Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone who visits "What I'm Watching". It wasn't until I added the counter at the bottom of the site that I realized there might be a few more people reading than I thought... Or one or two people who come here way too often. Either way, thank you. :)
Survivor: Nicaragua (Season Finale)
So after screwing over a lot of people, instead of trying to earn the jury's respect by keeping people who deserve to be there, all season all anyone kept talking about was bringing people the jury hates to the finals. However, Fabio somehow managed to do both because Dan and Holly didn't deserve to stay and the jury was pissed at Chase and Sash (though Chase did collect a surprising four votes). Chase is dumb; Marty's question about a "dumber than a bag of hammers" award was not "BS". I understand that he was trying to complain about the bias of not being able to choose Marty, but that is an irrelevant bias since Marty was far from the dumbest player. I do call BS on Naonka's question, though. It seems like something the producers told her to ask in order to get an emotional reaction out of Fabio, because it otherwise served no purpose whatsoever, and while Naonka is certainly not above stupid and pointless, I don't buy that she would want to ask whether Fabio loves his mother. But it was funny how Fabio laughed every time the jury attacked Chase and Sash. He knew he had it in the bag, and I have to take my hat off to him because at the beginning I thought he was just a dumb, shallow meathead who wouldn't make it to the end and now I actually have some respect for him and am glad he won. Didn't realize he was 21 though; that makes me feel old somehow, and I'm only three years older than he is. For once I was glad for Jeff Probst's douchiness when he cut off Shannon at the reunion, even though it sort of sounded like he was going to admit that Sash was not gay because he had met his girlfriend. Saw it coming that Jane would win player of the season. I was surprised at the number of former Survivors in the audience though, because there was really no reason for them to come except to keep their faces in the spotlight (though I heard a rumour that Boston Rob and Russell Hantz are returning next season for a showdown that involves them having automatic immunity until the merge).
Kenny vs. Spenny (Series Finale Christmas Special)
That...wasn't what I was expecting. It was almost like an Americanized version of what the show has become: a showcase for Kenny and his weird characters while Spenny tries to be taken seriously from the background. This was the apex of what Kenny vs. Spenny has been turning into. If you're a loyal enough fan to remember season one, you'll remember that it was a show about competitions that happened to be funny, as opposed to a show that is about crazy, raunchy humour and happens to have competitions. There was a competition here (who can stay in a pine tree the longest?), but it was shown in snippets between sketches with humour so distinct that you could tell, for example, that "Silencio vs. Goldar" was written by Kenny and the Santa sketch with the corny, vaudevillian style jokes was written by Spenny. Not the best send-off for a show that started in a completely different fashion, but the reappearances of several Kenny characters was, at best, appropriately nostalgic. The only thing I laughed at (and fairly hard, too) was the actor playing Spenny. Everything he did was hilarious and at first it actually took me a moment to figure out that it wasn't Spenny. But the bottom line is that Kenny vs. Spenny was supposed to be a reality show, and while there were certainly numerous moments throughout the series that felt fake and scripted, this one was the most fake of all. None of it felt sincere until the final moment in the end credits: the guys hugging while Spenny apologizes for destroying the set and Kenny responds with "Nah, I thought it was funny." I guess they are friends after all.
Hero of the Week: Whoever that guy was playing Spenny on Kenny vs. Spenny. The one brilliant part of an otherwise mediocre Christmas special.
Douchebag of the Week: Shannon from Survivor. Voted off months ago and only spoke for another few seconds this week; still a dick.
Showing posts with label kenny vs. spenny. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kenny vs. spenny. Show all posts
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
This Week in Television - Feb. 22-26, 2010
EVEN SHORTER WEEK (technically).
Lost
I think Jack having a flash-sideways son is a strong implication that the island/Jacob has been influencing our characters for their entire lives, because what we're seeing in these alternate timelines is, I think, a world where that influence does not exist or is at least changed because of the island being lost under the sea. In other words, mysterious island fate pushed Jack to marry Sarah, but the "natural" course was that he instead had a son with someone else (at least I assume it is someone else). I don't think Jack's role on the island was ever supposed to be leader, and a father is a type of leader so he probably wasn't meant for that either. The crazy lighthouse wheel was really cool. It might just be meant for observing, but I got the feeling Jacob somehow used it as transportation too, so that he could visit everyone at the proper times and places in their lives. P.S. Kate is a secret candidate because she was on the wheel at #51 but not on the cave wall, so evil fake smoke Locke probably doesn't know about her. That will be his downfall, and it will be awesome.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
I don't like Randy (or most of the other Villains, for that matter), but I still would have preferred to see Parvati go home. Even the way she talks annoys me because she has one of those airhead popular girl voices. I hope people are going to start stepping up their games though, because it seems like there are only a few of them actually strategizing when they should all be sharper than that. It could just be that there are too many players right now and they aren't given enough screen time for us to see what they're doing. Russell's plan to hide the machete didn't work because no one seemed to care that much, but if he manages to take Boston Rob's hat like he suggested, it could make him go psycho on the rest of the tribe. However Rob hardly ever takes his hat off.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Kenny vs. Spenny wasn't actually on this week because it appears the season has finished, but I discovered there was an unaired online episode, so I watched that. The competition: Who is the bigger idiot? This was a fun one because Spenny claimed right off the bat that he was a huge idiot and throughout the episode proceeded to reenact idiotic anecdotes from his life, which were interesting to hear. Kenny's strategy was just to dress bizarrely and act like a retard, but he does that in most of the episodes anyway. The crew being the judges, they already know these two quite well, so Spenny won due to 5 previous seasons of idiocy. Kudos to him for finally creating a gross humiliation that really had Kenny squirming.
Hero of the Week: The entire Heroes tribe from Survivor, for completely dominating the sumo challenge. Although the producers probably put that one in to induce a win from them since they are generally stronger than the Villains and work much better as individuals. But still, an 8-0 win is pretty awesome after losing like two immunities in a row.
Douchebag of the Week: Parvati from Survivor. I've already explained why I don't like her and there wasn't much to choose from this week, so she gets the thumbs down.
Lost
I think Jack having a flash-sideways son is a strong implication that the island/Jacob has been influencing our characters for their entire lives, because what we're seeing in these alternate timelines is, I think, a world where that influence does not exist or is at least changed because of the island being lost under the sea. In other words, mysterious island fate pushed Jack to marry Sarah, but the "natural" course was that he instead had a son with someone else (at least I assume it is someone else). I don't think Jack's role on the island was ever supposed to be leader, and a father is a type of leader so he probably wasn't meant for that either. The crazy lighthouse wheel was really cool. It might just be meant for observing, but I got the feeling Jacob somehow used it as transportation too, so that he could visit everyone at the proper times and places in their lives. P.S. Kate is a secret candidate because she was on the wheel at #51 but not on the cave wall, so evil fake smoke Locke probably doesn't know about her. That will be his downfall, and it will be awesome.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
I don't like Randy (or most of the other Villains, for that matter), but I still would have preferred to see Parvati go home. Even the way she talks annoys me because she has one of those airhead popular girl voices. I hope people are going to start stepping up their games though, because it seems like there are only a few of them actually strategizing when they should all be sharper than that. It could just be that there are too many players right now and they aren't given enough screen time for us to see what they're doing. Russell's plan to hide the machete didn't work because no one seemed to care that much, but if he manages to take Boston Rob's hat like he suggested, it could make him go psycho on the rest of the tribe. However Rob hardly ever takes his hat off.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Kenny vs. Spenny wasn't actually on this week because it appears the season has finished, but I discovered there was an unaired online episode, so I watched that. The competition: Who is the bigger idiot? This was a fun one because Spenny claimed right off the bat that he was a huge idiot and throughout the episode proceeded to reenact idiotic anecdotes from his life, which were interesting to hear. Kenny's strategy was just to dress bizarrely and act like a retard, but he does that in most of the episodes anyway. The crew being the judges, they already know these two quite well, so Spenny won due to 5 previous seasons of idiocy. Kudos to him for finally creating a gross humiliation that really had Kenny squirming.
Hero of the Week: The entire Heroes tribe from Survivor, for completely dominating the sumo challenge. Although the producers probably put that one in to induce a win from them since they are generally stronger than the Villains and work much better as individuals. But still, an 8-0 win is pretty awesome after losing like two immunities in a row.
Douchebag of the Week: Parvati from Survivor. I've already explained why I don't like her and there wasn't much to choose from this week, so she gets the thumbs down.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
This Week in Television - Feb. 15-19, 2010
Short week to due to Olympics hiatuses.
Lost
This week's episode had some of those awesome moments that make the show so great: Flocke throwing away the white stone as an "inside joke"; Hurley saving the day in Locke's flash-sideways like a swanky businessman; Ben complaining about the coffee filter in the teacher's lounge. It's those little things that make us love the characters so much. I thought Flocke was actually going to kill Sawyer via the broken ladder trick, because of a certain shot of him switching over to the second ladder with a grin mere seconds before Sawyer's snapped. I'm still not convinced that he didn't do a little work on it with his machete, even if it was just to save Sawyer and gain his trust. Interesting that a little blond boy scares the hell out of him though.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
What really annoyed me about this episode was the whole scene with Boston Rob passing out. First of all, they threw in a cheesy POV shot with the camera falling down, which shouldn't have been included because Survivor is supposed to be a documentary series (in theory anyway), and you don't use POV shots in documentaries. My second pet peeve was the reality TV staple that makes me hate reality TV, which is to show someone crying and play sappy music to blatantly coax tears of sympathy out of viewers. The close-up on Rob's tear-streaked face combined with his cheesy speech and thick Boston accent over "emotional" music actually made me laugh because it came off as more of a parody of an Oscar clip than anything else. What also made me laugh was Randy's "Roll it over Rupert's toe!" line at the challenge. He seems much less grumpy this time around (though no less malicious I'm sure), probably because he's enjoying being surrounded by other douchebags.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can survive on an island the longest? This episode was kind of lame because neither of them were really doing anything and then they threw in another cop-out victory. This is an old strategy of Kenny's, as there have been other episodes where it seems as if he is fooling around and not competing, only to spring a surprise victory on Spenny due to some loophole he had planned all along. It's not really believable that Spenny is naive enough not to have realized this by now, but then there have been plenty of moments throughout the course of the series that seemed fake and most likely were. As I said in an earlier post, I watch the show for the fun competitions but Kenny's stolen victories get tiresome.
Hero of the Week: Hurley from Lost, for being a really cool guy by helping Locke out of a jam and recognizing that Randy is indeed a douche (I do think he had a legitimate reason to fire Locke, he just has a dick personality).
Douchebag of the Week: James from Survivor. He may have been right about everyone having to listen to one person in order to succeed in the challenge, but he was rude and abrasive in his attacks against Stephanie, and "she forced everyone out of her tribe until she was the only one left" is not really a valid argument because it isn't true.
Lost
This week's episode had some of those awesome moments that make the show so great: Flocke throwing away the white stone as an "inside joke"; Hurley saving the day in Locke's flash-sideways like a swanky businessman; Ben complaining about the coffee filter in the teacher's lounge. It's those little things that make us love the characters so much. I thought Flocke was actually going to kill Sawyer via the broken ladder trick, because of a certain shot of him switching over to the second ladder with a grin mere seconds before Sawyer's snapped. I'm still not convinced that he didn't do a little work on it with his machete, even if it was just to save Sawyer and gain his trust. Interesting that a little blond boy scares the hell out of him though.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
What really annoyed me about this episode was the whole scene with Boston Rob passing out. First of all, they threw in a cheesy POV shot with the camera falling down, which shouldn't have been included because Survivor is supposed to be a documentary series (in theory anyway), and you don't use POV shots in documentaries. My second pet peeve was the reality TV staple that makes me hate reality TV, which is to show someone crying and play sappy music to blatantly coax tears of sympathy out of viewers. The close-up on Rob's tear-streaked face combined with his cheesy speech and thick Boston accent over "emotional" music actually made me laugh because it came off as more of a parody of an Oscar clip than anything else. What also made me laugh was Randy's "Roll it over Rupert's toe!" line at the challenge. He seems much less grumpy this time around (though no less malicious I'm sure), probably because he's enjoying being surrounded by other douchebags.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can survive on an island the longest? This episode was kind of lame because neither of them were really doing anything and then they threw in another cop-out victory. This is an old strategy of Kenny's, as there have been other episodes where it seems as if he is fooling around and not competing, only to spring a surprise victory on Spenny due to some loophole he had planned all along. It's not really believable that Spenny is naive enough not to have realized this by now, but then there have been plenty of moments throughout the course of the series that seemed fake and most likely were. As I said in an earlier post, I watch the show for the fun competitions but Kenny's stolen victories get tiresome.
Hero of the Week: Hurley from Lost, for being a really cool guy by helping Locke out of a jam and recognizing that Randy is indeed a douche (I do think he had a legitimate reason to fire Locke, he just has a dick personality).
Douchebag of the Week: James from Survivor. He may have been right about everyone having to listen to one person in order to succeed in the challenge, but he was rude and abrasive in his attacks against Stephanie, and "she forced everyone out of her tribe until she was the only one left" is not really a valid argument because it isn't true.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
This Week in Television - Feb. 8-12, 2010
Heroes
Kudos to whoever cast old Charlie, because they managed to find an actress with the exact same eyes as Jayma Mays. It was a little eerie, actually. I figured it was going to be Doyle forcing Emma to play her cello. I don't know where they're going with the whole worldwide reveal thing, but I hope they don't copy X-Men too much. I can't believe the season is already over though, February is an odd time for a network show to end a season. But if NBC is going to end the series I think now would be a good time, because all of the loose ends are fairly wrapped up and it didn't really leave us with that big of a cliffhanger.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like how Heather interrupted Corrinda's "Last Egg" musical number. I thought we were going to get a big majestic number similar to the "Every Sperm is Sacred" song in Monty Python's The Meaning of Life. Dusty is one messed up detective, but taking the mayor's corpse fishing in the park in broad daylight was funny. Second victim: Heather Weather in the courtroom with a remote control, the killer's weapon of choice it seems. Too bad Rampop only sees people as butterflies and thus cannot identify the murderer.
Lost
I wonder if Dr. Ethan is still evil if he spent his whole life off the island. I think the torturing of Sayid might have been to test for the black smoke - we already know it doesn't like ash or electricity (the sonic fence). Not sure about the hot poker though... Maybe that was just testing for general pain sensitivity. For some reason it didn't even cross my mind that Claire had turned into Rousseau until I read other people saying it online, but it seems so obvious now with all of the traps, the rifle, and her dirty, wild look. That could be trouble.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
The idea of Coach and Jerri as a couple is vomit inducing. But perhaps they are perfect for each other for precisely that reason. Looks like Russell is already trying to start another "dumbass girl alliance" - his words, not mine. I think he might be voted out early this time though. Sounds like JT is planning to be a villain this time around, and maybe Tom as well. Probably a good idea though, because playing with past players puts you at a disadvantage in that everyone already knows who you are and how you play, so to escape that you gotta play differently.
Parks and Recreation
I'm glad April broke up with her gay boyfriends, not only because I support the idea of April and Andy as a couple, but because they were really only a funny gag once and their subsequent appearances mostly just involved snide remarks and insults that I didn't find funny at all.
The Office
Cool, they added Ed Helms to the opening credits! This was a fun episode - Michael has often been driven by greed in the past, but you would think he'd learn his lesson because it always seems to backfire on him. This week's episode reminded us (and him) of how spoiled he is as a manager with the perks of his own office and Erin catering to all of his unusual and ridiculous whims, so in the end it looks like Michael prefers power over money. He even referred to himself as "head salesman", which I'm pretty sure was made up to make himself feel better. I don't know why Andy can't tell Erin that he likes her, or even why she can't tell him. It's not as if it's a Jim/Pam situation, because they're both single. The dogs sure do love Andy's man meat though.
30 Rock
I liked the characterization in this episode - one or two lines about everyone's Valentine's plans really said a lot about them. Or reinforced, rather, because I don't think we learned anything new about anyone. Also it was fun to see Liz's three former boyfriends acting like black women due to her hallucinations. And Elizabeth Banks is always cool.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can put on a better play? I think they made it obvious that Kenny was going to win. Spenny's was a boring 16-act historical drama in which the judge could be seen playing with her phone near the end of it, and Kenny's was funny and made the judge laugh. The idea of a Jew who enjoys concentration camp is hilarious though.
Hero of the Week: Sugar from Survivor, for bringing her A game during the first reward challenge. Sandra tried to sabotage her by removing her top, but she ran for it anyway sans top, scored the point, then flipped Sandra the double bird. Awesome.
Douchebag of the Week: Jo Bennett from The Office, because even though she owns Dunder Mifflin now, I don't like her smarmy, condescending attitude.
Kudos to whoever cast old Charlie, because they managed to find an actress with the exact same eyes as Jayma Mays. It was a little eerie, actually. I figured it was going to be Doyle forcing Emma to play her cello. I don't know where they're going with the whole worldwide reveal thing, but I hope they don't copy X-Men too much. I can't believe the season is already over though, February is an odd time for a network show to end a season. But if NBC is going to end the series I think now would be a good time, because all of the loose ends are fairly wrapped up and it didn't really leave us with that big of a cliffhanger.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like how Heather interrupted Corrinda's "Last Egg" musical number. I thought we were going to get a big majestic number similar to the "Every Sperm is Sacred" song in Monty Python's The Meaning of Life. Dusty is one messed up detective, but taking the mayor's corpse fishing in the park in broad daylight was funny. Second victim: Heather Weather in the courtroom with a remote control, the killer's weapon of choice it seems. Too bad Rampop only sees people as butterflies and thus cannot identify the murderer.
Lost
I wonder if Dr. Ethan is still evil if he spent his whole life off the island. I think the torturing of Sayid might have been to test for the black smoke - we already know it doesn't like ash or electricity (the sonic fence). Not sure about the hot poker though... Maybe that was just testing for general pain sensitivity. For some reason it didn't even cross my mind that Claire had turned into Rousseau until I read other people saying it online, but it seems so obvious now with all of the traps, the rifle, and her dirty, wild look. That could be trouble.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
The idea of Coach and Jerri as a couple is vomit inducing. But perhaps they are perfect for each other for precisely that reason. Looks like Russell is already trying to start another "dumbass girl alliance" - his words, not mine. I think he might be voted out early this time though. Sounds like JT is planning to be a villain this time around, and maybe Tom as well. Probably a good idea though, because playing with past players puts you at a disadvantage in that everyone already knows who you are and how you play, so to escape that you gotta play differently.
Parks and Recreation
I'm glad April broke up with her gay boyfriends, not only because I support the idea of April and Andy as a couple, but because they were really only a funny gag once and their subsequent appearances mostly just involved snide remarks and insults that I didn't find funny at all.
The Office
Cool, they added Ed Helms to the opening credits! This was a fun episode - Michael has often been driven by greed in the past, but you would think he'd learn his lesson because it always seems to backfire on him. This week's episode reminded us (and him) of how spoiled he is as a manager with the perks of his own office and Erin catering to all of his unusual and ridiculous whims, so in the end it looks like Michael prefers power over money. He even referred to himself as "head salesman", which I'm pretty sure was made up to make himself feel better. I don't know why Andy can't tell Erin that he likes her, or even why she can't tell him. It's not as if it's a Jim/Pam situation, because they're both single. The dogs sure do love Andy's man meat though.
30 Rock
I liked the characterization in this episode - one or two lines about everyone's Valentine's plans really said a lot about them. Or reinforced, rather, because I don't think we learned anything new about anyone. Also it was fun to see Liz's three former boyfriends acting like black women due to her hallucinations. And Elizabeth Banks is always cool.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can put on a better play? I think they made it obvious that Kenny was going to win. Spenny's was a boring 16-act historical drama in which the judge could be seen playing with her phone near the end of it, and Kenny's was funny and made the judge laugh. The idea of a Jew who enjoys concentration camp is hilarious though.
Hero of the Week: Sugar from Survivor, for bringing her A game during the first reward challenge. Sandra tried to sabotage her by removing her top, but she ran for it anyway sans top, scored the point, then flipped Sandra the double bird. Awesome.
Douchebag of the Week: Jo Bennett from The Office, because even though she owns Dunder Mifflin now, I don't like her smarmy, condescending attitude.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
This Week in Television - Feb. 1-5, 2010
Heroes
The wall was high, but not so high that Peter and Sylar couldn't consider the possibility of climbing OVER it. There was a fence intersecting with it that was more than half the wall's height, they could have used that as a jumping off point. Oh wait, Peter only ever gets one idea at a time and sticks with it until he's played it out.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
Hey, cool, a cameo by Colin Mochrie. There were some good gags in this episode, like the moron cops both being drunk and letting the mayor's wife use a hairdryer to pass her breathalyzer ignition test, and the jury duty form's questions about obesity, and the really crooked veterinarian taking advantage of the lawyer whose cat is in two different comas. Also enjoying the rivalry between Heather and Corinda.
Lost
Lost is the coolest and most epic show on television right now, so you can imagine how excited I am that it is back after an excruciating 8 month hiatus. I had a feeling that instead of showing us one outcome or another, they would show us both because I'd heard the show was going in a new direction, and that's exactly what happened. The premiere had me grinning big time - I love those "WTF is going on?" moments. What I can't figure out is why they're bothering to show us two alternate timelines. I mean it's really cool to see, but I just don't know how they will fit together yet. But I do think that Sayid may now be possessed by Jacob so that he can battle "Flocke" with his soldier kung fu.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
Okay, now that I've discussed the Heroes Tribe, let's take a look at the Villains.
-Tyson Apostol: Tyson can be arrogant and cold, but he's also funny so I don't mind him too much. I can potentially see him sticking around for a bit because he has a cunning, sneaky side.
-Randy Bailey: I actually kind of pity Randy. He's grumpy, mean, and seems to hate literally all people. I don't even know why he auditioned for Survivor, but I imagine he came back to get revenge on Sugar or something.
-Sandra Diaz-Twine: What I remember about Sandra is that she won her season by staying under the radar and doing a lot of eavesdropping from the bushes. That seems like a really obvious and straightforward thing to do but surprisingly no one else has ever used the "hide and listen" tactic to the extent that Sandra has.
-Danielle DiLorenzo: I barely remember Danielle. I even forgot that she came in second the first time around. But I think I can recall her being less than smart.
-Russell Hantz: As I blogged about him last season, Russell is one of the most arrogant players ever and I can see this guy coming back for every single All-Stars season until he wins. I think he'll have to work harder this time around though, because he's playing with veterans.
-Jerri Manthey: At this point I can't even remember why Jerri was such a villain back in the day, but I still have a general dislike for her because at the very least she comes off as an attention whore refusing to give up her 15 minutes of fame.
-"Boston Rob" Mariano: Boston Rob was certainly a power player on the All-Stars season, helping his future wife Amber to win the whole thing, but this season is going to have a LOT of power players, and I have no clue who will emerge as the main vote decider.
-Parvati Shallow: I hate Parvati, and I can say that her surname is highly appropriate. She acts like a conceited high school girl and I don't believe she really did anything to deserve her Fans vs. Favourites win.
-Benjamin "Coach" Wade: I also hate Coach, because he is one of the most self-absorbed idiots to play the game. His interests include: boasting about all of the wild things he's done and the multiple times he narrowly escaped death; pretending he's a samurai; constantly talking about warriors and dragonslayers; and claiming that he never lies when most of the stuff he says is too ridiculous to be true.
-Courtney Yates: Courtney isn't really that much of a villain, it's mostly that she's sarcastic and sharp-tongued. But she had some funny comments along the way and even won a challenge due to being incredibly scrawny. I can see her getting along well with Tyson.
Fringe
Olivia should have seen Peter glimmering right away when she first got scared, but I guess it was more appropriate for the writers to have it happen at the end of the episode. That almost-kiss has been a long time coming though, given the sexual tension between them. Cool episode. The best Fringe episodes are the ones that deal with the continuing story.
Parks and Recreation
Tom was hilarious in this episode with his snazzy costume changes, room-sized walk-in closet, and, of course, DJ Roomba. And so was Ron, who hand-crafted a harp while drunk and then took photos of himself making it to prove his judgment wasn't impaired.
The Office
I don't know why nobody knows how to pronounce "sabre" properly, but it sure makes for a funny song when you have to mess up the rhyme scheme in the middle of singing it. Jim and Pam really shouldn't have brought up the bathroom thing - it was clear from the rest of the tour and interview that the guy was already willing to forget it and move on.
30 Rock
I love 30 Rock, but I have to admit I've never liked Jenna. She's too much of a one-note character and 9 times out of 10 I find her more annoying than funny. So I wasn't really a fan of the story about Jenna and her mother, except when Jack was involved. Because Jack Donaghy is never not awesome.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can make a better commercial? Kenny's commercials were really, really funny, but as the judges said, Spenny's was a little more on topic because he actually gave information about the product. And submitted forged market research documents. I wonder if Spenny will cheat more often now. I'm not sure how I feel about that because then every episode will just become "Who is a better cheater?".
Hero of the Week: Christian Slater, guest starring on The Office. If he was back there, he'd know what to do.
Douchebag of the Week: Jerry from Parks and Recreation, because he killed DJ Roomba. HE WAS LIKE A SON TO TOM!
The wall was high, but not so high that Peter and Sylar couldn't consider the possibility of climbing OVER it. There was a fence intersecting with it that was more than half the wall's height, they could have used that as a jumping off point. Oh wait, Peter only ever gets one idea at a time and sticks with it until he's played it out.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
Hey, cool, a cameo by Colin Mochrie. There were some good gags in this episode, like the moron cops both being drunk and letting the mayor's wife use a hairdryer to pass her breathalyzer ignition test, and the jury duty form's questions about obesity, and the really crooked veterinarian taking advantage of the lawyer whose cat is in two different comas. Also enjoying the rivalry between Heather and Corinda.
Lost
Lost is the coolest and most epic show on television right now, so you can imagine how excited I am that it is back after an excruciating 8 month hiatus. I had a feeling that instead of showing us one outcome or another, they would show us both because I'd heard the show was going in a new direction, and that's exactly what happened. The premiere had me grinning big time - I love those "WTF is going on?" moments. What I can't figure out is why they're bothering to show us two alternate timelines. I mean it's really cool to see, but I just don't know how they will fit together yet. But I do think that Sayid may now be possessed by Jacob so that he can battle "Flocke" with his soldier kung fu.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
Okay, now that I've discussed the Heroes Tribe, let's take a look at the Villains.
-Tyson Apostol: Tyson can be arrogant and cold, but he's also funny so I don't mind him too much. I can potentially see him sticking around for a bit because he has a cunning, sneaky side.
-Randy Bailey: I actually kind of pity Randy. He's grumpy, mean, and seems to hate literally all people. I don't even know why he auditioned for Survivor, but I imagine he came back to get revenge on Sugar or something.
-Sandra Diaz-Twine: What I remember about Sandra is that she won her season by staying under the radar and doing a lot of eavesdropping from the bushes. That seems like a really obvious and straightforward thing to do but surprisingly no one else has ever used the "hide and listen" tactic to the extent that Sandra has.
-Danielle DiLorenzo: I barely remember Danielle. I even forgot that she came in second the first time around. But I think I can recall her being less than smart.
-Russell Hantz: As I blogged about him last season, Russell is one of the most arrogant players ever and I can see this guy coming back for every single All-Stars season until he wins. I think he'll have to work harder this time around though, because he's playing with veterans.
-Jerri Manthey: At this point I can't even remember why Jerri was such a villain back in the day, but I still have a general dislike for her because at the very least she comes off as an attention whore refusing to give up her 15 minutes of fame.
-"Boston Rob" Mariano: Boston Rob was certainly a power player on the All-Stars season, helping his future wife Amber to win the whole thing, but this season is going to have a LOT of power players, and I have no clue who will emerge as the main vote decider.
-Parvati Shallow: I hate Parvati, and I can say that her surname is highly appropriate. She acts like a conceited high school girl and I don't believe she really did anything to deserve her Fans vs. Favourites win.
-Benjamin "Coach" Wade: I also hate Coach, because he is one of the most self-absorbed idiots to play the game. His interests include: boasting about all of the wild things he's done and the multiple times he narrowly escaped death; pretending he's a samurai; constantly talking about warriors and dragonslayers; and claiming that he never lies when most of the stuff he says is too ridiculous to be true.
-Courtney Yates: Courtney isn't really that much of a villain, it's mostly that she's sarcastic and sharp-tongued. But she had some funny comments along the way and even won a challenge due to being incredibly scrawny. I can see her getting along well with Tyson.
Fringe
Olivia should have seen Peter glimmering right away when she first got scared, but I guess it was more appropriate for the writers to have it happen at the end of the episode. That almost-kiss has been a long time coming though, given the sexual tension between them. Cool episode. The best Fringe episodes are the ones that deal with the continuing story.
Parks and Recreation
Tom was hilarious in this episode with his snazzy costume changes, room-sized walk-in closet, and, of course, DJ Roomba. And so was Ron, who hand-crafted a harp while drunk and then took photos of himself making it to prove his judgment wasn't impaired.
The Office
I don't know why nobody knows how to pronounce "sabre" properly, but it sure makes for a funny song when you have to mess up the rhyme scheme in the middle of singing it. Jim and Pam really shouldn't have brought up the bathroom thing - it was clear from the rest of the tour and interview that the guy was already willing to forget it and move on.
30 Rock
I love 30 Rock, but I have to admit I've never liked Jenna. She's too much of a one-note character and 9 times out of 10 I find her more annoying than funny. So I wasn't really a fan of the story about Jenna and her mother, except when Jack was involved. Because Jack Donaghy is never not awesome.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can make a better commercial? Kenny's commercials were really, really funny, but as the judges said, Spenny's was a little more on topic because he actually gave information about the product. And submitted forged market research documents. I wonder if Spenny will cheat more often now. I'm not sure how I feel about that because then every episode will just become "Who is a better cheater?".
Hero of the Week: Christian Slater, guest starring on The Office. If he was back there, he'd know what to do.
Douchebag of the Week: Jerry from Parks and Recreation, because he killed DJ Roomba. HE WAS LIKE A SON TO TOM!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
This Week in Television - Jan. 25-29, 2010
Heroes
Hey, Peter, did it ever occur to you that instead of releasing a dangerous mass murderer to save lives, you could just, oh I don't know, ask Emma not to play the cello? Seems like one of those options is 50 billion times easier and safer than the other. Although in the dream, Emma looked kind of distraught so someone was probably forcing her to do it. But still, Peter should have made an attempt to explore other options before jumping right into the worst one. Also, Sylar already went through a period where he didn't have his powers and it didn't make him any less evil, so why does he think it will work this time?
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like the gag where a video is shown of the mayor reading his will, but not aloud. I wonder where Ricky is going to fit into all of this, being that he is a shut-in and doesn't really interact with the other characters. Unless he's going to get off the couch and exercise like he promised. Rampop is kind of disturbing in a Children of the Corn way.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
Survivor doesn't come back for another two weeks, but since this is a special season with past competitors returning, I thought I would post my opinions on each contestant. I'll discuss the Heroes tribe this week and the Villains next week.
-Rupert Boneham: Rupert was a cool guy and all the viewers seemed to love him, but he has competed twice and was knocked into the jury both times. I don't know if he is enough of a strategist to get any further than he has before, but he might make it to the jury again just because he is likable and useful at camp.
-James Clement: James is a nice guy and the ladies love to look at him, but he's not necessarily a power player.
-Colby Donaldson: Colby performed well the first time he competed, dominating challenges and coming in second, but then when he returned for All-Stars, he got cocky and was voted out early. I'm not sure if I like him and his success could go either way.
-Cirie Fields: I like Cirie. I've always found her kind of funny and endearing, and while she hasn't been very good in challenges I do think she is a cunning and persuasive strategist, and that got her far both times she's competed.
-Amanda Kimmel: Amanda is a record holder, being the only person in Survivor history to make it to the final tribal council twice. However, she has never gotten a single jury vote. I don't understand this because I think Amanda is one of the most deserving players in the game - she's made several genius strategic moves, has proven capable of winning challenges, and doesn't seem like a bad person at all. I'll be rooting for her again this time around.
-Jessica "Sugar" Kiper: Apparently Sugar was extremely annoying to the other survivors, but the viewers loved her. I remember I didn't think much of her at first, but by the end of the game she stood out as a strategist despite appearing dumb at first glance.
-Stephanie LaGrossa: Stephanie was a true survivor, being the only person on the show to ever be part of a one-person tribe. I think that's what made viewers like her more than her personality, although she's kind of cool too, I guess.
-J.T. Thomas: J.T. was a solid all-around competitor and a good guy, plus he won his original season. However these things can also be weaknesses because everyone else knows to watch out for him.
-Tom Westman: I don't even remember that much about Tom's personality, except that he won the season and also a few challenges.
-Candice Woodcock: I hate Candice, and she does not deserve to be on the Heroes team. I have two reasons why: a) When survivors were given an opportunity to ditch their tribe and join the other team, she took it, Jonathan Penner followed her, and then she later blasted him for being a traitor; and b) at the final tribal council, she asked finalist Yul an incredibly biased question and forced him to answer in such a way that no matter what he said it made him look like a liar. Candice is an idiot.
Fringe
Wow, Walter came off rather villainous at the end of this one. But I do like that he pointed out the elephant in the room, which is the looming sexual tension between Peter and Olivia. I kind of hope they don't get together, only because it's such a predictable staple to include a romance subplot in EVERYTHING, but on the other hand they probably would make a good couple. BEWARE THE HITLER TOXIN!
Kenny vs. Spenny
For the first time in history, this episode had no competition. Although at first I thought it was going to be something like "Who can start a competition first?" because Spenny kept naming all these new competitions. But as I watched it I started to feel a little dissatisfied with the season as a whole so far. The show is almost turning into a gimmick and it's become "The Kenny Show" now, and not just because he's been winning them all (although the competitions are much less exciting when you know Kenny has at least an 80% chance every time). It's no longer about competing, now it's more about what Kenny will get away with and what crazy loophole or scheme he'll exploit this week. I don't say this as an attack on Kenny's character, he is clearly a funny and entertaining guy, it's just that they have let him take over the show. I started watching Kenny vs. Spenny because it was a new thing and I thought a show about crazy competitions was an awesome idea, but the show rarely captures the true spirit of competition anymore. I wonder how many Kenny would win if he actually played fairly.
Hero of the Week: Matt Parkman from Heroes, who pulled a fast one on Sylar and trapped him inside his own brain and then proceeded to wall up his body in the basement, brick by brick.
Douchebag of the Week: Peter Petrelli from Heroes, for trying to undo Parkman's awesome handiwork. Nice job, dick.
Hey, Peter, did it ever occur to you that instead of releasing a dangerous mass murderer to save lives, you could just, oh I don't know, ask Emma not to play the cello? Seems like one of those options is 50 billion times easier and safer than the other. Although in the dream, Emma looked kind of distraught so someone was probably forcing her to do it. But still, Peter should have made an attempt to explore other options before jumping right into the worst one. Also, Sylar already went through a period where he didn't have his powers and it didn't make him any less evil, so why does he think it will work this time?
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like the gag where a video is shown of the mayor reading his will, but not aloud. I wonder where Ricky is going to fit into all of this, being that he is a shut-in and doesn't really interact with the other characters. Unless he's going to get off the couch and exercise like he promised. Rampop is kind of disturbing in a Children of the Corn way.
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains
Survivor doesn't come back for another two weeks, but since this is a special season with past competitors returning, I thought I would post my opinions on each contestant. I'll discuss the Heroes tribe this week and the Villains next week.
-Rupert Boneham: Rupert was a cool guy and all the viewers seemed to love him, but he has competed twice and was knocked into the jury both times. I don't know if he is enough of a strategist to get any further than he has before, but he might make it to the jury again just because he is likable and useful at camp.
-James Clement: James is a nice guy and the ladies love to look at him, but he's not necessarily a power player.
-Colby Donaldson: Colby performed well the first time he competed, dominating challenges and coming in second, but then when he returned for All-Stars, he got cocky and was voted out early. I'm not sure if I like him and his success could go either way.
-Cirie Fields: I like Cirie. I've always found her kind of funny and endearing, and while she hasn't been very good in challenges I do think she is a cunning and persuasive strategist, and that got her far both times she's competed.
-Amanda Kimmel: Amanda is a record holder, being the only person in Survivor history to make it to the final tribal council twice. However, she has never gotten a single jury vote. I don't understand this because I think Amanda is one of the most deserving players in the game - she's made several genius strategic moves, has proven capable of winning challenges, and doesn't seem like a bad person at all. I'll be rooting for her again this time around.
-Jessica "Sugar" Kiper: Apparently Sugar was extremely annoying to the other survivors, but the viewers loved her. I remember I didn't think much of her at first, but by the end of the game she stood out as a strategist despite appearing dumb at first glance.
-Stephanie LaGrossa: Stephanie was a true survivor, being the only person on the show to ever be part of a one-person tribe. I think that's what made viewers like her more than her personality, although she's kind of cool too, I guess.
-J.T. Thomas: J.T. was a solid all-around competitor and a good guy, plus he won his original season. However these things can also be weaknesses because everyone else knows to watch out for him.
-Tom Westman: I don't even remember that much about Tom's personality, except that he won the season and also a few challenges.
-Candice Woodcock: I hate Candice, and she does not deserve to be on the Heroes team. I have two reasons why: a) When survivors were given an opportunity to ditch their tribe and join the other team, she took it, Jonathan Penner followed her, and then she later blasted him for being a traitor; and b) at the final tribal council, she asked finalist Yul an incredibly biased question and forced him to answer in such a way that no matter what he said it made him look like a liar. Candice is an idiot.
Fringe
Wow, Walter came off rather villainous at the end of this one. But I do like that he pointed out the elephant in the room, which is the looming sexual tension between Peter and Olivia. I kind of hope they don't get together, only because it's such a predictable staple to include a romance subplot in EVERYTHING, but on the other hand they probably would make a good couple. BEWARE THE HITLER TOXIN!
Kenny vs. Spenny
For the first time in history, this episode had no competition. Although at first I thought it was going to be something like "Who can start a competition first?" because Spenny kept naming all these new competitions. But as I watched it I started to feel a little dissatisfied with the season as a whole so far. The show is almost turning into a gimmick and it's become "The Kenny Show" now, and not just because he's been winning them all (although the competitions are much less exciting when you know Kenny has at least an 80% chance every time). It's no longer about competing, now it's more about what Kenny will get away with and what crazy loophole or scheme he'll exploit this week. I don't say this as an attack on Kenny's character, he is clearly a funny and entertaining guy, it's just that they have let him take over the show. I started watching Kenny vs. Spenny because it was a new thing and I thought a show about crazy competitions was an awesome idea, but the show rarely captures the true spirit of competition anymore. I wonder how many Kenny would win if he actually played fairly.
Hero of the Week: Matt Parkman from Heroes, who pulled a fast one on Sylar and trapped him inside his own brain and then proceeded to wall up his body in the basement, brick by brick.
Douchebag of the Week: Peter Petrelli from Heroes, for trying to undo Parkman's awesome handiwork. Nice job, dick.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
This Week in Television - Jan. 18-22, 2010
Heroes
Hiro's diner hallucination trial featuring some dead folks was a cool idea. I thought his lawyer should have been Isaac Mendes at first just so they could get another dead guy in there, but then they used Ando. I guess that makes more sense. But it doesn't make sense that his mother could heal him in a hallucination, and if it was a purgatory deal and not a hallucination then it doesn't make sense for Ando to be there. But whatever, I'm down with Hiro not dying. When Sylar was given his Claire tattoo I thought he was going to start wooing her romantically since they're both immortal and they wouldn't be alone that way. Would have been funny, but I guess he's not into college chicks.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like how the two cops are so incompetent that they accuse each other of murdering the mayor and then a videotape has to remind them that they were on duty together at the time of the murder (which was inexplicably determined by the bald detective). I also find it funny that Heather Weather wants so badly to be the breaking news reporter but has no clue how to report on anything except the weather. For a minute at the end, I thought Death was just going to keep killing off Bruce McCulloch characters.
Fringe
This was actually an intense episode, which was perfect because the concept wasn't as mindblowing as in some of the other episodes (I'm not really a fan of the whole "deadly virus" plot incarnation). The last time an ally turned on Olivia, it was "Flancis" and she shot him outright, but that was a more deadly situation because this time she knew Peter could be cured. I also like those moments where Walter is desperate and fragile, because all those times when he gets excited about science and food, we sometimes forget how much he loves his son.
Parks and Recreation
The best part of the episode was Ron's plans to show up at Leslie's dinner party with a large quantity of deviled eggs and not have to share them with anyone. I think he is becoming my favourite character. I can understand why the guys don't like Justin: there is a fine line between being a fascinating man and constantly telling exotic stories to show off how interesting you are. I mean it's cool if you've experienced a ton of amazing things, but it makes you look like a douche if you bring it up every time you open your mouth.
The Office
Um, okay, I wasn't expecting a clip show. Especially not in the middle of the season. I get that it is their way of saying goodbye to the old Dunder-Mifflin, but it felt more like something they should have done for the series finale or something. But the frame story was funny and I like that they did it via an interview with Toby.
30 Rock
Julianne Moore's back! At least she got some funnier stuff to do this time. I have a feeling that Dale Snitterman could soon become a popular meme for everything that goes wrong with everything.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can have more fun? Whenever they do a competition like this, the victory can be considered questionable because the competition concept is abstract and hard to judge. I mean even for a sadist, is torturing someone more fun than partying on a boat with some hot bikini girls (which Kenny would also love)? It's all relative.
NEW FEATURE
I think the rating thing was kind of boring, so I have a new idea: Every week, I will pick two characters from the shows watched. One will be "Hero of the week", the character who has done the funniest or coolest thing in their respective episode, and one will be "Douchebag of the week", the character who has pissed me off or done something I don't approve of. This week's winners are:
Hero of the Week: Our very first hero of the week goes to Ron Swanson of Parks and Recreation, because as I have mentioned, I love when he shows up at events just for the food. Attaboy, Duke Silver.
Douchebag of the Week: Dale Snitterman from 30 Rock. Because he's a bastard.
Hiro's diner hallucination trial featuring some dead folks was a cool idea. I thought his lawyer should have been Isaac Mendes at first just so they could get another dead guy in there, but then they used Ando. I guess that makes more sense. But it doesn't make sense that his mother could heal him in a hallucination, and if it was a purgatory deal and not a hallucination then it doesn't make sense for Ando to be there. But whatever, I'm down with Hiro not dying. When Sylar was given his Claire tattoo I thought he was going to start wooing her romantically since they're both immortal and they wouldn't be alone that way. Would have been funny, but I guess he's not into college chicks.
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I like how the two cops are so incompetent that they accuse each other of murdering the mayor and then a videotape has to remind them that they were on duty together at the time of the murder (which was inexplicably determined by the bald detective). I also find it funny that Heather Weather wants so badly to be the breaking news reporter but has no clue how to report on anything except the weather. For a minute at the end, I thought Death was just going to keep killing off Bruce McCulloch characters.
Fringe
This was actually an intense episode, which was perfect because the concept wasn't as mindblowing as in some of the other episodes (I'm not really a fan of the whole "deadly virus" plot incarnation). The last time an ally turned on Olivia, it was "Flancis" and she shot him outright, but that was a more deadly situation because this time she knew Peter could be cured. I also like those moments where Walter is desperate and fragile, because all those times when he gets excited about science and food, we sometimes forget how much he loves his son.
Parks and Recreation
The best part of the episode was Ron's plans to show up at Leslie's dinner party with a large quantity of deviled eggs and not have to share them with anyone. I think he is becoming my favourite character. I can understand why the guys don't like Justin: there is a fine line between being a fascinating man and constantly telling exotic stories to show off how interesting you are. I mean it's cool if you've experienced a ton of amazing things, but it makes you look like a douche if you bring it up every time you open your mouth.
The Office
Um, okay, I wasn't expecting a clip show. Especially not in the middle of the season. I get that it is their way of saying goodbye to the old Dunder-Mifflin, but it felt more like something they should have done for the series finale or something. But the frame story was funny and I like that they did it via an interview with Toby.
30 Rock
Julianne Moore's back! At least she got some funnier stuff to do this time. I have a feeling that Dale Snitterman could soon become a popular meme for everything that goes wrong with everything.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can have more fun? Whenever they do a competition like this, the victory can be considered questionable because the competition concept is abstract and hard to judge. I mean even for a sadist, is torturing someone more fun than partying on a boat with some hot bikini girls (which Kenny would also love)? It's all relative.
NEW FEATURE
I think the rating thing was kind of boring, so I have a new idea: Every week, I will pick two characters from the shows watched. One will be "Hero of the week", the character who has done the funniest or coolest thing in their respective episode, and one will be "Douchebag of the week", the character who has pissed me off or done something I don't approve of. This week's winners are:
Hero of the Week: Our very first hero of the week goes to Ron Swanson of Parks and Recreation, because as I have mentioned, I love when he shows up at events just for the food. Attaboy, Duke Silver.
Douchebag of the Week: Dale Snitterman from 30 Rock. Because he's a bastard.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
This Week in Television - Jan. 11-15, 2010
Heroes
Geez, Peter, you could have explained things to Emma first and THEN smashed her cello. Since when is Peter the "shoot first, ask questions later" type? Fun Fact: Inspector Gadget also plays the cello!
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I always thought of Kids in the Hall as the Canadian Monty Python, the way the castmembers play every character they can, including the women. The tradition continues here, except this time it's a linear series rather than sketch comedy. It reminded me of the group's only film, Brain Candy, which is to say that it is kind of amusing but not as funny as the original sketch comedy series. The best part of the episode was the Mayor of Shuckton, played by Bruce McCulloch (who was always one of the funniest castmembers), and unfortunately Death took him down. I liked their take on Death though, having Mark McKinney portray him as a kind of seedy junkie who turns departed souls into dust and then snorts it. I didn't laugh out loud much during the episode, but I was definitely amused and entertained, so I'm going to keep watching, if only because it's nice to have The Kids back.
Fringe
Two episodes this week. The first was an unaired episode from season one, and it was actually a little dull so I won't say anything else about it, except that it was cool that they decided to air it. The second was much cooler - I like the idea of altering everyone's perception of something instead of altering the thing itself. As I said before, the second season has been awesome and most of the episodes have just been knocking it out of the park in terms of cool ideas and continuing storylines.
Parks and Recreation
I didn't even know Will Arnett was going to be in this episode, so that was a cool surprise. Ron's storyline was also fun, because the combination of the name Jean-Ralphio with that ridiculous hairstyle and Tom's personality equals comedy gold.
30 Rock
Double 30 Rock this week too! James Franco and his Japanese body pillow were funny, although also kind of sad because it's based on reality - I've heard there actually are some lonely guys out there who are very much in love with those things. Kenneth trying to work a computer was hilarious (it's not THAT easy to accidentally take a picture of yourself and then accidentally make it the desktop wallpaper and send it to everyone in the address book). Most of the time I find Jenna's character more annoying than funny, and she was mostly annoying in this episode too, except when filming her scene on Gossip Girl where she died of old age at 41 and was recalling all of the things she's experienced in her "long" lifetime, like Windows 95. And yes, Kenneth's haircut is an insult to lesbians.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who do black guys like more (part 2)? Well, I was right about Kenny's plan, but I thought Spenny was going to win it. I wasn't expecting the video footage to look as incriminating as it did, and I think Spenny may have helped it by going overboard in his KKK roleplay. I do like that the one guy said he was choosing Kenny not because of the video, but because just hanging out was more fun than Spenny's "racial retreat", which is exactly what I said last week.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A
Geez, Peter, you could have explained things to Emma first and THEN smashed her cello. Since when is Peter the "shoot first, ask questions later" type? Fun Fact: Inspector Gadget also plays the cello!
Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
I always thought of Kids in the Hall as the Canadian Monty Python, the way the castmembers play every character they can, including the women. The tradition continues here, except this time it's a linear series rather than sketch comedy. It reminded me of the group's only film, Brain Candy, which is to say that it is kind of amusing but not as funny as the original sketch comedy series. The best part of the episode was the Mayor of Shuckton, played by Bruce McCulloch (who was always one of the funniest castmembers), and unfortunately Death took him down. I liked their take on Death though, having Mark McKinney portray him as a kind of seedy junkie who turns departed souls into dust and then snorts it. I didn't laugh out loud much during the episode, but I was definitely amused and entertained, so I'm going to keep watching, if only because it's nice to have The Kids back.
Fringe
Two episodes this week. The first was an unaired episode from season one, and it was actually a little dull so I won't say anything else about it, except that it was cool that they decided to air it. The second was much cooler - I like the idea of altering everyone's perception of something instead of altering the thing itself. As I said before, the second season has been awesome and most of the episodes have just been knocking it out of the park in terms of cool ideas and continuing storylines.
Parks and Recreation
I didn't even know Will Arnett was going to be in this episode, so that was a cool surprise. Ron's storyline was also fun, because the combination of the name Jean-Ralphio with that ridiculous hairstyle and Tom's personality equals comedy gold.
30 Rock
Double 30 Rock this week too! James Franco and his Japanese body pillow were funny, although also kind of sad because it's based on reality - I've heard there actually are some lonely guys out there who are very much in love with those things. Kenneth trying to work a computer was hilarious (it's not THAT easy to accidentally take a picture of yourself and then accidentally make it the desktop wallpaper and send it to everyone in the address book). Most of the time I find Jenna's character more annoying than funny, and she was mostly annoying in this episode too, except when filming her scene on Gossip Girl where she died of old age at 41 and was recalling all of the things she's experienced in her "long" lifetime, like Windows 95. And yes, Kenneth's haircut is an insult to lesbians.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who do black guys like more (part 2)? Well, I was right about Kenny's plan, but I thought Spenny was going to win it. I wasn't expecting the video footage to look as incriminating as it did, and I think Spenny may have helped it by going overboard in his KKK roleplay. I do like that the one guy said he was choosing Kenny not because of the video, but because just hanging out was more fun than Spenny's "racial retreat", which is exactly what I said last week.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
This Week in Television - Jan. 4-8, 2010
Heroes
Sometimes watching Heroes is like watching someone play a turn-based RPG: whenever someone attacks someone, their target just stands there and lets it happen, and if they're able to retaliate they wait until the enemy's attack is over to do it. I don't mind that in video games but it's a problem on TV. Hiro speaking only in pop culture references reminded me of a patient on House who had a problem that made him say weird word combinations but he thought he was speaking normally. Maybe Hiro should teleport into Dr. House's office for help on that one. Kind of glad that Nathan's finally dead. Really his only contribution to the show was constantly putting his hand on Peter's shoulder and calling him Pete all the time.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who do black guys like more (Part One)? For the first time we have a two part episode. I don't know why the competition needs to be that long, but whatever. This episode was basically all Spenny's day with the black guys. At first I thought he was blowing it, because he spent the whole time talking about race, and even though he was saying positive things I think bringing it up at all still kind of makes it an issue. My strategy would just be to hang out with them like normal guys and not even talk about race, but they seemed to respond to him very well so I guess it worked. In the preview for next week it looks like Kenny is purposely offending them, but I think I have figured out his plan: he's going to use footage from this episode and edit together footage of Spenny yelling at Kenny-as-black-maid cleaning the toilet with footage of the actual black cleaning lady that Kenny got to clean the toilet, and he will show it to the black guys to make Spenny look like a racist monster. I think he's hoping that the black guys will be more offended by Spenny's supposed deceit than his own upfront douchebaggery. I think Spenny will win though, just because he's due by now. Let's check back next week to see if I'm right!
Overall rating for this week's shows: B
Sometimes watching Heroes is like watching someone play a turn-based RPG: whenever someone attacks someone, their target just stands there and lets it happen, and if they're able to retaliate they wait until the enemy's attack is over to do it. I don't mind that in video games but it's a problem on TV. Hiro speaking only in pop culture references reminded me of a patient on House who had a problem that made him say weird word combinations but he thought he was speaking normally. Maybe Hiro should teleport into Dr. House's office for help on that one. Kind of glad that Nathan's finally dead. Really his only contribution to the show was constantly putting his hand on Peter's shoulder and calling him Pete all the time.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who do black guys like more (Part One)? For the first time we have a two part episode. I don't know why the competition needs to be that long, but whatever. This episode was basically all Spenny's day with the black guys. At first I thought he was blowing it, because he spent the whole time talking about race, and even though he was saying positive things I think bringing it up at all still kind of makes it an issue. My strategy would just be to hang out with them like normal guys and not even talk about race, but they seemed to respond to him very well so I guess it worked. In the preview for next week it looks like Kenny is purposely offending them, but I think I have figured out his plan: he's going to use footage from this episode and edit together footage of Spenny yelling at Kenny-as-black-maid cleaning the toilet with footage of the actual black cleaning lady that Kenny got to clean the toilet, and he will show it to the black guys to make Spenny look like a racist monster. I think he's hoping that the black guys will be more offended by Spenny's supposed deceit than his own upfront douchebaggery. I think Spenny will win though, just because he's due by now. Let's check back next week to see if I'm right!
Overall rating for this week's shows: B
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
This Week in Television - Dec. 14-18, 2009
Survivor: Samoa
(I'm including the big Sunday finale here even though I don't really include weekends in the TV posts.) So I said in the beginning that Russell wasn't going to win. Turns out I was right after all, but I do have to admit that as his power continued to grow and grow throughout the season, I was doubting my prediction and I thought maybe he might take it after all. But it looks like there is no consistency in juries - sometimes they respect the villains who totally backstabbed them all, and sometimes they're whiners who ultimately shun those villains. This was a whiner season. Not that I necessarily disagree with Natalie's win - she seems like a nice girl and I am happy for her, and even though Russell did play a crazy strong and dominant game, comparing his strategy to Natalie's is really just apples and oranges. Making the jury want to vote for you is part of the game, and an important one at that, and that's where Russell failed, so it is not fair to say that, as he claims, he played a perfect game. I also don't think it is fair to say that Natalie was a coattail rider. True, she didn't strategize as much as Russell, but she wasn't following him blindly either (voting Erik had nothing to do with Russell) and there have been much better examples of those players in other seasons. Russell was pissed off to the point of visible nervousness during the reunion, and it showed, but he should have realized that his downfall was getting too arrogant and not thinking about jury votes until much too late.
The next season looks like a lot of fun - I like when they bring back past Survivors. I just hope that when they categorize the "heroes" and "villains", that the people participating will rightfully fall under those titles and not just be placed there because they were the only ones willing to do another season. I would love to see them do a season made up entirely of past winners. That would be the ultimate season.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who is a better basketball coach? Once Spenny caught a glimpse of Kenny's wheelchair team, I knew exactly how it was going to play out, and I was right. Kudos to Spenny for doing his best to fight Kenny's schemes, but he just did it wrong.
(I'm including the big Sunday finale here even though I don't really include weekends in the TV posts.) So I said in the beginning that Russell wasn't going to win. Turns out I was right after all, but I do have to admit that as his power continued to grow and grow throughout the season, I was doubting my prediction and I thought maybe he might take it after all. But it looks like there is no consistency in juries - sometimes they respect the villains who totally backstabbed them all, and sometimes they're whiners who ultimately shun those villains. This was a whiner season. Not that I necessarily disagree with Natalie's win - she seems like a nice girl and I am happy for her, and even though Russell did play a crazy strong and dominant game, comparing his strategy to Natalie's is really just apples and oranges. Making the jury want to vote for you is part of the game, and an important one at that, and that's where Russell failed, so it is not fair to say that, as he claims, he played a perfect game. I also don't think it is fair to say that Natalie was a coattail rider. True, she didn't strategize as much as Russell, but she wasn't following him blindly either (voting Erik had nothing to do with Russell) and there have been much better examples of those players in other seasons. Russell was pissed off to the point of visible nervousness during the reunion, and it showed, but he should have realized that his downfall was getting too arrogant and not thinking about jury votes until much too late.
The next season looks like a lot of fun - I like when they bring back past Survivors. I just hope that when they categorize the "heroes" and "villains", that the people participating will rightfully fall under those titles and not just be placed there because they were the only ones willing to do another season. I would love to see them do a season made up entirely of past winners. That would be the ultimate season.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who is a better basketball coach? Once Spenny caught a glimpse of Kenny's wheelchair team, I knew exactly how it was going to play out, and I was right. Kudos to Spenny for doing his best to fight Kenny's schemes, but he just did it wrong.
Monday, December 14, 2009
This Week in Television - Dec. 7-11, 2009
Glee
So the glee club won because one of their competitors was a group of deaf kids who couldn't sing, and because the judges were incompetent? I think I actually kind of approve of that, because I would have been outraged if they had won simply because they bested the competition. Would have seemed too kitschy. Too bad Sue got suspended, but she will come back even awesomer.
Modern Family
The problem I am starting to have with Modern Family is that I see many of the jokes coming. I knew the two sisters were going to sabotage their brother when they told him their idea to get Christmas back. I knew the scary monster face was going to pop up again in the video at the end. A punchline is no good when you already know it, folks.
Survivor: Samoa
They should've called Russell's bluff. I knew he wasn't going to play his idol, he was just trying out a way to use it without using it.
Bones
I don't watch Bones, but I did this week to see special guest star Zooey Deschanel. The reason I can never get into cop/detective shows - and this one is no exception - is that I really do not care about solving the mystery of a weekly anonymous character's murder, and all of that crap takes time away from proper character development, which is the other reason I would watch if there were enough of it. Bones and Booth are likable characters, sure, but not them or anything else about the show managed to pull me in. Maybe if Zooey's character were a regular castmember - the Benjamin Franklin quotes were annoying but she added a kind of sarcastic tone to each one to make them funny.
Fringe
That was some heavy stuff, removing pieces of Walter's brain and hiding them in the brains of others so that he wouldn't remember some dangerous info. I hope John Noble gets an Emmy someday.
Parks and Recreation
Once again, some good satire in this one: the media loves to blow things out of proportion and give false reports on something that would make an awesome story if it were true. Sounds especially like FOX news. I like the ridiculousness of their observations, such as, "Normally when two women stand so close to each other, we have to assume...lesbians." They weren't even standing that close. I am rooting for April and Andy to get together, they seem so weirdly appropriate for each other.
The Office
I never realized until Andy brought it up, but it is funny how the 12 gifts of Christmas are mostly birds. So Dunder Mifflin will be under new management. Interesting. But not as interesting as Phyllis and Bob Vance dressed in Santa outfits and making out with each other. lol gross.
30 Rock
It was cool to see Julianne Moore guest star, but unfortunately she didn't have much to do except for a mildly amusing Boston accent. Usually the guest stars get wackier parts. I knew Liz's zero dollar gift to Jack would be bringing Julianne Moore back.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can win a cock fight? I thought this episode was going to involve roosters. I should have known better.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A-
So the glee club won because one of their competitors was a group of deaf kids who couldn't sing, and because the judges were incompetent? I think I actually kind of approve of that, because I would have been outraged if they had won simply because they bested the competition. Would have seemed too kitschy. Too bad Sue got suspended, but she will come back even awesomer.
Modern Family
The problem I am starting to have with Modern Family is that I see many of the jokes coming. I knew the two sisters were going to sabotage their brother when they told him their idea to get Christmas back. I knew the scary monster face was going to pop up again in the video at the end. A punchline is no good when you already know it, folks.
Survivor: Samoa
They should've called Russell's bluff. I knew he wasn't going to play his idol, he was just trying out a way to use it without using it.
Bones
I don't watch Bones, but I did this week to see special guest star Zooey Deschanel. The reason I can never get into cop/detective shows - and this one is no exception - is that I really do not care about solving the mystery of a weekly anonymous character's murder, and all of that crap takes time away from proper character development, which is the other reason I would watch if there were enough of it. Bones and Booth are likable characters, sure, but not them or anything else about the show managed to pull me in. Maybe if Zooey's character were a regular castmember - the Benjamin Franklin quotes were annoying but she added a kind of sarcastic tone to each one to make them funny.
Fringe
That was some heavy stuff, removing pieces of Walter's brain and hiding them in the brains of others so that he wouldn't remember some dangerous info. I hope John Noble gets an Emmy someday.
Parks and Recreation
Once again, some good satire in this one: the media loves to blow things out of proportion and give false reports on something that would make an awesome story if it were true. Sounds especially like FOX news. I like the ridiculousness of their observations, such as, "Normally when two women stand so close to each other, we have to assume...lesbians." They weren't even standing that close. I am rooting for April and Andy to get together, they seem so weirdly appropriate for each other.
The Office
I never realized until Andy brought it up, but it is funny how the 12 gifts of Christmas are mostly birds. So Dunder Mifflin will be under new management. Interesting. But not as interesting as Phyllis and Bob Vance dressed in Santa outfits and making out with each other. lol gross.
30 Rock
It was cool to see Julianne Moore guest star, but unfortunately she didn't have much to do except for a mildly amusing Boston accent. Usually the guest stars get wackier parts. I knew Liz's zero dollar gift to Jack would be bringing Julianne Moore back.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can win a cock fight? I thought this episode was going to involve roosters. I should have known better.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A-
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
This Week in Television - Nov. 30-Dec. 4, 2009
Heroes
It seems out of character that Claire would want a normal life so badly that she would turn her back on her family to join the carnival. It was kind of cool the way Nathan turned back into Sylar as he fell. I didn't find Nathan that likable or interesting anyway.
Glee
I don't care much for most of the characters on Glee, but Schuster's wife is my least favourite so I hope she is finally getting the axe. What kind of mattress store sells those GINORMOUS mattresses that are big enough for like 10-20 people to sleep comfortably? Lol, Sue had her tear ducts removed because she "wasn't usin' 'em". Awesome.
Survivor: Samoa
When John bought that immunity idol clue at the auction, at first I thought it was a waste, but then I realized that he was really buying the knowledge that Russell has it. Not a bad idea. It didn't help him though.
Fringe
Poor Walter. He can't be independent because it's just not in his nature anymore. Also Astrid is the most dedicated lab assistant ever.
Parks and Recreation
I love how dumb Andy is. He's not trying to win Anne back because he's persistent, but because for no reason whatsoever he thinks she still loves him. I also love Ron's growing pattern of only showing up at events for the food.
The Office
I liked the juxtaposing of Dwight trying to sabotage Jim with Michael breaking his promise to the kids. I don't know why everyone was so willing to believe Jim being sneaky though - they've worked with him for years and should know by now that he's not the type to do something like that. Michael, yes, but not Jim. The best part was Dwight doing his impressions of Kevin, Stanley, and Toby over the phone.
30 Rock
This episode had one of the most hilariously disturbing endings on 30 Rock: Liz crying out of her mouth while Frank, rocking the Liz look, kisses her on the cheek. Bizarre, but funny. Fun fact: Mel Brooks is also an EGOT winner.
Flash Forward
When Janis told Simon that the satellite photo had been taken in 1991 and then they cut to commercial, the musical cue was terrible. They might as well have had some guy yell "PLOT TWIST!" at the top of his lungs because it was just that prominent. Musical cues are usually supposed to be subtle. I wonder if Mark really shot Demetri or if they just jumped to that conclusion because it was his gun. And if Lloyd and Simon really did cause the blackout (which I don't believe they did), that doesn't mean they caused the flash forwards, so I don't see what the big deal is.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can get further [sexually] with the other one's mother? Niether of their mothers was a whore so it wasn't really an easy one. Spenny actually copped a lot of feels and stuff before pissing off Kenny's mom. I thought he might win because Kenny was spending most of his time making bestiality jokes about Spenny's mom.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A
It seems out of character that Claire would want a normal life so badly that she would turn her back on her family to join the carnival. It was kind of cool the way Nathan turned back into Sylar as he fell. I didn't find Nathan that likable or interesting anyway.
Glee
I don't care much for most of the characters on Glee, but Schuster's wife is my least favourite so I hope she is finally getting the axe. What kind of mattress store sells those GINORMOUS mattresses that are big enough for like 10-20 people to sleep comfortably? Lol, Sue had her tear ducts removed because she "wasn't usin' 'em". Awesome.
Survivor: Samoa
When John bought that immunity idol clue at the auction, at first I thought it was a waste, but then I realized that he was really buying the knowledge that Russell has it. Not a bad idea. It didn't help him though.
Fringe
Poor Walter. He can't be independent because it's just not in his nature anymore. Also Astrid is the most dedicated lab assistant ever.
Parks and Recreation
I love how dumb Andy is. He's not trying to win Anne back because he's persistent, but because for no reason whatsoever he thinks she still loves him. I also love Ron's growing pattern of only showing up at events for the food.
The Office
I liked the juxtaposing of Dwight trying to sabotage Jim with Michael breaking his promise to the kids. I don't know why everyone was so willing to believe Jim being sneaky though - they've worked with him for years and should know by now that he's not the type to do something like that. Michael, yes, but not Jim. The best part was Dwight doing his impressions of Kevin, Stanley, and Toby over the phone.
30 Rock
This episode had one of the most hilariously disturbing endings on 30 Rock: Liz crying out of her mouth while Frank, rocking the Liz look, kisses her on the cheek. Bizarre, but funny. Fun fact: Mel Brooks is also an EGOT winner.
Flash Forward
When Janis told Simon that the satellite photo had been taken in 1991 and then they cut to commercial, the musical cue was terrible. They might as well have had some guy yell "PLOT TWIST!" at the top of his lungs because it was just that prominent. Musical cues are usually supposed to be subtle. I wonder if Mark really shot Demetri or if they just jumped to that conclusion because it was his gun. And if Lloyd and Simon really did cause the blackout (which I don't believe they did), that doesn't mean they caused the flash forwards, so I don't see what the big deal is.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can get further [sexually] with the other one's mother? Niether of their mothers was a whore so it wasn't really an easy one. Spenny actually copped a lot of feels and stuff before pissing off Kenny's mom. I thought he might win because Kenny was spending most of his time making bestiality jokes about Spenny's mom.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
This Week in Television - Nov. 23-27, 2009
Short week due to the American Thanksgiving on Thursday.
Heroes
Wow, Doug is a pretentious tool. I guess Sandra wanted the exact opposite of Noah. Sylar giving Angela the kiss of death made me laugh because it was so creepy. I don't think the dude with the dreadlocks necessarily has the same power that the Haitian does, because when he was done with Hiro, he hadn't forgotten anything. He still knew he had to escape and rescue someone, he was just confused about who that was. So I guess his power is... confusion?
V
The ending was cool, when they showed more ships coming. Hilarious pattern I noticed: every episode has a scene where Ryan hugs his human girlfriend and he makes an "Oh crap, I hope she doesn't find out I'm a V" face over her shoulder.
Glee
Only saw some of the episode, but I don't think I was missing much. Looked like it was mostly about Quinn's baby.
Survivor: Samoa
Clip show this week.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can keep a chicken coop on their head the longest? I like when they do these competitions that are really out there. This one was probably more entertaining than funny though, except when Kenny was basically doing a stand-up routine on abortion.
Overall rating for this week's shows: B
Heroes
Wow, Doug is a pretentious tool. I guess Sandra wanted the exact opposite of Noah. Sylar giving Angela the kiss of death made me laugh because it was so creepy. I don't think the dude with the dreadlocks necessarily has the same power that the Haitian does, because when he was done with Hiro, he hadn't forgotten anything. He still knew he had to escape and rescue someone, he was just confused about who that was. So I guess his power is... confusion?
V
The ending was cool, when they showed more ships coming. Hilarious pattern I noticed: every episode has a scene where Ryan hugs his human girlfriend and he makes an "Oh crap, I hope she doesn't find out I'm a V" face over her shoulder.
Glee
Only saw some of the episode, but I don't think I was missing much. Looked like it was mostly about Quinn's baby.
Survivor: Samoa
Clip show this week.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Who can keep a chicken coop on their head the longest? I like when they do these competitions that are really out there. This one was probably more entertaining than funny though, except when Kenny was basically doing a stand-up routine on abortion.
Overall rating for this week's shows: B
Saturday, November 21, 2009
This Week in Television - Nov. 16-20, 2009
Heroes
The stuff with Tracy getting help from Claire after losing control of her abilities was kind of pointless and pretty much the same story we got last season when Elle had the same problem. So if Samuel gets stronger around others with abilities, but he was somehow unaware of this without having seen the film, then the question of why he's gathering people is still up in the air. Disappointed that Sylar left Matt's body since watching those two duke it out was awesome, but maybe it will just continue with Sylar vs. Nathan.
V
Tyler is terrible at lying to his mom and stalling for time. Whatever the V's are planning to use him for, I hope they didn't need an intelligent person, because if so they will fail miserably.
Glee
No Sue at all this week, just some crazy obsessive teenage girls and Kurt trying to convert Finn to homosexuality. In a real life situation I would say it wouldn't happen, but since Glee tends to be unrealistic I wouldn't really be that surprised if Kurt and Finn hooked up at some point, even if it's temporary.
Modern Family
This episode was saved by its guest stars, Elizabeth Banks, who is cool, and Edward Norton, who I don't think of as a character actor but he does a good British accent. I also like the role reversal in having the wife be the one who is terrible with gifts and special occasions instead of the husband. Manny's attraction to Haley just seems like a recycling of the George Michael and Mayby thing from Arrested Development, although in this case I think Manny is Haley's... half uncle?
Survivor: Samoa
I didn't like Laura anyway. I'm still not really rooting for anyone in particular though, and there's only 8 left. Kind of a forgettable season in that sense.
Fringe
Awesome, I always found the observers really fascinating. Glad we got an episode to learn more about them. So if they are observing time, it must be that they are trying to either find something or learn something. And given that they are so bizarrely inhuman, why did that one guy start to have feelings?
Parks and Recreation
The hunting trip was kind of funny, but the best part was April and Andy wasting time doing mundane stuff like playing Marco Polo and practicing spit takes. I think they might get together at some point and would actually make a good couple (albeit a slightly weird one) since they're both so lazy and unmotivated.
The Office
Dwight's Recyclops costume was awesome. Kudos to Jim for punishing Ryan, because sometimes he can really be a smug prick. The ending was great when Dwight was so disgusted with the lineup for questions that he just ended up making suggestions for more efficient lineups.
30 Rock
Frank being the greenest person at TGS: funny; Dr. Spaceman making another appearance: awesome; Kathy Geiss's lawyer being a Teddy Ruxpin doll in a suit: priceless.
Flash Forward
Even back when Olivia first got the text, I knew it wasn't from anyone that Mark told. It's gotta be someone who was involved with the blackout. I like that the majority of the episode was about Bryce, because until now I thought of him as more of a minor supporting character. However it seems too soon to be introducing the girl from his flash forward and setting them up to be situated in the same country, because it looks like the first time they meet is in the vision, which would take place (and air) in the spring.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Season 6 kicked off this week with two episodes. The first was "Who Can 69 the Longest?". I read some of the competitions online and was wondering how they were going to do this one without it being too literal - there was no disgusting oral sex involved, just harnesses keeping them attached to each other in a 69-like position. The funniest part was watching them try to move around, and having the crew decide that it was a boring competition so they tortured them to provoke surrender.
The second episode was "Who can touch the most breasts?", and within minutes the term was quickly distorted to include the breasts of men, cows, chicken, and plastic mannequins and dolls. Surprisingly, I don't think Kenny even touched any bare lady breasts and Spenny got several (They're worth 3 points!).
New record: 11 shows this week! Also, for the first time in... possibly ever... I have at least one show on every weeknight.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A+
The stuff with Tracy getting help from Claire after losing control of her abilities was kind of pointless and pretty much the same story we got last season when Elle had the same problem. So if Samuel gets stronger around others with abilities, but he was somehow unaware of this without having seen the film, then the question of why he's gathering people is still up in the air. Disappointed that Sylar left Matt's body since watching those two duke it out was awesome, but maybe it will just continue with Sylar vs. Nathan.
V
Tyler is terrible at lying to his mom and stalling for time. Whatever the V's are planning to use him for, I hope they didn't need an intelligent person, because if so they will fail miserably.
Glee
No Sue at all this week, just some crazy obsessive teenage girls and Kurt trying to convert Finn to homosexuality. In a real life situation I would say it wouldn't happen, but since Glee tends to be unrealistic I wouldn't really be that surprised if Kurt and Finn hooked up at some point, even if it's temporary.
Modern Family
This episode was saved by its guest stars, Elizabeth Banks, who is cool, and Edward Norton, who I don't think of as a character actor but he does a good British accent. I also like the role reversal in having the wife be the one who is terrible with gifts and special occasions instead of the husband. Manny's attraction to Haley just seems like a recycling of the George Michael and Mayby thing from Arrested Development, although in this case I think Manny is Haley's... half uncle?
Survivor: Samoa
I didn't like Laura anyway. I'm still not really rooting for anyone in particular though, and there's only 8 left. Kind of a forgettable season in that sense.
Fringe
Awesome, I always found the observers really fascinating. Glad we got an episode to learn more about them. So if they are observing time, it must be that they are trying to either find something or learn something. And given that they are so bizarrely inhuman, why did that one guy start to have feelings?
Parks and Recreation
The hunting trip was kind of funny, but the best part was April and Andy wasting time doing mundane stuff like playing Marco Polo and practicing spit takes. I think they might get together at some point and would actually make a good couple (albeit a slightly weird one) since they're both so lazy and unmotivated.
The Office
Dwight's Recyclops costume was awesome. Kudos to Jim for punishing Ryan, because sometimes he can really be a smug prick. The ending was great when Dwight was so disgusted with the lineup for questions that he just ended up making suggestions for more efficient lineups.
30 Rock
Frank being the greenest person at TGS: funny; Dr. Spaceman making another appearance: awesome; Kathy Geiss's lawyer being a Teddy Ruxpin doll in a suit: priceless.
Flash Forward
Even back when Olivia first got the text, I knew it wasn't from anyone that Mark told. It's gotta be someone who was involved with the blackout. I like that the majority of the episode was about Bryce, because until now I thought of him as more of a minor supporting character. However it seems too soon to be introducing the girl from his flash forward and setting them up to be situated in the same country, because it looks like the first time they meet is in the vision, which would take place (and air) in the spring.
Kenny vs. Spenny
Season 6 kicked off this week with two episodes. The first was "Who Can 69 the Longest?". I read some of the competitions online and was wondering how they were going to do this one without it being too literal - there was no disgusting oral sex involved, just harnesses keeping them attached to each other in a 69-like position. The funniest part was watching them try to move around, and having the crew decide that it was a boring competition so they tortured them to provoke surrender.
The second episode was "Who can touch the most breasts?", and within minutes the term was quickly distorted to include the breasts of men, cows, chicken, and plastic mannequins and dolls. Surprisingly, I don't think Kenny even touched any bare lady breasts and Spenny got several (They're worth 3 points!).
New record: 11 shows this week! Also, for the first time in... possibly ever... I have at least one show on every weeknight.
Overall rating for this week's shows: A+
Friday, June 12, 2009
DVD Buffet #1
DVD Buffet is a feature I'm going to do sometimes where I talk about the special features I watched from a variety of DVDs. Sorry if you thought this post was about all you can eat digital discs.
Oldboy - Commentary
First off let me just say, for those who are unaware: this film is a masterpiece. It has everything that makes a good movie, including what is easily one of the greatest fight scenes in cinematic history. I have the special three-disc collector's tin version, and it actually comes with three commentaries. I watched the one with the director and cast. It's a little unusual watching a subtitled commentary, and I get the feeling that a few comments may have been overlooked here and there, but it wasn't bad. With the cast there it didn't get too technical, there was a lot of joking and talk about performances and some behind the scenes stories, so it was an entertaining one, which is a relief because if you watch a lot of commentaries you know how boring some of them can be.
Kenny vs. Spenny Season 4 - Deleted Scenes and Alternate Episode
A few of the deleted scenes on this one weren't even deleted, they were in the episodes, so that was lame. But other than that there were some funny ones. I enjoyed seeing Spenny having to bring a goat to his dentist appointment, and Kenny messing around with people in his fat suit. The alternate episode was for the "First One to Stop Singing Loses" competition, so basically what we got was more songs by Kenny. I loved the one that was almost like a TV show theme song about how Baby Spenny was born when a homeless guy jerked off in a trash can and then it got struck by lightning. I don't care if the show is scripted or not, that's funny.
WALL-E - Deleted Scenes and 2 Short Films
I appreciate that the deleted scenes had introductions by the director, because I like hearing the reasons why scenes were omitted. Most of the time it's just for time or redundant content, but there was a scene here that required a whole explanation because they decided to re-do it in a different location with the characters' roles reversed because it wasn't quite right, so it was interesting to see that. The short films were both funny and cute. I loved the idea of BURN-E being about a robot who keeps getting screwed over by the events in the movie. Next time I watch WALL-E I'm going to look for him, because if he's visible in the actual movie then that's even more awesome. The other short, Presto, was about a hungry magician's rabbit who is denied a carrot so he messes with the magician and refuses to come out of the hat, causing all kinds of craziness that the audience seems to think is part of the act. Gotta give Pixar props for creativity.
The Breakfast Club - Character Profiles
When I say "character profiles" I mean people talking about the characters/actors in interviews, not little written articles that they sometimes do on DVDs. I have the "Flashback Edition" of the DVD, which was released somewhat recently, so seeing what the castmembers look like now and having them look back on the film was cool. Unfortunately Molly Ringwald and Emilio Estevez seemed to be unavailable for comment, and John Hughes hasn't been seen in public for many years, but the other castmembers offered a lot of insight. For example, I always felt that Alison sells out at the end when Claire gives her a makeover, and some of the people interviewed said that as well, but Judd Nelson had an acceptable theory: she didn't sell out, she was only letting Claire do something nice for her, it was just kind of a bonding experience. She probably wasn't about to come to school like that every day anyway. Interesting stuff though and a great movie. There were more featurettes about things other than the characters so I will look into those sometime too.
Oldboy - Commentary
First off let me just say, for those who are unaware: this film is a masterpiece. It has everything that makes a good movie, including what is easily one of the greatest fight scenes in cinematic history. I have the special three-disc collector's tin version, and it actually comes with three commentaries. I watched the one with the director and cast. It's a little unusual watching a subtitled commentary, and I get the feeling that a few comments may have been overlooked here and there, but it wasn't bad. With the cast there it didn't get too technical, there was a lot of joking and talk about performances and some behind the scenes stories, so it was an entertaining one, which is a relief because if you watch a lot of commentaries you know how boring some of them can be.
Kenny vs. Spenny Season 4 - Deleted Scenes and Alternate Episode
A few of the deleted scenes on this one weren't even deleted, they were in the episodes, so that was lame. But other than that there were some funny ones. I enjoyed seeing Spenny having to bring a goat to his dentist appointment, and Kenny messing around with people in his fat suit. The alternate episode was for the "First One to Stop Singing Loses" competition, so basically what we got was more songs by Kenny. I loved the one that was almost like a TV show theme song about how Baby Spenny was born when a homeless guy jerked off in a trash can and then it got struck by lightning. I don't care if the show is scripted or not, that's funny.
WALL-E - Deleted Scenes and 2 Short Films
I appreciate that the deleted scenes had introductions by the director, because I like hearing the reasons why scenes were omitted. Most of the time it's just for time or redundant content, but there was a scene here that required a whole explanation because they decided to re-do it in a different location with the characters' roles reversed because it wasn't quite right, so it was interesting to see that. The short films were both funny and cute. I loved the idea of BURN-E being about a robot who keeps getting screwed over by the events in the movie. Next time I watch WALL-E I'm going to look for him, because if he's visible in the actual movie then that's even more awesome. The other short, Presto, was about a hungry magician's rabbit who is denied a carrot so he messes with the magician and refuses to come out of the hat, causing all kinds of craziness that the audience seems to think is part of the act. Gotta give Pixar props for creativity.
The Breakfast Club - Character Profiles
When I say "character profiles" I mean people talking about the characters/actors in interviews, not little written articles that they sometimes do on DVDs. I have the "Flashback Edition" of the DVD, which was released somewhat recently, so seeing what the castmembers look like now and having them look back on the film was cool. Unfortunately Molly Ringwald and Emilio Estevez seemed to be unavailable for comment, and John Hughes hasn't been seen in public for many years, but the other castmembers offered a lot of insight. For example, I always felt that Alison sells out at the end when Claire gives her a makeover, and some of the people interviewed said that as well, but Judd Nelson had an acceptable theory: she didn't sell out, she was only letting Claire do something nice for her, it was just kind of a bonding experience. She probably wasn't about to come to school like that every day anyway. Interesting stuff though and a great movie. There were more featurettes about things other than the characters so I will look into those sometime too.
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