Here's a look at the Top 5 TV news stories of the week!
There was a surprising piece of news that broke over the weekend. FX has cancelled Y: The Last Man after one season airing on FX on Hulu. Although the show received mixed reviews and hasn't garnered much buzz, this was surprising for a couple reasons. First of all, FX rarely cancels shows after just one season, especially as they are still airing. They have historically been patient with low-rated shows. Secondly, the road to the screen for Y: The Last Man lasted over a decade so it's shocking to see it come and go so quickly after how much time was invested in the development of the series. The numbers must have been truly terrible even though FX on Hulu, like all streaming services, is vague about actual numbers. The cast options were up and that had to do with the timing but FX would have given it a second season if they had any faith at all in it. The series is being shopped to other outlets but I'd be pretty surprised if it gets picked up considering the lukewarm buzz the show had.
With the fall premieres pretty much done for the broadcast networks, we are starting to hear some early midseason plans. FOX has announced it will use NFL Sundays to boost several midseason premieres in the 8pm hour. Reality series Next Level Chef will premiere on January 2 just in case you thought FOX didn't have enough Gordon Ramsay series. The following Sunday, they will launch the second season of Call Me Kat and the new comedy Pivoting starring Eliza Coupe, Ginnifer Goodwin and Maggie Q. Sunday nights are not the regular slots for these shows, those have yet to be announced, but they're getting the high profile premieres. Meanwhile, ABC will launch limited series Women of the Movement on January 6 and it will air Thursdays at 8pm for three weeks (six episodes). It will be interesting to see how a network limited series does in the awards conversation, where limited series have been ultra competitive lately.
If you're a fan of CBS's Ghosts or Apple TV+'s Mythic Quest, there was good news on Thursday. Ghosts, which debuted to solid reviews and has had decent ratings, will get a full season. Pretty impressive for a show that seems nothing like a CBS sitcom. Meanwhile, Mythic Quest has been renewed for two additional seasons. The Apple TV+ comedy has a lot of critical love and some thought it was going to break into the Emmy conversation this year though that didn't end up happening.
#4 - HAPPY 500TH TO SVU!
Law & Order: SVU celebrated its 500th episode on Thursday night. That's an amazing accomplishment, especially for star Mariska Hargitay who has been with the show since Day One. The series is still one of NBC's top shows more than two decades after it launched and it just keeps chugging along as the longest running live action scripted series in TV history. I haven't caught up this season but I continue to find it to be one of the more consistent procedurals out there.
#5 - SCRIPTED PREMIERES THIS WEEK
Here's a look at this week's scripted premieres!
Today: Apple TV+ has its second big genre swing of the fall with Invasion. Foundation debuted about a month ago and earned solid critical buzz with a second season renewal but it doesn't feel like it's been in the conversation all that much. It's another big swing and was filmed in various parts of the world although not as many as originally planned. Netflix has the second season premiere of Locke & Key, last seen in February 2020 and already renewed for a third season.
Sunday: HBO's month of prestige premieres continues with the return of two comedies. The fifth and final season of Insecure and the eleventh season premiere of Curb Your Enthusiasm will air back to back on Sunday nights after Succession to make a night full of critical darlings.
Monday: The CW has the return of All American for its fourth season followed by its one and only fall scripted premiere - the reboot of 4400. All American has been a bright spot in the ever diminishing returns for the CW and while the original The 4400 was a cult hit for USA in the mid 2000s, I'm not sure anyone really cares about a reboot.
Tuesday: TBS has the fourth season premiere of The Last O.G. It's hard to know what TBS's comedy strategy is but O.G. has now surprisingly been on the air since 2018.
Thursday: HBO Max drops the second season of its first original series, Love Life. When the streamer launched in May 2020, it didn't have all it planned to thanks to the pandemic but it did have Love Life. The second season of the anthology will have some returning characters but will focus on a new character, played by William Jackson Harper. The CW has the second season premiere of Walker, which got off to a strong start last January but petered out some as the season went on.
My pick for the week: I know it didn't get a lot of critical love but I was a fan of the first season of Love Life and I like William Jackson Harper so I'm reasonably hopeful. I never got into Insecure or Curb and probably won't start now. I might check out 4400 or Invasion but neither one really interests me that much.
Check back next week for a new week of blog posts!
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