TV Guidance

TV Guidance

TV Guidance

Jaime Weinman writes about all kinds of television and other kinds of popular culture. He does not write Gossip Girl episode reviews. Follow Jaime on Twitter: @weinmanj

NBC: Easy But Irresistible Target

by Jaime Weinman on Thursday, August 12, 2010 5:26pm - 0 Comments

The Hollywood Reporter has this look at the NBC 2010-11 schedule. The sharpest joke is the copyright logo.

It’s already been pointed out that making fun of Law and Order and CSI spinoffs (not to mention the multiple NCIS-es we’ll inevitably get) is the second-easiest target in making jokes about current television. (Easiest target: David Caruso’s one-liners followed by the “Yeaaaahhhh!”) The reason it’s an irresistibly easy target is that while many network TV shows are recycled versions of earlier hits, most of them are, at least technically, different shows. The Dick Wolf and Jerry Bruckheimer franchises allowed networks to do similar shows, under the same names, running concurrently with the original (until L&O got canceled), where the main difference was either the setting or the particular types of crimes being investigated. It’s easy to make fun of that — too easy, and the joke is a little played-out by now, but there you go.

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  • madeyoulook

    Time to break down and get me one of them digital recorder jobs. Wouldn't want to let that lineup go without a chance to enjoy it.

    The kicker: the lineup in your post may be more enjoyable than what will actually show up. At least Decreasingly Wet Paint would be more peaceful and less annoying than what they put in its place when the suits went and cancelled it after showing only six episodes of the lineup and never letting it get a following by bouncing it around the schedule like a ping-pong ball. Buggers called it all off before the "Hunter Green" episode even had a chance to really solidify its audience attachment and convert the critics. And what were they thinking when they sacrificed "Aquamarine" up in the same slot as "B-List Celebrity Felon Texas Hold'em 3 (repeat)" on ESPN4? The dopes. Guess we'll have to wait for the DVD set.

    • Lord Kitchener's Own

      I'd go for the DVD, but I hear they got NOBODY to do any commentary tracks. Not even Stan from Colour Your World.

      I'm waiting for the Blu-Ray, and hopefully it will have some good extras and behind the scenes stuff.

  • http://twitter.com/igsjr @igsjr

    Jerry Seinfeld's Paycheck. That made me spit out my ice water.

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