There's a bare knuckle fight scene in "Human Target" (Fox, 8 tonight) between the hero Christopher Chance and a thug, that starts in the air duct of a speeding train, minutes before it's about to crash.
That's pretty much all you need to know about the new action show starring Mark Valley as a for-hire bodyguard based on a DC Comics graphic novel.
It's a thrill ride.
It's official: At today's meeting with Fox executives at the Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena, sharp-tongued "American Idol" judge Simon Cowell confirmed he's leaving the show after this season, according to the L.A. Times.
His departure, he said, is part of a deal to put his show "The X Factor" on Fox in fall 2011.
The show's a bit hit in England (that's where Susan Boyle made her mark), and as part of that deal he is leaving his duties on "Idol."
But you'll probably be paying more.
The Los Angeles Times is reporting that News Corp. struck a new deal that will keep its Fox-owned television stations and several of its cable networks on Time Warner Cable.
The agreement was reached late this afternoon, but a series of extensions meant that Fox channels never went dark.
Fox, the paper reports, had initially been seeking $1 per subscriber each month for its television stations. Time Warner Cable’s initial response was to offer 25 cents to 30 cents. The terms of the new deal could not be immediately learned, but industry observers and analysts had been predicting that the price tag would ultimately be 50 cents or less for Fox.
Happy New Year!
And now, we're just 16 days away from the premiere of the new season of '24.'
In case you missed this, here's something to get you through the Jack Bauer jonesin'.
Jack Bauer Interrogates Santa Claus - Watch more Funny Videos
Local Time Warner Cable customers won't lose Fox (WRAZ Fox 50) and Fox News, but it looks like all other Fox channels are expected to disappear today, due to the ongoing contract dispute between the cable company and News Corp.
Fuel, Speed, and Fox Soccer will not be missed by me personally, but losing the FX channel would be a blow ("Damges," "Nip/Tuck," "Rescue Me").
Get more details over at the .biz blog.
Sigh, not again.
Time Warner Cable is battling it out with another network, this time putting the FX channel on the line. Alan Wolf at the .biz blog reports that the cable company is negotiating a new deal with News Corp., and if an agreement is not reached, local cable customers could miss shows like "Damages," "Nip/Tuck," and "Rescue Me."
Earlier this month, TWC had a similar stand-off with The CW, and last year, there was a contract dispute with Viacom (MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon). Get all the horrifying details at .biz.
After a thoroughly satisfying episode in which a few old wounds were healed and a few fresh new ones were opened, "destination horror" refers both to the world of hurt in store for Will Schuester once Sue Sylvester returns tanned and rested from her Boca exile, and also to our pain at having to wait till April for a new episode of "Glee."
Everything seemed to happen last night . . .
SPOILERS AHEAD!
Guest blogger Lenni G.cuts through the negativity and makes last name amends:
Welcome to the SYTYCD Results Show starring "Nigel the Almighty." And I mean "Almighty" in the worst possible sense of the word. Asked for his opinion on how America voting might change the competition, his reply was, "Some people might stay who should go."
And on that negative note, the evening proceeded with a veritable barrage of sniping, bitter and totally unnecessary comments from the man who would be the "Monarch of Dance."
Because of its low ratings last year, it's really a wonder that "Dollhouse" got a second season from Fox at all. So this cancelation shouldn't be a big surprise. A disappointment, certainly. But not a surprise.
"Dollhouse" has a small but devoted following, mostly people who dig anything show creator Joss Whedon touches ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Firefly," "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," "Angel"). It's a good show, but for whatever reason, just never caught on.
Fox is allowing the show to finish out it's 13-episode run. Whedon is currently filming episode #11, so hopefully he'll be able to bring closure to all twelve of the show's fans. The finale is tentatively scheduled for January 22.
Wanda Sykes launched her late night show last night (Fox, 11 pm) and got down to being Wanda right away.
The show played to her strengths with a lot of stand up, giving plenty of opportunity for her in-your-face riffs, taped skits like she used to do on Chris Rock's HBO show, and most effectively, a Chelsea Lately style roundtable.
