denver

(S01E04) Is the bar in Jericho asking patrons to pay money for the food and drink they're consuming during this crisis? I ask that because in the opening scene of tonight's episode, the power goes out and the woman behind the bar tells everyone to go home. And I'm thinking, wait a second...the world might be coming to the end and the only comfort these small town citizens can find is with each other, and the bar is making them go home at 9:30? Shouldn't this bar be sort of a meeting place, since it has food and drink and a television?

(S01E03) "18 Hours After The Bombs."

That's sort of an odd phrase to use as an opening, "after the bombs." But I guess we know they were definitely bombs, and there were more than one. Sometimes I think we might be overthinking this show. Maybe we're supposed to understand that these were nuclear bombs directed at our cities, a war, and not (take your choice) an accident, aliens, a conspiracy, or something similar. I guess the mystery is in who did it, why, and how this small town will survive.

(S01E01) I think I can say without much hesitation that CBS is going for the Lost crowd here. An ongoing mystery involving a nuclear (?) explosion that happens outside of a small town, cutting off all communication between the small town and the outside world. What happened? Was it an accident, another country attacking the country, aliens? Something else completely? But a show like Lost, one that grabs the imagination and fan fervor at an incredible level, is a rare thing. Can Jericho do it too?

CBS has been heavily promoting this new drama (if you watched The U.S. Open, it was teased approximately 2000 times), and we gave our quick first impressions several weeks ago, but here's a little more about the show.

Basically, it's The Day After: The TV Show. A loner (Skeet Ulrich) goes back to his small hometown in Kansas, just to stay for the day, to finish some business, when some sort of nuclear (?) explosion happens in the distance, perhaps Denver. The town is completely cut off from the outside world. They can't communicate with anyone. But what worries is that one of the kids in the town was talking to his parents on the phone when the blast occurred. They were in Atlanta, and a blast happened there too. Or did it?

Since Katie Couric has some time to kill before she starts anchoring the CBS Evening News in September, the network is sending her on a tour. This summer, Couric will hold town hall-style forums with viewers to learn more about what they want from their national news. So far, CBS is only saying that Couric is going to Denver (July 13) and San Diego.

The good news is that the meetings will not be filmed and local stations will not be allowed to cover Couric's meetings. I say that's 'good news' because, without cameras, there can actually be real conversation. The town hall forums are different from the trips that Couric will make to various CBS affiliate newsrooms to shoot promos with them for her debut.

If you enjoy the Real World for some reason, you'll be interested to know the 18th edition of the long-running reality series will debut on MTV later this year. This time the young, vacuous and gorgeous will be setting up residence in Denver, Colorado, the Mile High City, home of skiing, and, since I've never been there before, I'm going to say it's also the birthplace of the triangular waffle. Someone else can verify that. Neither the Governor of Colorado nor the Mayor of Denver, who has the totally awesome surname of "Hickenlooper," know much about the show, but they're welcoming it with open arms. The new cast of melodramatic twentysomethings will live in the city's downtown area, but it's not known just yet what their job will be.

I liked Bo and Constantine. They brought a rock element to American Idol, and I dug it. Little did I know that their success would bring an onslaught of rock n' rollers/out of controllers auditioning for AI. Awesome. Now, instead of simply listening to wannabes slaughter great pop songs, we're also treated to the torture of rock hits as well. I use to like Bo and Constantine. I now love them. It's because of them that I got to see a punk kid breakdance tonight...and I think he meant it. Plus, we got the satisfaction of seeing Seacrest flash the rock sign. But instead of flashing devil horns, he actually said 'I love you' in sign language. Amateur mistake, but appreciated nevertheless.