tv

next week 5/19

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More finales this week, hope the new Bachelorette and Last Comic will keep you entertained moving forward.

Monday

  • Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother/Two and a Half Men/Rules of Engagement/CSI: Miami (CBS, 8/8:30/9/9:30pm) Season Finales – I have to say that Big Bang sort of grew on me over the season – Sheldon makes the show, HIMYMother also still makes me laugh, though 2 1/2 Men doesn’t as much, and I usually turn to Samantha Who instead of Rules… Horatio on Miami makes me cringe whenever he opens his mouth.
  • Bones/House (Fox, 8/9pm) Season Finales – I have to say I like this lineup and I’m surprised how much I look forward to Bones, and in the finale we revisit Gorgamon!
  • Gossip Girl/One Tree Hill (CW, 8/9pm) Season Finales – I can always use a little Gossip, the cheesier it gets the more I dig, but I refrain from visiting that Tree Hill.
  • Bachelorette (ABC, 9pm) Season Premiere – This two hour episode reintroduces previously dismissed DeAnna to us while introducing her to 25 potential true loves, what’s the ratio one bachelorette to every five bachelors?

Tuesday

  • American Idol (Fox, 8pm – also Wed 8pm) Season Finale – Performances on Tuesday with who knows how much filler on the 2 hr results show on Wed, but at least we’ll finally see the battle of the Davids and wonder if America could really prefer Archuletta to Cook.
  • NCIS (CBS, 8pm) Season Finale – The two hour season finale.
  • Dancing With the Stars (ABC, 9pm – also Mon 8pm) Season Finale – The finalists compete on Monday, with a replay Tues at 8 before the winner is chosen at 9.
  • Reaper (CW, 9pm) Season Finale – This show’s gotten much more interesting with Sam in trouble as the demon rebellion loses trust, is Sam really the son of the devil, but didn’t he date a girl who he thought was the devil’s daughter?
  • Shark (CBS, 10pm) Season Finale – Sebastian’s nemesis threatens his daughter.

Wednesday

  • Criminal Minds/CSI: New York (CBS, 9/10pm) Season Finales – Murders and crimes.
  • Boston Legal (ABC, 10pm) Season Finale – Wacky legalness.
  • Law & Order (NBC, 10pm) Season Finale – McCoy has some trouble with the politics of his new role as DA.

Thursday

  • So You Think You Can Dance (Fox, 8pm) Season Premiere – I don’t totally know the format of this but folks compete with dance.
  • Ugly Betty/Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 8/9pm) Season Finales – Something happens on Betty and then of course more drama with Meredith and Derek, let’s hope they leave them together for a while this time.
  • Last Comic Standing (NBC, 9:30pm) Season Premiere – This hour and a half ep kicks of the latest search for some funny.

Friday

  • Take a break, see a movie, read a book…

Saturday

  • Vinegar Hill (CBS, 8pm) – This telefilm based on the book by A Manette Ansay stars Mary Louise Parker as a wife and mother

Sunday

  • Recount (HBO, 9pm) – This film dramatizes a story of the human side of the controversial 2000 presidential election.
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tv

next week 3/24

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Monday

  • Greek (ABC Fam, 8pm) Season Premiere – Popular older sis and geeky younger brother navigate the Greek system with varied drama and success.
  • How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 8:30) – This is the episode where Britney resurfaces, and the entire cast says how normal and professional she was.
  • The Hills (MTV, 10pm) Season Premiere – The ‘reality’ show that follows a group of now known to many folks, this time two of the gals hit Paris,  I can only identify them from the weekly magazines.

Tuesday

  • Autism: The Musical (HBO, 8pm) – A documentary that follows the kids and families dealing with autism as they put on a musical.
  • Jericho (CBS, 10pm) Series Finale – Well, they brought it back but nobody came, so the post apocalyptic show will end its run.

Wednesday

  • Great Performances: Peter and the Wolf (PBS, 8pm) – This year’s Oscar winner for animated short, though there’s no narration it’s apparently quite clear – plus they throw in a making-of.

Thursday

  • Smallville (CW, 8pm) Strike Hiatus – The show’s Superman mythology began with Clark and Lex as buddies and has shown an interpretation of their journeys to become mortal enemies, 6 or so new eps expected late April..
  • Miss/Guided (ABC, 8/8:30pm) Season Finale – Rumor Willis guests as our guidance counselor manages her adult high school life.
  • The Apprentice (NBC, 9pm) Season Finale – This year’s celebrity winner will get money for charity in lieu of a Trump hiring.
  • Reaper (CW, 9pm) Strike Hiatus – Sam tries to save Andi from lost soul of the week, 5 or so new eps expected late April..

Friday

  • In Treatment (HBO, 9:30pm) Season Finale – This five night a week drama where the shrink sees patients wraps up it’s nine week run.
  • Battlestar Gallactica (SciFi, 10pm) –  The series does a special presentation before the new season kicks off.

Saturday

  • Kid’s Choice Awards (Nick, 8pm) – Jack Black hosts this kids celebrating event.

Sunday

  • The Tudors (Show, 9pm) Season Premiere – Apparently this focuses on the early years of King Henry VIII’s reign.
  • Unhitched (Fox, 9:30pm) Season Finale – And the dating mishaps continue.
  • State of the Union (Show, 10pm) Series Premiere – This is Tracy Ullman’s new sketch comedy show.
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tv

next week 3/17

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Monday

  • The Big Bang Theory/How I Met Your Mother/Two and a Half Men (CBS, 8/8:30/9pm) – Back after a little strike lull! They’ll keep The New Adventures of Old Christine company.
  • Dancing With the Stars (ABC, 8pm; also Tues, 9pm) Season Premiere – A new gang cuts some rug, again not exactly A-list but some sports and interestingly the deaf Marlee Matlin.
  • The Bachelor (ABC, 9:30pm) Season Premiere – The single guy London style, who will get the rose? Of course who cares, they’ll break up soon anyhow.

Tuesday

  • It’s the Easter Beagle Charlie Brown (ABC, 8pm) – Looks like Easter must be coming, at least for the Peanuts gang.
  • The Riches (FX, 10pm) Season Premiere – This con family kept me on the edge of my seat as they pretended to be The Riches, it’s tough pretending to be a lawyer and his family whilst your con friends are out to get you.
  • Miss/Guided (ABC, 10:30; returns on Thurs 8/8:30pm) Series Premiere – The delightful Judy Greer returns to her alma mater as a guidance counselor for some old and new high school fun.

Wednesday

  • Well I’ll probably tune into acronym city ANTM, AI, and then L&O.

Thursday

  • Lost (ABC, 9pm) – Last for a couple of weeks before we get the new post strike eps going late April, I have been digging this season.
  • Lipstick Jungle (NBC, 10pm) Season Finale – And done. For now, and forever?

Friday/Saturday

  • Netflix, cineplex, book? – Though they are playing the next ep of Jezebel Friday, I’ll set the tivo just in case.

Sunday

  • The L Word (Show, 9pm) Season Finale -The fifth season wraps up as the ladies… uh I don’t know… I don’t get Showtime and I’ve never watched this show but since it’s about lesbians I assume it’s mostly ladies…
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my schedule

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Well almost everything has started and until they cancel more stuff, move stuff around, or we get to midseason changes. Here is where things seem to be settling in for me for watching, or at least tivo backlog. (I do try to narrow things down to no more than two shows per time slot.)

Monday

  • 8pm NBC – Chuck (CBS – How I Met Your Mother)
  • 9pm NBC – Heroes (CBS – Two and a Half Men/Samantha Who?)

Tuesday

  • 8pm Fox – Bones
  • 9pm Fox – House (CW – Reaper)
  • 10pm NBC – L&O SVU

Wednesday

  • 8pm ABC – Pushing Daisies (CW – ANTM or in repeats Sun 9pm)
  • 9pm CW – Gossip Girl (NBC – Bionic Woman)
  • 10pm ABC – Dirty Sexy Money

Thursday

  • 8/8:30pm NBC – My Name is Earl/30 Rock
  • 9/9:30pm NBC – The Office/Scrubs (ABC – Grey’s Anatomy)

Friday

  • 10pm CBS – Numb3rs

Sunday

  • 5pm CW – (encore) Girlfriends
  • 10pm ABC – Brothers and Sisters

And for a full grid of the current listings check out a couple of sites that I find helpful:

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returning fall favorites

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Ok the clock is counting down and although I’m always excited about new shows there’s nothing quite like a returning favorite, and here are a few of my most anticipated:

  • Heroes – (NBC, Mon 9/24, 9:00) A random group of folks suddenly realize they have special abilities, from time travel to reading minds to who knows what. They have to navigate their own lives and of course a big conspiracy plot and of course more people with special abilities. I wasn’t sold on first watch but I found myself looking forward to it each week as it grew nicely into its ensemble and its story arcs. I still think it has some uneven parts and characters but I like the fact that the characters are flawed and at different stages of struggling with their newfound powers and that good and evil are often not all that clean cut. Oh and did I mention Veronica Mar’s very own Kristin Bell is joining the ensemble for at least a little while?
  • Lost – (winter/spring) After Gilligan’s Island no one really thought the deserted island thing would fly, but when the plane crashed the survivors had more than cracking coconuts to deal with. They’re uncovering the mysteries of the island, it’s previous and current ‘Others’, as well as dealing with each other. The heavy use of backstories is a great tool to keep character development fresh and give us some time in the real world. I am of course as frustrated as the next person that they seem drop in more mysterious happenings without really ever explaining much, I mean what’s up with the smoke monster? New viewers would be confused, but then again so are the rest of us, but I stilll can’t resist it.
  • Grey’s Anatomy – (ABC, Thurs 9/27, 9:00) So surgical intern Meredith Grey starts in a Seattle hospital and we follow her, and her fellow interns, and other medical staff, through the traumas of medical care, but more importantly the dramas of their personal lives. And yes its all overdone enough to be unrealistic so you just have to give it a dose of soapy suspended reality. I still have a slightly Ally McBeale-esque visceral disdain for the title character, but the ensemble really ended up working.
  • How I Met Your Mother – (CBS, Mon 9/24, 8:00) This show made me laugh out loud last season more than any other. The episode with Robin as Canadian popstar and the slap bets alone raised the bar on this series. What started as a schmaltzy unrequited crush show turned into a great use of an excellent ensemble. Though I still can’t help but wondering if it would be better without the whole How I Met Your Mother premise.
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