If you didn’t happen to watch this past Super Bowl in New York, Dallas, L.A., or a handful of other “select markets,” chances are you were jipped out of a commercial. The Geico cavemen made their first ad appearance since their bomb of a show aired this past fall making. The Cro-Magnon pair make light of the fact that their lives were actually considered show-worthy. Looks like the tongue-in-cheek cave-men angle just won’t go away (and that goes for you too Budweiser and you’re “inventing the wheel” ad—come on, you guys are better than that!)
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Question: Does it seem like the networks this fall are nursing their new shows a little better than in the past few seasons? I know Viva Laughlin was canceled quickly (oh, well!), but the networks have picked up Gossip Girl, Private Practice, The Big Bang Theory, Back to You and Pushing Daisies for full-season orders. None of these are ratings blockbusters, but they have pretty decent followings and good buzz. Do you think the suits are trying something new as ratings, in general, have been down, or do you think that because there have been no major breakthroughs this season, they're being forced to nurse their new shows?
Answer: This is a fair observation. I was actually expecting a few more shows to be canceled by now. But given the generally depressed numbers for even hit shows this fall, it makes sense for the networks to let things continue to shake out for a bit as they try to analyze the potential for the new batch of shows, many of which have fallen far below expectations (in
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Question: Is it just me, or was last week's Cavemen actually kinda-sorta funny? The actress playing the cavewoman was a riot! What's her name?
Answer: Her name is Kim Director and I totally agree: She was some kind of hysterical. ABC should seriously consider changing the show's name to Cavewomen and making her the star. That I'd watch.
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Question: How do you think Bones will fare in the ratings? I see it recently averaged around the eight million mark. I'm glad it won't be up against Dancing with the Stars every week! However, it does compete with the well-established NCIS and now the two ABC comedies Cavemen and Carpoolers, which for me have no appeal. Bones doesn't get the media blitz that some other Fox shows do, like House and Prison Break. I'm concerned it will spend another season as an underrated show. Shouldn't Fox be putting a few more bucks into promoting a series with such heart and humor, one that is well-crafted and has a terrific ensemble cast with great chemistry? I enjoy the pairing of Bones and House, but I know American Idol is looming in the background, waiting to snatch away its time slot. Having a short break for baseball after only three episodes doesn't exactly help build the fan base, either. So what do you think Bones' chances are in its third season?
Answer: Bones is probably never going to be a
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Question: You and every other critic warned us that Cavemen was horrible, but I decided to check it out anyway. I imagined it as a traditional comedy that just used the cavemen issue for the occasional good joke. In fact, I thought it would be just as silly but as fun as Dinosaurs was in the early '90s. But instead of a show that acknowledged its silly gimmick, I found a show that actually thinks it is genius. I felt like the people behind the show were screaming, "Look at us! We are quirky! We are original! Admire us for our imaginative, offensive-to-none look at social problems! We are a serious show but still have a sense of humor!" Everyone knows that if you have to tell someone you have a serious side or a sense of humor, you don't have either. On the plus side, it made Carpoolers look really funny.
Answer: That's the first time I've seen Carpoolers and "really funny" in the same sentence. And hopefully the last. (And how bummed were you to learn that Cavemen is now set in San
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