Yup, They're One Of Us! - Canada Day Edition

Happy Canada Day!

In honour of our home and nation land, here's my favorite Canadians on TV because you know we are slowly taking over Hollywood (hehe) and that as a rule, there must be one Canadian on each show for it to be good. (Well, okay, the Australians and British are slowly taking over that rule but at least we are keeping it in the commonwealth). Though actually, looking below, seems like ABC is actually employing the most Canadians (as well as the Gays). I knew there was a reason why ABC is now my favorite network!

Sandra Oh as Christina Yang in Grey's Anatomy

Emily Vancamp as Rebecca in Brothers & Sisters

Luke MacFarlane as Scotty in Brothers & Sisters (who also made the Pride Edition! Gay AND Canadian!)

Taylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins in Friday Night Lights

Cobie Smulders as Robin Scherbatsky in How I Met Your Mother

Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop in the upcoming Fringe

Donald Sutherland as Tripp Darling in Dirty Sexy Money

Evangeline Lilly as Kate Austen in Lost

Sarah Chalke as Dr. Elliot Reid in Scrubs

Victor Garber as Jordan Wethersby in Eli Stone

James Tupper as Jack Slattery in Men In Trees

Some Other Canucks:

Plus Half the cast of Men In Trees including Sarah Strange, Suleka Matthews, Timothy Webber, Ty Olsson, Nicholas Lea and Currie Graham
Natasha Henstridge as Taylor Wethersby in Eli Stone
William Shatner as Denny Crane in Boston Legal
Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer in 24
Kristin Kreuk as Lana Lang in Smallville
Vik Sahay as Lester in Chuck
Jeremy Ratchford as Nick Vera in Cold Case
Tyler Labine as Bert 'Sock' Wysocki in Reaper
Missy Peregrym as Andi in Reaper
David Cubitt as Detective Lee Scanlon in Medium
Tricia Helfer as Number Six in Battlestar Galactica
Grace Park as Lt. Sharon 'Boomer' Valerii in Battlestar Galactica

Did I miss anybody?

More After the Jump...

Men In Trees - Money Doesn't Grow On Trees (Just Men)

New Dogs, Old Tricks - Ep. 217, Surprise, Surprise - Ep. 218

I was going to talk about last weeks new episode and get all excited in prepping up for tonight's new episode but apparently I've already seen tonights (Ep. 218 Surprise, Surprise)(and I didn't actually watch last weeks).

I don't know if it was ABC or only the Canadian channel CITY that switched the episodes but the Toronto feed skipped an episode so no wonder I was confused when Patrick was already back in Elmo, Jane and Plow Guy Sam were on the road on their roadtrip back to Alaska, Marin had a dog, and Annie was officially dating the hot hockey guy.

I thought I missed an episode and apparently I did, it just wasn't my fault this time.

So I guess Men In Trees isn't like Lost and we can pretty much guess what happened in between based on tonights episode (that I guess aired mistakenly at least in Toronto last week).

What I loved about tonights episode is that money actually becomes an issue, rarely spoken about on TV (Once and Again was probably the only show that realistically portrayed the struggles of money, and Friday Night Lights to a lesser degree). Marin gets her paycheque for her book and of course Jack pretends to be okay with it but starts to struggle with it when Marin starts paying for new renovations on his own house.


Meanwhile, I LOVED when Jane struggles to accept Sam's thriftyness while they are on the road and in another fairytale twist ending, I LOVED that Sam was thrifty not for economical sake but because of it's the right thing to do. Of course, he had been saving for so long that he was rich, and I'm assuming richer than Jane based on her facial expression when she sees the dollar amount. It was cute and sexy and those two are so hot together. Who knew moneytalk could be sexy? Of course it helps when it comes out of the mouth of Plow Guy Sam (Ty Olsen). Plus the fact that I'm in total agreeance and have the same money sensibility (though I will take a pass on eating at Potatoville to save $3. I do draw the line somewhere).

Patrick is now trying to woo back Annie but she's with hockey dude and he proposes to Annie at the talent show (which again, I guess I missed the auditions portion in the previous episode) and his heartbrokeningly rejected.

They better hurry up and make up because there's only a couple more episodes before the season series finale and I NEED a happy ending here.

Anyways, here's some pictures from last week's episode that I hope will play on the Toronto station tonight.

I'm guessing it didn't work out with Patrick and Sofia...

More After the Jump...

Alienated/ It's Too Late Now - Aliens in America, Men In Trees

Raja at Sixteen - Ep 117

Since Men In Trees restarts tonight (10pm on ABC/City) for its now final 3 episodes ever, and Aliens in America ended last week to its series finale, here's a little final eulogy to two of my favorite shows that barely anybody watched.
And I'm not going to start some kind of peanut campaign or anything, just saying that they were two terrific shows and now most people will miss out on the charms of Elmo, Alaska and Raja and the Tolchuks.

That look on Franny Tolchuk (Amy Pietz)? Is recreating the look of horror when the fans (and there were about that many as in the picture, 4 of us I'd say) found out that The CW was cancelling Aliens in America. And now it's too late and this is really a pointless post to convince you to watch (though it does go into repeats now) since you've missed the boat already and all I'm going to do is smack my head when you all come to me 3 years later after discovering a wonderful show called Aliens in America and wondering if it was still on. It's not. It's too late, cause you didn't watch when it was airing originals. It's your fault. (I'm talking to you Trent)(He "discovered" Six Feet Under and Veronica Mars after they were both cancelled AND thought I should check it out as if I had never seen them before. Smack.).

So sadly, we end our little run with Raja just as he turns 16 and just as he goes on his first date with the OTHER Muslim girl living nearby in Wisconsin. It was less a funny episode than an emotional and dramatic one, and again, it was nice and sweet as we watched Sadika and Raja "date" properly with both sets of families sitting by chaperoning the young pair.

Still, it was no less hilarious since Franny does her scheming to get these two together in the first place, AND THEN goes out of her way to clear some alone time for Raja and Sadika (and by extension, Claire and the hot blond foreign exchange student which was equally hilarious, especially when they finally "talk" instead of just sucking face).

Both the Muslim religion and their practices are treated with respect in the episode even as Franny tries to circumvent them (without intending them to insult Sadika's family).

Amy Pietz as Franny has been a total revelation in this series, never wavering from her Wisconsin accent and playing the fierce mother with her twisted sense of duty with such loyalty and love, that I've completely forgotten she was the loose neighbour in Caroline in the City.

Adhir Kalyan's Raja is simply superb in an Emmy winning performance (ditto with Amy Pietz) that will sadly never get recognized. It will be interesting to see him move onto Nip/Tuck, a 360 turn in moral attitudes.

As for the show, loved that Sadika, while liking Raja, was not immune to her North American upbringing, choosing to date the local boys as well, while trying to find that place between her own culture and background and her new place in America. While Raja felt betrayed, it's all a part of his learning experience in America, and those immigrant issues and emotions have rarely (if ever) been delt with in a serious (yet still sweet and funny) manner on American television.

Unfortunately, it's the last time we will see that for a while, until things turn around and a network sees the worth in showing stories that divert from the typical whitebread family life (not that that's bad since the Tolchuks are skewered and adored nicely at ths same time in this same series).

Sigh, so there it is. One season of the terrific Aliens in America, where even Scott Patterson was able to break out from his Gilmore Girls' Luke, and where Dan Byrd proved he can hold his own on a series.

Now it's time to say goodbye to the lovely folks on Men In Trees, another charming easy going show that tackles controversial issues in a light, delicate, funny and non-controversial way.

More After the Jump...

The Death and Life of Great American Pities - Aliens in America, Everybody Hates Chris

Aliens in America - Smutty Books - Ep. 116
Everybody Hates Chris - Everybody Hates the Ninth-Grade Dance
- Ep. 320

Aliens in America takes on those "Parental Groups"! While I take on The CW. Again. More on that later.

Sandy Shermer (Nora Dunn) calls Franny to warn her about the smut that Justin and his class is reading for English. Smut called Madame Bovary. Luckily, Franny takes the crazy woman's heretic screaming with a grain of salt.

Until Franny finds Justin's "inspired" drawings since Justin actually READ the book (and not just the cliffnotes) after Sandy's warnings. Gary tries to talk to Justin but gives up, since Justin is "drawing" all the time, 5-6 times a day, Gary notes it's a wonder his hand still works.

So Franny joins the parental group trying to get books banned in the school.

They succeed, so Claire tries to use THAT to HER advantage, getting Franny to ban the book she's required to read for HER english class by describing Pride and Prejudice as dirtier than it is. Brilliant!

Loved that Franny was about to ban Swiss Family Robinson but Everybody Poops (or whatever that book is called) was safe.

Love Mr. Matthews (Christopher B. Duncan, Veronica Mars) cool attempt to sidetrack the ladies, and then caving to their insane demands. Poor Mr. Matthews.

Raja mentions how much he loves Pride and Prejudice which shocks Franny (who thinks Pakistan and its censored ways keep it more backwards than America), until she realizes that there's actually nothing perverted about the book. She goes on to read P&P (she thinks it's long winded, yes, dirty, no) and Madame Bovary and rushes to Sandy and the Parental Group to stop the banning, where Sandy somehow turns it all around, making her mission to ban books even MORE (since it was even able to corrupt the mind of Franny). Sandy's next missions, to ban the dictionary and the bible (for the smut in the book of Genesis).

Hysterical. (Both in the "she's crazy" sense and the funny laugh-out-loud sense, which is why this show is so great!).

That being said, apparently Aliens in America has been cancelled, according to E!Online via Tube Talk. NOOOOOOO. (More bad news? Apparently a pleasurable favorite Men in Trees is also cancelled... BOOO).

This news sucks since Aliens in America has totally molded itself into the perfect political, social and family satire that is both biting and sweet, a tough line to stay on since any imbalance can make it cynical and dislikable, yet AiA is fun and comfortable to watch that is a smarter (if not one of the smartest) family sitcom.

I pity those that are missing out on this gem of a show.

But it's on The CW. On Sunday nights. Buried within the "black comedy" block, so thus ignored by most of America that isn't black. (Hey, I don't make the stats)

Plus, it's on The CW. They cancelled the amazing Everwood. The amazing Veronica Mars, and now this. Meanwhile, they gladly air Farmer Wants A Wife.

Civilization is dead. Maybe we SHOULD just ban all the books. We'll be able to use the energy source since we're using up all the oil anyways.

Speaking of the "black show comedy block" on The CW, if any of them crossed over, Everybody Hates Chris deserves more attention from ALL America. It's not always brilliant, but it's endearing as I've mentioned before.

This week, Chris tries to get a date for the 9th grade prom, and ends up asking a white girl (who really wants to go to the prom) after all the other black girls in the neighborhood turn him down.

Of course, all I really remember is Tichina Arnold's Rochelle rocking as a rock star in a dream sequence. Seriously, Emmy NEEDS to take notice and look beyond the colour lines (or The CW barrier) because Arnold can play hysterical outrageousness and switch to heartwarming and serious all within seconds. She goes for the broad yet feels incredibly real and not a caricature which is amazing with some of the things they make Rochelle do.

So everyone else in the school is shocked that Chris and the white girl are hanging out in anticipation of the date but of course, everybody hates Chris after Chris starts overanalyzing things too much and ruins a good thing.

It's sad when society's pressures (and the neuroses it triggers) doom something that could have been beautiful (and I can foray this into so many different spins and issues).

More After the Jump...

Tapeworthy - Men in Trees, Desperate Housewives, Samantha Who?, Scrubs, The Big Bang Theory, Bones, Corner Gas

Men In Trees - Wander/Lust - Ep. 215, Kiss and Don't Tell - Ep. 216
Desperate Housewives - In Buddy's Eyes - Ep. 412
Samantha Who? - The Butterflies - Ep. 112
Scrubs - My Bad Too - Ep. 707, My Manhood - Ep. 708
The Big Bang Theory - The Bat Jar Conjecture - Ep. 113
Bones - Player Under Pressure - Ep. 311
Corner Gas - Final Countdown - Ep. 518 - Season Finale

Men In Trees: Seriously, with my pathetic love life, I have to live vicariously through Men in Trees. I really should just move to Alaska shouldn't I? I especially love/live through Jane and Plow Guy Sam the most. Seriously, adorable! Loved when he bought the ring from the lost and found at his work (the sanitary dept. for the city) and Jane was grossed out, lost the ring, fell in love with it and had it returned right to her on her doorstep. Cute and a complete fairy tale but a fairy tale I so needed.

Also loved the awkwardness of Julia's (Kelli Williams) return last week AND Cash's (Scott Elrod) return this week. It's so silly that Marin and Jack can't seem to have friends of the opposite sex and be cool with it but the way they write it, it actually seems real and grounded.

Patrick finally has the gumption to go on his round the world trip and stops in New York joining Jane at her workplace where he charms Sofia Vergara and everyone else in the office with his small town boy charms! Annie finds herself alone in Elmo but charms newly single Buzz (from losing Mai's Hawaii-in-the-home fund to a gambling addiction) and all the radio listeners when she replaces Patrick at the mic. Annie was adorable getting Buzz to trust her ("hell no!") but why has no one even mentioned her adorable short haircut?

I had to laugh when Sofia Vergara's character asks Jane to essentially pimp out Patrick to her in exchange for her book deal. I love that this show throws in salacious things all the time and it still somehow feels like a wholesome show.

Desperate Housewives: As much as seeing Jason Gedrick again is not a terrible thing, I kinda hoped the pizza place thing and Lynette's family troubles would simmer down a bit. For goodness sake, let something good happen to the woman for once!

Orson's sleep walking was truly disturbing, and when he unknowingly revealed all in front of Julie, I had shivers Lost style on me. CREEPY!

Bree's comeuppance at the awards ceremony that was intended for HER was cliched yet still hilarious and her newfound respect/realization of Katherine as a perfect frenemy seems potentially frentastic!

Samantha Who? and Scrubs: One's new, one's getting old, and both are not at the game level they should be playing at (but both may be on the same network come fall), but I like the main characters enough to continue to stick by, even though I'm not laughing as much as they could be making me.

I'm still contending that Judy Reyes and John C. McGinley deserve Emmy Awards so I almost want Scrubs to continue staying on until they get a nomination in the very least.

The Big Bang Theory: Jim Parsons = hilarity. Jim Parsons + guest star Sara Gilbert + her former Roseanne costar Johnny Galecki = something far funnier than all of Chuck Lorre's previous efforts combined. I found myself already laughing out loud several times as Leonard, Rajnesh and Howard ask Leslie to beat Sheldon in a quiz showdown, but Howard's victory strip took it to another level.

I actually like Kaley Cuoco but at this point, her Penny is pretty useless to the proceedings. They really need to ask Sara Gilbert to join permanently.

Bones: Someone remind me not to eat dinner while I watch this show, which always seems to happen. And then I end up sitting with my mouth open in disgust, this time when a star college basketball player gets SQUEEZED through a grate. Ewwwwwwww.

It's also a second week in a row where one of the suspects/creepy people is a Lost alum! This week with Artz (Daniel Roebuck) as someone suspected of giving the star player some steroids.

But again, the real fun is back at the lab, with Hodgins uses Cam's personal blender to mix larvae (again, remind me NOT to eat while watching this show), Cam attempts to get Angela to keep Hodgins in check, and nicely blackmails her with a surveillance tape of the storage closet at lunch time that features starring roles with a naked Hodgins and Angela. I love that Cam was nice about it and that Angela ends up being quite proud of the tape!

Corner Gas: On the season finale, Brent turns 40 and plans to drink the 20 year old whiskey he bought 20 years ago that Hank had used 20 years ago. Loved Emma and Lacey's cake bake off fight but this was also the episode that seems to be getting some attention in the states for the small random cameo from Kiefer Sutherland as himself, living in his mother's (Canadian actress Shirley Douglas who has been on the show as someone else and just guest starred on Degrassi) house.

Here's the clip where Davis calls for backup and get the son of Shirley Douglas on the phone:

More After the Jump...

Men In Trees - A Convincing Promotion To Move to Alaska, or Squamish At Least

Sea Change - Ep. 207, Sweatering It Out - Ep. 208, Charity Case - Ep. 209, Sonata in Three Parts - Ep. 210, Home Seized Home - Ep. 211, Read Between the Minds - Ep. 212, A Tale of Two Kidneys - Ep. 213 Get a Life - Ep. 214

I haven't been blogging about Men in Trees lately, not because I don't love it anymore (I do), but just because there really isn't much to say about it on a weekly basis. Which doesn't mean it isn't good. I've said it from the start, it's a great fluff piece perfect for those cozy nights in with some junk food (take your pick, sugary or salty? a bit of both? Just like the show!) and a glass of wine.

The show hasn't been perfect, throwing some outlandish things at us (Jane's little parents, Patrick's amnesia, Buzz as Patrick's father, Mario Cantone as someone who is actually not annoying), but the show has written some of the most grounded amusing characters that I ACTUALLY LIKE AND WOULD WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH that it reminds me that a show doesn't need crazy plots and mysteries to keep me coming back. Sometimes it IS just as simple as having characters we like to spend time with. Remember those days on TV?

Anne Heche is actually likable as Marin and I love the bevy of re-occurring men that seems to parade through Marin's life. Love that they bring back Stuart (Jason O'Mara from my favorite lazy day in a foreign country show Monarch of the Glen). Love that Cash (Scott Elrod) is still around.

And of course Jack (James Tupper), with his gruff grunts and making unintelligible dialogues somehow extremely sexy and appealing (plus the new trim is a plus). Love that the men all kind of just float in and out of Marin's life, which actually seems somehow more realistic. Love that most of the men don't really talk. So true.

Love the townfolks of Elmo, Alaska! And so many couples! Of every range at every point of a relationship. Buzz and Mai, Ben and Theresa, Celia and Dick, Sarah and Eric, Patrick and Annie and Jane and Sam! Plus Jerome and his heartbreaks, awww...

So since the last time I talked about Men In Trees back in November, Patrick and Annie were about to get married until Patrick gets struck by lighting and forgets everything, including Annie. This allows them to split them up again and restart their meeting (cheeky of them) but they are buying their time by giving them side stories and giving Patrick a slightly new outgoing persona, though at least at the core, it's still Derek Richardson's goofy self.

The slow return to Patrick and Annie together again was soooo cute, especially when they were both thrown in jail by Patrick's mom Celia, but now they seem to be throwing new singles at them to split them apart again. Usually an annoying plot device especially since they already did it, but it's been kind of interesting with the hockey god Ivan (Diego Klattenhoff, Whistler) chasing after Annie and the (large for TV but normal in real life) wing-woman that seems to connect with Patrick.

Jane and Plow Guy Sam. Oh PLOW GUY! Their quick marriage, their move to New York, the Times announcement, Plow Guys emotional crying, and resulting speech he makes was a fairy tale ending worthy of a Disney adaptation. Or a musical! Maybe a Disney musical. It is an ABC show so we are halfway there already!

Then there's Sara and Pastor Eric! Oooh. I've always loved these two actors in real life so it's extra bonus that they get to play sweet here. Seriously Suleka Mathew and Nicholas Lea are adorable together, though I didn't mind that doctor-in-the-ambulance they threw in for a loop (that I bet will return to add more potholes into Sara and Eric's growing relationship.

Currie Graham is used nicely here as Celia's younger fellow cop/boyfriend and helps soften Celia. Plus, he's another Canadian in a cast (how many are we at now? James Tupper, Suleka Matthews, Nicholas Lea, Sarah Strange as Theresa, and Currie Graham! No wonder I feel comfortable watching... these ARE my people! Is Timothy Webber (as Jerome)? I think so...).

Plus, you've got to hand it to the writers and producers for making Mario Cantone into an actual likable character. I'm actually loving this buddy storyline with Cash that's starting up as Cantone's Terri decides to help save sickly Cash by donating a kidney.

Morgan Fairchild! (Who?) Shows up in Elmo as Morgan Fairchild and it actually made an amusing guest appearance that sort of bluntly laid down the daily rigours of a former TV star now on the lecture/shopping centre opening circuit without being demeaning. It's part of the charm of Men In Trees, turning everyone's daily grind into a fairytale that isn't too sickly sweet or unrealistic but that still melts the heart.

Almost makes me want to move to Alaska, or at least Squamish, BC (where they partly film).

More After the Jump...

What's Left On TV?

It's Chuck Versus Ugly Betty. Honestly, I would put my money on Betty if they had to actually brawl. I would actually kill to see Betty meet up with Casey and give him the full brunt of Betty's enthusiasm. I bet you he never got special training ops on dealing with that!

There's the last new Ugly Betty episode tonight (8pm on ABC/CITY) and it's up against the last 2 episodes of Chuck in the States (8pm and then 10pm on NBC)(luckily in Canada, the same network carries both shows and already aired Chuck on its regular Monday date, but I'll have the recap up later today but let's just say it was totally great and made me miss it during the Christmas holidays and now will make me miss it during the WGA strike) so even though we've been in a TV drought, it's time to work those tape machines (whether it be tivo/pvr/dvr/vcr/recordable dvd's etc etc) again tonight!

Anyways, Ausiello updated the number of remaning episodes of our favorite shows which I've copied below.

The good news, there's still the whole (though shortened) seasons of The New Adventures of Old Christine (starting Feb. 4th), Lost (starting Jan. 31st), Greek (starting Feb. 24th)!

Plus there are still 11 (ELEVEN???!!!) episodes left of Men In Trees (and if you didn't watch this terrific fluff piece, well nows the time!), 3 of Bones (though it doesn't return until APRIL!???), 2 more of House, 7 (SEVEN!!!) more of Aliens in America (and if you didn't watch this terrific biting satire on American society, well nows the time!). 2 more episodes of Brothers & Sisters. 4 more episodes of Friday Night Lights.

The full list is below, with my main recommendations highlighted (red's are must-sees, green's are enjoyable), if there are episodes still left. This list is accurate as of Wed. Jan. 23, 2008.

30 Rock: Ten episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Aliens in America: Seventeen episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Back to You: Nine episodes have been produced. Seven episodes have aired, so there are two left. 

The Big Bang Theory: Eight episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

Bionic Woman: Eight episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Bones: Twelve episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are three left. 

Boston Legal: Fourteen episodes have been produced. Twelve episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Brothers & Sisters: Twelve episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Carpoolers: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Cavemen: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Six episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Chuck: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Criminal Minds: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Twelve episodes have aired, so there is one left.

CSI: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

CSI: Miami: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Thirteen episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

CSI: NY: Fourteen episodes have been produced. Twelve episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Desperate Housewives: Ten episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Dirty Sexy Money: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are three left.

ER: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Thirteen episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Friday Night Lights: Fifteen episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are four left.

Gossip Girl: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Thirteen episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Greek: Eight episodes have been produced. None have aired yet, so there are eight left.

Grey's Anatomy: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Heroes: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

House: Twelve episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are three left.

How I Met Your Mother: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

Jericho: Seven episodes have been produced. None have aired yet, so there are seven episodes left.

Las Vegas: Nineteen episodes have been produced. Fourteen have aired, so there are five left.

Law & Order: SVU: Fourteen episodes have been produced. Fourteen episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Life is Wild: Twelve episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Lost: Eight episodes have been produced. None have aired yet, so there are eight episodes left.

Medium: Nine episodes have been produced. Two episodes have aired, so there are seven left.

Men in Trees: Nineteen episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are 11 left.

Moonlight: Twelve episodes have been produced. Twelve episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

My Name is Earl: Thirteen episodes have been produced (that includes two one-hour eps, which count double). Thirteen episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

NCIS: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

The New Adventures of Old Christine: Eight episodes have been produced. No episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Nip/Tuck: Fourteen episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Numbers: Twelve episodes have been produced. Twelve have aired, so there are zero left.

October Road: Twelve episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are four left.

The Office: Twelve half-hour episodes have been produced. Twelve half-hour episodes have aired, so there are zero half-hour episodes left.

One Tree Hill: Twelve episodes have been produced. Four episodes have aired, so there are eight left.

Prison Break: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are three left.

Private Practice: Nine episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Pushing Daisies: Nine episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

Reaper: Twelve episodes have been produced. Ten episodes have aired, so there are two left.

Samantha Who?: Twelve episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are three left.

Scrubs: Eleven episodes have been produced. Six episodes have aired, so there are five left.

Shark: Twelve episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there is one left.

The Shield: All 13 season-seven episodes have been produced. None have aired (the final season gets underway in '08), so there are 13 left. 

Smallville: Fifteen episodes have been produced. Nine episodes have aired, so there are six left.

Supernatural: Twelve episodes have been produced. Eight episodes have aired, so there are four left.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: Nine episodes have been produced. Three episodes have aired, so there are six left. 

Ugly Betty: Thirteen episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there is one left.

The Unit: Eleven episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left. 

Without a Trace: Twelve episodes have been produced. Eleven episodes have aired, so there are zero left.

More After the Jump...

Everyone Deserves A Good Bed, A Man In It, A Secret Diary, And The Chance To Be On The Amazing Race

Friday Night Lights - Pantherama! - Ep. 207
Men In Trees - Nice Day for a Dry Wedding - Ep. 206
The Office - The Deposition - Ep. 408
30 Rock - Somebody to Love - Ep. 206
The Amazing Race - Please Lord, Give Me Milk! - Ep. 1203

Friday Night Lights: Teary Moment of the Episode: It was pretty obvious where it was all going but I still totally bought it when Buddy took Santiago in and gave him his first bed to sleep in (love that Eric was only going to make his bed this just once!).

Julie is charmed by a new hot young teachers. Tami is suspicious of course and worried (as am I). Smash and Corina do not see eye to eye on his future prospects and as much as I understand Smash's drive, I wanted to smack him for his poor mama. Matt kisses Carlotta, the maid. Can I smack him too? Meanwhile, Tyra and Lyla work together to organize Pantherama! and it devolves into a strip-a-thon much to the excitement of the crowd, and look of shock and disappointment from the Taylors. Hysterical!

Men In Trees: They sure are trying to live up to the title. Jack still hasn't left yet, Cash is back AGAIN, and all during Patrick and Annie's nuptials. Hot pastor Eric and Sara are totally doing it! Colm Meaney finally shows up as Bob, Annie's dad, who cheated on Mary Alice, who is now smitten with a cleaned up Jerome. PLOW GUY IS BACK! Sam (Ty Olsson, who I noticed was added to the Men In Trees website... is that a sign that he's permanent now???!!!) shows up at the wedding with another girl, but is still totally in love with Jane (above with a masked Sam in their cute dating era from last season)! YES! Meanwhile, Annie's drunk brother Danny (Josh Randall! Ed) is there to make a pass at Jane. Dick (Currie Graham) handcuffs himself to Celia and of course, loses the key (and how funny was it that she made his younger age such a big deal in an earlier episode?). Even Mario Cantone is here to do the hair! Finally, after starting the wedding late with some switches to the lineup, Jack walks Annie down the aisle until Patrick gets hit with lightening and awakens with amnesia. Of course. Eric blames himself. Annie blames her father Bob. But who cares cause Plow Guy Sam gives the most impassioned love speech towards Jane before he asks her to marry him for real! Woot woot!

The Office: Okay, I know Michael is supposed to be a terrible manager but part of what made the show work was that he was competent enough that we could totally buy why he was able to keep the job. When he had to go with Jan to the deposition over her wrongful dismissal suit, I didn't buy that Michael would be THAT stupid to say the stuff he did, making inappropriate jokes when he did. I know it's his schtick but even he would have known better. It seemed a little too forced awkwardness when he should have known better. What DID work was Jan using Michael's diary in her defence. Now that's believable awkward. That and having Toby sit in as the HR rep (even though they didn't use him enough).

Meanwhile, Kelly taunts Pam for having a boyfriend who loses in ping-pong and Pam sets up a makeshift table to help him practice against the other office workers. Love it!

30 Rock: Oh poor Kenneth. Poor poor Kenneth.

Actually, poor Raheem, Liz's new neighbour (another SNL alum, Fred Armisen) who she suspects is actually a terrorist instead of someone who is just really excited to be applying to be on The Amazing Race. Poor poor Raheem.

Actually, poor CC, a democrat congresswoman Jack ends up sleeping with, unknowing of her political party allegiance. Poor poor CC (Edie Falco).

The Amazing Race: Oh well, the pretty sisters are out. The Ethiopian brother and sister team came in first at the pit stop in Africa. That's about all I got. That and uncooperative animals are always funny. This time, camels that needed to be milked and walked. First asses and now humps? What next?

Azaria & Hendekea - 1st Place
TK & Rachel - 2nd Place
Nathan & Jennifer - 3rd Place
Kynt & Vyxsin - 4th Place
Ron & Christina - 5th Place
Nicolas & Donald - 6th Place
Shana & Jennifer - 7th Place
Lorena & Jason - 8th Place
Marianna & Julia - eliminated

More After the Jump...

Desperate Brothers and Men Who Leave

Men In Trees - The Girl Who Cried Wolf - Ep. 205
Desperate Housewives - You Can't Judge A Book By It's Cover - Ep. 407
Brothers & Sisters - 36 Hours - Ep. 207

Things go wrong on Men In Trees, things get re-corrected on Desperate Housewives, and things get fixed on Brothers & Sisters.

I love that Murphy's Law is running rampant in Elmo. It's such the typical easy plotline but in the fluff that is Men In Trees, it sort of works and it's kinda fun. Desperate Housewives is getting rid of Victor but while we see Gaby whack Victor overboard on a boat in the promos, who knew she would do it TWICE? THAT. Was hilarious. Leave it to Desperate Housewives to make the murder of a major character by a title actor into something funny. Meanwhile, things get intense on Brothers & Sisters as the Walkers unite to confront Justin about his drug relapse, yet what could have been a dreary hour becomes mostly dramatic and poignant (the ranting and raving by Justin, calling out every low-blow shot at the rest of the family was particularly entertaining in that Oh-no-he-did-not-just-say-that way).

On Men in Trees: Mai has bad premonitions about the wedding but does everything in her power to bring good luck, but Murphy's out to get her and everything that CAN go wrong, will.

Annie's mom (Annie Potts) shows up for the rehearsal and bonds with Celia but is annoyed by Mai's constant presence. Annie's mom brings along Annie's old cat and makes the cat the ring bearer (with full heart pillow and all), at least until the cat runs away during the rehearsal.

Hot pastor Eric who is hot for Sarah gets the cold shoulder from his congregation when they find out about the relationship and Eric quits in haste. If only he thought it through a little more, since he was supposed to marry Annie and Patrick and he still can, just not in the church.

Annie and Patrick are happy to move the wedding to the Inn, but when Ben gets pre-occupied with the hockey team he just bought, he inadvertently leaves the bar unattended and of COURSE, the liquor board is on site, and closes the bar down. Leaving Annie and Patrick with no venue for the wedding reception.

Patrick gets a giant bell for Annie, to ring on their wedding day, but as he rigs it onto the roof of the Inn, you know disaster is waiting to happen. As Mai presents Annie with her Chinese Tea Set heirloom for a tea ceremony that brings luck to the marriage, the bell and Patrick crashes through the roof destroying both the building and the tea set.

Marin keeps finding herself outside facing off with a wolf until she stands her own and the wolf leaves. Marin is still sad that Jack is leaving on his extended trip, and is unaware that Cash has been brought back to take his place, but just as Marin is confident enough on her own, she meets up with the wolf again, this time surrounded by the entire pack..."to be continued"... (was this supposed to be the Season 1 Finale? It's the 5th episode of Season 2 which had taken in 5 already-taped episodes from season 1).

On Desperate Housewives: Lynette tries to offload her mom onto her sisters again, but Lydia and Lucy (Sarah Paulson, Studio 60 and the Sunset Strip, and Carrie Preston, Huffman's costar in TransAmerica) will have nothing of it. Lynette even goes so far as to ditch them at a diner as she secretly moves the suitcases into Lydia's car and then takes off. Genius! Then the sisters do it to Lynette. Double genius!!

Bree wants to circumcise the baby and Orson won't have it. It's discussed during a dinner party with Susan and Mike (AWKWARD!) where Bree also discovers Mike's pill popping. Bree warns Susan who of course ignores it until she finally finds the drugs... In a funnier story, Bree goes as far as to bring the baby to a Jewish bris and piggybacks the ceremony, pretending to be Jewish just to get the circumcision she wants for the child, after Orson had already warned every hospital in the state, plus adjacent states about his objections.

Finally, Victor takes Gaby on a yacht but Gaby finds out that Edie tattletaled to Victor about her affair with Carlos during the trip and thinks he's about to kill her. She instead whacks him overboard and leaves him in the water. Carlos comes to help and they go rescue him, when Victor really does threaten to kill Carlos and Gaby whacks Victor AGAIN overboard, this time unsuccessfully rescuing him.

Carlos and Gaby realise there's no way anybody knows she was with him, and if they got rid of the boat as evidence, it could seem like a suicide, and they subsequently release the boat toward the ocean.

As with Friday Night Lights, we now have main characters who have murdered (though this one far more comically than on FNL), and while they think they might be able to get away with it, I'm sure both murders will haunt their futures. I'm sure on Desperate Housewives, it'll turn out quite hilarious (especially this season), and I'm actually liking where the whole thing is going.

Meanwhile, after grandma waits for one of her daughters to take her in, she leaves knowing she's unwanted by Lynette, Lydia and Lucy.

Meanwhile, Dylan tries to search for more information about her real father and Katherine comes up with a manipulative scheme giving her full access to the info before she emotionally breaks down, scaring Dylan about the hurt her father caused, and Dylan backs off. Except, Katherine had been lying. Does this mean Adam Mayfair is in the clear? Since we are talking about her real father? Whew...

On Brothers & Sisters: Word of Justin's re-appearing drug problem spreads after Rebecca tells Holly. The entire family gathers to confront Justin about it, forcing him to deal with the problem before he unleashes his rage, all before the title credits! And they didn't even need alcohol!

The family takes shifts watching over Justin detox as secrets and lies start spilling out. Tommy's affair is discovered by Saul, and then Kevin.

Kitty is still somewhat dealing with her miscarriage while Kevin dances around Saul's possible homosexuality, which he vehemently denies.

On the "lighter" storyline... Jack's daughter comes to visit as Jack meets with a possible supporter, a donor he later finds out works in many shades of gray with questionable ties. Jack first fires Travis (Tony Award winner Denis O'Hare) and his whole team but then rescinds and fires just the team, more for publicity's sake. Jack also reveals that he was thankful the pregnancy didn't happen, since it wasn't what he needed/wanted right now.

When Robert returns to the Walkers house later, Kitty and Robert discuss their future, with marriage back on the tables, along with her wishes to get pregnant again, which Robert quietly concedes to.

Meanwhile, there's more scenes of Justin going crazy detoxing which somehow is crazy sexy and gives Dave Annable some great scenes in playing asshole/apologetic brother. Saul confronts Kevin as the loneliest gay man he knows. Kevin is forced to think about his situation with is "boyfriend" that he hasn't talked to in ages while he has taken in Scotty as a roommate (and possible "roommate"? One can only hope!).

Saul finally comes out to Nora while Tommy agrees to break it off with Lena.

I liked this more intense episode but I secretly do wish it returns to the slightly lighter/campier mode though there was some great acting tonight (and by great acting, I mean the intense gazes of anger/bitterness/resentment along with some nice shouting again). I do like that they are giving Tommy a plotline but again, does it HAVE to be the cheating plotline? Then again, they managed to get the Justin detox out of the way now in a much more entertaining fashion than I originally feared so hopefully we can move on now.

More After the Jump...