Chuck season 2 - Page 19

Re: Chuck season 2

In the Zap2it story. Their were two posts I was curious as to what posters here thought...

Re: Chuck season 2

Renew Chuck! With the new and improved Kung Fu grip.

Re: Chuck season 2

Here's the status on Chuck-

Re: Chuck season 2

Maybe we will give you a Season 3 AND 4 for no $2 million penalty

Re: Chuck season 2

There is no such thing as a "rating share". There is a rating, expressed as a decimal number, and there is a share, expressed as a percentage. The rating is an absolute number based on number of households watching a show. The share is the percentage of the audience that is actually watching television at a given time. In the quoted post the only number given is the rating, which is often less important than the share. (In a timeslot where there are generally fewer people watching a show that does a 30 share - 30% of active viewers - may be a considered a "hit" even though its absolute rating is lower than that for a show doing a 15 share in a more heavily-watched slot. And demographics - age and sex of viewers - can be more important than either, since demos are what drive advertising dollars. That's why comparing ratings is usually such a bootless exercise. Raw ratings in and of themselves tell us almost nothing about how well a show is doing.

Regards,

Joe

Re: Chuck season 2

Check out what Scott-S found on EW's show renewal guide:


Fall TV cheat sheet: What's in? What's out? | | Ausiello Files | EW.com

What would Jeffster sing in this situation? The Beastie Boys' "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)"?

Re: Chuck season 2

The link just took me to the HTF index page. I hope the prediction of Chuck being safe for renewal is accurate.

Re: Chuck season 2

They both should work now, but the second one always did. That's the one with the original information.

Re: Chuck season 2

Hollywood Reporter: NBC renews 'Chuck'!

Apparently we're looking at a thirteen episode season, steep budget cuts, and a slimmed down cast.

Still thrilled!

Re: Chuck season 2

Big Mike's taking the Subway Challenge? badarump!

On paper, I don't mind a thirteen episode season. Friday Night Lights had 13 episodes this year and it felt fine. Same for the Beast and I think Castle had 10. I would take more, of course.

Slimmed down cast. There's honestly no one I would like to lose. Chuck, Sarah and Casey are the essentials, but I need Ellie and Awesome. Losing the Buy More setting would cut the cast in a big way and move the Chuck character forward, but I know that Morgan and especially Jeffster are really popular. Still, if it was me, that would be where the cuts would come. I just hope it doesn't mess up the formula too much.

Renewal is great news, but this does come with some concerns. Well, I need to just take it as "anything they do is better than nothing" and just hope they do it such justice that a fourth season is a foregone conclusion instead of a fight.

Re: Chuck season 2

I think it also needs to be pointed out that "slimmed down" can also refer to guest stars. Did this season *really* need Jenny McCarthy, Andy Richter, Scott Bakula, and Chevy Chase (did I miss anyone?)? Sure, it was nice to have the last two, but honestly, McCarthy and Richter were an utter waste of whatever they paid for them, and I would wager Bakula and Chase cost more than they were worth, too.

Just run the show with a bunch of talented relative-unknowns, like those who make up the main cast (yes, I know Adam Baldwin and a few others are "known"). I honestly like when a show introduces a lot of new talent onto my radar. For example, how many people were honestly fans of Michael Emerson's work, before he was cast as Ben on LOST? Now, I would bet he gets a nice starring role and an impressive salary in whatever show he does when LOST is over.

I almost wish shows would quit with the guest stars, especially if they are already on the bubble cost-wise. I highly doubt someone is going to randomly tune in to watch a given show, just because Chevy Chase is on (no offense to Chevy).

Re: Chuck season 2

According to Michael Ausiello, only one series regular is going to be leaving the show altogether. The rest of the supporting cast will be bumped down to recurring, and trade off episodes. My guess is that the third season will alternate between B-plots with Ellie and Awesome and B-plots at the Buy More instead of having all three intertwined in each episode. As long as neither Yvonne nor Adam are out, that's fine with me.

Two of the writers are also being shown the door (no word yet as to which two). Costs have escalated out of control on network TV in recent years, and Chuck is by no means the one returning series facing budget cuts next season. I think the days of $2 million an episode (what "Chuck" was rumored to cost last season) are over for the foreseeable future. It all depends on who the guest star is. If the actor has a promotional deal with the network as part of a movie deal, I'd imagine they can actually be much cheaper to get for an episode than a less famous series regular. NBCU head Jeff Zucker loves having big names to plaster on promos, so I'm not sure we'll ever see a celebrity-free season of any show on NBC. I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment, though, because "ChucK" isn't the kind of show that big names would make a difference for (either in terms of ratings or in terms of quality).

Re: Chuck season 2

Well, Chuck me with a chainsaw!

(I always wanted to use that line once Chuck's fate was known to be positive.)

Re: Chuck season 2

And since both Chuck and Morgan quit, cutting people from the Buy More would be what would make the most sense as well.

Re: Chuck season 2

This is great news. I'll take what I can get.

Re: Chuck season 2

This is fantastic news. I look forward to the new season. I actually would rather watch Chuck than Heroes. I find Chuck a better show.

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"Chuck me runnin!!!"

Any Chuck is better than no Chuck - this is great news...

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Probably right, although I for one would really miss the Buy More setting. I always enjoyed that part of the show. I liked Ellie and Awesome as well, but I think I'd rather see less of them, if I had to choose.

Re: Chuck season 2

Me too!!!

Re: Chuck season 2

I'm glad Fringe was renewed, but had it been canceled I would have posted, "FRINGE TOAST."

Re: Chuck season 2

Here is the "scoop" from EW online.
I can live with a 13 episode season of Chuck. Like a previous poster mentioned, Friday Night Lights was only 13 episodes and they were all great episodes, without any feeling of filler in any of the episodes.

Re: Chuck season 2

My guess is the eliminated actor will either be Big Mike, Emmet, or the General.

Re: Chuck season 2

After hearing news of Chuck's renewal, I watched the season finale again. Of course, I am glad we get more Chuck, but at the same time I am a bit apprehensive with regards to where the next season is going. Simply put, I think "Chuck versus The Ring" makes a much better series finale then it does a season finale.

It would seem that the role of the Buy More and its employees will be diminished, perhaps greatly so and I think that will be a very bad thing.

Frankly, if Ellie and Awesome rode off into the sunset of the first show of next season and we never saw them again, I would have no problem. However, I loved the Buy More crew and less screen time for them would really change the show (at least for me anyways).

I am hoping for the best but I don't think next season's Chuck is going to have the same feel as first two. Hopefully, it will work out to be a good thing. Fingers crossed.

-Keith

Re: Chuck season 2

As far as stunt casting goes shows do that for ratings so hopefully they won't have too. I'm apprehensive as well, after the finale things do need to move forward, morgan needs to leave etc, but when does it stop being chuck and becomes something else?

As far as crew leaving one of the show's Supervising Producers is Robert Duncan McNeil a.k.a. Tom Paris, I wonder if he'll be around.

Re: Chuck season 2

Glad this has been renewed.

I guess I'm in the minority, but I would welcome less BuyMore. Hard to see how Chuck was able to remain an employee since he was always gone. (I know the government must have created work orders, but the coincidence of always being away at all hours.) Hope the show concentrates more on Chuck the fledgling, trainable intersect. Would miss Big Mike tho.

Doug

Re: Chuck season 2

The press release by NBC officially renewing "Chuck" is fascinating:

NBC RENEWS POPULAR ACTION-COMEDY 'CHUCK' FOR THE 2009-2010 SEASON WITH SUBWAY AS MAJOR SPONSOR
Published: May 19, 2009

preview / download

Innovative Advertising Partnership With Subway Validates NBC's Early "Infront" Process

Renewal Represents Triumph for Fans and TV Critics Who Waged Successful Online and Twitter "Save Chuck" Campaign Supported by Subway

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - May 19, 2009 - NBC is pleased to announce that due to an innovative advertising partnership with Subway, the fan-favorite and critically-lauded series "Chuck" will return for the 2009-10 season. The announcement was made by Ben Silverman, Co-Chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, and Mike Pilot, President, Sales and Marketing, NBC Universal.

"This innovative partnership is a perfect example of the effectiveness of the NBC Infront," said Silverman. "By involving Subway early in the process, we were able to bring a quality show like 'Chuck' back to NBC for next season. Everybody wins -- NBC, Subway, and the loyal fans who so enthusiastically lobbied for 'Chuck's' renewal."

"The synergy of the deal with Subway validates the Infront process," added Pilot. "Our goal with the Infront is to initiate early and ongoing dialogue with our advertising clients regarding the network's programming. We were thrilled when Subway, who had been integrated into the show lately, expressed a desire to expand their relationship with the series in a creative way."

"Our customers love 'Chuck' so we are happy to help bring the show back through our partnership with NBC," said Tony Pace, Chief Marketing Officer, SFAFT. "We have been working with NBC Universal extensively, well beyond the traditional upfront marketplace discussions, to craft ground-breaking, multi-platform deals, which we believe provide a more engaging way of getting our messages to our consumer audiences. And, since program development is essentially year round, we have found NBC's Infront process to be helpful in that we can be part of the conversation as programming decisions are made."

The multi-platform partnership with Subway will offer a variety of opportunities that will include significant integration into the show, as well as traditional advertising tie-ins.

"Chuck" has been heralded by TV Guide as classic TV escapism -- a funny, smart, stylish, silly action comedy, a hoot with heart, pure entertainment that mixes danger, humor and romance in a satisfying package."

In its second season, "Chuck" averaged a 2.8 rating, 7 share in adults 18-49 and 7.3 million viewers overall in a highly competitive time period that includes competition from Fox's "House," ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and CBS's "Big Bang Theory" and "How I Met Your Mother." "Chuck" over-delivered in upscale households, scoring a 115 index of adults 18-49 living in homes with $75,000+ incomes (with 100 representing an average concentration of those homes in the general 18-49 population) and generated 28 percent of its adult 18-49 audience through DVR time-shifting. The February 2 "3-D" episode of "Chuck" (3.0 rating, 7 share in 18-49, 8.5 million viewers overall) nabbed NBC's highest non-Olympic 18-49 rating in the time period since February 25, 2008.

From executive producer, Josh Schwartz ("The O.C.") and executive producer-director McG ("Charlie's Angels," "We Are Marshall"), the one-hour, action-comedy series follows Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi, "Less Than Perfect") -- a computer geek who is catapulted into a new career as the government's most vital secret agent. When Chuck opens an e-mail subliminally encoded with government secrets, he unwittingly downloads an entire server of sensitive data into his brain. Now, the fate of the world lies in the unlikely hands of a guy who works at a Buy More Electronics store. Instead of fighting computer viruses, he must now confront assassins and international terrorists.

With the government's most precious secrets in Chuck's head, Major John Casey of the National Security Agency (Adam Baldwin, "My Bodyguard") assumes the responsibility of protecting him. His partner is the CIA's top agent (and Chuck's first date in years), Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski, "Gone"). They'll try to keep him safe by trading in his pocket protector for a bulletproof vest. Also starring are Joshua Gomez ("Without a Trace") as Morgan Grimes, Chuck's best buddy, and Sarah Lancaster ("What About Brian?") as Chuck's ever-supportive sister, Ellie. Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak wrote, "Chuck," which is produced by College Hill Pictures, Wonderland Sound and Vision, in association with Warner Bros. Television.

# # #

Contacts:
Deborah Thomas, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 818-777-3040, deborah.thomas@nbcuni.com
Liz Fischer, NBCU Corporate Communications, 212-664-4825, liz.fischer@nbcuni.com

A few things leap out at me:

1. Campaigns to save shows that demonstate a documented benefit to sponsors' bottom line are far more effective than the cuter, thematic campaigns that have been launched in the past. Clearly, Subway is thrilled with the publicity it's gotten from this.
2. Because Subway will basically be the sponsor for next season, I think were going to be seeing a lot of Subway product placement in these thirteen episodes. That the expanded relationship "will include significant integration into the show" makes me a little nervous.
3. The series regulars next season, in addition to Chuck, are going to be: Adam Baldwin (John Casey), Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah Walker), Joshua Gomez (Morgan), and Sarah Lancaster (Elle). That leaves former series regulars Ryan McPartlin (Captain Awesome), Vik Sahay (Lester), Scott Krinsky (Jeff), Julia Ling (Anna Wu) and Mark Christopher Lawrence (Big Mike) left unaccounted for. Since Elle's still going to be a regular, my guess is that Awesome will be back less frequently in a recurring role. Interesting that none of the Buy More characters, other than Morgan who quit, were mentioned in the press release.

Re: Chuck season 2

More Jeffster!

Re: Chuck season 2

Perhaps Sarah, Chuck and/or Casey will start working at a Subway with the super secret castle in the basement?