Scrubs resuscitated on ABC

After years spent likes some neglected step-child on NBC, Scrubs is back for another season, but this time on ABC. And from all accounts, this last-minute extension has revitalized the show, with less trying-too-hard weirdness that's been around the past few seasons, and more of the type of show that captured a fanbase in the first few seasons that stuck with them through 9 timeslot changes over 7 years on NBC.

Alan Sepinwall's had a look at the first 2 new episodes and the prognosis is good. He proclaims the second of the two episodes on tonight is one of the best Scrubs episodes in its entire run, on far and in tone with the classic "My Old Lady" from Season 1 where a young JD (Zach Braff) takes the death of patient hard. I've loved this show from the start, but I found the past few seasons I had started to watch out of habit more than anything else. JD had turned into a man-child who despite 7 years of talking about what he was learning, never seemed to actually grow-up. But I stuck it through and there are gems in there, and now things are looking up since last time I checked in on the crew at Sacred Heart Hospital:

The past season has seen great work from the actors, but some lousy plotting. "Scrubs" has slipped down from my #1 TV comedy spot, as it is now bring up the rear behind "The Office" and "How I Met Your Mother". If "30 Rock" comes strong next season, it's going to slip further. I've got faith that the "Scrubs" can turn it around in the home stretch, now that a firm end is in sight.

By all accounts, the new season of Scrubs which starts Tuesday January 6th shouldn't exist. When the writer's strike came about last year, NBC denied Scrubs the opportunity to produce a small number of episodes to effectively end the series. In fact they outright said that was it for them. But in came ABC to offer an 18-episode eighth season. An ABC has been promoting the move heavily - I don't think I've seen more commercials for Scrubs on ABC in the past month then in all the years on NBC. They even have a slick new website set up with video clips, interviews with the cast and primers on the show:
Scrubs operating at ABC

It's likely the last season of Scrubs in it's current form. Producer Bill Lawrence and actor Zach Braff are both moving on after this season. But if ratings are decent, ABC may bring the show back in some incarnation or another next year. The show is in syndication, DVD sales are good, and once you remove Braff and Lawrence's salaries it's cheaper to continue the show then to produce new pilots. We'll see how it goes.

ABC (and City TV in Canada) is running back-to-back new episodes tonight. But really, what it comes down to, is any excuse to run Turk's dancing to Bell Biv DeVoe's "Poison" (updated: oh well, looks like Uncle Walt pulled the clip):

Sesame Street's Law and Order: Special Letters Unit.

Sesame Street turned in a little slice of brilliance in their funny version of Law & Order, Special Letters Unit. I expect this would explain if 3-year olds started imitating the ubiquitous Law & Order "chung-chung" sound.

Sesame Street's Law and Order: Special Letters Unit.

"Mommy, why is Elmo confessing to a double homicide?"

I can't help but laugh knowing that somewhere out there are muppet versions of Richard Belzer (Munch) & Chris Meloni (Stabler).

via ALOTT5MA

Emmy Highlights

My Emmy highlights (let's see how long these links last):
Steve Colbert and Jon Stewart give the award for best male performance in a comedy. Winner Ricky Gervais is absent so....



And the highlight of every year, the videos announcing the nominees for Best Writing for a Comedy or Variety Show:



And the rap battle between Kanye West and Rainn Wilson (The Office):



Best line of the night:
Kanye West "I never win."

TV Returns: Sometimes they come back

Sometimes They Come Back Part 1 - Dead Like Me resurrected

Dead Like Me was a quirky Showtime cable series about the lives of grim reapers, and specifically on Georgia (Ellen Muth) an 18 year old slacker who is employed as a reaper after a flaming piece of the MIR Space Station hits her (it was a toilet seat). It was a fun show, it was morbid and moving, it was a critical hit, it had a loyal following, and it was cancelled after two seasons. Since then it’s enjoyed a healthy life in reruns on cable and DVD sales, but fans like myself wondered how the story would have continued.

So it was a pleasant surprise to see that Dead Like Me has seen a resurrection of sorts, as MGM Studios announced that filming on a Dead Like Me straight-to-DVD movie has wrapped, with a release date expected within the year.

Ellen Muth (Georgia) returns as the lead, with everyone in the cast returning, with the exceptions of Laura Harris (Daisy Adair), whose role is now played by Sarah Wynter (24), and Mandy Patinkin (Rube). Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond on Lost) was cast as a new character named Cameron - the head undead who hands out assignments to the reapers, taking over the slot once occupied by Patinkin.If all goes well, according to MGM's head of Corporate Development Charlie Cohen, we’ll see more Dead Like Me movies, or perhaps even another television series. "If it's a series of movies that's fine. If someone saw it and thinks it makes sense to bring it back as an episodic tv series, we're open to anything," he said. However, MGM has not optioned the cast at this point.

Dead Like Me – TV.com

MGM resurrects Dead Like Me

Sometimes They Come Back Part 2 - Michael returns to Lost

Harold Perrineau (Michael) returns to Lost for Season 4. It hasn’t been said at what point he’s returning, but it looks like it’s not just a guest starring role, but a return to the regular cast. When last we saw Michael, he and his son Walt were on a slow boat off the island, having sold out his fellow castaways for a chance to save get him and his son off the island. While Walt (or an apparition of him) appeared in last season’s finale, nothing has been seen of Michael since. Producers have also said that next year will use both flashbacks and flash-forwards, so I’d guess we’re more likely to see Michael in the flash-forwards rather than returning to the island. Having Michael appear in the flash-forwards (to present day) would also be a handy way to explain away the fact the actor playing his son Walt had a major growth spurt and can likely look Michael in the eye now. Then again, it’d be interesting to see Michael back on the island, reunited with those castaways (Hurley, Sawyer, etc.) he betrayed.

Sometimes They Come Back Part 3 - Joss Whedon approves continuing Angel as comic book mini-series

Fans of the show Angel take note: an Angel – Complete Series DVD boxed set is coming out. But the big news is that series creator Joss Whedon announced at San Diego Comic Con that he’s sanctioned a comic series to act as an official Season 6. Angel – After The Fall will be set in the aftermath of the climatic series finale that saw the main characters seriously outmatched and outnumbered in an alley, and ended with them diving into battle, their fates unknown. Whedon has always stated that a sixth season of Angel was already mapped out by the time the WB network cancelled the show. A release date for the mini-series hasn’t been announced yet.
The announcement of Angel – After The Fall comes on the heels of the success of the Buffy The Vampire Slayer - Season 8 comic book series, which has managed to capture the dialogue and charactization of the TV characters, without being limited in terms of scope and special effects like a conventional TV series.

I recommend ordering the trade paperback collecting the first story arc of the Buffy Season 8 comic, and is written by Joss Whedon. Buffy - The Long Road Home is available for pre-order from Amazon, and is due in November.