Friday 10pm, TLC The televised dating show arguably peaked with “Joe Millionaire.” In case you forgot, that glorious 2003 Fox show featured an “everyday dude” (he was an aspiring model/actor) who acted as though he was wealthy in order to woo a bevy of would-be spouses. And at the end he told his chosen girl he […]
“The New Normal” /Tuesday 9:30pm, NBC You can’t peg creator Ryan Murphy. He’s been behind the seedy “Nip/Tuck,” the ridiculous “Glee,” the brilliant “American Horror Story”—and now he tries his hand at an unconventional conventional sitcom with “The New Normal.” The show follows the de facto family that emerges after Goldie, a small-town single mom, […]
“Robot Chicken DC Comics Special” Sunday midnight, Adult Swim Meanwhile, at the Hall of Justice, a bunch of nerds and geek-loving Hollywood stars teamed up to bring us the dorkiest TV show this side of “Who Wants to be a Super Hero?” The permanent teenagers behind stop-motion pop-culture comedy show “Robot Chicken” have gotten official license […]
Race to the bottom “Abby & Brittany” Tuesday 10pm, TLC There is a growing sentiment that TLC—which originally stood for The Learning Channel—has now become the modern-day equivalent to the circus freak show. An endless parade of extreme human behaviors are put on the airwaves—families with 19 children, teenage gypsy brides, extreme couponers and hoarders. While […]
“Face Off” Tuesday 9pm, SyFy SyFy’s cinematic make-up competition returns for Season 3, just a scant five months after it wrapped its solid second outing. Ratings grew dramatically from its premiere season, and continued to increase throughout the second run—you have to strike while the prosthetic is hot. A new crop of make-up artists will […]
“Oh Sit” Wednesday 8pm, CW When the fall of Western Civilization comes —and it is coming, I think we all know that —and someone asks you to pinpoint the moment you knew it had all gone wrong, I hope you say: extreme musical chairs. That’s the concept behind this new competition, in which a dozen […]
“2012 Summer Olympic Games” Through Sunday, NBC We’re in the home stretch of the 2012 London Olympic Games, and I think we can all agree on one thing: NBC’s coverage has been pretty dreadful. From the decision to cut away from the memorial section of the opening ceremonies to spotty coverage of fan favorite events to […]
“XXX Olympic Games” All week, NBC and its affiliate networks It’s the first full week of the Olympics, which basically means most of the other networks are raising their hands and slowly creeping backwards toward the nearest exit. Thankfully there’s plenty of excitement coming out of London. This week you can take in a heap […]
“Top Chef Masters” Wednesday 10pm, Bravo Although I love “Top Chef,” I have never been able to get into its “Masters” spin-off. It’s basically the kinder, gentler version of the competition, featuring already world-renowned chefs at the top of their game. But honestly, I do need a little drama in my reality competitions. And since […]
“Project Runway” Thursday 9pm, Lifetime It wasn’t long ago that I was bemoaning the state of this once-great fashion design show, but the charming “All Stars” spin-off did a lot to cleanse my Gretchen-and-Anya-stained palate (a second “All Stars” season is reportedly in the pipeline, by the way). Season 10 will feature 16 wannabe fashionistas […]