Monday Watch List: Cannibalism!

Welcome to Watch List, where we identify five things on TV to watch while you stay at home and write angry letters to your power company. LET’S GO!

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE – 9:00PM (PBS) Learn all about the Greely expedition, an 1881 expedition to the high arctic. Only six of the 25 men who ventured out came back alive. And those survivors told impossible tales of starvation, cannibalism, mutiny, and multiple other horrors. I’m addicted to any book or show about people stranded and dying. Bonus points if cannibalism is involved. That’s like icing on cake. If the cake was made of arms. ANTICIPATION: YUMMY!

THE BACHELOR – 8:00PM (ABC) You know what would make an overly padded reality show such as “The Bachelor” even better? If they found a way to include SINGING! Oh, yes. Tonight Brad and the gals take advantage of the “Glee” effect and visit the “Viva Elvis” show in Las Vegas, where the bachelor and one lucky lady will perform a duet. Can’t wait. It could be the beginning of a whole new wave of musical elements crammed into existing reality shows. What if they sang off “Survivor” contestants at Tribal Council? What if “Biggest Loser” people went ahead and sang Nickelback songs while they worked the elliptical? Can’t be any worse than actual Nickelback. Also tonight, according to my guide, “at the cocktail party, there’s a display of confidence.” I loved that quote. It tells you so much about this show when it’s noteworthy that a contestant expresses something other than massive insecurity. ANTICIPATION: NO BUSINESS LIKE HO BUSINESS!

TAKEN FROM ME: THE TIFFANY RUBIN STORY – 9:00PM (Lifetime) Taraji P. Henson stars in this Lifetime movie based on a true story (they’re always based on a true story) about a woman who goes to South Korea to search for her missing son, who was abducted by his baby daddy. Drama and kimchi ensue. ANTICIPATION: NOT WITHOUT MY KOGI TACO!

HARRY’S LAW – 10:00PM (NBC) I watched this show the other night because my power was out and my in-laws don’t have cable. And while some of the dialogue is pretty sharp, what drags down any David Kelley show is when the characters start shouting out social statistics that Kelley clearly read in the New York Times op-ed section two days before he wrote the script. I don’t want to watch TV to hear Kelley argue with himself about population control. I watch for characters. Get off the soapbox fella, because Kathy Bates deserves better. ANTICIPATION: BATES!

SHATNER’S RAW NERVE – 10:00PM (Bio) Tonight William interviews Carol Burnett, who talks openly about her daughter’s death and her parents’ alcoholism. Is that raw enough for you? ANTICIPATION: SHATNER!

Contact Us