Fall TV Returning Series Reviews

Let’s consider this their 1st semester grades. It's a good thing I'm grading on a curve...

ABC

Desperate Housewives
(Sunday at 9:00)
Season Grade: A-
Not as strong as the first season, mostly due to the mystery not involving all four of the ‘Wives but still with a lot of good performances and writing. There must be an even bigger mystery than just the dead girl in Chicago and the guy locked in the basement of Mrs. Applewhite’s, because it’s not that much of mystery any more.

Grey’s Anatomy
(Sunday at 10:00)
Season Grade: A
I like this show a lot. There’re a lot of subtle hints of the personalities at work, and the relationships, past and present. While I find Dr. McDreamy’s wife to be annoying I can understand her role in the show. Carry on.

Lost
(Wednesday at 9:00)
Season Grade: A
This season has continually made my brain explode. Literally. Every freakin’ new thing they learn about the island just compounds the mystery. The stupid “countdown of doom” clock. Strange magnetic fields. The Others. The tail section survivors. It all keeps adding to the aneurysm that’s about to pop in my head. And I love it. I hate Ana-Lucia but I think that’s intentional. I don’t know, I just have to keep watching, and that’s what I want and need out of this show.

Alias
(Thursday at 8:00)
Season Grade: C+
No Michael Vartan. Expectant mothers gambling. Baltazar freakin’ Getty. Sloane getting off scot-free. The list of reasons why this season is less than good is long and getting longer. I think there have been good parts of episodes, but no episode has been awesomely good.

CBS

NUMB3RS
(Friday at 10:00)
Season Grade: B
Being the only CBS show I watch that came back, I remain faithful, if just a bit belated at times. Generally the show had been good, the mysteries cool, but the only thing I just haven’t been a fan of is the new characters. Diane Farr is ok, but the cocky guy just gets on my nerves.

FOX

The Simpsons
(Sunday at 8:00)
Season Grade: B+
Chucklehead business as usual. They need a good Mr. Burns episode though. I think Treehouse of Horror should be good.

The Family Guy
(Sunday at 9:00)
Season Grade: B
Funny, funny stuff. Still not to the level of the Simpsons’ best seasons, but still really good.

American Dad
(Sunday at 9:30)
Season Grade: B-
Not consistently funny, but when they hit the mark with total inappropriateness, it usually leaves me rolling.

Arrested Development
(Monday at 8:00)
Season Grade: A+
I cannot praise this show enough. And what makes it great are really the little things, like the faux-James-Bond theme music “For British Eyes Only.”

That 70’s Show
(Wednesday at 8:00)
Season Grade: N/A
Season premiere next week. Will report back later.

Stacked
(Wednesday at 8:30)
Season Grade: N/A
Not sure when it premieres. Presumably in a couple weeks.

The O.C.
(Thursday at 8:00)
Season Grade: B-
Dra-ma! I guess because they only had 4 weeks before baseball they decided to cram a bunch of stuff in, but quantity /= quality. I hate Dean Evil and that other chick and Summer is still good, but Marissa needs a sandwich and Ryan is being a dumbass while Seth just is. Hopefully things will get better in this half of the season.

Malcolm in the Middle
(Friday at 8:30)
Season Grade: A-
After getting the shaft timeslot-wise for the last couple years, Malcolm moved to Friday, which, while not much of an improvement, lessens its chance of being preempted by football or something else. So far this season, there have been some excellent episodes, especially the one where they went to Burning Man or the one where Dewey is smoking.

NBC

Crossing Jordan
(Sunday at 10:00)
Season Grade: C+
Nothing too spectacular here, but generally solid episodes. If you like it, you’ll enjoy this season.

Medium
(Monday at 10:00)
Season Grade: A-
Watch this show. That’s all.

The Office
(Tuesday at 9:30)
Season Grade: B+
The Office has really grown on me. Oftentimes it the “laugh because it’s so uncomfortable” moments that get me.

Joey
(Thursday at 8:30)
Season Grade: B-
This season has been pretty “meh.” It still seems to be missing something. And I can’t figure out what.

UPN

Veronica Mars
(Wednesday at 9:00)
Season Grade: A
OMG! I, like, totally love this show! Like wow, it’s awesome.
No, seriously. The writing is good, the continuity is amazing (for us geeks who care) and the acting is good. Even Duncan is better this season.

WB

Gilmore Girls
(Tuesday at 8:00)
Season Grade: B+
Having Rory not in Yale has been a challenge I think, as so much of Rory’s motivation came from schoolwork. I’m so glad that Luke and Lorelei finally are together though, hope it isn’t a Moonlighting-jump-the-shark decision though. They still need more Lane though.

Smallville
(Thursday at 8:00)
Season Grade: C+
This season has been a definite step up from last season. It’s somewhat less gay, and Lana is less wooden/annoying. There have been missteps, like continuing to have Lois around, and the Aquaman episode was kind of lame. I also don’t know how many more times I can stand it if Lex just keeps appearing out of nowhere, or someone angrily bursts into Lex’s office. Better, but still not as good as it should be.

Everwood
(Thursday at 9:00)
Season Grade: A-
Everwood continues to be one of my favorite shows. It’s well acted and well written. There’s so much depth and growth in the characters as well. Bellisimo!

What I Like About You
(Friday at 8:00 *Additional episode at 8:30)
Season Grade: C
Val got married and Holly is with Vince. Bleh. There’s still funny parts, but I don’t get real excited to watch.