TVSquad

"Oh, goodness. Is this where they do Dancing with the Stars?"
-- Willie Ray Johnson, Brenda's momma

(S04E08) Here was an episode that epitomized what I like about The Closer. This was an excellent mystery. It was complicated and drew you into the chase. Like Brenda, you're wondering how it was done, why and by whom.

Of course, it didn't seem like it was going to be a heavy duty episode, not when the opening was all about Willie Ray and Clay's unexpected visit. That damn RV has brought Brenda's parents cross-country, even with gas at $4 a gallon!

Don't get me wrong, I like Barry Corbin and Frances Sternhagen. They're great actors, but the roles are so broadly drawn. The show uses them for comic relief, even though they can do drama brilliantly. The scenes at the film studio were too jokey to me, especially in light of the heinous crime scene that Brenda was investigating.

The murder reminded me of the O.J. Simpson case. It looked like Ryan -- an actor with anger management issues -- was the murderer. He lied and had a history of beating his wife. The sight of him with the gym bag and then those black gloves were all vaguely reminiscent of O.J. Of course, since he was the prime suspect, I never thought that he was the killer. Too obvious.

Kids starting to develop breathing problems? Might be time to drag them off the couch and away from Naruto.

Researchers say kids who watch more than five hours of TV a day are more likely to develop asthma, according to a story in Britain's Telegraph. Scientists found that the danger of these kids developing asthma was raised by more than half compared with kids who watch just one hour of TV a day.

As I'm reading this, I realize this theory has nothing to do with TV per se, but rather the fact that kids who watch that much TV are Certified Couch Potatoes. That means: 1) They don't get enough exercise; 2) their breathing is shallower than kids who play stick-ball and build forts in the woods; and 3) they eat more junk food, which leads to fatter kids, which is linked with asthma.

In April, TLC will air a new reality show based on a BBC special called Honey, We're Killing the Kids!

The show will focus on the obesity epidemic as Dr. Lisa Hark, a nutrition expert, takes over an overweight and unhealthy family and tries to get them to change their eating habits and lifestyles. It seems like just the right show for TLC, but right now I think I'm more entertained by the ads for the show than the idea of the show itself. Firsts of all, the show's title is possibly the most morbid I've ever heard, but in the ads it takes on a whole new kind of weirdness when the voiceover starts talking about the show like it's some kind of wacky carnival attraction. I don't think I've ever seen the fear of a child's untimely death portrayed in such an upbeat manner. Maybe they should hire this voiceover guy to comfort people at funerals, since he seems rather amused by the thought of things not living anymore.