Just one more week until FOX kicks off the new TV season. I wonder who will try to jump the gun...
Monday, 8/25
Deal or No Deal; NBC. 7 pm CST. Season Premiere.
Since the show hasn't given away $1 million yet, they're having four of the million dollar winner briefcases in the premiere.
America's Toughest Jobs; NBC. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
Thirteen contestants try their hand at oil drilling, Alaskan ice fishing, logging, and others for a grand prize that exceeds a quarter million dollars.
L.A. Hard Hats (National Geographic; 9 pm.) Series Finale.
And the Democratic National Convention begins tonight. There might be a little coverage from networks here and there.
Tuesday, 8/26
Greek; ABC Family. 8 pm. 2nd season premiere.
Guest-starring Charisma Carpenter.
I've heard the show is good, and Carpenter may actually be the thing I need to tune in.
Janice Dickenson Modeling Agency; Oxygen. 9 pm. 4th season premiere.
Didn't I have this show listed a couple of weeks ago?
Wednesday, 8/27
Shear Genius (Bravo; 9 pm). Season Finale.
Thursday, 8/28
Glam God With Vivica A. Fox; VH1. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
I usually don't mention VH1 shows, but I like Fox. I won't watch this reality contest show about finding a "new celeb stylist", but I will mention it.
Friday, 8/29
Queen Bees (The N; 7:30). Season Finale.
Grizzly Man Diaries; Animal Planet. 8 & 8:30 pm. 8-part documentary.
Taking footage shot by Timothy Treadwell, the man mauled to death by a bear as told in the great documentary Grizzly Man, this series looks at bear life in Alaska. Check it out.
Real Time With Bill Maher; HBO. 10 pm. Season premiere.
And all will be right with the world for the next 13 weeks... I don't agree with him 100%, but he definitely skews closer to my view of reality than most do.
And what great timing with the DNC this week. I wonder if he'll have something to say about it...
Sunday, 8/31
Robot Chicken; adult swim (what the Cartoon Network becomes at night). 10:30 pm. Season premiere.
Not always funny, but each ep is only 11 minutes long. It's worth a look.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Odd and Ends
Random thoughts since I just can't find the time to make a proper post:
Success breeds complacency: I won both Fantasy Football leagues I was in last year, and I realized last night at one of my league's drafts for this year that I'm getting lazy. I did no prep, got drunk, and then messed with my picks by taking 4 kickers (you're pretty much a jackass if you take your first kicker in anything but the last round, so four kickers is a bit of overkill).
I cared so little after round ten that I didn't even write my last eight picks in my roster sheet. It'll be like opening a Christmas present once the rosters get posted on our league site. I just hope I get a good surprise like a new TV and not a bad one like an ugly sweater.
But having four kickers was pretty funny. I kept insisting I picked them for "trade bait". (For you people not in the know, sometimes players load up on a position in the draft to force other players to make trades with you because you hogged all the good players.) Of course, with 32 kickers in the league, the "trade bait" excuse was just for laughs.
Not to brag or anything, but I still fully expect to finish in the top third of the league this year-- even if I did tank my draft.
Okay, enough about football and bragging about my Fantasy skillz. On to other things:
Check out the episode of Lawrence of America on Friday morning (Travel Channel, 8 am CST). I mentioned that I liked the show in a post a few weeks ago, and this episode about Nashville was the best of the bunch. Lawrence is very tongue-in-cheek on this show, so please understand he knows he's being ridiculous. It's not the best episode to see for the the first time, but it's too good to pass up.
I read somewhere that Amy Ryan will be in five episodes of The Office this season, which kicks ass. Her character in last season's finale was great, and I'm glad they got to keep her around a while longer.
I watched the first season of Battlestar Galactica. Damn. Good stuff.
Watched the first two seasons of The Wire. It's a different kind of show; it unfolds very slowly over 12-13 episodes, but it's extremely well-done-- and I heard it just gets better season by season.
Meghan from I Survived a Japanese Game Show took the #1 ranking of hottest woman on TV. Seriously, I had no other reason to waste a hour a week on the show other than to see her.
The Mole was pretty weak, which broke my heart as I loved the first few seasons.
Props to the people in the Big Brother house for not splitting over who is more Christian (and, thus, the "morally superior" alliance) and who's not. It's still a show I consider a guilty pleasure, but this season has been better than the last few.
I'm sorry to say Weeds just hasn't been great this year. I like Andy's storyline that has made him a coyote for Mexican illegals (becoming their version of Moses), but even the addition of Julie Bowen hasn't helped a weak status quo.
The Office and the Prison Break spin-offs have been shelved. Cool.
Speaking of Prison Break, I really hope this is the last season. I would hate to lose the great actors on the show (the show is pretty ridiculous, but you have to admit the actors are pretty damn good), but I would hate to see this show that had a fantastic first season continue to plummet in drama and suspense.
And if you haven't heard, Sara's back; rectifying one of last year's worst storyline decisions.
If you haven't seen Dark Knight yet, do so. It is amazing. All the hype is true. Ledger, Caine, Bale, Freeman, Oldman, Eckhart-- how can you not have a great movie? Add Nolan's direction, and it's a sure-thing. You owe it to yourself to see it. I had two quibbles with it, but it certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of it.
For the first time in 25 years, I am pretty much completely out of the comic book scene. I had to stop buying them last summer, but I, at least, kept up with the news in the industry. But this summer, I slipped further and further away. It kinda bums me out, but it's also a relief to have the monkey off my back (the problem with being a comic book reader is it never stops-- every week is another comic or ten; every store has something you don't own). But I feel a loneliness without them. Maybe I'll get back into them when my kids grow up and move out...
And I guess the e-mail address I have to this blog had a problem, so anything I sent didn't actually send. I fixed the issue (I hope), so if you sent me something and wanted a response and never got one-- I'm sorry.
Okay, gotta go and load up on TV. I'm gonna be gone all weekend, and I need to get the Laurel and Hardy marathon (Saturday, 5 am on TCM) on the DVR. I usually am at 90% capacity on the DVR, so I have some TV to get through and delete.
Thank God for OnDemand. I can still catch the Penn & Teller's I haven't seen...
Success breeds complacency: I won both Fantasy Football leagues I was in last year, and I realized last night at one of my league's drafts for this year that I'm getting lazy. I did no prep, got drunk, and then messed with my picks by taking 4 kickers (you're pretty much a jackass if you take your first kicker in anything but the last round, so four kickers is a bit of overkill).
I cared so little after round ten that I didn't even write my last eight picks in my roster sheet. It'll be like opening a Christmas present once the rosters get posted on our league site. I just hope I get a good surprise like a new TV and not a bad one like an ugly sweater.
But having four kickers was pretty funny. I kept insisting I picked them for "trade bait". (For you people not in the know, sometimes players load up on a position in the draft to force other players to make trades with you because you hogged all the good players.) Of course, with 32 kickers in the league, the "trade bait" excuse was just for laughs.
Not to brag or anything, but I still fully expect to finish in the top third of the league this year-- even if I did tank my draft.
Okay, enough about football and bragging about my Fantasy skillz. On to other things:
Check out the episode of Lawrence of America on Friday morning (Travel Channel, 8 am CST). I mentioned that I liked the show in a post a few weeks ago, and this episode about Nashville was the best of the bunch. Lawrence is very tongue-in-cheek on this show, so please understand he knows he's being ridiculous. It's not the best episode to see for the the first time, but it's too good to pass up.
I read somewhere that Amy Ryan will be in five episodes of The Office this season, which kicks ass. Her character in last season's finale was great, and I'm glad they got to keep her around a while longer.
I watched the first season of Battlestar Galactica. Damn. Good stuff.
Watched the first two seasons of The Wire. It's a different kind of show; it unfolds very slowly over 12-13 episodes, but it's extremely well-done-- and I heard it just gets better season by season.
Meghan from I Survived a Japanese Game Show took the #1 ranking of hottest woman on TV. Seriously, I had no other reason to waste a hour a week on the show other than to see her.
The Mole was pretty weak, which broke my heart as I loved the first few seasons.
Props to the people in the Big Brother house for not splitting over who is more Christian (and, thus, the "morally superior" alliance) and who's not. It's still a show I consider a guilty pleasure, but this season has been better than the last few.
I'm sorry to say Weeds just hasn't been great this year. I like Andy's storyline that has made him a coyote for Mexican illegals (becoming their version of Moses), but even the addition of Julie Bowen hasn't helped a weak status quo.
The Office and the Prison Break spin-offs have been shelved. Cool.
Speaking of Prison Break, I really hope this is the last season. I would hate to lose the great actors on the show (the show is pretty ridiculous, but you have to admit the actors are pretty damn good), but I would hate to see this show that had a fantastic first season continue to plummet in drama and suspense.
And if you haven't heard, Sara's back; rectifying one of last year's worst storyline decisions.
If you haven't seen Dark Knight yet, do so. It is amazing. All the hype is true. Ledger, Caine, Bale, Freeman, Oldman, Eckhart-- how can you not have a great movie? Add Nolan's direction, and it's a sure-thing. You owe it to yourself to see it. I had two quibbles with it, but it certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of it.
For the first time in 25 years, I am pretty much completely out of the comic book scene. I had to stop buying them last summer, but I, at least, kept up with the news in the industry. But this summer, I slipped further and further away. It kinda bums me out, but it's also a relief to have the monkey off my back (the problem with being a comic book reader is it never stops-- every week is another comic or ten; every store has something you don't own). But I feel a loneliness without them. Maybe I'll get back into them when my kids grow up and move out...
And I guess the e-mail address I have to this blog had a problem, so anything I sent didn't actually send. I fixed the issue (I hope), so if you sent me something and wanted a response and never got one-- I'm sorry.
Okay, gotta go and load up on TV. I'm gonna be gone all weekend, and I need to get the Laurel and Hardy marathon (Saturday, 5 am on TCM) on the DVR. I usually am at 90% capacity on the DVR, so I have some TV to get through and delete.
Thank God for OnDemand. I can still catch the Penn & Teller's I haven't seen...
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Premieres and Notables, August 18-24, 2008
Monday, 8/18
Into the Unknown with Josh Bernstein; Discovery. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Bernstein investigates historical mysteries. In the premiere, he digs into Noah's Ark.
Wednesday, 8/20
Architecture School; Sundance. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
A group of Tulane students design low-income homes in New Orleans.
Dinner: Impossible; Food. 8 pm. Season premiere.
Family Foreman (TV Land; 9 pm). Season premiere.
Thursday, 8/21
Bad Girls; Logo. 8 pm. 5th season premiere.
The Principal's Office; TruTV. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
TruTV and schools.
Jacked: Auto Theft Task Force; A&E. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
I know I've said this before, but it doesn't get old in this instance: A&E used to stand for "arts & entertainment". Not so much anymore.
Tabitha's Salon Makeover; Bravo. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Yet another freakin' reality show spin-off... Tabitha Coffey (from Shear Genius) gets her own show.
MVP (SOAPnet; 10 pm). Season finale.
Friday, 8/22
Discovery's Planet Project; Discovery. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
Eight scientists use Al Gore's environment proposal to try to effect climate change.
Who Are You Wearing? TLC. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Designers compete to make an outfit for a guest judge.
Saturday, 8/23
Making It Home: Greensburg; TLC. 6 pm. Series Premiere.
Two Trading Spaces guys go to Greensburg to help them rebuild after a tornado.
I wonder if this is the same Greensburg featured on a show on Planet Green, where it followed their efforts to rebuild itself as a "green" city...
Live Through This: Duff McKagen; Fuse. 10 pm. Series Premiere.
The former G'n'R bassist opens up about his struggles with booze and heroin.
And I have waited all summer for this. This is the shiznit, and needs to be on your radar:
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is running a 24-hour marathon of Laurel & Hardy shorts and movies. It had been easily 15 years since I've seen those two geniuses, but I've tried catching up since this Spring. I'll give the complete rundown, and I'll point out the ones I know to be must-sees. (I haven't seen most of them lately, and I do know the movies are usually a little weaker than the shorts-- those darn plots that get in the way of the mayhem when they run an hour or more).
Seriously: watch some of these, put a tape in, or set the DVR. There is great stuff here, and it's a complete shame that this could never play in today's entertainment environment-- even though the best ones hold up extremely well (aside from the less-sophisticated movie-making).
Night Owls; 5:00 am
Blotto; 5:25 am (Stan steals his wife's liquor and goes out on the town).
Brats; 5:55 am
Hog Wild; 6:20 am
Be Big; 6:45 am
Laughing Gravy; 7:15 am
Our Wife; 7:50 am
Pardon Us; 8:15 am
One Good Turn; 9:30 am
Beau Hunks; 9:55 am (Ollie gets dumped and talks Stan into joining the French Foreign Legion-- and then they try to get out of it.)
Helpmates; 10:35 am
Bonnie Scotland; 11:00 am
The Fixer Uppers; 12:25 pm
Them Thar Hills; 12:50 pm (I haven't seen it lately, but it is considered a classic.)
Tit For Tat; 1:15 pm
The Live Ghost; 1:40 pm (pretty good; the guys help a sea captain shanghai a crew for a haunted ship.
The Devil's Brother; 2:05 pm
Me and My Pal; 3:40 pm
Their First Mistake; 4:10 pm
Pack Up Your Troubles; 4:35 pm
Scram!; 5:45 pm
County Hospital; 6:10 pm. (A classic. Stan visits Ollie in the hospital, and they pack in a feature-length movie's amount of mayhem and destruction in just 19 minutes. Check out where Stan keeps his condiments. And it features my sons' favorite line, "Hard boiled eggs and nuts.")
The Chimp; 6:30 pm
****The Music Box; 7:00 pm. (A masterpiece. Absolutely brilliant in so many ways. The guys try to deliver a piano to a house located at the top of a hill. It's a half-hour long, and gets my highest recommendation. C'mon, people-- you can afford a half hour. It's worth it.)
Sons of the Desert; 7:35 pm. (One of their hour-long movies that are entertaining the entire time-- usually there is a non-Laurel&Hardy plot wedged into their full-length movies, but this is all Stan & Ollie. The two lie to their wives about taking a vacation, so they can go to a Lodge convention. It, of course, goes completely awry. Good stuff.)
Way Out West; 8:45 pm. (Another good one that's over an hour long. The two try to get a deed for a gold mine to the right person. Not as much slapstick, but they still get into their share of mishaps.)
Swiss Miss; 10:00 pm
Block-Heads; 11:15 pm (Ollie tries to help his old war buddy Stan-- who guarded a trench for 20 years before he realized the war was over. He brings Stan home, and, of course, things go very badly. There's a great scene where Ollie visits Stan at the VA Hospital and thinks he lost a leg in the war, so he carries the completely healthy Stan around.)
The Flying Deuces; 12:15 am (I haven't seen it lately, but I know it's a fan favorite.)
A Chump at Oxford; 1:25 am (Pretty good. There's a good scene where the two get lost in a maze, and some frat boys(?) mess with them.)
Saps at Sea; 2:30 am (The two get stuck on a boat with a killer. But they have a secret weapon: a trombone. Stan's hysterics as he tries to play the trombone under pressure is good stuff.)
Air Raid Wardens; 3:30 am
Sunday, 8/24
Z Rock; IFC. 10:30 pm. Series Premiere.
A sitcom about three Brooklyn rockers who can be themselves as the band Z02 at night-- and then have to be kid rockers Z Brothers during the day to pay the bills.
The N's Student Body (The N; 7 pm). Season Finale.
Generation Kill (HBO; 8 pm). Series Finale.
Law & Order: Criminal Intent (USA; 8 pm). Season Finale.
Into the Unknown with Josh Bernstein; Discovery. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Bernstein investigates historical mysteries. In the premiere, he digs into Noah's Ark.
Wednesday, 8/20
Architecture School; Sundance. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
A group of Tulane students design low-income homes in New Orleans.
Dinner: Impossible; Food. 8 pm. Season premiere.
Family Foreman (TV Land; 9 pm). Season premiere.
Thursday, 8/21
Bad Girls; Logo. 8 pm. 5th season premiere.
The Principal's Office; TruTV. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
TruTV and schools.
Jacked: Auto Theft Task Force; A&E. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
I know I've said this before, but it doesn't get old in this instance: A&E used to stand for "arts & entertainment". Not so much anymore.
Tabitha's Salon Makeover; Bravo. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Yet another freakin' reality show spin-off... Tabitha Coffey (from Shear Genius) gets her own show.
MVP (SOAPnet; 10 pm). Season finale.
Friday, 8/22
Discovery's Planet Project; Discovery. 8 pm. Series Premiere.
Eight scientists use Al Gore's environment proposal to try to effect climate change.
Who Are You Wearing? TLC. 9 pm. Series Premiere.
Designers compete to make an outfit for a guest judge.
Saturday, 8/23
Making It Home: Greensburg; TLC. 6 pm. Series Premiere.
Two Trading Spaces guys go to Greensburg to help them rebuild after a tornado.
I wonder if this is the same Greensburg featured on a show on Planet Green, where it followed their efforts to rebuild itself as a "green" city...
Live Through This: Duff McKagen; Fuse. 10 pm. Series Premiere.
The former G'n'R bassist opens up about his struggles with booze and heroin.
And I have waited all summer for this. This is the shiznit, and needs to be on your radar:
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is running a 24-hour marathon of Laurel & Hardy shorts and movies. It had been easily 15 years since I've seen those two geniuses, but I've tried catching up since this Spring. I'll give the complete rundown, and I'll point out the ones I know to be must-sees. (I haven't seen most of them lately, and I do know the movies are usually a little weaker than the shorts-- those darn plots that get in the way of the mayhem when they run an hour or more).
Seriously: watch some of these, put a tape in, or set the DVR. There is great stuff here, and it's a complete shame that this could never play in today's entertainment environment-- even though the best ones hold up extremely well (aside from the less-sophisticated movie-making).
Night Owls; 5:00 am
Blotto; 5:25 am (Stan steals his wife's liquor and goes out on the town).
Brats; 5:55 am
Hog Wild; 6:20 am
Be Big; 6:45 am
Laughing Gravy; 7:15 am
Our Wife; 7:50 am
Pardon Us; 8:15 am
One Good Turn; 9:30 am
Beau Hunks; 9:55 am (Ollie gets dumped and talks Stan into joining the French Foreign Legion-- and then they try to get out of it.)
Helpmates; 10:35 am
Bonnie Scotland; 11:00 am
The Fixer Uppers; 12:25 pm
Them Thar Hills; 12:50 pm (I haven't seen it lately, but it is considered a classic.)
Tit For Tat; 1:15 pm
The Live Ghost; 1:40 pm (pretty good; the guys help a sea captain shanghai a crew for a haunted ship.
The Devil's Brother; 2:05 pm
Me and My Pal; 3:40 pm
Their First Mistake; 4:10 pm
Pack Up Your Troubles; 4:35 pm
Scram!; 5:45 pm
County Hospital; 6:10 pm. (A classic. Stan visits Ollie in the hospital, and they pack in a feature-length movie's amount of mayhem and destruction in just 19 minutes. Check out where Stan keeps his condiments. And it features my sons' favorite line, "Hard boiled eggs and nuts.")
The Chimp; 6:30 pm
****The Music Box; 7:00 pm. (A masterpiece. Absolutely brilliant in so many ways. The guys try to deliver a piano to a house located at the top of a hill. It's a half-hour long, and gets my highest recommendation. C'mon, people-- you can afford a half hour. It's worth it.)
Sons of the Desert; 7:35 pm. (One of their hour-long movies that are entertaining the entire time-- usually there is a non-Laurel&Hardy plot wedged into their full-length movies, but this is all Stan & Ollie. The two lie to their wives about taking a vacation, so they can go to a Lodge convention. It, of course, goes completely awry. Good stuff.)
Way Out West; 8:45 pm. (Another good one that's over an hour long. The two try to get a deed for a gold mine to the right person. Not as much slapstick, but they still get into their share of mishaps.)
Swiss Miss; 10:00 pm
Block-Heads; 11:15 pm (Ollie tries to help his old war buddy Stan-- who guarded a trench for 20 years before he realized the war was over. He brings Stan home, and, of course, things go very badly. There's a great scene where Ollie visits Stan at the VA Hospital and thinks he lost a leg in the war, so he carries the completely healthy Stan around.)
The Flying Deuces; 12:15 am (I haven't seen it lately, but I know it's a fan favorite.)
A Chump at Oxford; 1:25 am (Pretty good. There's a good scene where the two get lost in a maze, and some frat boys(?) mess with them.)
Saps at Sea; 2:30 am (The two get stuck on a boat with a killer. But they have a secret weapon: a trombone. Stan's hysterics as he tries to play the trombone under pressure is good stuff.)
Air Raid Wardens; 3:30 am
Sunday, 8/24
Z Rock; IFC. 10:30 pm. Series Premiere.
A sitcom about three Brooklyn rockers who can be themselves as the band Z02 at night-- and then have to be kid rockers Z Brothers during the day to pay the bills.
The N's Student Body (The N; 7 pm). Season Finale.
Generation Kill (HBO; 8 pm). Series Finale.
Law & Order: Criminal Intent (USA; 8 pm). Season Finale.
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