Tag: Television

Years of Hope, Days of Madness. | HBO 2.0.

“I can start the story fresh, and at the same time there will be all these events that happened in between that will provide additional storytelling energy.” Don Draper’s destination? 1969. Apparently, Matthew Weiner and Mad Men have a five-season, ten-year mission, and will jump a year or so ahead after every season. (As noted here, Season 2 picks up on Valentines Day, 1962.)

Also in TV news, HBO announces its upcoming slate, which includes Treme (“Trah-May“, a.k.a. David Simon in Nola), True Blood (Alan Ball does Southern Gothic), more Curb, a Scorsese project, and — alas — absolutely no Deadwood.

AD Episode Bluth: Revenge of the Bluths.

“‘After months of speculation, I think we have finally figured out for sure that we are indeed doing an Arrested Development movie,’ Tambor told EW.com at the premiere of Hellboy II on Sunday. ‘I am very excited about that. I love that cast and crew and I felt like we had more to say.‘” Is the AD movie actually happening? So says George Bluth…or Oscar Bluth. Hard to say, really.

Clowns love Dominos.

“Does it depress you…how alone you really are? You had plans…look where that got ya!” Yes, even more news on the Dark Knight front: Domino’s has a fun site up with an exclusive variant trailer…and be sure to play 3-Card Monte with the Joker before you go. (If that site’s bogged down, low-quality versions have popped up on Youtube here and here.)

Update: Another exemplary new poster, and — just in case the deal isn’t closed yet — it looks like the teaser for Zack Snyder’s Watchmen will open the show. It’s safe to say I’m reaching LotR-levels of anticipation at this point.

Update 2: Gotham Tonight Episode 3 (crime in the city) and Episode 4 (Jim Gordon profile) are now up. Looks like Bal’more’s New Day Co-Op and MCU have both made it to Batman’s town.

This Place is a Prison.

Rumors were floating around a few weeks ago, and an earlier attempt with Christopher Eccleston failed…but now it’s confirmed. The classic British sci-fi show The Prisoner will return as a six-episode miniseries for AMC and ITV, with Jim Caviezel as Number 6 (Patrick McGoohan) and Ian McKellen as Number 2 (Leo McKern, most memorably). “While the original show worked as a metaphor for the paranoia of the Cold War, AMC says the remake will reflect 21st-century stressors such as constant surveillance and the conflict between liberty and security.”

The Men Nobody Know.

“Knowing that these unsuspecting sexists and bigots sit on the brink of their doom is all part of the fun. It is also perverse entertainment of a sort (Weiner calls it pornography) to watch them smoke like chimneys (including pregnant women), drink like extras from ‘The Lost Weekend’ and eat steak, cheesecake and creamed corn without consequences. Or mostly.'” In the NYT magazine, Alex Witchel catches up with Mad Men showrunner Matthew Weiner, and teases some aspects of the second season (starting July 27.) “The first season ended on Thanksgiving 1960, and the fact that I knew that the second season picks up [Spoiler] on Valentine’s Day 1962 horrified him.”

The Press Rests.

“‘Lawrence Spivak, who founded ‘Meet the Press,’ told me before he died that the job of the host is to learn as much as you can about your guest’s positions and take the other side,’ he said in a 2007 interview with Time magazine. ‘And to do that in a persistent and civil way. And that’s what I try to do every Sunday.’” Moynihan man turned pundit-king Tim Russert, 1950-2008. Now, that‘s a surprise. Russert was a guy I actually met a few times during my Carville days (in fact, I once inadvertently hit him with a whiffleball bat…long story), and he always seemed a genuine, amiable sort, particularly by DC talking-head standards. Obviously, his unique brand of political interrogation left something to be desired. Still, he was taken relatively young (and before his father), which is always tragic. Rest in peace, Russ.

Who’s on Fifth.

“My entire career has been a Secret Plan to get this job. I applied before but I got knocked back cos the BBC wanted someone else. Also I was seven.” Arguably the reincarnated show’s best writer, Steven Moffat will take over as head of Doctor Who for Season 5 (or Season 31, depending on how you’re counting), replacing Russell Davies. That’s a perfect choice…so long as it doesn’t screw up Spielberg and PJ’s Tintin trilogy.

On the Couch, In the Attic.

Some amusing pilfered links: Via The Late Adopter, watch every opening Simpsons couch gag, in just under 5 minutes. And, by way of all over the place (see Ted, The Oak, Supercres, Web Goddess, PCJM, etc.) do you know what Velcro, slinkies, Alaska, and Scientology have in common…?

Way Down in the Homer. | Deus Ex Cylonica.

Via What’s Alan Watching?, and much like these Battlestar Galactica images from two years ago, David Simon’s Baltimore goes Springfield. (That’s McNulty & Bunk down at the tracks above, but you probably already figured that out.)

Speaking of BSG, does anyone else feel like Battlestar is on the verge of entering late-season X-Files territory at this point? (Or as Starbuck (and MC Hammer) might screech, WE’RE GOING THE WRONG WAY!!!) I was never sold on the Watchtower Four or all the Vision Questing at the end of Season 3, but figured i’d see where the show goes thereafter…maybe the Cylons really do have a plan. But this season to me, the Cylon civil war notwithstanding, has seemed mostly meandering and purposeless, and last episode (particularly the Tigh-Ellen-Six stuff) bordered on incoherent and self-parodying. I’m not giving up on Galactica just yet, but the show is definitely starting to lose me.