Monday, September 17th, 2007
07:00 Corner Gas
07:30 My Boys
11:00 The Closer
12:00 The Hardy Boys Mysteries
Corner Gas. Season 3, Episode 17. A broken door at the gas station is the main plot-line that drives this episode. And generates an amazing number of good gags. The Wanda storyline involved her attempts to hide a big telescope from the various "big kids" in town. For once, it is the Oscar thread that fails to generate many laughs, but - even so - this is still a very funny episode.
My Boys. Episode 16. After a dud episode, My Boys rebounds with one of the funniest of the run so far. Sports-journalist PJ falls for the charms of a new Cubs player (Travis Schuldt) but to date him means crossing a professional line. It's a heartfelt storyline and the chemisty between the actors is great. While this is going on, the Boys (including Stephanie and Trouty) are caught up in a feeding frenzy surrounding a list of Chicago's hottest bachelors. Jim Gaffigan steals every scene he appears in, especially when dressed in a tux blending into a party.
The Closer. Season 3, Episode 10. The case involves the murder of a Chinese tour guide, but - as always with the this show - it is the cast and their interractions that make this such an enjoyable show. Brenda's parents are still in town, and - once again - they become embroiled in the case. Each and every scene with the family in the midst of the police work is great fun, and Jon Tenney turns in some his funniest ever work on the show.
The Hardy Boys Mysteries. Season 2, Episode 19. Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys meet in Budapest to take a train journey together. Nancy and Frank meet a girl being chased by thugs - although she has no idea why they are after her - and Joe is puzzled as to why someone would steal a photo of his family. Most of the episode has a great setting (the train journey) and there's a cool ski-chase at the end, but the whole thing never really gels. There's a very large guest cast (which often happens on this show) but some are a bit wooden, some have dodgy haircuts and some have dodgy accents! There's an attempt made to re-kindle the Frank/Nancy romance, but Janet Louise Johnson doesn't have the right chemistry with Parker Stevenson. A reference back to something that happened between them when Pamela Sue Martin was playing the role only serves to remind the audience that Johnson is playing a very different type of Nancy Drew. Hers is a less feisty Nancy, more prone to being the damsel-in-distress, and it's hard to imagine her flinging Frank over her shoulder the way Nancy mk1 did.
Corner Gas, My Boys, The Closer, The Hardy Boys Mysteries
