10 Binge-Worthy Shows

Article first published as 10 Binge-Worthy Shows on Seat42F.

The leaves are turning, the air is growing chillier, and it’s beginning to be the season where a lot of us just want to curl up on the couch and stay inside. For just such an occasion, I have a list of ten television dramas (sorry comedy fans) that would make great binge-watching projects this winter. They are not in any particular order, but all are worthy of your time.

Gilmore Girls ~ Last week, Netflix announced it was making a brand new season of Gilmore Girls! What better time to relive the seven previous years than right now? Netflix has the entire quirky, charming series ready to welcome you back to Stars Hollow. Just have some tissues ready whenever Richard Gilmore comes on screen. His presence will definitely be missed when the show returns.

The X-Files ~ Similarly, FOX is bringing back The X-Files in January. Some people say it may be a little late to tackle all nine seasons, but personally, I think it’s a challenge to accept. You’ll get all the Mulder and Scully, all the weird aliens, and all the Smoking Man. Just login to Netflix or Hulu and let the marathon begin! (And invite me over, because this is the one show on this list that I haven’t managed to get to yet, but I know it’s awesome!)

Lost ~ For my money, Lost is one of the best shows ever made. The twisty ABC drama kept fans obsessed and guessing for six years, all of which are now free for Netflix subscribers. This is definitely a series that begs for binge-watching, as so many little details dropped in one hour matter several installments later. The ending was admittedly polarizing for fans, but if you enjoy character-driven programs, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ~ As far as rewatchability goes, Buffy is at the top of my list. The tale of the Slayer, who faces the demons and forces of darkness, never gets old. From the goofy high school days, to the uber-depressing sixth season, to the heart-breaking series finale, Buffy is great all the way through. It’s the perfect mix of humor, action, and compelling drama. And while you’re at it, stay on the Joss Whedon kick and go through Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. (On Netflix and Hulu.)

Fargo ~ Looking for a show that’s still on the air to get into? Might I recommend FX’s Fargo? Season two just began, so you can plow (sic) through the first year’s ten episodes in a weekend on Hulu, if you’re so inclined. It’s an outrageous show in the style of ‘true crime,’ with a top-notch cast that includes Martin Freeman, Oliver Platt, Kate Walsh, Colin Hanks, Keith Carradine, Allison Tolman, Key & Peele, and, surprisingly enough, Billy Bob Thornton. (Trust me, Thornton is the best you’ve ever seen him.) Whether you’ve seen the movie or not, you should definitely check out the series, which tells a different tale. And season two has a new cast and story, so you can jump in at any time.

The Wire ~ Are you tired of all your friends telling you that The Wire is the absolute best show ever made and you having no frame of reference? I was, too, but now I’m almost done with season one, and I totally get it. Last year, HBO released all five seasons of the David Simon drama in HD for the first time ever. If you already have an HBO subscription through your cable company, you can login via HBO Go to watch. If not, HBO Now is available as a stand-alone service you can sign up for directly, and if you start soon, you’ll be all ready when Game of Thrones comes back in the spring. (Or binge watch Game of Thrones on the service, too.) Simon’s excellent Treme is another great one to check out.

Justified ~ Like Westerns? FX has a doozy of one that recently came to an end in Justified. Starring Timothy Olyphant, each of the six seasons found a lawman tangling with various gangsters and locals in the underpopulated, heavily treed state of Kentucky. The first scene of the pilot will hook you right away, Olyphant’s smoldering hero radiating cool, and the ending of the show is about as perfect as any series finale I’ve ever borne witness to, with four words just as meaningful as those that famously conclude 1984. It’s all available now on Amazon Prime.

The West Wing ~ If the craziness of the current presidential election primaries are bumming you out, why not go for the ideal administration? President Bartlett saved me from my second-term-Bush woes, and I’m sure he can do the same for you, no matter which side of the aisle you fall on. With a smart, witty staff, whose dialogue is as sharp as the ideals represented, I cannot recommend it enough. Bonus points if you make it an Aaron Sorkin trilogy and take in Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip and The Newsroom as well. (I wanted to recommend Sorkin’s Sports Night, too, but it’s a comedy, and this list is only for dramas.)

Felicity ~ The original Crazy (not quite) Ex-girlfriend, Felicity is a coming-of-age drama about a girl (named Felicity, duh!) who travels across the country for a guy, and it’s available on Hulu. For four seasons, there were only a few hints of weirdness underlying the surface (the shoe box episode, Pink Power Ranger Amy Jo Johnson’s small screen return, Greg Grunberg and Ian Gomez). Then, after the series finale the writers wanted, its forced resurrection resulted in a handful of hours that push the show far outside of its genre, and give answer to the concerns of those that think Felicity ultimately chose the wrong guy. Plus, see Jennifer Garner before she was famous! (Then continue on the J.J. Abrams train and check out Alias, which features Bradley Cooper before he was famous.)

Star Trek: Deep Space 9 ~ What can I say? I’ve been a Trekkie since long before I got into television. Deep Space 9 has always been the black sheep of the franchise, never being on the air alone, trapped between more popular siblings The Next Generation and Voyager. Yet, being confined to a single locale made it different than any other Star Trek series. Seven years of religion, politics, hopeless war, and a recurring cast of dozens make this one of my favorite shows of all time, and if you missed the overlooked gem, now is the time to redeem yourself. It is available on both Netflix and Hulu.

Honorable mentions ~ The original programs made by the streaming services themselves! We’re still in the early days of high-quality, long-form shows that you can’t get in your cable package. But from Netflix’s House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, to Amazon’s Transparent and Mozart in the Jungle, to Hulu’s… well, Hulu will get there some day, there are very good shows on a variety of platforms. Scroll through the offerings on each of these, and you’re likely to come across some really neat stuff.

When Good Shows Go Bad

Article first published as When Good Shows Go Bad on Blogcritics.


NBC's The Office was once one of the most praised, funniest sitcoms on network television. Community, on the same channel, was a brilliant, creative, original show that broke all the traditional bounds of what sitcoms were capable of. FOX's House was an intelligent character study wrapped in a medical procedural. What do these all have in common? They were great shows that fell apart in the end.

Although I list House, which I still enjoyed through to the end, even if I admit I see the point many make about the creative sagging of the final couple of years, this is usually more of a sitcom problem. A show that is funny and beloved will frequently age and tarnish. I think it's something about a certain type of comedy that just begins to wear thin over time. Jokes are only good for so long, and then they stop getting a laugh out of us. If a comedy series doesn't adapt and grow with its audience, rather than deliver the same thing over and over again, it begins to wither and die.

This isn't a new phenomenon. Many criticized Friends as it approached its end, frustrated with an unrealistic Joey / Rachel romance. The Seinfeld series finale is renowned for how much it disappointed fans. But it's also not going away, as The Office and Community prove. A show that once delighted can go sour.

Perhaps it's a lack of passion. A new show runner may feel edgy and their creative juices may flow, but they can get tired after awhile of working with the same characters and premises. Or new writing staffs may come in and just not understand what makes the characters tick.

The latter is definitely true for Community. Abed used to be the linchpin that made the series work. Even in the installments that could be considered filler, his keen eye and specific viewpoint always made things rise above what seemed to be happening on the surface. Now in its fourth year, with series creator Dan Harmon ousted from the project, Abed is easily the worst character in the ensemble, and the show suffers mightily for it. It may go off the air for good this week, with no fanfare and a very unsatisfying ending.


The Office, on the other hand, is taking its victory lap. It struggled to find its way after losing the star of the show, Steve Carell, and his wonderful Michael Scott. After over a year of floundering, the team threw in the towel and began gearing up to send the characters grandly off into the sunset. It's made the show seem a little better, with the players having some direction and the plot getting movement. But it's curtain call, which, while well deserved, should have come much earlier.

A series can pull itself out of a creative rut. After several strong initial seasons, CBS's How I Met Your Mother spiraled into unfunny drivel for a few years. It clawed its way back to being good by adding emotional heft. This was present in the beginning of the show, of course, before disappearing, but now it's the bread and butter of every installment, with the drama being of a far better quality than the comedy. Even as the final push begins, as next season will be its last, all the major stories are based on pathos, not gags.

But reinvention isn't always possible. Sometimes it's better just to end things, whether the show's story gets tied up or not. NBC pulled Heroes after a fourth season cliffhanger, and ABC didn't give Brothers & Sisters its due five years in. But neither of these series were worth watching anymore, and the networks decided to cut their losses and move on. This outraged fans, but most soon forgot about it.

Maybe we'll never know exactly why our favorite shows can't remain our favorite shows forever. For every Lost and Battlestar Galactica, which maintained quality through the finish line, even with polarizing swan songs, there are plenty like The X-Files or Veronica Mars, which just never recaptured what once made them so special. I'm sorry Veronica Mars fans, I've donated to the Kickstarted campaign and am greatly looking forward to the film, but it's true that each of the three seasons was weaker than the one before it. Storytelling is a tricky thing.


I do think series tend to be better if they maintain one creative vision. Gilmore Girls and The West Wing faltered after losing their guiding person (though the latter eventually found its stride again). A single voice having control allows better consistency than a production team; ask George R.R. Martin. However, if The Walking Dead can continue to thrive, even though it is now on its fourth show runner, this can't adequately explain away the phenomenon.

Taste is not only varied, it is fickle. Catching lightening in the bottle takes a high degree of skill and luck, but to cultivate that lightening and to not let it burn out for one hundred and fifty or two hundred episodes is a very rare feat. Maybe this could be solved with shorter seasons, like the cable channels tend to do, as you'll notice I've mainly talked about programs on the broadcast networks. But systems are slow to change, and there doesn't seem to be movement on that front.

Awesome television that doesn't age well will always be a part of life, sadly. For now, I guess we just enjoy what's good while it lasts.

Bunheads takes a bow

ABC Family's Bunheads completes its summer run with "A Nutcracker in Paradise." While things were looking up for most of the characters going into the week, this episode ends in disaster. Michelle (Sutton Foster) not only manages to run off Fanny's (Kelly Bishop) beau, but also mace the entire dance company in the middle of a performance of The Nutcracker. Not even a stunt straight out of Dead Poets Society can save her job now!

By the way, are we expected to believe a bunch of teenage girls, especially ones obsessed with dance who have little time for films, are familiar with that movie?

Michelle and Fanny's relationship is the best part of the show. Despite everything that has happened, there is no way that these ladies are done with each other. There might need to be a cooling off period, for sure. But Fanny likes having Michelle around, no matter how grumpy she may act towards the younger woman. And Michelle likes having purpose in the small town, and seems drawn to the dance studio. While she resists settling down, considering returning to performance, this is where she belongs. It won't be easy, but they will make up.

Bunheads does something extremely interesting near the end of "A Nutcracker in Paradise." Hubbell (Alan Ruck) appears to Michelle in a dream, and they talk about her life, and ruminate on if she would have stayed had he not died. Hubbell tells her that this is where she belongs. Michelle resists. It's an inner war that she's been struggling with all season, and while viewers already knew this, it's cool to see it brought to life in such a way. Plus, any return of Ruck is welcome.

Each of the teen dancers featured on Bunheads have come into their own as the season unfolds. Boo (Kaitlyn Jenkins) gets over her shyness and insecurity and lands herself a boyfriend. Ginny (Bailey Buntain) breaks out of her own comfort zone with her long-time steady, realizing that she needs to experience life and try dating other boys. And Melanie (Emma Dumont) accepts her friends for who they are, even as they move on with their interests in guys, which she doesn't seem to quite share yet. These are all normal teenage things.

But Sasha (Julia Goldani Telles) has the biggest journey. Frustrated with a terrible home life, she acts out in self-destructive ways. It isn't until Michelle sits her down and helps her get her head on straight that Sasha can return to her friends and the dancing she is so good at. Her life isn't solved now, and her problems won't get any easier. But she's in a good place as the season comes to an end.

It's understandable that Sasha stands up for Michelle in "A Nutcracker in Paradise," given how Michelle directly helps her, but why do the rest of the girls go along with it? Michelle has drifted into their scenes from time to time and solved a few problems. However, Bunheads has not shown her get too involved in the kids' lives, nor demonstrate a real passion for teaching them. Are they loyal to her because kids tend to be loyal to the adults that just happen to be around? Or should there have been more scenes with Michelle earning this kind of response? Or maybe they were all just following Sasha's lead? That is a debatable question, and the only semi-weak point in the episode.

Bunheads is charming, and with the music and dialogue, as well as the colorful townspeople and quirky jokes (like the unnamed 'ringer' in this episode), it really does feel like a somewhat continuation of Gilmore Girls. For this reason, it would be a crying shame to see it go away. A second half of the season has recently been picked up for winter, rumored to be about eight additional episodes. This isn't a terrible, but it's not a great sign, either, and the show probably needs more viewers if it's going to continue long-term. If you know a Gilmore Girls fan that isn't watching it, please let them know about Bunheads! I know it's on ABC Family, not a popular network among women past the age of eighteen, but they could expand the fan base enough to keep it running. It's very enjoyable, and it deserves to go on.

If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Check out my new website, JeromeWetzel.com! Article first published on TheTVKing

Bunheads, a.k.a. Gilmore Girls 2

Did you ever have a really bad day, and then doing something reckless out of exhaustion, frustration, and possibly under the influence of alcohol? That is exactly the premise that Bunheads begins with. Michelle Simms (Broadway star Sutton Foster) is a Vegas showgirl who has given up on her more ambitious dreams. Failing yet another audition, she accepts the kindness of a dorky man who has long admired her (Alan Ruck, Spin City, Persons Unknown). Which leads to her marrying the guy, and moving in with him and his mother in a sleepy town. Yes, this sounds like the mistake to end all mistakes. But from the mind of Amy Sherman-Palladino, the creator of Gilmore Girls, it is simply the beginning of another quirky, fun series.

It's a bold move to kill off the husband at the end of episode one. It would have been nice to see Michelle with her groom for a bit, and Ruck is a wonderful actor. On the other hand, Michelle didn't love him, and even if they were both OK with that for now, that is a status quo that would not have lingered very long. If Ruck's character hadn't died, Michelle would be back on her way to Vegas soon, or would have had to fall in love with him, which didn't seem a likely scenario, especially not in the short term.

So, instead, Bunheads will be about two women brought together by their connection to a man, and how they move on without him, helping each other in unexpected ways. The second woman in this duo is Fanny Flowers (Kelly Bishop, Gilmore Girls), who is Michelle's mother-in-law. Michelle and Fanny quickly discover that, despite a rocky introduction, they have a lot in common. Their bickering is reminiscent of Bishop's previous character's mother-daughter relationship, and remembering that, it's hard not to see warmness present under the surface. These two gals will find their way, probably learning to rely more on each other than either would like to believe right now.

Michelle and Funny have a mission: to turn a young group of girls into fine dancers. This group is less developed in the first episode than the older women, but the basics are there, and surely they will be a large part of the show going forward. Sasha (Julia Goldani Telles) has all of the talent, but none of the desire. Boo (Kaitlyn Jenkins) is the exact opposite, desperately wanting her dream, but lacking in coordination. Melanie (Emma Dumont) just wants to have fun, while Ginny (Bailey Buntain) worries she doesn't have the right build to be a ballerina. Surely, they will all grow and become fantastic. The fun isn't in knowing the outcome, but instead, enjoying their witty dialogue and slow growth. With a cast this good, it should be thoroughly entertaining.

Like Gilmore Girls, Bunheads is set in a sleepy little town, which will likely provide much of the show's charm, as well as a sizable supporting cast of oddballs. In the pilot, viewers are introduced to Truly Stone (Stacey Oristano, Friday Night Lights), a dressmaker and clothing store owner who is in love with Michelle's husband. If the other, soon to be introduced, players are half as interesting as she is, Bunheads has it made.

Yes, it does feel a little bit like Emily Gilmore took over Miss Patty's life on Gilmore Girls and gained a new, unwanted replacement for her daughter, who has the same smart mouth and lack of style. Fanny's dance studio even looks like Miss Patty's! When will Kurt wander in? But for fans of GG, what's so wrong with that? This will definitely fill a void for those missing the show, and it looks like Bunheads is made with the same high quality, and just as much warmth. For that, I am most grateful.

Plus, being on cable, it might get a little more love than network TV would show it. Watch Bunheads Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC Family.

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Necessary Roughness - "Pilot"

     USA's newest drama is Necessary Roughness, which premiered this Wednesday night. The central character in the pilot is therapist Dr. Dani Santino (Callie Thorne, Rescue Me, The Wire), who, as soon as the series starts, learns that her husband of seventeen years, Ray (Craig Bierko, Boston Legal, Damages) has been cheating on her... a lot. She dumps him, and six weeks later, while still pursuing her divorce, she meets Matthew (Marc Blucas, Buffy the Vampire Slayer). They fall into bed, but their relationship changes dramatically when Matthew introduces Dani to his boss, a football coach. Dani is asked to help a star player who has been faltering named T.K. (Mehcad Brooks, True Blood, Desperate Housewives). Because they are now working together, Dani tells Matthew they can't have a sexual relationship. Dani helps TK, and she is asked to take on more clients.

     Necessary Roughness does, admittedly, break the formula that USA had become mired in, as many of their newer shows do. That is the best compliment it can be paid, because other than that, the "Pilot" does not impress. Thorne herself is grating, and less than likeable. That's not an excuse for her character's husband to cheat on her, of course, as she claims to have been the "perfect wife and mother," but that self-made claim rings hollow as her husband and kids lie to her. Did she ever really have a handle on what is going on in her household? She seems to have her own set of morals and codes, which are abstract and have a shifting morality line.

     Dani's quick "miracle" with TK is much less than realistic. Considering that is the biggest premise in the first episode, it should have been handled better. Sure, it takes Dani days, maybe even a couple of weeks, to get through to TK. But she does, and now all is right with the world. It's strange that TK is a main character, since previews show Dani working with a number of other patients, mostly athletes, many of them not part of the football team. It is unknown at this time what exactly the structure of the show will be, but other than Dani, the other main characters all connected to one football organization. This makes the trailer confusing.

     Besides Dani, TK, and Matthew, Nico (Scott Cohen, Law & Order: Trail By Jury, Gilmore Girls) is the other member of the main cast. He is a guy who "takes care of things" for the football team. His mystery, which, of course, has the violent underpinnings, is what makes him interesting. And while similar characters have been done numerous times before, they've seldom been as intriguing as Cohen, who radiates the necessary "it." If Necessary Roughness is to be interesting in the long term, the greatest chance lies with focus, but not too much detail, on Nico. Audiences should be kept guessing his motivations and his actual actions, but he needs to have a hand in everything.

     Brooks also handles his part with relative ease. He is, after all, a veteran of a number of fine television shows, and knows how to capture an essence by now. Even if his plot falls a little flat, it's not to be blamed on the actor. Blucas has grown a lot since Buffy, and also is an acceptable performer, though isn't given a lot to work with. Not sure why his character puts up with Dani's no sex rule, the reasoning behind it being weak, at best. Matthew needs to grow a little backbone to rise from flat, straight, supporting, mostly silent man. Otherwise, there's not much of a reason to keep him around.

     To see if Necessary Roughness progresses anywhere after its "Pilot," tune in on USA Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. ET.

     If you missed "Pilot," you can get it streaming for free by clicking here.

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Doc Martin Collection: Series 1-4 on DVD

     Acorn Media recently released Doc Martin Collection: Series 1-4 on DVD. While parts of this set have previously been available separately, this is the first time the whole series (thus far) has been released in one collection. In the set are nine discs with thirty episodes, including the feature-length Christmas special that aired after Series 2. This show is on ITV in the UK and airs on PBS in the states.

     Doc Martin stars Martin Clunes (Demob, British Men Behaving Badly) as the titular character, a surgeon who finally sees his patients as people, not just bodies, and can no longer stomach the sight of blood. As such, he packs up and moves to the small seaside town where his Auntie Joan (Stephanie Cole, Coronation Street, Tenko) resides, Portwenn, and becomes their local general practitioner. Doctor Martin Ellingham has a few chips on his shoulder, and thus clashes with the colorful locals, finding their personable ways annoying. He especially doesn't not like the nickname Doc Martin, which they bestow on him immediately upon arrival.

     Clunes handles the comedy beautifully, both physical and subtle. The character is a little like [H]ouse, M.D., though not quite as abusive, and a little more accepting of his flaws. No drug addictions here. A particularly funny recurring gag is the dog that seems to come with the house and practice that Martin does not want.

     In the first series, Martin repeatedly makes mistakes that alienates all of the locals, who in a group mentality, cut him off and refuse to deal with him. Once he solves the medical conundrum and saves some lives, they realize he's not so bad, and open back up to him. This becomes less drastic as the series goes on, and it appears the townspeople are accepting him and ribbing him as one of their own.

     The town itself is a bit like Stars Hallow from Gilmore Girls, with each recurring character having their own eccentricities and position within the larger group. They treat their town as their own, self-sustaining world, with many having little use to travel beyond its borders, as there is plenty to get out of life staying right here. That being said, it's also realistic, and the younger people do like popular music and actors, so it's not completely isolated. And the scenery is beautiful.

     Among the denizens of Portwenn are Louisa (Caroline Catz, The Vice), a school teacher who is a love interest for Martin, Bert (Ian McNeice, Doctor Who, Rome), a handyman for all occasions, Al (Joe Absolom, EastEnders), Bert's computer savvy son, Mark (Stewart Wright), the eager and sweet local cop, and Elaine (Lucy Punch, The Class, Dinner for Schmucks), his inept assistant who he cannot fire without risking being running out of town on a rail, should a rail be found. Some of these people leave, and new ones arrive, but I won't elaborate further, as I wouldn't want to spoil anything.

     It's honestly a very charming series. There is comedy, and also some heart. "Delightfully quirky" is how the Los Angeles Times describes it, and it would be hard to find a better adjective. Confident in what it does, Doc Martin is a refined formula that provides much enjoyment. The humor isn't very edgy, nor the drama too melodramatic, but it is definitely an enjoyable way to spend a few hours.

     As for bonus features, there are none to speak of. Just a few photo galleries, cast trivia, and filmographies, things easily found online, that don't really add anything to the experience. But, like many releases from overseas, it's nice enough to have the episodes to watch, that anything else isn't really necessary anyway.

     Doc Martin will return to ITV and PBS soon, but in the meantime, be sure to buy Doc Martin Collection: Series 1-4, on sale now.

     If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Click here for all of my Current Season Reviews.

Article first published as DVD Review: Doc Martin Collection: Series 1-4 on Blogcritics.

I keep giving Mike & Molly chances, but...

     Five episodes.  Five half hours of my life I have devoted to watching CBS's new sitcom, Mike & Molly, and I'm left wondering, why?  There are two reasons I tuned in: Melissa McCarthy (Gilmore Girls) and Swoosie Kurtz (Pushing Daisies), both wonderful actresses in the right show, but even they aren't really enticing me.  Melissa's Molly is a harder character to like than even her stint on Samantha Who?, in which I, unfortunately, considered her a weak point.  I was hoping she'd get closer to Sookie in this role, who I really rooted for as she fell for Jackson, but sadly, no.  Swoosie plays a drunk, mean mother who isn't the least bit charming, and barely funny.

     That's the problem with the show.  It's barely funny.  It has gotten decent ratings so far.  It's from the genius who brought us the awesome series, The Big Bang Theory.  Unfortunately, said 'genius' also brought us Two and a Half Men, which despite great ratings, is a terrible show.  Mike & Molly falls somewhere between the two.

     I'm not offended by the fat people story, or the fat people jokes.  I think it's sweet when two people find each other, and Molly and Mike (Billy Gardell) seem pretty well matched.  The show keeps telling us that that's true.  Except, I don't sense a lot of chemistry there.  Again, I point to Sookie on Jackson on Gilmore Girls as a good example of chemistry, and this is not it.

     All of the supporting characters are one-note and pretty much useless.  Molly's sister, Victoria (Katy Mixon) would be nice comic relief, if anything she ever said was humorous.  Her sluttiness and drug use is much more sad than funny.  I can't figure out why Samuel (Nyambi Nyambi) is on the series at all.  Perhaps as a recurring guest star at the main characters' favorite dining establishment, he may have been ok.  But as a main character himself, being forced into plots he doesn't belong in, it falls more than flat.  Carl (Reno Wilson) is probably the most likeable.  His bromance with Mike is believable and nice.  Recent plot involved his jealousy over his best friend spending so much time with his new girlfriend, and that was probably the best part of the whole thing so far.

     The main problem is that here is a sitcom that isn't funny.  Sure, Mike and Molly have their share of trials as the inevitably grow closer.  The premise removes all romantic tension on whether they will get together.  But the things they do and say aren't charming, aren't laughter enducing, and oftentimes, it's obvious the writers are just trying too hard for a laugh.  A performer shouting "Look at me!  I'm doing something hilarious!" never is.

     I'd like to tell you to watch Mike & Molly, but I can't in good conscience do that.  I'd like to tell you that Mike & Molly has been canceled, but I can't do that either.  It looks destined to become one of those semi-long-running mediorce-at-best shows that is on the air for reasons I can't explain.  Or who knows?  Maybe eventually it will grow into itself.  Or retool in a way that improves the show a lot.  If you'd like to check it out and form your own opinions, Mike & Molly airs Monday nights at 9:30..

For frequent mini-reviews and occasional tv news, follow Jerome on Twitter.

Parenthood ties it all up

     Perhaps when the writers of NBC's new show Parenthood began working on the season finale, "Lost and Found", they weren't sure they were going to get a second season.  Or maybe they just don't believe in summer cliffhangers.  For whatever reason, though the entire Braverman clan will be back next fall, things wrapped up nice and neat by the end of this year.

     A big plot twist that has been playing out is the separation of grandparents Zeke (Craig T. Nelson) and Camille (Bonnie Bedelia).  It's kind of like if William Walker hadn't died in the pilot of Brothers & Sisters, but his secrets had come out anyway.  Zeke hid financial issues and adultery from his wife, who finally got fed up and left him.  But though he had trouble expressing his emotions, Zeke still showed up in front of the rest of the family to serenade her.  And while that was the end of the episode, so viewers didn't get to see a true reconciliation, it left things in a good place between the two eldest members of the family.  I certainly understand Camille feeling invisible; I barely noticed her when the series began.  However, they both delivered great performances.

     Also wonderful, and the biggest departure from the movie of the same name, is the arc had by Crosby (Dax Shepard).  As the season wound down, the mother of his son, Jasmine (Joy Bryant) got a job in New York.  Even though they have begun dating and become like a family, she decided to pack up her kid take the opportunity across the country.  Though Crosby has known of Jabbar (Tyree Brown) for only a short time, the two of them have bonded instantly and solidly, best evidence when Jabbar asked if he could call him Dad this week.  Instead of trying to convince Jasmine to give up her dream, or risk loosing any momentum with Jabbar, Crosby decides to leave the rest of his family behind and go with them.  He is proving himself an excellent father.

     Perhaps the best thing to come out of a show with so many great aspects is steady work for two people already well established as television stars, Peter Krause (Six Feet Under, Sports Night) and Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls).  Now rumored to be dating in real life, they play brother and sister Adam and Sarah on the show.  Their families were in conflict during the last couple of episodes, due to their daughters Haddie (Sarah Ramos) and Amber (Mae Whitman) fighting over a boy.  On a side note, the two girls making up will make you cry if you have emotions at all.  Anyway, amid all the conflict, the two of them really shine.  Though it's still hard to separate them from past characters they've played, as their are plenty of similarities to be found, it's an absolute joy to see them every week.

     I apologize if this review just seems like a love fest.  That's because it is.  A talented cast, smart writing, and heartwarming relationships leave little to complain about.  There's nothing exactly like it on television right now.  If you haven't yet, please check it out when it returns next fall.