{"id":38,"date":"2002-10-02T21:01:47","date_gmt":"2002-10-02T21:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/?p=38"},"modified":"2002-10-02T21:01:47","modified_gmt":"2002-10-02T21:01:47","slug":"a-week-of-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/?p=38","title":{"rendered":"A Week of TV"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new season of network television began about mid-September and, as
\nnormal, I’ve been watching. I’ve been checking in on old favorites,
\nattempting to see which got better and which
\n“jumped the shark<\/a>“.
\nI’ve also been looking for that new show that can sink its hooks
\ninto me and not let go.<\/p>\n

What follows is a quick run down – show by show – of what I’ve sampled
\nover the last couple of weeks and what I thought about each. It’s high
\ntime I have an entry that delves a bit into pop culture.<\/p>\n

Sunday<\/b><\/br><\/br><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nThe Sopranos<\/a>
\nThe star show of HBO<\/a> and for
\ngood reason. Season 4 has started a bit slowly but that’s par for the
\ncourse. The first three shows have been happy to present conflict after
\nconflict. However, nearly none of those problems have been resolved.
\nI like the relaxed pace of the show, season after season. Turn on the
\nheat, bring the water to a simmer, and then, and only then, let the fireworks
\nbegin. I have no doubt that when the water boils, I’ll be watching.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nCurb Your Enthusiasm<\/a>
\nA lighthearted comedy about the “real-life” trials of Larry David, the
\ncreator of Seinfeld. It’s quirky and the only show from the Seinfeld
\ncrew (the shows from the individual actors were unbearable) that
\nis (or was in the case of those other shows) noteworthy. There is
\na healthy dose of Seinfeld humor here (Larry himself shares a lot
\nwith Seinfeld’s character George – there’s even an episode about
\nthat fact). From what I understand, there’s is no set script
\nfor the actors, just simple situations. The somewhat improvisational
\nbanter lends the show a different cadence, one that no doubt kept
\nit from public TV. Oh well, it will have to do as the funniest show
\non cable.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nThe Practice<\/a>
\nI haven’t seen this one in a year. I just wanted to waive goodbye to
\nand old favorite that just doesn’t fit into my time schedule anymore. Buh-bye.<\/p>\n

Monday<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nDrew Carey<\/a>
\nI still like Drew’s little show but somehow I feel it is on its way down.
\nIt used to be outragously funny, with cute little dancing numbers and
\nfun little nuances. Now, it’s just good. I hope the trend does not
\ncontinue.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nWhose Line is it Anyway?<\/a>
\nThis is one of those shows that I’ve always had trouble finding time
\nto watch but always enjoy. This season is no different. Its one of
\nthe few comedies where I actually laugh out loud. I can’t imagine
\nsaying anything nicer.<\/p>\n

Tuesday<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nFrasier<\/a>
\nFrasier is still a good, solid comedy. I don’t know if I’ll always set aside
\ntime specifically to watch it but, when I do, I know there will be something
\nfor me. 24<\/a>, a show that got my
\naward for best new show last year (you know the wonderful Kensies) may
\nhave something to say about my Frasier viewing schedule when it begins
\ncompeting for my time in late October.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nHidden Hills<\/a>
\nA show I’ve watched only because it follows Frasier. Ok there’s one more
\nreason<\/a>.
\nIt’s surprising cute, with the second show being better than the first. That’s
\na good trend.<\/p>\n

Wednesday<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nMy Wife and Kids<\/a>
\nThis is another solid comedy, and one that I rarely fit into the wife and
\nI’s viewing schedule. Everyone seems to associate this show with the
\nCosby show because both families are African American. The association
\nshould be made because both are really great comedies for the whole
\nfamily.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nEd<\/a>
\nMy favorite show after the Sopranos. A quirky town with some
\nvery quirky characters that reminds me a whole bunch of
\nNothern Exposure. If you haven’t watched this show before,
\ndo so. You really don’t know what you are missing.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nThe West Wing<\/a>
\nDespite the fact that I’m a republican, I really like this show. Heck,
\nit features a democrat as president that even I’d vote for (yep,
\nonly in Hollywood is this possible). I think it has something
\nabout the fact that he has a pair of balls. Maybe Al Gore should
\nlook for his. In any case, I was bit worried that recent events
\nwould make any fictional topics basically irrelevant. I hope
\n(and so far it seems) that fear is unfounded.<\/p>\n

Thursday<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nFriends<\/a>
\nAnother solid start to the most consistently good comedy of the last decade.
\nI won’t likely miss an episode for a while but, jeez, Ross and Rachel
\nget together already. C’mon guys, you know you wanna give us
\none more season. You know you do.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nScrubs<\/a>
\nOne of my favorite new shows from last year (and now one of my
\nfavorite shows, period) returns for another season in a much better
\ntime slot. Hurrah. Maybe this show will get the recognition that
\nit deserves.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nER<\/a>
\nThe last couple seasons of this one seem to define the phrase “jump the
\nshark” (maybe it should be jump the GSW). Most of the main characters
\nhave spent the time jumping ship (I still don’t understand how they
\ncan turn down the weekly paycheck), leaving little in their wake. The first
\nepisode of this season
\nwas great, though. They better keep them coming if they want the wife
\nto stop nodding off in the middle.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nSurvivor<\/a>
\nAnother group of whiners left in the middle of nowhere to fend for themselves.
\nAs the seasons wear on, I feel more shame for enjoying it but I still do.
\nAll reality shows should take an extra cue from this one.
\nEating bugs = drama. Take that to the bank.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nCSI<\/a>
\nThe premiere was a typical episode – maybe too typical.
\nNonetheless, I grew quite fond of the show last season. Neat take
\non an interesting premise equals a modern day mystery.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nPush Nevada<\/a>
\nOdd, odd show. The story, or really all the stuff they don’t tell you,
\nis intriguing. Lots of odd stuff is going on and the main character
\nknows nothing. I may stick with a while; I may not. I’m mostly
\nconcerned that I won’t know any more weeks from now than
\nI know right now. Stop drawing it out and get to the point already!
\nUnfortunately, the current ratings may never allow the mystery
\nto be revealed. Now that would be a bummer.<\/p>\n

Friday<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nFirefly<\/a>
\nMix the some old west bandits with spaceships. It was surprisingly decent,
\nas these types of shows go. I wouldn’t mind catching another episode but,
\ngiven that it’s shown on Friday night, I may never do so.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nJohn Doe<\/a>
\nThe episode I caught (which was the first) was pretty decent. The only
\nproblem is that it looks like a show you may need to follow to fit the
\npieces together. Like Firefly above, its timeslot virtually assures
\nme that I will do nothing of the sort.<\/p>\n

For those wondering how I could possibly watch all this stuff, I wonder myself.
\nMy poor VCR gets quite a workout. Let’s just say that we don’t watch much
\nmiscellaneous television. There’s always too much waiting on tape.
\nIt’s about high time I get myself a
\nTivo<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new season of network television began about mid-September and, as normal, I’ve been watching. I’ve been checking in on old favorites, attempting to see which got better and which “jumped the shark“. I’ve also been looking for that new show that can sink its hooks into me and not let go. What follows is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plan.thewoottons.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}