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So... some of the new fall shows have been leaked already. Review copies, I think.
Anyway, I've watched two of them so far, and it's weird, because the one I would have thought from its description to be idiotic is one I'm definitely going to be watching, and the one I was looking forward to is one I'm going to give a very, very wide berth to.
Anyway.
Pushing Daisies I loved Dead Like Me. I mean, who wouldn't? Other than the too many people who didn't watch it, I mean, which got it cancelled. So this show seemed like a winner. A guy named Ned has the power to touch a dead person (animal, plant, whatever) and bring it back to life. The catch is, if he touches it again, it dies. Permanently. As in he can't bring it back to life a second time. And if he doesn't do so within one minute, someone else nearby dies.
The show is about him, a detective who knows about him, and his childhood sweetheart, who he brought back from the dead and can't ever touch without killing.
I saw a brief clip of it a couple of months ago, and it looked cute. But it's not. It's cloying and annoying and has voiceovers by a British butler (it sounds like) which made me want to tear my ears off and beat myself with them. I don't think this show has a snowball's chance.
Chuck You may have seen scenes from this on commercials. NBC has been running lots and lots of commercials for it, and I figured they probably showed all the good parts in the commercials.
The show is basically a cross between Jake 2.0 and the old Kurt Russell movie The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. Basically, a guy working for the Geek Squad at Best Buy (excuse me, I mean the Nerd Herd at Buy More) gets an e-mail containing the encoded contents of a computer that held all the data for the CIA, NSA, FBI, etc., and now he's got it all in his head.
It's wonderful. It's got action, adventure, geek humor, geek in jokes, Sarah Lancaster (Madison from Everwood), Adam Baldwin, playing a character a lot more like Hamilton in Angel than Jayne from Firefly, but who cares -- it's Adam Baldwin!
And if you can get past the main idea, which doesn't make any sense, unless he has a photographic memory, which, who knows?, I've only seen the first ep, this is a wonderful show that doesn't miss a trick.
This show will probably be a breakout role for Yvonne Strzechowski if she changes her last name. Maybe even if she doesn't.
I'll post more reviews as possible. I've got the pilot for Reaper (another dead person show) and the Sarah Connor Chronicles (timely, since I just watched the Terminator trilogy a few weeks ago). And if I can find Bionic Woman, I'll definitely include that as well.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I've seen part of the Sarah Connors Chronicles but it's the version with the school shooting, which will be reshot due to the Virginia tech shootings (the original was filmed before that event). Not bad so far...
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Reaper Think of the illegitimate child of Ghost Rider and Mallrats. A slacker working at Home Depot (I mean The Work Bench) and his friends channeling TS and Brodie. But TS had his soul sold to the devil before he was born, and now the devil wants him to round up fugitives from hell.
I feel like an idiot even writing that. But... except for the adolescent idiocy of the main character's friend, which I could do with a little less of, it's actually fun. It's going to be on ABC.
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The worst thing is that it was his parents that sold his soul. Wouldn't it be fun to find out your parents sold your soul to the devil? Posts: 4569 | Registered: Dec 2003
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Okay, more shows. First of all, for the time being, despite their availability, I'm not going to be reviewing Cavemen or Lipstick Jungle or Damages or Californication. I might, just possibly, change my mind later about Damages, but the other three are things I'd throw myself of a bridge before watching.
Bionic Woman I'm intrigued. Despite a long time crush on Lindsey Wagner, this looks like it could be interesting. Sort of a post-Crisis Jamie Sommers, if you'll excuse the geekery.
This is the original pilot, which has Ann from Arrested Development playing her deaf sister, but there weren't that many scenes with her, and I suppose the rest of it will stay the same.
There's just so much going on in this pilot. Tons and tons of backstory that I'm dying to find out about. That tells me that they grabbed my interest. The fights are amazing. Katee Sackhoff is amazing. Someone at a recent panel at one of the network shindigs asked Hugh Laurie the following question:
quote:Mr. Laurie, sir, [would] you address an alarming trend — the sudden influx of British actors coming and pretending to be American, thereby taking bread out of the mouths of Canadian actors pretending to be American?
I mention this because Michelle Ryan is amazing, too, and I'd never have known she was a Brit.
Anyway, this isn't your mother's Bionic Woman. Nor your older sister's. It's a whole different ballgame, but that worked out well for Battlestar Galactica, so it might work out well here as well. I'm excited about it.
Oh, and Aaron Douglas (Chief Tyrol) from BSG was in the pilot. That's a plus in my book.
Sarah Connor Chronicles More Brits pretending to be Americans. But it's okay.
Like I said, I just watched the Terminator trilogy last month. And I've read the new Terminator comic (Terminator 2: Infinity), which is "eh". So I was really up for this.
I'm bummed to hear that they're going to redo the pilot. Virginia happened a while ago. So did Columbine, for that matter.
The show plays like a movie. Maybe a little slower paced, but that's because it's a TV series, and they have a whole season to let things develop.
If you liked the Terminator flicks, you will love this. When I heard the line "Come with me if you want to live", I was so psyched!
Summer Glau is great at playing people who aren't like the average human being. Thomas Dekker (Zack from Heroes) does an excellent John Connor. It's going to take me some time to really get used to Lena Headly as Sarah Connor. I loved her in Coyote Ugly and Imagine Me and You, but she doesn't really show the depths of the intensity and mania that Linda Hamilton managed to bring to the character. I don't feel the repressed rage that I did with Hamilton. But I'm willing to give her a chance.
Obviously, this takes place between movies 2 and 3, since John is still a teenager. But... no, I'm not going to say any more about that. Let it be a surprise.
The Big Bang Theory Guilty pleasure time. I'm so embarrassed. I'm not even sure why I watched this. It's been ages since I watched a sitcom with a laugh track. Friends, probably. But I found myself laughing out loud over and over while I was watching it.
It's about two of the most incredibly nerdly nerds you've ever seen, and the cute blonde waitress who moves into the apartment across from theirs. It's mortifying to realize that I got every single joke in the show. That's just wrong. But damn, it was funny.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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have you seen new amsterdam? I have wanted to see that show...but I haven't seen the pilot floating around anywhere yet.
Posts: 1901 | Registered: May 2004
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There's like a half dozen superpowers type shows coming out this fall, of which I think Pushing Daisies and Reaper would probably fall into. Every station has at least one of them. Thank Heroes for it. There was a thing on CNN awhile back about all the new shows, I'll see if I can find it later.
Journeyman: Newspaper reporter who shifts through time. Sample can be found on NBC. (NBC)
Pushing Daisies: Guy can bring dead people back to life to ask them who killed them and collect reward money, but he can't touch people twice or they stay dead forever. Pegged as a romantic fantasy. (ABC)
New Amsterdam: 400 year old homicide detective in New York who is looking for his one true love and he'll stop being immortal, and there might be another immortal out there. (Fox)
Moonlight: Guy marries a vampire and is bitten on their wedding night. Becomes a vampire and uses his abilities to fight other vampires and save potential victims. So, basically it's Angel 2.0? (CBS)
Chuck: What was that movie with Kirk Cameron called where he gets a computer downloaded into his head? Something about sneakers I think. Anyway, this one is about a guy, Chuck, who gets the government's most sensitive secrets downloaded into his head and people are out to get him. Billed as a "comedic spy thriller." (NBC)
Bionic Woman: I think we all know this one. Woman's surgeon boyfriend fits her with mechanical improvements and then makes her work for his shadowy underground organization. (NBC)
Reaper: Already talked about this one, the main character Sean has his soul sold to the devil and he become's Satan's bounty hunter, which he apparently likes. (CW)
quote:Originally posted by Chris Bridges: So how did Laurie respond?
I don't know. The article didn't say. I imagine he laughed. But then he probably said something pretty witty in response.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: Chuck: What was that movie with Kirk Cameron called where he gets a computer downloaded into his head? Something about sneakers I think.
Kurt Russell. "The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes". I mentioned it in the first post.
And I'll definitely do pre-reviews of Journeyman, Moonlight and New Amsterdam (and Life) if I manage to snag copies.
quote:Reaper: Already talked about this one, the main character Sean has his soul sold to the devil and he become's Satan's bounty hunter, which he apparently likes. (CW)
All that's missing is the flaming skull for a head and bitchin' motorcycle.
Posts: 5422 | Registered: Dec 2001
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I'm just Super Excited for the next season of the office. I may have to start a topic for it. Horay!!! Posts: 856 | Registered: Jun 2007
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Unlike some, I enjoyed the pilot for Pushing Daisies, but I find it difficult to envision myself watching more of it. I'm not sure it has potential for new material.
Posts: 1215 | Registered: Apr 2005
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I just watched the pilot of Damages. You know how sometimes you can see a show and you just know what the pitch was for it? I have no doubt whatsoever that this show started off, conceptually, as "Suppose we take The Devil Wears Prada, make the boss a high powered attorney, get rid of all the comedy, and turn it into an hourlong drama."
Glenn Close is psychotically good. And that's a double (or triple) entendre. I don't like procedurals, though this is no procedural. I'm not into courtroom dramas, except for Boston Legal, which is three quarters comedy anyway. But I have to see how the story that starts in this pilot gets resolved. And if they change it before it airs so that it's a different story, I'll go to my grave unsatisfied.
It's good. Really, really good. It's not for the faint of heart, but it's worth it.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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And I watched Saving Grace. I'm really not sure how I feel about it. I mean, I'm not going to be watching it (I have enough to watch, and this just doesn't grab me), but it could be interesting.
Grace is a police detective. She's a hard drinking, rogue of a nutcase who sleeps with her (married) partner, swears like a sailor, and would just as soon deck you as talk to you. She's a disaster waiting to happen.
She's also on the fast track to hell.
Or so she's told by a redneck angel named Earl, in between chaws of tobbaco. Earl tells her she's only got one more chance (though it's hard to say what that means, since she does any number of bad sin stuff even after this warning). He tells her she has to clean up her act, get God, get faith, yadda, yadda.
It's definitely got a heavily Christian spin on religion, which I suppose makes sense, being that the vast majority of the US sees things that way, and Hollywood isn't really run by Jews. At least not Jews who would know the difference. And I'm guessing that that made me a little uncomfortable, though I probably wouldn't have put this on my calendar anyway. But if you like that kind of thing, this may be your piece of cake. If you liked Touched By An Angel, you might like this as well. If you can tolerate Grace the potty mouth, that is.
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quote:Originally posted by Fyfe: I have to say, I am so in love with Pushing Daisies. That one has to do well. I adore it.
Did you actually watch it, or did you just see a clip? Because I thought the clip looked great, too, but the show made me want to hurt my computer.
I mean, with the voice of Jeeves, the invisible butler, telling us over and over how many years, months, days and hours old each person was, I honestly started hating British people.
Okay, maybe just the voiceover one, but it was some big hate.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Grace is a police detective. She's a hard drinking, rogue of a nutcase who sleeps with her (married) partner, swears like a sailor, and would just as soon deck you as talk to you. She's a disaster waiting to happen.
The sad thing is that I like Grace, and can't help feeling that the angel is actually ruining her.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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I hated the previews shown for Saving Grace during that 20-minute spiel of commercials they show at the movies. It seems like another trite "God as a pushier version of Santa Claus" brand of Christianity...the kind Hollywood seems convinced is the only kind of Christianity.
Not gonna watch it.
Posts: 6689 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I, too, had a look at the "review copy" of the Bionic Woman pilot. I am moderately intrigued. The action scenes were great an the acting at least reasonably competent. I can see myself following this series. However...
Slightly spoilerish comments to follow.
| | | | | | | I'm not sure if they are going to be able to come up with a weekly concept that will hold my interest. The mission statement of the organisation what's-her-name is recruited into is apparently to stop futurish technology to fall into the hands of the wrong people. I'll probably lose interest fast if there is a weekly MacGuffin of some sort of outlandish technology that the Bionic Woman must retrieve/protect/destroy/etc. using her amazing bionicness. Hopefully they add a strong season long story arch and some real character development/drama. Then I can see this being good.
Also, more spoilers, I can't help to think having only on bionic arm must be a tremendous handicap, something that was alluded to but not really shown in the pilot. I suppose the nano healing thing helped somewhat but the blond girl SHOULD have been able to rip the arm off the brunette at the very least. Oh, well. Some suspension of your critical faculties are required in these sorts of projects, I suppose.
posted
Apparently, the narrator of Pushing Daisies is the same guy who reads the USA version of the Harry Potter audio books. So I guess someone must like his voice.
They should have hired Stephen Fry, who does the UK Harry Potter audio. He rocks, and has actually played Jeeves.
And yes, I have nothing to say about any of these shows. I'm waiting until I find out what gets cancelled after two episodes before getting invested in anything, having finally learned my lesson.
Posts: 1528 | Registered: Nov 2004
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Something I did like about Kevin Smith's (never used) Six-Million-Dollar Man script: in that, Steve Austin's good arm was also replaced, to provide balance.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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I'm looking forward to Pushing Daisies quite a bit. Especially after a friend turned me on to Dead Like Me.
Posts: 6689 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I absolutely adored Dead Like Me. Same with Wonderfalls. And I thought Pushing Daisies was beyond bad. So the two don't necessarily go together.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I really liked the Pushing Daisies pilot. I also liked Chuck and Reaper. I thought Bionic Woman was a little weak in the dialog but I enjoyed it enough to give it another shot. I started watching Sarah Connor Chronicles but shut it off 10 minutes in. It wasn't grabbing me. I'll probably try again sometime but I already watch too much T.V.
Posts: 1336 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Yep. Aaron. I loved that it was Sharon, Aaron, Karen, Darin and Jaye. She was always the odd one.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I wish they'd leak the Journeyman and Life pilots. I'm really looking forward to those, and I want to see if that's smart or dumb.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Lisa: The Big Bang Theory Guilty pleasure time. I'm so embarrassed. I'm not even sure why I watched this. It's been ages since I watched a sitcom with a laugh track. Friends, probably. But I found myself laughing out loud over and over while I was watching it.
It's about two of the most incredibly nerdly nerds you've ever seen, and the cute blonde waitress who moves into the apartment across from theirs. It's mortifying to realize that I got every single joke in the show. That's just wrong. But damn, it was funny.
I'm proud to say that I'm friends with one of the show's regulars. I haven't seen the show yet, so I don't know the character name, but he is the Indian nerd who can't talk around women. (Kunal is his real name.) Great guy, great actor.
quote:Kaley Cuoco (Penny) Johnny Galecki (Leonard) Jim Parsons (Sheldon) Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz) Kunal Nayyar (Rajesh Koothrappali)
Johnny Galecki may be familiar to some of you as Trouty on My Boys. Totally different character, but he's wicked funny.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Way up in the thread Lisa corrected Lyrhawn that The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes was Kurt Russell, not Kirk Cameron. It was both. It was Kurt Russell in Lisa's generation (1969 film) and Kirk Cameron in Lyrhawn's (1995).
Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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Yup, 95 made for tv (I believe ABC), was terrible but at that point I had a crush on Kirk Cameron so I watched it. I now think he's creepy.
Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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So I just watched "Pushing Daisies." I love the cast and the quirky feel of the show. The narrator voiceovers are a bit much but only because his voice has so much...presence.
I will certainly keep watching.
I also watched "K-Ville" which is Fox's new cop show set in New Orleans. I think it'll be great for the city and I like seeing places that I recognize on television. But for the most part, the idea of a show about the NOPD irritates me and there's too much bad feeling there to really relate to the characters. Overall, the show is an overblown cop drama that doesn't really know what to do with itself. Should it focus on the characters' and the city's struggles after the storm, or steer itself more towards unrealistic over-top gunfights in the French Quarter? Maybe it'll find the right balance but so far it doesn't look like it'll be doing anything new.
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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Okay, I found a few more. But I'm not going to watch them all. Cane, for example, doesn't interest me at all, so even though it's out there, I'm not going to watch it.
Journeyman. Wow, that was way cool. It's a little bit like Quantum Leap, but without the pseudoscience. The main character, Dan, is a journalist (not sure if that matters, but he is), and he starts getting whipped back in time. But each time, he's following someone whose life he apparently has to change. How does he know that he has to do that? There's no Al to clue him in, but at least in the pilot, it's fairly obvious. He sees a guy about to get hit by a trolley, and he saves him. And it all goes from there.
Oh, and there's the complication that he keeps running into his former girlfriend/fiancee, who is currently dead, only maybe not. And it seems he isn't the only one doing the time travel hokey pokey.
It takes place in San Francisco, so the scenery is cool, and if the pilot is any indication, this is going to be a great show.
Oh, and the former, maybe-dead-maybe-not honey is played by Moon Bloodgood, who was the girlfriend in Daybreak, for those of you who were lucky and smart enough to watch that.
Next up is Life. Based on the previews I've seen, I think I need to get into a zen mood first.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Originally posted by pH: I refuse to watch K-ville. Absolutely, positively refuse.
-pH
I absolutely agree. That's all I want to see is my home demonized even more, this time, by a bunch of Hollywood types who have no clue what N.O. is all about.
Maybe if it were a well written comedy/drama about the lives and culture of N.O. people, possibly even telling the story of their struggle, and return--THEN I might watch it. I would love to see my hometown on t.v., I just don't want it to become another New York, where NYPD Blue and such shows have pervaded peoples' ideas of what the city is as a whole.
Posts: 99 | Registered: Aug 2007
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Life is odd and quirky. I like odd and quirky. If you watch anything on NBC, you know the basic premise, because they've advertised the hell of it for months now. Charlie Crews is a cop who got a life sentence for a murder he didn't commit. When he gets out after 12 years, his settlement includes a boatload of money (tens of millions, probably) and a job as a detective back on the force.
He's partnered with Dani Reese, played by Sarah Shahi. If you watch The L Word, she played Carmen, Shane's fiancee who got left at the altar.
Needless to say, Charlie had a hard time as a cop in prison, and he's gotten very odd and quirky, not to mention extremely Zen. He's great fun to watch.
Back on the fake-American thing, Damian Lewis, who plays Charlie Crews, is a Brit. So is Kevin McKidd, who stars in Journeyman. And Michelle Ryan, who stars in Bionic Woman. And Lena Headey, who stars in The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
And that's aside from Hugh Laurie and Jamie Bamber from House and BSG. Let's hear it for the British invasion.
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