Unlike its sitcom counterparts Marry Me, One Big Happy, and pretty much every other NBC comedy, Undateable survived last night’s cancellation spree and has been renewed for a third season. It’s going to have to prove itself, though: Based on the strength of the show’s one-hour live special that aired earlier this week, Undateable’s corporate masters have demanded that its cast perform all 13—or maybe even 22—episodes of its upcoming season live. “You don’t want to end up like About A Boy, do you?,” NBC executives presumably cackled, brandishing a bullwhip as they spoke. “Then dance, monkeys, dance! And a second show for the West Coast!”
And because the peacock works in mysterious ways, NBC was kinder on its freshman series The Mysteries Of Laura and sophomore medical drama The Night Shift, both of which were renewed for another season of mom/cop balance and heroic motorcycle doctors, respectively.
The Night Shift’s renewal came along with the pickup of two new, revenge-based series: First there’s Game Of Silence, starring Revolution’s David Lyons as a successful attorney who teams up with his childhood friends to seek vengeance after they are blackmailed for—what else?—a terrible secret from the past.Then there‘s The Player (formerly known as Endgame), starring Wesley Snipes as an ex-military operative who, after the death of his wife, becomes ensnared in an underground gambling ring where a cadre of wealthy individuals bets on his ability to stop crimes from happening. Taken-style scenes of sinister billionaire decadence and brutal revenge are expected.