What else I'm watching

You'd think that between the appalling antics of Bret Michaels and Paula Abdul, I'd be too wiped out to consider other offerings of the idiot box. Oh, but you'd be wrong. The electronic babysitter usually has something worth watching. (Unless it's 3 p.m. on a Sunday. That's just a freaking wasteland.) Here's another surprise: not everything I watch is reality TV.

Almost everything. But not quite!

Holmes on Homes: I absolutely adore this show, not only because it's taught me so much about how (or how not) to build and renovate a house, but because of its titular star, Mike Holmes. Mike is the guy you want on your side, the burly dude with the big heart. He's a Canadian contractor who is outraged whenever other members of his profession screw over homeowners. When they drop the ball, he comes in and does it right. But first, he usually rips everything out. Now that the Discovery Home channel has started showing hour-long episodes, I dare not engage in the Mike Holmes Drinking Game, for he says some variation of "it's all coming up" too damn many times for the good of my liver. Hell, he says it in the credits of the hour-long shows; I can't keep up with that!

Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares: What Mike Holmes is to homebuilding, Gordon Ramsay is to the restaurant business. You might have seen him yelling profanely at contestants on Hell's Kitchen, but the Ramsay on display in this BBC America show is kinder... up to a point. He's still totally committed to improving the quality and viability of restaurants in the UK and helping failing restaurants turn their businesses around. What I love about this show is how Ramsay approaches his project restaurants from every possible angle: the artistry of the food, the bottom line of profits, the managerial aspects of staffing and running a kitchen, the marketing aspects of getting a dining room full of patrons. I'm impressed by his comprehensive understanding of the restaurant business, and it's every bit as nice to see him cheer on talented, kind folks as it is to watch him take down the pompous fools who are ruining their restaurants. I'm stoked that an American version of Kitchen Nightmares will be airing on Fox this fall; I hope they don't mess it up too much.

Design Star: You know how Top Design on Bravo sounded promising, but turned out to be kind of a shit sandwich? This is the design competition show Top Design was supposed to be. Part of what makes Design Star so different, I think, is the overwhelming niceness of its host and judges. Whereas Top Design's judging was a catty bitchfest that even the cosmic goodness that is Todd Oldham could not overcome, Design Star's host and judges are all kind and positive in their feedback. You get the feeling that they're interested not only in helping the designer contestants, but in understanding their thought processes and being fair. Also, the contestants themselves are better suited for TV than Top Design's were, since the prize at the end of Design Star is hosting your own show on HGTV. The ability to communicate and engage an audience is part of the judging criteria on the show, so the likelihood of unnecessary unpleasantness is greatly reduced. I hope this season doesn't suffer the sophomore curse, where the second season brings the crazy applicants out of the woodwork. But my hopes are high.

Burn Notice: See, I told you I didn't just watch reality TV! Honestly, these days it takes a lot for a show with a script and a plotline to hook me, but damned if Burn Notice didn't do it. I watched the pilot because Bruce Campbell is one of the stars. But I kept coming back because of how smart the scripts are and how enjoyable I'm finding the interplay between the characters. Jeffrey Donovan (a great comic actor whom I'd never seen before) plays Michael Westen, a spy who's been fired and is stuck in Miami. He's on a mission to find out who put the "burn notice" out on him, but in the meantime, he's helping people who need it. It's a nice combination of a classic detective show, a spy thriller, a snarky comedy and an action adventure. I could do without the T&A shots of Miami, and I'm still not sold on the chemistry between Donovan and Gabrielle Anwar as his assassin ex-girlfriend, but it's a pleasure to watch nonetheless. Plus, Bruce Campbell!

Simon Schama's Power Of Art: J turned me on to this show, and I'm so grateful. I don't tend to watch a lot of PBS (one of my many intellectual failings), so I would never have heard of this show otherwise. It's like an intensive art appreciation class, focusing on one work of art per episode and using reenactments, other works by the same artist and abstract photography that really makes me appreciate the big-ass TV and the hi-def channels (yes, Virginia, there is hi-def PBS). Schama, a professor of art history at Columbia University, looks at the historical, political, economic, personal and aesthetic factors that combined to create these works. I like that he doesn't always pick the best-known work of a particular artist. The show on Rembrandt, for example, focused not on The Anatomy Lesson or Night Watch, but on The Conspiracy of Julius Civilus, a painting the artist later cut down to a scrap he hoped to sell. The series truly examines the power of a single work of art to move those who view it, to shape opinion, to serve as the voice for an individual artist, a group, a country or the human race itself.

See, even a TV junkie like myself can't live on psychos and skanks alone.

Comments

[tulip]

Nice reviews! I too tuned into Burn Notice for the Bruce and stayed for the ensemble. And Sharon Gless as the smoking meddling crazy mom doesn't hurt!! I love it!
I'll have to check out the PBS show. As an art history major I'm surprised at how much I still don't know about artists. Sounds cool!

[ModFab]

You and I really are separated at birth, ScreamPunch. I and my hubbie are TOTALLY addicted to Simon Schama's Power of Art, which is the most astonishing exercise in dramatizing art history I've ever seen...it's like DYNASTY, but with talent.

I'm also watching DESIGN STAR, and have BURN NOTICE TiVo'd. As for Ramsay, I think I can only deal with him once a week. ;-)

[Cheesemeister]

I have to respect anybody who admits to liver-destroying drinking habits in public. I haven't watched Ramsay yet, I've heard he's absolutely insane.
But yet, they so lack the absolute waste of skin that is Scott Baio, who is 45, single, and we can sure see why!

[Lisa]

Thank you for making me aware of the existence of Burn Notice. I LOVE Bruce Campbell! USA sure does put out some fine shows.

[PoliVamp]

Glad to see some Burn Notice love. I was wondering if you are still watching Top Chef, or if the drama of Season 2 has thrown you off. Love your commentary, and wish to see it more :)

[bstewart23]

If I get all caught up in Simon Schama's Power Of Art I'll have you to blame, missy. The reviews I'd read so far made me less than inspired to rent it, but if it delivers like it has to you, I'll be very happy...