End-Of-Year: Favorite 2012 TV Shows, Part 1

I watch a lot of TV. A lot. I can't even tell you the number of shows I regularly watch, because you will probably think I need to see a specialist. All of this is just to say that coming up with a top 30 list of my favorite shows is not at all easy. Ranking them is even more impossible to the point that most of the rankings are quite truly arbitrary. This year, I've decided not to include any reality TV shows so I can make room for scripted shows. My top 10 post will come tomorrow, but for now without further a due...

30. Suburgatory - This should've been included in last year's list, but I guess I didn't realize how much I would like the show until the end of its first season making me super anxious for their sophomore season, which thankfully has kept up with the quality of its first.

29. Castle - Clearly I love the show since I'm still watching and it perhaps doesn't deserve a relatively low rank. But it's that kind of show that while I'm watching it I love it, but seem to forget when I'm not watching it. This is not a knock though on the actors as Fillion and Katic are great together, even more so now that they are officially a couple.

28. Political Animals - In some ways this show could've been much higher on my list or not at all. It was that kind of show that really felt like it was going in a bunch of directions. What truly set the show apart though was the glittering cast and while plotlines could get too insane, I just kept wanting to see what happened next.

27. How I Met Your Mother - I began this latest season with much apprehension and unfortunately nothing they've really done have allayed my fears save for Barney's proposal. But I will always be an apologist for this show, because I still truly love these characters and will stick with them through thick and thin.

26. Girls - The voice of a generation? Well, I don't know about that, but Lena Dunham did create a show with a unique voice that slowly, but surely sucked me right in. These girls' lives are a mess and I can't help but watch it all unfold.

25. 30 Rock - For me the show lost some of its freshness a couple of seasons back, but it has truly found itself again the past year especially as the show does its victory lap towards the end of the series. This show, like Jenna's whole life, is thunder.

24. Last Resort - This show had my second favorite pilot this year offering a real adrenaline rush so rare for TV that I immediately knew they would never be able to sustain it and also it would be cancelled after this season. Fortunately, they were able to sustain some of it mostly due to the cast, but unfortunately they still got cancelled.

23. Ben and Kate - I was a little lukewarm to the pilot (though I still liked it), but the more episodes I watched, the more I realized I'm going to really miss the fun sincerity these characters brought. I'm a sucker for sibling relationships also, so this hit all the spots. Plus, best theme song ever or best theme song ever?

22. The Walking Dead - Last season, spent mostly in Hershel's farm, wasn't great, but the latter half of that season ramped up the drama and stakes and kept it going through the first half of the third season that has given us a rawer, visceral experience to this zombie-filled world. Leading man Lincoln has never been better.

21. Dexter - Talk about a much improved show! Who knew all they had to do was pull the wool over Deb's eyes? The way they handled her arc this season was pretty great with Carpenter selling every "fuck" that came out of her mouth. Couple that with Dexter forcing to do some real soul-searching about his dark passenger, LaGuerta's chilling quest, and a three-dimensional villain made for a damn good season.

20. Once Upon a Time - Last year, this show barely made my Top 30, but the end of the first season focused on more interesting characters (Ruby, Mad Hatter) then orchestrated a magnificent reboot of sorts to start the second season giving more meat to previously one-dimensional characters and a much-needed urgency to the plot.

19. Revenge - This show's relative high placement is mostly due to the extreme goodwill the show built up in its freshman season with its addictive soapy drama and excellent use of Stowe and Mann. This second season has been more perplexing and just a bit underwhelming at parts even if I still enjoy the heck of it.

18. Cougar Town - How thankful am I that last season wasn't its last? I wasn't at all prepared to say goodbye to those lovable idiots most especially during the beach wedding finale that make me laugh and cry simultaneously. I just can't help but love these crazy drunks.

17. Happy Endings - I'm just going to repeat what I said last year. This show is "a piñata filled with candy and crack" and while some of the material and relationships seem a little less fresh this time around, it's all still damn addictive. Plus Hip Hop Santa end tag was too awesome for words.

16. Mad Men - Don't ask me why this isn't ranked higher, because unlike what some people seem to think, this wasn't a "weak" season of the show. It wasn't perfect, of course, but off the top of my head I could name so many great moments, episodes, character development that happened. Hendricks and Moss continue to be the series' MVPs.

15. New Girl - Not sure when it happened, but I suddenly fell head over heels in love with this show. It's weird since for most of its freshman season, I felt like I was watching it more from obligation than desire. But then the show became much more of an ensemble and the writers suddenly figured out how to write each characters better. And voila!

14. Awake - Even though this just missed out being my favorite new show of the season, it does get the honor of being my favorite pilot of the year. I was immediately hooked on its brilliant concept of a man experiencing two realities, one in which either his wife or son lived after a car accident, and each subsequent episodes let me fall into the rabbit hole of obsession.

13. Game of Thrones - My favorite new show last year fell a bit in the rankings this year mostly because while I still love the show's world building, you can already feel things spreading too thin. It's still a gorgeous show though with some powerhouse performances from such actors like Dinklage, Headey, and Williams.

12. Veep - *BEST NEW SHOW* As a huge fan of creator Armando Iannucci's film In the Loop, I knew this show, which borrows a lot of its tone and sentiments from the film, would quickly be one of my favorites. A great lead turn from Dreyfus and a hilarious ensemble make it all work and I can't help but laugh uncomfortably at every other scene.

11. Doctor Who - There were only 6 episodes this year, including the super enjoyable Christmas special. The other 5 episodes saw the last adventures of the Doctor with beloved companions Rory and Amy and like many things this show does, they were all sufficiently epic and even heartbreaking especially Rory and Amy's final episode. Smith, Darvill, and Gillan had real chemistry I will sorely miss. But from the looks of things, Coleman will be just fine.

So there they are! As for my top 10, as I said before, they'll be posted tomorrow sometime, but looking at my nominations and using a process of elimination will make it easy to figure it all out. But the key question is... which show will be #1? Any guesses?

TV Report: Week of 4/8

There are many reasons why I didn't post my TV Report a couple days ago as I try to do, but I won't go into it. Instead in an effort to catch up, just brief snippets on those shows I got to see last week. Note that these don't include any new episodes I've seen since Sunday. Hopefully will get to those this upcoming weekend. Onwards...

Game of Thrones - Not as flawless as the premiere, but still a wonderful episode where we got a lot more of Arya and Gendry than the earlier episode. Plus we also got more Tyrion and Cersei scenes and lord knows I could watch a whole hour of those two just sniping at each other.

Mad Men - Apart from Don's feverish dream where he commits murder, the episode really revolved around Peggy and Joan being awesome and that's all right by me since they are my favorites. Peggy had two great scenes conning Roger and hanging out with Dawn while Joan finally kicked Greg out of the apartment!

How I Met Your Mother - I don't think it's an insta-classic, but it was pretty damn close. Love all of the flashback/flashforward stuff with the guys reflecting on their lives every three years or so. I especially loved Cobie Smulders rocking the wigs and costumes this episode. Plus Ted with the baby made me smile.

2 Broke Girls - Nothing much to say about this episode where the girls had to do drug testing for money. It's a show I watch because it's after HIMYM. I enjoy the leads, but the show itself isn't good. Moving on.

Smash - Toning down Ivy's histrionics and giving Karen the understudy role were all good-ish or at least relatively compared to everything else. But I really didn't like how Eileen treated her potential investor, Dev's work problems, or anything to do with Julia's crisis at home (though Messing's performance is very good). So more bad than good I'm afraid. And the last-second Uma reveal is... yawn.

Glee - Matt Bomer was in this episode. That's pretty much where my interests began and ended and even then I cringed at even some of his scenes, because oh god why? My love affair with Blaine is rapidly declining though that gratuitous shower scene was much appreciated. I just feel sorry for every actor in this show to be honest.

New Girl - Other than wanting to know exactly how True American is played, this episode didn't really hold my attention. I do like Jess/Russell together, but this episode wasn't one of their better ones. Winston's B-plot was also a bit mediocre except for the ending as he tried to get his babysitting job back.

Suburgatory - While not everything worked, a lot of it did that it made the episode worthwhile. Don't really buy Lisa/Malik, but the actors had so much fun with their gross PDAs. Ryan's feelings for Jane were also not exactly organic, but I dig it. Plus we got tons of Yakult/Dalia which is a rivalry for the ages.

Modern Family - Was I the only one who didn't enjoy that episode? I mean I really can't point to a single reason why I did, but nothing really clicked for me. The worst was probably Cam/Mitchell getting into trouble yet again by being overly judgmental.

Community - What was not to like? The Dean gets lots of screen-time to steal scenes, Jeff/Shirley gets to hang out, Britta gets to Britta herself, and Troy's feelings for Britta resurfaces. Cool, cool, cool, cool.

30 Rock - Good to see Elaine Stritch back as Jack's mom as she's always good for a zinger or two plus Krakowski is still doing good work this season this time checking off a couple of items in her sexual walkabout checklist. The best scene, however, was Liz dancing as dollar bills rained down on her via Tracy and his son.

The Office - Not sure what to think of this episode. On the one hand, we get more development on Nellie and Andy/Erin, but for the most part it all felt just a tad bit awkward for everyone involved. I supposed this show's motto is making awkward, well, funny, but I think this time around the execution fell short a bit.

Awake - I get so depressed talking about this show knowing it'll get cancelled due to its anemic ratings, but I tell myself to just enjoy the ride and whatever episodes do air. This week's episode wasn't as perfect as the week prior, but it still gave us little clues as to the nature of Britten's accident. Need more! Of it all!

Fringe - What's the point of reviewing this episode when all I want to do is give every cast member an Emmy at this point? Anna Torv and John Noble especially showed off why it's ridiculous they haven't been showered with all of the award this past week's episode and Seth Gabel two weeks ago did the same when one of his characters died. For me, it's these performances that make it worthwhile. The cool sci-fi plots are just bonuses really.

Finally, I have checked out the first episodes of Scandal and Don't Trust the B- in Apt. 23 and will check out the pilot for HBO's Girls very soon. I'll do a quick post on all three when I can!

TV Report Catch Up: Tuesday and Wednesday

Sitcoms and twisty drama about super rich people. That's what Tuesdays and Wednesdays are all about or at least that's what I discovered when writing up my thoughts on the shows I watch on those days. Without further a due, as I reach closer and closer to catching up...


Cougar Town - Suffice it to say, I'm so very happy to have this cul-de-sac crew back and as silly as ever. But one of my favorite things about this show is how they've learned to balance the heart with the wackiness. Jules reacting to Travis' accident, Andy expressing his need to be king of the cul-de-sac, and Bobby's need for companionship were all handled deftly and sincerely. Of course we get an episode full of Scrubs shout outs including numerous former cast members of that show, dominance ball, Tom Cruise running gag, and way too many more to list.

New Girl - This show has gotten much better since those early days. The cast just seem to be gelling much better now and thus becoming more of an ensemble rather than the Zooey Deschanel show. Schmidt in particular, who I had mixed feelings with early on, is becoming my favorite especially with the latest episode doing a good job highlighting his various neuroses while still making his friendships with the others believable. They do need to do more with Winston.

Ringer - It's not a good sign that I don't really have much to say. Don't get me wrong, a lot has actually happened on this show. The blackmail storyline came to a head, Tyler was killed, and a whole bunch of people are actually learning some secrets. I'm just not rooting for anyone. Siobhan and Andrew are shady, Bridgette and Henry are clueless, and the rest are meh.


Suburgatory - I still like George and Tessa, but this show is increasingly becoming the Dalia and Dallas show for me. As mother-daughter they don't even have that many scenes together, but any scene they're in is usually a highlight. The rest of the show is just as solid.

Modern Family - Two episodes, two reactions. The Leap Day episode was not good. It was Cam at his paranoid worst not to mention that doing an episode that revolves around's women's cycles is very tricky to pull off and I don't think this show did that. The last new episode was MUCH better exploring Cam's clown past, Phil duking it out with Ellen Barkin, and Manny "winning" for once. Also I think Luke Dunphy is my favorite character.

Happy Endings - This show is on fire. Dave appears in everyone's sex dream, Jane and Alex mindfucks Dave and Brad, and Penny's 31st birthday is a hot mess. The latter was probably the show's best episode making me immediately call it "practically perfect" on twitter after I saw it. Like many sitcoms, there's just way too m any gags per episode for me to mention all of my favorites, but it definitely has a higher gag per second ratio than most. I hope they keep this up!

Revenge - Only one episode aired since I last posted and the next new one won't even air until mid-April! With that said, it was the episode after the big episode that revisited the pilot which meant it felt like a regrouping of sorts. We got to see what actually happened on the beach and who shot Tyler (Daniel but Takeda delivered the fatal shots). Emily, Nolan, and Victoria are fan favorites and they continue to be but I give props to this show for making a few meh characters stand out in this episode. For example, Ashley's maneuvering to become the Grayson's spokesperson, Daniel's maybe/maybe not memory loss regarding Tylers' confession, Charlotte's yearning to learn about her past, and Declan finally thinking about someone other than himself (i.e. his brother who was at the beach). Good stuff.

TV Report: Week of 2/19

Happy Oscar Day everyone! But before we all get caught up on who's wearing who and which silent French films are winning what, just a few thoughts on some of the TV I saw this past week.

For the Love of New York City

Both The Good Wife and Smash are shot in New York City though the first show uses NYC as a stand-in for Chicago. In any case, both clearly love to take advantage of this. With Smash it's all about featuring locale haunts such as Cloister Cafe or just walking near Broadway's famed Shubert Alley. With The Good Wife, it's the casting. Just this week alone the guest stars included Jonathan Groff, John Benjamin Hickey, Rita Wilson, Parker Posey, Edward Hermann, Denis O'Hare, Teal Wicks, and Amy Sedaris. Whew! You'd think all of those guest stars would suffocate an episode, but not The Good Wife where the bulk of the story dealt with Will's last case before his forced six-month suspension. I'm intrigued what this means for Will now.

As for Smash, it had its weakest episode yet perhaps due to unremarkable songs (though I think I liked the original "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" duet in the end) or perhaps due to some tired plot developments. The episode started well enough with Jaffrey and Davenport having a bit of macho Brit-off and Huston throwing drinks at her ex-husband's face never got tired, but then we got into Iowa and I fell asleep only to be awakened by Kat McPhee doing cringe-worthy country. More sleepy developments... Julia of course had a thing with the new DiMaggio (who is dreamy I give her that) and Ellis is channeling his inner All About Eve. Which brings me back to The Good Wife. Is Caitlin also up to no good? Team Ivy! Team Alicia!

A Very, Very, Very, Special Episode of Glee

Teen suicide. Check. Teen marriage. Check. Texting and driving. Check. Since Regionals was apparently not big enough to devote an entire episode to, Glee's writers decided to just throw the kitchen sink of PSAs into this episode. Spoiler Alert: It didn't turn out well. I have nothing but praise for Max Adler's heartbreaking portrayal of a depressed teen forced into committing suicide, but Glee's inconsistency (see their handling of Santana's coming out for example) and inappropriate reactions (Kurt's reaction toward Quinn) made it all frustrating. The Rachel/Finn marriage is something I never cared about and that ridiculous cliffhanger with Quinn getting hit by a truck was sensationalistic at its worst. Most of the songs were damn forgettable with the exception of the Troubletones fantastic rendition of Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger." Oh and Sue's pregnant. Sigh.

Sitcom Lightning Round...

Most of the sitcoms this week ranged from good to great with my least favorite episode coming from a show that's almost always my favorite. How I Met Your Mother handled the Robin/Ted (and Barney) thing quite nicely, though I was worried that Marshall and Lily were cast in a bit of a negative light here with their long-term bets. Cougar Town was pretty great if only for the sad zipline and staged murders, but I just continue to love the relationship between every character. New Girl, which is now a much better show than it was early in the season, delivers another good one with Jess becoming tougher (as a teacher) and Schmidt/Cece blooming slowly (while Nick/Julia wilts).

Suburgatory showcased two of my favorite supporting players this TV season, Allie Grant and Carly Chaikin, with the latter making me LOL at her detailed plan for revenge against Tessa. Modern Family was a bit mixed since the Cam and Mitch/Jay stuff didn't really work for me, but everything else was great especially Manny and Luke "driving" and the whole doll/virgin metaphor. Not the best episode of Happy Endings even though Elisha Cuthbert continues to surprise me at how funny she is and Max's bear stunt was inexplicably hilarious to me. 30 Rock had a great concept (Leap Year Holiday) and some fantastic acting throughout and yet something still didn't click for me. Parks and Rec probably had it's weakest episode in years as the Tom/Ann relationship is pretty dull, Jerry's party kind of blew, and Leslie realizing she needs to take a break was a bit shrug-worthy.

Fringe Giveth and Taketh Away

This was a huge episode for Fringe (which to be honest is in the brink of cancellation based on its ratings). Not only did we get A LOT of information regarding the Observers, but because things seem to be reaching a climax in terms of realizing the absolute tragedy that Peter's erasure and comeback to the timeline has done. All of them are dealing with their lives being rewritten, erased, etc. and that is wreaking havoc on all of them emotionally. Joshua Jackson again is doing his best work on the show right now and his final scene with Anna Torv was one of the most heartbreaking scenes of the series. Torv for her part was fantastic here as well as in all of her scenes with alternate!Nina. Of course we still don't know Jones' endgame and EXACTLY what is going on re: Peter and the "normal" timeline, but I still got chills during the scene with Peter and September in that room. Poor Henry. Poor Peter. Poor Olivia. Poor us!

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Really great capper for the two-part episode of Castle since I kept being shocked at all of the twists and turns it took... Anyone else starting to think Prince Charming in Once Upon A Time is kind of a goober for being so damn cowardly... It was fantastic seeing Misha Collins in Ringer in an episode where we finally find out what drove the sisters apart... The Amazing Race had its season premiere, but I didn't have much to say other than being happy it's back... And finally congratulations to The Simpsons for a solid episode last week which also happened to be their milestone 500th episode.

TV Report Catching Up

Internet troubles and other reasons conspired in me skipping my usual TV Report last week which means I now have 14 days of TV to try and talk about. And knowing my TV habits, that's a lot aka 30+ TV episodes. So in a effort to just catch up, just a few quick thoughts in alphabetical order:

2 Broke Girls - I'm still not sure what I think about Jennifer Coolidge's Sophie added into the ensemble, but any character not diner-related is potentially great. Last recent episode with Earl going to the hospital was good to show Max's softer side.


30 Rock - Jane Krakowski is dependably best in show, but Tina Fey has been stepping up her game. Her old lady Joker in the latest episode (to complement Jack's Dark Knight) was inspired. The one-hour episode the week before though dragged. Would've made a better half hour installment methinks.

Big Bang Theory - There are seven main characters on this show. So why does only one, the newest addition, Amy brings the laughs? Oh sure Sheldon and others will get a joke here and there, but the writers are doing most of them a disservice with dull plots such as Bernadette and Howard's prenup or the lame contest between Sheldon and Kripke.

Castle - This show brought out the big guns. First having an episode enabling the characters dressed up in 40s outfit in a flashback then having the first part of their February sweeps thriller event that involves the CIA. Both were very strong episodes and I can't wait to see the second part.

Cougar Town - It's finally back and still called Cougar Town! And I loved it. From the cold open showing us these people are still the alcoholics we know and love to that heart-clutchingly beautiful proposal in the end, it was a great premiere. The latter scene was made even more effective by showing us momentarily Bobby's heartfelt and sincere mixed reaction to the proposal. Didn't even mention the other gags like Evil Stan, the green screen, and Jules predictability.

Fringe - The ratings are super depressing, even more so since these last two episodes have been this season's best (and right up there in terms of the whole series). It helped that we're finally getting closer and closer to the resolution of the Amberverse as Olivia's memories are starting to come back. I constantly praise Anna Torv, right so, but Joshua Jackson reacting to this has been a wonder these past couple of episodes. It also helped that the Cases of the Week were strong on their own.

Glee - The less said about the Ricky Martin episode the better (though Martin was completely fine and predictably charming and Naya Rivera killed in all of her scenes). I actually found myself liking the Valentine's Day episode. The Karofksy twist was pretty unexpected, Mercedes' glorious "I Will Always Loved You" hit all the right notes, and Rachel's dad were fabulous.

Happy Endings - Two words: James Wolk. I think other things, potentially gut-bustingly hilarious things, happened in these past couple of episodes, but really JAMES WOLK. His Valentine's Day kiss with Max then his subsequent shirtless scene the episode after... yes, please.

How I Met Your Mother - A bit of a mixed review for this show. The housewarming party episode was great in terms of concept, but the content was uninteresting. This week's episode was better in no small part to Cobie Smulders' heartbreaking performance YET AGAIN. The end with her and Ted is a curious development. Finally, I've been on the "drunk train" once. Completely accurate.

Modern Family - I actually think the past couple of episodes were above average with some really fun storylines. Cam and Gloria competing, Phil's obliviousness to Claire getting hit on, and the whole fuckery that was the Aunt Mommy deal. Good stuff.

New Girl - Can this show be hitting its stride? I think so since I've unironically liked more episodes lately than not. The Lanlord episode was HIGHlarious especially when Jess and Nick got this close to getting into a threesome with their landlord. The Valentine's Day episode was a bit of a hit-and-miss but Ryan Kwanten is pretty and we finally get the Schmidt-Cece pairing that was pretty inevitable.

Once Upon A Time - My friends have a problem with the show taking its methodical time actually progressing the plot, but I'm sort of okay with that as long as they keep telling interesting retelling of fairy tale stories which I thought they did with Beauty & the Beast. Emilie de Ravin and Robert Carlyle really made it all work.

Parks and Recreation - I thought they handled the most anticipated reunion of Leslie and Dave well especially coupled with Ben's uneasiness with cops. It gave both Louis C.K. and Adam Scott an opportunity to really go crazy in this episode playing off their feelings towards Leslie. Andy writing Leslie's campaign song was also good though mostly for Ron's Duke Silver reappearance. After this episode, I'm undecided about Tom/Ann.


Revenge - I could and SHOULD probably write a whole separate entry on this show, because since Daniel and Emily got engaged it's been nothing but an insane ride for everyone. We are introduced to the truly harsh Grandfather Grayson making Conrad/Victoria's divorce a bit trickier. Jack gets super frustrated and crashes a dinner party whereby Charlotte finds out about her real father. Tyler (!!!) comes back and makes Emily's life that much worst. We go back to the first scenes of the pilot and finally find out that... Tyler gets shot and Daniel may be the one to have done it. And I'm not even conveying all of the other twists and turns and the unspoken acting showcase Stowe and VanCamp engage in whenever they have a scene together. Love this show.

Ringer - Like Revenge, these past two weeks brought a lot of plot developments to a head mostly thanks to Siobhan finally being in New York and interacting with others. Her letting Henry find out about Bridgette was something the show probably needed to do sooner, but glad it's happened. I appreciate the twist on the whole Julia/teacher/rape thing, but I still think that storyline is too much.

Smash - Thankfully I managed to put my thoughts on the pilot down already so I don't have to do it. As far as the second episode goes, I'm still pretty much in like with the show. Megan Hilty is so great and so it's actually making it difficult to connect with Kat McPhee's character since I'm rooting for Ivy so much more. Like the pilot, the adoption story is shrugworthy for me even more so after those cringe-inducing scenes in this second episode. The singing/dancing performances were aces and I still find Jack Davenport (and Anjelica Huston) so much fun to watch.

Suburgatory - The latest episode "The Body" was okay, but not one of my favorites. It at least gave the Shay siblings interesting storylines which is welcome. I much preferred the week's prior episode dealing with sex. Tessa navigating her tricky relationship with Scott Strauss and George finally getting some were great, but really Cheryl Hines dancing to Kelly Clarkson's Stronger was my scene of the week.

Whew! Now on to a new week of television. The Good Wife returns! Season premiere of The Amazing Race! 500th episode of The Simpsons! Downton Abbey season finale Christmas special!

TV Report: Week of 1/8

Tonight's a busy, busy TV day for me. Yes, there's the Golden Globes which is probably my main priority since I'm an awards nuts, but there's also the football playoffs featuring the Giants and more importantly the beginning of the Australian Open. I didn't even mention my usual Sunday TV fare like The Good Wife, Shameless, and Sherlock. Thank goodness I have tomorrow off. With that said, that's tonight, how about I talk about the TV week that was...


Speaking of Sunday TV...

My two favorite episodes this past week came exactly seven days ago with the latest episode of The Good Wife featuring the welcome return of Carrie Preston's eccentric, but shrewd lawyer Elsbeth Tascioni and the season premiere of Shameless with the return of Emmy Rossum and the rest of the Gallagher clan. Both actress did win my personal end-of-year awards, but that's neither here nor there. While they were my favorite parts, they didn't perform in a vacuum. The Good Wife, like every week, expertly juggles multiple characters and story lines with nary a fumble. This week the main story was a couple suing the always hilarious David Lee who brokered their divorce agreement during Alicia's first year. It gave us very tense moments where we thought Alicia might have ::gasp:: done something wrong showing us not only that this show can make missing paperwork exciting, but also giving a more bonding moment for a newly made-up-ish Kalinda/Alicia. This storyline also offered us a wonderfully new rivalry in Eli and David Lee which I hope will continue to foster. Of course, Elsbeth, as Will's new lawyer, confronting Wendy made me gleeful since both of them are so smart and manipulative is similar and yet very different ways. I'm so looking forward to what transpires there.

As for the Gallagher clan et. al, it was great seeing them back, this time in the summertime. It's been a few months since the events of last season's finale with Steve leaving and Eddie seemingly committing suicide. As per usual, the Gallaghers are surviving just okay in their usual way--Fiona working as a server, Lip doing fight club, Debbie and Carl babysitting the neighborhood kids. Frank gets up to his usual trouble which not only threatens his kids (Liam is held for ransom basically), but makes them lose all their hard-earned money. It's a strong premiere in that regard welcoming us back to what we fell in love with the show in the first place. Oh and it featured a dirty-mouthed shirtless James Wolk as Fiona's rebound. Yes, please.


The Ever So Consistent ABC Wednesday Block...

Apart from possibly Sunday, Wednesday seems to be my favorite TV day which is even made more peculiar since I only watch one network. Or if not my favorite then it's definitely the most consistent/best flow which was solidified even more this week as I graded each individual episodes a B+. The Wire references abounded this week on Suburgatory and Happy Endings with the first show featuring guest star Dan Byrd (Cougartown) working as an undercover cop and the latter show featuring Max, Alex, and Brad staking out a possible prostitution ring. Both had their usual sitcom-y twists of course with Tessa thinking Byrd's cop was actually a closeted gay and the prostitution ring not at all what it seems. For the latter show, the highlights were the guest appearances of Michael McKean (as Dave's dad) and Megan Mullaly (as Penny's mom) who are now dating and of course the racist/homophobic parrot Alex bought.

Meanwhile Modern Family delivered a solid episode that is to be commended for a not-too-grating Cam/Mitchell storyline that had them trying to impress a girl who wanted to give up her baby for adoption. Phil's schtick this time wasn't as funny as I usually found it, but I loved his final scene with Gloria who wanted Phil to be angry with her so it felt like they were family. I liked the Egg Drop bit more for Alex's background snickers and Luke's observations than anything else. Finally, Revenge was delicious as usual featuring the wonderful appearance of Robert Bart as the journalist turned author who burned Emily's father. The ending was predictable in that Emily got her revenged, but it was quite effective with the flames and Nolan's maniacally smiling in the background. I don't have high hopes for Fauxmanda. She's the loose end to Emily's plan and she'll eventually has to be dealt with, but I did love Emily as Cyrano for Amanda scene. Charlotte as Emily's half-sister is... boring, but this is a soap opera and maybe it'll be more development for that underused character.


Welcome Comebacks...

It's been more than a month since we got a new episode of Parks and Recreation and nearly TWO MONTHS since we saw a new episode of Fringe, so I was glad to have both shows back in my life this week. First, Parks was fantastic especially the Ben as depressed plot. Adam Scott was literally stealing scenes throughout from his calzones-zones to his claymaysh. It was also a welcome sight to see him interact with Chris. The other part of the episode with Leslie relaunching her campaign was good, but didn't become great until the end with the ice rink debacle with Gloria Estefan's "Get On You Feet" playing in the background. By the time the basketball player slipped and the song played immediately after, I was delirious from laughing so hard. It was both hilarious painful and painfully hilarious. End result is one we all predicted though with Ben being Leslie's campaign manager. Bring it, Paul Rudd!

As for Fringe, it was a very strong first episode of the new year which in all likelihood might also be its final year. I'd like to think this was probably setup as the mid-season finale, but the ratings made the network delay. Too bad since it really was quite epic in scope with the two Lees from both universe meeting up and Peter confronting not only his "all is not what it seems" father, but also his affectionate mother giving us a wonderfully heartbreaking reunion scene. The Observer's scene with Olivia was appropriately foreboding, but the return of Jared Harris as Jones from the first season is more than exciting and if this is to be the endgame, then I might be able to live with it. Just barely.

Few Other TV Tidbits...

The last episode of Once Upon A Time as a whole wasn't really that strong especially when we were in the real world, but props must go to Rober Carlyle for his great work... Ryan got married on Castle and Castle/walking down the aisle in the end was cute... Amy gleefully reacting to her tiara gift from Sheldon in Big Bang Theory was pure joy... Nice to see 30 Rock back again, but I still miss Community more.. Didn't get to see either The Secret Circle (too much on that night) or Supernatural (falling out of love with the show). Though I hear for the latter, it was a particular good episode. Go figure.

TV Report: Week of 1/1

I think the idea behind my weekly TV rankings is solid, but I'm continually trying to figure out the best way to offer up my thoughts on the shows I watch. The problem is I just watch too much and the amount of what I have to say varies from show to show and even week to week. So with that said, I think I'm going to do without weekly rankings and if I don't have much to say about a show, I won't talk about it (though maybe just in passing?). And so it begins...

Forgettable CBS Monday Episodes

I get why CBS decided to air new episodes of How I Met Your Mother and 2 Broke Girls especially with an NYE-theme episode of the former, but talk about being wholly forgettable and largely filler. Mother had good elements that never really gelled together. Barney and Ted's lifelong dream of opening up the bar should've made more of an impact than it did and Robin's big on-screen moment was also similarly anticlimactic. Marshall and Lily having separate "dad moments" gave the episode an uplifting ending, but not their best efforts. Girls went into the world of extreme couponing and Occupy Bathroom Tampons. I don't even want to go into it really.

ABC Wednesday Makes Strong Return

Let's just say the weakest episode on this night went to a solid Modern Family episode which tells you how strong this night is for this network. Any episode of Suburgatory where Tessa is forced to spend most of her scenes with Dalia, hilariously played by Carly Chaikin, is always excellent. Dalia BTW is like Regina and Karen from Mean Girls rolled into one. Modern Family delivers a somewhat boring episode with the only highlights coming from a paranoid Phil thinking he's about to die and Claire, Cam, and Mitchell eying Manny's father. Happy Endings was enjoyable as ever mostly because I loved the pairing of Max/Jane (competing for a matching sweater) and Alex/Brad (finding out they share a love of rom coms). The Penny/Dave possibly subplot intrigues, but I need more to jump on board.

Of course last but definitely NOT the least was a new episode of Revenge where Tyler pretty much went off the deep end and it was so absolutely, and sometimes terrifyingly, a joy to watch. Tyler ate up most of the episode going up against Conrad then Daniel then poor Nolan before holding most of the main cast under hostage. Of course he is taken down and it's tough to say goodbye to Ashton Holmes, but they didn't kill him and since this is a soap, I'm sure we'll see him down the line hopefully with his hot brother in tow. In other news, Victoria is fighting two battles, one with Emily for Daniel's affections and one with Conrad in regards to their divorce. Can't wait to see her play dirtier as she gets more desperate.

Brief Thoughts on Dark Thursdays

I don't blog about Grey's Anatomy, but I do still watch it and this latest episode, the second part of a two-parter that began before the holidays, was great if only for Sandra Oh's performance. Actually I also give props to Kim Raver whose devastation was so well-played by the actress and gut-wrenching to watch. As for The Secret Circle, it was a fairly middling episode even though I did like that they didn't drag out the gang knowing about Cassie's possible dark side. I am getting tired of whatever plan Dawn and Charles are trying to cook up as well as Faye's one-mindedness of being such a bitch.

And Some Final Reservations for Supernatural

This season hasn't been awful. It actually started out strong and the last new episode before the break where Bobby died was one of their best. And yet, I'm just finding myself not caring as much about these brothers. This is one of those shows where I've stopped having actual things to say and I'll probably stop talking about it in the weeks to come unless something big happens.

TV Report: Weekly Comedy Rankings

If you read my blog fairly regularly (or follow me on twitter), you've probably noticed that my favorite hour of TV this fall has been Thursdays at 8pm on NBC with the double dose of awesome from Community and Parks & Recreation. Unfortunately, it seems like this past week's hour will be the last time these two shows will be paired up with 30 Rock replacing Community in the spring when the latter goes on its extended hiatus. When it does come back, it'll probably be on a new day/time slot and paired with another show. With that said, both shows are again on top of my rankings this week as they have done so in the past. I refuse to rank them against each other though, so here goes...

Regional Holiday Music (Community) - They were bound to do a musical episode someday, but I'm glad they were able to do so while also spoofing Glee and giving the fans a great half hour to go out on. The songs by themselves, with the obvious exception of Childish Gambino-like rap duet with Troy and Abed, weren't that spectacular. Joss Whedon has spoiled me on that front, but as a whole it was plenty entertaining. Props to Saturday Night Live's Taran Killam (boyfriend of How I Met Your Mother's Cobie Smulders) for crafting the equal part cheery-creepy glee coordinator. Show, you will be missed. Please come back soon.


Citizen Knope (Parks and Recreation) - Heartwarming. That's what I got from this episode. I was holding back the tears at the end when Leslie Knope received not just an awesome gingerbread replica of the parks department, but also her co-workers and friends volunteering to take up her defunct campaign. It was all made the sweeter from the early setup with all of them proudly displaying the perfect gifts Leslie gave them (Ron even got sniffly). The B-plot with Ben was no less entertaining as he went around Pawnee trying to figure out what to do now that he resigned. I thought him becoming Leslie's campaign manager would be perfect and could still happen, but I was expecting it in this episode.

3. Symphony of Illumination (How I Met Your Mother) - With all the praise I've given those top two shows, it's this show and this episode that has been occupying my mind all week mostly due to the brutal performance by Colbie Smulders. I was one of the few people that didn't react negatively over the pregnancy cliffhanger from last episode. I trusted the show knew what it was doing and this episode proved it giving Smulders a non-Robin Sparkles episode for her to shine. She went through a roller-coaster of emotions, first freaking out about her pregnancy then reeling from the news that she not only wasn't pregnant, but is also not able to have children. Hard to watch especially as as Lily and Ted specially tried to figure out what's bothering her. The last scene of the episode with Ted and Robin especially wrecked me. What all of this means for Robin/Barney is unknown, but well-done to all involved.

At this point, just a few quick thoughts on the rest of the comedies this past week:

4. Bad in Bed (New Girl) - Justin Long should really be a series regular because his two episodes has been my favorite of the series. He has great chemistry with Zooey Deschanel and their antics together are hilarious. Schmidt's plot line also made me laugh out loud especially that outrageous moment when he pushed his very pregnant boss into the pool.

5. Christmas Wishes (The Office) - Even if this show isn't a favorite, I do tend to love their holiday offerings and this year wasn't an exception. I especially loved Erin's journey from shy receptionist to drunk woman scorned. Also thought Darryl/Val was adorable.

6. Express Christmas (Modern Family) - The episode itself was a bit bland, but I loved the different combination of characters this episode featured. With an ensemble as talented as this they can mix and match and usually deliver which they did here.

7. Grinches Be Crazy (Happy Endings) - Not their best episode, but solid enough. Max as Santa was good comedy, but the rest of the stories felt flat mostly due to writing and not the acting.

8. And the Reality Check (2 Broke Girls) - I admit I choked up a little when Max bid a tearful goodbye to Chestnut in the end and loved Caroline "acting rich" performance. Rest of the episode was just okay.

9. The Nutcracker (Suburgatory) - A bit of a forgettable episode, but what I do remember was pleasant enough especially that sudden kiss between George and Dalia. Also liked that we see how George is super awkward with the ladies.

10. The Speckerman Recurrence (Big Bang Theory) - Leonard trying to deal with his bully from yore was a bit of a snoozefest. Luckily, as they've done for more than a season now the ladies held the episode up. Amy Farrah Fowler, never leave this show.

TV Report: Weekly Rankings

Many TV shows took the week off either because they were pre-empted by live shows or because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Still a few shows got in there with some new episodes with many getting close to go on their usual winter hiatus.


Last week I commented about how the dramas let me down a bit, but this week, the four that had new episodes stepped up to deliver good solid episodes.

1. Suspicion (Revenge) - This crazy show somehow got even crazier this week and I seriously loved it. The biggest surprise of the episode was finding out that Emily is really The Bride from Kill Bill or perhaps Bruce Wayne complete with a Japanese mentor to teach her in the art of revenge. I wanted to laugh and applaud at that little development there. The other big thing that happened, which I suspected would happen as soon as we met her, was that the REAL Emily Thorne now Kara Wilkins had decided to attach herself to Jack making him believe she's Amanda Clarke, his childhood sweetheart. The look of anger, hurt, confusion Emily had when she discovered this was pitch perfect. Tyler, always the schemer, uses Nolan and Ashley to get one up against Daniel while Ashley finally grew a backbone against a Victoria who is finding herself in need of allies at the moment. Game on, everyone!

2. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (The Good Wife) - Like Revenge, it felt like this episode was all about confrontations. Alicia had to confront Jackie over her overly snooping ways, Diane had to confront Will about his relationship with Alicia, the States Attorney office confronted Diane to get to Will, Eli had to go up against an old ally, and finally the Dana/Kalinda/Cary triangle kept heating up. All of this was foregrounded with a tricky military case of a woman being scapegoated after inadvertently killing a dozen civilians with an errant missile. In any case, at the moment I'm looking for a way for the show to bring it all together. Last week's episode was great, but it's clear it's all building up to something explosive.

3. Kill Shot (Castle) - This was a clear Emmy-submission episode for Stana Katic who impressed as Beckett still not over her shooting from last season's finale. Trying to catch a serial sniper, her issues came to the forefront and she expectantly faltered only to bring herself out from it. The scene with her and Esposito inside the evidence room was particularly affecting as were all the times Castle just let her be to deal with her issues in her own time. My one complaint was that it perhaps crossed the melodramatic line in a few spots and I think they would've been better served pulling it back just a tad.

4. Vs. (Terra Nova) - I have to say that this was a particularly solid episode especially since most of it felt like exposition to the show's bigger mythological questions. We learned about some of the backstory with Taylor and his son, but I wished we had gotten this information a bit more organically. It seemed a little too convenient that Boylan was the one person in Terra Nova to know about the dead body underneath the Pilgrim Tree and the way Taylor just gave all the information to Jim was a bit coming from out of nowhere since it seemed that was more a priority than finding out who the mole was. My theory that didn't pan out (yet) was that Reynolds is the mole.


And now for the comedies...

1. The Rebound Girl (How I Met Your Mother) - I see many people praising the episode for most everything until the very last moment. Before we get to that, the episode overall was pretty great. Ted and Barney's decision to bro-parent was silly, but still believable especially in the situation where they currently find themselves in. I very much enjoyed Robin's freak out about Marshall/Lily's possible move to Long Island and the latter's misconception that their NYC apartment is now too small for them in comparison. Basically, an all-around solid episode with the talented cast. The surprise ending reveal of Robin's pregnancy IS shocking and while many are already complaining about how it's too similar to Friends and how this plot point is completely ruining the Barney/Robin storyline, I'm going to give the show the benefit of the doubt and just savor the shock of it all.

2. Thanksgiving (Suburgatory) - Lots of things to like about this episode, such as Tessa/Dallas working together and bonding, George's resolve to treat Tessa less of an equal, Dalia's vendetta against Yakult, and Lisa's brilliant take-down of her mom's overbearing ways. The latter's conversation with her himbo brother about Eternal Sunshine was also a highlight. What I appreciated also was the continued world building the show did with giving us brief glimpses of previously off-screen family members like Sheila's husband, Noah's wife and kid, etc.

3. Week Off (Up All Night) - This show is really growing on me especially now that Ava seems closer to a real person that earlier on (which was also fine, but it created a schizo tone that the show couldn't handle). Chris' temptation to go back to working worked well with Reagan trying to find ways to occupy her time with a week off from work. I loved that in the end Chris realized that he loved staying at home with Amy, but that Reagan needed to know that he needed to feel in charge there. For her part, her type A personality came out and hilarity ensued.

4. Punkin Chunkin (Modern Family) - I enjoyed this episode, but there was something missing for me. Maybe it was because I expected the show to do more with guest star Josh Gad. The episode revolved around differentiating the realists with the dreamers with the former group containing most obviously all of the adult Pritchetts (and Alex) and I appreciated consistency of the characters in this regard, but it's also nothing new. The end was heartwarming, but they've done better.

5. And the Very Christmas Thanksgiving (2 Broke Girls) - This had the misfortune of coming right after I was still processing the shock ending in HIMYM so I promptly blanked out on the first ten or so minutes. It was an okay episode, mostly because we were back to the two girls with their thing and less about Johnny/Max. I also appreciated Kate Denning's one liners and Beth Behrs acting hopped up on energy drinks. The dual holiday tribute of the episode is a bit annoying because we can't be talking about Christmas already, except everyone totally is so there's that.

6. Full Court Dress (Happy Endings) - A weird episode mostly because you expected a Thanksgiving-centric episode and instead we get one that was pretty scattered by itself. Was it funny? Of course it was since these characters are a damn hoot, but the fact the the story lines didn't really come together made this episode a bit unforgettable. In fact the whole psycho mailman B-plot was actually pretty bad until the very end with the group inadvertently scattering his ashes.

I'm thinking ranking episodes between now and until after the holidays will be tricky with shows going in and out of hiatus so I may discontinue talking about TV this way starting next week. Stay tuned.

TV Report: Weekly Rankings

I've been sick the past week which meant that this is being posted way later than usual and that I saw a lot of these shows all hopped up on meds. So instead of my usual rambly thought, I'm just going to give 1-2 sentence reactions In general though, most of the comedies impressed while the drama shows stalled a bit. So let's start with those first!

1. Wallflower (Fringe) - Didn't really work for me as a fall finale, but on its own I found many to like mostly the scenes Joshua Jackson had with Anna Torv and Seth Gabel. The ending with Nina was spine-chillingly awesome.

2. Unscheduled Departure (Pan Am) - Difference between this episode and the past few was how focused it was as well as more air time for the awesomeness that is Collette. Plot holes abound, but not to detriment of plot.

3. Shut Up and Eat Your Bologna (Ringer) - Very happy that many pieces are finally falling into place (Gemma's whereabouts, Charlie's secrerts, etc.) and I'm finding myself looking forward to more.

4. Death Row Tip (The Good Wife) - Not the worst episode, but it was definitely one of its lesser episodes this season which is odd since Eli's daughter liking Zach, Kalinda kissing Cary (and flirting with Dana), and Jackie overstepping her bounds were great developments.

5. Treachery (Revenge) - This episode felt a bit tame when compared to older ones, maybe because no one died, but it was also the one show I saw while hazy with medicine. Not enough gay and murder, but y'all know this is my favorite new show still.

6. The Price of Gold (Once Upon A Time) - The Cinderella story was shockingly dull even if I still enjoyed the hamminess that is Robert Carlyle's performance as Rumpelstiltskin.

7. Mash Off (Glee) - The scenes Rachel had in the end with Kurt and her mom as well as everything relating to Naya Rivera was great. Unfortunately there were a whole lot of other things I'd rather not talk about.

8. Lonelyhearts (Grimm) - It was a solid case of the week episode, but this show is quickly losing some of the magic that made it a bit interesting in the beginning. It's all starting to feel like another boring procedural.

9. Proof (Terra Nova) - Honestly can't remember much about this episode other than thinking it was a bit of a mess and just a wee bit filler... and something about a stolen identity. Who knows?

10. How to Win Friends and Influence Monsters (Supernatural) - Don't really think it was the worst show of the week, but other than the end with the possible death of Bobby I really have nothing to say about the episode.


Like I said, while I mostly from the dramas lacking this week, most of the comedies were just plain fantastic. In fact I couldn't even decide on my top pick this week so since it's my prerogative, I'm declaring it a tie!

1. Documentary Filmmaking: Redux (Community) - Perfect episode is perfect. Jim Rash and Joel McHale were the MVPs, but everyone involved should be duly proud of yet another brilliant episode this time with Abed filming Dean Pelton directing a commercial to promote the school. Hilarity ensued.

1. Smallest Parks (Parks and Recreation) - Perfect episode is perfect. As a Ben/Leslie shipper I have no choice to fall in love with this episode since they are seemingly back together, but the other subplots were pretty great too (The Ron Swanson Scholarship made me teary).

3. Tick Tick Tick (How I Met Your Mother) - Everything was Barney/Robin and everything hurt. Seriously, can we just take a moment and appreciate Neil Patrick Harris' hurt face? The Ted/Marshall high plot went on too long, but the ending was worth it.

4. The Code War(Happy Endings) - Must be because I was on meds when I saw this episode, but I honestly could not stop laughing at every little thing that happened from Alex's crush on Max to Brad's impromptu "Oh no he didn't!" soliloquy to Dave's Felicity hair to Jane's bad flirting... so great.

5. The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition (Big Bang Theory) - Another Amy-centric episode and another winner this time with Sheldon showing how much he's grown as not only does he get jealous of Stuart going after Amy, but actually asks her to be his girlfriend. Say it with me... aww.

6. Thanksgiving (New Girl) - This was the best episode the show has offered and I don't think it was just because of the delightful guest star Justin Long playing the male Zooey Deschanel. Great group dynamics and a welcome comeback for the douche-bag jar!

7. After the Fire (Modern Family) - A pretty solid episode with the whole family pitching in together to help a neighbor whose house burned down. Not laugh-out-loud funny, but its sweet with some fun character moments (Phil as masseuse, sleep clowning, Alex using sex as a weapon, etc.).

8. Sweet Sixteen (Suburgatory) - I always like the episodes when Tessa gets sucked into the ways of the suburbanites around her so her getting excited about the elaborate sweet sixteen all for her was great. The B-plot of George being imprisoned by Sheila was not so great.

9. And the Really Petty Cash (2 Broke Girls) - I still really liked this episode and its low rank only meant the episodes above it were better. The Max/Johnny storyline is keeping me interested now with added bitchy and manipulative girlfriend in the mix.

10. Gettysburg (The Office) - Neither storyline worked for me and there really was nothing too terribly noteworthy about this episode to hang on to.

TV Report: Weekly Comedy Rankings

You can tell the networks are bringing out their big guns since it's November sweeps. For sitcoms, it's less about epic story lines and more about bringing in a bunch of famous guest stars as you'll see below.

1. End of the World (Parks and Recreation) - Damn if this wasn't another strong episode from the best comedy on air right now. The Chris stuff is still the show's weak point, but everything else was strong enough to compensate. Most notable, for me, was Ben and Leslie finally sharing a scene together and trying to deal with their break-up. As an unabashed Ben/Leslie shipper, this episode killed me from the gas station scene to Leslie's "If the world was ending today, I'd want to be with him" quote. After that, Tom and Jean Ralphio's epic end of the world party and April and Andy Bucket List adventures culminating at the Grand Canyon were quite p itch perfect.

2. The Isolation Permutation (Big Bang Theory) - I've constantly been saying for the past season and a half that the best thing this show has done is to give Penny girl friends. But bringing in Mayim Bialik as Sheldon's sorta girlfriend and Penny's bestie was a stroke of genius in no small part due to the brilliance that Bialik brings into the role. This episode was very Amy-centric with Amy trying to deal with Penny and Bernadette jilting her on a bridesmaid shopping trip. I ugly-laughed several times, one of them while Amy tried to convince Sheldon to cuddle with her.

3. The Slutty Pumpkin Returns (How I Met Your Mother) - Here's the thing... I was amongst EVERYONE who groaned at the thought that Katie Holmes was cast as the famed Slutty Pumpkin from the show's first season, but she didn't do a bad job at all. In fact I found her and Ted's inability to connect quite hilarious. My favorite storyline of the night though went to Barney and Robin (notably sans their respective paramours) as Robin kept teasing Barney of his 25% Canadian heritage. Robin talking Canadian and torturing Barney are two of my favorite things ever. The cherry on top is seeing Neil Patrick Harris dressed as a shirtless Uncle Sam-like character. God Bless the USA. Marshall/Lily's city v. suburbs storyline was slight, but still good.

4. Parents (Up All Night) - I've not been such a gung-ho fan of this show from the get-go. I love everyone involve and there are moments and even whole episodes that are quite good, but all in all I don't have any exciting feelings regarding it. With that said, this past week's episode with guest stars Blythe Danner and Richard Schiff is one of those good episodes that had me smiling from beginning to end. Most of it were how great Danner and Schiff was, but Applegate was the real stand-out in this episode hashing out her issues with her parents as a new mom herself. The Maya Rudolph B-plot was also funny if only for that ridiculous and hilarious tribute video at the end.

5. Lying Around (Happy Endings) - Speaking of hilarious videos, Dave and Max's commercial for Dave's food truck nearly killed me in its over-the-top suckiness. I also loved the fact that they ended up creating a great commercial by the end only to make no mention of what they were promoting. Brad and Jane's staycation duel was pretty funny as well as Penny getting jealous of Alex's date being exceptionally grand. For the latter, I wished we had gotten to actually see more of the grand dates.

6. Advanced Gay (Community) - A lot of things worked for me in this episode. All of the gay puns and word play were more than chuckle worthy and that stupid jingle for Hawthorne wipes keeps playing in my head. I also loved Troy's B-plot about being recruited by Vice Dean Laybourne over to the Air Condition Annex. I just wished these two plots were in different episodes, because they never really connected. I also wished we had more Dean Pelton especially for an episode entitled "Advanced Gay." I also thought Pierce's ivory-wigged father was a bit too ridiculous even for this show, but whatchagonnado?

7. Treehouse (Modern Family) - There really was only two things I particularly loved about this episode. The first is Leslie Mann working with Eric Stonestreet with the latter trying to play straight and Mann going along for the ride in the end. Hope we see more of her! The second is Ty Burrell, because well he's Ty Burrell, and because I always enjoy his scenes with Luke. I also loved that he made a new friend. Rest of the episode was solid, albeit unspectacular to me... Gloria wanting Jay to dance and Jay trying to learn from Manny... Claire ditching Haley in the middle of nowhere so the latter had something to write about on her college essay after complaining she's had it easy, etc.

Note: I don't have much to say about the next four shows/episodes so my reactions will be very short and sweet.

8. Charity Case (Suburgatory) - Kind of an odd/weird episode that didn't really work for me, but on some level still did. More commentary on the excess that rich people have, but not much to the episode for me.

9. And the Pretty Problem (2 Broke Girls) - Apart from the end result of the girls finding out their niche in the cupcake business (mean cupcakes! genous!), another run-of-the-mill episode.

10. Doomsday (The Office) - Dwight and Gabe aren't my favorite characters and since this episode had a lot of them, it wasn't one of my favorite episodes. Kind of tired of both of their schticks.

11. Naked (New Girl) - To be honest, I'm this close to dropping the show. I just watch too many other similar shows that just do it better. Schmidt wanting to see Nick's penis was chuckle worthy as well as Jess' inability to say penis for the first five minutes (then it got increasingly annoying after that). I'll likely keep watching, but I'll probably stop writing about it.

TV Report: Weekly Comedy Rankings

Still not a complete slate of comedies, but that should change this upcoming week with November sweeps already underway. With Halloween tomorrow, most shows wisely chose to air their Halloween episode this past week, because doing it after Halloween would be a bit lame.

1. Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps (Community) - After taking last week off, Community is back at the top with yet another imaginative episode only their show could've tackled. Like their last new episode, the show contained seven mini-stories, this time the each of the gang telling their version of a scary story all prompted by psych major Britta wanting to figure out who amongst them is the homicidal maniac per the results of the psych test she forced them all to take earlier. The stories themselves were hilarious. My favorite was Shelley's Rapture-influenced tale containing Dean Pelton in a devil-in-drag costume (love).

2. Noretta (How I Met Your Mother) - Not a Halloween episode (they'll have theirs tomorrow), but it's still a really hilarious, albeit supremely disturbing, episode. I say disturbing because most of the plot dealt with the characters imagining their significant others as their parents. The best has got to be when both Marshall and Lily realized that they married a version of their father and the awesomeness of seeing them try to make out. With that said, this episode really racked up the guest stars with Frances Conroy and Wayne Brady as Barney's mom and brother, Christine Rose as Ted's mom, Bill Fagerbakke as Marshall's dad, Chris Elliot as Lily's dad, and Weird Al Yankovic... not to mention recurring characters Nora and Kevin.

3. Spooky Endings (Happy Endings) - This episode was worth it if only to see Penny and Max dressed up as mom and child. Seeing Max try to manipulate the mechanical baby hands was truly awesome. Brad and Jane was saddled with house sitting in the suburbs which initially worried me, but good comedy was mined from the aggressive trick-or-treaters. Finally, I actually loved the parallel stories of Dave and Alex. Both were single on Halloween finally getting to dress in their non-couple costumes only for Dave's Austin Powers getting mistaken for Elton John which sort of matches Alex's Marilyn Monroe. Also Alex getting mistaken for a man? Good stuff.

4. Halloween (Suburgatory) - The kids storyline worked out better for men than the adults. The latter was George trying to convince Dallas that being scared on Halloween is a must. Some good moments, but Tessa being possibly possessed storyline by the "dead" prior occupant of her room engaged me more. The exorcism scene was a howl. Mostly I enjoyed the episode because the end, with George and Tessa scaring the neighborhood kids with their epic Halloween display on their yard, was one of the rare times we see them both happy about their new situation.

5. Meet 'n' Greet (Parks and Recreation) - Disappointed isn't the exact word I would use, because to be honest this show can still do no wrong. I think I just had too high of an expectation for this episode. Most of the Halloween stuff, with Andy and April throwing a party at their house (to Ben's chagrin) was fantastic. Certainly the Ron/Ann interaction was golden. But then Chris' continued oblivious act when it comes to Jerry and his feelings about dating his daughter didn't feel right and while I appreciated the Ben/Andy "fight" I expect more to come from it. The Tom/Leslie B-plot with Leslie meeting the town's business owners didn't jive with the Halloween-centric episode, but was largely saved by Tom's touching montage video in the end. Just happy that the whole 720 venture is done. Now I need more Ben/Leslie scenes together. STOP KEEPING THEM APART, WRITERS.

6. Spooked (The Office) - A few noteworthy moments such as the skeleton dance, Dwight's montage of weapon-centric geeky costumes, and Robert weaving a truly epic and scary tale in the end using all of their deepest fears were had, but for the most part I've seen them do better. It was definitely a great showcase for Ellie Kemper as she tries to live in a "used to date the boss" kind of way.

7. The Good Guy Fluctuation (Big Bang Theory) - If I didn't know anything about the show and just saw the episode for what it was, this probably would've ranked higher, but I'm not a big fan of episodes where the gang gangs up on Sheldon. This is probably weird since most episodes ARE like that, but this past week's episode felt a bit more mean-spirited in that regards and those I'm just uncomfortable with. It really went too far towards the end when he thought he caused Howard to get a heart attack and then inadvertently shocked himself in the end. It wasn't funny. Yes, he got the last laugh in the end with a brilliant "zombie coming forth from the couch" gag, but even that felt mean-spirited back as Leonard was going through something really personal.

8. And the Disappearing Bed (2 Broke Girls) - I bet if the rest of the shows didn't air their Halloween episodes, this might be ranked a spot or two higher, but here it is in the bottom of the pack this week with a fairly forgettable episode. I'm actually a bit tired talking about this show because it's the same every week. I love the parts when it's just the two girls talking and learning about each other and I conveniently forget about anything else. I think this episode had the requisite "nine inches" kind of humor, so there's that.

TV Report: Weekly Comedy Rankings

Weird week for comedies as almost half of the ones I regularly watch were off the air for one reason or another (actually it's baseball's fault). It made ranking them that much easier though, but man I really wanted a new Parks and Recreation, didn't you?

1. The Rhinitis Revelation (Big Bang Theory) - One of the great things about this show is its roster of great recurring characters and Sheldon's mom played by the very funny Laurie Metcalf is right there on top as one of the best. While it's always good fodder when Sheldon becomes even more childlike at her presence, it's a real treat to see her interacting with everyone else and sizing them all up and their situations. Of course, capping off the episode with Sheldon sick and her singing "Soft Kitty" was just perfect, but I really wished we'd gotten a scene with her and Amy!

2. Go Bullfrogs! (Modern Family) - Off-the-bat have to say that my favorite story line is Phil bringing Haley to his alma mater for a college visit mostly because I just love Ty Burell in anything he does and he got to do two of his best roles: silly crazy dad and awesome caring dad. Claire going out with Mitchell and Cam was also fun, but I saw the whole "Gilles Marini is really straight uh-oh" from a mile away. As for Sofia/Jay/Manny, just one word: "pooberty."

3. Mystery vs. History (How I Met Your Mother) - This episode would've been higher up on the list if the ending to Ted's date had opened up for Janet McIntyre (played by the adorable Amber Stevens of Greek fame) to recur. Yes, she's the alpha woman who's smart, sexy, kind, and rich, but it felt oddly out of character for Ted to be so flabbergasted by that. Still I loved the whole "dating in the age of Facebook" theme of the show. I'm still undecided about Kal Penn being part of the group. He felt a bit stiff and it didn't help that Robin clearly preferred to hang out with Barney. Also... a boy for Marshall and Lily! Aww!

4. Birth (Up All Night) - I quite liked this episode, probably one of the better ones this show has had. But I just think it's WAY TOO EARLY to show us the birth of Amy. We're just getting to know all of these characters and this episode felt like something that could've waited until next season or at the very least the finale. As it is, it's just a good episode, but it could've been MUCH MORE if we had invested more time in them.

5. Secrets and Limos (Happy Endings) - The whole vision board thing was a little funny and a little weird, which kind of encapsulates the show. Kudos to Jane for being able to get "tickets to Greece" and "5 pounds of muscles" on the cheap. The Max/Brad/Brad's boss storyline was just okay, but then again the whole "He jellied my belly!" line was worth it. Also fun to see one of Dave's girls judge the group (like Megan Mullaly's character did last week).

6. And the '90s Horse Party (2 Broke Girls) - Definitely one of the stronger episodes of this show. I didn't even hate all of the diner stuff which I usually do. Of course it's also their umpteenth show where they mock hipsters, but if it works, it works. Though if they can pay off Max's student loan after one 90s horse party, it begs the question WHY NOT DO THIS SEMI-REGULARLY to make money? In any case, the show just needs a more regular dose of heart to go along with its snark.

7. Don't Call Me Shirley (Suburgatory) - I didn't hate the episode, but it felt off to me somehow. It actually felt like this was supposed to be the second or third episode so its placement here as the fourth felt weird. Tessa doing everything in her power to leave the suburbs is a bit of a rehash though I suppose it's okay just to see Dalia and her together for a sleepover. I still love the show, but hoping for better next week (Halloween episode!).