And lo, there shall come endings!
The series finale of The Sopranos this past weekend (which I didn't watch, by the way, because I've never been that huge a fan and would rather buy the DVDs and watch them in the future) reminded me that I was going to do a post about all the shows I watch on television and how they left things this season and whether or not they were good. So let's go - and of course, there will be SPOILERS!
Fox:
24: Well, the entire final third of the season was a bit anticlimactic, wasn't it? I mean, the nuclear bomb going off in California was cool. Jack feeling all conflicted about doing the job after shooting Curtis was cool. The plot to kill the president was pretty cool. Once they got Fayed, however, everything went a bit to shit. I know they had to clear up some loose ends, like Jack's father, but the whole Russian threat and the Chinese and the kid ... it went on way too long. The only cool thing that happened during that time was Milo's sudden death, which was pretty neat. Of course, the action was well done and the resolution was spectacular as usual, but the whole plot felt tacked on, even more so than it has in the past. It just seems like they're really running out of ideas on the show. I'm going to start next season, but I really hope they can come up with something different. Otherwise, it's just not that interesting anymore.
House: Occasionally this year, Dr. House got almost human, and the show suffered because of it. I get that they can't keep him a bastard forever and want to move him forward as a character, but most of the show's charm is that he's a bastard and always will be. The whole story with the threat of him going to jail was okay, but again, tried to make him contrite, which is boring. Similarly, toward the end of the season, when his three employees/worker bees/slaves were either fired or quit, it was a bit more interesting because he insisted on being hard-ass with them. I have no idea what's going to happen, if the three will be back or if he'll just get new peons to browbeat, but they need to get back to Hugh Laurie being a total jerk. As for the medical stuff, Scott at Polite Dissent does a wonderful job going over it each week, and apparently it got sloppier than usual this year. The worst transgression was the "pro-life" episode, where a fetus seemingly grabbed House's finger. It was supposedly based on a true event, but the "true event" has been debunked. It's still an interesting show, but it suffered a bit at the end of this season.
Bones: I really like this show, and I like how the writers balance the gruesome crimes with the soap opera. I also like how Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz flirt but haven't jumped into bed yet, and also how they talk about them not jumping into bed yet. I have no idea how "real" the science in the show is (not very, I suspect), but I don't worry about it too much. This is a cheerier version of the CSI shows on CBS, which I don't watch. And the chemistry among the cast is better than the CSI shows, too, as far as I can tell when my mother's in town (who watches them religiously). That being said, the season finale, with its unbelievably cheesy wedding between Angela and Hodgins, was just dumb. I love that Angela is that guy from ZZ Top's daughter, but their romance has been pretty weird. And it would be great to see Stephen Fry back in a guest-starring role occasionally.
The Simpsons: I don't even know if this counts as a show I watch anymore. I'm pretty sure I didn't miss an episode, but it's no longer a show that is "must-see." It's like a comfortable shoe. It's still mildly humorous, and occasionally it will come out with something really funny, but it's just there. Everything's been done. I may or may not watch next season (probably; that's the beauty of DVR), but it's not like it's going to register very much. It's just a nice way to kill 22 minutes or so.
NBC:
Heroes: Because I'm a comic book geek, you knew I'd love this show. For the most part, the writers did a good job this year with the various storylines, although for a show about superpowered people popping up worldwide, it seemed pretty localized to the United States. The ending, which was disappointing, wasn't horrible. The creator, Tim Kring, gave an interview in which he attempted to explain the gigantic holes in the finale, including why Peter didn't fly away his own damned self, but his excuse doesn't make much sense. Writers should have better reasons for why things happen, especially on a show where we're already suspending our disbelief. That being said, it was a satisfying first season, and Hiro in 17th-century Japan is awesome. We'll see if the show can keep up the goodness.
My Name Is Earl: This is the only Thursday night comedy I watch, and yes, I know the others are good too. There were a few things that disappointed me about this season, but generally, it kept up the quality. I was happy that they did a few episodes "outside of the list," as it kept things fresh. The two things I didn't like: the end of the Randy/Catalina romance, which was handled very poorly; the season finale, with Earl going to jail. It just seemed ridiculous, and I'm sure it will be rectified in the first episode or two of the new season, so I'm not that put out by it. I've also noticed that Catalina seemed to be pushed to the background after she and Randy had their night together, and that sucks, because she's an awesome character - much better than Joy.
Interestingly enough, I DVRed every single episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, and haven't watched them yet. Tom came up with the word "TiNo" for the phenomenon of recording shows and never watching them (at least I think he came up with it). That's a great word, and I have a feeling this show will fall into that category for me.
CBS:
You know, I watch nothing on CBS. Weird.
ABC:
At the beginning of the year, we watched a few episodes of Desperate Housewives, and I was really shocked to see how bad the show has gotten. Talk about a steep drop!
Lost: This is my favorite show currently on the air, and although the first part of the season was tough to watch, I didn't hate it as much as many people did, and the show regained its footing nicely in February when it returned. The season finale was fantastic, and sets up the remaining 48 shows nicely. I hope this experiment that ABC is doing, with 16 shows per season for three years, works, especially if they run them all in a row. 24's ratings went up when Fox started the season in January, and if Lost follows suit, maybe the networks will start running shows without a break and make the seasons shorter. Then we could see more shows and kill reruns. Wouldn't that be nice? Anyway, it sounds as if the creators actually have a plan, and without the pressure of keeping the show on the air forever, this could be one of the great shows in television history. If they don't screw it up.
I used to watch some shows on HBO, but Deadwood went away, Carnivàle got the axe, and I was never really into any of the other shows. I did watch the first episode of John From Cincinnati, which has some potential. We'll see.
One more ending has to be mentioned: the NBA season. The Spurs swept the Cavaliers in one of the worst-rated Finals ever, and if the people who vote for MVP had ANY sense of humor, they would have voted for Robert Horry for taking out Steve Nash and basically winning the series for the Spurs over the Suns. Phoenix should have done a better job making sure their players stayed on the bench and they should have used their bench more during the regular season, but I wonder why, in that one instance, David Stern chose to enforce "the letter of the law" instead of giving the Suns some wiggle room, which referees always do in the postseason. It's weird. If the NBA wants to make the playoffs more interesting, there's one thing they need to do: call more fouls. The idea of "letting them play" is idiotic, because that means good players get mugged far more than in the regular season and that means punks like Bruce Bowen are far more important than they deserve to be. Recently, hockey started getting tough on the players in the playoffs, and the game is fine. Basketball is a beautiful game when played well, and I'm sick of hearing about how fundamentally sound teams like the Spurs are. Has anyone seen Phoenix play in the past few years? They spread the ball, the find the open man, the play unselfishly, and somehow they're NOT fundamentally sound? In the playoffs, everyone knows how to beat the Suns: beat them up. Why? The refs "let them play." So what is everyone talking about here since the Suns' elimination? How they need to get "tougher." Good job, NBA. Phoenix may win a championship, but they'll do it playing "Spurs" basketball. And nobody will watch. Remember the 1970s? They showed Finals games on tape-delay, because nobody watched. Who brought the NBA back? Magic and Larry Bird. Two guys who were "fundamentally sound" but really fun to watch. If Magic came into the league today, Bruce Bowen would hack him every time he had the ball, and there would be no Showtime Lakers. But at least they'd be playing "fundamental" basketball. Sheesh.
Sorry for the rant. It still pisses me off. What did everyone think of their favorite shows and how they ended the season?
Fox:
24: Well, the entire final third of the season was a bit anticlimactic, wasn't it? I mean, the nuclear bomb going off in California was cool. Jack feeling all conflicted about doing the job after shooting Curtis was cool. The plot to kill the president was pretty cool. Once they got Fayed, however, everything went a bit to shit. I know they had to clear up some loose ends, like Jack's father, but the whole Russian threat and the Chinese and the kid ... it went on way too long. The only cool thing that happened during that time was Milo's sudden death, which was pretty neat. Of course, the action was well done and the resolution was spectacular as usual, but the whole plot felt tacked on, even more so than it has in the past. It just seems like they're really running out of ideas on the show. I'm going to start next season, but I really hope they can come up with something different. Otherwise, it's just not that interesting anymore.
House: Occasionally this year, Dr. House got almost human, and the show suffered because of it. I get that they can't keep him a bastard forever and want to move him forward as a character, but most of the show's charm is that he's a bastard and always will be. The whole story with the threat of him going to jail was okay, but again, tried to make him contrite, which is boring. Similarly, toward the end of the season, when his three employees/worker bees/slaves were either fired or quit, it was a bit more interesting because he insisted on being hard-ass with them. I have no idea what's going to happen, if the three will be back or if he'll just get new peons to browbeat, but they need to get back to Hugh Laurie being a total jerk. As for the medical stuff, Scott at Polite Dissent does a wonderful job going over it each week, and apparently it got sloppier than usual this year. The worst transgression was the "pro-life" episode, where a fetus seemingly grabbed House's finger. It was supposedly based on a true event, but the "true event" has been debunked. It's still an interesting show, but it suffered a bit at the end of this season.
Bones: I really like this show, and I like how the writers balance the gruesome crimes with the soap opera. I also like how Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz flirt but haven't jumped into bed yet, and also how they talk about them not jumping into bed yet. I have no idea how "real" the science in the show is (not very, I suspect), but I don't worry about it too much. This is a cheerier version of the CSI shows on CBS, which I don't watch. And the chemistry among the cast is better than the CSI shows, too, as far as I can tell when my mother's in town (who watches them religiously). That being said, the season finale, with its unbelievably cheesy wedding between Angela and Hodgins, was just dumb. I love that Angela is that guy from ZZ Top's daughter, but their romance has been pretty weird. And it would be great to see Stephen Fry back in a guest-starring role occasionally.
The Simpsons: I don't even know if this counts as a show I watch anymore. I'm pretty sure I didn't miss an episode, but it's no longer a show that is "must-see." It's like a comfortable shoe. It's still mildly humorous, and occasionally it will come out with something really funny, but it's just there. Everything's been done. I may or may not watch next season (probably; that's the beauty of DVR), but it's not like it's going to register very much. It's just a nice way to kill 22 minutes or so.
NBC:
Heroes: Because I'm a comic book geek, you knew I'd love this show. For the most part, the writers did a good job this year with the various storylines, although for a show about superpowered people popping up worldwide, it seemed pretty localized to the United States. The ending, which was disappointing, wasn't horrible. The creator, Tim Kring, gave an interview in which he attempted to explain the gigantic holes in the finale, including why Peter didn't fly away his own damned self, but his excuse doesn't make much sense. Writers should have better reasons for why things happen, especially on a show where we're already suspending our disbelief. That being said, it was a satisfying first season, and Hiro in 17th-century Japan is awesome. We'll see if the show can keep up the goodness.
My Name Is Earl: This is the only Thursday night comedy I watch, and yes, I know the others are good too. There were a few things that disappointed me about this season, but generally, it kept up the quality. I was happy that they did a few episodes "outside of the list," as it kept things fresh. The two things I didn't like: the end of the Randy/Catalina romance, which was handled very poorly; the season finale, with Earl going to jail. It just seemed ridiculous, and I'm sure it will be rectified in the first episode or two of the new season, so I'm not that put out by it. I've also noticed that Catalina seemed to be pushed to the background after she and Randy had their night together, and that sucks, because she's an awesome character - much better than Joy.
Interestingly enough, I DVRed every single episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, and haven't watched them yet. Tom came up with the word "TiNo" for the phenomenon of recording shows and never watching them (at least I think he came up with it). That's a great word, and I have a feeling this show will fall into that category for me.
CBS:
You know, I watch nothing on CBS. Weird.
ABC:
At the beginning of the year, we watched a few episodes of Desperate Housewives, and I was really shocked to see how bad the show has gotten. Talk about a steep drop!
Lost: This is my favorite show currently on the air, and although the first part of the season was tough to watch, I didn't hate it as much as many people did, and the show regained its footing nicely in February when it returned. The season finale was fantastic, and sets up the remaining 48 shows nicely. I hope this experiment that ABC is doing, with 16 shows per season for three years, works, especially if they run them all in a row. 24's ratings went up when Fox started the season in January, and if Lost follows suit, maybe the networks will start running shows without a break and make the seasons shorter. Then we could see more shows and kill reruns. Wouldn't that be nice? Anyway, it sounds as if the creators actually have a plan, and without the pressure of keeping the show on the air forever, this could be one of the great shows in television history. If they don't screw it up.
I used to watch some shows on HBO, but Deadwood went away, Carnivàle got the axe, and I was never really into any of the other shows. I did watch the first episode of John From Cincinnati, which has some potential. We'll see.
One more ending has to be mentioned: the NBA season. The Spurs swept the Cavaliers in one of the worst-rated Finals ever, and if the people who vote for MVP had ANY sense of humor, they would have voted for Robert Horry for taking out Steve Nash and basically winning the series for the Spurs over the Suns. Phoenix should have done a better job making sure their players stayed on the bench and they should have used their bench more during the regular season, but I wonder why, in that one instance, David Stern chose to enforce "the letter of the law" instead of giving the Suns some wiggle room, which referees always do in the postseason. It's weird. If the NBA wants to make the playoffs more interesting, there's one thing they need to do: call more fouls. The idea of "letting them play" is idiotic, because that means good players get mugged far more than in the regular season and that means punks like Bruce Bowen are far more important than they deserve to be. Recently, hockey started getting tough on the players in the playoffs, and the game is fine. Basketball is a beautiful game when played well, and I'm sick of hearing about how fundamentally sound teams like the Spurs are. Has anyone seen Phoenix play in the past few years? They spread the ball, the find the open man, the play unselfishly, and somehow they're NOT fundamentally sound? In the playoffs, everyone knows how to beat the Suns: beat them up. Why? The refs "let them play." So what is everyone talking about here since the Suns' elimination? How they need to get "tougher." Good job, NBA. Phoenix may win a championship, but they'll do it playing "Spurs" basketball. And nobody will watch. Remember the 1970s? They showed Finals games on tape-delay, because nobody watched. Who brought the NBA back? Magic and Larry Bird. Two guys who were "fundamentally sound" but really fun to watch. If Magic came into the league today, Bruce Bowen would hack him every time he had the ball, and there would be no Showtime Lakers. But at least they'd be playing "fundamental" basketball. Sheesh.
Sorry for the rant. It still pisses me off. What did everyone think of their favorite shows and how they ended the season?
Labels: 24, Bones, Heroes, House, Lost, My Name Is Earl, Sports, Television, The Simpsons
posted by Greg | 10:31 AM
7 Comments:
Your suspicions on the soundbess of the science in Bones ae unfounded. Kathy Reich, the forensic anthropologist whose books inspired the series is a consultant on the show and vouches for the accuracy of the science.
I know she's a consultant, and it's keen that she vouches for the science, but something like Angela's face-making machine makes me wonder. Does something like that exist?
I agree with the theory that the Suns got jobbed. But it's well past the third season of 24; it's like the 6th.
"The final third of the season," Roger. Not the third season!
mea culpa - comes with reading at 6 am
I will not rant on about the Spurs vs Cleveland. Since my move, I have become a Cavalier fan. I did not expect them to beat San Antonio...
But, yes, the Horry "HIT" on Steve Nash pissed me off... as does the "let them play" mentality that only takes place in the last minute or two of a game, and people get hacked like mad. Basketball, with Horry's cheap shot, can become hockey real quick. Send out a goon to give a "hard foul". If he gets a suspension, oh well. The opponent's star has a concussion or a broken arm/leg/etc. Or, maybe another star comes off your opponents' bench to get a longer suspension than your goon.
What happened to trying to make the league more "legitimate" with the dress code and such? Why not a conduct code, both on and off the court? Oh, there IS ONE? Really...
Well I fell in love with Heros as well and I thought the first season finale was a bit, sort of off if you know what i mean. I understand Peter trying to control the explosion (hence he couldn't fly since he doesn't control all the powers well yet) So my prediction is he got a hold of himself up in the air and pushed Nathan away so they will be back... And the only prediction I have for why Syler could live is all the powers he collected are gone and he will come back next year as a power cripple. And yes I love the fact Hiro is in Japan. Can't wait to see that (reminded me a little of Evil Dead - time travel-wise). So I hope they will be working on the new scripts this summer to bring in a whole new great season otherwise it will already jump the shark.
Bones is great as well
House is losing juice
And yes I admit I still watch the cheesy Smallville (having older brothers I grew up loving comics and marvel cartoons as well) So I think it is on its last leg - all they really have to do to end this series is show him going to metropolis like it was going into the movie or something cheesy like that. It is turning into a real Soap Opera though so what keeps me hanging are the neat special power effects. ;)
Oh and Medium. Besides Family Guy those are the only T.V. I watch... Oh wait Entourage... Great HBO show!
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