The Week before 9/23

So this week saw the premiere of K-Ville and Back to You. I watched K-Ville and I thought it was OK. There were bits and pieces I liked, and there were bits and pieces I did not like. I like Cole Hauser. He made a comment about the location of bullet holes that felt a little like Encyclopedia Brown. I think the twist at the end about his origins was a bit hokey. I think Anthony Anderson had his good moments, he did not make me feel like he was supposed to be doing a comedy. I did not like his character dumping the guy in the lake at the beginning. That felt a little torture-dark, especially when that word got thrown on it later. The old partner still having his radio also required some stretching of my disbelief suspension, though I probably liked that character the most. Lyndsae commented about the potentila negative effects of putting a crime show in New Oreleans and wondered about how that might affect the image of the people there and from there, suggesting it was a little different than doing it in New York or LA. I was not aware of that dynamic, myself. I guess all in all I did not love it, but I felt like it warranted one more viewing. If it doesn't get me this week, it will be gone.
Back to You was OK. I like Patricia Heaton and I liked her here. I do no particularly like Kelsey Grammar unless I can't actually see him (Sideshow Bob). I do not particularly like any of the bit characters either. I would not be annoyed if this were on and I was in the room, but I will not choose to watch it again. I'm just not much of a sitcom guy.
Saving Grace also had its season finale. It was not a huge deal, but I thought it ended well. Grace finally came clean about something that had happened to her that was relevant to the case they were working on and Earl lauded her for it. I think the "theology" here may turn out to be a twelve-step variety, rather than the Touched By An Angel Christianity I feared. I liked this show. I won't miss it, but I look forward to getting back to it.
Damages was good again. It is proving to be a fairly solid show. This week we saw Ellen's parents, which would be Andy Sipowicz's first wife and Greg Medavoy. I enjoy seeing old NYPD Blue people. I feel like Ellen is sliding from her good girl persona as she convinces her dad to try to jack around a woman he hit with his car. And, it turns out bad for him anyway, which at least is good from my moral sense. This show is dark, but fun for me.
Dirty Jobs was a compilation of crew favorite bits. I had seen most of them, but they are almost as good in rerun as they are the first time.
I think that was about all of note this week, though there was a Flight of the Conchords marathon that aallowed me to catch the first couple of shows I had missed. I think it got better, but the first ones were also good.

The Week of 9/16

A bit of irony that in last week's reviews I forgot about Damages. I have been enjoying that one this summer. Lyndsae has said that she feels like the "mystery" is developing too slowly, but I like it. I am interested in finding out how the characters got from point A to point B. I think Ted Danson has been really good. I think Glenn Close is OK, but not great. The other characters are passable. perhaps Zeljko Ivanek is decent. I feel like Close will be back for a second season, but Danson will not. This season has sort of been telling the story of his case. It is a dark show, but I like it.
The Closer wound itself up this week. The ending was in line with what we had seen all season. Fritz and Brenda had a fight that seemed a bit ridiculous to me. I couldn't find myself buying his anger, and I didn't think her emotions were caused by him. But, it all fell in line with my expectations of the series, which are not exceptionally high. I'll enjoy waiting for it as the new season approaches.
Saving Grace was good. It finishes next week (I believe). I would enjoy seeing some spares killed off from the office, maybe the Native American/Mexican? buddy, maybe the lou again. Other than that, this week saw a really unbeleivable attitude by Grace's sister, being unreallistically overpretective of their grandfather, who, also unrealistically was killed by falling off a horse. A bit lame. But, they needed a device and they got one.
Still no Dirty Jobs. I am not happy. I did watch a little of Blue World, though. It was cool. I learned that though the average winter temperature in Antarctica is -100, the water below the ice never goes below 28. I also saw footage of a seal keeping the ice hole through which he is able to get to teh surface to breathe clear using his front teeth as a kind of grinder. I also some really crazy creature lights in the depths of the ocean. An interesting show to be sure.
This week should see some premieres. We'll see if they're any good...

The week of 9/9

Well, this week saw me return from Japan and have not a whole lot of serial tv to catch up on. There were a couple of episodes of The Closer and Saving Grace, and the Season Finale of Flight of the Conchords. I liked Flight of the Conchords, though as there was less singing, I liked it a bit less than some of the others, though the mad dancing scenes were funny and did remind us of the ridiculousness of Footloose. I really liked Flight of the Conchords all season. I think it is awkward-funny and I enjoy the silly songs. Among my favorites were Mermaids, If That's What You're Into, and the What the Uck rap. But there were lots of good ones. I hope to catch the first two or three episodes in rerun when I can.
As for The Closer, I think it is not a well-written show. But, I like the charcters and I have become involved with them, so I still watch. Almost every show involves Brenda getting a confession from somebody in the interrogation room. I am reminded of the intensity of the scenes when Andre Braugher would do the same thing as Pembleton on Homicide; Life on the Streets and can only conclude that Brenda has none of the same fire or intensity. Kinda like Murder She Wrote in comparison. But, as I said, I like the characters, so I stick around. The Season Finale is (was) September 10th. This week left me with the To Be Continued tag, which, when you have lots of shows that have plot lines drawn out over several weeks seems a bit goofy. Every episode could say that.
Saving Grace has proven to be better than I expected. I like Holly Hunter, and so thought to give this show a chance, but I feared dogmatism and God in your face ism. But, I got neither. It seems fairly ecumenical in its religiousity, and I'm ok with that. The supporting cast leaves a lot to be desired, but I will be back for another season if there is one.

A New Blog begins

OK, here I am going to attempt to keep track and perspective on the serialized tv that I watch. Truth be told, I watch a lot of tv, but the vast majority of it is sports related, be it Boxing, Football, Basketball, soccer, etc. That stuff will be covered elsewhere or not at all. Here, I hope to put in a word or so about my weekly tv watching. I also will attempt to have a place for dates of season premieres, season finales, etc. Am I a bit of a tool for having a tv blog? Perhaps, but, then I guess my audience already knows that I am a bit of a tv head, and a bit of a tool so what difference does it make, right? Maybe by choosing to keep trak of it, I will be able to admit to myself that some of the crap I watch is just that and maybe go pick up a book instead. I guess we'll see.
By the way, "Regular Shows" with an asterisk are shows I intend to give a shot when they start in the upcoming season.