Take Me To The Pilots ’12: ABC’s ‘The Zero Hour’ – by Daniel Fienberg
The Pitch: Horologists, Nazis, Rosicrucians and Goose… Oh my!
Quick Response: In previewing “Do No Harm” last week, I mentioned that it was one of “three or four audaciously weird, wacky and possibly terrible (but possibly terribly addictive) new dramas” premiering at midseason. ABC’s “The Zero Hour” is another. Creator Paul T. Scheuring (“Prison Break”) is no stranger to seemingly unsustainable premises that may have been better suited to a miniseries format and I guess you could *kinda* argue that “Prison Break” found ways to regularly reinvent itself frequently enough to justify airing for four seasons, rather than for eight episodes as a Limited Series Event. But “Zero Hour,” with its tenuous and sometimes foolhardy alternate history involving the secret religious orders and scientific exploration and the Holocaust, is possibly even less suited for a long run and even more suited for a strictly capped episode run. Some stories aren’t meant to run for 200 episodes and I get the feeling that with its Rosicrucians, demon babies, underground clockmakers and 12-centric numerology, “The Zero Hour” should maybe run 10 hours, deliver answers and get out while the getting’s good.
Category: Opinion
TV Reality Vs. TV Fantasy
by Theresa Wiza
When Alan Funt’s Candid Camera television program made its debut in 1948, Funt unknowingly created the reality TV genre. From that first hilarious peek into the human spirit came shows like America’s Funniest Videos, Ashton Kutcher’s Punk’d, and more.
The same year Funt debuted Candid Camera, Arthur Godfrey showcased struggling artists in his Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts.
Thinking Man Reviews: Game of Thrones “Blackwater”
By Anthony Medina
**Be aware this review contains spoilers**
Season 2 Episode 9
“Blackwater”
“Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let’s go kill them.” – Tyrion Lannister
“The Fien Print” Ruminates on CBS’ MADE IN JERSEY
Take Me To The Pilots ’12: CBS’ MADE IN JERSEY – by Daniel Fienberg
The Pitch: “My Cousin Vinnie,” if you got rid of Joe Pesci and it just turned out that Marisa Tomei was a talented lawyer, in addition to being a hilarious ethnic stereotype.
Quick Response: Janet Montgomery *is* a star. I agree with FOX, which brought her in in an unsuccessful attempt to goose ratings for “Human Target” and I agree with CBS, which cast Montgomery in a show called “Made in Jersey,” despite a natural accent that’s distinctly from the wrong side of The Pond. I don’t really know what to make of “Made in Jersey,” unfortunately. CBS has been running trailers which focus more on Fish Out of Water humor than the actual tone of the show, which is closer to a straight-forward character-driven legal procedural with hints of cartoony local color. Montgomery, whose Jersey accent is acceptable, if not flawless, is very good playing a woman who comes off as kinda a Sherlock Holmes for trashy, blue collar details. She’s sexy and straight-forward and Montgomery really isn’t mugging or over-relying on stereotypes. The same cannot be said of Donna Murphy and Erin Cummings as two members of the main character’s Big Stereotypical Italian Family, an element that the producers said at TCA press tour that they intend to play up. Ugh. Bad idea.
LB Loves When io9.Com Uses This Picture
That’s this one:
It’s from the old STAR TREK: THE ANIMATED SERIES episode I wrote called “The Magicks of Megas-Tu.” It reminds me of how much the show was loved and fills me with a nice, warm feeling for Gene and D.C. and the gang.