TELEVISION UPDATE

HI! I have not written here in a while, because of life and because I'm terrible and stuff. So, since we're about halfway through November sweeps and coming close to the halfway point of the TV season (!!!), I thought I'd give a few updates on where a few shows are standing with me right now.

Let's start with Bob's Burgers. Bob's has only had 4 episodes so far this year, thanks to FOX's stupid dedication to SPORTS (gross!), but they've all ranged from decent ("A River Runs Through Bob") to fantastic ("Fort Night", which is, in my opinion, is already Bob's Burgers' Halloween classic). Bob's Burgers is one of those shows that's in such a great groove right now that it's hard to imagine it doing much of anything wrong. Other shows may be more ambitious, sure, but I still look forward to my half-hour with the Belchers every week more than anything else on television. Other than "Fort Night", nothing this season has quite hit the dizzying heights of episodes like "Mother Daughter Laser Razor" or "Topsy", but since the first half of this season will all be episodes made under the Season 3 production schedule (thanks to scheduling weirdness, now a staple of Fox's animation block), I'm fairly certain there's more classics waiting for us in the bunch. The thing that continues to impress me the most about Bob's Burgers is the way it just accepts everyone's flaws and quirks and does so in a way that is lovingly hilarious. It's such a refreshing tone, and it's certainly been present in all of the episodes this year. I really can't say enough good things about this show. It's a strong contender for my favorite show on television right now.

Let's get onto Brooklyn Nine-Nine, easily the seasons' best new comedy and probably the best freshman comedy since Community back in 2009. It's amazed me just how quickly this show found its comic tone - by the second or third episode, I was already consistently laughing out loud when I watched it, which is pretty rare for a comedy that young. The show has also done a great job crafting strong, relatable comic characters, from Captian Holt to Terry to Amy. And of course, it features the hilarious Chelsea Peretti, who was absent in this weeks' episode but is always there to bring her special touch of enderaring weirdness to everything she touches. My biggest issue with the show has been the way its lead character, Jake Peralta, can delve into douchebag territory far too quickly and never quite get the moments of redemption a character like that needs to in order for us to root for them. But the show actually remedied that a bit this week, with a stellar plot where Jake puts himself on the line after someone insults Captain Holt's sexuality. He's still not a perfect lead character, but I can see now that the show is working to make him better, and given Mike Schur & Dan Goor's track record with that subject on Parks & Recreation, I'm confident they'll be able to do so. One thing I find interesting about Brooklyn Nine-Nine is how old-school it feels - not so much in its humor, which feels very much like modern comedy, but in its relatively simplistic plotting and subtle character development. It's an interesting vibe that I'm wondering if the show will keep. I think it could stand to push its characters just a bit more, but other than that, I'm enjoying the bit of a throwback vibe its giving off, and I'm certainly enjoying the misfit ensemble they're crafting through solid writing and mostly pretty fantastic performances.

Then there's New Girl, which got off to a bit of a slow start this year but has really picked up its game in the last few episodes. I loved this weeks' episode, "Menus" - it was my favorite of the season so far, and probably one of my favorite episodes of the show of all-time. It wasn't anything particularly fancy, but the way it took the characters' seperate insecurities and blended them into one meaningful and thematically strong storyline was some really excellent writing. I think the show is also being aided a lot by the re-addition of Coach, who has already freshened up the dynamic a lot in the two episodes he's been around. I am hoping that Coach's return will spark something in Winston, rather than having him pushed to the sidelines even more. Winston's been having a great season comedically, constantly providing the show with some of its funniest moments, but I do think it's about time we got a real, full-fledged Winston arc (and not just a half-assed romance one like the one he had with Brenda Song). I know some people are frustrated with the show this season, but I really don't understand why, other than the usual third season backlash narrative. New Girl has never been a perfect show, but that's sort of what I like about it. It doesn't settle into a groove and continue to coast. It's constantly pushing and re-inventing itself to get to the emotional truth of its characters. That makes for a show that isn't always consistent but, when it hits, it really hits, and it's still hitting enough of the time that I continue to find it one of the best shows on TV.

That seems like a good way to segway us into Parks and Recreation, which has spent much of the last several years in "coasting" territory. Parks & Rec has an incredibly strong core, so when it coasts, it's still pretty damn great a lot of the time - but it can still get kind of same-y and boring after a while, as it did for much of Season 5 and portions of this season so far. Luckily, the show came back roaring this week in its return from its random hiatus/not hiatus, and it did so by doing what it used to do well in its earlier seasons but hasn't done in a while (arguably since Leslie got Ben back in Season 4) - it let Leslie Knope lose. I know, tragic. Just tragic. It was! The scene where it was announced that Leslie was recalled was a gut punch, and millions of Leslie Knope fans on Tumblr all cried out in sorrow at the same time. But that's a good thing! These things make us feel more connected to the characters. What was missing with Parks over the past few years was that it didn't let Leslie fail anymore. It gave her everything she wanted, mostly without even trying. All she had to do was defeat a bumbling moron for City Council or go through ridiculous, cartoonish townspeople to get what she wanted. So I'm really happy to see the show actually testing her again. It's sad! But this is Parks, so you know something good is coming for her soon, and that something is going to be even more powerful now that she's been through a bit of a struggle. This season has been inconsistent so far, but I'm enjoying it more than the last because it feels like its slowly poking out of the narrative rut it was in for all of last year and even a lot of Season 4. Let's hope it keeps pushing itself as the season progresses.

And finally, The Michael J. Fox Show, which I have nothing to say about. Because I dropped it. Because that shit is boring. I love you, MJF, but please, get a better show.

So, there's the basics. There are other shows that I'm consistently entertained by - like The Middle, which is the best family sitcom in ages - and other shows that I've been consistently let down by - like South Park, which is showing more cracks than ever this season, but those are the shows that have been consuming my mind the most lately. And Doctor Who. Oh, do I need to make a post about Doctor Who. But that's for another time.

"That's exactly what I'm going to say when I put them in a home" - Thursday TV Roundup 10/3/13

Here are some quick thoughts about Parks & Rec and The Michael J. Fox Show. Honestly, I don't really have a lot to say about them, so it will be quick. Oh, and bonus Welcome to the Family hatred!

Parks & Recreation - This episode felt like a whole lot of set-up, so I'm not quite sure how to feel about it. The Pawnee/Eagleton merge should make for some entertaining stuff, but it never quite escalated into anything particularly funny in this episode. Kristen Bell was good in her role, but I wanted to see even more of her, which I'm guessing we will in the next few weeks. And after really liking her in the season premiere, Leslie was just...too much here. The show kind of lost their handle on Leslie in Season 5, and this episode continued that unfortunate streak. I didn't really care for either of the subplots - Ron trying to erase all trace of his existence was just way too cartoony, even for Ron Swanson, and the shows' attempt to ground it with the tie to his marriage to Diane felt very forced. The Ann & April plot was...strange. Ann is moving to Bloomingtown because they have a nice baby store? And it all came at the expense of what could've been an interesting April plotline? All in all, this was definitely a disappointment after last weeks' stellar premiere, but maybe it'll look better once we get more from these storylines.

The Michael J. Fox Show - The quote in the title made me laugh a LOT. Actually, a bunch of stuff in this episode made me laugh a lot. But I'm still sort of getting a generic family sitcom vibe from the plot and characters. Since this show doesn't look like it's going to be the mass-appeal hit NBC wanted it to be, maybe they'll let the show break out of the tired Modern Family storylines they're trapped in and start getting a bit more experimental. I'm not holding my breath, but it'd be nice. Still, there's a lot of other appealing elements to the show. MJF continues to impress, and Betsy Brandt is also pretty awesome here. It just feels like it's playing it a lot safer than it wants to right now. The writing and the humor is pretty great, but everything else feels a few steps behind. Still, it's only episode 3 - here's to hoping they get everything figured out soon.

I also, unfortunately, watched the Welcome to the Family pilot. It was maybe the blandest thing I have ever seen, and strangely completely devoid of laughs. I bashed it more here, if you want to read!

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2013/10/cbs-fall-pilot-review-millers-premieres.html

I will end this by saying the complete blandification of NBC's Thursday line-up, complete with obnoxious tiny Sean Hayes running around the bottom of the screen, makes me very sad and nostalgic for days past. Come save us, Community! (I'm tagging Community in this because I only have 2 posts tagged Community and that is just wrong).

"No hard feelings but I hate you, not joking" - Tuesday (and beyond!) TV Roundup 10/1/2013

Hi everyone! It's been a few days. Not that much has happened since I last checked in, except for the government collapsing and shutting down or whatever. But let's talk about television instead! Tonight featured some very good episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and New Girl that I'd like to get to. But then I thought - hey, why not talk about this weekends' new shows, too? Namely, Saturday Night Live and Bob's Burgers. No, not Breaking Bad. I haven't caught up with it yet, so everyone just shut the fuck up.


Alright, well, what's there to say about Saturday Night Live? This is probably going to be a very transitional season for the show, which is probably good, because the show's been getting a little stale these past few seasons. As much as I'll miss Bill and Jason and Fred, SNL thrives on change - it's what keeps the show interesting. So even though this season may be a rough transition, I'm sure it'll ultimately prove to be a good thing in the end. Besides, the season premiere was actually a pretty solid outing, led by Tina Fey, who can do no wrong (except Admission, let's just all pretend that didn't happen). There was a lot of really great sketches, my favorite being the Girls parody, but with "E-Meth" and the always charming Drunk Uncle not being too far behind. I'm also excited to see what Cecily Strong can do with Update - I liked her last season, though I was a bit taken back by her sudden promotion to Update anchor. Her first night at the desk was pretty smooth. Her jokes were a bit broad, but her delivery was solid and her segment with Tina was really great.

So I guess this is the part where I address the shows' obvious diversity problem. I find it very disappointing, especially considering two of the shows' only non-white cast members (Jay and Nasim) were sidelined for most of the show last night. That said, I don't think Lorne Michaels actively hates everyone who's not white or anything. I just think that there's such a bulit-in homogeneity to the show that's holding it back from being as diverse as it could be. It's a bit of a bummer, and hopefully the backlash will let the show get it sorted out sooner than later.

Now let's move on to Bob's Burgers, which started its 4th season on Sunday, even though technically the episodes we'll be seeing between now and February or so are going to be from the Season 3 production line, thanks to Fox only airing 9 episodes of the show back in 2011-12 after ordering a full season. That means there's no need to panic about the shows' quality until then, internet, since the episodes airing now are in the same production line as the ones that aired in the spring. That's a relief, since the premiere was actually one of the shows' weakest episodes in recent memory. It wasn't a terrible episode of television or anything - there were still plenty of great lines, I laughed a ton, there was a fun song and any time with the Belchers is quality time, in my mind. But I thought the choice to kick off the season with an episode set in the woods was a bit of an odd choice. I missed the restaurant. I missed the great world of characters the show slowly built over the course of the first 3 seasons. I wanted to catch up with them in this episode, not be transported into the woods for a funny but overly wacky story that didn't let the truly unique personas of the Belcher family shine through completely. All in all, it wasn't a bad episode, but it was kind of a bad premiere. That's fine, because this is still Bob's Burgers. It's still one of my favorite shows on TV, and it's still great, even when it's not at its best.

And now onto actual Tuesday TV! I was very impressed by this weeks' Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which might be my choice for the funniest episode of the television season so far. The show already has such a tight grasp on its characters, and those characters are already just so much fun to hang out with. The plots still aren't terribly original - it's yet another episode centered around Captain Holt teaching Jake a lesson - but, geez, the jokes are. Chelsea Peretti has already established herself as a primetime sitcom treasure, and her interpretive dance to Christina Aguileria was one of the most beautiful moments on TV so far this season. The show is so close to greatness right now that I can't wait to see what it looks like when it gains a bit more confidence and starts taking some risks with its plots, which I feel probably isn't far off at all.

And now onto New Girl, which aired what was probably my favorite episode of its season so far tonight. Granted, we're only 3 episodes in, so that's not life-changing or anything, but I really loved a lot of things about this episode. The most important is Nick Miller, who just fucking knocks it out of the park every week, but his dancing and his reaction when Schmidt told him about his dilemma and his yelling about the valet and his helmet and just...his everything, was fucking perfect this week. And this episode also beautifully captured everything I love about Nick and Jess, particularly that last scene. Their awkward, weird, stupid, possibly lethal but kind of irresistible energy is so fun to watch, and the show is playing it perfectly so far. I also loved Winston's storyline - yeah, it sucks he's always getting sent off to his own plotlines away from the main cast, but I thought it was played perfectly this week. In fact, the writers kind of seemed to know that they have the tendency to do that to the character, and they sort of turned it into an emotional plotpoint. I have a feeling that we're building to something here - possibly something that intersects with the Coach arc, which should provide plenty of interesting fodder for Winston.

And that brings up Schmidt. There's been a lot of divisive reactions to his storyline around the internet - but honestly? I don't have a huge problem with it. Yes, he's being a total douche right now, but I thought he got what he deserved this week. Did that turn him into an ever bigger douche? Well...yes, but I sort of see this playing out similarly to the Pierce arc in Season 2 of Community. I think the show realizing what they're doing here, and I think they're doing it to send Schmidt on the same kind of path, where he really questions his own self, his actions and what he brings to this group. It's a bit of a darker tone for this show, so I understand what makes it jarring. And maybe I'm totally wrong and they're not building to anything. But this show has gained my trust, and it's given me no reason to believe I shouldn't trust it'll make something of all of this.

Last thing! I reviewed Super Fun Night for Sitcoms Online. I didn't like it very much. Read why!

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2013/10/abc-fall-pilot-review-super-fun-night.html

Alright, that's enough for tonight. Happy television! Or something! I don't even know anymore.

"I'm having so many thoughts and feelings that I'm paralyzed right now" - Thursday premiere round-up 9/26/13

Hello, dear reader(s). It's NBC Thursday, and you know what that mea...oh, wait. 30 Rock and The Office are gone? And Community is on hiatus yet again? And there's a bunch of generic, boring shows moving in next week to take their place? Oh. Well.

Hey, at least we still have Parks & Rec! And The Michael J. Fox Show, which is not quite up to the levels of the aforementioned NBC Thursday sitcoms but looks like it could get there eventually! So let's talk about those. Just...please, let's not talk about those horrible Sean Saves the World promos. Please, let's talk about anything but those.




Parks & Recreation 

I consider myself a fairly big fan of Parks & Rec - particularly Seasons 2 & 3, which was some of the most perfect comedic television made in the past 20 years. But I had some significant issues with the show last season - it seemed to lose all sense of direction after Leslie won the City Council seat, and spent most of the year sending its characters through rehashed, cartoony plots that provided some mild amusement but mostly failed to make any sort of impact. This was incredibly disappointing coming from a show that once knew how to pack every single episode with tons of great comedy and even stronger emotional punches. There were some high points - Leslie and Ben's wedding could easily stand with the best of the show, if you pretend Councilman Jamm wasn't there - but the most part, it felt like the show was kind of coasting on its former glory.

I'm happy to say that tonight's hour-long premiere, "London", doesn't share those same issues. It's not perfect - the Chris/Ann baby plot still can't help but feeling like a last resort for those characters, even if it's sort of worth it for the reaction from the rest of the Parks department - but it's an episode that has stakes that feel real, emotion that feels earned, and a lot of good old-fashioned Pawnee humor. (In London!) It's an episode that made me excited for the rest of the season, something that I feared wasn't possible after a string of highly unsatisfying episodes last spring.

There's a whole lot going on in "London", but we'll start with the episodes' central story, the Leslie "recall" plot. I had some issues with the way this plot was introduced in last seasons' finale - mainly that it happened so suddenly and wasn't grounded in anything that had actually happened on the show while Leslie was in the City Council seat. But I actually liked what the show did with it here, showcasing Leslie's growing annoyance at Pawnee and its ungrateful citizens, and - most promisingly - setting up some actual stakes for her going forward. I don't want Parks to ever lose its sunny disposition, because that's part of what makes it stand out from the rest of TV comedies - but in recent seasons, the show has sometimes used its optimism spirit as a way to avoid actual conflict, which comedy (and really, television in general), tends to thrive off of. The thing that made Parks' optimism so appealing in its earlier days was that it often came as a shining light to times of great turmoil. The Harvest Festival arc - perhaps the shows' best run of episodes - was so powerful because Leslie's determination and optimism led to her saving the entire Parks department. The show raised the stakes to huge degrees, and it made the end result all the more satisfying. Leslie's campaign arc, while filled with some all-time classic episodes and moments, wasn't as successful on the whole because we never had any real doubt that Leslie Knope wasn't going to win that election. Her opponent was a moron, and this was Parks & Rec, where everyone always gets what they want. That vibe continued in Season 5, which washed, rinsed, and repeated the "Leslie faces a ridiculous opponent -> Leslie defeats the opponent with her charm and optimism" over and over again. It was pleasant to watch, but the strong emotions that Leslie's accomplishments once brought were gone, because she wasn't really being tested anymore. So I guess that's why I like what the show is doing here. I have no doubt that this is somehow going to end up well for Leslie, but I don't mind because the show is going to throw her around a little bit and test her patience. She's going to get angry, and she's going to feel defeated, and we're going to feel for her, and that's good, because it's going to let us connect to her and root for her again, which makes for much better and, ultimately, more uplifting television. That's why the end of this episode worked so much better for me than any of the similarly sweet endings to Season 5 episodes. April's letter about Leslie was sweet, but it was even sweeter knowing it's coming at a time when Leslie truly, honestly needs it.

I also really liked the Andy plotline, even if it seemed like a bit of an excuse to explain why Chris Pratt isn't going to be around for a few months. Andy and April have been two of the shows' most interesting characters in its later years, as they've both grown leaps and bounds from where they were at the start of the show - and done it completely naturally. This felt like a continuation of that - Season 5 actually had some pretty good development for Andy, with him finally deciding it's time to get on his feet and do something with himself. So seeing him finally being able to do that - with full support from his wife and while still allowing to be...well, Andy...is really nice to see. Plus, Chris Pratt is still one of the best comedic actors on television, and can sell the hell about just about anything he is given. It's too bad that the show has to go on without him for a little while, but I'm confident that there will be plenty of great material for him upon his return.

Oh! And I haven't even talked about Ron fucking Swanson! Ron's "look at this closed off guys' heart opening" arc was a little trite last year, but I also found it pretty effective - effective enough that I thought the cold open was genuinely sweet and earned. I also loved how the show chose to completely forgo any kind of hoopla over Ron and Diane's wedding and just pushed these two together. Just how Ron Swanson would want it, indeed. And even better was Leslie showing her enthusiasm but not doing so in a way that went against Ron's desire for a non-event. The entire cold open was just pretty fantastic and a great way to start off the season.

This is getting ridiculously long, so I'll wrap it up by saying the Tom storyline wasn't anything special, but was very funny and put guest star Henry Winkler to great use. I'm really happy I have so much to say about this show again, because too many of last seasons' episodes would've added up to little more than "eh, it was okay I guess" if I were writing about them. I really hope this continues for the rest of the season.

The Michael J. Fox Show

This was both one of my most anticipated and feared pilots of the season. Like any reasonable human being (*cough* Taylor Swift *cough*), I like Michael J. Fox a lot and want to see him succeed. I also like a lot of the other talent on this show, both on-screen and off, and I think the idea of a comedy about a man struggling with Parkinsons is pretty risky and interesting and could be something really special if it works out. At the same time, it also easily seemed like this show could be bogged down in NBC's desperate attempt for a broad-reaching hit and become something cloying, manipulative, and little more than a Modern Family rip-off (so, basically The New Normal). Luckily, it is not that. It's not that at all - except for maybe the Modern Family rip-off part, right down to the wholly unnecessary mockumentary set-up. But this is looking like it has all of the potential to be a great and even somewhat powerful show, even if it's not quite all there yet.

Unsurprisingly, the show's stongest aspect is Michael J. Fox himself, who continues to be a masterful comic actor, Parkinsons be damned. Betsy Brandt also deserves some major credit as his wife - the two already have really great chemistry and a well-drawn and believable relationship, even when their relationship is left to deal with some pretty by-the-numbers sitcom schlock, as it was in the second episode tonight. If absolutely nothing else, this show should be a nice showcase for both of them, who are pretty fantastic and feel right at home in these roles.

But I don't expect that to be the only thing the show has going for it. Even if the plots too often border on typical family sitcom territory, the writing itself is sharp and nuanced, following the snappy pace of edgier single-camera fare. (Not surprising for a writing staff with a handful of 30 Rock, Happy Endings, and Community alumni). If it plays its cards exactly right, I could maybe even see this becoming the rare show to become both a critical darling and a mainstream ratings hit, something that often seems almost impossible these days.

At the end of the day, though, this show is mostly interested in being a family sitcom, which is something fans of the NBC line-up of the old will want to keep in mind before skyrocketing their hopes up to unreachable levels. It's not attempting to push the sitcom formula to new dimensions like 30 Rock and Community, or even trying the ambitious character work of shows like Parks & Rec and New Girl. And that's fine! If everything works out, this show could easily become a wonderfully written and acted family sitcom with some serious emotional impact. That's more than enough for me, and as long as it gets a bit more ambitious than the stock family sitcoms that it displayed in its second episode tonight, it shouldn't have too much of a problem reaching those levels. 

Tuesday TV Roundup: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, New Girl & Trophy Wife

Hello, everyone! It's another wonderful Tuesday here in the land of television, so let's break down all of the comedies that have graciously been given to us tonight (except for all of the ones that suck):

Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Everyone knows comedy pilots are hard to get right, but second episodes are arguably just as hard. You have to retain what people liked about the pilot, while progressing your world and characters in a way that allows the audience to see that your characters aren't static - and yet not doing it too much, in fear of going too far too soon. Brooklyn Nine-Nine's second episode is certainly a repeat of the pilot in several ways, but it repeats and adds to the pilots' strongest element - the mentor relationship between Jake and Captain Holt. We don't necessarily learn anything new about either of them in this episode, but their relationship is deepened and progressed in smart but subtle ways. I thought the mirroring that the relationship between the police captain and his delinquent son and Jake and Captian Holt's relationship was fairly well-done, if slightly on-the-nose, and the two continued to demonstrate the solid comic energy that they delivered so well in the pilot. The rest of the ensemble was contained to the episodes' B-plot, which involved Joe becoming nervous after Gina's fortune teller friend informed him that Rosa would never love him and he'd spend his life alone. The plot itself was pretty standard sitcom fare, but I liked the way it brought out the personalities of the rest of the ensemble - particularly Chelsea Peretti's Gina, who is really coming onto her own. Brooklyn Nine-Nine isn't completely there yet - the humor feels shoehorned at times, and the ensemble, while strong, hasn't completely gelled just yet - but it's already making great strides to get there.

New Girl: Tonight's New Girl felt like the first time since the start of the Nick/Jess arc that the show was able to just take a breath and relax a bit. The better part of Season 2's back half was spent carefully plotting Nick and Jess's relationship, and the premiere had to do the dirty work of actually dealing with the conclusion of that plotting. So it's probably natural that tonight'd "Nerd" felt like a bit of a filler episode. Even the central Jess/Nick plot- a place where the show usually does its heavy lifting - didn't have all that much to say outside of "hey, these people are dating now, and they're cute". As for Winston and Schmidt's stories - Winston got perhaps the funniest material of the episode, but the show never made Daisy enough of a thing to make his plot pack any emotional weight whatsoever. And Schmidt's plot continues to get more and more irritating the longer the show drags it on. Schmidt is often allowed to get away with terrible behavior, because he's the kind of character we expect it from (I mean, hello, douchebag jar). But his douchebaggery is entering new heights here - and, worst of all, it's being presented as some sort of wacky comic scenario, instead of the alarming example of insecurity that it really is. I have enough faith in New Girl to give Schmidt what he deserves and to find the emotional weight of this eventually, but I wish it would happen sooner. Anyway, I feel like I'm coming down hard on an episode of television that made me laugh a lot and prominently featured the entire cast singing "I Believe I Can Fly". The laidback vibe of this episode wasn't always a bad thing - it made the episodes' comedy come fast and effortless, and it was overall a reliably good time. But after some of the truly excellent half-hours the show produced last season, an amusing but lightweight outing can't help but feel like a bit of a letdown. Still, if an episode as funny and entertaining as this one now qualifies as a "letdown" for New Girl, then it's in pretty good hands at the start of this third season.

Trophy Wife: I don't have a lot to say about the pilot of Trophy Wife, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's a highly competent pilot episode, one that nails a lot of the beats that comedy pilots often miss, and lets is strong ensemble cast do most of the heavy lifting. The premise of the show is kind of uninteresting at its core, but the show puts a certain earnestness into it that allows it to actually be pulled off. There's a lot of great gags, its tightly-written and handsomely directed. The only place where the show falls a bit flat for me is in one of the most important quadrants - its characters. I didn't really connect to any character at the end of this pilot, which is a bit of an issue, because I like to have at least someone I can hold onto in a comedy pilot. Because of that, I'm not sure Trophy Wife is the type of show I'll be running to catch every week, but its strong writing and great cast is enough to hold my interest for a while.

I did not watch Dads because I value my time and sanity. I did not watch The Goldbergs because I get enough yelling and dated pop culture references from my own family. And I did not watch The Mindy Project because it's never going to get better and it's time I accepted that. But everything else was pretty good! Yay, network TV season! We love you,  network TV season!

Also, I have no interest in a weekly Marvel procedural. Sorry, ABC/Joss Whedon!

Things I am looking forward to on the television this year

Hello again, dedicated readers! I thought I would take this rainy Saturday night before what remains of the traditional network TV season to run through a list of what I am looking forward to this season. Why? Because, well, this is my life, and it's time I accepted it. So let's go! In no particular order, here are my most anticipated shows, both old and new, for the upcoming TV season:

• The return of New Girl and Bob's Burgers, aka the two best comedies on television right now. Seriously, if you're a comedy fan and you're not watching these shows, you are depriving yourself of a great source of joy, and that's just sad. True, both of these shows got off to a somewhat rocky start, but they've really come into their own. They both were far ahead of the rest of the comedy competition last season, churning out endless streaks of near-perfect episodes. Both shows benefit from having a deep understanding of their brilliantly defined characters - the kind of understanding that only shows that take the definition of the sitcom and elevate it to new heights can achieve. While following up seasons that were as good as New Girl Season 2 and Bob's Burgers Season 3 is a tough act, I'm still incredibly excited to see where these shows take us next, and I'm pretty confident that wherever it is, it's going to be all kinds of awesome. 

• Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I've already talked about my enjoyment of the pilot on here a lot, so I'm not going to go into too much detail - but I really feel like this is the safest bet for a great new comedy in quite a while. The creators are great, the cast is possibly even better, and the characters are already proving to be pretty interesting. Now, to be fair, my most anticipated comedies of the past 2 seasons both turned into shows I didn't care for (The Mindy Project and Up All Night, if you were wondering), but I have higher hopes for this one, which is already starting with tighter characters and stronger promise than either of those shows had at their start.

• The Michael J. Fox Show. I haven't seen the pilot for this one yet, and my anticipation for it can best be described as "cautiously optimistic". Like any self-respected human being, I like Michael J. Fox a lot and am excited at the prospect of him returning to television. Plus, the premise of the show sounds like something that could make for genuinely interesting and powerful television. My fear is that NBC is pushing so hard for this to be their new flagship comedy that I fear it will be sunk in the process. That's why Go On ended up as such a miserable failure, and I'd hate it to see that happen here, because I could see this being a really excellent show if it's given the chance.

• The triumphant(?) returns of Community and Parks and Recreation. I love both of these shows. That's no secret. I would strongly consider naming Community my favorite show of all-time (only 30 Rock might stand in its way), and the first 3 seasons of it are basically as perfectly tuned to my interests as a television should could be. Of course, it's no secret that Season 4 of Community was a mess, and I don't think there's anyone left in the fanbase that would deny that. But Dan Harmon is back! The darkness is over! Sure, Chevy Chase is gone and so is Donald Glover after 5 episodes. But I have strangely high hopes for this season. I think everyone involved in committed to really giving its fans the return to form they deserve, and we've all seen what can happen when a show really buckles down and commits itself to turning itself around and making an impact again (again, see: 30 Rock). Re-watching the earlier seasons of this show has reminded me of just how amazing it used to be, and I really think it can be that again. As for Parks - well, this will be far less popular, but I also felt that show sort of fell off the wagon a little bit last season. Its season wasn't the disaster that Community's was, but it was kind of a bore, with a few stand-outs but mostly a lot of repeated character beats and half-assed plotlines (Chris and Ann having a baby, anyone?). And yet, those few stand-out moments - like the genuinely touching "Leslie and Ben" - proved there's still spark left to Parks - and I'm hoping Season 6 will expose those sparks once again.

• Orange is the New Black Season 2. The biggest TV surprise of the year for me was Orange is the New Black. Not only was its release trapped in the dead of summer - a time of year generally reserved for B-list reality shows and Suits -  I show had no interest in until I heard the unanimous critical acclaim. As it turns out, Orange was one of the best shows of the entire year, a thoughtful and gripping look into a womens' prison that had the most diverse cast I've ever seen on television - not only in terms of ethnicity, but also in just in terms of different types of female characters. It was a show that really opened our minds in terms of what a television show could do, both with its unique flashback structure and its hoards of completely original characters. It's the best defense of the Netflix model of programming yet, and I'm incredibly curious to see what it can do in Season 2. Part of me fears it will go all Weeds on us, but the more logical side of me trusts that a show this special can't be soured so easily.

So there you go. There are my 5 things I am looking forward to most on TV this year. Or, more accurately: here are a bunch of TV shows I felt like talking about and this seemed like the most convenient outlet to do so. Hope you enjoy my opinions!

Television is back! I'm back! LIFE IS BACK!

Hi, no one! Or someone, maybe! I'm not going to assume you don't exist, because if you do exist, that'd be rude. Anyway, a new year of television is upon us, and this year I am going to attempt to actually utilize this thing in some meaningful ways, because it's getting crowded in my dumb, confused brain so I need some place to let my TV feelings roam free.

Although the official start of the TV season isn't until next week, Fox has decided that it likes us enough to treat us to all of their shows a week before the other networks. Also, they had a pretty shitty year last season, and are hoping that maybe they'll at least get a week to win by default. So far, it might be working, considering Sleepy Hollow surprised us all last night and became the highest-rated drama premiere on Fox in 6 years. So hey! Let's see what they had in store for us tonight.

Fox is trying once again to launch a two-hour comedy block this year, after last year's unsuccessful attempt that left poor Ben and Kate out to dry. New Girl and The Mindy Project remain in the 9:00 hour, but Fox is hoping the Seth MacFarlane live-action sitcom Dads (a sentence that sounds like it's trying to turn you away from television forever) and ensemble cop comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine can help tighten up the ship. Can they? It's not up to me! I'm not a superfluous ratings measurement system that becomes less and less relevant with time. But I can tell you if these shows are worth you while.

Dads

I don't have much to say about this one. Okay, mostly because I didn't watch it. Look, I have some standards, alright? But really, if you've spent any time on the internet this summer, you should know exactly what to expect from this show. It's bad. Of course it's bad. Did you think it wasn't going to be bad? Well, it's bad. Okay? Now let's never speak of it again.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

I wrote a bunch about this show for SitcomsOnline today! So you should go read that. If, for some reason, you don't, here's a summary - this is the an incredibly promising new show from an excellent bunch of cast and creators. For that alone, this seems like the best bet for a great new sitcom in quite a while. The pilot isn't amazing, but so few pilots are. The biggest problem with  it is that it isn't especially funny. But again - what pilots are? People often forget that their most beloved comedies didn't get off the ground running. The 30 Rock pilot had basically no laughs, the Parks & Rec pilot was a mess, the New Girl pilot was more or less "Zooey Deschanel being crazy for 22 minutes"...sure, once in a while you'll get an Arrested Development that kicks ass right from the start, but it's pretty rare. So while Brooklyn Nine-Nine's pilot isn't perfect, it's well-structured with plenty of great characterization. With a cast this good, that's enough to keep me very excited to see where it'll go next.

New Girl

I do not envy New Girl this season. Coming off of a highly acclaimed, universally beloved season is perhaps the hardest thing for a television show to do - the weight of expectations is almost impossible to match. Shows faced with this dilemma typically either choose to coast at the same speed and hope its supporters continue along for the ride (hello, Parks & Rec post-Season 3) or dial things up to 100 in an attempt to keep surprising its audience (that's you, Community Season 3!). Either of these methods is perfectly acceptable and can prevent the show from crashing and burning, but I personally prefer to watch the latter method, simply because I think it makes things a little more interesting. And while it's too soon to tell which road New Girl would take, all signs point to the second option after tonight's premiere. In a way, it has to take this route - the show changed its status quo so drastically by throwing Nick and Jess together at the end of Season 2 that there's no time for coasting. This is kind of an exciting prospect to me. New Girl could totally crash and burn this year, or it could balance everything perfectly and turn in another classic season of television. The fact that I have no idea which one it's going to be is a little scary, but it makes me incredibly excited to see what's in store for us in Apartment 4D this season. I will say that I thought this premiere was a step in the right direction - it made me laugh a lot, the Nick and Jess stuff was handled incredibly well, and I love that the show has made it clear that it's not going to sideline everyone else just to make room for their star couple. The only part of the premiere that I had problems with was Schmidt's storyline - love triangles are really just never interesting, and this one is no exception, particularly when that love triangle brings out the most irredeemable qualities in Schmidt. I hope that storyline wraps up sooner than later, whether it means Schmidt choosing CeCe or Elizabeth or the three of them forming the first polygamist relationship on network TV. Other than that, I'm all in.

The Mindy Project

The Mindy Project has gone through about four retools at this point, which is why it's weird that its biggest problems are the exact same problems that have been holding it back since it began. The show still has no likable or relatable characters, it's a strange mix of half-assed workplace sitcom and generic romantic comedy, and it has absolutely no point of view to speak of. In short, it's a total mess of a television program, one that has no consistent tone and seemingly no purpose, other than to be the internet's new favorite show and to book a bunch of cute boys for Mindy Kaling to kiss. What's worse is that the show is now seemingly content with this. There was a point in Season 1 where the show noticeably improved, and there was a wave of "look, it's gotten better!" support from critics and fans alike. While I never felt it improved into anything worthwhile, it was around this time that the show garnered a modest following and a bit more critical support (though not much). I guess it's decided to take that lukewarm reception and run with it, because at the start of its second season, the show seems perfectly content with its vapid mediocrity. There's a handful of decent jokes in tonight's premiere, and the writing itself remains somewhat clever. But there's absolutely no attempt to say anything remotely interesting or to progress its characters whatsoever. It's just a bunch of faceless characters exchanging snarky insults and occasionally kissing each other. That's enough for some people, I guess - but it's something I have absolutely no interest in, so I think this is where Mindy and I officially part ways. I maintain that there was a great show somewhere in that pilot last fall, but at this point, I have zero faith that great show is ever going to be discovered. 

So Fox's comedy block can best be described as a sandwich where the bread is really crumbly and gross, but the meat is delicious and some of the best around. That does not sound like a particularly good sandwich, but you can always take the meat out and just enjoy it by itself. Because you are a hard worker, and you deserve it.

30 Rock is over and I have feelings and none of them make sense

So um.

I decided I needed to make a 30 Rock post. But honestly, I'm not really sure where to begin. I mean, obviously this show means a lot to me, considering I cried like a total lame-ass at it tonight and it's probably the first time I cried in like 3 years. Obviously it means a lot to me, because it led me to realizing that TV and comedy were the two things I wanted to at least attempt to dedicate my life to. Obviously it means a lot to me because I sprinted home from my last class in the freezing cold while on the phone with my mom telling her to make sure she turned on the TV so that if I was late for the series finale, I could just rewind it and pretend I wasn't.

And honestly, part of  me feels like this isn't exactly the end. I mean, it is, but this show's impact is never going to disappear from my life. I'm still going to watch every single episode over and over and over again. I'm still going to watch it in syndication every night, even if I'm just basking in the sound of its jokes as background noise. And I know that pretty much every single piece of comedy I watch - or every single piece of comedy I write - was partly inspired by my love for 30 Rock.

I've told the story of how I got into 30 Rock like a million times, so I'm not going to tell it again, but basically, I can safely say I grew up with the show. It started when I was an awkward, acne-clad, jew-fro rocking 8th grader (note: only the jew-fro has gone away, although prescription acne medication is certainly helping!) who really didn't know who the hell I was or what I was doing. I mean, my favorite shows were Mad TV and American Idol, guys. Shit was dire. But I decided to try out 30 Rock because my friend Ashlee would kill me if I didn't, and I remember loving it pretty instantly. I was only 13 and I'm pretty sure I barely understood half of the jokes - but there was something about it that was so unique, that was unlike anything I had ever seen in a TV show before. They were just so unafraid to be totally, unbelievably weird. I mean, I watched Pee Wee Herman dress up as a deformed Austrian prince and kill himself with a glass of wine. That kind of stuff has a lasting effect on kids.

Honestly, it didn't instantly click for me that the reason I was so drawn into 30 Rock was because it felt like parts of my own, weird brain were being televised right before my eyes. And there were times early on when my lack of identity got in the way of my enjoyment of 30 Rock, as I tried to get into other dumb interests, like...music or something. Blerg. But as I got older, I started to realize just how happy the show made me, and I tried to figure out why. And then it clicked. This was me. This bizarre, ridiculous show was the thing that brought me joy and the thing that I was most passionate about. It was around then that I realized nothing made me happier than sitting down and watching 30 Rock and experiencing some of the most daring, original, creative, balls-to-the-wall comedy I had ever seen in my life. And then I kind of never looked back. I started watching other comedy shows, I started writing my own comedy. I had found my identity. I was still kind of the awkward kid from the 8th grade, but I was the awkward kid from the 8th grade with a purpose, and that purpose was to spread my weirdness to everyone else, like 30 Rock had done.

So since then, there's been dozens of comedy shows I've also grown to love - at times, seemingly even more than 30 Rock itself. But these last few weeks of 30 Rock have really brought home the realization that nothing will ever top 30 Rock for me, because 30 Rock is what started it all. Every single show that I love, I love because I was a nerdy teenager who looked forward to nothing more than spending 22 minutes with  Liz Lemon, Jack Donaghy, Jenna Maroney, Kenneth Parcell, Tracy Jordan, Pete Hornberger...even Lutz, guys, even Lutz. So while 30 Rock may not be making new episodes anymore, it's never going to be "over" for me. It's going to continue through everything I do in comedy, whether it be watching it or writing it or wishing I was writing it - whatever it may be, it'll all be because of 30 Rock.

Anyway this has had far too many feelings than I'm comfortable with. So I'll leave you all with this:

"Now I know how webisodes feel" - Tuesday Comedy Clusterfuck 1/8/13

New year, same old Tuesday comedy clusterfuck. Well, now with added Cougar Town! So let's dig right into the ridiculously abundant comedy choices our friend television gave us tonight.

Ben and Kate started off the year a little below the high standards it set for itself in the fall, having one of those typical "off" episodes that tries to cram too much into one half-hour. The only plot that felt completely satisfying was the BJ sub-plot, which had her meet her mother and successfully add another comic layer to her already hilarious character. I always like when we meet a characters' parents for the first time and it all feels so natural that it actually seems like that character was shaped by whatever guest actor is dropping in to play their parent and not a room of writers, and Ben & Kate achieved that with the BJ plotline. The rest of the episode was...fine, and had some really great moments - particularly from Dakota Johnson, who is already nearing all-star levels. But the show was juggling so much - Ben's failed business prospects! Kate's insecurities as a single mother! Being happy with yourself! - that it never quite stuck the landing on any of it. All of these themes are viable directions for the characters and would've been better off in separate episodes, rather than being crammed into one. Still, an episode that ended with a fake newscast by Ben and BJ which included the line "the only safe squirrel is a dead squirrel" can't be all that bad.

New Girl kicked off 2013 in pretty strong fashion, though. "Cabin" was a solid showing of everything the show does well - excellent character moments, a handful of top-notch Nick Miller speeches, and subtlety impressive characterization. Really, the entire episode could've just been the two couples in the cabin getting drunk and acting ridiculous, and it would've been a quality half-hour of television. But, as has become typical with New Girl, the show yearns for something more, so "Cabin" was both hilarious and a clear set-up for upcoming character movement. The show in particular seems to be building towards some kind of revelation for Nick, trying to figure out what it is he truly wants. Clearly, what he wanted wasn't Angie, someone completely out of his comfort zone who he thought "pushed him forward" but really just confused both of them. Having the episode end with Nick, freshly dumped by Angie, not quite processing his break-up was an interesting choice, and one that sets up a lot of interesting territory for the next few episodes. But I would be lying if I said my favorite part of the episode wasn't B-plot - a delightfully cringe-worthy story about Schmidt demonstrating some hardcore reverse racism and trying to get Winston to "embrace his culture". It's not really a sweeping statement to say that the scene where Schmidt and Winston invite a man into their car and the three of them proceed to think they're robbing each other is the funniest TV scene of 2013 so far, but I feel like it might hold that title for a while.

Happy Endings had two offerings this week, one on Sunday and another one tonight. Why ABC is doing this is...not really as exciting as it seems, they just needed something to fill the hole 666 Park Avenue left and they happened to have unscheduled episodes of Happy Endings/Apartment 23. Anyway, Sunday's episode was Happy Endings at its playful best, throwing out two comfortingly wacky plotlines and watching its actors sell the hell out of them. I thought tonight's episode, though, was the show's weakest in quite a while. The fact that I still laughed pretty much through-out the entire thing goes to show just how consistently satisfying the show has been lately, but I thought the plots were all pretty dull and just never really came together. I was surprised, in particular, with how straight the show played the pretty generic pop star plot. Typically, Happy Endings will take a stock sitcom storyline and tweak it to fit their own outlandish style - like how Sunday's episode looked like it was going to have a groan-worthy "characters break something while their friend is away and try to fix it" plot, until said characters end up killing their friends' racist parrot in the process. But tonight's plotlines - especially the pop star one - were pretty much straight out of Sitcoms 101. The exception would probably be Max's plotline, which did a typically great job of subverting a lot of gay stereotypes to tell a weirdly meaningful and simultaneously bizarre story about Max's sexuality. The other two had plenty of laughs, but ultimately lacked that spark that makes for a truly great Happy Endings.

Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 has been seriously fucked over by ABC's weird scheduling decisions. After Sunday's episode put June in a new job and had Mark almost ready to admit his feelings for her, tonight's episode - a holdover from Season 1 - hit the reset button and put her back in the coffee shop while Mark just started to realize he had any feelings for June. Despite all that, both of this week's episodes of the show were really good, demonstrating the show's impressive ability to put together an incredibly ridiculously and cartoonish half-hour and still somehow make us care about the characters in them. In fact, if you take tonight's episode and stack it up against Sunday's (produced much later) episode, you can see how much the characters have grown over the course of the show's run - particularly June, who's gone from a Chuckie Finster "I don't know if that's such a good ideaaaa, Chloe" type to someone who can be just as cunning as Chloe herself, in her own way. I mean, tonight's episode had her desperately trying to win the love and respect of her neighbors, while Sunday's episode had her stabbing her nemesis at work. That's some excellent character work. Maybe one day we'll get to see in the order it was supposed to happen.

I don't even really have anything to say about The Mindy Project anymore, other than the usual "it should be so much better" type of stuff that everyone on the internet is already saying. At this point, it just feels like the show is about absolutely nothing - the plots are all meaningless, just about every character other than Mindy, Danny, and maybe Morgan is totally disposable, and the show doesn't even really have a central focus other than "Mindy's a mess" anymore. Tonight's episode could have been a nice story about Mindy's relationship with her brother, and it could've provided us with some nice-needed characterization for the show's problematic lead character. Instead, it...ended with a broad and not all that funny rap number where Mindy had to stand in for her brother's back-up singer and sing dirty lines to him, and...that was it. The show has just added two more great comedy writers to its staff - 30 Rock alumni Jack Burditt and Tracey Wingfield. Let's hope they can get this show on track. I mean, no one else could, but...

Oh, and I also watched the cable premiere of Cougar Town. I've only sporadically watched the show, but I did watch the premiere and I enjoyed it quite a bit. It's one of those shows on my backlog to catch up with, and I'm hoping to do so as soon as possible. I'm planning on writing something about what the show's move to cable could potentially mean for the broadcast sitcom soon, so I'll talk about it a little more in-depth there, if it happens!