All season has been building to this; the prison vs Woodbury. The preview show’s Woodbury’s evil “Governor” leading an army that outnumbers Rick’s prison crew by at least two (if not three) to one. Will there be a massacre at the prison? Does Rick have a plan up his sleeve? Will they abandon ship? As readers of this website know, I am a long time fan of The Walking Dead comics and the thing that amazes me about where we are in the show is that I have no idea what will happen next. The television series is so different than the comic and both are as suspenseful and intriguing as each other. I can not wait to see what happens next.

Official description, “Welcome to the Tombs”: With the Governor’s attack looming, Rick and his people need to determine if the prison is worth defending.

The Walking Dead season finale airs tonight on AMC at 9pm. After the episode, Talking Dead takes viewers behind the scenes and host Chris Hardwick talks to some of the brains behind the show. Also on tonight…

8PM

BBC: Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited (special)
CBS: Amazing Race 22 (reality competition)
PBS: Call the Midwife (period drama)
COOK: Cupcake Wars (cooking competition)
HISTORY: The Bible (dramatic retelling)
TRAVEL: Trip Flip (docu)
STYLE: Jerseylicious (reality)

9PM

HBO: Game of Thrones (supernatural action drama)
ABC: Revenge (drama)
CBS: The Good Wife (drama)
PBS: Mr. Selfridge (period drama)
BRAVO: Married to Medicine (reality)
FOOD: Worse Cooks in America (cooking competition)
LIFE: Army Wives (drama)

10PM

AMC: Talking Dead (live talk show)
ABC: Red Widow (acion drama)
FOOD: Chopped (cooking competition)
HISTORY: Vikings (period action drama)
LIFE: The Client List (drama)
SHOW: House of Lies (drama)
ANIMAL: Finding Bigfoot (reality)

This is the best show you’re not watching. The season finale is tonight and I cannot believe the ride is over for the year. Already renewed for a second season, Banshee has quickly become one of my favorite shows.  Headlined by standouts Antony Starr (A New Zealand TV Legend, apparently) and Ulrich Thomsen (The Thing).   Banshee started off with a gimmicky premise (sort of like the equally awesome Suits); wherein a recently released crook, due to an unfortunate incident, becomes the sheriff of a sleepy small town.  This show’s first season has been one helluva ride, somehow unfolded into an epic love story about lovers forced apart because of circumstance. Throw in Amish gangsters, White supremacists, a sneaky First Nation tribe, and an Asian transvestite hacker named Job — and my god this show is good.

This is a show that you need to watch and luckily for you, you’ll be able to marathon the first season now.  Honestly, this show should be on HBO not Cinemax — it is that good.  Definitely worth the time and energy to watch. (Also, Odette Annable shows up as an aboriginal hitwoman, that’s how crazy this show truly is).

Catch the new episode of Banshee at 10:00pm on Cinemax.

8PM

SYFY: WWE SmackDown (wrestling)
CW: Nikita (spy drama)
ABC: Last Man Standing/Malibu Country (TGIF!)
DISNEY: The Wizards Return: Alex vs Alex (family)
FOX: Kitchen Nightmares (reality)
NBC: Fashion Star (reality)
 

9PM

CW: Cult (thriller drama)
FOX: Touch (drama)
NBC: Grimm (fairy tale horror)
STARZ: Spartacus: War of the Damned (drama)
DISNEY: Gravity Falls (animation)
 
 

10PM

CBS: Blue Bloods (crime drama)
 
 
 
 
 
 

Holy crap, you don’t know how excited I was when I heard this show was coming back. I never expected this show to return but here we are today. I have very fond memories of this show from when I was younger when it initially aired… I can’t wait to watch this season premiere. For those of you who do not know what The Joe Schmo Show is, I’ll give you a bit of a history about it. Created by Rhett Rheese & Paul Winick (yes, the writer’s of Zombieland), The Joe Schmo Show was Spike TV’s signature reality series when it was transitioning away from being known as The TNN network (like AMC, TNN had a meaning before being declared sans of meaning by the executives). The basic premise of the show is that it is a reality show where all the contestants are actors, besides one, and the entire show is to get the greatest comedic reaction from the Schmo. It’s a real take on premise The Truman Show established. Just to give an idea of what legacy this show has left behind, some actors who have appeared have gone on to big, big things; including David Hornsby (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s Cricket and creator/star of How to Be a Gentleman), Jon Huertas (costar of Castle), Ralph Garman (Family Guy, Red State), Natasha Leggro (comedian), Valerie Azylnn (costar of Sullivan & Son), Jonathan Torrens (Canadian TV personality and host of Wipeout Canada), oh and Kirsten Wiig…

Though, I do not know if Rhett & Paul are involved in the show’s new season I will say that I’ve got high hopes for the new season and I cannot wait to see what happens with it. Hopefully it keeps up with the quality of the first two seasons and warrants a potential fourth season. I love it when an old reality favorite gets revived. My hope is that The Mole gets renewed next somewhere.

The Joe Schmo Show: The Full Bounty premieres tonight at 10:00pm over on Spike TV. Will you be watching?

8PM

CBS: NCIS (crime drama)
FOX: Raising Hope/Ben and Kate (comedies)
NBC: Betty White’s Off Their Rockers (hidden camera)
PBS: History Detectives (docu)
ABCFAM: Pretty Little Liars (drama)
OXYGEN: The Bad Girls Club (reality)
CNN: Anderson Cooper 360 (news showcase)

9PM

ABC: Happy Endings/Don’t Trust the B- in Apt 23 (comedies)
CBS: NCIS: LA (crime drama)
FOX: New Girl/The Mindy Project (comedies)
NBC: Go On/The New Normal (comedies)
CW: Emily Owens, MD (medical drama)
A&E: Storage Wars Texas (reality)
ABCFAM: The Lying Game (drama)

10PM

TBS: Cougar Town (comedy)
ABC: Private Practice (medical drama)
CBS: Vegas (crime drama)
NBC: Parenthood (drama)
PBS: Frontline (news showcase)
A&E: Storage Wars NY (reality)
STYLE: Chicagolicious (reality)

Dirty Sexy Money will always have a special place in my heart because for all of its spoils. It was both a show about an outsider looking in and a show about an insider wanting out. A sexy soap that didn’t go too over the top- the series died prematurely thanks to the Writer’s Strike. Deception premieres tonight on NBC with a plot very similar to Dirty Sexy Money- however, it’s taking a cue from ABC’s soap Revenge by adding in a central murder mystery.

Starring Megan Goode, Victor Garber, and Tate Donovan among others, NBC put the pilot for the show on its website about a week ago. I saw it and I have to say, it’s a lot better then I expected. The gist of the show is that a San Francisco detective (Goode) goes undercover after the murder of the daughter of an affluence family, a family her mother use to work for and whom was close to the murdered daughter before drifting out of their lives for years. There is a twist in the investigation because it’s soon revealed that the detective isn’t just investigating the daughter’s murder but all the members of the family for another crime. Though I’m not going to give a full review of the pilot, I will say that there are definitely some stand out moments along with a few head scratchers, in the way of character choices and even acting choices. This is one of those pilots where you’re not missing much if you decide to skip it but it has enough potential to be a decent series going forward. Nothing groundbreaking here.

Offiical Description, “Pilot”: The death of wealthy party girl Vivian Bowers doesn’t add up for FBI agent Will Moreno (Laz Alonso), especially in a family as suspicious as the Bowers. Convinced that the tabloid staple’s death was a homicide, he recruits his former SFPD partner and Vivian’s childhood best friend, Joanna Padget Locasto (Meagan Good) to re-establish ties with the Bowers. Determined to find justice for her estranged best friend, Joanna infiltrates the dynasty she once considered family, and quickly begins to uncover why Vivian’s life was very much in danger.

Check Deception out at 10:00pm on NBC. What else is on tonight?

8PM

USA: WWE Monday Night Raw (wrestling)
ABC: The Bachelor (reality)
NBC: The Biggest Loser (reality)
PBS: Antiques Roadshow (docu)
ABCFAM: Switched at Birth (drama)
CARTOON: Regular Show (comedy)
VH!: Love & Hip Hop (drama)

9PM

ABCFAM: Bunheads (family drama)
FOX: The Mob Doctor (crime drama)
PBS: Market Warriors (docu)
HIST: American Pickers (reality)
HGTV: Love It or List It (docu)
OWN: Shocking Family Secrets (docu)
TLC: Cake Boss: Next Great Baker (competition)

10PM

HIST: Pawn Stars (reality)
ABC: Castle (crime drama)
PBS: POV (news showcase)
A&E: The Haunting of… (docu)
BRAVO: The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (reality)
FOOD: Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (docu)
MTV: Teen Mom 2 (reality)

Hey everyone, I hope that you had a wonderful Holiday and New Years (and break from television)- but it is 2013 and shows are coming back just as fast as they left. Tonight I think you should sit back with ABC at 10pm for a new episode of Happy Endings and stay through Don’t Trust the B- in Apartment 23 (pictured above).

Wait a minute! Why in the freck are Happy Endings and The B- new on Sunday, don’t these comedies air new episodes on Tuesdays? Well, ABC? Would you like to explain yourself? (crickets) Last month the usually reliable network pulled 666 Park Ave and decided to replace it with new episodes of two of television’s most underrated comedies- I mean what makes a better pair for the melodramatic soap Revenge than these two shows… right? Right? (ugh) To make matters worse the network is keeping both comedies in their regular slots with new episodes. They say this will give the shows a chance to get new fans and try out a new time slot. What it actually looks like to a fan is that they are burning off episodes with little regard for the show or building audience.

Don’t Trust the B- in Apartment 23 has grown from an okay show with silly over the top characters (including Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek as himself) to a laugh out loud show with even crazier over the top characters (Beek stands out). The series went from something I’d watch every now and than when bored to a show that I DVR and watch every week (now twice a week?). Hopefully the ratings improve and show ABC that this is a comedy worth keeping. Ditto for Happy Endings.

Official Description, “Paris…”: June begins a new job and is befriended by a colleague, but Chloe thinks the coworker is just keeping her enemies close. Meanwhile, Mark asks James for help in expressing his feelings to June.

What else is on tonight?

8PM

ABC: Once Upon a Time (fantasy drama)
FOX: The Simpsons/Bob’s Burgers (animation)
NBC: Dateline NBC (news showcase)
BRAVO: The Real Housewives of Atlanta (reality)
FOOD: Chopped (competition)
VH1: Mob Wives (reality)
ANIMAL: Gator Boys: Xtra Bites (docu)

9PM

FOX: Family Guy/American Dad! (animation)
ABC: Revenge (drama)
NBC: The Biggest Loser (reality)
PBS: Downton Abbey (period drama)
ANIMAL: Gator Boys (docu)
FOOD: Rachel vs Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off (reality competition)
LIFE: An Amish Murder (tv movie)

10PM

ABC: Happy Endings (comedy)
CBS: The Mentalist (crime drama)
FOOD: Iron Chef America (competition)
ANIMAL: Finding Bigfoot (reality)
DSC: Moonshiners: Outlaw Cuts (reality)
E!: Ice Loves Coco (reality)
HGTV: House Hunters Renovation (docu)

I remember first watching this show on a boring Saturday afternoon. I had no expectations going into it. None. I had no idea what this show was about other then it sounded like it was probably a prank show. I was right on that one. It was a prank show, but what I found out very quickly was that it was one of the best prank shows produced in the last decade. Not since I saw the first Punk’D did I laugh so hard at a prank show. Starring “The Tenderloins” a New York based improv group made up of five life-long friends- this prank show is unique in that the pranksters have no idea what they are going to have to say or do until they are actually in the middle of the prank. It is that simple deviation of the prank formula that sets this show apart.

There has been a ton of prank show failures since Punk’D, which have included the Punk’D revival, Prank My Mom, and a slew of other shows that have aired mostly on MTV. What I appreciate about this show is that you get laughs on two fronts; on one hand you’re laughing at the pranks themselves, which have included people giving blind presentations in front of college lectures to grabbing food off of the plates of people at a buffet joint but you’re also laughing at the pranksters themselves who have to go through with those pranks as well as others. These include multiple variations of a prank wherein they have to get people to say random words like “Nazi-lover” or “Chumbawamba” without actually telling them to say it.

Needless to say, this is a show that delivers the laughs. It is consistently funny and over-the-top. This is a series that though you may not feel the need to watch live, it is definitely worth the DVR space. Very funny. Worth the watch. Check it out- This is probably the best show TruTV has ever produced and is only being overlooked because it airs on TruTV and not Comedy Central (where it really should be).

Official Episode Description: (10:00pm) The pranksters prove insensitive while conducting a sensitivity-training class, have surprise celebrity encounters on the street and try being unreceptive receptionists in a busy office.

Official Episode Description: (10:30pm) The pranksters share shameful secrets in the park, don headsets at a fast-food drive-through, and ask unsuspecting strangers to dance.

Also on tonight…

8PM

NBC: Up All Night (comedies)
ABC: Last Resort (action drama)
CBS: The Big Bang Theory/Two and a Half Men (comedies)
FOX: The X Factor (music competition)
CW: The Vampire Diaries (supernatural drama)
HGTV: Hotel Impossible (reality)
SPIKE: Impact Wrestling (wrestling)

9PM

CBS: Person of Interest (action drama)
ABC: Grey’s Anatomy (medical drama)
NBC: Take It All (game show)
CW: Beauty and the Beast (supernatural drama)
BRAVO: The Real Housewives of Miami (reality)
GSN: Newlywed Game (game show)
LIFE: Project Runway All Stars (reality)

10PM

FX: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia/The League (comedies)
ABC: Scandal (drama)
CBS: Elementary (crime drama)
NBC: Rock Center (news showcase)
USA: Burn Notice (action drama)
MTV: Jersey Shore (disgusting “reality”)
ID: Nightmare Christmas (docu)

Season four has brought a lot of changes to FOX’s musical drama Glee. It split the action between McKinley High in Ohio with the actual Glee club and New York City where graduates Rachel and Kurt moved to at the end of last season.The split is ambitious to say the least and it sorta feels like there are two separate shows going on at once- I’m not fully sure if this is a good thing yet. It comes off a little scatter brained and as someone who doesn’t care much for Rachel or Kurt, I feel myself zoning out whenever the show cuts to New York (that is unless Whoopi is guest starring).

Last week saw the New Directions, led by Finn, losing Sectionals and putting the future of the club on the line. This was a pretty good twist after the team came off winning Nationals last year and not only knocks them down a peg, but breaks us from the constant format of always working towards Sectionals, Regionals, then Nationals… a format that feels very tired in the show’s forth season. I’m very interested in where they will go from here.

Official Description, “Swan Song”: Finn thinks about his future with the glee club after Sectionals are over. Elsewhere, Rachel gets ready for NYADA’s winter showcase; and Kurt gets a second chance at an audition.

The new Glee episode airs tonight at 9:00pm on FOX. What else is on tonight?

8PM

CBS: The Big Bang Theory/Tw0 & a Half Men (comedies)
NBC: 30 Rock/Up All Night (comedies)
ABC: Last Resort (spy drama)
FOX: The X Factor (music competition)
CW: The Vampire Diaries (supernatural drama)
BET: Apollo Live (variety)
SPIKE: Impact Wrestling (wrestling)

9PM

CW: Beauty and the Beast (supernatural drama)
NBC: The Office/Parks and Recreation (comedies)
ABC: Grey’s Anatomy (medical drama)
CBS: Person of Interest (action drama)
GSN: Newlywed Game (game show)
HGTV: Extrene Homes (docu)
TLC: Four Weddings Holiday Showdown (reality)

10PM

ABC: Scandal (drama)
NBC: Rock Center (news showcase)
CBS: Elementary (action drama)
USA: Burn Notice (action drama)
FOOD: Sweet Genius (cooking competition)
FX: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia/The League (comedies)
DSC: Ghost Town Gold (docu)