'Tis not the season quite yet to be jolly, but 'tis the season to definitely be thankful!
We at Watch With Kristin wanted to share our list of television-related items we are thankful for this year, so we sat down and looked deep inside ourselves to pick out our top favorites. Some shows were mentioned twice, and some of us were more thankful for the, ahem, attractiveness of a character on a certain Showtime drama. But the outcome is still as varied as Team WWK's taste in TV. Check out our list, and then hit the comments and tell us what you're thankful for this TV season!
Tierney's Thankful List:
- I am thankful for Mindy Kaling for the following line from The Mindy Project, which I now use to sum up my life for people: "I spent my weekend watching the movie Amélie, and when I woke up, I had spilled so much red wine on myself I thought for a second I had been shot." Also: She earned my forever love when she acknowledged the underrated awesomeness that is You've Got Mail.
- For Once Upon a Time's ability to make me feel like a little kid again. These days, it seems like every show lives to scare or shock its audience, so it's rare that a show as hopeful, happy and magical as OUAT thrives. So thanks for never losing your sense of wonder, Show! Oh, and of course, thanks Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis for giving me a new hot Irish actor (Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Hook), to love after taking Jamie Dornan aka my beloved hot hipster Sheriff away from me. Consider the debt paid.
- For Homeland for reminding me (and hopefully every other TV show) what the medium is truly capable of doing and the feelings (mostly anxiety) it has the ability to bring out of its viewers. Then again, I'm kind of mad at the Showtime drama for ruining every other show for me; they just pale in comparison.
Shawna's Thankful List:
- The Walking Dead's bloody-good third season. A faster pace, the return of one-handed Merle, the shocking deaths of Lori and T-Dog, and the introductions of sword-wielding wonder Michonne and especially The Governor, so cray under that smooth exterior...together, they've helped breathe new life into AMC's undead thriller
- Top Chef: Seattle, which is swiftly cleansing our palates of the bad aftertaste left by Top Chef: Texas. A few key ingredients—including talented chef-testants, from "most hated" John to quietly confident Kuniko; mouth-watering challenges and the addition of quippy judge Wolfgang Puck,has this go-round of Bravo's reality competition cookin'.
- Scandal's razor-sharp plot twists and addictive personal dramas. Will Olivia and Fitz find their way back to each other? Can Huck continue to stay on the no-killing wagon? Only time will tell, but in its second season, nothing about this ABC hit about a team of fixers needs to be fixed.
Taryn's Thankful List:
- I'm thankful for the return of Britney Spears, and I don't just mean to TV. When she snapped at Simon Cowell during last week's X Factor while defending Beatrice Miller she reminded me of the sassy popstar I became obsessed with. Plus, the fact I love her new single "Scream and Shout" reminds me she is still a superstar since she can judge and record at the same time. Sorry, Christina Aguilera, Lotus just didn't do it for me!
- I am thankful for the Brits. Damian Lewis became the second redhead (Prince Harry being the first) that I would like to be my husband. Yeah, I know he's married but it doesn't hurt to just look every Sunday night on Homeland, does it? Barry Sloane, who plays Aiden on Revenge, also is one of the reasons I keep coming back during what many call Revenge's sophomore slump. And Downton Abbey became one of my favorite shows out of nowhere!
- Finally, I am thankful for TBS. They gave Cougar Town another life! I just don't know what I would do without being able to laugh and watch this show while drinking wine out of a replica Big Joe.
Jenna's Thankful List:
- I am thankful for the perfection that is Parks and Recreation. The writing is perfect. The cast is perfect. The storylines are perfect. Even the work happening behind the scenes is perfect. It is the most perfect comedy on television right now. And I don't throw around the term "perfect" often. Except for this paragraph, in which I used it more than five times.
- Also, I'm very thankful for Wednesday Mornings, because that means I have new episodes of both New Girl and Happy Endings to watch. Picking between those two on Tuesday nights is the Sophie's Choice of television, so I just DVR them both and alternate which one I watch first come the morning. This way, I can avoid having both Happy Endings' Adam Pally and New Girl's Jake Johnson attack me on Twitter for playing favorites. I love both shows equally, and I am thankful that they are both having good seasons this year.
- Finally, the new Smash trailer rocked my world, and I could not be more thankful that the show's second season is almost upon us. While the first season was uneven at best, the season finale destroyed any bad memories I had about Ellis' constant habit of lingering in doorways and Leo's general presence. Honestly, the season-two promo left me breathless, and with the addition of the adorable and hella talented Jeremy Jordan and the incomparable Jennifer Hudson, Smash will surely smash my expectations.
- That reminds me: I am thankful for puns, too.