Television Revival

No, I Don’t Spend All of My Time Watching “Dancing with the Stars”

Considering my typical blog fodder is complaining about shows like America’s Got Talent and Paris Hilton’s My New BFF, it wouldn’t seem likely that I ever watch something that doesn’t cause my eyes to vomit blood and my brain cells to flip me off. Well, it turns out that I do.

That up there is a kind of old picture of Keith Olbermann. He’s one of the top dogs over on MSNBC, along with the inadvertently hilarious Chris Matthews, the extremely uncharismatic David “Ape Face” Gregory and, of course, Rachel Maddow. Sorry, I don’t have a joke/comment for her, since she’s quite bright and I pretty much like her. Watching all of the election coverage over the past several months has practically made the MSNBC anchors my BFFs. What? I’m sure if you asked them, they’d all agree.

Keith’s  nightly news show, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, is a staple in my teevee diet. Keith matches Bill O’Reilly in arrogance, but trounces him in all other areas, like charm, wit, logic, reasoned thinking… You know, these kinds of things. In short, I like Keith’s arrogance, since I usually agree with him anyway, and that’s way more than I’ll ever be able to say about Bill O’Reilly, who is simply an awful awful man.

Plus, MSNBC news has finally gained some traction in the ratings and has been giving The O’Reilly Factor and the rest of the Fox News bunch cause for pause, forcing “Papa Bear” to resort to an on air whine-fest full of conspiracy theories about cooking the numbers. Real mature.

So, get a dose of Keith, Chris, Rachel or even David Gregory, next time you turn on the picture box. Okay, seriously, not David Gregory, but any of the others will do. Consider it intellectual penance for all the time you wasted watching The Girls Next Door.

November 8, 2008   1 Comment

“Testees” Fails

Last night, FX premiered its new sitcom, “Testees,” following a new episode of the already successful series “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” To cut to the chase, after viewing the first episode of “Testees,” I am not a fan.

“Testees” was created by Kenny Hotz, of “Kenny vs. Spenny,” which you probably never saw. (You didn’t miss anything.) “Testees” is about two guys, Peter and Ron, who live together and work together.  By “work together,” I mean they participate in clinical studies for pay, and the idea is that hilarity ensues. It doesn’t.

In last night’s episode, Peter (the curly haired one on the left, above) is given a drug that, apparently, makes him pregnant. Yes, the first episode of “Testees” is an even less funny version of the movie Junior. I didn’t think it was possible to make a less funny version of Junior.

Anyway, I’m going to go ahead and tell you to skip this one. It tries too hard to be edgy, and ends up being juvenile and vulgar, instead. Considering that this appraisal is coming from a person who still giggles uncontrollably every time someone says “butt cheeks,” you can rest assured that this show is truly crude, and in a bad way. Worse yet, it’s crude in an unfunny way.

All of the jokes are about as subtle as the poor attempt at double entendre that is the title. (”Testees?” Get it? Because they’re “testees” in clinical tests, but “testes/testis” also means “balls!” Hilarious!)

Save the space on your DVR and record something better, instead.

[Picture source: FXnetworks.com]

October 11, 2008   1 Comment