[Televisionary]

I had to reread the following story because, at first glance, it seemed completely 100 percent fabricated: netlet the CW is developing an updated spin-off of Beverly Hills 90210 . Before you start to get images in your head of Brandon and Brenda's Minnesota cousins moving to BevHills and enrolling at the local lycee under the tutelage of, say, Gabrielle Carteris' Andrea, let's pause for a second to remember that one of the all-time great primetime soaps-- Melrose Place , natch--was a spin-off of the hallowed zip-code series that could and didn't feature any characters from the original flagship series. (Though remember how Jennie Garth's Kelly turned up at first following Jake around like a lovesick puppy?) While Beverly Hills 90210 creator Darren Star won't be involved with the series, The Hollywood Reporter says that the CW is in talks with Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas to write the pilot script. And if anyone knows the sophisticated teenage class warfa

Just when Runway withdrawal hit an all-time high after last week's finale, Bravo kindly offered us another reality fix with the fantastic launch last night of Season Four of culinary competition series Top Chef . (If you haven't already read it--and shame on you if you didn't!--you can check out my advance review of the Top Chef: Chicago premiere right here .) While I gave the premiere a glowing review worthy of a four-star dinner (even with the appearance of the icky Rocco DiSpirito), I couldn't of course divulge the identity of the ousted cheftestant, due to some confidentiality restrictions from Bravo, who had kindly provided me with the DVD screener. Fortunately, now that the episode has aired, I can talk about this thorny issue. I completely agree with the judges' decision to have Nimma pack her knives and go and my reasons had nothing whatsoever to do with her anti-social behavior on the first night in the house. Seriously, I get that this is a competition b

Aussie actor Josh Lawson has been cast as the male lead in FOX's comedy pilot Spaced . The project, based on the beloved British series created by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson , is about two strangers who pose as a professional couple in order to score the perfect flat. (For my feelings about what is bound to be a disastrous adaptation of Spaced , read my original reaction back in October about the news that FOX was developing this format, entitled " Must All British TV Series Be Adapted?: FOX Plans US Version of "Spaced" .) FOX has given Lawson a talent deal; this marks his first US role as he steps into the shoes formerly filled by Pegg, who went on to co-write and star in Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz with Spaced director Edgar Wright. Lawson is best known for his work on Australian series Sea Patrol, The Librarians , and the original Oz improv comedy format Thank God You're Here . Credit FOX casting head Marcia Shulman with discovering La

Sigh. Going into this season of Beauty and the Geek , I was already not entirely happy with this series' latest "loud" twist: that instead of the pattern we've come to know and love about Beauty and the Geek , the hapless geeks wouldn't be paired with beauties this time around. Instead, the geeks would face off against the beauties in a sort of war of the sexes. Puhlease. I understand the need for reality series to keep their formats fresh but I don't understand why the producers of this typically charming series--whose basic, inspirational/aspirational structure has been a standout among the increasingly trashy reality genre--feel the need to constantly mess around with what essentially works about the series. Last season's male beauty/female geek twist worked despite itself (or possibly because female geek Nicole was so gosh darn awkwardly cute), but this latest game change just grates from the start and seems to go against everything the series is meant

Mitch Hurwitz is returning to television, but sadly not with a surprise return to the much-missed Bluths of Arrested Development . (Damn!) The Arrested Development creator is adapting live-action 2001 Aussie comedy Sit Down, Shut Up as an animated series at FOX. Sit Down, Shut Up , from Sony Pictures Television, Granada USA and Tantamount (the production company Hurwitz operates with Kim and Eric Tannenbaum), will revolve around a group of high school staff members in a small fishing town as their egos and problems compete with the children they are meant to be teaching. Hurwitz, who co-wrote last season's comedy pilot The Thick of It at ABC , will write and executive produce the project. FOX has ordered casting for a table read on the pilot script and will make a decision about whether to greenlight a pilot based on the outcome. It's another in a long line of efforts from FOX to find its next animated franchise which it can pair with The Simpsons or Family Guy . (FOX is

I came home yesterday to discover a large pile of DVDs of culinary competition series, Last Restaurant Standing , from the good folks at BBC America, who know full well my undying obsession with the Raymond Blanc-hosted series. Despite numerous other television offering (including several series I need to catch up on), I spent the evening with the future Mrs. Televisionary watching several episodes (heaven!) and sitting on the edge of my couch, glued to the television set. Over the course of the next few episodes, the remaining couples will face their toughest challenges yet and nearly reach the brink of collapse. For those of you not watching Last Restaurant Standing , you really are missing out: it's gripping, tension-laden, and provocative. It also gives you a first-hand glimpse into what it takes to run a restaurant and, I am sure, will deter a few would-be restaurateurs from entering the business after seeing what these couples go through. (For those of you who ARE watching, I

If I rarely talk about Old Christine , it's not because I've stopped watching. In fact, I haven't given up on the series, which this season has been a little hit or miss in the quality department. Some episodes have been a little too sitcom-y (as in the comedy derives from the situation, rather than the characters themselves, like in the rock-climbing episode), rather than the witty and acerbic comedy that fans of the series have come to know and love. However, this week's episode of Old Christine ("House") was a return to the strengths of the series, focusing on the relationships between the core characters and on the tempest in a teacup herself, Christine Campbell, who--after watching a tearful episode of Oprah --decides to be more like Ms. Winfrey and send back happiness into the world, rather than her typically selfish responses of wishing heart disease on happy people. It's a character transformation that is tested when Richard and New Christine buy