Once upon a time, a TV season was pretty clearly defined; it stretched from fall to late spring, included a hiatus or two and was about 22 episodes long -- give or take. Then, cable started shifting seasons around the calendar, and it was only a matter of time before some network yahoo decided that if the season start and end dates weren’t fixed, then the length didn’t have to be either. So, we now get seasons that stretch out over a year or more, and some that fit into a fiscal quarter. Such is the case with THE SHIELD, which just wrapped up season six with the tenth episode. Yes, tenth. That’s a miniseries, not a season. Despite the recent renaissance of quality television, there’s a definite sensation of getting ripped off here.
Doing my taxes. Loading the dishwasher. Watching the Military Channel. Standing in the security line at the airport. These things are ALL more interesting than ON THE LOT, Fox’s sad attempt to bring the glamour of AMERICAN IDOL to filmmaking.
The executives at Fox realize there’s a problem with the moribund show, and that’s why instead of two or three hours to broadcast this week, there is only one. “Hallelujah,” says this intrepid reporter. Instead of having to sit through fifteen short films, I only had to sit through five, and you know what? That was more than enough.