TV Squad

• USA developing new shows
  

  Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, Programming, USA

  USA is developing some new series. Here's what's on the menu:

  The Negotiator, a show about a hostage negotiator who becomes a relationship counselor, is being developed by film producer Donald De Line (The Stepford Wives, The Italian Job).

  Meanwhile, Battlestar Galactica co-executive producer Toni Graphia is developing American Girl, about a Wal-Mart employee whose personality changes after she witnesses a robbery. I was hoping for a show either based on the line of dolls, or possibly the Tom Petty song of the same name, but I guess this works, too.

  Continue reading USA developing...
  




• TV Squad lists your season and series premieres and finales
  

  Filed under: ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, HBO, Showtime, Programming, The CW, USA, FX, Sci Fi, Comedy Central, TNT

  Hola, mi muchachos and muchachoettes! It is I, Schedule Boy, back from wherever the hell I was. I'm here this time to present a comprehensive list of upcoming season and series premieres and finales for you, my adoptive TV Squad family.

  What a crazy season its been! Shows that had so much potential (The Nine, Studio 60) struggled to stay on the air, while others (Ugly Betty, Friday Night Lights,...
  




• Psych: Scary Sherry: Bianca's Toast (season finale)
  

  Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, USA, Psych

  (S01E15)Exactly twenty years later . . . give or take ten minutes.

  And so, with heavy heart, we come to the conclusion of the first season of Psych. What at first seemed like a quirky little comedy-mystery hybrid (I call it mysterdy) featuring a Tom Cruise lookalike, the guy from The West Wing, and Arnie Becker, has become an amusing show full of snappy banter, decent character development and references to 227. Yes, Psych has come a long way in a very short time and I'll miss it while it's away on vacation....
  




• Psych: Poker? I Barely Know Her
  

  Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, USA, Psych

  (S01E14) You knew that a moment like this would eventually come up . . . a time where a father needed his son's help. I mean, even though Henry Spencer shows reluctance about his son's detective skills (especially since he masks them with a fake psychic power), inside he is extremely proud of how far his son has come. So, when an old friend of Henry's asks for help in finding his son the senior Spencer happens to drop Shawn's name. Ah, parents.

  Shawn doesn't disappoint this client....
  




• Psych: Game Set... Muuurder?
  

  Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, USA, Psych

  Smell that? It has the aroma of burning leaves. It must be me thinking about something again. Here's the skinny: I've noticed over the last few weeks that Shawn likes to tell people that Gus is his hero, that he looks up to his best friend. I think that most of that is just joking since it is usually preceded or followed by a false statement about Gus' skills. However, deep down, I wonder if Shawn really does look up to Gus. Gus is very intelligent (something we have just...
  




• Psych: Cloudy...Chance of Murder
  

  Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, USA, Psych

  (S01E12) Rich is off on his annual pilgrimage to North Carolina to tour the shops of various NASCAR teams. It's either that, or he's performing with his improv group. I forget. Either way, he's handed off Psych duties to me for the week. He'll return with a review of "Ready Set... Muuurder" next week.
  
  Right off the top, I have to say this was a fantastic episode. Possibly my favorite of the series so far. The courtroom venue worked great, and really set the stage for some fun bits. As Gus said, "Man, this is fun."
  
  Donnelly...
  



• Psych: He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, He Loves Me, Oops He's Dead
  

  Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, USA, Psych

  (S01E11) Yes, the review is late. I'll apologize to each and every one of you individually. That should take a few years, and by that time you'll probably forget what I was apologizing about.

  How do you connect speed dating with naked, fat guys found out in the middle of a field? I'm not too sure, but Psych did it and made it work quite well. Gosh, what a funny episode! I can't remember laughing out loud at this show so much as I did this time around.

  The second half of Psych has seen a lot...
  




• Psych: From the Earth to Starbucks
  

  Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, USA, Psych

  (S01E10)I predict we'll solve it Friday at 10:01pm, then maybe watch some cable. -- Shawn Spencer

  This was a very significant episode. Not because of the mystery being solved (which was very weak), but because of the character development we saw in three of the main players -- Carlton Lassiter, Henry Spencer, and our fair-haired boy Shawn Spencer.

  Let's begin with Carlton. As I mentioned last week I noticed that Lassiter performance in the second-half of the first season was much more subdued than he was first portrayed. At the beginning he was shown almost like an amalgam of other...
  




• My Monk reviews come to an end
  

  Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities, Monk, USA

  It's been written before, but it's worth repeating: TV Squad does not do episode recaps. We write reviews/opinions of episodes for people who have already seen them in order to spur discussion.

  I chose to review Monk because I'm a big fan of the show, but it has become more and more difficult for me not to repeat myself with each review. Five seasons in, I think the show has found a comfortable niche, but I can only write about that niche so many times before I get sick of it. Monk has more or less used the...
  




• Monk: Mr. Monk Makes a Friend
  

  Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities, Monk, USA

  (S05E11) Tony Shalhoub has garnered a few Emmys for his role as Adrian Monk, and I know some have complained that at this point it's almost as if he's given the award automatically. I don't care whether or not Shaloub "deserves" to be nominated year after year, but I do know that it's Monk that makes Monk worth watching. I don't watch this series because of the complex plots, because they're rarely complex. Clues to the suspect's identity are made more obvious than hints in an Encyclopedia Brown story, especially in this episode...