As I said in a column about the CBS sitcom, there's a twist at the end of the first episode — and now you all have had a chance to see it. (If it's still sitting unwatched in your recorder, stop reading here.)

It looked as if Ted (Josh Radnor) had found his match in Robin (Cobie Smulders) — until the end of the show revealed that Robin is not, in fact, the "mother" on the show; instead she's known to Ted's eventual children as "Aunt Robin."

That doesn't mean Smulders is out of the show. "It's going to be a complicated story," said Carter Bays, an executive producer on the show (and a former Buckeye). "(Ted) does meet this girl that he's crazy about, and you think she's going to be the one. We're going to see how having this person in his life affects how he goes about looking for the love of his life. … They have a great chemistry together and they become great friends. I think we want to explore what this relationship does become, if not that (romance). We want to see how she becomes a central part of his life, but not as his future wife."

"She becomes part of the group pretty quickly as a friend," added executive producer Craig Thomas. "It's not a 'will they' or 'won't they' between the two of them too much, because we know they don't ultimately."

Still, given that Smulders is appealing and there is chemistry between her and Radnor onscreen, I had to ask at the "Mother" press conference: "Can you promise here and now that Robin will not have a twin?"

"Twins, that's a good idea," said Bays.

"I'd love to play twins," added Smulders.

"They can do cool stuff with computers now, too," said Thomas.

To which I said: "Is that a yes or a no?"

And never got an answer. The producers still want to hold onto some surprise, and even their surprise could change. "We definitely have a plan in mind," said Thomas. "But at the same time, maybe things will meander, and we're open to that, too."

A review tape of "Ghost Whisperer" arrived today, all set for review before its premiere on Friday. The only problem is, the tape has a lovely crack in the spine.

Stuff happens, after all. I've talked to CBS, and they're sending out a new tape, so I should have it in plenty of time to take one more look before the premiere. The show, after all, has a local connection, since North Royalton's own Mary Ann Winkowski inspired the character played by Jennifer Love Hewitt on the show. ("Inspired," at least, is how the show describes it. You can read more about how I see it here.)

It's all part of being a reviewer. I get many (though not all) shows before they are on the air, so I can write a review and you will be more aware of the show than otherwise. If the review is positive, you might tune in — and the networks will be happy. If the review is negative, you might also tune in because you never agree with what I write — and the networks will be happy. Or you won't care about the review one way or another; you'll just think the show or one of its stars is worth watching.

Which brings me to "Threshold." It also has a local connection, since Canton's Brannon Braga is an executive producer; I most recently wrote about him a few weeks ago in a piece you should find here. And the pilot I saw had some real possibilities, so I was curious about the revised and expanded version that aired on Friday. Definitely something to write about.

Only a tape did not arrive. Nor was I alone in not getting it, since one of my colleagues was also lamenting the lack of it — and several other CBS shows. On Wednesday afternoon, this e-mail came from CBS:

"We regret to inform you that our mailing for Threshold has been delayed due to the fact that DHL has experienced a company wide disruption in service. None of the packages we over-nighted are expected to arrive at their destination today. We are in the process of setting up a password protected URL to provide the premiere via streaming video on your computer. Please stay tuned for further info."

This really jammed me up. If I'm writing for the features section on Friday, I usually have to see a show by Wednesday night — Thursday morning if I push it. Since I didn't get the tape ahead of time, I was at the mercy of the URL. CBS did indeed set that up later on Wednesday, and I tried to watch the show via streaming video. Only that didn't work very well either. I e-mailed CBS. A tech guy called me to offer assistance. We tried different things. I tried some more on my own. Nothing worked. I would get picture without sound, or picture and sound that would freeze, or that would simply stop. (Nor was I alone in struggling.)

Finally, I quit. I had written about the show in the Braga profile, and had mentioned it in a package on the new TV season, so I had not ignored it. But I didn't get to review it before air. So anyone who watched the show has the advantage on me — for the moment. I did finally get tapes of the premiere, and I do plan to look at them before the next episode is telecast.

Late Sunday afternoon, I was working in the basement, with a radio nearby carrying the Browns game. Of course, I wanted to take a look at it on TV, too, from time to time, so I lumbered up to the TV room to find — nothing.

The HD set. hooked through an HD cable box, had no picture. Neither did another, non-HD set, which was hooked to a DVR. Something, I knew, was amiss — especially when another TV set, which didn't have a box at all, was bringing in TV just fine.

I called Time Warner and, after winding through the press-1, press-something-else of the voice mail system, got to a very polite service rep. We went through various possibilities, rebooting both boxes for instance, without success. I wondered if something had gone wrong with the line to the two non-working sets, since a separate line went to the working one. The service rep wondered if something had gone wrong with my sets, since the boxes seemed to be working fine. We finally agreed that I'd have to arrange a service call, which would be two days later.

Bumming, I got off the phone. Then the light bulb went on over my head. I stomped back down to the basement, where I had been putting up a shelf. Checked all the cable wires around the area I was working. Finally saw that the plug from the signal booster had been knocked almost out of the outlet. Plugged it back in.

And lo, the TV sets worked. I saved myself a service call (since I promptly canceled it), could watch stuff in the places I most like to watch them — and still felt foolish about not checking the plug first.

One of the quirks of my job is that — unlike many TV critics — I don't have to watch and review the Emmys. That's fine with me. I can check out the final list of winners and losers and deal with them all in a single round of teeth-gnashing.

Of course, I record it, in case something wonderfully weird happens, and I do take a peek or two during the live telecast.

But last night I was content to stop after one peek, since that peek involved the award for best supporting actor in a drama.

Some Emmy categories can be lame. (Look at what was nominated for best drama this year, for instance.) But this one looked tough.

Oliver Platt, amazing on "Huff."

Terry O'Quinn, equally amazing on "Lost."

Naveen Andrews, very good on "Lost."

Alan Alda, also good on "The West Wing."

I could have put some other people in there — a bunch from "Rescue Me," for starters — but those guys were all Emmy-worthy, especially Platt and O'Quinn.

Of course, they didn't win. Instead, it was hammy old William Shatner winning again for "Boston Legal."

Emmy, Emmy, Emmy, I thought. What is the deal with you and the actors on "Boston Legal"? Later in the evening, James Spader won the Emmy for best actor in a drama, besting among others the far more qualified Hugh Laurie from "House" (my fave of the nominees) and the fascinating Ian McShane from "Deadwood." Glad I didn't stick around for that one.

Looking over the final winners, I can be happy about some. But I'm just as glad that I spent those Emmy telecast hours on other things. I've still got a dent in my forehead from the palm-smack when Shatner won.

Here's an e-mail to delight fans of Drew Carey's forays into improv:

Dear Friends of the Press,

I wanted to take a moment to thank you for the kind words you wrote last
year when Drew Carey's Green Screen Show appeared on The WB Network. Despite
the good press and with poor ratings, The WB pulled the show after airing
only 5 of the 12 produced episodes.

Thanks to Doug Herzog at Comedy Central, Drew Carey's Green Screen Show will
have another chance to make it's creative charm, wit and energy have an
impact in North America!

Starting on Monday, September 26th at 9:00pm, Drew Carey's Green Screen Show
will appear weekly on Comedy Central. Each show will be repeated the
following day on Tuesday evenings at 7:00pm.

Starting tonight, Drew Carey and the Improv "All Stars" begin a 40 city
improvisational tour to promote Drew Carey's Green Screen Show.

Information can be found on the Comedy Central web site [www.comedycentral.com]. …

Thank you again for your support, we hope that your readers enjoy the show.

Kind regards,

Ron Diamond
Executive Producer
Drew Carey's Green Screen Show

A link for specifics about the tour is here. It includes a Cleveland performance in December!

This e-mail arrived today:

As I was flipping through the channels shortly after 9:30 [Wednesday], I saw Mark
Nolan on Time Warner 23 local access.  He was doing the weather when I heard
a voice from off camera say something that was very faint & all you could
really hear was frickin or friggin & then Mark started to swear.  He just
stopped doing the forecast, started the swearing & then walked off
camera. …  What was up with that?

A big mistake, says Dick Moore, news director for WKYC (Channel 3), which also produces the Time Warner Channel 23 news. After the newscast, Nolan was taping a cut-in segment for Weather Plus, the service Channel 3 carries on a digital subcarrier, which is also fed to Channel 23 around the Akron-Canton newscasts.

Nolan did not know that a master-control operator was inadvertently feeding the taping session to Time Warner instead of the Weather Plus feed. He thought he was just working in the studio. And, when he was told that tape had run out and he had to do the cut-in again, he reacted pithily. Which is why the e-mailer heard some colorful language.

Moore acknowledged more than once that this was a mistake. He wouldn't talk about possible disciplinary action against Nolan. But he did say there was "no excuse" for what happened, and that he will be meeting with Nolan this afternoon. The station has also apologized to viewers who called the station to complain.

We'll see if any more comes of this. Since Nolan's outburst was only on a cable feed, not on a broadcast, Moore said there aren't FCC implications.

You'd think that as a general rule TV personalities would know not to let profanity fly when they're around microphones. But that's just not always the case. When I worked in the Albany/Schenectady area, a local anchor was taping a news cut-in for air during prime time. He messed up a take, swore, then redid the cut-in. Unfortunately, when the station aired the cut-in, it included the mistake and the swearing.

On Sept. 20, Paramount/PBS Home Video will release a DVD of a new documentary, "The Sixties: The Years That Shaped A Generation." That's more than a week before the program airs, on Sept. 29.

But if you want to watch the show, skip the DVD and wait for the broadcast.

I was watching the DVD tonight, and the music didn't seem to fit the narration. The opening music included a riff that was reminiscent of "Time Has Come Today," but it wasn't the song. The narrator mentioned "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," but the song didn't play. The narrator mentioned Eric Burdon & The Animals in a context that set up a playing of "San Franciscan Nights" — but the song wasn't there, just some generic instrumental stuff.

And that was all within the first 10 minutes.

I also happened to have a review copy of the planned telecast, so I put that in the player. What a difference.

There was "Time Has Come Today."

And "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

And "San Franciscan Nights."

Apparently Oregon Public Broadcasting, which produced the program, licensed songs for broadcast but not for DVD.

As a rule I prefer the original music from a TV show on its DVD version, although I've seen the occasional substitution that was tolerable. (The third-season DVD of "Northern Exposure" comes to mind.) But the replacement music here was really bad.

This is a DVD with a big "PBS Home Video" label at the top, so there's a clear implication of quality that the product doesn't deliver. While some DVDs will tell you that the music has been changed, I couldn't find any such acknowledgment on this one. And, as I said, the narration doesn't make sense without the songs on the soundtrack.

Keep your wallet closed for this one.

I've been writing regularly about TV shows on DVD for almost three years now, and I've had to change my approach in that time. In the beginning, I tried to review every DVD set of a TV show that crossed my desk. But, as you all know, the number of shows on DVD has increased exponentially, and it became impossible to watch at least some of everything while still doing the other parts of my job. So I have had to hope that the weekly list accompanying my column gives a thorough idea of what's out there, while the column itself could be more selective.

As part of that selection, I decided to choose a DVD "pick of the week" to lead the column. It's always a title I think merits special attention, and usually a show I like. (It was largely personal preference that made "Adam-12" a pick of the week over "The O.C." Although it was a bad season of "The O.C." )

Probably the closest I came to a pick that I wasn't crazy about was "Lost," a show that did not make me set the DVR every week. But I appreciated what it was doing, often checked on it during the season and looked closely at the DVD.

Now I'm hung up over "Desperate Housewives."

The DVD of the first season is due in stores Sept. 20. It would make a logical pick of the week. The show is hugely popular, after all. When an episode was delayed because of a Browns telecast, my phone line and e-mail became heavily populated with desperate viewers who missed the late-night replay. (I ended up having a well attended screening of the episode at the Beacon Journal.) It's nominated for Emmys. Many of my colleagues adore it. And I really like Felicity Huffman, both as an actress and as a person.

But I'm still tepid about the show. In fact, I think it began to run out of tricks long before the first season was over, and rechecking it on DVD just makes me feel that more strongly. For example, one of my favorite moments early in the season was the Lynette (Felicity Huffman) offering to thrown down on Maisy (Sharon Lawrence). It was a great moment, and Maisy was a very recognizable character to anyone who has had to attend a school parents' meeting or two. So why push the farce by later making Maisy a hooker/dominatrix?

Meanwhile, the core characters became softer as the season went on. (Oh sobbing Bree, we don't even know you.) You can call it rounding them out — giving a complex, sympathetic side to villainous souls. I call it smoothing out the rough edges.

Anyway, you see my problem. Even if the DVD is very well packaged — and it is — the show inside has some flaws I have a tough time forgiving. And I am definitely more impressed by some other DVD this week — "No Direction Home," "Ring of Fire," even "Crime Story." So I'm having a hard time conceding the pick to "Desperate Housewives." I'll probably toss and turn over it before finally making a decision in the morning.

In an earlier posting, I mentioned a ranking of TV teachers (and added a few I thought should have been included). Well, there's another one coming to prime time this season, as this NBC announcement shows:

NBC has given a pickup of six episodes to "Filmore Middle" (working title) — its new mid-season comedy series … focusing on a rule-breaking teacher at a New Jersey public school — it was announced today by Kevin Reilly, President, NBC Entertainment.   

"Executive producer Matt Tarses has delivered a sharp comedy with a talented ensemble cast who could well become NBC's next generation of comedy stars," said Reilly.

Filmore is a New Jersey school that has its share of problems, including apathetic teachers, antiquated rules and a majority of students who are more interested in text-messaging than in textbooks.  Luckily, Jeff (Justin Bartha, "National Treasure") — a once idealistic English teacher — is a rule-bending wise-guy who still secretly maintains hope. 

Jeff may just be the best teacher Filmore has ever had, and he is attracted to Alice (Sarah Alexander, BBC's "Coupling"), a rookie teacher who also won't give up on the students or the school.  Deon Richmond ("Van Wilder") plays Calvin, Jeff's best friend and resident drama teacher, while radio comedian Phil Hendrie portrays Dick, a burned-out teacher who would rather barbeque behind the gym than sit in another teachers meeting.

Also starring in the comedy are Matt Winston ("About Schmidt") as an eager-to-please teacher, Kali Rocha ("Meet the Fockers") as a strict instructor, and Grant Rosenmeyer ("The Royal Tenenbaums") as the star student who can also mix a pretty good martini.

"Filmore Middle" is from NBC Universal Television Studio.  Matt Tarses (NBC's "Scrubs") serves as executive producer and writer.

"Who won the first 'Amazing Race'?" my wife asked the other day.

It was not a casual question. We had gotten a DVD of the first season of the reality series for review (it arrives in stores on Sept. 27), and she was watching it.

I resisted telling her. She was enjoying the season, which she had not seen before, and knowing the outcome might spoil the experience. But she insisted she wanted to know, so I looked it up and told her.

She watched all the rest of "Amazing Race" DVD.' And quite happily.

I mention this in part because it's sometimes said that shows that reach a clear resolution at the end of a season — such as reality competitions — don't fare well in rerun. I'm more incline to believe that it depends on how good the show is. If you know how a case turns out on, say, "Law & Order," you can still watch the reruns (and re-reruns and re-re-reruns) to see how the pieces fit together, or to see who's getting to ham it up as a defense attorney, or just because you like the show. So why not do the same with "Amazing Race" or "Survivor" or another show — where the characters and the plot twists give you plenty to enjoy even when you know where it's all leading.

I also mention it because of all the complaints I hear and read about reality shows. The latest appear in a poll by the Associated Press and TV Guide, the details of which you can find here. The headline for stories from the poll tended to focus on the dissatisfaction with reality TV, with some 80 percent of respondents saying there's too much of it.

That really isn't a surprising figure, but it is misleading.

Why no surprise? First of all, because even the most successful shows don't have 80 percent of the audience watching week in and week out. According to Nielsen data, a top-rated series last season was seen every week in less than 20 percent of all TV households, and by fewer than 10 percent of all available viewers.

Second, "reality TV" as a genre gets bashed in the way comedy or drama does not. (TV news, on the other hand, does get trashed as a genre much the way reality TV does.) When you say "reality TV," people are most likely to think of the worst of the form — the "Fear Factors" of the world — instead of the best, and so folks will immediately respond negatively.

I've found the reactions change, though, when you remind folks of good reality shows, or of things that could be classified as reality but aren't always thought of that way, such as "Antiques Roadshow."

And I suspect the people responding to the poll were reacting to summer programming (when there was a lot of reality filling air time) or to the fall-season glut of a couple of years ago. The fact is, we are past the point of thinking that any reality show is going to succeed. The failures of some high-profile projects made that clear. The success of "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" reminded programmers that people will still flock to scripted programs, and I suspect we're one hit away from a resurgence in sitcoms.

But I'd rather watch a good reality show than a bad drama or comedy.

As I've mentioned here a couple of times, I originally saw "No Direction Home," a new documentary about Bob Dylan, in a theater, in one 3 1/2-hour sitting. Well, you can wait until Sept. 20 and buy the DVD of the program, or until Sept. 26-27 to see it on PBS, or …

See it the way I did, on a big screen. There's a showing set for The Kent Stage (175 E. Main St., Kent) at 7 p.m. on Sept. 22. Admission is free — first come, first served — and the doors open at 6 p.m.

The event is co-sponsored by WNEO/WEAO (Channel 45/49), WKSU and The Kent Stage. For more info, see www.pbs4549.org.

Channels 45/49 are also doing a live event next week to mark the premiere of "If You're Not Dead, Play!" — a documentary about the ''second wave" of Akron bands including Chi Pig, Unit 5 and Hammer Damage. (The first wave, for those of you tuning in late, included Devo and the Waitresses. Phil Hoffman, the maker of "If You're Not Dead," covered that era in the documentary "It's Everything and Then It's Gone." Channels 45/49 will replay "It's Everything" at 8 p.m. on Sept. 27. "If You're Not Dead" will premiere at 8 p.m. on Sept. 28.)

But I'm getting away from the live part. "If You're Not Dead" will be shown on Sept. 21 in the auditorium of the main Akron-Summit County Library (60 S. High St., Akron.) Unit 5 and Chi Pig will also perform at the screening. Admission is free for this one, too.

Consumer advisory: People interviewed in "If You're Not Dead" include Beacon Journal columnist David Giffels and former Beacon Journal columnist Chuck Klosterman.

Saturday's big project was putting up a storm door. Since we had never done it before, it took a lot longer than we hoped — and about six hands total. But we got it done. I can show you every little thing that's wrong with it, but it's done. And the next time I have to put up a door — which could be very soon — I'll know a lot more than I did with this one.

Because of the door, I was very grateful that Ohio State played at night on Saturday. Not only did I get to see all of the game, I was doing it with a feeling of accomplishment. (You know. The door.) I was even more grateful because it was a good game.

I am not talking about outcome. I am talking about a game that went into the final minutes with one point separating two teams, with it still possible that either team could win. I am talking about a game that my wife and me playing TV announcers at home. One recurring theme: "You can't rely on field goals." One after Texas got the go-ahead score: "They may have left the Buckeyes too much time." Hindsight — and the Zwick fumble — make that sound excessively optimistic. But it made sense at the time.

Then you've got drama. Then you've got a reason to watch at a time when logic says you should be asleep.

For those reasons, the Browns game on Sunday was not a good game. This time, I had to watch more haphazardly because of some Sunday obligations, so there were large chunks heard on the radio before settling in with TV in the second half. The early part made it sound as if would be a very good game, with the Browns playing boldly and aggressively on offense. By the second half, that feeling was long gone, and by the fourth quarter Browns fans were exiting the stadium.

It made me wish I had another storm door waiting.

Channel 3 didn't think she was good enough to keep as a weather forecaster, but apparently thinks she is good enough to chat on the air in the morning. Here's the announcement:

Channel 3’s Good Company has added Eileen McShea to the team of Fred Griffith, Michael Cardamone and Andrea Vecchio. The show begins on Monday, September 12, and can be seen weekdays on WKYC at 10 am. Channel 3 News Midday follows at 11 am with Barbara Gauthier and meteorologist Hollie Strano.

"This works out with really well with my schedule," said Eileen. "I’m thrilled to be part of Good Company and to be working with Fred, Michael and Andrea. I’ve always enjoyed doing community segments and know there will be lots of interesting information for our audience. I’m also going to work on getting the show to include a regular pet segment if I can."

Since the show has bounced around the schedule, here's the winner, as announced by CBS:

            After being one of the three remaining designers, Chris Cortez emerged triumphant last night as the winner of THE CUT, and was awarded his dream come true — the opportunity to design his own collection under the Tommy Hilfiger label, and to become the next great American designer.  The decision was made by Tommy Hilfiger after the final three designers unveiled the windows they created on Seventh Ave. at Macy's Herald Square in New York City.

Regular readers of this blog may recall my description of a screening of "Bob Dylan: No Direction Home," Martin Scorsese's documentary about Dylan's early years. If not, you can find it in the posting "Some Direction." (I tried to create a direct link but can't get it to work.)

That was in early July; at the time, PBS said it would not make review copies available ahead of time, supposedly because of fear of piracy. It also made critics watch the film in a group screening at a Hollywood studio.

Well, in today's mail, a copy of the show arrived. It wasn't a PBS screener. It was the DVD release, which hits stores on Sept. 20, before the national TV premiere on Sept. 26-27.

I've already started sampling the extras — including several bonus musical performances — to the dismay of the people around me. Not a lot of Dylan love in this room.

I'm still happy that I spent 3 1/2 hours at that screening, because I loved the film. And I'm curious whether I will love it as much when I watch it under more relaxed conditions. But the security surrounding that screening sure seems silly now.