Matt Passmore
It started with the swearing, a not-so-subtle indication that USA Network's "blue skies" credo was welcoming some adult turbulence into its programming. Its shows of recent vintage, including the sleek, sexy and casually profane Suits and the gritty undercover drama Graceland, have started to move USA into edgier, bolder territory. Two new Thursday dramas, Rush (9/8c) and Satisfaction (10/9c), are furthering that evolution, threatening to go over the top with their shock-value content in what looks like a bad case of FX/AMC envy. The results are decidedly mixed.
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Black-ish
Want a bar mitzvah but aren't Jewish? Comedian Anthony Anderson can help.
The star of ABC's upcoming comedy Black-ish, which premieres Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 9:30/8:30c, was faced with that question when his 12-year-old son expressed a wish for the Jewish coming-of-age ritual. "I looked him in the eye and said, 'That's not our culture, but I will throw you a hip-hop "bro-mitzvah."' I trademarked the name," Anderson said at ABC's Television Critics Assocation fall previews on Tuesday.
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Jeanne Tripplehorn
They rarely make TV-movies like Lifetime's Five (Monday, 9/8c) anymore, and I really wish they would. A sensitively told issue-of-the-week anthology in the classic life-affirming tear-jerker tradition, the high-profile talent is on both sides of the camera in these intertwined vignettes dealing with breast cancer. Though the subject matter is wrenching, the tone here is more about emotional uplift, emphasizing the importance of bringing loved ones along for the fight.
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Walden Schmidt
Monday's premiere of Two and a Half Men scored 28.7 million viewers — the best in its nine-season history. Did the addition of social media rock star Ashton Kutcher and his 7.7 million Twitter followers have something to do with it? We'll probably never know for sure, but there's no question that harnessing the power of a loyal online fan base is an invaluable asset for any celebrity. We asked Kendall Aliment, a digital strategist at ID-PR, for five ways for actors to better engage their fans...
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CSI
CSI's Ray Langston may finally have his shot to end Nate Haskell once and for all.
Finale Preview: Get scoop on 39 season-enders
Thursday's finale (9/8c, CBS) finds Langston (Laurence Fishburne) face-to-face with Haskell (Bill Irwin) inside the notorious Dick and Jane Killer's childhood home. Haskell has lured Langston there by kidnapping his ex-wife, Gloria (Tracee Ellis Ross), and Haskell hopes to prove once and for all that he and Langston are two sides of the same coin.
"Haskell and Langston are reflections of each other, at least in Haskell's mind, executive producer Carol Mendelsohn tells TVGuide.com...
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Bob Newhart
Bob Newhart has joined Lifetime's new original movie Project Five, TVGuide.com has learned exclusively.
Lifetime renews Army Wives, sets Diva premiere
An anthology of five short films, Project Five explores the impact of breast cancer on people's lives. Newhart, 81, will play ...
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Cee Lo Green
Glee (Tuesday, 8/7c, Fox)
Too much isn't always a good thing for this erratic yet always exuberant series, but with Lady Gaga music as the hook (including "Born This Way," which doubles as an episode title), this week's outing expands to 90 minutes. With prom looming, Quinn aims her sights on the title of queen — but so does the super-sized Lauren. Meanwhile, Mr. Shue is using the Gaga playlist to teach the glee club more musical life lessons in self-acceptance and embracing what makes each of them special.
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The Game
BET has renewed The Game for a fifth season.
The order is no surprise as the sitcom — rescued by BET after CW axed it two years ago — has been a ratings success for the network. The season premiere drew a record 7.7 million viewers and the season finale bowed out to 4.4 million.
Check out photos from The Game
In addition, the network has picked up ...
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Girlfriends by Darien Davis/Paramount Pictures/The CW
When Aaron proposed to Joan in Girlfriends' seventh-season finale, fans suspected that that episode was the series' swan song. But it wasn't. The show returned for an eighth and final season. But instead of going out with a bang, Girlfriends went out with a whimper — another victim of the writers' strike. Today, CW executives announced there will be no new post-strike Girlfriends episodes because the network has decided to "focus its creative and financial resources on shows that are in consideration for renewal next year." So Monday's episode, where Joan (Tracee Ellis Ross) read her fiancé Aaron's letter to his former students and learned that he would be returning from Iraq in two weeks, will be the series' last. New episodes of its spin-off, The Game, are expected to premiere in March. "Although it's always difficult to say goodbye, I choose to focus my energy on the history that Girlfriends has made," Mara Brock Akil wrote in her official farewell statement. "I am imme...
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Tracee Ellis Ross and Richard T. Jones by Lisa Rose/The CW
During Monday night's seventh-season finale of the CW's Girlfriends, William and Monica got back together; Maya and Darnell found a new house and bought back Darnell's old garage; and Aaron proposed to Joan. Basically, everyone got a happy ending — including Lynn (who'd landed her first regular paying gig only one week before). But it was all just too jubilant and tidy. Everyone and their mama showed up for Joan's surprise engagement party — her parents, her boss, her one-time assistant Peaches, and even her dry cleaner! The shindig could have easily doubled as a series farewell reunion show. And many who watched the finale had to wonder: Could this in fact be the end of Girlfriends? Insiders close to the show say CW execs have not tipped their hats either way. Officially speaking, creator and executive producer Mara Brock Akil will not find out if Girlfriends will get an eighth season until next week, mere days before the CW's May 17 upfront advertising presentations in N...
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