Fall Television Wrap Up

Now that the new TV season has gotten into full swing and I've had a chance to test the new shows a few times as well as get a feel for where my old favorites are going, I thought I'd give a wrap up of my impressions.

House:  I was totally skeptical about the House/Cuddy coupling this season, and I have to say I am more than pleasantly surprised.  The writers haven't just fallen into a relationship and made it so everything works - they really seem to be taking the time to make it realistic and show how two people would really go about working at creating a life together.  And I also love that the characters are taking it seriously - really trying to adjust their behavior and compromise on the issues of working and sleeping together so that they can make a go of it.  I feel the whole thing has been handled maturely and honestly, and I'm grateful.

Castle:  The best thing about Castle is the characters and their relationships - the best of these being between Castle and his daughter - and this season has kept up that tradition.  Basically my only response to the new season is HOORAY that Det. Beckett has finally got a good haircut!!  It was super cute short the first season, but last season her hair was majorly frumpadelic.  Glad to see the gorgeous Stana Katic finally has the do she deserves.

Glee: Are you going to hate me if I say that this season got off to a rocky start for me?  In my opinion, the best part about Glee is the way they tell some not so easy story lines within a framework of music that helps the plot hang together.  So far this season I have felt that the music has been more stunt driven (Britney Spears anyone?) rather than based on the plot - and what plot there is has been very thin.  They also seem to be moving into an "issue of the week" format, which is coming across as a little more heavy handed than their previous episodes.  This past week with the duets was a return to last season's form, so I hope this was only an awkward beginning to a great year.  I still love the show of course!

Running Wilde: I SOOOOOOO want to love this show.  Will Arnett is pretty much funny no matter what he does, and Keri Russell is so pretty I just want to stare at her for hours on end.  I do like how they have not only made the main character a rich doofus, but also made Emmy (the tree hugger bent on changing him) kind of a doofus too.  Like when she's being a martyr just to be a martyr rather than because it will actually achieve her goals or when they argue he points out the areas she is being a hypocrite.  It is very subtle sometimes, but I like that the writers have given both characters flaws - it could have very easily turned into a "the rich are bad and the poor are totally wholesome" type show (which is TOTALLY Emmy's ideal) and that would have turned it too preachy for me. I also think the daughter character, Puddle (and the actress playing her) is super adorable. That being said, the comedy is just... trying to hard.  They are trying so desperately to be random and quirky and funny, but only the desperation is coming across.  I hope they can find a gentler rhythm because this really could be a funny show, but I kind of feel it's heading for the chopping block.

Modern Family: Still pitch perfect, still hysterical, still LOVE it!

Fringe: While I like the new format of alternating between worlds, I am uncomfortable with Alternate Olivia being in our world with Peter and Walter.  Which I'm sure is totally the point, and I'm not sure how to fix it because I kind of like having Good Olivia in the alternate universe, unsure of who she is and unraveling the mysteries of what's going on over there.  I just really love Peter and Walter, and it's frustrating to me that they don't know they have the wrong Olivia - like my friends are being tricked, you know?  And I'm sure the producers would be thrilled to hear all of this because it's probably exactly what they are going for - we want our favorite characters reunited, but we also can't wait to see what mysteries they'll reveal while they are separated.  But overall I think the format is growing on me, especially as each story line develops, and in general I think the show has maintained quality and suspense very well.  So I'm not going anywhere.

Nikita:  I'm still not sure what I think about this show.  I definitely like it, but I'm not sure if that's just because this is the kind of thing I get sucked in to easily or because it's actually good.  From the first episode I felt like the tone could use a little bit of lightening up, but now that I've seen a few more episodes I understand the totally serious approach a little more.  But like I said, I love spy stuff, so this could be my own personal taste rather than actual judgment.  The best I can do is say that I am not entirely ashamed to be admitting I watch the show, so it can't be that awful.

The Good Guys:  I love this show, and I just want to mouth kiss whoever decided to put it on Friday nights!  okay, maybe only hug, but I am super grateful that they gave me a show I was going to watch anyway on a night when A) there are no competing shows on my DVR, and B) there was LITERALLY not a single other show I wanted to watch on.  Now we losers who stay home on weekends just need someone to start airing some decent programming on Saturdays and we're all set!

Well, that's it.  Anything I didn't mention has either been running smoothly and therefore not merited impression (ie, Bones, which is as awesome as ever), or I haven't seen it (ie, The Office, which  has fallen by the wayside due to DVR capacity and over scheduling on Thurs nights - I plan to catch up on Hulu).

What are you watching?