Nip/Tuck

CHICAGO – We have written here several times about the genius of “Glee” (in May and again in September), but with the show having been off the air for a few weeks so the Yankees could win another World Series, we thought it was a good time to assess how the show has been progressing by taking an advanced look at tonight’s episode, the wonderful “Wheels”.

CHICAGO – Let’s be honest: “Nip/Tuck” has been in need of a face lift for years. The show arguably jumped the shark when The Carver took over (in season three) and has never quite looked the same since. Even with the sizable flaws of the last two seasons, “Nip/Tuck” was never boring. It even showed flashes of creator Ryan Murphy’s occasional genius in the seasons since.

CHICAGO – Ryan Murphy’s brilliant “Glee” is not only the best new show of the year, it’s off to one of the best starts for any series in the last several fall seasons. Much closer to Alexander Payne’s “Election” than Disney’s “High School Musical,” this is a clever blend of satire, pop tunes, laugh-out-loud comedy, and rich, interesting characters that you simply shouldn’t miss.

CHICAGO – Much closer to Alexander Payne’s “Election” than Disney’s “High School Musical,” the pilot for Ryan Murphy’s “Glee” is one of the best of the last several years, a clever blend of satire, pop tunes, laugh-out-loud comedy, and rich, interesting characters. The one thing I kept thinking during the pilot of “Glee”? This is too good for network TV. It will never last.

CHICAGO – Ryan Murphy is not a TV writer who believes in following the rules. He reached nearly iconic status from the loyal followers of FX’s “Nip/Tuck” and is trying to create water-cooler TV yet again with FOX’s very unique “Glee,” a show that we’ll review later this week (but you can check out a great clip here if you’re impatient).

CHICAGO – Oscar-winning actress and former “Dancing with the Stars” contestant Marlee Matlin posed for the HollywoodChicago.com lens before meeting her hometown Chicago fans at the signing of her new memoir “I’ll Scream Later” on April 17, 2009 at Borders in Oak Brook, Ill.

CHICAGO – In a special edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: TV, we have 20 admit-two VIP passes up for grabs to the exclusive Chicago premiere of the new TNT drama “Trust Me” about a Chicago advertising agency. The series stars Eric McCormack (“Will & Grace”), Tom Cavanagh (“Scrubs,” “Ed”) and Monica Potter (“Boston Legal,” “Saw,” “Along Came a Spider,” “Patch Adams,” “Con Air”) from the producers of “Nip/Tuck” and “The Closer”.

CHICAGO – After recently lamenting the decline of “Nip/Tuck” in my review of the Season Five, Part One DVD, no one is more shocked than I am at the creative success of the mid-season premiere, airing January 6th, 2009 at 9pm CST on FX.

CHICAGO – “Tell me what you don’t like about yourself.” Doctors, I don’t like what you’ve done to a once-fascinating show. Ryan Murphy and the team behind “Nip/Tuck” missed a great opportunity with the fifth season of their cult hit show, now on DVD, and continued their series’ soapy decline.

CHICAGO – Be honest, TV fans. Fall 2008 was lackluster at best. The TV season really starts now.

With the strike delaying production on established series and the development of new ones, many more programs are returning or premiering in Jan. 2009 than the average mid-season. It couldn’t have come at a more important time for the medium, too.