Cheers to Criminal Minds for investigating its characters' private lives. The CBS hit's relentless parade of serial killers can grow wearying, so it's nice to spend time with the BAU crew off the job, even if the subplots aren't always happy (witness Hotch's painful divorce and Garcia getting shot by a date). Buffy alum Nicholas Brendon's recurring role as Garcia's computer-geek boyfriend has provided some much-needed comic relief, and — spoiler alert! — there's going to be a huge development for J.J. soon (hint: A.J. Cook is pregnant in real life). These personal storylines offer the show's appealing ensemble a chance to do more than go through the procedural motions. Good thing, because the Minds cast would be a terrible thing to waste.• For more Cheers & Jeers, check out the new vodcast.• Share your own raves and rants about other shows on the Reader Cheers & Jeers discussion board.• We may feature your Cheer or Jeer on TVGuide.com or in TV Guide ...
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Cheers to Criminal Minds for putting the spotlight on Kirsten Vangsness. The appealingly quirky actress, who's usually stuck behind a wall of computer screens, stepped out when techie Penelope Garcia met a hot guy in a coffee shop—and he shot her on their first date. Turned out he was a bad cop who thought Garcia was onto him, but the story line gave Vangsness the chance to share emotional scenes with her costars (especially Shemar Moore). Plus, it brought her a charming new love connection: Buffy alum Nicholas "Xander" Brendon as a fellow hacker. Hope Minds ' producers are smart enough to bring Brendon back.• Read and react to Bruce's opinions on Nip/Tuck, How I Met Your Mother and more!• Share your own raves and rants about other shows on the Reader Cheers & Jeers discussion board.• We may feature your Cheer or Jeer on TVGuide.com or in TV Guide magazine!
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I have new respect for Bradley Cooper as an actor. He was superannoying as Will on Alias, and then this summer he was a total jackass in Wedding Crashers. So the fact that he doesn't drive me crazy on this show, based on Anthony Bourdain's book of the same name, is a significant accomplishment. Cooper plays Jack (Bourdain), a chef who's given a chance to redeem himself after hitting rock bottom. In a very short time he has to put together a reputable kitchen staff for a new, trendy restaurant. And you know what that means, dontcha? Yeah, cue the Ocean's 11 music!
Weird coincidence of the night: This show has Nicholas Brendon from Buffy and John Francis Daley from Freaks and Geeks; meanwhile, How I Met Your Mother has Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel, who are — here it comes — from Buffy and Freaks and Geeks, respectively. Did you just get chills? No? Oh. Well, how about now? Still no? Wh
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Question: Thanks for your information and insights each week. I have to remark on your recent answer about How I Met Your Mother and Kitchen Confidential: "Somehow I don't think either CBS or Fox is banking on the Freaks and Buffy factor as selling points for either of these shows." I don't have your numbers and demographics, and I know that while it feels to me like Whedon fans are a large and vocal crowd, we are probably small in the vast millions of TV watchers. So I know that if the networks were counting on Whedon watchers as the main audience for these new shows, they would indeed be disappointed. However, I do think Alyson Hannigan, Nicholas Brendon, and David Boreanaz are as strong "selling points" as any others in their casts, none of whom are known to me besides Neil Patrick Harris. If Whedon watchers won't make or break the show's bottom line, at the very least those names will attract a hefty number of (Whedon) viewers (like me) who wouldn't ordinarily be gunning for a ...
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Question: As a big fan of both Buffy and Freaks and Geeks, I can't help but wonder about this scheduling of CBS' new How I Met Your Mother (featuring Freaks' Jason Segel and Buffy's Alyson Hannigan) and Fox's new Kitchen Confidential (with Freaks' John Daley and Buffy's Nicholas Brendon). Both shows are airing on Mondays at 8:30 pm/ET. What I'm wondering is, who decided it was a good idea to do this? What are the chances that two shows would premiere in the same season, each featuring cast members from huge cult shows? Wouldn't it have been much better to put them at different times, allowing both networks to get fans of both shows for the premieres?
Answer: Somehow I don't think either CBS or Fox is banking on the Freaks and Buffy factor as selling points for either of these shows. (If anything, Alyson Hannigan's American Pie movie appearances are more promotable to the mainstream.) This is purely a coincidence, and as much as I like these individual actors, they're very much ensemble
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