New TV That Feels Like the Same Old Thing

The new tv season is upon us already! I don't plan my tv season until I get the Entertainment Weekly Fall TV Preview issue which made this week of TV hard because my issue has yet to arrive (it should be here by Monday). Without the wise guidance from my favourite magazine, I just blundered along and tried out new shows and an old one.

Credit: Michael Desmond/The CW
Melrose Place, the CW, Tues 9pm
I should admit up front that I never ever watched the original series so came into this as a genuine new viewer - but one who enjoys camp. However, the pilot episode was just bad and I hear that it just gets worse. Sure there's some decent acting (nods to Stephanie Jacobsen as Lauren, Jessica Lucas as Riley, and Michael Rady as Jonah) but the camera work felt too amateurish and forced, much of the dialogue stilted and most of the characters are just boring.

I am most disappointed that the bisexual character (Katie Cassidy's Ella), although claiming to embrace a casual approach to sex and relationships, is pining for a guy (Jonah) - both are pictured above. It sucks to have a bisexual character who appears to be with women as her second choice (instead of being equally attracted to both sexes) - I hope that this changes as the show develops.

I'm not sure if I'll continue to watch. I may just to see if Ella becomes a more developed character.

So You Think You Can Dance, Fox, Wed 8pm
Yay for lots of good tap dancers! And awesome salsa! And yay for Cat Deeley! Since it's auditions there's not much to say other than that.

Glee Logo
Glee, Fox, Wed 9pm
I get such a kick out of Glee. Definitely my favourite parts are the musical numbers - this week's being Gold Digger!

I don't think this episode was as strong as the preview however I am hopeful that this is inevitable as the show finds itself. I must admit, though, that as long as there's fun song and dance numbers, I'm happy!

I randomly have hopes that Chris Colfer's adorable and gay Kurt will find romance with one of his bullies (my weird hope has been based on the fact that bully/football player Puck is a regular on the show). I'd like to see more of Kurt, Artie, Mercedes and Tina - they're the characters I'm most interested in!

Credit: Kharen Hill/The CW
The Vampire Diaries, the CW, Thurs 8pm
Well, I liked this much more than Melrose Place but that isn't saying a lot! I was a huge fan of Dawson's Creek and Buffy the Vampire Slayer so it was hard to watch this show without comparing it to them - and the Vampire Diaries came up lacking on both counts. The dialogue doesn't have that fresh fun-ness it did on Kevin Williamson's Dawson's Creek nor does it have the fun, campy humour that BtVS did. There's way too much emphasis (for me) on the romance which I suspect will please fans of the Bella/Edward romance in Twilight (which isn't my thing).

However, despite all that (and the voiceovers - I'm so bored of voiceovers), I will give it a try for a few more weeks. I love teen drama plus I love it when done by Kevin Williamson so I'm definitely giving it a chance to develop. Also, Ian Somerhalder (pictured above, on the left) as really bad boy Daman is awesome! I love Somerhalder (formerly Boone on Lost) in this role - evil suits him - and he's really thrown himself into this role.


TV News: Ellen Degeneres to be new American Idol Judge
How crazy is that?! I loved Ellen when she guest hosted on SYTYCD. Sure she didn't provide much in terms of critique but, man, is she funny and made all of us laugh. Perhaps this will be a good thing for American Idol: instead of the random crazy things Paula would say, now the viewers get purposefully funny humour (I prefer to laugh at something that's intentionally funny - cringing is never as fun). As a non-fan of AI, this move might actually get me to watch it!

''Well, in that case, I'd love to come.''

[Credit: ABC.com]

Oh Michael Emerson, how I adore you - no one else can say a line that today's title quote with as much dripping sarcasm as you can. I think that Emerson so brilliantly plays Ben on Lost that I love watching his character on the screen even though he is horribly manipulative, always plotting some nefarious scheme and nothing he says should ever be trusted. I have long been convinced that Emerson reading the phone book would be fascinating, and I feel this clip proves me correct: Emerson on Jimmy Kimmel reading a nursery rhyme in a totally creepy way.


[Credit: ABC.com]

This Tuesday saw the season (and hopefully not series) finale of a new favourite show of mine, Better Off Ted. It has such a fantastic cast (Portia DeRossi and the actors who play Phil and Lem especially stand out), witty dialogue, hysterical situations (eg. the motion and light sensors not seeing black people and the ensuring reaction of the company, especially "Operation White Shadow"), and it's a fantastic satire of the corporate workplace (eg. the company responds to the request for personalized cubicles by decorating everyone's cubicles in one of four non-threatening themes: Green Bay Packers, space, cats, and classic cars). I have my fingers and toes crossed for the show to be renewed, and was encouraged by this fun interview with the Phil and Lem actors in which they express their optimism that the show will return. My favourite part is definitely this quote:
Slavin (Phil): I think that we're the marriage on this show. We're a complex relationship but uncomplicated. We're so enmeshed, we cease to exist without each other. We're the marriage on this show!
Barrett (Lem): You think on our show the love affair is between Ted [Jay Harrington] and Linda [Andrea Anders], but it's Lem and Phil.


[Credit: Adam Taylor/FOX]

So, this week's House: House and Cuddy sleep together. You know what? It worked for me. I've never been anti-House/Cuddy although I'll admit I'm far more a fan of the House/Wilson dynamic. However, I thought this episode nicely demonstrated that House needs someone like Cuddy in his life. And that he does really care for her. I really believed House's line, "I always want to kiss you." (In response to Cuddy asking him if he wanted to kiss her.) I think that what we'll see next week is if House is good for Cuddy because I question whether that is the case. Also, the Fox promos are promising a shocking ending which I'm skeptical about because I don't think anything will top the shock of Kutner's suicide.

Biggest Shock of the Week:
The winner is definitely Lil' Kim's elimination from DWTS. I had been rooting for her to win so was devastated when she was eliminated. I really do like all the contestants and find Ty so charming because he works so hard, but I definitely would have picked Lil' Kim to stay over Ty. Sad.

My runner up is Locke's line to Ben at the end of Lost: I'm gonna go kill Jacob.

Least Surprising "Twist" on TV: When Derek and Meredith gave their wedding to Izzy and Alex. I did feel that it was right for all the characters: Izzy got the "perfect" wedding she'd planned and Meredith didn't have to have the big church wedding that she'd never wanted. It's maybe because it worked for the characters that it didn't feel like a surprise.

Favourite Exchange of the Week is from Lost yet again:
Dr. Pierre Chang: Your friend Faraday said that you were from the future. I need to know if he was telling the truth.
Hurley: Dude, that's ridiculous.
Chang: What year were you born? What year?
Hurley: Uh, 1931?
Chang: You're 46?
Hurley: Yeah. Yes, I am.
Chang: So you fought in the Korean War?
Hurley: There's no such thing.
Chang: Who's the president of the United States?
Hurley: All right, dude. We're from the future. Sorry.

This is our present... We can't be so naive as to think that nothing can happen to us. Any one of us can die.

Thanks to Daniel Faraday on Lost for articulating not just the precariousness of life on the show, but also how everyone is feeling because of current fear around H1N1.

I loved the 100th episode of Lost because it was a regular Lost episode with everything continuing on the way it has been this season. There were no obnoxious or unnecessary guest stars or silly stunts - the show producers wisely decided to be true to the show. That's what I like in my landmark episodes of TV shows, and also what I like about finales. It's also impressive to me that even though the episode didn't have my favourite character, Ben, it was still awesome and captivating with some awesome heart-breaking twists. In particular it was awesome to have a character with mother issues for once (as opposed to the normally rampant father issues). Plus we got to see Desmond and Penny (my other favourite characters) who are definitely the heart of the show.

This was actually a good week in TV overall. I felt Grey's Anatomy had a strong episode. I particularly enjoyed the examination of the Chief and Meredith's relationship, that was very well done. And the Owen and Cristina final scene was so good and heart-wrenching. "You take care" has never sounded more loaded with meaning.

Also making me happy this week was Dollhouse! Despite my favourite show ever being Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and also loving Joss Whedon's other shows Angel and Firefly/Serenity), I have been very resistant to the show. Because, let's face it, it's a creepy creepy premise. I get that it's supposed to be creepy but that doesn't make it necessarily enjoyable TV. Who wants to watch a show where humans are basically being used as slaves? However this week's episode had a couple of big game changers as well as two surprising twists! The writing really sparkled this episode so it was no surprise for me to discover it was written by the awesome Jane Espenson. I was especially impressed by Alan Tudyk's guest starring role which demonstrated his range (I'm used to his jovial Wash from Firefly/Serenity). It was neat to have him, Amy Acker and Eliza Dushku in a scene together - key people from three Joss Whedon shows! That was just a neat moment. Plus, the sleeping beauty theme was excellently used.

I'd also like to give a shout out to three of my favourite comedies: Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, and The Office for all having great episodes this week. In particular, I continue to love the dynamic between Sheldon and Penny on Big Bang Theory. Which brings me to....

My favourite quote of the week:
Sheldon: [after telling Leonard he spent the night at Penny's] "I have a much better understanding of 'friends with benefits' now."

Particularly funny considering this had been Sheldon's previous understanding of 'friends with benefits':
"What exactly does that expression mean, 'friends with benefits?' Does he provide her with health insurance?"

Favourite Hurley moment (from Lost): [When he heard that the folks stuck on the island had been in the 1950s] "Wait, you were in 1954? Like, Fonzie times?"

The Pranksters will Wear Fedoras!

The title is possibly my favourite moment from last night's 30 Rock because it was so random and surreal - and fun of course! But my TV week has been more about my two favourite office-set shows: Better Off Ted and the Office.

Better Off Ted is definitely my quote of the week:
Ted: You know, I'd like to believe after everything I've done for this company over the years, they'd show me a little more loyalty than this.
Veronica: Yes, I know it's hard to accept that giant companies don't care about people. I know how hard it was for me when I first realized it... when I was 8.

Although I feel there should also be an honourary quote of the week for this:
Lem: Did you disable the camera?
Dr. Bhamba: Did you disable your stupid-question filter?
Lem: I thought I did

Those are just a couple of the reasons why I'm in denial that Better Off Ted may be cancelled. Please ABC don't cancel this brilliant show, give it time to find its audience!!

I've caught up on the Office and have to say that I disagree with what a lot of people have been saying about this season. I've been hearing from a number of people that they're not enjoying this season of the Office. That it's become too cringe-worthy. Less humour, more realism.

Well, I marathoned the episodes from February to this week's and I'm happy with this season and here's why:

- I like when we're shown why Michael became a manager in the first place. He's a really good salesman - we're reminded that he got all of the Scanton branch's clients as well as how successfully he's been able to steal Dunder Mifflin's clients (of course the Michael Scott Paper Company isn't making a profit - but that's the side of Michael that doesn't make for a good manager). Plus, we see Michael be the ultimate salesman: getting Dunder Mifflin to hire back him, Pam and Ryan - an impressive feat.

- I like that David Wallace taking Michael's company loyalty for granted totally backfired and caused him to realize that the company needs Michael (despite how ridiculously inept he can be at times). As someone who works in an office, I find Michael's character pretty realistic, sometimes the people who are good at certain jobs are total idiots a lot of the time (come on people, stop hitting "reply all" for sensitive emails).

- We get to see Pam take another brave step and try something new. Not just leaving Dunder Mifflin, which is huge, but also trying out a new position as a salesperson. I cheered when she made the first sale for the Michael Scott Paper Company. It's just really great to see Pam continuing to challenge herself - it's awesome personal growth. I'm excited to see her in this new position at Dunder Mifflin.

- It was really fun to see Jim not being the boss' favourite. It was just a nice change of pace. And I must say I love how Jim managed to use his pranking Dwight skills for good so that things would go well for Pam and Michael.

So, the Office continues to work for me and I think here's the main reason why: you need to watch it as a drama that happens to have really funny moments and situations. Meaning that you're invested in the characters and their growth and challenges, and also entertained by the humourous and satirical situations that frame it.

Mutual break-up of the week: Lawrence Taylor being eliminated from DWS. I've never seen someone that happy to leave the show, and I think we were all happy to see him go.

This Week in TV

I have decided to try and resurrect this blog and commit to posting each Friday with brief thoughts, reactions and links to various things TV from the week. I read lots and lots of TV sites, articles, blogs and new pieces that I figure it might be fun to share the things I glean from that.

-- If you are a fan of Dirty Sexy Money, Eli Stone and Pushing Daisies, you will be happy to hear that ABC is finally airing the last few episodes of these shows:
* Daisies' final three episodes will air Saturdays, May 30 to June 13 at 10pm
* Eli Stone's final four episodes will air Saturdays June 20 to July 11 at 10pm
* Dirty Sexy Money's final four episodes will air Saturdays July 18 to Aug 8at 10pm
Yeah, I know, the popular Saturday 10pm slot! Well, at least we'll finally get to see the last few episodes. [Source]

-- In less happy news: It does seem likely that the wonderful Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles will be cancelled. I continue to hope this isn't true because the second season ended so awesomely! Plus I just love Summer Glau as Cameron (even more than *gasp* as River on Firefly).

-- Should you not have heard about where a particular House actor will be working now: Here's a neat interview in which Kal Penn talks about his decision to leave and work for Obama's administration and also the exec-producers talk about the decision to have Kutner kill himself.

-- Are you freaking out that House may be going down the Grey's Anatomy hallucination sex with a dead person route? (And whoever thought that that would become a trend?!) Well, the exec-producers reassure us that "It would never be a dead ghost sex love triangle thing like on [Grey's]" [Source (which contains spoilers for other shows, so beware if you click!]

-- What do Southland, The Unusuals, and Castle have in common? Well, aside from the obvious of them all being cop shows, it's actually that they all have wealthy people who have chosen to become cops (and in two of them are trying to keep their wealth a secret). Also, there is basically identical back stories of why characters on The Unusuals and Castle became cops. It's gotten to the point where I'm getting confused between everyone's stories on all these shows. I love Nathan Fillion on Castle, Benjamin Mackenzie on Southland and Amber Tamblyn on The Unusuals being back on my TV, but I may only stick with Castle - it's the most fun. I wish Amber Tamblyn was on something as smart as Joan of Arcadia.

-- My favourite new show: Better Off Ted. Funny, satirical and smart. Last week's episode dealt with the issue of institutional racism so well. I wish I could find a good clip of that but youtube is failing me, so instead I'll give you a promo for the show which captures how great it is: Better Off Ted teaser.

-- My favourite quote of the week: From Hurley on Lost: "That was Luke's attitude, too. In 'Empire', when he found out Vader was his father, instead of putting away his light saber and talking about it, he overreacted and got his hand cut off. I mean, they worked it out eventually. But at what cost? The Death Star was destroyed, Boba Fett got eaten by the Sarlacc, and everyone got The Ewoks. It all could have been avoided if they had just, you know, communicated. Because let's face it: Ewoks suck, dude."