At The Movies: My Top Ten (Plus One)

I didn't get to see everything I wanted this year.  I never seem to.  But it was a unique year for movies.  Here, for those of you who care, are my top ten of 2011, plus one other that was too awesome and odd to leave out.  Feel free to yell at me for leaving your favorite off the list.

Premature Autopsy: Summary Judgement on Half the Premier of "Alcatraz"

Thanks to the Fox marketing department and the fine folks at Frontier Airline, I got a chance to watch the first half of the two hour premiere of “Alcatraz” as I winged my way to Milwaukee a few days ago.

With the proviso that I haven’t seen the second hour and reserve the right to change my mind once I have, I thought I’d give y’all my initial impressions of the JJ Abrams produced drama.  Spoilers abound ahead. 

I swear I went in with the highest of hopes for “Alcatraz.” Love me some Jorge Garcia (and he is, unsurprisingly, the best thing about the first hour). I dig the hell out of “Lost” and “Fringe,” and the setting of Alcatraz Island is just a phenomenal place to center a TV series around.  Throw in the unsettling presence of Sam Neill and character actor extraordinaire Robert Forster and it should be a great mix of mystery and badassery.

So why did I finish that first episode with such a feeling of disappointment?

A Singularity of Awful: In Praise of "Work It"

Last night saw the debut of one of the worst shows in recent memory. Savaged by critics who had seen advanced copies and viewers who had only seen commercials, “Work It” premiered to over six million viewers (a respectable number, no doubt aided by little competition and the rubberneckers who wanted to see what all the vitriol was about). 

It was as bad as advertised. Maybe even worse. And I set a season pass on my DVR.

In Which We Discuss a Show: "Whitney" and "2 Broke Girls"

TV Talk continues with a discussion we had a few weeks ago about Whitney Cummings new shows, "Whitney" and (more specifically) "2 Broke Girls".

Andy

I know you are a sports fan, but the new Fall Season in September and October are my March Madness. It try to watch every new show I reasonably can, and keep up with the ones that have promise up until I just can't bring myself to care anymore. That happened this year with "Free Agents" half way through its last episode and “Terra Nova” as soon as I realized they were doing an amnesia episode their third time out of the gate. But the real story of this year’s freshman crop is "The Year of Cummings." Whitney Cummings has TWO new shows this season, and both have already gotten full season pick-ups.

In Which We Discuss A Show: Community's "Remedial Chaos Theory"

Chad

This week's episode of Community, "Remedial Chaos Theory", is the best of Season 3 so far, and easily in my top 5 favorite episodes of the series. It was initially scheduled to be the third episode of the season (hence apartment number 303 for Troy and Abed's new place) but due to the complexity of the concept and the difficulty in editing the different time lines, series creator Dan Harmon decided to switch it with last weeks "Competitive Ecology". Let's take some time to talk about what worked for us and what didn't in this episode, but please, let's avoid touchy topics like "the Negro problem" because it just wouldn't be appropriate.

"Glee," "Fame" and Fame

Before I begin, a qualifier: I have never missed an episode of “Glee,” yet I abhor it. It is the worst show I just can’t stop watching.

Whew… I feel better. Confession is good for the soul.