Skip to main content

Summer of '76: CBS Announces Launch of "Swingtown"

Remember Swingtown, that daring social experiment that CBS developed last year, however incongruous its 1970s suburban swingers might seem with the procedurals that populate the Eye's schedule?

For a while it seemed like the series, which stars Coupling's Jack Davenport, would be a casualty of the WGA strike as production was shut down on the drama early on and only a handful of the series' 13-episode commitment were actually produced.

CBS has now revealed that it will launch Swingtown this summer, rather than during the typical network season. The series will launch on CBS on May 29th.

The move doesn't strike me as being particularly confident. In fact, it seems like CBS just wants to burn off Swingtown during the summer and be done with it.

However, executive producer Carol Barbee told The Hollywood Reporter that she's pleased with the summer scheduling: ""A summer launch is perfect for Swingtown since the pilot takes place on the Bicentennial Fourth of July."

At least someone is taking those lemons and turning them into lemonade... Me, I can't see the particular sweetness of this decision, except for the fact that it gives the series some diminished expectations in terms of ratings. That said, I would be very surprised if the series, from studio CBS Paramount Television, makes it all the way through its run, much less is picked up for a second go-around.

Swingtown, your best bet might just be to leave your keys in the bowl.

Comments

Although summer scheduling doesn't bode well for Swingtown, it might attract a bigger audience during those sunny months when people are looking for a guilty pleasure to tune in to.
Anonymous said…
I really wanted to like this show. It has a solid cast and a different premise...sort of a naughty Wonder Years. I did get to see the first episode and, while it didn't quite live up to my expectations, it has potential. I guess I'll have to tune in this summer to check out the second episode and see if it gets any better.
Anonymous said…
Leave your keys in the bowl....nice. :)

While I didn't think the filmed pilot lived up to the fun script, I was still sucked in by the set decoration and costumes (And awesome hair!). I will be tuning in for at least episode 2.

Popular posts from this blog

What's Done is Done: The Eternal Struggle Between Good and Evil on the Season Finale of "Lost"

Every story begins with thread. It's up to the storyteller to determine just how much they need to parcel out, what pattern they're making, and when to cut it short and tie it off. With last night's penultimate season finale of Lost ("The Incident, Parts One and Two"), written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, we began to see the pattern that Lindelof and Cuse have been designing towards the last five seasons of this serpentine series. And it was only fitting that the two-hour finale, which pushes us on the road to the final season of Lost , should begin with thread, a loom, and a tapestry. Would Jack follow through on his plan to detonate the island and therefore reset their lives aboard Oceanic Flight 815 ? Why did Locke want to kill Jacob? What caused The Incident? What was in the box and just what lies in the shadow of the statue? We got the answers to these in a two-hour season finale that didn't quite pack the same emotional wallop of previous season

Pilot Inspektor: CBS' "Smith"

I may just have to change my original "What I'll Be Watching This Fall" post, as I sat down and finally watched CBS' new crime drama Smith this weekend. (What? It's taken me a long time to make my way through the stack of pilot DVDs.) While it's on following Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars on Tuesday nights (10 pm ET/PT, to be exact), I'm going to be sure to leave enough room on my TiVo to make sure that I catch this compelling, amoral drama. While one can't help but be impressed by what might just be the most marquee-friendly cast in primetime--Ray Liotta, Virginia Madsen, Jonny Lee Miller, Amy Smart, Simon Baker, and Franky G all star and Shohreh Aghdashloo has a recurring role--the pilot's premise alone earned major points in my book: it's a crime drama from the point of view of the criminals, who engage in high-stakes heists. But don't be alarmed; it's nothing like NBC's short-lived Heist . Instead, think of it as The Italian

The Daily Beast: "How The Killing Went Wrong"

While the uproar over the U.S. version of The Killing has quieted, the show is still a pale imitation of the Danish series on which it is based. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "How The Killing Went Wrong," in which I look at how The Killing has handled itself during its second season, and compare it to the stunning and electrifying original Danish series, Forbrydelsen , on which it is based. (I recently watched all 20 episodes of Forbrydelsen over a few evenings.) The original is a mind-blowing and gut-wrenching work of genius. It’s not necessary to rehash the anger that followed in the wake of the conclusion last June of the first season of AMC’s mystery drama The Killing, based on Søren Sveistrup’s landmark Danish show Forbrydelsen, which follows the murder of a schoolgirl and its impact on the people whose lives the investigation touches upon. What followed were irate reviews, burnished with the “burning intensity of 10,000 white-hot suns