30 Rock 1.1

Not very funny. And the story drags. Jack is in character, but seems like a total jerk. Very different to the series that followed. 4/10

2013 BEST TV COMEDY #6 -> 30 Rock

Because it felt like a last season and they wrote about things that mattered.

Because it was funny and genuinely clever.

Because it could pack a surprisingly emotional punch when it wanted. [8.75]

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 16. "Floyd"

Monday, April 12th, 2010

05.30 30 Rock

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 16. "Floyd"

I think maybe I love Liz Lemon too much. I was kinda gutted for her in this episode and, you know, 30 Rock isn't really the sort of show where you are supposed to be emotionally invested in the characters!!

Anyways, this episode was a treat. So funny. So quirky.

Great to see Cheyenne Jackson. I half thought they had forgotten about him, and written Danny out. Not so. Good.

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30 Rock, The Incredible Hulk, Stingray, The Days And Nights Of Molly Dodd

Thursday, April 8th, 2010

07.00 30 Rock
11.30 The Incredible Hulk
02.00 Stingray
03.45 The Days And Nights Of Molly Dodd

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 15. "Don Geiss, America and Hope" Tracy's scandal; Liz's future husband, part two

Lots to love here. The show has three very funny, and very clever, storylines for Liz, Jack and Tracy. Each one is inventive and packed with great lines/ideas. And, at the end of it all, they are able to make all three collide off one another in a way that gives all of the craziness a deeper meaning. Of sorts.

Michael Sheen returns for his second episode and will - he says - be back for 'sweeps' in May. Whatever that means...

The Incredible Hulk. Season 2, Episode 8. "Killer Instinct" Football

A solid episode, which finds David working for a football team. Among the things worthy of praise:

1. A great performance from Denny Miller, as a player dealing with severe aggression issues. Two scenes in particular (when the character is under hypnosis) are superb, but the whole performance is enjoyable and displays a wide range, as the character goes from a friendly buddy persona to a man displaying out of control rage.

2. There's no bad guy. Once again, clever writing and strong characters are able to create sufficient conflict to drive the drama without the need to resort to cliché bad guys of the type you'd expect to find on a 'superhero show'. A doctor character, more short-sighted than evil, is the focus for most of the conflict and it's a type of character that would be at home on shows like Quincy or Lou Grant.

3. With little more than three very strong performances and good location filming the episode is successful at creating the reality necessary to make the story work. We need to believe that we are witnessing behind-the-scenes events at a big league football team, we need to believe in the friendship between David and the player and we need to believe that the doctor is an expert who, while well-meaning, is missing out on important point. Together with Miller, Bill Bixby and Rudy Solari are flawless in creating the world of the episode.

4. It's a fascinating tale. The last half is mostly concerned with stopping the player from harming someone on the field, but the first half has some great discussion scenes between David and the doctor character. Conversations that - I must confess - completely pulled me in and had me absorbed. I also liked these scene because they gave David a valid reason to be working at this particular job. We can see that our hero isn't just taking random jobs, he is - time and time again - tracking down various ways to deal with his unique problem.

On the downside, there are a couple of things that I didn't like:

1. The reason for the Hulk Out in the middle of the episode is weak. Firstly the story didn't need a Hulk Out at this point (so it ranks as one of the episodes that really only needed one Hulk sequence) and secondly it's a bit silly how it happens: two players flick towels at Banner (causing him to yelp in pain) before they lock him in a steam room. The actual Hulk Out when it happens looks fantastic, but it can't quite disguise the fact that the build up is silly.

2. Barbara Leigh doesn't quite have the range to convince me that she's worried about her husband, or that she has some kind of deep bond with David that allows her to confide her fears about her marriage. And that's a problem. In order for many Hulk episodes to work you need to believe that these people will trust and open up to a complete stranger. In most cases, Bixby and the guest star can sell it. In this episode, for instance, it requires no leap of faith to believe in the friendship between our hero and the football player. But whenever David is talking to the wife, everything falls flat. Bixby is so good he completely blows her off screen.

Flawed, yes, but this is still a very solid and hugely enjoyable episode of TIH.

Stingray. Season 2, Episode 9. "The Second Finest Man Who Ever Lived" Docks

Standard crime tale. Helped by heart, the show's considerable style and nice location filming.

The story opens with a dock worker finding out that he's been complacent in a smuggling operation. A discovery that costs him his life and leaves his grown, but mentally-challenged, son alone in the world. Except that 'Ray shows up and starts to investigate the death...

The conversations between 'Ray and the son are about the big topics of life and Dennis Christopher and Nick Mancuso have no problem making the material work. The son fulfils the same 'outsider' role that characters like Spock and Data occupy on Star Trek and through him Burt Pearl is able to write a script that asks innocent questions in a meaningful way. And 'Ray is a great character to answer those questions. "There are two types of people in the world," he says. "Those that need help. And those that help." At the end of the story, when the son has a chance to kill the man who murdered his father we know that he won't (so there's no real sense of drama) but the journey that the character is on still makes the story worthwhile. Still makes the ending satisfying.

Stingray has a great visual style and this episode has two striking examples of this. At the midpoint of the story, our hero sneaks aboard a docked ship to find out what's going on and the sequence is full of the quick cuts and random drum beats on the soundtrack that I love so much on this show. It looks/sounds cool. Same goes for the climax, when 'Ray sends a truck zooming down the runaway as the bad guy's plane tries to take off.

Finally, there's the location shooting. Most of the episode takes place at night, on docks which appear to be wet and windy in every shot. Even when the action moves out into the country, everything looks wet and cold. And somehow all the more real.

The Days And Nights Of Molly Dodd. Episode 4. "Here's Why You Should Never Wear High Heels to the Bank"

This episode really captures the sense of Playing With Fire. Molly is working closely with her ex-husband, and it's been established from the get-go that she still has strong feelings for him. Scene after scene shows us how close they are becoming, shows us the spark between them, shows us all the ways that Molly is falling under his spell and - sadly - shows us all the ways that he is wrong for her.

Late in the episode they argue, and the episode pulls away and leaves them in the distance so we can't hear the words. But we can still see them, there's sumptuous music on the soundtrack and I think all of us watching can relate to what's happening, can see ourselves on the screen having that argument, being on one side or the other.

I wish all fiction did this. Touched you, made you relate and gave you perspective.

Wonderful stuff.

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Friends, 30 Rock, Law And Order, The Incredible Hulk

Monday, December 21st, 2009

06.00 Friends
06.30 30 Rock
07.00 Law And Order
01.00 The Incredible Hulk

Friends. Episode 11. "The One with Mrs. Bing" Chandler's Mom shows up. And kisses Ross. While Monica and Phoebe compete over a guy in a coma.

Morgan Fairchild makes her first appearance as Chandler's Mom. Kissing Ross and causing friction between the guys. One of the regulars having a famous novelist for a mother, who appears with Jay Leno in one sequence, is 'very TV' for a show like Friends, which trades on it's ability to be easy to relate to. However, the cast just about makes it work.

The other storyline is much better. The Coma Guy storyline raises many laughs.

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 8. "Secret Santa" Jack reconnects with someone from his high school days.

Julianne Moore is a bit disappointing, but this is a pretty good episode. Jane Krakowski raises all the biggest laughs, and her scenes with (the wonderful) Cheyenne Jackson are superb. Watching Danny master sarcasm was worth the price of admission.

Jack's romance may have been a bit of a dud storyline, but the ending (between him and Liz) was superb. The show really conveys a great friendship between these two.

Law And Order. Season 20, Episode 2. "Just A Girl In The World" Lupo's dates a suspect.

S. Epatha Merkerson steals the show with a single scene here. We get an insight into Van Buren's fight with cancer and - in an exchange with the doctor on the case - S. Epatha Merkerson does some of her finest work on the show. Fact is: we've been watching this character for well over a decade and we care. We bloody care. So, if the writers want to take us into her person life for a story like this (and they have S. Epatha Merkerson to deliver the material) they will deliver some great television.

Performance-wise, this episode has some great work from Jeremy Sisto and Anthony Anderson also, as Lupo dates a suspect and it causes friction between the partners. I've like Detective Lupo since he first appeared (basically because he's cool) but Detective Bernard never gets passionate about anything. Until now. His speech to Lupo about liking his job was his best moment yet and made me - for the first time - really like the guy.

However...

The story is weak. And predictable.

I knew the girl was guilty. I'm sure most viewers did. Lupo should never have gotten involved. Idiot.

Also, the climax was a little too easy. Cutter doesn't have to do very much to make her go bananas on the stand.

A pity that these truly great performances were buried in a weak episode.

The Incredible Hulk. Season 2, Episode 3. "Ricky" Race track.

Solid, unremarkable episode with a great performance from Mickey Jones as a special needs adult, whose brother is a race car driver. Jones has two stand-out scenes in particular: one where he plays at driving the race car, and one where his character tries to arrange some tools in the garage. He brings a perfect innocence to his role and makes you totally believe in the character. I'm a huge fan of his work from other shows, but this is probably the best he's ever been (and he's always great). Rather than try and 'do' anything with the role, it seems like he's made a choice to very honest and vulnerable in the part and it really, really works.

There seems to be a lot suggest that this was the last episode filmed for the first season of the show. Whether that is the case or not I cannot say, yet, but it's certainly a more polished episode than most of what we saw in season one. And the show's formula is completely intact here. David makes friends through the job he holds and is able to help them (by becoming the Hulk on two occasions). Also, he does more than just help them get out of danger, he actually walks away having made their lives better in some way.

The cast is superb, and each one is given a good character to play. A lesser writer might have left these characters as one-note clichés but Jason Summers manages to give each one some life as a real person. This is very obvious with the two bad guys of the story, played by Gerald McRaney and Eric Server. Rather than being presented as cartoon bad guys there are a couple of scenes to build/establish character. They still come off as jerks, but - thanks to the extra material - they seem like jerks you'd meet in real life, as opposed to jerks you'd only ever see on TV.

So, it all amounts to a perfectly solid episode of The Incredible Hulk. David doesn't really bond with anyone so the ending isn't particular sad. There's a very cool sequence with the Hulk drinking from a soda can to be savoured, however, and the matching up of new footage with stock footage (of race cars) is much, much better than you'd see on contemporary Universal shows.

Highlight? The Incredible Hulk (Mickey Jones)
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Friends, 30 Rock, Law And Order, Dexter, Scrubs, Black Beauty

Monday, December 7th, 2009

01.00 Friends
05.00 30 Rock
05.30 Law And Order
06.30 Dexter
07.30 Scrubs
12.00 Black Beauty

Friends. Episode 6. "The One With The Butt" Joey is Pacino's butt double, Chandler is dating a woman with many lovers, Monica is trying to story being a tidy freak.

Shades of stuff here that you won't see on any other sitcom. The while Joey storyline is classic Joey, and classic Friends. It's a character-driven tale. It works because of who Joey is.

The same goes for the Monica storyline. It's only a c-story, really, and it only gets a few short scenes but it establishes Monica as an obsessive compulsive tidy freak and Courteney Cox sells it.

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 7. "Dealbreakers Talk Show No. 0001" Liz makes a pilot.

One of the cleverest, and best, episodes of 30 Rock. It turns Liz into Jenna (with Jenna called in to talk her down), it turns Frank into Liz, it gives Tracy one of his best-ever stories and it features Dr. Spaceman and Will Arnett. Plus Astronaut Mike Dexter.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 22. "The Drowned And The Saved" Jack vs. Shalvoy

Law and Order ends the season on a true high note, with Jack and the team going up against Shalvoy (and his devious wife) again. It's a complex tale, superbly told, full of subtlety and tension in equal measure. It's also one of the best Jack McCoy episodes, highlighting him as one of TV's most heroic characters.

Dexter. Season 4, Episode 10. "Lost Boys" Missing child.

The show rolls out a second truly superb episode in a row, with Dexter going into full hero-mode, dashing around Miami on the trail of a missing child, in the clutches of Trinity (the amazing John Lithgow).

Scrubs. Season 9, Episode 2. "Our Drunk Friend" Lucy's alcoholic patient, Denise's love life.

Another strong episode. Kerry Bishé works well as the new lead, and her storyline is predictable but nonetheless successful. It took me a while to warm to Eliza Coupe's Denise, but she's a real favourite now and her love story with Michael Mosley's Drew will keep me hooked, I feel.

Black Beauty. Episode 3. "The Pit Pony" Vicki meets Billy and they try to save a pit pony on the way to be slaughtered.

Weaker than first two episodes. The plot is basically a re-thread of the first episode with a new hero and a new horse to be saved. The scene where Billy first steals the pit pony is simplistic and silly, and so is Amy's ability - later in the story - to know where the children are and send help.

Having said that, there is plenty here to enjoy. The production looks amazing, particularly the night scenes, and Judi Bowker is radiant and charming in every scene. The relationship between Vicki and Billy is well written and it works, even when the story fails to serve it occasionally.

Highlight? Dexter (truly superb)
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30 Rock, Law And Order, Friends

Monday, November 30th, 2009

05.00 30 Rock
05.30 Law And Order
12.30 Friends

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 6. "Sun Tea" Liz tries to force a guy out of his apartment.

When Liz went to meet her upstairs neighbour I was afraid it would turn out to be another disastrous love-story-for-Liz episode. I love those. But I don't want the show to rely on them. Instead, we got something different - and funny - as Liz tried various schemes to force the guy to go live somewhere else.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 21. "Skate Or Die" Skater serial killer.

A stunning guest shot from Brian Gant, a welcome return by Carolyn McCormick, and a truly warped story make for another great episode. Cutter bends the rules a tiny bit, I love when he does that, and there's nice continuity elements with the end of McCoy's bid for re-election.

Friends. Episode 3. "The One With The Thumb" Everyone loves Monica's new boyfriend.

A bit too 'cute' to work fully. Monica's new boyfriend makes a bigger impression on her friends than on her. He even convices Chandler to quit smoking.

Highlight? Law And Order (warped story)
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30 Rock, The Closer, House, Castle, The Incredible Hulk

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

05.00 30 Rock
05.30 The Closer
06.30 House
07.30 Castle
02.00 The Incredible Hulk

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 5. "The Problem Solvers" New cast member arrives, and causes Jenna and Tracy to panic. Jack and Liz battle over the idea of a DealBreakers TV show.

Very funny. Liz takes (bad) advice from Jenna and ends up dealing with the agent from hell. And, of course, part of the solution comes from the fact that Jack and Liz have a solid friendship and he wants good things for her.

The Closer. Season 5, Episode 12. "Waivers of Extradition" Serial Killer.

Superb episode, with a great guest turn by Xander Berkeley, whose character here would make a great lead in a TV series.

Mostly though, this is an episode all about Brenda under pressure and it's a terrific episode. It also brings Charlie's story to a conclusion.

House. Season 6, Episode 8. "Ignorance is Bliss" Genius wants to be dumb.

House has been on a roll this season, so much so that I ended up really enjoying this episode, even though it is similar (in themes) to stories they have done before. Here's a guy who thinks his wife is too dumb for him when he's smart, so he sets about dumbing himself down to 'fit in' with her world. It's certainly thought-provoking stuff, but we've seen similar before on the show.

Never mind: there is lots of other stuff to savour. Cuddy's cruel trick on House will make you feel sad. Taub's hilarious lie to his wife (about hitting House) will make you chuckle.

Castle. Season 2, Episode 10. "One Man's Treasure" Dead guy, two women show up to claim the body.

Except for the fact that they give the daughter a really strong storyline in the police station, this is a perfect example of a typical (and good) episode of Castle. The story is a little bit quirky, but the ending is terrific and it's a hoot to watch Castle and the gang do their thing. The fact that (adorable) Alexis got a lot to do only served to make a good thing even better.

The Incredible Hulk. Episode 11. "Earthquakes Happen" Underground lab.

Yet another Season One episode that isn't confined by the formula that dominated the stories in later seasons (David has a job, he befriends someone, Hulks Out twice before moving on, having helped them).

This one opens with David Banner doing some very un-David Banner type things. In a quest for a cure, he's found some equipment at a research facility that could help him so he phones up an external advisor (due to make a visit to the facility) and postponed an intended inspection so he can take that person's place. Rare to find our hero posing a real person and lying to so many people in such a deliberate way (he even procures some fake ID in a great scene, showing that Banner is nobody's fool, no matter how desperate his situation has become) but that is how the episode opens, with David undercover as it were. This, of course, adds a whole new level of tension to the episode that we don't normally have right away. In episodes that feature Jack McGee we often have an element of "Will David Get Caught?" but this time out it's a major part of the story from the get go, as a scientist (Sherry Jackson) quickly grows suspicious and immediately starts checking into this new visitor.

The story is called "Earthquakes Happen" and that's what happens. Just as David is using the equipment that might help with his quest for a cure. The equipment is destroyed, and - thanks to a chain reaction - David and a few other people are trapped underground in the power plant facility. Even worse, it appears that the bad timing of David using the equipment at the time of the earthquake makes a nuclear accident almost unavoidable.

And there you have it. A group of people scrambling through smoke and debris, while alarms go off everywhere and they squabble about the fact that David might have caused a major nuclear event. Which is another unusual touch. David being held responsible by everybody for what might be about to happen. (Jeez, as if the guy hasn't enough to feel guilty about!) David's always the good guy. This time, by total accident, he's the bad guy of the piece! So, for maybe the only time in the whole series, the viewer could be almost critical of Banner. He's lying more than usual and pretend to be somebody he's not and behaving in an irresponsible way. Yes, it's a huge coincidence that there was an earthquake but the fact remains that he was the one who had the equipment up and running. Bad luck or not, it's his responsibility. And there are no lines in the script where he tries to shirk that responsibility. When other characters challenge him on this, David simply lets it go unchallenged. He was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and he knows it. He takes it on board, and he accepts it.

So, it's a very unusual episode. Banner's being treated like a bad guy by everybody, they are all trapped and facing death and - via hilariously outdated footage - we can see the nearby town being evacuated. ("Everyone in town, take your 1950s cars and drive on the motorway... Now!")

All told, the first season is all over the place, quality-wise. There are superb episodes and real stinkers. This one falls squarely in the middle. It's very novel and I'd gladly watch it again, but it's not an example of the show at it's best.

Highlight? Castle (Alexis)
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30 Rock, Law And Order, The Middle, The Six Million Dollar Man

Monday, November 16th, 2009

05.00 30 Rock
05.30 Law And Order
06.30 The Middle
12.00 The Six Million Dollar Man

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 4. "Audition Day" Jack becomes an outcast (in society) as Liz and Pete try to manipulate him into picking their choice for new cast member.

Great episode, once again, with everything surrounding the robot guy being truly hilarious.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 20. "Exchange" Two scientists die in a fire.

Another solid case. Starts off as one thing, and ends up as another, as we are led to a particularly nasty bad guy.

The Middle. Episode 3. "The Floating Anniversary" Frankie and Mike try to find time to celebrate their anniversary.

More of the same chaos we saw in the first two episodes.

The Six Million Dollar Man. Episode 5. "Survival of the Fittest" Plane Crash.

Steve is escorting Oscar when they plane they are on, crash lands on a deserted island. Some assassins are on board, and decide to continue their plans to kill Oscar. Part of the fun of this episode is the fact that we can see two of the hit team, as they make their plans, and they refer to a third team member (called "Bobby") that we are not shown, but who we assume is somewhere among the passengers that Steve and Oscar are working with...

And that's the episode in a nutshell. Lots of different permutations of characters running around the island in different groupings, as we watch and try to figure out who isn't to be trusted. There's a great guest cast in this one: James McEachin, Christine Belford, William Smith, Laurette Spang and Randall Carver get some great material.

This is a good episode for the Steve and Oscar relationship, because in this episode we clearly see them as friends. Oscar doesn't tell Steve everything, of course, but they obviously care about one another. This is something that definitely wasn't present in the movies that started the series, and there was no opportunity to observe it in the one-hour episode that ran before this one. They are more than just 'boss' and 'agent'.

There's almost no bionic action in this one. At one point Steve runs very fast and kills a snake, but apart from that he never really uses his powers. At the end, his bionics come in handy as a means towards saving Oscar's life but it's not really a case of Steve using his powers, just the doctor being able to use some of his wiring.

Clever end to a very enjoyable SMDM script.

Highlight? The Six Million Dollar Man (fun)
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30 Rock, Law And Order

Monday, November 9th, 2009

05.00 30 Rock
05.30 Law And Order

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 3. "Stone Mountain" Liz and Jack in Kenneth's hometown, still searching for a new cast member for TGS.

Solid, funny outing with plenty of screentime for everyone in the cast. The Jenna and the Writer's storyline is the one that best illustrates how clever the show can be.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 19. "All New" Firefighter.

Solid, unremarkable, 100% enjoyable. The story moves gracefully through it's various twists and keeps up involved all the way through.

Highlight? (100% enjoyable)
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30 Rock, Law And Order, The Middle

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

05.30 30 Rock
06.00 Law And Order
07.00 The Middle

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 2. "Into the Crevasse" Liz's successful book causes friction.

I absolutely love the cold open on this episode: Liz has a 'fight' with a store clerk who is working on a window display. Everything about it (right down to Liz's final line about another successful interaction with a man) was perfect.

All told, this was a fun episode, where everybody got something to do. And some of the ideas were truly wacky: filming a werewolf movie in Iceland, for instance.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 18. "Promote This!" Illegal immigrant.

Another solid episode with a downbeat ending. It's also a good episode for showing how far the heroes are willing to go to (try to) get the job done.

The Middle. Episode 2. "The Cheerleader" Frankie is the one that keeps her family together.

I liked the pilot, but I'm still not sure this is a show I'm gonna be able to make time to watch every week. This episode gave everyone something to do, it was funny and it had a sweet ending (where Frankie suddenly came unravelled) but I'm still not sure...

Highlight? Law And Order (downbeat)
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30 Rock, Law And Order, The Dead Zone, Arrested Development

Monday, October 19th, 2009

05.00 30 Rock
05.30 Law And Order
08.00 The Dead Zone
12.30 Arrested Development

30 Rock. Season 4, Episode 1. "Season 4" New cast member search. Pages on strike.

Sometimes I don't enjoy the season premiere's of 30 Rock, but this one hit the mark as far as I was concerned. It amazes me that the show can (successfully) make comic fodder from the troubles of NBC and the economy in general. But it does.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 17. "Anchors Away" David Rasche doing TV news, and Jill Eikenberry helping her husband steal money and build an empire.

Great episode, with one of the strongest endings the show has had. It's refreshing to see an older couple (even a criminal one) so much in love, and so devoted to one another and even Connie appears touched by their affection. But the closing minutes drive home the fact (voiced by one of the regulars) that they might love one another, but they don't love anyone else. Even their own daughter, who ends the episode in a sorry state.

Great episode.

The Dead Zone. Season 2, Episode 12. "The Hunt" Johnny goes CIA.

One of the best, and coolest, episodes with Johnny helping the CIA track a suspected terrorist. The first two-thirds show the top secret set-up with documentary-like detail and it's absorbing and entertaining stuff. In it's final third, the story gets really clever and finds a way to plant Johnny in the middle of an intense fire-fight and impact upon the action.

A thrill ride.

Arrested Development. Season 3, Episode 12. "Exit Strategy" Iraq.

AD surprised me greatly by bringing it's three-season storyline to a conclusion. To be honest, as much as I loved the show (and I still) I never thought of it as having a proper 'story' that would need to be concluded. In fact, had it's final episodes been typical chapters I would in no way have felt that I was missing out on anything.

But, as it happens, the writers had an ending for their story arc in mind and in this episode we find out that George Sr. was innocent all along. We also get a guest shot from Gary Cole, which is never a bad thing.

Highlight? The Dead Zone (One of the best, and coolest, episodes)
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Sun, May 31, 09 - Dexter, Friday Night Lights, 30 Rock, Rules Of Engagement, Worst Week

07.30 Dexter
08.30 Friday Night Lights
01.00 30 Rock
01.30 Rules Of Engagement
03.00 Worst Week

Dexter. Season 3, Episode 11. "I Had a Dream" Dexter decides he's gonna have to kill Miguel. And he chooses a new Best Man.

This surprised me. Sure, I know Dexter was likely to kill Miguel, but I figured it would be left to, you know, the last episode of the season. Nope. The show had something else up it's sleeve. Good storytelling choice.

Friday Night Lights. Season 3, Episode 11. "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall" JD and his dad have a violent clash over his new girlfriend. Landry helps Tyra (again). Matt's grandmother has an accident.

The show brought me to tears again. This time it was in the Tyra storyline and it was because of what her mother said to her. Wow. Of all the characters on the show, I would have expected her to be the least likely to come out with something deep, insightful and inspiring. But she did. And it was a lovely moment.

I also enjoyed the handling of the accident that Matt's grandmother had. It was very low key. Like a real life incident. Yet it was destructive, and called lots of issues into sharp focus. Like a real-life accident might do. I'm glad the writers have opted to keep Matt's mother in the picture. And they are not teasing us with the promise that she might leave. In fact, she's being nothing but supportive and helpful. The writers are letting the drama/conflict come from other things (mostly the grandmother, what a great character) and she story/show is all the better for it.

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 22. "Kidney Now!" Liz becomes a relationship expert. Liz?! And Jack organises a benefit concert to help his (new) dad get a kidney.

A great season finale. After three season's of romantic disasters, Liz inadvertently becomes a relationship guru. All thanks to a catchphrase she write for Jenna/TGS. It's an example of the weird, zany logic that runs rampant on this cool show and it's a great place to bring Liz to, to end the season.

Chris Parnell returns. And pretty much steals the show.

Almost.

The finale (the actual Kidney Now! song) is the real highlight of the episode. Many real stars appear, playing themselves and sing their hearts out in an odd (but very, very catchy) little ditty designed to get Mr. Green a brand new kidney.

Rules Of Engagement. Season 3, Episode 13. "AARP" The girls host a sex toy party and Jeff and Adam get paranoid. Russell pretends to be married.

Pretty good. Not the best episode of the season, but still provokes a lot of laughter. The engine driving this is the idea that Jeff loves his wife and wants to satisfy her in bed. He's goes overboard (hence the comedy) but his heart is sure in the right place. None of the season three episodes had Jeff behaving like a neanderthal. And the show is much better for it.

Oliver Hudson has become adept at being the 'dumb one' in the group and he excels at reaction shots.

Russell's plotline was a a bit of yawner, but not so much that it ruined the episode.

Worst Week. Episode 6. "The Ring" The baby swallows the ring, Mel hates her dress and Dick's mother arrives.

Lots to like here. The episode opens with great chemistry between Kyle Bornheimer and Erinn Hayes and the episode that follows - once again - highlights Sam and Mel as a united team in the face of all that the world throws at them.

Nancy Lenehan gets several funny scenes, reacting to the presence of Olympia Dukakis as Dick's mean mother. Lenehan's a hoot.

Sam manages to do a lot of things right in this episode. He bonds with Dick over the fighting women, he sticks up for Angela, he destroys the wedding dress (making Mel insanely happy) and he is able to get the family to mend broken fences. It's all very enjoyable, but is the show's premise slipping away at this stage?

Highlight? Friday Night Lights (Tyra's mom)
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Sat, May 30, 09 - 30 Rock, Dexter, Friday Night Lights, Prison Break, Flashpoint, Corner Gas,

07.00 30 Rock
07.30 Dexter
08.30 Friday Night Lights
09.30 Prison Break
11.30 Flashpoint
01.00 Corner Gas

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 21. "Mama Mia" Liz competes with Jenna, while Jack meets his dad.

If I was a TV character, I'd want Alan Alda as my TV dad. Wow. Great casting. They even had Stuart Margolin as a runner-up!

And Steve Buscemi appearing again as private eye Lenny.

Yet, the show isn't swamped by guest stars and some of the funniest lines/moments come from the regulars (particularly Liz). Liz's advice-from-The-Sims bit at the very start is a classic.

Dexter. Season 3, Episode 10. "Go Your Own Way" Dexter and Miguel have a battle of wits, as each tries to get the upper hand.

One of the best episodes of Dexter ever made. Since Dexter is all about stealth we don't normally get to see him in a battle of wits scenario. So this is a new departure for the show: Dexter in all-out war with somebody. And, to make it even better, the war is fought through polite conversation in front of lots of regular people.

Except for the confrontation at the very end. The big face-to-face on the rooftop. That was amazing. Great performances from both men. Jimmy Smits can go from likable to hateful in a single conversation. Talented guy. His considerable on-screen charisma doesn't work against him when he plays a villain.

Then there's Michael C. Hall. The confrontation on the rooftop is amazing. The energy levels of the two men are completely different. Smits' Miguel is yelling and screaming with passion and hatred, while Hall's Dexter is pure calm and disconnection in the middle of the storm. It's as if Hall wasn't even in the scene at all, but digitally added in later. I'm not sure how he did it, but he really pulled off something remarkable here.

Friday Night Lights. Season 3, Episode 10. "The Giving Tree" Eric finds his teenage daughter in bed with her boyfriend, Joe McCoy tries to keep his teenage son away from a potential girlfriend, Buddy loses the trust of his teenage daughter and Landry tells Tyra a few things about the way she uses him.

A powerful and wonderful episode. Except for the (weak) Tyla/Landry stuff this is all about parents and parenting: Buddy makes a mistake and tries to recover from it, Joe is a total jerk and Eric & Tami have to deal with Julie's growing up.

When Connie Britton started to cry I started to cry, too. I honestly couldn't hold back the tears (they came in a flood) as I watched Tami and Julie have 'the sex talk'. Connie Britton is amazing. That's a given. The sun rises every day, the earth is round and Connie Britton is amazing. Some things are just obvious. But, even so, I was still amazed by what she was able to do with this material. Likewise: Aimee Teegarden. They were both wonderful in this scene/story. It was such a minimalist moment (if that is the correct way of saying it). Very little dialogue, or acting, or anything. Just a wave of emotion being channeled by the actresses.

And there were the guys: Kyle Chandler and Zach Gilford were superb. Their big scene was a very different kind of scene, but nonetheless I feel like the show managed to capture something very real and portray it in a way that did it justice. And touched the heart.

Yet, for all the tears and emotion, there was lots about the Eric-finds-Julie-having-sex storyline that was hilariously funny. It provoked nervous giddy laughter on many occasions. Matt is usually at the center of these comedic moments (offering to meet Julie at the movies, or entering the Taylor household to meet Coach).

The McCoy family had it's share of drama in this episode. For me, the jury is still out on these characters. They seem a bit one-dimensional for a show like FNL. Hasn't Joe got anything else in his life, except his son's football career? Is that it for this guy? His wife has been even more bland until the final scenes of this episode, where she becomes much more interesting when it becomes clear that she's more concerned that their son have a girlfriend and a normal life.

The casting, however, is superb. D.W. Moffett, Janine Turner and Jeremy Sumpter are three of my favourite performers from previous projects and (except for Turner, who only really got a chance to shine with this episode) they have been having a good season.

The Buddy-loses-Lyla's-money storyline was just as heartfelt and heartbreaking as everything else in the episode.

Only the Tyra/Landry stuff left me lacking. Landry's right: she uses him. So what? Let's move on. Quickly. Tyra works best in storylines that have nothing to do with romantic cat and mouse. Put them together, or split them apart, but stop writing about it. Create a status quo. Leave it be. And write about Tyra's efforts to make something of her life. Please!

That aside, this was a special and wonderful episode of FNL.

Prison Break: The Final Break. "The Old Ball and Chain" Sara goes to prison.

Wow. If this is what they had planned for Season Five then we were in for a great ride, had it gone ahead. This hour of TV is one of the best that Prison Break has offered. The show finds clever ways to include established characters (like Krantz, T-Bag and Gretchen), introduces several great new characters (Daddy, Wheatley and Simms) and - with the new prison - creates a fascinating new milieu.

Lori Petty was superb. And so was her character. Sara is such a lovely and sweet person that it is a stroke of genius to send her to prison. Man, I wish this was a full season deal.

Flashpoint. Episode 13. "Between Heartbeats" The son of the guy shot in the pilot comes after Ed. And the team. And he's an expert in urban warfare.

This time the bad guy knows what he is doing, really knows what he is doing, and we get one of the most intense episodes of this great show.

One of the main regulars gets gunned down in this one. I really wasn't expecting that.

Corner Gas. Season 5, Episode 13. "Outside The Box" Brent and Karen set out to find out what Lacey is keeping in a mysterious box. Oscar and Wanda start to crash funerals. Food food. Meanwhile the rest of the regulars take sides as a call centre is proposed in town.

It starts off very strong (with one of the funniest every Hank scenes and one of the funniest ever pre-credits gags) but it runs out of steam well before the end. The exploits of Oscar and Wanda are particularly unfunny. The Hank/Davis stuff is mostly good, but goes nowhere. Only the story of the mysterious box keeps inventive and manages to deliver a nice punchline (a similar box in a similar small town in Scotland.)

Highlight? Friday Night Lights (Connie Britton)
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Wed, May 27, 09 - House, 30 Rock, Reaper

07.30 House
08.30 30 Rock
09.00 Reaper

House. Season 5, Episode 23. "Under My Skin" A ballerina is sick, House is still seeing 'Amber'.

This story arc is great. Knowing that 'Amber' is really House's own thoughts makes for fascinating viewing and Anne Dudek is superb in the part. And crazy hot. (I have a thing for evil women. In real life. No, really. I do.)

Anyway.

The case-of-the-week is boring and pushed to b-plot status this week, as House tells Wilson, and later Cuddy, about his hallucinations. Watching him self-diagnose is fascinating. And the things 'Amber' said to him while he was crawling along the floor towards the pill were fascinating also. Why? Because we know that a part of him is thinking this stuff.

It's a great storyline and I have no idea where/how they will resolve it.

Away from House's personal problems and the case-of-the-week, Chase got some quality screentime and a strong story. Only a few scenes. But, still, a strong story.

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 20. "The Natural Order" Tracy acts responsible and professional, while Liz (to counteract this) becomes more 'one of the guys'. Jack confronts his mother's boyfriend with a speech he wrote to say to his father.

A weak, strained and mostly-unfunny episode of 30 Rock. It's way cool to see Tracy Morgan playing Tracy as dull, hard-working professional but the attempt to make it into a war of equality with Liz falls flat. It's about as funny as any half-developed idea.

Jack's sub-plot was funnier, with the episodes one true laugh out loud moment being the moment were Jack gave his short speech.

But when the total number of laugh out loud moments in an episode of 30 Rock is 1, you know you are watching a weak episode.

Reaper. Season 2, Episode 12. "Business Casualty" Sam goes corporate, and sends Nina to rescue his Dad from Hell. Meanwhile Sock has a chance to build the 'perfect' woman.

Another winner. There's no case-of-the-week at all. Rare for Reaper, but not unheard of. Instead, The Devil sends Sam into the world of Big Business and the show puts the sort of crazy twist on things that this show manages so well. Sam's disgruntled rival (Matt Champagne) is responsible for many big laughs. I especially loved the moment where (in the background) we see him take out his anger on a nearby bin.)

Sock, meanwhile, has a shot at dating a demon (Catherine Reitman) and asks her to morph her appearance into his 'ideal woman'. She agrees and he proceeds to amass data and images for her to work with/off.

The scene with Serinda Swan is particularly hilarious. Sock produces a measuring tape and starts taking notes on her face after he meets her in a bar. One of the funniest things I have ever seen.

Likewise, the exchange between Ben and Nina as she prepared to leave for Hell. Simply hilarious.

Reaper is pretty darn close to being the funniest show on TV.

Reaper has been cancelled, but it's chances of it returning in syndication look very good.

Click here to find out more. Or here. Help if you can. Please!

Highlight? House (Anne Dudek)
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Tue, May 26, 09 - House, Reaper, 30 Rock

07.00 House
08.00 Reaper
09.00 30 Rock

House. Season 5, Episode 22. "House Divided" House treats a deaf kid, while being taunted by his own sub-conscious (in the form of Amber).

For the first ten minutes of this episode I was completely distracted by the joy of having Anne Dudek back on the show. Then, once I realised she as playing a part of House sub-conscious that knew things he did not know he knew... I was completely un-distracted and knee deep in the episode.

Since it had a pretty good case-of-the-week and a real humdinger of a gimmick this ranks as one of the best ever episodes of house. That was before the final minutes, when the story took a very dark twist...

House trying to kill Chase? WTF?!

Reaper. Season 2, Episode 11. "To Sprong, With Love" Sam and the gang must protect a former teacher they all hate from vengeful student recently returned from Hell. Ben prepares to fight a Demon who has an interest in Nina, and Sock becomes the store mascot.

This episode is more driven by the case-of-the-week than recent ones, but the COTW doesn't dominate the episode. Ben and Sock get strong storylines to themselves. The Ben storyline is funny but sweet and romantic, while the Sock tale is pure, unadulterated comedy gold. It ends with him in a brutal fist-fight with a sweet little ol' lady for frak sake. What's not to love?

The ending of this episode is wonderful. The gang sits in a bar together and Andi wonders if they are a bunch of losers. Sock gives a totally cool speech. A speech celebrating the ordinary-ness of these characters. Let's face it, despite being surrounded by Demons and super-powered evil foes on a weekly basis this is an average group of people. They are not like Buffy and her Scooby Gang. Or the sisters on Charmed. Or a million other heroes on a million other similar shows. The heroes on this show spend a lot of time in the local bar, drinking beer and talking about stuff that's going on in their lives. And the show's strength is it's ability to given equal weight to the ordinary/funny stuff of their daily lives while giving equal balance to the crazy stuff that happens in the a-plot every week.

Bret Harrison is a wonderful leading man. He's heroic and dashing like a TV hero, but he carries himself (in this show) like an ordinary schmuck. So it's easy to relate to him and - consequently - the crazy predicament he finds himself in.

Reaper has been cancelled, but it's chances of it returning in syndication look very good.

Click here to find out more. Or here. Help if you can. Please!

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 19. "The Ones" Salma Hayek returns to the show and we learn that Elisa is a notorious murderer. Of course.

The show finds another way to end a relationship between Jack and his high-profile guest star lover. Turning her into a famous killer is a novel way of doing this. Perfectly 30 Rock. And, I suppose, having the character not appear for several episodes made it easier for the audience to become detached from her, and from them as a couple.

Salma Hayek wearing a Battlestar Galactica t-shirt blew me away, by the way.

Highlight? House (Anne Dudek)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Mon, May 25, 09 - House, 30 Rock, Reaper

06.00 House
07.00 30 Rock
07.30 Reaper

House. Season 5, Episode 21. "Saviors" Cameron comes back to single-handedly run a case for House. Why?

It's got a good case-of-the-week and a genuinely compelling mystery, with regard to why Cameron is back. Having her back is great. Not because I'm a huge fan of the character, although I do like her a lot, but because House is the kind of show that needs to change the status quo to keep it interesting and fresh.

The resolution was satisfying.

Maybe.

It makes sense.

Unless you think about it too much.

Cameron's actions are a bit silly and TV cliché female behaviour. And there's a mystery surrounding her actions simply because she chooses not to confide in anyone. So, while I liked it, I have to say that after years and years of watching House, there is a part of me that wonders why she didn't just tell someone...

Also, this episode marks the surprise return of Anne Dudek. That made me very happy. Anne Dudek rocks. Killing her character off was a huge mistake for the show. Nice to see them bending over backwards to bring her back...

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 18. "Jackie Jormp-Jomp" Liz adapts to life away from TGS (she was suspended in the previous episode) while Jack urges Jenna to fake her death to gain publicity for her new movie about Janis Jopl- I mean, Jackie Jormp-Jomp.

Lots of goofy gags pinned onto a fairly standard sit-com plot: hero takes a break from regular situation/job and everything falls apart in their absense causing everyone to learn a lesson.

The 30 Rock version of this is wonderful because they make it all their own. For a start, Liz absolutely loves her job and the script has to send her 180 degrees in the other direction in order to make the middle part of the story work. Not many shows could pull this off. 30 Rock does. By the halfway mark, we are ready to believe that Liz doesn't want to go back to TGS. That's remarkable. If they failed to pull that off, the episode would have failed.

Jenna and Tracy continue to be a wonderful team: working together to cause chaos and destruction in Liz's absense. The final scene with all three of them was a hoot.

Reaper. Season 2, Episode 10. "My Brother's Reaper" Morgan moves in, and makes moves on Nina. The Devil gives Sam a job outside his job description, and Tony appears.

Two ongoing storylines reach completion in this episode. Morgan is killed. But is sure to reappear. And Ted gets Andi fired. I wasn't expecting either one. One had me shocked and the other had me in stitches.

This show is hilarious. Tyler Labine might well be the funniest guy on TV and the writers come up with fantastic material for him, week after week. The stripper clowns... OMG. Genius idea. Perfect Sock.

Ken Marino returns. Always good. But the show finds a wonderful way to bring the equally awesome Michael Ian Black back for a few scenes. How? Well, he communicates through Karaoke machine. Of course. Watching Michael Ian Black sing it up was a hoot. I kept hoping for more scenes of him singing. They really, really should make this a recurring feature on the show.

Then there was Michael Weaver. Seriously, this show is awesome. So, so funny. With great stories, too.

Reaper has been cancelled, but it's chances of it returning in syndication look very good.

Click here to find out more. Or here. Help if you can. Please!

Highlight? House (Anne Dudek!)
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Wed, May 20, 09 - 30 Rock, Rules Of Engagement, 24

06.30 30 Rock
07.00 Rules Of Engagement
07.30 24
08.30 24
10.30 24

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 17. "Cutbacks" Liz has to make budget cuts, Jack is firing people and Tracy & Jenna think Kenneth is a mass murderer.

The genius of 30 Rock is not only making comedy from the recession, a financial crisis we are all dealing with in the real world, but in pairing that with a storyline that is surreal and cartoonish. Quite an accomplishment.

Rules Of Engagement. Season 3, Episode 12. "House Money" Jeff has some extra cash, so he and Audrey decide to blow it all. But they miscalculate...

Wonderful.

I think I love this show because most of the a-stories are about a married couple who spend a lot of time together and enjoy each other's company. Early seasons generated too many plots by making Jeff dumb and obnoxious, but the third season has ceased that habit, made Audrey central to most of the stories (including this one) and simply left the couple to do their thing.

The conflict in this episode is especially clever. Drama and Comedy both need conflict of some sort to drive the engine of the story. Here the conflict mostly comes from each characters own in-build expectations and goals.

The whole episode is Jeff and Audrey out together for a meal. Nothing still happens, but there are many supremely funny moments and it's just a blast from start to finish.

And I know I'm going to get that every week. A really cool married couple who like one another and do lots of stuff together. I think I just like tuning in to see that.

24. Season 7, Episode 22. "5AM - 6AM" Jibraan is forced onto the subway with the ticking bomb under a nearby seat, Chloe and Janice bicker (while saving the day), Jack runs Tony off the road and hits him in the face. A lot. Agent Aaron Piece makes a phone call to someone we like very much, and Kim Bauer meets two very nice people at the airport.

Another superb episode.

1. Jibraan's final episode is packed full of tension. So far he's been a victim/hostage but with this episode he gets a chance to step up and be a hero. And herein lies the genius of 24. Jack is too far away to help. So he gets on Jibraan's earpiece and tells him what to do. We like Jibraan. A lot. Traditionally, the innocent people in 24 don't do very well. They have a 50/50 chance of survival. So, while we know that Jibraan will almost certainly save the day, we have no way of knowing whether he will live or die in the act. Great stuff.

2. Olivia's storyline gets better and better. Despite all that she has done, we kinda like the girl. Now she is in way over her head and things are getting worse. Part of the reason I like her, I think, is the fact that Aaron Pierce likes her and the two of them have fantastic chemistry. He's the most decent person they have ever had on the show (except, maybe, for David Palmer) and he's really fond on the conniving little bitch. So, we reason, she can't be all bad. Having said that, I cheered when Aaron picked up the phone and called a character I honestly thought was gone from the show for good. I really thought that that character was screwed and out of the show. It seems not... Yay!

3. The biggest surprise for me (apart from the above-mentioned phone call) was the abundance of wonderful, funny scenes between Chloe and Janice. And, thanks to Chloe being in the picture, I honestly find myself liking Janice for the first time this season. It's a pairing that shouldn't work, since Janice is nothing more than Chloe-lite but - for some reason that only the gods of truly good writing and great cast chemistry understand - the two of them light up the screen when the bicker and squabble. Chloe had some of her best-ever lines in this episode and Mary Lynn Rajskub is awesome.

4. Kim is in danger again! I can't believe they are going down this route. But, having said that, I have to admit that... it works. The dilemma it creates for Jack is one they have used on the show many times before, but... it works. Bottom line: they shocked me with this twist and I cannot wait to see what happens next.



24. Season 7, Episode 23. "6AM-7AM" Jack breaks Tony out of FBI custody, there's a shoot-out at the airport, Olivia detains Ethan with a view towards getting her hands on - and destroying - the memory chip with her incriminating conversation.

On all fronts this was a superb episode of 24.

1. Kim Bauer turns action heroine and goes after the man who might be able to lead her to her kidnapped father. It's a great plotline and it's strange/wonderful to find myself so aggressively rooting for Kim Bauer of all people. Maybe all memories of the cougar incident are gone forever. Aside from Kim Bauer going all Jack Bauer on us (yay!) there's a lot of other cool stuff going on at the airport. The shoot-out at the airport was frantic and exciting and an example of typical 24. The stunt with the car looked great, filmed - as it was - with Kim in the foreground. Then the battle for the laptop, as both Kim and the bad guy caught fire, put a perfect cap on a perfect sequence.

2. Over at the White House we got to see some great scenes with Aaron and Ethan, as they plotted the take down of this season's other bad guy/gal: Olivia. Sprague Grayden's performance wad different in this episode: there's no trace of niceness in Olivia this time. Perhaps it's to make us dislike her a bit more so we'll enjoy her upcoming fall from grace (if that is what, in fact, happens). Or maybe it's just the character resolving herself to her course of action. She sent the funds in this episode, so I presume she's knuckling down and preparing to defend her position.

3. Tony and Jack's storyline, finds Jack a prisoner and Tony asking the woman in his life to let him get close to the Major Bad Guy of the season. Why? I hope they are doing this to provide Tony with some sort of redemption in the final episode. I hope we will see Tony in a different light after another hour of the show. I hope it has something do with getting vengeance for the murder of Michelle. And I hope it will allow me to keep liking The Tony That Was when the story is over. Jack makes a spectacular escape in the final minutes of the episode. An escape I didn't expect. Despite the fact that Jack is always escaping from situations exactly like this one. It totally caught me off guard.

So: the season finale is upon us! Jack's free and pissed off, Tony's a bad guy but he clearly has a an agenda, and Ethan finally knows that Olivia is bad. What can he do about it?



24. Season 7, Episode 24. "7AM - 8AM" Tony captures Jack and straps a bomb to him, explaining his end game. The President has to choose between her family and her job. Agent Walker steps over the line...

Magnificent.

The best season-ender, to the best season of the best television show ever made.

1. The Tony story arc comes to a satisfying conclusion. In fact, this is scene-for-scene how I wanted it to end. Tony did what he did because of his love for Michelle. Her death sent him over the edge, and - after that - he was willing to do anything to get to the ones responsible. It's a wonderful story and more than redeems him to my satisfaction. The writers are remarkable for being able to pull that off. Tony has killed innocents. He killed Larry (and we liked Larry) and they managed to put it all in perspective. Even better, they left him alive. That's ballsy. They set it up so it looked as if Jack would go for the killshot. And he didn't (need to) take it. Great writing. Satisfying storytelling.

2. The structure of the episode speaks of the confidence of the writers/producers. The big action stuff happens at the start of the episode and it out of the way by the mid-point. The second half of the episode is all about up-close drama and quiet personal scenes. The most dramatic moment of the whole episode (the turning of a head) happened with no dialogue anywhere near it. Again, this speaks volumes of the confidence of a writer who knows they have a great story and knows that they know how to tell it.

3. The performances were amazing. Cherry Jones and Colm Feore did their finest work this season in this episode. The portrait of a family being torn apart was heart-breaking to watch. This is story material that 24 rarely touches upon, but when they go here they know how to tell the story. And with people like Jones and Feore to bring the story to life we are in safe hands. After weak/mean Presidents and silly/boring Presidents, the show has delivered onto us again a President with Integrity that we can love and admire. It's like have David Palmer back. The show has come full circle.

4. With Jack, Tony and Agent Walker you get three sides of the same coin. Tony is the extreme: The good guy who has narrowed his vision so much that he loses sight of the collateral damage he inflicts. Jack is in the middle: The hero who is willing to do unspeakable things to get the right thing done, but who never loses sight of the cost of his actions. Walker is the other extreme: The innocent who stays inside the rules and doesn't understand the costs of going beyond them. With these three characters the show set up an interesting dynamic and made a powerful point. This season could be described as the story/journey of any of these three characters. The fact that the gave the final moment of the episode/season to Agent Walker speaks volumes about the story and it's subtext.

5. For the second episode in a row, the show showed us that pairing Chloe with Janice is a stroke of genius. Chloe has always been awesome, but Janise only really became awesome in these final two episodes. When she was paired with Chloe. Which is ironic, of course, because she's basically a clone of Chloe: The Walker/Janice dynamic is the same as the Jack/Chloe dynamic. Yet, for reasons that I would never have predicted, putting both of them side by side makes them both sparkle. Having the season end with Chloe doing her best to give Janice a compliment, and watching Janice light up when she received the compliment, was the perfect end to their partnership. For this season. Hopefully, the producers know that they are on to a good thing here and will keep this duo in action, together. Many action shows in the past have made us through scene of pathetic comic relief watching bland supporting characters. Here, on 24, you have a wonderful creation - Chloe - played by a wonderful actress - Mary Lynn Rajskub - who can be funny, heroic, sweet, clever, hot and human. In the midst of all the craziness, she can be human and real. Her presence can counterpoint anything else happening onscreen and - most important - the audience loves her. Passionately. We deeply care about her and want her to be happy, okay, acknowledged by Jack and loved by her husband. This season was possibly her best. Hopefully, she's in every episode next year. With Janice not far behind.

6. For the second episode in a row... Kim Bauer was cool. I really liked her in the final minutes of the episode, as she showed herself to be Jack Bauer's daughter and went in - all guns blazing - to get what she wants.

7. The power of this finale was not diminished at all by the fact that many elements of it were easy to predict. I hoped that Tony would be revealed to be working on an agenda to avenge his dead wife. I could only see two possible endings to the Olivia storyline and, when they went the route of exposing her, I could predict how the President would behave. We always knew that Kim would save Jack at the end of the season. We knew it, but it was still satisfying to see it happen. In this way, the show as not 'predictable' in a bad way. Rather, it fulfilled on the promise of all these storylines. In spades.

8. Not since the heyday of Wiseguy has a television series so excited and inspired me. Wiseguy pioneered a new type of storytelling, and now - twenty years later - 24 is doing the same thing. Even the subject matter is sometimes similar. Jack's speech here on the laws and the lawmakers reminded me of Vinnie's pontifications during the Washington D.C./Japanese Yen storyarc on Wiseguy. Both shows are action fare, with depth and scope far beyond everything else on TV.

I love 24 with a passion. I don't think I have ever been more proud to say that than I am tonight.

Highlight? 24 (magnificent)
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Mon, May 11, 09 - Parks And Recreation, 30 Rock, Famous Five, Superboy

09.30 Parks And Recreation
10.00 30 Rock
03.00 The Famous Five
03.30 Superboy

Parks And Recreation. Episode 5. "The Banquet" Leslie's mother is honoured with an award.

Aziz Ansari and Nick Offerman are emerging as my favourite cast members at this point. All the big laughs in this episode come from their characters.

The idea of Leslie and Ann being mistaken for a gay couple was inspired, but I felt that the episode didn't really run with it. And Leslie sounds like Michael Scott whenever she opens her mouth.



30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 16. "Apollo, Apollo" Jack turns 50, Tracy blasts off into space (sorta) and Liz and Jenna fight over Dennis Duffy (sorta).

When Dean Winters returns for a guest shot, the show is always the better for it. Dennis has another dumb business idea, in this episode, and he manages to get under Liz's skin again.

Adam West guests as himself (does he play any other parts anymore?) and there's a wonderful scene where Jack banishes everyone from his party, with Adam West standing beside him, that reminded me of the banishing-everyone-from-the-party scene from Batman Begins. How clever is 30 Rock?

I loved the ending. The core of this show is the Liz/Jack friendship and his line about not knowing what he would do without her was wonderful.



The Famous Five. Episode 4. "Five Go to Smuggler's Top, Part One" Strange lights on the marsh...

Another Enid Blyton book gets the TV treatment. Gloria Tors does a great job with the adaptation. The pace is fast, but never rushed.

It's a curious opening episode, however. The guest character of Sooty (played by Jonathan Wilmott) takes the lead for the duration. He's the one who spots the mysterious lights, he's the one who guides the Five around and - in effect - takes over leadership of the little group. While George still manages to get lots of quality screentime, the others are pushed way to the background. Dick and Anne seem to have no lines at all, sadly, and there are a lot of scenes with all six children sitting around while Sooty and George do the talking.

The guest cast are - as ever - really amazing. Ronald Fraser, John Carson and Ron Pember in this episode alone. And the musical score, which I always love, was great once again.



Superboy. Season 2, Episode 3. "Metallo" A small-time crook gets a push into the big leagues (and some super-powers in the bargain).

There's very little Stacy Haiduk and one supremely dumb moment (where Superboy used his Super-Shouting ability to say a message that everyone in the whole city can hear) but this is still a solid and very enjoyable Superboy tale. Largely because of Michael Callan who carries the episode with a great performance as John Corben, the man who becomes Metallo.

Highlight? 30 Rock (the Batman Begins gag)
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Mon, Apr 6, 09 - 30 Rock, Jury, Law And Order, House, Phil Silvers, Seven Days

05.30 30 Rock
06.00 The Jury
07.00 Law And Order
08.00 House
01.30 The Phil Silvers Show
02.30 Seven Days

30 Rock. Season 3, Episode 15. "The Bubble" Liz's boyfriend lives life in a bubble, shielded from all kinds of truth by his amazing good looks.

The sort of stories/jokes on this show won't appear on anything else. You've never seen them before. They come from the characters and some very, very inventive writing.

The Jury. Episode 7. "Too Jung to Die" Did a psychiatrist try to murder his patient, or is she delusional?

Zeljko Ivanek turns in a typically great performance. It's an unusual episode. For once there is no murder and - at the very end - the jury are unable to reach a verdict. It's also unusual because it's very much a case of one person's word against another. And one of those people has a very hard time telling fantasy from reality.

The final sting, of course, comes in the final seconds when we (the audience) are allowed to see what really happened. Was I surprised? Yes, once again, the show managed to surprise me with the revelation at the end.

Law And Order. Season 19, Episode 8. "Chattel" Children as slaves.

After a weak episode, the show rebounds with one that is absolutely superb. And it's an absolutely perfect example of a type of episode that the show does really well: it starts off as a simple case of murder, grows until it's a major incident or national/international importance and then it all comes back to the murder with a solid punch.

"Chattel" is an example of Law And Order at it's very best. A great story and lots of solid work from all of the regulars.

House. Season 5, Episode 17. "The Social Contract" A patient who speaks his mind, and cannot stop.

Despite being haunted by the feeling that I've seen all of this before, I must admit that this is quite a strong episode. Unlike many patients (who fade into the background) Jay Karnes pretty much carries the episode. I love this guy. He reminds me of Kyle Secor. I love him, too. If I had a network, I'd cast them as cops who are brothers.

Or something.

Anyway. He carries the episode as the patient who says everything that comes into his mind. There are many standout scenes. He breaks his daughter's heart by telling her she is of below average intelligence, and says a lot of cruel things to his poor wife. At the end, when she comes to the hospital to collect him and they head home, you know in your heart that that little family is destroyed. And it's quite powerful stuff.

House, of course, is fascinated by this unusual patient and the script cleverly has a look at all sorts of social contracts: the white lies we all tell on a day to day basis. It's good fun, and very interesting and stimulating.

Best scene? House arranges to have the patient hit on Cuddy by talking about her amazing body. Hilarious.

The Phil Silvers Show. Episode 3. "The WAC" Bilko competes with a lady sergeant for a jeep.

Interesting that after only three episodes the show is already toying with the formula. Not only does Bilko 'lose' in this episode, but he also gets a girlfriend. The final scene, where she turns his own tactics on him are hilarious. As is the whole episode, it must be said.

Seven Days. Season 2, Episode 3. "Parker.com" A computer program (a female one, at that) takes over the world.

This is a crazy, crazy episode. But it's a whole lot of fun. The pace is very fast, and the world at the end when Parker has sex with the computer. Yes, I'm serious. It's absolutely crazy stuff, but I loved every second of it. Keegan Connor Tracy is crazy hot as the computer program in question. Ever since her days on Jake 2.0 I've been a huge fan of this lady. But, she wasn't playing a sex vixen on Jake (unfortunately) and she's fantastic here.

This episode is also unusual because there's no time travel element. Parker isn't allowed to travel back in time until near the very end, so - in many ways - this plays out like an episode from a conventional action-adventure show. A somewhat crazy action-adventure show, but never mind...

Also worth mentioning: the landscapes at the very end, when Parker and the program are face-to-face are beautiful.

Highlight? Law And Order (powerful)
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