When NBC announced its new Thursday lineup, which includes Scrubs and 30 Rock, I wasn't exactly happy with it, especially since there were six shows over two networks that were can't-miss to me. What complicated matters was that, at the time, I reviewed two of those shows for TVS, so writing reviews would also be part of my evening.I know, tough life, right? That's why I'm calling it the "Thursday from Heck" in the headline; after all, I'm watching TV and writing about it, which is much better than just about any other job I could have.
Anyway, Julia was nice enough to take the reviews for Ugly Betty off my hands, but I still have to review yet another dense and intense episode of Grey's Anatomy. But I've been so looking forward to seeing a new Scrubs, it hurts. So how am I going to negotiate my evening? I'll let you know after the jump.
OK, here's how I think it's going to go (with 2 VCRs whirring away at once... still no DVR in my house, but I might cave after tonight):
8 PM Watch Earl and The Office, tape Ugly Betty
9 PM Watch Scrubs and 30 Rock, tape Grey's Anatomy
10 PM Watch Grey's, tape ER
11 PM Write Grey's review while watching TDS / Colbert.
Midnight Take four Advil for my headache and collapse.
I'll likely watch Betty and ER sometime tomorrow, or maybe over the weekend.
I can't imagine how bad things would be if I were a Survivor, CSI, or Shark fan (or one of the five fans of The O.C. still left). I think my head would explode.
So, TV fans, how are you going to navigate one of the most jam-packed nights of TV ever? Let me know in the comments.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-30-2006 @ 1:22PM
David4 said...
Why not watch Grey's and tape Scrubs and 30 Rock? That way the review would be up even faster! :-p
And Thursday Night is the one night a week I have NOTHING that is must see.
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11-30-2006 @ 2:36PM
Josh said...
8PM - Watch Earl and The Office, record Ugly Betty
9PM - Watch Grey's Anatomy, record The O.C., download 30 Rock tomorrow
And Supernatural isn't even on this week. When that comes back, the 9:00 hour will be even more packed.
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11-30-2006 @ 1:04PM
etana said...
Oh...well. It is quite simple for us five OC fans who are left. Tape Scrubs. Watch Grey's by streaming on ABC (Best thing to EVER happen to TV) at 2am and watch the OC live (cause you never know when it might be gone).
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11-30-2006 @ 2:18PM
Erik said...
Screw Earl. Watch Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock, Torrent Smallville, Daily Show and Colbert.
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11-30-2006 @ 1:59PM
Kevin O'Shea said...
Watch in their regular times:
Earl
the Office
Grey's
DVR
Scrubs
30 Rock
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11-30-2006 @ 1:55PM
Regina said...
As a Scrubs addict and CSI and Grey's fan, tonight I'm just thankful that CSI is a repeat. I guess it will be a mood thing going forward - but I have a feeling Scrubs and 30 Rock will win while I DVR the other two.
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11-30-2006 @ 3:03PM
TVblogger said...
Seeing that The Office and My Name is Earl are at the top of my watching list, and that I truly can't stand any other shows on Thursday nights, I'll be sticking with my regular NBC Thursday nights.
I think it's really going to bring back the Must See Thursday.
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11-30-2006 @ 1:42PM
TomB said...
Joel, I can't believe that you don't have a DVR!! Do you have broadband? Do you go to the library to post your articles on the internet?
DVR's the only way to go if just for the fact that you can pause and rewind live tv.
I got mine from my cable company for $5/month. Definitely worth it.
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11-30-2006 @ 2:19PM
Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV said...
IT's the best night of TV in years. The masses rejoice!
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11-30-2006 @ 2:28PM
Jason said...
The real problem is for those of us who watch CSI and Survivor as well. 7 PM CST isn't an issue because Ugly Betty sucks, but the 8 PM CST hour is lunacy.
Luckily, I have 2 more DVR's than Joel does.
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11-30-2006 @ 4:23PM
shawn said...
I'm just gonna watch NBC comedy tonight. Turn it off at 10. Simple
Reply
11-30-2006 @ 2:50PM
#257863 said...
here's how I am doing it where i live
8:00 lights out
8:05 convince big bart i still do not want to be his bitch
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11-30-2006 @ 2:59PM
Danny said...
I guess you're not a football fan either. Good thing or you'd really be screwed (like me). ;-)
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11-30-2006 @ 3:58PM
doog said...
Watch Survivor and CSI live, watch DVVRed Earl and The Office at 10:00. My wife will watch DVRed Grey's tomorrow. I hate Scrubs, so that's no loss, but with only a two tuner DVR, that leaves me hoping that NBC will have a full 30 Rock online rather than the two minute recap. If they do not, that's one show that I guess I will not watch.
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11-30-2006 @ 5:34PM
Margaret said...
Thursday's from Heck is right! I'm negotiating this Thursday by recording all the NBC shows from 8PM - 11PM (Earl, Office, Scrubs, ER), and Watching Ugly Betty & Grey's live. I don't know what the F I'm going to do when Supernatural returns with new episodes. Scrubs & 30 Rock better produce the funny if they hope to keep the slot I reserved for my Man Cheese show with surprisingly good stories this year.
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11-30-2006 @ 5:10PM
Thomas Vogh said...
Dude, it kills me each time you write these silly articles about how you're going to TAPE things while watching other things. Do us all a favor and go pick up a TiVo dual-tuner. You can start watching your shows at 8:10, and zip through the commercials. Frankly, I'd rather read a silly article about how you can't believe you waited so long to join TiVo Nation rather than get sucked into your mini-crisis each time a network opts to take on the competiton.
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11-30-2006 @ 5:29PM
Joel Keller said...
Thomas, I don't get how selecting what to watch and what to record changes with a TiVo. Yes, I might be able to time-shift a little more tightly (like starting to watch Grey's at 9:30 instead of 10, knowing the device is recording ahead). But it's still a matter of picking what to watch now and what to watch later. TiVo or no TiVo, you can only watch one show at a time.
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11-30-2006 @ 7:28PM
Thomas Vogh said...
You're right. You can only watch one program at a time, even with a TiVo. I guess it just gets my goat thinking of all the prep time needed to use multiple VCRs...scheduling the shows via the inferior interface on a weekly if not daily basis, swapping out tapes, suffering through the tape degradation or buying new tapes regularly, and so on...when they have a technology that does exactly what you want it to do, across two tuners. I mean, you're a writer for the most prestigious TV news and review blog on the internets...and you use a VCR set-up. This is like a graphic designer trying to ply his art with a Commodore 64. You have written on numerous occasions how you "might cave" and get a DVR. Just do it, is all I'm saying. Pick up a TiVo dual-tuner, write it off as a business expense, pen a glowing entry saying you can't believe you held out this long, and live happily ever-after.
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11-30-2006 @ 8:30PM
Paul said...
Thanks to CTV and Global airing shows at different times here in Canada, the wonderful world of timeshifting, and of course with the power of my PVR, I'm able to get everything in that I need to. (It's all gotta be taped because I'm often not home during the evenings.)
7:00pm: Grey's Anatomy
8:00pm: Scrubs
8:30pm: The Office
10:00pm: Survivor
11:00pm: CSI
Thank goodness I stopped watching The O.C. a couple seasons back.
I just hope the ratings for Scrubs are strong-ish.
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11-30-2006 @ 11:16PM
erroneous_nick said...
I watch it the way TV should be watched:
Download it all and watch when I damned well please!
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