Author: John Paulsen (Page 17 of 79)

Gilly, the unfunniest returning SNL character…ever

April 13, 2009 /

Truth be told, when fellow Premium Hollywood writer David Medsker filleted several Kristin Wiig characters in his mid-February post, “Kristen Wiig must be stopped,” I thought he might have been a little hard on her. I generally like her stuff, but I’ll admit that Penelope and Target Lady are wearing a little thin.

Then I saw a brutal skit in which Wiig debuted a new character, Gilly.

It’s one thing when a skit is repetitive and funny, but when it’s repetitive and unfunny, it’s just annoying. Thinking that this skit went over like a lead balloon, I figured that would be the last we’d see of Gilly, but last Saturday, there was another skit — this time Gilly sabotaged her school’s science fair.

The only thing mildly funny about this skit is Kenan Thompson’s “don’t make a kid ride a horse with crazy eyes” bit. Otherwise it was the same, unfunny shtick as the first Gilly skit. Some people laughed in the audience, but I have no idea why. Maybe Lorne Michaels pumps the place full of laughing gas, I don’t know. Now I’m starting to think that Mr. Medsker really is onto something — has Wiig run out of funny characters?

So Gilly is my choice for the unfunniest returning SNL character — who else makes the list?

External Entertainment, External TV, Saturday Night Live, TV, TV Comedies

Discussing the “Life On Mars” finale

April 10, 2009 /

Ted Anthony of the AP wrote a good article about how (and why) the finale for “Life On Mars” rubbed some people the wrong way. AP is tightening its restrictions on blogs quoting their content, so I’ll just link to the piece and move on. (It’s a good read.) By the way, there are “Life On Mars” spoilers ahead.

Anthony compares the “LOM” finale to that of “The Sopranos” and describes both as the kind of open-ended television that American audiences don’t like. This is one point I don’t necessarily agree with. The ending from “LOM” did come from out of nowhere, but I thought it buttoned things up pretty well. It explained why he was back in 1973 and why all those weird things were happening around him. Throughout the season, I was hoping that the creators would find a way for Sam and Annie to be together in the future, in the past, whatever, but I wasn’t expecting it to be in the year 2035.

Sure, Annie isn’t really Annie, but in the final scene it was obvious that there was (or there will be) something going on between the two astronauts. Maybe she didn’t know it yet, but he clearly developed feelings for 1973 Annie and I think that relationship will progress in 2035. The astronauts aren’t exactly the same as their characters in 1973, but that final scene proved that their personalities are similar, which is why I believe that “Sam” and “Annie” will eventually be together.

I did some research about the UK version of the show and discovered that the US ending was a big departure. Had our version ended the same way, I think there would be more of an uproar about how the conclusion wasn’t satisfying enough.

Again, I applaud ABC and the “LOM” creators for coming to a quick decision about the fate of the series and giving the loyal viewers a sense of closure. Some were unhappy to discover that the 1973 characters were just that — characters. But this is television, people. Aside from reality TV (or at least some of it), these are all characters. I’m just happy that Annie, Gene, Ray and Chris exist in some form in Sam’s present.

It was a fun ride while it lasted.

External Entertainment, External TV, TV, TV Action, TV Dramas, TV Sci-Fi

TV Roundup: “Eastbound & Down” renewed, ABC cleans house and more

April 9, 2009 /

– HBO has decided to renew “Eastbound & Down” for a second season. I just finished watching the six-episode first season and it was hilarious. There are at least 10 great lines or laugh out loud moments in each episode. If you start to watch the series, be sure to watch through the fourth episode before cutting it from your playlist. Between “Eastbound & Down” and “Summer Heights High,” comedy is alive on HBO.

– ABC has settled on a schedule for the final episodes of “Pushing Daises,” “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money” to run this summer. I stopped watching “Eli Stone” early on, and “Dirty Sexy Money” earlier this season, but I’m especially sad to see “Pushing Daises” go.

– “Chuck” is on the verge of cancellation, but the good folks over at ChuckTV.net are doing their best to save the show. You can get free swag if you support their cause.

– “Fringe” fans, you know all of those weird symbols that appear just before the commercial breaks? Well, someone has figured out what they all mean.

External Entertainment, External TV, TV, TV Comedies, TV Dramas

How did I not hear about “Clark and Michael” until now?

April 8, 2009 /

Part of the problem with viral marketing is that potential viewers sometimes have to rely on random chance to discover a show they might like. Such is the case with CBS’ online mockumentary, “Clark and Michael,” which follows Clark Duke (“Greek”) and Michael Cera (“Arrested Development,” “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”) as they play two aspiring screenwriters trying to make it big in Hollywood.

There are 10 online episodes available at ClarkandMichael.com. I’m through Episode 3 and it’s pretty funny.


Episode 1

External Entertainment, External TV, Humor, TV, TV Comedies

Uh-oh, “Reaper” creators sign deal with rival studio

April 8, 2009 /

Bad news for “Reaper” fans — the show’s creators just signed a deal with a rival studio, so it looks like the show’s fate has been sealed.

“Reaper” creators/executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters have inked a two-year overall deal with 20th Century Fox TV.

Under the seven-figure pact, the duo will join a 20th TV series and develop projects for the studio.

Fazekas and Butters’ exclusive deal with 20th TV effectively seals the fate of their bubble CW series as it calls for them to leave “Reaper,” produced by ABC Studios, where the two had been based.

“Reaper” has been pretty good this season though with the late premiere date it was obvious that it was on the cutting block. Let’s just hope that Fazekas and Butters can wrap up the series properly instead of letting “Reaper” simply go dark. No one wants that.

External Entertainment, External TV, Reaper, TV, TV Action, TV Sci-Fi

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