Liz & Jack back on the WB

Remember when I suggested you watch the new show Community?  Remember how good that show is?  Ok, now that I’m holding that over your head, I’m going to try to go 2 for 2.  There’s a new show coming to the CW (formally known as the WB) in January called Life Unexpected.  I’ve already read that this show resembles shows from the good ol’ days of the WB.  Shows like Gilmore Girls, Dawson’s Creek, and Everwood.  (Yes, Jen, Everwood!)  Nothing against the current shows on this channel (because, man, do I love Gossip Girl) but they aren’t as happy-soul-bursting as they used to be.

Life Unexpected is about a teenage girl, Luz, who grew up in foster care and wants to be emancipated.  To do that, she must have the signatures of her biological parents, so she tracks them down to basically say “Surprise, I’m your daughter, and if you’d just give me your signature, I’ll get out of your life again.”  But things end up being a little more complicated than that.  Luz’s biological mom is played by Shiri Appleby aka Liz Parker from Roswell!  And her fiance is played by Kerr Smith aka Jack from Dawson’s Creek!  I didn’t recognize the actors who play Luz and her biological father, but I like them.  Here’s a preview.  Let me know what you think!

- Jill

TV Shows on DVD

Putting TV shows on DVD is a fantastically brilliant idea.  I love being able to discover older tv shows I missed out on when they aired or getting to watch the beginnings of a show still on so I can catch up.  I’ve started or continued watching A LOT lately.  I thank Netflix DVDs, Netflix watch instantly, and Hulu for allowing me to do so — What would I do without them??  (Especially since I don’t currently have cable.)

Here’s what I’ve been watching.  Maybe you’ll find some you’ve already discovered or should watch!  In no particular order…

Leverage

A fairly new show on TNT – it’s currently in the middle of its 2nd season.  It’s a humorous, smart, sexy look at a team of criminals doing good.  Think Ocean’s Eleven + Robin Hood.  All of the actors, including Timothy Hutton in the lead, are fantastic, but my 2 favorite characters are “hitter” Eliot (played by someone you may recognize from Angel!!!) and “thief” Parker (who I was reminded of while listening to Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree). Have I piqued your interest yet?

Watch newer episodes at tnt.com or all episodes on Netflix watch instantly.

Pushing Daisies

A cancelled show that used to be on ABC, Pushing Daisies is one of the most visually stunning shows I’ve ever seen.  Seriously – check out that picture – gorgeous!  In this quirky crime-solving show that at times (like any good show) is like a soap opera, Ned has a gift to bring dead people back to life.  It comes with a few rules and he’s generally ok with that until he learns that his childhood love Charlotte aka Chuck has been murdered.  Rather than explain anymore of the plot & possibly confuse you, let me just say that Pushing Daisies has humor, quirkiness, mystery, love, stunning visuals, Jim Dale as a narrator and Kristin Chenoweth.  And holy crap, who doesn’t love Kristin Chenoweth?

You can watch the first 9 episodes at www.thewb.com!

Freaks and Geeks

I’m new to Freaks and Geeks, which aired briefly on NBC back in 1999.  I’ve seen about 5 episodes so far, and I can’t say I loved it right away, but it’s growing on me.  I think the main reasons I don’t love it yet is because I’m not a huge fan of Seth Rogen or James Franco and I hate the character of Kim with a fiery passion.  BUT I do love Nick aka Jason Segel aka HIMYM’s Marshall.  And I like seeing main character Lindsay struggle to find a new place for herself in high school.  Freaks and Geeks was ranked on top tv shows lists from Time and Entertainment Weekly, so it’s definitely worth a shot!

The Big Bang Theory

Just about to start it’s 3rd season on CBS, The Big Bang Theory is basically a story of beauty meets brains:  Penny moves in across the hall from Leonard and Sheldon, two genius/nerds who are socially awkward, and Leonard falls in love with Penny instantly but isn’t sure how to move past being friends.  It’s an interesting concept but add in A TON of nerd jokes about science, comic books, and general geekiness plus Sheldon, who is extremely cranky and lacks a sense of humor and an understanding of social cues but ends up being hilarious and steals every scene & you have a pretty good show.

Trivia: Three regulars of Roseanne are on/have been on this show.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Ok, this one’s really a RE-discovery because I used to watch it when it was on tv.  I’ve been really wanting to rewatch the “Hush” and “Once More with Feeling” episodes, but I decided to go in order.  The first 3 seasons are currently on Hulu, so I’ve been going through them.  I’d forgotten how awesome Buffy is!  It’s so witty, and snarky, and teenager-y in a fabulous way.  Plus, hello Giles is one of the best fictional librarians of all time!  Actually, now that leads me to ponder what the list of best fictional librarians of all time would look like – but let’s save that for another time.

Buffy – hulu – go!

Next up for me:  Psych, Wonderfalls (more from the creator of Pushing Daisies and ngtJen promised me it is delightful), Sports Night (created by Aaron Sorkin & all I have left from him since finishing The West Wing and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip).  So what are YOU watching?  I love adding new shows to my “to-watch” list!

- Jill

SYTYCD aka The Best Reality Show EVER

If you aren’t watching So You Think You Can Dance, you totally should be.  It is absolutely the best show on tv right now.  Next week will be the finale, so I’ll get you caught up…

Each season starts with auditions – much like American Idol.  People audition, performing solos in whatever style they choose from hiphop to ballet to tap.  Eventually if they’re deemed good enough by the judges, they’re given a ticket to Las Vegas.  During Vegas week these top performers are given difficult choreography in several different styles, and judges weed out contestants along the way.  Finally it’s narrowed down to 20 dancers – 10 guys, 10 girls – and we have (in my opinion) the real start to the show.  Each week after that a guy & girl are partnered & learn a dance in a random style.  Viewers get to vote for their favorite couples, and the next night the bottom 6 dancers (3 couples) dance solos to save their life.  At this point the judges have the power to send one guy and one girl home.  When there are 10 dancers left, the power to vote off individual dancers is given to America.  Right now there are 6 remaining dancers, with 2 to go home tonight:

Ade - contemporary

Brandon - contemporary

Evan - broadway

Jeanine - contemporary

Kayla - contemporary/jazz

Melissa - ballet

My absolute favorites this season are/were Brandon and Janette, who unfortunately got voted off last week even though she was amazing!  So now my female loyalty has switched to Kayla, with a little love left over for Jeanine.

The two I wish had gone home WEEKS ago?  Melissa and Evan.  (Everyone who disagrees, bring it on.)

And now to get you psyched, here are some of the best dances from this season.  What are you in the mood for?

Love?  (Jeanine and Jason, also voted off last week)

Drama?  (Kayla and Kupono, voted off 2 weeks ago) (You may have to turn up the volume to hear the music.)

Zombies? (uh-huh!)  (Kayla and Jason)

Fun? (featuring my two faves, Brandon and Janette! and a song I’m in love with right now)

OK, now you’re ready to watch tonight & next week.  And if you start to get into it, you’re in luck…there’s a new season starting this fall!!!  YAY!

If you’re already watching, who do YOU love?  Which dances from this season stand out to you?

– Jill

Community

Do you pay attention to the fall tv schedules when they’re released?  I usually don’t, but one new show caught my eye.  It stars Joel McHale!  If you don’t know who he is, you probably aren’t getting enough E!  He hosts The Soup on Friday nights.  I had no idea he actually acted.  Here’s what the show called Community is about, according to NBC’s website:

It’s been said that community college is a “halfway school” for losers, a self esteem workshop for newly divorced housewives, and a place where old people go to keep their minds active as they circle the drain of eternity. Well, at Greendale Community College…that’s all true. Community focuses on a band of misfits, at the center of which is a fast-talkin’ lawyer whose degree has been revoked (Joel McHale, The Soup). They form a study group and, in “Breakfast Club” fashion, end up learning a lot more about themselves than they do about their course work.

Interesting, right?  Now check out the video:

Notice anyone else familiar?  Chevy Chase & John Oliver???  What are you guys all doing in the same show?

AND if all that isn’t enough to make you interested, try this…it’s from the directors of Arrested Development!  Hooray!  Anything related to ArrDev is good enough for me.  I will be watching.  (Plus, it doesn’t hurt that it’s part of NBC’s Thursday night lineup.)  :)

- Jill

If You Like High School Musical…

This is the most amazing thing I have seen in a long time.  I know I say that about EVERYTHING, but I really mean it this time:

There are so many great things about “Glee” that I don’t even know where to start.  I love the main guy, his crazy wife, and all the high school students (even though they look old enough to be in grad school).  Plus Jane Lynch, Jane Lynch, Jane Lynch!!!  I wish we broke out into song on a regular basis in real life, so this show is perfect for me.

My favorite line:  “You’re very talented.  I would know, because I’m very talented.”

There are two incredibly sad things about this:

1.  It airs tomorrow at 8 on FOX and then doesn’t come back till the fall :’(

2.  I will be in the car at that time driving to Chi-town.  Arrrrgghhh!  Thank God for Hulu.

Jen

I Am Not Scared to Publicly Admit…

That I, a 26 year-old (almost 27) like “Hannah Montana”.  There I said it….are you happy Amber and Lindsay???

I must say it is probably all due to the both of you that I even got started watching it.  I was one of those people who used to ridicule the show. I caught part of the very first episode that ever aired and I was like, “Ugh, what is this?  The DC has really gone downhill since the glory days of “Flash Forward” and “Lizzie McGuire.”

But then I went to Lindsay’s Bachelorette party where I was engulfed in a world of Hannah Montana guitars, games, and underwear.  I started to think that maybe I should see what all the fuss is about.  Well, I would catch an episde here and there and it started to grow on me.  Kind of like that guy who doesn’t seem all that special when you first meet him, but after you get to know him you realize that he has a great smile, is pretty dreamy and makes you laugh.

Well, now it is official.  “Hannah Montana” has become appointment viewing for me.  I usually watch an episode every day during the week, either at 6:30 or 10:30, and I was so excited for the new show last night.  Lily is my favorite character (I love her fun wigs when she is Lola) and I think she and Oliver really need to get together.  I totally have a crush on Jason Earles who plays Jackson (but that is totally okay because he is way older than me so I am NOT a dirty old woman).  I thought last night’s episode was great!  I think it referenced my favorite British show ever “Spaced” when Lily said “Skip to the end!” (but I could be reaching about that).  Also, it contained the classic line “Even Lord Voldemort would look cute with a puppy!”

The first season is coming out on DVD very soon and I ordered it for the library.  I really want to put it on hold because I know it won’t stay on the shelves very long, but the unfortunate thing about working in a library is that I have to see these people every day and I have no excuse for putting Hannah Montana on hold.  No little sisters around, no nieces, and people in circulation are going to have to put a hold slip with my name on it around the DVD and think, “well that is odd.”  So maybe I will just hope that they will be checked in sooner or later.

Also, have you guys seen the promo for the new November episodes???  I love the song in the background, and doesn’t Mr. Earles look sooooo much hotter with his hair short.  He actually begins to look more like the married man of 31 that he is in real life.

Doesn’t it look like they are having so much fun?  I so want to work there.

Jen

An Open Letter to “The Office”

Dear “The Office”

I’m sorry if this comes across as rude, but it has already been proven that I am a little punchy today having mouthed off to a patron at the library (don’t even ask), but you have really let me down lately.

I remember all the happiness of season 2 with nary a bad episode and so many standouts like “Office Olympics,” “The Dundies,” and of course, “The Injury.”  Then came season three and you took Jim away.  I was a little perturbed, and there were some lackluster lulls in your greatness, but all in all everything was made up for by the last two shows of the season.

Season four was something of a confused mess where Michael became even more unbelievable (driving into a lake???) Jan went crazy, and Ryan was a douche.  But I let that slide because the strike disrupted the creative process.

Well, now that the fifth season is in full swing, how do I say this…..I am about one episode away from bailing on you and moving on to better things with the far superior 30 Rock.  The Dwight/Angela/Andy thing is becoming nothing but annoying (and is totally out of character for Angela), the stellar supporting cast seems to be relegated even more to the shadows, and don’t even get me started on how much the writers are irking me with what they are doing with Jim and Pam.  The first time they are together in so many episodes and they do that stupid scene with his brothers????  What were they thinking????

Now I will say that I have loved Holly.  But, I knew that she was not around to stay, so all the adorableness between her and Michael actually just made it worse because now she is gone and Michael is miserable and what do you bet Jan comes back in the picture.

I am writing this as a warning to tell you to pull yourself together.  I am not asking for season 2 caliber, I will settle for season 1 or 3.  But this is not an empty threat…..I have abandoned many a favorite tv show in my day because they made me mad.  I gave up on “Lost” in the middle of season 3 when it was meandering around all over the place and Sawyer and Kate did it in a cage….what what????  Apparently it got awesome after that, but I have moved on and won’t revisit it.  Also, Grey’s Anatomy was one of my must watch shows until Izzie slept with George.  That was just about the stupidest thing that could have happened and it made me hate two of my favorite characters, and I haven’t watched the show since.

So please, my Office friends.  Please get better.  I don’t want to stop watching you, but my time is precious and I already have a lot of stuff happening on Thursday nights.  But just know that if I do give up on your new episodes, we will always have season 2.

Sincerely,

Jen

Fictional Characters I Would Date: Part Eight

It has been a long time since I have done one of these, but I have been saving up for a good one….

Ned the Piemaker from “Pushing Daisies”

I only started watching “Pushing Daisies” last Monday, but I completely fell in love with it the moment I watched the first episode.  I whipped through the first season in three days just in time to watch the season premiere on Wednesday.  This show isn’t for everybody, but I think that everyone should give it a shot.  It’s like a cross between “Penelope” a Tim Burton movie and “CSI.”  The basic premise is this:  Ned can touch dead things and bring them back to life.  There are two little quirks to this gift.  The second time he touches something he has brought back to life, it dies again, and if he keeps someone alive for more than a minute, someone else has to die.  Oh, and he brought his childhood sweethear Chuck back to life and now they love each other, but can never touch.

So enough of that background mumbo-jumbo, here is why I would date Ned.

Ned is played by Lee Pace, who is really hot.  He has a very “British” look to him.  I don’t really know what that means, but that is the vibe I get when I look at him.  He has an extremely sexy voice.  His smile always looks just a little bit devilish.  Also, when his hair starts to grow out, he has a piece in the front that kind of looks like a toupee, and I find it really endearing.

He makes pies for a living, which is something that I could never master.  I love pie, but whenever I try to make one, something bad always happens (it’s always that dang crust part that I get wrong!).  I could be his official pie taste tester since he can’t taste the pies himself (he brings dead fruit back to life to use in the pies so it would just get all moldy again if he ate a piece).  And the best part…he named his restaurant The Pie Hole.

He’s a very inventive guy.  He can’t touch his dog Digby (because he also brought him back from the dead) so he has a special wooden arm thing that he uses to pet him.  The using dead fruit thing is also very smart because it saves money.  He also invented an ingenious contraption so that Chuck could sit in the front seat of the car with him with no fear of unwanted contact.

He can say things like “It’s not weird, it’s magical” without sounding corny or hokey.  And when he needs to create a diversion, he sets someone’s car on fire, which is pretty awesome.

Also, if I was dating Ned, first of all, he could actually touch me, so he wouldn’t be in so much agony all the time, secondly, I could pet Digby for him, and thirdly (is that a word?) I could totally steal all of Chuck’s really awesome dresses that look like they are from the fifties.

But wait, now that I am typing this I feel totally bad.  For the first time, I don’t want to steal Ned away from his fictional soulmate.  My heart is too happy watching Ned and Chuck be all cute together, so I think I will just admire him from afar and not even think about actually dating him.

Here is a video set to a very ironic Beatles tune (shout out to Amber!) that shows just how darn cute they are:

And here is another cute video where you can actually hear his voice, see Kristen Chenoweth (YEA!) and hear the wonderful Jim Dale narration from the show:

Jen

P.S.  The first season is like 18 bucks at Amazon!!!

Just Another Way to Waste My Time….

So I was casually reading Entertainment Weekly today (the actual magazine, not the website) and there was an article about hulu.com. It sounded so amazing that I almost couldn’t believe what I was reading……..it is a website where you can watch tv shows and movies for FREE!!!!

Now, I know there are like 10,000 other websites where you can do the same thing, but on this one, you just have to sign up with a username (nothing scary like a credit card number or anything) and then you are free to watch clips or entire episodes. There are some commercials sprinkled in here and there, but the quality is so much better than YouTube will ever be. This is actually supported by the studios and networks so it isn’t like some of those shady operations (RIP tvlinks, sniffle)

Most of the shows on there now are from Fox and NBC so that means there are full episodes of “The Simpsons,” “The Office,” “30 Rock,” and “Arrested Development.” Anyone who has not seen “Arrested Development” needs to go to that website right now and watch every single one, no excuses accepted.

I am pretty pumped about “Buffy” and “Major Dad.” Yes, that is right, “Major Dad”!!!!!!!! I used to watch that show all the time when it was on. I can’t wait to watch it again and realize, What was I thinking?

I am pretty much going to be wasting my time on this for the next few weeks, so if you don’t hear from me for a while, I am catching up on my Buffy watching.

Jen