 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
So What TV is Worth Watching in 2009? Try These, for Starters...
January 5, 2009 11:48 PM
We're six days into the New Year, and finally have our first quality new show of 2009. Of course, it's only new to ABC, because it used to be on NBC, but Scrubs is back tonight with a fresh pair of episodes (9 p.m. ET), and that's excellent news about an excellent sitcom.
And if you're making a list, and checking it twice, of upcoming new and returning shows to anticipate, also consider these...
Damages (FX, Wed 7, 10 p.m. ET). The second season begins tomorrow night, with another flash-forward set-up that's a jaw-dropper, and another roster of killer guest stars (in terms of talent if not murderous intent). Definitely a show to watch, and enjoy, with William Hurt added to the mix this year.
24 (Fox, Sun 11, 8 p.m. ET). The new season begins, and its biggest primary surprise already has been leaked. (Stop reading IMMEDIATELY, if you haven't heard.) Tony is alive, and back with a vengeance. The first four hours begin, as usual, with a major jolt, and throw Kiefer Sutherland's Jack Bauer right into the thick of things. Again. But it's still a fun ride, and I plan to be along.
American Idol (Fox, Tue 13, 8 p.m. ET). Can't help it. I've seen this competition from the start, and despite its high cheesiness factor, I still watch, and still enjoy most of it. Fourth judge? We'll be the judge of that -- but so long as the game is "Simon says," I'll be aboard.
Battlestar Galactica (Sci Fi, Fri 16, 10 p.m. ET). The last episode ended with a silent, astounding cliffhanger: The crew found Earth and landed there, to find it devastated. What happens now? Great question -- and what ought to be a great ending season for a very imaginative series.
The United States of Tara (Showtime, Sun 18, 10 p.m. ET). This Toni Collette showcase, created by Diablo Cody and produced by Steven Spielberg, is as good as that troika of talent makes it sound. On a big night for cable series -- Showtime's Secret Diary of a Call Girl and The L Word and HBO's Big Love and Flight of the Conchords also return that night -- Tara may be the most sparkling jewel of all.
And that's just for the next two weeks. Past that, January also offers the return of ABC's Lost, Fox's Hell's Kitchen, TNT's The Closer and USA's Burn Notice, and the premieres of Fox's Lie to Me and TNT's Trust Me. Not bad. Not bad at all.
And, in February, comes the show I've been anticipating eagerly all season: Fox's Dollhouse.
So don't give up because of a few days of True Beauty and Momma's Boys. All is not lost -- especially with Lost on the way.
Deeper Into the TV Worth Watching Readers' Poll -- Your Questions, Your Other Favorites
January 5, 2009 9:11 AM
Some readers, checking out the results of and replies to the TV WORTH WATCHING Readers' Poll, asked some follow-up questions. What other shows placed highly in the poll? What shows drew more or less support than expected. Good questions. Here are the answers...
To recap, here were the Top 10, as voted by you impressively tasteful and discerning readers. Pat yourselves on your collective back:
1) Mad Men, AMC; 2) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Comedy Central; 3) 30 Rock, NBC; 4) Battlestar Galactica, Sci Fi Channel; 5) Pushing Daisies, ABC; 6) Damages, FX, and The Wire, HBO (tie); 8) True Blood, HBO; 9) Lost, ABC; 10) The Office, NBC.
And here, as previously reported also, were the winners of slots 11-15: The Big Bang Theory (CBS), Boston Legal (ABC), The Closer (TNT), Breaking Bad (AMC), and Dexter (Showtime), in that order.
But what about the lower half of the TV WORTH WATCHING Readers' Poll Top 30? Lots of great shows nestled there as well. So here, to answer that question, are the rest of the Top 30, reported for the first time:
16) The Shield, FX
17) The Colbert Report, Comedy Central
18) Burn Notice, USA
19) Life, NBC
20) Friday Night Lights, NBC and DirecTV 101 Network (tie)
Rachel Maddow, MSNBC (tie)
Dr. Who, Sci Fi and BBC America (tie)
23) Late Show with David Letterman, CBS
24) John Adams, HBO
25) Saturday Night Live, NBC (tie)
Life on Mars, ABC (tie)
27) House, Fox
28) In Treatment, HBO (tie)
Real Time with Bill Maher, HBO (tie)
Chuck, NBC (tie)
--
That list astounds me. Surprises? The biggest one is that, except for ABC's Life on Mars, which lost me about episode five, every one of those shows -- every one -- is a show I like and watch, almost off of them religiously. It's great to know that even on mainstream fare such as NBC's Life, I'm not alone.
But the other surprise is the sheer depth of discerning choices. More than 120 in all, including Showtime's Californication, HBO's Entourage, Fox's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, CBS's The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and The Mentalist, ABC Family's The Middleman, even ABC's Hopkins.
Wow. Everything I watched and enjoyed in 2008, from How I Met Your Mother on CBS to Fringe on Fox, you seemed to be watching and enjoying too. (Except for ABC's Desperate Housewives, a show I still enjoy that didn't garner a single vote from readers.)
Good for you. Good for us. Good for TV. Good for 2008.
As for 2009, be patient. The good stuff starts arriving any day now. I hope.
TV Worth Watching Readers' Poll: "Mad Men" Best Show of 2008
January 1, 2009 11:35 PM
The votes are in for the first TV Worth Watching Readers' Poll, and they're very impressive. Good for you guys.
AMC's Mad Men took top honors by an impressive margin, with Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as No. 2 and NBC's 30 Rock as No. 3 -- all claiming significant, fervent viewerships.
As for the rest of the Top 10, as voted by readers of this website?
Here's the full list:
1. Mad Men, AMC
2. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Comedy Central
3. 30 Rock, NBC
4. Battlestar Galactica, Sci Fi Channel
5. Pushing Daisies, ABC
6. Damages, FX
The Wire, HBO (tie)
8. True Blood, HBO
9. Lost, ABC
10. The Office, NBC
The next five, for the record: The Big Bang Theory (CBS), Boston Legal (ABC), The Closer (TNT), Breaking Bad (AMC), and Dexter (Showtime), in that order.
More than 120 different shows were named in all, each as one of someone's 10 favorite shows. TV Worth Watching indeed...
And thanks, to each and every one of you, for taking the time to vote, and for voting with such taste and writing with such flair. One of you, in posting your vote, was similarly impressed, and noted, "A writer always gets the audience he deserves."
In this case, I take this as the highest possible compliment. Thanks to you all. Please stick with me in 2009. I'm trying not to go anywhere...
HAPPY NEW YEAR! My New Year's Resolution Is...
January 1, 2009 9:56 AM
...To finish the Smothers Brothers book I've been working on for, sigh, 15 years now. And this year -- this month -- that goal, I hope most fervently, will be achieved.
Tomorrow I'll comment on, and somehow summarize, all those wonderful Top 10 lists you sent in. If you haven't already, click the BLOG button in the navigation bar, go to the BIANCULLI'S BLOG just below this one, click on COMMENTS, and read what you and your fellow sitemates have written.
Amazing. Impressive. And deliciously, stunningly well-written. What a great start to what I trust, hope and demand to be a good year for us all.
Good luck with your own resolutions, by the way...
Here's My Top 10 TV List of 2008 -- What's Yours?
December 26, 2008 10:16 AM
Before giving my list of the Top 10 TV shows of 2008, I'm asking for yours. The readers of this website are so discerning and tasteful (you're here, aren't you?), I thought it would be fun, maybe even enlightening, to ask for YOUR Top 10 lists.
You have until the end of the year to send yours as comments, and I'll begin 2009 by tallying a TV WORTH WATCHING Readers' Poll Top 10.
As for the worst of the year? We'll leave that to the staff of TV NOT WORTH WATCHING. Now for my Top 10... after which, please forward your own...
My TOP 10 for 2008:
1) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Comedy Central
2) Mad Men, AMC
3) 30 Rock, NBC
4) Pushing Daisies, ABC
5) The Shield, FX
6) Boston Legal, ABC
7) Dexter, Showtime
8) Friday Night Lights, NBC and DirecTV 101 Network
9) 60 Minutes, CBS
10) The Wire, HBO
Non-TV VERY Honorable Mention: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, from the Internet
--
So what made YOUR list this year? For the next few days, YOU write, and I'LL read!...
Merry Christmas to All...
December 25, 2008 9:16 AM
...And to all a good TV night.
Tomorrow, I'll give you my nominations for Best and Worst TV of 2008 -- and ask for yours. But today, let's all just take a day off. Starting now...
Happy holidays.
Merry Christmas Eve Two-Way: Terry Gross Interviews Me On Today's "Fresh Air"
December 24, 2008 7:18 AM
Sometimes I provide TV reviews for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Sometimes I guest host. And very rarely, I get to do something that's an awful lot of fun: Have an on-air conversation with Terry herself.
On today's Fresh Air, Terry and I talk about the year in TV. There's a lot to talk about, and it takes up most of the hour...
The writers' strike. The presidential election. Sarah Palin and Tina Fey. I bring some clips to play of some of my favorite TV of the year, and list the best and worst of 2008. And my favorite part is when I describe a new reality show I can't stand, NBC's Momma's Boys, to an utterly disbelieving Terry. (Her disbelief was about my description of the show, not my opinion.)
I had a blast doing it, and would love you to listen. After 3 p.m. ET, you can hear by clicking HERE... or just tune in whenever your local public radio station broadcasts Fresh Air.
As 2008 comes to an end, it marks the conclusion of 21 years I've been associated with Fresh Air. That's more than two decades of some fabulous friendships, and it ranks as my proudest professional association. So thanks, everyone at Fresh Air -- and thanks, all of you, for listening, and for reading.
Happy holidays!
TV Holidays Are Festive Again: Letterman Is Back with His Annual Christmas Show
December 22, 2008 10:05 AM
Last year, the writers' strike put a Scrooge-like end to David Letterman's annual late-night Christmas show. Tuesday night at 11:35 ET, on a fresh edition of Late Show with David Letterman, it's back. Darlene Love will sing, Jay Thomas will tell his Lone Ranger story, and Jay and Dave will toss footballs at the giant meatball atop the tree.
And I'll be watching, and grinning...
This is one TV tradition we shouldn't take for granted. I made the case a year ago, a month into the writers' strike, with a column that recounted the entire glorious history of the Letterman Christmas show. I begged for the Powers That Be to grant special dispensation to allow Letterman's streak to continue. You can read the story, and find out all about the Lone Ranger and Jay Thomas, by clicking HERE.
The Powers That Were, of course, ignored me. The strike continued, and despite the adage that the show must go on, it didn't. But for 2008, the gang is back: Darlene Love singing "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," as she did for Letterman 22 years ago, and every year but one since. Thomas back to spin a yarn and toss a football. And, as this year's special guest, another veteran performer: Mickey Rourke, hot on the comeback trail thanks to The Wrestler.
Who knows? He may even stick around to take aim at the giant meatball. This show, every season, has become more obviously, and more delightfully, a celebration not only of Christmas, but of tradition, and friendship, and life itself.
As The Lone Ranger might say: Believe ME, citizen.
Not Enough Shopping Days Left Until Christmas... But Here's One Great Last-Second DVD Gift Idea, And Many Others
December 19, 2008 6:57 AM
This is the last weekend before Christmas -- so it's the last chance, here at TV WORTH WATCHING, for us to trumpet our easy shopping lists of great DVDs, holiday-related and otherwise. Find the dogs with the Santa hats on the home page, click, and shop.
There's still time to have them rush delivered in time for the holiday. (The gifts, not the dogs). And here's my foolproof, last-second, under-$10 recommendation for the perfect DVD gift...
Looking for an inexpensive, guaranteed-to-please treat for all ages? Stock up on this vintage, but still charming, animated delight: The Point, written and featuring music by Harry Nilsson. It's great -- especially but not necessarily for kids -- and Amazon has it on sale for $9.99. Buy it HERE.
Anywhere at all on the shopping lists, when you find something you like, click on BUY NOW. It'll take you to the right place on Amazon, offer a discount, and give us a little stocking-stuffing bump, too.
Also in this holiday home stretch, remember to use Diane Werts' mammoth lists of TV holiday specials, special episodes and movies, all located to the right of her regular FOR BETTER OR WERTS column on the home page. And in her regular blog, you can find a recent entry about online offerings as well.
Remember: If you stay at home and watch TV and shop, you reduce the risk of getting trampled...
The Password is... Unfortunate
December 18, 2008 9:38 AM
Tonight at 8 ET, after a run of summer specials, CBS launches Million Dollar Password as a weekly series. Because of the way the show is revamped, and what it means for TV in the future, the password is... "Unfortunate."
Regis Philbin, once again, is the host -- nothing wrong there. This is, after all, the guy who revived the prime-time game show with ABC's Who Wants to be a Millionaire. (That show would still be on the air at night had ABC not greedily programmed it 172 times a week.)
And the celebrity contestants, teamed up with regular players, are well-chosen, too: William Shatner is one of tonight's synonym-swappers, and future installments feature Craig Ferguson, Norm Macdonald and others.
Still, two things bother me about this latest incarnation of the classic game show.
One is that, for no discernible reason other than to irritate fans of the original series, Million Dollar Password has changed the rules. Instead of teams alternating to give clues -- Team A getting the first shot, Team B the second, and so on -- each team now gets to fire off its clues and guesses all in a row. That removes a lot of the clue-giving strategy, as well as any potential penalty for not guessing right the first time.
The other thing that bothers me is the timing. Right after NBC announces Jay Leno will be taking over the 10 p.m. ET weeknight slot next year with a game show, along comes a game show to claim one night of the 8 p.m. hour for CBS.
With other shows, like NBC's Deal or No Deal and CBS's The Price Is Right specials, already airing at that hour, it doesn't take too much imagination to imagine a broadcast prime-time lineup full of talk shows at 10, game shows at 8, and mostly reality shows at 9.
Is there any reason why such durable syndicated hits as Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! couldn't succeed as an 8 p.m. strip show for some network? And if some network makes that leap, the number of hours available for scripted TV shows will be reduced even more drastically.
Ergo: The Password is... Unfortunate.
