UrbanWireBy: Mandy Lim & Noel Teo
A year has passed, while some of the shows that we watched have been renewed, others have been cancelled. We take a look at our top 8 shows from 2011 and show you what we loved or hated about them, and we hope to share with you our humble opinion on whether or not we felt they made the cut.
2 Broke Girls
Renewed:
“Sugar, spice, and everything nice.” That pretty much sums up 2 Broke Girls, where you have two girls who are broke down to their last penny, trying to make a living by starting their very own cupcake business. We are thrilled that the show’s renewed because it would be such a shame to watch it end without them getting anywhere near their goal. When we say that, we mean it, because they have less than $1000 and it would be gratifying to see them hit their target – a jaw-dropping $250,000. On another note, we think they deserve a thumbs-up for being able to stay funny every single episode with their sexual innuendos and sarcastic remarks.
What we expect to see:
Now that Martha Stewart likes their cupcakes, we hope to see their business picking up by a lot more, which should propel them higher up towards their dream. Also, we’re hoping to see more of Sophie and Oleg, even though things are supposed to have “ended”. Apart from them, we think poor Han deserves more romance in his life. The only time we actually got to see him together with a girl was in Episode 5, when he danced with hippie party girl. That’s definitely not enough. We also think the 2 girls could do with a few more men (straight or gay) in their lives, to spice things up further. Since we know so much about Caroline, we were hoping more of Max’s history could be revealed to us. We’re sad her family history is tragic, but we think more can be revealed to us. Other than that, keep up with the slapstick humour and sarcasm!
American Horror Story
Renewed:
We fell deeply in love with the plot because we love to be confused. By making it difficult to differentiate between ghosts and humans, we’re often left with question marks in our heads, but we don’t mind, because it definitely kept us glued to the show. Kudos to Jessica Lange, our dearest Constance, who snagged the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress! We know how deserving she is of that award, especially since Constance’s character was so perfectly developed, allowing her (Jessica) to work her magic. The idea of a haunted mansion was been done to death (see what we did there), but American Horror Story has definitely made it fresh. And of course, with every show, there’s bound to be some moral value in it, and the theme of infidelity is highly obvious in this one.
What we expect to see:
According to co-creator Ryan Murphy, Season 2 will be an entirely different plot, with new characters and a new location. From what we know, it’ll be about an asylum, set in the 1960’s, themed on sanity. And my, are we glad to know that Jessica will be back again, this time as the head of the asylum. We are looking forward to the new location because this institution is going to set the mood for the show, and we all know how important that is to horror shows. We also hope to see the idea of flashbacks being played at the beginning of each episodes like in Season 1, because it slowly lets us connect to the current timeline and the story behind their (the ghosts’) deaths. Oh, for you Maroon 5 fans out there, we heard the super hot Adam Levine is going to be in Season 2, so stay tuned!
Grimm
Renewed:
Great job at combining CSI and the supernatural in this show, we think. Having familiar faces like David and Russell playing detectives Nick and Hank? Better. We thought the idea of making the Brothers Grimm into a whole clan was great, and also how they’re meant to hunt down the more evil Wesens. What we’re slightly disappointed about Grimm is the fact that not every episode is derived from an actual Grimm fairytale. For example, Episode 4 was based on the story of Bluebeard, which is a French folktale written by Charles Perrault, as compared to the classic Rapunzel. In spite of that, we adored every episode because there were new Wesens appearing almost every time without ignoring the previous creatures that appeared. We love how all the creatures, old and new, are all related in one way or another, and they help weave together a thick and juicy plot that has us Grimm fans clamouring for more.
What we expect to see:
So the season finale left us 3 main cliffhangers: Juliette’s lying in hospital, Hank’s been traumatized by Monroe scaring him, and Kelly(Nick’s mother) is alive. Juliette’s awakening scene felt like Bella’s awakening scene in Breaking Dawn: creepy and random. On the other hand, we’re hoping very much that Hank would be let in on Nick’s little secret about his double life so that he’ll have someone to help him, apart from Monroe. The poor guy has to wake up to help him in the middle of the night every time. We think he should get some “me” time. Lastly, we can’t wait to see more of Kelly! She’s a fantastic fighter and she’s definitely aware of her role as a Grimm. At the same time, explanation is needed for her survival and return and we think it’s about time they tell us what exactly happened in that “car accident”. On top of all that drama, we’re quite surprised Adalind Schade made it through to season finale, despite being rendered powerless now. We always love a woman who stands back up to fight, and we want to know her 5W1H’s.
New Girl
Renewed:
So we know that this show’s getting renewed for Season 2. Our question is: Why? Yes, we admit that the first 3 episodes of New Girl were hilarious and heartwarming, but we couldn’t decipher why/how it had been hanging on until now. We’re bored of seeing Nick trying to get into a new relationship (or hook-ups, towards the later part) which does nothing in adding any depth to his character. We get it, he takes a really really long time to get over a relationship, but how much more can you exploit that? To top it off, some of the episodes were getting a mere “meh” from us, and there really wasn’t much plot in them. We do however, love with a capital L, seeing Cece and Schmidt together. One of the reasons is because they make a hot couple, but it’s also because they bring in that level of awkwardness that cannot be tackled in most of the situations. Ok, maybe that’s mostly due to Schmidt’s fault, but you got to admit, without Schmidt being the resident douchebag, this show would lack a lot of humour. We’d also like to give credits to Zooey playing your weird-beyond-comprehension Jess, because we don’t think anyone else can pull off that level of quirk on the small screen.
What we expect to see:
At this point, we can’t really tell. The season finale of New Girl just brought the whole show back to square one. The 4 of them are living together once again, Cece and Schmidt are no longer together, Jess is single, and Nick is single again (assumed to be, since he didn’t move in with Caroline). So…we really don’t know what’s going to happen in Season 2 that could make it more interesting. Nevertheless, we hope things pick up in the next season, with more fun and laughter.
Once Upon A Time
Renewed:
Cast away the fairytales you already know and prepare for the story about what really happened in the Enchanted Forest. Probably the most exciting series this season, it is no wonder that Once Upon A Time was picked up for another season. The show reintroduced iconic fairytale characters who were made more human and relatable, which scored big with the fans (including us). Along with its intricate storyline and stellar cast, the show is truly on a league of their own. As the series progresses, Emma meets the various storybook characters and tries to solve their problems, unknowingly giving them back their happy endings. However, she does not believe in the curse Henry tells her is real. We like how the episodes go back and forth between the real world and Fairytale Land, revealing the true backgrounds of each of the magical characters.
What we expect to see:
The finale left us with more questions than answers. Why didn’t the townsfolk return to the Enchanted Forest? Did August turn back into a ‘real boy’? What is going to happen now that Rumplestiltskin has called magic into this world? Will the people of Storybrooke still remember their former selves? Whatever Rumple has conjured up, we at least hope it doesn’t hinder the reunion of the Charming’s, Snow White, Prince James and of course, Emma. We can’t imagine how she’s going to react now that she knows why her parents ‘abandoned’ her. We also wonder how the dynamic will be like between Emma and her parents since they’re all of the same age. Will there be awkwardness between the mother & daughter who have discussed things like one night stands while living as roomies and BFFs? And what about our favorite Evil Queen? Regina seemed to understand what Rumple was doing in the finale and boy, did she look pleased. We know she’s not about to repent, so what’s up her royal sleeve? Whatever it is, we don’t think she’ll have much time to try and destroy Snow White now that Rumple know what she did to his beloved Belle. Watch out Regina, Rumple definitely has something special planned for you. We can’t wait!
Ringer
Cancelled:
Identity theft, hired guns and a Cinderella story. Ringer was a series loaded with drama and suspense, but sadly it wasn’t enough to be green lighted for a second season. It was supposed to be once of the most exciting shows (for us anyway) of last year’s line up, mainly because it marked Sarah Michelle Gellar’s return to the small screen. Our favorite vampire slayer played both the lead characters, twins Bridget Kelly & Siobhan Martin. One a drug addict stripper, another an Upper East Side socialite and first class –pardon our language- bitch. We love how Siobhan was very much alive and knew very well someone was after her life and thus, in order to protect herself, she plotted for Bridget to assume her identity so her sister could die in her place. Cold!
What we expect(ed) to see:
We would have loved a fiery Good Twin vs Evil Twin showdown, but no, that went to hell. Apart from that, we wanted to see some resolution for the budding romance between Bridget and Andrew. After Andrew found out his newly reformed wife was a new wife altogether, he left in quite a huff. We hoped that when the season began again his anger would dissolve and he would realize that he loved Bridget too. As for Siobhan, the season finale left her at a low point: she had just given birth to twins, and her lover, Henry, kicked her out after learning the babies were not his. In such desperate times, would she repent or would she scheme up a more sinister plot for revenge? Guess we’ll never know.
Teen Wolf
Renewed:
This seems a little too late, but yes, we’re excited Teen Wolf is coming back for another round! Season 1 ended peacefully so we were scared they’d just drop the show (since it could suffice for an ending). But my, are we glad to see more of the hot guys and pretty ladies in action!
What we expect to see:
Now that Jackson is bitten, we want some really nasty stuff happening. Come on, we know him too well. Competitive and power-hungry guys like him will not just stay down like an obedient little puppy. At the same time, we think Derek could be stirring some drama of his own since he just turned into an alpha. One can’t help but wonder if he’ll be as crazy as his uncle was and go around recklessly killing people. And of course, not to forget our dearest Scott, who is still trying to get rid of his lycanthropy. We predict more conflicts between him and Alison (by nature because of their predator-prey relationship) and we’re secretly hoping for a big quarrel because let’s face it; a relationship with no obstacles is a boring relationship (onscreen anyway). We definitely want to see more of her archery skills! We think the girl has talent and she should start using them like a badass. If you guys watched the trailer, you’d know that there appears to be something else apart from the werewolves, something sinister. We’re hoping Alpha Female (not to be mixed with the word “alpha” used previously) Lydia has something to do with it, especially since she miraculously survived the attack in Season 1 without turning into a werewolf.
The Secret Circle
Photos credits to ABC, CBS, CW, FOX, FX, MTV & NBC.
Cancelled:
We’re sad to announce that show has been cancelled, even though there were attempts to bring it back. Show creator Kevin Williamson later confirmed this news, in an interview with IGN. The Secret Circle may have been boring in the middle, but it sure caught us by surprise more than once with the plot twists that happened later on (cue: traitor witch being Nick). And come on, who doesn’t love wizards and witches? We are extremely big fans of supernatural shows/movies, and we think that there’s potential for the show to grow further because of its cliffhangers.
What we expect(ed) to see:
Now that Charles is alive (sadly, as a vegetable) because the demons are sealed, we wonder if someone is going to try and release them again to kill them so that he can live a normal life. Secondly, we’re hoping that Grant is no ordinary human being, mainly because he’s just too suspicious to ignore. Being the random cute guy appearing in the middle of the show who desperately wants to date a witch, how can we not doubt his background? Lastly, we expect some kickass epic magic battles taking place (maybe not as epic as Harry Potter, but exciting enough to keep you at the edge of your chair) now that the remaining 4 Balcoin witches have arrived in town. With Adam playing around with the dark crystal (so much for being entrusted to seal it, dude), Cassie practising her dark magic (as always), Faye and Melissa getting their solo magic back, and Diana unlocking her dark magic, there’s bound to be something. We just hope that they’ll drop some of their lame spells (eg “Lock, unlock”), and start using some real powerful magic. Sadly, we won’t be able to see any of that now.
We hope you enjoyed watching these shows as much as we did! We can’t wait for new shows like The Carrie Diaries, Arrow, Nashville and many more. For all of you TV junkies out there, it’s time to schedule some of them into your daily routine if you’re as excited about them as we are!