Chris Fraticelli/TLC; ABC FAMILY/DANNY FELD; PacificCoastNews.com "A" heartbreaking reveal, rednecks and Miley Cyrus, oh my!
Labor Day is upon us, which means that summer is almost over, folks. While we're excited about the upcoming arrival of the fall TV season, we are kind of going to miss all of the TV awesomeness that the summer gave us, including some pretty awesome shockers.
So what made our list of the summer's most shocking TV moments?
1. Two and a Half Men's New Houseguest: Color us surprised that the edgy Miley Cyrus (see: new bleached pixie cut, punk wardrobe) will be making her return to TV on the traditional CBS sitcom. Cyrus is set to play a family friend of Walden's (Ashton Kutcher) who hits it off with Jake (Angus T. Jones).
2. Pretty Little Liars' Big ReveAl: If you're like us, you're obsessed with the ABC Family hit series and its many couplings. But our favoritest (totally a word in our world, so hush!) couple is Spencer (Troian Bellisario) and Toby (Keegan Allen), so you could imagine our reaction when it was revealed in the midseason finale that the chiseled one is a member of the "A" team. In case you lack imagination, our reaction included tears, curse words and objects being thrown around the room. Lots of 'em.
3. Here Comes Your New Reality TV Obsession: Y'all better "redneckognize" that Alana Thompson and her self-proclaimed redneck family are here to stay, thanks to TLC's breakout hit, the polarizing Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. It's a highly-addictive trainwreck you can't help but watch. (And since their home is right next to train tracks, there might actually be a trainwreck in season two.)
4. Meloni, Out: Chris Meloni fans (or, you know, Law & Order: SVU fans) were pretty stoked to hear that the actor was joining True Blood's fifth season as a series regular. They were less than stoked when he was unceremoniously killed off five episodes in. Doink-doink!
5. The Newsroom Under Fire: TV critics' public enemy No. 1 this summer TV season? Aaron Sorkin, the creator of HBO's The Newsroom. They hated the female characters. They hated the pulled-from-the-headlines storylines. They hated Sorkin's infamous monologues. However, viewers didn't feel quite the same way as the show was picked up for a second season. Sorkin: 1, critics: 0.