Star Trek: The Next Generation
They did it for the original series, now Paramount & CBS look to be having a go at a high-def restoration of select episodes of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" for a Blu-ray sampler release.
The Digital Bits indicates that episodes being included are the double-length "Encounter at Farpoint" pilot, the much acclaimed fifth season episode "The Inner Light" and the Worf-centric "Sins of the Father". No date is set as yet but it's likely to be near Christmas - a German site has indicated a mid-December release in that country.
While the HD update of the original series was an undertaking, Next Gen's restorations require a much more exhaustive overhaul. Though shot on 35mm film, episodes were converted to 480i video for editing and post production - including visual effects.
Neither Paramount or CBS are confirming the news at this time, though series actor Levar Burton revealed on Twitter last week that he had visited CBS "to see how the TNG conversion to HD for Blue Ray was coming along… #mindblown".
Alphas
Syfy has renewed its freshman drama "Alphas" for a second season.
The show follows a group of ordinary people whose unique neurological condition equips them with extraordinary physical abilities. [Source: EW]
Sons of Anarchy
Fans of the FX drama “Sons of Anarchy” gave the show its highest ratings ever with 4.9 million total viewers and 3.2 million adults in the 18-to-49-year-old demographic tuning in for the fourth season premiere.
That figure is up more than 19% in total viewers and 17% in the key demo over last season’s premiere. FX expects that when the final numbers are in, it will be the most watched original series episode in the cable channel’s history. [Source: NY Times]
Archer
The best animated series on television right now, "Archer" returns for a special airing of three all new episodes on September 15th. Now a promo for that batch has gone online which you can see below:
More Photos:
Fox dumped it, Syfy turned it down, but now MTV is reportedly curious about the potential of a "Locke and Key" mini-series after the successful pilot screening at Comic Con and the leaked online promo trailer reports Deadline.
Meanwhile Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage are set to produce the sitcom "My Best Friend Is a Lesbo" for NBC. The comedy revolves around two female best friends, one gay and one straight, who help one another navigate life, love and dating in Los Angeles.
Finally, The Huffington Post says that Aaron Sorkin's TV pilot about a cable news network has been picked up for series by HBO.
The initial 10-episode run has Jeff Daniels playing a news anchor fighting the uphill good fight. Sam Waterson, Emily Mortimer, Olivia Munn and Dev Patel also star.
Read my profile of The Hoxton in the bars section.
Sad as I am to see summer go, there is something I’m really looking forward to about the coming months, and that is the advent of the television’s regular season. After a long summer away from my imaginary friends in Pawnee, Greendale, and Lima, I’m eager to check back in and see what the new premieres have to offer. Hit the jump to see:
If, like me, you’ve been dying all summer to get a glimpse of Tammy 1 (Patricia Clarkson), you’ll definitely want to check out this extended preview for the fourth season of Parks & Recreation. Among teases of several other plot points, we get our first looks at Tammy 1 and the recently announced Tammy 0 (Paula Pell), mother of Ron Motherfucking Swanson (Nick Offerman). As it turns out, Tammy 2 (Megan Mullally) is actually the nice one of the bunch. An upcoming episode will see the three women face off in an “old-fashioned prairie drinking contest,” while Leslie gets caught in the crossfire.
[Flash 10 is required to watch video]
(I’m told you can also download the preview for free on Amazon, but it’s not working for me at all.)
I exaggerate only slightly when I say that my face looked like Andy’s (Chris Pratt) in the header image while I was watching this video. Parks & Recreation‘s fourth season hits Thursday, September 22 at 8:30 PM on NBC. [Cinema Blend]
A few days ago, we showed you the first promo for John Goodman‘s appearance on the third season of Community. A new spot has landed, which covers most of the same ground but also but mixes in clips of some jazzy dance numbers. Jeff (Joel McHale) may not understand the appeal of Glee at all, but it seems the people making Community do — and if the musical number (or, fingers crossed, musical episode?) is half as fun as it looks, it may end up out-Glee-ing Glee itself.
The new season of Community will premiere on NBC Thursday, September 22 at 8 PM — just before Parks. [Vulture]
Speaking of which, here’s another promo for the third season of Glee. The video promises, “New year, same underdogs,” and indeed, it looks like more of the same: Sue (Jane Lynch) and Will (Matthew Morrison) are still engaging in their rivalry, Finn’s (Cory Monteith) still wrestling with being unpopular, and Brittany (Heather Morris) is still charmingly ditzy. But hey, it looks like Quinn (Dianna Agron) has gone punk rock, or something, so that’s something new to look forward to, right?
Glee will return for its third season Tuesday, September 6 at 8 PM on Fox. Yes, that’s this Tuesday. Summer is officially over. [Vulture]
