Laurel’s TV Picks

Best Bets

His Girl Friday (TCM, 7pm)
Series premiere of The Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family, 7pm, 8pm, 11pm)
The Women (TCM, 9pm)
New 30 Days (FX, 9:05pm, 10pm)

Recommended Reruns

NCIS (CBS, 7pm)
Reaper (CW, 8pm)
Without A Trace (CBS, 9pm)

Primetime Grid

New Series

Brenda Hampton, the creator of 7th Heaven, is the creator of the new series The Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family, 7pm, 8pm, 11pm) which debuts tonight on ABC Family Channel. The regular timeslot for the show will be Tuesday nights at 7pm and 11pm.

This new show follows a 15-year-old girl as she learns she’s pregnant at the beginning of the school year. Shailene Woodley stars as Amy and she’s really excellent as the lead; her Mom is played by Molly Ringwald and her Dad is played by Mark Derwin (of The Bonnie Hunt Show, soap operas; he was the original “A.C. Mallett” on Guiding Light). Woodley played “Kaitlin Cooper” when she was first on The O.C. and she was “Felicity” in the TV movie Felicity: An American Girl Adventure; she’s also had other guest roles on TV over the years.

There are lots of decent actors, both new and familiar, in this show. The series follows a wide range of teens and families and the first episode does a decent job of introducing them all. John Schneider (of Smallville, The Dukes of Hazzard) and Josie Bissett (of Melrose Place) are the parents of a Christian household; they have one daughter who is a cheerleader in high school and a son who has Down’s Syndrome who is older. Ernie Hudson plays a psychiatrist for one of the teens. Camille Winbush, who was the oldest daughter on The Bernie Mac Show, plays one of Amy’s best friends.

I thought the first episode showed potential, though it was a bit clunky I attributed that to having a ton of characters to introduce; the episode did leave me wondering what would happen next for the characters. If this were airing in the fall, there’d probably be a lot of other better shows on which I’d recommend and I’d give this one a pass; but this is summer and there’s not a whole lot on and I’m guessing the show will get better in subsequent episodes– I hope it does.

The series premiere of The Secret ife of the American Teenager airs tonight on ABC Family Channel at 7pm, 8pm, and 11pm.

Primetime

Rosalind Russell is the featured star this month on Turner Classic Movies which is a very cool thing. Tonight they’re airing His Girl Friday (TCM, 7pm), which is one of my all-time favorite movies and The Women (TCM, 9pm) which is one of Lisa Schmeiser’s favorite movies. Some of you may know Lisa as “Sobell” over on Television Without Pity, she also writes for TeeVee and has a nifty blog of her own. I’ve somehow not seen The Women before, so I look forward to checking it out tonight. You can read more about His Girl Friday and about The Women on the TCM website. Lots more about Russell there too.

Series premiere of The Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family, 7pm, 8pm, 11pm).

I blush to admit that we watched the first episode of Wipeout (ABC, 7pm) last week and laughed. The second episode airs tonight. If you missed it and somehow don’t know what this show is . . . well, it’s a competition show. Competitors try to make their way through an obstacle course that’s over water. There are many many wipeouts, thus the name. The snarky hosts of the show mock the people as they race the course. It’s stupid, really, but I couldn’t look away. Maybe because it’s a show that definitely does not take itself seriously and just embraces the goofiness. My husband had this to say about it:

“In a hundred years Wipeout will be the world’s most popular sport.”
  – Kevin G. Austin

Al Roker hosts Celebrity Family Feud (NBC, 7pm). Four celebrity families compete to raise money for charity. Competitors tonight: Vincent Pastore vs. The Girls Next Door; Kathie Lee Gifford versus Dog The Bounty Hunter.

Ducky goes undercover to meet with La Grenouille in this rerun of NCIS (CBS, 7pm) from the season before the one that just ended. Armand Assante guest stars as La Grenouille.

Ziva: “Will you tell me who she is if I find the pirates version of the micro chip?”
Tony: “The pirated version. A pirate is a person, like Capt. Jack Sparrow.”
Ziva: “Who is Jack Sparrow?”
Tony: “Johnny Depp!?”
Ziva: “He is a pirate?”
Tony: “No, he’s an actor! How did we get here?”
Ziva: “I drove.”
  from NCIS

The final two compete on a new Hell’s Kitchen (FOX, 8pm). Whoopi Goldberg makes a special appearance.

While I actually kinda enjoyed Wipeout, I couldn’t bring myself to watch I Survived a Japanese Game Show (ABC, 8pm) last week and I doubt I’ll manage this week either (not even for you guys, sorry). The show really is what it sounds like: a show where people from the U.S. go to Japan and compete on Japanese game shows. The challenges are too icky or weird or embarrassing for me to enjoy watching them, but I imagine some people like this sort of thing or the show wouldn’t be on the air.

Detectives in Tucson, Arizona investigate the robbery-homicide of a cab driver on the season premiere of The First 48 (A&E, 8pm and midnight). This show follows detectives during the first 48 hours after a crime is committed.

Authorities consider whether the disappearances of two beautiful women, a teacher and a financial analyst, are related on 48 Hours Mystery (CBS, 8pm).

Sam starts dating a woman who he worries may be the Devil’s daughter in this rerun of Reaper (CW, 8pm). And the guys argue about what to do with a large amount of money they recovered from an escaped soul.

Sam: “How did you find me?”
Sock: “We followed you, Sam. Ben drove here with his headlights off the entire time.”
Ben: “It was very stressful.”
  from Reaper

New episode of Deadliest Catch (Discovery, 8pm, 10pm, midnight). Followed by After the Catch (Discovery, 9pm and 1am).

The second new five-minute “minisode” of Rescue Me (FX, 9pm) debuts on FX. These episodes are supposed to each stand alone. They are available online after they debut each Tuesday on FX; supposed to be available on Hulu, YouTube, MySpace, Crackle, and elsewhere. The first episode should be online, the second one debuts on FX tonight and will be online sometime after it airs.

A woman who is strongly anti-gun moves in with a family of hunters who are pro-gun on a new episode of 30 Days (FX, 9:05pm, 10pm)

The four-year-old adopted son of a celebrity couple goes missing in this rerun of Without A Trace (CBS, 9pm). Was the first episode of this past season. It also involves the case from the end of the previous season. James Marsters (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel) begins his guest stint on the show; Nick Wechsler (of Roswell) and Brian Bloom also guest star.

A look at the deadly implications if airborne anthrax were unleashed over the U.S. in a biological attack on Mega Disasters (History Channel, 9pm and 1am).

Jeff notices that work around his house isn’t getting done, and he grows suspicious of his assistants on a new Flipping Out (Bravo, 9pm, 10pm, midnight, 2am).

Tori and Dean continue to shop for a home, Tori kicks off her book launch on Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood (Oxygen, 9pm, 10pm, midnight).

A look at eating disorders on Secret Lives of Women (We, 9pm and midnight).

New A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila (MTV, 9pm, 10:30pm, midnight).

Rebroadcast of the new episode of Weeds (Showtime, 9pm, 9:30pm) that debuted last night.

Late Night

More Rosalind Russell movies on TCM including My Sister Eileen (TCM, 11:30pm), No Time for Comedy (TCM, 1:15am), and Design For Scandal (TCM, 3am). You can find out more on the TCM website.

Nothing but reruns in late night talk shows this week because of the holiday. If you want to see who the guests are, check out Sue Trowbridge’s Late Night Lineups Page which is one of just a few TV websites that’s been around longer than this one.