television recap (Oct.25-31)

I am coming at this a day late, I apologize. My Halloween weekend was much busier than my weekends usually are. A few of the shows I watch were on hiatus this week, this might look a tad bit different than normal in some aspects.

10. So you think you can dance- Putting Russell in the bottom totally shocked me, but I get it. He is going to be a fan favorite, I think, so it was good he did not go home, but it was worth it to watch him dance his solo. I tend to fall on the side of liking really aggressive looking dancing, especially hip-hop and it does not get much more aggressive than Russell's brand of crumping. He straight up killed it. I also loved Monday's show because all 3 hip-hop dancers were in a dance together. Legacy's breaking is ridiculous and I hope I get to see some more kick ass hip-hop this season!

9. The Vampire Diaries- The show gets points for putting the sexy female lead in a sexy nurse costume, but loses points for putting a witch in a witch costume and a vampire in a vampire costume. However, the episode was pretty well done aside from that. They killed off a character and it was kind of gruesome. I am used to seeing vampires disappearing after being staked, but this one just shriveled up and died. It was cool, but it also means the girl could return in some way or other. I also liked that the show is giving away a little bit of mythology with the witch, the necklace and the compass. It is moving a little slowly for my tastes, but the slow build could lead to a big sexy pay off. At least that is my hope.

8. Community- The Halloween episode this week is the funniest episode of this show since the pilot. Chevy Chase on a drug trip while dressed as the Beastmaster was priceless. Then you have Abed as batman and thinking he might actually be batman, complete with voice over narration at the end and of course you have Jeff giving up sex to help his friends. Oh and Ken Jeong was in the episode so it is hard to not enjoy that. It feels a little one note at times, but I think this episode made it work for me. However, the best part of the show is often the tag at the very end of every episode, usually between the same two characters every week. it is almost always some kind of nonsense and this week it was the two guys talking in their batman voices worrying that if they were made of doughnuts they would just eat themselves.

7. The Office- The episode was pretty funny, with Michael falling in the water and all of the jokes, but honestly the opening was my favorite. Michael wanted to put on a haunted house for a group of children and Craig Robinson is pushing the kids through and failing miserably to guess what any of the workers are dressed as, but the kicker in the bad haunted house is when Michael appears to have hanged himself and actually freaks the kids out. It was not quite as good as last year's everyone was dressed as The Joker opening, but The Office is not exactly the great show it used to be. This was a really funny open and it was also had really knowing character moments, especially for Michael.

6. Californication- Hank Moody sends his daughter to New York for a weekend and in comes Moody's BFF from his high school days. I enjoy episodes where a character from the past visits because it gives us insight into who our favorite characters were before we met them. Moody was also more emotionally open to this friend than he is to anyone, which was interesting to see. There was a lot of strong writing in the episode and then it had the BIG kicker at the end of the episode which is really going to make the rest of the season a whole bunch of fun. I am curiously drawn to this Hank Moody character because his life is a lot like mine except he actually has sex with all of the girls, I just admire them from afar, but we both find beauty in all women. It makes me think that if I looked like David Ducovney I would get sex all of the time. I like that!

5. Grey's Anatomy- I don't know why, but I am really liking the episodes with less Meredith and Izzie. Christina and Owen are always a joy to watch and Lexie has kind of become a favorite, well after Arizona. Arizona going off a bit on the chief was kind of a high point and I want to be a lesbian just so I can be with her. But this episode was all Derek and his sad eyes, which this week became all sexy intense eyes. He was going to save that man's life someway some how and it was all in his eyes. SIGH. I liked seeing an episode from Derek's perspective and I thought his voice overs were interesting, not to say Meredith's aren't, but Derek's are more confident, assured and mature. I could always use more Dr. Bailey and less Chief at this moment, but maybe it is how it needs to be. Here is to hoping for more McDreamy episodes.

4. Modern Family- Every week after this show is over I wish I lived next to a wonderful gay couple with a little Vietnamese baby. Mitchell and Cameron are far and away my new favorite couple on television. They are totally adorable and this week when they locked the baby in the car and Cameron was going to throw a trash can through the car window, I nearly died from laughing so hard. The rest of the characters are funny too and the first week of school theme was nice and it was great to see an episode that did not end with the entire family together. But no matter what happens, Cameron and Mitchell continue to make this show for me. I love how prissy they are and how in love they seem. They have the funniest lines and this week was no different. This show really has the most laughs of any show I have watched in quite some time.

3. FlashForward- The Blue Hand episode was AWESOME! Using Halloween was a nice idea and how intense did the show get in so many areas this week. First the little autistic boy ended up in a house he doesn't know until the future which really ramped up the drama in the house of our favorite Alcoholic F.B.I agent. Then, Harold and The Famous Jett Jackson go on a tour of Baltimore Street, which looks as ghetto as the actual Baltimore and come up on a creepy house, with dead bodies that have blue on their hands, which is equally creepy. I loved all of the confrontations, but the winner of the week is Joseph Fiennes chasing a group of masked kids into a creepy cemetery, on Halloween to a kick ass Halloween style song. The show is doing a good job of keeping up the pacing while slowly letting the story unravel. I stopped worrying about how this show lasts more than a year and am just enjoying the ride!

2. Supernatural- Oh Poker, how I love you in television and movies. For some reason it just always works for me. It has so much intensity when done properly. It was done properly this week because the stakes were much higher than money. The chips represented years of life! Awesome premise, right? We got a sexy witch, Dean aging 40 years and being played by an awesome older actor with Dean's perfect attitude and Sam getting to be the hero, which is always a nice change of pace for the show. We also got some great serious conversational moments and finally got more than a tiny glimpse into who Bobby is now that he is wheelchair bound. It was a bit heart breaking in all honesty, but this show balances the scary and the serious better than most before it, then when you add in the humor, you have the perfect Kyle television cocktail.

1. Dexter- HOLY CRAP!!!! I cannot say too much for fear of spoiling it all for Taylor, who is my most faithful reader/only commenter, but I just want to say the final two minutes of this episode were shocking, subtle and AMAZING!! The rest of the episode was not slouchy in any way either. We got brutal violence, a nice intense semi-chase, great Dexter quips and Dexter's ghost dad getting in some serious work. There really is not a slow moment in this season as far as the main story is concerned. The Rita stuff is getting a bit tiresome, which was my worry about the season, but the John Lithgow stuff is so damn good, I am willing to forgive the Rita stuff. Oh and a hot topless girl writhing around in orgasm does not hurt in any way shape or form. Keep on being awesome Dexter. I need you in my life!