Kitchen Nightmares – “La Galleria 33, Part One”
I love this show, and I’m really not sure why. The restaurants they show are so ruined and disgusting, that it should really turn me off of dining out. But it pulls me in! It’s like a train wreck. I just can’t stop watching.
This particular episode of Kitchen Nightmares has Gordon Ramsey trying to save an abysmal Italian family place. The sisters own the joint, and are just plain awful. It never ceases to amaze me how clueless these owners are.
They blame the staff, they blame the weather, they blame the customers…they blame everyone but themselves. The food is always disgusting and I actually feel bad for Ramsey because he has to choke this crap down.
This is only part one! What else could this train wreck restaurant hope to offer? How worse can it get? I’m sure we’ll see next episode.
Modern Family – “Open House of Horrors”
Every sitcom needs to have a recurring theme episode each season to really capture memorable moments. For Modern Family, it seems to be Halloween. One of the best episodes of the whole series was last year’s Halloween episode, and this season it looks like it was almost beat out but tonight’s episode.
One of the great things about Modern Family is the writers’ ability to bring several plot lines together through framing techniques. For example, Phil and Claire begin talking about how she’s not as scary with her Halloween tricks as she thinks, but end up scaring the crap out of him during his open house on Halloween night.
Side note: who has an open house on Halloween?
I also have a problem with Mitchell and Cam’s parenting in this episode. Mitchell accidently tells their daughter, Lilly, that her mother is a princess. Apparently, this goes against what diva-Cam wanted to tell her about her mother. Here’s the thing: Lilly is, what, 2 ½ year’s old? Something like that? She’s a tiny little girl, who cannot grasp hard concepts about adoption yet. Telling her that her mother is a princess is totally fine if it answers her questions in the short term.
Instead, Mitchell goes to certain lengths to hide this from Cam, who then gets peeved when he finds out what Mitchell told Lilly. Seriously? She’s a kid. A very young, very little, kid. Lighten up, diva-Cam. Your selfish irritations are detrimental to your daughter.
Arrow – “Lone Gunmen”
In the comics, Oliver Queen’s rogue’s gallery isn’t exactly a fun bunch. Or memorable. Or…even really existent. He mainly fought bank robbers and wannabe villains that didn’t have much flair to their presentation. Hence, the new Arrow series on the CW is borrowing some arch-villains from Batman. Tonight’s episode featured Deadshot, one of the better assassins in the DC universe, and a recurring Batman villain.
Deadshot, in the comics, has moved on from Batman’s rogue’s gallery and become more of a fan-favorite character that has gone up against multiple heroes. Hence he is a great candidate for a quick spot on Arrow. He’s perfect to be pitted against Ollie, as both of them are expert marksman, but with different weapons.
In this episode, Ollie has his next target off of his father’s list all lined up, but Deadshot gets to him first. A sniper, Deadshot takes out the target and pins down Ollie, making their first meeting quick and fruitless. Eventually they have a showdown, but I’m disappointed with the end. I would have preferred to see Deadshot as a recurring villain because I think they could set up a great similiarity/dynamic between these two characters.
I also find it interesting that this show goes to great lengths to not ever use the name “Green Arrow.” The police refer to Ollie’s costumed side as “The Hood” and the newspapers call him “The Vigilante.” Is the moniker of Green Arrow too hokey? Is the personification of a superhero too whimsical for TV?
Marc Guggenheim, an Arrow showrunner and who also helped on Smallville, had a similar approach with that show. They never called Clark Kent “Superman” and in the later seasons just referred to him as “The Blur.” Are we seeing the same thing here? Keeping our distance from the source material because it’s a little cheesy for this reality based show?
How I Met Your Mother – “Who Wants To Be A Godparent?”
Now that Marshall and Lilly have picked a babysitter, they head outdoors to meet up with the crew. Apparently, before this precious moment, they were planning their deaths. Thus, the episode begins with them trying to plan their deaths.
Except…that several seasons ago they had already done this. They had death folders, where in the event of their deaths they would know what to do with each other’s estate. Granted, the difference here is that both are dead, but still.
I can’t wait until some problem comes up with my kids so I can host a game show to decide the fate of someone.
The Voice 10-15-12
Cee-Lo Green looks like a Tyrannosaurus Rex. I can’t help but think that every time I see the guy! Tiny arms, big body. High pitched squeal.
I’m not a big fan of this show, or others like it, but I am willing to give it a shot. I think that the battles between singers from the same team is a little silly, since you can’t really tell who the better singer is from 15 second of mixed chords.
For example, Christina’s team had a battle between a guy and a girl. They were too different to even compare. Fame and fortune awaits this guy based on a tiny scrap of music he happened to sing well. So did the girl, btw.
Blake Shelton might be the most boring person on the planet. His generic comments are probably fed to his ear piece. All of them dance around negativity, because we wouldn’t want to hurt anyone’s feeling and ruin record sales, now would we?
Another generic episode of a generic show featuring generic singers.
30 Rock – “Governor Dunston”
There’s just something about 30 Rock this season that doesn’t quite hold up. Maybe it’s Tina Fey phoning it in, or Tracey Morgan appearing more stoned than usual. Maybe it’s Alec Baldwin’s thinning physique. Honestly, I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it’s obvious that this is the show’s last season.
After 7 years and dozens (literally dozens!) of funny episodes, 30 Rock will go the way of the dodo. It is in syndication, so it won’t completely fade away, but don’t expect it to be the legend that is Seinfeld or Friends. In five years I expect many people will forget most of the episodes that they did see.
With dwindling viewership, it’s no surprise that 30 Rock was canceled. NBC does appear doomed if this is the best their network has to offer. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the show and I love the crew, but I don’t really tune in every week excited to be a part of their world.
The Governor Dunston character is a political candidate that is played by Morgan to inspire his own screen persona, and help boost TGS’s ratings. This entire season appears to be a metaphor for what is happening at NBC currently. Baldwin constantly talks about the purposeful decline of NBC programming. It’s tongue-in-cheek, but not really off the mark.
High point of the episode was Tina Fey finally enjoying sex. She’s in my 5, so yeah, I’m enjoying that part of the show.
Arrow – Series Premiere
I’ve never been a huge Green Arrow fan, but I’ve always appreciated the character. His stints in the Justice League were fun, and his shared series with Green Lantern was legendary. When I heard that the new show Arrow was coming up, apparently killing the long rumored film “SuperMax” I was skeptical. Could it work?
In short, yes, it could. It actually works better than Smallville, which isn’t too surprising since several of the guys behind that show are behind this one.
This is what The Cape should have been. Everything that show did wrong, Arrow does right. Drama, action, nothing too hokey. It’s hard to make a live action super hero show not hokey, but Arrow does it. It’s almost as good as a Batman story. Since Green Arrow has never stood up against Batman, comparatively, and won, that’s really saying something.
This series premiere is fantastic, and I’m hooked. I cannot wait for next week.
Go On – “Big League Chew”
I was hesitant to like this show, but I’ll be honest, I think it’s just as good as Scrubs. The premise fits well with a sitcom, provided that the character’s problems don’t get too sad. The plot remains light and fluffy, which is the only way this can work.
Having been on the radio for a living, I find it hard to find Ryan’s show believable. Radio just isn’t glamourized like that anymore. A station would never spend that kind of cash promoting a broadcaster.
This week Ryan is stress-eating/grief-eating. I wonder how long the show can go until it runs out of relatable problems for the main character? The show does seem finite in its premise. He gets through the hunger games (pun!) and has a revelation while helping someone else.
A good show and I’m glad that Matthew Perry is back on the air.
How I Met Your Mother – “Nannies”
I think that How I Met Your Mother is the only show I’ve really enjoyed seeing Chris Elliot on. He just fits the deadbeat dad archetype to a T.
Being a dad, I relate to Marshall and Lilly’s search for a nannie. I relate more-so to the poop thing near the beginning of the episode. Sometimes that diaper needs to be handled by…someone…who is not me. ANYWAY, it’s nice to see the baby Marvin character being used instead of being put to sleep in every scene.
We do get an interesting statement during this episode during the narration. At one point Ted admits that his relationship with Victoria, the arguably best chick he’s been with ever, is doomed to implode within the month. We all know it’s coming, but to actually have it admitted so boldly? A little unusual for this show.
I’ll miss Victoria. I really will.
Dexter – “Sunshine and Frosty Swirl”
Last week Deborah discovered, confronted, and got admittance on the fact that her brother is a serial killer. This week we see the fallout from that. How is she supposed to handle this? She loves her brother, much more than a typical sister actually does (but that’s a whole other article…). But she’s also a police lieutenant. It’s her duty to arrest the now revealed REAL Bay Harbor Butcher.
It’s a great plot point that I’m excited to explore. I’ve always wondered what the families of serial killers must think. Are they dedicated to their family members, even after they are revealed as monsters?
Best line, and we all thought this at some point, was Deb saying, “I am the worst detective.” Seriously, she has been so inept this entire show. The very first season she was crying to her brother to help solve cases for her. I love that she admits this. It’s classic.
A nice reference to past season regular character Frank Lundy, too. Just a passing quote that completely fits with the show. It’s this attention to details that really makes this an awesome show. The small stuff counts.
Dexter’s son, Harrison, seems to have been shoved to the side during this episode. I assume that Angel’s sister is watching like usual, but while Dexter is undergoing his little “rehab” stint it just seems a little sloppy to not have Harrison accounted for. Especially for a show that loves adding little details from the past.
