Bull [CBS] [** Spoilers **]

JP Liz V1

Mr E wrote: »

CBS has greenlit a slew of series for the 2016-2017 season.

In the comedy department, the network has ordered projects starring Matt LeBlanc and Joel McHale. As for dramas, CBS will be rebooting “Training Day,” “MacGyver,” plus has picked up a medical drama from Jason Katims and a new show starring “NCIS” star Michael Weatherly.

http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/cbs-training-day-macgyver-reboots-joel-mchale-matt-leblanc-michael-weatherly-shows-2016-2017-season-1201774004/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNc4AZRZxAs

I am very interested to see how Weatherly fares after NCIS in this mash of Lie to Me, Scandal and The Mentalist from Dr. Phil (based on his earlier job) and Paul Attanasio

Go Harvey Go

Not the first American drama series to be titled Bull, as TNT will testify...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83WxfO4QG4I

However, that's the only thing these two dramas have in common. Indeed, the title of TNT's Bull didn't refer to any of its characters - but to a bull market, being made before 9/11 and the subsequent downturn.

I do like *this* Bull's tagline, "No rules... no apologies... all Bull". And the trailer isn't bad, either.

But of course, having Weatherly, a good trailer and a good tagline, and being based on the earlier experiences of one of CBS's biggest personalities, doesn't guarantee huge ratings...

Taltos

So two episodes in. How are folk finding it?

Personally I hope it's just early day jitters but it's not doing anything for me. Find it too much of a mix of Lie to Me & Endgame but without any of the depth or great characters. Again it's early so who knows...

expectationlost

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNc4AZRZxAs

I am very interested to see how Weatherly fares after NCIS in this mash of Lie to Me, Scandal and The Mentalist from Dr. Phil (based on his earlier job) and Paul Attanasio

whats the show about ?

Taltos

Bull and his team set up mirror juries to fake try cases and prove the innocence of those who would otherwise make a settlement or be found guilty. Along the way he may even find out who the guilty party is but that's a by product and at least so far was a throwaway afterthought where done with no real exposition.

All he's missing is Lightman's micro expression facial maps... Oh and some good character interaction.

Clareman

I find it a dumbed down Lie to Me but not a bad way to kill 40 minutes.

Taltos

Yup. Really hoping that will change or they'll start to build on the characters soon as I don't think just the stories will hold me for long.

Clareman

It's very "by the numbers" so far, the eccentric boss that knows something but doesn't share it, the woman who keeps track of him, the gay 1 and the socially awkward one.

JP Liz V1

Clareman wrote: »

It's very "by the numbers" so far, the eccentric boss that knows something but doesn't share it, the woman who keeps track of him, the gay 1 and the socially awkward one.

The cast isn't gelling for me yet

Agent Coulson

Very boring really by the numbers show and Weatherly is no Tim Roth when it comes to reading people.

Go Harvey Go

The first episode was watched by 15.5 million people - but nearly two million of them chose not to stick around for the second episode.

As I said in post #2, basing it on Dr Phil's earlier experiences and having Weatherly, a good trailer and a good tagline doesn't automatically mean that it'll be a roaring success. And so it's proving...

TheCockpitGuy

But you have the lead in from the massive NCIS.

NCIS LA and NOLA got that same lead in and they are holding their own.

True enough the Weatherly interested has slackened off a lot in the first week but probably will come down to 10-11M when it settles. The other NCIS's had the same kind of numbers.

The bigger question is how will NCIS go over the course of this season with the death of Gary Glasberg and how will that effect Bull.

Agent Coulson

This weeks episode was fun but they really need to get a season overview arc now instead of the generic by the numbers weekly episode.

JP Liz V1

Yara Martinez from Jane the Virgin cast as Bull's ex - TV Line

Go Harvey Go

13 million viewers for the third episode (after a week's break for the vice presidential debate) and 12.3 million for the fourth.

And reviews remain mixed to negative.

Ah, well...

Taltos

Still waiting for it to take off. Has potential but is they don't hurry and start with the relationships or as above an arc this show is at risk of sinking. Not getting with Weatherly's character really although the latest episode did reveal a lot more about what drives him

Go Harvey Go

It's dipped below 11 million viewers now - down almost a third on the first episode.

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/daily-ratings/tuesday-final-ratings-november-22-2016/

So can we safely say that this will be the only season?

Agent Coulson

It's an enjoyable show but without a season arc it's basically the same story every week.

Nody

Agent Coulson wrote: »

It's an enjoyable show but without a season arc it's basically the same story every week.

This; I had high hopes and it was an interesting premise but there are literally no connection between the episodes and you could watch them out of order without losing anything.

Clareman

It's not a bad show, kind of like Lie to Me but the lack of a overarching story line is killing it, it just goes from case to case now at this stage.

JP Liz V1

It starts on FOX UK on Friday January 13th at 10pm

Nody

And another episode which could be played anywhere in the playlist without feeling out of place (like the previous nine).

I think I've figured out what annoys me with the show beyond the lack of any type of meta plot and that's the perfect people. Bull and his team are always 110% correct, no character flaws, no real prejudices, never make a mistake and always the perfect people with the perfect opinion getting to the right answer catching the bad guys. Compare this to Elementary and the heroin addiction, wrong assumptions or Conviction with the rebelling against her mother, ex police who wants to believe police don't do things wrong, prosecutor who believes the evidence etc. and it's a clear difference in how the stories play out.

Agent Coulson

Nody wrote: »

And another episode which could be played anywhere in the playlist without feeling out of place (like the previous nine).

I think I've figured out what annoys me with the show beyond the lack of any type of meta plot and that's the perfect people. Bull and his team are always 110% correct, no character flaws, no real prejudices, never make a mistake and always the perfect people with the perfect opinion getting to the right answer catching the bad guys. Compare this to Elementary and the heroin addiction, wrong assumptions or Conviction with the rebelling against her mother, ex police who wants to believe police don't do things wrong, prosecutor who believes the evidence etc. and it's a clear difference in how the stories play out.

Bull is based on Dr Phil and sums up how he sees himself to a tee I thinking so It's no wonder the show is following suit.

Go Harvey Go

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

It starts on FOX UK on Friday January 13th at 10pm

And it's on UTV Ireland Be3 from Thursday 12th.

Back in America, viewing figures appear to have stabilised at around the 11-and-a-half million mark, as the season nears its midpoint. Plus, Weatherly believes that the show still has plenty to offer:

http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/bull-michael-weatherly-future-cbs-series/

Agent Coulson

Dr Phil wrote last nights episode and I think say more about how he sees himself more than anything else.

Still nothing but story of the week episodes and pretty much the same story each week.

Not sure why I have stuck with it being honest and will probably drop it soon enough.

Taltos

Afraid I've already dropped this one. Pity as I had hopes originally but it just never seemed to go anywhere. Might give it a shot again in a few months but somehow doubt it. Feel the name was prophetic.

Nody

Taltos wrote: »

Afraid I've already dropped this one. Pity as I had hopes originally but it just never seemed to go anywhere. Might give it a shot again in a few months but somehow doubt it. Feel the name was prophetic.

12 episodes in and there is still no meta plot nor reason to watch them in any specific order. I'll probably finish season 1 as I'm 12 episodes in but not expecting to bother with season 2.

Nody

Episode 14 and we might have the first story arch going beyond 1 episode...

Agent Coulson

Renewed for a second season.


Eliza Dushku joins the cast for a 3 episode arc at the end of season 1 and may become a series regular in season 2.

Agent Coulson

Benny's case is really interesting just a pity it took the whole season standalone episodes before getting to this point.


Also Eliza Dushku can't act to save her life the wrong actress cast for that character.

Sierra 117

I've watched up to episode 12 so far. I find it's an easy show to watch, and that's not a compliment. There's no tension, no struggle. Bull and his team either know everything or are able to easily find out what they need to know. Maybe it will improve in the second half but I expected the show to have more to offer at this point.

Agent Coulson

Back on Tuesday night in the States.

Nody

I don't think I ever ended up watching the last episodes of season 1 and have no intention to watch season 2.

budhabob

I've kind of enjoyed season 1 as brainless TV (something we all need from time to time). The team dynamic became a little more interesting as the season went on.

Clareman

I thought it was ok, 40something minutes of by the book procedural, nice background TV while doing something else.

Agent Coulson

Glenn Gordon Caron has taken over as showrunner and is writing episodes now as well.


If you don't know the name he created Moonlighting and Medium and wrote most of the first season of Remington Steele he also created and wrote the very underrated Now and Again.


I might give the second season a try now and see if he has added anything to it.

Clareman

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Glenn Gordon Caron has taken over as showrunner and is writing episodes now as well.


If you don't know the name he created Moonlighting and Medium and wrote most of the first season of Remington Steele he also created and wrote the very underrated Now and Again.


I might give the second season a try now and see if he has added anything to it.

It's a bit mixed up this season, they are broke to being able to spend a week doing whatever they want, it's the kind of program you have in the background knowing you won't miss anything if you're watching something on your laptop at the same time. It seems to have a bit of a House formula going as well, that is problem statement, theory, theory false, new solution and then everything works out.

Agent Coulson

Clareman wrote: »

It's a bit mixed up this season, they are broke to being able to spend a week doing whatever they want, it's the kind of program you have in the background knowing you won't miss anything if you're watching something on your laptop at the same time. It seems to have a bit of a House formula going as well, that is problem statement, theory, theory false, new solution and then everything works out.

Ah I was hoping with Glenn Gordon Caron coming on board he might put a season arc in place or at the very least a will they won't they storyline for Bull.

The Black Oil

To continue the **** show that is CBS's record with harassment...

According to a report by the New York Times, actress Eliza Dushku, who joined the cast of the CBS legal drama late in Season 1 as defense attorney J.P. Nunnelly, lodged a formal complaint with the network after being on the receiving end of several lewd comments made by series star Michael Weatherly. Dushku was poised to become a series regular, but soon after voicing her concerns, she was written off the show, and later given a $9.5 million settlement by the network as compensation.

CBS confirmed the settlement, which stemmed from a series of on-set incidents alleged by Dushku. She claims that Weatherly made demeaning comments about her appearance, saying “Here comes legs” when she arrived on set, said he would bend her over his leg and spank her in front of the cast and crew, and suggested she wanted to have a threesome with him and a male crew member. Dushku felt “disgusted and violated” following the incidents, according to interview notes from an internal CBS investigation.

TV Line

Agent Coulson

Didn't she also say she was sexually abused on the set of True Lies as well.




Weatherly also doesn't seem to have a great reputation either if you read Jessica Alba's accounts on him.

The Black Oil

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Didn't she also say she was sexually abused on the set of True Lies as well.

Yeah, by a crew member, iirc.

Weatherly also doesn't seem to have a great reputation either if you read Jessica Alba's accounts on him.

Was caught drink driving a few years back too.

JP Liz V1

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Didn't she also say she was sexually abused on the set of True Lies as well.




Weatherly also doesn't seem to have a great reputation either if you read Jessica Alba's accounts on him.

:eek:

I thought Alba and Weatherly dated

Sierra 117

They did. She was 19 and he was 30 so that should tell you what kind of guy he is.

JP Liz V1

NCIS ladies defending Mikey

https://tvline.com/2018/12/15/michael-weatherly-bull-controversy-eliza-dushku-harassment-ncis/

The Black Oil

So, Dushku has put out her own piece.

AV Club have some highlights https://news.avclub.com/eliza-dushku-has-now-released-her-own-account-of-harass-1831216368

Or, you can read (annoying sign up prompt thing) the Boston Globe which is her own own words and well-written and it makes Weatherly sound like a dick. Wait, no, he is. https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2018/12/19/eliza-dushku-responds-what-happened-cbs-took-job-and-because-objected-being-sexually-harassed-was-fired

PhiloCypher

Color me unsurprised that Michael Weatherly is the same overgrown jock douche he played in NCIS.

Agent Coulson

Surprised it has been renewed for season especially after what happened around Weatherly.


However....


‘Bull’: Steven Spielberg & Amblin TV Pull Out Of CBS Drama Over Michael Weatherly Harassment Controversy

EXCLUSIVE: Steven Spielberg’ Amblin Television is walking away from CBS’ popular legal drama Bull in the wake of the sexual harassment allegations against star Michael Weatherly.

“Steven Spielberg, Amblin Television, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey are no longer attached to Bull,” a rep for the company said in a statement from Deadline, declining further comment.

Spielberg and Amblin TV co-heads Frank and Falvey served as executive producers on Bull for its first three seasons. The procedural drama was just renewed by CBS for a fourth season.

Bull, which has been a solid ratings performer for CBS, was never in doubt for renewal though the show became a center of controversy earlier this season over sexual harassment allegations against Weatherly by then-co-star Eliza Dushku, which resulted in a $9.5 settlement with the actress by CBS.

Spielberg and his wife Kate Capshaw have been major supporters of the Time’s Up movement from the start, and I hear Spielberg, who had met with Duschu, didn’t want to be associated with the series any longer. That is a bold move as la long-running CBS procedural is considered one of the most lucrative propositions in TV, often associated with a financial windfall for producers.

“I actually spent the morning with the three heads of the Time’s Up organization and Mr. Steven Spielberg,” Dushku said in a March with Deadline. “We sat and brainstormed and discussed possible solutions for this systemic imbalance of power, the abuse and harassment that we’ve been seeing and hearing and experiencing and both in our industry and beyond.”

The Bull controversy erupted in December when it was revealed that former cast member Dushku had reached a $9.5 million settlement with CBS over claims she was sexually harassed by Weatherly during her time on the show. Dushku detailed her allegations in a stinging Boston Globe op-ed, including what she described as the toxic atmosphere on the CBS procedural and lewd comments that Weatherly allegedly made toward that led her to filing a formal complaint. She was let go form the show shortly thereafter.

Weatherly denied having been part of Dushku’s firing, but admitted that he engaged in behavior that was “both not funny and not appropriate,” saying he was “sorry” and that he regretted the pain he had caused the actress.

Created by Dr. Phil McGraw and Paul Attanasio, Bull stars Weatherly as Dr. Jason Bull in a drama inspired by the early career of Dr. Phil McGraw. Brilliant, brash and charming, Dr. Bull is the ultimate puppet master as he combines psychology, human intuition and high-tech data to learn what makes jurors, attorneys, witnesses and the accused tick.

Bull is produced by CBS Television Studios in association with Stage 29 Productions. Glenn Gordon Caron, Paul Attanasio, Dr. Phil McGraw and Jay McGraw are the executive producers.

Glenn Gordon Caron, who served as showrunner this season, is in talks to return.

https://deadline.com/2019/05/bull-steven-spielberg-amblin-tv-pulls-out-cbs-drama-michael-weatherly-controsy-sexual-harassment-1202611184/

Clareman

The power of syndication is still strong. It's just a standard court room drama at this stage that I guess is very cheap to produce so I'd expect it to continue till the magic 100

Agent Coulson

Not sure how or why however it has been renewed for a 6th season.

Clareman

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Not sure how or why however it has been renewed for a 6th season.

I can only guess cause its cheap and easy, there's no real over arching storylines and in the event of a lockdown it's easily made

JP Liz V1

Glenn Gordon Caron and co star actor Freddy Rodriguez are both exiting following a workplace investigation - TV Line