TV Report Card: Week of October 23, 2011

With my FOX shows still off the schedule, Modern Family in repeats, and Suburgatory joining Parks and Recreation in the "Shows I Watch But Don't Write About" category, this week's TV Report Card is a bit lighter than usual. At least Once Upon a Time, Chuck, and Grimm came along to fill the void. Enough with the explanations. Here is this week's TV Report Card:

Sunday
Once Upon a Time: "Pilot"

The first of this season's fairy tale themed shows debuted, and I was a little letdown by ABC's Once Upon a Time. I still want to give the show kudos for trying something a bit different, but the first episodes execution fell short of my expectations. The visual effects were subpar, the acting was not very captivating, and the characters were given zero development. Maybe the writers were expecting viewers to just jump on board since they're using classic fairy tale characters, but I wanted to get to know more about them before being thrown into the "real world". I can still see the potential that this show has, but its first attempt wasn't convincing enough to keep me around for much longer.

GRADE: C-

The Walking Dead: "Bloodletting"

I've accused The Walking Dead of relying too much on its zombies and not enough on its characters, and then the show gave us "Bloodletting" which did the exact opposite. Since most of the time was spent on Rick trying to save his son's life, which also gave the audience the chance to meet some new characters, this episode was one of the more character driven ones to date. We even had the chance to see how the rest of the survivors relate to one another while they were stranded on the highway. I'm still a fan of the zombie craziness, but I'm happy to see the characters get some much needed growth and development.

GRADE: B+

Homeland: "Semper I"

Usually, slow-burning dramas are not my thing (I can get impatient), so I'm a little surprised by how much I've been liking Homeland. I've written this before, but the characters are what makes this show work. There aren't any clear cut heroes and villains, but just people who are trying to survive in a Post-9/11 world. What has also impressed me has been its ability to create some very tense moments so subtly like when Carrie came across Brody's prayer mat but overlooked it because it was so innocuous. Homeland can also throw some wicked curve balls at us too which I enjoy. For example, watching Carrie befriend Brody at the end of the episode had me floored. I can see why everyone's saying this is the best new drama of the fall.

GRADE: B+

Monday
How I Met Your Mother: "Noretta"

I must be a glutton for punishment because I came back to watch this week's How I Met Your Mother even though my good sense told me not to. While I didn't hate "Noretta", I didn't think that it was particularly good either. I get that the writers were trying to amp up the ick factor with the sight gags of the gang almost making out with their parents, but it all felt tacky and easy. Plus, I was not a fan of how the episode treated Nora because she's one of the few characters I still like. Ditto for Kevin, which I never thought I'd say about a Kal Penn character. I kind of feel bad for both of them because they're just being jerked around by Barney and Robin until they get back together which will be the final straw for me. Man, what happened to this show?

GRADE: D-

2 Broke Girls: "And the Disappearing Bed"

My sadomasochistic ways continued as I stuck around to watch 2 Broke Girls. Much like HIMYM, I didn't dislike this episode any more than last week's, but this show is still a massive disappointment, and "Disappearing Bed" was just a reminder of that fact. First off, I don't care about Max and Johnny. I can see where the show is coming from, but right now it all feels forced. Also, if Caroline has such business acumen and can sell jazz to hipsters, why is she slumming it with Max? Sure, her father screwed some people over, and her name has been dragged through the mud, but I'm starting to find it hard to believe that she cannot make it on her own with her skill set, which makes the central premise shaky at best. While there was nothing inherently bad about this episode (besides all of the dick jokes), it was sloppy.

GRADE: C+

Castle: "Demons"

Castle is at its best when it's not taking itself too seriously, and it can churn out some fun Halloween themed episodes. While "Demons" wasn't a true Halloween ep, the Case of the Week did involve ghost hunters, haunted houses, and demons which all brought out the big kid in Castle. Rick is at his most charming when he's acting like a big goofball and ghosts, zombies, and aliens are his triggers, and when he's like this Kate becomes even hotter because she coyly plays along. And those looks! "Demons" was by no means an original episode, Beckett's skeptical nature was revealed during the X-Files episode, but it was a heck of a lot of fun. My only quibble, I'm tired of mopey Alex. Other than that, great outing from Castle.

GRADE: B+

Tuesday
Sons of Anarchy: "Family Recipe"

For some odd reason, I've never seen Clay as the bad guy of Sons. Yes, he's not a good person, has done some awful things, but it easy to overlook his sins since he's one of the show's main characters. Then he did what he did to Piney, and I realized how evil he can be. In the episode's other big story, Juice survived his suicide attempt, which wasn't shocking but a little disappointing, but I'm interested to see how bringing Chibs into the fold will progress the arc. While "Family Recipe" wasn't perfect, it was crazy enough to entertain the heck out of me.

GRADE: B

Wednesday
Happy Endings: "Spooky Endings"

I don't know when it happened, but Happy Endings has become one of my favorite comedies on TV right now. The cast is talented, the jokes almost always hit their marks, and it's able to turn ordinary situations and make them hilarious. A prime example of that last point was this week's "Spooky Endings". Going to a Halloween party or handing out candy to trick-or-treaters are not new ideas, but the Happy Endings gang upped their game and gave us a great 30 minutes of funny. Of course, Max and Penny stole the show with their insane costume, but they were also able to nail the sweeter moments. Ditto for Alex and Dave. Jane and Brad's trip to the suburbs was a close second to the Halloween party, but it was also firing on all cylinders. An added plus was the fact that the Yahoo! TV preview didn't hurt the ratings. Sweet!

GRADE: A-

Thursday
The Vampire Diaries: "Ghost World"

Wow, TVD's really throwing every supernatural element at the audience this season. At first, I wasn't too keen on having all of these ghosts just show up, but by the end I was impressed how they progressed the plot and added some nice tension since everyone of them was sent back to the Other Side while doing something important. I just hope we haven't seen the last of Anna because I'm already more invested in her and Jeremy than I ever was when he was with Bonnie. Plus, Malese Jow is beyond hot. Other Goodies: I'm always a fan of Bad Ass Caroline, Damon and Alaric need to get it on already, and still liking the Ripper. Only Negative: Elena is so annoying! "Ghost World" didn't rank up there with some of the stronger Season 3 episodes, but it was till entertaining as heck.

GRADE: B-

Community: "Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps"

I've complained that Community has the tendency to be too gimmicky, but there are some episodes where the gimmicks really work, and "Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps" was one of those episodes. The idea of the Study Group telling separate scary stories could have been a misfire, but luckily the vignettes added some substance to all of the characters. My only complaint about "Horror Fiction" had to do with the fact that it was yet another episode that focused on how these people see and relate to one another. This approach is not inherently bad, but it seems like every episode of Community has to go there, and it's done it better in the past ("Remedial Chaos Theory"). I guess I can't complain that a comedy is trying to foster character development and meaningful relationships, but I want to see something new next time.

GRADE: B

Friday
Chuck: "Chuck vs. The Zoom"

While I'm super pumped that we're getting a fifth season of Chuck, I do have to admit that "Chuck vs. The Zoom" was only an adequate episode. I'm still not on board with Morgan as the Intersect, and the fact that he's picked up on it faster than Chuck was annoying, but hopefully I'll get used to the idea. "Zoom" was also lacking the spy/action punch, and the two baddies were forgettable, but it did have some good character moments involving Chuck and Sarah. I'm not saying that "Chuck vs. The Zoom" was a bad episode, it was decent enough, but it wasn't as good as some of the past ones. Then again, it was just the season premiere and it did set the table fairly well, so it was a success.

GRADE: B-

Nikita: "343 Walnut Lane"

I almost forgot how evil Percy could be. Thankfully, "343 Walnut Lane" was a good reminder of what he's capable of and why so many people are hell bent on taking Division down. The way that he tricked both Alex and Nikita was a nice twist that added the right amount of intrigue to an already entertaining episode. On top of Percy's manipulation, "Walnut Lane" had some great action (I couldn't help but feel bad for Birkoff), back story, and plot development, which made it one of the better episodes of the season.

GRADE: B+

Supernatural: "Slash Fiction"

For the first time this season, I actually found myself caring about the Leviathan as the Big Bad because it was used in a pretty effective way. Having it pose as Sam and Dean and go on a cross-country killing spree while throwing in Quentin Tarantino references made for an fun time. Unfortunately, I still don't see the long-term benefits of the Leviathan especially since they ended this doppelganger gimmick after one episode, and I would've liked seeing it go on for a little bit longer because this show works best when it uses alternate versions of the Winchesters. In the end, "Slash Fiction" did expose what Dean did earlier in the season which was a plus, but even the reveal and the fallout felt safe.

GRADE: C+

Grimm: "Pilot"

One of the popular subjects of this television season has been the modern take on the classic fairy tale as both ABC and NBC gave us their versions of the concept. While I wasn't feeling ABC's Once Upon a Time, I did think that it had more of a upside than NBC's Grimm because of its serialized nature. That being said, I thought that the premiere episode of Grimm was better than its competitor's. Maybe I'm more of procedural fan that I'm willing to admit, but I felt that genre could work best with the fantasy elements of fairy tales. Grimm still had problems like its acting, but the pilot set a tone and atmosphere that was far more interesting than what Once Upon a Time gave us. I still think ABC will win out when it's all said and done, but Grimm was a nice surprise.

GRADE: C+

I'll be giving Once Upon a Time and Grimm a few more episodes to see if they should be added to the permanent rotation, but the returns of Glee and New Girl may have something to say about that.