Television thread

[Merusk]

Prison Break had the worst, most illogical product placement EVER yesterday. Did anyone else catch it?  More later.

[Yegolev]

Did I mention the fucking Hawkmen don't even have wings, just shitty looking capes?

Like this?

Also: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

[HaemishM]

Did I mention the fucking Hawkmen don't even have wings, just shitty looking capes?

Like this?

Yep, pretty much like that.

Also: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

That show continues to bring the kind of funny that makes you cringe. You don't want to laugh at it but you just can't help it. The football tryouts episode was hysterical.

[Johny Cee]

Did I mention the fucking Hawkmen don't even have wings, just shitty looking capes?

Like this?

Oh fuck me.  Is that episode of Mystery Science Theater available on DVD?  I was cracking up just reading the wikipedia entry.

[Yegolev]

Not sure.  I have watched most of those movies without the benefit of Joel or Mike.  This includes Puma Man, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, and many others which have rotted the memory centers in which they once resided.

[stu]

This is pretty funny if you're a fan of The Office:

http://blog.nbc.com/CreedThoughts/

[Grand Design]

Did I mention the fucking Hawkmen don't even have wings, just shitty looking capes?

Like this?

Oh fuck me.  Is that episode of Mystery Science Theater available on DVD?  I was cracking up just reading the wikipedia entry.

I don't know, but I taped it years ago and it is one of my all-time favorite MST3Ks.  Just the intro where Tom pronounces Thepumaman as one word is enough to crack me up.  Be warned, the Thepumaman theme-song is insidious and will stick in your head for days afterward.

[Abagadro]

Did I mention the fucking Hawkmen don't even have wings, just shitty looking capes?

Like this?

Oh fuck me.  Is that episode of Mystery Science Theater available on DVD?  I was cracking up just reading the wikipedia entry.

It hasn't been released as part of the DVD collections.

I've been trying to PM you, but I'm not sure it is working. I have that episode as an .avi. I can put it on a disk and mail it to you if you want.

[Bunk]

Well, I'd like to thank American TV producers for fucking up another idea. Watched Ramsey's (Etreme Home) Kitchen (Makeover) Nightmares. Talk about not getting the fucking concept.

- A show about restaurants and cooking had approximately 30 seconds of cooking footage.
- the point of the show is to help improve the running of a business, not fucking buying them a new kitchen
- I know, instead of cooking, lets inlude ten minutes of canned shots of people wiping counters and organizing menus! Don't want Americans to think they are watching show about food!
- Best of all, after 48 minutes of the idiot doing his best Tony Soprano, we get a two minute "I have seen the light and will mend my ways" And then they all played on a jumpy castle! Fuckin 'ell.
- Finally, they cut out the key payoff of the original show, Ramsey coming back a month later to see how badly they've fucked everything up.

That was really painful to watch.

[Trippy]

Time did pass in that episode beyond just that one week. E.g. there was no way they could've organized that community event during that week, and they showed that thing at the end about how Peter had transformed himself into a little angel after Gordon was gone. I agree that the show was weak. I like Gordon, though, (Bonnie should've won!), so I'll watch a couple more and see how it goes.

[Grand Design]

(Bonnie should've won!)

LIES.  No one in that group was worth a damn.  Maybe Waffle House chick with a couple of years more experience.

But yeah, Kitchen Nightmares was a disappointment.  Even Hell's Kitchen irks me because it isn't so much about cooking as it is about showing Ramsey having a meltdown.  "DONKEY!!"  Hell's Kitchen has evolved into a drinking game at my house.  Or is that 'devolved.'

And how much of that was staged?  The guy was obviously doing his best coked up Ralph Cifferetto impression, and it seemed like he told his friends to "drop by" while the cameras were rolling.  I'll bet they met up afterwards and high-fived on the awseome fist fight that they almost, kinda, sorta, maybe, in-a-way insinuated that they could have, should have, would have had if they hadn't been restrained.

But it is nice to humanize Ramsey by comparison.  For that it was worth watching. 

Fox has adopted a style of editing where they take ten hours of footage and show you an hour's worth of half second cut aways with trumpet flares over the dialogue.  Its tiresome.  It worked for one season of The Apprentice and now it's industry standard. 


Another five days until House?  Sheesh.

[Trippy]

(Bonnie should've won!)

LIES.  No one in that group was worth a damn.  Maybe Waffle House chick with a couple of years more experience.

I didn't say she was good cook.. :-D (Though she did do quite well in the challenges)

[Grand Design]

I didn't say she was good cook.. :-D (Though she did do quite well in the challenges)

So you're using the same criteria that Ramsey uses to judge.  /wink

But, yes, I would concede that she was more familiar with the -type- of cooking that he would expect in his kitchen.  Waffle House chick was just a better cook; it was obvious she had been on a line for some time. 

[Sky]

Caught some of that Kitchen Nightmares show, it was pretty funny. The host was no supernanny, she'd have laid out in no uncertain words how Peter was fucking over his entire family rather than try to be subtle about it. I stopped watching and recorded it to watch with the fiancee because we know a guy exactly like Peter irl, so it'll be fun to watch. That restaurant could've been a multi-episode deal, they had a lot of different angles to work.  The host also swore way too much, the bleeping got obnoxious (along with the little mouth blur).

[Miasma]

I forgot to watch that and I really wanted to, I loved the British series.  Damn.

It's a shame that they're bleeping him, they should put it on late enough that they don't have to do that.

[Grand Design]

The host also swore way too much, the bleeping got obnoxious (along with the little mouth blur).

I'm almost tempted to just wait for the dvds in hopes that it isn't censored.  But asking Gordon Ramsey to refrain from discharging expletives is akin to, crap I hate this phrase, herding cats.  Watch Hell's Kitchen next season to see him in his element.  The cursing is more in context when there's a donkey screwing up his line.

I loved the British series.

Funny how they have the best television.  Limey bastards.  The Office, Extras, [insert] Idol, Ramsey's shows, even the silly Nanny stuff has been ported here.  At least for House they just skipped the British version and hired a British actor.

[Bunk]

Caught some of that Kitchen Nightmares show, it was pretty funny. The host was no supernanny, she'd have laid out in no uncertain words how Peter was fucking over his entire family rather than try to be subtle about it. I stopped watching and recorded it to watch with the fiancee because we know a guy exactly like Peter irl, so it'll be fun to watch. That restaurant could've been a multi-episode deal, they had a lot of different angles to work.  The host also swore way too much, the bleeping got obnoxious (along with the little mouth blur).

The original British version was actually a show about the restaurant business, not this weak shit Fox has thrown at us. I'll stick to my reruns of the original on Food Network. Oh, and the host is Gordon Ramsey, what the fuck were you expecting to come out of his mouth? It's much less annoying on Cable where they don't bleep and blur it. (Or stage 90% of it like Fox did)

[Yegolev]

You people have pretty low standards for TV.

[Grand Design]

You people have pretty low standards for TV.

Are their higher standards for TV? 

I missed that memo.

[Miasma]

Just a warning that if you buy the Family Guy DVD set you are actually only getting half of the season, they split it again.  I was fine with it last time because it allowed them to get the season/volume numbers in sync again but now they're just trying to bilk us.  If it works it will set a very bad precedent and will start happening more and more.  It's like they want me to start bittorrenting TV.

[Bunk]

Any of you get to see the Canadian version of Food Network down there? One show I've gotten hooked on is Restaurant Makeover. Its set in Toronto, and is basically an Executive Chef and a designer redoing failing restaurants. They match the owner's investment dollor to dollar, and then gut the place and rebuild it. Meanwhile the chef tries to teach the resident cook how to do more than boil water.

The star of the show though is Igor the construction crew chief.

[Trippy]

You people have pretty low standards for TV.

The Fall season doesn't start until next week so for this week there's only a handful of new episodes/premieres from shows getting an early start.

[Grand Design]

You people have pretty low standards for TV.

The Fall season doesn't start until next week so for this week there's only a handful of new episodes/premieres from shows getting an early start.

And let's be honest: TV is a distraction.  I didn't watch Kitchen Nightmares expecting high drama.  It was so-so at best, and I'm not going to pretend that I hated it just to convince some internet asshat that I have high standards.  The same goes for K-Ville.  It was no NYPD Blue; it was so-so at best and it will (maybe) get a little better.  Good shows are few and far between and usually take time to mature.  Go watch the first season of Seinfeld and tell me that it would make it past episode one by today's standards.

When shows like Deadwood and Huff are given short runs on pay networks, my trust in executives to make their decisions based on 'standards' goes out the window.  They see million-dollar per episode price tags.  They will continue to pump out easy-to-film 'reality' crap rather than pay for good scripts and direction.

But I didn't think that anyone really wanted to rehash that tired old argument.  I thought that it was understood that we are in the reality TV decade and we had best suck it up in the meantime.

[Yegolev]

I wasn't rehashing any arguments, just making a comment.  We all know how it works, as you said.

I think I'm more of a gadfly than an asshat.

[schild]

The only kitchen show I can tolerate is Top Chef. At least the contestants on that show can cook and Tom Collichio + the occasional Tony Bourdaine is better than anything else anyone can even offer.

[Grand Design]

I wasn't rehashing any arguments, just making a comment.  We all know how it works, as you said.

It came off as a bit Hyacinth Bucket.  "Ooooo Richard you'll never believe what the neighbors are watching..."  I'll be a bit touchy until I get my House fix next week.

I think I'm more of a gadfly than an asshat.

Internet Asshat is a term of endearment by now, isn't it?

[HaemishM]

Any of you get to see the Canadian version of Food Network down there? One show I've gotten hooked on is Restaurant Makeover. Its set in Toronto, and is basically an Executive Chef and a designer redoing failing restaurants. They match the owner's investment dollor to dollar, and then gut the place and rebuild it. Meanwhile the chef tries to teach the resident cook how to do more than boil water.

The star of the show though is Igor the construction crew chief.

They've shown that on the American Food Network. It's a decent watch.

Top Chef is definitely good fun TV, especially when Bourdain is on there savaging someone. Next Food Network Star was ok until I saw Top Chef, now it pales in comparison. It's such a show about image and warm fuzzies, while Top Chef is about food and assholes.

Fuck Gordon Ramsey in his tiny ass. I've never seen what makes me think I should give a shit about him.

[Xanthippe]

Anyone catch the new softporn HBO show?  Tell Me You Love Me.  It stars a lot of people who you've seen in something or other.

It's terrible.  I wanted to like this show, but it's whinier than 30something was.  I didn't make it through the first episode.

[Grand Design]

I wanted to like this show, but it's whinier than 30something was.

You have just guaranteed that I will avoid it at all costs.  Somehow, I had managed to completely block out thirtysomething until I read that post.

[Evildrider]

Top Chef is far and away the best competetive cooking show as far as the whole reality tv thing goes.  Hell's Kitchen is fun to watch just because they hand Gordon Ramsey a bunch of idiots to run his restaurant.  Kitchen Nightmares BBC stlye > Fox style, but I still had fun watching it. 

[MrHat]

I had the thrill of watching "Highlander: The Source".

It was super fucking awesome.  Better than the Matrix, Boondock Saints, and Firefly PUT TOGETHER.

[Morat20]

I had the thrill of watching "Highlander: The Source".

It was super fucking awesome.  Better than the Matrix, Boondock Saints, and Firefly PUT TOGETHER.

I think you're being sarcastic. However, it's on my Tivo because "What the hell, I plan to be drunk sometime this weekend". :)

[Bunk]

Top Chef is far and away the best competetive cooking show as far as the whole reality tv thing goes. 

Ok, I've had about enough of this. It's time for Chairman Mark Dascascos to kick all of your asses.

[schild]

I had the thrill of watching "Highlander: The Source".

It was super fucking awesome.  Better than the Matrix, Boondock Saints, and Firefly PUT TOGETHER.

I think you're being sarcastic. However, it's on my Tivo because "What the hell, I plan to be drunk sometime this weekend". :)

There's no sarcasm there. Methos is probably one of the best characters ever conceived. In all likelihood, even if it's total shit, it's better than all 3 of those things put together. Of course poopy is better than whatever the child of Matrix and Firefly would be.

[Johny Cee]

Top Chef is far and away the best competetive cooking show as far as the whole reality tv thing goes.  Hell's Kitchen is fun to watch just because they hand Gordon Ramsey a bunch of idiots to run his restaurant.  Kitchen Nightmares BBC stlye > Fox style, but I still had fun watching it. 

I kind of got into Top Chef for a few episodes.  Then got completely turned off by the judges.  They seem to be waaaaay overcritical.