2014 RANDOM TV THOUGHTS

[Matt D]

Isn't Gotham primarily a young Gordon show? No one ever said it was about Bruce.

[Spritenaut 32]

Isn't Gotham primarily a young Gordon show? No one ever said it was about Bruce.

 

Yeah, it's supposed to be a Gordon/Bullock/Gotham PD show set in the time before Bruce became Batman.

[Reed]

 

They're apparently going to tease a different person bound to become The Joker in every episode.  Sorry, but the Joker is a force of nature with no origin story (or at least, one that is multiple choice).

 

OK, that sounds hideous.

[pipGofern]

I badly want Gotham to be good, if not for the comic nerd in me but because I'm an O.C. fanboy and think Ryan Atwood as a young Gordon is pretty much the greatest thing ever.

 

My problem is based entirely on the promos this show reeks of pinhead network executive interference. I know, from Fox? SHOCKING.

 

I have no proof of this but for whatever reason I get the impression whoever pitched this series read the Gotham Central comics and was like, "this would be a badass series." Then somewhere in that pitch meeting, a pinhead network executive was all, "Yeah, yeah, this sounds good but what if in addition to young Gordon and the seamy underside of Gotham we show...BATMAN AS A KID!" and the poor writer agreed with him just to get the show greenlit.

 

Actually, I do have a reason: Fox is the worst.

[Reed]

If you HAD to go the prequel route there was loads more potential in the seven years Bruce was away from Gotham learning to be a bad ass. And if you really wanted to write the city in, we could have occasionally checked in with Alfred to see how he was getting on at Wayne Enterprises or Gordon as he advanced in the police force.

[Bustronaut]

I think going the opposite - a police procedural that occasionally checked in on the Wayne kid would be a lot more cost effective and sustainable over multiple seasons.

[EVA]

FYI: The second season of HANNIBAL hit DVD this week. So for anyone interested, there are now ways to see it that are presumably less shitty than they might have been previously.

[Reed]

Season 2 of Hannibal is some of the best television ever once you get past 1) the FBI are utterly fools 2) There are no security cameras anywhere whatsoever.

 

Oh, and Michael Pitt basically doing his version of The Joker is amazing.

[Greggulator]

There was that episode in the first season where Carmella breaks down in front of the priest who wants to bang her about her family's income is one of the landmark moments of the series.

My favorite "Carmella is an awful person" moment came in the episode where Meadow is in the school musical and the father of the male lead is up to his ass in debt to Tony. The kid's SUV then becomes property of Tony's. The kid ends up dropping out of the musical, giving Meadow the role to herself which makes Carm happy.

Just a irredeemable human being. Awesome character.

[Reed]

There's a bit in the final episode where Meadow's old friend Hunter comes back to visit. Carmela smugly notes that she got into drinking and drugs and had to drop out of college, then Hunter mentions she managed to get her life together and is now in medical school. Carmela's reaction is so amazing. It's a combination of jealously (she wanted Meadow to be a doctor) and disbelief that someone managed to shake of their old habits and change their life when she never could. She can barely even talk and has to leave the room. It tells you everything you will ever need to know about the character.

 

Weirdly, though, I still found her strangely sympathetic. 20 years with Tony Soprano probably will fuck up your moral compass. She might have been an OK person if she'd never met him.

[EVA]

DEAR GOD. FX has renewed TYRANT for season 2, and upped the episode count to 13.

So SONS OF ANARCHY and JUSTIFIED are wrapping up over the next 8 months. THE BRIDGE is likely going to be canceled. THE AMERICANS probably will be, too, after next next season, if the ratings don't improve.

The future of FX is TYRANT and THE STRAIN. AMC laughs at that.

[EVA]

There is only one thing for them to do: Pick up HANNIBAL after it's inevitably canceled by NBC after this season.

[Jrag]

Anyone watching The Knick? First two episodes were promising, but it's a chore to get through the first 15 minutes.  Gross.

[Elsalvajeloco]

DEAR GOD. FX has renewed TYRANT for season 2, and upped the episode count to 13.

So SONS OF ANARCHY and JUSTIFIED are wrapping up over the next 8 months. THE BRIDGE is likely going to be canceled. THE AMERICANS probably will be, too, after next next season, if the ratings don't improve.

The future of FX is TYRANT and THE STRAIN. AMC laughs at that.

 

I quit on The Strain about 4 weeks ago. I think I gave Tyrant about 3 or 4 weeks before choosing to watch Hard Knocks on HBO instead.

 

This season of The Bridge isn't really as good as a few of the episodes prior to David Tate becoming the main focus for season one. However, this season is infinitely better than trying to follow those other two shows.

[Craig H]

For what it's worth though, in the Breaking Bad thread I think, and it may have been you, EVA, but there was some questioning going on about the future of AMC because Breaking Bad wrapped up and Mad Men was wrapping up. AMC was basically down to Walking Dead, a Walking Dead spin-off, and a Breaking Bad spin-off (Better Call Saul), the latter two of which are not guaranteed to be hits.

 

Good TV shows will come. At the very least, for FX, their comedy slate is awesome. 

[Brian Fowler]

AMC is fine as long as The Walking Dead remains the biggest show on cable.

[EVA]

Oh, yeah, AMC is heading toward shit, too, but at least their big, dumb horror show is the biggest thing going on TV that isn't the NFL, as opposed to THE STRAIN which, to this point, has been a solid double, at best.

And they can at least hang their hat on prospect of the Saul Goodman show for the time being. That's something they have to look forward to.

Good shout on FX having a strong comedy slate, though. Would definitely take ARCHER, SUNNY and LEAGUE (so they're on FXX...I'll still count 'em.), and even this new YOU'RE THE WORST show, over AMC's zillion bizarre reality shows.

[Niners Fan in CT]

Tyrant is maybe the worst show I've seen that tried to be good.

[Joe Lucia]

Anyone watch Rectify? Watched the first season on Netflix. I dunno how to really feel. The acting is great, but it's just so damn slow.

[EN090]

Anyone watch Rush on USA?

[Greggulator]

Tyrant was so amazingly and enjoyably bad. I can't recall a show that only made bad creative choices in this manner. I'm so glad there's a second season. The first season ended with the really awful "hero" figure jailed, so I'm hoping the next season is just he and his terrible family getting tortured.

[Craig H]

Oh, yeah, AMC is heading toward shit, too, but at least their big, dumb horror show is the biggest thing going on TV that isn't the NFL, as opposed to THE STRAIN which, to this point, has been a solid double, at best.

And they can at least hang their hat on prospect of the Saul Goodman show for the time being. That's something they have to look forward to.

Good shout on FX having a strong comedy slate, though. Would definitely take ARCHER, SUNNY and LEAGUE (so they're on FXX...I'll still count 'em.), and even this new YOU'RE THE WORST show, over AMC's zillion bizarre reality shows.

 

Don't forget about Legit. Legit was not what I was expecting at all. It has a TON of heart. More heart than a lot of shows have. Plus there's Louie.

 

I'm also sure Shawn Ryan and 

[Reed]

There is only one thing for them to do: Pick up HANNIBAL after it's inevitably canceled by NBC after this season.

 

Eh, I remember reading Hannibal is actually getting cheaper to make as it goes along thanks to distribution deals. And that's why it's still around despite mediocre ratings: NBC don't pay for it, they just pay the licensing fee, which gets lower every year. It's essentially syndication.

 

Also: It's not like NBC have that many options right now.

[Ryan]

QUAGMIRE'S DREAM WOMAN TURNS OUT TO BE HIS WORST NIGHTMARE ON "FAMILY GUY" SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12, ON FOX

Grammy Award-Winning Rock Star Adam Levine Makes Guest-Voice Cameo and Rachael MacFarlane ("American Dad") Guest-Star

When Quagmire meets a woman named Sonja (guest voice Rachael MacFarlane) who is as sexually insatiable as he is, he is thrilled to finally be with someone who won't judge him. However, things take a turn for the worse when Sonja abducts Quagmire, intending to make him her sex slave. It is up to Peter, Joe and Quagmire's dad to explore the seedy underbelly of Quahog to find and rescue Quagmire. Meanwhile, a love triangle emerges between Stewie, Brian and Stewie's teddy bear, Rupert, in the "Quagmire's Quagmire" episode of FAMILY GUY airing Sunday, Oct. 12 (9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (FG-1103) (TV-14 D, L, S, V)

Sprechen Sie sexy.

[Matt D]

We're three or four episodes behind but when Hell on Wheels hits, it really hits.