Ratings for "Xmas Show" Repeat

"The Christmas Show" maintained its 2nd place slot (against "CSI: Miami") scoring a 3.1/5 and beating a new ep. of ABC's "What About Brian". The original airing scored a 4.9/8.

Envelopes and Other Stuff:

- The Writer's Guild of America yesterday nominated "Studio 60" for two awards - Best Overall New Program and Episodic Drama for the Pilot. Winners will be announced on Febuary 11th from Los Angeles.

- After garnering four nominations from the Satellite Awards (given by the International Press Academy) the cast of "Studio 60" walked away empty-handed last night. Ouch.

- Richard at Screenhead realizes that "The Christmas Show" is "White Christmas":

Think about it. You have a show within a show, with the exterior show being produced by two showmakers (replace Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye with Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford) who are doing the show partially in the benefit of holiday charity - in this case for struggling musicians out of New Orleans. You also have one of the showmakers struggling to admit his feelings for a woman (Bradley Whitford’s Danny Tripp for Amanda Peet’s Jordan McDeere). And to top it all off, you’ve got a quest for snow - in the middle of L.A. of all places.

- The fast overnight ratings for last night's repeat should go public after noon eastern, so I'll be blogging them then.

Don't Forget...

Tonight's the rerun of "The Christmas Show".
New eps begin airing three weeks from tonight.

"The Chritmas Show" Reaction...

A roundup of the latest"60" reaction from across the internets:

-DownWithTyranny! loves Ed Asner as the hero of the newly-emergent epic battle of Network Chair vs. the FCC.
-Just Another Pretty Farce has the goods for those of you wanting more of the "Christmas Myth" plotline from last night.
-BuddyTV sums up the conventional wisdom in saying: "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip finally delivered on its potential last night."
-John Eggerton at BCBeat (the blog of industry mag Broadcast&Cable) reacts to the new NBS/FCC battle: "Studio 60 is pretty darn preachy, which is no surprise for an Aaron Sorkin production, but fortunately for me its my favorite sermon."
-Dorothy Surrenders disusses the new implications for "60"'s female characters after the new Jordan/Danny and Matt/Harriet developments of last night.

That's a very cursory look at the general reaction, but, as I said, the general CW out of last night's ep was that "'Studio 60' has bounced back".

Ratings Uptick Continues

Last night's "The Christmas Show" was the second week of ratings growth for the show (from its all-time low two-weeks ago). The show scored a 4.9/8. And while one might've hoped for a stronger showing for such a critically praised episode (more on that later), it's good news nonetheless.

Source: Zap2it
Ratings history for "60": Wikipedia

Tonight's 'The Christmas Show' a "Must Watch"

The TV Addict has apparently gotten a sneak peak tonight's show, given it five stars, and says it is the "MUST WATCH hour of TV tonight.":

The episode is classic Sorkin and is on par with the best of THE WEST WING and SPORTS NIGHT. (emphasis his)

If history tells us anything, "Studio 60" has perhaps a tiny-problem with high expectations. And that's not setting the bar high at all.

I will, however, be more than happy to have have my cynicism stand corrected.

Weekend Buzz Roundup

- "Studio 60" leads in television nominations for the Satellite Awards (tied with "Ugly Betty" with 4 nominations a piece) which will be held December 17th. Sarah Paulson and Amanda Peet will be competing for Best Actress in a Series (Drama), while Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford will head off for Best Actor in a Series (Drama).

- While Harriet Hayes' position on gay marriage set off that whole fun little adventure known as "Nevada Day", two headliners of "Studio 60" have made a stir taking the 'opposite' position (Harriet would disagree). In November's election Madison native and U. of Wisconsin graduate Bradley Whitford called Wisconsin voters urging them to vote against a ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage (it ended up passing, however). More recently, Amanda Peet appeared in ads for World AIDS Day appealing to gay males to avoid the increased risk of HIV that crystal meth use can cause.

- Monday is the last episode before the traditional holiday hiatus. Here's the brief synopsis from TV Guide via Studio 60 Guide: “Matt wants to bring the spirit of Christmas to Los Angeles when he and the “Studio 60” team put on a holiday show. Meanwhile, Danny tries to figure out his true feelings for Jordan.” The title is going to shock you: "The Christmas Show".

UPDATE 5:40pm: More linky goodness...

-Defamer profiles the ideal "60" viewer per their consistantly snarky graphic skills. Consider it a much less romantic version of the "alpha consumer" theory. Use their handy-easy-to-use flowchart to find out if you're one of them.

-THE FATHER IS WHO? NBC leaked a 4 minute clip of Danny & Jordan at the doctor's office "talking baby". You'll have to watch to find out. h/t Chris @ Studio 60 blog.