Premieres and Notables: February 6-12, 2012

Monday, 2/6

Smash; NBC. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
You've probably seen the commercials. Heck, I DVR everything, so I can FF through commercials, and I've seen too many commercials for this one.
It's a musical-drama based on the behind-the-scenes goings-on at a Broadway production of the Marilyn Monroe story.
NBC has pushed the crap out of this, but it looks like it could be a winner.


Tuesday, 2/7

The River; ABC. 8 pm CST. Series Premiere.
A nature-show host disappears while filming in the Amazon, and a crew of rescuers go on the hunt to find him.
Sounds like they'll find a lot of weirdness and mysteries...

Doomsday Preppers; National Geographic. 8 pm CST.  Series Premiere.


Thursday, 2/9

Swamp People; History. 8 pm CST. Season Premiere.


Saturday, 2/11

Parking Wars; A&E. 8 pm CST.  Season Premiere.


Sunday, 2/12

The Walking Dead; AMC. 8 pm CST.  Mid-season Premiere.
I'm no W.D. apologist; I'm very aware there are some problems with plot-lines and characters. Or pacing; the first part of the season was pretty slow.
But after the last ten minutes of the mid-season finale with the Holy Shit conclusion of that episode, I'm really looking forward to see what's going to happen next.
This show hooks me for a solid hour every week, and it's a rare show that can do that nowadays.
Check it out.
And if you've missed anything, AMC will air the first seven eps of the season right before the premiere, so you can catch up.

And at 11 pm, Talking Dead continues its look at the aforementioned series.  It's not necessary, but it has its moments-- and the show scores some good guests.

Comic Book Men; AMC. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
This reality show is set in Kevin Smith's comic bookstore in New Jersey.
I think there can be some good stuff here, but I can also see this devolving into a mess with ludicrous clerks or customers that make fun of comics.
Some of the best times-- and conversations-- in my life happened at my local comic store in college, so I'm giving it a shot.  But I also know that crazy sells, so I'm not expecting much in the way of thought-provoking situations.

Full Metal Jousting; History.  9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Didn't we just have a reality show about modern-day jousters on some other cable network last Fall?
Is this really a "thing"?