Why It’s Worth A Watch Wednesday – These Are Their Stories

As 2011 winds down, so does the need to tell you about any new programming on the TV. As a matter of fact, a lot of shows start showing reruns, leaving our DVR queue a little quiet.

This week, Tiffany and I share a few of our standby shows. They’re the ones we turn on while we fold endless piles of laundry, bake cupcakes, or pretend to get something done in the house.

My pick is one of a large and successful franchise: Law and Order. Specifically, Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

The original Law & Order has been around since 1990, and at the time of its final episode last year it was the longest running crime drama around. Criminal Intent began in 2001 and ended just this past May. While not as long running as the original, it definitely held its own with a ten year run, and for this TV watcher, it was the one that kept me tuned in.

Where the original series focused on the police catching criminals and the prosecutors bringing them to justice, L&O:CI paid more attention to the motives of the criminals. The show spent time singling out the criminal, showing what drove them, and generally ended with a confession. Unlike the other L&O series, Criminal Intent did not focus on the prosecutorial element.

So, for a TV viewer who likes good court case viewing, what made me choose the one L&O that shies away from the courtroom?

Simply put, Detective Robert Goren. The primary detectives working cases during the length of the series are Goren and Eames. Goren is a detective who has pays close attention to minor details, has a wide array of knowledge, and possesses a special knack for getting into the head (and often, under the skin) of the criminals he encounters.

Regular readers know how much I love the guys with a gift – Shawn Spencer, Dr. House, Patrick Jane – so it should come as no surprise that the character of Detective Goren holds a special place in my TV heart. After all, it is rumored that his character, like House, is based on Sherlock Holmes.

As the series continued, elements of his life are very slowly revealed that bring to light how he could be so good at what he does, and why he isn’t always appreciated for it. As a matter of fact, this is an element of CI I didn’t expect to appreciate; the characters personal lives are rarely touched on in the show.

Aside from loving the character, I will admit that the fact that he is played by the brilliant Vincent D’Onofrio is the biggest reason that this show is on regular rotation in my house. Whether he’s doing Kubrick, playing a demented serial killer, a tormented writer*, or an alien, I’ve never been disappointed with him in any role. Detective Goren’s character is occasionally over the top in interrogations, but D’Onofrio’s delivery keeps me watching.

While I wasn’t thrilled when the show added another set of detectives to share the caseload, it was definitely still watchable, particularly with actors like Chris Noth joining the cast for a few seasons.

Is this show an amazing feat of writing? No. The cases are often predictable, and some lines are occasionally cheesy, which is why I give this show the MacTV rating. But just like my mac n’ cheese, I’ll eat it by the bowlful, even the cheap kind from the box. Low on the nutritional value, but it will forever be a pantry staple.

Given my earlier post, I opted for a "mature" photo here.

And yes, I did, and probably forever will, have a bit of a crush on Mr. D’Onofrio.

Are you a fan of any of the L&O franchise? Does anyone share my admiration for the “actor’s actor”, Vincent D’Onofrio? What’s your laundry day go to?

Now click over to Tiffany’s blog and find out what she tunes in to when the household chores are piling up.

Come back next week to see what we have cooking!

Remember to stop by the #watchwed hashtag in Twitter to discuss any of today’s reviews, or to mention any television programs that you’d like to see on Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday in the future.

*The Whole Wide World is based on the memoirs of Novalyne Price, following her relationship with the writer Robert Howard, creator of Conan the Barbarian. Random trivia time: Renee Zellweger thanked him when she accepted her Oscar for Cold Mountain. This movie is the reason why.

A Recap of The WatchWed Review System:

GTV (Gourmet TV): Everything we want and more
MacTV (MacNCheese TV): Guilty pleasure. Not perfect, but is satisfies
GMacTV (Gourmet MacNCheese TV): A combination of fine wine and comfort food
JFTV (Junk food TV): It’s not great for us, but we’ll go back for seconds
TBPTV (Twice Baked Potato TV): Part gourmet and delicious, while absolutely horrible for our cholesterol
SSTV (Still Simmering TV): It has potential, but the jury is still out
NIV (Nyquil Induced Viewing): Perfect for that late night television sleep timer
LOTV (Liver&Onions TV): Do we really have to explain? Blech

Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday – Old School

This week on Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday, Tiffany and I are kickin’ it old school. Not so much because we are hip, but more because we are playing the part of cranky old folks, bemoaning days gone by. Specifically, we’re looking back to good ole TV programs we watched as kids that we occasionally long for, given the lack of quality family programming nowadays.

Tiffany is extra cranky this week, as her old favorite can’t seem to be found in syndication. At least I can tune into WGN or hit up Hulu Plus to see mine.

What did I pick?

Without a second thought, The Cosby Show. Like Tiffany’s choice, this show centers around a family. Though not perfect, they love each other and we get to look on as they go through the various trials of family life, simple and complex.

Having Bill Cosby at the helm as Dr. Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable, the show offered more than its share of laughs, using much of Bill Cosby’s standup material as fodder for the episodes. If you are not familiar with his standup, get on that, now. Here, I’ll wait for you:

Cliff is an obstetrician, married to Clair (Phylicia Rashad), an attorney. If their successful careers didn’t keep them busy enough, they also have five children (four at home, one grown and in college, played by Keisha Knight Pulliam, Tempestt Bledsoe, Lisa Bonet, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Sabrina Le Beauf) to handle. Their children dealt with the small problems we could relate to: sharing a room with your sister, younger siblings wanting the same privileges as the older ones, kids trying to play their parents against each other; the simple problems that arise in any family. The Huxtables dealt with their children firmly and lovingly.

What makes me miss this show so much? So many things.

For one, the show depicted a minority family as successful and educated. Originally, Cliff was supposed to be a limo driver and Clair a stay-at-home mom. It was Bill Cosby who convinced the show’s producers to change their roles to reflect a more successful family. While the show didn’t stereotype the family or deal much with the issues of race, it did educate by highlighting elements of African-American culture in the show.

The Cosby Show didn’t follow the formula of the bumbling idiot father, the annoyingly overbearing mother, and the sassy, too-smart-for-their-parents children that most family sitcoms fall into nowadays. The parents knew when the kids were up to something, and taught them valuable lessons, which sometimes were as simple as “listen to your parents”.

In our house, The Cosby Show was important enough in our TV viewing schedule that it was the reason my father bought our first VCR. Did I mention that I grew up in a family of five children with intelligent and funny parents? That could have something to do with my love for this show as well. I related. Watching moments like this make me feel like I am sitting with my dad.

The show also had great guest stars. Guests like Stevie Wonder, Tito Puente, Lena Horne and Dizzy Gillespie contributed to my musical education and were among my favorites. But the most memorable for me was my childhood crush, Danny Kaye, playing a dentist.

The show ran for eight seasons, from 1984 to 1992. It marked a revival for the successful TV sitcom, and set a great example of real family TV.

I miss you, Cosby Show.

Did you watch The Cosby Show? Could you relate to the characters in the show? Can you think of any current shows that compare?

Now head over to Tiffany’s blog to experience some Growing Pains.

Come back next week when Tiffany and I discuss a few of our favorite TNT syndications…the shows we like to run all day long while we fold laundry or bake treats for our sweets. (I stole this line from Tiffany – it captures exactly what I use my TNT syndications for perfectly.)

Remember to stop by the #watchwed hashtag in Twitter to discuss any of today’s reviews, or to mention any television programs that you’d like to see on Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday in the future.

A Recap of The WatchWed Review System:

GTV (Gourmet TV): Everything we want and more
MacTV (MacNCheese TV): Guilty pleasure. Not perfect, but is satisfies
GMacTV (Gourmet MacNCheese TV): A combination of fine wine and comfort food
JFTV (Junk food TV): It’s not great for us, but we’ll go back for seconds
TBPTV (Twice Baked Potato TV): Part gourmet and delicious, while absolutely horrible for our cholesterol
SSTV (Still Simmering TV): It has potential, but the jury is still out
NIV (Nyquil Induced Viewing): Perfect for that late night television sleep timer
LOTV (Liver&Onions TV): Do we really have to explain? Blech

Dear Television – It’s You, Not Me

I enjoy TV.  But I can be picky.

You may have guessed that, what with me telling you what you should or shouldn’t watch every Wednesday.

While I may watch my fair share, there aren’t too many shows that really grab me.  Most are guilty pleasures, opportunities to tune out.  With more and more web content available (and finding I spend more time in front of my computer than TV) I’ve started checking out more series online.

One series in particular caught my attention, and managed to hold it through the season finale, which was released today.

It’s called Leap Year.

The series follows 5 friends, each trying to start new businesses after being laid off, or “released” from their old jobs, in an effort to win a contest offering half a million in funding for their startup.

Why, on a blog where the readership is largely made up of creative writerly types who should be spending their time working on their novels rather than watching TV, am I taking a post to tell you to go watch something?

Because it’s good.  Believable, likable characters engaged in witty, yet realistic dialogue, in a plot that is interesting and timely…there aren’t many TV shows (well, any at the moment) that I can attribute a similar description to.   And really, with so much focus on making solid characters and stories in your writing, wouldn’t you want to see a great example of those things?

Also, given the time constraints I (and lots of you) have going (attempting to write and a 2 year old), the brief nature of the episodes makes it easy for me to keep up.  Although, I’ll be honest, they hooked me well enough that I’d make time for them if they ran longer.

So, I share with you some non-TV entertainment.  It’s what I wish TV would be.

Check the trailer here:

Currently Listening to: Nessun Dorma, on a loop, because that is what the 2 year old requested, and he is apparently the boss of me

Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday – USA! USA!

This week on #watchwed, Tiffany and I take on the USA network in a big way.  We review two shows each, one brand new and one already in progress.  I’ll be discussing Covert Affairs and Necessary Roughness; head over to Tiffany’s blog for the already popular Burn Notice and the new legal drama Suits.

A little something about the USA network.  Their branding, in my mind, is brilliant.

“Characters welcome.”

For me, the most important part of a story is it’s character development.  I can forgive you for a predictable plot.  Or even a meandering one.  If the characters are really great, I may even go as far as overlooking a lack of plot altogether (rare case, but possible).

USA prides itself in characters you can get into.  The obsessive-compulsive neurotic Monk.  The hilarious and observant slacker Sean in Psych. Even their syndicated viewing includes the curmudgeonly brilliant Dr. House.

In reviewing these shows, I was looking for characters I could love.  Or hate.  Characters that I want to be.  Or be friends with.

Covert Affairs surprisingly hits that mark.  I say surprisingly, because I thought it was unlikely that I would relate to the perky and perfect Piper Perabo, who plays the main character, Annie Walker.  Annie is a newly assigned CIA agent, pulled in to work in the covert division because of her grasp of many languages and, well, her hotness.

The good looking cast.

Being hot is helpful when your first assignment requires that you look like a high class call girl.

Sound familiar at all?  (*Alias fans raising hands*)

Despite the familiar formula of gorgeous girl kicking butt while navigating relationships with family who don’t know about her CIA status, Annie’s character is truly likable.  She’s great at what she does, but doesn’t always get it right.  Despite being smart and seemingly perfect, she has to deal with the discomfort of a new job like the rest of us.

Well, except for the high tech gadgetry and an attractive blind tech genius (Christopher Gorham, Ugly Betty) helping her along the way.

Is this a show that will challenge your mental muscles?  Perhaps not.  Will it entertain you?  For sure.  If you were looking for a show to fill the void Alias left years ago, this is for you.

That’s why I give Covert Affairs MacTV rating.  While it’s not absolutely riveting, it may have you on the edge of your seat from time to time, and the characters make you want to watch more.

But wait, there’s more!

Necessary Roughness, a newcomer to the USA lineup, follows the life of Dr. Dani Santino (Callie Thorne, Rescue Me, Burn Notice), a therapist who quickly finds her life thrown in a spin when she finds out her husband (Craig Bierko) has been cheating on her.

A lot.

Oops.

Excuse me a moment while I discuss the awesomeness that is Craig Bierko as the philandering spouse.  Remember the part about hating a character being a good thing?  You will hate him.  There is a line he delivers in the pilot to Callie’s character that literally made me cringe.  It’s not just the line, it’s the way he says it.

Awesome.  Please, writers of this show, give us more Bierko.

While I take issue with the main character immediately hitting a club and bedding the first charmer she meets (Marc Blucas), who just happens to be the trainer for an NFL team, I do enjoy the feisty nature of Callie Thorne’s character.

Which is necessary with the high profile clients she obtains through her newfound relationship with the aforementioned trainer.  Her primary client is a troubled star athlete (Mehcad Brooks) who, in the pilot, can’t catch a ball and has an attitude that needs to be checked.

The show is trying to give us a strong female lead, and I am hoping they can deliver.  I am hoping that “feisty and tough” doesn’t turn into “screams and whines a lot”.

I want to root for the mother taking on her rebellious daughter, her well-read teenage son (who seems to have his father’s smarmy charm…they must keep it in their hair), her wonderfully awful ex, and her high maintenance patients.

More pretty people.

And then, I’ll root for her to get the guy.  Just maybe not that trainer.  (Keep an eye on the team “fixer” (Scott Cohen, Gilmore Girls) and you’ll understand.)

That’s right.  I just told you to watch it.  I’m giving it an SSTV.  I see it’s potential.  Solid cast.  I just need the writers to win me over.

Now, it’s your turn.  Are you a fan of Covert Affairs?  Did you watch the Necessary Roughness premiere?  Will you be watching these shows now?  Do you love the USA network as much as everyone else?  Leave your comments or discuss with us on Twitter using #watchwed.

Head over to Tiffany’s blog to find out about Burn Notice and, one of my new favorites, Suits.

Next week, we get our science fiction on with TNT’s “Falling Skies” and SyFy’s “Alphas”.

The WatchWed Review System:
GTV (Gourmet TV): Everything we want and more
MacTV (MacNCheese TV): Guilty pleasure. Not perfect, but is satisfies
JFTV (Junk food TV): It’s not great for us, but we’ll go back for seconds
SSTV (Still Simmering TV): It has potential, but the jury is still out
NIV (Nyquil Induced Viewing): Perfect for that late night television sleep timer
LOTV (Liver&Onions TV): Do we really have to explain? Blech

Why It’s Worth a Watch Wednesday – Cop Dramas

This week, Tiffany and I head off to different networks, both returning with some cop dramas for you.  The direction I head is an unlikely one for me, even if I do fall in the demographic they’re aiming for.

I bring you a Lifetime original, The Protector.

We can do better.

Let’s start with some kudos.  Lifetime, thank you for producing something on your channel aimed at females that does not involve a woman being beaten, chased, raped or a victim in general.  We all know how much you cling to those themes, and I, for one, thank you for abandoning them for 2.5 seconds.

Having said that…really?  This is what you came up with?

I realize that there are only so many stories to be told.  But if there are several shows on TV with a similar theme, you need to do something special to grab me.

The Protector stars Ally Walker as a police detective and single mother.  She’s the kind of detective who notices everything and is always right.

Like Sean on Psych.  Or Detective Goren on Law and Order: CI.  Or Patrick Jane on The Mentalist.

I love all of those shows.  Each one has something about the “know-it-all” formula that works.

In The Protector, the main character is neither likeable nor unlikable.  There are a few moments when she is being motherly that are nice enough, but nothing to write home about.

Every cop drama has a partner backing up the main character.  Gus (Psych) occasionally uses his great sense of smell to help Sean solve mysterious crimes.  Eames (L&O:CI) is a capable detective in her own right.  All the detectives that work with Jane’s consultant character (The Mentalist) have their own strong traits that contribute.

How about The Protector’s partner?  Played by Tisha Campbell-Martin, this “partner” (or more accurately, sidekick) seems more concerned with bedding other detectives than figuring out the current case.  When she is “helping” with a case, it generally involves following her partner around with no mind of her own.

And everyone else?  Well, that’s exactly it.  They are just “everyone else”.

I wanted to like this show.  I did.  I like “know-it-all” characters.  No matter how many shows deliver them to me.  And with a creator like Jeffrey Bell, known for projects like Alias and Angel, I was hoping for more.

The Protector just didn’t deliver.

While I should probably give this a L&OTV rating, I didn’t hate it as much as other shows.  But I also don’t think it qualifies as a guilty pleasure either.  So, I will have to make up a new rating.

Right now. On the spot.

Let’s call this “Nyquil Induced Viewing”.  When I have a cold, and am under the influence of large quantities of Nyquil, I have been known to tune in to Lifetime, shake my head, and eventually drift off to sleep.  In that respect, this show delivered what I should have expected.

Want more cop drama?  Head over to Tiffany’s blog and check out her review of Memphis Beat. 

Did you watch The Protector?  Were you even aware that Lifetime did new series?

Next week, Tiffany and I both give you a double header (does that make it a quadruple?) from the USA network.  I’ll be talking about Covert Affairs and Necessary Roughness, she’ll be covering Burn Notice and Suits.  You won’t want to miss this one.