Brothers & Sisters: 4/29/2007

On the off-chance that I haven't said it already, Brothers & Sisters, is, in my humble opinion, the best show currently on television, network or otherwise. It has everything: intelligent writing, top-notch acting, three-dimensional relatable (read: rootable) characters. I love it, and if you're not watching it, well, you should be. Anyway, just wanted to get that out there before I began my review of this past Sunday's episode.

What, oh, what to make of Rebecca? Is she a) a intelligent albeit naive ingenue or b) a manipulative troublemaker? The great thing about this show is that even those aforementioned labels are too general to describe any character on this show, and this is not an exception as we learned with Rebecca. Who made the first move, Rebecca or Joe? By the looks of Joe's flashback of the episode prior to this one, it appears that Rebecca may have had quite an interest in her brother-in-law, a not quite so innocent interest.

It looks like Sarah and Joe's already rocky marriage is finally starting to crumble. Frankly, I can't say I'm disappointed, as I find Joe about as exciting as a piece of melba toast. It's time to move Sarah away from him and see her adjusting to life as a single mother. Of course, I may be getting ahead of myself, but the chances of their marriage lasting much longer aren't looking very good.

On the other hand, I love the relationship between Kitty and Senator McCallister (Robert, played by Rob Lowe). Both actors just ooze a certain chemistry with each other that brings out the best in them. The scene at the end where Kitty accidentally proposed to Robert was great, and Calista Flockhart played it perfectly.

Conversely (too many transitions!!!), I'm not particularly thrilled at all about the relationship brewing between Nora and her writing professor (portrayed by Peter Coyote). The guy just seems...creepy to me, and definitely not dynamic enough for feisty Nora. I would rather not see Nora involved in any romantic relationships just yet, but if she had to be, I'd much rather see her back with that construction guy (his name escapes me) from earlier in the season.

All in all, a decent, solid episode, notable mostly for the confrontation scene between Sarah and Joe in the kitchen and Kitty/Robert. Admittedly, it left me underwhelmed, but even a less than stellar episode of B&S kicks the collective ass of everything else on TV these days. And I do mean everything.

Grey's Anatomy: 4/26/2007

First off, sorry about the lack of updates lately. It's been a crazy-ass week to say the least.

Anyway, this week's episode of Grey's Anatomy was a big, big improvement. The show actually seemed like itself again, so hopefully, that means this creative dry spell is coming to an end. Or, the writers are just gearing up for May sweeps - whichever.

I'll start off with my favorite part of the episode, that being the big moment between Addison and Alex. I was so afraid this pairing was a dropped idea that the writers were just playing around with, so I'm glad to see that they haven't forgotten about it. Ironically, the fact that they're not officially a couple makes it even better because that's what makes the most sense for the characters. Neither have been able to make strong commitments in the past, so it's only logical that they wouldn't be able to make a commitment to each other. Mark's involvement was great too, and I like that the whole "dirty mistresses" thing hasn't been forgotten.

Callie confronting Izzie in the elevator was nicely understated, and didn't go over the top as it easily could have with lesser actors. Fortunately, that's not a problem on this show. I also liked that Callie ended up giving her study cards to Cristina rather than George. One of the things I'm gonna miss most if Addison does indeed get her own show is the Callie/Addison friendship, so I would not mind seeing Cristina and Callie becoming friends at all.

I didn't care about the whole wedding cake subplot, probably because I care even less about Burke. And don't even get me started on Isaiah Washington, but that's neither here nor there. Also, was there something going on with Meredith and Derek? If so, I sure didn't notice it. They were like wallpaper in this episode, but then again, that's definitely not a bad thing to me.

Other random thing's about this week's show were the "penis fish" case (classic Grey's Anatomy), despite how physically uncomfortable it may have rendered me to think about it, and the nice little scene at the end of the episode where Dr. Webber told Bailey she couldn't do everything. Good, solid episode overall.

Update on "Grey's" Spin-Off

You know I'm following every detail about the proposed Grey's Anatomy spin-off starring Kate Walsh. So, here's the latest news on the series.

The episode of Grey's Anatomy launching the spin-off is set to air on May 3rd, and is currently titled "The Other Side of This Life". In the episode, Addison will be traveling to Santa Monica to visit with her friends from medical school. Cast members from the new series should it be picked up that are featured in the episode include Tim Daly (The Nine), Amy Brenneman, Merrin Dungey, Taye Diggs and Chris Lowell (Veronica Mars). The spin-off series is also tentatively titled "Private Practice". In my opinion, it needs a new name, as Private Practice sounds too generic, but I digress.

Credit goes to Zap2It.com for the news.

Desperate Housewives: 4/22/2007

About last night's episode of Desperate Housewives, where to begin?

The blackout idea could have been a great premise for the episode. That is, if it had lasted longer than just the first ten minutes.

I'll be honest, there wasn't much about last night's episode that I liked. I hate, hate, hate Gaby with politician guy. At least next week she finds out about Edie and Carlos, which should be interesting. Although, I'm not holding my breath. Speaking of Edie and Carlos...oh, I don't even have anything to say about them. It was the same old song and dance for those two. Lynette's making cow eyes at the restaurant's new chef while Tom sits at home sulking. Again, I find myself unable to find anything to say about this, positive or negative. Susan decided that she couldn't choose just one man, so, in predictable fashion, she chose herself. At least that idiocy is over with...for now. I just bet by the end of the season, Ian will be some psycho obsessing over Susan at which point Mike will have to rescue her. I'm calling that one now. Mrs. McCluskey's in jail now, but the one thing that actually interested me in this plot twist, seeing all the other residents' reaction to McCluskey keeping a corpse in her freezer, didn't happen. I was not pleased.

Lately, Desperate Housewives has been really boring and predictable. Up until the last few episodes the show had been on fire, but now it looks like the show has lost all that momentum. Aside from Edie/Gaby, next week doesn't even look that great.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again now. Marcia Cross...come back!

Grey's Anatomy: 4/19/2007

It's official: Grey's Anatomy is in a rut.

I'm not kidding, I actually couldn't wait for tonight's episode to be over, and I definitely don't mean that in a good way. I'll start with the ongoing George/Izzie saga. I remember a not too distant time in the past when I loved Izzie. Now? I can't stand the girl. And George, well, I never liked George. George had absolutely no business chasing Izzie down like he was her protector. George, in case you've forgotten, you already have a wife. Her name is Callie. Ah, yes, Callie. I love her and I really would like nothing more at this point than to see her snap Izzie's bony body in two, and then smack the crap out of George. She really does deserve better.

Speaking of ongoing sagas, it looks like Distorted-Face Girl might finally be finding her family. Only problem is, after oh, three fourths of the episode, the people in question turn out not to be her family. Wow. I never saw that one coming (end sarcasm). Seriously, why are we even supposed to care? Alex is the only one that pretends to care, and even he doesn't seem that interested.

I guess stalking was a common theme throughout this episode. Not only did George chase Izzie's scent like a dog in heat, but Christina and Meredith had their own encounters as well. Christina continues to be followed around by her ex-boyfriend. She tells him she's moved on and is getting married, and doesn't miss him, blah, blah, blah. He says ok, and leaves. And that takes care of that. Meredith, meanwhile, has to contend with the mothering (which turns out to be something more like smothering) attempts on the part of her stepmother who feels guilty for not encouraging Merewhore's dad to spend time with her as a kid. Whaddya know, I find myself not caring yet again.

Pretty much the only thing I enjoyed in this episode was Mark schooling Chief Webber on the fine art of flirting, and the final shot of Addison dancing with the Chief at the bar.

Next week's show seems to be more promising, and one can only hope. I hate being so disinterested in Grey's.

Lost - Season 2

I just finished watching the second season of Lost on DVD, and I have to say I was not particularly impressed. For one, the pacing of the whole season was all wrong. Most of the time, it just seemed as if the writers were dragging their heels to keep from having to overexert their creativity (which we know they have plenty of).

I'll start with the three additions to the cast this season. I hated Ana-Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez). Not only did she kill Shannon and come off it essentially smelling like a rose, but I had no sympathy for her whole "Poor me, I have no friends" routine. Frankly, her death did not come soon enough for me, and you better believe I was cheering. It was the one thing Michael ever did RIGHT. Then we have Libby (played by one of my favorites, the divine Cynthia Watros). Watros was criminally underused and her character was underdeveloped in her even more criminally short time on the show. If I didn't have enough contempt for Michael before, I have nothing but a very painful death wish for him now. The fucker murdered Libby (why do they always kill off the wrong characters on this show?!), effectively ending my Cynthia's time on Lost. Finally, there is Mr. Eko, played by whose name I'm not even going to attempt to spell. He was perhaps the most fascinating of the three newbies, and has become one of my favorite characters...which probably means he'll be killed off.

In my humble opinion, far too much time was wasted on Henry, the "other" captured by the castaways. By the time it was revealed that he actually was an "other", I didn't even care. It felt like Lost was in limbo for oh, a good third of the season. The Jake/Kate/Sawyer triangle continued with all the pace of a snail (and even that's an insult to snails). Sun got magically knocked up, but everyone forgot after five minutes. Guess she couldn't even get the standard fifteen minutes of fame. Sadly, this all pretty much sums up Season 2. The long break from Walt, however, was quite refreshing, I must say.

The season-ending cliffhanger left me, quite appropriately, lost. I hear the third season is a big improvement. Frankly, I don't want to imagine it being worse. But, even at its worst, Lost is still one of the better shows on television.

Desperate Housewives: 4/15/2007

So, what's new on our favorite street?

Edie and Carlos are continuing their sex-a-thon, trying to one-up each other in the making love department (ha, now THERE is a competition). Although I hate that it only happened because of Marcia Cross's maternity leave, I am loving Edie (my favorite character) getting more screentime and an actual story to boot. I especially like that Nicollette is getting a chance to prove that she can do more than just comic relief. Remember last week's scene where she stripped down in front of Carlos? WOW.

Speaking of Marcia Cross, it's a good thing her absence is only temporary because you can really tell how much DH needs her. Ever since she's been gone, something has just been...missing from the show. Here's to hoping she'll be back in time for the season finale.

Tom and Lynette arguing over the pizzeria, Round 319. Is anyone else getting really bored with this? During last night's episode, I was beginning to hope Mrs. McCluskey would smother Tom with a pillow to shut him up. Oh, and did anyone else see the twist at the end of the show involving Mrs. McCluskey coming? BECAUSE I DIDN'T! That definitely surprised me, in a pleasantly twisted way that only Desperate Housewives could.

I make it no secret that I hate Susan, and that's putting it nicely. Frankly, I wish Ian had drowned in that lake and pulled Susan down with him. The whole Ian/Susan/Mike triangle seriously drags the show down for me, and I really hope next week's episode is a step to putting an end to it.

So Gaby's screwing the politician guy now, huh? Yawn...Move Gaby away from this grandpa and let her find out about Carlos and Edie's new "friendship". Then, let the sparks and fur fly! That would be interesting.

Next week's show looks better. Let's hope.

"What About" a Third Season?

Well, I don't know about you, but I'd really like to know the fate of ABC's low-rated What About Brian, starring Barry Watson as the title character. Prior to just a couple months ago, I had never seen an episode of the drama nor had any interest in it at all. That is, until it was announced that Tiffani Thiessen (who I've loved since her days as 90210's resident vixen) was joining the regular cast. That's when I decided to tune in, and I'm glad I did. This show, which I would describe as a cross between thirtysomething and Melrose Place, has great potential if only ABC would promote it more heavily. I honestly think if ABC just moved it into the timeslot following Grey's Anatomy, What About Brian would stand a much greater chance of developing an audience. Currently, it's not looking so good for the J.J. Abrams produced series as, the last I saw, it wasn't even in the top voted shows at this year's E!'s Save One Show campaign. C'mon ABC, give it one last shot.

Addison's Anatomy?

This May, ABC is airing a two-hour episode of their #1 hit, Grey's Anatomy, that will serve as a backdoor pilot for a potential spin-off featuring the character of Dr. Addison Montgomery. In the new series headlined by Addison's portrayer, Kate Walsh, Dr. Montgomery would depart Seattle Grace for um, greener pastures I presume. Cast members included in the new series include Amy Brenneman (Judging Amy), Taye Diggs (Day Break) and Merrin Dungey (Alias), who by the way, this viewer would be thrilled to see on his TV screen again.

Hmm...while I don't mind the idea of a Grey's Anatomy spin-off, I am not entirely sure that this is the best idea. A) I think it's still too soon for ABC to attempt to replicate the success of Grey's, and more importantly, B) I don't want to see Addison (one of my favorite characters) leaving Seattle Grace. One of the reasons Grey's Anatomy is so popular is because of the chemistry among the show's stars (well, with the exception of one), and I believe Kate Walsh has added a lot to the show since she arrived at the end of Season One. There is still plenty for Addison to do in Seattle, like say, steam up the screen with Alex or Mark, "Dr. McSteamy" himself. The possibilities are virtually endless.

No matter what I say, ABC is almost assuredly going to greenlight the spin-off for the fall season, so time will tell where Addison ends up.

First off...

To introduce, this is my blog reviewing basically anything and everything related to the world of TV entertainment. It might start off slow, because currently, the only shows I watch on a regular basis are Grey's Anatomy, Brothers & Sisters, and Desperate Housewives, but as I expand, you'll see a greater variety of topics and what not. From time to time, I'll also include reviews of seasons of shows that I'm catching up on on DVD. So yeah...enjoy.