entertainment

TV Guide just release their list of the top 30 Cult TV shows of all time. Of the 30, I counted the number of shows for which I’d seen at least 5 episodes: 11. I guess that is why they are cult favorites and not hugely successful favorites. 8 of the shows started in the 1960s or earlier (a surprise to me.) I’d never even heard of 4 of them. Not a single one on the list began its run during the years between 1975 and 1986, indicating an apparent lull in creativity. TV Guide List of the Top 30 Cult TV Shows of AllRead More →

It’s hard to say which new Fall 2007 shows will be worth watching based on the brief descriptions that are given. That’s why I set my TiVo to record new episodes of shows containing the keyword “Pilot” and give many of them a chance. However, I probably will manually record a few shows to make sure I give them a chance. NBC: Check out videos and descriptions of the new NBC Fall 2007 shows Journeyman – It’s airing after Heroes and looks like Quantum Leap with an edge. There are a bunch of clips, but I don’t feel compelled by any of them. Bionic WomanRead More →

There are always some great “bubble” shows that may or may not get renewed because they just don’t have quite enough viewers. Here are my favorites that did make the cut: How I Met Your Mother: I find this show more enjoyable than any other comedy on television. Watch The Office just plain makes me uncomfortable. If you know what “Swarley” and “Slap Bet” are, you know what I mean. Luckily CBS is keeping HIMYM around for another season. Friday Night Lights: The best drama on TV. NBC needs some major hits since their ratings stink. This show is not a major ratings hit, butRead More →

The Class: This show was not very funny; I stopped watching after the pilot. But somehow my wife and I watched a few episodes later in the season. They had re-tooled the cast and the story, and it worked beautifully. The show became an evolved version of Friends. But the first half of the season must have turned-away too many views and it was too late to be saved. Too bad this show won’t be picked up by another network. Veronica Mars: A great show, an almost perfect show, that did everything right but found it impossible to find a substantial audience. The show hasRead More →

Gilmore Girls: My wife and I first started watching this show when we were dating and she received only one channel at her house: The WB. I can’t believe we’ve been watching it for the 7 years. It interesting looking back over the years and how the characters have grown-up. It’s always sad to see a show end, but the spark wasn’t quite there this last season with a different executive producer. So long old friends. The Sopranos: Has this season been boring or what? Something exciting had better happen besides Christopher shooting the dude from Wings. Otherwise, HBO may have been riding a deadRead More →

My thoughts on the Season Finales, where the season actually has a satisfying story arc: CSI: In response to ABC moving Grey’s Anatomy to the same timeslot, CSI upped the ante by introducing a season-long mystery: the Miniature Serial Killer. It worked. It improved on an already great show. It fascinating how the inability to catch the serial killer has impacted each character; I can’t wait to see how the season ends. Friday Night Lights: The finale was several weeks ago, but it was an end-cap to a flawless season. This show is the best drama on TV, even when compared against the detective/forensic/medical competition.Read More →

My favorite portion of the TV season is mid-May. The sweeps period is ending. There are multiple new episodes of (pretty much) every show. There are Season Finales that wrap-up the season and make you look forward to next September. There are Series Finales that let you say “good bye” to your favorite shows. There are “advertiser up-fronts” by each of the major networks, detailing their renewals and new shows for the next season. Unfortunately, there are also the unexpected/unwanted cancellations, but at least you find out for sure that a show will not be back. Thus begins my once-a-year flurry of television-related posts. OverRead More →

I saw the third X-man movie this weekend and was very impressed. This trilogy provided the most satisfying story arc of any set of science fiction movies since the original Star Wars (Matrix 3 was kinda of a let down.) Of course, having decades of comic books from which to borrow story lines helps the writing / planning of short- and long-term stories. The special effects and action sequences were a couple of notches above the previous two movies, so I think that make this the best of the three. This movie instantly became one of my all-time favorite science fiction movies and I can’tRead More →