In a piece called “Writers strike’s effects spill over into fall TV; New season full of second chances, proven concepts“, Christopher Lawrence talks about all the new series from last season who had to deal with the writers’ strike stopping their course half-way through, and how they approach this new season.
He talked to a few series creators during the TCA press tour, including our very own God Rand Ravich :
Based on talking with series creators and their network bosses during the Television Critics Association’s summer press tour in Beverly Hills, virtually every drama returning for its sophomore year will be treating its season premiere as an additional pilot episode, reintroducing the series in an effort to bring in new viewers.
“If you have never seen the show before,” says Rand Ravich, creator of NBC’s quirky detective series LIFE, “you can come to this episode one and be thrown into the world and not be left behind and be instantly up to date with everything that’s happening.”
[ Source: Review Journal ]
Another report from the NBC “Sophomore Dramas” panel at the TCA, this time from TV Squad. Here’s what they said about LIFE :
There was a sophomore dramas panel with the star and executive producers of three series: Zach Levi and Josh Schwartz from CHUCK, Brooke Shields and Oliver Goldstick from LIPSTICK JUNGLE and Rand Ravich and Damian Lewis from LIFE. Lots of joking from Schwartz and Levi (including Schwartz saying “Every day is Yom Kippur”), and lots of talk about almost starting fresh because they were held back after the strike:
LIFE comes back with Crews still trying to unravel the mystery of how he got set up for the murder that sent him away, despite the fact that he found the trigger man at the end of the season. [Toggle Spoiler]
Donal Logue will be playing a former New York cop who’s been transferred to Crews’ precinct.
The oddest thing that happened on the panel is that Lewis started speaking in an American accent, and when someone asked why he wasn’t speaking with his native British accent, he slipped into it and went, “I thought it was cooler to be American. Now I’m really confused. OK, whatever you want. What’s your name?” But then he went back to American again. I’d like to see Hugh Laurie or Anna Friel do that!
Damn, I wish there was a video of that thing! Must be really cool to actually see/hear…
As you probably know NBC had a “Sophomore Dramas” panel at the TCA, panel where were present Mediaweek’s Marc Berman, the Programming Insider, and Alan Frutkin, senior reporter. From their report, here’s what’s about LIFE :
Rand Ravich on the writers’ strike:
“Coming up to the strike, it got a little crazed and we were hurrying to get as many episodes done as soon as possible. And then, given more time now, we could actually plan for a longer season and plan out our story arcs more carefully.”
-The Reality:
The unfortunate prediction is not to expect much out of CHUCK, LIFE or LIPSTICK JUNGLE next season. CHUCK generated only minor interest among adults 18-49 anchoring Monday, and there is no reason to think that will change next season. Moving LIFE to Friday at 10 p.m. is a suicide mission. And LIPSTICK JUNGLE opposite CBS’ CSI: NY and ABC’s potentially blossoming DIRTY SEXY MONEY on Wednesday will have its work cut out.
Continue reading "Mediaweek On The NBC Panel Front At TCA"…
As you probably now the Television Critics Association press tour is happening right now, and NBC panels are scheduled for Sunday 20th and Monday 21st. It is today at The Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, CA that NBC will have a panel about its sophomore dramas, featuring CHUCK, LIFE and LIPSTICK JUNGLE.
For LIFE, creator Rand Ravich and star Damian Lewis are scheduled to appear (sadly, no Sarah Shahi). Hopefully we’ll have some pictures & news for you later…
Okay so it’s not a recent interview, but who cares!
Back in April, Adam Arkin was interviewed by Comedy Centric, and of course at some point it was question of his most recent work, on LIFE. It’s short, but good.
He makes a point to praise Sarah Shahi, and as anyone who’s watch the show it’s easy to see why, and also talks about the move to Fridays, deciding to do as me and see only the better part of the news (that LIFE is back for another season), and that since the network (probably) has lower expectations than they’d have for a show on any other night, it might be a chance for LIFE to grow there for a while, a long while.
Hey, after all CBS put NUMB3RS on that exact same slot, Fridays at 10pm, and it’s been doing pretty well for some time now…
Continue reading "Adam Arkin talks LIFE"…
A mention of LIFE in a recent TV Guide, but be aware if you’re allergic to spoilers, there are some little bits of information about what to expect from season two. No details, nothing precise, but some major indications of things to come. You’ve been warned.
[Toggle Spoiler]
While the mainstays of LIFE remain in place - cop Charlie Crews will still be Zen, eat lots of fruit and fight to expose the conspiracy that wrongly sent him to prison - changes are in store for the NBC drama. Donal Logue (The Knights of Prosperity) is in as the new police captain, while shady Lieutenant Davis has transferred. Charlie moves past his crush on lawyer Constance and tries to reconcile with his ex-wife. But new viewers won’t be confused. “The mandate,” says executive producer Rand Ravich, “is to make the show accessible to those who have never seen it. You can catch up very quickly.“
Now, since I obviously read that I might as well add a few thoughts : I don’t have any feelings regarding Logue joining in, really, I just hope for the best. That said, I’m a bit sad about the departure of Lt. Davis, because she had evolved from the pilot, she wasn’t as anti-Crews as she used to, and she had a connection with Dani and her past (and drug abuse, rehab, …)
And now it looks like she’ll be gone for good, and that sucks. (Side note: I guess she wasn’t in on the conspiracy then, right?)
About what Ravich said, keeping the show accessible to new audience, I think that’s good, because it will help new viewers getting sucked in, it would be bad to have them feel excluded because of all the conspiracy stuff they missed and eventually because of it not watch the show. That said, it will be a difficult task to match everything, cause I sure hope they don’t forget about everything that happened and the loyal fans who’ve been watching from day one, we need to have consistency and follow-ups with everything that happened, or else we’ll have a problem I think. But really, I’m not worried, I have all the faith in the world in Ravich and his team, just look at the first season if you’re in doubt.
About you ?
[ Source: Spoiler TV ]
An article about LIFE on Variety by Stuart Levine. Thanks to adlervan for the scan :
(click to enlarge)
Continue reading "LIFE - Variety article"…
It’s that time of year again, Emmy fever is in the air, and NBC is campaigning their shows, including LIFE of course. This is really good news, and hopefully it might lead to more promotion of the show, maybe even more (*cough*reruns*cough*).
As part of their effort, NBC published this ad found in Variety, and as you can see below, once again we have Sarah Shahi in a sexy tank top, something that is completely out of character for Reese. Let’s try to ignore that and be happy she’s actually included, I guess.
Here’s a scan of the ad, thanks to adlervan :
(click to enlarge)
NBC Universal also launched a website, Nominate 08, to promote their shows and presents their candidates for Emmy consideration, among which if our beloved LIFE (NBCU distributes Fox’s hit-drama HOUSE, hence why it’s on the list). For a little, if you were living in the U.S., you could order your own LIFE button (among others), but due to overwhelming demand this isn’t possible anymore.
The candidates for our show are as follow :
- Outstanding Drama Series: LIFE
- Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Damian Lewis
- Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Sarah Shahi
- Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Brent Sexton
- Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Adam Arkin
Continue reading "Emmy fever and LIFE — quick roundup"…
