House, Home, and Homeland

Yeah, I admit, I have a weakness for cheesy blog titles, but trust me, it fits! Got three different topics to touch on today (alright, maybe four, we know I do go on sometimes...), so let's dive right in.

First up is House. Dr. House, that is. House has been one of my favorite shows for years now, and it started it's eighth season last night. Admittedly, last season went off the rails a little bit; between House being drug-free for most of the season and then dating Cuddy, a lot of it wasn't that entertaining. But after he got dumped, relapsed, and drove a car through Cuddy's wall in the finale, last night's episode focused on House in prison. None of the other cast members, just him, locked up with mass murderers and skinheads who he owed drugs to. Oh, yeah, and Urkel.

He didn't actually look like that, but you get the point.

Focusing the show back directly on House rejuvenated it a bit while also showing again that despite just how majorly screwed up he is, saving a patient's life comes first. Yes, he did have a patient in prison. No, that part didn't make that much sense, but the rest of it was good enough that I was willing to ignore it. The episode ended with him in solitary confinement because he caused a minor riot; next week sees him being temporarily released (which we know will become permanent) under supervision to help his old team save someone's life. Should be interesting.

Next is a quick, more serious update on home, or more accurately, my home life. My grandfather went into the hospital on Sunday due to an inability to breathe and was diagnosed with pneumonia and has been there since. They've said he's doing better and he might come home tomorrow; with this being his second trip to the hospital in under three months and just seeing the way he is everyday, even if he gets over the pneumonia I don't think he'll be around too much longer. I'm not one for prayer or any of that stuff, but if you believe it helps and feel like saying one or two for him, I'd appreciate it.

And that brings us to Homeland, a new show that premiered Sunday night on Showtime after Dexter (which was as awesome as usual, by the way). I had never actually heard of Homeland before Saturday night when I saw a promo for it and said, "What the hell, looks interesting." Boy, was I right. It centers around Sergeant Nicholas Brody, a Marine who was kept in a cave as a POW in Iraq for eight years before finally being found and returned home, and Carrie Anderson, a CIA agent who thinks Brody might have been turned by the terrorists and is now working against America. Claire Danes, by the way, is fabulous as Anderson, who is also completely batshit nuts. At one point, to get out of trouble, she tries to seduce the agent who trained her, played by the always awesome Mandy Patinkin. Sidenote, Mandy Patinkin will never be as awesome as he was when he played Rube on Dead Like Me, another Showtime original.

Rube took his breakfasts very seriously, Peanut.

The show touches on things like how Brody gets reacquainted with his family, including his daughter, his son who was too young when he got shipped overseas to remember him, and his wife, who in the interim started sleeping with his best friend because she thought Brody was dead. Mainly, though, it's about Anderson's quest for the truth: is Brody a traitor? The premier was really gripping, and for me it's become the best new show of the season.

Speaking of new shows, it was announced today that NBC cancelled The Playboy Club, making it the first cancellation of the season. I called it here two weeks ago. Am I good or what?