fall 2010

My life has been especially nutso this semester with school and work and, well, trying to keep my DVR percentage low enough to record all the shows in the coming week (it's a hard life!), so blogging has been difficult... But here's a quick little run down of my opinions on Fall TV thus far:

Shows I've already dropped:
- $#*! My Dad Says -- The comedic pauses are just awkward and annoying. Shatner is not the most annoying actor on the show, which already speaks volumes in my mind. One last thing, the show had one funny line and it was not shit said by the dad. Shatner is at the DMV taking the eye exam and is asked to read the large E at the top of the chart. Shatner: "I've never been rear-ended by a large letter E." DMV employee: "You've never driven on Sesame Street."
- Running Wilde -- I love Keri Russell but even she can't keep this show on my priority watch list.
- 90210 (though I dropped it halfway through last season) -- I know I already dropped this, but seeing the stuff going on and reading the spoilers on what is to come... Good riddance!
- Life Unexpected -- Jenn's entry sums it up perfectly. Forced dramatic story lines are just too much! Though it cracks me up that a Melrose Place (new, not old) reject has landed over here.

Shows I'm already committed to:
- Nikita -- Somehow this show became an immediate watch show for me, but I really like the complexity of each character and the fact that they all contribute layers of depth to the show.
- Hellcats -- I like peppy tv shows.
- Grey's Anatomy -- I forgot about the season ending with the shooting spree and the new season dealing with aftermath of that has been built up brilliant so far.
- Private Practice -- I still like the characters on the show enough to keep watching it, though the storylines aren't captivating.
- Parenthood -- This show just keeps getting better for me. The best family drama.

Shows I meant to watch but forgot about:
- Better With You -- Like Jenn, I really like Joanna Garcia.

Shows still sitting on my DVR:
- Lone Star
- The Event
- Hawaii Five-O
- Undercovers
- The Whole Truth
- My Generation
- Chuck

Shows I'm still looking forward to:
- No Ordinary Family -- But the stupid show is on at the same time as Glee and NCIS! Sigh, so this may end up going the route of Modern Family, where I mean to catch up online but forget to. Hopefully not!
- Glee, Episode 2 (cuz Episode 1 was a bit disappointing) -- Cannot wait for Brittany (my favorite character!) and BRITNEY (Spears)!
- The Good Wife
- Friday Night Lights, the final season! :(

On the cusp:
- Outlaw
- How I Met Your Mother -- We better meet the stupid mother this season. And that wedding in the season premier better be Barney and Robin's wedding.
- Gossip Girl

BTW, an awful lot of weddings in the season premier this year -- Grey's Anatomy had one, Private Practice had one, HIMYM had one!

Fall TV: Hellcats

There's actually really no reason for anyone to read a review of Hellcats...you pretty much already know if you're going to like this show or not. Considering I'm a fan of such movies as Bring it On (which this show borrows from pretty liberally) and Stick it and ABCFamily's Make it or Break it, I obviously had to watch it. I'm actually kind of surprised it took this long for someone to come up with a cheerleading show...there have been what, three straight-to-video/TV sequels to Bring it On already?

Alyson Michalka is the lead, and she's pretty perfect for this. She's fun and sassy and doesn't look stupid or like she's trying too hard. Her character is Marti, the new girl on the fictional Lancer University's squad, and from her leather jacket and bike-riding, I gather she's supposed to be kind of an edgy outsider. The pilot was all set-up getting Marti onto the squad and was probably more complicated than it needed to be...all this random stuff with scholarships and her mom and gymnastics that didn't all make sense but this isn't the kind of show you should be thinking too hard about.

The rest of the cast is pretty well filled out. Ashley Tisdale plays Savannah, the team captain, and Marti's new roommate in the cheerleading house. We didn't get too much on her but I guess she's supposed to be a slightly uptight and prissy Southern belle. Also on the team are Lewis, who will inevitably be in a love triangle with Marti and her townie friend Dan, and Alice, who's been sidelined by an injury and is supposed to be the "villain." There's also a few adults...Sharon Leal (who for some reason I remember from this short-lived UPN show Legacy) as coach and former Hellcat Vanessa, who it seems will be having her own little love triangle with her current boyfriend, team doctor Derrick (played by D.B. Woodside, aka Principal Wood from Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Wayne Palmer from 24) and former flame Red who coaches the football team.

There's a lot of Bring it On here, obviously (Marti even preps for her tryout by watching the movie), and also maybe a little Glee in that the Hellcats have to place at Nationals or else their funding will be revoked. So I expect there will be periodic competitions and probably rival teams and such along with the usual teen drama.

Oh, and um, I think I'd be remiss to not point out that Alyson Michalka has a pretty rockin' body. She's tall and thin but actually looks toned rather than bony. The Hellcats' midriff-baring cheerleading outfits are definitely done justice by those abs...