i love BIG love

i felt so bad about my insult throwing last night...I thought I would add that I L-O-V-E Big Love on H-B-O. I mean, you think how much can you possibly do with Mormons? A lot man! This is good stuff. Drama, comedy and suspense wrapped into one wonderful HBO soap opera.

And are you wondering if Roman is dead? I bet he's not...

give it up john...

i officially give up on "john from Cincinnati." don't get, don't want to try to get it, never will get it. I've watched 6 episodes and nothing has been revealed to me. like john says "my father tells me"- he tells me NOTHING!

i officially ban this show, give it up HBO!

Slings and Arrows

Slings and Arrows is (was) the best thing on Canadian and American television. Well crafted drama and comedy- it's about a Shakespearean Canadian Theatre company and their characters on and off stage. I first caught this show in its second season on Comcast On Demand (if you don't have this service that's unfortunate). Anyway, at first pass I immediately fell in love with the antics of Geoffrey, Ellen and the director's ghost. Oh yes there's a ghost. How Shakespearean I dare say. I soon caught the 3rd season airing on the Sundance Channel (a fantastic cable TV channel- pay for upper tier TV peoples!).

This last week I received the 1st season from Netflix. Everything was revealed to me about the plots that stumped me a bit in season #2 and #3. I highly recommend renting season one and two now. NOTHING is on TV right now and jump in to this wildly hilarious world of quirky insane theater people. Let me make something clear- this is not a Waiting for Guffman rip off. This is a very well written drama/comedy about the inner workings of REALLLY talented actors.

My favorite character is Geoffrey. I've got a mad crush on him. First of all he's brilliant and secondly completely insane. Really he had a nervous breakdown on the stage. Then my second one- Richard Smith Jones (of Kids in the Hall fame) -- he's truly quirky and neurotic.

While researching this show (yes I research tv shows) I found out that two leads - Geoffrey and Ellen- are married in real life. And they both were members of the REAL Shakespearean theatre in Canada, Stratford Shakespeare Festival. Love this!

AND, I've got to admit that this is the first time I've loved anything Canadian. I hate to say it (dear friends there) but usually my husband and I when we find out that a famous actor is Canadian we usually remark "oh, i knew there was something about them!" Take that how you will.

----this show looks like it will not be renewed for another season-- so rent it on DVD.
so unfortunate that my 2nd blog post is on another TV show laid to rest :(

studio 60 bye bye

For some of you who don't know - Studio 60: On the Sunset Strip - has been laid to rest. It's unfortunate that Aaron Sorkin's new venture did not succeed. The first few episodes were killer- weaving fabulous characters, superb writing and energetic editing. The pace was fantastic. But then something happened- it became old habit. We just didn't care anymore about Matt and Harriet's relationship woes, if they would beat the digitial running clock to Saturday night or how bad Jordan McDeere's past was.

And if we are going down this road... Amanda Peet really bothered me- I don't think she was right for the part. I mean who believes that the head of a major TV studio can be so young, beautiful and DUMB. Yes I said it, I never believed she was as savvy as they tried to portray her. And I don't think Peet can act. So I have identified the major weakness of the show. And maybe in the end middle America just doesn't care about the inner workings of TV. Of course, I loved it- I could relate to the deadlines and political wars.

I also loved the introduction of religion and politics. The show really tried to pick these fights all the time. Harriet's religion was a problem for the show- the "gays" didn't like her, Matt supposedly broke up with her because of her faith, a pro family organization banned her. I thought this was a very interesting sub plot. So interesting, I did a little research. Aaron Sorkin, the series creator, actually was mirroring his own life. Some years ago he had a challenging relationship with a Christian actress (who was on the West Wing). When I say challenging I mean she was Christian and he was Jewish. Of course I found no elaboration on this point but he must have found it interesting that a practicing Christian was in the entertainment industry and she was dating him. Food for thought, too bad the show is now canceled and can't be more of sounding board for the religious conflicts we have in the USA. Oh yes they do exist they are just hidden in the depths of our niceness and "acceptance" of all peoples.

Whatever happened, it's tragic that the TV gods didn't give it a second chance. Why do serial crime dramas keep coming back when a show like this is discarded? And even worse why is it treated to a final 3 episode airing after a 3 month hiatus and a cancellation sticker has been stamped on it? It is was so sad to tune in for the last episode this past Thursday night. And it was a great episode. Oh yes a corny good ending but exactly how it should end. These last episodes- part of the 1st season- should have aired 3 months ago. C'est la vie"