Apparently, the Christian Slater TV curse is starting to affect shows he’s not even on. Although, I guess we can’t really blame him for these latest Fox cancellations.
After all, the writing was pretty much on the wall for Human Target already, what with the eleventh-hour renewal last year. That’s right folks, late yesterday Fox announced the cancellation of Human Target, Breaking In and The Chicago Code.
Even though Human Target had been given a second season, the show had continually struggled in the ratings and I was actually surprised it came back for season two at all. It’s sad, though, as the show was really finding just the right blend of action, drama and humor with a cast that was clicking very well.
Same with Chicago Code. It was an interesting show that really seemed to be finding its way.
Oh well. I though the same thing about Firefly, Dollhouse and a lot of other shows and look where that got me.
As for Slater’s show, even though it started strong with a good lead in from American Idol, it was just a matter of time. Apparently, audiences don’t want to see Slater on TV. Perhaps he should go back to making movies?
With Human Target gone, Smallville ending this week and Chuck currently on the bubble for next year, there’s only a few genre shows left on network TV. What to watch?
After airing only two episodes the extremely low rated Fox series Lone Star has met its demise and been canceled by the network. Starting next Monday, Lone Star will be replaced by the surprise (at least to me) hit Lie to Me, which is having its premiere moved up to fill the gap left by Lone Star.
This shouldn’t come as any surprise given the ratings disaster that was Lone Star. Even with strong critical praise, It opened with a 1.3 rating. Not great for a show with as much press around it. Fox gave it one more chance but in its second airing the show actually slipped further in the ratings delivering a dismal 1.0 for the second outing. That pretty much closed the door on the show for good.
In the fallout of the Lone Star cancellation, Fox will move Human Target from Fridays to Wednesdays, taking over the slot originally given to Lie To Me which will now be on Monday. Lie to Me was to premiere on November 10 and run on Wednesday at 8 PM, leading into an one-hour Hell’s Kitchen.
Human Target will now premiere on November 17. A two-hour Hell’s Kitchen will air on November 10. Do you follow all that? We hope so. Are you sad to see Lone Star go? What do you think will be the next casualty of the Fall season?
One of the nice things about running your own website is that you can highlight movies, comics, games, TV shows or other entertainments that otherwise might not get a lot of attention or even, in some cases, slip under the radar completely. One such show is Fox’s Human Target which, in spite of its great cast led by Mark Valley and featuring Jackie Earle Haley, has not exactly been a ratings winner for the network.
Fortunately, the show has been given a second season and hopefully it will find new fans and become a big hit. It’s a great show with a good mix of action, drama and humor and an engaging cast which makes for an entertaining hour of TV each week. To help get potential fans excited for the new season and for established fans who want to relive their favorite moments, the show is coming to Blu-ray and DVD.
To help kick things off right we’ve got a scene from the show to share with you which helps illustrate the action, characters and humor I referenced earlier. This scene, part of the special features on the Blu-ray and DVD release, gives you a great idea of what the show is about.
Other highlights of the release include all twelve episodes, featurettes, commentary with cast and producers as well as a gag reel. So, with tall that in mind, check out the promo for the release after the jump.
Human Target The Complete First hits store shelves on September 21.
With Comic-Con in San Diego only a few short weeks away, more networks, studios and the like are releasing their plans for what they will be showcasing at the Con. This year, Warner Bros. TV looks to be pulling out all the stops and is bringing representatives from 14 of their TV series to San Diego.
Among those attending are some of the stars and producers of The Big Bang Theory, Chuck, Fringe, Human Target, Nikita, Smallville, Supernatural, Children’s Hospital and more. In addition, Warner Bros. Entertainment will have a booth at the Con to host signings, video game demos, giveaways and more.
It’s nice to see major studio like Warner Bros. giving the Con such a great amount of attention. Although, they really should be, as should all studios and networks. After all, the people who attend the Con are the exact people they want watching their shows.
Check out the full press release for all the details on Warner Bros. at Comic-Con. And, be sure to check back right here for all your San Diego Comic-Con 2010 previews, news, reviews, interviews and more.
To be honest, I haven’t really watched much of Tim Roth’s show Lie to Me. However, I’m really excited for the news that Fox has apparently renewed the show Human Target. According to EW’s Michael Ausiello (who is usually right about this stuff) the network has decided that the freshmen drama needs another 13 episodes to really find an audience.
Although, as Ausiello points out, there’s no “official” word from Fox, his sources confirm that the network is about to pick up Lie to Me for a 13-episode third season. But more importantly, at least for me and probably for you too, Fox has also opted to bring back struggling freshman drama Human Target for a 13-episode second season as well.
In addition, the network will reportedly bring in former Chuck co-executive producer Matthew Miller to be the new co-showrunner alongside Jonathan Steinberg.That’s an interesting decision as I felt the show was pretty good the way it was. Usually when networks do things like this they don’t like the way the show is going creatively or they need someone who can keep costs in line (or both).
More than likely Fox is going to do with Human Target what NBC did with Chuck, cut the budget but allow it to have another season. So, in that respect, it makes perfect sense to bring in someone like Miller who has experience with a show where the budget is greatly reduced but still manages to make the show look good.
Whatever the reasons, I’m just glad Human Target is getting another chance. It’s a good show that deserves it.
In case you were busy last night and were not able to catch the great dramas on NBC, including Chuck, Trauma, Law & Order and more, we’ve got highlights from the shows for you today. Starting with one of our favorites, Chuck, the clips highlights a fight between our hero and some tough guys which results in a precarious predicament for Chuck.
On Trauma, Nancy realizes she’s got to do whatever it takes if she really wants to be a doctor. For Law & Order, Lupo and Bernard go head-to-head with McCoy after clashing over how to handle a case. Plus, we’ve got a preview of next week’s show featuring guest star Tony Hale in a dramatic role as a father involved in a bitter international custody battle.
Finally, on Jimmy Fallon, Human Target‘s Mark Valley drops by to talk about his love of Civil War reenactments and also he shows Jimmy how throw a fake punch. Being a pretty good action guy on the show, he should know.
Fox has got quite a big month ahead of them. Between the return of 24 and American Idol, those shows alone should make the network a number one contender for ratings this spring. They also may be getting some help from a new show based on, of all things, a comic book.
The new series in question is Human Target starring Mark Valley (Boston Legal), Chi McBride (Pushing Daisies), and Jackie Earl Haley (Watchmen). It’s based on the DC Comics character, who assumes the identity of potential assassination victims and takes out their would-be killers before they get the chance to off their target.
The series is making quite a lot of noise among the TV and comic community, and all of that noise seems to be positive. With director Simon West (Con Air, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider) at the helm and composer Bear McCreary (Battlestar Galacitca) doing the score, this could turn out to be an amazing project or a colossal flop.
Either way, we’ve got a few clips to get you excited for the pilot, which airs on Sunday, January 17th opposite the Golden Globes (not smart). The pilot even guest stars fan favorite Tricia Helfer, which should get some fanboys interested.
Yes, you read that correctly. Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief claims “not sucking” is a sound business strategy. Okay, I can’t argue that point. From a business perspective not sucking, or at the very least sucking less then your competition, should be somewhere in the business plan and/or mission statement.
Unfortunately for Quesada, someone at Marvel hasn’t read said business plan. If they had we, the fans, would not have been forced to endure Ghost Rider, either Fantastic Four film or the trilogy of reboots that was The Punisher, The Punisher and The Punisher: War Zone. Quesada should probably send out a memo to the staff regarding his suck less initiative just as a reminder.
The show, which features Mark Valley (Fringe and the under-appreciated Keen Eddie), Tricia Helfer (BSG), Jackie Earle Haley (Watchmen) and Chi McBride, centers on a bodygard named Chance who has a rather unique way of protecting his clients: he assumes their identities and becomes, in effect, the ‘human target’ to keep them safe.
Human Target, which is based on the DC comic created by Len Wein, Carmine Infantino and Dick Giordano, premieres in January. But in the meantime, take a look at one of the clips below. For the rest, head on over to Sci-Fi Wire.
Last week we brought you news of this new Fox series before and were able to drop some details about the show based on the DC comic, its stars Mark Valley (formerly of Fringe and the under-appreciated Keen Eddie) and Tricia Helfer (from BSG, of course) and some other tidbits. But sadly, at that time, we didn’t have anything to show which would help you, and us, get a feel for how the show would look and help figure out if it might be good or not.
Fortunately, that’s no longer the case because today there’s a brand new trailer for the show to fill in those missing pieces. In this new trailer we finally get to see not only Mark Valley as Christopher Chance, but several of the other series cast including Jackie Earle Haley and Chi McBride. We also get to see Tricia Helfer looking great as usual and doing action which is good fun.
The three-minute trailer offers a pretty good first impression of the acting, tone and action the series is going to offer. Looks pretty good to me. I guess we’ll find out for sure when Human Target debuts on Fox in january. Meantime, check out the trailer below.
According to our friends over at ComicMix, the official word is in that Fox has picked up the DC comics series Human Target as one of its new Fall television series. The pilot, based on the comic created by Len Wein, Carmine Infantino and Dick Giordano, was apparently the most popular one shown at Fox’s recent network screenings.
In case you’re not familiar with Human Target, it concerns bodyguard Christopher Chance, played by Mark Valley in the new show, who has a rather unique way of helping his clients: he assumes their identities and becomes the “human target” to protect them. Others in the cast include Jackie Earle Haley, recently of Watchmen and the upcoming Nightmare on Elm Street and Chi McBride from Pushing Daisies and House.
The pilot was written by Jon Steinberg and directed by Simon West of Con-Air and Lara Croft fame. Steinberg and West exec. produced the pilot along with McG, director of the upcoming Terminator: Salvation. Also according to ComicMix, this latest show continues a long streak of Len Wein’s comics work being adapted for the screen. Some of his others include Swamp Thing, Wolverine, Storm, Colossus and Lucius Fox.
Apparently, even Even Human Target has been adapted before for TV before in a 1992 series on ABC starring Rick Springfield — which only lasted seven episodes. Let’s hope this new show does a little better.
Apparently, the Christian Slater TV curse is starting to affect shows he’s not even on. Although, I guess we can’t really blame him for these latest Fox cancellations.
Marvel’s chief fanboy, 
We previously brought you word about this series a few days ago with 
Last week we brought you 
According to our friends over at ComicMix, the official word is in that 
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