MORE NEW SHOWS:
Kitchen Nightmares
This show might make you think twice about going out to eat. Grease covered walls, mouldy pesto, rotten food under the stove... and never mind the frozen ravioli and microwaved veggies some of these places try to pass off for $30 a plate. My Gods, I can cook better than some of these chefs!
It's not so much an 'Extreme Makeover' show as an expose of the restaurant industry, making it that much more satisfying to watch Gordon Ramsey lace into some of these bastards. And really - you can never have too much Gordon Ramsey.
Bionic Woman
I’m one of about half a dozen genre fans who don’t watch Battlestar Galactica. No particular reason - I just never got into it and fell too far behind. So I didn’t have a lot of expectations for Bionic Woman, other than having been a fan of the original when I was twelve or so.
I must say, I’m liking it so far. I wasn’t thrilled with Michelle Ryan at first, but she’s definitely grown on me. Miguel Ferrer is outstanding as always. The tech stuff is done just right, and they even managed a subtle, cool upgrade of that electronic ‘nenenene’ sound from the original.
You know the one.
Life
"Are you really Zen?"
"I’m Zen-ish."
Something I’m noticing through this little exercise is that a clever premise will get me to tune in, but great characters, well cast and well written, will get me to come back every week.
Charlie Crews is a great character, and reminds me very much of one of my all time favourites: Larry in ‘The Razor’s Edge’ (the movies, not the book). He is almost magical in his spirituality, and yet he’s still a sensualist in his love for fast cars, casual sex and exotic produce.
Charlie’s police partner and his accountant / roommate make the perfect companions for him as he explores his newfound freedom and the world which he was denied for so long. They interpret this world for him and try to direct him, but most of the time they just sort of get towed along in his wake.
And then there’s the mystery of the murder for which Charlie was unjustly convicted, which ties the episodes together and gives the show a strong centre of gravity.
This might just be my favourite new show of the year.
Torchwood
Not quite as good as Dr. Who, but still a lot of fun with a nice hard edge. Again, though, why is the CBC spending our tax dollars on a BBC show, with an all British/Welsh cast and crew, shot entirely in Wales?
Dirty Sexy Money
As much as I adore Donald Sutherland, he wasn’t quite enough to get me to watch a second episode. It’s not that it’s a bad show - it just didn’t interest me.
Moonlight
I didn’t make it past the first ten minutes. Sorry, but it ain’t no ‘Blood Ties’ and he ain’t no Henry.
Da Kink In My Hair
I’m not a sitcom person, but I might actually come back to this one. I used to live and work in the very same Eglinton Avenue neighbourhood in Toronto where the show is set, so these people are all very familiar to me. At the same time, the world they inhabit and the issues they deal with every day are different enough from mine to keep me interested. It isn’t really a sitcom, either, although there are some very funny moments.
Now if I can just remember to watch it when it’s on.
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Next time: Returning shows of note.
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