One word brings up a  certain bitter feeling for Jericho fans, and that word is “hiatus.”  It was the dreaded hiatus in season one that killed any momentum the show had going for it.  By now you all know the story of the fight for the short second season, and if you weren’t aware there is now a season three via comic book.   (You can read about that here)

The first issue came and went and of course, we wanted more.  We impatiently waited for the next two issues, and then were simply left waiting.  What happened to issue four?  Is it perhaps because our beloved Jericho writers/producers love leaving us for long breaks on major cliffhangers?  Is it because the story is being altered to tie into a possible movie?  In an interview with Fearnet, Jon Turtletaub said “”We’ve been working with CBS Films on a film version of it, and a script is being written.”  (Read the full article here).   The answer is:  We do not know.  We do know that the comic has been selling well for Devil’s Due Publishing and that Dan Shotz has stated the series has been extended beyond the initial six-issue “Season Three.”  Beyond that, the delay appears to be out of the publisher’s control.  In an email to fans this week, they wrote:

We must offer a huge apology to all of the Jericho fans who are still waiting on issue #4 of the series to hit the stands. The book is still delayed, and as much as it kills us that’s all we can say right now.

We can say that issue 4 is drawn, colored, etc. and issue 5 is well in progress, and the whole series has been written, and unless the Mayans were off by a couple of years the book WILL be out soon.

Again, we’re sorry that’s all we can say at this time. For now, if you haven’t checked out the series yet (6 issues in total), you can read them via iTunes or the new comiXology desktop reader, or buy hard copies online and at your local comic shop.

Did you watch Jericho on TV? Have you been following the comic?  Are you getting impatient waiting for the rest?  Do you have a nut allergy and wish we’d all go away?  These questions and many others will be answered…  At some point, whenever CBS gets around to telling us.

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I won’t comment on Dawn Ostroff personally, but her network  is a downright embarrassment.  The point of The CW was to be really just to merge UPN and The WB using each network’s strongest shows.  I initially would have preferred they just kept The WB branding and simply cherry picked the best of UPN.  (Yes, “Best of UPN” does sound ridiculous.)  But if they were going to take the President of UPN instead of The WB and let her turn the network into this mess, then I’m glad The WB signed off and its legacy wasn’t allowed to be tarnished with this crap.  That said, I still watch a few things on this pseudo-network.  I’m embarrassed to say I have seen every episode of 90210, and found season one to have far more potential than the totally uneven sophomore season.  Perhaps it was more just the hope for an actual story for the old school characters, but I did enjoy some of the newer characters as well.  That was all but gone this season.  Life Unexpected is better than your average CW show but overall has been hit or miss, but I feel it has a lot of growth potential in the vein of 7th Heaven, so CW was actually wise in giving this one a chance to grow.  The most “Unexpected” part of the show is that The CW actually green-lit a show that can’t really be promoted with “OMFG.”  Lastly, Melrose Place. It was actually a good show, and then they axed the dreadful Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and added Heather Locklear.  Melrose Place was a fun, campy, dramatic, well-acted (save for Ashlee) s  that I had a mindless hour of fun watching.  Naturally, it didn’t mesh with The CW’s average viewers mindset (you know…the people who actually use “OMFG” in their actual vocabulary) and it was canceled.

Last year it was all about reboots (90210, Melrose Place) and unintentionally funny dramas that were so poorly done that they were laughable at best (The Beautiful Life: TBL).  Once that fizzled out, it became clear that they’d have to take things in a new direction if they were to ever grow this network into anything resembling a…well, network.  Which brings us to this season which includes a reboot of a ’90s action-drama Le Femme Nikita, this time simply called Nikita.  They are wisely using their one strong new show from last year, Vampire Diaries, to launch it on Thursdays.   Supernatural, meanwhile, shifts to Fridays where it will be paired with the tenth, and final, season of Smallville.  Lastly, we also have a show that looks so  laughably bad that the only reason you may watch it is not because you want to see a drama series but rather watch a show that is so bad that you’ll laugh at it: Hellcats. So the moral of the story here is: CW hasn’t really learned any lessons.  They are shuffling their lineups around a bit, so that’ll do….nothing really.  When it comes to The CW, I don’t care, I don’t get it, I just write about it.  If it affects me (As the cancellation of Melrose Place depressed me) sobeit, but this network is a total joke.  At least I get a good chuckle out of it.

Mondays

8:00 – 90210
9:00 – Gossip Girl

Tuesdays

8:00 – One Tree Hill
9:00 – Life Unexpected

Wednesdays

8:00 – America’s Next Top Model
9:00 – Hellcats

Thursdays

8:00 – Vampire Diaries
9:00 – Nikita

Friday

8:00 – Smallville
9:00 – Supernatural

Whether or not Charlie Sheen would be back on Two and a Half Men was a foregone conclusion, he was simply negotiating publicly.  What was less clear was whether or not CBS would mess with its one-two-punch of Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory.  On one hand, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.  CBS is by far the most conservative network when it comes to scheduling changes, but it this case it had an interesting opportunity to take advantage of.  Two and a Half Men is still strong enough to anchor Monday nights.  With Rules of Engagement finally returning for a full season and pairing well with How I Met Your Mother, the opportunity was there to take Big Bang Theory and use it to help launch comedy on a new night.  After striking out on Wednesdays with The New Adventures of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried, and sensing weakness from the competition, CBS decided to pounce on Thursdays at 8  using Big Bang to open the night and leading into the new William Shatner sitcom Shit My Dad Says (Bleep, $#^!, Shat, whatever they’re calling it) based on the twitter account of the same name.

The other night CBS has struggled is Sundays, largely in part to football in the fall which often pushes its primetime into late night.  With all three CSI series taking a downturn in the ratings, it seemed likely that CSI: NY would either be banished to Fridays and/or pushed to midseason.  Another likelihood was the original CSI flipping with The Mentalist or moving to Fridays had CSI: NY been held for spring.  Instead, the strongest of the series is going to Sundays, CSI: Miami, while CSI: NY does in fact go to Fridays while the original flavor stays put.  A headscratcher perhaps, but CSI: Miami could get CBS’ foot in the door on Sundays where they have long struggled (Three Rivers, Cold Case, etc.)  With that airing at 10 (or 11:29, thank you NFL) and Undercover Boss back for a full season at 9, they should have no problem taking Sundays.  Speaking of Three Rivers, it will be airing its remaining episodes on Saturdays for five weeks starting June 5.  That, combined with Moonlight encores on The CW, it’s a summer of O’Loughlin before the premiere of Hawaii Five-O this fall!  Yes, it’s true, Les Moonves is N’love with O’loughlin.

That leaves just Fridays for massive changes.  All three dramas saw their ratings decline drastically this season, which was slightly depressing.  I never watched those particular dramas, but it was nice that at least one network hadn’t thrown in the towel on Friday which is quickly become the new Saturday.  After Numb3rs found its episode order cut it seemed as though Ghost Whisperer and Medium would probably be safe to return, but in a surprise move CBS actually canceled Ghost Whisperer at the last minute.  With Miami Medical bombing hard, that will leave just Medium from this season on Fridays, with a new drama Blue Bloods and CSI: NY.  Given the deteriorating ratings for Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs, this is almost guaranteed to give CBS the advantage on the night.

Here is the entire schedule, chock full of crime dramas, as it will appear on CBS this fall.  (Next year’s canceled shows in bold.)

Sundays

7:00 – 60 Minutes
8:00 – The Amazing Race
9:00 – Undercover Boss
10:00 – CSI: Miami

Mondays

8:00 – How I Met Your Mother
8:30 – Rules of Engagement
9:00 – Two and a Half Men
9:30 – Mike & Molly
10:00 – Hawaii Five-O

Tuesdays

8:00 – NCIS
9:00 – NCIS: Los Angeles
10:00 – The Good Wife

Wednesdays

8:00 – Survivor
9:00 – Criminal Minds
10:00 - The Defenders

Thursdays

8:00 – The Big Bang Theory
8:30 – $#^! My Dad Says
9:00 – CSI
10:00 – The Mentalist

Fridays

8:00 – Medium
9:00 – CSI: NY
10:00 - Blue Bloods

Saturdays

8:00 – Crimetime Saturday
9:00 – Crimetime Saturday
10:00 – 48 Hours

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Last year they debuted 8 new shows for a total of 6 hours, and this coming fall they will debut 7 shows for a total of 6 and a half hours (With more on reserve for mid-season.)

Comedy Wednesday was a success, or at least Modern Family was, The Middle is doing middling ratings (pun intended) and Cougar Town has seen its ratings dip post-renewal.  In all, only Hank was a total strike out, and that one quickly disappeared.  Considering how awful ABC has been at launching successful comedies, the fact that they had any success with its bold Wednesday night block is a huge win for them.  Literally, ABC was scraping the bottom of the barrel, underscored not just by the fact that they even bothered saving Scrubs from NBC, but then renewed it despite its average of under 5 million viewers.  That didn’t happen again, Scrubs is now dead.

Dramas are where ABC has some problems.  They banked pretty much everything on FlashForward being the heir-apparent to Lost, and as anyone who endured FlashForward knows, that didn’t happen.  As the guy who actually watched The Forgotten, I actually thought it was a better show than FlashForward, and I’ll miss that one quite a bit more.  Alas, The Forgotten lived up to its title and the Jerry Bruckheimer drama will be replaced by The Whole Truth, a Jerry Bruckheimer drama.
ABC needs some success with its new dramas, striking out last season combined with its aging and dying veteran shows, it could be in serious trouble if it comes out of this season empty-handed.  Its Sunday line-up saw its ratings dip across the board and many expected that schedule to get a shake-up.  That will happen once Brothers and Sisters wraps early, but given that ABC is trying to launch so many new shows, it needed some familiarity in its schedule as well.  Desperate Housewives is still strong enough for a couple more years, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition was considered most likely to shift to Fridays, and still could, as it has definitely weakened over the past year.  Brothers and Sisters saw its ratings tank last year and may well be heading into its swan song.  Producers are still moving full steam ahead on a flash-forward that will see the show pick up one year in the future following the tragic events in the season finale.

Despite struggling on Fridays for years, ABC hasn’t entirely thrown in the towel just yet.  Body of Proof, the new Dana Delaney drama will launch on the night.  Because a female-centric detective drama worked so well there last time with Women’s Murder Club.  It will be paired with Secret Millionaire, the canceled reality show that ABC picked out of Fox’s scrap heap.

Sundays

7:00 – America’s Funniest Home Videos
8:00 – Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
9:00 – Desperate Housewives
10:00 – Brothers & Sisters

Mondays

8:00 – Dancing with the Stars
10:00 – Castle

Tuesdays

8:00 – No Ordinary Family
9:00 – Dancing with the Stars Results Show
10:00 – Detroit 1-8-7

Wednesdays

8:00 – The Middle
8:30 – Better Together
9:00 – Modern Family
9:30 – Cougar Town
10:00 – The Whole Truth

Thursdays

8:00 – My Generation
9:00 – Grey’s Anatomy
10:00 – Private Practice

Fridays

8:00 – Secret Millionaire
9:00 – Body of Proof
10:00 – 20/20

Saturdays

8:00 – Saturday Night College Football
(followed by a mix of specials/reruns)

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Two bubble shows that were iffy to return, Lie to Me and Human Target have been been renewed.  Human Target was thrown to the graveyard that is Fox Friday, meanwhile Lie to Me which finishes its second season beginning in June and running clear through the summer will essentially air straight through into the fall without a break.  I’m personally questioning whether or not the returns of both Lie to Me and Human Target have anything to do with a strong show of faith in both shows, or rather a lack of faith in their development season.  With Human Target they at least have an established following that the network hopes will follow it to Friday where it will inevitably improve over year-ago Brothers, ‘Til Death, and Dollhouse.  That old PBS guy teaching you to paint could draw better ratings than those shows.  I say that with some sorrow, as I really did enjoy Dollhouse.  Thank you anyway, Fox, for allowing that one to have a true sendoff.  How many shows can actually say that?

With that, here is the Fox schedule, as you’ll be seeing it in September.

Sundays

7:00 – The OT
8:00 – The Simpsons
8:30 – The Cleveland Show
9:00 – Family Guy
9:30 – American Dad

Mondays

8:00 – House
9:00 – Lonestar

Tuesdays

8:00 – Glee
9:00 – Raising Hope
9:00 – Running Wilde

Wednesdays

8:00 – Lie to Me
9:00 – Hell’s Kitchen

Thursdays

8:00 – Bones
9:00 – Fringe

Fridays

8:00 – Human Target
9:00 – The Good Guys

Saturdays

8:00 – Cops
8:30 – Cops
9:00 – America’s Most Wanted

And while we’re at it, here is Fox’s announced mid-season schedule, as it will surely won’t look like come January.

Sundays

7:00 – The Simpsons (repeats)
7:30 – American Dad
8:00 – The Simpsons
8:30 – Bob’s Burgers
9:00 – Family Guy
9:30 – The Cleveland Show

Mondays

8:00 – House
9:00 - Lonestar/Ride-Along

Tuesdays

8:00 – American Idol (Performance Show)
9:30 – Running Wilde/Mixed Signals

Wednesdays

8:00 - Raising Hope
8:30 – American Idol (Results Show)
9:00 – Glee

Thursdays

8:00 – Bones
9:00 – Fringe

Fridays

8:00 – Human Target
9:00 – Kitchen Nightmares

Saturdays

8:00 – Cops
8:30 – Cops
9:00 – America’s Most Wanted

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One rumor had NBC opening up a second night of comedy, that was supported by the number of comedies pilots picked up.  Said rumor had the comedies going up against ABC Comedy Wednesday where only “Modern Family” is a truly solid success.  Why NBC considered putting comedies on the only night ABC had comedies, a bigger mystery.  In the end it didn’t matter, as comedy stays Thursdays-only, for now.  “30 Rock” is finally being yanked out of its post-”Office” time slot which it never deserved getting the ratings bleed.  “Parks and Recreation” is already filming season 3, due to Amy Poehler’s pregnancy.  Those episodes won’t be seen for nearly a year, however, as it is absent from the fall.  Given that “Community” is a black ratings hole, and “Outsourced” won’t be strong, P&R as well as other mid-season comedies could be seen sooner rather than later.  Also noticeable, NBC is keeping Thursday all-comedy, scheduling hour-long comedy “Love Bites” in the 10 pm timeslot.  That should be strong.  (sarcasm intended).

Mondays remains action-adventure night.  “Chuck” stays at 8 and actually gets a fall berth for once, leading into “The Event” at 9 and “Chase” at 10, where NBC is hoping to fill the void left by “24.”  Given how weak a performer the perennial bubble show “Chuck” is, it’s questionable using it as a lead-in, but its fans won’t complain.  Now if only they’d multiply.  That wasn’t a judgment on “Chuck’s” quality, just an eyebrow raise at how poor a performer it is yet is being used to prop up a troublesome night.

“Parenthood” is also a bit of a surprise.  The show was never intended as a 10 pm drama and it definitely doesn’t feel like one.  After the crash and burn of “The Jay Leno Show,” that’s just where “Parenthood” ended up, and while it has struggled with weak ratings in the total viewers column, given how small its overall audience is, it makes its above-average (for NBC) demo performance that much more impressive.  So, rather than shift too much around, NBC is taking the if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it approach and leaving it right where it is.

In summary, here is a list of shows canceled by NBC from the 2009-2010 season:
“Heroes,” “The Jay Leno Show,” “Law & Order” “Mercy,” “Trauma.”

And here is the NBC fall schedule, as you’ll probably be ignoring much of it, come September.

Sundays

7:00 – Football Night in America
8:15 – NBC Sunday Night Football

Sundays (starting in March)

7:00 – Dateline NBC
9:00 – Minute to Win It
10:00 – Celebrity Apprentice

Mondays

8:00 – Chuck
9:00 – The Event
10:00 – Chase

Tuesdays

8:00 – The Biggest Loser
10:00 – Parenthood

Wednesdays

8:00 – Undercovers
9:00 – Law & Order: SVU
10:00 – Law & Order: Los Angeles

Thursdays

8:00 – Community
8:30 – 30 Rock
9:00 – The Office
9:30 – Outsourced
10:00 – Love Bites

Fridays

8:00 – Who Do You Think You Are/School Pride
9:00 – Dateline NBC
10:00 – The Outlaw

Midseason: The Cape, Friends with Benefits, Harry’s Law, The Paul Reiser Show, Perfect Couples

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http://twitter.com/TVMoJoe/status/11323362325
http://twitter.com/EWAusielloFiles/status/11323327850
http://twitter.com/franklinavenue/status/11323221786

Update: Michael Ausiello of Entertainment Weekly is confirming that pick-up is for a full 22 episodes!
http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2010/03/30/abc-renews-castle/

That’s good enough for me to take this to the bank!  The news does not come as a surprise, Castle has been on the rise especially of late, but for fans like me it’s reassuring to see it official.

As for its recent surge in ratings, just last week it set a series high 12.2 million and 3.3 demo.  That was topped this week (although final Nielsen numbers could alter it just a bit) by another series high 14.4 million and 3.7 demo.

Who else is excited for Castle?

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It is entirely possible this was a typo, though given its performance the past two seasons, I think that is unlikely.  Last night, it pulled in 4.3 million viewers and a 1.5 demo.  For persepective,  last week a repeat of Modern Family pulled 5.1 million and a 1.7 demo.   To rub salt in that wound, the final episode of Hank which aired on 11/4/09 managed 5.3 million and a 1.4 demo.  Yes, one million more viewers (to be fair, fewer in the demo) cared to watch Hank.  Given all of this perspective, I would say it’s a safe bet that Scrubs on Wednesdays is a burnoff, not a tryout.

Enough of the clock wordplay, however, it’s time to get serious.  Fox and 24 star Keifer Sutherland have been saying publicly for quite some time that the ultimate goal is for the show to transition from a television show to the big screen.  In order for that to happen the show would have to end, it takes a long time to produce this show and logistically it would be difficult to shoot a feature movie around it.  So long as ratings are high, the television show must go on!  However, ratings aren’t so high anymore.   Last night’s episode pulled in a respectable 8.8 million viewers and a 2.8 in the 18-49 demo.   One year earlier (3/9/09) the show clocked in with 11.3 million and a 3.6 in the demo.  Clearly, this season’s ratings are less respectable when you see the dip they have taken.

20th Century will reportedly try to shop the show around to other potential outlets, but given the high price tag and dwindling ratings, that seems unlikely.  If they are serious about turning 24 into a movie, potentially a series of them, it would seem they would want to keep the brand as strong as possible – in other words, why tarnish it by transition to NBC for a 9th season of even weaker ratings?

Here is the press release from CBS:

UNDERCOVER BOSS, which follows high-level chief executives as they slip anonymously into the rank and file of their companies, is the number one new series of the 2009-2010 season, averaging 18.74 million viewers, 8.0/17 in adults 25-54 and 7.1/17 in adults 18-49.

The series premiered following the Super Bowl to 38.7 million viewers, the largest audience for a new series following the Super Bowl. It also ranks as the biggest new series premiere since 1987 and the most-watched premiere episode of any reality series.

“We are thrilled with the overwhelming response to the series and how audiences seem to connect to it on several levels,” said Jennifer Bresnan, Senior Vice President, CBS Alternative Programming. “The wish fulfillment of seeing the top boss perform jobs of the rank and file is universal, and the employees’ stories discovered at each company are often relatable and inspirational.”

Each week, UNDERCOVER BOSS follows a different executive as they leave the comfort of their corner office for an undercover mission to examine the inner workings of their companies. While working alongside their employees, they see the effects their decisions have on others, where the problems lie within their organizations and get an up-close look at both the good and the bad while discovering the unsung heroes who make their companies run.

Stephen Lambert and Eli Holzman are executive producers for Studio Lambert, Ltd.