Top shows of my week...

My week in review:

1)The Real (Desperate) Housewives of Orange County - sure, it can be pretty vapid because these women go on shopping sprees to diamond stores and sweep down lush parkways in their custom made Escalades and go straight to the tennis club but the repeat episode I watched tonight surprisingly had some substance to it. One single mom is actually struggling to make ends meet (well, her ends are far different than mine but she has a drug addicted son, boyfriend and a daughter with virtually no drive, so that counts). Another mom is struggling with the possibility that all her sun-soaked days could kill her. She's had over 100 biopsies for skin cancer and has had some spots removed. I don't care how much money you have, cancer doesn't know dollar signs. And yet another woman is struggling to keep her champagne tastes afloat when her husband has been unemployed for quite some time. I guess I stumbled upon this show because I watch a ton on Bravo, but it kinda made me feel a little bit better knowing that in truth, we all have some kind of depth even if we are cloaked in silicone.

Disclaimer: I do at times watch this and after each scene where their opulence reaches new heights, go "Ah, geez, this makes me sick". But, I guess we all are suckered into this kind of empty programming from time to time, so that's my disclaimer. I am not completely devoid of substance that I find this show interesting. In part I like it that the Bravo producers do spin each episode a little so that you can see that they are essentially making fun of these people.

2) Beauty and the Geek - Well, these "beauties" have much less substance and smarts than the women mentioned above, but they surprisingly do have hearts. I snubbed this show when I heard the premise but Chas told me it was actually pretty good. I grumbled but gave it a chance. The "geeks" are paired with the beauties in competitions for a prize of 250K in the end. At it's core, it's a game show which polarizes the inadequacies of each group for a laugh but it really is quite fascinating. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I watch a lot of junk, but amid that slew of TiVo garbage, I find some gems. I find myself watching B&G and wincing with embarrassment for these people but also enlightened because even in this ever so shallow world, something pops up on TV that surprisingly has a moral.

3) Ugly Betty - Devil Wears Prada meets Ugly Duckling but pure genius. I watched a marathon on New Year's Day and it's no surprise it made Thursday night must see ABC. Worth a shot to those not easily swayed.

4) The Gerald Ford Funeral - Yes, I actually recorded this. I guess partially because it eclipsed my regularly scheduled recording of Today show but also because I wanted to hear the eulogies. Tom Brokaw, to name one, actually had some pretty powerful things to say. Also, it was interesting to see how he was remembered as an average man who made it to the White House by sheer circumstance. I am always fascinated about Presidents who haven't entirely screwed up our country like Bush has, so I tuned in. In addition, I was in utero when he left the White House and I really wasn't very knowledgable of his brief tenure other than pardoning Nixon (which cost him the election) and that he was clumsy. I have never watched a Presidential funeral and it's not normal for me to set such a thing to record, but hey, I was curious.

Until next week...