Regardless of the rollercoaster of cancellations and pickups for new TV series, there's still a stable of mature TV shows that have been running for a long time (over four seasons, to be precise). It's time for you to weigh on which shows are still thriving, and which shows should be put out of their misery.
Kyra Sedgwick is the Emmy winner for outstanding lead actress in a drama series! It's her first Emmy for The Closer, and she beat out Glenn Close, Mariska Hargitay, Julianna Margulies, January Jones, and Connie Britton. Do you agree with this win?
Don't forget to vote on all of my Emmy polls!
We're breaking down the Emmy nominees, one category at a time, and now we — that's you and me — are looking at the lead actress in a drama. Will it be a veteran nominee, or one of the deserving new faces to the race? Check out who you guys think deserves the Emmy, and I'll let you know my opinion as well. And don't forget to vote on my Emmy ballot — you could take home a prize too: an Apple iPad!
Network television certainly doesn't have the market cornered on great TV shows anymore. In fact, many of prime time's most acclaimed dramas are found outside of your standard channels. Though the seasons may be shorter, it just makes them even sweeter. So which cable TV drama is your favorite?
Don't forget to vote on all of my Best of 2009 polls!
All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to my selections below, you can also add Jessica Biel's Powder Blue to your queue, along with the first season of Designing Women.
New in Town
Renée Zellweger stars in this quirky romantic comedy as Lucy Hill, a tough Miami executive who is sent to take over a processing plant located in the frozen tundra of New Ulm, MN. Lucy is supposed to lay off a bunch of employees, but the longer she's in town the more she sees how devastating her actions would be to the people of New Ulm who have been so gosh darn nice to her. The plight of the townfolk is given voice through the local hottie union rep, Ted (Harry Connick Jr.), who has lots of initial contempt for the new lady in town and sees Lucy as a corporate stooge. Until, of course . . . he doesn't.
This isn't the best thing you'll ever see but it's fun enough for a little movie romance on the couch. Special features include featurettes titled "The Folk Art of Scrap Booking" and "Pudding's Delicious Role," along with deleted scenes and audio commentary with cast and crew.
One more up next so read more
I can't quite explain it, but there's something just completely adorable to me about imagining Kyra Sedgwick and Amy Sedaris in a room together. I think the two would have hilarious conversations. And tonight, we get to find out what it's like when they're acting side-by-side, as Sedaris shows up on the first of two episodes of The Closer.
Just from these brief video clips, it looks like she's perfectly suited to the role: Sedaris plays Fritz's sister, Claire, who shows up to help Brenda prepare for her wedding. And to say she's quirky is a bit of an understatement: She's a vegan home cook (it's hard to watch Sedaris present trays of carrot casserole and not think about her cheeseballs!) who also fancies herself a psychic — er, rather, an intuitionist. She ends up tagging along for one of Brenda's investigations, which should be a sight to behold.
Want to get an early look at Sedaris on the show? Just read more
A while ago, I speculated that TNT was becoming the official network of strong women. Tonight, two of the shows that have made it that way return for new seasons: The Closer begins its fourth season at 9 p.m. EDT and PDT, while Saving Grace starts its second immediately after.
The Closer has been a standout for several years now and spent last season shattering cable ratings records (many of which it already owned). The show has also earned wide acclaim for Kyra Sedwick as the no-holds-barred interrogator Brenda Leigh Johnson, who's practically a fixture in the Emmy and Golden Globe nominations these days. When this season begins, wildfires are tearing through Los Angeles, and Brenda is there to unleash her fury on anyone who seems to have done wrong.
Meanwhile, Saving Grace starts season two with Holly Hunter's Grace continuing to come to terms with her past — which seems to be darker and more haunted at every turn. Hunter spoke with reporters last week, including yours truly, and I'll be bringing you some of her comments later today. For now, though, you can get a sneak peek of the new episodes of The Closer and a quick recap of the first season of Saving Grace if you read more
I got a promotional e-mail today touting the Summer programming lineups on TNT and TBS. As I scrolled through looking for a return date for The Closer (July) and a start date for Raising the Bar (September), a banner at the bottom caught my eye:
"Kyra Sedgwick, Holly Hunter, Laura San Giacomo, Jordana Spiro, Nancy Travis, Jane Kaczmarek, and Gloria Reuben are just a few of the strong women coming to TNT and TBS this summer."
And they have good reason to spotlight that: Of the five series featured in the e-mail, only one (The Bill Engvall Show on TBS) has a male character in the lead. The rest are either female-led or have women in the majority of the starring roles: My Boys on TBS and all three of TNT's dramas, The Closer, Saving Grace, and the new series Raising the Bar. And, what's more, three of those four series have leading ladies over the age of 40 — a relative rarity in Hollywood.
I'm not sure if TNT and TBS set out to become networks full of programming featuring women who are tough, quirky, and relatable (and succeeding in roles typically earmarked for men, at that), but regardless, I find it encouraging that it's happened. They aren't the only networks in this game; FX's Damages drew a ton of acclaim with Glenn Close in its leading role. I just like the fact that these networks see their roster of shows with older, female stars not as a risk but as something to be celebrated. What's your take?
