Things unraveled quickly for A&E in 2014, which is looking to The Returned, about dead people who suddenly reappear in a small town, to resurrect its ratings this year. The show is based on the French series, and the pilot is almost a shot-for-shot reaction of it. But executive producer Carlton Cuse swears that will change, as I wrote at Adweek:

“While we start in a similar place, the show is fairly distinctively different by the end of the season,” said Cuse. “We felt like there was a way to take the show and over time, make it something that was very distinctly our own.” Cuse added that while “there’s a small, fervent audience that watched the French show,” an even larger American audience did not.

Of course, that’s the same thing producers said last summer about Gracepoint, Fox’s adaptation of the British drama Broadchurch, which flopped last fall.

Can Dead People Resurrect A&E’s Ratings?

The post Can Dead People Resurrect A&E’s Ratings? appeared first on TV & Not TV.

I’ve wrapped my Best (& Worst) in 2014 week, but I have one final look back for this year: my Adweek story about which networks made Santa’s naughty and nice lists in 2014. The easiest call by far? NBC, which topped the nice list:

It was a very good year for the Peacock Network, which won the 2013-14 season in 18-49 (a 2.7 average), its first demo victory in 10 years. The network picked up where it left off this fall, where it’s once again leading the pack in 18-49 (thanks largely to Sunday Night Football and The Voice). Not even Peter Pan Live’s disappointing ratings can stall NBC’s momentum, especially with Super Bowl XLIX waiting in the wings on Feb. 1.

How did the rest of the networks fare? Take a look!

And with that, TV & Not TV will be taking a holiday hiatus for a few days (barring breaking news). But we’ll be back at the end of the week with news of an exciting TV appearance this weekend that should mark TV & Not TV’s television debut.

Until then, happy holidays!

Which Networks Made the Naughty and Nice Lists This Year?

The post Which Networks Made the Naughty and Nice Lists This Year? appeared first on TV & Not TV.