tv

new and noteworthy tv: 6/23-6/29

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tyrant-key-art-season-1-fx

Taxi Brooklyn sounds ridiculous but rumor has it the chemistry in the cop drama adds a little something though time will tell as with the premise of legal chemistry on Reckless. Speaking of chemistry who would miss Tori and Jenni together again, ok it looks dumb as does the personal chef half hour pairing but sometimes the lighter fare works, and for other nostalgia Girl follows the next generation of the family (from Boy Meets World). Tyrant as FX’s latest offering is of course worth a look as is the latest where did the people go drama Leftovers.

As to our new reality fare, oh CeeLo… but if you like your real estate and you like Miami or nudists there’s something for you; Fat is more about cars than fat while Oprah’s Operation is Haiti focused. And of course dance studios are rescued as is plastic surgery, who could argue with that? And of course Wimbledon starts this week so tune in for the fortnight.

  • Monday: Street Outlaws/Fat n’ Furious, Season/Series Premieres (Disc, 9/10pm), Operation Change, Series Premiere (OWN, 10pm), POV, Season Premiere (PBS, 10pm), Teen Wolf/Wolf Watch, Season Premieres (MTV, 10/11pm), Ceelo Green’s the Good Life, Series Premiere (TBS, 10:30pm)
  • Tuesday: Abby’s Studio Rescue, Series Premiere (Life, 9pm) Botched, Series Premiere (E!, 9pm), Next Great Baker, Season Premiere (TLC, 9pm), Covert Affairs, Season Premiere (USA, 10pm), Sullivan & Son, Season Premiere (TBS, 10pm), Tyrant, Series Premiere (Fx, 10pm)
  • Wednesday: Big Brother, Season Premiere (CBS, 8pm), Young & Hungry/Mystery Girls, Series Premieres (ABCF, 8/8:30pm), Million Dollar Listing: Miami (Brav, 9pm), Wilfred, Season Premiere (Fxx, 10pm), Taxi Brooklyn, Series Premiere (NBC, 10pm)
  • Thursday: NY Med, Season Premiere (ABC, 10pm)
  • Friday: Girl Meets World, Series Premiere (Dis, 9:45)
  • Saturday: America’s Cutest Dog, Season Premiere (AnPl, 10pm), Buying Naked, Series Premiere (TLC, 10pm)
  • Sunday: Last Tango in Halifax/Endeavor/Vicious, Season/Series Premieres (PBS, 8/9/10:30pm), Reckless/Unforgettable, Series/Season Premieres (CBS, 9/10pm), The Leftovers, Series Premiere (HBO, 10pm)

The procrastinator lists items that may not be on your regular season pass, though notation does not imply recommendation other than those underlined. Times noted are typically PST.

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movies, tv

stream it…

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fnl

Just in case someone you know recently received or signed up for Netflix streaming, the procrastinator thought it might be time to do a recommendation round up to help with your distractions. For latest movies and all series you still might need to go to the full dvd subscription but I find enough to keep my backlog filled during my regular series downtime. I definitely lean toward the television (at least until I get a couple more series under my belt) but there are a few new and old movie options that are worth a peek as well.

TELEVISION

  • House of Cards/Orange is the New Black/Arrested Development – Netflix original series might be what drove you to pull the trigger and they’re worth a watch (plus the backlog of earlier AD still hold up).
  • Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog – Sometimes I just like to revisit the Joss Whedon backlog.
  • Battlestar Galactica/Friday Night Lights/Chuck/Terriers/The Riches/Saving Grace/Freaks and Geeks – These more dramatic series, some cut far too short and some a little long, are good slightly irregular watching.
  • Don’t Trust the B in Apartment 23/My Boys – Some comedic fare for just a little something quick.
  • Sherlock/Luther/Parenthood/Sons of Anarchy – A mix of dramatic series that are still going and definitely worth a look if you have yet to get on board.
  • Louie/Wilfred/The League/It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia/Parks and Recreation – And a little comedy catch up for those also still running.

On my to do list: Mad Men, The Fall, Rescue Me, Top of the Lake

MOVIES

A peek at some more recent releases back into the classics:

  • The Hunger Games
  • Safety Not Guaranteed
  • Jeff Who Lives at Home
  • Hit & Run
  • Adventureland
  • Young Adult
  • Lars and the Real Girl
  • Bernie
  • The Kids are Alright
  • Zoolander
  • Being John Malkovich
  • House of Yes
  • Lost in Translation
  • Memento
  • The Breakfast Club/Ferris Bueller’s Day Off/Clueless/13 Going on 30/Heathers – Some classics never get old.
  • The Italian Job, Parker, Blitz, Safe – I’ve developed a Jason Statham video weakness.

On my to do list: The American, Being Elmo, Cinema Paradiso, End of Watch, Extract, Flight, Drug War, Hoop Dreams, Melancholia, The Messenger, Our Idiot Brother, The Road, Tiny Furniture

Of course you can check the new releases and recently added to keep up to date. What’s missing from the list?

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tv

new and noteworthy tv: 6/17-6/23

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wilfred

More summer fluff arises, to entertain until Wimbledon…

Monday

  • Love, Marilyn (HBO, 9pm) – Stars reading memorabilia for some reason is getting good reviews. 

Tuesday

  • Blood and Oil (Disc, 10pm) Series Premiere – Family oil competes with the big companies. 

Wednesday

  • Franklin & Bash (TNT, 9pm) Season Premiere – Heather Locklear reprises her Melrose Place role, or you know one of her other reinvigorating personas, dumb series but you know I kind of like the banter. 
  • Hot in Cleveland/The Exes/The Soul Man (TVL, 10/10:30/11pm) Season Premieres – I still enjoy what’s basically a Golden Girls remake but pass on the others.
  • Fight Master (Spike, 10pm) Series Premiere – Elimination bouts.
  • The Soup Investigates (E!, 10:30pm) Series Premiere – What viewers want to know, if I knew what they were informing folks on I’d be tempted to watch.

Thursday

  • Wilfred (Fx, 10pm) Season Premiere – The search for Wilfred’s original owner, weird but good weird. 

Friday

  • Tripping Out with Alie & Georgia (Cook, 9:30pm) Series Premiere – Start with sampling Vegas. 

Saturday

  • 666 Park Avenue (ABC, 9pm) – Another show you may have forgotten about getting some air time. 

Sunday

  • Whodunnit? (ABC, 9pm) Series Premiere – It’s like real life Clue, or at least reality show Clue.
  • Crossing Lines (NBC, 9pm) Series Premiere – Donald Sutherland crosses national lines to solve crimes, doesn’t look revolutionary but worth a peak.
  • Drop Dead Diva/Devious Maids (Life, 9/10pm) Season/Series Premiere – I guess I canceled my season pass after they canceled it before they renewed it and then a potentially cheesy potentially culturally and sociologically stereotypical mystery soap.
  • Copper (BBCA, 10pm) Season Premiere – A new sergeant.

The procrastinator lists items that may not be on your regular season pass, though notation does not imply recommendation other than those underlined. Times noted are typically PST.

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best, tv

critics’ picks – top tv of 2012

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louieTime to get started on our year end lists! While the tv shows aren’t currently fresh, the critics’ best and award noms give you something to get ready to tune back into. I can’t personally recommend all of these shows (stay tuned for my top ten list) and as most readers know I don’t catch most of the real cable on first run (HBO, Show, Starz), but from the breadth of shows there is a little something out there for everyone. So without further ado here’s a sampling of top tv picks:

  • 2 Broke Girls (CBS) – E
  • 2012 Election  – JP
  • 30 for 30 (ESPN) – DF
  • 30 Rock (NBC) – AS, PGA, TG
  • American Horror Story: Asylum (Fx) – AFI, GG, JP, MoR, MZS
  • Archer (Fx) – MZS, TG
  • Ben and Kate (Fox) – TG
  • The Big Bang Theory (CBS) – E, MR, PGA
  • Boardwalk Empire (HBO) – GG, TG
  • Boss (Starz) – GG, TG
  • Breaking Bad (AMC) – AFI, AS, DF, JP, KT, MR, MoR,  MZS,  PGA, TG
  • Call the Midwife (PBS) – MR
  • Castle (ABC) – E
  • The Colbert Report (Com) – KT, MM
  • Coma (A&E) – MZS
  • Community (NBC) – E, MZS, TG
  • Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) – PGA
  • Dexter (Show) – MR, TG
  • Don’t Trust the B- In Apartment 23 (ABC) – TG
  • Downton Abbey (PBS) – MR, PGA
  • Enlightened (HBO) – GG
  • Episodes (Show) – GG
  • Game Change (HBO) – AFI
  • Game of Thrones (HBO) – AFI, DF, E, GG, JP, MoR, PGA, TG
  • Girls (HBO) – AFI, AS, DF, JP, KT, MR, MoR, TG
  • Glee (Fox) – E, GG
  • The Good Wife (CBS) – KT, MR
  • Gossip Girl (CW) – E
  • Happy Endings (ABC) – E, MoR
  • Hatfields & McCoys (Hist) – MZS
  • Homeland (Show) – AFI, AS, E, GG, JP, KT, MM, MR, MoR, MZS, PGA, TG
  • The Hour (BBCA) – DF, TG
  • House of Lies (Show) – TG
  • How I Met Your Mother (CBS) – E
  • It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Fx) – TG
  • Justified (Fx) – KT, TG
  • Louie (Fx) – AFI, AS, DF, JP, KT, MM, MR, MoR, MZS, PGA, TG
  • Luck (HBO) – AS, MM, MZS
  • Mad Men (AMC) – AFI, AS, DF, JP, KT, MR, MoR, MZS, PGA, TG
  • Magic City (Starz) – TG
  • The Middle (ABC) – MR
  • The Mindy Project (Fox) – E
  • Modern Family (ABC) – AFI, E, GG, PGA, TG
  • Nashville (ABC) – KT
  • New Girl (Fox) – E, GG, MoR, TG
  • On Freddie Roach (HBO) – DF
  • Once Upon a Time (ABC) – E
  • Parenthood (NBC) – AS, JP
  • Parks and Recreation (NBC) – AS, DF, E, JP, KT, MoR, TG
  • Raising Hope (Fox) – TG
  • Revenge (ABC) – E
  • Scandal (ABC) – E
  • Shameless (Show) – TG
  • Sherlock (PBS) – MM, TG
  • Sons of Anarchy (Fx) – MR, TG
  • Supernatural (CW) – E
  • Treme (HBO) – AS, DF, MZS, TG
  • The Vampire Diaries (CW) – E
  • Veep (HBO) – TG
  • The Walking Dead (AMC) – AFI, E, MM, MR, TG
  • Wilfred (Fx) – TG

AFI – AFI Television Programs of the Year, AS – Alan Sepinwall for Hitfix, DF – Dan Fienberg for Hitfix, E – E! Best Comedies and E! Best Dramas, GG – Golden Globe nomination, JP – James Poniewozik for Time, KT – Ken Tucker for Ew, MM* – Mary McNamara for LA Times, MR* – Matt Roush for TV Guide, MoR – Maureen Ryan for Huffington Post, MZS – Matt Zoller Seitz on Vulture, PGA – Producer’s Guild, TG – Tim Goodman’s Best Comedies and Dramas

* Some top votes were for categories of shows or notations to things like Clint’s chair speech and referee strike.

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