About Last Night...

Quick thoughts on the 1st night of Fall TV!

"Its a sad day indeed...the season of exposed skin is over. Gone are the tank tops...gone are the cute little skirts...the sundresses, the SUNDRESSES Ted!"

I don’t want to get too excited or leap to any conclusions or be overly dramatic but IT’S BACK, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER IS BACK! The camaraderie, the charm, the humor, my god the HUMOR. The show remembered how to be everything that made it different in How I Met Your Mother: Season One

The House and Cuddy hook-up made me uncomfortable. Like remember how the world felt when Al Gore and Tipper made out on TV? That was me, on my couch, pausing, squirming, and finally fast-forwarding through their scenes. Sometimes getting what you wish for is not a victory

Was Adrian Grenier on 90210? I’m sorry, I saw Silver’s haircut and then I was blinded by rage and confusion

"Dan - good shoulder to cry on. Nate - good shoulders" ~Gossip Girl
Katie Cassidy has mastered that old school bitch goddess appeal, that was invented on night-time soaps like Dynasty and Knots Landing and honed into an art form by Heather Locklear. Also she is more appealing and charismatic than Dan, Vanessa, and Jenny combined and then multiplied by a million. WTF was up with Serena’s outfit  when she went to the morgue? She looked like she stole that jacket from Jem and The Holograms. Whereas Blair's dress was AMAZEBALLS. Finally, is it just me, or does Nate have chemistry with everyone on the show, up to and including babies and inanimate objects?

I wanted to like The Event, but I have serious concerns about this show’s ability to develop these characters into people we care about. I watched LOST for 6 seasons, I knew LOST, LOST was a friend of mine, and you show are no LOST.

Side note: I don't watch Dancing with the Stars, but I had a feeling they would be invoking the Swayze, considering Jennifer Grey's presence and his recent passing. Here's "Baby", dancing to These Arms of Mine. And I am not going to lie, it made me feel feelings. Which I hate.

Check back later for instant reactions to the premieres of Chuck, Castle, Hawaii Five-0, and Lone Star!

SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY!!!

Sundays aren't just a day for Monster-Truck rallies. Or Church. No, Sunday is actually a great night of television! Well, that sounds excessive. How 'bout Sunday is a night when television is on!

SUNDAY

8pm

Extreme Home Makeover ABC, premieres 9/26

Look I think there’s a time and a place for feel-good entertainment, and Sunday night is definitely it. Having said that, I’m so over Screaming Ty and the rest of his motley crew. Can’t we just bring back “Wonderful World of Disney”? Cause even when that douchebag Michael Eisner was hosting, it wasn’t half as annoying as when the designers find out a kid kind of likes football so they build him a goal post to sleep in and an Astroturf rug…

Selleck, Smits, Smallville, Supernatch', and the Super Creepy Dateline Guy

All hail the DVR! No longer must we choose between going out on the town, and painting said town red, versus staying home for Friday night television, feeling like that kid in Can’t Buy Me Love (“the white-people re-make of Love Don’t Cost a Thing” according to “Community”). Speaking of Can’t Buy Me Love, do you think Patrick Dempsey, Neil Patrick Harris, Anthony Michael Hall, and Brian Austin Green all belong to some club of Men Who Look Better Now Then They Ever Did as Teen Idols??

Here’s what’s going to be on besides “The Soup”, Fridays this Fall:

Must-Schedule TV Thursday

In 1993, NBC introduced it's new ad campaign... Must See TV. Literally, their promos told you to "Get home early for must see TV Thursday". This was in NBC's #1 network heyday - they had rebounded from the loss of the Cosby show with younger-skewing shows like "Mad About You", "Seinfeld", and "Friends".

NBC hasn't been #1 in, literally, YEARS, and yet the concept remains. Thursday has become the most jam-packed evening of competitive popular television programming. Why, you ask, do they air all your favorite shows on the same night? Don't blame the networks - blame the movies. Revenue from movie advertisements - that traditionally open on Friday - is highest the evening before the movies open.

The point is, for the past 10 years, Thursday night is easily the hardest night of television to navigate. Choices have to be made...and they aren't easy. Seriously, there have been years where there are 4 or 5 shows on AT THE SAME TIME on Thursday (ex: 2006, "OC" v. "Supernatural" v. "Greys" v. "The Office"). And while NBC's reign of must-see terror is over, the "Sophie's Choice" element of Thursday TV lives on...

What to Watch Wednesdays This Fall

I find jokes about how Wednesday is hump-day, or how we're "halfway there" irksome. So lets get right to it, shall we?

WEDNESDAY

The Middle ABC, premieres 9/22
Where we left: I won’t watch this show.

What’s Next: I will never watch this show. I love the janitor from “Scrubs” as much as the next guy, but I hate Patricia Heaton, and my rage is unwavering. I choose to simply assume this crappy show continues to suck as much as its crappy catering lead actress. Oh and BTW? I’m not the only one. Google Hate Patricia Heaton. You’ll see.

Glee-full Big Losers Running Wilde - What's on Tuesday

"There's always something good on TV. It's been my motto since I was a little kid; I'm sticking to it." ~Everwood

Tuesday Television is always a mixed bag - its never been considered the TV wasteland that is Friday night, but it doesn't have the consistent, hour-to-hour, must-see appeal of Thursday nights either.

Regardless, there's always something on! And some of it's actually worth watching!

Sounds like Someone Has a Case of the Mondays…

Mondays are always hard, particularly in the fall when many of us have spent Saturday and Sunday in a pleasant day-drinking football-watching haze. Monday TV, then, should be easy. Light entertainment from 8-10, followed by shows that you wont necessarily cry over if you fall asleep during.


Here’s a rundown of what’s gonna be on, and in a move I borrowed from Television Without Pity, I’m detailing what and how I’ll be watching!

To Everything There is a Season

Labor Day has dawned. The kiddies are back in class where, doubtlessly, history is being neglected. Such are the signifiers that summer is truly at an end. But fear not, my fellow beach bunnies and boozy brunchers. For while one amazing season ends, another, more glorious one is upon us: FALL TV. 

Like children on a school bus lurching back to class, we are filled with anticipation and excitement, and more than a little dread. Who knows what the first day will bring? Will we still like our old favorite shows, or will they have changed over the summer? Should we give that weird show from last year another chance? What if all the new shows are TERRIBLE?

Much like back in school, I have found that scheduling is the key to a successful new year. Taking the time to develop a plan now will prevent you from feeling overwhelmed, or from missing something fantastic (COMMUNITY, premiering on NBC on September 23rd @ 8pm/7pm central!).

The best part is, I’ve done the research for you. I’m up on the spoilers for returning shows! I’ve read the descriptions and reviews for the new ones! I’m the senior who knows all the school secrets! 

Over the next couple days I will be providing an in-depth review of the 2010 Fall Television Season. Not just what will be on, but what to watch (and even how to watch it!).

Here’s to a new, and hopefully not-too-crappy, TV year!

“It’s those TV Networks Marge! One quality show after another, each one fresher and more brilliant than the last. If they only stumbled once, just gave us 30 minutes to ourselves…but they won’t! They won’t let me live!”

~The Simpsons