In this week’s episode of “How I Met Your Mother” (hereafter to be referred to as HIMYM because all the cool kids are using acronyms), Barney finds out what happens when you break the exalted Bro Code.

Last week he slept with Robin. The girl Ted was in love with and probably still is despite being apart for over a year. In typical Barney fashion, he recruits poor Marshall to go through the Bro Code bylaws with a lawyerly comb and find a loophole that will get him out of feeling guilty for sleeping with Robin. In explaning the origins of the Bro Code, we get an amusing flashback to the founding fathers of America who, along with the constitution, also set forth the rules of the Bro Code. Kind of silly I’ll admit, but seeing George Washington refer to D.C. as “Me D.C.” was enough to crack me up.

Marshall is unable to  find a loophole and tells Barney the only way to assuage the guilt is to just come clean. meanwhile, Robin already came clean to Robin and he forgave her right away. When Barney came clean, Ted ended their friendship. I don’t quite think that was fair but eh, it’s a silly sitcom and I didn’t spend all night fretting over it.

I really enjoy this show. It’s currently the only sitcom I’ve been watching. I’ve decided to come right out and admit I pretty much check out new shows based on the actors and actresses in them. I tried to deny it, but I cannot do so any longer.  I like Neil Patrick Harris (NPH for the cool kids) and so I netflixed HIMYM. I thought it was funny, thought NPH’s character was fantastic and became hooked on the show.

I love David Boreanaz. I checked out Bones via Netflix for that reason and that reason only. And was pleasantly surprised. That seems to be the way of it. So no more will I think that sampling a show or movie based on the hotness or coolness factor of a favoured actor/actress is wrong.

Bones was a pleasant surprise last night. Despite my last little rant about the show venturing off into sitcom land, last night’s episode, “The Baby in the Bough,” proved that they could pull it off if that is their intention.

Let me preface that by saying I am a master at the fanwank. Last night’s episode required a lot of fanwanking. The plotline that forced Booth and Brennan to take temporary custody of a baby was forced and contrived and basically served to show Brennan could eventually soften up and become attached and motherly. The whole whodunnit aspect of the episode was secondary and kind of sloppy. I know who killed the mother, but I don’t know how he did it. The forensics aspect of the show seems to be treated like it *has* to be there because the show is called “Bones” and she’s a forensic anthropologist.

But I have the wonderful ability to let all that go and just enjoy the character interactions and dynamics. I’ve never been a nitpicker when it comes to reviewing shows. I don’t care if there’s not supposed to be sound in space, or if the real senator of West Virginia wouldn’t let a bridge go unrepaired in real life because, well, the show isn’t real life. People seem to forget the e-n-t-e-r-t-a-i-n-m-e-n-t aspect of television. I’ve never been able to understand the need to nitpick.

And so I laughed giant belly laughs when Brennan told the baby that the pink stuffed elephant was “wrong” and even harder laughs when she was trying to quiet the child by showing him her “dancing phalanges” (better known as Spirit Fingers ) I’m sorry, but that was frickin’ hilarious.

So who cares if the Brennan/Baby bonding was contrived. Apart from that, it was handled well, acted well, and seemed like a natural thing. The mystery was tidied up, we get to see the softer side of Brennan, Booth is a natural with kids (since he has one of his own) and Angela and Hodgins aren’t going to waste screen time in the future fighting about whether they want kids. I liked this episode much better than last week’s.

I know I’ve said that I’ve pretty much abandoned “Lost” and that hasn’t changed. But just because *I* don’t watch it doesn’t mean everyone else has.

There is a new episode tonight. The show has been in reruns for a few weeks now so I’m guessing fans of the show are salivating for a new one. I have about four episodes sitting in my DVR queue and I keep meaning to watch them to get caught up because I’m not quite sure I’m ready to give up completely on this show I used to Really Love. But then something distracts me and the queue grows and grows until it becomes to daunting to find that much time to sit down and watch a bunch of episodes.

It’s actually a big night for ABC with their major shows coming in with new eps. Ugly Betty, Grey’s Anatomy and Lost. So break out the popcorn and settle in kids!

There is a lot going on in TV land this week. From a new Bones on Monday to a new Hell’s Kitchen last night (which has been TIVO’d to be viewed over lunch today ) to a new Wife Swap and Top Model tonight, to Smallville and Survivor tomorrow night, and finally - FINALLY a new Moonlight on Friday. That show’s been on hiatus forever and it was just starting to grow on me too.

Now, I know there are only a small amount of shows that I really talk about in this blog, and that my tastes run toward the rather nerdy stuff. I wish I had the time to get into a wider range of shows, but I’ll do my best to pass on the things I hear.

But speaking of nerdy, I have read that Joss Whedon’s new show, Dollhouse, began filming today! Excitement abounds! And former Angel actress, Amy Acker, has joined the cast. She played Fred/Illyria on that show. I’m ecstatic about that. Now we just have to hope FOX doesn’t cancel the show just when it hits its stride.

I worry about this third season of “Bones.” Maybe it’s the influence of pessimism and snark emanating from the Television Without Pity forums, but I’m increasingly annoyed by this season of Bones.

Last night’s episode, “Player Under Pressure” was originally set during season 2, but was postponed because of the Virginia Tech massacre (the episode revolves around a college basketball player who was murdered on campus. And maybe it was a respect thing which is totally cool, but after finally seeing the episode, I couldn’t really see any similarities between that horrible event and the plotline of the episode, but whatever.) It was nice to finally get to see the episode, but it served to highlight the glaring inconsistencies between the two seasons.

Almost everything this season seems to be played for laughs. Angela’s mysterious Fiji husband she married on a drunken holiday, Hodgins and Zach fighting over ‘King of the Lab’ titles, Booth going from hardened military sniper turned FBI agent dealing with a gambling problem to a big old goof complete with pratfalls and hokey facial expressions, Brennan and Booth forced into “couples” therapy for reasons I have yet to figure out and their shrink played by a 23 year-old guy who stays up at night playing video games?

Where is my, dare I say it, broody Seeley Booth who feels like he can’t have a relationship without putting that woman in danger? Where is Brennan’s all-night sessions in the lab rebuilding a shattered skull and studying bones trying to get them to give up their secrets?

Having said all of that, there are wonderful comedic moments that i love about the show and I’ve pretty much always labeled Bones as a lighter forensics show. Davis Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel are able to add layers to their characters with a seemingly throwaway line. In, “The Man in the Morgue,” Bones walks into a friend’s house calling his name. His name is Graham. So she’s yelling, “Graham? Graham?” and Booth mutters under his breath, “Cracker.” - Hilarious stuff!

So it’s not that I don’t like the comedic moments on the show. And I’m happy Boreanaz is getting to play something else besides a broody vampire. But I miss the balance the show was able to find in its freshman season between the broody and the funny. I think the show has lost that.

When I first caught Smallville, I loved it. I’ve always like the Superman mythology and was interested in this little show that showed Clark Kent’s life before he went on to become a superhero.

Plus, you know, Michael Rosenbaum. Yum.

The first three seasons rocked it. They handled the ‘will they/won’t they’ thing with Clark and Lana well, let Rosenbaum showcase his mad skillz (literally) when he had his psychotic break, and the freaks of the week were inventive and fun.

The fourth season… Eesh. The whole witchcraft thing with Lana. God that was stupid. And I’m still iffy on whether Lois Lane should have been introduced at all to Clark and the gang before he moves to Metropolis because I’ve always been under the impression that he and Lois only met then. Oh God. I sound so geeky.

The first time I watched this season (yes I’ve watched the seasons multiple times, because I’m a weirdo who can’t watch random episodes, and if I start a season, I have to finish it. Don’t question the insanity.) I guess I didn’t mind it. It didn’t shine though. By this time I’m tiring of Lana. I’m thinking, either shag or have Lana move to Star City or something but jeez Clark, get over it. There were high points though. I liked the mini arc with the girl who could teleport and knew Clark’s secret.

Of course, in the fifth season Clark loses his powers for a bit and he and Lana FINALLY consumate… until he gets the powers back and decides he might hurt her with his super… powers during sex. So he backs off Lana and by the end, she’s turned to Lex.

The highlight of the fifth season - for me - was James Marsters as Brainiac. I know fans of his complain that he was underused and I can concede that point. But I’m sorta warm and fuzzy about him in Smallville because it’s where I first saw James Marsters and was quite taken with him (I was a latecomer to Buffy.)

Anyway, I’m about halfway through the 6th season and it’s almost painful viewing I’m afraid. Even Rosenbaum can’t seem to bring it and I find myself, as season seven airs, watching the show when I get around to it (thanks to the DVR) instead of the appointment television it used to be. It’s nice that James is back this season though, but again - woefully underused.

And this whole post is apropos of nothing at all (Well… there’s a new episode on tonight!) other than I’m trying a new anti-spam thing with commenting (so you don’t have to register or anything to leave a comment now) that I’m hoping puts an end to the plethora of ‘Hey buy our insurance!’ spam I’ve been getting. So Smallvillians - leave me your comments and tell me I suck and that Smallville rulz and all that good stuff

I usually try to take reality shows with a boatload of salt. I know creative editing can make normal people seem like manipulative cretins and whiny losers when in reality, they’re no more manipulative or whiny than I am. But never was I so happy to see someone get tossed on his ass in Hell’s Kitchen.

Jason Something was sent packing last night, thank Elvis. I don’t think I could stand to hear one more misogynistic word out of his throwback-to-the-50s mouth. April MacIntyre of MonstersandCritics.com describes him perfectly: “..an out-of-shape slacker who smokes and flakes out when he is needed.”

On last night’s show it was pounded into our brains that Jason’s a MAN. He doesn’t do desserts! That’s women’s work! And when Gordon Ramsay booted his sorry behind - because he couldn’t take the pressure of remembering a simple dessert menu and quit three times - he MANfully declared that maybe if he’d cried like a girl, Ramsay wouldn’t have gotten rid of him. 

Uh, I doubt it dude. I think it would be more like Ramsay would be even MORE justified in letting you go little man. Now off you go, back into obscurity with you!

The first new “Bones” is on tonight (a new night, fyi.) The show has not aired since either late November or early December (I’d have to check my DVR to be sure. Either way it’s been a long damn time.) Admittedly, I got into this show because of the draw of David Boreanaz. I finished the last season of “Angel” and wanted more Boreanaz so I Netflixed “Bones.” And surprisingly, I found myself enjoying it. I say surprisingly because I’m not really one for the forensics shows. I prefer character-driven shows whenever possible.

But “Bones” turned out to be a character-driven forensics show and so I was a happy girl. Even if the show did squick me now and then. It’s full of corpsy-goodness. Wet, burnt, mutilated corpsy-goodness. *shudder*

Tonight’s episode is called “The Man in the Mud” and involves the remains of a professional motorcycle racer found in, well, mud. The team has to find the killer while Bones and Booth’s shrink forces them into a double date situation.

Now, the mud thing sounds pretty nifty. The double date thing seems, to put it bluntly, forced. The show has always fluctuated between gritty drama and campy humour and sometimes they pull it off, and sometimes they stretch their credibility. They’ve done it moreso in this third season when the most idiotic reason ever was contrived for getting Booth and Bones to kiss. Don’t get me wrong - I want to eventually see those two crazy kids get together as much as the next B/B shipper - but I want it to evolve naturally. I don’t want it shoved down my throat just because it’s what the writers think we want and it’s their way of giving us what we want without committing to a love story arc.

They used a crusty, feisty attorney who is friends with Booth and Bones to get all Puck-ish at Christmas and basically blackmail Bones into getting Booth to kiss her. It was stupid and I wish they hadn’t done it. But what’s done is done and I was hoping they’d spend what little time they have left after the writer’s strike to develop and solve the far more interesting Gormogon killer story arc. But judging by tonight’s evident foray into the romantically absurd, I don’t think I’ll get my wish.

But I’ll watch, because at the end of the day, I’m shallow and can at least stare all googly-eyed at David Boreanaz

The buzz around my office today is that people are looking for to a new “The Office” tonight. I have to confess that it’s not a show I watch. No reason really, I’m sure it’s brilliant and funny and has Steve Carell and really, I don’t know why I’m not watching it other than the fact that I just haven’t gotten a chance to. I think my brain says, “You should watch the British version first.” to which I reply, “Yeah okay. I should.” and then nothing happens because I get off on a tangent where I wonder if I may be slightly mad for carrying on a conversation with myself about a TV show.

But, if you’re a fan, then a new episode is airing tonight.

There’s also a new Survivor, so yay! I’ll be watching that and that’s about it for me. But there is also a new CSI and Without a Trace on after Survivor which are two other shows I never got into. And never will. I tried valiantly to watch WaT when James Marsters was a guest star, but aside from the very brief glimpses of him in a frumpy suit not getting much of a chance to show his acting chops, I think I’d rather pour lemon juice in a papercut than watch that show again. It was dry, the stories were not compelling and I didn’t care for any of the main characters. And I really tried to get into it by watching episodes from each season. It just didn’t do it for me. Besides, James doesn’t belong on a straight, crime solvey show like that, I don’t think it’s his forte.

As for CSI… it just never appealed. Still doesn’t. But that’s just me. I know several coworkers and friends who love various incarnations of CSI, so for you guys, don’t forget to watch the new one tonight

Oh yeah, and I think an Idol results show is on. If you like that sort of thing.

Tonight, Fuse is showing “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” I. LOVE. this. movie. The 80s churned out some of the most bubblegum, vanilla, feelgood movies you can imagine and back then, I ate it up like the card-carrying mallrat I was. Of course, this is before I discovered the colour black, and fell into my depressing Morrissey phase, but up until then, I wanted to be like Sarah Jessica Parker who was either the fun-loving friend of cool chicks like Ariel in “Footloose” or the oppressed daughter of a retired army general who only wanted to dance.

So if you are way overpaying for the higher cable channels and get FUSE, then join me tonight at 7pm while we relive the good old days