Otherstream

The long-running dramedy, which began as a mid-season replacement called Planet SOMA in January of 1996, enters its seventeenth season with some big changes in format. Most dramatically, our hero finds himself divorced–co-star Mark Arsenal departed for greener pastures at another network last season but is scheduled for at least one cameo appareance–and increasingly responsible for the care of his aging parents.

Like much of last season, most of the action now takes place in the college library where David works, allowing some youthful contributions to a series whose ratings have been skewing increasingly older in recent years. In October, the series will embark on one of its periodic “field trips” with hilarity expected to ensue somewhere in the vicinity of the Canadian border.

There has been speculation that a later plot development might include a relocation (David moves into the apartment above his parents’ garage?), the addition of a teenage character (the result of a long-forgotten heterosexual encounter from the mid-1990s?), or the death of a beloved long-term character in a helicopter accident somewhere in Korea. The producers would neither confirm nor deny these rumors at press time.

Season Premiere: Sunday, September 11 at 9PM Eastern.

Otherstream: The Plot Summary

I don’t like to whine, really, but what a shitty day.

I felt a little rotten this morning and stayed home from work, which is fairly unusual for me. But I ended up spending much of the day being inordinately stressed by something really pointless. No, I don’t care to elaborate right now. But I finally finished all related tasks and was headed home to start having my weekend.

And then my car started overheating. It’s no doubt the same problem that almost killed my trip to Atlanta three months ago, an it’s now ruining more weekend plans for me. I think I need a new car.

How things that might have excited you a year or two back are now more likely just to make you worry about the extra layer of stress they might add to your vacation.

M is for “meeting(s).”

M is for “myriad maniacal morons in big-ass SUVs on I-40.”

M is for “Monday.”

But at least I managed not to spend the weekend dwelling on an anniversary I didn’t particularly want to remember. Instead, I explored Charlotte with Carroll on Saturday and spent Sunday eliminating things that no longer belong in my life. The latter sounds all mysterious and philosophical and shit, but it pretty much just means “cleaning out the basement.”