Gawker: great television

And Then to The University

Richard Lawson — Thu, 22 May 2008 14:43:00 EDT

No more "Little Boxes" theme song for Showtime's excellent, biting, sad Weeds. "Nancy has gotten out of her box," says series creator Jenji Kohan. [EW]

Squeal

Richard Lawson — Tue, 06 May 2008 12:44:00 EDT

In the midst of all the Gossip Girl hullabaloo, one almost forgets to mention the two other great shows that were on last night. I'm speaking of ABC Family's smart and funny college show Greek, which you really should be watching, and MTV's anti-Hills high school reality show, The Paper (which, um, you really should be watching). Both shows' episodes, about Parents Weekend and the first deadline of the year, respectively, were squirm-inducing and wonderful in their own weird ways. Monday nights are almost too much.

LOSSST!

Richard Lawson — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:31:00 EDT

It finally returns tonight, with smoke monsters, gun battles, and mysterious trips to the desert. Be still my squiggly, obsessed heart.

Hot Off the Presses

Richard Lawson — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 13:04:00 EDT

So MTV's The Paper, about a Florida high school newspaper, may be my new favorite reality show. Airing right after The Hills on Monday night, it's a silly and pleasant and embarrassingly relatable antidote to the daftness of Lauren and Co. The kids' anxieties, passions, and intensities are exactly what I remember of those days (particularly of my time spent doing theatre). Things were so fucking important back then. It's a specific sense of urgency that feels lacking in the ever-cluttered and complicated adult world.

Also, the "characters" are just wonderful. The obvious star is Amanda, the neurotic, bossy, intelligent, and ambitious Editor-in-Chief, who desperately wants her staff to like her, but is entirely clueless as to how to do that. Also enjoyable: flamingly gay business editor and professional shouter Adam (he also performs in school plays, heh), nerdy managing editor (and possible Amanda love interest) Alex, and Trevor and Giana, a dreamy couple that seems particularly hostile toward Amanda. Despite some inevitable teenage cruelty, the show is warm and funny, and captures that Sturm und Drang of high school that in hindsight seems, well, kinda fun. Above is a clip from the staff ice cream social (sadly cobbled together by Amanda), and below is a snippet from last week. If you want to read more, Jezebel covered last week's premiere episode nicely.

LOSSST!

Richard Lawson — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 10:19:00 EDT

Spoiler Alert? Entertainment Weekly's Doc Jensen spent three days on the Lost set recently, exploring what's in store for the final five episodes of this most exciting of seasons. Ben in a woolly parka! A gun battle in Locke's camp! A body mysteriously washing up on shore! Another "game-changer"! By season's end we'll know how the Oceanic 6 got off the island, what happened to those who stayed behind, and who was in that damn coffin. Oh, and the show will completely buck its traditional format, much like J.K. Rowling did with book 7 of her Harry Potter series. Sounds exciting. It's almost too much to bear. It's April 23rd today and sweet, sweet Lost comes back tomorrow, right? [EW]

TV Shows Return, My Life Regains Meaning

Richard Lawson — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 17:40:00 EDT

TV IS BACK TONIGHT!! The Office! 30 Rock! Goodness and light have come and banished all the mirthless gloom from the world! On The Office, Michael and Jan have a dinner party. I love the episodes when they leave the, um, office. Like that episode where Jim has the party and he wears that cute sweater and his hair is floppy and... Anyway! On 30 Rock it's the return of "MILF Island"! An insider friend who works for the show tells me it's very, very funny. Which is ridiculous because that show is never funny. It's so awful and never makes me cry bittersweet tears of unadulterated bliss. Most of all, I'm excited to stop socializing with people on Thursday nights. It was getting exhausting and expensive! Much like our friend Alex Blagg, I can't wait to sit on my ass, eat pizza, and feel happy again. Some reminders of why we should all give thanks lie after the jump.

Saying Goodbye to The Wire, Over And Over Again

Richard Lawson — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:10:16 EDT

As you may have heard a million and one times today, last night was the series finale of HBO's The Wire, David Simon's sad and probing look into the lives of some people who lived in an American city once. Today there has been heaps of coverage about the last gasp of the Greatest Television Show In The History of Ever, and it can be a little daunting to sort through it. So, we've gone ahead and put together a little digest of some of the more interesting write-ups after the jump. Plus, a little video bonus. Shiiiiiit. Goodnight, Baltimore.

EW.com lists the 15 Most Brilliant Moments and manages to find some joy in the ending.
New York Magazine has exhaustive, point-by-point commentary and a list of unanswered questions.
The Baltimore Sun, which was heavily (too heavily, perhaps) focused on this season, was unhappy with this "once great" series' finale. Seems they maybe didn't like being depicted as Pulitzer hungry fabulists.
The New York Times' Alessandra Stanley loved the ambiguity and uncertainty of the series. Oh, and she manages to bizarrely equate The Wire to that show Numb3rs.
Slate counted down their Top 13 Moments.
The Onion's AV Club has an interview with David Simon, who talks about his new miniseries Generation Kill, and waxes dramatically about The Wire's connections to Shakespeare, O'Neill, and Chekhov.

And now, as a final adieu to this most beloved and barely watched show, the five closing montages that played at the end of each season.

Season 1, song: "Step by Step" by Jesse Winchester

Season 2, song: "I Feel Alright" by Steve Earle

Season 3, song: "Fast Train" by Solomon Burke

Season 4, song: "Walk On Gilded Splinters" by Paul Weller

Season 5, song: "Way Down In The Hole" by Blind Boys of Alabama

Lost Things

Richard Lawson — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:13:33 EST

As has been reported several times, the new season of HBO's The Wire will focus on a fictional version of The Baltimore Sun. We'll see a depiction of a beleaguered paper that faces budget cuts and bureau closings, which is definitely familiar territory for the real Sun. What do you get when an important television show that no one is watching portrays an important medium that no one is reading? A sad and lonely little ouroboros, methinks.