The Week That Was.....A Viewer's Diary: 3/20-3/26

Inspired by a recent series of emails on the Blogcritics.org mailing list, I have decided to start this, hopefully, weekly rundown of the television shows that I have watched. It won't be full on reviews or anything like that, just my impressions of the episode or some such nonsensical banter. The thing to remember is that I don't always pay terribly close attention to the shows that I watch, I generally tape everything I watch to time-shift my viewing and often I am writing reviews or surfing while watching. That said let us get to the premiere edition of "The Week That Was."

Sunday 3/20.

• Malcolm in the Middle. This show has really been slipping of late, I predict that, at most, it will have one more season. That said, this season was moderately amusing, mostly for the banter between Francis, Lois, and Lois's mother (played wonderfully by Cloris Leachman). And then there is the sub plot of laying a leg to rest.
• The Simpsons. In seasons that have been growing evermore mediocre, it has been hard to get a laugh. This episode had a few chuckles, Homer is one of the best characters ever. "The fumes are making me sleepy."
• Arrested Development. This show is consistently funny every week. The show defies explanation. This week has some funny stuff with Buster's new hook, and George Michael running for class president, man there is so much going on, it has to be seen.
• Law & Order: Criminal Intent. I watched this but it was in the back ground, I wasn't paying that close attention to it. I never really liked this before, but I started watching this year, and it is a pretty good show. This one revolved around a guy with a strange compulsion to give, and generally that meant his excess organs. But there is always a price. Pretty good.
• Crossing Jordan. I'm surprised this is still on, but I like it anyway. This show combines a strange mixture of goofy comedy and grisly crimes. This episode sees the return of Jordan's father, and a 30 year old conspiracy and a mixup in Nigel's new system. Not one of the better episodes, but still OK.

Monday 3/21.

• WWE: Raw. Yes I am a wrestling fan, I am not ashamed to admit it. This show was pretty good, getting all the players in place for Wrestlemania.
• 24. This has been a fantastic season. That said, this is one of the weaker episodes, but it is clearly setting up some near future moves.
• Medium. Still haven't made up my mind on this yet. It has an interesting premise, but tends to be a little slow moving. This episode puts our heroine into the drama surrounding an old TV show.
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars II Chapter 21. That's quite a mouthful. The second seasons episodes begin. Featuring a rescue of Jedi's from the hands of General Grievous, and perhaps more importantly, Anakin skips the final test and becomes a Knight, while hiding his romance with Padme. Good start.

Tuesday 3/22.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars II Chapter 22. The new season marches on, as Grievous gets some saber training from Count Dooku in preparation for the next offensive. Anakin and Obi-Wan lead troops in a battle against the droid army. This stuff is great!
• House. This show is a blast, Dr. House is such a droll abrasive character, and that is why we love him! This episode was pretty good featuring a Mobster turned witness who falls into a coma. There is also the rocky relationship between him and new cast member Chi Mcbride. I am so glad this got picked for a second season.
• Blind Justice. This show is slowly growing on me, Ron Eldard has been relatively convincing as a blind man. It works despite the hard-to-believe aspects like allowing a blind man to carry a gun. This was a pretty good story involving a detective's murder.

Wednesday 3/23.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars II Chapter 23. This series keeps moving along. Mace Windu and Yoda lead the defense of Coruscant, meanwhile Anakin has been selected to make a journey for an alien species. All the while, a battle rages in space above the planet. Looking forward to the next chapter.
• That 70's Show. This show has really taken a dive this year. I still enjoy it, but it has lost a lot, fortunately this is it's final season. This episode has Kelso picking Godparents for his daughter and the revelation that Fez is homeless. Kinda funny.
• Alias. One of my favorite shows currently on television, this particular episode didn't really do much for me. It dealt with Nadia's past and how it is colliding with her current work. We get some flashbacks, but I didn't find the episode to be very strong. But I still liked it.
• South Park. This seems to be a week with a number of weak episodes. This one follows the kids as they try to become Hollywood agents. I found it rather dull.

Thursday 3/24.

• WWE: Smackdown.The march to Wrestlmania continues. The action this show was OK, except for the stupid debate between JBL and Cena.
• The Office. The Americanized version of the British hit finally hits the airwaves. The bottomline is I like it. I recognize real people in the characters, goofy pranks, insane bosses, general bizarreness. I hear the next episode gets better.
• Life on a Stick. The jury is out, this is from the creators of the wonderful "Andy Richter Controls the Universe." This time it's about a couple of kids working at a fast food joint in a mall. There was an odd feel to the show, but I think it could get legs in a similar way to That 70's Show.
• ER. This was a mediocre episode, keeping with the theme of the week. It does have the return of Dr.Gallant and his reunion with Neela. The other plot of the show is the re-emergence of Sam's husband and the requisite trouble that follows him.
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars II Chapter 24. This series keeps getting better. This episode features a wonderful battle between a trio of Jedi, protecting Palpatine, and Grievous and his bots. Meanwhile, Anakin has a vision while on a journey for the aliens he met in episode 23. Great stuff. This is Star Wars.

Friday 3/25.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars II Chapter 25. The final episode of this second series of episodes leads right into episode III. We get shades of Anakin's darker side, and the abduction of Palpatine. Plus the starts of a massive space battle.
• Medical Investigation. I really liked this show early on in the season, I liked the chemistry that developed between the cast and I like Neal McDonough. Again, here we get a mediocre episode, but that wasn't helped by me missing last weeks Part 1. This episode had the team fighting an outbreak during a battle in some small country. It was OK, but didn't captivate me.
• Law & Order: Trial by Jury. Jury is still out. I did like this episode, concerning the death of a young baby. I liked the confrontations between the prosecution and the judge. I think this may be one too many L&O's.
• Kojak. The series premiere is pretty good. Ving Rhames steps into the title role, and really fits it to. This is a dark and gritty cop drama with some sweet touches and Rhames pulls it all off with equal ease. I hope the series has legs.
• Due to an unfortunate VCR programming mistake by yours truly, my Friday viewing was cut short.
• Stargate SG-1. I got to see about half of this, then the tape ran out. It was a decent episode featuring an alternate team traveling through time to correct it's mistakes.
• Stargate: Atlantis. Missed entirely.
• Battlestar Galactica. Ditto.

Saturday 3/26.

• Alien Apocalypse. Corny sci-fi film with Bruce Campbell and Renee O'Connor. Sort of like Planet of the Apes. I had fun watching it, but it was nothing special.

That brings us to the end of the first edition of A Viewer's Diary. It may change formats or content, or something, but just remember to watch TV and enjoy it, well..... some of it anyway.