Laurel’s TV Picks

Best Bets

Lakers at Celtics (ABC, 8pm)
Julia Roberts, Al Green on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm)

Premieres

Series premiere of Fear Itself (NBC, 9pm)
Series premiere of Swingtown (CBS, 9pm)

New Series Review

The series premiere of Swingtown airs tonight at 9pm on CBS.

This new series begins as one family moves from one neighborhood in a suburb of Chicago to a more affluent neighborhood during July 1976. They leave behind one set of neighbors and meet new neighbors who throw wild parties and who apprently engage in a bit of “swinging”.

I was amazed at how little we learn about the characters in the first episode. There’s the “swinging” couple where the guy is an airline pilot who enjoys spending time with stewardesses and the wife would prefer it if they at least only engaged in swinging with folks their own age.

We don’t really know much about the couple that moves, except that they do accept an invitation to a party from their new neighbors and are intrigued by their lifestyle. The couple they leave behind is the most conservative couple of the three, I guess.

There are teenagers involved too– the children of these adults and their friends. There’s a teen girl who is interested in one of her teachers, there’s another who wears a wedding ring on a chain around her neck. I like the actors playing these kids and think that there’s potential for good stories for them at least.

If it sounds like I don’t know much about these characters and that they aren’t terribly interesting, you’re getting the picture. At the end of the episode, I said to Kevin (my husband), “that was it?” because there was just so little to the show other than “golly, these people might have sex with their neighbors.” The most fun we had was saying “wink, wink” after every other line of the episode. The show itself is humorless and just so bland, which is a little odd given the supposedly racy subject matter.

There’s some decent music, but it’s pretty much all the songs you might expect to hear in a show set during this time period. Liz Phair is involved in the selection of music and scoring of episodes, which is neat for her but not enough to recommend the show.

I’m assuming there is more to these characters than what we see in the first episode, there are a few hints here but not enough to make me very curious about the pasts of these folks and any secrets they have.

Mike Kelley created this series, he was a supervising producer on Jericho and a consulting producer on The O.C.; he’s also written episodes of those shows and of One Tree Hill and Providence.

The couples are played by Jack Davenport (of Coupling), Molly Parker (of Deadwood), Grant Show (of Point Pleasant, Melrose Place), Lana Parrilla (of Windfall, 24, Boomtown), Josh Hopkins (of Pepper Dennis, Vanished, many shows), and Miriam Shor (of Big Day).

The first episode did very little for me and certainly didn’t make me want to tune in for future episodes, except possibly to see if things get more interesting in the second episode. I’d recommend skipping this unless you’re a big fan of someone involved in the show or just have a love for all things ’70s and even then I’m not sure it’s worth your time.

For an alternative view, Tim Goodman thinks the pilot has potential, he also talks a bit more about the show and how it came to air in the summertime. I definitely agree with him that the show is an odd fit for CBS.

Daytime

They’re doing another spacewalk today which can be seen live on NASA TV. Expect replays of highlights tonight if you can’t watch during the day.

Rerun of an episode of Oprah (syndicated, check our local listings) about “World Record Holders” including the grandmother with a 15-inch waist, the world’s fastest clapper, and a dog who jumps rope. Plus author Ken Follett.

Primetime Grid

Primetime

The NBA Finals begin tonight. ABC airs a special “Game Night” edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC, 7pm) with guests Magic Johnson and the winner of the big spelling bee, followed by pre-game show NBA Countdown (ABC, 7:30pm) and then the game itself: Lakers at Celtics (ABC, 8pm).

Bill Bellamy hosts another new episode of Last Comic Standing (NBC, 7pm – 9pm). More auditions. French Stewart (of Third Rock from the Sun) and Josh Gomez (of Chuck) look for comedians in San Francisco; Dave Foley (of NewsRadio, Kids in the Hall) and Richard Kind (of Spin City, Mad About You) audition comics in Toronto.

Cat Deeley hosts a two-hour edition of So You Think You Can Dance (FOX, 7pm – 9pm) in Las Vegas.

Twins Squeeze Play is a half-hour recap of the Twins-Orioles game from this afternoon (FOX Sports Net North, 7pm, 10pm, 1:30am; also at 6:30am and Noon on Friday).

New episodes of Designed to Sell (HGTV, 7pm and 11pm), Myles of Style (HGTV, 7:30pm and 11:30pm), Divine Design (HGTV, 8pm and midnight), and House Hunters (HGTV, 9pm and 1am).

“Cobbled Together” episode of Good Eats (Food Network, 7pm and 2am).

Kara enters the “Miss Sweet Corn” pageant in this rerun of Smallville (CW, 7pm).

Kara: “Look, I’m sorry, Mr. Luthor. The only secret I’ve got is that I make a lousy cappuccino. It’s probably not the best thing to confess to your boss, huh?”
Lex: “Twice I’ve been pulled back from the brink of death, and both times it was by a member of the Kent family. I’m not man who believes in coincidences. Sooner or later, I’ll find out the truth. Are you a savior? Or are you a warning?”
  from Smallville

Rerun of CSI (CBS, 7pm) where Keppler (played by Liev Schreiber) and Nick investigate the world of stolen body parts. Gordon Clapp (of NYPD Blue) guest stars.

Discovery Atlas: Mexico Revealed (Discovery Channel, 7pm and 11pm).

The team restores a 1967 Camaro on a new Overhaulin’ (TLC, 7pm and midnight).

New episode of The Secret Life Of . . . (Food Network, 7:30pm and 2:30am) which covers picnics through the years.

Flapjack brags that Bubbie is faster than a machine; Flapjack tries to learn what Bubbie does all day on a new episode of The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack (Cartoon Network, 7:30pm; also on Friday at 9:30pm and Saturday at 11:30am).

Someone tries to kill Lady Heather (guest star Melinda Clarke) in this rerun of CSI(CBS, 8pm).

Heather: “Leave me alone. I didn’t ask you to save me.”
Grissom: “I know, but what was I supposed to do? I’m your friend.”
  from CSI

A rabbit’s foot brings the brothers good luck and bad luck in this rerun of Supernatural (CW, 8pm) that was written by Ben Edlund (of The Tick).

Discovery Atlas: India Revealed (Discovery Channel, 8pm and midnight).

Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Addiction Special (VH1, 8pm, 10:05pm).

A look at the gangs of Las Vegas on a new Gangland (History Channel, 8pm and midnight).

Special 90-minute edition of Baseball Tonight (ESPN, 8:30pm). It’s draft day today.

Series premiere of Fear Itself (NBC, 9pm). This is a new suspense and horror anthology series; plans are for thirteen episodes (assuming all goes well) and I suppose if it’s a hit, they might do another season. The first episode (titled “Sacrifice”) is directed by Breck Eisner (of Sahara) and written by Mick Garris (who has written for Masters of Horror and Amazing Stories) from a story by Del Howison. This story is about four criminals (including two brothers) who stop at a fort where they encounter three women who, well, are sirens really. Actors in it include: Jeffrey Pierce (of The Nine, Charlie Jade), Jesse Plemons (who plays “Landry” on Friday Night Lights), Stephen Martines, Rachel Miner (of Californication), and Mircea Monroe (of Drive). The first episode is definitely only for viewers who can handle horror stories, but then I’m a complete wuss who ended up turning it off partway through the episode.

Series premiere of Swingtown (CBS, 9pm). See above.

A look at railroads in Alaska on a new Tougher in Alaska (History Channel, 9pm and 1am).

New episode of Celebracadabra (VH1, 9pm; also at 10am on Friday). With Ant, C. Thomas Howell, Christopher Reid, Hal Sparks, and Lisa Ann Walter.

Season finale of Step It Up and Dance (Bravo, 9pm and 10pm).

Justin Timberlake is profiled on Biography (Biography Channel, 9pm and 1am).

Ami, Nunez, Darren, and Dre watch a space shuttle launch on a new Miami Ink (TLC, 9pm and 11pm).

Late Night

Adam Sandler on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 10pm and midnight).

Pat Buchanan on The Colbert Report (Comedy Central, 10:30pm and 12:30am).

Julia Roberts, Al Green on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm).

Dustin Hoffman, Gordon Ramsay, Flobots on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (NBC, 10:35pm).

Wanda Sykes, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Lewis Black on Late Night with Conan O’Brien (NBC, 11:37pm).

Jeff Foxworthy, Poppy Montgomery (of Without A Trace) on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (CBS, 11:37pm).

Usher, possibly other guests yet TBA on Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, will probably air late because of the basketball game earlier in the evening).

Miranda Kerr, Rachael Harris, Seether on a rerun of Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC, check your local listings).