NBC the 5th Network

At least for the February sweeps NBC is in 5th place behind CBS, ABC, Fox, and Univision. Sweeps is a period of time that the networks showcases their best episodes in order to promote the advertisers.

Let's see how many shows I watch on NBC.

• Law & Order: SVU
• Parenthood

That's it. Worst part is these two shows were not on during sweeps or conflicted with other better shows on my preferred networks. 

Let me break down my primetime viewing habits by day.

I = 30 min.	CBS	ABC	FOX	NBC	SyFy	WB	TBS	AMC	HBO	SHO
Monday	III		IIII		IIIIII
Tuesday		IIII	II	II			I
Wednesday		II		II		II
Thursday	IIII
Friday									II
Saturday									IIII	IIII
Sunday		IIII	I					II	II	IIIIII
TOTAL	3.5 HRS	5 HRS	3.5 HRS	2 HRS	3 HRS	1 HR	0.5 HRS	1 HR	4 HRS	3.5 HRS

As for Univision I never watch it unless I am channel surfing looking for nothing.

This is not all if I expand it past primetime I would add several more hours to ABC for the news and various shows. Add a few more hours for FOX and CBS because of football and baseball seasons. Other regular channel like TNT, CineMax, FX, and a few other only makes NBC seem less relevant.

My suggestion is to stop all the reality crap like Trump's show and all the singing competitions. Refocus on sitcoms like Community and stop halting shows mid-season.

Raising Hope / My Name Is Earl

Making The Band
Throughout the season the inside jokes have been going crazy. Today's episode was a merger of the entire My Name is Earl cast into the Raising Hope universe. There have been a few crossovers but this one took it to extremes by adding the list and Mr. Turtle. Fans of both shows will be pleasantly surprised.

The Old Girl
Hillary Duff guest stars as the Chances revealed yet another way they ruined there son's life.

This is one of the best shows on TV.

The Walking Dead Goof

In the last episode of The Walking Dead titled Home there was a goof or error. I usually dismiss these but this one was way to obvious.

During the scene where Merle and Daryl ar fighting Daryl has his shirt ripped off from the back exposing a tattoo and scars.

The tattoo is on the right side and his shirt is torn around the armpits.

Next second the tattoo is on the left side and is shirt is still torn around the armpits.

Finally as he leaves the tattoo is still on the left side but his shirt is now fine and not torn at all.

Again I usually do not complain about minor errors but this was a crucial scene that changes Daryl relationship with his brother. It completely took me out of the scene. Sure the old fashion TV also takes me out of the storyline but that is my problem. Getting the continuity correct is the shows problem and trying to reverse the image could have helped. or digitally erase his shirt for the quick walk away.

Overall great episode and the season is good although Rick going crazy is getting old.

Superbowl Blogging Live

Jennifer Hudson and the Newton children's choir were just okay. Alicia Keys singing the national anthem was fine but adding the extra line was unnecessary but common nothing special.

I do not care for either team so maybe I will focus on the ads.

The Lone Ranger trailer was shown and it looks so boring that I thought I was watching every other Tim Burton movie.

--Baltimore scores first.

Red M&M singing I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) by Meatloaf was cute.

The model Bar Refaeli making out with the background guy Jessie Heiman was disturbing. For GoDaddy this again was a controversial ad since the kissing was said to be a bit to graphic for CBS and Israel. Full 7 min ad here if you can stomach it, look all make out sessions are nasty unless you are doing it.

--49ers score 3. So 7-3 Baltimore.

Free Pepsi Next.

Black label beer also looks good but they used the theme song for 2 Broke Girls.

Oz The Great and Powerful looks cool.

--Fumble, there seems to be a bit of anger on that field.

Cars.com ad with a couple asking for drama then handed a wolf pup in front of the wolf mama is great.

Taco Bell ad with the old timers was good too.

--21-6 Baltimore

PEPSI HALFTIME SHOW
Beyonce was off-center with her light show.

Poor camerman are having mini-strokes each time she bends over, yes she is wearing flesh colored tights. Isn't the Superbowl a family event why is she in lingerie? Destiny Child reunion is underwhelming.

2 Broke Girls mini video was cute.

Stadium went black, someone forgot to pay their light bill. 

Telex and printers are the main reason for the long delays. These pieces of tech are considered crucial for game play and 34 minutes passed before they were running.

Speed Stick ad was funny, waiting in the laundromat is horrible.

Budweiser ad was overly sentimental, ode to War Horse.

--28-20 Baltimore and another fumble in the 49ers favor.

Time Warner Cable / Walking Dead commercial was also funny.

--31-23, kicking has taken control.
--31-29 Baltimore only because the 49ers cannot get extra points by throwing.
 
So God made a farmer. By Ram has to be the best ad so far.

Kia's "Where do babies come from?" ad was cute and well done.

Tide's Montana stain ad was funny when the wife, a Raven's fan washes the sacred stain away.

--34-31 Baltimore wins and Flacco with is live potty mouth is MVP.

Elementary was the after show of choice and what a disappointment. I fell asleep.

Finales, Cancellations, and Hiatuses

The funniest show on TV Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23 has no been officially canceled but has been pulled from the air. I throw any support I can to this show as I have chosen it over New Girl.

Ben & Kate is finally canceled.

Fridays has become less science ficitiony with the end of Fringe. The show ended with everything in the known universes well but the paradox created made no sense.

Haven finally showed the seasons last 2 episodes postponed due to the Sandy Hook shooting. Having dead kids in school was a critical scene in the show so it is obvious why it was postponed. The show ended  in turmoil with the fate of everyone unknown. Overall very compelling and let us hope it comes back in fall as promised.

Why Is Everyone Watching That?

Looking over other people's list of top show and wondering what are they thinking. I will use Entertainment Weekly's Best of 2012 list as an example but most of the critics list have the same shows. This issue and some great list but most I disagree with but I get their rationale.

#1 Homeland
Agreed. A slowly developing drama with no gimmicks. Well written and well acted.

#2 Breaking Bad
Agreed. Another well thought out show that is slowly developing to a real life conclusion.

#3 Louie
Disagree. While I enjoyed the two previous versions of Louie's shows this one is uneven and not funny. Uncomfortable is his style but it also should be funny, the balance is not right.

#4 Girls
Disagree. Again more uncomfortable than funny. These women have been compared to Sex and the City and yes they are equally reprehensible with how the live there lives.

#5 Mad Men
Agreed. Although I do not watch it seems great and epic.

#6 The Colbert Report
Agreed. I stopped watching it because I sleep early and my TiVo is often too full. That said from what few clips I have seen the show is still topical and funny.

#7 Parks and Recreation
Agreed. When there is nothing left to watch I often watch this show because it is funny and you can always jump into it without feeling lost or out of the loop.

#8 Justified
Disagree. I know nothing about the show and as a TV junkie that is not a good sign.

#9 The Good Wife
Disagree. I tried watching it but it just feels like a typical serial drama. Nothing is special about it.

#10 Nashville
Disagree. Watched bits and pieces and while very true to life the whole country theme is not compelling.

#11 Parenthood
Agreed. A well acted drama that tends to get a bit whiny. These people have it all but ten to get hung up on the little annoyances of life, just like real people.

#12 Luck
Disagree. Gambling shows are never fun to watch and with all the dead horses around this one it just failed at every level.

#13 Fringe
Agreed. One of the few sci-fi shows left on TV and it does what great shows often do, that is leaves you asking questions and thinking about what you just saw.

#14 Sons of Anarchy
Disagree. Violence for the sake of storylines just never appealed to me. Maybe there is more to the sow but I just do not see it.

#15 Archer
Disagree. Adult themed cartoons are usually not funny or clever and this one is no different.

#16 The Walking Dead
Agreed. Should be higher on the list as the entire show is top notch. Great acting, great writing, great, scenery, and very compelling.

#17 Southland
Disagree. Another show I know little to nothing about and seeing how I watch too much TV that is not a good sign.

#18 Hunted
Disagree. See my previous opinion.

#19 NY Med
Agreed. Reality show that takes place in a hospital. It is compelling and filmed more like a documentary than a altered-overly-produced "reality" show.

#20 Bent
Disagree. Seriously never heard of this show until I read this list.

 
Sure not seeing the show should invalidate my opinion but half of a TV shows purpose is to bring new fans in. If you cannot even have a TV obsessed person like me to watch then the show is not worth it.

Redacting History

I noticed something odd during the flashbacks on General Hospital. It happened during the tribute to Edward Quartermaine (John Ingle) on November 22, 2012. Take a look at the background actors.

They were blurred out.

Now that video software is cheap and easy to use a person can re-edit anything. These actors were likely not extras since the storyline in that flashback had mostly main characters interacting at a Quartermaine party. I think that woman in the second picture was the originally Carly.

Is it right to change the past? Do these actors get paid when the footage is used? Do these actors get paid if they are pixelated or erased?

Postponed Part 2

Due to the shooting in Connecticut some more shows were cancelled or postponed or modified.

The Simpsons was not shown, at least not on the east coast.

Family Guy and American Dad were both pulled and older episodes were shown instead.

Homeland aired a disclaimer the due to the Connecticut incident the episode may be a bit harsh. They were right since the bombing on the show led to a scene where 200bodies were lined upped at a hanger waiting to be processed.

On The View some good advice was given, of course not by the women of the show but their special guests.
--Pre-1970 asylums and institutions dominated the country now unfortunately we can only hold the mentally ill for 72 hours.
--1 out every 100 people use to be in an asylum.
--Blaming others is a key to spotting a future mad-killer. (The FBI should look at the number of bloggers dedicated to hating Obama.) 

Nothing new so stop blaming TV and video games.

Bath School bomber killed 38 children and 6 adults after killing is wife that same morning on May 18, 1927.

Postponed

Due to the shooting in Connecticut some shows were cancelled or postponed.

Haven: Reunion 
Originally took place during a high school reunion and had some violence. The SyFy channel left these statements: "In light of today’s tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, Syfy will not be airing the new episode of #Haven tonight at 10/9C.", "At this time, no decision has been made as to when the episode will air."

General Hospital: 12.14.2012
The episode was postponed both on ABC and Soap Network due to the coverage of ABC news. They plan to air the non-controversial episode on Monday.

Most of ABC and the rest of networks pre-empted their daytime shows but since they are horrible it didn't really matter.

Over at the laist they have a great article of other shows and events that were pulled, I helped out a bit with one tip.

Frontline: Poor Kids

Happy Thanksgiving! Eat well!

This is a must watch documentary from the kids who do not have the joys you may have today.

The honesty from these kids is often drowned out by politics. Even on the website for Frontline there are ignorant comments about how these people have so much and eat like the rich. They are conservative commentators who blindly and willfully ignore the actual truth told. Some of these poor had $60,000 jobs in construction that dried up and they kept half there stuff and lost the other to storage auctions. Slowly as they the months dragged on they lose more things and the price of frozen pizza and soda gets cheaper than fresh produce especially with no kitchen.

Emotions and experiences make up a person's spirit and these kids will have theirs killed as they continue to grow up like they do. Accurately one girl sees how if she has no education and no job that she will end up a criminal. While their plights are not as drastic as those in other countries they are still important. The few safety nets we have is why these kids are not dead like they would be during the the early part of the 1900s.

Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together Benefit

The benefit to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Most of the coverage on the news is a mix of destruction and the whiners. Yes I know I am suppose to be nice but trust I live in the middle of the city and most people even in the bad areas are fine. The whining is tremendous as the free cheese lines grows and the cell phones are not fully charged.

Still there are plenty who did suffer and died and hopefully this money goes to them and their families before the fat whiners and scammers cut to the front of the line.

First up Christina Aguilera and she was good and depressing as was Jon Bon Jovi. Billy Joel was political as usual.

Jimmy Fallon took lead in a band with Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Steven Tyler, and more. Unfortunately half the performance was not audible because of faulty microphones.

In between songs they showed  little news snippets and clips showing the destruction.

Aerosmith played.

Whoopi Goldberg introduced sting even though she had mic issues, her face when they handed her the second mike was priceless.

Damn Coldplay with sharp images makes an instant tearjerker.

Mary J. Blige was up next with her drama.

Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band ended the night.

I leave everyone with the message that if the weather people give you 10 days warning you should not wait until after the event to prepare.