Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/30/25 — 12/6/25


Frosty the Snowman (Thursday, NBC)

This holiday special makes me cry.  Everytime.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Thursday, NBC)

Oh, I love this one!  Seriously, Boris Karloff and Christmas are a great combination!

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Friday, NBC)

Why is Santa Claus so mean in this one?  This special has always been my least favorite of the classic Christmas specials because it makes the North Pole look like a terrible place to work.

Saved By The Bell: The New Class (Prime)

I’ve been struggling with insomnia this week but I discovered that, if I put SBTB: The New Class on as background noise, it actually eases me into sleep.  This week, I slept through seasons 6 and 7.  I had totally forgotten that, after Richard Lee Jackson left, they brought in yet another blonde transfer student from Valley to step into the Zack role.  As I said last week, this show was the version of Saved By The Bell that I grew up with and I have a certain nostalgia for it.  It’s not good but it’s oddly comforting in its terrible way.

Sean Combs: The Reckoning (Netflix)

I watched this docuseries on Friday and Saturday.  It’s always so weird to me how people just kind of shrug off rap feuds turning violent, as if all the death is just a part of the entertainment.  As for the series itself, it obviously had an agenda but that doesn’t make Sean Combs any less sleazy.

Lisa Marie’s Week Television: 12/1/24 — 12/7/24


I watched the classic holiday specials this week!

In order of quality (from best to not-quite-as-good-as-its-reputation), I watched:

  1. A Charlie Brown Christmas Special (Apple+)
  2. How The Grinch Stole Christmas (NBC)
  3. Frosty the Snowman (NBC)
  4. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (NBC)

I have to admit that Rudolph has always left me feeling anxious.  I think it’s because Santa kind of comes across as being a jerk in that one.  The main message seems to be the Santa is a harsh taskmaster and the other reindeer are all jerks.  Poor Rudolph!

That said, I will always be happy to watch Charlie Brown learn the true meaning of Christmas.  And the Grinch remains a true classic, thanks to Boris Karloff.  Frosty always makes me cry, largely because I’ve lived a life largely bereft of snow.  In the end, I enjoy watching all four of those specials because it’s a part of my holiday tradition, just like Santa Claus Conquers The Martians, A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street, and It’s A Wonderful Life!

The other thing that I’ve been watching this week is an 80s miniseries called Amerika, which imagines what our country would be like if it was ruled by communists.  It would be pretty bad, what with the combination of oppressive politics, drab clothing, and mandatory struggle sessions.  Then again, it’s also really not that much different from America today.  Anyway, Amerika is interesting but it’s also 13 hours long and, as of this writing, I’ve got five hours to go.  (It’s on YouTube.)  So, I guess I’ll write more about it next week!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 12/17/23 — 12/23/23


It’s been a busy week.  I haven’t even had a chance to watch the finale of Survivor yet!  But that’s okay.  My mind is on the holidays right now.

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

Baywatch Nights (YouTube)

I wrote about Baywatch Nights here!  I’m really enjoying this extremely silly show.

The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas (YouTube)

This cute animated Christmas special from 1973 followed the adventures of a bear who decided not to hibernate for the winter because he wanted to experience Christmas firsthand.  All of the other bears thought he was crazy.  I was proud of him for following his dreams.

A Charlie Brown Christmas (Apple TV+)

I watched this on Friday evening.  It’s one of my favorite Christmas traditions, from poor Charlie Brown’s attempts to direct the play to Snoopy’s impersonations.  A few years ago, my sister wrote about this special.

Check It Out! (Tubi)

This week’s episode was a strange one.  My review will drop in another 30 minutes or so.

CHiPs (Freevee)

I wrote about CHiPs here!  Wow, Ponch really is a terrible cop, isn’t he?

Degrassi Junior High (YouTube)

I wrote about Degrassi Junior High and the start of season 2 here.

Fantasy Island (YouTube)

I’m happy to say that Fantasy Island has been re-uploaded to YouTube so now I basically have to binge as many episodes as possible before they get yanked down again.  Otherwise, I’ll have to use that terrible Daily Motion site to watch the show.  Anyway, I wrote about this week’s episode here.

Friday the 13th: The Series (YouTube)

I wrote about this week’s David Cronenberg-directed episode here!

Frosty The Snowman (DVR)

I recorded this classic Christmas special when CBS aired it on Saturday and then I watched it on Sunday.  It always upsets me when Frosty melts.  I think that’s because I live in Texas, where it hardly ever snows.  So, when a snowman melts down here, it’s totally possible that he will never be able to return.

Frosty Returns (DVR)

Frosty’s back and he sounds a lot like John Goodman!  I recorded this the same night that I recorded Frosty the Snowman.  Frosty Returns is not quite as charming as the first special, as the environmental message is so heavy-handed that it almost feels like a parody.  Still, I like snow and I like snowmen.  Come back, Frosty!

Highway to Heaven (Tubi)

By wonderful coincidence, this week’s episode of Highway to Heaven was a Christmas episode!  I reviewed it here.

Jennifer Slept Here (YouTube)

My review can be found here!

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

This week’s episode was really good.  I wrote about it here!

Monsters (Tubi)

I reviewed Monsters here!

The Murder of Jill Dando (Netflix)

This three-part true crime series took a look at the still unsolved murder of a famous and influential British journalist and television host.  It was an intriguing series, full of twists and turns and questions to which we may never get an answer.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (DVR)

This special is undoubtedly a classic but it always bothers me to see what a jerk Santa is.

Seinfeld (Netflix)

Earlier today, I watched the Festivus episode and the episode where Kramer becomes a department store Santa Claus and is accused of being a communist.  “Hey, this guy’s a commie!  He’s spreading propaganda!”

T and T (Tubi)

I wrote about T and T here!

Welcome Back, Kotter (Tubi)

I wrote about Welcome Back, Kotter here!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/20/22 — 11/26/22


I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!  Here’s some thoughts on what I watched this week!

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

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

The Brady Bunch (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

One of the Brady kids needed to make a movie for his Thanksgiving project.  The entire family helped!  Needless to say, Mike took it all way too seriously.  The movie itself looked awful but I’m sure the Brady kid — I think it was Peter — got an A.  No one ever had the courage to stand up to those Bradys.

California Dreams (YouTube)

Surf dudes with attitude….

Catholic Mass (Sunday Morning, The CW)

I always feel a bit weird watching Mass on television.  This Sunday, I felt even stranger about watching it while wearing a bikini and getting ready to lay out on the deck of my cousin’s place at Lake Texoma.  But, I did promise my sisters that I would try to go to Mass on Sunday so I did what I had to do!

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (Apple TV+)

Erin and I watched this classic on Wednesday.  She wrote about why she loves this special a few years ago.

Cheers (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

I haven’t seen many episodes of this show but I’ve read all the online praise and I am an unabashed fan of Frasier Crane.  The episode that I watched on Sunday was a Thanksgiving episode.  A bunch of barflies decided to spend Thanksgiving together.  Needless to say, it turned out to be a bit messy but also funny and even kind of heart-warming.

City Guys (Tubi)

They’re the neat guys.  I wrote about them here.

Football (FOX, NBC, CBS, Thursday)

The family was watching football so I joined them, kind of.  I cringed with every tackle and I felt terrible for the teams who lost.  I mean, what a sucky way to spend Thanksgiving.  Personally, I think they should allow for tie games so that everyone can be a winner!  But apparently, that’s not the way that football works.

Frosty Returns (Friday Night, CBS)

Frosty’s back!  But an evil businessman is going to destroy him with something called Summer Wheeze!  The 90s version of Frosty The Snowman tries a bit too hard.  I prefer the original.

Frosty the Snowman (Friday Night, CBS)

Yay!  Santa was able to bring Frosty back to life!  Seriously, I first saw this special when I was little and I was traumatized by melting Frosty!  Trauma aside, I love these old Christmas specials.

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

I watched two episodes on Sunday.  The first episode was from season one and it featured the Tanners having their first Thanksgiving since the death of Danny’s wife.  This was actually one of the better episodes of Full House.  This was followed by a much later episode of Full House, in which DJ finally got a boyfriend and started to show some independence from her overbearing family.  Good for her!

Gilligan’s Island (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

A bank robber (played by Larry Storch) somehow ended up on the island.  He menaced everyone with a gun, tried to hide his money, and then left without offering to help anyone else return to civilization.  I haven’t seen many episodes of Gilligan’s Island but apparently, this was a fairly common occurrence on the show.  For the record, I only watched this episode because I thought it was going to be Thanksgiving-themed but it wasn’t.

Happy Days (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

Upset that her family was more interested in football than fellowship, Marion Cunningham told the story of the First Thanksgiving.  To be honest, Happy Days is one of those popular old shows that I just don’t get.  The extremely enthusiastic “live audience” drives me crazy.  That said, this was an okay episode.  The cast got to dress up like pilgrims.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (NBC, Friday Night)

I love Boris Karloff!

The Love Boat (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

MeTV aired a Thanksgiving episode of The Love Boat on Sunday.  It was from season 6 so it’ll be a while before I get to review it as a part of my retro television reviews.

Saved By The Bell (Sunday Morning, MeTV)

I woke up early on Sunday morning and I watched six episodes of this show — that’s three hours! — as I had breakfast, cleaned up around the lakehouse, and packed for the trip home.  The episodes were a bit random.  It started with the Senior Prom episode, in which Zach realized that he still had feelings for Kelly.  This was followed by the infamous Graduation episode, in which the entire school rallied to help Zach avoid summer school despite the fact that they didn’t owe Zach a damn thing.  Then it was time for the “Time Capsule” clip show, in which a bunch of loser students gathered in Belding’s office to watch a VHS tape that had been left behind by Zach and the gang.

Time then moved backwards.  Suddenly, Zach was meeting Slater for the first time, Zach and Slater were competing to take Kelly to the school dance, and Zach was pretending to be Candy in order to get Screech to do his homework.

All of these episodes were, of course, pretty dumb and cringey.  But they made for nice background noise.  At this point, I think I have ever episode of this silly show memorized.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!

WKRP IN Cincinnati (Sunday Afternoon, MeTV)

“Oh my God!  They’re turkeys!”  Jeff introduced me to the Thanksgiving episode of this classic sitcom a few years ago and, since then, watching it has become a Thanksgiving tradition.  Poor Mr. Carlson!