(Ratings Clack 11/30 – 12/6)

It was an interesting week for TV numbers. With Tom & Samantha packing up the ballroom, there were viewers to be had on Monday and Tuesday. That meant there were winners (Chuck, The Mentalist), and losers (Samantha Who?, Heroes).

The other big story was just how well all of the Christmas programming did. Shrek, The Grinch, Santa Claus, and Rudolph all had nice showings, as did the Christmas in Rockefeller. We also saw the return of Jericho to the airwaves. If you were holding out hope that this could revive the series, well… nuts.

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8:00p/7:00 Central

• For those who don’t know, Chowder is an animated series on Cartoon Network that premiered as the #1 new show on the network about a year ago. Now, as its second season is under way, it’s time for the first ever half hour Chowder Holiday special. That’s followed by The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack
• Meanwhile, BBC America is taking us inside the Dragon’s Den for more invention madness. Discovery takes us into the world of timber on How Stuff Works, while TruTV looks at more Speeders.
• At 8:15p/7:15 Central, the NFL Network offers up another Thursday spectacle with the Raiders (3-9) taking on the Chargers (4-8). Talk about an amazing and relevant match-up! In fact, fifteen minutes later, you can flip over to HBO for the season finale of De La Hoya/Pacquiao 24/7.
• A list item leads Randy and Earl into the wild to find an old friend who’s living there on NBC’s My Name is Earl. Then, on Kath & Kim, Kath gets drawn into the world of life coach, and guest star, Maya Rudolph when wedding planning stress gets to be too much.
• It’s the fallout of Randy’s ouster on the one-week delayed Survivor: Gabon. I know it was on last week, but clip shows don’t count! Ugly Betty teams up with Amanda for an article for Mode’s website on ABC.
• It’s repeats for FOX and The CW with Kitchen Nightmares and Smallville, the latter featuring Clarks’ first day at the Daily Planet. MyNetwork TV goes with Driving Miss Daisy.

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I hesitate to admit it, but I have seen just about every episode of Kath & Kim so far. My excuse is that it’s between two shows that I actually enjoy: My Name is Earl and The Office. Beyond that, I feel like there is a good show somewhere under the surface, just wanting to get out.

The talent on the show is great – all four principles are funny and talented, but this material … I just don’t get it. I’ve already complained about the bizarre voice overs. That’s not the only thing that bothers me, though. I think I have pinpointed why this show just isn’t working for me….

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8:00p/7:00 Central

• Doomsday crashes the wedding of Chloe and Jimmy on The CW’s Smallville. Betty and Marc compete against one another to move up from assistant on ABC’s Ugly Betty.
• Over on CBS’s Survivor: Gabon, a castaway considers abandoning his/her alliance to save their own skin. This week, FOX launches the night with the new episode of Kitchen Nightmares, followed by a repeat. First up, Ramsay tries to shape up a struggling “health food” restaurant.
• Discovery’s How Stuff Works examines turkey in anticipation of Thanksgiving next week. Animal Planet is trying to raise awareness to the plight of The Vanishing Frog. Apparently, our amphibious friends are disappearing at an alarming rate due to fungus and other causes. By alarming, we’re talking extinction level numbers akin to the disappearance of the dinosaurs.
• The NFL Network offers up another special Thursday night football game with their coverage of NFL Football: Bengals at Steelers.
• At the half hour, TruTV has found a fun niche for a reality court program. Tonight’s first season finale of Speeders Fight Back offers more idiots trying to talk their way out of their speeding tickets.
• NBC kicks off their night of comedy with a tornado ripping through My Name is Earl, causing Earl to lose his list. Then, on Kath & Kim, Kath makes a fool of herself in front of a gay couple.

9:00p/8:00 Central

• It’s the return of Toby on NBC’s The Office, followed by Steve Martin’s guest stint on 30 Rock as an eccentric business associate of Jack’s who grows enamored with Liz.
• The prime suspect in a murder case from 12 years ago comes front and center on a new case on CBS’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.
• You can check out more inventions on BBC America’s Dragon’s Den, learn about ancient mining machines on History’s Ancient Discoveries, or watch mean beat one another on TNA: Impact over on Spike TV.
• It’s an injured sleepwalker on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy, while the battle for Anna continues on The CW’s Supernatural, with the Winchesters stuck in the middle.

10:00p/9:00 Central

• VH1 is back with Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew, while BET’s American Gangster explores J. Edgar Hoover. Iconoclasts wraps its first season on Sundance with Cameron Diaz sitting down with Cameron Sinclair.
• Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style wraps its second season on Bravo, while LA Ink is all new on TLC, and MTV brings another 50 Cent: The Money and the Power.
• Gates becomes obsessed with finding a homeless war hero on NBC’s ER, which frustrates Sam. Meanwhile, a different Sam on ABC’s Life on Mars discovers that his long missing father may have been involved in the kidnapping of a prominent family’s baby in 1973. Maybe this is why he’s stuck in ‘73?
• A government experiment to enhance soldiers goes a little haywire, meaning Hood must come in to help investigate in the Eleventh Hour on CBS.
• FX wraps up the fourth season of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. In it, Charlie stages a rock opera based on his classic song “Nightman.” After that, you have a choice. You can stick with FX, where Ron and Peter face their impending demise on Testees, or flip over to Comedy Central and be touched (so to speak) when Sarah sees her dad on The Sarah Silverman Program.

11:00p/10:00 Central

• It went so quickly. Already we’re looking at the first season finale of Sci Fi’s Into the Unknown with George Noory. Maybe it’s just a trial run to see if we’re watching.

MTV

8:00p/7:00 Central

• FOX offers up a two-fer with Kitchen Nightmares, while CBS’s Survivor: Gabon offers up a merge (maybe) and a reality show twist. The NFL offers a special Thursday night game at 8:15p/7:15 Central with NFL: Broncos at Browns on the NFL Network.
• Ugly Betty tries really hard to get the attention of her neighbor on ABC, while on The CW’s Smallville, Kara returns when Clark and Lois wind up in the Phantom Zone.
• NBC’s “Must See” Thursday starts with My Name is Earl with Jane Seymour guesting as herself. Then, on Kath & Kim has Kim convincing Kath that she knows nothing about her fiance.

9:00p/8:00 Central

• NBC’s comedies continue with The Office. Tonight, the team is shocked by the results of the annual customer survey. On 30 Rock, Oprah Winfrey guests.
• FOX is back with another Kitchen Nightmares, while reality is all new with BBC America’s Dragon’s Den, Discovery’s Destroyed in Seconds, History’s Ancient Discoveries and Spike TV’s TNA: Impact!
• The doctors of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy get competitive when a solo surgery is up for grabs. Alternately, on The CW’s Supernatural the boys find a wishing well that really works. Or, Grissom turns to Lady Heather for help on CBS’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

10:00p/9:00 Central

• 50 Cent, who’s managed to parlay his street background and rap success into a megamillion dollar business enterprise, offers up the opportunity to get a $100,000 investment from him into someone’s vision on MTV’s 50 Cent: The Money and the Power.
• BET’s American Gangster looks at Cornell Jones while VH1’s Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew keeps trying to help Jeff Conaway.
• Other reality includes new installments of TLC’s LA Ink, Bravo’s Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style and Sundance’s Iconoclasts with Bill Maher and Clive Davis.
• The team of CBS’s Eleventh Hour faces a positive viral outbreak, while Sam faces a potential race riot on Life on Mars, over on ABC.
• NBC’s ER moves on without creator Michael Crichton, who may not have been actively involved but it was still his baby.
• FX offers up a new It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, followed by Testees. At the half hour Comedy Central is all new with The Sarah Silverman Program.

11:00p/10:00 Central

• HBO keeps heading toward fight night with a new Calzaghe/Jones 24/7.

FOX

Everybody loves trick-or-treating, but how awesome would it be to go out on Halloween night in the world of our favorite television shows?

The Bauer Household (24)

• Kids: “Trick-or-treat”
• Jack [over intercom]: “Chloe? Is that you?”
• Kids: “Huh?
• Jack [over intercom]: “I need the schematics of this house. I’m sending you the address now. There’s someone at the front entrance.”
• Kids: “We just wanted some candy.”
• Jack [over intercom]: “Can you run a voice match analysis, too? See if they’re connected to the terrorist attack at the embassy earlier.”
• Kids: “Come on, let’s go to the next house.”
• Jack [over intercom]: “Not so fast.” [gas comes from doorknob, knocking kids out.] “Chloe, how we coming on that intel?”

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NBC

8:00p/7:00 Central

• Tonight, CBS’s Survivor: Gabon throws a new wrinkle into the game by having the tribes battle for individual immunity, and then sending both to tribal council to lose a member.
• Clark’s secret may be revealed on The CW’s Smallville, as a picture snapped by Jimmy of him saving Lois at super speed is headed to the front page of the Daily Planet. Alternately, Kimmie (Lindsay Lohan) finally shows her true colors on ABC’s Ugly Betty. I guess that means she becomes a boozing, drug addicted whore.
• On NBC, Randy befriends Catalina’s creepy nephew on My Name is Earl, followed by Kath overextending herself trying to plan her dream wedding, while Kim finds a reason to get back with her husband ($$$$) on Kath & Kim.
• FOX launches a two-hour Kitchen Nightmares block with a repeat from the first season where Ramsay has a showdown in front of the staff with the executive chef. They were going to air an episode of Hole in the Wall but I think they’re done with that now.

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