Lonestar, Greg Giraldo, and the Like.

To be honest I watch more television than I probably should. I get pissed when my DVR doesn't record something and I probably shouldn't. I watch stupid shows that I probably shouldn't waste my time with and get annoyed when they get canceled. I should say, that I used to get annoyed. Lately, I don't get annoyed with the cancellations of television shows, because it's honestly nothing I can help. I remember calling FOX, yelling at them about canceling "John Doe" and now looking back at that I can't help but realize how absolutely fucking pathetic that was.

I was ill informed back then about television. Like anything else, TV is a fucking business and if people aren't watching then people aren't buying the shit that are in the ads that play during your TV show. "Lonestar" is the first casualty of the 2010 Fall TV schedule. "Lonestar" is a show about a Con man, who has two wives in the same state. It stars a fairly newcomer in James Wolk, who if you do a double take, looks exactly like Kyle Chandler's offspring. Actually, so much so that he could be Chandler's son. The show - which was delicately explained in this article - was adored by critics and shit on by audiences. Critics loved the shit out of this show, because unlike everything else coming out this season it was unique. It wasn't that it was the greatest show to ever grace television, it was just that it was a unique concept. Unfortunately, unique doesn't necessarily garner ratings in the TV-biz, so therefore "Lonestar" bit it. Shit happens.

I remember becoming infuriated when "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" - the first show from Aaron Sorkin since "West Wing" - and feeling robbed of an opportunity to watch a great, well-written show. I also remember refusing to watch "30 Rock" because of it and now that I've seen "30 Rock" (completely caught up) and I love that show as much as I loved "Studio 60." It's absolutely a crap shoot as to what show is going to stick and which one isn't. It's like throwing shit at a wall in all actuality. So, when I made the presumption that "Lonestar" would be canned after 3 episodes, I wasn't kidding. I literally thought the show as going to be canned after 3 episodes. I did not look at ratings or at reviews or anything like that, I just know that good shows get canceled. Good shows, such as "Lonestar" which can only be described as "too smart for it's own good" get canned, because people just don't get the allure. The show was exceptionally acted and completely different than anything else on TV and that was the problem. I've come to terms with the fact that we live in a world where cop shows (ie: "Law and Order" "CSI" even the new "Hawaii Five-O") are what people want to watch. Cop shows and 30 minute comedies that you don't have to think about.

If it's not a cop show and it's on the big three (ABC, CBS, NBC) it's either Science Fiction or a cop show. If you watch FX or HBO or Showtime then you're in luck if you want to watch something different. FX started the whole thing with "The Shield" on Cable television and now they have "Sons of Anarchy" and some of the best 30 minute shows on TV. I digress though, because the point of this - if there is a point - is that TV sucks. Plain and simple. Movies are superior and much easier to love.

Anyway....

Greg Giraldo died. It's a very, very sad day for comedy, because this guy was one of the funniest fucking guys on the planet. He was blunt, honest, and a complete asshole and since he wasn't on a mainstream TV show, no one knows who he was. He did the majority of the Comedy Central Roasts (that I watched at least) and it's very sad that he's gone.

Top New Shows of Next Fall...

Having watched Fringe and Life On Mars I can say that they will probably be of the most hyped, most-watched shows next fall. Mars is good, but it could definitely use some fine tuning. Fringe, however, is so good it made me yearn for me. Fringe, if you didn't know, is produced by JJ Abrams, who in turn worked on two of ABC's hit shows LOST and Alias. 

11th Hour looks good, it does, but I don't know if I like Rufus Sewell in the lead role. I haven't gotten a screener copy of the show yet, but when I do I will pop on here and tell you want I really think about the show. I'll do that now with Life on Mars and Fringe right now...

Since I've got nothing else to do...at all. 

Fringe's 2-hour pilot was directed by Alex Graves, who directed countless episodes of Aaron Sorkin scripted dramas Sports Night and my favorite show The West Wing. It was penned by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman who together penned last years blockbuster Transformers, Mission Impossible III, Alias, and has been tapped to write Star Trek and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. It's also got the writing talent of JJ Abrams, who we all know is pretty damn good. The story focuses on a female FBI Agent, who is forced to work with a scientist who has been institutionalized, in order to fight against a slew of unexplained phenomena. The female agent is played by Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson plays the scientists son, and John Noble plays the crazy scientist. 

The 2-Hour pilot was very very good. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I think Joshua Jackson is going to steal the show. Anna Torv is hotter than hell, and it pisses me off what happens with Mark Valley's character. However, the writing is right there. It's good to a point that it's going to be the best pilot of the fall season (until I see something better at least like...90210). 

Life On Mars' pilot was directed by Thomas Schlamme, who recently directed Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, countless episodes of The West Wing, Sports Night, Invasion, Jack & Bobby, Ally McBeal and ER, so you know it's good. The show stars Jason O'Mara as a cop who is on the trail of a serial killer...when his partner/girlfriend is captured he's distraut and nearly gets into a traffic accident, he pulls over ...gets out of the car...and gets run over by a car. 

Then he's transported into the 1970's where he's forced to solve murders. 

Now before everyone gets on me about one thing or another, this show is based on a famous British series, which I have the first season of, and plan to watch one of these days. The story and screenplay are written by the guys who wrote October Road which according to everyone on the planet sucked, but here's the thing...

I liked October Road, I really liked it. It had a heart, and it had good dialogue, and the premise was there. I don't really understand the bashing that it's taking, I truly don't. I didn't watch any of the second season. I tried getting the episodes, but that wound up being a hopeless case, because I'd forget to get them, or lose interest in getting them, or something, but I liked the show. 

The script for the first episode/pilot of ABC's Life on Mars is good. It's not the greatest script in the entire world, but it's doable, it's believable and it's basically copied from the BBC series, but that doesn't tarnish the acting. Colm Meany and Rachel Lafevre breathe life into these characters, and Jason O'Mara has brought Sam Tyler to life. And, you know what, he damn well should have, I've seen the cat play a serial killer on Criminal Minds, a guy getting brain surgery on Grey's Anatomy and starring as a lead in InJustice (which was good). O'Mara has good acting chops and he showed it in this pilot episode for Life On Mars. 

I almost forgot to tell you that 90210 was/is going to be CW's hit new show. I didn't say it, the people at Horizon Media did. Yeah.