Returning/New Shows September 26-30

Returning Shows MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26

How I Met Your Mother:
The third episode in HIMYM’s seventh season enters into a pantheon of top-tier three-camera episodes, full of zig-zagging timelines and a resumption of Ted’s romantic woes in a refreshingly consistent way. The plot pings back and forth between Ted’s meeting with Victoria – told as a story within a story – and the gang’s travels to Marshall’s favorite restaurant, where Barney plots diabolically to figure out a way to fondle Lily’s pregnant breasts.

The episode is delightfully quaint. Some of the best episodes in the show’s history (including probably the best full stop, season two’s “Slap Bet”) have used this dynamic, grounding Ted and Robin in the real stakes while Barney, Lily, and Marshall run circles around them. And these two threads, and the places where they cross, provide tension, snap, and plenty of humor this week.

Victoria, Ted’s first true love in the series, has returned momentarily. It’s a nice chance to see how far Ted’s character has come since then. The writers may have neglected him at times over the years, but overall Ted can now easily tell that he isn’t meant to be with Victoria, while in earlier seasons he may have spent many more episodes trying to win her back. After much of Ted’s audience goodwill was lost after the Zoey debacle last season, it’s good to see a return to the much more likeable and relatable character of Ted. In fact, this season, only three episodes in, may do for Ted’s character what the sixth did for Marshall and Barney’s.

2 Broke Girls:

“Rude, crude, and in a bad mood” describes “2 Broke Girls’” second episode so cornily well that not much else can be said. This episode is a complete and total retread of the first. Rather than use the pilot to determine which elements of the show are working and which are failing, instead the second episode goes through the same motions again. One scene with Garrett Morris’ vaguely charming cashier? Check. One scene where the lecherous cook overhears a personal conversation and uses it as an excuse to imply a lesbian relationship between the leads? Check. A scene where the token dumb socialite mother insults the appearance of her children? Check. The only new element added this week was a crass joke about Beth Behers’ character falling in horse crap.

However, even that broad gag fell completely flat when any sense of urgency was stripped from the premise in the third act. Even the labored setup in the first few scenes, where Caroline remarks several times that she only possesses one set of clothing and that Max’s apartment has no water, results in no payoff whatsoever. Instead of building tension when Caroline has to sneak into Max’s babysitting job to shower, instead there is a cut to a later scene and the characters talk about what happened in the interim. Sloppy writing is hardly worthy of hope, and “2 Broke Girls” needs to do something new soon.

Returning Shows TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 27

Glee:

Another episode of “Glee,” another uneven attempt to provide some continuity in the rapidly shifting and growing universe. The “Glee” world seems to consist solely of characters with a Deep, Dark, sordid history that relates to whatever crisis the leads are going through this week. It’s hard to care about the ailment of the week, or problem of the week, or romantic entanglement of the week. So much of “Glee” depends on what week it is. Themes and songs line up conveniently.

Idina Menzel’s competing choir director has returned, bringing with her hanging plotlines left over from the first season finale. The aftermath of Quinn’s pregnancy, Puck’s battle to stay relevant in his daughter’s life, and Rachel’s feelings of abandonment are all dragged up by Menzel’s return. Hopefully, this isn’t the last we see of her character until next season.

The Quinn plotline seems to have shaped itself into something new already. Once again, Quinn has pledged to another character that her sweet, bland exterior is only an act, and one that obscures her truly sinister undertones. This time, she somehow wants to get her daughter back. The character is certainly in for a rude awakening when she finds out adoption is legally binding, and unless the show is willing to show months and months of slow-moving legal action, this plotline is heading nowhere fast.

More interesting is the direction they’re taking Kurt this year. Last year, Kurt was played handily by Chris Colfer as sympathetic if overly sanitized, losing the biting edge that made him complex in the first year. All last year, Kurt was told over and over again to celebrate his differences, encouraged to stand out as much as he could. Now, he’s seeing that while pride is a wonderful quality to have in life, it may not be the best way to gain acceptance in the theater world. Despite drawing largely gay men, the musical theater scene is still based primarily on heterosexual love stories, with male leads needing to at the very least pass as traditionally masculine and straight. Kurt, try as he might, cannot do so. This struggle is something Kurt truly has to come to terms with, and while I do not like that Burt, his supportive father, has encouraged him to write his own material instead of try to overcome this obstacle, here’s hoping this is not abandoned as the season continues. The songs this week are actually tied together in a subtle “West Side Story” homage, but thankfully this is not hammered by the writers and instead just serves to tie together an otherwise far-reaching episode.

New Girl:

After terrible second episodes to shows such as “2 Broke Girls,” the pilot to “New Girl” has ascended to the pantheons of “not offensively bad” in my mind, so expectations were at that bar for the second episode. Fortunately, that low-hanging achievement was met by last night’s episode, which also suffered some retread from the pilot but managed to stay enjoyable throughout. And as time passes, “New Girl” becomes rosier and rosier in my mind.

Notable was the absence of Damon Wayans Jr., whose awkwardly bad-tempered Coach flirted with caricature but was well-played nonetheless. Instead he has been replaced by Lamare Morris, essentially replacing the same role in the ensemble that Wayans did. Morris luckily has a low-key energy that does not trend towards urgency very well but doesn’t grate like Greenfield’s Schmidt can occasionally.

The show takes its inspiration from “How I Met Your Mother” with its relationship theorizing and snappy catchphrasing. The writing isn’t bad, but scenes on top of scenes where characters sit around and talk play significantly better in a 3-camera set than a single-camera one. It’s a good inspiration for the writers – the first few seasons of that show had great ensemble work and good writing. But copying that voice is not enough. “New Girl’s” next challenge is to find something unique within its universe. And hint – it is NOT the assortment of oddities plaguing Jess. In fact, step one should be to ground her somewhere in reality.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29th

The Office:

Given the Thursday night comedy landscape, an old horse like “The Office” can no longer keep up. In its second episode of the season, it’s clearer than ever that the wheels on this show are spinning. James Spader’s character Robert California is no more solidified than he was last week. While there’s no shame in having an enigmatic character whose motives are questioned, the other characters solely react to him with fear and intimidation because he’s the boss. So far he manages the office with sharp honesty and calm. His approach might be welcome on the show, which has been plagued by the ineffective managerial stylings of Michael Scott.

But Scott, for all his flaws, made sense as the boss in certain ways. He was far and away the best salesman on the staff, and his touchy-feely let’s-be-friends approach may have alienated some of his underlings, but in the end garnered people with genuine respect for him. Andy Bernard is hardly as complex as Michael Scott. Andy is a walking embodiment of just how far one can coast on privilege without any discernible skills. He’s managed to float to the top of this (moderate) corporate pyramid by being a terrible salesman, unqualified, and one of the younger candidates. Andy is also kind and generous, which gets him into a bind when he pledges that he’ll get a tattoo if the office is able to increase their profits.

Parks and Recreation:

Rarely is it a good idea to give a powerfully mysterious character backstory. Often it can eliminate any sense of surprise; as more is explained, less becomes compelling, tragic, or funny. Fortunately for “Parks and Recreation,” Ron Swanson is so powerful that even with the addition of Tammys 1 and 0 and a significant backstory, he remains a compelling character. Most of this is due to Nick Offerman’s unbelievable work.

The B and C stories this week are good, if slight. Ben’s travails with Entertainment 720 further illuminate how quickly this start up business is going to fail, and does some nice work humanizing Tom, preparing the audience for his inevitable return. Without Ben and Leslie able to stay in a relationship, it helps to give Ben something more to do, and his friendship with Tom is a good choice. None of the other characters so far have had a meaningful relationship with Tom, and deepening his character by having him realize that the shallow dreams of tossing around money without having worked for is immature.

Rob Lowe does a wonderful job playing off of the exasperated Rashida Jones in the featherweight C-story about the two filming a PSA on diabetes. There’s not much more to it, but it’s pleasant to see Lowe playing a poor improviser, very similarly to how Alec Baldwin feigned terrible flopsweat and panic in an early episode of “30 Rock.” It’s also nice to see Jones acknowledge the two characters’ relationship from the previous season. It’d be nice to see Chris’ near-psychosis pay off in some way as the season goes on, but even if it doesn’t, this still added to one of the best episodes of comedy so far this fall.

But no matter what happened on the sidelines, this was a Ron Swanson episode, pure and simple. Offerman swaps deftly between the hyper-masculine, typical Ron, a wary and fearful Ron, and the post-Tammy 1 emasculated, wimpy Ron. It’s the type of performance that garners Emmy nominations, and if it’s being burned off as the second episode, there must be fantastic things ahead for Ron and the rest of the crew. The final setpiece, a “Prairie Drink Off” between the Tammys and Leslie, gets extremely broad, but remains hilarious because the stakes are so high. Ron Swanson as we know and love him in danger, and both Tammys wish to get their claws into him and make him their own. Leslie, while a noble participant in the contest, is no match for the ice cold Tammy 1, the squat and sturdy Tammy 0, or the moonshine they’re drinking (even April, a proud Puerto Rican, can’t stomach a single mouthful). But when Leslie dissolves into a truly tragic drunken stupor just so Ron can continue to be who he really is, it inspires something in the temporarily un-mustachioed Swanson. He gains the conviction to down the bottle of moonshine and win the contest himself, dictating sharply that he wants to banish the Tammys and reclaim his identity as Ron Fucking Swanson. The audience wouldn’t approve of any other way.

Community:

Britta and Annie return to their own pasts this week on “Community.” Annie is sent back to high school when another hyper-competitive Annie tries to steal her thunder, while Britta finds herself in a push-pull flirtation with Chang the security guard and civil disobedience.

Frankly, the conclusion to both of these storylines is more hackneyed than is typical for
Community” fans. Britta’s final, absurdly ineffectual gesture is baffling by design, but still doesn’t have much impact. Hopefully this thread will not remain untied as the season goes on. While Britta thus far has been characterized by emotional arrested development, her coming to terms with her past could be played with sophistication. She also tells Shirley in the first scene that she’s decided to study psychology. Perhaps some self-analyzing will ensue.

The same goes for Annie and Jeff returning to their debate roots in a Model-UN-Off where they only manage to win by using a quick combination of Jeff's lawyer skills, Abed's pop culture acumen, and Annie's insaceable need to defeat her rival - the Asian and equally ambitious Annie Kim. Martin Starr appears as their Professor Cligoris, singlehandedly disproving that there are no funny names.

Not every episode of "Community" can provide the sturm and drang of "Modern Warfare," "Epidimediology," or even "Critical Film Studies." Instead this is another slightly underwhelming week of setup. It does prompt the careful veiwer to note Britta's impending quarter-life-crisis and Annie's surprisingly over-the-top temper tantruming.

Whitney:

Another weak episode of “Whitney.” Certainly no surprise. This may have already locked up the spot for worst fall show. It also singlehandedly proves that you cannot have your cake and eat it too. Want a show about a mildly neurotic single girl trying to navigate big-city dating? Then don’t spend your pilot dictating that the two lead characters have been in a five-year relationship. Want a realistic look at the ins and outs of unmarried adults in a long term relationship? Then don’t send the female protagonist into a panic every few minutes about the dangers of not being in the honeymoon stage indefinitely. What “Whitney” needed to do this week was give example of something that could be a typical conflict for these characters. Explain why their jobs are important. Give some context to their friendships. Sitcoms live and die by their characters and jokes. Even on the lamer popular shows, these are the elements that people respond to. Sitcoms do not live or die by the platitudes they spout, but that’s where “Whitney” is spending its energy.

No longer having Cummings’ hour special to work from, this episode settles on old observations from previous seasons of “30 Rock” and nothing else. No jokes. Most of the humor supposedly should come from D’Elia’s generic boyfriend character acting genuinely baffled at the mood swings and general mental illness of his terrifyingly unpredictable girlfriend, but his rational behavior – at least at first – is completely understandable. The episode actually switches focus at the midpoint and begins to focus on D’Elia after Cummings becomes frustrated and kicks him out. Is this meant to be a show with a dual protagonist? While D’Elia is less grating a personality than Cummings, that’s simply because he doesn’t have much of a personality at all. When he is convinced by his crass cop friend to go along with Cummings, who wants to do an extended role-play that the two have just started dating, the episode loses any semblance of a sympathetic character.

Once again, rather than introduce complications or conflicts, the show resorts to Cummings dressed in slutty outfits. In fact, it comes earlier in this episode than in the pilot. And in order to do better than the last, they add an underwhelming girl-on-girl kissing scene meant to be titillating. It comes across as crass and desperate. Same goes for the conclusion, where the two adult leads – who are in a relationship – get back together. It’s a result without weight, and thus has no emotional impact. The clock is ticking on “Whitney.” Hopefully it will be replaced by the already superior “Up All Night” at midseason along with “30 Rock.”

Project Runway:

It’s back to drama drama drama on “Project Runway” this week. In the first ten minutes, Anya manages to use her pageant training for some excellent waterworks when she misplaces her envelope of fabric money. Vicktor passive-aggressively makes snide remarks about Josh that implies cheating. Burt faces extra scrutiny because he’s the only designer remaining who even lived through the 70’s. The other girls decide not to tell Kimberly that they think her ensemble is tacky in order to get her sent home.

But after last week’s disaster challenge, at least this week is somewhat compelling. Of course, plenty of the designers end up with disastrous looks, and the constant praise for Anya’s mediocre sewing and Josh’s spangled nonsense has become predictable and boring. Even Vicktor, the only remaining contestant who continues to surprise or intrigue with his work, is scrambling to come up with bon mots in the talking heads. Playing the game of “Project Runway” has become a game all the contestants are hip to, and while it’s still possible to laugh at their efforts, it also removes some of the fun.

Archer:

The conclusion of “Heart of Archness” is upon us. Too tragic, that there won’t be any more of this wonderful show until January 2012. But, until then, there’s not much to say. This hour and a half of material has been a wonder to watch, is funny as hell, and while it may have seemed fitfully structured when split up by commercials and full weeks, it’ll play like gangbusters if released as a straight-to-DVD feature.

The best business in this conclusion comes from character. Archer in particular. Over the past two years, Adam Reed has given his leading man enough hilarious quirks, idiosyncracies, and details to propel this whole story to a firey, helicopter-dangling, lacrosse-playing, fantastic end.

How to be a Gentleman:

There’s no show I wish I enjoyed more than “How to be a Gentleman.” It comes from the mind of David Hornsby, better known as the frequently t-bagged Rickety Cricket from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” After serving as a producer and writer on that show, Hornsby has collected plenty of comedic ringers for his ensemble sitcom. Rhys Darby from “Flight of the Concords,” Mary Lynn Raksjub from “Mr. Show,” and Dave Foley from “Kids in the Hall” each have made television comedy history with their great work. All three have also done their own writing, and probably could have contributed something more original to their characters. Unfortunately, all three come across as disappointingly generic. But respect must be given to Hornsby, for he was no doubt a reason why these talented people chose to join the show.

The only weak links in the cast seem to be more CBS inspired than Hornsby inspired. His co-lead is “Entourage’s” Kevin Dillon. Dillon is doing what he did for years on that show, playing his crass, brash “Johnny Drama” persona with little subtlety. Almost as collateral, Hornsby is playing very quiet with his character. Perhaps this is due to his years working on a single camera sitcom, but it comes across as flat and boring. He’s almost as bad as Dillon, and their relationship is meant to center this show. The other uninspiring element is Hornsby’s neighbor/love interest of the week. She was previously featured on “How I Met Your Mother” as the borderline psychotic “Blah Blah.” Her character here could have the same name, but has none of the flair.

Maybe “How to be a Gentleman” will gain momentum once Hornsby gains his 3-camera voice and figures out how to write for his talented cast. But, as of now it is disappointingly characteristic of CBS, not of the people involved.

Returning Shows September 19-25

America’s Next Top Model:

This week features more uses of the word “brand” than anything outside of an advertising executive’s mouth. These D-list TV celebrities are each given a meaningless work or phrase meant to define their careers, their images, and their Pink’s Hot Dogs inspired photo shoot. The girls are as baffled at the product placement as any viewer.

Due to this confusion, most of the pictures range from the mediocre to the borderline pornographic. Poor Sheena, whose picture is no better or worse tthan Lisa, the winner's, is sent home.

American Dad!:

Somehow, “American Dad!” has managed to avoid the fatigue that plagues both “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy.” Maybe that’s because it’s yet to get to its 10th, let alone 20th, season. Perhaps it’s because the characters have better chemistry. But it seems like it’s because there’s simply better writing.

This episode is an oblique “Little Shop of Horrors” parody, with a magical hot tub voiced by Cee-Lo Green taking the place of the smooth-voiced evil Audrey II. The episode is a musical, featuring groovy -80’s-90’s R&B inspired tunes rather than the original’s 60’s Motown sound. While only MacFarlane can really compete with Cee-Lo in terms of voice, it’s nice to hear him moving beyond only classic show tunes. It’s also nice to see the deconstruction of the original musical rather than simply a reference to it. The episode really functions as a story, albeit one that owes its structure to “Little Shop,” with the hot tub slowly chowing down on Stan’s friends, allies, and loved ones.

What follows is an uneven affair, neglecting characters such as Hayley and Klaus entirely and only making passing reference to Roger. But Stan Smith is undoubtedly the most dynamic character in the cast, and the episode makes good use of him and his decline from strictly regimented oral fortitude to swinging sex manic. The songs are also fantastic. This also marks the second time that they’ve killed the family without blinking an eye. Taking chances like that are what makes “American Dad!” worth watching.

With such amazing comedies on the air, “American Dad!” only really makes an impact when compared to its fellow Animation Domination members. But without “Bob’s Burgers” back on the air until January, it’s undeniably the best part of that programming block.

Archer:

Not too much to say about the second half-hour in the three-part “Archer” special finishing up next Thursday. The episode is surprisingly low-key, handing out more exposition and once again setting the stage for the final confrontation. When it happens, it’s sure to be explosive. But until that showdown, no doubt restoring Archer as Isis’ premiere spy and reuniting him with his smothering mother Malory, the audience has been forced to wait.

Luckily, the characters and actors have plenty of chemistry, and the bore of waiting back at Isis is weighing heavily – and hilariously – on the office drones. The high-strung Malory demands that Carol wait by the phone. Cyrill has to re-balance the budget that Lana and Gillette (honestly, the weakest aspect of the episode) have been savagely ripping apart. Pam, ever the sexual deviant, pounces on recovering sex-addict Cyrill. The Isis antics represent what’s happening with this extended storyline – a bit of cabin fever mixed with confidence that soon everything will be back to normal.

Community:

After a long and arduous offseason that yielded no Emmy nominations and plenty of buzz about possible cancellation, “Community” has returned. The conflict between Pierce and the group has been streamlined into a conflict between Pierce and Jeff, as both jockey for positions inside the study group. On a larger scale, John Goodman’s Vice Dean character has become the force that threatens Greendale and strangles the last gasp of funds from Dean Pelton’s newly-goateed throat.

The premiere indicates several things about “Community’s” third season. First, a renewed interest in Jeff the protagonist, rather than the group protagonist of last season. Second, as the opening number suggests, a return to the smaller stories of season one rather than the wild adventures of season two. There is a new villain and a new teacher (“The Wire’s” Michael K. Williams).

The most problematic character for most viewers has been Chang. The first season painted him as a man mad with power. But the second took so much of that power away he seemed only mad. This season has made what so far seems like an excellent idea- make him the only man on campus security. It’s a necessity and a recipe for great comedic showdowns between the study group and Greendale infrastructure.

Then again, almost anything is a recipe for greatness when put in the trustworthy hands of Dan Harmon and the “Community” writing team. It remains to be seen if my observations about the direction the third season is heading in are true, but either way, “We’re gonna have more fun and be less weird, than the first two years combined” at Greendale Community College this year. E Pluribus Anus!

Family Guy:

The tenth season premiere is back to the same formula the show has been stuck in for the last four or five years. Part of that may have to do with the arrested development of the characters, but there’s no reason that for the second or third time Seth MacFarlane and his writing team have returned to the “Griffins become rich – Griffins do absurd antics – Griffins return to their previous poverty.” Back in the first season, where Lois’ wealthy upbringing was revealed and the first episode with this storyline, “Family Guy” was still attempting to do an interesting character comedy about how blue-collar crassness contrasts with blue-blood stiffness. It was funnier then, and fresher. But “Family Guy” has moved on, leaning heavily on cut-aways and non sequitors to provide the jokes that never seem to flow organically anymore.

Free Agents:

Another uneven effort from “Free Agents” this past week. Moving away from the dark emotional drama at the core of last week, this episode focused on an attempt at tragic sex farce. Unfortunately, the players are all too old and slow to sell the manic pace necessary to communicate urgency in such a premise.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia:

After last week’s amazing premiere, this is a slight step sideways. But this might be the most purely disgusting half-hour in the show’s history. And for a show that has scenes where a large portion of Dee’s hair is ripped out of her scalp, Dennis vomits in anti-gravity, and two bums are having sex underneath a dock, the most disgusting scene of all is undeniably the sight of Mac and Frank, two grossly overweight and gluttonous men, heartily tearing into a rum-soaked ham that has been floating in the ocean for several hours after being gnawed on by a feral dog.

The main heft of the episode comes from Dennis and Dee’s rose-colored glasses, remembering their childhood jaunts to the Jersey Shore with their wealthy parents as the time of their lives. They pack the gang into their Land Rover and head down to the beach, not realizing that the town has experienced some decline since their childhood, with nuclear testing and an infestation of wild dogs rendering the beach empty and the boardwalk full of untrustworthy drug addicts and thieves. Dennis and Dee get wrapped up in townie criminal activity, while Mac and Frank hook up with a band of roving guidos.

There is also a twisted but slight subplot about Charlie spending an E-fueled night of PG-rated passion with the Waitress on the abandoned beach. Over the years, Charlie has truly been infantilized sexually, with his creepy obsession with the Waitress settling into what a 10-year-old would expect his girlfriend to do with him at recess. The other characters, absorbed in their outsized adventures, dismiss this whole C-story immediately.

For fans of gross-out humor, this is probably one of the best “Sunny” episodes ever. But it can’t help but be overshadowed by the absolutely perfect half-hour from last week.

The Office:

The introduction of James Spader as the new CEO really gives the show a new element of psychological torture. For all his constant prattling, Michael Scott was always eventually harmless. It was the major differentiation between the American show and the British original. Spader’s new character might actually know what he’s talking about, so when his office popularity contest separates the workers into two groups – groups he deems “winners” and “losers” – that threat actually has some weight behind it. Unfortunately, Andy, the newly ineffectual manager, diffuses the tension immediately much in the same style that Michael Scott would.

So far, “The Office” seems to be behaving with a “business as usual” strategy. No reason to change the formula that’s made them NBC’s highest rated comedy, right? Not necessarily, given that formula has gotten stale over the years. In fact, I almost hope this exercise backfires, and the show is forced to try something new or come to a merciful end.

Parks and Recreation:

“I don’t know what that means, but it had the cadence of a joke.”

Parks and Rec is back, y’all! Amy Poehler’s wonderful showcase largely sidelines the typical small municipal problems in order to set up the season-long conflicts and character beats. For a half-hour of setup, “I’m Leslie Knope” manages to work in plenty of hilarious reminders why this is one of the best and most consistent shows on TV.

Several familiar motifs and running gags return. For example, Tom Haverford’s traditional long, loose, absurd lists have been replaced by his grab bag of Entertainment 720 merchandise. Ron “fucking” Swanson christened Leslie “fucking” Knope. Tammy, Ron’s fearful ex-wife, was replaced by Ron’s first wife, also named Tammy, and played with icy precision by Patricia Clarkson. If Megan Mulally and Nick Offerman, married in real life, have crazily unstable chemistry, the power between Clarkson and Offerman is so skewed in her favor (as an Oscar-nominated actress and veritable movie star, it’s no wonder she stands out in this cast of TV players) that she truly does seem fearful.

However, this episode features almost no traditional mockumentary tricks. Only one talking head (and even that was hardly a necessity), little to no concern about where cameras should or shouldn’t be allowed – for the most part, the show has ceased pretending this is a documentary at all, simply using the handheld, shaky camera movements. It helps to keep the show “showing” and not “telling,” choosing scenes like Leslie’s first campaign meeting and her lunch with Ann as ways to reveal how the character is feeling and what she is thinking rather than having her parrot it to the camera. This is wonderfully refreshing and lets this ensemble show actually show its ensemble behaving as such.

But what really sets “Parks and Recreation” apart is the love the audience can incur for the characters. So Leslie and Ben’s quiet, sweet, sad breakup scene is truly moving because we know how much these characters have gone through in order to get to this moment, and how much it truly means to them. This campaign already has stakes sky-high. And by building to it naturally, unlike, say, the “Glee” characters getting to the national championship level without any discernable change in their skills, it truly feels like a possibility for Leslie. She opened the show by claiming she wanted to be President. Now the audience can share in that wonderful confidence.

Saturday Night Live:

After it went into the offseason with a whimper, SNL is back, once again relying on one of their most frequent hosts – Alec Baldwin, back for his 16th time – to edge by with a somewhat enjoyable, if still lazy, episode.

Baldwin steps seamlessly into almost every act and every sketch. Only the musical interludes from moody rock band Radiohead and the pre-taped commercial parody are without him. And who can blame the writers – writing for Baldwin is practically a rite of passage and has resulted in some memorable and wonderful sketches over the years, including Pete Schweddy, whose new ice cream flavor was Baldwin’s monologue fodder. The monologue also featured an appearance from Baldwin’s faux-rival Steve Martin, who seemed to be setting the stage for his own appearance sometime this season. Let’s hope that’s true, because SNL needs all the help it can get.

The cast is still game, and good (if desperate) performances are buoying even the weaker sketches, but the same faces appeared again and again throughout the night. Taking over the heavy lifting in terms of female performers, Vanessa Bayer seems to be the new Kristen Wiig, appearing in more than half the show despite her status as a featured player. Conversely, Paul Brittain appeared only in the supersized cold open, while Jay Pharaoh was shown not at all. No Digital Short from Andy Samberg and the Lonely Island crew, which is odd considering I can’t remember them ever doing a bit or a song featuring Baldwin before.

This episode just featured an overall dearth of originality in the writing, frequently repeating punchlines and eliminating any edge the jokes might have. For example, the last sketch of the night was probably the most creative, with Taren Killam playing an old-fashioned army private forced to promise to adhere to the increasingly absurd But rather than taking time to develop Killam’s reactions, the momentum of the sketch was undercut by adding two other wisecracking dying soldiers. SNL has too many resources and too few ideas. Hopefully Mellissa McCarthy, a sketch/improv veteran, has a successful jaunt next week. New blood is always a good thing.

Up All Night:

Good work from “Up All Night’s” second episode. It’s still not necessarily a show I’d wait for each week, but it’s certainly begun to focus on the reconciliation of a late-30’s baby with an early-30’s partying past. Chris and Regan remain recognizably human, though I wish the same was true of Maya Rudolph’s Ava, who is getting more cartoony as time goes by. This would make more sense if she was an out-of-touch authority figure rather than Regan’s good friend.

Returning Shows Sept. 13-20th

America’s Next Top Model:

Tyra Banks is trying as hard as she can to prove her own mental instability. She is doing a wonderful job. This season of “ANTM” promises more washed up, tired looking models half-heartedly pretending to nearly go into epileptic shock every time they are graced with Banks’ visage.

Somehow, most of the “All-Star” cast seems to be familiar with one another, something that suggests perhaps the model graduates of ANTM might hit a glass ceiling of sorts. In fact, some of these awkwardly desperate women (for they’re all at least in their mid-to late twenties), seem to have suffered the slings and arrows of plastic surgery and hair extensions. The season could still be fun in a voyeuristic way, but frankly the proceedings seem kind of sad, and the level of intimacy one must have with the prior seasons (or, excuse me, “cycles”) in order to remember the moments frequently called back and referenced is disappointingly high.

Archer:

Alas, there will only be two more episodes of powerhouse comedy “Archer” before its usual premiere date in late January. Fortunately, this limited run is just as vivacious and hilarious as usual. “Heart of Archness – Part 1” is a uniformly excellent half-hour of setup, and here’s to hoping the next two episodes will bring the payoff in a great an unexpected way.

The episode opens with a quick rundown of where things have gone since the second season finale. Sterling Archer, still in mourning over his trashy European fiancée, has run away from Isis and has been on the lam in the deep Pacific for months. Malory, his overbearing mother, is sparing no expense in the quest to find him. The other Isis agents, Lana among them, have little interest in reintroducing Archer to their ranks. But, considering the title of the show, Malory is forced to outsource the job to Patrick Warburton’s Rip, a 1930’s style flying ace. Rip quickly finds Archer, but through typical Archer buffoonery, Sterling manages to both constantly shoot his would-be-savior in the foot and still having time to do the same to a shark’s face. Most of the effort of this episode is spent on establishing the Rip/Archer dynamic, which one can only hope is indicative of Rip’s significance in Season 3.

The plot really kicks up once Archer and Rip are kidnapped by pirates (pirates counting David Cross among them). Archer gets the chance to have one of his now-trademarked monologue/shooting sprees. It’s funny and sharp throughout, and if it’s odd to have an “Archer” storyline end without a resolution. But the spy-movie plot, the new locations, and the characters that seamlessly integrate with established favorites all show that “Archer” is well on its way to a fantastic third season.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia:

“Always Sunny” has never been the type of show to introduce serialization or maintain long-running arcs. But this season marks a new step forward in fearlessness and, at least in this episode, callback after callback. From the first scenes introducing “Big Fat Mac,” it’s clear the show is going farther than ever.

This season picks up a decent while after Dee’s pregnancy was resolved at the end of last season, throwing down the gauntlet immediately with Frank’s new girlfriend – the hysterically inarticulate prostitute Roxy. When Frank decides he wishes to marry Roxy, the gang spring into action. What’s great is the psychological consistency behind their concerns.

Dee, who still feels her life has yet to begin, decides to mentor Roxy in a “Pretty Woman” style. But through visiting expensive stores and taking high profile clients, Dee realizes Roxy’s hard-lined life on the streets is better than her comparatively conservative one.

Meanwhile, Charlie decides Frank deserves a girl who wants him for him, not for his money. Using his own twisted logic, he determines the best way to find such a girl is for Charlie to take out a woman while posing as a millionaire. Halfway through the date, he plans to feign illness and make way for Frank, who will be pretending to be a humble limo driver, to replace him on the remainder of the date. While this setup alone guarantees laughs, the payoff to this scene is possibly the first “Sunny” plot to actually require a spoiler alert. Structured impeccably, this whole setpiece is designed to get viewers back in the mood for disgusting, hysterical, anti-humor.

The weakest story this week is actually the “Big Mac” intro. While Rob McElhanney has shown remarkable commitment to getting as truly disgusting as possible, pairing Mac’s sloppy, newly gluttonous persona with Dennis’ near anorexia feels a little easy. Better is Dennis’ revelation that the only thing that’s been keeping him off of crack is his obsession with preserving his youth. Glenn Howerton does actually look pretty good, especially compared with McElhanney, which lends the delusional Dennis a tiny bit of credibility – at least until a deadpan doctor shatters his illusions of good health. The tag to the story, featuring Tommy Bahama shirts, is definitely its best aspect, and leads well into the conclusion.

The final scenes reunite the cast for a typical sociopathic blowout. It may not be shocking for “Sunny” aficionados, but it certainly shows that despite the addition of a baby to the series last year, this ensemble has not lost its edge in any way.

Project Runway:

Not too much to say about another entry in the middle of this so far disappointing season. Josh M. has been once again rewarded for bad behavior, the judges are fragmenting before the camera’s eye, and guest judge Malin Ackerman looked absolutely terrible. The challenge itself could have been more fun, but contradicted itself at every angle. At first, it seemed to be a quest for the designer to listen to what the husbands/boyfriends said about their ladies and try and make a good guess as to what the women’s styles were actually like. Then, with the addition of the women as models, it became another “dress a REAL WOMAN challenge.” Then, with the slight domestic disputes, it became about reconciling between the two parties and finding a look that they both approved of. Then, on the runway it simply became about which woman looked the most like a typical model. This resulted in a top three made up entirely of straight sized clients, a bottom three that was made up of entirely happy clients, and, at the very least, a loser who had been turning out bad looks almost from Day 1. It’s hard to believe Bryce even made it this far.