Better of Ted, Dead?

What’s the point America? It seems like every time I really get into a show it gets cancelled.
Today I learned of the pretty much certain death of one of those said shows. Better of Ted will not return tonight with its counterpart Scrubs (2.0). The show about middle management and office sociology echoes that of NBC’s The Office, except without all the whiney documentary and general downhill slide that that particular show has been experiencing. Don’t get me wrong I love The Office; it was one of my favorite shows. But it doesn’t hold a flame to what Better Off Ted was. For however smart The Office was, Better of Ted was smarter.
And that was probably its downfall. America doesn’t get smart comedies (Arrested Development, cough, cough). Instead we’re stuck with the same terrible comedy, the likes of which are only twisted further by “class-acts” like NBC’s The Marriage Ref and shows that should have been left to rot, yet somehow live forever (Simpsons).
In short, there was nothing wrong with Better Off Ted, save from this one seemingly fatal flaw. Sure it had a fairly bizarre name (is it a play off of ‘better off dead’?) but there wasn’t anything else wrong with it. Most people can appreciate the fight against a seemingly evil company who puts money before people. And each of the characters was unique and funny in their own way. Portia de Rossi, as boss Veronica Palmer, always stole every scene. In the end it was all the characters together playing off each other and in the situations that gave the show its amazing life. This only got better in the second series, making it definitively the funniest show to return this season—nothing had me laughing out loud quite like Better Off Ted did for its short 11 episode, second season, run.
So thanks ‘Ted for the laughs. And honestly ABC, I thought you were better than this. I thought you were a place where smart comedies would be respected (I’m looking at you NBC and FOX). After LOST is finished there will be officially nothing to watch on your network.
If you're looking for an first-class episode of this amazing show. check out ‘Impertinence of Communicationizing’ on Hulu.com, although it my opinion they’re all good.

Overrated: FlashForward

Despite being based on a novel, this TV show falls flat on its face (see Dexter for TV shows that actually do well when based on a book). Billed as the next Lost, ABC’s FlashForward seemed to have a good premise. The previews looked exciting and new. What I found though was a show particularly hard to watch. Apart from the first 20 mins of the first episode which seemed to head in the correct direction, the show began a headlong spiral into obscurity and feeble stories.
The premise:
The entire world blacks out for two minutes. During that time they see the future—they FlashForward. Wow, you say, that sounds like an awesome premise. Well that’s what I thought too, unfortunately I was dead wrong.
What makes this show awful?
One key element of the premise comes back and bites the story writers in the ass. Everybody sees their future—and we as the audience see that future too. Personally I hate predictable endings and this plays directly into this. I’m sure there are twists and turns on the way there but as soon as they figured out all the FlashForwards occurred on the same day and time in the future I figured out I was over it. I did watch 3 episodes of the series. I did try, but what I found every time were revelations that were less than earth shattering. Maybe I was expecting the Lost effect, or just expecting too much. While it might be an original premise it all feels way to played out; From the way Dr. Olivia Benford (Sonya Walger) finds the man from her FlashForward, the fact that we know that Special Agent Demetri Noh (John Cho) will die sometime soon (its like Jack from 24, except the exact reverse), or even the way the uninspiring-ly acted main character Special Agent Mark Benford (Joseph Fiennes) pieces the puzzle together from his FlashForward.
You itch for it to get to the end—to some measurable point—at then you just can’t take it anymore when a revelation comes and it’s weak or a dead end. And while this may seem almost hypocritical from a big Lost fan, I’m calling this show Overrrated. On the same hand I can’t wait for ‘V,’ ABC’s other big mystery-drama of the fall.

Check out the ABC Starter Kit for everything you really dont need to know:

Underrated: Modern Family

As I watched this week’s episode of ABC’s new half hour comedy on Wednesday, Modern Family it dawned on me that this was definitively the best new show on television. The mix of comedy is both smart and calculated and of course funny. The characters are understandable, quirky likable and the storylines are interesting and usually beyond funny.

The premise
The show consists of three separate family units. The first is the traditional nuclear family, one oblivious dad who wants to be a friend as apposed to a dad, 3 kids and a mom who just wants to keep everything together. The second, a gay couple who recently adopted a child from Asia. And finally an older man who has remarried a younger Colombian woman with a single child.

What makes this show great?
The key thing to know for this show is that all three families are tied together. The older man is the father of one half of the couples in the other two family units (the super mom and the smaller half of the gay couple). What this means is that at times the story lines will intertwine to a single (and often hilarious) point at the end. Three separate storylines means that if one storyline sucks the other two generally make up for it. Each family unit works by itself, developing its own plot, but then takes it a step further when the families come together. From being learner parents to learning to drive the show takes on the most prevalent and funny issues and trivialities in parenthood and families. Without spoiling any of the multitude of jokes crammed into a half hour, some of the best parts of the latest episode (and the best of the series) were issues of driving, waking up, baby bumps and who could win a race, fitting in and the first day of school. Despite the humor the show usually always wraps up with a lesson—almost Grey’s Anatomy-esque—which ultimately ties the episode together nicely and completely.

While NBC’s Community did have a good streak, it ultimately falls in second behind the admittedly lesser known but far funnier standards of Modern Family. Do yourself a favor and tune in Wednesdays at 9 on ABC; I’m fairly sure you’ll be glad you did.

Checkout the clip below for a taste: