I Am A TV Junkie

TV.com Has Hope For Another Season of Heroes, How About You?

Yes, despite all the brouhaha over yesterday's Hayden has changed her hair color news, Anna Hiatt at TV.com is still holding out for another go round for the series.

Today, at that site:

In Monday's season finale of Heroes, Samuel tried to have his big coming out party in Central Park. The plan was to bury a few thousand New Yorkers in one of his signature craters, and hopefully to be heralded as the king of the world. But as the carnival subplot wrapped up, a new volume began. Claire pulled a stunt in front of a hoard of news reporters, and jumped off the top of a Ferris wheel. And just like that, everyone found out about the "specials."

Which means that for next season (if there is one), we're promised a whole new world.

So Anna is hopeful. Ratings aren't however. The show is still fourth in its time period, and by a lot. What's a lot? A little more than 5.5 million viewers less than 24 on Fox.

I would recap you on the show but I haven't watched in a long time. After a while even I stopped caring.

One Hollywood Reporter Paragraph That Proves the TV Biz is Broken

And here it is:

"HMS" is about the exploits of the sexy freshmen class at Harvard Medical School through the eyes of a young female student. "Mystic Pizza" writer Amy Holden Jones penned the script and is exec producing, with Panettiere serving as co-exec producer.

That's Harvard Medical School, seen above. Looks exciting, huh?

And, that's Hayden Panettiere here to the left. You know, the li'l girl that plays the ex-cheerleader now just freaky chick with healing powers on a TV show I used to watch on NBC called Heroes.

And though it says nothing of this in the article or anywhere else there's nothing in her experience on this planet as a human being that makes her qualified for this role.

She's an actress.

She's not even an actress that can open a film (I think the Beth Cooper movie showed that) and she's no whiz behind the scenes unless I missed how she singlehandedly saved a studio recently, which I doubt.

She does happen to be a young woman of a specific age that interests a network like The CW and their viewers and that might be all it takes for this to go to pilot presentation, even to pilot presentation in a series that doesn't feature her on camera.

I think they are hoping, somehow, for this relationship to blossom over time and that after Heroes maybe she does something for them, so they throw some development money at her and her vanity shingle.

What a frickin' waste! But that's how it works. And who knows, maybe Heroes goes away fast and she gets available sooner. 

I'm pretty sure, however, that we will never see Hayden Panettiere on a show on The CW or anywhere else that concerns itself with the "the sexy freshman class at Harvard Medical School."

First off, it's an elitist concept that will have limited appeal. The Ivy League has never been a good place to set stories for TV.

Second, there is no freshman class in any medical school. You're a first year, period. Freshmen are typically 18. years old.

Third, she would be horribly miscast in the role.

And by the by, I think Harvard would have to agree to participate, and I don't think they would.

Still, The CW has decided to throw some money at this idea, if only to make nice with a blonde hottie.

And that's how the TV business is broken.

Another example? Nicole Richie has a development deal with ABC for a sitcom.

Nicole Richie.

I know.

Video -- Which Bad Chris Evans Movie Is Being Remade For TV?

Well it's this one noted above. Push was a 2009 release with Evans (Mmmmm ...) Dakota Fanning and Djimon Honsou (Mmmm, again), and here's details from IMDB:

A group of young American ex-pats with telekinetic and clairvoyant abilities are hiding from a clandestine U.S. government agency. They must utilize their different talents and band together for a final job enabling them to escape the agency forever.

Sounds familiar? Well, Summit Releasing (the Twilight people, they have a bunch of money apparently and no place to put it) is calling it the next Heroes.

Have they looked at the ratings for Heroes lately? They might not want to make that comparison.

Summit's not going the traditional route with this one, they plan to cast and shoot a pilot before even approaching a US TV network, hoping that the overseas sales will allow them to make the price for the US more, uh, appealing.

And although the prospects for the show, if foretold by the film, are global in nature it's not always a guarantee that foreign sales will be there. Just because the Eiffel Tower is in your project doesn't mean that the French will watch.

Tim Surrette at TV.com:

For some reason, the movie Push is being adapted for television. As far as I know, the movie wasn't that great, as I haven't heard anyone say one thing positive about it. Plus, the TV adaptation is being called the next Heroes, so I guess that's a good indication of what to expect. Ahh, whatever. I'll watch it anyway. God I hate myself.

Whatev, I don't hate myself that much. I find it hard to believe that a broadcast net will bite on this. Possibly a US cable network, but certainly not pay cable.

I would watch if they could cast Evans and promise shirtless scenes each week. Other than that I think for the time being I'm really over regular people who discover their irregular abilities. 

TV.com Talks To Greg Grunberg About That Show I Used to Watch, Haiti Relief, Triple D

What's up with Grunny? First off it turns out that he, like me, is a big big fan of Triple D (Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives) on the Food Network (hey, sorry Long Island to remind you that you're not getting the Food Network or HGTV during this period of dispute between Scripps and Cablevision).

Click here for the piece from Anna Hiatt at TV.com. Good thing that, Greg may be running into host Guy Fieri at the next NBC upfront presentation as Guy sets to host the prime time gamer Minute to Win It (formerly known as Perfect 10, a title that apparently has become a bit too sexualized to be used for a family-friendly show).

(Got invited to the first taping of the show, but now that I'm two hours out of Los Angeles I have really cut down on trips north to LA proper.)

Actually, maybe Grunberg doesn't have to worry about seeing Guy at the upfronts, at least not with the ratings Heroes has been amassing lately.

TV By The Numbers:

NBC now talks about the over a million DVR viewers Heroes adds to its live+SD numbers, but no matter how you slice it, down is down, and Live+SD or Live+7, viewership for Heroes is down to series lows – and last night was the series low for an original episode,  dropping below a 2.0 adults 18-49 rating (to a 1.8) and dropping below 4 million viewers.

Ouch!

Greg discusses the high rates of pirating of the show from torrent sites and more after the jump.

TV.com on a Heroes' Death -- Big Huge Spoiler (about a show I no longer watch)

Tim Surette has all the details, I'll excerpt him with the exception of the name of the actor and the role he plays, but it is someone in the image above (and not Hayden, which is the image TV.com used for some reason):

According to the site, blankblankblank who plays blankblankblank, has been "let go" (a nice way of saying "kicked to the curb and left to die a slow impoverished death").

E! Online, which broke the initial mystery-death report, says blankblankblank is ticked off about the decision and found out about it the hard way: by reading an upcoming script.

(snip)

So why kill blankblankblank now? Some say it's for budgetary reasons, but it seems more like the writers backed themselves into a corner and just needed to end this storyline.

Harsh, huh? Well, blankblankblank should have considered the tales of Jess Alexander and Jeph Loeb, producers/writers that got the very public heave-ho last year. They don't play nice on Heroes, it must be all the ill will that comes with watching your hit show go to shit.

Here's the link to Tim's piece, click at your own peril.

The Onion's AV Club tears apart the latest episode at this link.

The spoiler I want to read about is the one that tells me exactly what happened that turned this TV phenomenon into the most discouraging reminder of how broadcast TV can fail in recent memory. I think it might be time to add Heroes to a list that includes both Supertrain and Manimal, classic NBC flops from the Fred Silverman and not Ben Silverman era.

(Yes, I know, Fred inherited Supertrain from his predecessor ... but he didn't have to run the damned thing. And, Silverman, if you're out there reading, I haven't even touched the TV crime that was Pink Lady & Jeff, so you better just sit there and take it. TAKE IT I SAY!)

Not to Pile On, But I'm Breaking Up With Heroes

I'm done. It's over.

And, I don't even have to tell you all why, which is just lovely because the more I think about it the more annoyed I am with myself about sticking with it so long.

I will say this ... you know how stimulant users love that first line or bump or pill or ... whatever? I think I've kept watching Heroes after season one in the same way stimulant users are always chasing that first outstanding, live-changing high that they got from that first time.

Ever since, it's just not been the same. In fact, much like the stimulant user, I've just been pissed at myself at the end of most episodes after the first year because it could never "get me high" the way it once did.

My apologies if anything I said here guided you down the same road.

Bye cheerleader. Bye, Senator. Bye, crazy then not crazy then crazy again watch repair technician.

Bye cutie nurse/paramedic. Bye Company Man. Bye pretty effed up mom with the dreams.

Bye Rob Buckley fave Ali Larter (who's been so many things I'd have to give her her own paragraph if I was being fair ... oh, but wait, I already did give her her own paragraph).

And, btw, I think I'm leaving just ahead of the whole thing going away, anyway.

Two weeks. I give it two weeks.

Video -- Will NBC Let Greg Grunberg Play at ABC for Lost's Final Season?

If they ever, even a gazillion years from now want to work at some time in the future with J.J. Abrams it would be a good idea if they did.

Grunny is telling TV Guide, purportedly, that the Lost people have asked him to come back for the final season. Of course, I can't find that at all at TVGuide.com, but it's referenced in this New York Magazine blog post:

Greg Grunberg — the childhood friend of J.J. Abrams who played the pilot of on Lost's first-ever episode — tells TV Guide he's been asked to return for the show's sixth and final season. His return isn't a sure thing, since he'll need time off from his regular gig playing Matt on Heroes, but he says he's in if NBC okays the vacation days.

You're guess is as good as mine. I lean in the no direction. Networks are really touchy about their stars doing outside work for other networks lately. It's why I think no one ever successfully brings Battle of the Network Stars back, and let's face it, it's due.

I suggest a trade ... maybe send an ABC star to an NBC show for a while, even if you have to put together a five-network deal. I think Ty Pennington has to be jonesing for something different by now, how about he goes to Fox to host Idol for a year while Seacrest becomes a contestant on CW's America's Next Top Model, Miss J moves to CBS and The Big Bang Theory to play Penny's Cheesecake Factory manager and Simon Helberg spends a year on NBC's Chuck as a CIA analyst.

There. Done.

Video -- Heroes: Redemption Trailer Very Well Edited, How Will the Show Fair?

Okay, who hired the super powered serial killer to babysit? Never, ever, ever hire the super powered serial killer to babysit. Do you need a home economics class to teach you that? Isn't it obvious?

And, speaking of fair, there was a carnival at Comic-Con to promote the upcoming season, and apparently there's a carnival storyline in the new season, too. And if that's a spoiler, this clip has spoilers.

It also has a lot of footage of Robert Knepper (ex-Prison Break), and per THR today, "Knepper's character Samuel is at the center of the major new story line on the sci-fi series. He is the charismatic but evil Earth-moving ringleader of a traveling carnival who recruits people with special powers for a mysterious purpose."

Carnival? Does that mean that the creepiest puppeteer in all of TV is involved? I'm on that, waiting for a reply from David Lawrence.

I just got the reply, which says, "I wish I could tell you anything, but I can't!"

Of course, just the fact that he can't tell me anything means that he has something to tell, so ... did he just tell us something? Whatev, David, I'm still suggesting that Eric Doyle fans tune in come September.

While you're thinking about him, David would love it if you clicked this link and read all about a movie that he's in called The New True Charlie Wu.

And about the upcoming, Bryan Fuller-less season of Heroes, your guess is as good as mine. Clip after the jump. New season starts in the Fall.

Comic-Con Video -- Heroes and Chuck Panels From NBC.com

I have a full morning, so I'm posting this now before I leave and I'll be back this PM with more.

Chuck panel right here, Heroes after the jump.

LINK

Heroes and 90210 Adding "Hot Lesbian Storylines" for 2009-10

Hey gang, it's the easy and fun way to tip your hat at the gay and lesbian community that doesn't alienate gay-averse fanboys!

All you gotta do is make your hot chick a lesbian and ... no worries, right?

Wrong.

This is ridiculous, especially coming from Heroes where they quashed a gay storyline involving Claire's high school pal (remember Zach, played by Thomas Dekker, who was supposed to come out to Claire in the first season until everyone (including Dekker and his management) got cold feet?

Girl on girl is hot. Boy on boy sends you down the Nielsen ladder.

TV.com:

Claire is set to go to college in "Redemption," the title of the next volume which sees the Heroes returning to "normal" lives, and will be rooming with a pair of females -- Madeline Zima (Californication) and Rachel Melvin (Days of Our Lives). And because Girls Gone Wild and soft porn say it is so, the female roommates will be doing a little experimenting with each other.

How fucking lame is that? Like Tim Surette said at TV.com, it's cheap. And these writers should be aiming higher, much higher.

Not to be outdone, The CW has enlisted Rumer Willis to walk into the zip code of her upbringing (90210) and lay down some sapphic smack as well. This today from 90210 star AnnaLynne McCord (E! Online):

McCord said she doesn't know what Willis' storyline entails but wouldn't mind being a part of it.

"This is what I foresee," she said. "Naomi gets drunk, and she gets a little crazy. Liam's watching. Naomi wants to experiment. And then a little lip-on-lip action with Rumer Willis can't hurt anybody, right?

"How fabulous would that be," she continued. "They totally need to make it happen!"

I think I hear an actress dying for some additional attention, don't you?

And, btw, can we stipulate that Rumer Willis would not be getting acting parts if she were just some girl from the Valley? Can you say nepotism hire?

I thought you could.

Video -- Hayden Panettiere on Catty Schoolgirls, Waning Heroes, Her New Movie, Raccoons

With the gang from the KTLA Morning Show here in Los Angeles.

The Heroes stuff comes toward the end. She claims that the bar was set so high the first season that it's been hard to rise back to that level. I say Tim Kring shot his load early and has failed to keep a staff stable (Bryan Fuller just left, AGAIN!) or learn to innovate.

I beginning to believe that he got lucky with a great pitch and then "lost his abilities" and became a producer only worthy of Crossing Jordan-type stuff once again.

Hayden clip after the jump. She's with Sam Rubin, Mark Krisky and that skinny blonde woman they have in the AM that's kind of shrill.

Video -- Carrie Keegan Gets Up Close With Hayden Panettiere

I'm not feeling really cheeky right now so can you write your own naughty li'l Carrie meets Hayden thing? Put it in the comments section and I'll replace this lame paragraph with the winner and absolutely no compensation whatsoever except my thanks.

Before you start, two things ...

a) Chris Columbus, director, AND ... No Good Television virgin I believe. Check the 1:12 mark in the clip for the typical "can you say that" moment.

b) If you think about it, this movie is Can't Hardly Wait only from the Jennifer Love Hewitt character's point of view, kind of, almost.

One more thing, it opens Friday. I would bet it'll open in the $18-25 million range and cool considerably in the second week. Should open well in countries where Heroes is being shown.

Clip after the jump.

Hey, what ever happened to her recording career?

You, get writing!

2 Clips -- NBC's Day One, Including "The Clip Everyone's Talking About"

And I have to say that it's worth discussing. Really worth discussing. Hat tip to Hibberd.

Reasons?

1) It's a great clip -- You'll see it after the jump for yourself but this is some great stuff. And who doesn't love seeing Los Angeles being attacked from outer space, huh?

2) It's a sci fi show on a big network.

3) That big network is NBC and there is already plenty of discussion about how the show will die on the vine, including this comment at QuietEarth.us, the site that broke the clip on the web:

Pity NBC'll cancel this within 6 weeks. When will people learn that concept shows just don't work on Network TV? ONCE in a blue moon, one will catch on, grabbing the cultural zeitgeist or whatever...but I'm sure this will fail just like all the other shows that deserved full/multiple seasons and got shut down before they even got out of the gate.

4) It's from Jesse Alexander (that's him with the very very cool glasses here to the right) who got very publicly canned from Heroes (same network) last year, and some have said in a very sacrificial lamb kind of way.

5) Finally, we'd all like to think we've been chosen for something, right? Well, these people have been chosen. By who? Watch the clip.

From NBC.com:

In the aftermath of a global event that devastates the world's infrastructures, a small band of survivors strives to rebuild society and unravel the mysteries of why the event took place and what the future has in store. Told from the point of view of an eclectic group of neighbors in a Van Nuys, California apartment building, this journey of survival will show us that hope is found in the smallest of victories and heroes are born every day.

And, also after the jump, listen to what Alexander has to say about the show in a clip from Hulu. 

Some of the action in the preview clip reminds me of the first episode of the BBC series Survivors (soon on BBC America) in tone, but I have a sense Day One will veer off dramatically from that as it progresses.

The show isn't scheduled till early 2010. Things change, though, and I'll keep you in the loop.

So, a post-apocalyptic show for NBC on Monday nights at 9? Really? Against Two And A Half Men and The Big Bang Theory, whose audiences skew somewhat male? I dunno, we'll see. Like I said, things change.

Oh, and I'm adding Quiet Earth, "Dedicated to genre film and all things post apocalyptic ... We're fans first, journalists second," to the blogroll. Great site, go visit.

Heroes Star David Lawrence Heading to Jail? YES!!!

Uh huh! And only you can get him out.

Scariest puppeteer on TV heads to the lock up for the Muscular Dystrophy Association on June 24. You get it now, right? It's a fundraiser. Your donations "pay" David's bail and only then will he be released from the East Valley Lockup in Universal City.

(Note to David: if you set up a perp walk, I'll try to get some people there. But it has to be full on handcuffs and struggling against the officer. And if said officer happens to not really be a cop but a male stripper who performs after he throws you in the pokey I can get even more people there. I have readers in the Valley.)

Here's the deal, readers ... you're gonna give something to MDA before Labor Day anyway, because if you have a even an ounce of compassion you give to the telethon. Start now, click this link.

I'll start you off. There, I just did it.

Oh, c'mon Brian Austin Greene*, here because he Googled himself (AGAIN!) pony up buddy!

* I don't actually know if Brian Austin Greene has ever visited this blog or if he Googles himself. He's just the first actor I thought of because I just read that he's taking a role on Smallville which is apparently why he pulled out of One Tree Hill.

Sorry Brian, you were a convenience and I apologize.

Now the rest of you click over and support David Lawrence and MDA.

Heroes Nowhere Man Part II and More With David Lawrence (but that will come later)

Just to let you know, I had the second part of my interview with David Lawrence ready to go and then I clicked over from Facebook to the piece BuzzFocus ran yesterday on him and it's almost all the same quotes and subjects, so I'm gonna send you over there to read what they did today and I'll come up with something else from my hour of audio with him.

But in the meantime, the second part of Nowhere Man is live at NBC.com at this link and I haven't even watched it yet so have at it gang and I'll be back with more David in the next day or so.

Heroes' David Lawrence at NBC.com on His Character Arc & Nowhere Man Webisode Series

Watch it right here.

LINK

More of my interview with David this coming Monday night, with a link to the new chapter of Nowhere Man.

Heroes Webisodes Exclusive -- I Talk to David Lawrence, Creepiest Puppeteer on Television About Nowhere Man

UPDATE: The first webisode is now live, it's at this link at NBC.com. Have at it, gang!

Good morning Heroes fans. It's a Monday and we're coming off quite the good episode from last week. We've finally seen where all the players from the past key into the story of The Company. We learn more about Angela Petrelli that I ever thought there was to learn. We met the young Chandra Suresh and with that we discover this very Battlestar-esque meme of how we as a people are bound to repeat the mistakes of our past if we don't learn from them, or even worse, don't let that history be known to all.

And today, the first of a four-segment webisode series begins starring everyone's favorite creepy puppeteer Eric Doyle, who, with the new identity given to him by the helpful cheerleader Claire Bennet attempts to go off and live a life of relative obscurity as an office drone.

Of all things, huh?

Doyle has been played brilliantly by, per Variety's Brian Lowry this past week, "the very regally named David H. Lawrence XVII" (which, by the way, is his SAG name because there was another David Lawrence and you can't have two). I wrote about David's first appearance as Doyle because he totally creeped me out in his scenes in that first episode he shot with Jessalyn Gilsig's Meredith Gordon.

(During my lunch with David, he wanted me all to remind you to watch Gilsig on Glee this May 19 after Idol on Fox, he really loved working with her. And as I've said on a few occasions now, he's such a mensch.)

We met at Mo's in Burbank and hit the ground running -- he's one of those people that I would never run out of conversation with, we have too many interests in common.

What you don't know is that Lawrence's first episode was supposed to be his last. I'll have him tell the story to you later in the webisode series. I will be having parts of my interview with him from last week posted with each of this four part series.

Suffice to say on his first day of shooting the writers on the set disappeared and then reappeared with more stuff for him. He's now appeared in eight episodes since that debut on Heroes last September, which you'll find out as the weeks progress is a testament to his preparation and, I think, his passion for doing this.

Another thing you don't know about Lawrence, a Cleveland guy who had a big career in radio broadcasting and in technology for years (just look around his website to see all the irons he has in the fire) until he finally succumbed to that need to fulfill his  dream. He's only been seriously pursuing this acting career for the past three years, and he's applied all those skills from his previous profession admirably and quite effectively.

More on all these things as the episodes progress. I could throw it all at you now, but I know you can see these webisodes everywhere and I want you to keep coming back here for them.

So, we're good? Okay.

We start with David talking about finding out that this web series would center around him.

"You could have knocked me over with a feather," he told me. "My agent called and said they want you to do some webisodes series. I said some webisodes for Heroes, and he's like yeah, and I said, 'The Recruit? And Going Postal?'

"And he said, 'I have no idea what you're talking about,' but I did because I'm a fan."

"When I found out they were centering it about me I thought they would just have me do what I did on the show, I'd show up I'd do some puppet stuff and then they'd get rid of me or they'd make me scream that I wanna be normal."

But that's not the case. Eric Doyle, as you know, now has a new identity. He is Jason now, and as you'll see there's also someone else from the Heroes universe that mysteriously reappears. All he would tell me is that I would be very surprised.

"This is all about what happens to this character after Claire helps him and you find out what that smile was all about, Lawrence said. "That smirk at the end after Claire asks, 'Are you serious? Are you really gonna change?' and I give you that smirk? You'll see."

"And when you watched the trailer you saw a character that makes a return that nobody expected. I was really amazed at how well it is written and what it let me do."

The webisodes were produced by Heroes Exec Producer Dennis Hammer and written by Timm Keppler and Jim Martin. They're shot by Retrofit Films, which both David and I agree is important to continuity for the fans.

"They so get the Heroes look and feel and they have access to all the same production elements, so they have all the familiar music and the effects for the fans ... and, I finally go a copy of my sound effect."

Then Lawrence does the effect with the hand movement, the mouth's closed movement that you might remember from your kindergarten teacher now taken to an entirely creepy new level, and, honestly, I got a little freaked out, right there in front of my omelette and bagel.

"It's a four episode series," he explains, "and we find out what kind of a really wonderful guy Eric/Jason is. I get a love interest and I get to save a damsel in distress, and I get to kick some ass.

"I watched the episodes in the big digital theatre at NBC.com and I'm thinking this is some of the best work I've ever done. If it all ended tomorrow, this would be awesome. It'll be really interesting to see how the fans react to it. "

This blogger doesn't think for a second that it will all end tomorrow for David. I'm pretty sure the second the people at Heroes let him go he'll be on his way to bigger things.

In the subsequent weeks, I'll have details for you about David's career in radio and the tech field, more about his really remarkable "second act," his kids' reaction to his rather sudden launch into the Zeitgeist (it involves a Zac Efron request) and of course I'll have more of Heroes: Nowhere Man, which premieres today online.

After the jump, watch Tim Kring talk to you fans about the show and these webisodes, and then watch the trailer, see the mystery returning player, and as soon as it posts at NBC.com, I'll be updating this post with the link to the first segment of Heroes: Nowhere Man, starring David Lawrence.

UPDATE: The first segment is live, as I said at the top of this post, at this NBC.com link.

No New Posts Till Later Day, I'm "On Assignment"

On my way up to Burbank to have lunch and conversation with Heroes' David Lawrence, who plays the squirm-inducing puppeteer Eric Doyle.

Lawrence is the star of the webisodes that will being April 24 and lead us into the next chapter of the show.

Met him on Twitter during my short tenure there. Only good thing that happened there, in fact.

Look at me, I finally have something decent to Twitter about and I closed the account.

Also, later today, BBC One airs Doctor Who Planet of the Dead.

I'm tingly with anticipation.

Yes, tingly.

Back atcha later!

It's Monday, Here's a Heroes Post with No Recap, No Preview, No Plot Discussion

(Photo of Ali Larter's character in peril just for Rob.)

Plot? Do they have one?

Well, since it's Monday, here's some stuff ...

Tim Kring has a clip up all over the web about this Heroes All Access Fan Club. Yet the clip, for all it's minute and twenty-five seconds worth of talking, says almost nothing.

Wanna see it? It's at this link, but clicking said link may indicate to me that you're a sucker and I might try to sell you the Brooklyn Bridge.

I found this quote on a fan forum: "So, I just checked. There's nothing up yet. I wonder why they have Kring talk about it then don't post anything to sign up?

"I wonder how much its going to cost and if we'll get decoder rings?"

A decoder ring would be great for those episodes that just suck. Maybe there is hidden meaning in some of Aron Eli Coleite's more hackneyed dialog.

Another Kring item ... Tim has signed a deal to work with Nokia's Ovi app store for some new something or other that was probably touted as the next wave in convergence a few months ago but now is already out of date and won't make money.

This project has a code name. Code names for projects often indicate to me that the marketing is way, way ahead of the product. At least in my experience. So, keep that code name, in this case TEVA, also the name of a generic pharmaceutical company (I recognized the name from the packages of adult undergarments that Grandma was using before she left us) in the back of your mind if you're a Nokia phone user.

(Me? I can't even dial my cellie without misdialing once. My fingers are huge!)

If I was NBC, I'd be letting Tim know that he already has a job, a job that he doesn't even do particularly well in their eyes.

Finally, from our pal Meghan at BuddyTV.com is a slideshow called "110 Heroes Characters You Need to Know," complete with a cataloging of their abilities and a bio.

That is at this link, so have at it and while you're clicking through make a mental note of how many of these actors you would have liked to see stay and who is still around that you need to get rid of.

Claire!

Yeah, I'm not really lovin' the cheerleader lately. She just pisses me off. I know she'll be the last to go, too, only because I want her gone.

Heroes Question -- Why Do Hiro and Ando Know Who Dr. Phil Is?

Did you catch the moment this week on Heroes when Hiro and Ando talk about Dr. Phil?

How stupid was that, returning prodigal son Bryan Fuller?

No discipline in the writers room, apparently.

You can't just have a character reference anything, there has to be some sort of cogent reasoning behind it.

I'm just not convinced that the two would have any idea who he is.

And if baby Matt Parkman saves all the heroes at the end of this "volume," the next volume will not be read by me.

I'm on the edge of not watching this show anymore ... AGAIN!

At least Daphne is gone. Tracy Strauss? Not so much. The wink said it all.

Noah Gray-Cabey's done a lot of growing up since two years ago, though, huh?

Quelle Surprise! Heroes' Hayden -- Star Makes Boilerplate Nice Nice With Press, Ex, Fans

You know I rarely say anything about this celebrity stuff but since Heroes is on tonight and I can whore it up with the best of them if need be, though OK! Magazine should not consider this an audition at all even if I am linking to them.

Former cheerleader now comic geek bait Hayden has been covering her tracks publicity-wise after a couple of bad hits. First, there was a dust-up with a reporter in Hawaii that had the words "Don't you ever touch me" attached.

(Requisite cat wail)

Then, reports that she was trying to get inappropriately aged ex Milo canned from the show. That made me laugh 'cause I realized she might actually have the juice to do that.

So, she went to the very reputable news and information leader OK! Magazine with ...

"Milo and I are very close," the 19-year-old beauty explains to OK!. "We have enjoyed and continue to enjoy working together."

(snip)

"I have tremendous respect for the media and reporters – particularly the press who treat the people they are interviewing with dignity," she says. "I am appreciative that the press has supported me, my career, and especially the causes I feel passionately about. While in Hawaii, one reporter grabbed me suddenly from behind and frightened me. It happens. Typically, the press has treated me with great respect."

And check this, Tim Kring gets involved too. Also in OK! Mag:

OK! also heard from Heroes honcho Tim Kring, who said that his stars' relationship status has nothing to do with how he and his staff plot the NBC hit. "The final decision about which characters live and die on Heroes rests with me," he tells OK!. "I've made no announcement yet as to who will return and who won't."

Very rarely do I see writer/creator/executive producers getting involved in a celeb story on this level, unless it's Shonda Rhimes and I blame her cast for that. They're even more unruly.

When I read these celeb statements I always think about that series with Courteney Cox on FX a couple years back called Dirt.

Why OK! Magazine? Did they have something even more alarming on her? Was this a trade a la Lucy Skinner's method of finding cover-worthy stories?

How does a girl who got her GED after homeschooling and working all through her teens sit down to write a statement like either of them, anyway? Some reasonably sophisticated sentence construction for a 19-year-old, I think.

How about we don't really buy all this official statement crap or exclusive to this fish wrap with color photos garbage because we're not stupid.

Kids, here's a lesson for you ... Don't have sex with the much older guy at work and expect it will work out. It doesn't ever work out.

It was HaLo from the get-go, it was bound to end in a shootout.

NBC's Bromstad -- Heroes Will Return with Shorter Order, Lead-In/Out Possibilities

So, it's a go for next year. Which is fine, I guess, if the shows are good and people watch them. I'll watch them, I find myself feeling like an abused wife in my relationship with the show, which kinda lets on that I'm be continuing to watch.

Just sheesh, guys, can you please get a little more consistent with the content? Please? The way I see it, there are gonna be a lot of TV writers with drama experience on the market at the end of the season (five less hours for drama in primetime with the Leno move to 10), and I think you need to be picking up a couple free agents and letting go of some staff as well.

Hibberd at THR Live Feed has the details:

As part of Hollywood Reporter’s annual Q&As with the five broadcast network chiefs, Bromstad was asked if “Heroes” could be considered “on the bubble” for a renewal.

“No,” she said, and added that the network plans to order 18-20 episodes of the show for next season.

That's fewer hours than "Heroes" first (23) or current third season (25), with season two having been cut short due to the writers strike.

For all its headline-making audience erosion, “Heroes” is still tied with NBC's “The Office” as the network’s top-rated series among adults 18-49 this season. 

Also being factored: NBC's pilot project “Day One,” about a group of survivors in the wake of a catastrophic global event. If the serialized “Day One” goes to series, having an established sci-fi drama like “Heroes” could help the new show in a few ways, including possibly airing as part of the same Monday night block.

Sorry, James, I took a lot of your post. I'm always hopeful that my pithy remarks at your blog make up for this kind of excess.

A full interview with Bromstad and other network honchos will appear in the Friday Reporter, so don't forget to click over for that. They may even have some video (they usually do).

About Day One, from another THR article:

The project, produced by Universal Media Studios, chronicles the aftermath of a global event that devastates the world's infrastructures when a small band of survivors strive to rebuild society and unravel the mysteries of why the event took place and what the future has in store.

It comes from Jesse Alexander, late of the writing/producing staff ... at Heroes.

And the world goes round.

Still, I don't get how, if NBC wants low cost reality fare at 8 and they have Leno at 10, they will have an hour drama lead in or lead out of another hour long drama.

I wonder if they get it?

Heroes' Hunter Straps Suicide Vest to Parkman -- Over the Top or Comic Book-ish

I don't know what to think about the end of this week's Heroes episode. Is it in this Hunter guy's makeup to strap a suicide vest on Matt and push him out of the SUV on the Capitol Mall?

Isn't there just loads of CCTV cameras on the mall these days? And heightened security, even with the Hunter's various clearances? Wouldn't someone figure this out?

Does the guy who wrote this think you're stupid?

Now that's something to think about, because the name on the episode was Aron Eli Coleite and when you look at his IMDB page and see the eps that are "his" (of course, everything on this show is written by committee), he seems responsible for all the crap this show has attempted to foist on its very very forgiving fan base in the past.

I hate to harp on one guy, especially when the US TV industry is such a group effort (especially the writing), but the evidence is telling.

I just can't buy this. Apparently, per the preview for next show, he either doesn't get away with it or he gets away with branding not only our hunted heroes but also Senator Nathan Petrelli a clear and present danger to the American people and then things really turn around.

And eventually the Sylar story should merged with this one, and I would guess that will take till the end of the season to happen, but that could be a great confrontation.

I just hope that's an episode the Verheiden or Fresco write.

Sorry, Aron.

Though if you were responsible for the moment when Justin Baldoni (kissing Claire above left) took off his shirt I take some of that back. But just some of it.

And not just because it was fun to see. I seem to have been one of the few blogs that had a shirtless pic of the guy posted. Many new readers because of that.

And next week it seem's Claire gets a job at a comic book store because the geeks love to look at her. Don't you love when art imitates life?

Preview clip at this link.

Full Episode Heroes Video -- Rob Fresco Writes the Best Ep In a Looooong Time

Okay, the show is back. At least for me it is.

Great episode, lots of stuff going on for our favorites, a newbie pops up again (this one's another comic book store employee -- really? -- that can breathe under water -- let's see him in a Speedo, producers! Or at least shirtless, his charcter is a swimmer!) there's actually some acting going on.

(More on the shirtless thing? Just look at two images to the left there of Justin Baldoni. I'd like a little more beefcake on this show. We never see Peter less dressed anymore, I miss that. BTW, click the image and it gets bigger. No, not "it," just the photo.)

(Note the Gray family resemblance, btw, with swimboy. Both he and Gabriel have the same shaped face, and surprise, so does John Glover, who as you might know will be playing the elder parental Gray in upcoming episodes, probably starting with the episode in two weeks at this moment called Shades of Gray.)

This hour of the show was written by Rob Fresco, who's been with the show since the beginning of this season and wrote the Villians episode that aired originally in November.

Rob worked on the final short season of Jericho before this.

So, there was actually some acting going on in the episode, which lately has been hard to come by on this show, because there's usually not time made for it, not because they don't have people who can act.

Finally, Zach Quinto gets a scene partner. I like the kid, his name is Dan Byrd (image right) and you might have seen him last TV season in a delightful show that didn't make it on The CW called Aliens in America (not space aliens, the other country variety).

I agree with Jason at TV Squad, I think the texting Rebel is Noah Bennet. I also think we find out more about that next week when they come back with this year's version of Company Man from season one. It's called Cold War and I find myself looking forward to it.

Been a long time since I've been looking forward to an episode of Heroes. Thank you, people who work there.

Other things I liked? The whole Tracey piece of business, with the addition of Moira Kelly as the DHS person that gets duped by the Hunter's little scheme (unlocked door, faulty hardware, been three, done that!).

If you haven't watched it yet, the full episode is after the jump from Hulu.

Video -- The Mark Verheiden Influence on Heroes

The moment we see Nathan in the hanger with the military transport plane and the orange jumpsuits and the shackles I immediately thought of Mark Verheiden, the former Battlestar Galactica writer/producer now on staff.

Then Claire made her way into the cockpit and turned to find her father sitting in the co-pilot seat my initial reaction was, "Noah's a Cylon?" Because you know, you just didn't expect him to be there.

Then, when the cabin lost pressure and that music started and the noise of the plane and the fighting dimmed, I actually first thought about Bear McCreary. But then I thought about Verheiden's presence and I also realized that the music wasn't quite what I'd expect from McCreary, the instrumentation was a bit too, uh ... lush.

Which all just goes to prove how the presence of one man can effect the tone of a TV show.

Verheiden writes next week episode, called Trust and Blood, per his blog, which is now also an addition to my links list in the left column. It's called "Stuff You Should Click," so go, click!

That scene, and because it's from Hulu, the entire episode, Clear and Present Danger, after the jump. US only.

Sorry gang.

And it's ironically sponsored by a US gov't agency, the Air Force. At least it was when I clicked it up.

So, I'm back in. What I know we would all love from this show is some consistency. With the recent staff additions, hopefully we'll see that.

Oh, and more Zeljko Ivanek (pictured right, he was the lead paramilitary guy will the deep set eyes who you remember from Damages and True Blood). He's just the right kind of creepy for this.

And despite him being not a very big guy, he's pretty imposing in other ways. He seems to give off a G. Gordon Liddy vibe.

Video -- Wait a Minute, Now Elway Can Fly, Too? Do Peter and Nathan Have a Secret Brother?

NBC going all out, balls out, to bring people back to Heroes tomorrow night.

At 9. On NBC.

No Elway tomorrow night. At least I hope not. There's more than enough former jocks trying to hit a mark and say a line.

And I just don't buy that skinny li'l Sendhil Ramamurthy on anyone's front line. Looks good, but I betcha just a dirty look would bruise him.

LINK

Ali Larter Live Chat at Fancast Tomorrow (Friday) at 2 Eastern, 11 Pacific ...

... and the rest of you can do your own math.

Rob Buckley, you will really have to do your own math. I would be sending this post to you if I hadn't just clicked over and saw that you're already in the know, and you can chat with Ali through a widget at Rob's blog, if you like as well. Just click Rob's name and you'll be transported to The Medium is Not Enough, home of the regular feature Random Acts of Ali Larter.

And thanks to Meg at Fancast, who should really send me a heads up earlier, but it's also cool that she left a comment at this post.

Meg.

Speaking of Meg ... go look after the jump for something special.

Video -- They're Ba-ack! And They Are Fugitives: Heroes Behind the Scenes Of the New Chapter

Please, please, please be a better show than the first nine episodes of the Fall.

They were terrible.

(The Ali Larter montage above is specifically for Rob Buckley. Happy Tuesday, Rob.)

Oh Bryan Fuller (pictured left, what a cutie, huh?), great returning hero from Pushing Daisies and all those other great shows (Wonderfalls, anyone?), please come back and return the show to season one form!

(And, once again, let me just note that it's a gay man who's coming back to make it all better, to bring the excitement and the drama and the comedy that comes along for the ride. So, all you Mormons, remember that when you're watching Heroes come back to life -- I'm being optimistic here -- remember that the guy responsible is just one of the many people that you stripped civil rights from this past election cycle. Harrumph!)

Speaking of Fuller, Ausiello at EW spoke to him recently about returning to the fold and I share this from them:

Your work starts with episode 19, yes?
Yes. I'm fortunate to be coming into a very exciting story line. [Former co-exec producers] Jeph [Loeb] and Jesse [Alexander], before they left the show, set so many great events in motion with the "Fugitives" arc [kicking off Feb. 2]. It really is a fresh start. All of the characters are back in their real lives. You see Peter as a paramedic. Claire is looking for colleges. We get away from the world of formulas and quasi-magic.

Are the "Fugitives" episodes leading up to 19 solid?
Yes. Episodes 14, 15 and 16 are amazing. The whole "Fugitives" arc starts out very strongly, and then it gets a little dense in the middle in terms of the mythology. So I came in right at the point where everybody was realizing, "Oh, we're getting too dense here and we need to put faces on stories because there is no face to a formula; there is no face to saving the world." So it's turning this big ship back into a character stream, and everyone on the writing staff shares that desire. We need to get back into a character place, because that's where this story started: Very clean, superhero metaphors to everyday life. That's the path that we're taking. But it is a big ship so it's going to take a little while to turn it.

So, all this AND John Glover (above right) as Sylar's real dad? Okay, I'm back. But stop screwing with my allegiance for the show, okay Tim Kring? You're like an abusive lover what with all the promises and then disappointment.

I have clippage from NBC after the jump.

Video -- Golden Globes: Was Jay Mohr Quoting e.e. cummings Or Woody Allen?

Jay looked out into the crowd to his hot and funny wife, Nikki Cox (very funny, check out old eps of Unhappily Ever After, girl's got serious comedy chops) and said:

no one, not even the rain, has such small hands

e.e. cummings (pictured right) yes, but also a Michael Caine line from Hannah and Her Sisters.

In any event, it wasn't what I was expecting from Jay.

You'll remember that last year the People's Choice wasn't so much an award show as it was an interview show, what with the WGA on strike at the time. They gave Latifah another chance to host this year. I didn't even notice that the show was on until yesterday afternoon.

I went to the People's Choice Awards in 1985 and the thing that struck me was that Sly Stallone showed up just moments before his category, they sat him during commercial at a table down front, he won, and then all the people with him and him left.

Just left. Picked up and made haste.

That's when I stopped thinking seriously about the People's Choice Awards. Though I did vote for Doctor Who last year for favorite Scifi series last year. Not nominated this time, and Heroes won.

Yes, Heroes won. I know, it's embarrassing. Especially with BSG out there being such a great and transcendent show.

Then again, 27 Dresses was their favorite movie comedy. If I ran the vote I would have thrown out those ballots.

I was surprised that the show helped win the night for CBS, I had really thought after last year's issues the show would drop precipitously in the ratings.

Ratings info and a list of the TV winners from TV By the Numbers at this link.

Clip after the jump.

Video -- Haven't Watched Last Night's Heroes, But I Have the Last Five Minutes Right Here

Because from my morning research, I notice that a lot of you are looking for what your DVR cut off at the end.

It's right here below in this clip that I made at Hulu. After the last five ends, you can click a link on the screen to rewatch the whole thing.

I haven't seen it yet, and I haven't seen last week's episode yet, so I won't be catching up all that fast.

LINK

We'll discuss later, okay?

Heroes Video -- What My DVR Cut Off at the End (And Maybe Yours Too?)

UPDATE: If you're reading this on December 9 and you're looking for last night's DVR run off, click here.

I went to Hulu and customized a clip, just in case this happened to other Time Warner DVR viewers of the show. It's after the jump.

And, just to let you know, in response to the mail I've been getting lately dissing me for doing same to the show and the behind the camera crowd there (Tim), I 'm encouraging you to watch straight through Sweeps, even though others (Toby) have taken it off their series manager.

Good thing I did this, btw, there's certainly confirmation that there's some chemistry between Elle and Gabriel in that last minute, as short lived as it might be. You'll see.

After you watch the clip, you can click a link and watch the whole episode again right here online, and if you don't blink too hard you won't miss Seth Green and Breckin Meyer.

Re Seth, under my post about his eyebrow waxing was this lovely comment ...

::sigh:: he's perfect

Love that.

Down Economy Hitting iTunes, Amazon? I Get Discount Ad Emails From Both Today

I had to laugh at the email from Amazon. It reads:

As someone who has purchased a sci-fi TV show on DVD from Amazon.com, we thought you'd like to know that the new season of "Heroes" is available to watch on your PC or Mac with Amazon Video On Demand. Get the entire season delivered commercial-free (including upcoming episodes) to Your Video Library, while saving an additional 5% off the episode price.

I thought to myself, "If you're gonna put something on sale, damn it, put it on sale!" Five percent? How lame is that?

(And Heroes on sale? It should be a much deeper discount. MUCH deeper.)

Then I got an email from iTunes with a $5 sale on albums and movies and an under $10 promo on TV packages including Tina Fey's handpicked top five 30 Rock eps and either this season or the previous of The Starter Wife (couldn't tell from their shoddy copywriting).

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a pit of a price war with this stuff, but why buy when you can have for free (with ad support)? If you can't sit through the even shorter breaks for ads than broadcast on Hulu you really have an attention deficit or patience issue you need to address.

I know they don't have everything, but I'm sure with some schedule jockeying, you could find your way logistically to paying little to nothing for program content.

For example, if you miss Heroes and you're already paying for the Mojo HD channel? Just watch it on Thursday at 8 eastern.

Heroes Video -- Obviously a Spark, But Was There Elle/Gabriel Chemistry?

You know, spark, because it's Elle and she has that electricity thing and she teaches him and ---

(Okay, fine. But I have to write every one of these headlines myself. Occasionally I bomb.)

Well, how symbolic that Tim Kring should write this episode which attempts to reboot the whole entire series, at least in theme.

Another eclipse coming (hence the episode title It's Coming), Claire once again deemed special, now even more special than the rest, Hiro recapturing his innocence again and even reading comic books again (even if he hasn't run into our TV pal Seth Green yet), only this time there's a definite villian, which kind of harshes the banding together to do good zazz that came with the initial story because that definite villian has it out for his entire family, and it's that family that we've grown to know and love since the last eclipse.

This week the Elle/Gabriel (Gabri-Elle?) relationship advances which leads me to believe that they are setting us up to care about them in advance of some horrible thing happening to them in the coming weeks.

Intrigued by their scenes together, but I have trouble buying Gabriel Gray in any relationship with a woman. I just always assumed otherwise. Projection on my part? I dunno.

(After the jump, watch their big scene together. Then afterward if you like you can click a link provided and watch the whole episode over again, if you are so disposed.)

Anyhow, we're being set up for a couple big episodes coming up, but remember that this chapter is quickly coming to a close and something has to happen.

And then we can all meet back here and decide if we care. How's that sound?

UPDATED: Tonight on Heroes -- That is, If You're Still Watching ... a Seth Green Appearance?

UPDATE: Well, you figured out that I was looking at the wrong episode listing for Seth's appearance. Yet I will not regret taking that opportunity to link to my post on the history of Seth's eyebrow waxing, complete with four-photo gallery and analysis. And we'll look for Seth next week.

Tonight on Heroes ... eventually these six people end up sitting and standing just like this for a moment, and then they move into different positions.

Outside of that, I don't quite know what to tell you. Stuff will happen involving flames or extreme cold or head-slicing guy will slice open someone's head ... but whether of not it will be consequential to the plot is completely beyond me.

Here, watch the clip. Maybe you can make something out of it.

Damn, if I'm Kristen Bell and I've cleared my schedule to make time to be on this show this season? If I'm her, I'm pretty pissed off at this point.

She has three films (one animated) in the can and three films (0ne animated) in production, per IMDB. And, the page indicated that the second part of tonight's Eclipse episode, which will air next week, is her last this season (though they just might not have listed more yet).

And, if you click the previous link you'll see our TV pal Seth Green listed as an actor on this episode. (He's not in the clip after the jump, don't bother looking.)

A couple months ago it was reported that Seth and Breckin Meyer where gonna play Atlanta-based comic book geeks for a multi-episode arc. No Breckin at IMDB, however.

Hey, maybe this is why Seth is been focusing on all the brow waxing activity. You think?

Heroes' Behind the Scenes High School Soap Opera Drama Continues

And here's the latest.

Variety:

"Heroes" exec producer Tim Kring will attend this Saturday's Screenwriting Expo in Downtown Los Angeles after all.

But in a reversal, recently axed "Heroes" co-exec producers Jesse Alexander and Jeph Loeb won't be appearing, despite earlier promises that they still planned to show up.

The last minute panel switcheroo came soon after Variety reported Thursday night that Alexander and Loeb had decided to still appear on the "Heroes" panel, while Kring had opted out.

So, these three men, who all worked very closely for at least three years, can't be on the same stage? Even though the language of their comments indicates no ill will?

Kind of.

From what I can gather, all three were orginally scheduled but then after being canned Loeb and Alexander said they would still attend. Kring at that point pulled out, saying something about not wanting to pull focus from the two.

Then NBC-Uni got involved and said it wouldn't like fired Heroes employees representing the show. And since there are only a few places to sell you TV show these days (damned media consolidation) and Alexander has a project pending with NBC, they pulled out and so that the panel would have a Heroes writer, Kring stepped back in.

All so ridonkulous. And lemme ask you this ... Why would this screenwriting expo want any of these guys on a panel anyway? The show blows big massive chunks these days. I think they've shot their creative load, so to speak.

Maybe the upcoming eclipse (above) will change everything. We are in a mood for change, after all.

Evangelical-Based TV Watchdog Claims Ty Pennington Suitable For Viewing But Not Stewie Griffin

It's the pitchfork and torch crowd again. You know, the Parents Television Council.

TV Week's Vlada Gelman on the questionably suitable Dancing With the Stars:

As if the sight of toned women in scanty ballroom dance outfits isn’t horrible enough (somebody ought to alert PBS, which often airs real ballroom dancing competitions), the child may be scarred for life after seeing Cloris Leachman in a revealing evening gown.

Fortunately, Vlada and I don't take these people too seriously. Just seriously enough to mention them, refute their findings and marginalize them.

And c'mon, Ty Pennington is suitable TV watching? Not in my house. I just can't stand the combo of sappy and maudlin (though I do enjoy the Sammy Maudlin, SCTV host).

Here's their list of shows that they deem inappropriate viewing.

Hell's Kitchen -- Yeah, me too, but not because of the language specifically, but because of the way Gordon spits while he curses. And overall, I just don't like the guy. I don't care that he screams bloody murder at the poor saps on the show, after all they must have known what they were in for.

House -- D'ya think they have a problem with the pill-popping doc? Or is it the pansexual woman with the number for a name? Or, it is that House is a proponent of stem cell research?

Heroes -- What, because they don't like the plot holes and the dark turn the show has taken? Because there really isn't too much besides that going on! I can't imagine these same people who supported the Iraq War and the Bush Doctrine of preemptive war would care if Arthur Petrelli pulled a guy's head off.

Moment of Truth -- I would love Tim Winter from the PTC to go on this show. I have the questions already written. The first one has to do with why the PTC spends so much time and effort trying to convince others that their efforts aren't connected to a theocratic worldview.

American Dad -- He wears a flag pin. Why no love for Stan and the Smiths? Maybe it's the gay alien.

Family Guy -- Yeah, I don't think Seth cares what the PTC says. He's swimming in $100 bills in his palacial tub in his 1200 sq. ft. bathroom. Stewie, however, is primed for attack.

Four Fox shows. What will that Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity Bill O'Reilly say about this?

I would quote Stewie directly, but he's currently at sea. Watch him, after the jump.

NY Magazine on Heroes' Arthur Petrelli: "Turns Out He Was Behind the Whole Shebang All Along!"

Will Leitch at the Vulture blog:

Remember the episode of Lost that gave the backstories of Nikki and Paulo, two random background characters? To integrate them into the ongoing story, the producers actually reshot iconic scenes with the duo in the foreground. There’s Nikki screaming as the plane burns behind her! There’s Paulo talking to Arst like they knew each other all along! They were always here — you just didn’t see them! For about the 450th time, Heroes borrows a Lost trick, with a “One Year Ago” episode — told through the eyes of a hallucinating Hiro, for no apparent reason — where Robert Forster’s Arthur Petrelli shows up in scenes from Heroes past.

(snip)

The “shock” ending of having Arthur pop up behind Hiro doesn’t make any sense either, though it’s difficult to argue with another peripheral character (Usutu) being beheaded.

This is what happens when someone is tasked with saving a TV show. They pull rabbits out of hats.

How many hats? How many rabbits? I dunno. Apparently an infinite amount. And every time they pull on a pair of rabbit ears, more audience goes away.

Maybe next year, instead of creator Tim Kring doing a victory lap across every international TV festival and literary festival that invites him, he could actually sit for a while with the show's bible and give us something plausible for the future.

Seriously, how many TV galas did Kring show up at to do what was called a "master class" on TV writing?

Maybe he should have attended one.

And one other thing that I'm pissy about. Remember last year how they ran that promotion with Sprint where we were to choose the characteristics of a new Hero, a new character for the show? Well, it turned out not to be for the show, it turned out to be for a Sprint-branded webisode that has no connection to the actual series.

And that's a bait and switch that I don't care for.

Frankly, I don't care for branded content at all. It's just another take on product placement, and product placement was invented by Satan.

Where Did My Heroes Post Go? AGAIN!!!

This is getting very strange.

Two episodes in a row the post I've written about Heroes, this one that aired last night and the previous new episode, has disappeared. They were there and then they were gone.

And I have no idea where they went.

It's just too weird.

I had saved a draft version that appeared in its stead for a little while, but the post I'm looking for had three images in it and an embed from Hulu.

Maybe that Wireless chick that still sends me emails (though I opted out forever ago) got into the server at Typepad to play with my head because I don't open those emails anymore.

My post was headed by this same image of Arthur and Angela Petrelli as you see above.

It was about how this show used to be about people realizing that unique could be good. Now it's about a guy who failed to kill his own son, a kinda Sopranos on Steroids version of an Italian-American version of the Kennedys.

And it's getting too dark to be a ratings winner. It can't possibly have the mass appeal that they want it to have and be about a guy who would kill his son to create a new world order where he calls all the shots. That's not what we were sold in season one, it's not what became an international phenomenon.

It used to be about a saving a cheerleader. And she was blonde and young and sweet and not dating at thirty-year-old, btw.

Well, I'll give em thru sweeps to reengage me. They need to work fast. The ratings were the lowest in the show's history last night.

I think the other post might had more flair. On the second pass I get to the point.

If nothing else, the ep was notable for giving Quinto a couple great scenes.

True Blood: Emmy Winner Zeljko Ivanek Guests as Vampire Judge, Upcoming as Heroes' "Hunter"

 

When I was in high school Zeljko Ivanek was a young actor working a lot on Broadway. And he had a foreign name. And I was reading those theatre listings in the NY Times like they were the Rosetta Stone.

So I always remember Zeljko Ivanek.

But I hadn't seen him in years until he showed up in Damages as Ray Fiske, the creepy consigliere to Ted Danson's even creepier Arthur Frobisher, he of the hookers and blow in the back seat of the limo crowd. And Ivanek beat Danson for the Emmy for supporting actor in a drama.

Even creepier? Last night on True Blood as the vampire judge that rules on Bill Compton's murder of a fellow vampire to save Sookie Stackhouse.

(You can watch the whole episode right now at HBO if you like. Here's the link.)

It's also been announced that Ivanek will recur in a few episodes of Heroes after the holidays as The Hunter. Since the chapter in the (failing) saga is being called Fugitives, a guy called The Hunter must be a big part of the action, don't you think?

Well, I guess we should see about whether or not the show will survive long enough to show us this chapter. Because if I'm an NBC honcho and I'm seeing the cheapie shows that are rating higher than Heroes, I'm starting to look around for a lower cost option.

Maybe an hour of grass growing? Paint drying?

Watch Ivanek work with Stephen Moyer in a clip from the tribunal scene after the jump. Very creepy. Somewhat suitable for work (with the volume down) but not for the kiddies.

It's after the jump.

Monday Ratings Make My Head Hurt, or Is It All Christian Slater's Fault?

Who had the brilliant idea to put Slater in a TV series, anyway? I don't like the way he looks or sounds and from what I can gather I don't think we would get along if sat down next to each other at a party.

I'd rather see A.C. Slater, and I don't mean Mario Lopez, I mean the fictional character A.C. Slater.

Did you know that the Univision talker fronted by Christina Saralegui actually tied with My Own Worst Enemy in adults 18-34? And not just in Los Angeles but nationwide.

Is this enough of an indictment on the popularity of this particular actor and this show?

It's a shame, I like Mike O'Malley so much. I'm always hoping someone will write a buddy sitcom for him and Donal Logue.

Robert Seidman at TV By the Numbers:

(T)hough NBC is declaring it the “new hit” with Christian Slater in “the role everyone is talking about”, My Own Worst Enemy came in last among the big three at 10pm with an anemic 4.25 million and a 1.8/5 among 18-49 year olds. Someday those might be “hit” numbers for a big broadcast net, but today is not that day.

James Hibberd at THR Live Feed:

"My Own Worst Enemy" (4.3 million, 1.8), which had been eroding gradually, suddenly dunked below the waves in the demo, down 22% to a new low.

Heroes looks like it still has some uumph ratings-wise until you compare it to previous eps this season. It's at the series low. And that ain't a good thing for them. More on Heroes after I actually watch the show.

CBS is kvelling, however. The sitcom lineup is performing quite nicely against that ridiculous show on ABC where celebrities put out apartment house fires do ballroom dancing.

(Seriously, wouldn't you be more apt to watch if there was a chance that Derek Hough and Brooke Burke would be incinerated if they performed poorly?)

Hibberd, again:

CBS led the way with its comedy block, starting with "The Big Bang Theory" hitting a series high with 10 million viewers and a 3.9 preliminary adults 18-49 rating. "How I Met Your Mother" (9.7 million, 4.1) matched its season-best rating. "Two and a Half Men" (14.6 million, 4.9 -- the night's highest-rated show) and "Worst Week" (9.6 million, 2.9) were both up slightly, with "Worst" climbing 12%.

I only watch the first two, and I almost never watch them live. Honestly, I try not to watch anything live anymore. I get so much more show in when I can FF through commericals.

(I mean Fast Forward. Not the --- oh, never mind.)

In another number of note, Samantha Who? wins the 9:30 slot but only ties with Worst Week (which I call Worst Show) in the demo. I would still love Christina's show to have an appropriate lead-in, not the stupid ballroom dancing show, but I guess that's not gonna happen.

I haven't watched any Monday night TV short of yesterday's Maddow and the very few minutes of The Daily Show I watched before my eyes closed. I'll have a more critical eye later in the week.

I just can't get over how crappy NBC is doing on what was supposed to be their night. Who made these decisions? I feel bad for the gang at Chuck. They're doing some great stuff right now and all that anyone can talk about is how shitty Heroes and Slater's show have been.

E!'s Kristin With More on Heroes Shakeup: "Someone Had to Take the Fall"

So says her inside source.

More from the lovely Kristin (who is not as painfully thin as she was for a while, it is save to watch E! News again, folks):

Despite the shakedown, spirits were high at Saturday night's Hollywood Legacy Awards in Hollywood, which honored the Heroes cast and producers.

At the event, Kring laid out his plans for the future of the show:

"[The] Villains [chapter] goes until mid-December, and then we start the next volume, which is a brand new story from scratch called Fugitives. So you can start from scratch, or you can go right into Villains from that one."

He's also planning some more housecleaning. "There are a couple more deaths planned," Kring said. "Someone you have come to know will not make it to the end of the season."

So, Tim Kring is very off-handedly noting that if you want, you can stop watching the show til they get their shit together. That's certainly odd. I wonder what NBC has to say about that?

The thing is, I'm thinking about taking that suggestion seriously.

Okay, I'll probably watch them all, but just because of you guys and this blog. See how I put myself out for you?

Heroes Writer-Producers Loeb, Alexander Axed (more like hanged in the public square)

It's curious to me that these firings were so public. This morning in Variety, the report is that Jeph Loeb and Jesse Alexander (he wrote last Monday's episode and you can see him featured prominently in a photo-heavy post by Exec Prod Greg Beeman at his blog) are gonzo:

Both scribe-producers had been with the show since its first season and were known to have led the day-to-day production operation under the direction of creator/exec producer Tim Kring.

"Heroes," produced by Universal Media Studios, has struggled in the ratings its third season. It's understood that Alexander and Loeb were let go because of Peacock execs' frustration with the creative direction of the show. The show is also said to have been grappling with hefty budget overruns this season, that are going well beyond its already sizable $4 million per-seg pricetag.

(Apparently, Greg wasn't let in on the face that Alexander would be let go when he posted. I don't know if he would have splayed the guy's face all over the page.)

Over $4 mil an episode? And, last week, it rated a 2.9 with 8.51 million viewers per Nielsen (via TVByTheNumbers.com). That's a lot of money on the screen for so few viewers.

While I'm at Greg's blog, I thought I'd leaf through the comments section from last week's ep to gauge viewer reaction, remembering of course that Greg's blog is a place for hardcore fans of the show.

Here's one:

Now that you've killed off two characters people liked (Adam and Maury), you owe it to us to kill Maya, on screen. She's the worst character on the show, and sending her off with a bus ticket after she's murdered and slept her way around is patently unfair. We deserve some payoff for suffering through her scenes for two seasons.

Ouch! Not that I disagree, but still, Ouch!

After episode 6, I felt like the show was getting back on track. Episode 7 proved me wrong. Sorry. The bottom line is that she show, for whatever reason, has lost its heart. This used to be a show about ordinary people with special powers trying to cope. Now it's about a bunch of boring, self-obsessed people who have little or no connection to reality.

I swear that isn't my comment. I haven't commented on Greg's blog since last season. It is, however, exactly how I have been feeling.

Holy Molly, what have you done with my favorite show? I am suprised that you all didn´t fall into the huge plot hole you made.

Plot hole, or black hole as created by one episode only hero from three weeks ago?

Oh, and I think that commenter meant Holy Moly.

And finally, incorporating the news today, this recent response:

is beeman out of the loop? alexander and loeb just got their walking papers...guess this epi wasnt all that good.

verheiden has been brought on the show

i love mark, but as long as kring remains show runner, i dont see him making much of an impact, unless he has been given carte blanche and told to make the next arc much like his series, the american...which was praised by none other than alan moore...high praise indeed for a first time writer of comics.

Verheiden is Mark Verheiden from Battlestar Galactica. His blog is at this link.

Heroes is off tonight in lieu of the SNL Presidential Bash. Let's talk about this again during the week, okay?

And use the comments. What do you think of all this?

Heroes Premiere Party, Was It a Good Idea in Retrospect? Will I Be Watching After Tonight?

I think that before you have a party, you should make sure you have something to celebrate. Do you think they watched any of the eps they shot before they showed up at this thing?

The show sucks. The ratings suck, too.

Last Monday's ratings from NielsenWire:

Rank	Program	Network	Viewers (P2+)
1	DANCING WITH THE STARS	ABC	18,497,000
2	TWO AND A HALF MEN	CBS	14,630,000
3	CSI: MIAMI	CBS	13,505,000
4	WORST WEEK	CBS	9,875,000
5	SAMANTHA WHO?	ABC	9,636,000
6	HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER	CBS	9,446,000
7	BIG BANG THEORY, THE	CBS	9,331,000
8	HEROES	NBC	8,510,000
9	BOSTON LEGAL	ABC	8,137,000
10	CHUCK	NBC	6,872,000
Source: The Nielsen Company (October 20, 2008).

Will this be the last night I watch Heroes? You'll have to click back tomorrow and find out.

NBC Sked Shakeup Makes Wednesday Crimetime, Also Confirmation of Heroes Winter Hiatus

With apologies to the CBS Exec who invented Crimetime After Primetime in the early 90s.

 Hollywood Reporter:

The new Wednesday night block: "Knight Rider," "Life" and the return of "Law & Order." The lineup premieres Nov. 5.

"Lipstick Jungle," which has been under-performing on Wednesday nights at 10 p.m., is shifting to Friday night starting Oct. 31 -- effectively swapping places with "Life."

Also, NBC is moving the premiere of upcoming reality show "Mommas Boys." The series will premiere after the finale of "Biggest Loser" on Dec. 16, then will move to Mondays at 9 p.m., taking over the "Heroes" time period during the action drama's winter hiatus.

And then the standard overworked comment from Silverman and Graboff. Not worth posting.

Blah blah blah Brooke Shields series shooting in NYC not working, blah blah blah Dick Wolf will bail us out again blah blah blah Heroes will take a break over the holidays almost longer than the shopping season again and come back even weaker and then it'll be canned by May. That's just my prediction.

C'mon, they know that when they break Heroes in two parts it doesn't work. Can an entire network programming department suffer from the psychosis of doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome?

Is there a place online where I could start a Ben Silverman gets fired over/under pool? Because that would be fun.

Honestly, I think the handwriting is on the wall. I know that they're cutting back budgetwise, you can see it in the casting. Do you really think Robert Forster was their first choice? I mean, does the 18-34 that they're looking for really know who he is? Don't you think they probably wanted someone but couldn't pay their rate? It's a very expensive show below the line, let alone the talent above.

Nothing personal against Robert Forster, of course.

It just makes me sad that it ran out of zazz so quickly. It was fleeting, like a shooting star.

Oh, and you can order the back nine on Knight Rider all you want, it still sucks and it's making me hate that car.

Around the Horn -- NBC's Heroes Sucks Edition, One Week Until I Bail

All posts the result of a search of the terms "Heroes NBC Sucks."

HeroesWorld.com:

I can’t identify with it. It looks like a show about some people that I care nothing about. It’s spread too thin over some convoluted and repeated “change the future/don’t change the future.”

And that comes from a blog that writes only about Heroes? What will others think? Also, consider that those words were written at the end of September. It's just gotten more convoluted since then.

Jeff Jensen at Entertainment Weekly, lamenting the ratings and the critical notices, has five ideas to save the show. One of them is ...

Nothing undermines creative integrity like making characters act out of character just for the sake of advancing plot. Yet Heroes has recklessly committed this sin more than once this season. Included in the hard-to-swallow idiocy was a suddenly powers-hungry Suresh, as well as flying man Nathan Petrelli's (Adrian Pasdar) utterly unconvincing religious conversion and boneheaded choice to heed career advice from his dead nemesis Linderman (Malcolm McDowell). But the most egregious development has involved one of the show's best assets, Hiro. Having him blithely embark on a potentially world-destroying adventure simply because he was bored? That's just lazy writing.

Finally, from James Gimler at Livej0urnal:

I don't ask much of you. All I ask is that this season you just try a little...just a little, and stop rippi...errr...homaging, so many other films like THE FLY and HALLOWEEN.

All I want is a little super-powered crack. Let me see some dudes hit each other with electrical blast. Give me a dark future. Steal from Chris Claremont's 1980's run of Uncanny X-Men all you want, but at least make it not suck. Oh, and try to remember your own storylines. I don't mind continuity changes, but when stuff doesn't flow one season to the next...or one episode to the next, ya'all got issues.

Future Peter is interesting. Jesus Nathan is interesting. Noah hunting the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants is interesting. Hiro is losing...well, lost, that endearing quality and is sorta annoying. I don't even remember Niki's full storyline besides her hubby going out like a punk.

I think they've got one more week of my eyes before I decide to bail.

Preview clip (with a Sprint commercial, sorry) after the jump.

NBC's Heroes, a Show With ADD for People Who Suffer with ADD (but I don't)

I would bet you that there have been more individual speaking roles per hour on Heroes than any other show in this history to television. Every time I watch the show there's some new character that is poised to do something or other that will change everything.

What is up with that? Who are all these people and why don't I get enough time to decide whether I'm gonna like them or not before they're placed in peril? And hasn't anyone on the production staff of this show ever heard of the story of the boy who cried wolf?

Because for all the hype each week, not much has really happened. Sure, people get all dramatic and up in each other's faces, and there's lots of interesting looking stuff on screen (in case you are attracted to color, and shiny things) but there's no there there.

I think this might be the first TV program that is being scripted with the needs of Attention Deficit Disorder patients in mind. It's either that or the writers' room has run out of Adderall.

But thank you, writers and producers, for killing Adam Monroe. David Anders can now return to the cash register where they found him. What? He's acted before? Really? I wouldn't know that unless you told me.

Why are all the overweight men on the show villians? What is Tim Kring trying to say about my friends from the buffet line, huh? That we're inherently bad or we enjoy stubble or that we act either vaguely Jewish or vaguely gay? Because that's what I see on screen.

And how is it that no one has yet explained how Arthur Petrelli came back from the dead? We saw that he stole Adam's ability to live forever to revitalize, but why wouldn't the rest of the Petrellis have known that he was in some facility on a respirator?

Honestly, why am I still watching this? For all the pleasure I get out of the show, I could just hold of a photo of Milo Ventimiglia (with one hand).

I still enjoy watching Grunny. He's a very good actor stuck on a show that doesn't really value acting performance anymore.

And I'm really over Hiro Nakamura.  Sorry, Masa, it's just not working for me anymore.

Trying to Gin Up the Enthusiasm to Write About Heroes, But It's Soooo Hard

Ugh.

I just can't deal with the show right now. Remember in season one when it was about regular people who have to deal with their burgeoning extraordinary powers? Now all those people just spend all their time using their powers.

I saw the show through the eyes of the characters and their discoveries. That's how I connected.

The way I connected with the show this past week was by noticing that the guy they brought on to play this evil Doyle guy (who plays prominently in next week's episode) was less attractive than I am, and how if I could bend people to my will I would never shave or watch my diet, either.

The other way I connected to the show this week was by noticing how that whole Noah-Claire-Sylar scene around the vortex that "the vortex guy" created looked just like the Doctor Who episode Doomsday when the Doctor and Rose were trying to shut down the break in the rift that the Cybermen were coming through.

I have both clips after the jump should you be unfamiliar with one or even both (probably not both, you are reading this blog, after all).

And I'm really tired of dead people not really being dead. Not like Claire and Sylar healing themselves, I'm talking about Arthur Petrelli, who apparently is alive, on a respirator and looks just like Robert Forster.

Get better! Write better, more plausible shows! NOW!!!

Demonstrative clips after the jump.

Video -- Hot Mother - Daughter Action (Seriously)

And, images, too!

 

 

And, it was a very good episode to boot. I'll say more during the week.

But the beginning of the clip, when they were walking into the shipping container (always a shipping container, were they in Ireland, too?) was reminiscent of a women in prison movie. You know, one where the older, hardened con takes on the young spitfire upstart with the breasts that defy gravity and all that sexy manic hotheadedness. Dontcha think?

If you watch the whole clip, you can then click a link on the screen and rewatch (or watch for the first time) last night's Heroes episode.

You Are Not As Interested in Heroes as You Once Were, Say Overnights

James Hibberd at the Reporter:

The two-hour premiere of NBC's top drama "Heroes" was down 25% compared with last year's one-hour opener, taking an expected hit following a creatively middling second season and an extended nine-month hiatus prompted by the writers strike.

The "Heroes" debut (9.9 million viewers, 4.9 preliminary adults 18-49 rating and a 12 share) ranked second in the 9 p.m. hour after ABC's "Dancing With the Stars' " return, and second at 10 p.m. following CBS' "CSI: Miami" debut. ("Heroes" was actually down even more, 33%, if you include NBC's heavily protested move to push Nielsen last fall to roll its Saturday repeat rating into its premiere). Clip show lead-in "Heroes: Countdown to the Premiere" (6 million, 2.6/7) placed third in the hour.

Ouch!

Robert Seidman at TVByTheNumbers.com (which is back online after a server issue):

Still, NBC will likely declare it a hit, and rightly so because it performed well int he 18-49 demo, and crushed the field among 18-34 year olds. Among that youthful demo, Heroes was the most-viewed show last night.  Even with less than half the total viewers that DWTS had, it outperformed DWTS by over 40% in the demo.

DWTS = Dancing With the Stars.

About the countdown show, was that wise? Should one be celebrating, dressing up, boasting about the great season ahead, before the ratings and reviews come in?

Because I thought it was all pretty lame.

But I understand the desire to separate the Chuck and Heroes premieres by a week. It gives each show its due.

Heroes, Now With Sexytime Superpowers (Warning: Side Effects May Include Scales Growing on Your Back)

So, we find out what's in Mohinder's syringe, and it's exactly what I thought it was. And then he starts growing irridescent green (I think green, I'm colorblind) scales on his back after making sexytime with Maya.

 So that's why Maya's on the show. Okay, I get it now.

But at least before the scales started growing, the women out there got to see Mohinder in a sexual situation, and I am here to tell you that a lot of the female fans of the show have been waiting for that since they first saw him on screen.

Me? I like a hunkier guy.

Anyway, how many of you go down to the docks to shoot up? C'mon, don't be shy, you can tell us if you think that the dock of the bay is the perfect place to consider whether to throw a syringe in the ocean or stick the needle in your vein, because it's just so hygienic down there.

I know, lotsa stuff I just didn't seem to understand.

I have a theory ... I think that this show is constructed in a different way than a lot of others. They come up with this great scenes that they want to include in the show, and then they try to arrange those scenes into some sort of cohesive story and then they try to write plausible stuff to go into and out of those scenes.

Another theory? Someone needs to read Syd Field again.

I find myself once again wanting some additional info about how last season ended, or maybe it's just that I find this one so confusing that it seems comforting to go back to what I know, but once again there are holes big enough to drive a truck through and I don't get why?

I'll say more later (more about Nathan's God thing, about Matt Parkman's desert adventure, about Nikki's new gig as a political consultant) later, but will tell you this right now -- they have three more weeks. If they don't make sense of things before then I'm gone.

Because those big tension packed scenes are nothing if you don't make me care about the people in them.

And Ira Behr? I'm thinking about you today, my friend.