Bones Back @ Its Best; Castle Not so Much

Bones (FOX), just showed its second new episode of their 10th season; the premiere episode was well worth waiting for.

Castle (ABC), in its 7th season was flat, lifeless and hard to track. At the end of season 6, right when Kate and Castle were about to be married, Kate got called to a fiery crash which turned out to be Castle’s car. An excellent end-of-season cliff hanger.

The premiere of season 7 picks up right where season 6 left off, with Castle not being in the car (which is what I expected). Castle is missing through the entire episode which spans months. By the end of the episode, he’s found afloat in a boat from a pier owned by a Henry Jenkins (played by Matt Letscher) who turns out to be an imposter.

Matt Letscher told TVLine that while they were filming, everyone “played both sides of the fence” with him “because they wanted to leave themselves some options.” He added that Henry Jenkins is much more cunning compared to his Billy Chambers character in “Scandal” (who cares).

Bones hasn’t had many character eliminations. Zac Addy (played by Eric Millegan) was there from the beginning through season 4. Ryan Cartwright who played Vincent Nigel-Murray was one of several rotating “squinterns” who replaced Zac Addy. He was killed in Season 6, Episode 22 and his murder was the catalyst which brought Booth and Brennan together.

SPOILER ALERT!

John Francis Daley (Sweets) © FOX Network.

John Francis Daley (Sweets) © FOX Network.

In the episodic premiere of the tenth season of Bones, Sweets (played by John Francis Daley) is murdered. The second episode solves his murder and the rest of the team says good-bye.

Also in the first episode, a new cast member is introduced. Agent Aubrey (John Boyd) who you may recognize if you watched “24.”

That’s all I intend to say about Bones and Castle. I hope what I have written encourages you to tune-in to these hour long dramas.

Castle is on ABC on Monday nights at 9pm CST.

Bones is on FOX on Thursday nights at 7pm CST.

Canceled – But Rated High? Shows Returning in June.

From The Wrap

From The Wrap

How is that possible? Well it happens all the time, especially in that golden 18-49 demographic. Here is a chart of the 20 highest rated but canceled broadcast shows of 2013-2014 in that magic 18-49 demographic.

Robin Williams return to the small screen brought some bittersweet ratings. His show Crazy Ones was number 1 on the list with a 2.7 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, but it was still canceled.

It tied with FOX’s Almost Human which took up space on my DVR and I never watched a single episode. I usually watch anything with Karl Urban in it. Oh well.

But that 18-49 demo isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. For example, FOX’s Bones‘ runs around a 2.4 but it’s an enduring show that has proven its value to the network.

The Mentalist on CBS is another show earning a 2.0 but it also survived the cut. So it’s easy to say that numbers aren’t the only thing taken into consideration when shows are on the chopping block.

Here’s a list of what’s returning this month (June):

Longmire (Season 3) — A&E (June 2)

Mistresses (Season 2) — ABC (June 2)

Major Crimes (Season 3) — TNT (June 9)

Royal Pains (Season 6) — USA Network (June 10)

Graceland (Season 2) — USA Network (June 11)

Suits (Season 4) — USA Network  (June 11)

Dog and Beth: On the Hunt (Season 2)  — CMT (June 14)

Perception (Season 3) — TNT (June 17)

Rizzoli & Isles (Season 5) — TNT (June 17)

Rookie Blue (Season 5) — ABC (June 19)

Defiance (Season 2) — Syfy (June 19)

Wipeout (Season 7) — ABC (June 22)

True Blood (Season 7; final season) — HBO (June 22)

Falling Skies (Season 4) — TNT (June 22)

Teen Wolf (Season 4) — MTV (June 23)

Covert Affairs (Season 5) — USA Network (June 24)

Big Brother (Season 16) — CBS (June 25)

Unforgettable (Season 3) — CBS (June 29)

Last Tango in Halifax (Season 2) — PBS (June 29)

Under the Dome (Season 2) — CBS  (June 30)

Some canceled shows I know of include Once Upon a Time in Wonderland and Mind Games (ABC) and Greg Kinnear’s Rake (FOX) which seemed to end before it even began.