Now that we are approaching the new year we can start to think about the upcoming TV schedule for January and beyond.
One thing I'd like to discuss first is that I get annoyed that the networks have turned TV into a big mess with the scheduling of shows. I used to be able to count on about 22 episodes of a good show that started in September, took a break in December, and resumed in January. Now I have to do intense research to figure out when the shows I enjoy will be on and how long they will be on for. Please just pick the good shows and show them for 22 episodes.
Onto the shows I will be watching in the new year and some recommendations (in order of appearance):
January 8th - Friday -
Numb3rs
This series will be over after this season so if you haven't ever watched this show then now is probably not the time to start. I'm not a diehard fan but this show has interesting plots and pretty good characters. If you like crime dramas that wrap up each episode then you'd probably enjoy this. I like it better than the CSI series because they use math to solve crimes instead of all the forensic stuff. Just more interesting to me.
January 10th - Sunday -
Chuck (normally on Mondays beginning on 1/11)
Some of the best news TV news i've gotten in the past year was the news that
Chuck was being renewed.
Chuck is an incredibly smart and funny hour long comedy. It premiered on the strength of
Heroes (when
Heroes was good) and quickly became my preference of the two. The new season will explore Chuck's life after the intersect. Hopefully they don't mess up the story lines and do something that will screw up the series. Stick to what has worked: a warm hearted and comical Chuck being saved by his two government friends. This is a must watch.
January 11th - Monday -
Heroes
Ahhh,
Heroes. What do I say? You've had a good run. Unfortunately, nothing will ever top your first season. I think having an ending point (a la
Lost) would help the writers keep on a focused path. I still enjoy the show because I have become attached to the story line and characters. I always have trouble dropping shows that take a nose dive and I'll probably continue that trend. But Heroes has definitely moved into the "record and get to it later" group. I usually wait and watch two weeks of
Heroes in a row.
January 14th - Thursday -
Fringe,
Grey's Anatomy
Fringe: One of my favorite shows. JJ Abrams has another hit on his hands with Fringe. The only thing holding it back now is its 9pm Thursday time slot. Up against strong competition in
CSI,
Grey's, and
The Office/30Rock,
Fringe has still been able to pull a good share of the viewers. I'm assuming that Fox put
Fringe here because it wanted to put a great show up against the other heavy hitters. In the second half of the season, we will see more of the other world, where Peter came from, and we will meet Olivia's stepdad. Another must watch for anyone who enjoys
Lost or
X-Files.
Grey's Anatomy: Thursday at 9pm does a number on my DVR. I have to watch
The Office and
30 Rock live while I tape
Grey's and
Fringe. If I had to drop one, it would be Grey's. This show falls into the
Heroes category with me, but a little higher because it doesn't reach as much as
Heroes.
Grey's is like Chinese food. I feel full so quickly and a half hour later I'm hungry again. Not a good feeling. I prefer that a show be engaging enough to keep me interested until next week. Again, I mostly watch
Grey's because I'm a blindly (somewhat stupidly) committed viewer.
January 17th - Sunday -
24 (two day four hour event, normally on Mondays beginning 1/18)
Jack Bauer just locked me in a basement and tortured me for not putting
24 at the top of the list. After he finally let me talk, I told him it was just in chronological order. FOX decided when
24 premiered. He told me he was going straight to FOX headquarters and to call Chloe because he needed satellite imagery.
24 made a good comeback last year after a disappointing 6th season. All I know about this season is that it begins at some sort of international conference. Oh wait. I also know Jack will do the following in no particular order: Stab someone with a pen, break out of custody, have a pained emotional look on his face while he thinks about Kim, yell at someone then apologize, and save more than 100,000 lives. Have fun Jack.
January 21st - Thursday -
Burn Notice
Ok. This is one you may have not heard of.
Burn Notice is a funnier, smarter, modern
MacGuyver. Jeffrey Donovan is great as Michael Westen, a former CIA agent who has been burned by someone and is trying to get his old job back. The show mixes a serialized plot with smaller plot that end each episode. They are half way through the third season but you can jump in right now because of the simple story lines and exciting episodes. Give it at least three episode if you are going to try. I started by watching the whole first season on vacation. Only eight or so episodes - so it wasn't that bad.
February 2nd - Tuesday -
Lost
We will finally close the book on one of the best shows in television history. Some people lost (no pun intended) interest as the show waded through a messy 3rd and 4th season. For those who stuck with it, the 5th season was well worth it and we can look forward to more answers in this, the 6th and final season. If you haven't watched
Lost, don't start now. Wait until summer, get Netflix, and be prepared to be immersed into a world of endless mystery and excitement. If you already watch
Lost, you don't need me to go through all the unanswered questions we have. We can only hope to get as many answers as possible this season. Otherwise, there might be a dramatic increase in the number of flights from Sydney to LA.
February 4th - Thursday -
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
I will have a more in depth preview of this on an upcoming post, but until then you can read the suspected list of contestants
here.
March 4th - Thursday -
Flash Forward
I can't believe the show is taking this long off. They are coming back just before the point in time that everybody "flash forwarded" to. They will only have so many episodes to wrap up some kind of resolution to the story. I am starting to grow on this show, but the long break gives me some pause to ABC's commitment. I don't like to watch a show I know is going to be cancelled. How good the show is from March to April will determine if it will last or get the axe. As far as what new seasons would entail, the speculation is that since everybody's consciousness went forward that their future consciousness had to go somewhere else - perhaps to the future again. If this confuses you, join the club.
April 13th - Tuesday -
Glee
Too bad we have to wait so long for this show to come back. Thanks a lot American Idol.
Glee left us with a win for New Directions and a major firing at the school. We also had a love connection. I won't say everything that happened, because if you haven't seen
Glee, now is the time to catch up. Find full episodes on line and you'll be set by April.
Glee is smart and musical. Is that possible? While I assumed that I would not like
Glee, as the only musical I've ever been to was an amateur production of Beauty and the Beast (I do have a wife after all) I was actually pleasantly surprised and now look forward to the show each week.
That's it. What shows will you be watching this winter? Let me know if there's anything I'm missing. Maybe I can squeeze in some more shows.