DVR Ready. DVR Aim. DVR Record. Fall 2010. Part 2 - Tuesday Wednesday

Previously On...
DVR Ready. DVR Aim. DVR Record. Fall 2010 Part 1 Sunday Monday


The 'ol DVR ain't slowing down as Part 2 of the Fall 2010 Season highlights continues with Tuesday & Wednesday. In some ways, this fall is proving to be the most frustrating. We can only record 2 shows at a time. Both Tuesday and Wednesday have more than 2 shows airing during the same time slot (which wouldn't be a problem if the Major Networks were willing to air encores late at night instead of infomercials), forcing the decision of which not to record.

TUESDAYS
Think I can safely call Tuesdays guilty pleasure day. Read on.

Stargate Universe
Premieres 9/28, SyFy

Have you watched that trailer yet? You should. If you have not yet checked out this Stargate incarnation, you are missing a truly great show. I've said it before, don't think of it as a another installment of the Stargate franchise, for SG-U is so much more. It is a really great, intense, well written drama that just happens to have a Stargate in it. SG-U is my most anticipated returning show this season.

Sanctuary
Premieres 9/28, SyFy

I like this show. It is a good tongue-in-cheek companion to the more serious Stargate. Their take on the monsters is really creative, and the powers that be behind it know how to weave an interesting fable.

Sons of Anarchy
Premieres 9/7, FX

I consider it a failure on my part for not getting into this show until its 3rd season. The very concept itself says it is bad ass. I like my TV bad ass.

No Ordinary Family
Premieres 9/28, ABC

I am approaching this one with caution...aka, trying not to get my hopes up. Despite of the obvious Fantastic Four origin rip off, the comic geek in me is absolutely giddy about the concept. However it is on ABC, so my fear is it will be ABC-ized. Hopefully, the network will allow the writers to take it in the direction it needs to go for it realize its potential. Either/or, I'm going to be there on premiere night.

Parenthood
Premieres 9/14, NBC

Lauren Graham always gets me watching the most compromising guilty pleasures. I am a big fan of hers. To give this show credit, the writers do a great job in balancing all the characters and storylines. Not to mention, Craig T Nelson's character is dead ringer of my Grandpa (only it was the Korean War as opposed to the Vietnam War...d'OH, just aged myself).


Tuesday Honorable Mentions

Glee (Premieres 9/21, Fox): There is too much going on in the same time slot, so going to have to wait until the reruns to catch this quirky guilty pleasure. Yes, I know, I am a bad Gleek.

Biggest Loser (Premieres 9/21, NBC): Is it just me, or does the Biggest Loser operate like a cult. They isolate the contestants, break them down, and fill them full of their over-the-top preachy rhetoric as they built them back up. My wife, however, loves this show, so I gotta take one for the team...a heavy price to pay so I can record my Friday shows.



WEDNESDAYS
Though there really isn't that much worth watching on this day, it just so happens all but one occupy the same timeslot.

Terriers
Premieres 9/8, FX

I was originally going to pass on this one. Seemed like yet another case-of-the-week procedural. Then I read the write up in TV Guide Magazine, and changed my mind. It is a case-of-the-week procedural, but the characters are interesting and have great back stories.

Undercovers
Premieres 9/22, NBC

JJ Abrams is coming out with a spy drama?! SOLD!

Survivor
Premieres 9/15, CBS

Survivor got the shaft for not being nominated for an Emmy. Both seasons last year were some of the best of the show's entire run. Hoping that this is the case this year. Though why CBS is moving their 10 year Thursday night anchor to Wednesdays is beyond me...now convinced that network execs are all on crack.

Wednesday Honorable Mention

Hell's Kitchen (Premieres 9/22, Fox): Fox hates me. Really, they do. Why else would they move Hell's Kitchen (yet again) to Wednesdays. I just love it when Gorden Ramsey gets so worked up he literally spits on the contestants. Hoping they're encoring this one, 'cuz spitting or no, I ain't going to miss my Survivor.


Links to the show on their respective networks websites are the show's title. Part 3: Thursday Friday should be up in 2 - 3 days. Stay Tuned!

Cheers!

REVIEW: One Discriptive Best Fits SG-U's Preultimate Season 1 Episode, Intense

I don't even know where to begin. SG-U's penultimate Season 1 episode Incursion Pt.1 just proved it is the 2nd most intense TV show currently being broadcast (next to only Breaking Bad). Seriously, it is very difficult to talk about the episode w/o leaking spoilers like Destiny leaks atmosphere.


Photo from SyFy.com

One of the tells of a great serialized series is the episodes bleed into one another, making it difficult to distinguish when one episode ends & the follow up begins. Such is the case w/ "Subversion" & "Incursion Pt. 1". Young does vent the cell effectively killing Telford (whose in Rush's body...it is a communication stones thing, makes perfect sense if you watch SG-U from the beginning). That is the opening scene, & the episode does not slow down from there.

Incursion also ties the loose end of who attacked the base in SG-U's premiere episode. This is the event that landed our marooned characters onto Destiny to begin with. The Lucian, an opposition group hell bent on getting their hands on alien technology, are using Rush (whose in Telford's body) to get onto Destiny. They do just that. After easily breaking through Col. Young's defenses, the resulting battle not only lands the pregnant T.J. as a Lucian hostage, but also leaves Cloe shot & lost in a previously unexplored portion of the ship w/ Eli (who is not known for his cool headedness in intense situations).

SG-U also does a great job in leaving certain plot elements unspoken. Though briefly acknowledged by Rush (now back in his own body), Destiny has obviously taken a disliking to the Lucian. Whether or not they play the Destiny card in the finale, certain events furthered my suspicion that Destiny is an A.I.

So strong the suspense and drama, I found myself sitting at the edge of my seat throughout the entire episode. I was so engrossed into Incursion that it was a physical shock when the screen blacked out after the final scene.

Stargate has come a long way since the planet of the week episodes of SG-1. SG-U not only proves it can be an amazing situational character drama, but also is raising the bar of what a serialized series can do.

Here's a clip from Incursion Pt. 2:

IMHO, a scene is the best "preview" to entice viewer interest & curiosity