Summer is right on top of us- with the last season's shows already wrapping up, and networks announcing their primetime lineups for the coming fall. Welcome to Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- in this post we cover The FOX Network.

Returning Favorites on FOX

Alright! More Summer Glau in "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles". The very first season of only nine episodes just wasn't enough.

You know "American Idol" is definitely coming back for another run, and so are "24", "Family Guy", "House", "Prison Break" and "The Simpsons".

Also renewed are "America's Most Wanted", "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?", "Bones", "COPS", "Don't Forget the Lyrics", "Hell's Kitchen", "King of the Hill", "Kitchen Nightmares", "MadTV", "The Moment of Truth", "So You Think You Can Dance", "TALKSHOW with Spike Feresten" and "'Til Death".

Cancelled Shows

Gone from the FOX lineup this fall are "Back To You", "Canterbury's Law", "Nashville", "New Amsterdam", "The Next Great American Band", "The Return of Jezebel James" and "Unhitched".

New Shows

This is where that new Joss Whedon project comes in: "Dollhouse" starring Elisha Dushku (from "Tru Calling").

Also we have a spinoff from "The Family Guy"- "The Cleveland Show", as well as another animated comedy, "Sit Down, Shut Up".

Also added to the lineup: comedies "Starting Under" and "Do Not Disturb", dramas "The Fringe" and "The Oaks" and the reality show "Secret Millionaire".

We've covered all the major networks so far on our 5-part coverage of the upcoming seasons on TV: Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- feel free to check out the earlier networks in our earlier posts.

Cheers, everyone!

Summer is right on top of us- with the last season's shows already wrapping up, and networks announcing their primetime lineups for the coming fall. Welcome to Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- in this post we cover CBS.


Returning Favorites on CBS

The only show on the lineup that really matters to me is "How I Met Your Mother", which is already on its fourth season. Maybe we'll actually get to meet her this time.

Also, all 3 CSI shows have been renewed, as well as "Cold Case", "Criminal Minds", "NCIS", "Numb3rs", "The Unit" and "Without a Trace". That's a whole lot of crime drama, wouldn't you agree? But it seems to work alright with CBS.

We'll also be seing new seasons of "The Amazing Race", "Ghost Whisperer", "The New Adventures of Old Christine" "Survivor", "Two and a Half Men", "The Big Bang Theory", "48 Hours" and "60 Minutes".

Cancelled Shows

It put up a good fight, thanks to fans- but "Jericho" wouldn't be coming back this time.

Also gone: "Kid Nation", "Cane" Power of 10", "Secret Talents of the Stars", "Shark", "Viva Laughlin", "welcome to the Captain", and the vampire drama "Moonlight".


New Shows

Only a few new shows have been added to the CBS lineup, and other than the new Jerry Bruckheimer sci-fi thriller "The Eleventh Hour", it seems that I haven't heard of the rest of CBS' new shows- at least for now.

Remember Ava- Alex Karev's new psycho girlfriend from the latest "Grey's Anatomy"? Well she's got her own comedy now on "The Ex List". CBS also has a new crime drama with "The Mentalist", the Jay Mohr sitcom "Project Gary" and "Worst Week", an American take on the British series "The Worst Week of My Life".

Keep track of your favorite shows for the coming fall season on my continuing coverage: Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- our next posts will be covering FOX. We've already covered NBC, ABC and The CW earlier on.

Cheers, everyone!

You can always count on the Japanese to come up with some incredibly crazy- and funny stuff. You probably remember seeing this clip from last year: a rather innovative game show called "The Human Tetris"- at least that's what the clip says on YouTube.

If you haven't seen it yet, check this one out- it's extremely funny!

You gotta hand it to these guys: a great concept truly needs no translation. Anyway, word is that FOX has picked up this show and already ordered 13 episodes- only this time, they're calling it "Hole In The Wall".

I wonder how it will match up to the original? I suppose we'll find out soon enough.

Cheers, everyone!

Summer is right on top of us- with the last season's shows already wrapping up, and networks announcing their primetime lineups for the coming fall. Welcome to Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- in this post we cover The CW.


Returning Favorites on The CW

This season on The CW, you can expect more drama goin' down on new episodes of "Gossip Girl" and "One Tree Hill", and fresh sets of "Reaper", "Smallville" and "Supernatural".

I can't believe we have yet another cycle of "America's Next Top Model". Then again, I got friends who watch that show religiously.

Also renewed: the Chris Rock comedy "Everybody Hates Chris"- which I totally have to catch up on, and "The Game".


Cancelled Shows

Not coming back at all are "Aliens in America", "Beauty and the Geek" and "Pussycat Dolls Presents". The axe also dropped on "Online Nation", "Life is Wild", "Girlfriends", "CW Now" and "Crowned".
New Shows

Already getting some early hype is the new "90210"- along with a completely new cast, you might also expect to see familiar faces of the old "Beverly Hills: 90210" to make cameo appearances and guest roles.

Also new: "Stylista" and "Surviving the Filthy Rich".

Keep track of your favorite shows for the coming fall season on my continuing coverage: Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- our next posts will be covering FOX and CBS. We've already covered NBC and ABC earlier on.

Cheers, everyone!

Summer is right on top of us- with the last season's shows already wrapping up, and networks announcing their primetime lineups for the coming fall. Welcome to Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- in this post we cover ABC.


Returning Favorites on ABC

Definitely top-draws "Grey's Anatomy", "Lost", "Ugly Betty", "Dancing With The Stars", "Pushing Daisies" and "Desperate Housewives" are coming back with brand new seasons.

"Scrubs", now on its eighth season, moves to its new home from NBC. Surprisingly for me, "Private Practice" has been given another shot. Let's hope Addison pulls through this time.

Also coming back are "According To Jim", "America's Funniest Home Videos", "The Bachelor", "Boston Legal", "Brothers and Sisters", "Dirty Sexy Money", Eli Stone", "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition", "Primetime: What Would You Do?", "Samantha Who?" "Saturday Night College Football", "Supernanny" and "Wife Swap"

Wow, looks like they kept a lot this season.

Cancelled Shows

One of the biggest disappointments was the cancellation of "Cavemen". I haven't even had a chance to see it, but a lot of people say it's good. Have to check out the DVD when it comes out then.

Also gone are "Women's Murder Club", "Oprah's Big Give", "October Road", "Notes from the Underbelly", "Miss/Guided", "Men in Trees", "Just for Laughs", "Cashmere Mafia", "Carpoolers" and "Big Shots".

New Shows

Not much in the way of new shows. There's this animated comedy from Mike Judge (dude who gave us "Beavis and Butthead" and "King of the Hill") called "The Goode Family".

Also new are "Life on Mars"- a remake of the BBC drama, and two Ashton Kutcher projects: "Opportunity Knocks" and a still-untitled collaboration with Tyra Banks.


Keep track of your favorite shows for the coming fall season on my continuing coverage: Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- our next posts will be covering FOX, CBS and The CW. We've already covered NBC earlier on.

Cheers, everyone!

I have to admit- I wasn't that huge a fan of the old "Beverly Hills: 90210", even if I had a huge crush on Jenny Garth back then.

You've probably heard by now that The CW is coming up with a brand new 90210- with an entirely different cast of characters, cameos of old familiar faces, and well, lots of Beverly Hills drama.

Check out this new 90210 sneak peak from a vid posted by ecclectic2007 on YouTube:

The only person I seem to recognize from the whole bunch was Jessica Walters, who played the quirky Lucille Bluth in "Arrested Development".

So what do you think of the new 90210 so far?

Summer is right on top of us- with the last season's shows already wrapping up, and networks announcing their primetime lineups for the coming fall. Welcome to Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- in this post we cover NBC.


Returning Favorites on NBC

We'll be seeing new seasons of our favorites "30 Rock", "Chuck", "Heroes", "Life", "My Name Is Earl" and "The Office".

Also coming back are "Medium", "Lipstick Jungle", "Law & Order: SVU", "Law & Order", "Friday Night Lights", "ER", "Deal or No Deal", "Dateline NBC", "The Biggest Loser" and "The Apprentice".

Cancelled Shows

I was hoping they might be able to breathe new life into "Bionic Woman". Oh well- so much for that.

Axed this season were mostly game shows and competitions: "1 vs 100", "Amne$ia", "Clash of the Choirs", "My Dad is Better than Your Dad", "Phenomenon", and "The Singing Bee".

Also cancelled were "Las Vegas" and "Journeyman".

"Quarterlife" heads on over to NBC's sister cable channel Bravo.

New Shows on NBC

For new shows, there's a still-untitled spin-off of "The Office" in the pipeline, the new Christian Slater spy-drama "My Own Worst Enemy", a new Molly Shannon comedy "Kath & Kim", and the new Howie Mandell show, "Howie Do It".

Don't forget the re-imagined "Knight Rider"- though we heard it hardly has anything to do with the pilot that aired earlier this year.

Other new shows include dramas "Crusoe", "Kings", "The Listener", "Merlin", "The Philanthropist", and documentary/reality shows "America's Toughest Jobs", "The Chopping Block", "Shark Taggers", and "Who Do You Think You Are?"


Keep track of your favorite shows for the coming fall season on my continuing coverage: Renzie Reviews the 2008 Fall Lineup- our next posts will be covering ABC, FOX, CBS and The CW.

Cheers, everyone!

I've always had a fond appreciation for Mazinger Z. I think it was 1978 or 1979 when we actually got to see this anime in the Philippines. It was phenomenal- kids would run straight home right after school to catch these huge-ass robots slug it out with other evil huge-ass robots; there was nothing on TV like it.

Aside from the other Mecha shows, of course. At the time, other than Mazinger Z, there were Voltes V, Daimos, Mekanda Robot, UFO Grendaizer on one TV station (GMA 7), and then you had Balatak, Jeeg, Danguard Ace, Striker Force and Star Zinger on another (RPN 9). Of course there were others later on (Getta Robot, Gaiking, etc.), so maybe I'll blog all about these other mecha shows in another post.

Anyway, Mazinger Z was the very first mecha anime that came out- Wednesdays, I remember. For a cartoon, the theme was rather different from other usual animated fare at the time, like say, SuperFriends, or Disney movies or stuff from Hanna Barbera.

Mazinger Z ushered in a host of new mecha shows that were a lot more violent, darker, and perhaps a little more mature. Looking back, maybe it was a little too violent for kids (I was 5 or 6 at the time). But as far as mecha anime shows go, Mazinger Z set the conventions which would later be used by similar programs, and set the standard for a great super-robot series.

Check out this great Mazinger Z pic by Jose Liepana. Totally awesome.

The Mazinger Z Story

An archeological research team digs up an ancient civilization (said to be the Myceneans) on an island (which may have been the island of Rhodes?). The team discovers that this civilization made use of an army of giant steel titans (not unlike the legendary bronze giant, Talos), as a protection against invaders. The expedition team unearth prototypes of these titans, and start restoring them.

Realizing these giants can be remote-controlled, Dr. Hell soon sees the massive potential of these prototypes as instruments of world domination, and decides to kill off all the other members of the research team, so he can have the steel titans for his own designs. Professor Juzo Kabuto, another member of the research team, was the sole survivor of this treachery, and managed to escape to warn the world of Dr. Hell's plans.

Dr. Hell then starts building his mobile base of operations and his army of robot "beast fighters". In the meantime, Professor Kabuto builds Mazinger Z- a super-robot created out of a fictitious super-alloy (Chogokin-Z) that could only be found at the base of Mt. Fuji, and armed with an array of weaponry to stand up against Dr. Hell's mecha army.

Just as Professor Kabuto finishes Mazinger Z, he is assassinated by Dr. Hell's right-hand man, Baron Ashura. The dying professor passes on the secret of Mazinger Z to his grandson, Kouji, who then does battle with the beast fighters sent by Dr. Hell in every episode.

Mazinger Z Weapon Systems

To activate Mazinger Z, Kouji flies a specially-made hovervehicle (called the Pilder) into the super-robot's cranial cavity. This effectively allows him to interface with Mazinger Z and control the mecha's movement and access the weapon systems.

• Rocket Punch. Mazinger Z can launch his fist and forearm as a projectile that can punch through steel. These forearms then fly back to reattach themselves back to Mazinger Z's arms.
• Koshiryoku Beams. Laser beams that shoot from Mazinger Z's eyes.
• Rust Hurricane. Mazinger Z can blow out gale-force winds which can disintegrate steel
• Breast Fire. High-intensity beams powerful enough to melt metal that radiate from the red fixtures on Mazinger Z's chest.

Mazinger Z also had a female counterpart, Aphrodite A- which is piloted by the hot-blooded and tomboyish Sayaka Yumi, who also serves as Kouji's romantic interest. While Aphrodite A is also made of the same Chogokin-Z superalloy, she doesn't have much in the way of offensive weaponry. In fact, her only weapon system are missiles launched from her breasts- the Oppai Missile System.

Other Mazinger Z Facts

• Go Nagai, the legendary Japanese animator, was the creative genius behind Mazinger Z. Mecha/super-robot fans would usually credit him as the father of the super-robot anime genre, and Mazinger Z as "the mecha show that started it all". In response, Go Nagai would humbly pass the honor to two other animators and their projects: Osamu Tezuka's Tetsuwan Atom (aka "Astro Boy") and Mitsuteru Yokoyama's Tetsujin 28-go (aka "Gigantor").
  
• Mazinger Z was re-dubbed in English and re-named Tranzor Z for the US release in 1985. Many scenes considered too violent or too sexually suggestive were edited from the series, cutting down the number of episodes from 92 to 65.
• As you can see on YouTube, Mazinger Z seems to also have been popular in Italy, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Spain and the Middle East.

There were actually two Mazinger Z openings. This one I remember the most watching it as a kid (thanks to javeln, who shared this clip on YouTube):



This other opening replaces the first midway into the season (thanks to JihadAlexander, who also shared this clip on YouTube):



If you wanna check out more of Mazinger Z, you can read more about him here on his Wikipedia entry, here on the AnimeNewsNetwork, or here on TV.com. Interestingly enough, you may also want to check out Wikipedia entry on Mazinger Z's enemies-of-the-week, the "mechanical beasts".

"Crap From My Childhood" is a special feature on old cartoons and kiddie shows from the 1970s and 1980s. Read all about it on Renzie's personal blog on all things television: "Too Much TV!"

Cheers, everyone.

One of the things that keeps "Grey's Anatomy" interesting for me this season is the addition of the character of Lexie Grey- Meredith's younger half-sister, played by the cute-as-a-button Chyler Leigh.

What I didn't know was that at age 23 (she was born 10 April 1982, btw), she's already been a part of at least 9 different TV series:

• "Reunion" (2005)
• "North Shore" (2004)
• "The Practice" (2003)
• "Girls Club" (2002). She played lawyer Sarah Mickle.
  
• "That '80s Show" (2002). Her character was a punk rocker, June Tuesday.
  
• "7th Heaven" (2000)
• "M.Y.O.B." (2000)
• "Wilder Days" (2000)
• "Safe Harbor" (1999)
• "Saving Graces" (1999)
• "Kinetic City Super Crew" (1997)
• "Hall Pass" (1996), a syndicated news show
  

Of course, none are as memorable (or as big of a hit) as "Grey's Anatomy". In the latest season (Season 4) of the ABC medical drama, Lexie joins the staff of Seattle Grace as part of this year's batch of interns. Naturally, there's drama going on between her and Meredith, and later on with other characters- that's about as far as I go to keep things spoiler-free.

No surprise: Chyler did some modeling before her acting career took off. In fact, she's been in front of a camera since age 12, doing the round of magazines and catalogs. Even landing gigs on national ads for Coca-Cola and Wendy's, among other projects.

Chyler Leigh also had film roles. In 1997, she made her film debut in Kickboxing Academy. No I haven't seen it, but according to her Wikipedia entry, her love interest in this particular movie was her real-life brother (Christopher Khayman Leigh- who, incidentally, played a Power Ranger in 3 Power Ranger series). Which was weird, because there are several scenes in the movie where the two actually kiss.

Anyway, in 2001 she snagged the lead role in the Columbia/Tri-Star comedy Not Another Teen Movie- which, I have to admit, I have to check out again- just to catch a little more of Chyler. In the meantime, feel free to drool over her on this hot photo right here:

Other bits about Chyler Leigh: If you're a Marilyn Manson fan, you may recall seeing Chyler in the "Tainted Love" music video as well. She was ranked #65 on the Maxim Hot 100 Women of 2002. The following picture was taken for Stuff Magazine, the issue that came out in January 2002, to promote Not Another Teen Movie. That's Chyler with co-star Mia Kirshner.

You can continue seeing more of Chyler as Dr. Lexie Grey on ABC's "Grey's Anatomy"- check out your local listings on when you can catch it. Great show.

Also, check out Chyler's rather comprehensive profile on IMDb.com- where you can also find more photos, bios and other trivia about Miss Leigh.

As long as TV keeps coming up with delicious eye-candy, this blog's feature on "Favorite TV Chicks" will be on hand to get to know more about our fine female performers who make our TV shows a little bit more interesting. Only on "Too Much TV: Renzie on TV!"

Cheers, everyone!

Remember that old eighties cartoon Spiral Zone?

Well, I can barely remember the series myself. All I have are memories of '87 or '88, catching it on some afternoons right after I get home from school.

I thought it was kick-ass though. It made a great alternative to other cartoons like G.I. Joe and the Transformers, and I liked the whole concept around the "let's-put-together-a-crack-team-of-commandos-from-around-the world" idea. Check out the intro from a clip we found on YouTube right here:

What's Spiral Zone All About

Supposedly a renegade military scientist who calls himself "The Overlord" managed to envelop a significant portion of future Earth in a strange dark mist using some new form of biological warfare.

Our main villain managed to put up "Zone Generators" which spewed forth clouds that covered vast population centers. End result: millions of people stuck in this spiral-shaped territory (thus, the title) become zombie-like thralls- or Zoners- from which The Overlord now builds his army.

Naturally, he's got himself some henchmen as well- The Black Widows- which act as his lieutenants and special agents, riding around Zoned areas in Sledge Hammers: one-man vehicles with tracked wheels, overhead guns and flails on the side. The Overlord has a special command ATV with a cannon for himself.

Anyway, the world finally unites against this global menace, and puts together a crack team of commandos to go in the Zones and blow up the Zone Generators to liberate the planet one city at a time. We got:

• Colonel Dirk Courage. American field commander. Rides around in this monocycle with this massive cannon mounted on top.
• Lieutenant Hiro Taka. The team's recon, infiltration and melee combat expert from Japan.
• 2nd Lieutenant Max Jones. The team's African-American special missions expert.
• Master Sergeant 'Tank' Schmidt. The team's heavy weapons specialist from Germany.
• Corporal Katerina Anastacia. The team's medic from the Soviet Union.

So these guys don a special body armor that renders them immune to the effects of the Zone. From a mountain base, they're flown to the mission-of-the-week via a jet transport, then ride into enemy territory in fast-attack monocycles.

Spiral Zone Now

It's hard to get a hold of clips or pictures of this old cartoon. Personally, I only have a VHS tape of a few shows myself, and I'd really like to get me a DVD copy (if I could find one). Found a website which supposedly distributed copies of the series, but it's all sold out for now.

Bandai actually had a toy line going on in Japan, years before the franchise (and the accompanying TV series) was developed for the American market. So if you're into collecting the action figures, it means that there should be a number of collectors out there with a few pieces you might be interested in.

Check out Spiral Zone on TV.com and on IMDb.com. You can also catch bits and pieces of Spiral Zone on RetroJunk, and its entry on Wikipedia.

"Crap From My Childhood" is a special feature on old cartoons and kiddie shows from the 1970s and 1980s. Read all about it on Renzie's personal blog on all things television: "Too Much TV!"

Cheers, everyone.

I know the American Idol juggernaut just about got everybody hooked this season- now that it's down to David Archuleta versus David Cook for the finale.

My money's on Cook, but Archuleta does have a whole shitload of fans.

Alright, so I know enough about what's generally going down, but the truth is, I can't help but notice that, for the past several episodes, my enthusiasm for the show has noticeably waned.

I was trying to figure it out: was it possibly the lack of eye-candy for me? Hardly any chicks this season- at least not as compelling as when Katherine McPhee was around (sorry, just needed a reason to put her pic up on this blog :p). In fairness, Carly Smithson was the most fun to watch for this batch, so I know I really stopped watching the actual broadcasts after Broadway night and just relied on the internet for updates.

Was it because the weekly themes were sorta skewed towards a more mature audience? Alright, I dig Lennon/McCartney. Even the Andrew Lloyd Webber night was rather entertaining. But Dolly Parton night? Neil Diamond? I can only take so much Dolly or Diamond in one hour of TV viewing. Oh I didn't even bother watching Neil Diamond night. Where's the element of 'staying contemporary' Simon Cowell has been constantly crowing about?

While the show has inadvertently managed to keep itself interesting somehow- what with the Paula Abdul blunder a couple of weeks back (you can even catch a clip on YouTube if you missed it), or that debacle with Archuleta's dad on being such a stage parent (which you can read about here, here and here)- it doesn't seem to completely accomplish what the show set out to do: get my eyeballs locked on FOX two nights a week.

Luck of the draw, I suppose. Here's to hoping they get a more interesting set of contestants next year.

Cheers, everyone.

It's not a secret that NBC late night talk show host Conan O'Brien is into video games. As a matter of fact, he did manage to amuse himself and whatever was left of his staff with rounds of Rock Band during the Writers' Strike earlier this year.

So it's no surprise that he's been able to get himself a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, the latest and hottest GTA title in the controversial game series, which immerses you in a shady world of violence, sex and drug-dealing.

Supposedly, the latest installment of the GTA series has addressed these issues. And for the past few shows, Conan has been kind enough to share his experiences with a more audience-friendly, mellowed-down Grand Theft Auto IV.

Take a look at these:

Clips were shared by MuchRockness on YouTube. Always a good time whenever you catch Conan O'Brien every night on your NBC Channel, on Late Night with Conan O'Brien right after The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Cheers, everyone!

Too bad a lot of our shows had their number of episodes cut this season. Nevertheless, get ready as your favorite shows leave you hanging at the edge of your seats, answer some questions, or leave you with even more questions.

Let's check in on our most-watched shows as they wrap up in time for summer!

30 Rock (NBC). Jack lands himself a new job, Liz gets a pregnancy scare, and Tracy's porn-video game masterpiece is just about complete. We need more 30 Rock! Season 2 just ended last Thursday, May 8.

America's Next Top Model (The CW). Haven't we had enough top models already? Cycle 10 ends on Wednesday, May 14.

American Idol (FOX). The two Davids battle it out, but for some reason, I'm just not too excited about it this season. Season finale on Wednesday, May 21.

Battlestar Galactica (SciFi). We hit the episode 10 mark on Friday, June 13. No official word on when it's coming out, but the second installment of 10 episodes wraps up not just Season 4, but the entire series.

But hey, word is, we'll be getting the spin-off Caprica soon, and there might even be a BSG movie coming up!

CSI (CBS). Warrick finds himself in hot water in CSI's eighth season finale. This Thursday, May 15.

CSI: Miami (CBS). The entire Miami team is in danger, but Horatio is around to save the day. Find out what happens on the sixth season finale on (Monday) May 19.

CSI: New York (CBS). A bank heist goes terribly wrong- but you know the New York team is going to pull through as always. Could be fun! Season 4 wraps up on Wednesday, May 21.

Gossip Girl (The CW). The promos are hot, and as far as we can tell with the past few episodes, the first season finale is sure not to disappoint. Catch it Monday next week, May 19.

Grey's Anatomy (ABC). It's gonna be a 2-hour season finale, and you know there's gonna be lots of Seattle Grace drama going on. Fourth season wraps up on (Thursday) May 22.

The Hills (MTV). If you're a fan of Heidi, Spencer and Lauren, then you definitely wouldn't want to miss The Hills' third season finale! Airs on Monday, May 12.

House (FOX) is on its 4th season, and the two-hour finale airs this Monday, May 12.

How I Met Your Mother (CBS). We're almost at the end of Season 3, and we still don't know exactly how he did. Are we finally going to get some answers on (Monday) May 19?

Lost (ABC). Brace yourself for a two-hour season finale. More answers this time? Or just more questions? Check it out on (Thursday) May 29.

My Name is Earl (NBC). Earl must make a choice: his wife, or the list. The one-hour season finale airs this (Thursday) May 15.

The Office (NBC). Toby says goodbye and heads off to Costa Rica, and in comes his HR replacement. How does Michael Scott deal this time? Find out on Thursday, May 14.

One Tree Hill (The CW). I haven't watched a single episode, but I know a lot of my friends who do. The fifth season draws to a close on (Monday) May 19.

Reaper (The CW). It's Sam versus an entire army of demons as we wrap up the first season. Question is, will Reaper be back for Season 2? Airs on Tuesday, May 20.

Scrubs (NBC). Word is, they're moving to ABC next season. But not before the entire Sacred Heart staff winds up in a twisted fairy tale conjured up by Dr. Cox. Season 7 just ended last Thursday, May 8.

Smallville (The CW). What has Braniac been up to this time? Also- Clark faces off with Lex, Lana wakes up from her coma, and so much more going on as Season 7 of Smallville wraps up on (Thursday) May 15.

Supernatural (The CW). Dean has just 30 hours left until his pact with the demon Lilith expires. Can he, Sam and Bobby pull through? Season finale airs on Thursday, May 15.

Top Chef (Bravo). Just needed an excuse to put host Padma Lakshmi's picture up here. Season 4 has been really fun, and we may have some six episodes still on the way- which means we'll be seeing our top 2 chefs slug it out on (Wednesday) June 18.

Ugly Betty (ABC). Sorry, I don't watch this show, but my friends do. Season finale happens on (Thursday) May 22.

So there you have it- make sure you don't miss your shows! Stick around as we cover the fall line-ups soon. We'll get official word from the networks in a few days.

Cheers, everyone!

Okay fine, maybe I got a little nostalgic after that last post of mine on Iron Man. So I browsed through a few more videos on YouTube, and decided to share the opening themes of other old (circa-1967/68) Marvel cartoons here.

One of the catchier tunes that's been nailed into my brain since childhood was this one of The Incredible Hulk. Never was that huge a fan of the Green Goliath, but this campy theme just never fails to entertain. Check it out:

Not the best theme song there is, right? But incredibly sticky, you gotta give them credit for that. Okay, I'm sure you remember this one of Captain America:


Now that wasn't so bad, was it? Moving on, here are the opening themes for The Mighty Thor and the Sub-Mariner.

Lastly, while not from the same series of cartoons, here's the opening theme from the classic Spider-man cartoon:


So you have to hand it to Marvel for coming up with all these great gems from waaay back then. Sure, they're horrible now, compared to even the worst cartoons you have on Nick or Cartoon Network, but man, were they a lot of fun!

Cheers, everyone!

In the most recent Iron Man movie with Robert Downey, Jr., I noticed there was something familiar about the music during that hotel/casino scene towards the beginning. And then Pepper Potts' mobile phone goes off a couple of times. The ringtone was almost instantly recognizable for me, and I just knew it- they HAD to use the theme from the old Iron Man cartoon.

Check out a clip of the opening theme which I found on YouTube:

I remember watching the cartoon on weekday afternoons after school in the eighties, not knowing that at the time, the show was already almost 20 years old! I only found out fairly recently that the old Marvel cartoon made its first TV appearance in 1967 or 68.

Totally cheesy, I know. But it sure brings back some great childhood memories, for sure.

Check out my other blog entries on "Everything You Need To Know About Iron Man" on my other blog, "Renzie on Movies", which I wrote after checking out the kick-ass Iron Man movie. You can read Part 1 here, and Part 2 here.

Cheers, everyone!