So what was the point of all this? Good entertainment aimed at kids does exist. I know that none of my regular readers have children that are the right age for any of this stuff, but someday they will. Since we now know it exists, I urge you to take an interest in what your kids are watching and listening to. Help them differentiate the bad from the good so they don't fill their heads up with the mindless drivel that so many Americans waste their time on these days. Future generations will thank you for it.
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Epilogue: I just had to know if my crap sensor was broken, so I went out to YouTube and watched a random episode of "The Suite Life on Deck". Yep, it still sucks.
Thank goodness.
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TV. Show all posts
Friday, July 8, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Deaf is the New Down
I'd tried Disney. When that failed, I moved on to campy werewolves. Another failure. There had to be a show targeted at tweens or teens that wasn't any good. After all, they're not supposed to be good. Looking over my list again, I decided to try a new ABC Family show, "Switched at Birth". I've seen a couple episodes of different ABC Family shows before, and absolutely none of it was good. Surely this would be an easy target. Just look at the name. Nothing with a premise that ridiculous (yes, I know it's happened in real life before) could possibly be any good.
I'm wrong yet again. Ostensibly, the show is about two teenage girls who discover that they were switched at birth. This raises the natural issues of identity and the importance of nature vs nurture. In and of itself, this could make for an interesting show, but the main thing this show really has going for it is that one of the two girls who were switched at birth is deaf.
Remember "Life Goes On"? It was that show from the early 90s that was essentially a regular family drama, except for the fact that one of the kids, Corky, had Down syndrome. It brought a whole new cultural awareness to the plight of the mentally retarded. "Switched at Birth" is absolutely going to do the same for Deaf culture. So many of the scenes, with good reason, focus on what it means to be deaf and how deaf people and the hearing interact, that it's obvious that this is what the show is really about.
The fact alone that it's doing something that's completely new to television (which is so rare in this day and age) would probably make it worth watching. Add the fact that it's decently written, well acted, and treats its subject matter with the utmost respect and there's absolutely no reason to not give it a try.
I'm wrong yet again. Ostensibly, the show is about two teenage girls who discover that they were switched at birth. This raises the natural issues of identity and the importance of nature vs nurture. In and of itself, this could make for an interesting show, but the main thing this show really has going for it is that one of the two girls who were switched at birth is deaf.
Remember "Life Goes On"? It was that show from the early 90s that was essentially a regular family drama, except for the fact that one of the kids, Corky, had Down syndrome. It brought a whole new cultural awareness to the plight of the mentally retarded. "Switched at Birth" is absolutely going to do the same for Deaf culture. So many of the scenes, with good reason, focus on what it means to be deaf and how deaf people and the hearing interact, that it's obvious that this is what the show is really about.
The fact alone that it's doing something that's completely new to television (which is so rare in this day and age) would probably make it worth watching. Add the fact that it's decently written, well acted, and treats its subject matter with the utmost respect and there's absolutely no reason to not give it a try.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Howl at the Moon
Shaken by my unexpected enjoyment of "Sonny With a Chance", I decided that I needed to make sure I could still tell the difference between something that was good and something that was crap. I'll admit that I have the annoying ability to find the good in almost anything, but I can usually still tell when something is actually bad. Perusing my list of new summer shows, I settled on something I was sure would fit the bill, MTV's new remake of "Teen Wolf".
Everyone remembers the cheesetastic movie starring Michael J. Fox, right? Some high school kid becomes a werewolf and consequently becomes the best basketball player in the world all while wearing a ridiculous hairy wolf-man suit.
Well, this new show is not that.
In fact, much to my chagrin this new "Teen Wolf" is actually pretty good. For one, it's played completely straight. No camp, no cheese, and it employs a lot of tricks used in modern horror (tense scoring, dim lighting, and decent effects). For another thing, it's not another stupid show about vampires. Sure, it has a supernatural bent and is probably trying to cash in on the Twilight/"True Blood"/"Vampire Diaries" phenomenon, but it's refreshing to me that it's taking on a different fantastical creature for once.
Storywise, it probably employs a few too many cliches, but at least it's cliche done well. Our protagonist, Scott, is bitten by a werewolf while walking in the woods alone at night (yeah, I know), transforming him overnight into both a werewolf and his school's best lacrosse player. Props for showcasing a non-traditional sport, by the way. Unlike in the movie, though, this isn't common knowledge. It turns out werewolves are scary things that prowl moon-filled nights meting out death and destruction. Consequently, his best friend is the only guy in school to know his secret.
Add in a group of "hunters" whose mission in life is to stamp out all the werewolves in the world, a jealous team captain who used to be the best player on the team, and a new girl in town who takes a romantic interest in Scott (and oh yeah, happens to be the daughter of the lead hunter), and you have all the necessary ingredients for good teen drama. Seriously. If you're a fan of this kind of stuff at all, I recommend you give it a try. I think all of the episodes to date can still be viewed at the MTV website.
Everyone remembers the cheesetastic movie starring Michael J. Fox, right? Some high school kid becomes a werewolf and consequently becomes the best basketball player in the world all while wearing a ridiculous hairy wolf-man suit.
Well, this new show is not that.
In fact, much to my chagrin this new "Teen Wolf" is actually pretty good. For one, it's played completely straight. No camp, no cheese, and it employs a lot of tricks used in modern horror (tense scoring, dim lighting, and decent effects). For another thing, it's not another stupid show about vampires. Sure, it has a supernatural bent and is probably trying to cash in on the Twilight/"True Blood"/"Vampire Diaries" phenomenon, but it's refreshing to me that it's taking on a different fantastical creature for once.
Storywise, it probably employs a few too many cliches, but at least it's cliche done well. Our protagonist, Scott, is bitten by a werewolf while walking in the woods alone at night (yeah, I know), transforming him overnight into both a werewolf and his school's best lacrosse player. Props for showcasing a non-traditional sport, by the way. Unlike in the movie, though, this isn't common knowledge. It turns out werewolves are scary things that prowl moon-filled nights meting out death and destruction. Consequently, his best friend is the only guy in school to know his secret.
Add in a group of "hunters" whose mission in life is to stamp out all the werewolves in the world, a jealous team captain who used to be the best player on the team, and a new girl in town who takes a romantic interest in Scott (and oh yeah, happens to be the daughter of the lead hunter), and you have all the necessary ingredients for good teen drama. Seriously. If you're a fan of this kind of stuff at all, I recommend you give it a try. I think all of the episodes to date can still be viewed at the MTV website.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Surviving the Disney Channel?
Next up on my list was a new sketch comedy show for tweens on the Disney Channel -- "So Random". I've tried watching episodes of tween shows on Nickelodeon ("True Jackson, VP") and Disney ("The Suite Life...") before, but have never talked about it here. Truth be told, Meaghan and I absolutely love most things Disney, but the garbage they spew on to their TV channel is universally terrible. I haven't seen anything on it in the last 5-10 years that's even been close to good. Ahem. Let me amend that. I hadn't seen anything...
To talk about "So Random", I'll have to start with a not so brief but hopefully interesting history lesson. It all starts with another Disney Channel show that debuted a couple of years ago, "Sonny With a Chance". Yes, the name is terrible. "Sonny" shares a common setup to a lot of other Disney shows (analogies include: "Hannah Montana":Miley Cyrus, "Lizzie McGuire":Hilary Duff, "Wizards of Waverly Place":Selena Gomez -- if you don't recognize any of those names then you're living under a much larger rock than I am) in that it's primarily a vehicle for its leading lady. In this case, that lady is the star of the Disney Channel movies Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2, Demi Lovato. More on her in a bit, but first "Sonny".
"Sonny With a Chance" is the story of a girl from Wisconsin (Sonny Munroe) who is hired to join the cast of a Hollywood-based teen sketch comedy show called "So Random". It starts out primarily as a fish out of water story as Sonny has to adjust to the strangeness that is life in show business as part of a hit show. Complicating that is the fact that they share a studio with the #1 teen drama in America, Mackenzie Falls. Needless to say, the casts of the two shows do not get along... at all.
The ringleader of the people at the Falls is its star, the greatest actor of his generation, Chad Dylan Cooper (hilariously played by Sterling Knight -- remember that name). Most shows that feature a show within a show (or in this case, two shows within a show) fail miserably when they attempt to show anything from it -- "Studio 60" I'm looking at you here -- but that's not the case with "Sonny". Yes, the "So Random" sketches are hit and miss, but so is SNL. Sketch comedy is hard to do right. "Mackenzie Falls", however, is pure comedy gold as it single-handedly takes the mickey out of every CW show ever created. Behold!
In season 2 of "Sonny", the focus shifts to the burgeoning relationship between Sonny and Chad, exploring the regular hazards and pitfalls of dating as a teen as well as the complications that arise when those teens happen to be famous celebrities on competing shows. I didn't think I'd ever say this, but I'm proud to say that I've seen pretty much every episode of "Sonny with a Chance" and it's actually quite good. Sure, the acting can be a little rough at times, but those are the hazards when your cast is young and inexperienced. In particular, Lovato (who was only 16 when the first season was filmed) has a tendency to talk loudly and try to get through scenes by flashing her megawatt smile. Thankfully, she improves quite a bit in season 2 and blends into the show much better.
So if it was so good, why is a real version of "So Random" now on the Disney Channel? What happened to "Sonny" season 3? Well, the answer to that lies with its star. Demi Lovato is first and foremost a musician, not an actor. Prior to doing research for this piece, I hadn't heard a single song of hers, but now that I have it's not all that bad. It certainly tops trainwrecks like Ke$ha and the aforementioned Cyrus. She reminds me a little bit of a young Kelly Clarkson. Hopefully, she's able to grow into her voice in the future. This song in particular, "La La Land", from her first album is a catchy little earworm that I haven't gotten out of my head for the past week. Please take a listen and pay attention to the lyrics (which she actually wrote) as they're important to the tale I tell.
Ah... ain't naivete grand? The gist of the song (for those who refused to listen to it) is that even though she's knowingly stepping into the Hollywood hype machine, she's going to stay the same person she's always been. I think Mmes. Spears and Lohan (among others) might be able to offer a differing opinion. I actually think it's pretty appalling the way our culture treats young people in show business. It's almost as if it's designed to completely chew them up and leave them a frail shadow of the person they once were, after extracting every last penny of revenue from them, that is. Add to that the endless line of kids (and their parents) looking to get rich and famous and you can see why the individuals don't matter. There will always be someone there to replace them.
It's complicated enough being a kid in the first place. Add in the fact that you're expected to be a role model to other kids and everything you do is in the public eye, captured by tabloids or Internet gossip sites, and the pressure can be absolutely astounding. Interestingly enough, many of the best episodes of "Sonny" deal with these very issues, so not only was Lovato living them out in real life but she was play-acting them a second time over for her TV show.
In Lovato's case, she quickly became popular with the tween crowd from her TV roles and her albums. As I'm writing this, she has nearly 3.5 million followers (dubbed "Lovatics") on Twitter. Think about this for a minute. How many people are you or I even going to interact with in our lifetimes? She has 3.5 million people watching her every move on the Internet. After messy public breakups with childhood BFF (and fellow Disney star) Selena Gomez and boyfriend Joe Jonas (of the Jonas Brothers), it was only a matter of time before something was bound to go wrong.
And go wrong it did. While on tour in South America in late 2010, she punched out one of the Jonas Bros. (her tour mates) backup dancers. This was quickly followed by her leaving said tour and checking herself into a medical treatment center to deal with eating and self-harm issues. After receiving treatment and being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Lovato recently reemerged to begin work on her third studio album, which is due out some time this year. She's also been hired to write editorials for Seventeen magazine in an effort to help other young girls cope with problems like the ones she experienced. I hope everything works out for the best, but that brings us back full circle to "So Random".
Left without a star for "Sonny", Disney was forced to make a decision: cancel it entirely, or do something else with all of the actors under contract. Hence, the new sketch comedy show. It features all of the other main actors from "Sonny" along with a variety of musical guests and guest hosts, much like a little 20-minute version of Saturday Night Live. Is it any good? As with the sketches from the show within a show, it's hit or miss. Without any compelling characters or ongoing storylines, though, there's no real reason for me to watch it.
Now that Lovato is in the public eye again, will "Sonny With a Chance" ever return? It's doubtful, and that makes me sad. But maybe, if we're lucky, she'll make a guest appearance on "So Random". I'd probably tune in for that.
To talk about "So Random", I'll have to start with a not so brief but hopefully interesting history lesson. It all starts with another Disney Channel show that debuted a couple of years ago, "Sonny With a Chance". Yes, the name is terrible. "Sonny" shares a common setup to a lot of other Disney shows (analogies include: "Hannah Montana":Miley Cyrus, "Lizzie McGuire":Hilary Duff, "Wizards of Waverly Place":Selena Gomez -- if you don't recognize any of those names then you're living under a much larger rock than I am) in that it's primarily a vehicle for its leading lady. In this case, that lady is the star of the Disney Channel movies Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2, Demi Lovato. More on her in a bit, but first "Sonny".
"Sonny With a Chance" is the story of a girl from Wisconsin (Sonny Munroe) who is hired to join the cast of a Hollywood-based teen sketch comedy show called "So Random". It starts out primarily as a fish out of water story as Sonny has to adjust to the strangeness that is life in show business as part of a hit show. Complicating that is the fact that they share a studio with the #1 teen drama in America, Mackenzie Falls. Needless to say, the casts of the two shows do not get along... at all.
The ringleader of the people at the Falls is its star, the greatest actor of his generation, Chad Dylan Cooper (hilariously played by Sterling Knight -- remember that name). Most shows that feature a show within a show (or in this case, two shows within a show) fail miserably when they attempt to show anything from it -- "Studio 60" I'm looking at you here -- but that's not the case with "Sonny". Yes, the "So Random" sketches are hit and miss, but so is SNL. Sketch comedy is hard to do right. "Mackenzie Falls", however, is pure comedy gold as it single-handedly takes the mickey out of every CW show ever created. Behold!
In season 2 of "Sonny", the focus shifts to the burgeoning relationship between Sonny and Chad, exploring the regular hazards and pitfalls of dating as a teen as well as the complications that arise when those teens happen to be famous celebrities on competing shows. I didn't think I'd ever say this, but I'm proud to say that I've seen pretty much every episode of "Sonny with a Chance" and it's actually quite good. Sure, the acting can be a little rough at times, but those are the hazards when your cast is young and inexperienced. In particular, Lovato (who was only 16 when the first season was filmed) has a tendency to talk loudly and try to get through scenes by flashing her megawatt smile. Thankfully, she improves quite a bit in season 2 and blends into the show much better.
So if it was so good, why is a real version of "So Random" now on the Disney Channel? What happened to "Sonny" season 3? Well, the answer to that lies with its star. Demi Lovato is first and foremost a musician, not an actor. Prior to doing research for this piece, I hadn't heard a single song of hers, but now that I have it's not all that bad. It certainly tops trainwrecks like Ke$ha and the aforementioned Cyrus. She reminds me a little bit of a young Kelly Clarkson. Hopefully, she's able to grow into her voice in the future. This song in particular, "La La Land", from her first album is a catchy little earworm that I haven't gotten out of my head for the past week. Please take a listen and pay attention to the lyrics (which she actually wrote) as they're important to the tale I tell.
Ah... ain't naivete grand? The gist of the song (for those who refused to listen to it) is that even though she's knowingly stepping into the Hollywood hype machine, she's going to stay the same person she's always been. I think Mmes. Spears and Lohan (among others) might be able to offer a differing opinion. I actually think it's pretty appalling the way our culture treats young people in show business. It's almost as if it's designed to completely chew them up and leave them a frail shadow of the person they once were, after extracting every last penny of revenue from them, that is. Add to that the endless line of kids (and their parents) looking to get rich and famous and you can see why the individuals don't matter. There will always be someone there to replace them.
It's complicated enough being a kid in the first place. Add in the fact that you're expected to be a role model to other kids and everything you do is in the public eye, captured by tabloids or Internet gossip sites, and the pressure can be absolutely astounding. Interestingly enough, many of the best episodes of "Sonny" deal with these very issues, so not only was Lovato living them out in real life but she was play-acting them a second time over for her TV show.
In Lovato's case, she quickly became popular with the tween crowd from her TV roles and her albums. As I'm writing this, she has nearly 3.5 million followers (dubbed "Lovatics") on Twitter. Think about this for a minute. How many people are you or I even going to interact with in our lifetimes? She has 3.5 million people watching her every move on the Internet. After messy public breakups with childhood BFF (and fellow Disney star) Selena Gomez and boyfriend Joe Jonas (of the Jonas Brothers), it was only a matter of time before something was bound to go wrong.
And go wrong it did. While on tour in South America in late 2010, she punched out one of the Jonas Bros. (her tour mates) backup dancers. This was quickly followed by her leaving said tour and checking herself into a medical treatment center to deal with eating and self-harm issues. After receiving treatment and being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Lovato recently reemerged to begin work on her third studio album, which is due out some time this year. She's also been hired to write editorials for Seventeen magazine in an effort to help other young girls cope with problems like the ones she experienced. I hope everything works out for the best, but that brings us back full circle to "So Random".
Left without a star for "Sonny", Disney was forced to make a decision: cancel it entirely, or do something else with all of the actors under contract. Hence, the new sketch comedy show. It features all of the other main actors from "Sonny" along with a variety of musical guests and guest hosts, much like a little 20-minute version of Saturday Night Live. Is it any good? As with the sketches from the show within a show, it's hit or miss. Without any compelling characters or ongoing storylines, though, there's no real reason for me to watch it.
Now that Lovato is in the public eye again, will "Sonny With a Chance" ever return? It's doubtful, and that makes me sad. But maybe, if we're lucky, she'll make a guest appearance on "So Random". I'd probably tune in for that.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Cartoon Cartoons!
It all started when I decided to do what I've been known to do from time to time: look into some new TV shows. Little did I know that I would soon be embarking on a rather specific quest...
It began innocently enough. Cartoon Network's Regular Show is one of the few new shows I picked up last fall as appointment TV (for my DVR). Nearly 40 episodes have aired to date, and few if any of them have been misses. Given that, I decided to start with some programs that recently began airing on CN in the hopes of striking it rich again.
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Specifically, I started with a new show that aired on Adult Swim -- a late night block of animation that shares a channel with Cartoon Network. Ostensibly geared for the 18+ crowd, they draw an awful lot of teens their way, too. They air a lot of popular stuff that I or people I know watch from time to time: "King of the Hill", "Family Guy", "Robot Chicken", and "The Venture Bros". They also air a fair amount of anime and some rather off the wall stuff, too.
One of those off the wall shows is something called "Aqua Teen Hunger Force". If you've never heard of it, that's probably okay, but it's now in its 8th season so it must be fairly popular with somebody. I'm just not real sure who that somebody is. I like a lot of weird stuff (goodness knows I'm a huge David Lynch fan), but this really does just seem to be weird for the sake of being weird. Featuring the adventures of an anthropomorphic milkshake, french fries, and meatball, ATHF is chock full of non sequitur, absurdist humor as well as a bunch of pretty offensive stuff.
Wait a minute, wait a minute. I thought I was watching a new show. So why am I telling you all this about ATHF? Well, that new show I watched is something called "Soul Quest Overdrive", and it's a spin off of a particular episode of ATHF. In that episode, we're introduced to three anthropomorphic fruits. I think the schtick is supposed to be that they claim to be born-again Christians, but then proceed to do a bunch of crude, violent, and illegal things. Unfortunately, that's just not funny.
For "Soul Quest Overdrive", the fruits have been turned into sports equipment, but the characters remain the same. I just can't recommend this at all. The only thing I found amusing is what a good time the foley artists must have had using bowling pins, basketballs, and the like to emulate the characters moving about. Watch at your own risk.
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Beaten down from that horrible experience, I turned my gaze back to the regular Cartoon Network and decided to try "The Looney Tunes Show". Wait... what? Did you know they were making new Looney Tunes? It's admirable that Warner Bros is trying to reintroduce their classic characters to a new generation of teens and tweens, but unfortunately this show pales in comparison to the originals or even the Tiny Toon Adventures that I grew up with.
Part of the problem is just that -- it's a show. Where all previous incarnations of Looney Tunes have been a series of largely unconnected shorts, each episode of this is one long-form story with one or two 2-minute unrelated shorts mixed in. In the era of ADD and short attention spans, I find it a curious choice that they would turn their back on a format that would seem tailor-made for today's kids. To make matters worse, there's little chance that they'll be able to tell the diversity of stories they have in the past.
Each episode is based in the same coherent universe. Bugs Bunny lives in a house out in some suburban neighborhood development and Daffy Duck is his unwanted permanent house guest. All of the other characters only exist in so far as they enter and exit Bugs' and Daffy's lives. I watched the first six episodes to get a good feel for it, and I still haven't even seen some classic characters like Sylvester, Tweety, and Foghorn Leghorn. This would all be okay if it were funny, but beyond little bits and pieces its just not that great. It seems to be doing reasonably well in viewership numbers, so unless it's egregiously expensive they'll have some time to improve. I just don't know that I'll be there to see it.
I mentioned before that it features a short or two every episode. So far there have only been two types of these. The first type is a slick CGI version of Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote. These exactly capture the spirit and feel of the originals. If you were a fan of those, you'll actually enjoy this 2 minutes of the show. The other type is an absolutely horrific new version of Merrie Melodies. Watch the video below for an example at your own risk.
I warned you.
-----
Having failed again, I decided to give Cartoon Network one more chance to impress me. The final show I tried is something called "The Amazing World of Gumball". And impress me it did, despite the fact that I have little to say about it. It's essentially a family-based comedy with everything that entails, but it has an absolutely zany cast of characters and a good sense of humor.
My only problem with it is that it skews pretty young -- it is rated TV-Y7 after all -- so it's not likely to be something that I continue to watch on a regular basis. If I had kids, though, I would definitely make an effort to tune in every week. Check out the first episode and let me know what you think.
It began innocently enough. Cartoon Network's Regular Show is one of the few new shows I picked up last fall as appointment TV (for my DVR). Nearly 40 episodes have aired to date, and few if any of them have been misses. Given that, I decided to start with some programs that recently began airing on CN in the hopes of striking it rich again.
-----
Specifically, I started with a new show that aired on Adult Swim -- a late night block of animation that shares a channel with Cartoon Network. Ostensibly geared for the 18+ crowd, they draw an awful lot of teens their way, too. They air a lot of popular stuff that I or people I know watch from time to time: "King of the Hill", "Family Guy", "Robot Chicken", and "The Venture Bros". They also air a fair amount of anime and some rather off the wall stuff, too.
One of those off the wall shows is something called "Aqua Teen Hunger Force". If you've never heard of it, that's probably okay, but it's now in its 8th season so it must be fairly popular with somebody. I'm just not real sure who that somebody is. I like a lot of weird stuff (goodness knows I'm a huge David Lynch fan), but this really does just seem to be weird for the sake of being weird. Featuring the adventures of an anthropomorphic milkshake, french fries, and meatball, ATHF is chock full of non sequitur, absurdist humor as well as a bunch of pretty offensive stuff.
Wait a minute, wait a minute. I thought I was watching a new show. So why am I telling you all this about ATHF? Well, that new show I watched is something called "Soul Quest Overdrive", and it's a spin off of a particular episode of ATHF. In that episode, we're introduced to three anthropomorphic fruits. I think the schtick is supposed to be that they claim to be born-again Christians, but then proceed to do a bunch of crude, violent, and illegal things. Unfortunately, that's just not funny.
For "Soul Quest Overdrive", the fruits have been turned into sports equipment, but the characters remain the same. I just can't recommend this at all. The only thing I found amusing is what a good time the foley artists must have had using bowling pins, basketballs, and the like to emulate the characters moving about. Watch at your own risk.
-----
Beaten down from that horrible experience, I turned my gaze back to the regular Cartoon Network and decided to try "The Looney Tunes Show". Wait... what? Did you know they were making new Looney Tunes? It's admirable that Warner Bros is trying to reintroduce their classic characters to a new generation of teens and tweens, but unfortunately this show pales in comparison to the originals or even the Tiny Toon Adventures that I grew up with.
Part of the problem is just that -- it's a show. Where all previous incarnations of Looney Tunes have been a series of largely unconnected shorts, each episode of this is one long-form story with one or two 2-minute unrelated shorts mixed in. In the era of ADD and short attention spans, I find it a curious choice that they would turn their back on a format that would seem tailor-made for today's kids. To make matters worse, there's little chance that they'll be able to tell the diversity of stories they have in the past.
Each episode is based in the same coherent universe. Bugs Bunny lives in a house out in some suburban neighborhood development and Daffy Duck is his unwanted permanent house guest. All of the other characters only exist in so far as they enter and exit Bugs' and Daffy's lives. I watched the first six episodes to get a good feel for it, and I still haven't even seen some classic characters like Sylvester, Tweety, and Foghorn Leghorn. This would all be okay if it were funny, but beyond little bits and pieces its just not that great. It seems to be doing reasonably well in viewership numbers, so unless it's egregiously expensive they'll have some time to improve. I just don't know that I'll be there to see it.
I mentioned before that it features a short or two every episode. So far there have only been two types of these. The first type is a slick CGI version of Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote. These exactly capture the spirit and feel of the originals. If you were a fan of those, you'll actually enjoy this 2 minutes of the show. The other type is an absolutely horrific new version of Merrie Melodies. Watch the video below for an example at your own risk.
I warned you.
-----
Having failed again, I decided to give Cartoon Network one more chance to impress me. The final show I tried is something called "The Amazing World of Gumball". And impress me it did, despite the fact that I have little to say about it. It's essentially a family-based comedy with everything that entails, but it has an absolutely zany cast of characters and a good sense of humor.
My only problem with it is that it skews pretty young -- it is rated TV-Y7 after all -- so it's not likely to be something that I continue to watch on a regular basis. If I had kids, though, I would definitely make an effort to tune in every week. Check out the first episode and let me know what you think.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
A Little Musical Theater
I know this is nearing 5 years old now, so any self-respecting fan of "How I Met Your Mother" and/or Les Miserables has probably already seen it, but I can't resist posting it here. I discovered it while doing some YouTube research for a future post.
For those familiar with the original Broadway cast recording of Les Mis, I really dig how much they're channeling Terrence Mann and Colm Wilkinson in this. I also find the reactions of the other HIMYM cast members on the sofa to be hilarious.
For those familiar with the original Broadway cast recording of Les Mis, I really dig how much they're channeling Terrence Mann and Colm Wilkinson in this. I also find the reactions of the other HIMYM cast members on the sofa to be hilarious.
Friday, May 13, 2011
For Kim, Part 2/5
Coming in next on my list of five favorite male actors is late addition James McAvoy.
First off, he's a Scot. There's nothing more entertaining than listening to a Scottish accent. Second, it helps that he's actually a good actor. He'd primarily been in British films and TV until breaking through back in 2005 with his role as everyone's favorite patsy, Tumnus the faun, in the first Chronicles of Narnia. Say what you want about that movie series (I happen to like it), but McAvoy's portrayal of the bumbling, nervous Tumnus was note perfect. He followed that up with a couple bravura performances over the next couple years.
In 2006, he played the lead in The Last King of Scotland. Forrest Whitaker got all the credit (as well as an Oscar) for his portrayal of Idi Amin, but McAvoy provides the heart and soul, flawed though it may be, that drives the movie. Watching his struggle to escape the trouble that he creates for himself is riveting. He followed this up in 2007 with another great performance, this time opposite Keira Knightley and Saoirse Ronan, in Atonement. As a completely unrelated aside, if you liked Atonement you should go see Hanna, in theaters now. It also features Saoirse Ronan and shares the same director, Joe Wright. If you haven't seen Atonement, you should. It is a beautiful and tragic film.
After that, I'll confess that I haven't seen anything with McAvoy in it, but I'm eagerly awaiting his next great role. He starred in Wanted, but I've had a strong aversion to Angelina Jolie ever since Tomb Raider. He's also in the recent Lincoln assassination movie The Conspirator and he'll be playing Professor X in the forthcoming X-Men: First Class. I'm looking forward to catching both of those.
Stay tuned for next Friday's update when I reveal #3...
---
Hot off the presses, fans of Chuck can celebrate. For some insane reason, it's been renewed for 13 more episodes next year. Word has it that this will be its final season, and looking at its ratings you can understand why. However, since this is NBC, where everything gets lousy ratings, anything is possible.
First off, he's a Scot. There's nothing more entertaining than listening to a Scottish accent. Second, it helps that he's actually a good actor. He'd primarily been in British films and TV until breaking through back in 2005 with his role as everyone's favorite patsy, Tumnus the faun, in the first Chronicles of Narnia. Say what you want about that movie series (I happen to like it), but McAvoy's portrayal of the bumbling, nervous Tumnus was note perfect. He followed that up with a couple bravura performances over the next couple years.
In 2006, he played the lead in The Last King of Scotland. Forrest Whitaker got all the credit (as well as an Oscar) for his portrayal of Idi Amin, but McAvoy provides the heart and soul, flawed though it may be, that drives the movie. Watching his struggle to escape the trouble that he creates for himself is riveting. He followed this up in 2007 with another great performance, this time opposite Keira Knightley and Saoirse Ronan, in Atonement. As a completely unrelated aside, if you liked Atonement you should go see Hanna, in theaters now. It also features Saoirse Ronan and shares the same director, Joe Wright. If you haven't seen Atonement, you should. It is a beautiful and tragic film.
After that, I'll confess that I haven't seen anything with McAvoy in it, but I'm eagerly awaiting his next great role. He starred in Wanted, but I've had a strong aversion to Angelina Jolie ever since Tomb Raider. He's also in the recent Lincoln assassination movie The Conspirator and he'll be playing Professor X in the forthcoming X-Men: First Class. I'm looking forward to catching both of those.
Stay tuned for next Friday's update when I reveal #3...
---
Hot off the presses, fans of Chuck can celebrate. For some insane reason, it's been renewed for 13 more episodes next year. Word has it that this will be its final season, and looking at its ratings you can understand why. However, since this is NBC, where everything gets lousy ratings, anything is possible.
Friday, May 6, 2011
For Kim, Part 1/5
In the 3rd season of the sitcom "Friends", there's an episode (The One with Frank Jr.) where Ross infamously crafts a list of five celebrities that he's allowed to sleep with should he happen to run into them. Every guy who's ever seen it has carefully crafted their own list to share with their significant other. This is not that list.
Instead, this is the post that I promised Kim over at HarrisWorld I would make when I made a return to blogging: my list of five celebrity "guy crushes". After careful consideration, I've assembled this list of the 5 male actors that for whatever reason really make me interested in seeing a movie or TV show. [Note: Clive Owen was not allowed to be on this list, as I'm told that girls actually like him.] Without further ado, in no particular order, here is the first of them:
Nathan Fillion -
I'm not the world's biggest Joss Whedon fan, but Fillion's funny and nuanced performance as Captain Mal Reynolds in "Firefly" makes it an exception well worth watching. Believe it or not, other than 2007's criminally unseen Waitress, I've never seen anything else that he's in. His inclusion on this list means that I certainly want to make the time to watch Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog or his current TV project "Castle" some day.
Instead, this is the post that I promised Kim over at HarrisWorld I would make when I made a return to blogging: my list of five celebrity "guy crushes". After careful consideration, I've assembled this list of the 5 male actors that for whatever reason really make me interested in seeing a movie or TV show. [Note: Clive Owen was not allowed to be on this list, as I'm told that girls actually like him.] Without further ado, in no particular order, here is the first of them:
Nathan Fillion -
I'm not the world's biggest Joss Whedon fan, but Fillion's funny and nuanced performance as Captain Mal Reynolds in "Firefly" makes it an exception well worth watching. Believe it or not, other than 2007's criminally unseen Waitress, I've never seen anything else that he's in. His inclusion on this list means that I certainly want to make the time to watch Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog or his current TV project "Castle" some day.
Monday, September 27, 2010
New Fall TV: Week 3, Part 1
Away we go...
The Event - Mon 9/8 Central, NBC
On Mondays after "Chuck", I might give "The Event" a shot for awhile. Those of you burned out on "event" type shows (see "Flash Forward", "The Nine", and of course "Lost") probably need not apply here. There's a lot going on in this show and it tends to utilize a lot of flashbacks to tell its story so some folks may find it confusing, but they're mostly used in ways that heighten the storytelling.
Sean Walker is our viewpoint character: a normal guy going on a cruise with his girlfriend, where he plans to propose to her. On the cruise, everything starts to go south. His girlfriend disappears and all record of them ever being on the cruise is wiped out. Seven days later, Sean is on an airplane at Miami International with a gun trying to get into the cockpit. How did we get from point A to point B and why? Questions that will have to be answered in the future.
Alongside this story is one of governmental intrigue. In Alaska, the US government has been secretly holding a group of people in a prison camp for years. When the President finds out about it, he decides to hold a press conference to tell the American people. Be forewarned, there are sci-fi elements at play here. It's not overtly stated, but there are signs that the prisoners in Alaska are aliens or some other sort of extraordinary beings. Both stories collide in the final five minutes. We'll see where it goes from there.
Catch up on Hulu, if'n it sounds good to you.
Lone Star - Mon 9/8 Central, FOX
This was probably the most critically acclaimed new network drama of the fall, so of course it's tanked miserably and will probably be cancelled soon. It's a shame as I actually enjoyed it, although a large part of that might have to do with the fact that it's not a law or cop drama. I can see where it would lack broad appeal, though.
The main character is essentially a two-timing bastard of a con man. He's running two long cons in separate cities in Texas which he splits time between under the guise of perpetual business trips. With a wife in one and a live-in girlfriend in the other, he really should be the worst kind of human slime. To this, two aspects have been added in an attempt to get viewers to invest in the character: 1) He doesn't want to be a con man anymore. His father has raised him that way and essentially forced him to be one since a young age. 2) He is genuinely in love with both of the ladies in his life. If you can buy that, then you've found your way in. Ah, well. Slow-burning character dramas never make it outside of cable.
Catch up on Hulu, if you're looking for a short-lived shot of non-formulaic television.
Mike and Molly - Mon 9:30/8:30 Central, CBS
Not much to say here. This is a laugh track sit-com about two fat people falling in love. Trust me, I wouldn't say fat people if it weren't the actual premise. Call me a snob, but standard sit-coms need to be impossibly funny these days for me to want to watch them and this one's just not there.
Mike (comedian Billy Gardell - I know him from "Lucky") is a cop. Molly (Melissa McCarthy - Sookie from "Gilmore Girls") is an elementary school teacher. They meet at Overeaters Anonymous, and by the end of the first episode have plans to go on a date. Ho hum.
Catch up on the CBS website to see the latest in fat jokes. Oh... the fat jokes. Moving on.
Hawaii Five-0 - Mon 10/9 Central, CBS
Big. Dumb. Action. Woo! If you like explosions, car chases, gunfire, bikini-clad babes, and your revenge stories served tropical style then Hawaii is the place to be. Unlike other recent big dumb action reboots (see "Knight Rider" & "Bionic Woman") this one plays it pretty straight. There's a little humor, but it's not forced or campy like those shows were. Alex O'Loughlin ("Moonlight") is just as stiff as ever, but it almost manages to fit the character here. Scott Caan (Ocean's 1n movies, among others) is the standout here as Danno, if there is one. Check your brain at the door and enjoy the ride if you want, but I don't have room for this sort of thing on my DVR.
Catch up on the CBS website.
Chase - Mon 10/9 Central, NBC
The less said, the better. An uninteresting group of US Marshals chase (do you get it?) dangerous fugitives every week. Truly bland and forgettable. Where's Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones when you need them?
Try to stay awake at Hulu.
I'll be back tomorrow with Tuesday's shows. There's actually a real winner to be had there.
The Event - Mon 9/8 Central, NBC
On Mondays after "Chuck", I might give "The Event" a shot for awhile. Those of you burned out on "event" type shows (see "Flash Forward", "The Nine", and of course "Lost") probably need not apply here. There's a lot going on in this show and it tends to utilize a lot of flashbacks to tell its story so some folks may find it confusing, but they're mostly used in ways that heighten the storytelling.
Sean Walker is our viewpoint character: a normal guy going on a cruise with his girlfriend, where he plans to propose to her. On the cruise, everything starts to go south. His girlfriend disappears and all record of them ever being on the cruise is wiped out. Seven days later, Sean is on an airplane at Miami International with a gun trying to get into the cockpit. How did we get from point A to point B and why? Questions that will have to be answered in the future.
Alongside this story is one of governmental intrigue. In Alaska, the US government has been secretly holding a group of people in a prison camp for years. When the President finds out about it, he decides to hold a press conference to tell the American people. Be forewarned, there are sci-fi elements at play here. It's not overtly stated, but there are signs that the prisoners in Alaska are aliens or some other sort of extraordinary beings. Both stories collide in the final five minutes. We'll see where it goes from there.
Catch up on Hulu, if'n it sounds good to you.
Lone Star - Mon 9/8 Central, FOX
This was probably the most critically acclaimed new network drama of the fall, so of course it's tanked miserably and will probably be cancelled soon. It's a shame as I actually enjoyed it, although a large part of that might have to do with the fact that it's not a law or cop drama. I can see where it would lack broad appeal, though.
The main character is essentially a two-timing bastard of a con man. He's running two long cons in separate cities in Texas which he splits time between under the guise of perpetual business trips. With a wife in one and a live-in girlfriend in the other, he really should be the worst kind of human slime. To this, two aspects have been added in an attempt to get viewers to invest in the character: 1) He doesn't want to be a con man anymore. His father has raised him that way and essentially forced him to be one since a young age. 2) He is genuinely in love with both of the ladies in his life. If you can buy that, then you've found your way in. Ah, well. Slow-burning character dramas never make it outside of cable.
Catch up on Hulu, if you're looking for a short-lived shot of non-formulaic television.
Mike and Molly - Mon 9:30/8:30 Central, CBS
Not much to say here. This is a laugh track sit-com about two fat people falling in love. Trust me, I wouldn't say fat people if it weren't the actual premise. Call me a snob, but standard sit-coms need to be impossibly funny these days for me to want to watch them and this one's just not there.
Mike (comedian Billy Gardell - I know him from "Lucky") is a cop. Molly (Melissa McCarthy - Sookie from "Gilmore Girls") is an elementary school teacher. They meet at Overeaters Anonymous, and by the end of the first episode have plans to go on a date. Ho hum.
Catch up on the CBS website to see the latest in fat jokes. Oh... the fat jokes. Moving on.
Hawaii Five-0 - Mon 10/9 Central, CBS
Big. Dumb. Action. Woo! If you like explosions, car chases, gunfire, bikini-clad babes, and your revenge stories served tropical style then Hawaii is the place to be. Unlike other recent big dumb action reboots (see "Knight Rider" & "Bionic Woman") this one plays it pretty straight. There's a little humor, but it's not forced or campy like those shows were. Alex O'Loughlin ("Moonlight") is just as stiff as ever, but it almost manages to fit the character here. Scott Caan (Ocean's 1n movies, among others) is the standout here as Danno, if there is one. Check your brain at the door and enjoy the ride if you want, but I don't have room for this sort of thing on my DVR.
Catch up on the CBS website.
Chase - Mon 10/9 Central, NBC
The less said, the better. An uninteresting group of US Marshals chase (do you get it?) dangerous fugitives every week. Truly bland and forgettable. Where's Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones when you need them?
Try to stay awake at Hulu.
I'll be back tomorrow with Tuesday's shows. There's actually a real winner to be had there.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
New Fall TV: Week 2
Quick and Dirty, because I have to run.
Outlaw - NBC, Fri 10/9 (special premiere Wed, Sept 15 10/9)
Starring Jimmy Smits ("Dexter" Season 3, "Cane", "NYPD Blue"), "Outlaw" is the ridiculous story of how the "most conservative" member of the Supreme Court quits to become a crusader for righting injustices. Add in the fact that the character is defined completely by his behaviors as a gambler and a serial womanizer and you can see why this train wreck has been relegated to late on Fridays. In theme, I think it will probably run like a bunch of other short-lived law dramas (see "In Justice" as an example), just not as good. I've watched to the first commercial break, and I've seen enough to tell you to stay away. Far away.
Sym-Bionic Titan - Cartoon, Fri 8/7
I can't tell you a whole lot about this one. The two short preview clips I've seen involve giant robots from space fighting each other and terrifying Earth's population. A good sci-fi cartoon could be interesting, but I'm not sure this is it. Wikipedia tells me that it blends "high school drama" with the aforementioned giant robots. Not sure how or if that works, but I think I'll be giving this one a pass.
Boardwalk Empire - HBO, Sun 9/8
HBO's latest, "Boardwalk Empire" is the tale of gamblers and bootleggers in Atlantic City at the dawn of Prohibition. It has an excellent pedigree: created by one of the chief writers of "The Sopranos", the pilot is directed by Martin Scorsese, and it stars Steve Buscemi. If I had HBO, I would certainly be watching this. I'm sure I'll find a way to get a hold of it eventually.
Outlaw - NBC, Fri 10/9 (special premiere Wed, Sept 15 10/9)
Starring Jimmy Smits ("Dexter" Season 3, "Cane", "NYPD Blue"), "Outlaw" is the ridiculous story of how the "most conservative" member of the Supreme Court quits to become a crusader for righting injustices. Add in the fact that the character is defined completely by his behaviors as a gambler and a serial womanizer and you can see why this train wreck has been relegated to late on Fridays. In theme, I think it will probably run like a bunch of other short-lived law dramas (see "In Justice" as an example), just not as good. I've watched to the first commercial break, and I've seen enough to tell you to stay away. Far away.
Sym-Bionic Titan - Cartoon, Fri 8/7
I can't tell you a whole lot about this one. The two short preview clips I've seen involve giant robots from space fighting each other and terrifying Earth's population. A good sci-fi cartoon could be interesting, but I'm not sure this is it. Wikipedia tells me that it blends "high school drama" with the aforementioned giant robots. Not sure how or if that works, but I think I'll be giving this one a pass.
Boardwalk Empire - HBO, Sun 9/8
HBO's latest, "Boardwalk Empire" is the tale of gamblers and bootleggers in Atlantic City at the dawn of Prohibition. It has an excellent pedigree: created by one of the chief writers of "The Sopranos", the pilot is directed by Martin Scorsese, and it stars Steve Buscemi. If I had HBO, I would certainly be watching this. I'm sure I'll find a way to get a hold of it eventually.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Week 1 Recap
Before we move on to this week's new shows, I'll give a few quick thoughts about what I watched from last week.
Terriers:
This was my most anticipated show of the week, and it mostly lived up to my expectations. I'm unfortunately not planning on getting too attached though, as it apparently failed to draw much of an audience. Hank (Donal Logue) is a former cop, now operating as a small-time unlicensed P.I., and Britt (Michael Raymond-James) is his best friend and partner. In doing a favor for an old friend, they find themselves wrapped up in a plot involving murder, fraud, and adultery that may leave them on the wrong side of the law.
This is a tough show to describe. It's very funny (both with one liners and more subtle humor), but it's also pretty coarse and violent. This ends up making the show pretty uneven in a lot of ways. In the matter of a few scenes we go from a murder scene so grisly you can almost smell the carnage to a humorous back and forth between Hank and his legal advisor to a brutal fight scene in a parking garage with armed thugs. Come to think of it, that's probably exactly what you should get when you combine the grit of "The Shield" with the humor and charm of Ocean's Eleven.
We'll definitely keep watching, but it'll be interesting to see if it can settle into its own groove eventually. I think it's worth a look. If you don't find the first 15 minutes enjoyable, it's probably not going to be for you. You can catch up for free on Amazon or iTunes.
Nikita:
This was... okay. I'm not familiar with the previous Nikita properties, but this is apparently a continuation of sorts from where they left off. Nikita is a highly trained assassin, but now she's gone rogue in an effort to bring down the corrupt organization ("Division") that trained her. The "twist" (in quotes because the twist in pilot episodes almost always involves revealing the real premise of the show) at the end was probably enough to make me try this for another week or two: Nikita has inserted a mole into Division in the guise of a fresh, raw recruit. Chatter on the Interwebs has actually compared this to "Alias" in a lot of ways. I only watched that enough to know that I will never need to see Jennifer Garner in another wig before I die, but if it tripped your trigger you might give this a shot.
Hellcats:
Mentioned this briefly in the comments last week. I ended up watching this anyway (old habits die hard), and it was not as bad as I had anticipated. I won't be watching it again anytime soon, but it has a certain charm to it despite the questionable cheerleading routines and Disney Channel alumni.
Regular Show:
Made a place for it on my DVR. I don't watch a lot of cartoons, but this is easily the funniest new one I've seen in awhile. For those of you who didn't get a chance to check it out before it was removed from YouTube, someone new has uploaded it. I've updated the link in last week's post, so if you haven't already check it out now while it's still there. This week's episode has also surfaced on YouTube. Still funny, I highly recommend.
There are only three new shows this week. I'll do my best to get something up tomorrow for them.
Outlaw - NBC, Fri 10/9 (special premiere Wed, Sept 15 10/9)
Sym-Bionic Titan - Cartoon, Fri 8/7
Boardwalk Empire - HBO, Sun 9/8
Terriers:
This was my most anticipated show of the week, and it mostly lived up to my expectations. I'm unfortunately not planning on getting too attached though, as it apparently failed to draw much of an audience. Hank (Donal Logue) is a former cop, now operating as a small-time unlicensed P.I., and Britt (Michael Raymond-James) is his best friend and partner. In doing a favor for an old friend, they find themselves wrapped up in a plot involving murder, fraud, and adultery that may leave them on the wrong side of the law.
This is a tough show to describe. It's very funny (both with one liners and more subtle humor), but it's also pretty coarse and violent. This ends up making the show pretty uneven in a lot of ways. In the matter of a few scenes we go from a murder scene so grisly you can almost smell the carnage to a humorous back and forth between Hank and his legal advisor to a brutal fight scene in a parking garage with armed thugs. Come to think of it, that's probably exactly what you should get when you combine the grit of "The Shield" with the humor and charm of Ocean's Eleven.
We'll definitely keep watching, but it'll be interesting to see if it can settle into its own groove eventually. I think it's worth a look. If you don't find the first 15 minutes enjoyable, it's probably not going to be for you. You can catch up for free on Amazon or iTunes.
Nikita:
This was... okay. I'm not familiar with the previous Nikita properties, but this is apparently a continuation of sorts from where they left off. Nikita is a highly trained assassin, but now she's gone rogue in an effort to bring down the corrupt organization ("Division") that trained her. The "twist" (in quotes because the twist in pilot episodes almost always involves revealing the real premise of the show) at the end was probably enough to make me try this for another week or two: Nikita has inserted a mole into Division in the guise of a fresh, raw recruit. Chatter on the Interwebs has actually compared this to "Alias" in a lot of ways. I only watched that enough to know that I will never need to see Jennifer Garner in another wig before I die, but if it tripped your trigger you might give this a shot.
Hellcats:
Mentioned this briefly in the comments last week. I ended up watching this anyway (old habits die hard), and it was not as bad as I had anticipated. I won't be watching it again anytime soon, but it has a certain charm to it despite the questionable cheerleading routines and Disney Channel alumni.
Regular Show:
Made a place for it on my DVR. I don't watch a lot of cartoons, but this is easily the funniest new one I've seen in awhile. For those of you who didn't get a chance to check it out before it was removed from YouTube, someone new has uploaded it. I've updated the link in last week's post, so if you haven't already check it out now while it's still there. This week's episode has also surfaced on YouTube. Still funny, I highly recommend.
There are only three new shows this week. I'll do my best to get something up tomorrow for them.
Outlaw - NBC, Fri 10/9 (special premiere Wed, Sept 15 10/9)
Sym-Bionic Titan - Cartoon, Fri 8/7
Boardwalk Empire - HBO, Sun 9/8
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
New Fall TV: Week 1
For those of you who have been reading here at the Tower for awhile, you'll recognize this time of year as when I valiantly attempt to watch a lot of new TV shows, write about them, and fail miserably. So I'm not going to even attempt this year, at least not the way I normally go about it. I think some of it has to do with my complete apathy toward most of the new shows this year, but it's mostly just an attempt to keep my sanity.
Instead, I'm going to preview each week's new premieres with some quick thoughts about what to expect. If I actually watch a show, I'll probably come back with a slightly more in-depth review. So without further ado, let's get going with Week 1.
As with most years, this is where the CW attempts to get some traction with their new shows before the other networks start up for the year. You may recall that last year featured the new Melrose Place (18 episodes before cancellation), TBL (2 episodes before cancellation, although you can watch 3 more on YouTube - yay?), and The Vampire Diaries (back Thursday and still going strong). This year, the CW is only debuting two new shows: Hellcats and Nikita.
Hellcats - CW Wed. 9/8 Central
Inheriting TBL's spot from last fall, I will be horrified at the taste level of the American public if this lasts more than two episodes. Ostensibly along the same vein as the brilliantly saccharine Bring It On, Hellcats details the "secret life" of college cheerleading. Outside of the concept itself though, it looks like everything goes horribly wrong with this one. I've only seen brief preview clips, but the level of acting featured here is on par with made-for-TV ABC Family movies. I guess that's what you get when you cast two Disney Channel graduates as your leads. I'd recommend staying away, unless you really like cheerleading.
Nikita - CW Thu. 9/8 Central
I honestly have no idea what to make of this one. Based off of the critically acclaimed movie and TV series "La Femme Nikita", Nikita is the story of a deadly, but beautiful, female assassin. CW isn't sharing much in the way of real previews on their website, so I can't tell you if this will be any good. The formula seems like it would be hard to mess up: take a pretty actress and have her beat up a bunch of people. If that sounds at all appealing, I'd recommend you give it a try. I'll give it a shot to impress me this week. Knowing the CW's track record, it probably won't.
FX is debuting a new show this week, too. Unlike the CW, their shows are usually pretty good.
Terriers - FX Wed. 10/9 Central
I'll throw some words at you and see if they stick. Creator of "The Shield". Writer of Ocean's Eleven. Donal Logue. If you're me, all of the above are reason enough to give this show a try. Billed as a comedic drama, this is the story of two would-be private investigators struggling to make a living in the modern world. The PI's are played by the aforementioned Logue ("Grounded for Life", The Tao of Steve) and Michael Raymond-James (the "Cajun" from season 1 of True Blood), so I'm expecting it to be both funny and well-acted which is all I can really ask these days. I'll report back with more on this one after the premiere.
If you're into the cartoon thing, Cartoon Network also premiered a couple of shows this week. Sandwiched on Monday nights in between two episodes of "Adventure Time" (a fun and quirky show in its own right) are:
Regular Show - Cartoon Mon. 8:15/7:15 Central
Despite the title, this is no regular show. Featuring a blue jay, a raccoon, a talking gumball machine, a lollipop-headed man, and a yeti (voiced by Mark Hamill), Regular Show is an infectious and funny little show. The first episode (which you can track down on YouTube if you're so inclined) involves a Casio keyboard (stolen from a wizard) that grants the player magical powers. Clocking in at 12 minutes, it's easily short enough to maintain its high-octane pacing without wearing you out. Check it out.
MAD - Cartoon Mon. 8:30/7:30 Central
This is essentially the folks at MAD magazine attempting to crank out a kid-friendly version of "Robot Chicken": short vignettes and parodies that are more miss than hit. The first episode (also on YouTube) had a couple funny bits, but the largest pieces (a parody of Avatar and a mash-up of all things "CSI" with "iCarly") both fell flat for me. This show is also only 12 minutes long, so if it sounds even remotely funny to you, it probably wouldn't hurt to check it out. I'll pass.
I'll be back next week with a preview of three brand new shows. Week 3 will be the real doozy as that's when almost everything new (17 shows) finally debuts.
Instead, I'm going to preview each week's new premieres with some quick thoughts about what to expect. If I actually watch a show, I'll probably come back with a slightly more in-depth review. So without further ado, let's get going with Week 1.
As with most years, this is where the CW attempts to get some traction with their new shows before the other networks start up for the year. You may recall that last year featured the new Melrose Place (18 episodes before cancellation), TBL (2 episodes before cancellation, although you can watch 3 more on YouTube - yay?), and The Vampire Diaries (back Thursday and still going strong). This year, the CW is only debuting two new shows: Hellcats and Nikita.
Hellcats - CW Wed. 9/8 Central
Inheriting TBL's spot from last fall, I will be horrified at the taste level of the American public if this lasts more than two episodes. Ostensibly along the same vein as the brilliantly saccharine Bring It On, Hellcats details the "secret life" of college cheerleading. Outside of the concept itself though, it looks like everything goes horribly wrong with this one. I've only seen brief preview clips, but the level of acting featured here is on par with made-for-TV ABC Family movies. I guess that's what you get when you cast two Disney Channel graduates as your leads. I'd recommend staying away, unless you really like cheerleading.
Nikita - CW Thu. 9/8 Central
I honestly have no idea what to make of this one. Based off of the critically acclaimed movie and TV series "La Femme Nikita", Nikita is the story of a deadly, but beautiful, female assassin. CW isn't sharing much in the way of real previews on their website, so I can't tell you if this will be any good. The formula seems like it would be hard to mess up: take a pretty actress and have her beat up a bunch of people. If that sounds at all appealing, I'd recommend you give it a try. I'll give it a shot to impress me this week. Knowing the CW's track record, it probably won't.
FX is debuting a new show this week, too. Unlike the CW, their shows are usually pretty good.
Terriers - FX Wed. 10/9 Central
I'll throw some words at you and see if they stick. Creator of "The Shield". Writer of Ocean's Eleven. Donal Logue. If you're me, all of the above are reason enough to give this show a try. Billed as a comedic drama, this is the story of two would-be private investigators struggling to make a living in the modern world. The PI's are played by the aforementioned Logue ("Grounded for Life", The Tao of Steve) and Michael Raymond-James (the "Cajun" from season 1 of True Blood), so I'm expecting it to be both funny and well-acted which is all I can really ask these days. I'll report back with more on this one after the premiere.
If you're into the cartoon thing, Cartoon Network also premiered a couple of shows this week. Sandwiched on Monday nights in between two episodes of "Adventure Time" (a fun and quirky show in its own right) are:
Regular Show - Cartoon Mon. 8:15/7:15 Central
Despite the title, this is no regular show. Featuring a blue jay, a raccoon, a talking gumball machine, a lollipop-headed man, and a yeti (voiced by Mark Hamill), Regular Show is an infectious and funny little show. The first episode (which you can track down on YouTube if you're so inclined) involves a Casio keyboard (stolen from a wizard) that grants the player magical powers. Clocking in at 12 minutes, it's easily short enough to maintain its high-octane pacing without wearing you out. Check it out.
MAD - Cartoon Mon. 8:30/7:30 Central
This is essentially the folks at MAD magazine attempting to crank out a kid-friendly version of "Robot Chicken": short vignettes and parodies that are more miss than hit. The first episode (also on YouTube) had a couple funny bits, but the largest pieces (a parody of Avatar and a mash-up of all things "CSI" with "iCarly") both fell flat for me. This show is also only 12 minutes long, so if it sounds even remotely funny to you, it probably wouldn't hurt to check it out. I'll pass.
I'll be back next week with a preview of three brand new shows. Week 3 will be the real doozy as that's when almost everything new (17 shows) finally debuts.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Comedy Hour I
Community: Thursdays on NBC, 9:30/8:30 Central
Attempting to fill the shoes of My Name is Earl (along with its 8/7 timeslot starting in two weeks), Community is NBC's newest entry in their long-standing Thursday night comedy block. Unlike their flop from last year (Kath & Kim), Community is actually funny.
Jeff is a lawyer... or rather he used to be. It turns out that bar associations don't take it so well when your law degree came from an online "school" in Colombia. As a result, he's going back to college for the first time. Specifically, he's going back to Greendale Community College. In an effort to get in fellow student Britta's pants (she looks just like Elisabeth Shue), Jeff accidentally starts up a study group for his Spanish 101 class populated by a collection of misfits.
Community has almost everything I look for in a comedy. It's quotable (did you know that 90% of speaking Spanish is in how you move your hands?), self-aware, chock full of pop culture references (but not in an in-your-face Gilmore Girls kind of way), and walks the fine line between smart and silly. The pilot gets most of the dull exposition out of the way (character intros, etc.), but does it in a brilliant fashion. Throw 7 strangers into a room, let them interact, and you're bound to find out almost everything you need to know about them.
There have been two episodes so far, both hilarious, but in very different ways. You can catch up on Hulu or by watching the encore presentations tonight on USA at 11:05/10:05.
Bored to Death: Sundays on HBO, 9:30/8:30 Central
... Coming soon ...
Attempting to fill the shoes of My Name is Earl (along with its 8/7 timeslot starting in two weeks), Community is NBC's newest entry in their long-standing Thursday night comedy block. Unlike their flop from last year (Kath & Kim), Community is actually funny.
Jeff is a lawyer... or rather he used to be. It turns out that bar associations don't take it so well when your law degree came from an online "school" in Colombia. As a result, he's going back to college for the first time. Specifically, he's going back to Greendale Community College. In an effort to get in fellow student Britta's pants (she looks just like Elisabeth Shue), Jeff accidentally starts up a study group for his Spanish 101 class populated by a collection of misfits.
Community has almost everything I look for in a comedy. It's quotable (did you know that 90% of speaking Spanish is in how you move your hands?), self-aware, chock full of pop culture references (but not in an in-your-face Gilmore Girls kind of way), and walks the fine line between smart and silly. The pilot gets most of the dull exposition out of the way (character intros, etc.), but does it in a brilliant fashion. Throw 7 strangers into a room, let them interact, and you're bound to find out almost everything you need to know about them.
There have been two episodes so far, both hilarious, but in very different ways. You can catch up on Hulu or by watching the encore presentations tonight on USA at 11:05/10:05.
Bored to Death: Sundays on HBO, 9:30/8:30 Central
... Coming soon ...
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Friendly Reminder
Just wanted to remind everyone of something I stated last year. If you keep watching a show that I post about, feel free to keep talking about it in the relevant comments section so we can know if it gets better/worse, etc. I'll periodically drag updates from folks like you out into a main post if I get enough.
Scads o' TV-related posts coming very soon:
Comedy Hour - feat. Community, Bored to Death, Accidentally on Purpose, Cougar Town, Modern Family, Glenn Martin DDS
Kid-Tested, But Are They Brian-Approved? - feat. The Troop, RollBots, The Super Hero Squad Show, Hot Wheels: Battle Force 5
I am way behind on hour-long dramas. I'll try to spend some mornings catching up this week.
Scads o' TV-related posts coming very soon:
Comedy Hour - feat. Community, Bored to Death, Accidentally on Purpose, Cougar Town, Modern Family, Glenn Martin DDS
Kid-Tested, But Are They Brian-Approved? - feat. The Troop, RollBots, The Super Hero Squad Show, Hot Wheels: Battle Force 5
I am way behind on hour-long dramas. I'll try to spend some mornings catching up this week.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Models Inc. Strikes Back
The Beautiful Life: TBL: Wednesdays on CW, 9:00/8:00 Central
In the spirit of reviving questionable Fox primetime soaps from the 90s, the CW offers TBL for your viewing pleasure, its modern-day analog for Models Inc. If we're lucky it will have a similarly short lifespan.
Co-created by Ashton Kutcher, TBL details the life of a group of aspiring models who share their agency's NYC flophouse. There's Raina the model with a heart of gold whose Fashion Week runway has made her the talk of the town, Sonja the washed-up supermodel with a secret child, Chris the Iowa farm boy who execs think might have the look, Isaac the child model finding it hard to get gigs as an adult, and on and on. You get the point. Think America's Next Top Model meets Melrose Place.
What should come across as an interesting premise (fashion-related shows are pretty hot right now) instead falls terribly flat. The pilot opens with the aforementioned runway show at fashion week, complete with all the flash and gloss you'd expect in a CW show. Once you crack through the veneer though, there's not a lot of substance. With so much "real" fashion on the tube these days, it's easy to see that this is not it. Photo shoots, go sees, runway shows, none of them are particularly well done. Unfortunately for TBL it's these things that are supposed to make the show unique.
Add to that the poor acting (Mischa Barton as usual is especially poor as the pathetic Sonja), predictable plot, and characters straight out of "Screenwriting for Dummies" and were left with not a whole lot to entertain us. Watch only if you're a masochist or can't get enough of that CW thang.
Note: I'm up-to-date on my viewing, but behind on my posting. One hour dramas will continue to get full write-ups, half-hour shows will get capsule reviews, and kids' shows are going to be lumped into one big post.
In the spirit of reviving questionable Fox primetime soaps from the 90s, the CW offers TBL for your viewing pleasure, its modern-day analog for Models Inc. If we're lucky it will have a similarly short lifespan.
Co-created by Ashton Kutcher, TBL details the life of a group of aspiring models who share their agency's NYC flophouse. There's Raina the model with a heart of gold whose Fashion Week runway has made her the talk of the town, Sonja the washed-up supermodel with a secret child, Chris the Iowa farm boy who execs think might have the look, Isaac the child model finding it hard to get gigs as an adult, and on and on. You get the point. Think America's Next Top Model meets Melrose Place.
What should come across as an interesting premise (fashion-related shows are pretty hot right now) instead falls terribly flat. The pilot opens with the aforementioned runway show at fashion week, complete with all the flash and gloss you'd expect in a CW show. Once you crack through the veneer though, there's not a lot of substance. With so much "real" fashion on the tube these days, it's easy to see that this is not it. Photo shoots, go sees, runway shows, none of them are particularly well done. Unfortunately for TBL it's these things that are supposed to make the show unique.
Add to that the poor acting (Mischa Barton as usual is especially poor as the pathetic Sonja), predictable plot, and characters straight out of "Screenwriting for Dummies" and were left with not a whole lot to entertain us. Watch only if you're a masochist or can't get enough of that CW thang.
Note: I'm up-to-date on my viewing, but behind on my posting. One hour dramas will continue to get full write-ups, half-hour shows will get capsule reviews, and kids' shows are going to be lumped into one big post.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
TV Preview: 9/14/2009
Briefly, new this week:
The Beautiful Life - CW Wed. 9/8 Central
The weakest link from The OC (Mischa Barton) lives the beautiful life... I guess. Not expecting much.
Community - NBC Thu. 9:30/8:30 Central
Chevy Chase returns to TV for his first regular gig since Saturday Night Live in this community college comedy.
The Troop - Nick Fri. 8/7 Central
Nickelodeon gets in on the fantasy genre with this show about ordinary teens that hunt monsters. Given the channel, I'm guessing this skews a little younger than Buffy did.
RollBots - CW Sat. 8/7 AM Central
New Saturday morning cartoon about round robots. Not sure if there's a story there.
The Superhero Squad Show - Cartoon Sat. 8:30/7:30 AM Central
I'm not looking forward to this comedic take on the Marvel universe. Rumor has it that sneak peeks of the first two episodes are already running as of yesterday.
Bored to Death - HBO Sun. 9:30/8:30 Central
A detective comedy written by Jonathan Ames (The Alcoholic) and starring Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore, I Heart Huckabees, The Darjeeling Limited). I'm looking forward to this.
The Beautiful Life - CW Wed. 9/8 Central
The weakest link from The OC (Mischa Barton) lives the beautiful life... I guess. Not expecting much.
Community - NBC Thu. 9:30/8:30 Central
Chevy Chase returns to TV for his first regular gig since Saturday Night Live in this community college comedy.
The Troop - Nick Fri. 8/7 Central
Nickelodeon gets in on the fantasy genre with this show about ordinary teens that hunt monsters. Given the channel, I'm guessing this skews a little younger than Buffy did.
RollBots - CW Sat. 8/7 AM Central
New Saturday morning cartoon about round robots. Not sure if there's a story there.
The Superhero Squad Show - Cartoon Sat. 8:30/7:30 AM Central
I'm not looking forward to this comedic take on the Marvel universe. Rumor has it that sneak peeks of the first two episodes are already running as of yesterday.
Bored to Death - HBO Sun. 9:30/8:30 Central
A detective comedy written by Jonathan Ames (The Alcoholic) and starring Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore, I Heart Huckabees, The Darjeeling Limited). I'm looking forward to this.
Friday, September 11, 2009
The Monster Next Door
Durham County: Mondays on ION, 10:00/9:00 Central
Durham County is one of the best dramas I've watched on TV in quite awhile. If you trust my judgement at all, stop reading now and set your DVR/VCR to record the first episode. It's replaying tonight (Friday) on ION at 11:00/10:00 Central. Go ahead... I'll wait.
Homicide Detective Mike Sweeney has moved his family from the dangerous big city life of Toronto to the suburban county where he grew up. He and his wife are trying to escape their recent past, and have dragged their two daughters along for a fresh start. Mike's partner was recently gunned down in a drive-by and his wife Audrey is recovering from a bout with breast cancer that took multiple surgeries to survive. Across the street lives Ray Prager, one of Det. Sweeney's best childhood friends. A former NHL draft pick, his pro hockey career ended before it even started due to a car accident. Don't feel too bad for him though, he and his wife Tracy have managed to make a good living running a plumbing company.
There's just one problem: Ray is a bit of a psychopath. He witnesses a gruesome double rape/murder, and rather than report it to the authorities he uses it as the inspiration for his own grisly way of dealing with life's stresses. The game of cat and mouse that proceeds between Mike and his old friend Ray makes for compelling drama. In my previous post, I compared it thematically to Twin Peaks. After watching the six episodes which comprise the first mini-season, I think the comparison still stands up. They're both a dark exploration of the evils that man can do to one another. Interestingly, in this case you know who the bad guy is from the start. There's no question of "Who killed Laura Palmer?" here. It's essentially a murder mystery without the mystery, but it's so well-written that you still want to watch it play out.
The acting is top-notch throughout, particularly from Justin Louis who plays Ray. He switches from charming to monstrous at the flip of a switch, and his criminal acts only serve to make his charm more disturbing. The other actors are good as well, but the real star here is the story. In a world of disposable entertainment, it's refreshing to watch something where no line is thrown away. As Hugh Dillon (Det. Sweeney) put it in an interview I saw, it's "drama without pretension".
You may be wondering how it is that I've seen the first six episodes already. This is actually a Canadian import that originally aired on The Movie Network (think Canada's version of HBO) back in 2007. As such, it's chock full of cursing, violence, nudity, and 5-6 minutes of content that had to be cut out as it transitioned to American network TV. I'm happy to report that despite the editing, the show remains watchable. If you have the means to seek out the full-length version then do so. Otherwise, this can serve as a suitable alternative.
Durham County is one of the best dramas I've watched on TV in quite awhile. If you trust my judgement at all, stop reading now and set your DVR/VCR to record the first episode. It's replaying tonight (Friday) on ION at 11:00/10:00 Central. Go ahead... I'll wait.
Homicide Detective Mike Sweeney has moved his family from the dangerous big city life of Toronto to the suburban county where he grew up. He and his wife are trying to escape their recent past, and have dragged their two daughters along for a fresh start. Mike's partner was recently gunned down in a drive-by and his wife Audrey is recovering from a bout with breast cancer that took multiple surgeries to survive. Across the street lives Ray Prager, one of Det. Sweeney's best childhood friends. A former NHL draft pick, his pro hockey career ended before it even started due to a car accident. Don't feel too bad for him though, he and his wife Tracy have managed to make a good living running a plumbing company.
There's just one problem: Ray is a bit of a psychopath. He witnesses a gruesome double rape/murder, and rather than report it to the authorities he uses it as the inspiration for his own grisly way of dealing with life's stresses. The game of cat and mouse that proceeds between Mike and his old friend Ray makes for compelling drama. In my previous post, I compared it thematically to Twin Peaks. After watching the six episodes which comprise the first mini-season, I think the comparison still stands up. They're both a dark exploration of the evils that man can do to one another. Interestingly, in this case you know who the bad guy is from the start. There's no question of "Who killed Laura Palmer?" here. It's essentially a murder mystery without the mystery, but it's so well-written that you still want to watch it play out.
The acting is top-notch throughout, particularly from Justin Louis who plays Ray. He switches from charming to monstrous at the flip of a switch, and his criminal acts only serve to make his charm more disturbing. The other actors are good as well, but the real star here is the story. In a world of disposable entertainment, it's refreshing to watch something where no line is thrown away. As Hugh Dillon (Det. Sweeney) put it in an interview I saw, it's "drama without pretension".
You may be wondering how it is that I've seen the first six episodes already. This is actually a Canadian import that originally aired on The Movie Network (think Canada's version of HBO) back in 2007. As such, it's chock full of cursing, violence, nudity, and 5-6 minutes of content that had to be cut out as it transitioned to American network TV. I'm happy to report that despite the editing, the show remains watchable. If you have the means to seek out the full-length version then do so. Otherwise, this can serve as a suitable alternative.
Aaah! More Vampires!
The Vampire Diaries: Thursdays on CW, 8:00/7:00 Central
In a world where Twilight and its ilk rule both the bookstands and the cinema with its saccharine vampire teen romance and HBO's True Blood is slowly gaining traction with its violent and passionate vampire drama for adults, you'd think there would be little room in the market for another human girl meets vampire boy story. And you would probably be right. And that's a little unfortunate. Just a little, mind you. CW's new show The Vampire Diaries walks the fine line between the two: teen romance with a little violence thrown in.
Elena was a typical high school girl from Mystic Falls, VA, until she became the sole survivor of a car accident that claimed the lives of both of her parents. Now it's the first day of the new school year and she's still dealing with the tragedy and all of the people who keep reminding her of it. Enter Stefan. Dark, brooding, and handsome, he just might be the perfect guy. Oh, except he's a vampire with a past that dates back to the Civil War and he has a brother named Damon, also a vampire, who's been attacking people in the woods near town. Other than that, he might be perfect. Surround them with a host of reasonably interesting high schoolers: the psychic best friend, the stoner brother, the jock ex-boyfriend, and you've completed the recipe for a decent show.
Okay, so it's not exactly ground-breaking. Or is it? Fans of other vampire stories are probably going to find much they recognize here, but a lot of that might be because it's based on a series of books written back in 1991 that has served as the inspiration for many of today's vampire hits. It won't make a difference to viewers though. Due to the way it's being marketed, it's likely going to be perceived as a Twilight ripoff. And in a lot of ways, that's true. Without the existence of those movies, would this show have been developed or green-lit?
The Vampire Diaries largely manages to dodge the twin bullets that plague most things on the CW: poor acting and slick production values. Unfortunately the writing, particularly the excerpts of the titular diaries that are read in voiceover, is a little cheesy at times. The show is created by Kevin Williamson(Scream, Dawson's Creek), so there's hope that it will turn around. If there weren't already similar shows to watch, it's good enough that I'd consider picking this up, but True Blood is better and is plenty for me. If you're the type who can't have too many blood-sucking creeps in your life, go ahead and give it a shot.
In a world where Twilight and its ilk rule both the bookstands and the cinema with its saccharine vampire teen romance and HBO's True Blood is slowly gaining traction with its violent and passionate vampire drama for adults, you'd think there would be little room in the market for another human girl meets vampire boy story. And you would probably be right. And that's a little unfortunate. Just a little, mind you. CW's new show The Vampire Diaries walks the fine line between the two: teen romance with a little violence thrown in.
Elena was a typical high school girl from Mystic Falls, VA, until she became the sole survivor of a car accident that claimed the lives of both of her parents. Now it's the first day of the new school year and she's still dealing with the tragedy and all of the people who keep reminding her of it. Enter Stefan. Dark, brooding, and handsome, he just might be the perfect guy. Oh, except he's a vampire with a past that dates back to the Civil War and he has a brother named Damon, also a vampire, who's been attacking people in the woods near town. Other than that, he might be perfect. Surround them with a host of reasonably interesting high schoolers: the psychic best friend, the stoner brother, the jock ex-boyfriend, and you've completed the recipe for a decent show.
Okay, so it's not exactly ground-breaking. Or is it? Fans of other vampire stories are probably going to find much they recognize here, but a lot of that might be because it's based on a series of books written back in 1991 that has served as the inspiration for many of today's vampire hits. It won't make a difference to viewers though. Due to the way it's being marketed, it's likely going to be perceived as a Twilight ripoff. And in a lot of ways, that's true. Without the existence of those movies, would this show have been developed or green-lit?
The Vampire Diaries largely manages to dodge the twin bullets that plague most things on the CW: poor acting and slick production values. Unfortunately the writing, particularly the excerpts of the titular diaries that are read in voiceover, is a little cheesy at times. The show is created by Kevin Williamson(Scream, Dawson's Creek), so there's hope that it will turn around. If there weren't already similar shows to watch, it's good enough that I'd consider picking this up, but True Blood is better and is plenty for me. If you're the type who can't have too many blood-sucking creeps in your life, go ahead and give it a shot.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A Hot Meh
Melrose Place: Tuesdays on CW, 9:00/8:00 Central
Fans of the original may appreciate the CW's attempt to breathe new life into yet another 90's primetime soap opera, but fans of good television need not waste their time here. Take seven new characters: a dorky would-be film director and his elementary school teacher fiancee, the film director's bitchy & bisexual publicist, an AA-attending sous chef, a rich art thief, an intern whoring her way through med school, and the unknown newcomer (played by Ashlee Simpson), add a couple of has-beens from the original show, throw them into an apartment building in LA, and let madness ensue. Not my idea of gripping drama.
The original Melrose Place ran for seven(!) seasons back in the 90's after spinning out of Beverly Hills 90210 in the summer of 1992. It's probably most well-known for bringing sleaze into the limelight on network television. The tenants of that apartment on Melrose Place hopped in and out of each other's beds, got into cat fights, and offed each other at an incredible pace. One such tenant, Sydney Andrews, was run over by a car and left for dead at the end of season 5. Why then is Sydney now the landlord at the apartment in this new incarnation? Who knows? Do we care? The reprieve is short-lived as Sydney's bloodied corpse is found bobbing in the swimming pool right before the first commercial break.
This show has that same slick veneer that most other shows on the CW (Gossip Girl, 90210) seem to have. A trendy soundtrack backs images that try to walk a fine line between reality and an MTV music video. Every actor is attractive, but only some of them actually seem to be able to act. If the show were slightly better assembled or seemed to have something to say beyond light and fluffy entertainment, the premise would be tempting enough to stick with. Who doesn't like a good murder mystery? All of the tenant/suspects have a certain greyness to their morality so any of them could be responsible. Who did it? We'll probably find out in December should you be willing to stick with it that long.
If you missed last night's pilot and want to see it for yourself, it looks like you're out of luck for now. If it shows up anywhere online, it'll be on the CW site.
Fans of the original may appreciate the CW's attempt to breathe new life into yet another 90's primetime soap opera, but fans of good television need not waste their time here. Take seven new characters: a dorky would-be film director and his elementary school teacher fiancee, the film director's bitchy & bisexual publicist, an AA-attending sous chef, a rich art thief, an intern whoring her way through med school, and the unknown newcomer (played by Ashlee Simpson), add a couple of has-beens from the original show, throw them into an apartment building in LA, and let madness ensue. Not my idea of gripping drama.
The original Melrose Place ran for seven(!) seasons back in the 90's after spinning out of Beverly Hills 90210 in the summer of 1992. It's probably most well-known for bringing sleaze into the limelight on network television. The tenants of that apartment on Melrose Place hopped in and out of each other's beds, got into cat fights, and offed each other at an incredible pace. One such tenant, Sydney Andrews, was run over by a car and left for dead at the end of season 5. Why then is Sydney now the landlord at the apartment in this new incarnation? Who knows? Do we care? The reprieve is short-lived as Sydney's bloodied corpse is found bobbing in the swimming pool right before the first commercial break.
This show has that same slick veneer that most other shows on the CW (Gossip Girl, 90210) seem to have. A trendy soundtrack backs images that try to walk a fine line between reality and an MTV music video. Every actor is attractive, but only some of them actually seem to be able to act. If the show were slightly better assembled or seemed to have something to say beyond light and fluffy entertainment, the premise would be tempting enough to stick with. Who doesn't like a good murder mystery? All of the tenant/suspects have a certain greyness to their morality so any of them could be responsible. Who did it? We'll probably find out in December should you be willing to stick with it that long.
If you missed last night's pilot and want to see it for yourself, it looks like you're out of luck for now. If it shows up anywhere online, it'll be on the CW site.
Monday, September 7, 2009
TV Preview: 9/7/2009
It's the time of year again where I watch a bunch of TV so that you don't have to. I have a plan this time around, and I think I'll be able to stick to it. Wish me luck.
In case I don't get in-depth reports up in enough time I wanted to quickly cover what's started already and what's coming up this week.
In the Week to Come:
Durham County - ION Mon. 10/9 Central
Don't be put off by the fact that this is on ION (formerly PAX). It's a fantastic Canadian drama that explores the dark underbelly of suburban life. Probably the highest quality show I've watched in a long time, it reminds me of Twin Peaks because of the thematic material it covers. Don't worry, there are no dancing midgets or supernatural forces to deal with here if that sort of thing is a turn-off. There have been two 6-episode seasons so far, and as far as I know ION is going to show them both. I strongly urge you to check this out.
Melrose Place - CW Tue. 9/8 Central
The CW just keeps getting trashier. Gone are the few enjoyable shows like Reaper and Privileged, all replaced by drek like this. Granted I've not seen this yet, but I'm not holding out much hope. If the 90210 remake from last year was your sort of thing, chances are good you'll enjoy its more "adult" cousin, too.
The Vampire Diaries - CW Thu. 8/7 Central
I suppose the people who find Twilight to be gripping drama need TV to watch, too. At least, that's what the CW is hoping. I think that vampires are so hot right now that there's no way this show will fail, but is it any good?
In case I don't get in-depth reports up in enough time I wanted to quickly cover what's started already and what's coming up this week.
In the Week to Come:
Durham County - ION Mon. 10/9 Central
Don't be put off by the fact that this is on ION (formerly PAX). It's a fantastic Canadian drama that explores the dark underbelly of suburban life. Probably the highest quality show I've watched in a long time, it reminds me of Twin Peaks because of the thematic material it covers. Don't worry, there are no dancing midgets or supernatural forces to deal with here if that sort of thing is a turn-off. There have been two 6-episode seasons so far, and as far as I know ION is going to show them both. I strongly urge you to check this out.
Melrose Place - CW Tue. 9/8 Central
The CW just keeps getting trashier. Gone are the few enjoyable shows like Reaper and Privileged, all replaced by drek like this. Granted I've not seen this yet, but I'm not holding out much hope. If the 90210 remake from last year was your sort of thing, chances are good you'll enjoy its more "adult" cousin, too.
The Vampire Diaries - CW Thu. 8/7 Central
I suppose the people who find Twilight to be gripping drama need TV to watch, too. At least, that's what the CW is hoping. I think that vampires are so hot right now that there's no way this show will fail, but is it any good?
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