There is a lot to admire in the new Fall TV season. BIG BANG THEORY is the next #1 sitcom in the United States (it is currently #2 after TWO & A HALF MEN - which it will replace in 3 years). The actors are really developing their roles. Jim Parsons is turning into a great comedic leading man and Kaley Cuoco is also a rare commodity, a sexy comedic leading lady. The entire cast of BIG BANG THEORY is bringing its 'A' game each week.
Besides their singing talent, the cast of Glee is also the most diverse cast in the history of network television. Never in U.S. TV history has an ensemble cast included an African American, gay, Jewish, handicapped, Asian, and Latina actors all in 1 show. And that's not the only unique aspect of Glee. It is also the first musical series to successfully air in U.S., ever. One of my favorite TV show's of all time was Popular. Glee is from Ryan Murphy, who is an incredibly talented writer, director, creator, producer. The runaway funniest character on Glee is Sue Sylvester. For those of you who watched Popular, Sue Sylvester is basically a grown up Nicole Jilian. Actually, most of the cast of Glee is just an updated version of their Popular counterparts.
NCIS is the new #1 series in the United States. NCIS has been on the air since 2003 an it was always the "Rodney Dangerfield" of primetime. Always getting good numbers, but no respect and no one in the TV industry really talked about it, outside the millions that were watching the show. NCIS will be the #1 new show all year, and depending on how far American Idol declines this season (my prediction, not much). NCIS has broken through for 2 reasons: 1. The repeat airings on #1 cable network USA have helped a whole new audience experience the show and 2. It makes the audience feel safe. NCIS is a procedural about how a government agency should and would work in an ideal world. Fighting terrorist, capturing bad guys, a whole cast as James Bond like agents with the best technology the United States has to offer. The fantasy element not withstanding, NCIS is a very good show.
FRINGE is the new X-Files. Full stop. Period. I always liked The X-Files and I like the new X-Files - FRINGE, even better. I'm always excited when someone manages to improve upon an original, although both shows owe their series DNA to The Twilight Zone from 1959. The production of FRINGE moved from New York City to Vancouver Canada this season. Like most states during the recession, New York cut way back on tax credits for local productions. JJ Abrams borrowed an idea from his last series, Alias. Both FRINGE & Alias use the helicopter city shot to establish the location (Seattle, Boston, New York City.....). This allows the series to travel all over the world without ever leaving Vancouver. It's a cheap easy story telling element, but it totally works to the benefit of the show.
The other most underreported story of the this TV season is that every sport is up in the ratings on TV. If the World Series continues to shape up as an East Coast versus West Coast battle, watch baseball ratings go through the roof. Football is also up, no matter what night its on. Monday Night Football on ESPN is delivering the largest cable audience ever. Sunday Night Football is the only good story on NBC's Fall Schedule, too bad they can't use the "halo" effect to promote the rest of its male skewing primetime schedule. Something tells me Sunday Night Football fans better get ready for a lot of CHUCK promos. College Football is network television's only bright spot on Saturday nights. Bravo to ABC for successfully experimenting with putting college football on network primetime.
The other trend, reality is down, and interesting enough, what we're all witnessing is the revitalization of the U.S. network sitcom. It is a television truism that in times of economic decline, Americans want to laugh more. Other than procedurals, comedy is in. Everyone needs a laugh. Modern Family is the funniest of the new comedies. And as much as I love BIG BANG THEORY, the funniest show on television is Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm.
No comments:
Post a Comment