'Moonlight' On Path To Renewal

Garlic may not repel it, sunshine may not kill it, and Moonves won't cancel it.

It looks like "Moonlight" is close to earning a second season renewal from CBS, one of two new shows network chief Les Moonves says he feels will make a return in 2008.

Moonves spent some time talking to The Hollywood Reporter about the fall season, which has been dismal in terms of new shows for nearly all the networks. NBC probably took the biggest hit, but CBS hasn't fared too well either. In fact, the only other show that would probably earn a renewal is the comedy "Big Bang Theory."

"That's Hall of Fame batting," Moonves said, saying two hits out of five swings was something he was proud of. Shows like "Moonlight" represented a risky move for the network, but probably not as risky as the musical "Viva Laughlin," which only lasted a few episodes before CBS yanked it from the schedule.
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"It was a Hail Mary pass," said Moonves, shifting his analogies from baseball to football. "We took it. We'll continue to do that. We continue to feel very bullish about the network television business."

"Moonlight" has been one of fall's most consistent genre series. Although it's the least-watched CBS program on Friday night, it still is doing almost as well as "Heroes" on NBC and "Pushing Daisies" on ABC in terms of overnight ratings. Its household rating fell to a series low in its third episode, but has never really come close since, sitting a little more than half a rating point off its series premiere numbers. "Bionic Woman," on the other hand, has not been so lucky for NBC. That show has lost more than half of its premiere audience, and continues to post series lows.

"Moonlight" airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS. [x]

I must admit that I wasn't impressed with the pilot episode of the series. Actually, I didn't enjoy the first couple of episodes but for some reason, I kept watching and I'm glad that I did. The quality of the show has improved tremendously in both it's writing and plot development. That is primarily due to the fact that David Greenwalt ("Angel"), the original showrunner, left the show and Chip Johannessen took over. The show follows Mick St. John, a vampire/private investigator who falls in love with a mortal woman and his dealings with the city's other vampires.Moonlight has become the sleeper hit of the season and it's ratings have remained consistent since its premiere. The next episode airs on December 14th so make sure to tune in. ;)