Tag: nicholas hoult

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 Favorite TV Bromances

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When you think of television BFFs, it’s common that the strongest non-romantic relationship on a show will be between two females (i.e. Brooke & Peyton, Blair & Serena, all the girls from Sex and the City, etc.)  Then you’ll find the pesky male-female friendships that almost always turn romantic. And last but not least, there is the bromance. I for one love bromances. I find nothing more entertaining than two guys dishing out their feelings and crying on each other’s shoulders. It’s guy love, that’s all it is. In no particular order, here are my favorite television male-male platonic friendships. [Again, language warning for the Skins dialogue]

 

Tony Stonem & Sid Jenkins / James Cook & Freddie McLair, Skins (UK)

I just couldn’t separate these two because their friendships are very similar and I love them equally. Both Tony & Sid and Cook & Freddie are odd pairs, one typically gets used as a doormat (Sid & Freddie) for the other (Tony & Cook) and their friendship is rocked by the fact that they are both in love with the same girl, Michelle & Effy. They seem at odds the majority of the time and they don’t mind throwing/taking a punch every now and then. But their make-up scenes are always precious and they aren’t afraid to drop the L-bomb to each other. Aw. And besides, everything sounds better in English accents.

your bromance is showing…

Tony: Three things, Sid. One. Get rid of the hat. Two. I always loved you the best, Sid. Three…I can’t think of a three. [Tony hugs him]

Cook: [after Freddie head butts him] I really fucking love you, you bastard.


Cory Matthews & Shawn Hunter, Boy Meets World

Even though Shawn was essentially the third-wheel to the Cory & Topanga wagon for the majority of their lives, it never seemed that way. These perpetual class clowns have kept their friendship strong despite romantic complications, cultural differences and even psychotic nightmares. What’s left to say about this pair, really? Besties, cradle to grave.

your bromance is showing…

Cory: What do I do now?

Amy: Go find the person you love.

Cory: That would be Shawn.


Mark Sloan & Derek Shepherd, Grey’s Anatomy

You’d think that Mark sleeping with Derek’s wife and essentially ruining their marriage would have been the be-all end-all of this friendship. It definitely took a while to get there, but now the pair is back and bringing the man love in full force. The fact that they both have great hair and are charming as hell should be enough to warrant a friendship. And if Mark ends up marrying Lexie, they’ll actually have a legit “bro”mance.

your bromance is showing…

Mark: I thought it was just going to be you and me. I have been patient. I have waited when you partnered up with these chicks, but now they’re over. And it’s supposed to be just us. You and me; two guys on the prowl, on the hunt. Women are everywhere. I only have one person I can talk to.

Derek: That’s sweet.

Mark: Shut up.

Derek: No, it’s really warm and fuzzy.


Ryan Atwood & Seth Cohen, The O.C.

When Ryan became the Cohens surrogate son, not only did they both get a brother in the process, they got a best friend. Kid from the wrong side of the tracks + the geeky comic book nerd = true bromance. These two even each other out perfectly. Ryan’s the quiet, brooding one and Seth’s the guy you can’t shut up. Ryan has a tendency to punch people and Seth talks to his plastic horse, Captain Oats. Match made in heaven? I think so.

your bromance is showing…

Ryan: Well, you know, I’m not going. So if you want to hang out, rent a movie…

Seth: Ryan, I love you. But if I have to spend my senior prom playing video games with you, I’m going to kill myself.


Aidan McCollin & Josh Radcliff, Being Human (North America)

Unlike Edward and Jacob, this werewolf / vampire duo have managed to become best friends. Sure, their friendship has seriously been tested, they are rival mythical creatures for crying out loud. And they fight with each other like an old married couple, but when one of them is in need, the other is always there.

your bromance is showing…

Aidan: Does your mom cook with garlic?

Josh: Seriously? Is that a thing? For real?

Aidan: Yes or no Josh?!

Josh: I guess so. Does it kill you?

Aidan: No, no it doesn’t. It just makes us, us.

Josh: Okay, so stop being you! How do we do that?

Aidan: Feverfew.

Josh: Is that a band?

Aidan: It’s an herb, Josh!


J.D. & Turk, Scrubs

In many ways when these two are together they digress back to school boys. They congratulate each other for their sexual conquests. They have matching friendship bracelets. They call each other Vanilla Bear and Chocolate Bear. And they have their own song.

your bromance is showing…

Turk: It sounds like you’re asking me out on a man date.

J.D.: Turk, why are you so afraid of loving me?

REVIEW: Skins (UK)

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Tonight at 10 p.m., the U.S. adaptation of the popular British show, Skins, will premiere on MTV. To say that I am skeptical is putting it very nicely; I am expecting pure and utter failure. At about 10:59, the U.K. will be proudly sticking their middle fingers at us and we will have fully deserved it.

I briefly touched on the censorship differences between the U.K. and the U.S. during my review of Misfits, but it needs some reiterating here. Even though MTV is more lenient than most networks and the show has a less-prude timeslot, it’s still going to be seriously watered down. If the Parents Television Council thinks that Gossip Girl is corrupting the children of America, they are going to shit bricks after watching Skins.

There are so many things that I love about Skins U.K. It’s racy, drama-filled and has tortured but truly likeable characters that you can’t help but root for. Casting was dead on and it’s going to be hard to recreate that. Skins U.S. needs to deliver BIG TIME if it expects to convert Skins U.K. loyalists. MTV has said that the series will deviate away from storylines depicted in Skins U.K. following the pilot, but will still include some pivotal storylines such as Chris’ mother leaving, Tony’s accident and the death of Sid’s father.

There is one arc in Generation One that I cannot imagine being redone without some serious kickass-ness being required, I’m talking about the relationship with Sid and Cassie (Stanley and Cadie in the U.S. version). These two made the most adorable couple and were hands down my favorite part of Generation One. Sid reminded me of a geeky Ron Weasley and Cassie was a dead-ringer for Luna Lovegood…and I have no idea why I just made those Harry Potter references. The point is, they were perfect in their adorableness. Cassie saw past Sid’s loserdom and Sid was the only one who truly cared about her recovery from anorexia. Dear MTV, if Stanley and Cadie’s relationship (if it happens) cannot exceed the epicness of the original, do not attempt to recreate. I repeat, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO RECREATE.

I think both the U.S. and the U.K. need to accept the fact that some shows cannot be made into successful adaptations across the pond. The U.K. cannot pull off a High School Musical and the U.S. will probably not be able to successfully recreate Skins. What’s wrong with just showcasing the great television both places have to offer? There’s no reason Skins couldn’t be shown in its original glory on MTV just like popular U.S. shows like Glee and Friends are on Channel 4 in the U.K. That being said, I will try my best to reserve my full judgment until after I’ve seen the pilot in just a few short hours.