Big news from across the pond regarding two fan favorites, Misfits and Sherlock!
Tv Wise had news that it is pretty much a done deal for a fifth series of the superhero anguish show Misfits. It should air late 2013 and will be composed of 8 episodes.
Continue reading The British are Back! News on Misfits and Sherlock
I had plans to wait until I got home from a weekend trip to New Orleans to watch this week’s SNL, but the power of the Timberlake would not let me and I am grateful, because it was fantastic. I’ll admit that there was a bit of reservation initially because my slightly inebriated state may have made the show funnier than it actually was. Any doubt was erased when watched by the harsh light of a sober morning. And if there was any doubt that the writers were taking an easy/lazy break last week to gear up for this episode, they are now erased because minus a few missteps, the writing was as good as it’s been all season to date.
It is really rare to see the host in the cold open, to the point that I can not think of the last time I’d seen it. Of course, this is Justin Timberlake and it is well known that he rises above normal conventions. So there he was, in all his Elton John glory, singing at the funeral of Hugo Chavez. Nothing like a reworked ‘Candle in the Wind’ to start the night off right.
To truly appreciate the greatness of Timberlake’s “Five-Timers Club” monologue, you’d have to watch Tom Hanks’ monologue from his fifth time hosting back in 1990.
You’ve got the very young SNL writer, Conan O’Brien greeting Hanks at the door vs. current SNL writer Mike O’Brien who happens to also be behind one of my favorite webseries, Seven Minutes in Heaven with Mike O’Brien. I’m of the belief that all celebrity interviews should be conducted in a closet and end in awkward kissing. Of course the similarities between the two monologues continue with Paul Simon and Steve Martin. I really enjoyed it, but oh boy does it put a bit of a spotlight on how much more often men are the host of SNL as opposed to women. Well at least, frequent hosts. Perhaps next episode’s host, Melissa McCarthy can bring up that number someday and join Candice Bergen and Drew Barrymore in the ‘Five-Timers Club’.
Even though the monologue ran a bit long, it was really fun to watch SNL living history all come together and watch Bobby Moynihan and Taran Killam fight to the death.
I’ll admit that when the dating show set was shown during the commercial break I groaned a bit. This has been the year of musical monologues and game shows, some have worked but there have been some that really did not. However when it became clear that this was just going to be a vehicle for the singing sleazebags known best for ‘Dick in a Box’, it became infinitely better. Of course I really wasn’t expecting the Festrunk brothers (as often cameos in the monologue stay in the monologue) so they were an awesome surprise. As much as I enjoyed both duos, Bobby Moynihan as the rejected bachelor was equally as funny. He usually plays the weird part of the joke so seeing him as the straight guy is always a refreshing change of pace.
It would not be a Justin Timberlake show without a costumed street singer promoting some random business. I have a feeling if it were anyone else, this sketch premise would have been old and tired by now. Luckily the writer’s have been able to keep the jokes and song parodies pretty fresh each time so it’s exciting to see Timberlake dressed as a big block of tofu as opposed to that “oh man, here we go again” feeling.
If you were wondering who on earth is still watching Harlem Shake videos and giving SNL the idea that it was still at all relevant and not beaten to death… it’s me. I love them in all their stupid glory and was downright giddy watching the cast do the “Vegan Shake”.
As great as Justin Timberlake is and how awesome his performances were, it was actually the “NuvaBling” fauxmercial that was the funniest to me. Probably because it was unexpected (unlike the rest of the episode, I mean we knew pretty much what sketches were going to be done) but it was hysterical. I mean come on, diamond encrusted birth control? Cool.
Diamond encrusted birth control that then becomes earrings? Perfect. Between that and the final line of “and yes, it does hurt”, easily my favorite commercial of the year. Birth control should all be “100% effective at getting dat swag on”.
So apparently there was some dust-up between Timberlake and Kanye West? I was unaware so I couldn’t have told you anything about the changed lyrics to “Suit and Tie”, but the internet quickly let me know of my ignorance. I guess we are all now just sitting and waiting to see what Kanye has to say in response.
Weekend Update was really short, likely due to the length of the monologue and the first few sketches, but it brought back Stefon who seems like he has been missing for quite a while (John Marbury who usually writes that character has been off working on his pilot for NBC). Bill Hader never fails to entertain as the ridiculous Stefon and this was no different. The club named “Your Mom and I are separating” located in a burnt out Red Lobster is sure to be the hotspot everyone is talking about.
“Sober Caligula” was the obvious low light of the episode. However, I do give them credit for trying a new sketch. If you’ve watched SNL with any regularity you know that when hosts make repeat appearances, they often will pull out the same characters that they know people like and have been successful (Veganville, Dick in a Box), so it was nice to see something new. Of course I wish it’d been a little bit more successful but A for effort and let’s not lie here, there’s nothing wrong with a sketch that features a half-naked Taran Killam.
I would never have thought that Maine Justice would be a recurring sketch. Ever. For good reason. It was great as a one time “this is really weird but oddly entertaining” kind of thing. Coming back? Eh, not so much. Unlike the later sketch with the “not porn stars anymore”, Maine Justice just needs to go ahead and call it a day.
You can sell all the albums in the world and you can star in as many movies as you want; hell, you can be a member of the SNL ‘Five-Timers Club’, but I think we can all agree, you haven’t really “made it” until the Three Amigos introduce you.
“She’s Got a D#*k” was all right. Not much to write home about but it was better than Maine Justice. I did like how Nasim didn’t have a name instead was billed as just an “adorable brunette”.
After a long day, I totally look forward to a glass of “Monica and Chandler” champagne and feel like it’s about time it got a chance to shine. Even though we have a general idea as to what the two idiot former porn stars are going to say, it still is funny as hell. I take that back because at no point did I ever think I’d hear someone tell a story of jerking off a horse on TV. That was a new one.
Overall? Great episode. I do wish they’d tried more original sketches but I understand they were trying to go for that typical cameo filled episode to try to drive up the ratings, and they were successful as more people watched this weekend than have since Charles Barkley hosted last January. I can see them getting close to those numbers with Melissa McCarthy hosting on April 6th because there might be people tuning in to see if Kristin Wiig or Maya Rudolph make cameos. Even if they don’t, McCarthy is a great sketch comedy actress so I’m very much looking forward to that episode.
Until then SNL fans!
Clear was one of the best episodes of The Walking Dead I have seen in a long time. Can we say character development? This entire episode focused solely on Rick, Carl and Michonne. The unlikely trio head back to where the Grimes family used to live; where Rick was a sheriff and Carl was a child. The idea behind risking their lives was to gather guns, ammo and supplies from places that Rick remembers.
Almost immediately, they all realized that someone else had made a home out of the place, this is where we run into Morgan. Morgan, in case you don’t remember, was in season one and saved Rick’s life. Rick hid out with Morgan and his son and nursed to health before meeting up with the rest of the group. Morgan has gone a little bit crazy since then, which of course pulls at Rick’s heart strings, considering his own recent hallucinations. We learn that because Morgan could not kill his walker wife, she eventually attacked his son. Rick explains that Morgan has to come back from this… this horror of what he’s seen, what has changed, and what he has been through. He may be too far gone, though, there’s really no way of telling.
Carl and Michonne went to get a crib for little Judith, and made a stop in a tavern that contained a photo of his mom, dad, and himself back in the world. In this episode, we saw Michonne’s human side. Unlike her usual robotic demeanor, Michonne is buddy-buddy with Carl, and even saves his life. Carl says to his dad that she might be one of them, which indicates that she has gained his trust.
Clear was an episode that looked like it was right out of season 1. Not only was it very focused, but it showed how small the world really is. Morgan was still around, and was the only human they ran into. It wasn’t shown so that we could see the group take guns from Rick’s old stomping grounds; it was made to show the humanity left in humans.
It’s finally time for the face off! Rick and the Governor sit across from one another at a table to discuss what to do about their precarious situation. Philip seemed, once again, quite charming and relatable. He divulged information about his wife’s tragic death; the car accident after she’d called him at work, and he explained to Rick that he’s always wondered what she called for. It was a very thought-provoking story, because you always consider what the characters have been through since the apocalypse, but rarely think about who they were before hand. Philip was a broken man before zombies started taking over his land.
While Rick and the Governor were swapping stories and sipping whiskey, the rest of the group keeping watch decided to pair up. Oh, except for Andrea, who I could not possibly want to strangle any more than I already do. Daryl and Martinez kill through a line of walkers together, which was very impressive to watch. Daryl with his circus-like knife throwing skills, and Martinez with his baseball bat baton twirling act, was the coolest killing streak this episode. Hershel and Milton discuss the amputation of Hershel’s leg when he was bitten. When Milton asked to see his stump, Hershel replied by saying he should at least buy him a drink first. Laughter… something we hear very little of in this show. It was refreshing.
Over at the prison, sure the Governor would kill them all. Merle tried to go help defend his brother and the rest, but it was Glenn and Maggie that put their foot (feet?) down and stopped him, followed by a gunshot from sweet little Beth to break up the fight.
Glenn and Maggie have a sweet discussion where they make up from the tension surrounding their visit from Woodbury. This is followed directly by one of the sexiest… no…. THE sexiest scene in the history of The Walking Dead. Maggie and Glenn got their freak on… and it was HOT. Glenn has been one of my favorite characters this season. Much of what takes up our daily lives, being it love, sex, lust, like, and romanticism, are lost in the post-apocalyptic world. It is so sweet to see a couple actually making it in such harsh conditions. In fact, it is a regular American love story.
In the end, the Governor gives Rick an ultimatum; Rick can hand over Michonne and he will agree to leave their whole group and the prison alone. Rick is given two days to come up with an answer. The way both groups reacted to the meeting in the end was an amazing way to finish off the episode. The Governor explains to Milton that they are still going to kill Rick’s group, which Milton explains will be a slaughter – but Rick is no fool. He tells the group that the Governor wants them all dead and wants to take over the prison and that they are going to war. Rick and Hershel have a heart to heart during which Hershel explains that Michonne has earned her keep and saved some of their lives by this point because Rick seems to be considering giving up Michonne.
This episode was absolutely brilliant! The face off had to happen sooner or later, and I am overjoyed that it happened this way. I love the double-sided betrayal. I honestly cannot say much more than I am way too excited to see what the final three episodes of the season bring.
I would rate these two episodes as one, because the first of the two was a focused episode involving only three members of the group. 5/5 is something I am encouraged to rarely, if ever, give. However, in light of Arrow on the Doorpost being the best episode of the show this season, 5/5 it is.
So last time we covered some of the new comedy pilots NBC has ordered this year but let’s take a moment and look at their dramas. Surprisingly their drama line-up isn’t nearly as dismal as their comedy. Granted that’s because there’s not much of a line-up in the first place thanks to The Biggest Loser and The Voice filling up a lot of air time, but they have had success with last year’s newbie Grimm and of course, Parenthood. Add to that this year’s rookies, Chicago Fire and Revolution, both of which are likely to be renewed and there aren’t a lot of slots needing to be filled.
There is the spot left vacant by the “two episodes and done” Do No Harm and it’s possible that Law and Order: SVU might finally be on its way out so perhaps some of these new pilots will find a new home on the peacock? Time will only tell.
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Can lightening strike twice with J.J. Abrams on NBC? I imagine they certainly hope it can. After the success of this year’s Revolution, NBC is pairing up with Abrams again for Believe. This time instead of a prepper’s 
dream world, Believe is about a “gifted young girl” who teams up with an ex-convict who is supposed to protect her from evil forces who are after her power.
I can easily seeing this one making to series, not only because of Abrams name but they’ve got quite a few other nice names attached. The pilot was created and will be directed by Alfonso Cuarón who has written and directed some great movies in recent years such as Y Tu Mamá También and Love in the Time of Hysteria. He also directed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It appears as if he has done a television show before, but not here in the US. I’m looking forward to seeing how he writes for American television.
The cast is also intriguing with the extremely under-utilized Delroy Lindo, and the mayor of Portlandia himself, Kyle Machlaclan who is set to play a “mysterious billionaire”. In my head I’m imagining his Captain character from How I Met Your Mother with a serious side.
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This pilot has perhaps the most in-depth logline ever that makes me envision a graphic novel version of Romeo and Juliet based on the set of Desperate Housewives.
[quote]The Kill Bill-esque stylized drama follows an orphaned girl named Bird Benson who’s caught between two families of murderers and mercenaries. In order to eventually have a normal life, Bird learns, she must defeat her mother via mortal combat.[/quote]
If it doesn’t get a series order, I’m really hoping they at least let us see the pilot because something like that needs to be seen by the masses. In addition to a great premise, it has some great actors involved. With Breaking Bad ending their run, Jonathan Banks has signed on to be a “villainous patriarch” (EW). I’m of the opinion that both he and his Bloodline co-star, Tom Everett Scott can’t be on my television enough. Add in Skyler Samuels from the ABC Family one season, The Lives of Chloe King and it looks to be promising.
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Although NBC already has a fairy-tale based show in Grimm, they are looking to perhaps tap more into ABC’s Once Upon A Time audience with this pilot based on Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. Actually
ABC first had the rights but then released it due to it being too similar to Once Upon a Time as well as it apparently being rather costly to produce. So costly as a matter of fact, that it has been pushed a bit back to a mid-season review.
Does that move show that NBC is intending to bring it to air? Well they did the same sort of thing with the Munsters relaunch and of course the Wonder Woman show so there’s really no telling. All I know is I enjoy Once Upon a Time and would be okay with watching a show based in Wonderland.
There hasn’t been any casting announced yet but the show, created by Anthony Zuiker who brought us CSI and its countless offshoots, is set in modern time with a mystery that can only be solved in Wonderland which is ruled by a queen who we once knew as a young girl named Alice.
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[tab title=”Rand Ravitch”]
The premise of the untitled Rand Ravitch project seems vanilla at best, yet another political conspiracy show, much like ABC’s Scandal and Netflix’s House of Cards. I’d be willing to guess that NBC is hoping (praying, and wishing) that they can capture some of the success those two shows have had.
While the idea of the this pilot doesn’t blow my skirt up, the casting so far certainly does. Gillian Anderson is coming back to TV. Granted this isn’t news as she was already making a return on NBC’s Hannibal, but that is just as a guest appearance. This project makes it to series and it’ll be like the 90’s again, Gillian Anderson on the small screen every week. Joining her are Rachel Taylor from the short lived 666 Park Avenue and the incredibly easy on the eyes, Lance Gross from House of Payne.
Of course, if this does make it to series and it is good, then we will have to start lighting candles in the hopes it doesn’t end up on the chopping block like Ravitch’s last series, Life. That one still stings.
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[tab title=”The Sixth Gun”]
This show, based on the graphic novel of the same name, is probably one I’m looking forward to most. Outside of maybe Bloodline, it seems to be the most “different” projects contending on a prime time slot. Has there been a western on network television in the last ten years? I don’t think so. Justified over on FX is 
Westernesque and then of course HBO’s Deadwood, but I don’t know that we’ve seen a western on a big 5 channel since the ill-fated Firefly. That alone is enough to check it out.
Another reason? W. Earl Brown. The man is just the embodiment of what an actor in a Western should be so it makes sense that he’s done time on both Deadwood and Justified. He’s been cast as General Oleander Hume who we all know found the six guns. There hasn’t been an announcement yet as to who will play Drake Sinclair or Hume’s wife but Silas Hedgepeth will be played by Graham McTavish (who has a voice anyone who has played a video game in the last five years will recognize) and Aldis Hodge (Leverage) will also be on the hunt for the guns as Agent Mercer.
The Sixth Gun had already been a “thing” at SyFy a couple of years ago before they dropped it, so here’s hoping it has more success on NBC.
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[tab title=”Hatfields and McCoys”]
In a surprise to no one, there is a TV series of the infamous feud between the Hatfields and McCoys in the works. After the raging success of History Channel’s miniseries, it really was only a matter of time. Honestly,
given the built-in drama of the families, it lends itself to good TV.
However, this show? Will not be good. I would place good money that it will just suck. First off, they are taking the two families out of Kentucky and West Virginia and putting them in modern day Philadelphia. I can only imagine that the pig that started it all will probably be something stupid like a real estate deal for a new condo development. This will likely be a typical crappy nighttime soap in the tradition of Dallas or the new Dallas.
I really wish Virginia Madsen had not been cast in this because I really like her. Oh well, if history tells us anything, this will probably be extremely popular and Madsen will have a nice run. Good for her.
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So there we go – potential NBC dramas! Some good, some really bad. Not a bad looking group of shows though for a network that is looking to crawl their way out of the ratings basement. We’ll just have to tune in come September to see if any of them give NBC the boost they so desperately need.
Next up… ABC!
Whenever Justin Timberlake has a new movie or album or new outlook on life, everyone starts wondering… “when will he be on SNL?” Well thankfully it’s this weekend! As is customary, they’ve filmed and released their promos and it does nothing but make me more excited for this weekend’s show. I’m really looking forward to seeing if they do anything to honor his membership into the “Five-Timers Club”.
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I know I’m not alone, but I wish Timberlake would give up this whole music career thing he’s going for and just join the cast of SNL full time. Wouldn’t that make the world a better place? Solve the hunger problem in America? Stop all wars? No? Well okay then, but still, it would be pretty awesome because nothing makes me happy happy happy like Justin Timberlake on my TV on a Saturday night.
Sadly, there is a group of people that will likely not be partaking in the fun, as they are still really butt hurt over the “Djesus Uncrossed” sketch that aired during the February 16th episode, hosted by Christoph Waltz. I thought the outrage had calmed down, but apparently the people over at American Family Association have taken it upon themselves to alert SNL advertisers and call for them to pull their ads from the show. If Fox News is to be believed, JcPenney and Sears have done just that.
I find it hard to believe that JcP will bend to the AFA given their reaction to similar group’s response to their hiring of Ellen as their spokesperson but this is a crazy world we live in so, who knows? At the end of the day, none of this really matters because come Saturday night, it’ll be this guy and the ads run during the show won’t have any effect on how awesome it will be.
After last week’s episode was so strong, I figured there would be a bit of a lag this week, and I was right. However, Kevin Hart still made the show entertaining with his earnest efforts and high energy. The show kicked off with a typical politically themed cold open, and it started so slow that I almost just quit watching for a moment. Thankfully I kept with it otherwise I might have missed the most fabulous thing I’ve seen on my television in a while.
Yes, the sequestration is going to hit our country hard, especially the gay sailors, cops, construction workers, and Native American chiefs. Very sad. Very sad indeed. However, their loss is my gain because I could just watch that gif for hours.
While the monologue ran a little long, I loved it. It wasn’t some pointless musical number and Hart didn’t just stand there nervously fumbling his lines, rather he came out and did a stand up bit. The hobo palming some dude’s sandwich at Panera was awesome. Especially when he turned it into his fear of the hobo’s germs when he touched his lip. I was dying. The story of his audition at SNL was good, but not as good but it did what very few monologues I’ve ever seen on SNL do, it told a complete story! There was a beginning, a middle, and an end. Not only that but it had a flow to it and made sense. If I was a creative writing teacher I’d probably be giving him some good marks. I’m not, so I’ll just sit here being impressed.
The Steve Harvey Show sketch is not one that needs to be right after the monologue but this is not the first time this year they’ve done that. Much like the “Girlfriend’s Talk Show”, it just doesn’t have the energy in it to fill that slot. I did like Nasim with the stuffed horse though, no real reason behind it, I apparently am just a fan of watching Nasim Pedrad stand next to large stuffed animals.
You know the minute the camera comes up on Jason Sudeikis as Wolf Blitzer that it’s pretty much guaranteed to be funny. This time “The Situation Room” covered the papal election and I honestly did not see the punchline coming at all. Kevin Hart as Pope Quevenzhane Wallis was hysterical. Complete with her puppy purse and curly hair, perfect.
Kevin Hart makes an adorable little girl turned Pope and his Latin is quite good. Of course having taken Latin in high school, it was like I finally had a little moment where it all paid off. Who needs Spanish when you can spend three years of your adolescent life in preparation for fifteen seconds of an SNL episode? Ego sum homo indeed.
The Verissimo commercial made another appearance as did Bobby Moynihan and Cecily Strong’s worst employees ever. Apparently after leaving their high-powered careers at McDonalds, they found jobs at Barnes and Noble but again find themselves potentially getting fired. I like this bit and these characters because Moynihan and Strong are on point when it comes to timing and delivery of their barbs, but perhaps there needs to be a bit more time in between their appearances. It seems like they did the same exact
thing just in different colored shirts.
Weekend Update was great! Most of the headline jokes were good with my favorites being college girls raising their shirts to half mast in memory of ‘Girls Gone Wild’ and of course the baby boom expected in result of the Hurricane Sandy blackouts. I heard a nasty rumor the other day that Seth Meyers was thinking of leaving SNL which got me thinking, who could take over the Weekend Update desk? I don’t think there’s anyone in the cast right now that could do it.
It certainly couldn’t be Bobby Moynihan because then we’d lose a good chunk of what he does so well and that is WU guests. This week he was there as North Korean leader Kim Jung Un with his new best friend Dennis Rodman.
What an odd news story that translated into a great WU bit. Of course Bobby wearing no pants and Jay Pharoah trying to carry him piggy back without accidentally grabbing something he shouldn’t was too funny.
Also funny was the “Really” segment with Kevin Hart. I know there’s been a bit of an outrage over calling all of us Southerners racists but a.) it’s a joke and b.) we don’t really have much of a leg to stand on when it comes to racism in history. I mean come on. Complaining about being the butt of that joke would be on par with complaining that having to avoid the Trail of Tears memorial trail adds ten minutes to your commute time.
I don’t even watch The Walking Dead yet I can tell you that Nasim Pedrad does an awesome Carl. This sketch was funny, to an extent. It was basically the same joke repeated numerous times. Oh and I learned that if being called a racist solely on where you live got people riled up, go ahead and see what happens when you mention something spoilerish of their favorite show. Whoo boy, people are pissed. Of course I’m of the thought that if the show aired more than a couple of weeks ago, either watch it or shut up if you happen upon spoilers. It’s your own damn fault for not keeping up.
“Shark Tank” really had no hope of being funny. The only funny part was Tim Robinson and his “slest”. The sunglasses on a lamp part? Did not work.
If you watched television at all during the 90’s, then you saw exactly what “Z-Shirts” was about. Especially on Nickelodeon which I watched quite a bit of in the 80’s and 90’s (You Can’t Do That On Television and Double Dare mostly). These commercials were loud, obnoxious, colorful, and most often, stupid. Kevin Hart’s screaming “Ist it a F-Shirt?” was perfectly suited to his energy and delivery.
The pre-taped sketch was good on its own, my favorite of the night actually, but when it showed up two sketches later in a nice call back? Love. SNL is not known for those types of techniques so when they do use them it’s really a nice surprise. I’d love to see more of this, much like in the Justin Bieber episode where they had Ellen, a recurring character, be a part of a sketch not centered on her. It’s the little things in life.
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The Dove Chocolate recording session was funny, but it was actually the little “ehh?” Vanessa Bayer puts at the end of each section and then adds it in randomly that was the highlight. I don’t know why but seriously, that had me in stitches. She is one of those people that is really good at finding small things like that and working them in. They aren’t in your face but you can’t help but laugh.
The only thing funny about News 360 was the cameramen, especially Jay Pharoah in the rafters.
Oh, and I forgot about Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. I’m a fan so I enjoyed it but I wish they’d done “Same Love” instead of “Thrift Shop” (although I realize how ridiculous that is given that it’s “Thrift Shop” that got them on SNL in the first place) especially if they weren’t going to do it live.
I have a feeling the powers that be wouldn’t let them do it live for fear of them forgetting to do a radio edit version because they did come back and do “Can’t Hold Us” live. Recorded or live, there’s no one who can deny that those guys had a good time.
Overall? Wasn’t the best writing, wasn’t the best mix of sketches but it was fun despite it all. I have a feeling the writing will be taken up a notch for next week when Justin Timberlake pulls double duty. Until then SNL fans!
News bit for all those who noticed Don Pardo’s absence, he apparently suffered a broken hip so he’s been out of commission. They did not say when (or god forbid, if) he would return but Darrell Hannah has taken over announcing duties for now.
Grizzly Bomb 
