Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Saturday, October 31, 2009
End of October TV post
Here are some updates on what I'm feeling about my slate of TV shows. I'm not going to mention every one, but only the ones where my feelings have changed since last time.
The Forgotten-- I've finally figured out what it is about this show, and it's more than just the Chicago location. It's that they go through each mystery methodically and use logic to solve the cases. Most TV mystery shows these days are more about hunches and improbable coincidences than on good solid sleuthing. What can I say? I'm a very logical person, and I like my mysteries to be the same.
Three Rivers-- I was on the fence about this show, and football overruns have made me give up on it. I don't miss it!
Ugly Betty-- This hadn't started yet last time I posted. The tone has changed a lot since last year. It had become too frothy, and now it is almost too serious. It's clear that this show is on its last legs, and I hope it at least goes out in a satisfying way.
Brothers and Sisters-- It seems like they're trying hard to undo some of the things they did last year. I think Kitty's cancer exists primarily to get her out of that stupid plot where she and Robert weren't getting along. That never felt natural to me anyway. And I wish Kevin and Scotty could for once get a plot of their own, instead of just being stuck a year behind Kitty. She got married, so then they did the next year. She adopted a baby last year, so now they have to. Does that mean Kevin will get some dread disease next year? And I never knew Holly was supposed to be so rich, so it really means nothing to me that she has lost her money.
Dollhouse-- The last episode was awesome and a real game-changer. I can't wait for it to come back from hiatus.
Flashforward-- I continue my love/hate relationship with this show. One week I don't like it at all, and then the next it's great. I'm pretty sure I know what's going on with several of the flash forwards, and I keep watching to find out if I was right.
The Vampire Diaries-- The whole thing with Vicki totally surprised me. I didn't see her getting turned, and in such a casual fashion. And then I totally didn't see her getting staked so soon. I have one question, though. We saw Damon killing the uncle several weeks ago when he escaped. What happened to his body? And hasn't anyone noticed that he's missing?
I'm excited about V starting next week. I never saw the original (movie or TV show), and so it will all be new to me.
The Forgotten-- I've finally figured out what it is about this show, and it's more than just the Chicago location. It's that they go through each mystery methodically and use logic to solve the cases. Most TV mystery shows these days are more about hunches and improbable coincidences than on good solid sleuthing. What can I say? I'm a very logical person, and I like my mysteries to be the same.
Three Rivers-- I was on the fence about this show, and football overruns have made me give up on it. I don't miss it!
Ugly Betty-- This hadn't started yet last time I posted. The tone has changed a lot since last year. It had become too frothy, and now it is almost too serious. It's clear that this show is on its last legs, and I hope it at least goes out in a satisfying way.
Brothers and Sisters-- It seems like they're trying hard to undo some of the things they did last year. I think Kitty's cancer exists primarily to get her out of that stupid plot where she and Robert weren't getting along. That never felt natural to me anyway. And I wish Kevin and Scotty could for once get a plot of their own, instead of just being stuck a year behind Kitty. She got married, so then they did the next year. She adopted a baby last year, so now they have to. Does that mean Kevin will get some dread disease next year? And I never knew Holly was supposed to be so rich, so it really means nothing to me that she has lost her money.
Dollhouse-- The last episode was awesome and a real game-changer. I can't wait for it to come back from hiatus.
Flashforward-- I continue my love/hate relationship with this show. One week I don't like it at all, and then the next it's great. I'm pretty sure I know what's going on with several of the flash forwards, and I keep watching to find out if I was right.
The Vampire Diaries-- The whole thing with Vicki totally surprised me. I didn't see her getting turned, and in such a casual fashion. And then I totally didn't see her getting staked so soon. I have one question, though. We saw Damon killing the uncle several weeks ago when he escaped. What happened to his body? And hasn't anyone noticed that he's missing?
I'm excited about V starting next week. I never saw the original (movie or TV show), and so it will all be new to me.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Mid-October TV roundup
Ok, every show I wanted to watch, with the exception of Ugly Betty, has now premiered, so I thought I'd give you a summary of my thoughts. I'll go by night because it seems to work best that way.
Monday
Heroes-- This show is getting better and better and is actually fun to watch again. Too bad that I may be the only person still watching it!
Castle-- I love this show! Great mysteries and Moonlighting-like chemistry between the leads. What more could I ask for?
Tuesday
The Forgotten-- I know I'm not supposed to like this show, but something about it continues to appeal to me. It may be as simple as the Chicago locations and the fact that I still have a soft spot for that city. All I know is that I keep watching it every week!
The Good Wife-- This show is understated and shows more of the courtroom side of things than most mysteries these days. It kind of reminds me of Matlock. I think that my father would like it very much. I am not crazy about it, but it's well-done enough that I keep watching it for now.
Wednesday
Mercy-- I like this show. It reminds me of Grey's Anatomy in its first season, before it became entirely about sex and improbable diseases. The nurses' work and personal lives are well-balanced, and I like that their lives aren't totally intertwined. And James Tupper isn't quite as annoying as he was at first.
Glee-- This show continues to surprise me. But I really, really, really don't want the guidance counselor to marry the coach. I guess such a situation strikes too close to home to funny to me, even in satire.
Hank-- People seem to be beating up on this show for being an old-school sitcom, but there's nothing wrong with that in and of itself. I'm going to give it some rope to see if it finds its footing or not.
The Middle-- I don't want to like this show, but yet I keep watching it. I don't usually like this kind of sarcastic family comedy, but it is very well done.
Modern Family-- Now here we go! This show has the right balance of elements of the first two-- a hard and sardonic exterior shell, but with a sweet gooey center.
Eastwick-- I like this show more than I expected to. It's nice, escapist fun, and sometimes that's all you want.
Thursday
Vampire Diaries-- I think a part of me is still stuck back in high school and always will be. Maybe I'm like the vampire in this show, stuck in my teen years forever! At any rate, I do like this show, for the teen element more than the vampire element.
Fringe-- This show is finally hitting its stride! I love the risks they have taken, such as making Olivia walk around with a quad cane for several episodes. Heroes in these kind of action shows always heal impossibly quickly, and heroines hardly ever even get injured, so it's been wonderful to see them make her so human. Olivia Dunham is a real person, not some sex symbol, and it makes me sad that such a large part of the criticism of this show is that she's not "womanly" enough. What do you think a real-life FBI agent is like? And Dana Scully wasn't exactly all pink flounces and giggles either, you know. Another example of how much our culture has changed in the past 20 years.
FlashForward-- To be honest, I was about ready to give up on this show, but this week pulled me in again. Still, there's something about it that's not quite right, and the main reason I keep watching is in the hopes that one day we'll find out what happened.
Community-- Now that they've moved this show to 8 pm, it's in competition with both FlashForward and The Vampire Diaries for my attention. Since I've decided to stick with FlashForward for now, that means Community has to fall out of my line-up. I'm not sure if I'll watch it online or not. Somehow, I think I can live without it.
Parks and Recreation-- See above.
The Mentalist-- This show is as good as ever. Like The Good Wife, I watch it mainly because of the high production values.
Friday
Dollhouse-- This show reset more after the events of the season finale than I would have expected. I do like having Agent Ballard in the Dollhouse now. Since he's so drawn to Echo, it makes sense for him to be her handler. I'm just sad that we've seen so little of Victor and Sierra so far.
Sunday
Three Rivers-- Only one episode in, it's hard to make too many judgments about this show. Honestly, it struck me to be about on a par with Mercy. Do I really want to watch two hospital shows each week? If not, which one will win? Only time will tell!
Brothers and Sisters-- The first episode of the season left me concerned that they've run out of plot. They've found some sort of path since then, but I'm still not exactly sure how much more story this show has. It seems like they've already taken the characters everywhere they need to go.
Monday
Heroes-- This show is getting better and better and is actually fun to watch again. Too bad that I may be the only person still watching it!
Castle-- I love this show! Great mysteries and Moonlighting-like chemistry between the leads. What more could I ask for?
Tuesday
The Forgotten-- I know I'm not supposed to like this show, but something about it continues to appeal to me. It may be as simple as the Chicago locations and the fact that I still have a soft spot for that city. All I know is that I keep watching it every week!
The Good Wife-- This show is understated and shows more of the courtroom side of things than most mysteries these days. It kind of reminds me of Matlock. I think that my father would like it very much. I am not crazy about it, but it's well-done enough that I keep watching it for now.
Wednesday
Mercy-- I like this show. It reminds me of Grey's Anatomy in its first season, before it became entirely about sex and improbable diseases. The nurses' work and personal lives are well-balanced, and I like that their lives aren't totally intertwined. And James Tupper isn't quite as annoying as he was at first.
Glee-- This show continues to surprise me. But I really, really, really don't want the guidance counselor to marry the coach. I guess such a situation strikes too close to home to funny to me, even in satire.
Hank-- People seem to be beating up on this show for being an old-school sitcom, but there's nothing wrong with that in and of itself. I'm going to give it some rope to see if it finds its footing or not.
The Middle-- I don't want to like this show, but yet I keep watching it. I don't usually like this kind of sarcastic family comedy, but it is very well done.
Modern Family-- Now here we go! This show has the right balance of elements of the first two-- a hard and sardonic exterior shell, but with a sweet gooey center.
Eastwick-- I like this show more than I expected to. It's nice, escapist fun, and sometimes that's all you want.
Thursday
Vampire Diaries-- I think a part of me is still stuck back in high school and always will be. Maybe I'm like the vampire in this show, stuck in my teen years forever! At any rate, I do like this show, for the teen element more than the vampire element.
Fringe-- This show is finally hitting its stride! I love the risks they have taken, such as making Olivia walk around with a quad cane for several episodes. Heroes in these kind of action shows always heal impossibly quickly, and heroines hardly ever even get injured, so it's been wonderful to see them make her so human. Olivia Dunham is a real person, not some sex symbol, and it makes me sad that such a large part of the criticism of this show is that she's not "womanly" enough. What do you think a real-life FBI agent is like? And Dana Scully wasn't exactly all pink flounces and giggles either, you know. Another example of how much our culture has changed in the past 20 years.
FlashForward-- To be honest, I was about ready to give up on this show, but this week pulled me in again. Still, there's something about it that's not quite right, and the main reason I keep watching is in the hopes that one day we'll find out what happened.
Community-- Now that they've moved this show to 8 pm, it's in competition with both FlashForward and The Vampire Diaries for my attention. Since I've decided to stick with FlashForward for now, that means Community has to fall out of my line-up. I'm not sure if I'll watch it online or not. Somehow, I think I can live without it.
Parks and Recreation-- See above.
The Mentalist-- This show is as good as ever. Like The Good Wife, I watch it mainly because of the high production values.
Friday
Dollhouse-- This show reset more after the events of the season finale than I would have expected. I do like having Agent Ballard in the Dollhouse now. Since he's so drawn to Echo, it makes sense for him to be her handler. I'm just sad that we've seen so little of Victor and Sierra so far.
Sunday
Three Rivers-- Only one episode in, it's hard to make too many judgments about this show. Honestly, it struck me to be about on a par with Mercy. Do I really want to watch two hospital shows each week? If not, which one will win? Only time will tell!
Brothers and Sisters-- The first episode of the season left me concerned that they've run out of plot. They've found some sort of path since then, but I'm still not exactly sure how much more story this show has. It seems like they've already taken the characters everywhere they need to go.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
An anniversary of sorts
One year ago, something very bad happened to me, but even at the time, I saw that it was a beginning of something new as well as an ending. Truly, this bad thing set into motion a whole chain of events that I could never have imagined, and now, I am so very happy all because of this bad thing that happened. Romans 8:28 says, "All things work together for the good of those that love the Lord," and apparently it is really true!
Monday, September 28, 2009
More new shows
I've liberated myself this year and decided not to watch the first episode of shows that I don't expect to like. It's been a wonderful experience so far, but it also means that most of my reviews are going to be positive, since I actually do like most of the shows that I expected to!
The Forgotten-- This show got a lot of bad reviews, but I actually kind of liked it. Maybe it helps that I haven't been watching every episode of every procedural for years and years, but it held my interest, and I plan to keep watching it for a while at least. I must say, though, that Christian Slater does nothing special for me. They could have saved their money and gotten an unknown to play the lead, and I wouldn't have noticed.
The Good Wife-- Everyone said this was the best show of the season, so I was inclined not to like it, but then I watched the first episode and actually did. It does a very good job of blending the different facets of the main character's life. But I've said it before and I'll say it again-- Chris Noth should be playing a lovable jerk, not an actual jerk. He isn't quite the right guy for the role of her smarmy husband.
Modern Family-- For the first episode of a sitcom, this was wonderful! I hope it can keep up this pace in future episodes.
Eastwick-- Another show that didn't get good reviews but that I'm inclined to like. I certainly do like the change in tone over the movie version, that's for sure. I think this could be a fun show!
Mercy-- I'm on the fence about this one, but I'll watch it at least once more. As much as I love James Tupper, though, he doesn't really seem believeable as a doctor. I'm not saying that a guy can't be smart and drop-dead gorgeous at the same time. Eric Bane on Grey's Anatomy pulls it off quite well, and I guess they were going for the same effect when they cast this show. But James Tupper has a "lovable bumbler" quality, and I just can't see him realistically getting all the way through medical school and becoming an army surgeon. The fact that he mumbled all his lines didn't help his case, either!
FlashForward-- This reminded me a lot of the first episode of Invasion. It does make me a little bit nervous that we'll never find out exactly what happened, but it seems like the stakes are low enough in this one that it won't really matter. I'll keep watching it, not because of the mystery, but to find out more about how the characters deal with their visions of the future.
That's it for today. Eventually I'll come back with a post on returning shows and how I feel they're doing, but I suppose I should see a few episodes of each of those before I make up my mind.
The Forgotten-- This show got a lot of bad reviews, but I actually kind of liked it. Maybe it helps that I haven't been watching every episode of every procedural for years and years, but it held my interest, and I plan to keep watching it for a while at least. I must say, though, that Christian Slater does nothing special for me. They could have saved their money and gotten an unknown to play the lead, and I wouldn't have noticed.
The Good Wife-- Everyone said this was the best show of the season, so I was inclined not to like it, but then I watched the first episode and actually did. It does a very good job of blending the different facets of the main character's life. But I've said it before and I'll say it again-- Chris Noth should be playing a lovable jerk, not an actual jerk. He isn't quite the right guy for the role of her smarmy husband.
Modern Family-- For the first episode of a sitcom, this was wonderful! I hope it can keep up this pace in future episodes.
Eastwick-- Another show that didn't get good reviews but that I'm inclined to like. I certainly do like the change in tone over the movie version, that's for sure. I think this could be a fun show!
Mercy-- I'm on the fence about this one, but I'll watch it at least once more. As much as I love James Tupper, though, he doesn't really seem believeable as a doctor. I'm not saying that a guy can't be smart and drop-dead gorgeous at the same time. Eric Bane on Grey's Anatomy pulls it off quite well, and I guess they were going for the same effect when they cast this show. But James Tupper has a "lovable bumbler" quality, and I just can't see him realistically getting all the way through medical school and becoming an army surgeon. The fact that he mumbled all his lines didn't help his case, either!
FlashForward-- This reminded me a lot of the first episode of Invasion. It does make me a little bit nervous that we'll never find out exactly what happened, but it seems like the stakes are low enough in this one that it won't really matter. I'll keep watching it, not because of the mystery, but to find out more about how the characters deal with their visions of the future.
That's it for today. Eventually I'll come back with a post on returning shows and how I feel they're doing, but I suppose I should see a few episodes of each of those before I make up my mind.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
TV update
The fall season is just starting to kick in, and it seems almost a bit too premature to do a post, but if I don't, it's all going to get away from me real quick! First of all, I'm sorry to hear that ABC has apparently pulled the plug on Defying Gravity. I know it was a show that you either loved or hated, but I loved it, and I'm sorry we won't get to finish out the 6-year mission. I wonder if it will continue in Canada, and if so, if we'll ever get to see it on DVD here.
In DVD news, I finished the third season of Northern Exposure. It seems that most of the episodes I remember fondly were in that season; I think it was the peak of the show. The first two seasons were just sort of warm-up, and after this it started to go slowly downhill, what with the breakdown of the Joel/Maggie relationship, and then Joel leaving suddenly as he did. But this season was nigh unto perfect!
I also watched the first season of Jeeves and Wooster. (It was only 5 episodes, so it wasn't a major commitment.) Seeing those two shows at the same time really took me back to my high school days in a good way. It seems like my only really happy memories from those days are related to TV; it was my comfort when the rest of my life seemed confusing and full of trials. I suppose that's true for many people my age.
I have also been catching up with season 5 of Angel on TNT. Three more episodes and I'm done. It's clear that nobody realized the show was going to end; most of this season has seemed like a set-up for season 6, which obviously never happened. I'm curious to know more about the comic books, though.
A few new shows premiered last week. I work on Tuesday nights, so I didn't bother to watch Melrose Place, and I hear it's nothing special. I did watch Glee, though, which I'm still enjoying, and The Vampire Diaries. All I can say about that first episode was that it was a classic WB first episode, straight from the Smallville/Buffy playbook, but those turned out to be pretty good shows, so I'll keep watching for now.
Well, there you have it. I'm sure I'll be back soon with more info on more new shows.
In DVD news, I finished the third season of Northern Exposure. It seems that most of the episodes I remember fondly were in that season; I think it was the peak of the show. The first two seasons were just sort of warm-up, and after this it started to go slowly downhill, what with the breakdown of the Joel/Maggie relationship, and then Joel leaving suddenly as he did. But this season was nigh unto perfect!
I also watched the first season of Jeeves and Wooster. (It was only 5 episodes, so it wasn't a major commitment.) Seeing those two shows at the same time really took me back to my high school days in a good way. It seems like my only really happy memories from those days are related to TV; it was my comfort when the rest of my life seemed confusing and full of trials. I suppose that's true for many people my age.
I have also been catching up with season 5 of Angel on TNT. Three more episodes and I'm done. It's clear that nobody realized the show was going to end; most of this season has seemed like a set-up for season 6, which obviously never happened. I'm curious to know more about the comic books, though.
A few new shows premiered last week. I work on Tuesday nights, so I didn't bother to watch Melrose Place, and I hear it's nothing special. I did watch Glee, though, which I'm still enjoying, and The Vampire Diaries. All I can say about that first episode was that it was a classic WB first episode, straight from the Smallville/Buffy playbook, but those turned out to be pretty good shows, so I'll keep watching for now.
Well, there you have it. I'm sure I'll be back soon with more info on more new shows.
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