Tuned In+December 10, 2010

Kyra Sedgwick Closes The Closer

By James Poniewozik

I’ll admit I’ve never been a particular fan of The Closer, but for those of you who are, a bit of unfortunate and surprising news: next year’s season seven will be the last, because star Kyra Sedgwick has decided she’s done with it.

If it’s bad news for Closer fans, it must be worse for TNT, since the series has been one of the reliably best-rated on basic cable (though last summer’s success of Rizzoli and Isles may soften the blow a bit). And while the show–as a well-executed but not too ambitious crime procedurals–may not get the critical attention of other cable landmark shows like The Shield, it was significant for basic cable in showing that channels like TNT could compete with the broadcast networks in their own field (namely, well-executed but not-too-ambitious crime procedurals).

The press release after the jump:

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Tuned In+Uncategorized | July 13, 2010

The Morning After: Standard Operating Procedurals

By James Poniewozik

I feel like I should just get a time-saving review template to use over the summer. “Hey, everybody! A basic-cable network is premiering a light, escapist procedural about cops and/or spies with personality quirks and gritty, but not alienatingly challenging, cases! It’s not Mad Men, but what the hey, who wants to think about stuff [...]

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Tuned In+Television | May 19, 2010

Turner Upfront: Conan, Plus Some TV Channels

By James Poniewozik

From the perspective of Turner Networks executives, the reason to be at their upfront presentation this morning (which previewed the schedules of TBS and TNT), was “reach.” Even though this is traditionally the week that the big broadcast networks present their schedules, they argued, their cable networks reached enough viewers combined for them to be [...]

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Tuned In+Uncategorized | April 26, 2010

TNT Gives Southland a Third Season. (Also, There Was a Second Season.)

By James Poniewozik

If you were a fan of Southland—originally debuted in midseason by NBC a year ago, cancelled, then bought by TNT—you will be delighted to know that TNT has picked up the oft-praised but ratings-challenged (compared with TNT’s biggest hits) cop drama for a third season. You may also, like at least one follower of my [...]

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Tuned In+Uncategorized | November 2, 2009

Southland Gets Its Badge Back, at TNT

By James Poniewozik

TNT made it official this morning: it’s reviving the cop drama Southland, discarded by NBC. Well, sort of reviving. The cable network will air the first seven episodes shot last season, as well as the six that were made for NBC before the network pulled the plug (the rebroadcast starts Jan. 12). After that, we’ll [...]