Recently in TV Category

My wife is on her usual, "Let's watch American Idol" kick again this year. I tried to watch. A few parts were kind of funny and all, but . . . it's just not reaching me this time around. Luckily the kids want to play Habbo. My daughter's laptop has completely and utterly died. It was a slow, miserable death that only Toshiba can deliver. This was a most excellent diversion, however.

My son's desktop has originally been configured with a 15 GB HD booting Ubuntu. I did this because when he had Windows he would download and install stuff without my knowledge. Given that Habbo requires shockwave, only Windows can be used to play the game. So I regularly have to give the kids access to my desktop machine so they can take turns playing. Well, since her machine died, I decided to put a 160 GB HD in my son's machine, install Windows, and give him a lecture about downloading and installing software without my knowledge. He agreed. I was able to escape American Idol while re-configuring my son's computer.

Whoo - hoo!

Now they can both play at the same time. I still have to give up my desktop machine while my daughter plays Habbo, but I always have my laptop.

Were you watching Phenomenon tonight? What drama. This show is kind of like the American Idol for magicians. A few of them are pretty good too. One of the judges is Criss Angel who also happens to have his own show, Mindfreak, on A & E. The other judge is Uri Geller.

On tonight's show some guy, Jim Callahan, who claims to be able to speak with the dead, as if there were a seance going on, performs his act. Supposedly he talks to the the spirit of some dead author who is able to allow the magician to write a description of an object that a volunteer puts into a box without the magician's knowledge.

After the act, Uri and Criss critique the performance. That's where the drama comes in . . . In no uncertain terms Criss calls the guy out. Criss pulls an envelope out of his pocket and says he will pay the guy one million dollars if he can tell Criss what is in the envelope. For all intents and purposes Criss calls the guy a fake, a loser, a hack. NBC even has to bleep Criss' comments out at a point. However, I could make out that Criss basically called the guy's act "bullshit." That's where the two of them almost came to blows. It was like some episode of Riki Lake or something.

Seriously, the host had to get into the mix and pull the guy back from trying to attack Criss. It was hard to tell if it was staged, but I did get the impression it wasn't. Regardless, it was entertaining.

What's a mom to do when her husband dies of an unexpected heart attack leaving her to care for their two son's? How can she possibly maintain their lifestyle of driving leased Land-Rovers and sipping cappuccinos in the upscale, Southern Californian neighborhood of Agrestic? The answer is simple . . . you start selling pot. That's the basic premise of Weeds, a series on Showtime. I don't subscribe to Showtime, but browsing through some TV series DVDs I came across season 1 and watched it. I'm hooked on it. It is irreverent, disrespectful and completely hilarious.

Mary-Louise Parker, as Nancy Botwin, is a woman who suddenly finds herself a single, widowed mother of two sons. Her husband, an engineer, had previously been the breadwinner and provided for an upscale lifestyle in the upper-middle class, Californian neighborhood of Agrestic. As if being a widowed mom isn't enough, her fourth-grade son, Shane ( Alexander Gould ), has his own problems growing up. He has a bit of an emotional side but tries to find outlets like writing gangsta' rap music, making mock terror videos and shooting mountain lions. Her teen age son, Silas ( Hunter Parrish ), is not only sexually active but also enjoys smoking pot and going to his fair share of parties where he meets his deaf girlfriend. But life for the Botwins wouldn't be quite right without a fine, upstanding father figure like Andy ( Justin Kirk ), Nancy's brother. He's drifted in from Alaska and decides to step up and invite himself to be Nancy's partner in the business. He teaches Shane how to better cheat on his homework, seduces Silas' girlfriend via IM, screws Shane's friend's mom, and watches porn while getting high with Nancy's CPA. When he gets busted trying to help Nancy sell her pot, he then decides to bang his NA sponsor. But it's ok in Agrestic to be a bit odd.

Her best friend, Celia Hodes ( Elizabeth Perkins ) isn't without her fair share of faults. She sends her daughter away to boarding school after finding out that she is sexually active ( and Silas' original girlfriend ). Later she finds out that she has cancer and has her breasts removed after having an affair with Nancy's supplier, Conrad ( Romany Malco ). But it isn't just her desire to be young and beautiful that drives her to Conrad. She also learns that her lawyer husband, Dean ( Andy Milder ), is doing the local tennis pro and lets her shove her tennis racket up his ass. But Nancy doesn't let that stop her from using his legal skills combined with the local CPA, Doug Wilson ( Kevin Nealon ), help her to set up a front for her budding ( pun intended ) "bakery shop". After all, not only are they experts in their field, they are wonderful customers of hers.

But it isn't all fun and games. She's learning a little at a time about the drug dealing business. She faces angry, territorial dealers, the trials and tribulations of raising her kids, and the grief of losing her husband who she loved very much. There are times when the world is spinning out of control and she fears she just might lose it. How's a woman supposed to bring home the bacon, maintain a successful, expanding marijuana-dealing business while still being a good mom?

I can't believe it. I really can't.

I wasted a half hour of my life watching Cavemen.

Fortunately it was only a half hour. If you haven't watched it yet, well don't bother. I think it's supposed to be a comedy about three cavemen ( from the GEICO commercials ) who move to San Diego in search of a more fulfilling life. Evidently they are tired of the stereotypes and discrimination they face in other places. Fortunately, Tuesday's not an entire wash. I also watched the premier of Carpoolers. That show has hope. It actually made me laugh out loud a few times. Four guys carpooling for their 45 minute drive to work each day, talking about stuff that guys talk about and doing the things guys do actually has some degree of comedic value.

Did you catch either of these two? Am I way off? Is Cavemen going to be the big hit of the season?

I'm slowly catching up on the stuff I wasn't able to watch during the week. The series premier for Moonlight just happened to be one of them.

Moonlight is a new series in which the main character, Mick St. John ( Alex O'Loughlin ), is not only a crime-solving detective, but a vampire as well. You can forget everything that you already know about vampires. He isn't scared of crucifixes or garlic. He doesn't sleep in a coffin. Instead he sleeps in a freezer. And it's not one like you might store your spare t-bones in.

He doesn't need to hunt young women in their sleep or prowl the night in search of fresh blood. He gets his from his own supplier. Although, other myths remain true. While he can roam about during the night, sunlight is something that sucks the power from him. He can heal himself as most vampires do recover from their injuries. He does have super-human strength and will most likely kick your ass if you piss him off enough. The only thing that will destroy him is separating his head from his body or fire.

Sophia Myles plays Beth Turner, the meddling reporter / web-caster. She has the right mix of good looks, curiosity and pushiness to get the scoop. Oh, and did I mention she's kinda hot too? It seems like her and Mick are gonna be paired up a bit as the two try to solve crimes. It's quite natural for them to end up together. He saved her a long time ago when she was a child from another vampire. The premiere leaves you wondering if Mick's "real" identity is going to be revealed to her or not as we see history repeating itself when he saves her from the killer they are after.

Last fall I suggested that mainstream audiences might not be ready for a show like Heroes. Boy was I wrong. I'm almost tempted to say the same thing about Moonlight. I like the show and I'd like to see more of it. It's something fresh, something new, and as Mick says, "Vampires are coming back into fashion." But, will mainstream viewers accept it and like it as much as me? I don't think having the premier on Friday night is going to really help it's success. Time will tell.

How about you? Do you think it will last?