"Open, open, open!" THE NEW TV SEASON

by Toni McGee Causey

One of my favorite commercials of all time was the Mervyn's "sale day" commercial. Sadly, I cannot find it on YouTube (you have failed me, YouTube, in my time of need... I don't know if I can forgive you...) Anyway, the camera is set up on the inside of the store, aimed at one of the glass doors. Out there, it's dark, wee hours of the morning, and there is a woman standing there, her nose pressed to the glass, palms flat next to her and she's tapping her fingertips against the glass, quietly chanting, "Open, open, open."

That's how I feel about the new TV season.

I'm always curious as to what's going to become the new hits. What's going to be the critical favorite that everyone loves and nobody really watches. (Or not enough people watch. Firefly anyone? Currently, Mad Men?) (Um, total confession--I never watched Firefly until after Serenity, the movie, had been out a while, and then I saw it and I've probably re-watched Serenity ten times. Joss Whedon is God. That is all.) (Except for Dollhouse. I am still not sure what the hell he was thinking.)

There are some shows which clearly become iconic. Did you spot what Friends was going to turn into before the craze? What about Lost? It's amazing how much both of those shows infiltrated our culture, how some of their phrases became the language of their day. Iconic, hugely popular shows change how we think about issues, how we dress, what's cool, what's not, and those style changes reverberate out into much of our society. Watching the next hot show is a bit like getting the answers to the test questions ahead of time.

Now, my problem is, I don't watch much TV in real time--I record it and watch it while I walk on the treadmill. Theoretically. That is my main goal, to find something that will entertain me enough for the forty-five minutes I'm on the treadmill that I forget that I'm exercising. Sadly, I'm often a little too aware of the show's flaws and I start getting antsy and then I end up getting off the treadmill to go do something I just thought of and before I realize it, I'm back in front of the computer, back at work, having not gotten in enough exercise. I've started Netflixing old shows that were popular that I missed (like The Wire ). I've also been rampaging through HULU for shows like Fringe , which was utterly fascinating and riveting last year. (Fringe is like CSI meets the X-Files, according to my good Pied Piper friend, Allison Brennan, who led me to this crack, I mean, show. Which is kinda amazing that I loved it so much, because I'm not a huge CSI fan, nor did I ever watch X-Files. I know, I know. Travesty. I don't even remember what year it was supposed to be huge. I didn't have DVR then, and honestly, I was sort of dimly aware it existed only after it had already ended.)

Anyway, I have high hopes for a few shows.

I very much liked the pilot for Glee that aired last spring, but I'm wondering how on earth they can sustain the point. (Then again, if you'd asked me if Buffy could have kept going on that premise show after show, I'd have said 'no.' Clearly, we don't need to listen to my predictions.)

So tell me - what show are you looking forward to? What do you think will be super hot by the end of the season? A must-see show to Twitter about? And what have you seen advertised that just screams "What in the world were they thinking?" I'm itching to set my DVR...

Toni McGee Causey is the author of the critically acclaimed “Bobbie Faye” novels—an action/caper series set in south Louisiana; the series was released this summer in back-to-back publications, beginning with: Charmed and Dangerous, Girls Just Wanna Have Guns and When A Man Loves A Weapon which just came out on August 4th and has just received 4 stars from Romantic Times.

As an MFA in Screenwriting, Toni had several scripts optioned as well as having just this year produced an indie film, LA-308, which she and the rest of the producers will be submitting to festivals.

Toni has had several of her blogs syndicated nationally from her other group blog murderati. In addition to blogging right here - she also blogs for - murdershewrites.

Toni lives in Baton Rouge with her husband and two sons.

pics courtesy of:

Firefly: Hulu

Mad Men: AE TV and Boston.com

Friends: NBC and IMDb

Lost: ABC

The Wire: HBO

Fringe: Express Night Out

Glee: Chicago Tribune