Tag Archives: tv

comic-con 2011: day 1

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UGH. So busy! But in the midst of it all Rob & I celebrated our 3rd year anniversary. YAY!

AND today is Rob’s birthday. 🙂 It’s a big week in our household.

SO. Here’s the next installment of my Comic-Con trip report (click pics for bigger).

Thursday, July 21
On this day, our plan was to spend the ENTIRE day in Ballroom 20 and catch most of the television panels. The first panel was at 10am for Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe and we got in line at 7:45am. Even 2+ hours early, there were at least 1,000 people in front of us. We were pretty much guaranteed a spot, though, since the ballroom seats 4,000+. The only thing to do was… wait.



So close! The entrance to Ballroom 20 is in sight!



Annnnddd… we’re inside. YES. So much closer to the stage than last year.



The Burn Notice panel featured actor Bruce Campbell (he is freaking HILARIOUS) and creator Matt Nix. They were the highlights of Comic-Con 2010 and they didn’t disappoint this year. Some gems —

– Bruce Campbell opened the panel by poking fun at attendees — he said that the # of showers taken by Comic-Con attendees is 0 and reminded everyone that showers are free at the hotels. He also said that Comic-Con sees the most people wearing basketball shorts who don’t even play basketball. LOL.
– Then he even took a shot at a show on his own network — “For all you sleep-deprived fans, the Covert Affairs panel is up next.” EEEKKK.
– Unfortunately, Jeffrey Donovan had to work and couldn’t make the trip but that didn’t stop Bruce and Matt from talking about him — aka making fun of him.
— We learned that Jeffrey directed The Fall of Sam Axe and he was STILL #1 on the call list.
— Bruce discussed how Jeffrey started going up the list of potential directors for the movie. Apparently Jeffrey approached him and asked “Did you enjoy working on that episode I directed?” He responded “Sure, you did a great job. What do you think I’m going to say to the star of the show? It sucked. You were an asshole?” BWAH.
– During the question and answer portion, a fan dressed as Draco Malfoy went up to mic. Before she even asked her question, Bruce said “Harry Potter’s dead. It’s over. Might as well put a chain saw in his head. Oh, I’m sorry, am I making fun of your most beloved character ever?” She looked SO PISSED. LOL. Matt Nix covered the awkward pause by saying it was “important [for him] to keep [his] hostile relationship with [his] fans.”
– A fan asked what Bruce did to prepare for the TV movie. He responded by saying “I did two things to prepare for Sam Axe. Jack and shit. Thank you for asking.” OH MAN.

Pure entertainment.



I don’t watch Covert Affairs so I was pretty lost during the panel. It was pretty awesome to see Peter Gallagher, though. He even joked that he’s excited that they “used one of [his] eyebrows in the Comic-Con poster.” Hehe.



Next up – Psych! The panel opened with the creator Steve Franks and the writers singing the theme song live. Awesome! The best tidbits —

— Learning William Shatner will be guest starring next season. Other guests include Malcolm McDowell, Joey McIntyre and Danny Glover.
— The announcement that the season 7 premiere will be a musical episode.
— And Dule Hill will be tap dancing in a future episode. YAY!
— When discussing similarities to The Mentalist, James Roday said that “The Mentalist may have more viewers, but we have better fans.” Awww.
– Dule constantly with his head down… tweeting! Case in point. When asked by a fan whether he and Roday are friends in real life, he looked up, paused, and said “Sorry, I was tweeting. What was the question?” LOLARIOUS.
– Sometime during the panel, Dule tweeted that fans asking questions should end with “hashtag get Roday to tweet.” Someone finally did and he told her to “hit me up and I’ll hit you back. Say hi it’s meeee!” OMG, he’s so awesome.



Ringer marks the return of fan favorite Sarah Michelle Gellar to TV. I’m a huge fan of hers and I have high hopes for her new show. My favorite moments of the panel —

— Learning that Kristoffer Polaha auditioned for the role of Riley on BtVS.
— Ioan Gruffudd hadn’t heard of the CW before working on this show.
— Ioan also said that at age 37, he’s happy they even allowed him on the network.
— On the switch from CBS to the CW, SMG initially thought “Yes! I’m getting better clothing!” LOL. A girl after my own heart. Also, SO TRUE.
— When asked what she would wear if she participated in Comic-Con cosplay, SMG said “If I dressed up as Buffy, you guys would tell me I was a lame version of Buffy. I want to dress up as a Real Housewife of Beverly Hills.”

I really really want this show to be good.



And our last television panel of the day was for Game of Thrones. We’re really lucky we got into ballroom 20 so early in the day. This panel was incredibly popular — supposedly upwards of 7,000 people were in line but couldn’t get in because there wasn’t a lot of turnover from panel to panel. It sucks and I wish there was a fair way to handle admission into each panel but I don’t know what that solution is. So, the highlights —

— Emilia Clarke. She’s stunning! And has dark hair.
— Jason Momoa yelling in Dothraki in the middle of the panel.
— George R. R. Martin was the moderator and he asked the actors about their favorite scenes. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister) said “Well, Isaac was really annoying, so pushing him.” As the audience laughed, he quickly shook his head to take it back. LOL.
— One of the creators (can’t remember which one now) promised lots of supplementary material on the DVDs/Blu-ray, like the actors’ audition tapes, of which Jason Momoa’s was a highlight. He said “No offense, but I hadn’t heard of you before. I hadn’t kept up on my Baywatch.” Hee!
— Jason Momoa talked about reading the book and discovering that Drogo died. Talking directly to GRRM, he said “I f*!#ing hated you, man. I was like f*!# this.”
— A fan asked the actors how they would end the series — Peter Dinklage said “Dance number.”
— GRRM is asked about the books and he reveals that he’s a fan of bittersweet endings and that’s probably what we’ll get when the book series is complete.

Excellent panel!



Later that night, we had dinner with friends and decided to check out Nerd HQ, which was a bar taken over by The Nerd Machine, Zachary Levi‘s company. As soon as we arrived, we spotted the entire cast of Psych! SO COOL! I think they were heading to a party nearby. We weren’t quick enough to snag pictures with them but I did manage to take a random picture of them posing with some other people. LOL.

It was a great day at the Con — but looong. And there were 3 more days to go.

To be continued…

tv season wrap-up, part 1

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I’ve barely written any TV blog posts this year so now that the 2010 – 2011 broadcast season is over, I figured I’d write some quick finale thoughts…

Chuck
The Vivian Volkoff arc in the latter episodes of the season left a lot to be desired (I think it was partly because the actress just wasn’t that believable as a villain) but the finale provided a satisfying resolution to that storyline while setting up new adventures. Honestly, I would have been ok if the show didn’t get renewed – we got to see Chuck save the day without the Intersect (although I have questions about how Sarah managed to stay alive so much longer than other Norseman victims), Sarah & Chuck’s wedding (their vows! LOVE) complete with flashbacks to their relationship (I guess the writers were thinking series finale), and our favorite team back together as freelance spies. But that’s not to say I’m not ridiculously happy that NBC is giving the show a chance to go out on its own terms. I’m excited to see what the writers have in store for the last season, especially now that Morgan has the Intersect uploaded to his brain. !!! I didn’t care for Morgan in the first few seasons but he’s become one of my favorites and it’ll definitely be interesting to see how he and Team Bartowski handle this uhhh… unique situation.

Hawaii Five-0
I don’t take this show too seriously so I thought the finale was pretty darn awesome. There were some WTF moments (anything related to Danny/Rachel and the need to leave for New Jersey THAT DAY) but I totally didn’t expect the twist with the governor and Wo Fat. Now that I’ve had time to think about it, I wonder if this was planned from the very beginning of the season. Maybe the governor put together the 5-0 task force as a way to keep Steve close and monitor what he was doing. Really good set up if that’s the case. Now Steve is arrested for murder (they have to see his taser burn, right?!), Kono’s suspended (I can’t believe the eyewitness testimony could be considered credible at this point), and Chin’s back at HPD (I have hope he’s going to be their “inside man” and try to help the others somehow). Phew. I have no desire to see Danny back in a relationship with Rachel (ugh, cheaters!) so he better stay in Hawaii to help his friends (although I don’t know why they bother with the drama of him moving to NJ — he’s a main character and isn’t likely to leave).

No Ordinary Family
So much potential (love the actors, especially Autumn Reeser) but this wasn’t a good show. I’m sorry! The writing was lacking (terrible storylines, inconsistent characterization), the episodes were slooooow, and there was just no spark. The premise really intrigued me but the execution was all wrong. Disappointing. Not surprised it didn’t get renewed.

Glee
It may seem as if I don’t like this show… but I really do. I just have problems with its inconsistency. Especially this past season. I think I got a little whiplash with all the back and forth between good (Duets, Original Song) and terrible (A Night of Neglect – WTF) episodes. But I’ve come to accept that I’m here for the characters, the minimal development and interaction they get, and above all, the songs and performances. I’m ok with that.

One Tree Hill
Oh, this show. Just when you think it’s over, it goes and gets renewed. Again. I still watch because I’ve really grown to like the characters but it’s lost a lot of the fun and spark it used to have in the earlier seasons. Plus, there’s been veerrrryyy little storytelling in the last few episodes. Nothing really happens! It’s no wonder they keep doing time jumps to change things up. In any case, the finale was fine. Everyone had their moment and their happy ending — Brooke gave birth, Haley opened her cafe, Nathan and Clay found their star, and Chase returns from the Air Force to reunite with Alex (who I actually love now). See! Would have been a great series finale. I’m not really sure what other stories they have to tell but I have two requests — can they PLEASE limit Chuck and Jamie’s screentime? They’re taking screentime from characters I actually care about. And they are not cute kids, I’m sorry. ALSO, and maybe more importantly, PLEASE bring back the original theme song full time. As interesting it is to hear different artists’ take on the song, it’s just not the same.

The Good Wife
I love this show. But I think it suffered slightly from trying to do too much in its second season. They introduced characters that didn’t really work, dropped storylines (the deleted voicemail kills me), and sacrificed the screentime of major characters in the process. The last few episodes, though, after Bond was ousted and Peter and Kalinda’s past was revealed, were pretty much on par with the best episodes of season 1. Not to mention that they did a great job of setting up storylines for next season. Like Alicia/Will exploring their relationship (loved that Alicia was the one calling the shots that night) — how is that going to affect their interactions with Peter? Will’s conversation with Peter in the finale was already fraught with awkward tension. Or Eli moving his business into the Lockhart Gardner offices — does this mean more Alicia/Eli interaction? Yes please! And with Alicia/Peter’s separation, I sure hope it means less Jackie. The actress may be a Dawson’s Creek alum (Grams!) but I CANNOT stand the character. I know she’s a mother and loves her son but COME ON. Cheating is not ok and she acts like Peter did nothing wrong. She irks me so much. The only thing I’m dreading about next season is the move to Sundays. Especially on CBS after football. Isn’t this where they put shows to die? 🙁

Ok, that’s it for now — back again with the rest soon. Happy 4th of July!

happy things, (almost) july edition

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Rob’s out of town this weekend so I decided to take advantage and start watching True Blood. I saw the first couple of episodes at a friend’s place back when the series first started but I didn’t have HBO at the time so I never bothered to finish the season. It didn’t help that I wasn’t particularly enamored with the episodes I did see. I’ve since heard that the show definitely picks up after that point. And now that I’ve read the first 6 books of the Sookie Stackhouse series (which I enjoy), I thought I’d give it another chance. Hopefully I’ll like it much better this time around. 🙂

So it’s about that time for another Happy Things entry — this time it’s the (almost) July edition!

1. House-iversary! Rob and I have been living in our house for the past year. CRAZY. It really doesn’t seem that long. Particularly since we’re not even done furnishing or organizing the boxes in our garage. Not to mention that…

2. We JUST now (mostly) finished the work in our (tiny) yard. Yes, after a year! We had sod and pavers installed last September but since then, we’ve let weeds grow in the surrounding soil. Oops. Finally, two weeks ago, with my dad’s help, we got rid of the weeds, prepared the soil, and added plants. YAY.

3. The upcoming Fourth of July holiday. One of my favorites. Love how laid back it is. Not sure what our plans are for the long weekend but it’ll probably involve some work around the house. Maybe Rob will fire up the grill. 😀 And we can catch up on summer movies (still want to see Bridesmaids, X-Men: First Class, and Super 8).

4. Speaking of movies… HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2. !!! I can’t believe it’s almost over. *sob* I’ve already convinced Rob we NEED to see it opening weekend.

5. Two weddings and a baby shower. 🙂 I’m going to be an aunt! My cousin’s wife is pregnant — since I have no siblings, I’m claiming their (future) daughter as my niece.

Bonus happy thing!

6. Comic-Con. We’re going the full 4 days again. I CAN’T WAIT. This time we’ll have other friends with us — it’s going to be great.

Random. I’ve had Bruno Mars’s “The Lazy Song” on repeat. This is like my summer anthem…

Today I don’t feel like doing anything
I just want to lay in my bed
Don’t feel like picking up my phone
So leave a message at the tone
Cause today I swear I’m not doing anything

glee live concert

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This past Saturday Rob and I went to the Glee Live concert at the Staples Center with some friends.

It’s no secret that I’m pretty critical about the show. But who cares about that. The concert was GREAT! It was 80 minutes of infectious, gleeful FUN.



Evidence of my attendance. 🙂

I took photos during the concert but our nosebleed seats combined with the point and shoot I was using didn’t translate into good shots. But I’m going to post some of them anyway.



Opening number was “Don’t Stop Believing”. This was my favorite song of the concert. You could totally feel the anticipation of the audience when the first few bars of the music started playing. Then the cast came out and the excitement was palpable. Awesome.

What I loved most of all was that the concert really showcased everyone. Like you’d expect, Lea Michele, Chris Colfer and Amber Riley had solos but most of the cast did too. Heather Morris performed “Slave 4 U” and while I’m pretty sure she was lip-syncing, I think she out-Britney’d Britney. Her dancing was fan-freaking-tastic. Naya Rivera, Mark Salling, Cory Monteith and Kevin McHale had their own moments in the spotlight as well.



Ok, I’m biased. I love Darren Criss and I love The Warblers. So I was overjoyed when I found out they would be on the tour! They sang a mini-set of 3 songs and were terrific.



… And it was all over so soon. They closed the show with “Somebody to Love”.

I’m seriously amazed at how much time this cast puts in to their work — probably more than any other TV cast out there. During the season, not only do they film the show, they also have to lay down the tracks and practice for the musical numbers. And now when they should be on hiatus, they’re performing in this multi-city arena tour. Amazing.

Posting the set list for reference because I like this kind of stuff…


Don’t Stop Believing
Dog Days Are Over
Sing
Slave 4 U
Fat Bottomed Girls
I Want to Hold Your Hand
Ain’t No Way
PYT
Born This Way
Firework
Teenage Dream
Silly Love Songs
Raise Your Glass
Happy Days/Get Happy
Lucky
River Deep, Mountain High
Don’t Rain on My Parade
Jessie’s Girl
Valerie
Loser Like Me

Encore
Single Ladies
Friday – HILARIOUS
Safety Dance – Kevin McHale dancing!
Empire State of Mind
Somebody to Love

dexter

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I’ve heard so many good things about Dexter. But to be honest, I couldn’t imagine liking a show about a serial killer. Well, I was wrong! The show is so good that Rob and I watched the first 4 seasons over a few months and now I’m anxious for the 5th to be released on DVD.



The opening credits are AMAZING. Visually stunning. Usually we’ll fast forward through the credits of most shows but Dexter’s are so unique (and the theme song so catchy!) that it’s a great way to set the tone for each episode.

Each season is only 12 episodes long, which is just enough time to introduce, develop and close out the main storyline of the season. That doesn’t leave much room for filler episodes or superfluous storylines (though there are a few of those — Angel & Maria comes to mind).

Brief overall season comments (no specific spoilers here)…

Season 1
SO GOOD. This is my favorite of the 4 seasons I’ve seen so far. You’re thrown right into the season’s main storyline while learning about Dexter, his life, and the people in it.

Season 2
OK. Still a very good season but there were a couple of things that bothered me. First, a new character, Lila, was introduced who develops a relationship with Dexter. I HATED HER. I understand why someone like Lila was needed to show another side of Dexter but I just couldn’t stand her. Maybe it was the actress? Also, I was disappointed in the closure for this season because there was doubt raised heading into the finale but everything was resolved without those questions ever being addressed (not even in seasons 3 or 4).

Season 3
So much better! I didn’t like Jimmy Smits’s character at first but he grew on me and found his friendship with Dexter intriguing.

Season 4
WOW. Very close second to season 1 for me. The Trinity Killer storyline was set up and executed at a great pace (with unexpected twists!) and culminated in one of the best season finales I’ve ever seen.

Highly recommended! You can easily catch up via instant Netflix or DVD. Now, what show to marathon next?

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30 Days of TV Meme: Day 14

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I’m exhausted. The combination of real life and work has been overwhelming recently. I’m so looking forward to the weekend when hopefully I can play a little personal catch-up.

In the meantime, I’m going to continue on with this TV meme because gosh darnit, I started it and want to finish it even if it takes years. Which I hope it won’t. 😛

Day 14 – Favorite male character

SO EASY!



PACEY. From Dawson’s Creek, of course. 🙂

I love Pacey so, so much. His journey from the sarcastic and insecure boy in season 1 to the witty and romantic man he became in the later seasons involves some of the most compelling storylines of the show. The push/pull with his dad, his courage in the face of Andie’s mental illness, falling in love with Joey and dealing with the fallout — in many ways he was the true heart of the show. <3

The rest of the prompts…

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30 Days of TV Meme: Day 13

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Day 13 – Favorite Childhood Show
I’m stumped. I didn’t watch a lot of TV as a kid. Maybe Sesame Street or Reading Rainbow?

The first show I remember watching regularly was Beverly Hills Teens when I would get home from school. That was when I was about 7 or 8, I think.

Around the same time, we got cable in our house and my go-to show became The All New Mickey Mouse Club. The first few seasons with the members of The Party not the later seasons with Britney, Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake.

I loved the TGIF sitcom block on ABC too. Full House, Family Matters, Just the Ten of Us, etc. It’s interesting that I watched more sitcoms growing up than I do now. Huh.

The rest of the prompts…

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midseason tv report card, part 2

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Ok, part 2 of the TV report card!

Hellcats – C+
Yes, I’m still watching this show. Heh. It’s not much more than a typical college drama but it’s totally grown on me. I love Marti, Savannah and the rest of the Hellcats (Lewis, Darwin, even Alice!) and the random singing and/or dancing in each episode. I was even pleasantly surprised by the storylines until recently when the show did an about-face and broke up 2 couples (Savannah/Dan, Marti/Lewis) and possibly damaged a major friendship (Marti/Savannah) to develop a relationship between Marti/Dan. UGH. I’m a sucker for romance, I admit, but not when it comes at the expense of the characters’ integrity and their other relationships. Also, the adult characters need to go. They contribute… nothing. (And DB Woodside deserves better).

The Big Bang Theory – B-
I just started watching TBBT regularly this season so I sometimes feel like I’ve missed out on important character backstory by tuning in so late. I may try and catch up at some point. Regardless, the characters are enjoyable and I love all the quirky friendships (is it weird that my favorite relationship is Penny & Sheldon?). I love the show best when all the characters are interacting, like this past week’s episode where everyone (including Bernadette and Amy Farrah Fowler) takes a road trip to a science symposium. Gotta love the musical beds, lol.

Bones – B-
Still a good show but I feel like it’s slowly becoming another procedural. I know it technically is but the characters have always elevated the show beyond the traditional formula. Unfortunately the past few seasons they’ve all been running in place.

Grey’s Anatomy – C+
I go back and forth all the time with this show. While I love the characters, the ridiculous storylines make my head hurt. Last year it was Mark’s daughter (I stopped watching while she was around; she bugged me) and this year it’s Callie’s pregnancy AND Teddy marrying a patient (Scott Foley!) so he could have insurance (they’re totally going to fall in love, I just know it). ARGH. Cristina getting her surgical groove back took a tad too long but Sandra Oh is so awesome she made it work. Random — I saw McSteamy (aka Eric Dane) and his wife in LA a few weeks back. He looks smaller in real life somehow but just as cute. 🙂

Nikita – B
Honestly, I never thought I would still be watching at this point in the season… but I’m really liking it! It definitely needs some work but the show is improving each week. The winter finale, in particular, was a good episode — it set up Alex as an agent working on the outside and it FINALLY addressed my biggest issue when Nikita’s shell program was discovered. Seriously, to have Nikita and Alex basically chatting online whenever they felt like it required too much suspension of belief. Now, if only the show would bring back Owen and get rid of Jaden (ugh, she’s such a one-note character), I would be a very happy camper.

Smallville – C+
I might be an episode behind. Not sure. This season has been a little off for me — the storylines seem a little stale and overall there’s missing something. Maybe it’s the loss of Chloe? Or maybe it’s that the show takes itself way too seriously? I can’t put my finger on it. I also don’t know what happened to me because suddenly I like Lois/Clark. They’re actually kind of cute. I was really hoping that Kristin Kreuk and/or Michael Rosenbaum would reprise their roles as Lana and Lex since it’s the final season but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. It would have been a nice way to close out the series, especially for the fans.

White Collar – A-
Gawd, LOVE IT. It may not be the best or smartest show about the FBI (case in point – the larger mythology storyline involving the music box doesn’t always make sense) but it’s so light and fun that I don’t really care. Besides, it’s the chemistry between Neal and Peter that makes the show so great anyway. The reason it doesn’t get a straight A is that so much of Neal’s backstory is centered around his ex-girlfriend Kate who, unfortunately, is not very likable or sympathetic (thanks largely to the actress that plays her).

Pass:
CSI
CSI Miami
No grades for these shows. I watch each week because it’s become a routine but I’m not too invested.

Dropped:
V – *yawn*
Supernatural – Watched the first few episodes of the season and it felt a little “been there, done that.” Then the episodes kept piling up on the DVR until finally last month, Rob & I deleted all of them. I enjoyed the earlier seasons (and of course love Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki) but honestly, I just got bored.

Need to Catch up on:
The Vampire Diaries. I’m about 4 episodes behind but this show is SO good it automatically gets an A for being so AWESOME.

midseason tv report card, part 1

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It’s midway through the 2010 – 2011 broadcast TV season and I thought it was about that time to do a midseason TV report card (gosh, it’s been awhile since I’ve done this)…

Chuck – A
One of the few shows I have to watch immediately. I love it. The past couple of seasons have been really solid with the story arcs about The Ring and Chuck’s mom and I’m so happy that Chuck and Sarah are a REAL couple! And they’ve been together since last season! I’ve always hated how fleeting TV relationships usually are. Chuck and Sarah prove that there’s always drama to mine in any romantic relationship (especially since they’re spies!).

Hawaii Five-0 – B+
This show isn’t reinventing the genre or anything but I enjoy it. Doesn’t hurt that Steve and Danno are totally HOT (and totally in a bromance — come on, they banter back and forth every single episode). But as much as I love Scott Caan, I’m not sure why he was nominated for a Golden Globe for this show. He’s basically playing himself!

Gossip Girl – B+
This season’s major story arc (so far) involving Juliet and her obsession with revenge against Serena is so ridiculously over the top. But that’s what I love about this show. I may not care for her but I have to admit that Juliet brought new life to the Upper East Side with all her mischief-making. Minimal Jenny and Vanessa is also a good thing. It’s too bad because I actually like both characters — the writers just don’t know what to do with them and they no longer have any redeeming qualities. I’m also intrigued by the thought of Dan/Blair. I used to ship Chuck/Blair but that relationship is seriously MESSED UP and beyond repair (I loved them so this is really disappointing). Blair deserves much better.

No Ordinary Family – C
Ehhh. I don’t know. This could actually be a decent show (they have the acting talent!) but it’s just so bland. There’s no spark. I expected much more from Greg Berlanti. But I’ll probably stick it out until the end of the season to see if it gets better. If not, I probably won’t tune in next season (if I’m being honest, I don’t think the show will get renewed; the ratings are pretty dismal).

Glee – B
I have a lot of issues with this show (treatment of Will and Rachel’s characters, portrayal of women, Kurt making everything all about him, etc) but I can’t help it. I love the singing! And sometimes there are flashes of brilliance as evidenced by The Duets and The Substitute, which are episodes that reminded me why I love these characters and why I continue to watch the show. I also discovered Darren Criss this season — he’s a new favorite!

One Tree Hill – C-
Same old show. I seriously can’t believe it’s on its 8th season. WHAT. As per usual, the show is slow-paced and isn’t scared to put its characters into unbelievably melodramatic situations (the stalker turned shooter comes to mind). At this point, I’m only watching for Brooke and Julian’s wedding and to see if the writers can give Nathan and Haley a storyline worthy of their awesomeness. I could care less about Clay/Quinn (OMG, most snooze-worthy relationship EVER) and Chase/Alex (I’m *still* in shock that Stephen Colletti is on this show — from none other than Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County).

The Good Wife – A-
A favorite. This season hasn’t been as good overall as the first. It feels like the writers are trying too hard to match the magic of the first season. Even still, it’s miles better than most other shows on the major broadcast networks. Anyway, I’m torn about the new characters — I wanted so badly to like Bond (Michael Ealy) and Blake (I’m a huge fan of Scott Porter’s from Friday Night Lights) but they’re not layered enough characters for me to understand their motivations. All I know is that they’re taking away precious air time from the characters I love, like Kalinda! But the season seems to be ramping up for some interesting reveals and I’m looking forward to it.

Modern Family – B+
I’m normally not a sitcom person but this one is HILARIOUS! The kids are the best. Especially Manny! It’s nice to have some levity on my TV schedule.

Part 2 in the next few days… 🙂

off the map

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A TV post! It’s been a long time. This TV season has been pretty underwhelming for me so I haven’t felt compelled to write about it.

BUT. New midseason shows are premiering and I remembered to catch Off the Map, a medical drama set in an unnamed South American jungle.



The show’s been getting mixed reviews but I love Zach Gilford so I figured why not. The pilot was… ok. It didn’t wow me or make me fall in love with the characters but it wasn’t so terrible that I wouldn’t watch it again.

But seriously, as much as the producers want us to believe that Off the Map is not Grey’s Anatomy in the jungle, I’m here to tell you…

IT’S TOTALLY GREY’S ANATOMY IN THE JUNGLE.

At least as far as I can tell from the pilot.

I know Shonda Rhimes didn’t create this show (a former Grey’s writer/producer, Jenna Bans, did) but it sure has her fingerprints all over it. There’s a scene in particular when Lily, Mina and Tommy (the newbie doctors) are at the bar standing in front of an oscillating fan to beat the heat. They’re complaining about the craziness of their first day and Lily (who appears to be the Meredith Grey-type lead character) smiles, says “Just follow the fan” and they all simultaneously lean to the side. So quirky. So Shonda.

As an aside, what was up with drinking and then going immediately to check on a patient? So it’s not a requirement to be sober while at work?

Something else that bothers me is that none of the doctors (aside from Valerie) seem to speak or understand even the tiniest bit of Spanish. You’re moving to a foreign country to practice medicine and you don’t know basic words and phrases to communicate with patients?! Argh. I learn the basics when I travel and that’s just for a few weeks not for a prolonged length of time.

Anyway, there’s potential here. The premise is intriguing. And the cast is amazing, particularly Mamie Gummer, Caroline Dhavernas and of course, Zach Gilford (though sadly his character’s backstory is the weakest which saddens me because he deserves much better material). I just hope the writing improves and the show can somehow differentiate itself from Grey’s. Right now there’s too many similarities — from the characters (Lily is totally Meredith, Mina is Cristina, Valerie is Bailey, etc) to the dialogue and even down to the patients acting as the week’s “life lesson.” It needs more spark and less familiarity. I already watch and enjoy Grey’s. I don’t need to watch a forgettable, average version of the same show. I’ll give it a few more episodes to see if it finds its footing.

Did anyone else catch the premiere? What did you think?

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