Various Unposted Reviews of TV shows

Okay, so I've been wondering for a long time what I'm supposed to do with all the TV shows that I want to review but haven't published yet. So, I decided that before the news of cancellation of shows happens, that I should post the reviews of some of these shows. At least one of them has already been reviewed. Many of them currently don't have air dates on TV. I'm fairly certain that none of them have been reviewed before. I'm getting ready to start working on the summer TV schedule and the shows that are cancelled from this season. But I can't do that until they both happen. I am also working on my list of Huckleberry awards which I give to the worst TV shows from the season. You may have noticed that in my reviews, I've added a new part which says the reception of the show. Well I must apologize for not giving the most accurate reception section. I didn't really look up what the real reception was and was instead mostly just reading hate at www.tv.com which is mostly what the comments on the site are. So, I've come up with a better way of doing the reception section which says what other people think of the show. When possible, I will look up the information at www.wikipedia.org on what critics thought of the show. When I can't find information about reception there, then I just go with the general rating at www.imdb.com that regular people do. So these are unposted reviews of TV shows that I haven't added before.

The Mentalist: Status- Currently on CBS at 10/9 Central on Sundays. Why I’ve seen it- I thought that it might be interesting. Description- An adviser to the CBI uses his powers of observation to catch criminals as well as a serial killer named Red John, although I think that the Red John angle is mostly out of the show now. Pros- An interesting drama with some comedy that keeps you interested. The main character is funny with his methods of catching criminals. Cons- The main character can be annoying sometimes. It can also be dark including the Red John storyline that might have been dragged out too long. Recommendation- Watch this show. Prediction- This show might not last much longer since it has a bad time slot now. Another network might be interested in it even if CBS cancels it, although that’s more wishful thinking than actually likely. Reception: positive. Grade: A.

Suburgatory: Status- Currently on ABC at 7:30 Central on Wednesdays. Description- I don’t know what it is about except life in the suburbs after living in the city and culture shock involved with that. Notable People- Alan Tudyk from Firefly is on the show. Pros- Critics like it. It isn’t bad. Cons- I don’t get what it is about. I don’t understand it. Recommendation- I have none available right now. I don’t regularly watch this so I don’t have full knowledge of the show. Prediction- Toss-up. Reception: mostly positive. Grade: C-.

Community: Status- This is on NBC. Why I’ve seen it- It got my interest and the show I normally watched was showing a rerun. Description- This is a show about people at a community college and what unusual things happen there. Pros- The show is pretty interesting and not the type of thing typically shown on television. Cons- It’s hard to understand all of it and missing out on the earlier seasons make it feel like you missed out on something good. Recommendation- I’d say that you should watch it, provided that it is still on. Prediction- The network likes to screw with it so it probably won’t last as long as people want it to. Reception: mostly positive. Grade: B.

Primetime: What Would You Do?: Status- This is an ABC show. It is a spin-off of 20/20. ABC news helps with this show. Why I’ve seen it- Commercials made it seem interesting. Cancellation of The Good Guys helped me decide to watch it. Noteworthiness- It is the first hidden camera show I’ve seen that wasn’t out to exploit people for laughs. It is actually very serious. Description- Different situations are set up to see how people react to them. The point is to get people to react to a situation and get them to help people out. Very serious situations are acted out using issues such as coming out, unwanted pregnancy, racial issues, gender issues, and more. Pros- It shows the good side among people and how they actually help sometimes. It is very interesting and could make good teaching material. There are different segments in each episode to keep you interested. It probably is a more realistic version than any scripted show could come up with. Cons- Some segments are better than others. A certain amount of deception is involved with the people. All the shooting locations tend to be in the same locations. The Would You Fall for That? segments are pretty dumb. One can question the legalities of this show. Recommendation- Everyone should watch this show. This is the best show currently on television. Prediction- It should be on until they run out of ideas, which is unlikely that they will. Whether it will stay around is for the viewers to decide. I think that it will last a while. Reception: positive. Grade: A++.

Under the Dome:  Status- Currently on CBS during the summer. Why I’ve seen it- I like the CBS network and nothing else was really on during the summer. Noteworthiness- This is based off of a book by Stephen King. He helps with this show. This was first pitched to the Showtime network which passed on it and gave it to CBS. Description- For some odd reason, a dome traps people in a small town underneath it. Notable People- Dean Norris, from Breaking Bad, is on the show. Britt Robinson, who was on Life Unexpected at The Secret Circle, is another character. There are probably others. Pros- The show is interesting science fiction. It keeps you into the show. The secret lives of the characters are pretty good storytelling. The mystery of the show is gripping. Cons- A lot of people don’t like it. It seems to drag on without a real purpose to it. One wonders what the point of it is in the end. Recommendation- I think that this show is pretty good and worth watching all the time. Prediction- If it keeps the good ratings that it has, it should last a while, even if it airs during the less watched summer. However, if the general negativity of this show continues, then I don’t see it lasting much longer than it already has. Reception: mixed. Grade: B+.

Whose Line is it Anyways?: Status- Currently on the CW on Fridays at 7 Central/8 Eastern. Why I’ve seen it- I liked the original show and am a general fan of improvised comedy. Noteworthiness- It is the remake of an ABC show and retains much of the original cast. Description- A group of comedians make up stuff and make us laugh while competing for meaningless points. Notable People- Ryan Stiles, who has a recurring role as Herb on Two and a Half Men, is one of the original people returning to this show. Wayne Brady, who had a recurring role on How I Met Your Mother, used to host the primetime version of Don’t Forget the Lyrics, and hosts the daytime show Let’s Make a Deal, is another original person returning to this show. I think that they were both on the Drew Carrey Show, but I’m not sure who was on both shows, although I know that some people were. There are guests from certain shows that are noteworthy, whether they are the fourth member of the group (which changes) or a different special member. Aisha Tyler, who helps currently cohost the Talk, is the new host of this show. Pros- This is more or less the same great show that we all knew and loved when it first aired. Most of the original cast is back. Even though everything is made up, it still manages to be really funny. Cons- There are always guests on the show that tend to slow things down and take away from the talent of the true part of the show. Recommendation- You should probably watch it. I don’t know why one wouldn’t like this. Prediction- This should last a very long time, provided that the cast can stay together throughout the run of this show. I’m pretty sure that the cast not being able to stay together is what killed it the first time, although low ratings didn’t help. Reception: positive. Grade: A+.

Enlisted: Status- This show airs on FOX. Why I’ve Seen it- I pretty much had to watch this since it was paired with another comedy that I watched. Description- It is a comedy about people in the army here in the United States. Pros- It isn’t bad. Cons- It can be hard to tell what the real point of it is. The episodes aired out of order. Recommendation- It’s your choice whether to watch it or not, I don’t really care. It isn’t bad if you want to watch it, but it isn’t really that good either. Prediction- I don’t see it lasting that long and it might be cancelled already. Reception: critically acclaimed. Grade: C.

Big Brother: Status- This CBS show airs in three hours of primetime during the summer and on live internet feeds at www.cbs.com. The three primetime hours are basically split into the mostly live show where people are voted out, the show where people get nominated to get voted out, and the show where people compete to possibly change the nominations on the show. Basically, you’d have to watch the average week of shows to get the way it airs. Why I’ve seen it- A parody of it on the Talk interested me in watching the real thing. Noteworthiness- There are many versions of it in other countries, most of which work very differently than ours. In case you were wondering, we were not the first country to do this show, although we were the first country to use the format that it has in almost no other country’s version of it. Description- A group of people, normally strangers, but sometimes not, are put into a house where they are recorded 24/7 and competing for a money prize. Notable People- Julie Chen, formally of CBS’s the Early Show and current cohost of the Talk, is the host of this show. She has hosted this show longer than any other host in any other country’s version of this show. Pros- While it may seem similar to other reality TV shows, it is very different to the usual. You can see whatever you want to online since CBS has live feeds of what goes on inside the house. Cons- Okay, I should warn you that this cons section might be misleading since, although I like the show, I can think of a lot of cons about it, but not that many pros. You have to devote a lot of time to watching it to not miss anything important. The live internet feed gets cuts a lot making it seem like the people that air the show is hiding something. Tons of controversies have arisen on the show, whether they were caused by contestants on the show or the people who make the show. The live shows make you wonder if contestants don’t follow the rules of the game. The live aspect of the show makes the editing of it strange since one doesn’t know what will happen. Information about what happens on the show can be known before it even airs. Recommendation- Despite the rather lengthy cons section that I just mentioned, this show is a pretty good show to watch. Prediction- It will probably last a long time, although it just as easily might not. Reception: mixed. Grade: B-.

Rookie Blue: Status- Currently on ABC during the summer. Why I’ve seen it- There was nothing else to watch during the summer so I watched this. Noteworthiness- This is a Canadian show that airs sometimes in America. Description- A bunch of rookie cops (or, at least they were rookies when the show started) solve a bunch of cases. Pros- The show gives you something different to watch on TV sometimes. Cons- It’s hard to know when this is on making it easy to miss. Recommendation- This show is pretty good and you should watch it. Prediction- It has lasted a good amount of time so far. Whether that means it will keep lasting a while or if it will end soon is unknown. I heard rumors that it might end soon but don’t know if those rumors are true. Reception: mixed. Grade: B.

Hollywood Game Night: Status- Currently on NBC. Why I’ve seen it- I generally like to watch game shows and there was nothing else to watch during the summer when this first started to air on TV. Description- Two regular people compete in a game show of various competitions. Each has a set of three celebrities (six total) that help them with the game. Notable People- Jane Lynch, from Glee, is the host of the show. Sean Hayes from Will and Grace helped create the show. Many of the guest are obviously famous (notice how I do not say all because fame is relative) but since they always change, I would not be able to mention all of them. Pros- It’s fun to watch the show to see the various antics played out by everyone. As usual, the celebrities are competing for charity instead of themselves. There are different games each week to keep things interesting. Cons- Not all of the games seem fair in every way. Recommendation- I’d say that you should probably watch this if you ever have the time to do so. Prediction- Right now, it seems like a show that fills any gaps in scheduling. Things typically don’t end well for those shows, even if they do last long and always wind up airing instead of possibly getting cancelled. But this could always wind up becoming a daytime game show like most good games shows are. (Typically bad primetime game shows get cancelled and good primetime game shows become daytime game shows.) Now I cannot say that will be the case with this show. But I will say that I expect it to stay around for a while, provided that they can keep getting celebrities to do this show. Reception: positive. Grade: A-.