CHARLIE’S ANGELS. For a show with so many pretty, pretty people, the title type/treatment sure is ugly… Hoping next week we get a legitimate set of titles, and that they’re more impressive than that. // Expertly choreographed fight scenes, but I can’t help but think that a well-aimed tazer might save the girls a lot of bruises when bustin’ down doors and taking down goons. // Tainted hors d’oeuvres and richie!bitchy socialites, fun. // Bosley! It’s nice to see it’s not just the girls who’ll be whored out. // Overall, I’ll admit to a fair bit of eye-rolling, and struggled a bit with my usually spot-on ability to suspend disbelief (“It’s a long story” aka “We can’t be bothered to spend the time fleshing out the plot.”, but it’s borderline fun — brainless, trashy, flashy, sexy fun. Won’t miss it if it goes, but it’ll fill 41minutes as background entertainment while I surf the interwebz.

THE MENTALIST (RETURNING SERIES, 4th SEASON). Ah, how I’ve missed the 1-part exasperated, 2-parts enamoured looks Lisbon gives Jane. Lots of meaningful looks and silences between the two. The season premiere didn’t offer up any real surprises to anyone who’d been paying attention (save perhaps the speed in which Jane’s case went to trial) but delivered in typical MENTALIST style.

I love brash, ballsy, tough women who fight the good fight, so PRIME SUSPECT with the always-awesome Maria Bello as the helm was an easy sell even before it premiered. Despite that, even I wasn’t sure if I *liked* her for the first half! She’s so cool and poker-faced if not downright stoic in the face of all the hate, her superwoman calm and seeming need-for-no-one made it a smidge hard to connect… but once we’re presented with a tiny crack in her armour (“I know you’re still mad at me, and you can be mad at me again tomorrow…”), it’s love. The final scene over dinner? Hellsyeah!

PERSON OF INTEREST. Dug it. Already concerned it might not make it, as it’s not super-flashy or sexy, nor does it boast a simple premise (just try to explain to grandma)… but I’ll continue watching as long as it airs.

A GIFTED MAN. Okay, so it’s blatantly emotionally-manipulative. Brilliant misanthrope who’s on the road to do-gooder thanks to being haunted by his ex? Yup. It’s like HOUSE and GHOST WHISPERER had a pretty baby: House became a neurosurgeon (with better hair, and younger… also, without JLH’s boobages) and moved to his own digs (screw Princeton Plainsborough!) and started seeing ghosts… I’m not complaining.

SUBURGATORY. It’s cute, but not as cutting/clever as I’d hoped. Jane Levy is certainly a huge casting find (expect to see a lot more of her in the future), Jeremy Sisto is always good, and who doesn’t love a cheeto-orange Alan Tudyk?

THE GOOD WIFE (RETURNING SERIES, 3rd SEASON). Has to be one of the most consistently good shows out there… Never disappoints. The love (and lust) I have for @alancumming as Eli on THE GOOD WIFE borders on the absurd. Kalinda continues to rock.

Still looking forward to the premiere of ONCE UPON A TIME, and the return of LOST GIRL (a huge guilty pleasure).

What shows have I missed/forgotten? Any I should be watching?

CRIMINAL MINDS (RETURNING SERIES: 7th SEASON) returns… Fiiiinally! I dug it, though the episode fell victim to overwhelming anticipation: mine. I’d built it up so much in my head over the past months that the reality couldn’t possibly have lived up to it, and as a result felt a bit forced, the fourth wall a bit wobbly. Still, they crammed a helluvalot into one short hour, and answered key questions and did a lovely job of hitting the reset button for the team — and it’s soooo good to see them all back together.

Hope that now the team is (more or less, even with the residual awkwardness, confusion and anger that is bound to flavour their interaction — still some major kinks to work out: Reid!) back together, the show and actors can get back to business and let a bit of of the behind-the-scenes network muckety-muck subtext — and actual meddling (seriously CBS brass, STFU) — go.

DELIVERED: New credits! // Battle of the beards: Hotch and Doyle, both lookin’ pretty hot scruffy. // JJ showing some mad profiler skills, and looking very slick and tailored in all black. // Emily’s expression when she first steps into the doorway and faces the room (Paget Brewster is sooo good at saying narry a word and letting her expression do all the heavy lifting)… and Morgan’s shocked reaction. // Snarky!Spencer in court… “I am calm, and it’s Doctor.” yeah boy! // The biggest question keeping us all up at night over the long summer was answered: Garcia’s got Sergio. // Rossi going all Mike Holmes on the memorial wall photo. // Prentiss’ “may I think about it… I’m in.” fakeout and closing speech to the committee in defence of the team.

‘PICKING IT OVER: Well hell, at least Seaver got a mention, however fleeting. // The hyper-dramatic score: This isn’t LORD OF THE frakin’ RINGS, let’s take it down a notch. // When the hell did Strauss become amenable to drawing outside the lines and grow a heart — she offered *mints* for gods sake?!? And what was with her little “What the hell is going on here?” moment with Rossi behind the glass? That was strangely weighted. // Erm? Reid shooting straight, but with his eyes closed? That can’t be safe! // I’m still a little confused as to why a team of 7+ armed agents couldn’t cover 2 known individuals (one injured, exiting a plane with ONE door, the other *not* holding his weapon on his hostage) and one shackled prisoner on a tarmac without it becoming the WildWildWest shootout hour?

…but really, despite not rocketing to the top of my all-time-favourite-eps list, it was a solid hour, well executed and satisfying.

RANDOM: Nice to see (in the medical flashbacks) that the nurses also hated Em’s S6 bangs and fixed them before she was even out of recovery (Must have been the same nurses that applied Kate Beckett’s makeup on CASTLE — a shift change must have negated their ability to do her hair too). I like the new haircut… Don’t think Paget Brewster could look bad if she tried, but, um, hey, I’m no fashionista, and I know she’ been away, and probably didn’t have time to pack all that carefully, but jeebus, it looked like Prentiss raided my mom’s closet circa 1970 (the yellow patterned blouse, not hideous, but odd), then hopped into a time machine and accosted an extra from LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE for that ill-fitting tunic/smock monstrosity (just plain ugly). Horrors. Never thought I’d miss the ghost turtleneck, but there ya go!

Alas, my love for this show has not diminished, no matter how much it would appear otherwise from the nitpicking above. I can’t wait for next week’s ep!

SUITS. Gabriel Macht. Really? Enough said. I will watch that crazy-handsome bastard in anything (even the very bad SWAT 2: WHATEVERTHESEQUELWASCALLED). Based on the premise and the promos (and the always fantastic Gina Torres), I thought I would love the show more than I do (I like it, like it just fine, but love has proved fleeting), but it did offer up one big unexpected gem: Sarah Rafferty as Donna. She lights up the screen: tough, loyal, beautiful, funny and smart.

BURN NOTICE. THE BIG C. THE CLOSER. RIZZOLI & ISLES. TRUE BLOOD. THE GLADES. IN PLAIN SIGHT. To watch them is to love them.

HAWAII FIVE-O (RETURNING SERIES, 2nd SEASON): I will grudgingly admit I do not watch for the plot (though they are quite serviceable, action-filled and entertaining), or the acting (though the entire cast is solid and talented), or the incredible scenery (Hawaii, beautifully shot), or even for the awesome bromance… alas, it’s basic eyecandy that keeps me coming back for more: behold the glory that is Alex O’Loughlin. Dude could sit and sip coffee for an ep and I’d be satisfied.

All sorts of shit went down last season — The Chairman turned out to be a big bad baddie cooking up (haha, see what I did there, Food Network fans?) trouble, and when the team stirred the pot (again, I’m on a roll), all sorts of new conspiracies and conspirators related to McGarrett’s mother’s death and his father’s murder arose and everyone ended up in hot water (okay I’ll stop now) of various degrees, the team torn apart — and Alex O’Loughlin looks great in prison orange, scruffy and doing pushups… What was I talking about again? Erm… Ooooh, it’s Locke (Terry O’Quinn)… guess I’ll have to start calling him something else once they tell us who the hell his character is. // Chin Ho is such a badass, stopping The Chairman/Wo Fat (presumably on his way to “Iron Chef: Battle Badass”). // Oooh, it’s Spike! Shank-fight in the yard… Not the face! They must be getting vicious wedgies from those jumpsuits… Oh noes you di-in’t (insert head bob and finger waggle) just stab my boy!

Watch. Seriously, it’s fun, even if the pretty is downright distracting.

Okay, I have to start this with full disclosure: Though I continued to watch faithfully, I lost a bit of CASTLE-love over the course of second and third season. Last season in particular, I felt that the Castle/Beckett dynamic was off, chemistry-lite (even with all the jealousy being jammed down our throats), stories and lines and reactions were mainly fluff, an excuse to let Fillion’s Castle yuck it up (not that there’s anything wrong with that, I’d just hoped for a smidge more substance and angst/darkness, they just teased us with the freezer scene) — no real substance/character dev till the finale… and that hit like a truck.

And what a glorious truck… one that rolled beautifully into this year’s opener. I’m in love again.

The post-op hospital scene… lovely moment between the pair, save the fact that I was distracted (couldn’t have been the only one!) by Kate’s expertly applied lipstick and shadow/mascara, despite the “you’re staring at me, I must look really bad” callout — Stana is stunningly beautiful with or without makeup, they couldn’t have stripped her down for this scene a bit, so that it rang a little more true? #nitpicking

And seriously, Stana Katic has the.best.fuckin.hair. Jeebus. Though even I had to giggle at the stark contrast between the subtle, reserved, return-to-the-precinct updo (paired with the “oversized turtleneck’o frump” — the distant, plain cousin of Emily Prentiss’ “ghost turtleneck” on CRIMINAL MINDS) and the blammo!hairporn when she shows up at the bookstore before Castle.

“…someone you– someone you care about.” Nice save, Castle, impenetrable language! Shhh, no one will ever know. // Walls. Goddamned walls! Though I love a convo on swings.

Stoked that Michael Dorn (before I moved on to the glory that was Captain Picard, I had a crush on him as Worf on ST:TNG — love me a rough-around-the-edges, grumpy man, pay no mind to the bumpy forehead) is playing Beckett’s shrink — dude has the sexiest voice, I’d happily listen to him read the phonebook. Per tv-cues, he’s obviously to be trusted, a safe haven (as evidenced by the shoes-off, curled up physicality of Kate in the scene), and it’ll be nice to actually *hear* some of Kate’s internal dialogue, instead of just inferring from silent, weighed looks (though to date they have been quite effective at fanning shipper flames in this girl!).

Lies, lies! Kate pretending she didn’t hear Castle’s declaration of love; The much darker implications of Castle lying to protect Beckett, the inevitable fallout when his deception, however well-meant, is discovered… Ah, the angsty!possibilities. Hoping that all the dark threads that were pulled at and unravelled in the season premiere aren’t tucked back under the carpet, but instead, said frayed carpet is ridden hard a-la-Alladin in a season-long arc with serious development (not just a giant hit in the finale and occasional closing scene of Castle staring worriedly at his “Beckett’s murderous family tree” screen).

Yes, I’m looking for a little more gravitas — I’m not talking THE KILLING heavy, but a little darkness to balance. The cast has the chops. I’ve got high hopes for season 4!

Jeebus, lookit the date — when last I posted, we weren’t livin’ in the future. So far, no flying cars — what a disappointment.

Oh well, on to tv, glorious new tv! Trying to give pretty much everything a go this year, and though I am still very much mourning the demise of LIE TO ME, some shows did survive last year and return triumphant… but first, the newbies (including two comedies — a genre I normally avoid):

RINGER. *Yawn* I barely made it through the pilot… Loved SMG on BUFFY, but I’m afraid that love just can’t be transfered to this motly (though incredibly attractive and well-shot) group of selfish, boring twats. Don’t misinterpret: I don’t need a bunch of white hats or do-gooders (in fact, I prefer my characters complicated and flawed) but I have one major requirement: I have to like them, root for them, *care* about them… or at least find them marginally interesting. And I don’t. Not one bit.

2 BROKE GIRLS. Adorable snarky goodness. Love it! However, the laugh-track is horrendous, and does a spectacular job of ruining truly funny lines and moments. Not sure how the premise is going to sustain over a season or more, but I’ll keep watching.

NEW GIRL. Random, odd, funny, awkward, sweet — but not nearly as saccharine as the promos made us all worry t’would be. I think its strength might lie with the boys (undeniably likeable), Zooey is adorable as ever, but her character would wear/grate if she was the sole focus. It has moments of kindness, of feeling real… happy accidents? Either way, it’s pretty damned cute. DoucheJar… there should be one on every counter.

UNFORGETTABLE. I’m a big Poppy Montgomery fan. Loved her in WITHOUT A TRACE as Samantha Spade, and shipped Jack/Sam haaaard (and the 2-part first season finale FALL OUT remains two of my all-time favourite tv hours). So I start this show an easy sell… I want it to succeed. I’m a sucker for a procedural, I like the puzzle aspect of crime solving. Unless the pilot is a massive dud (which 17 minutes in it isn’t — and the strength of the cinematography is impressive and nearly enough to keep me hooked on its own), I’ll keep watching. (Aside: they also do a better job doppelganger-ing — when Carrie goes back into her memories — than RINGER.)

I did watch THE SECRET CIRCLE and didn’t find it appalling, despite my advanced age… Have a soft spot for the adorable Thomas Dekker (aside: why do boys always get the longest, most beautiful eyelashes?). // Also gave FREE AGENTS a bit of a go, but I’m sad to report, despite my warm regard for both Hank Azaria (loved him in HUFF — brilliant fuckin’ television, that) and Kathryn Hahn (great on CROSSING JORDAN), the dreadful lack of chemistry, interest or *forward motion* and general dreary lines meant I only made it about 12minutes into the ep before I gave up. // Skipped REVENGE, even though the looked like it was beautifully shot, and the cast looked interesting, the premise did not — if i want to watch entitled shitty people do shitty things to others while smiling to their face, I’ll head over to my local highschool.

Returning favorites continue to impress and be top of the list’o must-watch: HOUSE, FRINGE, THE MENTALIST, LIE TO ME and CASTLE (though really, did 3 of my favourite shows all have to be shoehorned into one frakin’ day, leaving most of the rest of the week devoid of great tv… and no, don’t ask me to hold off gratification and spread the recorded episodes over the week myself. Sheesh!)

GLEE – not sure if it should be categorized under returning or new – is incredible, clearly the best new thing on tv this year, even if it is hard to explain why. Now keep in mind, I usually abhor musicals/musical theatre (two exceptions: THE SOUND OF MUSIC and MOULIN ROUGE) and find most highschool shows to be horrifyingly saccharine sweet. But no, not GLEE… it’s a complex, layered, perfectly balanced mix of humour and angst, sadness and joy, dark and… yeah, you get the picture. Lea Michele (Rachel Berry) is luminous onscreen with her big brown eyes and beautiful tone of voice — her character is strangely easy to love, despite Rachel’s hard edges/rules and conceit. Jane Lynch’s eeeevil Sue Sylvester only needs to throw a look to have me in stitches, and the same can be said for Jayma Mays (Emma Pillsbury). The rest of the cast is strong and unique and lovable, even if some of them are plotting, lying, manipulative sorts. Plus, as a child of the 80′s, the music rocks hard. Seriously, if you’re not watching GLEE, you should be.

Nice to see Julianna Margulies back, beautiful and strong as always… though I’ll admit, THE GOOD WIFE feels a little like CANTERBURY’S LAW-lite. A kinder, softer legal drama bent on happy endings with a less gritty and dark backstory. With the loss of BOSTON LEGAL, I’m in need of some sort of legal drama that isn’t the formulaic-though-brilliant LAW & ORDERsss, and though I prefer dark and gritty, I’ll take what I can get. Archie Panjabi (Kalinda Sharma) is a huge find, and her brash character is great fun to watch, a nice foil for Margulies’ more controlled (though there’s a definite element of volcano waiting to erupt below the surface) Alicia Florrick.

I like FLASH FORWARD. The cast is strong and the premise interesting. Though I fear it’ll lead me down the same frustrated garden path as LOST and HEROES… shows I watched faithfully and obsessed over incessantly till the breadcrumbs of clues and never-ending unanswered questions burned out my little brain and soured me. The solution? Bank all the eps… I’ll watch them all in one huge run when the series have ended.

Nurses seem to be the character-du-jour. I’m not complaining, I really enjoyed NURSE JACKIE over the summer, and of the rest, I’m diggin’ MERCY most, and purely on the likeability of its lead Taylor Schilling (Veronica Callahan). So far, the soapiness hasn’t gotten to be too much for me to bear.

I tried to give most shows a chance this year, though playing catch-up after 2 weeks away at the start of most left quite a backlog to watch. THE FORGOTTEN isn’t bad, but isn’t great either… could prove interesting, or not. A “Meh.” vote. Same reaction to THREE RIVERS. TRAUMA wasn’t bad but it didn’t light any fires for me either (despite the sexiness that is Cliff Curtis aka “Rabbit”) — Another “Meh, I’ll watch if there’s nothing else on” vote. Hell, I even watched the first few eps of THE VAMPIRE DIARIES… and while it appealed to the little bit of teenage girl that still exists inside of me, it’s another “Meh, in a pinch, if I’m desperate.” COMMUNITY is cute (love Joel McHale and THE SOUP), but it’s no 30 ROCK.

Shows to avoid like H1N1: I barely made it through the ugly pilot of THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE, though it seems I wasn’t the only one, as it was killed off pretty quickly (one positive: it did have a great soundtrack). I skipped EASTWICK (despite a fondness for Rebecca Romijn), MELROSE PLACE, COUGAR TOWN (regretful, as the stunning Josh Hopkins is in it) and a bunch of the new comedies.

So what’d I miss? What are you watching this year?

The tv gods were relatively kind this year.

CHUCK (never underestimate the power of a $5 footlong!) lives to kung-fu fight another year, albeit with a stingy 13-episode order and orders to cut costs and limit supporting cast… Still, I’ll take what I can get!

My current obsession, LIE TO ME has been renewed for a second 13-episode season (again, what’s with the stingy orders? The way things are going, I’m concerned we might end up with “British” seasons that only last a handful of episodes per season).

CASTLE lives to write another day. FRINGE will continue to amaze, horrify and astound. BETTER OFF TED will continue its hilarious ways, at least for a while. BONES has been picked up for two additional seasons. In other “duh, of course it was renewed, it was never in danger” news, HOUSE, THE MENTALIST, GREY’S ANATOMY, LOST, NCIS (with an OSP spinoff to boot!), CSI (all 3), LAW & ORDER (presume all 3), 30 ROCK, HEROES, SOUTHLAND, COLD CASE, CRIMINAL MINDS and a whack of others I care so little for I won’t bother to mention were renewed.

Probably most shocking, DOLLHOUSE has been allowed to stick around to play a little longer (seriously, where was this FOX “second chance” compassion when FIREFLY was on the block? And why choose DOLL over TSCC?!?!).

Still on the bubble? WITHOUT A TRACE.

But the TV gods did not leave us unscathed, choosing a future without TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES (so much for fate being what we make – I think I’ll feel this loss the greatest), deciding we were no longer worthy of *sob!* LIFE (or even LIFE ON MARS), that bellybuttons were no longer an option – KYLE XY – but a requirement in primetime, that THE UNUSUALS’ quirks would not be tolerated, and that PUSHING DAISIES would bloom no more. The reworked god of love, CUPID, failed to enamor anyone.

RIP to the shows that were allowed to finish arcs and bow out gracefully: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, BOSTON LEGAL, ER, THE L WORD, and PRISON BREAK.

What’d you think? Which shows will you miss, which were deservedly cancelled, and which are you surprised have been given a stay of execution?

Rampant plot-holes and sort’a boring sums up tonight’s LIE TO ME, but does anybody care? If you’re like me, the appeal of “Undercover” (and the show) can be summed up in the last 3 minutes.

Now, I’m as good at deciphering feelings and emotions of people on tv as I am those in real life – which is to say not at all (I’m crap!), so I won’t try to interpret the connection or the guts of the exchange (warm and engaged quickly followed by a realization which results in Foster’s subtle-yet-abrupt big step back, firmly drawing “the line” and closing herself off to Cal), but I will say this: it left my UST-lovin’ Lightman-Foster shippin’ self all warm and tingly.

Come to think of it, UST is a bit of a misnomer (at least for what I’m projecting onto them): I think if they ever did hook up romantically onscreen, my reaction to the passionate display would be as eloquent as that of a 5yo: “Eeeew.” It’s more like UET (Unresolved Emotional Tension): They’re both wounded, insightful people who recognize a kindred spirit in the other: they trust one another, protect and support one another, love one another… but it’s complicated, they’re complicated – and I do love me some complications! (on tv that is – elsewhere they’re a pain in the ass)

“Something like that, yeah.”

THE GOOD (including the above):

Kelli Williams was frakin’ awesome, and can I say again how much I love the DP/Art Direction on this show? Beautiful lighting… though I have no idea who to thank, as I can’t read the miniscule credits squished up in the corner that roll by as my local station pimps out other shows. Either way, all of the episodes have impressed visually, so kudos to Joseph E. Gallagher, Alan Caso and Florian Ballhaus for their incredible work.

LOL “Shotgun!” moment: In the underground garage, G-men in bad suits and ugly ties appear with an invitation to the ball and insist they all carpool in their gas-guzzling pumpkin (or something like that). Choosing to forego any need for “compelling” Lightman agrees to a ride in their pumpkin, but ignores the backdoor being held open for him and gets into the front passenger seat of the Fed SUV. Hee!

To mis-quote Dorothy (Wizard of Oz): “G-men, spooks and terrorist-threats! Oh, my.” and to quote Lightman: “You’ve got your head up your ass.”

THE BAD:

Okay, not bad, but stick with me on these few okay-but-not great bits, none of which had anything to do with the “big” case: Nice to see Torres exists outside the walls of the office. I liked that the lawsuit was a ruse, and that Torres passed the loyalty test (as if the super-protégé could fail!), though I’m still upset with Loker, even if he did get kicked around a bit this ep – there was no attempt to explain his reason/rationale behind the “betrayal” (he’s no dumb bunny, he must have realized how his actions would put him, his job and others in jeopardy, even if at the time he didn’t care), seems they’re content to leave his character rather one-dimensional at this stage.

THE UGLY:

What reason would hubby’s (revealed-to-be) sponsor have had to come see Foster at work (other than to titillate the audience/Lightman), especially since everyone was on the DL about Alec’s addiction?

Dupree bringing b-ball tix for Torres to the office (wasn’t he going with her?) and leaving them with Loker – such a clunky excuse to create the “Ria’s gonna be the one to lose” confrontation.

Plot holes big enough to drive trucks through:

Scene: Red-backpacked kid runs from cops, ditches backpack, shoots at cops on staircase, then nonchalantly saunters across rooftop with hands in pockets, pulls his cellphone-holding hand out of his pocket (seriously, people should know better than to reveal a shiny object when faced with cops with drawn guns on a darkened rooftop or otherwise). Cellphone-toting kid is then shot twice and takes a long tumble off a short roof… was there a second kid? If not, why did Andre run from the cops in the first place? Who was shooting at the cops? Are we to assume that the shots fired were just the construct of the cops’ fertile imaginations? Did Andre just desperately need a smoke, explaining his hurry to get to the roof?

And what of the expertly-photoshopped photo? Wouldn’t that have required some paperwork at the FBI (who claimed ignorance)? Are we to believe the EMS sleeper agents were closet ‘shop pros?

…But if we ignore all that and focus on those delicious final minutes, all is right in the world.

So what’d you think? What was your interpretation of the Lightman/Foster interaction that closed the ep? What did Gillian’s big sigh say to you? (Relief or sadness?) What of Cal’s pause in the hallway (taking a moment to absorb the rejection, or wondering where he’d put his keys?)

ASIDE:

Just realized I haven’t posted anything (work’s been busy) about last week’s episode “Better Half” with the first appearance of Jennifer Beals as Lightman’s ex: Was fun, felt like the “Cal and Zoe quip-off hour.” I enjoyed the banter, but was sad that the rest of the cast was so marginalized as a result.

Only 2 eps to go in the season and from the loglines, they’re set to be explosive (seriously, what’s with the short season order? and still no official word on pickup for next season!). I’d like to say I’ll try to savour them, but truth is, I’ll gobble them down like a kid with a twinkie at fat camp – and I’ll still be hungry for more.