Los Angeles: 6/10
Just as one person's feast is another person's famine, this month the gulf between appraisals of October board flow was Grand Canyon-wide. Reports ranged from "the best October we've ever had" to "pretty pathetic." Somewhere in the middle, there's the rather tempered "not bad", supporting the theory that while some prodcos might've been swimming in boards, many were just wading. "It sounds like a lot of people are working on things but nobody's booking," lamented an exec. "We'll see boards and then they'll just die."

As for what companies are seeing, telecommunications, retail and packaged goods are making the rounds, as are the odd automotive scripts. Opinions on creative are also mixed - running the gamut from "nothing blowing my socks off" to "really exciting at the moment." But there seems to be a ho-ho-hold up in holiday boards (sorry, couldn't resist). "It's either already come and gone or it's last minute," said one EP. And most execs polled said the players aren't on the field yet for the Super Bowl, but they expect some action after Thanksgiving. Sounds like it couldn't come too soon.

Toronto: 7/10
"Santa is a fucking grinch. I'm opening an ad agency." So starts our round of board flow calls this month, signaling that for many Toronto prodcos Christmas is coming late. Holiday boards may be floating around - one exec has five, full-on snow jobs in the can - but the festive shoots have so far eluded most.

While October was characterized as "steady," "crazy" or "insanely busy," an early November lull has settled on the city, giving EPs a little extra time to work on wish lists: Bigger budgets ("You can only do so much work in a kitchen or backyard"), risk-taking clients ("Cannes was an ass-kicking") and a Canadian beer ad presence ("It's like Canadian beer is dead - it's a void, it's vacant").

The good news is cool creative is coming in from beyond Canada's borders and crews are making like Snowbirds to exotic southern locales. Non-Canadian beer, packaged goods, business investment and PSAs are keeping everyone busy, but the sleeper hits of the season are the federal and provincial governments. One exec compared the feds' anything goes attitude towards its TV spots to the city's recent surge in cutting-edge contemporary architecture.

Private sector clients are slowly realizing conceptual ideas with higher production values and special effects seem to work for their American and British counterparts. As a result, some interesting bidding is happening, but nothing zany. And although the creative is gradually improving, the same can't be said for budgets. Too bad, because we hear Cannes Lions make excellent stocking stuffers.

New York: 8/10
Even without the inspiration and networking opportunities provided by October's Boards Summit in NYC, it appears that the month was already shaping up nicely for New York. "No complaints" seemed to be the mantra, with scripts for beauty products, booze, telecommunications, sports, and retail arriving at a nice, steady clip. And very little of it was holiday or Super Bowl oriented - "We did one or two holiday spots way earlier," said one EP. "It was kind of depressing."

Variety is also evident in the media outlets the scripts are for, with many prodcos polled doing a fair amount of web work. "We're doing a lot of work that will never see the light of day on a television set," marveled one exec. Other execs report a marked increase in branded content boards, some with sizeable budgets and inspiring creative attached.

Back in the broadcast world, even those two aspects passed muster. "Frankly, nothing is piss-poor, which is good," said one exec about the creative coming through. As for money, "the high end is holding and the medium stuff is okay," offered another. And hopes are high that autumn in New York will give way to a decent December.

London: 7/10
With Sony's "Paint" making the rounds and Guy Fawkes Night just around the corner, we're compelled to talk about last month's London board flow in pyrotechnical terms. Problem is, we don't really know any, so instead we'll just liken London's October to "one match short of a smashing grand finale" and leave it at that.

Beer, automotive, insurance, beer, telecommunications and beer drove product categories this month, leading us to believe we've got a firm handle on Britain's seasonal affective disorder coping strategy. Creatively, things seemed to be on the upswing, making for a marked improvement over a turgid summer. "Throughout this year it's been really dull and agencies have been taking the piss with the stuff they're sending through," says one sales rep. "But this month it's gotten a lot better." Another EP went one step further: "I've been more excited about the last month quality-wise than I have at any point this year." Financially, though, it's the same old song, with the occasional cash cow enabling prodcos to chase after the underfunded creative pearls.

All things told, nearly every single exec indicated that things were healthy but "not overwhelming." "We've been going along at a good rate," reports one. "We're not breaking any records but we've been shooting a lot this month." Says another? "As long as we're still in business, I'm not going to complain." We'll drink to that. Anyone got any beer?