TV Gossiper

The week's biggest TV-centric stories—made even biggerer

By Michael O'Connell

Posted October 19, 2009

Special to Metromix

Which beloved TV vet is having a great week and which one isn't at all? We've got the answers to that and a few other questions for good measure.

5. NBC Nixes Thanks-glee-ving Day Parade
TV fans hoping to catch some live lip-syncing while basting their turkeys this T-day are out of luck. Though the cast of "Glee" was announced as performers for this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the idea of showcasing Fox stars did not set well with long-time parade broadcaster NBC. They killed the plans last week. No word on what the network suggested fill the empty slot, but you can bet your life it somehow involved Jay Leno.

4. Bad News for Gellar Pilot
Sarah Michelle Gellar just can't get a break. Her post-Buffy career has been marked by a series of box office flops and direct-to-DVD stinkers, and now it looks as if her much-anticipated HBO pilot is going nowhere fast. The first episode of "The Wonderful Maladys" was completed back in the spring, but HBO has yet to pick it up. And though they're insisting no final decision has been made, sources close to the would-be series say it's dead on arrival. Can't a girl get a break?

3. Limbo Continues for "Dollhouse"
Ratings for the second season of Joss Whedon's troubled "Dollhouse" have been pretty horrible, but the DVR crowd is apparently enough to keep the series on the air... for now. Fox announced last week that each of this season's 13 episodes would make it to air. What happens to "Dollhouse" after that is anybody's guess, but Fox's history of odd decisions considering the show makes even guessing seem pointless.

2. ABC Wins Matthew Perry War
After a bidding battle royale between the big four networks—we're assuming the CW sat this one out—ABC emerged victorious last week as the future home of Matthew Perry's new pilot. A single camera comedy about a self-involved manager of a sports arena facing a mid-life crisis, the former "Friends" actor conceived and will star in the project. And seeing as how ABC will have to pay a healthy load of penalties to Perry and co. if the show doesn't make it to the air, this is the first series currently in development that's all but guaranteed to find it's way to your tube next year.

1. So Mia Michaels Thinks She Can Do Better
Say it ain't so! TV's favorite and most Emmy'd choreographer has left the show that made her a mainstream star. Mia Michaels, whose "So You Think You Can Dance" routines are largely considered the best work on the show, announced last week that she's no longer involved with the series. Speculation ensued. It's not clear if Michaels really is just ready to move on to new projects, as she tweeted, or if it's a case of sour grapes. Just a few weeks ago, Michaels' colleague Adam Shankman was promoted to full-time judge—a job she may have wanted for herself.