Ready for Fall TV?
Even though it's been years since we were in school (we're not telling how long, thank you) and had a lengthy summer vacation we still get a little down the day after the Labor Day holiday. Eventually that feeling goes away by the time fall officially begins and you welcome the cooler nights, but until then we're in that odd part of the year that seems like limbo.
Fortunately we're also in that time of year when there are a lot of things to look forward to, so as fall rolls along we'll periodically take some time to point them out. Yes, there will be some guilty pleasures along with the not-so guilty ones and a few pleasant surprises.
Melrose Place. Tonight the updated version of the 90's cult fave premieres. Even those of you who remember the original and followed it religiously can admit that it wasn't high-quality--but it sure was fun when it got outrageous. That first season meandered miserably until Heather Locklear joined the cast and creator Darren Star decided to inject good campy fun. That was then. The word on the new series ain't so great--let's hope it's bad enough to be fun.
Many of the original cast will make guest appearances in the new show but the primary focus will be on the new cast, two of whom play children of the original characters (i.e. Ashlee Simpson plays the daughter of Sydney (Laura Leighton),the late character who has inexplicably been resurrected). Sexy Victor Webster will be on also although seemingly not a regular. He'll be playing a gay character here (yay). We'll watch of course and if it keeps us entertained without getting annoyed we may stick with it.
Reality shows.
--Big Brother comes to a merciful end next week after starting off strong and slowly deteriorating. Along the way the producers tried to influence results by taking "game play" out of the hands of the houseguests and leaving it up to "America". It seemed to backfire on the show causing one guest to melt down and get expelled. Little by little the interesting houseguests were voted out leaving us with finalists that no one seems to want to root for.
--Survivor: Samoa. The perennial favorite returns next week with 20 contestants and a few changes and/or twists as expected. As usual there are a number of beautiful men on board for the new season, but don't make the mistake of falling for any of them--good-looking hunks are automatically targeted for getting voted out because they're viewed as threats. Before that happens we'll at least a few episodes of eye-candy.
--Amazing Race. There's a reason why this show has always won the Emmy Award in this category--it is always good. The beauty of the show is that it contestants aren't voted off by the fellow competitors and there's no time to play sabotage--it's a race, literally. Naturally the show is edited in such a way as to create heroes & villains but for the most part nice guys DON'T finish last.
--Project Runway. Thankfully the new season hasn't lost any of its sparkle after moving to Lifetime. Talented designers, a few whack-jobs, interesting challenges, some "what were they thinking?" moments and it's really only just begun.
Question marks?
--Fast Forward. This new ABC sci-fi drama would have had us drooling if it had come out five years ago. But that was before Lost suckered us into a love-hate relationship which ends early next year. It was also before Heroes kept us going then disappointed us. FF better have learned from these shows what not to do or they can kiss our viewership good-bye.
Fortunately we're also in that time of year when there are a lot of things to look forward to, so as fall rolls along we'll periodically take some time to point them out. Yes, there will be some guilty pleasures along with the not-so guilty ones and a few pleasant surprises.
Melrose Place. Tonight the updated version of the 90's cult fave premieres. Even those of you who remember the original and followed it religiously can admit that it wasn't high-quality--but it sure was fun when it got outrageous. That first season meandered miserably until Heather Locklear joined the cast and creator Darren Star decided to inject good campy fun. That was then. The word on the new series ain't so great--let's hope it's bad enough to be fun.
Many of the original cast will make guest appearances in the new show but the primary focus will be on the new cast, two of whom play children of the original characters (i.e. Ashlee Simpson plays the daughter of Sydney (Laura Leighton),the late character who has inexplicably been resurrected). Sexy Victor Webster will be on also although seemingly not a regular. He'll be playing a gay character here (yay). We'll watch of course and if it keeps us entertained without getting annoyed we may stick with it.
Reality shows.
--Big Brother comes to a merciful end next week after starting off strong and slowly deteriorating. Along the way the producers tried to influence results by taking "game play" out of the hands of the houseguests and leaving it up to "America". It seemed to backfire on the show causing one guest to melt down and get expelled. Little by little the interesting houseguests were voted out leaving us with finalists that no one seems to want to root for.
--Survivor: Samoa. The perennial favorite returns next week with 20 contestants and a few changes and/or twists as expected. As usual there are a number of beautiful men on board for the new season, but don't make the mistake of falling for any of them--good-looking hunks are automatically targeted for getting voted out because they're viewed as threats. Before that happens we'll at least a few episodes of eye-candy.
--Amazing Race. There's a reason why this show has always won the Emmy Award in this category--it is always good. The beauty of the show is that it contestants aren't voted off by the fellow competitors and there's no time to play sabotage--it's a race, literally. Naturally the show is edited in such a way as to create heroes & villains but for the most part nice guys DON'T finish last.
--Project Runway. Thankfully the new season hasn't lost any of its sparkle after moving to Lifetime. Talented designers, a few whack-jobs, interesting challenges, some "what were they thinking?" moments and it's really only just begun.
Question marks?
--Fast Forward. This new ABC sci-fi drama would have had us drooling if it had come out five years ago. But that was before Lost suckered us into a love-hate relationship which ends early next year. It was also before Heroes kept us going then disappointed us. FF better have learned from these shows what not to do or they can kiss our viewership good-bye.
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