Jonathan Toomey
- http://www.tvsquad.com/bloggers/jonathan-toomey
Review: Nip/Tuck - Jenny Juggs
(S06E04) "Yes! She punched me in the face with her breasts!" - Christian
This is really starting to shape up into one of Nip/Tuck's best seasons in quite some time. Not only did "Jenny Juggs" put an excellent twist on the season's main plot (Teddy's plan), but it also added life to a plot that has, up until now, been pretty stupid (Matt, the bandit mime). Add in the laughs from Christian and Jenny and you've got some vintage McNamara/Troy action. Remember that? Nip/Tuck always used to be this good.
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Review: Bored to Death - The Case of the Stolen Sperm
(S01E07) "I don't mean to be rude, but I was transporting chilled semen." - Ray
What a great way to set up the season finale! At this point, I'm not sure Bored to Death has turned out to be anything like what HBO originally green-lit, but, despite its many ups and downs, it sure has been fun to watch.
Not only did last night's episode feature the return of two plots, that, when originally introduced, seemed like throw-away gags (Ray's sperm donations; George's rivalry with Richard Antrem), but it also featured one helluva line-up of guest stars. It bodes well for season two and even though we still have one more episode left, I'm feeling a lot better about the direction Bored to Death is taking when compared to Hung.
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Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Black Swan
(S07E07) "Look, it may have been an accident, but you're a murderer." - Marty
Blame is a funny thing. In the absence of facts, the owner of the blame (i.e. the person at fault), is about one thing and one thing only -- public perception. Spin a good yarn and you can make 'em believe whatever you want. However, when you're Larry David, getting past the hurdle of your own reputation can be an issue. If you listen to even half the stuff that Larry says, why would anyone want to believe a guy like him?
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Check out the trailer for season eight of 24
As in years past during the World Series, FOX has started up the marketing machine for the new season of 24 and this year is no different. The official trailer for Jack Bauer's eighth very bad day (which has 24's traditional 2-night 4-hour premiere on January 17th and 18th) aired last night.
While it doesn't shed too much light on the new season (which takes place in NYC), one thing is for certain -- despite how we last saw Jack, sick as a dog with Kim by his side, the guy seems pretty healthy now. And a healthy Jack Bauer means an ass-kicking Jack Bauer, retired or not.
It's been revealed that the new season will focus on the assassination attempt of a Middle Eastern political figure played by Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor. He gets a little bit of play here in the trailer as well as a quick glimpse of the resurrected CTU. But let's be honest -- all we care about seeing is Jack, even though he is a grandpa now. Check it and tell us what you think!
While it doesn't shed too much light on the new season (which takes place in NYC), one thing is for certain -- despite how we last saw Jack, sick as a dog with Kim by his side, the guy seems pretty healthy now. And a healthy Jack Bauer means an ass-kicking Jack Bauer, retired or not.
It's been revealed that the new season will focus on the assassination attempt of a Middle Eastern political figure played by Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor. He gets a little bit of play here in the trailer as well as a quick glimpse of the resurrected CTU. But let's be honest -- all we care about seeing is Jack, even though he is a grandpa now. Check it and tell us what you think!
Review: Nip/Tuck - Briggitte Reinholt
(S06E03) "I don't know... she must've thought I was someone else." - Teddy
Season six of Nip/Tuck, congratulations -- you have arrived. After two enjoyable, but largely disposable episodes to start the season, the focus has finally returned to the one dangling plot from season five -- Rose McGowan's Dr. Teddy Rowe. While it took some guesswork to recall everything the two-faced (three-faced?) anesthesiologist has done (the "previously on" sequence lacked anything to jog your memory since the season five Teddy was played by Katee Sackhoff), "Briggitte Reinholt" did a pretty decent job of explaining her past sins.
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Friday Night Lights, season four -- An early look
Entering into its fourth season (and second since the NBC/DirecTV deal), Friday Night Lights is a show in transition on numerous levels. The high school football drama returns tonight to DirecTV's 101 Network at 9 p.m. ET (NBC won't air this season until next summer) and for fans of the show, it's an episode they've long been waiting for.
Ever since the season three finale, as Coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his wife Tami (Connie Britton) stepped on to the East Dillon Lions decrepit football field, Eric's new home, the tension has been at an all time high in Dillon, Texas. How can Coach Taylor, a man whom many consider to be a high school football wunderkind, start from scratch with a team that doesn't even exist yet?
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The League -- An early look
Fantasy football is a tricky thing. You either love it or you hate it and that largely depends on whether you're good or bad at it. For the most part, the same can be said about FX's newest comedy The League. When it's good, it is good, but when it's bad... well, you get the picture.
The show, which premieres tomorrow night, Thursday 10/29, at 10:30 p.m. after It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, is FX's first solid attempt to produce a lasting companion piece to Sunny and, given some of its predecessors (like Starved or Testees), it'd be easy to write The League off. But, like a two-minute drill that gradually picks up steam, The League might actually go... all... the... way.
OK -- no more football metaphors.
Continue reading The League -- An early look
Review: Lie to Me - Grievous Bodily Harm
(S02E05) "It's always the popular ones who think they can get away with murder." - Loker
Easily the best episode of Lie to Me to date, I have to wonder -- I can't be the only out there who's just dying to know more about Cal's past, right? Lennie James guest-starred as Terry Marsh, one of Cal's old crime pals and his arrival created so many questions that have just pushed aside anything else going on at The Lightman Group. Unless Gillian or Loker turn out to be serial killers from past lives, nothing else really matters right now besides Cal's history.
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Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Bare Midriff
(S07E06) "Larry?! You sprayed on Jesus??" - Maureen
For as good an episode as "The Bare Midriff" was, it still had one huge problem that has plagued many past episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm as well. The central conflict -- Maureen's exposed stomach -- was just too much of a stretch (no pun intended). Why's that? The beauty of Curb is how well it sheds light on awkward situations we all relate to. Not so much on this one, because honestly, who in their right mind would think a short shirt like that was work appropriate attire? It wasn't believable, that Maureen thought her shirt was OK for the office. Fortunately, if you were willing to look past the absurdity of the issue, it paid off with arguably one of Curb's top five endings ever.
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Review: Bored to Death - The Case of the Beautiful Blackmailer
(S01E06) "Excuse me -- can I get a cheeseburger, no cheese, to go?" - Jonathan
Despite its overall mediocrity thus far, those of us out there who have been sticking with Bored to Death in the hopes that it would get less, well... boring, were finally rewarded. Not only was "The Case of the Beautiful Blackmailer" the best episode of the season to date (I know I've said that before, but clearly I spoke too soon), but it definitively justifies the show getting a season two renewal. This episode proved that the ensemble can actually work well together, and it also made one other thing very clear -- individually, Schwartzman, Danson, and Galifianakis are funny guys. But, together? Comic gold.
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