TV Time: What's Currently on My Sched...

So it's been some time since I did I what I'm watching post, and since we've now entered mid-season programing I felt the need to update:

Monday

8pm
Bones (starting 4/2)

9pm
Hart of Dixie
Alcatraz
Touch (starting 3/19)

10pm
Castle


Tuesday

9pm
The River

Wednesday

9:30pm
Apartment 23 (starting 4/11)

10pm
Revenge
Psych (starting 2/29)
The Soup

Thursday

8pm
Community (starting 3/15)

9pm
The Finder

10pm
Archer
Awake (starting 3/1)

Scandal (starting 4/5)

ON DEMAND
Face Off
The Voice
Comic Book Men


Interestingly enough I watch most of my reality competitions On Demand. In fact I just started watching The Voice this weekend while I sick in bed, mostly because I realized that I knew three contestants on it already so I might as well. Words can not even begin to express how excited I am for Awake  to start, between that and the return of Community NBC and I may have temporarily come to a truce in our long standing fight, but we shall see.

I admit as much as I hate that Zoë Gulliksen was cut from the show, because she is insanely awesome and the eipitomy of awesome female geeky fandom, seriously this girl knows her shit, follow her on twitter at @bookishbelle if you don't already, trust me you'll be glad you did, and let's face it would be nice to have a female POV on that show, Comic Book Men, is starting to grow on me. What can I say I like comics and Kevin Smith, it was bound to happen. 


I'm sure by the spring this will be revised yet again, but for now, this is what I've got.

Top Five: Shows of Last Pilot Season...Sorta

Well we are in the thick of pilot season now, which accounts for my lack of updates, sorry guys.

As I wade through scripts for countless doctor/lawyer shows and the inevitable copycat shows, already looks like there is a "new" American Horror Story and a "new" Homeland, I am reminded of what the last pilot season had to offer. So I've decided to do a Top Five of my favorite shows to come out of last pilot season. Here they are in no particular order:

1) Revenge - Ok, I admit it, when I first heard about the show I really didn't understand how they were going to make this premise work as a weekly show. As a movie or mini series sure, but I couldn't see how they could continue out this story week after week without it going stale. I am beyond pleased to say how wrong I was. Revenge has become one of my favorite shows, you know one of those shows you just devour. The cast is amazing, I don't even have words to describe how amazingly talented I find Madeline Stowe. It's a show that I look forward to week after week.

2) American Horror Story - I have mixed feelings about this show, but for reasons that will soon be explained, feel it had to be included in the Top Five. The show wasn't as terrifying as I had initially been lead to believe it would be. The first episode I unnecessarily forced The Boy's Brother, who is our other roommate and 6'5 to watch with me in case I freaked. Was the show creepy? Yes. Disturbing? Often. Terrifying? Not really, well except for the underutilized "infantada". That thing was the stuff of nightmares. But I digress, despite being littered with plot bunnies, often time confusing/frustrating, American Horror Story did do one thing I loved. It got people talking, discussing, theorizing. I'm a big fan of shows that get you thinking. While it was airing, Thursdays, and Fridays too for those of us who would DVR it, meant that the office was a buzz with conversation about that week's episode.

3) Hart of Dixie - I grew up in what I like to reffer to as the "Glory Days of the WB". It was the station to watch, they had Buffy, Angel, 7th Heaven (when it was still good), Dawson's Creek, the short lived Young Americans (which had Ian Somerhalder) and Dead Last (which had Tyler Labine). Side bar if anyone remembers those last two shows we need to be friends. Anyway Hart of Dixie brings the CW back to the WB hay day, with it's cute, feel good vibe and really, it's hard not to love a show that has Scott Porter and a very often shirtless Wilson Bethel.

4) The Finder - So I know we have just recently gotten a taste of this new show but as a fan of Bones since the beginning I felt it had to be given a spot. The show, although still finding it's legs,  has made some positive changes since the backdoor pilot during an episode of Bones last year. Saffron Burrows Ike is no more, replaced, without any mention, with Mercedes Masohn's Deputy U.S. Marshal Isabel Zambada and Maddie Hasson's Willa Monday. Throw in the riddiculously awesome guest stars, Brett Davern (Awkward), John Francis Daley (Bones), Wilson Cruz (My So Called Life), my random adoration Ian Reed Kesler (guest star on EVERYTHING), with Geoff Stults and Michal Clarke Duncan and you got some serious gold.


Okay, okay so after mulling this over for two days I have only come up with four. Sure, there were other shows I like that came out of last years pilot season, The New Girl, Once Upon a Time,  2 Broke Girls, Person of Interest, but they haven't made it to my MUST view lists. Then of course there is Alcatraz, and Touch, which haven't been on long enough for me to officially proclaim them, and factor in the scores of shows I am still DYING to see, Awake (can we just please get that on the air ASAP), Apt 23, The River top that list, by the way. So there you have it my Top Four pilots of last year.

It's the Most Wonderful TIme of the Year

Sorry for being MIA lately, my fabulous brother was doing some updates on my new laptop, and as I was off from work I was sans a way of updating. Plus the holidays are always a busy time. The Boy can attest to the fact that the entire month of December, our kitchen turns into a bakery.

It was a very pop culture Christmas this year, thanks to some brilliantly crafty and slightly sneaky friends. Major props go to my friend Leslie who not only cross stiched the entire Firefly cast (four times no less), but also managed to somehow sneak away at NYCC to get the lovely Jewel Staite  sign & personalize them.

Seriously how clutch is that?

Anyways, I've decided that this post, which will probibly be my last of 2011, is the perfect time for a Best Of list, are you guys tired of them yet? So here are some of my favorite pop culture things of 2011.

• Awkward - This was by far my favorite new show of the year. I knew the moment I read the pilot that I was going to like the show, despite it being on MTV. After the first episode I was hooked, even in all it's insanity, the show is still so real. It brings me back to when I was in high school, but in the good way. I am so excited that a second season is on the way and I can't wait to see where the characters are headed.

• The Resurgence of Mark Paul Gosslaar - 2011 saw the resurgence of one of my favorite childhood actors. I practically jumped for joy when I learned that Mark Paul Gosslaar and Breckin Meyers were doing a show together. I mean seriously what more could a girl raised on Saved By the Bell and Clueless want? The show itself is hysterical, better than I had expected. But things got even better, with both the TNT tv movie Hide, and ABC Family's 12 Dates of Christmas, it felt as though MPG was EVERYWHERE and that just made life better.

• Teemagnet.com - This has to be my new favorite website. Seriously all the best geeky tshirts on display. It's my homepage...it is why I am poor.

• Revenge - I fully admit to not really knowing how the show was going to work, I mean it sounded more like an awesome movie than a tv show, but after watching the first three eps I was hooked. I'm not generally a fan of "soapy" shows but Revenge is pure, gooey, guilty pleasure tv. Madeline Stowe is amazing and Ashley Madekwe is my fashion icon.

• Ring My Bell - Speaking of the lovely Ashley Madekwe, her fashion blog, Ring My Bell is my  newest obsession. This woman is fashion icon, she has a fabulous sense of style and is an all around amazing person. 

• The Return of the Muppets -  2011 also saw the return of the Muppets to the lime light, and I couldn't be more excited about it. Having always been a Muppet fan the fact that they were getting a new movie made me giddy, add in the fact that Jason Segel wrote and stared in it and I was in HEAVEN.  

• Pop Culture Art - So one of the greatest things about going to NYCC this year was getting to go through artist alley and seeing all the amazing pop culture inspired prints. Some of my favorites include, Katie Cook, Brian Kong, Scott Ethan Ambruson and Laurie B.

• American Horror Story - One of the most frustrating/thought provoking shows which I was sucked into this year. While not as scary as I had initially thought, it definitely kept me on my toes, and filled with emotions and tons of questions. While I didn't always love what went on with the story lines, and more often than not screamed in frustration over loose ends, but it was still a wild ride.

There you have it, some of the awesome pop culture stuff of 2011.

Harry Morgan Dies at Age 96: AKA: The Entertainment Industry Has a Profound Effect

Despite the fact that the final episode "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen", aired over a year before I was born, I grew up on M*A*S*H. It was and may still be both my mother and father's favorite tv show. They managed to collect all 11 seasons on DVD, slowly gathering them as Christmas and birthday gifts for each other. One of my favorite memories was when the both bought the same season for each other for Christmas one year. Not to mention that at some point they owned the M*A*S*H trivia game...yup that existed.

Anyway like I said, I grew up on the show, FX used to marathon episodes daily and I would come home from school and watch it with my mom. It was just the normal thing to do, it wasn't until I got to college that I realized it was a bit odd for someone my age to be able to describe entire episodes of a show that had been off the air for over a decade.

This morning I read on TVLine about the death of actor Harry Morgan. There was no big fanfare, in fact I almost missed the article entirely. Just a simple statement really that the man had passes away at the age of 96. You can read the article for yourself here.

It made me sad. I realize how utterly simplistic that sounds, but it's the truth. I talk to my mother often enough, as we do live on very different schedules, but reading the news made me immediately take out my phone to text her, because I knew she'd be sad too.

Despite working in the industry for years, I still am amazed at the way this silly little business has such a profound impact on our every day lives. The way it can cause such deep emotions and connections that you never really stop to think about or even notice all that much. A reminder that on some level my silly little job can, and often does have an impact.

R.I.P. Colonel Potter.

American Horror Story "Spooky Little Girl" : AKA: Seriously? We're pulling Black Dahlia now?

Okay, so I get it's a "Horror Story", says it right in the title, and there are therefore supposed to be ghosts, that's a given, but come on now, the ghost roster has gotten WAY too long. Before I continue my rant let's sound off with the ghost we know of in the house thus far:

1. Charles Montgomery
2. Nora Montgomery
3. Infatata/Thaddeus Montgomery
4. Beauregard (Constance's deformed son in the attic)
5. Hugo (Constance's cheating husband)
6. Tate
7. Troy (twin)
8. Bryan (twin)
9. Chad 
10. Patrick
11. Gladys
12. Maria
13. Female Cult member
14. Male Cult member
15. Young/old Moira
16. Hayden
17. Travis
18. Elizabeth Short

Seriously, we are up to EIGHTEEN now, in the house! Not to mention, the five classmates Tate shot, who's ghosts, though not connected to the house, were roaming about on Halloween, and the fact that somewhere Constance has another child, who very well may be in the house as well, and we aren't entirely sure what happened to Larry's wife and two daughters. I mean seriously, I really am starting to think that they've decided to throw the story out and see how many fun ghost stories and legends/guest stars they can address. Did we really need The Black Dahlia this week? Sure it was a cool idea, but I would have much rather focused on what was actually going on with the family. We got like a nano-second of Vivian, a sprinkling of Ben and no Violet whatsoever. Her mother was carted off to a psych ward, and it was basically her fault, but all we "see" of her is Ben mentioning she won't leave her room.

Also why have the police never questioned Ben about the death of Derek? Clearly, they must know he's dead by now and this is the third of Ben's patients to turn up dead. Bianca, the cult member, Sally, the boring woman who committed suicide, and now Derek, seems a little strange to me that no one thinks it's odd that all of a therapists clients are dying.

I've come too far into the season to give it up, but come on American Horror Story, make me want to stay.

American Horror Story "Rubber Man" : AKA: Um, Yuck!

WARNING *SPOILER ALERT* IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN "RUBBER MAN" DO NOT PASS GO. GO WATCH THEN COME BACK TO READ

Ok, so one week after professing my love of Tate, I now find myself shrieking in disgust. Um...he's the S&M guy? Eeewww, he impregnated his girlfriend's mother? Ok, that's just too creepy. I figured that S&M guy was probably one of the ghosts we'd seen, and not a separate entity for a while now, since they showed Tate in the costume in the basement, but I have continued to hold out hope that it wasn't him. I was kind of hoping it would be Constance's dead sex crazed hubby, or maybe even Charles Montgomery in a quest to give his grieving wife a new baby. Seriously, anyone else would have been ok with me, just not Tate.

Icky-ness aside, I have to admit I'm starting to loose a little faith in the Murphy/Falchuk ability to deal with a plot this complex. There have been several small details that have bothered me, things that just don't make sense. Not just in a WTF was that sense, but legit, little things that just don't seem to add up.

• Tate "not knowing" he's dead, but knowing all about the ghosts and how he could only leave the house on Halloween.
• Why if Constance moved next door, is her deformed son still living in the attic of the murder house when Larry is living there with his family? 
• Why did the goth chick say that Tate asked her if she believed in God before he shot her, though when we saw his killing spree he was completely wordless? 
• Why after installing what was supposed to be a top of the line security system is everyone and their mother still able to just waltz in and out of the house as they please? You can go by the theory that Moira let's them in, but I doubt very much she would let Constance in, given how much she despises her. 
• What ever happened to those voices Ben was hearing? 
• Why does it matter that Moira's bones are buried on the property, I guarantee Tate's aren't, so why does it make difference?
• Finally, why if the whole purpose of getting Vivian pregnant was for Nora, and now Haley, to get the babies, do they get her carted of to a psych ward? Seeing as the spirits can't leave the house, isn't that a little counter productive?

The Boy swears there must be good reason for them to want to have Vivian carted off, he clearly has more faith in the creators/writers than I do. I just hate to think that the creatives have merely chosen to go for the scare, than to actually invest in the stories of these characters.  It's a very complicated story to take on, and I have to wonder if they've bitten off just a little more than they can chew.

American Horror Story: AKA: For the Love of Tate

Here we are again, with me starting to fall for another character I really shouldn't love. This time it's American Horror Story's Tate.


*WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD*


Yes, yes, I know, he's dead, and perhaps more importantly he wordlessly mass murdered a bunch of his classmates before becoming so, but bare with me on this. Despite all that he has managed, at least for now, to weasel his way into my heart.

Sure he started off as a creepy psych patient of her father's, but deep wasn't that what Violet wanted? Some as fucked up as she was, to confide in?

Aside from being dead and the whole mass murdering thing, Tate is a pretty awesome boyfriend for Violet. First off he is ALWAYS there for her. Both emotionally and as her protector. He's a sounding board for her to complain about bullies, her parents, really anything that is bothering her. As Ben and Vivian pretty much raise her with a slightly concerned neglect, and having uprooted her from her life and moved her cross country, Tate, at first was exactly what she so desperately needed, a friend. When Violet started to become terrified by the ghostly visions she was having, Tate appeared and told her how to handle them.

Every time Violet has been in harms way, Tate has come through to rescue her. From the very beginning, he helped her put a stop to the bully tormenting her at school. During the first home invasion, it was Tate who appeared to Violet, and told her how to get rid of the intruders, who practically chopped that crazy bitch in half who threatened Violet's life. When the victims of his massacre surfaced on Halloween and threatened his beloved he took off leading them away from her. More importantly, when Violet attempted to O.D. on sleeping pills, he dragged her to the bathroom, pulled her into the tub, turned the water on her, and forced her to throw up. The whole time he is clutching her, begging her to hold on and all and all doing everything in his power to revive her.

What really won me over to the Tate side though was his tearful confession of love to Violet. Telling her he's never felt this way about anyone, but if she wants him to leave her alone he will, because her happiness means more to him then his own feelings.

He just looked so lost and broken, if Tate is playing it's a damn good one.

According to Constance, Tate doesn't know he's dead. Now, I am willing to believe in some sort of paranormal PTSD, as a reason to why he doesn't remember the heinous murders he committed, or how he died, but I don't believe that he doesn't know he's dead. He is far to calm around the other ghosts, clearly he knows Constance, his mother, no longer lives in the house AND more importantly, he KNEW he couldn't leave the house unless it was Halloween. So either Falchuk and Murphy royally suck at continuity, or Tate knows more about his current state of being than Constance let's on.

I'm sure we are in for tons more twists and turns and who knows, in two weeks I may despise him, still, for now, I find myself feeling sorry for Tate, wanting him to get his happy ending.

I'm Still Here...and I've got Theories

I haven't completely dropped off the face of the earth, however between working on NaNoWriMo and the fact that I was lacking power for almost a FULL WEEK, I'm a little behind on on my television. I am working on catching up but it's a slow process.

But I have a TON of theories on some of my favorite shows...so be prepared for the flood gates to open and a wealth of theories and observations to come bursting through....

American Horror Story: AKA: Sucked Into The Super Natural

So I just finished catching up on FX's American Horror Story, and as per usual am left in a perpetual state of WTF, that has come to traditionally follow each viewing.It's pretty smart on the parts of Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, seeing as I still don't know if I like the show but I am sucked into continuing to watch.

 After viewing this past weeks episode in preparation for tomorrow, The Boy raised an interesting theory, that Denis O'Hare's character, Larry, "definitely does not exist.", claiming him to be some sort of psychotic split personality of Ben's.  I call this theory interesting, because Larry was the only character who's alive-ness I never questioned. From the very first episode, I pegged Tate and Moira as ghosts, I've even raised doubts about Constance's existence, but Larry?  It was never a question in my mind. Props must be given to Denis O'Hare for some how making a physically disturbing man, humane enough to NOT haunt my nightmares. I suppose The Boy's theory is just as valid as any others out there. Let's hash this out for a mo-mo.

• Larry was a former owner of the house. 
• The only person to ever see him is Ben.
• He seems to be acting only in Ben's best interest
• How did Larry know that Hayden was there?
• How did he dig the hole so quickly/well with only one good arm?

 So, The Boy is claiming "The Fight Club" defense in support of his Larry/Ben theory. I'm now very interested to see if it plays out.

I have to admit, I have never been a fan of Moira's, she annoys me, but for the first time ever, I actually feel bad for Moira. She just wants to go "home", or wherever one goes once they leave this world. She was drugging Ben so that he would find her body, which I suppose would set her spirit free. Now that Larry has buried Hayden's body on top of her, and Ben has sealed off the foundation and built a gazebo over the spot, she is forced to remain in this world. It's quite sad, really.

Three episodes in, and I'm beginning to feel the need for a Ghost type thing score sheet. So far these are the "Things" we have seen that dwell in the house:

1. The Infantada (which is what the American Horror Story Wiki seems to calling that creepy nightmare inducing "thing" in the basement)
2. Young/Old Moira
3. Maria
4. Gladys 
5. Tate
6. Troy
7. Troy's Twin
8. Nora Montgomery
9. The S&M Suit Dweller

And that's only the things we know for sure are there and non living. While I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the show as a whole, it is definitely causing me to sit here and think, theorize and want to discuss, which is what "good" television should do.

Week Four: AKA: Making Decisions

So we're into week four of the fall tv season, and decisions are being made. I've gone through several weeks of new shows and am starting to make my decisions onto which shows I am going to make the commitment to. So far here are my updated verdicts:

Sundays

Homeland (10pm Showtime)
Ok, so I've only gotten my hands on the pilot, but as I've said before I ADORE Mandy Patinkin and as I think the concept an amazing new take on a familiar fear. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing more.

Pan Am (10pm ABC)
I wasn't sure I was going to continue watching this show after the pilot, but three episodes later and I find myself looking forward to each new episode. I adore Captain Dean (AKA: Mike Vogal, who will always be Dean from Grounded For Life to me), and Kate Jennings Grant has a recurring as role as Judith Cameron, Laura and Kate's mother. She just flat out rocks, and she is way prettier then they make her up to be.

Mondays

Terra Nova (8pm Fox)
I am well aware I need to be watching this show, and fully admit to it being my fault that I have yet to catch up. However due to my due to my commute anything airing before 10pm is a gamble on whether or not I make it home to watch.

Hart of Dixie (9pm CW)
It's a cute show, and three weeks in and I am still entertained. Is it a thought provoking master piece? Hardly, but it's sweet and a good way to the hour before Castle.

Playboy Club (10pm NBC)
Well the decision was made FOR me here. It wasn't the best show I had ever seen, but it was interesting enough. I was really looking forward to seeing where the storyline between Sean and Bunny Alice was headed. Homosexuality in the 1960's is not something we, the viewers, have been readily exposed to, I was really interested to see how they handled it. Unfortunately we may never know.

Tuesdays

Ringer (9pm CW)
This is one of the saddest hings I've typed. I was psyched for the premiere and raced home for the second episode, I was beyond excited to have Buffy Summers and Richard Alpert once again gracing my screen. Yet now after three episodes, I've realized I don't really care about the story. It's not a bad show, it just seems to be moving fairly slowly, and I don't really care about the characters themselves.I'm going to stick with it or awhile but sad to say when the mid season replacements start up, I'll probably end up watching something else instead.

Wednesday

Revenge (10pm ABC)
This show was honestly a pleasant surprise. I wasn't sure how they were going to sustain this as a tv show, as opposed to a movie, but, at least for now, it seems to be working quite nicely. More importantly, I actually "care" about the characters. I want to befriend Nolan, console Jack about his father, and while I'm not 100% sure how I feel about Victoria, I know that I want to know more about her.

American Horror Story (10pm FX)
We're only one episode in and honestly I am still in WTF mode. I'm not giving up on it just yet, but honestly the jury is still out on whether or not it's being added to my regular schedule. 

Thursday

Person of Interest (9pm CBS)
I still need to catch up but I'm gonna stick with it, because let's face it Ben Linus always has a plan.

American Horror Story: AKA: WTF?

Full disclosure, I was both pumped and terrified for last night's premiere of American Horror Story on FX. I'd heard it was all sorts of creepy and the fact that it was one of the only scripts I couldn't get my hands on during pilot season had me intrigued. Not to mention the most INTENSE/best session I've ever had was some one who came in for the role of Ben.

I scarfed down dinner, grabbed my big, oh so soft purple blanket and curled up on the couch prepared to have the beejesus scared out of me. I even coerced The Boy's brother to watch it with me so I wouldn't have to watch on my own.

I have to say, while I am completely willing to give the show another shot, last night's episode wasn't as gripping as I expected.

First off I love Dylan McDermott, I really do, his dreamy presence was the only decent thing about that abomination of a remake of Miracle on 34th Street from the 90's, but honestly, I didn't need to see that much of his naked body. I started wondering if Ben have something against clothes? And watching him finish himself off and then collapse into tears after catching his version of Moira the maid playing with herself? We get it he's sexually frustrated. This also leads to the question of why does he see a different version of Moira then both his wife and daughter? Are Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk implying that men are more susceptible to whatever the evil in the house is?

Also, why is the evil entity so sexual? Between the multiple attempts of Ben's version of Moira to seduce him, and the creepy black vinyl suit man who Vivian has sex with, while assuming it's Ben, itseems to be driving a message, perhaps unintentional message, that sexuality/sexual desires are linked to evil. I'll admit I'm having a little trouble buy that after not sleeping with her husband for almost a year, Vivian would be so gungho to go for round two a few hours later with her "husband" completely silent and dressed in full S&M regalia.

I have to say, I'm a little surprised they jumped right into the demon baby storyline so quickly. I mean clearly sex with rubber man was going to lead to evil spawning, but how much time passed between the sexcapade and when she told her husband she was craving Indian food? It felt like it was the next day, seriously is it even possible to know that quickly? Do demon spawn has a shorter gestation period?

Can we also touch upon the complete lack of responsibility of Ben treating possible sociopaths out of his HOME office? I fully understand that there are therapists, especially on tv, who work out of home offices, Jason Seaver (Growing Pains), Dani Santino (Necessary Roughness) to name a few, but they don't treat patients there who have a high probability of harming their families.

Speaking of lack of responsibility, do the Harmon's ever lock their doors? I mean ok, I can buy the first time that Addy and her mother Constance got in, the back door was unlocked, but after that unnerving encounter, you would think that they would be a little more neurotic about locking up. Apparently not though, because there seems to always be people randomly wandering about the house.

Dennis O'Hare is absolute perfection as the creepy, mutilating-ly burned former house occupant with an inoperable brain tumor. Alright, I realize how weird that sounds typed out like that but it's the truth.

To be honest, maybe because it was over hyped, I didn't find the first episode all that freaky. I was more freaked/intrigued by the preview at the end of the show than the actual show itself.  I plan on tuning in for the next couple of weeks before deciding if I'm going to stick with it.