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Before I get myself all geared up for it, is West Wing much worth watching after Sorkin exits?
I think yes. There is certainly a shift, but the seventh season in particular finds some really interesting things to do. It's not the same-- it's not as good-- but it's still worthwhile television.
Thirdmango
07-03-2012, 08:49 PM
I think yes. There is certainly a shift, but the seventh season in particular finds some really interesting things to do. It's not the same-- it's not as good-- but it's still worthwhile television.
I would also agree that it is, I didn't know Sorkin had left when he did but the characters are still fantastic at that point. The seventh season is one of my favorites.
Lucky
07-03-2012, 09:32 PM
The West Wing...that's a show I need to watch one of these days.
Ivan Drago
07-04-2012, 04:46 AM
I watched about 5 minutes of that new Kevin Smith show "Spoilers" and I had to turn it off. Awful.
A friend of mine out in LA was able to not only get on the show when they reviewed Prometheus, but got to see it in theaters with Kevin Smith himself. I personally enjoy the show.
EyesWideOpen
07-04-2012, 05:43 AM
Hearing average moviegoers talk about new releases is the absolute last thing I want to watch.
Irish
07-05-2012, 04:42 AM
I find myself irrationally excited that Netflix just put up more episodes of Agatha Christie's Poirot up on Instant Watch.
EvilShoe
07-05-2012, 12:37 PM
After only having seen random bits here and there, I finally started properly on Homeland.
And now I feel really, really bad for voting against Claire Danes at the Cutties. Her character is a lot more complex than I assumed, and she's doing a wonderful job.
Didn't know she had a performance like this in her.
After only having seen random bits here and there, I finally started properly on Homeland.
And now I feel really, really bad for voting against Claire Danes at the Cutties. Her character is a lot more complex than I assumed, and she's doing a wonderful job.
Didn't know she had a performance like this in her.
It was not a flawless first season, but her performance was pitch-perfect.
MadMan
07-06-2012, 08:22 AM
I thought
Alice was going to be the one to kill her. I did not expect Luther's wife to make it out alive, but yeah...
Starting season 2 of Luther now. It's almost 2AM here. I'd like to sleep. Cliffhanger, curse you.Yes! Luther is pretty fantastic. I was lucky enough to actually get to watch Series 2 as it aired on BBC America while also viewing Series 1 on Netflix Instant Viewing at the same time. I'm really hoping they give us a third series.
Ugh Studio 60 was not good. I'm willing to give Sports Night a chance, but I don't really care for Sorkin when it comes to his TV shows. The episodes I saw of The West Wing just made me roll my eyes, but then again I'm rather cynical when it comes to politics...
I'm still really enjoying my rewatch of Dollhouse with my roommate. She's really into it, and she gasps whenever there's a plot twist... which is fun.
Meanwhile, my fourth? time through the show, for some reason, this exchange has become hilarious to me. I'm pretty sure I didn't laugh much the first time:
Boyd: You know, after that news anchor...
Adelle: Which one?
Boyd: The one who wanted to be rolled in eggs and flour and dipped in...
Adelle: Ah, Tempura Joe. Such a lonely soul.
...but this time I actually had to pause the show to get my giggles out. I don't know if it's the line itself, or Olivia William's world-weary, not unsympathetic delivery, but it's hysterical to me.
Lucky
07-06-2012, 07:18 PM
I enjoy introducing people to new shows that they grow to love. I also remember that exchange specifically. Adele was my favorite character.
Winston*
07-07-2012, 10:26 PM
The latest Comedy Bang! Bang! was the best one so far. A lot of really really funny sketches.
Henry Gale
07-07-2012, 11:11 PM
The latest Comedy Bang! Bang! was the best one so far. A lot of really really funny sketches.
Yup, these last two weeks with Michael Cera, Seth Rogen, Bob Odenkirk, Paul F. Tompkins, and way too many others to mention, have probably been my favourites so far.
Also, The Eric Andre Show. My god, people, watch this. One of the funniest things I've seen in some time.
dreamdead
07-08-2012, 01:52 AM
Having knocked out the first three seasons of Parks and Recreation and season 1 of Sherlock, Sarah and I have moved onto starting Louie and Twin Peaks (the latter is a rewatch for her). The former (at least through the first four episodes) is frequently fixated on the grotesque, but it's usually so odd or strangely humane all the same that it doesn't go overboard.
Twin Peaks is really interesting after the first two episodes. I already feel drawn in and want to know more. An 8 episode first season makes it difficult to not just power through and finish the season in the next day or two. We'll see. I love how it jumps tone so effortlessly between scenes. And the Log Lady is awesome.:lol:
Acapelli
07-08-2012, 04:53 AM
Also, The Eric Andre Show. My god, people, watch this. One of the funniest things I've seen in some time.
one of the best things adult swim has ever done
Acapelli
07-12-2012, 01:37 AM
one of the best things adult swim has ever done
re: eric andre show
who knew mensa members would be so humorless
i love this show so much
Lucky
07-13-2012, 10:16 PM
Louie more often than not misses the mark for me aside from consistently solid performances from Louis C.K., occasional inspired dialogue, and the stand-up routines. Yet I watch consistently, because some episodes really come together for me. Last night's "Miami" was one of those. Very well done.
Henry Gale
07-13-2012, 11:09 PM
Louie more often than not misses the mark for me aside from consistently solid performances from Louis C.K., occasional inspired dialogue, and the stand-up routines. Yet I watch consistently, because some episodes really come together for me. Last night's "Miami" was one of those. Very well done.
Yeah, this and last week's episodes felt like pretty perfect episodes of television for me. Even better considering how drastically different they are in terms of their structure, tone and general comedy style, and they just happened to come right after one another in the very same series without feeling like an awkward shift in the slightest. It's that sort of variety that makes this show so consistently refreshing for me. Every new episode is completely different, and it finds a way to make every episode before it stronger and more unique as a result. By the end of the season he could do an episode where he has to do a gig in space, and I'd be rooting for him to pull it off.
And even if I'd heard him do the ending stand-up bit on Leno a few weeks ago, I began to predict it to be the episode's ending button as it went along, and having it in my mind enhanced the story even more as it progressed, all before finally showing up at the end to sum everything up perfectly.
Thirdmango
07-16-2012, 08:41 PM
Last episode of Eureka airs tonight. I'm a couple episodes behind. It's never been a great show, but it's still sorta fun. I doubt they'll actually go back to their original universe, they just needed a clean wipe I guess.
Henry Gale
07-16-2012, 08:58 PM
Last episode of Eureka airs tonight. I'm a couple episodes behind. It's never been a great show, but it's still sorta fun. I doubt they'll actually go back to their original universe, they just needed a clean wipe I guess.
Oh, SyFy kind of screwed up by wanting to release the season's DVD set so soon (tomorrow to be exact), because it meant the final episodes were already available enough to leak online before they aired. I don't really watch the show, but those in my family that do went ahead and watched them and seemed to really like its conclusion.
Thirdmango
07-17-2012, 05:24 AM
Yeah, I watched the last four episodes today. It was a good conclusion, nothing really left to be desired besides the whole switching timelines thing but they referenced it a lot. The last episode also had a weird subplot of them basically reacting to being cancelled. I'd say a straight B-C show all the way through.
Steven Weber owns Studio 60. Ridiculous show otherwise. At least five too many conceits that I just can't accept.
amberlita
07-19-2012, 12:35 AM
Steven Weber owns Studio 60.
Indeed. There was never enough of him. By far the best thing about the show though I thought Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford had a great, very charming buddy chemistry.
Emmy Nominations
COMEDY SERIES
"The Big Bang Theory" (CBS)
"Curb Your Enthusiasm" (HBO)
"Girls" (HBO)
"Modern Family" (ABC)
"30 Rock" (NBC)
"Veep" (HBO)
COMEDY ACTOR
Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper in "The Big Bang Theory"
Larry David as Himself in "Curb Your Enthusiasm"
Don Cheadle as Marty Kaan in "House of Lies"
Louis C.K. as Louie in "Louie"
Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy in "30 Rock"
Jon Cryer as Alan Harper in "Two and a Half Men"
COMEDY ACTRESS
Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath in "Girls"
Melissa McCarthy as Molly Flynn in "Mike & Molly"
Zooey Deschanel as Jess Day in "New Girl"
Edie Falco as Jackie Peyton in "Nurse Jackie"
Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope in "Parks and Recreation"
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon in "30 Rock"
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Selina Meyer in "Veep"
SUPPORTING COMEDY ACTOR
Ed O'Neill as Jay Pritchett in "Modern Family"
Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell Pritchett in "Modern Family"
Ty Burrell as Phil Dunphy in "Modern Family"
Eric Stonestreet as Cameron Tucker in "Modern Family"
Max Greenfield as Schmidt in "New Girl"
Bill Hader as various characters in "Saturday Night Live"
SUPPORTING COMEDY ACTRESS
Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler in "The Big Bang Theory"
Kathryn Joosten as Karen McCluskey in "Desperate Housewives"
Julie Bowen as Claire Dunphy in "Modern Family"
Sofia Vergara as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in "Modern Family"
Merritt Wever as Zoey Barkow in "Nurse Jackie"
Kristen Wiig as various characters in "Saturday Night Live"
DRAMA SERIES
"Boardwalk Empire" (HBO)
"Breaking Bad" (AMC)
"Downton Abbey" (PBS)
"Game of Thrones" (HBO)
"Homeland" (Showtime)
"Mad Men" (AMC)
DRAMA ACTRESS
Glenn Close as Patty Hewes in "Damages"
Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary Crawley in "Downton Abbey"
Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick in "The Good Wife"
Kathy Bates as Harriet Korn in "Harry's Law"
Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison in "Homeland"
Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson in "Mad Men"
DRAMA ACTOR
Steve Buscemi as Nucky Thompson in "Boardwalk Empire"
Bryan Cranston as Walter White in "Breaking Bad"
Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan in "Dexter"
Hugh Bonneville as Robert, Earl of Grantham in "Downton Abbey"
Damian Lewis as Nicholas Brody in "Homeland"
Jon Hamm as Don Draper in "Mad Men"
SUPPORTING DRAMA ACTRESS
Anna Gunn as Skyler White in "Breaking Bad"
Maggie Smith as Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham in "Downton Abbey"
Joanne Froggatt as Anna in "Downton Abbey"
Archie Panjabi as Kalinda Sharma in "The Good Wife"
Christine Baranski as Diane Lockhart in "The Good Wife"
Christina Hendricks as Joan Holloway Harris in "Mad Men"
SUPPORTING DRAMA ACTOR
Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman in "Breaking Bad"
Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo 'Gus' Fring "Breaking Bad"
Brendan Coyle as John Bates in "Downton Abbey"
Jim Carter as Mr. Carson in "Downton Abbey"
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister in "Game of Thrones"
Jared Harris as Lane Pryce "Mad Men"
MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE
"American Horror Story" (FX)
"Game Change" (HBO)
"Hatfields & McCoys" (History)
"Hemingway & Gellhorn" (HBO)
"Luther" (BBC America)
"Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia" (PBS)
LEAD ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Connie Britton as Vivien Harmon in "American Horror Story"
Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin in "Game Change"
Nicole Kidman as Martha Gellhorn in "Hemingway & Gellhorn"
Ashley Judd as Rebecca Winstone in "Missing"
Emma Thompson as She in "The Song of Lunch"
LEAD ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Woody Harrelson as Steve Schmidt in "Game Change"
Kevin Costner as 'Devil' Anse Hatfield in "Hatfields & McCoys"
Bill Paxton as Randall McCoy in "Hatfields & McCoys"
Clive Owen as Ernest Hemingway in "Hemingway & Gellhorn"
Idris Elba as John Luther in "Luther"
Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes in "Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia"
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Frances Conroy as Moira in "American Horror Story"
Jessica Lange as Constance Langdon in "American Horror Story"
Sarah Paulson as Nicolle Wallace "Game Change"
Mare Winningham as Sally McCoy in "Hatfields & McCoys"
Judy Davis as Jill Tankard in "Page Eight"
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Denis O'Hare as Larry Harvey in "American Horror Story"
Ed Harris as John McCain in "Game Change"
Tom Berenger as Jim Vance in "Hatfields & McCoys"
David Strathairn as John Dos Passos in "Hemingway & Gellhorn"
Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson in "Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia"
VARIETY SERIES
"The Colbert Report" (Comedy Central)
"The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" (Comedy Central)
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" (ABC)
"Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" (NBC)
"Real Time With Bill Maher" (HBO)
"Saturday Night Live" (NBC)
REALITY PROGRAM
"Antiques Roadshow" (PBS)
"Jamie Oliver's Food" (ABC)
"MythBusters" (Discovery Channel)
"Shark Tank" (ABC)
"Undercover Boss" (CBS)
"Who Do You Think You Are?" (NBC)
REALITY-COMPETITION PROGRAM
"The Amazing Race" (CBS)
"Dancing With The Stars" (ABC)
"Project Runway" (Lifetime)
"So You Think You Can Dance" )FOX)
"Top Chef" (Bravo)
"The Voice" (NBC)
HOST FOR A REALITY OR REALITY-COMPETITION PROGRAM
Phil Keoghan, "The Amazing Race"
Ryan Seacrest, "American Idol"
Betty White, "Betty White's Off Their Rockers"
Tom Bergeron, "Dancing With The Stars"
Cat Deeley, "So You Think You Can Dance"
ANIMATED PROGRAM
"American Dad!" (FOX)
"Bob's Burgers" (FOX)
"Futurama" (Comedy Central)
"The Penguins Of Madagascar: The Return Of The Revenge Of Dr. Blowhole" (Nickelodeon)
"The Simpsons" (Fox)
SHORT-FORMAT ANIMATED PROGRAM
"Adventure Time" (Cartoon Network)
"Phineas and Ferb" (Disney Channel)
"MAD" (Cartoon Network)
"Regular Show" (Cartoon Network)
"Robot Chicken" (Cartoon Network)
CHILDREN'S PROGRAM
"Degrassi" (TeenNick)
"Good Luck Charlie" (Disney Channel)
"iCarly" (Nickelodeon)
"Victorious" (Nickelodeon)
"Wizards of Waverly Place" (Disney Channel
CHILDREN'S NONFICTION, REALITY OR REALITY-COMPETITION PROGRAM
"It Gets Better" (MTV)
"Sesame Street: Growing Hope Against Hunger" (PBS)
"The Weight of the Nation for Kids: The Great Cafeteria Takeover" (HBO)
GUEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Dot-Marie Jones as Coach Shannon Beiste in "Glee"
Maya Rudolph, host in "Saturday Night Live"
Melissa McCarthy, host in "Saturday Night Live"
Elizabeth Banks as Avery Jessup in "30 Rock"
Margaret Cho as Kim Jong-il in "30 Rock"
Kathy Bates as Charlie Harper in "Two and a Half Men"
GUEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Michael J. Fox as himself in "Curb Your Enthusiasm"
Greg Kinnear as Tad in "Modern Family"
Bobby Cannavale as Dr. Mike Cruz in "Nurse Jackie"
Jimmy Fallon, host in "Saturday Night Live"
Will Arnett as Devon Banks in "30 Rock"
Will Arnett as Devon Banks in "30 Rock"
GUEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Martha Plimpton as Patti Nyholm in "The Good Wife"
Loretta Devine as Adele Webber in "Grey's Anatomy"
Jean Smart as D.A. Roseanna Remmick in "Harry's Law"
Julia Ormond as Marie Calvet in "Mad Men"
Joan Cusack as Sheila Jackson in "Shameless"
Uma Thurman as Rebecca Duvall in "Smash"
GUEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Mark Margolis as Tio Salamanca in "Breaking Bad"
Dylan Baker as Colin Sweeney in "The Good Wife"
Michael J. Fox as Louis Canning in "The Good Wife"
Jeremy Davies as Dickie Bennett in "Justified"
Ben Feldman as Michael Ginsberg in "Mad Men"
Jason Ritter as Mark Cyr in "Parenthood"
VOICE-OVER PERFORMANCE
Brenda Strong as Mary-Alice Young in "Desperate Housewives"
Dan Povenmire as Doctor Doofenshmirtz in "Phineas and Ferb"
Rob Riggle as Noel in "Disney Prep & Landing: Naughty Vs. Nice"
Maurice LaMarche as Clamps, Donbot, Hyperchicken, Calculon, Hedonismbot, Morbo in "Futurama"
Kristen Wiig as Lola in "The Looney Tunes Show"
Hank Azaria as Moe Szyslak, Duffman, Mexican Duffman, Carl, Comic Book Guy, Chief Wiggum in "The Simpsons"
DIRECTING FOR A COMEDY SERIES
Robert B. Weide, "Curb Your Enthusiasm "
Lena Dunham, "Girls"
Louis C.K., "Duckling"
Jason Winer, "Modern Family"
Steven Levitan, "Modern Family"
Jake Kasdan, "New Girl"
WRITING FOR A COMEDY SERIES
Chris McKenna, "Community"
Lena Dunham, "Girls"
Louis C.K., "Louie"
Amy Poehler, "Parks and Recreation"
Michael Schure, "Parks and Recreation"
DIRECTING FOR A DRAMA SERIES
Tim Van Patten, "Boardwalk Empire"
Vince Gilligan, "Breaking Bad"
Brian Percival, "Downton Abbey"
Michael Cuesta, "Homeland"
Phil Abraham, "Mad Men"
WRITING FOR A DRAMA SERIES
Julian Fellowes, "Downton Abbey"
Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon & Gideon Raff, "Homeland"
Semi Chellas & Matthew Weiner, "Mad Men"
Andre Jacquemetton & Maria Jacquemetton, "Mad Men"
Erin Levy & Matthew Weiner, "Mad Men"
DIRECTING FOR A MINISERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL
Jay Roach, "Game Change"
Kevin Reynolds, "Hatfields & McCoys"
Philip Kaufman, "Hemingway & Gellhorn"
Sam Miller, "Luther"
Paul McGuigan, "Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia"
WRITING FOR A MINISERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL<
Danny Strong, "Game Change"
Ted Mann, Ronald Parker & Bill Kerby, "Hatfields & McCoys"
Abi Morgan, "The Hour"
Neil Cross, "Luther"
Steven Moffat, "Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia"
SPECIAL CLASS PROGRAMS
"84th Annual Academy Awards" (ABC)
"The 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards" (NBC)
"The 54th Annual Grammy Awards" (CBS)
"Herbie Hancock, Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Phil Celebrate Gershwin" (PBS)
"Louis C.K. Live at the Beacon Theatre" (FX)
"65th Annual Tony Awards" (CBS)
SPECIAL CLASS SHORT-FORMAT LIVE-ACTION ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMS
"Childrens Hospital" (Cartoon Network)
"The Daily Show Correspondents Explain" (Comedy Central Digital Media)
"Parks and Recreation: April and Andy's Road Trip" (NBC.com)
"30 Rock: The Webisodes" (NBC.com)
"Web Therapy" (Lstudio.com)
DIRECTING FOR A VARIETY SERIES
James Hoskinson, "The Colbert Report"
Chuck O'Neil, "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart"
Jerry Foley, "Late Show With David Letterman"
Jonathan Krisel, "Portlandia"
Don Roy King, "Saturday Night Live"
DIRECTING FOR A VARIETY SPECIAL
Don Mischer, "84th Annual Academy Awards"
Louis J. Horvitz, "The 54th Annual Grammy Awards"
Louis C.K, "Louis C.K. Live at the Beacon Theatre"
Alan Skog, "New York City Ballet George Balanchine's The Nutcracker (Live From Lincoln Center)"
Glenn Weiss, "65th Annual Tony Awards"
WRITING FOR A VARIETY SERIES
"The Colbert Report," Barry Julien (head writer), Stephen Colbert, Tom Purcell, Richard Dahm, Michael Brumm, Rob Dubbin, Opus Moreschi, Peter Gwinn, Jay Katsir, Frank Lesser, Glenn Eichler, Meredith Scardino, Max Werner, Eric Drysdale, Scott Sherman, Dan Guterman & Paul Dinello
"The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," Tim Carvell (head writer), Rory Albanese, Kevin Bleyer, Rich Blomquist, Steve Bodow, Wyatt Cenac, Hallie Haglund, JR Havlan, Elliott Kalan, Dan McCoy, Jo Miller, John Oliver, Zhubin Parang, Daniel Radosh, Jason Ross, & Jon Stewart
"Portlandia," Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein, Jonathan Krisel & Karey Dornetto
"Real Time with Bill Maher," Adam Felber, Matt Gunn, Brian Jacobsmeyer, Jay Jaroch, Chris Kelly, Mike Larsen, Bill Maher, Billy Martin & Scott Carter
"Saturday Night Live," James Anderson, Alex Baze, Jessica Conrad, James Downey, Shelly Gossman, Steve Higgins, Zach Kanin, Chris Kelly, Colin Jost, Erik Kenward, Rob Klein, Seth Meyers, Lorne Michaels, John Mulaney, Christine Nangle, Michael Patrick O'Brien, Paula Pell, Marika Sawyer, Sarah Schneider, Pete Schultz, John Solomon, Kent Sublette, Bryan Tucker & Emily Spivey
WRITING FOR A VARIETY SPECIAL
"84th Annual Academy Awards," Jon Macks, Dave Boone & Carol Leifer, with Tim Carvell, Jeff Cesario, Billy Crystal, Ed Driscoll, Billy Martin, Ben Schwartz, Marc Shaiman, Eric Stangel, Justin Stangel, David Steinberg, Mason Steinberg & Colleen Werthmann
"Betty White's 90th Birthday: A Tribute To America's Golden Girl," Jon Macks, Steve Ridgeway, Mason Steinberg & Brad Lachman
"The Kennedy Center Honors," George Stevens, Michael M. Stevens, Sara Lukinson & Lewis Friedman
"Louis C.K. Live At The Beacon Theatre," Louis C.K.
"65th Annual Tony Awards," Dave Boone with Paul Greenberg
NONFICTION SERIES
"American Masters" (PBS)
"Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations" (Travel Channel)
"Frozen Planet" (Discovery Channel)
"Inside the Actors Studio" (Bravo)
"The Weight of the Nation" (HBO)
NONFICTION SPECIAL
"Bobby Fischer Against the World" (HBO)
"George Harrison: Living in the Material World" (HBO)
"Gloria: In Her Own Worlds" (HBO)
"Paul Simon's Graceland Journey: Under African Skies" (A&E)
"6 Days To Air: The Making of South Park" (Comedy Central)
SPECIAL CLASS SHORT-FORMAT NONFICTION PROGRAM
"Bravo's Top Chef: Last Chance Kitchen" (bravotv.com)
"DGA Moments In Time" (dga.org)
"Jay Leno's Garage" (NBC.com)
"Thank A Vet" (History)
"30 Rock: Ask Tina" (NBC.com)
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING
"The Amish (American Experience)" (PBS)
"Have You Heard From Johannesburg (Independent Lens)" (PBS)
"Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" (HBO)
DIRECTING FOR NONFICTION PROGRAMMING
Bertram van Munster, "The Amazing Race"
Robert B. Weide, "American Masters"
Martin Scorsese, "George Harrison: Living in yhe Material World"
Joe Berlinger & Bruce Sinofsky, "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory"
Craig Spirko, "Project Runway"
WRITING FOR NONFICTION PROGRAMMING
Barak Goodman, "American Experience"
Peter Jones, "American Masters"
Anthony Bourdain, "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations"
Geoffrey C. Ward, "Prohibition"
Christine Ferraro, "Seasme Street: Growing Hope Against Hunger"
ART DIRECTION FOR A MULTI-CAMERA SERIES
"Hell's Kitchen," John Janavs (production designer), Robert Frye (art director) & Heidi Miller (set decorator)
"How I Met Your Mother," Stephan G. Olson (production designer) & Susan Eschelbach (set decorator)
"Mike & Molly," John S. Shaffner (production designer) & Lynda Burbank (set decorator)
"30 Rock," Teresa Masterpierro (production designer), Keith Raywood (production designer) & Jennifer Greenberg (set decorator)
"2 Broke Girls," Glenda Rovella (production designer) & Amy Feldman (set decorator)
ART DIRECTION FOR A SINGLE-CAMERA SERIES
"Boardwalk Empire," Bill Groom (production designer), Adam Scher (art director) & Carol Silverman (set decorator)
"Downton Abbey," Donal Woods (production designer), Charmian Adams (art director) & Judy Farr (set decorator)
"Game of Thrones," Gemma Jackson (production designer), Frank Walsh (art director) & Tina Jones (set decorator)
"Justified," Dave Blass (production designer), Oana Bogdan (art director) & Shauna Aronson (set decorator)
"Mad Men," Dan Bishop (production designer), Christopher L. Brown (art director) & Claudette Didul (set decorator)
ART DIRECTION FOR A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
"American Horror Story: Open House (Part 7)," Mark Worthington (production designer), Edward L. Rubin (art director) & Ellen Brill (set decorator)
"American Horror Story: Part 1," Beth Rubino (production designer), Charles M. Lagola (art director) & Ellen Brill (set decorator)
"Great Expectations," David Roger (production designer), Paul Ghirardani (art director) & Jo Kornstein (set decorator)
"Hatfields & McCoys," Derek Hill (production designer), Servan Porupca (art director), John Vertrees (art director) & Sally Black (set decorator)
"Hemingway & Gellhorn," Geoffrey Kirkland (production designer), Nanci Noblett Starr (art director) & Jim Erickson (set decorator)
"Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia," Arwel Wyn Jones (production designer), Dafydd Shurmer (art director) & Joelle Rumbelow (set decorator)
ART DIRECTION FOR VARIETY OR NONFICTION PROGRAMMING
"84th Annual Academy Awards," John Myhre (production designer) & Joe Celli (art director)
"The 54th Annual Grammy Awards," Brian Stonestreet (production designer), Alana Billingsley (art director) & Matt Steinbrenner (art director)
"Saturday Night Live," Eugene Lee (production designer), Akira Yoshimura (production designer) & Keith Ian Raywood (production designer)
"65th Annual Tony Awards," Steve Bass (production designer) & Seth Easter (art director)
"The Voice," Anton Goss (production designer), James Connelly (production designer) & Zeya Maurer (art director)
Lazlo
07-19-2012, 04:26 PM
Mediocre with some small recognition of the truly best stuff, as usual. I still don't understand the rationale behind American Horror Story qualifying as a miniseries.
Thoughts on the Emmy nominations:
Community not even nominated for best comedy, which won the Cutties. No Parks & Recreation, no Louie. Emmys, you suck.
And NO ACTING NOMINATIONS for Community. Not supporting, nothing. It got one writing nomination. That's it. What the FLYING CRAP.
Raiders
07-19-2012, 04:37 PM
People still care about Boardwalk Empire???
Mr. McGibblets
07-19-2012, 04:46 PM
SUPPORTING COMEDY ACTOR
Ed O'Neill as Jay Pritchett in "Modern Family"
Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell Pritchett in "Modern Family"
Ty Burrell as Phil Dunphy in "Modern Family"
Eric Stonestreet as Cameron Tucker in "Modern Family"
:confused:
Irish
07-19-2012, 04:46 PM
I am rooting for some underdogs:
- Don Cheadle for House of Lies (he carries that show)
- Damian Lewis for Homeland (more people need to know this guy)
- Michael J Fox for Curb Your Enthusiasm (he was better on The Good Wife, but I'll take what I can get.) Nevermind! He got a nom for The Good Wife too. I hope he and Plimpton both win. Highly entertaining pair.
And NO ACTING NOMINATIONS for Community. Not supporting, nothing. It got one writing nomination. That's it. What the FLYING CRAP.
You can't be surprised by this.
number8
07-19-2012, 04:58 PM
The Emmy voters are typically very consistent. If they like a show, they will nominate the same one every single year. The best chance you have of being nominated is to be a new show. Suddenly getting nominations on your third season after being snubbed in the first two is a pipe dream.
Lazlo
07-19-2012, 05:04 PM
The Emmy voters are typically very consistent. If they like a show, they will nominate the same one every single year. The best chance you have of being nominated is to be a new show. Suddenly getting nominations on your third season after being snubbed in the first two is a pipe dream.
Pretty much. The only example otherwise I can think of off the top of my head is Friday Night Lights.
Raiders
07-19-2012, 05:06 PM
The Emmy voters are typically very consistent. If they like a show, they will nominate the same one every single year. The best chance you have of being nominated is to be a new show. Suddenly getting nominations on your third season after being snubbed in the first two is a pipe dream.
Admittedly, it is a little more difficult than voting for a movie. It is tough to look at one season of a show in a vacuum. That is partly true for movies in a series, though usually with film series there are multiple years between, except some like LOTR. It is why Return of the King won everything. It was rewarded for prior effort as well as its own.
Irish
07-19-2012, 05:09 PM
I still don't understand the rationale behind American Horror Story qualifying as a miniseries.
The producers submitted it that way, based on the idea it is an anthology (different cast, stories, etc in season 2).
Doing that means they sidestep competing with Mad Men and Game of Thrones. Pretty clever, I guess, because they racked up 17 noms.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/celebritology/post/american-horror-story-its-miniseries-emmy-bidpays-off/2012/07/19/gJQAxszgvW_blog.html
number8
07-19-2012, 05:11 PM
I'm more bemused that they decided to nominate one episode of Sherlock as its own entity rather than the whole season.
number8
07-19-2012, 05:19 PM
Admittedly, it is a little more difficult than voting for a movie. It is tough to look at one season of a show in a vacuum. That is partly true for movies in a series, though usually with film series there are multiple years between, except some like LOTR. It is why Return of the King won everything. It was rewarded for prior effort as well as its own.
That's where the bias sets in. Voters get sent 6 episodes to base their judgment off of, but it's not like they're robots who don't watch TV on their own time. You can submit 6 of Community's funniest, most clever episodes and the voters may find them really good, but if they watch Big Bang Theory and Modern Family week after week and are ardent fans, then they're still going to nominate those instead. That's why the Emmys tend to nominate the highest profile shows. Those are the ones most of them, who we can assume are busy TV people who wory more about their own shows than others, can actually follow.
amberlita
07-19-2012, 06:04 PM
I am rooting for some underdogs:
- Damian Lewis for Homeland (more people need to know this guy)
I have what some might call an unhealthy unique obsession with Band of Brothers. I've been saying this exact thing for over 10 years.
Of course, I've been saying that about nearly half of the actors of Easy Company for the same period of time. I noticed Michael Fassbender, James McCavoy, and Tom Hardy before the rest of the world became enamored with them. The way I see it, they sort of owe me for my unflinching loyalty and silent assist in their successful careers.... :twisted:
Irish
07-19-2012, 06:23 PM
I have what some might call an unhealthy unique obsession with Band of Brothers. I've been saying this exact thing for over 10 years.
Have you seen Lewis in The Forsyte Saga? Quite the eye opener.
It's steaming on Netflix if you haven't caught it. Similar to Downton Abbey but based on a series of novels written during the period (ie, Edwardian England).
Raiders
07-19-2012, 06:25 PM
Have you seen Lewis in The Forsythe Saga? Quite the eye opener.
Haven't seen this, but Keane. He's outstanding.
amberlita
07-19-2012, 06:45 PM
Have you seen Lewis in The Forsyte Saga? Quite the eye opener.
It's steaming on Netflix if you haven't caught it. Similar to Downton Abbey but based on a series of novels written during the period (ie, Edwardian England).
That must be one hot ticket item! You've really lit a fire under me to check it out as soon as possible! ;)
I have only seen bits and pieces, truly been meaning to watch it since a lot of his stuff that is accessible to me is just terrible (I couldn't make it through Your Highness despite his presence). I did see Keane, based on Winston*'s recommendation some years ago. It was pretty great.
Irish
07-19-2012, 07:10 PM
That must be one hot ticket item! You've really lit a fire under me to check it out as soon as possible! ;)
:| It's Edwardian social drama. What else do you really need to know?
Also didn't want to hint at Lewis' role or performance. If you see it, you'll know why.
number8
07-19-2012, 07:21 PM
Irish will be burning with embarrassment when he figures it out.
amberlita
07-19-2012, 07:31 PM
I'm not so sure. His interest in this thread might flame out before he notices.
Irish
07-19-2012, 07:48 PM
Yeah. That's clever.
amberlita
07-19-2012, 07:59 PM
Yeah. That's clever.
Oh boo, so it was a lame joke.
Anyway I'll watch the show when I have some time, which should be in 2014.
Dead & Messed Up
07-19-2012, 08:16 PM
http://thebrandrackley.files.wordpres s.com/2011/10/ron-swanson-clenches-fist.jpg
Henry Gale
07-19-2012, 09:56 PM
Wow, I watched the nominations live and it didn't even register that Parks and Recreation didn't get in for Best Comedy. Seemed like such a given, especially since it got two writing nominations (over every other Comedy nominee but Girls). I guess it's just a strong disconnect between the writers and then everyone else that votes on popularity and accessibility. Mind you, Dunham's series showed up in both places so there's not really much consistency. Maybe enough Game of Thrones fans just happened to stick around for that and Veep to give them that edge.
But happiest to see things like Kimmel finally sneak into Variety series (though being the Emmys host probably helped a lot), Community get their first ever recognition in the form of a Remedial Chaos Theory writing nom, and Louis CK get the most nominees of anyone ever, even if it still wasn't enough to give him a Best Comedy.
Winston*
07-20-2012, 02:20 AM
Watched all the episodes of Bobs Burgers so far. This show is really funny and great.
Ezee E
07-21-2012, 12:18 AM
American Horror Story went in as a miniseries apparently.
Mr. Pink
07-21-2012, 07:29 PM
I'm not sure why it took me so long to discover Hollywood Treasure, but man is it entertaining. The guys in the show seem a little phony, but looking at/selling high-end movie memorabilia makes for a respectable reality show.
It's pretty fun seeing what random pieces come up for sale.
Kind of crazy people spend that much, too, but I'd probably do the same thing if I could.
Irish
07-22-2012, 06:38 PM
Watching Jekyll (2007).
The first episode had a crappy payoff, and the second is dull. My interest is waning despite the presence of Michelle Ryan (http://www.google.com/search?q=michelle+ryan&tbo=d&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=X0cMUNezIIiG2gXh-ujwDw&ved=0CDkQ_AUoAQ).
I like much Moffat's other work, but does this get any better?
number8
07-22-2012, 07:26 PM
I think so. It gets pretty Moffaty mindtwisty and high concept in the second half, and that's more interesting than just the "modern day Jekyll and Hyde!" thing of the beginning.
Irish
07-22-2012, 07:45 PM
Cool, thanks -- exactly what I was hoping to hear.
EvilShoe
07-24-2012, 09:53 AM
Stephen Merchant will shoot a pilot for HBO.
HBO (http://www.deadline.com/tag/hbo/) has picked up to pilot Hello Ladies (http://www.deadline.com/tag/hello-ladies/), a comedy co-written, directed by and starring Stephen Merchant (http://www.deadline.com/tag/stephen-merchant/). The project, which The Office (http://www.deadline.com/?s=The+Office) co-creator co-wrote with former Office writer-producers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, stars the 6ft 7in Merchant as a gawky Englishman searching for the woman of his dreams in Los Angeles. Half as charming as he thinks he is — and twice as desperate — he’s obsessed with infiltrating the glamorous world of beautiful people. Unfortunately the beautiful people won’t let him in. Merchant, who also explored the theme in his Hello Ladies standup show last year, Eisenberg and Stupnitsky are executive producing the pilot, which is slated to shoot before the end of the year. HBO is producing in association with ABC Studios where Eisenberg and Stupnitsky are under an overall deal. On the feature side, Eisenberg and Stupnitsky, repped by WME and Mosaic, co-wrote box-office hit Bad Teacher (http://www.deadline.com/?s=Bad+Teacher). Writer/actor/standup comedian Merchant is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais. The duo co-created The Office, Extras and Life’s Too Short, the last two co-produced and airing in the U.S. on HBO. Additionally, WME-repped Merchant co-starred opposite Gervais on Extras. In addition to Hello Ladies, HBO has Charles Randolph’s Cold War spy drama pilot.
Very interested to see how this turns out. The premise does nothing for me, but I've often wondered what a Merchant-show without Gervais would look like.
Henry Gale
07-24-2012, 10:09 AM
Stephen Merchant will shoot a pilot for HBO.
Very interested to see how this turns out. The premise does nothing for me, but I've often wondered what a Merchant-show without Gervais would look like.
I'm assuming that it'll take a bit of material from the romantic mishaps he's told on the podcasts and done in his own stand-up special of the same name as this pilot. That might not be a bad thing though, especially since stories like this Las Vegas one could be turned into potentially great episodes:
(Starts around 2:30)
K38g08sSHVg
VU7smiuHMlI
I'm still watching Bunheads... alone... which is okay, because I'm not sure any of you would enjoy it. But I feel the need to post this sequence, because it occurred to me during this scene that this kid is going to be a star someday. You heard it here first.
_jKXQock1KU
She's still working on that "acting" thing, but I think she's about sixteen. She has time to figure it out.
Thirdmango
07-25-2012, 01:34 AM
I almost watched the first episode but I haven't gotten around to it, of course I haven't watch Gilmore Girls so I don't have that motivation.
Mr. McGibblets
07-25-2012, 01:39 AM
I liked Gilmore Girls a lot for the first 4 or 5 seasons. Everything until they introduced Logan.
Lucky
07-25-2012, 01:54 AM
That interview is hilarious, I'm definitely sold on checking out Merchant's show. The punchline slayed me.
MadMan
07-25-2012, 07:32 AM
I caught the first two episodes of the CN animated version of Black Dynamite. As much as I liked and enjoyed the movie, the whole thing works better in a 30 minute format. Pretty hilarious, over the top, outrageous, and constantly pushing the envelope, so I'm reminded of The Boondocks.
I almost watched the first episode but I haven't gotten around to it, of course I haven't watch Gilmore Girls so I don't have that motivation.
It's cheesy and affected, but it's not bad. It's actually pretty good and enjoyable... while being cheesy and affected.
Henry Gale
07-25-2012, 05:32 PM
re: eric andre show
who knew mensa members would be so humorless
i love this show so much
Finally got around to seeing this and the new Evangelos one. Eric definitely pestered the Mensa people for some time before he got the reactions we see, but seeing the show jump straight to their outrage so quickly makes it even funnier. He just had a few questions!
There are very few shows that I have to pause to either catch my breath or not miss anything from laughing so dizzyingly. But this is definitely one of those rare few. As much as I love the Parks and Rec's, Eastbound & Down's, Louie's and Community's of the current comedy landscape, stuff like this and Steve Brule just have such a refined 11-minute jolt of insane hilarity to me, it's a fantastic few weeks of the year when they're on.
And holy shit, the Jay-Z & Beyonce segment...
number8
07-26-2012, 09:27 PM
Remember that fictional Dracula show they talked about on Studio 60 ? NBC is making it.
number8
07-27-2012, 01:19 AM
ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. SOMEBODY IS FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW WHAT THE FUCK MAN.
Now a long-stalled U.S. remake of "Battle Royale" could be restarted -- as a TV series.
In the last few weeks, the CW has had talks with the project's Hollywood representatives about the possibility of turning the property into an English-language show, said a person with knowledge of the situation who was not authorized to speak about it publicly. The talks were preliminary, but if a deal could be reached, the network would acquire rights to Koushun Takami’s underlying novel, then unpack and expand on it for an hourlong dramatic series.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-battle-royale-could-be-reborn-as-a-tv-show-20120726,0,5414971.story
Thirdmango
07-27-2012, 02:52 AM
After really becoming a big fan of the Fallout series I've started to like post apocalyptic stuff a lot more. Thus I decided to watch Jericho and I just finished it last night. It wasn't the greatest of series but it did have a good ending which was quite rushed obviously since they were being cancelled. The first half of the show wasn't very good but near the end it picked up and became something enjoyable. Probably the weirdest person on the show was Aasif Mandvi, I'm so used to him on the Daily Show that him being a no nonsense drunk doctor was very strange.
Morris Schæffer
07-27-2012, 09:53 AM
Lawrence Fishburne will play Jack Crawford in the Hannibal series.
http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=34723
Qrazy
07-27-2012, 04:20 PM
After really becoming a big fan of the Fallout series I've started to like post apocalyptic stuff a lot more. Thus I decided to watch Jericho and I just finished it last night. It wasn't the greatest of series but it did have a good ending which was quite rushed obviously since they were being cancelled. The first half of the show wasn't very good but near the end it picked up and became something enjoyable. Probably the weirdest person on the show was Aasif Mandvi, I'm so used to him on the Daily Show that him being a no nonsense drunk doctor was very strange.
Watch Jeremiah, it's better. Although the first half is better than the second in that one.
Thirdmango
07-27-2012, 09:59 PM
Watch Jeremiah, it's better. Although the first half is better than the second in that one.
Oh cool, I was unaware of this series.
Watashi
07-28-2012, 07:05 AM
I just watched the first episode of Carnivale.
Is this going to be a show where I yell and curse at the TV after I finish the short-lived series?
MadMan
07-28-2012, 08:18 AM
ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. SOMEBODY IS FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW WHAT THE FUCK MAN.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-battle-royale-could-be-reborn-as-a-tv-show-20120726,0,5414971.storyThat sounds god fucking awful. Wow. Just wow.
Remember that fictional Dracula show they talked about on Studio 60 ? NBC is making it.Shit idea is shit.
You know what? I hate most network TV at this point. A lot of cable also gets hate as well.
Milky Joe
07-28-2012, 09:05 AM
I just watched the first episode of Carnivale.
Is this going to be a show where I yell and curse at the TV after I finish the short-lived series?
Yup.
Lucky
07-28-2012, 12:47 PM
ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. SOMEBODY IS FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW WHAT THE FUCK MAN.]
Considering The Vampire Diaries premiered during the wake of the Twilight series and is the CW's most successful show, this doesn't surprise me in the least.
Mr. McGibblets
07-28-2012, 02:29 PM
I think Carnivale has a perfect ending.
[ETM]
07-28-2012, 03:56 PM
I think Carnivale has a perfect ending.
Not perfect, but largely satisfying, considering how rushed S2 was. Also, the details about the story that never was released by the author make it even harder to accept that there is no more.
Qrazy
07-28-2012, 10:20 PM
Why don't they just do the rest of Carnivale as a comic or book or whatever.
Both seasons of Carnivale feature episodes that are full of greatness, a nifty trick considering the slow pace of season 1 and the rushed pace of season 2, largely attributable to a combination of inspired writing, stellar performances, and fucking awesome cinematography. Sort of an HBO template for success. Don't know which was the bigger crime: no third season of Carnivale, or no fourth season of Deadwood.
Lucky
07-29-2012, 01:19 AM
Another great episode of Louie this week. Parker Posey shined, strong direction and cinematography. Truly had a cinematic feel. Even the black & white credits were stunning.
Has this season stepped up its game or have I just finally drank the kool-aid?
Milky Joe
07-29-2012, 02:25 AM
Why don't they just do the rest of Carnivale as a comic or book or whatever.
HBO refused to sell the rights to do so.
The only issue I had with CarnivÃ*le on a recent rewatch (after being totally obsessed with it when it was airing) was that it sort of lacks a sense of humor. It's just soooo oppressively dark. And what bits of humor are there feel sort of forced (like the sideshow characters in season 1). In comparison, Deadwood's fucking hilarious, which is one reason it's endlessly rewatchable.
Still, a fantastically high concept show, one I'm still surprised and pleased that it got as far as it did. Still wonder about how the next four planned seasons would have gone.
Qrazy
07-29-2012, 03:59 AM
Another great episode of Louie this week. Parker Posey shined, strong direction and cinematography. Truly had a cinematic feel. Even the black & white credits were stunning.
Has this season stepped up its game or have I just finally drank the kool-aid?
You drank the kool-aid, I find this season to be quite poor.
Milky Joe
07-29-2012, 04:15 AM
oh come on.
(deja vu?)
But seriously, if you can't even enjoy this season of the L, I don't know why you bother watching TV.
Melville
07-29-2012, 12:23 PM
You drank the kool-aid, I find this season to be quite poor.
Yeah, it's been weak. Each season has reduced the amount of humour, increased the amount of triteness. The episodes have also felt more and more tepid. I thought this latest episode was a mildly interesting spin on the cliche of free-spirited quirky women as romantic symbols, but that's about it.
Ivan Drago
07-29-2012, 03:42 PM
I caught the first two episodes of the CN animated version of Black Dynamite. As much as I liked and enjoyed the movie, the whole thing works better in a 30 minute format. Pretty hilarious, over the top, outrageous, and constantly pushing the envelope, so I'm reminded of The Boondocks.
First Toonami comes back, now this? Is Adult Swim finally firing on all cylinders again?
I like Louie okay, but it's one of those shows I have to watch by myself. I've tried showing people a few episodes on Netflix or whatever and it invariably winds up being a silent, awkward 20 minutes of us sitting there staring at the screen and me wondering why I built it up so much to myself in the first place
Mr. Pink
07-29-2012, 06:50 PM
I really liked episodes 1 and 4 of Louie, but the rest have been disappointing. The one with the latin guy in particular was just plain stupid/annoying. I'm keeping my expectations low for the rest of this season, but I'm guessing there will be some good stuff still to come.
EyesWideOpen
07-29-2012, 07:06 PM
I really liked episodes 1 and 4 of Louie, but the rest have been disappointing. The one with the latin guy in particular was just plain stupid/annoying. I'm keeping my expectations low for the rest of this season, but I'm guessing there will be some good stuff still to come.
That was the best episode of the series.
Lucky
07-29-2012, 07:07 PM
Man, I couldn't disagree more with you guys. "Miami" is my favorite episode so far this season, and I'm enjoying the show more as it strays away from the comedic aspects which I never found funny in the past. I feel like the show has a newfound cinematic approach this season. While it may be more trite than the social comedy focus of previous years, it's more palatable and human now.
Mr. Pink
07-29-2012, 07:15 PM
That was the best episode of the series.
Which one? Episode 4 might be my favorite from the series so far.
Man, I couldn't disagree more with you guys. "Miami" is my favorite episode so far this season, and I'm enjoying the show more as it strays away from the comedic aspects which I never found funny in the past. I feel like the show has a newfound cinematic approach this season. While it may be more trite than the social comedy focus of previous years, it's more palatable and human now.
That episode started out promising, but over half of it built up to make a point that didn't make any sense to me. I understood not being able to articulate exactly why he stayed in Miami longer, but not telling the guy he wasn't gay was really annoying. It didn't seem realistic that someone - especially Louie - would struggle with telling someone he isn't gay when the person clearly thinks he is.
The problem was he follows it up with a routine on how guys are afraid of being seen as gay, to the point they won't even say the word "wonderful," yet he couldn't spit that out in the previous scene.
Thirdmango
07-29-2012, 07:33 PM
Louie has been an interesting show for me because I do like it but I don't go out of my way to watch it when it airs. A friend of mine was saying Louie got snubbed at the Emmys and on initial reaction I agreed but when thinking about it the likely episode they saw was The Ugly Duckling episode which was my favorite episode of last season. That episode was so good that my eyes were watering near the end from the Duck part but I never really laughed throughout the episode. Louie is for me sort of the bridge between comedy and drama, like if you look at the first episode of the second season, "Pregnant," the whole episode is this insanely dramatic episode all done for one glorious comedic payoff. (That is the only episode of this show my dad watched and he almost had a hernia at the end.) The Miami episode this season, it wasn't funny, it didn't go for any sort of comedic payoff besides the the last time the two met and I felt that was the weakest part of the episode, but I loved the rest of it, it was this great story of finding the fantastic interior of Miami. But that gay bit at the end, clearly he was just enjoying having a friend that is a guy.
I'm not saying Comedy has to be this oh my god laugh out loud kind of thing and I'm not suggesting Louie should change it's stripes, I'm just saying I can see why people might not like it or find it to be weaker. And I do get why the Emmys wouldn't nominate it for best comedy.
Also speaking of ep 4, Maria Bamford made me so sad in that episode. She did a great performance but I want her and Louie to be in love. Alas.
Lucky
07-29-2012, 07:40 PM
That episode started out promising, but over half of it built up to make a point that didn't make any sense to me. I understood not being able to articulate exactly why he stayed in Miami longer, but not telling the guy he wasn't gay was really annoying. It didn't seem realistic that someone - especially Louie - would struggle with telling someone he isn't gay when the person clearly thinks he is.
The problem was he follows it up with a routine on how guys are afraid of being seen as gay, to the point they won't even say the word "wonderful," yet he couldn't spit that out in the previous scene.
It plays off the running bit throughout the episode that the lifeguard doesn't believe Louie wasn't actually drowning. The more Louie tries to defend that he wasn't drowning, the more foolish he looks. He knew that there was no way to articulate he wasn't gay without looking more...well, gay. It's a bit of a bittersweet surrender.
EyesWideOpen
07-29-2012, 08:42 PM
Which one? Episode 4 might be my favorite from the series so far.
I was talking about the Miami episode.
Mr. Pink
07-29-2012, 09:06 PM
It plays off the running bit throughout the episode that the lifeguard doesn't believe Louie wasn't actually drowning. The more Louie tries to defend that he wasn't drowning, the more foolish he looks. He knew that there was no way to articulate he wasn't gay without looking more...well, gay. It's a bit of a bittersweet surrender.
No, that's a good point. It just annoyed me he couldn't just say he wasn't gay, considering the bit he ended on. Louie seems like the kind of person who would definitely have no trouble saying he wasn't gay if someone thought he was, so I didn't buy the bar scene very much.
I was talking about the Miami episode.
That's pretty surprising, considering how good some of the other episodes are. For the Miami episode, I just thought he took too long to get to his point, which wasn't as insightful as some of the male-female relationship-based episodes.
Qrazy
07-29-2012, 09:43 PM
oh come on.
(deja vu?)
But seriously, if you can't even enjoy this season of the L, I don't know why you bother watching TV.
LOLWUT
Henry Gale
07-29-2012, 10:02 PM
I don't think the Miami episode was so much about him not being able to have a normal male relationship, but more that he found just the right friendship for the right, brief amount of time and they both realized had run its course. They didn't really have much in common beyond the unexpected connection that turned around Louie's terrible time there, and that was all it need to be.
It's mentioned by his ex-wife and made clear in those early scenes that he hates being in Miami, feeling isolated and invisible, and it's exactly one of those situations that leads him to be "saved" by Ramone. Once Louie became comfortable in Miami and wanted to continue that sort of time there, it just became forced. He didn't like the Miami he has to do gigs in that much more, but he loved being able to see a better side to it with someone he genuinely got along with.
Even just look at the scene with them looking up at the condos, people alone on their balconies, and just picture that being Louie to some extent any other time he's been to Miami. Ramone mentions how he kind of feels kinda bad for them, so this was the one time he got to show someone like that a good time, only that person wanted to irrationally have that time over and over despite having a life to go back to.
No, that's a good point. It just annoyed me he couldn't just say he wasn't gay, considering the bit he ended on. Louie seems like the kind of person who would definitely have no trouble saying he wasn't gay if someone thought he was, so I didn't buy the bar scene very much.
From a writing standpoint, I just think he wanted to have a scene about that but not having to use the word "gay" once. Kind of like an opposite concept of when in The Wire where McNulty and Bunk say nothing but "fuuck" for an entire scene to verbalize their feelings at a crime scene. The point is made regardless, and the awkwardness goes beyond just the potential gay reading of things between them, and they both realize in the end that they had a good time, but it makes sense to just go separate ways.
I don't see the stand-up bit after it (where he does say the word multiple times) as meaning to summarize the whole storyline, but more just adding another funny button to the end of one little idea in the episode before wrapping everything up.
And for me, this Parker Posey two-parter was as good as anything the show has done and up there with the best TV I've seen all year. Season 3 has been the purest forms of what I love about this show. Every episode after the premiere (which I also really liked) has been top-tier stuff, and they've all been so refreshingly dissimilar that I'm always so impressed that he pulls it off.
number8
07-29-2012, 10:55 PM
Duuuuuude the first three seasons of The Thick of It plus In the Loop are on Hulu.
Qrazy
07-29-2012, 11:21 PM
Man, I couldn't disagree more with you guys. "Miami" is my favorite episode so far this season, and I'm enjoying the show more as it strays away from the comedic aspects which I never found funny in the past. I feel like the show has a newfound cinematic approach this season. While it may be more trite than the social comedy focus of previous years, it's more palatable and human now.
Louis CK has the formal skill and thematic nuance of a boot to the face. I like him when he's funny.
Milky Joe
07-29-2012, 11:27 PM
That's pretty funny/ridiculous considering your vehement defense of Christopher Nolan in the Batman thread. If Louie's a boot to the face Nolan must be, what, a neutron bomb?
Qrazy
07-29-2012, 11:31 PM
That's pretty funny/ridiculous considering your vehement defense of Christopher Nolan in the Batman thread. If Louie's a boot to the face Nolan must be, what, a neutron bomb?
The fact that you think Louis CK is a better formalist than Nolan is a testament to your bad taste and nothing else.
Milky Joe
07-29-2012, 11:48 PM
There's more formalism in the brief shots of Louie chasing chickens in Miami than there is in the whole bloated 3 hour mess that is TDKR. The fact that you think Nolan is a better formalist than anyone is a testament to your utter lack of any taste at all. I'll stop talking to you now.
number8
07-29-2012, 11:57 PM
The fact that you two of all people are arguing which between you have better taste is a testament to this forum's sense of humor.
Qrazy
07-30-2012, 12:03 AM
The fact that you two of all people are arguing which between you have better taste is a testament to this forum's sense of humor.
You must be saying this because both of our taste is so vastly superior to yours that you find it funny that two people with such refined tasted would disagree so vehemently.
Qrazy
07-30-2012, 12:04 AM
There's more formalism in the brief shots of Louie chasing chickens in Miami than there is in the whole bloated 3 hour mess that is TDKR. The fact that you think Nolan is a better formalist than anyone is a testament to your utter lack of any taste at all. I'll stop talking to you now.
You do not understand the concept of formalism.
Milky Joe
07-30-2012, 12:25 AM
Pretty sure I do. It's not a complicated concept. But if you want to explain it to me the way you understand it, I'll certainly read it.
Qrazy
07-30-2012, 12:41 AM
Pretty sure I do. It's not a complicated concept. But if you want to explain it to me the way you understand it, I'll certainly read it.
I was under the impression we were taking joke snipes at each other based upon personal preferences, don't really see the point in going in depth about that.
ledfloyd
07-30-2012, 01:15 AM
http://blogs.suntimes.com/scanners/2012/07/louis_funny_is_gravy.html
this is a great look at the most recent episode, and, coincidentally, a pretty good analysis of the ways in which louis ck utilizes formalism.
Irish
07-30-2012, 04:27 AM
Anyone else watching Political Animals? The bulk of the cast is silly but I'm loving Sigourney Weaver on this.
Qrazy
07-30-2012, 05:31 AM
Just watched that new Louie episode, the dramatic direction in this show is so awful. Every encounter is played with the same forced awkwardness. Truly lame.
Mr. Pink
07-30-2012, 07:26 PM
From a writing standpoint, I just think he wanted to have a scene about that but not having to use the word "gay" once. Kind of like an opposite concept of when in The Wire where McNulty and Bunk say nothing but "fuuck" for an entire scene to verbalize their feelings at a crime scene. The point is made regardless, and the awkwardness goes beyond just the potential gay reading of things between them, and they both realize in the end that they had a good time, but it makes sense to just go separate ways.
I don't see the stand-up bit after it (where he does say the word multiple times) as meaning to summarize the whole storyline, but more just adding another funny button to the end of one little idea in the episode before wrapping everything up.
And for me, this Parker Posey two-parter was as good as anything the show has done and up there with the best TV I've seen all year. Season 3 has been the purest forms of what I love about this show. Every episode after the premiere (which I also really liked) has been top-tier stuff, and they've all been so refreshingly dissimilar that I'm always so impressed that he pulls it off.
Yeah, I'd agree the stand-up wasn't meant as a summary, and you can't say it didn't fit in with that episode, but I thought it was contradictory to the point he was trying to make.
The whole bar scene was based around Ramon thinking Louie was gay, but since he isn't and that's not why Louie stayed, I didn't buy that he would have trouble at least making that much clear.
Ultimately though, I just didn't care about their relationship enough in the first place, so the bar scene annoyed me more than it otherwise would have.
So, I've been watching some Louie from the beginning and... I don't know. He's really funny, and the atmosphere is great, but does he ever... ever... ever... get off the subject of sex? Because it's getting kind of boring.
I just watched the one where he went to Birmingham and it was substantially better. I think he just needs to broaden his subject base.
ledfloyd
08-03-2012, 02:18 AM
I just watched the one where he went to Birmingham and it was substantially better. I think he just needs to broaden his subject base.
you have some really good, and non-sexual, ones coming up in heckler/cop movie, dogpound, bully, god, etc.
the birmingham episode is where it really started getting its hooks in me. stick with it.
Kurosawa Fan
08-03-2012, 02:42 AM
Revolution looks worse with every preview they play. It went from "only if the buzz is extremely positive" to "not a chance in the world I'll waste one second on that" during these Olympics broadcasts.
number8
08-03-2012, 04:54 AM
Yeah, I'd agree the stand-up wasn't meant as a summary, and you can't say it didn't fit in with that episode, but I thought it was contradictory to the point he was trying to make.
The whole bar scene was based around Ramon thinking Louie was gay, but since he isn't and that's not why Louie stayed, I didn't buy that he would have trouble at least making that much clear.
Ultimately though, I just didn't care about their relationship enough in the first place, so the bar scene annoyed me more than it otherwise would have.
There's another stand-up bit, it might have been in a previous season's episode, where he talks about how hard it is for guys his age to make new friends, because he himself finds it a really weird and awkward thing to ask a male stranger he really really likes at the end of a chance encounter for their contact information just to hang out as friends, even without the fear of being perceived as gay.
I don't think the point of the scene is that Louie was having trouble articulating that he wasn't gay. It was just as much about his own confusion as to what he's feeling. He stayed in another city for a couple of nights just so he can spend more time with a guy he just met? He likes the guy that much? What does it really mean? The point was that for them, it would've been so much more graspable for someone with their connection to just say, "I like you. I have a crush on you. I want to spend time with you." But since they're not gay and that's not a part of their frame of mind, they—particularly Louie—struggle to define what they actually want from each other.
Qrazy
08-03-2012, 08:44 PM
That Leon bit at the end of this last Louie episode was quality. The rest not so much.
Milky Joe
08-03-2012, 09:34 PM
It was all quality, as usual.
Qrazy
08-03-2012, 09:44 PM
It was all quality, as usual.
Agreed. Bad quality.
ZING.
Lucky
08-03-2012, 10:04 PM
I'm with qrazy this week. It didn't even have a standup scene.
Milky Joe
08-03-2012, 10:48 PM
The only issue I have with the show is that it's not an hour long.
D_Davis
08-03-2012, 11:30 PM
Anyone here watching that Louis C.K. show?
Qrazy
08-04-2012, 12:05 AM
Anyone here watching that Louis C.K. show?
Only when I'm eating a bucket of ice cream alone in bed.
Acapelli
08-06-2012, 02:57 PM
anyone here watch bbc2's "the line of duty"?
another cop show in the vein of "luther" or "the shadow line" (although not as good as either show), but it apparently has been a huge hit for the channel and they've commissioned a second series. lots of recognizable british actors too
i still can't see jamie from "the thick of it" as anyone else but jamie, and he's in this. lennie james has a great role too. as well as the last probation worker from "misfits"
EyesWideOpen
08-08-2012, 12:42 AM
I had never even heard of the show "The Booth at the End" until I noticed it as a Hulu exclusive a year or so ago. It only had five episodes but I've watched them all multiple times and it has become one of my favorite shows. Everyone thought that one season would be it and they'd never do anymore but after hearing rumors early this year we finally have a second season. New episodes started airing on hulu yesterday. The first one had Charlie Utter!
Qrazy
08-09-2012, 05:59 AM
I had never even heard of the show "The Booth at the End" until I noticed it as a Hulu exclusive a year or so ago. It only had five episodes but I've watched them all multiple times and it has become one of my favorite shows. Everyone thought that one season would be it and they'd never do anymore but after hearing rumors early this year we finally have a second season. New episodes started airing on hulu yesterday. The first one had Charlie Utter!
Just watched the first season on your rec. Had a few problems with a couple story resolutions but overall really good stuff. The power of storytelling amirite?
Ehh dunno how I feel about the first ep of the new season. I found the style wayyy over-dramatized compared to the first season.
EyesWideOpen
08-09-2012, 12:47 PM
Just watched the first season on your rec. Had a few problems with a couple story resolutions but overall really good stuff. The power of storytelling amirite?
Ehh dunno how I feel about the first ep of the new season. I found the style wayyy over-dramatized compared to the first season.
Yay! I tried not to explain too much about it because it's almost best if you go in blind. When I told my wife she couldn't comprehend how it's just in the booth. I said well he has them do things and she goes oh so then we see like in a flashback what they did? And I go nope they tell him what they did. All we ever see is the diner.
See I didn't really find the style that much different in the first ep of the second season. I mean the first series started as a web show and then it was bought by hulu so they had more money for the second season so it looks cleaner but besides that more of the same in my eyes. I'm really interested to see what happens with Doris and The Man.
Qrazy
08-09-2012, 04:07 PM
Yay! I tried not to explain too much about it because it's almost best if you go in blind. When I told my wife she couldn't comprehend how it's just in the booth. I said well he has them do things and she goes oh so then we see like in a flashback what they did? And I go nope they tell him what they did. All we ever see is the diner.
See I didn't really find the style that much different in the first ep of the second season. I mean the first series started as a web show and then it was bought by hulu so they had more money for the second season so it looks cleaner but besides that more of the same in my eyes. I'm really interested to see what happens with Doris and The Man.
I don't know man, the interaction with the kids near the end of the episode, Doris playing with the sugar dispenser and Melody outside the diner all felt overly dramatic to me and not in keeping with the subtle drama of the original season.
EvilShoe
08-09-2012, 05:33 PM
So Neil Cross is negotiating (http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118057635) with BBC to get a Luther spin-off about Alice made.
Not a big fan of those kinds of things, but this sounds promising.
"I think the first one would probably be a Luther-free zone, because their stories have diverged to a large extent, but there would be nothing to suggest they couldn't come together again -- either by this vehicle or a 'Luther' movie," Cross added.
number8
08-09-2012, 05:43 PM
That could be pretty cool.
[ETM]
08-09-2012, 06:42 PM
I love Alice. She is by far my favorite fictional murdering psychopath.
Qrazy
08-09-2012, 07:31 PM
So how good is Luther? Where would you rank it in terms of shows you like.
Kurosawa Fan
08-09-2012, 07:32 PM
It's definitely among the better shows in the last ten years. In terms of procedural shows, it's top notch.
Oh, and my love of Alice is well documented. Done correctly, I'd be all over that show.
Irish
08-09-2012, 08:37 PM
So how good is Luther? Where would you rank it in terms of shows you like.
Good if you like that sort of thing and great if you love Idris Elba.
It's got a couple (and by that I literally mean two) story ideas and it's watachable, but if you've dug into gritty crime dramas, especially European ones, you'll find a lot of it redunant and unnecessary.
Still: Idris Elba.
If you're looking for better British crime dramas, check out Wallander, Cracker, and Foyle's War, in that order.
Edit: Also, the first three to four seasons of Spooks (MI5 in the US) is good, but dives after that. It also leans strongly to the right.
EyesWideOpen
08-10-2012, 04:14 AM
So how good is Luther? Where would you rank it in terms of shows you like.
I would put it in my top five of current shows. With Alice being one of my favorite characters ever.
Morris Schæffer
08-10-2012, 02:26 PM
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/57523
FX orders new espionage series, The Americans, from Justified mastermind Graham Yost.
Childrens Hospital is really getting good at skewering primetime soaps. They hit the low-hanging fruit in the first couple of seasons, which was fine, but the in medias res format of last night's episode shows not only a satirical look at the conventions of the genre, but a weird sort of affection at the same time.
Qrazy
08-11-2012, 09:12 AM
Childrens Hospital is really getting good at skewering primetime soaps. They hit the low-hanging fruit in the first couple of seasons, which was fine, but the in medias res format of last night's episode shows not only a satirical look at the conventions of the genre, but a weird sort of affection at the same time.
I'll give the amnesia... amnesia.
EvilShoe
08-11-2012, 10:15 AM
I'm really surprised Childrens Hospital hasn't run out of steam by now. Last season's finale was terrific.
Also features Michael Cera's best work in years.
EvilShoe
08-11-2012, 10:41 AM
So, Teachers.
I've made it to the fourth and last season. Been working long hours the past few weeks, and unfortunately I get too distracted during the really good shows to marathon through those.
This one is the perfect "leave it on in the background"-show. It's mostly interesting as a documentation of the times-type show. Really demonstrates how far television writing has evolved the last 10-15 years.
Teachers is still plagued by the flaws from the 90s. The characterization is wildly inconsistent, the visual gags too restrained, the tone is all over the place.
What bothers me the most is the disdain the writers show towards their characters. This would work in a dark show, but Teachers presents itself a light-hearted show. Still, no matter how likeable they are: everyone comes out a loser here and we're supposed to laugh about it.
Worst about it is the way the show disposes of some main characters. Most egregious example is in the opener to season 4, when the remaining characters are seen pissing on the graves of those who didn't make the leap from season 3 to 4.
It's a very frustrating show to watch actually, because I think the premise (the life of teachers) could make for a very interesting dramedy. Yet what we get is too broad, and too cynical.
Does boast some nice work from Andrew Lincoln in the first season, though. After that his character just wanders around aimlessly, until Lincoln leaves the show.
amberlita
08-11-2012, 05:50 PM
Someday I'm going to make a list of all the television stars I wish had built a better career after their breakout role and Noah Wyle is going to be near the top of it.
[ETM]
08-12-2012, 06:14 AM
I really like what he's doing on Falling Skies.
amberlita
08-12-2012, 05:38 PM
;436422']I really like what he's doing on Falling Skies.
I do too. I don't like the show, but I like what he does on it. I didn't mean to imply he wasn't doing good work. I just wish he was doing more high profile work and something that I can be excited about watching. Damian Lewis is a similar example. I love love love him but I couldn't get into Life no matter how much I wanted to. And I thought he deserved something a step up in quality. Now he's doing Homeland and I'm chomping at the bit to see it when it finally comes out on Netfilx.
[ETM]
08-12-2012, 07:12 PM
I like the show. It has vastly improved in S2, and I think it's fairly popular now.
I'm still wandering through Louie and I'm enjoying it more as I make my way through it. I just watched the episode where his mother shows up for the first time, and they did a great job of establishing her character in about six minutes of screen time.
Stephen Root! The man improves everything, ever, just by showing up. I love you SR.
number8
08-13-2012, 05:04 PM
This is, fittingly, going to be on Cinemax.
ZiacKIVSDcE
EvilShoe
08-13-2012, 05:38 PM
I wonder what's going in Besson's head these days.
number8
08-13-2012, 09:20 PM
Anyone watched the first episode of Totally Biased? It's pretty fun.
v42WLN_4Scw
vZ_MTNHk2Dw
Qrazy
08-14-2012, 05:39 AM
Yay! I tried not to explain too much about it because it's almost best if you go in blind. When I told my wife she couldn't comprehend how it's just in the booth. I said well he has them do things and she goes oh so then we see like in a flashback what they did? And I go nope they tell him what they did. All we ever see is the diner.
See I didn't really find the style that much different in the first ep of the second season. I mean the first series started as a web show and then it was bought by hulu so they had more money for the second season so it looks cleaner but besides that more of the same in my eyes. I'm really interested to see what happens with Doris and The Man.
The end of the last episode was siiiiiiiick.
EyesWideOpen
08-14-2012, 12:32 PM
The end of the last episode was siiiiiiiick.
I didn't have time to watch yesterday. I'll watch it tonight.
number8
08-14-2012, 07:50 PM
Peter Berg is doing a show on NBC about a regular guy who starts temping as a henchman for supervillains in order to support his family. Apparently it's going for more drama than comedy, so it's basically going to be like a superhero version of Breaking Bad.
Shrug.
Great, surprisingly sentimental end to Louie season 1. It has definitely grown on me.
EDIT: Really, any time they want to focus on his kids instead of his romantic life is cool with me.
Anyone hear about that BBC series Call the Midwife? Because I am all over that and I'm mildly offended that the internet didn't inform me of its existence earlier.
Anyone hear about that BBC series Call the Midwife? Because I am all over that and I'm mildly offended that the internet didn't inform me of its existence earlier.
While I was writing this, Willow started trying to eat leftover salmon skin on my plate, and I was so involved in watching the trailer that I paid no attention, so she moved it over to my bedspread and began to eat it there.
...I suppose I deserved that.
Qrazy
08-14-2012, 11:38 PM
Peter Berg is doing a show on NBC about a regular guy who starts temping as a henchman for supervillains in order to support his family. Apparently it's going for more drama than comedy, so it's basically going to be like a superhero version of Breaking Bad.
Shrug.
Sounds like a good concept if it were a comedy, I don't know about the dramatic angle.
Thirdmango
08-14-2012, 11:42 PM
it could work as an hour show if it were done like Reaper.
EyesWideOpen
08-14-2012, 11:44 PM
Sounds like a good concept if it were a comedy, I don't know about the dramatic angle.
I feel the opposite. I can imagine that being terrible as a comedy but easily working as a drama.
I could see it working as a campy, self-aware comedy/drama. Playing it very seriously will probably not end well.
EvilShoe
08-15-2012, 06:50 PM
Trailer (http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-inbetweeners,83875/) for the US remake of The Inbetweeners.
Do not want.
CBS buys a legal drama series written by Danny Strong, directed by David O. Russell (!) and loosely based on a famous father/daughter high-powered law duo. De Niro is involved but doesn't look to be acting. Normally the premise wouldn't grab me, but those are some interesting credentials.
Isn't Russell supposed to be just... impossible? That would make television involvement (which is long-term and relies on good will on set) difficult.
http://www.deadline.com/2012/08/cbs-buys-legal-drama-written-by-danny-strong-directed-by-david-o-russell-and-produced-by-robert-de-niro/
Raiders
08-17-2012, 01:03 AM
Isn't Russell supposed to be just... impossible? That would make television involvement (which is long-term and relies on good will on set) difficult.
http://www.deadline.com/2012/08/cbs-buys-legal-drama-written-by-danny-strong-directed-by-david-o-russell-and-produced-by-robert-de-niro/
My assumption is that he is only directing the pilot (or maybe first couple of episodes as seems to be popular), so it wouldn't be a long-term investment on his part.
Winston*
08-17-2012, 01:26 AM
CBS buys a legal drama series written by Danny Strong, directed by David O. Russell (!) and loosely based on a famous father/daughter high-powered law duo. De Niro is involved but doesn't look to be acting. Normally the premise wouldn't grab me, but those are some interesting credentials.
Isn't Russell supposed to be just... impossible? That would make television involvement (which is long-term and relies on good will on set) difficult.
http://www.deadline.com/2012/08/cbs-buys-legal-drama-written-by-danny-strong-directed-by-david-o-russell-and-produced-by-robert-de-niro/
Did you watch the Errol Morris interview at the bottom of that article? He could make for a compelling character.
Thirdmango
08-18-2012, 08:41 AM
Just finished watching the first season of the Canadian Show Continuum. It's a fun little time travel show. Like many other Canadian shows I hope is has some sort of run in the US just because it would probably do decently well here.
Qrazy
08-18-2012, 07:35 PM
See, now that was a very good Louie episode. Maybe the best of the show's run. F Murray Abraham is amazing. The ending was a bit much but other than that, good stuff.
Lucky
08-18-2012, 09:50 PM
I found it disjointed and messy, similar to the previous two episodes. I prefer when he focuses more on a self-contained story like "Miami" and "Daddy's GF Part 2."
EyesWideOpen
08-18-2012, 11:46 PM
See, now that was a very good Louie episode. Maybe the best of the show's run. F Murray Abraham is amazing. The ending was a bit much but other than that, good stuff.
While I liked it I thought it was the weakest episode so far this season.
Qrazy
08-19-2012, 08:57 AM
While I liked it I thought it was the weakest episode so far this season.
Probably cause you hate humor. lulz.
number8
08-19-2012, 04:57 PM
I started watching ALPHAS. This show is much better than I expected it to be.
Acapelli
08-19-2012, 06:43 PM
i gave it a chance last year, but it couldn't really hold my attention
i had pretty high hopes though
Apparently this is an original series starting on BBC America tonight.
wujKChwOvDA
I'm curious.
By the way, I find myself not at all interested in catching up on Longmire. I just didn't feel like it lived up to the potential of the pilot.
Irish
08-20-2012, 06:10 AM
That promo makes it looks like every no-budget, shitty, cliche ridden cop show ever made. I don't think setting it in the 19th century will fool people for very long.
Longmire got better. Not a great show but solid.
[ETM]
08-20-2012, 07:16 AM
DMFP.
"Doesn't Matter, Franka Potente"
Winston*
08-20-2012, 11:25 AM
That promo makes it looks like every no-budget, shitty, cliche ridden cop show ever made. I don't think setting it in the 19th century will fool people for very long.
Halfway through the first episode. Your instincts are right. This sucks.
Irish
08-20-2012, 11:48 AM
Halfway through the first episode. Your instincts are right. This sucks.
Heh, I just finished watching. It was bad, but not for the reasons I expected -- it's like they're trying to do Deadwood meets Gangs of New York with terrible actors and no money. That's a whole 'nother level of bad.
Halfway through the first episode. Your instincts are right. This sucks.
See, this is why I love MC. You guys save me from wasting my time. Thanks!
And maybe I will catch up on Longmire if it got solid. There was some good infrastructure there.
Irish
08-20-2012, 02:30 PM
They might be able to do something with it yet, but the premier wasn't promising. I remember Spartacus had cheesy production values and some questionable performances, but still managed to contain a couple of good stories.
Look for the Longmire episode about the horses caught in a barn fire. Thematically, it's the strongest one. A few others are good too, and then there's some that fall back to less interesting crime-of-the-week storylines.
number8
08-20-2012, 02:35 PM
Still haven't seen it, but I went to a fairly intimate reception for it last week, just so I can meet Tom Fontana. He's been my hero for fucking ever, and it was one of those great moments to be able to have a conversation with him about screenwriting. I drank 4 glasses of wine first before I said hi.
number8
08-20-2012, 02:36 PM
I'm probably the only person here who watches his Borgias show, huh?
Look for the Longmire episode about the horses caught in a barn fire. Thematically, it's the strongest one. A few others are good too, and then there's some that fall back to less interesting crime-of-the-week storylines.
I saw that one, and I think I liked it. I should review the summaries before I catch up.
Ivan Drago
08-20-2012, 05:17 PM
I'm probably the only person here who watches his Borgias show, huh?
I want to see it. Jeremy Irons = Sold.
number8
08-20-2012, 06:21 PM
I want to see it. Jeremy Irons = Sold.
Wrong show. I'm talking about the one where John Doman plays Rodrigo Borgia in his natural East Coast American accent, and everyone else speaks with a French accent.
http://www.ecrans.fr/local/cache-vignettes/L450xH300/arton13368-0d390.jpg
It's something else.
D_Davis
08-20-2012, 07:50 PM
Anyone watched Seinfeld's new show yet?
Acapelli
08-20-2012, 09:26 PM
Wrong show. I'm talking about the one where John Doman plays Rodrigo Borgia in his natural East Coast American accent, and everyone else speaks with a French accent.
http://www.ecrans.fr/local/cache-vignettes/L450xH300/arton13368-0d390.jpg
It's something else.
waitwaitwaitwait
what?
number8
08-20-2012, 09:38 PM
Yeah, the series begins before Rodrigo becomes Pope, and the previous Pope is played by Udo Kier. This is his death scene:
NSFW
http://www.welt.de/img/dc5-images/crop105157304/4240719508-ci3x2l-w580-aoriginal-h386-l0/111014-papst-DW-Sonstiges-Rom.jpg
It's something else. The second season is starting soon.
Winston*
08-20-2012, 11:36 PM
Anyone watched Seinfeld's new show yet?
The web thing? I watched all the episodes except for the one with Ricky Gervais. Fine way to kill 10 minutes.
The scene in Louie with the fantasy in the elevator with the... bag... was really disturbing for me.
You know, Louie/s spends a lot of time talking about how he thinks of women sexually all the time, but it's unclear to me how he thinks of women to whom he's not attracted.
number8
08-21-2012, 01:32 AM
Woah, I've finished season 1 of Alphas already. The fact that it was only 11 episodes helped.
I knew they wouldn't be able to keep up the "grounded superpowers" angle for long. The series started with a guy who has excellent hand-eye coordination, a girl with good sense of smell and a guy who can trigger his fight or flight response at will, and by the end of the season we have a shapeshifter, an immortal, and Summer Glau building Cerebro.
Still, it's a really fun show. This is Heroes done right, I think. It's the same kind of comic book fun (the amount that it borrows from X-Men is near shameless), without the self-serious and overly complicated drama that grounded Heroes to a halt. The characters are very likable and dysfunctional, and they screw up and banter more than they save the day. Good formula.
EyesWideOpen
08-21-2012, 03:01 AM
The end of the last episode was siiiiiiiick.
I have absolutely no idea where this show is going and I love it.
MadMan
08-21-2012, 12:27 PM
Woah, I've finished season 1 of Alphas already. The fact that it was only 11 episodes helped.
I knew they wouldn't be able to keep up the "grounded superpowers" angle for long. The series started with a guy who has excellent hand-eye coordination, a girl with good sense of smell and a guy who can trigger his fight or flight response at will, and by the end of the season we have a shapeshifter, an immortal, and Summer Glau building Cerebro.
Still, it's a really fun show. This is Heroes done right, I think. It's the same kind of comic book fun (the amount that it borrows from X-Men is near shameless), without the self-serious and overly complicated drama that grounded Heroes to a halt. The characters are very likable and dysfunctional, and they screw up and banter more than they save the day. Good formula.All of that sounds good to me, especially the not being Heroes part. Plus it has David Strathairn. I'll add it to the "Long List of TV Shows That Should Be Viewed," list.
Yup, still watching Bunheads. It's not a perfect show, but I would like to point out that last night Sutton Foster's character:
1. Sang "Maybe This Time," which is one of my favorite Broadway tunes.
2. Maced an entire teen and pre-teen ballet cast during a live performance of The Nutcracker.
D_Davis
08-21-2012, 06:07 PM
I thought Alphas was going to be more grounded in reality - like a CSI with people who were super smart or something. I completely lost interest when the chick mind controlled the cop and the black dude had super strength.
D_Davis
08-21-2012, 06:08 PM
The web thing? I watched all the episodes except for the one with Ricky Gervais. Fine way to kill 10 minutes.
Yeah - I saw it on Crackle yesterday. Watched the first one. Pretty fun.
D_Davis
08-21-2012, 06:10 PM
Bought my first DVD in a long time...
Finally got the full run of Homicide: Life on the Streets. Looking forward to watching a bunch of it this weekend.
Hey, Veanne Cox just showed up in S2 of Louie. I love her, mostly because she does a lot of theater in D.C. She cool.
[ETM]
08-21-2012, 08:10 PM
Woah, I've finished season 1 of Alphas already. The fact that it was only 11 episodes helped.
I knew they wouldn't be able to keep up the "grounded superpowers" angle for long. The series started with a guy who has excellent hand-eye coordination, a girl with good sense of smell and a guy who can trigger his fight or flight response at will, and by the end of the season we have a shapeshifter, an immortal, and Summer Glau building Cerebro.
Still, it's a really fun show. This is Heroes done right, I think. It's the same kind of comic book fun (the amount that it borrows from X-Men is near shameless), without the self-serious and overly complicated drama that grounded Heroes to a halt. The characters are very likable and dysfunctional, and they screw up and banter more than they save the day. Good formula.
I'll go ahead and agree on everything.
number8
08-21-2012, 08:16 PM
You know what I find super endearing? The fact that their "hero-mobile" is a soccer mom minivan they all have to pile into instead of a cool CSI/Torchwood-style SUV. That one fact alone probably warmed me up to the show quickly.
Irish
08-21-2012, 08:30 PM
You two have the viewing standards of a couple of twelve year olds on a sugar high.
The show is bad. It's only real saving grace is that it's bad in a comfortable, SyFy kind of way.
And the More Than Human, Doom Patrol, X-Men, Heroes, Misfits premise is really played out at this point.
number8
08-21-2012, 08:37 PM
Oh man, when is the new season of Misfits? I forgot that's coming back.
[ETM]
08-21-2012, 11:37 PM
You two have the viewing standards of a couple of twelve year olds on a sugar high.
I'm sorry, I'll get off your lawn.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 03:38 PM
The original Law & Order looks amazing. Just finished the first season. Great show. I wish more television shows were shot on film.
number8
08-22-2012, 03:41 PM
The original Law & Order looks amazing. Just finished the first season. Great show. I wish more television shows were shot on film.
...You mean currently?
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 04:18 PM
...You mean currently?
Yeah.
What shows still are?
What was the last show to be shot all on film?
Yeah.
What shows still are?
What was the last show to be shot all on film?
Mad Men is shot all on film. They like to mention that in articles. That's all I know off the top of my head.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 04:43 PM
Mad Men is shot all on film. They like to mention that in articles. That's all I know off the top of my head.
Yeah - one of the reasons why it looks so good.
Dead & Messed Up
08-22-2012, 04:46 PM
Breaking Bad is shot on 35.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 04:47 PM
Breaking Bad is shot on 35.
Huh. Interesting.
number8
08-22-2012, 05:00 PM
Yeah.
What shows still are?
What was the last show to be shot all on film?
I was confused because you were talking about L&O, so I thought you meant back then.
Walking Dead is also shot on film. So yay AMC.
number8
08-22-2012, 05:11 PM
Actually, the whole conversion to digital is still fairly recent, and only new shows in the past 2-3 years do it because ongoing shows want to maintain the same look as previous seasons. So a lot of shows are still on film, at least the high profile ones that can justify the cost. The ones that converted their shows to digital are the ones on mid-level channels like FX, CW, TNT and USA.
I know True Blood, Glee and Boardwalk Empire are all 35mm.
30 Rock too, if you can believe it.
Qrazy
08-22-2012, 05:13 PM
Although keep in mind that content shot on film is still converted to digital for color correction and some other post work and then brought back onto film after that. Color correction on film is dead.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 05:16 PM
What is it about Law & Order that makes it look more like a film than many of these other shows?
Does it lack digital post-production of more modern shows shot on film?
number8
08-22-2012, 05:37 PM
What is it about Law & Order that makes it look more like a film than many of these other shows?
Does it lack digital post-production of more modern shows shot on film?
What are you referring to? The colors and the textured grit of it? I think that's pretty common with early 90s cop shows. Take a look at Homicide and NYPD Blue.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 05:42 PM
What are you referring to? The colors and the textured grit of it? I think that's pretty common with early 90s cop shows. Take a look at Homicide and NYPD Blue.
Yeah. It just looks more like I'm watching a movie, and less like I'm watching a TV show.
It also uses a widescreen aspect ratio really well, even though it was originally broadcast in 4/3.
number8
08-22-2012, 05:59 PM
I'm probably the opposite, then. The L&O look defines the "TV look" for me (not that that's a bad thing for me, it's just a specific look I've come to associate with the TV mentality). It's all medium shots and close-ups and over the shoulders.
The "movie look" to me is wide shots, two-shots. inventive dolly moves. I think part of why I got hooked on LOST early on was because it looked like nothing else on TV at the time. Lots and lots of wide shots making full use of the widescreen. It also never occurred to me until I watched Buffy how much Whedon use insane camera movements in episodes he directs, especially involving mirrors.
number8
08-22-2012, 05:59 PM
There's one episode that had this incredible pull back from a close-up of Buffy's face as she's talking, to reveal that it's a reflection in a mirror, then it keeps pulling back between Willow and Xander, who are now talking in the foreground of the shot, and pulls back again to reveal other characters who also start talking as they are revealed in the frame, and all the way to behind Buffy, who's completely on the other side of the room from the mirror where the shot started.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 06:06 PM
Yeah - exactly the opposite for me. Buffy and Lost look like television to me, and L&O looks like a film.
Interesting.
DavidSeven
08-22-2012, 06:09 PM
There's definitely a level of craftsmanship on display in the Buffy episodes "Restless" and "The Body" that rivals just about anything you will see in modern film. Everything in the first couple seasons has a very standard TV look, though.
Breaking Bad, Lost and Friday Night Lights are a few series that I feel went above and beyond the standard TV aesthetic pretty regularly.
number8
08-22-2012, 06:20 PM
Another thing that's interesting to note is that in the past 3 decades, the "movie look" has changed and back because of TV.
When I watch movies from the 70s, every normal conversation scene looks like they're about to have a Shaw Brothers fight all over the room. Movies didn't used to have so much close-ups unless it's to capture something specific. But then in the 80s home video and HBO came along, and people started watching movies on these small screens, so Hollywood directors either adapted or were influenced by it (especially the generation of directors who grew up watching TV shows more instead of movies), and suddenly you've got all these movies, dramas especially, where they would shoot it like a Law & Order episode, with faces and chests filling up the frame, and backgrounds out of focus instead of filled up with popping production design.
Of course, since widescreen HDTVs came along, the paradigm has shifted again to more wide shots, like the aforementioned LOST. I think it's harder now to say what look is which.
D_Davis
08-22-2012, 06:36 PM
Yeah, that's true.
Dead & Messed Up
08-22-2012, 07:07 PM
Lost, however, also has that weird new TV standard of using handheld camera as much as possible. It makes logistical sense for the production, but I have a lot of trouble dealing with unmotivated camera movement. I don't get a "gritty" or "visceral" or "immediate" feeling from such things. Instead, I'm acutely aware of a person behind the camera.
Technically, that should mean that a camera on sticks or dolly should have me thinking about sticks or dollies, but those feel smoother to the point of making the camera feel like an omniscient narrator. They place the attention on what's happening inside the frame.
number8
08-22-2012, 07:17 PM
I should note that I was talking about Season 1 Lost, mostly, because that's when they're still on the beach and did all those two-shots I was talking about, with two characters sitting side by side on the sand, etc, and wide shots of the group walking down the beach, etc.
Later seasons are much more conventionally shot, especially when they moved into the hatch and the village.
Qrazy
08-23-2012, 09:13 PM
"This is the Boston strangler.
That's your handle?
Well it's a long story, let's just say I lived in Boston in the 60's and I'm smarter than the police." - Henry Winkler
Winston*
08-23-2012, 09:49 PM
Have you seen Eagleheart, Qrazy?
Qrazy
08-23-2012, 10:04 PM
Have you seen Eagleheart, Qrazy?
No, what's that?
Winston*
08-23-2012, 10:09 PM
Another live action Adult Swim show, w/ Chris Elliot as a US Marshall. Absolutely ridiculous. Give it a shot.
Qrazy
08-23-2012, 10:14 PM
Another live action Adult Swim show, w/ Chris Elliot as a US Marshall. Absolutely ridiculous. Give it a shot.
Will do. Don't have many shows going right now so this is the time to start some.
EyesWideOpen
08-24-2012, 02:51 AM
Curiosity got the better of me and I watched the first episode of the US Inbetweeners. It was surprisingly not as bad as I expected although nothing compared to the original.
Pop Trash
08-24-2012, 04:26 AM
You know what I was thinking about recently? The finale to "The Wonder Years." I don't think I've ever had that much of an emotional reaction to a single episode of a show since.
Thirdmango
08-24-2012, 10:26 AM
About finished with the third season of Larry Sanders Show. This season has been really good and I'm breezing through the show now.
Skitch
08-24-2012, 10:48 AM
Anyone here watched the British show Shameless? Also I started watching Samurai Champloo.
Thirdmango
08-24-2012, 09:09 PM
Anyone here watched the British show Shameless? Also I started watching Samurai Champloo.
I watched the first season of the US Shameless and then by a recommendation watched the first episode of the UK but haven't continued. I bet it's better then the US but I don't really know at this point.
Good, keep watching Champloo and let us know how you like it, I for one am a big fan of the series.
Milky Joe
08-24-2012, 10:08 PM
Chloe Sevigny :eek:
Kurosawa Fan
08-24-2012, 10:19 PM
Chloe Sevigny :eek:
Is this Hit and Miss related shock?
Milky Joe
08-24-2012, 10:48 PM
Nah, Louie.
Melville
08-25-2012, 10:44 AM
Chloe Sevigny :eek:
Highlight of the season.
Ezee E
08-25-2012, 06:53 PM
What is this Chloe Sevigny spot we're talking about?
Melville
08-25-2012, 08:29 PM
What is this Chloe Sevigny spot we're talking about?
The first half of the latest episode of Louie. Chloe Sevigny takes orgasmic pleasure in her own invented version of Louis' romantic life. Best thing on the show since the woman who wanted spanking and blueberries.
D_Davis
08-26-2012, 05:02 PM
The third episode of Homicide, "The Night of the Dead Living," is one of the finest hours of television I've ever seen. So absolutely different than anything else I've ever seen on television. The entire episode is set in the homicide office during a super hot night. The AC is broken, and all of the detectives are hot, sweaty, and tired, and each is dealing with his or her own personal problems. The whole episode is nothing but conversations and character development, there really isn't a plot at all. So brave and expertly handled.
number8
08-26-2012, 05:04 PM
Are you just starting from beginning?
Winston*
08-26-2012, 08:33 PM
The first season of Homicide is fantastic. Wait until you see Three Men and Adena.
Gave up watching around the start of the third season though. Found a plotline irritating and it turned me off the show.
number8
08-26-2012, 09:12 PM
Which one?
Winston*
08-26-2012, 09:51 PM
Which one?
Daniel Baldwin and his wife. I think Bayliss's relationship with the woman that sleeps in a coffin was around the same point as well, and helped with my increasing apathy to the show.
D_Davis
08-26-2012, 10:11 PM
The first season of Homicide is fantastic. Wait until you see Three Men and Adena.
Great episode.
I watched most of the show when it originally aired - at least the whole second half of the series.
Haven't seen it since, though.
Qrazy
08-27-2012, 12:47 AM
"Yvonne Strahovski, who is known for being on the NBC television series Chuck, has also joined Dexter casting for season seven, playing the role of Hannah McKay, a strong independent woman with a past that she's struggled to put behind her."
ROFL.
Qrazy
08-27-2012, 01:05 AM
Another live action Adult Swim show, w/ Chris Elliot as a US Marshall. Absolutely ridiculous. Give it a shot.
Watched Episode 2 of this. That was some racist shit Winston, Birth of a Nation-esque if you will.
Winston*
08-27-2012, 01:13 AM
Watched Episode 2 of this. That was some racist shit Winston, Birth of a Nation-esque if you will.
Not sure I saw that one. The next one is really good. SkyCrime!
Been watching the second season lately. The amount of stupid twists they can pack into an 11 minute show is amazing.
Lucky
08-27-2012, 02:58 AM
Did anyone watch the miniseries Into the West back when it aired? Apparently AMC is reairing it starting next Sunday. Worth watching?
D_Davis
08-27-2012, 02:05 PM
Homicide - so Frank Pembleton is always concerned with being black; to him, everything is racially motivated. His cigarette of choice are Dunhills, which is, by large, a white brand, or at the very least they are European imports. However, one time when he was interviewing a black suspect he pulled out a pack of Cools, which are, stereotypically, a black brand. I think he carries two different packs of smokes, one for each audience. When he's around white people, he smokes Dunhills, but when he's around black people he smokes Cools. He is so concerned with race that he thinks about the kind of cigarettes he smokes and the image of certain brands.
number8
08-27-2012, 02:19 PM
Daniel Baldwin and his wife. I think Bayliss's relationship with the woman that sleeps in a coffin was around the same point as well, and helped with my increasing apathy to the show.
Interesting. Not sure if you know, but Baldwin
left the show at the end of the season because he thought that plot was bullshit. His character is then killed off (using a double) the next season.
number8
08-27-2012, 02:34 PM
Homicide - so Frank Pembleton is always concerned with being black; to him, everything is racially motivated. His cigarette of choice are Dunhills, which is, by large, a white brand, or at the very least they are European imports. However, one time when he was interviewing a black suspect he pulled out a pack of Cools, which are, stereotypically, a black brand. I think he carries two different packs of smokes, one for each audience. When he's around white people, he smokes Dunhills, but when he's around black people he smokes Cools. He is so concerned with race that he thinks about the kind of cigarettes he smokes and the image of certain brands.
Great observation, although I think he only does that inside the box, as a deliberate tactic.
He is most definitely concerned with it. There's that one time he accused Felton of being a racist, and he's butted heads with others over race throughout the series. There is actually a pretty important episode in Season 3 entirely about race.
D_Davis
08-27-2012, 03:16 PM
Great observation, although I think he only does that inside the box, as a deliberate tactic.
I was wondering about that. But then in the "Three Men and Adena" episode, he smokes his Dunhills while he's interviewing the Arabber. I think here he is trying to elevate himself in the Arabber's eyes. But then he gets called on it, and get's totally owned.
Winston*
08-27-2012, 10:59 PM
Vera Farmiga is playing Norma Bates in the Psycho prequel show. Weird.
Winston*
08-27-2012, 11:07 PM
Interesting. Not sure if you know, but Baldwin
left the show at the end of the season because he thought that plot was bullshit. His character is then killed off (using a double) the next season.
Didn't know that. Just felt like random soap opera stuff in a show that's supposed to be more grounded.
number8
08-27-2012, 11:45 PM
Didn't know that. Just felt like random soap opera stuff in a show that's supposed to be more grounded.
Yeah, that was Baldwin's reasoning. He called it "typical TV chicanery."
As much as I love the show throughout (the dialogue writing remain as strong as ever up to the end), there's no denying that it lost a little bit of its integrity after the first two seasons. To be fair, the ratings were so bad they were in danger of cancellation every single year. It's astounding that NBC even kept it on the air. So a lot of compromises had to be made and the show had to adopt some more sensationalist cases (even though they're always countered with really strong character work).
Ned Beatty left with Baldwin for similar reasons. He thought the police shooting storyline betrays what the show is.
EyesWideOpen
08-28-2012, 03:42 AM
They have the first episode of The Mindy Project up on hulu. It was surprisingly pretty good.
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