the seasons are in full bloom!
i’ve been remiss in posting! all the seasons of the shows i love–and the new ones i’ve grown to love–have begun and really started to develop. with the advancement of online full-episode viewing, i’m able to almost double the amount of shows i’m watching without the grades taking a hit. haha!
this will make for a long post, but the best way i can see to fulfill this blog’s purpose is to go through the shows i’m watching briefly. so sit back, and let’s take a tour through this season’s hit shows:
Prison Break (FOX): i didn’t know how this show could keep surviving–they achieved the show’s title. they broke out of prison. then comes season 3 with a new twist where michael is inside and lincoln’s trying to get him out. sarah’s been murdered which will make michael vengeful and determined which only leads to great television. some weeks are slow, like in any drama, but for the most-part, i think this is a truly strong season.
Chuck (NBC): this is a new show that i’m really liking. it’s about a nerd (and not the typical “nerd” portrayed on television–an actual nerd like those you have as friends…just a geek…not over the top). he gets a hold of top secret information and now has to work alongside government agencies, but he’s so nerdy and fragile–he can’t handle a lot of the “missions”…i use quotes because the show has this over-the-top quality to its action sequences that overwhelms the senses and makes them seem almost fake–but i think that’s intentional so you’re seeing it like chuck is–overwhelming. it’s definitely worth a watch!
Heroes (NBC): i’ll be honest, i’m watching this show, but not closely. i need to catch up on a couple episodes, but in the first 2 that i have watched, i haven’t been impressed. it’s a lot of building plot, so not a lot has really happened. it’s heroes, so it’s sure to deliver, i’m just waiting for the return to the first season hooks that grabbed viewers.
House (FOX): house is just a sad creature. we’ve always known it, but as you watch him try to narrow down applicants in order to find new employees, you see him hit new lows. but we love him for those lows. the shallow, demeaning nature of greg house is just spellbounding. you hate him, but you love him for that. this show can really do no wrong in my eyes. it’s still not a stellar show–i really only watch it for hugh laurie’s brilliant acting as house–the medical plot lines don’t really hook me and the ongoing character relationships aren’t really interesting…yet. this season is sure to be good. it’s house.
Law & Order: SVU (NBC): despite being one of my favorite shows for years, this is the first time i’ve watched episodes every week. i’m usually catching the marathons on USA or TNT instead of seeing new episodes. so far the new season is interesting–there aren’t a lot of personal stories being exploited on the force, though. i’m liking the addition of adam beach as detective chester lake–he’s a really unique actor. plus, he helps draw attention away from detective tutuolla played by ice-t. what a joke. the only fault i can find in the show is ice-t as a main character. otherwise, the cases are thrilling and unexpected.
Private Practice (ABC): i wish i could give raving reviews to this love child of the grey’s anatomy creators, but i can’t! the acting is way off, the stories are pathetic, and kate walsh forgot that despite changing set locations and show titles, she’s still dr. addison forbes montgomery shepherd. she’s treating this like a whole new character–a flighty one that i can’t admire like i admired the addison of grey’s anatomy. paul adelstein is good comic relief, but amy brennemen (of ‘judging amy’ fame) as the psychiatrist is dreadful. and i cannot complain enough about the switch from merrin dungey to audra mcdonald. i don’t know why they switched actresses from pilot to season 1, but the casting was way off. i keep watching and hoping for some grey’s-like emotion and plot development, but it hasn’t shown itself yet.
Life (NBC): new show. i don’t know what it is, but there’s something about this show that makes me want to keep watching. damian lewis plays a police officer that was wrongly accused of murder, so he is released, given a lot of money and per request, put back on the force as a detective. so you have this semi-wounded spirit who loves fruit (i guess prison lacked good fruit), and has an uncanny ability to read people. he’s had 12 years to study himself and the people around him–he’s gotten good. i’m not impressed by his partner, played by sarah shahi–her character outline isn’t compelling and she’s kind of uninteresting to watch, but damian lewis makes up for it. his zen-obsessed outlook on life is humorous, but it also contributes to the show’s depth as he struggles with finding who framed him and deciding whether or not to pursue his zen-forbidden revenge.
30 Rock: there’s not much to say about the show other than it’s brilliant. kenneth is the funniest character on television right now, no questions asked. tina fey is just such a great writer with comedic genius–although that’s not news. previews have advertised the slew of guest appearances in the coming weeks; they’ve already had jerry seinfeld (great return to primetime tv!) and will arnett (“that whispery guy”), and they’re soon to have david schwimmer (friends’ ross), carrie fisher (star wars), and others. this season is going to be great!
The Office (NBC): everyone last year, including me, was complaining about how the office was only a half-hour show and it should be an hour long because it’s so funny. our wishes were granted and for the first 4 episodes of this season, the office is an hour long. which was fun the first week, but then i started to get a little bored with an entire hour and began to see why a friend referred to hour long comedies as “contrived.” they just seem forced and drawn out. however! that’s not to say it’s not still hilarious and having jim and pam together again is a prank-lovers dream. they’re back pulling pranks and making us laugh yet again. i just finished this last episode online and i wasn’t laughing as hard as i have in the past, but it’ll be back to hilarious soon enough, i’m sure! best moment of the season so far: creed attempting to be young with the dyed and spiked hair.
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC): my favorite! this season is happy. it had been projected to be a much lighter and happier season than season 3 and it is. season 3 held all the changes for the characters that were necessary to give all the characters depth and gravity. now, the writers are able to take our better knowledge of the characters to a higher level, but through lighter material. we’re seeing the previous interns with their own interns now–they still have to prove themselves, but not nearly as much. george is stuck back repeating his intern year, but that was a brilliant writing move. it keeps our attention with the new interns and makes us like them, too. the principle cast is growing to epic proportions and plots are getting mangled and twisted, but that’s what we love about grey’s anatomy, no? plus, i’ve discovered a new artist out of this season already: meiko. very earthly, acoustic sounds…great voice. i’m loving the struggle between meredith and derek and the interactions between cristina and meredith in an odd friendship.
Brothers & Sisters (ABC): this show is taking the cake for emotional dramas. grey’s is great this season, but it’s not producing the heart-wrenching storylines that it once did. the storylines with justin coming back wounded from iraq and sarah struggling to keep her marriage alive tear your heart out, but they make you think and empathize and contemplate. it’s so good! nora is the most obnoxious mom, but then i think that just shows how much she loves her children and wants everyone to be happy, despite that being impossible. kitty and robert’s relationship is fun to watch and the political dynamic is always lighthearted and fairly balanced. the show is just really amazing–and not getting the praise it deserves!!
(sigh of relief) wow. that was exhausting and exhaustive. those are the shows that i’m really getting into this season, but over break, i’m hoping to also tack on ‘pushing daisies.’
