Crimestoppers versus Lawyers: The State of Modern Television Folds Inward Yet Again Tonight

Three major premieres tonight, and all three reflect the current TV tendency to solve crime. Whether this is because we like the comfort of watching square-jawed heroes catch bad guys before we shuffle off to bed or because we like to unwind puzzles or because there’s something in the SAG contract guaranteeing the opportunity to [...]

Is There An Awards Show Tonight? 2009 Emmy Awards Allegedly Given

We’ve been trying to think of something to say about the Emmy awards–we supposely think about TV a lot around here–and we’ve got nothing. Susannah’s a lot better at accepting this than I am, but we’re just not well aligned with the Academy. We realized last year that we agreed with about 25% of the [...]

THE PHILANTHROPIST: When Naivete Meets Arrogance

I’m a tiny blue dot in the midst of the reddest county in one of the reddest states in the US of A (thanks for overtaking us, Oklahoma!). I’m also a TV lover who is crazy about much of the oeuvres of both Tom Fontana and Barry Levinson (oh, how I miss Homicide: Life on the [...]

Squee! It’s..

There’s a whole lot o’ squeeing going on tonight if you’re a TV fan (smells like sweeps spirit). Christine Baranski, Emmy winner for Cybill, star of several other sitcoms, and Law and Order briefcase carrier, shows up on Ugly Betty along with Ralph Macchio. The Karate Kid, people! Kaley Cuoco of The Big Bang Theory pops [...]

Squee! It’s…

Ooh, double squee tonight. The brilliant William H. Macy returns to ER in their continuing self-congratulatory parade of former stars (eh, they survived 15  years–let ‘em have their parade. If it weren’t for Macy, we wouldn’t notice it going by anyway). Though perhaps best known for films such as Fargo, Boogie Nights, Seabiscuit, and Pleasantville, [...]

30 ROCK, MAD MEN, CLOSER Top SAG Noms

This year’s Screen Actors Guild nominations, announced this morning, seem to look an awful lot like last year’s SAG nominations. There were only a few surprises, among them well-deserved nods for Mad Men’s Elisabeth Moss and Tracey Ullman’s State of the Union. Also, oddly, this is the first year that House has been nominated for [...]

Squee! It’s…

Squee! It’s Courtney B. Vance on ER tonight! I suppose one of the bonuses that comes with casting Angela Bassett as a regular is getting her talented husband to make an appearance as well. While Vance is largely known for his movie career (how much do we love Jonesy in The Hunt for Red October? [...]

Squee! It’s…

Squee! It’s W. Earl Brown on The Mentalist and Paula Malcomson on Law and Order: Honey Barbecue (Special Victims’ Unit) tonight! Since we’ve mentioned Al Swearengen around here this week, it’s only right that Deadwood’s lovable, violent Swearengen sidekick show up as well. You’ve also seen Brown on Psych, Angel, CSIs both Original Flavor and [...]

Bacon Bits: THE EX LIST, EARL and More

• CBS has dropped The Ex List from its schedule, making it the ex-Ex List (har har). Other casualties of the season so far include Fox’s Do Not Disturb and Hole in the Wall, and ABC’s Opportunity Knocks.
• The Battlestar Galactica diaspora continues: Katee Sackhoff will guest on Law & Order Nov. 5 and Mary [...]

NBC Revamps Its Wednesday Nights

NBC is filling up Wednesday nights with crime dramas, making it the first network to rejigger its fall schedule. The new Wednesday night block will premiere Nov. 5 with Knight Rider (staying put), Life (moving out of the Friday dungeon), and Law & Order (retuning to its old roost sooner than anticipated). The underperforming Lipstick [...]