NY/NJ Trip
Last week Jeri and I went on a trip to New York City and Princeton, New Jersey to have some fun and see some friends. While there we took in 2 Broadway Musicals and my friend Kenny and I saw a movie, War starring Jason Statham and Jet Li.

On Thursday morning we got up to go to TKTS to see what shows we could get half price tickets to. Unfortunately it wasn't open and so we just walked around Time Square instead. But we found our way to the Neil Simon Theater where Hairspray was running and we went in and managed to get two second row center tickets for that night.
The musical was Amazing and had a fantastic cast including *NSYNC's Lance Bass as Corny Collins, O Town's Ashley Parker Angel as Link, and Leave it to Beaver's Jerry "The Beav" Mathers as Wilbur Turnblad.
The show was very different from the movie, but it was very fun. The best part was the song "Timeless to Me" between The Turnblad parents, in which the actors apparently improvise and were constantly making each other laugh. I in turn laughed so hard I cryed.

Friday night we went to see Grease featuring the winners of last spring's reality show "Grease: You're the One That I Want" Our seats were not anywhere near as good (we were in the balcony) but it was still great to see on stage. You could tell that the run had only begun recently as the cast seemed to still be finding their parts, but it was still fun to watch and the songs were as good as always.

Saturday night in New Jersey my friend Kenny and I went to see War. Unlike the typical Jason Statham movie, this one had actual character development and plot. There wasn't as much action as I had hoped (although I assume I'll get my fill in Shoot 'Em Up this weekend) but what action there was was still pretty amazing. The story revolves around a mysterious Asian Hired Gun who turns the two big Asian lead gangs against each other and starts a gang war. It featured some great twists and of course Jason Statham, who is the best action hero around these days.

While in the city we also saw Central Park, spent several hours in FAO Schwartz, had dinner with some of our friends who recently moved from Malibu to New York, and of course walked far to much.

While in New Jersey we toured Princeton, both the town and the school, went to an Orchard to pick apples, went to the Jersey Shore (much prettier than Malibu), and spent alot of time playing games with Kenny and Jennifer.

New Fall Shows
So I've had the chance to watch several of the Pilots for this year's new fall season. So far I've seen ABC's Pushing Daises, NBC's Bionic Woman (the first cut), Life, and Journeyman, and CBS's The Big Bang Theory. Tomorrow Jeri and I are going to a special screening of the CW pilots and plan to see Reaper, Gossip Girl, Aliens in America, and Life is Wild.
Here's my thoughts so far.

Pushing Daises
This was hands down the show that I was most excited to see this season and it didn't disappoint. The show centers on Ned a young man who finds out at a young age that he can bring life to the dead with one simple touch. Unfortunately he soon also finds that this power comes with a couple of caveats, one of which is that if he ever touches the person again they dies immediately and can never be brought back, another keeps him from letting anyone come back for more than one minute.
Ned, now grown up owns a pie shop and uses his power to bring back murder victims to find out who killed them and collect the reward money. But when the newest murder victim is Ned's first love he decides to keep her alive.
The show is a mixture of a forensics, murder mystery show, and the romance between two people who can never touch each other. The show is too hard to place in one genre, put really has something for everyone. It's my top recommendation for the new season. Mark your calendar's for Wednesdays on ABC.
Definitely one to set up for a "Season Pass"

Bionic Woman
Another show I was really anticipating. This is a pretty straight forward action show. For those of you who don't know it's about a girl who has some of her body replaced with "bionic parts" which make her better, stronger, faster. I enjoyed what I saw, but look forward to seeing the final cut. I plan on watching the first couple of episodes to see if it's one to keep.

Life
This is one show I will admit I had no desire to watch. The premise didn't entice me and I only watched it because I had nothing better to do. The story follows a policeman who was wrongly convicted of murder and has spent 12 years in prison. Upon his release he goes back to being a detective. It sound pretty straight forward and honestly like nothing special. But the lead is a very bizarre character and it's enjoyable watching him adjust to the changed that the world has gone through in 12 years (such as cell phones, OnStar, and Instant Messaging) Plus there's a great conspiracy about who framed him. All in all I'll give it two or three episodes before I decide.

Journeyman
This is another one whose concept sounded great. A man starts to travel through time waking up in different periods and then coming back with no explanation. Apparently he follows the life of certain people and has to try and change their lives in certain ways, although he's not sure how. It's kind of like Quantum Leap with out Al, and with everyone thinking he's crazy and on drugs since he keeps disappearing for days. (apparently being gone for a day or a few hours for him can equal much more time to his family and friends) There's a great twist partway through that completely threw me for a loop, and made the show one I will definitely be watching this season.

Big Bang Theory
It's funny, but seems forced. Two socially awkward nerds, one very beautiful girl, and a slew of hilarity ensues. At least I'm sure thats what the creator's thought. As it is it's mediocre at best but does have some potential. It's on against Chuck (Which I plan to watch soon and plan to be watching this season) and Aliens in America, so depending on how much we enjoy Aliens tomorrow this one may fall off my schedule.

That's what I think so far, I'll post my thoughts on the CW shows later this weekend, and at some point put up my fall viewing schedule.

Labels: TV Reviews, Vacation