KCRW's The Spin-Off Pre-Upfronts Edition: What's Hot? What Will Be Cancelled? (LISTEN NOW!)

Joe and I are back, this time with The Hollywood Reporter's Lesley Goldberg, for the latest edition of KCRW's The Spin-Off podcast. This time, we give a preview of what to expect at next week's network upfronts, as the FATE OF THE TV INDUSTRY IS DECIDED. (OK, not really, but sounds intense, right?) He's what we chatted about:

We've made it to May, and in the TV world, that means one thing: Upfronts. Some of us will be heading to New York next week, but before we go, we talk about what the lay of the land looks like for this year, and we check in on some of the pilots up for consideration.

Ahead of the upfronts, NBC announced three drama pickups, including Chicago Med from Dick Wolf, the same man who brought us Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. Will this year bring the return of the medical dramas? And what exactly do you do with all those superhero shows? It's a saturated genre, but perhaps there's a way to schedule them that makes sense.

And coming out of last weekend's massive boxing match, the CEO of Twitter announced that the big winner of the night was...Periscope, the video streaming app. Are apps like these going to be problematic for the TV industry, or should the networks learn to embrace them?

Plus, as always, we go around the horn for our Download segment and share the stories or shows that are top of mind this month.

Hey, go on iTunes and rate us/review us, will ya? And listen by clicking here!

MIKE ON KCRW: Talking Pilot Season on "Press Play"

On Monday's Press Play with Madeleine Brand, Diane Gordon and I talk about pilot season and other stuff:

The most popular television shows this year have been big on drama and big on crime, but not so big on laughs. Now the networks are kicking off their new pilot season, looking for the next runaway hit, and this year’s success stories could have a big influence on their decision-making. Does that mean another gritty lineup for the small screen? We discuss that and more in our weekly television news roundup.

Listen below:

MIKE ON RADIO: Discussing the Changing TV Pilot Season with KCRW's "Press Play"

On Tuesday's edition of KCRW's "Press Play with Madeleine Brand," I joined my former Variety colleague Cynthia Littleton to talk about the upheaval in the TV pilot process this season.

Here's how they described the segment:

We’re in the middle of March Madness - the basketball tournament - but that’s also a perfect name for TV’s pilot season. This is the height of the network’s annual scramble to produce new shows and roll out their Fall line-ups. It’s a costly and slightly crazy tradition - and it’s only gotten costlier and crazier. For years, network executives have said that they were going to do things a better way. Now it seems like that’s finally started to happen.

Listen below! The segment starts 16 minutes in.

MIKE ON RADIO: Oscar Ratings, Pilots and Jimmy Kimmel on KCRW's "Press Play"

Fun chat with host Madeleine Brand on Tuesday's edition of KCRW's "Press Play." We chat up Oscar ratings, the trends of pilot season and how Jimmy Kimmel's interview with Toronto mayor Rob Ford turned out. It's 20 minutes into this episode, stream it below:

MIKE ON RADIO: On KCRW's The Business, Discussing TV Critics Press Tour

On this week's edition of KCRW's "The Business," I called in from the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena to give an update on the Television Critics Association press tour. Pilot season -- which we also discussed on this month's The Spin-Off -- was the hot topic. Listen to the "banter" segment that kicks off the show:

Mike on Radio: Bantering About Fox's New Sports Network and More on KCRW's "The Business"

I'm back on this week's edition of KCRW's "The Business," bantering with the Los Angeles Times' John Horn about:

- News Corp announces their answer to ESPN -- a new cable channel, FOX Sports 1 -- but can they take on this 30-year sports behemoth? - The broadcast channels spend big this pilot season hoping to find something that will stick after a lackluster year. Some familiar names are shooting pilots, including Robin Williams and Greg Kinnear - NBC begins to think about when and how Jay Leno will finally walk away from late night

Listen below!

Mike on TV: Introducing "Kissy Sell Out" to L.A.'s Food Trucks

A few months ago, producers Jeff Androsky (who was behind my one shot as a TV reality show judge, Fox Reality Channel's Gimme My Reality Show!) and Michael Linder asked me to particpate in a TV pilot they were shooting starring rising British DJ Kissy Sell Out. The premise: Kissy comes to the U.S. to conquer this market, meeting people across the country along the way.

I taped a couple of segments with Kissy. Above, I introduce him to the joys of L.A.'s food trucks (including Korean tacos and ice cream sandwiches at Coolhaus. Yum -- although I'm not sure I recommend normally eating such things back-to-back. Shot outside LACMA. More tomorrow.