new show
Six New Shows (and 'Charmed') Coming to WE
Can we agree that the word "docusoap" is one of the worst TV-related words ever invented? It's approximately 300 times worse than "dramedy." WE has just announced that they're adding six new shows (plus the long-running WB show 'Charmed') to its schedule, and almost all of them are described as "docusoaps," which pretty means that I'm not going to be watching WE anytime soon (not that I'm in their demographic anyway). After the jump, a list of the new shows.
Tom Selleck to Star in New Show For CBS (But it's Not Jesse Stone)
When I first saw the headline that Tom Selleck was going to star in a new drama for CBS, my mind instantly went to 'Jesse Stone,' the fine series of TV movies based on the books by Robert B. Parker. I think it would make for a great TV series, but alas, this is a completely different show.Selleck is in talks to play the lead in a new drama for the network that would center on a family of cops in New York. Selleck would play the police chief and other members of his family would include Donnie Wahlberg (playing his son) and Len Cariou (playing his father). The show used to be called 'Reagan's Law' but now they're changing the name.
I'd rather see some Jesse Stone movies (or how about a 'Magnum, P.I.' reunion?), but if it keeps Selleck at CBS that means they'll be more Jesse Stone movies, so that's a good thing.
Here's the Trailer for David Simon's 'Treme'
'Instant Recall' Won't Go Down In History As One of the Great Game Shows

I'm a traditionalist when it comes to game shows. I don't really like anything that's too bizarre or wanders too far from the studio audience/stage/host with a mic/play a game format. So I didn't really like the new GSN show 'Instant Recall,' even if there were a few things that I found amusing.
The concept: host Wink Martindale and his crew stage a phony set-up to con someone into playing a game. This first episode featured two people who thought they were at a "love seminar" and a guy who found himself at a party that turned into an intervention for a woman he'd never met before (Wink and the sexy model are in another room as the con unfolds). So yeah, this is 'Candid Camera' with a twist. When it's time to let the victims off the hook, Wink comes in, introduces himself, and they play the game, which is to see if the contestants can remember what just happened to them.
Coming to NBC: new shows about a superhero and customer service reps
NBC seems to be picking up a lot of pilots lately, and here are two more. Cape is about a cop who decides to become a superhero so he can clear his name and get back together with his son. It's written by Tom Wheeler and will be produced by Lloyd Braun and Gail Berman. I'm surprised they didn't just add the character to Heroes. He could have been Matt's old partner or something. Outsourced is about a guy who is transferred to India to become head of a customer service department. It's based on a movie from a few years ago. Office director Ken Kwapis is going to direct the pilot.
On a side note, I chuckle every time I see the name Lloyd Braun attached to a project. That was the name of the character on Seinfeld who gave George all sorts of problems. He was named after the real Braun. I picture him at his desk, chewing weird gum, making decisions about TV shows.
Here are the first 18 minutes of FlashForward
FlashForward (I did it!) is probably the show that is getting the most buzz and the most good reviews before it premieres. It's about everyone in the world passing out at the exact same time for 2 minutes or so and seeing visions of their future (at least most people see a vision, some don't). Beyond that we don't know much, which is a good thing. Here's the opening scenes from the first episode, which airs this Thursday on ABC.
TV Squad Ten: Reasons Leverage is the best new show this season

Have you seen TNT's new show, Leverage yet? It's been called a new age A-Team, but I see it more as a lighthearted combination of Ocean's 11, Alias, Burn Notice and even How I Met Your Mother.
In fact, I'm willing to go out on a limb and state in no uncertain terms that Leverage is the best new show to premiere this season. I would have given the title to The Mentalist previous to Leverage's premiere, but since then, it has continued to steal my heart a little more each week.
What makes Leverage the best new show this season? In no particular order ...
Perez Hilton coming to VH1
Good news for fans of celebrity gossip dished out by a gay man with a love for MS Paint: popular online muckraker Perez Hilton is coming to VH1 as the host of What Perez Says, a series of one-hour specials that Hilton himself is describing as "like PerezHilton.com come to life, but even juicier." The new series debuts in September.
I suppose it's somewhat ironic that Perez is becoming part of the celebrity world he so gleefully attacks on his blog. Of course, in this age when almost everyone is a celebrity in some form or another, it's not too surprising.
Tila Tequila may have new show on VH1
According to Monsters and Critics, singer, video vixen and popular MySpace personality Tila Tequila (real name Tila Nguyen) may soon have her own series on VH1. Nguyen says she plans to "push the envelope," with her new series, which, based on her YouTube videos, I assume means she'll be half-dressed through most of the show to distract people from her singing. There are no real details on the series just yet, and no official word when or if it will debut.
Back to the Grind for old TV stars
Cindy Williams and Penny Marshall aren't the only "classic" TV stars slated to pop up on TV Land this coming season: both Loni Anderson (WKRP in Cincinnati) and Harry Anderson (Night Court) are the first to sign on for a new series called Back to the Grind, which is not a revamped version of the MTV dance show The Grind, but rather a reality series in which actors and actresses will actually perform the jobs their characters had on their respective shows.
Seeing Harry Anderson as a judge and Loni Anderson doing whatever it is she did on WKRP could be entertaining, but I also want to see Wayne Rogers remove shrapnel from a young South Korean boy, and I want to see Melissa Sue Anderson stricken with blindness in order to reprise her role as Mary Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie. If we're going to make a show like this, people, let's not mess around.
The series premieres on October 10.
FOX orders Anchorwoman
There's not too much information on it just yet, but FOX has ordered six episodes of Anchorwoman, a new comedy that will mix both reality and scripted elements as it focuses on a super model who returns to Texas to become a TV anchorwoman, because, who wants to listen to an ugly woman report the news? Not me. In fact, I was once almost killed in a tornado because I refused to listen to the average-looking news woman telling me to seek shelter. I now have half a dead chicken embedded in my skull, I can't do basic math, and sometimes triangles make me cry, but I think it was worth it.
Where was I? Oh yeah, not much information, but I like the idea of mixing two genres together. I'll save judgment until more information pops up about the series, but the basic premise alone has me intrigued.
Will the Muppets finally return to primetime?
While the Jim Henson Company works away on film and TV projects, we've been constantly teased with the promise of a new Muppet series. The last time this happened was with the short-lived Muppets Tonight in the '90s. Attempts to bring the gang back to television haven't come to fruition, including a pilot in 2004 for America's Next Muppet that was never picked up as a series.
Springer bodyguard gets own talk show
Steve Wilkos, the tough security guard who keeps rednecks from getting too feisty on The Jerry Springer Show now has his own gabfest. NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution recently sold the syndicated series to stations owned by Tribune and Sinclair. The show is still untitled, but look for the former marine and cop to offer his own brand of tough love and sound advice.
You may be asking yourself why the hell you should listen to advice from Wilkos. The real question is, why should you take advice from anyone on television? It's not like Oprah knows you any better than Wilkos does. Really, the only person on television you should trust is the Hamburger Helper glove. When he says he can make beef more exciting, I believe him. He's never steered me wrong before.
FOX orders Playing Chicken
Here's an original idea: create a sitcom based around two brothers with different political beliefs. Make one of these men liberal and the other one conservative. Also, make sure the liberal is the intellectual one and the conservative is an obnoxious blowhard. Now, to try and distract from the complete lack of originality inherent in this sitcom, put the conservative guy in a wheelchair. See? He's not just some cookie-cutter stereotype, he's a crippled cookie-cutter stereotype.
Anyway, that's the gist of a new pilot called Playing Chicken that was recently ordered by FOX. Perhaps the show will actually make fun of these stereotypes rather than perpetuating the nonsense that all conservatives are obnoxious and all liberals are erudite snobs, so I won't judge too harshly until I actually see it. Actually, who am I kidding? I'm going to judge it quite harshly.
Producers of Mister Rogers Neighborhood want to create new show
According to the AP, the producers of the classic PBS children's show Mister Rogers Neighborhood want to create a new show. Kevin Morrison, the CEO of Family Communications, Inc. told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that they are in talks with producers of various children's shows about creating a new program that is completely different from the one Fred Rogers hosted from 1968 to 2001. Rogers died in 2003.No concrete plans were reported, but even Rogers' widow, Joanne, seems to be in favor of the move. "I really think Fred would be proud of the organization for trying to continue their leadership in the field of children's television," she told the Post-Gazette.
TV Squad Hot Topics
Most Popular Articles
From Our Partners
- 'The Voice' Season 4 winner: Danielle Bradbery, Michelle Chamuel or The Swon Brothers - who won?
- 'America's Got Talent': American Military Spouses Choir ends night on high note
- 'So You Think You Can Dance' Top 20: Meet the hip-hop dancers
- 'Anger Management': Selma Blair out after Charlie Sheen dispute
- 'Summer Camp': Meet the cast headed to California for a reality 'Campathlon' and watch the promo
- More From Zap2it
- The Voice Season 4 Finale Recap: They're All Stars Tonight [Updated]
- The Voice: Season 4′s 25 Best Performances!
- It's Official: Anger Management's Selma Blair Abruptly Exits in Midst of Show's 90-Episode Run
- Liv Tyler Cast in HBO Drama Pilot The Leftovers
- General Hospital Puts Tyler Christopher on Contract — A Bad Sign for The Lying Game?
- More From TVLine
