CW comeback?

Every year, the E! network campaigns for one show facing impending cancellation doom. Fans can vote on E!'s website for which show they want saved, and the winner gets E!'s backing. It's worked 5 out of the 6 years E! has tried, so the odds are pretty good that the fan fav will be saved. Okay, I'll admit it. I voted. From each of the computers in the computer lab. My problem was too many of my favorite shows on the chopping block. Do I vote for Studio 60, which I've been championing from the start but has little to no chance of being saved? Do I vote for Scrubs or 30 Rock, neither of which I can imagine NBC actually dropping (hello NBC, try programming these gems at a time that's NOT against Grey's Anatomy)? Do I vote for What About Brian, a girly guilty pleasure of mine? Or The Class on NBC, which started out kind of crappy but soon became one of my favorite sitcoms? Or do I push for my old favs on the CW - Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls - which I can't imagine my life without? Well I voted for all of them. Probably not the smartest idea.

Regardless, the results were announced this week (read the article here: http://www.eonline.com/gossip/kristin/), and my CW picks won! Due to incredibly close results, E! is campaigning to save both Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls!

Veronica Mars has always had this off-the-radar underground following clearly not represented in the Nielsen numbers. This is the second time to my knowledge that there's been a surprising swelling of support for the show. So if E!'s campaign works, please try watching it. It may have started out as an implausible show about a blonde high school wunderkid who solves mysteries for her dad's detective agency (I know, I know), but it has turned into a smart, sexy show with a little mystery, a little drama, a lot of quick, sarcastic humor and some really appealing characters. The main problem is that it's on against House. But if you don't have DVR, get it. Then set it. I saw one episode out of context first season and I didn't like it, but when I went back again and watched the third season straight through, I regretted not having watched it before. Really, if you tried it and didn't like it, it's worth a second chance. If you haven't seen it before, and E!'s campaign works, get on board. Especially if you're a Nielsen viewer. ;-)

As far as Gilmore Girls goes, I'm kind of surprised that it won. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Gilmore Girls. But since the Palladino writing team left, the show has become a shadow of itself. The writers are doing well with the impossible task they've been given, but the plot has gone for a crazy ride this season, and I'm not sure it has stayed true to the characters. But hey, I'm definitely up for giving the new writers another shot! Let's see if E! can successfully negotiate Alexis Bledel's salary, since I've heard that's why the next season's up in the air. I have a feeling little Rory's become more of a tiger than everyone realizes.

Anyway, good job to those who voted. I have a feeling I'll have to kiss Studio 60 goodbye forever... and maybe The Class as well. But at least I can keep up my CW watching if E!'s plan works. How do you feel about the results? Did your favs get saved?

Davis the Disser

I'm not sure how many of you are still watching Real World. I'm a bit of a late joiner -- this is the first season I've watched. I can't get enough of it, and I'm hoping MTV starts playing Real World marathons so I can see the older seasons. This week on Real World Denver, though, Davis verbally bitch-slapped all the girls in the house with his comments on their looks. I was kind of taken aback... we've seen Davis get pretty cruel in past episodes (thus insane Brooke throwing water all over him a few weeks ago), but this week he took catty to a new level.

First you have to know that there's been weirdness going on between Davis and Brooke. Davis is the token gay character, and he sleeps with Brooke. Figure that one out. Supposedly it's just sleeping, but homeboy fights with Brooke like they're dating, and Brooke has been getting confused. Shocker.

This week, Davis was out with Jen, and he inexplicably offered up criticism of how the three girls in the house look. He said that in his high school, Colie would not be considered pretty and that he thinks she's actually kind of a dog, despite her nice rack. He said that he doesn't think Brooke is pretty, honestly, and that when she looks down she has a double-chin, so she should always look up. (Really, Davis? Really?!) Then when pressed, he told Jen that she has nice skin and nice breasts but that she could stand to lose some weight. Ouch. I'm sure you're shocked that Jen went home and told the girls what Davis said (although she wouldn't reveal specifics except about the double chin).

If you've watched any episodes of Real World Denver, you know that Brooke doesn't take this kind of thing lightly. And by that, I mean she usually has some kind of intense psychotic episode of epic proportions. This week was no exception. After attempting to confront Davis at a bar (all business transactions on Real World take place in a bar), Brooke stormed home, locked herself in the bathroom, and started screaming at the top of her lungs. Then she ran into Davis' room and trashed it, breaking lamps and throwing bed dressings on the floor. Then she left some creative notes on his bed telling him to rot in hell. Classic.

You just have to admit, this is great TV. Brooke's breakdowns are irresistable, and Davis' insincere apologies just ASK for more drama. In fact, the preview for next week shows Davis spilling his guts about the Alex/Jen/Colie love triangle that everyone forgot about in the midst of Brooke's outright insanity, Tyrie's angry black man antics and Steven's reticence about being an Outward Bound slacker. Tune in at 10pm on Wednesday to see the inevitably fantastic tears-filled results.

Thank God You're Here!

Here are my TV favs of the past week!!:

Thank God You're Here: If you used your DVR or TiVo to zip through commercials with celebs in funny costumes (Jason Alexander, Angela from The Office, Kevin Nealon, Mo'Nique), you should have payed more attention. They were commercials for NBC's new comedy improv hour that tests the mettle of some of your favorite funny celebs. I'm not sure when this show's usually on, but Monday night we were treated to two one-hour episodes. I've gotta tell ya, this show ended up being way funnier than I thought it would be. If you like Whose Line is it Anyway or you're in to improv at all, you've got to watch it. If you've always wondered whether comedian celebs are funny without clever script writers whispering in their ears, you've got to watch it. If none of these apply to you, but you have a pulse, you should watch it anyway. The premise of the show is that celebrities who think they're funny or good at improv are dressed up in costumes they've never seen before, and led to sets they've never been on, to play characters revealed to them once they get on the set. Some examples: a game show host, a mountain climbing expedition leader, an excavating professor, a doctor hawking his innovative (read: sketchy) product on a talk show. The other "characters" in the scene are in on the joke and great at improv, directing the scenes by prompting (or trapping) the stars into thinking on their feet. For instance, a character said to the star who stepped on to a game show set: "Remind the audience how this game is played!" I'll admit that I'm a little wary, since the show isn't live and is thoroughly edited. But if you can get past that, it's really worth a watch. (And if you watch ANY reality TV at ALL, you should be able to get past it. I mean, hello people, not only is reality TV scripted and brilliantly edited, but scenes are filmed multiple times to get different camera angles!) So basically, get past it and tune in -- I laughed for two hours straight.

Lost: Girl-on-girl catfight in the jungle. Guys, I bet you loved it. I'm a straight female, and I even loved it. Good stuff.

ANTM: Just a few comments... Thank you Tyra for admitting you guys totally screwed up Brittany's hair, and thanks for offering to fix it. Cuz I really can't stand watching that ratty mess for another week. 50 Cent pushed Jael into the pool. Can you blame him? Sarah the Pose-y Photographer got sent home. Good. Natasha's still a crazy mess. Even better. Whitney called the other models "skinny bitches." Amen. Nicole Richie stirred up trouble. I'm shocked. (Ok, I'm actually laughing my ass off.) Renee got hers. Finally. And last but not least... Wholahay? I love this show.

The Office: I think this about sums it up: STAB ME IN THE HEART. I can't take any more of this Pam/Jim torture. That scene at the soda machine felt like water torture to me. But things are looking up -- Pam and Roy are officially over. Did the scene in the diner feel like foreshadowing to anyone else? I'm well aware that Pam and Jim will never really get together (see: X-Files' sexual tension success vs. Moonlighting's sexual fulfillment disaster... these writers aren't stupid), but Roy's encouragement of the JAM pairing makes me hope Pam takes some action. Karen was especially horrible this week. Might I remind you of the moment in the break room when she snipped at Jim to get back to selling paper so he could take her on a trip? Yikes. Michael Scott is still hilarious, and his inexplicable and unfounded hatred of Toby is one of my favorite parts of The Office. Thursday's Dwight-As-Superhero storyline, besides being a shameless plug for NBC's Heroes, was absolutely hilarious and completely consistent with the characters. That's what I love most about The Office. Well done, writers. Every single week.

Grey's: Just kidding. No new episode, yet again. Come on, Grey's! I'm sick of repeats. You think having Meredith die and George and Izzy get it on during Sweeps exempted you from new storylines?! Seriously?!

American Idol: I'm watching it as I write this, so I'll just give a few gut reactions. Jenny from the Block was the guest judge, and unlike most of the other guests, she actually gave the contestants vocal coaching to make their songs better (or at least more Latin-ish). Yay for that. But if this was Latin week, where were the hot Latin men, I ask you?! Anyway, on to the performers. Last week Mindy Doo used Sanjaya's flat iron; tonight she used his hair teaser. Jordin reminds J-Lo of Michael Jackson? What was it, the side ponytail and girlish facial features? Yikes. Hot-pants Haley's got to go. And I'm sure Sir Sanjaya the Terrible is staying yet again... but at least he looks less like an adolescent female with that facial hair.

So there's my favs of the week! Next week, watch Thank God You're Here. It really is funny.

"New York is in the motherf*cking house!!"

As you all know, my favorite clock-craving crazy from VH1's Flavor of Love was "New York," aka Tiffany. For those of you who watched, well, you've GOT to remember her. For those of you who didn't, a) why the hell not?, and b) New York was the character on the show whose hilarious soundbytes made no sense, whose mother was just as insane as she is, and whose jealous obsession with Flavor Flav got her to the final two and then ultimately dissed in both seasons of the show.

Hopefully you also watched New York's show, "I Love New York," on VH1. It's hilarious. New York is as cracked-out as ever, and her soundbytes are as hilarious as they used to be. The show is set up like Flav's, down to the pimped-out velveteen house and the chunky prizes winners wear around their necks. Not surprising, since Flav is the producer. I called from the beginning that the final two men would be Chance, the ultimate Thug who New York compares to Flav, and Tango, the sensitive lover who gives New York a taste of her own drama-queen medicine. But I never would have predicted what went down in the season finale. I had a hunch New York would pick Tango, since Chance was too much of a loose cannon. In New York's words, "Chance is a straight-up thug. I just hope he don't pull out a gun and start cappin' motherf*ckers." True dat. But in an unsuspected twist, after New York announced his victory, Tango whipped out a diamond and proposed! New York nearly had a heart attack. She was clearly pressured into saying yes (pay no attention to the cameras behind the curtain!!), but she swifty backed down, muttering "what the hell did I just do?!" Such great TV.

If you ever watched Flavor of Love or I Love NY, tune in to the Reunion show in two weeks to see what ended up happening. Do I hear an I Love NY 2?! I hope so!!! If you didn't watch either show, check out VH1's "V-Spot" to see funny clips from the show so you can see what you've been missing!! (http://www.vh1.com/vspot/)

Jim's my favorite April fool

In honor of April Fools' Day (is that apostrophe right? I'm assuming there's more than one fool... Ok I'm a geek), and in the spirit of procrastination, I'd like to note my top five favorite pranks from The Office. Think of them as suggestions for your own tomfoolery... especially if you have Dwight Shrute-like colleagues. If you don't work in an office, or if you actually like your coworkers (or, I suppose, if you have serious and/or seriously annoying coworkers who would report you to corporate and get you fired or something), then you can just remember how much you love The Office and have a little laugh.

There have been SO many pranks on the show that it's incredibly difficult to pick a fave-five. (Hey thanks for the catch phrase, t-mobile!) And as you all know, I'm in love with Jim Halpert, so I basically think everything he does on the show is the greatest thing in the world. But after thinking about it for a little while (not long enough, since I have to get back to my stats paper... but in the scheme of things, probably too long, since I have to get back to my stats paper), here are my picks:

5) Jim pranks Dwight (season 3): After the office staff discovers a bat inside Dunder Mifflin, Jim tells Dwight that he thinks the bat bit him (Jim). Then during the rest of the day, Jim starts displaying "symptoms" of turning into a vampire. Of course, Dwight believes him. (Note: this prank narrowly beats Jim convincing Dwight in the season 1 episode "Drug Testing" that Dwight had smoked pot and lost his memory.)

4) Jim pranks Michael (season 3): Michael inappropriately asks Jim to hire a hot stripper to come to the office for Phyllis' wedding shower. Instead of hiring a sexy naked hottie, Jim hires an educational speaker dressed up as Ben Franklin. Of course Michael thinks it's a stripper theme. Hilarity ensues.

3) Jim and Pam prank Andy (season 3): Just when you thought office sycophant Andy couldn't possibly get more annoying, he shows up at work with a new cell phone ring -- a recording of him singing a really irritating song (I think it was Rockin' Robin? I can't remember at the moment)... in multiple-part harmony with HIMSELF. He proceeds to call himself from his desk phone so everyone can hear his new ring. Jim and Pam, in their triumphant return to the world of team-tag pranking, steal Andy's phone, hide it in the ceiling, and call him repeatedly.

2) Jim and Pam prank Dwight (season 1): In perhaps the most elaborate and intricately planned prank of the series, Jim and Pam take advantage of Dwight's paranoia with hilarious results. Dwight indicates to Jim that he thinks members of the office are forming Survivor-like alliances in order to avoid getting laid off. Jim and Pam take this conspiracy theory and run, pretending to overhear people's plans not to "get kicked off" and even staging a secret phonecall in the warehouse, convincing Dwight to stuff himself inside a taped-up storage box in order to learn the other tribes' secrets. With Jim and Pam's encouragement, Dwight even goes so far as to dye his hair in an attempt to go undercover. Just thinking about this one makes me laugh. It was great. And the best part was that the prank lasted for the whole episode!

Now my absolute favorite...

1) Jim and Pam prank Dwight (season 2?): It was a typical Thursday in the office, until Jim realized that Dwight thought it was Friday. Jim and Pam want to keep it that way, so they proceed to talk about "The Apprentice episode last night," make phone calls to friends about weekend plans, and do everything in their power to keep up the charade that today is Friday. This prank is so effective that for the first time in his life, Dwight doesn't come in to work Friday morning -- because he thinks it's Saturday! One of the funniest Office plotlines ever.

I had a hard time choosing and ordering these five, because there are SO many pranks on this show, and they're all so funny. I guess that's what you get when one of the writers (the guy who plays Ryan the Temp) used to do Punk'd with Ashton Kutcher!

How do your favorite pranks on The Office compare to mine? And have you ever tried anything like this in real life? Maybe today's the day to start.

Happy April Fools' Day!!!