Much like the fall lineup I am back and with any luck will be posting with a far greater regularity. The plan is actually for me to do weekly reaction/recap of certain programs. I clearly watch far too many shows to have time for such a lengthy reaction to all but there are certain shows where every week I find myself wanting to whine or compliment. So we'll see if I have the constitution...
What I Watched This Summer
TV
Warehouse 13: Not a revolutionary show but ultimately crazy enjoyable. In the vein of Eureka, SyFy is clearly picking up on USA/CBS's tactic of making predictable procedurals with quirky characters and a generally lighthearted tone. Only instead of being about spies (USA) or cops (CBS) they're about SyFy. Perfect background fodder for the geeky at heart... though I really wish they'd bring back Cha$e and/or Estate of Panic.
Chopped/Food Network Challenge/Cupcake Wars: I found myself really into Food Network reality shows... I know nothing of cooking and never will, but they manage to be entertaining regardless. Mainly because the two of them are based a lot on appearance but also because the entire season worth of reality is jammed into one episode with eliminations and a winner all nailed down by the hours end.
True Blood: One of the few shows that I made a point to see on appointment. A lot of people I talked to thought the third season was a downgrade. I preferred it to the second season, with Maryanne's constant theatrics. Still I was more than tired of anything dealing with Jason and found myself wishing Tara really did run away for good and that Bill loses his death duel. I feel like I shouldn't be rooting for these outcomes but the only things I really care about are Jessica and Hoyt's relationship and whatever it is that Eric is going to do next. And Pam. I really like Pam. I was unaware that I liked Pam as much as I do but she was perpetually on the verge of death and is enough of a side character that such is plausible so I constantly found myself thinking "Just don't let them kill Pam!" Oh yeah and I forgot all about Sam so you can tell how interesting that is to me. In fact they made him annoying and I've liked Sam pretty consistently in the past.
Also the marathoning continued
Dexter: I burned my way through four seasons and I definitely get the high praise it's recent season got and eagerly await it's premiere. I'll say this I'm very impressed by their ability to keep Dexter a sociopath. It's a damn hard thing to do with a character after you follow him four seasons but he still lacks that certain human quality and kills out of need rather than purpose. In addition to having perhaps the most unsettling opening credit sequence I've ever seen, it's interesting and exhilarating though at times a bit tedious. It's brilliantly acted all around and both Morgan siblings are wonderfully crafted, swiftly evolving characters. As far as seasons, the fourth is by far the strongest but the first is incredibly captivating and it unfolds brilliantly. The second season I think is OK. Storywise it was strong but it's antagonist was incredibly aggravating and not in a good way, in a for CHRIST SAKE END THIS STORY ARC ALREADY sake. Which is kind of how I felt about most of season 3. It just stretched on far too long for my taste. But I should qualify that's by Dexter standards, which are still higher than most shows.
Torchwood: Torchwood is just fun. Period. It's not something everyone would like but if you like Sci-Fi and British Sci-Fi in particular you're probably going to love it. I don't have much to say about it in particular but definitely recommend. Not much to say as I'm still in the heart of season 2.
Supernatural: Luckily I have been catching a few of my friends up on Supernatural which has resulted in my marathoning the first two season of the show and I'm no less impressed with the quality of this superbly underrated show upon second viewing. It's a show clearly written and produced by people who have a great love for and nostalgia about the horror genre and I often forget how well it is made technically. They play around with a lot in terms of lighting and angles and maybe it's just because they can get away with it because they off on the CW. But I mean really how could a Sci-Fi show go wrong with one executive producer from X-Files and another from Firefly?
