Tim Allen is the "Last Man Standing."

Credit: ABC

One of my favorite random "30 Rock" gags of recent vintage is that the show-within-the-show only got on the air as NBC's way of apologizing for having aired "Bitch Hunter," a misogynist action drama starring Will Ferrell as a hero who barks out dialogue like, "Put the mimosas down, bitch!" Each time we'd see a clip of "Bitch Hunter," it would come with a credit listing the various writers and producers, which included eccentric former NBC president Ben Silverman, "Mad Men" creator Matthew Weiner and (each time) "30 Rock" writer Jack Burditt.

At the time, I just took it as a friendly dig at one of the series' own writers. But having watched two episodes of "Last Man Standing" (it debuts tonight at 8 on ABC), the Burditt-created sitcom in which Tim Allen plays a sexist, homophobic, xenophobic sporting goods executive, I had the following thoughts:

"Enlightened" star Laura Dern and creator/director Mike White have a chat.

Credit: HBO

Okay, I offered my review of HBO's "Enlightened" this morning. Now it's your turn. What did you think of this collaboration between Laura Dern and Mike White? How do you feel about what we see of Amy Jellicoe both before and after she gains her alleged enlightenment? If you were a fan of Mike White's stint on "The Amazing Race," were you excited to see Victor from that season as one of the corporate lawyers? Glad to have Diane Ladd and Dern playing mother and daughter again? And do any of you plan to watch more than this episode?

Have at it.

Jonathan Ames (Jason Schwartzman) shows off at his "Bored to Death" book signing.

Credit: HBO

As I wrote about at the start of "Bored to Death" season 2, I think I've come to terms that the parts of the show I enjoy (George and/or Ray on their own, the three guys on a job together) and the parts I don't (anything to do with Jonathan by himself, and also some parts of Jonathan interacting with the other two) aren't going to change, that Danson and Galifianakis are just funny enough to overcome my dislike of the Jonathan Ames character and/or the way Schwartzman plays him, and that it's therefore not something I'll write about much.(*)

(*) If at all. I wound up not writing about season 2 again after that initial post, and we'll see if HBO winds up ordering a fourth season. For all the publicity about how Danson would get to do both "CSI" and this, it was easy to say, given that "Bored to Death" season 3 was already in the can. I have no idea whether CBS will let him do a fourth season, whether HBO would bother with a fourth without him, whether its banishment to Mondays (due to an overload of original programming) suggests HBO doesn't have future plans for it, etc.

For those of you who are still sticking with it, how did you feel about the season premiere? Are you glad to see Jonathan becoming more accomplished in both his professional lives? Did the level of violence (even if it was off-screen) seem off for the show? And how about Ray Hueston, part-time dad?

An extra-long Firewall & Iceberg Podcast this week features our final "Breaking Bad" discussion for a while, looks ahead to how "The Walking Dead" will succeed it in season 2, reviews some underwhelming new HBO and ABC comedies, discusses the current state of "The Simpsons," and more. The line-up: 

Karine Vanasse in "Pan Am."

Credit: ABC

A review of last night's "Pan Am" coming up just as soon as I get you some Cubans...

Laura Dern in "Enlightened." 

Credit: HBO

There's a long and rich history of comedies about characters severely lacking in self-awareness. Just in the past decade, we've been blessed with "The Office" (both David Brent and Michael Scott), "Arrested Development" (most of the family, but especially Tobias and GOB) and "Modern Family" (Phil Dunphy), to name a few. People who aren't aware how the rest of the world perceives them can be incredibly amusing in the right context.

HBO's new "Enlightened" (it premieres tonight at 9:30) - in which Laura Dern plays a woman who never seems to realize how off-putting everyone finds her - is not the right context, unfortunately. Despite writing from Mike White - who's been involved in TV shows and movies as wide-ranging as "Freaks and Geeks," "School of Rock," "Pasadena" and "Year of the Dog" (among many others - it's stifling, awkward and just plain not funny.

The "Breaking Bad" writers spent a while setting up the rivalry between Tio (Mark Margolis) and Gus (Giancarlo Esposito).

Credit: AMC

"Breaking Bad" just ended its fourth season in memorable fashion. You can read my review of the season finale here, and I spoke with the show's creator, Vince Gilligan, about everything that went down and some of his plans for the series' final 16 episodes, all coming up just as soon as I spend time in an electrician chat room...

Walt (Bryan Cranston) makes a call in the "Breaking Bad" season 4 finale.

Credit: AMC

A review of the "Breaking Bad" season 4 finale coming up just as soon as I wait around for a plate glass guy to come...

Carrie (Claire Danes) ponders her mission on "Homeland."

Credit: Showtime

A review of tonight's "Homeland" coming up just as soon as I have a waxing appointment…

Nucky (Steve Buscemi) confronts Jimmy (Michael Pitt) on "Boardwalk Empire."

Credit: HBO

A review of tonight's "Boardwalk Empire" coming up just as soon as I start picking up on people's signals...