TV Tues - Hopelessly Devoted

Been a little too busy to get totally caught up on everything (Monday nights are way too chock full of good TV and activities), but here's what's been watched and deemed comment-worthy.

Monday Oct. 8

Chuck (NBC 7:00): Still my favorite show of the new season; glad to see that they're finally done with all the set-up and are now ready to head into the Villain-of-the-Week stuff.

Journeyman (NBC 8:00): There are parts of this show that I'm really enjoying, and then parts that drive me crazy. The fact that he never presses very hard for information from former fiance and fellow time traveler about why they are the way they are: frustrating.

Tuesday Oct. 9

Reaper (CW 8:00): After what struck me as a trifle forced and overcrowded pilot, the second and third episodes of the series have lived up to the rave reviews it's been receiving. I am now officially on board for the long haul.

Wednesday Oct. 10

Pushing Up Daisies (ABC 7:00): So, I went into the second ep with my expectations set at a slightly different level, and for the first 15-20 minutes I was still not quite into it. But then we had the sequence with the Japanese businessfolk which made me smile, followed quickly by the Dandelion model hunkered over behind the car and crabwalking on the rotating dias as she ate the pie which made me laugh out loud, which was soon followed by Kristen Chenowith in a scene which made me think "that is one of the most awesome things I've ever seen.*"



Sure, there were some plot holes, and the stylized nature takes some getting used to, but that scene right there has earned Pushing Daisies a place in my heart**.

Private Practice (ABC 8:00): This one was a bit hit or miss for me; most of the "miss" scenes were ones focusing on Addison, while the "hit" scenes featured Cooper and Violet, which is turning out to be a pattern. My favorite line of the episode came from Naomi, however: "This boy's baking cakes at me!"

Thursday Oct. 11

My Name is Earl (NBC 7:00): One of the nice things about Earl is that it even if they do decide to have Earl serve out the full jail sentence instead of springing him with some deus ex machina, it can easily avoid falling into a jailhouse rut by dint of flashback episodes such as this.

Survivor (CBS 7:00): Extremely glad to see crazy Dave gone; let's hope the voting out of annoying cast members trend continues. Of course, with the high percentage of annoying cast members remaining, it would almost be hard not to.

The Office (NBC 8:00): Several great moments in this ep: Pam and Jim's pranking of Dwight, the office members obsessed with the DVD screen, the whole office's reaction to the pizza announcement (especially Kevin's "It tastes like hot circles of garbage"), Meredith wanting Jim to sign her cast . . . all comedy gold. But nothing beats the sheer awesomeness of Andy wooing Angela with Abba's "Take a Chance on Me" while backed up by two friends on speaker-phone -- greatness, pure greatness.

Grey's Anatomy (ABC 8:00): Good-bye, Really Old Guy; we hardly knew ye. Christina's manipulation of Meredith was fun, and pretty much every scene with Bailey was gold, as usual. The previews for this weeks ep that show Izzy getting ready for fisticuffs with Callie just made me cringe, however.

MONDAY Oct 15

How I Met Your Mother (CBS 7:00): The mini-Barneys were great, as was Barney's Machiavellian plan to win The Game.

Big Bang Theory (CBS 7:30): Man, they're bringing in all the Roseanne alums, aren't they? I'm hoping John Goodman or Sarah Chalke are next on the list. As for the episode itself, Sheldon continues to be the highlight of the show.

Two and a Half Men (CBS 8:00): The return of Rose! Too bad Drive had to be canceled in order for it to happen. Here's hoping it's not a one-off appearance.

Heroes (NBC 8:00): Okay, the big reveal that Parkman's dad was one of the Nine; took me by surprise. The reveal that he was also the Nightmare Man; not so much. Interesting that Sylar is going by Gabriel again; I wonder if that has any significance other than him just feeling lost. Also enjoyed watching Micah's cousin discover her Taskmaster-esque photographic reflexes.




*A scene I'm sure several other people saw as "The moment the show lost all appeal."
**Even if it did get "Hopelessly Devoted" stuck in my head for the rest of the week.