Television Troubles
My shows are disappointing me all over the place lately. In last week’s Veronica Mars, “There’s Got to Be a Morning After Pill”, Logan gets drunk and teary, then gasps between words to convey his anguish. Apparently he’s been taking acting lessons from Neve Campbell. Richard Grieco and his non-natural nose showed up so he could become a suspect. And Veronica and her dad talk about sex. I wish it were affirming; instead I find it creepy. Dick is funny and the best part of the show.
On last week’s House, “Needle in a Haystack”, the show did a 180 from the week before’s turgid rape drama. House was his glib, irreverent self as he tried to steal a wheelchair-bound colleague’s parking spot. Both attempts at characterization felt heavy and contrived. The earlier episode tried too hard to show House’s human side. Then last week’s stripped that away to imply an almost sociopathic disregard for others. Somewhere in between there is a nuanced, complex character. I hope.
On the Office, the parts of Michael were so frequent, and so painful, that I kept wincing. It’s a hard balance they do, but this week’s show of Phyllis’s wedding was too much in the pain range.
But then Bones surprised me. I had been so disappointed with it earlier that I was on the verge of abandoning it. But then Stephen Fry showed up as the shrink to counsel Booth. He was funny, humane, and gave me a great deal of hope that he might be a recurring character. And Brennan now has a love interest. Things are definitely looking up. There was a noticeable absence of crying.