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sweeps
Desperate Housewives: Now I Know, Don't Be Scared
by Isabelle Carreau, posted Nov 4th 2007 11:41PM
(S04E06) "Sometimes greatness needs a little nudge." - Milton
The moment of truth arrived: Danielle gave birth. About three weeks ago, I polled TV Squad visitors about the sex of Danielle's baby. Close to 54% of the voters thought it would be a baby girl but spoilers readers knew since mid-September that the baby would be a boy.
November sweeps secrets
by Isabelle Carreau, posted Nov 4th 2007 6:24PM
Sweeps period is not only important for networks but also for TV viewers. Sweeps periods are when some of the biggest events in a TV series happen: deaths, explosions, extra special guest stars, etc.To prepare you for November sweeps, I've combed through the networks' sweeps press releases and official episode descriptions and extracted what seems to be the juicy information for almost all scripted series on the five major networks.
All spoilers listed after the jump are actually spoilers the networks want you to know!
ABC's Traveler premiere bumped up to May 10
by Anna Johns, posted Apr 23rd 2007 2:37PM
ABC is giving Traveler some love. What is Traveler? Well, I'd honestly be surprised if you remembered. It was on ABC's fall schedule, which was announced almost a year ago, and then kept getting bumped back to later dates. The series is about two college grads who end up getting framed for a terrorist act by another college buddy. Bob has been looking forward to it for nearly a year now!Earlier this month, ABC announced Traveler would premiere on May 30th, but now the network has bumped up that premiere and given it a sweet time slot. The pilot episode of Traveler will air on May 10th at 10 pm, following a new episode of Grey's Anatomy. Then, the pilot will air again on the May 30th date.
I'm not sure if this is a good marketing idea. It seems odd to give a sneak preview of a show and then make people remember that they need to pick it up again during a holiday week (Memorial Day).
Ugly Betty: Derailed
by Julia Ward, posted Feb 16th 2007 1:37AM
(S01E16) To quote Lucy Liu as O-Ren Ishii in Kill Bill and as The Chin on Ugly Betty, "You didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you?" Tonight's theme - "it's complicated." I ended my review last week by saying this, but I think it bears repeating. Watching good TV can be an emotionally masochistic endeavor. One of the first lessons you learn in "how to be a TV writer" class is to put the screws to your characters. This lesson is often phrased as, "Give the audience what they want, and then take it away." This week's episode was all about giving us what we wanted and taking it away. Betty opens up to Henry about her feelings for him. Done. Christina catches a break. Done. Alexis gets to feel a little human connection post-op. Done. Justin gets to see Hairspray. Done. Hope you enjoyed it because now those cruel, cruel writers are going to make us regret that we ever wanted those things to happen in the first place.Day Break vs. ... One Tree Hill?
by Brett Love, posted Dec 1st 2006 4:15PM
At the beginning of the season I wrote about the battle between Lost and Criminal Minds on Wednesday at 9. That has turned into quite the contest. As Lost wrapped up their fall mini-season Criminal Minds had taken the overall viewers lead, while Lost held on to the coveted 18-49 demo crown. We've also talked about the ratings train wreck that ABC's Wednesday night has become since the departure of Dancing with the Stars and Lost.But now, things are just getting ridiculous. Any thoughts of competing with Criminal Minds, or anything on NBC or Fox, have long since passed. This week, not only did Day Break fall below 5 million viewers (what I am now considering the Mendoza line for the big networks), but the 1.8 rating the show got in the 18-49 demo was tied with One Tree Hill on the CW. Good grief, from battling over slots in the top ten to hoping that you edge out the teen drama on the CW. Ouch. That's a hell of a way to cap off your sweeps run.
It's an interesting story to follow, made all the more so by the fact that Day Break is actually a pretty good show. I didn't expect to see it develop a Lost like following, but why 12 or 13 million people have tuned out boggles me. It seems like ABC is committed to running the whole series, ratings be damned, but I guess we can stop speculating what a season two of Day Break would be like.
Salma Hayek to guest star on Ugly Betty
by Adam Finley, posted Oct 16th 2006 7:33PM
Hey, remember when Salma Hayek was on The Sinbad Show back in 1993? Yeah, neither do I, but apparently that was the last time she was on a television show. After the long absence from the tube, Hayek will jump in front of the camera again for a few episodes of Ugly Betty starting on November 2 (just in time for sweeps). Hayek is currently an executive producer of the ABC series. Technically, this won't be the first time Hayek has appeared on the show. In the series pilot she can be seen acting in a telenovela playing on Betty's television. We'll see if Hayek's appearance helps jack up the ratings for Ugly Betty. Not that the show would need it, it's been getting great ratings as of late, and ABC recently picked the series up for a full season.Two-part House in May
by Adam Finley, posted Apr 16th 2006 10:06AM
Hey, House fans and other lovers of cranky doctors with fake American
accents, this May there will be a two-part episode of the series, which I assume is being done for sweeps. According to
Futon Critic, the episodes, which will air on May 2 and 3, will focus on a mysterious case (well, of course) involving a
wounded police officer suffering from uncontrollable laughter. Things start to get even more serious when one of their
own, Foreman, begins to come down with the same symptoms. As the officer begins to deteriorate, House and his gang have
to figure out how to save their friend. Sounds all suspenseful and stuff, I can't wait. The episode is called
"Euphoria." Part one of the episode will air at 9 p.m. EST, and part two will air the following night at 8
p.m. EST.
Anna Devane coming back to Port Charles
by Adam Finley, posted Apr 12th 2006 2:03PM
As part of May sweeps, actress Finola Hughes will be reprising her role as Anna
Devane (or, if you will, Anna Devane Scorpio Lavery Scorpio Hayward) on General Hospital. Hughes was
originally on the soap opera in the 1980s, and left the show in 1992 before taking the role to All My Children
in the late 90s. She currently hosts How Do I Look? on the Style Network. I don't watch soap operas, but I do
remember the character of Anna since my mom watched General Hospital pretty religiously. Hughes won Emmys for
her role as Anna on both General Hospital and All My Children, although she also won a Razzie for her
role in the movie Staying Alive. I'm not sure if the awards cancel each other out or not. Hughes has also
been in numerous guest roles on shows such as Charmed and Tracey Takes On.... She's set to make her
return to Port Charles on May 12.Imperioli coming back to Law and Order
by Adam Finley, posted Mar 16th 2006 2:04PM
Michael Imperioli, who plays Christopher Moltisanti on The Sopranos
will be reprising his role as detective Nick Falco on Law and Order, at least for April sweeps. Imperioli
initially took on the role when regular Jesse L. Martin took a break from the series to star in the feature
film version of the musical Rent. Martin was also in the original Broadway production. Holy cow,
Imperioli plays a guy whose last name is Falco, and he's on The Sopranos with an actress named Edie Falco.
Coincidence? Yes, of course it is. I just thought I'd mention it.O'Reilly's bloviating begins tonight
by Adam Finley, posted Feb 7th 2006 12:50PM
I may have to make a rare change in my viewing habits and actually
tune into the O'Reilly Factor this evening. Tonight marks the first segment of "Bloviate with Bill" a segment in
which regular joes (or janes) come on the show to debate Bill on any topic. The segment will air this evening and
tomorrow evening, and then again on the 14th and 15th, and then once again on the 21st and 22nd. Six people were chosen
to appear before the abrasive newsman by sending in e-mails explaining why they could hold their own against
Sir William O'Reilly, who I decided to knight just now for no reason. We'll see if Bill holds back any with these
"special guests" or if he'll come out with guns blazing per usual.
Sweeps stunts are tame in February
by Anna Johns, posted Feb 3rd 2006 8:11AM
November sweeps stunts brought us stormtroopers on The
Apprentice, a live debate on The West Wing, a dead chick on Lost and Medium in 3-D. Why
are February ratings so tame? One word: Olympics.NBC is expected to kick some television tail when it covers the Olympics every single night from February 10-26. Going into this month, the networks are touting some pretty uninteresting guest stars on the shows that need a boost. And that's about it. Oh, there is also going to be some sh*t going down on The O.C., but you don't want the spoilers, do you?
Here are some highlights for February sweeps, which began yesterday and run through March 1:
O'Reilly wants you to challenge him
by Adam Finley, posted Jan 17th 2006 1:26PM
Two men enter.
One man leaves.
If you've ever watched Bill O'Reilly and thought you could stand your ground in an argument against the popular news analyst, then this is your chance. As a stunt for February sweeps, O'Reilly will choose six average people to come on his show and debate him on any topic. Starting today you can submit your topic to O'Reilly through e-mail. O'Reilly is obviously being more than a little tongue-and-cheek with the contest, dubbing it "Bloviating with Bill." Since I'm a lover and not a fighter I won't be attempting to faceoff with Bill, but if you do decide to take the man on, here's some suggestions:
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