The Goodwin Games: Yay or Nay?

Execs at CBS certainly didn't think 'The Goodwin Games' had the "it" factor. After all, the show wasn't picked up the fall schedule, even though CBS chose to pick up four other new comedies.

Now that the show's been relegated to the summer line-up it seems like it's a lost cause. So why watch it?

Thank God for Summer Television

I spent shockingly little time watching television this past year. 

 

Since we all know that's a blatant lie let me rephrase--my commitment and enthusiasm for watching shows live declined dramatically. The only shows that I watched as they aired were 'Castle' and 'How I Met Your Mother'. Don't ask me why those specific shows won out, because I honestly don't have an answer.

Now, however, it's finally summer and while (since adulthood) that doesn't mean my workload is any less than it is during the rest of the year, the annoying heat and rampant mosquitoes will encourage me to watch more TV as it airs. Lucky you!

What shows am I planning on watching and/or already watching?

New TLC Shows

There are a couple of new shows that TLC has chosen to produce that haven't been marketed yet. Until they get an official airdate, there's no guarantee that they'll be coming to our TVs, but here are a few shows that you might be able to watch soon:

Summer TV: 2012 Edition

It's June 1st today (officially summer!) and that means it's time for the start of summer television.

Here's what to watch, and when to watch it:

Dance Moms, Christi vs. Melissa

"Dance Moms"--Stealing the Show

Does anyone else have a massive problem with Christi? For one thing, who in the world thinks it's appropriate to yell at lots of other people in front of a group of your children and theirs. Apparently Christi thinks it is perfectly fine, and that really worries me. I am concerned about the impact it has not only on her child, but on all the other children as well. And it certainly did have an impact, almost every girl who was in the room when Christi started to scream burst into tears.

Christi also has unreasonable requests. She wanted Melissa's daughter Maddie to only dance one solo (and not two) because all of the other girls in the troupe were only dancing one solo. However, as both Abby and Melissa explained, Maddie has an extra private tap lesson once a week, and the second solo she was dancing was choreographed by that teacher within the confines of that class. Christi claimed that Maddie should only dance one solo because it gave her an "unfair advantage" in terms of increasing her chances to win. But these dance competitions aren't based on quantity. Christi may not want to believe this, but even if her daughter (Chloe) had danced three separate solos I don't think she would have beat Maddie. Maddie, this week at least, was a more technically perfect dancer. You just have to see how Chloe fumbled during her dance to see that. So, who in the world cares about the number of dances each child does?? It truly does not increase their chances. In fact, I would say that the more dances a child has the more likely it is that she will lose, because she is having to remember double the material accurately.

However, that is not to say that I have no problems with Melissa. After Maddie and Chloe had gone on stage to receive awards, and Maddie had won, Melissa provoked Christi by turning to her and saying, "Still undefeated! Aren't you happy?". When she knew how upset Christi was about Maddie's two solos (regardless of whether that was justified or not) I don't see why she felt the need to continue to antagonize another mother.

Now onto Kelly and her daughter, Paige. They did repeatedly ask Maddie's mom (Melissa) for Paige's dance music. And she didn't get it until 8 pm on the night before the competition. Regardless of how hard the music was to get, that is completely unreasonable. She is a nine-year-old child, and she is supposed to dance successfully based only on counts? Please. Kelly certainly has a point that someone dropped a ball, and we all saw how badly that turned out. Paige froze on stage. And Abby, rather typically, blamed Paige! She was not as well prepared as the other girls, because she did not have her music in time, and that showed.

Finally, I agree with all of the mothers that doing a six hour Acro class the night before a competition is lunancy. However, I also agreed with Abby (this is truly shocking!) that if the children didn't know it at that point they wouldn't know it. Still, I think it would have been far better to run each child through her dance once, and then to send her home to rest before the competition. The mothers are wrong that their children need endless practice in their routines before competition, but Abby is wrong that they need endless practice in something new. Don't make them practice! Let them actually get some sleep.

wednesdays are for reality tv

Reality Television Night

I'm really not a big fan of reality television. I think most of it is incredibly junky, and I have an especially hard time watching other people suffer on screen. It's bad enough when it's scripted.

Regardless, summer is a time when I do tend to watch more reality television, more out of necessity then anything else. Unfortunately, almost all of my favorites air at the exact same time on Wednesday nights.

Here are my top 4 favorites (in no particular order):

1. Toddlers & Tiaras
TLC, Wednesdays, 10 pm
Each week's episode follows 3 different girls and their mothers as they prepare for a beauty pageant, and then compete. Pretty shocking stuff (fake tans on two-year-olds, false teeth on three-year-olds, acrylic nails on toddlers) combined with ridiculously inappropriate on stage antics pairs for a train wreck worth watching.

2. Love in the Wild
NBC, Wednesdays, 10 pm

Can't stand kids? Well, 'Love in the Wild' doesn't have any. Instead it's a show that focuses on a group of twenty-somethings thrown into a jungle in Costa Rica. Oh, and they all work (and sleep!) in pairs with a member of the opposite sex. At the end of each episode they can choose to stay with that week's partner or switch to someone "better" (aka hotter). I like this show because the contestants' quirks and flaws shine far more realistically when they're completing a realistic nature challenge (i.e. building a raft to get across a river infested with crocodiles, or climbing down rope ladders into caves filled with bats) than it ever will on 'The Bachelor'.

3. Dance Moms
Lifetime, Wednesdays, 10 pm
This show is clearly mimicking the successful model of 'Toddlers & Tiaras', but that doesn't make it any less compelling. It follows a group of pre-teen competitive dancers and their controlling mothers. Actually, the only one who's less intense than these moms is their dance teacher. Each episode begins with the children preparing for the weekend's dance competition, and ends with their competitive dance number. Well worth watching for the drama alone, plus the dancing actually is pretty impressive.

4. The Glee Project
Oxygn, Sunday, 9 pm
This show isn't exactly inspired. It's a competition show much like many that have come before it. Teenagers, lured by the chance to have a 7 episode arc on 'Glee', live together in dorms and compete daily in different singing/dancing/acting challenges. At the end of each episode the 3 weakest competitors are asked to sing for 'Glee's' creator (Ryan Murphy), who choose one to eliminate. There's just something about watching talented, but slightly whiny, teenagers compete that I find oddly compelling (probably because I'm not in high school anymore).

Rizzoli & Isles Season 2 Premiere "We Need Another Hero"

'Rizzoli & Isles' finally premiered tonight at 10 pm on TNT.

I don't want to ruin too much for you, so please stop reading now to avoid spoilers.

'Rizzoli & Isles' opened with Rizzoli still recovering from her injury that happened at the end of last season (where she saved her brother by shooting herself. It's complicated. Watch Season 1 and maybe it will be clarified). And by recovering we really mean whining. Of course Isles is there trying to help her recover. And pointing out, in what can only be compared to typical Brennan ('Bones') fashion, that her pain isn't real anymore because it's not medically possible.

Now, lets talk about the men. Once again the show managed to introduce romantic possiblities for our main characters. Rizzoli was approached by Charles (her ex-boyfriend from high school) about 15 minutes into the episode, and two seconds later we learned that Isles was dating Rizzoli's surgeon. But don't worry, the writers aren't going to ruin the possibility for future romance (I'm talking heteronormative romance here, even though I love the insinuations of less heteronormative assignations). Charles was gone (I'm guessing temporarily) by the end of the episode because his leave time was over. And Isles realized that her surgeon boyfriend was as pompous as Rizzoli had said he was.

The thriller/mystery plots are all right, but nowhere near as detailed or intelligent as many of the other criminal justice shows out there ('NCIS', 'Law and Order: SVU, etc.). Still, Alexander and Harmon's ability to act so seamlessly together, and to have what appears to be a realistic friendship on-screen, is the true reason that the show is successful. Their chemistry makes the show's writing seem stronger than it is...in this episode the buddy cop conversations continued (see my prior post with quotes) and that really helped the episode move along.

I'm not going to tell you what the solution to the mystery was, but if you haven't figured it out before the detectives do you've missed some major hints. Or you've just been distracted by Rizzoli & Isles brilliant quips.

If you missed the episode tonight you can catch it tomorrow (July 12) at 12 am on TNT.

Top Quotes from Rizzoli & Isles Season 2 Premiere

Top Quotes/Quips from "Rizzoli and Isles" Season 2 Episode 1

'We Need Another Hero'

Top Islesism
sarcastic I need to learn how men compartmentalize!--Rizzoli
serious They simply separate things into different compartments.--Isles

Top Gay Moment
sarcastic "Why don't you mind your own buisness?"--Rizzoli
serious "You are my buisness."--Isles

Top "What a minute, is this 'Bones'?"
asking for advice "What do you do when fear is killing you?"--Rizzoli
serious "Well, it's very hard to die from fear unless you have a congenital heart condition".--Isles

Top Straight Moment
Rizzoli's mother opens her daughter's bedroom door only to see Rizzoli in bed with her ex-boyfriend from high school (Charles). She stares.
"Hey, Mrs. Rizzoli"--Charles
disparaging "Hello. Charles."--Mama Rizzoli
cut to...
"So, too sick to wash the dishes, but not too sick to have intercourse."--Mama Rizzoli

Top "You're like my girlfriend!"
"Dr. Isles offered me her guest house"--Rizzoli's mom
cut to...Rizzoli talking to Isles
"Are you crazy? You bought this guest house for your mother, not mine! ...Why are you doing this?"--Rizzoli
"Because she's your mother."--Isles

Top "Huh, this show's basically 'Bones'...lets end it with a cute convo between our two lead actors"
"You guessed!"--Rizzoli
"I did not guess."--Isles
"Dr. Isles gueesssed. Dr. Isles guessseed"--Rizzoli
pause
"I did not!"--Isles
"Did too!"--Rizzoli
"Did not"--Isles
cut to credits

read my analysis of the season 2 premiere episode HERE.

Rizzoli & Isles Season 2 Premiere

When is the Rizzoli & Isles Season 2 Premiere?

Tonight!

At 10 pm on TNT.

I'll be watching it, will you?

Check back tomorrow for my analysis.

It's Summer...What Are You Going to Watch?

What You Should Be Watching This Summer:

Now that summer's fully upon us (official June 21st!) what are you planning on watching while your favorite shows are on hiatus? Find some of my recommendations for live TV viewing and Netflix browsing below:



Mondays

1) Rizzoli & Isles. Premieres July 11th. Mondays 10/9 c on TNT.

Harmon (from 'Desperate Housewives') as a homicide detective. Alexander (from 'Dawson's Creek' and 'NCIS') as a medical examiner. They solve cases. They're best friends. There's homoerotic tension if you want to look for it.

2) Weeds. Premieres June 27th. Mondays 10/9 c on Showtime.
Marie-Louise Parker. Marijuana dealer. Mother to three. If you're going to watch this you have to play catch up first.

Tuesdays

2) Covert Affairs. Tuesdays 10/9 C on USA.

CIA. Hot female spy. Sexy James Bond lite. Enough said.

Wednesdays

3) Toddlers & Tiaras. Wednesday 10/9 c on TLC.

Ridiculous pageant moms and their children. Watch them 'train'. Watch them 'compete'. Watch the horror of child beauty pageants while sitting on the edge of your seat.

4) Damages. Wednesdays 10/9 c on DIRECTV.
Reality TV not really your thing? Watch Glen Close as a manipulative lawyer, and Rose Byne as her equally devious, slightly more genuine, younger counterpart.

Netflix It Anytime

5) Better Off Ted. Netflix.
If you missed this when it was on the air catch up with it right away. Crazy R&D firm. Portia de Rossi as an insensitive yet hilarious boss. Science nerds, children, and love interests.

6) Arrested Development. Netflix.
I know, I'm really pushing de Rossi's work. But this is pure genius. Watch it at least 3 times to get all the hidden subtext. Zany family, criminal charges, Michael Cera, and the most ridiculous plot you've ever seen. Plus, it has four characters all named some combination of George/Michael. How can you not love it?

7) Wonderfalls. DVD.
Recent Brown graduate works retail. Inanimate animals talk to her. They help her solve people's problems. Add a hot bartender/potential boyfriend and a hilarious closeted lesbian sister and you've got a must-watch.

8) Bones. Netflix.
Rewatch seasons 1-4 (all available on Netflix) and then somehow get your hands on season 5 and 6. Rewatch before November premiere date of season 7. Find the subtext. Reevaluate the writers...maybe they're not all crazy?

9) Law and Order: SVU. Netflix.
Crime, Benson, Stabler. It's all there. With 248 episodes you can really keep summer boredom at bay.

10) Parks and Recreation. Netflix.
Amy Poehler. Ridiculous local government. Rashida Jones. Oh, and did I mention Amy Poehler?

11) 30 Rock. Netflix.
Tina Fey. Alec Baldwin. Behind the scenes of an SNL-like show. Plus Jane Krakowski. Oh, and did I mention Tina Fey?

12) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the series). Netflix.
Because it's a cultural milestone. With a spunky ex-cheerleader and her quirky friends. Oh and said ex-cheerleader kills demons. Plus, early (note: hot) David Boreanaz.

"Love Bites": But will this new show bite the dust?

"Love Bites"
get it?

I just watched the series' premiere of "Love Bites" on Hulu. That fact alone is a little concerning. I do watch quite a bit of television live, but I somehow never saw a preview for "Love Bites". Advertising plays a large role (second only to a good time slot) in helping a new show get off the ground. Networks need to realize that "30 Rock" is an exception not a rule ("It's on at 8:30!...9!...or 10!?"). We've seen brilliant shows fail time and time again due to poor time slots and poor advertising ("Arrested Development"? "Better Off Ted"?). Unfortunately, I don't think that "Love Bites" is a brilliant show. It really is going to need quite a lot of help from the network to remain become successful.

"Love Bites" is a show that is broken up (a la Frasier) with titles spliced between different yet interconnected stories. Its title is a joke..."Love Bites" because sometimes it sucks! "Love also Bites" because it's lot of little stories (or bites if you will) about love! Get it? Yeah...but I'm not really sure that's all that clever.

Regardless. The show could prove interesting. The characters that I like the best are the guy who got fired (Dan?) and his fiancee (Colleen?). I'm a tad concerned that I watched a full 45 minutes and don't know what any of the characters are called. This is evidently a major issue with the 'lots of interconnected stories' (aka anthology series) arrangement.

I was most interested in the Jennifer Love Hewitt plays Jennifer Love Hewitt scene, and how Judd (that one is definitely right!) interacted. Unfortunately I think that was just a guest appearance, and I really doubt she's coming back. If she was, I'd be way more likely to watch.

Speaking of watching, I just noticed episode 2 is on Hulu! I'm going to give it a try...maybe this show will prove worth watching after all.

covert affairs: summer television returns (or will they really have affairs? will auggie and annie hook-up?)

I apologize for taking so long to post. Apparently the season of weddings is upon us, and consuming all of my free time. With that said...

Covert Affairs:
Annie, Ben, & Auggie

Finally, summer television is upon us! As much as I miss "Bones" and "Grey's" (note: a lot) I do have a few favorite shows that appear during regular season hiatus. While "Covert Affairs" isn't at the top of that list, I do find it light, fluffy summer fun.

"Covert Affairs" is about the life of Annie Walker, a new CIA agent recruited for her stellar language abilities, and for the fact that her ex-boyfriend (now current) boyfriend, was an ex (now current) CIA operative. Sound confusing? It might be if you haven't watched last season. So, I suggest you do that....now! Why the urgency? Because season 2 of "Covert Affairs" premiered on Tuesday, and you can spend this weekend catching up so that you're only an episode behind. Oh, and this week's episode is online so as soon as you've caught up with last season you can watch that too.

Now, some slight spoilers (only if you haven't watched last season): Annie spent all of season 1 desperately in love with Ben. But, it's clear that she never really knew who he was, and that love may be built on an imagined persona rather than his true one. Now that he's back, but seemingly out of the picture, will she continue to moon over him for the entirety of this season?

What I find particularly confusing is the dynamic that Annie and Auggie (ugh, I wish their names weren't so similar) have. Annie (Piper Perabo) relies on Auggie (Christopher Gorham) on a daily basis, and they are clearly close friends. Auggie's blindness doesn't get in the way of their case solving abilities or their friendship, but it seems to serve as a romantic relationship buffer. It is as though his disability stops him from being a true romantic interest on the show. I'm not sure where I get this vibe from (any suggestions?) but somehow the way that the show is currently written/acted keeps me from seeing any semblance of a romantic future for the two of them. This surprises me because on most shows on television the male and female lead characters (and that is really what Annie and Auggie are) have at least the spark of a possible romance. Will the writers try to add this in during season 2? Or is "Covert Affairs" the only show on television where a platonic relationship between the leads is really possible?

What do you think? Will Auggie and Annie hook up?

Also, does anyone else think of Seth's dad on "The OC" every time they see Peter Gallagher? That poor man.

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