I Watch TV: 2011-2012, Finale (Part One of Four)

It has long been my television-watching mantra that I don't watch shows for their realism. I live in reality. My life is filled with lots of reality, some of it more welcome than the rest, but reality all the same. When I watch tv, that is my down time and I want to be entertained. I don't mind if that entertainment makes me think (to a point) but I am perfectly willing to suspend disbelief for the sake of keeping me engaged, even if it means the subject is embellished, improbable, inaccurate or impractical. Reel me in. Make me laugh. Drop my jaw. Keep me balanced on the edge of my seat. So long as I get to escape the demands and responsibilities of the life I lead as an adult (not that my life is terrible, but let's be honest, there are some rather bland and not-so-fun parts to being an adult and leading a responsible life, even when that life is pretty amazing and awesome), then we're good. This is specifically why I don't watch a single "reality" show (not any more realistic than any fictional show I do watch, I might point out, but reality shows just cast a spotlight on all the drama I pointedly avoid in my own real life, so watching on the screen seems rather counterproductive to me). And if I wanted actual *realism* in a tv show, I would find myself a documentary.

Glad we got that out of the way.

Disclaimer: You shouldn't read if you don't want to risk spoilers!

I thought long and hard about how I wanted to summarize my thoughts. So many different ways to approach a series of posts about television shows. I could rank the shows and post in groups of five or ten. I could classify by genre. I could group by long-running series, new shows with renewals, and cancellations. Breakdown by network won.

I'm going to start with ABC. Why? I don't know. We'll say it's because it's owned by Disney and my  affection for Disney is no secret.

Once Upon a Time (season one): I wasn't entirely sure what to expect from this show. It was new and it was certainly very different from anything else I watch. But then again, if anyone can pull off a show about fairy takes and magic and ornate costumes, it would be a company owned by Disney, right? So I jumped in with an open mind. I was hooked immediately. I love the way they weave the familiar fairy tales into a whole land, where all the characters interact. They have created connections and back stories. And even when they stray a bit from the original stories, their improvisation just works. And the imagery they use is fabulous, so many little details to watch for. I was a little shocked that they broke the curse in the first season (though it was the season finale) and I am so curious where they will take us next. The possibilities seem limitless. There *must* be more to this story than just the curse. I will absolutely be tuning in for season two!

Favorite characters: Sheriff Graham/The Huntsman. Mary Margaret Blanchard/Snow White.

Best episodes: "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter." "The Stable Boy." "An Apple Red as Blood." "A Land Without Magic."

Pan Am (season one): Another new show this season. I know everyone wanted to hop on board the coattails of Mad Men. This was the only one that caught my eye. It seemed like it could be something like "Love Boat," only in the air. I'm not sure why it never caught on, though I think Sunday nights are tough on an established show, let alone a new one trying to build a viewership. After all, it's competing with Sunday Night Football. And while most of us have the ability to record what we want to see and watch when it's most convenient, thanks to the wonder that is DVR (not to mention OnDemand, online, Netflix, iTunes, Hulu, etc), those don't seem to factor into ratings. unfortunately (a topic which bothers me, but suffice to say, I think they should update the way they calculate ratings to consider the way we watch television now, instead of the archaic methods they still employ). And so I am sad that this one didn't get a renewal. It was a fun show. A new location every week, a cast I mostly enjoyed, single-episode plots mingled with ongoing threads that lasted the whole season. I was happy that they gave us a season finale that allowed for closure in a way, not yet knowing the ultimate fate of the show.

Favorite characters: Kate Cameron. Colette Valois.

Best episodes: "Ich Bin Ein Berliner." "Unscheduled Departure." "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang." "1964."

Body of Proof (season two): This is one of those shows that I like for background noise. I don't feel obligated to watch each detail or not miss a second of the action or the dialogue. Truth be told, sometimes I even doze off and miss part of an episode or the ending, and I don't bother to save it to re-watch. This show seems to teeter on the chopping block often. It's supposed to be coming back for an abbreviated season three. I will record and watch as I have the first two. I will grant that this season had a heck of a finale cliffhanger. And now I've read that half the case is being cut, so that takes away some of the suspense. Unfortunate casualty of the information age, I guess.

Favorite characters: Dr Curtis Brumfield. Peter Dunlop (who is not coming back--oops, guess he stops clinging to life after that stabbing).

Best episodes: "Identity." "Going Viral Part 1."

Last Man Standing (season one): I've been a hard sell on comedies since the Friends left their keys on the counter. It's difficult to replace a cast that stuck together from start to finish and truly became to feel like, well, friends you visited each week. It also seems sitcoms have gone the way of raunchy humor, being gross and revolving around just plain stupid. When it came about that Tim Allen was going to be part of a late release show, I had to check it out. It's exactly what I expected: he'll always be Tim the Toolman Taylor, only know he has a houseful of daughters instead of sons. It started strong and then faltered a little, but it makes me chuckle, and with its renewal, hopefully I will continue to chuckle through the sophomore season too. It's just such a relief after the way other shows have grown to disappoint (more on that when we get to other networks).

Favorite characters: Vanessa Baxter. Eve Baxter.

Best episodes: "Home Security." "House Rules."

Private Practice (season five): I followed Addison over to the beach from Seattle, lo those many seasons ago. And I've always liked her, even when she hasn't been very *likable*. This has been my least favorite season at Oceanside Wellness so far, and mostly because, even though Addison's dreams have all come true, she's *bugging* me. She has two guys eating out of her hand and she's leading them both on. That's just not cool. (I am partial to Jack over Sam who only decides what he wants when someone else makes a play for it.) Violet and Pete have irritated me to no end with the constant bickering and inability to communicate with one another. It's time for them to part ways because if I have to endure one more spat, I may have to slap them both...and that makes me look crazy, because they are inside my tv. While Private Practice is in no danger of losing me as a viewer, this season threatened to make this less of a "must see tv" for me, and more of a "Body of Proof" type show. Enter Jack and Amelia and...wow. They rescued this season for me and made me want to come back for the next.

Favorite characters: Addison (though I liked her less this season than I ever have before, either on this show or her time on Grey's). Charlotte (she may be a real witch but I love the straight forward way she expresses herself). Amelia (her character is difficult to watch, painful even, but Caterina Scorsone acts the *heck* out of that part). Jack.

Best episodes: "The Letting Go." "Drifting Back." "Gone, Baby, Gone."

The Middle (season 3): I had a tough time getting into this show. I didn't watch the first season at all and I only watched the second season sporadically for the first half. I think I was having a difficult time with Patricia Heaton as Frankie Heck when, in my mind, she will always be Debra Barone. She still is but Sue and then Brick started to grow on me. This show is still hit or miss with me, but there have been more hits lately, with some making me laugh right out loud. There will be a fourth season of Hecks, and I will be back for it.

Favorite characters: Sue. Brick (::whispers:: Brick.).

Best episodes: "The Map." "The Sit Down." "The Telling."

Modern Family (season 3): So many people call this the funniest sitcom running right now. I don't know if I feel quite as strongly about it. There are definitely shows that make me laugh more and this one comes up short sometimes. I didn't see much of the first season. I saw more of the second. I saw all of this one, and, as irony would have it, I didn't like it as much as what I saw of the previous season. While Cam and Mitchell can be funny, especially as such polar opposites, they are just as capable of annoying me. Luke and Manny often feel expendable to me. Gloria and Jay can grate on my nerves separately, although together they make me laugh. Modern Family dropped off with a real bombshell. I wonder how Cam & Mitchell will react to Gloria's pregnancy, given that they have struggled to adopt all season and took it pretty hard in the season finale. This show is supposed to be funny and that's a pretty heavy topic.

Favorite characters: Alex Dunphy. Claire Dunphy. Phil Dunphy (about half the time).

Best episodes: "Dude Ranch." "Hit and Run."

Scandal (season 1): This was a short (seven episodes), late-season show. Another Shonda Rhimes creation, but departing from her penchant for medical dramas. Olivia Pope and her "gladiators in suits" clean up messes in the messiest place there is: Washington DC. I loved the quick dialogue, the "onion layers" to each of the characters who have only begun to be revealed to us, and the depth of the stories. There is always more that you don't know and when it comes to the surface, it leaves you with your jaw on the carpet. I am so excited for a full season of this show. I can't wait to get to know these characters better.

Favorite characters: Olivia Pope.

Best episodes: All of them. When I tell you this show just got better each week, I mean exactly that. And it started out strong. If I had to pick, the last two episodes, "The Trail" and "Grant: For the People," were probably a wee bit better than the rest, but not by much.

Grey's Anatomy (season eight): One of my perennial favorites. I didn't get on board with this show til the second season (though I went back, bought the first to catch up and now own them all) but I've always felt a kinship with Meredith. Not in the physical sense, but in the emotional one. She was dark and twisty at the same time I was, and we've both climbed out of those trenches almost in unison. I love the opening and closing monologues, always have. And even though it's unrealistic, sometimes gross and often heart-wrenching, I love it. I don't know if I can say I loved this season. There was a lot of pain. But the acting was raw and that deserves some credit. And that ending... I get it--contracts end, actors are ready to move on--but it's still so hard when the characters make you like them or at least get attached to the role they play. I'm glad it was Derek (I was worried) but I'm sad that Teddy and Lexie won't be back. And with all the residents looking as if they are prepared to scatter, I just can't imagine where season nine will start, never mind where it will take us. I assume it won't end in the wilderness though. 

Favorite characters: Meredith Grey. Derek Shepherd. Jackson Avery.

Best episodes: "Dark Was the Night." "Suddenly." "If/Then."