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For 'Southland,'
a new life, with promise

TNT is debuting season two of the axed NBC show

By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Mar 2, 2010

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It's pretty rare that a network cancels a show before its season premiere even airs, but that was indeed the case for "Southland," which NBC axed last fall weeks before its second season was slated to begin.

TNT immediately swooped in to pick up the six already-filmed episodes of season two, which debuts tonight at 10 p.m.

Many were surprised that NBC even renewed the critically acclaimed series, about Los Angeles cops, in the first place. "Southland" premiered in the 10 p.m. Thursday slot the week after "ER's" series finale. Produced by John Wells, who also produced "ER," "Southland" drew less-than-impressive numbers, averaging just a 2.2 adults 18-49 C3 rating, according to Nielsen.

The network's decision to renew the show also seemed odd because the dark, gritty "Southland" would, by necessity, have to move to 9 p.m., with NBC turning over its 10 p.m. weeknight timeslot to Jay Leno and the NFL occupying Sunday at 10. Nine is still part of the family hours where children watch programming.

Instead, NBC chose to plop the show on the Friday night schedule as the lead-out to "Law & Order" but delayed the season premiere until mid-October in favor of a series of "Dateline" specials.

Soon word began to drift out that the network was nervous about the edginess of season two's episodes, and NBC canceled the show outright just weeks before its scheduled premiere.

"Southland" was a goner, or so it appeared until TNT saved it a couple of weeks later.

The network has already re-run the seven first-season episodes over the past two months, and they've drawn so-so numbers, averaging more than a million viewers. But in the past week or so there's been some hype over "Southland's" rebirth, so the ratings could well pick up tonight.

Even if they don't, TNT should bask in the critical love coming its way. Reviewers are slobbering over the new season, scolding NBC for passing it up, and praising TNT for giving "Southland" new life.

A look at this week’s top TV draws
TUESDAY, MARCH 2
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	ABC	“Good Morning America” (N)	“Bachelor” Jake Pavelka and this season’s winner guest, assuming they are still together. You never know in "Bachelor" world.
8 p.m.	CBS	“NCIS” (D)	Gena Rowlands guests as one of Gibbs’ former mother-in-laws.
8 p.m.	Fox	“American Idol” (R)	The top 10 female contestants show what they’ve got.
8 p.m.	NBC	“The Biggest Loser” (R)	The reality series returns after an Olympic layoff.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Lost” (D)	Sayid is forced into a very difficult decision.
10 p.m.	CBS	“NCIS: Los Angeles” (D)	A naval officer’s death is ruled a suicide, but the crew has other thoughts.
10 p.m.	NBC	“Parenthood” (D)	Series premiere. A single mom takes her kids and moves back in with her parents.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	NBC	“Today” (N)	Country group Lady Antebellum performs.
8 p.m.	Fox	“American Idol” (R)	Tonight it’s the top 10 guys who take the stage.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Modern Family” (C)	Cameron and Mitchell have brunch with Lily’s doctor.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Criminal Minds” (D)	A new kidnapping case is very similar to another that’s eight years old.
9 p.m.	ESPN	“College Basketball” (S)	Game between Duke and Maryland could decide the regular-season ACC title.
10 p.m.	ABC	“Oprah Winfrey Oscar Special” (A)	Oprah hosts and Oscar nominees interview each other.
10 p.m.	FX	“Nip/Tuck” (D)	Series finale. Sean and Christian look back at their extremely graphic relationship.
THURSDAY, MARCH 4
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	ABC	“Good Morning America” (N)	Tom Hanks and “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh both guest.
8 p.m.	Fox	“American Idol” (R)	Two more guys and two more gals will be cut, bringing the field down to 16.
8 p.m.	TNT	“NBA Basketball” (S)	Kobe and the Lakers travel to Miami to take on the Heat.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Grey’s Anatomy” (D)	A famous surgeon checks into the ER and requests an unusual procedure.
9 p.m.	NBC	“The Office” (C)	Pam heads to the hospital to give birth to her and Jim’s baby.
10 p.m.	CBS	“The Mentalist” (D)	A chef is killed at a cooking competition in Napa Valley.
FRIDAY, MARCH 5
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CBS	“Ghost Whisperer” (D)	A ghost tells Melinda about a dump that’s housing unexploded bombs.
8 p.m.	Disney Channel	“Suite Life on Deck” (C)	Zack, Cody and London all dream that they’re in fairy tales.
8 p.m.	Nickelodeon	“iCarly” (C)	A billionaire wants to help Carly and Co. put on the first live internet show from space.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Medium” (D)	Allison takes self defense classes after she’s mugged.
9 p.m.	HBO	“The Ricky Gervais Show” (C)	Among the topics discussed are personal mottos and superpowers.
10 p.m.	CBS	“Numb3rs” (D)	Charlie and Amita’s wedding plans could be on hold after they’re offered a new job. Bit of foreshadowing there, as this show is not expected to be renewed.
SATURDAY, MARCH 6
Time	Network	Program	Description
3 p.m.	NBC	‘PGA Golf” (S)	Third round of the Honda Classic from Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
8 p.m.	Fox	“Cops” (R)	Cops in San Diego catch a mother-son pair who stole a cake.
8 p.m.	National Geographic Channel	“Dangerous Encounters” (N)	A look at potentially dangerous animals that live in the American West.
9 p.m.	ESPN	“College Basketball” (S)	North Carolina and Duke renew their rivalry in men’s basketball.
9 p.m.	Hallmark Channel	“Uncorked” (M)	A workaholic suddenly has time on her hands while in California’s wine region.
11:30 p.m.	NBC	“Saturday Night Live” (S)	Zach Galifianakis guests and Vampire Weekend performs.
SUNDAY, MARCH 7
Time	Network	Program	Description
Noon	CBS	“College Basketball” (S)	A good SEC matchup between Florida and Kentucky.
Noon	Fox	“NASCAR Racing” (S)	A Sprint Cup race in Atlanta.
6 p.m.	E!	“Live From the Red Carpet” (A)	Ryan Seacrest and Giuliana Rancic interview celebs before the Academy Awards.
8:30 p.m.	ABC	“Academy Awards” (A)	Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin team up to host the 82nd annual event.
9 p.m.	HBO	“Big Love” (D)	Season finale. Tension builds as election day approaches.
10 p.m.	CBS	“Cold Case” (D)	The 1986 case of a murdered dock worker/pro wrestler is reopened.
A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.