The NSA has ruined spying for me. I used to LOVE to spy. I considered it a valid, useful skill set. If Iâve ever visited your home, rest assured Iâve spied on the entire contents of your medicine cabinet. If you were unlucky enough to have a confidential meeting or romantic breakup in a restaurant, and I was sitting nearby? You can bet your sweet lovehumps I was joyfully listening in on every word. And remember that super-embarrassing thing that occurred when you were younger, and youâre so relieved because no one saw it happen? I SAW IT HAPPEN. BECAUSE I WAS SPYING.
But now? The NSA has cheapened the idea of spying. For me, snooping was a private, almost intimate moment. I want to know something about youâso I spy until I learn what it is. However, the NSA doesnât do thatâthey stick their big fat noses into your Google, your e-mail, your internet porn bookmarks, and spy on EVERYBODY all the time, all at once! Whereâs the dignity in that? Whereâs the craft? If I want to know what kind of porn youâre watching, Iâll find out the old-fashioned way: by peeping into your window while youâre masturbating!
BAH!! Well, at least TV still values the old-timey spies and is debuting two new sneaky spy shows this week . Letâs peep into their window and see what theyâre doing! (Tee-hee-hee!)
⢠The Assets (ABC, debuts Thurs Jan 2, 10 pm): For those who love FXâs fantastic series The Americans, youâll similarly flip for The Assetsâan eight episode miniseries based on true events and the book Circle of Treason: A CIA Account of Traitor Aldrich Ames and the Men He Betrayed. (Quit beating around the bush, authors! Tell us how you really feel about this guy!) It tells the true story of CIA mole Aldrich Ames who, at the end of the Cold War, fed classified secrets to the KGB, which allegedly led to the deaths of at least 10 CIA assets. Veteran CIA operatives Sandra Grimes and Jeanne Vertefeuille were responsible for tracking down Ames, and this series focuses on their deadly game of cat and mouse. (By the way, I vote to change the phrase âcat and mouseâ to ânose and coke.â Itâs the same thing, really! Anyway⌠RECOMMENDED!)
⢠Intelligence (CBS, debuts Tues Jan 7, 9 pm): For those who like their spy dramas of the less-cerebral and more-hunky variety, you might want to check out Intelligence, which stars super-dreamy dreamboat Josh Holloway (Sawyer from Lost, SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!). Josh plays super-hot-poop secret agent Gabriel Vaughn who, thanks to a microchip implanted into his brain, can directly and instantly access the entirety of the internet. (So basically, itâs like wearing Google Glass without looking like an asshole.) From what Iâm given to understand, this show is completely dumb and ridiculousâbut it does have two things going for it: (1) a hero with a wicked-hot body⌠rrrrooww-RRROOWRRR! And (2) a hero who can potentially access internet porn in his brain during boring staff meetings. (I may not be able to tell what kind of porn heâs watchingâbut you can still learn a lot from peeping in someoneâs window! Tee-hee!)
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1
8:00 am NBC ROSE PARADE
Oh, dear god⌠my head!! Close the drapes and let me go back to SLEEP!!
10:00 E! THE SOUP
The annual hilarious âSoup Clip-Down,â in which Joel McHale salutes the most idiotic antics of the year.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 2
8:00 NBC COMMUNITY
Season premiere! Community returns with TWO episodes and original creator Dan Harmon behind the wheel!
10:00 ABC THE ASSETS
Debut! The CIA tracks down the deadliest KGB mole ever in this eight-episode miniseries.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 3
9:00 NBC GRIMM
Nick and Hank track down a healer, who refuses to look at that weird lump under Hankâs arm.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 4
10:00 TLC SEX SENT ME TO THE ER
Tonightâs episode: A man gets one of those⌠you know⌠things⌠stuck up inside of his⌠you know!!
SUNDAY, JANUARY 5
9:00 PBS DOWNTON ABBEY
Season premiere! Lady Mary is blinded by griefâwhich means this is a job for the sassy Dowager Countess!
9:00 ABC REVENGE
Somebody has shot Emily Thorne! That means someone else will have to get⌠REVENGE!
MONDAY, JANUARY 6
9:00 CBS HOSTAGES
Season finale! The first lady learns Ellen is about to assassinate her husband, which is kind of awwwwkward.
11:00 MTV WOLF WATCH
A new chat show (Ă la Talking Dead) created for the sole purpose of discussing MTVâs Teen Wolf. WHEREâS THE SHOW TALKING ABOUT MEEEEEEE????
TUESDAY, JANUARY 7
10:00 ABC KILLER WOMEN
Debut! Tricia Helfer (Number Six from Battlestar Galactica) stars as a rootinâ tootinâ Texas Ranger. Yee-HAW!
10:00 FX JUSTIFIED
Season premiere! The best modern western on TV! Miss it at your peril!
Follow me (but donât spy) on Twitter! @WmSteveHumphrey