Media Life Magazine - Oh 'Mercy,' there is a doctor in the house

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Oh 'Mercy,' there
is a doctor in the house

Can he save the struggling NBC hospital drama?

By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Feb 3, 2010

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During "Dawson's Creek's" five-year run, James Van Der Beek was the show's highest-profile star, becoming a teen heartthrob and starring in the modest hit film "Varsity Blues."

But since "Creek" ended in 2003, Van Der Beek has been overshadowed by his former castmates. Katie Holmes married Tom Cruise and became a tabloid staple, Michelle Williams earned an Oscar nomination and Joshua Jackson is starring on Fox's cult show "Fringe."

Now, finally, Dawson himself is back, joining the struggling first-year show "Mercy" tonight at 8 p.m. on NBC. The network is clearly hoping that Van Der Beek will have a Heather Locklear-like boosting effect on the show's sagging ratings.

Promos for "Mercy" have been playing up his presence as a narcissistic doctor who clashes with the trio of nurses the show focuses on. But it seems doubtful the girls who once swooned over Van Der Beek as a sensitive filmmaker on "Creek" will even still remember him today. That was a lifetime, and an inch of hairline, ago.

"Mercy" would probably need more ratings help than Van Der Beek can deliver to sew up a second season. The show is averaging a mere 1.9 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen live-plus-same-day-DVR-playback numbers, and unlike many NBC shows, like "The Office" and "Heroes," it does not get much of a kick from seven-day DVR numbers.

It got a full-season order mainly because it did okay among total viewers in a very weak timeslot, Wednesdays at 8. It has not gained either a critical following or a devoted fanbase that talks about it online, something that secured "Parks and Recreation" and "Chuck" third seasons.

Most likely "Mercy" will be a blip on Van Der Beek's resume as he attempts a bigger comeback, unless he can tempt former "Creek" girlfriend Holmes into making a guest appearance.

A look at this week’s top TV draws
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CBS	“Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials” (A)	A countdown of the best spots ever to air on Super Sunday.
9 p.m.	Fox	“American Idol” (R)	Hollywood is right around the corner as the audition phase ends.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Modern Family” (C)	Actress Minnie Driver guests as an old friend of Claire.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Criminal Minds” (D)	A con artist kills the people he scams.
10 p.m.	FX	“Nip/Tuck” (D)	A common procedure on an actress goes wrong.
10 p.m.	MTV	“The Real World” (R)	Ashley gets into a fight with Andrew, which stirs memories of past abuse.
10 p.m.	USA	“Psych” (D)	Someone goes overboard during a river-rafting trip, and Shawn thinks it wasn’t an accident.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	ABC	“Good Morning America” (N)	Comedian, singer and actor Jamie Foxx guests.
8 p.m.	CW	“The Vampire Diaries” (D)	Bonnie and Ben go on a date, but it doesn’t turn out well.
8 p.m.	TNT	NBA Basketball” (S)	Should be a fun one to watch between Miami and Cleveland.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Grey’s Anatomy” (D)	A patient of Bailey's and Meredith's wakes up in the middle of surgery.
9 p.m.	NBC	“The Office” (C)	Dunder Mifflin is bought out by a company whose CEO is played by Kathy Bates.
10 p.m.	CBS	“The Mentalist” (D)	A car saleswoman is found dead in the trunk of a Bentley. Was she selling Toyotas? People are pretty mad about the recall.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CBS	“Ghost Whisperer” (D)	Margaret Cho plays a professor who’s haunted by a ghost secret admirer.
8 p.m.	CW	“Smallville” (D)	The Justice Society of America gets help from Clark, Chloe, John Jones and Green Arrow.
8 p.m.	Nickelodeon	“iCarly” (K)	Freddie gets a little too close to Gibby’s girlfriend.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Medium” (D)	No matter who Allison talks to, she keeps seeing the face of the same man. Maybe someone else has a ghost secret admirer, huh?
10 p.m.	Showtime	“Spartacus: Blood and Sand” (D)	Spartacus plots to battle Crixus in the main event of a festival.
10:30 p.m.	ESPN	“NBA Basketball” (S)	The Nuggets try to take down the Lakers in Los Angeles.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6
Time	Network	Program	Description
Noon	ESPN	“College Basketball” (S)	Tough Big East matchup between Villanova and Georgetown.
8 p.m.	Fox	“NASCAR Racing” (S)	The Budweiser Shootout from Daytona International Speedway.
9 p.m.	BBC	“Demons” (D)	Season finale. Luke has bad dreams about the car accident that killed his dad.
9 p.m.	Food Network	“Food Network Challenge” (N)	Chefs make chocolate versions of the wonders of the world.
9 p.m.	ESPN	“College Basketball” (S)	Key conference game between Michigan State and Illinois.
11:30 p.m.	NBC	“Saturday Night Live” (C)	Ashton Kutcher hosts and Them Crooked Vultures perform.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7
Time	Network	Program	Description
Noon	NBC	“NHL Hockey” (S)	The sport’s current golden boys, Crosby and Ovechkin, face off in Washington.
2 p.m.	CBS	“Super Bowl Today” (S)	The season’s biggest game needs its longest pregame show.
2:30 p.m.	ABC	“NBA Basketball” (S)	The Magic travel to Boston for a game against the Celtics.
6:25 p.m.	CBS	“NFL Football” (S)	After all the talk, it’s Colts versus Saints in Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.
9 p.m.	HBO	“Big Love” (D)	Bill works endless hours in his attempt to win a state senate seat (and draw people away from the Super Bowl).
10 p.m.	CBS	“Undercover Boss” (R)	Series premiere. Executives pretend to be new low-level hires at their own companies. CBS pretends the show will actually start at 10.
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.