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UPDATE: ABC’s ‘Scandal’ Renewed, ‘GCB’ Canceled

ABC‘s two bubble midseason drama series are heading in opposite directions. Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal, which just inched up in the ratings last night, is being renewed for a second season, while GCB is being canceled. (ABC’s two other midseason dramas The River and Missing, had no chance of returning and are indeed dead.)

Source: http://www.deadline.com/2012/05/abcs-scandal-renewed-for-second-season/

Chat About the Show

Chat about the show at our new Yahoo! group: http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/abcscandal/

Ratings debate: Will ABC’s ‘Scandal’ receive a second shot?

When you are a show that starts up your run in the spring, it’s easy to have some sympathy — there are traditionally fewer viewers at your disposal, but you have to find a way to still convince people to give you an hour out of their busy lives.

For ABC’s new Shonda Rhimes series “Scandal,” the challenge has been a bit one — but has it done enough to earn another season? The show is the subject of our new ratings debate, so read on to find out our full verdict on if a season 2 will see the light of day.

Why it should go – If you look at it from a pure ratings standpoint, “Scandal” is on the low end of shows that are for sure going to be brought back on the network. At the moment the success stories are “Once Upon a Time,” “Castle,” “Revenge,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and to a lesser extent “Private Practice” — can this series really fit into this picture?

The other issue the show could run into here is that in airing only a small collection of episodes, there is a chance (see: “Body of Proof”) where viewers forget about it entirely in between the spring season and the fall.

Why it should stay – If quality still matters, this show be a pretty safe bet for renewal. “Scandal” is at the moment the best Shonda Rhimes product on ABC, and the first season ahs gotten stronger from week to week.

Also, when you look at the numbers the show has done a good job of staying steady around a 2.0 rating in the key 18-49 demographic ever since it first premiered. Few shows have that sort of retention week-to-week, and while it’s possible that the show could be forgotten over the summer, it’s also possible that some additional fans could be found via online viewings or reruns (should ABC opt to air it again).

Also, the show has not really fared any worse than “Private Practice” was doing following “Grey’s Anatomy” earlier this year — it has actually increased some in viewers, and that is even in spite of airing at a time of the season when fewer people traditionally watch TV.

What will happen – Basically we look at it this way — “Pan Am,” “Missing,” “Body of Proof,” and “GCB” are all shows that are going to be canceled before “Scandal” would be, and the end of “Desperate Housewives” leaves another open spot. With ABC only having four hour-long dramas at the moment they can rely on, they could use another.

We’re not sure whether or not “Scandal” would get a full season or another abbreviated order (which has actually worked out well quality-wise here), but we lean strongly towards it being back for another season. Also, consider this — “Happy Endings” had a similar sort of spring launch to “Scandal” last year, and it increased exponentially in quality during season 2. Imagine what Kerry Washington and company could do in the same situation.

Source: http://cartermatt.com/16160/ratings-debate-will-abcs-scandal-receive-a-second-shot/

Exclusive Interview: ABC Scandal’s Tony Goldwyn Teases Tonight’s Flashback Episode, Playing A President and Being Shameless

It’s not easy being a president.

It’s especially hard when that president has been unfaithful to his wife and is being blackmailed with a sex tape. That is the very difficult situation facing Fitzgerald “Fitz” Grant played by Tony Goldwyn in the ABC hit series Scandal starring Kerry Washington.

TV Equals had a chance to chat with the very cool Mr Goldwyn about the upcoming episodes of the season, the challenges faced by his character and how his experience as a director helps his acting. Check out what he had to say below and don’t forget to tune in to the latest episode of Scandal (ABC) titled “The Trail” Episode 6 which airs Thursday, May 10 (10:01-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

Read more: http://www.tvequals.com/2012/05/10/exclusive-interview-abc-scandals-tony-goldwyn-teases-tonights-flashback-episode-playing-a-president-and-being-shameless/

Scandal DVD

Get the first season on DVD! It will be released June 12, 2012.

ABC’s “Scandal” Builds on its Week-Ago Debut and Wins the 10pm Hour

Continuing to exhibit solid retention of its Grey’s lead-in during the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s Scandal ranked #1 among Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54. In the hour, ABC’s Scandal more than doubled its freshman drama competition, defeating NBC’s Awake by 188% in Total Viewers, by 170% in Adults 25-54 and by 133% in Adults 18-49. In addition, the new drama won its slot among Women 18-49 and Women 25-54 for the 2nd week in a row.

· Bucking the general trend for new shows, ABC’s Scandal was up over its week-ago debut across a number of key demos: Total Viewers (+3%), AD18-34 (+15%), AD18-49 (+5%) and AD25-54 (+4%).

· Scandal attracted ABC’s largest audience in the time period in more than 3 months – since 1/5/12.

Read more: http://www.thefutoncritic.com/ratings/2012/04/13/abcs-scandal-builds-on-its-week-ago-debut-and-wins-the-10pm-hour-893100/20120413abc01/#zQWbXsEG0frOCBvX.99

‘Scandal’s’ Kerry Washington: Olivia’s Strength is Her Biggest Weakness

How do you represent a woman claiming to have had an affair with the president of the United States when the leader of the free world is preoccupied professing his love for you?

That’s one of the primary questions ABC’s new Washington, D.C.-set political fixer drama, Scandal, is posing to viewers after President Fitzgerald Grant’s (Tony Goldwyn) camp enlists political fixer Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington) to douse a potentially term-ending story when a former White House aide makes some very Monica Lewinsky-like claims.

Read more: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/scandal-kerry-washington-311136

‘Scandal’ starts modest for ABC, ‘Person of Interest’ beats ‘Grey’s’

Shonda Rhimes’ latest ABC drama Scandal got off to a modest start in the ratings Thursday night, while CBS’Person of Interest beat ABC’sGrey’s Anatomy for the first time and NBC’s Community hit an all-time low.

The ABC political soap Scandallaunched with 7.4 million viewers and a 2.1 rating among adults 18-49, dropping 25 percent from its Grey’s Anatomy lead-in (8.1 million, 2.8) and was slightly under par for what Private Practice usually delivers in the 10 p.m. spot. The critical consensus on Scandal is that the show gets better as it goes on, so hopefully this number will build. Scandal is notable for being, by a couple reports’ estimation, the first major broadcast drama series to star a black woman in about 30 years. Opening ABC’s night,Missing (7.2 million, 1.4) was down 7 percent.

Read more: http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/04/06/scandal-ratings/

First Look at “Scandal”

The Futon Critic offers a first look at the ABC show Scandal.

Summary: It’s very Shonda Rhimes, not your typical law or cop show. Characters are very self-referential while set in the backdrop of crisis management. Looks like it could be a good show.