Browsing Tag

Westworld

Brad Pitt Gets the Spotlight at Frank Ocean Concert

–Brad Pitt made a surprise appearance at Frank Ocean’s concert and I have SO MANY QUESTIONS. (Was this a statement? Art? Did he even know he was on screen? Somebody tell me!!)

-I didn’t understand Ayra‘s “that’s not you” line to her direwolf on GoT last night but now that I read the explanation I’m crying.

-Sorry, One Direction fans: Louis Tomlinson has shut down rumors of a romance with Harry Styles.

–Lena Dunham referred to Jack Antonoff’s sibling as her “sister-in-law” on Instagram, and then had to deny speculation that she got married.

-I really, really liked this thread responding to Christopher Nolan‘s Netflix comments.

-I guess this is Kevin Hart’s response to those cheating allegations?

-Girls Trip (which I liked A LOT) had the biggest opening weekend for a live-action comedy this year despite its R rating, and already earned back what it cost to make. Add the fact that Wonder Woman and Beauty and the Beast are the year’s top-grossing films so far, and the box office is looking downright rosy for women-led flicks.

-The “friend from work” line in Thor: Ragnarok (aka – the best line in the entire trailer) was actually pitched by a Make-a-Wish kid who was visiting the set the day they shot that scene.

-In news that came out of ComicCon, Michelle Pfeiffer is joining the Ant Man sequel, Patty Jenkins has weirdly not signed on to Wonder Woman 2 yet, Henry Cavill’s mustache is causing problems for Justice League, and Ben Affleck insists WB isn’t replacing him (“‘We want you to be the Batman’ they told me, and I believe them.”) Also, I would *love* to know which TV cast was yelling at each other before their TV Line interview.

-Speaking of TV casts behaving badly at the con, the Supergirl crew really stepped in it while doing a musical recap of their season, in which they mocked fans who ship Kara and Lena.  I still need to catch up on that show, but this seemed incredibly mean-spirited. Who cares if the writers will never have Supergirl hook up with a woman onscreen? Let people watch for whatever reason they like and/or hope for whatever outcome they want.  The fact that they were mocking a marginalized group that has really embraced that show made it even worse. The cast’s apologies were not great (gotta love the “I’m sorry but think about ME” tactic).  Jeremy Jordan‘s first note was especially victim-y, but at least he got it right on the second try.

-Everyone is talking about this adorable video of the little girl crying over the Justice League cast, but I like this video of Jason Momoa meeting the little kid who asked about Superman during the panel.

-So much trailer goodies dropped at ComicCon this weekend. On the TV side, we got trailers for the new seasons of Stranger Things, The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, Doctor Who’s xmas special, Legends of Tomorrow, Westworld, Lucifer, Once Upon a Time, Preacher, and The Defenders.

-On the movie side, we got Justice League, Thor: Ragnaraok, Black Panther, and Spielberg‘s Ready Player One. (Also, this video of the Black Panther cast reacting to seeing the trailer for their first time is pretty swell.)

Worst TV of 2016

worst-tv-shows-2016

From revivals of shows that should have stayed dead to returning favourites that suddenly sucked, it was an often bleak year for TV (especially in the one-hour drama realm). I sat down with my fellow TV junkie Nicole for our annual chat about what we watched and hated. (Check out our Best of TV list here.)

MOST DISAPPOINTING NEW SHOWS:

Jen: I already talked about Westworld in our Best of TV chat, but that’s my pick. I’d also add The Path. If you told me last year that I’d quickly abandon a show starring Aaron Paul, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Nicole: I think mine was Divorce. I watched a few episodes but it just wasn’t the least bit enjoyable. I’m too busy (and old!) for TV to be work. I also did not get the hype of The Night Of. It was like a longer Law & Order. I was so bored.

Jen: Yeah, I still think The Night Of had the best first episode of the year (it was so tense I was sweating). But then it eventually dissolved into a standard, boring procedural.

MOST DISAPPOINTING RETURNING SHOWS:

Jen: This felt like the year of decent shows with terrible series finales. I was ok with both The Good Wife and Gilmore Girls, but I hated the last 30 seconds of each.

Nicole: I liked Gilmore Girls but I totally agree with you on The Good Wife ending.

Jen: This might be the year I end up breaking up with my beloved superhero TV shows. That hurts, especially when it comes to Arrow because it was on my Best Of list in 2015. This time last year, they had just aired one of their best episodes ever (which featured a proposal followed by a brutal limo attack). But then the show fell off a cliff and never recovered. When it’s good, Arrow is a fun blend of soap opera and comic book. At the end of last season, they leaned too heavily into the former; then they tried to course-correct this season by leaning too heavily into the latter. So now it’s all about stunts, trick arrows and new costumed heroes to make the comic book fanboys happy, but if you like character development and interactions between your favourites, you’re screwed. And their treatment of the few female characters left has become abysmal: Felicity is now a pod person, Thea is marooned on her own Scandal-lite show, and Laurel just pops up randomly to bait canon worshippers.

Nicole: I have crazy superhero fatigue! Arrow is the only one I’m still watching and frankly, it’s hanging by a thread. I don’t really care about any of the new people on the team and that’s a problem.

Jen: I’m less invested in The Flash so I’m less disappointed in it, but damn can that show figure out another threat besides evil speedsters?  I’m also bummed that Iris’ new relationship with Barry (which I don’t buy for a second) has somehow made her less of a character. She’s now been reduced to a pep talk vending machine. The only highlight of this season is that everyone is FINALLY calling out Barry for being a selfish jerkwad.

Nicole: I find that I’m dropping shows because they’ve gotten just plain boring. I love a good procedural but Elementary is just yawns now. If Person of Interest hadn’t been ending they would have lost me. TV can be so good now that I think I need more of a challenge.

Jen: Speaking of boring, I’m pretending The X Files revival didn’t happen, with the exception of the “Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster” episode. Every other one, though? Just didn’t exist!

Nicole: I had such high hopes for UnREAL after last year. Are you kidding me with showing a police shooting from the perspective of the white girl?!?! I think the characters were too unlikeable and not funny enough this season. I’m giving them two more episodes and then I’m out.

Jen: Yeah, I’m with you on UnREAL, which experienced such a brutal sophomore slump. It’s like they forgot that the magic of that show is watching Quinn and Rachel together, and kept them apart nearly all season. Speaking of dropping shows, I’m not sure if I’ve ever quit a series as fast as I quit The 100 after they killed Lexa like such a gross afterthought. The only silver lining: it led to a widespread #buryyourtropes conversation about TV’s treatment of gays and minorities that’s still reverberating.

SADDEST CANCELLATIONS:

Jen: The loss of Agent Carter sucked, especially since Hayley Atwell immediately jumped to a far inferior ABC show (Conviction) that was promptly cancelled.

Nicole: I can’t say I’m heartbroken about any cancellations this year, but I do hope Haley Atwell finds a place to land.

Jen: I’m also still mourning the cancellation of The Grinder. That show was so funny and I’m totally stumped about why it couldn’t find a larger audience.

DISHONOURABLE MENTIONS:

Shows that suffered bummer declines in 2106: The Fall, Mr Robot, Sleepy Hollow, The Affair, Poldark

Check out our Best TV of 2016 picks

Best TV of 2016

best-tv-shows-2016

We are officially living in Peak TV Land, with 455 scripted shows competing for our attention in 2016 (the most ever). And yet, this year felt like one of the most uneven TV seasons in a while. There was so much TV but most of it felt just…ok? A few were outstanding, but this was the first year I can remember in a long time when pulling together a Top 10 list would be a struggle. My BFF and fellow TV addict Nicole and I got together to chat about what we watched and loved.

BEST NEW SHOWS:

Jen: I’m guessing that this is going to be at the top of every critic’s list so I’m not going out on much of a limb here, but Atlanta was such a discovery. It’s weird, rule-breaking, and so specific. I fell in love as soon as I heard “Can I measure your tree?”

Nicole: It took two or three episodes for me to fully commit to this show because I kept waiting for it to fall off and become less awesome. But Atlanta turned out to be the most consistently great show of the fall season.

Jen: Speaking of discoveries, I didn’t think I’d like The People v. O.J. Simpson because I lived through that case (yeah, I’m that old), but man, was that an engrossing limited series. I was visiting my brother and we binged 5 episodes in a weekend.

Nicole: We’re going to fight about this but I love Westworld!! It’s so weird but completely engrossing. It’s the kind of show that drives me to Vulture to read theories on Monday mornings. Jeffrey Wright and James Marsden shine and where in the heck has Thandie Newton been? The ensemble cast really works for me and the feminist overtones are so refreshing (on HBO no less!). This interview by REW crushed me.

Jen: Yeah, I can’t get on board with you for this one. The more I watch and write about TV, the more I realize I don’t give a crap about plot; I just care about how characters to react to it. That’s why I’ll stick with a show in which I have no idea what’s happening but I’m invested in the characters (i.e. Orphan Black). I tried with Westworld but it feels like one of those shows that prioritize twists over character.

In non-cable series, the under-the-radar show that completely took me by surprise was MTV’s Sweet/Vicious. It’s about a college that’s turning a blind eye to its date rape problem, so two female students learn how to fight, dress up in ski masks, and kick the crap out of the perps. It’s like Veronica Mars, if Veronica was a kick-ass vigilante instead of a P.I., and there were two of her.

Nicole: I can’t believe you haven’t mentioned The Good Place yet. It may turn into appointment viewing when it returns because I love it so much. So funny and absurd!

Jen: I like The Good Place, too. It’s one of those new shows that isn’t perfect, but has enough potential to keep me watching. That also includes Pitch, Insecure, Better Things, and This Is Us. (Seriously though, if Kate on This Is Us doesn’t get at least *one* defining character trait beyond her weight, I’m bailing soon.)

BEST RETURNING SHOWS:

Nicole: Although I appreciated what You’re The Worst tackled last year, I found this year’s storyline a lot lighter and more enjoyable. Season one remains my favourite but this season was next best for me. Maybe it’s because they brought back Sunday Funday. I ended up watching the YTW and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend abortion episodes the same week and although both were really different, I thought it was amazing how the two stories were treated. I like that the writers are humanizing a tough topic.

Jen: YTW was a bit uneven this year but I agree about Crazy Ex-Girlfriend; it has somehow gotten even better now that they’ve dropped the love triangle nonsense and leaned into the female dynamics. Like Atlanta, it’s so specific and does such a good job of world-building. The recent Spice Girls spoof about #squadgoals slayed me (“all citizens must watch Hocus Pocus”).

Nicole: Let’s not forget that Game of Thrones was good again!  They brought back Jon Snow and it was 70% less rapey.

Jen: I was on the verge of giving up Game of Thrones, but this might have been my favourite season yet. They sped up the pace, characters actually crossed paths, and females ruled the world. Also, I’ve liked every season of The Americans, but this one may have been my favourite yet. I’m still in shock that they’ve managed to make a teenage character not only tolerable but essential. And Martha! My god, her storyline crushed me.

FAVOURITE PERFORMANCE:

Jen: I wasn’t thrilled with this season of Orange Is the New Black, but Lori Petty’s performance broke my heart into a thousand pieces. And don’t even get me started on Poussey. *sob*

Nicole: I loved anytime that Maeve was awake in the Westworld labs. Her moment on the train was magic.

Jen: I’m still not totally sold on Supergirl but I caught up on a few episodes before the big crossover and I think its move from CBS to CW worked wonders. The show seems to have finally found its footing, and Chyler Leigh’s handling of her coming out scenes was perfection.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS:

Stranger Things, Fleabag, Catastrophe, Girls, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, iZombie