new and noteworthy tv: 5/31-6/6

Most of the network shows are off but there’s always some cable action to keep you entertained. Procrastinator picks are underlined.

Monday

  • The Best Thing I Ever Ate (Food, 9pm) Season Premiere – Grill it up.
  • Cake Boss (TLC, 9pm) Season Premiere – They cake for others they cake for themselves.
  • Brett Michals Life as I Know It/Dad Camp (VH1, 10pm) Series Premieres – A preview into the series that will look at Brett at home which I fear is not just l a lot of rest for him then some new dads get some training.
  • True Beauty (ABC, 10pm) Season Premiere – Ten folks are judges on their inner beauty, whilst thinking they are competing on their outer beauty.

Tuesday

  • America’s Got Talent (NBC, 8pm) Season Premiere – Howie Mandel replaces the Hoff at the judges table for the latest crop of random ‘talent’,
  • Hell’s Kitchen (Fox, 8pm) Season Premiere – More competing, more yelling.
  • One Big Happy Family/The Little Couple (TLC, 9/9:30/10pm) Season Premieres – People do things.
  • Jersey Couture (Oxy, 10pm) Series Premiere – Getting on board with the Jersey reality trend we follow a family who runs a dress shop.
  • Losing It With Jillian (NBC, 10pm) Series Premiere – The bitchy trainer from Loser takes on families where they live.
  • Downtown Girls (MTV, 11pm) Series Premiere – Another reality look at folks not doing stuff, this focuses on girls in downtown NY.

Wednesday

  • Are We There Yet? (TBS, 9pm) Series Premiere – Ice Cube takes this film of blended family to the small screen.
  • Ghost Hunters Academy (Syfy, 9pm) Season Premiere – How many ghost hunting series are there?
  • Tosh.0 (Com, 10:30pm) Season Premiere – Hosting another round of web comedy whatnot.
  • Half Pint Brawlers (Spike, 11pm) Series Premiere – Little person wrestling.

Thursday

  • Burn Notice/Royal Pains (USA, 9pm) Season Premieres – More spy shenanigans and medical machinations.
  • NBA Finals (ABC, 6/8:30/9pm pst) – Let the games begin, followed by a special post show, and special Kimmel.

Friday

  • Scripps National Spelling Bee (ABC, 8pm) – Can you use the word in a sentence please?
  • Flashpoint (CBS, 9pm) Season Premiere – The Canadian SRU tactical team is back for another season of saves.
  • The Neistat Brothers (HBO, 11:59pm) Series Premiere – The series follows the brothers and their short films.

Saturday

  • Three Rivers (CBS, 8pm) – Dusting off this canned show for a little burn off.

Sunday

  • Bridezillas (WE, 8/9pm) Season Premieres – Goth and Vegas weddings.
  • Drop Dead Diva (Life, 9pm) Season Premiere – Our funny model protagonist now in a lawyer’s body faces disbarment.
  • Ice Road Truckers/Top Shot (Hist, 9/10pm) Season Premiere – New truckers and then shooters.
  • MTV Movie Awards/The Hard times of RJ Berger (MTV, 9pm) Series Premiere – Aziz Ansari hosts and then the latest scripted offering, a coming of age story of a gentleman who is well endowed.
  • The Next Food Network Star (Food, 9pm) Season Premiere – Who is camera ready?
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new and noteworthy tv: 5/24-5/30

Is it time to switch from tv shows to tv shows via Netflix?

Monday

  • HIMYM/Rules of Engagement/2 1/2 Men/Big Bang Theory/CSI: Miami (CBS, 8-11pm) Season Finales – Laugh, almost laugh, kind of laugh, laugh, and then random David Caruso.
  • 24 (Fox, 8pm) Series Finale – There’s still talk of a movie say Jack probably doesn’t die, but some other people probably will.
  • Chuck/Law & Order (NBC, 8/10pm) Season/Series Finale – Two hours of Chuck kicking some Ring ass, Chuck-style then there will be plenty of Law & Orders, and of course repeats, to fill this gap but get ready to say goodbye to the originator of the chung chung.
  • 10 Things I Hate About You (ABCFam, 8/8:30pm) Series Finale – I guess they’ve run through all ten things.
  • The Bachelorette (ABC, 9pm) Season Premiere – That girl who was on the Bachelor but left and tried to come back tries to pick some dudes.

Tuesday

  • The Biggest Loser/Parenthood (NBC, 8pm) Season Finale – One of the losers wins and then I’ve been sucked back into Parenthood, who can resist Lauren Graham?
  • NCIS/NCIS LA/The Good Wife (CBS, 8/9/10pm) Season Finale – Blah, blah, and then my favorite new drama continues to balance great characters, courtroom drama, and political intrigue.
  • Dancing with the Stars (ABC, 9pm) Season Finale – Following Tuesday’s performances the latest winner is crowned.

Wednesday

  • American Idol (Fox, 8pm) Season Finale – Following Tuesday’s final performances we pick the final two and say bye to Simon hopefully in only the two hours and seven minutes scheduled.
  • Criminal Minds/CSI: NY (CBS, 9/10pm) Season Finales – Death and criminals.

Thursday

  • Flash Forward/Hollywood Salutes Matt Damon (ABC, 8/9pm) Series Finale – Say goodbye to the visions and then for some reason we’re saluting Matt Damon.
  • So You Think You Can Dance (Fox, 8pm) Season Premiere – Dance baby dance.
  • 100 Questions (NBC, 8:30pm) Series Premiere – Not a gameshow, it’s a sitcom where folks flash back to questions answered on a dating survey.
  • Police Women of Memphis/Mall Cops (TLC, 9/10pm) Season/Series Premiere – And more of these…
  • The OCD Project (VH1, 10pm) Series Premiere – What happens when you put OCD folks in a house together and things start getting real?

Friday

  • Past Life (Fox, 8pm) – Time to burn off this long ago canceled show.

Saturday

  • Red Dead Redemption (Fox, 11:59pm) – Video game comes to life.

Sunday

  • National Memorial Day Concert (PBC, 8pm) – Gary Sinise and Joe Mantegna host the tribute to the military featuring Lionel Richie and Brad Paisley.
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new and noteworthy tv: 5/17-5/23

I could talk about the one new show and Lost, Lost, Lost, but I guess we can talk about finales, what will they bring?

Monday

  • House (Fox, 8pm) Season Finale – Can House save another?
  • One Tree Hill (CW, 8pm) Season Finale – Are those kids still living in One Tree Hill?
  • Gossip Girl (CW, 9pm) Season Finale – Will Georgina’s return bring more drama?
  • Castle (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – Will Castle declare his love for Beckett?

Tuesday

  • 90210 (CW, 8pm) Season Finale – Drama? Romance? Arson?
  • V (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – What are those Vs up to?

Wednesday

  • The Good Guys (Fx, 8pm) Series Premiere – Bradley Whitford and Colin Hanks give the odd couple buddy cop show another avenue, the series premieres in its regular timeslot on 6/7.
  • The Middle/Modern Family/Cougar Town (ABC, 8:30-10pm) Season Finales – Did Cougar Town actually become one of my favorite comedies?
  • Law & Order: SVU (NBC, 10pm) Season Finale – Will Sharon Stone be the next ADA to leave?

Thursday

  • Bones/Fringe (Fox, 8/9pm) Season Finales – Will we continue to see creepy death and just plain creepy?
  • Community/Parks & Recreation/The Office /30 Rock/The Marriage Ref (NBC, 8-11pm) Season Finales – Will Community keep up the goodness? Will the other comedies return to goodness? Will I ever watch an ep of Ref?
  • CSI/The Mentalist (CBS, 9pm) Season Finale – Will death hit close to home? Will the psychic detective solve another?
  • Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 9pm) Season Finale – What good could Mandy Moore bring to Grey’s?

Friday

  • Ghost Whisperer/Medium/Miami Medical (CBS, 8/9pm) Season Finale – If they don’t survive Miami Medical will one of the ladies talk to their ghosts?
  • Kitchen Nightmares (Fox, 9pm) Season Finale – Will the Chef ever stop yelling?

Saturday

  • Golden God Awards (VH1 Classic, 10pm) – Metal awards?

Sunday

  • Lost (ABC, 7/9) Series Finale – Will Jack wake to find it was all a dream?
  • Brooks & Dunn (CBS, 8pm) – Whatever.
  • The Simpsons/The Cleveland Show/Family Guy (Fox, 8-10pm) Season Finale – Will animation domination be funny?
  • The Apprentice (NBC, 9pm) Season Finale – Will anyone care who wins?
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new and noteworthy tv: 5/10-5/16

Aside from all the shows wrapping up there are a few other items you could catch, though not sure you’d really want to…

Monday

  • Undateable (VH1, 10pm) Series Premiere – What are the Top 100 Things that guys do that are deal breakers, find out over every night this week?

Tuesday

  • Ashes to Ashes (BBCA, 10pm) Season Premiere – What happens after Life on Mars when we hit the 80s, something tells me there won’t be a US version of this series after the hasty end of Mars.

Wednesday

  • ANTM (CW, 8pm) Season Finale – A special two hour episode where we find out who is the fiercest.

Thursday

  • Toughest Military Jobs (Military, 9pm) Series Premiere – Really there’s a Military channel?

Friday

  • Gavin & Stacey/Not Going Out (BBCA, 9/9:40pm) Season Premiere(s) – More British fun.

Saturday

  • A New Smile, A New Life (CW, 8pm) – For those desperate for a feel good moment, check out Roma Downey and Operation Smile.

Sunday

  • Miss USA Pageant (NBC, 7pm) – Goodness, which shellacked beauty will get the crown?
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new and noteworthy tv: 5/3-5/9

Monday

  • Best Food Ever (TLC, 9pm) Series Premiere – America’s best food starts with the sandwich.
  • Big Bang Theory (CBS, 9pm) – At this special time we see what happens now that Penny and Leonard aren’t an item.
  • The Real Housewives of New Jersey (Brav, 10pm) Season Premiere – The ladies, if you can call them that, are back.

Tuesday

  • Women Behind Bars (WE, 10pm) Season Premiere – Profiles of some new women, who are, yes you guessed it, are in prison.

Wednesday

  • How’d You Get So Rich? (TVL, 10pm) Season Premiere – Joan Rivers really wants to know.
  • Worst-Case Scenario (Disc, 10/10:30pm) Series Premiere – You’ve seen Bear Grylls get out of nature and now he’ll show you how to get out of things like burning vehicles.

Thursday

  • The Imploders/Heavy Haulers (TLC, 9/10pm) Series Premiere – The team takes down some smokestacks then another hauls heavy things.
  • The Dudesons in America/Ultimate Parkour Challenge (MTV, 10/10:30pm) Series Premiere – Think JackAss but Finnish then the athletes start at the Queen Mary.

Friday

  • Friday Night Lights (NBC, 8pm) Season Premiere – It’s Friday, and the football team returns, with lights.
  • Need to Know (PBS, 8:30pm) Series Premiere – The latest news magazine.
  • What Would You Do? (ABC, 9pm) Season Premiere – Hidden cameras catch folks in awkward situations.

Saturday

  • That Metal Show (VH1 Cl, 11pm) Season Premiere – Heavy Metal is discussed, and maybe you’ll hear some.

Sunday

  • Jesse Stone: No Remorse (CBS, 9pm) – Another round of Tom Selleck in the title role of the Robert Parker books.
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