TVSquad

Most of the action today is going to be on the ice, in the form of figure skating and speed skating. Figure skating pairs begin competition with the short program. Expect to hear a lot from the commentators about how the judging has changed since Salt Lake, when Canadian and Russian pairs ended up sharing the gold medal. Also today, Chad Hedrick begins his quest for five gold medals in speed skating. Plus, the Americans face the very strong Chinese women in freestyle skiing. All the high profile events will air during NBC primetime.

Here's the schedule:

Want to see some fearless athletes who won't be going to the Olympics? Check out Winter X Games highlights on iTunes. Most notable is Tanner Hall's win in the skiing superpipe. This kid (from my hometown) is fearless. In his first competition since breaking both ankles and both heels last spring (OUCH!), Tanner won his 10th X Games medal. You can check him out in Day 4 Extended Highlights, which also includes Snocross, a snowmobiling competition with some serious air. Blair Morgan goes for his record fifth gold medal in the event.

Like many TV viewers, I get a little miffed every couple of years when the Olympics take over a network's schedule. I don't begrudge the athletes their TV time, it's just that the Olympics take a couple of weeks, and that means that shows you like are going to be preempted.

NBC has the Olympics again, starting February 10 and running through the 26th. Which means that shows like The Biggest Loser and Joey and E-Ring are taking a couple of weeks off. Oh, wait a second, maybe this isn't a bad thing...

Of course, I'm kidding, because NBC also happens to have The Office, My Name Is Earl, Scrubs, and The West Wing too (the Surface season finale airs this Monday). But if you're not into the Olympics, it's just something you'll have to live with until late February/early March, when the shows return on a regular schedule. (Of course, I say this, but I know I'll get sucked into the Games...)

So, are you watching the Olympics this year? What events are you most interested in? Are people being too hard on Bode Miller? And if you have no interest in the Olympics, what shows are you going to miss the most?  

I am a total sucker for the Olympics, but I really hate all the cheesy, promotional crap that goes with it. This time around, NBC and Chevrolet are teaming up to feature some camera-friendly Olympians in their very own mini-movie. Oh, joy. It airs during Las Vegas on NBC in February and it'll also be included with advertisements before the trailers start at AMC, Cinemark, Regal, UA and Edwards movie theaters. Now, I clearly remember the little mini-movie that Chevrolet did during the last summer Olympics where a bunch of athletes call each other and drive their own Chevrolets to Athens (way to carpool, guys). I wanted to throw something at the movie screen everytime I saw it. Why? As a general rule, athletes can't act. You hear that, advertising geniuses? Athletes. Cannot. Act. This time around, the lucky Olympians are halfpipe snowboarders Kelly Clark and Ross Powers, alpine skiers Eric Schlopy, Ted Ligety, and Julia Mancuso, freestyle skier Toby Dawson and snowboarder Seth Wescott. They're all somehow paired up with the cast of Las Vegas and then whisked off to Torino, Italy for the competition. There will also be a behind-the-scenes mini-mini-movie of the mini-movie on NBC's website.