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SCI FI Channel's First Quarter: Best Ever Among Women 18-34

CLICK here for SCI FI Channel's first quarter numbers (with some tidbits about Stargate Atlantis).

Fabulous Project Runway Tainted by Tsunami of Product Placement and Tacky Cross-Promotion

Bravo’s Project Runway, arguably the most addictive, compelling reality series on television, hit the skids recently when the WWE Divas – the Playboy Bunny-esque wrestlers who worm their way into men’s hearts on USA Network’s Raw - appeared on the show.

Project Runway’s contestants were introduced to the Divas as they slithered around a wrestling ring. Their challenge: create an outfit that could be worn in the ring.

Since both Bravo and USA are sister networks owned by NBC Universal, this ill-fitting concept appears to be some NBCU executive’s (or producer's) idea of clever cross-promotion.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Stargate Atlantis Mid-Season Premiere Brings Down The House

Tired of the same old, same old on the broadcast networks? The same stale romances and police procedurals? Then tap into the Stargate Atlantis mid-season opener, tomorrow (Friday) night at 10p on SCI FI Channel, for some pure escapist fun.

CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STARGATE ATLANTIS REVIEW

YIKES, I JUST OPENED MY COMCAST BILL

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY RATE HIKE.

From Katrina to Crushing Coke Cans: The Dumbing Down of Anderson Cooper

Just two years ago post-Katrina, the New York Times gushed over Anderson Cooper, the "anchor who reports with a heart on his sleeve....he's anything but slick and packaged."

I watched the last, interminable eight minutes of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 (or AC 360) the other night. After the inane banter between Cooper and correspondent Erica Hill which ended in Cooper crushing a coke can in an obviously scripted moment, my husband yelled from his office across the hall, "omg! it's the news equivalent of vaporware!"

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS STORY

Fact Patrol: USA Net Claims They're #1

It's the Fact Patrol!

Two days ago, a press release landed in my email box from USA Network. First off, when the email opened I was faced with this GI-NORMOUS USA Network logo - like, not kidding here - a super-sized 144 pt. font.

At the bottom, in small letters, the network declared, "USA STILL ON TOP."

After Disney's record-shattering week, led by the 17.2 million stampede to High School Musical 2, here's what USA Network is claiming.

(I don't know about y'all but...whatever the folks at USA Net. are smokin', can I have some? It must be some damn fine herb!)

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE STORY!

HBO's Big Love Moves to Sundays; Where's Deadwood?

Now that HBO's John from Cincinnati, the aimless David Milch surf drama, is going the way of Davy Jones' Locker, Big Love moves into the Sunday 9 p.m. slot for the last two episodes of its Sophomore season.

The move will further confuse viewers who were forced to adjust to a new Monday night time slot after HBO bumped the series from its Sunday perch.

HBO cancelled Deadwood to allow Milch to focus on JfC, a decision that will live in infamy.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE STORY

SCI FI Makes It Official: Paul McGillion Returns to Stargate Atlantis

In a press release distributed this morning, SCI FI Channel made it official: Paul McGillion, the actor who captured fan hearts as the compassionate Scot on Stargate Atlantis, will reprise his role for a fourth season, two episode arc. McGillion's character, Dr. Carson Beckett, was abruptly offed in an explosion during a third season episode titled "Sunday."

The series’ fourth season launches Friday, September 28 at 10pm ET/PT.

This isn't the first tiime that Stargate producers have nixed a favorite doc., however. Fans are still stinging from the death of another well-liked Stargate physician, SG-1's Dr. Janet Frasier (Teryl Rothery). Beckett's demise touched off an on-going and well-organized protest headquartered at savecarsonbeckett.com

But this is Stargate and anything's possible.

Anyone with an Internet connection has known for months that McGillion was set to appear in at least two fourth season episodes. But fans want more. They've been lobbying SCI FI and the producers to have McGillion permanently reinstated for season five.

CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY

HDNet to Air Torchwood

HDNet just announced that they have acquired the HD rights to the first twenty-six episodes of Torchwood, the darker cousin spin-off of BBC's Dr. Who series starring John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness.

CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY!

ComicCon: BET Executives Tout Hannibal, Bufu & More

CLICK HERE TO READ PART ONE OF THIS POST!!

PART TWO

Okay - back to our regularly scheduled blogging.

Orlando Jones' Bufu is an animated sketch comedy. BET aired several segments, including "Who Needs They Ass Whooped!?," a skewed take on old game show formats like The Dating Game.

"Let's meet the panel!" enthuses the host. Says the first lanky panelist, "uhhh, I'm a first round, NBA draft pick. I have ten kids w/ six different women...two Ferraris and a Hummer...and I don't pay child support. I need my ass whooped."

And a belt-swinging midget runs out on stage to administer the whooping.

Then there's the "History in The Making" skit: "A black man swimming on television, the first African American male to qualify for the 200 meter freestyle," says the voice-over. He sinks but sprints on foot along the bottom of the pool.

One of the running gags is Tyra Banks big forehead. One segment took a swipe at the entertainment industry and "misogynist music videos." No one is safe and it's all killer funny.

When an audience member begged for a black super-hero series, the panelists provided no details but they assured the audience that a project would eventually get the greenlight.

Said Jones : "By next year there will be one out for sure. I'm working on one."

Hudlin: "We're developing some properties. That's an inevitability"

Cowan: "Get ready for it. It will be another revolution."

During the discussion of Hannibal, Cowan spoke passionately about what they are trying to accomplish at BET. "Black culture is a vast cultural oasis that hasn't examined," he explained, "there haven't been that many successful black animated shows, only four or five which is pretty sad....we're creating a black mythology. It's very important. [The European culture has] Conan, and Superman. Hannibal is vitally important to us as a people. Hannibal is North African. We're developing this stuff with intent to expand, to bring forth this great culture that we have. It's a real mission for us. I just wanted to get that out there."

At one point Hudlin addressed some of the recent controversies and defended the network. "The backlash has been great," he said with good humor, "I declare victory! We've launched five shows this month. They've all been ratings successes. We also have a show called Baldwin Hills about middle class black people in an LA suburb. But journalists have no interest in writing about middle class, smart black kids who sit around talking about what college to go to....there are always are going to be people who don't watch BET but who swear they'll never watch BET again....

After the laughter died down, Hudlin continued, "I don't care...because we program 18-34, we're gong to program provocative content. Any network who targets that audience is going to face controversy...Fox had it w/ Married with Children, FX had it w/ The Shield, Comedy Central had it w/ South Park, MTV had it w/ pretty much every show they ever put on. It comes w/ the territory. It means you're making noise."

(Orlando Jones. photo by M. McNamara)
Jones also had something to say about pushing the envelope and he used basketball to illustrate his point. "There will always be someone will come along to say it wasn't right... it used to be that you shot the jump shot at the top of jump. And kids who didn't know better came along and shot on the way down, did 360's ...dunking balls, as opposed to lay ups. Innovative culture is about doing it the way it hasn't been done, and facing that fall-out....Don Imus said something and all of a sudden hip hop is under fire? I'm confused by the whole thing. I truly am! I hope you push the envelope and do something I didn't think of."

But the best line of the hour definitely belonged to Hudlin. At one point, a young black man in the audience approached the mic and complained that he hadn't been invited to sit on the panel, "My boys, we been doing comics for ten years. We were the first to use hip-hop in comics," he groused. "We should be up there with you all. We sill don't get the support..."

Hudlin said something about "letting the marketplace decide." The panel was sympathetic and Cowan invited him to visit the BET convention floor booth to present his material.

"Will you support good black characters with your dollars!? Miranda Mercury - a black female sci fi heroine written by Brandon Thomas," the audience member then hyped, "coming out in February. Buy it!!"

Hudlin was lightening fast on the uptake. "And any Asian girls in audience," he announced, "will you date a black man?"

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