Network Upfronts 2010: Pickups, Cancelations And Renewals, Oh My!

With the network upfronts next week, TV news is coming faster than I can post it, so I'll just run through a quick few things that stick out in my mind:

-Chuck has been renewed for a 4th season. Hooray! Subway sandwiches for all!

-V has also been renewed for a 2nd season. I can't believe I'm saying this, but...hooray again! The show has actually been getting good. Almost good enough for me to watch a whole episode while not reading Entertainment Weekly/working on my 5,000-piece jigsaw puzzle.

-FlashForward has been canceled. Thanks for nothing, Joseph Fiennes! I said it once, and I'll say it again: John Cho should've been the lead. Then the show might've had a shred of a chance. Sorry, Penny Widmore.

-NBC's Rockford Files remake is DOA. Thank you, there must be a television god who doesn't like remakes either. Now, about that Hawaii Five-O...

-CBS ordered its first new show for fall: Mike & Molly. It's a sitcom about a chubby married couple. Sookie from Gilmore Girls is playing Molly. Hey, can we get Michel a show? He was pretty awesome.

-The Wanda Sykes Show has been canceled, giving network execs another excuse to say a late-night show starring a person of color will not work. Dang it! Wanda, you're one of the funniest ladies around. Fox's loss.

-The original Law & Order has been canceled. No wait, it hasn't. Wait, it definitely has. Actually, there might be a chance that it won't be. Eh, does anybody under the age of 87 really care?

***UPDATE***

Law & Order is officially done. But not to fear--NBC just ordered Law & Order: Los Angeles. I'm still waiting for Law & Order: Newark.

More to come as I hear about it...

FlashForward: Why Isn't Anyone Watching? Let Me Count The Ways.

FlashForward returned with new episodes a couple of weeks ago, and I've watched two of them. So far, it's a mixed bag.

The good, the bad, and the ugly of the new episodes of FlashForward:

The good:
-Every scene with John Cho. I'm sweating just typing his name. Geez. Whether he's arguing with his fiancée, or having a heartwarming chat with Janis, or running after a bad guy, I can't take my eyes off him.
-I love that Janis is fighting to have her future baby girl. I think she'd be a good mom. By the way, what happened to her girlfriend? Did they break up or something? I can barely remember what I had for dinner last night, let alone what happened in an episode that aired last December. Remember that, ABC, and all other networks, the next time you make your shows go on a four-month hiatus in the middle of a season.

The bad/ugly:
-Joseph Fiennes and Lloyd Simcoe (I don't know the actor's name, nor do I care). Their scenes bore me to tears. Approximately 75% of the 2nd episode consisted of Joseph and Lloyd rehashing their flash forwards: who called whom, who texted whom, who slept with whose wife when such calling/texting occurred, and what it all means, blah blah. MAN.
-You know how each episode of Lost focuses on one character, but they also show the broader plotlines going on with the other characters? FlashForward is doing that in reverse. Instead of focusing on one character, they focus on ALL BUT ONE character. In the first episode, there is no mention or appearance of AA dude and his soldier daughter. None whatsoever. Then, in episode 2, AA dude and his daughter are all over the place. But Olivia is gone. This is so bizarre and distracting, it takes away from my enjoyment of the show. Or maybe I'm just really, really neurotic.
-Can someone explain to me what happened to the Japanese girl? They spent a whole episode on the orderly dude going to Japan and knocking on doors and going to restaurants to try to find the girl from his flash forward. Now all of a sudden he's BFFs with the nanny? Visiting her and her crazy mom and gluing pennies on the wall? What?

FlashForward is currently on "bubble" status, which means it's on the verge of cancellation. Oh, FlashForward, you were so promising back in September. And now look where you are. I'm truly disappointed.

(Pictured: Janis and Demetri, my two favorite characters. Even covered in wounds, John Cho is dang hot.)

FlashForward: Twists and Turns, and Brunch for Dinner.

How awesome was this week's FlashForward?

For one thing, we learn who shoots Demetri Noh. I don't know about you, but I assumed he'd get shot by one of the bad guys who started the whole blackout. Instead, we learn it's Mark Benford, aka the boring lead character, who shoots him. Holy twist, Batman!

We also learn that in the world of FlashForward, people in Hong Kong eat dim sum for dinner. Dim sum is traditionally a brunch-y meal, so call me crazy, but I'm thinking the writers didn't do their research.

We also learn the truth behind Demetri's fiancee Zoe's flash forward. She thought she and Demetri were at their wedding. But they were actually at his FUNERAL. Makes total sense, as all the guests, and Zoe, were wearing white, the color of mourning in many Asian cultures. (At least the writers got that part right.) There was also a really nice moment between Zoe and Demetri's mom, who knew her son was going to die. Mom says, "When I saw the love you had for him [at the funeral], I knew you were right for him." Aww.

By the way, you know the blurry image of the guy in the video footage, the one who was walking around the stadium while everyone else was blacked out? That guy looks just like Lloyd Simcoe.

Speaking of Lloyd, a crazy thing happened at the end that led me to believe my fiance is psychic. Basically, Lloyd is having his son transferred to another hospital, and he, Olivia, and the kid are saying their goodbyes. Then, as the ambulance guys load the kid into the car:

Fiance: Those guys in the ambulance are bad.

Me: What?

Fiance: Yeah. Watch. They're going to shoot everyone.

Me: That's crazy. Why would you say that? They're just transporting the kid--

All of a sudden, the kid is yelling, the ambulance guys are forcing him into the car, and one of them goes to shoot Olivia. Lloyd steps in front of her and convinces them to leave her alone. They drive off. I'm stunned.

Me: How did you know that???

Fiance: I'm just that good.

We also learn in this episode that Mark Benford is a pretty inept FBI agent. At the dim sum place, he upends a table and takes Shohreh Aghdashloo hostage. He drags her outside, with all of Shohreh's men and Demetri and some black guy who I guess is Mark's boss following them. Everyone aims their gun at Mark, and he finally surrenders. Then the black guy fires Mark. FIRES HIM. I did not see that one coming. I mean, I could see that he was a terrible cop (did he really think he could get away w/ kidnapping Shohreh?), and a dull man to boot, but did he really have to be fired?

Don't worry, Mark Benford. The higher-ups at 24 are always firing Jack Bauer, and he always manages to stick around and save the day. There's hope for you yet.

Also, some stuff was revealed about Simon and the mysterious towers in the desert. I don't care about those towers. I just know I won't understand what they are, what they mean, etc. because this is just like the Dharma Initiative on Lost. Once they got into that whole thing, I was lost (no pun intended) and had to give up the show.

I really don't want to give up FlashForward. Especially since I'm hoping Demetri Noh gets promoted to replace Mark McSnoozy. I don't think that'll actually happen, but hey, a girl can hope.

FlashForward: John Cho/Demetri Noh for the Lead!

After watching the second episode of FlashForward this weekend, I am convinced that John Cho should play the lead role. Not Joseph Fiennes. Why?

1) John Cho is hotter. Joseph Fiennes is handsome, yes, but sorta bland (for my taste).

2) John Cho is more charismatic on screen. He moves with determination. My eyes are drawn to him no matter what scene he's in or who he's with in those scenes.

3) John Cho's character has a cooler name--Demetri Noh. (And no, it's not "Mongoloid.") Joseph Fiennes' character's name didn't even register with me until the middle of episode 2. It's Mark, for the record. And his last name? Beats me.

4) John Cho's character is unique, compelling, and memorable. He's the guy who had no flashforward, yet instead of sitting around moping, is every bit as determined to find the cause of the blackouts as everyone else. He's the guy who's engaged to be married, but knows he will die, and doesn't know whether to tell his fiancee. He's the guy who just found out his death date from the amazing Shohreh Aghdashloo. What does Mark bring to the table? a) He is a recovering alcoholic who found out he will be drinking again in the future. Meh, they haven't really delved into this. b) His wife will cheat on him in the future. Okay, but this is really about his wife, not him. c) He leads the FBI in investigating the flashforwards. Okay, not fair, because he told everyone he saw this in his flashforward, so everyone accepted it and let him do it. Besides, Demetri and that FBI lady Janis (the one who finds out she's pregnant in the future) are doing most of the work. I don't know what Mark contributed to the investigation other than "Pigeon is a city in Utah."

Am I the only one who thinks John Cho is underrated? Am I the only one annoyed that a more compelling character was relegated to the #2 lead--probably because he's Asian American, and there is not a single Asian American lead role on television and there hasn't been in years and years?

My FlashForward Verdict: I Like It. I Really, Really Like It!

First of all, I want to say: Holy way to end an episode, Batman!

Let's rewind. There were many things to like about this show (at least, the pilot). First and foremost, John Cho kicking butt. I loved seeing him as a tough FBI agent. I loved his acting-when he revealed that he did not see a vision, the devastation was evident on his face. But then he put his own fate (or lack thereof) aside to help with the mission. John Cho, you should be leading this cast, not supporting it.

The different visions are all interesting. There's a guy whose wife died in Afghanistan who saw his wife alive in his vision. The lead character's wife, Olivia, saw herself with another man (who we find out is the father of one of her patients). One guy saw himself at a meeting with another woman, so he called her up, and sure enough, she had a vision of the meeting, too. Very cool concept. I've always wondered if, when I dream about people, they dream the same dream about me, too.

Something funny I saw-one of the buses in the background had a Desperate Housewives ad along the side. Oh, ABC, you so devious!

Also, Charlie's babysitter was none other than Don Draper's former assistant and Roger Sterling's wife on Mad Men.

At the end of the episode, one of the FBI women has found something incredible in the footage she's been perusing of the blackouts around the world. At a Detroit Tigers' baseball game, while the whole stadium is conked out, a lone person wearing all black is creeping through the crowd. I nearly fell off my seat when I saw that. And in that moment, I knew that I'd be watching this show next week, and the week after. I. Was. Hooked.

ABC, you might just have yourself a new hit drama.

The FlashForward Compromise

Dear FlashForward,

I want to like you, I do.

You have a great premise: The whole world blacks out for two minutes, during which time everyone has a brief vision of their future. You pose a terrific, philosophical question: What would you do if you knew what your future was? Would you work toward it, knowing it was inevitable? Or try to change it? Okay, that's three questions.

You have a pretty great cast. And by pretty great cast I mean the hot, talented and funny John Cho, who is finally getting a big role in primetime TV. IMDB says he was in Ugly Betty, but alas, I don't remember him there at all.

The thing is, FlashForward, I don't know if I want the commitment.

You see, about five years ago, a little show called Lost came along, and I fell in love with it. Two years later, I broke up with it. Too many new characters, plotlines, mysteries. My head exploded, and I had enough.

Same thing happened with House. Prison Break. Heroes. Shows that all started out with a simple, brilliant concept that quickly evolved into too-big commitments and too many new characters I didn't care about.

So FlashForward, how about a compromise? How about we take this one episode at a time? If, at any point, I stop liking you, I can stop downloading you (because, of course, I'll be watching Survivor: Samoa). A clean break. No guilt. So? How 'bout it?

Sincerely,
A TV fan

P.S. If you had cast John Cho in the lead, I wouldn't have had to write this letter. I'm just saying.