Upfronts: It’s quiet. Too quiet. But here’s early looks at ABC and Fox
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By now, normally we would have heard about this new series or that one. But it’s been really quiet, so far, on the pickup tips because of that mean, mean strike that delayed production and has not allowed the networks to develop as many new shows as they would have liked. Executives, who at this point would be moving the pawns on their schedule chessboards, are still stuck in screening rooms taking all the creativity in. Or not.
It makes us nervous and excited.
Teacher’s pet NBC already made its new series choices, but there are still 50 drama and comedy pilots in contention for the prime-time lineup at ABC, CBS, Fox and the CW.
Here’s a look at a few lucky series that have already been ordered for the next TV season. Nobody’s ‘officially’ announced them, but we’re ready to:
ABC
Screenwriter Zak Penn (‘The Incredible Hulk’ and ‘X Men: The Last Stand’) is giving the small screen a try with ‘Section 8,’ a drama about a group of people with extraordinary - yet medically legitimate neurological abilities -- who are recruited to work for a top-secret government agency. ABC has ordered six episodes.
‘King of the Hill’ producers John Altschuler, Mike Judge and Dave Krinsky have created ‘The Goode Family,’ an animated comedy series about a family trying to do all the right things environmentally, politically and socially. The network has ordered 13 episodes.
Tyra Banks and Ashton Kutcher are teaming up on an untitled reality series centering on a beauty pageant -- with a twist.
Fox
Joss Whedon returns to TV with a drama, ‘Dollhouse,’ about a group of people who are imprinted with personalities and abilities needed to carry out specific missions. Eliza Dushku is the star. The network has ordered seven episodes. Whedon wrote and directed the pilot and serves as the series’ show-runner.
J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman are producing ‘Fringe,’ a mystery sci-fi thriller that centers on a brilliant and insane scientist (John Noble ), his estranged son (Joshua Jackson) and an FBI agent (Blair Brown) who is forced to work with them to help explain a brewing storm of unexplained phenomena. Jeffrey Pinkner (‘Lost’ and ‘Alias’) will run the show. Orci and Kurtzman wrote the pilot.
-- Maria Elena Fernandez