This is topic New Shows? Someone point me in the right direction in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.


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Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
 
Hey Guys,

So lots of new shows will be starting soon if they haven't already.. and I haven't paid the usual attention to my viewing options this year.

Could someone recommend new shows I should watch? Hatrack rarely fails me and, political disagreements aside, I almost always agree with your tastes.

Sci Fi, fantasy, Historical, and Whedonesque are some of my favorite genres.
 
Posted by SoaPiNuReYe (Member # 9144) on :
 
Boardwalk Empire on HBO is supposed to be good. Steve Buscemi leads, and the person who played Omar from The Wire is in there too. It's about prohibition and the first episode premiered last night. I didn't think it was so great, but that's what I said after the first episode of The Wire and that's my favorite show ever.
 
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
 
Watching Boardwalk Empire is part of what prompted me to post this. Yeah, it was kinda Meh but it probably just needs to get rolling.

Has anyone heard anything about The Event? Or any other show starting soon?
 
Posted by Chris Bridges (Member # 1138) on :
 
Terriers. Tim Minear is involved with it, and after Angel, Firefly, and Wonderfalls I'll give him a shot on just about anything.
 
Posted by Armoth (Member # 4752) on :
 
Where's Lisa - she's usually in charge of the fall season pilots...
 
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
 
Dexter season 5!
 
Posted by Shanna (Member # 7900) on :
 
The only new show I'm excited for is The Walking Dead on AMC (premieres on Halloween.) And I'm not just excited, I am counting the days!

I'll also be watching Boardwalk Empire. Largely this is because one of my coworkers, her husband, and I have made a tradition of me going over to their house every Sunday to watch True Blood and Hung. Both shows are done for the year but Dexter starts next week so we just decided to add Boardwalk Empire to the list. I missed the premiere because they were out of town, but the trailers make me believe it has potential, though no doubt it'll take a few episodes to get the ball rolling.

I'm already sick of seeing The Event commercials so I won't be tuning in to see the show. It just feels like someone trying to take advantage of the hole left by Lost, which I gave up on after three seasons.
 
Posted by AchillesHeel (Member # 11736) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Chris Bridges:
Terriers. Tim Minear is involved with it, and after Angel, Firefly, and Wonderfalls I'll give him a shot on just about anything.

Good spasmatic lord, I thought the biggest name in that was the red-head semi funny guy. They should lead with Minear.
 
Posted by Geraine (Member # 9913) on :
 
I watched The Event last night. I guess it was interesting, but the story was so convoluted I started to get annoyed at the end.

NBC is touting the show as a cross between Lost and 24. I have problems with those comparisons. The Event had the same pacing and sense of urgency of 24, but it had nothing to do with Lost. Sure there is mystery, but only to the audience. The characters shown last night, (The President and the shaggy guy) know exactly what is happening, but the audience doesn't. Part of what made Lost so special is that the characters knew as little as the audience did.

I'll give it a few more episodes, I just think the show was overhyped and underdelivered.

Chuck on the other hand was great. I miss Jeff, Lester, and Big Mike, but hopefully they will reappear. It was only the first episode. Linda Hamilton as Chucks mom is AWESOME!

Going to watch Glee tonight and Fringe on Thursday. Fringe looks like it is going to be pretty amazing. They are doing a type of storytelling that I haven't really seen in a show before. The show will have episodes that alternate between the "Home" universe and the "Alternate" universe. It will be interesting to see how that plays out.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Armoth:
Where's Lisa - she's usually in charge of the fall season pilots...

Linky

I'll tell you what I'm watching, at any rate:

Mondays:
Chuck - Linda Hamilton is joining as Chuck's mom. I mean, even if I didn't already love the show, this would be a no brainer.
The Event - The commercials have been irking me all summer. About a month and a half ago I figured out what the event probably is
Castle - I love, love, love the chemistry between Castle and Beckett.
How I Met Your Mother - What? Even if it wasn't so funny, I have to find out who the mother is.
Weeds - I'm loving this season.

Tuesdays:
Glee - Despite the Kurt-uber-alles stuff, there's more in this show that I love than stuff that I hate.
No Ordinary Family - Low budget Fantastic Four. Live action Incredibles. I don't care. The premise alone hooked me. Oh, and it's Berlanti. Everwood with superpowers?
Life Unexpected - Granted, I started watching it only because of Shiri Appleby, but it's a great story.

Wednesday:
Lie to Me - Just brilliant. One of these days, I want to see a crossover with Cal Lightman, Patrick Jane, Rick Castle and Charlie Crews. Lightman and Jane will be trying to read one another, Castle will be interjecting smart-ass comments, and Charlie will be sitting and watching it all with a very Zen smile.
Cougar Town - Guilty pleasure. I started watching it at the end of the TV season last year because everything else had finished, and Jordan was my favorite character on Scrubs. I wasn't initially going to watch it because the whole cougar thing is kind of offensive. But they got past that to the point that they were seriously considering renaming the show for this season. And it's really funny.
Hellcats - I like seeing different cultures crash head-on, so the idea of a law student having to join the cheerleading team in order to stay in law school tickled me. But it's a little too vapid for me to be wowed by it. So it's one of two shows that are on probation with me.

Thursday:
Bones - Brennan and Booth have great chemistry. Almost as good as Angela and Hodgins.
The Big Bang Theory - The funniest show on TV.
The Mentalist - See what I wrote about Lie to Me. Patrick Jane is one of my favorite characters of all time. Sarcastic, disrespectful, and arrogant. You have to respect that in a person.
Nikita - This is the other one that's on probation. It's good, but I'm not sure how much I care about the characters. Maybe Alex, though it's kind of jarring to see her in this and then see her sitting pretty on the sofa at the beginning of each episode of How I Met Your Mother.
This Is Not My Life - God... if you haven't been watching this show, go and find it. There've been 9 eps so far, each better than the one before it. It's on New Zealand TV, so the only way you're going to see it is illicitly. Unless they have eps on the station's website, which you'd have to check out for yourself. It's kind of Prisoner-esque. It stars Charles Mesure, who plays Kyle the terrorist on V, but he's a very different character here. This is true science fiction, possibly the best of it on TV right now.

Friday (taped, of course):
Human Target - I loved it when it was the backup feature in Action Comics in the '70s, and even though this is a different Christopher Chance, and he doesn't disguise himself as the targets now, it's still a fantastic show. Unfortunately, there were apparently complaints that every single regular was male, so they're shoehorning other characters in as a kind of equal opportunity thing. I mean, no one complained that Mercy was almost all female, but whatever. Anyhow, it's a great show.
Medium - CBS dumped it, but NBC picked it back up. CBS are a bunch of dopes (although they have The Mentalist, so someone there must be on the ball).
Smallville - Last season. I'm kind of glad now that I didn't stop watching it back when it made me want to claw my own eyes out. I've been enjoying it a lot for the last season or two. I'd like to hope that they'll spin off of it. Maybe Justin Hartley and the other heroes they've introduced. Nah, the people at DC are too stupid to do that.

Sunday:
Dexter - I don't think this needs any explanation, does it?

I watched the first ep of Outlawed because Havah wanted to, and that's an hour of my life that I'll never get back. Undercovers looks like it might be fun, but I'm overloaded as it is. And Hawaii 50 has both Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park in it, but I don't think that's enough to interest me. Oh, and the commercials for Chase were interesting, but it doesn't look like it has any light side to it, and if I want to see a smoking blonde US Marshall, I'm going with In Plain Sight, whenever that gets back.
 
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
Has Unexpected restarted? I'll have to catch up.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
Tonight is the second ep of the season. Last week's was huge.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
The woman in the Buymore that Morgan's flirting with... who is she? Was she that spy friend of Sarah's the Morgan turned down in season 3?
 
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lisa:
Tonight is the second ep of the season. Last week's was huge.

Excellent. Something to look forward to tonight, if I ever get to leave work.
 
Posted by anti_maven (Member # 9789) on :
 
Oh you lucky people. I'll have to wait for a year or two to get this lot on Spanish TV*.

*Spanish TV, used to be the worst TV in the known universe, but is getting loads better recently (or maybe my standards are dropping... [Wink]
 
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
 
Being Erica Season 3 is back on in Canada tonight. Pretty much the only show left I use torrents to get a hold of.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
OMG, yes, I forgot Being Erica.
 
Posted by Bella Bee (Member # 7027) on :
 
quote:
Spanish TV, used to be the worst TV in the known universe, but is getting loads better recently
You know, that was one of the things that surprised me when I moved here. US programmes are often shown here before they're available in the UK or France, maybe 2 or 3 days after the US. Dubbed of course, but now with digital you can push the red button and watch in English if you like. Of course, the actual Spanish shows are still pretty low budget, but hey.

As for this season - The Event (I hope it's aliens), and later The Walking Dead. That's my whole list of newbies, so far. This year hasn't been very inspiring.
 
Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :
 
Boardwalk Empire gets renewed for a second season after only one episode.

Did anyone see it? Is it worth it?
 
Posted by Geraine (Member # 9913) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
The woman in the Buymore that Morgan's flirting with... who is she? Was she that spy friend of Sarah's the Morgan turned down in season 3?

Nope. That my friend was Olivia Munn, of G4 fame. She is on Attack of the Show, and I believe she became a correspondent on the Daily Show.

Don't get used to her though. Her character ( I believe named Greta) will be played by a different actor every week. I believe in one of the next few episodes Mr. Old Spice Guy (Isaiah Mustafa) himself will be playing Greta as well. It is pretty clever.

[ September 29, 2010, 02:40 PM: Message edited by: Geraine ]
 
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
 
Despite my utter hatred for The Event commercials, I watched it last night.

I'm torn a bit. I'm pretty curious about where it's going and what's happening, but, it wasn't nearly interesting to watch on a weekly basis. I think it'd be fun to watch from Netflix though. But I'm worried about being spoiled if I don't. I probably won't.

On the other hand, Chuck was amazing last night! It's back with a bang and whole new dynamic! I'm amazed at how well that show reinvents itself to stay fresh, and still manages to hold onto a tiny bit of plot arc in a genre that usually does away with it entirely. Who am I kidding though, no one watches Chuck for the plot, but the awesome characters.

Tonight: I want to watch Glee, and next week I want to give No Ordinary Family a try. I was originally condemning Detroit 187 because it was filmed in Atlanta...but they moved filming to Detroit, and even reshot the pilot. That makes me want to watch it. The entire cast and crew is coming to the restaurant I work at tonight for the premiere, but I told my boss I didn't want to work it. I'd rather do homework than tear my hair out for four hours.

quote:
The Big Bang Theory - The funniest show on TV.
I always thought this looked a little silly until I borrowed the first season from a friend. Then I bought all three seasons and watched the whole thing in like a week. I love it! It's the ultimate comedy for geeks. And I am thrilled that Parsons won the emmy. He absolutely deserved it.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
quote:
Nope. That my friend was Olivia Munn, of G4 fame. She is on Attack of the Show, and I believe she became a correspondent on the Daily Show.
THAT'S where I recognized her.

quote:
Don't get used to her though. Her character ( I believe named Gertrude) will be played by a different actor every week. I believe in one of the next few episodes Mr. Old Spice Guy (Isaiah Mustafa) himself will be playing Gertrude as well. It is pretty clever.
Wait whut?

-

Spoilerlolwut?

(Is she a figment of Morgan's imagination? Can't recall offhand if anyone else responded to her. No matter what that's really weird.)

The main question that still hasn't been answered: ARE we supposed to recognize her in the slightest? Or is she an entirely new character?
 
Posted by Geraine (Member # 9913) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
quote:
Nope. That my friend was Olivia Munn, of G4 fame. She is on Attack of the Show, and I believe she became a correspondent on the Daily Show.
THAT'S where I recognized her.

quote:
Don't get used to her though. Her character ( I believe named Gertrude) will be played by a different actor every week. I believe in one of the next few episodes Mr. Old Spice Guy (Isaiah Mustafa) himself will be playing Gertrude as well. It is pretty clever.
Wait whut?

-

Spoilerlolwut?

(Is she a figment of Morgan's imagination? Can't recall offhand if anyone else responded to her. No matter what that's really weird.)

No she is a spy. She was heading out in the morning to go to Thailand. The position at the Buy More carries the name Gertrude, not the person. I think it goes something like "While you are here at HQ your cover / job is to be Gertrude." A spy leaves on a mission and another comes back and takes over the role.

There are supposed to be quite a few guest stars playing Gertrude this season, I'll see if I can get a list.

Anyone that watch Chuck last night notice who the bad guy was??? It was Dolph Lundgren! He played Ivan Drago in Rocky IV. I haven't seen him forever.
 
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
 
My favorite part of the episode was when he said "I must break you."

I love how geeky this show can be.
 
Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
 
Dexter is good.
Let's talk about it in a thread
someone start one.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
Good as Dexter is, I think we can wait a week. Right now all I can talk about is "ooohhh... it's gonna be so good!"
 
Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
 
Lisa, Cougar Town, but no Modern Family? That'd be my Wednesday ABC pick.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
I never started watching Modern Family. I thought about it, but adding one more show to my already insane list of TV didn't seem wise. I might go back and watch it at some point, though. Is it really good?
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
I just watched the pilot episode of Raising Hope, which was excellent. Great characters, exactly the right blend of stereotypes and depth for a sitcom. A main character who manages to be "everyman" and likeable but interesting. Very funny and sweet.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/178543/raising-hope-pilot
 
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lisa:
I never started watching Modern Family. I thought about it, but adding one more show to my already insane list of TV didn't seem wise. I might go back and watch it at some point, though. Is it really good?

Just watched the first 4 episodes last night and thought it was hilarious.
 
Posted by kmbboots (Member # 8576) on :
 
Wow. I am old. I don't have HBO but I do have 4 PBS channels. Most nights I am watching Masterpiece something. I am my parents.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
Just watched Glee.

"Mr. Schuester, are you aware there is a forum on my blog dedicated to getting you to stop rapping?"

"...kids... kids don't like it when I rap?"

[ROFL]
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Stephan:
quote:
Originally posted by Lisa:
I never started watching Modern Family. I thought about it, but adding one more show to my already insane list of TV didn't seem wise. I might go back and watch it at some point, though. Is it really good?

Just watched the first 4 episodes last night and thought it was hilarious.
Modern Family and 30 Rock are the only two half-hour "sitcoms" worth watching right now, at least if you have as little time as I do to watch shows. I was going to give Running Wilde a chance (as it has an Arrested Development pedigree), but early reviews are disheartening.
 
Posted by Hedwig (Member # 2315) on :
 
Dolph Lundgren got a Fullbright scholarship to M.I.T., so he's too smart to watch Chuck.
But so is this guy.
 
Posted by TheBlueShadow (Member # 9718) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Herblay:
Modern Family and 30 Rock are the only two half-hour "sitcoms" worth watching right now, at least if you have as little time as I do to watch shows.

The Big Bang Theory should be on that list.
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by TheBlueShadow:
quote:
Originally posted by Herblay:
Modern Family and 30 Rock are the only two half-hour "sitcoms" worth watching right now, at least if you have as little time as I do to watch shows.

The Big Bang Theory should be on that list.
You know what? I'm an uber-nerd, an professional electrical engineer and physics geek, that should be the target crowd for Big Bang Theory. But you know what? In the two or three episodes that I've seen, the show seemed much more intent on making fun of geeks and laughing AT them then portraying actual geek humor. I work with more geeks and dorks than I can count, and I only know one or two people who watch it.

If I want a REALLY good geeky show, I'll watch Chuck or the superexcellent IT Crowd. Better Off Ted wasn't TOO bad, but it was really hit or miss.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
One of the reasons I laugh so hard at Big Bang Theory is that I understand more of it than a normal person would. I mean, in the pilot, when they were talking about how Superman catching Lois Lane falling off a building would probably snap her like a twig, I thought it was great. When I saw the large bottle in the top of Leonard's closet, I knew right off the bat that it had to be a model of Kandor.

The IT Crowd... it's okay, but I don't think it's as good.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
I pretty much agree with Herblay. I didn't find Big Bang Theory funny much at all.

Does anyone know why they seem to be making TWO Arrested Development pseudo-spinoffs? (The Increasingly Poor Decisions of "Todd Margaret" and "Running Wilde.") I guess it looks like David Cross and Will Arnett are only playing bit parts in their respective shows, so it's like they're both filming two full series at once. Still, pretty weird.
 
Posted by scholarette (Member # 11540) on :
 
I loved first season of Big Bang but lately it hasn't been as good- like they used up their a material. Though the funniest thing for me was when they were doing the space toilet and my husband was like, nope, the guy who is going to be freaking out is Bob in the cubby next to me cause his signature is the last one preflight. The engineer totally is so in the clear. [Smile] First time I heard my husband was at all involved in space station toilets.
 
Posted by TheBlueShadow (Member # 9718) on :
 
Lisa and I have the same taste in shows.
 
Posted by AchillesHeel (Member # 11736) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
Just watched Glee.

"Mr. Schuester, are you aware there is a forum on my blog dedicated to getting you to stop rapping?"

"...kids... kids don't like it when I rap?"

[ROFL]

Never watched a single minute of the show, but rumor is that in the distant future they will have an entire episode dedicated to Rocky Horror Picture Show and even have Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon signed on. No word on the one and only Tim Curry, but maybe Anthony Stewart Head will appear just to remind everyone that he was Frankenfurter before he was Giles.
 
Posted by umberhulk (Member # 11788) on :
 
It's always sunny in philadelphia.

The first episode this season sucked though.
 
Posted by Shanna (Member # 7900) on :
 
I have a very love/hate relationship with Glee. I think the new season started off with some fun dialogue but between all the news about the Britney Spears episode and the Rocky Horror episode and the millions of celebrity guest spots, I wonder if the show plans on having any kind of over-arcing plot. Alittle heart and soul would also be nice.

And whoever is in charge of music should be fired. The songs are becoming more and more overproduced with each episode. Sometimes I can't even tell its actually a rerecording of a song or if the kids are just lip-syncing along with the original version. As a former choir kid of eight years, I really liked hearing the showtunes and choral remixes of pop songs.

Crazy, racist!Rachel was hilarious though and promises of more Brittany, Santana, and Puck keep me watching.
 
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
 
My only issue with The Big Bang Theory is that sometimes some of the nerd jokes come a little close, its definately alot funnier with the Sciencey stuff then the nerd culture jokes.
 
Posted by Shanna (Member # 7900) on :
 
My favorite parts of Big Bang Theory are the scenes with Penny and Sheldon. And not because one is geeky and the other isn't, but because his character is so socially-clueless and she is adorably tolerant of him.
 
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
 
I think I might agree that a lot of the jokes in Big Bang Theory come at the expense of geeks, but, I think it's sort of a celebratory poking fun at, rather than a mean spirited way. I totally identify with a lot of the dorky stuff they do (though, I'm not nearly the geeks they are). and I usually feel like I'm laughing with, rather than at them.

The science stuff, which I get maybe 90% of, is hilarious as well.

My favorite scenes are Sheldon and Penny as well, but really, Sheldon and anyone. I think I'd also agree that the first season was the best, but two and three were hilarious as well. A lot of people claimed there was a big drop off in quality in the last two seasons, but I didn't think it was nearly as bad as they did. It's still one of my favorite shows. Plus, Neil DeGrasse Tyson likes it. [Smile]
 
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
The newest episode of BBT is great.

Bummer that Kaley Cuoco is going to miss a few shows. But at least they're saying she should fully recover!


There was way, way too much stuff in the season premiere of Unexpected. And ew, ew, ew, plotlines from George Michael songs?!?
 
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
 
Immensely enjoyed The Event.

I'll try Undercovers for a few more episodes. It hasn't wowed me yet with the story. But the leading lady is so freaking cute I have to give it another try.

Can an American show make it where the leading man and woman start off together instead of dragging us along for 7 years wondering if they will get together?

Outsourced had interesting characters but never made me laugh.
 
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Stephan:
Can an American show make it where the leading man and woman start off together instead of dragging us along for 7 years wondering if they will get together?

Mad About You did. And there are others, although most are family-focused rather than couple-focused.
 
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by rivka:
quote:
Originally posted by Stephan:
Can an American show make it where the leading man and woman start off together instead of dragging us along for 7 years wondering if they will get together?

Mad About You did. And there are others, although most are family-focused rather than couple-focused.
I loved Mad About You, but I wasn't including sitcoms. I was thinking about dramas like Bones and Castle.
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
I enjoyed the Event too. It was much better than I thought it would be.

Hawaii 5-0 was also outstanding. But with the Kurtzman / Orci team (MI III, Star Trek), I'm not particularly surprised.

The Defenders was a very entertaining courtroom drama, but I don't have enough time for shows that aren't outstanding. It's good, and relatively fun, but it isn't great.

Outsourced was just bad. They spend too much time poking fun at India, and there isn't any heart. It's a very shabby, underfunded sitcom. Maybe it would have played better if it had the heart / introspection of a show like Scrubs.
 
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
 
Am I the only one who recognized the nod to Repo Man in the first "Chuck" episode? Harry Dean Stanton was essentially reprising his role from the movie.

I should probably write the show and tell them that someone enjoyed the cultural ref.
 
Posted by LargeTuna (Member # 10512) on :
 
I liked Hawaii Five-O too! the character's were genuinely likable and even though at times th dialogue seemed pretty weak it was like a good action movie. Lots of investigating that ends up with action (usually fun) most of the time. I need to fill my loads of shooting quota since 24 got the axe.
 
Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lisa:
One of the reasons I laugh so hard at Big Bang Theory is that I understand more of it than a normal person would. I mean, in the pilot, when they were talking about how Superman catching Lois Lane falling off a building would probably snap her like a twig, I thought it was great. When I saw the large bottle in the top of Leonard's closet, I knew right off the bat that it had to be a model of Kandor.

The IT Crowd... it's okay, but I don't think it's as good.

I'm with you on the IT crowd. We tried to watch a few episodes over the summer, and aside from a few moments, we thought it was pretty mediocre. Of course, we also think the US Office is far superior to the British one too.

As for Modern Family, it is truly amazing for a half-hour sitcom. They manage to pull off the bumbling dad stereotype in a fresh, endearing, loving way. I've never watched a show where I've loved so many of the characters (all but one of them, actually), all in different ways.

-Bok
 
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
 
I think there is enough interesting about Castle besides wondering if those two will ever get it on. It's like X files, only not actually similar in any particulars.
 
Posted by AvidReader (Member # 6007) on :
 
It's close to the end of its season, but the show I'm most excited about right now is Haven over on Syfy. I don't know what it is about Steven King adaptations that I love so much, but the back half of this season is seriously delivering.

It sort of started like an X-Files lite, but they've been bringing some nicely intense drama. If they keep this groove up next season, it may be my new favorite show.
 
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
Mike & Molly is surprisingly good. Good combination of really sweet and very funny. (Mike's story about his dad in the pilot being a perfect example.)
 
Posted by Stephan (Member # 7549) on :
 
I liked Hawaii 5-0 as well, I really didn't think I would. There are very few cop shows I have liked over the years, they can get formulaic REALLY quickly.
 
Posted by Geraine (Member # 9913) on :
 
The first two episodes of Fringe were really enjoyable.

After watching the third episode of The Event I am starting to like it more.

I love Chuck. I'm sooooo glad Jeff, Lester, and Big Mike are back.
 
Posted by Amilia (Member # 8912) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
I just watched the pilot episode of Raising Hope, which was excellent. Great characters, exactly the right blend of stereotypes and depth for a sitcom. A main character who manages to be "everyman" and likeable but interesting. Very funny and sweet.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/178543/raising-hope-pilot

I finally caught the pilot last night. You are right, it is excellent. My brother and I were still laughing an hour after the show was over. It's got such a delightfully morbid sense of humor. If all the episodes are as good as the pilot, this is going to be my favorite new series this season.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
I do think that the pilot episode is the best one so far, but the other ones have been almost as good.
 
Posted by Bella Bee (Member # 7027) on :
 
I'm glad that The Ev(backwards E)nt has been picked up for a full season. This year is so slim on new shows that interest me even slightly, I'll take whatever sci-fi/mystery show I can get. As long as it creatively does better than FlashForward (not difficult), it's doing well in my book.

I plan to start watching Fringe when I have time.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
I'm just going to write it The EV3NT. And I think the parallel universe thing is pretty much a given now.
 
Posted by MattP (Member # 10495) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lisa:
I'm just going to write it The EV3NT. And I think the parallel universe thing is pretty much a given now.

SPOILERS?

Vs time travel vs distant cousins a la the 12 colonies? Are there there other alternatives?

Also: THE EVƎNT
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
EVƎNT SPOILERS:

Parallel-developed aliens are still a possibility. Or humans that were bioengineered with some lost tech, just returning -- but that's pretty much the same as the "distant cousins" theory.

My money's on time travel. . . .
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Bella Bee:
I'm glad that The Ev(backwards E)nt has been picked up for a full season. This year is so slim on new shows that interest me even slightly, I'll take whatever sci-fi/mystery show I can get. As long as it creatively does better than FlashForward (not difficult), it's doing well in my book.

I plan to start watching Fringe when I have time.

The Event started off better than FlashForward, V, or Fringe. Fringe has been improving into greatness, but the Event might just be another Lost -- great from the beginning. It's been getting stronger with each episode, and it shows no signs of slowing yet....
 
Posted by MattP (Member # 10495) on :
 
EVƎNT SPOILERS:
quote:
My money's on time travel. . . .
The thing that makes me question this is that they don't seem too concerned about mucking with the past in major ways.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
That's why I'm discarding the time travel hypothesis.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
I saw the first episode of Tower Prep. Sort of a cross between The Prisoner and Sky High. It looks like it's going to be an excellent show.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
where is that airing?
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by MattP:
EVƎNT SPOILERS:
quote:
My money's on time travel. . . .
The thing that makes me question this is that they don't seem too concerned about mucking with the past in major ways.
Who said anything about travel from the future. . . .

<<Cues ominous music>>
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
I watched the first episode and a half of the EVƎNT. Is it really that good? It seemed pretty meh to me.

(Speaking as someone who liked Lost but gave up on Flashforward).
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
where is that airing?

It's on Cartoon Network. Even though it's live action. I think they're just trying to confuse us.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
I understand why MTV needs to air things other than music videos, since music videos are a fairly narrow form of entertainment. I have absolutely no idea why Cartoon Network needs to air something other than cartoons, since cartoons can mean anything.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
Just watched the pilot of No Ordinary Family. Thought it was pretty good. I particularly liked the fight scene between the teleporter/phaser guy and Mr. Incredible.
 
Posted by Herblay (Member # 11834) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Raymond Arnold:
I watched the first episode and a half of the EVƎNT. Is it really that good? It seemed pretty meh to me.

(Speaking as someone who liked Lost but gave up on Flashforward).

It gets progressively better. I also liked Lost, but I gave up on FlashForward about half-way in. I watched V through the first season, but I was kinda meh about it.

It's twice as watchable as FlashForward (and the budget's about 5 times as high).
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
I'm really impressed by Jason Ritter's character. I keep thinking of him as Kevin, though, even though he's Sean on this show.
 
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
 
Should I give Fringe another try? I watched the first probably 2 episodes, and while I was put off by the magic science, nothing else really made me care enough to stick around.
 
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
 
Fringe went from run of the mill cop-show with bad science to something pretty awesome. Apart from Dexter it's the show I look forward to most each week.
 
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
 
You you liked ______ or ______, then I think you'll like Fringe.

Fill in the blank?
 
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
 
Can't really compare it to another show...

It's an arc show though. The bad science doesn't go away, but it becomes far less annoying. Walter is funny. and... most of the stuff I want to say I like would be a spoiler...

Unfortunately you have to watch a lot of setup and character building before they really dig into the arc. I was pretty "Meh" on the show until the end of the first season. Then I bought the DVD and got my hubby to watch it and by the end he commented that he didn't understand why I said the show was mediocre. And it gets better from there. It's sorta like LOST in reverse. LOST started out super awesome and got lame. Fringe started out lame and turned somewhat awesome.

And like LOST, it's a JJ Abrams show so expect weirdness. Still, I wouldn't say it's similar to LOST in any other way.
 
Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by The Pixiest:
Fringe went from run of the mill cop-show with bad science to something pretty awesome. Apart from Dexter it's the show I look forward to most each week.

I missed the last half of season two. How horribly confused will I be if I start up again with season three?
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
I watched the pilot of Fringe. It creeped me out badly. I'm the kind of person who avoids horror movies at all costs. I won't watch Supernatural. I managed Ghost Whisperer, because the real scary things were few and far between in most seasons. But I caught part of an X-Files ep once, and it scared the bejeebers out of me.

So... is Fringe for me? I love Warehouse 13. Is it on that level, but less comedy-ish? Or is it more X-Files-ish?
 
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
 
I never watched X-Files but I've heard others compare the two.

I've also never watched Warehouse 13...

Suddenly I feel like I need to turn in my Hatrack membership card.

Fringe has some gross stuff, but not a lot of "BOO!" scares. I don't know what it is about horror you don't like.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by The Pixiest:
I never watched X-Files but I've heard others compare the two.

I've also never watched Warehouse 13...

Suddenly I feel like I need to turn in my Hatrack membership card.

Fringe has some gross stuff, but not a lot of "BOO!" scares. I don't know what it is about horror you don't like.

I hadn't watched Warehouse 13 until one of the characters from that show guested on Eureka. Then I had to, and I'm so glad I did.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
Is there any given point I could start watching Fringe AFTER the period of bad science and nothing particularly exciting happening? I tried watching the early episodes a few times and gave up.
 
Posted by Belle (Member # 2314) on :
 
quote:

I think there is enough interesting about Castle besides wondering if those two will ever get it on. It's like X files, only not actually similar in any particulars.

I agree. I actually started watching it simply because it was Nathan Fillion, and wasn't excited - didn't feel like I wanted to get involved in another Bones-like show where the "Will they or won't they?" is the only thing driving it forward week to week.

However, I find now that I look forward to Castle and not because of the relationship between Castle and Beckett - I maybe it's because I'm a parent of two teen girls, but I find the scenes between Castle and Alexis warm, funny, sometimes sad, and as believable as a make-believe, written for TV drama family can be.
 
Posted by Da_Goat (Member # 5529) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Geraine:
NBC is touting the show as a cross between Lost and 24. I have problems with those comparisons. The Event had the same pacing and sense of urgency of 24, but it had nothing to do with Lost. Sure there is mystery, but only to the audience. The characters shown last night, (The President and the shaggy guy) know exactly what is happening, but the audience doesn't. Part of what made Lost so special is that the characters knew as little as the audience did.

But every season there was a character or two that made you believe they know everything (Locke, Ben, even Jacob didn't know everything). Just because the characters in The Event think they know what's going on doesn't mean they do.

I'm looking forward to the baseball playoffs being over and Fringe starting again. And while I didn't read any reviews to persuade me in either direction, Raising Hope and Running Wilde both made me laugh. I fell in love with the show Community last year, but the episodes this year just haven't been as funny.
 
Posted by AvidReader (Member # 6007) on :
 
Raising Hope has just been super adorable. I don't think I've seen another show with as much warmth in its dysfunction. Usually the "point and laugh at the weird family" shows annoy me, but I haven't gotten that vibe from Hope.
 
Posted by Sa'eed (Member # 12368) on :
 
"Fringe" no where near approaches the awesomeness that was "The X-Files." An episode of the X-files like "Triangle" is worth the whole of J.J Abrams career.
 
Posted by umberhulk (Member # 11788) on :
 
The Walking Dead is starting soon.
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
The preair has already surfaced.
 
Posted by Shanna (Member # 7900) on :
 
I gave in and watched a leaked copy of the first episode.

Without saying too much, I was very impressed. I'm particularly amazed by the amount of gore AMC allowed. The acting was solid and I really got the feeling that the writers understood the source material. There were great little visual nods to the graphic novel but the changes and additions were also well-done and in line with the spirit of the series. The first episode has quite a bit of set-up but there were still some good action scenes and heart-wrenching moments.

I'm glad I got to see it early, but now I'm annoyed at myself because its an even longer gap of time between now and the second episode (unless it gets leaked as well. *fingers crossed*)
 
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by The Pixiest:
I never watched X-Files but I've heard others compare the two.

I've also never watched Warehouse 13...

Suddenly I feel like I need to turn in my Hatrack membership card.

Fringe has some gross stuff, but not a lot of "BOO!" scares. I don't know what it is about horror you don't like.

I am absolutely loving this show. Yes, the first few eps were kind of "eh", but I'm into the second season already, and it's fantastic!!! Thanks.
 
Posted by Raymond Arnold (Member # 11712) on :
 
Last year I watched one episode of Modern Family and went "meh." Today I watched one random episode cause I was bored, then I started watching all of this season 'cause its hilarious. Not sure if the episode I saw last year was just an off one or what, but it's pretty good.
 


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