A Very Busy Fall Schedule

BuddyTV has put together a helpful schedule listing 121 television shows premiering this fall, starting with Houdini on the History Channel tomorrow night.  It includes reality shows, cartoons, dramas, sci fi, and more.  Of course, even this endless list does not include new shows from other online sources, such as Netflix, Amazon, Crackle, and many others.  I will try to highlight some of my favorites as well as the more promising shows as I see them, but staying ahead of this tsunami of shows is a challenge for anyone.  At least BuddyTV got us started.

SyFy: No More Will Wheaton

More bad news for TV land - The Will Wheaton Project has been canceled by the SyFy network after only 12 episodes.  I guess it did not have the audience SyFy was hoping, but I believe the geeks were happy.  Overall, it was a low-budget yet fun production allowing Wil to pick fun at Hollywood, including a few SyFy productions (I am sure that had nothing to do with it, right?) 

Wil Wheaton is taking it well so far based on his blog, though he seems to wonder if the executives green lighted a show they never really understood: 

Ultimately, he told me, the executives in New York just didn’t think we had enough viewers to justify more episodes. I didn’t say anything about the total lack of promotion off the network, or point out that our ratings were on par with The Soup, or that ratings are always lower in summer than the fall. I didn’t  bother saying any of that, because I know he knows that. I was reasonably confident that he made those arguments with New York when he was trying to get the show renewed. I presume he fought hard for us, but ultimately couldn’t sway executives in New York who never seemed — in my opinion — to really understand what kind of show we were doing, who I was and why I was hosting it, and how to engage with and promote to the audience who would like it.

Maybe another network will see that SyFy was starting to mine a rich vein of fans that are now following everything from The Big Bang Theory to Game of Thrones and Silicon Valley.  It is only a matter of time before a similar program pops up, and I hope they give Wil and others a little more money and support.

A&E: The Demise of Longmire

I was disappointed to hear that the A&E network decided not to renew Longmire for a fourth season.  The third season ended with a cliffhanger (spoiler alert) as Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire continued to deal with his wife's death, deputy sheriff Vic Moretti faced a disintegrating marriage, and officer Branch Connally had a tense battle with his father that ended with a gunshot.  Plenty of excellent material for more seasons, but I guess A&E thought differently.  

I am not sure what A&E has going for it in the drama department after dropping Glades and now Longmire.  Makes you wonder if they want to be a serious contender, or stick with dumb programming such as Duck Dynasty and Storage Wars. Fortunately, the network still has Bates Motel, but I wonder if they are smart enough to hold onto it.  A disappointing day in TV land. 

The Emmys: Mapping the Future

I do not watch the award shows, but the outcome can tell us a little about what the television industry may support in the future. In that regard, it is unfortunate that Netflix did not come away with much in the way of Emmy Awards this week since I believe the company has done very well with the creation of new programs, such as House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, as well as offering a lifeline to other shows, such as The Killing.  That said, I am glad that Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Reg E. Cathey, and Kate Mara from House of Cards were at least nominated for awards, which is still an impressive feat. I should add that House of Cards had 22 nominations in the last 2 years and 4 wins in the more minor categories, and the same goes for Orange is the New Black with 12 nominations this year and 3 wins.  So in no way were these programs ignored.  

I should also add that I was very happy to see Amy Poehler and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the twin heroines of comedy television, nominated as lead actresses in a comedy series even if they did not win.  Parks & Recreations continues to be ignored for all its great work, but at least they are on the board (11 nominations over the years and 0 wins). 

Yet I was most pleased to see Fargo's Billy Bob Thornton, Martin Freeman, and Allison Tolman nominated, with Fargo winning in the Outstanding Miniseries category (and garnering 18 nominations this year with 3 wins).  What an amazing show Fargo turned out to be, and I for one look forward to a second season with (sadly in a way) a new cast, location, and story.  TV doesn't get much better, and the Emmy Awards recognized this.  Maybe not enough, but Fargo had its day in the sun, which is much appreciated up north.

Words of Wisdom from Nick Offerman

If you are impatient for the next season of Parks & Recreation, Mashable has put together a fun clip with Nick Offerman pondering a number of ideas called Simply Genius Shower Thoughts With Nick Offerman.  The content comes from Reddit's Shower Thoughts.  Here are a few more:

 -- The reason why lottery winners often go bankrupt is because all the financially-responsible people know that lottery tickets are a waste of money.

-- Pickpockets must hate skinny jeans.

-- Greece invented politics. Rome invented bureaucracy.

Nick Offerman's Ron Swanson also has a grilling site that you may want to visit.  He is very clear about his grilling preferences, stating "No 'vegetable burgers,' no kabobs, no chicken thighs. This isn't a tea party. Meat is spelled C-O-W or P-I-G."  Yes, straight-shooting Ron.

And I should add that Parks & Recreations returns to NBC for its seventh and final season next year.

Vicious on PBS

If you missed the six-part series called Vicious on PBS, you can still catch some episodes online.  And a Christmas special is still coming, while season two is in the works.

The comedy from the UK stars Freddie (Ian McKellen) and Stuart (Derek Jacobi), a gay couple of 50 years as they deal with the everyday issues of friends, family, and more.  Having two such accomplished actors, and gay actors I should add, playing these parts makes for a entertaining show.  And while the one-liners and laugh track may be too reminiscent of Are You Being Served? and similar imports from Great Britain, the two actors keep it interesting and lively in a time where older couples are seldom portrayed on American television. 

And in addition to watch McKellen's Lord of the Rings Gandalf in a completely different role, you can watch Iwan Rheon, the evil Ramsay Snow from Game of Thrones, play the innocent next door neighbor.  It is not for everyone, but it demonstrates the Brits continue to produce more than Downton Abbey. 

Doune Castle: Interesting Double-Billing

If you were watching the new Starz series Outlander and you noticed that the main castle in the story looked familiar (first image below), you are not crazy.  Doune Castle was also used earlier in Monty Python and the Holy Grail (the second image with the flying cow, if you need help).  I am happy Starz decided to use real horses in its new series and killer rabbits have not made an appearance, so far that is. 

You can visit Undiscovered Scotland if you want to learn a little more about the actual uses of the castle in the past.