What up, loyal readers? Damn, it's Monday. But hey, at least I've got the 24, Heroes, Veronica Mars, and Lost finales to look forward to in the next few days ...
I had a great weekend, and a busy one at that. On Friday my friend Dan and I went to a Shabbat dinner in West LA, where we met some interesting people. The highlight for me was ... well, any of you guys see Season 1 of Beauty and the Geek? Well you may remember a short geek who was kind of like a young Woody Allen, Richard Rubin. Well a while back I posted about how Richard was actually friends with my good friend Mike Z from their days at Brandeis. When the show first aired, Mike enthusiastically called me up to tell me about how his friend was on this reality show and how I should watch. So anyways, who was at this Shabbat dinner but ... reality star Richard Rubin! I introduced myself and pointed out our Mike Z connection, and Richard remembered Mike having mentioned me and the two of us got to talking. Anyways, very cool but slightly surreal to meet someone who's reality TV exploits I followed and enjoyed. Saturday, the Xplosian and I celebrated the birthday of fellow NBC Page Class of January 05 member Adriana, as we headed down to somewhat sketchy downtown LA for a pirate / nautical themed dinner. Then, I headed from there to young Hollywood hangout Barney's Beanery for current NBC Page Rebecca R's birthday bash, which was a great time, with many friends old and new showing up for the festivities. (check me out on facebook / myspace for some new pics).
- How psyched are you all for tonight's 24 season finale? Okay, sure, this season hasn't quite been up to par but come on, this is a 24 season final we're talking about. Two hours of sheer gravitas! At least, that's what I hope. Just bring back the Soul Patch already! Can you imagine -what if, in their final confrontation, Jack's dad is killed - but before he dies he tells Jack that since Graem died he had to install a new head of his organization - Jack is like WHO IS IT, WHO!?, then in walks TONY ALMEDA and Jack's like - Tony, it's, it's YOU? And Tony's like ... "Yeah ..." Daaaaaaaaaaaaamn ...
- If you haven't already seen this, and consider yourself a fan of action movies, esp those of the oldschool 80's variety, you MUST check this out ASAP. Look, I thought that Rocky Balboa was the pinnacle of 80's Stallone nostalgia / awesomeness, but this looks off the chain, and gory as hell - so now, sez I: Bring on John Rambo!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ColXeVm-gxY&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Edefamer%2Ecom%2F
- Been reading about possible casting for WATCHMEN. Hmmm ... Jude Law I guess I can see as Ozymandias, though their is something slightly bland about Law that I can't put my finger on. On the other hand, Keanu Reeves as Dr. Manhattan? This could be problematic ...
- Lots of DARK KNIGHT news of late. WB unveiled the first face shot of Heath Ledger as the Joker, and I have somewhat mixed feelings. It looks very dark and horror movie-esque, but to me it's a little too grotesque. Call me a traditionalist, but the Joker is an evil clown and therefore should look like one - not like some dude whose mouth is bleeding. I think of the great images of the Joker from the comics - Brian Bolland, Alex Ross, Jim Aparo, and though they are cartooish to some extent these are still the images I want to see brought to life, not something that looks to have been designed by Rob Zombie. I mean, this is Batman, not the new Saw flick. But I'll give it a chance and put my faith in Nolan and his team. I do love the prospect of Anthony Michael Hall appearing somewhere in here as well. I could see him as a great fit for any number of potential supporting roles. Dr. Kirk Langstrom, Edward Nigma, Arnold Wesker, Jeremiah Arkham, or even Julian Day - the Calendar Man. All would be cool as hell to see pop up in Dark Knight.
TV STUFF:
THE SIMPSONS 400th Episode Spectacular:
- Two episodes of The Simpsons last night to close out the show's EIGHTEENTH season and to mark its historic 400th episode. Unbelievable - I've been watching this show practically my whole life! Of course, the show has now, after eighteen years, been only decent to mediocre almost as long as it's been good. And yet, the show holds such a revered place in my TV cannon that realy, nothing can tarnish how great and influential the first ten or so seasons of the show were in my mind. And of course, every so often the show churns out a diamond in the rough - think last year's brilliant Ricky Gervais-penned episode, or this season's gem where Moe becomes an unwitting literary giant. Would last night's double feature be another return to form, or just more of the same old subpar Simpsons?
Overall, it was a mixed bag. I can't bring myself to be anything other than disappointed though, as a whole. There was SO much potential in a Simpsons / 24 crossover. The obvious precedent is in the X-Files episode from several years back, which was an instant classic and took full advantage of guest-starring Mulder and Scully ("I bring you love!"). This time, Kiefer Sutherland was relegated to a small cameo, and the show never really took full advantage of having Jack Bauer as a guest-starring character, never having him interact much with the denizens of Springfield. The show at times was clever in its parody of 24's style, but again, never took full advantage of the potential to satirize the show. That being said, this episode was the funniest the Simpsons has been in a while. I was cracking up at Skinner's "enhance, enhance, dehance!" line towards the beginning. And man, Jack Bauer at the end there was hilarious, when he diverted all of CTU's resources to find Bart, only for a nuclear bomb to go off right outside ("Don't worry, that was Shelbyville.") - classic. Homer in a dumpster was kind of amusing as well ("We're dumpster folk now, Milhouse"). But Marge's bake-sale subplot was kinda weak, and, I don't know, the 24 tie-in seemed totally tangential and not integral to the plot at all. In terms of animation, all the split screen stuff was done really well.
Overall - this was probably one of the better Simpsons eps in a while, and had some of the funniest lines of the season. But I was hoping this would be GREAT, and it asn't, just pretty good, so I can't help but feel let down.
My Grade: B+
As for the second SIMPSONS ep of the night, the big 400th episode ... well, things started out with a nice tribute to the show's history, but ... man, what happened from there? Nothing about this ep other than the intro felt big or special in any way at all. The big cameo was from Luddacris, in an semi-funny appearance, but nothing too stand-out. Worst of all, I looked at the clock when the main plot kicked in - in which Kent Brockman had coffee spilled on him and uttered an expletive on the air - it was 8:45! On the 400th episode, I did not expect the Simpsons to pull this kinda crap. It's a shame too, because the premise here was actually great. I love the conecept of Kent Brockman quitting his network news job and becoming a maverick internet journalist. Man, there is SO much potential in that, and yet this ep barely scratched the surface, since it was too concerned with filling up half the episode with random tangents. Some of these tangents were decently funny (Homer eating the one-millionth ice cream cone, then wanting it in a cup ...), it was a shame to see so much wasted time, that detracted from any feeling of specialness the ep might have. Like I said, there were the beginnings of some great concepts here - like some great jabs at the FOX network - that ultimately went nowhere. Man, I hope the movie is great, because this was a decent but ultimately pretty lackluster 400th episode of a show that deserves better.
My Grade: B -
- On the other hand, I can't tell you how happy I am about last night's FAMILY GUY. Welcome back, Family Guy! This was easily the best episode of the season, and the most I've laughed at this show in a long, long time. There was a clever plot that was a pretty hilarious riff on Back to the Future. There were some classic random cutaways (Peter losing his top while riding a mechanical bull ... lol), and just the right amount of crazy, absurd humor mixed with a plot that actually was a lot of fun and had some substance to it. Even the 80's references seemed funnier than usual (Krull!). Awesome - please tell me this is the beginning of a return to form for Family Guy, which at one point, what seems like forever ago now, was the funniest thing on TV.
My Grade: A-
- Meanwhile, what can I say about KING OF THE HILL. What an amazing, amazing show ... and of course, a show of this superior quality is the one that FOX is once again sticking at a crappy 7 pm timeslot. WTF.
- King of the Hill had two episodes last night, which I believe served as the show's season finale. The first ep was just classic King of the Hill. No other show has the ability to pick a random segment of society, in this case bodybuilders, and just capture that niche with so much humor and truth. Bill recruiting a bunch of muscle-heads to train him for his army physical was so funny. I mean, whoever thought to cast Randy "Macho Man" Savage as the voice of the group's leader was a genius. They even let him do his trademark "Ooooh yeah! Dig it!" Now that is awesome. But I am just continually amazed at how much heart and soul each episode of this show crams in between the laughs. A great ep.
My Grade: A -
- But then, holy lord ... I don't know if the writers of KING OF THE HILL thought that this second of two new episodes was their last, but it felt like it was almost conceived as series-ender. I mean, wow, they went all out on this one - not only was it a great episode, but I'd go so far as to call it an all-time classic. I loved everything about this one. For one thing, how great is Tom Petty as Lucky? Lucky is the rare character introduced late in a show's lifespan who just 100% fits in with the show and its world. Him wanting to sue Strickland Propane to get money so he and Luanne could have a fancy wedding - with Hank caught in the middle - was a classic King of the Hill plotline. The final scenes of this ep, with nearly every character that's ever been on the show making a cameo at Luanne's wedding, were wondefully done. And the final scene, with Hank and his pals standing outside drinking beer, was so good that I don't know if you could write a better ending for the show ... (don't get me wrong, thank god KOTH is coming back next year). This closing line just about sums it all up:
Bill: Wow, you just gave away a bride, Hank.
Hank: I know, I've got, uh, well, I guess you'd call it "emotions."
Classic.
My Grade: A+
To flash back a bit to last week:
- SMALLVILLE, as I said, usually comes through in its season finales. For whatever reason, the show just seems to step up its game for the big episodes, even when, as with this year, the show has suffered from a long string of subpar installments plagued by sloppy writing and little to no movement in the overarching plot. So, once again, this sixth season's finale was one of the few standout episodes of the season - an exciting, action-packed, surprise-filled hour that was the most enjoyment of gotten out of Smallville in a while.
First - the bad. Like many, I'm sick already of Lionel Luthor's back-and-forth flip flopping between being an ally and enemy of Clark's. Lionel has always been great as a villain, but the show has sent so many mixed messages about his true motives that the character is just a mess. How am I supposed to care about him one way or the other if every week he changes sides? The other big annoyance here was just how anticlimactic Clark's reveal of his true identity to Lana was. This is a moment that the show has been building to for SIX YEARS. And while it was a huge relief to finally, FINALLY see Clark put all his cards on the table for Lana after years of angsty secret-keeping, the moment could and should have been a bit more memorable and dramatic - maybe have Clark take Lana on a quick flight, or something!
One odd thing here was the inclusion of J'onn Jones. This potentially cool-as-hell character was given little to do, and it begged the question - why introduce the Martian Manhunter into the Smallville mythos as a recurring character, only for him to do approximately jack squat?
My other big "???" moment came when Lois appeared to be a goner, only for Chloe to rain magical tears on her cousin that apparently revived Lois, only to, in turn, kill Chloe! Now, this to me is potentially kind of a cop out. If Chloe is truly dead, then this was sure a lame way to kill her. If she's still alive, then what, exactly, happened to her? I don't know, this whole plot development came off as a bit out of nowhere and lame-ish for my tastes.
All that being said, there was some really great stuff here. Is it any surprise that Lex Luthor yet again provided the episode's best moments, with his chilling confrontation with Lana, and he and Clark's climactic showdown? I also liked the stuff with Clark and his mom - Martha Kent going to Washington should be an interesting twist for the show, hopefully leading to semi-adult Clark not being such a momma's boy anymore and striking off on his own a bit more and having more adventures not rooted in Smallville.
Finally, the last battle between Clark and the Krptonian Phantom was very nice - some of the best action we've yet seen from the show. To top it off, the show threw in an unexpected but fanboy-pleasing curveball, having the phantom absorb Clark's DNA and take on the visage of comic book (and Jerry Seinfeld) favorite - Bizarro! Bizarro am back! Me no like Bizarro! Sweeeet - finally, a REAL supervillain for clark to throw down with!
As fun as this episode was, it couldn't fully mask some of the faults that have been there on the show the whole season. This was a huge step up, but at the same time, not QUITE as good as past year's finales. As one of the few returning show's for the CW next season, let's hope that Smallville can turn things up a notch in the fall.
My Grade: B+
- As for THE OFFICE's season finale -- well, I really enjoyed it! I thought that the humor wasmuch sharper than the previous week's ep ("Beach Games"), and at the same time there was some nice character stuff and a few surprises to boot.
I haven't been a huge fan of the Michael - Jan relationship. To me it's forced Michael's character to go off in some odd directions that didn't seem to me to be keeping in line with Michael Scott as he was originally presented. But when Michael and Jan are written as hilariously as they were in the finale, then hey, I've got no problem with 'em at all. Michael's fascination and inability to argue with Jan's new, um, enhancements, was drop dead hilarious. Meanwhile, Dwight's temporary rule as manager of Dunder-Mifflin's Scranton branch was pretty funny, and provided some great comedic moments. You've also got to love the supporting character's bits, like when Kevin compares the hotness of Pam and Karen, or when Creed talks about how he likes his women floppy! Yikes!
I liked the Pam-Jim-Karen stuff a lot better this week, where it was kept subtle and down to earth. Still, there were moments that seemed a bit overdone. For example, I liked when Jim saw the note from Pam placed amidst his papers as he waited for his interview. But I thought inserting a flashback to their conversation at the beach was total overkill. For one thing, this show should never use flashbacks. And also, that could have been cut and the same effect would still have been felt, only more nuanced and less hammy.
Overall- what a year it's been for The Office. The finale was yet more evidence that the show is the reigning king of comedy on network TV.
My Grade: A -
- Alright, I'm out - final thoughts: Sorry to see the Suns go - they should have won that series and its too bad they likely lost a game due to a dumb ruling that kept out Amare at a key moment in the playoffs - and: here's hoping for 24 to rule it tonight!
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