"Man Up"
Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. on ABC

This is another of ABC's 2011 "male angst" sitcoms. It follows Tim Allen's dreadful (but predictably popular) "Last Man Standing," and while "Man Up" isn't very good, I think it's much better than "Last Man Standing."

It's essentially about some guys who apparently do not feel they behave in a manly enough fashion, whatever that is supposed to be. The premise is just as ridiculous as the one for Allen's show -- as if there is one certain way all men (or women) are supposed to behave. But I didn't cringe nearly as often as I did watching "Last Man Standing," which I realize is damning this show with faint praise.

To say something positive, Dan Fogler (second from the right) was actually funny a couple of times. He plays "angry" well, but he was the only humorous thing I saw. Keep in mind, I've only seen one episode so far. So, you know. Check it out. Or not.

"Last Man Standing"
8 p.m., ABC

I have got great news for everyone who has missed Tim Allen and corny laughtrack comedies.

ABC's "Last Man Standing" is a lot like the 90s sitcom "Home Improvement," except now Allen can say "balls" and "frickin'" on television. And instead of hosting a home improvement TV show, this time Allen is a male chauvinist executive at an outdoorsman supply company. Also, instead of sons he has daughters (and a baby grandson), and he's married to Nancy Travis. Hector Elizondo is his boss.

And the writing is horrid.

That's kind of it. The pilot has big laughs like this: When Allen doesn't like the "hippy" daycare his daughter takes her son Boyd to, the daughter counters that the school teaches him sensitivity and tolerance.

Allen: "You know how that ends up. Boyd dancing on a float." (Picture flamboyant arm-waving).
Daughter: "And what would be so wrong with that?"
Allen: "The only time men should be dancing is when other men are shooting at their feet."

Nice.

There's a demographic that might enjoy this. I am not in it.

UPDATE: This is interesting. The two advance episodes I watched had these weird silent moments after "jokes" that were obviously supposed to be filled with laughter from a studio audience, but there was no laughter. So I assumed it was NOT filmed before a studio audience, but on a closed set, and that they planned to electronically add canned laughter in later (I know that's cheating, but shows do it). This Washington Post review indicates the show was filmed before a studio audience -- an audience who obviously agree with everyone else that this stuff isn't funny. I'm guessing they'll be adding that canned laughter to the episodes that air tonight.

Suburgatory
Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. on ABC

This is a great one. A dad (Jeremy Sisto) finds condoms in his daughter's room so he freaks out and moves her from Manhattan to the suburbs.

"Suburgatory" is darkly hilarious -- the kind of  irreverent humor that I adore, but tucked inside the kind of smart sitcom I can't imagine making it in this cruel "Two and a Half Men"-loving world. Jane Levy is perfect as the daughter, and the dialogue (especially hers) is super sharp.

I love this sitcom. I will watch the fool out of this sitcom. I encourage/beg you to do the same.

Cheryl Hines and Ana Gasteyer are great as neighbor moms. Also stars Alan Tudyk and Chris Parnell.

Pan Am
Sunday, 10 p.m. on ABC

This series follows the lives of beautiful Pan Am stewardesses (and a few handsome pilots) in the early 1960s. It's a bit like "Playboy Club," but on an airplane. Also, less stuff happens.

"Pan Am" has oodles of retro glamour, but the light tone didn't work for me. Musically and visually, the pilot starts strong and ends strong. But sometimes in the middle, I felt like I was watching a slightly racy Disney movie. In fact, at one point when a stewardess was running through an airport to make her flight, I half-expected a shaggy dog or waddle of penguins to crash into her in a madcap fashion. I really think most of that is due to the soundtrack (note to ABC: more of the jazzy lounge singers, less of the swelling orchestral "Secretariat" theme music).

Apart from a few catty attendants and some extramarital shenanigans (light smooching is all we see), there's no real drama or tension until nearly the end. And even then, it's not very convincing. Still, given the interesting twist at the end, I'm holding out hope that "Pan Am" can make some adjustments and soar. But right now, it's not a show I'm the least bit excited about. Stars Christina Ricci, who looks fantastic.

This is incredible. It's "masters thesis" good: An illustrated timeline of the soap opera "All My Children" (click here to open as a 3-page PDF that can be enlarged).

The timeline was put together by Willa Paskin at New York Magazine. Kudos, Willa.

"All My Children" goes off the air today after 41 years on ABC. A version of the soap is supposed to continue online, produced by Prospect Park (they also bought "One Life to Live," which ends on ABC in January). TVLine.com has photos from the finale.

"Charlie's Angels"
Thursday, 8 p.m. on ABC

The pilot episode ABC made available said "not for review purposes," so this isn't so much a review as it is a warning...

This remake of the 1970s hit (which starred Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson, and Jaclyn Smith) sends fresh new angels on complicated "Burn Notice" type missions, but minus any semblance of reality at all. Not that the original "Charlie's Angels" was teeming with realism, but the original at least seemed to recognize it wasn't meant to be taken very seriously. And I would think the goal here, even if not to improve on the original, would be to at least not make it worse.

Between the fashion model glamour and the pounding soundtrack accompanying the Angels' missions, I felt like I was watching a series of clichéd, strung-together music videos. And neither the acting nor the writing is any good, so what you end up with is 45 minutes of mindless eye candy (i.e. hot women fighting in sexy clothes). Shoot, even the formerly paternal Bosley character has been transformed into a tech-savvy hottie (played by Ramon Rodriguez) in this remake, and a total hound dog to boot.

And then there's Minka Kelly (who previously starred in "Friday Night Lights" and The Derek Jeter Story). Minka is very pretty, to be sure, but not exactly known for her fine acting ability. Her performance here won't improve that reputation. At all. I can't stress that enough.

Watch something else.

"Revenge"
Wednesday, 10 p.m. on ABC

"Revenge" is about exactly what you think it's about: a young woman who has been wronged returns to the scene of the crime -- The Hamptons -- to make some uppity rich people pay.

The pilot opens at a beach party celebrating the engagement of Emily Thorne (Emily VanCamp of "Brothers & Sisters") to the wealthy Daniel Grayson, and a murder takes place on the beach just away from the party. We then flash back several months to when Emily first arrived in town, and learn the reasons behind her return and her hunger for revenge. Emily, operating with a new identity, coolly infiltrates the inner circles of Hamptons high society and sets about destroying those who have wronged her. The story will slowly build back to that murder on the beach. In fact, the biggest mystery here just may be the question of Emily's involvement in that murder. Was it part of her big plan, or was the victim merely collateral damage?

The pilot was fun. Nothing heavy, but lots of interesting, soapy twists. It's up against "CSI" on CBS and "Law & Order: SVU" on NBC -- both popular, long-established shows, but I'm betting viewers are ready for something new. Madeleine Stowe stars as Emily Thorne's nemesis.

"America's SuperNanny," an unscripted television series in which desperate families get advice on taming their unruly children, will hold an open casting call in Cary on Saturday. The event is noon to 4 p.m. at Monkey Joe's on Walnut Street.

If possible, the whole family should attend the casting call. If you can't make the casting call, you can submit an application online.

The easiest way to think of “Alphas” (Syfy, 10 tonight) is like a poor-man’s “X-Men” mixed with a dash of  ABC’s cancelled “No Ordinary Family.”  Sadly, “Alphas” doesn’t have the engaging start “No Ordinary Family” did; you’ll probably lose interest with this first episode.

The “Alphas” opens with Cameron Hicks (Warren Christie), a good-looking guy who works in a supermarket. We learn later that he’s a former army sniper and phenom baseball pitcher. He suddenly starts getting messages to shoot someone, and when he does, it’s pretty clear he’s under the influence of someone or something.

Next we meet Dr. Lee Rosen (David Strathairn), a neurologist and psychiatrist and the  Dr. Xavier; apparently we’re supposed to think he’s eccentric because of his affinity for herbal remedies and skimpy swim trunks.