BLOGS

TWoP 10: Summer Shows We Never Thought We'd Watch

by Angel Cohn July 22, 2011 6:00 AM
TWoP 10: Summer Shows We Never Thought We'd Watch

We have to admit that during the year, we are very hard on shows (it's our job!), but in the summer, there are only a handful of series like Breaking Bad and True Blood that are Emmy-worthy. To get us through these barren months, we've got our reality staples like Big Brother and So You Think You Can Dance, and teen guilty pleasures like Pretty Little Liars and Degrassi, but that's not enough to fill our DVRs. So, we routinely lower our standards to discover some shows that might not be must-see during the regular season, but are tolerated -- and maybe even appreciated -- in the summer television doldrums.

10. Love in the Wild
Both this show and The Challenge have people hooking up randomly, being paired in teams with someone they don't necessarily like and doing outrageous things in Costa Rica. However, Love in the Wild does this with uncharismatic people who are tediously boring. This could have been the next Paradise Hotel, but instead we fight to stay awake... and yet we're still watching.

9. NY Ink
We enjoy the Ink shows in general -- we've watched NY Ink star Ami James since Miami Ink -- but these often air on over-crowded evenings and we catch-as-catch-can with episodes in reruns. Recently, however, we've had the luxury of being able to watch this installment as it unfolded (and we plan to do the same with the trainwreck that will be Kat Von D and Jesse James on LA Ink). We've enjoyed the fighting almost as much as seeing the intricate tattoos.

8. Entourage
Formerly on our must-watch list, over the years this one has fallen off, but we're sort of excited for the final season, so it will make the cut as we watch Vince and the boys act ridiculous for a few more episodes.

7. Roseanne's Nuts
We might have found time to watch an episode out of curiosity, but we certainly wouldn't have stuck around for multiple episodes to see the comedienne shooting at pigs, destroying trees and forgetting to wear underwear.

6. Teen Wolf
This show has actually gotten halfway decent, and if it had debuted in September, we'd have likely written it off after its subpar pilot. Instead, it's become one of our guilty pleasures. Any show that has an entire episode that just features teenagers running around trapped in a high school while being chased by a vicious killer is OK by us.

5. Masterchef
Hell's Kitchen-lite isn't really compelling television, it's sort of akin to The Next Food Network Star (which we've also been tuning into for no good reason). These "at-home" non-professional cooks are dull and lack pizazz (except for Suzy, who knows how to bring out the self-confident bitchiness that competitive reality truly needs). But still, we'll tune in regularly to see Gordon Ramsay cut someone down with comments about their food looking like the contents of a colostomy bag.

4. The Nine Lives of Chloe King
Much like Teen Wolf, this show would have been eliminated from our DVR list after the first episode. But we gave Chloe King a second chance and kept watching. It's not as addictive as Pretty Little Liars, but a good mindless way to wind down on a Tuesday night. They eat pancake and bacon sandwiches sometimes. It's fascinating.

3. Rizzoli & Isles
Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander have great hair, there are fantastic shoes and there's a pet tortoise for some reason. Did we mention this is a show about cops and an ME? An ME who likes to eat in her exam room? It's quirky and fun, but hits with the drama when you least expect it. At least it's more balanced than say, Harry's Law.

2. Storage Wars
How do we spend an entire day sitting and watching adults stare into dusty dirty spaces to buy what's likely garbage for inordinate prices during marathons of this show? It's a true puzzle. But from Dave's annoying bidding tactics, to Barry trying to justify spending hundreds of dollars on a worthless trunk, to Jarrod and Brandi's bickering... we're completely hooked. On a show about opening storage lockers. And sifting through trash. Yes. Really.

1. Hawthorne
This show features the acting talents of Marc Anthony, and that's not even the most ridiculous thing about it. It's a medical drama but mostly involves Jada Pinkett Smith's title character just stomping around and yelling at people, and caught in one awful situation after another... when she's not caught in sexy love triangles. There's a lot of insanity here, and it makes about as much sense as Nurse Jackie sometimes, and plotlines are forgotten... but yet we just can't quit this show. Behold the mysterious allure of Michael Vartan and his puppy dog eyes.

Watch TWoP's editors discuss the summer's addictive TV shows in this segment airing on the New York Nonstop News cable channel:

View more videos at: http://www.nbcnewyork.com.

Comments

SHARE THE SNARK

X

Get the most of your experience.
Share the Snark!

See content relevant to you based on what your friends are reading and watching.

Share your activity with your friends to Facebook's News Feed, Timeline and Ticker.

Stay in Control: Delete any item from your activity that you choose not to share.

MOST RECENT POSTS

BLOG ARCHIVES

The Telefile

February 2013

21 Entries

January 2013

62 Entries

December 2012

44 Entries

November 2012

59 Entries

October 2012

69 Entries

September 2012

66 Entries

August 2012

65 Entries

July 2012

51 Entries

June 2012

58 Entries

May 2012

68 Entries

April 2012

71 Entries

March 2012

68 Entries

February 2012

64 Entries

January 2012

78 Entries

December 2011

49 Entries

November 2011

56 Entries

October 2011

74 Entries

September 2011

77 Entries

August 2011

61 Entries

July 2011

56 Entries

June 2011

57 Entries

May 2011

57 Entries

April 2011

78 Entries

March 2011

73 Entries

February 2011

57 Entries

January 2011

65 Entries

December 2010

39 Entries

November 2010

45 Entries

October 2010

46 Entries

September 2010

62 Entries

August 2010

55 Entries

July 2010

53 Entries

June 2010

65 Entries

May 2010

59 Entries

April 2010

57 Entries

March 2010

67 Entries

February 2010

53 Entries

January 2010

59 Entries

December 2009

32 Entries

November 2009

47 Entries

October 2009

65 Entries

September 2009

66 Entries

August 2009

58 Entries

July 2009

72 Entries

June 2009

71 Entries

May 2009

50 Entries

April 2009

57 Entries

March 2009

66 Entries

February 2009

52 Entries

January 2009

56 Entries

December 2008

51 Entries

November 2008

71 Entries

October 2008

88 Entries

September 2008

86 Entries

August 2008

120 Entries

July 2008

115 Entries

June 2008

90 Entries

May 2008

44 Entries

April 2008

30 Entries

March 2008

26 Entries

February 2008

30 Entries

January 2008

44 Entries

December 2007

31 Entries

November 2007

66 Entries

The Latest Activity On TwOP