News & Notes
Over on cable, ABC Family has the second season finale of The Secret Life of the American Teenager, BBC America has the 14th season premiere of Top Gear, History has the first season finale of American Pickers, Planet Green has the third season finale of Emeril Green, Showtime has the second season premieres of Nurse Jackie and United States of Tara, Sundance has the first season finale of Be Good Johnny Weir, and TLC has the second season finale of Ultimate Cake Off.
Prime Picks
Chuck (NBC): New. Sarah and Shaw keep a close eye on everything Chuck does as he attempts to complete a final test to see if he spy ready.
24 (FOX): New. Jack leads a last ditch and dangerous mission in the field without the help of CTU, where Chloe and Dana attempt to deal with the EMP explosion.
Castle (ABC): New. A serial killer begins taunting Det. Beckett with a number of murders. This brings the FBI on the scene with head profiler and investigator played by guest star Dana Delany (Desperate Housewives). Starts two minutes after the hour and runs 58 minutes. This is part one of a two-part episode. Part two plays next week. Really enjoyed this episode. It sets up a really good mystery that I can’t wait until next week to see how things turn out. Delany is great as the FBI agent that takes over the case from Beckett and Castle. This show just keeps getting better and better and they do big or special episodes really well. I really hope that the decision to put it after Dancing With the Stars instead of last night after Desperate Housewives works to garner a larger audience than it would have.
Solid Selections
Life Unexpected (The CW): New. Bug and Lux get picked up by the police, which brings Lux’s social worker back into the picture to meet with Cate and Baze. Cate attempts to find work for Bug at the radio station.
Two and a Half Men (CBS): New. Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) returns as Chelsea’s best friend. Runs 31 minutes.
The Big Bang Theory (CBS): New. Sheldon needs to get over his stage fright to accept a coveted award. Starts a minute after the half hour and runs 29 minutes.
Greek (ABC Family): New. A round of golf will determine which is the top frat on campus. Katherine is asked to bring back the Greek Goddesses Pageant. Calvin and Grant can’t agree on their spring break plans.
Other Options
- CSI: Miami (CBS): New. Horatio’s son is back from overseas and needs his father’s help to solve a murder.
- Damages (FX): New. Patty tracks down Carol Tobin and forces her to tell what happened on Thanksgiving. Ellen’s family is causing her some problems. Frobisher is making a movie. Plays twice and again later, plus replays multiple times throughout the week.
- Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives (Food Network): New. Guy checks out some places that serve classic dishes with a twist. A repeat episode plays right before. Both play again later.
- Good Eats (Food Network): New. Alton makes chicken and dumplings. A repeat episode plays right before. Both play again later.
- Gossip Girl (The CW): New. Damien is pressuring Jenny. Lily shares a secret with Rufus. Chuck has to make a difficult decision regarding his hotel.
- How I Met Your Mother (CBS): New. Ted brings a date to Lily’s birthday party and she doesn’t like it.
- Nurse Jackie (Showtime): Season Premiere. Things pick up a few months after the end of season one. Jackie has stopped seeing Eddie and is trying to spend more time with her family. At the hospital, Jackie is dealing with narcotics shortages. Eddie does something extreme to get Jackie’s attention. Plays again later. I’ve seen the first four episodes of the season and the one problem I had with last season is partially gone now that a few people know about Jackie’s home life, namely Eddie. Still don’t think this show is a great as many others do, but it’s worth checking out. I’ll probably be keeping up with it this season, which I didn’t last season. Might have more later on my problem with the show.
- Rules of Engagement (CBS): New. Russell is trying to convince Timmy not to go through with his arranged marriage.
- Trauma (NBC): New. Rabbit begins to talk about his past in therapy. Diana and Nancy disagree on a patient, which puts her in danger.
- United States of Tara (Showtime): Season Premiere. It has been several months since Tara left the hospital and seems to be fine, as she hasn’t transitioned in that time. But, when a neighbor commits suicide and her family becomes responsible for the house, she starts losing time again and begins to realize that she isn’t as well as she had hoped. Plays again later. Overall, I don’t really care for this show, but Toni Collette’s performance as Tara and all her personas keeps drawing me back in. I sat down last night to watch the first couple episodes of the season and ended up watch all six episodes that Showtime sent me. That’s how compelling Collette is on screen.
- Unwrapped (Food Network): New. Some favorite “Feel-Good Foods” are looked at. A repeat episode plays right before. Both play again later.
Sports Notes
- ESPN has doubleheader NIT Tournament college basketball action.
- ESPN2 has doubleheader NCAA Women’s Tournament college basketball action.
- NBA TV has the Dallas Mavericks at the New Orleans Hornets.
- Versus has NHL action.
TV Marathons
ABC Family has 10 episodes of The Secret Life of the American Teenager.
Oxygen has 10 episodes of America’s Next Top Model.
Spike TV has 10 episodes of CSI:….
Syfy has 15 episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
USA has 12 episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent early.
WE has five episodes of Amazing Wedding Cakes early followed 14 episodes of The Golden Girls.
