In case you missed it, your first casualty of the new TV season was Lone Star, the one man, two families drama that actually got some good press going into the season (which is why I left it off my dead pool list even though I noted during sweeps that I wasn't interested). Unfortunately, all the good press couldn't give it the edge it needed against Dancing With the Stars, the CBS sitcom block, and the strong debut of The Event.
Speaking of NBC, they may provide my first hit of the year, given how Chase is squandering whatever lead-in it gets from The Event. Keep your fingers crossed!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
New (To Me) on TV: Master Chef
The latest Fox-based Gordon Ramsey project, I'm catching up on it via the DVR. It's more or less Top Chef for amateur cooks, though somewhat in reverse. The main challenge occurs first (typically in teams, though not always), and the losers then have to compete against each other to see who goes home (a "Pressure Cooker" challenge). The main competition has mostly been cooking for groups (Marines, truckers, and in the next episode a wedding), while the elimination events have required contestants to pick out ingredients from a finished dish or name ingredients in their natural state using all the senses except taste.
It's an OK derivation of the cooking competition, helped by Ramsey taking it down several notches. His co-judges, chef Graham Elliot and restraunteur/vintner Joe Bastianich (frequent partner of Mario Batali's places and son of PBS fave Lidia) add a kind of good cop/bad cop element, as Elliot is more likely to champion contestants while Bastianich is more cutting (and, occasionally, pervy, at least in vibe). It is still a Fox production, which means lots of useless voice overs, banal contestant interviews, and the like.
It's not the best show out there, and it's not even the best cooking show out there. But I do like that there's now an outlet for amateur chefs, even if it's one that can tend towards insufferable. It's still better than The Next Food Network Star, though that's not saying much.
It's an OK derivation of the cooking competition, helped by Ramsey taking it down several notches. His co-judges, chef Graham Elliot and restraunteur/vintner Joe Bastianich (frequent partner of Mario Batali's places and son of PBS fave Lidia) add a kind of good cop/bad cop element, as Elliot is more likely to champion contestants while Bastianich is more cutting (and, occasionally, pervy, at least in vibe). It is still a Fox production, which means lots of useless voice overs, banal contestant interviews, and the like.
It's not the best show out there, and it's not even the best cooking show out there. But I do like that there's now an outlet for amateur chefs, even if it's one that can tend towards insufferable. It's still better than The Next Food Network Star, though that's not saying much.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
New on TV: Blue Bloods
OK, I didn't watch the whole pilot episode, so take this for what it's worth. For what little I saw, this appears to be a servicable cop/family drama. I only saw scenes with Tom Selleck and Danny Walbergh, and while I liked them both there was too much stereotypical hot headed street cop in Wahlberg's character for my taste (would it surprise you that one of the scenes I saw involved Wahlberg's character getting information from a kidnapping suspect by repeatedly pushing the suspect's head into toilet water?).
The show did well, winning its time slot, and given the low to moderate expectations for Friday shows I expect it'll stick around. That's more than one can say for Outlaw, the NBC show about a Supreme Court justice turned lawyer for the little guy. It tanked, to the point where it couldn't best The Jay Leno Show's numbers from this time last season. That should be grounds for automatic cancellation.
The show did well, winning its time slot, and given the low to moderate expectations for Friday shows I expect it'll stick around. That's more than one can say for Outlaw, the NBC show about a Supreme Court justice turned lawyer for the little guy. It tanked, to the point where it couldn't best The Jay Leno Show's numbers from this time last season. That should be grounds for automatic cancellation.
Friday, September 24, 2010
New on TV: Hawaii 5-0 and Undercovers
It's premature to judge a series based on its pilot. As it's the episode made specifically to sell the series, you can have a ton of exposition that sets up the episodes to follow, or a lot of flash to get viewers hooked. This week, I've seen one pilot for each of these.
Hawaii 5-0 is the expositional one, as the hour delved into the creation of the 5-0 team and set up the back stories for each of the characters while trying to solve the murder of Navy officer Steve McGarrett's father. I didn't expect quite so much background from a series revival, but I think it was done because(a) current viewers under 40 have likely never seen an episode of the original, and (b) to differentiate the new version from the old for those of us who have seen it.
Getting past all of the set-up, the pilot did have a fair amount of action and more violence than expected, which I suppose gives the show a push towards the spectacle area. This, as well as the broad charge the governor of Hawaii (played by Jean Smart) gives McGarrett, makes me fear that this will be less a cop show and more a tropical riff on 24. Even so, I'm still going to give it a chance, and based on the ratings (the pilot won its time slot, and will likely be the most-watched new show of the first week), I'm not alone. Maybe we're all just happy they didn't mess with the theme song all that much.
Undercovers falls more squarely in the latter category. A married pair of retired spies is goaded back into service by a CIA handler (Gerald McRainey) to find a former colleague who has gone missing. In the course of the hour, the newly reinstated spies travel to three countries, con their way into a bank to see ATM camera footage, crash a wedding to steal information off of a cell phone, skydive, get involved in a rooftop fight and handle crises related to a wedding reception (the pair entered catering after leaving the Company). It's slickly done, has attractive leads with good chemistry, and promises a dashing mix of spy work and domestic semi-tranquility.
And yet I do not plan to watch it again. I just never quite engaged with the show. It was too light to take seriously, and just a bit too serious to completely lose any expectation of reality. When someone who devotedly watched Lost through all of the time travel, glowing island hearts and polar bears starts to think that a show is implausible, you may have a problem.
I'll also admit to feeling like I'm going to get burned again. The pilot to Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was also energetic, featured attractive leads with good chemistry, and moved at a pace that made an hour seem like it was five minutes. And then the whole thing caved in on itself and got cancelled. One bitten twice shy, I suppose. I'll happily wait for whatever JJ Abrahms has cooked up for Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn.
Hawaii 5-0 is the expositional one, as the hour delved into the creation of the 5-0 team and set up the back stories for each of the characters while trying to solve the murder of Navy officer Steve McGarrett's father. I didn't expect quite so much background from a series revival, but I think it was done because(a) current viewers under 40 have likely never seen an episode of the original, and (b) to differentiate the new version from the old for those of us who have seen it.
Getting past all of the set-up, the pilot did have a fair amount of action and more violence than expected, which I suppose gives the show a push towards the spectacle area. This, as well as the broad charge the governor of Hawaii (played by Jean Smart) gives McGarrett, makes me fear that this will be less a cop show and more a tropical riff on 24. Even so, I'm still going to give it a chance, and based on the ratings (the pilot won its time slot, and will likely be the most-watched new show of the first week), I'm not alone. Maybe we're all just happy they didn't mess with the theme song all that much.
Undercovers falls more squarely in the latter category. A married pair of retired spies is goaded back into service by a CIA handler (Gerald McRainey) to find a former colleague who has gone missing. In the course of the hour, the newly reinstated spies travel to three countries, con their way into a bank to see ATM camera footage, crash a wedding to steal information off of a cell phone, skydive, get involved in a rooftop fight and handle crises related to a wedding reception (the pair entered catering after leaving the Company). It's slickly done, has attractive leads with good chemistry, and promises a dashing mix of spy work and domestic semi-tranquility.
And yet I do not plan to watch it again. I just never quite engaged with the show. It was too light to take seriously, and just a bit too serious to completely lose any expectation of reality. When someone who devotedly watched Lost through all of the time travel, glowing island hearts and polar bears starts to think that a show is implausible, you may have a problem.
I'll also admit to feeling like I'm going to get burned again. The pilot to Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was also energetic, featured attractive leads with good chemistry, and moved at a pace that made an hour seem like it was five minutes. And then the whole thing caved in on itself and got cancelled. One bitten twice shy, I suppose. I'll happily wait for whatever JJ Abrahms has cooked up for Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn.
Sunday, September 05, 2010
Cop No Killer
So we finally watched the Grey's Anatomy finale a couple of weeks ago, and for all of the upheaval (for those who don't watch, a gunman was loose in the hospital and shot a number of people, killing many, including two of the new supporting characters) there was one scene that really irritated me.
One of the main characters was trying to sneak out and get blood for her boyfriend when she encountered the shooter. He was planning on killing her (she unplugged his wife from life support), but the gunshot we hear wasn't from his gun, but from a SWAT team member. The shooter takes the bullet to the left shoulder. After which the shooter gets up continues to wander the hospital, shooting at least one more person before taking his own life - seconds before a phalanx of SWAT cops enter the ward where he's holed up (in the room where his wife died, which seems like the first place you'd station someone once you learn the identity of the shooter).
While I'm not an expert on SWAT procedure, it seems kind of odd to me that the cop that shot the gunman didn't advance, either to help protect the doctor or to check the status of the gunman. At the least, he'd radio in a position so his colleagues could move in. But neither seemed to happen.
This just seems careless, either for the writer who stuck it in here to add a little tension or for the director/producer for perhaps not ordering scenes in a way that would make sense. It's kind of a thankless task to expect logical thought from this show - seeing as logical thought would have prevented something like 95% of the romantic entanglements from ever happening - but this once, it wouldn't have hurt.
One of the main characters was trying to sneak out and get blood for her boyfriend when she encountered the shooter. He was planning on killing her (she unplugged his wife from life support), but the gunshot we hear wasn't from his gun, but from a SWAT team member. The shooter takes the bullet to the left shoulder. After which the shooter gets up continues to wander the hospital, shooting at least one more person before taking his own life - seconds before a phalanx of SWAT cops enter the ward where he's holed up (in the room where his wife died, which seems like the first place you'd station someone once you learn the identity of the shooter).
While I'm not an expert on SWAT procedure, it seems kind of odd to me that the cop that shot the gunman didn't advance, either to help protect the doctor or to check the status of the gunman. At the least, he'd radio in a position so his colleagues could move in. But neither seemed to happen.
This just seems careless, either for the writer who stuck it in here to add a little tension or for the director/producer for perhaps not ordering scenes in a way that would make sense. It's kind of a thankless task to expect logical thought from this show - seeing as logical thought would have prevented something like 95% of the romantic entanglements from ever happening - but this once, it wouldn't have hurt.
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Bring Out Your Dead for 2010
I've once again set out to prove what little I know by entering the Ted Marshall Open, the Interweb's greatest TV dead pool. Ten shows, 20 points per show that gets canceled with bonus points based on how you rank your choices. My picks for the year:
1 - Smallville - widely announced as being in its final season, so easy points. I could have had even more easy points if I'd remembered that As the World Turns was packing it in this season. In my defense, this is the first year that non-prime time programming is eligible, and I thought that whatever long-running soap was ending had already done so.
Still, left points on the table, which is galling.
2 - Outlaw - I don't think it gets any worse than Friday at 10 on NBC for a time slot. Throw in a show with an odd premise (roguish Supreme Court justice steps down to take cases for ordinary folk) and it seems like a goner. Makes me wonder just who Jimmy Smits pissed off.
3 - Hellcats - a pre-law student needs money for school, so she parlays her gymnastics experience to get a scholarship as a cheerleader. It looks like it's trying to meld Glee with the Bring it On franchise, but as it's on the CW it will fail at both. It's also in the post-America's Next Top Model slot, which you think would help but never does.
4 - Raising Hope - Most of what I've read about this show is not positive.
5 - Defenders - I know two wrongs don't make a right, but with my luck Belushi and O'Connell will combine to win a Peabody.
6 - Chase - this story of a US Marshal and the criminals she tracks down just feels generic. It's also about 10 years too late to benefit from The Fugitive.
7 - Better With You - speaking of generic, here's the latest attempt at a multi-generational family romantic sitcom. I swear there's like a dozen scripts in a cave somewhere and the networks just change the names around every time they try this. My only fear with this show is that, nestled in ABC's Wednesday comedy block, it will be inoffensive enough to survive.
8 - Bob's Burgers - I'm hoping that this will be the season's Goode Family, existing only to provide faintly humorous content in a space that needs temporary filling. I can't see it cracking Fox's existing Sunday of animation.
9 - Running Wilde - this show scares the hell out of me, as it seems so ridiculous on its face that it should be a lock for cancellation. But you throw in Will Arnett and you think anything is possible.
10 - Shedding for the Wedding - some random NBC mid-season reality show that I assume is about brides trying to lose weight to get into their wedding dress. I suppose I'm way out of the target demographic for this, so I may be misjudging how it'll do. Or it'll be so bad that it won't air at all, either way.
Of course, there are some shows that made the top ten shows picked by all contestants that I didn't choose. They are:
Outsourced - the potential for this to fail is pretty high, and if it veers to far into lame ethnic stereotyping it's not going to last. But NBC was pretty tolerant with its sitcoms last year (thank you for renewing Community, BTW), so I left this off. It's the second most popular consensus pick, which usually means cancellation but not always (both Gary Unmarried and The Ghost Whisperer got a second season after landing in this spot; maybe you just need to be a CBS show to survive?).
Detroit 1-8-7 - thought of it, had some mixed reviews, but then I thought it might be a nice dose of action against The Good Wife and Parenthood. So I left it off, even if I do think it's the dumbest name for a new show this season. It's the consensus third-place show.
My Generation - I really should have put this in, as this is the sort of show I hate, with its fake nostalgia and forced surprise that the future you dream of as a teen rarely, if ever, comes to pass. I'm kind of pissed at myself now for not picking it. It's the fourth place pick, which just confirms that I should have trusted my instinct.
The Event - the latest attempt at forging drama out of government conspiracy. I'm not sure about it, but I'm hoping the current political climate makes it more appealing. Maybe Glenn Beck or one of his crowd will start referencing it like it's a documentary. That might help.
The Good Guys - there could be worse things than an old cop-new cop show. Like Bradley Whitford's sunglasses and mustache. Not crazy about the Friday time slot, but given the competition it could win regularly.
No Ordinary Family - I can see why this is on here, as it's really high concept and follows the collapse of Heroes a little too closely. Still, I think making this about a family rather than strangers is a nice direction, and I can't complain if I get to see Julie Benz on my TV every week. But I can see where this could go wrong quickly.
So there it is. Look for my complaining throughout the season.
1 - Smallville - widely announced as being in its final season, so easy points. I could have had even more easy points if I'd remembered that As the World Turns was packing it in this season. In my defense, this is the first year that non-prime time programming is eligible, and I thought that whatever long-running soap was ending had already done so.
Still, left points on the table, which is galling.
2 - Outlaw - I don't think it gets any worse than Friday at 10 on NBC for a time slot. Throw in a show with an odd premise (roguish Supreme Court justice steps down to take cases for ordinary folk) and it seems like a goner. Makes me wonder just who Jimmy Smits pissed off.
3 - Hellcats - a pre-law student needs money for school, so she parlays her gymnastics experience to get a scholarship as a cheerleader. It looks like it's trying to meld Glee with the Bring it On franchise, but as it's on the CW it will fail at both. It's also in the post-America's Next Top Model slot, which you think would help but never does.
4 - Raising Hope - Most of what I've read about this show is not positive.
5 - Defenders - I know two wrongs don't make a right, but with my luck Belushi and O'Connell will combine to win a Peabody.
6 - Chase - this story of a US Marshal and the criminals she tracks down just feels generic. It's also about 10 years too late to benefit from The Fugitive.
7 - Better With You - speaking of generic, here's the latest attempt at a multi-generational family romantic sitcom. I swear there's like a dozen scripts in a cave somewhere and the networks just change the names around every time they try this. My only fear with this show is that, nestled in ABC's Wednesday comedy block, it will be inoffensive enough to survive.
8 - Bob's Burgers - I'm hoping that this will be the season's Goode Family, existing only to provide faintly humorous content in a space that needs temporary filling. I can't see it cracking Fox's existing Sunday of animation.
9 - Running Wilde - this show scares the hell out of me, as it seems so ridiculous on its face that it should be a lock for cancellation. But you throw in Will Arnett and you think anything is possible.
10 - Shedding for the Wedding - some random NBC mid-season reality show that I assume is about brides trying to lose weight to get into their wedding dress. I suppose I'm way out of the target demographic for this, so I may be misjudging how it'll do. Or it'll be so bad that it won't air at all, either way.
Of course, there are some shows that made the top ten shows picked by all contestants that I didn't choose. They are:
Outsourced - the potential for this to fail is pretty high, and if it veers to far into lame ethnic stereotyping it's not going to last. But NBC was pretty tolerant with its sitcoms last year (thank you for renewing Community, BTW), so I left this off. It's the second most popular consensus pick, which usually means cancellation but not always (both Gary Unmarried and The Ghost Whisperer got a second season after landing in this spot; maybe you just need to be a CBS show to survive?).
Detroit 1-8-7 - thought of it, had some mixed reviews, but then I thought it might be a nice dose of action against The Good Wife and Parenthood. So I left it off, even if I do think it's the dumbest name for a new show this season. It's the consensus third-place show.
My Generation - I really should have put this in, as this is the sort of show I hate, with its fake nostalgia and forced surprise that the future you dream of as a teen rarely, if ever, comes to pass. I'm kind of pissed at myself now for not picking it. It's the fourth place pick, which just confirms that I should have trusted my instinct.
The Event - the latest attempt at forging drama out of government conspiracy. I'm not sure about it, but I'm hoping the current political climate makes it more appealing. Maybe Glenn Beck or one of his crowd will start referencing it like it's a documentary. That might help.
The Good Guys - there could be worse things than an old cop-new cop show. Like Bradley Whitford's sunglasses and mustache. Not crazy about the Friday time slot, but given the competition it could win regularly.
No Ordinary Family - I can see why this is on here, as it's really high concept and follows the collapse of Heroes a little too closely. Still, I think making this about a family rather than strangers is a nice direction, and I can't complain if I get to see Julie Benz on my TV every week. But I can see where this could go wrong quickly.
So there it is. Look for my complaining throughout the season.
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