The Countdown Rolls On

Last week, we kicked things off with three great episodes. What will be on this week's list? Before we get to that, we have to go over the rules for the countdown. We ended up with 33 incredible episodes that demonstrate the diversity and quality of the current television state. The shows and their episodes are from both NETWORK and CABLE television. All episodes aired between June 2008 and June 2009. Each episode that made the final list moved us in some way; either by making us laugh out loud, cry our eyes out or just left us with that "wow" feeling that stays with you for a few days. So basically, it's completely subjective! Since this is a summer-long countdown to the number 1 episode, we will reveal a few each week all summer. So, be sure to tune in every Friday to find out which episodes are on the countdown! Today, we're going to take a look at numbers 30-28.

30: "Private Eyes" - My Boys
When PJ starts dating "a mystery man," the boys want to know who he is and they're not willing to take PJ's dismissal for an answer. So, what to do? They plan an elaborate spy mission that finds Stephanie wearing a wire at dinner with PJ and the boys hiding in Andy's minivan (not so) discreetly across the street. Things go from funny to hilarious from there as Mike starts thinking like a cop, the boys order pizza delivery, and PJ catches on to their scheme. And they say girls are the nosey ones! This episode had me laughing from start to finish as the boys acted like they were uncovering government secrets instead of PJ's boyfriend. Of course, the joke was on them. The "mystery man" was one of them: Bobby.

29: "Apocalypse... Now?" - Medium
You know how it is when you have a nightmare -- you wake up relieved, shake it off, and move on with your life. Unfortunately for Allison, things aren't quite that simple and when that nightmare (or series of nightmares as it were) includes visions of the end of the world and that end looks imminent, she has to take action. This episode was fascinating because it delved into human nature and how we react when we're forced to fight for survival. Allison's dreams aren't always literal, but there's no way to know for sure until everything plays out. Luckily, this one wasn't, but it was a very important clue to saving a kidnapped girl and finding the man responsible. And once again, I was reminded why I'm glad that I do not possess Allison's "gift." Written by Michael Narducci and directed by Larry Teng.

28: "Intervention" - How I Met Your Mother
When your friend refuses to cease using a fake British accent or cannot see that they are totally too tan what can you do? If you're part of the crazy HIMYM gang, you stage an intervention. The idea started innocent enough with them trying to help out a friend with an alcohol problem, but it was so successful, the gang decided to stage interventions for everything. Enter the fake British accent one (Lily), the totally too tan one (Robin), and many others until Barney accidently torched the sign (during his pyrotechnics magic tricks intervention) and the group realized that they needed to stage an intervention to stop the interventions. Months later, Ted finds a banner indicating that they had planned to stage one for him because of his relationship with Stella. The hilarity of the interventions combined with the hard truth about Ted and Stella made for a strong outing. In fact, I might need an intervention if this show keeps bringing the awesome like this episode. Written by Stephen Lloyd and directed by Michael Shea.

So, there's a look at numbers 30-28 on the countdown. What do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? Leave us a comment with your thoughts. And be sure to tune in next Friday for #27-25 on the list.