Running in place

I feel like I'm living at 500 miles per hour right now, which is probably why I feel more behind on things than I actually am. I see the unread blog posts counter ticking upward in Google Reader and try to clear enough of my DVR's hard drive so it can record more without deleting anything that I might want to watch but haven't. I feel too distracted to catch up on either in the evening. Sleep comes in fits and starts. (I'm blaming too much work and election craziness that broke my BS detector weeks ago.)

So, because I need an entry today and it's the only topic that occurred to me, I present to you some of what I'm watching--or not watching, as the case may be--this fall TV season.

The Amazing Race and Survivor: As far as I'm concerned, the blooms are off the roses for these longtime reality TV programs. I'm still watching, but the thrill is gone, especially in regard to Race. I suppose there's only so much that can be done to keep these shows fresh, but the biggest shortcoming is that the cast members fit into prescribed roles that lack any surprise. Regular viewers know the templates cold, so without any people who pop on screen, what else is there? Before episodes are over I'll often pick up my knitting to entertain me.

Pushing Daisies: I finally caught up with the strike-shortened first season and am up to date with the series, tonight's episode excepted. The comedy, romance, and general whimsy distinguish it from anything else on TV, but this is a dark, twisted show if you stop to think about it. Fun stuff.

Heroes: I lost interest in this in the second season, but with the relatively new HDTV, why not try to get back on the bandwagon? Maybe because the show is terrible? I don't particularly like the characters, who seem to change drastically from week to week anyway, and the plotlines aren't interesting. I dropped this one from the DVR record list, and it's not going back on.

Worst Week: So far this comedy of discomfort has been able to sustain its concept of a well-meaning guy messing up everything possible over the course of different weeks. It's consistently funny and mortifying in that oh-no-I-feel-bad-for-him way. Yes, for some reason that last quality is a good thing.

The Ex List: I'd read some positive early takes on this show, so I figured I'd take a chance even though it hadn't looked like my thing. I haven't watched a single recorded episode, and now comes news that it's been cancelled. Looks like there's four hours I can quickly clear off the DVR.

Fringe: This potential X-Files wannabe hasn't totally won me over like the show that's influenced it, but of the new shows I've watched this season, it's probably my favorite. At this point in time I'd be perfectly happy with "monster of the week" episodes rather than an overarching mythology, but it seems like the creators are trying to balance these qualities.

Life on Mars: I could do without the on the nose period references and dialogue in this time travel (?) cop show--a modern day New York City policeman wakes up from an accident and finds himself in 1973--but overall I like what I've seen. The cinematography has a nice, burnished look, and I'm curious about the central mysteries that have been introduced.

Life: I didn't have strong feelings about this Los Angeles cop show during its first season, but there's something appealing about its procedural sturdiness and just-quirky-enough characters that has me watching this before other programs on the DVR. I'm hoping they've ditched the documentarian interviews because, frankly, I couldn't care less about who was responsible for framing the detective and getting him sent to prison.