Cultural Cuisinart

Great news, everybody - season 2 of Syfy's unexpectedly fun and awesome show "Warehouse 13" starts tonight (July 6th) at 9pm EST. For anyone who missed this great little series when it aired last season, this is your chance to jump on board. Don't be afraid about being unable to follow the storyline - most of the episodes are monster-of-the-week format and you'll figure out the longer story arcs pretty quickly.

Here's all you need to know to start watching right away: remember that warehouse at the end of Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark where they stored the Ark of the Covenant? Warehouse 13 imagines a universe where that warehouse really exists and contains all sorts of magical items within its walls. Two agents, Myka and Pete, are assigned to hunt down mysterious artifacts around the country, figure out how to safely contain them and then return the items to the warehouse. Artie, an expert on all things supernatural, is their liaison back at the warehouse, dispensing advice remotely via fun steampunk video comm units. Claudia is the resident hacker/troublemaker who assists Artie at his job.

If you're looking for something to replace Lost in your life, well... this probably isn't the right show for you. But if you are looking for a breezy fun summer show, you can't go wrong with Warehouse 13. Myka and Pete have great chemistry - and for once, it's a fun brother/sister dynamic most of the time, versus the standard "sexual tension" kind, which is refreshing. C.C.H. Pounder - one of my favorite character actors working today - is also pretty great in her guest starring role as one of the mysterious people in charge of the warehouse. This show goes great paired in your DVR with a viewing of Burn Notice or my next suggestion.....

I'm thrilled that The Closer is returning this Monday, July 12th. Hopefully most of you are watching this series already and merely are benefiting from me reminding you to set your DVRs for Monday night.

The Closer isn't the most original show on TV, as it runs like a standard police procedural most of the time, but there's something special about this show that makes each episode go down smoothly. Brenda Leigh is a tough character to play - her behavior is often so self-absorbed that in the hands of a lesser actress she might come across as completely unlikeable. However, Kyra Sedgwick plays the role just right, and we (like her co-workers and belabored husband Fritz) find ourselves forgiving Brenda not matter what.

Like all great police procedurals, each episode is fairly self-contained, so this is another show you can jump right into even if you haven't seen past seasons. Enjoy!