I didn't write about this show last week cuz I'd kinda forgotten about it. Actually, I hadn't intended on watching it, due to lukewarm reviews. But then I read a review that made me decide to catch it on Hulu, and as it turned out, it's a pretty damn funny show. It's done by the same dude who did My Name Is Earl, which I enjoyed for a few years before it got kind of stale.
Anyway, it's one of those shows where if you're easily offended, you'll probably hate it. I like it enough that I'll stick around for the foreseeable future.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
RIP: The Office
The Office had a pretty good run. It was able to make me laugh quite a lot through most of its run, and it was even able to transcend a few sitcom tropes along the way. Jim and Pam got together. Companies merged. Probably a few other things I can't recall. But then last season, it just fell apart somehow. The company was bought out and rather than having that be a real shake-up for the show, it was resolved with no real conflict. It became just another stoopid show where everything basically resets at the end of the episode. And having proved it could do better, that was just unacceptable. I watched all last season, but I did consider giving up a few times. And I was all set to give this current season a chance.
But then I started watching the season premiere, and I just didn't care. I didn't want to watch. I didn't want to watch them do the same old shit anymore. The show basically had its high point last season when Jim and Pam got married. After that, it pretty much went to shit. Even the baby episode was mostly lame and forgettable.
So, byebye Office. I reserve the right to watch any future episodes that contain Amy Ryan, though, because she was an awesome character and I really want to see Michael end up with her.
But then I started watching the season premiere, and I just didn't care. I didn't want to watch. I didn't want to watch them do the same old shit anymore. The show basically had its high point last season when Jim and Pam got married. After that, it pretty much went to shit. Even the baby episode was mostly lame and forgettable.
So, byebye Office. I reserve the right to watch any future episodes that contain Amy Ryan, though, because she was an awesome character and I really want to see Michael end up with her.
RIP: Weeds
I watched Weeds through the end of the fourth season. I really loved the first two seasons, and while the third wasn't quite as good, I was still into the show. And I wasn't certain if the show could be as good away from it's suburban setting, I was curious to see where it would go in the fourth season. And I think I mostly enjoyed the fourth season, but towards the end I got a bit annoyed with it. And then when Nancy pulled out the ultrasound to show the dude who was probably about to have her killed that she was pregnant with his baby, I got really annoyed with it. I just didn't want to know where it would go from there.
Well, over the summer hubbie decided to watch the fifth season on Netlix streaming, and he really enjoyed it. And since it had been awhile, and I really did like the characters, I decided to give it a shot. And I mostly enjoyed it. But now in the sixth season, it's just wore me down. The characters DO NOT CHANGE. For the most part, they don't learn from their many, many mistakes. And Andy. Andy was my favorite character. He had an actual chance at happiness with Alanis Morrissette. Then he did something really stoopid, and Shane did something really stoopid, and suddenly, the Botwins are on the lam. Again. And Andy could have stayed and tried to work things out, but no, he had to go along with Nancy, who I started to kind of loathe.
And I watched a few episodes of the current season, and I just don't care. Even the presence of Linda Hamilton isn't enough to keep me around. Besides, she's on Chuck this year, so I won't be missing her. I dunno, I don't think it's necessary that characters change. But at some point, they need to do something, I dunno, unexpected. Something to keep me interested.
And another thing is that I decided to re-watch the series from the beginning, and after an episode I realized: these are really the exact same people. They were fucked up from the very first episode and they were basically Doomed to it. So, I'm done with Weeds for now. I might go back some time, but I dunno. I'd rather just remember that I liked it once.
Well, over the summer hubbie decided to watch the fifth season on Netlix streaming, and he really enjoyed it. And since it had been awhile, and I really did like the characters, I decided to give it a shot. And I mostly enjoyed it. But now in the sixth season, it's just wore me down. The characters DO NOT CHANGE. For the most part, they don't learn from their many, many mistakes. And Andy. Andy was my favorite character. He had an actual chance at happiness with Alanis Morrissette. Then he did something really stoopid, and Shane did something really stoopid, and suddenly, the Botwins are on the lam. Again. And Andy could have stayed and tried to work things out, but no, he had to go along with Nancy, who I started to kind of loathe.
And I watched a few episodes of the current season, and I just don't care. Even the presence of Linda Hamilton isn't enough to keep me around. Besides, she's on Chuck this year, so I won't be missing her. I dunno, I don't think it's necessary that characters change. But at some point, they need to do something, I dunno, unexpected. Something to keep me interested.
And another thing is that I decided to re-watch the series from the beginning, and after an episode I realized: these are really the exact same people. They were fucked up from the very first episode and they were basically Doomed to it. So, I'm done with Weeds for now. I might go back some time, but I dunno. I'd rather just remember that I liked it once.
New TV Watch: Undercovers
I forgot to write about this one last Wednesday. I was excited to watch Undercovers because the leads are very pretty and the trailers indicated it could be good, if mindless, fun. I guess I was excited until I started reading some of the reviews, that is. Most of them said it was mindless fun, but not as good as it could be. And they were right. The leads are indeed pretty, but they're kinda bland underneath. I didn't end the show just dying to see what would happen next. This one's on Hulu, so it's still around in 5 weeks and I feel like it, i might check in again, but unless someone else says it got better, I probably won't.
I will say it's rather disappointing on another level that this show wasn't better. As far as I know, this was the first show of its kind with two African-American leads. A show on a major network. If it doesn't do well, some programming idiot's gonna think it's because America wasn't ready for it or some shit. Then again, it could do well simply because it is kinda bland and breezy. I mean, Castle is entering a third season. Now, I like Castle cuz even though it's mindless, the characters aren't bland. I had hoped that this Undercovers show could have been fun, with good characters, but it just wasn't.
I will say it's rather disappointing on another level that this show wasn't better. As far as I know, this was the first show of its kind with two African-American leads. A show on a major network. If it doesn't do well, some programming idiot's gonna think it's because America wasn't ready for it or some shit. Then again, it could do well simply because it is kinda bland and breezy. I mean, Castle is entering a third season. Now, I like Castle cuz even though it's mindless, the characters aren't bland. I had hoped that this Undercovers show could have been fun, with good characters, but it just wasn't.
New TV Watch: Boardwalk Empire
I finally got around to watching the pilot for Boardwalk Empire, and man, it was good. I mean, DUH. I didn't expect anything less. I will say that I'm not rip-roaringly excited for the next episode, but I definitely want to keep watching. Steve Buscemi is, of course, a total bad ass and I adore him.
Update: Yeah, I did like the pilot, but so far I still haven't watched the newest episode, and yes, it's up On Demand. And a new episode is on tonight. It might end up being like Treme for me. I could never watch Treme "live" because it was on at the same time as Breaking Bad, and I COULD NOT miss Breaking Bad. And I never really felt like watching Treme On Demand, even though I really enjoyed the show. I'd end up saving two or three and then watching them all at once. I just enjoyed it more that way. It's what you call a "DVD show", because it flows better when you can watch more than one episode at a time. So maybe Boardwalk Empire will be the same way for me. I'll RIP it if I end up deciding I don't like it, but I definitely need to see more episodes before I can make that kind of decision.
Update: Yeah, I did like the pilot, but so far I still haven't watched the newest episode, and yes, it's up On Demand. And a new episode is on tonight. It might end up being like Treme for me. I could never watch Treme "live" because it was on at the same time as Breaking Bad, and I COULD NOT miss Breaking Bad. And I never really felt like watching Treme On Demand, even though I really enjoyed the show. I'd end up saving two or three and then watching them all at once. I just enjoyed it more that way. It's what you call a "DVD show", because it flows better when you can watch more than one episode at a time. So maybe Boardwalk Empire will be the same way for me. I'll RIP it if I end up deciding I don't like it, but I definitely need to see more episodes before I can make that kind of decision.
Friday, September 10, 2010
New TV Watch: Nikita
This was one I hadn't planned on watching. I quite enjoyed the original French movie, and just the fact that this show is on the CW kind of turned me off to it. I love Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries, but when I think CW I generally think One Tree Hill and 90210 and generic crap with generic, interchangeable teen actors that I can't fucking tell apart. So yeah, this wasn't high on my list.
But then Mo Ryan from TV Squad gave it a pretty good review, and Alan Sepinwall didn't exactly love it, but said it was better than expected. I wasn't watching anything else at the time, and it was on right after the season premiere of The Vampire Diaries, so I gave it a shot.
And it was pretty good. The actress playing Nikita was pretty kickass and the story was interesting enough. I did like that they pick up Nikita 3 years after she's escaped from Division rather than having yet another origin story. I don't know how long I'll watch this one, though, since I watch two other shows at the same time and I may not want to be watching that much TV. Oh, who am I kidding?? I loves me some TV. I am less certain of this one, so if I feel meh about it after 3 eps, I'll probably stop watching.
UPDATE: I actually had zero interest in watching the second episode, so I guess I'm already done with this one. I can always catch up with it later if I want. It's just so weird when I really like something and then never want to watch it again.
But then Mo Ryan from TV Squad gave it a pretty good review, and Alan Sepinwall didn't exactly love it, but said it was better than expected. I wasn't watching anything else at the time, and it was on right after the season premiere of The Vampire Diaries, so I gave it a shot.
And it was pretty good. The actress playing Nikita was pretty kickass and the story was interesting enough. I did like that they pick up Nikita 3 years after she's escaped from Division rather than having yet another origin story. I don't know how long I'll watch this one, though, since I watch two other shows at the same time and I may not want to be watching that much TV. Oh, who am I kidding?? I loves me some TV. I am less certain of this one, so if I feel meh about it after 3 eps, I'll probably stop watching.
UPDATE: I actually had zero interest in watching the second episode, so I guess I'm already done with this one. I can always catch up with it later if I want. It's just so weird when I really like something and then never want to watch it again.
New TV Watch: Terriers
Every year I watch a handful of new shows. What I decide to watch depends on various things, such as creators, writers, directors, actors, storyline, etc. And of course, the all-important, what time is it on and does it conflict with something else I watch? That last isn't necessarily a barrier anymore though, since a great deal of new shows can be viewed later via Hulu or On Demand.
In the case of Terriers, all I really knew was that Donal Logue was in it, and Alan Sepinwall of What's Alan Watching really liked it. So I watched it and immediately liked it. The two leads have great chemistry and the story was okay. I can forgive A LOT if the characters are convincing. I'm not sure I would have made it through the first season of Supernatural if the two brothers weren't so awesome.
I've liked Donal Logue for a long time. He has a certain snarkiness and charm, and on Terriers he also gets to be a bit more dramatic than usual.
I don't think I'll rate these things cuz it seems a bit pointless, I'll just say I really liked it and if I had a DVR this would get a season pass.
In the case of Terriers, all I really knew was that Donal Logue was in it, and Alan Sepinwall of What's Alan Watching really liked it. So I watched it and immediately liked it. The two leads have great chemistry and the story was okay. I can forgive A LOT if the characters are convincing. I'm not sure I would have made it through the first season of Supernatural if the two brothers weren't so awesome.
I've liked Donal Logue for a long time. He has a certain snarkiness and charm, and on Terriers he also gets to be a bit more dramatic than usual.
I don't think I'll rate these things cuz it seems a bit pointless, I'll just say I really liked it and if I had a DVR this would get a season pass.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
The Crazies (2010)
Alas...My beloved Timothy could not save this movie. The only way it would have been ultimately worth watching is if he had gotten very nekkid, which he didn't.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Thoughts on the Lost finale
Shut Up. Just Shut Up. I know this is months after the fact. But I started writing this in a Google document and I wanted it to be somewhere else, so here it is.
I really enjoyed the Lost finale, up to the last few minutes. The fact that it was set in a stoopid church and Christian (fucking) Shepard went off into a stoopid white light really torked me off. But as I read other people's reactions I wonder if my knee-jerk reaction to any hint of religious crap makes me lose sight of what was, really, not necessarily a religious crap thing.
As was pointed out by many, the church wasn't necessarily a Christian church. There was iconography from other religions in the chapel. And the more I read, the more I think that maybe I missed out on something wonderful because I was so annoyed at what I saw as religious crap.
I mean, even if it is religious crap, who cares? Does that invalidate anything that I feel and think about religion? I dunno. I mean, there was always that element there. Like the BSG finale that had people so up in arms. I mean, religious crap was always present on that show. You could interpret it however you wanted and it wasn't necessarily Christian, even the one true god crap. But even though that last hour of BSG was pretty stoopid, I didn't feel betrayed by the ending, I just felt it should have been about 45 minutes shorter. And the last five minutes I prefer to forget entirely.
But. Back to Lost. And to religious crap. I do have a tendency to see things in religious black and white. "Ooh, white light! Must be God and Heaven and all that Crap!! I must now hate the show and all it stands for!!!" Which is highly Stoopid of me. I can enjoy the Chronicles of Narnia without hating C.S. Lewis.
So, all of that is to say that even if it was a religious ending, who cares. It doesn't invalidate the fun I had watching it for 6 seasons (not all of which was fun, but anyway). And in retrospect, I don't think I missed out on a wonderful thing. I did enjoy the finale. It just leaves me with some questions, which are coincidentally the same kinds of questions I have about Heaven.
I mean...ALL of these people wanted to be together for this last thing? None of them were thinking "meh, I can never see these people again and die happily?" I mean, if my version of heaven is to be with my family forever...yuk! I don't even like most of my family. And that's usually what people say, you'll be with your loved ones forever. Loved ones, fine. But...sometimes the people you love are not the people who love you. So will you get stuck with someone you didn't really care for, but they really liked you? Will there be different versions of everyone in different people's Heavens?
Yikes. It just all sounds so ludicrous (maybe cuz it IS). And I know, the whole church thing at the end of Lost wasn't Heaven, it was like a holding place or something. But dammit! It's just still kinda stoopid.
I really enjoyed the Lost finale, up to the last few minutes. The fact that it was set in a stoopid church and Christian (fucking) Shepard went off into a stoopid white light really torked me off. But as I read other people's reactions I wonder if my knee-jerk reaction to any hint of religious crap makes me lose sight of what was, really, not necessarily a religious crap thing.
As was pointed out by many, the church wasn't necessarily a Christian church. There was iconography from other religions in the chapel. And the more I read, the more I think that maybe I missed out on something wonderful because I was so annoyed at what I saw as religious crap.
I mean, even if it is religious crap, who cares? Does that invalidate anything that I feel and think about religion? I dunno. I mean, there was always that element there. Like the BSG finale that had people so up in arms. I mean, religious crap was always present on that show. You could interpret it however you wanted and it wasn't necessarily Christian, even the one true god crap. But even though that last hour of BSG was pretty stoopid, I didn't feel betrayed by the ending, I just felt it should have been about 45 minutes shorter. And the last five minutes I prefer to forget entirely.
But. Back to Lost. And to religious crap. I do have a tendency to see things in religious black and white. "Ooh, white light! Must be God and Heaven and all that Crap!! I must now hate the show and all it stands for!!!" Which is highly Stoopid of me. I can enjoy the Chronicles of Narnia without hating C.S. Lewis.
So, all of that is to say that even if it was a religious ending, who cares. It doesn't invalidate the fun I had watching it for 6 seasons (not all of which was fun, but anyway). And in retrospect, I don't think I missed out on a wonderful thing. I did enjoy the finale. It just leaves me with some questions, which are coincidentally the same kinds of questions I have about Heaven.
I mean...ALL of these people wanted to be together for this last thing? None of them were thinking "meh, I can never see these people again and die happily?" I mean, if my version of heaven is to be with my family forever...yuk! I don't even like most of my family. And that's usually what people say, you'll be with your loved ones forever. Loved ones, fine. But...sometimes the people you love are not the people who love you. So will you get stuck with someone you didn't really care for, but they really liked you? Will there be different versions of everyone in different people's Heavens?
Yikes. It just all sounds so ludicrous (maybe cuz it IS). And I know, the whole church thing at the end of Lost wasn't Heaven, it was like a holding place or something. But dammit! It's just still kinda stoopid.
Quick thoughts
I watched the movie Hot Rod this weekend. I actually liked it quite a bit. Yes, it was extremely silly and yes, I kept thinking the writers must have been 12-year old boys, but I dunno, I still laughed a lot. The scene where Andy Samberg is "punch-dancing" in the forest just killed me. If you like silly humor, I recommend this one. One thing I really quite liked about it is that the level of gross-out humor was actually pretty nil. Also: the music of Europe dominated the soundtrack. Ya know. The '80's group that sang "The Final Countdown" (a.k.a., that song that Gob Bluth played at his magic events). It was actually perfect for the kind of movie that this movie was spoofing.
Gak, and how can I forget? Al Fucking Swearengen played Samberg's stepdad. He was funny and weird and dammit! Ian McShane needs to be on my TV screen more often, somehow, anyhow.
Another movie I watched, because a friend lent it to me and I'd had it forever, was The Big Tease, a 1999 movie with Craig Ferguson. It's a faux documentary about Scottish hairstylist Crawford Mackenzie (played by Ferguson), who comes to America to compete in the Silver Scissors hairstyling competition. It was pretty stoopid. It really was. But it was still watchable and I did want to know what was going to happen next. And it did have one fairly large admirable thing about it. Crawford is gay. He's a gay hairstylist. Let that sink in and imagine all the awful mannerisms and lisps that he's going to have, the awful jokes about him being gay, etc. And now ignore that cuz that wasn't in the movie. There were references to it, but it wasn't played for laughs the way it could have been. He just happened to be gay. So, even though I wouldn't seek it out or anything, it did have that awesome thing going for it. Plus, Craig Ferguson. Hello!!
Gak, and how can I forget? Al Fucking Swearengen played Samberg's stepdad. He was funny and weird and dammit! Ian McShane needs to be on my TV screen more often, somehow, anyhow.
Another movie I watched, because a friend lent it to me and I'd had it forever, was The Big Tease, a 1999 movie with Craig Ferguson. It's a faux documentary about Scottish hairstylist Crawford Mackenzie (played by Ferguson), who comes to America to compete in the Silver Scissors hairstyling competition. It was pretty stoopid. It really was. But it was still watchable and I did want to know what was going to happen next. And it did have one fairly large admirable thing about it. Crawford is gay. He's a gay hairstylist. Let that sink in and imagine all the awful mannerisms and lisps that he's going to have, the awful jokes about him being gay, etc. And now ignore that cuz that wasn't in the movie. There were references to it, but it wasn't played for laughs the way it could have been. He just happened to be gay. So, even though I wouldn't seek it out or anything, it did have that awesome thing going for it. Plus, Craig Ferguson. Hello!!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
Zombie
I'm not a huge fan of zombie movies. I love Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead, Dead Alive, 28 Days and 28 Weeks Later, but as far as horror genres go, zombies are further down the list. Given a choice between a bad '80's slasher movie and a bad zombie movie, usually I'd pick the former. Which isn't to say I don't like zombies at all. I just don't find them that scary since they don't really hunt so much as they just barrel forward and eat whatever they find that's in the way.
Lucio Fulci's Zombie is not a bad zombie movie. I probably still prefer Night and Dawn by Romero (I still haven't seen any of the further movies) but Zombie is pretty fucking kewl. The main problem with it is the dubbing. At times it looks like they're speaking English, but the sound didn't quite match, and sometimes it looked like they were speaking another language, but when I put on the Italian subtitles, it still didn't match. I gave up after about 30 minutes and eventually forgot about it, but it was distracting at times.
Anyway, the famous scene in this one is the splinter in the eye, which was pretty gross. I actually thought the scene with the zombies all eating the doctor's wife was grosser though. And the zombies in this movie were really, really gross looking. I mean, they always are in zombie movies, it's kind of the point, but these dudes looked so...I dunno, they looked like their flesh was rotting off the bones, which was how they should have looked since they had risen from the grave and all. They were just much nastier than the typical zombies I've seen in other movies.
I think my favorite sequence in the movie was the underwater zombie. The zombie vs. shark!! He was just tearing off chunks of shark and eating it! It was funny but not in a bad cheesy way, and I thought it was awesome. Plus, the chick who stripped down to a string bikini to go scuba diving was kind of hilarious. I mean, who takes off all their clothes and then puts on scuba gear on their bare flesh? Owch. I mean, if all they wanted to do was show off her tits, there certainly could've been some other way to do it.
Anyway, I gave this one 4 stars, which is pretty high praise since I don't generally seek out zombie movies. I definitely want to see more Fulci since I do loves me some creepy Italian shit.
Lucio Fulci's Zombie is not a bad zombie movie. I probably still prefer Night and Dawn by Romero (I still haven't seen any of the further movies) but Zombie is pretty fucking kewl. The main problem with it is the dubbing. At times it looks like they're speaking English, but the sound didn't quite match, and sometimes it looked like they were speaking another language, but when I put on the Italian subtitles, it still didn't match. I gave up after about 30 minutes and eventually forgot about it, but it was distracting at times.
Anyway, the famous scene in this one is the splinter in the eye, which was pretty gross. I actually thought the scene with the zombies all eating the doctor's wife was grosser though. And the zombies in this movie were really, really gross looking. I mean, they always are in zombie movies, it's kind of the point, but these dudes looked so...I dunno, they looked like their flesh was rotting off the bones, which was how they should have looked since they had risen from the grave and all. They were just much nastier than the typical zombies I've seen in other movies.
I think my favorite sequence in the movie was the underwater zombie. The zombie vs. shark!! He was just tearing off chunks of shark and eating it! It was funny but not in a bad cheesy way, and I thought it was awesome. Plus, the chick who stripped down to a string bikini to go scuba diving was kind of hilarious. I mean, who takes off all their clothes and then puts on scuba gear on their bare flesh? Owch. I mean, if all they wanted to do was show off her tits, there certainly could've been some other way to do it.
Anyway, I gave this one 4 stars, which is pretty high praise since I don't generally seek out zombie movies. I definitely want to see more Fulci since I do loves me some creepy Italian shit.
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