Golden Globes TV Predictions

I'm hesitant to even try predicting the Globe TV awards this year, because of what an epic fail my first attempt was last time. But what the hell, I guess all you can do is practice in order to get better. Let's brave the waters.

DRAMA SERIES

• The Affair
• Downton Abbey
• Game of Thrones
• The Good Wife
• House of Cards

Gulp. Right off the bat it's going to be a blind dart. Well...House of Cards is a prestige show with movie actors in its cast, but The Affair is brand new, sexy, acclaimed and maybe House of Cards is old news now? I do think it's between those two, so I'll just jump in with both feet. The Affair it is.

COMEDY SERIES

• Girls
• Jane the Virgin
• Orange is the New Black
• Silicon Valley
• Transparent

I think it's got to be Orange is the New Black here. They didn't get to crown it last time because it wasn't competing in Comedy where it belonged. It's still buzzed about and cool (newness and buzz is practically the most important factor with Globes voters when it comes to TV), so I think it will win this year. Transparent has an outside shot, but slim I'd say.

ACTOR- DRAMA

• Clive Owen, The Knick
• Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
• Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
• James Spader, The Blacklist
• Dominic West, The Affair

I think it's either Clive Owen or Kevin Spacey, who they haven't awarded yet. Tough. Um- I'm going with Spacey because the show is nominated in Series.

ACTRESS- DRAMA

• Claire Danes, Homeland
• Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder
• Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
• Ruth Wilson, The Affair
• Robin Wright, House of Cards

Well, Wright won last year, so she's out. It's either Davis or Wilson, and if they like The Affair, which it seems they do (three nominations) they usually go with the star of the new series, so I'm going to say Wilson takes this. They love to crown newbies.

ACTOR- COMEDY

• Louis C.K., Louie
• Don Cheadle, House of Lies
• Ricky Gervais, Derek
• William H. Macy, Shameless
• Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

I really think Tambor has this one in the bag, but Gervais does have a shot as an old Globes favorite. They may just vote for him to see him on stage. Still, I think the popularity of Tambor's show will carry him to the win.

ACTRESS- COMEDY

• Lena Dunham, Girls
• Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
• Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
• Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
• Taylor Schilling, Orange is the New Black

This is probably Schilling or Rodriguez, based on the fact that their shows got into Series too. I'm going to say Rodriguez will take it in a surprise upset (it's happened before with people who were on younger skewing shows- think back to Keri Russell, Claire Danes, Jennifer Garner, and America Ferrera).

ACTOR- MOVIE/MINISERIES

• Martin Freeman, Fargo
• Woody Harrelson, True Detective
• Matthew McConaughey, True Detective
• Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart
• Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo

Ok, so I assume this is McConaughey unless they want to buck the trend for some reason. But they won't- a pretty good rule of thumb in the TV Movie/Mini categories is that the movie stars almost always win.

ACTRESS- MOVIE/MINISERIES

• Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honourable Woman
• Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show
• Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge
• Frances O'Connor- The Missing
• Allison Tolman, Fargo

McDormand, based on the rule (and Lange's already won). Although, if they really did watch The Missing, Frances O'Connor stands a chance here.

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart
• Alan Cumming, The Good Wife
• Colin Hanks, Fargo
• Bill Murray, Olive Kitteridge
• Jon Voight, Ray Donovan

Bill Murray, per the rule and also because they want to see him on stage. Who doesn't want a Bill Murray acceptance speech at their awards show? If they actually watched this stuff, Matt Bomer should win, but don't count on it.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Uzo Aduba, Orange is the New Black
• Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Freak Show
• Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey
• Allison Janney, Mom
• Michelle Monaghan, True Detective

Based on the rule, who do you think it is? Kathy Bates, right? Me too.

MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE

• Fargo
• The Missing
• The Normal Heart
• Olive Kitteridge
• True Detective

Heh. Boy is this category epic. I wonder if the HFPA even realizes what a stack of riches they have here. Any one of these would be a great winner, but...I guess True Detective? The buzz and all? Part of me wonders if The Missing could pull this out- that was a BBC show and every once in a while the foreign press is watching a more international series and throws a curve ball based on the actual quality of something (the original BBC Office won years ago when hardly anyone here in the U.S. had even heard of it). And then there's Fargo, which they clearly liked and may not want to go home trophy-less. Hmm...I think I'm going with Fargo, based on the spread the wealth rationale. Well, I'll be watching these with several face palms ready, no doubt. Come back for the winners on Sunday night!

'Big Bang Theory,' Jimmy Fallon and a Bunch of Random Shows win at the People's Choice Awards

My hatred for the People's Choice awards doesn't actually extend as much to their TV side, because honestly, I'm too indifferent to care about any of them. I basically don't watch any show on network TV anymore, so this world of theirs is one I'm not really living in. Although I will say Jimmy Fallon is an unctuous, phony sycophant and giving Saturday Night Live favorite sketch show tells me none of them are watching it this season (lucky them). But the rest? I don't care, because I don't know it or watch it. And aside from The Big Bang Theory and one little mention here of Orange is the New Black, I don't who's watching any of this crap. This certainly isn't anything that represents TV people are actually talking about/binging on/recapping now. It's a relic for the casual watcher, not the serious TV fan. Seriously, go ahead and defend Melissa & Joey to me as favorite cable comedy series. Favorite for who? Who ARE these people?

TV Show: The Big Bang Theory
Network TV Comedy: The Big Bang Theory
Comedic TV Actor: Chris Colfer
Comedic TV Actress: Kaley Cuoco
Network TV Drama: Grey's Anatomy
Dramatic TV Actor: Patrick Dempsey
Dramatic TV Actress: Ellen Pompeo
Cable TV Comedy: Melissa & Joey
Cable TV Drama: Pretty Little Liars
Cable TV Actor: Matt Bomer
Cable TV Actress: Angie Harmon
TV Crime Drama: Castle
Crime Drama TV Actor: Nathan Fillion
Crime Drama TV Actress: Stana Katic
Network Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Show: Beauty and the Beast
Cable Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Show: Outlander
Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actor: Misha Collins
Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actress: Kristin Kreuk
Competition TV Show: The Voice
Daytime TV Host: Ellen Degeneres
Late Night Talk Show Host: Jimmy Fallon
Dramedy: Orange is the New Black
TV Icon: Betty White
TV Duo: Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder
TV Character We Miss Most: Dr. Christina Yang
Actor in a New TV Series: David Tennant
Actress in a New TV Series: Viola Davis
Sketch Comedy TV Show: Saturday Night Live
Animated TV Show: The Simpsons
New TV Comedy: Jane the Virgin
New TV Drama: The Flash

John Oliver explains New Year's Eve

A bonus from Last Week Tonight! John Oliver tells us why New Year's Eve is the worst:

Top 10 TV Shows of 2014

Well, with the end of the year fast approaching, it's time now to relay my top ten TV shows of 2014- and though this year wasn't quite as full as last year (many of my favorite shows were uneven at times, with hit and miss episodes during the season) I did manage to come up with a top ten filled with great television that I'd gladly watch all over again.

1. RECTIFY

The second season of Sundance's eery and absorbing drama continued the story of Daniel Holden in just as compelling a fashion as the first. Which was all the more surprising, considering that this year really progressed in a very different direction from the first season. These were ten episodes filled with angst, intimacy, compelling human drama (the unfolding of the mystery from the night Daniel was sent to prison is finally revealed), and still the quiet moments of reflection from Daniel, his family members and the locals who inhabit the Georgia town where the show takes place take you by surprise. I continue to be mesmerized by every moment of this show, whether surreal, dreamlike or reality based.

2. TRANSPARENT

Finally, a new comedy series worth getting hooked on. Amazon's first acclaimed show is a home run, telling the story of a 70-year-old man (Jeffrey Tambor), who finally decides to live out the remainder of his life as the woman, Maura, that he feels he is. A series that explores the fluidity of sexuality as a whole, that dives deep into the complicated sexual relationships, identities, and changing feelings of a whole host of characters- not just Tambor, but his grown children, all of whom are struggling in different ways. Funny, melancholy, and nonchalantly matter of fact in the way it portrays all kinds of emotional and physical connections- definitely one of the best of the year.

3. THE KNICK

Steven Soderbergh's foray into episodic television was a triumph of directorial style finally making its way to the small screen. Set in turn of the century New York and dealing with the hospital setting of a time that feels like another universe, with rudimentary and graphic medical procedures it's hard to believe were commonplace. Great acting from a big ensemble cast that includes Clive Own, Andre Holland, and Juliet Rylance, it's a genre show that gets all the juice and atmosphere it needs from the setting, with amazing production values and camerawork that makes it feel downright cinematic.

4. ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK

There was not the slightest hint of a dip in quality for the second season of Netflix's hit prison dramedy. This time an arc involving Lourraine Toussaint's villainous Vee took the show in a much darker direction, but there was still time for flashbacks for all our favorite characters, funny moments sprinkled throughout, and more development for side characters like new administrator Caputo (Nick Sandow). This is the biggest of the big ensembles on TV right now, but how nice it is to see a female dominated, racially diverse cast can't be said often enough. It hasn't missed a step.

5. LAST WEEK TONIGHT WITH JOHN OLIVER

My favorite Daily Show correspondent came over to HBO with guns blazing as he set out to stake his claim upon a new form of satirizing the news- the expose. Oliver's shift from The Daily Show was to seize upon topics in a more in depth fashion, giving us more information, more details, more to be outraged about in general, especially as it relates to international issues that don't see enough of a spotlight in a country most often focused on domestic politics. It was a nice change of pace, and he remains just as bitingly hilarious and on point as he was on Comedy Central.

6. ORPHAN BLACK

Tatiana Maslany returned as the seven clones of herself in the sophomore season of BBC American's cult hit, and the show was just as wacky and entertaining as ever. More mystery was unraveled, more questions raised, more subplots crammed into this overstuffed sci-fi extravaganza, but it all remained inherently addictive and watchable, as we buy each of Maslany's doubles (okay, maybe not the trans man Tony), and even the show's missteps are so amusingly nonsensical that I can really forgive and forget just about all of it. I love watching this show, and I just wish there were more than ten episodes a season.

7. BOARDWALK EMPIRE

The last season of Boardwalk was a perfect wrap up of the gangsters we've been following for five years, and it went out Godfather II-style, in an epic arc that took us from the very beginning of Nucky Thompson's rise to his inevitable, series finale fall. Alone the way we got endings for Chalky, Van Alden, Eli, Margaret, Capone and Gillian, every one of them satisfying to the tee. Boardwalk was a class act and remained so 'til the very end, paying off its fans' devotion in spades. All long running series should look to this one for tips on how to sign off well.

8. MAD MEN

Mad Men's first half of the final season conveyed to me how remarkably good the show has remained, well into its later years, which is not something a show that's been on for seven seasons can usually say for itself. But the consistency with which Matt Weiner and his writers have produced quality, contemplative episodes as they begin the wrap up the saga of Don Draper really warrants more credit than it's received so far. This year Don earns his way back into the upper standings of the SCDP, and looks to be repairing his relationships with his colleagues and children (the episode with Sally in the restaurant was a breakthrough). Could a happy ending actually be in sight here? We'll find out soon enough, as the end of 1969 draws ever near.

9. THE AFFAIR

Showtime's sudsy The Affair took a neat concept and ran with it- the idea of telling stories from one person's point of view, then the other, Rashomon-style over an entire season. The idea's kind of cool, but the execution of it is another story, and it's amazing that it actually held up over ten episodes as well as it did here. Ruth Wilson and Dominic West are two married people who embark on an illicit affair one summer, one that seems to be leading up to an eventual murder and arrest sometime years later. It's a little trashy and soapy, but the show's production and cast are so polished and professional that it manages to feel like high class trash at the very least, with an addictive quality that pulls you in in spite of yourself. I was enthralled.

10. THE MISSING

There will be a full review of this series coming in a couple of weeks, but Starz's The Missing, which was a co-production with the BBC, was one of the most grippingly intense thrillers I've ever seen on television, despite a subject matter so overbearingly grim that it guarantees it won't appeal to everyone. A British couple played by the sensational James Nesbitt and Frances O'Connor suffer the kidnapping of their 6-year-old son while on vacation in France one summer, and from that point on the series volleys back and forth between the time the tragedy took place in 2006 and the resumed investigation eight years later when new evidence has come to light. It's very dark stuff, but the acting is incredible, the pace suspenseful, and the resolution a gut punch. By the end of this eight episode run you'll be impressed with the achievement and relieved that it's over at the same time.

Honorable Mentions: Other shows I loved this year but that didn't quite make the top ten were The Americans, Masters of Sex, Fargo, True Detective, The Fall, 24: Live Another Day, and Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. All of them are worth watching in  full though, as we head into whatever the next year brings in television.

REVIEW: "Homeland" Season 4

Ever since Damien Lewis's Nicholas Brody was killed off last season, I had predicted that Homeland was going to morph into another iteration of 24, and so I guess I feel some validation in having turned out to be 100% correct in that assumption. Obviously the best case scenario would have been for the show to find another emotional hook or be able to develop its characters in some more profound ways without Brody around, but it turned out not to be capable of that at all, and so the best way to enjoy Homeland now is to think of it as a low rent 24 without the ticking clock commercial breaks (although this season had moments when they could have easily inserted those breaks without missing a beat).

Carrie, still played by Claire Danes of course, started out this season wary of her new baby and distant from her home, wanting to be somewhat permanently stationed as far away as possible (in this case, Pakistan). While there she recruits her old fellow agents, including Max, Fara and Quinn, to track a major target they need to take out, who goes by the name of  Hakani (this season's Big Bad). The episodes in Pakistan are well done and include some very exciting, pulse-pounding, action setpieces (the show still excels at that), as Carrie is poisoned and goes into a variation of "off her meds" Carrie, and Saul is kidnapped and held prisoner by Hakani and his guys for a good chunk of the season while Carrie and Quinn plot to get him back. There was also an interesting storyline where Carrie seduces a 19 year old Pakistani medical student in order to get to his uncle (Hakani), which she feels bad about later, but hey- if Carrie is Homeland's Jack Bauer than everyone she comes in contact with has to suffer, right?

But Carrie's not really Jack Bauer- if anyone fits that description it's actually Quinn (Rupert Friend), who's now second-billed and still a badass, when he's not sitting around moping about how much he hates his job and wants to leave the CIA. Whiny Quinn is really not my favorite Quinn, and he's so cool and in control when he's kicking bad guys around like the professional assassin he is, that I'd really prefer to see him like that at all times, if possible. It's not though, because this season confirmed what I'd been dreading last year, that Quinn is indeed in love with Carrie, and by season's end she finally reciprocates his feelings, only to see him go trotting off to Syria for a black ops mission at the order of the treacherous Dar Adal (F. Murray Abraham). Lame. I'm not a big fan of the Carrie-Quinn pairing, but based on what happened here this year, it looks like they're pretty much "endgame," as shippers like to say. I don't hate the idea, I just really have no emotional investment in it, not to mention Quinn's coolness factor shoots down about 1000% just by being interested in Carrie at all- I mean, what is he, nuts?

Claire Danes still gives a full throated, energetic and dominant performance as the loon that is Carrie Mathison, and in many ways she IS the show, but the idea that a rational, fellow CIA agent would want to get involved with her romantically is beyond ludicrous. Other tidbits this year included Tracy Letts' former antagonist Lockhart becoming a team player and one of the gang (kind of silly, but 24-esque) an entire episode about a raid on the U.S. embassy (anyone remember when President Alison Taylor's White House was taken over?), and of course, a mole in the inner circle, working against us the whole time (do I really need to say it?). None of this is necessarily a bad thing, in fact it's all kind of fun- just deeply familiar. Even by the low key, non-action fueled season finale, Carrie's completely turned the corner on baby Frannie (she's now at least a committed mother, albeit with a harried schedule) and the show moves on to replace the late James Rebhorn with Carrie's own mother, who now suddenly wants to become part of her life after 15 years. Boy, isn't that convenient.

I like Homeland, and I'll certainly keep watching it, but it's no longer a show that requires any deep investment whatsoever. I'm here for the fun action-packed thrills now, because the character stuff is really no more, and frankly they ought to simply embrace the spy thriller as a whole and dump the rest of it, because when they try to delve into that stuff (as in the finale) it's now just a bit boring compared to all the action. I mean, come on, who really cares about Carrie's mom? On the plus side, no Brody means no Brody family anymore, which is an improvement beyond words, if you know how I felt about those people. Yes- no more Dana Brody! That's a good thing. And Homeland's good too, although it'll probably never be great again. Too bad, but hey- what are you gonna do?

Grade: B

REVIEW: "The Affair" Season 1

Showtime's The Affair is the definition of a guilty pleasure, for women in particular, so much so that I'm almost embarrassed that I became so hooked on it. But hooked I was, and I'm already counting down the days until next season, although I'm fully willing to admit that this soapy, sexy, visual representation of a romance novel is by no means highbrow television (even if it tries as hard as it can to present itself that way).

The show takes a setup obviously inspired by True Detective, as it recounts a story from the perspectives of two people being interrogated by a detective looking into a murder case. The two in question are Noah (played by The Wire's Dominic West) and Alison (Ruth Wilson), and the series harkens back to their lives about four years earlier, when they met and began the tawdry affair of the title. In every episode, half the runtime is told from Noah's point of view, and the other half from Alison's, which leads to some really interesting directorial choices, as we see how Noah first saw Alison in his own mind (she was wearing a tight, short skirt) and how she appeared in her's (wearing a long, loose-fitting dress). Both were married, not really unhappily, but neither could resist the other as they exchanged longing glances across the beach and dialogue laced with sexual desire.

Yeah, it even sounds like trashy chick lit, doesn't it? But what can I say? Sometimes this soap opera stuff really works, especially when it's presented with great actors and a purely addictive, steamy quality that keeps you waiting to see how Noah and Alison are going to sneak in their next finger-bang right next to the restaurant where Alison's husband Cole (Joshua Jackson) waits for her. It may be kind of sleazy to be rooting for these two people to brazenly cheat on their more or less innocent spouses, but that's the kind of thrill The Affair presents week after week- there's just something irresistible about it. Plus, the actors pull it off really well, as West and especially Wilson are entirely affecting in their performances- he's appealing with a character that could very easily be a complete cliche (a well off married guy with four bratty kids and a shallow wife), while she has a built in sympathy factor going for her since losing her child a year earlier. And it's always funny and telling the way both come off in their respective POV accounts- he's always a little more considerate and heroic in her's, she's always aggressive and overtly sexual in his.

There's an intimate feel to the characters on the show, as it explores the emotional lives of Noah, Alison, their respective families, and how they drifted toward each other. The pacing is a tad slow, but it never feels tedious, as the show moves at a rate that's never less than entirely absorbing, even if the murder being investigated is absolutely the least interesting part of this premise (at least until the finale, which finally made some progress on that front in the classic cliffhanger 'til next season). I don't know how long creator Sarah Treem can keep this going (supposedly there's at least a three year plan in place), but I'm on board with it a hundred percent. Bring on the sudsiness- I've got the popcorn ready.

Grade: A-

RECAP: SNL 12/20 "Amy Adams"

The Christmas episode of SNL tonight is mildly decent, which is a relief. It isn't hilarious (that's just asking too much), but it's mediocre and actually contains a couple of chuckles, so that's something I guess. Mostly because of the opening, in which a beloved character is brought back.

COLD OPEN: I didn't say it was a beloved SNL character. That's right- for some random reason, Mike Myers shows up as Dr. Evil of all people, to lecture North Korea for being super lame in its attempts at evil-ness in bringing down Sony. It may not make sense, but you know what? It's funny, so I welcome it. So funny that I fully presume (in fact I know) that Myers wrote this himself. I forgot what it was like to have a cast member with the balls to call the GOP an "evil organization." Well played.

MONOLOGUE: Amy Adams comes out to sing about having Christmas cheer, but her monologue is crashed (for the second time) by Kristen Wiig, who steals the spotlight by adding a bunch of pizzazz to the proceedings. I love her, but does Kristen have to come back every few weeks? It feels like she was just there. Of course, once again I'm not going to complain about anyone doing something funny.

ASIAN-AMERICAN DOLL: A commercial about an Asian Barbie that makes fun of the fact that it can't be at all specific about her without offending anyone. It's alright.

HOLIDAY RAP: Online video from The Tenderfields family rapping about the year they had in their "Christmas sweatpants." This one just kinda sits there, but Taran does his best as the energetic dad.

SERIAL: Cecily does a spoof of the Serial podcast, researching "Chris," the mysterious holiday gift-giver. It's on point, but I have a feeling this one will play much better to people who actually get what she's parodying here- I'm only vaguely familiar with the NPR podcast phenomenon myself.

GIRLFRIENDS TALK SHOW: Ugh- one of my least favorite sketches is back. Sigh, let's get it over with. Amy is a popular dance squad leader who comes on the show to embarrass Aidy's Morgan, as is the joke with every GF Talk Show skit. Bleh. Not as painful (or as long) as usual though.

OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY: Pre-taped bit with Pete and Jay attempting their version of a Lonely Island digital short (they're even wearing the same suits from Dick-in-a-Box, although I wonder if anyone else noticed that). There's a bunch of jokes in the song about stiff office guys going nuts at the Christmas party- it's only okay.

UPDATE: Michael and Colin lob a bunch of softball jokes about Cuba and North Korea at us while Bobby shows up (for a split second) as Kim Jung-un, Kenan has a minute as homeless guy "Positive Willie," and finally, since they're there, Kristen and Fred Armisen return as Garth and Kat. They're reliable for a few laughs of course, but once again, it's sad that they have to bring back people from the Seth Meyers era in order get those laughs.

A VERY CUBAN CHRISTMAS: Really awful sketch showcasing random Cuban celebrities happy about the embargo lifting. Even the audience doesn't seem to appreciate this one (my guess is they know absolutely nothing about Cuba and get none of the references), but the whole thing was flat from the start.

DUNDEE SISTERS: Kate, Amy and Cecily are the Dundee Sisters, a singing trio in a bar on Christmas who keep wanting to eat garbage, and then it's revealed they're really raccoons. Yeah, you read that right. Um....I don't know what to say. It's stupid beyond belief.

WHISKERS R WE: Kate brings back her fairly amusing skit about the lesbian cat lady and shows off kittens for the holiday sale while Amy paws at her for real. It's not exactly a high note but better than ending on that raccoon sketch.

So that's it, guys. A mild episode where the best stuff came from former cast members, which continues to not say very much about the current set. At this rate, they really need to get rid of Colin Jost as head writer- he's clearly not working out and neither is Michael Che as co-anchor. Don't know how many times I (and other TV critics) have to say it before Lorne Michaels pays heed- fix Update first and the rest might improve upon that. But this one was probably a C, so compared to the rest of the season so far, it's a step below the only decent episode of the year, which was Bill Hader's. Let's hope it comes back a little better, although Kevin Hart's hosting on January 17th, so don't count it. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everybody!

REVIEW: "The Newsroom" Season 3

This past week an HBO series finished its last, six episode season, which was Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom. In this truncated season Sorkin actually got to end a show of his on his own terms, which was something that didn't happen with The West Wing (which he left after the fourth season) or Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (which was canceled during the first). This time Sorkin got to wrap up the stories for his characters, along with a brief arc about a whistleblower that also, for all its importance, resolved itself without a lot of drama in the end.

I always enjoyed The Newsroom for what it was, legitimate complaints about it aside. The truth is I can really watch anything Aaron Sorkin writes, and I'm kind of into it whether it's actually good or not (and this was a much better show than Studio 60, trust me). I think the death knell was the corner he wrote himself into with the setup by tying all the plots to actual news events, so that it literally took place in the real world where Obama's president, etc. This would always lead to him as a writer having the benefit of hindsight on how the press should have actually covered real news events as they happened, which a lot of critics came to despise as being riddled with overbearing smugness and/or preachiness. That might have been the case, but in spite of that fact, I did enjoy the characters, the actors (many of whom were great on this show) and the fictional storylines he came up with for the ACN crew, last year involving a botched investigative news story they were covering, this time the Snowden-esque whistleblower.

It's a shame that the stars of the show weren't Olivia Munn and Thomas Sadoski, both of whom had supporting roles that turned into the very best characters on the series, not least of which were because both of the actors proved to be natural and perfect fits for Sorkin's rapid fire dialogue. They also had real chemistry with each other, which turned them into the only couple worth rooting for (this show liked to play mix and match with romances but most of them were deadly dull), and I would have given anything to see a Newsroom spinoff starring Sloan and Don instead of Will (even though Jeff Daniels was good, Will could be annoying) and Mackenzie (Emily Mortimer never really rose above the level of fine for me). Other standouts on the show were Sam Waterston, Chris Messina, and Jane Fonda, all of whom lit up the screen with their presence whenever given good material to work with. It wasn't often enough though, seeing as they all had limited amounts of screentime in favor of the boring Jim and Maggie (tedious characters played on the Emily Mortimer level from Alison Pill and John Gallagher, Jr.).

The Newsroom was sort of a mixed bag, a show that could have easily been improved by plucking out the characters that worked (Sloan, Don, Charlie, Reese, Leona and Dev Patel's Neal), and tossing out the real world aspect of the news events, and then I could have seen it really becoming a great series. It was often times very close to that during its run- the elements were all there, it just needed a little more finessing. But as it was, it remained eminently watchable and enjoyable until the end, and I hope Sorkin takes the hint and brings Olivia Munn along for his next foray into television, because she was so funny, relaxed and natural with his style that it'd be a shame to think she wouldn't have a chance to do something else in this vein (and this time carry it herself). So long Newsroom- you were fun, irritating, hilarious and aggravating all at once. I'm kinda going to miss you.

Grade: B+

Stephen Colbert Signs Off

Last night's epic singalong was complete with more cameos than you could possibly name. I'm sad guys- there's really nothing like Colbert out there, and with him gone to presumably just become another routine late night host (albeit a very funny one, I'm sure) who will be there to relentlessly mock Republicans every night? It leaves a gaping hole in my TV watching, that's for sure. He was the best and there's no one else like him.

PROMO: "The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore"

Since The Colbert Report is going off the air tonight (sniff), Larry Wilmore will be taking over that time slot starting January 19th with his new Nightly Show. I'm kind of excited about this, because Larry Wilmore's always been one of my favorite Daily Show guests too (he was never a regular). I think he's going to be good.