Thought it was about time to discuss the shows everyone is watching…or at least what I’m watching. :p

Mondays
Prison Break – A fan since season 1, this season is a step-up from last season in my opinion. While it’s a little cheesy that they’re back in a prison, it’s back to the formula that made the original so great: find a way to escape. I think season 1 will stand as the best, but they give me enough to come back each week.

How I Met Your Mother – This is the show with Doogie Howser. We started watching it last season, and it’s amusing. It’s a good half-hour show to watch when you need something short.

Two and a Half Men – A very raunchy show, but very funny at the same time. Not a big Charlie Sheen fan in real life, but he’s hilarious on the show.

HEROES – The breakout hit of ’06-’07 is back and better than ever. The formula hasn’t changed, and it’s something I love about the show. The writers are awesome at keeping your interest peaked from episode to episode. I love it.

Tuesdays
Beauty and the Geek – Yes, we like our reality shows, and this is a fun one. It’s fun to see the crazy stuff they do and the big changes that a handful of them go through.

House – Still a great show, and it’s fun seeing where the new hiring process is going. I still don’t know who will join the show permanently and who is temporary, and House is still one of the best characters on TV.

Wednesdays
Kid Nation – It’s all about Jarrod, who hasn’t been in the last couple episodes a ton. What a rip. It’s funny how 6 or 7 episodes in, there are still kids who you have never seen or heard from. The interaction between the all is both annoying and entertaining at times.

Thursdays
Survivor – Still our number one reality show, I don’t think we’ll ever get tired of it. The characters change each season with new people to love and hate, and the strategy of the game is unlike anything else.

My Name is Earl – The jail twist is fun. I don’t know if it will last all season, but they’ve already had one episode that wasn’t almost all a flashback. The creative writing episode was definitely outside the box.

The Office – Season 2 was the greatest, but there have still been some awesome moments in season 4. I haven’t watched episode 5 to see what Denise is talking about, but this is still my favorite comedy.

That’s all the shows we watch each week. Feel free to discuss them or anything else that you like. I’ll also preempt Angelo’s comments that you still don’t watch Heroes, Prison Break isn’t as good, and the Office isn’t as funny. I’ll also predict that Doogie Howser isn’t funny, and reality television is lame.

Last night Prison Break and Heroes were fresh and exciting! Oh how I’ve missed that tag-team.

Prison Break is still very interesting despite being out of the slammer (though some people have found themselves going in). The larger conspiracy the show now revolves around is still good for some heart pounding moments, but it has become much more about the characters and personal vendettas than about the conspiracy. The conspiracy storyline took a well overdue advance yesterday, and I look forward to seeing how that unfolds.

Heroes continues to amaze me. I read an article in the paper about how the writers want something "big" to happen every episode, and boy have they come through. Each episode something major is revealed, whether it’s a new character, a new power, or a new breakthrough in the overarching story. It’s hard to not compare this to Lost, so I will. Lost seems like it has been spinning it’s wheels all season. If I recall there were some episodes where the only thing they showed was Kate and Sawyer sitting in their little cells. Heroes has been able to give the viewer a little something every episode to make you feel like things are progressing. When it feels like things are going nowhere (Lost) it tends to get really boring.

Are there any favorite shows that people are watching?

On Monday Treasure Hunters will end, and Prison Break will start. This marks the end of the many reality shows we’ve watched this summer, and the return of regular primetime programming. Here’s a recap of all the shows we’ve watched:

Last Comic Standing 4
I’d watched bits and pieces of previous seasons, but I never got into it enough to watch the entire season. For whatever reason we watched it from start to finish this year. Josh Blue won the whole thing, and I was cheering for him the entire time. I have to admit, Ty Barnett was really good. Josh was really funny at times (Gabriel, stop calling me!), but there were sometimes when I think he was just up there grabbing stuff off the top of his head. Ty had great material everytime he went out. But props to Josh for being naturally funny!

America’s Got Talent
We watched the first episode, and it was painful. I think we then skipped the next couple episodes, and started watching again in the semi-finals. The girl that won, Bianca Ryan, was beyond annoying. Her singing sounded like an annoying whine, and just becaue you can fluctuate pitch does not mean it always sounds good. This is what escapes me about professional singers. Just because you can do something difficult with your voice doesn’t automatically make it sound good.

The more I think about this show the more annoyed I get. Hasselhoff just wanted everyone to like them, Brandy had retarded hair every night, and Piers Morgan, though correct a lot, was a jerk.

Treasure Hunters
By far my favorite reality show of the summer! I’ve never watched much Amazing Race, but this show makes me want to. Take Amazing Race and throw in tons of puzzle solving, and you’ve got an exciting show. This one isn’t over until Monday, so I’ll finish this when the finale airs. Update: The Geniuses won, but I wanted Air Force to win.

Others
We’ve also have been watching Windfall (not a reality show, but it does have Luke Perry). It’s about a group of people that win the lotto and they each get $20 million. It started off as an interesting premise, but slowly turned into "we’ve all got problems and are retarded!" If this show sticks around past the summer, I don’t expect it to stick on our viewing schedule.

We also watched bits of several other shows. We watched the last couple episodes of Hell’s Kitchen, and it was fun. We were also watching a show called How To Get The Guy, and it followed around four different women in their quest to date and find the right guy. It was very authentic, especially for a tv show, but it was on a couple times and then disappeared.

Prison Break begins this Monday night, don’t miss it!

Abruzzi is alive?! Scofield kissesTancredi?! Lincoln is on the run?!

Prison Break is just off the hook! Every week has got me on the edge of my seat, and even sometimes falling off. Stupid Haywire, you should have stuck with Scofield. Screw that Gary guy taking C-Note’s money. The "company" and "the man" are at odds. I don’t know if I will survive a whole summer away from this show. It’s sweeeeet!

Back in October I made a post about the current shows I was watching and reviewed them. Now that we’re about half-way through the season, I thought an update on those shows was in order. In order of airing from Monday-Sunday.

Mondays

Prison Break – Off the air since December I believe, the show returns this coming Monday before 24. This is by far my favorite new show of the year. Every episode leaves you wanting more, and I can’t wait to watch it again. The last episode that aired left the entire escape in jeopardy, so it should be interesting to see what happens.

Super Nanny (new) – I try and tape this show whenever it’s on. It’s really interesting to see Jo come into an out of control house and lay down some discipline! It sort of makes you afraid to have children, but I think this show should be mandated to all crappy parents.

Two and a Half-Men (new) – While adult oriented, this show is hilarious. Very witty and funny. The show is interesting because none of the characters are very redeeming, but they’re all fun to watch.

Tuesdays

Gilmore Girls – My review in October was very negative. Beginning of the season we had Lorelai and Rory not talking, and it was all very annoying. Thankfully they are talking again, and that has helped a lot. There are still some annoying plot twists that seem forced. Luke has a kid that magically showed up after 12 years or whatever, and that has thrown a wrench in the wedding plans. Rory and Logan don’t know what they’re doing, and that’s getting old. I still enjoy the show, but things are a little tiresome. Improved, but not up to par.

The Unit (new) – I’ve only watched one episode of this show, so I almost didn’t put it on the list. I really enjoyed the action parts of the show, but the military wives back at the base were annoying. I guess I’m supposed to care more about the soldiers knowing they have a wife and kids at home, but I don’t, they’re just bad actors. I’ll watch another episode before I decide to watch this regularly or not.

Wednesdays

One Tree Hill (new, sort of) – This wasn’t on my last list, but I’ve watched it since day one. I tend to tape this show and watch several at once instead of watching it every week. All the kids on the show are seniors in High School, and I still really like the story lines. Lots of good music, and it lets me relive that teen-angst of being in High School.

Lost – Still a very good show, but there are too many characters. My advice? Kill a few. Charlie is annoying, and the writers have basically given him zero credibility. Then there is Sawyer who basically threatens everyone at gunpoint, and he’s hardly been on the last couple episodes. Jack is no longer the fearless leader, but more like a pain in the butt. Nobody really looks up to him, they just have to look for ways to evade him. Even with all that complaining, it’s still a great show and I’ll tune in every week. Due the viewers a favor though and kill some characters. It’s always exciting, and you’ve got too many.

CSI: NY (new) – I tape this show every week, and then I watch two or three in a row while I lesson plan. The characters on this version are all really cool, and much better than Miami.

Thursdays

Survivor – New season is on, and Exile Island has added a very cool twist. Lots of the contestants are annoying (Shane, Courtney) but hopefully a good person wins. I think I’m rooting for Terry.

Smallville – Good show that, like One Tree Hill, I tape every week and watch when I get a chance. Clark still can’t fly, but there have been some cool episodes. Oh, and his Dad died…and I think he is really dead. I figured it was a trick, and he’d somehow come back to life…but it’s been several episodes since he was last on. I got money saying he’s brought back to life in the season finale/next season opener.

My Name is Earl (new) – I started watching this show after my last post along with the Office. At first it was just so-so, but it’s really grown on me. At first it was just Randy repeating the same thing 5 different ways, and it got old. But it’s gotten more witty as the season has gone on. It’s only a half-hour, so a good filler show when needed.

The Office (new) – The single funniest show on television. Random and off the wall, I love this show. Whether it’s Michael trying to talk to his boss about their "relationship" or Dwight giving a speech like a dictator, this show rules.

ER – Yawn. We’ve watched a couple episodes of House (it’s been on break) and I like it better than ER.

Fridays

Reba (new) – We usually tape Reba and watch it when we need a short show. It’s a good sitcom that sometimes mixes in good values. Funny characters, and it reminds me of good old TGIF days.

Sundays

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (new) – We don’t catch this one every week, but very often. It’s usally good lesson planning company. How cool is that the producers have found a way to make money helping people?

There is my midseason review. Anyone agree or disagree with me on any show? I did a little Lost bashing, anyone willing to echo that?

Update: I totally forgot about My Name is Earl and The Office on Thursdays. Two very funny shows.

The Fall TV season has been underway for about a month now, and I’d like to take this opportunity to review the shows I watch on a regular basis. Are they fresh and exciting, or are they fizzling out? Here’s a look in order from Monday – Sunday.

Prison Break (Mondays) – I swore I wouldn’t start watching a new show, but Prison Break peaked my interest before the show even started. Now after the first couple episodes, I’m totally hooked. A little “Escape from Alcatraz” mixed in with the suspense of “Lost,” and this show is a ton of fun. A guy gets put in prison on purpose to break out his brother who was put their by error. This is the only new show I’ve added to my week, and it’s totally worth it. Check it out!!

Gilmore Girls (Tuesdays) – Stacie and I have watched this show for the last couple years, but so far this year it’s super boring. None of the story lines are going anywhere, though the last episode gave us a little hope. Is this show finally on the way out?

Lost (Wednesdays) – Holy cow this show moves at a slow pace, and holy cow do I love it. They could be in season 10 and only 6 months could go by, but they would some how make it engrossing beyond belief. Where did Desmond go? What’s with the stupid computer? Are those people the others, or are there other others? This show rules.

Survivor (Thursdays) – I don’t know anyone else that actually likes this show besides the two of us, but it’s still great. The show is hard because it becomes exponentially more entertaining as a season goes along. At the beginning there are so many survivors that it’s hard to get to know them and have a favorite, but by the end it’s always a lot of fun to see what happens. My only complaint is that this is the only show we watch NOT broadcast in high defintion. BOO.

Smallville (Thursdays) – This show is in its 5th season, and WOW has it grown up. The first 3 episodes have been jam packed with action and great storylines. Starting last year they finally began to create storylines that spanned more than one episode, and it has paid off big time. Much like Lost and Prison Break (though with slightly less production quality), Smallville has stayed a must see next week sort of show.

ER (Thursdays) – Much like Gilmore Girls, ER has been very slow this year. I don’t care at all about Luca and Sam. Finally Luca is a good guy, but Sam is retarded. Give me some characters I care about. I want more Prat, bring back Galant, and more of the nerdy doctor with prostate cancer. John Leguizamo joins the cast for a few episodes, but they need to make some bigger additions than the crazy lady from 3rd Rock from the Sun.

That is a lot of TV right there, and most of it gets watched on the weekend. We’ve been recording One Tree Hill and Everwood because we don’t have time to watch them, but we can save them for a rainy day. I’ll tape CSI too just to have a good show around to watch if there is nothing else. Anyone else watch these shows?

Tonight LOST starts up again. There is even a recap show in HD before the first episode. I figure if I’m bored I’ll watch. I can’t wait to see what is in the hatch, or who goes in, and what they do about it. Here’s for hoping that season 2 is just as well done as season 1.

I figure if this mini-series like show doesn’t hold up, I’ve always got Prison Break. I started watching that when it started and it’s been pretty cool. It’s a concept that you think couldn’t last in the long run, but with a good imagination, anything is possible.