Jonathan Toomey
- http://www.tvsquad.com/bloggers/jonathan-toomey
Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - Seinfeld (season finale)
(S07E10) "It's the Seinfeld reunion! That's a big deal!" - Cheryl
Yes, it is a big deal. A little over eleven years after we saw Jerry, Elaine, Kramer, and George behind bars, the reunion we've all been waiting for has finally arrived. I'm not sure if this even counts as a category to classify TV shows, but last night's Curb Your Enthusiasm season finale was easily the best "show within a show" episode I've ever seen... of any show.
Jane was kind enough to step in for me and write up last week's penultimate ep and I actually waited until last night to see that one as well -- I watched them back to back. I was struck by how well it all flowed together; how much it actually felt like we were watching a real episode of Seinfeld, even during the table read. However, seeing it play out, scene by scene, in the finale? Talk about nostalgia.
Continue reading Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - Seinfeld (season finale)
The final season of Lost will premiere on ...
Looks like the island wasn't the only thing that got moved.
Mark your calendars, set your DVRs, and don't make any plans. The two-hour season premiere (it's called "LA X") of the sixth, and final, season of Lost has been scheduled to air on Tuesday, Februrary 2nd at 9 p.m. ET according to Executive Producer Carlton Cuse via Twitter. Cuse also confirmed that Tuesdays at 9 would be the regular time-slot in subsequent weeks.
There really isn't much to say here except wow. It feels real now, doesn't it? With only 18 hours left in the series' run, there are still so many questions left that need answering and hopefully we'll get some serious debriefing come 2/2/2010.
Continue reading The final season of Lost will premiere on ...
Aqua Teen Hunger Force to air new Christmas episode in December
With the holidays fast approaching, it's good to know that Adult Swim is thinking of you. According to their online schedule, Aqua Teen Hunger Force will return on December 13th at 11:45 p.m. ET with an episode elusively referred to as "ATHF Xmas."In true Adult Swim fashion, there's been absolutely no indication as to what this episode might be about, however it's likely that it somehow ties into the recently released Aqua Teen Hunger Force Christmas CD, Have Yourself a Meaty Little Christmas. If you haven't bought it yet, do yourself a favor and get it now. Trust me when I say that you haven't lived until you've heard Meatwad croon his own version of "Silent Night" or Carl cackle his way through "I'll Be Home for Christmas."
Anyway, regarding the episode, it's the only one listed on the schedule, so it's probably not the new season premiere, but it'll hopefully have some sort of performance aspect with songs from the album. That and maybe The Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future will show up. Please let the robot turkey be there.
Review: Nip/Tuck - Alexis Stone
(S06E06) "That's the wonderful thing about raising children -- they keep you young!" - Erica
With Teddy's murder now come and gone (I could go on for hours about how displeased I still am with the way her story ended), Nip/Tuck returned to safe territory last night in "Alexis Stone" by bringing back one of the most loved (and hated) characters to ever grace the show -- Julia's mother, Dr. Erica Noughton (played to icy perfection by Vanessa Redgrave). With Erica around, conflict is always guaranteed and this was no exception. Calling her the mother (and mother-in-law) from hell would be the understatement of the year.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Alexis Stone
Review: Sons of Anarchy - Service
(S02E11) "If Gemma had gotten raped on John's watch, he'd have written a whole different book." - Jax
Forgiveness can be a funny thing. Assuming you're on the receiving end of something awful, It's not always easy to determine if you'd even be willing to forgive. That's the beauty of forgiveness though -- the act that led you to it might have been sincere, but that doesn't mean your capacity to forgive has to be. Unlike quietly accepting a situation, forgiving a situation has the power to pacify the parties at fault.
As we learned with Opie last night on Sons of Anarchy, his capacity to forgive is huge, but that doesn't mean he ain't lying through his teeth when it comes to his true intentions.
Continue reading Review: Sons of Anarchy - Service
Review: Nip/Tuck - Abigail Sullivan
(S06E05) "Why is it that we see what we want to believe and we don't believe what we see?" - Sean
I don't really have a ton to say about this episode; suffice to say that it wasn't my favorite. I argued last week that I hoped Teddy's run in with John Doe (I don't think we caught his name) didn't turn into an easy way to end her story and that's exactly what happened. I liked how it played out but only to the extent that it sent Sean off into this delusional "what the hell am I doing with my life" haze. I'll have a lot more respect for what happened in "Abigail Sullivan" as long as the consequences are worth it.
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Review: Lie to Me - Lack of Candor
(S02E06) "You work here. I know everything." - Lightman
Looks like we've got a bit of a trend going on here. Just a few weeks ago, we got a glimpse into Cal's seedy criminal past and now we got a taste of what Reynolds was up to before he became the FBI liaison to The Lightman Group.
As enjoyable as a one-off case on Lie to Me can be, it's way more interesting when Cal starts using his talent on the people working in his own office. There's more than enough material to mine here and hopefully there's more of this in the future.
Continue reading Review: Lie to Me - Lack of Candor
Review: House - Known Unknowns
(S06E07) "Well, I feel bad. I haven't named your testicles." - Cuddy
We're all thinking it, and unlike euthanasia, I see no reason to keep mum -- House is firing on all cylinders right now. Actually, let me clarify that -- House the character, not House the show, is firing on all cylinders right now. Anything going on in Greg's periphery at the moment is sensational, absolutely electrifying drama.
Everything else? Not so much. If anything, "Known Unknowns" did nothing more than highlight something we've seen countless times already. Namely, the paralyzing effect House's absence has on his team. They're inept without him. What did I glean from the case du jour? Some annoying teenager got sick from eating oysters. However, I gleaned plenty from the rest of the hour.
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Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - Officer Krupke
(S07E08) "Some guy told me to go 'f*ck my face' once. He went to jail." - Officer KrupkeWith the Seinfeld reunion coming up quickly (next week's episode is "The Table Read") things kicked into high gear last night on Curb -- especially when it came to the role of Amanda, George Costanza's ex-wife.
It came down to Cheryl and a busy, very popular actress named Virgina Sloane (played by Elisabeth Shue). Right off the bat, that creates a huge conflict since Larry assured Cheryl that she had the role. But beyond that, there were a lot of issues with how "Officer Krupke" played out in terms of conflict. Curb works best when the laughs are organic and too much of this episode felt forced and manufactured.
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Review: Bored to Death - Take a Dive (season finale)
(S01E08) "You think we learned anything tonight?" - Jonathan
I'll tell you what I learned -- Bored to Death has a lot of potential. All season long, I've gone from loving to hating to loving this show, and with the season finale now come and gone, there's a real opportunity here for Bored to Death to become HBO's next break-out hit when it returns. All the pieces are in place and it probably could have blown up this season had there not been so many episodes where the show tried to find its footing. Is it a detective show? Or is it about three friends in the publishing world trying to make their mark? Or is it both?
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Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
Have any questions for Vik Sahay of Chuck? Ask them here!
Mike Henry and Daryl Hall on a Cleveland Show Thanksgiving
