Clearing out the DVR

This has been a lovely week. I’ve gotten a lot of things cleaned up and filed away. I’ve had more opportunities to exercise than I have in, oh, between the weather and rehearsals, call it the past six months. And I’ve boiled my DVR holdings down from the high 90s to less than 50 percent. While I’ve still got the first two seasons of BBC America presents “The Tudors” and several movies, dribs, drabs and odds and ends to take in, I’d call this some significant progress.

Being Human

I’ll start with the season three finale of “Being Human” on BBC America. After building an entire season of suspense by playing one note over and over – to wit, that Mitchell will be killed by a werewolf and the evil vampire Herrick’s still in their mild-mannered lodger somewhere – the ghostie in purgatory draws Annie aside to say “JUST KIDDING!” and Herrick comes to himself, murders a police shift dispatch and stabs Nina.

That is, to avenge George mauling him fatally – well, at least to where he needed help resurrecting himself – Herrick, a demonstrably efficient killing machine otherwise – leaves Nina’s recovery an open question.

But quite apart from the ghastly new locale (how does Annie haunt a new place exactly? Never mind) and the fanboi vamp Graham and the “oh, me pup’s like a son to me” Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy, the posh perv vamps and their full moon cage fighting (you find all sorts in the country) George’s undead dad (really, you’re a werewolf and you – both you and Nina – think your alive-and-standing-there dad is a ghost?) really, the only story arc that was working for me this entire season was Nina and her pups. That’s taking the lore to the next level. The corruption in the police force, the unseemly manner in which they … how precisely would you call that covering your tracks? … and George staking Mitchell to avoid the topsy-turvy life promised by the Old Ones showing up at the last minute to provide a huge plot twist.

Yes, Mitchell is gone. Their argument – they have to kill him now because otherwise he would kill again – fits for any vampire and Mitchell’s got a better hold on things than others but oh well. I do think there ought to be a vampire in the mix but of course they’ve got that gorgeous werepup around to house-train. I’m so glad we’re not lumbered any further with that common tramp zombie at least.

Yes, it seems quite a bit happened this season even though the storylines moved forward glacially. The problem was most of it was plot cul-de-sacs and nothing advancing development. The main things – the investigation into the Box 20 Massacre, their amnesiac lodger and the werewolves after Mitchell – were in such interminable holding patterns, and when they finally resolved themselves it was so abrupt as to be almost rude.

FX shows

Also drawing to a finale is “Justified” on FX, and that show has re-established a solid pacing. While that redhead from the mining company was floating around Harlan County there was all of this secret no-context conversation going on among the hill folk that frankly dragged (and the final standoff could’ve been managed by a phone call). But as of this past week things have built quite unreconcilably to a war between the Bennetts and the Givens clans, and who’s in the middle once again but Boyd Crowder.

In other FX finales, Sterling Archer’s new foreign fling, Katya Kasanovna, has been killed by his new cybernetic nemesis, Barry, an agent from the rival intelligence operation ODIN, who keeps getting dicked around by ISIS agents generally and Sterling Archer in particular. I’m sad there will be no new episodes of that for a goodly long time. “Archer” is one of those popcorn shows where you just kick back and enjoy how very wrong it is.

By the way, we can almost say the same about this show. I apologized recently for some bonehead mistakes getting through and that very week in my columncast I managed to get the challenger’s name wrong in the AMC serial crime drama “The Killing.” Billy Campbell plays Darren Richmond in that show. And while I’m at it I have to say I have come around on that show. I’ve gotten to see a few more episodes and it is well worth your time. I was thrown by the structure of the show being sort of like a novel where nearly every new piece of information is given more or less the same weight and importance as every other piece of information. The scene with the cake-tasting with the soon-to-be stepson was, if anything, given greater emphasis than the quiet scene at the end of the episode revealing the teacher’s secret relationship with the 17-year-old victim (the reveal, incidentally, that the title of the episode, “Soundless Echo” arose from).

So … looking forward to more insight on that.

The FX comedy “Louie” will be premiering shortly as well and that should be fun. One thing I’m not sure whether I’m looking forward to or not is the FX comedy “Wilfred,” the one with the guy in the dog suit. I’m sure it will be amusing, don’t misunderstand. What I’m saying is I don’t know what fills me with the greater apprehension: That I will not like it, or that I will. And if I do like it, am I still qualified to comment on television? I guess I’ll find out for sure soon enough.

Speaking of which, I don’t like asking explicitly but I’ve had the same two comments on my iTunes account for more than a year now and if any of you have any opinion whatsoever about this podcast it really would mean the world to me if you’d share it. I sometimes feel like I’m talking to myself and I know that can’t be true so please, if you’re online and you’ve got a minute, give us a shout!

Happy Endings

I have this misapprehension in part because I enjoy the new ABC situation comedy “Happy Endings.”

Yes, you heard me. From the source who liked the fluffy and canceled “100 Questions,” from the guy who panned “Traffic Light” (oh, watched part of another installment of that one and I stand by that), from the guy who initially did not like “Bob’s Burgers” (everyone should watch “Bob’s Burgers,” it is hilariously dysfunctional) and who is still enjoying the heck out of “Mad Love” but not “Mike & Molly” but would tune in to “Accidentally on Purpose” again in a heartbeat) and the guy who enjoyed “The Paul Reiser Show” already (this week’s, not so much, in that housecats do not burrow), I do enjoy “Happy Endings.”

Why? I’d be hard pressed to tell you. The things I like in it are things I dislike elsewhere. There’s also a consistency issue. For instance, the pilot episode suggested of some comparison, “that’s like saying the songs of John Mayer are making John Mayer look bad” and in the very next episode, he’s mentioned as being hotter than diCaprio (hotter than which diCaprio? Now? In 1998? In 2005?) Meanwhile, when Larry King is brought up in “Traffic Light,” Ethan admonishes ManSlut, saying “I hate when he’s just used as a punchline.” You guys are the ones who USED him that way.

I enjoyed in the pilot episode how the writers made Elisha Cuthbert as runaway bride Alex turn to the camera and apologize to America for being horrible. I also enjoyed in one of this past week’s episodes her friend Penny asking her about a double date. “What if you were in a trap and a cougar was going to eat you, would you date then?” “Why would that even happen?” Yes, Kim Bauer, why would that even happen. Oh, it’s not her fault. I think that was one of the pre-David Fury productions but still, it was on screen for like a minute and it’s one of the most iconic images of that series. Kim Bauer in trouble. It must be Tuesday.

I guess I miss “Friends” and this is sort of “Friends”-like for like 30-something friends. You’ve got the young marrieds, you’ve got the post-breakup couple and all of their drama and you’ve got the singles at loose ends with the neuroses and the … incessant focus on relationships. That’s something that’s going to get awfully shrill awfully fast, but on the other hand, the focus floats freely among the six of them. In “Traffic Light,” the focus is on the three dudes and what they’re all trying to get away with at any given time and I’m just not especially interested in following that.

That said I suppose “Perfect Couples” is in exactly the same boat but I haven’t tuned in to that since the pilot episode. I wish them well but it just didn’t seem like it was that good of a show.

Cougar Town

Speaking of “Friends” I loved the installments of “Cougar Town” this past week. As often happens my favorite joke had no words. Grayson and Andy were running from this giant of a man whose wife they’d insulted and hiding in Grayson’s car. The giant was pounding on Andy’s window and Andy turned to the window with his hand hidden in his sleeve like he didn’t have a hand to unlock the door, and he made apologetic faces and gestures, one of which revealed the hand he’d been apologizing for not having. It was better on screen you should watch this show it’s hilarious. The joke that didn’t work was them repurposing the phrase “kick ass,” but it’s been months so I can forgive a lot. Welcome back “Cul-De-Sac Crew,” I mean “Cougar City” I mean “Cougar Town.” So have I missed you.

Coming up

Coming up, I notice “Brothers and Sisters” is still on the air. Me deciding I’m tired of it doesn’t translate to everyone else doing so and so long as it’s still selling Activia, Boniva and ED treatments who am I to judge, except that for G-d’s sake how is there still new information to come to light about paterfamilias William Walker? Never mind, I’m sure someone will tune in and find out.

There was a new “Doctor Who” on BBC America this weekend and I’ll have more to say about that soon enough, although as of this writing I’m quite looking forward to seeing it. The Sundance Channel is airing episodes of “My So-Called Life” Mondays so if you wondered what nearly every show on the CW would look like if the kids didn’t have cell phones or e-mail or apparently run their own multinational corporations, this would be it.

Speaking of Monday it looks like ABC is running a new “Better With You” after “Dancing With The Stars” to maybe trick people into watching it.

FOX is running a 90-minute episode of “Glee” Tuesday night, followed by a new episode of “Raising Hope.” The daycare girl from that show was in a commercial recently but all I can remember about it was, well, that she was in it. So hurray for outside jobs!

And again IFC is running gory carnage at 8/7c Tuesday night – “Hostel 2” this time – so again, just be aware of that because that’s awfully close to suppertime.

I caught a sneak peek of “The Voice” this week on NBC, can’t say I was really invested in it. I kind of want to see a few trainwrecks and my guess is they don’t get to that stage without at least some talent, so … meh.

This week is likely to be the last week I’m watching “Breaking In” on FOX unless it improves significantly. To begin with, more Trevor Moore. The man is the funniest person on the cast and he’s been sidelined unforgivably. You can make up the time from Mel’s boyfriend who there’s always way too much of and for G-d’s sake put a muzzle on Oz. Christian Slater isn’t as funny as he thinks he is but he is as creepy as I think he is. Anyway, that show may just be one trick pony and it’s done it. P.S., I heard the line “Boom goes the dynamite” while watching the movie “Wanted” today so now it’s just outright theft. It was before, just now I know about it.

This week marks Steven Carell’s sendoff on “The Office,” but I tuned in to watch The Dundies this past week and it just confirmed that I don’t like the energy on there now. The “Rent” redux was charming – the staff will clearly miss Michael despite his many Michael-ish tendencies – but the rest of it … oh, fantastic, exactly what was needed, we learned DeAngelo’s middle name. He’s DeAngelo Jeremitrius Vickers. Yes, I think maybe Jim and Pam’s wedding is officially the last episode I shall privately acknowledge of that series, based on Joss Whedon’s selling point of the re-release of the “Serenity” DVD – that is, “Alternate endings, depending on when you hit the 'stop' button.”

What else? I caught the 100th episode of “30 Rock” this past week which confirmed why I hadn’t been watching it. Oh, it’s funny enough but a lot of that was wacky for the sake of wacky which doesn’t do a lot for me. I’ve seen enough of the show to know that the outrageous stuff they were doing wasn’t even the most outrageous stuff they’ve done so … meh. Congratulations and … meh.

Oh, meanwhile “Grey’s Anatomy” is new this week, so … probably less bursting into song this time, yes? Probably yes.

Rob Corddry appears on a very special “Running Wilde” and … yes, that’s the selling point. “Running Wilde” is closing out its episodes on FX, I’m not your enabler, you can track those down yourself if you want to see them.

“Supernatural” was interesting this past week, with Sam and Dean heading to the wild west, only to be taken for dandies and worse. That dancing girl throwing herself at Dean needed a visit to old Doc Baker, schedule a regimen of shots or something. Yeesh. This week they get to confront the “big bad” for this season except she really hasn’t been much in evidence thus far and none of us have much insight into what she actually does so this should be at least informative. And “Fringe” this week focuses on side character Sam Weiss, which I for one am looking forward to. There’s had to be so much more to this guy than meets the eye and now he’s bound up in the end of the world? Color me intrigued. A new “Fringe” airs at 9/8c Friday on FOX.