Blog Posts by Angel Cohn

With Valentine's Day around the corner, we take a moment to celebrate not necessarily the best relationships on TV, but the pairings who seem like they'd be really cool to spend some time with.

10. Haley and Dylan ("Modern Family")
The recent episode with them as a little "family" taking care of the new baby and Lily was actually kind of charming... and if they've found a way to keep Lily (or Lucy) in check, we're all for the two of them together. Plus, we'd just sit around and brainstorm ideas for animal related T-shirts.

9. Lily and Marshall ("How I Met Your Mother")
There's not a lot of positive things to say about "HIMYM" these days, but Lily and Marshall are still cool... even if they frequently forget that they have a child. We'd sit at the bar with them and stage intervention after intervention for Ted (and possibly the writers) until something finally stuck. Hell, it's not like they have anything better to do.

8. Ruxin and Sofia ("The League")
We don't have

When "Scandal" started this past spring, we watched it but chalked it up as another guilty-pleasure show under the Shonda Rhimes umbrella. You know, like "Grey's Anatomy" but with politics. But somewhere toward the end of its first season, the show turned up the heat and captured our attention. Unfortunately, many people tuned out before it got juicy, or they didn't even spare it a glance before writing it off as another Shonda soap. For those people, here's why it's worth a second look.

Olivia Pope is actually an awful person
Don't take that in a bad way. Our favorite shows are filled with antiheroes, and she's worthy of joining their ranks. We initially were blinded by Kerry Washington's insane beauty, but we went on to see her manipulate a president and an election, be complicit in a major cover-up involving one of her own staffers, ruin relationships to save herself, involve herself in an extramarital affair, and help some truly disgusting criminals. That highly touted white hat

Although very few of this fall's new programs are remotely outstanding, most of them have at least one redeeming character. Yes, even "Beauty & the Beast." Here are the standout sidekicks who don't get enough recognition:

10. Tyra ("Emily Owens, Meryl's Daughter")
This bubbly lesbian character seems to be the only one with any actual common sense on this program, and she understands the inner workings of the hospital, given her father's position. And she's fun, which is more than we can say about everyone else on the show.

9. Peter ("Chicago Fire")
To be honest, we mostly watch this show for the eye-candy and the cool fires and explosions, but while we ignore most of the relationship storylines, we still pay some attention to the young newbie torn between the two attractive heads of the different factions in the firehouse.

8. Glitzy ("Here Comes Honey Boo Boo")
This pig is seriously adorable. And his squeals make as much sense as most of the dialogue on the show. Put him in

Some TV series hit their second season and decide to change their formats entirely ("Up All Night," we're looking at you), while others that got off to a strong start in Season 1 are unable to sustain their quality or intriguing storylines in their second year. But on occasion, some shows actually improve with time. We took a look at the 2011-12 season's freshman crop to see how they are holding up.

"New Girl": Smash
We've got some problems with it (too much Schmidt and an underutilized Winston), but the show is a solid comedy that's still really funny, even though it does seem to be struggling to please everyone in its ensemble. As long as they stick with the group dynamics, which is what makes this show work, and the rapid-fire jokes, it will stay in our must-see list. Also, having the dreadful "Mindy Project" air after it makes us appreciate it even more.

"Homeland": Smash
This drama had a stellar freshman season (not to mention a huge Emmy night), so we were concerned that it

Most comedies are filled with Halloween-themed episodes, with people putting on costumes and pulling mischievous pranks and the like. And while there are the rare dramas that feature their characters going to a costume party or have a specific horror angle, there are a few shows that just don't lend themselves to Halloween-themed episodes, which is something we'd like to see that change.

10. "Last Resort"
Take some time out from all of that nuclear missile business and enjoy the holiday, island-style: figuring out the native traditions and maybe taking the sub on a mission to bring back a shipload of Kit Kats for the whole island population to delight in.

9. "Mad Men"
The early leaked pics of Don and Megan in resort-wear have set our minds racing, wondering what adorable couples costume they might wear. Might we suggest something timely, like Don as Gilligan, trying to choose between Ginger (Joan) and Mary Ann (Megan)? And wouldn't Sally Draper be a perfect Wednesday Addams?

(Television Without Pity) — This season, people who nearly died on "Survivor" in the past received a chance to return and play against other mortals who have an unproven safety record. How will the returnees fare against the new kids? We've got our predictions.

Abi-Maria Gomes
Stats: 32-year-old business student from Los Angeles, California
First impression: This Brazilian showed up wearing a ridiculous flowy dress that offered no protection and says she's not above flirting to get ahead in the game. We're not surprised.
Odds of winning: 30 to 1. Flirting? That's so six seasons ago.

Angie Layton
Stats: 20-year-old model/student from Provo, Utah
First impression: She was ticked that Russell gave her puzzles to do when she said that she was better at physical challenges, so she's likely gunning for him, and she's got Malcolm on her side.
Odds of winning: 12 to 1. We sense that she's got an angry side, and when it comes to the surface, her real game will start.

Artis Silvester
Stats:

(Television Without Pity) — After just a couple of episodes, NBC's new 2012 drama "Revolution" has already prompted a huge amount of questions -- and we're not even talking about the source and mechanics of the global power outage, which we presume (or rather, hope) will be answered eventually. No, we have these other queries in mind…

Why pick a crossbow over a regular bow and arrow, or even a sword? Crossbows are heavy to carry, cumbersome to load, and totally ineffective in a firefight.

Wouldn't everyone's clothes be more tattered? It's not like the Gap is still producing and distributing new clothing, yet everyone still looks perfectly coiffed, if a little dingy.

How does Miles expect Charlie and her friends to meet in Indiana, or find any destination, really? Are there maps available? No one seems to be using compasses and there don't appear to be any street signs anywhere in the overgrown woods.

How exactly were the rules of the Baltimore Act communicated to the general populace?

Once the two main twists to the 14th season of "Big Brother" fizzled out, thanks to Russell Hantz's brother Willie's early ouster and the end of the veteran coach angle, it looked as though the 2012 edition of the CBS reality competition show was headed for a disappointing second half. But that was before previous winner and nominated-for-eviction ex-coach Dan resurrected his game -- and the show's entertainment value -- with the most jaw-dropping, cold-blooded, strategic play in the show's history, putting him on track to snatch away the title of greatest "Big Brother" player ever from Season 2's Dr. Will Kirby. Here's a look back at a summer for the ages:

Willie head-butting Joe
Not only was it irrational and totally unexpected, but also it got Russell Hantz's brother quickly removed from the game without our having to listen to him whine to Julie. We only wish someone had provoked him sooner, since his fuse was