I have been extremely impressed by the first five episodes of Men of a Certain Age. It's on TNT Mondays at ten. Briefly, it deals with the lives of three men around age 50. Joe is a newly-divorced father and owner of a party store. Terry is a has-been actor and ladies man. Owen is happily married but works for his very demanding father in a car dealership. All of the men have issues, but are likable and believable. The dialogue seems right on most of the time.Ray Romano wrote and produced the show. I didn't know Raymond had it in him, but he does. It manages to steer away from being too sweet or too sour. The balanced look at the men is unusual in a TV show. They don't chase down criminals, live in a beach house, cook, save lives, lose weight (although maybe Owen should) or chase aliens, but they are sure easy to spend some time with.
Any newer shows I should be watching?
19 comments:
This one has been on my to-watch list for a few weeks.
Other than a passing fascination in the Jay/Conan drama at NBC I haven't found much new that interests me.
[Patti-If you get a chance to catch THE HOUR on CBC out of Canada check it out. The host is great, a mix of Jon Stewart & Charlie Rose. Very eclectic guest list too.]
John McAuley
John-I just get on Canadian channel but I'll see if it's there.
If you get channel nine out if Windsor you'll get The Hour. It airs just after eleven p.m. and it reruns at various times during the day.
John McAuley
Thanks, John. I'll find it.
Newest good thing, ongoing, that I've seen on broadcast is still THE GOOD WIFE; best things I didn't get to see previously that are on Hulu have been BLACK BOOKS and THE BOOK CLUB.
Charlie Rose with wit and a clue, or Jon Stewart with a slightly greater sense of responsibility would be a good thing.
I see we tag it as CBCNEW, which meant we first saw it pop up on their cable channel. CBC mostly feeds it at 11:05p and repeats at 5a.
I, too, have grown fond of Men of a Certain Age. As you note, it's not flashy or tension-infused or overly ambitious in its storytelling. The show is just damn smart, well-written, and filled with human emotions and weaknesses. That it got on television in the first place can only be to TNT's credit. That it survives, and has in fact been renewed for a second season, is owing to the good taste of enough Americans to make a difference. Thank goodness everything on the tube doesn't have to be about forensic investigations, lame sitcoms, or trashy housewives ...
Cheers,
Jeff
I've been meaning, like John, to see MEN...glad to hear it's at least a tick up from EVERYBODY'S BORED BY RAYMOND. The best newest thing on cable I've seen is John Oliver's standup showcase on Comedy Central, albeit that wasn't much of a stretch for them.
Since I haven't lived in a cave for the last decade I was aware of Romano, but had never seen "Everybody Loves Raymond". This show got such excellent reviews I gave it a shot and have become quite attached to it. It's very low key and quite enjoyable. I've always liked Andre Braugher, but I've never seen or heard of the third guy on the show. He's good, though.
I did start watching a few new series this season, but the only ones I've stuck with are "FlashForward", which is on hiatus until March, and (please don't laugh) "The Vampire Diaries". The latter is no "Buffy", but it's not bad. Or perhaps this 60+ y.o. male is practicing to become a tween girl. I plan to try "Spartacus", starting on STARZ this week, and am really looking forward to the return of "Damages" and "Lost" in the next couple of weeks.
I saw the first episode of Men of a Certain Age and it was a little too relentlessly bleak, but I wanted to see more. Then the free preview of the cable channel it's on here in Canada ran out.
I've also been enjoying The Good Wife, I think they do a very good job of having episodic stories and a longer story arc.
If you get the CBC you might want to check out a show called The Border which is a drama about the Canadian border patrol.
THE GOOD WIFE is also very good. But a more typical show. It may be able to leave that behind and concentrate on the more interesting family problems or drift the wrong way and concentrate more on her trials--we have so much of that.
I liked Bakula in Quantum Leap although the show got predictable after a while. Wish they would ditch Rose Byrnes in Damages. She really can't act IMHO. I watched a few eps of FlashForward but began to see it as too arbitrary. Probably should have stuck with it.
Too bad, John. It's not really that bleak. I will look for Borders. We have a family member in the US Border Patrol.
THE GOOD WIFE isn't quite a groundbreaking show, no, but at least it is an extremely well-done and rather intelligent one (those aren't too common). Small points for having a lesbian character who is well-drawn without her sexuality defining her character.
Yes, and Archie is riveting in that part. As is JM-a quiet performance. Quite unusual.
i just watch the black screen until the voices talk back to me.
I thought THE GOOD WIFE would be a chick show but it's been surprisingly good. We also watch FLASHFORWARD (uneven), WHITE COLLAR and GLEE.
Jeff M.
I think everyone was surprised at the quality of THE GOOD WIFE, especially my husband.
I haven't seen either MEN or THE GOOD WIFE. Will have to check it out after these comments. One show that was a big surprise that I would like it so much is GLEE.
Gave up on Glee too early. My husband's mockery ruined it. I will try it again when he's out of the room.
Kieran-I don't even need the black screen for those voices.
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