Jeffery Dean Morgan and Katherine Heigl, Grey's Anatomy
Question: Matt, I am so upset. When I found out that Grey's Anatomy was moving from Sundays to Thursdays I almost cried. I understand every network wants to win the ratings on Thursday. But can Grey's Anatomy overtake CSI? I don't think it will; I think it can compete and hold its own. Grey's Anatomy is my favorite show on TV and I would rather it be safe on Sundays after the horrible Desperate Housewives than go up against CSI. Let's say that the ratings aren't good enough on Thursdays. Do you think ABC will move it back to Sundays, or even put it on Mondays? Or do you think they will stick out the season on Thursdays? I know you can never tell what the networks are going to do, and it's early yet (this season just ended), but I just don't want anything to happen to this show. Oh, and how awesome is it that Kate Walsh and Eric Dane signed on for all of Season 3? Addison is my favorite character, and with Eric Dane back, there should be some good stuff coming our way. And thank God ...
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Question: No, no, no! Please tell me ABC can't possibly be thinking about messing with their Sunday-night lineup! I realize that they want to spread the wealth around to other nights, but come on, don't screw up our Sundays! It's the best way to end the weekend, being able to catch Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy before the start of the work week. What will our Monday mornings be like if we can't sit around dissecting our favorite shows?
Answer: If it does come to pass that ABC splits up Housewives and Anatomy, the main motivation will be (presumably, according to the buzz) to strengthen the network on Monday night, which is now newly open after the departure of Monday Night Football. I would think Housewives will stay where it is. Even with its decline in quality, it's still a huge draw on a competitive night. When Anatomy airs its two-hour finale on Monday, May 15, we'll see how strong a contender it is on that tough night, but I'm betting it will do extremely well. And while
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Question: Why don't more networks take an approach to their shows like FX does? They show the majority of their dramas in the same time slot (Tuesdays at 10 pm/ET) but rotate them throughout the year. This seems to work for their hit shows like The Shield, Nip/Tuck and Rescue Me, so why don't networks like ABC try it for their shows? ABC could alternate 10- to 12-episode half-seasons of shows like Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy between a given time slot. One could start in late August, run for 11 weeks straight, let the next one take over until the end of December, switch again for the second half in January, and then trade places one more time in March for the other half of the other show. It's a little confusing, but I think it could work in the long run, especially for those who don't like constant repeats throughout a regular season.
Answer: Shared time slots work on cable and even (to a lesser degree) on mininetworks like WB. But as frustrating as repeats are, they're part
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T.R. Knight and Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy
Question: How awesome was Grey's Anatomy last Sunday? For an hour I forgot all about losing shows like Threshold, Arrested Development and Love Monkey. The shower scene near the end echoing, but so starkly contrasting, the fantasy the week before — fantastic! There were way too many great details to mention them all. I was so glad that Bailey's husband didn't die. The whole widowed-while-giving-birth thing just seemed so gimmicky. My only beef is that once the bomb was out of the body, it just seemed so obvious that it would blow up the bomb guys. It's hard to forgive anyone for blowing up Kyle Chandler, but all in all it was pretty amazing and I guess that with the other surprises they gave us, I shouldn't complain if there was some predictable stuff.
Answer: No, indeed, this is not the time to nitpick. That sensational two-parter was, I think, the turning point in Grey's Anatomy's already sensational success story. As you may have heard, Sunday's episode was the first time Anatomy
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Question: It's well known that ABC has a difficult time trying to fill Monday nights after football ends in December. Now with the NFL moving to ESPN on Monday nights next season, that leaves ABC with a three-hour gap that it can't (or shouldn't) plug with all untested shows. What do you think the chances are that ABC will move Grey's Anatomy to Mondays for next season? It would be a strong show to anchor the night and the strongest show to move without having the rest of its original night (Sunday) fall apart.
Answer: It's anyone's guess, but there's an upside and downside to this theory. First, it's a big risk for a network to dismantle a winning night, as tempting as it might be to move a hit like Anatomy to shore up a crucial new night of programming. If ABC develops another show as compatible as this to Desperate Housewives, that might make it easier. Pitting Anatomy against a powerhouse like CSI: Miami may also give ABC pause, though it would be compelling counterprogrammming an ...
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Question: Grey's Anatomy is one of the best shows on television at the moment and they so deserve the slot after the Super Bowl, but I'm starting to get fed up with the character of Meredith. I realize she is supposed to be the star, but her pining over McDreamy (her one-night stand) is getting annoying. She has not developed and acts like a little girl. On the other hand, I find the character of Addison very refreshing, and I hope the creators of the show give her more of a story line away from Derek. I'm hoping for a love story with Alex or George because Derek doesn't deserve her. I have read various websites and most of them agree that Meredith is annoying, yet the other characters are far more developed and more likable, especially "Prestina" (Cristina and Preston). Do you think the character of Meredith needs a major overhaul?
Answer: I'd agree with you if Meredith didn't already consider herself pathetic for not being able to get over McDreamy, who's much more than a one-night
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Question: I know that Sandra Oh and Patrick Dempsey are getting all the award nominations for Grey's Anatomy, but after watching some recent episodes, T.R. Knight has been the standout for me. In "Begin the Begin" he helped a teenage girl understand what she really wanted to be in life, and in "Tell Me Sweet Little Lies," he and Carole Cook had maybe the best scene I've seen in this show since Cristina screamed and sobbed, "Somebody sedate me!" Knight has finally come into his own; he has become moving and distinguished in subtle ways. If anything, I think he deserves some award recognition. I know you don't base your TV-watching on awards, but I'm an awards-show aficionado. What do you think his chances are at the Emmys this year? P.S.: I admire your column and read it every Monday and Wednesday. Thanks!
Answer: Thank you. I'd seen T.R. Knight a number of times on stage before he got this big break with a character that fits him like a surgical glove. He is terrific: hilarious,
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As long as Lost and Brokeback Mountain won the big awards, which they did, anything else that happened at the historically random (and often, randomly hilarious) Golden Globes was gravy to me.
What I love about the Golden Globes as a TV show is the rare opportunity to see movie and TV stars — or, in the case of Felicity Huffman, one and the same — share the spotlight. After all, where would a multinominated movie star and director like George Clooney be without TV having made him what he is? And then there's Geena Davis, resplendent in red and accepting her Commander in Chief Globe with a hilarious mock anecdote of how inspiring her presidential role is to some little girl she made up. She has gone from TV to movies (and an
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Question: In your Jan. 9 posting, Christine asked why roughly five million people who watch Desperate Housewives do not watch Grey's Anatomy. You presented one logical explanation, that some people do not watch past 10 pm/ET due to work the next day. Then you seem perplexed by the rest of us who like to stay with Housewives but not with Grey's Anatomy. To start out with, I would consider myself a connoisseur of television. I say this so that you won't consider me a simple dolt who just watches action and procedural shows. I love good writing, chemistry between the actors, intelligent interactions, interesting background. But to me, it's simple. I do not like shows with a straight-out "soap opera" formula (their main focus is how many people they can get their characters involved with in varying situations) like ER, Grey's Anatomy, Beverly Hills, 90210 and Gilmore Girls, etc. I admit that I watched the first few shows of Anatomy, ER and L.A. Law but soon grew bored by the soap-opera ...
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Grey's Anatomy
Question: Is it just me, or is Grey's Anatomy the third-best show on TV right now (behind Lost and Veronica Mars, of course)? This last episode, "Make Me Lose Control," was amazing, and Ellen Pompeo gave a terrific performance. I love how there are compelling stories for both the main characters and the patients in the episode, unlike the past-its-prime ER. What you think of the second season? To me it is way better than its lead-in, Desperate Housewives, or another one of my faves, Gilmore Girls (which has been under par this season). Why don't you mention it in your column more? It is a perennial Top 10 show. Oh, love the column, by the way.
Answer: Well, thanks. I'm also a bit surprised I don't get more questions/comments on Grey's Anatomy, because it's really hitting its stride these days. I was lukewarm on the show when it premiered late last season — the pilot episode overused the voice-over narration, which only exacerbated the "It's hard work being a doctor-in-training" clichés.
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