The sixth and final season of Lost is just a few days away, and this week’s Sci-Fi TV column has you covered with the latest news, images and videos (including the first six minutes). Also included this week are fresh details on Smallville, Fringe, Heroes and more news, including a season three pick up for the BBC series Being Human and Syfy picking up the broadcast rights to Merlin. All that plus the latest television ratings, casting bites, images and videos.
GENRE TV NEWS
LOST: Watch The First 4 Minutes of S6 + Sunset on the Beach Coverage
It’s almost here. Next week is the sixth season premiere of "Lost" (Tuesday, Feb. 2nd on ABC), but you don’t have to wait until then to get your first glimpses of the sixth season. Courtesy DocArzt, here is the four-minute opening sequence of the premiere:
In other news, star Matthew Fox told that Guardian that he is the only cast member that has been told by the producers what the final image of the show will be, but of course Fox offered very little specifics: "It’s going to be really beautiful and powerful, and I can’t wait to see how we end up there," he said. Fox also quickly breezed through a couple of the show’s unanswered questions:
Do you know what the temple is? "No."
Do you know about the smoke monster? "Er, yeah."
Can you say anything about it? "Er, no."
Did they really need to be down in the hatch pushing the button? [Long pause] "Yes."
Do you know what the numbers mean? "No."
Will we find out how Jack’s dad is connected to the island? "I do anticipate some resolution in that."
Do you know who the Others are and what they were doing on the island in the first place? "I don’t know the answer to that one, but I’m sure we will. I haven’t been informed."
As you may know, tonight is the special "Sunset on the Beach" event in Hawaii where the first hour of the premiere will be screened to fans and press. DarkUFO is covering the event and you can follow along at their site. The screening begins at 6:00 p.m. Honolulu time (11:00pm ET/ 8:00pm PT). We’ll close out this week’s "Lost" news with two bites and the latest batch of images and videos:
- Is Claire alive or a ghost? Star Emilie de Ravin believes she’s the former: "I think I’m alive, as far as I know," de Ravin said. [TV Guide]
- Here’s a neat little easter egg. The Kayak.com travel web site has a listing for a flight on Oceanic Flight 815. Just search for a one-way non-stop flight from Sydney to Australia on September 22nd. Of course the listing is fake and simply sends you to a Lostpedia article on Flight 815. Also worth noting are the numbers used in the pricing: $4,815.16 airfare, $23.42 in taxes and fees (which are of course "the numbers": 4,8,15,16,23,42). [Cnet via SCI FI Wire]
Click the image below for an interactive chart of character connections prior to Oceanic 815 [Scordit via io9]
Cast promo images of Kate and Sawyer (more, including Jin, Claire and Hurley at sources) [DocArzt, LylyFord, DocArzt and DocArzt]
Images from the set [more at DarkUFO]
Cuatros (Spain) promo [Dailymotion via DarkUFO]
Interview with producer/director Jack Bender [YouTube]
The cast (Evangeline Lilly, Terry O’Quinn, Emilie de Ravin, Michael Emerson and Jorge Garcia) talks about the final season [YouTube]
Season six soundbites with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse [DocArzt]
Fringe: Answers Upcoming for Peter + J.J. Abrams on 3rd Season Chances
Next week’s episode of "Fringe" (Feb. 4th) will be the show’s last until April 1st. In addition to being the first episode back, the April 1st episode will also be significant because we’re likely to learn more background information on Peter’s connection to the alt universe, says consulting producer Akiva Goldsman:
"It’s an episode that’s fundamentally about his relationship to Walter and the truth of where they are right now, which is pretty revelatory to the characters and hopefully the audience…By the end of [the Feb. 4 episode] and into [the April 1 episode] questions about Peter’s identity and mortality go a long way towards being answered."
Goldsman also offered an update on the status of Special Agent Amy Jessup (played by Meghan Markle): "You have not seen the last of Agent Jessup." Rounding out the week’s "Fringe"-related news, co-creator J.J. Abrams told Crave Online that their relationship with FOX is solid and he is hopeful that the show will be picked up for a third season:
Crave Online: Do you feel like Fox is committed to doing a third season of Fringe, despite putting you on Thursdays?
J J Abrams: Despite our time slot, which is always frustrating, they’ve been wonderfully supportive. I have no complaints at all about how Fox has supported us or dealt with us. Though there’s no official news about anything, I’m hopeful that, despite everything, we’re holding our own with them.
Promo for episode 2×14 – "Jacksonville" [YouTube]
BBC Renews Being Human for S3 + Syfy Picks Up Merlin
Scheduled to wrap its second season of episodes this February, BBC has announced an early third season renewal for the supernatural series "Being Human". The regular cast is expected to return. Here’s an excerpt from the press release [via SCI FI Wire]:
Rob Pursey, Executive Producer, Touchpaper Television says: "’BBC Three continues to provide us with a great opportunity to make unusual, ambitious drama, and we are very excited to be able to take the new series of Being Human into fresh territory. With the new location in mind, we’ve already established some startling new storylines and characters. We’ll also aim to deliver plenty more exclusive online content in the gaps between series."
In related news, Syfy has picked up the broadcast rights to the U.K. import "Merlin". Syfy will rebroadcast the first season of the show during a one-day marathon beginning at 10:00 a.m. on March 28th. Season two — which has already aired on BBC One — will then premiere on Friday, April 2nd alongside the return of "Stargate Universe".
Stargate: Wright Talks SGU Origins + Video Game News + Prop Auction
Included in the latest issue of "The Official Stargate Magazine" is an interview with "Stargate Universe" co-creator Brad Wright in which he reveals the origins of the series. Wright told the magazine that he and fellow co-creator Robert C. Cooper first conceived of the series as a TV movie which they ended up pitching to MGM:
“The germ of Stargate Universe began as a movie by Robert Cooper, as do many of our ideas,” Wright told the magazine. “We always come up with a movie, pitch it to MGM, and they say, ‘Terrific, let’s make it a TV show.’ When we were spinning the film idea, we knew deep down that Universe was really a series because it had so much scope.”
Wright also talked about the main difference between ‘SGU’ and the other two shows; a focus on conflict from within the crew instead of via a main or various set of villains:
"Both those shows were about fighting big bad guys," Wright said. "With Universe, our stories are much more character-based and those interactions and relationships are what drive the stories. Sometimes it’s very fundamental. A murder can take place on Universe, and that could be the whole story, where on SG-1 it could be just a story beat and an act. That doesn’t mean this series is slow-paced or less interesting, but we do reveal less all at once."
Check out more from Wright in issue #32 of "The Official Stargate Magazine", available at major bookstores (or visit Titan Magazines to subscribe). In other news, writer-producer Joseph Mallozzi revealed that the working title for the show’s fifth episode of season is "Cloverdale". On the video game front, Firesky has announced a February 10th release date for the upcoming video game "Stargate: Resistance". Available for the PC, ‘Resistance’ will only be made available for purchase through digital download on the company’s website here.
And finally, Propworx will be holding auctions this week for various props from "Stargate SG-1" and "Stargate Atlantis". Head to www.propworx.com or follow them on Twitter at @Propworx for listing details. Some items up for auction are included below.
Working Jaffa Serpent Head (Auction estimate: $10,000-$12,000)
Hero Zat Gun (Auction estimate: $3,000-$4,000)
Smallville: Absolute Justice Details
Next Friday (February 5th) The CW airs the two-hour "Smallville" Justice Society of America-themed TV movie "Absolute Justice" from writer Geoff Johns. "Smallville" executive producer Brian Peterson offered a preview of the episode in an interview with Fancast, telling the site that unlike some DC Comics characters that have been introduced into the show in the past, fans will be happy to learn that the three featured in "Absolute Justice" — Hawkman, Dr. Fate and Stargirl — will track more closely to the source material:
"There is a terrifying fear that you’re going to disappoint fans, because we have usually taken a very ‘Smallville’ spin on things and made it our own. But these are three characters that, with ["Absolute Justice" writer] Geoff [Johns], we literally pulled out of the comics and put on the screen. From their costumes to their powers to their attitudes… all that had to be realized.
In other news, Justin Hartley (Oliver Queen/Green Arrow) confirmed that he is contracted for a 10th season should The CW decide to renew the show. Hartley also offered some thoughts on upcoming episodes, revealing that we’ll see Oliver and Clark (Tom Welling) working together to deal with Zod, and that he is going to have a relationship with Chloe (Allison Mack) [TV Guide]:
On Oliver and Clark teaming up: "Oliver and Clark, instead of butting heads about everything, team up and find the usefulness in each other and the power of unity"
On his upcoming relationship with Chloe: "I don’t know how long it will last or how far they’re going to go with it because we haven’t shot that much yet, but that’s what’s going on right now."
Promotional images for two-hour TV movie "Justice League" [more at OSCK and OSCK]
Space (Canada) trailer for "Absolute Justice" [YouTube]
Watch another trailer for the TV movie at EW
"Absolute Justice" Webclip [YouTube]
Watch one more here
NEW IMAGES
Human Target
Promotional images for episode 1×04 – "Sanctuary" [more at Target419]
Supernatural
Promotional images for episode 5×14 – "My Bloody Valentine" [more at Shock Till You Drop]
The Vampire Diaries
Promotional images for episode 1×14 – "Fool Me Once" [more at VampireSite]
CASTING BITES
- Brandon Routh revealed that his stint on NBC’s "Chuck" has been extended from four episodes to eight… [EW]
- …Check out an interview Routh over at IESB.
- Odessa Rae has joined the cast of "Smallville" as the DC Comics villain Silver Banshee. The actress will first appear as Siobhan McDougal (aka Silver Banshee) in episode 16, "Escape". [TV Guide]
- Billie Piper (who played Rose on "Doctor Who") considers her character’s role on the show to be over: "I think enough is enough now." [Blogtor Who]
- Jake Abel, who played Sam and Dean’s long-lost — and dead — half-brother Adam Milligan on "Supernatural" will be returning to play a "pivotal role" in an upcoming episode. [E! Online]
NEW VIDEOS
Caprica
New main title sequence (debuted with Friday night’s episode "Rebirth") [SCI FI Wire]
Chuck
Promo for episode 3×06 – "Chuck vs. the Nacho Sampler" [YouTube]
Heroes
Promo for the penultimate episode of the season, "The Wall" [YouTube]
Countdown to season four finale promo [YouTube]
Supernatural
Promo for episode 13 – "Back to the Future II" [YouTube]
The Vampire Diaries
Promo for episode 1×12 – "Children of the Damned" [YouTube]
TV BITES
- NBC has ordered a pilot for a new superhero drama called "The Cape". The show centers on a former cop framed for a crime. He becomes the masked hero the Cape to clear his name and reunite with his son. It’s described as "a light drama with a comic book sensibility". [THR]
- Apparently the upcoming third season of the HBO hit "True Blood" will feature lots of people getting naked, especially star Alexander Skarsgård (Eric)… [E! Online]
- …meanwhile, Carrie Preston hints that her character Arelen will be experiencing something "very unexpected" this season, adding: "[She] might just be nervous enough about the supernatural characters around her that she will try to do something about it. I think she is going to try to figure out a way to protect herself. She gets very upset. She doesn’t think vampires should be around children." [EW]
- You can read a review of the pilot script for Frank Darabont’s adaptation of "Walking Dead", which AMC recently picked up as a proposed series, over at Coming Attractions. [via CBR]
- Despite continually declining ratings, "Heroes" star James Kyson Lee (Ando) is confident that NBC will renew the show for a fifth season… [CBR]
- …On the story front, fellow star Masi Oka (Hiro) revealed that before the show goes on hiatus for the Winter Olympics, fans will be treated to a resolution to the Charlie (Jayma Mays) storyline: "I can’t say what kind of reunion it will be, but there will be a resolution. Whether it’s good or not, the audience will have to decide." [TV Guide]
- Fox has released an official description for episode four — "Sanctuary" — of "Human Target". Check it out at Target419.
- Syfy announced the return of their "Name That Movie" contest for an untitled film that will premiere on March 27th. The network previously ran the contest for 2006’s "Kraken: Tentacles of the Deep". Syfy also announced a Sunday, March 13th premiere for the Roger Croman-produced original movie "Dinoshark". [The Futon Critic]
SCI-FI RATINGS (Based on final national numbers unless otherwise noted) [@TravisYanan]
"Legend of the Seeker" returned from a three-week hiatus on January 2nd with 2.10 million viewers. That was down a significant 21% from the previous original episode on December 12th (which was a season-high). However, the show has rebounded slightly over the past two airings, drawing 2.28M (Jan. 9th) and 2.34M (Jan. 16th) viewers, respectively. The current season has averaged a solid 2.42 million viewers overall (through eight episodes). [TV by the Numbers]
Last night was the season/series finale of “Dollhouse”. According to preliminary fast affiliate numbers, the finale drew just 2.16 million viewers and a 0.8 A18-49 rating, which was basically flat from the episode prior (+3% among viewers / n/c in A18-49 rating).
CHART (1/18/2010 to 1/24/2010)
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Follow Russ on his blog: Your Entertainment Now and on Twitter: Twitter.com/YourEntNow.
I actually won the LOST sweepstakes that allowed one to view the season 6 premier early but I was extremely off put by the fact that the video was watermarked. I understand why but it still frustrates me.
we’ll see Oliver and Clark (Tom Welling) working together to deal with Nod
er, Zod?
Why can Smallville give the Justice League heroes their classic costumes (and they all looked cool to me) and over on Superherohype we’re arguing that Captain America can’t have his standard costume? Why can some shows do it and the ones I want to do it not?
Sorry, I mean the first six minutes of the premier (the same video as above, but with sound)
Awesome
Poor dollhouse, fox owed it so much more but they never got the word out and thus it never caught on. Excellent show, and I thought a good ending, even if pretty depressing.
Fringe is starting to bring in more viewers. Last week it had roughly 9 million tune in for the first half hour. It dropped to 8 million in the second half but still. Fringe is holding up (something I am very happy about). The recent episodes have been quite good too. I’m confident FOX will re-new it for S3.
p.s those numbers include DVR viewers as well. CSI was also a repeat. But it’s good news regardless.
Fox promoted Dollhouse quite a bit early on. The problem was simply that the show was terrible. I’m sure it gets better after the sixth episode like everyone says, but nobody stuck around to find out. A show cannot be terrible for over a month and expect people to stick around long enough to keep it afloat.
The Caprica title sequence looks amazing and did I hear a BSG drum beat thrown in there?
It airs here in the UK on Sky 1 on Tuesday,
I can’t wait :)
9? I thought the cgi work in this first regular episode was weak, including the opening sequence. BSG had some weak segments, cgi-wise, but overall was excellent. Caprica’s starting to have a basic cable feel to it.
I like Lost, but am definitely ready for this to be the end.
SGU — some great moments, but overall it needs to pick up the pace A LOT. Good cliff-hanger. I also like the lead, but wish they hadn’t cloned Baltar for the main antagonist. Also — many sexy ladies. Please give them something useful to do.
nuf sed.
Thanks for the round-up, Rosario.
#3
Andy, the reason is because you are confusing two different things: images of The Justice Society of America in their costumes with the original costumes of The Justice League of America.
The JSA was an organization of superheroes built on the founding characters originated in the Golden Age of comics from 1930s to the 1940s. The JLA was a similar organization formed with members of the rebooted version of those superheroes in the Silver Age. This is going to sound familiar but the distinction between the two was explained in the Silver Age (1950s-THE CRISIS ON INFINTE EARTHS) as the two versions existed on parallel Earths with different timelines, i.e. the JSA members were generally older than the JLA because in their universe they had appeared earlier just prior to WW II. The Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen, was the one who discovered the alternate Earth with the JSA who were merely comic book characters on his Earth (Earth I). The JSA’s Earth became known as Earth II.
It is unknown to me how Smallville intends to introduce the JSA next week but they have already introduced The Legion of Superheroes from the future with their time traveling flight rings and alternate futures.
It looks like Green Lantern might make an appearance based on the image at :21 into the Canadian Smallville.
And at :09!
The continuing story line of this seasons Dollhouse was excellent. However, the stand alone shows mostly left something to be disired. And Eliza was always good to look at. Sad to see it go.
Billie Piper says enough is enough. I wholeheartedly concur.
“With Universe, our stories are much more character-based and those interactions and relationships are what drive the stories.”
Yes Mr. Wright, and that is why you fail. Your SGU characters are all dour and unlikable, and watching them interact is about as appealing as watching cataracts slowly invade your eyeballs. Stargate Atlantis was good fun with great characters, but now we have the writers from the Days Of Our Lives trying their hand at crappy space murder whodunit’s, totally unaware that the audience is rooting for the murderer and hoping he won’t get caught until he has bumped off at least 80 percent of the main cast.
Not to sound like a broken record, but The Sarah Connor Chronicles trumped Dollhouse bar none. It was axed so a lousy Terminater movie could be made so “The Suits” could line their pockets……SIGH
Chuck over Heroes, I don’t think so!
Smallville now totally confuses me. So, Clark does live in a universe where superheroes have already existed and everyone still gets weirded out by all the events that take place in Smallville and Metropolis? It seems that the show can’t stay away from the rich heritage of stories and ideas that DC has generated over the past 7 decades (and understandably so) but still wants us to feel the Clark, Oliver and there friends are experiencing something new.
Its like that one issue of Green Lantern: Rebirth where these two teen/twenty somethings are talking about a restricted area and one says, “its because of aliens” or flying saucers or something. The other guy says he doesn’t believe in flying saucers. Seriously?? In the world of Superman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern and untold years of stories there are people in the DC universe who live in modern metropolitan areas and don’t know about life on other planets?
I love the JSA and I’ll watch it as a JSA TV Show Episode but Smallville itself has long since lost me.
#19 Perhaps the JSA did most of their hero work in secret?
#20
I’m in your camp.
I just can’t figure why they have costumes when a nondescript outfit would be more in keeping with stealth? To impress each other?
In older Smallville they did have more nondescript clothes(Clark wore plaid). Its the old school comic book geeks screeching in their mom’s garage (Its a carriage house) that has led to the cartoon like costumes. The squeeky wheel gets the grease in this case.
BTW I still say the cartoon like costume is part of the reason Singerman Returns failed. After Smallville, the bright suit just can’t be taken seriously.
I enjoyed The Stepfather- this was just as a great as the first. Dylan Walsh did a great job filling the shoes of Terry O’Quinn http://bit.ly/dicg8I