The TV Chick

Last night’s Make It Or Break It was huge. It addressed the politics behind the national team, something that the show has never done before. There is clearly a lot of corruption in any sport, and gymnastics is one I have followed closely throughout the years. There have been some interesting decisions regarding coaching and centralizing the national team process that I have had mixed feelings about. But I digress. (More on this later).

The episode starts with Payson and her family meeting with the European doctor who thinks her experimental surgery can fix Payson’s back. Payson and her dad are very excited by the prospect, but Kim can’t seem to get behind it. She’s worried about the risks and the possibility for paralysis and for Payson not to be the gymnast she once was.

Back at The Rock, the girls are told by Sasha to be flawless because they are having a National team practice. The China meet is a very important step towards the Olympics, and the girls need to be perfect so they are chosen to compete. Lauren decides to confront Chloe Kmetko and try to get her to stay away from her dad, by “confessing” that her dad is a sex addict. She also confronts Emily about her dress from her mom’s “boyfriend.”

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Some shows lose their momentum after a few great episodes, but Life Unexpected certainly has not. It just continues to dig deep into the complex lives of the characters, while keeping the perfect balance of funny and serious. Last night’s episode centered around the ramifications after Lux’s big lie to her friends at school. Bug picks her up on his motorcycle and her ex-friends make comments about him being homeless and call her bong girl/lying freak/you name it. Jones (Brin’s boyfriend and intended recipient of the bong lamp) comes up to Bug and starts talking about motorcycles with him. Jones then tells Lux that because he never got the bong lamp, he gets to throw a huge party at Brin’s house, and that the bong gave him leverage. This exchange puts Jones in a positive light, as he is the only one who doesn’t seem to care about Lux’s past.

Lux then goes out for a fun night with Baze and friends. They have eating contests, and Baze tries to figure out how he could use this to bring revenue to the bar. Baze and Lux have a “father/daughter” talk about Jones (who also happens to be the quarterback of the football team), and Baze tells her that if she gets in with him, she’s golden. She asks him if they’d be friends in high school, to which he replies that he doesn’t know if he could be friends with someone who does an annoying victory dance after she beats him at air hockey. I absolutely love that this episode focused on the Baze and Lux relationship, which is one of my favorites. They are straddling the line between a friends and parent/child, but they just click so well. Sometimes there is almost a role reversal between the two of them, as we see later in the episode.

When Lux returns home, Cate is waiting for her, scared that something happened. Cate explains that she gave Lux a cell phone for a reason, and that she should use it. Lux tells her she’s fine, she was with Baze, and not to worry. This prompts some radio station discussion over whether Cate is laid back and fun. She and Ryan discuss attraction and a caller says she doesn’t see how they are attracted to each other because they are such polar opposites. Ryan tells a sweet story of their first date, but Cate is still struggling with how to be a “cool” mom. She is jealous of Baze because he seems to have this really close bond with Lux that they don’t have yet. And everyone at the station forgot about the station manager Alice’s birthday. Cate promises her a girls night out with “boozy fun” her.

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Sure, I will be watching the Olympics pair skating long program tonight as well, but I am really excited for a brand new episode of Life Unexpected. Check out a few clips from “Turtle Undefeated,” and be sure to tune in tonight to the CW at 9 pm! I adore this show so much.

Liz Tigelaar (awesome creator) previews “Turtle Undefeated”:

Check out a couple of preview clips:

Love it or hate it, American Idol is an icon of pop culture these days, and everyone is talking about it. I will fully admit that I wasn’t crazy about the last two seasons. I miss the days of Kelly Clarkson (in my opinion, the best idol), and Clay Aiken and even Eliot Yamin. However, this season brings a judge’s departure (Paula) and a new surprising choice to replace her in Ellen DeGeneres. I do plan on watching this season — perhaps not religiously — but I want to see what all the buzz is about. I recently had the chance to participate in a conference call with Kara DioGuardi, who talked about Ellen, what it’s like to hear someone sing her songs, the Howard Stern rumor, and who would make a good mentor.

How has it been having Ellen this season?
I guess what I’m saying is that when I was sitting next to her, I felt she had a really good handle on whether a contestant had potential, whether they had a star quality.  She knew if something was off in the vocals or in their performance, and I thought she delivered the message with kindness, but also had criticism in there.

And Paula’s absence?
I really don’t want to speak about Paula’s absence because you can’t really compare Paula and Ellen.  They’re completely different, and I think they both bring something valuable to the table.  To judge on one person’s show, I think that’s very difficult to do, and I’m speaking from experience, that when I first came in, it’s something that takes time to get used to, and I think she did an incredible job for her first time there.  Hopefully, you’ll see more.

Is there an Adam Lambert effect this year?  Are there more really unique performers that you’ve seen?
I would like to say, and I’ve only been on the show two years, but I think that people were interpreting songs from the get-go in audition week.  They weren’t just singing them the way they were sung by the people who originally recorded them.  They were kind of taking some risks, and I like that, and maybe that is because of Adam, but that’s definitely a sign of good artists when they do something unique and different with material.

So far this year we’ve had a bunch of memorable songs that have come through.  Obviously, “Pants on the Ground” was kind of a big hit already, but last night we had someone singing a version of “Straight Up,” and then someone also sang a version of your song, but can you speak a little bit about how you guys reacted to hearing those versions.
In terms of that girl singing “Terrified,” I was absolutely shocked.  I couldn’t believe it.  It’s not a song that was released as a single.  It’s something I co-wrote with an artist I signed to Warner Brothers, Jason Reeves, and it was a very special song for both of us.  I put it up on my site I think last year.  There was no music, there’s no way she could find the sheet music, so she went and she learned it on her own which I thought was pretty impressive to want to sit and watch that YouTube video over and over to learn it, and I think she did a really good job and a nice interpretation of it.  I think she showed that she has a great range and sensitivity when she sings.  I was pretty impressed by her, and the “Straight Up” was genius.  That was just genius. Is it odd sometimes when they’re singing songs you’ve written?  Of course, because it’s like, “Wow, they’re singing my song.  Oh my God, if it’s not good, what am I going to say?”  It was so sweet of them to even want to do that, but you have to be honest, and if she hadn’t been great, I would’ve told her.  And actually “Sober” was my song, too.  That was sung by Mary, I think her name was, and I thought she did that pretty good, too.

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I will fully admit that I fell off the wagon with The Amazing Race last season. When TV feels more like a chore and less like a passion, I have to let that show go. However, I have always loved The Amazing Race. I have watched loyally since right around the beginning, and I was hoping something would make me watch again. Well, Season 16, you got me! Jeff and Jordan, my two favorites from last season’s Big Brother are competing on The Race. I adore them. Jordan won last season of Big Brother, and Jeff came close, and they are just so cute and wonderful. They are also incredibly strong physically and mentally after being on Big Brother, and I think they have an honest shot at winning the entire thing. I certainly know who I am rooting for from the start!

The season premiere started in Los Angeles, with 11 quite diverse teams. (Meet the contestants after the review). The teams started by flying to Chile where the road block involved a challenging task high above the city. For those wondering, Jordan did this challenge. After that, they had to travel by a cable car type deal down the mountain to paint houses, which is part of the landscape in this town in Chile, so much so that the government pays for the maintenance. One hilarious moment was when everyone was looking for the place to go paint and at one point, Jeff just takes the ladder Jordan is carrying, and carries it up himself. Seriously, can you tell that I love them? Anyway, when they are done painting, the contestants have to race to the pit stop. Of course, I can’t tell you who is the last team to arrive. But I will tell you it was a great episode. In addition to Jeff and Jordan, one of the team members is Caite Upton AKA Miss South Carolina who gave an insane response to a question about geography in the Miss Teen USA Pageant. On the show, she says that she wants to prove herself and for people to realize she is smart and strong. I can’t say I quite believe that after the first episode, but we’ll see where it goes from here. There’s also a team of brothers (one gay), that drove me a little up the wall. I don’t want to spoil too much, so I will be interested to hear your thoughts after the premiere. Congratulations, Amazing Race, you have earned another viewer for one more season.

Meet the Contestants:

• Caite, 20 and Brent, 28: Dating
• Louis, 47 and Michael, 45: Detectives
• Steve, 57 and Allie, 23: Father/Daughter
• Jeff, 31 and Jordan, 22 (Yay!): Dating
• Monique, 39 and Shawne, 39: Moms
• Jet, 30 and Cord, 29: Brothers (and cowboys!)
• Adrian, 40 and Dana, 39: Married/High School Sweethearts
• Jody, 71 and Shannon, 22: Grandmother/Granddaughter (these two are really sweet)
• Carol, 47 and Brandy, 40: Dating
• Dan, 24 and Jordan, 22: Brothers
• Joe, 42 and Heidi, 37: Married

Be sure to tune in to CBS tonight at 8 PM for the 16th season premiere of The Amazing Race.

I hadn’t heard much about How To Make It In America when I received the screener. However, I am a big fan of almost everything HBO, so I was excited to watch. HBO classifies this show as a comedy, from the producers of Entourage. I’m not sure I would group it in the comedy category — it is a half hour — but it was an interesting show nonetheless.

Here is what HBO has to say about the show:

“How to Make It in America follows two enterprising Brooklyn twenty somethings as they hustle their way through New York City, determined to achieve the American Dream. Trying to make a name for themselves in New York’s competitive fashion scene, Ben Epstein (Bryan Greenberg) and his friend and business partner Cam Calderon (Victor Rasuk) use their street knowledge and connections to bring their ambitions to fruition. With the help of Cam’s cousin Rene (Luis Guzman), who is trying to market his own high-energy drink, and their well-connected friend Domingo (Kid Cudi), the entrepreneurs set out to make it big, encountering obstacles along the way that will require all their ingenuity to overcome.”

Lake Bell also rounds out the cast, playing Rachel, Ben’s ex-girlfriend. The first episode centers around Cam’s cousin Rene getting out of jail. Cam borrowed money from him (although he lied to Ben about it), and has to pay him back. Cam decides to buy some bootleg leather jackets and sell them on the street to make back the money, and enlists Ben to help him. When they go to buy the jackets, Ben’s eye catches a spool of very expensive denim. (This fact comes into play in the 2nd episode, so it’s worth mentioning). Meanwhile, their friend Gingy (Shannyn Sossamon) is having a gallery opening. Ben and Cam show up, and Rachel is there, with a new boyfriend, which is quite awkward.

I think this show has a lot of potential. The actors are all great, and I thought Victor Rasuk stood out amongst the ensemble cast. He played naive, shady and excited all at the same time, and that’s a hard task. I enjoy Lake Bell and Bryan Greenberg as well. However, it certainly didn’t have a lot of hilarious or laugh out loud moments. In the second episode, there were a few funny/awkward moments, but nothing that would classify it as a comedy. Entourage (from the same producers) was also in the comedy category, but for me all the Ari/Lloyd moments really made that show fit into a comedy category. I hope that this show builds momentum, and finds its voice in a gamut of shows trying to find the balance between drama and comedy. But one thing I really, really loved was the soundtrack. Whoever is in charge of picking the music for this show is brilliant. They used music in an incredibly innovative way, and everything down to the soundtrack was fitting and fantastic. (How’s that for alliteration?) Honestly, if you are a music buff, that is one good reason to tune into this show. You can even download the mixtape on the show’s website. Another thing I liked about How To Make It, is that it uses the backdrop of New York City really well. It is definitely a unique show with a premise I haven’t really seen before. However, as we saw with The Beautiful Life, a show about the behind-the-scenes fashion world (even if it was from a different perspective) doesn’t always work.  While I can’t say it’s my new favorite show, it is certainly worth checking out. And I liked the second episode more than the first, so I think it will continue to improve.

How to Make It In America premieres Sunday night at 10 pm on HBO, but you can watch the premiere online for free at HBO’s site.

Check out a trailer for the show:

I have some more great The Vampire Diaries previews! Tonight’s episode is titled “Fool Me Once,” and we all know how the rest of that saying goes. Nina Dobrev (Elena) posted on twitter earlier today that her hint about the episode is “tomb.” As long as there is some great Salvatore brothers action, I’m happy.

Check out this video preview:

And here’s the trailer for tonight’s episode:

Be sure to tune in tonight to the CW at 8 pm for an all new episode of The Vampire Diaries!

Showtime has some amazing programming, and I am so thrilled that Nurse Jackie is returning on March 2, and United States of Tara is returning March 22nd. I absolutely adore Edie Falco and Toni Collette, and I have some great videos that will give you a sneak peek and behind the scenes look at season 2 of each show.

Nurse Jackie:

Here is the trailer for Season 2:

And Showtime gave Peter Facinelli a flip cam and he shot 2 great behind-the-scenes videos:

Part 1:

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Love is in the air for Parks & Recreation, where every February 13th is Galentine’s Day in Pawnee, and the ladies celebrate ladies!

Check out a video preview here:

And on The Office, the crew finally get to meet Sabre CEO Jo Bennett (Cathy Bates. Here’s a sneak peek:

Be sure to tune in tomorrow night starting at 8 pm for all new episodes of Community, Parks & Recreation, The Office and 30 Rock!

It’s Prom Night at The Rock…well, at Payson’s school. Last night’s episode “Save The Last Dance” centered around the girls going to prom. Payson finally seems happy to go to school, and has found a new hobby in photography. Her new friend Heather talks about prom night and gets Kaylie and Lauren excited, so they all vow to go if Payson goes. The girls immediately start planning for the big night.

Meanwhile, Damon decides to show up at the pizza shack to try and explain himself. Emily, who previously ripped up a photo of her and Damon, is not having any of it. Lauren shows up and tells Emily they are all going to prom. Razor of course offers to step in as her date, which she isn’t thrilled about. Back at the gym, Sasha is pushing Kaylie to try and master an arabian. Carter (still in love with her) offers to help her like Nicky did previously, and she takes him up on the offer. By the end of the epsiode, Carter takes the safety net away (she was practicing attached to wires) and she lands her new skill. Carter is obviously still very much in love with Kaylie, but Kaylie doesn’t seem to feel the same way.

Lauren, up to her old ways, finds Carter in the closet and he tells her that her dad is dating someone. She decides that she will figure it out from the woman’s cheap perfume. Lauren calls her dad and tells him that someone has been upstairs with a lady friend, and her dad denies the whole thing and blames it on the housekeeper. Steve and Chloe at this point, are still keeping up their ruse of not dating.

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