US TV

In the US: Fox, Monday 9/8c. Starts on Monday.

In the UK: Acquired by Five. Will air in 2007.

I moaned at them and wow, here’s the screener. Of course, the show’s airing on Monday in a double-bill with the premiere of Prison Break, but here it is nonetheless.

Vanished is interesting because it embodies that other network trend: the coincidentally identical premise. Remember when Robin Hood and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves both came out at the same time? And last year, when Threshold, Surface and Invasion all slammed into our screens (and out the other side eventually)?

We’ve got a similar thing going on here with NBC’s Kidnapped, since we’ve got two kidnapping shows at the same time. Vanished has a bit of a march on Kidnapped, but will the better show win? And which is the better show?

Continue reading “Preview: Vanished”

In the US: NBC, midseason.

In the UK: Acquired by ITV3, with a later pick-up by ITV1

When I first heard about Raines, I wasn’t impressed. A detective that can talk to dead people? Just how derivative can you get? Like we need another Medium or Ghost Whisperer.

Turns out that while Raines (Jeff Goldblum) can talk to dead people, it’s not because he’s psychic. It’s cos he’s just a little bit nuts and has a very vivid imagination.

Continue reading “Preview: Raines”

In the US: NBC, mid-season show

In the UK: Acquired for ITV2. Will debut in the spring.

There is a reason I felt guilty about turning off Angela’s Eyes after only a minute. Although I doubt it would have made a difference in that show’s case, sometimes you’ll come across a programme that is absolute rubbish at first, but which turns out to be a real corker by the end. That is, after all, why I do third-episode verdicts.

The Black Donnellys is one such show. I started watching it last night, and after about ten minutes, I was ready to start extracting some serious urine from it. But I finished watching it this morning, and I have to say the rest of it was riveting.

Continue reading “Preview: The Black Donnellys”