Thursdays in Primetime Version 4

Thursdays are the most competitive nights on television. All the networks put all their best shows on the same night. It is impossible to watch everything good at this time, unless, of course, you record some things to watch later or watch what you can’t see online. NBC airs some popular dramas and an hour of comedies. CBS airs comedies as well and ends with The Amazing Race right now. ABC shows their popular TGIT night which are all dramas by Shonda Rhimes. FOX has a constantly changing lineup that I won’t bother to keep track of. The CW shows Supernatural and Riverdale. There are no losers and every network seems to win in their own right. The reason this night is the most competitive is the high demand of advertisers for the movies that will come out the next day. I have seen a lot of these shows so here’s my views on them:

Superstore: Status- Currently on NBC at 8/7 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- My mother was originally interested in it, so I recorded it for her and watched it myself. Description- This is a comedy about people who work in a store and the adventures that ensue. Notable People- America Ferria from Ugly Betty is in the cast. She might have also created the show too. Pros- This show is interesting and different. Cons- There really isn’t much that this show offers. It can be weird. Note to Parents- This is probably the standard amount of what you’d expect in terms of what is acceptable or not for your kids to watch. Recommendation- It isn’t terrible, but I wouldn’t watch it again. My Viewing Habits- I only watched this once. Prediction- I say that it might last, but only given NBC’s general lack of comedies that they have to rely on. They need something, right? Reception: mixed/average. Grade: D.

The Big Bang Theory: Status- Currently on CBS at 8/7 Central on Thursdays. It has also been sold into syndication. Why I’ve seen it- General interest in the show from the moment it first aired and a bit before. Noteworthiness- Of all the live action comedies on television to still be in production, this one has been on the longest. Description- This show is about the adventures of nerds, a female neighbor, and other people in their lives. Reruns can be different than how the show is currently portrayed. Notable People- Chuck Lorre, who created Two and a Half Men, also created this show. He has created other shows as well, but I’m not sure they are worth mentioning. Kayley Cuoco from 8 Simple Rules and Charmed is Penny. Others are famous, some from being on the show. If they were famous before the show, then I don’t know who they are unless I just mentioned them. Pros- This is a really funny comedy. Everyone loves Sheldon, the Obsessive-Compulsive roommate. Some people can watch reruns over and over again and still find it just as funny as they did the first time. Cons- Sex and other bad stuff can be present a lot. Note to Parents- There are a lot of objectionable things in here so you would have to watch it to see if it is something you let your kids see. If they are in high school, I see no problem with letting them watch this.  Recommendation- I say that you should watch it if you like it. Most people do like this show. If you don’t laugh after watching an episode, then it isn’t for you. But, it is one of my favorite shows and I highly recommend it. My Viewing Habits- While I have not seen every episode, I’ve watched this since it has first started. Prediction- This show is renewed for more seasons right now, but there are rumors that it could be ending after them. Reception: mixed then positive. Grade: A-.

Grey’s Anatomy: Status- Currently on Thursdays at 8/7 Central on ABC. Why I’ve seen it-Desire to find a medical drama to watch all the time on a regular basis. When I realized that I liked medical dramas, I also realized that they always cancel the ones that I like, so I figured that I should watch this since it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Noteworthiness- It is the longest running drama on ABC to still be in production. Description- A medical drama featuring a large cast of doctors of both genders solves medical problems that sometimes relates to their own team. I’m not really sure how to describe it that well so you might understand it better if you watch an episode yourself. Notable People- Shonda Rhimes, who went on to create Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, and now dominates most of Thursday nights on ABC with shows that she helped make, created this show. Pros- This show is pretty interesting and humorous. Most of the large cast is focused upon most of the time. The medical aspect is well-done. It isn’t always about the same characters all the time. Cons- The show can be quite complicated and hard to understand and follow, especially if you don’t watch every week. If you don’t like soap operas, then this show probably isn’t for you because of the format it uses. There’s too much sex in the show as well and most people wouldn’t like the morals present. There are too many characters to keep track of on a regular basis and sometimes a lot of the cast isn’t in a certain episode. The main character, in particular, isn’t there that much. Note to Parents- I would avoid letting your kids watch that. Recommendation- Take it or leave it. If you don’t like it now, you never will. My Viewing Habits- There was a long time when I didn’t watch this for one reason or another, but I finally decided to start watching it and I did. Prediction- This could last a long amount of time, but I think that it could potentially end in the near future as well. Reception: somewhat positive. Grade: C+.

Powerless: Status- Currently on Thursdays at 8:30/7:30 Central on NBC. Why I’ve seen it- I thought that I would be interested in it and it seemed like it would fit in my schedule. Noteworthiness- This is in a self contained part of the DC comics universe. Description- This shows more of the human side of the superhero battles as an insurance firm seeks to protect people from the effects of those attacks. Notable People- This stars Vanessa Hudgens who was in the High School Musical series. Alan Tudyk, who was in Firefly, Con Man, Newsreaders, Suburgatory, and other shows and movies, is a character. Danny Pudi, who was on Community, is another character. Ron Funches, most recently from Undateable, is yet another character. Pros- I think that this is quite good and funny. Cons- Part of its problem is being set in a weird universe that’s mostly unknown to the viewers. Note to Parents- I’m not sure if there is much to worry about. If you let them watch Saturday morning cartoons, you’d probably be okay with this. Recommendation- It is worth watching, especially if you were wanting something to see after The Big Bang Theory. My Viewing Habits- I have missed some episodes, but have seen it, more or less, from the first episode. Prediction- This will probably not last as the ratings are too low. Reception: somewhat positive. Grade: B. New review

The Great Indoors: Status- Currently on CBS at 8:30/7:30 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- If I can, I normally watch a CBS show at least once. Description- An outdoorsy person has to get used to a new job inside. Notable People- Joel McHale, who was in Community, is the lead of this show. Pros- It goes for something different and has a potential good romantic storyline with the lead. Cons- It loses points for attacking my generation. The cast seems to be too young and doesn’t exactly work that well. Note to Parents- This might not be bad, honestly, but you’d have to watch it yourself to know for sure if your kids should watch it. Recommendation- Don’t waste your time with this. My Viewing Habits- I watched the first episode and won’t be watching a second. Prediction- Since it airs after The Big Bang Theory, it will last for a while. Don’t expect it to end just yet. Reception: mixed. Grade: D. New review

Mom: Status- Currently on CBS at 9/8 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- If you didn’t know already, I like to watch every CBS TV show, even if it is just once. Description- A woman deals with the issues of single motherhood and various family problems. Notable People- Alison Janey and Anna Farris, both known for movies, are two main characters on the show. Chuck Lorre, who created Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, and helps with Mike and Molly, helps with this show, although I’m not sure if he created it, which he might have. Pros- People like it, based on comments I’ve seen online. Cons- All the show is about is a bunch of immoral people and I don’t know why we should care about something like this. Also, it is far from being funny. Note to Parents- This has so much smut in it that I wouldn’t let anyone you take care of watch it. Recommendation- Don’t watch it. It’s terrible. The fact that people like it completely baffles me. My Viewing Habits- I watched the first episode and would rather watch 30 straight minutes of commercials before I’d tune into this again. Prediction- I think that this is renewed for another season. I don’t know how much longer it might last, but it could be a bit longer. Reception: somewhat favorable. Grade: F.

Riverdale: Status- Currently on the CW at 9/8 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- From this point forward, I’ll try to watch any new CW show if possible. Noteworthiness- This is inspired by the Archie comic book series. Description- Starting out, it is about a murder at a high school and various other dark plots. At the moment, it is best described as the noir genre. Notable People- Cole Sprose, who was one of the leads on The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, is a character who narrates the show. Pros- There is enough potential in it that it might be good. It seems better than just another dumb high school show. Cons- This seems stereotypical in a way. This probably has all the problems you could expect from a CW show. Some of it is unrealistic and doesn’t make sense. Note to Parents- There are enough bad things in here that children shouldn’t be watching. Recommendation- I’d put this at a toss-up. My Viewing Habits- I started watching from the first episode and have kept watching it since (although I haven’t seen every episode). Prediction- It is renewed for a second season, but I’m not sure if it will last beyond that. Reception: generally positive. Grade: C+. New review

Chicago Med: Status- Currently on NBC at 9/8 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- At the time, the only show that I watched in this timeslot, Notorious, had its episode order cut so I started looking for a replacement in the timeslot. I chose this show due to its connection to a show that I watched and its fairly new time on the air. Noteworthiness- This is the third installment of the Chicago franchise. It is created by Dick Wolf, who also created the Law and Order franchise. Description- Basically, this is a medical drama. Notable People- Dick Wolf, who created Law and Order, also helped create this show. Pros- One of the characters has autism, so that makes the show more interesting. There’s certainly nothing major wrong with it. Cons- It doesn’t seem to be that notable in any way. It seems like just an ordinary show with nothing major ever happening in it. Note to Parents- Mostly, it’s just the medical stuff that one would see that I would recommend against letting young kids see. Recommendation- I’m not sure what to say here. It is good enough for me to watch, but not really that outstanding a show. My Viewing Habits- I started watching into what I believe its second season is and have not stopped watching since. Prediction- I think that this will last for a while. It should be around until syndication at least. Reception: mixed or average. Grade: B-. New review

Life in Pieces: Status- Currently on CBS at 9:30/8:30 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- Blah, blah, blah, watching a CBS show once, blah, blah, blah. Description- It’s hard to describe the plot of the show. It is basically about a family and their adventures all mixed into one story. Notable People- This show has Colin Hanks, from Fargo and The Good Guys, who is also the son of Tom Hanks. Pros- It’s different from most other shows. Cons- It is very stupid and pointless. It focuses far too much on sex. Note to Parents- Don’t let your kids watch this. Recommendation- This isn’t any good so don’t watch it. My Viewing Habits- I have seen only the first episode of this then never watched it again. Prediction- It will be back for next season, but I don’t know how much longer it will keep lasting. I say that this could last until syndication, but I don’t know if it will last beyond that. Single camera sitcoms like this tend to do poorly on CBS. But the ratings are good for now that people won’t have to worry about it being cancelled for a while. Reception: generally favorable. Grade: F. New review

The Catch: Status- Currently on ABC at 10/9 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- I thought that it looked interesting. Description- A woman finds out that her fiancé is a criminal that she’s looking for. I’m not entirely sure what the name of the show has to do with what it is about. Notable People- Shonda Rhimes, who helps with TGIT on this network, is a producer of this show, although I’m not sure if she helped create it or not. Peter Krause, who was in Parenthood, is a character in the show. Pros- The show is interesting. Enough of it is worth watching. Cons- It can be unusual. It relies too much on sex and sex appeal. A lot of it is unrealistic and could be improved on. Note to Parents- There’s enough in here that your kids shouldn’t be watching. Recommendation- It is a good show worth watching if you have the time. My Viewing Habits- I have not seen every episode, but I have watched this since it first started airing. Prediction- It could go either way at this point. Reception: positive. Grade: B-. New review

The Amazing Race: Status- Currently on CBS at 10/9 Central on Fridays. Why I’ve seen it- It was originally something that my family was into. Description- Teams of two different people race around the world to hopefully win a million dollars. It is a reality show. Pros- There is a different group of people each season, in case you don’t like one. It has some interesting moments and is hard to get out of once you start watching on episode. The critics love it and give it awards. Cons- If you don’t get into it soon enough, it won’t interest you. The problems that happen to the contestants that lead to a commercial break tend to be solved when it returns before a minute has past. It can be hard to stay into the whole season sometimes. Every episode follows the same basic premise and can get predictable. It isn’t as interesting as other shows are. It can be a bore sometimes with the redundancy of what always happens in every episode. There have been times where they hired contestants who have already worked on other reality shows. It can still be seen as a work in progress despite it being on the air a long time. Contestants have regularly gotten screwed in challenges on the show. Note to Parents- This is probably acceptable for your kids to watch, although it is borderline on that front. Recommendation- Take it or leave it. Like most reality shows, you may not like it, you may loathe it like every reality show, or you can’t live without it. My Viewing Habits- I used to watch this all the time, but stopped watching as I felt it couldn’t do anything it hadn’t already done. While I don’t watch this anymore, I still like it. Prediction- I’m not really that sure about what will happen with this anymore. It might be approaching the end of its life on TV. Or it might stay around for longer. Reception: positive then more negative. Grade: C-.

The Blacklist: Status- Currently on NBC at 10/9 Central on Thursdays. Why I’ve seen it- I don’t know why I started watching it, but it was probably because the promos made it look good or something like that. Description- Okay, I don’t really understand what this show is about yet. It’s intriguing enough that if you can’t tell what it is, you still might want to watch it to figure it out. Apparently it is about some law enforcement agency going after very dangerous criminals that are on something called the blacklist. Notable People- James Spader, from movies and other things I’m not familiar with, is a main character on the show. Pros- This show is very interesting and keeps you coming back time and time again. Cons- It can be hard to understand. The show is very violent and bloody. Note to Parents- Don’t let young people watch this. Recommendation- I’d say that you should probably watch it. My Viewing Habits- I came in early into the first season (after it started) and have been watching this ever since. Prediction- I think that it will stay a long time since it’s doing better than most NBC veteran shows. Reception: critically acclaimed. Grade: B.