Rueben's Ramblings

So far this week I covered the dramas that are up for consideration at ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC for the upcoming 2013-2014 TV season; and now today I will focus on the dramas at The CW.

They are listed in alphabetical order below:

Blink – This pilot focuses on a car accident that leaves a family’s patriarch in a coma-like state where he cannot speak or move, but can hear. His narration and various fantasy sequences provide a wry counterpoint to the stories and conflicts of his family.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Vera Herbert (Awkward.) will write and serve as a supervising producer while David Marshall Grant (Smash) will be the executive producer along with Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly (both from Elementary) acting as producers.

CAST: John Benjamin Hickey (The Big C) will play Greg, the lead role while Madeline Carroll (Flipped) will play Ari Trask, Greg’s 16-year-old daughter. Elizabeth Marvel (Person of Interest) will play Greg’s wife Helen Trask, a strong-willed psychotherapist. Johnny Simmons (The Perks of Being a Wallflower) will play Ari’s older brother Doge, a guy who feels deeply which often gets him in trouble. Michael Weston (House) will play Greg’s slightly disheveled younger brother who moves in with his brother’s family.

Company Town – The pilot is about a scandal at a Navy base in Virginia that divides best friends. The focus is on two early 20-something women – Krista and Page – who grew up together, who were once best friends, but are now on opposite sides of the Townie/Military divide.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Sera Gamble (Supernatural) will write and executive producer with Taylor Hackford and Bill Haber (Rizzoli & Isles).

CAST: Gage Golightly (Teen Wolf) will have the lead role of Krista, who has lived a charmed life and is happily engage to Paul, a lieutenant in the Navy, but begins to show her vulnerable side when Paul gets involved in the scandal. Stella Meave (Golden Boy) will have the other lead role of Page, who grew up with Krista and were best friends, but are now on opposites sides of the scandal. Newcomer Maya Kazan, granddaughter of Oscar-winning director Elia Kazan, will play Marla – the best friend and sidekick to Krista. Merle Dandridge (Sons of Anarchy) will play Louise, the newly appointed Commanding Officer of Naval Support Activity tasked with sorting through the scandal. Arjun Gupta (Nurse Jackie) will play Jack Weiss, a mechanic with the Navy while Dondre Whitfield (Make It or Break It) will play Don, a combat-trained trauma surgeon. Relative newcomer Graham Hamilton will play Mark, a well-bred and charming lieutenant in the Navy who has a dark side.

The Hundred – The pilot is based on the forthcoming novel by Kass Morgan of the same name that is set nearly a century after a nuclear war that destroyed civilization, in which a spaceship has sent 100 juvenile delinquents back to Earth to investigate the possibility of re-colonizing.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Newcomer Jason Rothenberg will write and executive-produce with Leslie Morgenstein and Gina Girolamo (Pretty Little Liars).

CAST: Henry Ian Cusick (Lost) will play Kane, an ambitious officer aboard the Ark who has his sights set on the Chancellor’s job. Eliza Taylor (Neighbours) will play Clarke Walters, the de facto medic, who knows the truth behind their mission. Marie Avgeropoulos (Cult) is on board as Octavia Black, Bellamy’s (Bob Morley) illegally born sister. Paige Turco (Person of Interest) will play Abby, Clarke’s mother. Isaiah Washington (Grey’s Anatomy) will play Chancellor Jaha, the leader of the remaining human race now living in the orbiting space station. Bob Morley (Neighbours) and Eli Goree (Emily Owens, M.D.) will play Bellamy Black and Wells Jaha respectively. Thomas McDonell (Prom) will play Finn, a cool and charismatic free spirit who is something of a folk hero to the kids on The Ark because of his ability to bend the rules and escape unharmed. Kelly Hu (Arrow and The Vampire Diaries) will play Cece, the Chief Communications Officer on The Ark. And, newcomer Christopher Larkin will play sweet and likable Monty, who is the furthest thing from a delinquent, but he uses his smarts and sense of humor to help delinquent Clarke in her quest to survive.

(Copyright Entertainment Weekly)

The Originals – This is The Vampire Diaries spin-off pilot that will follow the “Original” Family, focusing primarily on Klaus (Joseph Morgan) who returns to New Orleans, a town he helped build centuries ago to reunite with his diabolical former protégé Marcel (Charles Michael Davis from The Game and Grey’s Anatomy).

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries) will write and executive producer with Leslie Morgenstein and Gina Girolamo (Pretty Little Liars).

CAST: Daniel Gillies, Claire Holt and Phoebe Tonkin will also continue their roles from The Vampire Diaries in this spin-off while relative newcomer Daniella Pineda will play Sophie a witch whose magic has been silenced by not snuffed. She is quietly sowing the seeds of a revolution amongst her peers. Danielle Campbell (Prison Break) will play Davina, a young witch who has been over-sheltered by her protective caregivers. Leah Pipes (Life is Wild and The Deep End) will play Camille, a college psychology student fascinated by the study of human behavior unaware of the supernatural universe that exists around her.

Oxygen – This pilot is about an epic romance that ignites between a human girl named Emery (Aimee Teegarden from Friday Night Lights) and an alien boy named Roman (Matt Lanter from 90210), who are part of the nine Orions selected for a high school pilot program in which humans and aliens are desegregated.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Meredith Averill (The Good Wife) will write and executive-produce Josh Appelbaum (Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol).

CAST: Malese Jow (The Vampire Diaries) will play Emery’s friend Julia, a dying – but surprisingly vibrant girl – who may get a second chance at life thanks to the aliens and Titus Makin Jr. (Glee) will play goofy and cute Lukas. Grey Damon (Nine Lives of Chloe King) plays Grayson who has a crush on Emery. Natalie Hall (Pretty Little Liars) will play human girl Taylor, the undisputed queen of her high school who takes an interest in newcomer Emery but Emery’s friendliness towards the hated Orions may put a damper on their new friendship. Relative newcomer Chelsea Gilligan and Greg Finley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) will play two of the alien Orions.

Reign – This pilot is about what happens as 15-year-old Mary Queen of Scots arrives in France, betrothed to Prince Francis. She must survive fierce foes, dark forces and a world of sexual intrigue.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Stephanie Sengupta (Outlaw) and Laurie McCarthy (CSI: Miami) will write and executive-produce.

CAST: Adelaide Kane (Neighbours) will play the lead role of Mary Queen of Scots. British actor Toby Regbo (Treasure Island mini-series) will play Prince Francis. Megan Follows (Anne of Green Gables) will play Queen Catherine, the Queen Consort of France, who is willing to do anything to maintain her own standing and power at Court, as well as that of her children. Jenessa Grant (Cyberbully) will play one of the ladies-in-waiting. British newcomer Celina Sinden will play Greer, another of the ladies-in-waiting. Australian Caitlin Stasey (Tomorrow When the War Began) will play lady-in-waiting Kenna. Anna Popplewell (The Chronicles of Narnia) will play Mary’s friend and lady-in-waiting Lola. Rossif Sutherland (Flashpoint and King) will play the recurring role of French prophet Nostradamus. Torrance Coombs (The Tudors) will play Sebastian, Francis’ resourceful illegitimate half brother.

The Selection – This pilot (which was actually set up for last pilot season) will follow a working-class young woman chosen by lottery to participate in a competition with 25 other women to become the nation’s next queen. This is based on the Kiera Cass book of the same name.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain (The Vampire Diaries) will write and executive produce.

CAST: Israeli actress Yael Grobglas will play the lead role of America Singer. Michael Malarkey (Raw) will play Prince Maxon Shreave. Young British actor Lucien Laviscount (Skins) will play Aspen Leger, a handsome, brave young man from the servant class who is having a secret, illegal relationship with America. Australian actress Peta Sergeant (Winners & Losers) will play Gaia, a rebel leader who is working to overthrow the monarchy. Sean Patrick Thomas (Ringer) will play Sylvan Santos, Social Secretary to the Royal Family and the candidates’ guide in all things related to The Selection. Newcomer Celia Massingham will play fellow competitor Celeste Newsome, a drop dead gorgeous member of the Noble Class. Anthony Head (Buffy and Merlin) will play King Clarkson, the patriarch of the royal family that rules the nation. Relative newcomer Sarah Winter will play Ashley Brovillette, a naïve young woman thrilled to be among the Selection’s participants. Louise Lombard (CSI) will play Queen Amberly, a canny political player within the palace and knows everything there is to know about every single girl in The Selection competition. Ben Aldridge (Lark Rise to Candleford) will play Prince Maxon’s younger brother.

The Tomorrow People – This pilot is based on the U.K. series of the same name that tells the story of several young people from around the world who represent the next stage in human evolution, possessing special powers like teleportation and telepathy. They work together to defeat the forces of evil.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Phil Klemmer (Chuck) will write and executive-produce with Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries) and Greg Berlanti (Arrow).

CAST: Peyton List (Mad Men) will play Cara, the female member of the Tomorrow People group who has a sense of humor beneath her serious demeanor and seems to be a trustworthy ally. Australian actor Luke Mitchell (H2O: Just Add Water) will play one of the other Tomorrow People, John Young. Robbie Amell (Revenge – and cousin of Arrow star Stephen Amell) will play a character named Stephen, a tormented young man who longs to be normal and is relieved when he learns that he’s not crazy, but rather part of a group of genetically superior Tomorrow People. Mark Pellegrino (Lost and Supernatural) will play Dr. Jedikiah Price, an evolutionary biologist committed to containing the threat posed by the “Tomorrow People,” whom he believes to be a grave danger to the human race. Madeleine Mantock (Casualty) will play plat Astrid, Stephen’s closest friend since childhood. Aaron Yoo (21) will play resident badboy of the Tomorrow People who is a lightning bolt of energy and fun.

MOST LIKELY TO BE PICKED-UP: The Selection and The Originals

COULD MAYBE GET AN ORDER: The Tomorrow People, Oxygen and The Hundred

LONG SHOT (but it would be cool to see): Reign

NOT GONNA HAPPEN: Blink

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So far this week I covered the dramas that are up for consideration at ABC, CBS and FOX for the upcoming 2013-2014 TV season; and now today I will focus on the dramas at NBC.

They are listed in alphabetical order below:

After Hours – The pilot is about a motley crew of rogue ex-Army surgeons (think M*A*S*H-meets-ER) that bring humor and rock-n-roll energy to the night shift at a chaotic trauma center in San Antonio, Texas.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah (90210) will write and executive-produce

CAST: Freddy Rodriguez (Six Feet Under) will play Ragosa, Jeananne Goossen (Alcatraz) will play Krista, Brendan Fehr (Roswell) will play Drew, Brigid Brannagh (Army Wives) will play Althea, Jill Flint (Royal Pains) will play Dr. Jordan Santos, Ken Leung (Lost) will play Topher and Eion Macken (Merlin) will play TC Callahan. [No other details could be tracked down for this pilot at this time.]

Believe – This pilot is about the unlikely relationship that develops between a young girl with a gift and a man sprung from prison who has been tasked with protecting her from the evildoers who covet her power.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Alfonso Cuaron (Harry Potter) and Mark Friedman (The Forgotten) will write and executive-produce with J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk (Lost).

CAST: Jake McLaughlin (Crash) will play Tate, the man who is sprung from prison to protect the young girl from those trying to hunt her down while newcomer Johnny Sequoyah will play the young girl named Bo. Delroy Lindo (The Chicago Code) will play Winter, a kind man with an honorable agenda posing as a priest who may not be what he seems. Jamie Chung (Once Upon a Time) will play Channing, Winter’s all business associate. Sienna Guillory (Resident Evil: Retribution) will play Moore, a hit woman after Bo. Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks and Desperate Housewives) will play Skouras, a mysterious billionaire with an even more mysterious agenda.

The Blacklist – This pilot is about Red, the world’s most wanted criminal, who mysteriously turns himself in, offering to give up everyone he has ever worked with. His only condition: He will only work with Elizabeth Keen, a newly minted FBI agent with whom he appears to have no connection.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Jon Bokenkamp (Perfect Stranger) will write and executive-produce with John Eisendrath (Alias).

CAST: Megan Boone (Law & Order: Los Angeles) will have the female lead role while Ryan Eggold (90210) will play Elizabeth’s husband Tom. James Spader (Boston Legal) will play the lead role (of the most wanted criminal) opposite Boone. Diego Klattenhoff (Homeland) will play Donald Ressler Field Agent In-Charge. Henry Lennix (Dollhouse) will play Harold Cooper, the successful yet cynical Assistant Director of Counterterrorism at the FBI.

Bloodline – This pilot is about Bird Benson, a smart, irreverent young girl who finds herself caught between two warrior families in modern suburbia.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: David Graziano (Awake) will write and executive-produce with Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights).

CAST: Skyler Samuels (The Nine Lives of Chloe King) will play the lead role of Bird Benson. Tom Everett Scott (Southland) will play Dr. Christopher Benson, a beloved ER physician at a suburban hospital who’s known for his charm and dedication to his patients. But an indiscretion years ago led to him impregnating a patient; the resulting child was Bird. KaDee Strickland (Private Practice) will play Bird’s mother Stella, who has been raised in a family descended from an ancient line of killers, brigands and mercenaries. Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad) will play Bird’s grandfather, Leo Killpriest, a Greek mercenary who married off Bird’s mother to satisfy a mysterious debt with a rival Chinese clan. Chris Zylka (The Secret Circle) will play Troy Robbins, who grew up with the rigorous training regimen once mandated for all male Spartans. He is smitten by Bird. Tzi Ma (24) will play Charles Hwang, Bird’s trainer and mentor.

Hatfields & McCoys – This pilot is set in present-day Pittsburgh, where a startling death reignites the feud between the legendary families. Unleashing decades of resentment, the blue-collar McCoys will put the Hatfields’ wealth and power at risk as they battle for control of the city.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: John Glenn (Eagle Eye) will write and executive-produce with actress Charlize Theron.

CAST: Virginia Madsen (Scoundrels) will play the matriarch of the McCoy clan, Eloise McCoy, a self-made woman who manipulates her son into taking revenge on the Hatfields after her husband is murdered. Jesse Lee Soffer (The Mob Doctor) will play Patrick McCoy, prodigal son who returns home after years away. Patrick Flueger (The 4400) will play Jack McCoy, a street-smart, hot-headed guy who is fiercely loyal to his family. He runs a sports bar in the city he loves. Rebecca De Mornay (The Hand That Rocks the Cradle) will play Hatfield matriarch Mary, the city’s mayor and Nick Westrate (Hatfields & McCoys mini-series) will play her son Randall. Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill) will play Emma McCoy, a resident at Allegheny General Hospital. Annie Ilonzeh (Charlie’s Angels and Switched at Birth) will play Shannon Hatfield, the adopted daughter of Mary Hatfield, who develops a romantic interest in Patrick McCoy. James Remar (Dexter) will play Mary Hatfield’s estranged husband Joe.

I Am Victor – This pilot is based on the Jo Nesbo upcoming novel of the same name that focuses on Victor Port, a high-powered divorce attorney with a unique view of relationships. He is quick, charming, disarming, brazen and direct. He unapologetically says what most people think but dare not say, and the methods he uses on behalf of his clients are anything from jurisprudence.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Mark Goffman (The West Wing) will write the pilot while Katie Jacobs (House) and author Jo Nesbo will executive-produce.

CAST: John Stamos (ER and Full House) will play the lead role of Victor Port. Megan Dodds (Ever After) will have the female lead, playing Victor’s wife Helen, an accomplished businesswoman and a caring, family-oriented mother of two. Matthew Lillard (Scooby Doo) will play Victor’s best friend Elliott, an off-beat, off-books former cop who helps Victor acquire information and things, legally and otherwise. Terry Kinney (Oz) will play Victor’s father-in-law. Newcomer Lorenza Izzo (Hemlock Grove) will play the lead role of Lena Engles, the Assistant District Attorney while McKaley Miller (Hart of Dixie) will play Victor’s daughter Dana. Angela Sarafyan (Twilight Breaking Dawn 2) will play Cucumber, Victor’s sassy secretary. Josh Zuckerman (Kyle XY and 90210) will play Wes, an attorney with an extraordinary mind.

Ironside – This pilot is a remake of the 1960s classic drama, about Robert T. Ironside, an acerbic police detective relegated to a wheelchair after a shooting, who is hardly limited by his disability as he pushes and prods his hand-picked team to solve the most difficult cases in the city.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Michael Caleo (The Sopranos) will write and executive produce with David Semel (American Horror Story).

CAST: Blair Underwood (L.A. Law) will have the lead role of Ironside. Brent Sexton (The Killing and Justified) will play Gary, Ironside’s ex-partner, once a hard-nosed detective who blames himself for the shooting and falls apart after the incident. Gary struggles to move on with his life. Pablo Schreiber (Weeds) will play a team member named Virgil, one of the toughest, craziest cops in the city who will do anything to protect citizens, victims and most of all his partners. Neal Bledsoe (Smash) will play the wealthy and highly educated Teddy who became a cop following a family tragedy. Spencer Grammer (Greek) will play the lead role of Holly, who stands up to Ironside and everyone else. She would be much higher up in the police department if she would distance herself from the criminals she grew up around. Kenneth Choi (24 and Sons of Anarchy) will play Captain Ed Rollins, Ironside’s supervisor.

Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives – This pilot is about three couples in the idyllic community of Saddle Hills, California who live secret lives; especially when a murder in their suburban home complicates their lives.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Sascha Penn (Imagination Movers) will write and executive-produce with Jerry Bruckheimer.

CAST: Nicole Ari Parker (Soul Food) will play Paula Cooke, Jesse L. Martin (Law & Order) will play Greg Cooke; Perry Reeves (Entourage) will play Danielle Deaver and James Tupper (Revenge and Men in Trees) will play Richard Deaver; Laura Allen (The 4400) will play Alison Dunn and Martin Henderson (Off the Map) will play Kyle Dunn – the three main couples in the pilot. [No other details could be tracked down for this pilot at this time.]

The Sixth Gun – This pilot is based on the best-selling Oni Press graphic novel, a supernatural Western that tells the tale of six mythical guns with otherworldly powers in the Old West, the most dangerous of which falls into the hands of an innocent girl named Becky Montcrief who – alongside shadowy gunfighter Drake Sinclair – must battle vile men thought long dead that have set their sights on retrieving the gun.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Up and comer Ryan Condal will write with Carlton Cuse (Lost) as executive producer.

CAST: Laura Ramsey (Lords of Dogtown) will play the lead role of Becky while Michiel Huisman (Treme) will play the lead role of Drake Sinclair, a rogue gunslinger. W. Earl Brown (Rogue) will play Oliander Bedford Hume, a seemingly immortal Confederate War General obsessed with acquiring the sixth – and most powerful – of the guns. Graham McTavish (24) will play Hume’s loyal lieutenant Silas Hedgepeth and Aldis Hodge (Leverage) will play Mercer, a Special Agent with the Pinkerton Detective Agency who is searching for the aforementioned gunfighter. Pedro Pascal (The Good Wife) will play Special Agent Ortega, the younger of the two Pinkerton detectives who follow Mercer’s lead. James LeGros (Ally McBeal) will play Bill John O’Henry, a gunslinger who is a fervently loyal companion and sidekick to Drake Sinclair and Chin Han (The Dark Knight and Arrow) will play Chow, a brilliant Machiavellian schemer. Elena Satine (Magic City) will play “widow” Missy Hume, a powerful Madame who runs the town of Brimstone, who is kept unnaturally youthful by being in possession of the Fifth Gun.

Untitled Rand Ravich Project – This pilot is about Washington’s most powerful players, including the President, who find themselves blackmailed into an international conspiracy by an unlikely puppeteer. The story follows Marcus Finley, an idealistic Secret Service agent who finds himself at the epicenter of an international crisis on his first day on the job as the President’s son’s protection when the son, along with several of his classmates, are kidnapped.

THOSE BEHIND THE SHOW: Rand Ravich (Life) will write and executive produce with Far Shariat (Life).

CAST: Lance Gross (House of Payne) will play the lead role of Marcus Finley while Rachael Taylor (666 Park Avenue and Charlie’s Angels) will play FBI agent Susie Dunn, who is responsible for getting information from the children’s parents and whose biological daughter Amber is among the kidnapped. Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) will play Susie’s sister Meg, who has been raising Amber as her own. Halston Sage (The Bling Ring) will play Amber Fitch, one of the kidnap victims and daughter of Susie. Max Martini (The Unit and Revenge) will play Koz, a well-armed and deadly mercenary behind the abduction. Dermot Mulroney (My Best Friend’s Wedding) will play Bill Gibson, the chaperone on the ill-fated private school bus. He is divorced from his wife and estranged from his daughter, Beth Ann (relative newcomer Stevie Lynn Jones), who is a passenger on the bus. Michael Beach (Third Watch) will play the FBI Director, who snaps into action after learning of the crisis while James Lafferty (One Tree Hill) will play Mr. Nash, this boyishly handsome private school instructor who was abducted along with his students. Joshua Erenberg (Suburgatory) will play Anton, a genius student whisked away into the woods by the wounded Finley to save him.

MOST LIKELY TO BE PICKED-UP: Ironside and Hatfields and McCoys

COULD MAYBE GET AN ORDER: Bloodline

LONG SHOT: The Sixth Gun

NOT GONNA HAPPEN: The Blacklist

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