What's on tonight: Cops, Fantastic Four, 48 Hours
Mystery, Entourage

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 01:21:00 PM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Programming

At 8, NBC has a new Dateline.
ABC has college football at 8, Notre Dame vs. Michigan.
FOX has a new Cops at 8, followed by a repeat episode and then a new America's Most Wanted.
CBS is rerunning the Jericho premiere at 8, followed by the Smith premiere, and then a new 48 Hours Mystery.
HBO2 has a mini marathon of Entourage starting at 8.
Also at 8: Cartoon Network has a new Fantastic Four.
Around 8:20, IFC has Ed Wood, with Johnny Depp and Martin Landau.
At 9, there's a new Naruto on Cartoon Network, followed by a new Bobobo-bo Bo-Bobo.
At 10, NBC is rerunning the premiere ep of Kidnapped.
HGTV has a new Design on a Dime at 10.

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Shana Hiatt vs. World Poker Tour - VIDEO

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 12:48:00 PM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Sports, Cable, Industry, OpEd, Video, Celebrities

I'm a casual poker fan. I play occasionally and watch a few of the various television shows. The World Poker Tour on the Travel Channel is what originally got me interested in Texas Hold'em. Because of that, I was naturally a Shana Hiatt fan. A blooper reel of her WPT work after the jump will give you an idea why.

The former Miss Hawaiian Tropic was the hostess for the show prior to being replaced by Courtney Friel for the fourth season. I'd wondered where Shana disappeared to, and why we hadn't seen her pop up on another show yet. She seemed to have a pretty good fan following. And now we have some idea.

It seems that Shana has been trying to get a couple different gigs, but has been hampered by a disputed no compete clause in her WPT contract. But now a judge has granted an injunction on Hiatt's behalf.

According to the ruling, the WPT can no longer keep Shana from pursuing the two poker related jobs at NBC that brought the whole matter to the courts. It remains to be seen whether the WPT is going to try and fight the injunction, but I think the more Shana Hiatt on TV poker the better.

video details and more

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Numb3rs: Spree (season premiere)

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 12:24:00 PM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Drama, CBS, OpEd, Numb3rs

Numb3rs: (l - r) David Krumholtz, Navi Rawat, Peter MacNicol

(S03E01) I wasn't all that excited about this episode. Last season ended on an uneventful note so there wasn't much to really look forward to. I mean, I love this show, don't get me wrong. If you ask me, it shouldn't be on Friday nights because it could easily hold it's own in another time slot. So yeah, I wasn't too excited. Well that changed, because five minutes into the episode what did we get? That's right, the triumphant return of Lou Diamond Phillips.

LDP (I affectionately nicknamed him that some time ago) shows up after a modern day Bonnie and Clyde duo make their way to the L.A. area. That is what Agent Ian Edgerton does after all. He tracks people. Then he shoots people. With pin-point accuracy. You don't mess with LDP.

At this point, I hope you've all noted my heavy sarcasm. Lou Diamond Phillips might be the most mediocre actor out there and for whatever reason, I find it hilarious that he's the one guy who has a recurring role on Numb3rs. What's this, his third episode? Anyway, moving on.

So as I said, a modern day Bonnie and Clyde tale only this time it's Buck and Crystal (nice turn by Deadwood's Kim Dickens). Plus Crystal has an agenda of her own. Without fleshing out the story, they robbed people, they killed people, and it was all so Crystal could right the wrongs of her life. Oh and Buck is a teenager. Plus they got married by a midget Elvis impersonator. See? Exactly like Bonnie and Clyde!

Besides LDP, what made this episode better than it should have been was all the backstory that was so desperately needed last season. The romances are in full swing, especially Charlie and Amita. She chose to stay at Cal Sci instead of taking the job at Harvard. Plus Alan is moving out and I bet Amita moves in. Poses a good question though. If Alan is moving out, does that mean we see less of Judd Hirsch's character and if so, will he make a few more spot appearances on Studio 60? We can only hope. Besides, his character doesn't contribute much to Numb3rs now anyway.

Larry and Meghan are still seeing each other too, but that might not last long? Anyone else put off by the cliffhanger? How exactly did Crystal track down Meghan? I thought it was a bit of a stretch but we'll have to wait and see in next week's conclusion, "Two Daughters." Anyone have some thoughts on what we might be in store for this season?

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Should Saturdays still be taboo for TV

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 11:47:00 AM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Industry, Programming, OpEd, Saturday Night Live

Recently a bunch of us folks here at TV Squad made a list of what we're watching this fall, broken down by day. Everyone had a pretty lengthy list of stuff to either watch live or via recorded programming, and one thing struck me right away...

There is jack squat on TV on Saturdays.

I do understand why Saturdays have traditionally been a night of little to no original programming worth watching. It's usually date night, a night of doing things other than watching television. It used to be that it was just too difficult to catch a favorite show on a Saturday night, since there was just a good chance you wouldn't be around to watch it. These days, though, more people are getting TiVos and cable-provided DVRs to help ensure they don't miss beloved programming. So why then does Saturday night TV still remain taboo?

We're a bunch of TV watching fools here at TV Squad, so if this list of our Saturday TV watching isn't an indication of how paltry the selection is that night, I don't know of a better one:

Bob: SNL and Cops
Me: SNL (maybe) and what I recorded all week
Rich: SNL and Netflix movies
Jonathan: SNL and Talkshow with Spike Feresten
Anna: America's Test Kitchen (11 AM on PBS)
Brett: Napping and watching recorded stuff
Mike C.: SNL (maybe)
Annie: SNL
Adam: Ebert and Roeper, then random weird stuff
Joel: "Who cares?"

"Who cares," indeed. Really, there is NOTHING on! It used to be that you could catch a movie-of-the-week, but for the most part those just suck. Tell me why a network wouldn't take a shot of some good programming on a Saturday night, a night where there really is no other competition now with DVRs in many households. When you've got CSI up against Grey's Anatomy on a Thursday night, many people without dual-tuner DVRs have to make a choice if they're fans of both shows. But if one of those programs moved to a time when nothing else is on or in competition with it? Even if folks aren't around to catch it, their DVR will always record it.

Until DVRs are in near 100% of households watching television, I think Saturday nights may remain taboo for the networks. I guess that could be a good thing, since what other night are we going to watch everything else we recorded all week? Then again, I guess we could all (*gasp*) go out of the house.

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Saturday, September 23, 2006

post from Laurel's TV Picks on 23 September 2006 11:19:31 AM. © Laurel's TV Picks

Best Bets

Reruns of series premieres of Jericho (CBS, 7pm) and Kidnapped (NBC, 9pm)

News & Notes

I've started putting together a new FAQ for this site; it includes a key for the colors used in the new grid here and other (I hope) useful stuff.

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Katharine McPhee as Wonder Woman

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 11:17:00 AM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Industry, American Idol, Music and Variety, Celebrities

Rumors and speculation about who will take on the role of Princess Diana in Joss Whedon's Wonder Woman movie have been flying around the Internet since word leaked out that he was working on it. Even after all the names that have been mentioned, this one caught me completely off guard. Apparently, one of the names being talked about for the role is American Idol's Katharine McPhee.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Katharine acknowledges that it would probably be a mistake for Wonder Woman to be her debut role, but she doesn't deny the possibility of it happening. Frankly, with Whedon at the helm, I think anything is possible. She also talks about her upcoming CD, the Idol tour, and the obsessive Idol fans.

As far as Wonder Woman goes though, can't we just give the gig to Charisma Carpenter and get on with it?

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The Five: Five essential lessons from Grover

post from TV Squad on 23 September 2006 09:59:00 AM. © TV Squad

Filed under: OpEd, The Five, PBS, Children

grover High on the list of things none of you probably care about is the fact that Grover is my favorite Muppet of all time. He and I even share a birthday (it's true). What I love about Grover, besides his lovable furriness, is how willing he is to do himself bodily harm in the name of education. After the jump I've placed five clips of Grover doing what he does best: teaching kids no matter how much physical punishment it causes him. Now let's all learn together, shall we?

Have you ever been inside a building and didn't know how to get out? Sure, we all have. Thankfully, Grover is here to explain what "Exit" means, and how it can aid you in your desire to egress. Just try not to get trampled like Grover does.

Next, Grover explains what an echo is. Did he really have to climb that mountain to explain it? No, not really, but we love him for his tenacity. His mountain climbing clothes are adorable, and the way he says "Oh, mommy!" in the beginning cracks me up every time I watch it.

This time, Grover enlists his pal Kermit to tell kids how to take care of their teeth. Remember kids, see your tooth checker regularly, eat crunchy bananas, and comb your teeth after every meal. Kermit's speech impediment after he gets his false teeth is hilarious, and he and Grover make a hilarious comedy team. Frank Oz and Jim Henson worked together like veteran jazz musicians, and this proves it. The jokes and the timing are absolutely perfect.

Again, Kermit joins Grover to help explain the difference between "short" and "long," but this time Grover is the foil. That's fine with me, Grover is always funniest when he's experiencing physical and emotional anguish.

Finally, what I consider to be the quintessential Grover lesson: his demonstration of "near" and "far." The furry blue one is not content on merely telling kids the difference between these two words, he's going to demonstrate it over and over again until every child watching understands and appreciates what the words mean and how to use them. Truly a classic moment.

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MAS*H coming to TV Land

Filed under: Drama, Comedy, Cable, Programming

I think I can say with some certainty that whatever cable or satellite provider you use, you probably have at least one channel that airs episodes of M*A*S*H on a fairly regular basis. Well, if you also have TV Land you'll have even more chances to catch the men and women of the 4077 because episodes of the long-running series will be hitting that channel starting in January. The match makes sense, I guess, because you don't get much more "classic TV" than M*A*S*H, but is there really much of a point when the series is already rather ubiquitous on the TV landscape anyway? It's not as if TV Land has exclusive rights to the episodes. Eh, whatever, when I get that occasional itch to watch M*A*S*H it'll give my TiVo more chances to catch an episode or two.

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Muppet Christmas album out next month

Filed under: Comedy, Children

I know, I know, it's a bit early to be thinking about Christmas, but the ever-diligent Muppet News Flash is reporting that a brand new Muppet Christmas album will be out on October 17. The album, titled, "A Green and Red Christmas" will feature twelve holiday songs, and is retailing for about ten bucks, which is a pretty good bargain. I wonder though, what makes them think they'll ever be able to top the Christmas album the Muppets made with John Denver, possibly the greatest Christmas album of all time next to Vince Guaraldi's soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas? Not to mention the John Denver album is only $5.98 on Amazon. I'm just sayin'.

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Grace coming to TNT

Filed under: Celebrities, TNT

Holly Hunter will be starring in a new pilot for TNT titled Grace. Hunter will play an Oklahoma City detective who is visited by an angel (played by Deadwood's Leon Rippy) who tries to help her redeem her life. Laura San Giacomo of Just Shoot Me will play Hunter's best friend, and Bokeem Woodbine will play a convict who can also see the angel. I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't recall any television series with an angel as one of the main characters that I actually enjoyed. I know that both Highway to Heaven and Touched by an Angel were about as interesting to me as watching an ice cube melt. Nevertheless, we all enjoy different things, so what do the rest of you think? Does this show sound interesting? I will admit that I've always really liked Holly Hunter as an actress, and still harbor a slight school boy crush on Laura San Giacomo, but other than that there's not much pulling me towards this show.

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