Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Wednesday's News & Notes

~Primetime Pass~
(a look at what PTR is watching tonight)

Friday Night Lights (8 p.m. NBC) - "Upping the Ante." Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) struggles between preparing for the game and dealing with the situation with Smash (Gaius Charles) as the town of Dillon piles on the pressure. Relationships also begin to form as Tyra (Adrianne Palicki) and Julie (Aimee Teegarden) start an unlikely friendship and Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) reconnects with his estranged father. Jason (Scott Porter) and Lyla (Minka Kelly), on the other hand, have problems of their own as Buddy (Brad Leland) finds out news of their engagement. Be sure to click on over to nbc.com to catch the 2-Minute Replay to see what you've been missing.

Bones (8 p.m. Fox) - "The Man in the Cell." This show finally returns tonight!!! Brennan and Booth are called to the scene of a deadly fire at a D.C. prison to investigate what they believe is the death of Brennan's incarcerated adversary, serial killer Howard Epps, whose body was found burned beyond recognition. But Brennans examination leads to a chilling realization.


Medium (10 p.m. NBC) - "Very Merry Maggie." If dreams of child abuse weren't disturbing enough, Allison (Emmy winner Patricia Arquette) becomes spooked by a young boy's doll, who seems to have urged it's owner to kill. Meanwhile, with project deadline looming, Joe (Jake Weber) becomes concerned about his health.


About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: American Idol, NCIS (r), House, The Unit (r), Boston Legal

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

And finally, it's Nielsen Wednesday! Here's a look at last week's Top 10 shows courtesy of USA Today:
1. American Idol (33.9 million viewers)
2. American Idol (32.6)
3. Grey's Anatomy (21.5)
4. CSI (21.2)
5. CSI: Miami (18.9)
6. Deal or No Deal (17.6)
7. Two and a Half Men (15.8)
8. Cold Case (15.1)
9. Heroes (14.9)
10. NCIS (14.8)
11. Hallmark's Valley of the Light (14.8)

PTR faves in the Top 20: Men in Trees (#19)


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

No Easy Truths on 'Mars'

Last week's episode of Veronica Mars reminded me why I missed this show so much during its first break of the season, and last night's reminded me of why this is one of the best shows to ever grace my television set. What seemed like a simple case of boy meets girl, loses girl and then wants Veronica to track her down, quickly turned into a very complicated, sordid tale. First we find out that this girl is a hooker (rather, escort), and Max's friends paid her to sleep with their friend so that he would no longer be a virgin. Then the biggest surprise of all, she still has feelings for him (and her name is apparently Wendy). It all seems a little too good to be true, and Veronica discovers that it may be when she finds purple makeup on a napkin that Wendy's friend (and fellow escort) used to put ice over her "wounds." Suddenly, it appears that Max has been played for $1000, but no worries because Veronica has a plan to get it back -- she blackmails one of Wendy's clients (a high-profile judge). Too bad the plan backfires, and Veronica and Max wind up meeting Wendy's pimp in the form of another Cold Case connection (the same actress played the one victim who slipped through serial killer George Marks' fingers the first time around. He killed her during the second season finale and told Lilly that "even Atalantia lost her charm," referring to the bedtime story that she drew on the first time to give her strength). Anyway, now Max is out $11,000 ($1,000 the first time and $10,000 to buy Wendy out of her contract), but he does have the girl. Too bad that her sordid past is too much for both of them to overcome.


Speaking of overcoming, it seems that Veronica was pretty willing to overlook any of Logan's past indiscretions. She wanted to know if he had been with a hooker and was relieved to find out that he hadn't (although, she would have dealt with it if he had). She was even OK with his fooling around while they were broken up. I was expecting fireworks and declarations of "WE WERE ON A BREAK!!" But, Veronica shrugged it off and we were spared another round of Ross/Rachel. There is, however, one unforgivable skeleton in Logan's closet and unfortunately for him, lingerie shops aren't as secretive as some of their names may suggest, especially when Madison Sinclair is shopping in one. Logan, Logan, Logan -- WTH were you thinking?? Madison Sinclair??!! And this comes just when I was beginning to think that these two crazy kids could work things out and be together sooner rather than later. I think we all need to fasten our seatbelts because next week's confrontation is going to be a bumpy ride (oh, and I'm not falling for those "I'm pregnant" promos for a single second).


If you missed last night's excellent hour ("Poughkeepsie, Tramps and Thieves"), watch it for free at cwtv.com or download it for $1.99 from iTunes. All of the pictures in this edition are courtesy of vm-caps.com.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Tuesday's Primetime Pass

A look at what PTR is watching tonight

Veronica Mars (9 p.m. The CW) - "Poughkeepsie, Tramps and Thieves." When Veronica (Kristen Bell) is hired to track down a girl (guest star Brianne Davis, "Entourage") with whom Max (guest star Adam Rose, "Malcolm in the Middle") shared an incredible one-night stand, she discovers the girl is not who she says she is. Meanwhile, Keith (Enrico Colantoni) takes a closer look at Dean O'Dell's suicide and begins searching for clues that may point to a murder.

Gilmore Girls (8 p.m. The CW) - "To Whom it May Concern." Noticing Sookie's (Melissa McCarthy) recent odd behavior, Lorelai (Lauren Graham) forces Jackson (Jackson Douglas) to tell her the reason. Luke (Scott Patterson) and Anna (SherilynPublish Post Fenn) attend a hearing to decide their custody battle over April (Vanessa Marano). With help from Paris (Liza Weil), Rory (Alexis Bledel) finally makes amends with Lucy (Krysten Ritter). While attending Richard's (Edward Herrmann) economics class at Yale, Rory witnesses a frightening scene. Finally, Christopher (David Sutcliffe) finds the letter Lorelai wrote for Luke's character reference.

About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: Deal or No Deal, Prison Break, 24, Heroes, CSI: Miami (r)

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

And finally, it's TV on DVD Tuesday! Look for the 3rd season of Law & Order: SVU to hit shelves today along with Dallas (season 6), Murder, She Wrote (season 5) and I Dream of Jeannie (season 3). For more on today's releases, click on over to tvshowsondvd.com.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Claire Finds Mommy Dearest

It's too bad that two of the biggest shockers on last night's episode of Heroes were ruined by guest star news published all over the net and your local newsstand. As soon as I saw George Takei's name in the opening credits, I remembered that he was playing Hiro's father. It was obvious early on that the "boss man" was going to be Takei. Similarly, I knew that Claire's mother didn't die because I read that the role had been cast and I saw Claire calling her in the previews. Otherwise, both twists would have taken me by surprise. Regardless, there were some interesting developments last night. It seems that Claire's real mom is a real fire-starter and Hiro's father is quite powerful. We met them both in the closing moments, so we'll have to wait for future episodes to uncover more about their characters. Meanwhile, Silar decided to surprise us all (and HRG) with one last hurrah. I really thought that he was done until we saw him catching the doctor off guard. HRG is in for quite the fight now -- for his daughter's life!

My favorite story of the moment belongs to Peter and The Invisible Man. Of course, Peter becomes invisible in his presence as well, but Invisible serves an even more important role: He is the only one who stands a chance of stopping Peter by teaching him how to control his ability to absorb others' powers. From the looks of things, he can't come in contact with Nuclear Man until he does. And in my endless quest to decide which power I would want for myself (invisibility is the current fave for those playing along at home), Micah's ATM talent enters the fray. Boy, did that come in handy! DL showed us a little more of his power when he walked through walls for Niki, but unfortunately, he isn't able to transfer it to her so she can get out as well. Then again, I'm not so sure that's a bad thing! Jessica scares the bejeebus out of me!

If you missed tonight's episode, you can watch it for free at nbc.com. All of the photos in this edition are courtesy of nbc.com.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Sunday, January 28, 2007

U2 on the 'Case'

I was hoping that tonight's episode of Cold Case would be a season stand-out. And yes, I realize that I was asking a lot considering that this season has been phenomenal, but I just felt like we were due for an episode that blows you away (which seems to be coming every few weeks this season). Cold Case did not disappoint! What an excellent hour of television! And, it was all set to the soundtrack of the uber-fabulous U2. The case was well done, surprising and emotional. I like the way that both teens highlighted the good and bad in all of us. In the end, I was equally upset about both of their murders and it made me a little sick to think that both of them were trying to make their lives better when they were abruptly cut short. In seasons past, whenever this series presented us with an episode that focused on a character other than Lilly that meant little to no Lilly involvement. This season, however, seems to be the opposite and the same was true tonight. I loved the way she and Kat worked together and her interrogation with Madison's mom was awesome! It must have been hard for her to not lay into this mother knowing that her own mother did the same thing only with alcohol (whether it was after or before her father left remains to be revealed). What a beautiful contrast to last season's "Saving Patrick Bubley" when she jumped all over the Bubley boys' drug-addicted mother before hearing her story. It's a perfect example of how this show uses character development to its advantage. Lilly was very troubled by her reaction during the Bubley case, so it was clear that she was trying to keep her emotions in check tonight. As usual, Kathryn Morris was excellent. She conveyed through her subtle facial expressions the anger and disgust that Lilly was feeling while also trying to hold her back. She also gets the prize for the best scene of the night with Lilly's perfect look in reaction to stockbroker/murderer Gibby's wink during their interview. It was priceless! Tracie Thoms turned in a solid performance for her first Kat-heavy episode. This show is blessed with a very talented cast.


They say that all good things must come to an end, and such was the case with Vera's cute relationship with Toni. I suppose the writing was on the wall with his crazy hours. As Scotty said to Lilly in that infamous hotel hallway in Nashville -- the good cops are all lone wolves. It's too bad that Vera got so close to both Toni and Andre because it's only making things harder for him now. He and Lilly should really talk! If she had a dime for every time a guy broke up with her the way that Toni broke up with Vera, she'd be rich. Which begs the question, how come no one ever leans on Lil? Is it because she's so guarded about her personal life that they feel uncomfortable opening up to her? I'm sure that she has great advice considering all of the crap that she has been through. Oh well, their loss. One thing's for sure -- don't lean on Vera, especially if you're female. He'll chalk up your moodiness to "that female cycle thing." It's scenes like that one early on tonight that provide the icing on this cake of an episode. Cold Case moves to 12-2 on the season.

In CC-related news, today (January 28th) is star Kathryn Morris' birthday.
Happy Birthday Kathryn!!


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Friday, January 26, 2007

Weekend Primetime Pass

Cold Case (Sunday 9 p.m. CBS) - "8:03 AM." TV's best crime drama returns before taking a little hiatus to make way for February sweeps events. First, though, an episode featuring songs from multiple Grammy Award winners U2!! Miller re-opens a case from her undercover days that has haunted her for years involving the world of methamphetamine addiction on a mission to find the link between two murders that occurred at the exact same time.

About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: Grey's Anatomy, CSI, Shark (r), Men in Trees

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

QUICK CUTS
*Breaking SVU news from PTR staff writer Trublu:
NBC assured us that they were close to inking a deal
with SVU leads Mariska Hargitay and Christopher
Meloni, and done it is as NBC announces that both
Chris and Mariska will be returning! According to Variety.com,
both have signed two year deals -- Hargitay's reportedly
worth $6.5 million a year (with Chris' rumored to be
in the same ballpark)! That's $300,000 to $340,000 per
episode! The news comes a short time after the
announcement that Adam Beach would be joining the
cast and calmed the nerves of many fans who worried
that Beach would be replacing one of the leads. (A
separate Variety article also confirms that Ice-T is
not being replaced by Beach.)
*And finally, CBS and INNERTUBE are giving you the chance to be on television during the daytime coverage of the Superbowl! They're launching a new community campaign dubbed "15 Seconds," which asks viewers to post their inspirational 15-second messages on YouTube. CBS Interactive will then choose the best video messages and air the first one on CBS television network during its daytime Superbowl coverage next Sunday. Log onto YouTube to post your inspirational message for America.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Thursday's Primetime Pass

CSI (CBS 9 p.m.) - "Redrum." Catherine must deceive her teammates when she agrees to Keppler's covert and controversial plan to catch the killer of a popular politician. Tony Award winner Liev Schreiber returns as Michael Keppler, a seasoned CSI who is new to Las Vegas and is assigned to Grissom's team during Grissom's teaching sabbatical.


Men in Trees (10 p.m. ABC) - Bed, Bat and Beyond." Marin is excited to move into her rustic mountain cabin, but discovers that her new place is not quite ready for her when she encounters some unexpected visitors. Jane unintentionally neglects Plow Man (Ty Olsson), to support Marin's new move, Patrick is concerned that he will not be able to give Annie the wedding of her dreams, Celia (Cynthia Stevenson) finally admits to dating her boss, and Theresa has mixed feelings about Sara helping out at The Chieftain while Ben recuperates.

About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: American Idol, Criminal Minds (r), CSI: NY, Medium, ABC comedies

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

'Lights' Joins the PTR Line Up

For months, I've LOVED Friday Night Lights and championed it as this season's "Best Show You're Not Watching," and yet, I've never written about it from week to week. It's not that I haven't wanted to, just that I never seem to have the time. Well, that stops now because this show is too good not to talk about on a weekly basis. Did you see last night's shocking ending?? How I missed that one coming with the episode's title being what it was ("Little Girl I Want to Marry You"), I will never understand. All of the signs pointed to Jason breaking up with Lyla in order to give her a chance for a "better future." We saw how Buddy's talk affected him and we know that there are still trust issues between these two (and rightfully so), so I didn't think a break up was too far off. This is one of television's most complicated relationships, and most realistic. It's far from perfect, but there is something between these two that won't die. Lyla's indiscretion was more a result of her acting out her devastation over Jason's accident than an indication that she loved Jason any less than she did before he ended up in a wheelchair. BUT, I don't think that these two should be getting married anytime soon. They're too young, and there are too many issues still waiting to be properly solved. And oh, is Buddy going to be mad! I certainly wouldn't want to tick him off.

Sometimes this show is so realistic that I have to stop and remind myself that I'm not watching a documentary. The truest moments come whenever Coach Taylor is interacting with his wife. That opening scene with the radio stations was hilarious, especially when we later see Coach use the shrink's advise on his team in the next scene! These two argue over real things, as stupid as they may be from time to time (garbage cans, radio stations, etc.). I never fail to be absolutely moved and amazed by Kyle Chandler's performance or Connie Britton's, for that matter (they must get Emmy noms or I'm so over the Emmys!!). I know there were early complaints about the character of Tyra, but I'm thinking that those have subsided. The show has done an excellent job of fleshing her out these last few episodes. There's a lot more to Tyra than her previous actions would indicate. That stuff with her mom is so upsetting and inspiring, and I find myself now rooting for her to make a better life for herself and to rise above the crap that her mother has taught her about men. Luckily, it seems that Tyra knows that you don't have to have a man in order to be happy. I just wish that her mom would learn it and how to take care of herself. And finally, Smash's steroid secret is out. What a tough decision for Coach Taylor. It's difficult to ruin a kid's entire future over one mistake, as wrong as it was, so I have to agree with his decision. But like every conflict on this show, I'm torn. And that's just a small part of what makes this show so great.

If you missed last night's episode, click over to nbc.com to watch it for free.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

The Girls and Their Secrets

Photo courtesy of Crazy-Internet-People.com

By Turtlemama
PTR Staff Writer

*sorry this is late! we got behind on the tivo and well...*
Our Girls came back from a Christmas break; to celebrate Christmas. Rory came back from visiting Logan in London to find Lorelei had postponed all Christmas activities until Rory was home. Rory was greeted by her mom, her dad and her little sister. Lorelei and Christopher made the same lame ‘England Driving’ joke, at different times, and the show was on its way. Lorelei had excellent lines, for once this season. The little tirade about the thoughts in her head...oh that was excellent! (I say excellent too much don't I? Excellent!)

Personally, I think this was a pretty good episode, aside from more forced conflict, but I’m coming to expect that so it doesn’t sting as much as it has in the past. Luke went to the Dragonfly Inn to ask Lorelei to write a letter of character for his court case against Ana. Lorelei agreed, obviously but, here’s the forced conflict, refrained from disclosing to Luke that she had agreed to write such a letter. Why did she refrain? Why good question, Young Grasshopper, I shall explain. Lorelei gives a blurb to Rory while they’re out Christmas shopping, that she wanted to spare Christopher anymore turmoil about Luke because Christopher had seen her holding Liz’s baby and all the issues surrounding the wedding party that Emily wanted to throw. See, it’s typical Lorelei stuff, and if Chris has really known Lorelei for 30+ years he’d understand that. But, because we, the fans, need some forced conflict, Chris doesn’t like that Lorelei didn’t want a big wedding party. Nor, did he like the fact that Lorelei held a baby from Luke’s family tree…’cause you know, holding babies ALWAYS leads to more between two people. So, Lorelei decided that telling Chris about the Luke Letter was a bad idea. And why do you think will happen next? Why, Chris is going to find the letter, think that it’s some sort of nostalgic piece that Lorelei wrote because her heart told her so and then Chris will be out the door, or very close to it…March sweeps are coming up, who knows what conflict we’ll be forced into by then. So that, Young Grasshopper, is why Lorelei didn’t tell Chris about her Luke Letter. Oh, yeah and the oogling at the mall when Luke and Rory were reminiscing over his past gifts to her…that had something to do with it, even though that was an odd scene.
We finally got to have decent scenes with Lane and Zach. But I do have to ask, just how pregnant is Lane? I mean didn’t she find out in September that she was pregnant? That makes her only 4 months along. Even with twins you’re not THAT big, I don’t care who you are. Maybe if she had a whole litter brewing in there, she’d be that big…but I’m talking 6 babies. She’s got two. Not to mention her stomach was really high in one scene then really low in the next. Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve had three babies and pregnancy and childbirth are always misrepresented in Hollywood, even Stars Hollow as is the case. So, I’m probably overly-sensitive on this subject, but I still think that they should just have her chubby and not full blown, house-super-size, McBabyFactory big….I’m just saying.
All in all; I liked the episode. It made me smile and gave me back my ‘Girls’. I want to see more interaction between characters though. I’m still missing how Lorelei and Rory’s lives were followed all over Connecticut and not just in their house and in town on occasion. And really, I’m all happy that Luke has a kid and all (although I still wish that he didn’t have one, it would make life more interesting and he’d still be the tough guy with a heart of gold instead of this mature, ‘Father Knows Best’ dude that he’s turned into), but I really am sick of hearing April talk. She talks too much. I know that’s her quirk, but it’s annoying. Her voice annoys me and what they talk about is monotonous and I really couldn’t care less. As a matter of fact, during the scene at Luke’s apartment when they were talking about rocks and the rock polisher, I was thinking of my grocery list…seriously, I’m not over-exaggerating here…I was seriously thinking “Oh yeah we need toilet paper, and dryer sheets, oh and dog food.” It’s BOR-ING, folks…B-O-R-I-N-G! Ok, that point has been made…moving along….
So, I’m glad that I got a Christmas episode, even if it’s late, I liked it…it was Christmas Gilmore-style! I want to see more scenes with the other residents of Stars Hollow and with Emily and Richard. We need to get everyone back together and make this look like a state that Lorelei and Rory are a part of and not a show about Lorelei and Rory that the state plays a part in, on occasion….please? Anyone out there hear me? Anyone? Bueller?

Wednesday's News & Notes

~Primetime Pass~
(a look at what PTR is watching tonight)

Friday Night Lights (8 p.m. NBC) - "Little Girl I Wanna to Marry You." Smash's mom (guest star Liz Mikel) discovers something in Smash's (Gaius Charles) room that can potentially destroy his dreams of playing football. Tyra (Adrianne Palicki), fed up with her mother's insecurities, decides to take matters into her own hands to get their life back on track. Meanwhile, Jason (Scott Porter) rethinks the seriousness of his relationship with Lyla (Minka Kelly) after Bud (Brad Leland) sets her up on a date. Be sure to click on over to nbc.com to catch the 2-Minute Replay to see what you've been missing.


Medium (10 p.m. NBC) - "Better Off Dead." Allison's (Emmy winner and Golden Globe nominee Patricia Arquette) latest visions reveal an odd new friendship between two ghosts, and surprisingly one of the men rebuffs her attempts to determine the identity of his killer.


About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: American Idol, NCIS

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

QUICK CUTS
*TVGuide.com's Mike Ausiello has some scooptastic news today about a beloved Everwood alum and a hit ABC show. In addition to former Everwood showrunner Greg Berlanti running things on ABC's newest hit Brother and Sisters and alum Treat Williams' guest spot, another Everwood alum is joining the production. Look for Emily VanCamp (the fabulous Amy Abbott) to play the role of Rebecca in upcoming episodes. No confirmation from the network yet, but Ausiello promises that VanCamp will be on the set starting this Friday. For more on this exciting breaking story, click on over to The Ausiello Report.


*And finally, it's Nielsen Wednesday! Here's a look at the Top 10 shows courtesy of USA Today.
1. AFC Championship (46.7 million viewers)
2. American Idol (37.4)
3. American Idol (36.9)
4. AFC Postgame (29.4)
5. Grey's Anatomy (21.9)
6. CSI (21.4)
7. Golden Globes (20.0)
8. Desperate Housewives (17.1)
9. NCIS (16.0)
10. 24 (15.7)

Other PTR Faves in the Top 20: Law & Order: SVU (#12), Without a Trace (#15)


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

'Veronica' Shocks the Monkey-Napper

Welcome back old friend. Oh, how I've missed your sarcastic, witty remarks, ace detective skills, and clever stories. Veronica Mars is back, and she brought a little moral dilemma with her. I'm an animal lover myself, so the thought of Hearst's researchers killing the monkey and other research animals after their study is over (to perform a necropsy - animal autopsy - to get conclusive results on their tests) killed me too. On the other hand, without the important research, will we ever find a cure for horrible diseases such as cancer, AIDS, diabetes, Alzheimer's, etc.? Perhaps, it's a necessary evil, but one that is still hard to swallow when you're looking into the test subject's eyes. Like Veronica, I wouldn't have been able to turn the monkey-napper in, and I would have shown the same disappointed look when I learned that the researchers were just going to continue their research on another monkey. And yet, I understand the importance, so we're left with a genuine moral dilemma. Last night's outing was a great way to start off the second half of the season. We had a well-done self-contained case (get used to those -- CW President Dawn Ostroff announced at the Winter Press Tour that the last five episodes of the season would contain no overarching mystery, just self-contained "mysteries-of-the-week" ala your favorite procedurals), interesting developments in the Dean O'Dell murder case, and some great personal stuff.


Mac, who is still suffering from the effects of Beaver's craziness, found someone to trust again. And thanks to Parker's nosiness, we now know that Amy is just his sister. I like Bronson, and I think that he could be good for Mac. We all know that Piz has a thing for Veronica, and that she is clueless about it. But, I thought that last night was finally going to be the point when she realized it. Their little heart-to-heart about knowing what you want only convinced her that she should go running back to Logan. I have nothing against Veronica and Logan (in fact, I want them together in the end), but I think that Veronica would be a lot happier if she allowed Logan to mature on his own. He's not nearly ready for her, and she deserves someone who is more to her maturity level. We'll just have wait and see what happens with this story. Finally, Keith discovered what we suspected all along -- Dean O'Dell did not kill himself. And how can he be so sure? The Dean's best Scotch was still sitting unopened in his office. Why would he kill himself without drinking that first? Further more, why would he kill himself in the exact same manner as Veronica's "perfect murder" paper? "Goodbye cruel world" indeed.

If you missed last night's excellent hour ("Show Me the Monkey"), watch it for free at cwtv.com or download it for $1.99 from iTunes. All of the pictures in this edition are courtesy of vm-caps.com.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Tuesday's Primetime Pass

A look at what PTR is watching tonight

MUST SEE PROGRAM OF THE NIGHT:
Veronica Mars (9 p.m. The CW) - "Show Me the Monkey." Attempting to keep her mind off Logan (Jason Dohring), Veronica (Kristen Bell) takes a job helping animal researchers track down a monkey missing from their laboratory. In order to find the missing animal, Veronica and Mac (Tina Majorino) go undercover as members of an on-campus animal rights group, believed to have freed the monkey. Meanwhile, Mindy O'Dell (guest star Jamie Ray Newman, "E Ring") asks Keith (Enrico Colantoni) to investigate Dean O'Dell's death because she believes he was murdered.

Gilmore Girls (8 p.m. The CW) - "Santa's Secret Stuff." Rather than celebrating Christmas while Rory (Alexis Bledel) is in London over the holidays, Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Christopher (David Sutcliffe) decide to put their holidays on hold. Turning up unexpectedly at the inn, Luke (Scott Patterson) asks Lorelai to write a character recommendation letter for his custody battle over April (Vanessa Marano). Lorelai struggles to write the letter until she and Rory run into Luke and April at the mall.

About Last Night...
BIGGEST RATINGS WINNERS: Deal or No Deal, Prison Break, Heroes, 24, CSI: Miami, CBS comedies

For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

The 'Heroes' are Back!

I'm beginning to think that those crazy recap shows that ABC airs (that wind up on my TiVo because the bleepin' network categorizes them as "new") aren't so crazy after all. I never watch them, but end up complaining about how I can't remember what happened before the frickin' "Fall Finale." So in conclusion, I shouldn't erase them off my TiVo without watching them and NBC should have done one for Heroes (I know they didn't because it didn't wind up on my TiVo). For some reason, I thought that Sylar had died along with Not-Eden, and I couldn't flippin' remember a lot of smaller details from when we last left off. I felt like The Haitian had come and wiped my memory like Claire's friend Zach. The show did provide a little bit of background, so I began remembering once things got rolling. This show is weird for me -- it starts out a little slow each week, but quickly sucks you in. Halfway through, I'm swearing that it's the best show on television. Then it ends on an exciting note and leaves you hanging for more, but I walk away realizing that it's awesome, but not as good as some of my other faves. Last night, I was sucked in the moment we saw the mysterious "f" symbol on the samurai sword! How frickin' awesome was that??!!

I used to brush off the whole Linderman thing, but it seems like many of the heroes are connected to him. I'm not buying the "he loves to collect artifacts" argument. Last night also introduced the new theme for this half of the season -- "Are you on the list?" Mohinder has the list, and HRG (Claire's father) wants to team up. We know that HRG is not a paper salesman, but I still can't figure out why he has so much power and why he knows so much about the heroes. We found out that the vision of Peter exploding human-bomb style has something to do with him taking on nuclear boy's ability (which he seemed to be honing in the Nevada desert -- where Peter is headed). Finally, how awesome was the new hero??!! He can make himself invisible! Why did I not see this one coming??

If you missed tonight's episode, you can watch it for free at nbc.com. All of the photos in this edition are courtesy of nbc.com.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Monday, January 22, 2007

Morris on the 'Case' at Sundance

(Resurrecting the Champ's Kathryn Morris poses for the portrait session of the 2007 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah)

We here at PTR consider ourselves a television blog, meaning that we don't cover the world of film too often, EXCEPT when a PTR fave has one coming out (witness last summer's extensive coverage of Kristen Bell's Pulse and Zach Braff's The Last Kiss). Well dear readers, the time has come again to interrupt your usual TV programming with a film-related post. Instead of thoughts on Cold Case (which had the night off thanks to the NFL), I have its star Kathryn Morris who spent the weekend at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival where her film Resurrecting the Champ premiered. The movie, which also stars Josh Hartnett, Alan Alda, Samuel L. Jackson and Teri Hatcher, follows a reporter as he works to uncover the true identity of a homeless man he believes to be a former boxing champ. Morris plays Hartnett's wife. Of course, PTR has full coverage of her big weekend in snowy Utah (click any of the photos to see them larger). Cold Case (and PTR's coverage of it) will return next week with an all-new episode.

THE PREMIERE (Saturday, Jan. 20th)
The cast poses with director Rod Lurie (second from right)


Morris and Hartnett arrive for the premiere. Morris talks with reporters


THE SWAG (Promotional Items) - Friday, January 19th & Sunday, January 21st
Morris at Northface House and The Ice Lounge


At Village at the Lift and at Gibson Guitar and ET Hospitality Lounge


PORTRAITS (Saturday, Jan. 20th)

Special thanks to RichE at Look Again and mwahokie at Superior Pics for these high-quality portrait photos.


AROUND SUNDANCE (Sunday, Jan. 21st)



(Kathryn Morris, Josh Hartnett and Teri Hatcher pose for pictures January 21st)

For more photos from this weekend at Sundance, check out Getty Images, WireImage, Bruno Press and Yahoo! Photos. Resurrecting the Champ will hit theaters later this year.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Monday's Primetime Pass

A look at what PTR is watching tonight

Heroes (9 p.m. NBC) - "Godsend." One of this season's best new shows finally returns tonight!! Picking up two weeks after recent events, Nathan's (Adrian Pasdar) determination to save a comatose Peter (Milo Ventimiglia) forces him to turn to Simone (Tawny Cypress) for help. Isaac's (Santiago Cabrera) puzzling "Hiro vs. T-Rex" painting inspires Hiro (Masi Oka) and Ando (guest star James Kyson Lee) to search for the pictured samurai sword. Jessica (Ali Larter) struggles against Niki's decision to turn herself into police. With his associate Eden dead and Matt (Greg Grunberg) on his heels, H.R.G. (Jack Coleman) tries to focus on his orders regarding Sylar (guest star Zachary Quinto). After being offered a choice by the Haitian (guest star Jimmy Jean-Louis), Claire (Hayden Panettiere) struggles with changes her decision has wrought. Taking up his fathers quest, Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy) attempts to share information about who is "on the list" of people with special abilities and the threats to their lives. Meanwhile, a new hero (guest star Christopher Eccleston) makes a shocking debut. Click over to nbc.com to get the 2-minute replay to find out what you have been missing.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Weekend Primetime Pass

Desperate Housewives (Sunday 9 p.m. ABC) - "Come Play Wiz Me." Lynette and Tom struggle to overcome challenges as Pizzeria Scavo prepares for its grand opening, Gaby cant seem to get away from her secret admirer, and the new neighbor on Wisteria Lane reveals a devious plan.


Without a Trace (Sunday 10 p.m. CBS) - "Primed." The team searches for an up-and-coming young artist who secretly photographs and then paints strangers on the street who are experiencing intense personal moments. Peter Paige ("Queer as Folk") guest stars as Lucas Blumenthal, an art gallery owner who opened an exhibit of the missing artist's paintings just before her disappearance. (VCR/TiVo Alert: may be delayed due to football)


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Friday, January 19, 2007

'Scrubs' is Music to the Ears

Is is wrong that I've spent the day singing about "Guy Love?" Because those damn lyrics are so catchy that they're not leaving my head anytime soon! And you know what? I don't want them to because last night's musical episode was so fan-frakkin-tastic that I want to own the soundtrack to it! What else is there to say for a show that turns a song about poo into a full-fledged Broadway production? Scrubs' foray into the world of musicals was single-handedly the most clever half-hour of television ever created. Everything from the aforementioned "poo song" (especially the lyric about the answer to the patient's problem not being in her heart, but in her butt) to Dr. Cox's song about why JD drives him crazy (LOVED Janitor's spotlighted solo!) to "Guy Love," Turk and Carla's tango and JD wanting to know which of them was the best singer in the patient's head was done so brilliantly that I forgot that I wasn't watching a real musical. It's no coincidence that the episode played out like a show on New York's famous theater street. The people behind Broadway's Avenue Q were also behind last night's stellar hour. These guys made the episode feel real, and not like a show that was trying to do a musical episode. After watching this, I can imagine a Scrubs: The Musical opening on Broadway in summer '08! I'd go see it. I can't imagine all of the time that went into the rehearsals, writing and coaching, so PTR is sending out a great big, HUGE heart-felt thank you to the entire cast and crew who made it happen.

Last night's episode didn't really lend itself to The Scrubies, so PTR won't be holding them this week. Because if I did do an edition of The Scrubies, I'd have to write out all of the lyrics to every song last night. And while that may be amusing, it would be far too time consuming. So, let's just assume that the entire episode gets one big Scrubie for writing the Best. Fikkin'. Episode. EVER!!! If you missed last night's incredible outing (or just want to have it forever and ever like me -- so what if I'm already collecting the seasons on DVD), head to iTunes to get it for $1.99.

What did you think about Scrubs' musical episode? Leave me a comment with your thoughts.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!

Psyched About 'Psych's' Return

Last summer, cable's USA Network helped fill the void of the summer rerun season with a fake psychic detective, his best friend, and some of the funniest scenes and lines to come from a comedy in a long time. Well, guess what? It's back! Psych returns tonight with all new crazy cases, more zany antics, and hilarious new scenes. The show, about a wannabe detective who uses his uncanny ability to pick up on details to pretend to be a psychic, was a surprise hit last summer. So much so, that it's returning to finish out its first full season tonight instead of waiting for the summer. Series star James Roday, who plays the detail-oriented private detective, promises that best bud Gus (The West Wing's Dule Hill) will play a more active role in Shawn's crazy schemes this time. "He recognizes, `Well, in order for this to work, I got to do this so that Shawn can do that.' And I think that's actually led to a lot more fun," the actor tells Zap2it.

Look for upcoming cases to feature a naked man who claims to be an alien abductee, a seasoned detective who says he solved a murder, but can't remember, and a haunted caper in an episode that star Roday penned himself. You can also expect Corbin Bernsen to reprise his role as Shawn's disapproving father. The actor says that his character is more conflicted than we may realize. "Shawn is exceeding my expectations, you know, the way I wanted him to do, what I wanted him to achieve, but he's not doing it my way. How much I'm able to live with him doing it his way and the gap that creates, that's what's fascinating to me. I actually think as we grow, my problem becomes bigger because I gain more respect (for his skills)," Bernsen explains. In the end, the show's strongest appeal comes from its over-the-top antics, which is something not lost on Roday. "I think we've always as a species been fascinated with stuff we don't understand. On our show, I think we fully and unapologetically rode those coattails of `OK, there's an interest for all of this stuff, now let's just make fun of it.'"

You can read more with the cast at Zap2it. Psych premieres TONIGHT at 10 p.m. (EST) on USA Network.


Get even more of your TV fix at PassTheRemote.net! A comprehensive television site with news, reviews, photos and much more!