As part of my (once again) renewed committment to try to post a blog entry every week, I'm going to go through the TV shows that I'm watching. Rather than try to say it all in one huge, boring post that becomes a struggle to finish, I'm going to break it down and write about one day each week.

On Mondays, I watch The Big Bang Theory on CBS. I can best sum up its appeal for me when I tell you that after my lovely fiancee and I watched it together for the first time a couple of weeks ago, she started laughing hysterically, then turned to me and said, "I'm marrying the Big Bang Theory." I wish I could say that there were moments on the show that weren't exactly like times spent with my friends, but sadly, that's not the case.

Part of what makes the show great for me, besides it being really funny, is that it treats the geek characters with warmth and sympathy. They're funny because--like all geeks--they're obsessed with things outside the mainstream, and this makes them outsiders to a certain degree. But while this may make them awkward, it doesn't make them stupid, or unemotional, or whatever. Penny, the "normal" woman in the cast, doesn't treat them like they're any less human just because she doesn't understand all the things they talk about. And that's what won me over from the very first episode.

(Also, producer Chuck Lorre's vanity cards at the end of each episode are hilarious, if you take the time to freeze and read them. Or you can just read them online at the handy link I just posted.)

A new show I'm watching on Mondays is Castle on ABC. It stars Nathan Fillion, of Firefly/Dr. Horrible/Buffy fame, but I'm not just watching it for the geek casting. I skipped the entire first season, because the concept just sounded DOA. Fillion plays Richard Castle, a mystery writer who helps the NYPD solve crimes while working with them for research for his books. It's Murder, She's Old, only tonight the part of Jessica Fletcher will be played by Nathan Fillion. At least, that was my initial perception.

Now that it's made it to a second season (and been renewed for a full 22 episodes) I'm willing to give it a shot, especially since it comes highly recommended by a friend whose opinion I trust. And it's a lot of fun. It's got a police setting, but it's not a cop show. It's an old-fashioned mystery/romance show, kind of in the vein of Moonlighting but more grounded. The dialogue is snappy and witty, and the characters are engaging. It's got nothing really to do with police procedure, but Columbo isn't any less of a show than Hill Street Blues for the same reason.

Coincidentally, the two shows I watch on Mondays star actors from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: Nathan Fillion and Simon Helberg. Maybe I should start watching How I Met Your Mother again for Neil Patrick Harris, but there's just not enough time.