The Office - season 6
Around the middle of the 4th season, I started to give up on The Office. It wasn't as good as it used to be because the characters (specifically Michael and Dwight) had grown a little too far over-the-top and the storylines were getting stupid. Around this time, NBC was also stretching the show to fill an hour time slot. It couldn't have been more clear that forcing the writers to fill an hour every week was a horrible idea. But once the show returned to 30 minutes and Dwight slipped a little more into the background it got better again. Dwight is a great character, but he is so ridiculous that he needs to be used in moderation. The writers figured this out just in time.
The other complaint that I had in recent years was that I really didn't care about the attempts at a dramatic storyline (Jim and Pam, I'm looking at you). It seemed like the show's lame attempt to appeal to the Grey's Anatomy crowd. But a few weeks ago, the show reached something it has been building towards for a long time: the big wedding. The episode was fantastic. It proved that the show could easily fill 60 minutes (if it had a good reason) and also proved to me that I actually do care a little bit about those two characters. In fact, during the big finish, I realized that I had come to care about all the characters and it was great that they finally all came together for something without any qualifications. A+ for the episode.
Not sure where they go from here since the wedding was the big moment we had been building towards practically since day 1. Will they find a new direction? Will they maintain their recent momentum? I really hope so because The Office has regained its status as one of my favorite shows.
Rounding out NBC Thursday night (the best night of TV on any network these days) are 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation and Community. I still haven't watched 30 Rock, so I can't comment there, but I have been watching the other two.
Parks and Recreation is frustrating. It's very much in the style of The Office, but not as good. The premise seems way too thrown together for me. Amy Poehler's character is just like Michael Scott: usually very funny but some jokes seem too forced. Tom Haverford is the best character. Ron Swanson is also good, but , as good as she was on The Office, Rashida Jones doesn't really do anything for me and the fact that her character is still involved in the running storyline doesn't make any sense. She isn't connected to anyone that works in Town Hall other than the fact that she is supposed to be Amy Poehler's good friend. Well, they supposedly met in the first episode and it's pretty much the least convincing television friendship I can remember. And Rashida's ex, Andy, has even LESS reason to still be featured. They just keep him around so they can make jokes about him living in the pit. The whole show seems too forced to me and I don't think I will watch beyond this season if the show even makes it that long. I can't imagine many people are watching.
Community, on the other hand, is great. The stories and morals are overly simplistic and somewhat juvenile, but the episodes are packed densely with jokes and funny dialogue. I often have to rewind to make sure I catch everything. The characters are unique and have come together in an interesting and original setting (community college). And I am glad to have Chevy Chase back in my life. It has been soooo long since he has been a factor.
Support Community! I have a hard time comparing it to anything else. It's not quite documentary style like The Office...but there's no laugh track. Scrubs maybe? Give it a try, and pay attention or you will miss half the jokes. My only fear is that it is too smart for its own good. It doesn't spell out its comedy for the masses...it's somewhat subtle and trusts its audience. A similar recipe spelled a premature end for Arrested Development, so I will enjoy Community while it lasts.
Next show: The World Series of Poker. I love watching this way more than I should. I find it to be kind of the ultimate reality show. Thousands of amateur strangers competing against some of the world's best poker players for millions of dollars and a coveted bracelet in a game where all contestants start on equal ground. This is the beauty of poker: even though there are recognized masters of the game, any amateur can beat any pro on any given day. And when it comes to reality, the WSOP is MUCH more of a reality show than any of that other brand of "reality show" which is so clearly not reality (Osbournes, Girls Next Door, Hogan Knows Best, Growing Up Gotti, Kardashians, The Hills, those Bam Margera shows). I seriously hate those shows. And if you think that the "day-to-day" life depicted is what would be happening if the cameras were off, I've got a bridge in Brooklyn I'd like to sell you.
But back to poker... It's not that I love watching poker. In fact any poker on TV other than the WSOP bores me. But the WSOP main event is such a unique competition that I love every minute of it. I love rooting for the pros to reclaim their title from the amateur idiots that have been winning. I love Norman Chad's hilarious commentary. I love watching grown men throw hissy fits because they catch a bad break. I love getting to know new players as they reveal more about themselves the longer they survive.
We are down to 16 or so players remaining and you better believe I'm pulling for arguably "the best player in the world", Phil Ivey.
Quick comments about the rest:
South Park - Still good in its 13th season. Uneven though. Some episodes miss completely while others are brilliant.
Numb3rs/CSI - I vow to give up these two shows every year, yet I can never bring myself to erase them from the DVR. Call them my guilty pleasures if you like. CSI's cast has undergone a major makeover with William Petersen gone, Gary Dourdan gone, Jorja Fox gone and then returned, and Riley Adams (worst character ever) gone (good riddance). Numb3rs is getting by on its beloved characters and what must be a cult following. The math is a complete joke and I'm not sure whether or not they are trying to be funny sometimes, but I keep watching if only for the next Lou Diamond Phillips appearance.
FlashForward - The show ABC has been selling to LOST fans as a replacement when LOST ends its amazing run next spring. It's about what happens when the entire world collapses at once for about two minutes and sees where they will be at the exact same moment a few months (or years...I forget) in the future. It's just ok. It's very high concept has me intrigued (much like LOST), but it seems to take itself a little too seriously and have more potential story holes which they will hopefully avoid. I will give this one a little longer, but the inferior characters are the main difference between FlashForward and LOST. I attribute this to some bad casting. John Cho should never play a character as serious as this. After all, he was Harold. And why do they cast a British actress with a horrible American accent in one of the lead roles? Could they really not find a single American actress that fit the part? Odd.
The Tonight Show - I will always think that Conan is better than Jay, but it's getting awfully repetitive. The repetition worked better with Late Night's more low brow style. I like that they brought many good skits with them (In the year 3000, quarters) but also some crappy ones (Noches de Pasion, the bassist' thoughts about how white Conan is). Most of the new ones suck (studio tours, tabloid moment, twitter tracker), while some of the best were left behind (live via satellite, actual items, if they mated). Go figure. I still watch it, but I fastforward through a lot of it, mostly just looking for good guests.
Fringe - Stopped watching because DVR can only record 2 shows at a time. Really not missing it at all.
Entourage - Same as it always is. Some people attack it for being lazy, but I say it is consistent. They knew what they are and don't venture too far from it. Give them some credit.
No comments:
Post a Comment