Summer Television begins June/July: White Collar, Covert Affairs, Weeds and Rizzoli & Isles...

SUMMER TELEVISION IS COMING BACK...

what to watch & when to watch it

I am really, really ready for it to be summer. And not because I want it to stop being so cold in Boston (though that is obviously a major benefit) but because lots of my favorite shows are coming back on! I'm not sure why, but I find that there often tend to be far more must-watch shows in the summer than during the rest of the year. Here are the shows I'm most excited about:
White Collar
Another one of those ridiculous crime investigative shows that I'm about to make clear the cable networks are riddled with, "White Collar" is still worth watching. It centers around the relationship between a FBI agent (Tom DeKay) and a con artist (Matt Bomer). The show reminds me of a post-chase version of "Catch Me If You Can", if the Leonardo DiCaprio character had agreed to start working for Tom Hanks. I like this show because while it doesn't take itself too seriously, it also is intelligent enough that you don't always know where it's taking you. Certainly worth a try.
The 3rd season of "White Collar" premieres on June 7th at 9 pm


Covert Affairs
Despite that fact that this show is also completely ridiculous in premise, I find it incredibly addicting. The show focuses on the work/love life of Annie (Piper Perabo) a skilled linguist who has just (last season!) been hired by the CIA. In typical 'this would only ever happen on television' form, Annie goes on all kinds of secret missions. Is it kind of cheesy? Yes. But it also has enough depth that you really feel for the characters. And I want to know why Annie's ex-boyfriend, who she discovered at the end of last season is an ex-CIA operative, is, you know, an ex-CIA operative. Plus, the cases are the perfect amount of summer t.v. fluff.
"Covert Affairs" returns to USA on June 7th at 10 pm


Weeds
One of my favorite shows, and one of the reasons I am constantly hating the fact that I don't have Showtime, "Weeds" is a must-see. Mary-Louise Parker plays a widowed mother raising two teenage boys and a new baby. Oh, and because her husband's death leaves her destitute she makes the obvious decision to turn to drug dealing. With a sexy yet dangerous ex-husband chasing her, the love of her dead husband's brother getting in her way, and a son who may or may not be a sociopath, "Weeds" could be a pure soap opera. Somehow, it manages to avoid being completely cheesy and predictable, perhaps because it is willing to go to darker and darker places, sometimes avoiding humor all together.
"Weeds" is back on Showtime June 27th at 10 pm


Rizzoli & Isles
If you read my blog at all you know that I am obsessed with this show. It centers around a Boston homicide detective (Angie Harmon) and a medical examiner (Sasha Alexander) who have one of those "unlikely" friendships that television shows are so crazy about. The show mixes just the right amount of gore with humor, and it's more like "Bones" than "CSI". Still, its cases manage to be slightly less ridiculous in premise than "Bones", despite the fact that the star medical examiner has a giant pet turtle that wanders freely around her apartment.
"Rizzoli & Isles" returns to TNT on Monday, July 11th at 10 pm