TVSquad

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

The end of the year is always a lame time for TV DVD releases (there were hardly any at all last week). Of course, if you're a fan of any of the seven DVDs that follow, this is a great week.

• 10 Items Or Less - Seasons 1 and 2
• Comedy Central Roast of Bob Saget: Uncensored
• Death Note - Vol. 8 LImited Edition
• Greek - Chapter 2
• Kyle XY - Season 2
• Nip/Tuck - Season 5, Part 1
• The Secret Life of the American Teenager - Season 1

• At 8, NBC has more U.S. Olympic Trials.
• TNT has the Sprint Cup: Coke Zero 400 race at 8.
• Disney has a new Life with Derek at 8, followed by a new Cory in the House.
• TCM has the original 3:10 To Yuma at 8.
• Also at 8: Versus has stage one of The Tour de France.
• At 9, FOX has a new America's Most Wanted.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• At 9:30, HGTV has a new Divine Design.
• At midnight, Cartoon Network has a new Bleach, then new episodes of Death Note, Code Geass, and Shin Chan.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, FOX has a new Cops.
• NBC has the U.S. Olympic Trials at 8.
• Food Network has Summertime Unwrapped at 8.
• TCM has Seven Samurai at 8.
• At 9, FOX has a new America's Most Wanted.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• Lifetime has the new movie Joy Fielding's The Other Woman at 9.
• There's a new Robin Hood on BBC America at 9, followed by a new Graham Norton Show, with Gordon Ramsay.
• Also at 9: Spike has a new Ultimate Fighter.
• At 9:30, HGTV has a new Divine Design.
• At midnight, Cartoon Network has a new Bleach, then new episodes of Death Note, Code Geass, and Shin Chan.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, FOX has a new Cops.
• TLC has a new Flip That House at 8.
• At 8:30, Disney has a new Phineas & Ferb.
• At 9, FOX has a new America's Most Wanted.
• BBC America has a new Robin Hood at 9, followed by a new Graham Norton Show, with guests Alanis Morrisette and Dame Edna.
• CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show at 9.
• Cartoon Network has two new episodes of Naruto at 9.
• Also at 9: IFC has Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn in Made.
• At midnight, Cartoon Network has a new Bleach, then new episodes of Death Note, Code Geass, and Shin Chan.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Being the award for Excellence in Animation, this was easily the widest ranging category, and you all really came through in your nomination suggestions (sorry The Venture Brothers doesn't qualify). With animation owning several channels all to itself and still appearing everywhere else, you've got kid's shows, very much adult only series (did I mention The Venture Brothers can't get nominated?), gag cartoons, sci-fi cartoons and even gothic horror.

With your help from my Adam Finley Award call for nominations post last week where you tried to trick me into nominating The Venture Brothers, even though I can't, we've managed to narrow down the field of contenders to what we feel were the five strongest entries into the wide world of television animation in the past season. Don't forget to check out the Reader's Choice at the bottom where you can vote for which of the five you think are deserving to win. Next week, we'll be revealing both your winner and ours.

With the writers strike pulling a black cloud over our collective television set, have you been feeling super-sad? Do you feel lost, without a sense of direction, now that your favorite show has run out of new episodes? Do empty pints of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia and fresh receipts from the video game store litter your home, serving as a constant reminder that you love TV, you breathe TV, and you need TV to fill your life? I certainly hope not, because that would be kind of pathetic.

What's weird is that before the invention of television, there was this thing called "books". People used their eyes, just as they use them for watching television, to "read" these books. Books are hard to come by these days, but if you visit the library, they might have one or two, hidden in the back room. Please note you may have to slip an Alexander Hamilton or wear a low-cut shirt to gain access to the book room. Anyway, books are a great way to escape reality (TV). If you manage to track a few down, why don't you pick up a book or two while the writers strike is in effect? If the idea of straying so far away from television terrifies you, here are some books that aren't too far off point, so you can join in nice and easy.

As you may have been able to tell from my last name, I am Asian. Anime was a big part of my childhood, especially when I lived overseas in those early years. I even went through that awkward Sailor Moon phase in third grade. However, by the time the anime craze hit America, I was over it. So while my classmates traded Pokemon cards and donned cat ears, I quietly filled my heart with loathing and silently complained about the newer animes that everyone else seemed to love so much. In my eyes, nothing seemed to deliver.

But just this summer, not only did I manage to tolerate an anime show, I fell in love with it. Enter Death Note, an incredibly engaging anime that just wrapped up its run in Japan three months ago.