Summer TV Round-Up

I didn't get to the weekly round-up yesterday, so to make up for it, you get two posts today! This one will be about some TV shows I have been watching this summer. The next post will be the weekly round-up and should be up later today.

Lookwell (1991 TV pilot)
Lookwell on IMDB
When I went to the Philly Comic-Con a few weeks ago I attended a Q&A session with Adam West and Burt Ward! It was an entertaining and informative event with some great questions being asked, such as what was it like to work with Bruce Lee on the Batman/Green Hornet crossover. Adam West has done many TV pilots over the years and when someone asked which pilot was his favorite that never got picked up, he responded with Lookwell. Adam West told us how disappointed he was that it failed since the main reason it didn't get picked up was due to a regime change at NBC. Lookwell was written by Robert Smigel and Conan O'Brien and is about struggling actor Ty Lookwell, whose most famous role was that of a cop on a weekly TV series. However, Lookwell now thinks that because he played a police officer on television years ago that he can actually solve crimes! The show is hilarious and it is a shame it was never picked up as I think it would have been successful.
Lookwell can be seen on YouTube here. Check it out!

Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1
One of my favorite TV shows is Space Ghost: Coast to Coast. So naturally I like Aqua Teen Hunger Force, a spin-off show made by mostly the same creative team. Aqua Teen Hunger Force is about the surreal adventures of a Milkshake, a bag of french fries, and a piece of meat. Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1 is a re-branding for the 8th season, apparently to keep the food from getting stale. The main change is a new intro, although there is a recurring gag that the Aqua Teens have moved to Seattle. Despite the "move," nothing has changed except from a subtitle at the beginning of the episodes that says "Seattle." They still live in the same neighborhood! If you are a fan of the show you will enjoy the new season, but if you didn't get it before don't expect this season to win you over as it is still the same show.

Jon Benjamin Has a Van
I've been watching this show because I am a fan of voice actor Jon Benjamin. Unlike most of Jon Benjamin's work, this is not animated but a live action show. Jon Benjamin essentially plays himself in a mock news show with some short skits in between. The show has been hit or miss so far, but I'll probably watch the whole season.

Wilfred
I usually don't watch shows based solely on commercials for them, but I did in this case since it reminded me of Harvey and Donnie Darko. The show is about a young man named Ryan (Elijah Wood) who tries to commit suicide on a drug overdose only to later find out just he took a lot of sugar pills. The next morning his new neighbor, the lovely Fiona, asks him to take care of her dog, Wilfred, for the day. However, Ryan sees Wilfred as a man in a dog suit while he appears as a normal dog to everyone else. Wilfred is actually based on a TV series of the same name from Australia. While most US shows based on shows from other countries tend to fail (notable exception being The Office), the actor who played Wilfred on the original show also plays him in the American version. The pilot brought in a lot of viewers for FX but we'll see if they stick. So far only two episodes have aired but I like it so far. As you can tell from the premise, the show is quirky and not for everyone. There is some dumb sex and toilet humor but luckily not much and its still a bit different since it usually involves Wilfred and how Ryan sees him.

Later today I'll post the weekly round-up.