Two Tivos To Paradise 02.13.09: Two Dozen Roses Worth of TV News

Posted by Al Norton on 02.13.2009

Will Dollhouse make Friday the hottest TV night of the Week?, the top 10 TV couples, Dancing with the Stars newest cast, FX's newest shows, an update on the Grey's Anatomy exodus, the latest on pilot season, raves for Bones, TONS of news and notes, the TV Pick of the Week and more, all in the Valentine's Weekend edition of Al Norton's Two Tivos To Paradise!

Hello Friends. A rough week in the Norton household as both Mrs. Tivo and I came down with a rather violent stomach bug within about an hour of each other on Sunday afternoon. I wasn't fully mobile until Wednesday but the good news is that the twins came through unscathed.

In case you missed it earlier this week you can read my interview with Man v. Food host Adam Richman here.

To kick off our Valentine's Day celebration I give you one of my favorite love songs in recent days, and a version of it with harmonies so sweet you can get diabetes just from listening. Please to enjoy Los Lonely Boys and Ronnie Milsap doing More Than Love from CMT's Crossroads.

It's an embarrassment of link riches this week as I am pleased to share you with the brand new very funny trailer for Comedy Central's action/fantasy/comedy Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire. The show is set to premiere on April 11th and this clip debuted at NY Comic-Con last week to resounding laughter. Oh yes, and its' Friday the 13th. No clips for this but I figured I should at least point it out.

Something in your voice makes my heart beat fast, hope this feeling lasts the rest of my news.

If There Were No Words, No Way To Speak, I Would Still Hear You
In honor of the romance filled holiday weekend I thought I would give you a list of my 10 Favorite TV Couples. A few notes before we get started: this list is made up only of current TV couples, and they are all romantic relationships, so Shawn & Gus from PSYCH and JD & Turk from Scrubs didn't qualify. Here goes:

10) Derek & Meredith, Grey's Anatomy
I am not afraid to admit I like them as a couple, based mostly on how well they know each other. It's interesting to me the contrast in what is making their relationship stronger – it's Derek getting to know Meredith better combined with Meredith getting to know herself better.

9) Audrey & Jeff, Rules of Engagement
Sorry if my picking a couple from a lousy show offends you put when you've got two incredibly talented comedic actors like Patrick Warburton and Megan Pryce, the relationship they portray is bound to be funny, sweet, and realistic. They have had some of the more dead-on couple conversations in recent memory and deserve better the neighbors CBS has given them.

8) Rose & Bernard, Lost
They may not get as much screen time as other couples on this list but that's what makes how powerful their bond comes across that much more impressive. They may disagree with whose leadership they should follow to get off the island but their commitment to each other is never, ever in doubt.

7) Brenda & Fritz, The Closer
It's only recently that I fully got on board the Brenda and Fritz bandwagon, in particular when he finally opened up to her, both about his alcoholism and his needing to be a full partner in the relationship. That fantastic scene proved that open lines of communication make for stronger partnerships.

6) Cooper & Charlotte, Private Practice
Cooper and Charlotte are the couple having the most - and hottest - sex on this list, at least they were up until recently when plot contrivances have been keeping them apart. Those things will pass and they will resume being a great example of two different and distinct personalities coming together to compliment each other.

5) Julius & Rochelle, Everybody Hates Chris
Ahh, the TV rarity that is a true middle class coupling. Julius works two, sometimes three jobs to provide for the family. Rochelle works and watches guard on the children. They fight as well any couple on this list but their passion for each other and their desire for their kids to have better opportunities than they did are always clear.

4) Kevin & Scotty, Brothers & Sisters
While I actually like Scotty more than Kevin these days, this is a couple who truly worked to make this list, dating, breaking up, and then finding each other again before getting married last spring. What makes them so great is the way they inspire and support each other to greater and greater levels of personal and professional success. I especially like the way Scotty has no problem standing up to Kevin's crazy family. Well, except Nora, of course.

3) Adama & Roslin, Battlestar Galactica
It took the better part of three seasons but these two finally acknowledged their feelings and the universe is a better place because of it. Talk about a power couple – the President of the Colonies and the head of the Military! Both extremely comfortable in their own skin, they give prove that the fires burn strong no matter what is going on around you.

2) Allison & Joe, Medium
In my mind these two are the most realistic couple on TV. They work, they raise their kids, they deal with serious financial issues, they put the needs of their family first, they talk about how they feel, their fights always ring true, and they enjoy a healthy sex life. The fact that they do so while one of them has visions that help solve some seriously horrific crimes is just another thing they find a way to deal with.

1) Desmond & Penny, Lost
Desmond and Penny snuck up on me, with storytelling over many episodes that laid the groundwork for last season's The Constant, an episode that mere clips of still bring tears to my eyes; I've never wanted someone to answer a phone that much in my life. They prove that such feelings really do have no bounds; through class issues, meddling families, continents, years, and magnetic fields, their love found a way.

And there you go. Feel free to use the comments section below to tell me your picks for the First couple of TV these days.

Things Are Coming Your Way Out There, Somewhere Tonight It Is The Right Time And Place
Considered a wasteland given up on by some networks, the last few weeks have found some of the best shows on television airing on Friday night. With Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles debuting in it's new timeslot tonight at 8 that makes no fewer than 3 of the 10 best drama on TV putting roots down on Fridays (Friday Night Lights and Battlestar Galactica being the other two). While they are completely different in style and content, Everybody Hates Chris and PSYCH belong on anyone's short list of top TV comedies as well. And while the quality level of the show is still to be determined, there is no doubt that Dollhouse (9 pm, Fox) – Joss Whedon's return to series TV – makes the night that much buzz worthy.

My excitement for having a Joss Whedon show on the air is tempered by reports that the he and Fox battled over the tone of the show, leading to production being shut down for several weeks. I don't know who ending up winning those fights but I'd watch anything Joss put his name on at least a couple of times before rendering judgment. Fox seems to be hoping that putting two sci-fi dramas together on a night when the most critically acclaimed show of the genre already enjoys some success might lead to some ratings. Certainly it's the kind of programming decision that will take the DVR numbers into account.

While Mondays are the nights that our Tivos do the most recording, Friday is right now the night that gets the highest quality.

Message Keeps Getting Clearer, Radio's On And I'm Moving Around This Place
ABC announced the 13 competitors who will lace up their dancing shoes for the 8th season of Dancing with the Stars, which premieres Monday March 9th. In alphabetical order: former Go-Go's lead singer Belinda Carlisle, comedian and host of Chocolate News David Allen Grier, singer Jewel, Olympic Gold Medalist Shawn Johnson, rapper and ex-con Lil Kim, Gilles Marini is best known for his role as the naked neighbor in last summer's Sex and the City movie, rodeo champion Ty Murray, Jackass star Steve-O, Access Hollywood host Nancy O'Dell, actress Denise Richards, NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor, country music singer Chuck Wicks, and Apple computer designer Steve Wozniak.

This year has some "interesting" twists with the cast, first and foremost being that Jewel and Murray are the first married contestants in show history. At 17 Johnson is the youngest competitor the show has ever had, and while ABC is not heavily promoting it, I am fairly sure Lil Kim is the first convicted felon in Dancing with the Stars history. Another new wrinkle is that Wicks dancing partner on the show is his real life girlfriend Julianne Hough.

I am a little disappointed at the lack of a late 80's-early 90's TV star in the group - somewhere Dennis Haskins is still waiting for his phone to ring – but Wozniak is one of the more out-of-the-box choices in series history.

I Am Just A Poor Boy And My Story Seldom Told
FX is looking to continue its success in the original programming department with the announcement of two new pilots this week. Lights Out is about a former heavyweight boxing champion who falls upon hard times after retirement and takes a job as collecting money for a bookie/loan shark. Complicating his attempts to provide for his wife and three daughters is his diagnosis with pugilistic dementia, a common neurological disorder for boxers that will eventually cause him to lose all his memories.

The second series is based on the Elmore Leonard short story Fire in the Hole, following a US Marshall from Kentucky as he does his job and deals with an ex-wife and aging Dad. Graham Yoost, who created Boomtown, wrote the pilot and will executive produce.

Based on how much I grew to love Sons of Anarchy last year I have high hopes for the type of long term, character driven storytelling FX seems to have in mind from its shows. Lights Out sounds a little like Rocky mixed with parts of Rocky 5, but the whole amnesia in reverse concept could make for some great scripts. The producers are saying the show will focus not only on the fighter but his wife and others, comparing it to the way The Sopranos wasn't just about Tony. That's a pretty high bar to set for yourself but I admire the gumption. You can decide for yourself if the fact that the pilot is co-written by the guy who penned The Bucket List is a good thing or not.

Elmore Leonard's works have long been the source for movies and TV and Yoost has a nice resume; along with writing all of the episodes of the cruelly overlooked Jeff Goldblum cop drama Raines, he also wrote episodes of Band of Brothers and From Earth to the Moon. And the guy used to write for Herman's Head, which has to count for something.

Let's hope FX can keep their streak going and keep making quality television for us to enjoy.

Like A Coin In Your Mint, I'm Dented And I'm Spent With High Treason
It's pilot season in TV Land and as such we've broken the updates about new shows out of the "All The Young Dudes" section below and given it it's own feature. All of the shows mentioned below are having pilots filmed, putting them one step closer to getting a spot in their network's line ups this fall…

ABC: The Witches of Eastwick pilot got a director in David Nutter, whose track record seems to guarantee the show will get picked up; Nutter has an INCREDIBLE streak of 14 consecutive pilots he has helmed having been picked up for series, including some diverse works as Roswell, Dark Angel, Jack & Bobby, The Mentalist, Without A Trace, and Smallville. Oh hell, let's name them all: Supernatural, Tarzan, Traveler, Dr. Vegas, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Sleepwalkers, Millennium, and Space: Above and Beyond. If he made Dr. Vegas look good enough to get on the air, the man has talent…ABC ordered a pilot for No Heroics, an adaptation of a BBC comedy about a watering hole that has a cliental made up of superheroes. The script is being written by Jeff Greenstein (Will and Grace, Desperate Housewives) and Drew Pearce, who created the original version…The highly underrated Ed O'Neill has been added to the cast of the pseudo-documentary comedy An American Family…Cedric the Entertainer will executive producer and star in the sitcom pilot The Law, about weekend reserve police officers…Planet Lucy is based on the book Slummy Mummy about a highly successful professional who gives up her career to raise three kids at home…Cougartown, executive produced by Bill Lawrence (Scrubs) and starring Courtney Cox, is heading in front of the camera…

CBS: Jerry Bruckheimer's Miami Trauma, a hospital drama, is under consideration for the fall line-up, as is Three Rivers, which tells the story of an organ donation for the points of view of the Dr, the donor, and the recipient. Oscar winner Curtis Hanson is one of the executive producers along with Jericho's Carol Barbee, who wrote the script…The Good Wife, which will move forward depending on casting, follows the significant other of a politician who goes back to work at her old job as a defense lawyer…Echoes of Green Acres resound in the comedy Big D, where an decidedly east coast wife moves to the hometown – Dallas – of her husband…Speaking of comedies, Accidentally on Purpose is based on the novel of the same name where a movie critic becomes pregnant after a fling with a much younger man…Mad TV's Will Sasso is on the writing team of Waiting to Die, where two male friends find themselves quite happy with their lives no matter how bad things seem to get…I, Witness is a new crime drama (SHOCKING) from the producers of CSI: NY about a detective/professor who uses her keen psychological skills to solve crimes. Oh I see, it's different because it's a woman and not a man…Margaret Nagle, who gave us Lifetime's charming Side Order of Life, is the creative force behind the medical drama The Eastmans…Richard Murphy is adapting his book Confessions of a Contractor for a drama pilot…

The CW: Dawson's Creek creator Kevin Williamson is adapting the teen novel series The Vampire Diaries into a show of the same name. I always forget that Williamson also wrote the screenplay for Scream…Body Politic follows a young new assistant at a US Senator's office and the staffers she works with…

NBC: State of Romance is a comedy described as a modern take on Pride and Prejudice…Speaking of romantic comedies, 100 Questions for Charlotte Payne is set in New York and follows a young woman's dating life.

FOX: Mark Valley, long one of the more underrated TV actors – yes, I am among the legion of writers who are big Keen Eddie fans, plus I remember him as the only Jack Deveroux who could come close to holding a candle to Matthew Ashford – has been cast as the lead in the Human Target pilot, a new action series being adapted from a DC comic book series. Fun Fact – Rick Springfield played the same character in a 7 episode series for ABC back in 1992. Hmmm, maybe that was only fun for a Working Class Dog like myself. Hey, Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet. Ok, I'm done now…

But You Were Up To Your Old Tricks In Chapters Four Five And Six
All you need to know about the Nielsen's for the past week (or so)...Last Thursday's Celtics-Lakers game was TNT's highest rated regular season basketball game in 13 years. Ratings for TNT's NBA telecasts are up 23% from last season…Bones picked up viewers in its second Thursdays at 8 airing, with its 10.76 million more than enough to win the hour…Grey's Anatomy won the entire night in both total audience and demos, and the "crossover episode" helped Private Practice jump 35% from last week and score the second best numbers in series history…Every program that aired during primetime on NBC on Thursday was down from previous new episode…Sunday night's Grammy Awards were up 14% from last year and easily won the night with 19.1 million…Both Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters were up from their last new episodes…Monday's Presidential press conference was carried by the big four and watched by more than 37 million people…The Big Bang Theory, shifted to a post Two and a Half Men time slot, hit a new series high with 13.1 million, thanks to a lead-in audience of 14.88 million…Everything else on Monday night was down from previous new episodes…Tuesday's American Idol was down a bit from last week but still drew a crowd 24.5 million strong...Fringe, it's lead out, was down 20% from last week…NCIS was watched by 18 million…The Mentalist set a new series high with 19.7 million…Without A Trace used that lead-in audience to jump 21% from last week, with an audience of 14.55 million…Idol's two hour Wednesday episode dominated the evening with 24.6 million, down a bit from last week but made to still look quite strong considering the length of the show was doubled...Lost took a hit from AI, hitting a SERIES low 9.76 million. If you want good news you can look at it like it was the night's top rated scripted show in the demos for the 4th week running and that the audience grew larger as the episode went on...Law and Order dropped 13%...

All The Young Dudes Carry The News
Industry News, Notes, and Hot Rumors…James Pickens, who plays the Chief on Grey's Anatomy, got the TV press corps churning big time when he told US Weekly that both Katherine Heigl and TR Knight would be leaving the show by the end of the season. Both have been widely rumored to be departing, both because they wanted to pursue new opportunities. Entertainment Weekly is reporting their sources say nothing is even close to definite yet. Both actors are under contract and would have to return next fall if the network wants them…TV Guide is reporting that Nicollette Sheridan will leave Desperate Housewives at the end of the season…U2 will be the musical guest on The Late Show with David Letterman the entire week of March 2nd through the 6th. The band will be promoting the release of their new album...The Writers Guild of America named Mad Men and 30 Rock the best written shows on TV, and gave the awards for individual episodes to the pilot for Breaking Bad and last year's season finale of 30 Rock…Rob Thomas told Entertainment Weekly that his meeting with Joel Silver and Warner Brothers to pitch a Veronica Mars movie was to take place in the next couple of weeks…Showtime has renewed The United States of Tara for a 12 episode second season…Caprica, the Battlestar Galactica prequel that is set to begin airing on Sci Fi in 2010 will have it's two hour pilot released on DVD on April 10th of this year…ABC Family renewed The Secret Life of the American Teenager for a 24 episode second season that will begin airing this summer…Loretta Devine, most recently seen as Eli Stone's secretary, will keep her legal briefs on in her new role on David E Kelley's upcoming Legally Mad. She's getting a promotion, too – on the new series she will be playing a lawyer…Joe Buck will host a new sports-based magazine show for HBO, replacing the departing Bob Costas' Costas Now…Krysten Ritter (Gilmore Girls, Veronica Mars), who will be seen on the upcoming season of Breaking Bad, is the first person to be cast in the Gossip Girl spinoff. Ritter will play Lily's sister Carolyn, the black sheep of the family…Jerry Springer will not return to host America's Got Talent this summer so he can focus on a theater project and his talk show. Springer has hosted the show – the summer's highest rated program three years running – for two seasons, following Regis Philbin who left after the first season for health. The new host will be Nick Cannon, aka Mr. Mariah Carey…reasons…Following word that CBS is asking their actors to forgo traditional pay raises comes word that USA is more than doubling the salary of Burn Notice star Jeffery Donovan, whose show has enjoyed it's best ratings ever since it returned last month…Chris Pratt, forever known in these parts as Bright on my beloved Everwood, has been cast as Rashida Jones boyfriend on NBC's upcoming Parks and Recreation…The Cartoon Network picked up a second season of The Clone Wars. The first season wraps up next month…Anne Heche has been cast opposite Thomas Jane in HBO's upcoming Hung. The part was played in the pilot by Kristin Bauer, and those scenes will be reshot…Kelsey Grammer will direct the Lifetime pilot Alligator Point, about a group of offbeat folks who all hang out at a Florida bar and whose routine is broken up when a Northern girl joins the gang. Cybil Shepard plays the bar's owner and Lauren Stamile (Grey's Anatomy) is the Northerner…NBC has picked up 8 episodes of an untitled Tony Robbins reality series where each week the motivational speaker/life coach helps people take on lifelong personal challenges…MyNetworkTV will no long air original programming – other than WWE Smackdown, its top performing show – and will switch to a slate of reruns come this fall, including one night that will be back-to-back episodes of Law and Order: Criminal Intent. It also gave Sunday nights back to its affiliates…Spike TV is moving forward on Players, a comedy set in a sports bar written by and starring Upright Citizens Brigade alum Matt Walsh…Paige Davis (Trading Spaces) will host the syndicated show Life For Dummies…Speaking of syndication, Cristina's Court will not be back for a fourth season…TV Guide tells us that Eureka returns for a third season on July 14th…Taye Diggs real life wife Idina Menzel will join him on multiple episodes of Private Practice this spring…Wilmer Valderrama is producing Earth to Pablo for Nickelodeon, a family comedy where the family in question gets a teenager from outer space instead of the one from South America they were expecting from the exchange program. I get it, it's Aliens in America but with real aliens… Based on the killer ratings for this season, ABC has added a one hour special to The Bachelor finale package, meaning the three hour finale will air on one night, including the traditional After the Rose special, and will be followed the next night by After the Rose, Part II…Alex O'Laughin, last seen as the lead on Moonlight, will guest as a serial killer on Criminal Minds later this season…America's Next Top Model had its premiere pushed back a week – now March 4th - as well as having it extended into a two hour event…

Turns Out Not Where But Who You're With That Really Matters
The top thing I watched since the last column went to press AKA The Best Of What's Around…Last Thursday's Bones was a tour-de-force for David Boreanaz, showing why he is among the more underrated actors on TV. Perhaps because too many people still think of him only as Angel, his ability to do drama and comedy has never seemed to get enough credit, despite that fact that he is two-for-two as far as successful series go. Locked up by a serial killer on a boat rigged with explosives with only the ghost of a soldier once under his command to help him find his way off, Boreanaz put every ounce of his talent on display, getting laughs and tears along the way; I knew what his son's name was but still got a bit chocked up when he finally said it. Some credit must go to Noel Fisher (The Riches), who continues to show he is an actor worth keeping track of; playing a ghost isn't easy but he gave earnestness a good name.

To be honest, the non-Booth parts of the episode were a bit of a let down – that was how they wrapped up a serial killer storyline that's been going on since season one?!?! – but it didn't matter since Boreanaz made the hour easily the week's most compelling episode of television, which is pretty high praise since we knew full well that they were going to kill him off. While some aspects of Bones current season have left me a little cold, the way they are digging deeper into Booth has really paid off.

People Say I'm Crazy Doing What I'm Doing. Well, They Give Me All Kinds Of Warnings To Save Me From Ruin
What's flashed before my eyes the last seven days…While it certainly worked for ratings, ABC hyping the Grey's Anatomy – Private Practice crossover last week left me feeling quite under whelmed since none of the characters from one show actually appeared on the other. How much cooler would it have been if they didn't hype it at all and then Derek gets the frantic call from Addison at the end of Grey's? People would have still stayed tuned to PP just to see what was going on, and then they could have pushed it like crazy for the next week, which is when the real crossover happens. It's the networks choice, not the show's, and it made something that could have been cool into something that was ultimately disappointing…Life returned with a solid episode last week, moving the story along somewhat while employing some of the show's trademark quirkiness to good effect. I love that Roman is becoming more integral to the story as Garret Dillahunt plays him so well…Life on Mars episode last Wednesday was fantastic and really should have been the first outing of the new year as it picked up where things left off in December. Great acting all around, and the central mystery just keeps getting deeper…How can I find new ways to rave about Battlestar Galactica? The second half of the two part episode was just as good as the first, with the Baltar – Gaita pre-execution conversation being not only a highlight of the hour but of the season so far. Mark Sheppard's Romo Lampkin is always a welcome sight…Jon Hamm's first of multiple 30 Rocks was funny although sometimes I wish they might go a little lighter on the silly…Anytime Dwight and Jim are forced to work together its we fans of The Office who benefit…Has any reality show contestant ever dominated their show the way Stefan has on this season of Top Chef? Yes, I know, he had one off week but his overall track record is simply ridiculous and it would be an upset of epic proportions if anyone other than him takes the prize. Now watch him go and screw up this week that I won't get to watch before we go to press...TV is simply a better place when John Glover is working, making his first Brothers & Sisters appearance a cause for celebration. I think he and Jennifer Coolidge may need to be added to my dream sitcom cast soon…Loved the confrontation between Bill and Barb's Moms on Big Love this week, especially since it gave us some interesting back story. On my current list of top dramas Big Love is 5th with a bullet. How funny were the other wives' reactions when Marjene revealed her new hair color?!!?...SNL's Digital Short I'm On A Boat was an instant classic in my eyes – LOVED the Kevin Garnet shout out…I love that My Name is Earl remains unafraid to take risks; last season they had a series of episodes where Earl was in a coma (to me the sitcom in his mind was a perfect skewering of certain types of shows) and now they have Crab Man and Joy off on their own and generating big laughs. The concept of the series remains in tact but they find new sources of energy to keep the show alive and well…I have always been a Scrubs fan but this is really the first season where I have LOVED the show, feeling their mix of comedy and drama really worked over the long term. Don't get me wrong, there have been some truly classic episodes in the past that made be both laugh and cry, but the run this season has been very, very impressive…A gay couple adopting a baby? A wife telling her husband she drinks wine in the afternoon and then takes care of her own sexual needs? A Mom worried that her developmentally disabled son is becoming sexually active? Who would have thought this would all be on a show (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) on ABC Family?!?!?...I thought Lost was solid but did not understand some calling it the best episode of the season. I did like seeing where the Smoke Monster lived and finding out that it has the ability to brain wash you once it grabs you...

TV Pick Of The Week
With ratings for the NBA up all around this season, interest in All-Star Weekend should be equally as high. Things start off Friday at 7 with the NBA All-Star Celebrity Challenge (ESPN), followed at 9 pm by the NBA Rookie Challenge (TNT), which pits the top rookies going head-to-head with the best of the league's sophomore class. NBA All-Star Saturday Night (8:30 pm, TNT) includes the fan favorite dunk and 3 point shooting contest as well as the latest addition (unofficially this season), a game of H-O-R-S-E. What better way to show your significant other how much you care than sitting on the couch watching some hoops?

The All-Star game itself is in primetime on Sunday night (8 pm) and usually features copious amounts of offense, so don't expect to be board.

Don't miss a minute of the NBA All-Star Weekend!

Special Note – TheWB.com is celebrating the romance by giving you Valentine's Day themed episodes of Everwood, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls, The OC, Veronica Mars, and Smallville. They also put together a 10 episode package of Friends' episodes that chronicles the Ross-Rachel relationship, including the two part series finale. Even better, you can know watch the first 5 episodes of Pushing Daisies via the website, with more to follow. For those of you sick of the romance the site will have episodes dealing with break up's from such series as One Tree Hill, Angel, Buffy, and Gilmore Girls as well as package of Friends' outings featuring the one and only Janice, all starting on February 18th.

Hope You Need My Love, Babe, Just Like I Need You
Here is some other noteworthy programming of the next seven days…

*James Roday co-wrote and directed tonight's episode of PSYCH, which involves a case about the mysterious disappearance of a camp counselor.

*Alec Baldwin's hosts Saturday Night Live for the 14th time this week, with the Jonas Brothers as musical guests.

*Masterpiece Classic starts its run on Charles Dickens with Sunday's Oliver Twist (part two airs next Sunday).

*Amazing Race 14 (Sunday, 8 pm, CBS) includes Mike White, the pen behind the Jack Black films School of Rock and Nacho Libre competing with his Dad as well as two former Dolphin Cheerleaders and a deaf pair as well.

*I am doing my best to keep my expectations for Eastbound and Down in check. Will Ferrell is executive producing this comedy about a former pro baseball player who returns to his hometown to teach gym. Danny McBride, so funny in last summer's Tropic Thunder, stars.

*Spectacular, Nickelodeon's version of High School Musical, takes the stage Monday at 8. Expect lots of Facebook posting and Twittering among the tweener set.

*Battle For Tobacco Road: Duke vs. North Carolina is a new documentary chronically the storied rivalry between the two college basketball powerhouses that debuts on Monday at 9 pm on HBO.

*American Idol is now down to 36 contestants, with 12 performing on Tuesday night and three making the cut to the finals on Wednesday.

*Dogg After Dark begins it's 7 episode run Tuesday at 9 pm on MTV with Snoop doing the variety show hosting gig. Look for some sketch comedy, musical guests, and many, many snack breaks.

*The Real Housewives of Orange County wraps up another season Tuesday at 10 pm on Bravo, immediately followed by the season two premiere of The Real Housewives of New York City.

*Top Chef: New York's two part finale begins Wednesday at 10 pm with the finalists heading down to New Orleans. Guess who stops by as a guest judge? Here's a hint – BAM!

*Being Erica is a Canadian series that being airing on SoapNet Thursday night and involves a woman being magically sent back in time to relive big moments in her life and hopefully make better decisions. Sounds interesting enough to check out.

Two Tivos To Paradise
30 Days, 30 Rock, The Academy, American Idol, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, Antiques Roadshow, The Apprentice, Battlestar Galactica, Best Day Ever, Best Week Ever, Big Love, Bones, Breaking Bad, Brothers And Sisters, Burn Notice, Chocolate News, Chopped, Chuck, The Closer, Criss Angel Mindfreak, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Daddy's Girls, Damages, The Deadliest Catch, Desperate Housewives, Destination Truth, Dirty Sexy Money, The Dish, Entourage, Eureka, Everybody Hates Chris, Flipping Out, Gary Unmarried, Ghost Hunters, Ghost Hunters International, Gossip Girl, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, The Hills, House, How I Met Your Mother, Iron Chef America, Jon & Kate + Eight, Last Comic Standing, Last Restaurant Standing, Law And Order, Law And Order: Criminal Intent, Law And Order: Special Victims Unit, Life On Mars, Lost, Mad Men, Make Me A Supermodel, Man v. Food, Medium, The Middleman, My Name Is Earl, The New Adventures Of Old Christine, Next Food Network Star, Nip/Tuck, The Office, One Tree Hill, Paranormal State, Private Practice, Project Runway, Pushing Daisies, Psych, Real Time With Bill Maher, Reaper, Rescue Me, Rules Of Engagement, Run's House, Samantha Who?, Sanctuary, The Sarah Jane Chronicles, Saturday Night Live, Scrubs, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Shear Genius, Skins, So You Think You Can Dance?, Sons of Anarchy, The Soup, Sports Soup, Step It Up and Dance, Supernatural, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Top Chef, Top Design, Torchwood, True Blood, Trust Me, Ugly Betty, Will Work for Food

People Love You When They Know You're Leaving Soon
Here ends another edition of Two Tivos To Paradise. Hope everyone has a safe Friday the 13th as well as a happy Valentine's Day weekend! Any of you looking up in my neck of the woods looking for ways to celebrate the day and/or listen to some quality music should check out Will Dailey's show at Harper's Ferry in Allston, MA on Saturday night. We'll be back next week with the full rundown of TV news as well as the return of the American Idol Revue. I was giving it it's own column but time is short when you're the Father of twins, so it returns to its home next Friday. Sorry all you AI haters - you can always just skip on down to the next news item. Chuck fans should check out my interview with Julia Ling here at 411mania on Monday.

All my love to Tina and Genevieve, the two women who will forever have my heart.

See you in 7!


Feedback is encouraged at [e-mail] as well via the comments section below.

Sources for this week's column include Daily Variety, Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, and Hollywood Reporter (plus the web sites for those publications) as well as Aintit.cool.com.