Welcome to another edition of TV or Not TV where I never cease to be amazed by FOX.

Just last week the FOX network put out a press release about the exciting programming we could expect for the sweeps season. In the day-by-day breakdown we were informed of all of the pending action, drama and great guest stars coming up on DOLLHOUSE. The network also started sending out press screener copies of the next two installments of DOLLHOUSE to wet critic appetites to show them the forthcoming Whedonistic brilliance so they could shout from the rooftops to tell the masses to watch for they would be amazed! What is the network now doing to cash in on this? Apparently they have decided to put the show on the backburner during sweeps and instead air repeats of HOUSE and BONES.

JOSS WHEDON commented on this situation via whedonesque.com. Here’s an excerpt:

“Howzabout that schedule? Well, I’m not as depressed as everyone else. We weren’t about to rock sweeps anyway, and though there’s a chilly November, December is CRAZY. It’s like an Advent calendar of episodes! We get November to try to spread the word (which I’ll be leaning on Fox to do, though it’s hard to imagine them doing as good a job as the WhyIWatch guy) and then December is pure gluttony. Plus the episodes line up extremely well in these pairs, and we’ll have an absurdly appropriate lead-in.”

The saddest part of all I think is that those aforementioned press screeners are starting to turn the heads of critics and produce buzz for the show that the network won’t even be able to cash in on. Herc at AICN said that both the fourth and fifth episodes of the show were great and do a wonderful job of telegraphing the conflict that is to come. Matt Roush of TV Guide has said that this Friday’s episode is the best of this season and Maureen Ryan (THE WATCHER of the Chicago Tribune) says it’s possibly the best emotionally charged of the series so far.

After seeing this past Friday’s episode, titled BELONGING, I would have to agree with them all. The episode, written by JED WHEDON and MAURISSA TANCHAROEN and directed by JONATHAN FRAKES, was by far one of the best of the series so far and for me it brought for me some closure on a lingering question after last seasons episode titled NEEDS. In NEEDS we saw the Active named SIERRA confront a doctor who apparently had her somehow put in the DOLLHOUSE for his own twisted desires. Even though the show constantly travels in the grey area of what is right and what is wrong the characters that run the DOLLHOUSE always seemed to at least have a certain code that they lived by and this seemed out of scope. Part of what made the DOLLHOUSE somewhat palatable was that all the actives were volunteers who knew what they were signing up for and were willing to trade off the bad for the good at the end.

In BELONGING we find out how SIERRA was actually brought to the DOLLHOUSE and the story that we were shown, for this writer, was a completely engrossing and emotional tale. The acting, the directing, and the writing all came together to form 44 minutes of television that I couldn’t take my eyes away from. FRAN KRANZ, DICHEN LACHMEN, OLIVIA WILLIAMS and HARRY J. LENNIX all knocked it out of the park. I don’t really want to go into detail on what happens in the episode because with our forced and unanticipated break you will have a chance to watch this episode at FOX.COM or HULU.COM and if you haven’t I would strongly encourage you to take the time to do so. 

Ah well. At least we still have nine more episodes to enjoy before it is all over and we’ll be able to consume them in a December all-you-can-watch buffet!

Now that we’ve completely gone over the horror of FOX let’s see what else we can scare up for the spooky week to come.

MONDAY

CHECK LOCAL LISTING – In case you haven’t found just the write costume for your four legged friend it’s the Halloween Petacular on THE MARTHA STEWART SHOW.  

NBC – 8:oo PM: Although not intentional I’m sure HEROES will once again be quite the horror show (or train wreck, take your pick).

CBS – 8:00 PM: Aww, who am I kidding? The entire Monday night comedy lineup is in repeates tonight because next week is sweeps.

NBC – 9:00 PM: It’s a Halloween party gone all kinds of wrong on TRAUMA.

ABC – 10:00 PM: CASTLE and BECKETT get called in to a graveyard to investigate a staked vampire. FILLION also has a very familiar looking costume for ALL HALLLOW’S EVE.

AMC – 10:00 PM: The original HALLOWEEN is on complete with a painted white CAPTIAN KIRK mask.

TUESDAY

ABC – 8:00 PM: It’s been another year so it is time to once again be reminded of why a pile of leaves and a went sucker don’t mix with IT’S THE GREAT PUMPKIN, CHARLIE BROWN. Why Linus, why do you torture yourself every year?

AMC – 8:00 PM: MICHAEL MYERS once again escapes from the hospital and whakiness ensues in HALLOWEEN 4: THE RETURN OF MICHAEL MYERS.

CHILLER – 9:00 PM: The tragic death of BRANDON LEE is just one part of the creepiness of THE CROW.

WEDNESDAY

CARTOON – 7:30 PM: See how it all began with SCOOBY DOO! THE MYSTERY BEGINS.

NBC – 8:00 PM: A paid advertisement never looked so glossy with tonight’s airing of MONSTERS VS. ALIENS: MUTANT PUMPKINS FROM OUTER SPACE. Sounds more like a JIMMY NEUTRON episode doesn’t it?

ABC FAMILY – 8:00 PM: I’m just not sure if HOCUS POCUS is a Halloween classic or not. I also can’t believe it’s over 15 years old.

CMTV – 9:00 PM: I’ve heard of counter-programming against other shows, but against a holiday season? CMTV tries with NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION. No, seriously.

THURSDAY

NBC – 8:00 PM: COMMUNITY has a Day of the Dead party, PARKS & RECREATION has a Halloween party, THE OFFICE host a community haunted house and 30 ROCK doesn’t care that it’s Halloween.

ABC – 8:00 PM: Although not Halloween related at all how can I not mention FLASHFORWARD with DOMINIC MONAGHAN making his firtst full episode appearance?

AMC – 8:00 PM: The most frightening part of END OF DAYS is SCHWARZENEGGER’S acting.

FRIDAY

CBS – 8:00 PM: Melinda gets haunted by THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN on GHOST WHISPERER.

TRAVEL – 8:00 PM: GHOST ADVENTURES LIVE! performs a “lockdown” paranormal investigation at the historic Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in West Virginia. Last time I heard of someone being locked in an asylum the end product was FREDDY KRUEGER. This might not end well.

AMC – 8:00 PM: Want to get into the Halloween spirit without all the fright? Take in the comedy classic YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN.

CBS – 9:00 PM: Just like Allison on this week’s MEDIUM I’ve dreamt of being in scenes of the original NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD but thankfully I’ve never woken up with bruises and bite marks from them…. at least not without a lot of tequila the night before.

SATURDAY

Do you really need me to mention things today? If you have kids you are building up for trick-or-treating and if you don’t you are either sitting in the house quiet with the lights out avoiding trick-or-treaters or you are at a party. OK, fine, here’s a few tid-bits.

AMC – 6:00 AM: The day stars with EARTH VS. SPIDER and ends with THIRTEEN GHOSTS. Everything inbetween is nothing but cheesy goodness.

COMEDY – 7:00 PM: The original SCARY MOVIE is at times far from funny but definitely not scary.

BRAVO – 9:00 PM: Watch all of HANNIBAL tonight and you’ll never look at RAY LIOTTA the same way again.

LIFETIME – 9:00 PM: I have to admit that VACANCY was the first film of the genre in a while that had me from beginning to end.

SUNDAY

SYFY – 12:30 PM: Before becoming a crappy 80’s television series there were the mini-series V and V: THE FINAL BATTLE. SYFY cashes in on ABC’s re-invention airing later this week by running both mini-series back-to-back. Yeah, I admit it, I’m gonna watch.

SHO – 9:00 PM: With absolutely no advance viewing I have to guess that this is the week where DEXTER. Can’t wait to see if I’m right.

– Will Wilkins wrote this with a touch of bitterness and a side of discontent.

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