TV Midterms are Upon Us, Let Us Critique

No high concept post this time around, folks. Due to bachelor party shenanigans last night, I simply could not muster anything up more than this. Hopefully, it will suffice. Qualler and I were recently bemoaning the fact that so many reviews of television shows judge solely by a pilot or a set of the first 3-4 episodes that the network provides whiny babies that don't actually watch TV. So I thought I'd check in with everyone and let you know what's still worth watching now that there have been about seven eps for most shows this season. I'm going to be terrifyingly brief due to more wedding events to prepare for and attend, but you're going to accept it and wish you were coming to Qualler's wedding. And if you are, you're not invited anymore.

Heroes: Still watching it despite most of the complaints that have arisen: unnecessary romance subplots, unnecessary time-traveling subplots, a lack of progression in the story and lack of development in the characters ad nauseum. I never came close to giving up, because I'm pathetically attached to all of the characters, but this is reason to restore everyone's faith, hopefully. If he went out in the open and said this, he will get a lot of crap if it doesn't actually get better.

Gossip Girl: It is the wind beneath my wings.

Journeyman: I almost always watch the first 10-20 minutes of this show as it follows Heroes, but mostly it's just waiting to see when he will go into the future. But then I remember the terrible special effects budget given to Heroes, so why would they give it to the nu-Quantum Leap? It's the same episode every time (go back in time, save someone's life either figuratively or literally) and they keep hinting at a larger plot that will help propel the show, but now that it's come out in the open, I really don't care anymore.

Aliens in America: I can't help but continue to like this show despite its rampant cutesiness. Luke from Gilmore Girls as the dad though? Can't get enough of it. Yeah, generic being-a-nerd-in-high-school story lines drive the majority of the eps, but its sweetness and slight chuckles, along with the Freaks and Geeks-esque love between friends is what keeps me coming back to The CW's obnoxiously neon-colored video player.

Life: So much charm! This guy has totally rocketed up into my top 5 non-sexual sexy men list. He's so kooky! Seriously though, I still keep coming back for more. It's pretty predictable every time and has a vom-rom vibe to it that doesn't really fit into its existential detective thematics, but when it's on, it's completely entertaining and often has the wittiest dialogue on television right now. Plus I can't get enough of his Buddha-inspired non sequiturs! (Eyelids flutter).

Dirty Sexy Money: Definitely the best new show on television. I don't care if Peter Krause plays a slightly less neurotic version of himself on Six Feet Under, because every other characters makes up for his protagonist tenfold. Sure, the "rich people are people too" mentality can be overpowering at times, but generally, it's good at blurring the line of that ostentatious haute couture message. Maybe these people are actually just incompetent manifestations of the evil of capitalism. It's part of the show's real mystery, aside from the "who killed my father?" subplot that is actually becoming more interesting and interrelated to the rest of the show as it goes on. And the idea that Krause's Nick (unfortunately, Donald Sutherland's name isn't Gatsby) works for this family only to give back to his community using his new fortune is something refreshing for the usually snobberiffic story of the straight guy gets involved with the wealthy and self-involved. Plus they actually name dropped Explosions in the Sky. On Disney's television station. WTF.

30 Rock & The Office: One is the only genuinely good 30-minute show on television, the other used to be and has now been inflated by the powers that be into a downright soap opera with generally and genuinely funny moments. Luckily, the subtle and poignant relationships between characters that used to set The Office apart from other sitcoms is replaced by a sharp and vicious dose of mental insanity in 30 Rock - something that could only be heightened over time (and hopefully never taken away). And yet, we still feel for all the characters (Liz Lemmon's feminist loneliness, Tracy Jordan's instable celebritism) without the subtle looks and glances through a shaky lens that has been romanticized in The Office.

This entry was posted by chris, on Thursday, November 08, 2007. You can leave your response.