ERM-TV's 'Top Ten' June shows

It's understood that I'm a TV addict -- although barbarian networks, such as CBS and NBC, are whittling away with a poleaxe at my favorite shows. To wit: "Unforgettable" being replaced by "Vegas" come fall on CBS and "Prime Suspect" outted by "The Firm" (and whatever happened to that show?) on NBC. I read on "Google News" that CBS is considering breathing new life into "Unforgettable" as a possible 2013 replacement show. I'm holding my breath. NOT!

Thank goodness for Summer TV via cable networks A&E, Lifetime, Sy-Fy, TNT and USA. June is about over, but I do have a "Top Ten" list for blog readers.

Picking my No. 1 June program wound up being between "Rizzoli & Isles" and "The Glades" -- with "R&I" winning by a nose. Sound familiar? The same toss-up happened in choosing my "Top Ten Sci-Fi Movies" between "Avatar" and "Inception" -- with "Avatar" winning.

TNT's classy police procedural "Rizzoli & Isles" gets the nod for the top rung. I enjoyed Angie Harmon as an ADA on "Law and Order" and Sasha Alexander as a federal agent on "NCIS." Put the two together in "R&I" and you have a definite hit. The supporting cast includes Lorraine Bracco (Rizzoli's mother), Jordan Bridges (Rizzoli's brother), Lee Thompson Young (Det. Barry Frost), Bruce McGill (Det. Vince Korsak) and even a guest shot by Jacqueline Bisset as Maura's mother (Maura's adopted).

A&E's "The Glades" stars Matt Passmore as Det. Jim Longworth and Kiele Sanchez as Callie Cargill. It's taken two seasons, but Jim and Callie are more than just friends. I loved Sanchez in "30 Days of Night: Dark Days" in which she played a vampire hunter/slayer. I still get chill bumps recalling a few particular scenes, but I digress.

Another favorite, "Eureka," is down to the last few episodes of its final season. The quirky show, on Sy-Fy, stars Colin Ferguson (Sheriff Carter), Erica Cerra (Deputy Lupo), Salli Richardson-Whitfield Allison), Neil Grayston (Fargo), Joe Morton (Henry), Felicia Day (Holly) and Niall Matter (Zane). "Eureka" will be the second show to end this Summer TV season, following "In Plain Sight") on USA.

Here's my "Top Ten" June shows:

  1. Rizzoli & Isles (TNT)
  2. The Glades (A&E)
  3. Eureka (Sy-Fy)
  4. Necessary Roughness (USA)
  5. Lost Girl (Sy-Fy)
  6. Fairly Legal (USA)*
  7. Franklin & Bash (TNT)
  8. Burn Notice (USA)
  9. Royal Pains (USA)
10. Drop Dead Diva (Lifetime)

There's still more to come  in  July -- including the last six episodes of "The Closer" on TNT (July 9 @ 9 p.m.); "White Collar" on USA (July 10 @ 9); "Covert Affairs" on USA (July 10 @ 10); "Warehouse 13" on Sy-Fy (July 23 @ 9); and "Alphas" on Sy-Fy (July 23 @ 10).

If you are a "Suits" or "Common Law" fan, your shows are missing because I just didn't want to become part of those USA shows only to be disappointed. Nor is "Justified" from FX listed.

ERM-TV has signed off.
    *The summer season has ended for "Fairly Legal."

My days as a serial killer have ended

In writing "Nomad" (the sequel to "Plotz" that was published in 2011) over the past 10 months, I have been an intrepid investigative reporter, a fiery female behavioral analyst, a police detective(s) and a serial killer.

I finished the last chapter on 06.18.12. To be honest, it has been quite exhausting -- both physically and mentally. So I am taking a short (two weeks at least) vacation before I begin the editing and rewriting process. I have decided to add an epilogue, but will wait until after the aforementioned process that all writers face after typing "THE END" at the bottom of the page.

The "Nomad" cover was created by my nephew-in-law, a very talented Roderick Mullins, who resides in Wise, Va. He took my original idea, added his own artistic touch and -- well, you can see the end result at right.

I suppose all writers do their role-playing bit -- placing themselves in the shoes of a particular character. As Evan (my protagonist), who is the crime reporter for the fictional Glamorgan Gazette, I felt I was in familiar environs. As a newspaperman for 29 years, I drew on my experience as a reporter and an editor to "help" Evan piece together the mystery behind Nomad, the serial killer.

Becoming Annie (my heroine) was no easy assignment. She is a comprehensive composite of several women I have known, met professionally or seen on TV (think "Criminal Minds").

As for doing the detective work, I relied on my experience as a police reporter (a long, long time ago) and, again, TV (think "Law and Order" or "Law and Order: Criminal Intent").

Becoming Nomad was the most difficult task that I faced. In reality, I am not a serial killer; however, to write about one, I spent months pretending to be one. I did scads of research (Google and I became the best of friends) and read about Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jack the Ripper and, of course, Hannibal Lecter (I even watched the four-star "Silence of the Lambs").

Psychologically-speaking, I had to place myself inside a serial killer's head; and, in doing so, when I penned Nomad's murderous deeds, I made certain that my readers were inside Nomad's head, too.

In "Plotz" (co-written with Sandra Z. Bruney using the pen name Marshall Bruney), readers did a lot of traveling across the state of North Carolina and visited several well-known sites and ate some fine, fine North Carolina food. In "Nomad," the reader will visit Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and Odessa, Texas, as Evan unravels similar Nomad cases.

So dear friends, if you meet me on the street, don't panic. I'm not sizing you up as my next victim. I just haven't been able to get rid of "the look" yet. (:-)

My Top Ten List of Sci-Fi Movies

After viewing "Prometheus" on 06.08.2012, I wondered where Ridley Scott's venture back into science-fiction (after a 33-year absence from the genre) would place on my Top Ten List; so, I went file searching and located an ancient list with Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" as No. 1.

No "Avatar". No "Inception". No "The Matrix".

My new No. 1 was a battle between "Avatar" and "Inception." "Avatar" won by a nose -- so to speak.

So, without further ado, here's my updated Top Ten List of Sci-Fi Movies:

  1. Avatar (directed by James Cameron)
  2. Inception (directed by Christopher Nolan)
  3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (directed by Stanley Kubrick)
  4. Alien (directed by Ridley Scott)
  5. Blade runner (directed by Ridley Scott)
  6. Prometheus (directed by Ridley Scott)
  7. Aliens (directed by James Cameron)
  8. The Matrix (directed by the Wachowski brothers, Andy and Lana)
  9. Dune (directed by David Lynch)
10. Terminator (directed by James Cameron)

I note with interest that Cameron and Scott have three movies each in my Top Ten; and that "2001: A Space Odyssey," which was released in 1968, held that No. 1 post for 44 years. Wow!

Also, none of the "Star Wars" movies remain in my new list. The 1977 release of "Star Wars" (retitled to "Star Wars: A New Hope" by director George Lucas after Episodes 1, 2 and 3 were released) was easily No. 2 on the "Old List" but fell into the "Second Ten" when I placed "Prometheus" at No. 6.