NBC Orders Full Seasons of UP ALL NIGHT, WHITNEY; Axes PLAYBOY CLUB

NBC announced today that they’ve picked up the back-9 options for new comedies Up All Night and Whitney, sending a clear signal that there’s new leadership at the network. Early orders inspire confidence, even if so far the program has not.

Up All Night was a pleasant surprise; it wasn’t even on my radar but I happened to catch the first episode and thought it was funny, clever, and real…ish. Real-ish. Whitney, other other hand, was a major disappointment. The laugh track was jarring, the writing pedantic, and I don’t find Whitney funny. I didn’t even make it through the first episode. Clearly NBC President Robert Greenblatt sees potential in the series, and Whitney Cummings has been heralded as something of an “It Girl”. Greenblatt has a history of growing hits at his previous gig as head of USA Network (which often has higher ratings than NBC – ouch), so maybe it’s time to give Whitney another shot.

In other NBC news, The Playboy Club is the first new show to be cancelled this season. It held zero appeal for me, and apparently most viewers felt the same way judging by the low ratings. So long, Bunnies.