Entries Tagged 'Viva Laughlin' ↓

(Begin pointless personal digression.) I have a soft spot for the semi-annual TV Week Critics Poll. (Read the story here and results here.) Back when the magazine was called Electronic Media, I used to be in the poll all the time, and I started talking to the people over there - we were all in Chicago at the time - and I ended up getting hired as assistant managing editor and getting a whole different look at the industry. While I worked there I ran the poll a couple of times, too, which gave me lots of time to talk to my critic friends who I only got to see on press tour otherwise. So this poll is like an old pal. (End pointless personal digression.)
But seriously, "Pushing Daisies" is better than "Mad Men"??? I don’t think so. Better than "House" or "The Office"?? Really? Uh, no.Ten Best Series1. Pushing […]

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In the office pool over which shows would get canceled first, I put my money on "Cavemen." It was a logical bet, but it was the wrong one. CBS is giving the show the ax after just one episode. Now, we panned this show hard just the other day, but even I didn’t expect it to get cut that fast.
We also saw the reality shows "Anchorwoman" and "Nashville" die on the vine: "Anchorwoman" went online-only and "Nashville" went "on hiatus" for awhile before execs admitted it was never going to return. At least you can still see the eps that did air over at the Fox website.
For "Laughlin," the afterlife looks even less promising: CBS has said only that "Viva Laughlin has been canceled and all show assets online will be taken down at this time." In other words, "You have failed to complete your mission. We don’t know […]

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The first scripted casualty of the new season happened earlier today when CBS gave VIVA LAUGHIN the boot after only two episodes.  I wouldn’t be alone is saying that I saw this one coming a mile away.  What confused me was how it got picked up as a series in the first place.  A group […]
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Forget "Saw." Forget "Hostel." The scariest thing you can see on screen this Halloween season comes in tonight’s pilot episode of CBS’ new musical soap opera, "Viva Laughlin." Businessman Ripley Holden, played by Lloyd Owen, goes to see an old flame, Bunny Baxter, played by Melanie Griffith, in hopes she’ll convince her investor husband not to back out of Ripley’s casino project. Bunny has other ideas. She wants Ripley back in her bed. Or wherever. And thus we get the terrifying spectacle of Griffith tomcatting on, over and around the unwilling Ripley. Something has gone terribly wrong with Griffith’s face and especially her lips - botox or collagen or surgery or just all those years of pouting have turned her kitten-with-a-whip look into a mask as terrifying as Freddie’s or Jason’s.
And. AND. This being a musical, she’s singing along with Blondie’s "One Way Or Another" while she rubs up […]

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Saturday? We don’t need stinkin’ Saturday. Watch college football on ABC, or "Torchwood" on BBC America, and forget about "Cops" and the endless reruns on the other networks. Sunday, though, is as always another story, featuring the season’s most bizarre new show ("Viva Laughlin," right) and several returning favorites.
ABC’s trio of hits - "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "Desperate Housewives" and "Brothers & Sisters" - returns on Sept. 30. The big excitement here has to be Dana Delaney and Nathan Fillion joining the cast of "Desperate," a show that seems in definite though not desperate need of some fresh fuel. It will be interesting to watch the ratings here.
CBS will still have "60 Minutes" at 7 and "Cold Case" at 9, and it’s swapping in James Woods as "Shark" at 10. The show has curdled a little as Woods’ bracingly hard-edged character has gotten soft around the edges; we’ll see if […]

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You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers! Podcast #9: Attack of the Listener Questions
TV Podcast 9: Dan and Kathie are on the spot when listener voicemails are played and questions are answered. Trying to do something fun this time, we decided to have you guys call in and leave us voicemail comments and questions. It […]
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