In a recent interview with FRINGE executive producers Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Wyman, the talented twosome stated that one of the goals in deciding to alternate episodes between the two universes at the start of the show’s third season was to “really get people invested in the alternate universe with someone at the heart of it that they absolutely identify with and care about.” Needless to say, after last night’s premiere, they weren’t kidding. And while we may not quite be on board with Walternate’s deliciously (debatably?) evil plan to transform the Olivia we know and love into a sharp shooting emotionless Alternate version of herself, we did find that “over there” had more than a handful of things to latch onto. Namely the early start it gave Anna Torv’s “For Your Consideration” Emmy campaign that culminated in an incredibly emotional reunion with her very much alive-and-well mother played by special guest star Amy Madigan. The introduction of the world’s coolest cabbie Henry (played by THE WIRE’s Andre Royo) who we haven’t seen the last of. And most exciting of all “Dogs,” which let’s face it, is far cooler than the feline option our universe has subjected millions of viewers to. We’re just sayin’
Archives for September 2010
You Be The Critic: Thursday Night Premieres
1) Did you wake up this morning wishing U.S. Customs and Immigration would outsource the job of whichever NBC network executive greenlit OUTSOURCED? 2) Was $#*! MY DAD SAYS the crime against comedy that the majority of TV critics led you to believe? 3) Raise you hand if you bothered to tune into MY GENERATION at 8PM over on ABC? Let us know in the comments below. And as usual, in case you’re wondering what we thought: 1) Yes, 2) Indubitably, and 3) We didn’t, but in the interest of fairness we did record it and plan on checking out the episode over the weekend.
Must Read TV: MODERN FAMILY, VERONICA MARS, THE OFFICE & More!
• From the department of life isn’t fair, MODERN FAMILY kids get a shot at our dream job! (See Video Above)
• An Open Letter to fans of quality television, from LONE STAR creator Kyle Killen.
• Just when you don’t think she could get any cooler, Kristen Bell reveals she’d finance VERONICA MARS movie herself!
• ANATOMY Answers: from Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey.
• The Odd Couple 2.0, Michael Emerson talks about his new NBC series with Terry O’Quinn.
• How do you solve a problem like Michael Scott’s OFFICE exit? Top writers from BONES and LOST have more than a few ideas.
Random Musings: LONE STAR, THE EVENT, and the SHEER STUPIDITY that is launching all of ones new fall shows up against one another!
While we’re the first to admit that we never would have predicted just how poorly LONE STAR performed in its initial outing on Monday, more shocking still is the perverse amount pleasure certain members of the media seem to be getting from reporting on Fox’s failure. Now — putting aside for the moment how Fox should be applauded for thinking different over simply offering up another generic legal procedural along the lines of NBC’s OUTLAW and ABC’s THE WHOLE TRUTH — one can’t help but wonder why certain members of the media who shall not be named are calling for the network to take the show off the air after one poor performance that didn’t even include the DVR/PVR numbers. Need we remind them that this isn’t the network that cancelled FIREFLY and PROFIT anymore. Rather, this is the network that gave the likes of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, DOLLHOUSE and even PRISON BREAK more seasons than their ratings indicated they deserved. We’re just sayin’
Chief among the complaints surrounding this week’s premiere of THE EVENT has been the apparent backlash with regards to the episode’s thrilling final scene. And while we certainly don’t begrudge anyone their opinion, we can’t help but scratch our head over those who insist on comparing the show to LOST. Suffice to say, if THE EVENT were anything like LOST, the writers would have waited a good three or four seasons before introducing any sort of supernatural element. Which is why, rather than take them to task like noted technology blogger David Zatz, who tweeted, “Anyone else see The Event? I found it suspenseful and interesting until like the last 60 seconds. Sorry, I don’t need another Lost.” We’re going to go ahead and applaud them. At least now fans know what they’re signing up for!
Reviewapalooza! MY GENERATION & $#*! MY DAD SAYS
MY GENERATION
Premieres Sept. 23 at 8PM on ABC
Eight high school seniors (“the jock,” “the nerd,” “the wallflower”) in Austin, Texas are rejoined 10 years later by a documentary film crew to see who’ve they become. Shot in faux-documentary style, it frustrates what could have been a rich soap, made even more infuriating by how awkwardly and superfluously it incorporates events from the last decade. Still, the young cast seems willing and perfectly able to deliver under pointlessly restrictive circumstances, so it’s worth holding out for things to turn around. This is too much ambition being channeled too narrowly. Grade: C+
$#*! MY DAD SAYS
Premieres Sept. 23 at 8:30PM on CBS
After being laid off from his job at a magazine, Henry (Jonathan Sadowski) is forced to turn to his stubborn and mouthy father (William Shatner) for help. Based on the eponymous Twitter feed by Justin Halpern, the translation from the concise, 140-character soundbites to a sitcom is flawed, fleshed out in a routine sitcom fashion that renders the biting tweets effectively zingless. A digital source trying to be fed into an analog receiver. Grade: D+
Aleks Chan is a contributing writer to The TV Addict. He has seen every episode of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER four times, has once referred to his DVR as his “best friend,” and has only seen the pilot episode of THE SOPRANOS — and has no intention to apologize for it. He lives in Austin, Texas. His name is pronounced like Alex. Email him at alekschan.thetvaddict@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter (@alekstvaddict), or his own blog, Screen Reader.
SURVIVOR NICARAGUA Recap: The Biggest Bachelor In Nicaragua
By: Josh Wigler
Shoes Fly: If you thought Wendy Jo was a whackjob, clearly you haven’t met Holly Hoffman. After voting her ally out at the first tribal council of SURVIVOR: NICARAGUA, the 44-year-old swim coach took a swan dive straight into the deep end by stealing a boiling pot of food and sinking real estate executive Dan Lembo’s $1600 shoes to the bottom of the ocean out of pure spite — then confessing her actions to the entire tribe, entirely unprompted. Leave it to coach Jimmy Johnson, whose social game is improving tremendously, to talk Holly off the proverbial ledge. Had Espada lost this week’s immunity challenge, there’s no doubt that Holly would have gone home in a unanimous vote. I suppose that’s what next week is for!
Idol Hands: I thought the hidden immunity idol was actually supposed to stay hidden this year? It didn’t get ferreted out in total Russell Hantz fashion, but the idol has nonetheless found itself in the clutches of technology executive Marty Piombo after only two episodes. Marty has doctor Jill Behm to thank for the prize after she coached him towards the idol in a surprising display of loyalty. Unfortunately for Jill, Marty’s words upon discovering the idol says everything about his strategy: “I found the idol! I mean, we found the idol!” Marty’s slip of the tongue speaks to an undeniable truth about the game of SURVIVOR — out there in the jungle, possession is nine-tenths of the law, meaning that Jill has absolutely zero claim to that idol unless Marty feels like playing nice.
Watch, PVR, Pass: Thursday September 23, 2010
Double the Astrid, Double the Fun! We Preview FRINGE Season 3 with Star Jasika Nicole
This just in: Fame and fortune are not the only things that separate the acting profession from us desk jockeys and office drones. No really. Did you know that acting may in fact be the only ‘job’ where one welcomes double the work load for exactly the same amount of pay. At least that’s the impression we got on our recent visit to the set of FRINGE in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia where star Jasika Nicole could barely contain her excitement when it came to getting the opportunity to pull double duty as both Astrid and Alternate Astrid on what is shaping up to be an epic season for one of our favorite FOX shows.
Just how excited are you about the direction FRINGE seems to be headed going into its third season?
Jasika Nicole: I never saw this coming in season one, I was just happy to be cast. I had no idea we would do a musical episode, I had no idea FRINGE would be such a funny show (At least all of my scenes with John [Noble], we feel like we’re in a sitcom half the time), and I had no idea that I was going to be able to play two completely different characters in one television show. All of the crappy things that you would think go into working on a television series — where you do all the same things all the time, see the same people and don’t get to explore new things — all of those ideas have been totally knocked down with this show. I love that and never would have expected that to have happened.
Which Astrid are you enjoying playing more?
It’s like going to a new restaurant and trying some new food that you haven’t tried before and wondering if it’s going to be good, versus going for a home cooked meal that you know is going to be good. There are so many good things about both of them and it’s really really hard to say which one I like better. But, probably because this Alternate Astrid is new and so incredibly different I’m really enjoying doing scenes with her. She doesn’t make eye contact when she talks to people and that’s been so awesome because it really messes with people brains when we’re doing a scene.
TV Ratings: Wednesday September 22, 2010 (MODERN FAMILY laughing all the way to the bank)
Time | Network | Show | Rating | 18-49 |
---|---|---|---|---|
8PM | CBS | Survivor: Nicaragua | 12.47 | 4.0/12 |
ABC | The Middle | 8.81 | 2.6/8 | |
NBC | Undercovers | 8.57 | 2.0/6 | |
FOX | Hell’s Kitchen | 5.95 | 2.6/8 | |
CW | America’s Next Top Model | 2.82 | 1.3/4 | |
8:30PM | ABC | Better With You | 7.97 | 2.5/7 |
9PM | CBS | Criminal Minds | 14.08 | 4.0/11 |
ABC | Modern Family | 12.61 | 5.0/14 | |
NBC | Law & Order: SVU | 9.68 | 2.9/8 | |
FOX | Hell’s Kitchen | 7.19 | 3.2/8 | |
CW | Hellcats | 2.32 | 1.0/3 | |
9:30PM | ABC | Cougar Town | 8.35 | 3.3/9 |
10PM | CBS | The Defenders | 12.09 | 2.9/8 |
NBC | Law & Order: SVU | 10.36 | 3.5/10 | |
ABC | The Whole Truth | 4.91 | 1.5/4 |
You Be The Critic: Wednesday Night Premieres
1) Did J.J. Abrams’ UNDERCOVERS live up to the hype? 2) Are you better off with, or without, BETTER WITH YOU? 3) Was the surprisingly shocking final reveal coupled with the overall awesomeness that is Maura Tierney enough of an incentive to get you to tune into THE WHOLE TRUTH on a semi-regular basis? And finally, 4) Are you (wo)man enough to admit that you’ve got a bit-of-a man-crush on Jerry O’Connell and Jim Belushi’s bromance on THE DEFENDERS? Let us know in the comments below. Oh, and in case you’re wondering what we thought: 1) Yes, 2) Better off WITH 3) Kinda 4) Embarrassingly enough, Yes.