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  • TV Or Not TV: 1/19 – 1/25

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    Welcome back to TV or Not TV where I am blown away by last week, I am looking forward to change and getting LOST.

    Tuesday January 20th brings the events of the 2008 US Presidential Election to a close with the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States.  This event has reached an epic status, so much so that you can’t open your email without getting spammed by offers for the Obama coin. Amazing Spider-Man #583 had a variant cover featuring the President Elect in the foreground that sold easily on eBay for $100 and up. I’d say the country has Obama fever, but I feel more like we have had enough of the George W. Bush flu and we’re ready for what we hope is the Obama cure to this condition. I don’t envy our new President as he has a lot to deal with in handling the monumental task of getting things back on track. I hope his inauguration is at least one heck of a celebration that can create fond memories for him to remember in the difficult days ahead.

    In speaking of our soon-to-be former Preisdent I think, in looking back at last week, it is kind of interesting that George W. Bush‘s farewell to the nation was overshadowed by something that also gives us hope for the future. The US Airways plane crash into the Hudson River gave us something to hold up as proof that even when things appear to be at their worst great things can happen. An airline pilot made all the right decisions, everyday people banded together to help one another, and 155 lives were saved. I’d gladly take this tale of near tradgedy and heroic deeds over a speach attempting to tell everyone why the past 8 years weren’t so bad.

    Of course I can’t talk about plane crashes without discussing this week’s season premiere of LOST. The plight of Oceanic Flight 815 is back and we begin our journey of discovering why and how the Oceanic 6 get back to the mysterious Island as well as what happened after they left. Don’t worry about an entire season of “How do we get back?” however. According to executive producer Damon Lindelof, “The conventional thinking might be that we’re going to spend the entire season telling the story of how and if these characters are able to make it back to the island. That’s not what we’re doing, not by any stretch of the imagination.”

    I have very high hopes for this season of LOST because we are embarking on the final 34 episodes of the series (17 this season and 17 next season). With a finite set of episodes I’m hoping for lots of relevant content and not a lot of “filler”. Last season, which was whittled down to only 14 episodes due to the writer’s strike, was what I would call a nearly flawless execution of content minus filler. The only weakness of the season, for this writer, was having such a powerhouse episode such as The Constant followed up by the lackluster episode The Other Woman.  The writers have their road map, they know how long it is going to take to get us to where they want us, and all they have to do is now get us their in a way where we aren’t screaming in the back saying, “Are we there yet?!?”

    In my hopes I’m trying to ignore the change in story telling that has to occur now that we have two different stories that have to be told. “The show is taking on a new model, in terms of the way we tell stories, and finding a balance between what’s happening off the island and on the island,” says Lindelof. “We’re really happy with the scripts that we’re writing, but at the same time, there’s this complete sense of fear and second-guessing, in terms of whether or not the audience is going to groove on what we’re doing.” In Season 3 the producers were able to quickly compensate for fan dislike of Nikki and Paulo. I only hope that before the show airs they aren’t so deep in the production that they won’t be able to error correct again if we don’t actually groove on what they’re doing. At least we know that they pay attention to fan feedback and, should we not dig it,  I hear you can work miracles in post-production.

    That all being said, let’s take a look at the shape of things to come this week.

    MONDAY

    FOX – 8:00 PM: I’d love to recap 24 so far but it’s already getting pretty convoluted and we’re only at episode five. I’m still going to watch though.

    FOOD – 8:30 PM: Food Network comes up with their own version of Dirty Jobs with Will Work for Food. Next Food Network Star alumni Adam Gertle does the not-so-known jobs in the culinary world. This week? Working on a lobster boat and harvesting honey.

    HIST – 9:00 PM: The History Channel brings out their special from last August that shows us what it is like to fly in the highest of classes in Secret Access: Air Force One.

    TUESDAY

    ABC, NBC, CBS Morning: The time for change is here with the inauguration of Barack Obama as our 44th president.* You can also watch it through CNNLive with all your friends on Facebook.

    FOX – 9:00 PM: Fringe returns tonight. Want to get caught up? Go here.

    ABC – 8:00 PM: The Alphabet Network gets my vote for best night of inauguration programming. The Neighborhood Ball: An Inauguration Celebration has Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Faith Hill, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Shakira and Stevie Wonder scheduled to perform. Even if my neighborhood had a ball it wouldn’t be anything like this.

    * Check local listings.

    WEDNESDAY

    FOX – 9:00 PM: Tim Roth comes to the little screen as a man so schooled in human behavior and mannerisms that he is a walking polygraph in the new drama Lie to Me.

    NBC – 8:00 PM: I’m having flashbacks of 1982 as Knight Rider brings out the bad version of KITT named KARR. Peter Cullen adds to the deja vu by reprising the vocal role of KARR.

    ABC – 8:00 PM: If you want to finally get in on the LOST experience then tune in at 8 PM for LOST: Destiny Calls where they try to get us all caught up and ready for the two hours of LOST‘s season premiere that follow at 9.

    THURSDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: I have no idea what NBC has planned since (at press time) this week’s description of My Name is Earl reads as part 2 of the episode that didn’t actually air last week. Maybe we’ll get part 1?

    FX – 8:00 PM: Witness the horror of Van Helsing. I’m talking about the film itself. UGH!

    AMC – 8:00 PM: Watch The Untouchables and you’ll never look at a baseball bat the same way again.

    USA – 10:00 PM: The cool as a cucumber former spy is back with tonight’s return of Burn Notice. Apparently the near-death experience last season may have shaken some of the frost off of Michael’s cool exterior.

    FRIDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: OK, I might have originally mocked the idea a little but I actually did chuckle at Howie Do It and you might to.

    CBS – 8:00 PM: The discovery of a mass-grave leads to a mass-haunting on Ghost Whisperer.

    HIST – 8:00 PM: The 2003 special The Kennedy Assassination: Beyond Conspiracy used computer modeling of the Zapruder film and Dealey Plaza tries to answer the who and where of what happened on November 22, 1963.

    SATURDAY

    TOON – 8:00 PM: The direct to DVD cartoon Superman:Doomsday was an interesting adaption of the Death of Superman saga. There’s no “Reign of the Supermen” portion, but it is still entertaining.

    USA – 8:00 PM: All the flash and glamour within can’t reproduce the cultural experience of the time of the original TV series in this film version of Miami Vice.

    HALMARK- 8:00 PM: Clint Eastwood directed the captivating motion picture Unforgiven. Morgan Freeman came along for the ride, and I promise you this is no Bucket List.

    SUNDAY

    AMC – 6:00 PM: See how one former vet becomes a one man army in First Blood followed immediately by Rambo: First Blood Part II.

    ABC – 8:00 PM: Prepare to have the ol’ heart strings tugged at a bit with two hours of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition where the team rebuilds the home of an injured war vet who’se home was damaged by a tornado.

    NBC – 9:00 PM: Another network attempts to tap in to the DaVinci Code and National Treasure vibe with the Mira Sorvino driven adaptation of the book The Last Templar.

    – Will Wilkins fears the frozen donkey wheel.

  • TV Or Not TV: 12/22 – 12/28

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    Welcome back to TV or Not TV where I admit that I am a reality television addict.

    I am sure that I, like anyone else, has certain reality television show favorites that they take in. Some reality shows I love and refuse to miss, some fall by the way side for me (an example of the latter is the CBS staple Survivor). In my case, however, my tastes usually go against the grain and I prefer the not so popular shows.

    Two of my regulars are The Biggest Loser and Big Brother. Like most shows of the genre both have contestants voting each other out and in the end the winner gets some type of grand prize. Both feature challenges. Both can be heavily influenced by player interaction. Both can be edited to portray people in whatever light the producers choose.

    As noted in last week’s column, The Biggest Loser had the finale for their sixth season this past week. If you aren’t familiar with the show let me sum it up for you. People unsatisfied with their weight are chosen as contestants in a competition where the goal is to be one of three finalists who loses the greatest percentage of body weight. The contestants spend four months living on “The Ranch” where they are subjected to physical and mental challenges as well as grueling 4 to 8 hour workout days. Every week they are weighed in and those scoring the least percentage of body weight lost are subject to a vote by their peers for elimination. In the end, however, only three compete for a $250,000 cash prize. Those voted off, however, are still motivated to try to lose more weight at home to compete for a $100,000 cash prize.

    The week prior to the finale of The Biggest Loser we were able to see the final four contestants receive the same news that the season five competitors received: a phone in voting campaign would decide the third contestant to be in the final three, with the player receiving the least votes being stuck back in the at home competition category. I bring this item up because it served up some interesting complications for the remaining competitors in the game (that the rest of us, who could one day become reality tv stars, should pay attention to). With the season finale we saw a married couple competing for the third slot, Ed and Heba Brantley. In their final pleas that they recorded at The Ranch we saw Heba stating why she should be chosen and Ed stating why Heba should be chosen. This was immediately after a weigh in where Ed some how had gained two pounds instead of losing, something that team trainer Bob stated had to be game play so Ed could see his wife get into the finals. Where was the real complication I mentioned? America voted for Ed to be in the final three, leaving Heba to compete for (and win) the at home consolation prize. Why is this a complication? If America had voted the other way Heba had enough weight loss to win the grand prize and walk away with the title of this season’s Biggest Loser.

    The reason why I bring all of this up is because I see one thing that seems to happen time and time again in reality television, and it is a cycle that could easily be broken if people were to keep a level head in these crazy experiences that they get themselves in to. It is one thing to play a game and do it in front of the American public, but you have to remember that your every action can be edited to make you appear to be the villain or victim in any given situation. Whether Heba was either isn’t relevant since she, as a player, provided the producers with enough content to give them exactly what any show runner would want: a villian that stirs up the pot and causes drama. Nothing gets ratings (or viewers that come back) like drama. If you go on a reality television show try to keep your behaviour balanced folks.

    Another interesting side note to The Biggest Loser story this season’s other qualifying finalist Vicky. This woman wasn’t cast in a very nice light during the run of the show and it turns out that people have been harassing the woman via phone and mail. I’m sure that Ed and Heba have also received similar treatment given their alliance with Vicky. What baffles me about this type of behaviour is that people can be this motivated by a television show to take action against the peopel playing it. I enjoy television, I’ve seen some really nasty reality television, but I’ve never been so stoked with anger or hatred for someone I’ve seen on TV that I’ve taken the time to research who they are, where they live, how to contact them and then actually write a letter or make a phone call. Hearing this type of thing makes me feel a little ashamed to write a column about television. It’s just TV folks.

    That all being said, let’s see what I think there is to offer on TV this week.

    MONDAY

    ABC – 8:00 PM: If you missed the showing earlier this month of Shrek The Halls than you are in luck. It’s on again tonight.

    NBC – 8:00 PM: Today goes prime time with 2008: Today Looks Back, A Holiday Special. Apparently there are only five items newsworthy enough to look back on. I guess the year really did suck for everyone.

    CBS – 8:30 PM: Any regular reader knows I’m a fan of How I Met Your Mother and this repeat of Slapsgiving was a great payoff to a joke set up earlier in that season.

    COMEDY – 9:00 PM: If you didn’t shell out the money for the DVD of Futurama: Beast With a Billion Backs than you can watch it free (with commercials) tonight.

    TUESDAY

    CBS – 8:00 PM: The 10th Annual A Home for the Holidays Special features musical performances and inspirational stories of adoption.

    ABC – 8:00 PM: There was no greater choice than Boris Karloff for voicing the title green meanie in Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

    TLC – 8:00 PM: See if Manual Uribe reached his weight loss goal as World’s Heaviest Man takes a return visit to see his progress.

    WEDNESDAY

    For a lot of people it’s Christmas Eve so here’s what you can watch after that last minute shopping is finally done and you are up to your eyeballs in eggnog.

    NBC – 8:00 PM: The Peacock wasn’t happy enough having me cry just once so It’s a Wonderful Life is on again tonight.

    FOX – 8:00 PM: If you aren’t a fan of the holidays than tonight’s episode of Bones might make you smile with Santa in the Slush.

    TBS – 8:00 PM: Only one thing in the world could’ve dragged you away from the soft glow of electric sex gleaming in the window, and that’s 24 hours of A Christmas Story.

    THURSDAY

    FX – 7:00 AM: Ice Age: The Meltdown is on for the next 14 hours, providing you the perfect thing to distract the little ones with when you need that break.

    FOOD – 7:00 PM: Pastry chef’s are put to the Food Network Challenge of making ginger bread houses and I’m put to the challenge of not finding sugary treats to eat while watching.

    TLC – 8:00 AM: An all day marathon of Little People, Big World can help you to not sweat the small stuff.

    COMEDY – 8:00 PM: Still not a fan of the holidays? Enjoy a slightly sanitized version of Bad Santa.

    FRIDAY

    TNT – 8:00 PM: Take in Con-Air… and be sure to put the bunny back in the box.

    BRAVO – 8:00 PM: If Con-Air didn’t have enough testosterone for you than I would recommend Heat.

    ABC Family – 8:00 PM: Didn’t buy Nicolas Cage as a former Army Ranger and Ex-Con? How about Nicolas Cage as an investment banker who gets a glimpse at how his life could have been in The Family Man?

    SATURDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: OK, this is a new one on me. NBC has Bob Costas and Matt Lauer host a special where they look back at The Bejing Olympic Opening Ceremony. I guess I can’t blame them. The original airing garnered 2 billion people world wide. This has to bring them some viewers, right?

    AMC – 8:00 PM: Last night we had two Nicolas Cage choices, so you can see Sandra Bullock get abused by her boss (and find love of course) in Two Weeks Notice.

    OXYGEN – 8:00 PM: Sorry folks, if you target Sandra Bullock flicks in most cases you are going to get sappy romantic films. The Lake House is no exception.

    SUNDAY

    ABC – 7:00 PM: Here is a completely useless fact that will mean nothing to you: In my 37 years on this planet I have never seen The Sound of Music. Will I end that streak tonight? Not sure.

    AMC – 8:00 PM: Sometimes AMC has some really interesting choices. Tonight they have Fargo at 8 followed by Hannibal at 10. I could probably sit and watch this channel the entire night.

    HIST – 8:00 PM: The History Channel premiered Valkyrie: The Plot to Kill Hitler back on November 24, but with the release of the movie Valkyrie this may be an interesting documentary to take in both before or after taking in the film.

    – Will Wilkins is not The Biggest Loser.

  • TV Or Not TV: The Holiday Special (12/8 – 12/14)

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    Welcome one and all to a Ho-Ho-Holiday special edition of TV or Not TV!

    This week here at TV or Not TV we’re kicking off what I hope becomes an annual tradition. This week we will be looking specifically at all of the Holiday TV offerings that are avaialble to you, the loyal television viewer.

    I’m sure each and every one of you reading this may have a certain TV special or movie that resides in your mind as the one that you identify with the holiday season. Maybe it is something you look forward to when it comes on the tube, maybe it is the movie you put on in order to get into the holiday spirit, maybe it is something you like to put on while you are making your Thanksgiving feast or decorating your tree. Whatever the TV special or movie is I’m sure, if you are like me, it is the one thing that you set time aside for to take your annual viewing in.

    For me these memories currently span close to four decades and each new gem for me has a place on my holiday shelf as I enjoy them all. Some of the movies you may not even think of as holiday films (the original Die Hard and Lethal Weapon are great examples) but during this time of year I love them all. I don’t need ABC Family’s 25 Days of to get me through the season because of how much is out there.

    It's a Wonderful LIfeOne of the movies that I always enjoy this time of year is the Frank Capra classic It’s a Wonderful Life. If you look at this film, as a whole, it is as much of a holiday film as the aforementioned Die Hard and Lethal Weapon are but because the films climax occurs on the eve of Christmas it has been widely adopted as one of the holiday staples. A copyright misunderstanding during the 1980’s also lead to the movie being played on numerous channels and numerous days during the holiday season, so much so that you could sometimes find it on more than one channel at the exact same time.

    Whether you think of It’s a Wonderful Life as a holiday classic or a great american film doesn’t matter. The film represents a lot of things that we can all appreciate. The movie tells us a story of a simple man, George Bailey. George has big dreams at the beginning of the film, dreams of travel before college to become an architect or engineer and designing big buildings or bridges, all themes that can be connected to a man making his mark on the world. During the course of the film, however, George has to set these dreams aside in order to keep the family business running and ensuring his little brother has a good life. He doesn’t  pursue his dreams, he lives his life and he makes sacrifices for the greater good while constantly facing off against Henry Potter, the stingy town tyrant who is determined to own the entire town.  After his Uncle Billy makes an absent minded mistake that can ruin the family business, George reflects that his life is a failure and is about to give it all up before his guardian angel Clarence intercedes. He gives George a glimpse at what the world would be like without him, giving him true perspective on all that he truly has (a new spin on the A Christmas Carol theme). In the end everyone in George’s life steps up to help him, just as he has helped them his entire life.

    I haven’t watched It’s a Wonderful Life this year, even though I have the DVD. Oddly enough just writing about it has the same effect on me as I hold back choking on emotional tears thinking of Sam Wainwright‘s telegram to George (I wasn’t kidding when I said I have a deep emotional connection to the film).  It never ceases to amaze me how a work of fiction can be soemthing that reminds us that just by being here we have an effect on the world around us, to show us that even just by doing our everyday jobs we still make a difference, and of course the reminder of how important friends and family are. All of these messages are nice to have in the face of the troubled times around us. This, if nothing else, shows why this movie is timeless.

    The good news is that even if It’s a Wonderful Life isn’t your cup of holiday tea I have plenty more for you take in during this week. Unfortunately I didn’t find any instances of Christmas Vacation or Scrooged this week, which are two of my holiday must haves. Those two exceptions aside, here’s what I have found to offer.

    MONDAY

    ABC – 8:00 PM: Once again ABC rolls out another one of the holiday classics with A Charlie Brown Christmas. Be sure to spot the commercial where they try to get you to buy the digitally re-mastered DVD of what you are watching for free.

    DISNEY – 8:00 PM: Tim Allen has to find a wife in The Santa Clause 2. Their clever use of the Mrs. Clause still makes me chuckle, but Tim Allen in the fat makeup without the beard is just plain creepy.

    ABC FAMILY – 8:00 PM: Bad accents, bad acting and our introduction to Jake Lloyd are just a few of the horrors that make up Jingle All the Way. One redeaming quality is the late and great Phil Hartman‘s presence.

    CARTOON NETWORK – 8:00 PM: Just in time to get the song stuck in your head for a week is the cartoon special built around Grandma Got Runover by a Reindeer. If that doesn’t make you leary enough, there’s a character named I.M. Slime. Behold the creativity at work here!

    TUESDAY

    FOX – 8:00 PM: House tries to bring the holidays home with this episode titled Joy to the World. The critical case of the week is a girl that collapses during her high school Christmas program.

    FOOD – 8:00 PM: Enjoy two hours of food fun starting with Paula’s Cookie Swap (I thought this was like a key party with cookies, turns out I was wrong) followed by Dear Food Network: Holiday Family Traditions.

    WEDNESDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: Just when you thought your life wasn’t complete because you haven’t seen a CGI version of Danny Devito your cries were heard with the new animated special Little Spirit: Christmas in New York. I will say this, the combination of CGI rendered in the style of a traditional painting creates a very interesting aesthetic (even though everyone has a wrapped in plastic kind of sheen on them).

    ABC FAMILY – 8:00 PM: It’s Rankin/Bass night with Santa Clause is Comin’ to Town followed by the confusing Rudolph’s Shiny Year and Jack Frost.

    USA – 9:00 PM: If you didn’t catch the Monk holiday episode Mr. Monk and the Miracle you can watch this before the 10 PM showing of Elf.

    THURSDAY

    NBC – 8:00 – 10:00 PM: That’s right Comedy Done Right-ers, all of your comedies tonight have a holiday motif.

    HALLMARK – 9:00 PM: Even though it’s been on once a week since Thanksgiving, you can still catch a father/daughter trying to save their Christmas theme park from a land developer in Moonlight and Mistletoe.

    ABC Family – 9:00 PM: Some classics don’t need an update and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & the Island of Misfit Toys is a great example of that. It’s interesting to see the Rankin/Bass characters rendered in CGI, but the novelty wears off quick. Your kids, however, are gonna love it.

    FRIDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: Greatest Holiday Moments is back with their hour long Songs of the Season Countdown.

    CBS – 8:00 PM: Faster than you can say Happy Birthday that lovable talking snowman is back for two hours with Frosty the Snowman and Frosty Returns. Stick around for both of those and you can even take in a Finnish Flying Squirel trying to teach Niko the reindeer how to fly in The Flight Before Christmas.

    AMC – 11:00 PM: Nothing says holiday fun more than hundreds of green menacing Gremlins tearing up your town on Christmas Eve.

    SATURDAY

    NBC – 8:00 PM: If you made it through the entire beginning of this column and it made you want to see It’s a Wonderful Life than you are in luck because it’s on tonight. I’ll be the guy that’s sobbing around 10:54 PM when they read that telegram. Sentimental HOGWASH!

    FOOD – 8:00 PM: It’s another holiday food block tonight with A Neely Family Holiday, Unwrapped: Holiday Treats, and The Secret Life of…: Christmas.

    TLC – 8:00 PM: If you want to be envious of other people’s holiday yard decorations (or feel good that yours are better than these) you can watch Crazy Christmas Lights.

    ABC – 9:00 PM: Ben Affleck tries to get to the root of his issues with commitment and the holidays while battling whits with Tony Soprano in Surviving Christmas.

    SUNDAY

    BRAVO – 9:30 AM: Snuggle up with your morning cup of coffee to watch Mel Gibson try to make a drug bust in a Christmas Tree Lot in Lethal Weapon. My favorite moment is when Gary Busey answers Scrooge on the television in the question of what day it is with, “It’s FU@#ING CHRISTMAS!” before destroying the TV in a hail of machine gun fire. Ahh, the holidays.

    MTV – 8:00 PM: If the CGI Danny Devito wasn’t enough for you than you can take in an animated version of Adam Sandler in Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights.

    HGTV – 8:00 PM: Relive magical moments like when as kids you watched the holiday display at Higbee’s with Holiday Windows 2008.

    FOX – 9:30 PM: It took a holiday edition to finally get me to mention American Dad, so that must say something. Stan, in pursuit of the perfect tree, meets an untimely end in the woods and fights the forces of good and evil in limbo.

    – Will Wilkins is a mean one, Mr. Grinch.