Recently, I’ve grown exhausted “defending” the new season of Arrested Development. Sure, the show has always been an acquired taste that will confuse the New Girl-crowd and fully alienate most of the people that think The Big Bang Theory is a hoot and a holler. [This is a really smart show about mostly wacky people…
Category: Entertainment Editorial
Emmy Nominations–The Best Surprises and Worst Snubs
There’s been a lot of grumbling about the new Emmy nominations and there are a litany of the usual complaints. “They honor too many of the same old shows!” Yeah, but when the same old shows are Homeland, Mad Men, and Breaking Bad, they kind-of have to. These are critically beloved dramas that deserve their…
The Most (and Least) Promising New Fall Shows
The networks have all unveiled their new fall shows, and some definitely look more promising than others… Most Promising: Although I wasn’t knocked out by any one show, these have the most potential in just their set-ups and their casts… 5. Sleepy Hollow…Fox’s new drama takes a tired central premise (some type of fantasy/sci-fi element…
5 Shows to Look Forward to in the Summer
Cable has made the old days of summer being a TV wasteland irrelevant. In some ways, I might even prefer it because there are fewer “in-between” shows to watch (Grimm, Person of Interest, etc.) and just a handful of great ones to watch. Not Done Yet: Even though Game of Thrones ended their season…
5 Cancelled Shows I’ll Miss, and 5 I Won’t
It sucks when your favorite shows get cancelled. It also sucks when some not so promising shows get renewed over them. Still, I’d say the broadcast networks got it mostly right with their decisions this year (while HBO and TNT dropped the ball big time). 5 Cancelled Shows I’ll Miss… 5. Honorable Mention: Fringe and…
Pop Culture Battle 3, Book of the Summer: “The Interestings” vs. “Reconstructing Amelia”
What’s the book of the Summer? Both of these books have been mentioned on countless lists, and it’s time to settle this… The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer…About: A group of six creative kids goes to a summer camp for artists in the 70’s and make friendships that last a lifetime, even as some of them…
Pop Culture Battle, Part 2: Netflix’s House of Cards vs. the BBC’s House of Cards
Netflix is hustling to get in the original content game (this month’s Arrested Development return is probably their biggest coup to date), and their nasty political drama, “House of Cards,” truly is as good as anything on most cable networks. [I still don’t think it touches most dramas on AMC or HBO.] It’s smart, well-made, and excellently…
Pop Culture Battle…Bates Motel vs. The Following vs. Hannibal
Three shows enter, only one show shall leave (the first of three pop culture battles today). What’s the best serial killer show on TV? Bates Motel…Going for it: Is the show better than I thought it would be? Yes, but that’s not saying much. The cast is strong, particularly Vera Farminga as the infamous Mother…
More Book Reviews: The Teleportation Accident, What the Family Needed
Two literary novels with a sci-fi angle that are more interesting than truly successful… The Teleportation Accident by Ned Beauman…This book has already been described as a “cult hit,” which means that most people probably won’t like it very much. Sadly, I’m in that category. It is occasionally brilliant (a man in 30’s Germany wonders about…
Book Reviews: Ghost Man, Dinner, 12 Tribes of Hattie, Bringing Up the Bodies
Ready for a round-up of books that came out last year or a few months ago? No…well, too bad… Bringing Up the Bodies by Hillary Mantel…This book came out last year and pretty much everyone who was going to read it already has, but I thought I would weigh in briefly on this (slightly)…
Most Anticipated Movies of Summer, And Least Anticipated
It’s time to think about summer movies, and I humbly submit some (most of them smaller films that could get lost in the shuffle) films for you to consider… Most Anticipated… 10. “The East” and “Shadow Dancer”…Two smart, sleek looking indie-thrillers. “The East” is about corporate espionage, and “Shadow Dancer” stars Clive Owen as a…
Book Reviews: How to Get Filthy Rich in Fast-Rising Asia, We Live in Water
Note: Two books that experiment with narrative, both looking (on the surface) like something wildly different than novels… How to Get Filthy Rich in Fast-Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid…This clever novel takes the form of a self-help business book, a popular hybrid usually written by some rich-guy/scam-artist that promises to make people rich through…
Book Reviews: The Andalucian Friend, The Burn Palace
Two books, two thrillers, both of them better than average, and both with a snake on the cover… The Andalucian Friend by Alexander Soderbergh…An unassuming nurse treats (and falls for) a patient that just so happens to be the heir to a notorious Spanish crime family currently in a fight for its life against…