Summer 2010 -- for what it's worth!

[maggiethecat]

Just thought I'd start a general thread to see if anyone out there has found anything worth watching . . .

. . . sound of crickets . . .

. . . I thought not!

Although I did, purely by accident, catch an episode the other night of a wacky little fantasy series called "Warehouse 13" on the Scyfy (formerly SciFi: wassup with their spelling?) Channel, which stars our beloved Saul Rubinek. It's entertaining, it's funny, and I haven't the FAINTEST idea what's going on. It's just fun to see Dr. G again. If we've already discussed this show in another thread I apologize. Must have missed it.

Thank heavens the library has so many good DVDs for free. Other than that, I confess a somewhat ridiculous obsession with "Golden Girls" reruns. What the heck, the show is still funny and who doesn't need a laugh?

I've tried "The Gates" and Frank Grillo looks swell . . . but it's so damned dark (literally) that I can't follow all that much of the action. ;D

Thoughts, anyone?

[mlm828]

I'm watching Friday Night Lights -- not exactly summer TV, but not to be missed, whenever it's on.

I've watched the first two episodes of The Gates, and the jury is still out, as far as I'm concerned. Vampires and such really aren't my "thing," but I'm curious about when Frank Grillo is going to catch on to what's going on. One problem for me is that the first two episodes were on at the same time as Leverage, which I think is a lot more fun. Totally unrealistic, of course, but fun.

Rescue Me is back, and I've been watching it, too, although I'm not sure why. The Closer is also beginning again sometime soon, and I'll probably watch it. Also Covert Affairs (see separate thread) and Dark Blue when it returns, sometime this summer.

I saw an ad for Warehouse 13 and thought it looked interesting. Sounds like another one to check out.

[inuvik]

I have been watching Warehouse 13 since day 1. It's really good! I can catch you up:

Warehouse 13 is a big government warehouse where they store artifacts/objects that are a danger to the public. Saul's character is the head of the warehouse. He is also the researcher, advisor, and boss to the two field agents, Micah and Pete.

There are a few minor charactors. The two most important are Claudia, who helps in the warehouse with Saul, and Mrs. Frederick, who is Saul's boss.

With a few exceptions, most episodes follow this format.

• report of strange happenings to a person, or by a person, or to a whole town
  
• Saul suspects an artifact may be the cause
  
• Agents go out to investigate and try to identify the artifact
  
• Many calls to Saul for research, and adventures befall the agents
  
• Artifact is identified, neutralized, and brought back to warehouse for containment and storage
  

There is also a continuing side narrative about a former partner/warehouse employee of Saul's who has gone rogue and causing havoc.

The fun is in the nature of the artifacts and what they do (for example, Sylvia Plath's typewriter causing extreme lethargy/depression).

It's not a fantastic show, but the dynamic between the two leads is fun, in a "Bones" sort of way. Good summer fun!

[mlm828]

Thanks, inuvik. It sounds kind of like "Fringe Light." I'll check it out.

[maggiethecat]

Great recap! I'm really having fun with this show, which sort of reminds me of the old "Friday the 13th" show, where the gang had to recover weird stolen artifacts, like the fountain pen that had to be dipped in blood to write great prose.

And it's always fun to see Dr G!

[mlm828]

I watched the last couple of episodes of Warehouse 13 and thoroughly enjoyed them, although I'm sure I don't know everything that's going on. I stand by my description of it as "Fringe light" -- but in a good way. Love Saul Rubinek as cranky Arthur (who of course is a big softie underneath the crankiness).

Program Alert: Mad Men is back this Sunday evening!

[maggiethecat]

Jul 22, 2010 19:38:28 GMT -5 mlm828 said:

Program Alert: Mad Men is back this Sunday evening!

My dad was an advertising copywriter for several New York agencies in the 1960s and 1970s (J. Walter Thompson, Lambert & Feasley, Compton), and as far as I'm concerned???

That show is a documentary.

[mlm828]

If you're looking for something to watch on Wednesday evenings, I recommend Dark Blue. It returns for its second season with a two-hour season premiere this Wednesday on TNT. I started watching it by chance last summer and was hooked. It's a cop show about a team of undercover cops. They're basically adrenaline junkies and not exactly choir boys or girls. It's edgy and dark, but quite well done if you like that kind of thing.

[mlm828]

If you haven't yet gotten hooked on Fringe, here's your chance. Several episodes from last season are being re-run over the next few weeks, leading up to the beginning of the new season. The first one is at 9 tonight on Fox.

If you enjoy Warehouse 13, check out Fringe. Where Warehouse 13 has Saul Rubinek (who was awesome in this week's episode), Fringe has John Noble (who is awesome in every episode, especially the recent ones, where he plays two versions of the same character). Honestly, it's the best show you're not watching!