Last night, Fox premiered yet another science fiction show, Terra Nova.  The show has a lot going for it; the main thing is that it’s produced by Stephen Spielberg. (side note: Brannon Braga is also a producer and show runner, and I won’t count this against it)  The show starts out in 2149.  Earth is dying due to pollution and overpopulation.  Fortunately, scientist discover a rift in time leading to an alternate Earth timeline 85 million years in the past.  So, we decided to save humanity by sending qualifying humans through the rift to resettle in Terra Nova.

I can tell the producers put emphasis on the production value of the show.  There aren’t any standout stars so you know salaries are low.  Stephen Lang might be the biggest star, but he is basically reprising his fantastic character from Avatar, with a few tweaks.  I’m not going to compare the show to Avatar, because that’s not what this show is.  The set is gorgeous and the effects are nice.  What bothers me most is that they decided not to use well known dinosaurs.  Apparently, they thought it’d be more interesting to create dinosaurs “that might have existed” as opposed to ones that we know, especially due to Mr. Spielberg’s Jurassic Park movies.  I know I wasn’t the only one thinking, “I’ve never heard of that dinosaur.”  It took a little will power to not get on the internet to look up these “new” dinosaurs.

For a premiere show, I thought the story was well done.  Luckily, they did explain that it was a separate reality from the future they left, which easily dismissed the complaints that people like me who overly criticize time travel in movies and T.V. shows in a couple of lines.  A couple of the reveals in the show, which I’m not going to spoil here, were obvious and I wish that they weren’t.   My hope is that this show doesn’t turn into Lost where more questions are raised than answered, or The Event where questions are asked and answered every episode, but the story never gets developed beyond the first episode.

All in all, the show was good and worth tuning in next week.  We’ll see if it has longevity.

 

Persons Unknown followed the story of seven people who were abducted and placed in a seemingly abandoned town in the middle of nowhere. They wake up in a hotel with no knowledge of how or why they are there. The hotel, the streets of the town, and the other buildings are all filled with cameras and microphones. During the first few weeks of their captivity, they are subjected to psychological and physical stresses (torture). They also try to escape several times without success since the town is surrounded by some sort of impassable microwave energy wall. Once, they actually make it through the wall only for all of them to pass out, possibly due to an implant, and awaken back in the town.

The secondary plot follows Mark Renbe, a journalist and the ex-husband of one of the abductees, Janet Cooper. Renbe is attempting to find Janet to not only investigate the unusual circumstances of her disappearance but to also reunite her with their daughter, Megan. Another subplot involves Joe Tucker who at first seems to be an abductee like the other six people but is later revealed to be an agent of “The Program,” those responsible for the abductions and what is going on in the town.

Now that I’ve explained the important plot details, let me explain why I think the show failed in the end. Initially, the show was advertised as a mini-series event and that “All will be answered” at the end of the summer. The only thing that the show didn’t do was to provide answers, or at least the answers for which I wanted answers. 1) How did they decide who to abduct? 2) What is the purpose of “The Program? It has to be more than just finding individuals who show great promise. 3) What is The Program? 4) What’s going to happen to Kate Damatto and Ambassador Fairchild? Those are just a few of the questions that I have. These questions wouldn’t be so bad if I knew that there was going to be another season.

I will commend the writers for creating a show with an original premise. The series finally was a well written episode, if they were setting up more seasons. Am I supposed to just assume that The Program continues on? Why not go out with a bang and have the characters that we (the audience) grew to care about escape and somehow expose The Program, or find a way back to their lives, or even make new lives, instead of being stuck in a loop. Usually, when a series or mini-series comes to an end, there is closure. Fans of this show, however few there may be, won’t have any closure. The conspiracy continues and the plight of our characters isn’t changed. It would be like Battlestar Galactica ending after Crossroads Part 2 with the revelation of who the hidden cylons are. Or it would be like Lost ending after the fifth season finale The Incident when Ben kills Jacob, Ilana opens the metal crate to reveal Locke’s body, and Juliet smashes the nuclear core and detonates the bomb. You can’t end a series that you know is coming to an end with a cliff hanger and not expect people to be a little perturbed.

Maybe it was a case of the writers not knowing how to end the show, but that’s ridiculous. You knew going in that it was going to end. There really isn’t any excuse. I might have been happy with just showing Joe and Mark in a new town starting the cycle over again, but you also show me our original abductees (minus Joe) in a hotel built into a ship out at sea in the middle of nowhere (incidentally the ship is named Almas Perdidias which translates into Lost Souls). They are then told “Welcome to Level 2,” by a now sinister looking Night Manager. What the hell is Level 2? Why didn’t they just scrap this group like the normally would do? If The Program is trying something new, what exactly are they trying? The writers seem to have no problem with raising even more questions.

Maybe I’m being too hard and literal. I actually did like the show, and if there were going to be more seasons, I would watch. But the ending bothered me. I dislike false closure on my TV shows. Maybe this’ll spawn comic books or webisodes, or even some decent fan fiction. One can only hope.

I am really disappointed in the Smallville finally.   A whole seasons worth of build up for one super jump and a explosion and the doomsday fight was over. I feel cheated, but its my fault for have any sort of decent  expectations.    Despite the disappointing showdown,  the writer have left wth two interesting questions and one interesting twist.   Where did the legion time ring take Lois?  Is that really Zod making an appearance at the end?   The best part of the whole episode occured at Jimmy Olsens funeral (who was killed by Davis) or should I say Henry James Olsen,    Chloe gave James (Jimmy) Olsen  his older brothers camera the implication is that the younger Olsen is the “Jimmy Olsen” from the comics

I finally watched all of  season two of  Primevial just in time for the season premiere of season 3 on BBC America     The show follows a team of five scientists tasked with investigating the appearance of temporal anomalies across Great Britain and containing prehistoric and futuristic creatures which enter the present.  Its great sci-fi television.   You can catch reruns of the first season on the Sci-fi channel on Friday nights 

New episodes this week  and DVD releases after the break 

• Medium ”The First Bite Is the Deepest” (5×17). Allison seeks out help from disgraced private investigator Cynthia Keener (Anjelica Huston, reprising her guest-star role) when her paranormal visions center on a young kidnap victim (Rumer Willis) who was rescued by Keener years earlier. Balthazar Getty guest stars. Series star Patricia Arquette directed the episode.
• Reaper ”Business Casualty” (2×12). The Devil places Sam in a company that is a front for capturing souls. Also: Sam receives a message from his dad in hell with information about possibly escaping his deal with Satan.
• Legend of the Seeker ”Reckoning” (1×22). Season 1 finale: Darken Rahl and his Mord’Sith interrupt Richard and Kahlan as they prepare to unleash the power of Orden, which would destroy the tyrant once and for all.
• Primeval ”Episode 3.02″ (3×02). Several years back, three teenage boys broke into a supposedly haunted house that came alive when a terrifying creature attacked them. In the aftermath, the only survivor was arrested for murder. Years later, the hapless young man is free, but is still too tormented to confront what really happened. Cutter’s research leads him to predict the next anomaly will open in this same so-called haunted house but soon into the investigation they discover the house is actually home to a terrifying camouflage creature from the future, a beast that can change shape and form to disguise itself until it is practically invisible. The team also find themselves in trouble with the law when suspicious police detective Danny Quinn (Jason Flemyng) takes an instant dislike to them and their interest in the house, culminating in Connors arrest.

New DVD releases
True Blood: The Complete First Season (HBO Series) [Blu-ray]

Battlestar Galactica: Season 2.0 and 2.5

Heroes: Seasons 1 & 2

Dragon Ball Z: Season Nine (Majin Buu Saga)

I’m referring to the actor Walter Emanuel Jones who played the original Black Ranger  Zack Jones on the Power Rangers television show.   He was written out of the series midway through the second season after appearing in 81 episodes, apparently due to disagreements over wages and fee.   Since then he has been doing voice over work , starred in several independent films and made appearances on several television shows like  “CSI” and “The Shield”.

Walter currently resides in Los Angeles, California and spends his free time Salsa Instructing and Dancing, Camping, Scuba Diving, Snowboarding, and Traveling.

Friday the 13th: The series was a first run syndicated show that made its debut on Oct 3, 1987. The show lasted 3 seasons and aired 72 episodes. The show had no connection to the film franchise other than the name.

This series revolved initially around the adventures of two cousins, Ryan Dallion and Micki Foster, who inherited an antique shop, “Curious Goods,” from their Uncle Vendredi. We find out in the first episode that Vendredi made a pact with the Devil, to sell cursed antiques. He recanted at the last minute and tried to recover the antiques, but was claimed by Hell. The cousins, aided by Vendredi’s partner Jack Marshak, used the store’s manifest to track down the cursed antiques, each of which fell into the hands of someone who inevitably used them for evil.

Max Headroom premiered on ABC on March 31, 1987.   The show lasted only 14 episodes, but  a  Max Headroom is a look into the future. Society is run-down and dominated by televisin and large corporations. Edison Carter is a reported intend on exposing corruption and greed. In the pilot episode, Edison is hunted down by his own employer. He is injured and his mind is digitized into a computer program. The resulting program takes on a life of its own. This is the creation of the eccentric and unpredictable character of Max Headroom. Max can move through computer and television networks at will. The series is about Edison Carter and Max Headroom in their combined fight to expose and eliminate the corruption in society.

Source: Variety

MGM Domestic Television Distribution has optioned U.K.-based online graphic novel “The Many Worlds of Jonas Moore” for development as a series. MGM execs say the move is part of a burgeoning effort to put the Lion back into the TV production biz in a significant way.

Studio aims to develop “Jonas” into an action-drama, with a U.S.-U.K. co-production deal a possibility, according to Chris Ottinger, exec VP of worldwide TV for MGM. Film Collective‘s Ruth Vitale is attached to the project as an exec producer.   “Jonas” revolves around a fugitive vidgame player in a futuristic world where the British empire still reigns supreme and America is just one of thousands of virtual worlds in a global game network.

Howard Webster created and produced the graphic novel for his London-based Factory Publishing imprint and Triumph Motorcycles.

As for distribution of TV skein, “It’s more likely to be a cable series here in the U.S.,” Ottinger said. “But it has a real shot to be on terrestrial TV in the U.K.”

MGM is shopping for a writer to adapt the novel for TV. Ottinger hopes to have a script commissioned in the fall so the series is ready to go next year.

“We’re really trying to restart our television business, and we’re looking for hot properties that we can turn into hourlong dramas,” he said.

The “Jonas” novel is available for download on iPod or PC as a combination of traditional comicbook animation and 3-D animation. Brit thesp Colin Salmon provides the voice of the lead character. The graphic novel incorporates 3-D animation, live-action photography and newsreel footage.

Before it started, a Comic-Con staffer told Davis, “I’m gonna end this on time, I don’t care when it starts.” At 9:51 AM, only Davis and Hudlin were on hand for the 10 o’clock panel. He then turned the lights on and off multiple times, which was odd. People started filling in the room with gusto at about 9:55, with the level of handshakes and chatter rising accordingly. Familiar faces greeted one another as they found their way to seats.

Far from being an all-Black affair (although it did seem predominantly that way), there were faces of every ethnicity represented, including an interracial couple smooching in the second row.

John Dokes showed up at 10:04, and an iMovie presentation started about then. With humor and historical images shown, it had a soundtrack including “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” and “Stronger” by Kanye West. Davis exhorted the crowd to stand with great enthusiasm and only slightly missed audio cues. “I had it all planned out, we were gonna have the crowd stompin …”

“I’m so impressed, I walked in, people were waiting,” Davis joked. “They weren’t on time, they were early! For the Black Panel!”

“Hi, I’m Dwayne McDuffie,” Method Man joked, before social networking expert Faith Cheltenham introduced her self, one of the members of Suns of Man spoke as working with Davis, as well as Dokes, Cowan and Hudlin.

McDuffie had a conflict because he’s the show runner on “Ben 10.” “I knew that Rusty would be late, because he’s Rusty,” Davis said. “Every year at the Black panel, I make the point … every year we used to have a panel called Blacks in Comics, and people complained complained complained. I said ‘Let’s be positive.’ But this year, whatever you wanna talk about, no matter how good it makes me look, it’s all on the table. This is the most important moment in the history of African Americans since the ‘Black Panther’ announcement from BET. Anything goes, be respectful of the fact there are kids here.” His phone rang, and even he said, “That’s ghetto…”

“We had another presentation … what’s up Captain America?” Davis said to a Black man dressed like Captain America. “It’s 10:11 …”

“I was waiting on the Falcon …” the fan responded.

The panel was open for questions immediately, starting with a Milestone question, wondering why BET never picked up the show (forgetting that BET is owned by Viacom and at the time Hudlin and Cowan didn’t work there).

“I can answer part of it,” Cowan said. “None of the characters were intended for a niche market. Milestone is for everybody. I have to pause at the first part of your question. As far as future plans, keep your eyes open, because you don’t know what’s going to happen.”

“Leave hopeful,” Hudlin said. “The success of ‘Black Panther’ will make room for more Black superheroes on television.”

Davis reminisced on the origins of the company and its inclusiveness in terms of content and fandom.

“I got a comic book coming out,” Method Man said. “I’ve been reading since I was six years old, since I didn’t have a TV. Wait, what was the question? I’m working on a few more kids. David Atchison helped with the writing part … no, he did the writing part.”

“The Method Man comic book is done by an excellent artist, Sanford Greene,” Cowan said. ” I was reading it and I was thrilled.”

A fan asked about a controversial cartoon BET released virally called “Read A Book,” and Hudlin considered it a perfect satire of hip hop. “The most shocking thing you could say in hip hop is ‘read a book.’ Crazy talk! For me it was about a parody of the current state of hip hop. This song would never get heard unless we make a video for it. We previewed it here at Comic-Con, and somebody boot legged it, and it was on YouTube. People commented saying ‘this is the sort of stuff BET should be doing!’ Which was funny, because … we did it.” He claimed the controversy came from people who didn’t appreciate satire and the intelligence of youth.

Another cell phone rang, and Davis called out an audience member for looking around like it wasn’t their phone.

The guy in the Isaiah Bradley costume asked if BET will take on this one as well. “It really is up to everybody in this audience,” Hudlin said. “If we can make this a successful series. It begins one step at a time.”

Davis expressed love for the guy, and they then shared a comical hug.

“They don’t have this kind of fun at the Marvel panel!” Davis said to Dokes. “They don’t let John on the Marvel panel …”

Another BET question came up, and Davis asked, “You know there is a BET panel right after this, right?”

“Yeah, I read,” the fan responded to riotous laughter.

“If you come to the BET panel …” Cowan said.

“There will be chicken!” Davis exclaimed.

“I always wanted to do a comic book,” Method Man said. “When the opportunity came up, I just was throwin’ ideas from everything, David Atchison put it all in a tasty stew. How would I like it to further my career? We got my man Reggie Hudlin over there, I’d like it to become a cartoon … or a movie!”

Rusty Cundieff showed up at 10:34 as a fan asked if the NAACP and Black organizations are helping the efforts to make these images and concepts more popular.

“I directed ‘Fear of a Black Hat’ and ‘Chapelle’s Show,’ I don’t have to be on time,” Davis joked.

“I thought it was fear of a Black panel,” Cundieff said.

Davis recounted a story about a Motown animation project called “Monkeybutt …” where the NAACP protested without having the full information. “There’s a lot of illusions about African American companies. I’ll work with anybody who’s professional. I prefer African American companies, because I like Black people. That doesn’t stop me from taking a check from Microsoft.”

“You’ll normally hear about Black political organizations in the negative,” Hudlin said. “Even when we announced ‘Black Panther.’ There’s a culture war in America. There’s a debate about what’s positive and what’s negative. Instead of pulling up and acknowledging that, everyone asks ‘my point is correct, why can’t you acknowledge that?’ Until we can stop do that, we can’t find an elevated level of discourse.”

“I’ve never felt the effect of the NAACP in my hood,” Method Man said. “I never seen them come through and hand out turkeys, that was the drug dealers.”

“I work for Tour.com now, and previously building Sarahferguson.com,” Cheltenham said. She talked about the “Darker Mass” anthology featuring superhero fiction from the likes of Steven Barnes and Walter Mosely.

Davis wondered why we don’t have a DJ at these panels, which led Method Man to beat box before Davis assistant cued up “This Is How We Do It” by Montell Jordan, and he danced off stage for a moment. “You don’t get a DJ at the Marvel panel!”

“I’m a contributor to a large online site of Disney fans,” the next questioner said.

“I’m a big fan of porn,” Davis responded.

The panel was asked about Disney’s “The Princess and The Frog” to complete silence. “I hate to comment on anything I haven’t seen,” Hudlin said.

“Ultimately, we hope it’s really good,” Cowan said. “If it’s really good, it’s good for everybody. It kind of cracks open the door in a big way. More power to Disney, and hopefully it’ll work out. They’ll probably sell a lot of toys.”

“We do need a Black princess,” Hudlin said.

“We have a Black princess — Omorosa!” Davis said.

Dokes said that the Black Panther was going to appear in video games. “He has to elevate in the market, and what BET is doing with Marvel is gonna help do that.”

A fan asked about artists who look less “ethnic” working more than others, which made former “Firestorm” artist artist Jamal Igle on one side of the room want to chime in. “I came on to a book mired in controversy because they took a white character and killed him to replace him with a young Black character from Detroit, who was on his way to college, who made the mistake of making a delivery and got super powers. He’s trying to develop himself as a hero, and I’m getting flack about it for decisions I didn’t even make. I didn’t start the book until issue eight. I think because of what I get and what a lot of people get is because you’re known by your name. Ryan Stelfreeze is not the first name you’d think of as a Black man, but he’s a strong Black man. I’m Jamal Igle, it doesn’t get much Blacker than that.”

“Larry Washington!” Davis said.

Igle continued, “If you’re a Black artist, you’re going to run into obstacles. It doesn’t mean you can’t do it, it just means it’s going to be harder.”

“They treat the music now like fast food,” Method Man said. “Ringtone music, artists are dropping every week. The music is suffering, and you can’t just blame the artists. As far as Wu-Tang, I could care less what they play on the radio, and what videos there are, because at my shows, they’re packed saying ‘Wu-Tang, Wu-Tang’ … don’t judge the book by its cover. You might choke on some of that bad food on a plane and be like ‘Lil Wayne just saved my life!’”

Hudlin noted that BET was putting out a DVD on Wu-Tang history later this year.

Do people have to change the race of their characters? “Denys and I walked out of meeting with a big development person who asked if we could make him a white guy?”

“Don’t listen to people like that,” Cowan said. “When I got into comic books, I drew what characters appealed to me, but it wasn’t in order to get a job, I had to draw white characters. I wanted to do Deathlok, I wanted to do Power Man and iron Fist, I wanted to do Black Panther. But I also wanted to do Batman, and did.”

“You have to have self confidence,” Cheltenham said. “Sometimes that comes across as bitch, and Kimora Lee Simmons said that’s okay. She’s fabulous, so I’m gonna go with that.”

“I’ve had editors and agents try to steer me to look more like Terry Dodson or Adam Hughes, and that’s where I rebelled,” Igle said. “That’s the only way you’re going to survive. You have to follow the voice inside you.”

BadAzzMofo creator David Walker stepped up to the mic to ask about how do people create more buzz and publicity for their work. “What are people going to do to support creators who haven’t made it up there yet?”

“It’s scary how you can never feel like you’ve made it,” Hudlin said. “I feel like I’m struggling every day. I was having come of age career wise in a pre-internet era. Because everyone can have a voice and a blog, it’s harder to make noise. One of the interesting theories is that in this era, brands mean more. Wu-Tang is a fantastic example of people coming together and creating a new brand. It will carry those guys forever. That tipping point is a hell of a thing. All of a sudden, it happens. What was the difference? You didn’t stop.”

“I was talking to some people about this the other night,” Cundiefff said. “There’s so many opportunities. What it’s created is a bunch of content providers, so many content providers in so many distribution bases that to really get known you have to be exemplary and spectacular as an individual. When I did ‘Fear of a Black Hat,’ I was surprised how many people came to see it because there weren’t a lot of Black films. Now, you can make a living just below that middle ground. If you really want to do something to get out there, you have to do something incredible. When you talk about believing in yourself, a lot of people, I wanna say ‘stop believing.’ Try to find a way to honestly assess your ability against the marketplace. It’s just knowing what your skill set is and finding people who help you.”

“It doesn’t help when your friends and family tell you how good you are and you suck,” Davis said.

“I would encourage people to network as hard as you can,” Cheltenham said. “When you do things, you can rise up a little bit quicker.”

“Did you ask if there’s corporate interest in the advancement of Black people?” Hudlin asked a questioner.

“When you put it like that …” the fan said.

“I create an opportunity where there’s an existing infrastructure and tell them how to market it to Black people,” Davis said. “Every deal I’ve made has been with major companies.”

“There’s very few reliable supplies,” Hudlin said. “Are you talented? Can you deliver what you say you’re going to do? Are you timely? Can I sleep and not worry about what you’re going to do? There are some people who want to be good corporate citizens, but they have to be profitable corporations.”

“Not enough credit has been given to Reggie for ‘Black Panther,’” Dokes said of a question about portraying Black struggle. “From a Marvel standpoint, we try to do that in as many places as we can with as many characters as we can. Axel Alonso, Reggie’s editor, does that in as many places as he can. It helps when you come up to editors at the booth and tell us you’re missing elements. They think about that when they get back to the office, so keep bringing up these questions.”

“Everyone here is here to make things better, not worse,” Hudlin said. “A lot of people freaked out when I gave the Black Panther a little sister. I said ‘why not?’ Let’s give him a kick ass little sister. In the future, I showed her as a Black Panther herself. As a corporation, the vast majority of vice presidents in the entertainment are women. The majority of the BET audience is women. We have women in mind because they’re part of our audience.”

Cheltenham said, “I have to give a lot of respect to Michael because I asked him at New York Comic-Con why I’m not on this panel.”

“I’m looking for Asian women,” Davis said. “That was a joke, I love Black women. Stay strong!”

“Arsenio Hall has a show, but it wasn’t as good as Tyra,” Method Man said. “You’ve got Oprah Winfrey, y’all are everywhere. Especially in my house, I don’t run my house at all.”

“We’re in the middle of a paradigm shift,” Hudlin said about the question of funding. “Melvin Van Peebles has a great line, ‘Trouble is opportunity in work clothes.’ We have to use our natural futuristic nature as a culture to figure out where are things going and how can I get there first?”

“Where’s the money?” the fan asked.

“That’s for you to figure out,” Hudlin answered. “It’s always a hustle. There’s no blueprint on how to do things outside of the system. Robert Townsend used credit cards. Creativity isn’t just the product you make, it’s how to make the product.”

Are people working on electronic versions of their work for products like Kindle or iPhones? Dokes said, “You can read Marvel digital comics unlimited,” Dokes said. “This is something I came up with in the digtital media group. It’s a way to get comics out to a larger audience.”

“We have a ‘Three Shadows’ graphic novel on Tour.com,” Cheltenmam said.

The panel ran late and had to end with a discussion of networking, with Hudlin recommending talking to people at this very panel.

by Hannibal Tabu, Columnist

My hope is that this will be Marvels answer to Justice League/Unlimited cartoon. Marvel nails live action films, but they have a real crappy record when it comes to animated television shows. I think they are trending upward recently with the direct to DVD films (Ultimates, Ultimates 2, Iron Man, etc.) and the Sensational Spiderman cartoon, but they have a long way to go before they can match the DCAU.

Source: eonline.com

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA

What We’re Hearing:  The crown jewel of the Sci Fi Channel should finish out its fourth and final season, but per writer Jane Espenson, it’s almost certain that, schedule-wise, the story will be split into two separate miniseasons. The show completed 14 episodes before the strike hit, and at least the first 10 will air beginning Apr. 4. The second batch could premiere in the fall or even sometime in 2009.

HEROES (Updated)

What We’re Hearing:  It looks like Heroes won’t return until next season-but it could launch a little earlier than usual (late summer). Insiders tell us Milo Ventimiglia just signed a movie (scheduling conflict) and, moreover, executive producer Tim Kring is busy at work crafting a “series bible.” Word is, he wants to map out exactly where the series is headed (for many seasons) before Heroes goes back into production. We hear from crew members that they’ve been told they aren’t expected back on set anytime before June. 

LOST 

Executive Producer Damon Lindelof Says:  “Indeed, it would appear that we are in the endgame of the strike. Personally, I couldn’t be more psyched to be part of this union. Like any negotiation, some parts suck and some parts surpassed my wildest expectations for what we could accomplish, but most of all I’m left with a feeling of pride.

“As for Lost (pending the actual lifting of the strike, which we vote for on Tuesday), a game plan should begin to manifest by the end of the week. All I can say is that Carlton and I and the rest of the writers have every intention of making sure you guys get more episodes this season beyond the eight already completed. How many and how they will be aired is a conversation we’ll be having with our bosses, but as soon as we’ve got a plan, we’ll tell the fans first.”

What We’re Hearing:  Lost‘s actors are on standby, and the show is expected to produce more episodes this season. Fingers crossed! The bigger question is who’ll keep the golden Thursday at 9 p.m. time slot once those Seattle Grace docs also return…How ’bout we put Sawyer and McDreamy in a cage and let ‘em duke it out? (‘Cause we know who’d win…)

SMALLVILLE

What We’re Hearing:  Our all-time favorite Smallville source (SWAK!) tells us the CW wants the show to produce five more episodes this season.

I’ve watched the first two episodes of Terminator:  The Sarah Connor Chronicles, and I must say that I am somewhat impressed. I don’t know if it’s because of the lack of new shows due to the writer’s strike, and one can only take so much of American Gladiators.  The effects are good for a television show.  The writing has been pretty good so far, especially how they’ve managed to work much of the existing Terminator universe into the story.  I usually have problems with time travel, but the writers seem to have handled any issues fairly well.    They start out in 1999 and by the second episode they’ve traveled to 2007.  This totally dismisses Terminator 3 as if it didn’t exist, but from what I read the producers like to think of this show as existing in its own version of the Terminator universe.  That’s fine with me.  They do however hold over the fact that Sarah’s going to develop cancer.  Consistency is good. 

Summer Glau brings her kick ass attitude to her Terminator “Cameron”  model character.  But her dead pan performance is, in a word, dead.   Thomas Decker, as the savior, John Connor, comes off as a whiney brat.  Richard T. Jones shows up as Agent James Ellison, the FBI agent tasked to bring in the fugitive Sarah Connor.  I won’t dog the brother for collecting a paycheck, but I will say he needs to either watch The Fugitive or U.S. Marshals and see how much passion Tommy Lee Jones brought to the role of Sam Gerard as a fugitive hunter.  If anything, he should watch a few episodes of the original Fugitive series, because he looks like he’s sleeping through his lines.  But he does have a few episodes to shape up since Sarah had dropped of the map for 8 years.  The bright spot is Lena Headey of 300 fame.  She brings a level of complexity to the titular character that echoes Linda Hamilton.  She makes the show worth at least giving it a chance.

I recently watched the “Roots The Gift” on TVONE which features two characters Kunta Kinte and Fiddler from Alex Haleys ground breaking 1977 mini series “Roots”. In this movie the two of them accompany their owner to another plantation at Christmas time and they learn that the son of the owner helps slaves escape.  The two of them try to help him and also see this as an opportunity to escape themselves. While watching my geekdar picked up a couple of familar faces. I saw two Captains and two Lt. Commanders from Star Trek.  Then again Q may have transported them all to 1775.

“Tin Man” is the Sci-Fi channel’s re-imagining L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz. I watched the first and second night of this three part miniseries. Sci-Fi promoted this series almost as much as Flash Gordon was promoted. That should have been my first warning. The second was Sci-Fi’s scheduling of the second night to run against Chuck and Heroes, which are two of the Sci-Fi channel’s target audience’s favorite shows, especially since these were the mid-season finales. Thankfully, Sci-Fi repeats their “television events” almost immediately after airing.

Briefly, the story follows D.G. (originally Dorothy Gale) who works a dead end job as a waitress dreaming of bigger and better things. We find out that she isn’t from this world but from another world called the O.Z. (Outer Zone) and that she is the key to saving it from an evil sorceress, Azkadellia (the Wicked Witch). She is joined on her journey down the old road by Glitch, a man who lost half his brain as a punishment for being a criminal, Raw, a cowardly beast with psychic abilities, and Cain, a former cop, known as tin men in the O.Z. We get the classic characters of munchkins, the Mystic Man (the Wizard) played by Richard Dreyfuss, and even the flying monkeys who spring from the cleavage of of Azkadellia. Literally.

The effects aren’t bad for a television series. Obviously, the network wanted this to be a success. The visuals are pretty good, despite the filter that the director, editor, or director of photography went with. What I mean is that everything seemed to be in perpetual early evening, an almost dusk. It’s a decent story for the most part, but it could have been done better. Many of the puns and allusions to the original story don’t have to be so blatant. Anyone watching has probably seen the Wizard of Oz dozens of times. I can do without lines like “If he only had a brain,” or “They’re off to see the Wizard.” Side note: It may not be suitable for your under 5 crowd, but that’s a parent’s call. There are hookers, a pimp, torture, some pretty gruesome scenes, and the Mystic Man is a drug addict who uses on screen. But I digress.

If you don’t have anything else to watch, especially with the writer’s strike, give this a shot. If you miss it, you won’t miss much. Rent The Wiz.

Two fists for making Toto a black man.

 Here’s the ratings for all the shows this year. Just to give people an idea on of how there favorite genre shows were doing.   Heroes is the number one genre show at #20.     Chuck must be a winner as far as NBC is concerned, it the #54 ranked show and was recently picked up for a full season by the network.   I wonder why they haven’t picked up Journey man (#62) for a full season considering its pretty close to Chuck in the ratings.  Also I wonder how many shows are avoiding cancellation due the writers strike.   I think the strike has extended the life of a couple shows (Reaper) because the networks need programming.     

      
                                 NO/OF  VIEWR  VIEWR

RANK                               T/C     2+     2+  

                                          (000)   RTG 

—–                             —— —— ——

    1   CSI                            8  21670    7.6

    2 * DANCING W/THE STARS-MON        9  21240    7.4

    3 * GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM         8  20780    7.3

    4 * DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES           8  19450    6.8

    5   HOUSE                          8  18850    6.6

    6 * DANCING W/STARS RESULT-TU      8  18010    6.3

    7   NCIS                           9  17370    6.1

    8   NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL      8  16170    5.6

    9   WITHOUT A TRACE                7  15970    5.6

   10   CSI: MIAMI                     9  15920    5.6

   11   CRIMINAL MINDS                 9  15530    5.4

   12   SURVIVOR: CHINA                8  15060    5.3

   13   TWO AND A HALF MEN             9  14250    5.0

   14 * SAMANTHA WHO?                  6  14220    5.0

        60 MINUTES                     9  14220    5.0

   16   CSI: NY                        9  14030    4.9

   17 * EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.      8  13850    4.8

   18   COLD CASE                      9  13450    4.7

   19 * BROTHERS & SISTERS             8  12940    4.5

   20   HEROES                         9  12600    4.4

   21 * PRIVATE PRACTICE               8  12590    4.4

   22   LAW AND ORDER:SVU              9  12230    4.3

   23   AMAZING RACE 12                4  12160    4.2

   24   UNIT, THE                      9  11650    4.1

   25   SHARK                          9  11590    4.0

   26   DEAL OR NO DEAL-WED            4  11410    4.0

   27   RULES OF ENGAGEMENT            9  11330    4.0

   28 * BOSTON LEGAL                   7  11190    3.9

   29 * UGLY BETTY                     8  10970    3.8

   30   SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK      8  10930    3.8

   31   OT, THE                        4  10710    3.7

   32   NUMB3RS                        9  10380    3.6

   33 * PUSHING DAISIES                7  10230    3.6

   34 * WOMEN’S MURDER CLUB            6  10090    3.5

   35 * EXTREME MAKEOVER:HM ED-7P      2   9970    3.5

   36   BIONIC WOMAN                   7   9930    3.5

   37   E.R.                           8   9900    3.5

   38   OFFICE                         8   9890    3.5

   39   SIMPSONS                       7   9790    3.4

   40   GHOST WHISPERER                9   9760    3.4

   41   DEAL OR NO DEAL-FRI            8   9580    3.3

   42 * BACHELOR, THE                  9   9570    3.3

   43   FAMILY GUY                     7   9530    3.3

   44   BONES                          8   9320    3.3

   45 * DIRTY SEXY MONEY               8   9120    3.2

   46   CANE                           9   9040    3.2

   47   BIG BANG THEORY, THE           9   8990    3.1

   48 * BIG SHOTS                      7   8770    3.1

   49   FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3       8   8670    3.0

   50   SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER        6   8650    3.0

   51   LAS VEGAS                      8   8550    3.0

   52   HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER          9   8490    3.0

   53   MY NAME IS EARL                8   8410    2.9

   54   CHUCK                          9   8350    2.9

   55 * AMER FUNN HOME VIDEOS          6   8250    2.9

   56   MOONLIGHT                      9   8220    2.9

   57   LIFE                           8   8040    2.8

   58   PRISON BREAK                   6   7880    2.8

   59   KING OF THE HILL               5   7680    2.7

   60   KID NATION                     9   7610    2.7

   61   BIGGEST LOSER 4                9   7400    2.6

   62   JOURNEYMAN                     9   7220    2.5

   63   AMERICAN DAD                   6   7180    2.5

   64   48 HOURS MYSTERY               7   7060    2.5

   65   HOUSE-MON 8P                   1   6990    2.4

   66 * CARPOOLERS                     6   6980    2.4

   67   30 ROCK                        6   6920    2.4

   68   CRIMETIME SATURDAY             8   6840    2.4

   69   BACK TO YOU                    8   6760    2.4

   70   COPS 2                         5   6750    2.4

   71   SCRUBS                         4   6740    2.4

   72 * MEN IN TREES                   6   6690    2.3

   73 * 20/20-FRI                      8   6680    2.3

   74   PHENOMENON                     5   6620    2.3

   75 * CAVEMEN                        6   6610    2.3

   76   VIVA LAUGHLIN                  1   6500    2.3

   77   SINGING BEE                    4   6490    2.3

   78   TIL DEATH                      8   6380    2.2

   79   AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK       6   6370    2.2

   80 * SAT NIGHT FOOTBALL             8   6230    2.2

   81   FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS            7   6200    2.2

   82   KITCHEN NIGHTMARES             8   6120    2.1

   83   COPS                           6   5940    2.1

   84   SIMPSONS-SUN 7:30P             5   5930    2.1

   85   DON’T FORGET THE LYRICS        5   5920    2.1

   86   CRIMETIME SATURDAY 8PM         8   5770    2.0

   87   DON’T FORGET LYRICS-FRI        2   5590    2.0

   88   K-VILLE                        7   5440    1.9

   89   LAW & ORDER:SVU-SAT            7   5310    1.9

   90   SMARTER THAN 5TH FRI-8P        2   5240    1.8

   91   SMALLVILLE                     8   5050    1.8

   92   AMERICA’S TOP MODEL-3          9   4860    1.7

   93   FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN         8   4680    1.6

   94 * SAT NIGHT FTBL PRE-GAME        8   4590    1.6

        FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 2       9   4590    1.6

   96   KING OF THE HILL-SUN 7P        3   3840    1.3

   97   BIONIC WOMAN-SAT               3   3460    1.2

   98   SUPERNATURAL                   7   3260    1.1

   99   CHUCK-SAT                      4   3240    1.1

  100   BEAUTY AND THE GEEK-2          9   3020    1.1

  101   REAPER                         9   2940    1.0

  102   NEXT GREAT AMERICAN BAND       5   2890    1.0

  103   GAME, THE                      9   2540     .9

  104   GOSSIP GIRL                    9   2520     .9

  105   EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS          9   2440     .9

  106   GIRLFRIENDS                    9   2240     .8

  107   ALIENS IN AMERICA              8   2060     .7

  108   EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS-MON      1   1790     .6

  109   AMERICA’S TOP MODEL-3-ENC      9   1440     .5

  110   LIFE IS WILD                   8   1280     .4

  111   ALIENS IN AMERICA-SUN          6    960     .3

  112   CW NOW                         9    800     .3

  113   ONLINE NATION                  3    670     .2

 We recently posted the Ratings for all shows this  year.   Just to give people an idea on of how there favorite genre shows were doing.   So hears this weeks ratings.   Heroes is the number one genre show at #33 which I think it pretty decent since its up against Monday night football.  All of the Genre shows seem to be sliding as the season progresses.    I wonder how many of these shows would have gotten the axe if the WGA strike wasn’t happening.   The networks really can’t cancel a show until they have a replacement.

                                  VIEWR  VIEWR
 RANK                                2+     2+
                                    (000)   RTG
 -----                             ------ ------
     1   CSI                        21940    7.7
     2   WITHOUT A TRACE            21680    7.6
     3 * DANCING W/THE STARS-MON    20470    7.1
     4 * GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM     19500    6.8
     5 * DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES       18630    6.5
     6   HOUSE                      18170    6.3
     7   NCIS                       18150    6.3
     8   NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL  17330    6.1
     9 * DANCING W/STARS RESULT-TU  17060    6.0
    10 * CMA AWARDS                 15950    5.6
    11 * EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.  15030    5.2
    12   SURVIVOR: CHINA            14860    5.2
    13   CRIMINAL MINDS             14650    5.1
    14   CSI: MIAMI                 14070    4.9
    15   TWO AND A HALF MEN         13800    4.8
    16   60 MINUTES                 13120    4.6
    17   CSI: NY                    12920    4.5
    18 * SAMANTHA WHO?              12860    4.5
    19   COLD CASE                  12780    4.5
    20 * BROTHERS & SISTERS         12350    4.3
    21   LAW AND ORDER:SVU          11700    4.1
    22   SHARK                      11460    4.0
    23   SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK  11100    3.9
    24   UNIT, THE                  11080    3.9
    25 * UGLY BETTY                 10830    3.8
    26   RULES OF ENGAGEMENT        10770    3.8
    27 * BOSTON LEGAL               10620    3.7
    28   SIMPSONS                   10530    3.7
    29   AMAZING RACE 12            10480    3.7
    30   FAMILY GUY                 10390    3.6
    31   OT, THE                    10300    3.6
    32   NUMB3RS                     9940    3.5
    33   HEROES                      9870    3.4
    34   GHOST WHISPERER             9850    3.4
    35   DEAL OR NO DEAL-FRI         9630    3.4
    36 * WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB         9600    3.4
    37   BONES                       9520    3.3
    38   BIG BANG THEORY, THE        9370    3.3
    39 * BACHELOR, THE               9230    3.2
    40   FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3    9070    3.2
    41   SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER     8850    3.1
    42   HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER       8770    3.1
    43   E.R.                        8440    2.9
    44   OFFICE                      8270    2.9
    45   PRISON BREAK SP-11/5 9P     8000    2.8
    46   MOONLIGHT                   7900    2.8
    47   BIGGEST LOSER 4             7880    2.8
    48   CANE                        7780    2.7
    49   AMERICAN DAD                7770    2.7
    50   PRISON BREAK                7690    2.7
    51   MY NAME IS EARL             7660    2.7
    52   CHUCK                       7650    2.7
    53   KING OF THE HILL            7600    2.7
    54   48 HOURS MYSTERY            7490    2.6
    55 * AMER FUNN HOME VIDEOS       7400    2.6
    56   CRIMETIME SATURDAY          7030    2.5
    57   KID NATION                  7010    2.5
         LAS VEGAS                   7010    2.4
    59 * BIG SHOTS                   6960    2.4
    60 * 20/20-FRI                   6930    2.4
    61   COPS 2                      6810    2.4
    62   30 ROCK                     6600    2.3
    63   DON'T FORGET THE LYRICS     6520    2.3
    64   TIL DEATH                   6510    2.3
    65   BIONIC WOMAN                6480    2.3
    66   BACK TO YOU                 6450    2.3
    67   LIFE                        6390    2.2
    68   KITCHEN NIGHTMARES          6360    2.2
    69   AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK    6350    2.2
    70   DON'T FORGET LYRICS-FRI     6290    2.2
    71   SCRUBS                      6270    2.2
    72 * SAT NIGHT FOOTBALL          6220    2.2
    73   PHENOMENON                  6100    2.1
    74 * MEN IN TREES                6030    2.1
    75   CRIMETIME SATURDAY 8PM      5990    2.1
    76   COPS                        5950    2.1
    77   FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS         5560    1.9
    78 * CARPOOLERS                  5490    1.9
    79   LAW & ORDER:SVU-SAT         5370    1.9
    80   JOURNEYMAN                  5130    1.8
    81   AMERICA'S TOP MODEL-3       5100    1.8
    82   FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 2    4950    1.7
    83 * CAVEMEN                     4880    1.7
    84   FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN      4850    1.7
    85 * SAT NIGHT FTBL PRE-GAME     4660    1.6
    86   SMALLVILLE                  4640    1.6
    87   BIONIC WOMAN-SAT            3370    1.2
    88   CHUCK-SAT                   3170    1.1
    89   SUPERNATURAL                3010    1.1
    90   BEAUTY AND THE GEEK-2       2650     .9
    91   NEXT GREAT AMERICAN BAND    2600     .9
    92   GOSSIP GIRL                 2520     .9
    93   EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS       2450     .9
    94   REAPER                      2420     .8
    95   GAME, THE                   2260     .8
    96   GIRLFRIENDS                 1990     .7
    97   ALIENS IN AMERICA           1780     .6
    98   AMERICA'S TOP MODEL-3-ENC   1410     .5
    99   LIFE IS WILD                1170     .4
    100  CW NOW                      1000     .4
    101  ALIENS IN AMERICA-SUN        850     .3

It seems like the WGA is officially on strike and its going to have a impact on a number of things.   In case you didn’t know the WGA is on strike for the following things.

• An increase from 4 cents for every DVD sold to 8 cents 
• Digital distribution revenues (ads and downloads )- Writers want 2.5% and the Studios are offering .3%; one of the sticking points is producers want to call some stuff “promotional material” which would be exempt.  The writers are countering that if you have ad revenue associated with its then its fair game.

Seems like they would just meet in the middle and be done with it, but its not my money to give away.   Now to the important stuff how does it affect me.  

• After the first of the year Current prime-time shows will likely run out of new episodes, so have about 3 months before it hits the fan  .
• More crappy reality shows to avoid
• Movie studios will be OK for the short term,  if it goes on longer than 4 months it may push back some stuff Im looking forward too.
• Maybe all the part-time comic writers will finally have some time to get some  movement on a new “Young Avengers” series (Allan Heinberg) and the completion of “Ultimate Wolverine/Hulk” (Damon Lindelof)
• More time to read all the Graphic Novels I have back logged
• I can finally re-watch all those Batman Beyond DVDs
• Spend time with my spouse   College football
• Catch up on house work   I can start to organize all my comics. 

Hopefully this won’t be and extended strike and we can all get back to bitching about the Sci-fi Channel.  

We recently ran a list of Top 10 Canceled shows and according to the networks,  ratings (or to be more specific low ratings) were the primary reason for canceling a show.   Since these shows live and die by their ratings, I thought it would be interesting to track how our favorite genre shows are doing this fall,  so we can see who maybe on the way out.  The highest ranked genre show this week is Heroes at #17 .    For fans of shows like Reaper you may want to start last rites because I don’t think it will be around much longer.    Theses numbers are for the season to date.   I plan on posting the weekly numbers  so stay tuned.   I have highlighted the genre shows in bold. 

                                   NO/OF  VIEWR  VIEWR
 RANK                               T/C     2+     2+
                                           (000)   RTG
 -----                             ------ ------ ------
     1   CSI                            5  21490    7.5
     2 * DANCING W/THE STARS-MON        5  20680    7.2
     3 * GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM         5  20190    7.1
     4   HOUSE                          4  19390    6.8
     5 * DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES           5  19170    6.7
     6 * DANCING W/STARS RESULT-TU      4  17130    6.0
     7   NCIS                           5  16840    5.9
     8   CSI: MIAMI                     5  15860    5.5
     9   CRIMINAL MINDS                 5  15050    5.3
    10   WITHOUT A TRACE                4  14880    5.2
    11   SURVIVOR: CHINA                5  14720    5.1
    12   NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL      4  14630    5.1
    13 * SAMANTHA WHO?                  2  14060    4.9
    14   TWO AND A HALF MEN             5  13980    4.9
    15   CSI: NY                        5  13880    4.8
    16 * EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.      5  13420    4.7
    17   HEROES                         5  13370    4.7
    18   60 MINUTES                     5  13220    4.6
    19 * PRIVATE PRACTICE               5  13200    4.6
    20   COLD CASE                      5  13100    4.6
    21 * BROTHERS & SISTERS             5  12820    4.5
    22   LAW AND ORDER:SVU              5  12690    4.4
    23   UNIT, THE                      5  11740    4.1
    24   DEAL OR NO DEAL-WED            4  11380    4.0
    25   SHARK                          5  11370    4.0
    26   RULES OF ENGAGEMENT            5  11220    3.9
    27 * PUSHING DAISIES                4  11130    3.9
    28   BIONIC WOMAN                   5  11000    3.8
    29 * BOSTON LEGAL                   4  10870    3.8
    30 * UGLY BETTY                     5  10790    3.8
    31   OT, THE                        2  10700    3.7
    32   NUMB3RS                        5  10200    3.6
    33 * WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB            3  10100    3.5
    34   SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK      4   9930    3.5
    35   E.R.                           5   9910    3.5
    36   OFFICE                         5   9800    3.4
    37   CANE                           5   9730    3.4
    38 * DIRTY SEXY MONEY               5   9630    3.4
    39 * EXTREME MAKEOVER:HM ED-7P      1   9570    3.3
    40   GHOST WHISPERER                5   9450    3.3
    41   DEAL OR NO DEAL-FRI            5   9290    3.2
    42 * BACHELOR, THE                  5   9180    3.2
    43   BONES                          4   9120    3.2
    44 * BIG SHOTS                      5   9000    3.1
    45   BIG BANG THEORY, THE           5   8950    3.1
    46   SIMPSONS                       3   8780    3.1
    47   LAS VEGAS                      5   8770    3.1
    48   LIFE                           5   8640    3.0
    49   PHENOMENON                     1   8550    3.0
    50   MY NAME IS EARL                5   8540    3.0
    51   CHUCK                          5   8500    3.0
    52 * AMER FUNN HOME VIDEOS          4   8410    2.9
    53   HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER          5   8370    2.9
    54   FAMILY GUY                     3   8350    2.9
    55   MOONLIGHT                      5   8280    2.9
    56   SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER        3   8230    2.9
    57   JOURNEYMAN                     5   7990    2.8
    58   PRISON BREAK                   4   7930    2.8
    59   FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3       4   7900    2.8
    60   KID NATION                     5   7740    2.7
    61 * CARPOOLERS                     4   7720    2.7
    62 * CAVEMEN                        4   7460    2.6
    63   BACK TO YOU                    4   7320    2.6
    64   KING OF THE HILL               3   7190    2.5
    65   BIGGEST LOSER 4                5   7110    2.5
    66   SCRUBS                         1   6950    2.4
    67   30 ROCK                        4   6910    2.4
    68 * MEN IN TREES                   3   6800    2.4
    69   TIL DEATH                      4   6740    2.4
    70   SINGING BEE                    3   6730    2.4
    71 * 20/20-FRI                      4   6710    2.3
    72   48 HOURS MYSTERY               4   6700    2.3
    73   COPS 2                         1   6680    2.3
    74   CRIMETIME SATURDAY             4   6580    2.3
    75   AMERICAN DAD                   3   6570    2.3
    76   KITCHEN NIGHTMARES             4   6520    2.3
    77   VIVA LAUGHLIN                  1   6430    2.2
    78   AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK       2   6310    2.2
    79   FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS            4   6120    2.1
    80   K-VILLE                        4   6090    2.1
    81   COPS                           2   5910    2.1
    82   DON'T FORGET THE LYRICS        3   5680    2.0
    83   CRIMETIME SATURDAY 8PM         4   5520    1.9
    84 * SAT NIGHT FOOTBALL             4   5310    1.9
    85   SIMPSONS-SUN 7:30P             3   5300    1.9
    86   SMARTER THAN 5TH FRI-8P        2   5240    1.8
    87   LAW & ORDER:SVU-SAT            4   5220    1.8
    88   SMALLVILLE                     5   5130    1.8
    89   AMERICA'S TOP MODEL-3          5   5090    1.8
    90   FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN         5   4570    1.6
    91 * SAT NIGHT FTBL PRE-GAME        4   4440    1.6
    92   FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 2       5   4280    1.5
    93   KING OF THE HILL-SUN 7P        2   3720    1.3
    94   BEAUTY AND THE GEEK-2          5   3310    1.2
    95   NEXT GREAT AMERICAN BAND       2   3250    1.1
    96   SUPERNATURAL                   4   3210    1.1
    97   REAPER                         5   3190    1.1
    98   GOSSIP GIRL                    5   2770    1.0
    99   GAME, THE                      5   2610     .9
   100   EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS          5   2470     .9
   101   GIRLFRIENDS                    5   2310     .8
   102   ALIENS IN AMERICA              4   2300     .8
   103   EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS-MON      1   1790     .6
   104   AMERICA'S TOP MODEL-3-ENC      5   1470     .5
   105   LIFE IS WILD                   4   1360     .5
   106   ALIENS IN AMERICA-SUN          2   1020     .4
   107   CW NOW                         5    760     .3
   108   ONLINE NATION                  3    670     .2

Last night Spike aired its 2007 Scream Awards which honors the best in Horror, Sci-fi, Comics and Fantasy.   I think they should rename it the Fanboy awards because that’s the audience.   The awards were very entertaining, lots of energy and plenty of genre stars, and its nice to actually see some of the comic guys get some screen time.   Some of the major highlights other than announcement of the category awards, was Harrison Ford winning the first ”Hero” award which recognizes the legends of the genre,  a reunion of the original “Star Trek” cast for the 25th anniversary of “Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan”, and Neil Gaiman winning the  ”Comic-Con Icon Award”

I like the fact the the show also premiered never before seen trailers (great marketing gimmick for fanboys)  for upcoming films like Beowulf.   My only real complaint was the musical performers, Ozzy Osbourne, Avenged Sevenfold and Alice Cooper who won an award for “SCREAM Rock Immortal”.   Its amazing that people seem to think this is the only genre of music that Sci-fi, Comics and Horror fans like.   I guess we can only tackle one stereotype at a time.    

Here are the categories and nominees for the awards the winners are in bold.

    THE ULTIMATE SCREAM
    — 28 WEEKS LATER
    — 300
    — BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
    — THE DESCENT
    — HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
    — HEROES
    — PAN’S LABYRINTH
    — PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — SPIDER-MAN 3
    — TRANSFORMERS

    BEST HORROR MOVIE
    – 28 WEEKS LATER
    — 1408
    — THE DESCENT
    — GRINDHOUSE
    — THE HOST
    — HOSTEL: PART II

    BEST FANTASY MOVIE
    — HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
    — PAN’S LABYRINTH
    — PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — SPIDER-MAN 3
    — STARDUST

    BEST SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE
    — CHILDREN OF MEN
    — THE FOUNTAIN
    — THE PRESTIGE
    — SUNSHINE
    – TRANSFORMERS

    BEST TV SHOW
    — BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
    — DOCTOR WHO
    – HEROES
    — LOST
    — MASTERS OF HORROR

    BEST COMIC BOOK
    – 30 DAYS OF NIGHT
    — ALL-STAR SUPERMAN
    — THE BOYS
    — ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR
    — Y: THE LAST MAN

    SCREAM QUEEN
    – KATE BECKINSALE, VACANCY
    — ROSARIO DAWSON, GRINDHOUSE
    — JORDANA BREWSTER, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE BEGINNING
    — BIJOU PHILLIPS, HOSTEL: PART II
    — ROSE MCGOWAN, GRINDHOUSE
    — MARY ELIZABETH WINSTEAD, BLACK CHRISTMAS

    SCREAM KING
    — JOHN CUSACK, 1408
    — SAMUEL L. JACKSON, SNAKES ON A PLANE
    — SHIA LABEOUF, DISTURBIA
    — ANGUS MACFADYEN, SAW III
    — FREDDY RODRIGUEZ, GRINDHOUSE
    — LUKE WILSON, VACANCY

    BEST SUPERHERO
    — MICHAEL CHIKLIS, FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER
    — CHRIS EVANS AS THE HUMAN TORCH, FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER
       SURFER
    — TOBEY MAGUIRE AS SPIDER-MAN, SPIDER-MAN 3
    — MASI OKA AS HIRO NAKAMURO, HEROES
    — MILO VENTIMIGLIA AS PETER PETRELLI, HEROES

    SEXIEST SUPERHERO
    — JESSICA ALBA, FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER
    — ALI LARTER, HEROES
    — HAYDEN PANETTIERE AS CLAIRE BENNET, HEROES

    FANTASY FOX
    – JESSICA BIEL, THE ILLUSIONIST
    — KIRSTEN DUNST, SPIDER-MAN 3
    — LENA HEADEY, 300
    — KEIRA KNIGHTLEY, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — EVANGELINE LILLY, LOST
    — EVA MENDES, GHOST RIDER
    — SIENNA MILLER, STARDUST

    FANTASY HERO
    — GERARD BUTLER, 300
    – JOHNNY DEPP, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — MATTHEW FOX, LOST
    — EDWARD NORTON, THE ILLUSIONIST
    — DANIEL RADCLIFFE, HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

    SCI-FI SIREN
    — CLARE-HOPE ASHITEY, CHILDREN OF MEN
    – MEGAN FOX, TRANSFORMERS
    — SCARLETT JOHANSSON, THE PRESTIGE
    — KATEE SACKHOFF, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
    — RACHEL WEISZ, THE FOUNTAIN

    SCI-FI STAR
    — CHRISTIAN BALE, THE PRESTIGE
    — HUGH JACKMAN, THE FOUNTAIN
    — SHIA LABEOUF, TRANSFORMERS
    — CILLIAN MURPHY, SUNSHINE
    — CLIVE OWEN, CHILDREN OF MEN

    BEST CAMEO
    — DAVID BOWIE, THE PRESTIGE
    — JAY HERNANDEZ, HOSTEL: PART II
    — KEITH RICHARDS, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — QUENTIN TARANTINO, GRINDHOUSE
    — BRUCE WILLIS, GRINDHOUSE

    BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE
    — CLARE-HOPE ASHITEY, CHILDREN OF MEN
    — ZOE BELL, GRINDHOUSE
    — MEGAN FOX, TRANSFORMERS
    — LAUREN GERMAN, HOSTEL: PART II
    — SHAUNA MACDONALD, THE DESCENT
    – HAYDEN PANETTIERE, HEROES
    — RODRIGO SANTORO AS XERXES, 300

    MOST VILE VILLAIN
    — SERGI LOPEZ AS CAPTAIN VIDAL, PAN’S LABYRINTH
    — MICHELLE PFEIFFER, STARDUST
    — ZACHARY QUINTO AS SYLAR/GABRIEL GRAY, HEROES
    — KURT RUSSELL AS STUNTMAN MIKE, GRINDHOUSE
    — RODRIGO SANTORO AS XERXES, 300
    — TOBIN BELL & SHAWNEE SMITH, SAW III
    — THOMAS HADEN CHURCH, SPIDER-MAN 3
    — TOPHER GRACE, SPIDER-MAN 3
    – RALPH FIENNES, HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

    MOST MEMORABLE MUTILATION
    — BATTLE VS. THE IMMORTALS, 300
    — CRANIAL SURGERY, SAW III
    – DISMEMBERED IN CAR CRASH, GRINDHOUSE
    — EATEN ALIVE BY CANNIBAL, HOSTEL: PART II
    — MOUTH SLICED OPEN AND SEWN BACK TOGETHER, PAN’S LABYRINTH

    BEST COMIC-TO-SCREEN ADAPTATION
    — 300
    — FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER
    — GHOST RIDER
    — SPIDERMAN 3
    — TMNT: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES

    BEST SEQUEL
    — 28 WEEKS LATER
    – HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
    — PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — SAW III
    — SPIDER-MAN 3

   “JUMP-FROM-YOUR-SEAT” SCENE OF THE YEAR
    — ATTACK OF THE UBER IMMORTAL, 300
    – FINAL BATTLE: MEGATRON VS. OPTIMUS PRIME, TRANSFORMERS
    — MID-AIR BATTLE: SPIDER-MAN VS. THE NEW GOBLIN, SPIDER-MAN 3
    — THE RAIN OF ARROWS, 300
    — ZOMBIE ATTACKS GLASS WINDOW, 28 WEEKS LATER

    BEST DIRECTOR
    — MICHAEL BAY, TRANSFORMERS
    — DANNY BOYLE, SUNSHINE
    — ALFONSO CUARON, CHILDREN OF MEN
    — GUILLERMO DEL TORO, PAN’S LABYRINTH
    — NEIL MARSHALL, THE DESCENT
    — ELI ROTH, HOSTEL: PART II
    — ZACK SNYDER, 300
    — SAM RAIMI, SPIDER-MAN 3
    – QUENTIN TARANTINO & ROBERT RODRIGUEZ, GRINDHOUSE

    BEST SCREAM-PLAY
    — 300, WRITTEN BY ZACK SNYDER & KURT JOHNSTAD
    — CHILDREN OF MEN, WRITTEN BY ALFONSO CUARON, TIMOTHY J. SEXTON, DAVID
       ARATA, MARK FERGUS & HAWK OSTBY
    – GRINDHOUSE, WRITTEN BY ROBERT RODRIGUEZ, QUENTIN TARANTINO, JEFF
       RENDELL, ELI ROTH, EDGAR WRIGHT & ROB ZOMBIE
    — THE DESCENT, WRITTEN BY NEIL MARSHALL
    — PAN’S LABYRINTH, WRITTEN BY GUILLERMO DEL TORO
    — SUNSHINE, WRITTEN BY ALEX GARLAND

    BEST F/X
    — 300
    — HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
    — PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END
    — SPIDER-MAN 3
    – TRANSFORMERS

    BEST FOREIGN MOVIE
    — CELLO (SOUTH KOREA)
    — DEATH NOTE (JAPAN)
    — THE HOST (SOUTH KOREA)
    — INITIAL D (HONG KONG)
    – PAN’S LABYRINTH (SPAIN)

    BEST COMIC BOOK WRITER
    — BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS, CIVIL WAR: THE INITIATIVE/DAREDEVIL/NEW AVENGERS
    — GARTH ENNIS, PUNISHER: MAX/THE BOYS/GHOST RIDER/CHRONICLES OF
       WORMWOOD/MIDNIGHTER
    — FRANK MILLER, ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN, THE BOY WONDER/FRANK MILLER’S
       ROBOCOP
    — ALAN MOORE, LOST GIRLS/YUGGOTH CULTURES
    — BRIAN K. VAUGHN, EX MACHINA/RUNAWAYS/Y: THE LAST MAN

    BEST COMIC BOOK ARTIST
    — JOHN CASSADY, ASTONISHING X-MEN
    — DARWYN COOK, THE SPIRIT
    — PIA GUERRA, Y: THE LAST MAN
    — STEVE MCNIVEN, CIVIL WAR
    — BEN TEMPLESMITH, WORMWOOD: GENTLEMAN CORPSE/FELL

    BEST SCREEN-TO-COMIC ADAPTATION
    – 28 DAYS LATER: THE AFTERMATH
    — ARMY OF DARKNESS
    — FRANK MILLER’S ROBOCOP
    — GEORGE A. ROMERO’S NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD:
       BACK FROM THE GRAVE
    — THE HILLS HAVE EYES: THE BEGINNING

    MOST SHOCKING COMIC BOOK TWIST
    –  ALICE IN WONDERLAND AND DOROTHY FROM OZ HAVE LESBIAN SEX!, LOST GIRLS
    – CAPTAIN AMERICA DIES!, CAPTAIN AMERICA
    — PETER PARKER REVEALS THAT HE IS SPIDERMAN!, CIVIL WAR
    — SABRE-TOOTH IS BEHEADED BY WOLVERINE!, WOLVERINE
    — SUPERMAN KAL-EL IS KILLED BY SUPERBOY-PRIME!, INFINITE CRISIS

Universal, which brought us the successful Jurassic Park trilogy, has decided to add another dinosaur flick to the stable. The studio has given the greenlight to cult classic “Land of the Lost,” a somewhat popular television series from 1974, rerun during the eighties, and brought back to T.V. in 1991 as a new series starring Timothy Bottoms (The Paper Chase).
The movie will star Will Ferrell and have a budget of $100 million dollars. Source: Variety

I don’t know what to think of this project. I watched the series when it aired in the eighties and also the 1991 series. There has to be some interest for a box office big gun like Will Ferrell to be attached to this film. I don’t get nostalgic for this like I would for something like, I don’t know, maybe Thundercats or Transformers. Also, I remember the series took itself seriously, and this movie is being touted as a comic. I just don’t know if Ferrell’s going to be enough to get back the $100 milllion.