Hell on Wheels

CHICAGO – Do you know what separates AMC from a majority of networks? The art of the ensemble. The multi-Emmy-winning casts of “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad” are the bars against which most current dramas are measured. There were issues with some of the writing behind “The Killing” but no one ever complained about the performances. And it’s the people of “The Walking Dead” that keep it interesting.

CHICAGO – AMC’s watchable western series “Hell on Wheels” is just good enough to sustain audience interest despite its meandering plot. As soon as Gustavo Santaolalla’s catchy theme music kicks in over the brooding title sequence, it’s effortless to become absorbed within Joe and Tony Gayton’s handsomely photographed dramatization of the first transcontinental railroad’s epic construction in 1865.

CHICAGO – Fans have been asking me for months when Walter White and Jesse Pinkman would return for the fifth and final season of AMC’s amazing “Breaking Bad” and we can now reveal that the date to mark on your calendar is Sunday, July 15, 2012. Eight episodes of the fifth season will air in 2012 with the final eight not airing until 2013. Yes, one could say this is cheating and that we’re just getting a shortened season five and a shortened season six. However you want to slice it, eight this summer, eight next summer.

CHICAGO – AMC has had quite the up and down year for itself. While the basic cable network has had some behind the scenes struggles with some of its hit shows (including contract struggles for “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad” and “The Walking Dead” showrunner Frank Darabont stepping down this past summer), the network has still had good enough ratings to renew all four of its series that ran during 2011.

CHICAGO – If a group of advertising agents, a chemistry teacher turned meth dealer, and a bunch of survivors fighting zombies weren’t enough success for AMC, they may be able to add railroad worker/cowboys to the list. The new drama series, “Hell on Wheels,” premiered last night to very decent ratings for the basic cable network.

CHICAGO – AMC has been on such a creative streak lately that it’s tempting to think (or at least hope) that every new offering will be of the caliber of “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” “The Killing,” or “The Walking Dead.”

CHICAGO – While the entire story has not been fully revealed, the fact still remains that AMC’s hottest series has lost its showrunner. Frank Darabont, head writer and producer of AMC’s “The Walking Dead” as well as director of films such as “The Shawshank Redemption” and “The Green Mile,” has walked away from the hit zombie series after only one completed season.