Comments on: ONE TREE HILL & VAMPIRE DIARIES Get Back 9 Picked Up, While Ostroff orders 6 more MELROSE (Or How Dumb Can Dawn Ostroff Really Be?)

By: Craig

Craig — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:10:31 +0000

I’m still really surprised that they haven’t decided to run Vampire Diaries encores on Fridays after Smallville. They’d make a great pairing, and considering how competitive the Thursday-at-8 timeslot is, it might be a good way for Dawn’s only hit to get another chance.

That, and if I’m too lazy to turn off the TV after Smallville, I don’t want to have to sit through Top Model. So there are selfish reasons for saying that, too.

By: Brad L.

Brad L. — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:06:05 +0000

TBL is as good as dead. Burn off whatever episode sthey have left and wait for Life Unexpected to fill its place. Hopefully that might catch on (as the very WBish Vampire Diaries has). Guess we’ll see how Smallville on Fridays does tomorrow…

By: Alex

Alex — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:03:16 +0000

Brad they don’t necessarily have to move Smallville to Tuesdays (although a Top Model/Smallville pairing would be a big night for them) they should just move it off Friday’s and put The Beautiful Life there. In theory they could try putting something like Vampire Diaries behind Top Model and try to grow that into a bigger hit with a strong (CW) lead-in. Or if Dawn really wants to keep Melrose Place try moving that behind Top Model and hope that stops the bleeding.

By: alex_j

alex_j — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:59:24 +0000

Tom, your point is certainly valid. It (TBL) is a thematic match with ANTM, no question about it.

I’m just surprised (why, one would wonder) at the constant narrowing of the creative range on this network. It’s either rich white kids, models, current hyped-up teen movies (Twilight) or former hits, redone in a way that fits their targeted demo.

That’s why I am frustrated… it seems that almost nothing works (their (CW’s) hits are the leftovers from WB.. OTH, Supernatural & Smallville) and still they are reluctant to try something different. Like ‘Body politic’ par example.

Anyway, you are right, their strategy is collapsing. Hopefully, that would change things… or end the CW forever. Whichever is fine with me.

By: Julia H.

Julia H. — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:15:25 +0000

If Dawn had wanted a Friday night she shouldn’t have dumped Smackdown. At this point the night is a loss, and there is no reason not to move TBL there.

By: Brad L.

Brad L. — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:03:45 +0000

No way would they put Smallville to Tuesdays….yet. Dawn wants to see how well/poor it will do on Friday. If she can build a Friday night she should. But now with other networks doing the same (or trying to) it might not last on Friday. IIRC, they are shooting episode 8/9 of TBL now, so they can easily go through the Winter if CW wished.

By: Peter Noble

Peter Noble — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:39:17 +0000

Serinda Swann was one of the few high points of Smallville last year.

She’d make a good Athena in a Battlestar Galactica movie.

By: Alex

Alex — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:17:11 +0000

Nick I cannot believe you typed the sentence that a remake of Melrose Place wasn’t a bad idea, yes it was. It might have seemed like a good idea immediately after the debut of 90210 last year but the weeks that followed should have made everyone see sense but clearly not.

In regards to the additional episode pick-up’s for Melrose Place I can see why its been done – they don’t really have anything to replace it with now The Beautiful Life is dead. On the subject of The Beautiful Life can anyone explain why its called The Beautiful Life: TBL? And surely someone should be running a sweepstake on how much longer it lasts in its current slot? I would have thought now was the time to move Smallville off of Friday nights and dump TBL there…

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:35:00 +0000

TBL’s series order frankly made sense. It was a thematic match with ANTM, it starred the usual young faces (and frankly, Barton and the HSM guy are more known that Simpson), and it made their long term producers (Banks & Kutcher) happy.

I view the TBL disaster as a sign of the collapse of the CW strategy more than anything else.

By: alex_j

alex_j — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:08:02 +0000

Yes Jack, I know Dawn was the president of UPN… that just makes things worse, really. But, enough about VM… old wounds.

I wonder if anyone (Nick C?) has more info on why was TBL picked up by the network… because of the all important 18-34 F demo?

Jesus.