Scorecard: Fast-tracked shows

So we're an average of 4 - 6 weeks into "fasttracking / direct from the US / streaming direct" depending on which network spin you listen to.

And how are they faring?

There are about twelve major dramas and comedies on our screens on quick turnaround (discounting chat shows). As a relatively new exercise in Australian programming there have been some tough-love lessons for networks. Viva Laughlin would never have aired and fallen over if Nine was programming the old-fashioned way. Damages fumbled through too many encores. Californication has attracted right-wing protests. Bionic Woman isn't getting the word-of-mouth it might have enjoyed.

After all is said and done what's the lay of the land?

TV Tonight has assessed the batch based on the turnaround time between US - Australian airing, the critical reception, local audience ratings, reviewed how sensibly the networks have programmed shows and stuck by the audience, and thrown in a "wow" factor - whether the show has its own intangible buzz.

Each show has been scored out of 25 points.

HOUSE (TEN)
Screening turnaround: 4
Critical reception: 4
Audience ratings: 5
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 4
TOTAL: 22
Dr Cranky only misses top marks because he’s without his sidekicks and TEN waited 3 weeks before launching it.

CALIFORNICATION (TEN)
Screening turnaround: 4
Critical reception: 4
Audience ratings: 3
Network commitment: 4
Wow factor: 5
TOTAL: 20
TEN has stuck by this candid, sometimes shocking, drama amid a wall of criticism, only occasionally dropping the ball. A drama about apathy and the disintegration of the American family.

MY NAME IS EARL: (Seven)
Screening turnaround: 4
Critical reception: 3
Audience ratings: 5
Network commitment: 4
Wow factor: 3
TOTAL: 19
Consistently funny with a loyal following in a generous timeslot. But we actually started with the tail end of the last series.

LIFE (TEN)
Screening turnaround: 5
Critical reception: 4
Audience ratings: 2
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 2
TOTAL: 18
Good reviews for Jason Lewis haven’t yet locked in local audiences yet. But Wednesday nights have been a nightmare for hot competition.

BIONIC WOMAN (Seven)
Screening turnaround: 5
Critical reception: 3
Audience ratings: 3
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 2
TOTAL: 18
Everyone came to the party, but they have been disappointed by cliché dialogue and soapie storylines. Losing ground fast and potentially a missed opportunity.

HEROES (Seven)
Screening turnaround: 5
Critical reception: 3
Audience ratings: 2
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 3
TOTAL: 18
Season 2 is slow-going with lots of unresolved and elongated plots. The series equivalent of a superhero changing outfits in the phone-booth.

K-VILLE (Fox8)
Screening turnaround: 5
Critical reception: 3
Audience ratings: 1
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 2
TOTAL: 16
If it wasn’t for the fact that this cop show was set in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans it would be just another cop show. Foxtel dabbles with fasttracking while everyone waits for Gossip Girl.

PRISON BREAK (Seven)
Screening turnaround: 4
Critical reception: 3
Audience ratings: 2
Network commitment: 3
Wow factor: 3
TOTAL: 15
The show that re-packages itself every season is struggling in Season 3. Off air this week while Seven plays catch-up.

SUPERNATURAL (TEN)
Screening turnaround: 3
Critical reception: 2
Audience ratings: 3
Network commitment: 5
Wow factor: 2
TOTAL: 15
Teeny spook show that plays it safe and sexy. Hard to pick the difference from the last season.

DAMAGES (Nine)
Screening turnaround: 2
Critical reception: 5
Audience ratings: 1
Network commitment: 2
Wow factor: 4
TOTAL: 14
The reviews have been stunning but Nine shot itself in the foot with too many encore episodes and twice-weekly premieres which only confused the audience. To do so on a complex, multi-layered thriller was a major blunder. Even the US audience has shown it’s hard enough to stay focussed without added scheduling tricks.

WITHOUT A TRACE (Nine)
Screening turnaround: 4
Critical reception: 2
Audience ratings: 2
Network commitment: 3
Wow factor: 2
TOTAL: 13
Anthony LaPaglia comes to Nine’s rescue as it bumps Damages. Otherwise it wouldn’t be here yet.

VIVA LAUGHLIN (Nine)
Screening turnaround: 5
Critical reception: 1
Audience ratings: 1
Network commitment: 2
Wow factor: 0
TOTAL: 8
Nine could have protected itself from the media flak over this if it hadn’t been aired direct to screen. It has learned the hard way there can be a downside to being so quick off the mark.