What I Watched: Vampire Diaries & Secret Circle Finales & More

I was home sick yesterday, and after sleeping for half the day it meant I managed to catch up on some things . . .

Live-ish: The Vampire Diaries, "The Departed (EP322)" - I wasn't as blown away by this finale as I have been in previous years, but I thought it was good, and I'm THRILLED with what it set up for next season. I know a lot of people are upset about some things that happened, and I understand why, but this is definitely a time when I think my viewing experience is improved by not having a horse in the shipper race for this show. I particularly loved Jeremy and Matt in this episode, and I'm so glad that neither of them were killed off. Snarky Damon is my favorite Damon, and I can't wait to see what happens now that Elena will remember everything.

The Secret Circle, "Family (EP122)" - This finale was very strong, and led me to write the phrase "Witch Hitler Casanova" for the first time in my life, and this show has improved so much overall that I will be very sad if it doesn't come back next season. The finale set up some REALLY interesting ideas for where they could go with it.

Awake, "Say Hello to My Little Friend (EP111)" - THIS SHOW. Why is no one watching this show? I know everyone else was crying over vampires and witches, but this was the episode last night that really got to me. Jason Isaacs is astonishingly good, and I will never listen to "Bohemian Rhapsody" the same way again.

Community, "Curriculum Unavailable (EP319)" - I usually love Community's moments of darkness, but I watched this episode after the previous three shows mentioned last night, and I was perhaps a little too tired and drained for it. But still, it was very good, and I love when they "remember" things they never showed us (as in the "clip show") because the idea of characters having whole lives we don't see is one that knocks us off balance in an interesting way.

Live+7: Revenge, "Legacy (EP120)" - This flashback episode was fun, but it didn't necessarily do a whole lot to advance the plot or keep up any sort of momentum. Update: Nolan is still the bestest.

Veep, "Catherine (EP103)" - I'm enjoying this show more with each episode, and I thought newcomer Sarah Sutherland did an amazing job as the sort of uber-Ellie Bartlet. I hope she's back in future episodes, and I hope her interesting chemistry with Jonah is explored.

White Heat, "The Past Is a Foreign Country (EP101)" - Loved it. Quick Pilot Thoughts post will be up later today.

Catching up: Gossip Girl, "It Girl, Interrupted (EP519)" - I'm not sure how I got so far behind on this show, given that I think Dan and Blair is the best thing to happen to it in a long time. And I loved Nate actually scheming semi-successfully in this episode. Nate Archibald: Serious Businessman is such a thoroughly delightful surprise this season.

How I Met Your Mother, "Now We Are Even (EP721)" - I know exactly how I got behind on this one - Bones moved into its timeslot. Anyway, I liked this episode and especially the way it handled the Ted/Robin friction, but I am becoming ever more worried that on Monday we will discover that Barney is marrying someone other than Robin, and that is UNACCEPTABLE.

On the list: Scandal, Missing

Morning Coffee (3/2/12)

It's FINALLY Friday. Everyone I know seems agreed that this was the longest week ever, for some reason.

Andrew Breitbart has died.

Firefly fans, get excited: Adam Baldwin will reunite with his captain by guest-starring on Castle!

In other interesting casting news, John de Lancie will be on The Secret Circle, and actually, if either Q OR Al Kiefer showed up in Chance Harbor, the show would immediately be way more interesting. Alas, he will be playing neither of those characters.

I discovered while writing that that John de Lancie did a voice in a few episodes of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. I just thought you'd want to know.

I read about a lot of book deals and don't often mention them, but OMG Claire Legrand is doing a YA retelling of The Nutcracker and I am so excited!

Some people he didn't know got into a fight kind of near Colin Firth. In other words, it was a very slow news day.

So, About The Secret Circle...

First: I'm still enjoying The Secret Circle. Absolutely. But I had planned to write about it every week, and now I'm just not sure I have that much to say. (This is partially because it's on right after The Vampire Diaries, which is my priority as far as both time and attention.) It's fun! It's intriguing! But the third episode didn't leave me with anything I felt I absolutely had to say about it. So I think I'm going to put this one on the "write about it as the spirit moves me" list.

(I'm still trying to figure out some stuff about the families, but I'm told it's explained in the books, which I'm currently reading. When I finish those, I will definitely do a post sharing those answers and giving any other thoughts I have on the book/show differences.)

The Secret Circle, "Bound:" Once you DO believe in magic...

How did you like the second episode of The Secret Circle? I liked it quite a lot, and it made me hopeful for the direction this series will take. Read on to find out why . . .

The Secret Circle: Do You Believe in Magic?

Did I get that song stuck in all your heads? You're welcome. So, anyone else watch the pilot of The Secret Circle last night? What did you think? I realize that I am as close to being the target audience for this as I could be without actually being a teen girl, but I really liked it. Some more specific stuff after the break . . .

Tonight's TV Premiere Reminders: 9/15/11

For these first few weeks of fall TV, I'll have quick posts up at 9am each day reminding you of which shows start that night, with times and channels and maybe a quick thought or two. Remember, you can see my whole fall TV spreadsheet here. (All times Eastern.)

8 p.m.:
The Vampire Diaries season 3 premiere, CW
SO EXCITED. This is one of my absolute favorites. You all probably know that. But this seems like a reasonable time to mention that I'm on the team at Vampire-Diaries.net, so you should head over there for all your TVD needs. I'll do a weekly post of some sort here about it as well.

9 p.m.:
The Secret Circle series premiere, CW
This is a new show about teen witches based on books by the author of The Vampire Diaries and produced by the same EP. I've seen the pilot. It's awesome. At V-D.net, we told you why we think you should watch. I'll probably be covering this one weekly in some form too.

10 p.m.:
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 7 premiere, FX
I've never seen this. But my brother loves it!

Personalized TV Recommendations for Teen & Supernatural Drama Fan

@Medlinniel on Twitter asked for recommendations; here's what she likes: "Vampire Diaries. Pretty Little Liars.. True Blood and... The New Girl (which isn't out yet)"

Okay! First of all, if you like Vampire Diaries, you must try The Secret Circle. It's made by the same people, and based on another trilogy by the same author. It's about a young girl who moved to a small seaside town to live with her grandmother and discovers that her family is one of several families of witches in the town. I've seen the pilot and liked it a lot. For your viewing convenience, it's on the CW on Thursdays at nine, right after Vampire Diaries.

You should probably try the CW's other new show Ringer, on Tuesdays at nine. It stars Buffy's Sarah Michelle Gellar and just cast Moonlight's Jason Dohring (also known as Logan from Veronica Mars), so it's sort of vampire-adjacent. It's about a woman on the run who tries to stay safe by impersonating her missing, estranged twin sister, only to discover that people are after the twin as well. It doesn't look like it's going to have a supernatural element, but the pilot has a similar feel to the sort of shows it sounds like you like - somewhere between PLL and Nikita with a little Gossip Girl thrown in.

A few more ideas: ABC's Revenge is a Hamptons soap about a young woman trying to get revenge on the rich community that somehow ruined her family, and it looks like it could be a lot of fun. (It's loosely based on The Count of Monte Cristo. And if you're looking for more shows with magic or supernatural elements, try ABC's Once Upon a Time and NBC's Grimm.

I hope that helped! If you try any of these shows, let me know what you think!