“So You Think You Can Dance”
Wednesday 8pm, Thursday 9pm, Fox
“American Idol”’s boogie-lovin’ cousin’s ratings are growing, meaning that more and more people are checking out this talent competition each week. They should; I think it’s a better show than “Idol” sometimes. Now that we’re down to seven couples the leaders are starting to emerge. Lacey and Kameron are arguably the couple to beat, marrying sex appeal, some killer moves and personality-plus (at least on Lacey’s part) into a dynamite combo. I’m fond of Neil and Lauren, who don’t get nearly enough credit. The judges keep fawning over Anya and Danny, but I don’t see it—they’re good dancers but neither are appealing as individuals. All that aside, I expect Hok to make it to the end. He’s a breakdancer who manages to morph beautifully into any style. What’s not to love?
“Robot Chicken”
Sunday 11:30pm, Cartoon Network
If you are a) sexually frustrated, b) a male, c) who was a kid in the ’80s, and d) like really weird shit, then this is the show for you. “Robot Chicken” was co-created by Seth Green (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” Scott Evil from Austin Powers), and he co-writes the series and uses his Hollywood connections to get celeb voices for almost every episode. There are no robots or chickens to speak of; instead the show features super-short vignettes in which vaguely creepy claymation/action figure props act out some of the most absurd, pop culture-soaked scripts you ever did see. One episode took on “Power Rangers,” “Transformers,” The Little Mermaid and other ’80s staples, and turned The Neverending Story into “The Neverending Party,” which included a nameless princess getting smacked on the butt while screaming “Say my name!” Classic.
“American Body Shop”
Sunday 10:30pm, Comedy Central
This show does to auto shops what “Reno 911” does to cop shows and, if it’s even half as funny as its predecessor it’ll be worth watching. The satire focuses on the crew at Desert Body & Custom, a bumbling, bungling bunch of losers that are being filmed as part of a documentary on…something, I suppose. (Ever wonder why we never actually see these documentaries being used as narrative devices? How many hours of footage does the film crew behind “The Office” need?) You have to wonder how much mileage they can get out of the car shop premise, but the clips are pretty funny.
