Block out your 10 o’clock hour tonight because season four of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” premieres!

“Day Man…fighter of the Night Man” kills me every time!

The gang is back and ready to push the envelope once again with their self-deprecating, absurdist humor. Don’t know of the wonders to which I speak? You could do two things: check out my hyperbole filled post praising this television show or just rent the “Always Sunny” dvds to find out for yourself.

The last act of “The Shield” premieres next month and I’m still two seasons behind!

I know this may be sorta sacrilegious for a supposed television revivalist, but my favorite television anti-hero is Vic Mackey on “The Shield” . Most people say Tony Soprano (HBO’s “The Sopranos”), but Tony S. just doesn’t do it for me. Obviously I recognize that “The Sopranos” is an excellent drama that I love to watch, but if we’re talking comparisons here, I’m simply more entertained and impressed with FX network’s cop drama.

I love “The Shield’s” gritty realism, with its handheld camcorder style and episode writing that repeatedly pushes the envelope. To me, “The Sopranos” focuses more on its own microcosm of mob and familial issues. “The Shield” does all of that AND raises issues of society. It jumps into that dark realm of ambiguity and examines the effectiveness of politicians and the entire criminal system.

Plus, Vic Mackey is such an amazing character to watch evolve over these last 6 seasons. At times, he scares the crap out me when he so willfully crosses the line. While other times, I end up rooting for him to do just that in the name of justice. I seriously need to finish those last few season 5 dvds and buy “The Shield” season 6, since it came out today! There’s no way I can jump into the final act without being prepared.

Still haven’t gotten around to buying the first season of “Damages” on dvd. No worries, FX feels your pain.

Since this show is told in flashbacks, a marathon can really put things into perspective. You really get the big picture of Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) as shrewd lawyer, possible murderer!

“The Riches” may be the best television series nobody’s seen. Minnie Driver is better in it than any movie I’ve seen her in and Eddie Izzard looks better in civilian clothes than in drag.

But that’s not the point. It’s the plot and the spiky dialogue that gets you. Like many good novels it’s about the American Dream—the one we sell through advertising. But the Malloy family doesn’t get there through hard work or by being born with a silver key in hand. Instead, they are a family of “travelers,” (think gypsies or tinkers) who break away from their larger “family,”which was a wandering band of scam artists who live outside the law.

The Malloys stumble upon the Riches family, who have been killed in a car wreck. So what do they do? They discover the very well off Riches are about to move into an elegant home they have purchased, site unseen, over the Internet—and they simply step into their lives. Then, the fun really begins.

Start your Tivo or pick up the first season DVD. Remember, as Bob Dylan said, “To live outside the law, you must be honest. But then he hadn’t met the Riches when he wrote that.

“It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” returns to F/X on September 18th (Thursdays at 10pm), which pleases me to no end. It’s been called “Seinfeld” on crack, but I say the gang is much darker than those cynical New Yorkers.

The gang consists of four slacker friends who own an Irish Pub in Philly. Being the lazy, selfish people they are, they end up having to let Dennis’ Dad, Frank (Danny DeVito) come help run the bar and keep things afloat. The kicker is that Frank usually ends up being the real instigator of their troubles (see. “Bums Making a Mess All Over Town” from last season where he uses an old cop car to extort hot dogs out of a street vendor).

Each episode essentially is them getting into the most insane situations. For example, Dee and Dennis get addicted to crack (on purpose) so they could claim welfare (instead of like, y’know, getting a job), Charlie pretends to be a war vet on a dare, or like on episode two where they decide to give underage kids alcohol as a public service! And that’s just off the top of my head.

Still, I think my favorite scene is still Dennis and Charlie coming up with “Day Man” in Charlie’s dingy apartment. The performance of the song to a stunned bar crowd (and the subsequent booing) was priceless!

They say there will be more songs and a sequel to “Day Man” in the new season of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”. Yes! More David Bowie-esque outfits! Maybe more of Danny DeVito on drums too!

The season 3 dvd comes out on September 9th, so I can finally delete the episode containing DayMan from my television. I’m telling you, these seasons are highly rewatchable (maybe that’s where they get the “Seinfeld” comparison). I def don’t regret owning the season 1 & 2 dvd set. Take my advice and watch these episodes so as to acquaint yourself with the hilariously demented minds of the Paddy’s Bar gang.

Related Sources: Pajiba Comic-Con highlights

In the summer, many channels schedule marathons and reruns to fill up those empty blocks. Holidays and warmer weather create significant drops in viewership, which leads to less advertising dollars. Thus, networks can be more creative with the schedule.

There is the new trend of showing smaller budgeted shows during the summer as mid-season or summer only programs. I’ve discovered quite a few gems during this so-called down period like “Burn Notice”, “Mad Men”, “Eureka”, “Weeds” and “In Plain Sight”. As you may have noticed, mostly cable network or premium channels can so freely funnel money into summer shows, since you have to pay to see those channels anyway.

Here’s a list of reruns, premieres and marathons for July:
“Burn Notice” - Season 2 premiere on July 10th, 10pm (mini marathon on July 3rd)
“Weeds” - Season 4 already up and running, Mondays on Showtime at 10pm
“Mad Men” - Season 1 marathon on July 20th at noon, Season 2 premiere on July 27th (Thanks Whitney for the heads up!)

“Eureka” - Season Premiere on July 29th, 9pm (watch reruns online here)
“Supernatural” - Season 3 encore, Thursdays at 9pm
“Rescue Me” minisodes started on Tuesdays on F/X, but you can catch them online as well at Crackle.com

Don’t waste the day away in your sofa hammock, stay cool and catch up on all that great tv you missed earlier in the year.

Since I watch so much television, I usually save entire seasons on my DVR. Once the finale airs, I can finish the whole season in a straight shot or at my leisure.

This is the case for F/X’s “Damages”, and boy am I glad I did. The finale was a doozy with all that dramatic irony fueling the final reveals. Not to mention, it was alot easier to follow the double-crosses without having to wait a week in between episodes.

The show uses a flashback structure where it starts and ends each episode in the present, but shows the past in between to reveal a how the whole thing started. Each week you learn more about the events surrounding Ellen (Rose Byrne) and how she came to be charged with the murder of her fiance. Ellen works for Patty Hewes (Glenn Close), a top notch hold no prisoners litigator. The Hewes firm is trying a civil suit against Arthur Frobisher (Ted Danson) whose company fell apart due to financial fraud, sorta like Enron.

I’m telling you this show is intense! The acting is superb, I even like Rose Byrne despite hating her in anything else with her. After the finale, I was very afraid of Patty Hewes. She’s not a person you want to get mad.

Season 1 is out on DVD, so catch up before they start the second season.