Issue #18, 26 October – 1 November 2008

Posted by AJ in Entertainment and Pop Culture TV Rewind.

This week: TVR suffers because of the World Series (reruns galore!); Don returns home on Mad Men; the title is oh-so-true on My Own Worst Enemy; Raising the Bar’s Judge Kessler puts her bitchiness on the backburner for a week; and Paris wants her best friend to be a stalker on Paris Hilton’s My New BFF.

Show: Mad Men
Episode: “Meditations in an Emergency” (1×13)
You Can Watch It: when AMC plays reruns because this was the season 2 finale.

The Cuban Missile Crisis overshadowed the second season finale of this year’s Emmy Awards Best Drama series, Mad Men.  The merger became finale between Sterling Cooper and Putnam, Powell, and Lowe.  All of the junior execs went into a tizzy about who will stay and who will go.  Because Campbell won’t adopt a baby, his father-in-law pulled the Clearasil account, but never fear!  The ever-manipulative Duck, in the midst of striking the deal between SC and PPL, offered Campbell the position as Head of Accounts and confided in him that he is poised to become president of SC.  Don, still on his little sabbatical that no one knows about, bonded with Anna Draper (the real Mrs. Draper) and had many flashbacks that explained a lot about what happened between the time when Dick Whitman assumed the identity of Don Draper and the present.  Betty found out she’s pregnant with a third child, had sex with a stranger in a bar, and then went horseback riding.  Don returned home, Betty told him she’s with child (his…duh), and he held her hand.  Also, Campbell tried to sleep with Peggy again, but she dampened the mood when she told him about how she had his lovechild last year.

Conclusions:
I’m glad we all know that America doesn’t get nuked by the Cubans or the Russians.  Otherwise, that would have been one hell of a cliffhanger.

***

Show: My Own Worst Enemy
Episode: “Hello, Henry” (1×03)
You Can Watch It: Mondays at 10pm on NBC

Henry still hasn’t jumped on the “I’m a spy!” bandwagon.  While he’s trying to balance a demanding job, a demanding wife, demanding children, and being the split personality of a government agent, Edward’s just trying to not let Henry get him (them?) killed while on missions.  The mission this week was for Edward to meet up with a contact in Mexico and make an exchange for some super secret important specs regarding Russia’s plans for a nuclear bomb.  Unfortunately, Henry surfaced right before the jump from a plane, drank too much at the contact’s abode, and almost walked them right into a trap laid by the contact for the Russians.  Luckily, Henry made a good impression and the contact changed his mind and bailed Edward/Henry out at the last second.  Also, Edward bought Henry’s daughter a $2,000 hoochie dress for a Bar Mitzvah and Henry almost got to sleep with his wife for once.  But he didn’t.

Conclusions:
Henry is one lucky bastard.

***

Show: Raising the Bar
Episode: “Roman Holiday” (1×09)
You Can Watch It: Mondays at 10pm on TNT (Season 1 marathon Monday 11/3!)

Guess who presided over Jerry’s case this week?  Judge Trudy Kessler.  Oddly enough, this week she didn’t try to screw him over!  Jerry’s client, an HIV-positive African-American male and an activist for HIV/AIDS research—was charged with attempted murder for spitting in a police officer’s face when he knew he had HIV.  The jury deemed him not guilty on all counts (lots of ridiculous charges were filed), so in the end Jerry didn’t have to face some prick ADA from Major Crimes (played by Erik Palladino) for nothing.  You know, the prick he happened to punch in a bar the night before the trial began because he called Bobbi a whore.  The only good thing about that guy was that he kind of made Michelle look like an idiot, which was sad because this week she had a soul.  She helped to convince Marcus to go easy on a 14-year-old kid charged as an accessory to murder, which happened to be one of Bobbi’s cases.  And Judge Kessler did not only not screw Jerry, but she didn’t screw Charlie in Tuscany either despite her best efforts.  Charlie came out to Trudy and the gang all in one episode.  Here, here!

Conclusions:
Why does Erik Palladino always play a dick?  (See: ER seasons 6 – 8.)

***

Show: Paris Hilton’s My New BFF
Episode: “You Gotta Have Class” (1×05)
You Can Watch It: Tuesdays at 10pm on MTV

Paris tested the besties’ knowledge of her with a game show in their living room called “I Love Paris.”  Kiki, who at the start of the challenge had proclaimed, “I don’t know anything about her!”, won the game and was given the choice of being handed $8,000 or going on a dinner date with Paris.  Kiki, not one for wanting to be sent home for being greedy even though we all know she is, chose the dinner date.  Corrie was tasked with sending one of the other remaining girls home while Kiks (let’s call her Kiks—pronounced “keeks”—shall we?) and Paris went out to some place called Citrus.  While on their date, Paris let her real self show.  She didn’t even use her baby voice.  Corrie ended up sending Zui home, which came as no surprise to anyone.  Not even Zui.  Later, Paris challenged all of the girls to a game of 7 Minutes in Heaven, locking them in a closet with Simon Rex dressed as his alter-ego Dirt Nasty.  No one recognized him besides would-be Rock of Love contestant Natasha, who was sent home for being too cocky.

Conclusions:
Why wasn’t Natasha on Rock of Love?  Manlier than Bret?  Looked like a tiny Inna?  What?

***

Dear Readers,
I watch a lot of TV, but I don’t write about every show every week.  Otherwise, you’d have no time to read TV Rewind.

Luvalways, AJ

Entertainment and Pop Culture, TV Rewind |