Long, long ago, in a sweltering land of endless baseball games and golf tournaments, there was nothing but sports and reruns to watch all summer long. When I was still young enough to believe my mother’s reasoning, I used to think that there was no place for television on warm summer evenings. According to this logic, the networks responded to the summer habits of its viewers, and held off programming until the fall.
Puh-lease. This is America. We’re not exactly what I’d call an active people — we live in front of our televisions. Over the last few years, the networks have gradually tested the waters for an audience for summer shows, achieving a fair amount of success.
“The O.C.” was last summer’s blockbuster, and some of its popularity should be credited to its summer debut which allowed them to enter the fall season with a considerable amount of buzz. Steal viewers away from “The West Wing” during the summer when reruns are on, and chances are, you can probably hold on to some of those viewers in the fall.
Fox pioneered this summer season concept — or as they call it, year-long programming — and now, thanks to their success, other networks are in on the secret, unveiling summer series and reality shows to woo us away from the glow of patio citronella candles to the bug-free television zone. Unfortunately, most of these shows will be reality series, and you should know by now how I feel about reality TV. Still, there are a few that will warrant a watch or two.
“The Simple Life 2.” Okay, I must admit, the first round of this show was pretty amusing. “What do they sell at Wal-Mart? Walls?” It doesn’t get more classic than that. Paris and Nicole will be road-tripping across America starting June 16 on Fox.
Another promising comedy from Fox called “Method & Red” starts June 16 and explores what happens in an uppity community when two hip-hop stars (real artists Method Man and Redman) move in.
NBC’s summer roster is packed with reality, serving viewers second helpings to some of the worst reality TV including “Who Wants to Marry My Dad” plus a new series, “Next Action Star.” This new talent competition premieres June 15 and seeks to find the next action star through a 14-person competition. It might be funny to see how many injuries this show inflicts on its contestants, but aside from that, NBC’s hope to find the next talent competition hit should bomb again just as “Last Comic Standing” did last summer.
On June 1, the WB will unveil “Summerland,” a new Aaron Spelling family drama starring Lori Loughlin (last seen in “Full House”), about a successful career gal inheriting three children when her sister dies.
So if you’re looking for something cool to do on a hot night, check out these summer shows. Personally, I’ll be watching the only team worth watching, the Boston Red Sox, as they win their way to this year’s World Series.