Raising the Bar (2008 TV series)
| Raising the Bar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Legal drama |
| Created by |
Steven Bochco David Feige |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer |
Richard Stone Philip de Souza |
| Composer(s) | Alec Puro |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 25 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Steven Bochco |
| Producer(s) |
Jonathan Abrahams Dayna Kalin Bochco David Feige Caroline James |
| Cinematography | Baz Irvine |
| Editor(s) | Rick Hinson |
| Running time | 45–48 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Steven Bochco Productions ABC Studios |
| Distributor | Disney–ABC Domestic Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | TNT |
| Original release | September 1, 2008 – December 24, 2009 |
Raising the Bar is an American legal drama, which ran on TNT network from September 1, 2008 to December 24, 2009.[1]
Production
Raising the Bar was originally announced to be joining TNT as a new series in January 2008.[2] It came to TNT through ABC Studios and Steven Bochco served as executive producer, with Jesse Bochco as co-executive producer and David Feige as supervising producer. After completing its first season of 10 hour-long episodes in November 2008, the series was renewed for a 15-episode second season, which premiered on Monday June 8, 2009 at 10p.m ET/ 9 p.m. CT.[3] The show was canceled after season 2.
Plot summary
Idealistic public defender Jerry Kellerman does whatever it takes to assist the helpless and disenfranchised, which often leads to clashes in the courtroom presided over by Judge Trudy Kessler, a hard-liner hoping to become the city's next district attorney. Jerry has many clashes with both law enforcement and the assistant district attorneys (ADAs) such as Michelle Ernhardt, the beautiful and occasionally devious attorney with whom he has had a turbulent secret fling.[4]
Cast and characters
- Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Jerry Kellerman
- Gloria Reuben as Rosalind Whitman
- Jane Kaczmarek as Trudy Kessler
- Melissa Sagemiller as Michelle Earnhardt
- Jonathan Scarfe as Charlie Sagansky
- J. August Richards as Marcus McGrath
- Currie Graham as Nick Balco
- Teddy Sears as Richard Patrick Woolsley
- Natalia Cigliuti as Roberta "Bobbi" Gilardi
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | DVD release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season premiere | Season finale | ||||
| 1 | 10 | September 1, 2008 | November 3, 2008 | June 2, 2009 | |
| 2 | 15 | June 8, 2009 | December 24, 2009 | May 11, 2010 | |
Reception
The series debut garnered 7.7 million viewers. It was the biggest audience ever for a new-series launch on basic cable. It beat the record set in 2004 by USA Network's launch of The 4400 which opened with an average of 7.4 million viewers; runner-up was TNT's The Closer, which recorded 7 million viewers when it was unveiled in 2005.[5] Following the premiere, ratings evened out to around 5.5 million viewers per episode.[3] For calendar-year 2008 on a first-run basis, the series delivered 1.37 million viewers in the 18–49 demographic,[6] garnering mixed reviews.[7]
Cancellation
TNT confirmed to E! Online on November 30, 2009 that the series would not be renewed for a third season.[8] The final three episodes were burned off marathon style on Christmas Eve night.[9]
International distribution
| Country | TV network(s) | Series premiere | Weekly schedule (local time) |
|---|---|---|---|
 United States | TNT | September 11, 2008 | Monday 22:00 |
 United Kingdom | BT Vision | June 2012 | On Demand streaming |
 Arab World | Fox Series | 2010 | |
 Turkey | DiziMax | October 17, 2008 | Friday 22:00 |
 South Africa | M-Net | December 2008 | Tuesday 21:00 |
 Bulgaria | TV7 | December, 2009 | 20:00 |
 Canada | CTV | January 9, 2009 | Friday 22:00 |
 Spain | TNT | March 2, 2009 | Thursday 22:15 |
 Italy | Fox Crime & La5 | March 18, 2009 | Wednesday 22:50 |
 India | Zee Cafe | February 2012 | Weekends 21:00 |
 Portugal | AXN & Sony Entertainment Television | April 8, 2009[10] | Wednesday 21:30 |
 Norway | TV2 | June 23, 2009 | Tuesday 21:45 |
 Singapore | Sony Entertainment Television | August 26, 2009 | Wednesday 21:00 |
 Hong Kong | Sony Entertainment Television | August 26, 2009 | Wednesday 21:00 |
 Greece | Fox Life | December 5, 2009 | Fridays 21:00 |
 New Zealand | TV2 | July 27, 2009 | Tuesday 00:30 |
 Uruguay Argentina |
AXN | September 8, 2009 | Monday 21:00 |
 Brazil | AXN | October 5, 2009 | Monday 21:00 |
 France | Jimmy | October 1, 2009 | Thursday 20:40 |
 Mexico | AXN | October 5, 2009 | Monday 22:00 |
 Netherlands | NET 5 | April 21, 2012 | previously on Saturday 23:20 |
 Israel | yes stars Base / HOT family | November 14, 2009 | Saturday 17:15 |
 Latvia | Fox Life | 2011 |
DVD releases
| DVD name | Release date | Ep # |
|---|---|---|
| The Complete First Season | June 2, 2009 | 10 |
| The Complete Second and Final Season | May 2010 | 15 |
References
- ↑ Raising the Bar at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ TNT Press Release (2008-01-26). "TNT Heads to the Courtroom With New Steven Bochco Legal Drama Series Raising the Bar". Webwire. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
- 1 2 TNT Press Release (2008-09-16). "TNT Renews Two Hit Series: Saving Grace and Raising the Bar". The Futon Clinic. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
- ↑ "Raising the Bar". Zap2It. Retrieved 2008-09-03.
- ↑ de Moraes, Lisa (2008-09-03). "'Raising the Bar' and Clearing It in the Ratings". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
- ↑ "Breaking News - Final Dvr Data Revs Up Ratings for FX Frosh Drama Sons of Anarchy - TheFutonCritic.com".
- ↑ "Raising the Bar". Metacritic.
- ↑ Jennifer Godwin (2009-11-30). "TNT Cancels Mark-Paul Gosselaar's Raising the Bar". E! Online. Retrieved 2009-11-30.
- ↑ "Breaking News - TNT to Say Goodbye to "Bar" on December 24 - TheFutonCritic.com".
- ↑ "PRIMEIRA-MÃO – Raising the Bar em estreia no AXN". Archived from the original on 23 June 2009.