Tuesday, March 18, 2008

An ABC Comedy Worth Watching?

You may not know the name Judy Greer, but it's a fair bet you've seen this talented actress/comedienne in something. From things like "Arrested Development" to "13 Going On 30" to the recent "27 Dresses," Greer is often cast as the scene-stealing best friend.

Tonight, Greer moves into the spotlight as the lead on "Miss Guided" (ABC, 10:30 p.m.), a new single-camera comedy in the vein of "Malcolm In The Middle." Greer plays a guidance counselor at the school she once attended as a high school geek. To her dismay, her teenage rival from those days (Brooke Burns) is now a super-hot member of the faculty.

Though ABC didn't send me an advance copy, and given its dreadful sitcom record over the past few years - "Cavemen" and "Carpoolers" this year alone - those elements might spell trouble, but "Miss Guided" has generated some positive buzz, and the presence of Greer makes it worth checking out. Though debuting tonight after a 90-minute "Dancing With The Stars," its regular timeslot will be Thursdays.

TUESDAY'S BEST BETS: I had high hopes for FX's "The Riches" (FX, 10 p.m.) last season when it debuted, because it took an interesting concept (a family of traveling con artists who assume the identities of a wealthy family) and had a big name cast, including Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver. Plus, it was coming from the same network that gave us "Rescue Me" and "The Shield."

I gave up after about three episodes. With the exception of Izzard, who was terrific as the clan's patriarch, the characters were too annoying to root for and the pacing of the plotlines was terrible. But "The Riches" has built up its own cult following, and Season 2 kicks off tonight, for better or worse.

"Jericho" (CBS, 10 p.m.) continues to wind down with its penultimate episode, if my math is right. And "Project Runway's" Tim Gunn makes a special appearance on "The Biggest Loser" (NBC, 8 p.m.) Of course, the ratings grabber of the night will be "American Idol" (Fox, 8 p.m.)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

"Miss Guided" is definitely a new show on our radar.

Judy Greer is definitely hilarious, in a way like Jason Segel (Marshall on "How I Met Your Mother"), has been in a ton of things, constantly stealing scenes, and only this year is each actor getting a spotlight. (Segel will finally be a comedy movie lead in this Summer's hilarious looking Judd Apatow flick, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall").

I will definitely check "Guided" out. "The Riches", on the other hand, you couldn't PAY ME to watch again. I absolutely hated this show. I felt bad for Eddie Izzard...the only thing worth watching on this. The worst part? Minnie Driver who was atrocious as his wife.

The fact that she got an Emmy nomination for arguably, one of the worst performances in television history, shows the fraudality of Emmy voters and how they don't watch most shows, but vote for someone when they recognize a "name", like Driver who's become famous for her movie work.

I used to like driver but after watching her for 3 epidoes on "The Riches", I won't be watching her again, anytime soon. Izzard on the other hand, is a great talent being wasted.