TV Reviews for the Week of Nov. 23, 2008 Pt. 2

"I was still really wrong about what I thought that was."

This is the cancellation that hurts the most. Okay, there was some whistling going on in the background that was really freaking me out. This was a good episode with an ending that seemed rushed. I’m wondering if it was supposed to be like that, or if they’re trying to come up with a decent ending before the show’s final episode.

"Y’know I hate when you sniff and smell dead stuff."

Some excellent character moments here, especially with Bones and her dad. And I liked what Sweets told Booth: he’s not a bad father because he can’t get Parker into a private school, but he would be if he didn’t beat himself up about it. I just finished watching this and I can’t remember any of the science behind the episode, but I don’t care. It’s the people and their lives that interest me, and they are interesting.

"It’s behind your barette."

The only time I’ve ever caught any of The Pickup Artist (I think that’s what it’s called) has been on The Soup or Best Week Ever, when they’re making fun of him. But this is so much better. The Pickup Artist has created a serial killer. And damn, Prentiss and Jordan were harsh on him. And does Reid have a girlfriend? Good for him!

Because of various scheduling conflicts, this is the first episode of L&O this season that I’ve been able to watch. I like Jeremy Sisto, but I’ve never been much of an Anthony Anderson fan. It was a rough episode to wrap my head around. As a parent, I definitely see the parents’ point of view. But it sounds so horrible. And didn’t SVU do this already?

I think I should have started watching that Dennis Leary fireman show when it started. I thoroughly enjoy every FX show I’ve watched: The Shield, Nip/Tuck, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Dirt, and now Sons of Anarchy. This isn’t the most intense show that FX has, but it’s definitely one of the best acted. Since the first episode when Jacks found his dad’s book, you could tell a confrontation between him and Clay was inevitable. It looks like we’ll have that next season. It’ll be interesting, if Jacks does split from the Sons, to see who goes with him and who stays with Clay.

"Two years? That’s almost three years."

Y’know how I know Tony Shaloub is a good actor? Because he can go from being Antonio the immigrant cab driver in Wings to Adrian Monk, an extremely obsessive compulsive detective scared of everything. I didn’t get into this until a couple of years ago, when Trailer Howard became Monk’s assistant. I thoroughly enjoyed her in Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Parlor and that Foo Fighters video...and she’s pretty. The show itself is slightly better than average, but I truly believe that Shaloub deserves every Emmy he’s received. Apparently Monk has a Christmas episode every year. It’s usually a few weeks before a new season starts. This had some great gags with Monk dealing with bums, Captain Stotlemeyer (who many may remember as Buffalo Bob from Silence of the Lambs) as a monk, and Disher with a mustache. Good primer for when the show returns in a few weeks.

"You have cooties on your face!"

This is probably the best original show that the USA Network has. Gus (the West Wing’s Dule Hill) is a great straight man to Shawn Spencer’s smart mouth and his excellence in observing the mundane. The stories are rather simple, but it’s the characters that I like and how they interact with each other. I’m finding that I’ll sacrifice story or believability if the characters are really engaging. As with Monk, this was a Christmas special. Shawn hooks up with Gus’ sister, and they solve a murder. Merry Christmas!

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Listening to: Avenue Q - There Is Life Outside Your Apartment
via FoxyTunes

TV Reviews for the Week of Sept. 7, 2008

Prison Break

Another good episode. I particularly liked the change in dynamic between Alex and Lincoln. It wasn’t abrupt or arbitrary; it formed a link between the two, a bridge of empathy that gave Linc another reason to fight. I’m very intrigued as to what T-Bag is going to do. So far his story is hilarious and awesome. Michael is actually the least interesting person to me. He’s too good at everything, and he’s too damn morose. Maybe having Sarah back will loosen him up a bit.

Fringe

A show about Fringe science. It’s X-Files, except with science instead of monsters and aliens. If it were based in Britain, if everyone smoked and cussed and were wholly unlikable, I’d say this was a Warren Ellis comic book come to life. I want this show to succeed, I really, really do. But since it’s on Fox, I have very little hope that it will. Except for X-Files, Fox has a habit of not carrying genre-specific shows all that long (see Millennium, Dark Angel, Firefly…to name a few). This also has me worried for Dollhouse, but we’ll cross that bridge later in the season. For now, I’ll be a faithful watcher, and I hope to get blown away by some of the ideas that might be brought up in the show.

The Shield

It’s the seventh and final season, and I can’t remember ever watching a bad episode of this show. There’s not much I can say that won’t end up sounding like a broken record week after week after week. I was impressed with Billings this week. Dutch got under his skin last week, and he gave it back in spades this week. And it was thanks to him that the case they were working got solved. I guess he’s not quite the joke everybody thinks he is, or does everybody think exactly what he wants them to think?

Bones

It’s no reflection on the show that I almost fell asleep half-way through it. I’ve got a three-month-old son…I blame him. It was a perfectly fine episode. A little gross, what with all the feces. But I loved Booth busting up two of Brennan’s dates, especially the scene in the diner with Sweets tagging along. It’s good to see Boreanaz in a non-broody role.

Sons of Anarchy

Another good episode. Katy Segal is, wow, she’s a far cry from Peggy Bundy or her character from 8 Simple Rules. She’s sexy, and she’s cold, and she’s calculating. I’m wondering what happened to her husband, Jacks’ dad. I wouldn’t be surprised if she and Ron Perlman’s character had something to do with it in order to take over leadership of the Sons of Anarchy. The show isn’t as hardcore as The Shield, but I think it has the ability to become as hardcore. This episode they use some dead bodies to fake a crime scene, in order to throw off the investigation into the deaths of the women at the gun stash house.

Monk

“Do you have seven dimes and a nickel or three quarters or a hammer?” In order to finally cure himself of all of his phobias and psychological problems, Monk gets hypnotized and ends up believing he’s a child again. Tony Shalub is consistently nominated for a Best Actor emmy for his role as Adrian Monk, and while the show is pretty average, Tony does deserve all of his accolades. I’ve always said you can tell a good actor by how he plays a character that is mentally challenged. Leonardo DiCaprio in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,” Tom Hanks in “Forrest Gump,” Brad Pitt in “12 Monkeys,” and I’ve been told Cuba Gooding, Jr. was very good in “Radio.” When you can believe that the actor might actually be afflicted with the handicap he’s portraying, instead of just being a caricature of the subject being portrayed. Did that make any sense? It did in my head. Monk is a great character, and when Tony plays him as a child in this episode, it only reinforces the praise for his acting skills. He’s come a long way from immigrant cab driver Antonio on “Wings.”

Psyche

This has been a great second season to a smart and funny show. Last year it was all about the quirky cases and kooky antics of Shawn Spencer. This year still has the quirky cases and kooky antics, but he’s being more responsible. He’s being a bit more vulnerable. This episode, just for a flash, we saw a bit of fear and anger that Gus was inside the bank during the hostage situation. We saw it when his uncle came to visit, and we saw it last week when Jules went undercover. So there’s more to Mr. Spencer than being observant and witty. Nice. I’m looking forward to its return.