One of the great TV characters right now is the mysterious bald Observer on FOX's Fringe. And he's popped up in other places as well, including FOX baseball game coverage.
This pic was taken this morning at South Station in Boston (larger version here). Many mysterious bald guys standing around. Also, they were handing out these. I wonder if this freaked anyone out after that Aqua Teen Hunger Force promo fiasco.
(S01E10) "What does a heart attack feel like?" - Finn, in a panicky call to Kurt after facing Quinn's parents at dinner
The subject of this episode of Glee was ballads. It was learned that the club must perform a ballad at sectionals in a few weeks, and the writers managed to weave the soulful songs into every storyline. The first was "Endless Love," sung by Will and Rachel. It set the tone for one of the storylines -- her crush on the teacher. In fact, the episode was filled with odd-couple pairings, thanks to a hat-draw for ballad partners.
(S06E07) "I'm living my life. For the first time, I'm not going to change that because of how it might affect him -- or you." -- Cuddy to Wilson, who asked her what she sees in Lucas
I just want to shove House and Cuddy into a room together and let them figure out their relationship. It's clear that even though she's trying to be happy in her current relationship, she just can't get House out of her head, no matter how much she declares that she has or is going to.
I feel for her, because once they end up getting together -- if they don't by the time the series ends, I'll be ticked -- she'll have a long road ahead of her. Or not. People change. There's a good heart beating inside House's damaged psyche. It could work.
It was nice to cut back Seth MacFarlane's domination of Sunday nights to only three shows. As much as I enjoy all three shows in a general sense, two-and-a-half hours of MacFarlane's brand of humor was a bit much. I continue to enjoy the growth of The Cleveland Show more and more; I'm beginning to see why FOX went ahead and gave it an early season two pick-up.
After a shaky start, we're starting to get a better feel for all these new characters, and I'm finding little things about them to enjoy. It's little things like Arianna's love of confetti that add layers to the character. And while I'm sure it's politically incorrect of me, I find Kendra tooling around in her Rascal absolutely hilarious. That and the over-eating, but all with such a sweet disposition and voice.
(S01E09) If you're a Glee fan already -- a Gleek -- this episode is going to hit you in the sweet spot. If you're not a Glee fan, do yourself a favor and go online and watch this one (when it's available). It's just that good.
It may be coincidental, but the focus was on the school and the music. And plenty of character development with Puck, Kurt, and especially Sue. There was no football, no Slushees, no Emma and definitely no Teri. It's looking like Glee is best when Mr. Schu's personal life is off camera. I haven't missed the Mrs. one bit. More after the jump.
Is this a surprise? Not at all. In fact, a lot of people were rather surprised when the show was given a second season. I wonder how many fans of the first season didn't even bother watching the second season of the show because they knew it was a surprise that the show got renewed and they knew it was just a matter of time before FOX canceled it? Or maybe the Friday night slot was another reason a lot of people weren't watching.
The show will actually finish its whole 13 episode order, which is something a lot of canceled shows can't say. Now we'll just have to see if Whedon will have an actual ending for the show.
A lot of shows on the list won't surprise us: Hank, The Forgotten, Numb3rs, Gary Unmarried, and 'Til Death (each either gets low ratings or has been on for a while), but there are several that I think will actually make it to a another season, including The Good Wife and Parks and Recreation.
(S02E06) "You work here. I know everything." - Lightman
Looks like we've got a bit of a trend going on here. Just a few weeks ago, we got a glimpse into Cal's seedy criminal past and now we got a taste of what Reynolds was up to before he became the FBI liaison to The Lightman Group.
As enjoyable as a one-off case on Lie to Me can be, it's way more interesting when Cal starts using his talent on the people working in his own office. There's more than enough material to mine here and hopefully there's more of this in the future.
(S06E07) "Well, I feel bad. I haven't named your testicles." - Cuddy
We're all thinking it, and unlike euthanasia, I see no reason to keep mum -- House is firing on all cylinders right now. Actually, let me clarify that -- House the character, not House the show, is firing on all cylinders right now. Anything going on in Greg's periphery at the moment is sensational, absolutely electrifying drama.
Everything else? Not so much. If anything, "Known Unknowns" did nothing more than highlight something we've seen countless times already. Namely, the paralyzing effect House's absence has on his team. They're inept without him. What did I glean from the case du jour? Some annoying teenager got sick from eating oysters. However, I gleaned plenty from the rest of the hour.
FOX pushed the boundaries of their Seth MacFarlane-filled Sundays about as far as they could. It wasn't enough to have three animated series already in the lineup, but they had to give him his own "variety show" as well. They bumped The Simpsons to make room for a two-hour block of Seth madness!
But that's not all! If you watch new episodes of American Dad, Family Guy, The Cleveland Show AND the all-new Seth & Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show, we'll throw in a bonus episode of Family Guy absolutely free! The real question is... was America really ready for that much Seth?
It's a scavenger hunt, and here's how it works. During this entire week (November 9-13) the network will scatter references to the show throughout their lineup. And this isn't something that will show up in just a few shows here and there, you're going to find a reference to The Simpsons in every FOX prime time show.
Last night FOX aired Seth & Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show, and they're getting a little heat about it today. They re-enacted a scene from a Family Guy episode that made fun of deaf actress Marlee Matlin. Then they took it a step further and had Alex Borstein imitate Matlin singing a pop song. No worries though, since Matlin was there to defend herself.
Considering the incredible overnight ratings that Fox got for Game Six of the World Series, you might think I'm crazy to suggest that the network would be rooting for the New York Yankees last night to beat the Philadelphia Phillies, but I have evidence. All through the game, Fox was promoting Fringe and Bones, urging viewers to tune in tomorrow night -- tonight -- for new episodes. Why would the network be sending that message when there was a possibility of a Game Seven?
Fox's master foodie is at it again. Gordon Ramsay has conjured up a new show called MasterChef, only it's not really his idea. See, it's already been done in England and Australia, but Gordon will put his spin on this show. So for all intents and purposes, it's another Gordon Ramsay project. (Like the Alan Parsons Project without Alan Parsons and a small 'p').
In MasterChef, amateur chefs will compete to master the perfect dish. These will be everyday people, not sous chefs or short order cooks, but backyard grillers and homemakers who have a specialty at which they excel. Sounds to me a bit like the Food Network Challenge shows in which people try to make the best chili or the definitive hamburger.
My first thought whenever O'Reilly visits The View is Joy Behar. She always looks like she'd rather be anywhere else but sitting next to him. But I suppose she puts up with it -- and has no choice in the matter -- because O'Reilly and Barbara Walters have been friends for a long time, and Barbara, of course, has the final say on who gets on the show and who doesn't.
This is all speculation, of course. I have no idea what goes on behind the scenes. Just reading the body language, which I've learned a little about while watching Tonya Reiman on O'Reilly's Fox show, The O'Reilly Factor.
It was nice to cut back Seth MacFarlane's domination of Sunday nights to only three shows. As much as I enjoy all three shows in a general sense, two-and-a-half hours of MacFarlane's brand of humor was a bit much. I continue to enjoy the growth of The Cleveland Show more and more; I'm beginning to see why FOX went ahead and gave it an early season two pick-up.
This seems to be the week for cancellation notices. ABC canceled Eastwick yesterday and Hank today, and now FOX has announced that they are canceling Joss Whedon's Dollhouse.
A couple of weeks ago, I did a post about the shows that were "on the bubble," the ones in danger of being canceled. Now AOL TV has given the odds on what shows might not be coming back.
FOX pushed the boundaries of their Seth MacFarlane-filled Sundays about as far as they could. It wasn't enough to have three animated series already in the lineup, but they had to give him his own "variety show" as well. They bumped The Simpsons to make room for a two-hour block of Seth madness!
As you know, we're in the middle of the 20th anniversary of FOX's The Simpsons, and the network has a special contest that actually starts during tonight's episode of House.
Fox's master foodie is at it again. Gordon Ramsay has conjured up a new show called MasterChef, only it's not really his idea. See, it's already been done in England and Australia, but Gordon will put his spin on this show. So for all intents and purposes, it's another Gordon Ramsay project. (Like the Alan Parsons Project without Alan Parsons and a small 'p'). 
It's always fun when Bill O'Reilly visits The View. Bob posted about it yesterday, too, talking about how weird Whoopi was acting. 
The TV Squad Podcast: The Prisoner, '80s TV, soap news and more
Let's talk about spoilers ...
The Prisoner -- An early look
