TV time.

Glee: Oh hello, Glee! I missed you. "Hell-o" felt like a season premiere, as the writers reintroduced the major characters (Will, Rachel, Finn, and Sue) and shuffled them into place. Similar to the pilot, a lot happens here. I'm thrilled with the addition of Jonathan Groff to the cast - his voice matches Lea Michele's in ways Cory Monteith's never will, and the pair have excellent chemistry. Unfortunately, "Hell-o" also contained a hearty dose of sexism, as Will and Finn strive to find their special snowflake selves despite the "craziness" of the women around them. When Emma told Will "maybe you're trading [Terri's] crazy for my crazy," I almost gagged (I also want to punch Matthew Morrison whenever he makes his "Maybe You're Right That I Am Actually Too Good for You" Face). As usual, I loved Brittany ("Did you know that dolphins are gay sharks?") the most. Next week, this.

Of note.

The awesomeness of Gabby Sidibe:

“They try to paint the picture that I was this downtrodden, ugly girl who was unpopular in school and in life, and then I got this role and now I’m awesome. But the truth is that I’ve been awesome, and then I got this role."

I want to go to margarita night with her so bad. Read more at New York Magazine (see also: above).

Fine in 09: TV

Instead of listing my five favorite TV shows, I've listed my five favorite TV characters of the past year. Working with individual characters expands the playing field, and makes things much more interesting/fun.

April (In Treatment): It will be a shame when Alison Pill doesn't win an Emmy for her work on this show. The structure of In Treatment (each episode covers one half-hour therapy session) demands the actors do little besides talk to each other. The writers also presented Pill with a defensive, stubborn character, unwilling to tell Paul (and the audience) directly the troubling details of her life (much less her cancer diagnosis). By season's end, April stopped therapy in order to focus on her physical health (to Paul's disappointment) but her renewed will to live was a triumph worth celebrating.

Cameron (Modern Family): The funniest character of the 09-10 season, Cameron's quiet confidence allows him to hilariously comment on the insanity of his boyfriend's family ("There's a fish that carries its babies around in its mouth. That fish would take one look at Mitchel's relationship with his mother and say, 'that's messed up.'"). He loves football, clowning, Diana Ross, and debuted his adopted daughter to "The Circle of Life," but he'll also kick your ass for messing with his loved ones.

Dr. Claire Saunders (Dollhouse): Amy Acker has only appeared once during Dollhouse's second season, but she left a lasting impression. Her character (a disfigured Doll programmed to serve as the in-house physician) raised fascinating moral ambiguities regarding the Dollhouse's work. Does a programmed persona deserve the chance to live once that personality inhabits a real person? Clarie's ongoing search for self (are any of her thoughts/feelings authentic, or just part of a computer program?) made her the most compelling character on the show.

Don Draper (Mad Men): Yes, he's an asshole, a horrible husband, a cheat, has a temper, regularly ignores his children, and tends to bail on people when the going gets tough. The show works because sometimes you don't want to root for Don. When he dismisses Sal with the homophobic "you people," or yells at Peggy to relieve his own stress, we'd really like to punch him in the face. The writers aren't afraid to show us Don's dark side, making his victories (the moments he connects with his kids or recognizes his co-workers' talents, his brilliant plotting in the finale) all the more memorable. Plus, the man exhales charisma.

Rachel Barry (Glee): She's annoying, overly ambitious, self-centered, and occasionally lacks basic social graces, but don't ever forget that Rachel Barry cares. She cares about her team, even if that team includes people like Quinn (and Kurt), who spend their time making her miserable. She cares about rising above and performing to the best of her ability. Rachel isn't afraid to stand on stage and sing like the world is ending. She might "want everything too much," but that doesn't stop her from pursuing her goals with a relentless (occasionally manic) vigor.

Honorable Mentions: Peggy Olsen (Mad Men), Kurt Hummel and Quinn Fabray (Glee), and Adelle Dewitt (Dollhouse).

TV time.

Dollhouse "A Love Supreme": Can Alan Tudyk guest star every week? He's made Alpha into the Dollhouse version of the Joker - chaotic, unreliable, and menacing, yet also fun, dashing, and poignant. He brings an immediate sense of danger to any story. He also makes a good foil for Echo; while Alpha succumbs to his multiple personalities, Echo fights to control hers, thus maintaining a sense of autonomy. I like the idea that Echo (originally intended as a blank, Active persona) has developed into a functioning person (even if she's merely a composite of all the people she's been), and that it was Alpha who ignited her "awakening." It explains why Echo is more "special" than the other Dolls - they didn't experience a composite event, so they haven't been triggered. When Echo tells Adelle "I'm like [Alpha]" we understand her unique role in the series' mythology, and thus why we're supposed to care about her.

Glee: I loved "Sectionals" upon initial viewing, but the further I stray, the more cracks I see in the pavement. The Will/Emma final moment didn't work for me. Will hasn't done anything to deserve Emma's affection; he's still kind of a douche, and incredibly patronizing toward everyone around him (the kids, Terri etc.). It might have something to do with Matthew Morrison's acting choices, but I regularly want to punch him in the face. That explains why my Sue affection has only grown. The more she demoralizes him, the happier I am (her comment about his lesbian hair = priceless). I want her to metaphorically beat Will to a pulp, I just don't want it to happen at the kids' expense. Nothing beats Rachel performing "Don't Rain On My Parade." It's the perfect song for her because it will always rain on Rachel's parade. She admittedly wants "everything too much." People who want that badly, who try that hard, get penalized for their passion - it hurts harder when they fall, and the Glee kids are no exception. As Will says, "sometimes being special sucks," and that's a lot more compelling than two adults in their early-thirties acting out their latent Dawson Leery/Joey Potter fantasies.

Beccamendations.

My apologies for disappearing last week. I didn't plan a hiatus, but life demanded one nonetheless. I hope you all had a pleasant weekend.

During my absence, I discovered Beccamendations a blog written by my friend Becca Marsh. I met Becca at Columbia, where her impeccable grammar helped to redeem my early attempts at copy-writing. She also loves Jacob Clifton, so you know she has good taste. Her Glee recaps (Gleecaps!) are a pure delight in which she defends Terri Shuester's life choices and Finn Hudson's dancing ability with equal vigor (go read them, I'll wait). I particularly enjoyed her analysis of the Shuester marriage:

"He's not the man he thought he would be, and that's why he's here. He never left town, never became a star, never had an audience worth bragging about. He never got that special thing that everyone coveted – unless you count Terri. She's still the head cheerleader in his mind, beautiful, pristine, forever young. She's the high school triumph he managed to hold on to, but a trophy by any other name is still a trophy . . . This marriage works because he doesn't feel good about himself."

TV time.

The City: Is anything more awesome than a fleet of synchronized town cars dispensing brightly-clad, bossy fashion ladies like a platoon of real-life Miranda Priestlys? I also loved Erin's refusal to leave Olivia and Joe Zee alone on-camera; she was busting into their scenes like a tornado ravaging a small mid-western town. A good episode, but not a great finale. It lacked any sense of closure, and the cliffhangers didn't work (we already know Whitney debuted a collection at fashion week, and who cares if Olivia leaves Elle?). Kelly Cutrone line of the night: "You really want to stand there like Lucy and Ethel in some kind of bad Stephen King film?" I don't even know what that means. Also: does Roxie own a shirt that covers her bra? She must have the most revealing professional wardrobe in existence.

Glee: I'm relieved to have the pregnancy conspiracy revealed, but Will and Terri's confrontation demanded a complete shift in style and tone. A well-played scene, but I like to feel happy at the end of a Glee episode, not depressed. That's probably an immature response ("it's different, so I don't like it"), but it's hard to feel good about an episode that also revealed the depths of Rachel's insecurity and mania. That girl lives on the edge of completely batshit crazy, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. I did love Quinn blackmailing Sue, and Sue's reluctant admiration of it.

The Hills: Kristin and Justin's "first appearence" at the reunion special was a joke. Kristin couldn't have looked more uncomfortable; she refused to look at Justin, or answer any questions about their "relationship." Dear producers: Kristin Cavallari rocks. Stop feeding her premeditated storylines, and let her do her thing. Her "thing" includes being massively appealing and a natural source of entertainment. The reunion proved an utter waste of time (besides Holly admitting that she still likes to get wasted). If Heidi and Spencer aren't going to show up, at least don't make every other castmember talk about whether or not they'd make good parents.

TV time.

The City: Is next week really the season finale? Tuesday's episode dropped any lingering personal life plots to focus solely on the girls at work. Instead of more boy drama, we get Whitney arranging a photo shoot for her fashion line, and Erin relying (once again) on Olivia for help with the Today Show. I don't buy Kelly Cutrone's mistrust of Roxie, it's a fairly obvious play for drama the show doesn't need. Whitney and Roxie make fine TV having friendly cake fights. Erin and Olivia's storyline, on the other hand, has started to drag. Erin doesn't like Olivia because Olivia gets to associate herself with Elle without having to actually work there, unlike Erin who busts her ass and knows what she's doing. Olivia is clearly not an Assistant Accessories Editor, she's a socialite getting to play one on TV, and that's the real source of Erin's hostility toward her.

Glee: Hooray for Tina finally getting showcased! She did well with "True Colors." I quite liked that performance, with the cast sitting on stools wearing bright, solid colored t-shirts like a Gap ad from 1994. I also liked "Imagine" (though it was kind of rude for our kids to interrupt the other school's performance). The myriad pregnancy stories needed to conclude yesterday. Dianna Agron as Quinn has continuously impressed me, but at this point, I'd just like everyone to know that Puck is her baby's father, and that Terri isn't pregnant. I'm also not a fan of Kurt turning into a scheming asshole, what with him embarrassing Rachel in order to get Finn's attention. The plotting didn't do it for me this week, thankfully the music did.

The Hills: Probably the worst episode in the history of this show. It's like no one involved can be bothered to care about the relative credibility anymore. Kristin looks horribly bored, as though she just realized she signed her public image over to a team of producers who are desperate for ratings, and capable of paying her rent as long as she and Stacie make out. I mean, when Audrina (of all people!) is bailing on your reality show because it doesn't "depict her real life," you know you've got problems. Instead of inserting Kristin into this world, and then stepping back and letting her develop relationships and rivalries on her own, the producers have story-boarded her entire "character" arc. If she had any sense, the above photo would feature her calling her agent, asking him/her to get her the hell out of there.

TV time.

The City: While The Hills has started to feel dated and forced, the adventures of Whitney, Roxie and company feel fresh and authentic. It helps that Whitney and Roxie are actually friends, and that Whitney really is trying to start a fashion line. The major fault of this show's Los Angeles counterpart was the producers' decision not to acknowledge the cast's celebrity status on camera. Here, Whitney doesn't have to pretend she works at People's Revolution, since Kelly really is helping her launch a career as a designer. Furthermore, Whitney has improved leaps and bounds in her role as the series' star. Her obvious disdain for her pretentious blind date, and the look on her face when Zach (Roxie's date) showed up to the bar with six other girls, were priceless, and the kind of moments she hasn't allowed herself before now. She's finally started to let her personality show, and that has made all the difference.

Glee: "Ballad" was easily my least favorite episode to date. On the plus side, I loved Brittany's throwaway moment of hilarity ("I bet the duck is in the hat"), and Matthew Morrison is probably the only cast member who can match Lea Michele vocally (leading to their beautiful rendition of "Endless Love"). My major concern with "Ballad" was the horrendous characterization of nearly every female character. I found Will's performance of "Young Girl/Don't Stand So Close To Me" utterly insulting, as if his magic singing penis could actually reduce both Rachel and Emma to complete doe-eyed idiocy. His "all these girls are so fragile and crazy" comments didn't help either; they just made him look like a douche. The constant use of the word "crazy" to describe any woman with either strong emotions, or a mind of her own, was gross. For a show that's usually forward-thinking, this was a major step back. Welcome to 2009, Glee writers, you can no longer shrug off a woman's point of view as hormonal hysterics.

The Hills: Is Kristin thinner now than during her Laguna Beach days? I can't get over how long her neck looks. Anyway, popular culture continues to dismantle the feminist movement piece by piece, as Heidi plots to stop taking her birth control in order to "surprise" Spencer with a baby. Her seduction methods include cooking him pasta and dressing like a hooker. This storyline is so obviously fake it's a joke. You can practically see Heidi reading off the cue cards as she teases Spencer with promises of "dessert." On top of that mess, Kristin and Jayde proceed to spend the episode flouncing around L.A. calling the other "crazy" to whoever will listen (or is getting paid to pretend like they care). Though Canadian Jayde telling Kristin to "go back where [she] came from" (um, Malibu?) was an unintentional highlight.

Modern Family: I didn't laugh out loud this week, what the hell? This might be another show I stop writing about, since I never have much to say about it besides "it's good." It's hard to write about a comedy without simply listing the things I found funny; there's not as much to analyze besides whether or not the jokes worked. In that vein, my favorite part of the episode was Alex convincing Luke that Jay was terminally ill. That girl loves to fuck around with her siblings, with consistently hilarious results.

I love these people so much.

Tonight's installment was maybe the best Glee yet (its only competition would be the Kristin Chenoweth episode, which isn't a fair fight, since that one had . . . Kristin Chenoweth). From the moment Brittany explained that recipes confused her (I am loving poor, stupid Brittany. Between the recipe comment, raising her left instead of her right hand, and her genuine friendship with Becky, she stole the show), I knew I was in for a treat. "Wheels" had humor, pathos, deft characterization, great music, and best of all, no Terri Schuester or Ken/Emma weirdness.

Highlights included: Kurt and his dad, Kurt singing "Defying Gravity," and Kurt in general. I'm so appreciative of the writing staff's delicate handling of this character. It's not very often a prime time show portrays gay teens as anything other than an After School Special or Jack McFarland. I'm really glad Kurt's dad stuck around after the "Single Ladies" episode; their complicated, respectful, loving relationship is easily turning into one of the series' emotional centerpieces.

I also found Sue's story a fair presentation of the issues it raised. I worried the writers were going to make her a bigger monster, but thankfully, they didn't. She actually raised some relevant points. When does acknowledging a student's difference stop being accommodating and start being patronizing? I thought Will could have toned down the "this is so hard for Artie" comments. Artie was eventually able to voice his own concerns, and the other students were willing to listen; we didn't need Will slow clapping every time Artie opened his mouth.

Finally, I'm loving the Love Square (Rachel, Finn, Quinn, and Puck). They all have moments of unpleasantness, but at the end of the day, each of them cares about the other three. Quinn and Puck's food fight was adorable; the actors have great chemistry. As for Rachel, she's my favorite character (I'm just as surprised as you). The girl tries her hardest, every time, and puts the team first when needed. Lea Michele's (phenomenal) voice helps too. Just a great episode all around, regardless of "Defying Gravity" (which made me cry as soon as Kurt started getting nervous about the high note). Good show, Glee, good show.

TV time.

Dollhouse and The Office are no longer Mandatory Viewing. Dollhouse showed so much promise with "Epitaph One," but now it's back to Echo's Mission of the Week. I don't find Echo interesting, so count me out until they start focusing on the larger mythology again and/or Amy Acker returns. As for The Office, it's still a great show, but my interest has waned. When I couldn't bring myself to watch Jim and Pam get married, I knew it was time to say goodbye. Unless the writers can find a new status quo, like they did with the Michael Scott Paper Company episodes, I probably won't be back to Dunder Mifflin for a while.

The City: Ditching the Hills style narration and focus on love relationships has done wonders for this show. Whitney is massively more appealing as a nice girl trying to make her way in the fashion industry than she was as Jay's doe-eyed girlfriend, plus Roxie and Erin = awesome. Is it just me, or does Olivia seem kind of downtrodden this season?

Glee: Too much Terri, but I loved everyone else, particularly Rachel. Her reaching out to Quinn ("the kids in glee won't judge you") was a great moment; Lea Michele has grown exponentially as an actress. I also loved her extra-hyper introduction to the girls' mash-up (" . . . and also ANGELS!") and morning routine. If Emma marries Ken, I'm going to be sad.

The Hills: Audrina doesn't like Kristen because Kristen has more charisma in her pinkie finger than Audrina does in her entire person, so Audrina is funneling her rage into all this "girl code" bullshit, since she can't acknowledge the cast's celebrity status on camera. Also, why is it that even with Lauren gone, Heidi and Spencer don't interact with anyone but themselves?

Mad Men: A fantastic episode, if only for the show's willingness to portray its characters acting horribly. Don must be on a mission to personally destroy every favorable member of the cast (though Peggy seems to have gotten over her tongue lashing a few weeks back). Poor Sal seems to be a recurring response this year; my stomach lurched when Don muttered "you people." I hope we see more of Carla soon, and mark me down as unenthusiastic about Don's new affair and Betty's character in general.

Modern Family: The funniest show on TV. Just watch it.

Song for you.

My love for Kristin Chenoweth knows no bounds.

Don't stop believing (in "Glee").

I almost gave up on Glee after the "Acafellas" episode (episode 3, for those keeping count). The show was just all over the place, so many characters with so little depth, not enough laugh-out-loud humor, and musical numbers nowhere near the excellence of "Don't Stop Believin'." I thought, maybe the pilot was the best this show could do, maybe Glee already peaked. But, then I watched Wednesday's episode, and I'm back to being hooked.

"Preggers" had everything I want from Glee: musicality, dark humor, a pinch of drama, and recognizable humanity. It was funny, it was fun, and it had heart. The teenage cast is finally starting to stand out - Kurt, Tina, Quinn, Puck, Mercedes, and Finn have all emerged as distinctive personalities. Rachel, of course, was already distinctive, but I realized on Wednesday that you're supposed to think she's just as annoying as her peers do. The adult cast, meanwhile, has always been strong; Will, Sue, and Emma were the best things about the first three episodes.

My favorite "Preggers" moments were the football team doing the "Single Ladies" dance, Kurt's conversation with his dad, Tina's solo, Terri and Quinn's confrontation, and Sue's closing monologue. Next week looks even better with Kristin Chenowith and the cast singing "Somebody to Love" (download it on iTunes, it's phenomenal). Bravo Glee, you've made a believer out of me.

Catch-up.

I've been horrible about keeping a regular posting schedule; bear with me. I still don't have a reliable Internet connection in my apartment, nor do I have a desk. Nevertheless, here's a quick and dirty look at my recent cultural consumption:

Men Men "The Arrangements": This is from two Sundays ago, but since it took about a week to download I'm just getting to it (it's killing me to be so behind in my Mad Men viewing). Another strong episode, with a heaping portion of Peggy Olsen hilarity. The scenes between her and Joan ("Please Joan, tell me what to do"), and her and her potential roommate (" . . . you know, fun") had me laughing out loud. I don't remember much else besides Grandpa Gene being pretty cool to Sally and then dying. Poor Sally should ask Don and Betty to start saving for her therapy bills now. And the scene between Sal and his wife was kind of hard to watch.

Glee "Showmance": I don't know. The teenage cast members can't act and the songs sound so ridiculously dubbed over it's embarrassing (I had to avert my eyes during the "Gold Digger" performance). This show has so many things going for it (mainly Jane Lynch and Jayma Mays, even though Lynch's character stopped resembling anything close to a human being after 30 seconds). I'm going to stick it out another episode or two in hopes that the writers are just finding their feet, but I'm getting nervous. I did like Rachel telling the chastity club that girls want sex just as much as boys (and Lea Michele still has a great voice).