from the couch of Renzie Baluyut
With our old favorite TV shows coming back for new seasons, we can definitely expect a lot of great viewing these next few months. There will be surprise hits and flops, drama on- and off-cam, and of course, new chicks on TV!
So far, I have my eye on three great-looking women: Anna Torv of the J.J. Abrams FOX drama Fringe, Dania Ramirez, the deadly Maya from the hit NBC show Heroes, and then we have Mädchen Amick, who plays Nate Archibald's new cougar love interest on Gossip Girl on The CW.
Lets get to know them a little better, shall we?
Anna Torv of Fringe
As special agent Olivia Dunham, Anna Torv kicks ass every week on Fringe. And just like any other FBI field operative, she's chasing down criminals on foot, or vaulting over cars, or even across buildings.
What makes Dunham's character so bad-ass is the kind of crooks she hunts down: you'd think they're regular serial killers or terrorists, but these miscreants are actually part of some much larger, much more elaborate conspiracy she's still trying to figure out.
Anna Torv's character is forced to confront the systematic spread of weird, paranormal occurences (called 'The Pattern' on the show), and I have to say that Anna is doing great playing Olivia Dunham.
Anna is an Australian actress, with a few movies and TV shows to her credit, but this is the biggest role she has thus far, and I say good luck on this endeavor. She's doing a great job, and I can't wait to watch the next episode to see how The Pattern unfolds.
J.J. Abrams' Fringe is this season's new sci-fi action/thriller. I'd describe it as the new X-Files, though there are people who also see a little bit of Dark Angel, Twilight Zone and Lost in it.
Dania Ramirez of Heroes
We've actually seen Dania Ramirez's character, Maya, last season on the NBC hit drama. Remember that Mexican chick who'd always be crying black tears and then everyone in a hundred-foot-radius would suddenly drop dead?
Well, Maya is back this season, and while we didn't see much character development the last time she was on Heroes, she promises fans this time, "I cry a lot less this season and make out a lot more."
We can all appreciate that. Thank you, Dania.
Dania Ramirez actually came from the Dominican Republic, and has had a recurring role in The Sopranos' final season. You also may have caught her on the last X-Men movie (X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006) and on a music video here and there.
As for Dania's character on Heroes, well, we've seen some more of that "making out" the other night. That, plus more revealing clothes. Still no idea how her powers work though. Is it psionic in nature? Does she exude some kind of airborne nerve toxin? A fast-acting disease perhaps?
I suppose we'll have to find out in the next several episodes of Heroes. And I wouldn't mind seeing more Dania Ramirez in the process.
Mädchen Amick of Gossip Girl
Her name Mädchen means "girl" in German, and is pronounced mayd-shyen- remember that. You probably remember her as Shelly Johnson from the old TV drama Twin Peaks, or that chick in the Stephen King movie Sleepwalkers (1992).
OK, so she also had recurring roles on a lot of other shows including Gilmore Girls, E.R., Jake In Progress and Joey- that plus a number of movie roles and other gigs. So you get the idea: she has been around for quite some time, and now Mädchen is back, for the appreciation of a totally new audience on Gossip Girl.
Mädchen Amick plays the role of Catherine Mason, one of this season's new characters. She has a summer fling with Chace Crawford's character of Nate Archibald, which of course goes on to extend for several episodes just for fun.
We also find out later on that Catherine Mason is stepmom to Blair Waldorf's (Leighton Meester) love interest, Marcus. With all the characters running around, up to their usual Upper East-side scheming and shenanigans, you know that this makes for great Gossip Girl drama, and it can only be a good thing for viewers, right?
There will definitely be more Mädchen Amick and Catherine Mason this season. You know you love her.
Hey, you can check out our featured actresses on their own respective profiles on the Internet Movie Database: check out Anna Torv's here, Dania Ramirez's here, and Mädchen Amick's here.
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!
by Renzie Baluyut
You've probably been waiting for it all year- the third volume of Heroes finally made its premiere last night. I caught it myself, and liked it. I'm sure a lot of my friends did too. But in the business of television, buzz is good, but ratings ultimately matter. The question is: was the NBC drama able to hold up well enough against the fierce Monday night competition?
Not quite heroically enough, according to a report on TV.com. In fact, according to figures from The Hollywood Reporter, viewership of Heroes: Villains is rather disappointing- down 25% this season, based on ratings of the third season premiere last night, pulling in only 9.9 million sets of eyeballs.
Which meant one in four who saw the second season premiere last year was probably watching something else, leaving it up to the DVR to record the show, or just busy doing other stuff. Heroes overload, perhaps?
We had three hours' worth of Heroes last night: a 1-hour clip show at 8pm, which pretty much just brings us up to speed with what went down the past couple seasons, then you had Episodes 1 and 2 of the "Villains" volume: "The Second Coming" at 9pm and "The Butterfly Effect" at 10pm.
Understand, however, that in my case, I also want to catch my other favorite Monday night shows- specifically: Gossip Girl (on The CW, at 8pm), How I Met Your Mother (on CBS, at 8:30pm), The Sarah Connor Chronicles (on FOX, at 9pm). So thank Bob for DVR's.
Now that's just MY demographic. What about the rest of Monday night primetime-viewing America? It seemed that ABC's Dancing with the Stars pulled in 21.1 million viewers- more than twice the number of Heroes' viewers- at 9pm, and then CBS kicks NBC's ass at 10pm with David Caruso's screaming hot shades with CSI: Miami's 16.9 million viewers.
The biggest draw for Monday night however, seemed to have come from Monday Night Football, with the return of Bret Favre, so all around, even the other Monday night shows got hit: The Sarah Connor Chronicles only had 5.8 million viewers, Prison Break (also on FOX) also took a slight dive, and so did Gossip Girl, which saw 20% less viewers compared to last week.
Possibly impressive: comedy newcomer Worst Week garnered more than 11 million viewers last night- still at least a million more viewers than the Heroes season 3 premiere.
I'm still hoping that our heroes (and villains) would rally by next week. Sure looks like the Petrellis have some hustling to do.
Cheers, everyone!
Ladies and Gentlemen, the new shows for the Fall Season are upon us. Yes, your favorite shows- at least most of 'em, anyway- are back to entertain you once again. So get your eyeballs ready- there's lots of great stuff coming out of primetime TV these next few months!
Week of Sept 01 to 07
Gossip Girl comes back with its second season on The CW, Monday, September 01.
Yet another cycle of America's Next Top Model- we're on season 11, btw- comes back on The CW on Wednesday, Sept 03
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, returns with all-new episodes on FOX, the second season premieres on Monday, Sept 08
House, now on its fifth season, comes back on Tuesday, Sept 16.
Heroes on NBC. With a 60-minute clip show preceeding the third season premiere. Sept 22.
Season 5 of CSI: New York comes back on CBS on Wednesday, Sept 24.
It's a special 2-hour premiere for season 5 of Grey's Anatomy; comes back on ABC on Sept 25.
The Amazing Race is back on CBS for its 13th season; it's another race around the world on Sunday, Sept 28.
ABC's Brothers and Sisters is on its third season, returning on ABC on Sunday, Sept 28.
The second season of Chuck comes back on NBC on Sept 29.
The Grey's Anatomy spinoff, Private Practice, is back for another run. Second season premieres on Wednesday, Oct 01 on ABC.
CSI: Las Vegas is back on CBS; season 9 premieres on Thursday, Oct 9.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!
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:
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!
Alright, ever since Gossip Girl hit local screens, people have been asking me about it- so here it is.
Gossip Girl is pretty much this season's biggest guilty pleasure. Think of it as The O.C. for 2008- well, more like 2007 to be exact. The CW came out with the show in mid-September of 2007. As of this writing, we're halfway into the first season, which means you have 13 episodes to catch up on to bring yourself up to speed.
I know it's not a huge huge show, but I've read somewhere that despite the show facing massive competish, Gossip Girl is one of the most downloaded or recorded shows (if not the most) of the season- which means people will probably watch their Bionic Woman or Private Practice or America's Next Top Model (when it was shown on Wednesdays), but people will find some way to get their Gossip Girl fix (via TiVo, or downloaded, or whatever).
The truth is, Gossip Girl was one of the most anticipated new shows of the season. If you didn't already know, the soap is based on the popular novel series (of the same name) written by Cecily von Ziegesar. From Wikipedia:
Gossip Girl revolves around the lives of socialite young adults growing up on New York's Upper East Side who attend elite academic institutions while dealing with sex, drugs, and other teenage issues. Featuring an ensemble cast, the series begins by introducing Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) and best friend Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester), as well as Blair's boyfriend Nate Archibald (Chace Crawford). Other characters in the show include Dan (Penn Badgley) and Jenny Humphrey (Taylor Momsen), who become involved in the lives of the main characters despite being less inclined to merge with the upper-east-side crowd. The series is narrated by a seemingly omniscient character, "Gossip Girl" (voiced by Kristen Bell), who runs a blog about her fellow Upper East Siders — consequently stirring the plot and creating potential rivalries in this exclusive and vicious circle of friends.
I can still remember watching the Pilot episode just before Christmas; at the time I was raving about the new shows Chuck and Reaper, and I had this friend who was raving about this one. She checked out Chuck, and I checked out Gossip Girl. Her selling point? "You know, the narrator on that show is Kirsten Bell..." Ding! I'vebeen hooked ever since."I'm relying on old favorites while exploring current pop music. And since the show revolves primarily around high school students in New York, we'll definitely be using some New York-based bands. But these kids listen to the radio, too."
Finally, Jericho fans will be getting what they paid for in truckloads of nuts! A new episode comes out on Feb 12. So if you feel like doing some homework just before the new season premiere, you still have time to do some surfing or even watching the last few episodes all over again- which is what I'll probably be doing.
While we do have some shows to tide us over for now- The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Project Runway, The Apprentice and Lost, I'd sure like to get some resolution done for the whole lot of shows left midway through their respective seasons.
So here I am, still keeping tabs on the shows I usually watch. There are actually a lot of people asking me if a certain show has new episodes out, or if I know when a new show is coming back- so I thought I'd do everyone a service by posting a quick update on some of our favorite shows right here.
30 Rock last aired Episode 10 of Season 2 last Jan 10. It's been weeks since we got anything new.
Grey's Anatomy came back with "Lay Your Hands On Me" last January 10- but that was it. Nothing new from the guys since then.
Scrubs last went on with "My #1 Doctor" last December 6. No word yet when the guys will be out with a new episode.
I might be a media guy, but my field is really more into radio and marketing more than anything else. For the most part, it means that what I know about television is pretty much stuff just about anyone can know- so don't expect me to go technical or anything. 
Hey, Renzie here at your service, and thanks for stopping by to check out the stuff on this blog.