Category Archives: Returning Shows

A Chat with Eden Sher of ‘The Middle’

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Credit: ABC/Bob D'Amico

Credit: ABC/Bob D’Amico

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

As you all know, I’m a huge fan of The Middle (Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on ABC). The show is so funny without having any snarky undertone. (If you’re not watching the show, give it a try. Have I steered you wrong before?) The comedy features two of the best teenage characters on television. When I was at the Television Critics Association Press Tour last week, I had the chance to talk to Eden Sher, 21, who plays the ever-enthusiastic, middle child Sue Heck.

Question: How much of you is in Sue?

Eden Sher:  Sue was like my Sasha Fierce. She was my alter ego. I have become more like her. I think we’ve sort of melded into one. I think it’s like if you spend enough time around another person you’ll eventually be like them and I spend so many hours of the day pretending to be Sue.

Question: I always say there’s a little bit of Sue in anyone who has ever been a teenage girl. Do you think that’s true?

Sher: I don’t think it’s a universal thing. It’s a common thing. Definitely a relatable thing among people but I have come across some cynical people who just by nature do not have any Sue in them and I always feel like those are the people who need the most Sue.

Question:  Sue is a great role model.

Sher: There are tons of arbitrary standards that specifically women are held to, held to very harshly and they don’t matter at all. Sue is the poster girl for not giving a s*** about what anyone else thinks. She is totally unapologetically her. Always. Walk into a room. Don’t care about what anyone else thinks. It’s time to do Sue.

Question: What’s coming up for Sue? Will she get a boyfriend?

Sher: Yes! It’s a real life natural progression. If there was like an older brother and a younger sister, the  younger sister is probably going to date one of the brother’s friends. The writers sort of took that dynamic and made a little story line and Sue gets an older BF. He’s kind of a dope. He’s one of Axl’s friends that you’ve seen around. [TV Gal note: Could it be Darren who took Sue to the prom last year? Or Sean who Sue had a crush on in season two?]

Question:  You wrote and directed a short film called The Suitcase. How is that coming along?

 Sher: It is 97% done, it just needs five hours in post sound but I’ve just been so busy working.

Question: What’s it about?

Sher: It’s about a girl’s journey on her way to the subway and that’s all I will say.

Question: Do you think you want to do more things behind the camera?

Sher: I would love to write or direct something in the future. I’ll probably just keep writing because that’s a compulsion. I can’t help that. The quality is not very good but the quantity is large. I would love to do something behind the camera. That’s probably what everyone says.

Question: Do you think you will always want to act?

Sher: Acting is draining. Acting is physically exhausting. It’s definitely something I want to continue to do in the very immediate future. I see no stopping that in the next two, three, four years but beyond that but I don’t know. But then I would sort of just love to be in TV forever and just love to be on this show forever. I have a personal relationship with TV. Before I was even on TV, I just always related more to TV than to movies. I like the idea of going back week to week and building a personal relationship with these people and to sort of evolve with their lives. I love that.

Question: You (@edensher) and your co-star Charlie McDermott (@charliemcdrmott)  are very funny on Twitter. How did that get started?

Sher: I’m best friends with Charlie in real life. We just rag on each other. We just make fun of each other a lot. Most of the time we’re just having these exchanges two feet away from each other. We like to make fun of each other for always being on our cell phones. He’ll call me ‘Cell Phone Sally’ but he, in fact, is ‘Cell Phone Sal.’ He’s the major culprit on set for always being on his phone.

Question: But you guys aren’t dating?

Sher: No absolutely not. We’re very, very close. I set him up with one of my best friends. He was dating her for a very long time. I’m dating someone else. We all get along like family.

On ‘Bunheads,’ Boo and Booooooo

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SUTTON FOSTER

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

Hello and Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great holiday season. I’m pretty sure I spent 50% of my time between Christmas and New Year’s doing dishes. How about you?

After taking a long winter’s nap, TV is back in the full swing of things this week so let’s get to it.

Bunheads returns tonight at 9 p.m. on ABC Family. As you know, I can’t decide if I love or hate the fact that the series is basically Gilmore Girls Redux. When The Newsroom premiered, someone clever put together a video clip of how Aaron Sorkin often uses the same dialogue. I’m fairly confident someone could do the exact same thing with Amy Sherman–Palladino. Whole scenes from Bunheads seem directly lifted from Gilmore Girls. The series gives me a sense of déjà vu every time I watch it.

On Bunheads, Michelle is Lorelai. Fanny is Emily Gilmore (she’s even played by the same actress). Paradise is Stars Hollow. Sasha, Boo, Ginny and Melanie are Rory and her friends. (With Boo being my favorite. I love her.) I understand Sherman-Palladino’s desire to recreate the magic of Gilmore Girls and not veer too far outside her comfort zone. (Anyone remember The Return of Jezebel James?) The acting on the show is terrific. I like that, like Gilmore Girls, it’s a show that can play to multiple generations. We really don’t have enough of that on TV. (ABC Family really excels in this area. Switched at Birth, which also returns at 8 p.m. tonight, is another show multiple generations can watch together).

I  also like that the show has teenage characters who aren’t vampires and aren’t behaving older than they should be for their age.  And like Gilmore Girls, Bunheads does a great job of making even the show’s secondary and tertiary characters fantastic. I’m particularly fond of Truly (Stacey Oristano, who played Mindy Riggins on Friday Night Lights) and Boo’s mother Nanette (Jennifer Hasty).

However, Bunheads is missing any real conflict. The entire premiere is spent with Michelle back in Vegas living with her friend and performing with a cheesy magician in Henderson. But here’s the thing: We all know there’s no way Michelle is staying in Vegas. We all know she’s going to return to Paradise. There wouldn’t be a show if she didn’t. So despite the enjoyable performance and fun banter (seriously I would watch the fabulous Kelly Bishop have a tete-a-tete with anyone),  the whole hour feels like we’re just biding our time until Michelle makes her inevitable return. The trick on a TV show is to make something the audience knows is going to happen interesting (see what How I Met Your Mother did with Barney’s proposal to Robin) and the Bunheads premiere doesn’t pull that off.

Bunheads is also missing its Luke. I enjoy still getting to see Alan Ruck in flashbacks but with Hubbell dead, Michelle needs a romantic interest, one that the audience can root for.  What do you think about Bunheads? Are you going to watch tonight’s premiere? Talk about it below.

NBC premieres Deception tonight at 10 p.m. The hour long drama plays out like someone said “Hey, you know how ABC has a hit on its hands with Revenge? We should totally do that.” The series is a blatant, but not at all clever,  attempt to capitalize on Revenge’s popularity last season. Detective Joanna Locasto (Meagan Good) returns to place she grew up to investigate the death of her former best friend Vivian Bowers.  The FBI has been investigating the Bowers family and is convinced that Vivian’s death wasn’t an accidental overdose.

There are plenty of bad shows on TV but I always get particularly upset when I don’t like a show that features so many actors I do like.  Deception stars Victor Garber (Alias), Tate Donovan (Damages) and Marin Hinkle (Once & Again). That’s a lot of great talent to waste on such a boring show. And the kicker is that the series gets even more dull in next week’s episode.  My official review is: BOOOOOO!

I’m at the Television Critics Association Press Tour this week. I’ll be gathering as much fun TV information as I can to share with all of you. Have a question? Seen a familiar face? Hear a great TV quote? Email me through my contact page and let me know.

My Ten Favorite Episodes of 2012

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The Final Page, Part One And Two

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

Last week I talked about my ten favorite shows of the year. And, of course, those shows had some wonderful episodes in 2012. “The Other Woman” episode of Mad Men  was my favorite episode of the year.

But this week I thought I would turn my attention to my ten favorite episodes on shows that didn’t make it to my top ten list (got that?). It’s the holiday season — I’m spreading the love around.

My 10 favorite episodes of the year:

1. “Stride of Pride,” 30 Rock (October 18, 2012): This is the episode where I fell even more in love with Liz Lemon.  In 22 glorious minutes, Fey took on the ridiculous argument that woman can’t be funny. Plus we got a fun guest appearance by Olympian Ryan Lochte and a scathing commentary about how Hollywood treats actresses in their 40s. What more could you want? If you missed the episode, NBC is repeating it next Thursday, December 27.You can read my review of the episode for Paste Magazine here.
2. “The Final Page, Part 1 and 2,” How I Met Your Mother (December 17, 2012): This is the episode that made me go, “Oh right. This is why I love How I Met Your Mother.” In the final moments of the episode, viewers learn that Barney has pulled a long con on Robin to get her to realize that she’s in love with him.  The episode harkened back to the show’s glory days with inside jokes and delightful rapport among the friends (the jinx rule was right up there with the slap bet).  Plus it managed to shock viewers even when we knew was going to happen. Here I was annoyed that the show was drawing out the Barney and Robin engagement AGAIN and then the show pulled off one of the best surprises of the season.  It really was legen-wait-for-it- dairy. Bonus points for a terrific performance by Ellen D.Williams.  YESI’MTALKINGABOUTYOUPATRICE!
3. “Handle Your Scandal,” Nurse Jackie (June 17, 2012): I tend to binge watch Nurse Jackie. I’ll watch an entire season in one week. Perhaps that’s why the season finale hit me so hard. The anguish on Dr. Mike Cruz’s face as his son is brought into the ER stayed with me for a while. As brilliantly played by Bobby Cannavale, Dr. Cruz was a great adversary for Jackie because, even though he was often awful,  you could understand his point of view. Jake Cannvale, the son of Bobby Cannavle, was fantastic as a lost teenager trying to find himself in all the wrong places.  Every character dynamic reached its peak in the show’s season finale.
4. “Pilot” Smash (February 6, 2012): No, the musical drama did not live up to the promise of its pilot (boo Ellis! Boo!) but the pilot was a fantastic hour that did everything right from character introduction to central conflict. Let me be your star, indeed.
5.“Jimmy’s Fake Girlfriend,” Raising Hope (February 14, 2012): First of all I should have given an honorable mention to Raising Hope last week.  The show is terrific and weird and terrifically weird.  Its humor is out there and hilarious. And this episode, which found Jimmy conjuring up a fake girlfriend to make Sabrina jealous, was genius. The comedy upended audience expectations by putting the will-they-or-won’t-they couple solidly together (a move which totally worked) and putting the couple together in the sweet way while staying true to the unique humor of the show.
6.“A Reunion . . . “ Don’t Trust the B____ in Apt. 23” (October 23, 2012): Everything came together in this episode that found James Van Der Beek desperately trying to stage a Dawson’s Creek reunion.  I love the glorious relish with which Van Der Beek good naturedly mocks himself and the show that brought him fame. Add in cameos by Busy Phillips, Frankie Muniz and Mark-Paul Gosselaar and I don’t want to wait to tell you how much I loved this episode.
7.“The Dream Team” The Good Wife (May 6, 2012): Let’s all think back to the time BN – before Nick. Before the show went all 50 Shades of Food Products on us.  In this third season finale, two of my favorite guest stars (Martha Plimpton and Michael J. Fox) return to try to take control of the firm. The episode also featured the fantastic ending of Kalinda starring at her door with her gun loaded as she hears a knock on the door. Too bad that didn’t work out.
8.“Always”/“The Final Frontier”  Castle (May 7, 2012 and November 5, 2012): I know I’m breaking my own rules by picking two episodes from the same show but I simply couldn’t decide. “Always” brought television’s best star-crossed couple together in a way the delighted fans and “The Final Frontier” had such fun with Nathan Fillion’s status in the science fiction genre.
9.“My Life/Your World Parts 1 and 2” Cougar Town (May 29, 2012): I love the wine-loving cul-de-sac crew and never did I love them more then when Grayson and Jules got married and Travis confessed his love to Laurie. The title sequence read “Welcome to Cougar Town: Hopefully this is only the season finale.” Lucky for us it WAS only the season finale. The show returns with new episodes January 8 on TBS.
10.“The Countdown Reflection,” The Big Bang Theory (May 10, 2012): Since adding Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik to its cast, this comedy has thrived. The fifth season finale, which featured Howard and Bernadette’s wedding and ended with all the cast holding hands as Howard launched into space, was the perfect combination of humor and sweetness.

Those were my favorite episodes of the year. What were yours? Talk about it below.

My Favorite Shows of 2012

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PATRICIA HEATON, EDEN SHER, NEIL FLYNN, CHARLIE MCDERMOTT, ATTICUS SHAFFER

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

When I first started writing about TV, I could list my ten best shows of the year with confidence. Sure one viewer’s trash is another’s treasure (some think American Horror Story is brilliant, I find it rather laughable). Lists are always subjective and my opinion is just my opinion. But, back then, I had at least watched one episode of every show and felt I had given every series its fair consideration.

That, my friends, is no longer the case. Even if I did nothing else but watch TV, I don’t think I would be able to say I’ve seen everything the medium has to offer. There are way too many shows on the air. For example, I will admit to you that I’ve never seen a single episode of Justified. It’s been on my “I need to watch this show” list for years. There are other shows I liked –The Walking Dead and Breaking Bad among them – that for whatever reason I haven’t kept up with. The second season of Downton Abbey is just sitting on my desk waiting to be watched. Do spa/TV viewing vacations exist? Because that’s what I need.

My other issue is the rise of what I like to calls shows that are rated NFA – Not For Amy. For example, I can appreciate that Lena Dunham is creating something unique with a distinct point of view with Girls. However, from the opening moments, I couldn’t stand the show. I found the characters to be whiny, obnoxious and self-centered. And series such as Game of Thrones are also NFA.  With its gratuitous sex and violence, I didn’t even make it through the series premiere of Game of Thrones.

What I can offer you are my favorite shows of the year. The shows that have been consistently high in quality. Show that each week offered thoughtful, moving performances and strong writing. Shows that make me laugh, cry or both. Shows that are among the best TV has to offer. I have ranked them in terms of what I would choose to watch first on my TiVo.

1.Homeland (Showtime): So we’re all kind of in a fight with Homeland and I totally get that.  The show is cutting corners and sacrificing realism to advance the story and get the characters where they need them to be. I mean we’re going to have to ask Carrie more follow-up questions about how she escaped from Abu Nazir, right? An acceptable answer isn’t “I got lucky” when it comes to freeing yourself from the world’s number one terrorist. But all my quibbles aside, no other show surprises me and keeps me engaged like Homeland does.  Especially in season two, I never knew what the show was going to do next. Every time I lulled myself into believing I knew what was going to happen, the series zigged in a totally different direction.  But what really sets Homeland apart is the incredible acting. Clare Danes, Damian Lewis and Mandy Patinkin are breathtaking every week. They rise above the most inane writing and ridiculous plot twists.  Danes and Lewis have made me believe in TV’s most unlikely and unhealthy romance. It’s been a long time since I’ve looked forward to a show as much as I look forward to Homeland. And that means, despite the ridiculousness of late, the drama is doing a lot of things right.

2.Parenthood (NBC): This is the season Parenthood transitioned from a good drama into a great one.  I wrote about Parenthood being one of the best shows for Paste Magazine. You can read what I had to say here.

3. Southland (TNT): The best cop drama on TV. With gritty realism, Southland pulls the viewer into its world each week.  This past season the drama added Lucy Liu and, as much as I enjoy Liu on Elementary, I am really going to miss her on Southland. Her performance was transformative. I could write paragraphs about the brilliant acting that occurs each week on the show but I want to especially praise Regina King, whose Detective Lydia Adams is one of the strongest female characters on TV. Bonus points to the show for having C. Thomas Howell in its cast. When I was a girl, pictures of Howell adorned my bedroom walls. How wonderful it is to have him on TV. Some things that are gold can stay.

4. The Middle (ABC): This week Frankie (Patricia Heaton) woke up in the middle of the night to fight with Mike (Neil Flynn) and you know what I loved best about that scene? Frankie was in mismatched pajamas. That, my friends, is real life. (My biggest complaint with Homeland this season remains that Jess packed a negligee to go to a safe house). While Modern Family may be the show all the cool kids watch, The Middle is the show that truly captures the humor of family life. The comedy has the best teenage characters of any show. Each week Eden Sher and Charlie McDermott are perfect as the ever enthusiastic Sue and her older, slacker brother Axl. (For real fun, follow these two on Twitter to see how they interact in real life).  When people ask me what’s the one show they are not watching that that they should be watching, I always say The Middle.

5. Scandal (ABC): From her first power-suit strut into the office, I was all about Olivia Pope and her not-so-merry band of Gladiators. The show provides a juicy soap opera and intense mystery while, without making a big deal about it, has built a show around a successful woman of color. Plus nobody enunciates quite like Kerry Washington enunciates. I want to be a client of Pope & Associates just so I can hear Olivia say my name. Most of the time, I have no idea what the Huck the show is going to do next and I love that.

6. Parks and Recreation (NBC):  What other series could make local politics so utterly compelling? I literally love this show. Parks has the best ensemble cast on TV. There are no weak links. I adore every single character on it.

7. The Glee Project (Oxygen): The Glee Project is the only reality competition that is truly rooted in reality.  The audition process is grueling and, in the end, no matter how much the casting director, vocal coach and choreographer may love you, it all comes down to the executive producer’s capricious decision.  I love that this is a tough competition but one where none of the coaches are mean-spirited or nasty. If you’re not performing well, they will tell you but in a way that allows the performers to flourish. Bonus points to the show for 1):  Totally making up words.  We all need a little glee-ality and romanticality in our lives.  2): Giving me my new secret boyfriend Zach Woodlee. His proud papa face when he watches the kids perform makes me tear up every time.  3): Giving Glee Blake Jenner and Alex Newell. They’ve both been great additions to the series.

8. Mad Men (AMC): Not everything worked this season but when the show worked, it worked brilliantly. Joan finally telling her husband to get out. Peggy leaving the agency and coming into her own. Joan becoming a partner in the worst possible way. These are TV moments indelibly inked in my mind. Mad Men continues to create a world that is mesmerizing.

9. Awkward (MTV):  Yes I know I’m way too old to be watching this show. But what I love about Awkward is that although the technology has changed (no one had a blog when I was in high school), the experience of being a teenager hasn’t. Awkward takes me right back to the not-so-glory days of high school. But it’s not just nostalgia that makes me love the show – it is witty, hilarious, poignant and heart-breaking.  While I always rooted for Jake, the Jake/Matty/Jenna love triangle is one of the best ones out there.

10. New Girl (FOX): For a show ostensibly about a girl, it’s the men who have made this comedy flourish. The rapport between Schmidt, Nick and Winston is the stuff of TV magic. If Schmidt is the series breakout character, Nick is the sleeper breakout character. I still laugh every time I think about Jake Johnson’s “I give you cookie” diatribe.

Honorable Mentions:

The Good Wife (CBS): I adore this show. The only reason it isn’t part of my top ten is due to the mandatory “Nick is a bad husband” deduction. May we never have to see a fight involving raw eggs again.

30 Rock (NBC): As always, I want to go to there. In its final season, this smart comedy has enjoyed a greater and more hilarious freedom as it mocks its corporate parent and takes Liz Lemon through some major life changes.

Switched at Birth (ABC): Bunheads may be Gilmore Girls Redux but it’s Switched at Birth that has filled the hole Gilmore Girls left in my viewing schedule.

Go On (NBC): This comedy is doing exactly what a freshman comedy should be doing: It gets better every week as Ryan (Matthew Perry) continues to grieve his wife’s death with an unlikely support group. It can’t be easy to make a comedy about people continuing on with their lives after a great loss, but Go On is doing an excellent job.

Those are my favorite shows of 2012. What are yours? Talk about it below.

Am I Breaking Up with ‘Revenge?’

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MADELEINE STOWE, EMILY VANCAMP, GABRIEL MANN, JOSH BOWMAN, ASHLEY MADEKWE, NICK WECHSLER, HENRY CZERNY, CHRISTA B. ALLEN, CONNOR PAOLO

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

Sometimes when I break up with a show, it is dramatic and abrupt. I turned off the TV midway through an episode of the new 90210, announced “I’m never watching this stupid show again” and have never looked back. (Same thing happened with The Secret Life of the American Teenager. I announced during one of Amy’s hair-flip whines, “I can’t take this show” and immediately deleted the series from my season pass manager).

Sometimes I agonize over the decision wondering if I’ll miss something if I don’t watch. That happened last season with American Idol. I had watched the show since its inception. To actively decide not to watch anymore took a few months to come to terms with, but, once the decision had been made, I didn’t miss Ryan and the gang.

And sometimes the break up sneaks up on me and I don’t even realize that it’s happening. I think I might be breaking up with Revenge and I didn’t even know it. We’re on Day 13 of the Amy’s Not Watching Revenge Watch. I am two episodes behind but every time I sit down to watch TV, I chose something else. I can’t seem to bring myself to watch the drama. Maybe it’s because of the fast and furious but basically nonsensical plot twists (what is the Initiative and do I care?). Maybe it’s because the show doesn’t adhere to its own rules (seriously I cannot abide the lack of security on Nolan’s computer). Maybe it’s because of all the bad characters and bad acting (your names begin with D,C and FA). Maybe it’s because they changed Takedas on me without ever acknowledging it. Maybe it’s because of that insipid Neiman Marcus commercial. I don’t know. All I know is last season I enjoyed the show’s fun, soapy antics and this season, it seems like a chore to watch the series.

How about you? Are you still watching Revenge? What shows have you broken up with this season?  Should I watch the two episodes of Revenge that are sitting on my TiVo taunting me? Talk about it below.

Where Have I Seen Them Before?

Joe Nieves was one of the lawyers questioning Owen on Grey’s Anatomy. He is Carl, the bartender at MacLaren’s, on How I Met Your Mother.

Chelcie Ross was Harold Pierce, the CEO who was acting crazy as his son was about to take his company public on Scandal. He was Conrad Hilton on Mad Men . He also played Avery’s grandfather, Harper Avery on Grey’s Anatomy.

Becky Ann Baker was Alma,  the prosecuting attorney in the other county on The Good Wife. She plays Hannah’s mother on Girls, Karen’s mom on Smash and was Jean Weir on the wonderful Freaks & Geeks. Fun fact: Her real life husband is actor Dylan Baker, who plays the devious Colin Sweeney on The Good Wife.

Richard Gant was the lawyer at the beginning of The Mindy Project advising Mindy, Jeremy and Danny. He was Owen’s dad, Owen Thoreau Sr.,  on Men of a Certain Age.

Betsy Brandt was Hank’s ex-wife on Parenthood. She’s Marie on Breaking Bad. and she was also the abused woman Violet met at the airport last season on Private Practice.

Quotes of the Week

“You’re right. If those 40-year-olds on Glee can act like teenagers than so can we.” Virginia to Burt on Raising Hope.

“I told him you’re Italian so he might call you Tina,” Jack to Liz on 30 Rock.

“I’ll convert to Indianism.” Schmidt to CeCe on New Girl.

“I really love you but I can’t do this anymore.” Mark to Sarah on Parenthood. That scene hurt my heart to watch.

“We want different things. Every time we try to ignore that we end up hurting each other. We don’t work. That’s what we know and that hasn’t changed.” Owen to Cristina on Grey’s Anatomy. This one didn’t hurt my heart at all. I just can’t care about these two being together.

Exchanges of the Week

“I have been sure for a long time that this was never going to happen and I was fine with it. Ergo it couldn’t matter.” Liz to Criss about getting married on 30 Rock.

“It’s okay to be a human woman.” Criss to Liz

“No it’s not, it’s the worst.” Liz’s response

“What if he comes back?” Alicia to Kalinda about Nick on The Good Wife

“He’s not coming back.” Kalinda to Alicia.

“You sure?” Alicia to Kalinda.

“Yeah.” Kalinda’s response. So do we think Kalinda killed Nick and do we care? I”m just so happy that he’s off the show.

That’s all for today. I’m back next week to begin my favorites of 2012 lists. If you have a favorite episode or TV moment from 2012, let me know about it via my contact page. Have a great weekend.

Checking in on the Believability Rating of ‘Modern Family,’ ‘New Girl,’ ’30 Rock,’ ‘Homeland’ and ‘Parenthood’

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JULIE BOWEN, SOFIA VERGARA

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

As we have discussed, I don’t require a lot of realism in my TV shows. I’m okay with most of the outrageous TV conventions. Couples can have babies that they often seem to forget they have.  Female detectives can walk around all day in high-heeled shoes.  Characters can go to work at offices that don’t require they do any actual work. Jess can pack a sexy negligee to go to a safe house. Heck Abu Nazir can even Skype with Brody on a smart phone and, in general,  I’m pretty much okay with it.  Let’s take a look at some of the things that happened on TV last week and see where they landed of the believability scale.

Let’s start with pregnant Gloria on Modern Family.  I loathe pregnant Gloria. Loathe her. It’s as if the writers googled “pregnant women stereotypes” and then decided to gift Gloria with all those traits this season. She doesn’t want to wear maternity clothes. She’s forgetful, irrational, emotional, and even unbalanced. I’ve been pregnant and I’ve known a lot of pregnant women and no one I know acts like this. For some reason I am unable to willingly suspend my disbelief on this one. Perhaps it’s because pregnant Gloria is not funny. She’s just gratingly annoying.  Can you imagine how ridiculous she’s going to be a mother of a newborn? Believability Rating: 1 out of a possible 10

Over on New Girl, the comedy tried to send women over 30 into a panic about their ovarian egg reserve. Let’s ignore the fact that the show blatantly disregarded actual medical facts on what constitutes ovarian reserve testing, when it can happen, and how the results are interpreted. I’ll  go ahead and suspend my disbelief on that one because hopefully no one is seeking out medical advice from a television comedy.  What bummed me out about the episode is that there is a larger, more thoughtful conversation to be had here about being a single woman over 30 who knows she wants to have a family but isn’t ready to yet. Instead we got lines like Jess shouting “give my nipples a purpose” and her referring to her uterus as a 1930’s dustbowl.  I’m curious to see if the show brings this topic up again or if it was merely a one-shot plot development. Although I know this is something that mostly affects women, it would be great to see some male characters (other than Ted Mosby, of course), discuss their desire to have a family. Believabilty rating: 0 out of 10 on medical facts, 3 out of 10 on emotional reactions

But thank goodness Liz Lemon had the most perfect wedding on 30 Rock. As I wrote about in my review of last week’s episode for Paste Magazine, Liz was able to confess that getting married was a big deal without losing her sense of self or suddenly becoming a different character entirely. I would have been so angry if suddenly she wanted to wear a princess ball gown and surround herself with women in pastel-colored matching dresses. That’s not the Liz Lemon we know and love. I really hope she and Crises get to have a baby before 30 Rock says its final goodbye in January. Believablity rating: 10 out of 10.

I  also wrote about my beloved Parenthood in Paste Magazine’s Best TV Shows of 2012.  But what I want to talk about today is how much the show is stressing me out. What is Sarah doing? After my initial panic, the series has set up the Hank/Mark/Sarah triangle believably.  Hank and Mark are such completely different people and you can see how they each offer attractive qualities the other doesn’t have. I even believe that Hank kissing Sarah would send her into a full-fledged panic where she would immediately move in with Mark to try to squelch any feelings she might have for Hank. But would she cancel her plans to attend a wedding with Mark to help Hank out? I’m not so sure. I don’t quite know what the show is trying to do here. And I like not knowing. But if Sarah and Mark do break up, we have to figure out a way to keep Mr. Cyr on the show. Believablity rating: 6 out of 10

Okay, now let’s talk about Homeland. At some point this season I decided to give into all the ridiculous Homeland plot twists and just go with the show. It’s absolutely one of those situations where if you think about a show too much you’re not going to be able to enjoy it. And I want to enjoy Homeland.  So I went with the fact that the world’s most renowned terrorist would be able to get into the country, rent a car, buy a big gulp (really he doesn’t have a minion he can send in to the convenience store?) and kidnap Carrie. I’m not saying I preferred this plot twist, I’m saying I  went with it. But the biggest question Homeland faces now is: Can the show continue with Brody or does he need to be killed off? Brody crossed a line he had not crossed before when he killed the Vice President.  His switching from abject horror at what Abu Nazir was asking him to do to smirking as he told the Vice President he was killing him was way too abrupt. And what’s with Carrie going back in to find Abu Nazir? She’s like the teens in some B horror movie that go into the woods alone. My biggest concern with the most recent episode is that Brody has long been a bad guy for whom I’ve had some degree of sympathy for but that’s gone now.  And I’m not sure I’m interested in watching a completely evil Brody. I was hoping for way to keep Damian Lewis on the show next season because I love him so but I don’t see how that’s possible now. I’ve learned, of course, to never doubt Homeland so I can’t wait to see what happens in the final two episodes of the season. Carrie believability rating: 5 out of 10, she  is crazy enough to go after Nazir. Brody believability rating: 4 out of 10, why didn’t he give Nazir a number that was a little bit off?  Abu Nazir believability rating: -1 out of 10, but I didn’t care.

That’s all for today. I would love to hear your thoughts on Modern Family, New Girl, 30 Rock, Parenthood and Homeland below. And if you have seen a familiar face or heard a great quote, definitely let me know about it.

TV Throwdowns

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By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

As TV viewers, we must make tough choices. In that vein, I present to you my current TV throwdowns.

New Glee Students vs. New Grey’s Anatomy Interns: Glee had an obligation to add new students. It is, after all, a show about a high school Glee Club. It would be impractical to keep the actors high school students forever especially since many of them looked as if they passed the exit to high school long before the show started. But, we didn’t really need new interns on Grey’s. We have enough doctors to keep up with as it is. On top of that, while the Glee students may be knock-offs of the originals (in the grand tradition of Valerie becoming the new Brenda and Gina becoming the new Valerie on 90210), they have made an impact. I may not like Kitty, but at least I know who she is. While watching Grey’s last week, I did not even recognize Leah (Tessa Ferrer). When she talked about having slept with Alex, I thought, “Is this girl hallucinating? She’s never been on the show before.” Turns out she’s been on the show twice before. Who knew? The rest of the interns I refer to as the crying one, Smash and Tina Majorino. Winner: The new Glee students.

Marvin “Wait For It” Erickson (How I Met Your Mother) vs. Carl Porter (Revenge): I know it’s hard to have a real baby on a TV set. If my daughter had been on any TV show as a baby, you would not have been able to hear any of the dialogue over her screaming, but I digress. Last week when Marshall was wearing a doll in a baby carrier, it was as if How I Met Your Mother wasn’t even trying.  The scene was ridiculous. Say the baby is sleeping or out for a walk or whatever, just don’t show us a lifeless baby doll. It was disturbing Baby Carl may be the easiest, most well behaved baby on the planet but at least he’s usually played by an actual baby. Winner: Carl Porter.

Nellie Bertram (The Office) vs. BJ (Ben and Kate): Who is the better saucy British sidekick? The Office has done a lot of work to make Nellie a more tolerable character this season. The smartest move the show made was to make her one of the gang. Now she’s the one colluding with Jim and Pam to play a trick on Dwight instead of the antagonist. They’ve also attempted to give Nellie a personal life to try to humanize her character. But despite her character rehabilitation, too much damage was done last season. I still prefer Lucy Punch’s absolutely outrageous BJ. Winner: BJ

The technology on Scandal vs. The technology on The Killing: Both shows seem, at times, to be stuck in the early 2000 technology wise. Rumors spread a few weeks ago that Netflix might pick up The Killing for a third season. In addition to the fact that this might not be the best idea creatively (the show struggled so in its second season), I wondered if the characters on The Killing even know what Netflix is or that’s it’s possible to watch a TV show via the Internet. This is, after all, the show that has a police detective using a flip phone and driving a car with no automatic locks. But over on Scandal, Olivia still receives photos via fax machine (I honestly thought my mother was the only person who still used a fax machine so at least she’s in good company) and Cyrus’s husband is excited about being on the front page of a newspaper (wouldn’t he be more excited about being the featured story on the paper’s website or getting his own blog for a political website?).  Meanwhile the show has Huck who can hack into anything at any time. At least The Killing was consistent with its archaic technology. Tough call but winner: Scandal.

Stockard Channing as Alicia’s mom (The Good Wife) /Adrienne Barbeau as Victoria’s mom (Revenge): Which mom am I most looking forward to meeting this Sunday? Well I already love Alicia’s brother and I’ve missed having the Former First Lady on TV. Except for the Storyline That Shall Not Be Named, The Good Wife does an excellent job with its guest stars. Revenge, however, wasted Jennifer Jason Leigh. WASTED HER. I’m not even sure of the reason for having Leigh on the show.  Winner: Stockard Channing.

Where do you weigh in on some of these TV throwdowns? Talk about it below. Have a question? Seen a familiar face? Heard a great quote? Email me and let me know.  And remember to sign up to follow my blog if you want to be part of my December TV Swag giveaway. Coming soon, my open love letter to Parenthood, Part 2.

Dysfunction Junction: TV’s Most Unhealthy Romances

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By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal ®

Love is in the air all over TV. A long simmering romance is finally blossoming on Castle. George and Dallas are positively adorable as they discover what it’s like to date after divorce on Suburgatory.  And the great tradition of falling for a former cast member of Friday Night Lights continues on Parenthood.

But while other couples are going out for fancy dinners and canoodling, several unhealthy relationships are getting plenty of screen time. A look at some of the most dysfunctional couples currently on TV:

Angela, The Senator and Oscar on The Office (Thursdays at 9 p.m. on NBC): This entire storyline is such a dark turn for The Office to take in its final season. Yes Angela isn’t the nicest character. She’s nasty to Kevin and was awful to Andy. She constantly puts down Pam and makes fun of Phyllis. But do I want to see her, as Kevin so aptly put it, discover that her entire life is a lie? Not really. I can’t find the humor in finding out that your husband is cheating on you with a man.  And after nine seasons, I would love to have Oscar find true love. But does that true love have to be at Angela’s expense? Not sure what the writers were thinking when they went down this path. There are not a lot of laughs to be mined here.

Olivia and President Fitzgerald Grant on Scandal:Just a few weeks ago I was wondering where this particular story line could go. There are only so many times a fabulously dressed Olivia can defiantly announce to Fitz that their relationship is over. There are only so many times he can give her his hurt puppy face in response. I liked the knowledge of their affair as a starting point for the series. The idea that they both want something they absolutely cannot have is a great undercurrent to all the action. But the whole thing was beginning to feel a bit redundant. Until, that is, the show hinted that Olivia, the First Lady, and Cyrus had collaborated to fix the election. I couldn’t figure out why the series kept emphasizing that the opposing candidate had lost by 4,359 votes in Ohio.  But now it definitely seems like there was some voter tampering going on and if Olivia wasn’t a part of it, she was aware of it.  And since it appears that the President was not, that should add a new interesting wrinkle to their relationship. While I’m on Scandal, as much as I love the show (it’s second on my must watch on my DVR list after Parenthood), I’m concerned that Olivia is getting duped by her clients too easily. She’s not the ultimate fixer if she discovers after the fact that the Governor did know his wife was having an affair. That kind of last minute bait-and-switch reveal reminds of what The Practice always used to do.

Carrie and Brody on Homeland: This duo is the definition of dysfunction.  Three weeks ago Carrie was triumphantly told Brody that he was under arrest for being a traitor to his country and this week she’s hungriliy making out with him in the woods.  What works about their twisted romance (if one can call it that) is that as a viewer, I never know if Carrie has true feelings for Brody, if she’s playing him or if it’s a little bit of both.  When she told him in the interrogation room that if she were being honest she would tell him she wants him to leave his wife for her, it’s hard to tell if it is some confession ploy or the real deal. And the thing is –  I don’t think Carrie knows her true feelings either. Her work and her life are so enmeshed that how she feels about Brody is part of her work.   There’s a fine line between love and hate but when it comes to Carrie and Brody, there’s a fine line between love and obsession.

Victoria and Conrad on Revenge: Since the dog died last season, there are no functional couples on Revenge. (Jack and the dog were our last hope).Everybody is using everybody. Conrad and Victoria viciously plot to bring each other down. They trade barbs and insults. But when they were both facing death,  they held hands.  It wasn’t sweet exactly but it was something. As the patriarch and matriarch TV’s most outlandish prime time soap, Victoria and Conrad are better together even if they both have a knife in the other’s back.

What couples do you think define dysfunction on TV? Talk about it below. I’m back on Thursday to check in on how some of this season’s new shows are doing (The New Normal, Nashville, Elementary). Remember to sign up to follow my blog (upper right hand corner) if you want to be part of my December TV Swag Giveaway  And if you’ve seen a familiar face or heard a great quote, email me and let me know.