Entries Tagged 'Television' ↓

Apparently tonight was also "Idol Gives Back", which basically meant the night was one big telethon. I don't really do telethons. Jack Black was funny. For the most part we fast forwarded.

The only real "hook" for the show was that Ryan promised a *shocking* result to the end of the vote. Based on how calm everybody was, and how they didn't really focus on the bottom two as the show progressed, you sort of knew what was going to happen. When it came down to Chris R and Jordin as the bottom two and Chris was safe, I told Kerry, "The shock is going to be that no one's going home." Sure enough, that's exactly what they did. This week is about the telethon and the money, not the elimination.

Next week, though, *two* people are going home. That's going to be brutal. I'm waiting to see Chris R go. It bugs me that he's probably going to stick around long enough to knock out somebody who I like (like Blake).

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Hi everybody,

Sorry I'm behind, but I just got back from out of town and the server was down for several days and I'm way behind. Short answer, it's Heather and John in the bottom two, and Heather goes home. I don't feel bad to see her go, though, when she busts out a written farewell speech that is just painfully awkward. She blames Carrie Ann for them leaving ("She gave us a 7, we knew we wouldn't come back from that"), and then starts rambling about the makeup ladies in the back, and eventually I just gave up.

Next week should be John, by all rights, or possibly Billy Ray. But I wouldn't be surprised to see Ian drop down there as well since he's not getting any love from the judges (they even said, "Watch Billy Ray") and he doesn't have the sort of audience support the other two do.

Sorry for the spoiler, but man, it's about time!

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Can I tell you how much I hate country week? I was on cbs.com looking to see if I could find when Rockstar: INXS is coming back.

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I don't know if I'm just extra busy at work or I'm just not into the shows like I used to be, but neither Dancing nor American Idol is really doing anything for me this season.

Dancing this week was actually pretty high end, with a number 10s including a perfect 30 for Apolo and Kim. And what do they highlight in the recap? Heather's "dramatic" fall. Dramatic? I had to rewind on Tivo because I missed it the first time. Right at the very end of their dance, for the pose, she actually stood on one leg. Problem was, it was the wrong leg and down she went. She brushed it off like "It happens to me every day, big deal," but the audience was all "I had tears in my eyes, that brave woman!" So I was left wondering if she did it on purpose.

Who did I say last week, John would be next? John's actually safe, and it's Clyde and Heather in the bottom two. That surprises me, I thought Heather would go farther than this. Clyde, if you missed it, was called "the worst dancer in the competition" this week. That's a bit rude, even if it's true. Somebody has to be. Clyde goes home. But does that mean Heather will be next? Does John, who was also tagged with "the best worst rhumba I've ever seen", have enough popularity points to start beating out the better dancers ala Sanjaya?

Over at Tubewad.com there's an article up detailing the elements of a great sitcom. They are: a solid premise, strong characters, great writing, comedians in the lead roles and a live audience. The comedians one in particular fails pretty miserably and he admits that (Friends? Cheers?) what he really means is "If you have a comedian in the lead role, you're better off than if you don't, see Seinfeld and Raymond as my prime examples."

I'm disappointed that he does not include How I Met Your Mother, my favorite sitcom on tv right now. I like the premise and characters, very Friends like. A happy couple, a couple of friends who ultimately hookup, and the outsider Barney. The writing is brilliant (mostly coming from Barney's character). None of them are comedians by trade, and I have no idea if it's filmed before a live audience. I think that the first three are enough to carry it, and the author was just looking to round out to five items so that he could hav e a list to post on Digg.

Did anybody watch this show? I wouldn't even have noticed it if not for some reference in one of the TV blogs I follow in reference to where it would end up on the schedule relative to American Idol (or Dancing with the Stars, or something like that). It wasn't bad, but I don't expect it to last.

The premise of the show is to take a 30-something couple expecting their first child, and then surround them with every combination of friends with advice that you've ever heard. Start with the happily married couple who are so into researching and practicing their first parenthood that they carry around a doll, and even set the alarm to wake up at 3am to practice feeding. Never met anyone that does that, myself.

On the other end of the spectrum is a zombie-like couple that the central characters meet at a shower who give them much more realistic advice about never sleeping again, as well as several other scary things including a graphic depiction (and delivered upon promise to show them) of what happens to breasts after breastfeeding.

Throw in one oversexed, divorced career woman best friend and you've got a borderline Sex in the City episode. All character development in the show will apparently always devolve back into "I'm in my early 30's, I'm not ready to give up the life I enjoy but I want to start a new life by being a parent and I'm scared silly about it." So the stories will be stuff like whether to swap out the small car (the mini cooper) for a minivan. I wonder if at one point there was supposed to be a joke in there about trading the mini for a mini, but if there was I missed it and it was just confusing.

I don't believe the characters. The husband is supposed to be one of those anal retentive freaks that researches everything on the net first, which is funny when he disagrees with the doctor and has to learn to shut up, but other times just makes him hard to get behind. The couple I mentioned above, who are so gung-ho that they deliberately wake up at 3am, are either completely unbelievable or, if they resemble somebody you know, completely annoying. I don't see them lasting long.

It's on at 10pm on I think Thursday (Tivo will do that to you) so we'll record it as long as it lasts and probably watch it over the weekends. Maybe it will get better if the network gives it a chance. I just wonder if they'll run out of material, bouncing back and forth between "I don't know how to unfold the stroller" jokes and "What do you mean I don't get to wear sexy underwear anymore" jokes.

The fact that I can even consider an analogy with New Orleans after the hurricane does not bode well.

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I enjoyed this episode.  Supposedly about everyone mourning Laverne in their own way, I really didn't see too much of Laverne in it.  But the comedy bits were nice, including JD's funeral, and all the interaction between JD, Turk and Janitor.  Here's a note from the podcast — apparently in the JD's funeral sequence, there was supposed to be a bit where the reverend refers to JD's "valiant but futile attempt to save the world from the hostile alien takeover", and then cut to a space alien looking at his watch and giving the "hurry it up" gesture.  In other words that the invasion had occurred and they were holding up the destruction of the human race so that the funeral could take place.  I thought that would have been funny, but they cut it.

You named our daughter JD.  Why would you do such a thing?
  I was hoping that you would hate the name so much that you wouldn't be able to hide your spite from your daughter and she would love me more than you.

I did her autopsy.
  I'm her uncle.
Your niece had beautiful guts.

Hell, I love ya newbie.  I should have done this a long time ago.
  I knew you loved me, I just had to fake my own death to prove it.  He loves me everyone, can I get an amen?  Woo, God is good!

Are you an idiot?
  No sir, I'm a dreamer.

It's like her feet are giving me the peace sign.

Dr. Cox?
  You might want to knock, he's in an imaginary glass bubble.
I need help with a patient.
    Twenty minutes.
Ok.  How long does it take an old woman to bleed to death?

Oh, you're deaf too.  What are the odds?  I'm a doctor, I should know that.

I'm the trailer trashy pop star who rarely wears underwear, and you're one of my backup dancers who's not sure about his sexuality.  yet. 
  I don't want to do Britney and K-Fed anymore.  Ever since the divorce it's too sad.

Well when I was in high school  I was a volunteer janitor at the Hoboken Zoo.  And one night I was out plucking peacock feathers to sell for pens when I noticed Gary the gorilla making the sign for food. I gave him my danish, he gave the sign for thank you. It was the only two signs that Gary knew.  Except for boobs.  He liked em big and hairy.
  Join the club, player.
Get away.  So eventually Gary I'm sorry to say died of lung cancer.  For that I blame myself because I used to share my smokes with him.  But he also peaked my interest in signing and in his memory I took my first signing class.
    Is any of that true?
Someone would have to read it back to me.

What's up your kiboodle?
  Kiboodle?
It's my new word I'm trying out to replace ass.

Can you teach me how to sign 'I think we can fix your son's hearing"?
  Or I could just tell him.
I think it's best if he hear it from a doctor.
  No, you just want the glory. Are you really that emotionally needy?
Have we not met?
  Oh, you're right, I'm sorry.  Wasn't thinking.

Elliot, this relationship isn't working for me.
  Well that sucks kiboodle.

You know if we learned sign language we could talk in the movies without Carla yelling at us.
  Yeah but it's so dark how could we see what we're signing?
We'd get special glow in the dark signing gloves.
  Yeah but then the popcorn butter would get all over the gloves!
Why do you keep poking holes in this?  We'd cut off the fingertips.

Ha! You nagger.
  Hey, what you just call him, you punkass?
A nagger.
  Oh.  We cool.

Laverne was our friend, and people are walking around like she never existed.  It's not right, you know?
  Yup.  Tough crap.
Excuse me?
  You can't tell other people how to feel, you just can't.  Some want to cry, that's fine.  Others may choose to laugh and guess what, that's ok too. Plus you don't know what's going on inside people's heads.  Take…take PeePants here.  Now how do you know he's not thinking about Laverne right now?
    I am thinking about her.  I haven't seen my cellphone since her autopsy.  You don't think if I call it…
  You're done.  So to sum up, tough crap.  Hope that helps.

We're just wondering if we have any legal recourse?
  Just give me one second.
    Are you looking for a legal precedent?
  No I'm looking up the word 'recourse'.

Who could you possibly go to if the father won't sign a consent form?  Here's a hint, it begins with an M and ends with an R.
  Marg Helgenberger!

I"m glad it's not Marg.  We did not end well.  Hell hath no fury like a Helgenberger scorned.

You know Carla, sometimes you can be a real kiboodle hole.

I've been watching you for 20 years, champ.  Your joy comes from being needed.  That's who you are.

And tell him, if you know the sign that is, BooYah!
  BOO YAH!
    Nazi salute.
  My bad.

You know when I was a kid, I made my dad teach me sign language so I could communicate with my deaf sister. I ended up closer to her than with anyone.  I think Mr. Francis is afraid of losing that.  
  Is any of that true?
Mostly. My dad died before I was born.
  Wait a minute I met your dad!
You met a man.

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Update: Nonono, this is old, you want this week's update!

Short and simple this week, I have very little time for recapping. Once again Sanjaya is not even in the bottom three. This week it's Phil, Chris R and Haley. I guess we don't get to see her legs anymore, Haley is going home.

I don't get annoyed by Sanjaya. I get annoyed by an internet worth of people saying "Hey, you know, I'm not so sure that American Idol is a singing competition anymore, I think it's more of a popularity contest." Ya think? The only time that American Idol was a singing competition was the first season, when nobody really knew what to expect. Ever since then it's been all about getting the fanbase and campaigning bigger than the next guy. The problem is that once it was about picking who you really thought was the best singer (i.e. Ruben versus Clay or Bo versus Carrie), now it's about picking somebody who is a funny choice. Nobody thinks Sanjaya is the best singer, so even though it's their right to vote for whoever they want, it's ultimately ruining the premise of the show. If he does end up winning (which I don't expect will happen), it would basically be the end of whatever credibility the show still has.

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