Terriers yet another quirky crime show?

    FX has television's newest crime show, Terriers, though I'm sure it won't hold that 'new' status for long. Why are crime dramas the most common type of series on television? Sure, I get the draw of a few of them. Bones, for one, has a very eclectic cast played by extremely talented actors, so I watch it. Plus there is personal development and arcs that last through multiple episodes. FX has delivered two unique shows that can barely be called crime shows: Damages and Justified. I am fans of both of those as well. But with the huge overpopulation of the CSI and Law & Order franchises, as well as the failure of most crime investigation shows to break a procedural mold, I am by and large against them. USA is the one network that strikes a delicate balance, winning and losing in almost equal parts.

     I can't tell from the pilot which side of the coin that Terriers lands on. On one hand, there was one case that was solved in the hour. On the other, there is a very interesting character in Hank Dolworth, a recovering alcoholic pining over his ex-wife. He is played by Donal Logue (Life). I have seen Logue before, but certainly never with this much depth. It is a role of a lifetime for him. He is a former cop who now goes around with his best friend Britt (Michael Raymond-James, True Blood) and, while sometimes getting in the way of the cops, finding things that are lost. Or at least, that's how they're described in the pilot. I liked Raymond-James better in his last series. He plays the dumb sidekick here, but not as well as plenty of other actors have played it.

     The only other notable star is Rockmond Dunbar (Prison Break) as Dolworth's former partner, Detective Mark Gustafson, who is still on the force. Dolworth's lawyer, Maggie (Jamie Denbo), is okay, and might possibly have potential. Both Britt's girlfriend Katie (Laura Allen, Dirt) and Dolworth's ex-wife, Gretchen (Kimberly Quinn) don't really add anything new to the mix. The question is, will these side characters become important, or will the entire series be about Dolworth? And if it is, can television support another single character-driven procedural? I'm thinking not.

     I'll give the show another chance, given the excellent network it airs on, but at this point, I'm not optimistic. If you'd like to check out Terriers, it's on FX Wednesdays at 10pm, and the pilot will surely rerun this weekend.


Article first published as TV Review: Terriers Yet Another Quirky crime Show? on Blogcritics.

Vampire Diaries back with The Return

*Before you begin, need a refresher on the finale?  Here's my review from last spring.

     Tonight at 8pm is the long-awaited second season premiere of the CW hit, The Vampire Diaries.  In my press materials, I have been instructed not to tell you "who lives, who dies, who remains mortal, who vamps out, etc."  So I won't.  No major spoilers are below, although there are a few minor ones.  There are still a few things I can talk about without ruining the mystery.  For instance, this episode begins on the same night that the season finale ends, and goes through shortly after the mayor's funeral.

     When last season ended, a number of characters were in mortal peril.  Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) had tried to off himself with a bottle of pills.  Caroline (Candice Accola) was in a car accident.  And Uncle John (David Anders) had been stabbed by the newly returned, but often talked about, vampire Katherine (Nina Dobrev).  I am happy and sorry to report that one of these three appears to make it through their peril, only to be apparently killed before the end credits roll, though I won't say which one.  I also, unfortunately cannot give the fates of the other two.  But I so want to!  Of course, with this show, even seeing someone get killed doesn't mean they are gone for good.  There are too many possibilities.  And the one whose death I referred to up above may not even really be dead, though I suspect that he or she is.

     Katherine is, of course, the focus of tonight's season premiere, and probably the season.  Nina Dobrev gets to stretch her acting skills, proving she can portray two different people in Katherine and Elena, although, you're not always sure which one she is when the scene begins.  Hopefully the writer's will keep it easy to follow.  Fortunately, the secret that Katherine is back is not kept a secret for long, and soon many characters know that she is in Mystic Falls.  Dobrev has plenty of fun, getting into physical fights with both Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder).  Katherine also tells one brother that she has comes back for them, while telling the other that she never actually had feelings for him.  Again, I won't reveal which is which.  But it's good stuff.  Oh, and she stabs one of them.  I will say that "The Return" is a very strong Damon episode, and fans of the bad boy will not be disappointed.  It's some of Somerhalder's best work.

     The other plot point that will surely have far reaching effects in the premiere is the quick arrival in town is Mason Lockwood (Taylor Kinney, Trauma), who has come to grieve his departed brother.  What this will mean for Mason's nephew, Tyler (Michael Trevino) is still up in the air.  And why Tyler and his father were affected by the anti-vampire device last season has not yet been explained, but at least one character seems to know why.

     The Vampire Diaries will be back tonight at 8pm on the CW.

Less than impressed with Nikita

     What can I say about the CW's Nikita? 'Lots of potential, slow start' sums up the pilot pretty good. Nikita is a character many audiences are familiar with, having been the subject of a movie and a cable series. But now she's back in an updated series, complete with action and espionage. And, surprisingly for the CW, a lack of teenage angst.

     Maggie Q (Mission: Impossible III) carries the title character in this incarnation, and it's hard to argue that she's not bada**. In the highpoint of the pilot, which was unfortunately spoiled in the trailer, Nikita confronts her enemies in a crowded party, and has an escape plan good enough that she can do so with confidence. What said enemies don't know is that she already has an hook in their organization, besides once being a part of it, but I'll leave that surprise for you.

     Nikita's foes are a government organization that train young people to do their bidding, whatever they decide it is. Nikita was once a member of that organization, but now wants to take them down. Fans of the previous versions already know that. This new series also stars Lyndsy Fonseca as a new recruit in the group named Alex, just beginning her schooling. Lyndsy is a fairly big television star, having had substantial roles already on How I Met Your Mother and Desperate Housewives, as well as appearing in the movies Hot Tub Time Machine and Kick-Ass. Shane West (ER, Once and Again) plays her trainer, Michael, who also has a history with Nikita. The cast also includes Xander Berkeley (24) and Melinda Clarke (The OC). So the new show brings a bit of star power with it.

     I can't put my finger on why I didn't love this pilot. Perhaps when I see it a second time, I will. There's obviously some great driving motivations, and there are a number of twists that surprised me, which I won't spoil for you, just in the first hour. But I will say check it out and make up your own mind.


     Nikita premieres tomorrow night at 9pm on the CW.

Hellcats about to raise some hell

   By now you've probably heard the bad reviews of the CW's Hellcats. I certainly had, and that's why I never got around to watching the preview DVD they sent me at the beginning of the summer. However, I got a second version of the pilot from them last week, and I'm happy to report, it was pretty good.

     The show stars Aly Michalka as Marti Perkins, a smart girl studying law who loses her scholarship. Desperately searching for a way to stay in school, Marti finds out that cheerleading offers a scholarship. Despite considering all cheerleaders brainless groupies, she decides to put her past gymnastic skills to work and tries out. She can't quite keep up with their routines, but with a little improvisation, she impresses the coach and captain enough to earn a place on the squad.

     Speaking of the captain, she is Savannah, played by Ashley Tisdale, star of the High School Musical series. The quote that best personifies her is, "If we're going to improvise, shouldn't we make some kind of plan?" She's uptight, but dedicated to her team, and willing to do whatever it takes to win, even if that means befriending Marti after the blond trash talked everything that she loves. This part shows that Tisdale does have acting chops beyond Disney movies, and she was my favorite part of the pilot.

     The cast also includes a love triangle, naturally. Robbie Jones (One Tree Hill) is Lewis Flynn, Marti's new cheerleading partner. Dan (Matt Barr) has been Marti's best friend since childhood, although she doesn't seem him as anything more. Both are definitely into her, and both would make a good pairing, although I'm learning towards Team Lewis. I also enjoyed Sharon Leal (Dreamgirls, Private Practice) as the coach and the always fantastic D.B. Woodside (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, 24) as her boyfriend slash team doctor. Not so thrilled with the villain of the piece, Alice (Heather Hemmens), whom Marti replaces after her injury. But perhaps that's because she's doing a good job being unlikeable. Nor did I like, surprisingly, Gail O'Grady (Boston Legal, American Dreams) as Marti's alcoholic mess of a mother. But again, I'm not sure I was meant to.

      Hellcats premieres tomorrow night (Wednesday) on the CW at 9pm.



Article first published as TV Preview: Hellcats About to Raise Some Hell on Blogcritics.

Thinervention With Jack Warner

    Two years ago, Bravo canceled a popular show called Work Out amid much controversy and drama, cause by comments that may or may not have been said by trainer and owner Jackie Warner about a breast cancer survivor's implants. While much about what happened hasn't been revealed publicly, it meant the end to one of the few reality shows I enjoyed and watched. Now, however, Jackie has returned with a new show called Thintervention With Jackie Warner on the same network.

     The new show differs quite a bit from the old one. Sky Sport Spa, Jackie's gym, is no longer the setting, though she has a new gym. All of the other trainers, who created such interesting drama, are also gone, replaced by one assistant, Craig Ramsay, who appeared very little in the first episode, and only in the context of helping train. Similarly, there is also a therapist, but she is shown only while in session.

     In fact, the focus has shifted from the people doing the training to the trainees themselves. Eight clients are trying to loose varying amount of weight. One some viewers may recognize as former cast member Jeana Keough from another Bravo show, Real Housewives of Orange County, now divorced and plumped up. I never watched her former show, so I don't know how she currently compares to when she was last seen, but that's the impression given by her conversations so far. The other contestants were no one I had heard of or seen before. Jeana seems to have a bit of a crush on fellow contestant Joe, but the only one that stood out to me in the pilot is Nikki, a frequent smoker and drinker who does not wish to give up the lifestyle.

     As far as reality shows go, this one is typical. Meaning, I will not be watching it. But if you are into weight loss types of programs, this one may be fore you. Thintervention With Jackie Warner airs Mondays nights at 10pm on Bravo.

Article first published as TV Review: Thintervention With Jackie Warner on Blogcritics.

Big Lake almost a disappointment

     Comedy Central's Big Lake comes from some big names in comedy. However, it would be hard to tell that from watching the show. Set in an average sized community in middle America, the plot began when Josh (Chris Gethard) lost all of his money, and all of his clients' money, including everything his parents had, and then moved back in on their couch. I'm not sure what exactly Josh's job was, but the point is that he is a huge disappointment to his folks and now lives with them. Josh is very creative, but can't seem to get any of his ideas off the ground, which makes you wonder how he got the job he previously had in the first place.

      Josh's family has some talent in it. His mother is played by Deborah Rush (Strangers With Candy), a comic genius in my opinion, whose talent is wasted on this project. His father is portrayed by James Rebhorn (White Collar), whom usually does more dramatic roles, but can certainly do comedy. His younger brother, who at the age of twelve has already dropped out of school and seems to run all organized crime in their town, is Dylan Blue. Each of these actors is strong. Each of them struggle to make bad writing funny, and succeed at it more often than expected.

      Now that he's back home, Josh begins to hang out with his townie best friend, Glenn (Horatio Sanz, Saturday Night Live), and his former teacher, Chris (Chris Parnell, also SNL). Chris used to be a great mentor, but has given up on his career and does plenty of illegal things that would cost him his license if he ever got caught, which remarkably, he doesn't. By the end of the pilot the three friends have become inseparable and unable to function without each other, which is odd, considering they were used to being alone before the show began.

      And that's the problem. The sitcom plays into cliche and cheesiness, and allows it's characters to be one note. Sure, it's quirky and sometimes funny, but there are so many things wrong with it, it's hard to like it. Yet, I keep watching. Maybe it's the cast. Maybe it's because the show is odder than it should be. I don't know. Something about it draws me in, even if I admit I don't really like it all the much.

      If you want to check out Big Lake for yourself, new episodes air on Comedy Central Tuesday nights at 8 and 8:30pm. But do it quick, because I think it's unlikely to get a second season.


Article first published as TV Review: Big Lake Almost a Disappointment on Blogcritics.

Melissa and Joey delivers classic sitcom

    ABC Family has made it's first decent sitcom with Melissa & Joey, a new show starring Melissa Joan Hart (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch) and Joey Lawrence (Blossom) in the title roles.  Premiering just two weeks ago, the show has earned a season pass from me after four episodes.  The show centers around slightly slutty, slight air-headed Melissa, who has recently inherited a nephew (Nick Robinson) and niece (Taylor Spreitler, Days of Our Lives), and is trying to balance raising them with her busy city worker job.  She also has a funny best friend slash assistant in Rhonda.  Rhonda is played by Elizabeth Ho, her performance mirroring so many other female Asian comedic relief characters of late, and while not standing out, she does it just as well as the others.

     In the pilot, Joey is desperate for a job, and forces his way into her home as a live in nanny / housekeeper.  Turns out that although he has no children, he makes a much better parent that Melissa.  It was a little cheesy and cliche, but it was nice.  He quickly becomes the moral center of the household.  What's more, he seems to be channeling Tony Danza from Who's The Boss?  As the show has gone on, you can easily forget how the situation came to be, and just enjoy the antics.  Which mostly consists of Melissa doing stupid things, and Joey getting her out of trouble.  The kids don't matter much to the story, at least so far.  This show in the brief title sequence, which just features Joey and Melissa.

     Like another cable summer sitcom, Hot in Cleveland, this one feels like it was written and filmed in a different era.  Namely, the golden sitcom era of the 1980's and early 1990's.  The humor is clean, almost bland.  Nothing dangerous or too bad ever happens.  The 'problems' the characters must overcome in each episode are pretty base, and never risky.  I guess that's the charm, though.  Recalling those sitcoms everyone watched when sitcoms ruled the airwaves.  And being prepped by HiC, which grew on me over time, left me open to watch this replacement after the former ended it's summer run.

     Melissa & Joey is far from great television.  A little more quirk and some depth to the characters would do wonders.  But it's just four episodes in, and it has the right ingredients to put on something decent, including two leads who have done it before.  I won't stop watching it anytime soon.

     Melissa & Joey airs Tuesday nights at 8pm, usually with a rerun at 8:30, on ABC Family.

Emmys were good, but a tad unsatisfying

     Last night was the 62nd Annual Emmy Awards, and this morning, the results are a mixed bag.  First, the broadcast itself.  Host Jimmy Fallon did ok.  His singing tribute to 24 and Lost was very cool, but his reading of twitter comments was beyond lame, and he did it multiple times throughout the night.  The cast of Modern Family participated in some funny retooling clips of their show.  The best part, naturally, was the opening sketch.  Jimmy and Tina Fey helped Lea Michele, Corey Monteith, Amber Riley, and Chris Colfer, all from Glee, form a Glee Club.  The other members they picked up included Jon Hamm (Mad Men), a very enthusiastic Nina Dobrev (The Vampire Diaries), the always enjoyable Jorge Garcia (Lost), Joel McHale (Community), the fantastic Jane Lynch (Glee), and last and definitely least, Kate Gosselin (Jon & Kate Plus Eight).  The bit also included appearances by the legendary Betty White, Tim Gunn (Project Runway), and Randy Jackson (American Idol).

     The comedy awards went in an expected fashion.  Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) and Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) took the lead awards, while Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family) and Jane Lynch (Glee) brought home the supporting statues.  While none of these choices was surprising, each was highly deserved.  It was also nice to spread out the gold among four different shows.  Stonestreet's TV husband, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, touchingly has tears in his eyes as Eric went up to the stage.  The much-talked about showdown between Modern Family and Glee for best comedy ended with MF getting the prize.  Again, not surprising, as MF is the more typical comedy of the two, although it was surprising that phenomenon Glee didn't garner more statues.  Most surprising?  Broadcast television swept this category.

     The drama awards were a bit more surprising.  Not the Best Series, which went for the third year in a row to Mad Men, even though I was really pulling for Lost in it's final year.  Although I must ask, for a series that has won top honors three times, why was a new episode aired last night in competition with the Emmys?  Did they want no one to watch it?  Thank goodness for TiVo.  Also, Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) kept his Best Actor streak going  But Best Actress went to Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer), a total mistake in my book, as I was rooting for every other actress in that category!  Cranston's co-star, Aaron Paul, got a well deserved Supporting Actor win, and Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife) rounded out the category.

     In the miniseries and movie genre, Al Pacino (You Don't Know Jack) and Claire Danes took home the top statues, the latter much more deserving than the former, and David Straithairn and Julia Ormond assured that Temple Grandin got three of the four awards.  Grandin also took Outstanding Made for Television Movie, while the Tom Hanks / Steven Spielberg epic The Pacific unsurprisingly won best mini-series.  Grandin and The Pacific were both fantastic, so no complaints there.

     I'd also like to mention that although it would have been oh-so-satisfying for Conan O'Brien's The Tonight Show to win, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart is a nearly flawless program that deserves every kudos it earns, so it someone had to beat Conan, I'm glad it was Jon.

Lost Season 6 worth buying immediately

     It had to end sometime.  After six spectacular seasons, ABC's Lost came to an end last May.  Although Lost usually waits to put out their DVDs until late in the fall, Season 6 is already out, and I highly recommend going to the store and purchasing it at your earliest convenience, if not sooner.  All sixteen episodes, including the two hour premiere and two and a half hour finale are included.  This was the season that tied it all up.  From the flash sideways universe, to Richard (Nestor Carbonell) and Jacob's (Mark Pellegrino) origins, to the tear jerking series finale, it was a hell of a year.

     But, of course, if you're like me, you've already seen the episodes.  The most exciting thing in this DVD release is the special features.  There are a few, though not more you easily get through in a couple hours, audio commentaries aside.  There's here forty minute "THE END: Crafting A Final Season" which shows clips and interviews from throughout the last year.  It brought almost as many tears as the episodes did to me eyes.  "A Hero's Journey" is about how Lost set out to tell the classic hero tale, times sixteen.  "See You in Another Life, Brotha" tackles some of mystery surrounding the sideways universe, and why the alternate characters were always looking in mirrors.  "LOST on Location" takes you to the set for six episodes, mostly revealing how the special effects and water scenes were created.

     The crown jewel of the DVD, and the reason you must buy now, is the twelve minute epilogue to the series, "The New Man in Charge".  It finds Ben Linus (Michael Emerson) arriving at the warehouse that puts together all those nifty food drops to the island to fire the two employees.  Half of the minisode is Ben and the guys watching a tape on the function of the Hydra Station, which didn't reveal a lot of new information, so much as confirmed widely held theories.  And then Ben goes back to Hurley's old mental institution to tie up one of the show's biggest loose ends.  I won't reveal who he finds there, as the surprise was great, but it is a major player who was not brought back like so many others were.  And there's a brief appearance by Hurley (Jorge Garcia), too.

Psych best USA has to offer

    In a network filled with the best procedurals on television, most of the few worth watching, Psych stands out as the current best. Seven episodes (out of nine airing this summer) into it's fifth season, it's also the longest running, with the departure of Monk after eight years last fall. The reason it works so well is it's just so fun! The show stars James Roday and Dulé Hill (The West Wing) as Shawn Spencer and Burton Guster, better known as Gus, but often introduced by Shawn with a variety of odd nicknames. The two make up the Psych detective agency, which works freelance for the Santa Barbara Police Department, helping them solve crimes, frequently involving murder. Shawn pretends to be a psychic, but is just highly observant. Gus, his best friend since childhood, supposedly holds a regular job, which he hasn't been shown at in some time, and is persuaded by Shawn to help out.

     This season, things have changed slightly, now that Shawn's father, retired cop Henry Spencer (Corbin Bernsen, L.A. Law, Major League) has been brought in by the police to coordinate all consultant hires. Although Henry is in on their scheme, he is often helped them in the past, and still does, although sometimes making them work a little harder to earn their keep. Their boss is Chief Vick (Kirsten Nelson), who often has little, if any, plot. The cast is rounded out by police detectives Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson, Judging Amy), who hates them, and Juliet O'Hara (Maggie Lawson), who tolerates them much better.

      This year started out with a couples of sub-par episodes, but the last couple have been back to the usual standard. In last night's offering, Chi McBride (Pushing Daisies) played a prison guard who lost some inmates, and Shawn and Gus helped him track the cons down. Recent episodes have also been bolstered by an extra long version of the theme song, arguably the best part of the series in the extended form. The shorter cut isn't very good.

     Next week, Psych will guest star Nestor Carbonell (Lost).  Psych has only two episodes left this summer, but will return in November for seven more, including the show's third Christmas special, which this year will have It's a Wonderful Life as it's theme. Considering how good special episodes of Psych usually are, I am certainly looking forward to it.

     Psych airs Wednesday nights at 10pm on USA.