New 'Under' tops list of TV worth watching
The Winter Games came to an end Sunday night at an emotional ceremony in which - I thought this was touching - a network executive removed the five Olympic rings from the NBC logo. Now back to our regularly scheduled programs: "Six Feet Under," which led my list of 10-best shows last year, returns for what already promises to be a mesmerizing second season at 8 p.m. Sunday on HBO. (Episodes repeat 9 p.m. Mondays on HBO Plus.) Has there ever been another television show in which one of the main characters gets killed off in the first episode? Richard Jenkins is listed as a regular cast member of "Six Feet Under," yet ever since he said hello to Mister Oncoming Bus in the series premiere, he hasn't exactly been himself. Instead, he has been a ghost, appearing in every episode, having conversations with his family members, none of whom seems bothered by the fact that he is dead. But then, the Fisher family - whose home doubles as a funeral parlor - has an unusual bond with the deceased. Each episode of "Six Feet Under" begins with someone expiring (this week's drug-related death of a little-known movie actress is one of the more gruesome exits we've seen). And many of the scenes take place in the embalming room, the sales office and the visitation room, as mourners and morticians pass through the Fisher domicile in parallel streams that rarely intersect. The Fishers have their own problems, mostly matters of the beating, living heart. David (Michael C. Hall) is out of the closet, but companionless. Nate (Peter Krause) and Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) seem to be heading to an impasse. And what's the deal with Mom (Frances Conroy) and the Russian flower guy (Ed O'Ross)? Then you have the apparition-patriarch flitting in and out, commenting on the chaos, passing along little life lessons. Is he just a figment of his widow's and children's imaginations? A projection of their own fears about death? You be the judge. "Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball's style leaves it up to the viewers to interpret scenes however they wish. That's high respect for his audience and what makes each episode of this show - like every tombstone - uniquely memorable. Readers have been asking what happened to "State of Grace." They're worried that the Family Channel - which became Fox Family and then, late last year, ABC Family - had canceled this family-friendly comedy. In fact, "State of Grace" just didn't appear in reruns, and it got a booster shot in the off-season. The network's new ownership ordered 13 new episodes for year two, which begins 7 p.m. Friday on ABC Family and continues for 26 weeks. That's four more episodes than the usual sitcom gets. But this isn't your usual sitcom. It doesn't have a laugh track. It's squeaky-clean. It takes place in 1965. And it's safe to say that most of the show's young viewers have never seen two families like the Rayburns (immigrant Jews transplanted to North Carolina) and the McKees (rich Southern WASPs) on TV before. "State of Grace" has a good ear for nostalgia, as evidenced by this week's episode, which accurately captures the thrill of getting that first color television set - I mean, color console. ABC Family's new Friday-night lineup has "State of Grace" leading into an "According to Jim" repeat, followed by an "Alias" repeat. The case of Antonio Richardson, who was sentenced to death row for two St. Louis County murders in 1991, is documented on "The System," airing at 10 p.m. Saturday on Court TV. Although considered borderline mentally retarded, Richardson was to die in March 2001 before constitutional questions about his execution were raised. Missouri has since outlawed putting the mentally disabled to death. Attention creationists: Make sure you have that "Dear Station Manager" letter handy. This week's "Nova" follows a group of researchers as they prove - allegedly! - the "missing link" between fish and land animals that is a key assumption of evolution theory (7 p.m. Tuesday, KCPT and Topeka's KTWU). If last week's "Glutton Bowl 1" left you hungering for more, sink your teeth into "Gut Busters," a documentary about the rapidly expanding sport of "competitive eating." It weighs in 8 p.m. Sunday on Discovery, followed, intriguingly, by "Cannibalism: The Last Taboo?" E! just added the "British Academy Film Awards" to its schedule. The "BAFTAs," airing 7 p.m. Saturday on E!, could be a predictor of which movies will win Oscars, since so many of her majesty's subjects are up for Academy Awards. To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit the TV Barn Web site at www.tvbarn.com @ART CAPTION:Peter Krause and Rachel Griffiths star in HBO's "Six Feet Under," returning for its second season Sunday. @ART:Photo (color) @ART CREDIT:HBO
