Save Our Shows

The good ones, I mean! I've become concerned about society recently, for two reasons. And they're both from the same web page. A prominent video website recently placed CBS's The Big Bang Theory and NBC's Chuck on their list of best TV shows you aren't watching. I hope this doesn't mean you, gentle reader. For, although The Office and 30 Rock are finally truly funny again, although Scrubs is coming back (this time on ABC) for a half-season, and although Battlestar Galactica returns in January for the final half-season of its story arc, my two favorite TV shows right now are still these two. The ones about loveable geeks (and non-loveable geeks) spying and/or being really geeky. (I wonder why?) Instead, everyone seems to be watching the inane Heroes and, erm, Gossip Girl. (Yes. Really.)

Why are these my favorite shows? The same reason I love any show. They aren't very serious; the writing is fantastic. The actors were perfectly cast. Honestly, Sheldon Cooper and Penny on Big Bang Theory and Chuck Bartowski, John Casey (Adam Baldwin, of Firefly and Serenity fame), and Morgan Grimes are some of the best characters on TV right now. Sadly, Chuck and The Big Bang Theory run opposite each other on Monday; the former being an hour-long show starting at 8, and the latter a half-hour show starting at the same time. If you must only choose one, pick Chuck, which has better characters and production quality and boasts a more promising storyline; but full episodes of Chuck are available on www.nbc.com, whereas the episodes of The Big Bang Theory can only be found, ahem, subversively.

Yes, I hear what you're saying...good shows only ever get cancelled by FOX! (*sigh* Firefly, Arrested Development....tragedies...) But with Pushing Daisies and some others, there is now precedent for even non-FOX networks' cancelling shows with small but loyal followings. Give these shows a try!

WATCH! Chuck episodes, webisodes, and episode re-caps can be found here, for those wishing to catch up on the action; CBS's much poorer Big Bang website, sans full episodes, can be found here.