Who's excited for this, huh? We get out first glimpse (and I do mean glimpse- most of this footage is from past seasons) of David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson in Mulder and Scully garb right at the end of this new teaser, but it's still pretty cool to see them back on TV. The X-Files returns for six new episodes starting January 24th, 2016.
REVIEW: "Silicon Valley" Season 2
HBO's Sunday night comedy block this spring was a pretty good lineup, topped by the excellent second season of Mike Judge's Silicon Valley, a show that started out good but wobbly last year, then got on a roll, and continued its smoothness right off the bat this time around for one of the best comedy seasons in recent memory. The ensemble cast is so perfectly matched, with every character bound to recite at least one hilarious zinger per episode, but often two or three, and the rest of the supporting characters follow along in rhythmic fashion to make it look effortless.
The second season dealt with the lawsuit lodged by Hooli CEO Gavin Belson (Matt Ross, now co-starring) against Richard (Thomas Middleditch) and PIed Piper for intellectual property ownership, and Richard's attempts to fight off every strike thrown at him to launch his company. To tell you the truth, I know absolutely nothing about this industry and I can occasionally get lost in some of the technobabble (this is Mike Judge's area, not mine), but you know a show is damn good when that doesn't even matter and you can still find it funny. The jokes work on a satirical level but also just on a laugh out loud, gag and dry humor level. The chemistry between the cast is top notch, with Middleditch as the perfect straight man (the key to which is always in his befuddled reactions to the madness around him), and his coders and partners the sometimes annoying, always bickering, drily sardonic (Martin Starr really steps it up this year as the cynically deadpan Gilfoyle) group that can deliver any number of wisecracks the writers toss at them. Dinesh is forever put upon and unlucky in love, Jared is gloriously and cheerfully awkward, and TJ Miller, well...what is there to say about him, really? Miller's Erlich shines like no other in a cast filled with A-list scene stealers, and he makes me laugh out loud at least once every single week. If there's any kind of awards god for comedy, I wouldn't be surprised if his climactic episode where he testifies on behalf of Richard but of course runs afoul of everything he shouldn't say puts him in prime Emmy contention.
On top of all this perfection, the guest stars this season were also dynamite, with Suzanne Cryer coming in as the new CEO of Raviga and Peter Gregory replacement (who was of course portrayed by the late Christopher Evan Welch, whose death is handled in the first episode in an appropriately funny and respectful manner that shapes several punchlines around it without once missing the mark in tone), and she's a twitchy, strange presence that fits the show completely and doesn't get nearly enough screen time for how much potential she brings with her. And Richard's new benefactor, douchebag billionaire Russ Hanneman (think of a Mark Cuban-type), the guy who put "radio on the Internet" is played by Chris Diamantopoulos in sleazy, bombastic, insulting pompousness that he obviously relishes, while getting the chance to chomp at the scenery and unintentionally sabotage every move Richard makes. While there are memorable moments aplenty this season (Dinesh and Gilfoyle's SWAT board, the masturbating monkey, Erlich's epic "charm them with rudeness" tour, and Richard's race in the finale to stop the guys from deleting his algorithm forever), the show still hasn't managed to figure out how to have female characters of substance incorporated into the gang, although to their credit, they did try this season. Amanda Crew is still around as Monica, although she also still doesn't have much to do and is saddled with even more of a straight man role than Richard (the show also surprisingly didn't even follow up with the implied attraction between the two last season), and there's an episode that brings up the need to hire a female coder, since it would be a benefit in making them look good to the public (ha- way to face the critics head on). Sadly, when Alice Wetterland's Carla is hired, she gets a couple good lines for one episode and is then nudged to the side and seemingly forgotten by season's end.
This show is sometimes labeled a "dude-bro" comedy, like Entourage was, but I'd like to say for the record that Mike Judge's humor is nothing like that of Doug Ellin, and as somebody who never really liked Entourage or the characters on it (except occasionally Jeremy Piven's Ari, who did make me laugh, at least at first), I like this show so much that even its male dominated shenanigans don't bother me in the slightest. It's just funny. The idiosyncratic style of humor on this show may not be not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's definitely mine and this run of ten episodes was one of the very best on television this year. Well done, guys.
Grade: A-
First Trailer for Netflix's 'Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp'
I admitted last week that I didn't know anything about this movie, but I gotta say, the trailer makes me want to watch not only the original film, but this series as well. It looks hilarious! I think I might be in on the basis of this preview alone, even if I don't make it to the movie from 2001. All episodes are dropping on July 31st.
Showtime Teases the Return of 'The Affair'
Apparently this show proved itself pretty divisive (among those who actually watched it), with some loving it and others unable to stand one second of it, but I have to admit being in the former camp. I thought it was an addictive guilty pleasure and done really well for what it was, so I'm looking forward to its return this fall. Rumor has it we'll see the POV from Maura Tierney and Josh Jackson's characters this season, so for those who hate Alison and Noah, you'll be getting a break from them (although I can't imagine why you'd even watch the show if you do).
Stephen Colbert Lauds Marriage Equality
On this historic weekend, it's nice to have Stephen Colbert chime in with a viral video ridiculing the conservative justices dissents on the landmark Supreme Court decision they handed down on Friday. Now that same sex marriage is legal in all 50 states, he delivers a message that would not have seemed out of place on The Colbert Report, to tell you the truth. I wonder if his Late Show is going to prove to be not all that different from the Report after all- it'd be nice to have one politically minded, intelligent late night host on network television still.
REVIEW: "Orphan Black" Season 3
The first half of this season of Orphan Black, one of my favorite shows, was nothing less than tragic to watch. Tragic because it seemed that this show had pulled a Broadchurch Season 2- that is, taken on a storyline that was doomed from the very beginning and filmed all the episodes before they aired, so that no changes can occur as the season played out, but rather this year was almost certainly destined to be a waste of time no matter what happened in the end.
That storyline was the teaser from last year's cliffhanger ending, with Ari Mullen introduced as the soldier boy clones. I knew from the moment we met him that whatever this "boy clone" situation was, the only way it could possibly work was if Mullen somehow possessed the same talent for playing multiple characters that one Tatiana Maslany had when she created Sarah, Alison, Helena and Cosima, and within about 15 minutes of the premiere, the answer very clearly became a resounding no. No, he does not. So from that point on we are saddled with a dreadful, boring, inexplicable plotline involving the same guy with the same haircut in a bunch of different outfits, going around stalking Sarah for whatever impossible to understand reasons involving the mysterious Project Castor, the brother to Project Leda, and you know what? It's not even worth talking about. This story was sunk the second it was realized that Mullen cannot distinguish between any of the clones he was playing, and the "big bad" of Season 3 was a massive failure.
This led to at least five terrible episodes in a row, despite the fact that Maslany still plays her characters well, and the supporting cast around her does a bang up job themselves- we still love Fe, Mrs. S, Donnie, Scott and Delphine, but none of that matters because SO much time is wasted on Castor and what they're doing and why they're doing it, and even though I did sit through those episodes, I couldn't tell you a single thing about what's happening in any of them. At the best of times, the mythology of this show was always incomprehensible, but this year it became pure gibberish. I was this close to quitting Clone Club, guys. And then we got to episode six, and suddenly the boy clones are gone. Just like that. And we get an episode of all Tatiana Maslany going between Beth, Sarah, Helena and back again. The one after that it's time for suburban hijinks with Alison and Donnie, but with Cosima thrown into the mix and more focus on a love triangle with Delphine and new flame Shea. I was pulled back, as I always am, by Maslany and her amazing ability to interact with completely different versions of herself, and then they introduce Crystal the ditzy manicurist, another new Maslany clone, who crackles with Felix in a hilarious con job act, and before I knew it I was back in. Episodes six through ten were good enough and fun enough and such a massive 180 turnaround from what had been the main arc of the season that I almost got whiplash.
So what happened here? A season that was going down the toilet suddenly saved itself midstream, even though this series had all been filmed ahead of time? My guess is that the Castor storyline was such a complete misfire that it became obvious during production, and the writers decided to shut it down as best they could and use Maslany to salvage what was left of the episodes. By the time the finale rolls around, the characters of duplicitous Delphine and murderous Helena and been boosted to be the most useful they ever have been, while Mullen is all but pushed off to the side, only to be brought back when absolutely necessary to wrap up what I suppose they felt was important about the Castor situation. I have to give them credit for managing to right the ship, because they did a pretty good job of it in the handful of final episodes. Helena moving in with the Hendrix's led to some outstanding scenes with her and Donnie, and since Donnie and Alison's drug dealing business had mostly been tangential anyway, the writers used it to bolster the material in the last few episodes, and precarious state of their marriage. And Delphine helps lead the always murky conspiracy story back to Leda and Neolution (the mysterious villains from the first season) and away from the god awful Castor stuff, while also keeping up with the character relationships and drama with Cosima and Scott (with an appearance or two from Rachel, the now one-eyed evil clone of the bunch).
So the show managed to win me back with the remainder of the season, which was every bit as good in places as the best of Orphan Black, but boy is that first half dire. I guess everyone makes mistakes, huh? At least Graeme Manson and John Fawcett were smart enough to realize that before it torpedoed the season completely. Still, the only good thing that happened in the first half was the shipping off of Keira, the forever in danger daughter of Sarah, to Iceland with her dad Cal (that was long overdue), and so I would honestly give this schizophrenic season two separate grades. An F for the first part and a solid B+ for the second. What does that average out to? I guess I'd say a C, only because if you are a fan of this show, get through the first five eps, and I promise you it will get better. And I think because of that we have the proof that the writers kind of know what works and doesn't, and that next season will have a more balanced approach. At least I hope so. Because Maslany still rocks, and the more you give her to do, the better the show becomes. No more boy clones, guys. Ever again.
Grade: C
'The Flash,' 'Hannibal' Win Big at Saturn Awards
The Sci-Fi Academy also honors genre television, which gets even less recognition than genre films (you won't see any of these shows at the Emmys, even if they deserve it, and only occasionally at critics awards). They went for some very deserving stuff though- you know I'm a big fan of The Flash, and it's nice to see it loved someplace, since it's certainly bound not to happen anywhere else. Also, I don't understand what makes Game of Thrones a "limited run" series, since it's been on for five years now. Because it only has 10 episodes a season? As opposed to Hannibal's thirteen or The Walking Dead's sixteen? That doesn't seem to make any sense.
Best Network Series: Hannibal
Best Syndicated/Cable Series: The Walking Dead
Best Limited Run Series: Game of Thrones
Best Superhero Adaptation Series: The Flash
Best Actor: Hugh Dancy, Hannibal; Andrew Lincoln, The Walking Dead (tie)
Best Actress: Caitriona Balfe, Outlander
Best Supporting Actor: Laurence Fishburne, Hannibal
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa McBride, The Walking Dead
Best Guest Star: Wentworth Miller, The Flash
Best Performance by a Younger Actor: Maisie Williams, Game of Thrones
Breakthrough Performance: Grant Gustin, The Flash
Best Youth-Oriented TV Series: The 100
Special Recognition: Continuum
Andy Samberg Battles Kit Harington in '7 Days in Hell'
This Andy Samberg spoof about a 7 day tennis match does look pretty funny. It reminds me of a Christopher Guest movie, with the talking heads, although it looks like they got real tennis players in on it too. I wonder if Kit Harington will end up having a bigger career outside Game of Thrones, considering what happened to his character in the finale (although there appears to be some debate about that- it looked pretty clear cut to me).
'Heroes: Reborn' Brings in New Heroes, Familiar Faces
I have no idea who was clamoring for a revival of NBC's Heroes, a show that was a first season sensation that flamed out really quickly (like Glee, Desperate Housewives, and The OC to name a couple of examples of series I started but fled during their first years, leading to my relative distrust of network shows to this day, although I'm slowly starting to get back into them). So this isn't for me at all, but I'm wondering if there really is a fanbase out there who's been waiting for this. Anyone?
'Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp' Trailer Takes Us Back to the '80s
Netflix's eight episode miniseries prequel to the 2001 cult film Wet Hot American Summer is launching July 31st, but I have to admit I never saw the movie, so this doesn't mean that much to me. In fact, I didn't realize it was such a cult thing- I've honestly never heard much about this at all, despite the insane cast, most of whom are returning for the series (Amy Poehler, Bradley Cooper, Elizabeth Banks, Janeane Garafolo, David Hyde Pierce, etc). I don't know- should I bother to watch the movie, is it worth it?
