From Yahoo TV:

This came up in the Lost thread as it will fill in their time slot as they go on hiatus until February. Even with only 13 eps the concept could get old, but hey, I need something to watch until Lost gets back, so I'll give it a shot.

I like the idea of a shortened season for this show. It could help the issue of each day repeating by condensing the idea for the first season into 1/2 the episodes of a usual drama.

Reading some reviews it appears that the lead keeps his injuries from the previous days which is a new twist (different from Groundhog Day, where Bill Murray just ended up commiting suicide for a while).

It is one of the few shows that I have been interested in this year.

(The idea is from Rob Bowman, from The X-Files)

At first, I was a little disappointed by that news. I kind of wanted Groundhog Day rules, where Taye could basically do whatever the fuck he wanted and suffer no consequences. Then I realized if that was the case, there would be no tension and while that works for a comedy, not so well for a Drama/Thriller. However, I do want him to figure out rather quickly what's going on, because if he makes the same mistakes day after day, that will get old real quick.

Anyway, here are some clips from TV.com.

I love that his body lives through each day, as it means he can't just keep doing this indefinitely hoping to stumble onto the way to make it stop, and presumably if he ides, that's it.

Also, it's very refreshing that the mysterious guys who capture and frame him apparently have nothing to do with the day repeating.

Saw the ABC promo for the first time on Wed. during Lost and it looks fairly promising. Taye seems to get the concept and does learn from the previous days.

Here is the long version of the promo from ABC.

I didn't realize that there were X-Files folk behind this show. The plot reminds me a little of the XF episode "Redrum," so that's interesting.

Thanx for posting the promo. Shirtless Taye is always a good thing : ).

Isn't this coming on sooner rather than later? I thought I saw a promo for it coming on next week or so.

Am I the only one who thinks this looks quite bad?

The show is going to take over the Lost timeslot (Wednesdays at 9pm for the heathens among us) for 13 weeks starting, I think, in mid-to-late November... Lost will then return in February.

The show will premiere Nov. 15th in Lost's timeslot, Wednesdays at 9(8 central). It will run 13 weeks, no reruns.



This show is going to be all about the execution. The premise is intriguing, but I could easily see TPTB bungling this. The suspense is going to be the effect of Taye learning things and changing his behavior accordingly. I'm somewhat hopeful because I believe this is a limited series. That is, one season, thirteen weeks. Therefore, the complete story is mapped out.

I knew it was suppose to be taking the slot from Lost but I thought it might be geting one of the soon to be cancelled show's slot.

As for the premise I have seen it on a few tv show, the best being Stargate but I don't know if having the same day over and over again is going to work for 13 eps. Even in one ep of some shows it starts to get boring fast.

This looks exactly like the type of show I could fall for...

...and two weeks later - POOF! - it's gone, into the ether of time and space, and I'm in pieces on my couch, alternating crying jags with long, sad monologues about the cruel mistress which is the network TV industry, barely subsisting on stale Cheetos Paws and flat Mountain Dew.

And yet - I'll still watch it. If I hate it, I'll consider myself burned, but free. But if I love it, I fear I'll be consumed by it, and then, when the inevitable ratings collapse leads to cancellation, I'll be trapped in the depths, cursing myself, and my weaknesses for kitchen-sink plotting, genre-fusion, and, of course, the flash-versus-substance paradox.

In other words, I really need to go outside once and a while.

I actually think this might do pretty well. It's got the Lost timeslot, a recognizable star in the lead, a premise that most people are at least vaguely familiar with (from Groundhog Day, the X-Files or TNG eps, or somewhere), and aside from the repeating-day convention, it seems to be a pretty straightforward, 24/Prison Break-style action/adventure show (i.e., not a lot of overt genre elements or complex mythology to turn off mainstream viewers). I actually haven't heard anything about it being a limited-run venture... in fact, if the show does go to term, I'm fully expecting some sort of "shocking" cliffhanger at the end...

I'm definitely curious about this. It might be a better chaser for me to Criminal Minds than CSI:NY is...but as others have said, the execution of this will save it or doom it.

I may check this out. I've liked Taye Diggs ever since he was criminally underused on Guiding Light, back in my soap-watching days.

Totally agree about the importance of the execution. One thing that made Groundhog Day work (aside from Billy Murray, the biggest factor in its success) was how drastically different many of the days were. It might be good if some of the days were less tragic than others, although maybe that would violate the premise if the gf inevitably ends up dead every time.

Ohhhh. please please please let this actually be a planned limited run for 13 eps. I adore Taye Diggs and I love the idea and I completely and utterly fear the execution being bungled. I am feeling burned by so many of these serial dramas (Reunion, anyone?). I am sick of them this Fall. But this one has so many things going for it and I am totally in.

Taye Diggs? I want to have your babies.

I love this idea. I think this show is flying too far under the radar.

Please, please, please ABC, do not blow this, othewise this will be a long winter. I don't want to watch Criminal Minds.

New web page up at ABC.com.
Right now it's just the two TV promos plus the long promo I posted earlier as well as some photos and cast bios.

Here's the ep list from TV.com which I'll spoiler tag for the extremely spoiler phobic:
1 Pilot 11/15/2006 100
2 What If They Run 11/22/2006 101
3 What If He Lets Her Go 11/29/2006 102
4 What If He Can Change The Day 12/6/2006 103
5 What If They're Stuck 12/13/2006 104
7 What If They Find Him 12/20/2006 106
8 What If He's Not Alone 12/27/2006 107
9 What If She's Lying 1/3/2007 108
10 What If They're Connected 1/10/2007 109
11 What If He's Free 1/17/2007 110
By the ep titles, you can kind of see how they'll play this.

24 meets Groundhog's Day? I can totally work with this. Awesome.

I'm 7 1/2 months pregnant already and told my son's father that I'm going to have to give him the last name "Diggs"... you know, just in case Taye and I happen to fall in love one day after Idina leaves him when she finds out that he can't have babies due to an injury he incurred while filming Brown Sugar.
I haven't quite worked out the details but in other words...

Bring it!


Topic: Um... I will watch at least the first episode. I'm not a big fan of all the huge high concept shows. I like my television without the calculus equations. This is why I only watched Lost once. But Taye Diggs could be on the Golf Network and I'd watch at least 5 times. Never change the channel if he sang showtunes sans shirt.

ETA: I don't know why but I read the thread title as "Because Taye Diggs is better looking than McDreamy". I have no idea where that came from.

I am really looking forward to seeing this show. I had no idea that Taye Diggs and Adam Baldwin were going to be in it though, so that makes me want to watch that much more. I wish that it wasn't taking the place of Lost, though. I don't really like them having a huge hiatus, but whatever.

Am I the only one who thinks there's no possible way this show can work? There's no emotional stakes, if every morning he wakes up and the previous events are erased. Who cares then? So what if his girlfriend gets shot? She'll be fine the next day. Am I missing something from the premise?

Well your criticism is possibly valid, but you might be missing that anything that happens to him carries over. So if he is reckless (like in Groundhog Day) and dies, he's dead for good.

I get that he dies, but does anything else matter for any other characters?

I'm not sure. I wonder if that rule only applies to him. If he kills someone, do they come back the next time? I'm not sure. I would think so, it wouldn't make a lot of logical sense otherwise (not that it does in the first place).

So I guess that creates stakes, because his girlfriend could get hurt as well.

I have the same concern. Adam Baldwin's involvement is kind of sealing the deal for me though. He always picks interesting roles and projects (granted many have been B flicks, but they were interesting to o... if you love B flicks as much as I do).

This one might require a certain amount of suspending logic. I'll probably watch the whole run though. "Cause I would watch Taye Diggs watching paint dry. Yum.

But I would be much happier if they actually get it right and make it a suspenseful, interesting show.

Taye Diggs... Yuuuum.

Adam Baldwin... Bonus.

Is it bad that I'm looking more forward to this then I am to the last two episodes of Lost before it begins it's hiatus?

Anyway, The Futon Critic has listing for the first two hours, that are airing on Nov. 15.

PREMIERE

DETECTIVE BRETT HOPPERS LIFE TAKES AN UNEXPLAINED DETOUR WHEN HES CHARGED WITH KILLING A DISTRICT ATTORNEY, DISCOVERS HIS LOVED ONES ARE IN DANGER AND THAT HES BEING FRAMED -- AND FORCED TO RE-LIVE THE SAME DAY OVER AND OVER UNTIL HE CAN RIGHT WHAT WENT WRONG -- ON THE PREMIERE OF DAY BREAK, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 ON ABC

Detective Brett Hopper is having a hellacious day; the kind of day where nothing goes his way and he just cant wait to put it behind him... only he cant, because hes living the same day over and over again. Taye Diggs (Kevin Hill) stars in Day Break, an action-packed thriller that takes a bad day and multiplies it by infinity, premiering WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 on the ABC Television Network.


And the second episode, also airing Nov 15:

HOPPER ATTEMPTS TO SKIP TOWN WITH RITA TO ESCAPE THE DAY, BUT SOON DISCOVERS THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS IMPULSIVE ACTIONS, ON ABCS DAY BREAK

What If They Run Hopper makes the decision to take Rita and make a run for it by getting out of town in an attempt to escape the day. But he soon discovers the disastrous consequences of his rash actions, on Day Break, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 on the ABC Television Network.

McPike and Skinner, back in the saddle. No surprise to see Mitch Pileggi, with Bowman as one of the execs, but where in the hell has Jonathan Banks been? Off to IMDB!

I think the idea is that he keeps trying to save the people he loves, but either failing, or causing something else disastrous to happen in the process. So he keeps having to go back and "relive the day" over and over again, until he gets it right. Imagine yourself in that situation... you're not just gonna stand by and let the person you love get shot because "it doesn't matter, she'll be alive again when I wake up in the morning." He's not like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, who (eventually, at least) ends up reliving his day thousands upon thousands of times... he's new to this, he's not gonna trust it enough to develop that sort of blase attitude.

Also, I think the fact that he can apparently get hurt regardless of the fact that time keeps resetting itself adds an extra level of urgency to the proceedings... after all, what if he lets someone die, and then he dies himself? Then the person he loves will be dead forever. And, for that matter, if he retains injuries and whatnot, maybe he still ages too. So any which way you slice it, he can't just keep doing this ad nauseum. He's working on a timetable here.

In addition, he doesn't know when the days are going to stop resetting, so he can't go off all willy-nilly. I wonder if they'll try to explain why this is happening. I kind of hope not, they'll have a lot on their plate as it is.
The first two eps will be shown back-to-back on Nov. 15.
The first act of the pilot is up at ABC.com.

This show looks like it could be really bad. No doubt it will be helped by timeslot. Is it me, or am I the only one that dislikes all of these open-ended "so many questions that we need to find answers to" shows spawned by "Lost"?

Parts of this show look cool, like how in the preview he's catching the coffee cup, presumably because he knew it was going to fall since it had fallen in a previous "day". But parts look soooo bad. I've never thought Taye Diggs is a particularly good actor.

The other thing I'm wondering, is what happens if this show is successful and there is a season 2? Are we just supposed to expect that, like Jack Bauer, bad things keep happening to him? With Jack at least, his bad days are spaced out over time. For Taye Diggs, in a Season 2, we'd be expected to believe that he'd have to repeat yet another day?

I guess the premise just doesn't appeal to me. It was OK in Groundhog Day, but not in a continuing series.

I'm looking forward to this show because I'm very curious about a couple of things. I'd like to see how TD does as the lead on a major network. I liked his last series, Kevin Hill, so I'd like to see if ABC will give the show a real shot. I'm also really interested in how/if TPTB will explain why he's repeating days. Will it be his calling, a la Tru Calling? Will he turn out to be a delusional guy who's replaying scenarios in his head to figure out how to save people who died on his watch? I'm willing to give to show a shot (or at least the pilot) in the hopes of finding these things out.

I am really curious to see how this turns out also! I think that Taye is going ot be really good...I who wouldn't want to see him every week? I am also really interested in seeing what the angle is going to be...be it, is he going crazy or is it something that they are doing TO him or what?...I also really like the fact that we are going to know at the end of the show's run what has happened, so it's not like we are going to be kept in the dark!

Oh boy! Another show based on simple concept and narrow premise. Wondered if they have taken a look at what happens to show like Vanished, Kidnapped & Runaway. Sounds good for a 2-hour movie but for a series? I don't know.

Well, what's different and cool about this one though is the fact that it's going to have an ending...so,, like I said it's not like it is going to be goign on forever with the same idea. I like that fact.

When you say "ending", do you mean that this series was conceived as a "one season only" or "limited run" series? If so, what if ratings are good? What do they do in the second season? Or do you mean "ending" in that we get the answers to what's going on? Because if that's the case, I don't see how "Day Break" is different and cool.

All the of the other series mentioned, I presume they have endings and answers too. On "Vanished", the hostage situation ends. On "Kidnapped", they find the son. On "Runaway", the kid comes back. So I would think we get answers as to why what has happened has happened.

The cynic in me says we never get the answers to "Day Break" because just like all these other promising shows with a mystery (R.I.P. "Smith"), it's going to get cancelled before we get to the end.

I am going to assume the ending is that the girlfriend dies. And, that... personally... is not the kind of ending that drives me to watch... ANYTHING!

This movie seems to have shades of Vin Diesel's "A Man Apart" which intrigued me when that movie's trailers came out. He seemed to really love his wife, too. But... I don't know. I couldn't watch it. As much as I love the story of man so taken with his wife... but, then... his wife... dies. I can't handle that.

I never got a good look at the girl, so I didn't realize she could be Filipino. That is so cool if she is. I'm half-Filipino, and it seems like there is never really any Filipinos on anything I watch. I don't really care, but it will be nice to have some representation. However, I'm not looking forward if that stereotype you mentioned is shown. I don't really even know how true it is. My mother definitely does not need my father to baby and protect her. Nor do I with my husband. Nor my sisters or aunts with their husbands. So, I hope they don't go in that route at all because I do not see that as typical behavior for a mixed marriage anyways.

Moon Bloodgood is half-Korean.

Here is her IMDB page.

So one of the backstories is that Rita used to be married to Adam Baldwin's character and is now with Taye, so that is another source of tension between the two characters. So here is my question to the straight women out there (and gay men, no discrimination here): Upgrade or downgrade?

Aimingforyoko....for me it would be apples and oranges. Equal quality different concept.

Here's Matt Roush's take:

From TVGuide.com

After reading that, I have to say, it is indeed an interesting concept. So in order to avoid X being killed, he tweaks things a little, but then Y dies. So the next "day" he saves Y, but then Z dies. So he fixes things again and this time he saves Z and Y but X dies and we are back to square one.

I could see myself getting annoyed with this show. That, plus the description of it as "ad nauseum" and Taye Diggs as "humorless" is enough to keep me from tuning in.

McPike guest starred on Alias a few years ago, that's the last I've seen of him.

There's a reason the concept for the show is known as the Groundhog Day concept, because it's been tried millions of times since (and a couple of dozen times before), and only Groundhog Day ever got it to work right.

Please don't let Roush's opinions determine your own. He annoys me the way he often makes completely subjective analysis out to be definitive fact.

I'll probably watch. The concept's been attempted before, but it's a fun concept. It'll likely be frustrating, but I'm a glutton for that sort of thing. If it starts to really suck, however, I won't let myself be victim to the "Well, I gotta have something to watch since Lost isn't on" syndrome. I know how to turn off my TV and go do more important things... like logging another hour on TWoP, snarking with the rest of you guys.

Moon Bloodgood will work for me as eye candy. Even though we'll probably she her character get killed like 20 times. She was part of the reason I was actually able to sit through Eight Below. (Don't ask.)

That's got to be the creepiest name that any actress has ever had, though.

It looks like it's overflowing with action. I'd probably take a peek on it next wed and see if it's worth wasting my precious time. The girl is hot but i don't really like taye diggs that much.

I'm so glad you mentioned this because it keeps bringing up all sorts of TV and movie related thoughts/memories for me. In the sci fi show Seven Days there was a character who got killed almost every week before they reset and went backwards seven days to fix everything. He commented on it in an interview somewhere (in a humerous and classy fashion).

Then I think of the slapping montage from Groundhog's Day.

Basically I hope Ms. Bloodgood (and word on the creepy ass name, I love it) has a great sense of humour about dying damned near every week and swimming in fake blood.

I figure the show will either rock or suck. But I'm guessing that if it sucks, it will be mildly hilarious (a la Jericho and Tru Calling.

Someone said this feels like a two hour movie more than a series. It does... doesn't it? That's probably as far as I'll go, too.

To make Day Break a really good show it probably requires making the show somewhat complex and I don't know if viewers will want to get involved in another show that involves all of their attention straight after the mini Lost season finishes.

If people complain that Lost has too little plot advancement, I don't know how they will feel about the same day with some variations over and over. I'm making the assumption that the majority of Day Break's viewers will come from Lost viewers tuning in.




I used to love watching Seven Days. I thought it was a really good show and had a good mix of interesting plots and humor.