the middle-related stories
Posted Nov 5th 2009 1:22AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E06) Something big is going to happen with Axl, and I can't wait for it. Yes, he's doing the same bored, sleeping, lazy teenager act that we've seen a million times before, but I like the way he works off of both Neil Flynn and Patricia Heaton. And I think there's real potential for him to break out into something unique; like when he put his clothes on for the bus in two seconds.
The writers have already crafted both Brick and Sue into wholly unique, and bizarre, children. By comparison the only thing odd about Axl so far is his name. He's just so ... ordinary! Ordinary was enough, though, for him to be part of a pretty funny storyline that pitted him at odds with his father.
It also makes me terrified of the upcoming teen years. Maybe I'll just ship mine out to some other family to deal with. Maybe he can move to Orson, Indiana and I'll just let Mike and Frankie take care of him. Better send him with an extra coat. You never know when a door might go missing.
Continue reading Review: The Middle - The Front Door
Posted Nov 4th 2009 12:09PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Late Night, Programming, Celebrities, Talk Show, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
At 7:30, FOX has Game 6 of The World Series.- At 8, ABC has a new Hank, followed by new episodes of The Middle, Modern Family, Cougar Town, and Eastwick.
- CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
- NBC has new episodes of Mercy, Law and Order: SVU, and The Jay Leno Show.
- The CW has a new America's Next Top Model at 8.
- PBS has Bill Cosby: The Mark Twain Prize 2009 at 8.
- At 9, TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne, then two new episodes of Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns.
- Food Network has a new Throwdown with Bobby Flay at 9.
- History Channel has a new episode of The Nostradamus Effect at 9, followed by a new MysteryQuest.
- Syfy has a new Ghost Hunters at 9, then a new Destination: Truth.
- Fine Living has Martha Stewart's Thanksgiving Desserts at 9, then a new Whatever, Martha!
- Also at 9: Showtime has a new Inside The NFL.
- At 10, Bravo has the Top Chef All-Stars Dinner.
- Comedy Central has a new South Park, then a new Secret Girlfriend at 10.
- FX has a new Nip/Tuck at 10.
- Food Network has a new Dinner: Impossible at 10.
- Spike has a new Ultimate Fighter at 10.
Check your
local TV listings for more.
After the jump, the late night talk shows.
Continue reading What's On Tonight: World Series, Hank, Mercy, South Park
Posted Oct 31st 2009 10:00AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Reality-Free, The Big Bang Theory
Like a stray dog that works his way into your heart, I think I've fallen in love with
The Middle. I didn't want to get so attached, because -- quite frankly -- ABC's track record for sticking with quality shows isn't so great. I'm still mourning
Pushing Daisies. But
The Middle is nothing like
Pushing Daisies, nor does it fall into the quirky, clever mode of other shows that ABC has been promulgating for years.
Ugly Betty is quirky.
Better off Ted is quirky.
Dirty Sexy Money was quirky. Quirky's the word.
Continue reading My Big Bang theory: The Middle's Brick is another Sheldon
Posted Oct 30th 2009 2:02PM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, How I Met Your Mother, NCIS, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, The Big Bang Theory
The candy manufacturers had better watch out, because as Halloween is approaching, TV shows have been coming up with their own candies, inspired by some of the more colorful, interesting characters. Take a look at this list, and see which are treats and which are tricks. And, listen, tell us what kind of candy your favorite TV characters might inspire!
8. How I Met Your Mother - Robin Scherbatsky's Canadian corn
Oh, Canada. Slutty pumpkins aside, Robin had to convince her American friends that Canada not only celebrates Halloween, but Canadian corn is the best Halloween candy ever. That's right, Canadian corn. It's like candy corn, only it's orange on the top and white on the bottom. It also tastes like pancakes because it isn't made with corn syrup; it's made with maple syrup.
Continue reading Eight TV character-inspired Halloween candies
Posted Oct 29th 2009 1:10AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E05) Things are starting to settle into a familiar and comfortable pattern. There was nothing particularly groundbreaking in the presentation or even the subject matter of this episode, but it was still enjoyable. It's the love within the Heck family, even within Axl, that makes this a heartwarming comedy.
It doesn't have the sharp wit and cleverness of its follow-up
Modern Family, but it's still leaps and bounds better than its lead-in -- Oh, that's right. ABC went with a re-airing of
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown instead of
Hank. Didn't they air that last night, too. That's okay, Kelsey. It'll be just fine. You'll get that back nine order any day now.
This week, we focused on Brick. The more I see of the little whispering weirdo, the more I like him, and while I hate to keep bringing this up, the more I need the show to address his physical ailment. Commenter 'Jeremy' said he has found evidence pointing to it being osteogenesis imperfecta. This is the same thing
Carnivale's Michael J. Anderson has.
Continue reading Review: The Middle - The Block Party
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 1:08AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E04) Okay, there's clearly something going on with Atticus Shaffer's legs, or leg. It's not a big deal, but at the same time I can't help but notice it when he's limping around. I wish the show would just address whatever it is, so I can stop thinking they're trying to pull a fast one over on us and pretend there's nothing there. It's like when
How I Met Your Mother was horribly trying to cover up two pregnant bellies all last season.
Brick can have a medical condition, and we'll still love him as much as ever. In fact, it would make the family even more "just like the rest of us." Regardless, Brick was hilarious this week with his new girlfriend. I remember when my son was getting his first little girlfriends, and it seemed to go down about the same way. Not the point where his new girlfriend gives me a verbal beat-down on my own front porch, but maybe we're just not to that point yet.
The other main plotline had us finally finding something that Sue is good at! I'm as shocked as you are.
Continue reading Review: The Middle - The Trip
Posted Oct 21st 2009 12:19PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Late Night, Programming, Celebrities, Talk Show, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
At 8, ABC has a new Hank, followed by new episodes of The Middle, Modern Family, Cougar Town, and Eastwick.- CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
- NBC has new episodes of Mercy, Law and Order: SVU, and The Jay Leno Show.
- FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, followed by a new Glee.
- The CW has a new America's Next Top Model at 8.
- PBS has a new Great Performances at 8.
- G4 has a new 2 Months $2 Million at 8.
- At 9, Discovery has a new Mythbusters at 9, then a new Time Warp.
- IFC has a new Monty Python: Almost The Truth (The Lawyer's Cut) at 9.
- History Channel has a new Nostradamus Effect at 9, followed by a new MysteryQuest.
- Showtime has a new Inside The NFL at 9.
- At 10, Comedy Central has a new South Park, then a new Secret Girlfriend.
- Bravo has a new Top Chef: Las Vegas at 10.
- FX has a new Nip/Tuck at 10.
- Food Network has a new Dinner: Impossible at 10.
- TCM has The Third Man at 10.
- Also at 10: Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food.
Check your
local TV listings for more.
After the jump, the late night talk shows.
Continue reading What's On Tonight: Old Christine, Glee, Cougar Town, Top Chef
Posted Oct 17th 2009 9:03AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Reality-Free
I wasn't really prepared to like
The Middle. I had no expectations, really, because aside from knowing that it was
Patricia Heaton's latest sitcom, there had been very little scuttlebutt about it. So, when I tuned in, I expected the typical Patty Heaton I had seen for years on
Everybody Loves Raymond or the upscale version I'd watched on
Back to You.
Well, what a surprise when I saw her on
The Middle. This is a Patty I had never seen before, and I not only liked her character, I admire her performance.
Continue reading What Patricia Heaton is doing right in The Middle
Posted Oct 15th 2009 5:03AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S01E03) We already know that Sue Heck has no discernible talent, but a ton of enthusiasm. This week we learned that her cluelessness goes even beyond physical activities. She's as earnest in her social endeavors as ever. Unfortunately, she's also as oblivious to the reality of her actions and their consequences. I love everything about it.
The moral of this episode, I guess, is that a mother is never allowed even fifteen minutes of time alone. Granted, it appears that Frankie's fifteen minutes happened to coincide with the worst chain of events possible, but the moral remains the same. A mother's job is never done, and she's never off the clock. At least she has the love of her husband to help her when the time comes, and he came through in a big way for her.
Continue reading The Middle: The Floating Anniversary
Posted Oct 14th 2009 4:30PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities, Reality-Free
All of the new ABC Wednesday night comedies --
The Middle,
Cougar Town, and
Modern Family -- have been
picked up for the entire season. Actually, one new sitcom is missing from that group.
Kelsey Grammer's
Hank isn't getting any love from viewers and it's not getting any love from critics. Ratings aren't that good and the critics don't like it. So Grammer is doing a bunch of interviews for tonight's episode, including
this one over at The TV Addict. He promises that tonight's episode is funny -- really! -- and we should all watch it.
Continue reading Kelsey Grammer says tonight's episode of Hank is funny
Posted Oct 14th 2009 12:23PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Late Night, Programming, Celebrities, Talk Show, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
Hallmark has an I Love Lucy marathon all night.- At 8, ABC has a new Hank, followed by new episodes of The Middle, Modern Family, Cougar Town, and Eastwick.
- CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
- NBC has new episodes of Mercy, Law and Order: SVU, and The Jay Leno Show.
- FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, then a new Glee.
- There's a new America's Next Top Model on The CW at 8.
- PBS has a new American Masters at 8.
- Discovery has two new episodes of Mythbusters starting at 8, followed by a new Time Warp.
- At 9, Syfy has a new Ghost Hunters, then a new Destination Truth.
- History Channel has a new Nostradamus Effect at 9, followed by a new MysteryQuest.
- Showtime has a new Inside The NFL at 9.
- At 10, FX has the season premiere of Nip/Tuck.
- Bravo has a new Top Chef: Las Vegas at 10.
- Comedy Central has a new South Park at 10, then a new Secret Girlfriend.
- Current has the series premiere of Vanguard at 10.
- Food Network has a new Dinner: Impossible at 10.
- Also at 10: Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food.
Check your
local TV listings for more.
After the jump, the late night talk shows.
Continue reading What's On Tonight: The Middle, South Park, Nip/Tuck, Man vs. Food
Posted Oct 10th 2009 3:02PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Reality-Free, FlashForward
There are still a couple of new shows that haven't premiered yet, including two I'm really looking forward to, ABC's new version of
V and FOX's new version of
The Human Target (I know, I'm actually looking forward to two remakes). But they're not going to premiere until November and January, respectively, so here are my picks for the three new shows that I'm truly enjoying so far this new season. And somehow, they're all on ABC.
FlashForward. I bet a lot of people are going to pick this as the best new show, but I was kinda worried about it. I thought it would be too
Lost-ish, but would suffer in comparison because it didn't have the strong cast and "gravitas" that
Lost has. But it's a great show beyond any comparisons (and Dominic Monaghan hasn't even shown up yet!).
Continue reading What I like about the new season (so far)
Posted Oct 9th 2009 8:37AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Reality-Free, Cougar Town, Modern Family
I've always heard that three out of four ain't bad. But if you're Kelsey Grammer, it's a whole different ball game. While there's been no word on the horrid
Hank, ABC has ordered
full season pick-ups for the rest of their Wednesday comedy block. At this point, I'd say that was inevitable. ABC's bold experiment of a whole new night of programming seems to have worked out.
Early buzz on
Modern Family particularly brought people to sample the wares, and luckily that show delivered.
The Middle has been impressive as well, and would probably fare even better if it switched places with
Cougar Town. Courteney Cox's latest vehicle is much better than I expected, but not up to the creative caliber of its lead-ins.
As for
Hank? Well, it is the only multi-camera comedy on the night, so it stands out a bit in that respect. Oh, and its derivative and lacking in any originality or, and this one can be a bit of a problem, comedy. So there's that to deal with as well.
Posted Oct 7th 2009 12:09PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Late Night, Programming, Celebrities, Talk Show, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
TBS has Baseball Playoffs all night.- At 8, ABC has a new Hank, followed by new episodes of The Middle, Modern Family, Cougar Town, and Eastwick.
- CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, and CSI: NY.
- NBC has new episodes of Mercy, Law and Order: SVU, and The Jay Leno Show.
- FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, followed by a new Glee.
- There's a new America's Next Top Model on The CW at 8.
- Also at 8: ESPN2 has the WNBA Finals.
- At 9, Discovery has a new Mythbusters.
- History Channel has a new Nostradamus Effect at 9, then a new MysteryQuest.
- Syfy has a new Ghost Hunters at 9, then a new Destination Truth.
- At 10, Comedy Central has a new South Park, followed by the series premiere of Secret Girlfriend.
- Bravo has a new Top Chef: Las Vegas at 10.
- Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food at 10.
Check your
local TV listings for more.
After the jump, the late night talk shows.
Continue reading What's On Tonight: Old Christine, Mythbusters, Eastwick, Top Chef
Posted Sep 30th 2009 12:20PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Late Night, Programming, Celebrities, Talk Show, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
At 8, ABC has the series premiere of Hank, followed by the series premiere of The Middle and new episodes of Modern Family, Cougar Town, and Eastwick.- CBS has a new Old Christine at 8, then new episodes of Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds and CSI: NY.
- NBC has new episodes of Mercy, Law and Order: SVU, and The Jay Leno Show.
- FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, followed by a new Glee.
- The CW has a new America's Next Top Model at 8.
- PBS has a new episode of The National Parks at 8.
- At 9, Syfy has a new Ghost Hunters.
- History Channel has a new Nostradamus Effect at 9, then a new MysteryQuest.
- Food Network has a new Throwdown with Bobby Flay at 9.
- Also at 9: Showtime has a new Inside the NFL.
- At 10, Travel Channel has a new Man vs. Food.
- TruTV has a new Black Gold at 10.
Check your
local TV listings for more.
After the jump, the late night talk shows.
Continue reading What's On Tonight: Hank, Gary Unmarried, Ghost Hunters, Bobby Flay
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