TV Watch

The new season has started, and while I'm still hanging on to some favorites from last year like "Desperate Housewives", "Without a Trace" and "CSI", I've also added two new shows: "Commander in Chief" and "How I Met Your Mother."

The latter is such a cute little comedy. It's funny, the acting is very good, and I actually laugh at some of the gags. And I have a very low threshold when it comes to obscene humor, so I'd daresay this comedy might actually even be family-safe, since nothing that's happened in the two episodes I've seen has made me want to run and dunk my head into a vat of bleach.

I like "Commander in Chief" for acting and yes, the set-up is schmaltzy, and there's a generous dose of suspension of disbelief required for key story points, but the presence of Geena Davis just transcends it all and I'm not even a Davis fan. I also think Kyle Secor, as the First Gentleman, is absolutely adorable. Plus, it's more of a political intrigue, rather than issues-based -- which got old real quick with "The West Wing" -- and that appeals to me.

Shows I've dumped this year: "NCIS", "ER", "The West Wing", "The Apprentice", and "The Amazing Race" (family edition and racing across the US not doing it for me; I liked this show because, y'know, it featured people bungee jumping off cliffs in New Zealand or going on a safari in Kenya).