You just can't keep an undead cable network down: TechCrunch has reported that The WB has been resurrected as TheWB.com, which launched today. The site will act as a source for all the TV shows that originated on The WB and has a number of interesting features. While one might argue with TechCrunch's assertion that TheWB.com is now a competitor to Hulu.com, they really do have a pretty awesome search engine that will hunt down......

This weekend concludes NBC's broadcast of the XXIX Summer Olympics which has had some very enjoyable moments, not necessarily enjoyable because of NBC, but it's not like we had a lot of choice. Who knows what moments we missed in the countless events that were not broadcast, who knows what sports would have piqued the interest of Americans, if only they had exposure to them. In feedback to previous posts about the Olympics, commenters have......

Pretty much an Olympics-only night tonight which looks like it will be focused on gymnastics (_still_) and now track. Left is a pic from the cycling men's sprint event which was very exciting but of course you won't be seeing any of it on NBC's prime time coverage. There's a chance to revisit a couple great shows from Sunday night: Comedy Central's Roast of Bob Saget was very good - the combination of some great......

According to The Hollywood Reporter, ABC is going to be releasing some pilots very soon, well not too soon as I don't imagine that they will attempt to compete with the Olympics and NBC. The only things that jumped out at me was the name of Portia de Rossi who will be in another sitcom, an untitled Victor Fresco ("My Name Is Earl", "Andy Richter", etc.) project, as well as a "large-cast Shakespearean drama" titled......

We're well into Shark Week 2008! Last night was a lot of fun and there's more to come tonight, I've highlighted the "Greenland Shark Quest" below as the one to watch. If TV sharks aren't enough, of course Discovery Channel's Shark Week website has a bunch of news, scientific info, and games all tied into Shark Week - my fave is "Go Shark Yourself" which is creepy gross and fun at the same time. Once......

While it's understood that "Mad Men" isn't an action/adventure series, last night's season premiere could have used a bit more oomph. While highly dramatic and exceptionally written there was too much seed planting vs. movement. OK, so Draper's wife, Betty, can flirt with a tow truck driver? We don't really expect her to go beyond that red herring - this isn't "Nip/Tuck" after all. What we can expect is Draper to get together with Betty's......

G4's "Attack of the Show" crew is broadcasting live from Comic Con for the next couple days (see the listings below). Coinciding with Comic Con: The BBC announces that the newest iteration of "Doctor Who" has been released to iTunes. Also, BBC AMERICA will have a booth on the exhibition floor plus a host of creators and stars from: "Doctor Who", "Torchwood", "Primeval" and "Spaced". Comic Con related DVD releases that the TV Junkie has......

After receiving an Emmy nomination for its first Star Wars episode (which was released to DVD yesterday), Seth Green's "Robot Chicken" is going full steam ahead on "Star Wars Episode II" - while I don't know if they can top their first time out, the players lined up to do voices this time include: Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Seth MacFarlane, Conan O'Brien, and Andy Richter. Oops, I somehow missed last night's Season Two premiere......

Some of the funniest TV ever is finally coming to DVD - we're talking about Comedy Central's "TV Funhouse" which was _finally_ released today. I've sent Comedy Central a few emails over the past 7 years begging them to revive the series or at release it on DVD, and even though it seemed like my messages sent through their "Contact Us" page seemingly disappeared down a black hole they have evidently been listening to me......

NBC will be getting more than $1 billion in ad revenue from the Olympics this year. They've already sold off 85% of their inventory at a cost of $750,000 per 30-second spot. Looks like the network is looking to break a different kind of record. 8:00pm Big Brother CBS - Wednesday edition premiere 9:00pm Project Runway BRAVO - Season Premiere.......

Tonight a double-travesty is occurring: the broadcast of both "Wipeout" and "I Survived A Japanese Game Show". Both of these shows take a good idea (for immature jerks like myself), Spike TV's "Most Extreme Elimination Challenge" aka "MXE", and turn it into garbage. "MXE" is an overdubbed (by members of LA's comedy troupe the Groundlings) and hilarious replaying of episodes of Japanese gameshow, "Takeshi's Castle" while "Wipeout" and "I Survived A Japanese Gameshow" are......

If you thought Microsoft's foray into television had stopped with their relative failure in MSNBC, you were wrong - Microsoft acquired (for an undisclosed sum) interactive TV network Navic. Navic provides services to Comcast, Cox, Time Warner, and Charter Communications among others - so I guess what we're saying is, get ready for a blue screen of death when you try to watch TV. Other than watching the amazing flop known as the Lakers perform......

In April and May, LAist's TV Junkie highlighted an amazing PBS documentary series called "Carrier", about life on board the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and its six-month mission to the Persian Gulf in 2005. The ten episodes gave a seawater and rivets-eye-view of what life is like for the sailors and Marines on the nuclear boat. With an average age of 20 years and a few months, the servicemen and women of the Nimitz gave......

Fans of "Project Runway" might want to know more details about its move/death to the Lifetime Networks as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Some fans might say, "Oh no, 'Runway' is going to totally make it on Lifetime - I'm still going to have viewing parties at my house, etc." Be aware that the producers that created the show, Weinstein Co., are not moving with the show to Lifetime - can one safely assume......

Advertising Age is reporting on the possible end of the nightly network newscast as another 1.2 million viewers in the US stopped tuning in last year. The article points out that the reason why people aren't tuning in at 6pm is because.... they are still at work. Hey networks, instead of constantly going off on red herrings like Terri Schiavo and WMD in Iraq, how about creating a frenzy over the fact that Americans work......

This weekend it's all about BBC America's programming with new seasons of "Robin Hood", "The Graham Norton Show", and "Wire In The Blood". I've seen previews of "Robin Hood" and it's a more than worthy replacement for "Torchwood" whose season (dramatically) ended last Saturday with the (supposed) deaths of at least two main characters. Of course, you'll have to be able to emotionally handle the incredible switch from science fiction to fantasy in order to......

New York City may be all the way across the country, but if Rupert Murdoch gets his way there you can bet he will cast his gaze upon all other major metropolitan areas: the New York Times reports that Murdoch wants to obtain a permanent FCC waiver to acquire two TV NYC stations in addition to his three newspapers and radio assets. Will this be a last hurrah while the friendly Bush Administration still controls......

It's Earth Day on (some of) TV. Below are some marked programming that is Earth Day-related and of course there's plenty online, including web "TV" properties like Joost who have launched an Earth Day Channel. 8:00pm Nova: Car of the Future PBS/KCET - Tom and Ray Magliozzi of NPR's ``Car Talk'' examine new technologies and ideas for transportation, including alternative fuel sources. Earth Day!......

If you saw my SNL post yesterday, you know I'm all high on live TV (always have been), and lookie, lo-and-behold, we're going to start getting live ads on TV: the Hollywood Reporter says that Jimmy Kimmel (featured below tonight) will start running at least one live ad per episode starting in May. Garmin ran a live ad on Leno a year ago and the "effectiveness and awareness" levels exceeded standard (dead?) ads enough for......

The TV Junkie is in New York City and will be at the above SNL taping! Tonight 9:00pm Miss USA NBC - Donnie and Marie host the event, if only they would make out like in that SNL sketch 10:00pm Battlestar Galactica SCIFI - Nerds and those with inner nerds rejoice! [I count myself in both demographics]......

The above is a clip for tonight's "30 Rock" that hasn't even been posted on NBC.com, check it out. Before the writers' strike, Thursday was comedy night, with "30 Rock" vs. "Ugly Betty", etc., so I'm glad this dry spell is over. In local TV-related news, KCET is gets props from LA County for the production and broadcast of "Bracing for a Quake: A Survival Guide", which, as you might recall, the TV Junkie......

Comedy Central has started to establish some control over Wednesday nights. What's funny is that I started to go back to them on Wednesdays because of Lewis Black's excellent show "Root Of All Evil" (anyone catch him on Conan last week? He was great) and now I'm finding myself re-engaging with "South Park" but I'm sure that program directors at Comedy Central were planning for the flow to happen the other way. Whatever, it's working......

Did anyone see the plastic surgery disaster that is Renee Zellweger on Letterman last night? The skin was stretched so hard over her face I thought her skull was going to pop out. OK so maybe it isn't plastic surgery, Botox anyone? What is wrong with her?? Tracey Ullman has her dead on in "State of the Union". Also, in yesterday's Wall Street Journal, there's an article about NBC's new 52-week, wait, now "65-week" lineup,......

Spike has a new, totally original show that is essentially 'Cops' for the Drug Enforcement Agency and it has the totally original name 'DEA'. “Television viewers will get the same unprecedented access to the inner workings of the DEA as our camera crews – the raids, the risk and the danger,” said Al Roker, executive producer (Al Roker??!! He's so effing hardcore). “When you watch ‘DEA,’ you will feel like you have gone undercover.” This......

Did anyone watch "Top Gear" last night on BBCA? They had a fantastic contest of who could cross London the fastest: a bicycle, a several hundred horsepower boat, public transportation, or a Mercedes SUV. The bike won! Followed closely by the boat and then public transportation with the SUV dead last by more than a quarter hour after public transport. Since LA doesn't have many viable waterways it looks like it's time to sideline cars......

Is Fox TV above the law? The Washington Post reports that Fox is challenging a $91,000 fine levied against them by the FCC for a broadcast of "Married by America" back in 2003 that featured reality show cast members licking whipped cream off of strippers' "digitally obscured" body parts. Since the FCC is controlled by an administration that is full of Fox fans will the network get away with it? It should be noted that......

Is HBO really in trouble? (Speaking of HBO, check out this great movie from 1983 about the creation of the HBO Theater opening sequence). Business Week asks if the premium channel is in trouble now that "The Sopranos" are gone (also "The Wire", "deadwood", "Rome", etc.) with nothing on the horizon to step up. The fact is that Showtime, FX, and even AMC are coming up with more compelling shows as of this last year......

Here on the 5th anniversary of the Iraq War with over 4,000 American dead and tens of thousands of Americans wounded PBS' Frontline launches its two-part special "Bush's War". Of course conservative pundits will accuse PBS of being the citadel of the liberal media but Ann Coulter, Sean Hannity, or any of their ilk could never come up with a documented timeline of evidence that illustrate what a completely disgusting mess we're in. The......

It looks like a lot is on tonight but as a commentor said yesterday, "TV really blows these days" - I agree. Lifetime has launched an online series hosted by Daily Show co-creator Lizz Winstead called "Gift Intervention", it's kind of like an Antiques Roadshow for really bad gifts combined with an outing of the bad-giftor. 7:00pm What's New Pussycat TCM - (1965) Shaga-slapa-delic classic with Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Woody Allen, Ursula Andress, Capucine.......

Everyone is in a tizzy about The Wire coming to a close yesterday - it's one of the few shows that decided to go out while it was on top so kudos to them. The TV Junkie is barely keeping his head above water with the deluge of new shows coming out in the next week, tonight it's Julianna Margulies' return to the little screen with Canterbury's Law (that's a mouthful, say: Julianna Margulies in......