Poor Taste in Television

Yeah, I admit it. I watch brain-candy TV. Not the "reality" stuff that always makes me squirmingly uncomfortable...those shows make me feel like I'm invading the participants privacy. Never mind that they've invited me and a whole camera crew in to do so. I just feel creepy watching.

Nope, I like the fluff, like Clueless, Grosse Pointe, Friends, and Sex in the City. One of my favorites was a show call Leap of Faith which was one of the million or so failed shows NBC scheduled for the 8:30 slot after Friends. It featured an adorable advertising copywriter and her graphic-artist best friend and was sort of Sex In the City for network TV, with fewer lead characters and no onscreen sex. It only lasted about 5 episodes, but I loved every one of them.

I'm a sucker for the kinds of shows where everyone lives in housing way beyond what their characters can afford, they all dress super trendily, and no one dies or investigates anything.

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Occasionally, I like one with good writing, like Sports Night or the British version of Coupling (not the American version...I do have some standards). But I'll take mediocre writing if it's not cringe-inducing and the actors are cute enough.

This week, I discovered a new one, So NoTORIous on VH1, starring (lord help me) Tori Spelling as herself. A fictionalized, tongue-in-cheek version of herself. She's quite good, with good comic timing and an amazing willingness to make fun of herself. And since it's scripted and fictionalized, it's more like the fake behind-the-scenes Grosse Pointe than a reality show. The two episodes I've seen are very funny. My favorite line so far is Tori telling her best friend "This is LA, we all look like hookers." Gotta love that.

If you like most of the fluff I've listed above, you'll probably love So NoTORIous right along with me. Pull on your jammies, make some chocolate chip brownies, flop down in front of the TV and have fun trashing your brain. VH1 has it on like a million times a week, so check your listings.