Well, pretty much every show is going on hiatus for a couple of weeks, so here's my brief rundown of where I am.
:: There's a rumor that everyone on Heroes is planning for this to be the last season. I've been saying for a couple of months that'll probably be true. I don't know if anything's confirmed yet, but I won't be surprised when it is. Too bad it just never pulled itself out of that second season ratings slump. I think the key problem with the show has been how repetitive it tends to be; it's the same conflicts over and over and over. The only character I care about anymore is Claire, and she just keeps proving how dumb she is, so why bother? I just hope it ends in as semi-but-not-really-satisfying a way as Heroes has proven itself capable of. That was sarcasm.
:: How I Met Your Mother is bouncing back from Barney and Robin being together. It makes Ted less whiny to not be the only single one of them. And The Big Bang Theory is awesome. The recent episode where Sheldon had to take Penny to the hospital is my favorite episode they've ever done.
:: Castle is awesome!
:: I didn't think V was really a bad show, but the four episodes aired were pretty dull. In some areas, they were downright hackneyed. There's just nothing really special or compelling about it, except that I think Morena Baccarin is really good as the leader of the visitors. (Actually, a number of the actors are pretty good, especially Elizabeth Mitchell.) They've got a new showrunner, and it's not coming back until 30 March, but I have to admit, I wouldn't miss it if it never came back. I hope they retool it into something really exciting. Why do networks keep screwing up science fiction?
:: Modern Family may have moved up in my estimation from the best new show on TV to my favorite show on network television. And I am still enjoying Cougar Town.
:: I finally figured out what it is that's been annoying me with The Office since Jim became co-manager: he's become a total dumbass. I mean, I know part of this show's humor has been that the people in corporate--Michael, David Wallace, Charles Minor, Ryan when he was an executive--are completely clueless. But seeing Jim, who was always such a good character because he was so effortlessly sensitive to the people around him and what they needed, turn into a clueless buffoon is just grating on me. Now they've gotten promotions, Jim's a fool and Pam's a bitch. It sucks.
:: This week's 30 Rock was the funniest yet.
:: I think Parks and Recreation gets better and better. They've really discovered the characters and who they are, and seeing different facets of Tom Haverford and Ron Swanson (one of my favorite characters on TV right now) in the last few episodes has been especially fun. If only Community wasn't stinking up the joint at 7pm...
:: Ugly Betty did a couple of things this week that were refreshing. Mostly it involved characters coming to realizations and understandings they should've had a looooong time ago. I think the problem with this show over the last couple of seasons is that some of the more frustrating dramas have been drawn out for far too long while ignoring some of the other characters. (Especially Justin, who is going through a lot at school, but just gets ignored by the show.) I did enjoy some of the shots at scientology in the past few episodes, even though Jamie-Lynn Sigler's Alyssa Milano impression got pretty old. (Okay, maybe she's not trying to be Alyssa Milano. Maybe she's just a crappy actress in the exact same way as Alyssa Milano.)
Becki Newton has been doing one hell of a job as Amanda this season, though.
I feel like this is probably going to be the last season for Ugly Betty, too, and there are times when I feel like I can almost see it starting to wrap up.
:: Other shows I still love but don't feel the need to get into: Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Phineas and Ferb, Jonas, Wizards of Waverly Place (Selena Gomez is God), and Hannah Montana.
:: I say this every season, but every season it's true: best finale ever of Curb Your Enthusiasm. It actually made me consider watching Seinfeld again, a show I've hated for years.
:: Sonny with a Chance ending its season with a clip episode was pretty lame and disappointing. Tiffany Thornton was hilarious on it, though. As always.
:: Did anyone catch the death race episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold? Best DC series ever!
:: The Venture Bros. ... genius. No other word for it. Absolute genius.
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
TV Report: Half the Season Over
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7 comments:
ah the tv times...my favorite topic...
Heroes lost me so long ago and I, as a lover of supers really feels bad about that.
Big Bang is still terrific now that Harold has a full time girlfriend he is less creepy. I am so glad they haven't created a rivalry between her and Penny. Just leave them as is thank you very much. There is room for four boobs on that show.
Castle charms my pants off but I got me a bad feeling something will happen to his daughter and that will totally and unnecessarily freak me out. Don't mess with what you got. Keep it light and breezy. I got Criminal Minds for the creep out.
The Middle I love just to see how Sue the middle child can fail week after week.
Modern Family is still genius and the best written sitcom in years.
I wish Community could learn something from Parks and Rec about being quirky. I don't need the obvious hammered into my skull.
Hey Frog,
Nice well thought out run through of shows but I must respectfully disagree with your read on the Office. I've seen it happen both to myself and other people in office settings and that is the bump from underling to manager/administrator can be a difficult job. Consider this, most of Jim's screw-ups have been in the interest of efficiency and equality in the office. The fact of the matter is the relationship between peers changes when one becomes a workplace superior. Jim is still finding his sea legs and while he has made mistakes they've all come from the best of intentions. Now if he continues to make mistakes for the next season or two I'd agree, but right now we're looking at an awkward, unfortunate learning curve. He's not Michael yet and I don't expect him to turn that way either.
I agree with El Gigante. This change is an interesting and a dramatically risky one...where persons who had the luxury of being gadflies now grow up and actually have to do something...which means their personalities can't remain intact but need to develop...it also allows other characters to emerge and develop...I think if I were a writer, I would have been thinking about this issue for the last couple of seasons.
Cal: I love Harold's new girlfriend, and I really hope she sticks around for a while. I always felt Harold was the weakest character (I'd just seen that character on so many sitcoms before), and having a real girlfriend makes him much more sympathetic. Now they just need to get him out of his mother's house. The screaming is less funny every time.
What creeps me out more on Castle is knowing that Alyssa Milano is going to be on it soon. I hope it's not forever...
I haven't watched much of The Middle.
My problem with Community was that it kept elbow-slamming you in the ribs so hard to make sure you got how quirky and clever and unconventional it thinks it is.
El Gigante and Chris: I understand your points, I just don't think the writers are doing it very well. Dwight's slide into cartoonish evil has been really irritating and while there's going to be a shift in the workplace dynamic with the promotion (and I'm still not sure I buy Jim being promoted as a superior in an office where his wife works), some of it's just too much. Dwight's plot last week, the Employee of the Month flap set up just to embarrass Jim, would've required Jim's brains to completely fall out in order to work.
I think episodes like the one with the murder mystery game or Jim letting Michael fall in the koi pond work better, with the two managers trying to find the right balance.
I watch very little television. I work at night. I have a few shows I watch online. I did watch Heroes for awhile, but I finally gave up on it. I don't know anybody who still watches it.
I liked the fact that the thing that got Amanda involved in this plot involved not money but a small, thoughtful kindness after she was betrayed made that whole plot very interesting to me. But I am mad at Hilda for what she did. I am just disappointed, especially since she had to actually think about what she was going to do before it happened.
It didn't really surprise me that it happened, though.
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