What's up, people. Man, am I beat. Last night I had a whirlwind adventure, as my old BU roommate Dan Levin was in LA on his way back to St. Louis from Australia. I tried my best to meet up with Dan before he had to get on his second flight, but by the time I got to him at Universal Citywalk it wa nearly time to hit the road again. I drove DL down to LAX without having eaten dinner, then drove all the way back to Burbank, getting back to the apartment at almost 11 pm, tired, hungry, and ready to pass out (didn't help that I spent like half an hour trying to figure out where in the massive sprawl that is LAX I had parked my car ...). It was good catching up with Dan (one of the three Dans in the now-famous / infamous "Three Dans and Aksel" sophomore-year suite in Shelton Hall), but after a long day of workin' for the man, this wasn't exactly the relaxing evening of winding down that I desperately needed.
People keep asking me if I've seen FOX's new reality show - On the Lot. Aside from catching it for a few minutes during the premiere, no, I have not. I'm somewhat interested in the subject matter, but from the little I saw it seemed slightly bland. And to tell the truth, I'm totally burnt out on television. While I love taking the time to follow my favorite shows like Lost or 24, I also hate the time demands that those shows put on you. Honestly, I don't mind a show like Lost only having 12 episodes per season at all - it doesn't need any more than that to tell a good story, and it creates a lot less pressure to commit to watching it week in and week out. I love the feeling of having more time to read, watch a movie, play some Playstation, work on some writing, or just go out and meet up with friends. When I do turn on the tube at this point, it's either to watch the NBA Playoffs, or to catch something random like Colbert or CNN or VH-1 or even MTV. I mean, I'd like to give, say, Traveller a try, but I just have little interest in commiting to watching anything beyond a stray episode of The Real World during these summer weeks.
One thing I am chomping at the bit to talk about is the networks' new fall shows. A few things are preventing me from giving my round-up though. One is the sensitivity of talking about some of this stuff. the other is that there's a few key shows that I've yet to see - off the top of my head I still need to catch CBS's Moonlight and FOX's K-Ville and New Amsterdam. Other than those three, I think I've caught just about every new pilot, both picked up and not picked up, that's of interest (things like the Grey's Anatomy spinoff I could care less about). So yep, I've seen all of NBC's cool new pilots (and company bias aside, they ARE cool - Chuck, Bionic Woman, Journeyman, and Life are all excellent), as well as buzz-worthy shows like The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Pushing Daisies, Sam I Am, Reaper, Gossip Girl, etc ... Sometime soon I may give my picks - feel free to ask me privately what I think though - as some of my media friends will tell you, I am not especially shy about giving my thoughts.
Some movie stuff:
- The trailer for The Golden Compass looks spectacular - I was pretty impressed with this one and can't wait to see. I'll also say I was pleasantly surprised by how cool Enchanted looks. In general, I don't like the trend of every family movie being stuffed with cool / ironic references, but this one looks like it may pull of the whole concept of a Disney movie in Real Life.
- My revamped most-anticipated Summer Movie list (in order of anticipation): Superbad, The Ten, The Simpsons, Stardust, Ratattouille (sp?), Balls of Fury, Transformers, and Fanboys. Two which I'll likely see but am cautiously optimistic for are Evan Almighty and the latest Harry Potter. BTW - I'm by no means a big Potter fan - I had never even seen the movies until last year. But I admit that the announcement of a Harry Potter Land at Universal Studios Florida is pretty awesome. For one it's just good for Universal to have such a cool and buzz-worthy attraction. But more than that, it just plain sounds cool to have such a comprehensive attracton based on a movie - how cool would it be to have something similar for a Star Wars or Lord of the Rings?
- The Simpsons in particular is going to be fascinating in terms of how well it does at the box office. Millions of people worldwide love the show, and most will likely turn out to see the movie. But - Simpsons fans are a fickle bunch - if the buzz is bad, then that could really negatively impact the box office. Still, this is the sleeping giant of the summer season, and I am rooting for it to succeed if only to validate The Simpsons as the greatest comedic creation of all time (even if it's been a shadow of its former self for almost ten years now ...).
- In addition to all of those, I'm really looking forward to Knocked Up, which I may end up seeing next week at a Universal screening. I've been a fan of Judd Apatow and Seth Rogan since Freaks and Geeks, and I was such a fan of that show that I'll eagerly support any new project from its creators or any that features that show's great cast.
NBA:
- Well, a grudging congratulations to the San Antonio Spurs on once again making it to the NBA finals. The Spurs are an amazingly solid team, and one of the few teams in the NBA that's been able to have an old-school team centered around one of the last great Big Men - Tim Duncan, with a supporting cast of slashers and shooters and great defenders - a very, very rare combo in today's watered-down NBA. There's only one problem - the Spurs are boring, and not particularly likable. I'm a fan of Michael Finlay from his days as a Sun and Maverick, but otherwise, I've never been a fan of the Spurs' stoic style of play, ever since David Robinson led them and began a tradition, continued by Duncan, of uber-talented players with little real fire, personality. I don't know, I respect Duncan's mastery of the fundamentals, but you never really get the sense that he's fighting for his life out there - my favorite players like Reggie Miller and Sir Charles always gave that little extra something when the game was on the line, and you could tell they were leaving their hearts on the floor each and every game. Also, the Spurs have some of my least favorite players ever, including the much-maligned Robert Horry. I just can't bring myself to root for them even if I have to admit they're probably the best and most well-managed NBA franchise of the last decade.
In the East - man, please let LeBron and the Cavs pull this one out. At least with the Cavs vs. Spurs you have a compelling storyline of LeBron, the young breakout, trying to make a name and taking out the old-guard Spurs. That series would have an exciting, history-making feel, even if the Cavs would need a miracle to have a chance. But, Detroit vs San Antonio - that's just painful. We've seen that series before, and it was one of the most boring in recent memory. The only drama will be whether or not C-Webb can get a ring, and if Rasheed Wallace gets suspended for amassing 7 technical fouls in the playoffs.
And my condolences to my brother, a long-suffering Utah Jazz fan (why, I have no idea), who yet again saw his team quietly surprise the critics and ascend the playoff ladder, only to bow out with a crushing defeat, with few outside of Salt Lake, not named Matt Baram, giving a flying #$%$. Don't worry Matt, maybe next year, maybe next year ... Dammit all.
- Seriously though, the absolute saddest part of the Eastern Conference Finals winding down is that it means an end to one of the most hilarious shows on TV - TNT's Inside the NBA. This show is so far above and beyond anything on ABC or ESPN it's not even funny, and it's a joy to watch Ernie Johnson, Sir Charles, Kenny the Jet, Magic, and Reggie Miller take jabs at each other and the rest of the NBA each and every week. The other night, I was dyin' as Reggie Miller compared the hypothetical rosters of an ESPN vs. TNT basketball game, with TNT winning out in every position except point, where Mark Jackson beat out Kenny Smith (emphasized with a hilarious vintage clip of Jackson schooling The Jet, played over and over t0 escalating comedic effect). Meanwhile, TNT's roster of announcers is consistently on point, with Marv Albert and Steve Kerr always doing an outstanding job. So here's hoping this Cavs-Pistons series goes seven games, just for the sake of getting as much Inside the NBA as possible before season's end!
- Alright, I am out. Here's something I never thought I'd say: Go CLEVELAND!
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