Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Sunday
Interview With Lisa Bernhard
Aired September 08, 2002 - 18:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: If you haven't finished watching all of those shows you taped off of the air and piled up this past year, you'd better hurry -- TV's new fall season is just weeks away.
"TV Guide" deputy editor Lisa Bernhard joins us from New York for a preview. Lucky us -- hi, Lisa.
LISA BERNHARD, DEPUTY EDITOR, TV GUIDE: Hi. How are you?
LIN: Good. Good to see you. Looking forward to the new season.
BERNHARD: Yeah -- absolutely.
LIN: Now as I understand it the new edition of "TV Guide" is going to help us in case we forgot some of our favorite plot lines -- catch up, right?
BERNHARD: Yes, indeed it will. It goes on sale tomorrow -- the new fall preview issue. So we've got 34 new shows, we've got 19 dramas, 14 comedies. I think the dramas by and large are a little bit stronger than the comedies but there's good stuff to look forward to.
LIN: Well, help us break down some of "TV Guide's" best bets. I've got a list here starting with "Boomtown." This is a new show.
BERNHARD: This is a great new show. This is on NBC. And what I love about "Boomtown" is that it's a crime show that's told through the eyes of the various characters on the show whether it's a detective, a politician, a cop. It has a very cool look to it. The viewer actually knows more than any one character on the show -- really well done.
And the way that "24" was a different way of storytelling last year, "Boomtown" does that this year. It's a great, new, exciting crime show.
LIN: What's "Fast Lane" about?
BERNHARD: "Fast Lane" -- this is -- this is the great guilty pleasure of the season. This is on FOX and this is like the fast and the furious and -- like "XXX" -- that Vin Diesel movie as well. And it's got a star that really looks like Tom Cruise and sounds like Tom Cruise. You can see a glimpse of him there. He's got a hard edge.
It's two cops and Tiffany Keyaston (ph) is their boss and they've got just great special effects. It's directed by Mick G (ph), who did the "Charlie's Angels" movie so it's got a great look and feel to it -- like a feature film.
And it's just great action and great fun. It's going to really pull in that younger demographic.
LIN: Yeah -- especially with two cops working for Tiffany Keyaston (ph).
BERNHARD: That I've got to see.
LIN: All right -- next on the list -- "CSI Miami." Really looking forward to this as a spin-off there and, of course, we're going to see some of our favorite actors on this show.
BERNHARD: Absolutely. I think this is a slam dunk. "CSI" -- the original is the number one drama now. It bumped out "ER" -- "CSI Miami." We've got the return of David Caruso -- highly anticipated, of course.
And then another actor who was on "NYPD Blue" -- Kim Delaney -- joins him. And this is the same formula. It takes place in Miami.
Now these are very compelling actors. This is on on Monday nights at 10:00. It will give "Crossing Jordan" a run for its money, which was the highest rated drama -- new drama -- of last fall.
It's -- the way that "Law & Order" became a great franchise for NBC, I think "CSI" will do that for CBS.
LIN: All right. Well, what about "Life with Bonnie?"
BERNHARD: I love "Life with Bonnie" because I love Bonnie Hunt. This is probably the best new comedy of the fall. This is on ABC Tuesdays at 9:00. It has sitcom competition from "Frasier" and "24."
This is a woman who plays a talk show host in Chicago and she's got a very frenetic home life. She's got a bunch of kids.
What's fun about this is when they show her talk show scenes, a lot of it is going to be improvised. So it's really -- it can be a lot of fun and it will be exciting to see what they can come up with.
She's a great talk show guest. I don't know if you've seen her on "Letterman." She's been on "David Letterman" a bunch of times and she's very funny.
She creates this great world around her -- very appealing. So look for "Life with Bonnie" to hopefully break out for her.
LIN: OK. A couple of quick ones here -- "Birds of Prey"?
BERNHARD: "Birds of Prey" is on the WB. "Birds of Prey" comes right off the pages of a DC comic. It's three great-looking women who are crime fighters like the next generation of super heroes.
We've got Bat Girl who was shot by the Joker. She's paralyzed now -- she calls herself Oracle. There's another character called Huntress who is actually the daughter of Batman and Cat Woman. And then a third is a teenage girl who has got psychic powers.
And so they're in New Gotham instead of Gotham City and you'll be seeing them fighting villains that are the next generation of villains like the Joker was. It has a beautiful dark look to it -- beautifully shot.
I think it's the kind of show that guys will love because the girls are so great-looking. And the women will find them as really strong female role models. So that's a lot of fun on the WB.
LIN: Interesting. All right -- "The Twilight Zone." Anything like the old show back that our parents watched?
BERNHARD: Well, that's what they're aiming for. There's a lot of retro shows this year actually and "The Twilight Zone" is one of them. It's hosted by Forest Whitacker, who is a very appealing film actor.
There will be two new half-hour stories for each show. There will be some big guest stars. I know that Jason Alexander is coming up obviously from "Seinfeld" in one of the early episodes.
CBS did try to remake this show once before. This is on UPN actually this season.
CBS tried to remake it in the mid '80s -- didn't quite hit. UPN is looking -- hoping that we're still in this very nostalgic field post 9/11 that we want to go back to the old shows that we loved.
This one was originally ran in the late '50s -- early '60s so -- and Forest Whitaker is appealing. So hopefully "The Twilight Zone" will do well for UPN.
LIN: Yeah -- that will be fun for a whole new generation.
BERNHARD: Yeah.
LIN: All right -- "The Sopranos" -- it's about time.
BERNHARD: Absolutely. I'll tell you something -- I just -- I keep saying this, but absence has only made the heart grow fonder for this show. Unbelievable -- 16 months it was away. People are just chomping at the bit -- next Sunday finally for the premiere of "The Sopranos."
Obviously a cable show to really have among the biggest buzz of the fall season.
LIN: Right.
BERNHARD: They're telling us that it's going to be a little bit darker this year if you can believe that.
LIN: Darker?
BERNHARD: I know. I think Tony is even going to get more vicious. I think even -- I think even James Gandolfini is a little bit afraid that he gets more vicious this year.
And they're also going to be focusing on the relationship of he and his wife played by Carmela ...
LIN: Right.
BERNHARD: ... by Edie Falco. And I think there's other people in the family are also going to go into therapy. So it's -- definitely -- that will be huge next Sunday -- the numbers for that.
LIN: All right. I've just got a few seconds left. I've got to ask you about "Friends." Is this going to be the last season?
BERNHARD: I'll tell you something -- when they go and offer this cast another 22 million to come back -- awfully hard to walk away from.
LIN: You bet.
BERNHARD: The opening -- the opening episode will be huge. They're saying it's the last season. I say never say never. This is a huge payday for these friends right now at a million an episode. They're stronger than ever. Amazing comeback last season.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is the ninth -- I would be surprised if they came back for the 10th even though they're not saying so yet.
LIN: Yeah. And they're still getting to do their own projects and they all like each other. So easy money and a good time.
BERNHARD: And great camaraderie with the cast -- you're right. And they're doing feature films as well.
LIN: All right -- thank you so much. Lisa, you know your stuff, man.
BERNHARD: Thanks so much. I get paid to watch television -- it's great.
LIN: All right -- me, too -- but it's different.
All right -- Lisa Bernhard, "TV Guide" -- thanks so much.
BERNHARD: Thank you.
LIN: We're looking forward to the new season.
BERNHARD: Great.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
