Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1033 days ago

Whatchoo Talkin' 'Bout, TVGuide.com?

By James Poniewozik

Damn you, TVguide.com-the-website-no-longer-affiliated-with-the-magazine-but-still-affiliated-with-the-cable-channel! Damn you to hell with your frenetic, link-bait list-making! Damn you for making me expend actual energy into disagreeing with your list of the 16 Greatest TV Catchphrases! For starters, there’s the no. 1 choice—I won’t spoil it here—which is possibly not even the best catchprase from the series from which it [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1033 days ago

TV Tonight: Cupid's Second Shot

By James Poniewozik

  If somebody had asked me to pick one ABC romantic dramedy of the ’90s to remake, I would have chosen Relativity. But nobody did ask me, Jason Katims is busy with Friday Night Lights, and instead ABC gave Rob Thomas (Party Down, Veronica Mars) a second crack at his offbeat series Cupid (tonight, 10 p.m. [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1033 days ago

FNL Officially Picked Up

By James Poniewozik

If the broadcast networks are turning into large cable companies, here’s one bright side of it: a show like Friday Night Lights can get a fourth, and fifth, season on NBC with basic-cable-like ratings. NBC and DirecTV have confirmed a deal that will keep FNL around for two more seasons. The seasons will also be [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1033 days ago

The Morning After: Basketball Jones

By James Poniewozik

Not a lot that was either spoiler-worthy or comment-worthy in last night’s How I Met Your Mother, except to say that it may have been as close as possible to being a statistically average episode of HIMYM: ’80s movies references (check), Canadian jokes (check), a challenge (check) and a lesson about growing up (check). For [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1034 days ago

The Amazing Race Watch: Family Thais

By James Poniewozik

Brief spoilers for last night’s The Amazing Race coming up after the jump:

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1034 days ago

The Morning After: Programming Note

By James Poniewozik

  Some personal business (you don’t want to know) is probably going to keep posting lighter than usual here for a couple of days. For now, I’ll throw this post open for any weekend-TV discussion. For instance—speaking of programming—Friday’s Dollhouse, which seemed to me about half a step forward, and one or two back, after [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1037 days ago

TV Weekend: The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

By James Poniewozik

  I put The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (debuting Sunday night on HBO) in the DVR expecting it to be a chore. I’m not much of a fan of procedurals; I’m even less a fan of detective novels. (And hence, I have never read the Alexander McCall Smith novels on which this series is [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1037 days ago

30 Rock Watch: I'm Lizzing! I'm Lizzing!

By James Poniewozik

Spoilers for 30 Rock coming up after the jump:

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1037 days ago

Office Watch: And Here's To You, Mr. Scott

By James Poniewozik

Spoilers for last night’s The Office coming up after the jump:

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1037 days ago

Idol Watch: Begging, the Question

By James Poniewozik

Quick spoilers for last night’s American Idol elimination after the jump:

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1037 days ago

Dead Tree Alert: Broadcast TV Is Dead (Unless You're the President)

By James Poniewozik

  I’ve got two pieces in the magazine this week, but I wanted to link them in the same post because they are, in a weird way, about the same thing. The first is Here’s to the Death of Broadcast, and if you’re a regular reader you’ll know it’s basically a polished-up version of an [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1038 days ago

Report: FNL Practically Almost Renewed!

By James Poniewozik

I don’t want to get you overexcited, but OMG AUSIELLO SAYS FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS IS ON THE VERGE OF GETTING RENEWED. (Scroll down.) The pickup, which Ausiello mentioned as a possibility a while ago, will be announced “any day now,” he says.  The deal would bring the show back for two 13-episode seasons, minus at [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1038 days ago

From Jack Bauer to Jack Kennedy: 24's Conservative Creator Takes on the Dem Clan

By James Poniewozik

File under Culture Wars, Upcoming: Joel Surnow, the vocally conservative co-creator of Fox’s 24, is shopping around a ten-hour miniseries about the Kennedy family. And from the description in Variety, anyway, it doesn’t sound like a love letter. Reports the trade mag, the press release from the potential project’s distributor says it aims to look [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1038 days ago

American Idol Predix Thread

By James Poniewozik

Because the commemorative-postage-stamp format of our American Idol reviews (scroll down for them) does not lend itself to general thoughts or predictions, here are mine:  * The guest. I love Smokey Robinson the singer. I love Smokey Robinson the songwriter. I’m sure Smokey Robinson the person is delightful. Smokey Robinson the mentor / color commentator? [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1038 days ago

Lostwatch: Everybody Kills Hitler on Their First Trip

By James Poniewozik

  Before you read this post, whip up a batch of waffles—don’t burn the bacon!—and watch last night’s Lost. 

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1038 days ago

Judging American Idol: The Final 10

By James Poniewozik

Click on the photos for reviews of last night’s American Idol performances. Read Last Week’s Review of the American Idol Final 11

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 1039 days ago

Corporate Press Release Theater: Cartoon Network Scooby-Does It Again

By James Poniewozik

Cartoon Network announced a host of new series and specials at its upfronts this morning. The most problematic for me: Scooby-Doo–Mystery Inc., yet another series in the unkillable dog-detective franchise. The Tuned In Jrs. are just winding down from a major obsession with the various generations of the series, which I’d just barely made my [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+1039 days ago

Happy Lost Day! and Programming Note

By James Poniewozik

The programming note first. Thanks to the exciting season finale of Barack Obama Takes Over Your TV Week, American Idol‘s performace night was bumped back to tonight. The same night as Lost. Which leaves me with blogging obligations that are irreconcilable. (Well, irreconcilable by means other than staying up far later than my lazy tuchas [...]