MY FAVORITE TV OF 2009 (UPDATE 2)

UPDATE 2.

Everyone keeps mentioning some great shows -- Dexter, Breaking Bad, 24, Generation Kill, etc. I've watched episodes from all these shows and think they are great. But I don't return for more. In some cases, I'm too far behind the story and will have to catch up on DVDs. In other cases, I think they are too similar in tone to Sons. Watching them is a little too much like going to work. You can tell by the things on my list that I use TV like most of you do -- to escape.

UPDATE 1.

I forgot to check the DVR in the bedroom. There were several guilty pleasures I watch with my wife. The additions are *** below.

It's not a"top ten" list, it's not the "best of" list, it's just the shit that I enjoyed watching this year. I don't watch a lot of television. I try to sample the new shows on both network and cable. That sampling very rarely leads to a desire to watch again. So these are the things that ended up on my DVR this year (SOA not included). No particular order, no compelling reason.

HOUSE HUNTERS INTERNATIONAL

Katey and I watch it religiously. It's our escape fantasy. We dream of quitting everything, liquidating our assets, putting the kids in boarding school and moving to the south of France, northern Italy or a Greek Island.

ROBOT CHICKEN

Irreverent, ridiculous and fucking funny. It's fifteen minutes of juvenile escapism.

THE DAILY SHOW

Jon Stewart is my only news source. If it wasn't for him, I'd have no idea what's going on in the world.

NURSE JACKIE

Took me a few episodes to embrace the adulterous junkie caregiver with the heart of gold, but by the end, I was wanting more. Edie Falco is a writer's dream -- she turns a six on the page into a ten on screen.

*GLEE

Katey started watching. Got my daughter, Sarah hooked. I begrudgingly watched an episode with them. Shaking my head in a manly, "C'mon" manner the whole show. Then, when Katey was out of town, I watched every episode. I laughed, I cried, I sang, I danced.

ENTOURAGE

Some critics hate it, but I still love hanging out with these guys. It ain't brilliant, but it's entertaining and addictive.

HUNG

Episodes were uneven, but the overall narrative arc and the acting were very compelling. And yes, an average Joe with a huge penis that every woman wants to fuck... and then pays him, does appeal to my ego-righteous sense of "I could do that... if my penis was four inches longer and I was good looking."

FAMILY GUY

Nothing else in the world makes me laugh more. Nothing.

KIDDIE SHOWS

My three-year old only watches television with her daddy. Twenty minutes in the morning, twenty minutes before bed. These are her favorites in order of dvr requests:

Mio Mao

Bonnie Bear

Musti

Sesame Street

Sponge Bob

LOST

The only network drama I watch. Not just because my wife is on it. Damon and Carlton have me on a string. It's appointment television for the whole family.

IMPORTANT THINGS WITH DEMETRI MARTIN

Love this guy's stand-up. The show is still finding its way, but I watched every episode. And laughed.

CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM

I thought I'd be tired of Larry by now, but he still makes me fucking cringe with laughter. Some of the episodes felt derivative, like spec scripts of the show, but there were several shows this season that rivaled the first year in their ingenuity and irreverence. The Seinfeld arc was classic Larry.

TRUE BLOOD

Sexy, intriguing, totally over the fucking top. I'm in, Alan. Can't wait for next season.

MAD MEN

I had to force myself to watch the first half of the season. I was having a hard time relating or caring about ANYBODY. (spoiler ahead) After the grandfather died, I finally started plugging in. The finale was awesome. Looking forward to seeing Don Draper with a sense of purpose next season.

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE

I watch it for Andy Samburg's Digital Shorts and anything with Kristen Wiig and Kenan Thompson.

SAM CROW MEN OF GINGER

My Christmas gift from the beautiful and kind Winter Ave Zoli (Lyla). Happy Holidays.

NOT SO GOLDEN GLOBES

Now that my angry tweets are all over the net and I continue to bolster my reputation as the most dangerous showrunner in Hollywood, I figured I'd briefly weigh in.

I was actually in a pretty Zen place about the Globes.  I knew from our press guy that we were off the radar and weren't gonna win.  Basically Fox couldn't afford to buy us an award too.  I was cool.  But when I woke up and I saw who/what actually got nominated, I just got really pissed.  Actually, not pissed, insulted.  I think all those years of being ignored on The Shield is having a cumulative effect.  I get it, the Globes are a sham (Nikke Finke breaks it down best), but they are still a valuable marketing tool and as shallow as it sounds, those golden statues boost an artist's ego.  So when I saw actors like Courtney Cox getting nominated for fucking Cougar Town and Kyra Sedgewick for The Closer (both talented actors but the performances in these vehicles are just not award worthy), I snapped.  Look, I know she's my wife and I know there in no way in hell I can be objective, but Katey's performance not being recognized is a little offensive, no? 

For the record, I called the Foreign Press old, tired and lazy.  That was a heated opinion based on very little research, any resemblance between my appraisals and persons living or dead, although intentional, is purely coincidental.

I'm trying to stay hopeful about the Emmys, but I know Sons is riding a very dark horse in that race also.  I broke all that down last year in this blog.  The support from the fans on my blog, Twitter and FB has been great.  I know at the end of the day, the gold statues don't mean shit.  And I wish I could just sit back, be humble and shut my fucking mouth (and trust me, there's a long list of people wishing the same thing), but alas, I make no promises.  For today, I am content with having the best job in Hollywood, rabidly loyal viewers and the praise of a few good critics.