Tag: NBC

5 Scenes That Prove Ron Swanson is a Genius

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Move over, Sue Sylvester. I am a relatively new viewer of Parks and Rec, but you don’t need to be a veteran viewer to recognize that the character of Ron Swanson, played by actor Nick Offerman, is comedy personified. His IDGAF attitude is just full of win. I think we can all agree that Sue was not at her comedic best this past season, unlike with Ron who just seems to get better and better. Whether it’s his undying love for bacon-wrapped turkey legs; his inability to escape the clutches of ex-wife número dos, Tammy; or his overt passiveness for the albeit fictional city of Pawnee, Indiana, RS knows how to deliver a laugh.

I embarked on a great rerun marathon of Parks and Rec this weekend and obviously, I had to put a list together of Ron Swanson’s best moments. Obviously, there are more, but YouTube was only moderately helpful with providing supplemental video. So, basically these are my fave moments that were available on YouTube… Enjoy.

Ron Goes to the Health Food Store

“No, I don’t plan to buy anything here. I buy my burger ingredients at Food ‘n Stuff, a discount food outlet equidistant from my home and my work. I came here for the same reason people go to the zoo. Shhhh, look at that guy. Nature is amazing.”

“Of course I’m Ready, I’m Ron F—ing Swanson”

“I have a hernia. I’ve had it for a while, and I’ve been ignoring it successfully. But this morning I made the mistake of sneezing. But as long as I sit still and don’t move my head or torso, I’m good. I got this.”

Ron Swanson is Woman of the Year

“Which of these objects most represents women for this portrait? A pot? Or this deputy director Barbie? Isn’t it adorable? She’s got a little briefcase, her cell phone.”

Ron Goes Camping

“Fishing relaxes me. It’s like yoga except I still get to kill something.”

Ron Swanson’s Secret to Success

“I have been developing the Swanson Pyramid of Greatness for years. It’s a perfectly calibrated recipe for maximum personal achievement. Categories include: Capitalism, God’s way of determining who is smart, and who is poor. Crying, acceptable at funerals and the Grand Canyon. Rage. Poise. Property rights. Fish, for sport only, not for meat. Fish meat is practically a vegetable.”

Five Artfully Awesome Opening Credits

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As I continued my summer’s journey of television mania, (this week: Eureka) it just reinforced my love for clever and artsy main title sequences. I truly miss belting out “CALIFORNIAAAAA” every week with Phantom Planet. I understand that by just using titlecards it can save a precious minute of airtime, but I overly enjoy having a catchy theme to sing or hum along with before all of the laughter and drama starts.

Now, I have many favorite main title sequences, they range from themes you have to jam out with to the boldly graphic. But these are my favorite main title sequences, visual aesthetics and general design being the main factor. Like always, click through the banners for video.

Nip / Tuck, “A Perfect Lie”- The Engine Room

Yes, it’s creepy and the scissor noise in the background is mildly disturbing, but I’ve always appreciated how well the song fits the series. It’s pretty minimal but catches the nature of Nip / Tuck in 45ish seconds. For some reason, my favorite part of the credits is the finger twitch at :09, although I also enjoy watching the lips blow up like collagen balloons at the end.

Six Feet Under, Original Theme

I’ve come to the conclusion that cable shows just automatically have better opening credits. And I think it’s time for the primetime networks to step it up. Six Feet Under’s opening sequence automatically sets up the premise of the show and its tune is delightfully catchy for a song about a funeral home family.

Dexter, Original Theme

Okay. Yeah this one bugged me at first. It’s hella long and the opening shot of the mosquito sinking into Dexter’s arm isn’t particularly my favorite visual. But after a while it definitely grows on you. And the last shot of Dexter’s innocent smile after all these violent shots of a typical morning routine made me laugh out loud the first time I saw it.

Skins, Original Theme

The series 1 Skins opening is my personal favorite. You can’t help but feel ridiculously giddy whenever it plays. The theme is upbeat and just puts an automatic smile on your face. I also appreciate that each season and generation gets a new mix…even though I feel like they’ve all paled in comparison to the original.

Chuck, “Short Skirt”-Cake

You gotta love Cake. And the opening sequence was surprisingly creative and artsy, no complaints here.

Big, Blonde, Beautiful…and Bitchy

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In every television show, there is always that certain character you hate. For me, there are usually a handful. I am never simply indifferent about a character, I’m either a fan or their nemesis. And looking back on some of my least favorite characters, I’ve noticed a pattern with the females. They are almost always the female lead, blonde and curly haired and are known for being a HBIC. I can’t really explain my hatred, because I happen to love other fair-haired characters like Quinn Fabray & Caroline Forbes, who could also be considered a HBIC. But there is something about these 5 that have the power to make me want to shut off the tv. How do I loathe thee? Let me count the ways…

Peyton Sawyer / Hilarie Burton, ONE TREE HILL

I have never loathed a character as much as P. Sawyer. I found her whiny woe-as-me demeanor to be exceedingly boring and annoying. My personal war against Peyton started in season 1 when she started hooking up with Lucas behind her BFF’s back. And yes, I am extremely anti-Leyton, but even after I accepted Brucas was dunzo I always thought Lucas deserved more than Peyton.

Jen Lindley / Michelle Williams, DAWSON’S CREEK

I never seem to be a fan of the character who chooses to be a rebel simply because they want to be known as a rebel. And that’s Jen. In addition, she attempted to break up my OTP in season 2, snatched Dawson’s virginity and caused drama for the sake of causing drama. Jen only got back into my good books in the series finale…and then she died.

Naomi Clark / AnnaLynne McCord, 90210

Naomi is Beverly Hills’ token spoiled bitch and I have never been a fan of hers. And while she got a bit more bearable this past season (I actually liked her with Max), all of that was ruined when she revealed she was preggers in the last seconds of the finale. And okay, that wasn’t necessarily her character’s fault but it definitely won’t help me like her more.

Marissa Cooper / Mischa Barton, THE O.C.

Because Marissa & Ryan were a power couple of the show, I also disliked Ryan by association. It wasn’t until Marissa kicked the bucket (and made me ecstatic) that I realized I actually liked Ryan. And his new girlfriend, Taylor, as annoying as she might have been was 10 times better than Marissa. Like the others, drama followed her around like a stormy rain-cloud and she bucked the system just to say she did. Her death was one of my O.C. moments.

Britta Perry / Gillian Jacobs, COMMUNITY

Britta is the newest addition to my list of hated characters. When she starts another one of her political debates I groan in sync with the rest of the study group. It doesn’t help that she constantly has a sour puss expression on her face and I can’t stand Jeff with Britta, but I would loathe her whether or not I was pro-Jeff & Annie.

REVIEW: 2010-2011 Television Season

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I have always watched a crap-ton of tv, but this year seemed particularly heavy. I had at least two shows per day Monday thru Thursday and I discovered the brilliance of British television. It’s been a busy television season and on the whole, I’m satisfied with the finales we got.

Shows That Premiered This  Season…

After watching the pilot episode, I stuck with only four shows this year: Being Human, Shameless, Happy Endings and The Walking Dead. I always bitch about how much I hate American remakes of British tv shows…and yet two of them made the list. However, unlike Skins, these remakes are actually good. People have been listing Happy Endings on their comedy Emmy wishlists, and while I think that is a wee bit of a stretch, this show surprised me. Any sitcom revolving around a group of friends is immediately likened to, well, Friends. I found the overall premise of Happy Endings to be relatively weak, but the show definitely improved over the course of its short season.

FAVORITE NEW SHOW: Being Human, hands down. The show just gives such a fresh spin on the whole vamp-werewolf dynamic and it totally holds its own against the U.K. counterpart. Although, it’s official, I can’t stand the Josh/George character aka the werewolf in either version.

Discovered shows already on air…

This year, I discovered so many wonderful programs that are already on air. I love this, because then I have oodles of episodes to watch without an annoying hiatus. Thanks to blogs and mostly Tumblr, I had heard only high praises for the British shows, Misfits and Skins. Misfits is by far one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen and I kind of have a crush on Robert Sheehan. I also randomly stumbled upon The Big Bang Theory bloopers on YouTube and even those made me crack up, which gave me the incentive to blindly purchase the dvds. And it’s amazing. I am making it my mission to attend a taping before I leave LA.

While I am still making my way through Parks and Recreation & 30 Rock, I have to say, I love NBC’s Thursday night comedy line-up. I know I am so late to The Office party, it’s not even funny. Within a course of 4 days, I watched every single episode on Hulu. What can I say? It was a boring finals week. And unlike other fans, I don’t think the show has necessarily lost its mojo, I for one, loved season 6. I caught the last few episodes of season 7 on air and while I do agree that it will be a different program, I think the show has potential to be great without Michael Scott / Steve Carell. One of my roomies always sang the praises of Chuck, so I gave that a try, too. It’s a great dramedy and I kind of have a crush on Zachary Levi, too.

FAVORITE NEW SHOW ALREADY ON AIR: This is such a tough decision because I love each and every one of the programs shown above. But it has to be Community. If Glee gets an Emmy nod and Community doesn’t, there’s officially no justice in the world. Even Community‘s “weaker” episodes are better than most shows’ best. And it’s two-parter paintball season finale was damn near flawless. Community‘s comedic style is exactly my cup of tea and I am officially the biggest Jeff & Annie fan ever. I would normally find a relationship between a 20-year-old girl and a guy who is nearly 40 to be disgusting, but they are absolutely adorbs. And to think I only discovered this gem because it was on sale at Target…I have so much love for Target.

Returning shows…

FAVORITE RETURNING SHOW / BEST OVERALL SEASON: This was really not a tough call, as a lot of these shows had lackluster seasons, The Vampire Diaries. Now, I am not one of those crazy TVD fans who stakes out polls on Entertainment Weekly until TVD reigns supreme, but this season was very strong overall. I am such a fan of Tyler & Caroline and I cannot wait to see where the writers take this storyline. We finally saw some progression in the Stefan / Elena / Damon triangle and Jeremy finally got some lovin’ and a relationship I approve of. No sophomore slump here.

ONE TREE HILL: Much like Glee becoming the Kurt Show at times, One Tree Hill morphed into the Brooke & Julian Show. And I love Brooke and Julian, but it was overkill with the babies. If the network would have let Mark Schwahn & crew do the abortion storyline intended for Brooke in season 4, it would have added another dimension to the fact that she is unable to have children. It just seemed too easy to have Brooke get magically pregnant, with twins no less. I love me some Stephen Colletti, but I think the fact that he is now a series regular says enough. We all know that One Tree Hill should have ended after season 6, if not season 4. Although OTH never racked up high numbers, as a long-time fan, it’s horrible to see how its fallen not only in ratings but in quality.

LIGHTS OUT: I won’t divulge too much because it hasn’t aired on NBC yet, but I thoroughly enjoyed the finale. It was the perfect end to a nearly-perfect show. Can we get some Emmy love, pwease?

I generally enjoyed 90210‘s season 3. I think the first half of the season why stronger, but it overall was exponentially better than Gossip Girl. The only thing I really liked about Glee season 2 was the return of Fuinn and we all know how that ended. As for Grey’s, hopefully this season will be its last and it can go out on a high note. It’s already losing its magic, I don’t buy any article that claims Grey’s is having a comeback. Just limit the Calzona, give Alex a substantial love interest, bring back Addison and reunite Mark & Lexie and you’ll be back on track.

So what’s going to be my summer obsession? Well, So You Think You Can Dance, obvi, but I also started watching Six Feet Under today and I’m loving it so far. I am also planning to spend this summer checking out Fringe, Parenthood, Modern Family and The Good Wife.  All I can say is, thank God for Netflix.

Seven LOL Community Moments

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In anticipation of part II of Community‘s season finale / paintball extravaganza, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite Community moments to date. I limited myself to strictly comedic moments, or else this would have been solely Jeff & Annie moments (a few still slipped through). It’s refreshing to find a show that doesn’t revolve around the ships. As always, click through for video.

1. Annie chloroforms the janitor.

Troy: I don’t know what to do, my whole brain is crying!

2. Flashback montage

Britta: Are you sure you guys have the group’s best interest at heart? Feast your ears-tongues on these memories pops…

Annie: Those are just stories about us being cute.

3. Annie blows everything off

Jeff: Do me a favor and be very un-Annie and blow it off too.

Annie: Oh sure. I’ll just blow it off. I’ll just blow eeeeeverything off. Heck, I guess I’ll blow off walking. And now I’ll just blow off standing. Just blowing eeeeverything off. Maybe I’ll blow off talking language. Blee bloo blah blee boo bluh bluh.

4. The boys krump

Troy: We’re krumping.

Jeff: No you’re not.

5. The entire “Cooperative Calligraphy” episode (only Community can make an entire episode about a lost pen and still have me LOLing the entire time)

Jeff: Annie, relax.

Annie: No, you relax, Jeff. Or are you scared that if you do, MY PEN WILL FALL OUT?!

6. Pierce is psychic

Pierce: This investigation is going nowhere. You need a psychic.

7. Troy & Abed mocking others

Jeff: I can hear you through the window, morons.

Troy: Just pretend like you were sleeping…

REVIEW: Community

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Most people know that when I find a new tv show, I move to the “obsession stage” pretty damn fast. In fact, every show I have ever watched loyally qualifies as an obsession, because I am not going to waste an hour of precious tv time on something I merely “like.” Well, I am proud to introduce the newest inductee into my Television Obsession Museum, NBC’s Community.

You know that moment when you’re perusing the New Releases section at Target, Best Buy, etc. and there’s something on sale for half its original price and an alarm starts blaring through your head, “MUST HAVE. MUST HAVE”? I had one of those this weekend. I have heard nothing but good things about Community and season 1 was on sale for $14.99. That’s a steal this tv lover just cannot pass up.

Community is centers on a group of seven students, who through various circumstances are attending Greendale Community College in the fictional Greendale, Colorado. The series’ protagonist (or antagonist, depending which way you look at it) is Jeff Winger (Joel McHale), a 30-something ex-lawyer who is forced to go back to college after his degree is revealed as fake. On his first day at Greendale, he accidentally forms a study group in his attempt to pursue Britta (Gillian Jacobs). Other fellow students, Annie (Alison Brie), Troy (Donald Glover), Abed (Danny Pudi), Shirly (Yvette Nicole Brown) and Pierce (Chevy Chase).

The show is very cleverly written and frequently uses pop-culture references. Most of the humor is from sarcasm and one-liners. It reminds me of a less raunchy Misfits.

And I may be only 13 episodes in, but I have already found my OTP: Jeff & Annie. After the couple made the finals of E!Online’s tv couple showdown poll, I had planned to look them up on YouTube, but never got around to it. Watching the first episode, I just couldn’t picture them working as a power couple. Their personalities majorly clash, they’ve got at least a 10 year age difference and he seemed 100 percent into Britta. But after episode 1×09, “Debate 109”, my mind has completely changed. I freaking love them.

As soon as I’m sure I cannot add another show to my weekly tv schedule, something will come along that forces me to make yet another adjustment. Sadly, Community will probably not bump The Vampire Diaries for my Thursday 7 p.m. slot, but it will definitely be my first iTunes download come Friday morning.