Prime Time TV

Posted by Karen Woodward

I’m not angry at Fox for killing off Dr. Tancredi. I’m angry at Sarah Wayne Callies, who clearly didn’t care enough about the series to give closure to the fans of Michael & Sara.

From all the “research” I’ve done (Ok, I pore over websites, seeking answers. I can call that research. I have a masters in media studies) the blame seems to lie squarely with Callies. Most of us know that she was pregnant, and was thus written out of the first half of the season. We all assumed – as did Fox – that she would come back after that. But apparently there was one small hitch: She either had to be paid for all 22 episodes, or her contract was void. Apparently Fox didn’t want to do that, or maybe they asked if they could fly out to her. She wouldn’t give, so they basically told her to F- off. Either that, or she wanted to take some time for maternity leave and they wouldn’t let her. Again, depends on who you ask.

But I’m going with the former. I think Sarah Wayne Callies just didn’t care enough to come back, and she found a loophole and took it. It’s terribly disappointing. Michael and Sara were really the only reason I watched this show, and I feel let down that Callies didn’t care about the fans. Look at Marcia Cross – she let ABC tear up her house so they could film there. George Clooney filmed a super secret scene with Julianna Margulies so fans could get closure.

I feel disrespected. Callies really isn’t that fabulous an actor – she’s hardly in a position to be biting the hands that feeds her.

Posted by Karen Woodward

I love Two and a Half Men and I’m not ashamed to admit it. It’s a show that actually makes me laugh out loud. I know it can be sexist, misogynist, and filled with 14-year-old boy humor, but somehow that doesn’t bother me. I like watching Charlie and Alan squabble and act like morons, and I keep hoping that Emilio Estevez will stop by for a guest arc.

Speaking of, in celebration of the season 1 DVD release, Warner Home video is giving away a chance to guest arc in Malibu, California. It's not an arc on the show, but – arguably, even better – a chance to hang out in Malibu and “live like Charlie.” (And Alan? I mean, he lives there, too. Poor Alan. Shafted even in a Warner Bros promotion.)

Anyway, I think it’s sort of a cool idea. Visit TwoAndAHalfMen.com, and send a “Two and Half Men Hipster card "to a friend and you’re automatically entered into the sweepstakes. Some of these cards are damn funny. Birthday cards, Get Well Soon, and some really random ones. I chose one of Charlie saying “Thinking of you, me and Malibu” and sent it to my sister. (I wonder if Warner Bros would give me cash for the flight and rental car since I already live in LA?)

Sweepstakes winner receives:

• Two round trip airline ticket and airport transfers
• Lodging including 2 nights, 3 days
• Three day mid size rental car
• Two and Half Men merchandise, "exciting activities and more" (Now that sounds interesting)

All entries must be received by October 11, so times a wastin’. Go the site, and send ME a card. Primetimetv@suite101.com

Posted by Karen Woodward

Am I the only person who thought Carpoolers was funny? Come on, this show was a lot funnier than it had any right to be. Maybe it’s just Jerry O’Connell – it’s like he carries the whole show. The other guys are funny, but the scenes with Jerry really pop. I had no idea that he had such comedic timing!



The way he sits in the car, totally resigned to his fate as a carpooler; the serious intensity in his fight with the new Carpooler; his total commitment to getting the best spot in the parking lot, and then dropping that commitment on a dime when an equally good spot comes up. I rewound my DVR three times to watch his face change from fierce competition to “Oh there’s another spot,” and thus leaving his fellow Carpooler alone in the dust on the hood of a competing car. It’s classic.



I’m not saying this is a good show. I’m just saying that it’s highly watchable, and that’s all because of Jerry. I’m not even a huge Jerry fan in general, but he really brings it in this show. You gotta check it out just for him.

Posted by Karen Woodward

Dr. Sara Tancredi isn’t coming back? Nonononono.. Sara and Michael are my favorite part of Prison Break. They’re the only reason I watch! I’m a girl – I don’t care about prison riots. Seriously, how could the producers let this happen? I know that Sarah Wayne Callies went on maternity leave, and that she was going to be gone the first half of the season, but I always thought she was coming back. But no, Michael Ausiello at TVGuide says it was Sarah Wayne Callies' decision not to come back after she had her baby. What? Why? Sure it shoots in Texas which sort of sucks, but it’s a hit show and she probably doesn’t have to do much work.

But wait- I believe that there is a catch here. A very interesting one. My sources – and they’re good – tell me that Prison Break is a very unhappy set. That Robert Knepper (T-Bag) and Wentworth Miller (Michael Scofield) had a heated argument (about what I do not know) and almost came to blows. Apparently no one really gets along that set. Interesting.

But still – no Dr. Sara and Michael as a couple? I wanted someone to end up happy on this show. Now I don’t think I’ll watch. I wonder what’s going on on How I Met Your Mother. Has Ted met his kids' mom yet?...

Posted by Karen Woodward

Oh. My. God. Okay I am not a prude, but Tell Me You Love Me is shocking. Don’t believe the nonsense that HBO is feeding about this being art, this is softcore porn. Worse than that, it’s depressing and dull. Why would I want to watch a show like this? My life is depressing enough.

I was only vaguely interested in seeing the show, and I admit that what curiosity I had came from everything I’d read addressing the nudity issue. I wanted to see just how far these actors would go. Because these actors are real! These aren’t elevated porn stars. “They got good actors,” thought I. “It must be good material.”

And ok the material is compelling if you’re an actor. I guess. There is lot’s of sobbing and yelling and quiet depression. Ally Walker is amazing. But as a viewer, I really don’t want to watch this. The show’s message is that Being In a Relationship Sucks. You lose yourself, you lose your partner when you stop communicating, you get jealous, and essentially being in a relationship is a very lonely existence. Well that certainly sounds like something I want to check in with once week.

The nudity and sex isn’t even necessary, and it takes you right out of the show. Watching it, all I can think is, “is that really Adam Scott’s penis?” or “Doesn’t Ally Walker feel stupid doing that?”



Not exactly compelling television.

Posted by Karen Woodward

Oh come on – that’s it? PJ pulls a Veronica Mars’ “I was hoping it would be you” with her “You came!” All season we’ve been teased about who she would decide to bring Italy - although I personally never cared. I always kind of knew she’d go alone, and the writers already proved with the Brendan debacle that they want PJ to be single. But ok, I’m game. Who’d she bring?

Brendan? As much as I’d love the answer to be yes, there’s no way. PJ and Brendan weren’t a story this season, so no need to drag him in again.

The ex-Cubs Player? (He's too boring to even remember what his name was) -Nah, He and PJ never had chemistry.

Thorne? Quite possibly, except I doubt that Jeremy Sisto would sign on for an arc on a cable show. And if he went to Italy with her, he’d have to show up in some episodes next season. Unless the writers pull what they did at the beginning of this season and just pretend it never happened.

Evan the Botonist? Probably the best bet. He’s boring as hell, but has chemistry with PJ and the actor playing him isn’t famous, so he’s probably just happy to be working.

Any of the other guys? Nope. Unless she brings her brother. But what with his new job and Meredith being pregnant, that’s not likely.

Posted by Karen Woodward

I’ve been spending these post summer-show-finale/pre fall-show-premieres catching up on the shows that I don’t regularly watch during the year. My latest is How I Met Your Mother. I’m really not much of a sitcom watcher, but this is a funny show.

It’s not as funny as 30 Rock or as clever as The Office, or as offbeat as My Name is Earl. In fact, this is a very traditional, multi-camera, couch-in-the-middle-of-the-living room sitcom. But despite that, it’s still pretty awesome. That’s right, awesome. Clearly I’ve been spending a lot of time with Marshall and the gang. And note that it’s Jason Segal AKA Marshall, that I quote, because he is really the funnybone of this show. Everyone loves Neil Patrick Harris as Barney, and yes, he’s funny, but he seems to be in a totally different show from everyone else. It’s a funny show, but it’s a different show. Alyson Hannigan as Lily is reliably funny, but face it, she’s not that deep an actress. Cobie Smulders is likeable as Robin, but she really isn’t that great an actress either. (Although I’m thrilled to note that she has a normal woman’s body as opposed to being stick thin.) Josh Radnor is Ted. And really that’s about all I can say. I found him terribly annoying in the first couple of episodes – that guy who stalks you who smells of desperation. Ick.

This show will never be appointment television for me, but sitcoms rarely are. Still, it’s funny, the characters grow on you (even Ted) and while I have no idea who “your mother” is, I think Barney and Robin end up together.

Posted by Karen Woodward

I love My Boys on TBS, but I have a couple of gripes.

Some of the acting is really awful. Jordana Spiro is cute and she’s approachable and I wouldn’t recommend anything as rash as recasting her. I think she embodies PJ and fits right in with this group. But this girl really needs to get herself to an acting class.Her default setting is Giggle. And Kyle Howard (Bobby) acts like he’s in a high school drama class. Always indicating his emotion instead of actually feeling any, and he has no comedic timing whatsoever.

Still, I can live with it. What I can’t live with is that the writers set up a storyline between Brendan and PJ, even giving us a cliff hanger kiss, and then dismiss the whole thing in one episode. I was expecting some answers when this show came back from hiatus, but got nothing. They’re not pretending it didn’t happen, it’s like it really never happened. Like neither one of them was actually in that cliff hanger episode. It’s maddening.

But besides the above complaints, this show has actually gotten funnier. So Howard trips over his lines, and Spiro sometimes misses her funny moments, but the other guys make up for it. The other guys know what show they’re in, especially Jamie Kaler (Mike) and Jim Gaffigan (Andy) and even Kellee Stewart as PJ’s only real girlfriend is hitting her marks this year. In fact, the whole group is really gelling. Even the sucky ones. Now if we could just get PJ and Brendan to admit that they kissed in the kitchen.

Posted by Karen Woodward

Oh my god, I just received this email from The CW Publicity Department:

"Kevin Federline will guest star on The CW’s hit drama ONE TREE HILL, as Jason, the cocky, enigmatic frontman for “No Means Yes,” a seminal rock band from the fictional town of Tree Hill, North Carolina. Federline will appear in a multi-episode arc of the show, which returns midseason on The CW."

That sound you hear is me giggling, even as I sort of live in fear of what this means. First, how could The CW have stooped so low? I mean, I know that One Tree Hill is a bad show, but this is just embarrassing. The network should be ashamed of itself. Second, An "enigmatic frontman"? Really? Third, "No Means Yes?" I guess they were going for "edgy" with that name, but it's really sort of pathetic. They don't sound like bad asses, they sound like a bunch of would-be rapists who couldn't think of a better name for their band. But lastly, here's what really scares me: Kevin Federline has a better agent than Britney Spears. Yes, kudos to KFed's agent, whoever he or she may be. Even I know that this is a damn good career move for the non-rapper, not to mention great for his custody case. "Hey Judge, this guy has a job! And it's only a part- time gig so he can be home in time to feed and bathe the kids!"

Come to think of it, I want Kevin Federline's agent.

Posted by Karen Woodward

I’ve officially hopped on the So You Think You Can Dance bandwagon for the season. I’m a little late, only joining three weeks ago, although since I read a ton of entertainment magazines (I know, no surprise), I can surely judge.

Lacey was a favorite from the beginning. At first I didn’t want to like her because she’s the sister of last years winner, Benji. It just seemed like so much nepotism – should she even be allowed to compete? Won’t the judges be biased in some way? But she won me over for the same reason that Benji did last year – personality and an underdog spirit. It doesn’t really make sense for her to be the underdog, she should have gone into this as top dog, but nevertheless she still has that underdog scrappiness. You can tell that she’s willing to work hard, and perhaps that’s because she isn’t a conventional beauty and she doesn’t have a stick-thin body.

Unlike say, Lauren, who I was thrilled to see kicked off this week. Yes, she was good, but she was so smug in her talent and prettiness that she just bugged the crap out of me. Stop smiling you moronic twit! Move aside so someone else can have a bloody chance. Plus it irked me no end that she never danced her solos to the song’s beat. It was like the music was strictly background, and nothing to actually be danced to.

But then look at Sabra. I was not a huge Sabra fan at first because she didn’t seem to have much of a personality. But boy can she dance, and Nigel’s summation of her two weeks ago was spot on: she dances from the heart. She may not have a personality in person, but it all comes out in the dancing. Especially that jazz number she did with Neil to the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).” I had to go back and watch it about five times, I thought it was that amazing.

Neil is another underdog. Let’s face it, he isn’t as good as the rest of them, but like Travis, he’s pulled through and gotten better, and more endearing, each week. (If you ask me, Travis was robbed last year – did you see him in that “Sexyback” group dance? He owned that.) When Neil smiles, I just want to give him a cupcake, he’s so cute.

Speaking of cute, my co-worker has a major crush on Danny, but I just don’t get it. He’s so generically pretty to me, like an African-American Ken doll. He’s totally boring to watch, and I wish he’d gotten kicked off weeks ago. Although I really don’t think there was a good crop of male dancers this year.

Take Pasha for instance. Was he technically good? I guess. But he was so boring to watch because I’m so sick of those ballroom dancers who can’t do good solos. All they do is twitch around the stage, twisting their bodies back and forth. Sometimes they’ll mix it up with a cape or something, but there is no hiding it – ballroom is boring.

One last gripe, speaking of boring. Did anyone really like that stupid “What if I met my daddy in heaven” dance that Mia choreographed for Lacey and Neil? It was sentimental tripe and I thought for sure they’d get nailed for it. Imagine my surprise when the judged loved it and Mary Murphy cried. What? Were we watching the same dance?

Two nights with two hours next week seems a little much. But when my co-worker pointed out, "you say that now, but then you'll be crying," I realized she was right. Makes me cry just thinking about it.