Falling Skies - Sci Fi, Summer Style

TNT has gotten into the science fiction genre with Falling Skies, a tense alien invasion drama that is far superior to anything V tried to do. Despite that, there are flaws.

Six months after an alien invasion left the Earth devastated, 90% of its population dead or captured, and all communications grids destroyed, a small group of survivors in Boston have banded together in what they call the Second Massachusetts. One of their leaders is Tom Mason, a history professor who specializes in the American Revolution. His wife was killed shortly after the invasion, and one of this three sons was missing, presumably abducted by the aliens. All Tom wants to do is find his son, but he takes part in recon missions to gather guns and food. During one operation, his sixteen-year-old son, Hal, sees his missing brother, and Tom has a mission.

The aliens, called "skitters" because of the way they walk, have taken over all the cities, including Boston. They essentially look like big skittering insects. Also with them are "mechs", or big robots with two legs that are equipped with a lot of killing power. It turns out that abducted children are harnessed with symbiotic devices that control, sedate, and heal them. Any attempts to remove the harnesses have resulted in killing the children attached to them.

What elevates this from standard sci-fi stuff is the caliber of the cast and the humanity of the plots. Noah Wyle stars as Tom, and takes what could be a boring hero role and adds devotion to his sons and a sense of duty. Wyle is an extremely likable actor, a lot like his former colleague, George Clooney, and always brings intelligence to any part. Moon Bloodgood (who earns the award for most colorful name) plays a pediatrician, Anne, who is friends with Tom. She advocates for the civilians that are attached to Second Massachusetts. The most interesting character is Pope, a gang leader who captured Tom's group during a mission, and was later made a captive of the Second Massachusetts. Played by Colin Cunningham, Pope is wily, mischievous, and cynical, and manages to steal every scene he's in.

Falling Skies also adds a lot of humanity into the plots. Tom is successful in the Second Massachusetts because of his knowledge of historical battles. His love and devotion to his sons clearly drive his actions. Anne's Uncle Scott teaches biology to the civilian children who have not been abducted by the skitters, and helps out in the kitchen and in developing communications. One of Anne's assistants is Lourdes, a young lady whose belief in God hasn't wavered. Plus, why do the "mechs" have two legs, instead of the six legs sported by the skitters? When humans dream of robots, our robots look like us. What makes the "mechs" so different?

There are flaws, however. The plot once required a skitter and a formerly harnessed child to be left alone unguarded. Lourdes' expressions of faith have been a little clunky.

All in all, it is an enjoyable series, and if you like this kind of thing, enjoy.

Another Season Over

So, another season is over, and I must say, it was quite blah. No new shows sparked my interest beyond one episode. The Event was so uneventful that it was not picked up for next year. Neither was No Ordinary Family, which took every cliche and did nothing new with them. Hawaii Five-O will return, an unqualified success, but it just wasn't for me (though I'm thrilled for Daniel Dae Kim). I never saw Undercovers, which was canceled before the season even ended.

I think it was a good thing that this season was so bad, however, as I had less time to watch television than normal. I know a number of my friends with children are able to maintain their viewing schedules, but I wasn't. I have no ideas why, and this isn't really the venue for me to contemplate how the way I am with my twins affects my TV.

Because of this, I rarely watched any show on a "timely" basis, i.e., within a day or two of its airing - heck, getting to watch within a week was sometimes more than I can handle. But now, I've watched the very last episode of the season, so I've some thoughts.

Let's start with the show that excited me the most: Fringe. It was a fabulous show, with a confusing ending. It turned some of its own mythology on its head (no mention of the Pattern this season!), and really fleshed out the alternative universe. Walternate's sole goal, of course, is to destroy our universe, with our characters, but we came to know and care about the characters in the alternative universe as well, even Fauxlivia. Since the machine that would destroy one universe (or the other...or both) required Peter (and, it turns out, Olivia), Peter's role became central. And who he picked would also be central - Fauxlivia or Olivia?

But the final episode of the season was terribly confusing. Peter decided that he could prevent the machine from working by entering it, but once he did, he jumped to the future, a terrible future, in which the alternative universe was destroyed, and only Walternate (who had allegedly jumped to our universe to make peace), survived. But the destruction of the universe led to the slow death of ours, helped by Walternate's terrorism. Before it was over, Olivia (married to Peter!) was killed by Walternate, and Walter, released from jail, realized that he was the one who sent the machine back into the past (so much for the First People), and that Peter must go back to let everyone know the universes depended upon each other for survival.

Suddenly, the two universes were together, in our timeline, at Staten Island. Two Walters, two Olivias, two Astrids. Only one Broyles (of course, since Alternative Broyles was killed), and one Peter. Though, as Peter explained his theory to the Walters, he suddenly disappeared. And no one blinked.

Then, we were watching the Observers, as they observed. No one missed Peter, because he never existed.

Hunh?

So why did Walter go to the other universe, causing all the harm to the alternative universe? How did the machine work? Who fathered Fauxlivia's child? I'm frankly having a hard time wrapping my head around this.

But, I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt, as I always do. I believe in trusting the producers to make sense of the seeming messes they've created. I hopefully will be rewarded. Good news: Seth Gabel has been brought on as a regular. Maybe Lincoln Lee fathered Fauxlivia's child?

My next favorite comedy this season is Community, which will also return next season. The show's meta focus has remained meta, which might throw some people off. It ended with yet another paintball contest, with Pierce winning and donating the earnings to save the school. But he left the study group, not surprising considering he was the villain throughout the season. I guess the group will have to do something next season to bring him back in. They will also have to figure out what to do about Senor Chang, who was mostly endearing through the season. I for one was rather sad Shirley's baby wasn't his.

My last favorite? The Good Wife. I have a friend who reported being embarrassed that she likes this show as much as she does, yet she watches almost all The Real Housewives. Go figure. Juliana Marguilies continues to hit this one out of the park as the stoic, heartbroken junior associate at Lockhart Gardner. There were some fun shenanigans with the law firm, but what most stood out was the destruction of Kalinda and Alicia's friendship. Alicia figured out that Kalinda once slept with her husband, a discovery that destroyed her marriage and her friendship with Kalinda, and opened up the door to a night in the Presidential Suite with Will. Kalinda was devastated by the loss of her friendship, and almost left the firm. Before the season was over Kalinda made herself hard, commenting that she doesn't have to share her feelings with anyone. We'll see what happens with that.

Bones ended on a high note for many people this season, except those who actually wanted to see Booth and Bones "do it". Bones is pregnant after at least one night with Booth. His sly grin told all there is to know - he's thrilled. What will happen with this relationship? I don't know. We'll find out.

On the other hand, House ended on a very low note. Destroyed by his break up with Cuddy and his discovery that she might have moved on romantically (or even lied to him about it, though we know she didn't), he drove his car into her house "to return a hair brush". Cuddy told the cops she never wanted to see House again (which should be easy, since Lisa Edelstein is leaving House). Even Wilson implied he thought House should be arrested. House, on the other hand, was last seen in some beach setting that clearly couldn't be New Jersey. Presumably, he's left the country. What will happen next year? Who knows.

Let's not forget Chuck. Chuck and Sarah married, all without bringing the show down to Moonlighting levels. But to get married, Chuck had to betray the CIA, so Team Bartowski was essentially fired. But thanks to the former Volkoffs (I just can't go into it), the team has enough money to investigate corruption in the CIA. The evil CIA had removed the Intersect from Chuck, but the show ended with Morgan Grimes inadvertently downloading the Intersect into his brain. Okeydokey.

Sadly, the Human Target, which I think never got a fair chance, was canceled. It was a good show. Shame on you if you never watched it!!

So, here is my report card on the shows I actually watched:

Fringe - A-. The season finale was lackluster and confusing. Otherwise, this show would have been an A.

Community - B. It's still a great show but needs to be careful with it's meta focus.

The Good Wife - A + - this show was top-notch the entire season and never once missed a step. I would grade it even higher (if I could) just because they promoted Alan Cumming to series regular.

Bones - C - I'm happy that Bones and Booth finally got together - I really like the characters. I do. I just think the show is running out of steam.

House - B - - Is this an example of grade inflation? I don't know. I like that Cuddy is leaving, since that will cause some major, needed changes. But the medical mysteries are boring and repetitive.

Chuck - B - - This show gets a higher grade just because it is actually ending next season. I like it when shows have an end date (see Lost), just so the producers have an opportunity to end the show in a way that will please us all. Or not. But I'm looking forward to seeing how it wraps up.

Human Target - A +. I'm still disgruntled.

So, that's that. At some point, I'll be writing a post about next season, which seems to hold a lot of promise. I'm sure I'll post about the summer season as well.

Anna Torv Channels Mr. Spock

I've written before about the negative reaction Anna Torv's performance as Olivia Dunham received in Fringe's first season. A lot of people complained that the show was great except for her flat, boring existence. I disagreed. I thought Torv was playing flat because of the tragedies her character suffered at that time, not least the death of her fiance, who, it turned out, might or might not have been a traitor. I thought it was a nice, quiet, understated performance.

In the second season, we learned that Dunham had been the subject of Walter's experiments. Others who had been experimented upon had similarly isolated lives with similarly dark wardrobes. So, Torv's quiet, flat Dunham made even more sense to me.

But this season has given Torv the opportunity to play not one, not two, but three characters, all various versions of the one. Besides Olivia, there's Fauxlivia, a woman rather like Olivia, but one with a lighter heart (at least, until she feel in love with Peter Bishop), a fuller life, an easier smile. It turns out that Fauxlivia is less certain of herself than ours, and less able to think creatively. But she has more friends, and seems to have easier relationships with others. Until her trip to our universe, her life was pretty sweet - she even had a fiance.

Then, in Stowaway, the most recent episode of Fringe, Olivia was mostly absent from the episode, all because she drank some tea when she visited William Bell in the other universe. Apparently, Bell had served the tea with his soul magnets, and when a particular bell was rung, Bell's soul was drawn into Olivia like, well, a magnet to steel. Or whatever magnets are attracted to. Olivia was pushed to the side, and Bell had taken over.

I'm not really clear on why Bell did this. Perhaps he genuinely believes that his presence is important to help the floundering Walter Bishop find his self-confidence. Perhaps he believes only he has the knowledge necessary to prevent the two universes from destroying each other. Perhaps he's like so many of us, unwilling to die.

He acknowledges that he cannot stay in Olivia's body for long, and after at first hedging how long he can stay, agrees to vacate after finding a suitable substitute. While the computer program attempts to find an adequate host, he agrees to help solve the mystery of the week.

In the meantime, we are treated to quite a performance. It is, I am sure, no surprise that I am a lifelong fan of Star Trek. I have spent the years studying the various characters and actors, of which, Mr. Spock and Leonard Nimoy are favorites. I've watched Nimoy's career through the years, and thoroughly enjoyed his turn as William Bell on Fringe. I wasn't surprised when Bell died last year, given Nimoy's announced retirement from acting (Nimoy's retirement may be as short lived as the Who's - he may be returning to Fringe later this season). Normally, I'd think such a "return" as this a cheap gimmick, but Torv's performance was so spot on, that I actually forgot who she was.

What did I see in Torv's performance? Well, first, she walked differently, slower, less gracefully. Much like an old man would walk. Her hair was blander, and her make up even less prominent than normal. She had a sly grin as she talked (Olivia never grins), and looked at everyone differently, less upfront, more from the side.

As many of us know, Nimoy had an excellent ability to use a raised eyebrow as communication, and Torv adopted it as well as she could. Some people can raise an eyebrow, and some people can't. However, Bell possessing Olivia's body would only have been able to do what Olivia could do, so even that felt right.

The only thing that didn't feel right was the tremor in her voice. As Nimoy has aged, his voice has developed a tremor, and it was a definite part of William Bell. Torv has adopted the tremor, under the presumption that if Bell had it, he would have it in Olivia as well. However, just as Bell wouldn't be able to raise an eyebrow if Olivia couldn't, he would have the voice that she had, which was remarkable in its lack of tremor. However, you could argue that Bell was so used to speaking with a tremor that he forces it in his conversations in Olivia's body. An unconvincing argument, but an argument all the same.

It was fun watching Bell interact with those who know Olivia so well. Walter, as expected, was delighted, and the two scientists quickly reverted to their old relationship as old friends who had worked together for years. They smoked pot together, joked about inserting Bell's consciousness in the cow, and solved a math problem.

Peter was justifiably horrified to find Bell in Olivia, especially considering how Bell slipped the soul-magnet mickey in her tea. Only Peter seemed outraged by Bell's casual dismissal of any moral issues in taking over Olivia's body. However, since no one else seemed all that upset, Peter accepted the situation, if only because he had to.

I'm fairly sure that Astrid is not a fan, after being sexually objectified and harassed by the scientist. I personally understood when she buttoned the top button her blouse. It turns out that William Bell was a pig.

I found Stowaway to be a thoroughly enjoyable episode of Fringe, and am sorry I don't have more time to discuss other aspects of the story, including the mystery of the week centering around the woman who can't die and Lincoln Lee on our side of the universe.

Deadwood fan alert - Paula Malcomson, Trixie on Deadwood, played a woman who learned that being struck by lightning twice prevented her from dying.

The Darcy Effect

Colin Firth won an Oscar last night for his performance in The King's Speech. Yes, I know, that's a movie, and this is a blog on television. But I've been a big fan of Firth since 1995, when he starred as Fitzwilliam Darcy in the BBC/A&E Production of Pride and Prejudice. As Darcy, Firth made quite an impression.

The story of Pride and Prejudice, of course, is that Darcy is prejudiced against the country folk, and insults them, including Elizabeth Bennett. But she rejects him out of pride later after he has changed his mind. Seemingly too late she discovers that he is a good man, worthy of her. But, of course, it really wasn't too late, and the two end up marrying, and living happily ever after.

The BBC version was aired on A&E, back when it did more than exploit drug addicts, obese people, and hoarders. It was an exquisitely produced version, and I fell in love. With Firth, obviously. With those wild curls, the disdainful manner followed by a decent heart, how could I not? On top of all that, he was English, too. That never hurts. He was so charming in the role, and did an excellent job of showing the changes that Darcy made from boorish snob to a man in love. The producers also took great effort to showcase the physicality of the man as well, even having him take a swim in his clothes at one point.

To be fair, I must admit that I also fell a little in love with Jennifer Ehle, who is one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen. She was perfectly cast as Elizabeth Bennett, and demonstrated much wit and intelligence in the role. And yes, I've followed her career since, but she hasn't won an Oscar. (Ironically enough, she did have a role in The King's Speech as Geoffrey Rush's wife).

I'm not the only one who fell for Firth. Many a woman I've discussed this with has admitted to an attraction to his portrayal. Helen Fielding was so taken with the miniseries that she wrote Bridget Jones' Diary. In it, Bridget is fascinated with the miniseries, obsessing over the actors, and feeling disappointed upon learning that Firth and Ehle had an affair during the filming of the series. Further, she met a disdainful man named Mark Darcy. In case you couldn't tell, Bridget Jones' Diary was loosely based on Pride and Prejudice. How wonderful when Colin Firth was cast as Mark Darcy in the movies!

After Pride and Prejudice, I kept an eye out for Firth. He remained a little under the radar for a few years, playing the cuckolded husband on The English Patient and the jilted fiance in Shakespeare in Love. Maybe it was Bridget Jones that pushed him into the leading man roles in movies? I don't know. I do know he has a vital part in Love Actually (a film I've sadly yet to see), and of course, was nominated for A Single Man last year. I think Firth's going to do alright by himself.

Firth's role as Darcy was so definitive that I refused to see the Keira Knightly movie version. My father thought I was crazy. However, had I know that Matthew Macfadyen...

Cowboys in Space

Why didn't I watch Firefly when it aired? I loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, and I was confident that anything Joss Whedon did would be interesting and entertaining. And I'm a huge fan of serial television in general. What happened?

Well, life happened. I had no DVR at that time, and I was working a second job on Friday nights from 7 PM to 7 AM. But I think what really interfered was that I was involved in a new love affair at the time. We all know how that ended.

I wasn't the only television fan who wasn't watching. Low ratings led to the show being canceled. Why did Fox air the show on Friday nights? Why did they insist a new pilot be created? Why did they air the episodes out of order? It seemed at the time that Fox was doing everything it could to cancel the very show they were airing.

I finally got a chance to watch all the episodes of Firefly this past January, as Ovation aired them, in order, starting with the real pilot, and even airing the three episodes Fox never did. If I ever had a column called "Gone Too Soon," this show would top the list.

I called this series "Cowboys in Space," and the show certainly felt like it took place in the wild west, only with spaceships. The crew used guns, and frontier law ruled the worlds the ship, Serenity, visited. The worlds were dusty, filled with sometimes desperate people trying to survive. Even the language that the crew used made me think of Westerns.

As I watched, I couldn't help thinking of the original Star Trek, which, as you may recall, was touted at the time as a Wagon Train in space. The show had some similarities: a charismatic captain, a spaceship, and a doctor. But really, to me, they didn't have a whole lot in common. Captain Kirk was a member of the Federation, a governmental entity that commissioned the Enterprise to space exploration. Mal Reynolds, on the other hand, was a refugee from a losing civil war to the Alliance, a centralized federal government. The Enterprise was a slickly clean, efficiently run operation, while Serenity forever seemed in need of a good housekeeper and was kept together by glue. Kirk's crew was intensely loyal, while Reynolds' crew felt free to question every decision and poke fun at him. Worse, he never knew when one of his henchmen, Jayne Cobb, might betray him.

Each show was truly a show of it's time. The Sixties were a time of optimism, and a belief that man can solve any social ill. Think of the War on Poverty and the belief that governmental programs could actually cure poverty. Such was Roddenberry's Federation, which had somehow succeeded in ending poverty (but not the common cold, oddly enough) and created a just world. By the early 2000s, however, we'd become suspicious of government, believing it to be a malicious force in society. The Alliance, indeed, mistrusted by Serenity's crew, fought against by several members, was to be avoided when possible, exploited if necessary. Its motives were always suspect.

But let's face it. What appeals to me most about Firefly is, of course, the characters. Each character was relatively well developed (the series ended far too soon to flesh out some of the characters, sadly) and the relationships that developed among the crew and passengers was realistic. Mal and his second-in-command Zoe. Zoe and her husband, Wash, the pilot, who respected but also resented Mal. Jayne Cobb who sold his services to the highest bidder, and whose relationship to his guns was stronger than any relationship to a person. Kaylee, the naive engineer with no formal training, protected and loved by all. Then the passengers. Inara was a Companion (think high-class prostitute) who rented a shuttle from Serenity. Sparks flew between her and Mal, but his insistence on calling her a whore perhaps interfered with an easy relationship. Book, the Shepherd, who knew far more about criminal enterprises then you'd think a good pastor would know. Lastly, the brother and sister Tam: Simon, the doctor, who rescued from the Alliance, his sister River, the psychic, who'd been in training to be an assassin.

Only fifteen hours of show was produced (a two-hour pilot and thirteen episodes), but Whedon was given the opportunity to produce a movie, where he was able to flesh out some of the storyline more. I saw the movie, Serenity, long before I saw all the episodes. I'll need to see it again.

Sadly, we'll never know what this show could have been. But I'll definitely add it to my list of "Favorites". If you're into science fiction, compelling characters, and great stories, I highly recommend you give this show a shot. Surely Ovation will air it again?

One thing that Firefly did was put several actors on the map. Who had heard of Nathan Fillion before Firefly?

Buffyverse fan alert. Joss Whedon was loyal to his actors. Nathan Fillion appeared on Buffy as the homicidal cleric Caleb (I almost never forgave Fillion for gouging out Xander's eye). Gina Torres was the goddess Jasmine who tried to impose peace on Earth on Angel. Adam Baldwin guested as Marcus Hamilton, a guardian of the Senior Partners, also on Angel. Summer Glau made her professional acting debut as a prima ballerina cursed to dance the same ballet for two centuries on Angel.

Dollhouse fan alert: Alan Tudyk played the criminally insane doll, Alpha. Summer Glau played scientist Bennet Halverson.

Chuck fan alert: Adam Baldwin plays a character similar to Jayne Cobb in Chuck. His John Casey is often the best part of Chuck.

V fan alert: Morena Baccarin, Inara on Firefly, plays Anna.

And of course: Barney Miller fan alert: Ron Glass played Book the Shepherd. But I'll always remember and love him best for playing Detective Ron Harris, author of Blood on the Badge.

Steve Landesberg Dead at 74

Many of my readers (all two of you) have probably not heard of Landesberg. I was shocked to learn that so few people knew the man. I would have attributed this to youth, had one of the ignorant not been older than I am.

Steve Landesberg played Arthur Dietrich in one of the best comedies to ever air on TV, Barney Miller. If you've never seen it, you owe it to yourself to watch it. It airs on the U channels in Chicago, but sadly, only the first three seasons have been released on DVD.

Why is Barney Miller so awesome? Well, first of all, it was a true ensemble series, headed by Hal Linden as the kind, put-upon Barney Miller, Abe Vigoda as the ever old and cantankerous Fish, Ron Glass as the vain Ron Harris, Max Gail as the naive "Wojo", Jack Soo as the wry Yemana, and Landesberg as the know-it-all Dietrich.

The humor relied not on pratfalls or one-liners (though they had those in plenty) but in the quirky characters, their interactions with each other and with the crooks and victims in their district. How hard Miller worked to keep sanity in the squad room! Just thinking of some of the plots makes me laugh. Remember the hash brownies? The wolf man? Lugar's mail-order bride?

Dietrich was my favorite. He was smart, dry, and witty. Some great lines:

Miller: You speak German?
Dietrich: Don't you?

Guest: Do you have a Ph.D in psychology?
Dietrich: Yes.
Guest: Got it on ya?

Dietrich (calmly, upon seeing what a suspect had brought to the squad): Where'd we get the atomic bomb?

I only have these because of Wikipedia. Wish I had more.

Reports had erroneously indicated that Landesberg was 65 when he died. Apparently, the man gave out various dates of birth, wanting to be younger to hide his late start as an actor.

Report Card for Fall, 2010 Shows

To be exact, this is a report card on shows I watch. I am afraid to report that I watch only bits and pieces of new shows. This was just not a good year for new shows.

I may not be blogging much (blame my two little niblets for that!), but I'm still watching television. I may not watch the show in the same week it airs, but I'm still watching. This post will discuss how I think the shows are faring this new season.

Chuck

One of the marvels of Chuck is that it has taken science fiction conventions and turned them on their head. In this case, Chuck's family all knows about his superhero powers (I guess that's what you'd call the Intersect) and he landed the hot babe. Chuck's sister is extremely smart, so the writers would have to stretch credulity far more than they already do to have Chuck keep that secret hidden. However, Ellie has made Chuck promise to leave the spy game, a promise Chuck has broken. How long can he hide that from her? Who knows?

Many have decried Chuck's relationship with Sarah Walker as a Moonlighting moment, claiming that the affair has caused the show to jump the shark. I disagree. From what I've read (amazingly enough, I never watched Moonlighting), Moonlighting lost it's spark long before the leads shared a bed. Plus, keeping Chuck and Sarah apart in the past two seasons alone has stretched the writers' abilities, so it was time for them to either come together or get rid of one. And what would Chuck be without Sarah? Or Chuck, for that matter? No, I think the relationship is fine, though some of their arguments are as manufactured as the plot points that kept them apart.

The major reveal of the season is Morgan Grimes, Chuck's Buy-Moron best friend. Last year Morgan learned Chuck's secret and joined the CIA. This season, he was made manager of the CIA-front Buy More, earned John Casey as a mentor, and started dating Casey's daughter. He's a bumbling fool who more often than not is right. In other words, in a way, he's taken on the role Chuck used to have. He's the outsider whose perspective and unusual ways have earned him the respect of John Casey (brilliantly portrayed by Adam Baldwin). He's also earned my respect, and has become the heart of the show.

The first half of this season has focused on Chuck finding his mother (who - surprise, surprise - is also a spy). This plot line has been underwhelming, though Timothy Dalton as the psychotic Volkoff has been a joy.

The Volkoff plot has been a bust, but Morgan makes the grade higher: B.

House

Last season ended with House starting a relationship with Cuddy after almost relapsing into narcotics abuse. Huddy fans rejoiced.

I was never a Huddy fan, but I preferred House with Cuddy than Jennifer Morrison's self-righteous Cameron. Cuddy, at least, was House's emotional and intellectual equal. Plus, unlike Cameron, you knew Cuddy would know exactly what she was getting herself into. And that's what's been so cool about the season. House and Cuddy both know their weaknesses, and have been trying to address them as adults. House has not been made softer (watch him describe his relationship with Cuddy as an episode from Wild Kingdom), and he has resorted to form by lying and manipulating her to get his way, both at work and in their relationship. Many television romances are predictable, and thus boring, but this one so far has not been. I have no idea if they will make it or not. And I like that I don't know.

The only other thing worthy of note is that Peter Jacobson and Olivia Wilde have finally been added to the credits, and Jennifer Morrison's name has been removed. Cameron, I hardly missed you.

That said, this show is clearly aging, and the writers don't seem to acknowledge it. The cases are becoming less interesting, and House's arguments about human nature have been aired many times before. The acting remains top-notch. Grade: B-.

Human Target

This show is the perfect comic book television show. It has succeeded in a way that Heroes can only imagine. Christopher Chance is a former assassin who is now attempting to atone for the harm he has caused. He knows many languages and forms of fighting. He can protect people better than anyone else, but often puts his own life in danger, simply because he doesn't really care if he lives or dies. If he lives, he wants to continue to help others. He is joined by Winston (the incredible Chi McBride) and Guerrero (Jackie Earle Haley, how steals just about every scene he's in, except with McBride).

I learned just recently that I missed last season's finale, I presume because of all the changes in cable boxes we experienced this last year. From what I can tell, enemies of Chance took Winston captive to force Chance to help them. Winston was nearly blown up, and Chance was so traumatized that someone he loved almost died because of him. So he joins an ashram in Nepal. Or Tibet. Whichever. He is found by a Melinda Gates-like woman, who's life is in danger after her husband was murdered. After Chance saves her, she essentially "buys" his business. So Indira Varma (of Rome fame) joins the cast.

I've only seen two of three episodes so far this season, and so far, I've found the series to be the same in tone and atmosphere as last season. Mark Valley as Christopher Chance brings a warm, self-deprecatory humor to the role, and the addition of Varma (and a female thief who idolizes Guerrero) has not interfered with that yet. We'll see. In the meantime, I'm giving the show a provisional: A.

Community

Community is the only comedy I have on DVR. I like its zany humor, and I love that John Oliver from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart has a recurring role. Last season, the show struck comedy gold when it parodied every bad action flick, with the students of Greendale Community College join a paintball war with the winner earning the right to priority registering. This season they've parodied zombie films and Apollo Thirteen films. Like last season, the episodes are a bit inconsistent - Betty White's guest turn was underwhelming - but it's always a fun half-hour. I'm giving a B+.

Bones

Last season, the group broke up. Bones went to some remote island to study the beginnings of humankind, Booth went to Afghanistan to train would-be snipers, Hodgins and Angela went to Paris, and Sweets grew a beard (or something like that). Caroline Julian, one of Bones' recurring characters who's more interesting than some of the main characters, brings them back to save Camille Saroyan's career. After doing so, the gang's all back together, like nothing's changed.

Or so it would seem. Angela's pregnant (and the storyline where everyone figures it out but keeps it from Hodgins because he wanted to surprise them was deadly dull) and Booth has a serious girlfriend. The girlfriend is the real source of dramatic tension this season, as Bones has to deal with the fact that she rejected Booth, who has moved on. The girlfriend is an accomplished journalist, and quite likable, and Bones has made an effort to be a friend. But it's obvious she recognizes what she passed up, and that Booth still cares for her. It appears that soon Bones' inner turmoil will be expressed. I'll be curious to see how that works out.

Bones remains, as ever, inconsistent, so I'll give it a B-.

Fringe

Fringe is one of those shows that just gets better each year. Last season ended with Walter successfully finding Peter in the other dimension and bringing him home. However, unbeknownst to both of them, they brought along the other dimension's Olivia, called "Fauxlivia". "Our" Olivia remained in the other dimension, where she was experimented upon to discover what it was that allowed her to cross dimensions. While maintaining the "monsters of the week" story line, the show managed to show Fauxlivia's attempts to accomplish whatever she was sent over to do and Olivia's eventually successful attempts to return home.

Anna Torv has shown herself to be a far better actress than she was ever given credit for. Many complained that she was too flat in her portrayal of Olivia, but I thought her lack of affect made sense, given the fact her lover was initially thought to be a traitor. This season, she played two Olivias, and managed to show the tiny, subtle differences that exist between the two. John Noble has always been recognized as a great actor, and his portrayal of two Walters has not disproved that. We see in the alternate Walter - called "Walternate" - what our Walter could have been, and it is not a pretty picture. Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop remains as watchable as ever.

The Olivias have returned to their rightful universes, and only time will tell what damage Fauxlivia managed to wreck here. The immediate fall out, of course, will occur between Olivia and Peter. Somehow, Peter will have to reconcile his affair with Fauxlivia, and his own inability to recognize her as an impostor. This is one show I look forward to seeing week after week. Grade: A+.

Project Runway

I've already blogged about my impressions of the great season of Project Runway we just had. I never posted my thoughts about the fact that Gretchen won over Mondo, but I refuse to let that disappointment sway me from my opinion. Grade: A.

The Good Wife

I remain captivated by this show, in large part driven by Juliana Margulies's portrayal of a betrayed wife. This season, Alicia's husband campaigns to win his job back, while the law firm she works for has merged with another. The firm's merger may have saved it from bankruptcy, but has created a whole new set of problems, including the addition of a potentially felonious investigator and Diane's decision to leave the firm. Meanwhile, Alicia has just learned that Will apparently left her a message detailing how he feels about her, a message she never got because Eli Gold deleted it. Will's moved on, assuming Alicia moved on. This sounds like a soap opera, doesn't it? But it's still good, and my description doesn't do it justice. The writing is excellent, the acting is impeccable, and the plots are interesting without being predictable. I'm definitely giving this an A.

I never did watch Undercovers. I eventually deleted the episodes. Apparently, I wasn't the only one not watching - the show was canceled.

I've watched a few episodes of Raising Hope. It is amusing, but Cloris Leachman's character is a little too broad and silly for enjoyment. It's fun to watch when I come across it.

I've started watching The Office, and I must say, it turns out I'm a fan. Who knew? I've not seen enough this season to have an opinion as to its grade. Maybe at the end of this season.

You might be justified in accusing me of grade inflation, and you may be right. But why waste my valuable time watching a show that doesn't even warrant a B-?