March Madness

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity with the annual Paley Fest being held from February 26 to March 14 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. This year I had the opportunity to attend the following panels: Lost, NCIS, The Vampire Diaries, FlashForward and Glee. Each panel had its share of fun and excitement, allowing the audience to see a new clip or episode of each series. Each one also provided fans the chance to see their favorite stars in person and get autographs.

While these events are always entertaining, they can also be exhausting because I tend to be the designated “line holder”. This simply means I’m the one who is up early in the morning to arrive at the theatre where the event is being held (or to get off work early) to snag a place in line that is as close to the front as possible, allowing for my friends and I a better choice of seats once we’re inside the theatre. Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind being the “line holder,” but it sure does make for a long day.

Another fun event that will be held by the Paley Center for Media – the folks behind the Paley Fest – will be tonight’s event saluting the ABC series Castle. A lot of fans were hoping that the show would be part of this year’s Paley Fest, but when the line-up was announced, Castle was not on it. But obviously the folks at the Paley Center were paying attention and arranged for the event to be part of their Spring Programs.

The cast expected to be in attendance tonight includes: Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Susan Sullivan, Molly Quinn, Ruben Santiago Hudson and Tamala Jones. Also on tap are Creator and Executive Producer Andrew W. Marlowe and Executive Producers Rob Bowman and Laurie Zaks.

Please check back at NiceGirlsTV soon for full coverage of the Castle event by our very own Tiffany.

In addition to the event madness this month (or my own personal March Madness) will be the following TV debuts, returns, special and/or finales:

• The debut of the FX series Justified, starring Timothy Olyphant, as a hard-hitting US Marshal relegated to working in his own hometown area, which debuts tonight at 10 PM;

• The return of the ABC series FlashForward, which will have a two-hour opener this Thursday (March 18) starting at 8 PM. I can vouch that the new “powers that be” behind the series seemed to have taken note of the criticisms the first 10 episodes received by viewers and critics alike, as the first 20 minutes of the return opener were aired at the Paley Fest and it was quite good; at least in my humble opinion;

• The finale of the prequel series Caprica on Syfy this Friday (March 19) at 9 PM, which simply keeps getting better and better with each new episode;

• The finale of the first season of the UK series Survivors on BBC America this Saturday (March 20) at 9 PM. I understand this finale is going to end with a BANG, but at least the wait for a conclusion of the finale won’t be long because season two of this series will pick up on a new night on the network – Tuesdays at 9 PM starting on March 23;

• The clip show for the ABC remake of the 80’s classic V will air on March 23 at 10 PM, allowing viewers to get caught up on the four episodes that aired back in November;

• The return of The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural on Thursday nights at 8 and 9 PM respectively on the CW, staring on March 25; and,

• Then there is the one-hour return of V, airing on ABC on March 30 at 10 PM.

The above, of course, doesn’t include all the regular programming that I also watch, which can easily number anywhere between 15 to 20 shows in a weeks’ time; ergo – March Madness.

What shows are you anxious to see return this month? Please share.