#5) The Series Finale of Life Unexpected - This adorable little family drama on the CW closed its final chapter this week with a two-hour finale that somehow managed to wrap up most of the plot threads it had tangled together before the winter hiatus. But that's why they invented the "Two Years Later" epilogue, because two years is plenty of time for people to have babies, graduate high school, and shuffle themselves into their appropriate romantic pairings. In fact, this is much easier than the planning, writing, and story-weaving that would be required if they had the luxury of two more seasons. I'm sure some fans felt cheated, but I for one was very pleased by their perfect happy ending.
#4) Lily and Ben's Budding Romance on Off The Map - Emotional baggage from both parties? Check. Bonding over similar woundedness from past tragedies? Check. Heart-to-heart conversation while one delicately holds the other's arm while picking Anaconda teeth out of her wounds? Check. Awkward moment of accidental nudity? Check. These two jungle doctors are giving Grey's Anatomy's Mer-Der a run for their money.
#3) The Series Premiere of SyFy's Being Human - The premise of this show sounds like a bad joke: A vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost share an apartment. But somehow Being Human manages to paint a funny, moving portrait of what it means to be human, despite having three main characters that are anything but. Even in its first episode, the show seems to have a solid sense of its tone, which is lighter and funnier than its typically dark themes, but nothing like the tarted-up tween vampire stories you might find in movie theaters or on the CW. (Not that I don't love me some Vampire Diaries.) The three cohabitants thrown together include a vampire struggling to go vegan (read: not kill people), a ghost trying to move on from her death (and her life), and a werewolf who wants more than anything to be normal. Watching them, we see that they're not that different from us. They worry about their credit scores; they have OCD; they have trouble getting over their exes; they have adorable fix-her-up montages while they clean up their new apartments! They're (almost) human! Plus, the cast is great, including Sam Huntington (Veronica Mars) and Mark Pellegrino (Lost, Supernatural).
#2) Danny Strong Guest Stars on How I Met Your Mother - I love any time a Whedon alumnus guest stars on anything, but I especially love when Buffy alumni guest star on shows that already have Buffy alumni in their cast. That might sound like the ramblings of a crazed Buffy fanatic, but if you still think of Alyson Hannigan as Willow, then you understand my excitement at seeing Jonathan (Danny Strong) join her on HIMYM this week. Strong played a reverend/former bully who attended Marshall's father's funeral reception. How appropriate that the impromptu Buffy reunion would be at a funeral, considering the high mortality rate of their former residence, Sunnydale (AKA the Hellmouth). Other winning aspects of this week's HIMYM ep: Marshall's late father's "positive racism," Robin's Mary Poppins handbag of drugs, and Ray Wise as Robin's dad.
#1) FRINGE FRIDAY! - The best drama on network television (okay, so it's actually a tie between Fringe and The Good Wife) was back and better than ever this week with the appropriately titled episode "The Firefly." Christopher Lloyd guest starred (yeah, he's kind of a big deal), and the episode dealt with issues like time travel, the butterfly effect, and how to make the perfect strawberry milkshake. God I missed this show.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
*Lost shout-out on Greek when Rusty and his girlfriend rewatched all of the first season.
*Community shout-out on Cougar Town when Travis and his girlfriend watched the first season.
*Marcel "I'm just misunderstood" Vigneron got kicked off Top Chef: All Stars. Nice try, werewolf. Someday you'll be a real boy.
*The return of Parks and Recreation, sponsored by the Swanson Pyramid of Greatness and Rob Lowe's tears.
*Jeffster performed Whitesnake's "Is This Love" on Chuck. (Watch it here.)
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Yes, I know I totally cheated by having five honorable mentions, but it's not my fault that so many exciting things happened on TV this week. Watch Fringe! That is all.