Update - More Renewals & Cancellations

This week the major networks are announcing their Upfronts - the shows that have made the Fall 2012 schedules.

Many shows have been renewed but there is certainly no lack of cancellations, some no-brainers, a few surprises, at least in my book.

ABC put the axe to GCB, Pan Am, Missing and The River, while FOX has dumped Breaking In, I Hate My Teenage Daughter (did it even air?), Alcatraz (leaving fans - however many - to wonder if lead heroine  Det. Rebecca Madsen survives her gunshot wound) and The Finder.

NBC, ever in transition, has canned Harry's Law, Are You There, Chelsea?, Awake, Bent and Best Friends Forever.

The biggest surprise for me was the CW's cancellation of The Secret Circle.  This is the one network that cancels the fewest shows, being that they rarely have enough replacement shows.  I also thought the show was a good match for the net's strongest performer, The Vampire Diaries.  I am, however, thrilled that Supernatural will see a season eight and Nikita has gotten a third season.  Gossip Girl will return for a shortened (11 episode) final season, and the net has renewed Hart of Dixie, which fills the hole left by One Tree Hill.

Also returning for a shortened final season is FOX's Fringe (YAY!).  Touch has also been renewed along with New Girl, Raising Hope and Bones.

NBC will bring back Grimm for a second season, ditto for Smash.  Also returning are The Office, Parks and Recreation, Up All Night and Whitney, the latter two very much "bubble" shows.  Parenthood will also return - another renewal I'm thrilled with ... it's terrific.

CBS has renewed a great many of its shows, most recently Two and a Half Men.  Still up in the air are CSI: Miami, CSI: NY and Unforgettable.  We'll know this week if they all make the cut.

Check back here throughout the week for full Upfront updates.

So Who's Been Watching What?

Many thanks to Entertainment Weekly online (www.ew.com) for compiling a wrap-up of the most-to-least watched network (CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX and The CW) programs of the fall (September to December). 

Alas, my fave network, the CW, rounds out the bottom, but that won't stop me watching its awesome shows (of particular note, Supernatural, Vampire Diaries and Nikita).

Other shows I recommend:  Hawaii Five-0, Criminal Minds, How I met Your Mother, 2 Broke Girls, Suburgatory, Castle, Big Bang Theory, Ringer, Revenge, Glee, Body of Proof and Parenthood.

So where do your fave shows rank? (shows in red are cancelled)

1. NCIS (CBS, 21.4 million)
2. Sunday NFL Football (NBC, 19.9)
3. Two and a Half Men (CBS, 18.9)
4. Dancing with the Stars (ABC, 18.5)

5. NCIS: LA (CBS, 17.4)
6. DWTS: Results (ABC, 16.65)
7. Big Bang Theory (CBS, 16.61)
8. Modern Family (ABC, 15.066)
9. NFL Pre-Kick (NBC, 15.063)
10. 60 Minutes (CBS, 14.67)
11. Mentalist (CBS, 14.6)

12. Criminal Minds (CBS, 14.4)
13. The OT (Fox, 14.0)
14. 2 Broke Girls (CBS, 13.6)
15. Mike & Molly (CBS, 13.56)
16. Unforgettable (CBS, 13.532)
17. Person of Interest (CBS, 13.531)
18. Hawaii 5-0 (CBS, 13.4)
19. CSI (CBS, 13.2)
20. Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 13.1)

21. Blue Bloods (CBS, 12.9)
22. X Factor Wed (Fox, 12.5)
23. Survivor: South Pacific (CBS, 12.5)
24. X Factor Thurs (Fox, 12.3)
25. Castle (ABC, 12.2)
26. Once Upon a Time (ABC, 12.0)
27. Good Wife (CBS, 11.9)
28. How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 11.5)
29. Last Man Standing (ABC, 11.47)
30. Rules of Engagement (CBS, 11.45)
31. CSI: Miami (CBS, 11.42)
32. CSI: NY (CBS, 11.34)
33. Football Night in America 3 (NBC, 11.1)
34. Amazing Race 19 (CBS, 11.05)
35. Body of Proof (ABC, 11.03)
36. Desperate Housewives (ABC, 11.0)
37. Bones (Fox, 10.2)
38. New Girl (Fox, 10.0)
39. Terra Nova (Fox, 9.98)
40. Glee (Fox, 9.90)
41. Revenge (ABC, 9.8)
42. Middle (ABC, 9.82)
43. House (Fox, 9.7)
44. Law & Order: SVU (NBC, 9.1)
45. Suburgatory (ABC, 9.0)
46. Harry’s Law (NBC, 8.99)
47. Private Practice (ABC, 8.98)
48. How to be a Gentleman (CBS, 8.6 million)
49. A Gifted Man (CBS, 8.5)
50. Fear Factor (NBC, 8.5)
51. Pan Am (ABC, 8.2)
52. Simpsons (Fox, 7.77)
53. Happy Endings (ABC, 7.70)
54. Hell’s Kitchen Mon 9 (Fox, 7.4)
55. Hell’s Kitchen Mon 8 (Fox, 7.3)
56. Office (NBC, 7.29)
57. Family Guy (Fox, 7.26)
58. Parenthood (NBC, 7.1)
59. Grimm (NBC, 7.0)
60. Charlie’s Angels (ABC, 6.919)
61. Man Up (ABC, 6.915)
62. America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC, 6.8)
63. Biggest Loser 12 (NBC, 6.7)
64. Raising Hope (Fox, 6.6)
65. Sat. Night College Football (ABC, 6.30)
66. Up All Night (NBC, 6.14)
67. Prime Suspect (NBC, 6.12)
68. I Hate My Teenage Daughter (Fox, 6.0)
69. Football Night in America 2 (NBC, 5.97)
70. Dateline Fri (NBC, 5.93)
71. American Dad (Fox, 5.7)
72. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC, 5.77)
73. 48 Hours Mystery (CBS, 5.75)
74. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 9 p.m. (ABC, 5.4)
75. Whitney (NBC, 5.3)
76. Playboy Club (NBC, 5.2)
77. Sing Off (NBC, 5.17)
78. Cleveland Show (Fox, 5.14)
79. 20/20 Friday (ABC, 5.10)
80. Cleveland Show Sunday 8:30 (Fox, 5.07)
81. You Deserve It (ABC, 5.03)
82. Crimetime Sat 9 p.m. (CBS, 4.5)
83. Middle Tuesday (ABC, 4.48)
84. Allen Gregory (Fox, 4.45)
85. Parks and Recreation (NBC (4.42)
86. SVU Saturday (NBC, 4.3)
87. Kitchen Nightmares (Fox, 4.29)
88. Prime Suspect Sat. (NBC, 4.26)
89. Sat. Football pregame (ABC, 4.22)
90. COPS Sat. 8:30 (Fox, 4.19)
91. Community (NBC, 4.18)
92. Fringe (Fox, 4.10)
93. Rock Center (NBC, 4.01)
94. Free Agents (NBC, 3.9)
95. Chuck (NBC, 3.888)
96. Suburgatory Tues. (ABC, 3.886)
97. COPS Sat. 8 p.m. (Fox, 3.77)
98. Up All Night 8:30 (NBC, 3.72)
99. Comedytime Sat. 1 (CBS, 3.6)
100. Harry’s Law Sat. (NBC, 3.5)
101. Comedytime Sat. 2 (CBS, 3.3)
102. Vampire Diaries (CW, 3.1)
103. Terra Nova Sat. (Fox, 2.5)
104. America’s Next Top Model 17 (CW, 2.37)
105. Secret Circle (CW, 2.34)
106. Supernatural (CW, 2.25)
107. Hart of Dixie (CW, 2.1)
108. Nikita (CW, 2.06)
109. Ringer (CW, 2.02)
…112. 90210 (CW, 1.7)
113. Gossip Girl (CW, 1.68)
114. Bob’s Burgers (Fox, 1.65)
…120. H8R (CW, 1.2)

Tuesday Night TV - 90210 & Ringer

Fall TV officially kicked off for me tonight with the return of the deliciously unrealistic 90210 and the premiere of the noirish drama Ringer, which brings fan favorite Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) back to the small screen.

Say what you will about 90210, it doesn't shirk from tackling a slew of plot points at breakneck speed: college (Naomi, Annie), marriage (Raj and Ivy), proposals (Liam to Annie - twice), cancer (Raj), homosexuality (Teddy), marijuana (Naomi's new pad), love (all), hate (all) and, of course, ridiculous wealth (again, all).  No signs of a recession in these pretty people's lives.  Never ceases to amaze me the copious amounts of alcohol these underagers have access to.  Liam even manages to BUY HIS OWN BAR!  But where there is bad, there is also good: When Teddy struggles to come out to his father, Silver wisely tells him not to apologize for who he is.  Am I actually defending this show?  Well, that's what guilty pleasures are for.  And nice to see Matt Cohen (young John Winchester from Supernatural) working.

One of the more anticipated series this fall is this film noir-esque drama about twin sisters and their many, many secrets.  Sarah Michelle Gellar pulls double duty as Bridget, a recovering addict who is poised to testify against a mob crime boss, and Siobhan (pronounced Shivan), a wealthy New York socialite in a loveless marriage. 

**Episode details follow**

When Bridget takes off on her FBI protector Victor (Lost's Nestor Carbonell), she comes to Siobhan, whom she hasn't seen in six years.  Apparently something bad happened to Siobhan's son Sean years ago with Bridget seemingly to blame, but Siobhan assures her sister that all is forgiven.  Out for a boat ride to catch up, Bridget wakes up hours later to find Siobhan gone, only her wedding ring and an empty pill bottle left behind.

Believing her sister has killed herself, Bridget sees a way out and takes it, despite her own admission that "every time I clean up a mess I end up dirty." She soon finds she has taken on more than she bargained for: an emotionally distant husband (Ioan Gruffudd), a persistent lover - and Siobhan's best friend's husband (Kristoffer Polaha), an angry step-daughter, a surprise pregnancy and, at episode's end, a life-or-death struggle with a masked attacker Bridget thinks is after her, but is actually out to kill Siobhan, who we learn is actually alive and hiding out in Paris.

Pay particular attention to the use of mirrors throughout the show - they are EVERYWHERE - a clever metaphor for reflecting each character's duality back on them.  And, of course, they can't help but think of the other every time they look at themselves - the faces are the same, after all.  But what lies behind each face - the secrets, the lies, the betrayals - is sure to be revealed as the show progresses.

Bottom line:  An intriguing series worthy of a second look...

Catch Ringer on the CW Tuesdays at 9 p.m., immediately following 90210 at 8 p.m.