TeleChimp | TV Journalism

Modern Family season 3 episode 1: Dude Ranch

The family decides to don their cow boots and hats and head to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for some fun and adventure in the great outdoors. While vacationing on Lost Creek Ranch, they try their hands at a little cattle herding, skeet shooting and horseback riding; there are also some big firsts, a huge surprise and an actual face off between Jay and a foe – a cowboy named Hank.

Modern Family season 3 episode 2: When Good Kids Go Bad

Mitch and Cam plan a nice evening with the whole family to break the happy news that they’re looking to adopt another child. However their parade is rained on when they realize Lily may not take well to another baby in the house. Meanwhile, Claire and Jay are each consumed with proving a certain point

Modern Family season 3 episode 3: Phil on Wire

The growing bond between man, Jay, and dog, Stella, is grating on Gloria’s nerves; Phil and Luke embark on a new adventure involving a tightrope, but it’s Claire with the missteps, as she tries to teach the girls a life lesson; and Cameron chooses the most inopportune time to start a juice fast.

Modern Family season 3 episode 4: Door to Door

Everyone sets their eyes on a goal: Jay is determined to help Manny sell wrapping paper for a school fundraiser; Claire petitions the city for a stop sign to be installed at a high-traffic intersection; Mitchell is hell bent on proving a point with Cameron, and neither one of them will back down; Phil and Luke will stop at nothing to create a viral video sensation; and Gloria is desperate to find Stella after losing him.

Modern Family season 3 episode 5: Hit and Run

Jay is frustrated at work, Manny is stressed out about school work, Gloria would like to help but no one seems to want it. Phil and Claire run into Councilman Duane Bailey again, who is out campaigning for his second run, and he’s just as irritating as they remembered — so much so that Claire may give him a run for his money. Mitch and Cam get into a fender bender and the other car flees, which becomes the tipping point for all the men in the family who decides to take out their frustrations on the kid giving Haley problems.

Modern Family season 3 episode 6: Go Bullfrogs

It’s father-daughter time, as Phil takes Haley on a college tour of his old alma mater, and Claire, having a rare night alone, forces Mitchell and Cameron to take her for a fun night out with the boys — but ends up alone with one particular man candy who is anything but gay. Meanwhile, Gloria and Jay deal with a potential situation at home that may require having “the talk” with Manny.

Modern Family season 3 episode 7: Tree House

Hanging out with Shorty and his girlfriend, Darlene, makes Gloria envious of how much those two do as a couple, so she gives Jay an ultimatum to step it up for a night of salsa dancing or else. Meanwhile, Cameron take a bet a little too far when Mitchell and Crispin challenge him to get a hot girl’s number at the bar, and Phil builds a tree house for Luke, but ends up being the one to make a new friend.

Modern Family season 3 episode 8: After The Fire

After a neighbor’s home burns down, the whole family rallies and organizes a community drive to help do some good – though it’s not all good, as Jay throws out his back, Cameron does some posturing with a huge moving truck, Claire discovers that Mitchell and Gloria have been spending a lot of time together, and Luke and Manny get their hands on some of the donated toys.

Modern Family season 3 episode 9: Punkin Chunkin

When an old neighborhood kid returns to town as a hugely successful internet billionaire, it gets Phil thinking of what could have been. Jay feels Manny could use a little dose of constructive criticism, and Cameron is offended when Mitchell questions the authenticity of his colorful childhood stories. It all comes to a head at Thanksgiving with the family divided between the “Dreamers” and the “Pritchetts” — and nothing settles the score like a punkin chunkin challenge.

Popularity: 5% [?]

English general entertainment channel Star World will launch five new shows in different genres – comedy, crime and drama.

Brand initiative as “full load of training in March, the watch includes Dexter, Mr. Sunshine, giving hope, Las Vegas and the community.

Star World is to strengthen its Torrentz initiative, launched last month to combat piracy in the channel. Bringing the latest and best show in Hollywood this month is Mr. Sunshine, and “Raising Hope. Carrier says it will also play an important role in the solution recommendation system for its viewers with new offerings, they can see.

Star India GM, senior VP, English Channels Saurabh Yagnik said, “Star World is committed to bringing the best in English entertainment to its viewers in India. The objective is not only to get the freshest in entertainment but also create innovative ways to engage our viewers with our content across multiple screens and platforms. Our viewers find crime and drama appealing and we are revamping that genre in our 9 and 10 p.m. slot.

“We have been driving this category so far and will continue to do so thereby spurring on the growth of the category overall and our channel specifically. It won’t be long before we also organize live chats with international stars of our channel. The English GEC space has tremendous potential for growth and we are continuously innovating, listening and coming up with new initiatives that fulfill viewer expectations.”

Former ‘Friends’ star Mathew Perry stars in ‘Mr. Sunshine’ which is also his own production. He will guide viewres on the dos and don’ts of overcoming a mid-life crisis at 40. The show is based on a concept by Perry, which he planned to co-write, star in and produce. Ben Donovan (Perry) is the sports arena manager for the Sunshine Center, a second-tier arena in San Diego. He goes through a mid-life crisis when he turns 40, while dealing with the unusual demands of his job and his unpredictable boss.

The show starts on 26 March and airs every Saturday at 10 pm.

Another show, Las Vegas, kicks off on 7 March and airs Monday-Friday at 9 pm. It will showcase all one needs to know about the high-stakes and glamorous world of Casinos and its underbelly. It focusses on a team of people working in the fictional Montecito Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada—dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and restaurant management to security.

Following that at 10 pm is Dexter. It is a crime drama about a serial killer who only kills serial criminals. Dexter Morgan is played by Michael C Hall, a serial killer who works as a blood splatter analyst. The series shows him balancing an everyday life with his secret identity, all the while keeping up a facade of normality.

Community is a sitcom about a group of students studying at a community college in Colorado. Community centers on Jeff Winger (Joel McHale), a suspended lawyer who was forced back into school after his college degree is deemed invalid. The series focuses on Jeff’s experiences while attending the Greendale Community College in Greendale, and the people he meets there. It kicks off on 14 March and airs Monday-Friday at 11 pm.

Another comedy raises the hope, which involves 23-year-old who has to raise her child, conceived by a single night with the help of his family imperfect baby’s mother (who killed multiple partners) is sentenced to death and executed when the baby is only six months. Begins March 26 and will air every Saturday at 10:30 pm.

Popularity: 2% [?]

George Lucas is supposedly scheming future Star Wars movies at his top-secret Skywalker Ranch, reports IESB, who claims this could be more than just a rumor.

IESB is reporting that fans can expect the new trilogy after the entire saga is released in 3D which is expected to be complete around 2015 or 2016. Their source also claims the movies will not be prequels, but sequels. It’s not for certain if they will be the long awaited Episodes 7, 8 and 9 but could instead be Episodes 10, 11 and 12.

Wired chimed in with a quote from Lucasfilm spokesman Josh Kushins:

“This is, of course, is completely false,” Lucasfilm spokesman Josh Kushins wrote to Wired. “George Lucas has plenty of projects to keep him busy right now – including plenty of Star Wars projects – but there are no new Star Wars feature films planned.”
New films or not, the live action Star Wars television series is currently in development, already has over 50 scripts ready to go and plenty of pre-production time and money spent on artwork and storyboards. Once that show goes into production, Lucasfilm hopes to be able to produce at least 100 episodes since that is the threshold for syndication in the United States.

Only time will tell about the reality of a new trilogy, but we got to ask, does the idea of a new Star Wars trilogy get you excited?

Popularity: 92% [?]

There are a few ways to look at the jam-packed two-hour season finale of “Grey’s Anatomy.” It was a cleaning-out of a couple of characters that were going nowhere; it was a whirlwind tour through a bunch of long and drawn-out romantic story lines; and it gave several actors massive, Emmy-baiting showcases.

But mostly, it was an absorbing and suspenseful story that went just a little off the rails from the sheer amount of business heaped upon it.

It began with Gary Clark, who’s been suing the hospital over the death of his wife. He showed up with a gun and almost immediately did away with the little used Dr. Reed Adamson, one of the Mercy West imports, in the supply room.

More significantly, he shot Alex, who dragged himself into an elevator where he waited patiently to be discovered — much like Carter once did in the famous “Carter and Lucy get stabbed” sequence on “ER,” in the shadow of which this episode inevitably exists. When Reed’s body was discovered, the hospital went into lockdown.

Meanwhile, Lexie and Mark found Alex and dragged him into a conference room, where Mark cut him open and Lexie stuffed balled-up surgical gloves in his mouth to keep him from screaming. (Seriously, pretty intense, this whole thing.) Their battle to save Alex was on.

In the most harrowing story of the episode, Clark came into the room where Bailey was hiding with Percy and a patient named Mary (played by Mandy Moore). Bailey heard Clark ask Percy if he was a surgeon, and when Percy said yes, Clark shot him. So when Clark dragged Bailey out from under the bed (yikes!) and asked her if she was a surgeon, she lied and said she was a nurse. Once Clark left, Bailey’s battle to save Percy was on.

Meanwhile, Meredith was elsewhere in the hospital, happily learning that she was pregnant. But before she could tell Derek, Clark found and shot him as a horrified Cristina and Meredith looked on from the opposite walkway. (It must be said: It was a very nicely composed sequence). Meredith and Cristina’s battle to save Derek was on.

Down in the OR, Owen and Teddy were mid surgery when the lockdown began. They had to move the patient, making Avery the only one there to receive Meredith and Cristina when they brought Derek in. This left only Cristina to do Derek’s surgery.

But when Clark found them (he really got around), he put a gun to Cristina’s head and demanded she stop working on Derek. A horrified Meredith and a conveniently arriving Owen looked on as Avery bluffed Clark into thinking Derek was dead long enough for Clark to leave — and then, naturally, they saved Derek’s life anyway.

Alex was spared, too. Lexie barely survived an encounter with Clark herself, then announced to the half-conscious Alex that she loved him. This fact was not lost on Mark, who proposed to her last week. Lexie didn’t even mind when Alex briefly mistook her for Izzie in a state of delirium, so their relationship seemingly is on track.

Not everybody is so lucky: Owen picked Cristina over Teddy, but Cristina had already dumped him by then, so it’s not quite clear whether she intends to take him back.

But you can’t win them all. When Bailey heroically dragged Percy through the corridors of the hospital only to find that the elevators were stopped for the lockdown, she realized there was no way to get him to the OR and that he would die. She sat on the floor with him, cradled his head in her lap and stayed with him until he died. So that’s two Mercy Westers who didn’t find spots in the story and got themselves killed as a result.

Much of the episode worked, until one part that felt like it had been tacked on for no good reason: Meredith miscarried while all the madness in the OR was developing.

There was a lot to like about the episode: Bailey’s devastated explosion of temper at the elevators, Cristina’s speech to Meredith about how she herself couldn’t operate on Derek with Meredith in the room, and the scene in which Webber calmly talked Clark into killing himself to end the standoff.

But the miscarriage felt very much like an add-on, not quite earned. Having a pregnancy announced and lost in the same episode seems manipulative, and not really up to what was going on the rest of the time.

The other unsuccessful segment involved Arizona and Callie, who once again bickered annoyingly during an otherwise tense and serious story. They then got back together once again because they papered over their child issues again, with Arizona apparently agreeing to have kids even though she still doesn’t actually seem to want them.

All in all, it was a very well-done finale, but it got away from the writers just a little at the end. With the shooter seemingly everywhere you didn’t want him and everyone trapped with precisely the most dramatic person possible, it got a little ridiculous.

But in the end, the acting — including big nights for Chandra Wilson, Sandra Oh and Ellen Pompeo — carried it off.

Popularity: 20% [?]

With a title like Pain, it’s obvious that there’ll be some heavy drama in this episode, which may put some viewers off. Right from the opening scene, in which Lt Scott (Brian Smith) is having sex with Lt James (Julia Benson) emotional tensions are running high. Lt Scott tries to leave and Lt James takes it rather badly and bashes him over the head, leaving him dead on the floor.

In another part of the ship, Dale Volker (Patrick Gilmore) gets trapped in his room when his door doesn’t function, and it’s only when Sgt Riley (Haig Sutherland) opens his door from the outside that he can get out. However, it doesn’t take long for us to realize that these are illusions, as we see Lt Scott alive and well, and being entirely bewildered by his son appearing on board.

When it turns out that an alien tick has bitten into the heads of certain members of the crew, including Lt Scott, Dale Volker, Chloe Armstrong (Elyse Levesque), Dr Rush (Robert Carlyle), Sgt Greer (Jamil Smith) and a few other members of the crew, the hallucinations become more of a problem.

Sgt Greer believes that another mutiny is about to occur, and under what he takes as orders from Col Young (Louis Ferreira), he takes unprovoked action.

All the while, Dr Rush gets increasingly freaked out by the fact that he thinks aliens have taken control over the ship, which has to be at least a little unnerving.

This is one of those classic sci-fi staples that has made appearances in many shows over the years including Buffy, Stargate Atlantis and Star Trek Voyager, and that, if you get right, can be brilliant.

Unfortunately, this episode is a little lacking in ingenuity and thought process.

For instance, the first scene in which Lt Scott gets murdered would be increasingly more effecting on the viewer if we didn’t see him a few scenes later alive and well. Dale Volker’s hallucinations, however, become more and more terrifying as the episode goes on, and it’s only a shame that they work out what’s going on early in the episode.

It’s in situations like this that a ‘red-shirt’ would come in handy. It’s something that Stargate Universe has done once before, in the episode which introduced them to the altogether different kind of alien life form they have come across in this series. The ‘dust devil’ in that episode was responsible for the loss of Cpl Gorman early in the series and made the threat to the crew all that more real.

Now, I know that, with a limited number of expendable background characters like we see on Destiny, you can’t afford to kill off a member of the crew every time there is an unknown threat. However, in situations like this, that very thing can sell the threat of the unknown so much more than it can without it.

Still, given that the ticks don’t take anyone’s life, and, in fact, only cast the illusion of doing so to a very limited number of people, the threat becomes relatively infantile and the impact of the hallucinations falters because of it.

Only in the first scene do we really feel like there is anything to worry about as, with a crew full of smart people and relatively good technology, they’re going to find a way around it within the 40-minute runtime.

However, we already know that the rules of the show can be changed, as in the episode Time, and that people can die from alien threats, as in the episode Water. So, the fact that this feels like a step down is disheartening.

It’s not bad, though. The quality we see here is higher than you can get in a lot of other shows on television right now, which is a testament to just how good this team is at making the show.

Even at their lowest hour, they can still make a good episode, no matter if the quality of the writing dips. It’s by no means a good reason to stop watching. In fact, the episode only goes to prove why it is worthwhile viewing.

By giving us this rather poor episode in comparison to the excellent standard we have become accustomed to, we see how this show could be weekly, and if it were at this standard every week, viewers would re-consider their fan status. As it is, this only goes to strengthen the efforts of Time and Human, which are arguably the show’s finest hours.

Of course, I would have preferred that the episode hadn’t been this weak and that this truly brilliant germ of an idea hadn’t went to waste as it has. However, I do still have faith that the quality will pick up, and that it’s only because this idea came from a wealthy pool of great sci-fi that it feels worse than it actually is.

In conclusion, probably the worst episode of the season to date, but given that it has some good points, it’s still worth a watch.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Meet the Griffins – Peter, the big, lovable oaf who always says what’s on his mind. Lois, the doting mother who can’t figure out why her son keeps trying to kill her. Their daughter Meg, the teen drama queen who’s constantly embarrassed by her family. Chris, the beefy 13-year-old who wouldn’t hurt a fly, unless it landed on his hot dog. Stewie, the maniacal one-year-old bent on world domination. And Brian, the sarcastic dog with a wit as dry as the martinis he drinks. The animated adventures of this outrageous family will have you laughing out loud.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Baywatch the nice and humanitarian service these Bunch of professionals as beach guards do for mankind, to this great Channel, before the frequencies

of this channel, Reached Indian shores, I Was familiar only with Odds and Evens, Ryan o Neal, Outlaw Josey Wales Duchess and the dirt water Fox, Inside Job of Henry Fonda, and Return of The Man called Horse.

These things kept me ignorant of the world. I used to think James Hadley Chase is a Genius to write such Good stories, Roger Moore wearing safari Suits is the ultimate in style statements or Dharmender Wearing Corduroy Shirts, Pants, Jackets are the Best things this world has to offer. Then I read and heard there is going to be a free Telecast of few hours From Singapore on Doordarshan A Network of channels called Star Network And this Network has Star World, The very first time I saw this Channel, I Was introduced to Baywatch the people the star cast of this nice program presented to the Indian Audience a show of milk of human kindness I could not believe the efficiency these professionals Of Baywatch displayed Diving into cold, salty sea water. Risking their own lives, saving lives of holiday makers Giving Artificial Respirations, unconcerned about the Risk of catching Some contagious disease. Their eye catching uniforms, their professional attitude left a deep impact on My impressionable mind, I was even allowed to look into their personal lives I could not help myself but admire their spirits, their approach their walks of Life.

My friends in college watched Baywatch they confessed to me for other Reasons than mine, their reasons were not worth a dime, they could not Influence me, I only watched this program to see the kindness in the Chest of these selfless souls. Who are doing a hazardous job like it’s Just another day at work. Ophra Winfrey was also my introduction from this channel, her tears, her Crusade, Her insights, her concern, Her Attention, Her alertness, her Compassion for the guest on the show made me addicted to this channel Ophra Winfrey Always reminded me of a Surgeon with a scalpel ready To make the incision in the patient body.

I have to mention Ophra as these were the 2 Gems I came to know about in The beginning thru Star World their Programs are a beautiful necklace of Many such Gems. I grew up watching FRIENDS growing old right In front of Me and becoming famous stars right in front of our eyes. Everybody Loves Raymond I believe this is true. I wished many a times and practiced to Stammer as nicely as perfectly like BOB NEWHART 911, Police Videos, and Americas Funniest Home Videos You Asked for It, Becker, all these soaps on Star World tickled me, I know star world and star network Gave blokes like me a Window to the outside world.

I am still fond of Star World, I am fond of Barkha Dutt I am fond of Simi Gerawal, sometimes I do use Remote control to take A peek at Poll Kholl on Star News or 17th re-run of Star Movie, overall my Favorite has bee The Star World. I am sorry to include all this in the review of Baywatch a review of just single program limits me. The pleasure I had from the channel itself must be Mentioned. Some channels force you to swallow programs down your throat, But Star World has been sensible they have purchased only widely accepted And popular Serials from other networks that saved them the trouble Of in-house programming and being original.

Instead of writing your own notes, just copy your notes from the best student In your class is a sure formula for success. Why dirty the hands, when there Are thousand others doing just the same? It sure saves a lot of headaches And backaches. Borrow and telecast. Relaxation has many name Baywatch, Star World is one Of them. I don’t get vomiting sensations watching Star World.

Popularity: 33% [?]

It’s not hard to see what ABC is trying to do with its new show “Castle” (Mondays at 10 p.m. Eastern). From “Remington Steele” to “Moonlighting” to “The X Files” to “Bones,” the idea of a mismatched guy-gal team solving crimes has been a go-to concept for the networks. So the pairing of crime novelist Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion of “Firefly”) and tough-but-pretty detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic in her first lead TV role) in “Castle,” a procedural with a huge helping of comic one-liners thrown in, must have looked awfully good on paper to ABC.

Unfortunately, on paper is probably where this series should have stayed.So much of “Castle” seems borrowed from other programs. In the debut, Castle is about to release a new crime novel that kills off his long-running hero, something everyone thinks is a big mistake, especially his ex-wife, who is also his publisher. Outwardly, Castle is confident he has done the right thing, but we find out he is in the midst of writer’s block, unable to deliver his next novel. Watching Castle struggle to write, booze it up, hit on women (including signing a fan’s breast, followed by the groaner of a line, “Call me when you’re ready to wash that off”), act self-destructively, care for his wise-beyond-her-years daughter (Alexis, played by Molly Quinn), and use his rakish charm to try and get what he wants, I couldn’t help but wonder if “Californication” executive producer Tom Kapinos had already contacted his attorney about a possible lawsuit. Castle, to me, seems like a less interesting rip-off of Hank Moody (David Duchovny’s character in “Californication”). At least Hank is supposed to be a serious novelist, as opposed to Castle writing crime fiction for the masses.

Even worse, Castle lives with his mother, Martha (Susan Sullivan of “Dharma & Greg”), who is a boozing actress, past her prime, with a checkered history with men. Not only is the character a dead ringer for the grandmother played by Jessica Walter in “90210″ (which is already a take on Walter’s mother from hell in “Arrested Development”), but Sullivan even looks disturbingly like Walter in “Castle” (and seems to be channeling Walter’s performance, too).

I can only guess that ABC was hoping that witty banter would carry the program above the sea of police procedurals currently on the networks’ schedules. But creator/writer Andrew Marlowe (in one of his first stabs at television after writing films like “Air Force One” and “Hollow Man”) just doesn’t deliver the kind of smart, funny dialogue that is needed to make up for the plot and character problems. Instead, I found myself rolling my eyes at forced exchanges, like a cop, upon seeing a female murder victim covered in flowers, saying, “Who says romance is dead?”, with Kate replying, “I do, every Saturday night.” Not only does the line not work, but the idea that someone who looks like Kate would be alone on Saturday night for any reason other than her own choice is kind of preposterous (and certainly not inducing any sympathy in the viewers).

Nothing quite feels right in the world that Marlowe has constructed. Castle and Kate are brought together when a murderer kills two victims in the manner described in two of Castle’s books. Kate, a fan, recognizes the correlation and seeks out Castle for more information. Eventually, he wants to be involved (for the thrill and to help his writer’s block) more than she wants him around (she thinks he’s a “bad boy” who jeopardizes her investigation). They end up trying to one-up each other, with Castle trying to show that he knows as much as Kate does, and Kate trying to make it clear that she is the professional who knows better how to do the job.

I found myself asking, Is there such a thing as rock star crime novelists? I doubt a glance at TMZ would reveal many writers amongst the paparazzi photos. And is it me, or is there no humor left to be mined out of a horny older woman? “Castle” wants you to howl in laughter at Martha being on the make, but it just felt a bit degrading and exceptionally silly and done-to-death to me. It doesn’t help when Martha is given dead-on-arrival zingers to spit out, like “I just got a hit on my greydar” when she sees an attractive older man she wants to try and pick up.

Popularity: 12% [?]