Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/27/22 — 12/3/22

Posted on December 3, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here’s a thought or two on what I watched this week:

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

With Janine struggling with food poisoning, Ava was forced to leave her office and teach Janine’s class. I loved this episode. Ava is a wonderful comedic character but Janelle James never allows her to turn into a caricature.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

We have our final three and I couldn’t be happier with the three teams that made it! I’ll be rooting for Derek and Claire but, honestly, I could be happy with any of the teams winning. I wrote about this week’s episode at Reality TV Chat Blog!

Bachelor In Paradise (Hulu)

I got caught up with the latest season’s finale on Sunday. This season didn’t do much for me.

California Dreams (YouTube)

I watched two episodes of California Dreams and then I reviewed them! They’re here on the site, somewhere….

City Guys (Tubi)

I watched and reviewed two episodes of City Guys. I did it all for you!

Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields (Netflix)

I watched this 3-part Netflix docuseries on Monday. It deals with a stretch of land near Houston where it appears several different serial killers have been dumping the bodies of their victims. As a Texan, this was a story that I’ve read quite a bit about and it always disturbs me, both because of the unbelievable tragedy involved and also the suggestion that there are multiple serial killers out there, all using the same stretch of highway. The docuseries took a look at some of the victims but there’s been so many of them that it would probably take several seasons of Texas Killing Fields to tell all of their stories. I was particularly touched by the story of Kelli Cox, who — as I would later be — was a student at UNT when she initially disappeared.

The docuseries also featured the efforts of Tim Miller, the father of one of the victims, to get justice for his daughter. Miller is convinced that she was murdered by his former next-door neighbor and while you always do want to exercise caution when it comes to making accusations, he does make a pretty good case.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Eh. There wasn’t a dinner service during this week’s episode. That disappointed me. The chance to witness people trying to send out raw food at the dinner services is pretty much the main reason why I watch this show.

It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia (Hulu)

On Tuesday, I watched the episode with the Paddy Bucks. It occurred to me, as I watched it, that It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia managed to predict crypto fraud.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (Tuesday Night, CBS)

Yay! Rudolph put those snotty reindeer in their place. This is such an old special but it’s a classic and I love it. Some television exec is probably going to try to do a new, updated version at some point in the future. That’s just the way of the world now. But the original is the one that has all the heart.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Sami played a pretty good game but it came to an end this week. It still freaks me out that his job is cremating dead pets. I wrote about this week’s episode at the Reality TV Chat Blog.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/9/22 — 10/15/22

Posted on October 15, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I spent most of this week watching movies but I did catch a few shows. Here’s some thoughts on them:

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Ava is such a cool principal! This week’s episode wasn’t as strong as the previous three episodes but the scenes in which we saw how Ava dealt with disciplinary problems were entertaining. “I want to go to the principal’s office!”

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I reviewed the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

Another crazy day at the mall. I’m glad Al survived. Earn and Darius got their shoes. The Crank Dat Killer was taken off the streets. Some Guy Named Doug finally got to collaborate with Al. Another day in Atlanta.

Bachelor in Paradise (Monday and Tuesday Night, ABC)

Eh. This season is too complicated for me. The scenery’s nice.

Baywatch (Weekday Morning, H&I)

I watched an episode of Baywatch on Wednesday morning. After an accident left him paralyzed, Manny had a crisis of confidence. Meanwhile, Neely and Mitch continued to argue on the beach. This was an episode from Baywatch’s final season. It was all a bit silly but the scenery was nice.

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

You can read my review of what I watched by clicking here!

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

In the first episode, Aunt Becky went back to work and Danny panicked because it meant his new girlfriend would be leaving Wake Up, San Francisco. Fortunately, she got hired to do weather so I guess that all worked out. Becky going back to work reminded me of how little Jesse actually does.

In the second episode, a singer was hired to perform at Stephanie’s birthday party. Stephanie had a crush on him but he had a crush on DJ. The singer was like 30 so he really shouldn’t have had a crush on either of them.

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

Poor Jay! He just wants some friends, like his wife has with the ghosts. Unfortunately, he always seems to end up finding the worst possible friends around. This week, he nearly got sucked into a cult. Perhaps Jay should follow the ghost’s advice and become a snake oil salesman.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

O’Shay being eliminated was not a huge surprise. It really should have happened last week, when he tried to send out raw chicken. The episode ended with Chef Ramsay announcing that the 20s vs. 40s competition was over and the show was reverting back to its usual women vs men format. Again, this wasn’t a huge surprise. Hell’s Kitchen, unlike several other reality shows, has pretty much stuck with its original format and I don’t see it changing any time soon.

Interview With A Vampire (Sunday Night, AMC)

I’m still struggling to get into this one, for whatever reason. I’ll give it another try next week and maybe rewatch the first two episodes as well.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week, the criminal was a serial killer who was also a famous actor. The episode wasn’t anything special but at least it wasn’t obnoxiously political.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

I watched it but I’d be lying if I said I remembered a thing about it, beyond Stabler looking like he was about to give himself a heart attack with all of his pent-up rage.

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

Again, I watched it but I don’t remember much about it. By broadcasting all of these Law & Order shows on the same night, NBC is causing them to blend together in my mind.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I reviewed what I watched here!

Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head (Paramount Plus)

I honestly thought last week’s episode was the season finale but it turns out I was wrong! A new episode dropped on Thursday. Beavis and Butt-Head building their own dinosaur was hilarious and also sad. “Why did we do this?”

The Real Love Boat (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Who cares? The old Love Boat is more fun.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I reviewed the latest episode of Survivor here!

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I didn’t pay much attention. Chris Hardwicke seemed kind of bored with it all.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I hate to admit it but I have yet to find the time to write out full length reviews of the past two episodes of The Walking Dead. Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to do it next week. As for last week’s episode, it was an improvement on the episode that came before it. I’m kind of bored with the downfall of the Commonwealth, though. I think the show made an excuse taking that long break before starting the final half of season 11. I was really into the show before that break but now I’m struggling to get reinvested.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/2/22 — 10/8/22

Posted on October 8, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here’s some thoughts on what I watched this week!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Oh Lord, the Story Samurais. Seriously, I’ve known people just like that. I was cringing for them through the entire episode. Ava continues to be the best character on the show.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here.

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode dealt with an enigmatic entertainment mogul known as Kirkwood Chocolate, who was a prolific and popular creator of melodramatic dramas and broad comedies. Everyone on the show acknowledged that Mr. Chocolate’s shows were not necessarily good but they also wanted to support black art. Mr. Chocolate, himself, turned out to be a somewhat crazed megalomaniac who also claimed to have no control over his shows. Lottie briefly became Mr. Chocolate’s biggest star. It was a funny and thought-provoking episode and it made no attempt to hide that Kirkwood Chocolate was basically Tyler Perry.

Bachelor In Paradise (Monday and Tuesday Nights, ABC)

I just watched it for the scenery. It is kind of interesting that everyone who has been eliminated so far came from Clayton’s season. It’s like someone put a curse on that season and the people involved will never find peace.

Beyond The Headlines (Sunday Morning, Lifetime)

This was a one-hour discussion of the Gabby Petito case, which Lifetime aired as a companion to The Gabby Petito Story.

East New York (Sunday Night, CBS)

On Sunday, I watched the first episode of CBS’s newest cop show, East New York. The main reason that I watched it was because I had been inundated for commercials for the show while I was watching Big Brother last month. Much as I was expecting, East New York turned out to be a middling cop show, one that tried to walk the fine line between back the blue and defund the police. It didn’t really work but it was nice to see that the show had good roles for Richard Kind and Jimmy Smits.

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

Sam started a podcast about Hetty’s murder but, in order to get funding, she had to accept the eccentric and creepy Todd Pearlman as a co-host. This episode wasn’t quite as funny as the season premiere but it did set up what I assume will be this season’s major storyline.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Someone finally tried to serve raw chicken. It’s not really Hell’s Kitchen until that happens.

Inspector Lewis (YouTube)

I watched the end of the 8th series on Tuesday. Robbie was upset because one of his old cases was being reopened. I was upset because Hathaway had a truly terrible haircut. Hopefully, that’ll be corrected next week.

Interview With A Vampire (Sunday, AMC)

I watched the premiere on Monday and I was bored out of my mind.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Anti-Asian hate crimes have been on the rise in New York City so, of course, Law & Order decided to do an episode about it in which they blamed it all on a generic right-wing gun nut who was upset over COVID. The U.S. government wanted to prosecute the criminal but they also wanted to see the death penalty. “I don’t know if I can set my personal beliefs aside,” Price said. When has Price ever been able to set aside his personal beliefs? Seriously, we’re only to seasons into this season and I’m already sick of Price talking about his personal beliefs.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

I did watch Organized Crime but seriously, don’t even ask me what happened on this week’s episode. I got bored and kind of zoned out. All I know is that Stabler needs to relax. Maybe try yoga or something.

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

SVU took a heavy-handed swipe at influencer culture this week. It was a bit of a generic story but the episode was somewhat redeemed by Killi Giddish’s performance as Amanda Rollins, who is still struggling to put being shot behind her.

Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head (Paramount Plus)

Never will I forget the horror of Beavis putting on Yoga pants. The season came to an end this week with an appropriately hilarious episode. First, Beavis and Butt-Head were thrilled to discover their employer reserved the right to refuse service to customers who created an unsafe work environment. And then Beavis decided that he would “look really sexy” in yoga pants. Needless to say it didn’t go well. As for the overall season, I liked it. I perhaps would have done a bit less with Old Beavis and Old Butt-Head but otherwise, this was a really funny and sharply satiric show.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

I watched two episodes of this old 80s show on Friday night. One dealt with songs about drugs. The other was a profile of Depeche Mode.

The Real Love Boat (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Basically, this is just Paradise Hotel on a boat. Who knows? Maybe everyone will find love before the season ends.

So Help Me Todd (Wednesday Night, CBS)

This is a new show about a lawyer and her son, the private investigator. Guess what the son’s name is! CBS advertised the Hell out of this during Big Brother, so I watched the first episode when it was re-aired on Sunday. It was not quite as bad as I was expecting but it’s still very much a middle-of-the-road, safe to watch with your middle-aged relatives sort of show. Marcia Gay Harden plays the lawyer and it’s nice to see her playing someone who isn’t a half-crazed victim for once.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here.

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I still like Talking Dead but it’s hard not to feel that everything that can be said about The Walking Dead already has been said. Even Chris Hardwicke seemed to be kind of bored with it all.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

The Walking Dead returned with a boring episode. Let’s hope things pick up next week.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 9/25/22 — 10/1/22

Posted on October 1, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Not only did I spend this week preparing for Horrorthon, I also ended up watching quite a bit of television. Here’s some thoughts on what I watched.

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

This week, Janine tried to get Abbott a computer and Ava got to host a Shark Tank-style competition. Ava is such a great character. This episode may not have matched the premiere but it was still pretty funny and a good example of how Abbott Elementary is able to deal with the realities of public education without losing sight of the comedy.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Amazing Race here!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode of Atlanta took a break from the surreal with a straight-forward but very funny episode about Earn and Al’s family. Earn’s mother “kidnapped” Grandpa while Earn’s father made the mistake of buying a hat and allowing himself to get delayed in the mall. While Aunt Jeanine called the police and demanded that her sister by criminally charged, Earn and Al looked for a way to escape the studio. It was funny and enjoyably cringey. Give Isiah Whitlock, Jr. an Emmy.

Bachelor in Paradise (Monday Night, ABC)

It’s a new season of Bachelor in Paradise! All of the people who couldn’t find love on the main show get to hang out on the beach. Bachelor in Paradise is actually more fun than The Bachelor because it’s honest about being a totally and completely shallow production. Nobody is there for the right reasons and it’s great.

Apparently, Jesse Palmer is going to be the host for the entire season so I guess last season’s rotating host gimmick has been retired. That’s probably for the best. I actually like Jesse as the overall franchise host. He doesn’t bring a lot of extra drama with him like Tayshia and Kaitlyn did and he seems to understand that his job isn’t exactly the same as being a brain surgeon.

That said …. where’s Meatball!?

Big Brother (Sunday Night, CBS)

Big Brother 24 finally came to a close on Sunday night. Taylor Hale not only won the game but she also won America’s Favorite Player. Considering the way that Taylor was bullied by the other houseguests at the start of the season, her victory was popular with the show’s fans. Personally, I think both Monte and Turner played a better game but knowing that Taylor’s victory upset some of the worst people to ever appear on the show was still a satisfying feeling. Knowing that Ameerah, Nicole, and Daniel were probably upset made the past few months worth it.

I wrote about this season over at the Big Brother Blog.

Bubblegum Crisis (NightFlight+)

80s cyberpunk! Man vs machine! The Sabre Knights vs a pack of robots known as the Boomers! The main character, Priss, is also a rock star! I had no idea what was going on when I watched this show early on Saturday morning but the animation was interesting to look at and Priss was undeniably cool.

CHiPs (Weekday Afternoons, Get TV)

I watched one episode of this old motorcycle cop show on Tuesday. The cops kept the peace at an anti-nuke rally and Erik Estrada provided counseling to a child who was being abused by his parents. I can’t say that I really paid that much attention. I did like the bass-heavy theme song however.

Concentration (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

This was an old gameshow from the 70s and the 80s. I watched an episode on Friday while I was doing some work around the office. The most interesting thing about it was that it was hosted by Alex Trebyk, who came across as being far more relaxed and casual about things than when he hosted Jeopardy.

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

Uncle Joey (you know, the one with the mullet) tried to teach Michelle how to ride a bike but he wasn’t very good at it and Michelle was humiliated when she fell off her bike at the park. At first, Michelle blamed Joey but eventually she got over it. What a brat.

This was followed by an episode in which poor DJ (who, really, deserves to nominated for sainthood for putting up with her family) has to take her two obnoxious sisters with her on a date. Everyone learned an important lesson about sneaking into the movie and lying. Don’t do either of them but, if you do sneak into the movie, don’t get caught.

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

The second season premiere of Ghosts was as charming as ever, with the ghosts spying on the B&B’s first guests and Jay discovering that, despite his near death experience, he still cannot see the ghosts. I felt bad for Sam, as most of the stuff that the guests complained about when it came to her was the same stuff that people tend to complain about when it comes to me. I cheered a little when she stood up to them. The whole “Our yelp account was hacked!” ending was perfect.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Hell’s Kitchen is back! This season is going to be 40-something chefs vs 20-something chef. To be honest, the gimmick doesn’t matter. I’m just looking forward to Chef Ramsay yelling at people and losing his temper at the potentially lethal incompetence around him. Who will be the first to try to send out raw chicken? Sadly, the premiere episode did not feature a dinner service but, according to the previews, it’s coming up next week!

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Last week’s Law & Order was pretty good. This week, sadly, was one of those middling, lefty political episodes that the franchise often does in an attempt to remain in the good graces of those who would otherwise dismiss the whole thing as being copaganda. It’s always funny to me how the Law & Order franchise is full of blue collar, Catholic cops who sound like they spend all of their time watching Joy Reid and Chris Hayes as soon as their shift is over.

On last night’s Law & Order, the victim was the daughter of the governor of Texas so, of course, we got this whole big thing about how the governor is always criticizing New York City as being crime-ridden. “Why does the governor of Texas care about New York?” one of the detectives demanded and that’s when I started to tune this episode out. One could just as legitimately ask why people in California and New York always feel the need to comment on what’s happening in Texas. Law & Order always errs on the side of going overboard when it attempts to deal with politics. This was especially true this week, as Law & Order waded into the abortion debate and came up with an ending that was both so heavy-handed and so predictable that I felt embarrassed for the show’s writers.

Law & Order: Organized Crime (Thursday Night, NBC)

With the start of a new season, Stabler got a new partner and a new crooked family to investigate. From what I’ve seen, Organized Crime is the least interesting of the Law & Order shows and often feels more like it should be a part of NCIS franchise than Law & Order. It was difficult for me to watch because Stabler really does seem like he’s going to give himself a heart attack if he doesn’t figure out a way to relax.

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode of SVU opened with an extremely disturbing scene in which a teenage girl was gang-raped on a subway while, just a few feet away, the rest of her family was hacked to death with machetes. This scene reminded me of why I don’t regularly watch this show. It’s undeniably well-acted and usually well-written, except for when it tries to be overly political. But Good Lord, are the cases ever disturbing!

Mike (Hulu)

I wrote about Hulu’s disappointing Mike Tyson miniseries here.

Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head (Paramount Plus)

Inspired by a holy nacho chip, Beavis went on a spiritual journey and learned nothing. This was a unique episode in that it told one story instead of the usual two. It’s become obvious that Beavis, with his odd moments of clarity and his desire to actually be something more than just a sidekick, is a far more compelling character than Butt-Head.

Monarch (Tuesday Night, FOX)

This show gets sillier and sillier with each episode but it’s kind of worth it for the scenes of Trace Adkins glowering in the shadows while holding a gun. I don’t really care much about which Roman daughter is crowned the next queen of country music but I definitely do what to know who Trace has been burying for the past three episodes.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

From the 80s, it was a look at women in rock, from Janis Joplin and Grace Slick to Stevie Nicks. I watched on Friday night. The music was good.

Password (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

I watched two episodes of this old game show on Tuesday. Apparently, the aim was to try to guess a word and win money. The episodes I saw were from the mid-70s and the most interesting thing about them was how cheap and run-down the show’s set looked. One got the feeling that the whole studio probably reeked of cigarettes and spilled beer.

Saving Grace (Weekday Nights, Start TV)

On this show, which apparently ran for three seasons, Holly Hunter played an Oklahoma detective who, after she accidentally ran over a pedestrian after a night of drinking, was told by a fallen angel named Earl that she was going to go to Hell unless she changed her ways. So, apparently, the rest of the show was about Grace solving crimes and talking to Earl. How have I never heard of this show before? It aired from 2007 to 2010 and Hunter was even nominated for two Emmy awards for playing Grace.

Anyway, the episode that I watched on Wednesday night featured Grace trying to solve a murder while another angel (F. Murray Abraham) tried to convince her to abandon Earl and work with him. It was odd but Holly Hunter is always good and the show took place in Oklahoma so, as someone who spent some time in Oklahoma while she was growing up, I felt like I could relate to most of the characters.

Super Password (Weekday Afternoons, BUZZR)

I watched two episodes of this show on Tuesday. It was just like Password, except the set looked cleaner.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/3/21 — 10/9/21

Posted on October 9, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This has been a busy week. Along with dealing with the Hole of Death, I also took my Dad to and from the chiropractor on Tuesday. I’ve always been trying to keep up with my horrorthon commitments so I didn’t watch much TV. That’s probably a good thing.

(“Girl, you watch too much TV!” as my friend Marty would say.)

Here’s a few thoughts on what I did watch:

Allo Allo (Sunday Night, PBS)

Rene had to take pictures of the secret meeting. Luckily, Michelle of the Resistance supplied him with a totally obvious hidden camera. He had to hide it under his apron. How would he operate the bulky camera without anyone noticing, you may be asking. Michelle also supplied Rene with a fake arm. Rene went through with it because, as Michelle and others often point out, Rene is the bravest man in France.

Bachelor in Paradise (Tuesday Night, ABC)

It’s now safe to return to the beach. Bachelor in Paradise is over …. for now! Three couples got engaged so I guess we won’t see any of them next season. I’m joking, of course. They’ll all probably be back next season, even more bitter than ever.

Baywatch (Weekday Evenings, H&I)

While I was cleaning around the house on Sunday, I turned the TV on and had Baywatch going in the background. It was the pilot film, Panic at Malibu Pier. The Hoff tried to get used to being in charge while Madchen Amick stalked a lifeguard.

Columbo (YouTube)

Peter Falk vs. Donald Pleasence! My friend Mark suggested this episode to me after I shared a scene of Pleasence from Wake in Fight. It’s a terrifically entertaining episode and guess what? You can watch it here on the Shattered Lens!

Dancing With The Stars (Monday Night, ABC)

It was Britney night! I was too busy dancing myself to pay too much attention to the dancers on the show.

Flight of the Conchords (Friday Night, HBOMax)

After “dissing” several rappers, Bret formed a gang for his own protection. Stay cool, Murray!

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

This is an entertaining show and I’ve been having fun highlighting here on the Shattered Lens. Yes, I totally relate to Micki. We both have red hair and a desire to collect cursed antiques.

Law & Order: Criminal Intent (Tuesday Afternoon, Sundance Channel)

I took my Dad to and from the chiropractor on Tuesday. The television in the waiting room was tuned to the Sundance Channel and while I waited for my Dad to return, I watched two episodes of Law & Order: CI. They were obviously very early episodes, as Vincent D’Onofrio was still slightly restrained in his performance as Goren. One of the episodes featured a killer doctor and was kind of disturbing to watch in a doctor’s office. Choosing what to show in the waiting room of an office is an underrated skill. I usually go with one of the retro stations. The shows may not be challenging but they’re also designed not to cause any undue worry.

Open All Hours (Sunday Night, PBS)

Arkwright, that old perv, finally got to go away with nurse Gladys Emmanuel for the weekend. Nothing happened, though. The nurse really seems to be leading Arkwright on, perhaps hoping that someone who isn’t a sociopathic shopkeeper will show an interest in her. Meanwhile, Granville continued to listen to the voices in his head, undoubtedly imploring him to burn everything to the ground.

Parking Wars (Weekday Mornings, A&E)

Apparently, A&E shows episodes of Parking Wars of every morning. I watched two episodes while I was working from home on Monday morning. In the first episode, the people at the impound lot had to deal with an irate “customer.” Apparently, we were supposed to feel bad for the poor little government quislings who were having to deal with the citizens whose lives they make miserable.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about this week’s episode of Survivor here!

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

Chris Hardwicke, who has gone back to being clean-shaven, spent some time talking about Walking Dead, which was cool. But then he spent even more time trying to get the audience hyped up for Walking Dead: World Beyond and that just felt awkward.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I wrote about this week’s episode here!

Walking Dead: World Beyond (Sunday Night, AMC)

I hate to be rude but what the Hell is this? I guess this show started during my temporary hiatus from all things related to The Walking Dead. According to Wikipedia, World Beyond is in its seconds season. AMC advertises the show by saying, “And now, the final season Walking Dead: World Beyond,” as if this show is some sort of landmark event as opposed to just a rather cynical spin-off from one mighty work of pop culture.

Anyway, as far as i can tell, Walking Dead: World Beyond is like a YA version of The Walking Dead. Instead of adults killing each other and having endless discussions about the ethics of it all, it’s teenagers. But, from what I saw of the show, it seems like a pretty pale imitation of The Walking Dead and, unlike Fear The Walking Dead, it doesn’t really add anything new to the story. So, I don’t know if I’ll bother to set the DVR for any more episodes of Walking Dead: World Beyond. I imagine I will but I probably won’t be very happy about it.

Lisa’s Week In Television: 9/26/21 — 10/2/21

Posted on October 2, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

If it seems like I watched an excessive amount of old TV shows this week, that’s because I did. While I was working this week, I kept the TV turned to the retro channels. The only exception to that rule was on Friday when I watched three daytime dramas. For the most part, these shows served as background noise while I was making plan for this year’s Horrorthon but, at the same time, I have to admit that I do kind of like occasionally watching the old TV shows. I’m a history nerd and, at their best, those shows are like stepping into a time machine and seeing the way people used to dress, talk, and, for better or worse, think.

This week also saw the end of Big Brother, which means that I can now devote all of my time to horror films. Yay!

With all that in mind, here’s my week in television:

Allo Allo (Sunday Night, PBS)

With the Germans and the Italians holding a conference to determine their plans for invading England, it falls on Rene to discover their plans to send that information to the Resistance, via the use of a homing duck. Yes, a duck. There’s probably worse ways to do it, to be honest. I know that the ducks in our neighborhood are pretty resilient. Needless to say, Rene complained quite a bit but still did what he had to do.

Bachelor in Paradise (Tuesday Night, ABC)

Ivan had to leave the show because he snuck out of his room during lockdown and tried to see one of the future contestants. This show certainly does have a lot of rules for something that is essentially just a second-rate knock-off of Paradise Hotel.

Bewitched (Weekday Afternoon, Antenna TV)

I watched two episodes of this classic sitcom while doing some work around the office on Tuesday. Unfortunately, both episodes were from the Dick Sargent years. (I prefer the episodes with Dick York’s hapless Darrin to the episodes that feature Dick Sargent flying into a rage every few minutes.) The first episode features Sarena causing trouble, which was fun. The second episode featured Endora casting a hex on Darrin, which was fun if just because Darrin was such a pain in the ass that he certainly deserved it.

Big Brother (24/7, Paramount Plus and CBS)

It’s over! I wrote about the show and big finale over at the Big Brother Blog!

The Bold and the Beautiful (Weekday Afternoons, CBS)

Last year, when the COVID lockdowns first kicked in, I got sucked back into the world of the daytime dramas. However, up until this week, it had been a few months since I had watched any of them. I guess I just got bored with them. That said, this Friday, I decided to check in with a few of them, just to see what was going on.

The Bold and the Beautiful remains my favorite, just because it’s so self-aware and intentionally over the top. This Friday’s episode featured a lot of people having heated discussions and it was fun to watch. The drama, the eye rollings, the flaring nostrils, the little smirks — Hell, I might have to start setting the DVR for these shows again!

CHiPs (Weekday Afternoon, Charge!)

I watched two episodes of this 70s cop show on Thursday. The show itself was pretty bland but the California scenery was lovely and that opening theme music really gets stuck in your head. They knew how to work a bassline in the 70s.

Cold Case (Weekday Afternoon, Start TV)

Remember this show? Cold Case followed the adventures of Lily (Kathryn Morris), the deathly pale cold case detective who never seemed to wash her hair. On Wednesday, I watched an episode in which Lily and the cold case squad investigated the murder of a woman who made a tape for a dating service shortly before her death. As always, the show started off on an interesting note but then got unbearable once Lily and the gang started doing their thing.

Crossing Jordan (Weekday Afternoons, Start TV)

On this crime show, Jill Hennessy played Jordan, a coroner who investigated crimes for some reason. This was one of those overly quirky crime shows that aired in the aughts, so naturally Jordan has a crew of odd co-workers and a potential boyfriend played by Jerry O’Connell. Fortunately, Miguel Ferrer was also on the show, lending it all some much needed gravitas.

I watched two episodes on Wednesday. In the first one, Jordan researched the darkest corners of the internet. (GASP!) It was interesting to watch, just because the episode was made before Twitter and Facebook really became things. This was followed by an episode in which Jordan investigate the death of corporal who had gone AWOL from Afghanistan. Crossing Jordan was always at its worst when it tried to be political.

Considering how annoying I found this show to be, both during its original run and in reruns, I’m kind of surprised I watched two episodes. Was I just too lazy to change the channel? It’s possible.

CSI: Miami (Weekday Mornings, Charge!)

I don’t care what anyone says. Between David Caruso putting on the sunglasses and Emily Proctor’s Southern accent, CSI: Miami was the best of the various CSIs. I watched two episodes on Thursday. The first one dealt with a man who died at a race track and it was okay but kind of forgettable. The second one dealt with the mysterious world of the internet and there’s nothing I love more than when CSI: Miami explores the dark web! While the team explored the internet, Horatio protected his niece from a killer and did that thing where he delivered one-liners in an extremely serious voice. It was fun!

Dennis The Menace (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

Dennis the Menace? More like Dennis the sociopath! I watched two episodes on Tuesday. When Dennis wasn’t harassing Mr. Wilson, he was making everyone else’s life a living Hell. GO AWAY, YOU LITTLE BRAT!

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

Getting to discover old shows like this is one of the truly fun things about our annual horrorthon at TSL.

General Hospital (Weekday Afternoons, ABC)

Oh my God, Sonny might still be alive! On Friday, I watched this show for the first time in months and I was immediately reminded of why I love General Hospital, despite the fact that I find the title to be misleading. The show features nonstop drama, much of it revolving around gangsters named Sonny who know how to fake their own death.

Ghost Whisperer (Weekday Mornings, Start TV)

As I’ve written in the past, I love Ghost Whisperer! The episode that I watched on Wednesday featured a ghost leading Melinda to a munitions dump that was full of unexploded bombs. I don’t believe in ghosts but, if they did exist, I would hope they would be willing to confide in me as easily as they do Melinda.

I Dream of Jeannie (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

I watched two episodes of this old show on Tuesday, while I was doing some work around the office. The first episode featured Jeannie’s sister trying to steal away Major Nelson. The 2nd featured a con artist (played by Milton Berle) trying to outsmart Jeannie! Oh no! The 2nd episode took place in Hawaii, which was nice. I loved visiting Hawaii.

Hazel (Weekday Mornings, Antenna TV)

Hazel is an old sitcom about a live-in maid who insists on trying to run everyone’s life. On Tuesday, I had the TV in the office tuned to Antenna TV and, as a result, two episodes of Hazel served as background noise while I worked. In one episode, Hazel’s employer was convinced that the neighbors were interfering with his TV reception. In the second episode, Hazel came to the defense of a friend who was accused of being a corporate spy. I felt bad for Hazel, who apparently didn’t have much of a life outside of work.

Knight Rider (Weekday Afternoons, Charge!)

I’ve often heard of this old show but Thursday was the first time that I ever watched an episode. In fact, I watched two episodes. Youngish David Hasselhoff driving a car that talks in the voice of Mr. Feeney? What’s not to love!? Actually, to be honest, it seemed like the type of show that would get pretty boring once the novelty wore off. The car was cool, though. The first episode featured the Hoff and the car saving a building from detonation. The second found the Hoff driving the car in a race and protecting a journalist. In both cases, everything turned out for the best.

McHale’s Navy (Weekday Mornings, Antenna TV)

This was an old sitcom about a bunch of sailors in the Navy. It was obviously made at a time when America was not at war because you wouldn’t trust any of these people to be able to handle a combat situation. Ernest Borgnine played the McHale of the title. I had the show on for background noise while I was doing some work around the office on Tuesday. Antenna TV aired two episodes but I didn’t pay much attention to either one. One featured a chimpanzee. The other featured McHale trying to run a beauty contest. Ernest Borgnine seemed to be having fun.

Medium (Weekday Afternoon, Start TV)

Medium was the serious version of Ghost Whisperer, starring Patricia Arquette instead of Jennifer Love Hewitt. It will always be interesting to me that Patricia basically spent the first decade of this century starring in Medium and filming Boyhood on the weekends. Anyway, Medium was always a bit too dour for me but Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber both gave good performance every week that the show aired. It was a show for grown-ups, one that unfortunately aired when I was anything but.

Start TV always shows Medium after Ghost Whisperer, which makes it impossible not to compare the two shows. On Wednesday, I watched an episode in which Patricia developed a sensitivity to light. She started wearing sunglasses but whenever she put them on, everyone that she saw would have a number on their head that states how many days they have left to live. AGCK! Actually, by Medium standards, this was a fun episode.

Moone Boy (Sunday Night, PBS)

PBS’s airing of Moone Boy came to a touching end with two final episodes on Sunday. The first featured Dessie trying to open a Catholic book shop. It soon became popular with people of all religions, including Scientologists! The second episode featured the death of Martin’s grandfather and the return of his grandfather’s imaginary friend, George Gershwin (played by Paul Rudd). It was the a very, very sweet episode, one that took an honest but humorous look at aging, maturing, and death. The final scene brought tears to my mismatched eyes, What a good show! I’m glad I got to see it.

Open All Hours (Sunday Night, PBS)

I didn’t really pay much attention to this episode but I’m pretty sure a dog ordered Granville to go on a rampage. I’m a little bit worried about Granville, to be honest. He seems to let things get to him.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

You can read my thoughts on the latest episode of Survivor here!

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

Talking Dead was a bit bland this week, which was a shame considering how good the latest episode of The Walking Dead was. For the record, the guests were superfan Yvette Nicole Brown and, via satellite, Lauren Ridloff.

That Girl (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

On Tuesday afternoon, I had the TV in the office tuned to Antenna TV, largely because I had a lot of work to do and retro sitcoms are often the perfect background noise. Among the shows that aired were two episodes of That Girl, which is a show that I had heard of but never watched before. Marlo Thomas plays Anne Marie, an actress. I appreciated the fact that Anne and I share a middle name.

Anyway, I didn’t really pay much attention to the two episodes that aired. I had a lot of work to get done. The first episode featured Anne dealing with a potential audit from the IRS and it was nice to see that people in the 70s hated the IRS as much as I hate them right now. The second episode featured Anne Marie trying to encourage a singer who was planning on becoming a nun. In both cases, everything worked out for the best.

Three’s Company (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

I watched two episodes of this very 70s sitcom on Tuesday. I should admit that I only had it on for background noise while I was finishing up some work so I didn’t pay much attention to it. I’ve seen a few episodes of this show over the year and I’ve never really seen the appeal. I’m just like, “Just explain what really happened and get on with your life!”

Anyway, the first episode features James Cromwell — yes, that James Cromwell — as a vice cop who thought Chrissy was a prostitute so he came back to the apartment to arrest her but Jack thought he was just a jerk so he punched him and then Cromwell tried to arrest everyone but then Mr. Roper said that Jack was gay so Cromwell let him go because it would be too embarrassing to admit that he got punched out by a gay guy. God, that was exhausting. This was followed by an episode where everyone thought the apparently asexual Mr. Roper was having an affair because every character on the show was an idiot.

Unforgettable (Weekday Afternoon, Start TV)

On this show, Poppy Montgomery played a detective who had the ability to remember every single thing she had ever seen or heard. It was a really interesting premise and Poppy Montgomery was a good series lead but the show was never as interesting as it should have been. The episode I watched on Wednesday featured Poppy and Dylan Walsh transporting a witness down to Florida. It was a pretty basic show but Poppy and Dylan had an enjoyable chemistry.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

This week’s episode was pretty good and I wrote about it here!

The Young and the Restless (Weekday Afternoons, CBS)

After having not watched the show for a month, I watched Friday’s episode. There was a lot of talking. Mariah and Tessa were debating whether or not start a family. Victoria and Nick’s rivalry was threatening to ruin a wedding. As usual, there were a lot of restless people on the show. I enjoyed it. I like watching attractive, rich people argue.

In conclusion …. actually, this post is already over 2,000 words long so we probably don’t need a conclusion. It was a good week!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 9/19/21 — 9/25/21

Posted on September 25, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I spent most of this week planning and preparing for the big October horrorthon (yes, it does take a month to prepare) but I did watch a bit of television. I also made the decision not to watch American Crime Story: Impeachment, despite having the two most recent episodes on the DVR. The first episode just didn’t capture my interest and there’s way too much that I want to do to spend any more time than necessary on the Clintons. So, Impeachment is now off my DVR. If I hear that it’s good, I might get caught up with it later.

Here’s some thoughts on what I did watch this week:

Bachelor In Paradise (Tuesday Night, ABC)

I’ve stopped paying attention to what actually happens on this show. Some of that’s because I’ve been busy getting ready for October. More of it, though, is just because this show is primarily about watching attractive people hang out on the beach. Actually paying attention to what they’re talking about would just take away from the fun of it all.

Big Brother (24/7, Paramount Plus and CBS)

Yay, it’s almost over! The highlight of this week was Kyland nearly getting into physical altercation with Xavier over being voted out of the house. I had mixed feeling about the whole thing. It was interesting television but I didn’t particularly feel good about watching it. I wrote more about this show over at the Big Brother Blog!

Dancing With The Stars (ABC, Monday Night)

I used to love this show but I’ve kind of been over it for a while. I will still set the DVR for this season but, after just one episode, I really have a hard time imagining anyone other than JoJo and Jenna winning. I’m torn, because I liked Dance Moms, The Office, and the Spice Girls. I guess I’m Team Melora/JoJo/Melanie. I would definitely prefer not to have Mr. Peloton win.

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

This is an old 80s horror show, which ran for about three seasons and was about a cursed antique store. (Jason Voorhees is nowhere to be seen.) All three seasons, I recently discovered, been uploaded to YouTube. I watched a few episodes this week in preparation for our upcoming Shattered Lens Horrorthon! I’ll have more to say about this show in October.

King of the Hill (Wednesday afternoon, FX)

The episode where Hank and Bobby enter the father/son shooting contest despite the fact that Hank’s a terrible shot is one of the few cartoons to consistently make me cry. It’s such a sweet episode.

Ordinary Joe (Monday Night, NBC)

This is a new series about a guy named Joe. The day he graduates from college, he has to make a decision. He can either go talk to the girl he just met or he can talk to his girlfriend or he can talk to his uncle. The show features three alternate realities, each determined according to whom he decided to speak with. In one reality, Joe is a rock star. In another, he’s a cop. In another, he’s a nurse. Unfortunately, he’s pretty boring in all three of those realities. The idea behind this show is interesting but the pilot suffered from some pretty obvious This Is Us-style plotting. We’ll see how the rest of the series does, though. The premise has enough promise that I’ll give it a second and probably even a third chance.

Smash (Friday, E!)

Yes, E! did indeed do a Smash marathon on Friday. I watched an episode or two, perhaps hoping the show would turn out to be more fun than I remembered. Smash is the show that made the term “hate watch” well-known. To be honest, it was rarely even interesting enough to be a hate watch. The Marilyn musical feels like it really would be a pain to sit through. This is the show that begged us to believe that Katharine McPhee could somehow be a better Marilyn Monroe than both Megan Hilty and Uma Thurman. It was a disappointing show, let’s just leave it at that.

(Dammit, now I want to rewatch the whole thing.)

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Yay! Survivor’s back! I wrote about the 41st Season Premiere at the Reality TV Chat Blog!

The Ultimate Surfer (Tuesday Night, ABC)

I honestly didn’t even realize that Tuesday was the finale until a few minutes before the show ended. That’s how much I was actually paying attention to the show. As I’ve said before, the appeal of this show was essentially that it featured attractive, wet people. Congrats to the winners.

The Voice (Monday Night, NBC)

I watched a bit of The Voice but I have to admit that I got bored with it. The singers are good but they’re all good in the same generic way. Blake and Kelly are the fun judges. I would probably want to be on Kelly’s team, just because we’re both from Texas.

The Walking Dead

I wrote about this week’s episode here.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 9/12/21 — 9/18/21

Posted on September 18, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Again, this was another week where I didn’t watch much. But I have a good reason. Number one, I was up at Lake Texoma for the first part of the week and I forgot to set the DVR to record a few shows. Number two, I accidentally DVRed a reshowing of the first episode of Impeachment and I missed the second episode and, since I didn’t care much for the first episode, I didn’t bother to rewatch. Number three, I somehow totally forget abut the Brooklyn Nine Nine finale. That was such a good show but I always had a hard time figuring out when it was actually airing. Finally, I watched quite a few movies this week as I continued to prepare for October!

So, here’s a few notes on what little television did I watch:

Allo Allo (Sunday Night, PBS)

Having avoided (through a convoluted set of circumstances) marrying the head of the community resistance, Rene found himself being targeted for death by that same resistance. Rene was forced to once again fake his own death and then wander around the village disguised as his father, which meant putting on a fake beard. Rene even resorted to asking Herr Flick to “lock me up in one of your dungeons for a few days,” but Flick refused because they couldn’t just have people wandering in from off the street. Rene even asked Office Crabtree to arrest him. “Are you confessing to a cream?” Crabtree responded, in his broken French. It was all a bit complicated and, in the end, nothing really worked out. But it made me laugh and that’s the important thing.

Bachelor in Paradise (Tuesday Night, ABC)

Because I forgot to set the DVR, I only saw one of this week’s episodes of Bachelor in Paradise. Lil Jon was the new host because eventually, every reality show will be hosted by Lil Jon for a week. I didn’t really pay too much attention to the show, to be honest. I had just gotten back from the lake and I was tired.

Big Brother (All the Time, CBS and Paramount Plus)

It’s almost over and I’m happy about that. I like Big Brother but I always get a bit bored with it towards the end. I’m still writing about the show over at the Big Brother Blog.

Hell’s Kitchen (Monday Night, FOX)

I was happy that Trenton won, even though he did occasionally act like a bit of a jerk. Still, he obviously earned his victory and I’m sure that Megan will find success as well, even if she didn’t ultimately win Hell’s Kitchen. I really liked this season. The kinder, gentler Chef Ramsay was fun to watch and, for once, he really seemed to actually enjoy working with the younger chefs. Who would have thought that Hell’s Kitchen would end up becoming the most positive and feel-good reality show of 2021?

Moone Boy (Sunday Night, PBS)

Two episodes of Moone Boy aired on Sunday. I recorded both. The first featured the Moones trying to fool granddad into giving up his house so that Fidelma, Dessie, and the baby would have some place to live other than with them. Meanwhile, Martin wandered about with a video camera, hoping to capture something that could be sent to Ireland’s version of America’s Funniest Home Videos. Fortunately, it turned out that Grandad’s home was full of bats and when they attacked Dessie, Martin had his video! The second episode featured Martin and Padraic all excited about the idea of aliens having landed in Boyle. Can you blame them?

Open All Hours (Sunday Night, PBS)

After overordering, Arkwright desperately tried to get his customers to buy extra apples. Meanwhile, Granville continued to wonder how his once promising life had descended into the living Hell of being a 40 year-old stockboy.

The Ultimate Surfer (Tuesday Night, ABC)

Though two episodes aired this week, I only watched the 2nd episode. I still have no idea what’s happening on the show, beyond that it features a lot of attractive people getting wet. But, sometimes that’s all a show needs.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I wrote about the latest episode of The Walking Dead here.

Yes, Minister (Sunday Night, PBS)

PBS aired two episodes of Yes, Minister and I recorded both of them, despite having seem both of them before. That’s just how good this show is! The first episode featured Jim unsuccessfully trying to reduce the power and size of the civil service. The second episode featured a lively debate about whether or not the government should allow citizens to have any privacy. Even though this show is over 40 years old, both episodes continue to feel extremely relevant to our current situation. That’s the mark of a good show.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 9/5/21 — 9/11/21

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Jeff and I have been up at Lake Texoma since Wednesday so I haven’t watched much television. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course. Sometimes, it’s important to take some time off.

Here’s a few thoughts on what I did watch this week:

Allo Allo (Sunday Night, PBS)

After being absent for a few weeks, Allo Allo is back on PBS! Having won his freedom from the Communist Resistance, Rene finds himself still expected to marry the head of the Communists. Meanwhile, Herr Flick continues to search for the missing painting, Edith somehow does not realize that Rene is cheating on her with literally everyone on the show, and Crabtree continues to speak very bad French. It was a strange but entertaining episode.

Bachelor in Paradise (Monday and Tuesday Night, ABC)

This week, temporary host Lance Bass was replaced by Tituss Burgess. Unlike the sarcastic David Spade and the overly earnest Bass, Burgess was just kind of boring, though it was fun to watch the Bachelors and the Bachelorettes all pretend to be huge Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt fans. Anyway, though I watched them, I didn’t really pay much attention to either one of this week’s episodes. It’s a show about attractive people hanging out on the beach. You really don’t have to pay that much attention to what’s actually going on. Just enjoy the scenery.

Big Brother (All The Time, CBS and Paramount Plus)

It’ll be over by the end of this month! Until then, I’m writing about it over at the Big Brother Blog.

Dragnet (Weekday Mornings, MeTV)

I finished binging Dragnet this week, watching the final three episodes of the show’s fourth season on Monday and Tuesday. In a minute, the results of that binge.

Monday got started with an episode in which Joe and Gannon were investigating a string of robberies. A woman called them and claimed that her ex-husband was responsible. However, it turned out that he wasn’t responsible and that his ex was just trying to get him in trouble because she was still angry over the end of their marriage! However, it then turned out that, even though he wasn’t responsible for the crimes his wife accused him of, he was still holding up other stores! It was actually kind of an interesting story though, Dragnet being Dragnet, all of the action did stop for a lengthy explanation of how fingerprinting works. This was followed by another episode in which Joe and Gannon tracked down a thief, this time a safecracker. The safecracker was well-played by G.D. Spradlin, who later played Sen. Pat Geary in The Godfather Part II and Col. Corman in Apocalypse Now. This episode was also memorable for featuring a crime victim named Mr. Letterman. Needless to say, whenever his name was mentioned, I immediately pictured David Letterman looking annoyed.

On Tuesday, I set the DVR to record the final episode of the 60s revival of Dragnet. This episode, called “The Victims,” followed Joe and Gannon over the course of one night, as they investigated a series of crimes. They investigated a few robberies and yet another murder at a boarding house. Throughout it all, the emphasis was placed less on the detectives and more on the traumatized victims of the crimes that they were investigating. Throughout the show’s run, even during the campy third season, Dragnet centered around the idea that that the job of the police was to protect and serve the public and this episode emphasized that point. With the exception of a scene where Joe (rightly) reprimanded a patrolman who didn’t show enough compassion for a robbery victim, there was no moralizing. Instead, Joe and Gannon did their jobs as best they could and tried to help out the innocent victims of terrible crimes. It was the perfect final episode for this series.

Now that my binge of Dragnet is over, I can say that it wasn’t a bad show at all. Yes, it’s dated, as any show that ran from 1967 to 1970 would be. And yes, the drug-and-hippie shows were frequently campy. But there really weren’t as many episodes about drugs and hippies as I imagined. Instead, for the most part, this was just a show about two men trying to do the right thing and protect their community. Some of the episodes were undeniably silly and it’s easy to laugh at any episode in which Friday and Gannon went undercover but quite a few of the episodes hold up well as police procedurals. If nothing else, the show is an interesting time capsule of when it was made. As a history nerd, I enjoyed it.

Hell’s Kitchen (Monday Night, FOX)

On Monday night, there were two episodes of Hell’s Kitchen, meaning that two chefs were eliminated ahead of next week’s finale. Steve was the first to go, with Chef Ramsay saying that Steve had talent and a good attitude but that he wasn’t vocal enough in the kitchen. Second to go was Brynn, who Rasmsay said had the makings of a great chef but who still needed to learn how to control her emotions. I don’t think anyone who has watched this season was surprised to see those two chefs eliminated but I did appreciate that Ramsay emphasized their positive traits and encouraged them, even as he sent them out the door. I like the kinder, gentler Ramsay.

Three chefs remain and the finale is next week! Personally, I’m rooting for Trenton.

Impeachment: American Crime Story (Monday Night, FX)

This is the third installment of Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story series and it deals with the impeachment of President Bill Clinton.

The first installment of American Crime Story dealt with the O.J. Simpson trial and it worked largely because the involvement of Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski worked as a buffer against producer Ryan Murphy’s worst instincts. The second installment, about Andrew Cunanan and Gianni Versace, started out strong but ended up getting so bogged down in its reverse chronology gimmick that it lost whatever narrative momentum it had going. It’s too early to pass judgment on the third installment but I’ve had my doubts about it from the beginning. In what world, I wondered, could an Arkansas hillbilly like Bill Clinton, a living caricature of everything that is wrong with American politics, somehow be played by the handsome and charming Clive Owen? Even with Monica Lewinsky reportedly signing on as a co-producer, it was hard to imagine Ryan Murphy ever producing a show that would truly be critical of a Democrat, even one as terrible as Bill Clinton.

The first episode was uneven. It dragged a bit, lacking a dramatic set piece like O.J. Simpson getting arrested or Versace getting shot, in broad daylight, outside of his mansion. Instead, this episode built up to Bill Clinton calling Monica Lewisnky for phone sex but the effect was ruined by the sight of Clive Owen wearing a prosthetic nose. The majority of the episode was taken up with Sarah Paulson, acting up a storm as yet another obnoxious character with no social skills and while Paulson did her usual good job, it all felt rather familiar. The episode worked best during the few scenes that focused on Paula Jones, well-played by Annaleigh Ashford. Jones was the first woman to accuse Clinton of sexual harassment and, in the days before Me Too, she was ridiculed and caricatured as being “trailer trash” by the rabidly pro-Clinton national media. In the scenes in which Jones faced a barrage of ridicule and outrageously sexist questions from the press, Impeachment showed why this decades-old political scandal matters.

Mom (Weekday Afternoons, Paramount Plus)

On Tuesday afternoon, as I was packing to go up to the lake for the week, I had Mom playing in the background. I think I went through about four episodes. I didn’t pay much attention but, from what I saw, each one seemed to be more depressing than the last. This show always reminds me of why I could never be an alcoholic because there’s no way I’d ever be able to bring myself to sit through those AA meeting with all of their rules.

Moone Boy (Sunday Night, PBS)

After being gone for a few weeks, Moone Boy is once again airing on PBS on Sunday Night. This week’s episode featured Padraic running away from home and Debra trying to launch a new career as a marriage counselor. Needless to say, things didn’t go as planned for either one of them. It was a funny episode, as they tend to be. I especially enjoyed it when Martin and Padraic attempted to take up shoplifting.

Open All Hours (Sunday Night, PBS)

Open All Hours is back on PBS. This week, Arkwright went to a funeral and left Granville alone at the store. Though Granville seemed to enjoy having some time to himself, I’m going to guess that he probably spent most of the time wondering how he had ever ended up trapped in a go-nowhere existence, living in a run-down shop as an indentured servant to a greedy old man who cared not whether his employee lived or died. It was a pretty dark episode.

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

It was fairly dull Talking Dead this week. Sometimes, Talking Dead is the perfect way to recover from an intense viewing experience. Other times, it just reminds you that it’s essentially a one-hour infomercial for The Walking Dead. This week was a case of the latter.

The Ultimate Surfer (Monday and Tuesday Night, ABC)

Much as with Bachelor in Paradise, I have no idea what’s actually happening on this show. I just know that it features attractive people surfing and that’s really all that matters.

Upstart Crow (Sunday Night, PBS)

On Sunday, I rewatched the first episode of Upstart Crow, with Will working on Romeo and Juliet, Kate lobbying for a chance to play the lead role despite the law against allowing women on stage, and Will’s family wondering why his poems don’t make much sense. I had seen it before but it all held up very well.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I (finally) reviewed this week’s episode earlier today. You can read my thoughts by clicking here.

Yes, Minister (Monday Morning, PBS)

Yay! Yes, Minister is back on PBS! They’re reshowing the show from the beginning so I rewatched the first two episodes on Monday morning. The first dealt with Jim Hacker learning about his new ministry and getting expertly manipulated by Sir Humphrey for the first time. This was followed by the episode in which Jim discovered that the world’s newest dictator was an old college classmate. Both episodes held up well to repeat viewing. In fact, having to deal with the daily reality of a Biden presidency has led me to have a greater appreciation for this show’s satirical portrayal of shallow politicians and devious civil servants.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television — 8/29/21 — 9/4/21

Posted on September 4, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I’ve been on a cleaning binge over the past week so I didn’t really watch that much. I did get hit with insomnia on Wednesday, which led to me watching a lot of true crime. It also led to me being beyond exhausted on Thursday. Anyway, here’s what I watched this week!

Bachelor In Paradise (Monday and Tuesday Night, ABC)

Lance Bass has replaced David Spade as the guest host. On Monday’s episode, he was very enthusiastic and very earnest and it felt totally wrong for this deeply silly and extremely shallow little show. As for Monday’s episode, the men are still hung up on stuff that happened during their time on the Bachelorette and it’s kind of pathetic. (“You weren’t there for the right reasons!”) As for the women, Demi is my favorite because she’s unapologetic when it comes to creating drama. She understands what this show is about. As for Tuesday’s episode …. well, I didn’t really pay attention to be honest. There was a lot of arguing on the beach. My favorite part of this show remains the totally self-aware and delightfully silly opening credits.

Big Brother (24/7, CBS and Paramount Plus)

I’m writing about the trainwreck of a show over at the Big Brother Blog.

Dead Silent (Wednesday morning, ID)

This is a true crime show about murders that occurred in isolated locations. I watched three episodes on Wednesday morning. One of them dealt with a particularly gruesome crime that occurred in my home city of Dallas. Yikes! It’s a scary world out there.

Dragnet (Weekday mornings, MeTV)

I’ve only got a few more episodes left until this binge is over.

On Monday, things got started with an episode in which Joe and Gannon investigated the case of a seemingly helpful woman who was actually conning old people. This was yet another episode where Joe and Gannon went undercover! I always enjoy the undercover episodes because it’s not like Joe and Gannon actually change their behavior in any way. They’re still obviously cops but no one ever seems to notice. This was followed by an episode in which Joe and Gannon investigated a murder at a boarding house, which was something that happened fairly frequently on Dragnet. This episode also featured a classic scene where Joe and Gannon convinced a reporter to hold back on publishing a story by appealing to sense of civic duty. That reporter would lose his job today. He probably would have lost in in 1970, too.

On Tuesday, the DVR only recorded the 1st episode. Either I forgot to set it to record both episodes or the cable could have gone down. (I was asleep, so who knows?) These things happen. Anyway, the episode that was recorded featured Gannon and Friday searching for a missing college student who, because of his drug addiction, had fallen in with a bad crowd. It wasn’t a bad episode, despite the fact that if featured the most clean-cut heroin addicts imaginable. For once, the emphasis was on helping drug addicts instead of just throwing them in jail.

On Wednesday morning, the DVR actually recorded both episodes. The first episode featured Joe and Gannon investigating a man who was manufacturing and selling amphetemines out of his home. They had to prove that the man was actually the one who did the manufacturing, which they managed to do through handwriting analysis. (It turns out that the man was foolish enough to leave his notes out where anyone could find them.) It was actually a pretty good episode, focusing more on police work than on heavy-handed moralizing. (That’s the main difference between the third and fourth seasons of Dragnet.) The second episode featured Joe and Gannon taking down a gang of criminals who would kidnap dogs and then return them to collect the reward. The best thing about this episode is that all of the dog owners were portrayed as being kind of crazy. I’m a cat person so I approved.

I forgot to set the DVR to record Thursday’s episodes. Sorry.

Friday got started with one of my favorite episodes, perhaps my second favorite after the third season episode where Joe and Gannon appeared on the talk show and debated the hippies. In this episode, Joe was taking a night class at the local community college when he noticed that one of his classmates had a baggie of weed hidden in his notebook. Joe arrested the student and, as a result, was kicked out of class by his left-wing professor. Joe asked for a chance to plead his case. Fortunately, it turned out that another classmate was an attorney who pointed out that the professor didn’t have any any right to kick Joe out in the first place. Featuring smug liberals, anti-drug hysteria, and a self-righteously indignant Joe Friday, Night School is a classic Dragnet episode. This was followed by an episode where Joe and Gannon worked in the Internal Affairs Department and cleared the names of two homicide detectives accused of stealing money from the victim of a crime. It was a good, solid episode but it could have used more hippies.

Hell’s Kitchen (Monday Night, FOX)

The black jackets were handed out and, sadly, both Emily and Antonio were sent home. I surprised myself by crying a little when Emily was eliminated but, to be honest, it wasn’t the first time that I’ve teared up this season. I’ve actually gotten quite emotionally involved with this show.

As you may have guessed, I’ve really enjoyed this season of Hell’s Kitchen. I’ve actually preferred it to Big Brother. The fact that Chef Ramsay has been a bit nicer this season than he has in previous seasons has been a surprising but also a welcome change. As much as everyone loves it when Ramsay yells and curses, he seems to be a lot more sincere when he’s actually praising a chef that he’s sending home and telling them to keep learning and not give up their dreams.

Hometown Homicide (Wednesday Morning, ID)

This is a true crime show about homicides that occur in small communities. I watched two episodes on Wednesday morning while I was working on some things. I’m not sure why, exactly, I ended up watching so much true crime on Wednesday. I guess it was just the mood I was in. Sometimes, you want confirmation that the world is as scary and dangerous as you think it is.

It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia (Sunday morning, FX)

I watched Chardee MacDennis 2: Electric Boogaloo, which wasn’t quite as good as the first Chardee MacDennis episode but which still featured a pretty good guest turn from Andy Buckley. This was followed by the episode where Frank fell out of a window, which is one of the few It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia episodes that I’ve never been able to make my way through. That gash on the back of Frank’s head just freaks me out too much.

Man With A Van (Wednesdsay Morning, ID)

Apparently, this entire series is about men who owed vans and abducted women. I had insomnia on Wednesday morning so I watched an episode. It was about a 16 year-old girl in Arkansas who got abducted by a man with a van. It was disturbing to watch and, as with most true crime shows, it was hard not to tell that the show was exploiting a real-life tragedy. Still, the message was a good one: stay away from weird men who own vans.

60 Minutes (Sunday Night, CBS)

Good God, this show is like a hundred years old and so are most of the reporters on it. I imagine the same that can be said for the people who watch it every week. Myself, I only watch it when Big Brother gets preempted by a football game and I have to impatiently wait for Scott Pelley to get off my TV.

Talking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

Josh McDermitt continually pointing out that it made no sense for Maggie to leave Gage to die was the highlight of this week’s Talking Dead. McDermitt was, in fact, so charming and funny that I found myself really hoping that he’ll find another high-profile role after The Walking Dead ends.

The Ultimate Surfer (Monday, Tuesday, and Friday Night, ABC)

I struggle to follow most of what happens on this show. Growing up, I lived in a lot of different states and I experienced a lot of different cultures but I never met any surfers so I’m at a bit of a disadvantage when it comes to this show. (If it was The Ultimate Ballerina or The Ultimate Motorcycle Gang Member, I would be on more familiar ground.) But honestly, the only thing that really matters about this show is that everyone looks really good. If you’re going to make a show about surfing, be sure to populate it with people who you would actually want to see on the beach.

The Walking Dead (Sunday Night, AMC)

I reviewed the latest episode here.

Your Worst Nightmare (Wednesday Morning, ID)

This is a true crime show. I woke up at two in the morning on Wednesday and, unable to get back to sleep, I watched two episodes. Both of them were about young women being abducted by crazed stalkers. It was probably not the best thing to watch at 3 in the morning, to be honest.