Bi-Monthly Power Rankings- 20 Through 11

Rick Moonen guest judges on Top Chef

Here we go with some of my favorite series currently on television. Here we have numbers 20 through 11 on the Quiet Pool Perspective's September Power Rankings. We have one new edition and a couple of big slippers. Enjoy.

Place. Show- (last time)...red=moving down, green=moving up

20. Top Chef- (HM) Wednesday on Bravo
This is just quality reality television. The contestants don't get as in depth a look as some of the other greats, so I haven't loved or hated any of them as much as Big Bro or Survivor peeps, but the challenges are great. Each week it's something new. Through two seasons of watching, I have never gotten mad at this show, which is the main reason it took American Idol's spot in the top 20.

19. Treme- (18) Sundays on HBO
Treme came out with a good first ten episodes last spring. I wasn't left that excited, but I enjoyed every hour that I watched. I'm looking forward to seeing if they introduce anyone new after the major character that we lost at the end of the first season.

18. Sonny With a Chance- (19) Sundays on Disney Channel
Without a doubt my current favorite on Disney. Demi Lovato has shot up the charts for best leading ladies on television. Her comedic moments are so much better this season. Add that to Sterling Knight and the improvement of fat Grady and you got yourself a ridiculously fun sitcom.

Hank Moody doin' work

17. Californication- (17) Sundays on Showtime
A pretty long hiatus for the David Duchovny dramedy. I'm looking forward to the appearance of Rob Lowe next season. There's no way he'll be as funny as in Parks and Rec, but he could just be in a groove right now.

16. Parks and Recreation- (16) Thursdays on NBC
Speaking of the NBC comedy...Parks won't be back until mid-season because they needed to leave room for the God awful looking Outsourced. The addition of Adam Scott and Rob Lowe have me extremely excited for its return.

15. Survivor- (14) Wednesdays on CBS
A couple of great seasons last year keep Survivor near the top. Can they continue this run? Will some people tune in just to see ex-Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson? I know I'm looking forward to seeing the hair get messed up in Nicaragua.

14. Justified- (15) Tuesdays on FX
Justified had a great first season, with the second half picking up steam to what was a fantastic finale. Timothy Olyphant, as Raylan Givens, has created one of my favorite characters on tv.

Russell with a beautiful vase

13. True Blood- (8) Sundays on HBO
And so we get to the biggest faller of the September Power Rankings. As Larry said to me a week or so ago, "they think that good tv is just the craziest sh*t you can think of." I mean I'm a fan of crazy, but to a certain point. When that's basically all you're giving me, I get fed up with it. My biggest problem with this season of True Blood is that every episode just runs together. I can't pick out a single episode by name, number or even event. Russell has been on and off for me, and in no way a decent replacement for Maryann as the big bad of the season.

12. The Office- (9) Thursdays on NBC
Another big dropped even though it hasn't been on since the last rankings. I'm having some residual bad feelings towards the last season of The Office. Maybe I didn't like it as much as I thought, or maybe it's because Alan Sepinwall and company repeatedly tell me that it was an awful year for the NBC comedy. Either way, this next season should be interesting as we watch to see who will take Steve Carell's place as the main man.

11. Mad Men- (13) Sundays on AMC
Mad Men is a show that can be extremely boring for some. As it was for me when I first started watching. Now whether it's because I'm writing about every episode, or it has just gotten significantly better, Mad Men is now so very interesting to me. There's something about writing about every little detail of a show that will cause you to either love it or hate it. In this case it is the former. The other thing is that after three and a half seasons, it's much easier to get involved in the goings on of these characters.

Summer Poolies Watch- Comedy

Before I get into chatting about the comedies that have been airing this summer, I'd like to give out a two-sided warning. If you are one of my readers that love the Disney Channel shows, continue on excitedly. If you are one of my readers that write off the Disney shows without ever giving them a chance, then stop here because Party Down is really the only other comedy that's been on the air so far this season.

Let's take a look at the big one. The Seinfeld Award for Best Comedy Series. The only series nominated last year that that has aired is Jonas and after a revamp of the show, I'm shifting it to the drama category. So who then who is vying for a spot thus far? Well Party Down is right there on the cusp, but it's schedule really hurts it for the Poolies. Six eps of the second season aired during last year's time frame, and then four more came out in June. With no third season in sight, it's hard to imagine a nomination for four eps.

So now we get to the Disney shows. Here is my current order of how good they've been since June 1st. 1) Sonny With a Chance. 2) Hannah Montana. 3) Wizards of Waverly Place. 4) Good Luck Charlie. Sonny has excelled thanks to the vast improvement of Demi Lovato and an awesome two-parter in 'Falling for the Falls.' Hannah is off to a good start in its final season, with the exit of Smokin' Okin coming as a pleasant surprise.

What else have I been checking out on the comedy circuit? TVLand's Hot In Cleveland and FX's Louie. Neither have done much for me. Even though Louie is getting rave reviews, it's all Mr. CK and his down on his luck character/personality is not funny to me. And then with Cleveland we have a 90s style sitcom, which I'm mainly watching for the appearance of Joe Jonas later this season.

I only have four dudes in the running for the Cory Matthews Award for Best Lead Character in a Comedy, but does anyone other than Larry David have a shot if Curb comes out before June 2011? Henry Pollard and his final four eps lead the way, while Justin Russo and Chad Dylan Cooper, from Wizards and Sonny, respectively, have had good starts to the season. Louie CK, who some feel is the funniest man in the world, rounds out the group.

The Arthur Spooner Award for Best Supporting Character in a Comedy has had more competition early on. You have a trio of Party Downers in Kyle, Ron and even Roman who wasn't as annoying to me this season. Robby Ray Stewart has kept up his obnoxious antics so far and should be able to secure a second straight nomination if things continue the way they have. Although Sonny's Grady Mitchell knocked it out of the park with his "coupon" lines, Max Russo of Wizards is the only other one with a chance.

Quietly becoming one of the toughest categories to crack, the Phoebe Buffay Award for Best Female Character in a Comedy is off to a good start. What can you say, but adult television doesn't know how to create funny female characters. They leave that to the kids shows. The triple Disney threat of Sonny Munroe, Alex Russo and Miley Stewart will most likely be my one, two and three next June no matter what else happens. Casey Klein of Party Down had a very good showing this season and should be in the running for a nomination. Then there is Lilly Truscott of Hannah and the Duncan girls of Good Luck Charlie.

Not much to hate so far in the world of comedy. One comes to mind though. Lydia Dunfree of Party Down. As a replacement for Jane Lynch's Constance, she annoyed the heck out of me every time she was on screen. Also a couple to hate from Sonny are Nico, who was nominated last year, and Zora who should have been.

And finally we have the 'The Dealership' Award for Best Comedy Episode. I've got two in mind so far. Party Down's 'Company Picnic' and the aforementioned 'Falling for the Falls' of Sonny With a Chance.

And next we will have a look at the early season drama doings here at the Pool.

Bi-Monthly Power Rankings- 20 Through 11

The Quiet Pool Power Rankings continue with my 11th through 20th favorite shows. A few new series made the cut this time around thanks to the end runs of a couple long timers.

20 Through 11

Show- (last time)...red=moving down, green=moving up

20. American Idol- (15) Tuesdays on FOX
A lackluster season combined with the loss of Simon Cowell doesn't give anyone high hopes for 2011 Idol.

19. Sonny With a Chance- (-) Sundays on Disney Channel
A fantastic recent two part episode, 'Falling For the Falls' sky rocketed Sonny to the top of my Disney standings. Demi Lovato is cracking me up left in right in this comedy.

18. Treme- (HM) Sundays on HBO
I'm really starting to really warm up to many of the characters in the Treme, and unlike most of the stuff I wrote about the season one finale, the show itself is growing on me.

17. Californication- (-) Sundays on Showtime
Hank Moody comes back to the air soon and apparently they'll be shooting a movie for Hank's new book. Sounds good.

16. Parks and Recreation- (17) Thursdays on NBC
Yeah they snagged Adam Scott from Party Down, but what really gave this show a jump up near the end was the addition of Rob Lowe. Let's get him signed to full-time status already.

15. Justified- (20) Tuesdays on FX
Fantastically explosive finally for Raylan and his merry crew. Positive outlook for next season is that Walton Goggins is now a regular castmember. Negative outlook? MC Gainey's Bo Crowder got shot to death.

14. Survivor- (14) Wednesdays on CBS
Every time it's a different game. It continues to shift itself over the years. When it comes back in the fall with a regular group of contestants, my tune might change.

13. Mad Men- (13) Sundays on AMC
It has been quite a long layoff. The fourth season starts up soon and here's hoping that it's as good as the end of season three.

12. Big Brother- (11) Summers on CBS
My favorite reality series is returning soon for the summer. The cast can't be as terrible as it was last season with the likes of Natalie, Chima and Ronnie.

11. It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia- (-) Thursdays on FX
After shooting through seasons one through three, and then skipping four to catch up five before the Poolies, the Gruesome Twosome, the Dynamic Duo and Sweet Dee have me wanting more.

Cable Fall Preview

Although many of these cable shows have already started, I believe they need their just due here.

HBO
Entourage
I thought I'd mention the two HBO programs that are finishing up their current seasons. Entourage has four episodes left and it has been as lackluster of a summer as ever for the entertainment dramedy. Lowlighted by Tom Brady's awful performance, season six has been less than stellar. Stop following E's love life. Nobody likes him. It's torture.

True Blood
True Blood, on the other hand, has taken as giant leap in the right direction in its sophomore season. What started out as a weak-charactered vampire show, has turned into a fantastic-storylined supernatural thriller. The 10th episode of this second season was one of my favorite eps of any show in a long time. After this past Sunday's penultimate ep, there is only one left this summer.

Curb Your Enthusiasm
Curb Your Enthusiasm finally returns on September 20. After what was one of the two best seasons in the show's history, Larry David had a lot to live up to this fall. He found a way to get me even more excited. Prettttty, pretttttty, pretttttty excited. A Seinfeld Reunion. All four of the main actors from Seinfeld, yes Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss and even Michael Richards, will be major contributors on this season of Curb. Not only that, but the premise of the season will be Larry and the gang putting a Seinfeld Reunion in the works.

Disney
After the DVD release of Hannah Montana The Movie this month and the television premier of Wizards of Waverly Place The Movie this past Friday, the Disney Channel's big three are picking up major steam. Joined by Sonny with a Chance, these three shows have gotten me hooked on the Disney Channel as I used to be with Even Stevens back in the day. They don't come without major success either, as the Wizards Movie recorded the highest viewership of the summer, with 11.4 million viewers. I'm assuming most of them are not 23 year old dudes.

Greek
I have yet to watch the season 3 premier of Greek that aired tonight (Monday) but I'm definitely excited for it to be back. Whether it's hating on Rusty's awkwardness, loving Cappie's wit, or crushing on Casey for some inexplicable reason, Greek always brings plenty of entertainment.

Mad Men
Mad Men is three eps in now, and it started up where it left off. Interesting, but not entertaining. I find myself a bit intrigued by the stories and historical elements of the show, but they don't manage to portray them in a way that gets me excited for the next episode. I'd much rather watch a show that can entertain without being smart (the late Las Vegas) than a smart show that fails to entertain (Mad Men).