Bianculli here: All TV critics have their quirky specialties, and we here at TV WORTH WATCHING are no different. But I admit to being ignorant of, though curious about, the majority of Japanese anime programs. But one of my former college students at Rowan University, Rich Greenhalgh, is passionate about the subject, so I gave him a dare: Write a column about anime explaining what's hot, and why. He came through, and even provided links for us to become instantly anime-literate...

2010

Jan

FINAL VERDICT ON JOSS WHEDON'S "DOLLHOUSE": REGARDING THE CAST, MISSED IT BY THAT MUCH By David Bianculli

As I type this, less than 90 minutes remain until Fox broadcasts the final, unpreviewed episode of Joss Whedon's Dollhouse. The fact that I'm anticipating it attests to the promise that Whedon brings to every project -- but at this point, at the show's final hour, I think I've isolated where his latest genre missed the mark. It cast the right actors -- but not always in the right roles...

2010

Jan

GOODBYE, CONAN -- HELLO, RETURNING CABLE SERIES AND OTHER GOOD TV By David Bianculli

Conan O'Brien said farewell to his NBC show, and his audience, Friday with absolute class -- thanking NBC rather than trashing it, and sending a special message to young fans not to be cynical. So long as entertainers such as Conan still get to follow their bliss on TV, that'll be an easier message to embrace. Meanwhile, TV marches on -- and on this particular Monday night, there's a LOT worth watching...

2010

Jan

WE KNOW JAY LENO'S NEXT MOVE -- NOW HOW ABOUT DAVID LETTERMAN'S? By David Bianculli

We now know that Conan O'Brien's era as host of NBC's "Tonight Show" is at an end, and that Jay Leno will resume his former late-night throne in five weeks. The next question to ask -- and it's an enticing one, regarding CBS's David Letterman -- is "WWDD?" As in, "What Will Dave Do?"...

2010

Jan

ACADEMY OF TV ARTS & SCIENCES HALL OF FAME: THE SMOTHERS BROTHERS GET INDUCTED, NOT INDICTED By David Bianculli

I was an invited guest at Wednesday's Academy of Television Arts & Sciences dinner honoring new inductees into the Hall of Fame -- and it didn't dawn on me, until dawn the next morning, that I had forgotten to take notes. I was there because of, and to support, Tom and Dick Smothers, and just enjoyed the evening thoroughly. For a TV critic, historian and professor, the whole night was a dream...

2010

Jan

CONAN, TAKE 2: HERE'S MY OPINION PIECE FOR CNN.COM By David Bianculli

After posting my own Conan-Jay blog yesterday on TV WORTH WATCHING, CNN.com called and asked me to do one for them. So I did, and it's been posted. Was Conan screwed - and if so, by whom? Is Conan doing the right thing? And will NBC reverse course, or is Jay Leno the "new" Tonight Show host -- again?...

2010

Jan

NEWS FLASH: CONAN REFUSES NBC'S POST-MIDNIGHT "TONIGHT SHOW" OFFER By David Bianculli

Bill Carter of the New York Times, who wrote the authoritative "Late Shift" book about the previous late-night TV upheaval, has just written the latest chapter of an obvious sequel: Conan O'Brien has rejected NBC's offer to continue to host The Tonight Show, but in a 12:05 a.m. time slot...

2010

Jan

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER PRIME-TIME SHUFFLE: THIS TIME IT'S SIMON COWELL, LEAVING "AMERICAN IDOL" FOR HIS OWN FOX SERIES By David Bianculli

Beginning tonight at 8 ET on Fox, the ninth season of "American Idol" begins with a notable absence: from now on, no more Paula Abdul. What Fox announced yesterday, though, was a coming change of much more significant proportions: Simon Cowell will be leaving after this season, and launching his own talent-search series, an American variant of his British hit, "The X Factor", in fall 2011. And just like the latest Leno shuffle, this move has major TV implications...

2010

Jan

NBC CONFIRMS LENO MOVE, BUT TWO QUESTIONS REMAIN: WHITHER CONAN, AND WILL LENO'S LATE-NIGHT FANS RETURN? By David Bianculli

NBC confirmed Sunday that it's canceling the prime-time Jay Leno Show, and moving the former "Tonight Show" host back to his old 11:35 p.m. time slot. But one question is, will Conan O'Brien stay with The Tonight Show, and with NBC? And another question is, or ought to be: Will Leno have the same drawing power when he returns, or, as a prime-time flop, is he now damaged goods?...

2010

Jan

LENO RUMORED TO RETURN TO 11:30: NBC'S LATEST MORONIC MOVE By David Bianculli

How many colossal, crucial mistakes can one network make before its executives (in NBC's case, chiefly Jeff Zucker) pay the price for their own hubris and mismanagement? My guess: With Comcast coming in to merge with NBC-Universal, and with this latest rumored Jay Leno move, not many more...

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