TV News

Community is Officially Returning!

The chairman of NBC Entertainment, Bob Greenblatt, has officially stated for the first time that cult hit sitcom Community will return to complete its third season. When the show was pulled back in November, statements were released that vaguely suggested that the show would be returning “at some point in the future,” but based on past experiences with similar statements, the internet was largely distrusting.

“I want to dispel any notion that [Community is] just quietly disappearing from the schedule,” Greenblatt told reporters at the Television Critics Association press tour today. “I failed to explicitly say it will be back.” Greenblatt’s insistence that the show will be back should soothe fans of the comedy, but he was fairly vague when questioned about the possibility of a fourth season for the show.

Sci-Fi and Fantasy Authors News: Neil Gaiman Defends a Cause and G.R.R. Martin Teases

Two of the most talked-about contemporary authors in the world of genre shows, sci-fi, and fantasy were in the news this week, one giving an interview following his defense of free speech on campus (or just Firefly?) and the other teasing his fans with a chapter of his upcoming book.

Renown comic book, sci-fi, and fantasy author Neil Gaiman (Neverwhere, American Gods, Stardust) sat for an interview in which he explained why he threw his support behind James Miller, professor of theater and speech, in the confrontation the latter had with his employer at the University of Wisconsin, Stout. Miller displayed a Firefly poster outside his office with a quote from Mal (Nathan Fillion): “You don’t know me son, so let me explain this to you once: If I ever kill you, you’ll be awake, you’ll be facing me, and you’ll be armed.” This did not sit well with the university and it took some activism and the support of Gaiman and his 1.6 million twitter followers to make free speech prevail. [via: The Huffington Post]

Fall 2011 TV Shows Rated by Popularity

Before heading into the midseason, it is customary to check the TV programs’ report cards from every possible angle. That is why we share with you this list (from Inside TV) of the major broadcast networks fall shows rated by the average number of viewers.

House of Lies Premiere Available Online

Showtime has made the full premiere episode of its new series House of Lies available for viewers online. The show – touted as a comedy – focuses on a group of management consultants who will do anything to get the job done, and stars Don Cheadle, Kristen Bell and Ben Schwartz.

The first full episode of the series can now be viewed on Showtime’s official website and on iTunes, as well as select On Demand channels, smartphones and tablets. Viewers can also watch an edited version of the premiere episode on YouTube.

Hell on Wheels Renewed for Second Season

AMC’s newest drama Hell on Wheels has been renewed for a second season. The western, which follows the story of Confederate solider Cullen Bohannon (played by Anson Mount), who is out for vengeance in a post-Civil War era America, has seen a steady decline in its viewing figures since its premiere, but has still retained enough of an audience to see it past its initial run.

The show premiered to 4.36 million viewers – the second highest for an AMC drama this year behind The Walking Dead’s record breaking second season – but its seventh and most recent episode gained just 2.27 million. Whilst the drop is significant, the season low of 2.15 million is still a higher number than any episode of the most recent season of acclaimed AMC drama Breaking Bad besides its premiere.

NBC Offers Full-season ‘Holidays Catch-up’ for TV Shows

According
to a press release from NBC, starting Monday, December 19, the network
has made available online all already aired episodes of some of its new
fall shows, including Up All Night, Whitney, and Grimm.
The move, which is part of NBC’s annual holiday “catch-up,” also
includes all previously aired episodes of the current season of Parenthood. The episodes will be available online until each show’s scheduled broadcast return in January 2012.

Fall TV Shows Midseason Return Dates

Christmas
is upon us, which means we are entering the last and most important leg
of the holiday season, but it also means the end of the TV hiatus is
only about a week away.

With
that in mind, TVOverMind has compiled a list of return dates for fall
shows. Now you just have to bookmark this page and use it as a
reference throughout the month!

American Horror Story to Reinvent Each Season

Ryan Murphy recently confirmed that his critically lauded freshman drama American Horror Story will move to a new haunted building with several new characters for its “radically different” sophomore season. The series creator revealed that the FX series is finished with the story of the Harmons, played by Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton and Taissa Farmiga.

“Next year of the show will be a different haunting,” Murphy said. “The next season of the show will be a brand-new home or building to haunt.” Speaking to the reappearance of the current cast, Murphy said “Some of them will be coming back. There will be familiar faces and also some new faces.”

HBO Renews Enlightened, Cancels Three Others

HBO has confirmed today that they have picked up the Mike White/Laura Dern lead comedy Enlightened for a second season. Despite being critically lauded, the show hasn’t gained as much traction with audiences as is generally expected of an HBO show. Nevertheless, it earned two Golden Globe nominations last week for both best comedy series and best actress in a comedy series (Dern).

Despite most of its shows drawing a similar range of viewing figures, they have rarely factored into the cancellation decision making process with the cable giant, as is evident by the longevity of David Simon’s New Orleans drama Treme, which will be going to its third season this year.

Whedonverse News: Castle, Once Upon a Time, and Firefly

There
were many news tidbits from the Whedonverse (as in Joss Whedon) during
the week, so we thought we would please the whedonites out there by
lumping them all together.