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TV Upfronts

The CW Unveils Its 2013-14 Schedule

Jace Lacob examines The CW's 2013-14 primetime schedule, which includes five new dramas and moves around returning shows ('Supernatural,' 'The Carrie Diaries') across the week.

The CW took the wraps off of its 2013-14 primetime schedule on Thursday morning, marking the final day of the broadcast network upfronts.

Among the changes afoot at the nearly seven-year old network: Hart of Dixie and Beauty and the Beast are moving to Mondays, Supernatural moves to Tuesdays, and The Carrie Diaries gets pushed to Fridays at 8 p.m. Nikita, which will have its final season of a six episodes, will be held until midseason. The network ordered five new dramas for next season, which will be scattered throughout Tuesdays (The Vampire Diaries spin-off The Originals), Wednesdays (The Tomorrow People), and Thursdays (period drama Reign) when The CW begins its fall season in October. Two additional dramas—Star-Crossed and The 100—will be held until midseason along with newly ordered reality show Famous in 12; their timeslots are still to be determined.

CW Upfronts

CW

9-to-5er

Adam DeVine: Real-Life Workaholic

In a Funny or Die video out today, Adam DeVine spoofs reality TV. The comedian looks back on his giant success with 'Workaholics' and the future of his new TV and film projects.

There was a media firestorm when Arrested Development’s Jason Bateman unwittingly tweeted a photo of his first day back on set for the show last August, revealing two-thirds of Comedy Central’s Workaholics co-stars and co-creators—Adam DeVine (Adam DeKamp) and Anders Holm (Anders “Ders” Holmvik)— in the background. Fans have been salivating for details on the popular show’s return to Netflix on May 26.

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Adam DeVine in a scene from "Workaholics." (Comedy Central)

“Jason Bateman didn’t know we were on a TV show,” DeVine said in an interview with The Daily Beast. “He had no idea about Workaholics until then, and then he was like, ‘I guess these guys are really on a show,’ which is really cool. I’m such a huge Arrested Development fan.”

Bazinga!

‘The Big Bang Theory’ Triumphs

Leonard, Sheldon, Penny, and the intellectual as object of adoration: Ken Tucker on why CBS’s ‘The Big Bang Theory’ has only gotten better and braver in its sixth season.

Six seasons in, The Big Bang Theory is more popular than ever, and better than ever. Which is not to say it’s a great show, as much as I always root for popularity and greatness to overlap. (If I didn’t, I’d be reviewing poetry full-time.) What BBT has going for it this season is its clear, crisp communication to its audience that it completely understands the personality and function of every member of its growing cast, no small achievement for a series that started out as a simple story pitch: two nerds (Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki) try to interact with the hot girl (Kaley Cuoco) across the hall.

The Big Bang Theory

Leonard played by Johnny Galecki and Sheldon played by Jim Parsons in an episode of CBS' 'The Big Bang Theory'. (Sonja Flemming/CBS)

The series has sextupled-down on that premise, first by making egghead pals Howard (Simon Helberg) and Raj (Kunal Nayyar) co-stars, and then giving both plus Sheldon brainy love interests (played, respectively, by Melissa Rauch, Kate Micucci, and Mayim Bialik). And did this without reducing the screen time of the show’s only nonintellectual, Cuoco’s Penny, while filling in her characterization well beyond “hot girl” to interestingly tough-minded, probably-from-an-abusive-family realist.

Samurai Chic

Sweet Bun, Dude

Chicago Bulls Center Joakim Noah

Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah motions during Game 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals against the Miami Heat. (Lynne Sladky/AP)

Joakim Noah, the most fashionable Chicago Bull, has a pretty awesome top bun.

Perched atop a mountain of wavy, pulled-back hair is a mangled ball of manliness, a holdover from the days of the samurai. Joakim Noah, the most fashionable Chicago Bull, has a top bun.

In the annals of hair, the top bun renaissance will be marked by the style’s escape from the shackles of gender and Brooklyn’s “hipster” L train. Wearing top buns (also known as the top knot or, according to The New York Times, the man bun), men are straddling both fashion and practicality. And looking sexy while doing so.

The bun’s unisex construction pushes rogue strands of hair away from the face and, in only a few minutes, presents a clean, polished look. Stylist Brandon Williams, who works with the Memphis Grizzlies’ Mike Conley, tells me that in a generation of NBA players who aspire to classy GQ fashion—Steve Nash shed his Katie Couric tresses for a Mad Men cut, Kevin Durant opts for thick-rimmed glasses—Noah is a rebel.

TV Upfronts

CBS Unveils 2013-14 Schedule

CBS's 2013-14 schedule is here, and it's largely the same, save moving 'Hawaii Five-0' to Friday and 'Person of Interest' to Tuesday, while 'Mike & Molly' returns in midseason.

CBS on Wednesday drew back the curtain to reveal its 2013-14 primetime schedule during its traditional breakfast with reporters ahead of its official upfront presentation at Carnegie Hall.

Stability seemed to be the rationale behind CBS's primetime schedule, which returned pretty much intact with a few notable exceptions: Hawaii Five-0 will move to Fridays at 9 p.m., in order to take over the timeslot left vacant by the cancellation of CSI: New York, Person of Interest will now close out the night on Tuesdays, and Mike & Molly is being held until midseason.

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CBS

Director, Activist

J.J. Abrams’s Juggling Act

J.J. Abrams opens up about ‘Star Trek Into Darkness,’ partnering with the Mission Continues, which helps military veterans transition back to civilian life, ‘Star Wars,’ and more. Plus, read the Mission Continues’s founder Eric Greitens on the organization’s message.

J.J. Abrams might be the hardest-working man in show business.

In addition to his myriad television projects past and present—Felicity, Alias, Lost, and Fringe, to name just a few—his production company Bad Robot, and his direction of the Hollywood blockbusters Super 8, Star Trek, and now its sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness, he also has partnered with the nonprofit organization the Mission Continues, founded by former Navy SEAL Eric Greitens to help military veterans transition back to civilian life.

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Trekkies in Love

Match Me Up, Scotty!

Need a date to ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’? There’s an entire subculture of online dating just for Trekkies like you. Kevin Fallon straps on Vulcan ears and explores the niche matchmaking trend.

Is your idea of a good date dinner, a movie, and a passionate debate about whether Gul Dukat, even though he hurt a lot of Bajorans while commanding Terok Nor, is good or evil? Well, you’re in luck.

“Set phasers to stunning and if that doesn’t work set them to stun!” encourages StarTrekDating.com, one of a number of dating websites that have beamed online in recent years to help Star Trek and sci-fi enthusiasts find love. “If you’re a sci-fi fan and want to meet your Borg Queen or Captain Kirk, try it now!”

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Many “Star Trek” fans find love online. (StarTrekDating.com)

Viral

A Real-Life Kitchen Nightmare

A recent episode of Gordon Ramsay’s Fox reality show, ‘Kitchen Nightmares,’ has spilled out into the comments section of Yelp and beyond.

A restaurant featured on Gordon Ramsay’s Fox reality show Kitchen Nightmares is living a real-life nightmare—on its Facebook and Yelp pages. Viewers, appalled at what they saw on the show—the owners of Amy’s Baking Company were shown pocketing the staff’s tips; it was revealed by Ramsay that the raviolis, like the restaurant’s famed baked goods, weren’t made on site—took to social media to complain.

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via Hulu

Customers weighed in on Yelp: one reader called the owner “a psychopath,” another said, “This place makes Subway or MacD seem like fine dining,” and another described Amy’s as an “Awesome restaurant if you're a masochist! I've been insulted, humiliated and put down so many times in an evening that I got my fill for a year.“

Talking TV

Next Season's Television Trends

The Daily Beast's television critic Jace Lacob talks to KPCC about the broadcast network upfronts and what's in store for next season.

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After more than a decade impersonating everyone from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Liberace to the Queen of England, Fred Armisen is reportedly joining the growing list of 'Saturday Night Live' stars who are calling it quits. Here's to a versatile and stellar 'SNL' career.

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