fall 2010 tv preview: round 2

continuing my fall tv premieres discussion (last week's here), here's what we have for the week of september 19-25.  this is a HUGE week for premieres, so bear with me here...

(and again, this is only a discussion of the shows i watch and want to recommend to you all!) 

{boardwalk empire, series premiere, hbo, sundays}

1920.  prohibition.  outlaws.  atlantic city.  chicago.  scorcese.  sopranos writer.  hbo.  i.  am.  sold.  this show has so much potential to be the next big thing on television, and i hope it lives up to that standard.  the early buzz around this show is excellent (it's been called a mixture of the best of the sopranos and mad men!); i'm very optimistic!

{how i met your mother, season 6, cbs, mondays}

i was late to the HIMYM party.  i started watching midway through last season while simultaneously renting the previous four.  i'm definitely hooked.  it's not the funniest or the smartest comedy out there, but it's consistently good and well-acted, and i love me some NPH and jason segal.  it's incredibly similar to friends, but i'm ok with that.  i always look forward to watching a new episode, and unfortunately i can't say that about every show.  um, besides, who can pass up robin sparkles?!      

{the event, series premiere, nbc, mondays}

nbc has purposely been incredibly vague in its advertising about what this show is really about.  they're trying to create a buzz and some mystery, and it may be working.  after the end of LOST and the failure of flashforward, i'm looking for a new suspenseful drama, and this just might be it.  i also have a feeling, based on what looks to be heavy government intrigue, that 24 fans are going to like this one too.   

{glee, season 2, fox, tuesdays}

i have to be honest, i had a lot of problems with the back 9 episodes of season one.  after being an early champion of the show last september for its originality and uniqueness, i started to realize that by spring's part 2 the amount of attention that had been heaped on the show had, for lack of a better phrase, messed with "its" head.  it was trying to be too much at once, to please the masses and simultaneously remain independent and different.  and it just didn't work.  many of my issues were resolved in the season finale, mainly by tying up or abandoning story lines that had gone wayward.  i am hoping that in between that finale and the filming of season 2, ryan murphy (creator and head writer), sat down with his team and decided what exactly they wanted glee to be.  i still love this show, but i'm hoping for an april rhodes-worthy comeback!     

{running wilde, series premiere, fox, tuesdays}

i've heard mixed reviews on this new comedy so far, so i'm just going to have to wait and see for myself.  created by mitchell hurwitz (arrested development, which automatically means he's amazing), starring will arnett (love!) and keri russell (love again!).  will plays a privileged snob to keri's environmental activist.  and i'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that he falls for her while she hates him - at the beginning.  i'm just hoping this show is as good as the people involved.

{the middle, season 2, abc, wednesdays}

here comes my first plea to you all to watch abc's wednesday night block of comedies (the middle, modern family, cougar town).  three excellent and funny shows in a row, and the middle holds its own.  nothing against patricia heaton (everybody loves raymond) and neil flynn (scrubs), but it's the kids that make this show not only lol-funny, but something special and unique in a sea of recycled sitcom ideas.  i wasn't quite at her level, but sadly i might be able to identify a little too much with awkward-middleschooler-sue.  i'm really looking forward to this show's return (and i have to thank my mom here for telling me i  just had to start watching this show last year).    

{modern family, season 2, abc, wednesdays}

deservedly the emmy winner for best comedy amongst the nominees (especially with always sunny and community not on the list).  this show is clever, not afraid to go there, and every week has at least one completely hysterical moment.  like i mentioned in round 1 of my preview, the show follows 3 generations within a family, documentary-style, to frequently absurd results.  it consistently raises the bar on itself, and that makes for an excellent, excellent show.  ps if you didn't watch the emmys but are a fan of the show, definitely watch the "ways to improve modern family" bit from the ceremony here.     

{cougar town, season 2, abc, wednesdays}
in spite of its groan-worthy name (which, interestingly, was almost changed between seasons 1 & 2), this is an excellent comedy.  it started off a little rough, but once the writers realized that it was much much funnier to watch jules (courtney cox arquette) interact with her friends and family than with 20-something pretty boys, this became a very witty show - i swear!  if you wrote it off last season because of the title, try it out this year.  please! 

{community, season 2, nbc, thursdays}

as i mentioned above, community was not nominated in the best comedy category at this year's emmys.  i'm still baffled.  i freely admit having a major crush on joel mchale, which is why i started watching the show in the first place; but i stayed for the rest of the cast.  joel plays the straight man to everyone else's idiosyncrasies.  the result is a lovable ensemble cast of community school misfits and writing that loves to parody tired movie and television cliches in unique ways.  case in point: modern warfare, probably the best episode of season 1.  if you have any interest at all in getting into this show, watch that ep and tell me it's not brilliant!  and, to get you excited for season 2, watch this well-done remix of some of season 1's best moments here.

 
{30 rock, season 5, nbc, thursdays}
this show is fantastic, and luckily it has received the accolades it deserves (both in terms of awards and viewership).  the combination of tina fey, tracy morgan, and alec baldwin behind the scenes at nbc headquarters is just phenomenal.  i can't say enough good things about 30 rock, it's just so well-written, clever, and self-deprecating in the most endearing way possible.  liz lemon-ism's (tina) have been sprinkled into my vocabulary (think: blerg.  nerdbombers.), it showed us all that jon hamm is not only a perfect don draper, but he has impeccable comedic timing, and who doesn't get excited when liz's ex dennis (dean winters) reappears ("yea, i know what prenatal means.  pre: before.  natal: ruined.")?!       

 {the office, season 7, nbc, thursdays}
this has actually become my least favorite of nbc's thursday night comedy line-up, but that's more due to the excellence of the other 3 (i'm including parks and recreation in this even though it doesn't return until january) than to anything wrong with the office.  it has always been a great show, and i hope, with steve carrell leaving soon, they up the ante this season.  speaking of carrell's departure, i don't mind that michael scott will be no more.  his awkwardness can often cross over to uncomfortable rather than funny, and if the show decides to continue on without him, it might give it a fresh start - which i believe is badly needed as we enter the 7th season.       

do you watch any of these shows?  any others worth watching?  thoughts you'd like to share?  feel free to comment!

xo. di.

*images: boardwalk empire, HIMYM, the event, glee, running wilde, the middle, modern family, cougar town, community, 30 rock, the office