The Little '90s Family Sitcom Stars That Couldn't

by Rachel Stein February 3, 2010 10:37 AM
The Little '90s Family Sitcom Stars That Couldn't

When we heard that Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence were getting their own sitcom, we thought of a few '90s family comedy stars who are even less deserving of their own shows, due to their ultra-campy acting and unforgettable awkwardness. So while we may have appreciated some of these folks back in the day, we're in no rush to see any of them again in starring TV roles soon.

La Femme Nikita: Can't Keep a Good Assassin Down

by Rachel Stein January 29, 2010 1:47 PM
La Femme Nikita: Can't Keep a Good Assassin Down

News hit yesterday of The CW picking up a pilot for a reboot of the late '90s classic Le Femme Nikita. Somewhere, thousands of 30-somethings grasped their burning arms, revealing a darkening tattoo of Peta Wilson donning a pair of stylish sunglasses, because let's face it: Nikita had one hell of a cult following.

Human Target: Five '80s Action-Adventure Shows It Reminds Us Of

There's something about the new Fox series Human Target that makes us feel like kids again. Why does this man-of-action adventure drama, starring Mark Valley as more-than-a-bodyguard Christopher Chance, suddenly take us back to the 1980s? Could it be that the show reminds us of a bunch of adventure series that were on the air back then? The first Human Target TV show failed back in 1992 because it had missed the 1980s action-adventure boat, but maybe now nostalgia-seeking TV viewers will give it a "chance" (sorry). We compared the new Human Target to some of our favorite '80s action shows and found that they had a lot in common -- although Target still has some tricks it can learn from them.

Muppets Tonight, We Hardly Knew Ye

by Rachel Stein January 12, 2010 1:53 PM
Muppets Tonight, We Hardly Knew Ye Even though I was born in 1988, seven years after The Muppet Show ended, I was raised on Jim Henson's empire. I guess I can technically say that I literally grew up with the Muppets because I was a baby when they were Muppet Babies. The point is, the Muppet world is glorious and continues to produce wonderful content that was created 55 years ago just by keeping these characters alive (perhaps with the exception of 2005's The Muppet's Wizard of Oz). That being said, IMHO, the most underrated member of the Muppet production universe is the short-lived sketch show Muppets Tonight.

Tonight, On A Very Special Clone High...

by Heather Marulli December 1, 2009 11:18 AM
Tonight, On A Very Special Clone High...

Scrubs is returning to ABC on December 1st for a 9th season, which may leave some wondering "Wasn't that show cancelled years ago?" and others somewhat excited about the impending birth of J.D. and Elliott's spawn. Another Bill Lawrence project that remains forever tucked away in the dusty corners of my memory is Clone High. Clone High was a short-lived cartoon that aired on MTV during the 2002-2003 season. Only 13 episodes exist of what I will dare to call a mini-masterpiece of the animated genre; an opus to the primetime cartoon.

Shows Not Even Heather Locklear Could Save

by Mindy Monez November 16, 2009 3:17 PM
Shows Not Even Heather Locklear Could Save Endless observations have been made over the years regarding Heather Locklear's impressive show-saving abilities, and much of that is based on some very compelling evidence. She revived Dynasty, she elevated Melrose Place from fairly entertaining trash to deliciously addictive guilty pleasure, she swooped into Spin City to lighten the ailing Michael J. Fox's workload halfway through the series and boosted ratings for a bit, and now she's returning to Melrose tomorrow night in an attempt to save that train wreck as well. She's obviously doing this out of some sense of show-saving duty, not unlike the Spider-Man of primetime soaps, but her inability to save a disaster is not unprecedented. Let's look back at the Melrose reboot-sized flops even Heather Locklear couldn't rescue.

@ShitMyDadSays: The TV Series? Been There, Done That

As frequent Twitterers, we're big fans of @ShitMyDadSays, where a man who lives with his parents turns all of his father's withering comments and insults into Tweets. (Example: "Son, no one gives a shit about all the things your cell phone does. You didn't invent it, you just bought it. Anybody can do that.") So when we heard that he was getting a book deal, we were happy for him. Then, when we heard it was becoming a show on CBS, we had to scratch our heads. First of all, the swear words he uses (including the one in the frickin' title) are part of what makes it so funny, and second... it's a show about a grumpy old guy who berates his live-in adult son? How is that different from half the shows on television? We looked back at some of our favorite abusive TV dads from brilliant but cancelled shows.

Fawlty Towers and Blackadder: Two BBC Shows That Ended Too Soon

Spaced. Extras. The Office. The Young Ones. Have you ever wondered why most British TV comedies end after only two seasons, which in brief British season numbers translates to a paltry 12 episodes? Blame Fawlty Towers. The 1975 series, starring John Cleese as an easily outraged hotel manager, is considered one of the funniest shows in British television history, and yet Cleese called it quits after only two series, before he ran out of ideas (which was the reason he gave for leaving Monty Python's Flying Circus). Released in a newly remastered boxed set today -- along with the remastered set of Rowan Atkinson's Blackadder -- it becomes painfully apparent that this is a show we would have gladly watched for another hundred episodes. After all, 12 episodes is only half of a regular American TV season, and we've watched full seasons of some pretty awful shows over the years.

Southland: Returned to Sender

by Angel Cohn October 9, 2009 1:59 PM
Southland: Returned to Sender

NBC has announced that it has cancelled Southland before even a single episode of Season 2 aired in the show's terrible new Friday timeslot. Apparently the show was just too dark for the network to air at 9 PM, though that wouldn't have been a problem if there wasn't a giant chin taking up the 10 PM slot five nights a week. And could it really have been so much darker Season 1? Wasn't it pretty gritty and profanity-filled from the get-go? The only remotely encouraging news coming out of this is that John Wells (who executive produces and runs the show's production company) says that they are shopping around for a new home for this engagingly realistic cop drama.

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Kings: This King Didn't Live Long, But It Was A Decent Reign

It was a lofty premise for network TV: A show based on a bible story, with a modernized feel but set in an imaginary town filled with a messed up monarchy. It looked totally lush, with gorgeous set design. It was doomed before it even started.

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