Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 2/5/23 — 2/11/23

Posted on February 11, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I had a cold for most of this week. Actually, I still do. Somehow, this did not lead to me watching more TV than usual.

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

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

It’s Valentine’s Day and we all totally know that Janine and Gregory totally belong together. The show wasn’t particularly subtle about it as Maurice gave Janine an empty bag while Gregory’s girlfriend was downright rude about Gregory’s present! While this was going on, Ava was discovering the joy of learning and Jacob was teaching black history. All in all, it was a good episode. I always worry that Abbott Elementary is going to be overshadowed by the whole Office-style mockumentary format but the show has definitely established its own identity.

The Bachelor (Monday Night, ABC)

Good Lord, Zach is boring. I think that’s going to be my review of every episode this season.

The Brady Bunch Hour (YouTube)

I wrote about The Brady Bunch Hour here!

California Dreams (YouTube)

I wrote about California Dreams here!

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

I wrote about Fantasy Island here!

Future Quest (Nightflight Plus)

Future Quest was a show that aired on PBS in 1994. Hosted by Jeff Goldblum, it took a look at the “future.” I watched the first episode on Saturday morning with Jeff and our friend Pat McCurry. It was full of people talking about what they expected the 21st Century would be like and amazingly, they weren’t that far off. Quite a few of them predicted that we would eventually end up watching movies on our phone, for instance. Only one person said that email’s popularity would fade and people would go back to hand-written letters. Sadly, an even larger group of people thought that the future would usher in an era of peace as we moved away from geographic conflicts, political unrest, and terrorism. With the benefit of hindsight, it was interesting to see what people got right and what people got wrong. And, of course, Jeff Goldblum was totally charming.

Hang Time (YouTube)

I wrote about Hang Time here!

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

I was not at all surprised when Alex won this season, as he was clearly not only the best chef but the best leader as well. Still, it was very emotionally satisfying to see him walk through that door. Alex was one of the many business owners to have their lives upended by the COVID lockdowns. From the minute this latest season began, he just seemed destined to win. It just felt right,

The Love Boat (Paramount+)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Night Flight (NightFlight Plus)

I watched two episodes of this old entertainment digest on Friday night. Both of the episodes were from 1990. The first one was a profile of the band, The Art of Noise, which I liked quite a bit. The second was a look at some films that were coming out that weekend. None of the films looked particularly memorable.

South Park (Comedy Central)

South Park is back. Cupid Ye not only satirized Kanye West but it also showed why his rantings are so dangerous. At a time when so many people are still treating Kanye West like he’s just some sort of kooky eccentric as opposed to someone using his huge platform to spread destructive conspiracies, South Park has more guts than almost every other show on television combined.

Stolen Youth (Hulu)

I watched this creepy documentary on Saturday morning. A middle-aged man named Larry Ray stayed with his daughter at Sarah Lawrence College and started a sex cult! The documentary featured interviews with some of the students who fell under his malevolent sway. As opposed to the unlikable people in The Vow, the interviewees in Stolen Youth were all sympathetic victims who were preyed upon by someone who knew how to take advantage of their naivety.

Lisa Marie’s Week in Television: 1/29/23 — 2/4/23

Posted on February 4, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I watched quite a bit. Let’s see what I can remember about it.

Accused (Tuesday Night, FOX)

This week’s episode was actually pretty good. It has an enjoyably macabre ending and was well-directed by Jonathan Mostow.

The Amazing Race 5 (Netflix)

The fifth season of The Amazing Race is on Netflix! I watched a few episodes this week. I’m glad that Colin and Christie were given a second chance to compete on the show because they really were the strongest competitors during the fifth season. After getting used to the mellow Colin who appeared the second time, it was interesting to be reminded just how intense and ultra-competitive he was the first time he appeared on the show. I know that Colin and Christie were meant to be the fifth season’s “villains” but, honestly, it’s impossible not to like them. I respect the fact that they consistently refused to yield or U-turn anyone.

American Auto (Tuesday Night, NBC)

Anna Gasteyer’s character went on the Seth Meyers show to try to soften her image and convince everyone that she really wasn’t the country’s most hated CEO. I understand that the whole point here was to reunite Gasteyer and Meyers, as I assume they were on Saturday Night Live at the same time. But I don’t know. Gasteyer had a few funny moments but Meyers has never really appealed to me a a talk show host. And really, if you were a CEO trying to improve your image by appearing on a talk show, would you go on the one that most people don’t watch? She should have held out for Fallon.

The Bachelor (Monday Night, ABC)

Boring!

The Brady Bunch Hour (YouTube)

I wrote about The Brady Bunch Hour here!

California Dreams (YouTube)

I wrote about California Dreams here!

City Guys (Tubi)

Uh-oh! It looks like Tubi has removed a few episodes of City Guys! Fortunately, I think I can find them all on YouTube. Anyway, click here to see what I wrote this week!

Football Game: Bengals vs Chiefs (Sunday Evening, CBS)

I watched this game with Jeff and Erin. I guess I’m glad the Chiefs won. The Bengals uniforms were a kind of silly looking.

Football Game: Eagles vs 49ers (Sunday Afternoon, FOX)

Was it on FOX? I honestly can’t remember. Anyway, I watched this game with Jeff and Erin and they were a lot more into it than I was. I decided that I would root for the 49ers because Philadelphia is the city of Parking Wars but I changed my mind once it became obvious that the 49ers weren’t going to win.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

I’m not sure if I agree with Chef Ramsey’s decision to keep Dafne over Sommer. Sommer may have been abrasive when she was put in charge of the Kitchen but she was still a lot less scatter-brained and more effective than Dafne was. That said, we all know that Alex is going to win this season.

Kids Behind Bars: Life or Parole? (Hulu)

This show originally aired on A&E. I watched an episode on Monday morning and I was immediately reminded of why I never particularly cared for this show. Not only does it exploit real-life tragedy but it’s also so biased and heavy-handed that it’s not really worth watching as a work of journalism.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week, the murderer was a prosperity preacher. Nolan Price used a bunch of shady legal tricks to convince a judge to force a minister to break his sacred oath. This show is always at its most cringey when it tries to deal with religion. As I watched this week, I noticed that the show is now playing up the whole “relationship” angle between Price and Maroun. They’re a cute couple but I kind of want to see Maroun handle a case without Price hovering over her shoulder.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here!

Night Court (Tuesday Night, NBC)

I know I watched the episode because I jotted it down in my notes for the week but I can’t remember a thing about it. That’s kind of a recurring problem with Night Court. I’ve seen every episode so far and I still can’t really tell you anything about the show or its characters.

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

I watched an episode from the 80s. It was all about the use of animation in music videos.

Survivor: Philippines (Hulu)

There are several old seasons of Survivor on Hulu. I watched a bit of the Philippines season, which featured the unbelievably hot Malcolm and the unbelievably obnoxious Abi-Maria. Along with Penner, RC, Russell, and a few others, this season featured some of the least likable castaways ever but it also featured Malcolm so it all worked out.

TV Party (Nightflight Plus)

I watched an old episode of this 80s public access program on Friday night. Chris Stein, of the band Blondie, led a small band in playing medieval music. Then a bunch of drunk people called the studio and threatened to beat him up.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/22/23 — 1/28/23

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Here are some thoughts on what I watched this week!

(I’ve got a headache coming on so excuse the bland intro.)

Accused (Tuesday Night, FOX)

The latest new legal show is Accused. Based on a BBC series, Accused is an anthology series in which, each week, a different person is accused of a crime and, through the use of flashbacks, we see how they came to be accused. Anthology series tend to be rather uneven and I have a feeling that’s going to be the case with Accused.

The first episode featured Michael Chiklis as a wimpy Dad who went from plotting to kill his son to giving his son a lot of money so his son could go on a trip to Iceland. Of course, it turned out that his son was lying and he instead used that money to buy a bunch of guns and shoot up his school. Chiklis was found to be irresponsible but not legally liable. It was a bit of a bland episode but, reportedly, it set a record for the number of people who watched. (Of course, it also aired right after the Cowboys/49ers game.) Michael Chiklis was miscast as a father who was too meek to stand up to his obviously unstable son. And even if the role had been perfectly cast, the father was still too much of wimp to generate much sympathy.

The second episode was directed by actress Marlee Matlin and it was a little bit on improvement over the first episode. It dealt with a couple who discovered that their newborn was deaf and their surrogate, who was also deaf and felt that she had to intervene to keep the parents from subjecting the child to a surgical procedure. Matlin’s direction elevated the episode, especially the opening scene in which Matlin showed the viewer what it was like to live in a world without sound. That said, the anthology format still left me feeling as if the episode was a bit inconsistent. Basically, an entire season’s worth of information was crammed into 45 minutes. I didn’t quite buy the episode’s ending, either.

As far as the show as a whole is concerned, we’ll see. I’ll probably watch the next few episodes, just to see if I’m correct in my assumptions. Hopefully, the season will shape up to be better than I’m currently expecting.

American Auto (Tuesday Night, NBC)

I think that Tuesday night was the first time that I’ve ever watched American Auto and I hate to say it but I was so busy cleaning the house that I mostly just used it for background noise. So, I really don’t have any thoughts on this show beyond the fact that Ana Gasteyer is funny.

The Bachelor (Monday Night, ABC)

Zach is the new bachelor and oh my God is he bland. Zach met the women vying to become his wife and he also got some advice from former bachelor Sean Lowe. The show is always happy to bring back Sean because, after 26 seasons, he is the sole Bachelor success story. Anyway, Zach assured us that he is on the show for the right reasons and hopefully, he will find his future wife amongst the bachelorettes.

The Brady Bunch Hour (YouTube)

I wrote about the 2nd episode of the Brady Bunch Hour here!

Customer Wars (Wednesday Morning, A&E)

This show features footage of customers getting into fights with other customers and yelling at the employees of the stores where they shop. Ugh. A&E did a mini-marathon on Wednesday morning and I watched a few episodes because I was waiting for the new episode of Accused to drop on Hulu. It was hella depressing. There’s a lot of trashy people out there.

Personally, I’d rather see a show called Costumer Wars.

Football Game: Cowboys vs 49ers (Sunday Night, FOX)

I watched this game with Erin. The Cowboys lost so I guess winter is going to last for another six months or something. In the past, whenever the Cowboys lost, everyone in Dallas would be depressed for weeks afterwards but this year, no one seems to really care. I guess everyone’s used to it.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

The first Black Jacket dinner service turned out to be an utter disaster as the Fab Five totally fell apart in the kitchen. When Chef Ramsay kicks everyone out of the kitchen, does that mean all of the diners just have to go home without getting any food? I’ve always wondered this.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, FOX)

I didn’t pay much attention to Law & Order this week. I mostly just had it in for background noise while I was doing some stuff around the house. I noticed that it was a murder trial and the accused was a teenager so I’m guessing the internet was to blame. I also noticed that the judge really got into banging down that gavel. Seriously, I jumped every time that I heard it.

The Most Comfortable Bra You Will Ever Own (Monday Night, Infomercial)

I’m pretty sure that I already have the most comfortable bra that I will ever own.

Neighborhood Wars (Tuesday Night, A&E)

This is a show about feuding neighbors. Like most of A&E’s other true crime shows, it makes heavy use of footage taken from drones, cell phones, and home security cameras. The episode that I saw was a look at the “ten most memorable moments of Neighborhood Wars.” To be honest, it was kind of a depressing show to watch. All of the people featured were trashy, stupid, ugly, and inarticulate. “Get your fucking bitch ass out here!” one pregnant woman yelled at her neighbor. Ugh.

Night Court (Tuesday Night, NBC)

Eh. Is it really necessary for Abbi to be a recovering alcoholic? Do people watch sitcoms to be depressed?

Parking Wars (Weekday Morning, A&E)

I watched two episodes on Tuesday morning while I was waiting for the Oscar nominations to be announced and, not surprisingly, Parking Wars was just as obnoxious as I remembered. I know the show is over ten years old now and I hope that means that the Philadelphia Parking Authority finally did something about the ugly décor of the majority of their buildings. If you don’t want people to think they’re living in an authoritarian nightmare, try not to work out of offices decorated in the mid-50s communist style.

Survivor: Redemption Island (Hulu)

This old season of Survivor, featuring Boston Rob and Russell Hantz and introducing the concept of Redemption Island, is now on Hulu. I watched the first episode and it was kind of nice to be reminded of how much fun Survivor was before its post-COVID facelift.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/8/23 — 1/14/23

Posted on January 14, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week did not leave much time for television watching. I had a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday. I drove my father to and from a doctor’s appointment on Friday. And I had a lot of movies to watch!

Here’s some notes on the five (yes, only five) television programs that I watched this week!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

“FIGHT!”

What a wonderful episode, this was. Sometimes, kid just don’t get along and there’s nothing you can do about it.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It’s time for the blind taste test! The blind taste test is an annual Hell’s Kitchen tradition but it’s hard for me to think of another season where the chefs failed quite as dramatically as they did during this season. It was a bit odd because, for the most part, the chefs have been pretty strong this season. Last night proved that anyone can have an off-day.

Brett was sent out of Hell’s Kitchen as the end of this week. To be honest, I don’t think anyone was surprised, as it was obvious that Brett will be a great head chef once he gets more experience but he wasn’t quite ready just yet. Still, it was kind of sad to see Brett go. He was always entertaining and he definitely always seemed like he was doing his best to improve with each dinner service. Brett also seems like the type who will be back whenever the show does another all-star season.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

For the second week in a row, Samantha Maroun actually got to do something more than just gaze lovingly Price. This week, she led the prosecution of a rich teenager who was arrested for beating an ex-con to death. The teenager’s defense was that he had been driven temporarily mad by super-strong marijuana. (Yes, I can hear everyone rolling their eyes. Look, I’m just reviewing. I didn’t write the episode.) Maroun was determined to get a murder conviction until Price told her that she was taking the case personally and that she needed to set aside her personal feelings and her own guilt about the death of her sister.

To which I have to say, really? Like, who is Price to tell anyone not to take a case personally? Price takes every case personally. Price put a pharmaceutical CEO in prison because Price has never gotten over the death of his junkie brother. Price may have been correct about Maroun but it still feels a bit hypocritical on his part. That said, I think the writers may have figured out that having two prosecutors who take everything personally doesn’t always work dramatically. Ever since the show returned from its holiday break, Price has suddenly been a lot more pragmatic.

There’s a lot of people online who, after last night’s episode, are convinced that Price and Maroun are in love with each other. They’re probably right. McCoy’s not in any position to forbid it, either. (It’s kind of funny how McCoy has gone from being a self-destructive, alcoholic womanizer to being the voice of wisdom.)

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

This week, we finished up watching Night Flight’s 1982 New Year’s Eve special. Most of it was made up of footage of Grace Jones performing and being interviewed. It was weird but entertaining. Apparently, 1983 got off to a very trippy start.

Project Greenlight (YouTube)

On Wednesday night, I watched three episodes of the third season of Project Greenlight. This is the season that aired on Bravo and which detailed John Gulager’s efforts to direct Feast. No one had any faith in Gulager but he did a pretty good job with Feast and he’s the only one of the Project Greenlight winners to go on to have a notable career. The episodes that I watched deal with the casting of the film and it was once again infuriating to watch as the film’s casting director went out of her way to undercut Gulager and cast her best friend in the film. The third season of Project Greenlight is the one that really makes the viewer hate Hollywood.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/1/23 — 1/7/23

Posted on January 7, 2023 by Lisa Marie Bowman

As the first week of January comes to a close, here’s some thoughts on what I watched!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Abbott Elementary returned this week with a sweet episode in which we got to see that Melissa actually is a really good teacher and that Jacob has no idea how to do a podcast. I have to admit that I cheered a little when, at the end of the episode, Melissa revealed that, due to the contest rules being poorly written, her “classroom” had indeed won the reading competition.

The Circle (Netflix)

The Circle was back with four more episodes on Wednesday. Marvin destroyed his game by trying to be a player while Billie-Jean and Shubham ended up getting eliminated. (Shubham did not help himself by losing his temper while answering a “savage question.”) I want to like Raven but the whole “everything about Raven is perfect” narrative makes it difficult. At this point, my favorites are Tom and Xanthi & Brett. I also have to say that I found Sam to be a lot more likable this week than I did last week.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Hell’s Kitchen returned and we have finally reached my favorite part of the season, when Chef Ramsay starts to show his softer and more encouraging side and the remaining chefs finally get a chance to show how good (or bad) they can be. Abe got sent home but he also get some words of encouragement. That was nice. I actually like all of the remaining chefs but it’s hard not to feel like its pretty obvious that Alex is going to win.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Law & Order returned with a new episode and this week and — yeesh! After several episodes that were generally intelligent, well-done, and not too heavy-handed, this week’s episode felt like a parody of Law & Order. This week’s murder victim was a undocumented immigrant who had been sent to New York City from Texas so, of course, we had to spend a lot of time listening to the cops talk about how heartless the governor of Texas was. It always amuses me how this show always features a bunch of blue collar cops suddenly talking like MSNBC analysts. I wonder if the show will do a future episode about the Democratic governor of Colorado sending people to New York? I kind of doubt it.

Anyway, it turned out the murderer was a real estate mogul who was obviously meant to be a stand-in for one of the Trump kids. In order to convict him, the prosecutors had to get testimony from a woman who worked in his office but — are you ready for this? — the woman was also an undocumented immigrant! As soon as she testified, she was deported back to Lebanon. After 20+ episodes, Sam was finally allowed to get upset about something and show a hint of personality. Whatever else you might say about this episode, it’s nice that Sam finally got some hint of a backstory. Up until last night, she was one of the most underwritten characters in the history of this show.

The show certainly tried to tug at the heart strings with this episode but it was so just so heavy-handed and clumsily written that it had the opposite effect.

Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street (Netflix)

This is Joe Berlinger’s latest Netflix true crime docuseries. Over the course of four episodes, Berlinger explores the story of Bernie Madoff. When I started watching, I was skeptical because I really didn’t feel that there was much left to be said about Bernie Madoff but both Berlinger and the show did a good job of explaining not only what Madoff did but also how he was able to get away with it for so long. Along with taking a look at Madoff’s life, the film also examined the people that he hurt (including his two sons, both of whom emerge as tragic figures).

One thing that I did learn is that, while Madoff did handle accounts for a lot of famous and rich people, the majority of his clients were just normal people who were looking for someone to handle their retirement funds. These people were victimized twice, both by Madoff and then by the government regulators. Despite the fact that none of these people knew about Madoff’s crimes, many of them lost their homes and were driven into bankruptcy when they were ordered to help pay back the money that Madoff had stolen.

The film features a lot of footage of the now-deceased Madoff being interviewed in prison. Even imprisoned and shunned by his family, Madoff still didn’t seem to feel that he had done anything wrong. This is probably the first Madoff documentary that has really convinced me that Bernie Madoff really was as evil as everyone says.

Night Flight (Night Flight+)

On Friday night and Saturday morning, I watched the Parts 3 and 4 of Night Flight’s 1983 New Year celebration. The music was good. The stand-up comedians were bad. A surprisingly coherent Ozzy Osbourne was interviewed about whether or not he had actually bitten the head off of a bat. He said it was an accident and assured the interviewer that the rabies shots were not fun.

Tough as Nails (Wednesday Night, CBS)

The blue collar reality show is back. To be honest, this show would be more interesting if it was office workers and executives being forced to do things like build buildings and unclog drains. But whatever. I like Phil Keoghan as the host. Just as with The Amazing Race, he seems to genuinely care about the people competing.

The Twilight Zone (Sunday and Monday, SyFy)

On New Year’s Day, SyFy had their annual Twilight Zone marathon! I watched a few episodes, in between watching movies and doing other things. I caught the Monsters Are Due On Maple Street and the one where Burgess Meredith breaks his reading glasses and realizes that he’ll never be able to read another book. Unfortunately, I did not catch the one with William Shatner and the Gremlin on the wing.

I watched a few more episodes on Monday. Again, I missed the Gremlin on the wing but I did see the one with the guy who was dreaming about being on death row. That’s personal favorite of mine.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 12/4/22 — 12/10/22

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I watched a little television this week but not a lot of it. It’s the holidays and I’ve been busy decorating and gift buying. Plus, I had to go the freaking DMV on Thursday to get my license renewed and that took almost all day. Anyway, here’s a few thoughts on what I did watch:

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

Abbott Elementary was cute this week. It was kind of nice to see everyone’s life outside of the school. I guess Ava’s boyfriend was a famous basketball player or somebody? I will admit that I did laugh when he got out of that limo, looked down at Janine, and said, “She’s even shorter than you said.” That said, I’m a little worried that Janine is going to settle for Maurice and fall into the same trap that she found herself in with Tariq.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

Yay! I was so excited when Derek and Claire crossed that finish line. I always felt that neither one of them was really treated fairly on Big Brother so it was nice to see them get rewarded. Plus, they’re just an adorable couple. I wrote about the finale of The Amazing Race over at Reality TV Chat Blog.

California Dreams (YouTube)

Surf dudes with attitude …. next week, I’m starting Season 3 and I’m looking forward to it. Season 3 through 5 are the classic California Dreams era. Basically, California Dreams can be split into two separate parts: the pre-Lorena era and the Lorena era. Lorena is the character to whom I’ve always related.

City Guys (Tubi)

The neat guys …. smart and streetwise …. I watched so many episodes of City Guys this week that it made my head hurt. Read my thoughts on two of those episodes here!

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

I wrote about this week’s episode here!

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

Usually, Chef Ramsey seems to secretly like all of the chefs, even the ones that he sends home. But last night, I got the feeling that his dislike for Vlad was very, very real. I feel a bit bad for Vlad but, at the same time, using a cake thermometer to cook meat is not something that a head chef should ever do. That’s like something I would do and there’s no way I’d last more than one dinner service on Hell’s Kitchen.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

Once again, Nolan complained that he wasn’t sure if he could “morally” prosecute a case. Fortunately, this week, McCoy kind of told him to stop bitching and just do his job. Good for McCoy! I mean, I have yet to see any evidence of Price’s high morals causing him to refuse his paycheck.

The Love Boat (Paramount+)

This week’s episode featured a chimpanzee and a nose job! I wrote about it here.

Survivor (Thursday Night, CBS)

Wow! I was stunned when Cody was voted out. Jesse will betray anyone but I also think he’s probably now in a very strong position to win the game next week. I wrote about Survivor at Reality TV Chat Blog.

Like I said, I didn’t watch much this week. I’ve been busy getting ready for the holidays and for a special person’s birthday. I hope everyone’s having a wonderful month! Can you believe 2022 is almost over?

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: 11/13/22 — 11/19/22

Posted on November 19, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I’ve been on vacation this week. Here’s what I watched.

(Yes, that’s not my best intro but seriously, I’m tired. I always take some time by myself after my birthday so that I can reflect on the year and plan the next one. It’s a tradition that is the result of having watched too many movies and read too many books about women who retreat to a lake house for a holiday and achieve enlightenment or, at the very least, write a really great book. Unfortunately, that always seems to work better in movies than in real life. In real life, I’ve spent a good deal of time inside because the average temperature this week has been close to freezing. As a result being stuck inside for hours at a time, my original plans of watching next to no television and only going online to host my weekly live tweets were quickly abandoned. When I did go outside, I got caught out in the rain more than once and I also banged up my knee and probably nearly broke my neck when I tripped over a tree root while exploring the surroundings. The sun has occasionally peeked through the clouds, mostly just to remind me of the fact that I cannot tan to save my life. I’m now catching a cold, and I’m no closer to being enlightened than I was before. This has not been my best-planned getaway, though it will make a great book someday. Anyway….)

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

“RALPH!”

This episode will always be remembered for the broken eggs and Barbara’s reaction to the way one of the mothers dressed. However, I think this episode deserves to be remembered for the brief moment when Ava has a serious conversation with Barbara about that mother. I always like the episodes where we discover that Ava actually does kind of care about her job and other people.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

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

California Dreams (YouTube)

Being stuck inside, I watched a few episodes of California Dreams so that I could write and schedule a few reviews in advance.

City Guys (Tubi)

Being stuck inside, I watched a few episodes of City Guys so that I could write and schedule a few reviews in advance. Hmmm …. that sounds familiar.

Graffiti Rock (YouTube)

I watched the only episode of this 80s dance show on YouTube on Friday night. A young Debi Mazer and an adorable Vincent Gallo were amongst the dancers! It was fun to watch.

The Greatest American Hero (Weekday evenings, ACE TV)

This is an early 80s show about a klutzy teacher (William Katt) who is gifted a red suit by a group of aliens. The suit turns the teacher into a superhero but, because the aliens didn’t give him any instructions, he’s not really sure how all of his powers work. He fights crime with his girlfriend (Connie Selleca) and a drunk FBI agent (Robert Culp). One of his student was played by a very young and handsome Michael Pare.

I watched an episode on Thursday while I was having dinner. The teacher battled criminals while preparing for an IRS audit. It was actually a pretty cute show. William Katt was as likable here as he was as poor, doomed Tommy Ross in the original Carrie.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It was a good dinner service but Chef Ramsey still had to send someone home. At least he was polite about it this week. I’m really liking this season of Hell’s Kitchen. I could honestly see any of the chefs winning.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode of Law & Order dealt with a murder that was linked back to Iraq War burn pits. Considering that Price and Mouron are the two most self-righteous prosecutors in the history of this franchise (and that’s saying something!), I was cringing a bit at the thought of them relitigating the Iraq War. But this episode was actually fairly well-handled. I never would have expected that Cosgrove and Shaw would become my two favorite characters on this show but they’ve managed to do it. I think that’s because Cosgrove and Shaw does their job without complaining, whereas Price always has some moral dilemma going on. Seriously, McCoy needs to bring in somebody new.

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

Stabler’s going to give himself a heart attack if he’s not careful. CALM DOWN, STABLER!

Law & Order: SVU (Thursday Night, NBC)

The squad was hunting a serial rapist and murderer who targeting transgender women. Greg Grunberg played one of the victims’s father, an NYPD detective who was not comfortable with his child’s identity and who was trying to hide evidence that would have confirmed that she was transgender. Eventually, however, he did the right thing and handed over the evidence that allowed the D.A. to get a conviction. Grunberg, as always, gave a good performance.

Magnum, P.I. (Weekday Mornings, Charge TV)

On a chilly and rainy Monday morning, I watched a two-part episode of the original, 1980s Magnum P.I. Magnum and his friends were being stalked by a KGB agent named Ivan. The episode ended with Magnum executing Ivan in cold blood. Ivan totally deserved it.

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

Friday night, I watched two episodes of this 80s entertainment digest. One episode was about the early days of rap and while the other episode that profiled Sade.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I wrote about the latest episode of Survivor here!

Too Close For Comfort (Weekday Afternoons, Antenna TV)

This is an old 80s sitcom, about a grouchy old man who lived on the second floor of a San Francisco townhouse. His daughters lived on the first floor. A bizarre manchild lived on the third floor. This show has been on Tubi for a while and also on Antenna TV. On Tuesday, after spending the first part of the day hiking and trying to meditate, I decided to unwind by shuffle dancing to The Chemical Brothers. Then, after that, I collapsed in front of the television and watched two episodes of this show on Antenna TV.

In the first episode, the grouchy old man and his wife were shocked to discover that a runaway girl named Sam was living with the manchild. Sam explained that she had run away from home because her father was overprotective and didn’t understand her and wouldn’t let her go out with her friends. The problem was that the actress playing Sam appeared to be nearly 40 years old so it was difficult to sympathize with her. I mean, just get a job and move out if you can’t take it. You’re an adult. Anyway, the grouchy old man explains to Sam that her father loved her and Sam went home. Yay!

This was followed by an episode in which the manchild and one of the daughters graduated from college. The manchild got a job as a mall security guard. Good for him.

The Twilight Zone (Weeknights, MeTV)

On Tuesday night, I watched The Obsolete Man. In this episode, an authoritarian government official ordered a man to commit suicide. Before dying, the man revealed the official to be a coward. The official was then ripped apart by his former supporters. This is usually described as being one of the more heavy-handed episodes of original Twilight Zone but, in this time of general government overreach, there was something satisfying about watching the smug government representative get outsmarted.

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 11/6/22 — 11/12/22

Posted on November 12, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

It’s my birthday and I’m up at Lake Texoma so, needless to say, I haven’t been watching much television. That said, we just got hit by the first cold front of the season and both freezing temperatures and rain are on the way so, for the upcoming week, I may not be doing much other than staying inside and watching old TV shows.

Anyway, here’s a few thoughts on what I watched this week:

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

With Quinton and Mattie getting eliminated, we are now down to five teams! To be honest, I get the feeling that Aubrey and David are going to come out of nowhere and somehow manage to win the final leg. That said, as a Big Brother watcher, I am rooting for Claire and Derek and, as a dancer, I’m rooting for Luis and Michelle. I wrote about this week’s episode at the Reality TV Chat Blog!

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

Atlanta came to a conclusion this week with an episode that somehow managed to wrap up the show’s themes while also feeling just like another episode of Atlanta. The show ended with a celebration of the relationships between the main characters and a hint that we might all just be in a sensory deprivation tank. It was a great ending for a good show.

California Dreams (YouTube)

I wrote about California Dreams here!

City Guys (Tubi)

I wrote about City Guys here!

Fantasy Island (Tubi)

I wrote about Fantasy Island here!

Ghosts (Thursday Night, CBS)

Poor Pete! A trashy reality show called “Dumb Deaths” wanted to shoot an episode about his dumb death. Fortunately, a series of weird events led to them actually doing a show about the hippie’s death. Compared to the first season, the second season has been a bit uneven but last night’s episode did make me laugh.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It seems like Trenton should have known better than to have his wedding reception at Hell’s Kitchen. Needless to say, things did not go well. Chef Ramsey kicked both teams out of the kitchen and then sent home two chefs. And really, the two teams were so incompetent that night that they left Chef Ramsey with no other option. I will never eat another scallop.

Law & Order (Thursday, Night, NBC)

Price and Mouron humiliated a prominent activist attorney in order to get a murder conviction. We knew the attorney was powerful because, in her office, there was a really photoshop of her standing next to Nancy Pelosi. I’ve finally gotten to the point where I kind of like Detective Cosgrove and Jeffrey Donavon’s performance has definitely improved over last season’s one-note characterization. That said, there’s still a self-righteousness to Price that just makes me want to throw something at the screen whenever he launched into one of his sermons.

The Love Boat (Paramount Plus)

I wrote about The Love Boat here.

Mid-Term Coverage (All Week, All Over The Place)

Come on, Arizona …. HURRY UP! I swear, we knew who won in Texas on election night and this state is a hundred times bigger and more populated than Arizona and Nevada combined. If you really want to fight against the conspiracy theories, a good first step would be to not be totally incompetent at your job.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

This week, Jeanine become the first member of the jury. That was not a shock at all. I wrote about this week’s episode at the Reality TV Chat Blog!

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 10/23/22 — 10/29/22

Posted on October 29, 2022 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I spent most of this week watching horror films. I’ll have a lot to catch up on, starting on November 1st.

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

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

This week’s episode was a Halloween episode and it was a true classic, with Baby Thanos releasing candy to all the children in the middle of the school day and chaos breaking out as a result. Jacob dressing up as Wage Theft for Halloween made me laugh way too much, as did the competing Scarlet Witch costumes.

Atlanta (Thursday Night, FX)

This week’s episode was a mockumentary about Thomas Washington, a black animator who was briefly the CEO of Disney Studios when the board mixed him up with a white exceptive named Thompson Washington. Thomas Washington was obsessed with making “the blackest movie” ever. The end result was The Goofy Movie, though it’s explained that Disney’s Board of Directors interfered with Washington’s vision and cut the most powerful scenes out of the film. Thomas Washington, we’re told, died under mysterious circumstances.

I’ve never seen The Goofy Movie.

The Amazing Race (Wednesday Night, CBS)

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

Full House (Sunday Evening, MeTV)

On the first of this week’s episode, Michelle was finally punished for being a brat. She nicknamed Jesse “Uncle Tattletale.” This episode was even more cingey than usual because it featured a scene with Michelle talking to “Angel Michelle” and “Devil Michelle.” The Olsen Twins weren’t even believable as one person, let along three. This was followed by an episode in which DJ learned how to drive. As usual, her stupid family screwed everything up.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, Fox)

No one went home this week! Chef Ramsay decided to spare the nominated chefs because it was a good service overall. I would have sent home Vlad but Ramsay decided to show mercy. Good for him.

Highway to Heaven (YouTube)

My friend Mark recommended an episode of this show to me after reading my review of I Was A Teenage Werewolf. I’ll write more about this episode tomorrow.

It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia (Hulu)

On Tuesday night, I rewatched the classic “The Gang Tries Desperately To Win An Award” episode. Sudz seems like a fun place.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

This week’s episode featured a law professor who was being blackmailed after he was filmed using a slur. After the blackmailer turned up dead, the professor was put on trial. It turned out that the professor’s 14 year-old son was the guilty party. It was kind of boring. This season has been a dud so far.

The New Wave Theater (NightFlight+)

This was an old show from the 80s, which featured live performances from various up-and-coming bands. It was hosted by Peter Ivers, who co-wrote the classic “In Heaven, Everything Is Fine” for David Lynch’s Eraserhead. I watched an episode on Saturday morning. Elvira was the co-host. The music was cool and trippy. All of the performers were off in their own little world.

Night Flight (NightFlight+)

I watched three episodes of this show on Friday. One episode was about “rock poets.” The second episode dealt with “villainous actors.” (Dennis Hopper, Henry Silva, Rutger Hauer, James Woods, and Robert De Niro were profiled.) The third episode featured Talking Heads. Good stuff!

The Real Love Boat (Wednesday Night, CBS)

I don’t know if I so much watched this show as I just sat through it because it aired in between Survivor and The Amazing Race. I didn’t pay much attention to it. The people on the boat are boring.

Survivor (Wednesday Night, CBS)

You can read my thoughts on Survivor here!