more fall fun

So some folks were asking about shows that they know I watch but weren’t listed in Fall Favorites… By now folks know I watch and enjoy more shows than a person probably should. In addition to previously noted favorites Bones, Chuck, Dirty Sexy Money, Gossip Girl, Heroes, The Office, Pushing Daisies, and 30 Rock, there are a few other returning shows that typically hit my tivo:

  • America’s Next Top Model (CW, Wed 9/3 ) – Yes Tyra is annoying but it’s not really about her, it’s about the annoying wannabe models and this year they promise a transgender contestant.
  • Big Bang Theory (CBS, Mon 9/22) – I don’t love this show but Sheldon makes me laugh enough, and Darlene is joining her Roseanne boyfriend as a regular this season.
  • Brothers & Sisters (ABC, Sun, 9/28) – I almost don’t even like this show but I can’t help but tune in to see what mess the Walker family is getting into and this season we should see the real illegitimate half sibling.
  • Criminal Minds (CBS, Wed 9/24) – I usually actually only catch this special FBi unit cathing the brutal serial killer of the week show in repeats.
  • Eli Stone (ABC, Tues 10/14) – This quirky guy with visions that may be leading him along won me over, but did we really leave him in a coma after an operation?
  • Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, Thurs 9/25) – Yes Grey herself is totally annoying but maybe as she theoretically sticks with McDreamy this season we can focus on the rest of the good supporting cast.
  • House (Fox, Tues 9/16) – Last year’s shakeup to cranky House’s team gave him some new fodder, though they didn’t find a good balance yet of old and new, and what of best bro after his girlie’s death?
  • How I Met Your Mother (CBS, Mon 9/22) – This show still has a lot of hilarity, though I don’t care how he met the mother, or whether it is or isn’t Sarah Chalke.
  • Law & Order (NBC, midseason) – I dropped this for a few years but found myself tuning back in this last season as the current ensemble seems to be working.
  • Law & Order: SVU (NBC, Tues 9/23) – I know this show is all about Stabler and Benson but I don’t love them, though I keep tuning in, this is the one with the sex crime slant.
  • Life (NBC, Mon 9/29) – This detective back on the force after being falsely accused amused and interested with his oddball antics though not so much on the conspiracy of his conviction.
  • Lost (ABC, midseason) – Well I loved the start of last season but at the end of the day was a little underwhelmed by the Oceanic 6 getting off and having to go back, this season starts a new chapter, I’m very curious and definitely still in.
  • My Name is Earl (NBC, Thurs 9/25) – I am still amused enough by Earl and his trashy family getting his karma back in line, though bored by the coma version of Earl and the normally likable Alyssa Milano.
  • The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS, Wed 9/24) – I still think this is a great role for Dreyfus to do broad funny as an crazy and awkward single mom with her misfit family.
  • Numbers (CBS, Fri 10/3) – This isn’t a great procedural but the interplay between FBI and math genius brothers solving cases works, though math brother just lost his credentials, whatever will they do.
  • Reaper (CW, midseason) – This show started strong last season and almost lost me with its capture of the week but the devil’s bounty hunter and friends found a new rhythm by introducing some additional intrigue, and the devil is fantastic.
  • Samantha Who? (ABC, Mon 10/6) – Applegate is winning as her post amnesia persona tries to marry her old bad ways with her new clean slate.
  • Scrubs (ABC, midseason) – I was surprised by the network move though I think this show has a great cast and good balance of silly fun, though we’ll see how well they transition to the predicted new young cast additions.
  • Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox, Mon 9/8) – This show grew on me as the cast and intrigue were better developed while Sarah and her son John try to change the future by jumping years with the help of hot chick terminator Summer Glau.
  • Two and a Half Men (CBS, Mon 9/22) – This show’s lost its edge a bit for me as the brothers work their odd couple dynamic with lazy kid getting less cute as he grows up, but there are still some good laughs.

And before you ask, current cable faves include: Battlestar Galactica (behind but catching on dvd), Breaking Bad, Burn Notice, The Closer, Dexter (dvd), Eureka, Flight of the Conchords, Greek, Project Runway, The Riches (yet to be renewed), and Saving Grace.

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next week 8/18

New and notable in the week ahead…

Monday

  • Thank You, Mr. President: Helen Thomas at the Whitehouse (HBO, 9pm) – She quips about her tenure in the press corps with many a president.
  • The Hills (MTV, 10pm) Season Premiere – This is that ‘reality’ show where ‘regular’ people have become ‘celebrities.’
  • Busted (MTV, 10:30pm) Series Premiere – More reality but this time it’s kids who get arrested.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC primetime coverage includes women’s individual gymnastics events, trampoline final, track & field, and women’s beach volleyball semis.

Tuesday

  • Making the Band 4 (MTV, 9pm) Season Premiere – The bands promote what I’m sure are hot hits.
  • Olympic roundup – NBC primetime coverage includes men’s and women’s individual gymnastics events, track & field, diving, and new event: bmx cycling.

Wednesday

  • Architecture School (Sund, 9pm) Series Debut – Can you pick the hot new architect who will combine a great aesthetic and a realistic single family home?
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC primetime coverage includes gymnastics exhibition, track & field, bmx cycling, and women’s beach volleyball finals.

Thursday

  • Glam God with Vivica A Fox/The Cho Show (VH1, 10/11pm) Series Premieres – Folks compete to be a celebrity stylist, then we get to follow comedian Margaret Cho around.
  • Jacked: Auto Theft Task Force (A&E, 10pm) Series Premiere – It’s like Cops but with carjackers.
  • Tabatha’s Salon Takeover (Bravo, 10pm) Series Premiere – Some chick from Shear Genius tries to turn salons around.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC primetime coverage includes track & field, women’s diving, and men’s beach volleyball finals.

Friday

  • Discovery Project Earth (DSC, 9pm) Series Premiere – Can scientists come up with the way to save the earth, hear what they have to say here.
  • Who Are you Wearing (TLC, 10pm) Series Premiere – I think this is kind of like Project Runway.
  • Jeffrey Ross (Com, 11:30pm) – A comedy central special of Ross doing No Offense Live from New Jersey.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC primetime coverage includes men’s diving and track & field.

Saturday

  • Olympic Roundup – NBC day and evening overage includes women’s basketball finals, women’s volleyball finals, rhythmic gymnastics, synchro swimming, boxing, canoe/kayak, men’s marathon, track & field, and diving.

Sunday

  • Law & Order: CI (USA, 9pm) Season Finale – This is actually the one of these I don’t watch, though I like Mr. Big better than D’Onofrio.
  • Generation Kill (HBO, 9pm) Miniseries finale – Does this mean the war is over?
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC day and evening coverage includes men’s waterpolo finals, rhythmic gymnastics, boxing, men’s volleyball finals, and the Closing Ceremonies.
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fall favorites

gg_omfg2.jpgWell I just saw a promo for Gossip Girl and it reminded me of how much I enjoyed the campy trashy show. What else am I most eagerly awaiting? Funny you should ask.

  • Bones (Fox, Wed 9/3) – Currently my favorite procedural because not only do they have fun cases with an anthropological science twist, but the leads Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz are good on their own but their chemistry is great, and the the quirky supporting cast works so well, I’ll forgive them for the weak wrap-up of last year’s serial killer.
  • Chuck (NBC, Mon 9/29) – Seeing Geek Squad Best Buy Nerd Herd Buy More employee, and accidental keeper of government secrets, forced into the spy world as well as the spy world stuck into Chuck’s life creates not only plenty of action but plenty of humor as well as a little potential romance with his CIA handler (the pretty one, not the hilariously stiff Adam Baldwin).
  • Gossip Girl (CW, Mon 9/1)/Dirty Sexy Money (ABC, Wed 10/1) – Who can pick between the two trashy campy soaps? Good thing you don’t have to as we catch the richest of rich families, and their lawyer who is trying to help out and not get sucked in, to more trouble each week than most folks do in a lifetime, unless that is you’re a bunch of rich private schoolers, being fashionable and popular and deceptive is such hard work.
  • Heroes (NBC, Mon 9/22) – Currently my favorite of the involved conspiracy shows, though it’s been uneven, we have followed our cast favorite regular folks who got special powers like time travel, indestructibility, and mind reading, and have to deal with other heroes, secret organizations, and of course saving the world, this season as they struggle with their own right and wrong actions it looks like they take on some real villains, but typically good and evil aren’t so clear cut.
  • Pushing Daisies (ABC, Wed 10/1) – Every aspect of this show was magical and captivating as I somehow fell for two characters who are so sweet and in love normally I couldn’t stand them, but I lament every moment they aren’t able to touch because what brought her back to life would take her from him forever, so in the meantime he and his supporting cast run the pie shop and solve crimes, who better to help out than a guy who brings the dead back to life for a minute.
  • 30 Rock (NBC, Thurs 10/30)/The Office (NBC, Thurs 9/25) – Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin just made me laugh a lot last season as they found a good rhythm with Fey running a late night sketch comedy show, her mess of a life, and keeping a crazy supporting cast together while the season finale of the Office made me appreciate how far this show has come from one that I saw more as a placeholder in the lineup to one I tune in for, because just when you think they’ve pushed the wackies too far in one direction they remind you to care.
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next week 8/11

New and notable in the week ahead…

Monday

  • Sesame Street (PBS, 7am) Season Premiere – Feist and Jack Black hang out on the street, I’ve always wanted to visit the street.
  • Greek (ABC Fam, 6pm) – For those of you who may have missed out on this fun light show about some folks in the fraternities and sororities you can catch a first season ep every night this week at 6 starting with the pilot.
  • The Mole (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – I’m sure I noted when this show started up again but I didn’t realize this show was still on.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC evening coverage has medals for swimming, men’s team gymnastics, and men’s synchro 10m diving, as well as some prelim beach volleyball.

Tuesday

  • Samantha Who? (ABC, 9/9:30pm) – For another funny show that you may have missed, catch Christina Applegate waking up with amnesia from the start.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC evening coverage has medals for swimming, women’s team gymnastics, and women’s synchro 10m diving, as well as some prelim beach volleyball.

Wednesday

  • Olympic Roundup – NBC evening coverage has medals for swimming, men’s individual all around gymnastics, and men’s 3m synchro diving as well as some prelim beach volleyball and women’s road cycling.

Thursday

  • Olympic Roundup – NBC evening coverage has medals for swimming and women’s individual all around gymnastics as well as beach and indoor volleyball.

Friday

  • Star Stories (BBC, 9:20pm) Series Premiere – Comedians reenact the stories behind the stars stories.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC evening coverage has medals for swimming, men’s shotput, as well as track and field, beach and indoor volleyball.

Saturday

  • Instant Beauty Pageant (Style, 9pm) Season Premiere – This is where The View’s first young one Debbie is… regular gals do a pageant in the mall.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC coverage of basketball, cycling, rowing, badminton, water polo, beach volleyball, trampoline, track and field, diving, and of course swimming.

Sunday

  • Skins (BBC, 9/10pm) Series Premiere – It’s a coming of age story…
  • Bob Saget Roast (Com, 10pm) – Get ready for lots of inappropriate Mk and A Olsen jokes.
  • Kung Fu Killer (Spike, 10pm) Miniseries – Did someone say David Carradine and Kung Fu? this two part series wraps tomorrow night.
  • Olympic Roundup – NBC coverage of cycling, rowing, badminton, table tennis, equestrian, indoor and beach volleyball, track and field, diving, and individual gymnastics events.
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presidential celebrity

mccain_obama.jpgSo for those of you who missed it, McCain has an ad out that condemns Obama for being a ‘celebrity.’ Darn that Obama for being so charismatic. Well I just had to note that both Obama and McCain would be airing spoof campaign ads, of themselves, on tonight’s Last Comic Standing (NBC, 8pm). Not that I’m drawing any parallel with doing a faux ad on a comedic reality show and celebrity.

While I’m talking about that ad, I should note that I should note that since McCain put Obama in his ad next to the likes of Paris and Britney, Paris was a little miffed. So Paris did her own little rebuttal ad at Funny or Die. Hilton ’08?

And for additional television scheduling they’ve announced the actual debate dates and moderators:

  • Friday, September 26 – Jim Lehrer
  • Tuesday, October 7 – Tom Brokaw
  • Wednesday, October 15 – Bob Schieffer
  • Thursday, October 2 – Gwen Ifill (Vice Presidential Debate)
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olympic watching

olympicmedals.jpgWell I like to think that the amount of time I sit in front of a television could qualify me for my own Olympic event, but I hear it actually just makes me sound pathetic. So sometimes to make me feel more athletic I watch sports. I should be in really good shape after three weeks of Olympic coverage.

There seem to be three kinds of watchers: Watch it All, Watch Favorites, and the Dabblers (who just seem to turn on the tv when they’re around and watch whatever sport happens to be on). Well as much as I long to be a Dabbler I get engrossed in a sport and then somehow think I’m going to miss out if I don’t watch 24/7.

The sports that I do tend to seek out are swimming, diving, gymnastics, and beach volleyball. Of course the fun of the Olympics is more about some of the sports that folks toil over year round that most people don’t follow like archery, table tennis, or synchronized swimming.

So no matter what you’re planning to watch you might need to do a little planning to watch it. NBC proper will typically show the most ‘popular’ sports but with a block of 8 and then 4 hours of coverage on this Saturday alone tivos will be getting pretty full pretty fast.

The NBC Olympics site has pretty detailed breakdowns by day and by sport. You can drill down each day to see what sports are on in shorter blocks of time as well as which time blocks are finals vying for medals. And in this day and age of course you can find videos online. There may be too much planning involved on this even for me so I guess in the meantime I should clear off a little more space on my tivo.

* Full coverage includes NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, USA, Universal HD, Oxygen, Telemundo, and apparently NBC Olympic Basketball Channel and NBC Olympic Soccer Channel

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next week 8/4

New and notable in the week ahead…

Monday

  • Teen Choice Awards (Fox, 8pm) – Miley Cyrus is hosting this year and as I understand it is having a dance off with her crew but has rejected the offer of a girl kiss.
  • I Want to Work for Diddy (VH1, 9pm) Series Premiere – Diddy is adding to his television empire.
  • Nashville Star (NBC, 10pm) Season Finale – I’m torn between the hispanic country guy with a great twang and the big voiced mom though overall better talent than AI, not that I actually listen to country music, oh and that Billy Ray Cyrus is maybe the stiffest host I’ve seen in my life.
  • New York Goes to Hollywood (VH1, 10pm) Series Premiere – I Love New York didn’t make her a big enough celebrity so now she’s conquering Hollywood, or not.
  • Luke’s Parental Advisory (VH1, 10:30pm) Series Premiere – Luke Campbell is family man and rowdy rap mogul.

Tuesday

  • Million Dollar Listing (Bravo, 11pm) Series Premiere – Follow a sale from listing to close with undoubtedly some personalities.

Wednesday

  • Hard Knocks (HBO, 10pm) Season Premiere – Training camp with the Dallas Cowboys returns.
  • Man vs. Wild (Dsc, 10pm) Season Premiere – Bear hits the Mexican desert and faces off with the elements, and bees.

Thursday

  • Last Comic Standing (NBC, 8pm) Season Finale – Let’s hope this one’s funny.
  • So You Think You Can Dance (Fox, 8pm) Season Finale – The final dancer is picked, and the Jonas Brothers perform.
  • Bill Engvall Show/My Boys (TBS, 9/9:30/10pm) Season Finales – Hijinks and humor as the seasons wrap.
  • Hopkins (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – And the folks at the hospital keep doing what they do.

Friday

  • Summer Olympics (NBC, 8pm 7:30pm) – The opening ceremony kicks off the NBC coverage though soccer starts the previous Wed on MSNBC, additional coverage on CNBC, USA and some Oxygen and goes for three weeks of the world’s finest in sports.

Saturday

  • Damages (Fx, 7am) Marathon – In case you missed out on all or part of this first season you can catch the full 13 episode season marathon.
  • Primeval (BBC, 9pm) Series Premiere – Rips in the fabric of time seem to let prehistoric critters loose so evolutionary zoologist and his team are on it.

Sunday

  • Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox, 9pm) – Catch up on last season’s show that grew on me with a different ep Sunday through Wed at 9, starting with the pilot.
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next week 7/28

New and notable in the week ahead…

Monday

  • The Recruiter (HBO, 9pm) – This week’s special focuses on an army recruiter in a time where recruiting is probably not the easiest thing.

Tuesday

  • Eureka (Scifi, 9pm) Season Premiere – Another season of the wacky weird science geniuses getting out of control accidentally or on purpose and the sheriff who tries to keep it all together.

Wednesday

  • Lewis Black’s Root of All Evil (Com, 10:30) Season Premiere – Who is more evil, ultimate fighters or bloggers?

Thursday

  • Hopkins (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – I guess it’s more on the patients and staff of Johns Hopkins, but really I don’t believe the commercials that this is what the cast of Grey’s is watching now.

Friday

  • Dr Who (Scifi, 8:30pm) Season Finale – The fourth season wraps up featuring characters from spinoff shows The Sarah Jane Adventures and Torchwood.

Saturday

  • X Games (ABC, sa/su 12pm and ESPN/ESPN2 various times starting Thurs) – Skateboard, bmx, moto x, and rally car this year in LA, but will Jake Brown try the mega ramp again, it should happen on Thursday.

Sunday

  • Girl on the Loose/Sunset Tan (E!, 10pm) Series Debut/Season Premiere – And another reality show where we learn more… this time it’s Pam Anderson, then apparently a show I’ve somehow missed where celebrities go get tan, I sense a crossover episode on the way.
  • The Factory (Spike, 10pm) Season Finale – You can catch up, if you want, with a mini marathon starting at 7:30 to see what these guys have been up to.
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tour de france

tour.jpgSo a few years after getting cable and stumbling on the Lance channel (now Vs-Versus previously OLN-Outdoor Living Network) where they seemed to show Lance Armstrong riding his bike 24 hours a day for weeks, I have become a bit hooked on the Tour de France. It’s actually quite interesting once you learn some of the basics and once you figure out what parts of the tour you can fast forward through (no one should watch 3-6 hours of cycling a day). I’m still figuring it out but here’s where I’m at.

The Basics

The tour typically takes 23 days with two rest days. The route changes each year but circles the country popping in and out of other countries at times along the way with a finish in Paris. There are about 20 teams invited to the tour with 9 riders each. Each stage covers roads that range from flat to mountainous, with usually a few days in each of the Alps and the Pyrenees. All of the riders start together on these stages except for the couple stages that are time trials where the riders have staggered starts and must ride against the clock. Some tours include a team trial where the team as a whole rides together for time. Unfortunately at the end of the day, not all the riders finish due to injury on crashes, not finishing within the appropriate time (usually a percentage of the winner’s time), abandoning the race, and of course being kicked out for drug use. Though a few riders are still caught doping we’re hoping the fact that they’re caught means that the system is working.

More Than One Way to Win

So we all learned that yellow was good as we watched Lance roll into Paris wearing the yellow jersey (a record number seven times) which is awarded for the overall cumulative fastest time, the competitors for this are often referred to as the GC (General Classification). But that’s not the only jersey awarded, there’s the white for the best young rider (under the age of 25) with the best cumulative time, green jersey for sprinters who win points for their place in overall finishes and various points in the stages, and the polka dot jersey awarded for winning points on the mountains. And of course the winner of each stage. There are also a few other claims to fame including the overall leading team and most aggressive rider awarded for a day’s performance.

Really a Team Sport

So though individuals often receive the glory it really is a strong team that can make the difference in the race. There is a tremendous amount of strategy used within a team to make sure that their individual contenders have the best shot at their win. Cyclists draft off one another but they also may do things like move to the front of the peloton (the main pack of cyclists) and set the pace, chase down breakaways (those trying to go faster than the peloton), lead out sprint stages to set up for the win, and go back for water to bring to the front riders. Phil and Paul, two of the best sports commentators there are, try to explain all this and more during the many hours of coverage. Vs usually has a a live show at the crack of dawn and replays throughout the day in edited formats with a primetime show hosted by Craig and Bob (Al used to hold Craig’s spot but we think he’s too busy in an Olympic year).

Who’s On Top

So we’ve wrapped up the major mountain stages where the ride is so hard that it’s usually where the GC guys win or lose the stage, but the last men standing are still surprisingly close together. The next couple of stages aren’t thought to allow a break by anyone competitive overall and it’s thought that the final time trial on Saturday might be what determines who will finish up first. The final stage into Paris is almost never challenged by the GC guys and left for the sprinters to make their push for the line. The top four riders, Sastre, Schleck, Kohl and Evans, are all separated by less than two minutes which is potentially enough for things to change. All eyes are on Evans who is great in the time trial and is theoretically able to beat current leader Sastre by one to two minutes, but will he have the legs this Saturday? Time will tell.

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the balcony is closed

siskel_ebert.jpgSo I spent much of my childhood getting the thumbs up from Siskel and Ebert as to what was worth a go at the movies. With the sad parting of Gene Siskel I never quite grew accustomed to the finally permanent replacement of Richard Roeper. It’s good to get a feel for a reviewer’s taste but if on the whole you don’t agree that much with them, but not in a totally opposite way, it’s hard to see the review as much help.

Roger Ebert has had health issues that have kept him off the show for a couple of years now and a cycle of guest hosts have kept Roeper company. I still found the thumbs up system (with a helpful tag of moderate or enthusiastically so) to continue to be a great awareness on a movie’s merit. But to be honest one of the main reasons I stopped tuning in was because they would give away too much about the movie whilst arguing its worth.

ebert_roeper.jpgWell Roeper has decided not to/was unable to renew his contract and Ebert has decided that he no longer wants to be associated with the current Disney show and he’s taking his thumbs with him. Ebert and Siskel’s widow own the rights… He says the thumbs will be back and Roeper intends to join a new venture that maintains the early integrity that Siskel and Ebert set.

The final show will air the weekend of August 16. Then what do I do? Turn to the clapping or sleeping man in the Chronicle reviews?

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