November sweeps is upon us, which means a lot of stunts, special episodes and probably a few guest stars. And then after that we will probably get the usual December reruns and such. November is one of my favorite months of television and this week kind of showed why, in a few different ways.
10. Melrose Place- I guess I should just admit to myself that I am liking this show. It is such a terrible thing to admit, but I cannot help it! Riley and Jonah are the supposed sweet perfect couple, but since they became engaged, they have both kissed other people. Oh Soap Operas! Plus, the hot girl doctor is still moonlighting as a hooker and Ashlee Simpson is still crazy and the murder mystery is getting closer to being solved. This week had a whole lot going on, but mostly I just love Ella. Katie Cassidy is so much fun to watch as the bad girl/good girl and it is the best character on the new version. She is similar to the Heather Locklear character and I am excited to see when they cross paths. The show could still be a bit sexier, in my opinion, but this is the third week David has been hooking up with some random chick to begin the episode, so that is good. Also, there was a really nice twist at the end that should set up the culmination of the first "arc" of the season.
9. The Vampire Diaries- To be honest, I expected this to be higher this week because I love shows that introduce characters from the past and when that character is a sexy 300 yr old vampire, well, it should have been better. However, the show once again killed someone I did not expect to be killed. It is actually pretty exciting, if you think about it. Kevin Williamson may not be writing the scripts anymore, but you can certainly see his fingerprints all over the pacing and the beats of the script in this show. There are Bon Jovi references, articulate arguments and the kind of hipster attitude that Williamson has relished in. Plus, Ian Somerholder is really having a blast as the bad vampire and he delivers the line "Duh, I'm a vampire" with such glee that it is hard not to get wrapped up in it. Like Melrose I think the show should be a bit sexier, but I think it will come with time. Also, I love the witch stuff almost more than the vampire stuff.
8. So you Think you Can Dance- From the very first audition, Legacy was my favorite dancer because his break dancing is effing insane. It had nothing to do with his personality or anything else, just his break dancing. As the Las Vegas week went on, I was worried that he was not strong enough in other areas. But his personality started to show through and I started to like him even more. He is genuinely touched by great dancing and seemed moved by Mia Michaels choreography. So this week, when he just nailed a gorgeous routine, I was so damn happy I could barely stand it. The routine was gorgeously choreographed and brilliantly danced by the couple that has quickly become my favorite underdogs. Every week I watch this show, I cannot believe it took me so long to find it.
7. How I met your Mother- Okay, I have to be honest, my patience is starting to be tested with this show. This show has fallen into the trap that befalls too many shows, they started listening to the most vocal fans. There was such a giant faction of fans who wanted Robin and Barney together and so the creators gave them to us, and now they are overloading us with them. That being said, the episode was still funny, because I love these characters so much and the show is so good at staying true to these characters. Marshall is easily swayed by Barney's words, Marshall and Lilly are supposed to be the perfect couple, Ted is the rational one and Robin and Barney want to live in a fantasy land where problems do not exist. All of that existed in this episode, but the highlight, as it often is in HIMYM, is the HIMYM-isms. A few seasons ago, "eating a sandwich" was code for smoking weed. This week "Playing the bagpipes" became code for having sex. I am still waiting for the show to get back on track, but at least it is staying true to these characters I love.
6. Modern Family- So this was without question my least favorite episode of this show, that was saved by Cameron's video taping and then the cutesy ice skating routine we got to witness. The Manny fencing storyline was funny until they just went too overboard with the girl he was fighting against. I mean making her an orphan and all that nonsense just pushed the limits that I am willing to go with any show, but every time it cut away from that, it was pretty good. I love the Cameron and Mitchel interview scenes, always and then this week we were treated to more Julie Bowen sexiness than we have been allowed to see on this show. The woman is so damn pretty and they have her playing a sometimes too stuffy mother, but this week she let loose and we got a hilarious ice skating routine, without the skates. But the clincher, was the tag at the end with Cameron and Mitchell. If I sound like I am repeating myself, well, too bad. I love those two guys!
5. Californication- I feel like this is my favorite season even though there is not nearly as much sex as I would like. Hank Moody's life is unraveling, but finally he is slowly coming to terms with it. His daughter and love of his life are at constant odds and Hank has other women in his life who want a part of him. Having the mother of his child visit the show this week reminded me why I am glad Karen is gone. I love the actress and the character, but there is something about it that just does not work any longer. I liked that Rick Springfield appeared as himself in the episode and then what I really loved was the final few moments of Moody and the obnoxious daughter. It was the sad reality that I think Hank needed to hear and maybe, just maybe, the daughter will stop being so freaking obnoxious for a little while. The show, i think, works better when she and Hank have a good working relationship, but maybe this conflict was needed.
4. Grey's Anatomy- Again, this show is at its best when the romantic stuff is caused by the doctor stuff. I get so tired of the bickering, but when it comes from the medical stuff, it works for me and this week had all kinds of it. Yes, this episode was setting everyone up for tears by having the entire episode involve young patients, but it also meant sooo much Arizona Robbins, my definite favorite character and to watch her tell off the chief and maybe help the chief to see how much of an asshole he has been. The Owen and Christina stuff was not as interesting to me, but I know the fans love it, but for me, Arizona is becoming the heart of this show in my eyes. She has such warmth and strength and is so graceful and beautiful and so in love. I like the new girl with the short hair falling for Alex and the Alex stuff has become really interesting, as we see him broken down, but fighting and fighting hard. It is awesome to see.
3. FlashForward- The Famous Jett Jackson gets his day in the sun and I should have known this was not going to end well for him. The pacing this week was phenomenal, switching between the stories effortlessly and giving us some more insight into all the lives of the characters. Demitri and his fiance are finally on the same page, but no one else really seems to be. I liked the idea of the Ghosts in this episode and how people who saw no future are just doing whatever they want because they really believe they will not be alive in 6 months. I hope we get a little more of that stuff and I think we will because it filled another spot on Joseph Fiennes big board of crap. I keep expecting to get frustrated by the show, but I am not. Every week we get a sliver of the puzzle, which keeps me coming back for more each week. I was really impressed by Jett Jackson's very subtle acting choices and I really feel the show might suffer for a little while without him.
2. Dexter- John Lithgow and Michael C. Hall spent most of this episode together. Honestly, that is pretty freaking brilliant. In fact, if nothing else had existed inside this episode, it would have been just fine with me. I could watch these two go at it for 57 minutes no problem. Again, I choose not to say too much about the stuff that actually happens in the episode, but I just want to say that this show finds a way to get better and better every week. Rita is kind of annoying, but she toned it down this week and we got a whole new little set out of it. I am so interested to see where this season is going, because I think it is going to be one hell of a final few episodes.
1. Supernatural- In the opening I discussed Sweeps stunts, well Supernatural fully embraced that this week, by parodying television. A character that pops up every so often is The Trickster, who is a demi-God, and this Trickster can create anything he wants and this week he stuck Sam and Dean in television shows. So we saw Supernatural as a sitcom, complete with hilarious title sequence and song and we saw a wonderful Grey's Anatomy parody complete with a girl who just said "seriously" all the time and we got a Japanese game show, a herpes commercial, Knight Rider and my favorite, CSI: Miami parody. The guys had the shades, the cheesy lines and everything else that goes along with all of the parodies, really. It was a perfectly executed episode that started off full of the comic flare this show has when the time is right and then getting deadly serious, as it always does. Finding the perfect balance between goofy comedy and serious monologues has always been one of the Strong suits of this show and this week proves that. It was hilarious, but it helped move the season along and also showed why Sam and Dean are pretty much the most heroic dudes ever.
No comments:
Post a Comment