Saturday, September 18, 2010
Summer in Review: Cable Shows
The networks are incapable of launching a summer series. NBC tried again this year with Persons Unknown, but they moved nights and just stopped running some of them. I decided not to catch up on Hulu and gave up on the show like most people. But the cable networks do a much better job of launching and successfully running summer shows. The best thing about these shows is you can start watching one of these shows knowing full well there will be at least one season and the show will be on the same night each week throughout the summer.
First up is True Blood on HBO. This is the best summer show and this season was great. There were lots of vampire deaths this season, much more that I ever expected. This season started all about the werewolves and ended with the true nature of Sookie's heritage. Sookie and Vampure Bill broke up just like in the novels, but not for the same reasons. I wonder if she will end up with Vampire Eric. They seemed to imply that next season is going to be about witches and witchcraft as they have added two minor characters that are witches.
One of my favorite cable shows ran a half season on USA: Burn Notice. This season had a great addition of Jesse, another burned spy. However the "big bad" this time was less defined other than previous seasons. Also the secret that Michael burned Jesse was a little contrived. Logically anyone would understand that Michael didn't know the fall out of his mission into the CIA office in Miami. Plus the CIA burned Jesse rather abruptly with very little evidence. I didn't really buy it. But their stand alone stories were as good as ever. This show always delivers.
Also on USA is Psych, the funniest detective show on TV. Richard from LOST joined the cast as a recurring character: a super-smart super rich fake FBI profiler who immediately figure out Shawn was a fake psychic. I hope we see more of him when season 5 resumes. in November.
After Pysch was the new show Covert Affairs. I can't image the new JJ Abrams spy show this fall could be better than this one. Agent Walker is a great character and it has been great watching her as a new spy. Plus the season arc of her ex-lover/rouge spy has been fascinating. The finale was last Tuesday but it is still on my DVR.
Over on TNT (the know drama) is Leverage. My friend Bill calls it Average. I still enjoy it. This time they tried to have a season arc with a big target fell a little flat this season. They didn't even talk about it until the last episode. Regardless the show is enjoyable. Also it is filmed in Portland so it has a look like no other on TV right now.
On A&E is The Glades, a police drama set in Florida. This show has a unique feel as rather than a homicide team, it is a detective and a medical examiner working together on cases. Plus the main character is hot.
And finally the only comedy: Louis, created by and starring Louis CK. This show is really funny. My favorite moment was when Louis and the mom of one of his daughter's classmates are sitting at the playground talking dirty. Saying this like, "I bet you'd want that guy over there to bunch up his sack and put it in your puss." While they were discussing the dynamics of how one does they, his daughter comes up and asks for carrots and they effortlessly slip back into mom and dad mode. It is very funny and wonderfully unique.
First up is True Blood on HBO. This is the best summer show and this season was great. There were lots of vampire deaths this season, much more that I ever expected. This season started all about the werewolves and ended with the true nature of Sookie's heritage. Sookie and Vampure Bill broke up just like in the novels, but not for the same reasons. I wonder if she will end up with Vampire Eric. They seemed to imply that next season is going to be about witches and witchcraft as they have added two minor characters that are witches.
One of my favorite cable shows ran a half season on USA: Burn Notice. This season had a great addition of Jesse, another burned spy. However the "big bad" this time was less defined other than previous seasons. Also the secret that Michael burned Jesse was a little contrived. Logically anyone would understand that Michael didn't know the fall out of his mission into the CIA office in Miami. Plus the CIA burned Jesse rather abruptly with very little evidence. I didn't really buy it. But their stand alone stories were as good as ever. This show always delivers.Also on USA is Psych, the funniest detective show on TV. Richard from LOST joined the cast as a recurring character: a super-smart super rich fake FBI profiler who immediately figure out Shawn was a fake psychic. I hope we see more of him when season 5 resumes. in November.
After Pysch was the new show Covert Affairs. I can't image the new JJ Abrams spy show this fall could be better than this one. Agent Walker is a great character and it has been great watching her as a new spy. Plus the season arc of her ex-lover/rouge spy has been fascinating. The finale was last Tuesday but it is still on my DVR.Over on TNT (the know drama) is Leverage. My friend Bill calls it Average. I still enjoy it. This time they tried to have a season arc with a big target fell a little flat this season. They didn't even talk about it until the last episode. Regardless the show is enjoyable. Also it is filmed in Portland so it has a look like no other on TV right now.
On A&E is The Glades, a police drama set in Florida. This show has a unique feel as rather than a homicide team, it is a detective and a medical examiner working together on cases. Plus the main character is hot.And finally the only comedy: Louis, created by and starring Louis CK. This show is really funny. My favorite moment was when Louis and the mom of one of his daughter's classmates are sitting at the playground talking dirty. Saying this like, "I bet you'd want that guy over there to bunch up his sack and put it in your puss." While they were discussing the dynamics of how one does they, his daughter comes up and asks for carrots and they effortlessly slip back into mom and dad mode. It is very funny and wonderfully unique.
Labels: Burn Notice, Covert Affairs, Leverage, Louis, Psych, The Glades, True Blood
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Hawaii Five-O
When an old TV show shows up in my life three times in one day, it is time to blog about it. Today it was Hawaii Five-O. This morning I was reading one of my moderately favorite blogs, dougsploitation, had a post about Hawaii Five-O as a tribute to recent death of the song writer of the theme song to the classic 12 season series.
Later in the morning I was hanging out with visiting friend Matt Yee and his husband Paul. They are visiting Seattle from Honolulu on the Mariner of the Seas. We went to the Museum of Flight. While looking at the very first 747, the topic of the opening sequence of Hawaii Five-O with the 747 landing in Oahu came up. I didn't realize how important the arrival of the regularly scheduled 747 was to the integration of Hawaii to mainstream mainland culture was until this conversation.
Later, while watching episode seven of True Blood, the inexplicably sexy detective Andy was fishing when his cell phone went off. His ring-tone: Hawaii Five-O theme song.
Later in the morning I was hanging out with visiting friend Matt Yee and his husband Paul. They are visiting Seattle from Honolulu on the Mariner of the Seas. We went to the Museum of Flight. While looking at the very first 747, the topic of the opening sequence of Hawaii Five-O with the 747 landing in Oahu came up. I didn't realize how important the arrival of the regularly scheduled 747 was to the integration of Hawaii to mainstream mainland culture was until this conversation.Later, while watching episode seven of True Blood, the inexplicably sexy detective Andy was fishing when his cell phone went off. His ring-tone: Hawaii Five-O theme song.
Labels: Hawaii Five-O, True Blood
True Blood
As I write this I'm currently watching episode six of season one of True Blood. This HBO show was on last summer. Season two started up this week. First off, this show is awesome. If you have Netflix what you should do right now is put season one on your queue and move it to the top of the list.
After Buffy, The Vampire Slayer I was certain the vampire genre was done. That show was so well written, so well put together, and so funny, nothing else could ever do vampires as good. I watch the horrible train wreck of Twilight when it came out on DVD. This was such a crappy rip off of the teenage-vampire love affair of Buffy-Angel. And the stupid "sparkling in sunlight" instead of bursting in flame was beyond suck. Don't pay to see the sequels. And then the CW is having The Vampire Diaries this fall. This is an even worse rip off of the Buffy-Angel romance. Puh-leeze.
If you don't know what True Blood is about here is a short synopsis. It's modern times but a few years ago with the invention of synthetic blood, vampire have "come out of the coffin". In a small Louisiana town an old vampire had return to his original home around the time of a series of unexplained murders. The mystery is fantastic. But the most interesting thing is the integration of Vampires in the modern societies. As they push to gain acceptance the parallels to the push to gain rights and acceptance is an obvious parallel to the gay rights movement. The thing that makes it better than Buffy is the almost scientific look at the way vampires work. The vampire blood IS life and it has its own superior powers. In addition to the supernaturalness of vampires, there are other supernatural things going on. The main character played by Anna Paquin is a telepath. Her desire to have a vampire boyfriend makes perfect sense as he is the only love interest who she cannot hear thoughts. This show is very well written.
But the number one reason to watch the show is super hottie Jason Stackhouse (pictured). He is incredibly hot and a total brain dead man whore. As this is the south, he spends much of the time without his shirt on. I love it. He is played by the hot and brilliant Australian actor Ryan Kwanten. I love him. My three month free HBO subscription ends in two weeks but this show is making me consider paying for it for a few more months.
After Buffy, The Vampire Slayer I was certain the vampire genre was done. That show was so well written, so well put together, and so funny, nothing else could ever do vampires as good. I watch the horrible train wreck of Twilight when it came out on DVD. This was such a crappy rip off of the teenage-vampire love affair of Buffy-Angel. And the stupid "sparkling in sunlight" instead of bursting in flame was beyond suck. Don't pay to see the sequels. And then the CW is having The Vampire Diaries this fall. This is an even worse rip off of the Buffy-Angel romance. Puh-leeze.
If you don't know what True Blood is about here is a short synopsis. It's modern times but a few years ago with the invention of synthetic blood, vampire have "come out of the coffin". In a small Louisiana town an old vampire had return to his original home around the time of a series of unexplained murders. The mystery is fantastic. But the most interesting thing is the integration of Vampires in the modern societies. As they push to gain acceptance the parallels to the push to gain rights and acceptance is an obvious parallel to the gay rights movement. The thing that makes it better than Buffy is the almost scientific look at the way vampires work. The vampire blood IS life and it has its own superior powers. In addition to the supernaturalness of vampires, there are other supernatural things going on. The main character played by Anna Paquin is a telepath. Her desire to have a vampire boyfriend makes perfect sense as he is the only love interest who she cannot hear thoughts. This show is very well written.But the number one reason to watch the show is super hottie Jason Stackhouse (pictured). He is incredibly hot and a total brain dead man whore. As this is the south, he spends much of the time without his shirt on. I love it. He is played by the hot and brilliant Australian actor Ryan Kwanten. I love him. My three month free HBO subscription ends in two weeks but this show is making me consider paying for it for a few more months.
Labels: True Blood
