Outsourced

It is interesting that the three shows I posted about at the beginning of the season I no longer watch. Which show is that I don't miss? NBC's Outsourced on Thursday night. Originally a 2006 movie, the show is in its first season on the small screen. At first, I didn't think the show had staying power. Since then, I've become addicted.

Occasionally, the humor is pretty bad TV humor. It is often mildly racist humor that your "Uncle Larry" would tell at Thanksgiving dinner. (To be fair, the writers do Indian jokes of Americans, too.) But there are always a couple big laughs in every episode. The name of the show gives away the premise: an American company's call center is outsourced to India and the call center manager (Todd) is transferred to Kansas City, Missouri to Mumbai to run the show. He has two love interests - the quite randy Australian and the beautiful Asha (who is in the process of selecting her husband for an arranged Indian wedding). The office contains members of different castes which adds to the shows complexity, though in a harmonious way all seem to get along (except for the assistant manager). Really, it is a lot like The Office but with curry and without those "interviews".

The Event

Let me begin by saying that I loathed Lost. I never got into that show, which was a huge time commitment. Miss one episode and you could forget ever catching up. I wanted to give NBC’s The Event two tries before writing a review. The pilot was edgy, yet it dragged through a little too much to be, well, interesting. It had some good moments, but it was very much like Lost. By the end of the episode, I was a little lost myself.

On the plus side, however, is the setting of the show. Rather than flashbacks to reality from a deserted tropical island on which the Lost cast was marooned, the reality of whatever is going in The Event is in a very believable Miami. (Less plausible, however, was the premise that a non-human species dwells among us and which species possesses the power to cause an aircraft to vanish into a midair ‘forcefield.’ Best of all, the political and government conspiracy angle make this show infinitely more appealing than was Lost.

Accolades aside, I realize that The Event will be a time commitment a la Lost. But it may be a commitment I am willing to make.

Detroit 1-8-7

It is just another cop show, but the premiere was well-done. Set in Detroit, the locale is unique (do we need another NYC cop show??) and makes the show immediately interesting. Plus, the epicenter of today's financial mess seems to be Detroit so the location couldn't be more appropriate.

The show focuses on a homicide unit. Character development for a premiere was decent enough, especially with lead character Detective Fitch (to some extent, the writers seem to push his mysterious character a little overboard, but at least Imperioli doesn't overdo it). The show's most annoying tick (a Baby Love ringtone) ends up having a poignant finish (making it clear that the writers of this show will go too far to make a poignant finish; nothing is worth an annoying tick).

Tick aside, the show is pretty good. I don't know how long the show will last, but I hope to see some more character development in future episodes. If we do, there may be some staying power.

Outlaw should be outlawed

I tried Jimmy Smits' new show Outlaw last week. Smits plays the role of Cyrus Garza - a young, womanizer, gambler, and Supreme Court justice who leaves the Court to fight for justice and the disadvantages/unrepresented.

In other words, the plot was right up my alley. Kind of like a judicial version of The West Wing. I love The West Wing. And Jimmy Smits is a good actor.

But this show was Awful. The feel-good plot was too predictable. The fictional Justice Garza was to the right of Justices Thomas, Scalia and Alito, rendering his liberal rebirth remarkably unbelievable (particularly in our current political climate). I might give it another episode, but I probably won't. This show will be cancelled by mid-season unless it has a break-out Episode 2.

UPDATE: I decided to give Episode 2 a chance. They should have led with this one. Arizona's new immigration law and Garza represents a cop accused of enforcing that law (in so doing, the cop shot an American citizen). Politics aside, the episode was much improved over the weak premiere. The show probably still won't make it.

The Tudors

M. and I have just finished enjoying season one of Showtime's The Tudors. The show is loosely, but still with much historical value, on the reign of Henry VIII and his six wives. Season one recalls the rise of Anne Boleyn, but concludes before their nuptials. It also deals with the King's growing dislike for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and for the Pope (though he hasn't yet created the Church of England, he is clearly considering the divine right of Kings).

Anyway, the show is really well done (though some scenes involve cheesy digitalized waves and other scenes that were clearly computer-generated). The acting is decent to good. Of course, it's a pay channel cable show so their is a lot of sex and nipple, so I wouldn't recommend watching it with kids around.

If you haven't seen it, you should. Especially since it is free streaming on Netflix.

Fruits, Veggies & Kids

Last night, after watching my 18 month old devour several asparagus spears and repeatedly asking for bites of lettuce, I happened upon a clip advertising a new television show set to premier on ABC this fall. Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution is set in Huntington, W. Va. (the CDC ranked the community in 2008 America's least healthy city) and the premier shows the lack of knowledge six-year-olds have about common fruits and veggies.



Based on my little guy's eating habits, I'm glad that I don't think I have to worry. Still, we all should be concerned... maybe more kids should have their parents read Foodie Babies Wear Bibs (An Urban Babies Wear Black Book).