This post is brought to you by Allstate: Are you in good hands?
Riiight...so apparently this week is "Product Placement" week on NBC. The Office had their Staples shredder bit, 30 Rock had the "pos-mens," and now Studio 60 has pretty much the exact same plot as 30 Rock: network higher-ups need more ad revenue, and so are pressuring producers into increasing product placement. Does anyone else get the feeling that NBC execs held a meeting a month ago in which they pressured producers into increasing product placement? Yeeeah...
30 Rock's Snapple bit managed to be clever and funny, again worthy of an Arrested Development comparison, since the "Burger King: It's a wonderful restaurant" bit with Tobias and Carl Weathers set the benchmark for all self-mocking product placements to come. Studio 60 similarly (although far less hilariously/cleverly) managed to increase product placement simply by talking somewhat negatively about product placement, so the NBC executives should be happy campers. Among the brand names bandied about: Samsung, Sony, and Nokia. Oh, and Jordan actually has the line (speaking of the show's audience), "They like iPods, and so do I." I'd call that a "pos-men," wouldn't you?
In other news (brought to you by the Ford F-150: Built Ford Tough), Ricky and Ron leave the show to work on a Peripheral Vision Man sitcom for Fox. They take all the writers with them but the British chick and the stand-up comedian guy. As Matt points out, it's not a big deal since he was writing all the sketches anyway. Which apparently sucked this week, but we didn't have to see them, so I'm not going to harp on that point.
Characters you actually might care about, brought to you by Miller: It's Miller Time
Harriet wants to do a lingerie spread for some magazine to increase her marketability, but Tom and Simon are pretty sure the magazine just wants to brag about getting a religious chick semi-naked. Um, duh. Jordan may or may not be getting fired soon, and I may or may not be writing an angry letter to Aaron Sorkin soon.
The Big Conclusion, brought to you by Macy*s: Save 10-50% at our Thanksgiving Sale
Overall, I think the show is starting to find its sea legs, even if it's not quite there yet. Fewer sketches, less harping at Middle America, more character-created drama, and more Christine Lahti next week (I don't know why I love her on this show, but I definitely do). Well-played, Sorkin. Oh, and I seriously, SERIOUSLY covet that fiber optic cactus from the scene with Matt and Harriet. It would go so well with my fiber optic palm tree!
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Studio 60: It's a Wonderful Restaurant!
Heroes: She may have lost the popular vote, but she won the geektoral college
Okay, so there are other plotlines this week. Mohinder, through
the help of Dream Kid, the Human Fortune Cookie, decides that his destiny is to go back to New York and find the heroes. Jessica shoots at D.L. But come on, what you really care about is Claire, right? Well, let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up:
Nathan gets the painting from Linderman, and it shows Peter dead outside the high school at 8:12. He destroys it, ostensibly to save Peter, and just as he does, he gets a supremely evil look in his eye. Hey, maybe he is going to turn out to be a supervillain after all. Because all the really good supervillains get into supervillainy thinking they're doing the right thing. I mean, I can only think of Darth Vader right now, and that was a stupid, O. Henry-ripoff reason, but… I'm sure there are others. Dr. Evil, maybe? Anyway, Simone kept a picture of it, which she shows to Peter, who immediately flies to Texas. On a plane, you guys.
Over in Texas, Zach is the best. He organizes the nerd vote to get Claire the homecoming crown, gives her Chandra Suresh's book, digitally throws rocks at her window, and comes to her house armed with a ladder to break her out of her grounding. The greatest proof that Claire is superhuman is that she's still not in love with him after all this. Perhaps the dance will change that?
So now Claire's at school, and so are Peter and Sylar, who get thrown off by Jackie's big "heroic cheerleader" display case and think she's the one. Sylar corners and kills Jackie, but realizes his mistake when Claire heals herself. Peter realizes his mistake too, and helps Claire get away before Sylar takes a dive off the bleachers with him. Thanks to Claire's proximity, he survives, but the cops arrest him. Sylar, meanwhile, doesn't get far before Eden and The Haitian neutralize him.
(Takes breath) Oh, yeah. This was an exciting episode. But I have to say, out of everything, my favorite part was… Claire. I liked her already, but in this episode she displays more confidence than I think we've ever seen from her, and she's finally accepting her abilities. And, of course, her relationship with Zach is endearing. She's a great, complex character who's easy to root for, whether she's saving someone, punching out Jackie, or greeting her new subjects as Queen of the Geeks. I'm glad it's her at the heart of this storyline.
Monday, November 20, 2006
ScrubsWatch '06: Ten Days Until Liftoff!
Access Hollywood attended the Season Six party for Scrubs (scroll to the end of the article for a great video containing short interviews with the cast), and scored a bit of a spoiler from Judy Reyes (Carla):
I actually like where she's going this season," Reyes said of Carla's ongoing transitions. "I don't want to give too much away, because it's gonna be airing soon. She's having the baby and dealing with real life issues that women deal with when they have their children. And [she's] dealing the emotional turmoil of actually bearing a child and what real women deal with and the sadness of dealing with child birth and the turmoil."
Ah, Scrubs. I knew I could count on you to bring the real. In happier Scrubs news, Playbill.com has more info on the musical episode! Looks like it's scheduled to premiere on January 18th, and will be called "My Musical." As we've heard, the episode centers around a woman who hears everything as singing. That woman will apparently be played by Stephanie D'Abruzzo, who got a Tony nomination for playing Kate Monster in Avenue Q. Makes sense, since the episode's songs are written by the guys behind Avenue Q, Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. Man, this episode is SO gonna rock hardcore!
Desperate Housewives: If a moron gets arrested in the woods, and no one's around to hear it...
In last night's slightly weak episode of Desperate Housewives (sweeps sets a high bar, Marc Cherry), Gabby gives a bunch of little wanna-be models eating disorders, Susan faces off with Ian's butler and ends up with a drawer, Lynette obsesses over a possible child molester, and Bree tries to deal with Orson's mother. That is, until said mother lets slip that Orson cheated on Alma with Monique.
That's right, the Monique whom Orson pretended not to recognize in the morgue on his and Bree's wedding night. Awk! Ward! Also: Monique really got around in that neighborhood--damn! Needless to say, Bree kicks Orson out. Oh, and Andrew finally reverts to his true self, selling his alcoholic grandmother a bottle of wine. Nice, Andrew. Nice.
In Desperate Househusbands news, Carlos crashes with Mike, whom he calls his best friend. Ha. They have Tom over for a football game, where Mike asks the guys what he was like before the accident. They answer honestly: mysterious and stand-offish. Incidentally, Mike lost more than his memories in the accident--he also lost any criminal smarts he once had. Knowing that the police were looking for his toolbox, and knowing that they had been staking out his house, Mike thought it would be a bright move to drive out to the woods to bury the toolbox. Yeah, busted. Dumbass.
Oh, and what the heck happened to Kayla? Didn't Nora make Lynette promise to take good care of her? I'm pretty sure that doesn't entail ditching her at the local orphanage, or her mysterious grandmothers' house, or IHOP. I'm assuming I missed something here, because I didn't see her hanging out with the Scavo kids last night, but I don't remember her being sent anywhere else. Eh, whatever...next week's holiday episode looks like a good one!
The Amazing Race: Chickens in Kiev
The producers, apparently deciding that the teams have had it too good for too long (and really, they have – for multiple seasons), mix things up this week. Their clue (which, as you'll recall, they get when they've finished the rappel in Helsinki) mentions Chernobyl and tells them to go to the capital city of the country where it's located. It's a lucky thing that the teams run into an intelligent travel agent at the airport and then share that information among them, because, of course, geography is the beauty queens' Achilles heel. Too bad, because I really, really wanted to see Rob and Kimberly go to Moscow, and Dustin and Kandice end up in, say, M
ichigan. ("Is this Chernobyl?" "No. It's Cheboygan.")
Once the teams get to Kiev, the producers cruelly/awesomely provide them with a clue in Cyrillic script, which I assume is Ukrainian, and a Russian-made car. If you didn't see the cars, just think of the car that Homer Simpson got from the country that no longer existed. Put it in H! Rob and Kimberly actually break their car – again – which is either the fault of bad driving or cars just commit suicide around them. Or a little of both.
And finally, finally, the former Six-Pack alliance is dead, because Lyn and Karlyn, fed up with how the Chos stop for directions every ten minutes (why would they want to know where they're going?) strike out on their own. Good for you, ladies. This is indeed a race. The Chos, however, due to slow progress and getting detained by the police, are last and eliminated, but are happy that they ran a "clean" race. Which is nice, but look at where it got you guys. Nobody's saying that being mean is the only way to win a race, because it isn't (see: Chip and Kim), but you really can't win a race if you're constantly holding yourself up so you can stay with another team. Especially when you are the last two teams. That's just stupid racing. Still, I'm glad that you're happy with yourselves, and you had your moments, so I'll miss you guys.
By the way, Dustin and Kandice are running a very good race, and it would be nice to see an all-female team win, but it won't be this one. The show has recently gotten into a "there's a test at the end" kick, and, well. See above about geography. Shame, but there it is.
Friday, November 17, 2006
The Good, The Bad, and The Neurotic
The Good: Veronica Mars has been picked up for almost a full season! They got a back seven instead of a back nine, but a 20-episode season is still definitely great news for VM fans. Yay!
The Bad: Fox has committed to a full season of 'Til Death (barf), and yet NBC has yet to renew one of the funniest shows on television. Last night's episode of 30 Rock was hilarious, showing an almost (dare I say it?) Arrested Development-like subtle hilarity with the running "Muffin Top" song gag. Start watching, people--it's getting funnier in leaps and bounds, if you ask me.
The Neurotic: Monk is returning tonight for a holiday special, in which he meets his estranged (and probably also just plain strange, since he's related to Monk) father. Yay, Monk! Although I have to say, the show seems to be in a bit of a glut with the gimmicky episodes. "Monk coaches girls' basketball!" "Monk's college reunion!" "Monk is blind!" Etc., etc. How about "Monk solves a mystery interesting enough to merit an episode without a gimmick!," eh, USA?
Update: Justice fans also got a reprieve--instead of killing the show altogether, Fox will be banishing it to Fridays starting December 1st.
Grey's Anatomy: Bright and Shiny Only Last So Long
In this case, "Bright and Shiny" Meredith only lasts about half an hour before her spirit is tarnished by a patient's mom who's taken straight out of The Nanny Diaries. And it's just as well, because as annoying as "Dark and Twisty" Meredith is, the perkiness was starting to get to me.
And was anyone else uncomfortable watching Isaiah Washington and T.R. Knight's scenes together? If I were a gay man, I'm not sure I could stand acting in such close quarters with someone who had basically publicly called me a faggot and forced me out of the closet. And it's funny that both Isaiah Washington and his character have been damaged in my mind at about the same time--Isaiah for the aforementioned slur, and Burke for the whole "putting people at risk just to hide his injury" situation. Isaiah and Burke--you're on notice (best link ever, Lori!).
Ugly Betty: Marc's Wonderful Girlfriend, Who Lives in Canada!
Perversely, Ugly Betty aired its Thanksgiving episode this week, even though they're airing a new episode on the real Thanksgiving. Silly ABC. No one's in the Thanksgiving spirit yet. From the time Halloween is over, everyone's in the Christmas spirit, and the only day anyone is in the Thanksgiving spirit is on Thanksgiving itself. According to IMDb, this episode was originally supposed to air on Thanksgiving, so I can only assume that next week's episode is so exciting that they had to air it in the thick of November sweeps.
In the best tradition of all Thanksgiving episodes on any show, pretty much everyone has a crappy Thanksgiving. This includes Daniel, who gets into a pissing match with Salma's perfect boyfriend, who is so perfect that you know something has to be wrong with him. And there is – he's really Darren Wells from Studio 60! Salma, haven't you noticed him writing his number on everything in sight? Anyway, this subplot is worthwhile only for Betty's salsa dancing lessons over the phone to Daniel, a scene which is very cute ("Are you biting your lip?" "No." "Yes, you are. Stop it.") and put together quite nicely. Of course, Daniel salsas in much the same way that Elaine would, which is to say, dorkily, with much elbow flailing.
At the Suarez table, Hilda learns that the true meaning of Thanksgiving is not giving all your money to a shady lawyer who just ends up stealing it all and running out on you. As for the Slaters, what they should learn is not to eat a turkey that Wilhelmina cooked, because it'll probably kill them. Wilhelmina also needs to learn not to trust Martha Stewart as far as she can throw her – not about turkeys, not about anything. If you need help with a turkey, call the Butterball hotline. It worked for President Bartlett.
I give real thanks, though, for Marc and Amanda, who have the funnest Thanksgiving ever, alone in the Mode offices, wearing couture gowns and swigging champagne. But not before Marc makes an Avenue Q reference. He says at the beginning of the episode, before this plan is hatched, that he's going to go home and tell his family all about his girlfriend who lives in Canada. It's sort of a shame that he didn't go home, because I would have loved to see Marc belting out at the kitchen table, "She couldn't be sweeter, I wish you could meet her, my girlfriend who lives in Canada!" Liz, are you watching this show? Because they really, really want you to.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Medium: Psychics and Robots!
I will say, though, that Joe Dubois is way, way too unbelievable as the best husband ever. I mean, what kind of person is THAT understanding? At first I thought he was going to get crazy jealous when Allison's ghost ex-boyfriend showed up, but noooo, he was all reasonable and cool about it. I'm pretty sure he's a robot or something, which just goes to show how useless Allison's psychic powers are. Figure it out, Allison--no flesh and blood human would be that cool about everything!
Also, I'm loving Bridgette, the psychic daughter, more and more. The actress is great, and not just because she isn't a Dakota Fanning look-alike (although I do love that). And I really appreciated the writers' efforts to make her powers childlike by showing her death premonition dreams as cartoons--it was a great touch, beyond being an important plot point.
The episode also painted a fuller picture of the non-Dubois characters. D.A. Devalos is suddenly vulnerable as a diabetic who hates going to the doctor, and Detective Scanlon, after putting himself out there with his girlfriend only to have politics get in the way, falls into bed with someone else.
Oh, and I really hope that when NBC does its announced schedule-juggling, it puts Medium on after Heroes. The combo makes much more sense than Heroes/Studio 60, and Studio 60 isn't exactly flourishing in the timeslot. I'm just sayin'.
America's Next Top Model: ¡Las Perras Flacas Van a España!
Last week on America's Next Top Model, Anchal whined and half-assed her way out of the competition. Hooray for rightful eliminations!
We rejoin the girls in the house, where Michelle has BREAKING NEWS: She might not want to model. Sigh. Jaeda, however, has found something new to whine about: She's sick of living in a house with a bunch of chicks. Way to sound less like a dude, Jaeda. Are you even making an effort to pass anymore?
The girls head off to the Los Angeles Repertory Company, where they meet Tasha Smith, an actress/acting coach, and apparently the person who inflicted crazy "actress" Tyra upon us. Thanks a lot, Tasha. Also, can I just say right now that CariDee is SO gonna rock this challenge? First, the girls have to go onstage and act really silly and ugly, or something, and it reminds me of why I hate doing improv.
Next, they do an exercise appealingly titled "Dump," in which they have to let all their feelings out onstage. And wow, it's a freaking train wreck, where they all take turns ranting and crying and stuff. Michelle "goes for it," i.e. has an onstage freakout. Melrose tries to let it all out, but instead seems SO FAKE and crazy in her unintelligible screaming rant about pictures. See what happens when you're taught by the acting coach that taught Tyra how to "act"? Jaeda whines MORE about her new look. She hates it, no one feels sorry for her enough, etc., etc. HATE. This whole thing is pretty painful to watch.
CariDee, in the middle of a crying rant about how no one understands how hard modeling is, and how much she wants it, accidentally reveals a secret: she's attempted suicide before. Happily, she now feels like she's doing something right for the first time in her life. I really like this girl. CariDee, one of the twins, and Tasha hug it out, and then they get back to the actual challenge: to act in an improvised silent movie. The fabulous prize? A role on One Tree Hill. Finally, The CW justifies its existence. Long have I awaited an ANTM/One Tree Hill crossover.
The girls basically have to act out various directions and emotions which Tasha yells at them ("There's a knock on the door, and you're hopeful. Run to the window, you're sad! You suck, you suck! The Kool Aid is SO GOOD!"). She makes them do crap like eat whole lemons and drink prune juice (which makes one of the twins barf). And CariDee wins!!! I knew it!!! And (ha!) they made the scenes into a hilarious little silent film, in which CariDee's boyfriend leaves her for a horse. Tyra guest stars, and tells the girls to pack their bags...(Tyra runs into the room in a flamenco costume)...'cause they're going to Spain! And, a bullfighter appears from nowhere and starts dancing with everyone! Rockin'.
"Dani" is at fashion week in this episode's installment of the increasingly boring "My Life as a Covergirl." Yeah, that's about it.
CariDee goes to the One Tree Hill set, where she'll be playing a model who comes into town and "stirs things up a little bit." It looks like she does a great job! Did anyone actually catch the episode, for some confirmation?
The girls pack their giant, giant suitcases and head to Barcelona. Lucky bitches. One of the twins (yeah, I still can't tell them apart) says that as the competition goes on, "it feels just like before, but with less people." With that level of insight, I can't believe they say models are stupid.
Upon their arrival in Spain, the girls get a Tyra Mail that says the competition is getting too easy, so Tyra has added local models into the mix to keep things interesting. Local male models! They all head out to dinner, which is rather awkward due to the language barrier. It's about to get worse, though, since the girls receive a Tyra Mail that says they'll be reading from scripts with the guys tomorrow...IN SPANISH. Oh, and there's a makeout session written in. The girls are rightfully worried, but the guys would rather eat than practice.
At this point, Jaeda's partner tells Jaeda he doesn't want to make out with her because he doesn't like black girls (not, as one would expect, because he doesn't swing that way). Yikes. Jaeda starts to panic, and it really does suck. They have nice, niiice digs to make up for it, though. CariDee, as the challenge winner, gets first pick of the beds. Go, CariDee!
The next morning, Melrose tells us she stayed up two extra hours studying lines. Good thinking, Melrose. I still hate you, but that's very, very smart. And damn, the script isn't even in Spanish--it's in Catalan. That's pretty freakin' rough. CariDee can't roll her R's, Michelle's worried about kissing a guy for the first time, and Jaeda's pissed that she has to kiss a random racist guy when she's loyal to her boyfriend. I'd call the first half of her complaint justified, and the second half a little silly, given she wants to be a model. Models make out with random guys on camera all the time! Or at least that's what Tyra and Janice have led me to believe.
The girls meet Tyra, who tries valiantly to justify Barcelona as a fashion destination. Jay Manuel runs in and tells them they'll be filming a commercial for Secret deodorant. In Catalan. Daaang. The commercial involves the girls going around to the male models and whispering secrets like "Sometimes I ride the bus for an extra stop if there's a cute boy on board" to them. And then they kiss one guy at the end after whispering something creepy about wanting to have his babies. In the final version, the director cut all the girls' performances together into one commercial, which is definitely a good call. He used Eugena a lot, for what it's worth.
Michelle's first to film, and she tries to convince us she's more worried about the language than the kiss. They get phonetic cue cards, but that's still pretty rough. Michelle does fine, though, even with the kiss. Unfortunately, Jay's a hater, and he thinks she gave the camera the cold shoulder. The judges tell Michelle she was tough to listen to, and didn't relate to the boys enough. I somehow doubt she'd be receiving that specific criticism if she hadn't come out as questioning her sexuality.
Eugena also does a good job, but says she didn't enjoy the kiss. The judges think Eugena was good, and say she did a good job ad-libbing when she lost the lines. Amanda...has trouble with her lines. The judges also think she didn't commit to the kiss enough. Luckily for her, she looked gorgeous before she lost the whole thing with the line problems.
Jaeda does NOT want to kiss her racist jerk. And it throws her off her game. Man, I hate her, but that really does suck. She starts crying and says she can't do it, although in the end she half-asses her way through. The judges think it was like watching a car crash, and Nigel calls it "appalling." Jaeda tells the judges that she's angry with herself for not being able to do it, and the judges agree that even though the guy was a racist, Jaeda should've been able to buck up and get the job done.
Melrose does a really good job, and knows it. She manages to renew my hatred when, after her shoot, Jay tells her that "for the day, that was probably one of the best reads," and Melrose lets out a totally fake-surprised "WHAT?!" Her take is pretty funny 'cause she keeps laughing during it, but the judges think she did a great job interacting with everyone and reading the lines. She mentions that she stayed up an extra two hours to memorize them.
CariDee has big trouble with the lines and the language, and is not at all herself. Jay and I both found it painful to watch. She tries to make up for it with an extra-enthusiastic kiss, though...daaaamn. But she knows she bombed, and the take is really hard to watch. The judges think she looks almost drunk, and Nigel says it was like a train wreck. Miss Jay says CariDee was lost in translation (yuck yuck), and Tyra thinks she looked amateur, and that it cancelled out the challenge win. The word "unforgivable" is also thrown around. Yikes.
While the judges (the commercial director is the guest judge) deliberate alone, the girls turn on Melrose because of the "extra two hours" comment, pointing out that she couldn't have known how late everyone else stayed up, and call her fake. Ha! In the commercial break, The CW shows the same Secret commercial (with our girls!), but in English. Yeah, it's a lot less awkward in English. Oh, and incidentally, Nigel isn't looking as hot as usual tonight. Just an observation.
The judges were pleasantly surprised by Eugena, and think she finally stepped it up. They think the extra studying really helped Melrose, and call her perhaps the greatest Top Model actress evah. Now there's a low, looow bar. They agree that Jaeda can't act, but a few judges think she could model. Michelle gets resoundingly criticized for looking and sounding bad, although Tyra disagrees and says that Michelle looked great, but can't act. Apparently the camera loves Amanda, but she totally tanked the kiss. Much as Melrose is the best ever, CariDee is the worst ever, and even gets called "shockingly bad." That's sad, because she definitely is the best actress--it was just the language thing.
Tyra calls the girls back, and Melrose, Eugena, Amanda, and Michelle are in. At this point, I start muttering at Tyra that Jaeda had better freakin' be out, OR ELSE. According to Tyra, CariDee was basically insanely awesome until today, while Jaeda has struggled throughout the competition (including today), but has a strong (cough*male*cough) face. And CariDee's in, thank goodness. Yay!
Bye, Jaeda. Go home and get some extensions. Incidentally, most of Jaeda's photos had her in wigs anyway, so what the hell was she talking about when she said she didn't feel as sexy with her short hair? It didn't even matter! Oh, and CariDee is Covergirl of the week again! Nice choice, America. Next week is go-see week, so get ready for mass lateness, lost-ness, and confusion!
Day Break: Go Back, Taye, Do It Again
He's Taye Diggs, and today is the longest day of his life.
He's framed for murder. His girlfriend dies. His partner dies. His sister is being abused by her husband. And his day is lasting for… well, days. You've probably seen reviews comparing this show to Groundhog Day, but what the show most closely resembles is this episode of The X-Files, because 1) he has to figure out how to play the day exactly right so that the minimum amount of people die unnecessarily, and 2) Mitch Pileggi is in it. Pileggi actually does a great job; his casual menace is extremely entertaining. The other cast standout is Victoria Pratt, who looks and acts like nothing so much as a badass Kate Winslet.
The show is a big puzzle, and it's fun to see all the pieces come together. Of course, I may be getting more enjoyment out of it because I have faith that the writers actually have some sort of plan. They've got to wrap it up before Lost comes back, so they have to be going somewhere; they can't afford to just throw polar bears in there to mess with the fans. So I recommend giving it a watch (if you missed it, you can see the episode here), and on behalf of Liz, keep your televisions on for The Nine.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
ScrubsWatch '06: Hiro!
The Scrubs news just keeps getting better and better! According to Kristin Veitch, Masi Oka (whom we now know and love as Hiro on Heroes) may be stopping by to pay tribute to his humble roots as Franklyn the lab worker on Scrubs. Best of all, Bill Lawrence wants Masi to keep his Heroes powers! AWESOME.
And in other Best Sitcoms Ever news, Mitch Hurwitz and Richard Day (previously of Arrested Development fame), have gotten a pilot order from ABC for The Thick of It. From Zap2it:
The original series, which won two BAFTA Awards (the British version of the Emmys) earlier this year, including best comedy, focused on a harried member of Parliament and the inept staff members and bureaucrats he dealt with on a daily basis (it aired on BBC America in this country). ABC's version will transplant the action to Congress.
ALSO AWESOME.
House/3 lbs.: Battle of the Brilliant but Antisocial Doctors!
While House and Wilson deal with John Larroquette, who was woken up from a coma vegetative state for just one day so they could cure his dying son, House's minions are being interviewed by David Morse, who's trying to nail House. And not in the good way. It looks like they all stick together and defend House's pill-popping ways, but Morse won't be defeated, and freezes Wilson's bank accounts in an attempt to get him to admit that House stole his prescription pad and forged prescriptions. Oh, and Morse? Is totally House. Right down to the thinking everyone is lying thing. Of course, in this case, he's totally right (also much like House).
It stars Stanley Tucci as Dr.
The show itself was average bordering on cheesy (the "Calling All Angels" theme music didn't help), and left me pretty cold. I'm out, but if anyone keeps watching, let me know if it gets better. I'm not holding my breath, though.
So let's just say, hypothetically speaking, I'm a murderer...
In what can only be described as an awesome premise for a sketch on Saturday Night Live, FOX is going to air an interview with O.J. Simpson at the end of November. Wait for it, wait for it... The two-part special is entitled, "O.J. Simpson: If I Did It, Here's How It Happened." I just... I... There are no words. From Zap2it:
Publisher Judith Regan and Simpson will have a no-holds-barred interview in which he, among other things, "tells for the first time how he would have committed the murders if he were the one responsible for the crimes."
Oh, and it gets even better:
The special is perfectly timed around the release of Simpson's book "If I Did It," which will be released on Nov. 30.
That's right, the man famously acquitted of murder despite considerable evidence to the contrary is doing an interview and writing a (hilariously titled) book about how he WOULD HAVE committed the murders IF he had done it. This seriously sounds so much like an SNL sketch that I feel like (hope?) we're all being Punk'd or something. Oh, man. How much do I love America right now?
UPDATE: Cancelled. :(
Veronica Mars: Enough With the Excuses!
Okay, all these excuses they keep making are really annoying. This week, for example, Wallace is gone, supposedly having a marathon study session/Shining reenactment out in Twentynine Palms. I'm actually glad that they've stopped making excuses for Mac, because I don't think I could have stood them week after week. And no, she's not back yet.
So, overall, kind of a slow episode, one that seems to be just buildup for the final act. But we'll get to that. Keith is still seeing Harmony, and the only thing that can dissuade him is Veronica's disappointment. Vinnie, however, tries very hard with some blackmail. He's got compromising photos of Keith and Harmony, uses them to get a payoff, and tells Keith the Fitzpatricks want to know where the money Kendall skipped town with is. Do they not know she's dead? You know, usually I don't care about the Fitzpatrick storylines, but Vinnie somehow makes it worth paying attention to. I still don't care that much, but it's more than I usually do.
Veronica's case revolves around a girl, Meryl, missing her boyfriend, and while Meryl insists that something happened to him, Veronica is sure that he's just run out on her. Veronica is, in fact, very mean on this point, but then, she has that kind of boyfriend. Meryl is right, because her boyfriend has a case of amnesia that sweetly clears up as soon as he sees her. All together now: awww. Veronica's boyfriend? Well, his seeeeecret alibi for Mercer involves a fire at a Mexican motel and some running away. Yeah, he's a prince. He semi-redeems himself by coming to Veronica's aid when she's roofied and cornered in a parking garage. A couple of locks of hair are shorn off, but otherwise she seems to be okay. All right, I will give him points for saving her from the rapist, but all that does is move him up from "terrible boyfriend" to "just plain bad boyfriend." And this is only partly based on Logan as a person. Mostly I don't like the way he treats her - keeping things from her, ditching her to surf/gamble/burn Mexican motels down, asking her to get off his bratty, fratty friends, etc. I miss when they hated each other. Those were good times. Good times.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Scrubs: Can'tWaitCan'tWaitCan'tWait
Is anyone else ridiculously excited for the Scrubs season premiere November 30th? And I'm even more psyched now that I hear Blue Man Group is going to have a cameo! According to Playbill News:
[T]he Blue Man Group will make a special appearance on the season premiere of NBC's "Scrubs" Nov. 30 when Zach Braff's character J.D. finds himself on stage at The Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino.
SWEET! [via TV Tattle]
Studio 60: Pah-Rumpus
So does anyone else feel like Studio 60 is getting incredibly meta? And it's not like Sorkin could have intentionally made the show THIS parallel to real life, because it's not South Park--he wrote the scripts way in advance. We've got the show which may be too intellectual/left-wing for the average television audience. We've got a network struggling to get back on top, possibly by becoming a home for more upscale shows--those which may not get huge ratings, but attract higher-income "alpha viewers." Luckily for both Studio 60's, the alpha viewers pull through, and the shows are allowed to continue on their merry, Jesus-bashing ways. Yay!
Let's just hope the cast of the real Studio 60 can avoid landing in a jail cell in Nevada, thrown at the mercy of John Goodman. Because it wasn't THAT entertaining on the show-within-a-show. Although I do appreciate what I assume was an attempt to address the "Hollywood elite looking down at everyone else" criticism (more meta-ness than you can shake a stick at, here).
Heroes: Hiro, Lost in Time
No Niki/Jessica, no Petrellis, and very little Claire, but the Heroes who are in this episode have excellent material to work with, so overall, it's a good episode. And with a cliffhanger to lead us into next week's barnburner of an installment, you'd better pay attention, because I'm only going to lay this out for you once.
Mohinder: He's back in Chennai, installed in his dad's old office, and soon he's strolling around in flashback dreams (is that his power?) of his dad. There's also a mysterious kid in these dreams who seems to be another hero, because there's a file on him in Papa's desk. Mohinder also learns from Mama Suresh that he had a sister named Shanti, who died when she was five and Mohinder was two, and Papa thought she was special. Damn, does everyone on this show have powers? Well, I know most of them do, but still.
Matt: While interviewing last week's Radioactive Man, Ted, he learns that Ted had a two-day blackout and the little hamsters start running in Matt's brain. They compare notes, // tattoos, and trace it all back to the erstwhile Possible D.L. and Blank Slate, now given a name of sorts: The Haitian. And before Homeland Security ruins everything (as they always do; see 24, season 5), Ted gives Matt a mission: "Find The Haitian." Ted later gets away, so there's another thing Homeland Security ruined. And congratulations, Heroes writers, on finally giving Matt a worthwhile storyline. See what happens when you put Greg Grunberg in a scene with some immediacy and impact?
The Baddies: Eden's got Isaac detoxing in the secret lair that Glasses Man has set up in the paper company where he works. Claire's homecoming dance, and thus her date with Sylar, is tomorrow, and Glasses Man wants Isaac to paint something to help him save Claire, but Isaac can't do it without heroin, and won't shoot up now that he's clean. So Eden has to go and use her super powers of persuasion on him. I know it's weird, but I can't help thinking of Eden as the Mirage to Glasses Man's Syndrome, you know? She's a super working for a non-super and she's uneasy with his methods. It kind of works. Right?
Hiro/Ando: At a diner in Texas, they run into another hero, a waitress with both super memory and super affection for Hiro. But then, who doesn't have the latter? When she's killed by Sylar, Hiro can't do nothing this time, and he decides to go back to yesterday to stop her from coming in to work. He tells Ando he'll be back in five seconds. He's not, but he does show up in a picture from the waitress' birthday party… weeks ago. Gasp!
Next week: Homecoming! They finally save the cheerleader! And I really hope that this is the end of all the "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World" commercials. I don't think anyone doesn't get it now.
Monday, November 13, 2006
I ♥ Dirty Puppets
Anything with the words "puppet" and "uncensored" HAS to be awesome, right? TBS is airing a puppet improv show on November 20th called Puppet Up! Uncensored, performed by the same Henson folks who brought us Sesame Street and Muppet Christmas Carol (my absolute favorite Christmas movie ever, incidentally). It may even end up as an actual TV show on TBS's broadband channel, and is apparently one of multiple adult-oriented puppet projects in the works at The Henson Company.
I'm kind of picturing it to be a mix between Meet the Feebles and Avenue Q. If it's even half as dirty, un-PC, and generally insane, it's gonna be great!
The Amazing Race: First Five Teams May Get Muddy
Finland, Finland, Finland! The country where the teams want to be. Its mountains so lofty, its treetops so tall. But first the teams have to get there. You will not be surprised to learn that the beauty queens bring out their map again to educate the airline ticketers about geography. I would, however, be surprised if they pointed to the correct country, because they were asking earlier if Finland was the country where they wear wooden shoes. Remember the song, ladies: so near to Russia, so far from Japan. It's the country with the president who looks like Conan O'Brien. You know, that one.
Upon their successful arrival in Finland, the teams are sent out into the countryside for a muddy Detour, introduced by Phil as he is waist-deep in mud and wearing waders. The teams can either run a muddy cross-country skiing course or a muddy obstacle course, and why they didn't have Phil actually run one of those is beyond me. If Phil is just going to stand in the mud, then he may as well be replaced with the Travelocity gnome. Anyway, one part of the obstacle course requires a team member to carry the other, which sparks a moment later on that is both funny and kind of sad. Rob enthuses that he didn't think he could carry Kimberly as easily as he was able to, and Kimberly instantly assumes that he thinks she's fat. Because they really are that couple. They're the bickering, "does this make me look fat" couple you thought didn't exist outside of cliché. You were wrong.
The Roadblock takes them down into a limestone mine to retrieve a block of limestone with a clue in it. Certainly David would have felt right at home here, although I'm sure the limestone mines are a bit roomier than what he would be used to. Incidentally, the remaining members of the Six Pack are mourning their fallen comrades by wearing their clothes; Karlyn has David's U of K hat and the Chos have their "Friends in Low Places" shirts. And Godwin, while going down into the mine, calls on David for help. He's not dead, you know. Sadly, the Chos don't realize that they are now the only people in their alliance, because they keep complaining about Lyn and Karlyn not waiting for them. There are five teams left; it's about time to stop helping other teams, especially when, as they do, they always end up in the back of the pack.
At the Olympic stadium in Helsinki, the teams are instructed to do a face-first rappel down a tower (pictured, and very tall), and if you were looking at your clock at this point, here's where you realized that there would be no pit stop in this episode. And you'd be right, because it's a two-parter. We leave off with Tyler and James just having finished the rappel, Dustin and Kandice about to start, the Chos and Lyn and Karlyn having found the right way to go, and Rob and Kimberly running around the stadium lost and frantic.
