So, like me, you've probably seen the advertisements for new fall shows and returning fall shows but you continually forget the date of most of them. Well, here they are in order by date and channel.
ABC Shows (in order of premiere date)
Wifeswap -- Monday, September 11 @ 8/7c
Dancing w/ the Stars -- Tuesday, September 12 @ 8/7c
Boston Legal -- Tuesday, September 19 @ 10/9c
Grey's Anatomy -- Thursday, September 21 @ 9/8c
Desperate Housewives -- Sunday, September 24 @ 9/8c
LOST -- Wednesday, October 4 @ 9/8 c.
FOX Shows
Returning
Prison Break -- Monday, August 21 @ 8/7 c
Bones -- Wednesday, August 30 @ 8/7 c
House -- Tuesday, September 5 @ 9/8 c
The Simpsons -- Sunday, September 10 @ 8/7 c
American Dad -- Sunday, September 10 @ 8:30/7:30 c
Family Guy -- Sunday, September 10 @ 9/8 c
The War At Home -- Sunday, September 10 @ 9:30/8:30 c
The O.C. -- Tuesday, November 2 @ 9/8 c
New Shows
'Til Death -- Thursday, September 7 @ 8/7c
Standoff -- Tuesday, September 5 @ 9/8 c
NBC Shows
The Office -- Thursday, September 21 @ 8:30/7:30 c
New Shows
Heroes -- Monday, September 25 @ 9/8 c
Twenty Good Years -- Wednesday, October 4 8/7c
The CW
7th Heaven -- Monday, September 25 @ 8/7 c
Gilmore Girls -- Tuesday, September 26 @ 8/7 c
One Tree Hill -- Wednesday, September 27 @ 9/8 c
Smallville -- Thursday, September 28 @ 8/7 c
Supernatural -- Thursday, September 28 @ 8/7 c
Veronica Mars -- Tuesday, October 3 @ 9/8 c
CBS
CSI: Miami -- Monday, September 18 @ 10/9 c
Criminal Minds -- Wednesday, September 20 @ 9/8 c
CSI: NY -- Wednesday, September 20 @ 10/9 c
Survivor: Cook Islands -- Thursday, September 21 @ 8/7 c
CSI -- Thursday, September 21 @ 9/8 c
Ghost Whisperer -- Friday, September 22 @ 8/7 c
Close to Home -- Friday, September 22 @ 9/8 c
Numb3rs -- Friday, September 22 @ 10/9 c
If you haven't been watching this show, you need to. Originally, it was going to be on The WB in 2003-2004 season, but it didn't get picked up. Instead, it is on the Sci Fi channel. The premise? 10 people compete against each other in order to win immortality in a Stan Lee comic book based on their character. There are various tests for elimination, such as seeing how long someone will tussle with two trained attack dogs or if they would notice a child crying for help during their mission. This show is ridiculous, funny, and wickedly entertaining. Who would have thought that gathering a bunch of adults, having them dress up in spandex and skimpy costumes and pretend to be superheroes would work?! But it does.
There are only 6 episodes, unfortunately. Sci Fi is most likely to rerun them marathon-style once they've premiered. This week (Thursday at 9pm) will be the 5th episode. For such a silly little show, it really pulls you in. Watching Lemuria try to sit on the lap of a hardened felon for ten seconds is scary and hilarious. Watching 'Fat Momma' try to distract the attack dogs by throwing them donuts and Major Victory (a former male stripper) jokingly scolded by Stan Lee for always taking off his cape just brings a smile to ones face.
Stan Lee plays a major part in the show as the host. You never see him in person, per se. It's pretty obvious that the show has big television advertisers and Stan Lee always appears on these television sets, rather than talking to the competitors face-to-face. I don't always agree with Stan's choices (he eliminated someone during a hidden camera moment saying she was an actress). In this show, the contestants are aware that they are being judged AT ALL TIMES. However, I don't feel that some of their actions warranted being told "turn in your costume". I'm not going to mention who's been eliminated thus far, in case you haven't watched it.
Sorry I'm so late in the game posting about Who Wants to Be A Superhero, but if you did miss it, I guarantee there will be a marathon shortly after it wraps up and you'll be able to catch the whole thing from the beginning.
Tags: Stan Lee, Who Wants to be a Superhero, Sci Fi
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They designed her to be the perfect soldier, a human weapon … then she escaped. In a future not far from now, in a broken world, she is haunted by her past. She cannot run, she must fight … to discover her destiny. Max (Jessica Alba) is a genetically enhanced human prototype known as an "X5," or "transgenic."
Following her escape from a top-secret military program known as Manticore, she is hunted by her former handler,the ruthless Colonel Donald Michael Lydecker (John Savage), through the edgy, underground counterculture of 21st-century Seattle. Living in hiding and ever fearful of being recaptured, Max pursues a lonely and perilous mission to reunite with her transgenic "siblings," who scattered following their joint escape from Manticore.
Max is aided in her quest by Logan Cale (Michael Weatherly), an idealistic cyber-journalist battling repression and corruption in the ruins of a world in decline.--taken from Sci Fi.com's website
Recently, as in yesterday, there was a marathon of Dark Angel on Sci Fi. I DVR'd (or Tivo'd, if you will) it and watched it today and within the first 5 minutes was hooked. I started at the episode Meow and watch 3 more episodes afterward. I was simply just enjoying this show from start to finish. I was dismayed to find that although the show is on DVD, there are only 2 seasons. I had not watched Dark Angel in it's original run, what with watching Buffy, Angel, and so many others already. My mom loved this show, but I didn't have time for it at the time it was on. Just--wow. So sad that it's cancelled. This show is awesome and so well-written and looks good on your screen. It's on Mondays at 7 on the Sci Fi Channel, so check it out. You'll thank me for it. Jessica Alba is so hot, too! :) Just had to say that.
For more on Dark Angel, check out this post. I love this site and continually go there. It's all about what would have happened on canceled tv shows, such as Everwood, Buffy, Angel, etc. This particular post is about Dark Angel returning via Sci Fi channel.
Read this post to find about more about Dead Like Me finding new life on the Sci Fi channel. I was a HUGE fan of this show (especially Mandy Patinkin as Rube) and I'm so glad Sci Fi picked it up. Originally it was on Showtime and had a few swears in it, but don't expect to hear the 'f' word on Sci Fi.
Sci Fi Channel also has some new movies coming up that look good: Starting Saturday, Aug. 26, at 5/4C is Dark Kingdom, starring Benno Fürmann (The Sin Eater), Kristanna Løken (Terminator 3), Alicia Witt (David Lynch's Dune, TV's Cybill) and cinema legend Max von Sydow star in this epic, two-part fantasy miniseries. Description: In an age when gods walked among men, one hero was all that stood between a kingdom and a curse.
Dragon Sword: An English knight (James Purefoy, Resident Evil, HBO's Rome) returning from the Crusades encounters villainy and adventure and earns a reputation as a heroic dragonslayer. Patrick Swayze (Ghost), Michael Clarke Duncan (The Green Mile, Sin City) and Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly) co-star. WORLD PREMIERE: Saturday, Aug. 26, at 9/8C.
Tags: dark angel, jessica alba, Dragon Sword, Dark Kingdom, Patrick Swayze, Piper Perabo, Alicia Witt, Kristanna Loken, Sci Fi Channel, James Cameron
Next Monday is the finale of Treasure Hunters. As you may know, the three teams to make it to the end are The Geniuses, The Southie Boys, and Air Force. In the last episode, they left us in a cliff-hanger style with all three teams still in action, so close to the treasure they can taste it. The Genii (as team Ex-Cia was fond of calling them) seem like they are a hair away from cracking the puzzle, but still haven't figured out what clue will tell them the answer to the cryptex code. The Ex Air Force and Southie Boys (they're so cute with those Boston accents and tough guy appeal) are hot on the heels of The Geniuses. The treasure is worth millions.
I have to say, although I expected Air Force to be a strong contender and in the running for the treasure, neither the Southie Boys or the Geniuses were candidates in my mind. The Southie Boys at first were not confident in their brain power and seemed to stay in the game through the use of alliances, street smarts and pure brawn. The Geniuses were always arguing. Charles (the blonde guy) always shot down the correct answer, keeping themselves and the team Young Professionals at Mount Roosevelt (instead of Mount Rushmore) by discouraging them and telling them that if they go to Mount Rushmore and they're wrong, they'll be losing more time. He was DEAD WRONG so many times, but made others, especially in his team question their logic. They really didn't seem like a strong, tight-knit team--constantly bickering and often belittling the loveable but overweight Sam. In more recent episodes, you might have noticed Sam cracking the codes and figuring out the answers. Due to his asthma, he cannot push himself as hard on the physical challenges and would get reamed by Charles because he couldn't keep up...but here they are in the last leg of the game.
Team Air Force have dominated in every leg of the treasure hunt, always coming in first. It's no surprise they made it this far. They display that not only do they have the physical stuff down, they are also highly intelligent and due to their survival training and just in general, their training, they work exceptionally well as a team. The Southie Boys, on the other hand, waste a lot of time in the bickering department as well. The Southie Boys consist of two twin brothers and their best friend. In one of the recent episodes, they wasted so much time yelling at each other and saying they were going to beat each other up that they allowed another team to catch up to them. It was only through pure luck of guessing the combination of the outer cryptex that they were able to move on.
Who do I think will win it? Hmm...the Geniuses are in the correct room, but they still haven't figured it out and are wasting a lot of time. Sometimes they tend to overanalyze even a phrase like "It's right in front of you". Personally, I'd like the Southie Boys to win. Although they have demonstrated that they are smarter than they appear, I don't think they will get the treasure, but one is a fireman and millions of dollars would change his life, so I'm rooting for him. In actuality, I think Air Force is going to get it. They are smart, but remember not to oversimplify or overcomplicate clues and that has been the key to them getting this far. I don't know about you guys, but I can't wait until next season. I've gotten excited every Monday to see this game, and while it's a little predictable and hokey at times, it is fun to see the dynamics between teams, fun to laugh at The Wild Hanlons and fun to hate The Fogals (read my earlier post on 'We've Been Fogalled', a phrase coined by teams that got conned by them). It's been fun all the way through, you learn about American history (though some is a little stretched or fictionalized) and you start to care about these people and you enjoy trying to solve the puzzles at home.
Mark your calendars -- the launch of the new network, which is a merge of UPN and The WB happens on September 18th. If you want to know more about the merge, check out my old blogpost at http://popcornandtwizzlers.blogspot.com/2006/06/smackdown-gilmore-girl.html
From Wikipedia:
The WB will close their network on Sunday, September 17 with a five-hour block of pilot episodes of their past signature series, including Felicity, Angel, Buffy (which was a two-hour episode) and Dawson's Creek, and during commercial breaks, re-airings of past image campaigns and network promotions. This plan will involve promo spots given to the cable networks currently carrying these shows in off-network syndication, along with ads for each series' TV-on-DVD box set.
It is expected that UPN will close the preceding Friday, September 15, likely with its usual airing of Friday Night SmackDown!; whether the network will air its usual (optional) repeat block that weekend is unknown. The low-key closure is not surprising given that in some of the largest cities, where the local affiliate is owned by Fox and is joining My Network TV, UPN will not be available, at least on those stations, once MNTV launches on September 5. It is unclear what will happen to UPN or The WB programming on the applicable MNTV affiliates in other markets, i.e. if it will be dropped or aired in overnight hours.
The network will likely launch with a premiere special on September 18, and air season finales from the previous season for the first week, except for America's Next Top Model and Friday Night Smackdown, which will launch their new seasons on September 20 and 22 respectively, with full-night premieres. The network's second week will consist of all season/series premieres for all other series from September 25-October 1, with the exception of Veronica Mars, which will debut their third season on October 3.
Tags: gilmore girls, smackdown, chris rock, the wb, the cw, upn, merge, cw premiere, america's next top model, 7th heaven
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I have read many of the stories in Stephen King's Nightmares and Dreamscapes. I am not familiar with Autopsy Room Four and as far as I can tell, there is no such story in the book. Maybe it was added in an updated printing. Regardless, I did find Autopsy Room Four interesting, but yet I feel I've already seen this scenario on The Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits. A guy is a corpse in the morgue, only he's completely awake and aware of sensation. See? It sounds familiar, doesn't it? Well, here's the difference: the man is NOT dead -- he was bitten by a snake and is paralyzed. His heart is beating and he is breathing, only its barely detectable. It was okay, but not really one of Stephen King's best.
Next they have You Know They Got A Hell of a Band. I recently read this story and I have to say that it felt darker and more creepy when reading it. Putting it on the small screen was great for visualization, but it sort of detracted from the relationships between the character and the "oh my god" sort of feeling worming through your stomach at various times. For example, a waitress slides a note to the main character and when she reads it, it says: "Get out while you still can". When reading a story, I really put myself in the shoes of the characters. You already knew something was odd here, and it IS a short story by Stephen King, but that feeling of your stomach trying to crawl into your bowels is missing from the smallscreen. Stories like The Stand were successful conversions (although SO MUCH was taken out) but some simply cannot be based on how they were written. This is supposedly to be about characters and the realization that you are in big trouble and that it is creepy and wondering if your husband is running away with the car, or if he is going to wait for you -- all the paranoid thoughts and feelings one might have in this hokey (yes, the premise is a little...errr...lame) story. Overall, they kept most things the same, but perhaps it was the lack of true resemblence to the residents of Rock and Roll Heaven that really killed the kick of this story. Neither story (Hell of a Band and Autopsy Room Four) seemed like it needed an entire hour to tell.
I am a huge fan of Stephen King's, but that is not to say that I love absolutely everything he writes. The Mangler, which was a movie, was just about the stupidest story ever. Sometimes he's on (The Stand, Hearts in Atlantis, The Gunslinger series) and other times he's just not. All of his stories are written how I like them, with great characters and dialogue, but sometimes the plot is convoluted and contrived.
Tags: Stephen King, Nightmares and Dreamscapes, Hell of a Band, Autopsy Room Four, The Stand
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Don't forget that it's Wednesday. Tonight at 9 & 10PM, Nightmares & Dreamscapes is on TNT. The first hour is Autopsy Room Four and the second hour is You Know They Got a Hell of a Band, featuring Steven Weber, who has been in many of Stephen King's films, such as the recent NBC movie, Desperation. Steven Weber was also in the updated version of The Shining.
If you've read the short stories, or even if you haven't, check out Nightmares & Dreamscapes tonight at 9PM.
Autopsy Room Four
Starring Richard Thomas, Greta Scacchi
Teleplay by April Smith, based on the short story by Stephen King, directed by Mikael Salomon
Businessman Howard Cottrell (Thomas) is on vacation playing one of his many games of golf. Chasing the ball into the undergrowth, he is bitten by a snake and completely paralyzed, showing no signs of life. At the hospital, unable to communicate, he is the key witness to his own autopsy.
You Know They Got a Hell of a Band
Starring Kim Delaney, Steven Weber
Teleplay by Mike Robe, based on the short story by Stephen King, directed by Mike Robe
A wrong turn on a lonely road turns frightening for Clark and Mary Willingham (Weber and Delaney) as they stumble upon a town not on any map - Rock and Roll Heaven, Oregon. There is a free concert every night, but the price of admission is high - once the audience enters, it can never leave.
Tags: nightmares & dreamscapes, stephen king, tnt, steven weber
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