“Man Men”, one of my favorite shows, is returning for its 4th season on Sunday, July 25th at 10 pm ET/PT on AMC. To get you ready for the new season, here are a few videos from AMC which focus on some of the key characters: Don Draper (Jon Hamm), Betty Draper (January Jones), Roger Sterling (John Slattery), Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks), Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss) and Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser). I have also included a few photos from the season premiere episode, “Public Relations.”
At the end of the third season, “Putnam, Powell, Lowe” planned to sell Sterling Cooper and Don, along with some of his colleagues, break away to form the new ad agency: “Sterling, Cooper, Draper & Pryce.” Don’s marriage to Betty appears to be over and she is flying away with Henry Francis. If you love a good drama, you should not miss “Mad Men.”
TNT – the network that knows drama (remember, they saved “Southland” ) – will be starting season 3 of “Leverage” in its new time slot with a two-hour event on Sunday June 20, 2010 at 9:00 PM ET/8C. Back to back episodes will air, as follows:
“The Jailhouse Job” – Sunday, June 20, at 9 p.m. (ET/PT) In order to save the life of an innocent inmate, Nate must bring down the corrupt warden of the Super-Max prison where he’s currently incarcerated and escape… whether he wants to or not. Elisabetta Canalis and Edwin Hodge (brother of LEVERAGE star Aldis Hodge) guest-star.
“The Reunion Job” – Sunday, June 20, at 10 p.m. (ET/PT) To uncover a password, the team infiltrates the high school reunion of an amoral software magnate who’s the IT department for the Axis of Evil.
One of the stars of the show, Aldis Hodge, who plays Alec Hardison, resident computer expert and hacker, was available for questions about the show and this upcoming season. Here are a few excerpts:
When asked how Hodge avoids being the nerd on the show, Hodge responded “Because I'm a nerd in real life and I like think that I'm sort of cool. It’s a lot of, especially when it comes to TV there’s a lot of assumption that goes with playing a specific character. When your hear computers or geek or whatever you just automatically think pocket protector, glasses, not very social, always kind of clumsy. You think that kind of a - that kind of model. When it came to the pilot and when it came down to me and Dean Devlin, and John Rogers trying figure this character out, you know, we kind of wanted to throw a different spin on it because nowadays I mean computer nerds, we’re coming off kind of the shape of society but we’re not just one thing. And I don't want the audience to get what they’re already used to having and wanted to give them something different and something fresh. And it’s funny people say there’s a cool vibe there. I'm like I feel like I'm kind of dorky and corny sometimes but that’s just me. But if you all think it’s cool hey I'm thinking I'm going to keep giving it to you.
When asked about what this show is really about, Hodge explains that his “quick definition is, you know, a group of criminals who take down corporate bad guys in order to give back to those that they take advantage of. Now it may take a little figuring out but usually people end up saying Robin Hood. They usually say Robin Hood on the very first shot. But yes, you know, we are a lot of people said that of, you know, Oceans 11 with Robin Hood in there, a little A Team in there.”
“Leverage”, however, takes the “Robin Hood” theme and gives it a modern update, and Hodge’s role brings computers and technology into the mix, something of which Robin Hood couldn’t even dream.
If you need a refresher on where things left off at the end of Season 2, a short recap video is below, plus a short look at season 3. Don’t forget to tune in on Sunday June 20th for a new season of action!
The sitcom is not a television genre that I like, with game shows and reality shows being at the bottom of my list. I only watched the premiere of TV Land’s “Hot In Cleveland” because I’ve lived in the Cleveland area all my life and I wanted to be sure this show was not going to trash talk the city. (OK, I also watched to see Betty White.) Since it is a sitcom my expectations were not very high, but the show did deliver a few chuckles. And it also was surprisingly respectful of Cleveland.
The series stars Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick, and is about three attractive single women from LA who are on their way to Paris for a vacation when their plane makes an emergency stop in Cleveland. During their stop they visit a local bar and are shocked to realize that the local men find them attractive, the women aren’t afraid to eat, and that real estate prices are very low. When Melanie (Bertinelli) thinks she’s found love, she leases a house, which comes with a cantankerous caretaker Elka (Betty White) and they decide to stick around. Sadly, the guy she hooks up with – a plumber who has a boat – turns out to be married.
The show is a typical sitcom – laughter cranked up in the appropriate places and dialog that requires no acting, rolling off the actors’ tongues just as if they are reading off the script. It’s nothing new. It does get some things accurate about the Cleveland area; for example, one can get beautiful, huge houses in the area for a reasonable amount and people do enjoy their food. It also gets some things wrong; for example, while we enjoy food, many DO watch what they eat, and since this is a big sports town, men don’t pay attention to women in a bar if there is some sort of sports playing on TV. But, like any sitcom, it relies on stereotypes, which may fit or not fit depending on the person viewing the show.
Betty White clearly has the best lines in the show, and the show should be grateful she’s on it. Without her, the show would be just another bad cookie-cutter sitcom.
The show is not Emmy winning material; in fact, it’s probably more suited for a high school production. Despite the show’s downsides, being a Clevelander, I feel compelled to continue to watch, even if it is to make sure they don’t diss my fair city. But, it’s a quick half hour and a nice time filler if you can’t find anything more challenging to watch, and you just make get a laugh or two that may make it worth your time.
TNT has released information about season 6 of ”The Closer” (TNT) which premieres on Monday, July 12. 2010. The official release is below, and afterwards I have included TNT’s video recap of season 5, plus two promos for season 6(the quality of the promos isn’t great but it is the best I could find).
New Digs and Big Career Decisions on Tap as TNT’s THE CLOSER, Ad-Supported Cable’s #1 Series of All Time, Returns for Sixth Season Monday, July 12
A new multi-million-dollar headquarters and an internal political struggle over who will become the next police chief add a whole new set of challenges for Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson as TNT presents the sixth season of ad-supported cable’s #1 series of all time – THE CLOSER. Golden Globe(R) winner and four-time Emmy(R) nominee Kyra Sedgwick returns as Johnson, who heads up the LAPD’s Major Crimes Division.
THE CLOSER, which is set to launch its new season Monday, July 12, at 9 p.m. (ET/PT), features an extraordinary Screen Actors Guild Award(R)-nominated ensemble cast. The series stars Jon Tenney (Brothers & Sisters), J.K. Simmons (Juno), Corey Reynolds (The Terminal), Tony Denison (Prison Break), G.W. Bailey (M*A*S*H), Michael Paul Chan (Arrested Development), Raymond Cruz (Breaking Bad), Robert Gossett (Arlington Road) and Phillip P Keene (The DA).
As the new season of THE CLOSER opens, the squad is moving into its new high-tech digs. But it’s not long before they’re wishing they could be back in their old space, where a plain white board nailed to the wall was more practical than the troublesome sliding screens in their new murder room. But true to form, Brenda is determined to bend the space to her style.
With the LAPD on the hunt for a new chief of police, Assistant Police Chief Will Pope (Simmons) is among those in the running. Should he get the job, it could mean a promotion for Brenda. The political juggling around the office soon leads Brenda to do some career-minded soul-searching. It also has her colleague, Robbery-Homicide Commander Taylor (Gossett) smelling a possible promotion for himself, even though he can’t even seem to wrangle an office of his own in the new facility.
On the home front, Brenda’s husband, FBI Agent Fritz Howard (Tenney) has some career changes of his own in store. After turning down a promotion that would have sent him to Washington, D.C., he’s now in line for a job that could not only keep him in LA, but give him and Brenda the chance to spend a lot more time together.
This season, Brenda and her squad will tackle cases involving a sniper shooting in a posh neighborhood, a possible serial rapist who uses a stun gun to immobilize his victims and a drug-related custody battle that ends in two deaths. Meanwhile, Detective Sanchez (Cruz) will struggle to care for a young boy involved in a case the squad investigated last year. And Lt. Provenza (Bailey), Brenda’s second-in-command, will once again find himself in a professionally embarrassing situation when a one-night stand with a flight attendant leads to the discovery of a dead body in her bathtub.
Also this season, Mary McDonnell (Battlestar Galactica) will reprise her role as Capt. Raydor, the by-the-book head of the Force Investigation Division who has butted heads with Brenda on several occasions. This time, her presence could have major implications for Brenda’s future in the department.
Since its premiere in 2005, THE CLOSER has earned numerous ad-supported cable viewership records, ranking as the #1 series of all time and scoring the #1 series telecast of all time. For its fifth season, the show averaged 7.7 million viewers. THE CLOSER will be joined on Mondays by TNT’s newest crime drama, RIZZOLI & ISLES, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander. The series centers on Boston Detective Jane Rizzoli and her best friend, Medical Examiner Maura Isles, characters created by novelist Tess Gerritsen. RIZZOLI & ISLES airs Mondays at 10 p.m. (ET/PT), beginning July 12.
THE CLOSER comes to TNT from The Shephard/Robin Company, in association with Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive-produced by Greer Shephard, Michael M. Robin, James Duff, Rick Wallace and Kyra Sedgwick. The show is produced by Andrew J. Sacks, and Gil Garcetti, Los Angeles district attorney from 1992 to 2000, serves as consulting producer.
TNT, one of cable’s top-rated networks, is television’s destination for drama and home to such original series as the acclaimed and highly popular detective drama The Closer, starring Kyra Sedgwick; Men of a Certain Age, with Ray Romano, Andre Braugher and Scott Bakula; Saving Grace, starring Holly Hunter; HawthoRNe, with Jada Pinkett Smith; Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton; and Dark Blue, starring Dylan McDermott; the upcoming Rizzoli & Isles, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander; Memphis Beat, with Jason Lee; and Southland, from Emmy(R)-winning producer John Wells (ER). TNT also presents such powerful dramas as Bones, Supernatural, Las Vegas, Law & Order, CSI: NY, Cold Case and Numb3rs; broadcast premiere movies; compelling primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards(R); and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR and the NBA. TNT is available in high-definition. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.
I have to admit that I wasn’t sure if I wanted to watch “The Good Guys” (Fox). I was a little worried that I wouldn’t like Bradley Whitford in another show that was so far removed from his role on “The West Wing.” But the fact that I always liked Bradley Whitford in “The West Wing” was what eventually compelled me to watch “The Good Guys” and I was not disappointed.
Whitford plays a Dallas, Texas cop, Dan Stark, who is partnered with a much younger detective, Jack Bailey, played by Colin Hanks. (Colin is the son of actor Tom Hanks.) Whitford steals the show, with a thoroughly enjoyable portrayal of the seasoned cop. (Personally, I found it even more enjoyable because Whitford closely resembled a guy I used to work for, down to the mustache and receding hairline, and who was also from Texas, but he was very straight-laced, not at all like Dan Stark.)
Jack and Dan are investigating what seems to be a simple case of vandalism – a rock thrown through the window of the home of two attractive girls. Dan recreates the scene by laying in bed with one of the girls and notices that the street light was also broken. He realizes that it was the light they were really aiming for. When he finds a vintage car was stolen in the area, he is able to make the connection that someone is actively stealing vintage cars. When they can’t get approval from Kiersten (Lauren Stamile) to get more resources to set up a sting, Dan sacrifices his own Trans-Am, using it as bait.
All their plans go wrong when their attempt to track the car using the ankle monitor on Julius (RonReaco Lee) - who is hiding in the trunk of the car – flops. But Julius, who escaped the car, knows where the car was taken and they all go to a warehouse and see several vintage cars in storage. When they get the license numbers and head back to the precinct, they confirm the cars have all be stolen.
But there is a wrinkle – it seems Kiersten is in on the stolen car ring, and she’s helping out the car thief, Nigel, who is played by Steve Valentine. There must be something in Valentine’s contract that says he must play a person named Nigel in every show he’s in, because I think he’s been in several shows playing characters of that name.
When Jack gets captured by Kiersten it looks like Nigel is going to kill him but of course Dan comes in and saves the day, and he saves his beloved Trans Am.
It’s not so much the case but the way they tell the story that is entertaining. They use flashbacks – sometimes only flashing back a few minutes – to tell the story as to how each character reached each point in the story. It’s a fun way to see the story unfold. But Whitford IS the show with his portrayal of Dan Stark. He’s fun, he’s over the top, he’s the perfect balance to the dry and dull Colin Hanks. “The Good Guys” is good fun and should be a part of everyone's summer viewing schedule.
Lie To Me (Fox) returned for a new season with the same cast and interesting cases – one involving a UFO, the other, a serial killer. It made for a very enjoyable episode, with Tim Roth doing an excellent job as the human lie detector, Dr. Cal Lightman.
Lightman lectures for a college class at the request of one of his own teachers, Helen Dezekis (Rowena King), who Cal also had a relationship with when he was her student. During the lecture, one of the current students - Martin Walker (Jason Dohring) poses a question to Lightman, disagreeing with his methods. Lightman essentially challenges him to a dual of sorts – saying he can spot when Walker is lying. When Lightman loses his bet, he realizes that Walker is a psychopath. Lightman makes his concerns known to the school, saying that he bets they have at least one missing student case – they do - and Lightman works to pin it on Walker. Lightman’s trusty sidekick, Dr. Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams) doesn’t spot the warning signs with Walker, thinking Lightman is just rattled because he once had a relationship with Dezekis and knows that Walker is currently having a relationship with her as well.
Meanwhile, back at the offices of the Lightman Group, Eli Locker (Brendan Hines) and Ria Torres (Monica Raymond) are working to clear the reputation of a science teacher, Sam Hendricks (Howard Hesseman) who insists he saw a UFO. This case isn’t quite as compelling – frankly I find Torres annoying - but they both work the case and manage to clear the teacher, obtaining an acceptable answer from the military on what Hendricks saw (and that one of his student had captured video) in order to save Hendricks' job. But the acceptable answer is really a lie – it was crafted well enough to be believable for the teacher’s school, and allowed the military to keep their secret about whatever the UFO really was (if they even knew what it was).
Lightman continues to play cat-and-mouse with Walker posting photos of him around the campus and even trying to get personal information about him from his mother. Walker seems unflappable even when Lightman has him under the glare of the lights in the interview room at the Lightman Group. They also find that Walker had a sister who drowned at a young age, and Lightman thinks that it was at Walker’s hands. When Dezekis tells Walker their relationship is over – an action planned by Lightman – Walker doesn’t take it well and it seems they believe that Walker will go after Dezekis. They have Walker wired and under surveillance, but it’s Lightman who gets captured by Walker, who tortures Lightman by waterboarding. Later, when Walker has Lightman digging his own grave, Lightman gets him to admit he killed his sister and that bodies of other girls are nearby, and the police pounce. Clearly Walker didn't realize that Lightman planned for Walker to go after him, and Lightman was under surveillance.
Afterwards, when Lightman asks Foster out for a bite to eat, she blows him off in order to do paperwork. These two have the strangest relationship, with Foster being the one who seems to blow flaming hot one week and icy cold the next. If there is any big flaw with “Lie to Me” it’s the relationship between these two. I don’t see any chemistry and I don’t have any interest in them getting together in any shape or form. Besides, it’s a plot device that gets overused and I’d rather they’d either put them in a relationship, or just call it quits with the two of them. I don’t want to go through an on-again, off-again thing with these two every week, when I’m not interested in them being together to begin with.
”Lie To Me” is just different enough than other crime-drama type shows that it makes for an interesting hour. Tim Roth grows on me every week – although sometimes I still can’t understand every word he is saying. Still, he is perfect for this role and he creates an interesting character that viewers want to know more about. I’m glad the show is back for the summer.
Summer “lite” TV viewing returns with ”Royal Pains”(USA Network). The same cast is back, and thankfully there was a short recap before the show began to remind viewers what transpired last season. Dr. Hank Lawson (Mark Feuerstein) finds that his brother Evan (Paulo Costanzo) has placed HankMed in dire financial straits by trusting their estranged father, Fonzie – er, I mean Eddie Lawson, played by Henry Winkler. Meanwhile, Divya (Reshma Shetty) is dealing with the fact that she’s engaged (it’s an arranged marriage). Jill Casey (Jill Flint) is now having problems at Hamptons Heritage Hospital when Dr. Elizabeth Blair (Marcia Gay Harden), who is also on the board of the hospital, wants to oust Casey for what Blair sees as bad judgment on Casey’s part. Jill also announces that she’s sent her now ex-husband packing and signed the divorce papers. And rich-guy Boris (Campbell Scott) gets a little pissy with Hank when he doesn’t seem to think Hank is handling his case with the proper attention and care.
Of course, there has to be a patient of the week, and in this episode, we get a guy called “Spencer the Spaz" who is a well known klutzy infomercial actor. Because this show seems to hinge on rich people AND rich people being a little stupid or clueless, Hank and his team have to save Spencer from himself several times before Hank is able to deduce that part of Spencer’s problem goes back to exposure to mercury. Like the other well-known medical TV series House(Fox), I don’t care about the patients too much because they seem to only serve as a backdrop to advancing the stories of the regular characters.
The episode centers on making amends. Hank convinces Boris he is committed to solving his medical problem and wants to be the “quarterback” for Boris' medical case and work with all Boris’ previous doctors to get a “big picture” look at his illness. Boris gives Hank the contact information for his first doctor on the case – Dr. Asseras in Cuba - and she has some connection to the Cuban roses in Boris’ rose garden. Evan wants to make amends with Hank for Evan's trusting their father with so much of their money, which he appears to have lost. Evan gets disappointed when his father seems to ditch him at a New York City hotel, and Hank is only more upset with Evan that Evan really thinks his father will repay them. With a little nudging from Divya to meet Hank halfway in making peace, Evan sells his prized sports car in order to pay back the debt. Hank seems to soften a bit, but at the end of the episode, when he and Evan are tossing around a football, it is clear that Hank is still stinging a bit. They all get a surprise when they get back to the house and find that their father Eddie is already there, and he has a big check to repay them. Hank hands the money to Evan and then Hank punches his father.
Just because I think this show is “lite” summer television doesn’t mean that this show is not entertaining. The cast has great chemistry and, for the most part, the characters are interesting. The only character that seems a little flat is Jill Casey, who seems to be all over the place. Her relationship with Hank is not very well defined and I find that I am not interested in whether they get together or not. The relationship that seems to be more compelling is Evan and Divya, with Divya announcing she will be getting married in 60 days and moving to London. I figure they will run this storyline out to the end of the season. Hopefully, Evan will continue in his “growing up” process, but not so much to the point that he becomes dull and boring. We already have that with Hank, who seems to be too squeaky clean and nice. I would be nice to see Hank with some sort of weakness or secret that can give his character some depth, because he seems a little too perfect right now, and perfect can get boring.
”Royal Pains” is not deep, dark, heavy drama, but it is an engaging series that mixes fun with drama, a combination that make for great viewing when you just want to sit back and relax. If you missed last season, don’t worry, there are no complicated story lines that will make you feel lost if you start watching now. So if you are looking for a cure to the summer TV doldrums, ”Royal Pains” may be the cure.
I called the finale of ”Lost “The End”: The Long Con Revealed, ” but nothing quite says what all the problems were with the Lost finale like this video called “Lost” The Ultimate List of Unanswered Questions.” Enjoy!
Please note: I am sorry, but this video is no longer available.
I rarely stay up until 11:30 PM to watch television, but made the exception for the series finale of Lost. The last episode, appropriately titled “The End” could have also been titled “The Long Con Revealed” as the last 10 minutes or so of the show finally gives away the whole secret of the Island. And the secret really was that there really was NO secret of the Island per se, it was that everyone who seemed to be trying to reconnect with others in their “sideways” life were really all dead and they were preparing themselves to “move on.” The whole “they’re all dead” theory was floated by many people very early in the first season, and if my memory serves me correctly, that theory was dismissed and denied by many people closely associated with the show. I suspect that the writers may have been making the whole thing up all along, and once they knew that it was time to end it, they decided to go back to the tried and true “they’re all dead” theory. I have to admit that I felt dissatisfied with the ending of the series as it seemed to descend into a predictable cheesiness. I also felt conned as the whole time viewers were led to believe that the Island had a deep mystery, and when it all came down to it, it may have been just another player in the "Jack Shephard goes to heaven" story.
The big question in my mind - and maybe the only mystery left for discussion long after the show ends is - exactly when did they die? Did they die when the plane first crashed on the Island? Did they survive the crash and die while on the Island, such as Jack, Juliette, Locke, Charlie, etc., and others while trying to get off the Island, such as Kate, Claire, Sawyer, Miles, Richard, and Lapius when they took off on Ajira 316? Did those people escape the Island on that plane and die sometime later? What about people like Desmond and Ben, who weren’t on the Oceanic flight to begin with (Desmond being busy pushing the button all those years, and Ben being an “Other”), or someone like Penny, who never set foot on the Island yet were at the church and crossed over (well, except for Ben who was outside the church, apparently not ready to go yet). Did Ben and Desmond still die on the Island but Penny died some other time and just waited to cross over until Desmond was dead and ready to go? It’s enough to make your head swim.
It seems that we are left with wondering what part of who's lives were real. For example, did they manage to get off the Island when Juliette died blowing up that bomb and they all seemed to go to other lives off the island, and did they die when they made their return trip when Jack convinced them they had to go back? Or was that just more of their “purgatory/limbo?” Here’s the dialog between Jack and his father, Christian, to help sort things out:
C: Hey kiddo. J: Dad? C: Hello Jack. J: I don’t understand, you died. C: Yes I did. J: Then how are you here right now. C: (sigh) How are YOU here? J: I died too. C: It’s ok. It’s ok. It’s ok, son. (They embrace as Jack sobs) J: I love you dad C: I love you too, son. J: Are you real? C: (Laughs) I sure hope so. Yeah, I’m real. You’re real. Everything that’s ever happened to you is real, all those people in the church – they’re all real too. J: They’re all…they’re all dead? C: Everyone dies sometime, kiddo. Some of them before you, some of them long after you. J: But why are they all here now? C: Well there is no now, here. J: Where are we dad? C: Well this is the place that you, that you all made together so that you can find one another. The most important part of your life was the time that you spent with these people. That’s why all of you are here. Nobody does it alone, Jack. You needed all of them, and they needed you. J: For what? C: To remember. And to let go. J: Kate. She said we were leaving. C: Not leaving, no. Moving on. J: Where are we going? C: Let’s go find out.
Jack’s father said everything that happened to Jack was real. Does that mean that Jack both crashed on the Island and also had a life where he, and the rest of them, did not crash on the Island? For example, did Jack really “cure” Locke but did Ben also kill Locke? It seems that there are many conflicting actions, depending on whose perspective one takes.
Regardless of what you believe, even though I wasn’t particularly satisfied with the ending, it was one that will have people talking about for quite some time. The ending credits will even spark discussion, as it isn’t clear which flight that plane wreckage was from (or at least I could not tell). Who knows, maybe it is another group’s arrival to make their long journey to crossing over.
Truly tragic is that is appears that dogs don’t have an afterlife, as Vincent appears next to Jack as he dies on the Island, but we don’t see him crossing over at the church. Maybe Vincent was just not ready.
No mystery with this finale is ABC’s desire to cash in, with seemingly 4 minutes of commercials for about every 6-7 minutes of storytelling. The Target commercials were the only ones that seem to put some thought into tying their ads toward elements from the series. And I don’t know if this was just a local problem or more widespread, but our ABC affiliate’s HD signal kept breaking up and pixelating, so we had to watch most of the show on out local non-HD channel.
And now that the secret has been revealed, maybe when people re-watch the series, the nitpicking and raising inconsistencies will reach a new level. For me, this ending has left me with no desire to re-watch another episode ever again. I suppose I wanted the Island to have some magical secret or mysterious powers. Maybe it still does - but for those that were "lost" and are now "found" and are crossing over to the other side, the Island has outlived its usefulness - and for me as well.
The season finale of Fringe (Fox), “Over There Part 2” brought Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv), along with Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble) over to the alternate universe in order to retrieve Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson), who went over there willingly with “Secretary” Walter Bishop (also John Noble). It seems that even William Bell (Leonard Nimoy, in what is supposed to be his last acting role) has come to call the alternate universe version of Walter the “Walternate”. By the way, I was amused by what seemed like a tribute to Nimoy as Star Trek's Mr. Spock as he raises his hand - reminiscent of "live long and prosper" - to release his energy. The episode did an excellent job in showing the differences between our world and the alternate – they fly in quiet dirigibles, the Transamerica Pyramid is in New York City, and Liberty Island has a gleaming Statue of Liberty with Liberty Island being the headquarters for the Department of Defense, and serves as Walternate’s headquarters. We also hear of some of the areas that are “quarantined," one of them being by Madison Square Garden, where a wormhole exists and 10,000 people are trapped inside, all who have been declared dead.
We know we are in a different place as the episode opens with a familiar looking theme – but it’s red rather than blue and some of the words are different (see comparison video below). The alternate universe, despite some of the normalcy,seems like a very cold and sterile place. Walternate seems to be the man in charge, and John Noble does his usual excellent job in portraying the very calm and reserved, yet cold and calculating Secretary. At the end of the episode, with Olivia imprisoned, he is able to show the differences between Walter and Walternate simply by changing the look on his face. It was enough to make me shudder. Although the twist at the end could be predicted a mile away, it was one of those endings that was highly satisfying, and only makes one wonder more about the interesting possibilities this show has for next season. (In case you missed part 1, see Fringe “Over There Part 1” Recap & Review)
In case you missed Part 2, here’s what happened:
Peter flies over New York to meet Walternate in his office on Liberty Island. It’s at Walternate’s office where Peter learns that Walter’s taking of Peter years ago created several “soft spots” in their universe because of what “that man” – Walter – did, and they are marked as red spots scattered all over the map of the United States, one almost covering Boston. He wants Peter to help him with a power source to help solve the problem and Walternate believes Peter’s knowledge of science from the other side can help. It’s here where Peter sees Olivia’s strawberry blonde alternate, and she is somewhat cold to him. Later, Walternate warns her that their doubles cannot be trusted and will lie – and he wants a favor of her.
Fringe Finale – extended scene (deleted from episode)
Walternate knows that Walter is at a local hospital being treated and sends the alternate Fringe team out to get him, but William Bell helps Olivia get to Walter first and to escape. Walter is really thrilled about the drugs they used – and also seems interested in the food, specifically, a bucket of KFC fried chicken which tastes the same to him in both universes. They make their plans to get Peter back, and they need to find a way to keep the door to the universes open so they can cross over – a doorstop of sorts. But Alt-Olivia is already working to track them down as has seen their escape on security video and she has also seen her blonde equivalent, and she now must work to top Walter from getting Peter back.
Alt-Olivia takes Peter to a hotel room and tells him he will be famous now that he returned as people know his story. While Olivia works to track down Peter, William Bell and Walter scout out his alternate Harvard lab for equipment to help them cross back over. We find that William Bell’s alternate had died in a car crash years ago and he and Walternate never worked together. Walter begins to argue with Bell, saying that Bell took the alternate world’s technology for profit, and Bell reminds Walter that he only came over to try to stop the events Walter started by coming and stealing Peter. He adds he had no choice but to work for Walternate, coming up with things like the shape shifters. Walter tells him of the 17 years he spent in a mental institution and is angry with Bell for cutting out pieces of his brain and stealing his memories. But they start working together when they find the piece of equipment that they need.
Meanwhile, back at Alt-Olivia’s apartment, she is ambushed by Olivia. They compare notes and find they are not completely alike, for example, Alt-Olivia’s mother is still alive, but her sister died in childbirth. When it seems Alt-Olivia wins at the battle of wits, Olivia manages to disable her and then knocks her out. Olivia dyes her hair and then makes her way to where Peter is being held – along with Agent Charlie Francis (Kirk Acevedo), whom Olivia told she was instructed to move Peter. Peter, working on the power source at the hotel, realizes the component needed to make it work is something unique – HIM.
When she gets to the hotel, she gives Peter the drawing she got from the Observer, and hearing mention of the Observer, he realizes something is up. When Olivia knocks Charlie out, Peter knows it is really Olivia, and she tells him Walternate lied about fixing the other universe; it is about destroying theirs. He asks her how long she knew about where he was really from and she tells him a few weeks, adding he doesn't belong here.. He agrees, but he thinks he doesn't belong there either. She says thought of 100 reasons why he should come back but the best reason is his belonging with her. She steps closer and they kiss.
At Alt-Fringe division, they realize Walter and the rest are going to the opera house. At the opera house, Peter and Walter re-unite, but as sirens approach, Bell tells Peter and Walter to go in and set up the device while he holds them off. Bell uses weapons he designed for maximum impact, and gives Olivia prototype phosphorous grenades while Walter powers up his machine inside. But when Olivia notices Alt-Olivia, she warns Bell, but there is a huge explosion. The next thing we see is Olivia - and I find myself asking is it really Olivia? - standing over William Bell, who was knocked out from the grenade. Inside, Walter and Peter have the machine up and running and Bell makes the decision that since his atoms are so scrambled anyway he will help keep the device open. As the door is opening, he admits to Walter that he took out part of his brain because Walter asked him to, because of what he was becoming. As the Alt-Fringies come through the door, he raises his hands and the energy flows out of him and with a flash, they are back “home” in the opera house, with Bell and the machine gone. Later, "Olivia" arrives home and looks around strangely. At the lab, Astrid (Jasika Nicole) welcomes Peter back with lots of pie. Before Peter leave the lab for the night, Walter asks him if he is staying, and Peter tells him, "I'm trying to see this your way, Walter. I can't. But, you did cross universes twice to save my life, so that's gotta count for something, right?"
But we then see “Olivia” walk into the typewriter store and she asks for the Selectric model 251 typewriter, used to communicate with the other side – and we know she is not who she seems. In the back room, as she gets ready to type her message, we see a tattoo on her neck. Her message: "Infiltration achieved. "Awaiting orders."
Back in the alternate universe, we see Walternate enter a darkened room and walk up to a window and turns on a light. It’s our Olivia inside a padded cell, and she screams for him to let he go, but he looks on her with a creepy smile of sorts and then turns the light out, leaving her in darkness, as we too go to black.
The season finale for Fringe (Fox) airs tonight (May 20, 2010) at 9PM ET on Fox. To get you ready for the action in the alternate universe, here is a video comparing the traditional “blue” opening sequence, and the alternate (or “Walternate”) red opening sequence. Enjoy! (The video is best viewed full size.)
Please note: I am sorry, but this video is no longer available.
Here are video previews of several new shows that NBC just announced as part of their 2010-2011 fall season lineup. I have a clip, in some cases more than one, from most of the new shows below. “Friends with Benefits” is missing as, despite the fact that NBC released the clip as part of their approved press kit, Fox is blocking the video from YouTube. There are no clips from the new Law & Order: LA (LOLA) as the show hasn’t even been cast as yet.
It’s hard sometimes to judge a new show based on a short clip, but based on what I’ve seen so far, I’d say NBC is off to an underwhelming season. Keep in mind that I am slightly older than the prized 18-49 demographic, so maybe my expectations for new, edgy, and intelligent television are set too high. Then again, maybe the 18-49 year olds’ expectations are set too low.
Please note: I am sorry, but this video is no longer available.
May 16, 2010
NBC UNVEILS 2010-11 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE ACCENTED BY FIVE NEW COMEDIES, SEVEN NEW DRAMAS AND NEW ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM
The New Fall Schedule Features All-Drama Lineups on Mondays and Wednesdays and All Comedies on Thursdays, Plus Unscripted Programming into Compatible Dramas on Tuesdays and Fridays
New Comedies Include "Friends With Benefits," "Outsourced," "Perfect Couples, "Love Bites" and "The Paul Reiser Show"
New Dramas Are "Undercovers," "The Event," "Chase," "Law & Order: Los Angeles," "Outlaw," "The Cape" and "Harry's Law"; And New Alternative Show "School Pride"
NEW YORK CITY - May 16, 2010 - NBC announced today its 2010-11 primetime schedule that is highlighted by five new comedies, seven new drama series and one new alternative program, including shows from such innovative hit-makers as J.J. Abrams, Jerry Bruckheimer and David E. Kelley, among others.
The high-quality series include new comedies such as "Outsourced," Love Bites," "Perfect Couples," "Friends With Benefits" and "The Paul Reiser Show." The new dramas are "The Cape," "Harry's Law," "Outlaw," "Undercovers," "The Event," "Chase" and "Law & Order: Los Angeles."
The schedule features all-drama lineups on Mondays and Wednesdays and five comedies on Thursdays. Tuesdays will continue to combine the similar appeal of "The Biggest Loser" with "Parenthood," and Fridays will team "Who Do You Think You Are?" and the new series "School Pride" with "Dateline NBC" and the new legal drama "Outlaw."
NBC will also broadcast a 35th anniversary "Saturday Night Live" special that will celebrate the iconic late-night series' long and eventful run on NBC since 1975.
The announcements were made by Jeff Gaspin, Chairman, NBC Universal Television Entertainment, and Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios.
"This new schedule brings NBC back to basics with its commitment to quality scripted programming," said Gaspin. "Our new shows are distinctive and feature a combination of the biggest talent, the brightest new stars and the strongest auspices in television. With this new schedule, we're poised to take the next step toward our long-term goals with a lineup that has stabilized and has been building solid momentum through the second half of the season."
"Our team has been working tirelessly to achieve our ambitious goals and we are so pleased to see that these new series demonstrate tremendous upside for NBC," said Bromstad. "We feel that this development season introduces shows that will become part of the great programming legacy of our network."
On Mondays (all times ET), NBC leads off with "Chuck" from 8-9 p.m., followed by two new and intense hour-long dramas - "The Event" (9-10 p.m.) and "Chase" (10-11 p.m.). Then on Tuesdays, NBC returns with its powerful stories from the hit alternative series "The Biggest Loser" (8-10 p.m.) and finishes the night with the acclaimed family drama "Parenthood" (10-11 p.m.).
NBC's Wednesday night features three hours of drama programming beginning with the new series "Undercovers" from J.J. Abrams (8-9 p.m.), "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (9-10 p.m.) and the new "Law & Order: Los Angeles" at 10-11 p.m. concludes the night.
Primetime Thursdays feature wall-to-wall comedy as this season's freshman sensation "Community" continues at 8-8:30 p.m. followed by the Emmy Award-winning "30 Rock" (8:30-9 p.m.). The Emmy-winning "The Office" continues 9-9:30 p.m. and will be followed by the new comedy "Outsourced" (9:30-10 p.m.). Now NBC's comedy fans get an extra round of laughs when the new, hour-long comedy "Love Bites" debuts at 10-11 p.m. "Parks and Recreation" will return to Thursdays later in the season to give the night more original programming.
Fridays come alive with a fresh mix of reality, news and a new scripted drama as the popular "Who Do You Think You Are?" returns at 8-9 p.m. where it shares the time period with "School Pride" -- a new, proactive and inspiring series about rebuilding a community's schools. "Dateline NBC" continues at 9-10 p.m. with its compelling personal stories. The workweek ends with "Outlaw," a new courtroom drama featuring Emmy winner Jimmy Smits as a former U.S. Supreme Court justice.
The wildly successful "NBC Sunday Night Football" reigns supreme again on Sundays (8:15-11:30 p.m.) preceded by "Football Night in America" (7-8:15 p.m.).
Sundays beginning March 2011, the popular competition series "Minute to Win It" returns (8-9 p.m.) followed by "The Celebrity Apprentice" (9-11 p.m.)
The new series "The Cape," "Friends With Benefits," "Perfect Couples," "Harry's Law" and "The Paul Reiser Show" will premiere later in the season along with a new version of "The Apprentice" "The Marriage Ref" and the new series "America's Next Great Restaurant" -- starring acclaimed celebrity chef/restaurateur Bobby Flay....
....See the schedule, watch exclusive video, and explore NBC's upcoming shows on NBC.com: http://www.nbc.com/upcoming-shows/
NBC FALL 2010 SCHEDULE
*New programs in UPPER CASE; all times ET
'UNDERCOVERS' -- Acclaimed writer/producer/director J.J. Abrams ("Star Trek," "Fringe," "Lost," "Alias") serves as co-writer, executive producer – and also directs – his first direction of a TV series pilot since "Lost" in "Undercovers" with executive producer/writer Josh Reims ("Brothers and Sisters"). "Undercovers" is a sexy, fun, action-packed spy drama that proves once and for all that marriage is still the world's most dangerous partnership. Outwardly, Steven Bloom (Boris Kodjoe, "Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion," "Soul Food," "Resident Evil: Afterlife") and his wife, Samantha (Gugu Mbatha-Raw, "Doctor Who," "Bonekickers"), are a typical married couple who own a small catering company in Los Angeles and are helped by Samantha's easily frazzled younger sister, Lizzy (Jessica Parker Kennedy, "Smallville"). Secretly, the duo were two of the CIA's best spies until they fell in love on the job five years ago and retired. When fellow spy and friend Nash (Carter MacIntyre, "American Heiress") goes missing while on the trail of a Russian arms dealer, the Blooms are reinstated by boss Carlton Shaw (Gerald McRaney, "Deadwood") to locate and rescue Nash. The pair is thrust back into the world of espionage as they follow leads that span the globe -- and Steven and Samantha realize that this supercharged, undercover lifestyle provides the excitement and romance that their marriage has been missing. Also starring is Ben Schwartz (NBC's "Parks and Recreation"). "Undercovers" is from Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. The pilot was written by J.J. Abrams & Josh Reims and directed by Abrams. Abrams, Reims and Bryan Burk ("Fringe," "Lost, "Alias") are the executive producers. http://www.nbc.com/undercovers/
'THE CAPE' -- "The Cape" is a one-hour drama series starring David Lyons ("ER") as Vince Faraday, an honest cop on a corrupt police force, who finds himself framed for a series of murders and presumed dead. He is forced into hiding, leaving behind his wife, Dana (Jennifer Ferrin, "Life on Mars") and son, Trip (Ryan Wynott, "Flash Forward"). Fueled by a desire to reunite with his family and to battle the criminal forces that have overtaken Palm City, Faraday becomes "The Cape" his son's favorite comic book superhero -- and takes the law into his own hands. Rounding out the cast are James Frain ("The Tudors") as billionaire Peter Fleming -- The Cape's nemesis -- who moonlights as the twisted killer: Chess; Keith David ("Death at a Funeral") as Max Malini, the ringleader of a circus gang of bank robbers who mentors Vince Faraday and trains him to be The Cape, Summer Glau ("Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles") as Orwell, an investigative blogger who wages war on crime and corruption in Palm City; and Dorian Missick ("Six Degrees") as Marty Voyt, a former police detective and friend to Faraday. "The Cape" is a Universal Media Studios and BermanBraun production from executive producer/creator Thomas Wheeler ("Empire"), executive producer/director Simon West ("Con Air"), the executive producing team of Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun (NBC's "Mercy), and executive producer Gene Stein ("Accidentally on Purpose"). http://www.nbc.com/the-cape/
'CHASE' -- "Chase" is a fast-paced drama from Emmy Award-winning executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer ("CSI" franchise, "The Amazing Race," "Pirates of the Caribbean" films) and executive producer Jennifer Johnson ("Cold Case") that drops viewers smack into the middle of a game of cat-and-mouse as a team of U.S. marshals hunts down America's most dangerous fugitives. Kelli Giddish ("Past Life") stars as U.S. Marshal Annie Frost, a cowboy boot-wearing deputy whose sharp mind and unique Texas upbringing help her track down the violent criminals on the run. Cole Hauser ("K-Ville"), Amaury Nolasco ("Prison Break"), Rose Rollins ("The L Word") and Jesse Metcalfe ("Desperate Housewives") also star as members of Frost's elite team. "Chase" is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc., in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. Television. Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman ("CSI" franchise, "The Amazing Race," "Cold Case") and Johnson serve as executive producers, while KristieAnne Reed is co-executive producer. David Nutter ("The Mentalist," "Without a Trace" "The X-Files") directed and is executive producer of the pilot that was written by Johnson. http://www.nbc.com/chase/
'OUTLAW' -- Starring Emmy Award winner Jimmy Smits ("NYPD Blue," "The West Wing"), "Outlaw" is a new drama from executive producer John Eisendrath ("Alias," "Felicity," "Playmakers"). Cyrus Garza (Smits) is a U.S. Supreme Court justice who abruptly quits the high-level position. A playboy and a gambler, Garza had always adhered to a strict interpretation of the law until he realized the system he believed in was flawed. Now that he's quit the bench and returned to private practice, he's determined to represent "the little guy" and use his inside knowledge of the justice system to take on today's biggest legal cases -- and he's making plenty of powerful people unhappy along the way. Jesse Bradford ("The West Wing"), Carly Pope ("24"), Ellen Woglom ("Californication") and David Ramsey ("Dexter") also star. "Outlaw" is a Universal Media Studios production along with Conaco productions. Eisendrath is executive producer along with Terry George ("Hotel Rwanda," "Reservation Road"), Conan O'Brien, Jeff Ross and David Kissinger ("Andy Barker, P.I."). "Outlaw" is written by Eisendrath and directed by George. http://www.nbc.com/outlaw/
'HARRY'S LAW' -- Emmy Award-winning creator David E. Kelley ("The Practice," "Boston Legal") brings his unique storytelling to "Harry's Law," a series about fate and the people it brings together, starring Academy Award winner Kathy Bates ("Misery," "About Schmidt"). Harriet (Bates), Matthew (Ben Chaplin, "Me and Orson Wells") and Malcolm (Aml Ameen, "Kidulthood") couldn't be any more different. Harriet is a curmudgeonly ex-patent lawyer who, having just been fired from her cushy job, is completely disillusioned with her success and looking for a fresh start. Her world unexpectedly collides with Malcolm's -- a young man trying to figure out life. When he finds out Harriet is a lawyer, he begs her to represent him in an upcoming criminal case. Matthew, a dreamer at heart and also recently fired from his job as a high school teacher, is introduced to Harriet through Malcolm, a previous student of his. When these three cross paths, they realize they're all looking for a fresh start. Now, the most unlikely of people are starting a law practice in the most unlikely of places--a rundown shoe store. "Harry's Law" also stars Brittany Snow ("Hairspray") as Harriet's assistant, Jenna Backstrom and Beatrice Rosen ("Dark Knight") as Eve, a high school French teacher.
"Harry's Law" is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with David E. Kelley Productions and Warner Bros. Television. David E. Kelley ("Boston Legal," "The Practice") and Bill D'Elia ("Boston Legal," "The Practice") serve as executive producers. D'Elia also is the director. http://www.nbc.com/harrys-law/
'LAW & ORDER: LOS ANGELES' -- The new "Law & Order: Los Angeles" is a procedural crime drama that will follow the theme and storylines similar to the "Law & Order"-brand series on the streets of Los Angeles. The series, from executive producer Dick Wolf and Blake Masters "("Brotherhood"), is a Wolf Films production in association with Universal Media Studios. Casting and pre-production work are continuing. http://www.nbc.com/law-and-order-los-angeles
New Comedy Series
'PERFECT COUPLES' -- "Perfect Couples" depicts the misadventures of three engaging couples as they struggle to find out what makes the ideal relationship -- and how to maintain it through humorous trial-and-error. The series explores their heroic journey in search of the perfect relationship without destroying each other in the process. Dave (Kyle Howard, "My Boys") and Julia (Christine Woods, "Flash Forward") are the relatable, normal couple, but Julia's hope of remaining the cool, low-maintenance chick is tested by Dave's attempts to keep both his wife and his needy best friend Vance (David Walton, "Heist") equally happy. Vance, along with the neurotic Amy (Mary Elizabeth Ellis, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"), are the high-passion, high-drama couple who bring out the best and worst in each other. The third duo features Rex (Hayes MacArthur, "She's Out of My League"), a reformed party guy, and, and his wife, Leigh (Olivia Munn, "Attack of the Show"), who considers herself as the group's mother hen. Believing that they are relationship experts, Rex and Leigh have attended every class and seminar on relationships -- and regard themselves as the "perfect couple." Jon Pollack ("30 Rock") and Scott Silveri ("Friends") are the executive producers while Andy Ackerman ("Seinfeld," "The New Adventures of Old Christine") is the director. The series is produced by Universal Media Studios. http://www.nbc.com/perfect-couples/
'OUTSOURCED' -- "Outsourced" is a comedy where the Midwest meets the exotic East in a hilarious culture clash. The series centers on the all-American company Mid America Novelties that sells whoopee cushions, foam fingers and wallets made of bacon -- and whose call center has suddenly been outsourced to India. Todd Dempsy (Ben Rappaport, off-Broadway's "The Gingerbread House") is the new company's manager who learns that he's being transferred to India to run the operation. Overwhelmed, Todd discovers that his new staff needs a crash course in all things American if they are to understand the U.S. product line and ramp up sales from halfway around the world. But as strange as America seems to his eclectic sales team, Todd soon realizes that figuring out India will be more than a full-time job. Rizwan Manji ("Privileged"), Sacha Dhawan (BBC's "Five Days II"), Rebecca Hazlewood (BBC's "Doctors"), Parvesh Cheena ("Help Me Help You"), and Anisha Nagarajan (Broadway's "Bombay Dreams") also star as members of Dempsy's off-shore team; Diedrich Bader ("The Drew Carey Show") and Jessica Gower (Network Ten's "The Secret Life of Us") additionally star. "Outsourced" is produced by Universal Media Studios. Robert Borden ("The Drew Carey Show" and "George Lopez") is executive producer/writer. Ken Kwapis ("The Office") developed the project through his company, In Cahoots, and serves as executive producer/director. Alex Beattie serves as co-executive producer. http://www.nbc.com/outsourced/
'THE PAUL REISER SHOW' -- "The Paul Reiser Show" is a new single camera comedy from Emmy and Golden Globe nominated comedian-author-producer-actor Paul Reiser ("Mad About You") and writer-producer Jonathan Shapiro ("Life"). The show stars Paul Reiser as…Paul Reiser. It's been a few years since Paul's hit TV series went off the air. Since then, he's been enjoying the quiet life at home with his lovely wife and kids and generally minding his own business. Lately, however, Paul has been thinking that it's time he did something new, something meaningful. As to what that next thing might be, he has no idea. In his quest to figure it out, Paul is helped and hindered by his new "friends." Like most men his age, Paul didn't choose these friends. They're the husbands of his wife's friends, the dads of kids that his boys go to school with. Thrown together by circumstance, Paul and his friends form an unlikely comradeship -- and a horrible basketball team. In addition to Reiser, Ben Shenkman ("Angels in America") stars as Jonathan, Omid Djalili ("The Infidel") as Habib, Duane Martin ("All of Us") as Fernando, Andrew Daly ("MADtv") as Brad, Amy Landecker ("A Serious Man") as Claire, Brock Waidmann as Zeke and Koby Rouviere ("Greenberg") as Gabe. The pilot is executive produced and written by Reiser and Shapiro, produced by Craig Knizek ("Mad About You"), Merri Howard ("Cold Case") and Peter Safran ("Heist"), and directed by Bryan Gordon ("Curb Your Enthusiasm"). "The Paul Reiser Show" is a production of Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Nuance Productions and Warner Bros. Television. http://www.nbc.com/the-paul-reiser-show/
'FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS' -- From Oscar and Emmy winner Brian Grazer ("A Beautiful Mind," "Arrested Development"), "Friends With Benefits" is a half-hour comedy revolving around a group of twenty-something singles as they navigate the difficult, and often confusing, world of dating. Ben Weymouth (Ryan Hansen, "Party Down") is on the hunt for the perfect woman who meets his unique set of standards, while his best friend, Sara Maxwell (Danneel Harris, "One Tree Hill"), is just looking for a man to settle down with and raise a family. Ben and Sara have fallen into the habit of turning to each other for moral and physical support as they wait for Mr. and Ms. Right to arrive. Their friend Aaron (Fran Kranz, "Dollhouse"), a romantic at heart, doesn't approve of Ben and Sara's complicated friendship, but he, along with womanizer Hoon (Ian Reed Kesler) and straight shooter Riley (Jessica Lucas, "Cloverfield"), are all distracted with their own dating trials and tribulations. David Nevins ("Lie to Me," "Arrested Development") joins Grazer as executive producer for Imagine Television. Also serving as executive producers are David Dobkin ("Wedding Crashers"), who directs the pilot, writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber ("(500) Days of Summer"), and Jeff Kleeman. "Friends With Benefits" is a production of 20th Century Fox Television, Imagine Television and Big Kid Pictures. http://www.nbc.com/friends-with-benefits/
New One-Hour Comedy Series
'LOVE BITES' – From Emmy Award-winning writer-producer Cindy Chupack ("Sex and the City"), "Love Bites" is an hour-long romantic comedy anthology series featuring three loosely connected, modern stories of love, sex, marriage and dating. Each episode contains multiple vignettes, all illuminating the theme of love with an edgy, irreverent spin. Becki Newton ("Ugly Betty") stars as Annie and Jordana Spiro ("My Boys") stars as Frannie, the last two single girls standing after all of their friends get married. Annie is an infectiously bubbly optimist and Frannie is an always-a-bridesmaid realist. Their story will anchor the series, while other romantically-challenged characters will come and go each week. The pilot's guest cast includes Jennifer Love Hewitt ("Ghost Whisperer"), Greg Grunberg ("Heroes"), Craig Robinson ("The Office"), Jason Lewis ("Sex and the City"), Lindsay Price ("Lipstick Jungle"), Larry Wilmore ("The Daily Show"), Charlyne Yi ("Knocked Up"), Pamela Adlon ("Californication"), Stacy Galina ("Hidden Hills"), Brian Hallisay ("Privileged"), Kyle Howard ("My Boys") and Steve Howey ("Bride Wars"). "Love Bites" is a production of Universal Media Studios and Working Title Television, which is a new division of Working Title Films (the U.K. production company behind box office hits including "Love Actually," "Bridget Jones's Diary" and "Four Weddings and a Funeral"). Chupack is creator, executive producer and writer. Emmy Award-winning producer-director Marc Buckland ("My Name Is Earl") also is executive producer and directs the pilot. Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan and Shelley McCrory from Working Title Television are executive producers. "Love Bites" is Working Title Television's first U.S. commission. http://www.nbc.com/love-bites/
New Alternative Series
'SCHOOL PRIDE' – From executive producers Cheryl Hines ("Curb Your Enthusiasm") and Denise Cramsey ("Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and "True Beauty"), "School Pride" is a proactive, alternative series that tells the stories of communities coming together to renovate their aging and broken public schools. While transforming the school, the community also restores its sense of value and school pride. The cameras follow students, teachers and parents as they roll up their sleeves and rebuild their own schools, concluding with the unveiling of a brand new, completely transformed school. They are motivated by a quartet of community organizers and personalities -- SWAT Commander Tom Stroup, interior designer Susie Castillo ("House of Payne"), comedian and former substitute teacher Kym Whitley ("Til Death") and political correspondent Jacob Soboroff ("AMC News"). Together, the team of experts will lead the community through the makeover process. Months later, cameras will revisit the school to discover the lasting effects of the transformation -- a renewed sense of school pride and an increase in student achievement scores. "School Pride" is produced by Horizon Alternative Television. http://www.nbc.com/school-pride/
We actually do take a trip “Over There” in this episode of Fringe (Fox). Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv), Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble) and a few other people part of Walter’s Cortexaphan experiments head over to the alternate universe to try to bring Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) back. It seems that Peter has crossed over to the other side with “The Secretary” - who is the Walter Bishop alternate (“Walternate”) and who is Peter’s real father. Major gloom and doom will ensue if he stays there, according to Walter. This episode gives us a good look at life in the alternate universe, with its different scenery (the World Trade Center Twin Towers are still standing, the Status of Liberty looks brand new, and dirigibles fly in the sky), different money (a $20 bill is a “Junior” for Martin Luther King, Jr., and a coin has Nixon’s face on it), and a different ID system ("show me"). Our main characters also have their counterparts who look different – and some that we know to be dead are still alive here. It’s an interesting episode that serves to set up the season finale very nicely. This has been a fantastic season of Fringe so far, and I suspect that fans will not only be excited about the finale, but also energized for the next season.
Here’s what happens in this episode:
When the episode opens, we’re already on the other side, watching the alternate Fringe team with a strawberry blond-ish looking Agent Olivia Dunham and her team – made up of a very edgy dressed agent Broyles (Lance Reddick), Agent and Charlie Francis (Kirk Acevedo), and Nick (David Call) – who on the “real” side is one of the Cortexaphan test group. They are investigating a “breach” in a large theatre – and after tense moments which included Broyles working with what seems to be a version of Astrid (Jasika Nicole) who seems to have some special ability, they don’t need to quarantine the area in the theatre. We see, though, that the breach was caused by Olivia, Walter, and 3 other members of the Cortexaphan test group crossing over to the alternate universe. The alternate Fringies find a body that doesn’t have a “show me” – which is their version of an ID – and the person has a $20 bill on them that is foreign to the alternates.
The story goes back 36 hours, and we see Walter in his lab, sadly watching a video of Peter disappearing in a flash with Walternate. Olivia is drowning her sorrows in a bar, but an Observer walks by and leaves her what looks like a large piece of paper. When Walter calls Olivia telling her something terrible is going to happen to Peter, she tries to calm him, but she looks at the paper the Observer left her and it is drawing of an odd machine and Peter's face with what looks like glowing fire coming out of his eyes. Later, when she shows this to Walter, he thinks this is what has been upsetting him and says "My son is going to be responsible for the end of the world."
Walter knows he needs to go to the other side to get Peter back and enlists the help of Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) at Massive Dynamic, who recognizes the machine as William Bell’s technology, but says they never built it. As they work to get to the other side, Massive Dynamic lab geek Brandon (Ryan McDonald) shows them the danger of going over – their molecular make up could shatter, and that William Bell crossed so many times he became molecularly unstable. Walter doesn’t want to build another door like the one he first used to get Peter – he is concerned both worlds would be destroyed. He thinks he could do it with Olivia and the Cortexaphan group. When Broyles says they do have a few more of them other than Olivia, they decide to use them to make the cross over. James Heath (Omar Metwally), the guy who transfer cancer can now cure disease. Sally Clark (Pascale Hutton) is a controlled pyro-kenetic and Nick Lane can seemingly transfer his feelings, making everyone, including Broyles, laugh.
Walter later talks with the Cortexaphan group and despite Heath seeming a little skeptical of Walter, they decide to cross over with him. After having the night off – and after Olivia gives her crucifix to her niece Ella (Lily Pilblad), and hugs her sister Rachel (Ari Graynor), she heads off to the theatre which is their best place to cross over. Nina sends a message to William Bell on the other side as to where to meet them, and hopes that he will get it. Despite Broyles objections, Walter will cross over with them, and they join in a circle and essentially “will” themselves over.
Once there, sirens can be heard and James falls ill and collapses and they must leave him. They quickly make their escape as they watch the alternate Fringe team work on the breach. Once outside, they try to get to the meeting place but they don’t have a “show me” to get on the bus, so they have to walk. Sally also becomes ill and Nick tries to help. Meanwhile, the $20 bill the alternate Fringies found raises a red flag to the Department of Defense and they are called in to see The Secretary. He admits that although they think the Fringe team was created to investigate natural disasters that have occurred since the "zero event" in 1985 at Raden Lake (which is where Walter crossed over to get Peter), causing tears in the universe, and that the Secretary wrote about them in the “ZFT” in 1995, that the ZFT is a half-truth. The tears aren't natural and lead to a parallel earth. He believes the dead man they found didn't come over alone and he thinks the "invaders are anything but peaceful."
Elsewhere, Peter, after sleeping for 3 days, wakes up in a bed in a home in the country, and his mother Elizabeth (Orla Brady), is cooking breakfast. She tells him he's been sleeping for three days. They have an emotional hug. Later, they talk about his “other mother” and her suicide. She gives him something from Walternate. He looks at it later, and it is the blueprint for the same machine in the drawing the Observer gave to Olivia.
Walter, Olivia, and the others reach the area where they expect to meet William Bell, and instead are greeted by the alternate Fringe division, who fire their guns on them. They all attempt to flee, but Sally is ill and Nick again tries to help her. Nick gets shot, and in retaliation, Sally shoots a ball of fire at alternate Nick, turning him into a crispy critter – alive but badly burned. Nick and Sally have also vaporized. But later, and separated from Olivia, Walter realizes he was shot, and collapses at the entrance of a hospital. Olivia has tracked down the address of her alternate and stands outside her home, seeing that her alternate has male company. And soon Olivia herself has company – William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) who meets her on the sidewalk and says he got the message too late and he knew she would come here. He tells her Walter's in trouble and they don't have much time. Elsewhere, Walternate walks into a large, secret-looking room and we see what looks like a parchment paper that depicts the machine and Peter with his glowing fiery eyes, like the drawing the Observer gave to Olivia. There seems to be strange writing on it. Walter looks up at what looks like the machine. He takes something out of a case that is marked “mC Wave Sink No. 3” and leaves the room with it, and as the door closes behind him, we cut to black.
Stay tuned for part 2 next week – the season finale!
Photos from AMC 
