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ABC’s new sci-fi series, ‘V,’ makes its alluring, mysterious debut tonight
Like some of the best sci-fi, ABC’s “V’’ is bursting with allegorical possibility. The alien “Visitors’’ who come to Earth appear as attractive GQ models, and they try to seduce us into cult-like devotion to them. They promote peace and prosperity, glowing with the tranquillity of the “after’’ photos on antidepressant ads. They’re particularly interested in appealing to teenagers, as ...
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s corner
Kate: Her Story 9 p.m., TLC As if you didn’t already know it. The last original episode of “Kate Plus 8’’ aired last week, but Kate Gosselin now talks to Natalie Morales about divorce, the media frenzy, and, you know, herself.
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s corner
Shadow of a Doubt 6 p.m., TCM In this creepy Alfred Hitchcock suspense film from 1943, a young woman fears that her beloved Uncle Charlie may be a villain. Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten star.
In defying labels, millennials are leaving their mark on TV
Back in 1963, a sitcom named “The Patty Duke Show’’ defined what a girl could be. She was either a Cathy or a Patty. Cousin Cathy was a classy little lady who adored minuets and Crepe Suzette; rock ’n’ roller cousin Patty lost control when it came to, um, hot dogs. The pair, both played by Patty Duke, were matching ...
Critic’s corner
Sex Rehab With Dr. Drew Tomorrow at 10 p.m., VH1 Oh good lord. The sequel series to “ Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew’’ premieres tomorrow night, with eight sex addicts sharing their stories in hopes of healing (and, of course, national attention, which is not healing). Whatever. The group includes porn actress Penny Flame, Playboy Playmate Nicole Narain, and drummer ...
New questions about an old murder in ‘Place of Execution’
When journalists and detectives on TV get too emotionally invested in their work, it can be a good thing for the viewer. Assuming the script is smart, we get a chance to watch parallel dramas unfold. As we figure out who committed the crime, we also figure out how the investigator’s unresolved issues are driving him or her. The crime ...
TV critic’s corner
White Collar 10 p.m., USA I’m really curious about the second episode of this series. Last week’s premiere, which did extremely well for USA in the ratings, was a strong introduction to the buddy chemistry of the lead characters, FBI agent Peter (Tim DeKay) and con artist Neal (Matt Bomer). But good pilots don’t always follow through (I feel a ...
Crude humor and guy talk is hit and miss on ‘The League’
With the popularity of Judd Apatow movies, men have been given permission to act like 15-year-old boys - and still be lovable. Apatow heroes can’t be dismissed as terminal stoners, sexists, or slobs; they ultimately have some redeeming sensitivity. What was once considered definitively caveman behavior, from the explicit sex talk to the relentless you’re-so-gay teasing, can now be understood ...
Critic’s corner
Time Warp 10 p.m., Discovery Channel Tonight, the show that slows reality way down welcomes Blue Man Group. It will be Blluue Maaannn Grrrouppp: Three of the silent ones will clown for the “Time Warp’’ cameras, catapulting blue paint at one another, and then we’ll watch the footage in the slowest of slo-mo. You’ll have a good time, gradually.
Critic’s corner
2009 Scream Awards 10 p.m., Spike Yeah, it’s on Spike, the guy’s guy’s guy channel. But expect “Twilight’’ to win a prize or two. Presenters include Kate Bosworth, Jessica Alba, Eliza Dushku, and Liv Tyler - you get the point. Also, expect to see plenty of love for J.J. Abrams, William Shatner, and Stan Lee, who will fly over the ...
Critic’s corner
Castle 10 p.m., Channel 5 “Castle’’ is developing a loyal fan base, with ratings in the 9-10 millions, and CBS recently gave it a full-season pickup. The light show is an old-fashioned crime series, by which I mean it’s not all about forensic evidence and cool atmosphere. It’s like “Bones’’ - Nathan Fillion’s Castle and Stana Katic’s Beckett banter and ...
These characters can almost ruin an otherwise clever TV show
Lately, I’ve been loving “House.’’ But every time Omar Epps’ Eric Foreman shows up in a scene, I cringe. He just annoys me. Plain and simple. Ditto Katherine Heigl’s Izzie on “Grey’s Anatomy.’’ She’s a mosquito buzzing around my ear.
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
Endgame 9 p.m., Channel 2 This installment of “Masterpiece Contemporary’’ is a political thriller set in South Africa amid the negotiations that led to the release of Nelson Mandela. Chiwetel Ejiofor, William Hurt, and Jonny Lee Miller (above) star.
TV critic’s corner
Always and Forever 9 p.m., Hallmark Channel You go, Hallmark. The cable channel just keeps churning out these watered-down romantic movies starring C-list actors. Tonight’s entry is about a pair of high school sweethearts, played by Dean McDermott and Rena Sofer, who meet up again at their 20th reunion.
Critic’s corner
Monk 9 p.m., USA Bitty Schram. Oh how I’ve missed being able to use those two words. Bitty Schram. It almost sounds like a porn name. The former costar of “Monk,’’ who left during the third season due to a contract dispute - er, I mean “creative differences’’ - will return tonight for one episode as Sharona. She has a ...
‘White Collar’ pair are a comfortable fit
On the surface, there’s nothing special about “White Collar.’’ The latest in a long line of lighthearted crime dramas from USA, including “Monk,’’ “Burn Notice,’’ and “Psych,’’ the show follows a by-the-book FBI agent and a charming young con artist who team up to catch white-collar criminals. Yup, another odd-couple buddy set-up in the manner of “48 Hrs.’’
‘Dunham Show’ laughs are strictlyfor dummies
There are those who enjoy watching a guy lock his jaw closed and tighten his lips, clenching his entire face into an expression of no expression, looking as if there is a gremlin freaking out at the entrance to his esophagus because his throat muscles are flexing and twisting so demonically. You know who you are.
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
30 Rock 8:30 p.m., Channel 7 This sitcom has won three best-comedy Emmys and countless media plugs, but it nonetheless lags in the ratings. Last week’s season premiere drew 6.3 million viewers, which was down 30 percent from last year’s. I wonder if the show would do better on a different night, when the competition isn’t so fierce. In any ...
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
Modern Family 9 p.m., Channel 5 One of the best new characters of the fall season? Manny on “Modern Family.’’ He’s a passionately romantic 10-year-old who likes to write love poetry and wear hair gel. Alas, he’s doomed to be bullied at school, which his bullyish stepfather (Ed O’Neill) knows too well. Played by Rico Rodriguez (above), he’s an old, ...
Critic’s corner
NCIS: Los Angeles 9 p.m., Channel 4 This is the season’s most popular new series, ratings-wise. And that makes me happy for Linda Hunt! As Hetty, she’s the division’s own Edith Head, suiting up the team for their oh-so-dangerous undercover work. And her owl glasses? They’re NCI-Spectacular.
NBC took a risk and lost. Now it’s time to pull the plug on an experiment gone wrong.
There’s something hollow and disingenuous about the nightly kick-off of “The Jay Leno Show.’’ Wearing his best “modest face,’’ which looks more like a “maniacal-wizard face,’’ Leno is greeted at the stage’s edge by a small rush of audience members. They high-five Leno like a pack of dutiful, embarrassed eighth-graders. Then the standing ovation recedes on cue, the music peaks, ...
Critic's corner
Lie to Me 9 p.m., Channel 25 This show is awkwardly written, which is too bad. The problem is that the supporting characters keep having to explain the science of face-reading while Tim Roth’s Cal Lightman is doing it. Their stilted dialogue to each other about how a smirk means this or that is really directed at us. In “The ...
From Facebook to television, we are all playing roles carefully crafted - by us
Matthew Gilbert is writing a story for the Globe. Matthew Gilbert is pondering the meaning of life.
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
The Kennedy Assassination: 24 Hours After 9 p.m., History Channel This two-hour documentary revisits the events of the first day after President John F. Kennedy was killed, including LBJ taking the oath of office (above).
‘Occupation’ captures inner battles of war
There have to be good reasons to watch a scripted drama about the war in Iraq, as opposed to a documentary. And BBC America’s powerful “Occupation’’ provides plenty of them. This four-hour epic, which premieres tomorrow night at 8, is a spectacularly acted and dramatically filmed look at three British soldiers during and after their service. A sort of “The ...
Critic’s corner
Really Awards 10 p.m., Fox Reality Channel Vivica A. Fox (above) is the host of the awards show that pays tribute to reality TV. Categories include “Really Favorite Villain’’ and “Really OMG Moment,’’ and the, um, Innovator Award, um, will, um, go to Paris Hilton. Meanwhile, Lance Bass will give us the scoop from the red carpet. By the way, ...
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
Law & Order 8 p.m., Channel 7 Take a few cubes of Octomom and a dash of the Florida parents of 16 disabled kids and mix them in boiling “Jon & Kate Plus 8’’ and - voila! - you have another ripped-from-the-headlines soup. Yuck is right. There are a zillion potential killers in this episode, and most of them are ...
‘30 Rock’ hasn’t lost its sharp edge
‘Hello, everyone, I’m so happy to see all of you and welcome you to Season Four,’’ Alec Baldwin’s Jack Donaghy says at the start of tonight’s “30 Rock.’’ And then the camera quickly pulls back to reveal Jack, Liz, Tracy, and Jenna about to eat a meal at an Asian fusion restaurant called . . . Season Four.
Matthew Gilbert’s Critic’s Corner
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation 9 p.m., Channel 4 The procedural “Without a Trace’’ disappeared - yeah, without a trace. And that was OK, since the crime stories had been played out after seven seasons and the character dramas never quite clicked. Tonight, Enrique Murciano, who played Danny Taylor on “Without a Trace,’’ guest stars on this series, as a detective.
Critic’s corner
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 9 p.m., Channel 7 When known actors and actresses do guest turns on the procedurals, I often groan. They tend to seriously overact. Did you happen to see Eric McCormack’s turn on “SVU’’ a few weeks ago? Or Erika Christensen on “Lie to Me’’? Wow. Tonight, Scott Foley (above) guests as an alcoholic who ...
Critic’s corner
The Good Wife 10 p.m., Channel 4 Tonight is a jury-tampering-in-a-class-action-suit-against-a-big-pharmaceutical-company case, which is one of those we’re-a-weekly-legal-drama-so-we-can-be-lazy-when-it-comes-to-originality plots we’ve seen on a million other shows, which is too bad because this show could have been a focused what-happens-when-a-political-marriage-faces-public-disgrace melodrama.
Critic’s corner
Latin Music USA 9 p.m., Channel 2 This four-part series, covering salsa, Tejano, and reggaeton, among many other genres, “makes a startling case that its subject matter has been ignored for far too long,’’ wrote my colleague James Reed. Tonight: Latin jazz, mambo, and the cha-cha. Pictured: Gloria Estefan.
Television critic’s picks
Masterpiece Mystery! 9 p.m., Channel 2 Tonight’s episode of the “Inspector Lewis’’ series is called “Quality of Mercy.’’ An actor is murdered with a prop knife during a production of “The Merchant of Venice.’’ Pictured: Kevin Whately.
Critic’s corner
Mad Men Tomorrow at 10 p.m., AMC The Sally Draper Fan Club meets here every week. She’s fabulous, don’t you think, with her lisp and her righteous anger? Go little Thally! She’s a baby boomer parent in the making, learning from her parents precisely what not to do when she has kids of her own. Betty treats her daughter poorly ...
Enough of ‘Jon & Kate’
When I think of the Gosselins, the “Jon & Kate Plus 8’’ stars who now dominate the celebrity press, I think of plastic dolls. The female wears an asymmetrical hairstyle and mom-glam sunglasses and the male has a slobby gut and a shrinking forehead. I also think of Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots.
Critic’s corner
The Manchurian Candidate 8 p.m., TCM This is the 1962 original version directed by John Frankenheimer, and it is so much better than the 2004 remake with Meryl Streep. The political thriller is about American soldiers who were brainwashed in Korea, and it features memorable performances by Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, and Angela Lansbury. Early on in “Lost,’’ I’d hoped ...
Critic’s corner
The Office 9 p.m., Channel 7 This sitcom tends to revolve around parties and events, and this time it’s a big one. Pam (Jenna Fischer) and Jim (John Krasinski) are getting married, after all these years of courtship. What I admire about “The Office’’ (and, OK, NBC) is that the ceremony is not going to take place during a sweeps ...
Critic’s corner
Glee 9 p.m., Channel 25 One of the benefits of this show is getting to see more of Jessalyn Gilsig, who plays Will’s lying, selfish, not-pregnant wife. Her breakthrough role was as a meek teacher on “Boston Public,’’ but she’s always at her best when she’s playing mean and twisted, as she did on “Nip/Tuck.’’ Perhaps you remember her? She ...
Intriguing ‘Secret Girlfriend’ is a tease
The format of “Secret Girlfriend’’ is pretty cool. The protagonist of this new Comedy Central series is the invisible guy who’s holding the camera. We never see him, or hear from him; but all the other characters - his two buddies, his ex-girlfriend, his new love interest - look at him and talk to him and call him “you.’’ And ...
Television critic’s picks
Darwin’s Darkest Hour 8 p.m., Channel 2 Desmond on “Lost’’ is doing some time-traveling tonight. This docudramatic episode of “Nova’’ stars Henry Ian Cusick as Charles Darwin in 19th-century puffy shirts. The story begins with Darwin competing with another scholar to break the whole-theory-of-evolution thing. Maybe you’ve heard of it. Frances O’Connor, who was so good as Fanny in the ...
Imus talk show returns to TV simulcast
Imus In the Morning 6 a.m., Fox Business Network Quack! Quack! Don Imus has been back on talk radio after CBS Radio fired him in 2007 for his offensive comments about the Rutgers women’s basketball team. Now he’ll be back on TV, too, as FBN begins airing the simulcast of Imus’s radio show. FBN picks up where MSNBC left off ...
‘Seinfeld’ reunion on ‘Curb’ is nothing short of brilliant
Track this scene from tomorrow night’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,’’ if you can. Playing “Larry David,’’ Larry David, who is the model for George on “Seinfeld,’’ is telling Jason Alexander’s “Jason Alexander,’’ who played George, that he wants to make a “Seinfeld’’ reunion in which George angles to get his ex-wife back, which is what “Larry’’ is doing by creating a ...
‘Three Rivers’ diagnosis: weak plot
‘Three Rivers’’ is going to have a profound effect on viewers. After watching the new CBS medical drama about organ transplants, you’ll never think of coolers in the same way again. Once a sacred picnic essential, a portable home to beer and burger patties, coolers will hereafter be identified with the cross-country transfer of hearts on ice. And we’re not ...
Critic's corner
Night at the Movies 8 p.m., TCM This month on Friday nights, TCM will be profiling different movie genres. Tonight is thriller night, with a look at the history and conventions of the genre, the roles of damsel in distress and femme fatale, and classic villains. Interviewees include Ken Follett, Bryan Singer, Diablo Cody (above), Kenneth Branagh, and David Koepp. ...
Critic’s corner
The Mentalist 10 p.m., Channel 4 By bringing in Terry Kinney as the cop who has now taken over the Red John case, “The Mentalist’’ creator Bruno Heller accomplished two goals: 1.) He found a way to explain the Red John history to new viewers and 2.) He has given Simon Baker’s Patrick Jane a formidable foe. When Jane and ...
Kelsey Grammer (‘Hank’) and Patricia Heaton (‘The Middle’) launch new sitcoms
Recycling is good and all, but, alas, not when it comes to comedy. Recycled comedy only junks up the TV environment, needlessly increasing our DVR footprint.
Critic’s corner
Glee 9 p.m., Channel 25 Hey, what was up with Kristin Chenoweth at the Emmy Awards? Accepting her supporting actress award for “Pushing Daisies,’’ she was convulsing like crazy - except when she delivered her punch lines. And no tears? Do people sob without tears? Anyhow, she brings her particular brand of cheeriness to “Glee’’ tonight, as Will’s former classmate.
Critic’s corner
Melrose Place 9 p.m., Channel 56 I was going to get excited about tonight’s return of original “MP’’ star Jane Mancini, played by ad-campaign face, People-style parenting expert, and, oh yeah, actress Josie Bissett. But now that Heather Locklear is set to return to the “MP’’ remake, well, all else pales. Locklear will return on Nov. 17. Sorry, Josie.
Action trumps character in NBC’s ‘Trauma’
You don’t need to be an Obama tour groupie to know we’re a country preoccupied with health care. Even if you’re a scripted-only TV addict, afloat in a DVR-fueled bubble, you can’t miss it. This season, the already long list of medical shows that includes “House,’’ “Grey’s Anatomy,’’ “Nurse Jackie,’’ “Private Practice,’’ and “HawthoRNe’’ will take on three new dramas: ...
Creator of ‘Mad Men’ keeps its characters true to its era
I keep hearing grumblings about how glacial this season of “Mad Men’’ has been. But I’m sending out kudos to the show’s creator, Matthew Weiner, for avoiding big explosions and fast edits. This season of the AMC series has been a string of cool, understated, bottled-up hours. Generally, things only almost explode on “Mad Men’’ - “almost’’ being the operative ...
Critic's corner
Saturday Night Live 11:30 p.m., Channel 7 Megan Fox hosts the season premiere. Why? Well, she sure is pretty. And she has a quote from Shakespeare’s “King Lear’’ tattooed on her shoulder: “We will all laugh at gilded butterflies.’’ Also, she stars in “Jennifer’s Body.’’ U2 is the musical guest.
Another killer season of ‘Dexter’
‘Wanna know a secret?’’ Dexter Morgan asks his infant son in the fourth-season premiere of Showtime’s “Dexter.’’ Holding a bottle of milk up to the adorably squishy tyke, he says, “Daddy kills people.’’
Critic’s corner
Law & Order 8 p.m., Channel 7 Many fans feared that, with the onslaught of the nightly “The Jay Leno Show,’’ NBC would no longer have room for this oldie. But you can relax now. The pacifier of crime dramas is back for another season, its 20th. Tonight, the murder of a veteran may have something to do with torture ...
Chemistry isn’t enough to save ‘Brothers’
You’ve got to love sibling rivalry jokes to tolerate “Brothers.’’ I mean, really, really love them. Because this new Fox sitcom is a dripping faucet of sibling rivalry jokes.
Critic's corner
FlashForward 8 p.m., Channel 5 We all want to live forever, but vampire stories certainly make that fantasy look less than pleasant. And we’d all like to see the future, but “FlashForward’’ is about to put a grim warning sticker on that wish. The world has a collective blackout, during which people see themselves months later. Much psychological and sci-fi ...
‘Modern Family’ presents domestic bliss with a twist
Pop cultural anthropologists dig sitcoms. Oddly enough, those harmless, sometimes grating slivers of mass entertainment can double as valuable artifacts. Scrape off the contrivances and zany punch lines, and you can see shifting and conflicting social definitions at play. When it comes to family sitcoms, you find old-fashioned gender roles in “Make Room for Daddy,’’ a blended fantasy on “The ...
Critic’s corner
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 9 p.m., Channel 7 The show returns for its 11th season, which is amazing. I still think of “SVU’’ as a young show, because it arrived so many years after “Law & Order’’ (which returns for its 20th season on Friday). Wentworth Miller from the defunct “Prison Break’’ (above) is the guest of the ...
Nurses need to inject some originality into NBC’s ‘Mercy’
What’s it like in a meeting when TV producers build a hospital drama like NBC’s new “Mercy’’? Is it like a group Lego project - put the arrogant doctor here, put the new nurse who gets puked on here, put the storage closet where staff hook up here? Do the creators have fun piecing such a prefabricated show together, or ...
‘The Good Wife’ deserves a better script
CBS’s “The Good Wife’’ opens with what has become a common enough scene in real life to inspire a weekly TV series. Klieg lights beating on her, Julianna Margulies’s Alicia Florrick stands by her state’s attorney husband at a podium as he resigns over a call-girl scandal. While he delivers stock apologies, the cameras capture the hurt and humiliation tensing ...
‘Forgotten’ with Christian Slater is an unusual procedural with a future
ABC’s new crime drama “The Forgotten’’ starts with voice-over narration by the dead victim, a nameless young woman whose body lies in a wooded area. It’s reminiscent of the novel “The Lovely Bones,’’ which is told by a murdered girl looking down on her friends and family. “I was on my way somewhere,’’ the “Forgotten’’ voice says. “I had plans, ...
Critic’s corner
North by Northwest 8 p.m., TCM Yes, the new season is in full swing this week. Shows are starting and returning and demanding your attention. But don’t forget about the old movies that air endlessly on cable and often provide satisfying escape. This fantastic Alfred Hitchcock thriller is both suspenseful and a spoof, plus it stars Cary Grant. Sometimes a ...
What’s on? Reruns.
One thing you can safely say about Emmy voters: They’re consistent. Mind-numbingly consistent. The lineup of winners on last night’s Emmy Awards telecast was nearly a copy-and-paste job of last year’s list. Again, “Mad Men’’ was best drama, “30 Rock’’ was best comedy, Bryan Cranston was best dramatic actor, Glenn Close was best dramatic actress, and Alec Baldwin was best ...
‘Accidentally on Purpose’ is bubbly but has no fizz
Jenna Elfman is bubbly, and if bubbly isn’t your bag, you have no business watching “Accidentally on Purpose.’’ The humdrum CBS sitcom, premiering tonight at 8:30 on Channel 4, is a vehicle for the former star of “Dharma & Greg,’’ where she played a bubbly hippie chick with bubbly marital issues. This time, she’s doing pregnant-cougar-bubbly, featuring lots of bubbly ...
Critic’s corner
House 8 p.m., Channel 25 Tonight’s season premiere is two hours long, and it is extraordinary. House is in a mental institution, and he’s going all “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’’ on the ward to bother his doctor, played by Andre Braugher. But the episode veers in some unexpected directions, all the time giving us a tour through House’s ...
Critic’s corner
The 61st Primetime Emmy Awards 8 p.m., Channel 4 Neil Patrick Harris hosts the show this year, which will air live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. “30 Rock’’ has the most nominations of all: 22.
Critic's Corner
Curb Your Enthusiasm Tomorrow at 9 p.m., HBO The series returns in good form, but, you know, after six seasons, some of the magic has faded. This season doesn’t really get on track until the third episode. That would be when the much-promoted “Seinfeld’’ reunion plot begins. In the meantime, Larry deals with what has become “the Loretta situation.’’
TV critic Matthew Gilbert predicts this year’s Emmy awards
Like the Oscars and the Grammys, the Emmys are facing self-defeat. The mission of the awards is to honor the best TV, but the reality is that few people watch the best TV. If the bulk of Emmy nominations and statues go to low-rated shows such as “30 Rock,’’ “Mad Men,’’ and “Damages,’’ then the bulk of American viewers will ...
‘Bored to Death’ is delightfully droll
As Brooklyn writer Jonathan Ames in HBO’s amusing new series “Bored to Death,’’ Jason Schwartzman has a uniquely facial comedy style. Most of the area on his face stays stiff, in a guarded deadpan underneath his mop-top hair. But then his eyes are wide and expressive, like a silent-film actor signifying “wariness’’ to the audience. He also possesses rare comic ...
Critic's corner
Guiding Light 3 p.m., Channel 4 The “Light’’ goes out forever today, after spinning melodramatic stories for 72 years first on radio and then, starting in 1952, on TV. Last year, in a last-ditch attempt to get viewers, the show changed over to a loose production style with hand-held cameras. But the effort to evoke reality TV failed, and the ...
Critic’s corner
VH1 Divas 9 p.m., VH1 At this point, if you asked the folks at VH1 to define “diva,’’ they’d probably say “any female singer.’’ The annual concert, which returns after a five-year hiatus, will feature Kelly Clarkson, Jordin Sparks, Leona Lewis, Adele, and Miley Cyrus, none of whom seems particularly diva-like to me. Indeed, the only person on the show ...
NBC’s ‘Community’ is built around a strong cast
While NBC junks up prime time with second-rate reality contests, middling trauma dramas, and yet more talk-show blather, the network still has the touch when it comes to comedy. This fall, along with “30 Rock’’ and an improved “Parks and Recreation,’’ NBC is introducing a promising new Thursday night sitcom called “Community.’’ Look closely, and you’ll see hints of NBC’s ...
Critic’s corner
Glee 9 p.m., Channel 25 I am getting on board “Glee,’’ after last week’s second episode. The writers and producers have made a good decision by featuring Jane Lynch (above) more prominently, as the cheerleader leader who’ll be an ongoing obstacle for the Gleeks. Lynch has an original kind of dry humor, which she has demonstrated in many different contexts ...
In CW’s ‘Beautiful Life,’ model behavior isn’t pretty
Hoping to encourage familiarity, the CW has slipped a handy nickname into the title of its new modeling-world soap, “The Beautiful Life: TBL.’’ We’re meant to use “TBL’’ as a pet name, so that we can write texts and tweets such as “OMG! TBL is so GR8!’’ as effortlessly as possible.
Critic's Corner
The Biggest Loser 8 p.m., Channel 7 Season eight begins tonight, with 16 contestants including a woman who lost her husband and two children in a car crash. Home viewers will undoubtedly lose water weight through their tear ducts. Also in the lineup: Daniel Wright from last season, who went from 454 lbs. to 312 lbs. and hopes to lose ...
In debut, Leno settled for comfortable instead of taking prime-time risk
“The Jay Leno Show’’ premiered last night with a big old disconnect. NBC’s prime-time Jay Leno experiment has been hugely anticipated - both inside and outside the TV industry - since the move was announced in December. It has been called network TV’s riskiest change in decades, one that could forever alter the nature of nightly programming. And yet there ...
Critic’s corner
The Jay Leno Show 10 p.m., Channel 7 Will Jay Leno save NBC? Will Leno and NBC pull network TV into a new era of prime-time talk? The answers to the season’s big questions begin to unfold tonight, with the premiere of this nightly series. In an attempt to guarantee a big premiere audience, Leno has booked fellow NBC mascot ...
Critic’s corner
Melrose Place 9 p.m., Channel 56 Tonight, the CW is giving viewers another chance to watch the premiere of the remake of the 1990s soap opera. The second episode airs on Tuesday. Pictured: Katie Cassidy and Michael Rady.
Critic’s corner
2009 MTV Video Music Awards Tomorrow at 9 p.m., MTV Russell Brand takes charge of the show this year, after his (not really) controversial hosting job last year. He made fun of the Jonas Brothers, which somehow translates into boldness in today’s MTV universe. This year’s show will also include a tribute to Michael Jackson and performances by Jay-Z, Green ...
Women hold the power on ‘True Blood,’ ‘Hung’ this season
Summer TV has been quite the trip, largely thanks to a particular maenad and her shivery, incantatory fits. Featured in the second season of HBO’s “True Blood,’’ Maryann Forrester has brought all kinds of wicked primal energy to the screen. Her name may put you in mind of “Gilligan’s Island’’ and a pair of pigtails, but she is more of ...
Critic’s corner
The Vampire Diaries 8 p.m., Channel 56 The CW is re-airing the premiere of this new series about the teen undead. The show has none of the crisp wit of the CW’s “Gossip Girl’’; it’s from “Dawson’s Creek’’ creator Kevin Williamson, and a little bit bland. But Ian Somerhalder, Boone from “Lost,’’ adds some bite as an unrepentant bloodsucker who ...