Turn off the Lights
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Fall Network TV Preview: DRAMAS
August 17, 2019 | TV Features
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TV for the Common Folks: 2018 Best in Network TV
January 1, 2019 | TV Features
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A David Among Goliaths
December 30, 2018 | TV Features
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The Best of 2018 List – TV Edition
December 30, 2018 | TV Features
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Hulu’s July Round-Up
July 16, 2018 | TV Features

TV Features

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TV Shows That Lasted Too Long

Following in the footsteps of Nicholas, who took it upon himself to look at some shows throughout the recent history of television that were killed before they turned two, I found myself thinking about the opposite end of the spectrum. Too often, shows that are doing quite a few things right in their tenure on our screens step well off the beaten path, going from more than watchable to outright awful (or something somewhat in between). It’s hardly a rarity, but I give you my take on a few shows that should have/need to end.

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They Died So Young: Five Great One Season Shows

It’s a part of the nature of the television industry for shows to be canceled before they have reached their conclusion, but that doesn’t make it any easier to accept when it happens to a show you love. In three installments, I’ll be taking you back over some of the best short-lived television series, while trying not to reopen any old wounds. Starting with an eclectic mix of shows that never made it out of their freshman season that  all share one similarity: ending before they should have.

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Alien Invasion TV Series Before “Falling Skies”

“Falling
Skies,” the much talked about alien invasion TV series (probably
because Steven Spielberg’s name is in the production team), premieres on
TNT next week, on Sunday, June 19. This happens just as ABC’s “V” — the
only remaining alien invasion series on a major network — has been
cancelled, so we thought this would be a good time to take a closer look
at those specific genre shows. After a quick peek at their evolution
over the years, we will try and define “Falling Skies” place into the
fray in a vain attempt to estimate its chances of success.

Contrary
to what one might think, alien invasion TV series are not quite as
common, or quite as old, as other sci-fi TV shows; but, similar to their
older and more popular counterparts, they originally grew out of movies
and novels. In 1898, one novel in particular not only introduced the
concept, but also laid out the early blueprint of such stories: H.G.
Wells’s The War of the Worlds. The novel tells the story of a
Martian invasion in England, during which a man tries to reunite with
his wife. Movies were, as usual, the first to jump on the bandwagon, and
it wasn’t until 1967 — sixteen years after the first movies — that we
had with ABC’s The Invaders, the first alien invasion TV series
produced in the US. The series ran for two seasons, but there was no
other production in this sci-fi subcategory until the late 1980s. In
1988, the new series War of the Worlds extended the story of
Wells’s book (first adapted in a 1953 movie) by using the now cliché
the-aliens-didn’t-quite-die trick, but wasn’t able to go beyond one
season. During the following two decades, other U.S. productions all
suffered similar fates, all suffering in ratings.

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What You Won’t Be Watching This Fall

With
the bounty of new shows this autumn, the ones that didn’t make the
cut will probably not be missed, but there are a few unpicked
projects that are worth taking a moment to acknowledge. Whether it’s
for how much potential they held or just because of the buzz they
generated, these four shows deserve a second glance.

Starring
Terry O’Quinn (
Lost) as
Del Roman, a man whose power is only outweighed by his villainy and
who rules over the town of Hallelujah, this project’s cast was one of
the best things it had going for it. Also set to star was Donal
Logue (
Terriers) as
Rye Turner, a family man fallen on hard times, and Frances O’Connor (A.I. Artificial Intelligence) as his wife. With the arrival of
an altruistic stranger possessing miraculous powers, played by Jesse
L. Martin (
Law and Order),
the small town is engulfed in a struggle between good and evil in
what could have been Marc Cherry’s second hit for ABC. It’s hard to
imagine any project Cherry is involved with not having a satirical
edge, which might have hurt the show’s chances of being picked up.
Once Upon a Time, a
series ABC did choose, is another over-the-top depiction of a battle
between the forces of good and evil. Though it takes place in a
vastly different setting, the similarity could be the reason the
network opted not to run with the seemingly more grounded
Hallelujah.

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Summer 2011 – TV Roundup

It’s
not really a secret that the summer isn’t exactly known for being the
time of year to catch widely popular television shows. If you’re looking
for something with viewing figures in the tens of millions then you’re
in the wrong place. That being said, there has to be something on TV
over summer – I mean it doesn’t just close up shop and hope everyone has
enough to do in their lives to occupy them until the fall premieres of
the heavyweights, right? With that burning question in mind, I took it
upon myself to take a look around at what exactly is going to be on this
summer and what might be worth laying your eyes upon.

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Smallville’s Top 10 Episodes

During the past seven years, I have wondered on several occasions why I was still watching Smallville.
Now that the show has ended, I have looked back, searching for those
episodes that kept me going. The list is based on my own emotional
reaction to
and on my overall assessment of each episode within the context of the series. Our
various lists my not exactly match, but I hope some of the episodes
below will resonate with many of the series regular viewers.

Season 1, Episode 1
Pilot
Smallville‘s
pilot episode remarkably sets the tone for what is to come during the
first three seasons. Not only does it bring our favorite alien to
earth, but it also touches on themes that will stay with us for the
entire series. All major characters are appropriately introduced, and
the dynamics of the relationships between them are skillfully layed out
in a story in which no frame is wasted.

Memorable scene: Lex’s car falling off the bridge, and Clark amazing rotation alongside it all the way down.

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Top Five Reasons We’ll Be Missing Michael Scott

He made us laugh, he made us cry, and
now that Michael Scott has said farewell it’s time to honor him with
the top five reasons why we’ll never forget our favorite Regional
Manager and all the years he spent entertaining us. Here’s to you,
Mike.

No one could have guessed that Michael
would ever willingly leave Dunder Mifflin, but when he quit because
of David Wallace’s lack of respect, he revitalized a season that had
been a step down from its predecessors. Unfortunately, the competing
business he started could only be called a success in terms of the
laughter and memories it yielded. Michael did redeem himself however
by taking on Wallace and Charles Minor in a buyout meeting that
became one of his best moments of the series. Calling Wallace’s bluff
was a rare spot of competence for Michael, one that was written
perfectly for the character and performed flawlessly by Carell. Fans
couldn’t help but feel proud of the wacky and lovable boss earning
his job back.

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TV Show Renewals: The Good, The Bad, and The Ones That Should End

So it’s that time of year again that some TV fans rejoice at and others sit nervously in the corner praying to some divine entity about. This year has seen some fairly shocking renewals on the major networks as well as some shows getting left out in the cold despite strong and loyal fan bases. So before I get into the shows that deserved their pick-ups and those that should just, well, end, here’s what has happened in the world of TV so far:

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Series Finales Done Right!

Every time season and/or series finales are drawing ever closer,
some set up to be good and some set up to be forgettable. I often find
myself looking back over these shows that I hope the current crop of
shows splattered across our screens will aspire to achieve. Everyone out
there is certain to have their own personal opinions based on not only
what they’ve seen, but personal preference and one man’s masterpiece can
easily be the bane of another man’s existence. It is with that in mind
that I bring you this list of what I consider to be some of the best
series finales out there; love them or hate them.

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The Enduring Appeal of Kings & Queens

With the premieres of “Camelot” and “Game Of Thrones” Starz and HBO are revisiting the classic tale of monarchs fighting to establish or maintain their supremacy over kingdoms. With these shows, the networks are distilling a whiff of the perennial theme of Kings and Queens embodying the best and the worst in mankind. That second reading made me wonder what is it with royalty that makes its members the protagonists of choice for the most formidable epics. In short, what explains the enduring appeal of stories of kings and queens.

Stories about kings and queens are probably as old as storytelling. The Epic of Gilgamesh (2,150 to 1,100 BCE) is arguably the oldest written story on Earth and its main protagonist, Gilgamesh, is a king. He is not an exemplary king though and following a chain of events, sets out on an unsuccessful quest for immortality that instead teaches him how to live and cherish what he has.

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