Trophy Wife: Mother's Day, Indeed

This series has been cancelled, and I have lukewarm feelings about that. I have mentioned on and off all season that the concept behind the show was different, the characters were somewhat appealing, and the kids were downright lovable... though it also tried too hard and didn't always act like a rookie comedy. There are folks out there with hope that ABC Family or Hulu might revive the family program, but I'm gonna go ahead and doubt them... though I do hope that Bradley Whitford is able to score another series, because I miss him on television. Of course, that would ideally be reincarnating Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, but that's even more ridiculous. :-P  Still, isn't the below a cute way to catch up viewers on who's who?

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Trophy Wife "Mother's Day" (S01E22): Kate wants to be thought of as a mom, so she's thrilled when Jackie and Diane decide to let her spend Mother's Day with the kids, though she tries to get thoughtful gifts for the others as well. This leads to a chicken for Jackie and a recreation of a Flemish still-life for Diane. [how amusing! I wonder how the chicken would have played out for another season...] But, neither are home on Sunday morning, as they took off for Laguna Beach. [haha! Hillary: "they dumped the kids and Kate on me"] Bert gets the location out of Sad Steve, so they head down there and Kate gets into it with the other women. [a bit roughly, I might add!] However, everyone comes together when they learn that Pete had a heart attack. But, it was just indigestion from eating random food while under pressure from being the lead counsel representing a company that spilled oil. ["what else can we blame this on?" made me laugh.] Still, he wants to do something different in the future. [between that and the jokes about Kate being pregnant, this series could have had some intriguing storylines going forward!] 

Instant Mom: Mothers Help Each Other Out

I'm very curious as to how the guest stars [Meredith Baxter (Family Ties), Jackee Harry (Sister, Sister), Florence Henderson (The Brady Bunch), Marion Ross (Happy Days), Tempestt Bledsoe (The Cosby Show)] were selected for this episode... did the producers see who was available and then have the writers craft the jokes from there? I mean, Jackee Harry is perfect for this, but Meredith Baxter and Marion Ross in particular are very interchangeable with the dozens of other sitcom mothers over the years. Tempestt Bledsoe seemed like a fill-in... like maybe Phylicia Rashad was supposed to be there but then they re-wrote it for whichever Cosby kid they could manage, and Tempestt is the most sitcom-oriented these days? Regardless, I loved the catchphrases ("jump the shark"!!) and jokes (haha, younger, cuter kids), particularly Tempestt's about how perfect Cliff and Clair were as parents... a doctor and a lawyer with unlimited time to teach their children lessons in the most creative ways! This series is gonna be fine... and might even pick up a larger audience now that Trophy Wife has been cancelled! 

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Instant Mom "Not Your Mother's Day" (S01E22): Stephanie expects the full Mother's Day treatment from the kids, but they didn't really get anything for her, so they cover by claiming that Stepmother's Day is the following Sunday. [I looked it up... apparently it's not really a thing.] She takes her own mother to a day at a spa to celebrate the day but they wind up arguing over who is a better mother, but Maggie's anger is actually stemming from the fact that Stephanie didn't write a mushy message in her card. [I'm doing my "not impressed" face over Maggie's issue here.] Stephanie gets some advice from other mothers (the guest stars), but she and Maggie still wind up slinging mud at one another. All is made well again when Stephanie says something that would be sweet in a card, and Maggie forgives her. [is Maggie really the type of mother who will read a card over and over?] 

Meanwhile, back at the house, Charlie and the kids put together a hodgepodge Mother's Day for Stephanie, including someone else's cake, off-holiday balloons, a solution of various perfumes, and a poorly constructed poem. [you win some, you lose some.]

Trophy Wife: Helping One Another

I just get so amazed sometimes at how television writers can have multiple plots going on that are so different from one another, yet have strong similarities as well. A once-bullied woman brings her ex-husband's wife as her own wife to a high school reunion, while a divorced couple takes their teenage twins to a college campus to help them see what the next step in life could be like. Both scenarios feature family members coming to one another's aid and characters experiencing awkward situations, but also showcase the differences between adolescents thinking ahead and adults looking back at their youth. And that's not even including Bert's message to Tevin about the stages of life! While I fully expect Trophy Wife will get the ax next week, it could also be a darling little show that takes some time to find an audience. Of course, I'd also shift around ABC's schedule and move The Goldbergs to 8:30 Wednesday (after The Middle), and Trophy Wife to 9:30 Wednesday (after Modern Family), but I'm not the President of the network...

Trophy Wife "There's No Guy in Team" (S01E20): Hillary has some friends over, so Warren asks Diane to come over. [and he has no understanding that his choice isn't the same...] Kate suggests he try to make some new friends, so he joins the field hockey team. [I'm flashing back to Frasier joining "F Hockey" thinking it was "Freshman Hockey," haha!] Kate thinks Warren is committing social suicide by doing so, but when she tries to help him find other interests, she winds up making the kid feel like a loser. He quits the team, but she apologizes, telling him that he's so confident that he'll be okay. [and I have every drop of faith that he will be.] 

Meanwhile, Hillary gets a bad grade so she filibusters her way to a do-over... and gets Jackie's help to write a creative poem and paint. [the three-mother situation is so interesting when you think about saving kids' artwork and helping them with homework! someone remind me to explore that further if the show gets renewed...]

And, Bert gets a credit card in the mail and immediately starts using it. [ha!] Pete tries to help Bert learn some fiscal responsibility, but Bert doesn't see the value in doing things yourself, so he sells his classmates sodas and makes them pay for rides on his scooter. [that last one got a laugh out of me.]

Trophy Wife "Back to School" (S01E21): Hillary heads to a college campus for a week-long science camp, and Diane handles Hillary's orientation while Pete tries to get Warren interested in going to college by taking him to sit in on a Violence in Cinema class. [I felt for Hillary in that small group. learning you're a big fish in a small pond is tough.] Hillary quickly gets intimidated, and Diane is upset that she never taught Hillary it was okay to be second-best. It's Warren who actually makes Hillary feel better. [awww! yay, siblings!]

With Pete away, Jackie asks Kate to go with her to her high school reunion. [I have a hard time understanding why you'd bring a friend with whom you're not romantically involved, but okay.] Meg and Tevin watch Bert, and decide to have a child of their own. [ha! I did like them pretending to be Kate and Pete, though.] Jackie pretends she and Kate are married, and Kate uses Diane's orthopedic surgeon stories as her own, causing her to realize that she does want a career.

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Trophy Wife: Trying Too Hard

I've been a bit of a waffler over Trophy Wife, and I've been trying to pinpoint the actual problem... and I think I've found it. I think that the writers act a bit desperate, especially for a first-season show. Comedy is a tough market right now, and most rookies don't make it past the pilot season, but that's still no excuse to pull out as many stops as I think Trophy Wife might be. Guest stars are fun, wondering what xyz would be like is nice, changing the scenery up a bit is refreshing, and having a character take a brush with death is enticing... but all in a row?

ABC/Michael Ansell

I get that it shows versatility for the future and only just tugs at what the universe of the show could hold, but I look at it like it's trying too hard and that'll probably be part of the reason the show won't make it. 

Trophy Wife "The Wedding: Part 1" (S01E16): Kate decides to clean out the garage, and stumbles upon Pete's old wedding videos, bringing out the green monster in her who regrets eloping. [Pete kept the wedding videos in both divorces?] She tells Pete, and they decide to go for the full craziness of a wedding, with "You Make Me Happy" a la The Muppets as the inspiration for the event. [Pete and Diane got married while OJ Simpson was on the run.] Meg and Hillary both want to be Maid of Honor, but have to work together, a challenge for both. Meanwhile, Pete plans for the guys in the wedding to wear kilts, but it turns out that they're Flemish, not Scottish! [what a terrible time to dig up your family tree, LoL!] Things only get worse, however, when it turns out that Kate isn't technically a citizen and will have to go through an INS interview. [haha, the shirt at the beginning of the episode was just to remind the audience that Kate is Canadian.] It doesn't go well, until the family barges in and it becomes apparent that it is NOT a marriage of convenience. Kate's mom, Cricket (played by Megan Mullally), then arrives, which really only gets the crazy started. 

Also, Diane and Russ decide to make their relationship public, but they quickly learn that they have a lot of differing opinions, now that they can do things together. And, Jackie is seeing Steve but lies to Bert about who he is.

Trophy Wife "The Wedding: Part 2" (S01E17): Cricket kisses Pete's parents on the lips, and soon freaks out that Kate resents her eclectic upbringing. [but seriously, who hires strippers for a rehearsal dinner??] This is in stark contrast to Pete's parents, who constantly lie to one another. Pete's dad pretends to golf but really works, Pete's mother sold the house and bought a condo in Florida, and they refuse to talk about their issues. [yeah, a whole different kind of crazy!] Kate winds up locking them in a room together to talk about their issues, but they don't care about much of anything until Great Aunt Margaret dies at 108, and the funeral is the same day as the wedding. [which, by the way, Hillary is trying to run without Meg's help, so Diane and Jackie wind up pitching in.] So, everyone takes off for Portland, and Jackie winds up officiating a wedding on the plane! [how surprising!]

Trophy Wife "Couples Therapy" (S01E18): Pete tells Diane that he and Kate are in couples counseling so that she'll think he has grown as a person and take over some of his volunteer duties. [this frontier fair was a lot of work for a single episode!] It all starts when Kate makes chili for Pete but he throws it out and makes his own anyway. [haha.] Diane tells Jackie about the therapy, so Kate and Pete also milk her for more childcare to spend more time together. Unfortunately, Diane figures out that they're lying, and it's not long before the jig is up.

In a flat B-story, Hillary writes her extended adolescence psychology paper on Meg.

Trophy Wife "The Minutes" (S01E19): Kate is late to a PTA meeting because she was watching Scandal. Diane begins to choke on some granola, but Kate administers an abdominal thrust and saves her. However, the doctor is far from grateful, and Kate decides to take over the PTA as a result. [kinda strange revenge?] She has a great time gaining popularity, until she learns that the meetings are transcribed for the school community. When she's not willing to fund a squash team to get her insults struck from the record, Kate asks Diane for help. They dig up some dirt and wind up blackmailing the secretary to delete the records of the minutes. [I feel like this could have been so much more.]

The high school semiformal brings its own complications as well - Hillary wants to go with a boy whose parents are enemies of Pete and Jackie. They plan to forbid her, but the boy's parents forbid him first, and Hillary begs Pete to make peace. Being a good father, he is prepared to swallow his pride, but it turns out that the boy's parents knew nothing about it, and the lad made it up because he didn't want to hurt Hillary's feelings by turning her down. [ouch!] Warren, on the other hand, decides to get a celebrity to go with him to the dance, and Bert helps him made a video to ask Vanessa Hudgens. She agrees, but Hillary demands that he email the woman's manager and explain that he's not dying. [how did Warren not catch on to Bert's agenda there??] 

Trophy Wife: Kate Plans Bert's Birthday

I enjoyed this episode, but I might have been partial because my bridal shower had an Aladdin theme. And, although I understand Pete's reasoning behind granting Bert any type of birthday party he desires, I think the result might have been a bit too Outrageous Kid Parties. The giant pillows in the living room were fine, the costumes were great, the cake was very cool, and I could handle the pony. But the huge dance performance? That was a bit much.

ABC/Eric McCandless

Especially when you consider that all Bert actually wanted was some Neapolitan ice cream. I'm also going to nitpick that Kate should have stuck with the book theme over movie, just because it was reading that earned Bert this privilege in the first place. Plus, how believable is it that his favorite move is 20 years old??

Trophy Wife "Happy Bert Day" (S01E15): Kate is being shut-out of the soccer moms group, so when there's an opportunity to plan a big birthday party for Bert, she uses it to impress the moms. [haha at Jackie pretending that she was at the whole soccer game!] However, they think she's a former stripper because of a rumor Jackie started. The truth comes out and Kate is accepted, but when the moms just want to bad-mouth Jackie, Kate asks them to leave. Hillary is crushing on a backup dancer at the party, but when he has interests in common with Warren, he tries to steal him as a friend. [and, Chris Harrison, seriously?]

When Pete and Diane go to the bakery to exchange an erotic cake, Diane pulls an illegal turn on the way home to avoid traffic. [hello, the same thing happened on Friends!] When she's pulled over, she pretends that Pete is having a heart attack, and they get away with it. However, the cake falls to the ground when Diane runs into the glass door, so it's ruined anyway. [that would have made me SO ANGRY! I went through so much trouble and missed the party for nothing?!?]

Trophy Wife: Working Together

I'm not much of an ideas person, which I only really notice because my husband is hugely an ideas person. He probably comes up with something on a weekly basis that could improve life in some way, and I think I've had about three such ideas in the past ten years. So, I'm intrigued that Jackie comes up with so many ideas, even if she doesn't follow through with any of them or they turn out to be terrible concepts. Kate doesn't seem to be an ideas person, either, but she does want to make a difference, so I completely believed that she would blindly follow Jackie into a side business. Unfortunately, Kate doesn't have the creative mind to make it work, and it soon fails. However, the broached topic will probably return in one form or another, so perhaps there is a future for Jackie's ideas and Kate's spunk to work together.

ABC/Gilles Mingasson

Trophy Wife "Foxed Lunch" (S01E14):  Jackie has a new idea for a business, and sells Kate on making designer lunches for children. However, each takes 45 minutes to make, so Jackie quickly panics when there is pressure from several PTA parents to buy them. [my jaw dropped at how long that took! my mom made creative lunches in the 90s and I'm willing to bet more than 5 minutes didn't go into it!] Kate decides to cheat and buy cheap cucumbers rather than organic ones, hiding her trickery with stickers. [ha!] But, when Jackie finds out, she quits, forcing Kate to attempt to keep the entire business together... but that only lasts another day. [Kate is 3 credits shy of a degree in marketing? I see that becoming a future storyline!]

Warren and Bert take karate, so they think Pete should beat up troublemakers at the movie theater. [who does that?] Pete talks to the instructor about the lessons he's giving the kids, and winds up hurting himself in trying to prove a point of his own. [boring!]

Also, Diane trains Hillary for the track team. [random.]

Trophy Wife: Kate Disciplines & Helps Warren

What did Kate do before she married Pete? We're well aware that she wasn't a barista, but it certainly appears that she's never worked with kids, either, as she has no sense of how to discipline whatsoever. The breakdown of characters (Jackie, Pete, and Bert; Diane, Kate, Warren, and Hillary) was intriguing, and I particularly enjoyed seeing one of Pete's other "families" in tact, as we often see him focusing mainly on Kate, who remains the least likely 30-year-old ever. Maybe I'm just ultra un-hip, but her attitude and actions seem much younger, especially as she tries to help Warren with his love life. That said, it was really cute of her to cry when Warren got kissed... maybe she can appreciate her "kids" growing up after all.

Trophy Wife "The Punisher" (S01E12): Kate catches Warren jumping off of the roof into the pool, as Hillary films it. [haha that Meg actually took a video!] Kate doesn't know how to punish them, and Pete doesn't answer his phone, so she asks Diane for help. [haha that Diane handled this during a spray tan!] Diane comes over to tell Kate that she needs to mature and punish the kids herself, then gives her practice scenarios. [seriously?!?] When Kate's ready, she jumps in and removes all screens for the rest of the day, then ignores the teens as they continue to push her buttons. Soon, however, the kids fight back by annoying Kate with a visit from a charity-organizing neighbor. [I probably would have gotten in more trouble for that than I would have for jumping off the roof!] 90 minutes later, the twins are trying to strike a deal, but Kate stays strong. Then, they accidentally drop Kate's phone into the garbage disposal when they go to use it, and she freaks out at them. [lots of bleeping!] The kids call Diane, who rushes over, only to fake-out the kids by pretend-yelling at Kate. [that was funny.] 

Bert is scoring average on standardized tests and sees Jackie and Pete as never near one another, so they decide to take him on an outing together. [average is still better than Warren, right?] When the mini-golf course they go to is pirate-themed, they take up accents and get competitive. 2.5 hours later, Bert wins a free game, so they have to do it all over. [what course takes that long with only three people?? I play miniature golf every couple months and the only time it ever took two hours is when we had six people.] When some teenagers antagonize them, Pete and Jackie yell back, and purposely get banned from the establishment. [haha! bad example for Bert, though.]

ABC/Gilles Mingasson

Trophy Wife "The Tooth Fairy" (S01E13): Warren, Bert, Kate, and Pete are out to a messy meal at Mama Saucy's when Bert loses a tooth on an ear of corn. [that amount of ketchup about grossed me out!] On the way home, they call Jackie, who is really excited. However, it seems that the tooth got lost en route, and is not in the car or at the restaurant. Pete doesn't want to disappoint Jackie, so he decides to "tamper with the evidence," and gives Jackie one of the old teeth he's been saving. [my mom saved our teeth, too. I guess that's a thing. I mean, it seems weird to throw them out, doesn't it?] But, Jackie can tell the difference by smelling it, and decides to show Bert Indiana Jones as revenge on Pete. [gross on Jackie's part!] He responds by teaching Bert "downward dog," but then Kate puts an end to the one-upping. [good for her!] Bert finds out his tooth was lost, but after some more searching, Jackie and Pete just decide to give him an old tooth anyway. [ha!]

Warren gets a text from a girl he likes, and Kate helps with his responses. He asks her over to study math the next day, but it's not going well, especially after Kate tries to talk him up and comes off as a pervert. [that was a bit weird!] Fortunately, the two will still be friends, but nothing more, as the girl turns out to be gay. [I think I could go for Warren having a BFF around, so hopefully this wasn't a one-time guest character.]  

Hillary has her first high school sleepover, and hosts it at Diane's, hoping for a classy event. However, when the girls show up and want pizza and scary movies, she throws Diane under the bus and then asks her to leave them alone. [too bad it all played out that way - I was intrigued at the idea of a fancy sleepover for teens... that's really more of a fancy girls' night for adult ladies, LoL.]

Trophy Wife: Dating, Drinking, and Driving... not at the same time

Bad parenting bothers me quite a bit. So, you can imagine my disgust at the idea that four parents all manage to behave terribly enough to ruin the Christmas for three kids. It appears to take them quite a while to put together the events of the previous night, and, considering everyone is 30+ (as that's Kate's age), that's downright ridiculous! Diane having a secret relationship, while immature, made sense to me, though. I could understand not wanting to be seen failing at multiple relationships. A birthday curse is an idea that has been played up on television before, but Peter perhaps had some of the worst luck (not getting to drive the rented Ferrari??). I think the best moment in the past few episodes was Kate realizing that she was "okay" with not going out all the time anymore... that's a huge thing for a lot of people our age (I say this even though I feel much younger than she seems!).

Trophy Wife "Russ Bradley Morrison" (S01E09): Pete is sick, so Kate has to chaperone Warren's field trip with Diane. Kate isn't happy that Diane is mean to her, and Warren suggests that his mother "get some," without knowing what that means. [ha!] Kate agrees, and spends the morning trying to find a good match for the uptight doctor. [LoL at Warren helping find potential suitors for his mother!] Kate finds a good match... so good, in fact, that he and Diane have been secretly seeing one another for two years, and she is choosing to stay mum to make sure nobody knows of another potential failed relationship. [ouch. that's the sort of thing I hate, but can understand.] Diane winds up admitting in front of the students that she enjoys "talking" to Russ Bradley, which is a big step for her.

ABC/Adam Taylor

Jackie is left to care for the sick Pete, and although her leaf-and-mushroom juicing combined with forbidding him from electronic devices makes him miserable, the codeine tea really sends him over the edge. Meanwhile, Bert turns to Hillary when he has been losing his recess as school. She had the same teacher years prior, and tries to help. [how did they have time to bake cupcakes from scratch before school??] The teacher finds Hillary to be a suck-up, though, and advises Bert not to follow in her footsteps. [hahahahaha!!!] Bert tells Hillary, who heads down to the school to tell the teacher that she's a go-getter who will make it in this world. [I couldn't imagine telling off a teacher like that when I was a teenager!]

Trophy Wife "Twas the Night Before Christmas... or Twas It" (S01E10): It's Christmas morning and Pete's house is in absolute chaos, complete with a wolf in the living room and the presents MIA. [what the...??!?] The adults are all hungover as the children wake up, and everyone helps to piece together the events of the previous 12 hours. It all began with Kate's mulled wine, which Bert spiked with a bottle of absinthe. [yeah, that was a ridiculous twist!] Pete shredded a big case and calls his boss 16 times, but luckily didn't quit! Diane let the wolf into the house, believing it was a dog, which the older children really wanted. [I don't understand how people kept thinking that was a domesticated dog!!] Jackie stole three Virgin Marys from a neighbor. Diane and Kate made Jackie's eyebrows into those of an elf, then went to take a picture and wound up lighting the tree on fire. [holy cow!] Pete hauled the tree out to the pool to put a halt to the fire, then dressed as Santa and tossed the toys down the chimney. Meg and one of Warren's teachers also came over at one point. [one of the more drastic pulls from the main story, but okay.]

Trophy Wife "The Big 5-0" (S01E11): It's Pete's 50th birthday, but he prefers to celebrate the day before, because his birthday is cursed. [Meg's gift basket of old people stuff was kinda funny. and impressively well thought out for her! I did laugh that she shops in Kate's kitchen, though.] Kate tries to make the actual day a memorable one, but she almost embarrasses him in front of some colleagues, then accidentally distracts him so he rear-ends a police car. [that's really gotta suck!] The officer sends him straight to the DMV to renew his license, but he's due for a road test, too, and Kate took the car. [I'd be mortified if my spouse was mistaken for my child!!] Kate pulls up in a Ferrari for Pete to use, but as he doesn't know how to parallel park, so he fails and doesn't get to drive the car. [!!] They head for some good food, but it's too noisy and they last a minute. [why would a place that loud be known for its food anyway??] They head to another bar, but while dancing, Kate's trenchcoat flies open, revealing her in the nude. [I really didn't think people did the naked-under-a-trenchcoat thing anymore!]

Meanwhile, the rest of the characters have their own adventures all day... Jackie goes to Diane's office to ask for money for the gift from the kids (enormous windchimes), but Diane doesn't accept the gift, so they leave to return it. [Diane is my favorite character sometimes, you guys!] Diane has to be pushy for a refund, but the day only gets worse when they arrive at a spa to buy Pete a certificate for a massage. They get talked into a couple's massage, then get kicked out when they cause a scene, forcing them back to the original shoppe to re-purchase the chimes.

And, the kids open a perishable package that comes for Pete before school... it's live lobsters! Warren doesn't close the lid tightly, and they have to go on a hunt when they get home. Bert wants them as pets, not dinner, so the other kids break it to him that a lot of foods come from animals. [ya gotta learn some time! I think he's kinda old not to know that, actually.]

Fun Friday: What the Rich People Watch

Yesterday, AVClub posted an article looking at the socioeconomic demographics of the Nielsen ratings - the top 20 shows watched by the highest-earning households, and the top 20 watched by the lowest-earning households, on average. I was thoroughly amused by which shows were on each list. Let's take a gander, first at what the high-earners watch:

Now, out of the 20 above, I regularly watch 5 of them (The Goldbergs, How I Met Your Mother, The Michael J. Fox Show, Trophy Wife, and The Middle), and occasionally tune in for one more (Shark Tank). Of the others on the list, there are several that I can't stand (Modern Family, Glee, Super Fun Night, and Nashville), and a bunch I've seen but don't care for (Castle, Parks and Rec, New Girl).

Now, at what the low-earners watch:

From this list, I only cover one series for this site: Bob's Burgers, the show with the lowest earners of them all. I watch The Simpsons occasionally, and tried both The Neighbors and Dads, though they weren't my cup of tea. I've seen American Dad and Family Guy in the past, and enjoyed America's Funniest Home Videos back in the early 1990s. The rest? I couldn't care less about.

Now, I don't really trust the Nielsen ratings anyway, so I take all of the information in the above charts with a grain of salt, but I still found it interesting enough to glance through and think about.

What about you - do you tend to watch the shows of the princes or the paupers?

Trophy Wife: Halloween, Parties, and Lice

This show really snuck its way into my heart for a show that I never planned on watching! I don't find it realistic, per se, but the characters are unique and the relationships really amuse me. There's no character in the family I truly dread seeing get the "big" story, though I would like to see more of Hillary, as well as learn more about the relationships between Peter and his ex-wives when they were married. I'd also like to hear about how Jackie and Kate both groomed dogs but didn't realize it for some time. Still, I could do without Meg... she seems to useless to the series!

Trophy Wife "Halloween" (S01E06): After Bert and Jackie scare Kate, Bert realizes that the Halloween costume Jackie made him isn't what he had hoped... as she doesn't know who Iron Man is. [or that Robert Downey had a son, for that matter. how is she so deep into her own world?? also, was Jackie Queen Elizabeth or Marie Antoinette?] Kate heads to the store to buy a costume, but the line is really long so she has to try cutting. [... I've never seen a ling that long for a costume store!] She pretends she's the mother of some teen boys, and soon returns with a costume for Bert. [30% of why Jackie adopted him was to go trick-or-treating. that's scary.] Bert is so excited that she wants Kate to go trick-or-treating with him, and she wears one of Jackie's old costumes: a centaur. She has some trick-or-treating tricks, but soon Jackie is following them and Bert disappears when the women argue.[it's not even starting to get dark? is it 2pm in the afternoon?]

ABC/Ron Batzdorff

Over at Peter's (Diane is a gargoyle, Peter is a hung jury, Warren is Ellen DeGeneres, and Hillary thinks she is too old for the holiday), Warren is recovering from dental surgery. [that couldn't be scheduled on November 1st?] Peter recognizes a voice of a kid who egged the house last year, and steals his candy. The kid gets Warren to egg the house to make it look like he's innocent, but Warren is caught, so he hits on Hillary instead. [what??] In the end, they have to let him go, though it wound up being him after all. [haha!]

Trophy Wife "The Date" (S01E07): After hosting three kids' parties, Kate and Peter decide to throw one for themselves. Jackie crashes it and winds up being intimate with one of Peter's colleagues, Steve. Steve wants to date Jackie, but there is some awkwardness between an ex-husband and his employee. Fortunately, because Steve is looking to get serious, Peter wants him to date Jackie, as he could take her out of their lives a little. [ha! love it!] Also at the party was Diane, though only long enough to get one of Hillary's books. Still, Diane winds up on Meg's Instagram, and the surgeon can't get the bartender to take it down until she beats her in beer pong. [but she doesn't actually win??] When Diane has to give stitches to Meg in the bathroom, Meg agrees to not instagram the family again. [is she allowed to suture someone anywhere??] As far as the kids are concerned, Bert and Warren do a video series about gum, and Hillary winds up being an executive producer. [interesting, but glad it's not ongoing!]

Trophy Wife "Lice and Beary White" (S01E08): After Bert gets lice, Kate tries to take charge of the situation, but Diane demands to lead. [haha that she was embarrassed to ask about lice shampoo at the drugstore.] Jackie tries hard to avoid getting involved because she spent $300 on a Brazilian blow-out, so Diane tells Kate to handle Jackie. [I might never understand the mindset of people who pay that...] Still, Diane has to use a hose on Jackie to get her to break. [omg!] Jackie and Kate decide to give Diane regular shampoo instead of lice shampoo, but Diane used it on Hillary instead of herself. [LoL that Jackie plays both sides.] Both Kate and Diane want to solve the problem, but when they learn that the kids at school have been using wigs in a play, they run away so someone else will be blamed. [but who does Hair in high school??]

While all of that is going on, Peter comes across one of Warren's old stuffed animals that he had given to Bert at one point. [I don't understand passing down plush toys... just get the new kid his own!] Peter makes Warren confess to Bert, and then the kids each try to convince Peter that they are the most deserving. Peter tries to pull the King Solomon situation, but the boys want to have the bear cut in half. [yeah, they're kids...] The kids decide to split custody of the bear. [why does Bert care so much? it was hardly ever his!]

[Also, be aware that this comedy is off until December 3rd!]

Three Days of Halloween

Some years, we've given tons and tons of holiday specials. Some years, we just do a few recommendations. But, we're so close to Halloween already, this time around we're just doing three days and listing only television specials, not movies. And, yes, we agree that Wednesday looks very sparse... not sure why! If you know of other specials airing, let us know!

And, remember, times given are for the Pacific Time Zone.

Pixar

Tuesday, October 29th

7am: Henry Hugglemonster “The Halloween Scramble” (Disney Jr.)
7am: Kickin’ It “Boo Gi Nights” (Disney XD)
8am: Imagination Movers “A Monster Problem” (Disney Jr.)
8am: Lab Rats “The Haunting of Mission Creek High” (Disney XD)
8:30am: Charlie & Lola “Halloween” (Disney Jr.)
8:30am: Little Bill “The Halloween Costume” (NICK Jr.)
8:30am: Billy & Mandy “Wrath of the Spider Queen” “Jacked up Halloween” (Cartoon Network) 
8:30am: The Funky Phantom "Ghost Grabbers" (Boomerang)
9am: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse “Mickey’s Treat” (Disney)
9am: Team Umizoomi "The Ghost Family Costume Party" (NICK)
9:30am: Sofia the First “Princess Butterfly” (Disney)
9:30am: Rolie Polie Olie “Queen of the Pumpkins” (Disney Jr.)
10:30am: Henry Hugglemonster “The Halloween Scramble” (Disney)
10:30am: Higglytown Heroes “Higgly Halloween” (Disney Jr.)
11am: Bubble Guppies “Haunted House Party” (NICK) 
Noon: Cheers "House of Horrors with Formal Dining and Used Brick" (TVGuide)
1pm: Dora the Explorer “Halloween Parade” (NICK)
12:30pm: Handy Manny “Sounds like Halloween” (Disney Jr.)
1pm: Fish Hooks “Halloween Haul” (Disney XD)
2pm: Special Agent Oso “Pumpkin Eyes” (Disney Jr.)
2pm: Tiny Toon Adventures "Stuff that Goes Bump in the Night" (HUB)
2:30pm: Jungle Junction “Lance and the Jumpy Pumpkin” (Disney Jr.)
2:30pm: Tiny Toon Adventures "Hare Raising Night" (HUB)
2:30pm: Spookley the Square Pumpkin (Cartoon Network)
3pm: Michey Mouse Clubhouse Minnie’s Masquerade” (Disney Jr.)
3pm: Animaniacs "Scare Happy Slappy" "Witch One" "MacBeth" (HUB) 
3:30pm: Little Einsteins “Little Einsteins’ Halloween” (Disney Jr.)
3:30pm: Dear Dracula (Cartoon Network)
3:30pm: Oddities “Vampires of Philadelphia” (Science)
3:30pm: R. L. Stine's The Haunting Hour "Punpkinhead" (HUB) 
4:30pm: Bill & Mandy “Jacked Up Halloween” (Cartoon Network)
5pm: Ed, Edd ‘n Eddy’s Boo-haw Haw (Cartoon Network)
5pm: Lab Rats “Night of the Living Virus” (Disney XD)
5:30pm: Lab Rats “The Haunting of Mission Creek High” (Disney XD)
5:30pm: Back at the Barnyard “The Haunting” (NickToons)
5:30pm: Adventure Time “The Creeps” “Bad to Worse” (Cartoon Network)
5:30pm: Jake and the Never Land Pirates “Night of the Golden Pirate Pumpkin” (Disney Jr.)
6pm: Scary Godmother: The Revenge of Jimmy (Cartoon Network)
7pm: Toy Story of TERROR! (Disney XD)
7:30pm: Laverne & Shirley “Haunted House” (HUB)
8pm: Big Time Rush “Big Time Terror” (TeenNick)
8pm: Laverne & Shirley "Murder on the Moose Jaw Express - Part 1" (HUB)
8:30pm: Laverne & Shirley "Murder on the Moose Jaw Express - Part 2" (HUB)
8:30pm: Big Time Rush “Big Time Halloween” (TeenNick)
8:30pm: Henry Hugglemonster “The Halloween Scramble” (Disney Jr.)
8:30pm: Kickin’ It “Wazombie Warriors” (Disney XD)
9pm: The Goldbergs “Who Are You Going to Telephone” (ABC)
9:30pm: Trophy Wife “Halloween” (ABC)
9pm: Wild Grinders “Wild Zombies” (NickToons)
10pm: Special Agent Oso “Pumpkin Eyes” (Disney Jr.)
10pm: Crash & Bernstein “Health-o-ween” (Disney XD)
10:30pm: Crash & Bernstein “Scaredy Crash” (Disney XD)

Wednesday, October 30^th

Midnight: Laverne & Shirley “Haunted House” (HUB)
12:30am: Laverne & Shirley "Murder on the Moose Jaw Express - Part 1" (HUB)
1am: Laverne & Shirley "Murder on the Moose Jaw Express - Part 2" (HUB)
1:30am: Laverne & Shirley "The Ghost Story" (HUB)
6am: Animaniacs "Scare Happy Slappy" "Witch One" "MacBeth" (HUB)
6:30am: Animaniacs "Hot, Bothered & Bedeviled" "Moon Over Minerva" "Skullhead Boneyhands" (HUB)
7am: Tiny Toon Adventures "The Horror of Slumber Party Mountain" (HUB)
7:30am: Tiny Toon Adventures "Toons from the Crypt" (HUB)
8:30am: Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures "Nothing to Fear but Berries Themselves" (HUB)
9am: Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures "The Berry Scary Fun Adventure" (HUB)
Noon: Pound Puppies "Nightmare on Pound Street" (HUB)
2pm: Tiny Toon Adventures "The Horror of Slumber Party Mountain" (HUB)
2:30pm: Tiny Toon Adventures "Toons from the Crypt" (HUB) 
3pm: Friends "The One with the Halloween Party" (TBS)
3pm: Animaniacs "Draculee Draculaa" "Phrankenrunt" (HUB)
7pm: Step by Step "Something Wild" (HUB)
7:30pm: Step by Step "Dream Lover" (HUB)
8pm: The Middle “Halloween IV” The Ghost Story” (ABC)
8pm: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "A Halloween Story" (HUB)
8:30pm: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "A River of Candy Corn Runs Through It" (HUB)
8:30pm: Back in the Game “Night Games” (ABC)
9pm: Modern Family “Open House of Horrors” (ABC)

Thursday, October 31^st

Midnight: Step by Step "Something Wild" (HUB)
12:30am: Step by Step "Dream Lover" (HUB)
12:45am: King of Queens "Ticker Treat" (TVLand)
1am: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "A Halloween Story" (HUB)
1:30am: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "A River of Candy Corn Runs Through It" (HUB)
3am: Roseanne “Skeleton in the Closet” (TVLand)
3:30am: Roseanne “BOO!” (TVLand)
4am: Roseanne “Trick or Treat” (TVLand)
4:30am: Roseanne “Trick Me Up, Trick Me Down” (TVLand)
5am: Roseanne "Halloween IV" (TVLand)
5:30am: Roseanne "Halloween V" (TVLand)
1pm: General Hospital Halloween Episode (ABC)
6am: Animaniacs "Hot, Bothered & Bedeviled" "Moon Over Minerva" "Skullhead Boneyhands" (HUB)
6:30am: The Haunted Pumpkin of Sleepy Hollow (HUB)
7:30am: Animaniacs "Scare Happy Slappy" "Witch One" "MacBeth" (HUB)
8am: Animaniacs "Draculee Draculaa" (HUB)10am: The Haunted Pumpkin of Sleepy Hollow (HUB)
11am: Tiny Toons' Night Ghoulery (HUB)1pm: Home Improvement "The Haunting of the Taylor House" (Hallmark)
1:30pm: Home Improvement "Crazy for You" (Hallmark)
2pm: Home Improvement “Let Them Eat Cake” (Hallmark)
2:30pm: Home Improvement “I Was a Teenage Taylor” (Hallmark)
3pm: Home Improvement “A Night to Dismember” (Hallmark)
3pm: Goosebumps “The Haunted Mask (HUB)
3:30pm: Home Improvement “Bewitched” (Hallmark)
4pm: Goosebumps “The Haunted Mask 2” (HUB)
4pm: Little House on the Prairie “The Monster of Walnut Grove” (Hallmark)
5pm: Little House on the Prairie “The Halloween Dream” (Hallmark)
6pm: Little House on the Prairie “The Ghost Story” (Hallmark)
7pm: Little House on the Prairie “The Nightwalker” (Hallmark)
7:30pm: ALF "Some Enchanted Evening" (HUB)
8pm: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "Good Will Haunting" (HUB)
8pm: Parks and Recreation “Recall Vote” (NBC)
8pm: Deadtime Stories “Little Magic Shop of Horrors” (NICK)
8pm: It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (ABC)
8:30pm: Sabrina, the Teenage Witch "Episode LXXXI: The Phantom Menace" (HUB)
9pm: Grey’s Anatomy “Thriller” (ABC)
9pm: Everybody Loves Raymond "Halloween Candy" (TVLand)
10pm: Frasier “Halloween” (Hallmark)
10:30pm: Frasier “Tales from the Crypt” (Hallmark)
11pm: Frasier “Boo!” (Hallmark)
11:30pm: Frasier “Dark Side of the Moon” (Hallmark)
11:30pm: Secret Squirrel "Which Witch is Which" "Bold Rush" "Squiddly Double Diddley" (Boomerang)
11:35pm: Jimmy Kimmel Live “Half & Half Halloween Pageant” (ABC)
11:45pm: King of Queens "Ticker Treat" (TVLand)

Trophy Wife: Diane is an Extreme Mother

Warren has both a desktop computer AND a laptop at Pete's house, yet Hillary doesn't seem to own either? Why did she have to borrow Warren or Jackie's device for her Chelsea Clinton chat? The whole argument over whether the teens are 14 or 15 is also slightly troubling, but let's look at the bigger picture. The show isn't bad; it's different and semi-interesting, making good use of the various characters and not ignoring anyone. There are, perhaps, a few too many people around, and Diane may be a bit overwhelming, but it's good, clean fun. Problematically, I don't know that enough people are watching. I'll give it another episode beyond the three recapped below...

Trophy Wife "The Social Network" (S01E03): Diane tells Pete that Hillary is sneaking around, "hooking up" with a boy, and demands that he snoop through her things. [the term, "hooking up" has been around for over ten years now, but I've NEVER actually heard someone use it in real life. maybe I'm too old for the slang, but I'm tired of it because it seems to fake to me.] Hillary is only 14, and Kate suggests that, rather than invade her privacy, they just talk to her. Pete goes to interrogate her, but when that doesn't work, he searches the internet for the boy, Ace McBrady, but he just keeps posting his name over and over as her status update. [this was probably funny to people who have never seen that internet gag before, I guess.] Before they can delete the multiple entries, Hillary gets home and sees, getting very upset. [duh.] Kate tries talking to Hillary, but the teen hits her up for a party, even though she's grounded. Hillary begs to be allowed to see a movie, and Diane agrees, purely so she can keep snooping. But, Hillary dupes Kate when Meg sees Hillary get into another car at the movie theater. The BFFs follow her while Diane uses her fake online persona to find out where the party is. Kate arrives first, and busts Hillary seconds before Diane and Peter arrive. [her middle name is Rodham??] There's nothing unexpected going on at the party, though. [haha, Diane is using "Courteney" to get Warren to work harder at school, too!]

Meanwhile, Bert has a playdate with Sawyer, whose mother has a shoppe. Bert and Jackie play it up so Jackie can showcase her jewelry there, but she needs 20 more pieces immediately. Bert has more perseverance than Jackie, and asks Warren to help. [Jackie taking the doggie door and Bert's Yiddish phrases were weird.].

Trophy Wife "The Breakup" (S01E04): Meg shows up, having freshly ended a relationship. They had only been together a couple of weeks, but she and Kate start drinking hardcore, and, in the night, Meg eats Hillary's solar system project, which was made with candy. [that's disgusting.]

ABC/Danny Feld

Kate tells Meg that she needs to do things, so she can't mess around all day. After Meg swims topless, Kate drives her back to her boyfriend's place... and learns that the fight was over mustard. [I can't handle this type of immaturity, guys.] Kate tells Meg that she likes the responsibilities that she has now, and they decide to take a break from one another. [I think this argument should have come a little later in the series, but I'm glad to be rid of Meg for a bit.] Kate gets upset that she's not considered "fun" anymore, and Pete goes to Meg's to fix the friendship between the ladies. [oh. figures.]

Jackie buys Bert a LEGO set that has over 1,000 pieces, but they can't figure it out, so Jackie calls Warren for help. [he's such a catch-all character, LoL.] He organizes all of the pieces for an hour, but when Diane calls him, he's caught not studying for the PPSAT. [he did the second grade twice... so he and Hillary aren't in the same grade?]

Trophy Wife "The Tryst" (S01E05): Diane checks the twins' homework with video conferencing, which also allows her to hear Pete and Kate try to get out of carpool. [ha!] Diane then calls them for help with a fundraiser, and they have to come as 80s icons. Diane is Pat Benatar, Pete is Billy Idol, and Kate is Melanie Griffith from Working Girl. Pete and Kate head to a supply closet and have some fun, only to learn that there is no handle on the inside of the closet. [omg I'd freak out!] Kate blames Pete for the night going down the toilet, but he thinks it's Diane's fault. With Kate's encouragement, he stands up to Diane and says he won't let her steamroll his plans anymore. [can we agree this won't last?]

Hillary and Warren find Jackie's dating video profile, and tell her that it might be a little strong. Hillary dresses her in Kate's clothes and Warren re-shoots and edits the video, but Bert gets jealous and delays things before he also helps. [STRANGE side story!] 

Trophy Wife: Kate Helps Out

That little Bert is a real show-stealer! Now I really wish I had seen him on stage in the local show he did! While I'm not really hooked on this comedy, I will give it points for being unique and for the humorous lines the children say. Because of the distinct family dynamics required for the premise, the interworkings of the various relationships will take a while to flesh out, but that's not always a bad thing. I am definitely looking forward to getting more on Meg, as well as what drove Jackie and Pete apart. Until then, though, I think this series needs to work more on its balance of adults vs. kids, as more scenarios without the youngsters could be good.

Trophy Wife "Cold File" (S01E02): Bert procrastinates going to bed, allowing Kate to see just how difficult it can be to care for young children. Still, she's determined to help out more, so she volunteers to do it alone, against Jackie's wishes. When she doesn't make any progress after three hours, she lets Bert fall asleep while watching television... only he ends up staying awake for hours, watching age-inappropriate things. [hahaha.] So, when he's tired the next day, Kate lets him have some coffee... but rather than a sip, he goes for much more, making him hyper at his soccer game. [she went out to get that, then came back to wake him up?] Unfortunately, he eventually crashes, letting every ball get past him before just laying down on the job. Kate winds up admitting to it all when she accidentally kicks a ball to Bert, swelling his testicle. [omg that's crazy!] But, they bonded over the experience, as he calls for her when he wants juice.

http://abc.go.com

Hillary and Warren spill salsa on Diane's couch, and solve their problem by flipping the cushions. Diane figures it out and sets up a Tell-Tale Heart scenario, serving quesadillas, teaching them to dance the salsa, and eventually flipping the cushions over so they confess and promise they'll never eat on the sofa or hide anything from her again. [I sometimes wonder if my siblings and I have less of a conscience than most people... we never gave in, LoL.]

NEW SHOW: Trophy Wife: Fitting Together

What's this? An eleventh hour addition? Yep! While Trophy Wife didn't really blip on my radar all summer (in fact, I called the premise nothing more than a bad movie), I recently found out that one of the kids (Albert Tsai, who plays Bert) on the series lives around my area AND was "discovered" after acting in a colleague's play. So, I had to give the comedy a chance. I actually liked it much more than I was anticipating, and believe that the series could actually have a chance this season, although it may walk a fine line between being too Modern Family or The New Normal, as depicting a non-American-Dream family can be risky. It will undoubtedly take some time, but Kate could definitely fit in with this piecemeal family.

(ABC/Craig Sjodin)

Trophy Wife "Pilot" (S01E01): Kate went from singing karaoke with BFF Meg to married to Pete and being a stepmother to his three children (with two different ex-wives) in just a year. [do Kate OR Meg have any type of career?] There's surgeon Diane Buckley with teenage twins Warren and Hillary, and there's Jackie, with whom Peter adopted Ben from China. Because of the complicated family dynamics, Kate could initially only see lawyer Pete Tuesdays, Thursdays, and every other weekend, but they worked it out.

Kate is trying to handle parenting responsibilities, but Diane, in particular, doesn't take her seriously. For instance, when Pete can't make an emergency parent-teacher conference, Kate and Diane go, Diane thinks that Kate is the source of Warren's inappropriate writing about Greek gods. [ha! also, Warren reminds me of what Friends' Ross might be as a kid.] Kate later discovers that Warren just has a crush on one of Hillary's friends, but before that revelation, Diane gets upset at Kate for being drunk. See, Kate had told the teens a story from her own youth that involved sneaking vodka into a concert in a water bottle. [why she'd pass on this trick, I don't know.] Hillary immediately tries this, and Kate catches her. [where did she get the vodka with which to do this?] Trying to bond with her stepdaughter, Kate keeps the incident from Diane, but has to chug the vodka when Warren is thirsty for water. [well, soda. but a mother in the medical field isn't letting Warren have cola willy-nilly.] It isn't until Diane threatens to try for full custody that Hillary admits to why Kate is drunk, getting herself grounded in the process. This frees up Warren to attend a concert with Hillary's friend. [not sure why the friend agrees to take Warren over another friend.]

It might not be long until Jackie is also upset with Kate, as Kate farmed out transporting Bert to orchestra practice so she could be at Warren's school, but Meg detoured to a bar and Bert missed his saxophone audition for a solo part. [not a big fan of Meg.] Although, on the other hand, Jackie doesn't seem to have it all together, either. When Bert's hamster at her house dies, she tries to swap it with the one at Pete's house so he'd be the one to explain what happened. [this was pretty funny!] Instead, Pete catches her, they accidentally kill the other one, and they make a mad rush to the pet store in search of more hamsters. Jackie pulling out a dead hamster from her purse (combined with a joke about how Pete also killed one of the critters) stops them from being able to buy more. [hahaha!] When they can't find twin hamsters at any other store, they resort to buying Bert a puppy to avoid telling him about the dead hamsters. [and it seems like they're just going to pretend they got lost.]

TCA Summer 2013: Sunday

Sunday began with Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, which I had completely forgotten was still around. And, apparently, Meredith Vieira has been hosting it for a decade already. Well, now Cedric the Entertainer is going to pick up the hosting responsibilities, and you can read my highlights on that panel here.

Immediately following was the panel for Trophy Wife, which I was not looking forward to. I originally boiled down the series to "a girl who falls for a twice-divorced man with three bratty kids. She wants to win over the kids and avoid the exes, but it's going to be harder than she thinks." After the panel, I must say that I was a little more taken with the series than before. Apparently the title is supposed to be ironic, and even upon reading the script, Malin Akerman "thought it was so brilliant" and "the complete opposite of a trophy wife." However, the title may come into play as the Kate character encounters various people who view her as such. Plus, Kate is not really replacing the previous "wives" in this situation (Jackie and Diane) completely anyway, as she sometimes teams up with either of the women toward a common enemy (like a teacher). That said, it still may not be the best pilot, as EP Lee Eisenberg pointed out that introducing eight characters in 21 minutes is "very tricky," though the final scene has Kate admit to Bradley that she has no idea what she's doing, and that is an honest moment that may resonate with viewers.

Next was the Executive Session with Paul Lee, which I'll bullet-point for you here, as I thought that most of the questions either didn't receive great answers or weren't the most interesting inquiries.

• Last time Lee spoke at TCA, he talked about the female demographic and its importance to the ABC network. Lee shared that ABC is the Number One women's 18-49 network, and lots of the his "have incredibly empowered women in them." But, shows like S.H.I.E.L.D. and Goldbergs are "constructed to be four-quadrant shows" so women aren't the only focus. He also called ABC "the most upscale network" and mentioned that "we focus on empowered women. We are men-inclusive. We are family-inclusive. And we are highly co-viewed." The journalists in the room mused over the term "co-viewed" a bit, as it's not exactly a familiar word. 
• It would later be discussed further, but when asked about Rebel Wilson's American accent on Super Fun Night, Lee explained that it was Wilson's "choice" to do that, but he thinks that she's "going to be fantastic at it" and is "actually extremely good at it." He also added that "she's so funny and she brings such a presence to everything she does, and she has an in-built fan base who are already very engaged with that show." 
• Regarding Suburgatory, which got renewed yet is not on the fall schedule, Lee has "a little inkling in our mind where that show is going to go back" and that the third season will "bring the show back to all the sort of fish-out-of-water stories that it was originally intended to be." This made me happy, as loyal readers know how much I became disappointed in that series. Still, if I had to guess, I think Suburgatory isn't on the schedule yet because ABC doesn't put a lot of faith in Back in the Game, which is a Wednesday night comedy we'll get to later today... 

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland was next, and I was really looking forward to hearing about that series, as I'm not a big fan of the original, yet was surprised that ABC chose to feature it at Comic-Con over the new drama. I'll be writing more about this one at a later date, so stay tuned.

Following that was Super Fun Night, which still looks horrific. And, after a lunch screening of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., we had the garbage that is Betrayal. Everyone in the room tweeted about the many similar series that exist on ABC already, including Revenge, Mistresses, and Scandal. I'll be looking at that one in more detail just before the drama is set to premiere.

Two of the ABC series I'm most looking forward to followed, The Goldbergs, which is the family comedy set in the 80s, and Lucky 7, which has seven Queens residents splitting lottery winnings. ABC handed out scratch-offs to accompany that one, with critics winning massages, gas cards, or a junk food gift basket. I have lots to say about these two series and their panels, and will likely cover one over in my Examiner column tomorrow.

Before the much-anticipated Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. panel (where everyone really wanted to hear from Joss Whedon, not just because he's shiny but also because he wasn't going to be at the cocktail reception following), we had Back in the Game, which I initially touted as a Bad News Bears-type series, and the panel really solidified that perspective. It actually made me feel worse for anyone wanting to tune in. I mean, look at these tidbits:

• There are coaches on the show to help the actors if they need it, but "they're actually really athletic," according to EP Mark Cullen. Plus, they need horrible kids to be on the horrible team, so it works out. Maggie Lawson, however, played softball growing up and is good enough that she doesn't need a "stunt thrower."
• Cullen also noted that even though the kids "have two good coaches," the team will "get somewhat better, but they're never going to be good." He later added that "they're not going to win a game all year," making them worse than Charlie Brown's team. So the gimmick to watch this show over others is a kids' baseball team, but it's a horrid at the sport?
• I'm glad that someone asked how the series plans to last more than four years with a Little League team as the backdrop for the comedy,

That's it for Saturday, ABC, and TCA, actually. PBS has the end days of the summer tour, and although we may do some retweets, no major articles are planned for their presentations.

Looking Ahead: ABC's Comedies and Dramas for 2013

What intrigued me most about the shows ABC has decided to try out this fall is that I really needed to see the trailers to make decisions about a good chunk of them. For a large proportion of the new series this year, I've been able to make decisions on the premises and cast/crew alone. This means that ABC did a good job of marketing their programs to me, but they also run the risk of seeming too generic for specific groups to try. I think they have a wide variety of options, but that has its own pros and cons, so who knows.  

I'm looking to try out one of the comedies and two of the dramas, which is low for me when you consider how many of ABC's series I've enjoyed in the past. Which interest you?

COMEDY:
Back in the Game (formerly The Untitled Cullens Project) is about a divorced woman who brings her son along to live with her father. The old man is a former baseball player, but because her son loves the sport, the mother is drawn back into it once again. It sounds a little like The Bad News Bears, and I'm not interested.

The Goldbergs is your average variety family comedy, except it's set in the 1980s. You've got mom, dad, three kids, and grandpa. The youngest is a budding filmmaker, so we see a lot of narration from his point-of-view, much like The Wonder Years. The more I learn about the series, the less I like it, but I'll give it a couple episodes for now.

ABC

Mixology, as you might expect, is set in a Manhattan bar. It's a bit How I Met Your Mother in that the series depicts singles looking for love in a single night. It didn't sound good to me, but the trailer was almost repulsive, so I'm staying far away.

Super Fun Night reminds me a bit of The Weekenders in that it's three ladies concerned only about having a great weekend, or, more specifically, a great Friday night. I didn't even smile at the trailer, and find the premise to be a terrible movie, let alone a disastrous show.

Trophy Wife is about a girl who falls for a twice-divorced man with three bratty kids. She wants to win over the kids and avoid the exes, but it's going to be harder than she thinks. Again, this sounds like a bad movie and nothing more.

DRAMA:
Betrayal is about an affair between a married photographer and a lawyer who is facing off against the photographer's husband in the courtroom. Gag me with a spoon... this is about as off-putting as it gets!

Mind Games (previously Influence) is two brothers using human behavior statistics and psychology to get things to go their way. It's part Psych and part House for starters... if you know how someone will react, you can create illusions all around you. I hate manipulation, so I'm out.

Killer Women is based on an Argentinian series where there's one rough-and-tumble woman in the Texas Rangers who is determined to succeed. Female empowerment aside, this honestly looks really boring.

Lucky 7 is based on a British program where seven coworkers (in Queens for this version) win the lottery. I liked the backstory flashes for the characters enough to give this one a try, though I think I would have approached it differently.

ABC

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (previously S.H.I.E.L.D.) is the Joss Whedon project based on the Marvel Comics' organization, a spinoff from the Avengers film(s). Because I'm a big Marvel fan, I'll try it out, but I've already been rolling my eyes a bit.

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland is the spin-off to the hit Sunday night attraction, Once Upon a Time. The difference here is that it will be told from the perspective of Alice. I don't have any interest in the original, and this one sounds no better.

The Resurrection (previously The Returned) is a bit too creepy for me. The idea is that dead people return from beyond out of nowhere, acting like no time has passed. This only works in a specific town in Missouri, but it reminds me a lot of Alcatraz. I think there's a market for it, but it's not me.

How many of these shows will you be tuning in to try?

[quick links to the other networks: CBS/CW, FOX, NBC.]