TV Surveillance

Since a tiny version of my face is found next to the word “TV” once a week, the first thing random people ask me is, “What shows should I be watching?” Seriously – this isn’t just me posturing or creating a false sense of importance. People ask! Thus, the following paragraphs discuss the three shows you should absolutely be watching, even if it means going back and catching up on DVD immediately. Plus: a must-see newbie hits the airwaves this week.

SHOW: “Fringe”
EPISODE: “Earthling”
WHEN: 9 p.m. Thursday on FOX

After a rocky 10-or-so episodes, “Fringe” kicked things into a whole new gear last spring, delivering one tremendous mythos-based episode after another and probably last season’s best finale. Season two has legitimately been even better than that, as the writers have intelligently pushed Josh Jackson’s Peter to the forefront and have been able to slowly develop the most intriguing overarching plot this side of “Lost” in a way that is so damn tense and intriguing. Whereas last season there was a clear divide between the “case of the week” and mythology episodes, those elements have been smashed together pretty well in every episode, meaning even the mythos-light efforts propel the story forward in some way.

SHOW: “Friday Night Lights”
EPISODE: “After The Fall”
WHEN: 9 p.m. Wednesday on DirecTV 101

Cable programs like “Mad Men” get the awards-show love and “Lost” is heralded by the geek crowd, but for my money, it is hard for any television program to touch the brilliance of “Friday Night Lights.” The chemistry between the cast members, specifically Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler at the center, is ridiculously perfect, and when paired with the always-solid writing (let’s just forget that the season two murder plot didn’t happen), scenes crackle with energy and emotion. NBC more or less gave up on this show two and a half years ago, but give them credit for at least paying for some of the production costs while DirecTV covers most of it. With season four just beginning, the episodes won’t hit NBC until 2010, but surely you have a friend who has DirecTV or can procure it by “other” means.

SHOW: “Supernatural”
EPISODE: “Changing Channels”
WHEN: 9 p.m. Thursday on the CW

I have harped on people to watch this one since early 2006, even before I had a stupidly popular television-centric column. As good as the mythology of “Fringe” is and the chemistry between the actors on “Friday Night Lights” is, “Supernatural” does both of those things better. Though the show was always really, really great, seasons four and five have been humorous, self-referential and yet intelligent and deep. I hate to sound like some hyperbolic fanboy and I would also never undercut the quality of “Lost,” because I think it is the best program on the air right now. However, “Supernatural” seriously gives it a run for its money. They will never get the credit they deserve because they are a genre show on the CW, but Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki have better chemistry than any other two actors on television – period.

New show alert

SHOW: “V”
EPISODE: “Pilot”
WHEN: 8 p.m. Tuesday on ABC

“V” has been marred by a slew of production problems – script delays, production stoppages and showrunner changes – and insane rumors,  such as ABC won’t let the show use the word “alien” because it might turn away women or non-geeks, that led ABC to plan on airing season one using the “pod system” that worked so well for the third season of “Lost.” Great, remember how annoyed we all were with those damn polar bear cages? However, the “V” pilot was nearly universally loved by critics. Sure, it’s a remake of a campy ’80s series about aliens infiltrating our culture by pretending to be our friends, but it also stars the best performer of “Lost” season five, Elizabeth Mitchell, and looks to be headed in a darker direction than its predecessor.