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« April 13, 2008 - April 19, 2008 | Main | April 27, 2008 - May 3, 2008 »
The Simpsons
Bart joins the 4-H club and raises a prize steer, but can't bear to have it slaughtered because he loves it so much. Will he become a vegetarian like Lisa? Doubtful.
Desperate Housewives
Bree and Katherine decide to go into business; Lynnette tries to deny her emotions; Mike learns the truth about his accident.
Dexter
The latest crime scene from Ice Truck Killer triggers a childhood flashback for Dexter. Rita's ex wants custody of the kids.
Show: Smallville
Episode: “Sleeper”
First Aired: 4/24/08
Last week’s review ended with a reference to the Brad Pitt film “Se7en.” This one begins with a reference to another Pitt project - “Mr. & Mrs. Smith.” In fact, the new episode of “Smallville” is an entire reference to that movie, as well as “True Lies,” James Bond, a little bit of “Mission: Impossible,” etc. Is this another example of Hollywood’s lack of originality or a sincere homage? Read on to find out.
We open with Jimmy trying to reignite the spark in his renewed romance with Chloe (right), but as usual she’s too busy to stick around. Why so busy? That’s what a sexy special agent from the Department of Domestic Security wants to know. She’s been monitoring Chloe’s recent computer hacking exploits and suspects that Jimmy’s main squeeze is part of a sleeper cell of terrorists. In reality Ms. Sullivan is using government satellites to help Clark find Kara and Brainiac. Jimmy of course doesn’t know this and, although he doesn’t want to believe his girlfriend could be a traitor, he’s curious enough to spy on her for the feds (plus, he was threatened by the sexy fed -- so he’s got that going for him).
Nigel must be gobsmacked. "American Idol" ratings are really starting to blow chunks, sez the Hollywood Reporter. Well, actually they said "slipping." The results show was down to 22.6 million viewers on Wednesday night, three quarters of a million down from the week before. The New York Times sez that Carly's fatal mistake might have been singing "Jesus Christ Superstar" this week, a song that many devout Christians just don't cotton to. But at least she's not feeling sorry for herself.
Hilary Duff has been approached to star in the "90210" remake headed for CW this fall, according to an exclusive report from E! Online's Kristin. She'd play Annie Mills, a Beverly Hills High School student who's into theater. No confirmation or denial yet from either side on the report from a source close to the show.
But you have to wonder if the onetime "Lizzie McGuire" star would really want to go back to playing a high schooler despite her busy career in movies and music. Not to mention her successful attempt to recast her image as that of a fully grownup hottie --------->
Dr. Drew won't comment, and we don't have any other names on the slate, but Heidi Fleiss (left) says she's already signed on for the sequel to "Celebrity Rehab." Her problem? Meth to stay up and Vicodin to sleep. It should be exciting to watch her kick that habit.
More importantly, she's got a sharp tongue, which should keep things lively in group therapy sessions. For example, she recently told Radar she's in awe of Rush Limbaugh's ability to toss back the oxys and keep working. Oh, snap!
Of course Mr. Tough On Crime says he's clean, but I think he'd be great on the show. I mean, what sober man would call for violent race riots in Denver during the Democratic National Convention, and then deny doing it the very next day?
Jenny Mason was born in Korea and adopted by a white family in the Midwestern US. After an uncomfortable "indiscretion" with her white adoptive brother, she heads for New York City to pursue a career in photography. Cut off from her adoptive family, struggling to fit in with white New Yorkers, she's also having a hard time understanding or identifying with Asian-American New Yorkers.
Who is she really, and what does she want? "Tie A Yellow Ribbon," a new indie film coming soon on PBS, explores her identity and the Asian-American experience.
You can see a short preview at yellowribbonmovie.com. Dates and times vary by region, but start some time after May 1.
Knucklebuster posted this video with only the comment "so awesome" and I have to agree. It's a trailer for a 70s grindhouse flick so terrible it doesn't even have an entry in IMDB. The tagline: "They want your liquor. They want your women. But most of all, they want everything!"
Zac Efron is getting a little too old to convincingly play a high-schooler, so the Disney team is looking for a new cast for the fourth edition of "High School Musical." (HSM3, if you didn't already know, is now filming.)
They're looking for an all new (or mostly new) cast of young fresh fellows and gals, and since the casting itself should provide plenty of drama, they're turning that into a "High School Musical" show as well.
Welcome to "High School Musical: Summer Session!" The open casting starts this Sunday: Anyone aged 16-22 can compete by just showing up at Long Beach Arena. The show will air starting this July. Oh, and guess who's hosting? Nick Lachey.
Oh yes. "The Venture Brothers" are returning to Adult Swim, and Doctor Venture is going to have to face his greatest fear - namely, his rival superscientist's prehensile Johnson.
A roundup of penis-related television news...
HBO has signed to develop "Hung," a dark comedy about a former high-school jock who heals his midlife crisis by finding a way to exploit his extraordinary endowment. (Variety)
Kudos to our friends over at the bracingly reality-based blog TV By The Numbers for casting the hard light of truth on the avalanche of "Gossip Girl" hype. "I threw up in my mouth a little bit when New York Magazine made Gossip Girl its cover story with the title Best Show Ever..." writes Robert Seidman, who goes on to deconstruct ratings claims for the show involving viewership via the Internets. Seidman writes, "You know what you have? A show that still has less viewers in total than the Gilmore Girls had just last year in its final season. Even when you add in the imaginary million extra Internet viewers." Ouchie!
Michael Scott in all his glory.
Benjamin Linus is rapidly moving from "pretty excellent villain" to "perhaps one of the best TV villains of all time." Make no mistake, he is a guy with whom you would not want to frak. It probably bodes well for no one that the events of this most recent episode have stripped Ben of one of the last remnants of his humanity, but as bad as it is for the survivors of Oceanic 815, it's pretty much awesome for us.
Our latest "Lost" episode is titled "The Shape Of Things To Come," and we definitely get a taste of what is coming up. Lots of dead bodies, lots of villainy and - of course - lots more questions. Along with new questions, we get a nice dose of an old favorite. Namely, what the hell is up with the smoke monster? Yes, old smoky is back again, and he is not in a good mood. So, what's the score?
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD***
Continue reading ""Lost" Scorecard: You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry" »
We don't usually cover sports on TV With MeeVee, but I might as well tell you I'm not going to be watching any of these shows. I'm going to be watching the Red Sox at Tampa Bay.
Moonlight
Beth is kidnapped - possibly by the same crook who killed her boss. But Mick is now mortal, and rescuing her is a far greater risk.
Duel
The game show continues as players go head-to-head in trivia competition.
Friday Night Smackdown
The soap opera for boys continues.
The biggest show on this big night of TV is of course the return of "Lost" to finish up its strike-abbreviated fourth season. And while there are still those who mock the ABC drama's labyrinthine plot and endless enigmas - I am married to one such person - most "Lost" fans would I think say that this season has been one of the best. A New York Times article this morning has producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof explaining why it seems so juiced - the announcement that the show would end in 2010 allowed them to plan how the mythology would unfold, rather than vamping slowly toward a conclusion. They credit Stephen King's prodding and J.K. Rowling's example for giving them the stones to go to the network and ask for an end date. Another way to prep for tonight is to read this post by one of our deeply troubled friends over at TV Squad, who has tallied up the notable deaths on the island, beginning with the crash of Oceanic flight 815. I'd forgotten Hurley's great line after one minor character blew himself up: "You've got Arzt on you." Ah, 10 p.m. ET can't come soon enough.
Let's see, a kickass "Survivor" - unless you prefer "Ugly Betty" or "My Name Is Earl" and "Scrubs" - followed by the first "The Office" since Jim showed us the engagement ring, followed by "30 Rock" - unless you prefer "Grey's Anatomy" or "CSI" - followed by the return of "Lost." All new for the launch of May sweeps! And that's not even mentioning "Without a Trace" or "Smallville" and the return of "Supernatural." Scripted television is back, baybee! On a night like this, that strike seems a distant memory. But we have a few hours to kill first. So here are a couple things to read...
Friedman, by the way, also has some "Weeds" dish that fans won't want to hear, way down in the same column. (Fox News)
"I'm Doing it for Zoi. I'm here to win. I'm going to win for Zoi." Oops, guess not.
Fauxhawked Jen Biesty got sent home from "Top Chef" last night, just one week after her girlfriend. Why? Well, she served squishy bread, soggy asparagus, and too much damn cheese in the improv challenge.
She's not happy about it at all, and her exit interview on BravoTV.com makes that clear in a polite but firm manner. I kind of agree: While her dish wasn't that great, she at least followed the rules of the challenge, while the other team at risk didn't even use the required ingredient. Oh well. At least we've got one fewer ridiculous haircut in the group.
The tourist board of Cumbria decided it needed to make Wordsworth and his daffodils a little more youth-oriented. So, obviously, the solution was a rapping squirrel.
Oh, wait. Clark and Chloe don't have fun with national security, but they have to do it anyway, because they're searching for Lex and Lana. Sorry for the confusion, folks.
OMFG! A motherfrakkin' funny story about (not) saying "fuck" on the air. Which gives me another chance to run the "30 Rock" graphic at right. (TV Week)It is a BIG night for scripted TV!
30 Rock
Jack and his rival Devin (Will Arnett) fight for the prize of succession to the chairman's job, currently held by Don (Rip Torn). Good to see the old guy getting work, after all those problems he had in the past few years.
Lost
Locke's camp comes under attack, and a body washes ashore.
The Office
Michael and Dwight head to New York City to try to schmooze with Ryan and his colleagues. Back in Scranton, the staffers are grumbling over being stuck with Ryan's web project all weekend.
Ugly Betty
Charlie has a surprise that might ruin Betty's plans to spend her birthday with Henry. Meanwhile, Wilhelmina is still evil, but at least is meddling with the Daniel/Renee thing and not with Betty.
Carly Smithson gave the best performance of "American Idol" Andrew Lloyd Webber Week Tuesday night with "Jesus Christ Superstar." So of course she got voted off the island. WTFH?
Continue reading ""American Idol" Results: What The Hell?" »
Well, duh. "ANTM" will pick a fake girl and hope to teach her to keep it real before they pick a real girl and teach her to fake it up. I'd rather see Dominique go home - even Miss J says, "I think she's a brotha" - but given the choice between Whitney and Lauren, you know who's getting the axe.
According to the Hondells, it's totally awesome to ride around town on a Honda. According to this video, it's particularly great if you live in Portland, Oregon and ride a vintage Honda 650.
True or not, this video, just shy of two minutes long, would make a wonderful advertisement for Honda, the city of Portland, and for the rider, Anna Wild. (Great name, by the way).
The television academy has decided to honor a new category of, well, can we really call it achievement? "American Idol's" Ryan Seacrest (right) and "Survivor's" Jeff Probst will surely be among the frontrunners this year when the Academy votes on its new Emmy category for...gulp...reality TV hosts. Now, it can't be easy being Ryan - ushering everyone one and off the stage in the right order, reading the prompter and mixing it up in carefully scripted adlibbed banter with Simon and Paula and Randy. But seriously...he should get an Emmy for this? Not so much.
Meanwhile, Variety reports that "Idol" ratings are down for the second season in a row, offering "clear indications" that the show has peaked and is now at the top of a long downslope. Variety notes that we all expected the writers strike - which sidelined traditional dramas and sitcoms - to juice "Idol's" ratings and that hasn't happened. Instead the show is down 8 percent from a year ago.
All of which leads us to predictions for tonight. Obviously the Davids are safe, and after that "Jesus Christ Superstar," I'd say Carly is too. Andrew Lloyd Webber Week wasn't as kind to Jason or to Brooke, who forget her words. And Syesha seems to be in the bottom three almost every week. I'm going to say it's Jason's week to go.
Science-fiction writers and satirists have for many years made sport of the possibilities for game shows to cross every line of decency into literally fatal attractions like "Death Race 2000" or "The Running Man." Now, at least according to TMZ.com, the scenario stands a chance of coming true in a strange way. The celeb blog says that O.J. Simpson has reached out to the producers of "The Apprentice" to express his desire to appear on the program. Another pathetic attempt by the psycho to resuscitate his reputation. But it's Donald Trump's show, people, so...anything is possible. TMZ notes there's a lot of backstabbing on the show. Well, he'd take that to the next level. You have to hope NBC would at least have the decency to put a stop to this. But these days even that might be too much to expect. And then Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman would be, what, collateral damage in the Nielsen ratings race?
AMC scored a surprise critical hit with their first original series, "Mad Men," a lush period piece about Madison Avenue advertising executives in the '60s. Like just about everyone else who saw it, I fell in love with the tense, quiet drama of "Mad Men" and the exquisitely crafted recreation of a place and time full of cigarettes and sexism. Luckily for me, and you, AMC knows which side its bread is buttered on, and they've announced that the show will return sometime in July. AMC hasn't given us a specific date for the premiere, but the season 1 DVD - with its super sweet packaging - will be in stores July first. If you missed the first season, catch it on DVD, "Mad Men" is just swell.
I guess it's blowing my appearance of impartiality, but I'd have to say that's the funniest blog headline I've ever read. Or it would be, if we weren't enmeshed in a bloody war, a collapsing economy and environmental doom. Read the whole story at BuddyTV. And there's an amusing sidelight at TV Decoder.
Another reason to hope that "Cashmere Mafia" gets the axe: If it does, Lucy Liu will jump to the far superior "Dirty Sexy Money." (Hollywood Reporter)
Between the hardcore Whovians and all my beloved mother-frakkers, things are looking rosy for The Sci Fi Channel. Season 4 of "Doctor Who" had its American premiere last Friday with the 90-minute "Voyage of the Damned" special, a Titanic-themed episode that teamed the good Doctor with pop princess Kylie Minogue, and it proved to be a ratings hit for Sci Fi. The episode aired with the highest ratings for a season premiere since the first season ran on Sci Fi in 2006. Add to that the fact that "Battlestar Galactica" hit a ratings high with its final-season premiere, and it's champagne time over at the channel.
"Doctor Who" will be back with regular episodes this Friday, staring the ever charming David Tennant as The Doctor and bringing back Catherine Tate as the whiny, slightly annoying Donna. I hope that she'll grow on me, but I miss Martha already.
Jesse L. Martin is leaving "Law & Order" this week after nine years, moving on to a new production of "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner" on Broadway. Replacing him in producer Dick Wolf's repertory company is Anthony Anderson of "K-Ville" and "The Shield."
The NBC synopsis of Wednesday's episode has Martin's Detective Ed Green and Det. Cyrus Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) investigating a referee's murder, which leads them to notorious hustler, “"Bunny” (guest star Bobby Jones), a familiar face from Detective Green’s past. When "“Bunny” is found dead, the case is turned over to internal affairs Detective Kevin Bernard (Anthony Anderson) and Sergeant Gregory Cole (guest star Peter Bradbury).
(Above, Anderson; below, Martin.)
Wolf and Anderson got on the phone with reporters and bloggers a few days ago to talk about the transition. An edited transcript of the interview follows...
Question: If you could tell me about the character you’ll be playing and maybe how it contrasts to the character and the detective you played on K-Ville earlier this year?
Anthony Anderson: Sure. My character’s name is Detective Bernard, Kevin Bernard. You know, he starts out in Internal Affairs where he did not volunteer for the job. He was recruited straight out of the Academy. So it’s not like he’s a turncoat who wanted to police the police. His dream was to become a homicide detective but, you know, he has to serve two years in IAB before that can happen. You know, straightforward - you know, you may think he’s a by-the-book guy because he comes from Internal Affairs but he knows how to get around certain things without cutting too many corners to get the job done. The difference in the characters from K-Ville to Law & Order, they're both passionate about their job, you know, and wear their hearts on their sleeves, and will do what it takes to get the job done. That’s what I think connects these two, if you want to connect them at all.
America's Next Top Model
The models head to Rome to film a TV commercial. That's tricky for people with no public-speaking experience, but there's an additional catch: They have to do it in Italian.
American Idol
Andrew Lloyd Webber performs and everyone says goodbye to someone who they don't idolize very much.
Top Chef
Guest judge Johnny Iuzzin has the chefs make desserts, and the Second City comedy team visits for fun and improvisation.
Law & Order
Jesse L. Martin leaves "L&O," to be replaced by Anthony Anderson. See our interview today.
Wikipedia tells us that show tunes are "frequently written for actors with limited vocal abilities," but Randy tells us tonight's songs are all very difficult. Simon says the Andrew Lloyd Webber songs will challenge the "American Idol" singers to seem contemporary.
That's probably the real challenge for listeners as well. This is a style of music that never really left the 1940s, despite the addition of electric guitar. I mentioned to a friend that Andrew Lloyd Webber would appear on the show tonight, and she said "He's still alive?" Yes, and he's Younger Than McCain.
To be honest, the only music that I find more irritating than show tunes is the undergrad a capella that seems to accompany it on otherwise decent college radio stations. But this evening isn't about my dislike for show tunes. It's about my disdain for the talents of "American Idol" contestants.
Despite the production quality and the over-dramatic music, this is still an incredible nature video. The first minutes alone, in which an eagle attacks a mountain goat, will stay with me for weeks. Yes, the eagle wins, pulling the goat off a cliff and dropping it hundreds of feet to its death.
There's really nothing much you can say about "Sandcastles In The Sand," the cheese-o-riffic second music video from Robin Sparkles, the Canadian-pop-nymphet alter ego of Cobie Smulders' Robin Scherbatsky on "How I Met Your Mother." It's not as good as her earlier "Let's Go To The Mall," but after all, it is the B side.
If "American Idol" is too tame for your tastes, you might consider tuning in to MTV's "A Shot At Love II," which debuts tonight Like the first edition, it stars ambisexual Tila Tequila, her ambivalent charms, a bevy of chicks and dudes, and also a whole bunch of liquor. Idiocy and hijinks ensue.
Bostonist will be rooting for Michelle, hometown hero and former boxer. She's managed to avoid the cauliflower ear, but not the unfortunate fashion choices, of her pugilistic upbringing, and I just don't think she's as cute as last year's fan favorite, Dani.
The boat flooded in September, but the roughest seas were from October, and "Deadliest Catch" post-production editors spliced them together to make it look like they'd happened at the same time. Scandal! Sort of. Those crab-fishermen are still out there, there are still waves, and there is still flooding. Only the order and dramatization are in question. Still, people seem outraged that a bastion of honesty in entertainment would have used post-production editing tricks to punch up the drama, instead of relying on the more conventional "somber narrator and tendentious music" strategies that at least are obvious.
Nobody, however, seems to be surprised that the Pentagon paid analysts to punch up the drama before and during the most recent US invasion in Iraq, and to soften criticisms of American human-rights violations. Those analysts, of course, didn't disclose their conflicts of interest, and even if they had, mere disclosure doesn't stop an influence from being malign. It's totally fine, though, because we know that TV news is entirely made up.
Sean Penn somberly narrates the following explanation of the military PR offensive that lead up to the military shooting offensive.
Apparently the demographic segment that loves "Deal Or No Deal" is the same small portion of Americans who still think Dubya is doing a heckuva job. I always knew there was something weird about that show.
If you thought you'd escaped endless TV critic harping on how great "The Wire" is, think again! The show may be over, but it's soon to arrive on DVD, meaning that everyone who didn't watch it on HBO or pirate it online is going to start renting the discs (or buying them - free shipping if you pre-order now with code WIRES5NL at checkout) and starting all over about how it really is the greatest show on earth.
You can't escape. You won't escape. Submit to "The Wire!"
They swear it had nothing to do with the raging controversy over "MILF Island," the acronym that dare not speak its name, but NBC has moved "30 Rock" to 9:30 for the remainder of the season, after "The Office." NBC also switched "Scrubs" to 8:30. The official word, as read in the NY Times, is that they want "30 Rock" to get the biggest possible lead-in for its remaining three episodes, capitalizing on Tina Fey's publicity for her movie "Baby Mama." And they say "30 Rock" will have to go back to 8:30 in the fall, anyway, to make room for the worst television idea of the century "Office" spinoff. Which once again suggests that if "Scrubs" airs in the fall, it will be on ABC another network, so why give it the phat "Office" lead-in now?
It's not surprising that some people are upset about "MILF Island" appearing during the so-called family hour. But is the audience really so different at 9? Like all the kids in America go to bed then? Last night, "Two And A Half Men" made about 19 references to Charlie's balls and used the word "balls." But since that's 30 minutes later, it's OK? Somebody has taken their stupid pills, I just can't decide who. But at least I get to run that awesome "MILF Island" graphic again.
OK, maybe they're not as spoiled as that family-pack of hamburger you forgot about in the trunk on the way to the cookout. But TV Guide has six secrets from upcoming episodes of "Lost."
Don't click through if you don't want to know!
You know you can't resist. Dooooo it!
It's Andrew Lloyd Weber night on "Idol" and I'll be liveblogging it for all your showtunes-loving, showtunes-loathing pleasure. Rumor has it that Brooke White will be singing "Don't Cry For Me," and that it's going to be totally huge.
Meanwhile, that guy from "The Soup" is eating chunks of Kristy Lee Cook's horse.
Remember William Hung? The "She Bangs" kid from the third season of "American Idol" whose relentless clueless awkwardness seemed kinda strange, then kinda sweet, then kinda strange again after a while? Well, the student newspaper at CSU Northridge, the Daily Sundial, reports he's there studying to be a math teacher. The pic of him posing with the tree is ... well, you gotta see it.
American Idol
The final six contestants perform Andrew Lloyd Webber songs. Jazz hands, everybody!
Law & Order: SVU
An investment banker is murdered - possibly to hide his love affair with a professional football player. Meanwhile, Benson stats dating a newspaperman, played by special guest Bill Pullman.
Reaper
Sam and Andi are finally together, so that's good. But Steve (Michael Ian Black) and Tony are trying to use Sam to lure the Devil into some kind of trap, and as a general rule it's a bad idea to try to match wits with the prince of darkness.
TV Guide says Tania Raymonde, otherwise known as Ben's daughter on "Lost," is going to be in a high school sex comedy - based on Lysistrata, no less - and starring Rob Schneider and Rumer Willis. Shudder. Guarantee you the girl's going to have a new agent the week after that movie comes out. I mean, seriously, Rob Schneider and Rumer Willis? Spending a lifetime in the tropical weirdness of the island sounds like a glorious vacation in comparison.
Art imitates life and life imitates art. Inspired by danger and conspiracy and terror, "24" became an icon for people who wanted America to act tough, kick ass, and take names.
Meanwhile, alleges a new book by Philippe Sands, a British lawyer, the lawyers behind the Guantánamo interrogation (i.e. torture) rules were "inspired by the exploits of Jack Bauer."
TV is never slow to jump on real-life crime and tragedy for cop-show plot fodder. Writers for shows like "CSI" and especially "Law & Order" seem to start typing almost while the gunfire still echoes. However...when life imitates art TV is usually quick to step back. In April 2007, Fox postponed an episode of "Bones" about a college murder that was scheduled to air just two days after the Virginia Tech massacre. Now - weirdly close to the anniversary - Fox is finally putting the episode on the air tonight at 8.
"The Player Under Pressure" has Bones and Booth investigating the death of a college basketball star whose body is found crushed under the folding bleachers in the college gym. Doesn't sound close to the Virginia Tech shootings by a disturbed student who then took his own life...but of course on TV no death is as simply as it initially seems.
Buddy TV tipped me off to the scheduling - I'd completely forgotten the backstory of this episode - and also notes that Fox apparently has decided not to re-edit the episode for continuity, so the Angela-Hudgins relationship will be out of sequence.
Pictured: From left, David Greenman, Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz.
John Francis Daley, known to me as Sweets, the shrink from "Bones," got his big break on "Freaks & Geeks" - and he still looks like he could play a high schooler, even though he's now 22. Here's a little more about him:
Can Blair and Chuck handle "breakfast as a family?" Please. Would it be "Gossip Girl" if they could do it without at least a little drama?
