Welcome back, folks, to another pathetic and useless week of television.

That’s a nice cheerful intro, right? I know, I guess I’m a little bit grouchy this week because I have no interest in watcing the Olympics and most of the channels out there are barely even trying to compete. This sets me in a bad mood especially when I have to, in a few paragraphs, start writing about what to watch this week.

I suppose I’m also in a bad mood because something that premiered last week was something I was looking forward to but was let down. If you’ve never heard of THE RICKY GERVAIS SHOW than you were the target audience for the premiere of a new animated show of the same name last Friday night on HBO. The TV show is the repurposing of the podcast that took the Internet by storm in 2005 (if memory serves, sorry…. I’m just too lazy to look it up and confirm). In concept I think the idea is great and in some cases I’ve see it work very well.

When it comes to the animated version of THE RICKY GERVAIS SHOW I must be biased because I’ve already heard a lot of the content. I also wasn’t fond of the animation itself and I found that it didn’t add very much to the discussions. Yes it helped to bring elements of the story to the visual medium but Gervais himself is already such an animated person to watch that I found his Fred Flintstone-without-personality animated character to be a bit of a distraction.

Another show that premiered this past Friday on HBO was the FUNNY OR DIE but I am somewhat hesitant to recommend it. The premiere episode had a decent gem with the Drunken History sketch. The others sketches (or short comedy bits or whatever you want to call them) left me wanting to vote more int he Die category but on my TV there was no way to vote.

Now that I’ve given these two glowing reviews let’s move on to the other weak choices that we have available this week.

MONDAY

FOX – 9:00 PM: Last week on 24 stuff started hitting the fan and this week they are looking for scape goats. Yeah, that’s some actions.

TNT – 10:00 PM: Men of a Certain Age has it’s season finale tonight. Haven’t watched a single episode. I’m a great TV critic aren’t I?

ABC – 10:00 PM: Yes I’d happily take a repeat of CASTLE over most of the other crap that’s on this week.

ABC FAMILY – 10:00 PM: Yes I watch GREEK and they just got picked up for another season. Good on them.

TUESDAY

ABC – 9:00 PM: Last week on LOST we learned something about why these people are on the ISLAND. This week we learn more. Oh yeah, CLAIRE is also back. I also don’t give a crap about anything else on TV tonight.

WEDNESDAY

ABC – 11:00 AM: OCTOMOM drops in on THE VIEW. Unless WHOOPI asks her, “BITCH ARE YOU CRAZY?!?” this just can’t go the way I want.

ABC – 2:00 PM: I don’t watch ONE LIFE TO LIVE  but a guest appearance by SNOOP DOGG could get me to tune in. When he’s on is it One Lifel to Double LIZAL?

USA – 10:00 PM: On PSYCH GUS and SHAWN join a group trying to stopy a tycoon from getting murdered by thinking up the perfect murder. Naw, that can’t back fire at all. Wasn’t this also a plot on ALIAS?

THURSDAY

CBS – 8:00 PM: I am really enjoying SURVIVOR: HEROES VS. VILLAINS even though no one is wearing spandex.

FOX – 8:00 PM: Tonight the dream of four hopefullys will be crushed on live television in the first national vote results show for AMERICAN IDOL.

FRIDAY

FOX – 8:00 PM: I’m sure I lose credibility in admitting that I like BLADES OF GLORY but at least I’ll be watching some type of Winter Olympic sport, even if it is totally fake and awkward.

THE CW – 8:00 PM: Apparently the KANDORIANS revived a dead physician and he thanks them by trying to convince the world that it’s being invaded by aliens on SMALLVILLE. OK, even this description confuses me.

SATURDAY

ABC – 8:00 PM: Another Saturday night with the Alphabet airing a boy wizard movie as they roll out HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX.

AMC – 8:00 PM: Remember when FORREST GUMP was leading edge film making technology? Those crazy blue cat people mock Gump now, but it was something back in the day.

A&E – 8:00 PM: Another guilty pleasaure film that I never have admitted here (I don’t think, again too lazy to verify) is GONE IN 60 SECONDS.

SUNDAY

ABC – 9:00 PM: I think the producers of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES are trying to make sure they get more of a male demographic: the former stripper is now living with KATHERINE and they’ve got the hots for one another.

NBC – 10:30 PM: We’ve heard a lot about THE MARRIAGE REF and tonight we get our first glimpse of it. Some random guy and a celebrity panel help people’s marriages. I admit I’m curious.

– WILL WILINS will try to be a bit perkier next week.

Comments: None