SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

The N Revamps April Schedule, Adds Brothers Garcia; ABC Brings Back Murder Club, Moves Legal and Trees, ABC Summer Slate Announced

The N is totally revamping its schedule almost starting next week (Monday, April 7). Weekdays 6am-3pm will remain the same as it is now, so we still will have Growing Pains in the noon hour. It looks like All That didn't do "all that" well for The N because the only slot it will air now is weekdays at 7am. Replacing it weekdays at 3pm is an hour of Instant Star. The four in a row block from 4pm-4am will be basically gone now. 4-5pm weekdays will see the sitcom Brothers Garcia join the line-up. The series was a Nickelodeon sitcom from 2000-2003. An hour each of Kenan & Kel, Zoey 101 and Saved by the Bell follows until 8pm. In primetime we get more Kenen & Kel in the 8pm hour, followed by an hour each of Fresh Prince, Zoey 101 and Saved by the Bell until midnight. The four in a row block from 12-2am will remain with Kenan & Kel on Mondays, Fresh Prince on Tuesdays, One on One on Wednesdays and Degrassi on Thursdays. Degrassi will air a ton on weekends, Fridays 7pm-6am, 6:00pm-12:30am on weekends, and 3-6am on Saturday nights. Weekends will see some changes as well, with Brothers Garcia airing in the 9am hour and 12pm hours. To see the FULL new line-up, I really advise you to click HERE.

We were the first ones to tell you on our messages boards last week that ABC was going to move Women's Murder Club to Tuesdays at 10PM starting April 29...and we were right!
Women's Murder Club will return with original episodes on Tuesday, April at 10:00 p.m., ET/PT, on ABC. The one-hour series from James Patterson will air for three weeks (April 29, May 6 and May 13) in that time period.
As a result, Boston Legal will move to Wednesday nights at 10:00 p.m., as of Wednesday, April 30, where it will air for three weeks, on April 30, May 14 and May 21, with a preemption for an ABC News special on May 7. Boston Legal will still return on Tuesday, April 8 and air on April 15 and 22 as well in its Tuesday night at 10:00 p.m. time slot.
MEN IN TREES will return on Wednesday, May 28 at 10:00 p.m., ET/PT, following Boston Legal's run for its final three episodes of the season.

ABC announces its summer schedule with the premiere of eight original series, including the return of The Bachelorette on Monday, May 19 (9:00-11:00 p.m....moves to 10:00pm the following week), following the performance show finale of Dancing with the Stars; The Mole on Monday, May 26 (10:00-11:00 p.m.); Wipeout on Tuesday, June 24 (8:00-9:00 p.m.); I Survived a Japanese Game Show on Tuesday, June 24 (9:00-10:00 p.m.); ABC News' Hopkins on Thursday, June 26 (10:00-11:00 p.m.); Dance Machine on Friday, June 27 (8:00-9:00 p.m.); High School Musical: Summer Session on Sunday, July 20 (8:00-9:00 p.m....will air Sundays and Mondays at 8:00pm); and Wanna Bet on Monday, July 21 (9:00-10:00 p.m.).
For details on each summer program, click HERE!

Week 27 Numbers (First Four Nights); How the Sitcoms Did

After having Easter Sunday off (we did a mini-DVD review weekend) last week, we are back with our regular Sunday weekly ratings report!

Week 27 numbers (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: Fox 8.1/12.8, ABC 6.7/10.7, CBS 5.8/9.4, NBC 5.6/9.0, The CW 1.5/2.4, MyNetworkTV 0.8/1.3
Total Viewers: Fox 13.72 million, ABC 10.19 million, CBS 9.11 million, NBC 8.68 million, The CW 2.21 million, MyNetworkTV 1.23 million
Adults 18-49: Fox 5.1/13.5, CBS 3.0/8.2, ABC 2.8/7.4, NBC 2.8/7.4, The CW 1.0/2.5, MyNetworkTV 0.5/1.2

Analysis: Week 27 so far has Fox and ABC dominating...ABC dominated Monday, while Fox and ABC had a big audience on Tuesday, and Fox dominated Wednesday. Through the first four days of week 27, we have Fox on top obviously, with ABC in second in HH/viewers, CBS surprisingly is second in 18-49 (thanks to NCAA most likely), CBS is third in HH/viewers (ABC is battling with NBC for third in 18-49 and has a very slight edge). NBC is 4th in all categories. Last week, week 26 Fox was number one in all categories (with Idol they should be), but it was a close finish, as ABC almost won the week. ABC was 2nd in HH/viewers, but third in 18-49. CBS was third in HH and viewers, but 2nd in 18-49 thanks to the NCAA Tournament. NBC was fourth in everything.
On Monday, it was all ABC as Dancing with the Stars did 20.52 million for two-hours, slightly off from the 90-minute premiere the week before. The Bachelor: London Calling followed with 7.27 million, down from the premiere. CBS was next with its sitcoms which were all-new! The Big Bang Theory's second post-strike episode did 8.53 million, off from the previous week, but How I Met Your Mother had a season high in viewers 10.67 million, thanks to Britney Spears guest starring. The show hit a series high in 18-49 as well at a 4.5/12 rating...wow. Two and a Half Men followed with 14.23 million and a new episode of Old Christine did 9.77 million, off from previous week. CSI: Miami is now back with new episodes and the show did 16.06 million for its return, seems normal. NBC was next with Deal or No Deal at 9pm doing 10.14 million but NBC started the night off at 8pm slow with My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad at 4.18 million, a series low and just a 1.2 18-49 rating. Medium closed the night off with 8.91 million, as the show went down because CBS was all-new. Fox aired a repeat of House to start off the night and it did 7.7 million, following at 9pm was New Amsterdam doing 6.19 million, a series low. The CW had a repeat of Gossip Girl doing 1.07 million and a new Pussycat Dolls at just 1.55 million.
On Tuesday, Fox was on top thanks to Idol at 24.76 million for 90-minutes, but it was lower than normal thanks to Dancing with the Stars also airing (they overlapped from 9-9:30). at 9:30 fox aired a new episode of 'Til Death and it didn't hold much and dropped to 10.0 million, but clearly a season high. ABC was next with a recap of the first three performance shows of Dancing with the Stars at 8pm doing a solid 10.5 million...not bad at all for a recap...then the real thing aired at 9pm, Dancing with the Stars: The Results did a solid 17.49 million and it built heavily in its second half. ABC was on top at 10pm with the finale of Primetime: What Would You Do? at 9.92 million. NBC aired a two-hour Biggest Loser at 7.84 million and a repeat of Law & Order: SVU drew a decent 8.55 million. CBS was next with a repeat of NCIS at 9.34 million, followed by the Tuesday edition of the disappointing Big Brother 9 at just 5.86 million, and the series finale (let it be done with already) of Jericho at 6.02 million. The CW aired a new Beauty & The Geek at just 1.61 million and a repeat of Reaper did 1.66 million, ouch it beat a new episode of Geek.
On Wednesday, it was all Fox again. American Idol Results at 9pm did 25.74 million, seems below normal, though. The Moment of Truth at 8pm did 10.05 million, solid...but down from previous weeks. NBC was next with its all-repeat line-up. Two Law & Order: Criminal Intent did 6.8 and 6.13 million, but the original Law & Order did better at 8.05 million, not bad for a repeat. CBS continues to struggle with Big Brother 9 at just 5.87 million and repeats of Criminal Minds and CSI: NY followed with 6.99 and 7.46 million...maybe CBS's crime repeats are getting tiring now even. ABC's Wife Swap did 6.27 million for a new episode, followed by a repeat of Supernanny at 5.81 million and a new MEN IN TREES did 5.62 million, very steady even with a repeat as its lead-in. The CW had an all-new Top Model at a decent 3.53 million, for some reason this is not as good this season in the ratings, a repeat of Pussycat Dolls did just 1.59 million, but better than its original Monday airing, sad, isn't it?
On Thursday, NBC was in a rare top spot thanks to the two-hour finale of Celebrity Apprentice from 9-11pm at 12.13 million. But would it have done that if it were facing originals of CSI/Grey's Anatomy or even Lost? Doubt it. Wonder what The Donald will say now? Deal or No Deal-Thursday started the night off with 11.4 million. CBS preempted its regular programming for the NCAA Tournament, as an average of 10.02 million tuned in during the primetime portion. Fox was next with Are You Smarter That a 5th Grader? and Don't Forget the Lyrics! doing 8.54 and 8.95 million, with the latter doing very well again. Lost is now in repeats for ABC, thanks to the strike, but it will return April 24 at a new time slot (10pm), but we still had a repeat at 9pm doing 5.39 million, but ABC started the night off better with two new episodes of the hilarious Miss Guided at 5.9 and 5.58 million, down from the two episodes the previous week, but still not too bad. Eli Stone closed the night with 6.53 million, that is just a bit off from what it was doing with a new Lost as its lead-in..so maybe this show does have an audience of its own.
Like usual, no Friday finals yet. CBS lead the first two hours with NCAA basketball coverage, but at 10pm NBC's Dateline did unusually high. Saturday ratings were not available to us.
Tonight will be ABC with the win most likely again, lead by Oprah's Big Give and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. NBC is in repeat mode from 9-11pm but Dateline is new at 8pm but its lead-in at 7pm is a Keith Olbermann special which did terrible once before. CBS will suffer with Big Brother but Cold Case returns tonight with new episodes, so CBS will get a bit of a bump. Fox will have a mix of new and old tonight, with new episodes of The Simpsons, Unhitched and King of the Hill. How low will Unhitched go tonight?
As for the week, Fox will win in HH, viewers and 18-49. I predict ABC will hang on for second, followed by CBS and NBC in 4th. In 18-49 it could be Fox, CBS, ABC and NBC, though.
This coming week sees more shows return from strike hiatus such as Criminal Minds and CSI.

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week of March 17-23)

• Everybody Hates Chris (The CW) - All-new episode did just 990,000 viewers...OK this is just pathetic now.
  
• Aliens in America (The CW) - All-new as well and it did just 910,000...CW needs to move these back to Mondays.
  
• The Game (The CW) - A new episode did just 1.26 million, but compared to the other two shows, this is like American Idol.
  
• Girlfriends (The CW) - A repeat did 1.17 million.
  
• The Simpsons (Fox) - A repeat did 4.81 million...seems way below a normal repeat's numbers.
  
• King of the Hill (Fox) - A repeat at 7pm did just 2.5 million.
  
• Family Guy (Fox) - Just 4.49 million for a repeat...way below normal for an encore.
  
• Unhitched (Fox) 2 episodes - Only 3.21 and 3.11 million for 2 new episodes at 8:30 and 9:30...it seems fox wanted to just burn this off and fail.
  
• American Dad (Fox) - Only 2.7 million for a repeat at 7:30pm.

Monday Sitcoms

• The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - 8.53 million tuned in for the second episode back, down from the return, but still solid. What a funny show this is.
  
• How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 10.67 million for its second new episode back...thank Britney Spears for it, a season high in viewers and a series high in 18-49 with a 4.5/12 rating/share!
  
• Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 14.23 million for a new episode...#1 sitcom airing of course.
• Old Christine (CBS) - 9.77 million for a new episode is good but it seems below normal... losing 4 1/2 million from the lead-in? Not good.
  

Tuesday Sitcoms

• 'Til Death (Fox) - A new episode on a special night and time following Idol did just 10.0 million...not good following a 24.76 million from 8-9:30.
  

Wednesday Sitcoms

• None
  

Thursday Sitcoms

• Miss Guided (ABC) 2 episodes - Two new episodes did 5.9 and 5.58 million..down a bit from the timeslot debut the previous week, but still decent enough. Funny show, isn't it? Edie McClurg as Mrs. Pool (though not the same character from Hogan Family...but you never know) all over again is so great...even if it was just for one episode.
  

Friday Sitcoms

• None
  

Saturday Sitcoms

• None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) is a mix of new and repeats of sitcoms on The CW from 8-10, and Fox's animated comedies (and Unhitched at 9:30) are also a mix of new and repeats from 7-10.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (Old Christine, 'Til Death) or just plain old terrible (CW Sunday 3/23, Unhitched 3/23).

Mini-DVD Review: Alvin and the Chipmunks Go To the Movies: Funny, We Shrunk the Adults (April 1); Solomon's Weekly Rant

It is Saturday, so that must mean it is time for the mini-DVD review and Solomon's Weekly Rant! First up, are the mini-DVD review. This week we take a look at Paramount Home Entertainment's second set of The Chipmunks Go to the Movies. The Chipmunks Go to the Movies is a continuation of Alvin and the Chipmunks from 1990 where the Chipmunks re-enact your favorite classic movies like Big, Back to the Future and Honey I Shrunk the Kids! See my mini-DVD review of The Chipmunks Go to the Movies:

Alvin & the Chipmunks Go To the Movies: Funny, We Shrunk the Adults (Paramount, $16.99) brings three episodes from the short-lived 13 episode series where the Chipmunks spoofed major Hollywood films. This is the fifth set from Paramount featuring the Chipmunks series. The last set was the first Chipmunks Go To The Movies set (which featured "Star Wreck," "Batmunk," and "Funny...We Shrunk the Adults"). Previous sets were the Valentine's, Halloween and Christmas specials releases. Paramount has also released the Chipmunk Adventure feature film from 1987 on a separate set...so six sets really. Well maybe seven because they will also re-release this movie on April 1 as well with a bonus soundtrack disc inside (more on that below).
This set has three episodes from the 1990 series featuring spoofs on Back to the Future, Big & Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Yes, the spoof on Honey, I Shrunk the Kids was on the last Chipmunks Go To The Movies set and for some reason is on this one, too. The episode titles for this set are "Back to Alvin's Future," "Bigger," and "Funny...We Shrunk the Adults." As I said in the previous review, why not just bring all 13 on two-discs or something? It doesn't make sense to me why just three episodes and one of them was already released on the last set. On the last set, each episode ran 21:30 or so, with NO closing credits or chapter stops. On this set two of the three have closing credits, but one doesn't. The two that do, have runtimes of 23:06 and the one that doesn't has a runtime of 22:33 (but that one has the original NBC In Stereo logo during the opening credits). Each episode has 3 chapter stops.
Packaging is simple and in the same line as the previous sets--a nice simple case with the disc inside with an insert for Chipmunks.com. Cover art has Alvin and the Chipmunks Go To The Movies logo with a reel strip and the mention of "Funny, We Shrunk The Adults." Picture of Theodore, Alvin and Simon are on the cover as Alvin holds a shrunken Dave and Ms. Miller. Disc art is the same as the cover art, but with just Alvin's shot from the cover. The last set's packaging featured Star Trek on the cover and Batman on the back, while this set is all about Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.
The menu screen has Play All and all the episodes listed on the main menu, with a screenshot and episode title. The main menu is in blue/pink background.
The video and audio are decent and very watchable and in line with other releases.
I highly do recommend any fan to pick up this set. New fans might also want to see this hilarious take on popular films (such as Tom Hanks in Big and Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future), but I am hoping Paramount (or any other studio) releases the series on DVD in order with the classic episodes, and not just select episodes from The Chipmunks years (1988-1990). I like the old style animation the series had on NBC from 1983-87...why aren't they coming to DVD first? I think those might be from Warner and Ruby-Spears, while these are from DiC. But for now get shrunk (again) but this time we get 'bigger' and go to the 'future' with the Chipmunks. Alvinnnnnnnnnn!

Now I'll just comment a bit on the new release of The Chipmunk Adventure feature film movie from 1987 that runs 76 minutes. The packaging is different and the disc artwork is different, but everything else is the same. We get the same menus, video/audio, scene selections, special feature (original artwork). However, this new release has The Chipmunk Adventure soundtrack with all 11 tracks. So if you want to spend the money just for the soundtrack, because basically everything is the same except for the things I mentioned above, then buy this set. If you haven't bought the movie on DVD, then go for this set instead of the older one. The movie is really fun!
-- Reviewed by Pavan
(4/5 stars) for both sets

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Also purchase the new release of The Chipmunk Adventure with the soundtrack CD:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Alvin & the Chipmunks TV.com Page
Chipmunks.com


Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, March 29, 2008
"Price DVD Disappointing; Local News Breaks Into Programming, ION Strikes Again"
By Solomon Davis

I thought the Best of Price is Right DVD would be a great buy for fans of the show but when I heard that there are episodes from the 2007 season included, I was no longer in a rush to buy the DVD. Why in the world would FIVE episodes from 2007 be on a best of the Price is Right DVD? The very last episode with Bob Barker I can understand a little but what are the other 4 episodes on the DVD for? Who cares if they are from Bob's last week on the show, this DVD should be all about the HISTORY of the Price is Right and not episodes from this decade at all. I don't even think it should be episodes from 1997, so to hear that 2007 episodes are on the DVD just sounds really stupid. This release proved that BCI Eclipse doesn't have no clue as to what should be on a Best of the Price is Right DVD. I hope they are planning on a second release because besides the 2007 episodes the newest episode is from the mid-70s...they skipped the entire '80s??

I know that someone has experienced watching a show on one of their local stations and the news cuts in to go to a press conference or a breaking news story when they can just tell viewers about it when the news comes on. I lost count at the number of times I was recording something only to have my local news station cut in and stop me from getting an entire show on tape. Which was what happened to me this week on my Fox station when the news station cut in on The Tyra Banks Show at the 40 minute mark to go to a Hilary Clinton press conference in Philadelphia leaving me with an incomplete episode. I just wish local news would leave regularly scheduled programming ALONE if it's not a MAJOR NATIONAL NEWS story...they could wait for the regular local news timeslot to report it. If Charlie Gibson, Brian Williams or Katie Couric are not breaking in, no one else should.

Can't say I'm surprised by the recent programming by ION Television this past week with its new April schedule. ION for some reason feels the need to add shows that have already been played on other cable networks which is not an intriguing pick-up for TV fans. Who hasn't seen The Wayans Bros., Family Feud, and The Steve Harvey Show in syndication before? Plus ION decides to do this ODD mix of primetime scheduling and will now have a drama (Quantum Leap) leading into sitcoms which is just bizarre. OK, Quantum Leap hasn't been played much in syndication, but it is out of place on ION (Mama's Family airs before it and Drew Carey Show plays after it...what???) So it's the same 'ole story with ION each month, which is adding TV shows that are in the "Brand New Old" syndication category.

Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.

DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.

Star-Studded Marathon for Diff'rent Strokes on BET; TV One May 2008 Highlights

We gave you highlights of BET's schedule changes and upcoming marathons in April a few days back, but now we have full details on one of the marathons! The Diff'rent Strokes marathon that is airing next Sunday (Sunday, April 6) will be a star-studded marathon! Join Arnold and Willis and the rest of the family as they welcome in special guests such as LaWanda Page and Whitman Mayo (Aunt Esther and Grady of Sanford & Son), Janet Jackson, Muhammad Ali, Forest Whitaker, Robin Givens, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Mr. T! The marathons starts at 1pm and will end at 9pm on that Sunday. Fans will be happy to see an assortment of episodes from all seasons (well none from season 7, but we do get a few season 8 ones). There will be 6 Janet Jackson episodes! Whatchya talkin' about Wills, indeed. To see the marathon episodes with the times, click HERE. And discuss this episode selection with other Diff'rent Strokes fans by clicking here.

TV One in May will see lots of marathons, including a Mother's Day stunt filled with motherly episodes. Throughout the month, TV One is going to get the weekends pumping with a series of true 'marathons' – 24 hour May Mega-Marathons, which will each start on Friday evening and run through Saturday evening.
On Friday, May 9 beginning at 7pm, TV One offers a "Mothers Day Weekend" 24-hour marathon saluting favorite sitcom moms from TV One sitcom favorites Martin, All of Us, The Parent'hood, Good Times, Amen, and The Hughleys.
On Friday, May 16 beginning at 9pm, TV One offers its annual birthday tribute to superstar Janet Jackson (she turns 42 on May 16) with a 24-hour marathon of Good Times: "The Janet Years," featuring episodes when a young Janet played the Evans' neighbor, Penny. Directly preceding the marathon at 8pm on Friday, a special TV One Access, hosted by former Cosby Show Kid Keshia Knight Pulliam, takes a look at "Our Favorite Child Stars: All Grown Up."
On Friday, May 23 beginning at 11pm, TV One kicks off the long Memorial Day weekend with a trip to the 'projects' of The PJs – featuring all the episodes of the series during the course of the 24 hour marathon.
Finally, on Memorial Day itself (Monday, May 26), TV One takes a "Memorial Day Break" beginning at 8am, TV One presents a full day marathon of the first 11 episodes of the action crime-drama series Day Break starring Taye Diggs. The show airs weekly every Sunday at 10pm.
Schedule changes include more Amen as it will also air 5 and 5:30pm weekdays starting May 5 replacing For Your Love and Eve, which will both be off the line-up totally. Amen will also air in the mornings as well still at 6am & 6:30am. Eve will be replaced in the early mornings as well, weekdays at 4am will be another Parent'hood instead. And the 1am airing of NY Undercover will be replaced by two more Divorce Court episodes. NY Undercover will still air in its other slots.

ION Also Adds Steve Harvey Show in April; TV Land's High School Reunion Does Big in Ratings

Just a few days ago we gave you most of ION Television's April 2008 schedule, with the additions of Family Feud (Mon-Thurs 7-8pm) and Quantum Leap (Mon-Wed 9pm). However, weekdays 6-7pm was still "to be determined," along with Thursdays from 8-10pm. We now have one of those "to be determined" slots announced! The '90s sitcom The Steve Harvey Show will join the ION Television line-up on Monday, April 7 and will air weekdays at 6:00pm & 6:30pm ET/PT. The sitcom starred Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer. The show will air following The Wayans Bros. from 5-6pm, part of ION's African American Initiative programming block. The Steve Harvey Show comes from their Sony Pictures Television library deal.
We still do not know what will air Thursdays 8-10pm starting in April, but as soon as we know, we will indeed let you know. Hopefully by tomorrow? My guesses are a crime drama themed block or a sitcom themed block or maybe regular movies from their Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. deals that they used to air?
Anyway, recap yourself with our ION April 2008 schedule highlights, and also discuss these major changes, by clicking HERE!

TV Land's original reality series, High School Reunion, averaged 797,000 total viewers for last night's 10 p.m. telecast, making it the most-watched episode of the series to date. The telecast also gave TV Land double digit gains across the network's target demo, Adults 25-54, and among the network's core audience, Adults 40-54. The show reunites classmates from all walks and stages of life who have some issues to address and resolve since their high school days. The series gives viewers a front row seat to the emotional and compelling rollercoaster ride throughout its run.
Last night's shocking and dramatic episode, in which Mike and Steve finally confront each other about Steve's affair with Mike's ex-wife Lana, posted a 0.5 rating (513,000 viewers) among A25-54, up 29% in rating from last week's episode and up 28% in viewers 25-54. Among the network's core A40-54 audience, the episode earned a 0.6 rating (330,000 viewers) a rise of 20% in rating and 20% in viewers 40-54 over last week. It also scored double digit gains in total viewers (797,000) with a 12% increase over last week.
Season one of High School Reunion has been averaging 753,000 total viewers with a median age of 47. Among A25-54, it has been posting a 0.4 rating (448,000 viewers) and among A40-54 a 0.5 ratign (286,000 viewers).

Hallmark Channel and WE TV Acquire The Golden Girls; George Lopez Marathon Scores for Nick at Nite

The Hallmark Channel and WE tv have acquired the cable rights to The Golden Girls starting in March 2009 in a shared cable deal. This means the durable sitcom will leave its home of Lifetime Television of 12 years at the end of February 2009. The show has been on the Lifetime since March 1, 1997 (it was renewed a few times) and was one of its highest rated series in the history of the network.
We mentioned a few months back that The Hallmark Channel also has gotten rights to sitcoms Cheers (Fall 2008) and I Love Lucy (January 2009), so they are slowly building towards a sitcom line-up, after having just dramas for many years. It is not certain yet if Cheers and I Love Lucy will also air on TV Land still when Hallmark starts them, but both show's current contracts expire when Hallmark starts airing them.
As for Golden Girls, Lifetime said this in a statement regarding the sitcom moving to Hallmark Channel and WE tv :
"The 'classic' series will depart our schedule after a 12-year run to make room for our next generation of off-net comedies such as the very popular Reba, Still Standing and Will & Grace, as well as numerous original comedies in development, along with the return of the smash hit Army Wives. We wish Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia all the best of luck in their new homes."
We don't have full details yet on WE tv, but it will likely also start when The Golden Girls comes to Hallmark. WE tv currently airs sitcoms in the daytime. Sitcoms that air are Hope & Faith, Kate & Allie and Dharma & Greg. That's a lot of ampersands! They need to get Laverne & Shirley just for the ampersand! Anyway, we will let you know what WE tv says when we find out.
For now discuss the news of Golden Girls leaving Lifetime and coming to Hallmark/WE tv in March 2009 by clicking HERE! Thank you for bein' a friend!

Last week Nick at Nite had its seven night George Lopez "Luck o' the Lopez Marathon" and the marathon helped Nick at Nite all the way to 3rd in cable ratings for all of cable. The marathon aired March 17-23 from 9pm-6am on Sun-Thurs and 10pm-6am on Fri-Sat, so the marathon was all that Nick at Nite aired that week. Nick at Nite had its best week ever as it averaged 2.17 million viewers for the week (approx. 64% higher than the same week last year) and a 1.7 HH rating. The only cable networks that were higher that week were USA Network at a 2.2 HH rating and The Disney Channel at a 1.9 HH rating. Nick at Nite was #1 for the week on cable in the following demos: Teens 12 to 17 and adults 25 to 54; adults 18 to 34 and 18 to 49; and women 18 to 34, 18 to 49 and 25 to 54. George Lopez was all that Nick at Nite aired last week, so it was all George that did this! "I Got This!" In fact, as many as five episodes in the marathon had well over 3 million viewers, which is unheard of for Nick at Nite. Woooopah, as George would say! The previous two weeks, Nick at Nite finished 6th in cable network ratings. The show regularly airs every night at 10:00pm & 10:30pm ET/PT with an encore later in the evening. People are watching, so if you haven't watched yet...check it out because it is actually very funny.

Fox Cancels Jezebel James; ION Picks-Up Family Feud, Quantum Leap, and More in April 2008

Fox has pulled new sitcom The Return of Jezebel James after just two weeks and three episodes airing. The sitcom was just averaging a bit over 3 million on Friday nights. Fox will replace the 8pm hour on Fridays with repeats of Bones, which will lead into new episodes of Canterbury's Law starting this Friday. If Jezebel James was still airing this Friday, Fox would probably have had historic lows on that night as James leading into Canterbury would have been a disaster. Unhitched could be next on the cancelation block as that sitcom also did terrible this week in two airings on Sunday with just 3 million someodd viewers.
Meanwhile, Fox has picked up a fourth season of Prison Break, the action-packed series starring Dominic Purcell and Wentworth Miller as on-the-lam brothers Lincoln Burrows and Michael Scofield.
After spending the first season filming on location in Chicago, followed by two seasons on location in Dallas, production on the upcoming fourth season of Prison Break will move to Los Angeles.

ION Television has picked up rights to Family Feud starting April 7. It will be the current version hosted by John O'Hurley. On your marks... let's start The Family Feud! The long- running, popular family-oriented game show is back with a new host and a new look. Hosted by television personality John O'Hurley, Family Feud is a fast-paced game show that pits two families against one another in a contest to name the most popular responses to survey-type questions posed to a 100 people. O'Hurley's quick wit and sophisticated style resonates with viewers who remember the Richard Dawson era. Although the set is now in a theatre in the round setting, it is somewhat of a throwback to the Dawson era when the families posed inside a living room setting.
ION will air Family Feud Mon-Thurs at 7:00pm & 7:30pm, replacing Alice, which will leave the line-up. ION has also picked up the drama Quantum Leap. After theorizing that man or woman could time travel within his or her lifetime, Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into his Quantum Leap accelerator and was launched into an unknown abyss. It was upon awaking he realized he was trapped in the past, seeing a mirror image that wasn’t his and feeling driven by an unknown force to change the course of history for the better. Guided on this journey by Admiral Al Calavicci, an onlooker from his own time who only appears in the form of a hologram, Dr. Beckett leaps from one life to another, hoping that ultimately his next one will be the leap that takes him home.
Quantum Leap will also start on April 7 and air Mon-Wed at 9:00pm, leading into The Drew Carey Show's new timeslot 10 & 10:30pm Mon-Wed. ION will expand a bit, too! Instead of starting 6:00pm, they will start 5:00pm now...at least Mon-Fri (Saturday and Sundays it will still start at 6:00pm). The Wayans Bros. will move to 5:00pm & 5:30pm Mon-Fri. 6:00pm hour is still to be determined, which was Wayans' old slot. The aforementioned Family Feud follows at 7 Mon-Thurs, followed by Mama's Family for an hour at 8, but only Mon-Wed now. ION has something planned on Thursday nights from 8-10pm, which is still to be determined. Following that on Thursday nights at 10:00pm will be 48 Hours (it will still air Sundays at 6:00pm, too). The qubo kids block on Fridays will move up an hour now from 2:30-6pm to 1:30-5pm now. Baywatch will remain Saturdays at 6:00pm, which it moves to starting this coming Saturday. RHI programming will still air Fri-Sun from 7-11pm, and among the titles we will see in April are all four parts of Return to Lonesome Dove, new movie Praire Fever and Lone Rider, and classics such as Gullilver's Travels.
We will have more on those "to be determined" slots when we find out. Will it be a sitcom or a game show maybe to lead-into Family Feud? Or what is going to on Thursday nights from 8-10pm? We don't know yet, but as soon as we do, we will let you know!
For the entire April schedule in a list form and more highlights, click HERE! Please discuss as well!

BET Schedules Diff'rent Strokes and Malcolm and Eddie Marathons; CBS Brings Back Shark, More Price

Last Monday we gave you some BET schedule news as weekends changed a bit with more Sanford (Sundays 12-1pm now). We also gave you details that Jamie Foxx Show and Wayans Bros. are expiring from the channel and will leave after their farwell marathons this Saturday (March 29). Their last regular schedule appearances will be on Friday (March 28). Now we have more BET schedule updates! First off, Sanford will gain two more slots now starting Saturday, April 12...it will air Saturday nights at 3:00am & 3:30am (that's early Sunday mornings). It will continue to air Sundays at 12:00pm & 12:30pm, too. Also, a special 3:00pm & 3:30pm afternoon airing is scheduled on Saturday, April 5 ONLY.
Now to the major news. Diff'rent Strokes, which is airing weekday mornings from 9-10am, will get a marathon! The marathon will air Sunday, April 6 from 1pm-9pm. We don't have episode details yet, but as soon as we do we will post in our message boards. In other Strokes news, fans will be happy that starting tomorrow morning they will start airing season three episodes in the rotation ("The Magician" and "The Bank Job" will air...remember they are going in production order). That is great because seasons three and on are not on DVD yet. So if fans were waiting for that, tune in starting tomorrow (March 25) at 9am!
Malcolm & Eddie will also get a marathon, too! The marathon will air Saturday, April 19 from 9:00am-7:00pm, which means Thea will be preempted 9-10am on this Saturday (April 19) only. We will post episode info when available.
We will post episode info when available on our message boards, so check back. Also, please discuss this!

The Price is Right Million Dollar Spectacular will return with four new Wednesday primetime specials starting Wednesday, April 30 at 8:00pm while Shark, the second-year on-the-fence drama starring James Woods, returns with four original broadcasts on a new day and time period--Tuesdays at 9:00pm starting Tuesday, April 29. Its second season finale will be broadcast on Tuesday, May 20 at a special time of 10:00pm. Following Shark on Tuesdays will be the new reality series Secret Talent of the Stars on Tuesdays at 10:00pm, starting April 8. That show will put 16 stars together to find secret talents. Among the stars are Clint Black, George Takei, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Marla Maples, Sasha Cohen, Ric Flair, Joe Frazier, Bridget Marquardt, Mya, Sheila E., Roy Jones, Jr., Cindy Margolis, Ben Stein and Danny Bonaduce.

Mini-DVD Review: Day Break - The Complete Series (March 25)

Happy Easter everyone! We don't have final ratings for Thursday and also no averages for the first four nights because of the Good Friday/Easter holiday, thus I have decided not to do a ratings report this week. As always you can always get daily final ratings on our General Sitcoms Questions & Discussions message board. So today, I decided to give you all another mini-DVD review! It is an Easter mini-DVD review weekend it seems. I am stunned we got all our planned March 25 mini reviews (Pebbles & Bamm-Bamm, Dennis the Menace, Price is Right and now Day Break today)out of the way before March 25. Today week we take a look at BCI's Day Break: The Complete Series. Day Break was an excellent action-packed drama that was gone too soon. It was the show that was replacing Lost as it went on its hiatus last season in November (2006). Unfortunately, viewers didn't flock in and they missed a wonderful thriller starring Taye Diggs. The show's final episode, which never aired on ABC, even has a conclusion to this story, so fans who gave up or didn't watch, missed out (the show's final 7 episodes aired on abc.com). See my mini-DVD review of Day Break: The Complete Series:

Day Break: The Complete Series (BCI, $39.98) brings us all 13 episodes of the thrilling action-packed Taye Diggs series that relives the same day over and over again. Detective Brett Hopper (Diggs) wakes up in the morning at 6:17am with his girlfriend Rita (Moon Bloodgood) and is later accused of the murder of state attorney Alberto Garza. He will realize that he's been framed. He will run. Then he will wake up and start the day over again. Different things happen each day and Brett has to figure out clues on who killed Garza. It's not your ordinary crime drama, as this is heavily serialized, but very thrilling and exciting. This is one of the shows from 2006-07 season I wish was still around. Anyway, Hopper remember the different things he did on that same day over and over again, but of course no one else does. If someone dies, they are not dead when the day restarts...but if he gets hurt or dies, it will remain. So if he dies, it is all over. What will happen? You'll have to see yourself, if you haven't already.
Let's now move on to the packaging. BCI has done a very good job. The box holds three slim cases inside. The box's cover art features Taye Diggs followed by the Day Break logo, the Complete Series mention, followed by a cast photo on the bottom. Surrounding the big picture of Taye are nice little images in the background. The color sceheme is like yellowish, similar to a sunrise. The back of the box is also great. We get a quote from The Hollywood Reporter on top, followed by a nice synopsis of the series. Nice photos of Rita, Andrea (Victoria Pratt), Chad (Adam Baldwin), and Spivak (Mitch Pileggi) surround the synopsis. Below that we have more photos...Jennifer (Meta Golding), Choi (Ian Anthony Dale), Brett, Damien (Ramon Rodriguez), Fencik (Joe Nieves) and Buchalter (michael McGrady)...wow they got the entire cast on this on the back...very cool. I advise you to view this website to find out details on all the characters, because there is a lot! Below that is the list of the special features. And below that we are told that this set includes 7 episodes never aired on network television. Inside the box are the three slim cases and a nice episode booklet. The booklet is four pages, counting the cover and back. The front cover has the cast and is similar in style to the cover art. Pages 2 and 3 gives us a disc-by-disc breakdown of what episodes are on each disc. We also are given the audio commentaries list for each episode. Every episode has commentary...very good job by BCI. The back of the booklet has another cast photo and credits for the production of the commentaries. Moving on to the slim cases. Get it slim? As in Danny "Slim" Yan. Anyway, each slim case features a character on the front and back of the case. Case 1 has Brett/Rita. Case 2 has Andrea/Spivak. Case 3 has Chad/Jennifer. The episodes for each slim case are listed on the back below the character image. When we open the case, nice promotional images from the show are in the background Disc artwork is very nice as well. Slim case one has disc one and the artwork on the disc is Brett and Jennifer. Slim case two has disc two and the artwork on the disc is Rita and Brett. Slim case three holds discs three and four. Disc three's disc artwork has Chad and Brett. Disc four's artwork has Andrea and Chad.
The menu screen is also very nice. It starts off with the famous sunrise. Then we get a yellow background, similar to the box art. We have a picture of Brett Hopper with a video on the bottom left of the first 15 seconds or so of the first scene from the pilot. The audio of that is also playing. Excellent scene. The menu options are easy to navigate. The episodes are listed on the main menu, with the episode # and title. We also have an option for Audio Set-Up. When we choose that option we have the option for 5.1 Dolby Digital or 2.0 Stereo. When we choose an episode, we get to the episode menu. Options are Play, Chapters, or Play with Commentary. When we select chapters, we see the scene titles and a video screen grab from the episode. Theme music is playing in the background. You can also use your remote to skip chapters if you don't want to use this option. There are 7 chapter stops.
The video and audio is excellent, as it should be. The show is presented to us in widescreen and it looks great. The audio is also excellent, as you have the option for 5.1 or 2.0 stereo. Each episode runs about 42 minutes or so each. Highest is 43:06 and lowest is 41:08. Don't worry, I can assure nothing is edited.
We get a lot of special features! I was so surprised to hear we have audio commentaries for EACH episode and some have multiple tracks! We have other extras as well, but I'll start with the commentaries. Here is a break-down:
1. Pilot - #1: Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), Jeffrey Bell (Showrunner), Rob Bowman (Director), and Matthew Gross (Executive Producer); #2: Rob Bowman (Director) and Marta Evry (Film Editor)
2. What If they Run? - #1: Taye Diggs, Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), and Rob Bowman (Director); #2: Rob Bowman (Director) and Marta Evry (Film Editor)
3. What If He Lets Her Go? - Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), Rob Bowman (Director), and Steven Maeda (Writer)
4. What If He Can Change The Day? - Victoria Pratt and Henry Alonso Myers (Writer)
5. What If They're Stuck? - Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), Taye Diggs, and Adam Baldwin.
6. What If They Find Him? - Ramon Rodriguez and Rob Bowman (Director)
7. What If He's Not Alone? - Jeffrey Bell (Showrunner) and Steven Maeda (Writer)
8. What If She's Lying? - Victoria Pratt, Meta Golding, and Henry Alonso Myers (Writer); Single Scene Commentary (5:26) by Marta Evry (Film Editor)
9. What If They're Connected? - Rob Bowman (Director), Mitch Pileggi, and Ian Anthony Dale
10. What If He's Free? - Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), and Steven Maeda (Writer)
11. What If He Walks Away? - Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), Taye Diggs, and Moon Bloodgood
12. What If She's The Key? - Mitch Pileggi, Jeffrey Bell (Showrunner), and Paul Zbyszewski (Creator)
13. What If It's Him? - Paul Zbyszewski (Creator), Taye Diggs, Jeffrey Bell (Showrunner), Matthew Gross (Executive Producer), and Rob Bowman (Director).
Wow a lot of commentaries indeed! I urge you all to watch the episodes first, especially if you've never seen the show...then rewatch it with the commentaries and you'll learn a lot!
We also have Cast Interviews that runs 12:28...Taye Diggs, Moon Bloodgood, Meta Golding, Victoria Pratt, Ramon Rodriguez, Adam Baldwin and Mitch Pileggi are interviewed. These are from when the show was first coming on the air, so it is neat to see this. Then we have Producer Interviews, and this runs 5 minutes or so and has Paul Zbyszewski, Matthew Gross, Jeffrey Bell, and Rob Bowman...and like the cast one, this is also from when the show was set to premiere on ABC. Then we have a 3:44 segment on Behind the Scenes. We see how the set looks and how a scene is filmed...pretty cool. Finally we have a 2:30 video clip of promotional images. Nice to see.
I highly do recommend this set for any Day Break fan for sure. If you have never watched the series, then I urge you to watch this because it is thrilling and it DOES have a conclusion at the end. So you're not watching for nothing. We find out why this was happening to Brett. Maybe you can guess it before you see it. BCI has done a wonderful job for this set and fans will be extremely pleased. The show is now airing on cable network TV One in reruns Sunday nights at 10pm, so you might want to sample that if you are still cautious in buying this series on DVD. Remember, for every decision there is a consequence. Although the only consequence for buying this set is that you'll have a great time and you'll be glued!
-- Reviewed by Pavan
(5/5 stars)

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Day Break TV.com Page

Stay tuned tomorrow as we head back to our regular news. We have a great week ahead of us as we expect the following: BET April, ION April, Nick at Nite April and TV One May. Will ION expand to more hours? Will BET have another nice sitcom marathon for us? And what times will Urkel and the gang air on Nick at Nite? We hope to answer all that and more this week on the blog! You won't want to miss this!

Mini-DVD Review: The Best of The Price is Right (March 25); Solomon's Weekly Rant

It is Saturday, so that must mean it is time for the mini-DVD review and Solomon's Weekly Rant! First up, are the mini-DVD review. Today we take a look at BCI's The Best of The Price is Right. The Price is Right of course is the long-running daytime game show hosted by Bob Barker where you guess the prices of various products via different pricing games. See skees53's mini-DVD review of The Best of The Price is Right:

The Best of The Price is Right (BCI, $39.98) gives you a chance to come on down and enjoy 26 episodes of one of the greatest game shows in American history! The four-disc set features four episodes from the 1960s, 17 episodes from the 1970s, and all five episodes from Bob Barker's final week as the host from 2007.
The set begins with Disc 1, which features the "beginnings" so to speak of the series. On here, we have four episodes of the version of the show that was hosted by Bill Cullen in the 1960s. Despite the fact that the version we all know aired (and still does) on CBS, these aired on NBC originally, and later on ABC. But don't expect the flashy colors or a few rounds of Plinko on these episodes. These are all in black and white and basically it is a much different game. On this version, the only thing contestants do is bid on items, and the one that comes closest to the actual retail price without going over wins... this part is only the first step in winning on the current version! Watching these episodes will seem boring to some fans, as that version didn't have the pricing games and excitement as the version we all know does, but if you imagine it as a different series, it really isn't all that bad.
The other three episodes on Disc 1 are episodes from the first week of the show as we know it that was hosted by Bob Barker, and you'll see that the games Bullseye and Grocery Game were VERY popular in the early days. This Bullseye game is NOT the one that we currently have on the series, and in watching these episodes and hearing the rules, you'll discover why this game was retired VERY quickly... it was virtually impossible to win! You almost have to feel sorry for the few unfortunate people that were invited to "come on down" and got stuck playing that game. You'll notice on these episodes that the contestants and audience are nothing like what we see on the show today. They are all calm and subdued, it seems very weird!
On Discs 2 and 3, we have 14 episodes from 1972-1975, and on these episodes, we find all of our classic games that we know and love from the series, like Clock Game, Any Number, and Plinko, as well as some that we have since forgotten, such as Give or Keep and Double Bullseye (a new version of that flawed original Bullseye game, this one featured two players). Throughout these episodes, we start to see a change in the series, and it starts to evolve into how we know it today... the contestants and audience are finally starting to get excited, all the time. Up to this point, all of the episodes are half hour episodes, but on Disc 3, we get to see the first hour long episode (which was part of an experimental week of hour long episodes) as well as the first regular hour long episode of the series. We get introduced to the Showcase Showdown for the very first time, and the Big Wheel... except on the experimental one hour episode, the Big Wheel looks NOTHING like the one we have today! But the rules are still the same.
Finally, Disc 4 contains Bob Barker's final five episodes as the host of the show. Most of these episodes are somewhat uneventful, but we do get to see contestants play the games one last time with Bob Barker as the host. We also get to see the most expensive prize ever offered on the series, valued at over $100,000... and to think, on the first week of the series, contestants were bidding $30 on items while in contestants row!
The video and audio quality on the set can tend to be a little rough, but it is understandable, as game shows were really not intended to be preserved when they originally aired. Besides, this show doesn't exactly need the greatest quality in the first place... I think if it had been preserved too well, it would remove the nostalgia factor from the older episodes. The Cullen episodes look very rough, but again, like the 70s episodes were never really intended to be seen again 30 years later, these Cullen episodes DEFINITELY were not intended to be seen again. The episodes have varying runtimes, with the Cullen episodes running around 26 minutes, the 70s half hour episodes running around 22:30, 70s hour long episodes running around 45 minutes, and the 2007 episodes running around 35 minutes. I have no clue if these runtimes are what the series should be, but daytime shows often tend to be shorter anyway. It appears that many of the sponsorship elements and ticket plugs are in place.
One thing that is annoying about the set, though, is the lack of VARIETY of episodes. The set neglects over 30 years worth of episodes! Where are the late 70s? All of the 80s and 90s? And the early 2000s? There are many great episodes in those years, and many great pricing games within those episodes... some that had a lasting impact, some which were quickly retired. And how can you have a Price is Right DVD set without that infamous incident of Yolanda Bowsley coming on down and having her, err, wardrobe malfunction? That isn't to say that the episodes on here aren't fun to watch, because they are, but a wider variety would have been nicer. We don't even get to hear Rod Roddy announce on a single episode on this set, yet he was the announcer for a majority of the years that the show was on. I seriously hope that there are more sets on the way that might include some of these other episodes!
Another thing that is annoying is the total lack of bonus features on the set. The box mentions Bob Barker's last week as a bonus feature, but how is that a bonus feature? Those episodes are already included in the episode count! It is great that these were included, because they are an important part of the history of the show, but I'd hardly call it a bonus feature. I don't understand why they couldn't get some bonus footage or interviews together. There have been plenty of people involved with the show over the years, and somebody would HAVE to be willing to be interviewed for the set, even if it was just a contestant talking about their experience on the show. It may be a little boring if it was just a contestant, but it would still be better than nothing! The BCI release of Match Game was great as far as special features were concerned, and it is disappointing that a series that is several times more popular than Match Game would be left in the dark on special features.
Still, even though many fans would probably like a more "diverse" selection of episodes than what is on here, as well as more bonus features, this is a great set and it is fun to see the older episodes of the series. I think any fan is certain to appreciate this set, and will want to get it as soon as possible. Personally, I haven't been watching the series that often since Drew Carey has taken over, and it is refreshing to see Bob Barker back in action, if only for a few episodes. It would be nice to see more releases, perhaps with episodes from the 80s and 90s!
-- Reviewed by skees53
(4/5 stars)

To purchase this DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Official CBS Website
The Price is Right TV.com Page


Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, March 22, 2008
"TV Guide Changes; Abdul Needs To Leave Idol; Why More Dancing?"
By Solomon Davis

I noticed in the new issue of TV Guide that the print is smaller in the TV Highlight section for what's coming on TV. Up until now the print was bigger and easier to read but now you need a magnifying glass to read what's coming on TV. And instead of all the days of the week having its own TV Highlight section, all the TV highlights of the week are now jammed together into one section. What is TV Guide trying to accomplish with this sudden change? They should just give up and stick to online listings.

It's just amazing how stupid Paula Abdul sounds everytime she opens her mouth on American Idol. Seriously what in the world is wrong with this woman? Is she on something? I mean every time she critiques someone's performance s just suddenly stops talking in mid-sentence like she forgot what she was going to say. And this is someone's opinion that American Idol contestants should take it seriously? Not only that but she is always afraid to tell someone the truth who had a bad performance and just compliments their outfit instead. This isn't Top Model or a fashion show. I know there is another woman that can replace her since she is nothing but a buffoon who Simon and Randy makes fun of every week.

I'm so sick of seeing the promos for Dancing with the Stars which I'm surprised hasn't been played out yet. Exactly how many more new dances can someone do on that show that viewers haven't seen yet? Hasn't everything been done that can be seen on a dance floor? So I guess the intrigue for this show is the NEW faces each season instead of the new dance moves. Maybe they will plan another collapse this season by one of the dancers to keep it fresh?

Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.

DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.

Mini-DVD Review: Dennis the Menace: Trouble, Trouble Everywhere! (March 25)

Today is Good Friday and the news seems to be very slow today. So, I decided to give you all a mini-DVD review today instead! Not to fret, we still have one tomorrow on its regular day...and it will be The Price is Right! Today week we take a look at 20th Century Fox and DiC's Dennis the Menace: Trouble, Trouble Everywhere. Dennis the Menace was one of my favorite '80s animated series. It is based on the comic strip and I think everyone knows what it is about...a little boy named Dennis is a menace, but in an innocent way. Mr. Wilson seems to be the one always suffering. Join the Mitchell family and the rest of the gang for some holiday fun, as they travel all sort of places on this best of set! See my mini-DVD review of Dennis the Menace: Trouble, Trouble Everywhere:

Dennis the Menace: Trouble, Trouble Everywhere (Fox, $14.98) brings us seven classic mini episodes from the '80s animated series. The series is based on the comic strip and is not to be confused with the '50s sitcom starring Jay North. Although I like both. On this set, entire nations can't run and hide from Dennis. The Mitchells (Henry, Alice, and Dennis) love taking vacations (usually with their neighbors the Wilsons, George & Martha) and we get seven of them on this set. Wherever they head, young Dennis seems to wind up in the center of numerous catastrophes...whether he's chasing crooks in Venice, kangaroos in Sydney, outrunning Mayans in South America, bulls in Spain, or even proving that erupting volcanoes in Hawaii wreak less havoc than he does...Dennis is always drawn to finding trouble wherever he is! The Queen of England would agree!
Let's now move on to the packaging. It is a very nice colorful design. We get a snap case that holds the single disc inside. The cover art features Dennis on an airplane with the world in the background. The show logo is above him along with the Trouble, Trouble Everywhere mention. The back of the case features a nice shot of Dennis surfing in Hawaii with a volcano erupting. Two screenshots also are found (Dennis, Mr. Wilson, Margaret; and Dennis and Petey). We also have a nice synopsis of the set and technical information. When we open the case, we see a nice episode listing insert on the left side, with the seven episodes on this set listed in the black of the red guards at Buckingham Palace. Dennis' frog, Willy, is also on the guard as Dennis is below the guard. On the back of that insert there is a mention that Inspector Gadget: Big Little Problems is coming to DVD June 17, but it was just announced that is delayed now. We also have another insert, this time a booklet of other DVDs from Fox and DiC. On the right side we see the disc. It is similar to the cover art, with Dennis and the world and Dennis on a skateboard now, but this time we see the torch on the Statue of Liberty falling off along with the time on Big Ben falling off. Dennnnnnis! No artwork are on the inside background of the case, just a red background.
The menu screen is very nice. But before that we get auto trailers of other DVDs such as Care Bears, Garfield Gets Real, and Bob the Builder. The design of the main menu is nice. We get the logo of the show with Dennis and Ruff smiling, in a post-card style design. Two other postcards seem to be behind that, as I can see a stamp of Henry and a stamp of Mr. Wilson. No theme in the background, though. The options for the main menu are Play All, Episode Selection, and Language Selection. For the latter, we can have English or Spanish stereo audio or subtitles in English or Spanish. In episode selection, we get a list of episodes with a screenshot in a post-card form. The post-card thing is very nice since this is a vacation/traveling themed set.
The video and audio is good. The sound is very good since it is in stereo. The video seems to be just OK. Nothing bad and nothing great, but very watchable. The best episode it seems in video quality is the New York one. Each episode runs 11:47, except one runs 7:01 ("Dennis Plasters Pamplona"). The show was a half-hour show, but had three mini episodes (approx. 5, 10, 5 minutes not counting the opening/closing credits) in each half-hour...so that is what I meant by seven mini episodes on this set. Since Fox/DiC chose seven vacation episodes from the entire run, these episodes are not in their full 22-23 minute episode format, but we do get the opening/closing themes on each episode. I wish Fox/DiC would release every episode in its full half-hour format and in order. Maybe if this set does well, they will. For you closing logo fans, we get two closing logos after the closing credits on this set. The blue DiC logo with DiC in yellow and flashing in and the DFS Program Exchange logo with the scary sound. Why a Program Exchange logo? Since that was for syndication. Are these prints from The Program Exchange?
Unfortunately, we get no special features at all. Here's hoping if they release the series in order, we get some in those.
I highly do recommend this set for any Dennis the Menace fan, fan of the comic strip, the sitcom, or '80s animation in general. I have always had a soft spot for this series. I grew up watching it in the '80s and early 90s and even watched reruns on cable on Fox Family and Cartoon Network over the last decade. I just hope we get all 78 half-hours on DVD, and not just seven mini-episodes. If you want this to happen, you'll have to buy this DVD. It is pretty cheap on Amazon, you can find a link to that below. This series has never hit DVD, so this is a major release, I just wish it was in order instead of a best-of set. It is a start, though! This set is right in time for the traveling season as families are planning where they want to go this summer. Maybe the Mitchells will persuade you to where to go? So, head on back to your childhood and buy this set because I'm sure we all had a Dennis in us as a child! Dennnnnnis!
-- Reviewed by Pavan
(4/5 stars)

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
My Dennis the Menace Episode Guide
Dennis the Menace TV.com Page

Stay tuned tomorrow for our regular mini-DVD review on our regular day...Saturday. We take a look at BCI's The Price is Right. Also tomorrow of course is Solomon's Weekly Rant.

TV Rebels: Smothers Brothers; Fox Moves New Drama to Fridays; Baseball Time For SitcomsOnline

It is time for our monthly TV Rebels essay! We have gotten special permission to publish at least 6 different essays on TV shows and actors that will be featured in the upcoming book TV Rebels: 100 People and Programs That Shaped the Medium by author Lou Orfanella. The book is in the works and will be released in 2009.

So without further adieu, we bring you the fourth column of TV Rebels:

The Smothers Brothers: You Can’t Do That on Television

In 1967 when CBS was looking for a program for the time slot against NBC's longtime Sunday ratings champ Bonanza the network turned to the popular comedy/singing brother duo Tom and Dick Smothers. The network ended up with more than it bargained for. In addition to their trademark folk music and "Mom liked you best" sibling rivalry banter, they brought with them an alternative/counter-culture point of view on the state of American society that triggered weekly battles between The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and the CBS censors.
Lampooning public figures, particularly political personas did not have a long history on American television when the Smothers Brothers debuted. That Was the Week That Was ran for a season and a half on NBC in 1964 and 1965 to some initial attention but faded relatively quickly. In addition to the presidential race between Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, the escalating war in Vietnam gave the brothers an unending stream of material. "With hundreds of G.I.s dying every week in Vietnam, those who opposed the war were widely seen as betraying America, and that was the dilemma the Smothers Brothers presented to a network that already took flak every time Walter Cronkite dropped so much as a hint of bad news. The Smotherses were recruited specifically to help CBS appeal to The Young People. But when they started to use words Young People used, like 'mindblowing' well, CBS wasn't about to let a word like that on the air when nobody at CBS was sure what it meant" (Hinckley).
To Tom Smothers the show's comedy reflected a society where young people wanted more of a voice. "Things had heated up in the Vietnam War and protests were out there, so we started reflecting more of what younger people were thinking. We were in our late twenties at that time and most of our writers were in their early twenties, so there was a certain passion there, and it showed up in sketches on the war and voter registration...we expressed those alternative points of view that weren't being reflected, and it became a battle with the network censors" (Lasswell 161).
Those battles with the censors over both the comedic and musical (singer/activists like Pete Seeger were welcomed by the brothers but not embraced by the network) content of the show continued through its cancellation in 1969. The reason for cancellation has been debated over the years. Some believe both the outgoing Johnson administration and the incoming Nixon administration put pressure on the network. Others believed that the duo attempted to push the envelope a bit too far. "Were they sacrificial lambs-as an incensed New York Times article claimed shortly after their dismissal-victims of behind-the-scenes political maneuvering? Or did they do themselves in by displaying a mixture of bravado, immaturity, and youthful rebellion intolerable to their network and sponsors? However their war ended, while it raged it was indisputably a clash of two generations, with TV's old guard being challenged to put up their dukes for the first time" (Neuwirth 32).
Attempts to revive The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour by ABC in the summer of 1970 and by NBC in the winter of 1975 met with lukewarm receptions, the political unrest of the 1960s already becoming a memory. Their irreverent legacy, however, is preserved in everything from Saturday Night Live to The Daily Show. Tom and Dick Smothers never faded from view, becoming nightclub and concert hall fixtures. They even resurfaced on CBS from 1988-1989 with yet another version of their comedy hour.

Works Cited
Hinckley, David. Line of Responsibility: The Smothers Brothers. The New York Daily News 20 May 1991: 39.
Lasswell, Mark. TV Guide: Fifty Years of Television. New York: Crown, 2002.
Neuwirth, Allan. They'll Never Put That on the Air. New York: Allworth, 2006.


Fox has made a schedule change starting this Monday (March 24). New drama Canterbury's Law, which seems to skew very old, will be on the move to Fridays at 9pm starting March 28. House repeats were airing in that Friday slot and now Fox will move those repeats into Canterbury's Law old slot of Mondays at 8pm starting this Monday. I am afraid to see how Canterbury will do following the low-rated new sitcom The Return of Jezebel James.

Don't forget to tune into the second episode tonight of new sitcom Miss Guided. Over 9.2 million saw the premiere at a later than usual time for a sitcom, so hopefully tonight it will match that or do better. Tonight will be the premiere of its regular night and time of Thursdays at 8:00pm. Ashton Kutcher and Jamie Lynn Spears guest star. It is a very good and funny episode. Better than the pilot, I think...see my review if you missed it. Tune in tonight at 8 on ABC!

Finally, we leave you today with some off topic news. Every year at SitcomsOnline.com we have various online fantasy sports seasons (provided by Yahoo!), such as Fantasy NBA, NCAA March Madness Pick'em, NFL Pick'em, and Fantasy MLB. We only have 7 teams thus far for our upcoming Fantasy MLB league and we need 12 teams...so 5 spots are open. Whoever joins first will be in. The live online draft will be tomorrow (Friday) at 11:15pm ET, so if you want to join, please play with us. If you can't make it to the online draft, you can pre-rank your players that you want. To find out how to join click HERE. Todd and myself will be in the league as well, along with other sitcom fans. You know this is a sitcom league as we have one team called "Furley's Ascots." So, sitcom fans, come join other sitcom fans in playing some fantasy baseball...this isn't like the Happy Days softball team, but still fun! Let's see if you all can beat me ;)

Remembering Ivan Dixon, RTN Salutes With Hogan's Heroes Marathon; House and Monk Line-Up Stations for Fall 2008 Syndication

Ivan Dixon, an actor, director and producer best known for his role as Sgt. "Kinch" Kinchloe on the 1960s sitcom Hogan's Heroes, has died. Dixon died Sunday at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, NC after a hemorrhage and of complications from kidney failure. He was best known for the role of U.S. Staff Sgt. James "Kinch" Kinchloe on Hogan's Heroes, a satire set in a German prisoner-of-war camp during World War II. Kinchloe, in charge of electronic communications, could mimic German officers on the radio or phone. He earned an Emmy nomination for his performance in the 1967 CBS Playhouse special The Final War of Olly Winter. He was primarily an actor in the '60s with guest spots on many hit dramas such as Dr. Kildare, Love American Style, The Fugitive, It Takes a Thief, Ironside, Perry Mason, I Spy, and more. He didn't act much after the start of the '70s. His last acting role was in 1991 on an episode of Father Dowling Mysteries.
After acting on television, he moved on to directing and directed hundreds of episodes of series, including The Waltons, The Bill Cosby Show, The A-Team, Greatest American Hero, The Rockford Files, Magnum, P.I. and In the Heat of the Night.
He will certainly be missed by sitcom fans. He was 76.
Some Retro Television Network affiliates will honor Ivan Dixon tonight with a special tribute marathon. WNGS, WPXI, WSB, KKYK, KCBU, KSUB, and WBIF are among the RTN affiliates saluting Ivan Dixon tonight with a Hogan's Heroes marathon. The Hogan's Heroes "Kinch-themed" episodes that will air are (in order): "Prince From the Phone Company," "The Tower," "General Hammerschlag Burning," "They Fall," "Monkey Business," and "The Informer" (Pilot, in black and white). Check your local RTN listings for exact times in your area.

When we brought you the list of shows coming to off-network syndication and first-run syndication this fall we forgot to list drama House, which will air on weekends. NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution recently announced it has sold hit series House and Monk (we mentioned Monk before) to local broadcast stations in 99% of the U.S. for weekend syndication runs starting this fall.
House has been sold to stations from Fox, CBS, Tribune, Sinclair, Clear Channel, Meredith, Media General, Cox and more. Top markets for House in syndication include WNYW-TV New York, KTTV-TV Los Angeles, WFLD-TV Chicago and KPIX-TV San Francisco. The show will enter its fifth season this fall on Fox.
Monk has been sold to stations from NBC, CBS, Fox, Hearst-Argyle, Tribune, Fisher, Scripps, Raycom, Belo, Post-Newsweek and other leading station groups. Top markets for Monk include WNBC-TV New York, KNBC-TV Los Angeles and WFLD-TV Chicago, as well as WPHL-TV Philadelphia, WSBK-TV Boston, KNTV-TV San Francisco and WFAA-TV Dallas. Monk just ended its sixth season on USA Network and will have a seventh season soon.

Family Matters Now Coming to Nick at Nite in April; Biography Acquires Truth Behind the Sitcom Scandals; TV Land Greenlights 4 Pilots

Nearly two months ago we got word that Family Matters coming to Nick at Nite got moved to June. Originally it was supposed to come in March, but they moved it to the summer, which made a bit more sense to me, since lots of teenagers and young adults would watch. But now it looks like they changed their minds! Last night during the first night of the George Lopez seven-night Luck o' the Lopez Marathon, a promo aired indicating Family Matters is "coming next month" (April). They showed Urkel, too. We don't have full details yet, but we are working on it. So if we have something more, come back to this spot and find out...if not we will bring it to you in the coming days. It's certainly time to "do the Urkel dance" in primetime!

Sorry for the late notice, but The Biography Channel has acquired the series of specials called TV Guide's Truth Behind the Sitcom Scandals. If you all remember or didn't know, these specials aired in 1999 and 2000 on Fox. They had about 5 specials under this name and profiled a lot of sitcoms behind-the-scenes details (some very scandalously) such as Three's Company, The Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, The Jeffersons, M*A*S*H, Diff'rent Strokes, Gilligan's Island, Welcome Back Kotter, Facts of Life, Roseanne and more. Then they changed the name for three more specials called TV Guide's Truth Behind the Rumors and profiled series such as Growing Pains, Charlie's Angels, Cheers, Laverne & Shirley, and Dynasty. Well starting tonight (Tuesday, March 18) The Biography Channel will re-air most of these specials! It will air Tuesdays at 10:00PM and re-air 2:00AM later that night.
Tonight they will air special #3 of Truth Behind the Sitcom Scandals. First stop in this episode is a look back at The Love Boat, the series the critics claimed would "sink like the Titanic," but which sailed on for nine years with its Aaron Spelling formula of bikinis, blondes, celebrity guests, and lovable, yet troubled stars. Then we'll hear Loretta Swit as she recalls what it was like to be the only woman on the set with all men in the hugely popular medical comedy M*A*S*H.
Up next week is special #4 of Truth Behind the Sitcom Scandals. Stars from Happy Days, The Jeffersons and One Day at a Time reveal controversies. We don't have April episode info yet, but keep checking back on our message board's thread on this. To view that and to discuss these specials, click HERE! I remember watching all of these, and I taped a few even originally. If you haven't seen this or need to tape it, I would advise you watch/tape.

TV Land announced that it has greenlit four pilots as part of its ongoing original programming agenda. The channel, which recently rolled out new original series High School Reunion to double digit ratings increases, will continue to rev-up production on programming designed to appeal specifically to viewers in their 40's. The four pilots are all reality based and are:
- First Love, Second Chance -- gives long-lost sweethearts an opportunity to rekindle their romance -- years later.
- Now or Never -- Empty nesters are given the chance of a lifetime to open a new chapter in their lives by pursuing careers that they always dreamed of but never dared to pursue. In each installment, couples try out their dream jobs, a new place to live and a whole new social scene before making the gut-wrenching decision of which path to follow.
- Make My Day -- provides a window into one day in the life of an unsuspecting participant. Hidden cameras capture the action as contestants are put through a series of weird coincidences, extraordinary situations and surprise appearances.
- What's In The Box? -- TV Land's first game show in which individual contestants square off in the ultimate, fast-paced 20 question competition.
For more info about these pilots, and to discuss this, click HERE!
Upcoming TV Land originals after the conclusion of High School Reunion include: The Big 4-0 (launches April 16), She's Got the Look (launches June 4) and Family Foreman (launches July 16). In addition, the 6th Annual TV Land Awards will now air this summer instead of the spring (June 22 is the tentative date).

And don't forget the premiere of sitcom Miss Guided tonight after Dancing with the Stars at 10:30pm ET/PT on ABC. Hope you saw our review on Friday...because this is one of the top 3 sitcoms I think of the season behind Big Bang Theory and Samantha Who? So if you like those, you'll like this. Episode 2 is even funnier, so tune in to that on its regular night and time on Thursday at 8pm.

Latest BET Schedule Notes, More Sanford; According to Jim Returns April 15, More ABC Notes

We have some more BET schedule notes today for you. Currently the weekend shows Sanford airs Saturday nights at 2:30am and Sundays at 11:30am and Thea airs Saturdays 9-10am, 3am late night and Sundays at 12 noon. Now we are getting some time changes, and it is better actually. Effective this weekend (March 22-23), Thea will now only air Saturdays 9-10am, but it will be two episodes a week still, and no more confusion of the encores (as sometimes BET messes up and airs a different episode then). Sanford will now only air Sundays 12-1pm, but that is also better because we get two episodes instead of an encore! Sanford for some reason didn't air this weekend in its 11:30am Sunday slot, and the 2:30am slot was already supposed to not air because of a special (same for Thea at 3am this past weekend). I think now it is easier to remember...Thea Saturdays 9-10am and Sanford Sundays 12-1pm.
Sanford at 12:30pm will be replacing In Living Color, which will return to weekdays starting March 31, though. In Living Color will air weeknights at 3am and 3:30am starting the week of March 31, replacing the Wayans Bros. Jamie Foxx Show will also be replaced starting March 31 by more Hell Date airings at 12am and 12:30am. Viewers can say goodbye to Jamie Foxx Show and Wayans Bros. with a marathon of both shows on Saturday, March 29 from 10am-8pm. Jamie from 10am-3pm and Wayans from 3pm-8pm. I'm not sure if their contracts expired or what, but both shows joined in October 2005 I believe, as did In Living Color, but that will still be on, so who knows. If I find out anything, I will for sure let you all know. Will any more sitcoms join since Jamie and Wayans are leaving? We will let you know if they do plan on more sitcoms!

According to Jim returns April 15 on ABC. You're probably thinking what do you mean "returns," since it has been airing Tuesdays at 9 since January. But last Tuesday was its last airing in that slot because Dancing with the Stars returns this week. When Jim returns, it will move to Tuesdays at 8:00pm and 8:30pm, replacing Just for Laughs. 7 new episodes remain for the season. If they air one new episode a week that will make it last through the end of May, but I'm sure once or twice, they will air two new episodes in the hour. This might not be the final 7 episodes, because ABC is mulling to bring it back next season for an eighth season. No official news yet, though.
In other ABC schedule news: Lost's pre-strike finale is this Thursday at 9, but ABC has announced Lost will remain in that slot for repeats on March 27, April 3 and April 17 (April 17 is 8-10pm). The show returns with 6 new episodes starting April 24 at 10pm following Grey's Anatomy's return. ABC will stop the Fridays at 8pm encores of Grey's Anatomy starting April 4. An AFV repeat is scheduled for April 4 leading into the return of game show Duel at 9pm (it will air for 10 episodes and won't be serialized like the tournament week was in December). Not sure yet what will air Friday, April 11 at 8pm, but April 18 will be a Desperate Housewives' encore from its first post-strike episode, which will debut Sunday, April 13 at 9pm. To catch up on Desperate Housewives' return, ABC will re-air the final pre-strike episodes on a special night of Thursday, April 10 from 8-10pm. As for Eli Stone, yes ABC will air all 13 episodes! Episode 12 will air on a special night though...Sunday, April 13 at 10pm. It will air right after that new Desperate Housewives return episode. Brothers & Sisters returns the following week with new episodes. The final Eli Stone of the season will air in its normal Thursday at 10pm slot on April 17.
So, ABC will let viewers catch up on Desperate Housewives and Lost with the last two pre-strike episodes, but what about Grey's Anatomy? Nothing announced yet, but it will return April 24 at 9pm with new episodes.

Speaking of returns, tonight is a big night! Scripted TV makes its first return with post-strike episodes tonight with CBS's sitcoms The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men. The bad news for that is Dancing with the Stars also returns tonight on ABC. I'm sure both will do well!

Week 25 Numbers (First Four Nights); How the Sitcoms Did

Week 25 numbers (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: Fox 9.8/15.4, CBS 5.5/8.9, NBC 5.5/8.9, ABC 4.3/6.9, The CW 1.6/2.6, MyNetworkTV 0.9/1.5
Total Viewers: Fox 16.52 million, CBS 8.45 million, NBC 8.4 million, ABC 6.36 million, The CW 2.35 million, MyNetworkTV 1.4 million
Adults 18-49: Fox 5.8/15.7, NBC 2.7/7.2, CBS 2.4/6.6, ABC 2.3/6.1, The CW 1.1/2.9, MyNetworkTV 0.5/1.5

Analysis: Week 25 so far has seen Idol go back to twice a week, but one of those airings were 2-hours. Through the first four days of week 25, we have Fox on top obviously, with a close race for second with CBS with the edge in HH and viewers and NBC with the edge in 18-49. NBC is 2nd in 18-49, followed by CBS and ABC, which are neck and neck. ABC is 4th in all categories. Last week, week 24, Fox was number one in all categories (with Idol they should be). CBS was second in HH and viewers, with NBC second in 18-49 (though ABC and CBS were right behind). Third in HH and viewers was NBC, but ABC was right behind it.
On Monday, NBC and CBS were on top again, as ABC will welcome back Dancing with the Stars on this night tomorrow. NBC's Deal or No Deal at 9pm did 11.82 million, up a million from previous week, but NBC started the night off at 8pm slow with My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad at 6.81 million, down from previous week. Medium closed the night off with 9.34 million, up slightly from previous week. CBS was next with a mix of repeats and new episodes. Sitcom repeat of Two and a Half Men lead the night with 11.82 million (up nearly 2 million from previous week), besting two new episodes of Old Christine. A CSI: Miami repeat closed the night with 10.24 million, up almost a million from previous week. Fox aired the premiere of Canterbury's Law at 7.72 million, on par with previous week's part one of Sarah Connor Chronicles but it skewed much older, with only a 1.7 18-49 rating. Following at 9pm was the time period premiere of New Amsterdam doing 8.83 million, up from previous week's part two of Sarah Connor Chronicles...but not in 18-49. ABC aired a special titled The Bachelor: Where Are They Now? and it drew a decent 7.57 million, however the two-hour season finale of October Road followed with just 4.68 million, down from previous week. The CW had a repeat of Gossip Girl doing 1.18 million, down a bit from previous week, and a new Pussycat Dolls at 1.67 million, down a tad from previous week.
On Tuesday, Fox was on top thanks to Idol at 29.88 million, up from previous week, but this week it was two-hours rather than one-hour. NBC aired a two-hour Biggest Loser at 7.66 million, down from previous week and a repeat of Law & Order: SVU drew a decent 9.52 million, up from previous week. CBS was next with a repeat of NCIS at 8.51 million, down a lot from previous week, followed by the Tuesday edition of the disappointing Big Brother 9 at just 5.87 million, down from previous week, and Jericho at 5.84 million, up a bit from the previous week. ABC had two episodes (new/repeat) of Just for Laughs start the night off with 4.47 million (down from previous week), followed by a repeat with 4.54 million (same as previous week)...a new According to Jim followed with 4.96 million (down from previous week) and a repeat followed with 4.89 million, which was better than Carpoolers' finale the previous week. ABC closed the night off with the new limited and interesting series Primetime: What Would You Do? at 7.6 million, up nearly two million from previous week. The CW premiered a new season of Beauty & The Geek at just 1.92 million and all-new One Tree Hill did 2.5 million, down from previous week.
On Wednesday, it was all Fox again. American Idol moved to the 9pm hour and did 27.13, down over a million from previous week when it aired in the 8pm hour. The Moment of Truth moved to its new timeslot of 8pm and did 10.58 million, down from the 14.72 million it did previous week after Idol. Fox should not have switched this, but it is better for Fox local news at 10pm. NBC moved Deal or No Deal back to 8pm after airing for a week at 9pm, this week it did 10.19 million, up from the 8.95 million the previous which was at 9pm. Law & Order: Criminal Intent is back to 9pm and it did 7.9 million, up from the 6.74 million it did the previous week at 8pm. The original Law & Order closed the night with 11.85 million, up over 2 million from previous week. Nice move by NBC to switch the 8 and 9pm shows back. CBS continues to struggle with Big Brother 9 at just 5.31 million, down from previous week, repeats of Criminal Minds and CSI: NY followed with 7.44 and 6.35 million, both down A LOT from previous week. ABC's Wife Swap did 6.18 million (up a million from previous week), followed by Supernanny at 5.94 million (down from previous week, now it will face Idol head-to-head) and MEN IN TREES did 5.67 million, down a bit from previous week. The CW had an all-new Top Model at a decent 3.65 million (up from previous week, but it should have done better since it didn't face Idol), a repeat of Pussycat Dolls did just 1.58 million, down from previous week and lower than Monday for the first time.
On Thursday, CBS started the night off with Survivor: Micronesia at 13.2 million, up a tad from previous week, followed by repeats of CSI and Without a Trace at 11.23 and 9.78 million...both up from previous week. Lost was the show again for ABC, Lost enhanced repeat started the night off at 8pm with 5.33 million (down a bit week-to-week), followed by an all-new episode at 12.08 million and a 4.9 18-49 rating (both down from previous week), and Eli Stone closed the night with 6.92 million, down a bit from previous week. Fox has lost American Idol on Thursdays, but Are You Smarter That a 5th Grader? and Don't Forget the Lyrics! returned with 9.42 and 8.74 million, with the latter doing very well...maybe Idol helped it a few weeks ago. NBC started the night two repeats of My Name is Earl not doing much at just 4.14 and 4.52 million, Celebrity Apprentice followed with 8.24 million (down a bit from previous week), followed by Lipstick Jungle at just 5.37 million, down from previous week...series low.
Like usual, no Friday finals yet. NBC's Amn$sia continues to do bad at 8pm, as the fourth Price is Right Million Dollar Spectacular special was number one in the slot once again, but lower than previous week, but the entire night suffered this night (daylight saving probably). Fox's premiere of new sitcom The Return of Jezebel James was terrible for dead last in the 8pm hour. CBS' Ghost Whisperer repeat and a House repeat on Fox at 9pm, was no match for NBC's Dateline which also was #1 at 10pm again. Saturday ratings were not available to us.
Tonight will be ABC with the win most likely again, lead by Oprah's Big Give and Extrme Makeover: Home Edition. NBC is in repeat mode from 9-11pm but Dateline is new from 7-9pm, while CBS will suffer with Big Brother and make a Cold Case repeat go down again. Fox will have repeats all-night except for Unhitched and King of the Hill.
As for the week, Fox will win in HH, viewers and 18-49. Battle for second is unclear, but I predict CBS will be second, followed by NBC and ABC in 4th. In 18-49 it could be Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS, though.
This coming week sees Dancing with the Stars returns Monday and Tuesday along with CBS's Monday sitcom block with new episodes! More scripted programming is also near! Let the spring season begin!

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week of March 3-9)

• Everybody Hates Chris (The CW) - All-new episode did just 1.37 million, down from previous week.
  
• Aliens in America (The CW) - All-new as well and it did just 1.17 million...slightly up from previous week.
  
• Girlfriends (The CW) - A repeat did 1.05 million, down from previous week.
  
• The Game (The CW) - A repeat did 920,000 only...down from previous week.
  
• The Simpsons (Fox) - A new episode did 7.31 million...down from previous week...what has happened?
  
• King of the Hill (Fox) 2 episodes - 7.75 million tuned in for a new episode previous week, but this week only 6.25 million. A repeat at 7pm was barely on the radar with 2.72 million.
  
• Family Guy (Fox) - Just 7.49 million for a repeat.
• Unhitched (Fox) - Only 5.14 million for episode 2, down from premiere's 5.77 million.
• American Dad (Fox) - Only 3.22 million for a repeat at 7:30pm.

Monday Sitcoms

• How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 6.5 million for a repeat...on par really from previous week.
• Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 11.82 million tuned in for a repeat...up nearly 2 million from previous week, which was below normal.
• Old Christine (CBS) 2 episodes - Two new episodes wrapped around Men did 7.38 and 9.62 million...the first one was disappointing a bit.
  

Tuesday Sitcoms

• According to Jim (ABC) 2 episodes - A new episode at 9pm did 4.96 million against Idol so it went down, of course. A repeat followed with 4.89 million. Effective this week the show will be gone until April 15...more on that tomorrow.
  

Wednesday Sitcoms

• None
  

Thursday Sitcoms

• My Name is Earl (NBC) 2 episodes - Two repeats did just 4.14 and 4.52 million.
  

Friday Sitcoms

• The Return of Jezebel James (Fox) 2 episodes - Final numbers are not in, but the premiere of this sitcom with two episode did terrible. Dead last in its slot with a bit over 3 million. Will it be gone after next week?
  

Saturday Sitcoms

• None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) is a mix of sitcom repeats on The CW from 8-10, and Fox's animated comedies are also a mix of new and repeats from 7-10.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men repeat and Old Christine 9:30 were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (8:30 Old Christine, How I Met Your Mother repeat) or just plain old terrible (According to Jim, The Return of Jezebel James).