Oh, excellent! Thanks for the good news.

Caroline | November 09, 17:05 CET

Good news if true. I'm not as in love with it as I was just after the pilot since I think it's hit some patchy spots but 'Nevada Day Part 1' (last week's episode) was truly great TV, funny, smart and witty (and the 'Jesus Christ, Head of Broadcasting Standards' sketch was genuinely funny, IMO, which may silence the naysayers on at least that score). If it carries on at that standard it'll repay the network's faith (though whether it'll recoup its audience is another story, I can still see it not getting renewed).

Watching it though i'm sorry to say (because I like Bradley Whitford) that Danny is one of the bigger problems for me at the moment. He's the only character that really seems to wear his smugness on his sleeve. Matt's smug but only because he's so super-secure in his opinions, he doesn't really act smug since he's often so neurotic (doesn't hurt that he's brilliantly played by Matt Perry) and all the others are great (Simon and especially Tom are faves but I like Harriet a fair bit and Steven Webber's Jack Rudolph is just stellar). Maybe Danny's being setup for a fall but i've got my doubts (and could he pick up his frikkin feet when he walks ? Sorry, pet peeve ;).

(side note but I watched most of the 'Saturday Night Live' with Hugh Laurie hosting and was deeply embarrassed for him being involved - especially since he knows a thing or two about comedy himself. I know sketch shows are variable by their nature but it was pretty dire, pretty much all the way through IMO)

[ edited by Saje on 2006-11-09 15:11 ]

Saje | November 09, 17:10 CET

Agree with you on BW's Danny, Saje. Hugely unlikeable character. But I think Steven Webber is going to be the break out star of the show if he continues like this.

I was disappointed in Hugh Laurie doing that song ('All we gotta do is mmmrrmph'). It's an oldie from the Fry and Laurie days (and maybe even older than that) and anyone could have predicted satirising the Springsteen type singer/songwriter wouldn't work across the pond.

Caroline | November 09, 17:19 CET

I thought that song was familiar Caroline (wondered if it might be an old classic from the folk comedy days, maybe even Billy Connolly or similar).

Very cringey moment when it absolutely died with the audience (in fact I reckon that and his "Queen's factotum" sketch - especially Laurie's inspired little ad-lib when he couldn't get his glasses on - were among the all too rare highlights. And seeing him in very 'Fry and Laurie'-ish drag one more time ;). Thought they might do a piss-take of 'House, M.D.' but maybe the studio/network wouldn't let them (or I guess maybe Hugh Laurie himself didn't want to) ?

Saje | November 09, 17:47 CET

FOX News are having such a bad time lately... :o)

gossi | November 09, 18:06 CET

Well that almost balances out spending the night in the ER! YAY!

I love Danny, though; yes, he is smug but I totally see it as a defense mechanism. I am sure they have written him this way for a very specific reason!

OzLady | November 09, 18:10 CET

I would say that means FNL is done for. If I were the CW I would be trying to pick it up the moment NBC drops it.

I think Studio was always going to at least finish it's run out this season. Next, not so much. One of the big things it has going for it(beside the"Big" name and A list actors)is the people who watch are the very wealthy investors and they can sell more airtime to those kind of advertisers. Moving timeslots though, may be the only way to end this season with at least something postive rating wise though.

[ edited by Donna Troy on 2006-11-09 16:15 ]

Donna Troy | November 09, 18:14 CET

y'know, i get all my tv news here. i don't know anything about us tv that hasn't appeared on whedonesque. :)

daylight | November 09, 18:52 CET

Michael Ausiello did report the same info today.

I wonder if NBC will re-allocate the show to another timeslot. January we'll witness Fox premiering their 24/American Idol blockbusters. Which does change the programming scenario a bit.

NBC has a few shows yet to premiere, which includes the sixth season of Donald Trump's "The Apprentice" and the new season of "Crossing Jordan". I wonder if pairing Studio 60 with another show, will get better results.

Numfar PTB | November 09, 19:15 CET

Woohoo! Good news.

I don't really love this show yet, but come on, it's Sorkin (wich to me is almost like Joss having a series again), after last week brilliant episode (if only they maintain that standard), I once again trust that Studio 60 is going to be fantastic television.

I don't hate Danny, he's smug, and not in a way that it actually makes him likeable for the audience, but he's also funny, smart and confident, and those qualities make him likeable, atleast to me. I think he's had some great scenes, stole the fifth episode, and again, it's BW, given time, he's going to do some great stuff.

I don't like Steven Weber that much. I love Jack though, he feels like Toby a lot of the time (mostly the cyninism), wich is my favourite character Sorkin created, and Jack also has a lot of the good qualities early Josh had.

the Groosalugg | November 09, 19:33 CET

Speaking of Paulson, she is also doing a romantic comedy for Lifetime called 'A Christmas Wedding'. Due to air around the holidays, go figure. I wonder who came up with that bit brilliant scheduling.

Oh and good to hear Studio 60 getting picked up for a full season.

RavenU | November 09, 19:53 CET

This is good news. Its one of the few new shows I am really enjoying.

I love that its so fast paced. Yeah it gets a little pedantic sometimes but it engages me. I'm not bored. There are a lot of different things going on, particularly this last episode.

I also noticed Steven Weber this week for some reason. As a matter of fact when watching his scenes with Amanda Peet I started thinking about that will they/won't they article.

And Matthew Perry is just so good.

And Saje:
"(and could he pick up his frikkin feet when he walks ? Sorry, pet peeve ;)."
Snicker
Now I will have to watch him just for that.

Xane | November 09, 20:00 CET

I think I agree with all of Saje's first paragraph. I hadn't really thought of Danny as a problem before but I think that assessment of his character is fair. I also find Jack's character the most interesting. I think it's both because of the actor and because I'm wondering if we've ever seen a network head as a regular character on TV before. He seems rife with possibilities.

If the show still fails to perform well by season's end it doesn't seem it will be for lack of support or promotion. I understand FNL did its best numbers in the Studio 60 timeslot.

yourlibrarian | November 09, 20:02 CET

Honestly, this isn't too surprising. As I understand it, NBC would have to pay Sorkin a *huge* fee if they'd cancelled it without completing the season.

But, I'd rather have more decent TV than money in Sorkin's pocket, so, that's a good thing. I think Studio 60 is good, but not great.

k8cre8 | November 09, 20:10 CET

However when Studio 60 is compared to last years time slot holder Medium, it has lost more than 40% of the audience. This past Monday night ratings; Studio 60 pulled a 4.9, last year Medium had 8.1 in the ratings for the same night.

RavenU | November 09, 20:14 CET

Exactly, RavenU. I suspect that it's getting the episode order to avoid paying Sorkin the cancellation fee, and that'll be the end of it.

k8cre8 | November 09, 20:28 CET

Can Steven Weber really be a "break-out" success considering all his previous success?

I'll be enormously glad if this story is true, but the Fox article from last week was obviously full of crap. Anonymous inside sources are rarely accurate, especially when the entire piece read like an excuse for a conservative anti-Hollywood liberal rant.

Gonnas | November 09, 20:49 CET

Hurray! I've been worried about Studio 60 getting an untimely death all season, (hence my no less than two link posts to that point). But it looks like I will not have to worry again for at least a couple months. Thank god.

Resolute | November 09, 20:50 CET

k8cre8: NBC would only have to pay Sorkin a huge fee if they cancelled the show during the first thirteen episodes they'd ordered. They could stop it after those 13 episodes are produced, and there'd be no punitive fees for doing so.

Gonnas | November 09, 20:51 CET

I love Studio 60 and am glad to see the full season order. I think this show has a distinctive "Sunday Night" feel to it, and once NBC's coverage of football is done, they'll move it to the Sunday at 10 PM timeslot with a better lead in. While Heroes might be a surprise hit (especially so since it's pretty much a watered down, less well-written version of The 4400), I imagine the people who are watching a mediocre genre series about ordinary people having superpowers aren't the same people who are watching a well-written series about Hollywood elites taking on social issues while happening to run a late night TV show. People often reference keeping the audience of the lead in, but I'd be curious to know how much of Studio 60's 5 million viewers are actually watching Heroes before it, and how many are tuning in at 10 like myself.

Barclay | November 09, 21:10 CET

Wow. I've watched too many Fox shows--I'd already given up all hope.

Niels van Eekelen | November 09, 21:26 CET

Thanks Gonnas for the clarification.

Barclay - the audience for Studio 60 is roughly half the size of Heroes.

k8cre8 | November 09, 21:26 CET

Barclay's question, though, was whether those 5 million who are watching Studio 60 are part of the 10 million watching Heroes, or whether they are two non-overlapping groups. That is to say, how many people are watching BOTH?

Personally, I'm watching them both. (Though I'm not thrilled with either, so far, for very different reasons.)

Septimus | November 09, 21:41 CET

Speaking of Whedonvwese related actors...have the Irish band Dae Kim taken their name after a sertain island dweller and Wolfram & Hart laywer?????

Jonas | November 09, 23:24 CET

I saw a cost figure for this show of $8 million per ep. Since
ad revenues are tied to ratings there is no way this isn't
losing a at least 2-3 million a week. That sort of bleeding
can not and will not continue for very long.

Imho they are really trying to give it a chance which is
quite remarkable in this day and age.

JDL | November 10, 00:23 CET

$8 million per episode ? Bloody hell ! Presumably that's mostly on salaries since there's no effects to speak of ?

(bit annoying to think that that's about 4 episodes of 'Firefly')

FWIW, BTW, I watch 'Heroes' and 'Studio 60' and enjoy them both (though not quite without reservation in either case) so on the demographics Venn diagram i'd be the shaded portion in the middle ;).

Saje | November 10, 00:33 CET

Not sure where you got the 8 million but from everything I have read and heard,Studio is about 2.5-3 million an Ep. FNL is 2.5 to make. The reason Studio can make it's money is that the people who watch it are in the high money brackets. So NBC can charge more for ad time for higher priced advertisments.

Make no mistake about it, Studio is running on the fumes of it's creator, it's stars and the amount NBC can reap in from advertisers. But like it has been stated everywhere, that can't go on for very long.

Donna Troy | November 10, 01:11 CET

I have heard $2 million and I've heard $3 million, and I imagine those figures are around accurate. No way does the show cost $8 million. That would make it by far the most expensive show on television.

It's been reported, and even stated by the head of NBC, that the show is currently profitable. I don't believe it's running on "fumes" at all.

Gonnas | November 10, 02:49 CET

"Watching it though i'm sorry to say (because I like Bradley Whitford) that Danny is one of the bigger problems for me at the moment. He's the only character that really seems to wear his smugness on his sleeve. Matt's smug but only because he's so super-secure in his opinions, he doesn't really act smug since he's often so neurotic (doesn't hurt that he's brilliantly played by Matt Perry) and all the others are great (Simon and especially Tom are faves but I like Harriet a fair bit and Steven Webber's Jack Rudolph is just stellar). Maybe Danny's being setup for a fall but i've got my doubts (and could he pick up his frikkin feet when he walks ? Sorry, pet peeve ;)."

You know whats funny? I think the whole lot of them are being set up for a big fall, I think the big theme of the season is that there are two sides that seem to hate each other today in America, and if you notice, they acknowledge many of the critics about these characters. If you saw last weeks show, John Goodman was the man, but if you listen to what he says, his criticisms are shared by many who find the show smug and condescending. In many ways, the show is smug and condescending, but I think thats part of what the over-arching storyline is going to be. That though this side hates this other side and vice-versa, there is something to be said about those can come together. Harriet and Matt are the poster childs for the over-arching theme of the season, and in that sense, I think Danny will suffer a fall as will Harriet, Matt, and the other side as well.

Im happy to see this show picked up, and I hope that it actually makes it, but like others I like the show so that has to mean that its going to be cancelled.

jerryst3161 | November 10, 03:25 CET

Wheeeeeeeeeee! So.freaking.happy.

I think Danny is a problem because he's underused. I love the character whenever he's around though.



Exactly. They're just living the theme.

Samantha | November 10, 05:47 CET

In case people might doubt Kristin: official press release

Yay!!

crossoverman | November 10, 06:03 CET

I'm glad for the news and hope the audience continues to grow. I'm also one who watches - and enjoys - both "Heroes" and "Studio 60", although I watch "Studio 60" on Sunday night in Canada. These are two of my three favourite new shows this year - the third one being "Saved".

samatwitch | November 10, 11:39 CET

I retract the 8 million. It appears that was the cost of the pilot.
Per ep costs seem to be about 3 mil.

As to ratings; the important numbers are those for the key
demographics and those are not primarily tied to income. In
actual p.o.f. the age and sex of the audience is key with
18-49 being the sought after demo for prime time shows.

People in the 50-70 bracket usually have much higher incomes
than those 18-30 but they rarely get catered to by the nets.
The reason that I have seen for this is that advertisers
believe that the older age group is largely unswayable by
advertising.

There used to be an idea a long long time ago that sponsering
a show was a payback by a company to its loyal customers.
Nothing like that has existed for quite some time.

JDL | November 10, 12:19 CET

If you saw last weeks show, John Goodman was the man, but if you listen to what he says, his criticisms are shared by many who find the show smug and condescending. In many ways, the show is smug and condescending, but I think thats part of what the over-arching storyline is going to be

Oh sure jerryst3161, Goodman is basically the voice of reasonable criticism from the red states and was partly there to puncture Danny, Matt et al's pompous superiority about the hick town of Pahrump though, IMO, it felt more like Sorkin giving voice to his critics in a self-referential way (and it remains to be seen which 'side' ends up being 'right' with Tom's further revelations about his speeding ticket etc.).

To me the over-arching theme so far has been that most issues (and certainly most people) are more complicated than they first seem or their stereotypes suggest (e.g. with the nasty gay guys last week where the 'evil Christian' was actually the reasonable, kind, in many ways more enlightened innocent party) but I really hope you're right (in some ways) and that the season's big bad is the sort of partisan superiority that both sides of the right/left divide share.

What makes me think not is that (so far) there don't seem to be many characters in the middle, nobody really saying "Hey, let's calm down and look at this as reasonable adults rather than as our respective labels" and that, for the most part, the liberals are usually presented as being right, as fighting the good fight (though smug in the process) even if the less liberal characters are rounded out as likeable, understandable people (Jack Rudolph for instance).

Also, if they are all headed for a fall I think it may be a bitter pill for most people to swallow if their favourite characters are basically presented as having spent the entire season being smug, superior dicks in order for Aaron Sorkin to make the (IMO extremely obvious) point that we need to look past left/right and see most of the issues as points reasonable, intelligent adults can differ over.

(I haven't watched much of 'West Wing' though so maybe i'm underestimating him)

Saje | November 10, 15:11 CET