By ED LEFT Source: SyFy Portal Feb-18-2008 The Writers Guild of America strike has ended, and the networks are making their plans for the remainder of the season and beyond. And because of the strike, we didn't have a normal pilot season.
Instead, the networks started ordering series directly instead of ordering a pilot, or even ordered foreign series. Here's a look at the new series coming to your screens in the next twelve months or so. "Dollhouse" will air on Fox, was created and produced by Joss Whedon, and stars Eliza Dushku. It's about men and women imprinted with different personalities and skills for different assignments, and then having those personalities wiped clean when the assignment is completed. When between assignments, they live like children in the Dollhouse, their dormitory/laboratory. They live with no memories of which they are, until Echo, played by Dushku, begins to remember. I like the concept behind this show. If it was airing on a cable network, I think we'd have a winner. However, it will be airing on Fox. Joss Whedon is a genre fan favorite, but let's face it, he hasn't really had a hit show. Although "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" had long runs, they ran on minor netlets. Neither show would have lasted on a major network. "Firefly" did air on a major network, and it was a ratings failure. Dushku previously starred in genre series "Tru Calling," and it also failed in the ratings. Combining Whedon, Dushku and Fox does not spell success. I think we'll only see the seven episodes contracted, if that. "Fear Itself," a horror anthology from NBC, promises be much like Showtime's "Masters of Horror," providing 60-minute telefilms by name horror writers and directors. Anthologies don't work on network television anymore. This one is doomed before it starts. "The Listener" is being produced by CTV in Canada, and has been bought by NBC to air this coming summer/fall. Paramedic Toby Logan, played by Craig Olejnik, has "the power to listen to people's most intimate thoughts." With the help of his friend and partner Osman Bey (Ennis Esmer), they save lives and solve mysteries. Borrowing from "Heroes," they take the most lame of abilities and build a show around it. It could work, but it would depend on the strength of the writing and the acting. I don't hold out much hope. "Middleman" from writer-producer Javier Grillo-Marxuach of "Lost" fame, stars Natalie Morales as a struggling artist recruited by an agency to fight comic-book style villains. Matt Keeslay co-stars as Middleman, her superhero guide and mentor. It's on ABC Family, so expect it to be pointed at the family crowd, and it will probably have a "Kyle XY" look and feel. It seems on ABC Family, cast and chemistry is the most important aspect. If they're likeable, the show will probably stick around. "Sanctuary," the Web series picked up by the SciFi Channel, stars Amanda Tapping as Dr. Helen Magnus. Magnus runs the Sanctuary, which is a home to various creatures of myth and legend, who must be tracked down and protected. Dr. Will Zimmerman, played by Robin Dunne assists her in her quest. It's cheap to produce, and airs on SciFi. It's a match made in heaven. It also has "Stargate SG-1" connections, which will bring in a ready-made audience. This show could have legs. "Section 8" has been picked up by ABC for a six-episode order. The premise is a group of everyday people with "advanced neurological abnormalities" who work for a secret government agency. This sounds like a very thinly veiled "Heroes" homage. Or maybe it's more like "Misfits of Science"? We'll find out. "True Blood" is brought to us by HBO, and is based on the Southern Vampire book series by Charlaine Harris. It features Sookie Stackhouse, played by Anna Paquin, a mind reading barmaid in Louisiana who falls in love with vampire Bill Compton, played by Stephen Moyer. Vampires are no longer a secret, and can feed on a synthetic blood developed by the Japanese. It's HBO, so you know they will be spending some money on it. But I wonder if vampire fans will tune into another vampire series so soon after the demise of "Blood Ties" and the fate of "Moonlight" still up in the air. Getting Anna Paquin to star was a good move, and it guarantees I will check out the pilot, at least. "Wizard's First Rule" is a new first-run syndication series set to air this fall. Produced by Spider-Man director Sam Raimi, this series is based on the "Sword of Truth" book series by Terry Goodkind, and "follows the extraordinary transformation of woodsman Richard Cypher into a magical leader who joins with a mysterious woman to stop a blood-thirsty tyrant." It has guaranteed coverage on the Tribune stations, so it will air in the major U.S. markets. Straight fantasy has never done well on the tube, but campy fantasy has. It remains to be seen which this will be. So there we have it, the new genre series coming to our TV in the next 12 or so months. This doesn't include any of the current shows returning, or any additional series ordered from pilots. There were a few pilots ordered before the strike, and more are going into production as we speak. Next time out, I'll go over the pilot projects in the works. If you'd like to chat about this column, you can join our message board discussions by clicking here. Ed Left is a columnist for SyFy Portal, who was kind enough to take his mittens off long enough to type this article. He also is the Webmaster of Sci-Fi On TV. He can be reached at [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.syfyportal.com/pagetogether.php?id=4731&page=3 Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
