Talking while these TV shows are on can't be good for YOU!
In front of the TV more than I should be, insane in the membrane
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MAY
26
2008
Here's my 5 favorite escapes and why I like them so much. No Anderson Cooper 360 here....
5. THE LATE, LATE SHOW WITH CRAIG FERGUSON: Remember Mr Wick on The Drew Carey Show? It's that guy. Turns out before he was Mr Wick he was in a punk band, had his own show on BBC, wrote a couple movies and even directed one! In 2005 he was handed the reigns to The Late, Late Show and he's made it uniquely his own, to include summoning up his musician chops to write his own intro song. He's like no other talk show host. His monologue is more like a guy having a conversation with the audience than the standard joke/punchline template used by almost everyone else and he's a naturally funny man who is also a good interviewer. His free-wheeling interview style provides many laughs and insights, even 3 years in. The program is littered with silly sketches often featuring SNL alum Tim Meadows and Ferguson's own passable impersonations of Micheal Caine and Sean Connery. His skewered sense of humor knows no sacred cows and he will tell you his best sketches are the ones that often turn out to be "train wrecks". If that weren't enough, he has demonstrated the ability to be serious and heart-felt, eulogizing his father on air. In other words, Craig's a breath of fresh air, except when he farts. Where to find it: The show airs perfectly for us night owls, at 12:35 am Monday-Friday on CBS, right after Letterman, who was my favorite late night talk show host before Craig came along.
4. BOSTON LEGAL: Another legal "dramedy" from the mind of David E. Kelley (Yeah, it ain't enough the guy's lucky enough to be married to Michelle Pheiffer, he's gotta have written excellent TV escapism like "Picket Fences", "Chicago Hope", "The Practice", "Ally McBeal", and "Boston Public") "Boston Legal" began in 2004 as a spin-off from "The Practice" and centered around lawyer Alan Shore, portrayed by James Spader. He signs on with the firm Crane, Poole, and Schmidt, with the Crane being Denny Crane (William Shatner, looking better than a 75 year old man has any right) and the Schmidt being Shirley Schmidt (Candice Bergen). Through 3 seasons, the peripheral characters have changed,but these remain and the show revolves around the deepening friendship of Denny and Alan. Silly cases run rampant on the show, along with cross-dressing lawyers but, like a lot of Kelley shows, underneath the silliness is a big heart and people we learn to care about. Denny is in the early stages of Altzheimer's (he refers to it as "mad cow") and he's a political conservative yet a moral deviate while Alan leans far left and acts like a moral deviate, yet yearns for someone he can love. His closing trial arguments are beautiful soliloquies that often strike a chord and his and Denny's now staple episode ending balcony chats never fail to leave me feeling something. Where to find it: Wed nights, 10pm, ABC, Seasons 1-3 on DVD
3. 24: Through 6 seasons, the formula is typically the same. Something or someone threatens the security of the United States and Jack Bauer (Keifer Southerland) must overcome the bad guys AND government ineptitude in 24 hours to save the day. Each show is 60 minutes in real time with the season comprising 24 episodes. Bauer is the center-piece and he gets information by hook or by crook, coming up with some ingenious and often gruesome methods of, uh, er, persuasion. Episodes move at break-neck speed, usually with completely unexpected twists and a cliff-hanger at the end of each that has, more than once caused me to yell something like "#$#@$#$@. No #$@#$ way!" at the TV, not in anger, but in disbelief not only that THAT happened but I have to wait until next week to find out how it resolves! The single most impressive thing about 24 is, it dares to go places no other drama would. Want to know how? Get the DVD. I'll not spoil it for anyone here! And Jack Bauer? Think Chuck Norris with a gun only more bad-a@#. Where to find it: Monday nights, 9 pm, Fox (starting Jan 2009), Seasons 1-6 on DVD
2. RESCUE ME: Star Denis Leary created this show in the aftermath of 9/11 and plays Tommy Gavin, NYCFD firefighter extraordinaire and possibly the most screwed up human being you've ever met. Tommy fights his inner demons as he tries to make sense of the death of his best friend, cousin, and fellow firefighter Jimmy Keefe, who perished in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. See, the trouble is, Jimmy still visits him from time to time and it doesn't help that Tommy is a deeply flawed man and a recovering alcoholic. In fact, his firehouse is populated with flawed characters and the strength of this show is Leary presents these people with all their warts. Gavin tries to fight off his demons, but even as he makes progress, it often seems disaster is just around the corner. Mixing firefighting action with character development, Rescue Me is a lot like real life, a roller coaster ride, except this coaster threatens to fly off the tracks at any moment. An expert blend of comedy and pathos, this show is often like a train wreck with dead bodies strewn everywhere. You know you shouldn't stare, but you just can't help it. Where to find it: Tuesday nights, 10pm, FX. New season starts 2009. Seasons 1-4 on DVD
1. LOST: Sci-Fi meets fantasy, meets ???. Oceanic Flight 815, en-route from Australia to L.A, mysteriously breaks up and crashes on what appears to be deserted tropical island, leaving 70+ survivors to try and figure out how to live until they can get rescued. As it turns out, their troubles have just begun. The show soon finds it's center around Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley and Locke, and, the longer they are all on the island the more weirdness ensues. Before long, they discover they are NOT alone and the island seems to have a life of it's own. These survivors run into everything from a polar bear to a black cloud that seems to be alive to Jack's dead father. And that's just the normal stuff. We learn about the characters through flash backs and, later, flash forwards, that give us clues to the people and the island. The producers have already set an end date of 2010 because the show goes in so many directions at once, some speculated they didn't know where they were headed. Every show answers some questions about the cast's fates but then leaves us hanging with more. Both maddening and spectacularly entertaining, this is like nothing on TV before it. Where to find it: Thursday nights, 10 pm ABC. Seasons 1-3 on DVD.
If you are one of those fine folks who've managed to cut TV out of their lives completely or watch only educational television, well, bully for you! Really. That's great. I respect the heck out of you. Just don't talk while my shows are on, m'kay?
Last edited on May 27, 2008
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