Tv week of 1/29

So I thought I would talk about what I watched this week. Maybe these Friday articles about TV will be a weekly event; we'll see I suppose.

So this week was largely reruns of my favorite shows so I don't have an overwhelming amount of material. It started off Monday night with Chuck. This was the first episode I caught of this season unfortunately, but I didn't feel too lost. The same quick wit and superb action kept me glued to the screen just as the previous season had. The new "upgraded" Chuck was a little cheesy for me (they made so that he can look at a weapon and get instant proficiency in using it), but it might have been necessary to advance the plot line. The show still rocks though, and the excellent writing/acting combo will bring me back next week.

The only other new episodes I caught this week was American Idol. I don't know about anyone else, but this season feels really shallow to me thus far. The gimmick of having a new guest star got old extremely quickly (bring on Ellen already!), and the constant feuding within the judges panel (such as Kara vs Katie Perry or Simon vs Neil Patrick Harris) is not interesting in the least. I feel like the talent is playing second fiddle this year, and bad singers and angry judges is not why I watch this show. When the highlight thus far is a song tittled "Pants on the Ground" sung by an old black man, you know the show has jumped the shark. Not sure if I'll be watching this season; we'll have to see how much better Ellen makes it.

I thought I should also mention this weeks episode of The Office, despite it being a rerun. It centered around Michael Scott (Steve Carell) being invited to New York to attend a shareholders meeting for an ailing Dunder Mifflin. Little does he know that the shareholders are livid at the upper management, and he is only there to show that there is a small spark of life still in the company.
I feel like this episode shines a light on the character of Michael and gives insight into his moral fiber. His intense optimism is inspiring and it is in the forefront in this episode. When a congressman says "Who is this moron [Michael]?" in the hospitality sweet, Michael replies (and I'm paraphrasing), "My branch is the only one to make money and you're in a hole. So you're the moron." It's this type of disdain for authority and honesty in speech that makes the character of Michael Scott so appealing to the viewers. The Office is my favorite show and I hope it continues to stay true to itself.

Well, that's all for TV this week. Not a bad week overall.

-Joe