For the month of August, TV Breakroom is promoting Alphas! You can already see the updated site look, but the real prize is below – a giveaway! Winner will receive one Alphas Season 1 DVD set and an Alphas t-shirt. Runner-up will receive an Alphas t-shirt. This giveaway is sponsored by Syfy!
Continue reading Alphas Giveaway!
The holidays are coming to TV Breakroom a little early this year, as today we kick a three-poll arc celebrating Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas episodes! First up on the calendar, it’s time to vote for the spooky and funny episodes that either give you great ideas for costumes and pranks or make you afraid to sleep at night.
If there are any great Halloween episodes I left out, please nominate them in the comments! Side note – I love the vampire/Spanish symmetry of the left and right pictures above.
Poll will be open for one week, and you can vote for up to 3 episodes. Be sure to check out our other ongoing Olympic polls and the medal results on our main event page!
What's your favorite Halloween episode? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 204
Loading ...I love crossover episodes – when characters from one show guest star on another. Often, this happens when one show is spun off from another. Since the shows are already set in the same “universe,” it makes crossover episodes easier, and you get the opportunity to see characters interacting who haven’t for a while. Other times, two similar shows are on the same network when it’s decided to have them do a crossover event (which sometimes creates logical inconsistencies, like with the Warehouse 13 and Eureka crossovers – main cast from both shows had previously guest starred on the other show, as different characters!).
I will be awarding medals to both (or all three) shows in each crossover. If I’ve missed some great crossover episodes, please let me know in the comments! I purposely am not including “planted pilot” episodes (like “The Finder” episode of Bones, or the two-part “Legend” episode of NCIS that launched NCIS: Los Angeles). This poll is about two (or three) shows connecting after both shows exist.
Poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 3 of your favorite crossover episodes. Remember to keep checking the main event page for all the current polls and results!
What's your favorite crossover episode? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 160
Loading ...I almost didn’t make this one of the mini-polls for this event, because how do I score this? Should I award negative medals for the characters that win? Award the bottom three?
In the end, I decided to award the top three, as usual. Why give an award for a negative attribute? Because most of the time, these characters are the one or two flies in the ointment of an otherwise awesome show. They seem all the more annoying because the rest of the characters are so great. Diehard fans of a show tend to be the most annoyed by these characters, as well, and to know how annoying a character is (and therefore vote for him/her), you most likely have to be already watching the show.
But I know there are tons of annoying teens who aren’t on this list yet, because there were only a few nominations in this category, and there are tons of teen-dominated shows I don’t watch. So come on, Glee fans and CW watchers – let me know which ones I missed!
Poll will be open for one week, and you can vote for up to 3 annoying teens.
Who is the most annoying teenage character? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 91
Loading ...TV Breakroom doesn’t cover animated shows, but we do cover live-action shows that have an animated or other alternate media episode. Only a few were nominated for this poll, so if you know of any others, please mention them! They should be a main part of the episode, not just a brief clip. For example, Community’s anime scene in “Foosball and Nocturnal Vigilantism” doesn’t count, but the puppetry in Angel’s “Smile Time” was a driving force in the episode, so it’s allowed.
Poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 3 episodes. Please spread the word, and be sure to check out all our ongoing polls in this Olympic event!
Which is your favorite animated/alternate media episode? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 75
Loading ...This musical episode mini-poll is one of my favorites in this event, so it’s awesome that it coincides with the Olympic opening ceremonies! As I mentioned in the nominating post, this option is limited to episodes from shows that aren’t all musical episodes (like Glee or Smash). It’s not that I don’t like their episodes, it’s just that the poll would end up being far too long for this mini-poll event.
And as always, if I missed a great musical episode, please feel free to nominate it in the comments! As usual, live-action scripted shows only, please. Also, having only one or two songs doesn’t make an episode a musical, but feel free to nominate individual songs for the cast-performed songs category!
I almost wish this poll happened later, as Psych is doing a two-hour musical episode that is sure to be amazing! Also, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog gets an honorable mention, but as a stand-alone episode it doesn’t qualify for this event.
Poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to three episodes. Be sure to check out all our ongoing polls at the main event page!
Which is your favorite musical episode? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 100
Loading ...Poll #4 in our Olympic event (have you been keeping up?) focuses on characters aged 6-12 and the talented child actors who play them. From this small list of nominees, you can see that elementary-school-aged characters have grown increasingly rare in the TV world, but there still are a handful of awesome ones out there (and if we’ve missed any that regularly appear on live-action, scripted shows, let us know!).
You can chose up to 3 characters, and this poll (like the others) will be open for one week. And yes, I am aware that some of these characters have moved past their elementary school years, but all spent a significant part of their show in that age range. Vote and spread the word!
Who is your favorite elementary-aged kid? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 141
Loading ...Yes, just about every baby and toddler you see on TV is absolutely adorable. But which ones are your favorites? You can only pick three! From Angel to Up All Night, many shows have featured cute babies and sweet preschoolers.
If you haven’t voted for your favorite married couple or for the cutest couple name, there’s still time! And be sure to keep up to date with the entire event on the TV Show Olympics main page.
Poll with be open for one week, and if I missed any kids, please nominate them! They should be part of the main show, not just flashbacks or special episodes, and live-action, scripted shows only, please.
Who is your favorite newborn to kindergarten-aged kid? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 689
Loading ...Round two of TV Breakroom’s Olympic mini-poll event features married couples in live-action, scripted shows! Some of these were married when their shows began, others found their way to each other throughout the show. (With Once Upon a Time’s Prince Charming and Snow White, it was a little of both!)
If you haven’t already voted on Cutest Couple Names, you still have 6 days left! And keep up with all the polls and results on our main event page.
Like all the other polls in this event, this poll will be open for one week. You can vote for up to 3 married couples, and the top 3 will be awarded medals toward their shows’ totals!
Who is your favorite married couple? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 795
Loading ...It used to be easy to answer the question of where you watch TV. The living room set, with its rabbit ears, was the only option, or you might have an additional portable one in the kitchen. Now the possibilities are as varied as people’s lifestyles.
I remember the joy of discovering Hulu in the summer of 2008. Living in an area without TV reception meant that most of the shows I had watched up to that point had been on video or DVD. Even the one year of satellite TV my family had was largely overtaken by my siblings, though I didn’t mind, as I like to watch TV shows the way I read books – start at the beginning and read every chapter until the end. Hulu made that method easier with shows, and I could watch on my own timetable, on my own laptop.
High-speed internet and watching TV on computers go hand in hand, but set-top boxes and smart TVs have brought online TV watching back to the living room. You can visit Argos for a LG smart TV. I got one of the first generation of Roku set-top boxes so I could watch video from Hulu, Netflix, YouTube, and others right on my TV without the hassle of hooking up my laptop to the TV, but a smart TV now has those same capabilities built right into the unit.
Living room TVs are great for watching TV with friends. Some of the more popular brands are Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and Toshiba. Click here for a Toshiba TV. I still watch the majority of shows on my laptop, partly so as not to disturb my roommate, and partly because the reception is better in my room. Yes, I still use an antenna to watch broadcast channels, and I now have one with a USB connection that plugs right into my computer. In a pinch, it can also be used as a DVR.
And while TV sets keep growing in size, the small screen has also found a way to get even smaller, with mobile phones, iPods, and tablets. Obviously, tablets provide the best viewing experience, but even 3-4 inch screens can provide an enjoyable watch. If I have trouble getting to sleep, I’ll sometimes watch a recorded show, or one off of Netflix on my iPod Touch.
Where do you watch TV?
The links in this post are sponsored.
We’re launching this year’s TV Olympics with the ever-so-cute (you can read that as sarcastic if you lean toward a more jaded view of the world) category of couple names! Often these are used by fans to promote their preferred pairing in shows with love triangles, but occasionally they’ve shown up in actual episodes:
The Big Bang Theory (The Zazzy Substitution):
Penny: Hey look, it’s Shamy.
Amy: Shamy?
Sheldon: Juvenile amalgamation of our names. Sheldon, Amy. Shamy.
Amy: Oh. I don’t like that. Don’t do that.
NCIS (Life Before His Eyes):
Tony: I remember you. Riva. No, Visa. No, no, no. Tiva!
Ziva: Ziva.
You can vote for up to 3 options, and the top 3 answers will receive medals for their shows! Poll closes in one week. Be sure to check out our other polls and results on the main event page!
Which is your favorite couple name? (Choose up to 3!)
Total Voters: 923
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Welcome, voters! TV Breakroom is hosting an Olympic-themed competition between scripted live-action TV shows, and you decide which shows take home the medals!
Every day during this event, a new mini-poll will launch, and you’ll have one week to vote. The top three answers in each mini-poll will receive medals (gold, silver, and bronze), which will be awarded to their respective shows.
Here on the main event page, you will find:
You may want to bookmark this page and come back to it over this four-week event! Here you can also add late nominations in the comments for current and upcoming polls.
Event is Over!
Click here for our results post.
Medal Count
[table id=1 /]
Poll Medalists
Gold – Tiva (NCIS)
Silver – Densi (NCIS: Los Angeles)
Bronze – Caskett (Castle)
Gold – John and Mary Winchester (Supernatural)
Silver – Snow and Charming (Once Upon a Time)
Bronze – Angela and Hodgins (Bones)
Favorite Newborn to Five-Year-Old Character
Gold – Hope (Raising Hope)
Silver – Christine (Bones)
Bronze – Michael (Bones)
Favorite Elementary-Aged Character
Gold – Henry (Once Upon a Time)
Silver – Young Shawn (Psych)
Bronze – Young Gus (Psych)
Gold – “Once More With Feeling” (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Silver – “My Musical” (Scrubs)
Bronze – “Song Beneath the Song” (Grey’s Anatomy)
Favorite Animated/Alternate Media Episode
Gold – “Smile Time” (Angel)
Silver – “Lysergic Acid Diethylamide” (Fringe)
Bronze – “Digital Estate Planning” (Community)
Tied for Gold – Connor (Angel) and Dawn (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Bronze – Harmony (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Gold – Doctor Who (Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures) – The Stolen Earth and Journey’s End
Silver – NCIS: Los Angeles (NCIS) – Random on Purpose
Bronze – The Finder (Bones) – Little Green Men
Gold – It’s the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester (Supernatural)
Silver – Code of Conduct (NCIS)
Bronze – Mummy in the Maze (Bones)
Tied for Gold – Child’s Play (NCIS) and Pangs (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Bronze – Slapsgiving (How I Met Your Mother)
Best Vampire Effects and Rules
Gold – Supernatural
Silver – Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
Bronze – True Blood
Best Werewolf Effects and Rules
Gold – The Vampire Diaries
Silver – Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel
Bronze – Teen Wolf
Gold – Angel/Angelus (David Boreanaz) – Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
Silver – Willow/Vampire Willow (Alyson Hannigan) – Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Bronze – Snow White/Mary Margaret (Ginnifer Goodwin) – Once Upon a Time
Favorite Switched-Body Performance
Gold – Jared Padalecki as Lucifer – Supernatural
Silver – Matt Cohen as Michael – Supernatural
Bronze – Joanne Kelly as Pete and Eddie McClintock as Myka – Warehouse 13
Gold – Dragon (Merlin)
Silver – Satchmo (White Collar)
Bronze – Marcel (Friends)
Gold – Castle and Alexis (Castle)
Silver – Eli and Ziva (NCIS)
Bronze – Max and Temperance (Bones)
Gold – Martha and Castle (Castle)
Silver – Emma and Henry (Once Upon a Time)
Bronze – Madeline and Michael (Burn Notice)
Gold – John and Dean/Sam (Supernatural)
Silver – Henry and Shawn (Psych)
Bronze – Walter and Peter (Fringe)
Gold – Ellen and Jo (Supernatural)
Silver – Jackie and Rose (Doctor Who)
Bronze – Amy and River (Doctor Who)
Favorite Hero/Villain on Different Shows
Gold – Timothy Omundson: Carlton Lassiter (hero) on Psych, Phil Constantino (villain) on Jericho
Silver – Jensen Ackles: Dean Winchester (hero) on Supernatural, Ben/X5-493 (villain) on Dark Angel
Bronze – Nathan Fillion: Malcolm Reynolds (hero) on Firefly, Caleb (villain) on Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Gold – “Shout” sung by Shawn and Gus (Psych)
Silver – “Thinking of You” sung by Eliot (Leverage)
Bronze – “Dead or Alive” sung by Dean and Sam (Supernatural)
This week, we’re going to do something a little different. As TV Breakroom gets geared up for its Olympic event (we still need more nominations!), I thought it would be beneficial to know what shows you all actually care about. So this will be our first annual reader poll!
The majority of the poll’s options are specific shows. There are also several “I” statements that I’d love for you to select if they are true for you. If you have any additional statements you’d like to add, please include them in the comments. Also, I’ve listed well over one hundred shows as options, but with that amount, it’s quite possible I missed a few, so please mention them in the comments! I included some past favorites and many of the new shows that will debut this fall.
You can select up to FIFTY answers below. Please vote for the shows you’d genuinely like to hear more about on this site. This isn’t a popularity contest. Feel free to share this poll with others, but don’t do it just to drum up support for your favorite show. I only want to get your opinions on what shows I should share more about here. There will be no prizes, no top 10 list. I want a broad view of what shows you enjoy, so please select at least several options.
I visit this site because/I would like to see more about: (Choose up to 50!)
Total Voters: 230
Loading ...In late July, TV Breakroom is going to go mini-poll-crazy for the Olympics! Each daily mini-poll will be considered an event, and gold, silver, and bronze medals will be awarded at the end of each. TV shows will be treated like countries, and will gather medals from more show-based polls (team) as well as character/episode polls (individual). Not every show will be eligible to enter every poll (event), but this is typical of the Olympics as well.
Here are some ideas I had for mini-poll events, and now I need your nominations! Feel free to nominate your own ideas for mini-polls as well, but remember, keep it small and specific! If I get too many nominations for an event, I’ll postpone it for a regular Monday Madness poll. If I get too few, however, it will be dropped as an event.
Make sure you mention what event you’re nominating for in the comments! If you’re nominating for a bunch of events, it will probably best to copy/paste the list of events into your comment, and add your nominations from there.
Cutest couple name (Tiva, Shamy, etc.)
Best married couple
Best couple with a baby
Best couple who hasn’t kissed (yet!)
Favorite guy/girl friendship (non-romantic)
Favorite newborn to 5-year-old
Favorite elementary-school-aged kid
Favorite musical episode (excludes all-musical shows like Glee and Smash)
Favorite animated/alternate media episode (excludes all-animated shows)
Favorite bottle episode (primary cast restricted to one area)
Best crossover episode (a character or characters from one show visit another)
Favorite Christmas episode
Favorite Halloween episode
Favorite Thanksgiving episode
Favorite Valentine’s Day episode
Favorite special opening credits (often used on holiday episodes)
Favorite short intro (10-15 seconds)
Favorite voiceover intro (Castle, Burn Notice, etc.)
Best switched-body performance
Best dual role (Angel/Angelus, Fred/Illyria, etc.)
Best hero on one show, villain on another actor (both shows will get medals)
Best vampire effects/rules (by show)
Best werewolf effects/rules (by show)
Best explosions (by show)
Best car chases (by show)
Best romantic speech (quote beginning in nomination or include episode)
Best into-battle speech (include episode and given by)
Funniest one-liner
Favorite ball/prom/dance/wedding dress
Character who rocked a tux best
Favorite main cast-performed song (excludes all-musical shows)
Most annoying teen character
Favorite animal in a show
Favorite house/apartment
Favorite hang-out location (that isn’t a house or apartment)
Favorite dad/daughter duo
Favorite mother/son duo
Favorite dad/son duo
Favorite mother/daughter duo
Favorite pilot (or planted pilot) character who wasn’t on the rest of the show
If you need clarification about any of these poll categories, please let me know! I’m looking forward to seeing what nominations you all come up with!
This Monday Madness, in honor of TNT’s new show, Perception (which premieres Monday, July 9th, at 10/9c), we’re looking at TV’s brilliant yet crazy characters. Perception centers around a schizophrenic neuroscientist (Eric McCormack) who works with FBI Agent Kate Moretti (Rachel Lee Cook) to solve complex criminal cases. Perception also stars Arjay Smith and Kelly Rowan, with special appearances by Levar Burton.
For the purposes of this poll, I’m defining “crazy” as anywhere from clinically insane to mild disorders to kind of quirky. “Brilliant” ranges anywhere from off-the-charts IQ to uniquely skilled in a certain area (though most lean toward high IQ).
This poll will be open for one week, and you can choose up to 10 of your favorite smart, zany characters. Be sure to spread the word so your favorites will make it into the top 10! Fans have used Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, forums, Reddit, blogs, and chatboxes to get the word out about past polls. Get creative!
Even though there are 20-some options on this list, I know there are brilliant-crazy characters I left out! You can nominate ones I missed in the comments until Thursday night, and I may add them to the poll (from live-action scripted shows only, please, and avoid villains unless they’re a major part of the show).
Want more of a say in who makes it onto the poll each week? Be sure to follow me on Twitter or like TV Breakroom on Facebook, since I usually ask for nominations for the next Monday Madness the weekend before the new poll. Please help out with nominations! There are only so many shows I can watch personally, so I’m counting on you to fill me in!
Without further ado, here’s the poll for this week’s Monday Madness! Voting ends around 1AM July 9th.
Who's your favorite brilliant but crazy character? (Choose up to 10)
Total Voters: 2,717
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