Cylons, Matthew Perry and Christopher Nolan.

I tried this already with Arrested Development and nothing good came of that. Previously on this blog, a friend of mine recommended The Wire and I've since seconded that recommendation. But now I'm going to try and put my stamp of approval on another series, one that many of you will no doubt ignore out of hand because of its genre.

Of course, I'm talking about Battlestar Galactica, airing every Friday at 9PM on the Sci Fi Channel. You're going to say, "But, Murph, I haven't been watching it since the beginning, so, I won't know what's going on." To that I say, "Suck it up and deal." If it's good, it's good, right?

In fact, this reasoning is troublesome to me. Surely, you can listen to a band without ever having heard them before and like one of their songs. Most of the time, if the song really knocks your socks off, don't you want to go and seek out other songs by the group? With the way DVDs are quickly released after each season, renting a couple of discs or even outright purchasing season sets is yet another way to invalidate the excuse that you can't catch up to a show.

But, again I say, if it's good, it's good, right?

I had never seen Buffy the Vampire Slayer when I sat down to watch it in between classes some 4 years ago now. By then, the show was ending its 6th season on primetime, but it was already rerunning previous episodes on FX -- in two hour blocks, no less. I saw what was probably episode 16 of season five and I got hooked. I made sure to watch those episodes every day and then, of course, the DVDs when I could, and I caught up in no time. But not knowing the totality of the series prior to episode 16 of season 5 did not diminish my enjoyment of episode 16, nor any preceding or following it.

Similarly, my girlfriend and I have a standing Tuesday night date where we watch my stories: House, Veronica Mars and Boston Legal. She's getting in to Veronica Mars, even though she doesn't know these characters at all. But the show's good enough that she's keen to keep watching. A friend of the blog has also started to watch House regularly and has gone so far as to call and ask questions about the show to fill in the blanks.

So, when I say that Battlestar Galactica is a show you should TiVo or otherwise watch, please don't use the excuse that there's too much there for you to catch up on. Enjoy the ride, because it is an emotional, disturbing, thrilling drama that deserves its critical acclaim as well as your attention. Fridays at 9PM on Sci Fi.

Now, Aaron Sorkin's latest series, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip does not receive the Awkward Phrasing Stamp O'Pproval on account of its sanctimony, condescension, and near-total lack of humor.

By now you probably know that Studio 60 is about the behind-the-scenes of a Saturday Night Live-type show. But wait, there's more to it! Matthew Perry plays Matt Albie, a writer with a knack for being The Greatest Writer Humanity Has Ever Known, who nonetheless must toil away writing seemingly every sketch for a late night comedy show because his best friend and business partner Danny Tripp (Bradley Whitford) tested positive for cocaine use and now he can't get insured to direct their movie. Ultimately, the show is as pointless, long-winded and unnecessarily complicated as the description I just wrote.

Then again, The West Wing is a tough act to follow. Still, it's hard not to see Aaron Sorkin pulling a Charlie Kaufman a la Adaptation here and writing himself into his own TV series, where he and his real-life biz partner Tommy Schlamme are wunderkinds, savants, or just flat out Gods Amongst Men in the TV world.

But when the dramatic stakes are significantly lower (than, say, the Presidency) and the characters are flat and muddled when it comes to point of view, it's hard to care about this show. I really expected to enjoy Studio 60. But I don't, and I don't expect you to, either.

And, finally, I must state publicly that I am a yooge fan of director Christopher Nolan (Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins). His new film The Prestige opened today. I will be seeing this sucker in short order, but let me just say that it's going to rock. I don't need to see a review, I don't need the word of mouth, I just know it's going to be a great movie that will catch you off guard. I am recommending it based on nothing other than I love the way this guy creates a mood with his movies. He creates mystery, dramatic tension and he genuinely gets great performances out of his actors. He also strives for a more realistic movie world, and that realistic style is what I appreciate the most. The more we can recognize the world on screen, the more likely we are to suspend disbelief where necessary and get swept up in the drama. Movie audiences are far more intelligent than those of twenty years ago. A more sophisticated storytelling dynamic is necessary simply because of the volumes of films that have been produced over time.

Go see The Prestige, TiVo Battlestar Galactica and read a book at 10PM on Monday nights. Oh, and have a great weekend!