On last night’s @midnight, Chris Hardwick claimed that he was tricked into watching football to see the Star Wars trailer and then compared it to a Hungry Man commercial airing during Project Runway. I must take exception to this, because while there are plenty of general differences between the football and Star Wars fandoms, they are both so popular that they have plenty of crossover. It is more like a commercial for a Christmas special airing during a Halloween special. Those are probably the 2 most popular American holidays (maybe Thanksgiving is second or first, but Christmas and Halloween are definitely both top 3), but they are definitely significantly different. One’s more of a friends holiday, the other a family holiday. Some Halloween lovers probably hate Christmas, and vice versa. But there are folks who love ’em both.
For me, football and Star Wars were two of my earliest fandoms. I’ve grown a little disillusioned with both, though, thanks to concussions and rah-rah tribalism in the case of the former and Jar-Jar Binks in the case of the latter. But when I see something like the stupidest ever trick play from the Colts, I gotta keep watching. And when I behold BB-8 rolling along, I’m like, “I guess you better get me a ticket.”
This review was originally posted on Starpulse in October 2015.
A little over a year after emerging from a terrible car accident that nearly killed him, Tracy Morgan called up his “co-Obi-Wan Kenobi” Lorne Michaels (whom he loves like his daddy) to let him know that he wanted to come home as soon as he got on his feet. There was legitimate concern that he would have trouble making it through the grind of the whole 90 minutes, or if he could even walk on his own. He acknowledges in his monologue that his mental capacity may not be at 100%, but the truth is, it never has been. This is perhaps the biggest and most successful comeback story in “SNL” history, as the returns of Tracy’s most beloved characters, the show really hitting its stride with its election cycle material, and gratifying trips into the bizarre make for the best episode of the season thus far.
Democratic Presidential Debate – Seven years ago, an emergent political figure bore a striking resemblance to an “SNL” cast member. Tina Fey was no longer on the show, but it still felt inevitable that she would play Sarah Palin. This cycle’s doppelganger did not promise quite the same certainty, as Bernie Sanders’ “SNL” alum twin has a much more contentious history with the show. But sometimes, you just gotta focus on the comedy, with Larry David’s excellent cameo as the Vermont senator perhaps unwittingly committing him to at least a year’s worth of guest appearances. The shoe certainly fits, as Bernie’s propensity to spout percentages and esoteric facts sounds a lot like dialogue from “Seinfeld” or “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” Elsewhere, Kate McKinnon continues her superstar turn as Hillary, with her debate version relating to millenials with accuracy but also insanity. And those other guys are a mix of barely present, just happy to be there, and (Alec Baldwin-portrayed) delusional. A-
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – The Last Man on Earth
Monday – Fargo
Tuesday – The Muppets was a delight.
Wednesday – You’re the Worst
Thursday – Nathan for You (I’m not in a relationship right now, so I have plenty of time to commit to my writing.)
Friday – Jeopardy!
Saturday – Saturday Night Live, featuring Larry “Bernie Sanders” David and the search for Jackie Chan
Each week, I check out VH1′s The 20 (formerly Top 20 countdown), and then I rearrange the songs based on my estimation of their quality.
Original Version
1. R. City ft. Adam Levine – “Locked Away”
2. The Weeknd – “The Hills”
3. Justin Bieber – “What Do You Mean?”
4. Taylor Swift – “Wildest Dreams”
5. Demi Lovato – “Cool for the Summer”
6. One Direction – “Drag Me Down”
7. Ed Sheeran – “Photograph”
8. Shawn Mendes – “Stitches”
9. Elle King – “Ex’s & Oh’s”
10. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Eric Nally, Melle Mel, Kool Moe Dee, and Grandmaster Caz – “Downtown”
11. Selena Gomez – “Good for You”
12. X Ambassadors – “Renegades”
13. Hailee Steinfeld – “Love Myself”
14. Nick Jonas – “Levels”
15. Ellie Goulding – “On My Mind”
16. Alessia Cara – “Here”
17. Major Lazer & DJ Snake ft. MØ – “Lean On”
18. Calvin Harris and Disciples – “How Deep is Your Love”
19. Hozier – “Someone New”
20. Selena Gomez – “Same Old Love”
Jmunney’s Revision
1. Lean On
2. The Hills
3. Downtown
4. Ex’s & Oh’s
5. Same Old Love
6. Renegades
7. Good for You
8. Here
9. Cool for the Summer
10. Levels
11. On My Mind
12. What Do You Mean?
13. Someone New
14. Love Myself
15. How Deep Is You Love
16. Wildest Dreams
17. Drag Me Down
18. Stitches
19. Locked Away
20. Photograph
The Martian is very interested in process. As such, it is more focused in making you think than in leaving you thrilled. That is not to say there is no action – there is, it is just not especially emphasized. When it comes to movies that are almost exclusively about making you think, I usually appreciate them more than I like them. But The Martianreally makes you think. The plight of Mark Watney (a fully engaged Matt Damon) – stranded on Mars with any hope of rescue years away – is one that requires the full commitment of all his mental faculties. The detailed presentation of how he gives himself a fighting chance is endlessly inspirational. Not everyone will have to plant a makeshift potato farm at some point in their lives, but everyone will almost certainly have to face situations when a lot has to be made out of a little. Thus, humanity is better off because of the example set by The Martian.
SPOILER WARNING: This essay discusses in depth the endings of an episode of Community, a 35-year-old movie, and a classic piece of sketch comedy. If you are reading this, you are probably already familiar with Community’s twist. The Shining works perfectly fine even if you know the ending. But if you have not seen the Key & Peele bit yet, do yourself a favor and watch it before reading.
When I took on this assignment, I thought I was going to be able to cover a whole survey of Shining homages. But then I realized that besides Chang’s misadventures in “Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality,” the only other one I am really familiar with is the Key & Peele sketch “Continental Breakfast.” So I looked up some more to make sure that my suspicion of their proliferance was correct. There’s a 2014 IKEA commercial in which a Danny bikes around a store. The Simpsons did it (“Treehouse of Horror V”). So of course Family Guy also did it. There are plenty of directions one can take with a Shining parody: hammy Jack Nicholson impressions, creepy little kid acting, Shelly Duvall’s big eyes, etc. Focusing on a comparison between Community and Key & Peele is instructive because the crux of both homages is the ending and what they say about the nature of reality.
SNL: The Weeknd, Amy Schumer, Kate McKinnon (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)
This review was originally posted on Starpulse in October 2015.
“Saturday Night Live” in 2015 continues its search for an identity, as the second episode of Season 41 is the latest in a long line of recent outings with almost no recurring segments. This state of affairs would seem to allow someone with such a well-developed comedic style like Amy Schumer to come in and bend the episode to her will. But it does not always work out that way. Besides, while Amy has an identifiable voice, she does not have much in the way of recurring characters, generally preferring to play variations of herself. She gets to do to that to a certain extent in her “SNL” hosting debut, but “SNL” is still “SNL,” so everyone has to play characters, for better or for worse.
Fox and Friends – This “political” gabfest is one of “SNL’s” few current reliable go-to opening sketches. This edition does not say anything too unique about Jason Chaffetz’ bid for Speaker of the House or Congress’ attempts to defund Planned Parenthood. But it does not have to when Bobby Moynihan’s Brian Kilmeade is delivering plenty of malapropisms, like wondering why they don’t let every House member speak or identifying Newt Gingrich as “the man who stole Christmas.” His interpretation of the Pizza Rat footage as the purported Planned Parenthood video is one for the ages. B
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Rick and Morty
Monday – Whose Line is it Anyway?
Tuesday – The Grinder‘s second episode was good, but what if it weren’t?
Wednesday – Arrow is making me nervous.
Thursday – Billy on the Street
Friday – Jeopardy!
Saturday – Doctor Who
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