Getting Geeked Up For Glee

Since I heralded FOX's "Glee" as my sleeper pick for best fall show in my last blogpost, I figured that I should take a closer look at some aspects of the show that I think are being overlooked. Here are a few thoughts:

- Chord Overstreet, the actor who played Sam "Troutie Mouth" Evans, is leaving the cast. Not a huge blow to the show, especially after hearing that Kurt's boyfriend, actor Darren Criss, is being promoted to full-time regular. However, given how the finale showed Sam and Mercedes together, it will be interesting to see how this will be weaved into the plot. Overstreet had been given an option to be in a six-episode arc on the show with a chance to come back for the rest of the season. I can't blame him for rejecting that feeble offer - he filled a niche last season as being the "cool" guy after Puck went gaga for his "fat-bottomed girl." Sam brought a baller aspect to the guy-half of the group that Finn just can't pull off (see: Justin Bieber episode).

- Speaking of Finn, I discovered recently how old actor Cory Monteith (who plays Finn) actually is: 29. I understand that this happens fairly often in the acting community, but I thought that this is a little ridiculous. He's almost twice as old as the character he's playing, and he looks like it too! I found this fact to be just a bit unnerving, and I'm curious how it will change the way I look at Finn as he goes into his "senior year" in high school. Right.

- I didn't watch the reality show "The Glee Project," but the Oxygen channel's attempt at bottling the "American Idol" mojo serves as a feeder into Glee. The top two finishers (Damian McGinty and Samuel Larsen) will have a 7-episode stint on the show, while the 3rd and 4th finishers will be on for two episodes each. This will be interesting, considering that these winners could possibly do well enough to earn a permanent spot on the show. Just something to keep in mind.

- Terri Schuester, Will (Matthew Morrison)'s crazy ex-wife, is no longer going to be making random appearances on the show. This, coupled with the second half of Season 2 showing Will and guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury getting close leads me to believe that Season 3 will be a green light for the Will-Emma relationship. This seems like a good thing, since Terri never came off as significant to Will's day-to-day life, and hopefully the main antagonist of the show will remain dynamite villain Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) for a long, long time.

I only recently came back to my Glee crush, and I realize that I approached it with the bar set low. I'm looking forward to the premier this week, as lame as that sounds, and hopefully this season doesn't disappoint a little higher expectations.

Fall TV Season Preview

The dog days of summer having wreaked havoc on the grass here in Houston. Seriously, H-Town has been dryer than Jay London's sense of humor. In addition to being light on rain, this summer has been pretty tame in terms of must-see television. However, there are quite a few televised events that are coming up that qualify (for me) as Must-See TV. Here's a look:

Baseball Playoffs, NFL Season, NCAA Football Season

Thankfully, God has rained sports manna down from heaven for fans across the nation: baseball games that matter, America's favorite sport, and a place for the people of Nebraska to go on Saturdays (namely, Memorial Stadium in Lincoln - the largest city in Nebraska when completely filled). The MLB playoffs are wild and crazy during the division series round, and from there the "Team of Destiny" stories help carry the suspense from game to game. The NFL, through only a week of regular season action, already has regained its stranglehold on Sunday activities. And for the cities and regions with a strong college football presence, fandom is crazier than that of the pro game, the week is spent trash talking with friends and neighbors, and lots of crow promises to be eaten throughout the season.

Jersey Shore
(MTV, in progress)

The 4th season of Jersey Shore is underway, as we observe The Guido Gang's adventures in Florence (or Firenze, for all native Italians scoring at home). So far, I think this season has been the best since the original season, and the language and culture barrier have provided the plot with enough twists and turns to make the show interesting again, which had been lost in seasons 2 and 3.

How I Met Your Mother
(CBS, premieres Sept. 19)

Entering the alleged penultimate season in the series' schedule, the show still seems to be miles away from its ending. It is my (shared, I'm sure) opinion that the final clip of the final episode of the series should be Ted meeting the future mother of his children, but there is nothing that leads me to believe that that can be anytime soon. This is my favorite sitcom on TV right now, and I love the cast top-to-bottom, especially Neil Patrick Harris and Jason Segel.

Glee
(Fox, premieres Sept. 20)

Say what you will about "the gayest show on television," but after recently getting caught up on the dram-com (just made that word up), I reinforced an opinion that I was wavering on: the out-of-this-world soundtrack more than makes up for the ridiculous-at-times plot structure. Look no further than the Justin Bieber episode (actual title - "Comeback") or the "Funeral" episode to see some amazing songs performed by amazing singers. I'm surprised to hear myself recommend this, but Glee is my sleeper pick for best show of a star-studded fall schedule.

Modern Family
(ABC, premieres Sept. 21)

I'm new to the Modern Family bandwagon. I just discovered it about two months ago, and absolutely ripped through the old episodes, all the while laughing like a school girl at the mayhem induced by the complicated family structure. My favorite characters have to be Phil and Mitchell, but really it's the same as choosing your favorite child: you go with the one whose coat-tails you can ride to fame. Or so I'm told.

The Sing-Off

(NBC, premieres Sept. 19)

The Sing-Off, a reality show-adaptation of the ever-popular Glee, has quickly risen in two seasons to be my favorite vocal-centric reality show (there are surprisingly quite a few shows that fit this rather specific category). They've made a great (in my opinion) personnel change in letting go of the Pussycat Dolls' Nicole Scherzinger and bringing in former a cappella groupist and pop darling Sara Bareilles to take over the female presence in the panel. The mix of eccentric personalities (so many faux-hawks!), attire (so many vests!), and choreography (so many jazz hands!) with the strong presence of popular, catchy tunes makes for fun, guilty pleasure TV. Plus, it's practically designed to make you fall in love with the contestants. The Sing-Off is my most-anxiously-awaited show, and I guarantee that if you try it, you won't be disappointed.

Upcoming shows on the horizon:
Mad Men (early 2012), NBA (currently locked out, TBA)