RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Monday, December 12th and Monday, December 15th:
- With most of the fall shows either finished with their newest season, set to wrap up its newest season, or already over with their midseason finale, I figure that it's about time for me to bring back an old tradition from The mj15 Blog. Ladies and gentleman, back from a two month hiatus, it's the TV Top Ten! Here's the list of the ten shows that I most enjoyed between my last list in October and today:
10 (tie). "Raising Hope" (position previously held by "Curb Your Enthusiasm")
10 (tie). "American Dad" (position previously held by "Suburgatory")
9. "Happy Endings" (position previously held by "Homeland")
8. "The Simpsons" (position previously held by "Boardwalk Empire")
7. "South Park" (position previously held by "Archer")
6. "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (down from #4, position previously held by "Community")
5. "Boardwalk Empire" (up from #8, position previously held by "Louie")
4. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"/"The Colbert Report" (down from #3, position previously held by "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia")
3. "Homeland" (up from #9, position previously held by "The Daily Show"/"The Colbert Report")
1b. "Parks and Recreations" (up from #2, position previously held by "Breaking Bad")
1a. "Community" (up from #6, position previously held by "Breaking Bad")
Up from Last List (October 2011): "Raising Hope," "American Dad," "The Simpsons," "Happy Endings," "South Park," "Boardwalk Empire," "Homeland," "Community," "Parks and Recreations."
Down from Last List (October 2011): "Breaking Bad," "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," "The Colbert Report," "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," "Suburgatory," "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Louie," "Archer."
New from Last List (October 2011): "Raising Hope," "American Dad," "Happy Endings," "South Parks."
Just Barely Missed List: "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," "Suburgatory," "New Girl."
Other Thoughts:
a. Explanation for my tie at #1: Both shows were just so great and pushed my right buttons in all kinds of different ways, so it was pretty hard for me to select one of them as my #1 choice. I even tried to match square up each episode that aired on the same night, and it ended up being a 3-3-1 tie ("Community" won for "Remedial Chaos Theory," "Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps" and "Regional Holiday Music," while "Parks and Recreations" won for "End of the World," "The Treaty," and "The Trial of Leslie Knope," while there was a tie when "Documentary Filmmaking: Redux" competed with "Smallest Park").So, in the end I just decided to go with a tie, instead of having to go through the Sophie's choice of great sitcoms.
b. Welcome back to the top ten list, "The Simpsons"! After leaving you off my last list after deciding to stop giving it an automatic spot following one disappointing slate of episodes after another, the show responded with some of its best stretches of episodes in years (including last week's Christmas episode, which was by far their best time-traveling episode since the 1995 classic "Lisa's Wedding"). Hope this show's recent Renaissance continues.
c. Speaking of shows that rebounding after missing my last list, let's give hand to "South Park" for ended its season with one of its best stretches of episodes in a while. So good to know that Trey Parker and Matt Stone still have it in them to make great episodes even after their Broadway success with "The Book of Mormon."
d. Over the course of the past two months, I finally got around to watching both "Raising Hope" and "Happy Endings" for the first time after hearing some positive reviews from both friends and respected critics. So far, I've enjoyed watching each of them, but I'm not going to overexaggerate and call these two shows some of my new comedies (not yet, at least).
e. A big reason for some of these new shows on the list: at least four of the shows that were included in my last list ended their seasons before October 13th, leaving plenty of room for newcomers to join in.
f. Still haven't watched "Sons of Anarchy" yet, people. But don't worry: it still remains as part of my to-do list before its season five premiere next fall.
g. Shows that you probably should expect on my next list, which will be sometime between February and March: "Justified," "Archer," "Luck" (whose pilot I liked), "House of Lies," "Downton Abbey," "The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret," "30 Rock," "Alcatraz."
- Watching John Elway during Denver Broncos games is like watching the owner of the Cleveland Indians during "Major League." You can tell the guy hates Tim Tebow, and obviously despises the fact that the team continues to win and, as a result, won't draft his ideal quarterback for the team. And yet he just has to take it and swallow his pride every time another Tebow comeback occurs.
- How can I be a hipster? It took me until Tuesday to realize that the band Bon Iver was pronounced like this, and not "Bahn Eyever."
- I wonder who the NFL's front office hates the most these days: Ndmaukong Suh, who they suspended for two weeks Thanksgiving weekend, or James Harrison, who they might consider banning?
- I love reading year-end lists of any kind, and yet I'm never sure why. Most of the time I just end up being disappointed with some of the writer's choices. I guess I just like reading things that sparks debate (like lists usually do) and to see how people's opinions vary differently from mine.
- I hope all of you reading this went to louisck.net this past week to pay a more than reasonable $5 to watch the newest online-only Louis C.K. stand-up special "Live at the Beacon Theatre." Another wonderful hour of comedy from a man who basically can do no wrong at this point. Plus, it might give him the money to make a new movie, and who doesn't want that?
A quick programming: as is custom before Christmas on this blog, and in preparation for my annual "End of the Year" column, I will start shutting down all of this blog's regular features for the rest of the year, with the exception of the NFL picks column, which go on weekly as planned. That means that this Saturday will feature my last "End of the Week" for 2011, and then two days later on Monday will feature my last "Random Thoughts" of 2011 (featuring a certain special surprise, in case you were in need of some tease to get you anticipated for it). So, be sure to stop by until then. In the meantime, enjoy the rest of your week!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you just have any suggestions or tips for my next blog entry, e-mail me at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mails are greatly appreciated.
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