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The Daily Beast: "Is J.J. Abrams Too Big for TV?"

Sci-fi auteur Abrams' latest TV show, Undercovers , has gotten the axe at NBC. Over at The Daily Beast, I take look at what went wrong and why TV needs a fully-committed, not watered down, Abrams in my latest feature, "Is J.J. Abrams Too Big for TV?" Do you agree with my assessment? Did you try to watch Undercovers ? Do you miss the days of Lost, Alias , and Felicity ? Should Abrams be more committed to these television endeavors even as his feature film career skyrockets? Or is it a case of over-committing, audience expectations, or creative partnerships? Head to the comments section to discuss.

The WB to Return as Online Site

Feeling nostalgic for a time when Lorelai and Luke sparred over a morning cup of coffee, Felicity Porter had not yet cut her trademark locks, or Buffy was still an only child, a mini-skirted naif whose destiny was thrust onto her? Such nostalgia has gotten a little easier with the news that Warner Bros is relaunching The WB, home to such series as Gilmore Girls, Felicity , and Buffy the Vampire Slayer ... not as a linear television network, but as a web site. The ad-supported site, which has wb.com as its working title, will serve as an online home for all Warners-produced WB series that ran on the network during its brief lifespan from 1995 to 2006, including Gilmore Girls, Everwood , and What I Like About You . (It's still, sadly, unclear whether that will eventually include non-Warners produced titles like the aforementioned Buffy or Felicity , but fingers crossed.) It will also include original short-form series, all targeted at the WB's signature demographic of women 12-3...

Bidding Adieu to the Dubba-Dubba-WB

Sayonara, Michigan J. Frog. It's with a heavy heart that I'll sit down on Sunday night and watch the WB sign off. It seems like only yesterday (eleven years ago, in fact) that the little netlet-that-could launched and brought an (in)attentive audience shows like Muscle and Unhappily Ever After . For me, the WB truly launched back in 1997 when it started airing seminal series like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dawson's Creek , two programs that more than any others put the fledgling network on the map for audiences and critics alike. But, alas, all good things, as they say... On Sunday night, the WB will take its final bow before rising like a phoenix from the ashes of What I Like About You to become the CW, another unfortunately monikered netlet comprised of the old CW and UPN, who are coming together to battle the evil forces of more dominant networks together. It's either a canny mix or a big old mess. Throw in some vegetables from craft services, as Carl Weathers mi...