SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

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!

Fox Mid-Season Pilot Review: The Return of Jezebel James - Premieres March 14

The Return of Jezebel James - Fridays at 8:30PM ET/PT on Fox
Premieres March 14 with a one-hour premiere from 8:00-9:00PM ET/PT

Imagine, if you would, that you have everything you ever wanted in life. But what if there is just one thing that is missing, like a child? And what if you were unable to have that child on your own because your doctor just isn't possible? Well, then you have to turn to your sister for a little help, and that is exactly what happens in The Return of Jezebel James.

This is a comedy that answers the question of whether polar-opposite sisters can live together when one agrees to carry the other’s baby. Bright, optimistic, successful children’s book editor Sarah turns to her estranged and free-spirited younger sister, Coco, when she learns she cannot conceive a child herself.

Cast Details:

Parker Posey as Sarah Tompkins, Lauren Ambrose as Coco, Scott Cohen as Marcus, Ron McLarty as Ron, Michael Arden as Buddy, Dianne Wiest as Talia

It seems uncommon to find sitcoms with star-studded casts these days, and this series is not an exception to that rule. There really aren't any well-known people in the series, aside from Parker Posey, who plays Sarah Tompkins (the starring role). She has played in several movies that, while not blockbuster hits, are pretty well known, such as Dazed and Confused and Scream 3. Additionally, she has been on the series Boston Legal.
Lauren Ambrose (of Six Feet Under fame) plays her sister Coco.
Ron McLarty, was a regular on Spenser: For Hire and has appeared more recently on The Practice, Law & Order and Sex and the City, he plays her father, who is named Ron.
Scott Cohen plays Marcus and is best known for his role as Wolf in the miniseries The 10th Kingdom and for his recurring role as Max Medina on Gilmore Girls.
Rounding out the cast are Michael Arden (he recently guest starred on Grey's Anatomy and NUMB3RS) as Buddy and Oscar-winning actress Dianne Wiest as Talia.

Pilot Plot:

The pilot doesn't really get into much of a plot, but instead gives us a general overview of the series. And it is pretty simple. Sarah wants to have a baby and discovers that she can't, and turns to her sister for help. Of course, like any normal person would do if they were asked to carry a baby, her sister was against the idea. But, like any sitcom idea requires, her sister figures that she will go ahead and give it a try and moves into her sister's house to get started.
Guest Cast: Dylan Blue as Aaron, Amy Hohn as Evelyn and Jasika Nicole as Dora.

The review copy that I received also included the episode "Paragraph Two, Section Three," which is currently scheduled to air about a month after the first episode. In this episode, Sarah and Coco struggle to work out a legal agreement for Coco's plan to carry Sarah's baby, as both have their own selfish (and sometimes ridiculous) ideas.

Analysis:

I'm REALLY not sure where they are planning to go with this series. The whole premise of the series is that the main character wants a baby, and can't have it, so she wants her sister to have it. Now, that would make for a typical (not necessarily GREAT) episode of a sitcom, but this is a series. Either her sister will or won't do this. So if she does, then what is the point of the whole series? And if she doesn't, how long can they keep coming up with story lines about Sarah wanting her sister to have a baby for her? Clearly, this is a half baked premise for a series, and I can not see any possible way of it making just on that idea. Perhaps, though, the creators have something up their sleeve and this isn't the whole concept behind it after all. But all of the press says that it basically IS the idea.

Even if the series could be a success as it is, there is one other important thing missing from the series. The laughs. I didn't really laugh one time while watching this, which is just not a good sign, particularly since this is a standard sitcom that even has a laugh track. All of the jokes seemed to be lame jokes.

Conclusion:

Yep, it is another typical sitcom from FOX... that could be either a compliment or insult depending upon what you think of FOX sitcoms. This reminds me of a sitcom that Lifetime aired about ten years ago called Oh Baby, where a woman wanted to have a baby by artificial insemination before her biological clock ran down. And she did just that... and the series was promptly canceled. I'm seeing the same thing happen with this series, except it'll be sooner rather than later.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 3/5
Funiness: 1.5/5
Overall: 2.5/5

-- Reviewed by Skees53 on 03/12/08

Discuss the show after you watch it on Friday on our message board.

Related Links:

FOX.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

The Return of Jezebel James Photo Gallery

Fox Post-Strike Line-Up; Boston Legal Coming To ION Television; Gary David Goldberg Interview

Fox has ordered many of its current series back to production following the writers' strike and has announced airdates for spring 2008. Among the series slated to return are Bones, Back to You, 'Til Death and House. 24 will also return to conclude production on its seventh season, but the Emmy-winning series starring Kiefer Sutherland will not premiere until January 2009, allowing the drama to once again run 24 episodes consecutively. Fox's animated series, including American Dad, Family Guy, and The Simpsons, are also returning to production on future episodes.
Here is a recap of what we can expect: Back to You still has two pre-strike episodes left and they will air next week (Feb. 26 and 27 after Idol). The show will then return to close the season with new episodes starting Wednesday, April 16 at 8:30 PM ET/PT every Wednesday at 8:30. 'Til Death has one pre-strike episode left and it will air Tuesday, March 25 following Idol. Post-strike episodes will start on Wednesday, April 16 at 8:00 PM ET/PT every Wednesday at 8:00. Bones will return will all-new episodes on Monday, April 14 airing Mondays at 8. House returns with new episodes on Monday, April 28 moving to a new night of Mondays at 9.
Other premieres are new mid-season entries such as new sitcom Unhitched on Sunday, March 2 at 9:30pm. New drama New Amsterdam will get a special preview airing Tuesday, March 4 at 9 after Idol and again after Idol on Thursday, March 6 before moving to its normal night and time of Mondays at 9 on March 10 (before House takes over in late April). On that same night (Monday, March 10), new drama Canterbury's Law will premiere at 8:00pm (before Bones takes over in mid-April). New sitcom The Return of Jezebel James will debut Friday, March 14 at 8 p.m. for a one-hour premiere before moving to 8:30pm the following week. Finally, returning reality series Hell's Kitchen will air after Idol on Tuesdays at 9 starting April 1. Reality series such as Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader, The Moment of Truth, and Don't Forget the Lyrics! will continue on without any problems.
There you have it...Fox's plans for the rest of the season. Status on the future of shows like Prison Break and Sarah Connor Chronicles are up in the air until upfront most likely in May. Expect one of them at least to return next season, if not both. K-Ville is 99.9% gone for good.
We now only have ABC left for an official announcement of their plans. Stay tuned for that!

ION Television announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Twentieth Television to air the David E. Kelley hit television series, Boston Legal, on ION Television, beginning this Fall. The agreement marks a milestone in the network's commitment to popular and diverse entertainment.
The acquisition will join M*A*S*H in the line-up this Fall. ION recently launched The Drew Carey Show and will launch Baywatch next month in a plan of popular and diverse entertainment.
Will they be expanding by the fall since they have announced so many new shows? We shall find out...so let's hope they do. Don't judge them until they announce a schedule.
Boston Legal has regularly been a top 20 program on ABC and draws one of the most affluent audiences in television. Kelley and Bill D'Elia are executive producers. The series, which premiered October 3, 2004, currently is in its fourth season on ABC and is produced by David E. Kelley Productions in association with Twentieth Century Fox Television.

Our good buddy Eric from JustMyShow.com continues to get noteworthy guests for his show. On Feb. 5, Emmy winning producer Gary David Goldberg celebrated the release of his new autobiography "Sit, Ubu, Sit" by taking part in a panel discussion at the Paley Center alongside cast members of his most successful shows. But before he spoke to his sold out audience, he sat down with Just My Show to talk about his seven years as creator and executive producer of Family Ties.
You can listen to the very interesting podcast by clicking HERE!

We have a big week planned this week on the blog...so you will want to check in everyday. Big stuff!

AOL Video Adds Archie Bunker's Place, What's Happening Now!!, etc.; Nick at Nite Schedule; Fox Cuts Mid-Season Sitcom In Half

AOL's Funnybone channel, a channel dedicated to classic Sony comedies, has now added Archie Bunker's Place, What's Happening Now!!, Over the Top, Maude, & Square Pegs all in the last month or less. You can also watch newly added episodes of Just Shoot Me, Benson, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, What's Happening!!, and Married...with Children.
The Archie Bunker's Place episodes are the most unique since they are third season episodes, and of course that season not on DVD yet. Among the episodes you will see is the first pilot for Gloria that has been in the syndication package for Archie Bunker's Place. Other episodes include an episode with Reggie Jackson and an episode with Don Rickles. The What's Happening Now!! and Maude episodes are from the first season, which are on DVD already. Over the Top and Square Pegs are not on DVD yet, so they will be fun to see!

A new Nick at Nite schedule starts tonight. Yes, another one. Full House is back to start off each night, while an overnight marathon featuring shows like Fresh Prince, Roseanne, Cosby Show, and Full House from 3-6am will be on everynight. Click HERE for details.

Fox has cut the episode order for its midseason sitcom The Return of Jezebel James from 13 to 7 episodes, including the pilot. Fox says because it has a tight midseason schedule. Among the shows Fox has coming are returning hits 24 and American Idol along with newbies Unhitched, Canterbury's Law and New Amsterdam.
The sitcom stars Parker Posey as a New York book editor who realizes she wants a baby -- and asks her estranged sister (played by Lauren Ambrose) to carry it.
In other Fox news, Fox is expected to pick-up Back to You this week for a full season order. No doubt they will air it a few times at least after Idol to boost the show. Fox also might pick up a few extra scripts of struggling drama K-Ville. Why?

Tune in tonight to the premiere of the sitcom Samantha Who? at 9:30pm et/pt only on ABC! See our review from Saturday if you haven't already! Be good, Sam!