LOST: I loved the Ben-centric episode but then, watching Michael Emerson as Ben is always a treat.  Interesting to see his sideways story parallel his island story in that he had choices to make about power and if he should or should not seize power in both timelines. It’s also interesting to see Ben Linus as a caring, concerned teacher who sacrificed his own gain for that of student Alex Rousseau.

MODERN FAMILY: Shel Turtlestein, Flyza Minnelli and Zsa Zsa Gaboa.  So many laugh out loud lines, I couldn’t stop laughing.  Loved when Gloria said to Jay (or Yay if you prefer),”Flyza Minnelli?” and Jay replied, “I can’t believe I didn’t know that kid was gay.” Another favorite: when Manny declared, “I was made for the role of Tevye!”  And of course, Cam’s shtick in the car when he made Mitchell say the words to “Shout (a little bit louder now)” and then waved to another car, “Go around, we’re trying to recreate a faux pas!”  And here I thought Judy Greer would be my favorite part of the episode but as usual, the regular cast knocked it out of the park and made me smile and laugh over and over.  Oh, and finally, I loved baby Lily in her duck hat.
PARENTHOOD: The second episode was good but it’s not a great show yet.  It’s nice, it has some good moments. It feels like Lauren Graham is trying too hard and I wish she’s take a breath and relax so I could too.  I like Peter Krause and Monica Potter a lot.  Dax Shepherd is pretty good – much better than I expected.  But the show as a whole doesn’t move me – maybe it’s because I’m not a parent but I don’t think that’s it.
PSYCH: The season finale was an homage to Hitchcock and it was nicely directed by James Roday.  Lots of fun with a great guest performance by Jimmi Simpson.
HIGH SOCIETY: And I thought the CW reality show about the Amish kids going nuts was bad.  This is bottom of the barrel reality programming.  Tinsley Mortimer isn’t the worst of the lot, they’ve managed to find a couple of really gross “fauxcialites” in Jules Kirby, a trashy, foul-mouthed gal and Paul Johnson Calderon, a guy who gives rich and gay people a bad name.  The show isn’t even remotely interesting, it’s just bad.
AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL: I only watched a few minutes here and there of ANTM because I realized Andre Leon Talley wouldn’t be on the show until NEXT week.  I’ll tune in for ALT because he never fails to entertain and enlighten.
I’ll be watching the WHITE COLLAR season finale tonight because I haven’t seen it yet.
TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: “Look What You’ve Done” by Jet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjPb2HJl0Co&feature=related
Tonight’s rundown: all the NBC comedies are new new NEW episodes! Latenight note: Broken Bells are Jimmy Fallon’s musical guest tonight.

ABC: Grey’s Anatomy (repeat), Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice

On the new episode of GREY’S: “Owen recruits a fellow Iraq War veteran to be the new cardiothoracic surgeon, but Cristina questions the new surgeon’s abilities; Izzie returns with her high school mentor seeking treatment for dementia.”

CBS: Survivor, CSI, The Mentalist

NBC: Community, Parks and Recreation, The Office, 30 Rock, Marriage Ref

Katharine McPhee guests in tonight’s episode of COMMUNITY.  Yeah, the Katharine McPhee who was on AMERICAN IDOL.  No, I don’t remember if she won or not.

On PARKS AND REC: tonight’s episode is titled “The Possum” – I don’t even need to know anymore. I’m in.

On THE OFFICE: Kathy Bates returns as Michael Scott tries to impress his new boss.

On 30 ROCK: Avery (Elizabeth Banks) returns with bad news about Jack’s business future.  Liz tracks down the man of her dreams.

THE MARRIAGE REF: Madonna, Larry David and Ricky Gervais appear as guest panelists in tonight’s episode.

FOX: American Idol, Kitchen Nightmares

The IDOL kids perform a Michael Buble number tonight.  The Top 12 finalists are revealed.

CW: Vampire Diaries (repeat), Supernatural (repeat)

A&E: The First 48, ManHunters, ManHunters: Fugitive Task Force (special)

Bravo: Real Housewives of Orange County (special, reunion, part 2), Real Housewives of New York City (time period premiere),  Watch What Happens

I watched last week’s season premiere of RHONY and they’re still a feisty and pretty nasty bunch.  I’ll be watching more.

Centric: Model City
Comedy: Important Things With Demetri Martin, The Sarah Silverman Program
FOOD: Ace of Cakes
FX: 10PM: Archer
GSN: Carnie Wilson: Unstapled (season finale), Instant Recall
HGTV: My First Place, House Hunters
History: Food Tech
ID: True Crime with Aphrodite Jones (series debut)
Lifetime: Project Runway, Models of the Runway
MTV: America’s Best Dance Crew, Taking the Stage
Planet Green: Renovation Nation
Science: Factory Made
Speed: Bullrun
TLC: Police Women of Maricopa County, LA Ink
TOON: Chowder, Adventure Time with Finn and Jake (series debut), The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack
truTV: Smoking Gun Presents: World’s Dumbest Brawlers 2, Hot Pursuit
VH1: 10pm: Celebrity Rehab Presents: Sober House (season premiere)

This edition of SOBER HOUSE has the residents arriving for the first day of sober living and meeting the returning house manager, Jennifer Gimenez. Jennifer finds an old speed pipe in Tom Sizemore’s bag and must drug test him. Dennis Rodman challenges Jennifer’s authority and refuses to sign the rules of the house and an argumentative Kari Ann Peniche is allowed to stay after testing positive for methamphetamine. Dr. Drew and Bob arrive and explain to the residents what they can expect over the next 21 days of sober living.

That’s a wrap for now.

BIG LOVE SEASON FINALE: I had mixed feelings about the season finale right after it ended but now that I’ve thought about it, there was a lot to love. First and foremost, the masterful closing shot of the episode that had Bill, Barb, Margene and Nicki onstage, holding hands, wearing red, white and blue after Bill announced that their marriage is a plural marriage.  Will they all move into that big new house and live together openly?  Will Bill’s home store business fail now that he’s gone public about his family? Will Barb stay?

Other thoughts:

–Will Alby Grant continue to become scarier and meaner?  I fully expect so given his desolation after Dale’s suicide.  Matt Ross continues to amaze and scare me with his performance as Alby.

–I absolutely loved the fire scene and thought it was perfect justice for the character involved.

–Did anyone else’s jaw drop a bit at the almost threesome of Anna, Goran and Margene?  Wow. They went there.

–I’m still worried about Nicki and how she’ll cope with her inability to bear children. Nicki is acting out on so many of her feelings, I have a hunch this will manifest itself in some way, I’m just not sure how.

Yes, I’m already anticipating the next season of BIG LOVE.  We’ll get ten episodes instead of nine next season and I’m already wondering what they’re cooking up.

CHUCK: Zachary Levi directed last night’s episode and he did a very solid job.  The most striking part was the scene toward the end when Chuck had a very honest conversation with his best friend Morgan.  This led me to wonder how serious a spy Chuck can be if his emotions interfere constantly.  There’s no answer to the question and this issue keeps rearing its ugly head which makes me wonder if Chuck will ever commit to being a full-time spy.  It’s not like you can be a spy and take your family and friends everywhere you go.  That said, I really did love that Chuck got his spy mojo back after his heart-to-heart talk with Morgan.

“MAGIC & BIRD”: Though I’m not the biggest sports fan, I watched this HBO documentary and found it very moving.  It’s a story about a complicated friendship that gets even more complicated as the two athletes become huge NBA stars.  And then there’s the racial element.  It’s a fascinating portrait of the two men and I highly recommend it.

DAMAGES: I’m really enjoying the fact that Ellen Parsons has become every bit as Machiavellian in her behavior as Patty Hewes.  Ellen uses everything and everyone as a means to her own end and it delights me to no end to watch her evolve that way. I also love that her end is not necessarily that of her bosses, in this case, the Assistant D.A.  My other favorite part of this season: it’s all about following the money.  Reminds me of ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN.

FALLING OFF MY VIEWING LIST: GOSSIP GIRL has become boring. I don’t even know how that’s possible but it has.  I still adore most of the cast but there’s no sizzle anymore and the writing doesn’t seem nearly as sharp as it was the first season.

STILL LOVE THESE SHOWS BUT I NEED TO CATCH UP: HIMYM, CASTLE, LUX

HAVEN’T WATCHED YET BUT WILL DO SO THIS WEEK: WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? The show airs Friday night on ABC. Lisa Kudrow and various celebrity friends explore their ancestry and find surprising info along the way.

PALEYFEST: I attended the DEXTER program and will write that up for the next SURF REPORT.

EARLY HEADS UP FOR TOMORROW (WEDNESDAY) NIGHT: The CW’s AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL returns to start a new cycle, followed by the premiere of HIGH SOCIETY “starring” socialite Tinsley Mortimer in a new “reality” show.

TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: “Is There Nothing We Can Do” by Badly Drawn Boy – because the music in the PARENTHOOD promos is completely cribbed from his music: http://www.myspace.com/badlydrawnboy

Tonight’s rundown: The 10pm hour is super competitive with SOUTHLAND, THE GOOD WIFE, PARENTHOOD and tonight’s season finale of WHITE COLLAR.

ABC: Lost (repeat), Lost, The Forgotten (season finale)

Tonight’s new episode of LOST is a Ben-centric episode.  Congrats to LOST composer Michael Giacchino for his Oscar win for UP. Giacchino makes such moving music for every episode of LOST and if you saw UP, you know he did an equally wonderful job on that sweet, lovely film.

CBS: NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Good Wife

On THE GOOD WIFE: Alicia and Will defend an attorney arrested for murder.

NBC: Biggest Loser: Couples (2-hrs), Parenthood

FOX: American Idol, Glee (repeat)

CW: 90210, Melrose Place

Animal Planet: Wild Recon (season finale), Madman of the Sea

BIO: Shatner’s Raw Nerve
BRAVO: 10pm: Millionaire Matchmaker
Food: Chopped (season finale)
HGTV: My First Place
History: Life After People
ID: I (Almost) Got Away With It
MTV: 10pm: 16 & Pregnant
Oxygen: The Bad Girls Club (season finale)
Spike: Blue Mountain State, Players
Syfy: WWE NXT
TLC: 19 Kids and Counting, The Miss Turkey Trot and Miss Drumstick Pageants (special)

TNT: 10pm: Southland – tonight’s episode is titled “Butch & Sundance”:

“John and Ben are the first responders to a gruesome triple homicide in Hancock Park, where a mother is bludgeoned to death and her young daughters are found bound, gagged, raped and dead in their bedrooms. In investigating the case, Lydia and Rene realize they have two very different styles of doing detective work. Sammy continues to have problems with his wife, who seems unable to complete even the simplest of tasks. And Ben confronts John about his increasing reliance on pain pills.”

Travel: Food Wars (series debut), Food Wars
USA: 10pm: White Collar (season finale)

That’s a wrap for now.

Q: The genesis of the show: Dan Harmon went to community college when his then-girlfriend was taking a spanish class. He took that class with her and he took a biology class.  He was 32 years old and he had nothing else to do so he aced the bio class and the younger people in the class asked if they could study with him and while he thought they’d “siphon off my A,” he did form a study group with them.  He wound up liking them “even though they had nothing to do with my career. I’m not a networker kind of guy.  And then it dawned on me, this is the other half of life when you make friends with people.”  The character of Jeff Winger comes from a guy who is a control freak and doesn’t acknowledge he’s a control freak.

Q: Cast members’ initial reactions to the pilot script: Chevy said he thought it was great and then toppled backwards off his chair.  Ken Jeong said “I was a late addition to the show – I wasn’t in the pilot.  I thought it was a hit and I jumped to do it.  Every single person in this cast could headline a show.”

Q: Was there any concern about doing a show set in college?  The track record of past shows like UNDECLARED and DELTA HOUSE was not good.  EP Garrett Donovan said that with a community college, you get a wider age range, not just teenage kids.  EP Russ Krasnoff said that we needed a setting where these organic people could be together.  Both lauded Dan’s writing of the pilot.

Q: The pilot casting process – were the characters set in stone or was it about finding actors who could work together?

Russ Krasnoff: Dan knew these characters’ voices and it was rewarding to watch actors bring them to life

Dan: I learned from them that there’s a process.

Joe Russo: Pilot casting is a grudge match: the talent pool is limited, a lot of it is getting lucky.  Joel was first in, we met with him and everyone loved him.  We felt we could build the show around him.  Chevy was next.  We met with him, he fell asleep.  He woke up and talked about his money problems (Chevy waved some money at this point).  We had seen work Donald had done on YouTube.

Don: Also, Nick Cannon said no, right?  He was busy with Mariah.

Joe: Troy was scripted as a white character.

Dan: I had no preconceived notion of the characters’ race

Don: Also, I’m pretty white.

Dan: this character is pretty white, like Woody Harrelson. We realized Donald was a star and that doesn’t mean adding “yo yo yo” before every line.

Don: In the earlier version of the pilot, Reverend Run is my dad.  I try to sell Britta.

Dan: In 1999, I did the HEAT VISION AND JACK pilot and at the 11th hour of casting, there was nothing but white people in the show so we made the scientist black and I’ll never forget coming to the lot and seeing black men lined up, tall, short, fat, skinny, young, old.  I try to create “race neutral” characters.  The characters become the actors who play them.  Jeff is Joel.

Q: Talk about Gillian.

Joe: It took us forever to cast the role of Britta.  Dan knew what he wanted: some grit, she’s 2/3 full of herself, less stereotype.

Gillian: I was doing this really low budget indie film in NYC. I came back two weeks later and auditioned for the pilot. I don’t have to shut off part of my brain to play Britta.  (The moderator mentioned that Gillian is Julliard-trained and asked if she was intimidated by the cast.) Yeah, I’m intimidated.  I have no standup comedy experience. I’ve played a lot of trashy women – look it up on IMDB.  I’m in good company – this is like grad school for me.

When Ken Jeong came in, Donald Glover thought, “Oh man, I saw that guy naked.” (THE HANGOVER) and Don says Ken is not afraid to try new stuff.  Ken thinks Don is a genius who keeps everyone sane by improvising characters between takes like E.T. as a black comic. Dan Harmon says the best thing he can do for his show is write lukewarm crap and send it down to the set and let them play with it.  Glover loves working on the show because the scripts are tight and funny and they still tell him to “go crazy.” Garrett Donovan says, “Any joke you give these actors, they make it better.  Improv lines have become more and more a part of the show.”

When Dan Harmon commented, “the cast minus Chevy is nice,” Chase shot back with “I feel so much younger working with them. No I don’t.  Every one of them has their own special talent. It’s like going to Home Depot.”  Harmon then said that after he had a conversation with Chevy, someone told Harmon that Chase walked away saying, “I wonder what it’s like to be fat AND gay.”

Q for Joel: What have you learned from Chevy?

Joel: Not how to match my clothes.  He’s like Nolan Ryan – he’s still alive.  When he goes, he’s the funniest person on set.  He throws the ball hard and then he calls you a prick.  And he has the best stories.

Chevy on Joel: The pilot was well-written and fun.  I asked Dan who was playing Jeff and they said Joel and mentioned The Soup.  Joel is very very funny. I hope he can work out that hemorroid thing.

Ken: Joel can bring it.  He’s a great actor. I love my scenes with him.  Joel sets the tone for the show.  He IS as nice and cool as you think he is.

Chevy: Joe is the star of the show and we support it but everyone in the cast – we’re amazed at what they do with their lines.  I’m hard to make laugh and I laugh all the time here – on my way to the bank.  I worked with some of the best on SNL. I don’t know that any of them could do better on a show like this.

Joel: We’re shooting an episode now where Chevy thinks he’s a wizard. I can’t wait for you guys to see it.

Joe Russo: There’s an interesting conceptual episode coming up.

Dan: It’s like an action movie in 20 minutes.  We’re testing all corners of the room we’re in.  And if the show were to die, let it go.  DNR.  I’ll do another show, it’ll have robots, you’ll love it.

Joel praised Dan Harmon as “an oracle and someone who knows sitcoms so well and he takes TV conventions, eats them, chews them, spits on it, poops it out and smears it around.”  Joel also noted that none of the characters are cartoons.  Gillian praised Harmon for always having emotional moments in the episodes and she loves that he’s done that from the start.   Don Glover loves that Dan loves sitcoms and knows them so well – he wants the characters to be real and to see the other side of them too.

Garrett Donovan summed it up nicely when he said, “Sitcoms have become pretty cynical.  We’re going back to that special moment in Act 3.”

When asked about the dedicated web content for the show and how good it is, Dan Harmon gave a shoutout to his assistant Dave Seger. Seger shoots all the web content and he also runs Channel 101 (Channel101.com).

One of the final questions had an audience member suggested that Joel play the title role in a FLETCH remake.  Chevy Chase said, “I think he’d be a great Fletch cause someday I’m gonna die.”

Asked if Abed has Asperger’s Syndrome, Dan Harmon wouldn’t put a label on it.  He says “some of my friends might have it.  I’m keeping it like in life, not an Afterschool Special titled “Asperger’s: Deal with It!”  Joel observed, “Abed is like Data or Spock” and Harmon added, “Or Peter Sellers in BEING THERE.”

They screened tonight’s episode of COMMUNITY titled “Physical Education” at the PaleyFest program. The main story is about Abed and the group’s fretting about him not having a girlfriend. I don’t want to spoil this for you because it’s one of the best stories they’ve told in their incredibly good freshman season. While the entire ensemble is strong, tonight’s episode belongs to Danny Pudi and Joel McHale. The episode also features McHale’s Jeff shooting billiards, first in shorts, then his underwear and then buck nekkid.  Finally, be sure to watch the tag at the end of tonight’s episode which has Pudi and Donald Glover in an instant classic scene.

NIP/TUCK FINALE: I didn’t even record it because the preview looked so weak.  I may catch one of the repeats but I’m not really curious about it. The show was waaaaaaaay past its peak.

LAST RESTAURANT STANDING: This week’s episode with the last cycle’s winners Michele and Russell was better than this entire season as Raymond Blanc trained and harangued his new business partners as they prepared to open their Cheerful Soul restaurant with him.  Watching Blanc question the chef and then taste and re-taste and re-taste the menu and critique every little detail was fascinating and gave you an idea of why Blanc is a master restauranteur.  There was also a very touching moment when Blanc took Russell aside before the big opening night and told him to relax and be himself and he would be fine.  It was very fatherly and very sweet. Perhaps the next season of the show should chronicle the first six months of The Cheerful Soul.

THE GOOD WIFE: This week’s episode was yet another strong installment which featured a very good turn by Alan Cumming as Eli Gold, a tough campaign manager Peter hires.  I can’t wait to see more of his character.  I continue to marvel at the subtleties in Julianna Margulies’ Alicia.  Peter won his appeal and has moved back home but she’s clearly not enthused about it and looks to her work as an attorney to keep her out of the house.  She’s also feeling very competitive with Cary (Matt Czuchry) and it’s forcing her to be more assertive with her bosses.  I’m also loving the simmering affection between Alicia and her boss Will (Josh Charles); that’s clearly going to progress before the end of the season, don’t you think?

BECAUSE I READ ABOUT TV TOO: I loved the Vanity Fair piece “Big Trouble at 11:35″ about the Letterman/Halderman matter and Letterman’s pattern of dating women he worked with because he’s never had much of a life outside work.  It’s a very good read.

http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/features/2010/04/letterman-201004?printable=true

I’m off to the PaleyFest program for DEXTER tonight and in honor of DEXTER, TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: The Doors “People Are Strange”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3CHi_9sxj0

Tonight’s rundown:

ABC: 8:00pm. Grey’s Anatomy (R) 9:00pm. Grey’s Anatomy 10:00pm. Private Practice

CBS: 8:00pm. Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains 9:00pm. CSI 10:00pm. The Mentalist

FOX: 8:00pm. American Idol Results Show 9:00pm. Kitchen Nightmares

THE CW: 8:00pm. The Vampire Diaries (R) 9:00pm. Supernatural (R)

Discovery: Extreme Peril, Surviving Death

FX: 10pm: Archer

History: Modern Marvels, Food Tech

Lifetime: 10pm: Project Runway, Models of the Runway

TNT: NBA Basketball: Jazz at Suns

USA: Burn Notice season finale

That’s a wrap for now.

On the panel: Actors: Nestor Carbonell (Richard Alpert), Zuleikha Robinson (Elana), Michael Emerson (Ben Linus) and Terry O’Quinn (John Locke & NotLocke)

ABC: Modern Family (repeat), The Middle, Modern Family, Cougar Town, Oprah Winfrey Oscar Special (special)

On THE MIDDLE: Brick is in a spelling bee.

On MODERN FAMILY: we learn about each family member’s fears.  Do not miss this very funny episode.

CBS: New Adventures of Old Christine, Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, CSI: NY

NBC: Mercy, Law & Order: SVU (2-hrs)

FOX: American Idol (2-hrs)

CW: Life Unexpected (repeat), Gossip Girl (repeat)

BBCA: 9pm & 930pm: The Inbetweeners

BRAVO: Shear Genius
Comedy Central: Tosh.0
D101: Underbelly
Discovery Channel: Mayday! Bering Sea, I Shouldn’t Be Alive
Fuse: Hip Hop Shop
FX: 10pm: Nip/Tuck (series finale)
G4: Web Soup (season premiere)
Health: Radical Parenting (special)
History: MonsterQuest
Logo: The Robert Verdi Show Starring Robert Verdi
MTV: 10pm: The Real World: D.C.
Science: Mantracker
Showtime: Inside NASCAR
Soapnet: Being Erica
Spike: 1000 Ways to Lie (special)
Style: Clean House
Syfy: Ghost Hunters (2-hrs, season premiere, 100th episode), Ghost Hunters International
TBS: Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, Tyler Perry’s House of Payne (returns from hiatus)
Toon: Dude, What Would Happen, Destroy Build Destroy
truTV: Most Daring: Bedlam in the Burbs, Most Shocking: Drunk and Disorderly
TV Land: High School Reunion (season finale)
USA: 10pm: Psych
WeTV: The Locator (1-hr, season premiere)

That’s a wrap for now.

PARENTHOOD: Lauren Graham is back on TV which makes me happy. I just wish I could be more enthusiastic about THIS series.  The first version of the pilot was not good but I keep hearing the reshoot with Graham was much stronger.  I have not seen the new version; reviews have been lukewarm so far.  I’ll be tuning in to check it out.  PARENTHOOD airs at 10pm tonight on NBC.

MY MONDAY NIGHT TV: I soaked in DAMAGES and marveled at the fact that Glenn Close seems to be depending heavily on one quizzical facial expression this season.  I absolutely loved the “test” she gave the young attorney (who is portrayed by Tara Summers, she was great on BOSTON LEGAL) who is dying to work for her and sent her to the prison for a very special visit with Biddle, the convict portrayed by Wallace Shawn. I’m also dying to see more of Keith Carradine’s character and hope he becomes more central to the storyline.

Opting out of THE BACHELOR finale nauseousness, I watched LAW & ORDER which was satisfying for its straightforward storytelling and sober point of view.  I also watched most of the Rob Zombie-directed CSI: MIAMI which had some nice self-mocking humor.  Michael Madsen was the best guest actor, followed closely by Malcolm McDowell (he’s never bad) and Paul Blackthorne.  I also watched LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON just to see the second installment of “LATE,” their LOST parody which is absolutely spot on and very funny.  I also loved the latest episode of “Bothered” in which Fallon does a delicious impression of R.Patz and this episode featured an appearance by R.Patz since he was on the show last night.  To watch those clips, click to: http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/

TODAY’S SURF REPORT WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: “The High Road” by Broken Bells (aka Dangermouse and James “Shins” Mercer): http://www.myspace.com/brokenbells

Tonight’s rundown:

ABC: 8:00 p.m. Lost (R) 9:00 p.m. Lost 10:00 p.m. 20/20: Before They Were Famous

As is my usual practice, I’m going into tonight’s new episode of LOST without any info and I prefer it that way. I’m writing up my LOST Paley Festival notes and I’ll include those in tomorrow’s SURF REPORT.

CBS: 8:00 p.m. NCIS 9:00 p.m. NCIS: Los Angeles 10:00 p.m. The Good Wife

Alan Cumming guests in tonight’s episode of THE GOOD WIFE which continues to be the quiet shining diamond of new CBS dramas.

NBC: 8:00 p.m. The Biggest Loser (two hours) 10:00 p.m. Parenthood (series premiere)

PARENTHOOD is based on the 1989 Ron Howard film about four grown siblings experiencing what it’s like to be parents and trying not to turn into their own parents.  The series stars Lauren Graham, Peter Krause, and Craig T. Nelson.

From Mediaweek: Ron Howard at the Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour in January on why there is a second TV show version of Parenthood:  “We had tried once to do sort of a sitcom version of it. That was, you know, just misguided. Didn’t work, didn’t live up to, in my mind, the potential of all the stories that were – and the characters as they existed in the movie. And the first question that we asked was, “Well, why do you need ‘Parenthood’? And we made an argument for why the foundation of that family worked. Ultimately, it’s about the unbelievable ups and downs of parenting, the absurdity of it, the pain of it, and also, significantly to me, the nobility of it. But it’s also just about being responsible and being in a family. And that always creates great suspense and great drama. We felt that he could take this thing and bring it forward to today in a way that was compelling.”

FOX: 8:00 p.m. American Idol (two hours)

There’s been a slight change: the men will sing tonight as one of the gals is under the weather and cannot perform live tonight.

THE CW: 8:00 p.m. 90210 (R) 9:00 p.m. Melrose Place (R)

BBC AMERICA: 9pm: LAST RESTAURANT STANDING visits the winners of the last cycle to see how they’re doing. This one-hour special catches up with Michele and Russell, winners of Last Restaurant Standing Season 2, as they work with Raymond Blanc to transform an old pub into the restaurant of their dreams.

SPIKE: 10pm: PLAYERS – Matt Walsh and Ian Roberts (of Upright Citizens Brigade fame) star in this comedy about two brothers running a race car.  The show is improvised and with these two guys, there’s a better than average chance it’ll be funny.

TNT: 10pm: SOUTHLAND – the first of the episodes that did not air on NBC airs tonight.

That’s a wrap for now.

]]> http://www.thesurfreport.biz/index.php/2010/03/02/the-surf-report-new-lost-parenthood-premieres-southland-good-wife-new-episodes-3210/feed/ 0 http://www.thesurfreport.biz/index.php/2010/03/01/the-surf-report-we-now-return-to-your-regularly-scheduled-programming-3110/ http://www.thesurfreport.biz/index.php/2010/03/01/the-surf-report-we-now-return-to-your-regularly-scheduled-programming-3110/#comments Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:23:40 +0000 Diane Gordon http://www.thesurfreport.biz/?p=142 Tonight’s TV schedule returns to the overloaded pre-Olympic Monday night.  DVRs everywhere are overworked.

LIFE UNEXPECTED: You can catch up on LUX (as it’s affectionately referred to) tonight as there’s a repeat of last week’s episode before tonight’s new episode.

Also tonight, the season finale of THE BACHELOR and it’s down to Tenley and Vienna.  Either way, bad hair extensions and equally bad romance cliches will be flying.  And there’s always THE BACHELOR: AFTER THE FINAL ROSE if the sap-filled finale isn’t enough for you.  Ah, forced romance followed by a forced engagement; this is the stuff broken dreams are made of.

CHUCK is back tonight with a new episode titled “Chuck vs. the Fake Name.” I couldn’t be happier as pretty much every episode this season has been rock solid.  I hear Brandon Routh is shirtless in tonight’s episode and that we learn Sarah’s real name as Chuck faces the world’s most dangerous assassin.

More fresh episodes tonight: HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER with special guest star Carrie Underwood, THE BIG BANG THEORY where comic book legend Stan Lee drops by, and new GREEK, DAMAGES, LAW & ORDER and 24.  THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER is also new tonight and I’m not sure when the episode airs that Bristol Palin is guesting in. As that was just announced, I don’t think that’s airing just yet.

I have to make special mention of tonight’s CSI: MIAMI. I don’t usually watch the show but I’m planning to watch it tonight because Rob Zombie directed the episode and the killer guest start lineup is Michael Madsen, Malcolm McDowell and William Forsythe.  And yes, this episode takes the Miami team to Los Angeles.

KELL ON EARTH is pre-empted tonight for a REAL HOUSEWIVES TOP 25: THE EARLY YEARS.  Wow, does REAL HOUSEWIVES need a retrospective already???

BIG LOVE: After thinking about this week’s hectic and somewhat scattered episode, I’ve come to the conclusion that Bill’s run for political office is a “pride goeth before the fall” story because there’s no way this can end well and the season finale is this coming Sunday (only nine episodes were ordered this season).  We’ve just learned that J.J. was going to be censured before Roman’s death and now he’s subdued Adaleen.  Chloe Sevigny turned in another wonderful performance as Nicki continues to be confused about who she is and how she wants to present herself.  Margene has realized that the green card marriage to Goran probably wasn’t such a hot idea but she’s in it now.  The episode’s final scene when the family gave Sarah the quilt was the true lump in the throat scene; another simple but beautiful family moment.

HOW TO MAKE IT: I continue to like Bryan Greenberg but not Victor Rasuk.  Rasuk’s Cam reminds me too much of a cheap scam artist. I realize we’re supposed to think he’s ambitious but he comes off as guy who only wants to make a quick buck, not someone who wants to create a career for himself.  Maybe I’m expecting too much.  Greenberg’s Ben gives the show a nice gravity and it’s good to see a lead character who doesn’t want to just party 24/7.  I loved the scene between Ben and his father when Ben had that moment where Ben realized he actually wanted to DO something with his life.

PALEYFEST: MODERN FAMILY: The festival kicked off with the cast of MODERN FAMILY along with co-creator Steve Levitan and EP/director Jason Winer.  The evening began with a screening of this week’s episode that examined everyone in the family and their individual fears. That’s all I’ll say because I don’t want to spoil any of the fun for you.  There are plenty of laugh out loud moments in the episode.  If you couldn’t make it to the program – here are some of the highlights:

–Levitan says the show really felt right when they brought this group of actors together.  When asked why each person is so right for their role, Ed O’Neill replied that he loved the script when he first got it but he didn’t meet Levitan and Chris Lloyd til a year later. Then he realized, “I gotta go back to work.”   O’Neill was a little afraid of the role but he thought it would be good to take the role because of that.  He loves the shorter hours and the cast.  He knew the show wouldn’t be a one trick pony and that there’s a lot of ways the show can go.  Sofia Vergara said in her wonderful accent, “I never thought I’d be married to a Bundy. I love going to work.”

–Jason Winer says the twins who play baby Lily have quickly grown to love Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Mitchell) and Eric Stonestreet (Cam) and because of that, it’s tough to get her to cry around them.  They have to call over a scary biker dude grip on the lot to get her to cry.

–Eric Stonestreet says this entire experience is his dream character, dream writers and dream job.  He doesn’t mind that some people think he’s gay in real life even though he’s not.  He loves all his fans, “no matter how much hair they have on their back, or lip or legs.”  He also loves that that writers incorporate elements of who the actors are in real life into the scripts.  His character is based partially on “moments of his mother” – the moment he pointed to was from the pilot when Cam admired the mural in Lily’s room and sighed, “don’t you just love it?”

–Jesse Tyler Ferguson had a bad sitcom experience, not THE CLASS and he loved the MF pilot when he got the script but he didn’t think he’d land the role.  He had to audition and read with several people before he got it.  One of his favorite comedic moments was dancing in the parking lot with Julie Bowen when they re-enacted their ice dancing routine.  The other wonderful story he told was about his “chemistry read” with Eric and they went to have coffee afterward and they got some looks from people.  Then Eric realized it was Valentine’s Day and that’s why the barrista decorated his coffee with a foam heart.  Steve Levitan noted again, as he’s said before, that Cam and Mitchell are actually the most conservative of the couples in the show.  Levitan said he has a lot of respect for what WILL AND GRACE did.  Eric loves that people always tell him they watch the show together as husband and wife or with their families.  He said, “We’re not curing cancer but I think we’re giving rickets a good shot.”

–When asked if they improvise at all, Levitan said they start with a solid script but all the actors in the cast are so quick and funny, they do play with it a little bit and the cast always makes things funnier. Jason Winer pointed out that they shoot the show very quickly, “Great improv comes from knowing character and all our actors know their characters so well – and we move quickly – it’s better for the comedy when the cast isn’t exhausted.”

–Ty Burrell says “it’s a vacation to play Phil because his brain is a sort of meadow and I’m a neurotic mess – but I’m also an idiot, so…”   He continued, “Phil is like the people in your life who annoy you but they wear you down.”

–When asked about seeing more of the characters backstories, Steve Levitan said, “I thought we saw that with Clive Bixby, Phil’s romantic side.  I have a soft spot for the dorky dad who scores the hot wife.  Phil balances Claire out: Claire overthinks and Phil doesn’t.  Both of Jay and Dede’s kids chose very positive people to be wish.”

–Julie Bowen loves playing Claire because “they let me be a complete jackass.  The shooting style lets you be looser and free-er.” Bowen was applauded for her hilarious turn in the Clive Bixby episode when her trenchcoat got caught in the escalator while she was buck nekkid undernearth.  Julie said, “Yes, I represent stressed out moms who get naked once a year in the mall.  Let me be a beacon in the night for those women.”

–The cast was asked about their favorite scenes:  host Billy Bush mentioned the moon landing (which happened to writer Bill Wrubel in college). Jesse loved the scene at the gas station with Fizbo the Clown and Claire getting caught in the escalator.  Eric loved the scene when they locked Lily in the car and the football day episode with the scene in the kitchen when Jay asked Cam and Mitchell if he was attractive and Mitchell replied that Jay “was ruining gay for him”. Ed loves the little character touches about Gloria – when she got mad at Jay for keeping Manny up all night.  Ed also loved the scene after Jay flew the model plane into Phil’s face and then he sort of apologizes to Phil and Claire kissed him on his head.  That was an unexpected, unplanned moment.

–When asked about guest stars for the show, Steve Levitan said, “a lot of ridiculously famous people came up to our table at the Golden Globes and said they want to do the show.  We don’t want to overdo it.  We’ll focus on the cast as much as possible.”

–Barkley the Dog Butler is now in the writers room and has spooked or startled everyone on the staff.

–Fred Willard will return as Phil’s father.

–When asked about the documentary style of the show, Levitan said “it’s a family show told documentary style rather than a documentary.  I wouldn’t like these people if they let cameras in their house.”  Ty Burrell likes that they don’t explain who the documentary crew is – he says his wife Holly noted that only family members look at the camera which makes the viewer feel like part of the family.  Jason Winer says they were more strict at the start about the documentary style but now they’re not.  He says he tries to slightly explain how the camera is in a private place in order to suspect the viewer’s disbelief.

–Steve Levitan wrote the lyrics to the song Dylan sang to Hailey, the actor who plays Dylan wrote the music.  Levitan is especially proud of the lyric, “Underneath a willow tree, wearing nothing else but me.”

Overall, a fantastic kickoff to the Paley Festival.  I also attended the LOST program and that will be in the next SURF REPORT.

TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: Aloe Blacc’s “I Need a Dollar” – HOW TO MAKE IT IN AMERICA’s wicked good title track: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_9aaotk3PU

If you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow Scott Vener, the man behind HOW TO MAKE IT and ENTOURAGE’s music @brokemogul

Tonight’s rundown:

ABC: The Bachelor (2-hrs, season finale), Bachelor: After the Finale Rose (special)
CBS: How I Met Your Mother, Rules of Engagement (season premiere), Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, CSI: Miami
NBC: Chuck, Law & Order, Law & Order
FOX: House (repeat), 24
CW: Life Unexpected (repeat), Life Unexpected
PBS: Antiques Roadshow, American Experience: Dolly Madison (90-minutes), Morristown: Where America Survived (special)

A&E: Intervention, Hoarders
ABC Family: The Secret Life of an American Teenager, Make It or Break It, Greek
BBCA: Top Gear
BRAVO: The Real Housewives Top 25: The Early Years (special)
Food: Unwrapped
FX: 10pm: Damages
G4: The International Sexy Ladies Show (season premiere)
Health: Paralyzed & Pregnant with Twins (special)
HGTV: For Rent
History: American Pickers, Pawn Star$, Pawn Star$
ID: Disappeared
Logo: Rupaul’s Drag Race, Rupaul’s Drag Race
MTV: The Buried Life, My Life As Liz
Planet Green: Emeril Green
Showtime: Secret Diary of a Call Girl, State of the Union, La La Land (season finale)
TLC: Our Little Life (series debut), Our Little Life, Ultimate Cake Off (new time period)
Travel: 10pm: Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations: ECUADOR
truTV: Operation Repo, NFL Full Contact
VH1: Fantasia for Real, Let’s Talk About Pep (season finale)
USA: WWE Monday Night Raw

That’s a wrap for now.

PALEY FESTIVAL: MODERN FAMILY opens the festival tonight and today’s news is that ACCESS HOLLYWOOD host Billy Bush is moderating the program which means there will either be unintentional comedy or produce will be thrown.  I’m hoping showrunners Steve Levitan and Christopher Lloyd will steer the program resulting in less running of Bush’s mouth.

The LOST PaleyFest program is tomorrow night (Saturday) and Paul Scheer is moderating the program which should be interesting because he’s a big fan of the show.

I’ll have lots more about the Paley Festival next week in THE SURF REPORT.

HBO COMEDY TONIGHT: HBO has a strong Friday night lineup of funny and they’re all great shows to come home to after a tough work week!  There are new episodes of THE RICKY GERVAIS SHOW, THE LIFE AND TIMES OF TIM and REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER tonight.  On THE RICKY GERVAIS SHOW, Stephen tells a story about midget warriors. Other topics in tonight’s show include sex, butt plugs and Karl’s worries about being conned by charities.

On THE LIFE AND TIMES OF TIM, Tim crashes with the Priest, who is about to give his first sermon since being suspended for having a girlfriend.

Bill Maher welcomes Olivia Wilde (she plays 13 on HOUSE), Chrystia Freeland, Reihan Salam, Adam Carolla and Richard Haass.

EARLY HEADS UP FOR NEXT WEEK:

Monday March 1st: Jay Leno returns to THE TONIGHT SHOW.

Tuesday March 1st: PARENTHOOD premieres on NBC and new SOUTHLAND episodes start to air the same night on TNT.

NBC’s Thursday night comedies return with new episodes – finally!

Next Saturday March 6th: Zach Galifianakis hosts SNL.

Here are Leno and Letterman’s lineups for next week:

THE LATE SHOW lineup:

MONDAY – Bill Murray

TUESDAY – Mitt Romney

WEDNESDAY – Jerry Seinfeld and Tom Brokaw

THURSDAY – Tom Hanks

FRIDAY – Matt Damon

THE TONIGHT SHOW lineup Jay’s first week back:

MONDAY – Jamie Foxx, Olympic Gold Medal Skier Lindsey Vonn

TUESDAY – Sarah Palin, Olympic Gold Medal Snowboarder Shaun White

WEDNESDAY – “Jaywalk All-Stars” with the Cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore, Chelsea Handler, and the most decorated American Winter Olympian of all time Speed Skater Apolo Anton Ohno

THURSDAY – Matthew McConaughey and Jason Reitman;

FRIDAY – Morgan Freeman and Meredith Vieira.

TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: “Casanova 70″ by Air. It’s an ambient kind of day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUe5LI3HLpQ

Time for your weekend rundown:

Tonight – 2/26/10

ABC: 8:00pm. Movie: Blades of Glory 10:00pm. 20/20

CBS: 8:00pm. Ghost Whisperer (R) 9:00pm. Medium (R) 10:00pm. Numbers (R)

NBC: 8:00pm. 2010 Winter Olympics

FOX: 8:00pm. 41st Annual NAACP Image Awards

THE CW: 8:00pm. Smallville 9:30 p.m. Smallville (R)

HBO: 9pm: The Ricky Gervais Show, The Life and Times of Tim, 10pm: Real Time with Bill Maher

Starz: Spartacus: Blood and Sand

Syfy: 9pm: Caprica

Saturday 2/27/10

ABC: 8:00pm. Movie: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (R)

CBS: 8:00pm. Numb3rs (R) 9:00pm. Cold Case (R) 10:00pm. 48 Hours Mystery

NBC: 8:00pm. 2010 Winter Olympics

FOX: 8:00pm. Cops (original and repeat) 9:00pm. America’s Most Wanted

Sunday 2/28/10

ABC: 7:00pm. America’s Funniest Home Videos 8:00pm. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (R) 9:00pm. Desperate Housewives 10:00pm. Brothers & Sisters

CBS: 7:00pm. 60 Minutes 8:00pm. The Amazing Race 16 9:00pm. Undercover Boss 10:00pm. Cold Case

The owner of White Castle gets the UNDERCOVER BOSS treatment this week.

NBC: 7:00pm. 2010 Winter Olympics Closing Ceremony, 10:30pm. The Marriage Ref (premiere / preview)

THE MARRIAGE REF: Jerry Seinfeld is the creator and producer of this non-scripted look at marriage.  Comedian Tom Papa is the marriage ref and additional celebrities, comedians and sports stars help to decide who is right and who is wrong in real-life disputes between real-life couples.

FOX: 7:00pm. ‘Til Death (2 episodes) 8:00pm. The Simpsons (R) 8:30pm. The Cleveland Show (R) 9:00pm. Family Guy (R)  9:30 pm American Dad (R)
PBS: Masterpiece Classic: The 39 Steps

HBO: 9PM: BIG LOVE

Sarah makes a big announcement.  Bill questions Margene about why she’s really marrying Anna’s fiance. Bill looks for clues about J.J. in Kansas.  Barb finds herself in the spotlight unexpectedly.

HGTV: House Hunters

Style: Ruby, Giuliana & Bill

TLC: 9pm: Your Kid Ate What? (great title!)

The show follows doctors as they operate on kids who have swallowed unusual items. Crack open a bottle of Pepto-Bismol and get comfortable!

That’s a wrap for this week.

LOST: “The Lighthouse” was a Jack-centric show and we got to see Claire too which proved to be the most unnerving part of the episode as she’s apparently lost her marbles. There was also further evidence that the entity now occupying Locke’s body is The Man in Black/Smokey as Claire referred to him as “my friend.”  The voodoo doll baby in Claire’s makeshift crib spooked me to no end and I’m glad they didn’t keep cutting back to it.

We saw more about alt-Jack and discovered he has a teenage son David who does not like his father and that he doesn’t see his dad much.  In this world though, Jack is kinder and shows more emotion than island Jack.  It was odd and sweet to watch alt-Jack try to get through to his son to convince him that he cares.  The scenes with Jack and his mother (played by Veronica Hamel of HILL STREET BLUES fame) were slightly off too as Jack couldn’t remember where he got the scar on his stomach and his mother told him it was from when he had his appendix taken out as a kid, though we know Island Jack was shot and patched up on the island.  I liked the scene at David’s conservatory audition when another one of the fathers turned out to be Dogan.  That was almost as good as Ben Linus turning up as a teacher at the school Locke started working at in last week’s episode “The Substitute.”

The big discovery of the episode was Jack and Hurley’s walk to the lighthouse, at Jacob’s (or I should say the ghost of Jacob’s) behest.  The lighthouse had a compass (which reminded me of the donkey wheel Ben Linus turned) and the compass had the names of many islanders with their corresponding numbers – and they were THE numbers.  In a fit of pique and frustration, Jack broke the mirrors that showed his childhood home when the compass was set to his name and number.  Jacob says Jack has to figure out why he’s on the island.  Evidently, it’s not, as Jack said, “because I was broken and I thought the island could fix me.”  (I love that line.)  So Jack was staring out at the water, contemplating why he’s on the island.  I have no guesses but then, I haven’t had a ton of time to ruminate.

My pal Jace aka the Televisionary mentioned “The Lighthouse” was the 108th episode of LOST and that has to mean something too. Theories anyone?  As is my usual practice, I’ll read more commentary about the episode because I don’t catch every little detail and the more I learn, the more I enjoy the show.

CRAIG FERGUSON: All around brilliant Brit Stephen Fry was Ferguson’s sole guest last night and in a break from the usual routine, the show was done with no audience. It’s on my DVR and I’ll be watching that later tonight.  If you didn’t record it, the episode should be online at CBS.com tomorrow.

LIFE UNEXPECTED: The two latest episodes are on my DVR but I’m behind on my viewing.

LAST RESTAURANT STANDING: I’m very angry with the show’s producers because the winning team chosen in last night’s episode are a complete joke and it made a travesty of a once-great competition show.  The winning “chef” is a man who cannot cook.  Yes I’m serious.  The winning half of the team is an expert mixologist and bartender but he cannot cook a meal to save his life.  the other half of the team is a good host/front of house person.  The only way I can see Raymond Blanc and his partners Sarah and David making money with these two buffoons is to open a high-end cocktail bar with a limited bar menu.  A very disappointing end to a very disappointing season.  Next Tuesday, LAST RESTAURANT STANDING checks in with last season’s winners to see how they’re doing.  Despite my disappointment with this season, I will tune in to check that out.

TODAY’S SURF WRITTEN WHILE LISTENING TO: Roseanne Cash & Bruce Springsteen’s cover of “Sea of Heartbreak”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3LSrcKksCo

Tonight’s rundown:

ABC: Modern Family (repeat), The Middle (repeat), Modern Family (repeat), The Middle (repeat), Cougar Town (2 repeats)
CBS: New Adventures of Old Christine (repeat), Gary Unmarried (repeat), Criminal Minds (repeat), CSI: NY (repeat)

NBC: Winter Olympics (special)

I’ve only watched bits and pieces of the Olympics but all I know is that when I wake up around 130am (which happens often), all I can find on the NBC channels is curling. Why curling?  I’ve tried watching it too and you’d think at 130am or 2am, it would be compelling but no, not really.

FOX: American Idol (2-hrs)

The top 10 guys sing tonight.  I heard the Top 10 gals were underwhelming last night. The LA Times had an interview with Perez Hilton today as he’s vying to be the new IDOL judge when Simon Cowell leaves.  This is the first interview I’ve read with Hilton that didn’t instantly make me hate him.  He’s actually given a lot of thought as to why he wants the IDOL gig and it’s not about money:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/americanidoltracker/2010/02/perez-hilton-explains-his-idol-video-pitch.html

CW: Life Unexpected (repeat), Gossip Girl (repeat)

BBC America: 9pm: The Inbetweeners (2 episodes)

Have you sampled this very funny Britcom laced with many expletives yet? It’s a coming of age comedy done very well and the guys in the lead roles are very good.

Bravo: 10pm: Shear Genius

Comedy Central: Tosh.0
D101: Underbelly
Discovery Channel: Solving History with Olly Steeds
Fuse: Hip Hop Shop
FX: 10pm: Nip/Tuck
History: MonsterQuest
ID: Prison Wives
Logo: The Robert Verdi Show Starring Robert Verdi
MTV: 10pm: The Real World: D.C.
Planet Green: Conviction Kitchen (season finale)
Science: Meteorite Men (season finale), Mantracker

Showtime: 10pm: Inside NASCAR

I went to my first NASCAR race last Saturday at the Auto Club Speedway.  I understand why people like a day at the races but it was a tad too loud for me and I know I couldn’t take hours of the noise outside.  Luckily, I was in the ACS suite and had a terrific birds eye view of the track.  It’s quite something to see up close.

Soapnet: Being Erica
Spike: 1000 Ways to Die (season finale)
Style: Clean House
Syfy: Ghost Hunters International
TBS: Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns
Toon: Dude, What Would Happen (returns from hiatus), Destroy Build Destroy (returns from hiatus)
truTV: Most Daring: Jail-bound Jerks
TV Land: High School Reunion

USA: 10pm: Psych

In tonight’s episode “Think Tank” Shawn and Gus are recruited into a think tank to help prevent the murder of a business tycoon, but once the group has disbanded, they realize that one of the members plans to use the assassination ideas to kill the client instead of save him.  Chris Sarandon guests in the episode.

VH1: Peak Season (season finale)

That’s a wrap for now.

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.