I have to go a little different route with this list. Due to time constraints and the capriciousness of my reading habits, I didn't really read a ton of books that were actually published in 2011, so instead of listing the Top 5 Books of 2011 I'm going to list the Top 5 Books That I Read In 2011. These are all books that I started and finished in 2011 without regards to when they were published and enjoyed the most. It makes the list even more personal then usual but it's all I got. Here are my Top 5 2011 books...
5) Sleepwalk With Me - Mike Birbiglia (2010)
If you're familiar with his stand-up then you know Mike Birbiglia is a funny guy. This book is no exception, as his humor translated wonderfully to the written word. Those of you who have listened to his stand-up will find some of the stories familiar (that doesn't make them any less funny) but there is plenty of new material to keep even the biggest Birbiglia fan entertained. My favorite selection is his story about getting his first kiss. It was wonderfully awkward and laugh out loud hilarious. A great quick and easy read for anyone looking for a good laugh.
4) A Game Of Thrones - George R.R. Martin (1996)
I'm a bit of a sci-fi/fantasy geek (I was reading Tolkien's The Hobbit in first grade) so why it took me so long to pick this book up I'm not quite sure. I've been meaning to read it for years, but some other shiny book always seemed to catch my eye when I entered the book store. Now, thanks in part to all the buzz behind the HBO show, I finally got around to purchasing a copy and giving it a read. Although it's very dark and morbid, Martin's opus lives up to much of the hype surrounding it. I may still prefer Tolkien and Jordan, but Martin and this book certainly belong in the conversation. Great characters (just don't get to attached), compelling story lines (just don't look for inspiration) and a beautifully drawn world make this book one of the best fantasy novels around.
3) Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins (2008)
I have a small aversion to Young Adult novels, being that I am a full grown adult and all, especially when they have this kind of buzz around them. Against my better judgement, I picked this book up to see what the hype was about and was pleasantly surprised. It starts out a little slow and is obviously written for a younger audience, but once the action starts to pick up so does the depth of the characters. Collins characterizations are very subtle yet powerful and I think that's what I liked most about this book. She doesn't spoon feed her young readers. Let's be honest though, as much as the media tries to paint this as an original story, there is nothing original about it. It's part Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, part Koushun Takami's Battle Royale, and part reality television craze. None the less, it's highly worth reading.
2) Redbreast - Joe Nesbo (2000)
This is a Norwegian crime novel that blew me away. Ever since reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, I've gone out looking for Scandinavian crime novels, a genre I find darker, better written and more appealing then it's American counterpart and this is the best I've come across yet. It read very much like the Steig Larsson novels, yet it was published years prior. Nesbo was Steig Larsson before there was a Steig Larsson. If you liked The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo or if you really enjoy dark crime novels this is a must read.
1) Bottom Of The 33rd: Redemption, and Baseball's Longest Game - Dan Berry (2011)
I've read a lot of baseball books in my time, it being my favorite sport and all, but nothing has ever struck me as hard as this book. Maybe it's because I used to go to McCoy Stadium as a kid, where this game was held. I still have a few souvenir cups that have the scoreboard from this game on them. Maybe it's because I grew up watching some of the players involved in the game. I think it's merely because this is such a well written book about not just the longest baseball game to ever be played, but the idea of dreams and aspirations. Berry does an exceptional job of characterizing all the people involved, from the players on their way to the Hall Of Fame, to the players on their way to obscurity, to the owners of the teams involved, to the fans in the stands. I think even a reader who could care less about baseball would get pulled into the world that Barry depicted. The book is about being human more then it is about winning a baseball game. My must read book of the year.
Honorable Mentions : Read Player One- Ernest Cline (2011), Freedom- Jonathan Franzen (2010), One Day- David Nicholls (2010), Water Music- T.C. Boyle (1981)
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Top 5: TV Shows of 2011
Today, instead of dealing with just the new shows, the Top 5 list is Best Television Shows of 2011. Just like yesterday, this list consists of only the shows I was able to watch, so nothing from HBO or Showtime or Starz was considered. And once again, if anyone wants to get me screeners for the premium cable shows I would gladly incorporate them into my lists. But until then here is the Top 5 non-premium cable Television Shows of 2011...
5) New Girl
I talked about this one yesterday in my Top 5 New Show of 2011 list. I started watching this show because of Zooey Deschanel, but have continued to watch because of the great ensemble cast. After a brief creative lull this show has proved to be a consistently hilarious show with a full cast of actors with solid comedic chops and wonderful writers.
4) Louie
This show has only gotten stronger in it's second season. At times it was more dramatic then it was funny, but what really stands out is the high creative quality of each episode. Louis C.K. is an extremely talented man and this show is proof of that, as he has complete creative control from writing to casting to filming to directing to editing. The humor is certainly off beat and raw and the drama is sometimes uncomfortable, but all that is a staple to C.K.'s style. If you aren't watching this show, it's certainly worth giving a shot.
3) The Walking Dead
I know this show takes a lot of hits from critics. People complain that it's too slow or too over the top or poorly acted, but I just don't share those views. I think it's wonderfully paced, the mix between zombie attacks and personal drama is spot on. The show is trying to break from the typical zombie fare by focusing on the human struggles of how to continue society and that requires things to slow down at times. The writers have found a good balance of keeping the horror and zombie threats high while still giving the characters time to deal with personal issues and dilemmas. It's far from a perfect show and it's had a few missteps but I can't help but think of it as appointment TV and one of the best programs of 2011.
2) Community
Just as I put a cancelled show on my best new show list, here is a show in danger of not making it to 2012 on my best show list. In spite of being put on an undetermined hiatus and having pretty horrible ratings, Community is by far the best comedy on TV right now. The risks the writers make to break sitcom convention and satire pop culture seem to always pay off with huge laughs. The show feels both smart and funny and the cast is by far the greatest ensemble on TV. My fingers are crossed that it's given another chance and that people start tuning in because I haven't gotten my fill of this one yet.
1) Friday Night Lights
I have been in love with this show for years and this, it's final season, was probably it's best. Great writing and great acting made this show one of the best dramas ever on broadcast television. The fact the writers were able to write off all the characters we loved the first few seasons and then get us to fall in love with a whole new team is a great accomplishment in itself. Coach Taylor and his wife were easily the best marriage ever depicted, even if their daughter was a spoiled brat. Even though my eyes weren't quite clear those last few episodes (it was a little dusty in my room), my heart was certainly left full and we all know that means this show couldn't lose.
Honorable Mentions : Breaking Bad, Subergatory, How The States Got Their Shapes, Beavis and Butthead
5) New Girl
I talked about this one yesterday in my Top 5 New Show of 2011 list. I started watching this show because of Zooey Deschanel, but have continued to watch because of the great ensemble cast. After a brief creative lull this show has proved to be a consistently hilarious show with a full cast of actors with solid comedic chops and wonderful writers.
4) Louie
This show has only gotten stronger in it's second season. At times it was more dramatic then it was funny, but what really stands out is the high creative quality of each episode. Louis C.K. is an extremely talented man and this show is proof of that, as he has complete creative control from writing to casting to filming to directing to editing. The humor is certainly off beat and raw and the drama is sometimes uncomfortable, but all that is a staple to C.K.'s style. If you aren't watching this show, it's certainly worth giving a shot.
3) The Walking Dead
I know this show takes a lot of hits from critics. People complain that it's too slow or too over the top or poorly acted, but I just don't share those views. I think it's wonderfully paced, the mix between zombie attacks and personal drama is spot on. The show is trying to break from the typical zombie fare by focusing on the human struggles of how to continue society and that requires things to slow down at times. The writers have found a good balance of keeping the horror and zombie threats high while still giving the characters time to deal with personal issues and dilemmas. It's far from a perfect show and it's had a few missteps but I can't help but think of it as appointment TV and one of the best programs of 2011.
2) Community
Just as I put a cancelled show on my best new show list, here is a show in danger of not making it to 2012 on my best show list. In spite of being put on an undetermined hiatus and having pretty horrible ratings, Community is by far the best comedy on TV right now. The risks the writers make to break sitcom convention and satire pop culture seem to always pay off with huge laughs. The show feels both smart and funny and the cast is by far the greatest ensemble on TV. My fingers are crossed that it's given another chance and that people start tuning in because I haven't gotten my fill of this one yet.
1) Friday Night Lights
I have been in love with this show for years and this, it's final season, was probably it's best. Great writing and great acting made this show one of the best dramas ever on broadcast television. The fact the writers were able to write off all the characters we loved the first few seasons and then get us to fall in love with a whole new team is a great accomplishment in itself. Coach Taylor and his wife were easily the best marriage ever depicted, even if their daughter was a spoiled brat. Even though my eyes weren't quite clear those last few episodes (it was a little dusty in my room), my heart was certainly left full and we all know that means this show couldn't lose.
Honorable Mentions : Breaking Bad, Subergatory, How The States Got Their Shapes, Beavis and Butthead
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Top 5 : New TV Shows of 2011
Today's best of 2011 Top 5 is going to be new television shows. I included any show that debuted in 2011, whether that debut was part of the 2010-2011 winter season or the 2011-2012 fall season. The caveat to this list is I only considered shows that I got to watch. I don't have any premium channels so anything on HBO, Showtime or Stars is automatically off the list, so don't get all mad because I didn't list Game Of Thrones or Homeland. Chances are, from everything I've heard, both of these would have made the cut, but I won't get to watch them until they show up on DVD or Netflix. If anyone would like to pay for me to have these channels or if any of the channels would like to send me screener copies, just let me know, I would happily except either and include the shows next year. But until that happens, here's this year's non-premium channel Top 5 New TV Shows...
5) Chicago Code
In all honesty, this wasn't a great year for new television. So much so that I included a show that only lasted 13 episodes before being cancelled. Chicago Code was a Shawn Ryan creation (The Shield, Terriers) that dealt with corruption in Chicago politics and crime fighting. It was a gritty cop show that went beyond the typical cop procedural, which I am not usually a fan of. The show was fantastically acted by Jennifer Beals, Jason Clarke, Matt Lauria and Delroy Lindo, amongst others. It's too bad it wasn't given a chance to further it's complex storylines. Much like Terriers, another Shawn Ryan show, it was killed before its time.
4) Once Upon A Time
I wasn't expecting much from this show from a couple of Lost writers. For one, I wasn't happy with how Lost ended and had a bitter taste in my mouth for anything Lost related. For another, I really didn't know how interesting someone could make the concept of Fairy Tales set in a modern world. But, as what happens a lot of times when expectations are low, I have really enjoyed the show so far. The shows style, moving back and forth from the Fairy Tale World past and the Real World present, harkens back to Lost flashbacks and works to get the viewer wrapped up in both the present characters and the Fairy Tale World history. My only question is, where is the show going? Everything is working for now, but how many seasons can they delay breaking the curse and returning the people of Storybrook back to the Fairy Tale World? And is there any story to tell once that occurs? We'll have to wait and see, I guess, but for now it's certainly one of the best new shows on TV.
3) How The States Got Their Shapes
I can't put into worlds how enthralling I find this History Channel show. The little bits of local history, the events that molded state borders and regional traditions, the funny responses people have to Brian Unger's questions. Everybody should be watching this show. There's a lot to learn from it and a ton of entertainment to be had. I'm not sure if there is going to be a season two or not, they may have fit everything they had to teach us in 10 episodes, but I have my fingers crossed because I can't get enough!
2) Suburgatory
Another show that kind of crept up on me. There wasn't a lot of buzz or publicity behind this show about a single parent father who decides to move his teenage daughter out of the corrupting city to the suburbs, so it kind of flew under my radar. But it only took one viewing to know that this was going to be on my Top 5 new show list. The suburbs that the show depicts is far from reality, but the satire still works in bringing out big laughs. Jeremy Sisto, Jane Levy, Cheryl Hines, Allie Grant, Ana Gasteyer are just a few of the names from this great comedic cast. The show is able to be extremely silly yet deeply heartfelt at the same time, the best recipe for a great show.
1) New Girl
There should be no surprise that this is the number one new show on my list. I had very high hopes for this show based solely on the fact that it's star was Zooey Deschanel and boy did it deliver. Little did I know that the rest of the cast would end up being just as funny and appealing. I got a little scared after the third or fourth episode that they show was going to get stuck in a rut of telling the same story over and over, but they've come out of that strong with a bunch of laugh out loud funny episodes. The quirky off beat comedy might not be for everybody, but it's right up my alley.
Honorable Mentions: Lights Out (canceled), Pan Am, 2 Broke Girls
5) Chicago Code
In all honesty, this wasn't a great year for new television. So much so that I included a show that only lasted 13 episodes before being cancelled. Chicago Code was a Shawn Ryan creation (The Shield, Terriers) that dealt with corruption in Chicago politics and crime fighting. It was a gritty cop show that went beyond the typical cop procedural, which I am not usually a fan of. The show was fantastically acted by Jennifer Beals, Jason Clarke, Matt Lauria and Delroy Lindo, amongst others. It's too bad it wasn't given a chance to further it's complex storylines. Much like Terriers, another Shawn Ryan show, it was killed before its time.
4) Once Upon A Time
I wasn't expecting much from this show from a couple of Lost writers. For one, I wasn't happy with how Lost ended and had a bitter taste in my mouth for anything Lost related. For another, I really didn't know how interesting someone could make the concept of Fairy Tales set in a modern world. But, as what happens a lot of times when expectations are low, I have really enjoyed the show so far. The shows style, moving back and forth from the Fairy Tale World past and the Real World present, harkens back to Lost flashbacks and works to get the viewer wrapped up in both the present characters and the Fairy Tale World history. My only question is, where is the show going? Everything is working for now, but how many seasons can they delay breaking the curse and returning the people of Storybrook back to the Fairy Tale World? And is there any story to tell once that occurs? We'll have to wait and see, I guess, but for now it's certainly one of the best new shows on TV.
3) How The States Got Their Shapes
I can't put into worlds how enthralling I find this History Channel show. The little bits of local history, the events that molded state borders and regional traditions, the funny responses people have to Brian Unger's questions. Everybody should be watching this show. There's a lot to learn from it and a ton of entertainment to be had. I'm not sure if there is going to be a season two or not, they may have fit everything they had to teach us in 10 episodes, but I have my fingers crossed because I can't get enough!
2) Suburgatory
Another show that kind of crept up on me. There wasn't a lot of buzz or publicity behind this show about a single parent father who decides to move his teenage daughter out of the corrupting city to the suburbs, so it kind of flew under my radar. But it only took one viewing to know that this was going to be on my Top 5 new show list. The suburbs that the show depicts is far from reality, but the satire still works in bringing out big laughs. Jeremy Sisto, Jane Levy, Cheryl Hines, Allie Grant, Ana Gasteyer are just a few of the names from this great comedic cast. The show is able to be extremely silly yet deeply heartfelt at the same time, the best recipe for a great show.
1) New Girl
There should be no surprise that this is the number one new show on my list. I had very high hopes for this show based solely on the fact that it's star was Zooey Deschanel and boy did it deliver. Little did I know that the rest of the cast would end up being just as funny and appealing. I got a little scared after the third or fourth episode that they show was going to get stuck in a rut of telling the same story over and over, but they've come out of that strong with a bunch of laugh out loud funny episodes. The quirky off beat comedy might not be for everybody, but it's right up my alley.
Honorable Mentions: Lights Out (canceled), Pan Am, 2 Broke Girls
Monday, December 26, 2011
Top 5: 2011 CDs
This week I am going to try putting up a Top 5 List each day naming the Top 5 Best of 2011. Yes, it's that time of year where everybody comes out with their best of the year lists and who am I to not? I'm going to start with the Top 5 Cds of 2011. I'm not sure most people still buy CDs, but I do so the name still works. I think there is an art to recording a full album of songs and it's an art I enjoy much more then the release of a single, so I'm going to reward those who still strive for 10-15 quality songs strung together to form a complete piece of work. The other caveat I have to put in here is that I'm not as up on the music as I once was. I don't work in a used record store anymore, so I don't get to hear every thing that gets released. This list is the stuff that I was able to give a listen to and fall in love with, that being the case, the advantage is going to go to artists I already know the past work of and am more willing to give their new stuff a try. Anyway, here's the Top 5 2011 Cds...
5) Alpocalypse - Weird Al Yankovic
It was great to see Weird Al back with a strong cd. The weird thing was usually when I listen to one of his cds I pick out all the parody songs. This time, because I'm so out of touch with the pop crap out there, I would turn on the radio and go, hey, that's a Weird Al song. My favorites are "CNR", "Party In The CIA", "Skipper Dan", and of course, his traditional polka mix, "Polka Face".
4) Wasting Light - Foo Fighters
Wasting Light is your typical Foo Fighters release. It's a bunch of mediocre songs with a few amazing tracks thrown in between. I know this doesn't totally fit my criteria of a complete album that works as a single piece of art, but the mediocre songs aren't bad and the amazing songs are so mind blowing I just can't ignore the album. "Bridge Burning", "Rope" and "Walk" are great songs and "Arlandria" is an example of the perfect pop rock song. The lesson is when Dave Grohl and the boys are on nobody is better.
3) El Camino - Black Keys
These guys have been around for a while, El Camino is there 7th studio release, but it looks like they have figured out how to perfect the creation of great album. This follow up to last years amazing Brothers is just as strong, if not stronger. Clocking in 38 minutes from beginning to end, El Camino starts out with the intense soulful "Lonely Boy" and doesn't let up until the cd is over. The front of the cd tells you to play it loud and they aren't kidding. "Lonely Boy" also has the privilege of being the best video I've seen in awhile not made by OK Go. Simple as possible, one guy standing in front of a building dancing and singing along to the song, yet as funny and entertaining as anything I've seen on TV.
2) 21 - Adele
There isn't much I can say about this album or this singer that hasn't been said in every publication or on every best of list for the year. She's an amazing throw back with an incredible voice and a knack for writing songs that capture all the pain and heartache from love lost. Fingers crossed her vocal cord injury doesn't end her career because two albums of her stuff just isn't enough. I'm looking forward to listening to tons of Adele material for years to come.
1) Easy Wonderful - Guster
OK, I'm cheating a little on this one, but oh well. It was released in October of 2010, but I spent most of this year listening to it over and over again, so I'm considering it a 2011 album. I've been listening to Guster for 14 years, they've released a lot of great music, but this album, so far, is the peak of their career. Easy Wonderful is a masterpiece. There isn't a bad or even mediocre song on the album, every song makes me giddy when it pops up on my IPod. In an era where listening to mixes and singles is the only way to listen to music, this cd is the rare cd that you can pop in and listen from beginning to end.
5) Alpocalypse - Weird Al Yankovic
It was great to see Weird Al back with a strong cd. The weird thing was usually when I listen to one of his cds I pick out all the parody songs. This time, because I'm so out of touch with the pop crap out there, I would turn on the radio and go, hey, that's a Weird Al song. My favorites are "CNR", "Party In The CIA", "Skipper Dan", and of course, his traditional polka mix, "Polka Face".
4) Wasting Light - Foo Fighters
Wasting Light is your typical Foo Fighters release. It's a bunch of mediocre songs with a few amazing tracks thrown in between. I know this doesn't totally fit my criteria of a complete album that works as a single piece of art, but the mediocre songs aren't bad and the amazing songs are so mind blowing I just can't ignore the album. "Bridge Burning", "Rope" and "Walk" are great songs and "Arlandria" is an example of the perfect pop rock song. The lesson is when Dave Grohl and the boys are on nobody is better.
3) El Camino - Black Keys
These guys have been around for a while, El Camino is there 7th studio release, but it looks like they have figured out how to perfect the creation of great album. This follow up to last years amazing Brothers is just as strong, if not stronger. Clocking in 38 minutes from beginning to end, El Camino starts out with the intense soulful "Lonely Boy" and doesn't let up until the cd is over. The front of the cd tells you to play it loud and they aren't kidding. "Lonely Boy" also has the privilege of being the best video I've seen in awhile not made by OK Go. Simple as possible, one guy standing in front of a building dancing and singing along to the song, yet as funny and entertaining as anything I've seen on TV.
2) 21 - Adele
There isn't much I can say about this album or this singer that hasn't been said in every publication or on every best of list for the year. She's an amazing throw back with an incredible voice and a knack for writing songs that capture all the pain and heartache from love lost. Fingers crossed her vocal cord injury doesn't end her career because two albums of her stuff just isn't enough. I'm looking forward to listening to tons of Adele material for years to come.
1) Easy Wonderful - Guster
OK, I'm cheating a little on this one, but oh well. It was released in October of 2010, but I spent most of this year listening to it over and over again, so I'm considering it a 2011 album. I've been listening to Guster for 14 years, they've released a lot of great music, but this album, so far, is the peak of their career. Easy Wonderful is a masterpiece. There isn't a bad or even mediocre song on the album, every song makes me giddy when it pops up on my IPod. In an era where listening to mixes and singles is the only way to listen to music, this cd is the rare cd that you can pop in and listen from beginning to end.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Top 5: Christmas Movies
Today we will continue with the Christmas themed Top 5 lists with Top 5 Christmas movies. I am defining a Christmas movie as any movie that's plot and character development is directly effected by the Christmas holiday. I make that distinction because...
5) Die Hard
Die Hard is one of the greatest movies ever made and pretty much spawned it's own film genre, and even though that genre had nothing to do with Christmas, it's easily one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time. I can hear everyone either groaning or yelling at me, but seriously, this is a Christmas movie. The whole plot revolves around the fact that it is Christmas. That's why all the employees are at the Nakatomi Plaza building. That's why John McClane is visiting his wife. No, there is no Santa or reindeer but that doesn't make it any less of a Christmas movie.
4) Miracle On 34th Street
The only old classic on my list. For some reason this one has stayed fresh, while most classic Christmas movies have grown stale. I hate A Christmas Carol and any of it's reincarnations, they bore the crap out of me. It's A Wonderful Life never did anything for me either. But this cute little story about the real Santa getting a job at Macy's and returning faith in the fantastical to a young girl and her mother hasn't aged a bit. Natalie Wood plays the perfect to serious for her age little girl and Edmund Green plays what is easily one of the most iconic turns as Santa.
3) Elf
As hilarious as Will Ferrell is in this movie, what really puts this movie over the edge for me is Zooey Deschanel. Yes, I am part of the Zooey Deschanel cult that has swept the nation with the arrival of Fox's New Girl. I could probably be considered a founding member, since I fell in love with her the first time I saw this movie 8 years ago. Of course there is also the Peter Dinklage cult that I also jumped on after this movie. His scene with Will Ferrell calling him an elf is probably my favorite in the movie. This movie is as funny as it gets and does a great job of talking about Christmas spirit without being too sappy.
2) Christmas Story
A great Christmas movie is as much about nostalgia as anything else and no movie makes me think about my Christmases as a child more then this movie, other then maybe Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas (which is not on this list because I consider it a Christmas special, not a movie). Not that I grew up in the 50's, when the movie is set, but Ralphie and his Red Rider bee-bee gun helps stir up many memories for me. There are so many classic scenes and line in this movie it's hard to pick a favorite. And no matter how many times TNT decides to show it, it just doesn't get old to me.
1) National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
I make sure to pull out this DVD every year around Thanksgiving because it wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't sit down and give it a view. As funny as Elf is, this movie makes me laugh ten times harder and I've seen it dozens of times. It reminds me so much of Christmas with my family and is totally ridiculous at the same time. I fall off the couch in fits of laughter every time that squirrel jumps out of the tree and chases everyone around the house. And anything with the old aunt has me in stitches. This is Chevy Chase at his best and a must see Christmas movie every year.
Honorable Mentions: Lethal Weapon, Ernest Saves Christmas, Santa Clause (1985)
5) Die Hard
Die Hard is one of the greatest movies ever made and pretty much spawned it's own film genre, and even though that genre had nothing to do with Christmas, it's easily one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time. I can hear everyone either groaning or yelling at me, but seriously, this is a Christmas movie. The whole plot revolves around the fact that it is Christmas. That's why all the employees are at the Nakatomi Plaza building. That's why John McClane is visiting his wife. No, there is no Santa or reindeer but that doesn't make it any less of a Christmas movie.
4) Miracle On 34th Street
The only old classic on my list. For some reason this one has stayed fresh, while most classic Christmas movies have grown stale. I hate A Christmas Carol and any of it's reincarnations, they bore the crap out of me. It's A Wonderful Life never did anything for me either. But this cute little story about the real Santa getting a job at Macy's and returning faith in the fantastical to a young girl and her mother hasn't aged a bit. Natalie Wood plays the perfect to serious for her age little girl and Edmund Green plays what is easily one of the most iconic turns as Santa.
3) Elf
As hilarious as Will Ferrell is in this movie, what really puts this movie over the edge for me is Zooey Deschanel. Yes, I am part of the Zooey Deschanel cult that has swept the nation with the arrival of Fox's New Girl. I could probably be considered a founding member, since I fell in love with her the first time I saw this movie 8 years ago. Of course there is also the Peter Dinklage cult that I also jumped on after this movie. His scene with Will Ferrell calling him an elf is probably my favorite in the movie. This movie is as funny as it gets and does a great job of talking about Christmas spirit without being too sappy.
2) Christmas Story
A great Christmas movie is as much about nostalgia as anything else and no movie makes me think about my Christmases as a child more then this movie, other then maybe Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas (which is not on this list because I consider it a Christmas special, not a movie). Not that I grew up in the 50's, when the movie is set, but Ralphie and his Red Rider bee-bee gun helps stir up many memories for me. There are so many classic scenes and line in this movie it's hard to pick a favorite. And no matter how many times TNT decides to show it, it just doesn't get old to me.
1) National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
I make sure to pull out this DVD every year around Thanksgiving because it wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't sit down and give it a view. As funny as Elf is, this movie makes me laugh ten times harder and I've seen it dozens of times. It reminds me so much of Christmas with my family and is totally ridiculous at the same time. I fall off the couch in fits of laughter every time that squirrel jumps out of the tree and chases everyone around the house. And anything with the old aunt has me in stitches. This is Chevy Chase at his best and a must see Christmas movie every year.
Honorable Mentions: Lethal Weapon, Ernest Saves Christmas, Santa Clause (1985)
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Top 5: Christmas Songs
Over the next week I'm going to go Top 5 list crazy. It's that time of the year when everybody is doing their top whatever of the year and I'm no exception. It's also the holiday season and I realized that I've never done any Christmas Top 5's, so I'll end this week with a couple of Christmas lists and then Top 5 of the Years all next week.
I'll start with my list of Top 5 Christmas songs. The thing with any list of Christmas songs is that the person singing is almost as important as the song itself. Everybody wants to do their own version of the classics, some come out great, some come out horrible. Here is my list of Top 5 Christmas Songs...
5) My Grown Up Christmas List - Kelly Clarkson
This is a song nobody but the biggest Kelly Clarkson fans are probably familiar with (yes, I'm huge Kelly Clarkson fan. Yes, I'm slightly embarrassed about that. No, I make no apologies!). As far as I know, the only way to get it is on a bonus cd that was packaged with the American Idol Christmas album. I'm not sure what it is I love about the song, but it strikes a cord with me.
4) All I Want For Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey
OK, in all fairness, my love of this song probably has more to do with the video then the song itself. I had a huge crush on Mariah as a young man and there was just something about here frolicking in the snow in a tight red Santa outfit that I found extremely appealing. I do stand behind the song as well. It's probably the most popular of the "new" Christmas classics you here on the radio today. It fits in wonderfully with the old standards and stuff like "Jingle Bell Rock", which a lot of the newer Christmas songs can't say.
3) Santa Baby - Rev. Run and The Christmas All Stars
This is the first example of a certain version of a song being more important then the song itself. There are a lot of horrible versions of this song. And, to tell you the truth, I think the song itself is not very good on its own. But, this version, found on A Very Special Christmas 3, takes the shell of the original and adds so much extra it becomes a wonderful song. They essentially turned it into a rap song. There aren't that many Christmas themed rap songs, "Christmas In Hollis" comes to mind but that's it, so I think the rarity of the genre adds to my love of the song. It's a rare example of taking an original, turning it on its head and making it better then before.
2) Silver Bells - Dean Martin
The only real standard I put on the list. That's not to say I don't like the standards, the next five in my top 10 would probably be all standards. My favorite Christmas album is probably the Rat Pack Christmas. This is also another example of my love of the version being bigger then my love of the song. Deano kills it and I really have no idea why this isn't the version of "Silver Bells" that gets played all the time. On the other end of the spectrum, the worst version of "Silver Bells" has to be by Barry Manilow. It's about as God awful as a song gets.
1) Mr. Heatmiser - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
This cover from the Christmas special, The Year Without Santa Clause, is so awesome that I play it all year round. I absolutely love this song. I'm sure the horns have something to do with it since I love almost any song with horns, but the Dixieland style of the tune appeals to me as well. In this version they combine both Heat Miser and Snow Miser's themes into one upbeat toe tapping tune. I can't imagine a Christmas without hearing this song dozens of times!
Honorable Mentions - almost anything by Dean Martin (Marshmallow World, Baby It's Cold Outside, Winter Wonderland, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer), The First Noel - Frank Sinatra, Silent Night - Frank Sinatra, Most Wonderful Time Of The Year - Johnny Mathis, Little Saint Nick - Beach Boys
I'll start with my list of Top 5 Christmas songs. The thing with any list of Christmas songs is that the person singing is almost as important as the song itself. Everybody wants to do their own version of the classics, some come out great, some come out horrible. Here is my list of Top 5 Christmas Songs...
5) My Grown Up Christmas List - Kelly Clarkson
This is a song nobody but the biggest Kelly Clarkson fans are probably familiar with (yes, I'm huge Kelly Clarkson fan. Yes, I'm slightly embarrassed about that. No, I make no apologies!). As far as I know, the only way to get it is on a bonus cd that was packaged with the American Idol Christmas album. I'm not sure what it is I love about the song, but it strikes a cord with me.
4) All I Want For Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey
OK, in all fairness, my love of this song probably has more to do with the video then the song itself. I had a huge crush on Mariah as a young man and there was just something about here frolicking in the snow in a tight red Santa outfit that I found extremely appealing. I do stand behind the song as well. It's probably the most popular of the "new" Christmas classics you here on the radio today. It fits in wonderfully with the old standards and stuff like "Jingle Bell Rock", which a lot of the newer Christmas songs can't say.
3) Santa Baby - Rev. Run and The Christmas All Stars
This is the first example of a certain version of a song being more important then the song itself. There are a lot of horrible versions of this song. And, to tell you the truth, I think the song itself is not very good on its own. But, this version, found on A Very Special Christmas 3, takes the shell of the original and adds so much extra it becomes a wonderful song. They essentially turned it into a rap song. There aren't that many Christmas themed rap songs, "Christmas In Hollis" comes to mind but that's it, so I think the rarity of the genre adds to my love of the song. It's a rare example of taking an original, turning it on its head and making it better then before.
2) Silver Bells - Dean Martin
The only real standard I put on the list. That's not to say I don't like the standards, the next five in my top 10 would probably be all standards. My favorite Christmas album is probably the Rat Pack Christmas. This is also another example of my love of the version being bigger then my love of the song. Deano kills it and I really have no idea why this isn't the version of "Silver Bells" that gets played all the time. On the other end of the spectrum, the worst version of "Silver Bells" has to be by Barry Manilow. It's about as God awful as a song gets.
1) Mr. Heatmiser - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
This cover from the Christmas special, The Year Without Santa Clause, is so awesome that I play it all year round. I absolutely love this song. I'm sure the horns have something to do with it since I love almost any song with horns, but the Dixieland style of the tune appeals to me as well. In this version they combine both Heat Miser and Snow Miser's themes into one upbeat toe tapping tune. I can't imagine a Christmas without hearing this song dozens of times!
Honorable Mentions - almost anything by Dean Martin (Marshmallow World, Baby It's Cold Outside, Winter Wonderland, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer), The First Noel - Frank Sinatra, Silent Night - Frank Sinatra, Most Wonderful Time Of The Year - Johnny Mathis, Little Saint Nick - Beach Boys
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Book Review: Ready Player One
What’s the old saying, “There’s nothing new under the
sun,”? That was the feeling I was given
while reading Ready Player One.
Much like Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games, Ready Player One is a
book with a lot of buzz (ok, to be fair, no where near as much buzz as Hunger
Games, but still a lot in book selling circles) that is supposed to be
fresh and original. Although some
aspects of the story were new and inventive, such as a rich compute designer
creating a game to win his inheritance, the idea of a bunch of kids running
through a virtual world laced with pop cultural references just isn’t. The whole time I was reading I couldn’t help
but compare Ready Player One to Tad Williams’ Otherworld
series. Otherworld was also about
a bunch of kids running through a virtual world laced with pop cultural
references, but it was better written and more compelling. This comparison took a lot of the stuffing
out of my enjoyment of the new book.
That’s not
to say I didn’t enjoy the book at all.
I’m a pop culture geek, so anything that is able to reference and center
a plot on stuff from my childhood is going to hold some level of enjoyment for
me. Ready Player One is a fun and
easy read. And maybe that’s why I found Otherworld
more compelling; the stakes in Otherworld are much higher. Otherworld is a darker more serious
story while Ready Player One has the feel of a romp through my favorite
80’s and 90’s pop culture. While both
books require their main characters to have some understanding of pop culture, Otherworld’s
understanding means life and death while Ready Player One’s just means
you win a game. If lighter fare is more
your style, then maybe you would enjoy Ready Player One more then me,
but if you’re big into science fiction and like a little more weight to your
reading, skip Ready Player One and try out Otherworld instead.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Book Review: Redbreast
Knowing what I know about domestic literature, I can’t help
but find reading foreign stuff a dicey prospect. When reading a novel from a country or
culture I am unfamiliar with, I feel that I am being informed as well as
entertained, but how trustworthy is that feeling? How can one know when a novel is a true
reflection of real life in a foreign setting or just a fun house mirror,
distorting and exaggerating for the sake of plot and excitement? As I got wrapped up in the world Norwegian
author Joe Nesbo created in his novel Redbreast, thinking I now know
more about life in Norway, some of the political issues they deal with, how
their justice system works, what the scars and blemishes of their culture are
and how they got there, it suddenly dawned on me, “What if this guy is the Norwegian
John Grisham?”
Think what
you want about Grisham’s talents as an author, but it can’t be argued that his
novels are purely for enjoyment; he plays fast and loose with facts and reality
to keep his stories fast paced and thrilling.
Would you want someone from Norway
forming opinions about American life based on The Firm? It’s easy for us to determine his works are a
form of escapism because we live here, we know what’s real and what’s
exaggerated (at least most of us do).
But what if you had never stepped on US soil? What if you never spent time immersed in our
culture? Would if be so obvious?
Redbreast
is a well written, well constructed crime novel that spans two generations
and 60 years. The story and how it plays
out reminded me very much of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but
lighter in tone and more mainstream. So
much so that I wondered if in some circles it would be considered a Steig
Larsson rip off trying to cash in on the other book’s success, but Redbreast
was written five years earlier then the other book. It’s this construction and the novel’s
subject matter, the effects of WWII and Nazism in Scandinavian countries, that
gives it the air of authority. By making
history and personal politics major plot points, one is lulled into believing
that they are being more then just entertained.
But the fact remains that I still have very little idea what role Nazism
plays in modern Norway
or how prevalent it is. I also have no
clue how WWII effected how Norwegians look at their fellow countrymen, no
matter what insight I may feel I’ve been given.
In all
fairness to John Grisham, he has written novels that show people slices of
American culture, warts and all. As over
the top as the conclusion to A Time To Kill may have been, it did a good
job showcasing racism in the South and the power it holds. While not totally true to life, it was a very
solid depiction. So maybe if Joe Nesbo
is Norway’s
John Grisham then Redbreast is his A Time To Kill and I’m
worrying about nothing. Maybe if I just
let myself enjoy Redbreast for what it is, a wonderful character driven crime
novel centered on an interesting love story, and not go looking for anything
more or deeper, I would avoid any and all pitfalls. Either way, the real answer seems to be
somewhere in the middle. When reading
foreign literature, be a little leery, don’t take everything as concrete fact,
enjoy the ride you are being taken on and maybe you walk away a little more
informed and a lot more entertained.
**Side Note: My other
fascination with foreign literature is the translator. With this novel, I found it a little
interesting that I knew the translator was British without looking at his
bio. Nationality does have an effect on
how a novel is translated from language to language.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Symphony of Illumination
I am so furious after watching this episode that this should be a pretty short post. The fact that subterfuge is becoming the only trick in the writer's bag has made this show extremely frustrating to watch. It's like the writer's decided to take everything I hated about Lost and apply it to a sitcom. I don't want to be lied to or misled, just tell me a funny story about friends hanging out and growing up. Unlike Charlie Brown, I will only have the football pulled away from me so many times before I go home and I am dangerously close to going home. I groaned when they announced Robin wasn't pregnant even though I knew it was another false positive, then I got confused about why they would announce that Barney was Robin's husband even though I figured that's the way things are going, then I wondered why they would show Robin's kids if they were telling us she couldn't be pregnant because why do we need yet another mystery, and then I threw my remote across the room when she told us the whole thing was a lie. Robin has become a totally loathsome character and I'm not sure why I should be emotionally involved with Ted wanting to cheer her up because Ted shouldn't be wasting his energy on such a horrible person.
3-7-2. This show better pick things up or it may go the way of Glee and disappear from my TIVO.
3-7-2. This show better pick things up or it may go the way of Glee and disappear from my TIVO.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Top 5: Muppets
In honor of the new Muppet movie (which I hope to have a review of up soon) I thought it would be fitting to do a Muppet themed Top 5. I've been a huge Muppet fan for as long as I can remember. I would get beyond excited every time I saw the spinning ITC Entertainment logo pop up on the television screen. Much like the CBS "Special Presentation" logo, I knew what was about to follow was going to be pure awesome. The genius of the Muppets is that they have kept me entertained over the years. As I have grown, so has my appreciation for the Muppet humor; The Muppets are able to entertain people of any age. So, without any further ado, here is my Top 5 Favorite Muppets...
5) Pepe The King Prawn
I am probably more forgiving then most when it comes to the Muppets. I can't think of a project of theirs that I didn't enjoy. Most people panned their last movie, Muppets In Space, which even though flawed, I loved for one major reason, Pepe. The movie's main character may have been Gonzo, but for me it was all about the hilarious king prawn. Every scene he was in had me in stitches. I was more then a little disappointed he didn't have bigger role in The Muppets, but there's always the next movie.
4) Rizzo The Rat
Rizzo was another bright spot in Muppets In Space. The way he and Pepe played off each other was comedic brilliance. Although around since the days of The Muppet Show, Rizzo first came to prominence during The Muppets Take Manhattan. I love his bitter sarcasm and ability to seem above his fellow Muppets shenanigans. One of his best roles was as fellow narrator with Gonzo in The Muppet Christmas Carol.
3) The Swedish Chief
This character is pure silly and draws from the most base humor possible, but he make me laugh. There is nothing high brow or subtle about his gibberish he speaks or the kitchen disasters he causes, but I love it none the less. One f my favorite moments of his was in The Muppets Take Manhattan when he was working in the movie theater. He was wearing 3D glasses and singing, "Popcorn popping in your face. 3D!" as he threw popcorn at himself. For whatever reason it's always stuck with me.
2) Animal
One of the best cameo's in The Muppets was Dave Grohl dressed up like Animal in a Muppet cover band called The Moppets. I know a lot of drummers and almost all of them site Animal as a reason they started to play. I can't imagine it was much different for Grohl, so it must have been a joy to play that role in the movie. Animal is easily one of the most iconic Muppets after Kermit. Henson obviously patterned him after drummers he knew, because his frantic energy and crazed persona fits the psyche of every drummer I've known. It's this energy that makes Animal a favorite and one of the funniest Muppets around.
1) Statler and Waldorf
If Animal is the Muppet most like my drummer friends, then these two jokers are probably the closest to me. I couldn't even quantify the amount of time I've spent in my life sitting with a friend on the fringes of things commenting and heckling everyone and everything that passes by. I'm sure most of my friends would add crotchety to the list of adjectives that would describe both me and this pair. The original Beavis and Butt-head, these two's ruthless attacks on their fellow Muppets have always left me in stitches.
Honorable Mentions: Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Crazy Harry, Lew Zealand
5) Pepe The King Prawn
I am probably more forgiving then most when it comes to the Muppets. I can't think of a project of theirs that I didn't enjoy. Most people panned their last movie, Muppets In Space, which even though flawed, I loved for one major reason, Pepe. The movie's main character may have been Gonzo, but for me it was all about the hilarious king prawn. Every scene he was in had me in stitches. I was more then a little disappointed he didn't have bigger role in The Muppets, but there's always the next movie.
4) Rizzo The Rat
Rizzo was another bright spot in Muppets In Space. The way he and Pepe played off each other was comedic brilliance. Although around since the days of The Muppet Show, Rizzo first came to prominence during The Muppets Take Manhattan. I love his bitter sarcasm and ability to seem above his fellow Muppets shenanigans. One of his best roles was as fellow narrator with Gonzo in The Muppet Christmas Carol.
3) The Swedish Chief
This character is pure silly and draws from the most base humor possible, but he make me laugh. There is nothing high brow or subtle about his gibberish he speaks or the kitchen disasters he causes, but I love it none the less. One f my favorite moments of his was in The Muppets Take Manhattan when he was working in the movie theater. He was wearing 3D glasses and singing, "Popcorn popping in your face. 3D!" as he threw popcorn at himself. For whatever reason it's always stuck with me.
2) Animal
One of the best cameo's in The Muppets was Dave Grohl dressed up like Animal in a Muppet cover band called The Moppets. I know a lot of drummers and almost all of them site Animal as a reason they started to play. I can't imagine it was much different for Grohl, so it must have been a joy to play that role in the movie. Animal is easily one of the most iconic Muppets after Kermit. Henson obviously patterned him after drummers he knew, because his frantic energy and crazed persona fits the psyche of every drummer I've known. It's this energy that makes Animal a favorite and one of the funniest Muppets around.
1) Statler and Waldorf
If Animal is the Muppet most like my drummer friends, then these two jokers are probably the closest to me. I couldn't even quantify the amount of time I've spent in my life sitting with a friend on the fringes of things commenting and heckling everyone and everything that passes by. I'm sure most of my friends would add crotchety to the list of adjectives that would describe both me and this pair. The original Beavis and Butt-head, these two's ruthless attacks on their fellow Muppets have always left me in stitches.
Honorable Mentions: Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Crazy Harry, Lew Zealand
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: The Rebound Girl
As I try to figure out exactly where the HIMYM writers are going wrong, many possibilities come to mind. The most obvious is that they've just run out of ideas. We are now in season seven of a show that barley made it out of season two and it just might be that they've exhausted all the ideas they had for a show that they didn't expect to run this long. Craig Thomas and Carter Bays based the show on their friendship and personal experiences and no matter how rich a life you lead, that well has to run out at some point. But "The Rebound Girl" is the perfect example of that just not being the case yet. The show's current problems aren't a lack of ideas, the writer's still have a ton of those, but seem to lie in the execution of those ideas.
Although filled with funny premises, "The Rebound Girl" failed to deliver the laughs that it should have. The thought of Barney and Ted deciding to raise a kid together is hilarious, but the motives were all wrong. Barney's character has grown a lot over the last few seasons but not once has he ever expressed any interest in having a family, so the jump to wanting to raise a kid with Ted seemed to huge to believe. In light of his recent heartbreak, if the writers had just made his desire to have kids a play to get into the chasing girls game, it would have worked much better. I know this was touched upon briefly, but it was a side effect not a desired result. It was a funny idea that the writer's just bungled.
Another funny premise was how Lily and Marshal found their apartment so small after visiting Lily's grandparent's house in Long Island. But again, everything else written around that premise felt wrong. The first scene of the episode with Lily and Marshal in Long Island felt so familiar I thought at first I was watching last week's episode. I was pretty sure we had resolved the house issue and all of a sudden they are having the same discussion they had last week. It's not that it was a bad plot point or that it's unbelievable that the two would readdress what to do with the house, but it didn't work putting it so close to the original plot. Why not have a few weeks of them struggling to sell it, draw it out, make it an albatross that they eventually grow to love? It just felt forced the way they presented it and was a disservice to the funny premise of their apartment feeling small.
The premise was also ruined by Robin's over the top reaction and hysterics. They must have felt they needed to work Robin into the stories somehow, but this didn't work and the revelation that she is pregnant at the end seemed forced as well. Without Barney, the writers seem to have no idea what to do with her, which begs the question, why have her choose Kevin over him in the first place? The pregnant angle feels so cliche and like another stall tactic by the HIMYM writers.
We're almost half way through season seven and the shows record stands at 3-6-2.
Although filled with funny premises, "The Rebound Girl" failed to deliver the laughs that it should have. The thought of Barney and Ted deciding to raise a kid together is hilarious, but the motives were all wrong. Barney's character has grown a lot over the last few seasons but not once has he ever expressed any interest in having a family, so the jump to wanting to raise a kid with Ted seemed to huge to believe. In light of his recent heartbreak, if the writers had just made his desire to have kids a play to get into the chasing girls game, it would have worked much better. I know this was touched upon briefly, but it was a side effect not a desired result. It was a funny idea that the writer's just bungled.
Another funny premise was how Lily and Marshal found their apartment so small after visiting Lily's grandparent's house in Long Island. But again, everything else written around that premise felt wrong. The first scene of the episode with Lily and Marshal in Long Island felt so familiar I thought at first I was watching last week's episode. I was pretty sure we had resolved the house issue and all of a sudden they are having the same discussion they had last week. It's not that it was a bad plot point or that it's unbelievable that the two would readdress what to do with the house, but it didn't work putting it so close to the original plot. Why not have a few weeks of them struggling to sell it, draw it out, make it an albatross that they eventually grow to love? It just felt forced the way they presented it and was a disservice to the funny premise of their apartment feeling small.
The premise was also ruined by Robin's over the top reaction and hysterics. They must have felt they needed to work Robin into the stories somehow, but this didn't work and the revelation that she is pregnant at the end seemed forced as well. Without Barney, the writers seem to have no idea what to do with her, which begs the question, why have her choose Kevin over him in the first place? The pregnant angle feels so cliche and like another stall tactic by the HIMYM writers.
We're almost half way through season seven and the shows record stands at 3-6-2.
Monday, November 28, 2011
Walking Dead: Pretty Much Dead Already
So much for any glimmer of hope. The half-season finale only took our bunch of survivors further down the rabbit hole of despair by shattering Hershel's world view and putting the group's search for Sophia at an end. Granted, both were a house of cards waiting to tumble, but I held on to a small sliver of hope that someone would walk away with something to look forward too. I guess if we wanted to be eternal optimists there was one person who ended the half-season on a high note; good old Glenn seems to have finally solidified his love connection with Maggie.
I like to think I'm a pretty savvy television watcher, but I have to admit I totally missed the thought of Sophia being in the barn. It seems so obvious after the fact, but I didn't see it coming. I'm not sure that's saying anything about the writers of the the show. It's more likely that I was lulled into the drama and violence to see what was right in front of my face. It would have been disingenuous to the tone the writers have set if Sophia was found alive after all this time, so I was expecting the group to find her in zombie form, but it never dawned on me that she would be in the barn. It was a nice exclamation point on the insanity that broke out to have her stumble out of the open doorway. As discouraging as it was, it was a powerful way to wrap up the season's search.
Which means the disappointment I felt lay in the handling of Hershel and his zombies. Did they need to shatter Hershel's world so dramatically and leave him so traumatized? Couldn't the group have moved on from the farm leaving Hershel to come to grips with the new world order on his own terms? At some point there needs to be some hope for these survivors or the insane ramblings of Shane will become not crazed but prophetic. I realize we must hit bottom before we can rise back up and that despair makes for better drama than triumph, but giving Hershel his barn would have been a small sign that people can find piece of mind in this apocalyptic world as fragile as that piece of mind might be.
On other notes... earlier in the season I was on board with the turn Shane was taking. He was a yin to Rick's yang. A voice of practicality to balance out irrationally hopeful. Now, I feel like they've taken him too far. How can he come back from his outburst? It seems to me that the writer's have built a situation where the only rational thing from the group to do is break into two camps; two camps that can't co-exist together. Shane has obviously gone off the deep end and I can't believe that there can be any other outcome then his death, like in the comics, or his departure from the group. This could have been a much slower burn, but now the writers have put themselves in a corner.
I like to think I'm a pretty savvy television watcher, but I have to admit I totally missed the thought of Sophia being in the barn. It seems so obvious after the fact, but I didn't see it coming. I'm not sure that's saying anything about the writers of the the show. It's more likely that I was lulled into the drama and violence to see what was right in front of my face. It would have been disingenuous to the tone the writers have set if Sophia was found alive after all this time, so I was expecting the group to find her in zombie form, but it never dawned on me that she would be in the barn. It was a nice exclamation point on the insanity that broke out to have her stumble out of the open doorway. As discouraging as it was, it was a powerful way to wrap up the season's search.
Which means the disappointment I felt lay in the handling of Hershel and his zombies. Did they need to shatter Hershel's world so dramatically and leave him so traumatized? Couldn't the group have moved on from the farm leaving Hershel to come to grips with the new world order on his own terms? At some point there needs to be some hope for these survivors or the insane ramblings of Shane will become not crazed but prophetic. I realize we must hit bottom before we can rise back up and that despair makes for better drama than triumph, but giving Hershel his barn would have been a small sign that people can find piece of mind in this apocalyptic world as fragile as that piece of mind might be.
On other notes... earlier in the season I was on board with the turn Shane was taking. He was a yin to Rick's yang. A voice of practicality to balance out irrationally hopeful. Now, I feel like they've taken him too far. How can he come back from his outburst? It seems to me that the writer's have built a situation where the only rational thing from the group to do is break into two camps; two camps that can't co-exist together. Shane has obviously gone off the deep end and I can't believe that there can be any other outcome then his death, like in the comics, or his departure from the group. This could have been a much slower burn, but now the writers have put themselves in a corner.
Walking Dead: Secrets
The revelations in "Secrets" brings more into focus the yin and yang approach to the new world that is being represented by Hershel and Rick's group. In Hershel we see a man of faith who so believes that things can go back to the way they were that he is keeping and feeding family and friends that have turned in hopes that they can be cured of their "illness". On the other side we have Lori, who is willing to abort her child because of the horrible future she sees for it and Shane, who is willing to sacrifice people for the good of the many. Even though two beliefs are being presented, you can't help but feel the more cynical will win out. Hershel, as good hearted and well intentioned as he seems, has put himself and his crew in a position where things can only get worse. In that regard, Walking Dead seems to be a parable about losing faith. Hershel is headed toward the same realization that Rick and Shane and Lori and the rest have already come to, that they are on their own, that no amount of faith will bring back normalcy. I hope the writers don't follow down that road. I hope they show that as horrible as life may become there is always room for faith. Even in a zombie apocalypse their are ways to bring about a new normalcy, one that would be safe for future generations, it's just up to this generation to establish it. The show is doing a great job showcasing the hardship and the horror, but it could use a little dash of hope to keep things going.
In other notes... I'm finding Dale's ability to figure everyone's secrets out a little silly. I find it very hard to believe that he is able to know everything we know from the little bits that he has seen or been told. There is no way he would doubt Shane's story about Otis or at least not enough to vocalize it yet. I know I shouldn't be expecting a zombie show to be true to life, but a little bit of credibility here would go a long way.
Are we heading toward Shane's death? I got the feeling that Shane was going to be with us for a while, but now Carl is learning to shoot and Rick knows he slept with Lori. I think it would be more interesting to keep him around, but as was pointed out to me by a friend, some needs to die soon and for those of us who read the comic, it seems to be pointing towards Shane.
In other notes... I'm finding Dale's ability to figure everyone's secrets out a little silly. I find it very hard to believe that he is able to know everything we know from the little bits that he has seen or been told. There is no way he would doubt Shane's story about Otis or at least not enough to vocalize it yet. I know I shouldn't be expecting a zombie show to be true to life, but a little bit of credibility here would go a long way.
Are we heading toward Shane's death? I got the feeling that Shane was going to be with us for a while, but now Carl is learning to shoot and Rick knows he slept with Lori. I think it would be more interesting to keep him around, but as was pointed out to me by a friend, some needs to die soon and for those of us who read the comic, it seems to be pointing towards Shane.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Top 5 : Beavis And Butt-head Episodes
In honor of the triumphant return of Beavis and Butt-head to MTV, I thought it would be fitting to work them into a top 5. I had forgotten how influential B&B had been for my generation until I started watching the new episodes. Seeing the two main characters tear apart bad videos stupid reality shows brought up an interesting "chicken or egg" question. Was the original run of the show so successful because it reflected the jaded sarcasm that was already present in our generation or did B&B teach it to us? Either way, I can't help but feel it played some role in creating the "too cool" hipster community that is so prevalent in today's society. None the less, it was a huge source of entertainment for me through my formative high school years and looks to be returning to form 14 years later, so here is my list of Top 5 Old School Beavis and Butt-head episodes...
5) Burger World (Season 2)
This is one of the episodes that I remember putting B&B on the cultural map. The boys are working at a fast food joint and end up serving Mr. Anderson a fried rat and bugs. There was an outrage about showing fast food workers doing something so horrible. It's a far cry from the stuff that South Park gets away with today, but it was a big deal in '93 and certainly paved the way for Matt Stone and Trey Parker to work their satiric magic.
4) No Laughing (Season 2)
This was a two part episode where Principle McVicker forbids B&B from laughing because they are being to disruptive in during class. After the punishment is handed down, the two boys find themselves in Coach Buzzcut's sex ed class and hilarity ensues. As stupid and immature as B&B are, there's a little kid in all of us that find dirty words and funny names hilarious and it's that little bit of truth blown up to ridiculous proportions that makes this show so great. This episode was a perfect and early example.
3) Very Special Christmas (Season 3)
This episode was nothing but B&B watching and making fun of Christmas videos. As funny as the plot parts of the episodes were, what really made B&B so funny were the videos. And as many horrible videos as Mike Judge showed, there were also a ton of great ones. B&B was a great source of new music for a kid who lived in the boonies of Northwestern Connecticut and had very few outlets for anything but top 40 fare. This episode didn't have any good music in it, except "Christmas in Hollis", just really funny Christmas crap and, of course, the burning Yule Log.
2) Choke (Season 5)
Butt-head chokes on a chicken nugget and it's up to Beavis to save his life. It's probably the stupidest brand of humor you can find, but I laughed through this episode at least 100 times. I'm not proud of it, but it doesn't change the fact that it's one of my all time favorites.
1) The Great Cornholio (Season 4), Buttniks (Season 5), Bungholio: Lord of The Harvest (season 6), Vaya con Cornholio (Season 7)
I know it's cheating to list four episodes and count them as one, but I lived for anything Cornholio. To the point where, on boring weekend nights in high school, I was know to wander the frozen food section of the local grocery store with my shirt over my head. My favorite of the four was probably the Halloween one, where Cornholio pops up after Beavis gets a hold of to much candy, even though nothing can ever really beat the first appearance of such a classic character.
Honorable Mention: Kidnapped (season 3), Cow Tipping (season 4), Vs. The Vending Machine (season 4), Spanish Fly (season 5)
5) Burger World (Season 2)
This is one of the episodes that I remember putting B&B on the cultural map. The boys are working at a fast food joint and end up serving Mr. Anderson a fried rat and bugs. There was an outrage about showing fast food workers doing something so horrible. It's a far cry from the stuff that South Park gets away with today, but it was a big deal in '93 and certainly paved the way for Matt Stone and Trey Parker to work their satiric magic.
4) No Laughing (Season 2)
This was a two part episode where Principle McVicker forbids B&B from laughing because they are being to disruptive in during class. After the punishment is handed down, the two boys find themselves in Coach Buzzcut's sex ed class and hilarity ensues. As stupid and immature as B&B are, there's a little kid in all of us that find dirty words and funny names hilarious and it's that little bit of truth blown up to ridiculous proportions that makes this show so great. This episode was a perfect and early example.
3) Very Special Christmas (Season 3)
This episode was nothing but B&B watching and making fun of Christmas videos. As funny as the plot parts of the episodes were, what really made B&B so funny were the videos. And as many horrible videos as Mike Judge showed, there were also a ton of great ones. B&B was a great source of new music for a kid who lived in the boonies of Northwestern Connecticut and had very few outlets for anything but top 40 fare. This episode didn't have any good music in it, except "Christmas in Hollis", just really funny Christmas crap and, of course, the burning Yule Log.
2) Choke (Season 5)
Butt-head chokes on a chicken nugget and it's up to Beavis to save his life. It's probably the stupidest brand of humor you can find, but I laughed through this episode at least 100 times. I'm not proud of it, but it doesn't change the fact that it's one of my all time favorites.
1) The Great Cornholio (Season 4), Buttniks (Season 5), Bungholio: Lord of The Harvest (season 6), Vaya con Cornholio (Season 7)
I know it's cheating to list four episodes and count them as one, but I lived for anything Cornholio. To the point where, on boring weekend nights in high school, I was know to wander the frozen food section of the local grocery store with my shirt over my head. My favorite of the four was probably the Halloween one, where Cornholio pops up after Beavis gets a hold of to much candy, even though nothing can ever really beat the first appearance of such a classic character.
Honorable Mention: Kidnapped (season 3), Cow Tipping (season 4), Vs. The Vending Machine (season 4), Spanish Fly (season 5)
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Tick, Tick, Tick
I am incredibly torn on which column in the HIMYM season record to put this episode. Much like last week, I was certain where it was going to until the last 5 to 10 minutes and then things changed. Unlike last week, those final minutes didn't clear things up me, but only muddied them up. I've made it pretty clear on this blog why I watch HIMYM, I'm looking for a good laugh, and this episode, short of a few good lines about sandwiches and hard meat, seemed to run as far away from laughter as if could. That's a problem when you're a sitcom. As I've said in the past, there is room for drama in sitcoms but it needs to be surrounded by funny and in the first few seasons of this show the writers seemed to be masters at doing that. But that mastery is a distant memory at this point in the game. Of late, episodes that jump into the dramatic aspects of the group's life leave behind the jokes. If I was looking for large doses of melodrama I would have kept watching Gray's Anatomy.
Yet, the final scene of Tick, Tick, Tick was such a well written, well set-up punch to the stomach moment, I don't think I can put the episode in the loss column. I can see where some people may complain that it just further delays the inevitable, a too often used tactic the last few seasons, but does it matter? Unlike past delay tactics, the pay off was to great to pass up. The question now is, where do they take Barney's character? Does he go groveling back to Nora? (God, I hope not) Does he go back to whoring it up? (Fingers crossed!) Is he able to hang out with the group anymore? I know if I was him I wouldn't want to see Robin's face. How do you face someone who would leave you in that position? In all honesty, how does Barney ever get back together with her now? We're talking about a character that was scared of intimacy and finally left himself be vulnerable only to get cut down. It's certainly a dose of his own medicine, but how does he come back after all the growth we've seen?
Of course, the reason this moment may have hit me so hard was we were so close to getting rid of Kal Penn! Like Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown at the last moment, I was sure this was the moment his horrible character would be punted out of my life only to have the writers renege in the end. It hurts my soul to think my time with him will be extended at all. He was originally contracted for two more episodes, so there is still the chance that the Robin/Kevin relationship comes to an end in the next two episodes, but I also feel that would be a sell out to the moment just created. Why break Barney (and our) hearts for two more episodes?
So, in the end, I'm going to cop out again, keep straddled on the fence and put Tick, Tick, Tick in the tie column (I am a hockey fan after all). This season's record stands at 3-5-2.
Yet, the final scene of Tick, Tick, Tick was such a well written, well set-up punch to the stomach moment, I don't think I can put the episode in the loss column. I can see where some people may complain that it just further delays the inevitable, a too often used tactic the last few seasons, but does it matter? Unlike past delay tactics, the pay off was to great to pass up. The question now is, where do they take Barney's character? Does he go groveling back to Nora? (God, I hope not) Does he go back to whoring it up? (Fingers crossed!) Is he able to hang out with the group anymore? I know if I was him I wouldn't want to see Robin's face. How do you face someone who would leave you in that position? In all honesty, how does Barney ever get back together with her now? We're talking about a character that was scared of intimacy and finally left himself be vulnerable only to get cut down. It's certainly a dose of his own medicine, but how does he come back after all the growth we've seen?
Of course, the reason this moment may have hit me so hard was we were so close to getting rid of Kal Penn! Like Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown at the last moment, I was sure this was the moment his horrible character would be punted out of my life only to have the writers renege in the end. It hurts my soul to think my time with him will be extended at all. He was originally contracted for two more episodes, so there is still the chance that the Robin/Kevin relationship comes to an end in the next two episodes, but I also feel that would be a sell out to the moment just created. Why break Barney (and our) hearts for two more episodes?
So, in the end, I'm going to cop out again, keep straddled on the fence and put Tick, Tick, Tick in the tie column (I am a hockey fan after all). This season's record stands at 3-5-2.
Monday, November 14, 2011
The Walking Dead: Chupacabra
When trying to survive a zombie apocalypse do you focus of the needs of the few or the needs of the many? That seems to be the dilemma season 2 is boiling down to. Should the group follow Rick who is holding every life precious even if it puts everyone in potential danger or should they follow Shane who obviously feels a few casualties are OK as long as you are protecting the lives of everyone else? Will the search for Sophia end up causing more damage then finding her at this point? It's a question that's just as hard to answer in a normal society but the savagery of the zombie world pulls the argument out to the fore front. I'm not sure either Rick or Shane is totally right, but the dilemma is an interesting one. I have a feeling that Rick will come out on top, that the writers will focus on the triumph of humanity over savagery, but it isn't a question that will be easily answered.
In other news, I guess we now know why Hershel is so worried about the traveling group getting to close and wanting to stay around... he's hiding a troop of zombies in his hay barn. Poor Glenn ran into the biggest cock block you find in the zombie world. How will everyone react? Will Glenn keep quiet about it for Maggie or will he blab to the group? Will this revelation effect how much longer Rick and company stay around looking for Sophia? Maybe the bigger question is, why is Hershel keeping zombies in his barn. The obvious answer is that they are all close friends or family members who got turned, people he didn't have the heart to kill. If the zombie's aren't hurting anyone, is there any harm in keeping them around? I can't help but think this type of thing only ends in disaster.
The last from the episode I need to comment on is the return of Michael Rooker as Merle Dixon. I'm hoping a figment of Daryl's imagination isn't the only way we will see Merle from here on out. I'm still holding out hope that he will end up being the Governor. It seems like an obvious way for the character to develop. I also wonder if we are going to see Morgan and Duane return like in the comics or when and if Tyresse will make an appearance.
In other news, I guess we now know why Hershel is so worried about the traveling group getting to close and wanting to stay around... he's hiding a troop of zombies in his hay barn. Poor Glenn ran into the biggest cock block you find in the zombie world. How will everyone react? Will Glenn keep quiet about it for Maggie or will he blab to the group? Will this revelation effect how much longer Rick and company stay around looking for Sophia? Maybe the bigger question is, why is Hershel keeping zombies in his barn. The obvious answer is that they are all close friends or family members who got turned, people he didn't have the heart to kill. If the zombie's aren't hurting anyone, is there any harm in keeping them around? I can't help but think this type of thing only ends in disaster.
The last from the episode I need to comment on is the return of Michael Rooker as Merle Dixon. I'm hoping a figment of Daryl's imagination isn't the only way we will see Merle from here on out. I'm still holding out hope that he will end up being the Governor. It seems like an obvious way for the character to develop. I also wonder if we are going to see Morgan and Duane return like in the comics or when and if Tyresse will make an appearance.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Disaster Averted
I'm starting to get so confused with the HIMYM timeline, it feels like I'm watching Lost and not my favorite sitcom. It used to be pretty easy to follow. Bob Saget was speaking from the future, all the events occurred in our timeline, every once and a while the group would flash back to the past. But after "Disaster Averted", I have no idea where in time the story is at. The writers have us conditioned to believe that the group sitting around telling the story of the hurricane would be happening today, or close to today, but two things that happened last season/before June (Lilly getting pregnant and Barney meeting Nora), were said to happen during the hurricane which was a little over two months ago. It doesn't make any sense! I feel like the writers are really starting to play fast and loose with the timeline and if that happens the whole show unravels. Also, with dealing with an event that just happened, you risk in being out of date by the time the show airs. I'm almost positive Robin would have brought up the October blizzard when telling a story about the wimpy hurricane.
I was all ready to count this episode as a win, but then I got to the end of the episode and everything fell apart. It started off great with the Indiana Jones sequence that turned into a Duck Tie joke. I knew the Duck Tie could be the joke that kept on giving, something that has been missing from HIMYM the last few seasons. But, just as it was starting to pay off, they took it away and replaced it with a recurring joke that has lost it's steam. The Slap Bet has been played out. It was great and part of me was excited to see that last slap, but it's moment is over. I can't believe they sacrificed the Duck Tie for an old joke. And speaking of rehashed jokes, I'm really getting tired of the Ted tells long story jokes. I get it, the show is aware of itself, it was funny the first time but the 100th time is just too much.
As if the time line and killing the Duck Tie weren't enough, the writer's further ruined the episode with a forced Robin/Barney kiss out of nowhere. I understand that they've been setting this up for a couple seasons now, but it still seemed forced in the moment and rushed. We spent a whole episode focused on the Slap Bet, Marshal's fears and Ted's boy scoutness and then all of a sudden they throw in a Robin/Barney kiss at the end. This much awaited reunion deserved more set up then it was given. If I'm going to take anything positive out of the kiss, it's that it hopefully brings an end to Kal Penn! (I think he has three episodes left. That's three to many)
With all the problems at the end there were a few funny moments in between. As stupid as the "Marshal scared of not being insured" story was, the dreams of him getting mauled by a bear were great. I think it was the obviously fake bear suit that really sold the joke. I also liked Ted's therapised line, even though Penn's break down of what Barney was trying to do had little to do with therapy or psychology.
The season record is 3-5-1.
I was all ready to count this episode as a win, but then I got to the end of the episode and everything fell apart. It started off great with the Indiana Jones sequence that turned into a Duck Tie joke. I knew the Duck Tie could be the joke that kept on giving, something that has been missing from HIMYM the last few seasons. But, just as it was starting to pay off, they took it away and replaced it with a recurring joke that has lost it's steam. The Slap Bet has been played out. It was great and part of me was excited to see that last slap, but it's moment is over. I can't believe they sacrificed the Duck Tie for an old joke. And speaking of rehashed jokes, I'm really getting tired of the Ted tells long story jokes. I get it, the show is aware of itself, it was funny the first time but the 100th time is just too much.
As if the time line and killing the Duck Tie weren't enough, the writer's further ruined the episode with a forced Robin/Barney kiss out of nowhere. I understand that they've been setting this up for a couple seasons now, but it still seemed forced in the moment and rushed. We spent a whole episode focused on the Slap Bet, Marshal's fears and Ted's boy scoutness and then all of a sudden they throw in a Robin/Barney kiss at the end. This much awaited reunion deserved more set up then it was given. If I'm going to take anything positive out of the kiss, it's that it hopefully brings an end to Kal Penn! (I think he has three episodes left. That's three to many)
With all the problems at the end there were a few funny moments in between. As stupid as the "Marshal scared of not being insured" story was, the dreams of him getting mauled by a bear were great. I think it was the obviously fake bear suit that really sold the joke. I also liked Ted's therapised line, even though Penn's break down of what Barney was trying to do had little to do with therapy or psychology.
The season record is 3-5-1.
How I Met Your Mother: The Slutty Pumpkin Returns
3-4-1. Here's the funny thing about comedy, things become funnier when you share them with others. I'm not sure why this is, but I have numerous examples of it happening. I didn't think Austin Powers was that funny at all and then I sat around with some friends rehashing the movie and realized it was side-splitting. I liked Borat a lot, but once I talked about it's great moments with co-workers, I loved it. "The Slutty Pumpkin Returns" was an OK episode that was funny but flawed and then I spent some time with friends and it became hilarious. I was probably going to put it in the tie column, but given a little time to share the experience I had a change of heart.
That's not to say I'm still not critical of the episode, just more forgiving then usual. I don't buy the whole slutty pumpkin plot. If Katty Holmes was so eager to meet back up with Ted, why did she never return to the party like he did? And, man was I disappointed with how the slutty pumpkin costume actually looked! Why show the costume? Wouldn't it have played better if you left to our imagination like they did in the first episode? Also, as funny as the concept as pregnancy brain may be, the Lilly/Marshal story-line, like many of the Lilly/Marshal story-lines this season, just fell flat.
But this was a win, not a loss, so let's focus on the good. The "Barney is a quarter Canadian" plot line carried the episode and over shadowed many of episodes flaws. It shows the power of one well written and set up joke. Every aspect of the joke had me laughing starting with the idea that everyone would be friends with Barney's real dad on Facebook. Marshal's line that Jerome has gotten pretty good at Bejewled Blitz was great. This show seems to be at it's comedic best when it makes fun of Barney and at this point in the show's run, nothing would cause more humiliation then him having a little Canadian blood. Yes, it was one joke and a fairly easy one once Barney's heritage was established, but talking about it with friends had me in stitches, which is all I should be asking from HIMYM in the first place. And of course, the one thing that may have been more responsible for this ending up in the win column, at least for this season... No Kal Penn!!
That's not to say I'm still not critical of the episode, just more forgiving then usual. I don't buy the whole slutty pumpkin plot. If Katty Holmes was so eager to meet back up with Ted, why did she never return to the party like he did? And, man was I disappointed with how the slutty pumpkin costume actually looked! Why show the costume? Wouldn't it have played better if you left to our imagination like they did in the first episode? Also, as funny as the concept as pregnancy brain may be, the Lilly/Marshal story-line, like many of the Lilly/Marshal story-lines this season, just fell flat.
But this was a win, not a loss, so let's focus on the good. The "Barney is a quarter Canadian" plot line carried the episode and over shadowed many of episodes flaws. It shows the power of one well written and set up joke. Every aspect of the joke had me laughing starting with the idea that everyone would be friends with Barney's real dad on Facebook. Marshal's line that Jerome has gotten pretty good at Bejewled Blitz was great. This show seems to be at it's comedic best when it makes fun of Barney and at this point in the show's run, nothing would cause more humiliation then him having a little Canadian blood. Yes, it was one joke and a fairly easy one once Barney's heritage was established, but talking about it with friends had me in stitches, which is all I should be asking from HIMYM in the first place. And of course, the one thing that may have been more responsible for this ending up in the win column, at least for this season... No Kal Penn!!
The Walking Dead: Cherokee Rose
It looks like The Walking Dead is falling into a set pacing pattern as, once again, a highly charged, action packed, super eventful episode is followed by a slower, less dramatic one. Not that I'm complaining, I'm just pointing out the pattern. It's these "slower" episodes that help give the show it's depth of character, setting up for the action packed episodes and making their impact that much deeper. This show isn't 24, it's not slam down the accelerator action and never let up. The show is about what happens between the zombie attacks and sacrifice of life. And, in that sense, it's episodes like "Cherokee Rose" that are more important then "Save The Last One."
That being said, holy shit, was that well zombie disturbing! That has to be one of the most disgusting sequences I've ever seen on television. The bloated animated corpse that looked like something from The Hills Have Eyes was bad enough, but when he ruptured at the waist causing his lower half to explode back into the well followed by T-Dog braining the still alive torso put it over the top. It was zombie gore at it's cable best!
Some questions I'm left asking at this point in season... Will the group ever find Sophia? She plays a fairly big role in the comic, but as we've seen so far that doesn't really mean much to the television show. How far will Shane take Andrea down the same dark path he seems to be traveling? Are these two the male and female equivalents of the new zombie society paradigm or is this leading to a bad end for Andrea? Are we going to have a Carol/Daryl hook up? That feels a little odd and wrong, but also seems to be an avenue the writers could take. As Maggie pointed out, the options are pretty limited now and everyone feels lonely. What does the infected water mean for the survivors? They never addressed this. Is all the water at the farm now tainted? Doesn't this mean no one can stay at the farm anymore? And the most obvious question, still unanswered in the comic as far as I know, is Lori pregnant by Rick or Shane? This obviously sets up all kinds of future issues. In all honesty, I would have rather they hide this plot point a little longer, kept in question what exactly Lori had asked Glenn to get, have Lori show little signs of pregnancy without making it obvious. I think it would have played better.
That being said, holy shit, was that well zombie disturbing! That has to be one of the most disgusting sequences I've ever seen on television. The bloated animated corpse that looked like something from The Hills Have Eyes was bad enough, but when he ruptured at the waist causing his lower half to explode back into the well followed by T-Dog braining the still alive torso put it over the top. It was zombie gore at it's cable best!
Some questions I'm left asking at this point in season... Will the group ever find Sophia? She plays a fairly big role in the comic, but as we've seen so far that doesn't really mean much to the television show. How far will Shane take Andrea down the same dark path he seems to be traveling? Are these two the male and female equivalents of the new zombie society paradigm or is this leading to a bad end for Andrea? Are we going to have a Carol/Daryl hook up? That feels a little odd and wrong, but also seems to be an avenue the writers could take. As Maggie pointed out, the options are pretty limited now and everyone feels lonely. What does the infected water mean for the survivors? They never addressed this. Is all the water at the farm now tainted? Doesn't this mean no one can stay at the farm anymore? And the most obvious question, still unanswered in the comic as far as I know, is Lori pregnant by Rick or Shane? This obviously sets up all kinds of future issues. In all honesty, I would have rather they hide this plot point a little longer, kept in question what exactly Lori had asked Glenn to get, have Lori show little signs of pregnancy without making it obvious. I think it would have played better.
The Walking Dead: Save The Last One
Whenever a movie or television series is adapted from a piece of literature those of us who were fans of the original print material can't help but hold the new production up to it. In The Walking Dead, one of the most obvious and controversial differences between the comic book and the television series is the fact that Shane didn't meet an early demise at the hands of Carl after going into a jealous rage with Rick over Lori. Robert Kirkman, the creator of the comic book, has said working on the TV show and keeping Shane alive lets him play George Lucas and play with his original creation. In a way, what Kirkman has done is create parallel worlds or universes, one where Shane dies and one where Shane lives. Kirkman has also said that Shane's presence fundamentally changes the show, as he can't help but be a major player in what happens to the group. "Save The Last One" is the perfect example of how this true this statement is.
As surprising as the death of Otis was to many, he had a long life in the comic and was being played by a somewhat known character actor in the show, when Shane turned up at the farm alone I had a feeling he was behind Otis' death. Reading the comic, even though he was in it very briefly, has left me with a strong distrust for Shane and his motives. Whether a short stint in the comic or what is looking to be a long sojourn in the show, Shane has a dark journey to take and it's pretty obvious that the sacrifice of Otis is just the beginning. I guess the better question is, in the zombie infested world of The Walking Dead, will this journey end as tragic or heroic?
As I tend to point out ad nauseum, what makes The Walking Dead so special is it's look at humanity in the face of extraordinary circumstances. A zombie apocalypse would obviously establish new rules for society and Kirkman and friends have never shied away from tackling what those changes might be. One of the biggest issues the writers deal with is, at what price and to what extent does one go to for survival. In terms of the events in "Save The Last One," were Shane's actions heroic because he did what was needed to save Carl and himself or is he a cold blooded murderer or, in the new zombie society, is there a difference between the two? Is this the beginning of Shane spiraling deeper and deeper into darkness and insanity (some people suggest he will become the Governor... I think it's going to be Merle)? Or will he become a rock the group can depend on to do what needs to be done when the more emotional wishy-washy Rick can't?
These are questions that can only be answered over time (or sitting in the writer's room as they hash out plot lines), but the fact that the show is willing to explore them and sacrifice any character in the process excites me. The Walking Dead is more then just a zombie show, it's a exploration of society and episodes like "Save The Last One" that dive into these themes are what makes it one of the best shows currently on TV.
As surprising as the death of Otis was to many, he had a long life in the comic and was being played by a somewhat known character actor in the show, when Shane turned up at the farm alone I had a feeling he was behind Otis' death. Reading the comic, even though he was in it very briefly, has left me with a strong distrust for Shane and his motives. Whether a short stint in the comic or what is looking to be a long sojourn in the show, Shane has a dark journey to take and it's pretty obvious that the sacrifice of Otis is just the beginning. I guess the better question is, in the zombie infested world of The Walking Dead, will this journey end as tragic or heroic?
As I tend to point out ad nauseum, what makes The Walking Dead so special is it's look at humanity in the face of extraordinary circumstances. A zombie apocalypse would obviously establish new rules for society and Kirkman and friends have never shied away from tackling what those changes might be. One of the biggest issues the writers deal with is, at what price and to what extent does one go to for survival. In terms of the events in "Save The Last One," were Shane's actions heroic because he did what was needed to save Carl and himself or is he a cold blooded murderer or, in the new zombie society, is there a difference between the two? Is this the beginning of Shane spiraling deeper and deeper into darkness and insanity (some people suggest he will become the Governor... I think it's going to be Merle)? Or will he become a rock the group can depend on to do what needs to be done when the more emotional wishy-washy Rick can't?
These are questions that can only be answered over time (or sitting in the writer's room as they hash out plot lines), but the fact that the show is willing to explore them and sacrifice any character in the process excites me. The Walking Dead is more then just a zombie show, it's a exploration of society and episodes like "Save The Last One" that dive into these themes are what makes it one of the best shows currently on TV.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Fall TV: Part 3
It's a little delayed thanks to power outages and lack of time, but here's the final installment in my run down of all the fall television shows that ended up on my Tivo...
American Horror
I'm a big Connie Britton fan, so I was more then a little excited to see Mrs. Coach coming back to TV now that Friday Night Lights is over. Of course, anytime you're excited about something you're bound to be let down. This is a show that benefited a little from my delay writing this because if I had written after the pilot I would have slammed it, now it's just going to get a modest slapping. The pilot was way over the top and seemed to just be perverse just to be perverse. I was more then a little stumped why Britton would be involved in this show at all after coming off such a work of genius. Things have gotten a little better, the plot is more fleshed out and the stupid needless sex has been way toned down. I'm going to keep watching, but I'm ready to turn off if things go back to what the pilot suggested.
VERDICT: It will stay on my DVR... for now
South Park
There really isn't much to write about this show now in it's 15 season. South Park is the Pearl Jam of TV, they've found a successful formula for cranking out quality work and are just going to stick to that formula as long as it stays fun or people will let them. South Park is by far the best satire of our society out there, nobody or no thing is left untouched. Hopefully it will keep going for another 15 years.
VERDICT: Stays at #14 on my season pass
The League
This show has quickly become one of the funniest shows on TV as long as they follow one rule. Oddly enough, that rule is to stay away from the premise the show was started on, fantasy football. The show has developed funny entertaining characters that are almost as hilariously evil as those on Always Sunny..., but it just seems to lose all it's funny the minute they start dealing with football. I'm fine with it staying in the background, with functioning as a reason for the characters to get together, but they need to keep the plot lines separate from fantasy football. They also need to make Raffi a regular and not just a reoccurring character. I don't remember a scene he was in that didn't end with me rolling on the floor with laughter.
VERDICT: Stays at #16 on my season pass
The Walking Dead
Since I like to write about this show on an episode by episode basis, there really shouldn't be much doubt that it's one of my favorites on television. What I really enjoy is how the writers try to focus on how people would deal on an emotional level with a zombie apocalypse. Not that there isn't as much gore as cable television will allow, but the human element is what separates it from other zombie fare. As far as I'm concerned, it's up there with other AMC all-stars, Mad Men and Breaking Bad, in the best show on TV conversation.
VERDICT: Moves to #5 on my season pass
Man Up
I didn't have very high hopes for this show, but it had a few funny people involved, Dan Fogler, Terri Polo, Amanda Detmer, and I'm always willing to give a sitcom a try. And after watching a few episodes... there's not really much to say. I'd be surprised if the show makes it through a whole season, but it doesn't offend me enough that I'll stop watching. It's a had a couple funny moments, so I'll stay on board for now.
VERDICT: Stays on my DVR... for now.
Chuck
I feel like I'm just playing out the string watching this final season. I am certainly going to miss watching Yvonne Strahovski on a weekly basis, but the show just feels over played at this point. Making Morgan the Intersect is just silly and I would day it was the Chuck writer's jumping the shark if I didn't feel like they jumped the shark by giving Chuck kung fu powers a few seasons ago. This was a great show and has become mildly entertaining. It feels right that this be it's final season.
VERDICT: stays at #22 on my Season Pass
Grimm
I can't help but compare this to Once Upon A Time, which I'll get to next, since both are shows about fairy tales coming to life. The premise of Grimm is much more solid then the other, it's police procedural structure lends to a much longer shelf life, but the writing and acting are so awful it's embarrassing. Also, I couldn't help but think of Supernatural. Someone fighting monsters, protecting a public that would never believe what he knows to be true. It's been done before and done much better and much scarier. I got through the pilot and half of the second episode before giving up. I groaned one too many times at the horrible writing.
VERDICT: Erased from DVR after one and a half episodes
Once Upon A Time
Another fairy tale turned real drama, this one from the creators of Lost. It's much better then Grimm, but I'm not sure how long the premise can go on. You are only going to be able to delay the characters return to fairy tale land so long before viewers get tired of the delaying and then what? For now, the writing is pretty clever, the acting is spot on and even though it gets a little confusing at times (what would you expect from Lost writers), it's pretty entertaining.
VERDICT: Staying on my DVR
Hell On Wheels
Nothing like a western, but I'm not sure if this one is going to keep me watching. It seems to want to be as edgy as Deadwood but not being on HBO kind of hurts in that category. Even so, the characters are interesting enough and nothing says western more then a good revenge story. AMC has a pretty good track record so far, so while I wasn't blown away by the pilot, I'm going to keep watching with interest.
VERDICT: Staying on my DVR
American Horror
I'm a big Connie Britton fan, so I was more then a little excited to see Mrs. Coach coming back to TV now that Friday Night Lights is over. Of course, anytime you're excited about something you're bound to be let down. This is a show that benefited a little from my delay writing this because if I had written after the pilot I would have slammed it, now it's just going to get a modest slapping. The pilot was way over the top and seemed to just be perverse just to be perverse. I was more then a little stumped why Britton would be involved in this show at all after coming off such a work of genius. Things have gotten a little better, the plot is more fleshed out and the stupid needless sex has been way toned down. I'm going to keep watching, but I'm ready to turn off if things go back to what the pilot suggested.
VERDICT: It will stay on my DVR... for now
South Park
There really isn't much to write about this show now in it's 15 season. South Park is the Pearl Jam of TV, they've found a successful formula for cranking out quality work and are just going to stick to that formula as long as it stays fun or people will let them. South Park is by far the best satire of our society out there, nobody or no thing is left untouched. Hopefully it will keep going for another 15 years.
VERDICT: Stays at #14 on my season pass
The League
This show has quickly become one of the funniest shows on TV as long as they follow one rule. Oddly enough, that rule is to stay away from the premise the show was started on, fantasy football. The show has developed funny entertaining characters that are almost as hilariously evil as those on Always Sunny..., but it just seems to lose all it's funny the minute they start dealing with football. I'm fine with it staying in the background, with functioning as a reason for the characters to get together, but they need to keep the plot lines separate from fantasy football. They also need to make Raffi a regular and not just a reoccurring character. I don't remember a scene he was in that didn't end with me rolling on the floor with laughter.
VERDICT: Stays at #16 on my season pass
The Walking Dead
Since I like to write about this show on an episode by episode basis, there really shouldn't be much doubt that it's one of my favorites on television. What I really enjoy is how the writers try to focus on how people would deal on an emotional level with a zombie apocalypse. Not that there isn't as much gore as cable television will allow, but the human element is what separates it from other zombie fare. As far as I'm concerned, it's up there with other AMC all-stars, Mad Men and Breaking Bad, in the best show on TV conversation.
VERDICT: Moves to #5 on my season pass
Man Up
I didn't have very high hopes for this show, but it had a few funny people involved, Dan Fogler, Terri Polo, Amanda Detmer, and I'm always willing to give a sitcom a try. And after watching a few episodes... there's not really much to say. I'd be surprised if the show makes it through a whole season, but it doesn't offend me enough that I'll stop watching. It's a had a couple funny moments, so I'll stay on board for now.
VERDICT: Stays on my DVR... for now.
Chuck
I feel like I'm just playing out the string watching this final season. I am certainly going to miss watching Yvonne Strahovski on a weekly basis, but the show just feels over played at this point. Making Morgan the Intersect is just silly and I would day it was the Chuck writer's jumping the shark if I didn't feel like they jumped the shark by giving Chuck kung fu powers a few seasons ago. This was a great show and has become mildly entertaining. It feels right that this be it's final season.
VERDICT: stays at #22 on my Season Pass
Grimm
I can't help but compare this to Once Upon A Time, which I'll get to next, since both are shows about fairy tales coming to life. The premise of Grimm is much more solid then the other, it's police procedural structure lends to a much longer shelf life, but the writing and acting are so awful it's embarrassing. Also, I couldn't help but think of Supernatural. Someone fighting monsters, protecting a public that would never believe what he knows to be true. It's been done before and done much better and much scarier. I got through the pilot and half of the second episode before giving up. I groaned one too many times at the horrible writing.
VERDICT: Erased from DVR after one and a half episodes
Once Upon A Time
Another fairy tale turned real drama, this one from the creators of Lost. It's much better then Grimm, but I'm not sure how long the premise can go on. You are only going to be able to delay the characters return to fairy tale land so long before viewers get tired of the delaying and then what? For now, the writing is pretty clever, the acting is spot on and even though it gets a little confusing at times (what would you expect from Lost writers), it's pretty entertaining.
VERDICT: Staying on my DVR
Hell On Wheels
Nothing like a western, but I'm not sure if this one is going to keep me watching. It seems to want to be as edgy as Deadwood but not being on HBO kind of hurts in that category. Even so, the characters are interesting enough and nothing says western more then a good revenge story. AMC has a pretty good track record so far, so while I wasn't blown away by the pilot, I'm going to keep watching with interest.
VERDICT: Staying on my DVR
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Top 5 : Pearl Jam Songs
Even though it seems to have blown out of proportion with a movie, a record, a book and a tour, I wanted to do a list in honor of the 20th anniversary of the best American band out there. I decided to go with Top 5 Songs, which was almost as hard as picking the Top 5 Beatles Songs. I kept the list to only original songs, leaving Last Kiss and Leaving Here, both strong candidates, out of the running. A couple things I thought while researching this list... I always liked Binaural but most fans consider it the bands worst album, upon further listening I still don't get it. I think it's a much better album then both Riot Act and Pearl Jam, which I find lackluster. Also, I always considered the era of great Pearl Jam albums to end with Vitalogy, everything after seemed to be pretty formulaic, but listening again I couldn't help but love No Code, probably the most underrated Pearl Jam album. But enough about the albums, here are my Top 5 favorite Pearl Jam songs...
5) Just Breath (Backslider)
Super simple lullaby style song. For a band that is at it's best when it goes big, loud and fast, this is a great departure. Eddie Vedder has always had a special style of singing that worked great the bigger songs, but here he shows that he has the versatility to do slow and subtle as well. That says nothing about the powerful lyrics, something Vedder has never had a problem producing.
4) Life Wasted (Pearl Jam)
Ok, it was a mostly lackluster album. It had a couple really good tracks and this was probably the best of the Formulaic Album era. I liked the Wasted Reprise even better then the song, but since it was called a reprise and was just the chorus with only an organ as accompaniment, I considered it part of the song as a whole.
3) Better Man (Vitalogy)
Some times this song takes some knocks for being to commercial, so I guess I really like commercial music because I love this song. The way it builds from a guitar, to guitar and lyrics, to all out rock fest is perfect and fits the subject matter wonderfully. Vedder's lyrics are best the more personal they get and it doesn't get more personal then this song.
2) Porch (Ten)
I'm not sure there is a song that gets me more pumped up then Porch. Another song that uses the art of building up to a furious crescendo, it starts with Vedder singing with only a guitar riff backing him up, then adds a little drums before the song erupts into a crazed frenzy. The unplugged version from Pearl Jam's MTV Unplugged is just as intense and easily Pearl Jam at it's best. I keep my fingers crossed any time I see them live that this one makes the setlist, because it makes the show that much greater.
1) Black (Ten)
This one is special to me for various reasons outside of how great it is as a song. Even though it is closer to a rock ballad then the type of Pearl Jam song I enjoy the best, it's easily my all time favorite. The lyrics strike home and have given me comfort many times over the years. Vedder's intensity by songs end leaves me breathless every time I hear it. It's possibly one of my top ten favorite songs by any band ever.
Honorable Mentions: Alive (Ten), Yellow Ledbetter (Old Dogs), Footsteps (Old Dogs), Go (Vs), Rearviewmirror (Vs), Blood (Vs), Corduroy (Vitalogy), Hail, Hail (No Code), Lukin (No Code), Do The Evolution (Yield), Breakerfall (Binaural), Nothing As It Seems (Binaural)
5) Just Breath (Backslider)
Super simple lullaby style song. For a band that is at it's best when it goes big, loud and fast, this is a great departure. Eddie Vedder has always had a special style of singing that worked great the bigger songs, but here he shows that he has the versatility to do slow and subtle as well. That says nothing about the powerful lyrics, something Vedder has never had a problem producing.
4) Life Wasted (Pearl Jam)
Ok, it was a mostly lackluster album. It had a couple really good tracks and this was probably the best of the Formulaic Album era. I liked the Wasted Reprise even better then the song, but since it was called a reprise and was just the chorus with only an organ as accompaniment, I considered it part of the song as a whole.
3) Better Man (Vitalogy)
Some times this song takes some knocks for being to commercial, so I guess I really like commercial music because I love this song. The way it builds from a guitar, to guitar and lyrics, to all out rock fest is perfect and fits the subject matter wonderfully. Vedder's lyrics are best the more personal they get and it doesn't get more personal then this song.
2) Porch (Ten)
I'm not sure there is a song that gets me more pumped up then Porch. Another song that uses the art of building up to a furious crescendo, it starts with Vedder singing with only a guitar riff backing him up, then adds a little drums before the song erupts into a crazed frenzy. The unplugged version from Pearl Jam's MTV Unplugged is just as intense and easily Pearl Jam at it's best. I keep my fingers crossed any time I see them live that this one makes the setlist, because it makes the show that much greater.
1) Black (Ten)
This one is special to me for various reasons outside of how great it is as a song. Even though it is closer to a rock ballad then the type of Pearl Jam song I enjoy the best, it's easily my all time favorite. The lyrics strike home and have given me comfort many times over the years. Vedder's intensity by songs end leaves me breathless every time I hear it. It's possibly one of my top ten favorite songs by any band ever.
Honorable Mentions: Alive (Ten), Yellow Ledbetter (Old Dogs), Footsteps (Old Dogs), Go (Vs), Rearviewmirror (Vs), Blood (Vs), Corduroy (Vitalogy), Hail, Hail (No Code), Lukin (No Code), Do The Evolution (Yield), Breakerfall (Binaural), Nothing As It Seems (Binaural)
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Noretta
2-4-1. That's the current HIMYM record after another unfunny, uninteresting episode. Although it gave me a few chuckles, like the opening gag with the bar booth crowded with everyone's significant others, and had at least one well written construct, the episode had too many holes and too many stories I just didn't care about. It's starting to look more and more like the "Duck Tie" episode was an aberration rather then a come back.
The only joke or story that I thought really worked can still be looked at as a failure because there was more not to like about it. The main theme of the episode was the idea that everyone ends up dating one of their parents. And while it made me chuckle once or twice, it just isn't a premise to base a whole episode around. I loved when centered around Lilly and Marshall, the way they tied Marshall's love of board games with Lilly's dad was clever, but everyone else's problems just weren't interesting or felt forced to fit the theme. The other problem was the pay off. Barney says he doesn't mind dating someone like his mom because she was one of the greatest person he knew and this seems to put Lilly and Marshall at piece with the problem. One small problem, Lilly hates her dad! He's one of the worst people that she knows. So how will this comment by Barney put her at ease? Wouldn't make her more upset?
Other problems I had with the episode... I get that they were trying to set up Nora to be like Julie Andrews to fit with the mom storyline, but her using all those British sayings is annoying and I find it hard to believe, after all the shit the group gives Robin for being Canadian, that they would not make fun of her every time she uses one. The writers are either missing out on some jokes or just trying to annoy me.
And of course, Kal Penn is still on the show. The Kumar countdown is now at 4 episodes left (I write with my fingers crossed).
The only joke or story that I thought really worked can still be looked at as a failure because there was more not to like about it. The main theme of the episode was the idea that everyone ends up dating one of their parents. And while it made me chuckle once or twice, it just isn't a premise to base a whole episode around. I loved when centered around Lilly and Marshall, the way they tied Marshall's love of board games with Lilly's dad was clever, but everyone else's problems just weren't interesting or felt forced to fit the theme. The other problem was the pay off. Barney says he doesn't mind dating someone like his mom because she was one of the greatest person he knew and this seems to put Lilly and Marshall at piece with the problem. One small problem, Lilly hates her dad! He's one of the worst people that she knows. So how will this comment by Barney put her at ease? Wouldn't make her more upset?
Other problems I had with the episode... I get that they were trying to set up Nora to be like Julie Andrews to fit with the mom storyline, but her using all those British sayings is annoying and I find it hard to believe, after all the shit the group gives Robin for being Canadian, that they would not make fun of her every time she uses one. The writers are either missing out on some jokes or just trying to annoy me.
And of course, Kal Penn is still on the show. The Kumar countdown is now at 4 episodes left (I write with my fingers crossed).
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Mystery Vs History
After last night the HIMYM record now stands at 2-3-1. The idea of Barney and Robin as some type of special agent team guiding Ted through his dating adventures had so much potential but ultimately the writers has no idea where to take it. This episode just wasn't funny. The jokes about what Janet might be hiding were as easy and obvious a series of jokes as you will ever find on TV. If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times, I expect more from this group of writers then what this episode gave us. There was gold to mine with this premise but the writers just couldn't find it.
Complaining just about the mystery or history premise and it's lack of humor is ignoring two more major problems with the episode. One: The Marshal/Lily story line felt forced and shoe horned in. For whatever reason, I just don't care about their kid and would much rather have them doing and dealing with other things. But the kid is coming at some point and will probably become an A storyline at some point this season, so I guess I better start getting used to it. Two: Kal Penn needs to go. Has there been a character added since season one that has been likable in any way? Penn is stiff and awkward and just has no chemistry with anyone in the cast. His presence alone seems to kill whatever funny that may be happening. Hopefully his eight episode run will be it and we will never see him again. I'm counting them down... 5 more Kumar episodes left!
Complaining just about the mystery or history premise and it's lack of humor is ignoring two more major problems with the episode. One: The Marshal/Lily story line felt forced and shoe horned in. For whatever reason, I just don't care about their kid and would much rather have them doing and dealing with other things. But the kid is coming at some point and will probably become an A storyline at some point this season, so I guess I better start getting used to it. Two: Kal Penn needs to go. Has there been a character added since season one that has been likable in any way? Penn is stiff and awkward and just has no chemistry with anyone in the cast. His presence alone seems to kill whatever funny that may be happening. Hopefully his eight episode run will be it and we will never see him again. I'm counting them down... 5 more Kumar episodes left!
Monday, October 17, 2011
Walking Dead: What Lies Ahead
The long 10 month wait for the return of The Walking Dead is finally over. And, boy, was it worth the wait. What Lies Ahead was able to capture everything that makes The Walking Dead one of the best shows on television. It was gory, suspenseful, gory, emotional, gory, thought provoking and... did I mention gory? Not five minutes into the show the writers have the viewers hearts in their throats and don't let off the pedal, even as the show comes to an end. After an hour and a half of hiding under cars, hunting lost children, mutilating zombies, arguing amongst survivors, where left with a cliff hanger that makes me wish I had let a few episodes build in my TIVO before I started watching. Almost everything about this episode was perfectly crafted, making the long wait worth it.
If there was anything that bothered me about the episode it was how much it seemed to rely on the gore at times. I realize that most zombie fans are tuning in just for the gore, I mean what else is a zombie story if not extremely gory, but I always thought what made the comic special was how it dealt with issues away from the zombies and I've always believed in the premise that what is not seen is scarier then what is. At times it seemed like the show makers were going out of their way to make the scenes as gory as possible and as much as I understand that this helps depict the horrible circumstances these people now find themselves in, it just felt gratuitous. I would like to see the show dial back the gore and rely more on great story telling and old fashioned suspense.
Not that there wasn't plenty of great story telling in this episode. The argument between Dale and Andrea and the survivor's doubts about Rick's decision to leave Sophia are both classic The Walking Dead. I've always felt the show is best when it deals with the moral dilemmas a zombie apocalypse would cause rather then just killing zombies. Both these scenes did a great job of just that.
What Lies Ahead is a great start to season two. Lets hope it's more of the same going forward.
If there was anything that bothered me about the episode it was how much it seemed to rely on the gore at times. I realize that most zombie fans are tuning in just for the gore, I mean what else is a zombie story if not extremely gory, but I always thought what made the comic special was how it dealt with issues away from the zombies and I've always believed in the premise that what is not seen is scarier then what is. At times it seemed like the show makers were going out of their way to make the scenes as gory as possible and as much as I understand that this helps depict the horrible circumstances these people now find themselves in, it just felt gratuitous. I would like to see the show dial back the gore and rely more on great story telling and old fashioned suspense.
Not that there wasn't plenty of great story telling in this episode. The argument between Dale and Andrea and the survivor's doubts about Rick's decision to leave Sophia are both classic The Walking Dead. I've always felt the show is best when it deals with the moral dilemmas a zombie apocalypse would cause rather then just killing zombies. Both these scenes did a great job of just that.
What Lies Ahead is a great start to season two. Lets hope it's more of the same going forward.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Book Review: Hunger Games
I have a problem with the sudden popularity of teen and young adult literature. My problem isn't that it's popular with kids, these are the people who are supposed to enjoy it. In fact, I'm ecstatic that young adults are finding such enjoyment from reading, something that has been lost with recent generations of kids. My problem is how popular these novels are with adults. As interesting as some of the storylines may be, they aren't written for the adult mind. I've read Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone. I've read Twilight. The language is simple, the themes are dumbed down. These are books written for the enjoyment of children, adults should find them childish and boring. If you are an adult looking for these types of stories read Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings or Erin Morgenstern's Night Circus or Ann Rice's Vampire Chronicles. These are books that use adult vocabulary and tackle adult themes.
Even though I have these issues with Young Adult literature, I have another problem which is my need to know what all the fuss and hype is all about. That is why I read Harry Potter. That is why I read Twilight. And that is why I asked my middle school teacher friends if they had a copy of Hunger Games I could borrow. Like most of you, I couldn't avoid hearing about this series of novels and the up coming movies; how the premise was so new and fresh and empowering to young women. The thing is, the premise didn't sound so fresh to me. I had read a Japanese novel called Battle Royal years ago about a class of school children forced by the government to fight to the death on a secluded island. If you combine that novel with Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and any number of today's reality television shows you get the premise of Hunger Games.
So I procured a copy of the book and read in an attempt to prove just how right I was and just how unoriginal and unworthy of buzz the book was. The first half of the book didn't let me down. The book's writing was clearly aimed at a 14 year-old girl. There was nothing challenging about the language or themes, nothing of any interest in the story for an adult and every plot point and twist rang of something taken from another already established source. And then, mid-story, something changed. The language was just as simple and the writing just as geared for children, but suddenly the characters had more depth and their dilemmas were becoming more complex. I found the way the game messed with Katniss' emotions endlessly intriguing. Was her relationship with the baker for real or an act needed for survival? How was her behavior going to affect her future relationships? What does her ability to compartmentalize her emotions say about her as a person? And will any of this have an affect on both her physical and emotional growth? By books end I found myself interested in what was going to happen next, how Katniss was going to deal with the very adult emotional tangle she found herself in, where else was this story going to go, something I could not say about either the first Harry Potter or Twilight books.
I'm not sure whether to classify Huger Games as a guilty pleasure or an excellently written young Adult novel. It certainly doesn't come with the acclaim of the Harry Potter books, which in all honesty I only read on of and couldn't find a compelling reason to read more of. The style style and themes of the book are very much aimed at young girls, but it never pretends or sells itself as anything else. Even with that against it, I found it much more enjoyable a read then any other Young Adult novel I've read as an adult (other then Slam which probably had more to do with the fact I love Nick Hornby). I enjoyed it so much I've been asking the same teacher friends for the follow up novels. So, I guess there are instances where adults can find pleasure in Young Adult novels after all.
Even though I have these issues with Young Adult literature, I have another problem which is my need to know what all the fuss and hype is all about. That is why I read Harry Potter. That is why I read Twilight. And that is why I asked my middle school teacher friends if they had a copy of Hunger Games I could borrow. Like most of you, I couldn't avoid hearing about this series of novels and the up coming movies; how the premise was so new and fresh and empowering to young women. The thing is, the premise didn't sound so fresh to me. I had read a Japanese novel called Battle Royal years ago about a class of school children forced by the government to fight to the death on a secluded island. If you combine that novel with Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and any number of today's reality television shows you get the premise of Hunger Games.
So I procured a copy of the book and read in an attempt to prove just how right I was and just how unoriginal and unworthy of buzz the book was. The first half of the book didn't let me down. The book's writing was clearly aimed at a 14 year-old girl. There was nothing challenging about the language or themes, nothing of any interest in the story for an adult and every plot point and twist rang of something taken from another already established source. And then, mid-story, something changed. The language was just as simple and the writing just as geared for children, but suddenly the characters had more depth and their dilemmas were becoming more complex. I found the way the game messed with Katniss' emotions endlessly intriguing. Was her relationship with the baker for real or an act needed for survival? How was her behavior going to affect her future relationships? What does her ability to compartmentalize her emotions say about her as a person? And will any of this have an affect on both her physical and emotional growth? By books end I found myself interested in what was going to happen next, how Katniss was going to deal with the very adult emotional tangle she found herself in, where else was this story going to go, something I could not say about either the first Harry Potter or Twilight books.
I'm not sure whether to classify Huger Games as a guilty pleasure or an excellently written young Adult novel. It certainly doesn't come with the acclaim of the Harry Potter books, which in all honesty I only read on of and couldn't find a compelling reason to read more of. The style style and themes of the book are very much aimed at young girls, but it never pretends or sells itself as anything else. Even with that against it, I found it much more enjoyable a read then any other Young Adult novel I've read as an adult (other then Slam which probably had more to do with the fact I love Nick Hornby). I enjoyed it so much I've been asking the same teacher friends for the follow up novels. So, I guess there are instances where adults can find pleasure in Young Adult novels after all.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
How I Met Your Mother: Field Trip
This week's episode has me a bit torn. It didn't offend me, but it wasn't the funniest episode either. I got a few good laughs, but at the same time it left a bad taste in my mouth. Since I don't think it was bad enough to warrant a loss, nor good enough to reward it with a win, "Field Trip" is going down in the record book as a tie giving the HIMYM's writers a record of 2-2-1 on the season.
What bothered me about the episode was a sense of having been there before. We're getting to a point in the history of the show where it's going to get tough keeping the storylines fresh. I couldn't help thinking of Ted and Stella as I was introduced to a forbidden relationship between Robin and her psychologist. Although it wasn't exactly the same, they way they non-dated every week at the dinner felt a lot like Ted's two minute date with Stella. That's not even mentioning that both Stella and Kevin refuse to date Ted and Robin at first because they are their patients. Barney's fear of dating Nora after finding out she didn't like the Ewoks also ran familiar and at first felt like an insult to the continuity of the show. The HIMYM writer's have already mined the problems of dating someone who doesn't like Star Wars when Ted first started dating Robin. Which also made it odd why Barney had a problem with Nora, he'd already dated someone who didn't like Ewoks. If I didn't find his actually reasons for fearing Nora so funny, I'd have a problem with him not realizing the real reason Nora didn't like them due to his past experiences.
But I did find it funny, funny because it's true. There is defiantly a line that differentiates Ewok fans from non-fans and it almost certainly has to do with date of birth. The fact that Barney would use this to assume that Nora was older then she said she was had me in stitches. It was this kind of thing that made me fall in love with HIMYM, this use of pop culture to run the characters everyday lives. It's something that has been sorely missed the last few seasons. If you were listening there was also an Ewok reference during Marshal's law firm scenes. They were playing the Ewok celebration song in the background while the lawyers were partying.
Another thing that made me laugh and reminded me of HIMYM when it was still great was the use of Ted's students. The idea of having them vote to solve all of Ted and Barney's arguments was genius. "Pollstered" is sure to become yet another classic HIMYM catchphrase.
What bothered me about the episode was a sense of having been there before. We're getting to a point in the history of the show where it's going to get tough keeping the storylines fresh. I couldn't help thinking of Ted and Stella as I was introduced to a forbidden relationship between Robin and her psychologist. Although it wasn't exactly the same, they way they non-dated every week at the dinner felt a lot like Ted's two minute date with Stella. That's not even mentioning that both Stella and Kevin refuse to date Ted and Robin at first because they are their patients. Barney's fear of dating Nora after finding out she didn't like the Ewoks also ran familiar and at first felt like an insult to the continuity of the show. The HIMYM writer's have already mined the problems of dating someone who doesn't like Star Wars when Ted first started dating Robin. Which also made it odd why Barney had a problem with Nora, he'd already dated someone who didn't like Ewoks. If I didn't find his actually reasons for fearing Nora so funny, I'd have a problem with him not realizing the real reason Nora didn't like them due to his past experiences.
But I did find it funny, funny because it's true. There is defiantly a line that differentiates Ewok fans from non-fans and it almost certainly has to do with date of birth. The fact that Barney would use this to assume that Nora was older then she said she was had me in stitches. It was this kind of thing that made me fall in love with HIMYM, this use of pop culture to run the characters everyday lives. It's something that has been sorely missed the last few seasons. If you were listening there was also an Ewok reference during Marshal's law firm scenes. They were playing the Ewok celebration song in the background while the lawyers were partying.
Another thing that made me laugh and reminded me of HIMYM when it was still great was the use of Ted's students. The idea of having them vote to solve all of Ted and Barney's arguments was genius. "Pollstered" is sure to become yet another classic HIMYM catchphrase.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Fall TV: Part Two
Here's part two of me going through all the season premiers on my DVR...
Modern Family
I know this is everyone's favorite sitcom and the winner of numerous Emmys, but for me it's incredibly hit or miss. When it's a hit it's fall off the couch funny, but when it's a miss it's hardly worth watching. The season premier, set at a dude ranch, was a huge miss. I know the show has more to offer so it's not going to hurt my thoughts about it, but this was an extremely auspicious start for "the best comedy on TV." I think the cast is wonderful, especially Julie Bowen, who I would watch on anything, so any short fall on the laughs side of things must come from the writing staff. As uneven as the laughs may be, it's still a must watch.
VERDICT: Staying put at #8 on Season Pass Manager
Community
This show gets my vote for the funniest show on TV. It's the perfect blend of off beat comedy, pure silliness, culture references and your typical sitcom fare. Every cast member is hilarious in their own style, from the main characters like Jeff and Brita right down to the bit players like Star Burns and Dean Pelton, which makes the show a true ensemble effort. I'm not sure where the writers are going with the whole Jeff and Annie thing, but the show is always best when it's not focusing on the soap opera aspect of sitcoms, something I think the writers are aware of, so I'm not to concerned. If there is one thing I would like to see going forward it would be Chang returning to his first season form. He became awkward and annoying after being one of the funniest parts of season one. I'd love to see him gain some credibility and power back and in the process get more funny.
VERDICT: Due to other shows slipping, moves up from #3 to #1 on Season Pass Manager
Charlie's Angels
Not sure how long a show that pisses me off in the first 15 minutes is going to last. In this age of female empowerment, this seemed like an obvious choice for a reboot and could be a big hit. But the show runners proved they didn't know what they were doing when they killed off the one Angel, Nadine Velazquez, with any personality or appeal. Don't get me wrong, I think Minka Kelly is gorgeous, but the other two ladies are nothing special and neither of the three could act their way out of a paper bag. Add to that a couple of lack luster mysteries for the girls to solve in the first two episodes and I'm having a hard time finding reasons to keep tuning in. I had high hopes for this one, but the writers and producers seemed to have dropped the ball with both the casting and stories.
VERDICT: Deleted from Season Pass Manager after two episodes
The Office
At one time this was appointment television, but things have changed and while it still has it's great moments, it just doesn't pull me to my TV like it once did. Whether this is just due to familiarity and staleness after so many years or a downgrade in the writing, the loss of Michael Scott, aka Steve Carell, doesn't help. Andy as boss just doesn't work comically like Michael did. As much as I love this show and hate to see it go, without Carell it's just a shell of what it once was. I can't see it lasting much more then another season unless someone is brought in to fill the void Carell left. For now, it's still a must watch, more out of loyalty then anything else, but that could change very easily if it slips anymore.
VERDICT: Slips from #2 to #12 on Season Pass Manager
Whitney
Another old school multi-camera sitcom. This season is riff with new additions in this genre. And oddly enough, this is another good one. As much as I dislike the canned laughter and the set-up/joke, set-up/joke writing style, I couldn't help but find myself laughing. Whitney Cummings may be the name sake of the show and it's main character, but for me the show is all about Chris D'Elia. The way he plays off Whitney's odd behavior and messes with her is what has me excited about the show. The show is far from perfect, I could do without the Mark character, he's just stupid and annoying, but I think it has promise. So far, it's probably the third best new sitcom this season behind New Girl and Suburgatory (which I will get to).
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Fringe
The last couple of seasons of this show have been phenomenal. Unfortunately nobody has been watching and the show has been moved around in an attempt to find a spot on the schedule for it, leading to it being dumped on Friday nights (television purgatory) and altered to appeal to a wider audience. I have no idea where this show is going, which is usually a good thing, and feel like it has lost everything that made it special. It feels more like a police procedural and less like an X-files style sci-fi show. But I still have faith. The oddities that made the show different are still present, even though they are down played, and the writers still have to explain what happened to Joshua Jackson's character and find a way to bring him back. Something tells me it's at that point that the show will pick up again, for now I'm just watching and waiting for one of my favorite shows to return to form.
VERDICT: Stays at #3 on Season Pass Manager (for now)
Pan Am
The second of the network Mad Men rip offs and a much better one at that. Pan Am, unlike Playboy Club, feels a lot more like it's own show then a rip off. It also seems to actually accomplish much better what Playboy Club claimed to be about, a story of women empowerment. Pan Am is much better written and much better acted. I do wonder how fresh you can keep a drama set in an airplane, though. How much time can you spend in the cabin telling new and interesting stories? At the moment, it's working and this show is my favorite new drama of the season so far. Hopefully it can keep up the intriguing storytelling.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Family Guy
This was one of my favorite shows when nobody, and I mean nobody, was watching. Then it got canceled. Then it came out on DVD and suddenly it was everyone's favorite show. Then it came back. Not much has changed about Family Guy over all that time. It's still crass. It's still apologetically inappropriate. And it's still funny as hell. This isn't some people's cup of tea. I get that, but for me it's hands down one of the funniest shows ever made.
VERDICT: Stays at #9 on Season Pass Manager
Terra Nova
One of the most expensive shows ever made, with a ad budget to match. Easily one of the most talked about shows of the new season. I'm not sure the hype was warranted, but it's not a huge disappointment either. Basically, it's a family drama masquerading as a science fiction/action show. For all the special effects and action sequences, it's really just a show about a family that was pulled apart trying to put the pieces back together. This show would have been a staple Sunday night show when I was growing up. Sci Fi fans might be tricked into tuning in, but I doubt they will keep watching. So the questions becomes, will fans of family drama tune in or will they be scared off by the sci fi stuff before giving it a try? I like it enough to keep watching, but I'm not sure it's going to find the right audience to keep going.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Suburgatory
This show is great! A must watch!! If it wasn't for New Girl and Zooey Deschanel, this would be the funniest new show and my favorite of the new season. The writing is amazingly sharp and witty and the acting is great. Jeremy Sisto, Cheryl Hines, Jane Levy, Rex Lee, Ana Gasteyer, Allie Grant. They may not be big time names, like those in Up All Night, but they are all quality actors who have great comic timing. The depicting of suburbia is more cartoonish then satiric, but once you realize that you can't help but fall in love with the humor and the well written characters.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass with a bullet
Happy Endings
This was billed as the new generation Friends and although it has it's funny moments, it far from lives up to it. I like the cast and the situations the writers put them in do feel new and fresh. The humor is much more absurd then anything Friends tried to do and because of that it's much more hit or miss. At the moment, the misses are much more frequent then the hits, but the hits have been strong enough for me to keep viewing. I'm slightly upset that it got renewed because I loved Damon Wayans Jr. on New Girl, but while it's on, I'm watching.
VERDICT: Stays at #19 on Season Pass Manager
I'll be back in a couple of weeks with the third and final installment of my Fall TV review.
Modern Family
I know this is everyone's favorite sitcom and the winner of numerous Emmys, but for me it's incredibly hit or miss. When it's a hit it's fall off the couch funny, but when it's a miss it's hardly worth watching. The season premier, set at a dude ranch, was a huge miss. I know the show has more to offer so it's not going to hurt my thoughts about it, but this was an extremely auspicious start for "the best comedy on TV." I think the cast is wonderful, especially Julie Bowen, who I would watch on anything, so any short fall on the laughs side of things must come from the writing staff. As uneven as the laughs may be, it's still a must watch.
VERDICT: Staying put at #8 on Season Pass Manager
Community
This show gets my vote for the funniest show on TV. It's the perfect blend of off beat comedy, pure silliness, culture references and your typical sitcom fare. Every cast member is hilarious in their own style, from the main characters like Jeff and Brita right down to the bit players like Star Burns and Dean Pelton, which makes the show a true ensemble effort. I'm not sure where the writers are going with the whole Jeff and Annie thing, but the show is always best when it's not focusing on the soap opera aspect of sitcoms, something I think the writers are aware of, so I'm not to concerned. If there is one thing I would like to see going forward it would be Chang returning to his first season form. He became awkward and annoying after being one of the funniest parts of season one. I'd love to see him gain some credibility and power back and in the process get more funny.
VERDICT: Due to other shows slipping, moves up from #3 to #1 on Season Pass Manager
Charlie's Angels
Not sure how long a show that pisses me off in the first 15 minutes is going to last. In this age of female empowerment, this seemed like an obvious choice for a reboot and could be a big hit. But the show runners proved they didn't know what they were doing when they killed off the one Angel, Nadine Velazquez, with any personality or appeal. Don't get me wrong, I think Minka Kelly is gorgeous, but the other two ladies are nothing special and neither of the three could act their way out of a paper bag. Add to that a couple of lack luster mysteries for the girls to solve in the first two episodes and I'm having a hard time finding reasons to keep tuning in. I had high hopes for this one, but the writers and producers seemed to have dropped the ball with both the casting and stories.
VERDICT: Deleted from Season Pass Manager after two episodes
The Office
At one time this was appointment television, but things have changed and while it still has it's great moments, it just doesn't pull me to my TV like it once did. Whether this is just due to familiarity and staleness after so many years or a downgrade in the writing, the loss of Michael Scott, aka Steve Carell, doesn't help. Andy as boss just doesn't work comically like Michael did. As much as I love this show and hate to see it go, without Carell it's just a shell of what it once was. I can't see it lasting much more then another season unless someone is brought in to fill the void Carell left. For now, it's still a must watch, more out of loyalty then anything else, but that could change very easily if it slips anymore.
VERDICT: Slips from #2 to #12 on Season Pass Manager
Whitney
Another old school multi-camera sitcom. This season is riff with new additions in this genre. And oddly enough, this is another good one. As much as I dislike the canned laughter and the set-up/joke, set-up/joke writing style, I couldn't help but find myself laughing. Whitney Cummings may be the name sake of the show and it's main character, but for me the show is all about Chris D'Elia. The way he plays off Whitney's odd behavior and messes with her is what has me excited about the show. The show is far from perfect, I could do without the Mark character, he's just stupid and annoying, but I think it has promise. So far, it's probably the third best new sitcom this season behind New Girl and Suburgatory (which I will get to).
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Fringe
The last couple of seasons of this show have been phenomenal. Unfortunately nobody has been watching and the show has been moved around in an attempt to find a spot on the schedule for it, leading to it being dumped on Friday nights (television purgatory) and altered to appeal to a wider audience. I have no idea where this show is going, which is usually a good thing, and feel like it has lost everything that made it special. It feels more like a police procedural and less like an X-files style sci-fi show. But I still have faith. The oddities that made the show different are still present, even though they are down played, and the writers still have to explain what happened to Joshua Jackson's character and find a way to bring him back. Something tells me it's at that point that the show will pick up again, for now I'm just watching and waiting for one of my favorite shows to return to form.
VERDICT: Stays at #3 on Season Pass Manager (for now)
Pan Am
The second of the network Mad Men rip offs and a much better one at that. Pan Am, unlike Playboy Club, feels a lot more like it's own show then a rip off. It also seems to actually accomplish much better what Playboy Club claimed to be about, a story of women empowerment. Pan Am is much better written and much better acted. I do wonder how fresh you can keep a drama set in an airplane, though. How much time can you spend in the cabin telling new and interesting stories? At the moment, it's working and this show is my favorite new drama of the season so far. Hopefully it can keep up the intriguing storytelling.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Family Guy
This was one of my favorite shows when nobody, and I mean nobody, was watching. Then it got canceled. Then it came out on DVD and suddenly it was everyone's favorite show. Then it came back. Not much has changed about Family Guy over all that time. It's still crass. It's still apologetically inappropriate. And it's still funny as hell. This isn't some people's cup of tea. I get that, but for me it's hands down one of the funniest shows ever made.
VERDICT: Stays at #9 on Season Pass Manager
Terra Nova
One of the most expensive shows ever made, with a ad budget to match. Easily one of the most talked about shows of the new season. I'm not sure the hype was warranted, but it's not a huge disappointment either. Basically, it's a family drama masquerading as a science fiction/action show. For all the special effects and action sequences, it's really just a show about a family that was pulled apart trying to put the pieces back together. This show would have been a staple Sunday night show when I was growing up. Sci Fi fans might be tricked into tuning in, but I doubt they will keep watching. So the questions becomes, will fans of family drama tune in or will they be scared off by the sci fi stuff before giving it a try? I like it enough to keep watching, but I'm not sure it's going to find the right audience to keep going.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass Manager
Suburgatory
This show is great! A must watch!! If it wasn't for New Girl and Zooey Deschanel, this would be the funniest new show and my favorite of the new season. The writing is amazingly sharp and witty and the acting is great. Jeremy Sisto, Cheryl Hines, Jane Levy, Rex Lee, Ana Gasteyer, Allie Grant. They may not be big time names, like those in Up All Night, but they are all quality actors who have great comic timing. The depicting of suburbia is more cartoonish then satiric, but once you realize that you can't help but fall in love with the humor and the well written characters.
VERDICT: Added to Season Pass with a bullet
Happy Endings
This was billed as the new generation Friends and although it has it's funny moments, it far from lives up to it. I like the cast and the situations the writers put them in do feel new and fresh. The humor is much more absurd then anything Friends tried to do and because of that it's much more hit or miss. At the moment, the misses are much more frequent then the hits, but the hits have been strong enough for me to keep viewing. I'm slightly upset that it got renewed because I loved Damon Wayans Jr. on New Girl, but while it's on, I'm watching.
VERDICT: Stays at #19 on Season Pass Manager
I'll be back in a couple of weeks with the third and final installment of my Fall TV review.
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