Glee: Chenoweth Schools the Kids

Glee:

"The Rhodes Not Taken"

This episode was fantastic. I didn't realize how much I like Kristin Chenoweth until she showed up on Glee playing April Rhodes, the most talented singer in the school's history who quit school a few credits before she graduated. Of course I adored Pushing Daisies, and she was fantastic in it (and very much deserved her Emmy award), but there were so many things I adored about Pushing Daisies that I'm not sure I was fully aware of how much I liked Chenoweth.

Chenoweth was great on Glee. She was hilarious, and she pulled off three absolutely show-stopping numbers. I'm thinking she's going to follow up her Emmy for Best Supporting Actress with one for Best Guest Star.

Highlights and observations:

• We're back to "Don't Stop Believing." Ooh, but with Quinn instead of Rachel. This version wasn't working as well, even before Quinn had to take a vomit break.
• Puck: "That Rachel chick makes me what to light myself on fire, but she can sing."
• This waiter is a six-year senior so he can stay in Vocal Adrenaline because he's the only one who can do the triple flip! Ha! I knew there was some funny business going on with that group.
• Sometimes my bangs do that weird flippy thing that Emma's bangs are doing right now, but I don't try it. And I try to stop it from happening.
• Eew, this newspaper kid is gross. Trying to blackmail Rachel into showing him her bra.
• Oh, Finn is crafty! Very good manipulative strategy.
• Emma: "...and two months later, Versace was dead."
• Wow, April's got a nice house! And she's an alcoholic. And she's a squatter.
• Chenoweth's looking good. Her hair looks very nice.
• Will: "We'll get you sobered up and find you some underwear. It's not too late for you."
• Sorry, kids, I'm pretty sure Chenoweth can kick Rachel's butt ;-) (And I love Rachel.)
• The juxtaposition of April and Rachel singing the same song is really cool.
• Lol at the glee kids' stunned reaction to April's performance.
• Will: "You draw a lot of attention to yourself and they're embarrassed enough as it is."
• Lol at April's efforts to win the kids over. Especially showing Mercedes and Tina how to steal groceries by holding them between their thighs.
• Finn: "You know what we should do?"
  Rachel: "Elope?"
• Ha! Kurt's looking rough.
• Kurt (to Emma): "Oh, Bambi, I cried so hard when those hunters shot your mommy."
• Emma says Kurt "looks like an 11-year-old milkmaid."
• Emma's a buzzkill, let April stay in glee!
• April: "These high school boys are a lot hotter than they used to be."
• Wow, April and Wow are show-stoppers. Their rendition of "Alone" is fantastic. Those lucky bingo players!
• Kurt: "Maybe Quinn is lactose intolerant!"
• Puck: "I bet you thought Burt and Ernie were just roommates."
• Wow, what a look of devastation on Rachel's face.
• Sue! She's been MIA in this episode.
• What is with these costumes?
• Ha at the country line dancing. They're good. But I'm thinking that Chenoweth could probably make pretty much anybody look good.
• Invitationals are very well attended.
• Will: "And, hey, there's always Branson."
• Kurt: "You were right, Mr. Schue. April would massacre Mariah in a diva-off."
• Kind of a lengthy intermission, huh?
• This April-less version of "Somebody To Love" ain't bad either. And Rachel sure picked up the choreography fast.
• Yea for Mercedes! I don't understand why she doesn't get more of the solos.
• Good episode! Lots of singing.

Song list: "Maybe This Time" (April and Rachel), "Alone" (April and Will), "Last Name" (April and New Directions), "Somebody to Love" (New Directions)

(photo: fox.com)

Glee: Put a Ring on It

Glee:
"Preggers"

This was my least favorite episode of Glee so far, yet the episode still contained its share of hilarious moments and entertaining comments.

Highlights and my thoughts:

• LOL at Kurt lip-syncing and dancing to "Single Ladies." BTW, Britt (blond cheerleader with bangs) and Tina are good back up dancers.
• Ha, yeah, all the jocks are wearing unitards these days.
• Kendra: "Dishonesty is food to a marriage; it would die without it."
• Ha ha, Sue has her own segment on the local news. Wow, and she's be written up twice on the sports page of USA Today. That's impressive.
• Sue just called Emma "Alma."
• Ha, Sue said that Will has to go to the salon every week to have his hair permed.
• Ha ha, Mercedes is a Jet in West Side Story.
• Artie: "The more time she storms out of rehearsal, the less impact it has."
• Finn: "But, thanks, I know how important dances are to teen gays."
• Kurt: "My body is like a rum chocolate souffle. If I don't warm it up properly, it doesn't rise."
• To their credit, the football players are actually laughing less at Kurt's dance routine than I am.
• Sue is pro-littering.
• How is Quinn pregnant?
• Sandy: "I'm living in a cocoon of horror."
• Well, that was the strangest blackmail ever.
• Sue: "If I was out to get you, I'd have you pickling in a jar on my shelf by now."
• Sue: "Find your voice. Stomp that yard. All that crap."
• Tina's good, and this is not an easy song to sing. It's really high.
• What does it matter who Will "gives this song" to? They rarely ever perform. So Tina sings a solo in practice, so what?!
• Puck: "I knew it! You're in love with Kurt!"
• Ahhh, Quinn slept with Puck. That explains everything.
• Ok, but Terri's supposed to be like 4 months pregnant and Quinn's only 5 weeks pregnant, so isn't Will going to notice that his wife was pregnant with their baby for like 12 months? (No, actually, he probably won't notice because he doesn't seem to be that swift about these things.)
• The football team gets a large crowd turnout at its games despite being so bad.
• On the bright side, the other team has only scored 6 points, so the defense must have been doing ok.
• A dancing football team is soooooo Remember the Titans. At least those people had the good sense not to dance in the middle of a play though.
• This has to be some kind of penalty. The offensive line isn't allowed to move.
• The football players are pretty darn good "Single Ladies" dancers, however.
• How does the offensive line hold the defenders off long enough for Kurt to do his dance?
• Kurt's mom is dead. Did we know that?
• Kurt's dad: "I've known since you were 3. All you wanted for your birthday was a pair of sensible heels."
• Quinn is horrendous for telling Finn it's his baby.

Episode song list: "Single Ladies" (lip sync), "Taking Chances" (Rachel), "Tonight" (Tina)

Next week: Emmy-winner Kristin Chenoweth!

My Take on Emmy Nominations: 2009

Emmy nominations will be announced next week, so I've compiled a list of actors, shows, and personalities that the Emmys would be remiss not to include.

(I have not broken them into categories because I'm often completely befuddled by who is deemed "supporting" and who is "lead" and what is a "comedy" and what is a "drama" and I'm trying to avoid that headache.)

Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad: Paul has been flawless at handling everything Breaking Bad has thrown at him. He's been brilliant at comic relief and gut-wrenching with dramatic material. In fact, there's no one I want to see on the Emmy nomination list more.

Adam Baldwin, Chuck: Baldwin is perfect as the gruff Major Casey, giving us little glimpses into the character's humanity but never becoming too much of a softy.

B.J. Novak, The Office: He's just so good at playing such a cocky little jerk (while never losing sight of Ryan's inherent patheticness).

Breaking Bad: I've documented my love for this show before, so should come as no surprise that I'm pegging it not only for a Best Drama nomination, but also for the freaking Emmy itself.

Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad: There's a reason he won the Emmy last year, and Cranston continued to excel this season as Walter's morality became even more nuanced.

Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance: Deeley is easily the best reality competition show host around as anyone knows who has watched her interact with contestants, the judges and the audience. And she's a fashion icon to boot. It's insulting that she wasn't nominated last year.

Chi McBride, Pushing Daisies: If McBride's surly and sassy (but secretly sweet) private investigator isn't on the list of Emmy nominations, I'm going to pull an Emerson Cod and yell, "Oh, HELL no!"

Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?: Applegate was effortlessly charismatic and hilarious as the lovable amnesiac, and it's a bummer that ABC didn't give her more support.

Chuck: The top-notch quality of the show's sophomore season cannot be ignored. With the possible exception of those episodes with that annoying MI-6 spy who kept getting shot, Chuck was firing on all cylinders this season and capped it all off with a season finale that was easily one of the best hours of television all season.

Gabrielle Anwar, Burn Notice: I realize that Burn Notice is one of those quasi-comedy, quasi-drama type shows that people enjoy watching but the Emmys tend to completely ignore (while being all over stuff that nobody is enjoying anymore like Boston Legal), but nevertheless I think Anwar deserves a nod. You'd be hard pressed to fine anyone on TV who is cooler than Anwar's Fiona, and that's got to count for something.

James Roday, Psych: Roday's been overlooked in the past, but as Shawn, a fast-talking, pop culture-obsessed genius, he has proven time and again that he's got serious acting chops.

January Jones, Mad Men: Jones absolutely stole the show's second season with her depiction of cold-hearted Betty Draper. Jones was masterful at giving us glimpses of the fragile girl behind her character's ice queen facade.

Jennifer Esposito, Samantha Who?: Esposito's Andrea is horrendous, but she's also wickedly funny.

Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory: Everyone on this show is funny, but Parsons is consistantly hilarious as Sheldon's scientific, antisocial temperament gets pushed to the limit by his friends and surroundings.

Lee Pace, Pushing Daisies: Pace's turn as the sweet and funny Piemaker ended far too soon, but it was beautiful to watch while it lasted.

Lost: Overall, I probably liked Lost's fourth season better than its fifth season, but this show was undeniable as it ratcheted up the suspense and the stakes ever-higher to lead into its final season.

Pushing Daisies: Sure, the second season was ridiculously abridged, but it was also ridiculously good.

Rose Byrne, Damages: Supporting/lead/whatever, Byrne really held her own during Damages' second season, as her Ellen Parsons went toe-to-toe with Glenn Close's Patty Hewes and didn't back down.

Steve Carell, The Office: I adored the high jinks of the Michael Scott Paper Company, and Carell shone throughout, especially in the conference room scene where he masterfully cut David Wallace down to size.

Terry O'Quinn, Michael Emerson, Ken Leung and Jeremy Davies, Lost: Since so many supporting actors had very strong showings on Lost this season, the Emmy list could very well include any or all of them.

Zachary Levi, Chuck: Perfectly balanced Chuck's humor with his humanity, adding a lot of soul to a very fun show.

(photos: amctv.com, abc.com, usanetwork.com, cbs.com)

10 Things I Hate About You: Not Much To Like

10 Things I Hate About You:

"Pilot"

Full disclosure: I'm a pretty big fan of the film version of 10 Things I Hate About You. In fact, aside from Clueless, it's probably at the top of my list of favorite teen movies. It holds a special place in my heart because it came out in 1999, when I was, in fact, a teenager (and not a 20-something who still watches an inordinate amount of teen shows). Therefore, ABC Family's television remake of 10 Things could probably only really go one of two ways with me: I'd love it for reprising characters and story lines I adored or I'd detest it immensely for dragging something I love through the mud. After watching the pilot episode, it looks like you're heading for a sizable payday if you put your money on the "detest" option.

I'm tempted to turn my review into a list under the heading "10 Things I Hate About This Show," but I think I can boil the objects of my distaste down to a few key attributes. (I do, however, reserve the right to pull out a 10-part list if I deem it necessary after watching future episodes.)

First of all, the characters in the show failed dismally in living up to the appeal of the originals. If you think about it, for a teen movie, a lot of the actors in 10 Things turned out to be pretty legit: Heath Ledger (obviously), Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and David Krumholtz all have created fairly solid bodies of work. Additionally, Gabrielle Union and Andrew Keegan were proven mainstays of the teen movie/show genre. Larisa Oleynik (Bianca) has flown fairly under the radar (at least my radar) since 10 Things, but she was pitch-perfect in the film. So, it's not like the young actors in the 10 Things television show don't have some reasonably big shoes to fill.

The problem is that they're not even coming close. I'm not going to even discuss the merits of Ethan Peck vs. Heath Ledger as Patrick, because there's probably no one who could fill those shoes. (But is Ethan even giving it that great of a try? No, not really.) Kat is rather unlikeable (and not like Julia Stiles' Kat was unlikeable because she was supposed to be gruff--this one's just annoying and seems inconsistent). The kid who plays Cameron seems to be trying to channel Michael Cera so hard that it's probably actually hurting. Bianca's okay, but not quite there yet. And this Joey is NO Andrew Keegan (lol). Even the dad in the TV show fails to live up to the charm of the dad in the movie, and he's played by the same actor!

These across-the-board shortcomings lead me to the conclusion that most of the problems with the characters in the show lie with the writing as opposed to the acting. So far, everyone seems like a caricature or a stereotype and not so much like an actual person-esque entity. No one has real soul yet. No one has real dimension.

The one character/actor I did like was Dana Davis (of The Nine, Heroes, and a far superior turn on Pushing Daisies) as Chastity. Sure, she is playing a stereotype too, but she did a good job with it.

Additionally, I'm not sure why this show is a half-hour comedy instead of a one-hour, soap-style drama like Greek. Perhaps the characters would have gelled better if they'd had a little more time. It felt like we were tearing through the episode a break-neck speed and sacrificing subtle nuances like plot and character development. (After all, we did see the first day of school, cheerleading tryouts, the first party, and another school day, which seems like a lot when an entire episode could reasonably be based solely on one school day or one party.)

Highlights + a few other things I hated:

• The background music at the beginning of the episode was a little too decidedly perky and cutesy.
• Michael: "Even the biggest dorks can be cool if they play their cards right. Look at Shia LaBeouf." (Is Shia really the best example of that phenomenon? I'm not sure I ever thought that Shia was that dorky. Goofy, maybe.)
• Cameron is really tall. He doesn't seem as sweet at the movie version either. Just pathetic.
• Kat alternates between being extremely rude and extremely idealistic and humanitarian. It's bizarre.
• One other thing I like better about the movie: it's pivotal scenes don't involve a staring contest.
• Chastity: "Of the 10 things I hated about today..." (Is that how we're tying the title into the show? It's kind of clumsy. I realize that they can't have Kat reading the "I hate the way you..." poem in the first episode since that would wrap up the entire story, but I'd have been fine if the title had never being directly referenced.)
• This keg full of non-alcoholic beer thing is straight out of Freaks and Geeks.
• Why doesn't Kat just leave this poor (Patrick) guy alone? I really don't think he's even trying to mess with her. I think they just happen to be in the same room sometimes.
• At least we know that Patrick can talk--I wasn't sure for a while there.
• This Joey character is completely different. He's not sleazy--he's just "confused."
• Dad: "Are you talking to me or the democrats in your head?"
• Bianca: "Since I'm not going to be popular, I may as well join show choir. Closeted gay guys are fun."
• Ok, now Patrick might be messing with Kat.
• Bianca: "No more NPR. It's giving me menopause."
• Um, shouldn't somebody be paying somebody else to take out the surly sister? Wasn't that the whole point?

(I suspect that the show not really living up to the movie accounts for ABC Family not playing the movie over and over again in preparation for tonight's premiere. It's probably better for them if the superior source material isn't fresh in our minds.)

(photo: abcfamily.com)

Pushing Daisies: Endings Are Where We Begin

Pushing Daisies:

"Kerplunk"

ABC finally got around to airing the last episode of Pushing Daisies, which was filmed months and months ago and then re-edited to make into more of a series finale-esque creature. Undeniably, "Kerplunk" was fantastic. It was super fun to get to spend some time in the high-stakes world of synchronized swimming and underwater circus acts. The Aquacade looked like one heck of a fun show--if it hadn't been for the mid-National Anthem shark attack anyway. Personally, I'm a little peeved that my half birthday came and went a few days ago without anyone presenting me with Aquacade tickets. (Not to mention that Ned gave Chuck two or three additional half birthday gifts throughout the course of the episode...I mean, geez, I got nothing.)

Anyway, the dialog was witty, the guest characters were vivid and entertaining, the emotions were genuine, and Ned (Lee Pace) looked damn cool in his sunglasses/green tie talent agent costume. What's there left to say? The episode was brilliant, the show was fantastic, and ABC sucks for taking it away from us.

While "Kerplunk" was a stellar episode, it just wasn't a satisfying series finale (why do I feel like I was just making this argument about something else?) After all, "Kerplunk" wasn't supposed to be a series finale and after-the-fact editing can only do so much. The show's trusty narrator tried to wrap up loose ends left and right in the final minutes, but I was left wanted to know more about what happens Ned and Chuck, Pushing Daisies' main protagonists (and also what the heck was up with Ned's dad, but that's another matter). I was left wondering: Are Ned and Chuck just going to spend the rest of their lives together without touching? What would that look like? And then I came up with how I would have ended the show:

In the closing montage, the narrator explains that Chuck and Ned decide to get married even though they haven't found a way around the no-touching thing. Some time later, they seek fertility treatments, and utilize in vitro insemination. (Here's where it gets complicated: would Chuck's egg die when touched by Ned's sperm? Let's say that through some television magic, it does not and we all agree not to think about it too hard.) Because no one really wants to find out if putting the fertilized eggs into Chuck would equate to Ned touching her and her re-death, they decide to use a surrogate (Olive, of course) to carry the babies. Yep, babies. In 30 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, and 34 minutes, Olive gives birth to Chuck and Ned's healthy octuplets and the show becomes Chuck, Ned (and Olive) Plus 8. I'm pretty sure that higher order multiples would fit right into Pushing Daisies' fantastical world of pie shops and Darling Mermaid Darlings and frescorts and sunflower cars. I think it would be a perfect new beginning.

Good bye, Pushing Daisies. You were too good for the world of network TV.

(photo: ABC.com)

Pushing Daisies: Window Display Dangers

Pushing Daisies: "Window Dressed to Kill"


This is bittersweet. Well, Pushing Daisies, let's just make the most of the time we have left, shall we?

The play-by-play:

• Olive's book was called "Double Negative: What You Shouldn't Not Know."
• Oh geez, how I love Lee Pace.
• That's one huge cherry hanging from the Pie Hole's ceiling! (Actually, it looks like there are at least two of them up there.)
• Olive: "And if you could speak in the declarative only, using affirmative or comparative modifiers."
• Pear-way To Heaven pie!
• Emerson: "Well, that's just downright craptastic, Clark."
• Holiday spirit? Winter? Wha? Oh, riiiiight, because this episode was supposed to air five months ago... Darn you, ABC! Darn you!
• Oh no, Olive ran away and these guys got locked up because of her. OMG, Mr. and Mrs. Snook didn't even notice that Olive was missing.
• Ha! Olive told the kidnappers that she and Ned are getting married. And Ned played along! Aww.
• Emerson snoring loudly which Chuck rambles.
• Emerson: "[That's] the kind of bad idea that gives a bad idea the will to live."
• Oh cool! This episode's about department store window decorators. I love department store window displays! I should join the group of "devotees."
• The inside world of window dressing is scary.
• Whoa, Olive got Ned to kiss her! Score! That was an adorable kiss too.
• Why is Olive the only one who gets to have musical interludes? I realize it's because Kristin Chenoweth is a fantastic singer, but it would be great if some other cast members got to join in sometime.
• That's kind of an odd choice of a scene for a "memorial window." And it rather conveniently depicts a way that someone could die.
• I can't believe Vivian saved all of Charles Charles' old clothes either. I mean, the dude totally jilted her and then saddled her with raising his illegitimate daughter.
• Chuck: "Erin and Coco didn't design any of these windows! Chic-As-Hell Denny did."
• How do I get people to preface my name with "Chic as hell" when they talk about me?
• Ned: "Why do you have a wedding veil?! We're still just playing, right?"
• Olive: "You try on your best friend's bra and you smile on the inside because yours are bigger and better." (Ouch, Chuck!)
• Ned: "I don't know what words to choose now."
• Kidnapper: "Take mad and multiply that to a power of pissed."
  Ned: "Don't be mad and certainly not to a power of that degree."
  
• Aww, poor Ned. He was just trying to help!
  
• "Ass-over-tea-kettle crazy things"
  
• Dick Dicker: "I'll need a proper bodyguard. Samson, my driver, would use me as a human shield if there was even the vaguest notion of a threat!"
  
• What's going to die if Ned keeps this rhino alive for more than a minute?
  
• Ha ha, now Ned has to chase an ex-dead rhino down the street. (Looks like he caught him, phew.)
  
• Coco: "after ranting like a size 10 at a sample sale..."
  
• Oh no! Ned's jealous of Randy because he's with Olive now!
  

Next week: Oh no! Emerson's baby mama who took his daughter away from him is Anna Espinosa! Why am I not surprised? No wonder he hasn't had any luck getting the girl back--Anna E. is no joke! They're going to need all of Ned's superpowers if they take her on...

Pushing Daisies: Do You Believe In Magic?

Pushing Daisies:
"Oh Oh Oh... It's Magic"

Speaking of magic, Pushing Daisies could have used a little magic in the ratings department for the episode that aired on Wednesday, but unfortunately none materialized. In fact, the ratings were even worse than usual, which is something I totally saw coming. After two weeks off the air and no promotion by ABC to speak of, even I (who have sent postcards to ABC to plead for it to continue to air PD) almost forgot that PD was going to air this week. Would it kill ABC to substitute every third Desperate Housewives commercial for one about Pushing Daisies? Whatever, ABC, PD's 11/19 ratings woes fall directly on your shoulders. The show is delightful, and it shouldn't take too much of a marketing genius to be able to convey that to the people out there in the world who want to watch some delightful television. Where is Don Draper when we need him?

In any event, "Oh Oh Oh... It's Magic" was a delightful episode, and Pushing Daisies viewers should really cherish every episode we get. Ned started off the episode a little whiny for my tastes, but he rallied and ended up bonding with his half-brothers. He even figured out a way to trick Lily into admitting to Chuck that she's her mother, while not spilling the secret that Chuck's alive. The scene in the car of Ned and Chuck listening to Lily's stories and holding their hands up to the glass that separated them was simply beautiful.

I'm wondering if Ned's dad had some kind of a secret that drove him into repeatedly abandoning all of his family members. Some Ned-like magical ability, perhaps?

Highlights and thoughts:

• Young trick-or-treating Maurice and Rawlston were cute!
• The "Magicians? Illllluuuuuusionists!" exchange was straight out of Arrested Development.
• Quote of the episode:
  Emerson: "A magic show?! Where did I put that rat's ass I could give?"
• Wow, Chuck got all kinds of dressed up to go to the magic show. I didn't realize that magic shows were such formal occasions.
• Emerson: "I was just going to tell you all to shut up, but you stopped talking, so I didn't have to."
• Well, at least Chuck's unsuccessful crank calls to Lily are giving her the opportunity to practice her accents.
• "Cementia" turns out to be quite the involved trick...what with the blow torch and all.
• Ned's dad ditched the twins at a Sunday matinee magic show! Ouch! At least he was nice enough to send Ned to a school before disappearing on him.
• Chuck's dad and Ned's dad were both in the Peace Keepers? Neither Charles Charles nor Ned's dad strike me as much of a do-gooder.
• Olive: "He's also dead, so that's why he really can't talk."
• What in the heck is going on with the collar of Chuck's coat?! She looks like she has a black lion mane or is dressed like a black Big Bird! Holy moly!
• Ned: "Herman will be avenged. I don't mean vigilante style justice, because what kind of an example would that be?"
• Ned: "Rawlston, we're two grown men with dad-related bodily fluid issues."
• Emerson: "You need to get yourself a bigger human shield; you're hanging out all over the place."
• Ned's shirt/sweater combo is very grandfatherly.
• Lily: "Tell me, when you were a jockey, did you ride the horses or just beat them when they were dead?"
• This pesky former-Peace Keeper friend guy knows way too many secrets now.

(photo: ABC/Pushing Daisies)

Mad Men: In the Event of an Emergency

Mad Men: "Meditations in an Emergency"

It's no secret that I didn't love Mad Men the first time I saw it. But, for some reason, I could never really shake this show. When it was on, I'd occasionally check in on it, and I kept abreast of the larger plot points by reading the articles and spoilers about it on tvguide.com and ew.com, etc. It was definitely, though, the show's second season that really hooked me. Somewhere along the line, I found myself watching one of the season 2 episodes and not being able to turn away. Then I watched the next one and then the next one and then the next, and suddenly a full-on obsession was born. With starling precision, Mad Men turned from a show I begrudgingly respected to a show I couldn't stop thinking about. In fact, it's now easily among the 5 shows that I'm most emotionally invested in at the moment (I suppose the others would be Gossip Girl, Greek, Pushing Daisies, and Chuck).

What's most amazing is that the characters I didn't like from the pilot have turned into people I literally spend time worrying about. (Will Don ever get his act together? Will Joan be able to find the strength to leave her asshat fiance? Will Betty float away? etc.) Impressively, Mad Man takes a bunch of characters who are not overly likable on the surface and makes you truly care about them anyway. It's kind of like a show full of Chuck Basses. So of course I'm loving it.

I thought this season 2 finale episode was fantastic. Set during the uncertainty of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the characters struggled with uncertainly in their own lives. The episode was packed with new developments: Betty finds out that she's pregnant, Don finally mans up and makes a better effort at trying to get Betty back, Pete reveals that he knows he should have picked Peggy, Peggy reveals to Pete that she had his baby, Don threatens to leave Sterling Cooper, etc. But even with all of that, Mad Men still found time for some of those heart-wrenching moments of quiet desperation that define the show. This episode was a tour de force from beginning to end, and I think somebody wants another Emmy. (Speaking of Emmys, if the women of Man Men get shut out again, there is no justice in the world.)

Highlights and mediations:

• I adore this show's fantastic opening theme and credits. It's addictive. I just want to keep watching it over and over again.
• I loved how the episode began with Betty looking at the deer panting in the doctor's office. She definitely has a Bambi quality to her and also a deer-in-the-headlights look and attitude.
• Oh, poor Betty is pregnant. Which is just awesome, because Betty and Don make such fantastic parents.
• Doctor: "Are you concerned with your appearance?" (What a butthead.)
• Finally, people are speculating about what Don's problem is and where he disappeared too!
• WHAT?! Don came to the stables? Holy moly, even the slightest show of (normal) effort from him floors me sometimes.
• I have a feeling that "I was not respectful to you" might be the closest thing to an admission of the affair(s) that we're going to get out of Don.
• But, it's not good enough for Betty. No, no, Betty, this might be the best you're ever going to get. It's time to stop being an ice queen.
• Poor stupid Pete is scared out of his mind about the Clearasil thing.
• Oh no, don't promote Pete! That seems like something we might regret.
• Duck's banking on Don having a non-compete clause in his contract with Sterling Cooper.
• Don (to Peggy): "Do I work for you now?"
• Wow, Peggy looks hot today; she's wearing a form-fitting dress. So, what happened, she heard about the Cuban Missile Crisis and decided to tart up her look?
• Pete: "What happened? One minute I'm standing next to you in the car port and the next I'm tap dancing for General Dynamics!"
  Don: "Sorry, I missed that."
• Don: "You wanted to see me?"
  Roger: "About three weeks ago."
• Roger: "Kennedy's daring them to bomb us right when I got a second chance."
• Sally: "Mommy doesn't like to eat."
• That was a gorgeous shot of Betty looking in the store window.
• Well, I guess with all of Betty's drinking and smoking, there's a chance the baby isn't going to make it anyway.
• Wow, Bar Guy is hot! And he sounds familiar...do I know him from somewhere? OMG, I looked it up, and he's Captain Awesome from Chuck!!!! I couldn't even tell from looking at him. Oh, that's so cool.
  
• Whoa, Betty! Making out with Bar Guy in the bathroom hallway! She looks like she's going to pass out. Betty! I know the guy's hot, but this is not the appropriate way to deal with your issues.
• Yea, Betty's eating something! (I guess it takes adultery to make her hungry?)
• Pete's wife (Trudy) is evacuating to Rehoboth Beach!! Count me in!
• Harry: "Bad news! ...I checked the fridge and there's canapes--really good ones!"
• Wow, Pete told Don about Duck being president; he's kind of redeeming himself.
• Don's letter to Betty: "I understand why you want to move on without me, and I know that you won't be alone for long, but without you, I'll be alone forever."
• Roger: "Don, is this necessary?"
  Duck: "It is. Because he likes this room and hearing the sound of his own voice."
• Don doesn't have a contract! He can start his own agency. Wow. That could be very interesting.
  
• Any way the Russians can just nuke Joan's fiance and no one else?
• Pete: "You're perfect... I wish I'd picked you then... I love you and I want to be with you."
  Peggy: "Pete, I could have had you in my life forever if I had wanted to."
• Despite the threat of impending nuclear war, Pete had been having a pretty good day: he was promoted, he got praise from Don...but this scene with Peggy has brought his good day to an abrupt end. He just poured his heart out to her, and she rather calmly replied by telling him what has to be one of the most devastating things imaginable. I know Pete's a schmuck, but you have to feel badly for him now. My guess is that this experience hardens him and he turns into an even bigger jerk than he was before.
• So the Drapers are going to try to get it together for Baby Number Three. I'm sure it won't be an easy road, but it's nice that they're actually going to give it a try.
• I liked that they showed footage from the Mad Men wrap party after the episode. It's nice to see all of the actors in modern clothing (Elizabeth Moss looks so much better). I didn't know that Christina Hendricks has a Southern accent. I wish they would have shown some footage from the Mad Men review as well!

It sounds like it might be a long wait before Mad Men returns, but I can't wait for this fascinating ride to continue.

(photo: amctv.com)

Pushing Daisies: Rent a Friend, Save a Show

Pushing Daisies: "Frescorts"

Although I'm very much not on board with the whole Lily-is-really-Chuck's-mother-and-Charles-is-
her-father-and-he-used-to-be-Vivian's-fiance-
so-they-are-just-pretending-to-be-her-aunts thing, I am still very, very much on board with Pushing Daisies in general.

The way I see it, PD's PD's second season has been composed of two very good episodes (Bzzzzz!" and "Bad Habits") and two fantastic episodes ("Circus, Circus" and "Frescorts"). Despite the show's continued exceptional quality, its ratings have been sup-par at best. So it looks like it's time to dust off the old save-our-show fan campaign skill set: send letters and e-mails to ABC, sign the online petition, tell people you know to watch, etc. If you care about this show (and you should, trust me), you can stay abreast of the fan campaign at pushingdaisies-tv.com and at savepushingdaisies.blogspot.com. Hopefully some sort of daisy-mailing will happen soon too.

As for "Frescorts," I thoroughly enjoyed this episode. I thought that Ned opening the door to reveal the (happy-looking) taxidermied Golden Retriever holding a guitar was hands down one of the funniest moments of this new TV season.

Also, it was nice to see Ned making more of an effort to get along on his own a bit--he's been acting awfully needy towards Chuck this season. And now he might even have a new (albeit creepy) friend, who at least didn't kill anyone (that we know of) and whom he doesn't have to pay to like him.

I also liked seeing Olive and Chuck try to be friends, only to discover that their baggage proved impossible to ignore when they were forced to confront it when they were both stuffed in the same locker. It was convenient that they're both so skinny that the two of them could fit in the same locker. But they both decided that they're relationship is worth working on, which was nice.

And Emerson got to have some fun with his entertaining PI mother. (Boy, was Emerson one cute baby!)

Also, this episode featured a star turn by Dana Davis, who--like Chi McBride--was eons more likable in Pushing Daisies than she was in The Nine (and also much better than she was in Heroes, but that's an entirely different story).

Exchange of the Episode:
Ned: "It's tough. You share your life with someone and suddenly there's an abyss where a person always was before."
Randy: "You lost a roommate too?"
Ned: "And girlfriend. Same person."
Randy: "Your roommate slash girlfriend died?!"
Ned: "Yeah. I mean no. She moved out. Sorry, doesn't compare. Not even remotely."
Randy: "You're not completely alone though. Golden Retriever, right?"
Ned: "Yeah! Digby...would be a source of comfort if he didn't prefer living with my girlfriend, her new bestie, and their pig!"

Runner-up:
Olive: "Here comes the center of the universe, pulling us all into her gravitational orbit of blame."
Chuck: "Oh, well, FYI, um, there is no center of the universe because our universe is forever expanding."
Olive: "Like your neediness."

Sorry, I can't end the post without reasserting my annoyance with the Lily-is-Chuck's-mom story line. I don't mind it on principle, but when you think about it, it doesn't make sense. Supposedly, Vivian was the fiancee of Charles Charles (we'll call him CC) until he told her he'd knocked up someone else (Lily, but Viv doesn't know that). So Viv and CC break up, and CC raises Chuck by himself after Lily gives birth to her in the convent. So then, why when CC died would Viv (the jilted fiancee) and Lily (the jilted fiancee's sister who "has nothing to do with any of this") rush to Chuck and adopt her, becoming her surrogate "aunts"? It doesn't make any sense. Why would you go raise the child that your cheating fiance fathered with someone else while engaged to you? Why would your sister go along with it?

Anyway, the rest of the show is still awesome. Help to save Pushing Daisies!!!

(photo: abc.com)

Premiere Watch '08: Pushing Daisies

Pushing Daisies: "Bzzzzzzzzz!"

After a very long hiatus, the delightful Pushing Daisies returned with a premiere episode featuring lots of bees, a colorful convent, and Dean Hess' sloppy seconds.

I'm a Pushing Daisies lover, and this episode demonstrated many of the show's best qualities: Lee Pace's sheer adorableness, Emerson saying funny things, Lonely Tourist Charlotte Charles and the Piemaker being almost too cute to tolerate, Olive being sassy, and an extremely bizarre murder. It wasn't one of my favorite episodes ever though, because I thought that they amped the cute factor up a notch or two too high. I mean, you can only hear so many words that rhyme with "bee" in a one-hour time span before you just want to gag. And Chuck used her "might" (as in power) versus "mite" (as in insect) joke about three too many times.

What bugs me the most, however, is all this nonsense about Chuck's lineage. I assume we're not supposed to fully understand it yet, but it seems like a problem that we don't understand it to such an extent that--as of now, based on what we know--it sounds like Chuck's mother (Lily) and father (Charles) were brother and sister, and her father (Charles) was engaged to his other sister (Vivian). Now, I know that can't be right, but that's what the facts we know are telling us: Charles, Lily and Vivian are all siblings; Chuck's dad was Charles; Lily is Chuck's real mom; Lily had an affair with her sister's fiance; Vivian's fiance is Chuck's father.

Thankfully for my sanity, my sister did some investigating on PD message boards and found out that the consensus is, more or less: Vivian had a fiance, and Lily had an affair with this guy and got pregnant with Chuck. Lily went off the the nunnery, and Vivian didn't know what was going on. When Lily had Chuck, she somehow convinced her brother, Charles Charles, to pretend that Chuck was his baby. (He must not have been living near the aunts at this time, so Vivian wouldn't have known that this wasn't true.) So Charles, who is really just Chuck's biological uncle, raised Chuck until he was unwittingly "killed" by Ned, at which time Chuck's secret mom Lily and aunt Vivian moved in. Chuck's biological father/Vivian's former fiance is someone entirely different (and will probably be factoring into the plot soon...).

While I'm very glad to know that Chuck is not the result of some weird incestuous situation, I think that whole explanation is loony and feels like it was made up after the parameters of the show were established, and that's why it doesn't quite make sense. I mean, what a raw deal Charles got--having to raise his sister's love child all by himself. Seems kind of weird that he got roped into doing that. But I guess that is just a small discrepancy, as opposed to the averted BIG discrepancy of Chuck being the child of her mother and her mother's brother who was his other sister's fiance, or whatever.

I'm sure this issue will be better dealt with in future episodes. And, frankly, it needs to be.

Highlights and observations (btw, it's hard to get the quotes completely correct for this show because everyone talks so fast!):

• Wow, they rehashed the entire plot of the whole darn series in that opening sequence.
• Not that I mind seeing Lee Pace without most of his clothing, but pouring the dead bees on him is weird. What happens if the bees fly into Ned more than once? They're just going to die all over again. Right?
• Emerson's pop-up book: "Lil' Gum Shoe"
• Oh no, it's Taylor Townsend. Can't say I've missed her much. (Is being swarmed by lots of angry bees her penance for annoying the heck out of me in season 4 of The O.C.?)
• Ned: "That's terrifying. That's terrifying!"
• Ned: "I could have been swarmed in my underwear!"
• What exactly is a Bee Girl? I thought it was a female break dancer ;-)
• I like Chuck's yellow eye shadow.
• Ned: "If I could breath, I would vomit."
• How did Chuck get out of there so fast when her aunts showed up? She's speedy!
• Chuck: "I'll stop walking in on you when you're doing things you don't want me to know you do."
  Ned: "That wouldn't have happened if you were wearing your bells!"
• Emerson: "It is not okay for a grown-ass man to cry in front of happy families eating pies!"
• Ned: "I don't expect her to sit inside all day and--HIDE!"
• Quite the vibrant color scheme they've got in this convent. I've never seen nuns wearing anything so green.
• Emerson: "He is stalking you!"
• Chuck's eye makeup/fake eyelashes today are not great. Oh, are those gross eye lashes part of the Bee Girl uniform? I think I'll pass on that job then.
• Olive: "Forgive me, Father, for I am going to file a police report for all my missing possessions."
• Is Missi Pyle ever not the bad guy? Or at least kind of the bad guy?
• Eek, why's Ned's dad stalking him now? Did he hear about the pies and want back in Ned's life so he can mooch some of them?

So, here's a question to think about: what did Chuck walk in on Ned doing that he didn't want her to know he does? Hmmm..... (it sounds kind of dirty).

And: rent Mrs. Pettigrew Lives for a Day. The only thing cuter that Lee Pace is Lee Pace rocking a Scottish accent. It is flat out irresistible.

Premiere Rating: 7.5/10

(photo: ABC/Pushing Daisies)

Premiere Watch '07: Round Up!!!

Well, I'm exhausted. Who knew that blogging about television could be so tiring ;-) It sure didn't help matters that there are now about a billion shows that I wanted to a least sample this season. Here are my rankings for the first episodes of almost everything a whole lot of new and returning shows (scale of 1 to 10):

Pilots:

• Pushing Daisies...............9.5
• Reaper..............................8.5
• Chuck...............................8.0
• Gossip Girl.......................7.5
• Dirty Sexy Money..........7.0
• Samantha Who?..............7.0
• Aliens in America............7.0
• Moonlight.........................6.5
• Kid Nation........................6.5
• Private Practice...............5.0
• Big Shots...........................2.5
• Viva Laughlin...................1.0

Returning Series:

• The Office.........................8.0
• 30 Rock.............................8.0
• Ugly Betty.........................7.5
• Grey's Anatomy...............7.0
• Brothers and Sisters........6.0
• Men In Trees....................6.0
• Heroes................................5.5
• Desperate Housewives....5.0

Whew. It seems like no sooner did we wade through all the premieres, than it's time for November Sweeps! Oh well, bring on the weddings, births, deaths, surprise pregancies, etc....

Premiere Watch '07: Viva Laughlin

Viva Laughlin:
Well, it wasn't easy, but CBS managed to put a show on at 10 p.m. on Thursday that was significantly worse than Big Shots.

I didn't think it could be done. Major congratulations are in order for Les Moonves, etc. The congratulations will, however, be quickly followed by questioning along the likes of: "WTF were you thinking?"

Ok, I don't particularly love musicals, but I really don't like whatever this was. It wasn't a musical because the actors were only kind of singing along with the actual songs. And they doing it in a half-assed manner reminiscent of Britney Spears at the VMAs. You couldn't even freaking hear them some of the time.

As stupid/bad as the songs were, I felt like there weren't enough of them because the spoken dialogue and plot were so much more awful! And, dude, the main character guy is replusive. And not in a House/Dexter/Boston Legal kind of way, but in a there's-nothing-remotely-likeable-or-redeemable-about-this-person-at-all kind of way.

I felt badly for some of the actors in the show who can do so much better (and have done better in the past): Senator McAllistor's brother from Brothers and Sisters (a.k.a. Rex from Days of Our Lives), Sherry Tinsdale from Gilmore Girls, and Professor Landry from Veronica Mars. I feel particularly badly for Prof. Landry because he was on Pushing Daisies just last week! That's a long way to fall in a very short amount of time.


Most of the time while watching Viva Laughlin, I honestly could not believe what my eyes were seeing and my ears were hearing. And not at all in a good way.

Premiere Rating: 1 / 10
(Well, I know it was worse than Big Shots, which got a 2.5, but I'm not really sure where to place this one in the 0 to 2 range. I'll go with a 1 because I suppose that somehow it could have been worse: they could have sung only Spice Girls and Celine Dion songs, they could have played a transexual hooker plot line for laughs, they could have aired a blank screen for an hour, etc.)

Pilot Watch '07: Pushing Daisies

Basically everyone in the world who has seen an advanced screener of Pushing Daisies has been extolling its virtues as loudly as they can for months. Thus, my expectations for this pilot probably couldn't have been any higher. Fortunately, "Pie Lette" (how cute is that name?) every bit lived up to the hype.

Pushing Daisies was charming almost beyond belief. The storybook feel seemed very unique. The characters were quirky and likable (not just quirky). The story and plot devices were inventive. The dialogue was snappy and wittier than I was expecting. The cinematic value was top-notch, with gorgeous, vibrant colors and a dream-like quality. The whole thing was as sweet as the pies they sell at the Pie Hole.

Pushing Daisies reminded me a lot of a Tim Burton film. It seemed very much along the lines of Edward Scissorhands and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: strange but unexpectedly touching. It's a formula that I warmly welcome to television.

If I had to make one complaint, it would be that the narrated back story seemed to last a while and it might have taken them just a bit too long to get Lee Pace on the screen. But once he appeared, the show was good to go.

Something about Ned and Chuck reminded me of Ed and Carol from Ed. I guess the actors look vaguely similar (in their faces), but I think it was more the purity of the love story. Ned remembering his time with young Chuck was a lot like Ed remembering the time he first saw Carol and she took his breath away.

I also really enjoyed Chi McBride in this episode. The Emerson/Ned banter reminded me of Shawn and Gus from Psych. Emerson and Ned made Pushing Daisies much funnier that I was anticipating.

Other thoughts:

• The dog looked pretty good for having been run over by a tractor trailer. And I do find it unrealistic that Ned managed to keep his dog for 20 years without ever touching it, even by accident.
• Gotta love a show that uses pretty language like, "Chuck came ready-made from the Play Doh Fun Factory of life."
• Ned's accidental responsibility for Chuck's dad's death is reminiscent of Lana Lang's parents being killed in the meteor shower that brought Clark Kent to earth on Smallville.
• What did people make of two seemingly healthy neighbors just keeling over and dying on the exact same day?
• I really, really want Cantaloupe the Chow! Cantaloupe is an adorable name for a dog. It's right up there with Saffron from Damages.
• Logistical questions: Does just one person die for everyone who stays alive or do more people keep dying? And assuming Ned brings them back to life and never touches them again, do the "alive again" people live indefinitely or could they die again?
• For some reason, I really love the name "Boutique Travel Travel Boutique."
• Ned: "I hate to be a bad host, but I'm kind of exhausted from chasing your coffin..."
• Chuck's last name is Charles! Perhaps we're related :-)
• Ned: "It was most definitely on the menu; it was the Special of the Day--can we drop this metaphor?"
• Emerson: "We all have childhood issues--I've got the full subscription."
• Emerson: "Bitch! I was in proximity!" (I was also afraid that keeping Chuck alive would have caused Emerson to die, so thankfully that was not the case.)
• I haven't heard "petard" used since Ed.
• This pilot was showed in the opposite manner of "limited commercial interruptions." It seemed like there was a commercial break every 4 minutes.
• Chuck's aunt: "I can hold my breath for a long time." He he, she was a synchronized swimmer after all.
• Morgue guy: "Aren't you the dog expert?"

Basically flawless.

Premiere Rating: 9.5 / 10
(I deducted 0.5 just because I'm sure there could have been something that would have made me love the episode even more...like a guest appearance by James McAvoy or something.)

2007 Fall Outlook

I'm going to have a lot of television on my plate this fall. Even though three of my favorite shows ever (The OC, Gilmore Girls, and Veronica Mars) were canceled last season, there are still about a million shows that I want to watch. Actually, I'm planning to check out 23 shows this fall. Even I think that's excessive.

Something's gotta give at some point though. Right? Thankfully, Damages is going to wrap up its first season in October, but if everything on this list is still going strong by the time Lost, Kyle XY, Monk, Greek, and Psych come back, I'm going to be screwed.

I'm most excited to see the pilots of all the new shows because we've been hearing about them for almost six months now! It's go time!

The following is a list of shows that I plan on watching (or at least monitoring). I also included a ranking (high, medium, or low) of how excited I am to have each (so far unpremiered) show back.

Sunday:
Desperate Housewives (low), Brothers and Sisters (low)

Monday:

Chuck (high), Heroes (medium -- escaping "low" only because of the addition of David Anders and Kristen Bell to the cast), Aliens in America (medium), Samantha Who? (medium)

Tuesday:

Beauty and the Geek, Reaper (high), Bones (medium), Damages

Wednesday:
Pushing Daisies (high), Private Practice (low), Dirty Sexy Money (high), Gossip Girl, Kid Nation

Thursday:

30 Rock (high), The Office (high), Ugly Betty (medium), Grey's Anatomy (low), Smallville (medium), Without a Trace (low)

Friday:

Moonlight (medium), Men In Trees (medium)

Yikes. And this list doesn't include Viva Laughlin, which I want to watch because it is supposed to be ridiculous and terrible, and Big Shots, which I will try (due to allegiance to Michael Vartan) to watch at least once even though it looks awful.

Hmm. I guess it's good that I really don't have anything else to do...