TV Winners and Losers…So Far

A quick rundown, in no particular order. Spoilers ahead.

House
Great fun. I love the Survivor-esque competition House is orchestrating to whittle 40 applicants down to a final three. I liked that there was an older guy in the pack (the guy who kept claiming he was 21) and while I didn’t foresee the twist with his character, I was glad there’s a chance he’s sticking around in a new role. Wilson messing with House’s mind was great fun–but then, how do we explain the Foreman sighting? Number 6 flipping into Number 9–nice touch. And the blond cutthroat chick (I forget her number) who kept playing a bit dirty, thinking she’d won a round only to find House switching up the rules. If Wilson is right that House is going to hire a team he doesn’t like to make things emotionally easier on himself, than this woman’s a shoe-in. Tune in next week for Tribal Council.

K-Ville
Absolutely ridiculous. This week’s episode confirmed my theory that K-Ville will center on no small story line. Once again, Cobb and Boulet catch a murder that’s not just any murder: 1) The victim is a city councilman, 2) who’s linked to a high-class brothel, 3) and is involved in a controversial post-Katrina land development deal, 4) with direct connections to the Latin Kings. Puh-leeze.

And how do they kick off this investigation? By tracing a fingernail found on the body, with polish that’s produced in only one salon in all of New Orleans, which Boulet’s wife just happens to recognize. Excuse me while I laugh. I really checked out of this show when the uniform cops who work with Cobb and Boulet rolled up to an abandoned neighborhood and a guy started firing at them with a machine gun–and the only cops to come back them up were Cobb and Boulet! I know the New Orleans police force is understaffed, but you’d think these guys were the only cops fighting crime anywhere in this city. The conversation these cops had with the neighbors once the crazy shooter had been apprehended was some of the worst scripting I’ve sat through in a while. I definitely won’t be returning to K-Ville.

Side note: With all the Maude episodes I’ve been watching for my ongoing series over on the Beachwood Reporter, I did get a kick out of seeing Adrienne Barbeau appear as the brothel madam.

The Office
Wow, what an opening! We rewound and watched it four times. Too funny. Michael explaining the accident to the gang and Stanley’s reaction (“What is wrong with you?!”)–perfect. While there were many great lines–superstitious vs. just a little stitious–I thought the double episode linked as one dragged at times. I like that Pam’s asserting herself more and I was glad to see they revealed the PB&J relationship right away, rather than dragging it out. Kevin’s continual attempts to out the two lovebirds was the highlight of the hour. (“You’ve got to be kidding me!”) And as Pam and Jim’s relationship takes off, do we see a rocky road ahead for Dwight and Angela? Good potential there.

Ugly Betty
Great beginning to the second season. While I kind of saw the surprise twist at the end (Hilda’s grief fantasy) my only quibble was that her son seemed to be handling the death surprisingly well, which helped with “the trick” but doesn’t seem very believable. I thought the disaster-themed photo shoot was hilarious. Great to see Illeana Douglas added as a supporting character.

Damages
The show continues to be great fun and Glenn Close just gets creepier and creepier. The mystery twists and turns but each episode reveals more and moves the story along, keeping red herrings and dead ends to a minimum. (An excess of which alienates me from a program like nothing else; example Lost.) Only three episodes left, each of which should be a tempting step toward what promises to be an exciting conclusion.