The Lost Diary

8. Rescue Me

One of the reasons why I loved the Michael Moore film "Bowling for Columbine" so much was how it seemlessly went from being drop-dead hysterical in one scene to gut-wrenchingly serious the next -- and it totally worked. That's "Rescue Me" for me.

We've talked before about how there are very few "comedies" on TV anymore -- but that some shows are just funny sometimes. "Rescue Me" is by no means a comedy, it's just hysterical. Though it had a few missteps in the past few years, I often look at a show and think "How much do I care about what happens to these characters?" And you'd be hardpressed to find a cast like this one.

And for the record -- SPOILER ALERT -- the final scene where Tommy's dad died was a perfect scene of television.

Posted by Daniel at 01:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (222)

9. Chuck, Nip/Tuck and Ugly Betty

Plenty of shows fall under the category of "guilty pleasures." You hold them up to different standards than other shows. Characters come back from the dead and you don't blink an eye. Everyone sleeps with everyone and it is par for the course. There will always be a place for good guilty pleasure shows, and these are my three favorites.

About halfway through this TV season, a strange thought occurred to me: I really like "Chuck." I mean REALLY like it -- in a "I want to watch it that night and not put it off" kind of way. The entire premise is completely and utterly implausible (there is no way in the world Sarah and Casey wouldn't have just killed him in the pilot) but I love it anyway. It's just fun, period.

Speaking of fun ... there's "Nip/Tuck." People use the phrase "jump the shark" a lot in television and in this case it applies to the entire show. Once you establish that anything can happen, you can do anything you want and make it "believable" in the universe of that show. "Nip/Tuck" can do things that "Law & Order," for example, just can't. If you're going to nitpick a show like "Nip/Tuck," you'll never enjoy it.

Then there is "Ugly Betty" -- which is the soapiest of the bunch. Crossdressers! Mom on the run! Stop the wedding! You get the idea. This show separates itself from the other three in one way -- some of the snappiest writing on TV. The banter between Marc and Amanda is always priceless. Witty dialog wins me over everytime.

Action, sex and comedy -- if only we could combine these three shows. "Ugly Nip/Chuck," perhaps?

Posted by Daniel at 04:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (198)

And so begins my list of the top 10 shows on TV. A few ground rules:

-- The show has to be still on TV, but it doesn't have to be airing right now (though nothing is airing now with the strike).

-- I am counting the entire history of the show, but weighing the most recent season more heavily.

-- I am grouping some shows together for a reason. Which I'll begin doing with ... 

10. 24/Heroes

Both of these shows are not presently worthy to be on my top 10 list -- they might not even make my top 20. No shows had a more disappointing 2007 then these two. Nonetheless, I put them here, based entirely on past performance.

Season 5 of "24" was its best -- not many fans would debate that. Season 6, however, was its worst. But when "24" is on, it is the equivalent of a great popcorn movie: things are blowing up, a good guy is never who they say they are, the main bad guy is trying to get revenge and our hero can't die. Escapist TV at its finest.

Now, I can't say this enough: beginning with the finale of season 1, "Heroes" has turned out crap. Crap! I am never more frustrated than I am at the end of an episode of "Heroes." How can a show go from so good to so bad so quickly? It's the Britney Spears of television.

But I rank these shows together, and in the number 10 spot, because they WERE great and I believe they can be again. Or at least I hope they can. They certainly can't get any worse.

Posted by Daniel at 10:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (203)

I watched the "Lost" commercial a few weeks ago like everyone else. Found the link and watched it (with one eye closed, of course). I thought it was good, not great. Didn't change anything for me really.

You see, for the last month or so I have been insanely busy with work. I have had my schedule changed twice in the last few weeks. Worked holidays, weekends. Found out I had to move. Looked for a place. Found a place. Blah.

My lack of motivation was clearly evident.

Then it happened.

I was in a bar in NYC last Thursday with friends from home. People I only get to see twice a year, if I'm lucky. Friends I've had since grade school. I don't know what Roy was saying at the time, but the sports bar we were at, with its several TVs, was suddenly showing that same "Lost" commercial.

I shushed him immediately (I think I even held up a hand). I watched the commercial -- again the SAME ONE I'D ALREDY SEEN -- like I was watching a list of crash survivors and looking for the names of my loved ones. When it was done, I don't even remember what I said.

That was it. I was back.

"Lost" is roughly 5 weeks away. I never thought we had the time to finish season two anyway, so let's forget that. We'll save that for next summer. Beginning tomorrow, I am going to count down my 10 favorite shows on TV -- one a day for the next two weeks. We'll fill the other three weeks somehow.

Sorry I was gone, but I'm ready now.

Let's roll ...

Posted by Daniel at 09:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)