As we get older, our TV time becomes more limited. The 9-5 schedule is practically non-existent, and we have to fit in dinner and any unfinished business before we go to bed. If you have children, your TV time is even more limited because you find yourself surrendering to the programming of Nick, Jr., the Disney Channel, or whatever' DVD the kids want to watch for the millionth time.
Even though our time has become limited, our choices have become endless. It's not only the network programs we have to choose. We have an endless choice of specialized cable shows that appeal to our tastes from sports to drama to reality to textbook topic channels.
Whoever created the DVR should be given a Nobel Prize.
However, even though we can now watch our favorite TV shows whenever, we have to cram in all our favorite shows in the limited amount of free time we have to sit on the couch and watch.
So far, here are some shows I highly recommend for the 2010 Fall Season. Understand that I don't have Showtime or Starz, so DEXTER, WEEDS, CALIFORNICATION, and SPARTICUS will not be on this list (though I hear they're really good).
1) HAWAII FIVE-O (CBS Mondays, 10PM/9PM): This has to be one of the biggest surprises of the season, which is saying a lot because it has a lot to live up to being a reboot of a classic TV show - something that doesn't often work out well on network TV (i.e. THE BIONIC WOMAN and KNIGHT RIDER). CBS has taken its cop formula - action packed stories stylistically directed with charismatic characters - and successfully applied it to this new episodic police program. Alex O'Loughlin as McGarret, Scott Caan as Danno, and Daniel Dae Kim and Chino Ho are not only appealing to a new audience but makes the older fans of the classic show not think about Jack Lord, James Macarthur, and Kam Fong. Even the casting of Grace Park as Kono, who was an overweight male islander in the original series, is acceptable. Yes, this show is essentially CSI: HONOLULU or NCIS: HAWAII, but every new episode is better than the previous.
2) BLUE BLOODS (CBS Fridays, 10PM/9PM): Finally, there's a reason to stay home on Friday nights again to watch TV. Again, CBS shows its genius by combining its family drama formula with its cop show formula to present a show that is exciting and emotional. Tom Selleck is strong as the patriarch of both his family, in which the sons and daughter carry on the family business of working for law enforcement that was started by their grandfather, and the commissioner of the NYPD. He is not Thomas Magnum in this show - not at all. Here, he is a staunch veteran who is trying to keep his family - both personal and professional - together. The cast is rounded out by a surprising group of exceptional talent consisting of Donnie Wahlberg (yes, THAT Donnie Wahlberg from New Kids on the Block and Mark's older brother) as a veteran NYPD detective; Bridget Moynahan as Selleck's daughter, a DA going through a divorce; and Will Estes, a rookie cop who graduated from Harvard and decided to go into the family business by being a cop rather than a lawyer (that's not so unbelievable because there's a true story about a Harvard educated lawyer who decided to work for the police instead of the DA's office). The show also includes a strong supporting cast with Nick Turturro as Estes's sergeant/partner and now Jennifer Esposito as Wahlberg's new partner. Part THE GOOD WIFE, part NYPD BLUE, CBS has a solid winner with this show.
3) LAW AND ORDER: SVU (NBC Wednesday 9PM/8PM): SVU continues to show why it's the sole survivor out of all the LAW AND ORDER spinoffs, and it just keeps getting better and better. Why? Because the cast remains constant and familiar. Unlike other cop series, the success of L & O is not about the stories but rather the relationships. Sometimes the relationships work out very well (Jerry Orbach and Chris Noth, Jerry Orbach and Benjamin Bratt, Jerry Orbach and Jesse L. Martin, Sam Waterson and Jill Hennesey, Sam Waterson and Angie Harmon, Sam Waterson and Christine Rohm). Sometimes they flop hard (Dennis Farina and Jerry Orbach). Sometimes the relationships are never given a true chance like the final season of the mainstay L & O with Jeremy Sisto and Anthony Anderson (who actually impressed me) as the law and Linus Roache and Alana De La Garza as the Order. L & O eventually failed because the stories grew stale. SVU is different. Each story remains as engaging as the previous, and the mainstay and consistency of the cast - Chrstopher Meloni, Mariska Hartigay, Ice-T, Richard Beltzer, and Dann Florek. Though the DA assigned to the group always changes, the producers know how to integrate the changes successfully into the show. Plus, SVU is also able to get engaging special guest stars and recruit from NYC's talent pool to appear in episodes. SVU is a true mainstay of TV that shows no signs of faltering.
4) PARENTHOOD (NBC Tuesdays, 10PM/9PM): Here is the perfect example of a show that has so far survived the sophomore slump. This show continues to be as engaging and entertaining as it was last season as a mid-season replacement. The success of this show is that though it shares the same title, themes, and even situations of the 1980s Ron Howard dramedy (the divorced daughter with the rebellious daughter and distant son, the perfect oldest son with the child with a learning disability, the youngest wayward son with an interracial son), the producers of this show have not continued the story of the family from the movie. These are the Bravermans, not the Buckmans, and their situations have become modernized. Again, here is another show whose success is due to good casting and excellent writing.
5) THE BIG BANG THEORY (CBS Thursdays, 8PM/7PM): Maybe it's because I'm a geek at heart and understand the obscure references to science fiction and comic books, but this show is really a belly laugher. It reminds me of THAT 70S SHOW featuring a collection of geeks and nerds instead of 70s teens. Every week I find myself laughing not only at the jokes but also at the situations.
6) TEACH: TONY DANZA (A&E Fridays, 7PM/6PM): Any fictional and reality show about teaching catches my interest. This reality show features the experiences of Tony Danza from TAXI and WHO'S THE BOSS? struggling to survive as a real English teacher in a Philadelphia high school. The situations are not canned or created as if they would be on one of his sitcoms. Danza is realizing the struggles today's teachers face, and it's most compelling when it overwhelms him to the point of frustration and tears. This show is like THE CELEBRITY APPRENTICE in that it's difficult to fully embrace the struggles Danza faces because he's still a "celebrity" whose bank account is more than a teacher may ever see in their career. However, it is amusing to watch as Danza realizes the responsibilities and struggles that comes with teaching.
7) THE APPRENTICE (NBC Thursdays, 10PM/9PM): Say what you will about Donald Trump, but he knows how to recognize when a concept becomes stale and fixes it. That's what he attempts to do with this season of THE APPRENTICE by having a cast of unemployed businessmen and women compete to work for him. While the show is entertaining and even timely due to the recession and the high unemployment rate, it still feels like it's lacking depth. Still, it has me wanting to watch every week.
8) MODERN FAMILY (ABC Wednesdays, 8PM/7PM): Next to THE BIG BANG THEORY, this is definitely the funniest show on television. Ed O'Neill makes us forget the Bundys and makes us focus on the Pritchetts, who are much more amusing and even appealing than Al Bundy's brood.
9) SMALLVILLE (CW Fridays, 8PM/7PM): It's now the final season, and the producers have finally begun to address how Clark Kent becomes Superman. For comic book fans like me, it's been entertaining watching how the show integrates second tier DC Comic characters (Green Arrow, Zatanna, the Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Supergirl, the Justice Society of America) into the Superman mythology. The show has also been more successful than the SUPERMAN movies in featuring other supervillains other than Lex Luthor - Brainiac, General Zod, Metallo, and even Doomsday and now Darkseid. This is a comic book geek's show, and every episode makes you want to watch the next. Now only if they would write an episode in which an orphaned billionaire from Gotham City comes to Metropolis or feature a certain Amazon princess whose supposed to get her own series next year.
So here are eight shows making it worth the time to sit down and watch or to program into the DVR. You won't be disappointed.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
SUPERMAN - THE NEW MOVIE
A few weeks ago, Warner Brothers announced that Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, the filmmakers behind the reboot of the Batman franchise, had finally selected the director for their reboot of Superman - Zack Snyder.
The good thing about this decision? Zack Snyder is no stranger to remakes or comic book movies. This is the filmmaker who directed the remake of Dawn of the Dead and the adaptations of the graphic novels 300 and Watchmen. He has the necessary skill and talent visually to embody a sense of realism and comic book surrealism. Look more at his work with the Dead remake or the Watchmen adaptation than the cartoonish style of 300. That film was shot in the manner it was to look like Frank Miller's artwork coming to life similarly as to how Robert Rodriguez shot Sin City.
Snyder's flaw is in his cinematic narrative, and that comes more from problems with the script than his direction. Dawn of the Dead was a good script, but the passage of time was not handled well. 300 was more about spectacle than story. Watchmen was a losing bet right out of the gate. Not even the most talented of filmmakers could take condense a 12 issue maxi-series with such strong themes and undertones into a 2-plus hour movie about superheroes. Besides, the naked Dr. Manhattan detracted from all that was good with the movie.
If Snyder's Superman is going to be any good, it's going to need a few things:
1) Follow the James Bond/Batman mode of reboots - James Bond is the longest running film series with the most actors playing the Ian Fleming's iconic character. Each actor made the character their own and establish their films as their own separate series while being a part of the ongoing James Bond saga.
The reason why Batman Begins and The Dark Knight worked is because it was a complete reboot of the film series. Where Burton's Batman films had Gothic overtones and Schumacher's movies were as campy as the 1960s TV series, Nolan's pictures brought not only a sense of realism to the Batman films but also made the character of Batman as interesting as the villains.
Superman films need to take the same approach. Each actor who plays the role must make the character their own while also making the film part of an ongoing series. Christopher Reeve is the Sean Connery of the Superman roles. George Reeves from The Adventures of Superman is the Roger Moore. Tom Welling from Smallville is the Pierce Brosnan. Brandon Routh is the George Lazenby.
The reason why Superman Returns failed was because Bryan Singer was too preoccupied making the Superman III that should have followed Superman II and wanted to make an homage to the Richard Donner classic. The problem is the Richard Donner film is a classic and should not be remade or replicated. Leave the Donner film alone. Let it stand on its own.
Snyder needs to make his Superman an original work. Don't pay attention to what has been done. Make his own Superman movie. Forget Superman: The Movie, Superman II, and definitely Superman III, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, and Superman Returns. Don't continue what's been done on Smallville. Just make a Superman movie.
2) Skip the Origin - Everyone knows the origin of Superman. It's been shown through almost every medium - print (comic and novel), radio, TV, film, animated. Donner's 1978 film stands as the definitive version of the origin, one that has both influenced other mediums including the comics. Snyder doesn't need to show how Kal-El arrived on Earth as a baby, was raised by the Kents, and how he became Superman. Donner did it so well already, and Smallville has addressed the origin well over the last 10 years. We don't need to see it again.
3) Introduce Another Villain Besides Luthor - The Scarecrow is a 2nd tiered villain who has only appeared in cartoons outside the Batman comics. Ra's Al Guhl is a villain only a comic book fan would know. However, both villains were highly effective in Nolan's reboot. Featuring those two villains allowed Nolan to effectively bring in more popular villains like The Joker and Two-Face.
Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor is as iconic as Jack Nicholson's Joker. Kevin Spacey as Luthor in Superman Returns was confusing - was he the comedic genius like Hackman, the mad scientist of classic Superman comics and cartoons, or the ruthless businessman in the modern comic series and on Smallvile?
While Superman's rogues gallery may not be as well-known as Batman's, there are a few familiar faces who could translate well on-screen, namely Brainiac, the super-genius alien with a computer brain, or Bizarro, the defective Superman clone Luthor attempted to create. Bizarro would allow the actor playing Superman to pull an Eddie Murphy and play multiple roles - Superman, Clark Kent, and Bizarro. Maybe even Darkseid or Doomsday, the creature that killed Superman in the '90s. Perhaps Snyder's film could include Luthor, Braniac, Bizarro, and Doomsday.
Just don't bring back the Computer She-Robot Zombie from Superman III or Nuclear Man from Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.
4) Zod or No Zod?: The pro about using General Zod is that the character is not only familiar but also allows Superman to unleash his full powers. The con about using General Zod is that the character is heavily associated with Terence Stamp. Snyder will have to find a Heath Ledger to pull off Zod well. Perhaps Alan Rickman? Kenneth Branagh? Ralph Fiennes? Jason Isaacs? Liam Neeson would be excellent, but he's Ra's Al Guhl.
5) Cast an actor who can act: Don't go for the look. By the look I mean don't go for someone who looks just like Superman from the comics. The look of Superman has changed so much over the years. Make sure that actor also has talent. Also, don't look for someone who looks like Christopher Reeve.
Again, Snyder should look to both James Bond and the Batman films as his inspiration, more specifically the films featuring Daniel Craig as Bond and Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman. Both are talented actors who lose themselves in the role. Snyder needs to find another Gerard Butler. They don't need to be an unknown but rather an underrated. Jim Caveziel? Jonathan Rhys Meyers?
Tom Welling is a TV star, not an actor. While he is associated with Clark Kent, he is not Superman. When he finally dons the costume, the question will be answered whether he is believable as the Man of Steel. He could not carry a Superman movie on his own.
Jon Hamm would be the best choice if they go with Superman as an established character rather than do the origin.
6) Modernize Clark Kent: The meek, mild-mannered reporter is out. In John Byrne's comic series THE MAN OF STEEL, Clark is portrayed as an athletic midwesterner. Plus, if Clark Kent is going to be a reporter, he's going to have a spine. Make him a mix of the modern Clark in the comic and the Clark Kent on Smallville. Don't make him a bumbling buffoon.
7) Call the film The Man of Steel. Not Superman VI or Superman 6. Not Superman Begins. Not Superman and Robin. Not even Superman. Use the nickname.
8) Get rid of Superman Jr./Superboy/Illegitimate Mutant Son of Lois and Clark from Superman Returns.
9) Look to the comics for inspiration. The websites are claiming that Mark Waid's limited series Superman: Birthright is serving as the influence for the Snyder film. However, that's an origin series, and doing the origin again is ill-advised. Look to John Byrne or Geoff Johns' run on the comic.
10) Make Superman an alien but not aloof: The problem with Superman Returns is that Superman comes off as very aloof and detached from the world. That's not Superman. He's very attached to his adopted home planet and its inhabitants. Perhaps the difference between Superman and the rest of the world is not that Superman is an alien but that he was raised with simple, midwestern Christian values. It's not that he doesn't understand humanity. He doesn't understand society. How is it people can be so cruel and evil? That's the difference with which Superman should struggle. He's a pure soul in an impure society. Perhaps the story should be what would happen if Superman resorted to the violent, cruel ways of society.
It is exciting knowing another Superman movie is in pre-production. Let's just hope they do it better than Bryan Singer's attempt.
The good thing about this decision? Zack Snyder is no stranger to remakes or comic book movies. This is the filmmaker who directed the remake of Dawn of the Dead and the adaptations of the graphic novels 300 and Watchmen. He has the necessary skill and talent visually to embody a sense of realism and comic book surrealism. Look more at his work with the Dead remake or the Watchmen adaptation than the cartoonish style of 300. That film was shot in the manner it was to look like Frank Miller's artwork coming to life similarly as to how Robert Rodriguez shot Sin City.
Snyder's flaw is in his cinematic narrative, and that comes more from problems with the script than his direction. Dawn of the Dead was a good script, but the passage of time was not handled well. 300 was more about spectacle than story. Watchmen was a losing bet right out of the gate. Not even the most talented of filmmakers could take condense a 12 issue maxi-series with such strong themes and undertones into a 2-plus hour movie about superheroes. Besides, the naked Dr. Manhattan detracted from all that was good with the movie.
If Snyder's Superman is going to be any good, it's going to need a few things:
1) Follow the James Bond/Batman mode of reboots - James Bond is the longest running film series with the most actors playing the Ian Fleming's iconic character. Each actor made the character their own and establish their films as their own separate series while being a part of the ongoing James Bond saga.
The reason why Batman Begins and The Dark Knight worked is because it was a complete reboot of the film series. Where Burton's Batman films had Gothic overtones and Schumacher's movies were as campy as the 1960s TV series, Nolan's pictures brought not only a sense of realism to the Batman films but also made the character of Batman as interesting as the villains.
Superman films need to take the same approach. Each actor who plays the role must make the character their own while also making the film part of an ongoing series. Christopher Reeve is the Sean Connery of the Superman roles. George Reeves from The Adventures of Superman is the Roger Moore. Tom Welling from Smallville is the Pierce Brosnan. Brandon Routh is the George Lazenby.
The reason why Superman Returns failed was because Bryan Singer was too preoccupied making the Superman III that should have followed Superman II and wanted to make an homage to the Richard Donner classic. The problem is the Richard Donner film is a classic and should not be remade or replicated. Leave the Donner film alone. Let it stand on its own.
Snyder needs to make his Superman an original work. Don't pay attention to what has been done. Make his own Superman movie. Forget Superman: The Movie, Superman II, and definitely Superman III, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, and Superman Returns. Don't continue what's been done on Smallville. Just make a Superman movie.
2) Skip the Origin - Everyone knows the origin of Superman. It's been shown through almost every medium - print (comic and novel), radio, TV, film, animated. Donner's 1978 film stands as the definitive version of the origin, one that has both influenced other mediums including the comics. Snyder doesn't need to show how Kal-El arrived on Earth as a baby, was raised by the Kents, and how he became Superman. Donner did it so well already, and Smallville has addressed the origin well over the last 10 years. We don't need to see it again.
3) Introduce Another Villain Besides Luthor - The Scarecrow is a 2nd tiered villain who has only appeared in cartoons outside the Batman comics. Ra's Al Guhl is a villain only a comic book fan would know. However, both villains were highly effective in Nolan's reboot. Featuring those two villains allowed Nolan to effectively bring in more popular villains like The Joker and Two-Face.
Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor is as iconic as Jack Nicholson's Joker. Kevin Spacey as Luthor in Superman Returns was confusing - was he the comedic genius like Hackman, the mad scientist of classic Superman comics and cartoons, or the ruthless businessman in the modern comic series and on Smallvile?
While Superman's rogues gallery may not be as well-known as Batman's, there are a few familiar faces who could translate well on-screen, namely Brainiac, the super-genius alien with a computer brain, or Bizarro, the defective Superman clone Luthor attempted to create. Bizarro would allow the actor playing Superman to pull an Eddie Murphy and play multiple roles - Superman, Clark Kent, and Bizarro. Maybe even Darkseid or Doomsday, the creature that killed Superman in the '90s. Perhaps Snyder's film could include Luthor, Braniac, Bizarro, and Doomsday.
Just don't bring back the Computer She-Robot Zombie from Superman III or Nuclear Man from Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.
4) Zod or No Zod?: The pro about using General Zod is that the character is not only familiar but also allows Superman to unleash his full powers. The con about using General Zod is that the character is heavily associated with Terence Stamp. Snyder will have to find a Heath Ledger to pull off Zod well. Perhaps Alan Rickman? Kenneth Branagh? Ralph Fiennes? Jason Isaacs? Liam Neeson would be excellent, but he's Ra's Al Guhl.
5) Cast an actor who can act: Don't go for the look. By the look I mean don't go for someone who looks just like Superman from the comics. The look of Superman has changed so much over the years. Make sure that actor also has talent. Also, don't look for someone who looks like Christopher Reeve.
Again, Snyder should look to both James Bond and the Batman films as his inspiration, more specifically the films featuring Daniel Craig as Bond and Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman. Both are talented actors who lose themselves in the role. Snyder needs to find another Gerard Butler. They don't need to be an unknown but rather an underrated. Jim Caveziel? Jonathan Rhys Meyers?
Tom Welling is a TV star, not an actor. While he is associated with Clark Kent, he is not Superman. When he finally dons the costume, the question will be answered whether he is believable as the Man of Steel. He could not carry a Superman movie on his own.
Jon Hamm would be the best choice if they go with Superman as an established character rather than do the origin.
6) Modernize Clark Kent: The meek, mild-mannered reporter is out. In John Byrne's comic series THE MAN OF STEEL, Clark is portrayed as an athletic midwesterner. Plus, if Clark Kent is going to be a reporter, he's going to have a spine. Make him a mix of the modern Clark in the comic and the Clark Kent on Smallville. Don't make him a bumbling buffoon.
7) Call the film The Man of Steel. Not Superman VI or Superman 6. Not Superman Begins. Not Superman and Robin. Not even Superman. Use the nickname.
8) Get rid of Superman Jr./Superboy/Illegitimate Mutant Son of Lois and Clark from Superman Returns.
9) Look to the comics for inspiration. The websites are claiming that Mark Waid's limited series Superman: Birthright is serving as the influence for the Snyder film. However, that's an origin series, and doing the origin again is ill-advised. Look to John Byrne or Geoff Johns' run on the comic.
10) Make Superman an alien but not aloof: The problem with Superman Returns is that Superman comes off as very aloof and detached from the world. That's not Superman. He's very attached to his adopted home planet and its inhabitants. Perhaps the difference between Superman and the rest of the world is not that Superman is an alien but that he was raised with simple, midwestern Christian values. It's not that he doesn't understand humanity. He doesn't understand society. How is it people can be so cruel and evil? That's the difference with which Superman should struggle. He's a pure soul in an impure society. Perhaps the story should be what would happen if Superman resorted to the violent, cruel ways of society.
It is exciting knowing another Superman movie is in pre-production. Let's just hope they do it better than Bryan Singer's attempt.
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