Thanks to each and every one of you that kept up with GMMR last week despite my erratic updates.  I think things will be a bit smoother this week.  Based on your feedback, it seems that we are going to stick with the daily “So Say We All” post, so let’s get talking about weekend TV…or at least Sunday.

Share your thoughts on the shows below and/or what you watched this weekend.

Desperate Housewives

This show lost me halfway through the first season.  Yes, I turn it on from time to time but I never really understood the mass appeal.  I could watch Felicity Huffman read a phone book and I think that Marcia Cross is charming as Bree, but even those two women couldn’t offset forcing me to watch Teri Hatcher for an hour a week.  I’m sure Ms. Hatcher is lovely but I’m just not a fan. Hence my not watching.

But I did watch the pilot episode.  I got it a few weeks ago and heard about the debut of Nathan Fillion as a new neighbor and I just had to check it out.  Now I missed the Firefly/Serenity train (or is it ship?) but I do love me some Nathan Fillion.  That itty bitty crush goes back to his days as Joey Buchannan on One Life to Live (my sister is going to love that shout out).  Nathan was fabulous as newbie doctor Aaron, but I can’t say the same for his on-screen wife played by Dana Delaney.  I’m just so sick of yet another Wisteria Lane newbie with a secret to hide.  I think it’s old and uninspired.  I guess that’s what the shows about, but I remember back in S1 when it was smart and somewhat funny (at least for a little bit).

So Desperate Housewives fans…I know you’re out there.  Tell me what you love about the show.  I’m honestly open to giving it another chance if you think it’s worth it.

Brothers & Sisters

Ducky & I have debated about Sunday night in the past.  Is Sunday night the kick off to your television week or is it the winding down before the new TV week begins?  Ducky is in the former camp and I’m in the latter.  And since this is my blog and Ducky’s opinion doesn’t matter (lol) I’m going to say that it’s so satisfying to have The Walker Family be the culmination of a full week of TV.

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Andy Samberg continues to show why he’s one of the best things about Saturday night when he premiered his new SNL Digital Short: “I Ran” - a love song dedicated to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (who else?). Now this isn’t going to compete with the Emmy Award winning “Dick in the Box” (and yes, I’m serious about the Emmy part), but it’s pretty funny stuff and has a few guest stars you just might recognize.

If you are a pending or current employee of the Dunder Mifflin Chicopee Branch, please click here for an important message.

I’m finally catching up on all the shows I missed while I was in Cali.  So I’m watching GREY’S ANATOMY and kind of loving it…it’s nearing the end, Izzie hears a knock on the door, she turns on the light to see it’s George and the “Do you want to delete this recording?“  WTF?!  No but I do want to kick someone’s ass over at ABC for letting the show run long.  Do they not know the limitations of digital video recorders?  I’m all firey right about now.

Help a girl out!!  Someone PLEASE tell me what happened at the end?!

Promise You Won’t Tell, but I Used to Have a Crush on KITT

I have to admit, with the return of Heros and How I Met Your Mother, not to mention the premiers of my new darlings Life and Journeyman, I spent most of the week with a beatific smile on my face. I had hardly a moment to think about the silly and the sordid side of TV with such a wealth of new programming at my disposal. But indeed, the gossip piles up, whether I’m paying attention or not. So, without further ado, here’s a few juicy tidbits to fill up the lulls between “I wonder where Syler is?” and “How long are they gonna keep Earl in Prison?” at the parties this weekend.

• Last spring, when ABC gave critics a peek at their new comedy about members of an oppressed ethnic group living in Atlanta and the madcap trouble that starts when one of them begins dating a hot blonde girl, the buzz was utterly savage. The show was Cavemen, and despite the network’s denials, most people thought the ham-handed racial parallels were pretty shocking. So shocking that famous segregationist Strom Thurmond sat up in his grave and said, “Oh, come on now!” So they scrapped the pilot and shot a new one set in San Diego. This time, they won’t let critics anywhere near it. Rumor has it they’re pondering guest appearances by that little British lizard, the HeadOn lady, and the Afflack duck on the theory that if the audience is adequately bludgeoned by played-out commercial icons that stopped being funny a year ago, they won’t have enough brain function left to be offended.

• To publicize Dexter, their show about a benign serial killer, Showtime dyed the water in fountains in 13 cities red to look like blood. The effect is said to be fittingly gory. Personally, I think this kind of take the theme to the people promotion is great. I’m looking forward to Pushing Daisies-themed pies, My Name is Earl stick-on mustaches, and for Fox to start spiking the water supply with Vicodin to get us all watching House.

• I guess somebody at NBC saw that video of a drunk David Hasselhoff mauling a cheeseburger and thought, “Man, do you know what was great? Knight Rider!” because they’re giving that classic gem a new chance at life with a planned TV movie pilot. Or maybe it’s just time to block TV Land channel on the NBC sets. With Bionic Woman and Knight Rider (not to mention Battlestar Galactica on NBC-owned Sci Fi) it’s about to be all retro cheese-inspired TV, all the time. I can’t wait for the blockbuster remakes of Three’s Company, Grizzly Adams, and The Love Boat. Perhaps no one should be surprised that the network that brought us 16 variations on Law & Order would keep on running to the well for programming until that well runs dry.

• When Kiefer Sutherland was arrested for drunk driving this week, word is that he was more scared than annoyed. With images of beaten-out confessions and cut-off thumbs dancing in his head, Kiefer feared the worst. He tried to fashion a weapon from a ballpoint pen, made a failed attempt to escape through the ductwork, and declared, “Nobody messes with Jack Bauer and lives !” His lawyer reportedly found Sutherland curled up in the fetal position in his cell and had to assure his client that, at least for the time being, real American justice doesn’t work like it does on TV. Sutherland promptly fired his lawyer and is said to be trying to hire Jack McCoy.

• The first cancellation of the fall happened this week when Fox unofficially axed their docu-soap Nashville after just two episodes. The show, which chronicled country music wannabes as they hit the city with nothing but a guitar and a dream, finished last behind a pack of reruns in the ratings. Frankly, I think it’s a shame. I’m from Nashville originally, and I believe it’s about time that somebody showed what the city is really like. Because the truth is, every single person in Nashville is just dying to break into the music biz. All the women have big blonde hair, everybody wears boots all the time, and we’re all issued a complete wardrobe of sequined western shirts on our eighteenth birthday. It’s just countrified hicks and bimbos as far as the eye can see. This cancellation will just perpetuate the myth that Nashville is a modern, diverse city with interesting art and culture, and we can’t have that, can we?

Martha Smith is a San Francisco-based freelance writer and editor. She writes mostly about food, TV, and other things that can be enjoyed while sitting down.

WOW! Just wow…there are no words for everything I’m feeling right now. Do you know that we live in a world where Jim Halpert & Pam Beesly are dating…and are happy? I can’t stop smiling (and neither can they). How great was it to see our OFFICE friends tonight. Things just see right with the world. And the best part? There’s another new episode next Thursday too!

So I don’t think there’s much of a need to recap tonight’s episode, because come on…I know you all watched it. And I’d like to say that I was able to jot down every single important moment but for the first time in forever I (a) watched the show with other people and (b) watch the show only once (although we did have to TiVo back a few times to rewatch some swoonworthy scenes and to hear some lines that we laughed right over.)

Because it’s reeeeaaaaally late, I’m going to be completely self indulgent and talk about some of my favorite parts of tonight’s episode. Then you can remind me of all the parts I forgot to mention. I can’t wait to get home to watch this episode a few more times. Be warned, the following has no rhyme or reason to it (did I mention it’s late?). Oh and before we get started please know that I am fully aware that The Office is NOT only about Jim & Pam, but you’ve gotta give me a little room here to live in the moment, deal?

Jan & Michael are living together and Jan has seemed to really embrace her new role as house-girlfriend. No sign of the apocolypse with those two but then again it’s only the first episode.

Angela & Dwight have some issues. Well I guess I should say that they have more issues because they’ve always had issues. I was a little thrown by Dwight and Angela tonight. Angela seemed really different. Where was the judgemental gal that we came to love? She’s been replaced by a hot blonde with cute bangs who wears sheer shirts to work and asks Pam for relationship advice. Who is this woman and where is the real Angela Martin? And Dwight? Did he suffer from another concussion tonight? I don’t know if Greg Daniels and crew are taking Dwight in a new direction this season but I thought he was a bit darker than he has been in the past. Maybe it was just me but Dwangela seemed a bit odd tonight. And did they break up? Say it ain’t so.

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Get a sneak peek at the new OFFICE covers of Entertainment Weekly and hear every single detail of what’s going to happen with Jim & Pam in tonight’s S4 premiere of The Office (I kid of course). But John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer talk candidly about the end of last season and where Jim & Pam might be heading this season. Very minor spoilers for tonight.

Thanks to lapses at The Office LJ community

The first real Thursday of the Fall season. My head is already spinning this morning - so much TV and so much of it that I can’t watch tonight. Yep, in a hotel with no TiVo means I’m not going to be able to watch GREY’S ANATOMY until this weekend. And only watching THE OFFICE once tonight instead of the 3-4 times I normally watch it on a Thursday…so wrong. For those of you without a TiVo…how do you do it? What will you be watching?

Series & Season Premieres:

Big Shots | Season Premiere | 10pm on ABC
Four CEOs find sanctuary in male bonding to make sense of their lives. In the opener, Duncan (Dylan McDermott) tries to squelch a potential scandal; James (Michael Vartan) weighs a professional opportunity while dealing with a personal setback

Ugly Betty | Season Premiere | 8pm on ABC
“How Betty Got Her Grieve Back”
The second season begins three weeks after the first’s cliff-hanger, as Betty tries to forget about Henry, and Amanda distracts herself from the discovery that Fey Sommers is her real mother.

I’ve seen the first two episodes of the new season and I’m lovin’ me some Ugly Betty. But you know it’s Marc & Amanda that I really adore. Those silly little bitches are up to a lot in the first two episodes. If you’re like me and are all about Henry & Betty then we’re going to have a lot to discuss over the next few weeks. Oh, and bring some kleenex tonight because you will be sobbing.

My Name is Earl | Season Premiere | 8pm on NBC (1-hour long episode)
“My Name is Inmate 28301-16″
In the Season 3 opener, Earl has difficulty adapting to life behind bars, particularly when he runs afoul of a jailhouse bully. Problems continue outside of jail, as Randy has trouble adjusting to life without Earl.

The Office | Season Premiere | 9pm on NBC (1-hour long episode)
“Fun Run”
In the fourth-season premiere, Michael believes the office might be cursed in the wake of a freak accident. After scrutinizing each of his staffers’ religious beliefs, he organizes a charity 5K “fun run.”

Grey’s Anatomy | Season Premiere | 9pm on ABC
“A Change is Gonna Come”
As the fourth season opens, Cristina returns from her “honeymoon” (with Meredith) and begins looking for Burke. At the hospital, new chief resident Callie welcomes a new batch of interns—including George, who is repeating his intern year.

Also on…

• CSI | 9pm on CBS
  
• Smallville | 8pm on The CW
• Survivor: China| 8pm on CBS
• ER | 10pm on NBC
• Without a Trace | 10pm on CBS

Premiere date: Thursday, September 27, 2007
Airs: Thursdays @ 10pm on ABC

The lines between boardroom and bedroom blur in Big Shots, the story of four friends who are at the top of their game… until the women in their lives enter the room. These competitive but dysfunctional New York CEOs take refuge in their friendship, discussing business, confiding secrets, seeking advice and supporting one another through life’s twists and turns.

James Walker (Michael Vartan, Alias) is the group’s moral center, but his professional life almost crumbles in an instant, thanks to a corporate shakeup at AmeriMart Industries. However, his work woes pale in comparison to what he later learns about his wife. Brody Johns (Christopher Titus, Titus) is Senior Vice President of Alpha Crisis Management. Despite his professional success, his wife will be judging him by how magnificently he can put together her birthday party. Karl Mixworthy (Joshua Malina, The West Wing) is the sweet yet always nervous CEO of a large pharmaceutical company. He has a loving wife – and a cunning mistress who is beginning to monopolize whatever free time he can muster. And Duncan Collinsworth (Dylan McDermott, The Practice) is the sexy, divorced CEO of Reveal Cosmetics. Having built his company into the industry leader, he now finds his personal life threatened by rumor of a personal indiscretion – which is actually a fact – that could turn his world upside down.

I wanted to like this one, I really did. The idea of seeing Michael Vartan back on TV brought me no small amount of joy…that is until I watched the pilot. This male Sex and the City wannabe is too neat and too clean - and that’s not a good thing. The actors aren’t bad but the stories just aren’t realistic. Former Veronica Mars showrunner, Rob Thomas has taken the helm and my sources tell me that he has already re-written a bunch of episodes, so I’m not fully ready to give up on this one yet. Let’s see if Rob can pull out a little VM magic on these not so big shots.

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Our resident Sci-Fi recapper, Jo, is taking on recapping NBC’s new show BIONIC WOMAN for GMMR while her beloved BATTLESTAR GALACTIC is enjoying an extended hiatus. Read on to find out just went down in the show’s season premiere, and more importantly what Jo thought of the reinvention of the Bionic Woman.

Don’t forget to give this one the ‘ol “So Say We All” and let us know what you thought.

Episode Title: “Pilot”
Original Airdate: 9.26.2007

The halls of One Government Conspiracy are lined with dead and bloodied scientists. Future Hiro’s Less Cool Brother finds Starbuck, er Sarah Corvus, huddled over the mess. “Do you love me?” she asks. Yes, yes we do, Katee. He shoots her. Touching, but not as gut wrenching as that time when Helo shot Athena so she could…oh, it’s going to be a long wait til January…

Jamie Sommers, quiet bartender, cares for her lying and law breaking teenage, yet shockingly one dimensional, sister. There should be some good stuff in this relationship later on though. Jamie sneaks into a college lecture on bioethics given by her boyfriend Will. Oh, their little heart to heart why do you love me conservation rings a bell in my head. This is what’s wrong with this whole episode. The characters are talking to the audience and not to each other.

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