Saturday, October 18, 2008

The Week's Most Popular TV Episodes




#1 Family Guy (S7E2 "I Dream of Jesus")
Last week's rank: #2
This is the only show episode on Hulu that actually climbed in the rankings, so I guess the taboo subject of Jesus is tearing up the inernet. The episode, in which Peter meets Jesus working in a video store and befriends the son of God, is filled with funny sacrilege.

#2 The Office (S5E2 "Business Ethics")
Last week's rank: New to list
This episode is absolutely classic, and I'm glad to see that it ranks so high after only a single day on Hulu. The star attraction is Michael, who is all hyped up to be a father figure in the life of Jan's unborn child. The entire episode is centered around Jan treating Michael shoddily, and Michael treating the sweet Holly like dirt in turn (in an effort to please Jan). In the end, Jan asks Michael not to date Holly, leaving him with a big choice to make. I don't knwo why I'm rehashing the episode-- watch for the hilarious jokes.

#3 Saturday Night Live: Weekend Update Thursday (S1E1)
Last week's rank: New to list
This experiment by the SNL folks is already a huge success. I thought this particular episode was lacking, but the second installment is much better.

#4 Family Guy (S7E1 "Love Blactually)
Last week's rank: #1
This was listed as set to expire last week, but I guess someone changed their mind. Brian is smitten with a new girl, but when he tries to take it slow, Cleveland moves in.

#5 Heroes (S3E5 "Angels and Monsters")
Last week's rank: New to list
Heroes had a great first season, but then bogged down in season 2. The creators said that they understood the problem and were fixing it, but I'm about ready to give up on this one. The action has picked up, it's true, which is nice. But the labyrinthine plot involving all of this time travel just makes my head hurt-- the future Heroes coming back once in a great while is a nice gimmick, but it's been the central theme for 3 seasons now, and I'm sick of it. Set me up with some cool origin stories and some cool battles, and I'm satisfied. Anyhow, Hulooligans think enough of the show to make it clock in at #4, which is something.

#6 The Daily Show With John Stewart (S3E125)
Last week's rank: #4
Slipping only 2 spots from last week, this episode features Clint Eastwood as the guest, pimping his new "Changeling" movie (which does not have great buzz, btw). I watched this episode and enjoyed it, but I'm not really sure why it's showing such stamina over other eps in the series.

#7 It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (S4E3 "America's Next Top Paddy's Billboard Model Contest")
Last week's rank: #7
Holding strong at spot #7, this is a hilarious episode. Frank puts some aspiring models (including Dennis) through hell to win a spot on a billboard he's purchased. But the funniest stuff is the B story, involving Dee and Charlie trying to gain internet fame with viral videos.

#8 It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (S4E4 "Mac's Banging the Waitress")
Last week's rank: #8
Also holding strong, which is nice, because the show is fricking awesome. Dennis is jealous of Charlie and Mac's "best friends" status, and tries to drive a wedge between them. He picked a good week, because, after all, Mac's banging the waitress.

#9 The Daily Show With John Stewart (S13E124)
Last week's rank: New to list
I wonder whether this show is going to keep ranking so high when the election is over. I'm surprised that it's nabbed two spots on the list, while "The Colbert Report" companion show hasn't yet made an appearance.

#10 The Simpsons (S20E2 "Lost Verizon")
Last week's rank: #10
It's nice to see a 20 year old program hanging with the big boys on the top ten list. In this ep, Bart is desperate for a cell phone, and he steals one from the local golf course. It turns out that the rightful owner is Dennis Leary, who is mad as hell. There's an especially good sequence in which Bart makes a slew of classic prank phone calls to bars around the world.
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