I hear tonight’s DAMAGES episode is crazy good. The title of the episode is “It’s Not My Birthday” and the synopsis is, “Patty Hewes squares off with the D.A. over access to a key witness. A job candidate at Hewes & Shayes asks Ellen for insight into Patty.”
LET’S START WITH SOME GOOD NEWS: GREEK got renewed for another season! Now, here’s a shoutout to the ABC Family publicity department: please promote GREEK a LOT more. The show is so deserving and it has a lot of loyal fans.
FX picked up the animated comedy ARCHER for a second season and if you haven’t seen the show, be sure to check it out for its sarcasm and sheer funny. There’s good stuff here.
CBS ordered a second season of UNDERCOVER BOSS because the show continues to score well in the ratings. I got bored after two episodes because the episodes are basically commercials for the participating companies. There’s no conflict, no one gets fired and even the reprimands given to employees have been weak. There’s nothing compelling about it.
THE BURIED LIFE: I watched the “Help Deliver a Baby” episode over the weekend and was surprised by how touching it was given the fact that this is an MTV show. The B story (for lack of a better term) was even better as the guys helped raise money so a young woman could visit her mother’s grave in Denver; her mom had died while in the military and the girl didn’t get to attend her funeral. Ben, Dave, Duncan and Jonnie make up the pack of guys at the center of the show and they’re empathetic, inquisitive and endearing. Tonight’s episode of THE BURIED LIFE has the guys heading to D.C. to try to play basketball with President Obama.
BIG LOVE: As touching and heart-wrenching as last week’s episode was, this week’s was just bats**t crazy. There was a lotta gumbo thrown in the pot this week as there was a bomb scare at the casino which Barb had to deal with because Bill and Joey headed down to Mexico (in secret) to rescue Ben, Frank, Lois and JoDeen. The certifiably crazy Hollis and Selma Greene were holding the four captive and staging a mock trial that would inevitably end in the death of all four captives. The already fragile Nicki found out she had “an unhappy uterus” and secondary infertility which made her anxious but that anxiety went through the roof when she found out her mother Adaleen was pregnant (though no one can fathom how this happened at Adaleen’s mature age). Margie is complicating matters again with her sudden plan to marry Ana’s boyfriend Goran so he can stay in medical school in the U.S. and the Henricksons can stay close to Ana’s baby, which they confirmed was Bill’s baby. Barb and Nicki saw through Margene’s explanation that it will help them stay close to the baby and said that Margene was just protecting herself for when Bill went public with his polygamist marriages. I agree with Barb and Nicki; Margene has her own business now and is reveling in the blush of her newfound financial independence. Both Margene and Nicki are trying desperately to come into their own as full-fledged women and both are taking stumbling steps toward doing so. In Nicki’s case, it’s tough to watch because she runs into obstacles at every turn. Having another baby at this point in her life would make her feel womanly and like the wife she thinks Bill wants her to be. Margene is yearning to establish her identity as a grown-up woman and she still maintains she can be part of the marriage and family and do it all. I’m not so sure.
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES: I tried to watch the show last night after being away from it for awhile and found it lifeless, even with the new addition of DEXTER’s Julie Benz as an ex-stripper friend of Susan’s.
BROTHERS AND SISTERS: Kitty officially threw her hat in the ring for Robert’s Senate seat in last night’s episode. I love Cheryl Hines as Buffy, the headstrong campaign manager with a soft Southern drawl. I’m sorry to see Jay Karnes depart as Sarah’s love interest but it’s clear they did that in order to bring Gilles Marini back. I just love Jay Karnes because of his regular guy appeal. Even after his weirdest scenes in THE SHIELD, I like him. He also did good guest turns on BURN NOTICE. It was good to see him in in this more mainstream drama. Emily Van Camp has a big storyline now that her character of Rebecca suffered a serious loss in this week’s episode, and it’s something that will test her relationship with Justin (Dave Annable). In a show-related note, congrats to Dave Annable, he got engaged to actress Odette Yustman last week.
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF TIM: This animated comedy returned last Friday night with lots of guest stars and even more ridiculous situations for Tim. In the season opener, Tim found himself being compared to a guy accused of being a murderer. I can barely express how much I love this show. There’s a lot of funny and I really can’t wait until this week’s episode when Tim decides to stay with Debbie, the black hooker from the series’ first episode.
TONIGHT’S HIGHLIGHT: The season finale of MEN OF A CERTAIN AGE, a show that hit its stride in episode three and took off from there. Ray Romano, Scott Bakula and Andre Braugher are all at the top of their game and they’re a pleasure to watch in this show. Some male friends tell me the show depresses them but I think it’s a pretty honest show that’s full of wry humor and good observations about men and women. The MOACA season finale titled “Back in The S**t” airs tonight at 10pm on TNT and it sounds like they’re ending the season with some turmoil: “Joe’s new house causes him financial problems; Owen and his father have it out; Terry’s big acting break hits a snag.”
TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: Nick Drake’s “Day is Done” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2jxjv0HkwM
Tonight’s rundown:
ABC: The Bachelor (2-hrs), Castle (repeat)
CBS: How I Met Your Mother (repeat), Accidentally on Purpose (repeat), Two and a Half Men (repeat), The Big Bang Theory (repeat), CSI: Miami (repeat)
NBC: Winter Olympics (special)
FOX: House (repeat), 24
CW: One Tree Hill, Life Unexpected
ABC Family: The Secret Life of an American Teenager, Make It or Break It, Greek
Animal: Animal Cops: Miami
BBCA: Top Gear
BRAVO: 10PM: Kell on Earth
I think someone gets the boot in tonight’s episode of KELL ON EARTH. If I had to bet on who it is, it’s either an intern or Stephanie Voorhees, the girl who can’t even stamp letters correctly.
Discovery: King Tut Unwrapped (2-hrs, special)
Food: Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives
FX: 10PM: Damages
HGTV: Real Estate Intervention
History: American Pickers
ID: Disappeared
Logo: Rupaul’s Drag Race, Rupaul’s Drag Race
MTV: The Buried Life, My Life As Liz
Planet Green: Emeril Green, Blood, Sweat & T-Shirts (season finale)
Showtime: 10pm: Secret Diary of a Call Girl, State of the Union, La La Land
TLC: Cake Boss (special), Ultimate Cake Off
TNT: 10pm: Men of a Certain Age (season finale)
truTV: Operation Repo, Operation Repo, NFL Full Contact
VH1: Fantasia for Real, Let’s Talk About Pep, Peak Season
USA: WWE Monday Night Raw
That’s a wrap for now.
