(Buffy Season 4, Episodes 1-2)
(Angel Season 1, Episodes 1-2)

Welcome to the new and shorter-titled “Diary of a Buffy/Angel Virgin.” I’m a completist by nature, so if I’d been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer when it was on, I would have surely tuned in to Angel. I’ll bet the vast majority of people who were watching did the same, or at least sampled Angel.

So far, both shows feel a little lean. They took two of the regular cast members of Buffy, and put them on Angel. Buffy is just making do with the smaller number, while Angel added one. After high school so much changes, so it’s pretty cool watching two different shows to see how everybody’s lives are moving in such different directions. Read the rest of this entry »

Alex Drake seems to be settling into to her 1981 digs nicely, thank you. She does keep seeing visions of the creepy birthday clown Pierott, but you can’t expect complete normalcy when you’ve been transported to a make-believe time and place after being shot. I quite enjoyed Alex’s greeting to her precinct brethren: “Good morning imaginary constructs.” Unlike Life on Mars, this series has a more light-hearted feel to it, which fits the silly ’80s to a tee.

In episode two, Alex, Gene and the rest of the fantastical coppers are after a mad bomber threatening to blow-up the wedding of Lady Diana to Prince Charles. Bundles of dynamite are popping up across London, much to the chagrin of Alex and a poor little pooch. Explosions don’t do much to ease Alex considering her parents were killed by a car bomb. Read the rest of this entry »

When I read about Mistresses – BBC America’s newest hour-long drama – I have to admit, I wasn’t jumping for joy. Four chicks whining about their unfulfilled relationships with men seemed like an overabundance of estrogen. I’m not one to dismiss a show without giving it a watch, so I took in the premiere last Friday night, stiff drink in hand.

Any time a series opens up with a funeral, you know you’re in for something interesting. Bodies in caskets aside, the debut featured assisted suicide, an office sex scene, and lesbians. Now that’s how you get out of the blocks quickly. I hope the writers didn’t blow their wad after just one episode. Not to worry. It appears they will be able to get some mileage from this collection of philandering birds.

Read the rest of this entry »

OK, did I tell you, or did I tell you? Was that not one of the most perfect season finales ever to grace your screen?

Now, we know that Nate, Parker, Eliot, Sophie and Hardison are awesome. And by awesome, I mean spectacularly written and acted, funny, human, three-dimensional and, well, spunky. We’ve gotten a chance to see these main characters grow and evolve and become even more … well, awesome as the series has gone on.

The season finale has now elevated two supporting characters to awesome status: Maggie, Nate’s ex-wife, and Sterling, Nate’s nemesis.

Read the rest of this entry »

I know that Life on Mars is set in 1973, and women have made a lot of progress in America in the last 26 years. Still, I was really surprised to see just how big of a dick our Detective Ray Carling was to his wife Denise during Wednesday’s show.

Should I be? I don’t know, maybe I figured that even with all of his tough talk at work, he wasn’t really that bad. I chalked it up to just that — tough talk.

We know some of the random officers at the station are skeevy — the ones that don’t play any major part in the show. But Skelton (whether he is or isn’t the mysterious voice on the other end of the phone) treats women with respect, and even Hunt is a big old softie underneath the gruff exterior. I guess there had to be a bad seed, and it’s Carling.

Read the rest of this entry »

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve never seen the British version of Life on Mars. I also haven’t yet started watching the original The Prisoner series (though I plan to very soon). However, as soon as I saw the guy pictured above, I thought this was a character pulled right from one of those shows. You know, a bushy-browed, jolly ol’ chap with a trench, hat, and cane. You know, like all the old British dudes. Clearly, I also have never been to England.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Mentalist. Yeah, he’s pretty slick
Flicks a frakker’s nose ‘cuz he’s being a dick
But there’s someone else who can outclass Jane
Don’t know who I’m talking ’bout? You gotta be insane!

He’s Cho, yo, and he’s stealing the show
Put on his sunglasses and he’s ready to go
All of the ladies, hey, they can’t say no
‘Cuz this mother fucker, he’s a playa pro

Read the rest of this entry »