Jason Dohring and Minka Kelly on the same show!

This is so exciting. Minka Kelly (I know some of you hate her, but I love her, even if she does date Derek Jeter in real life) and Jason Dohring (aka Logan from Veronica Mars) are going to be co-starring in a CW show called Body Politic. And according to a random poster from the Reliable Source's chat yesterday, Brian Austin Green might somehow be involved. (A sidenote, but I'm a little sad that it appears the Reliable Source women did not watch Veronica Mars. For shame.)

There is no question that I'll be watching.

Thoughts

You know what makes me sad? The fact that this blog is so inactive. We have had only two posts this month (both by Isaac, mine will be the third). Last month we had six total posts, with Isaac drafting four, and Holt and me drafting the other two. Bailey hasn't posted since June and Wilder hasn't posted since December 2007. I have barely been writing. Very sad.

I have seen posts like this on other blogs. The blogger then says that s/he misses blogging and will be better about keeping up with the blog. It's the kiss of death--the blogger rarely returns, and the blog eventually dies.

So I won't say that I'm going to be better. But I will share some thoughts:

1. I hate the Republicans. I can't even talk about the extreme hypocrisy and utter ridiculousness of their tactics (and the frustrating that they seem to be working). It consumes my thoughts way too often.

2. I'm watching Runway right now, and in anything between Kinley and Liane, I'm on Team Liane. I really like her best, but Korto is growing on me. Gobo is really fond of Kinley. He agrees with me that Liane is the best designer of the bunch, but he just has a warm spot in his heart for Kinley.

3. We watched the entire first season of Mad Men over the past month, and are catching up on Season 2. Gobo calls Peggy "Kinley."

4. Also on the Runway topic, I really hate it when Suede talks about himself in the third person. Who does that? Oh! And Heidi just said "...two of you, will be out." She's never said that before.

5. I started watching Big Brother again this summer. I'm pathetic. Luckily, there wasn't all this talk about god and evildoers like last season.

6. In addition to Mad Men, Gobo and I watched season 1 of both How I Met Your Mother and Burn Notice. We're about to start season two of both of those shows.

7. Fall television is starting. I'm really excited to see Pushing Daisies and the Amazing Race again, and I'm sad that I have to wait so long for Friday Night Lights. If I didn't have such an aversion to talking to customer service reps and waiting during a four hour window in the middle of a workday for technicians to install things, I would probably just sign up for DirecTv.

Truly Excellent News

Friday Night Lights is coming back for a full, guaranteed, season! It's all thanks to a really interesting deal between NBC and DirecTv that will allow the satellite providor to air weekly episodes beginning October 1 exclusively for its subscribors. The entire season will then be shown on NBC sometime in 2009. Red and I were IMing about this and she mentioned she was tempted to become a DirecTv subscribor just to thank them. Ditto. This was just the news I needed to brighten my day.

Clear eyes. Full Hearts. Can't lose? Save Friday Night Lights!

Since the end of the writers' strike I have been obsessively following news about whether Friday Night Lights will be renewed for a third season. The news hasn't been looking good. On every list of television shows I have seen, FNL seems to fall in the "future uncertain" category.

But there are now some rumblings that not all hope is lost. Last week, Variety reported that the show may be picked up by another network (according to Isaac, who sent me an e-mail about it on the 12th, unfortunately, I can't find a link), and yesterday they ran a story saying NBC is actively shopping the show to other networks as part of a plan in which NBC would share the show with the other network. They say that the CW, E!, TNT and DirecTV are all in the mix.

Personally, I don't care who picks up the show, as long as it is picked up. I'll even switch to DirecTV if I have to. However, if none of the other networks bite, I really hope NBC allows the show to film a few more episodes to air this season (or in the summer?) just so fans can get some closure. I hate that the last episode I watched involved no Buddy Garrity, Coach Taylor fighting with Tami's obnoxious ex, Jason trying to convince his one-night stand to have his miracle baby, and Riggins going to church in an attempt to get Lila back. Don't get me wrong--I enjoyed the episode. But it clearly wasn't meant to be a last episode for the season, let alone for the series. I know the chances of NBC actually resuming production just to make a few fans happy isn't likely, but I guess I'll keep hoping.

For those interested in keeping the show on the air, visit:

Best Week Ever Save FNL Campaign and Petition

Save Friday Night Lights

MySpace (this may be related to the "Save Friday Night Lights" link above, but as a non-MySpace user, I'm confused)

I'm Ready For Some Football

As I noted last week, I bought the Season 1 DVDs of Friday Night Lights. I will agree with Red Fraggle and The Sports Guy (and when the two of them agree on something, it can't be wrong) that the first season was excellent. Sure, there were some hiccups, but the show contained outstanding acting, interesting story lines, and some good football scenes (even if virtually every game was decided on the final play). Of course, the ratings were lousy, but NBC, to its credit, kept the show alive.

Season 2 debuted on Friday night (!), and I managed to watch the final two episodes of season 1 and the season 2 premiere that evening. (It did help me get over the gnat-infested nightmare that likely cost Joe Torre his job.) As other critics have pointed out, the premiere contains a plot twist that could ruin the series.

SPOILERS. All of a sudden, not only does the guy who tried to rape Tyra reappear, but Landry kills him. Even worse, they decide to throw the body off a bridge. Now, I know Tyra and Landry were freaked out, but was there really no choice? I mean, this guy tried to rape Tyra and was now stalking her. Sure, Landry overreacted but this is Texas. A jury would have acquitted him if he shot the guy 132 times, reloaded his automatic weapon, and shot him 48 more times. Puh-lease. If they really wanted to have a plot device to match a romantic relationship between the town slut and a geek more realistic, they could have called the cops and let the chips falls where they would. Instead, I fear the show turning into I Know What You Did Last Summer. If the rapist is still alive and comes back to haunt them, I give up.

In other news, the exchange between Lyla (who found Jesus this summer) and Riggins was priceless. And the conflicts the Coach faces now that he is in Austin while his wife has to care for the new baby (daughter, of course) without him makes for a more interesting development for this season than the Landry/Tyra nonsense. And, not surprisingly, much tension is added to the Matt/Julie relationship. I'm sure there will be many twists and turns, but you know these two will ultimately end up together (assuming the show reaches an ending).

I know the show needs to increase its viewership, and perhaps the emphasis on football as the advertising hook during year 1 was a mistake. But year 1 made clear this was not a football show. For the writers (and network) to conclude that the answer is to have less football (and more melodrama) is a mistake. I hope a bridge has not been crossed (or a body thrown over that bridge that can't be recovered).

Red Fraggle Wins

(Fittingly) on Friday, after succumbing to pressure from Red Fraggle and The Sports Guy, I bought season one of Friday Night Lights on DVD (for the low, low, low price of $20). Over the past three days, I have watched 12 of the episodes, and with a lot of baseball, some football, and a 17 month old to also watch (sans Mrs. Bartender), I did pretty, pretty good. And I have to say that it is a pretty damn good show. It is not a show about football although the sport plays a big role in the show. There is some fine acting and a number of interesting plotlines.

(Spoiler alert!) For example, the storyline about Street's dealing with his spinal cord injury is very well done and quite moving although part of it merely demonstrated that the writer had seen (the excellent documentary) Murderball. There are some stretches--the rawness of Matt and his insecurity--that are a bit much, but all in all it is a very good show that deserves to be watched. It ain't The Sopranos, but then again, what is.

A ticket to Dillon, TX

Wouldn't it be sad if the best show on television were canceled and you never even watched? For those of you who don't tune into Friday Night Lights, it very well might happen.

But it's not too late to start. I know a ton of people were saying that they just hadn't gotten around to watching season one and were waiting for it to come out on DVD. Well, it's here. And what's more, if you don't like it, NBC will give you all of your money back. But you know what? I guarantee you won't ask for your money back. It is really that good. Season one might be the most perfect season of any show that I have ever watched. (And you know I watch a lot of television.)

Season two premieres on October 5. So buy season one (or get it on Netflix, or just watch it for free on NBC.com). Then start watching season two. If you don't get through season one by October 5, just start DVRing season two. It's that easy. And I guarantee you will thank me for telling you to do this.

If that's not enough to convince you, even The Sports Guy is asking everyone to start watching. He's right, it is the best sports series ever made. Except it really isn't a sports series. The football is just part of the backdrop of an excellent show about relationships and life in a small town in Texas. (And I'm from New York, so if I can like a show about small town Texas, anyone can.)

A great year for television

As the 2006-07 television season draws to a close, I'm really impressed with how many good shows debuted this season. Not only did we get the best show on television, Friday Night Lights, but we also got Heroes, Ugly Betty, The Riches and The Tudors. In addition, I have heard so many good things about 30 Rock that I am going to rent the DVDs this summer so I can begin watching season two.

Did I waste an inordinate amount of time with shows like Studio 60, Justice and The Wedding Bells (yes, I actually did watch the last show--I'm not proud of it)? Obviously. They were all bad and were all deservedly cancelled. But I can't remember another season when I have added five new shows to my viewing schedule. And when you consider that FNL, Heroes and Ugly Betty are three out of my four favorite non-reality shows right now (Lost being the other), 2006 was a very, very good year.

Friday Night Lights renewed: time to watch season one on DVD

This is the best television news I have heard in a very long time. The best show on television was renewed, despite low ratings.

So to those of you who haven't watched before: get the season one DVDs as soon as they are released and catch up! I think one of FNL's problems was potential viewers didn't watch the first few episodes, thinking it was just a football show (it's not!) and then decided they would just wait until the DVDs came out to catch up before season 2.

Of course, because no one was watching, whether there would even be a season 2 became a major question. But it has been renewed, so get those DVDs. You really won't regret it.

As someone who watched season 1, I am interested to see where season 2 will pick up. During the off-season (where we left off)? That would be an easy choice because we still have all of our characters in one place. At the beginning of next football season? If so, what happens to Riggins (picture included with this post, of course)? He's a senior, after all. Although I'm not that worried: there is no way this show is going to drop one of its most popular characters.

Happy Friday!

Thoughts for the end of the week

I have a lot of small things to blog about, but nothing I feel like making into a long post, so I thought I would just put everything together in one mish-mash.

NBC gave us yet another excellent episode of Friday Night Lights two days ago. I thought both Tyra and Lyla were particularly compelling. Tyra doesn't have an easy life, having to parent her mother at 17 years old. It made me happy that Tammy is making Tyra her "next project," because Tyra really needs hope for a way to do more with her life than her mother has. And I felt so sorry for Lyla, who really has no one other than Jason. She has no friends left and no one to confide in. She had to drive 200 miles just to have someone to talk to. And as for Riggins: how long until he starts sleeping with the older neighbor? I give it two episodes.

Ryan Seacrest was clearly implying Kellie Pickler had a boob job last night on Idol. And although they are definitely a lot larger than they were last season, so is her butt and her thighs. In fact, the boobs are still smaller than her butt. So what do you think? Implants or just extra weight? Also, her hair looked awful.

Obviously (I guess it is obvious if you read my earlier posts), I think that Antonella should have been eliminated before Leslie, and Sanjaya before A.J. I also thought A.J. should probably have made the final 12. What I really don't understand, however, is all of the tears from the girls when Leslie was kicked off. Sure, Antonella should have been kicked off first. But Leslie was out of her league and gearing to go next week anyway. So why were they sobbing? They had better get used to eliminations, because they are going to happen every single week from here on out.

Is anyone still watching Veronica Mars now that Bailey and Holt are out of town? What did everyone think of the big reveal of the Dean's killer? I thought it was unsatisfying. And I wasn't at all happy about the death that took place. I read that they are going to finish the season with just single mysteries every week, but no overarching mystery. That's disappointing to me--I think the format from the first two seasons worked best.

Gobo and I have been watching the first season of Dynasty and I am so glad we decided to do so. Neither of us had ever watched us before, and it's really great. We're at the point where Blake inadvertently kills Stephen's lover, Ted. Great stuff. I think if we ever adopt another cat I will insist we name her Fallon.

The Real Housewives of Orange County continues to disgust me, and I continue to watch. Seeing the filth Lauri's daughter, Ashley, lives in was upsetting. Not because I care about the filth, but because the poor cats were defecating outside of the litterbox. Cats do this when the litterbox they are provided is too dirty (they also do it when sick, but I think the former applies here). I feel sorry for the cats.

I have some TV to catch up on this weekend: Heroes, Grey's (which is really starting to irritate me), Grease: You're the One that I Want and maybe the final episode of The O.C. Oh, and the final three episodes of Dynasty season one. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like season two is available on DVD. Not good.

Wednesday Night Lights

By now, everyone reading this blog should know how much I love Friday Night Lights. So there's no reason to write yet another post about how great this show is. Instead, just a few questions that popped into my head while watching the show last night:

* How has Jason Street gotten so great at quad rugby so quickly? I get that he is a natural athlete, but it does seem a little strange that he was already given one of the two dozen invites to auditions, after becoming paralyzed only a few months before. Maybe the applicant pool just isn't that large?

* Why didn't Coach Taylor have Mac talk to the players on the team after his racist remarks? The tension was obviously growing, and even if the Coach believes that Mac isn't a racist, the players certainly deserved a personal explanation and apology, didn't they?

* Isn't it a little out-of-character that Smash, a player who was terrified his college career was over before it started, would suddenly decide to lead a walkout right before the playoffs, jeopardizing his chances of having scouts watch him play and potentially gaining the label of a troublemaker (making him less attractive to colleges)?

* Mac told Coach Taylor that he was still getting used to the idea that a man a decade younger than him was holding the head coach job he always thought he would have. Is there only a ten year age difference between the two? Because if so, that's a really rough ten years.

* I love the whole Julie's rebellion story. It's great and it really makes you wonder what a parent can really do in this situation. If you have a good kid who starts to go bad, where is your power? Grounding only works when they listen to you. Do you think that the Taylors are wondering why they were so worked up about Julie liking good-guy Matt? Bad-girl Tyra is definitely a far bigger threat.

* I love Smash's mother. I love that they haven't made her into a stereotype, pushing her son's athletics at all costs. Rather, she is a woman worried about her son as a person first, and is willing to sacrifice his football career if it comes in the way of his health or ultimate happiness. And would you ever say no to that woman?

* Can Tim Riggins get any hotter?

The best show on television?

I know the general consensus among critics is that The Wire is currently the best show on television. However, I don't watch The Wire, because I really can't handle shows that are too gritty (The Sopranos is enough for me).

So I'm going to make my vote for Friday Night Lights. Is there anything that could be improved about this show? If so, I can't think of it. The writing is moving and realistic, the acting is great, the cinematography is effective, the small characters are perfect and they get the small details right (do football players in East Texas really have huge signs on their front lawns with their name, jersey number and position? I suspect so!). I love it.

I particularly loved last night's episode. Lyla Garritty might very well be the Best Girlfriend Ever, but for her transgression with Tim Riggins (but if one were to ever cheat, shouldn't it be with someone just like Riggins?). But despite her wholesomeness she doesn't come across as unrealistic or saccharine. Just like a teenager who is really in love and wants to do be the best person she can.

I love that the show is consistent about giving Smash barely-perceptible acne, even when his steroid use has not been profiled for the last few weeks (although it looks like that storyline comes to a head in next week's episode). And I loved his speech to Waverly about who he is and how he loves not only football but the crowd, the attention, and everything that comes along with being a star (as well as his admission that, like Rickey, he will continue speaking about himself in the third person).

Was there any doubt that Tyra's home life would be exactly as it was? No surprise there. What I loved the most about her scenes was her talk with her mom about getting out of Dillon, and her mom telling her that she did leave once, for Dallas. Actually, during this talk I did think to myself "are you telling me that the girl who wants to get out so badly never knew her mother moved to Dallas at 18?" So maybe there was a slight point of unrealism. But regardless, I thought it was effective, because it reminded us not only that Tyra wants to get out, but also that it is easy to be pulled right back in. And the fact that her bonding moment with her mother was interrupted by Abusive Boyfriend of the Week made it all the more poignant.

For me, the most poignant storyline of all is Jason Street's. Sure, Matt Seracen's story is sad, he is a 16 year old with a lot on his plate and no help, and his selfless act in telling his dad to return to Iraq--and to think that someone would prefer Iraq to selling cars for Buddy Garritty--was totally in character. (On a sidenote, Buddy Garritty is a great minor character. I loved his sleaziness in making Seracen's father wear the flag pin, and I adored his scene in church, recognizing that god is truly all-powerful because he ensured the Panthers would make the playoffs and then saying "You know what I'm going to ask for next, god" when he prayed that they would win state. But then we do see the more human side of him, like when he stood by his daughter after finding out she had cheated on Jason with Riggins.)

But Jason's story is my favorite. I love his character, I guess because I'm a sucker for a good kid who has something go wrong, and continues to be a good kid. The scene where Jason starts trying to convince himself that maybe his parents and the lawyers are right about the merit of his lawsuit was great. You could see him doing it not only for his mom, but also for himself, so that he could live with the decision. Of course, he couldn't stop himself from apologizing to his coach, because he's a good kid who can't stand what's going on around him, but can't stop it either. And the new Jason-as-outcast story will be interesting to watch as well. I want to see how a town of people who loved Jason as a quarterback and supported him when he was paralyzed justifies ostracizing him now that he is suing the Dillon Panthers.

Although Jason is my favorite character, my favorite scenes are always those between Coach Taylor and his wife. Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton are so incredibly realistic as a married couple, and there banter always makes me laugh out loud. Which is something I don't do often while watching TV. Their tiff last week over Riggins' education, where Tami kept telling her husband that she couldn't even believe they were arguing because she was so obviously right, was priceless, particularly when Coach Taylor actually listened to her and told Riggins he had better pass (without rally girl help) if he wanted to play.

I guess I have written a pretty long review only to say what I said in the first two paragraphs here. Friday Night Lights is about as perfect as television shows come.

Robbed!

Isaac may not want to talk about the TV nods on the Golden Globes, but I do, if only to start ramping up for my inevitable rant when it's time again for the Emmys. No nominations for The Wire, Friday Night Lights, or Battlestar Galactica? I'm completely and totally appalled that the three best shows on television - by leaps and bounds - didn't merit mention in a single category. Don't get me wrong, I love me some House, but Kyle Chandler on FNL is a revelation. And if I think for more than the time it takes me to write that EVANGELINE LILLY and SARAH PAULSON are nominated for a Golden Globe while Mary McDonnel, who can shred my heart with a lowered eye, is not, my head might just explode.

The Season So Far: Tuesday

How great is Friday Night Lights? Oh my gosh, I love this show. It's really not like anything else on television. Mostly it looks totally different -- from the way people to dress, to the cars they drive, to the lighting, which looks like actual daylight. For those of you who have not been watching, you can watch all nine episodes here.

Last night's episode was so good, it was almost excruciating to watch -- especially the Julie and Matt story line, from Matt's Members Only jacket, to Julie's hoochie dress, to Matt's singing "Mr. Sandman" to his grandmother.

I'm not a big fan of the Smash-using-steroids storyline. It's a little too afterschool-special for this show. So, I was glad to see Smash's character being more developed last night.

I've been a little disappointed in Veronica Mars this season. I think it's partly the realization that it's never going to be as good as the first season, but then how could it be? It's not really possible to have another mystery that's as integral to the emotional heart of the show as Lily's murder and Veronica's rape. You can't kill off Veronica's best friend every season.

But also Veronica's not as likeable. The hostility and sarcasm that made sense when she was in high school -- after all these people turned on her and her dad -- is overkill in college. She really needs to give people a chance. In the same vein, some of the new characters are a little cartoonish, especially the feminists and the greeks. I don't think any of the high school cliques were so crudely drawn.

That being said, I still like the show. As sad as it was, I'm glad that Veronica and Logan broke up. More evil Logan please. And more Wallace and Mac.

I've also been watching House, about which I have very mixed feelings. On the one hand, I love Hugh Laurie. But I think the show is caught in a bit of a bind. If they stick to one-off episodes, it gets formulaic: patient gets sick with mysterious illness, someone suggests lupus, they run all sort of tests, they settle on a diagnosis, that turns out to be wrong, House has an epiphany. But when they do the multiple-episode story arcs, they don't really work, I think because we know that in the end nothing is really going to change.

Friday Night Lights Continues to Not Suck

In fact, it's doing much better than that. Friday Night Lights is beautiful. I won't say it's the highlight of my tv-watching week (that spot in my heart is reserved for Battlestar Gallactica) but it's creeping right up there. I don't think I've ever watched a television show that every week looks and feels like a brilliantly executed one hour film. There's nothing lazy about it. Every scene is gorgeous and real. And it honestly treats the race and class issues that haunt the small-town west without beating you over the head with them or preaching. They show up in the little moments. Last week we got the contrast between the black church services where people were cooling themselves with hand fans and the white church services in an air-conditioned 1960s style cathedral. This week when Saracen was on his tiny scorched front lawn trying to scrub the "loser" off his sign so his grandma wouldn't see, a bunch of kids drove by shouting insults out the window of their car. What got me about that scene was that the car had a big old dent in the driver's side and a fair share of primer on the hood. This was no highschool-on-TV car, it seemed real. And it contrasted with the shiny late-model vehicle we saw Lilah driving later in the episode.

The show conveys menace and dread in the smallest details. The sight of the new "refugee" quarterback walking off the field, shot from below so he looked 8 feet tall. You could just feel the dull thrum of panic in the team that this new, unknown element caused. And in the new quarterback's face, the face of someone who had lost everything and was being used by everyone around him . . . there was nothing.

Friday Night Lights

It was awesome. I loved every second of it. Totally lived up to the hype (which is always hard, even for great shows). Within minutes, I actually cared about the characters. Many tears were a rollin' down my cheeks throughout the episode.

Can't wait for next week.

Setting the Bar High

The NY Times' review of Friday Night Lights is just a LITTLE over the top:

Lord, is “Friday Night Lights” good. In fact, if the season is anything like the pilot, this new drama about high school football could be great — and not just television great, but great in the way of a poem or painting

Wow. I sure hope it lives up to that.

Fall TV Preview: Tuesday

8 pm: Dancing with the Stars (ABC), NCIS (CBS), Friday Night Lights (NBC), House (Fox), Gilmore Girls (CW)

9 pm: Knights of Prosperity (ABC), The Unit (CBS), Standoff (Fox), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC), Veronica Mars (CW)

9:30 pm: Help Me Help You (ABC)

10 pm: Boston Legal (ABC), Smith (CBS), Law & Order: SVU (NBC), Nip/Tuck (FX), The Streets (BBC America)

At 8, I will be TiVoing House. I love me some House, as they say. But since I can record 3 shows, I might also add Friday Night Lights. I have loved Kyle Chandler since the late lamented Early Edition, and this is one of the new shows that TWOP is recapping.

At 9, Veronica Mars of course. But how can I pass up Standoff featuring Ron Livingston? I can’t, that’s how. I note for the record that Knights of Prosperity used to be called "Let’s Rob Mick Jagger" and is about a planned heist on Mick Jagger’s New York apartment. Potentially awesome.

At 10, I don’t know. Televisionary recommends Smith, starring Ray Liotta, Virginia Madsen and many others, about criminals who pull off heists. (Two recurring themes: heists and conspiracies.) I detest Law & Order: SVU. I get it -- people who commit crimes against children are bad. Can you shut up now, Dick Wolf? I know that Wilder loves Nip/Tuck, but I’ve never been able to get into it. Too over the top.

What will you guys be watching?