Well as some may have heard rumors of strike, as of last night the actors contracts are up for both SAG (Screen Actors Guild) and AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). SAG actors received a last minute offer that is currently being reviewed. Until then no lockout or authorization to strike vote so all parties might keep working. Initial comments on the offer were that they hadn’t addressed all the actors concerns.

AFTRA, reached a tentative deal in May and is waiting for a vote to ratify the agreement which should come, or not, next week. Since the unions overlap with more than half of AFTRA’s 70,000 members also in SAG, some members of SAG have been leaning on AFTRA not to ratify as they think the deal isn’t quite good enough, and of course their united power would be that much greater.

At this point we’re talking about nuances in contracts similar to the precedent set by the writers’ strike. Issues like new media as well as minimum payments and product placements are some of the concerns. What is fair is a little unclear. What is clear is that a deal is preferable to a strike.

Should we face a strike there is some hope that all other aspects of the shows could keep moving. Now that we have writers on board, and could be ready to start shooting again the moments the actors walk back on set, as opposed to taking weeks to get rolling again. But how long would the actors be out?

Things are already winding down production to prepare for the worst. Some contingency plans are being made for reality and a few foreign based shows but the real question is would the networks air just a few episodes produced if that’s all they’ve got. Comedy and standalone drama perhaps. But shows like Heroes and other new ones waiting….

I guess the real, real question is if we face another strike would people permanently find something to watch besides television?

Well after three episodes of In Plain Sight (USA) I’m not that interested but so far I’m not quite giving it up. It’s not a bad show, it’s just not really a good show. If it weren’t summer it’d be a no brainer and be gone. It’s got pretty much standalone episodes and it’s not that hard to follow which is great for filling in the spare time.

This hard as nails Federal Marshall does whatever it takes to take care of her folks in witness protection. Each episode seems to start with the before witness protection scene and then jumps forward to the present where things are for some reason or another going awry. She’s surrounded by her laid back partner and her odd ball boss at work and her drunk and criminal mom and sister at home. The problem? The episodes aren’t quite suspenseful and the characters aren’t quite interesting. But I’m sticking with it for maybe one more episode, at least until some other summer favorites start.

The Closer (July 14, TNT) is a straight up formula show that I tend to enjoy a little more. Kyra Sedgwick is hired on to head a special investigative police unit because what she lacks in personal and interpersonal skills she makes up in detective skills with her specialty being the interrogation. She’s definitely quirky in an entertaining way. I like her struggles with the political systems, her peers can’t stand her, the relationship with her boss is complicated by a long ago affair, and she’s winning over her resentful staff. And of course she struggles with other agencies, her current beau is an FBI guy.

Saving Grace (July 14, TNT) has another strong lead, Holly Hunter. Grace has a guardian angel but don’t be afraid this is going to turn into a touched by an angel soft show. Grace tries to keep her distance from her family barely dealing with the loss and abuse of her childhood while wrapping herself up in her work as a do it at all costs cop. Of course she drinks like a fish and seems to sleep with everyone inside and outside of work. So what about the angel? Well Earl, who’s got some personality himself, is there to challenge her thinking and of course try to get her headed in the right direction. Grace tries to piece together Earl’s deal with her and with another criminal he visits, while Grace’s crime lab pal analyzes things he’s left behind.

I was also won over to Burn Notice in reruns. I joked with someone after originally watching the pilot that they tried to cram in everything an ex spy show might be about but somehow got it all wrong. Well after a few more episodes I came to enjoy the cheese factor almost as much as our protagonist’s cap toothed smile. Trying to figure out who ‘burned’ him, he’s been set up and ousted, he’s paired up with his ex and an old washed up spy buddy to take on random cases. What I think I like about this show, besides the campy action and humor, is how he gets pretty macgyver, more of a lethal macgyver, but at some point in the show taking whatever he’s got and making it work.

I do like some formula shows to fill the downtime but even in the off season I can’t quite bring myself to order them on dvd (too busy with Dexter and BStarG). So I pick up some of the shows I don’t like all that much during the regular season like Criminal Minds or CSI (never CSI: Miami) and I even watch reruns of L&O or L&O: SVU (on network and on at almost all hours of the day on cable). I’ve also started catching the delightful characters and banter on earlier Bones on TNT. 

I also spend some time poking around and using tivo searches, there’s tons of stuff on cable to watch in reruns or even catch the shows straight through. For example Jake 2.0 is doing a marathon on 6/20 starting at the start at 8am on SciFi and you can catch the X-Files pilot episode on 6/20 on SciFi at 2am. There’s not much new to watch but my tivo always seems to be full.