2010 TV Round Up - Part 2

• Blue Bloods (CBS) - It's a decent cop show, but nothing we haven't seen before.  Pretty good cast, I'll see where they take it for a few episodes.
  
• Detroit 1-8-7 (ABC) - I like the main guy, but again, this is a decent cop show where we already have too many cop shows.
  
• The Event (NBC) - This is still boring and the writing is so lame.
  
• My Generation (ABC) - Ugh.  I feel so pandered to.  This is insultingly boring and filled with every single stock character you can think of.
  
• Nikita (CW) - This is actually okay.  I'm surprised.
  
• No Ordinary Family (ABC) - I'll give it a few episodes to find its feet.  I like both Julie Benz and Michael Chiklis.
  
• Outlaw (NBC) - Ugh.
  
• Outsourced (NBC) - Are you fucking kidding me? THIS should have been the first axe of the 2010 season.
  
• Terriers (F/X) - This show is great.  If you aren't watching it, you should be.
  
• Undercovers (NBC) - I really want this to be great and do well, but it's been polished so much it's bland.  Would have done better on USA and with two leads who have better chemistry together.  (Separate, they're great actors.  Together...they fall flat.)

Shows I haven't yet seen, predict I will dislike, but will eventually watch at least one episode of: S#*! My Dad Says (CBS), The Whole Truth (ABC), The Defenders (CBS), Hellcats (CW).


Very sad Lone Star got cancelled, it was one of the best of this year's batch.

2010 TV Round Up - Part 1

TV IS BACK!

That means in addition to my old favorites returning (like Chuck!), it's time for the new shows to premiere!  This makes my week incredibly hectic to get all my viewing in, but I've managed pretty well.  Thank you DVR and internet.

Here's the quick rundown of what I think of this season's new shows...or at least the ones that have air Sunday - Tuesday.




Boardwalk Empire (HBO) - Awesome.  Steve Buscemi is so good.  They've done a marvelous job on the sets and the story.  I'm looking forward to the rest of this season.

Chase (NBC) - It's a cop show set in Texas.  Nothing you haven't already seen before.  (What's up with everyone being enamored of Texas?  Is it the boots or the hats?)

The Event (NBC) - Boring.

Mike & Molly (CBS) - I could watch the 50% of the show that doesn't ask me to laugh at the characters for being fat.  But I'm going to skip this after the requisite 3 episodes. Also, the laugh track drives me up the wall.

Hawaii Five-0 (CBS) - Surprisingly alright.  I'll give it a few episodes to see if it makes the final rotation, but Grace Park is AWESOME.  Alex O'Laughlin (the lead) is the least charismatic of the actors on that show, but his co-stars more than make up for that.

Raising Hope (Fox) - Eh.  It's a serialized version of Raising Arizona but sans Holly Hunter and Nick Cage.  A few laughs, but doesn't come close to Modern Family, Community, Parks & Rec, or any other established comedy.

Running Wilde (Fox) - Ouch.  I think I laughed twice.  Ouch.  Bring back Arrested Development.

Live Blogging the Emmys

This should be FUN.

I'm primarily watching KTLA's preshow, though I occasionally jump to NBC's.

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3:50 - Aaron Paul (BREAKING BAD) deserves an Emmy. Actually, all of BREAKING BAD should get its own Emmy called the UNTOUCHABLE BAD ASS OF TELEVISION Emmy.

3:54 - Terry O'Quinn & Michael Emmerson (LOST). That is all, bask in the awesome.

3:58 - Sharon Gless (BURN NOTICE) is AWESOME. I can be her when I grow up?

4:03 - Ew. Do not like Robin Antin of the Pussycat Dolls. Get off my screen.  (Also, I do not care about AMERICAN IDOL.  Bleh.)

4:05 - "Snob appeal?" What about the fact that MAD MEN is utterly fantastic (though not as good as BREAKING BAD).

4:05 - LOVE Judah Friedlander's (30 ROCK) hat: "Best Undressed."

4:10 - "A pair and a spare" Sophia Varga, Steven Levitan  (MODERN FAMILY) and his wife.  Michael Emmerson, Terry O'Quinn and Carrie Preston (TRUE BLOOD and ME's wife) made a better 'pair and a spare.'  Also, MODERN FAMILY should win over GLEE.

4:15 - Ugh.  To LL Cool J *and* NCIS: LA.

4:17 - Connie Britton! (FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS)  Great show, great actress.

4:18 - John Goodman was fantastic on TREME.  Great show.

4:24 - FYI, I'm reading Girl With the Dragon Tattoo whilst ignoring my TV.

4:30 - Patrick Stewart is a glorious man.  (He's nominated for HAMLET.)

4:46 - I really like Scott Bakula (MEN OF A CERTAIN AGE).

4:59 - Jane Lynch (PARTY DOWN/GLEE) deserves an Emmy simply for being awesomecakes.

4:59 - January Jones (MAD MEN), WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?!  D:    D:    D:

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5:02 - OMG SO JEALOUS THE GLEE KIDS GOT TO DO A SPOT WITH TINA FEY.  But Jon Hamm + Betty White?  GENIUS.

5:06 - Kate Gosselin is harshing my Emmy vibe.

5:06 - Guest comment: "all we need now is Colbert, and this would be perfection."  True Story.  Great opening number.

5:08 - The obligatory CoCo reference.  Took you long enough.

5:09 - Are we going with a video game theme?  Neat.

5:11 - Again, Jon Hamm + Betty White = Genius.

5:13 - YAY MODERN FAMILY!  Stonestreet totes deserves it!  Haha, I like the commentary.  "...and a clown.  Apparently these are the same job in Kansas."

5:19 - Jim Parsons (BIG BANG THEORY) and Sophia Vergara (MODERN FAMILY) - wonderful!

5:21 - YES MODERN FAMILY.  YES.  Looks like Julie Bowen may end up streaking Sunset after all...

5:24 - Sir Dr. Stephen Colbert IS a National Treasure.

5:25 - JANE LYNCH IS LOVE.  One of the few GLEE Emmys I'm happy to see.

5:32 - Sad they pushed the Guest emmys to the afternoon, but yay Betty White!

5:35 - Meh GLEE (best directing for a comedy).  Whatevs.

5:36 - HA! Modern Family/Family Guy crossover FTW!  Love Modern Family SO MUCH.  It's actually increasing with these spots.

5:38 - I want Jim Parsons (BIG BANG THEORY) to win Best Male Lead in a Comedy....

5:39 - YES!

5:44 - Edie Falco (NURSE JACKIE) for best Lead Actress in a Comedy.  That was a surprise.  She's a great actress though, terribly terrific.

5:47 - I'm going to check out of the reality bit.  Such crap, we should not be rewarding this 'genre.'

5:58 - God this past season of DEXTER was amazing.  John Lithgow was phenomenal.

6:02 - "Guy Walks into an Advertising Agency" is my absolute favorite MAD MEN episode ever. I want it to win.

6:02 - MAD MEN is so very, very good.  Two extremely good contenders for episodes.  Though I'm utterly shocked BREAKING BAD didn't even get a nomination because that show is superbly crafted.

6:04 - FUCKING YES AARON PAUL for best supporting actor!!! BREAKING BAD FTW!

6:11 - Wow Archie Penjabi! (Best Supporting Actress)  I really like her in THE GOOD WIFE.

6:13 - I have to go Bryan Cranston for Best Actor in a Drama...

6:13 - FUCK YEAH BREAKING BAD! :D :D :D  Bryan Cranston is a revelation as an actor.  So very good, Mr. Walter White.

6:22 - BREAKING BAD's Michelle MacLaren should win for directing.  She is beyond amazing.  Her landscapes are beyond reproach.

6:22 - However, I cannot hate on DEXTER.  But still, BREAKING BAD is better.

6:33 - I have no real feelings on best actress in a drama series.

6:35 - Stephen Colbert, still justifying South Carolina's continued existence.

6:41 - The Tonys won an Emmy.  This makes me giggle.

6:48 - I do not find Ricky Gervias that funny--at least he's not doing his "I'm a fat man" shtick.

6:52 - Daily Show v Colbert Report.  Why is Celebrity Death Match no longer on?

6:53 - Woo Daily Show!!  Keep fighting the good fight, JStew!

7:08 - What...just happened there?  (RE: John Krasinski and January Jones)  Worst presenters of the show??

7:16 - David Strathairn beat Patrick Stewart for best actor in a mini-series?  Captain Picard will sic Q on you!

7:23 - BP, you are not getting me on your side.  You can post as many ads as you want, but you BROKE THE OCEAN.

7:30 - Glad to see TEMPLE GRANDIN getting recognition.  We need more positive depictions of conditions like Autism.  Too much stigma and misunderstanding still exists.

7:36 - Alexander Skarsgaard over what's-his-name any day.

7:37 - Yay Temple Grandin (best director for a mini-series.)

7:39 - Al Pachino wins best male lead in a mini-series for YOU DON'T KNOW JACK. Cue resurgence of the "it's easier to portray a live person" debate.

7:40 - Ha, Pachino just tried to distance himself from the whole "getting into the character's head" deal since his character performed mercy killings for terminally ill patients.  Nice save, buddy.

7:47 - No one is shocked THE PACIFIC won best "long form."

7:49 - This award approved by TEMPLE Grandin and her awesome cowgirl outfit.  (I mean this sincerely.)

7:51 - COME ON BREAKING BAD.

7:52 - I'm not surprised MAD MEN won (Best Drama Series).  I love it.  But BREAKING BAD is the better show.

7:57 - YES! YES! A MILLION TIMES YES! Go Modern Family!! (Best Comedy Series)

8:00 - On the dot!  Not a bad broadcast.  Props.

How Lost Should Have Ended

This is WONDERFUL.

Lessons in Screenwriting: U R Doin' it WRONG

The point of prose in a script is to help lay the scene. It should create vivid images, impart new and useful information, keep the story rolling.

It should. In theory.

Let's examine a few common ways people fail in their prose.

I. Redundant redundancy is redundant.

There is HUGE EXPLOSION as the lab explodes.

Similarly, if you read a 4-sentence paragraph and the word 'dazzle' is used five times, you have a problem AND a poorly written book about sparkly vampires.


II. Blatant racism is not okay.

He tops off his tank and walks to pay the INDIAN cashier who’s really an Indian of the American persuasion.

Hollywood likes to pretend it's 'progressive' and 'forward thinking.' We like you to hide your racist, sexist, ageist thinking in the subtle details so we can all claim cluelessness later.

Now dressed as the Chicano gangbangers they are, they're wearing baggy pants, long black coats.

III. Mexico is many things...

Crossing the border, H and C crack open a couple beers and exchange a laugh as they drive their $70,000 automobile into the safe haven called Mexico.

...but it is not a safe haven. For anyone. Haven't you seen Desperado or Kill Bill? Also, it really messes with the flow of your story if you have your main characters driving from LA to Tijuana and back in like, 5 minutes.


IV. NO.

It’s the most spectacular powder sequence ever laid down on film and the most dangerous...

---

Sylvia’s so stunningly beautiful she could give a clam a heart attack.

When "Science" Has an Agenda

So Angry.

A Florida doctor is dosing pregnant women with an experimental (and non-FDA approved) hormone to prevent their daughters from becoming lesbians and--BONUS!--make sure they grow up into wives and mothers. You know, proper ladies who want to cook and clean and wait for their man to bring home the bacon. Because being a wife and a mother is the ultimate goal of every woman in the world. If you chose NOT to be a wife or mother, there is obviously something wrong with you. Also, lesbianism is bad. So we can blame childless lesbian spinsters on their parents because mom obviously didn't love her child enough to dose herself up with Dex in utero. And you know what else is bad? Not adhering to a gender binary.

On the heels of the fuckery that is the doctor who is shortening CAH people's clits and then stimulating them with a vibrator to make sure they still work comes this, which is also an attempt to prevent ambiguous genitalia in children with CAH (Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia which is a condition that lowers the tolerance to estrogen and results in a 'masculinizing' of the genitals). So this doctor wants to do her patients a solid and make sure all female babies grow up to be appropriately 'girly' and well as making sure kids with CAH are "girly" outside and in. We're just going to ignore the fact that masculinity and femininity are both culturally dictated binaries and that people are different, not to mention what qualifies as a masculine or feminine activity changes. Like in the 1800s when a man proved his masculinity by decorating a house. My favorite comment:

"It is enormously frustrating when scientists treat natural variation as a problem to be solved, and necessarily deny humans' capacity for ideological adaptation in order to sustain that pretense."

Read More...

This is all such bullshit science, and not just because Dex isn't FDA approved.

“The challenge here is... to see what could be done to restore this baby to the normal female appearance which would be compatible with her parents presenting her as a girl, with her eventually becoming somebody’s wife, and having normal sexual development, and becoming a mother. And she has all the machinery for motherhood, and therefore nothing should stop that, if we can repair her surgically and help her psychologically to continue to grow and develop as a girl.”

Naturally, we're just assuming that the child in questions wants to be a girl or even wants a binary gender at all. We also seem to be avoiding the term 'intersex' in the articles I've read so far, which is a lovely way to continue making an invisible group of people more invisible. Props, media outlets.

...the 2008 paper by Meyer-Bahlburg et al hints that variation in sexual orientation beyond the population of girls with CAH might also be partly explainable through prenatal androgen exposure. Such reasoning could lead to the pursuit of other “screening” and “treatment” methods for manipulating intrauterine environments.

While everyone has been busy watching geneticists at the frontier of the brave new world, none of us seem to have noticed what some pediatricians are up to. Perhaps it is because so many people are fascinated by the idea of a “gay gene” that prenatal “lesbian hormones” have slipped past public scrutiny. In any case, we think Nimkarn and New’s “paradigm for prenatal diagnosis and treatment” suggests a reason why activists for gay and lesbian rights should be wary of believing that claims for the innateness of homosexuality will lead to liberation. (BioEthics Forum)

I think this has been done before. Experimenting on minorities/"undesirables" and then extrapolating out to the wider population.

The Readings:

• The Announcement
  
  
• What Causes Low Rates of Child-Bearing in Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia? by H. F. L. Meyer-Bahlburg [the paper]
  
  

  “CAH women as a group have a lower interest than controls in getting married and performing the traditional child-care/housewife role. As children, they show an unusually low interest in engaging in maternal play with baby dolls, and their interest in caring for infants, the frequency of daydreams or fantasies of pregnancy and motherhood, or the expressed wish of experiencing pregnancy and having children of their own appear to be relatively low in all age groups.”

  
  
• Doctor Treating Pregnant Women With Experimental Drug To Prevent Lesbianism [Slog]
  
  
• Preventing Homosexuality (and Uppity Women) in the Womb? [Bioethics Forum]
  
  
• Pregnant Women Being Given Experimental Drug to Breed Girly Girls [Strollerderby]
  
  
• Awful Doc Drugs Pregnant Women To Make Their Babies More Girly [Jezebel]
  
  
• A Prenatal Treatment Raises Questions of Medical Ethics [Time]
  
  
• Clinical Practice Guideline on CAH Approved by the Society [Endo-Society]

:| I are Unimpressed

This does not bode well for the human race's continued existence.

Al* finally accepts that a woman can be sexually active and they start to make love again.

It's the again that really gets me.

*For the record, Al is not me.  I fully accept and believe that women can be sexually active.