Today I never changed out of my pajamas. I woke up at 1:00 in the afternoon, relocated from my bed to the couch in the living room, and never really left. Did not set one foot outside. Why, you may ask? Because The Closer is awesome, that's why. An all-day marathon, followed by the premiere of Season 3.
I love this show very much, which rarely happens for me with any of these detective-type series. Couldn't care less about any of the Law & Order's or CSI's. Ok, granted, I did grow up watching Matlock. When I was a kid- cartoons? No, thank you. Ben Matlock was The Man. That's why it's so cool to have found another character-driven show where justice is served daily. Kyra Sedgwick plays Brenda Lee Johnson, a homicide investigator from Atlanta. She's got the Southern manners, the little personality quirks, and and the general bad-ass nature that intimidates murderers into confessions.
This episode had one of the most surprising twists in any of the cases to date. Opens with: mom, dad, and 12-year old daughter stabbed to death in their home. No broken windows or doors. Drugged out teenage son hiding in the attic. But, just like always, the first suspect is never the guilty one... Twist: father was a bigomist. His son from his other family found out about his dad's double life, decided to confront him, and things got out of control.
sidenote: Jon Tenney, who plays Brenda's boyfriend Fritz, is so cute. He is another example of one of those guys who gets better looking as he gets older. I never fully realized until I saw Tim Daly in the Grey's spinoff, Private Practice, but that's a pretty common thing. Now that I've thought about it, totally true. George Clooney, Patrick Dempsey, Paul Newman. To use a calculus term, the limit of their attractiveness does not exist. Unfortunately, it only works for guys... Thanks for being so fair, universe.
After watching the premiere of Season 4, I am simply amazed by Denis Leary's talent. His acting/writing deserves some serious props. And while the show has great critical acclaim, it still hasn't gotten enough attention. I'm just hoping the Emmys bestows its awards on worthy candidates this year, like Leary and *cough* LOST *cough*. Last year was pretty disappointing. Except for Conan's incredible hosting. And Steve Carell winning. You know what, they should just let me pick the winners.
I digress. Rescue Me. Having seen all of the first 2 seasons but only a few episodes of the 3rd, I was slightly confused about what was happening. After the first scene, though...didn't really care. ("Don't think I didn't notice the pot. I can smell it. Pot and sex! I can smell both!!") Denis Leary is one of the guys who I think sets the standard for television today. The Season 1 premiere and finale are 2 of the best hours of television I've ever watched in my whole life. And this episode convinced me that Season 4 is going to continue to maintain the excellent quality of the show. Btw, totally love the new castmembers- Jennifer Esposito, who plays a volunteer firefighter who saved Tommy's life in the Season 3 finale, and Tatum O'Neal, who plays Tommy's sister and is now the wife of Garrity. Much better than that other girl from Season 2 (haha, the "twunt").
Shout-out to the other tv writers who are so amazing that they've made me into the television addict that I am: 1) Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse- I am aware that they are technically 2 people. But they're a team. A brilliant and glorious team without whose dedication, LOST would not be the same. 2) Ronald D. Moore- People don't believe me when I tell them that Battlestar Galactica is one of the best shows ever. It's cool, not nerdy, I promise! 3) Ricky Gervais- I am convinced that this man could take over the world with his wit if he wanted to. Creator of The Office. Enough said. 4) David Chase- He took a failed plan at a television version of The Godfather, combined it with his complex relationship with his mother, and created Tony Soprano.
Shout-outs, with a disclaimer- As Stephen Colbert would say, these people are "on notice." This means that they are in time-out because they need to think about what they've done! But I can't forget all the magical things they've created in the past, even though they've betrayed me... 1) J.J. Abrams- He used to be my hero. Then he abandoned Alias. He didn't even come back to write or direct the series finale. So it wasn't the same Alias that it used to be. I will never completely forgive him for that. "Oh, look at me. I'm J.J. Tom Cruise wants me to direct Mission Impossible: III. Bye Sydney Bristow. Who cares that my vision for resolving the story of Rambaldi and all the awesome twists of Alias will never be carried out. Who cares that my name is on LOST as the creator when I don't do anything. Blah blah blah." I bet he says that to himself all the time. 2) Shonda Rhimes- She killed Denny. She made me love him, and then she took him away. But I stayed with her. Because she gave me Denny in the first place. And because I am loyal to my shows almost to a fault. Then the Season 3 finale shattered that loyalty, leaving me with the message that everything needed to go wrong for all of the characters to prove the point that there are no happy endings. Thanks for the depression and the disappointment. I'm gonna give her a chance to redeem herself next fall, just to see where she's taking the show. If I don't like it, Grey's Anatomy will be dead to me.
I would be ashamed of the fact that I watch this show... But the summer is a desperate time for me as far as television goes. I have very little to look forward to, and I miss being invested in worlds and characters outside of reality. As a result, while I am anxiously awaiting the return of my favorite summer show, The Closer (premiering next Monday, June 18th- yay!), I am passing the time with this little Debra Messing dramedy about a Hollywood woman whose husband tells her he wants a divorce, forcing her to move into her friend's Malibu beach house, where she falls for the homeless, but hot, beach bum. Wow. That's quality, right there.
I enjoy this show, as long as it's not trying to be more than it really is- meaningless chick lit in tv form. That's why I get really annoyed when the show slips into dream-like sequences where the characters re-enact scenes from classic movies. Come on. Putting Chinatown and Silence of the Lambs in this fluffy show doesn't make it look smart. It's just out of place and annoying.
Overall, I find the show pretty entertaining. It's fun to watch with my mom and little sister, but I don't have high expectations for it.
Hello. I've decided to create a place where I can share my opinion about all the shows that I watch. While my original idea for this blog was that I could save a lot of time having the same conversations with all of my television buddies (Because I have quite a few. But I guess that's to be expected since I am invested in quite a few shows.), I doubt that anyone will actually take the time to read this... Really it's just me talking to myself. Organizing my thoughts, if you will. After all, I have seriously considered pursuing a career as a television journalist. And this could be a nice portfolio. I'd hand in a very professional collection of my blogs so that they (whoever they may be) could see a sample of my writing.
Oh. And in case, you (you, the hypothetical person who cares enough to be reading these words) did not catch the reference: the title, "J.R.'s Television Thoughts for Your Everyday Life," goes back to my early, carefree tv-watching days. All That. Lori Beth Denberg's Vital Information for your Everyday Life. That's seriously how my mind works. In references to television. It's quite sad, really. But I love it.
Alright, so this introduction also doubles as my first entry. Thoughts on Sunday night's series finale of The Sopranos. Gotta say, at first I was like, "Excuse me, but I'm still waiting for my ending. My nice little conclusion that resolves the questions of the whole show. Will Tony be arrested for his crimes as the mob boss of New Jersey? Or will he get whacked? Or will one of his family members get whacked, thereby sending him over the edge?" I did not expect a cut to black in mid-scene, with all of this tension still in the air about Tony's ultimate fate. But over the past 24 hours, I have come to understand and appreciate David Chase's version of a series finale. The whole point is that life for the Sopranos is not ending with the last episode of the show. Tony still might have to go on trial for everything he's done. Somebody still might order a hit on him. He will still deal with and learn from his emotional problems. Just like when the show started way back in January 1999. I think the fact that the final scene took place to the music of "Don't Stop Believing" made this episode for me. Plus the fact that everything ended with the words "...don't stop." Brilliant, if you ask me. I'm pretty sure that if any other show had a finale like this, I would be furious. I expect such a satisfying resolution from the series finale of LOST in 3 years that I will cling to that show for dear life until the very last second, always in anticipation of the amazing answers to come.
For the past week, I have seen about 3 or 4 "Farewell, Sopranos" articles with the writer's personal top 10 favorite episodes. Because I agree with some of each of them but all of none, I am making my own list. This will mean absolutely nothing to anyone who has not seen the show. Oh well... 1) "The Sopranos"- Season 1, Episode 1. How anyone can possibly overlook the freakin' PILOT is beyond me, but none of the "Greatest Hits" lists included it. I mean, it sets up the whole show. And it had little A.J.'s line at the end when he discovers that his grandmother isn't coming to his birthday party- "What? No fuckin' ziti, then?!" Classic. 2) "Long Term Parking"- Season 5, Episode 12. Adrianna gets killed by Silvio for being an FBI informant. Seriously great acting in this episode from Christopher, my favorite character, when he learns what she has done and realizes what has to happen to the woman he loves. 3) "College"- Season 1, Episode 5. Seems to be everybody's favorite. I like it a whole lot, but I don't think it embodies the entire show. Although the concept is really cool- Tony is taking his daughter to visit all these schools while he is hunting down a former mafia guy who became a rat. Plus, Carmela's intimate evening with her priest really intrigued me in the whole scheme of Carmela-her religion-Tony-his affairs-etc. 4) "Made In America"- Season 6, Episode 21. The finale. Already discussed it above. 5) "Funhouse"- Season 2, Episode 13. Very cool dream sequences. Plus, Big Pussy finally gets what's coming to him when Tony, Silvio, and Paulie take him out on a boat and make him sleep with the fishes. 6) "Members Only"- Season 6, Episode 1. Great season premiere. Story has advanced quite a bit since the end of Season 5, in a good way. Johnny Sack is in prison, leaving a power vacuum in the New York family, and Uncle Junior has lost his mind, which is hilarious, until he SHOOTS TONY. 7) "From Where to Eternity"- Season 2, Episode 9. Just an all-around good episode. Christopher is in the hospital after having been shot. This contains my favorite Paulie storyline when he becomes paranoid about what "3:00" means from Chrissy's near-death experience visions. 8) "Whitecaps"- Season 4, Episode 13. INTENSE. Everything comes to a head between Tony and Carmela. Some seriously amazing acting. 9) "Join the Club"- Season 6, Episode 2. Everyone sitting with Tony at the hospital while he's in a coma. Very emotional and heartfelt scenes with Carmela, Christopher, and A.J. Meanwhile, Tony is in an alternate world where he's a business man who has lost his identity. 10) "The Second Coming"- Season 6, Episode 19. Tony has some real insight in his session with Dr. Melfi about his relationship with his mother, one of the few times that he could actually come to some substantial conclusions about that crazy woman. A.J. feels the pain of the world too much and tries to commit suicide. In the mental hospital where he's getting treatment, he talks about when his grandmother told him that life ended with you dying alone in your own arms, but the end when Tony goes to visit his son sends a deeper message about the love in a family. Runners-up: "Mr. Ruggerio's Neighborhood"- Season 3, Episode 1. Completely new perspective as the federal agents observe the Soprano family and track them so that they can sneak into their house and plant a listening device. "Pine Barrens"- Season 3, Episode 11. Hilarious. Chrissy and Paulie get lost in the middle of nowhere in South Jersey. In the snow. "Army of One"- Season 3, Episode 13. Just because of the scene at the end where Uncle Junior sings a heart-breaking Italian song that brings the tough mob guys to tears.
