Lately, though, watching Glee has been a bit of a chore for me. I didn’t even watch last week’s episode, the return after a winter hiatus. Maybe it was the Christmas episode that did me in. My favorite part was Kurt’s comment about Blaine being his “winter roommate” (mostly because I agree and also wish he were mine) but other than that I actually spent the whole time rolling my eyes. It’s just too over-the-top now. I appreciate what Glee has done to bring a lot of social issues into the spotlight, especially bullying and homosexuality, but now it seems like every episode has some kind of lesson that needs to be taught. Every once in a while is fine, but more than that and you’re lecturing your audience.

I’ve always been annoyed by Lea Michele’s character, the over-ambitious Rachel Berry, despite Michele’s role of Glee sweetheart. The producers keep saying Rachel isn’t coming back then changing their minds – I know they’re afraid losing Michele would kill the show, but at this point, I want to skip all of her scenes anyway. She has gone from annoying but lovable (hey, I have control issues of my own, so I have to give the girl a break) to just plain annoying. I want her to succeed and go to New York just so she’s out of McKinley – people can watch her on the inevitable spin-off, but I won’t.

Even my favorite, Sue Sylvester, has been a little too much as of late. She goes from typical, lovable-villain-Sue to I-have-a-heart-Sue to downright evil Sue in a three-episode arc. The touch of humanity is nice, but some consistency would be, too.

Once I get invested in a show, I wait it out until its bitter end – I have this weird phobia of not knowing how things end. Even with shows I don’t watch on a week-to-week basis anymore (House, MD for one), I still catch up on weekends when I get the chance. I’ll watch last week’s episode soon, because c’mon – Michael Jackson week is next. I have high hopes, and hopefully they’ll be met, because otherwise it’s to the back burner we go.

(White House photo)

But one of my very favorite things about Parks and Recreation has been the development of the character of Ron Swanson, played with delightful stoicism by Nick Offerman.

Ron was a good character from the beginning. But something happened around the time that we were introduced to the Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness (chock full of such insights as “America: The only country that matters. If you want to experience other ‘cultures,’ use an atlas and a ham radio” and “Greatness Itself: The best revenge”) at the start of last season. Swanson went from a good character to a great one. He is staunchly anti-government, yet tasked with running a government department. He’s wholly unsocial while fiercely loyal to those few people within his sphere. Ron is a man’s man. Unless one of his ex-wives is around.

Ron keeps a survival pack hidden in an air duct in his office. He hired a secretary whose sole qualification was a willingness to keep the public, whom he serves, from ever getting anywhere near him.

This week’s episode was focused almost exclusively on Leslie, but there was still time to remind us who Swanson is. The intro featured Ron as he was shocked to learn how computer cookies and Google Earth are invading his privacy. His logical and well-reasoned response was to throw his entire computer in the dumpster. Problem solved.

I expect a real life cult devoted to the teachings of Ron Swanson to pop up any week now.

New Girl is cute, I’ll give you that — both the show and the person. We’re just starting to get to know the characters, so they’re still a little blurry around the edges. We get a little more each week, and I’m hoping for some continued development, especially for Jess. Her awkwardness is a little much sometimes, but there has to be a story there. Despite putting herself “out there” so much, she still has some moments of insecurity — I loved the “CeCe/Si, si” flashback for its comedic sense, but also because it showed us how Jess has always let her friend take the spotlight. It’s interesting for someone who seems so comfortable being different. Also, just as I was starting to get annoyed with Schmidt, the wannabe womanizer, he showed a nicer, less-douchey side. This small redemption has me ready for more.

My fear for New Girl is that it will cross the line between goofy awkward and uncomfortable awkward. I have a friend who literally covers their eyes when they watch The Office, because of the embarrassing situations the characters find themselves in and how closely it mirrors real life. While laughing at other people’s extremes has always been a pastime — just look at YouTube — there is a line, and it can be crossed.

Zooey Deschanel plays her part well (it is her standard typecast, after all), and the comedy has been pretty spot-on so far. For me, the appeal is more subtle jokes that make me silently giggle after the fact than the one-liners that get a quick chuckle. I’m still trying to determine how much of a storyline they’re going to try to carry through the show, but so far I like it and I’m definitely going to stay tuned for more.

After a year of Cathy Bates guest spots, her role has been replaced by James Spader as new Sabre CEO Robert California. The enigmatic and charismatic new boss brings a fresh and funny new input to the story.

That’s not to say that The Office is now any more than a shadow of what it once was. But a shadow of The Office’s heyday is still better than most sitcoms on TV today. The Office still has enough life in it to keep long-time fans coming back for more. We can’t give up on Jim and Pam, even if they’ve become half-hearted imitations of their formerly hilarious selves.

While Spader replaced Carell (and Bates – a veritable two for one trade) in the cast, it was Andy who replaced Carell’s character Michael Scott as the Regional Manager of Dunder Mifflin’s Scranton branch. Although the real world reason for promoting Andy was obviously to capitalize on the increased visibility of actor Ed Helms, I at first thought that Andy’s promotion was one of those inexplicable TV-mechanisms like the constant cycle of promotion/demotion on the Drew Carey Show. But the writers actually gave us a credible reason why California would choose Andy Bernard to be the new boss.

No, The Office isn’t what it once was. We can’t reasonably expect that it ever will be again. But as long as it continues to be above average – and provides a nice lead-in to the funnier Parks and Rec and Community – we’ll keep tuning in.

How I Met Your Mother

Don’t get me wrong — I love the other characters on the show, and their day-to-day interactions are some of the most entertaining parts of the series. I like to hear their stories. But many of the characters are becoming caricatures of who they once were. Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) was always a lovable womanizer, but some of his schemes had us just shaking his head. Robin (Cobie Smulders) is no longer the strong, independent woman she once was, and now all of her story lines are focused on her (unexplained) love for Barney. And it’s becoming more and more likely that the aforementioned characters will end up together.

Producers promised some things for the new season, including Marshall beginning his new job and  Robin’s heartbroken reaction to the Vancouver Canucks’ Stanley Cup loss, but they didn’t promise something viewers have been waiting for since the pilot: meeting the mother. Five episodes in, and nothing even remotely close. We saw the return of Victoria from season one, but it went nowhere.

With every season, HIMYM loses more and more frustrated viewers. CBS clearly isn’t getting the message — it’s been renewed for season after season, which will obviously delay the inevitable end point of the season. The producers may want to take a note from LOST producer J.J. Abrams: pick an end point, and be done with it. It will allow more solid writing instead of the fluffy filler episodes we’ve been subjected to. Viewers love the episodes with substance — clues to who the mother could be. Many of us are continuing to watch out of pure habit. If we don’t get what we’re looking for, they could lose us as well.

Now, three weeks into the new season, there has been nary a single film convention skewered. Community has become – gasp – a straight sitcom. The stories are about what they appear to be about without any deeper layers of pop culture reference.

Not only did the leitmotif change, but the characters have undergone an unwelcome reformation as well. Jeff, once the voice of reason, is now the crabby, self-absorbed jerk (to be fair, he was always crabby & self-absorbed, but he also managed to be the voice of reason for the first two years). Abed has been mostly invisible through three weeks. Britta devolved into her pre-college radical self. Pierce suddenly started making sense. It’s as if instead of being caricatures of various pop culture icons, the characters are now caricatures of… themselves.

It isn’t all bad. John Goodman’s all-too-brief cameo in the season opener was a bright spot that set the tone for a season-long subplot concerning the school’s financial woes. The once sexually-ambiguous but now downright flaming dean is coming into his own as a character. Former professor cum unpaid security guard Chang provides some over-the-top comedy as his character has evolved (for better or worse) from creepy weirdo to full-on lunatic.

When Community debuted, I gave it a favorable review but wondered how long the writers could keep up the theme-a-week format. Two years, it turns out, is it. Rather than going out with a whimper, the weekly homage went out on a high note, cutting it off completely rather than attempting lamely to keep it going. But unless things pick up in coming weeks, we may all find ourselves wishing that Community chose the whimper.

Starring Kat Dennings (Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist)  and Beth Behrs as the titular “Broke Girls,” this might be the Whitney Cummings creation that actually takes off! In the season premiere, we are introduced to Max (Dennings), a street-smart girl living in Brooklyn who works two jobs to survive — one at a hole-in-the-wall diner in her neighborhood, and another working as a nanny for a nauseating socialite in Manhattan (who named her twins Brad and Angelina – vomit). Enter Caroline (Behrs), a former socialite herself who lost her family fortune when her father’s Ponzi scheme backfired. Made reluctant coworkers, and even more reluctant roommates, they struggle with making ends meet and their vastly different views on life.

I know that Caroline is supposed to appear as the aloof, dim-witted blonde who hasn’t worked a day in her life, but she’s actually my favorite of the two characters. Regardless of the fact that she clearly didn’t pay for it, her top-notch business education did her well — she’s smarter than she lets on, and her idea to start a bakery business inspired by Max’s famous cupcakes could have some merit. This becomes the premise of the show: Max and Caroline working to earn enough money to fund the new endeavor.

Max, on the other hand, doesn’t really sit well with me. She’s supposed to be smart-tongued and quick-witted, but instead her sarcasm comes off as nasty, not funny. The show’s alluded to her softer side, but her tough-as-nails exterior is a little too exaggerated.

2 Broke Girls is rife with one-liners, and has already met its quota on poop jokes for the season, but it has that comfortable sitcom feel about it. I’m hoping that some of the roughness will be smoothed out as it takes off, and that someone will finally decide that the concept of a laugh track is ridiculous. There’s no need to get overly invested, but it will certainly do its job until I finally lose faith in ever meeting the mother.

NBC

When I saw the advance materials for the show, I thought that it looked more like a movie trailer than a TV pitch.  How long, I wondered, could they keep the whole dynamic between leads Alex and Helen (Hank Azaria and Kathryn Hahn) fresh?  Having seen the results for the first two episodes, I don’t think we’ll ever find out.  The show is almost certain to be canceled long before the mystique can wear off.

It’s normal for a new show to lose some viewers between the first and second episodes.  You can’t please everyone, after all.  But Free Agents lost a full million viewers DURING the first episode.  The audience wasn’t even interested enough to stay up until 11 to see how things worked out for Alex and Helen.  Another huge drop by week two put Free Agents in fourth place for its time slot, losing badly to ABC’s Suburgatory, the second half of CBS’s Survivor, and the middle portion of Fox’s X-Factor.

The future looks dim for Free Agents, despite a really good ensemble cast.  Hank Azaria is absolutely charming and earnest.  Kathryn Hahn is convincing.  Anthony Stewart Head – Giles of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame — is hilarious as their boss.  Natasha Leggero’s deadpan portrayal of man-eating executive assistant Emma would make her a good candidate for breakout supporting character of the year — if anyone were watching.  At least she’ll have some work on film to try to attract work from another show down the road.

As long as NBC sticks with the show, there is hope that it will find its audience and develop staying power.  But not much.

Athlete Brady Kelly and actor Cheeks were just supposed to go to Vegas to celebrate the passing of marriage equality in the US. But they wake up the next day with rings on their fingers. To protect their public image, they decide to stay married and make it work. But how will they transition from six-week boyfriends to husbands?

Husbands premiered online last Tuesday, September 13, to an enthusiastic audience, who came from different parts of the world. They upload new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Be sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter and their website, Husbands the Series.

About the Cast and Crew

Jane Espenson (Co-Creator/Executive Producer) has written for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Caprica, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Angel and Game of Thrones. Husbands is her first independent web series. Follow more of her updates on Twitter as @JaneEspenson.

Brad “Cheeks” Bell (Co-Creator, Actor – “Cheeks”) plays Cheeks, one-half of the husbands. He is most famously known for his YouTube channel, where he released short form comedy videos in 2008. He recently created WeYüMe, an entertainment and lifestyle website, featuring a variety of original video programming. You can follow him on Twitter, @GoCheeksGo.

Sean Hemeon (Actor – “Brady Kelly”) grew up in Virginia and eventually moved to Los Angeles after he scored a role on As The World Turns. He was most recently seen as a vampire on True Blood. Learn more about him and his future projects on Twitter, @SeanHemeon.

Alessandra Torresani (Actress – “Haley”) was most recently seen on Caprica as Zoe Gladstone and as a guest star on Warehouse 13. She’ll next be seen on the thriller film, Playback, with Christian Slater, and TV movie, Circling the Drain, produced by Michael Eisner. You can follow Alessandra on Twitter, @BambolaBambina.

Jeff Greenstein (Director) is an Emmy-winning writer and producer for Dream On, Friends, Will & Grace, Parenthood and Desperate Housewives. You can follow Jeff on Twitter, @blue439.

Don’t forget to check in Tuesdays and Thursdays for new episodes of Husbands!

The basic setup for the show is pedestrian. After an ugly breakup with her former boyfriend, Jess feels the need to move out of her apartment and get a fresh start – which to her means repeatedly watching Dirty Dancing and crying on the couch. Her new roommates, three single guys lured into taking her in by the potential for meeting her model friends, soon lose patience with her moping and try to help her find her mojo on the dating circuit. Much hilarity ensues.

A significant part of the appeal is the aforementioned adorableness of Zooey Deschanel. Her innocent, goofy, lost portrayal of principal character Jess is the centerpiece of the show, the foundation from which the concept of the show springs. Her doe-eyed awkward nerdy hotness (a sub-genre of hotness that reached new heights of popularity when Tina Fey began satirizing Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live) is captivating.

But a cutey-pie starlet alone does not a successful sitcom make. The ensemble cast also prominently features her three new roommates, portrayed by Jake Johnson, Max Greenfield, and Damon Wayans Jr. as well as her best friend Cece, played by Hannah Simone of Beautiful People fame.

From the advance clips, it looks like the cast has the kind of special chemistry that made Friends such a hit. The writing is solid for a pilot and shows the promise of staying power. In a pretty weak field of competition, New Girl may easily be the best of the bunch for Fall 2011.

New Girl premiers Tuesday, September 20th on Fox.