'Raising Hope,' 'Blue Bloods' keep our Reader Reviewers tuned in

Back in September, the Daily News sat down with 12 Reader Reviewers to watch a selection of new TV shows - "Raising Hope," "$#*! My Dad Says," "The Event" and "Blue Bloods" - before they hit the airwaves. Last week, we followed up with these kinda-critics to see what has become must-see TV and what they're deleting from the DVR now that we're five weeks into the season.

"Raising Hope" (Tuesdays, Fox, 9 p.m.), about a quirky family banding together to raise baby Hope, was the clear favorite this year with our Reader Reviewers. Many favorably compared the show to "My Name is Earl," the previous effort from "Hope" executive producer Greg Garcia.

"I think the whole family as a unit is dysfunctional and funny," said Carol Wright of North Philly.

"It kind of reminds me of my family."

Cloris Leachman's dementia-addled, oft-topless Maw Maw was a universal hit among the "Hope"-ful, although Bala Cynwyd's Mario Macchi was nonplussed that she's a one-joke pony.

Our Reader Reviewers are in step with the national audience. Based on its ratings, "Raising Hope" was the first show given a full-season order by Fox.

"Blue Bloods" (Fridays, CBS, 10 p.m.), about a New York City-based family of justice-seekers, is also popular with our Reader Reviewers, especially with those, like Bill Hollis of South Philly, who are fans of other procedurals, such as the "CSI" franchise. (Hollis is also digging "Law & Order: UK" on BBC America and appeases his wife by tuning into "Hawaii Five-0.")

Several cited "Blue" patriarch Tom Selleck for their devotion to the show. But the Northeast's Darnell Grayson said "Blue Bloods" was too far-fetched "and a little too patriotic to law enforcement."

But she's not totally tired of cops: She started watching "Law & Order: Los Angeles," which surprised her because there are already so many shows in this franchise.

Like Selleck in "Blue Bloods," a winning star, William Shatner, generates positive feelings for "$#*! My Dad Says" (Thursdays, CBS, 8:30 p.m.). Wright said she was "a Trekkie at heart" and would watch anything in the Shatner universe. Hollis liked how Shatner takes pot shots at his own self-important image. Grayson tried one more episode after the pilot, but finally gave up on it. She just couldn't deal with the concept of a man moving back in with his aphorism-spouting father.

On the comedic front, Ellen Neubar of West Torresdale added "Mike and Molly" (Mondays, CBS, 9:30 p.m.) to her viewing schedule. She thinks this sitcom, about the budding love between two people who meet at Overeaters Anonymous, is more down-to-earth than other shows. It reminds her of "The King of Queens."

Other comedies haven't fared as well: Macchi decided to give "Outsourced" (Thursdays, NBC, 9:30 p.m.), about a Midwesterner managing a call center in Mumbai, a go after it was placed in NBC's Thursday lineup, along with "Community" (Macchi's fave), "30 Rock" and "The Office."

"Outsourced" met Macchi's expectations, which was not necessarily a good thing. "I figured they were just going to make Indian stereotypes," he said. "And that's what they did."

The biggest loser among our Reader Reviewers was the twist-filled "The Event" (Mondays, NBC, 9 p.m.). Again, this is a trend reflected by national ratings, which dipped (and have kept on dipping) after the premiere.

While some Reader Reviewers gave up after the pilot, most stuck it out for two or three episodes but were turned off by the similarities to the much-beloved "Lost" ("It was too done," said Queen Village's Pamela Galowich) and weren't ready to emotionally invest in another serial show.

"I don't know how long they were going to take it," said Neubar.

"If they could tell us in advance, that would be great."

Liz Kinky, of Maple Shade, N.J., said she might return to "The Event" when she can watch large chunks of it in one sitting, rather than an hour a week. She said she is more likely to stick to a show that is available to watch in more than one way.

Other viewers, like West Chester's Damon Oliver, mirrored Kinky's sentiment: TV is no longer appointment viewing. He would rather watch shows according to his schedule, rather than the network's.

But that might be because, overall, Oliver thinks the season has been mediocre. "Nothing really pops," he said.