Fall TV: New Shows I Have Watched and May Watch: Thursday & Friday

I was planning on doing Thursday and Friday earlier in the week but things built up at work and well you know how that goes. But I did get a chance to watch a few of the new shows that aire on Thursday and Friday and may be able to give you an idea of what works and what doesn't. Let's begin:


THURSDAY: So this is probably the only day where my old shows dominate. I only had one new show that I actually got a chance to see. My favorite returning shows on Thursday are 30 Rock, Fringe and The Office. I really want to watch Community, but I've just never been able to find a way to consistently watch it. Last year the wife had to have Gray's Anatomy and so I wasn't able to see it or the Office in primetime. I ended up watching the Office on Hulu thankfully but just couldn't squeeze in time for Community. Cody Dee swears by it and he usually has a good sense for these shows. So fast forward to 2010 and I've convinced my mother in law to DVR Gray's Anatomy at her place now freeing me up for Community. I'm a little behind but from what I understand it's worth it. Community aires on NBC with the block of 30 Rock and the Office starting at 8:00 PM.

SHIT MY DAD SAYS: It's always a bad sign when you make a show for the networks where you can't even use the proper title. Apparently the show has already caused problems with people's DVR cause they don't know how to look up the show cause it starts with $#"!. But what do you expect from a show based on a twitter feed of the same name. The only reason I was giving this show a chance was because I love William Shatner, dude is funny even when he doesn't intend to be. This should be a no brainer, but as I was watching the show I noticed something horrifying. It looks like the showrunners have decided to put a collar on Shatner and his antics. He seems caged in the pilot--they should let the freak Shatner fly, but instead he's just limited to groan inducing one liners. Shatner still emerges at times to give me a chuckle but he seems to be buried under a schmaltzy and mostly unfunny script. The guy playing his kid is almost unwatchable. He's trying way too hard, the show could have promise if the writers were truly interested in channeling Archie Bunker. But it just seems like they are trying to continue to cash in on the shit Dad says on twitter which is pretty hit or miss most of the time. I'm on the fence whether or not I'll check out the second episode but if you are tired of painfully formulaic sitcoms then this show is not for you. ($#"! My Dad Says aires on CBS at 8:30 PM)

There are two other shows that I had some thought about taping but decided against it at the last minute. The one that I'm sort of regretting is Nikita, which aires on the CW at 9:00 PM. The trailer didn't do much for me but then I will admit to you I saw star Maggie Q wearing that red bikini and then I started to think--damn maybe I should give it a shot. In all honesty the reviews have been mixed but most have said it was fun and I do love me some spy shows. I'm a complete sucker for them so why shouldn't I watch this one---maybe I'll watch on Hulu. The other show I considered was Outsourced but now I'm kind of glad I dumped it. The trailer was pretty bad and most of the reviews I read were pretty negative. This show was based on the John Jeffcoat movie of the same name. It's about an American who is sent to Mumbai to manage an American novelties company (fake vomit) Call Center and through his new job he gets to learn about Indian culture. The premise sounds like it could be funny but it seems like they dumbed it down to the lowest common denominator. Did I mention the almost all Indian cast is going to be fielding calls about fake vomit. Yeah, remember what I said about NBC and subtlety. This would probably apply here. But if you want to take a shot let me know what you think cause I don't think I'm going to be adding this to my Must See TV list. (Outsourced aires on NBC at 9:30 PM)

FRIDAY: So Friday, usually is dead air, but that's usually. Last year I enjoyed two truly great shows that aired on what is considered the death knell for tv shows. Friday Night Lights and Joss Whedon's Dollhouse. This year I'm still awaiting Friday Night Lights cause I don't have Direct-TV, it'll aire sometime in January I believe. They also moved a couple shows I watched on Wed that are now on Friday Human Target and the Good Guys. (I did a review for the Good Guys a few months ago, click here.) You can check out both of these shows on Fox starting at 8:00 PM with Human Target and the Good Guys at 9:00 PM.

BLUE BLOODS: I just saw this one last night and I really enjoyed it. They've got a great cast with Tom Selleck, Frank Reagan, as the patriarch of a family of NY city Cops: Donnie Wahlberg as the tough as nails Detective Danny Reagan and eldest son of the brood. Danny's tough Assistant DA sister Erin (Bridget Moynahan) and their little brother, former Harvard student, turned rookie cop Jamie (Will Estes). You even have Frank's retired cop father Henry (Len Cariou) to make this a total family affair of three generations of Cops. I really thought it was well written and brought some new flavor to the typical Cop Show. This is a bit of both cop drama and family drama which is important for this show to really work. In the pilot they go right at opposing viewpoints on tough subjects like water boarding. I think you've got some great potential for compelling stories as well as a fun thriller that will keep the viewer on their toes. It's great to see Selleck back on something as smart as this and it's always great to see him sporting the signature stash. I know Friday is the night to party but if you find yourself at home you should really check this one out I highly recommend it.  (Blue Bloods aires on CBS at 10:30 PM) 

OUTLAW: I actually got to watch the pilot a week or so ago and I wasn't that impressed. I was intrigued with the premise of the show about a Supreme Court Judge, Cyrus Garza (Jimmy Smits), who decides to leave the bench and go back into private practice. The intriguing part was that he is a very conservative style judge who has a very liberal personal life with the gambling and womanizing. Could be interesting right. We learn right off the bat that his very liberal minded father was killed recently in a car accident with Cyrus at the wheel. So in the pilot Cyrus pisses off the right wing because he doesn't tow the line and they try to blackmail him. He seems to be having a crisis of conscience. He gets the jump on their threats and leaves the bench of his own free will. I find it amusing that a guy as Conservative as this would all of a sudden become so liberal minded so quickly, but oh well. Where the show works is it's lead star Jimmy Smits. The guy is a pro and he makes Cyrus very compelling. The problem is the pacing and the overblown ridiculous plot. We are to believe that this guy leaves the bench and helps a convict avoid lethal injection just because he stood up to a judge for five minutes. The guy had been on death row for like 15 years or something and he digs just a little bit and gets him off. The whole thing just felt so contrived. I want to give the show more time but I was so annoyed by the ease in which he solved the case that I couldn't fathom how they could make this show last a whole season without the audience laughing off every triumphant victory. It sort of reminded me of Matlock which is never a good thing. (Outlaw aires on NBC at 10:00 PM)

Fall TV: New Shows I Have Watched and May Watch: Tuesday & Wednesday

TUESDAY:

There are quite a few newbies on Tuesday but so far I haven't really felt much excitement about most of them. Detroit 1-8-7 on ABC at 10PM looks like a paint by the numbers procedural that probably won't make it to mid-season regardless of Michael Imperioli, he's been on a losing streak since Christopher got smothered by Tony on the Sopranos and I'm afraid it's gonna continue. There is also Raising Hope and Running Wilde both half hour sitcoms on Fox at the 9 - 10 PM slot don't look much better. I really like Will Arnett and Kerri Russell for Running Wilde but the promos so far haven't really got me jumping through hoops yet. I kind of dig the premise of an Oil Baron (Republican) tries to woo a girl he knew when they were kids who is an Environmental Activist (Democrat) and then you have a show that basically describes the relationship between Republican pundit Mary Matlin and her Raging Cajun Democrat Husband, pundit, James Carville. Raising Hope looks like an even redneckier version of My Name Is Earl if that's even possible. Showrunner Greg Garcia returns to tell the story of a young man who knocks up what one would call the Female equivalent to a Caged Heat convict who is then forced to raise the youngster himself while the mother is in stir. He turns to his bizarre family for help and therein lies the comedy. I gave up on My Name is Earl around season 3 and apparently so did everyone else. I got tired of the stupid idiotic rednecks that populated the show day in and day out and unfortunately Garcia seems to be trying to tap that well again. So good luck to you Greg, but I won't be watching.

Some of the returning shows for Tuesday that I fell in love with last year was Parenthood on NBC at 10 and the Good Wife on CBS also at 10. Both of these shows are well written and will keep your interest I suggest checking these out when they open this week. So for Tuesday I guess I had only one show that piqued my curiosity, and of course it deals with superheroes.

NO ORDINARY FAMILY: Yeah I know, it's ABC Family and it's basically a live version of the animated hit the Incredibles, but I'm still curious to see how this one turns out. I really like leading man Michael Chiklis who plays the patriarch and invincible Dad on the show. I also have really grown to love Julie Benz after great turns as Darla in Buffy and Angel and more recently as Rita on Dexter. It feels a little Fantastic Four as a family of Four gain super powers after an accident in the water. This thing could go either way honestly, it seems to have a pretty good Showrunner in Greg Berlanti who has done some writing on popular shows like Brothers and Sisters and short lived ones like Jack and Bobby and Dirty, Sexy Money. (No Ordinary Family aires on ABC at 8 PM)

WEDNESDAY:

Wednesday is going to be a light day for Prime-time viewing this year. Of the returning shows the only one I'm interested in is Modern Family which comes back on ABC at 9. It's such a funny show and totally deserved all the Emmy love it received this year. If you missed this one last year, don't be a dope and miss it again, it's just too good. So of all the few newbies this year on Wednesday I've only got my eyes on one show. And it's got JJ Abrams name all over it.

UNDERCOVERS: Yeah I'm always a sucker for the spy genre I can't ever get enough. I actually got into that Piper Parabo show Covert Affairs over the summer. It's a bit of a guilty pleasure but it's a fun cast and I really got a kick out of it. Undercovers probably falls in the same category except there is probably a better twist, given that it's JJ Abrams. At least I hope so. They are kind of taking a page out of the Mr. & Mrs. Smith playbook with two former C.I.A agents who marry each other and start a catering business. It's short lived of course and they are thrust back into the agency. It seems like it's a Action/Comedy/Romance, could work. Just looking at the trailers the two spies played by Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw seem to be having fun together, I've got a good feeling about this one. (Undercovers aires on NBC at 8 PM)

Stay tuned for Thursday & Friday.

Fall TV: New Shows I Have Watched and May Watch: Sunday & Monday

It's that time of the year again where new shows dominate the airwaves. It's especially interesting this year due to NBC's big time debacle last year when they so stupidly tried to run the guy with the chin weeknights at 10PM. They have now agreed with everyone else that it was dumb and have now ordered something like fifty new shows for the fall. Subtlety is not in NBC's wheel house. So I decided to study the new fall schedule check out some of the new shows I wanted to see and listed them here for you. All you have to do now is just set your DVR and enjoy the show.

SUNDAY:

So there is only one show to watch this Sunday, that is if you aren't watching Football, and it's Boardwalk Empire on HBO. If you've read any reviews on the subject everything is glowing and damn right it should be. This is director Martin Scorsese's first attempt at a TV show and it should be considered a major coup for everyone involved. Although I did hear that of the first 5 episodes Marty's was the weakest. Nevertheless it's Scorsese doing what he does best telling a story about the Mob. This time it's in Atlantic City during Prohibition and it's about how one guy, Nucky Thompson (Steve Buscemi), took the reigns of everything illegal in that town and completely ran with it.  There's a young Capone, "Lucky" Luciano, Arnold Rothstein and many others. It's got a great cast, a great group of creatives and it's probably going to win a shitload of Emmy's next year. I shouldn't have to say much more about it cause this one has been the talk of TV for about two straight months now, if you haven't heard about this show then you have no business watching TV to begin with. (Boardwalk Empire aires on HBO Sunday Sept. 19th at 9PM)

MONDAY:

It's funny but Monday seems to be a busy night for TV in my house all of a sudden. I never would have thought that a few years ago. So I have the old standard Chuck which is always a must see. Even my brother caught the Chuck bug. He watched all three seasons over the summer and is chomping at the bit for season 4 to begin, as am I. We've got a few newbies to add to Monday's list. One I'm on the fence about but I have been hearing great things is a half-hour sitcom called Mike & Molly. It's a little different from your average sitcom in that the main actors are fairly normal looking, ie they aren't thin as a rail 30 somethings who look like they should be on the cover of GQ. I saw the pseudo trailer and I just didn't find it very funny, but I was going to wait to get the consensus at the end of the week. I can always check out Hulu over the weekend. The big problem is I want to watch Lonestar and the Event and unfortunately I can't DVR all three.(Mike & Molly aires on CBS Monday at 9:30 PM)

LONE STAR:  This is an hourlong drama about a con-man, Bob Allen (James Wolk), who leads a double life in Texas, naturally. He's got a wife (Andriana Palicki) in Houston and a girlfriend (Eloise Mumford) in Midland. He seems to want to go straight and leave the con business and his con-father behind, but he can't seem to shake the double life he's carved out for himself. The trailers have been pretty interesting and I really dig the cast. Especially David Keith as the Con-Man Father trying to keep his kid in the game. I'm getting a real-life kind of vibe that really worked for Friday Night Lights and it's in Texas, again, so what could go wrong? This one has been getting some good buzz but it's always hard to tell with some of the newbies especially when it's a first time Producer/Showrunner Kyle Killen, he's also writing the film the Beaver with Mel Gibson which comes out later this year.  (Lone Star aires on Fox Monday at 9:00 PM)

THE EVENT:  This is also one of those shows that has been talked about to the hilt. The first couple trailers didn't do much for me especially with the entire cast talking up the secret surprise that is the title---the Event--ooh spooky. What is it? Everyone seems to want to know and even --- dum dum dum--the President doesn't seem to know what the fuck it is. I also really hated the editing with the weird cut to actress Laura Innes (ER) goofy face in order to ramp up the intrigue and suspense. Just a little tip, showing this does not enhance my desire to see the show. But as the slew of advertising progressed an interesting premise appeared and they had me curious to what the damn event really is. It seems that a President, Elias Martinez (Blair Underwood), a scruffy looking guy, Sean (Jason Ritter), and Sean's kidnapped Girlfriend Leila (Sarah Roemer) are going to find out what it is the hard way. They knew they would get me now that Lost is off the air and I suppose they decided to go the extra mile and make it look a bit like 24 now that that show is over too. I say smart move--this should do pretty well, as long as you know, no more weird cuts to Laura Innes' weird face. (The Event aires on NBC Monday at 9:00 PM) 

HAWAII FIVE-O: I have a good vibe about this one, I really do. I shouldn't because on the surface this seems like another crap re-make of a classic popular show. And I should know I have watched my share of bad remakes: Knight Rider, Bionic Woman etc. But this show has what those couldn't dream of having, a damn good cast. Alex O'Loughlin as super cop Steve McGarrett, Scott Caan as Danny "Danno" Williams, Grace Park as Kono and my personal favorite Daniel Dae Kim as Chin Ho. I loved him on Lost and I'm sure I'll love him here. I used to watch the original when I was a kid in syndication you don't get much better than Jack Lord and of course there is that theme song. This new one has the great cast but it also has the luckiest two writers in Hollywood attached to it, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, the guys who wrote the Transformers movies, the new Star Trek and the awesome show Fringe. These guys have been on a roll the last few years it's doubtful that Hawaii Five-O will stop their reign.(Hawaii Five-O aires on CBS Monday at 10:00 PM)

I'll hopefully be posting Tuesday and Wednesday's lineup tomorrow night. Stay tuned.

The Good Guys

It's been a while since I've given a shout out to a show which should tell you something right off the bat. I kind of stumbled on this show by accident when I was flipping around on Hulu. I vaguely remember seeing the teaser trailer earlier this season during Human Target, which is also a pretty fun show by the way, and I remember doing a double take when I saw Bradley "Josh Lymon" Whitford doing somersaults over a Mustang sporting aviator glasses and a Magnum P.I. stash. I was intrigued but it didn't specify when it was airing, just sometime in the summer. So of course it was forgotten until a few weeks ago I was browsing around Hulu and I found it again. I watched the first couple episodes and I found myself laughing pretty hard. In a way it fits in with shows like My Name is Earl and Starsky & Hutch but just when you think the redneck silly shtick goes too far they ramp up the action to reveal a different kind of show. The dialogue is pretty darn great and the pacing is fun--keeps things rolling on.

The Good Guys series follows two very different cops. Dan Stark (Bradley Whitford), a drunken mess of a cop who still thinks he's living in 1985. He's inept and afraid of computers (which makes for some funny scenes) and he's always trying to get poon no matter if he's on or off the clock. He's old school but he retains his cop instincts which makes for an entertaining and funny setup. His partner, Jack Bailey (Colin Hanks), is the opposite. He's smart and precise but a little green. Actually it' kind of eerie how much Hanks is like his pop. He sounds exactly the same and makes the same kind of faces--it'll freak you out at first. You think you might be watching Dragnet, "Hey where is Dan Aykroyd..." Then he moves his face again and it's gone. Weird. But he plays a pretty good straight man to Whitford's looney Dan Stark. The reason he's partnered with the train wreck in the first place... guy's got no head for politics. No one at the top wants to promote Bailey cause he makes them look like idiots, sort of reminded me of Hot Fuzz. In fact that is a perfect example. If they made Hot Fuzz an American TV show then it would totally be this fucking show.

So check this one out if you find yourself hot and bored this summer, save it from cancellation. Apparently it's not doing so hot in the ratings. It aires on Fox Friday at 9PM.

The Battle For Tobacco Road: Duke Vs. Carolina

Last year during March Madness on HBO they kept showing this great documentary on Villanova and their magic run to the Final Four in 1985 called The Perfect Upset. It chronicles the David and Goliath victory over powerhouse Georgetown and Patrick Ewing. So they are playing this thing every damn night or something. I'm saying to myself, this is a great story sure, but come on the UNC Vs. Georgetown Final in '82 was even better. Patrick Ewing was only a Freshman on Georgtown at the time. But Carolina had James Worthy, Jimmy Black Sam Perkins and a young wet behind the ears freshman named Michael Jordan. Why can't we see a documentary on that?Fast forward to this year--Most people know how much I love the Tarheels. In fact they know it so well that I was inundated with e-mails and phone calls last week from friends telling me about this documentary about the Carolina and Duke rivalry on HBO. It's only an hour, obviously not long enough to talk in depth about Carolina greats like Walter "Sweet D" Davis, Phil Ford or Charlie Scott but it did reveal a small hint at the tradition and excellence of Carolina basketball. They unfortunately had to divide the time by talking about both schools. But I did enjoy seeing them talk about Duke Pre-K. For some reason Dukies like to think that their perceived greatness did not occur until the rat-- I mean Mikey K. dropped from the heavens. But in actuality there have been a string of good coaches for years before the almighty Krzyzewski. For instance Eddie Cameron for whom their beloved stadium is named for. This guy was 119-56 for his career and won the Southern conference Championship three times. (This was the conference tournament before the ACC Tournament.) Then there was Gerry Gerard, Harold Bradley, Vic Bubas and Bill Foster.For Carolina it was Frank McGwire who put UNC basketball on the map. From 1953-1961 Frank McGwire used his New York connections to bring some of the best talent to the Tarheel State. Guys like Lennie Rosenbluth, with his height and skill was able to bring a second National Championship home to Chapel Hill. The spark however that spawned the program for UNC Basketball didn't truly begin until a little known Assistant Coach Dean Smith took over the program from McGwire in 1961. Through teaching and innovation Dean Smith took two NCAA titles and won the ACC Tournament 17 times. And did I forget to mention that up until a few years ago he was the winningest coach in College Basketball with 879 victories. Coach Roy Williams has continued the sucess of Dean by winning a championship himself in 2005 and 4 ACC Championships since he's been with Carolina.The Documentary kind of glossed over the rivalry between Duke and Carolina only briefly commenting on the big games like Carolina's comeback from an eight point deficit with under 17 seconds left to go. But after watching it I really feel that probably both schools deserve a two hour special, each. There is just so much history for both you don't really do them credit to cram them both into an hour long documentary. Especially with Dean Smith, this is an interesting guy. He played for Kansas learning under coach Phog Allen who had been coached by the inventor of basketball himself James Naismith. Coach Smith challenged segregation by enlisting the first African American scholarship player Charlie Scott. He was a teacher who molded some of the best players in Basketball history like Michael Jordan and Vince Carter. So give the Dean some love Hollywood! If you get a chance check out this documentary but if you are itching for more you can always buy the Deano's book. Or if you want more on the rivalry you can check this out.On another note my Heels won the ACC Regular season and then had to sideline their star player Ty Lawson for the ACC Tournament. The end result wasn't pretty they lost to Florida State and to add insult to injury Duke coasts by FSU to win the damn Tournament. The Tar Heels at least got their number one seed in the South and I feel pretty good about their chances especially now that I know that Ty is playing. This should be a good year for March Madness--everyone is fallable this year so let the sweating begin.

A WOMAN WHO WILL FIGHT MY BATTLES FOR ME...

I mean that's what we guys really want, am I right? I'm lucky enough to already have a strong willed, tough-as-nails, She-Ra in my life. But for those of you who are still looking, look no further than the new, re-vamped, but still spandexed AMERICAN GLADIATORS on NBC, which wrapped it's grand reopening of a season last Sunday night.

While this redux version of the late 80's/early 90's Saturday morning sensation fell short of the original version in several areas; the new arena was a lot smaller, the new co-hosts were a lot lamer, the new contestant-centric format was a lot less tolerable, there was one very important improvement from the old show. And to para-quote my good friend, singer/songwriter Bryan Adams, it kept me coming back for more. Baby, it was all that I wanted. When I was lying there in the dark. Maybe... it was hard to believe, but I was in heaven. A heaven where gigantic, powerful, and most important, hot Amazonian princesses destroyed itty-bitty pre-med students with one grand swing of a pugel stick.

Yes, that's right - the new female Gladiators are SMOKING! They are head and shoulders above the beefy, butchy lady Gladiators of yesteryear. If you watched the old show, then I'm sure you remember she-malesque Zap, Sky, and Siren (I know she was deaf, and she does get sympathy points for that, but that's no excuse for her overt mannishness):

And lest we forget Malibu, a female Gladiator so hideously unattractive that she was cut after the first season (great head of hair though):

They've now been replaced by athletic, strong, yet feminine ladies like Crush, Venom, and Siren (The second - uh, what's the matter? Can't come up with an original Gladiator name? But don't get me started, that's all WHOLE other blog).

Crush doesn't just play a bad-ass on TV. She's a real life bad-ass. Her real name is Gina Carano, and she's genuine MMA Muay Thai fighter. I'm sure many a male Bucket reader out there wouldn't mind letting Gina wrap her patented Kengmei Leg Scissor of Death around them.

If Marilyn Monroe was on steroids (and she may have been) she would've looked like Venom. A ripped, blonde bombshell, portrayed by fitness model Beth Horn.

Then there's flame haired, firecracker Siren - portrayed by bodybuilder Valerie Waugaman. I don't know what it is about a good looking red headed gal. Maybe because there's so few, that when you see one it's like it's like seeing a wild & untamed, white Palomino galloping free across a southwestern vista.

There's no doubt that these three ladies are a big reason why the first season of the new Gladiators was so successful. And while a lot of guys may not admit it, I firmly believe that most men are attracted to strong women.

Part of the male species Oedipus Complex?

Maybe.

A sign of man's own narcissistic tendencies?

Perhaps.

Or it could just be that we really, really, like watching hot girls in spandex. Yeah, HOT GIRLS IN SPANDEX!!!!! Season Two, AG, coming at you... CATCH IT!

Lipstick Jungle – The Next Sex in the City?

Last night was the series premiere of the much anticipated Lipstick Jungle. Based on the book by Candace Bushnell, the author behind the Sex in the City juggernaut, Lipstick Jungle follows the lives of three friends who are all on the list of New York’s 50 Most Powerful Women.

My official reaction to the show falls somewhere between “eh” and “bleck”.

Perhaps it was the constant comparison to Sex in the City that lead me to expect something a bit more exhilarating than a wife cheating for no apparent reason, a struggling artist saved by her millionaire boyfriend and marriage failing by reason of emasculation but sadly that was not to be. While I applaud the idea of three women who believe being at the top of their career game isn’t a right devoted solely to those in the human race who have a penis, the show falls flat when a few basic facts are forgotten.

Firstly, it can’t all be bad. The last thing I need is to be repeatedly depressed for an hour once a week. Can anyone say time suck? When Carrie’s Big breakup carried on over two episodes her friends threw her into therapy and 20 minutes later she was sleeping with Bon Jovi. Realistic? No (unfortunately) Good TV? Yes.

Secondly, people are voyeuristic. We want to know the intimate details. For an hour long show there was surprisingly little going on. I used to work for a producer and part of my job was to read scripts and filter out the ones that she should read. She gave me only one rule, if there are too many phone calls in the script don’t bother. And now I see why. Brooke Shield’s character, Wendy, is a high powered executive for a major motion picture company. But instead of spending any real time on a movie set the only glimpse the audience gets of the industry is a lackluster phone call. Believe me when I say that people don’t want to see a phone call with Leonardo DiCaprio they want to see Wendy wielding her power to corner him backstage at a Victoria Secret Fashion Show. An audience that is going to stick around needs more action.

And speaking of action…is it just impossible to find a television actress that is capable of simulating a real orgasm? As adorable as Robert Buckley is, if the audience is supposed to expect Kim Raver’s character Nico to cheat on her husband for him it has to be hot. There needs to be sexual tension, passion and it needs to be dirty. A couple of over the shoulder gasps of “Oh Kirby” aren’t going to cut it. And while I’m on the subject maybe the post-coital ride home should be left to Diane Lane in Unfaithful who did it much better.

Finally, remember when Carrie Bradshaw waxed poetic about how pink carnations were coming back? Well I would rather watch a rerun of that before I watch a dialogue less Lindsay Price as Victory Ford oversee a parade of assistants flooding her living room with hundreds of expensive yet generic floral bouquets. Never underestimate the desire for clever writing. If this kind of unimaginative stunt is meant to appease the Sex in the City set I’m afraid the show’s producers will soon find that we’re just not that into it.

Bottom line: If Lipstick Jungle wants to steer clear of becoming a sensationalistic one season circus some serious reworking of the characters needs to be done. Otherwise they might as well bring on the car explosions and lesbian love affairs and be done with it.

Fall Lineup 2007

It's that time of the year again where we analyze, chop up and spit out the new fall lineup of shows. I've actually been able to watch more than normal since most of the time I find myself holding Nathan on the couch watching TV. It actually keeps him pretty calm which is a nice relief. After watching some of them I have discovered that this is the year of the geek/nerd. Two of my favorite new shows revolve around the nerdy guy who can't seem to close the deal with the hot girl. There are also a few returning shows that I have been looking forward to that are starting in the next few weeks.

Monday

Chuck is what happens when you take a show like The Office and throw it smack dab into the spy thriller show Alias. Chuck Bartowski is a typical smart guy who was expelled from Stanford and finds himself making ends meet as a Nerd Herder at a Best Buy like chain. Chuck gets an e-mail from an old roomate--the same roomate that had him booted from school. This e-mail contains all of the Intelligence information from the three spy agencies of the U.S. The NSA, the CIA and the FBI. His old roomate turns out to be a rogue CIA spy and poor Chuck's brain gets downloaded with all of this information. Needless to say he ends up smack in the middle of the spy game with a hot as hell CIA agent named Sarah and a hard as nails NSA officer determined to get the info out of Chuck's skull one way or another. So far this has been a really fun show, it doesn't take itself too seriously and did I mention the CIA chick was hot? Zachary Levi is great as Chuck he's funny and he carries the show. Yvonne Strahovski is the bad ass, Sydney Bristow lite, Sarah, she's pretty good given that I have never heard of her or seen her in anything previously. I also really like Joshua Gomez who plays Chuck's goofy best friend Morgan, he's funny and blends in great with this cast. It's also great to see Adam Baldwin picking up a little work after his departure from one of my other favorite shows, Firefly. Baldwin plays the hard nosed John Casey of the NSA. If you haven't seen Chuck you should go to your computer and watch the first few episodes on line.






Chuck aires Monday nights at 8PM on NBC


Heroes It is now in it's second season and so far it's started off kind of blah. I've always had a love hate thing with Heroes. I like that they are trying to focus more on the characters and less on the "Save the World" mantra that got very stale from last year. I also really like that they upgraded mind reader cop Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg) to a much more pivotal role. Although it's starting to look very predictable. I can totaly tell where they are going with this storyline as they knock off the older heroes, but I will wait to pass judgement until at least sweeps. They also seem to be playing with some politics here as they recognize Hurricane stricken New Orleans as Micah goes to visit granny Uhura in the delta. One of my least favorite part of the new heroes are the Wonder Twin Mexicans with their lame powers. So far they are desperate to get across the border, find a way to the Big Apple, so they can receive help from Doctor Suresh. Again I hope they make it there soon cause so far their journey has been boring and annoying.


Heroes aires Monday nights at 9PM on NBC


Journeyman This is sort of a sci/fi drama that meshes pieces of the book The Time Traveller's Wife and one of my favorite shows from the early 90's, Quantum Leap. We follow reporter Dan Vasser as he leaps back and forth through time without any warning except for a headache that pains him right before he jumps. He is married and has a young son and his leaping adds to the strain in his home life. His jumps appear so randomly that the poor guy can't even drive his car, cause as soon as he disappears his car becomes a hazard on the road. Not to mention that when he leaps he finds himself face to face with a supposed to be dead ex-lover who seems to have the same leaping ability that he has. Kevin McKidd is great as Dan, you can feel his frustration as he tries to deal with his predicament as he leaps back and forth trying to make everything right in the past and the present. Tamar and I also really enjoy the little touches as well. He so far has jumped back as far as the late 70's but everytime he does it is accompanied by the hit song of that year and it's kind of fun figuring out which period he has leaped into. There are some structural problems with it that hopefully will be ironed out. Mostly that his family and boss seem very understanding for the most part when he just vanishes without a trace for a couple of days. They need to set up better ways for him to cover his disappearances. Plus he continues to make the mistake of doing normal things when he knows he may just vanish, which causes drama for the show but it also makes him kind of stupid. Overall the plotting seems fine and the stories are interesting it's just a little bit of tweaking and all will be well.

Journeyman aires Monday Night at 10PM on NBC

Tuesday

Reaper is another favorite of mine about a young likeable loser named Sam. His life is going nowhere as he works at a Home Depot like store and pines for the hottie behind the cash register. His life changes when his Parents drop a crazy 21st Birthday present on him, eternal enslavement to the devil. Apparently before he was born Sam's parents made a deal with the Devil giving up their first born to the Prince of Darkness when he turns 21. Now the Devil has come to collect and he wants Sam to be his bounty hunter on earth casting damned souls back down to the fiery pits of hell. This is such a crazy concept it might actually work, and in the capable hands of Director Kevin Smith it really becomes something really fun and hilarious. It's kind of a blend between Ghost Rider and the Ghostbusters. Bret Harrison is funny and carries the show well as Sam. The funny honors go to yet another sidekick though---Sock, played by Tyler Labine is hilarious. I mean the guy's name is Sock so y'know it's got to be funny. Not to mention Ray Wise, an old school character actor, who gets to chew up the scenery as a strange mix of Fatherly wisdom and evil bastard playing the Devil.

Reaper aires Tuesday at 9PM on the CW

Wednesday

Bionic Woman Honestly I would've been much more excited if they did a re-make of the Six Million Dollar Man but after watching a few episodes I found myself enjoying this action romp. Jaime Sommers gets a retread from Lindsay Wagner to newcomer Michelle Ryan. Ryan is cute and she seems capable enough. So Ms. Sommers is driving along with her boyfriend until they are blindsided by a Mack truck that puts Jaime into traction. Her boyfriend luckily is a top notch surgeon and he saves her life by replacing her dead body parts with cybernetic implants. So she has an eye replaced, both her legs an arm and one of her eardrums. So Jaime finds herself working for a secret government organization run by Jonas Bledsoe (Miguel Ferrer). So she's got super powers and she still has to come home to take care of her teenager sister. That's a lot to deal with. Not to mention there is a kick ass bad Bionic Woman (Katee Sackhoff) who like to make Jaime's life a little more difficult. I've really enjoyed the show especially Katee Sackhoff as the bad Bionic chick, she chews some scenery for sure but she's fun. It sort of reminded me of Alias and it has some potential to be great. Hopefully if this thing gets a second season maybe we'll see Steve Austin the OG Bionic Man. Do I smell Spin off show potential?

Bionic Woman aires Wednesday at 9PM on NBC

Thursday

My Name is Earl is now entering into it's third season. I have really enjoyed this series it's funny and has a lot of heart. Last season Earl found himself taking the heat for his ex-wife Joy's crime spree and heading off to the big house. So for the first few episodes he's been in jail trying to continue his deal with Karma and helping everyone he can while behind bars. I don't know if they will be able to sustain a viewership if he's in prison the entire season. It has been funny though as he's dealt with rival prisoners in love with each other--kind of a Romeo loves Jules story. As always Jason Lee's back up characters like Randy, Joy and Crabman are hilarious and completely ignorant.

My Name is Earl aires Thursday at 8PM on NBC

30 Rock has started its second season and it's been pretty good so far. It was nice seeing Seinfeld as the first guest star. The best thing about this show though has been and always will be Alec Baldwin as NBC Exec Jack Donaghy. I really hope that Baldwin decides to stay for a few more seasons. If you followed any of his public personal problems with his daughter you might have heard him say that he may retire from acting all together once his contract with the show is up. Tina Fey is great and all but this show does not work without Jack Donaghy, period. I did love the first episode where Jack tries to digitally put Seinfeld into ads and NBC TV shows. Hilarious.

30 Rock aires Thursday at 8:30PM on NBC

The Office is now in its fourth season and it already is better than ever. This is a great ensemble show. Steve Carell is awesome as always but anyone who watches the show knows that Rainn Wilson who plays Dwight steals the show every night. Poor Dwight is in the doghouse with uptight girlfriend Angela this season after he mercy kills her cat and stuffs it in the freezer. Star-crossed lovers Pam and Jim are now dating this season, I'm wondering how long this is going to last. Intern Ryan has also returned as Michael's new boss at corporate, it seems like he's the new Jan except he's gone bad. Jan is also back after she lost her job and living with Michael. They have also added Creed to the regular cast. It's a great show, if you haven't seen an episode you gotta Netflix it. Also check out the original British version with Ricky Gervais, it's pretty funny too.

The Office aires Thursday at 9PM on NBC

Grey's Anatomy This is the fourth season of the show. I've only seen the first two seasons continuously. It's a pretty decent show but most of the characters get on my nerves. My wife really loves the show and the spin-off show Private Practice, which I have not seen. It comes on Wed at 9 by the way. I put it on here cause my wife loves it and it's on a different network from NBC, which I now realize I have a lot of shows that I watch on the Peacock, so I'm trying to have some diversity. Katherine Hiegel is on this show and really she's pretty hot, so if you can deal with that whiney chick who plays Meredith Grey, then it's worth your time to see Katherine looking great.

Grey's Anatomy aires Thursday at 9PM on ABC

Big Shots I'm still kind of the fence with this new show. I've watched a couple of episodes and I'm not really that impressed. I really like Michael Vartan from Alias, Joshua Malina from West Wing and Dylan McDermott. They just whine a lot on this show about their wives, girlfriends and mistresses. I thought it was going to be about these corporate guys and what they do but really it is a male version of Desperate Housewives. I'm going to give it a few more viewings but if this becomes a trend I may just cut it altogether.

Big Shots aires Thursday at 10PM on ABC

Friday

Friday Night Lights is now in it's second season thankfully. This is one of the best of the new shows last year. It was almost terminated permenantly but thankfully NBC decided to give it another chance. Kyle Chandler is excellent as Coach Taylor. Now in the second season the Coach has moved on to be an assistant coach at TMU. Unfortunately his family has stayed in Dillon which causes a major commuting problem. Not to mention that the Coach's wife Tami, played by the awesome Connie Britton is stuck at home with a newborn and a randy teenager who is thinking of cheating on her boyfriend, star quarterback Matt Saracen. The drama can appear to be soapy but it's so well written and the acting is so good that it really transcends any of that daytime TV crap. It's a great drama that mixes teen angst and responsibility with some nice hard nosed football. What more could you want?

Friday Night Lights aires Friday at 9PM on NBC






















Real Time With Bill Maher is now in it's fifth season. I absolutely love this show! As long as W is in the White House only Bill can make me laugh about it. It's biting comedy but Bill is also a smart guy, he can be a smart ass too but mostly he's intelligent and funny and sometimes he says things that may rub you the wrong way but more than likely they turn out to be true. If you don't get HBO I'm sorry but you may be able to catch his show on the web or on Netflix.

Real Time With Bill Maher aires Friday at 11PM on HBO

Tell Me You Love Me is not quite a solid show yet. I've seen a few episodes and it is interesting at times but mostly you get to look at these relationships so closely that you find yourself watching the most mundane and trivial parts of their lives. Basically the show revolves around three couples and how they deal with different stages of their relationships together. One couple is married with kids and they can't have sex. Another is trying to have kids but can't. The third is about a couple who want to get married but have trust issues. The only time so far where I felt this show had some bite is when they have sex. The show tries to show the reality of sex so it shows a bit more skin then other sexy type shows, but again, it still doesn't make this show watchable for more than a season.




Tell Me You Love Me aires Sunday Night at 9PM on HBO

I also watched the season premiere for that show Moonlight on Friday nights on CBS. It is terrible, it is about a Vampire that is a detective and they try to do this whole Phillip Marlowe meets Interview with a Vampire thing. You would think that it was an intriguing premise but after watching just one episode I had to cut it out of my lineup. The guy playing the gumshoe Vampire is terrible, his acting is stilted and he looks like he belongs in one those trashy romance novels. Skip this one at all costs.

Now for your added viewing pleasure I will show you another great reason why these shows are so fun:

On Monday we have: Chuck























Heroes















On Tuesday:






















Reaper


















On Wednesday:


















Bionic Woman








On Thursday:

My Name Is Earl

The Office

























Grey's Anatomy







On Friday:

Friday Night Lights