Welcome back!

I have decided after a long absence to reinvigorate ye ol' blog. Perhaps I've been inspired by my hubby's blog, which has really taken off, or that our group of grad school friends has its own lil' blog now. Oh, and the fall TV season is in full swing, so there is much to rant and rave about.

First let me let out some raves. As has been mentioned a long time ago, the big show in our house is Lost. If you haven't watched it - start! Or even better, rent/buy the first season on DVD. So many yummy extras. My favorite character is Sun - I think the actress who plays her (Yujin Kim) is just beautiful and astonishing.

Another favorite which I haven't mentioned in the past is Grey's Anatomy. Yes, I love Desperate Housewives. But so far this season it's been a tad subpar (except Marcia Cross, who continues to rock the free world). Meanwhile Grey's has gotten even better. Remember when ER was really great those first few seasons? It's like that, with less blood. My favorite character is definitely Dr. Bailey, furthering my obsession with strong African-American women. She's played by diminutive actress Chandra Wilson. The men are all adorable, but our favorite has to be George. He needs a hug. From me. Repeatedly.

As for new shows, the one I got hooked on this fall is Commander in Chief. It really sucked me in - how did that happen? Remember that awful Geena Davis sitcom? But seriously - this is a good show. Like the good seasons of The West Wing but more personal.

Now y'all know I love me some reality television. So what happened this season? It all sucks! Survivor is possibly the worst ever, and I'm not even watching it. (Bringing back two former players to give them a "second chance?" Lame.) Beloved favorite The Amazing Race came out with a "Family Edition" which features a plethora of unlikable personalities, lame challenges, and completely unexotic locales (example: find the country's largest office chair in nowhere, Alabama). I'm so disheartened. All I have to say is that the producers of TAR had better turn this ship around, or I'm done with CBS. (This summer's edition of Big Brother was remarkably interesting, so I have hope.)

And now onto my rant for this post. I will be talking about the weekly sob-fest known as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Come on, you know you've watched it. Each week follows a set formula:

1. Present non-wealthy family's tragic sob story, generally involving a dead relative.
2. Family is sent on a vacation, while Ty sends them periodic videos of what's happening, and it's all completely fake and lame.
3. Designers occasionally work on the house, but mostly act in even lamer set-up sketches.
4. Family returns while a bevy of paid extras stand around and cheer.
5. We see the whole house (which is always ridiculously nice, yet impractical), and the family weeps buckets. We also weep because the kitten - she is being choked.
6. Lather, rinse, repeat.

What kills me about this is how unbelievably emotional the designers are. It's like they have all been force-fed estrogen in mass quantities. The biggest crybaby is this woman, but because she's usually pretty sincere, I'll forgive her. Next would be Paul, who is a complete girly-man when it comes to sad family situations. And then we have the woman that I like the least - she's relentlessly perky (and not in a good Paige Davis way), yet always is drowning in crocodile tears by the show's end.

And of course there's also Ty, who is like an extremely annoying Peter Pan. Extreme Makeover: Asshole Edition. I hate him with the passion of a thousand burning hot suns. Where is Amy Wynn when I need her???

My parting thought is how astonished I am by how much I watch on the major networks this season. If you had told me two years ago that I would be watching more ABC than NBC, I'd have said that Britney Spears must be President (please, don't let that happen). Here's the surprising rundown of my regular week on the non-cable networks:

ABC - 5 (DH, Grey's, Commander, Lost, Supernanny)

CBS - 1 (TAR)

NBC - 0*

Fox - 4 (Simpsons, King of the Hill, Arrested Development, Kitchen Confidential)

WB - 1 (Reba)

UPN - 1 (Everybody Hates Chris)

* The one exception is that I do watch Saturday Night Live pretty regularly, but as it's not part of the prime-time schedule, I didn't include it.

Well that's it for this post. I'll try to get back on here with more regularity. Please feel free to post comments, and do visit the wonderful SNU's blog.

The good shot.

Newly married.

Get a life!

Wow, I really need to write here more often. People weren't kidding when they warned me how hard it was to keep up a blog...

Today a little discussion of a reality show on MTV - the Real World/Road Rules Challenge. I'm sure you've heard of it - it's been on constantly for like SIX YEARS. Which brings me to the brief ranting period. Basically the cast is a bunch of idiots who have been on previous seasons of The Real World and Road Rules. They compete, win prizes, vote people out, etc.

What's truly sad about this show is that some of the older competitors have seriously been on this challenge show every season. In other words, these people have no life, and completely finance their lives by appearing on this lame show. And they're proud of it! Like it's a badge of honor! These people are so UN-real, it's ridiculous.

Of course the only reason to watch this is for the interpersonal drama. The challenges are really stupid. Actually Entertainment Weekly did a wonderful review of the show last week. You can read about it here.

Most of the men are very calm, and never cause any fuss. There's always a bit of drama from Mike a.k.a. "The Mizz" but that's it. The women, however, are pretty much only there so they can self-destruct and beat each other up (literally). A few guaranteed drama queens are Coral (who defines the TV stereotype of "angry African-American woman"), Veronica (who is pure evil and I hate her), and Rachel (a lesbian who had a total meltdown once when she got voted out).

Then there is Ayanna. She's just one of those girls that never seems to get along with anyone. If you were placing bets in Vegas, she'd be a sure bet of someone who will be voted out before the first 4 episodes are over. But here's an interesting tidbit - I saw her at the movie theater the other day! She was obviously in a rush to get to the start of a movie, so I didn't approach her. But of course I ran home to call my friend who always watches the show (so we can compare notes later).

The other reason to watch the show is for hot guys, plain and simple. Some of the boys are just delicious, and they are often competing on the beach, so...no shirts. The most fun this season was a challenge that involved melting a big block of ice. The guys did some serious gay porn stuff to melt it. It was...kinda hot. :) I can't post a photo from the website here, but you can check some out for yourself.

This week I'm sad because the girl I like the most - Cynthia of Real World: Miami got kicked out because she wouldn't "step up as a leader." Whatever, bitches!

And the commercial that's driving me crazy this week if for Hecht's. I believe that Hecht's is an East Coast chain, so you may not be familiar with it, but it's basically the major department store chain in our area (like Hudson's, Macy's, etc.) I could complain about their commercials every week, because they always suck. They generally involve some kind of animated bullshit that's non-specific enough to sell...everything, I guess. This week they brought back the same dumb theme they used for the holidays last year - little "presents" that have female voices. And faces. And arms and legs. BELIEVE me - they annoy.

But to prove I'm not all piss and vinegar, let me offer a commercial that I really like! And it's for a TRUCK! Yes, my current favorite ad is for none other than Toyota trucks. It basically is written like a nature consveration piece, but the thing that is being "saved" is...truck beds. I can barely explain how clever it is - you just have to see it. I tried to see if I could snag it online, but no luck. If anyone finds it, let me know so I can post it here!

The ebb and flow of reality TV

Last night I watched “the usual” shows – Survivor and The Apprentice. Surprisingly, Survivor actually had an episode that was up to par with previous seasons when the show was watchable. It still wasn’t very good, but…it gave me a glimmer of hope. Perhaps I’m just a sucker for the obligatory “letters from home” episode. The oldest woman, Scout, is a lesbian, and talked about her partner. So cute! But it won’t change the fact that this show has jumped the shark. It happened right about the time that America “gave” Rupert a million dollars…just because they liked him. UGH.

Conversely, The Apprentice was just not that great. Frankly, I think this show is tanking real fast. I fault the casting – there are just too many strong personalities that are basically detestable people. By the way, I think former military man Kelly is a wee bit gay.

I was surprised to find that the most fun I had watching TV last night was late night – on the Game Show Network! Yes, it’s a total guilty pleasure – I freely admit it. I love Extreme Dodgeball! This is hilarious, because – it’s a sport. But I truly get into it. I’m always pulling for the CPAs, and a couple guys on the other teams are hot. But my new fave team was MAD, which features some really good female players. (I’m a complete feminist when it comes to athletics.)

On a side note, as I was flipping channels I came across Lifetime’s “Women Who Rock” concert. It was so lame. First of all, the performers would come out and only sing tiny little snippets of songs. Then I see Debbie Harry – RAPPING. The hell? And then out comes En Vogue. Don’t get me wrong – I love them. But they aren’t aging very well, and the shortest woman (Maxine) looks like she gained 100 pounds, right after getting her hair dyed by a dog groomer. Someone call What Not to Wear – she needs help!

Commercial complaint of the day – I can’t stand those damn Perdue chicken commercials. Their spokesman is possibly the King of Geekdom. Please take this idiot off my TV!