TV Report Card: Week of October 3, 2010

My brother got married this weekend, so I didn't have as much time to put together this week's TV Report Card, but I wanted to crank one out just for the heck of it:

Sunday
Boardwalk Empire: "Broadway Limited"

After this week's Boardwalk Empire, I realized that I could skip the first thirty minutes, and it'd be fine because so much of the show is needless exposition. I appreciate what Boardwalk is trying to achieve, but the first three episodes have taken so long to develop an interesting storyline that I'm starting to lose interest. For example, I really don't remember what happened during this week's episode. One thing that did stick out was how the show tried to be graphic for the sake of being shocking. I don't need to see things being shoved up some guy's junk or gratuitous sex scenes that add nothing to the story. I know they add these elements to make the show more "real" and "gritty", but usually it's just distracting. The characters are still interesting enough, and the conflict between Nucky and Jimmy could lead to some good stuff, so I'll be sticking around for a little bit longer.

GRADE: C-

Monday
Chuck: "Chuck vs. the Cubic Z"

This week's Chuck had the chance to be really special, but in the end it was just OK. The A-plot involved the return of former baddies, Heather Chandler and Hugo Panzer. Instead of really great action scenes or funny jokes, we had more of the same relationship angst from Chuck and Sarah, although Nicole Richie did get in some good shots at her former high school rival. While the "Suck" stuff was stale, it was still better than the Buy More B-plot about Morgan not being able to pull of a major video game launch, which led to a riot. "Cubic Z" only proved that they should have left the Buy More burnt to the ground. Chuck still has enough going for it to keep it at the top of my list of must see shows, but things need to turn around here pretty soon.

GRADE: C

How I Met Your Mother: "Unfinished"

So, where's the poop? Apparently, it's walking around in the form of Lily Aldrin because she once again ruined what could have been a decent episode of HIMYM. Her bossy, know it all, buttinsky routine has gotten less funny and more unbearable every season, and she's the main reason why I've thought about ditching the show once and for all. The rest of the episode, Robin and Ted getting closure, wasn't groundbreaking stuff but it didn't suck either. Also, watching Barney put the moves on Ted to convince him to rejoin GNB worked better than it should have. "Unfinished" didn't restore my faith in HIMYM, but it didn't push me away either, which is a win unto itself.

GRADE: C

Castle: "Under the Gun"

I love it how Castle is not even trying to follow the footsteps of other cop procedurals that rely on believable cases. Instead, Castle just wants to be fun with a little murder mystery thrown in for good measure. "Under the Gun" was one of those episodes that threw grittiness out of the window in favor of a lighter tone that involved hidden treasure, motorcycles, and old crushes. The Case of the Week was about a dead bailbondsman who was caught up in a hunt for hidden treasure. While on the case, we got to meet Beckett's mentor/possible love interest, and we got to learn more about her. Of course, there was also some classic moments where Beckett teased Castle, and he got a little bit jealous. Castle will never be as realistic as CSI, SVU, or even Bones but that's exactly why I love it so much. With this show you get the accessibility of a police procedural with an amazing comic sensibility.

GRADE: B+

Hawaii Five-0: "Malama Ka Aina"

There really wasn't anything special about this week's Hawaii Five-0, but it was still a pretty entertaining. Watching the team intervene in a gang war and infiltrate an illegal gambling ring had its moments, but the best part of the episode had to do with all of the character development. We got to see more of Dan and his daughter, learned more about Chin Ho, and we even got a nice anecdote about where the term "Five-0" came from. So far, Hawaii Five-0 still hasn't established itself as a cutting edge police procedural, but the combination of good action, fun characters, and the sexy location is still good enough to keep me coming back for a few more weeks.

GRADE: B-

Tuesday
Glee: "Grilled Cheesus"

The only consistent characteristic of Glee is its inconsistency. For example, last week's "Britney/Brittany" was little more than an hour long music video with a little bit of "story" thrown in, but this week Glee's gave us a well thought out episode that addressed the hot button topic of religion. Kurt's story that focused on how he dealt with his father's mortality and his friends' reliance on faith, which directly conflicted with his atheism, could have been fallen flat, but Glee's approach to show the strengths and weaknesses of both sides was effective. Finn's plot added some very important humor, but his crisis of faith at the end didn't feel fully formed. "Grilled Cheesus" proved that Glee can actually say something when it wants to, and it could return to greatness if it could decide what kind of show it wants to be.

GRADE: B

No Ordinary Family: "No Ordinary Marriage"

After a pretty standard pilot, episode two of No Ordinary Family continued down a familiar path, but it still worked. The majority of "No Ordinary Marriage" dealt with Jim and Stephanie trying to figure out whether they should use their powers or not. Their interactions and fights actually felt realistic, and I bought them as a couple dealing with typical and not so typical marital issues. The B-plot about JJ using his new super brain to pass math, which led to his teacher accusing him of cheating, was telegraphed as soon as we found out what his power was. While the parents continue to be fleshed out, the kids still get the short end of the development stick, and I hope that changes soon. While the son and daughter need some work, the side kicks (George and Katie) make the show special thanks to their enthusiasm alone.

GRADE: B-

Wednesday
Modern Family: "Earthquake"
This week's Modern Family was one of those rare misses. The titular earthquake only lasted seconds, and was merely a catalyst to kick off four random stories. Cam and Mitchell had to deal with the ramifications of lying to a friend to get out of a themed party, Jay and Manny discussed the afterlife while ditching church, Claire got stuck in the bathroom with a plumber and discussed parenting, and Phil took advantage of his wife being trapped to do chores he said he already did. Out of the four stories, the only one that I thought was good was Claire's because watching her butt heads with her kids, Haley in particular, can be realistic but still funny. The remaining three mini-plots weren't that great, and really didn't add much to the overall episode.

GRADE: C-

Thursday
The Vampire Diaries: "Kill or Be Killed"
After last week's episode that focused on back story and was a little slower paced, "Kill or Be Killed" really amped up the Mystic Falls craziness. Stefan and Elena are keeping up their fake fight, Caroline clashed with her mother, and we finally get to see how Mason became a werewolf. While a lot was going on in the episode, it really didn't get good until the Salvatores were outed as vampires by Mason, which led to them being shot by Liz. The cops were about to kill the brothers, but Caroline stopped them by going all vamp on them. I have to say that Vamparoline has become one of my favorite characters on TV, and her story continues to be one of the most entertaining this season. Episodes like "Kill or Be Killed" are the reasons why The Vampire Diaries has become must-watch TV.

GRADE: B+

The Big Bang Theory: "The Zazzy Substitution"
Sheldon broke up with Amy, replaced her with cats, and they reconciled after his mother used reverse psychology on him. That was the gist of Big Bang this week, and while "Zazzy" wasn't a horrible episode, it really doesn't require any additional thought or time.

GRADE: C-

Community: "The Psychology of Letting Go"
All I remember about this week's Community was Britta and Annie oil wrestling. Oh, I think they also had a religious storyline, which apparently was a universal theme this week since both Glee and Modern Family addressed faith as well. Like Big Bang, "Letting Go" was far from Community's worst outing, but it wasn't special either.

GRADE: C-

Bones: "The Maggots in the Meathead"

Bones + Jersey Shore = Worst Episode Ever! I couldn't even finish it, mostly because Brennan was beyond ridiculous this week, and not in a good way. What irked me was she apparently has no idea about the cultural significance of rock and roll, but considered Jersey Shore to be a documentary and found the guido culture fascinating. I couldn't keep going after she tried to fit in with the guidos by mimicking their behavior. It was just painful to watch.

GRADE: F

Nikita: "The Guardian"

The CW's Nikita continues to be the best new spy show on TV. Not only did we get some pretty good action this week, but we learned a little bit more about Percy and Division, and we have another operative (Owen) in the mix. Nikita's road to redemption now includes saving Owen from their former boss, and things could get interesting if he ends up sticking around for a while. We all know that Nikita and Michael have a history, but it wouldn't surprise me if something starts up between her and Owen, and they become a bad-ass couple set on destroying Division. Either way, I'm hooked.

GRADE: B

After another sub-par episode, Undercovers has been removed from the TV Report Card mostly out of sheer disappointment. The rest of my shows were a mixed bag. Some were pretty good (Castle, Glee, The Vampire Diaries, and Nikita), others were OK (The Big Bang Theory, Community, and Chuck), and some just sucked (Bones). All in all this week wasn't a total waste of time, but it wasn't mind blowing either.