Pop Culture Curmudgeon

The Nielsens Are Evil

As I watched Better off Ted last night, I was again struck with anger that the shows I like are always either on the bubble or sure of being canceled. [Edited to add: According to TV by the Numbers, Better of Ted gets 4.5-5 million viewers, a 1.9 in the 18-49 demographic. American Idol gets 18 million viewers, a 8.0 in the 18-49 demo.]

It all started when I was nine, and a little show starring Sarah Jessica Parker and a cast of odd characters. That show was Square Pegs. My best friend and I watched it every week, delighting in Patty and her fat friend’s journey through high school, the odd behavior of Johnny Slash and his buddy Marshall, the Valley Girl stylings of Jennifer, the grudging respect Jennifer’s boyfriend Vinnie began to show Patty as the year progressed, and the elevated diction of Muffy. Muffy and Brother Dan, the vice principal at the Catholic high school I graduated from, are the only people I have heard use the work behoove and mean it.

Square Pegs made it through one year on the air, but that was it. Its cancellation cut me to my core. I wish I could say that was the last time I was crushed as one of my favorite shows didn’t make it back on the air, but the list is too long for a blog post.

Twin Peaks almost canceled itself, with its quick drop in quality after the reveal of the central mystery. ABC put it out of its misery when it canceled it, but it still hurt.

Veronica Mars was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, standing up to my incessant replays of its three short years.

This year, I fear that I will again have to bid a fond farewell to some high-quality shows. And that I will again be left with nothing but an unsatisfying cliffhanger to watch again and again on the DVDs as others revel in their Americal Idol, Dancing with the Stars, CSI, and Grey’s Anatomy. I will again curse the random sampling method of gauging viewer interest in their television shows. The Nielsens have been cruel to me over the years, and I would like to see a ratings system that I can at least believe is accurate.

Yet I still look forward to the upfronts. The announcements of which shows have been spared and which new shows I will get attached to in the fall. The mourning period that begins when the cancellations are for sure.

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What to Watch and When to Watch It

Michael Ausiello continues to be a great source of info on tv news. Here is his list of which shows will make more episodes to complete their seasons: http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-Editors-Blog/Ausiello-Report/Wga-Strike-Favorite/800032698

It looks like many of my faves will be back this spring (Supernatural, Reaper, The Office, 30 Rock), and others will definitely be back for the fall (Chuck, Dirty Sexy Money, Heroes). I’ll have to take some time to catch up on Moonlight–love Jason Dohring, but have been somewhat bored with the rest of the show. The cable series I like will also come back this spring (Battlestar Gallactica, Greek).

Speaking of Greek, I’m going to get recaps of the first part of S1 posted over the next few weeks, and then post recaps as the remaining eps of S1 run. Greek? you ask. Really? Yes, really. I enjoy this show (Clark Duke is awesome!), and I was disappointed to find that no one was doing recaps when the eps first aired over the summer.

There is more good news for SPN fans: Lost will be moving to 10pm Thursdays this spring, so it will no longer be opposite SPN.

Really the only bad news is that Friday Night Lights still doesn’t know its fate. I know I talk about this show a lot, but if you knew me last spring when Veronica Mars was on the chopping block, you would see that (a) this is just how I am and (b) the furor over FNL is nothing compared to VM.

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There'll Be Dancing, Dancing in the Streets

It’s over!!!! The writers can get back to bringing us the wonderful scripted shows we love. I HATE reality tv so much, and I can’t wait for the new eps of even bad scripted shows.

Read more about it at http://unitedhollywood.blogspot.com/

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I'm So Glad It's (Almost) Over

How happy am I that I can expect some new episodes of my favorite series this season? How happy am I that I can go back to watching eps I missed on the Internet? And hoe happy am I that the writers appear to have worked out a favorable deal for new media? Well, happy enough to post about it.

Ausiello has a great list of how many episodes we can expect of each of our favorite shows. Certainly, some of the news isn’t great–a lot of shows won’t be back until fall–but we’ll have more eps of Supernatural, The Office, My Name Is Earl, 30 Rock and Reaper, plus some others I don’t watch. I’m hoping for the final eps of Scrubs to run on NBC. Perhaps after you write to NBC asking them to keep Friday Night Lights on the air, you could also ask them to give Scrubs a real send off…

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