Monday television makes me want to sing….

Monday, Monday (ba-da-da-da-da-da)
So good to me (ba-da-da-da-da-da)
Monday evening, I can’t believe all the good TV
But Monday evening, Monday evening, couldn’t guarantee (ba-da-da-da-da-da)
That I would have enough time for the shows I want to see

Sorry… I couldn’t resist. I love Monday night TV. It is incredible the amount of awesome shows on that night. We have House and 24 on FOX, Chuck and Heroes on NBC and a great comedy block on CBS. I know this is old news, but I wanted to give it a few weeks before I wrote about it. I wanted to see which of these shows I still managed to watch on a consistent basis and which ones would wind up collecting dust on my Tivo. The crazy thing is that I’ve managed to keep up with every one of them and still watch them on the night that they actually air. Of course this would explain why I didn’t wake up until noon today. Oh the sacrifices we make to entertain ourselves.

Let’s start with FOX. We start the night off with the greatest doctor (albeit, the crankiest) in the world, House, and we end it with the most kick ass agent of all time, Jack Bauer. Seriously, I think Jack Bauer could kick James Bond, Jason Bourne and Batman’s ass all at the same time with nothing but a Nerf football at his disposal. Nobody does it like Jack. After a disappointing season 6 and a year and a half off the air, I wasn’t sure that 24 could return to its glory days. It certainly has. Season 7 has been one endless, adrenaline pumped, thrill ride and we are only a third of the way through. It seems that the year and half off really energized the creative team behind the show and I’d be more than willing to wait another year or 2 for season 8 if it means that it would be this good. I actually think that this could be the best season of 24 yet and last night’s 2 hour episode that focused on Jack trying to stop a terrorist attack on the White House was a major nail biter. The simple fact is that on any other show, I would know that the attack would be thwarted and the White House would remain standing, but this is 24… anything could happen. As for House, there’s not much to say. As always the show is unfailingly entertaining. There is never a bad episode and it is always a pleasure to watch Hugh Laurie play this cranky medical guru

Please, please, please NBC, don’t cancel Chuck. It’s a wonderful show! Chuck deftly balances humor, action and romance with appealing characters that you can’t help but have an emotional investment in. Even the minor characters draw you in. There are no words to describe the geek nirvana, bliss that I felt a couple of weeks ago seeing Reginald VelJohnson reprise his role as Sgt. Al Powell from Die Hard. Truly brilliant! I just can’t understand why this show can’t find an audience. It’s funny, charming, silly, thrilling and action packed every episode. NBC did the right thing by this show, giving it a full second season commitment after the strike shortened season last year, but I don’t think they will renew for a third. Especially with Jay Leno invading primetime next season and fewer overall slots for shows available on the network. It seems like Chuck is doomed. As for Heroes, I’ll never get over how uneven the story telling is. Heroes was on track to be an amazing show in its first season, but since, has never lived up to its potential. The second season was soooo bad that I was actually grateful for the writers’ strike. Then came the season 3 Villains story arc. By the end of that story line, Heroes was certainly clicking, but getting there was a real chore. It took forever to move the story along. With the latest story arc, Fugitives, it seems like we are moving at the same pace as prior seasons. One good episode is followed by an awful one and then by another good one. The problem with the show is that the writers clearly have no idea what to do with some of these characters. Nathan being the prime example. He’s a bad guy… no wait he’s a good guy… sorry he’s actually a bad guy… nope wrong again he’s a good guy. My head is going to explode if they don’t reign in this character and once and for all reveal his true motivations. He’s a man with super powers who is rounding up all super powered individuals to keep the world safe. Huh? It would be one thing if Nathan didn’t know some of the people he is having hunted, but his brother Peter or former cop Matt Parkman are clearly good guys. Why on Earth would he want to lock them up? If he truly wants to save the world, wouldn’t it make more sense for him to form a group of super heroes, ala the Justice League, to keep everyone safe? Another character that drives me bananas is Hiro. When the hell are they going to give him his powers back? Every story line on this show is stretched out to the point where you lose interest. What about Peter? I’m happy to see him finally acting like the hero he is meant to be, but I would like it better if he still had every power under the sun.  The way the character was written initially, it was obvious that he was supposed to be the polar opposite of all powerful villain, Sylar. Why would they change that? Speaking of Sylar, he is the only character on the show that remains compelling.  His constant quest to find out who he truly is and where he comes from is the one story arc on the show that consistently entertains. Some of you reading this are probably wondering why I even watch Heroes anymore if the show bothers me so much. Let me clarify. The show is good. I enjoy it more often than I don’t. My problem is and always will be that the show could be amazing and that it has yet to live up to the potential it had in season 1.

Those of you looking for a couple of laughs need to look no further than the CBS Monday comedy block. The comedy block starts with The Big Bang Theory now in its second season. Bang is always good for a few laughs and the cast is terrific. Much adieu has been made about Jim Parsons brilliant turn as socially inept genius Sheldon Cooper and rightfully so, but the rest of the cast is equally as good. Johnny Galecki is fantastic as straight man Leonard and Kaley Cuoco displays great comedic timing as hot neighbor Penny. Bang leads into How I met Your Mother, another marvelous comedy featuring a remarkable ensemble cast. Silly and irreverent, Mother is always full of laughs. Even if you didn’t like the show, it’s worth tuning in to watch Neil Patrick Harris’ freaking hysterical turn as the ultimate womanizer Barney Stinson. Two and a Half Men is next and although it’s been on for quite a few years now, the laughs just keep coming.  Men has got to be one of the raunchiest sitcoms ever. It is astonishing to me all the crude remarks and sexual innuendos that this show gets away with. Rather than speak about how great Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer are, I think it is fair to shine the spotlight on Angus T. Jones, whose portrayal of teenager Jake is too funny for words. This kid truly has major comedic talent and he is one to keep an eye on. That’s where the comedy block ends for me. I’m not a fan of either Worst Week or Rules of Engagement. My wish would be that CBS pushes one of those shows out of the lineup and instead airs Jay Mohr’s underappreciated but freakin’ hysterical, Gary Unmarried. It couldn’t be a better fit with the rest of the comedy block.