Couch Potato: Coming to terms
By Casey Gillis on Jun. 03, 2009
I’ve finally come to terms with ABC’s cancellation of “Pushing Daisies.”
But that doesn’t mean it’s easy to say goodbye to one of television’s most innovative hours.
The show hasn’t been on the air since December, but now that summer is (almost?) here, ABC began burning off its three remaining episodes — as well as those of fellow cancelled series “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money” — last week.
The final two will air at 10 p.m. this Saturday and 13, followed by four episodes of “Eli Stone” from June 20 to July 10 and four of “Dirty Sexy Money” July 18 to Aug. 8.
As they bid us adieu, we’ll still have plenty to watch.
Shows like “The Closer,” “Burn Notice, “True Blood” and “Army Wives” are back with new episodes, joined by a slate of newbies.
NBC’s got a former playboy-turned-philanthropist (in a show called “The Philanthropist,” natch), a telepathic paramedic and a miniseries about the legend of Merlin the wizard, while USA introduces us to a blacklisted doctor who finds work treating the rich and famous in the Hamptons, and Jada Pinkett Smith joins TNT’s slate of tough-talking females as nurse Christina Hawthorne.
Read on for all the details (new shows are in bold):
June 4
Craig Olejnik is Toby Logan, a 25-year-old paramedic who uses his telepathic abilities to help others, in The Listener (10 p.m., NBC).
USA’s “Burn Notice” is also back at 9 p.m., followed by “Royal Pains,” which stars Mark Feuerstein (“Good Morning Miami”) as a doctor who loses it all, but finds work after he and his brother (Paulo Costanzo, “Road Trip”) crash a party at a mansion in the Hamptons.
June 7
“Army Wives” returns at 10 p.m.
June 8
“The Closer” and “Raising the Bar,” with a newly shorn Mark-Paul Gosselaar, are back at 9 and 10 p.m.
June 14
Evan Rachel Wood joins the cast of “True Blood” (9 p.m., HBO) as a vampire queen.
June 16
Jada Pinkett Smith is Christina Hawthorne, a compassionate and intense nurse who always goes the extra mile for her patients in Hawthorne (9 p.m., TNT). At home, she’s dealing with her husband’s recent death, after a battle with cancer. Michael Vartan (“Alias”) also stars as the hospital’s chief of surgery and the oncologist who treated her husband.
June 21
The fantasy series Merlin (8 p.m., NBC) takes place in Camelot, where a ruthless tyrant has banned any use of magic. But everything changes when the titular character, a young boy with magical powers, shows up. He quickly makes enemies, including Prince Arthur, the heir to Camelot’s throne.
June 22
ABC Family’s Make It Or Break It (9 p.m.) is set in the world of competitive gymnastics and follows a group of fictional Olympic hopefuls.
June 24
James Purefoy is The Philanthropist (10 p.m., NBC), a billionaire playboy whose life is changed after he rescues a young Nigerian boy during a hurricane. He’s joined by a great cast that includes Jesse L. Martin (“Law & Order”) as his business partner and friend, and Neve Campbell (“Party of Five,” “Scream”) as Martin’s wife.
July 7
10 Things I Hate About You (8 p.m.) is, yes, ABC Family’s attempt at updating the 1999 film of the same name, which starred Heath Ledger and was an adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew.”
The Stratford sisters, Kat and Bianca, couldn’t be more different. Kat is a strong-willed feminist who can’t wait to finish high school, while her little sister is a social butterfly who prides herself on her popularity. But both girls are thrown for a loop when Kat meets Patrick (Ethan Peck, filling in Ledger’s shoes), their school’s newest bad boy.
July 15
TNT’s “Leverage,” a clever series about a group of con artists who use their skills for good, returns at 9 p.m., followed by new series Dark Blue (10 p.m.). Dylan McDermott (“The Practice”) stars as Carter Shaw, the leader of a group of undercover cops who are so covert, many of their own colleagues don’t know who they really are.
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