Vapid viewing for Valentine’s Day
Most importantly, though, we celebrate Valentine’s Day with television. The following is a comprehensive round-up of Valentine’s Day specials.
Netflix hoards Arrested Development south of the border
“…Arrested Development will be coming exclusively to Netflix for its U.S. members to watch instantly, beginning in 2013.” While this statement does not necessarily preclude the eventuality of Canadians having the show made available to them, it implies that the show will only be available south of the border. This is possible—even unsurprising—because Netflix and Netflix Canada are two separate entities, experiencing different business models and services.
Arrested Development: the illusion that is their comeback
Rumours of an Arrested Development movie – or better yet, a whole new season – have been floating around for years now. There have been mentions of contracts, claims of scripts, and more. Again and again, though, fans have been disappointed.
Channel Surfing: Will Entourage get an encore?
By the time you read this, HBO’s contemporary Hollywood television show, Entourage, will have ended. An instant success, it portrayed the celebrity world with a new insight. Originally based on Mark Wahlberg’s (executive producer and occasional guest star) early career, it quickly went in its own direction under showrunner Doug Ellin.
Channel Surfing: AMC Story Matters
While AMC’s lineup is still comprised of some of the best shows on television, one wonders how the station will be able to continue to thrive under leadership so lacking in tact and consideration for the quality of its product.
Channel Surfing: Fall series preview part two
The second half of my two-part series on new programming premiering this fall will wade into familiar blockbuster territory, while delving into fantasy, fairytales, and a whole networks’ share of homicide, hunting, and tales of unfinished business.
Channel Surfing: Fall series preview part one
If the upfronts are any indication, this season of television, amongst other things, will be remembered and characterized by its blockbusters. Leading the charge are such shows as JJ Abram-produced Alcatraz and the Steven Spielberg-produced Terra Nova.
Channel Surfing: The changing of the seasons
Warm weather and longer days signal many things: the changing season, some much needed time off from studying, and the finales of the television shows that kept us from absolutely loathing weekdays during the dark winter months. And while summer programming offers many things in terms of entertainment, it has a hard time competing with the intrigue of hiring a new office manager and the shock of seeing our favorite irritable doctor finally take things one step too far.
Channel Surfing: Doctors, divorce, and a death in the family
After 41 years on the air and over 10,000 instalments, the long-running ABC soap opera All My Children will air its final episode this fall along with One Life to Live. Soap operas have been in steep decline since the mid-1990’s, but will these two cancellations be the final nails in the coffin for the once popular genre?
Channel Surfing: Live from Abbotsford, it’s an SNL column!
For somebody who grew up on Saturday Night Live, the chance to make a pilgrimage to the holy site of studio 8H at Rockefeller Centre is a must. For me, the opportunity came last winter on a trip to New York City, where I was sure to make a studio tour at NBC one of the first things to check off my list in the big apple.
Channel Surfing: The Reality of the UFC
Reality television at its best is able to encompass the art of the human drama to its full extent. The trials and tribulations of day to day living typically provide enough content to fill hours of television programming, and while most of it is of poorer quality, when captured correctly the raw and visceral emotion of people can be an experience that is unsurpassed.
Channel Surfing: Jersey shore again?
As certain as the seasons themselves, the dawn of each summer brings with it a new brand of subculture to the shores of Seaside Heights. The annual gathering of guidos and guidettes at local clubs and t-shirt shops, once as sparsely talked about as the New Jersey community itself, has become a yearly event as the cast of MTV’s hit show Jersey Shore takes up residence in the “Shorehouse.”
Channel Surfing: Modern Seinfeld
Before I begin this article let me just say that I do not write this in jest, or to offend those who pray at the gospel of Seinfeld. I, along with many who grew up in the nineties, did so under the tutelage of one Jerry Seinfeld and his band of loyal friends. I was there when Jerry fooled around during Schindler’s List, when George got caught sleeping under his desk at the Yankees front office, and at the show’s riveting conclusion when the entire gang was arrested. The show made an indelible mark on my psyche, so when I say that a new television program is a modern-day equivalent, or perhaps even an improvement on Seinfeld, I do so with the utmost respect for the earlier program.
Channel Surfing: Celebrity Apprentice
Like watching a figure skater fall or being unable to pull your eyes away from some terrible car wreck, celebrity inspired reality television shows are something of a unique and guilty pleasure in terms of television programming.
Channel Surfing: Reality… really?
Reality television is technically unscripted programming that features allegedly ordinary people. Those who are not professional actors are considered ordinary, suggesting actors carry some sort of extraordinary status. There are different forms it takes, sometimes game shows, sometimes voyeurism, often it holds some kind of a challenge with a cash prize of sorts because only idiots would compete in stupid challenges (Minute to Win It, anyone?) for nothing. From its ground breaking roots in the big series Survivor and Big Brother, reality TV has branched off into communities, niches, and homes that viewers would normally not want to enter. This cheap, both in cost and quality, programming offers just about anything deemed just ridiculous enough to become addicted to.
Channel Surfing: Black Pudding
The influence of British media has the same branching effect as its colonial predecessor. Where that small European island was once the epicenter of trade and global rule, it is now the foundation from which other nations take and spin TV shows. Programs such as Top Gear, Hell’s Kitchen, and Britain’s Got Talent have expanded from one side of the globe to the other. The recent explosion of reality TV, too, has made this possible for both networks, who love the inexpensive quality of it, and viewers, who latch on to the so-called “reality” it offers.
Channel Surfing: Gleeks rejoice!
This week saw the return of the phenomenal hit show Glee. Now, for those of you who don’t follow the show religiously, here’s a recap: the post-Superbowl episode featured a Michael Jackson tribute – a zombie-fied, Gleeked-out version of “Thriller.” The episode in the regular time slot on Tuesday bowed to the pressure of the love-crazy public, and centered on Valentine’s day. These episodes are prime candidates for a major criticism of the show; specifically, does it bow to viewer desires too often?
Channel Surfing: Fox switching up Sunday night; or just fishing for new viewers?
Fox, in what seems to be an attempt to fish for more viewers, has once again switched up its Sunday night line-up. The Simpsons and Family Guy retain their spots at eight and nine p.m., respectively, with The Cleveland Show moving to 9:30, taking the spot of American Dad!, with the 8:30 slot being filled by Bob’s Burgers, Fox’s newest cartoon comedy. American Dad! slipped to 7:30 p.m., which made me think that it had been cancelled at first (I had to go look up what happened to it on Fox’s website).
Channel Surfing: Doctor Who 10 vs. 11
When David Tennant announced he was no longer going to be The Doctor in the long-lived and beloved British T.V. series Doctor Who, fans were heartbroken – myself included. Everyone was full of curiosity and anticipation on who was going to be chosen as his replacement. When Matt Smith was picked from the hundreds who applied and the few who were considered, everyone went “…who?” which invoked an often comical pun on the show’s name, Doctor Who?? Now that the first series has come to an end Doctor Who fans – or Whovians, as we like to call ourselves – are left comparing the tenth (David Tennant) and the eleventh Doctor(s) (Matt Smith). Personally, I think it’s hard to make the comparison, but I’ll give it my best.
Channel Surfing: Gleeful time at the Golden Globes
Kicking off the annual awards season celebrity wank-fest, the 68th Golden Globe Awards aired on January 17, 2011. The event was hosted for the second year running by irreverent atheist comedian Ricky Gervais of UK Office fame, who pushed both buttons and the envelope, dissing almost every nominee and getting away with it by virtue of hilarity. In between skewering Sex and the City 2 and The Tourist in his awkwardly gut-busting opening monologue, Gervais gave props to the Cascade’s favourite new TV dramas, Boardwalk Empire and The Walking Dead.
Channel Surfing: Boardwalk Empire Season Finale
Boardwalk Empire’s much anticipated first season is coming to an end. There is no doubt that this is HBO’s next mega hit and Empire has been renewed for another season. This show is unique in so many ways. It is the first series or television show that has ever been set in this time period (1920’s during prohibition in the United States of America). This was also one of the most expensive shows that HBO has ever produced; the team behind the show built a replica of the Atlantic City boardwalk in Brooklyn. Martin Scorsese directed the first episode of this gem and was a big part in making the series happen along with Mark Wahlberg and Sopranos writer Terence Winter.
Channel Surfing
After a short hiatus from channel surfing, I am back talking about your favourite non mainstream shows. I would like to thank Sophie and Nick, who filled in for me last two weeks. Sophie brought an excellent show to my attention, which I only found out existed a week ago.
Channel Surfing: Cuckoo for Co-Co
Iconic television personality Conan O’Brien has overcome his fair share of professional adversity in recent years simply to stay on the air.
Channel Surfing: Pre-empted
30 Rock, The Walking Dead, The Office in this week’s edition of Channel Surfing.
