It's the moooost wonderful tiiime of the yeeeear

It's nearly autumn, which means...the start of the new fall TV season!

As you all know, I love TV and am fascinated by the entertainment industry in general. Maybe my obsession with TV isn't as bad as it was senior year of college, when there was no one around to monitor my addiction, but it's definitely at an unhealthy level. I am, and will forever be, a TV junkie: someone who diligently tapes and rewatches her favorite shows; someone who thinks of the characters as friends and picks up on their speech patterns; someone who has been known to have hissy fits when her "friends" misbehave or when things do not tape properly. Someone, in short, with a problem.

It's with this problem in mind that I look to the new TV season with the hyper anticipation of an addict awaiting his next fix. Okay, not exactly. More like the buzzing glee of Cookie Monster with a fresh batch in the oven. And here's my warm plateful of cookies for fall: you've got your chocolate chips, your oatmeal raisins, your snickerdoodles, your double-chocolates and the elusive oatmeal dark chocolate chip.

Let's go through 'em:

Chocolate chip: Chocolate chips are the shows you can rely on for quality and entertainment. When you pick up a chocolate chip cookie, you know you're going to enjoy it, whether it's crispy or gooey. Same with a chocolate chip show - when you turn on the TV you know it's going to satisfy. Chocolate chip shows I'm looking forward to include Gilmore Girls and Arrested Development.
Rookie cookie with promise: It's early, but Everybody Hates Chris is a frontrunner.

Oatmeal raisin: You need your oatmeal raisin cookies for your fiber, your substance, your...er...regularity. Just like you need your dramas: to keep things solid and grounded. Oatmeal raisin cookies are filling and can be good for you, depending on their ingredients. ORC shows include House and the dearly departed Once and Again.
Rookie cookie with promise: Threshold, starring Carla Gugino.

Snickerdoodle: Who doesn't love a good snickerdoodle? I can't think of anyone. Snickerdoodles are sugary with a bit of spice and exist put a smile on your face. (Just ask Wallace.) Any good comedy should strive for a similar result, and the best ones achieve it. When I want a warm hug in cookie form, I turn to snickerdoodles or snickerdoodle shows like Scrubs and retired MVP Friends.
Rookie cookie with promise: My Name is Earl, starring Jason Lee and competing cookies How I Met Your Mother and Kitchen Confidential.

Double-chocolate: You eat them when you want to feel a little bit bad. You know they're not good for you, and if you over-indulge you won't be happy with the results, but it's hard to stop yourself. They're just this side of wrong, or are they "so wrong it's right"? When you have them a bit at a time, they sure do taste right. For rich, double-chocolatey decadence, try ANTM (best if consumed in groups) or anything on ABC Family.
Rookie cookie with promise: Every year, the batch of potentials gets bigger and bigger. My money/mouth is on Love Inc., Reunion, and Related.

Oatmeal dark chocolate chip: Hard to find, but so worth it when you do, this cookie has it all. It's an inventive mix of laughs, scares, love, heartbreak, pop culture and lasting soul - all the glorious stuff of life and death. (Well, the cookie is just a mix of oatmeal and dark chocolate chips, but you get what I mean.) The ODCC cookie is both good and good for you. It's sweet but substantial. When you're done with it you feel okay. Better than okay - you feel like the world, and you as part of it, have undergone significant improvements in the past five minutes while you chewed or the past hour while you sat on the couch. Maybe it's the phenylethylamine, or maybe the world really is better with something that wonderful in it. ODCCC shows that rock my world include the stellar Veronica Mars and the high-school-era-Joobie favorite Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Rookie cookie with promise: Farscape. It's not new; it's been cancelled for more than a year, but I've just discovered it on DVD. I'm thrilled to find a show this surprising and touching, but I'm very sorry it was cancelled. Let's just hope Veronica Mars can stay alive.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to do some baking...er...mass cookie consumption.