TVSquad

(S01E13) That was... interesting. The writers definitely kicked it up a notch with this episode as things certainly felt more dramatic than they have throughout most of the freshman season of Dirt. A lot of that feel was do in part to simple things that were used very effectively. Numerous times in the episode, the power of silence coupled with the rhythmic sounds of a beating heart helped to cut together some very cool scenes unlike anything this show has tried before.

Add to that a rather off-beat cameo from Jennifer Aniston as well as the proper outcome for some of the show's minor characters, and we had ourselves a pretty decent finale. Savor it though, because unless FX is feeling brave (Starved and Over*There tells me they aren't), then I don't think we'll find out what happens next. Dirt may very well be the latest FX one-hit wonder.

Sanjaya has turned American Idol into a hair competition with himself. Many people have used the term mohawk but Sanjaya actually resembled more of a fighting Trojan. If anyone can find a comparable picture to prove this please send my way. Sanjaya cannot get all the attention for looney television moments, so we will move on to other TV's Top 5! moments.

Last night, Tori "I want to be Jessica Simpson" Spelling talked about how she thought she killed her baby after rough sex with her husband Dean McDermott on Tori and Dean: Inn Love. The baby stopped kicking after their antics and this worried the inheritance disabled Spelling. Regardless of how worried she truly was, it stop her from entertaining an encore performance. Where do these reality show actresses come up with this stuff?

Jennifer Aniston, you may have lost Brad and Vince, but you can alway be Dirt-y with Cox...

When I was watching The Riches on Monday night, FX had ads for the season finale of Dirt on fairly heavy rotation. Of course, the big promotional point of the ad was that Jennifer Aniston was going to guest star on her Friends buddy Courteney Cox's show... and they were going to kiss! In fact, not only did FX make a huge deal out of this kiss, but tabloid entertainment shows and morning news shows all over the country breathlessly touted "Courteney and Jennifer's lesbian kiss!" for weeks leading up to the episode.

Recently Jonathan and I got on the phone with The Shield's Walton Goggins, but if you read the interview you'll note we hadn't yet seen the first six episodes released to the press. Having now seen those episodes, I think our line of questioning would have been quite different.

I'll be the first to admit it. I was a latecomer to The Shield. I'd never watched a minute of it until right before the fourth season started and a buddy of mine let me borrow the first three seasons on DVD. He told me it was the best cop show ever. Wait a second. Better than NYPD Blue or The Wire? Yes. So I watched the three seasons... in one weekend. The phrase "glued to my seat" does not begin to do justice to how mesmerized I was by this show. I mean, damn!

So naturally, when I was approached about speaking with Walton Goggins, I practically blew up with anticipation. However, I'm not the only Shield fan here at TV Squad. Our fearless leader Keith is a die-hard too. So we decided to do something different for this interview -- the first ever TV Squad Tag Team. Walton didn't know what he was stepping into... that is, if he could crack through all the codes to get into our elaborate virtual phone-in conference room. I can't say that I blame him. I got confused too.

Keith: Hey man, thanks for joining us.

Walton: (laughing) I'm in the inner sanctum of some imaginary corporate office right now.

Jonathan: I know, it's crazy! You have to push buttons and number sequences and then some computerized voice announces your name.

(S01E03) Things are starting to settle in for the Malloys, and their new lives as the Riches, and this is where the fun starts. As I watched the first two episodes, I was waiting for the series to get into a routine and show the Malloys faking and conning their way through life at Eden Falls. I just felt during these cons we'd see the lighter touches that the show's casting and premise indicated would be there.

And this third episode doesn't disappoint.

(S01E12) Not bad. Not bad at all. Actually, it's unfortunate. Last week was a great episode and so was this one. Now the finale is next week. Why do shows always seem to get better when there's fewer episodes left?

Lots of stuff going on, especially the leak of the Julia/Johnny sex tape. It was bound to happen, but I truly didn't see it turning out the way it did. I suppose all signs pointed to Julia being behind the leak. When I first considered that it could have been her, it felt too convenient and I let the idea pass. Had me fooled.

With the TV news networks dedicating major portions of their broadcasts this week to the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the war in Iraq, a New York Times TV critic says that the war, as well as issues related to terrorism and torture, have become major themes on American television, ranging from dramas like 24, to comedies like Saturday Night Live.

"Television shows process news events much faster than ever before but not much more directly than they did at the time of Hogan's Heroes, M*A*S*H or China Beach," critic Alessandra Stanley wrote, noting that a failed FX program, Over There about soldiers in Iraq "turned a war into entertainment as it was still being fought."

One of the things I noticed when I watched last week's pilot of The Riches was that Eddie Izzard was struggling to maintain an American accent of any kind, much less the southern accent that his character, Wayne Malloy, is likely to have.

But when I watched last night's episode (Brett and I are trading off reviews on this show), I noticed that Izzard's accent had smoothed out, and his British didn't seep out as much as it did in the first episode. This is no small feat; doing an accurate American accent is extremely difficult for Brits, as the many tiny differences between how each country speaks English are tough to keep track of. The effort to make the leap has sunk many accomplished British actors; even ones who do a reasonable job, like Emma Thompson, let their native accents leak through every so often.

(S01E02) This week the Malloy family continues their transition into their new lives. The episode felt like a part two to the premiere as it ended with a bit of resolution for everyone, finally acknowledging that they are really going to do this. Now that they have committed, we can move forward with the story and let the drama and hijinks begin.

We'll get to all of that in the coming weeks though. For now, there are setup fish to fry. For me, the best part of this episode was how they showed each of the characters dealing with all of these changes. Of those, I thought Dahlia's story was the most interesting. The burying of the money and the towing of the RV both served to show hard it is for Dahlia to let go of her old life.

Hola, mi muchachos and muchachoettes! It is I, Schedule Boy, back from wherever the hell I was. I'm here this time to present a comprehensive list of upcoming season and series premieres and finales for you, my adoptive TV Squad family.

What a crazy season its been! Shows that had so much potential (The Nine, Studio 60) struggled to stay on the air, while others (Ugly Betty, Friday Night Lights, Jericho, 30 Rock) surprised us with their growing fan bases and popularity. Then there were shows like ER that made a sudden comeback and ones like Gilmore Girls and Scrubs that didn't seem to find their way for the first half of the season. Well, at least we could be confident that hits like Grey's Anatomy, American Idol, 24 and Lost would carry us through the season. Then again, maybe not. Like I said, crazy season.

So, sit back, relax, and enjoy this fine presentation, presented in color with limited commercial interruption. You can find the list of premieres and finales (as well shows returning from hiatus) after the jump. Remember, dates are subject to change, so we'll be updating as time moves forward.

The numbers are in and The Riches is off to a nice start for FX. The 3.8 million viewers more than doubled the best Monday night at 10 the network has ever had. That was also slightly better than the premieres of Nip/Tuck and Dirt, but fell short of The Shield, Rescue Me, and Over There. In the 18-49 demo, the news was even better. The Riches ranks as the number two premiere, trailing only The Shield.

Of course, it remains to be seen how things hold up moving forward. I thought the premiere was very good, but it didn't match the advertising that led up to it. The show had a much darker, more serious tone than those commercials where we saw Wayne and Dahlia walking down the stairs pondering their new life. I'll be interested to see if that turned off any of those 3.8 million viewers.

(S01E11) Whoa... we got a live one here. It took eleven episodes, but we finally got a really good one from Dirt. It was tense, had a cool twist, and none of the dependence on crappy character history that had been a trend as of late.

Using the whole "36 Hours Earlier" technique, we got a cool re-telling of a day in the life of Don. It was a little hard to swallow at some points, but more than anything else we found out that Don is ridiculously smart. From his "3 P's," to the "always carry empty rolls" rule, this guy has his job down to a science. I know a lot of people have suggested that he get his own show, and while I was against it, this episode made a pretty good argument in favor of it.

(S01E01) If there's anything close to a certainty in this wacky world of 3,000 channels, it's this: When a new show premieres on FX, chances are it's going to be pretty damned good. Even the less-than-stellar shows are more daring, creative, and entertaining than most of what you might see on a broadcast or basic cable network. And The Riches is no exception; in fact, it is one of the most well-done new shows of the year. The pilot, which aired earlier tonight, was nearly as riveting as that of The Nine, wich was almost universally lauded before the fall season started. But unlike The Nine, The Riches knows where it's going. And it looks like it's going to be a pretty fun ride.

FX continues to roll out edgy new dramas and comedies. Next up is The Riches, which premieres Monday at 10PM ET. But you can watch the entire pilot now at AOL Television.

The show stars Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver as the parents of a family of con-artist grifters. It starts off with Minnie Driver's character, Dahlia Malloy, getting released from jail after two years. The Malloys roam around in their RV, looking for ways to scam "buffers" (regular people), until an accident gives them a chance to live the American Dream.

Now after the missteps of Dirt, I was initially wary of The Riches. But the pilot is very promising and reminds me of Six Feet Under in some ways.

Check back to TV Squad for a review of the premiere sometime soon.