The changes include a smaller budget and a limit of 13 episodes, but even so I was very happy to learn that Dollhouse has been renewed for a second season by Fox. It joins the ranks of Fringe on the same network, Heroes and Medium on NBC, Lost on ABC (for 3 more seasons), and Smallville and Supernatural on the CW. All shows I watch and enjoy, although some more than others. Still undecided are Chuck (decision on Monday, promising), Reaper (perhaps syndicated with cast changes), and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (not very hopeful). There are some excellent shows that have been confirmed canceled, like Eli Stone and Pushing Daises, and some new shows worth looking forward to, like Flash Forward from Robert J. Sawyer, or the remake of V, from the folks who did The 4400 and staring several Firefly actors. So as with all years, it’s a mixed bag. And while I want to see every one of the Undecided shows returning, if there can be only one, I hope it is Chuck.
Season 3 of Primeval kicks off on BBC America tomorrow night, bringing our crew of time-traveling dinosaur secret agents back for another round of fun. For those who haven’t watched the show, the dinosaurs do most of the time traveling, the members of the secret government agency combat them. Word has just surfaced that Warner Brothers will be bring it to the big screen, or at least a variation of it. I am hoping they at least have the sense to use the original cast, but they have already announced they will move the action to the U.S. Back in the UK, for the second Bank Holiday in May, London Expo is going on this weekend, with all kinds of movie goodies.
By way of SciFi Cool comes word that Fringe has been renewed, as has Heroes. But no news about whether Chuck gets brought back for a third season yet.
Eureka returns in July, something we tend to expect these days. But this time it comes in on Friday nights instead of Tuesdays, joining the strong tradition of ScfFi Friday shows like Battlestart Galactica, various Stargate incarnations, Doctor Who, Primeval, and more. It also coincides with their branding switch to SyFy, so all we need to round it out is the new Riverworld TV series they commissioned. While over at BBC America, Ashes to Ashes hits its season 1 finale tomorrow night, with season two kicking off the following Saturday. New episodes of Primeval and Torchwood are coming soon, as well as another original series,
For those lucky enough to be in the UK, tonight was the first segment of the new Red Dwarf special on Dave TV. Robert Llewellyn, who plays the part of Kryten in that series, is being Tweeted to death about it, with a reported over 2,000 received so far tonight. For his last several Car Pool segments (he interviews people while driving them around in his car with web cams, very entertaining) he has had fellow Dwarfers Chris Berrie (Rimmer) and Craig Charles (Lister). He will be interviewing Danny and Holly (Norman, not Hattie) in the next week or two, I haven’t heard if Chloe Annett is going to do one or not. For myself, I will be waiting on the release of the DVD in July to watch it and add it to my collection.
The final episode of the US version of Life On Mars airs tonight, and the producers think sci-fi fans will not be disappointed with the way they tie up the loose ends. The folks at io9 have audiences an interview with the producers you can check out. Meanwhile, BBC America continues to run Ashes to Ashes, the sequel to the original Brit hit production.