Posted Feb 9th 2010 2:15AM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E04) I am so excited for the return of the infamous bong lamp, but wow, does it cause some major trouble. Last week, we saw Lux sell Baze's pride and joy to help cover his bar rent. Two weeks ago, the offending lamp was also one of the reasons Baze was denied full custody of Lux. This week, it's the reason she gets suspended from her fancy-pants public school. Stupid lamp, can't do
anything right.
We're ratcheting up the drama here this week. Lux's illusions of family life crumble a bit more as she and Cate, in the grand traditions of mothers and daughters everywhere, clash something awful.
Continue reading Review: 'Life Unexpected' - 'Bong Intercepted'
Posted Feb 9th 2010 2:08AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Heroes, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E19) Volume Five came to a climactic end, and as with past volumes, it was both exciting and a little bit of a letdown. But also in keeping with tradition, it left the door open for exciting possibilities in Volume Six, teased at the end of the episode, despite a fifth season not being a certainty at this point.
I suspect, though, that NBC will in fact bring the show back, despite it's lackluster ratings performance. A reboot, of sorts, to the franchise could revitalize it in the same way
'Chuck' has seen ratings improve this season. Properly handled,
'Heroes' is a show that could go several seasons. "Properly handled" is the key to that phrase, and it has been mismanaged for too long.
Continue reading Review: 'Heroes' - 'Brave New World' (season finale)
Posted Feb 9th 2010 1:25AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Chuck, Reality-Free
(S03E07) This was the last
'Chuck' until after the Winter Olympics, so it was important that we made some progress with the intersect -- natch -- and also the Hannah and Sarah situations. Ever since she flew into Chuck Bartowski's life, Hannah has seemed too good to be true. Is she really? And what of Chuck and Sarah's on/off relationship? Fortunately, we got a good take on it all, as well as some edge-of-the-seat thrills. More after the jump.
Continue reading Review: 'Chuck' - 'Chuck Versus the Mask'
Posted Feb 9th 2010 1:13AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S06E14)
"You can do it." - Cuddy
I get the reason for making an episode like '5 to 9.' Long running show that's popular. Established characters and story structure. The desire for David Shore, Katie Jacobs, and the rest of the '
House' crew to try something different is to be expected. However, that doesn't mean they should have done it. '5 to 9' wasn't a bad episode (in many ways, it felt like a back-door pilot for Cuddy), but it was, in a word, pointless. At the end of the day, '5 to 9' doesn't really add anything to the world of 'House,' and its outside-the-box attempt at being different just ended up being forgettable.
Continue reading Review: 'House' - '5 to 9'
Posted Feb 9th 2010 12:03AM by Joel Keller
Filed under: How I Met Your Mother, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E15) I've noticed that the last few episodes of 'HIMYM' have largely taken place in the "home booth" at MacLaren's. I know it's the 21st century version of the couch at Central Perk, but the world of 'Mother' is a lot bigger than that these days. And, besides, Cobie Smulders and Alyson Hannigan aren't pregnant anymore; there's no need to hide their baby bumps under the table anymore.
That being said, it's a great place for two of this show's signature "bits" to start: 1) Absurd arguments, and 2) Incessant ball-busting. We saw both of these this week, with Ranjit thrown into the mix to make things more interesting. What really made this episode wasn't just the Rabbit/Duck argument, though; it was the subtle direction shifts that made loyal viewers think Ted was going in one not so good direction, when he was really going in a worse -- but more fun! -- direction.
Continue reading Review: 'How I Met Your Mother' - 'Rabbit or Duck'
Posted Feb 8th 2010 8:30PM by Isabelle Carreau
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E01) Networks usually give the post-Super Bowl time slot to household series or to series they really believe in and want to offer a ratings booster. This year,
CBS decided to give the post-Super Bowl time slot to the
new reality documentary series 'Undercover Boss.'
The series follows high-level CEOs are they go undercover in their own company to examine how things work outside of their ivory towers.
In the premiere, Larry O'Donnell (pictured right), president and COO of Waste Management, got out of his suit and put on worker clothes to live a day in the lives of four of his employees.
Does the concept work? Will I tune in for more? My two cents coming up!
Continue reading Review: 'Undercover Boss' - Series Premiere
Posted Feb 8th 2010 8:02PM by Mike Moody
Filed under: OpEd, Lost, Watercooler Talk, Reality-Free
Jorge Garcia, the dude who plays Hurley on
'Lost', has launched a new weekly podcast about the show's final season, lovingly titled
"Geronimo Jack's Beard."
You can
download the first episode now, which features Jorge and co-host Beth Shady discussing the script for last week's premiere
'LA X Parts 1 & 2'. It's a fun listen, but don't expect to hear any plot spoilers from Jorge, who clearly states that he's "not the answer guy."
While listening to "GJB," I honestly wasn't expecting to get any definitive answers to the four million questions I have about the premiere. (I doubt Jorge could get away with sneaking spoilers into the recording.) Still, I was hoping to get a few clues about the strange new
"flash sideways" storyline.
But the podcast left me even more confused about the premiere than I was before.
Continue reading Jorge Garcia's New 'Lost' Podcast Just Melted My Brain
Posted Feb 8th 2010 7:33PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Doctor Who, Celebrities, Reality-Free
As the title says, the Goth Geek God himself, Neil Gaiman,
has penned an episode of the British iconic program
'Doctor Who'. Gaiman has already written for television (including an episode of
'Babylon 5' and his British TV series
'Neverwhere') but this represents the first time he has written for a program that he actually watched as a child. If you listen carefully, you can hear all the nerd brains around the world exploding.
Gaiman himself announced this at a British sci-fi convention this past weekend and shocked everyone with this bombshell during an award acceptance speech. However, the folks behind our favorite Time Lord would not confirm Gaiman's statement. Hopefully he didn't jump the gun with this announcement. It would be a shame if he had to renege on it later.
The episode might be called 'The House of Nothing' (the announcement is nothing if not vague) and supposedly will air sometime in 2011, during the next season. Neil Gaiman, meet Matt Smith.
Posted Feb 8th 2010 7:00PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Industry, Grey's Anatomy, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
If you're one of the fortunate few who make it big in the television biz, shouldn't you take the opportunity to use that cushy cushion you have built for yourself and take a big risk on something exciting and new? Not if you're one of these big television producers.
Big shots like Shawn Ryan, David E. Kelley, and Shonda Rhimes all have pilots in the can that don't seem to stray much farther from the shows that made them the big shots that they are today.
For instance, Ryan, creator of the groundbreaking FX cop drama
'The Shield,' has another cop drama premiering with Fox called 'Ridealong.' Kelley, the writer/producer behind
'The Practice' and
'Boston Legal,' has created a reality drama for NBC called 'Kindred.' Even Rhimes, the woman behind ABC's
'Grey's Anatomy,' has another medical drama show for ABC called 'Off the Map.' Is ABC looking to create an all-medical soap opera cable channel in the coming year?
Posted Feb 8th 2010 6:29PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Cancellations, Reality-Free
The family
reality show that would never say die just died.
TLC has officially canceled the long-running 'American Chopper', which has been on the air since 2003 when it first found footing on the Discovery Channel. The show's final episode will air on Thursday.
Say what you will about the series running past its prime, but both the show and its subjects have been through a hell of a lot of mayhem. The shop played host to a ton of thick, rich drama, capping with the final season
in which Paul Jr. leaves the shop on very heated terms and eventually led to
Paul Sr. suing his son for a $1 million in back company stock.
If you're curious to know how things will wrap up, check out a preview of the final episode at
Turbo.Discovery.com.
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