This week I’m taking a look back at the 2010-2011 television season. In case you missed it, take a look at how I spent my Sunday nights, Monday nights, and Tuesday nights for the last eight months. I’ll give you a few minutes….
All caught up? Here’s my Wednesday night experience.
As I mentioned on Tuesday, Wednesday may have been the night of the failed sitcom. Happy Endings was particularly confusing for me … where was the comedy? I’ve read that people have compared the show to Friends (at least that it’s built on that model), but Friends was a much smarter show. A series also about friends who hang out and sometimes date shouldn’t earn the comparison.
Forget Christian Slater’s consistent strikes when it comes to series … how about Bret Harrison? I watched Breaking In’s pilot for him, and only for him, but even Bret wasn’t enough to make me want to come back a second time.
Better With You was an alternate take on both the “group” dynamic and the “couples” one: three couples in the same family. Unfortunately that didn’t make it any better.
I was supposed to love Mr. Sunshine for Matthew Perry. And even though I’m not a big fan of Andrea Anders, I maybe could have kept with it until the end … if not for how bad Allison Janney was. I know a lot of people liked her crazy stadium owner, but I wasn’t one of them.
And so I don’t lead you to believe that only sitcoms had their share of hiccups — Outlaw was Jimmy Smits’ grand return to television after a star turn on Dexter, an awesome but ultimately failed starring role on Cane, and stellar work winning the presidency on The West Wing (to name but a few recent roles) … so what happened?
Off The Map was something like a copy of a copy of a copy … never good news for a TV show, while Undercovers tried to be Mr. & Mrs. Smith, only without the fun. And The Whole Truth? There are many reasons I’m sorry that Maura Tierney got sick; her missing out on Parenthood and instead getting stuck with this show is one of them.
Psych’s an unusual show for me, in that its seasons mean little to me. The arcs and grand stories wash over me like so much noise … I’m just there for Shawn and Gus, who are awesome every time.
I still follow Criminal Minds closely, even if I did have to give up reviewing it for my sanity’s sake. The show is as dark as ever — if not darker — but the team is a master class in putting a group of people together as an ensemble. And even better: Prentiss (Paget Brewster) is gone!
I know it spent most of the season on Friday nights, but at some point Blue Bloods was airing new episodes on Wednesdays, and I wanted to make sure I included it in my look back at the season. The cases aren’t great, but the Reagan family is awesome, and I love how the writers have expanded Frank’s (Tom Selleck) battle with the mayor. Plus, thanks for putting an end to Jamie’s (Will Estes) yawn fest!
Modern Family is great, no question about it. But is it the best comedy on TV right now? I’d argue that it’s not even the best comedy of the night, but it’s definitely top three or five of the year. A solid cast of characters — save for Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson), who’s an awful human being — and a ton of brilliant and hilarious capers makes this a joy to watch every week.
The Defenders was my second surprise of the season (after Detroit 1-8-7 on Tuesdays). Originally something I tried and passed on, I gave it another shot On Demand after two commenters urged me to back in November. I know it’s “dead and gone,” but watching Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell play lawyers was awesome. I’m really glad I gave it a second try!
The Middle should be hauling in trophies and accolades after this season. Even though she’s the weak link of the ensemble, score another win for Patricia Heaton, because this show is awesome. Best sitcom on TV, hands down.
Even so, the crown jewel of my night was a little watched show called Terriers. Hank (Donal Logue) and Britt (Michael Raymond-James) were the best partner pairing around this season. The show was a bit gritty, but it was also smart, funny, well written and acted, and just plain fun. And talk about feeling like you know two people in full … it’s sad to have had to say goodbye to Terriers so soon, but just imagine if we hadn’t gotten a chance to see it in the first place.
Quite a busy night for me on Wednesdays. How about you? How did you experience Wednesday night television this season? Share your adventure in the comments below!
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Jun 02, 2011 @ 14:00 EST5EDT
Agreed that Terriers is an awesome show. Great balance of humor, drama, and suspense that gives it a “real” feel. Beautifully shot in addition to what has already been said. It was fresh and could have easily had wide appeal had FX not done such a terrible job of promoting the show, particularly in the beginning. People had no clue what it was going to be about. They teased it with a meaningless dog rather than actual footage which could have hooked viewers. Very glad to have at least experienced it. The ending is pretty satisfying and I have no clue how they would have overcome that situation for a second season.