Category Archives: Tube Watch

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Man of Steel Countdown #3: Smallville’s ‘Craving’ episode with Amy Adams

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In less than fourteen days, the wait would be over. The Man of Steel countdown has officially begun last week with Superman & Me and Superman: The Movie in 1978,The Year.

Today we’ve got Bubbawheat from Flights, Tights and Movie Nights‘ review of a Smallville episode starring miss Lois Lane herself, Amy Adams. 

When I was asked to be a part of this Superman countdown, I quickly agreed but I wasn’t quite sure at first what I would do for it. I didn’t just want to do a review of a Superman movie, especially since I’ve already reviewed almost every Superman movie out there and I didn’t just want to rehash one of my old reviews.

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Amy Adams as Lois Lane

But she also mentioned that I could do something involving one of the Superman TV series and it hit me. There is a connection between the new Man of Steel movie and one of the TV series. Interestingly enough, Amy Adams who plays Lois Lane had an early role in Smallville‘s first seasons as one of the freaks of the week in the episode Craving. So I thought I would take a look at that episode and her first interactions with the man who would become Superman, Clark Kent.

I was a big supporter of Smallville back when it first came out, and I actually had to rewrite this sentence because I had forgotten how long ago it actually was when it first came on the air. I originally wrote that both my wife and I were fans of the show from the very beginning, until I realized that it’s been over 12 years since the first season first aired, and we have only been together coming up on 10 years.

Smallville_LanaClarkAs much as I was a fan of the show, she would become the die hard fan and through the years I’d forgotten that it was actually me who introduced her to the show for the first time, probably towards the end of the second season, maybe even into the third. Of course, her love of the show was mainly focused on one character: Lana Lang played by Kristen Kreuk. After Kristen left the show during the last couple seasons, we both kind of fell out of love with the show and still have yet to watch or own the final two seasons on DVD, though we did tune in for the series finale.

But I’m getting off track here, let’s bring it back to the very first season of the show where Clark Kent was still learning his powers. At this point he had only developed his X-Ray vision alongside his strength and speed, Lana Lang was still dating the football player Whitney, and Lex Luthor was still playing at being a good guy who’s just trying to help the kid that saved his life get the girl he really wants.

And while there is the start of one of the ongoing plotlines with the Kryptonite scientist Dr. Hamilton, this is very much an episodic story that revolves around Lana’s birthday and our meteor freak-of-the-week played by Amy Adams in fat makeup whose name I’ve already forgotten. She’s the “fat” girl, and I use quotation marks because when she weighs herself the first time the scale reads around 170 pounds, and while that is a little overweight, it’s a far cry from “fat”. Of course this could have been a good opportunity to be a social commentary on the fact that in high school (or beyond for that matter) a 170 pound girl is considered to be fat by our current social standards based upon the ultra skinny models, Hollywood actresses, and vapid reality stars.

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One of the worst parts of these early episodes really is the drop-in drop-out characters who are only in one episode, but during the run-time try to act as if they’ve been there all along. Here, Adams feels like she should have been hanging out with the main group of Clark, Chloe, and Pete for the whole season as close as they are for her week. There’s also the stoner looking teenager who in Star Trek terms would be considered the red shirt, who makes fun of Adams and calls Pete a “chubby chaser”. I suppose I should mention the whole freak concept. Adams has a greenhouse where she grows vegetables in soil laced up the wazoo with Kryptonite meteors, and when she makes a diet shake with them, it speeds up her metabolism just enough to make her instantly lose weight and become closer to her ideal weight. There’s always a price, and after a while her metabolism supposedly catches up to her and she has to gorge, which usually means making a mess out of all the food in the refrigerator, but when the craving hits her at night after she has just hit a deer, she becomes this comical looking “fat vampire” where her jaw drops an extra foot wide which we’re supposed to believe allows her to suck all the fat out of the deer, and later in the episode the red shirt kid.

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As far as Adams’ role in the episode, even though it’s a very cheesy concept, she pulls it off quite well. She’s great in both the scenes where she’s hanging out with the Clark gang as if she’s been there the whole time. She also handles the dramatic moments very well, whether she’s hiding the fact that she just went through a gorge-fest, she’s calling out the red shirt on his verbal bullying, or when she’s trying to save Pete from her own cravings which she can’t control. It’s a shame that she was only cast for the weekly freak as I think she would have fit in well as a recurring character and oddly enough it does make me look forward to seeing her as Lois Lane in Man of Steel in its own small way.

Smallville_Craving_Amy3The episode itself draws some minor parallels to eating disorders, but I didn’t feel like the connection was very strong. The B story with Lana’s birthday party falls into the same old typical routine where Clark gets his chance to be with Lana, as friends, and promises that he’ll be there for her but ends up a no show because he’s busy playing the hero to save Pete. And in the end, he makes up for it with a little help from Lex’s money.

It was fun taking a look back at this early episode of a show I watched for years, it definitely has its problems, but it was fun seeing Tom Welling play his awkward Clark Kent. The cast of the show and relationships between the characters were one of the reasons why I think the show lasted as long as it did, as well as one of the reasons why I didn’t stick with it when they lost a lot of the core cast. Michael Rosenbaum, Kristen Kreuk, Tom Welling, and even Allison Mack as Chloe just work so well together even as early as this first season and really helped remind me why I loved the show.

Thanks again to Ruth for giving me an excuse to go back and revisit the show and I know I can’t wait to see Man of Steel.

Thanks again to Bubbawheat for his awesome contribution.
Check out more comic-related musings and reviews over on his blog.

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Thoughts on Amy Adams and/or Smallville? Let’s hear it in the comments!

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Guest Post: TV Show Fails and Wins – Replacement actors who made or broke their shows

Hi everyone! Taking a bit of a break from movies, today we have a special TV-related guest post from Lindsay Mcmahon. Her interests are entertainment, television, parenting and health but she is constantly extending her field of view to incorporate interesting news suggested to her by her readers. Her favorite flick is ‘Fight Club’, a great classic combining action and philosophy. When it comes to TV, she’s an absolute Fantasy freak, having ‘Game of Thrones’ sitting at the top. She currently works for Direct2TV.com.

TV shows have the unique problem of cast retention. Unlike most industries, once a TV character is signed onto a show, they are almost required to remain for the entire run of the show. If they do not, or are unable to for some reason, then the TV network must scramble to replace that character. Sometimes, the replacement is able to keep the fans of the show, but in most cases, the show soon ends after the cast replacement.

KutcherThreeAndaHalfMenAshton Kutcher in Two and a Half Men

The most famous replacement in recent years is the replacement of Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men. Two and a Half Men is currently in its 10th season, after starting in 2003. The show followed two brothers, one rich and single, one divorced and with a kid. The series focused on the romantic pursuits of the brothers.

Over the years, Charlie Sheen fell deeper into drug addiction, which eventually led to his being fired from the show at the end of season 8. His replacement was Ashton Kutcher. The show has continued for two years after Charlie Sheen left, and has been able to hold its viewer ratings.

DIckSargentBewitchedDick Sargent in Bewitched

Bewitched is famous for its switch of Samantha’s husband halfway through the series. After the 5th season, Dick York quit the show to pursue other interests. The replacement was Dick Sargent.

Surprisingly enough, the show made no mention of the fact that the husband was now a completely different man. While this bothered many viewers, the show continued to run for an additional 3 years, giving the show a total run-time length of 8 years.

CharlieSheenSpinCityCharlie Sheen in Spin City

Charlie Sheen has had many different projects over the years, and one of them was a replacement for Michael J. Fox on Spin City. It was a show about the mayor’s office in New York, featuring the relationships of the various employees- and specifically Fox’s character.

When Fox started exhibiting severe signs of Parkinson’s disease, he had to leave the show. The series made it look like a regular job switch, and replaced Fox with Sheen. The show ran for a total of 6 years, 4 with Fox and 2 with Sheen. The ratings fell dramatically during the last two seasons.

KristieAlleyCheersKristie Alley in Cheers

Cheers featured a fun cast of several characters who own the bar or visit regularly. The show ran for a total of 11 seasons, and was one of the highest rated shows in the 1980s. During the first 5 seasons, Shelly Long played a waitress at the bar. She left after season 5 and was replaced by Kristie Alley. Alley’s forceful personality and charm gave the show new life, and it was able to continue for 6 additional seasons until 1992.

All of these shows had replacement actors with varying success. The shows that did the best were the ones that replaced characters in a logical way with an actor that had an extremely likable personality. The shows that did worst tried to ignore the difference or replaced the original actor with someone who was much less likable.

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Thoughts about TV’s cast retention dilemma? Are you a fan of any of the shows and/or actors?

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Musings on Downton Abbey – seven things that got me hooked on the show

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Well, two years after this show premiered on PBS in January 2011, and after the urging of several friends, I finally saw my first episode of Downton Abbey. Being an anglophile AND a fan of period dramas, this show has the ingredients of the kind of show I’d be into, and I’m glad to report that indeed Julian Fellowes’ popular period drama does not disappoint!

Here are just seven things that got me hooked:

Bear in mind I’ve only seen two episodes, so these are just my first impression of the show that made me want to keep on watching.

• The story

DowntonAbbeyEstateThe social class of 20th century England makes for a fascinating drama, especially the fact that much like Gosford Park, the story focus on both the haves and the have-nots, kind of like Upstairs Downstairs but in a much bigger house, as my colleague calls it. There are just so many layers in the stories across social classes. I love how the series weave in and out of the lives of both the masters and the servants, and how money and status clearly doesn’t buy happiness as both classes have their own set of problems! Despite the fact that the masters of the house are treated like Kings and Queens, I like the fact that this show is NOT about British monarchy. It is essentially about one wealthy family, both a family by blood and marriage and also the group of servants living together like one family, all living under one roof. The servants care about the house as much as their masters do, as Carson the unmarried butler tells a fellow staff, “They’re all the family I’ve got!”

Fellowes — who won an Oscar for writing Gosford Park — certainly know how to craft a juicy story of people from all backgrounds. From sibling rivalry to servant rivalry, people of all classes plotting for and against one another to get or keep what they want, it’s a feuding frenzy with manners!

• The cast

It’s always fun to see British shows as they often recycle their actors. I’m familiar with a few of the faces in Downton Abbey even if I don’t know their names. The two I am accustomed with are Hugh Bonneville and Maggie Smith (collaborating again with Fellows after Gosford Park), one of my three favorite British Dames. I’m thrilled to see the always-reliable Bonneville in a leading role and a serious one at that. I’ve only seen him in comedies (Notting Hill, Mansfield Park, The Vicars of Dibley, etc.) but he definitely has the chops as a dramatic actor. He has such a pleasant countenance and dignity as Robert Crawley or Lord Grantham, the head of the massive estate and patriarch of the Crawley family.

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Another actor I’m familiar with is Dan Stevens. I featured him in the Jane Austen rain scenes list, as I adore him as Edward Ferrars in the BBC miniseries of Sense & Sensibility. I much prefer him to Hugh Grant in that role. As the presumptive heir Matthew Crawley, he’s perhaps the most relatable to most audiences as he and his mother Isobel represent the middle class, not used to living in a big castle with so many servants. It’s always amusing to see how Violet sneered at Matthew working as a lawyer and Isobel serving in the hospital because of her nursing background. Even the servants give disparaging remarks, murmuring that ‘real gentlemen don’t have an occupation.’

• The characters

Characters are the spice of any film or show. They’re the ones that stick with you long after you’re done watching ‘em, and this show is chock full of great, memorable ones! I’m going to hold off listing my favorites until I see at least the first season, but the Crawley family, both Robert & Cora Crawley, the American heiress, plus Robert’s mother, Violet a.k.a Dowager Countess of Grantham are all very fascinating. The tentative relationship between Violet and Cora is fun to watch, and not only because the nature of the a wife and her mother in law is ripe of conflicts, but their different cultural background also makes it even more intriguing.

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And amongst the servants, I’m very intrigued by John Bates, the limping valet and the conniving footman Thomas who wants his job. There is something sinister simmering beneath the surface of both men, though Bates seemed like the ‘victim’ initially. Brendan Coyle is brilliant as Bates, as he was in North & South with Richard Armitage. I’m also intrigued by Lady Mary’s turbulent love life, which surely will get even more juicy as the series progresses.

• The dialog

Dame Maggie Smith seems to have the most great one-liners, and some of my friends who’ve seen the entire 3 seasons said the same thing. She’s quite the scene-stealer in this show, she’s a highlight in every episode.  There’s something about her shrewd delivery that made those lines sound even better!

Cora, Countess of Grantham: Are we to be friends then?
Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham: We are allies, which can be a good deal more effective.

When she complained about the bright chandelier is such a hoot, normally I’d be annoyed by a wealthy woman complaining about the most trivial things in life, but the way Maggie Smith delivered it is just amusing.

Violet: Oh, dear, such a glare. I feel as if I were on stage at the Gaiety.

Can’t wait to hear more memorable lines as I catch up with more episodes!

• The historical lesson

A mix of historical events with fictional stories are always fascinating to me. The series started with the shocking news of the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 12, 1912.

On board of the Titanic was the heir-presumptive of the Grantham estate, whom Lady Mary Crawley was betrothed to, so naturally that caused a major problem as the Crawleys have no son. Oh man, I’m glad I wasn’t born in those days. Not only that we couldn’t inherit anything, we couldn’t even earn our fortune either! In any case, Downton Abbey is essentially one big soap opera comprised of convoluted family drama, unbridled ambition and all kinds of scandals, but the historical setting and events make it feel more ‘grounded’ and not as superficial as it otherwise would.

I think season 2 would be set around World War I, which will bring a set of new issues for the Crawleys. Learning about class division and the prevalent cultures of the times couldn’t have been any more enjoyable!

• The costumes and set pieces

As a big fan of costume dramas, I expect to see gorgeous clothes and fashion of the times. Unlike in the Jane Austen era where the women’s figure is hidden under ginormous empire dresses, the clothes in post-Edwardian show more of a woman’s figure in their gorgeous gowns. Costume designer Susannah Buxton has won Emmy and Bafta awards for her astounding work.

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There are sooo much eye candy in this series, and the costumes is definitely one of them. It’s such a treat for fashion lovers! The set design and architecture are fantastic as well, everything in and out of the estate is meticulously crafted down to its last detail which is just astounding. Just from the first episode alone, I’m in love with Lady Mary’s elaborate black choker below, soooo beautiful and such a perfect complement to her black lace dress.

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Not only are the costumes beautiful to look at, but the production team of the show seem to have done their research to ensure historical accuracy. What each servant, footman, valet wore at the time are as crucial as what the masters put on as they reflect the measure of status. Reading the PBS site of the show, apparently the footmen were hired for their good looks and height, with the taller footmen earning a higher salary.

• The music

Since I haven’t made my Music Break post this week, I’m including John Lunn’s terrific score for the show. Lunn won an Emmy for Original Dramatic Score, and it’s become one of my favorites!

In an interview with THR, Lunn shared that he didn’t want to simply use library samples chosen by programmers, he insisted on using real musicians. He’s also mindful about the strength of the show, which is the dialog: “We use a 35-piece string orchestra, a solo piano and the odd solo instrument like a French horn and that’s about it. One of the reasons for a string orchestra is that it sits well under dialogue. You can have quite a lot of underscore without swamping the dialogue.”

Great music adds so much to the tone and mood of any production. All that drama, passion, intrigue of the show is reflected in the soundtrack. It really takes me back to the era and has that lush, beautiful melody that soothes the soul.

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Well, do you watch Downton Abbey? What’s YOUR favorite parts about it? No spoilers please, thank you!

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Tube Watch: TV Bad Boys You Can’t Get Enough Of

RobinHoodlogoHappy Tuesday all! I’m not gonna have a Weekend Roundup this week as I’ll do a Monthly recap in a few days. Truthfully, I’m already tired of talking about the Oscars so let’s switch gears and talk TV for today if you don’t mind.

The past weekend I’ve been catching up on BBC’s Robin Hood. I actually have seen a bunch of clips of the show on YouTube, but I figure it’s time to watch it properly. I’ve got to admit I’m much more interested in watching the villain of the series than the heroic English outlaw… most especially the vicious but tormented Guy of Gisborne… played to perfection by Richard Armitage.

Dark. Dangerous. Intoxicating. What is it with certain villains we just can’t get enough of? I talked about Charming Movie Bad Boys a while back, and the TV counterparts share similar irresistible qualities. Ok, so the fact that Guy is dressed in all black leather, broods and glowers like nobody’s business and speak in such a deep, raspy voice are all very fetching stuff… but I have to give props to the show’s creators for writing Guy in such a delish way, a complex character instead of a typical one-dimensional baddie. Best of all, they’ve got the perfect actor to effortlessly stir every hot-blooded woman in the audience.

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As the Sheriff of Nottingham’s second-in-command, Gisborne certainly has done more than his fair share of heinous stuff on the sheriff’s behalf. Murder, lies, torture, robbery, you name it, he’s done them all in the name of power. He’s a loathsome creature but yet, I can’t stop watching and I can’t bring myself to hate him either. Not to mention all that unrequited love stuff between Guy and Marian, the girl he loves who of course is in love with Robin. Power-driven and love-starved, Guy is forever torn by his own emotions and you can’t help but feel for this guy. It’s all very beguiling… I wish this show’s still going on!

GuyMarianBBCRobinHoodI guess I have a taste for damaged characters who think they’re beyond redemption, those tortured souls whose own self-loathing and internal conflicts somehow draw me in instead of pulling me away. With villains like these, who cares about the hero? Characters like Guy is the very reason I kept tuning in and I wish they had focused more on him on the show. I find Jonas Armstrong as Robin Hood so terribly boring by comparison.

Watching him made me think of other great TV bad boys from previous shows I’ve watched. Most recently there’s Frank Underwood in House of Cards, but there have been countless others in the past. Sexy con-man Sawyer from Lost, vile lothario Dr. Christian Troy of Nip/Tux, Lex Luthor in Smallville, Gregory House the acerbic doctor, the narcissistic genius Gaius Baltar of Battlestar Galactica, misogynist jerk-off Richard Fish of Ally McBeal… the list goes on! And though I hardly ever watch the show, surely Made Men‘s Don Draper is one of the most irresistible TV bad boys ever written. Popular shows like Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and Boardwalk Empire actually consist pretty much entirely of bad boys.

So now I’m asking you, readers. Who are YOUR favorite TV bad boys [or girls for that matter]? 

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[Wintry] Weekend Roundup: House of Cards and All About Eve

BaftaStatuetteHello everyone! Happy post-BAFTA Monday, fellow film fans. I’ve only followed it somewhat via Twitter, seeing people’s reactions on the winners. What’s with the hate against ARGO, I think it deserved the Best Film and Best Director win for Ben Affleck. In fact, it’s perhaps one of my favorite Best Picture contenders, but I remember people were grumbling too when The King’s Speech won. Ah well, I don’t always agree with the winners so it’s nice to be on the other side of that spectrum.

Well, we’ve got sleet/freezing rain/snow mix all day Sunday so I never left the house, which rarely happens. To all my friends in the Northeast affected by the monster storm Nemo, I pray that you’re all ok. I’m not gonna complain that we barely half a foot of snow!

I skipped the cinema again as nothing interest me. I had seen Side Effects a couple of weeks ago so check out my review if you haven’t already. Oh apparently Top Gun IMAX 3D re-release still spells ‘ka-ching’ for Paramount as it raked in $1.9 mil this weekend playing in 300 theaters. I wouldn’t mind rewatching that again on Blu-ray, I’ll see if my pal Ted has the BD ;)

So my weekend viewings consist of a brand new made-for-Netflix show House of Cards, a masterpiece classic All About Eve, and Bel Ami, which was so inferior compared to the other two. I don’t even feel like reviewing that last one. Right after I finished it, I couldn’t help but watch the last episode of North & South just to see this scene. Richard Armitage as John Thornton never fails to beguile me and erase my memory of Robert Pattinson as a cunning Frenchman.
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House of Cards (2013)

I’ve only seen two episodes in and both are directed by David Fincher so naturally I expect something great. Well, thankfully it didn’t disappoint. Fincher’s directing style with his signature camera work and framing technique works well for this story. It made me wish he had directed the entire episodes though I reserve judgment until I see the entire first season. Kevin Spacey is perfectly cast Frank Underwood, a ruthless and ambitious politician (is there any other kind?) willing to use and betray anyone to get what he wants in Washington. I’m usually not into political shows, but this one is quite entertaining. Spacey’s got this inherent playfulness in portraying a despicable character, you’re repulsed and captivated by him at the same time.

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I just read this interview on Hitfix with Fincher on how the show came about, which was inspired by an early 90s UK TV series of the same name. It’s fascinating to see the casting process as well…

“…One of the responsibilities I put on the cast when we had our first read through is I said, “I want everybody here to know that you represent our first choice – each actor here represents our first choice for these characters. So do not f*** this up.”

The ‘breaking the fourth wall’ style where the character speaks directly at the audience is tricky, but I think it works well here, or at least the filmmaker and actor makes it work. Only Spacey’s character uses this technique though, it gives the feeling that we’re in on it on all of Frank’s schemes. I’m also impressed with the rest of the key players on the show: Robin Wright as Spacey’s equally sly wife, Kate Mara as the ambitious young reporter, and Corey Stoll as a Pennsylvania congressman consumed by his own demons of sex and drug addiction.
I hope the rest of the episodes are as intriguing as the first two, but my hubby and I are definitely hooked for more.
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All About Eve (1950)

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I’m sooo glad I finally saw this film, special thanks to my friend Vince for his help to get this movie! I initially wanted to see this as I’m participating in Paula and Aurora‘s 31 Days of Oscar Blogathon and I’m going to be featuring the famed costume designer Edith Head. So naturally I want to see some of her Oscar-winning work, and I’ve been wanting to see this one for ages. I also promised Andrew when he made this excellent Scene on a Sunday post on All About Eve over a year ago. It’s a bit late, sorry Andrew, but hey I did get to see it on a Sunday :)

This film was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won six, including Best Picture. As of today, it remains as the only film in Oscar history to receive four female acting nominations (Bette Davis and Ann Baxter as Best Actress, Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter as Best Supporting Actress). It’s worth noting that out of the four actresses, I’ve only seen Baxter and Holmes in a previous film, thanks to my Gregory Peck marathon. Same with the two male actors Gary Merill and Hugh Marlowe who were excellent in Twelve O’Clock High. George Sanders was excellent as well as the mischievous theater critic.

Andrew said it best on Twitter last night… “… imagine it’s more than half a century old. It’s so (sometimes startlingly) relevant and fresh.” Indeed it was! In fact I was thinking that there are some similarities between House of Cards‘ Frank and Eve Harrington, different end goal but they both used the same conniving, manipulative means to get what they want.

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Andrew also asked me which one is my favorite performance. Oh boy, between Davis, Baxter and Holmes, it’s really hard to say. Having seen Bette Davis’ performance for the first time, I was quite mesmerized by her. Baxter perhaps has the hardest role to convincingly portray an innocent small town ingenue to a devious, scheming b*tch climbing her way to the top. At times her delivery is a bit too over the top When she was wearing a black wig in her dressing room following a performance, I was reminded of her seductive pur in The Ten Commandments as she was trying to seduce Moses, ahah. I guess I like Holmes’ character the most because she’s kindhearted and sees the good in people. She’s a fantastic actress and her scene with Baxter in the powder room is especially memorable. Oh, there was also a brief but interesting cameo of a then unknown starlet by the name of Marilyn Monroe as an aspiring actres, but it was kind of a thankless role for her.

There are much to admire about this film… starting with the bewitching story, brought to life by all the talents involved. What this film also has in abundance is style. Visually, its set direction, cinematography, and of course costume design are superb. The brilliant script also makes this film surprisingly funny. Davis’ Margo Channing not only dresses well, but she seems to have an endless supply of great lines as well. She seems to have the best lines when she’s vexed… “I’ll admit I may have seen better days, but I’m still not to be had for the price of a cocktail like a salted peanut.” And of course her most famous line “Fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy night” is delivered with such a perfect sense of irony.

I feel like I can’t do it justice reviewing this film in my weekend roundup post, so let me just say that the iconic status is absolutely well-deserved. Joseph Leo Mankiewicz‘s film lives up to my already high expectations and captivated me from start to finish. Like Casablanca, I’m glad I finally saw one of Hollywood’s finest, and certainly it wouldn’t be the last.

5 out of 5 reels

Well, that’s my Wintry weekend roundup. How ’bout you folks… seen anything good?

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Tube Watch: Musings on CW’s ARROW’s Pilot

It’s been almost a year since I actually have a TV show to watch on a weekly basis, those I was initially anticipating either got canceled or I simply didn’t have time to watch :( Now, I’ve blogged about ARROW a few times before and I posted the trailer here. I’m even more excited to see the positive reviews, and now that it’s here, I’m happy to report that it was pretty good.

For those of you who aren’t into comic book stuff, Arrow is basically the DC comics’ The Green Arrow. The show revolves around young billionaire playboy Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) who was stranded on a deserted island for five years and returns to his hometown Starling City a changed man. There’s not a lot of exposition on his life on the island, in fact, it only showed Oliver, looking very much like Robinson Crusoe being rescued by local fishermen sailing in the South China Sea.

Oliver quickly assumes a vigilante identity, a la Bruce Wayne as Batman, becoming the city’s ‘savior’ as a way to atone for his selfish behaviors of his former life. In fact, someone on Twitter suggested Bruce Wayne making an appearance on the show, as you can see in my tweet, that’d be a geeky girl’s dream!!

According to comicbookmovie site, Torchwood‘s alum John Barrowman’s been hired to guest star, but his role is top secret. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’ll be a DC-crossover thing happening. Fingers crossed!

Now, as a superhero fan, you know why this type of stories appeal to me. But yet there hasn’t been any TV show that keeps my interest because of bad writing/awful acting, etc. [cough Smallville cough] but this one certainly has a lot going for it in the pilot that hopefully would keep me tuning in!

The Good

I definitely like the darker tone of the show. I must say there are a LOT of resemblance to the first hour of Batman Begins as far as Oliver’s journey is concerned, but to be fair, their identities are very similar to begin with,except that Oliver’s mother is still alive [more on that later].  Some reviewers have said this isn’t like in the comic books, but since I didn’t read the comics, I don’t mind the fact that the show’s creator took a lot of liberties, even shortening the name to make it less comic-book-ish. I’m also glad this character has NOTHING to do with the Green Arrow character in Smallville, though they use the same mansion of the Luther estate for the Queen manor.

Canadian Stephen Amell is a perfectly-cast as Oliver: he’s got the tall, dark and handsome thing going on, all good recipes for a superhero, but he’s also got that mysterious quality about him that works for the role. He hasn’t exactly displayed much range, I think he’s charismatic enough as the protagonist. His transformation from up-to-no-good playboy to a brooding, fierce bow-wielding hero who’s not afraid to kill when necessary. The action stuff is done pretty well and Amell’s um, athleticism is in full display. CW certainly makes the most of his washboard abs during Oliver’s training in his dad’s former factory, but who am I to complain? ;) The archery stuff seems pretty authentic to me, Amell had said in interviews that his trainer was adamant in getting the form right. He said the coach started the training by showing him a 45-minute video of all the ways archery has been done badly in film and TV.

Overall I think the quality is an improvement over Smallville, I say that because at least I did not cringe every two seconds like I did on that show, and this coming from a huge Superman fan! The gritty look and well-shot action set pieces are quite fun to watch.

Oh, it’s interesting to see Colin Salmon here though, as a Bond fan I noticed him as one of MI-6 agent in two of Pierce Brosnan’s Bond movies, in fact if he were younger, I’d love to see him play a black James Bond! I hope the producers will give him something worthy to do here, I certainly would love to see more of him on this show!

The not-so-good

Ok this is only the second show on CW I watch, but it has the same weaknesses in that some of the lines are cheesy and the acting is questionable. I’m talking about the supporting cast, especially the guy playing his best friend Colin Donnell, his character is just annoying and it doesn’t help that Donnell is not an experienced actor. I hope they keep his screen time at a minimum. Katie Cassidy fares a bit better as the love interest, but I’m not exactly impressed by her yet.

I talked about that there’s a lot going on in the pilot, now you could say it’s a bit overstuffed. Yes, the mysterious plot definitely opens up to a lot of interesting possibilities, but seems like it could be one twist too many. Even in just one episodes, there are a bazillion thing our protagonist has to deal with… the mysterious death of father, shady mom who marries an even shadier business partner of his late dad, not to mention the love triangle between two sisters, one of which died on the boat that capsized. As if that weren’t enough, the city’s top detective Quentin Lance happens to be the father of the two sisters, so you could imagine he’s not exactly fond of Oliver.

With all the characters not being who they seemed, it feels like a big action-packed soap opera, so I think the producers have to be careful not to overdo it. There seems to be a lot of conspiracies within the Queen family itself, what with the revelation at the end involving his mother. I can’t help but roll my eyes, I mean, another twist?? [face palm]

Is it worth watching?

It remains to be seen but for sure it’s got potential. Of course there are a ton of unanswered questions that I’m hoping will get at least partly answered in future episodes. I mean, how in the heck that nobody ever sailed near that island in the entire 5 years, is it possible that Oliver just didn’t want to be rescued just yet? If so, why?? Then, how did he even train himself archery to the degree of being a professional assassin? What’s up with his dad’s drastic decision on the lifeboat?? That’s just the tip of the iceberg, but so far I’m pretty hooked to find out more!

I think the USA Today review says it best:

“By almost all measures, Arrow is one of the season’s more promising pilots. And yet, fairly or not, it must hurdle a substantial problem most other pilots don’t face, and it can be summed up in two letters: CW. Whether from budgetary restraints or management problems, there’s no company out there, broadcast or cable, with a worse record for turning promising pilots into terrible series.”

Let’s hope CW breaks that pattern. One thing for sure, the show is a hit. Apparently it scores the network’s highest ratings in 3 years so it might be around for a while. I do like what I’ve seen so far, but it really has to be worthwhile over time for me to keep tuning in, Amell’s abs-tastic notwithstanding.

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Anybody else seen this show? Well, what did you think?

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Tube Watch: First Trailer of CW’s ARROW looks quite promising

What is it with archery-skilled heroes that I find intriguing? Legolas, Robin Hood, Katniss Everdeen, and soon Princess Merida in Pixar’s BRAVE … somehow the art of shooting with a bow and arrow just looks so darn cool on screen.

Now, this Fall, the CW network is bringing the show ARROW based on the Comics Green Arrow. It’s odd that they only used the one word title but never mind that, the trailer actually looks pretty good, and I’m not even the targeted CW demographic. The production quality is quite impressive as well. According to HitFix, judging by their 2012-13 upfront presentation to advertisers, this looks like the new show the network is most excited about.

Check out the trailer below:


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Now, I think that scene of him shooting at all the tennis balls to the wall is pretty darn cool, and I like that the vibe of the origins story seems to be inspired by Batman Begins. It also looks a heck of a lot darker and more hard-edged than the ever-so-corny Smallville and Vampire Diaries, thank goodness!

You can read the full synopsis on the show’s main site, but basically, the protagonist Oliver Queen is a billionaire playboy who makes Starling City his home. Just like Bruce Wayne, he lives a dual identity… a hooded vigilante by night and a wealthy, carefree and careless philanderer by day. But he’s a rich, handsome playboy with a purpose of course, and his goal is to right the wrongs of his family, fight the ills of society, and restore Starling City to its former glory.

Canadian Stephen Amell seems well-cast judging from this clip, obviously the extent of his acting skills remains to be seen, but he seems to have the physique that would make even Patrick Bateman jealous ;) He resembles Christian Bale a bit too, which is never a bad thing in my book. He definitely has that dark, brooding look about him, a huge improvement over Justin Hartley as Green Arrow Smallville, glad they didn’t use him here.

Well, I definitely will give the pilot a chance and we’ll see how long it’ll hold my interest. It’s scheduled to air Wednesdays @ 7 PM Central Time before Supernatural.

What do you think of the trailer folks? Does it pique your interest?

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Tube Watch: Bitten by the BBC bug – Sherlock & Spooks

Happy Friday all! 

I’m afraid it’s going to be a short post today as I’m getting ready to post this month’s Five for the Fifth for tomorrow.

I’ve clearly been bitten by the BBC TV bug as I’m so addicted to both these shows! Those who’ve seen at least one episode of either one of these would surely understand. I’m sooo anticipating the arrival of season 2 of Sherlock coming to PBS Mystery this Sunday, yay! Check out the trailer below, as the super detective says… ”I wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

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As for Spooks (or MI-5 as it’s called in the US), I’ve mentioned last Tuesday that I’m only going to catch up with Season 7 – 10, or you could say, since Richard Armitage joined the cast, natch! I’ve always loved a good espionage thriller and Spooks definitely delivered. Just like Sherlock, it’s impeccably-written, superbly acted and beautifully-shot. I love that it portrayed London in such a fascinating way, and not just the glamorous side of the city. This is the trailer that got me to finally watch this show, now of course it’d be nice if Rupert Penry-Jones had been around longer to work with Richard, but maybe that’ll be eye-candy overload, ahah.


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There are a quite a few connections between the two shows, well other than airing on the same network. Benedict Cumberbatch apparently had an uncredited cameo in an earlier episode of Spooks back in 2003 (when Matthew Macfadyen was still the lead actor).

As if I need an excuse to post a photo of Richard in all that leather… [yowza!]

And recently, the actress playing Sherlock‘s love interest Irene Adler, Lara Pulver, was actually Richard Armitage’s co-star in BBC’s Robin Hood as Guy of Gisbourne’s sister Isabella. She also has a role in the last season of Spooks as the new Chief of Section D. Wow, she’s one busy girl… and very, very lucky! From what I’ve seen in her clips with Sherlock, she’s certainly poised to juice up the already stimulating show ;)

I think it’s awesome that the main cast of BOTH shows, Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman and Richard Armitage are ALL going to be in The Hobbit! Man, I’d give anything to work for FREE for just a day on that set!

Anyway, I guess the good thing of being so far behind on TV watching is that I have a wealth of episodes to catch up on. These two shows definitely satisfy my penchant for easy-on-the-eyes British guys and the oh-so-witty writing! :D

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Are you a fan of either of these? And tell me, what show(s) are you completely hooked on lately?

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Tube Watch: Thoughts on JJ Abrams’ ALCATRAZ

All right, after months without a show to get excited about, finally Alcatraz arrives. I blogged about this back in September. Basically it’s a procedural mystery thriller with elements of time travel thrown in… the trailer promises all kinds of twists and turns only JJ Abrams & co. could muster, what with Alcatraz prisoners disappearing from 50 years ago and suddenly showing up on present day and bent on a shooting rampage.

So, is it worth watching?

Well, the short answer is YES. The 2-hour season premiere did its job  trick as based on what I’ve seen so far, I’m hooked. Now, I didn’t watch LOST so I consider that a good thing as I won’t have ‘LOST fatigue’ like some TV reviewers mentioned, and I also won’t be keeping tabs on how the two shows are similar, well apart from the fact that both shows involve an island and a boat load of unexplained scenarios.

What I like about the show:

The Premise

One benefit from not watching hardly any TV is that I’m not burned out by procedural shows. Yes I’m aware there are a plethora of it out there, and that this one involves a police detective trying to figure out the strange killings happening in the city, but the mystery/time travel elements sets it apart from the pack. The contrast setting between the ghostly, eerie atmosphere of retro Alcatraz island and the panoramic Bay City also adds visual interest.

This pilot tells us that each episode will focus on one prisoner (perhaps also the guard?) and how his story will help shed some light to the overall mystery. Just what in the world happened to that night in 1963 and why are they back in the present day? For what purpose?? The two prisoners so far seem to have totally different ‘missions’ if you will, that don’t seem to have any connection with each other. At least that’s how it appears right now.
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The Players

The most intriguing character so far is Sam Neill’s Emerson Hauser, the lead investigator of this whole Alcatraz enigma. He’s been there from the start as he was a young guard back in 1963 when 300 + prisoners and guards vanished from the island. It’s obvious that he knows more than he’s letting on, and so does his sympathetic scientist partner Lucy Banerjee (Parminder Nagra). Meanwhile, Detective Rebecca Madsen (Sarah Jones) gets unwittingly dragged into Hauser’s team whilst investigating the murder of Alcatraz’s former Deputy Warden E.B. Tiller. With the help of some Google search (isn’t it nice to be living in the 21st Century?), she finds Dr. Diego Soto (Jorge Garcia), a comic book writer/Alcatraz expert who ends up becoming her partner on the case.

So far Garcia gets the best lines like “You’ve built the bat cave under Alcatraz. Why would you do that?” or “Anyone else’s head exploding right now?”, which is a nice balance to Jones’ serious demeanor. I’ve never seen Jorge before but he’s perhaps the most well-known TV actor here because of his role in LOST. I like him right away and he’s funny without being overly quirky (I’m looking at you Masi Oka).

Neill, Jones & Garcia on Alcatraz

It’s quite an eclectic mix of people and you could say the same about the cast. I quite like Neill in this role, a bit prickly but highly mysterious… oh and bad ass, too. At the end of the second episode he doesn’t hesitate to shoot the prisoner’s hand to keep him from shooting people at random. I can see how Neill can have tons of fun with this character if the writers did their job well.

Sarah Jones reminds me a bit of a Battlestar Galactica‘s Katte Sackhoff (Starbuck), but a softer, less tomboy-ish version. She seems believable in the role but lacking a bit in the charisma department (especially against a veteran like Neill). But hey it’s early yet, I’d give her some time.
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The Time-Travel Elements

Time travel movies are inherently intriguing and there are so many possibilities to explore! If there’s anyone who can freshen up a tried and true formula, that’d be Abrams. As proven with the Star Trek movie, good writing can somehow make something you’ve seen before feels new again. Now I’m not saying he’s got the formula down pat yet, it’s still too early to tell, but so far he’s done a good job in making us want to know more what happens next.

The alternating timelines between the 60s and present day keeps it interesting as well as gives us an insight into what each of the disappearing prisoner’s all about. I especially like the Jack Sylvane (Jeffrey Pierce) storyline, ok so Pierce is eye-candy material too, always a nice bonus ;) I think the fact that he was imprisoned for something trivial (stealing at a grocery store) but ended up being jailed on The Rock is just as bizarre as him suddenly waking up in 2012.

I do have an issue with how the disappearing prisoners who suddenly pop up in present time don’t have that much trouble adjusting to 2012. When Jack stepped out of the prison after being awaken by a visiting tourist girl, he seemed disoriented for a while but recovered quickly and went on with his mission. I think it’d be more interesting if the writers explore the discombobulated ‘fish out water’ period a bit more, which is always the most interesting factor about time travel stories.

The Verdict

Well, now that they got me hooked, we’ll see how long it can keep me interested. I have a short attention span with shows, the last TV series I watched was Hawaii Five-0 but Alex O’Loughlin’s hunkyness aside, I got bored with it pretty fast as there is really nothing to look forward to week after week. With this one, there is almost a sense of urgency to find out just what the heck is going on, and with every episode, we (hopefully) get just a little bit closer to the heart of the mystery.

For example, as the first hour ended, we found out that Madsen’s grandfather was actually a prisoner, not a guard as she was led to believe. So there is a personal connection there that makes it all the more intriguing. The premiere ends with a WHOA moment involving Lucy’s character. I definitely didn’t see that coming! Does Hauser know all along that Lucy is the same person as Dr. Lucille Sengupta? Was that why the sniper prisoner targeted Lucy? Well, Abrams’ done the job well as I REALLY want to know the answer to those questions.

I just hope that there are sufficient pay-offs to the build-ups. I think the trouble with these types of shows is that the writers have too much fun thinking of all the twists and conflicts but in the end don’t know how to solve them. I sure hope that won’t be the case here.

So did anybody else watch this pilot? Well, what did you think?

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Tube Watch: 3 new shows I look forward to this Fall

Happy Sunday everyone! The Emmy just wrapped tonight and though I didn’t watch it, it makes me think of some shows that are going to be premiering this Fall. I don’t usually have time to watch more than one TV series a week, but these three shows are intriguing enough I might have to blog less so I can watch these shows. This is in addition to Hawaii Five-O which is my guilty pleasure that’s returning Monday nights on CBS.

As some of these shows are premiering the same week as TCFF, I’d have to catch them the following week. But in any case, I’m quite excited for these:

Person of Interest (CBS, Thursdays 9/8c)

The first time I saw the trailer for this, I have to admit that Jim Caviezel’s casting caught my eye. I think he’s an underrated actor and has admitted that playing Jesus in The Passion of the Christ made Hollywood reluctant to hire him. It’s a pity because he’s a talented and versatile actor and he definitely looks bad ass in this one.

This is one of the 10 newcomers worth sampling posted by AP via Yahoo last month, below is the description from that post:

An obscure software genius and an ex-CIA agent believed to be dead: This is the duo who dedicate themselves to preventing bad things from happening — even without knowing what the bad thing will be. This is an edgy thriller that links the video surveillance that blankets modern life with a computer program that identifies each “person of interest” — someone who, whether as a victim or a perpetrator, is about to be involved in a violent crime. Michael Emerson (Lost) is the obscure man with the software, and he recruits Caviezel, playing an off-the-grid ex-spy, to do his legwork.

Another reason this piqued my interest is the Minority Report-inspired storyline and talents behind it: J.J. Abrams (Lost) and Jonathan Nolan (yep, Chris’ brother who’ve collaborated with him on the screenplay of Memento, The Prestige and The Dark Knight). This is Nolan’s first TV project and he’s apparently been long interested in the idea of information-age overload, which enabled in part by the 9/11 terrorist attacks, that led law-enforcement agencies to take surveillance to a new level. Quoted in USA Today, Nolan says, “The show is about two guys interacting with an all-seeing machine that can’t communicate with them beyond a string of nine numbers… We have all this information, but getting the relevant pieces out of it is tough.”

I hope the folks at CBS give this show some time to develop before they cancel this prematurely.


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Alcatraz (FOX, Mondays 9/8c)

[This one actually doesn't air until Fall mid-season in 2012]

This is another one of J.J. Abrams’ TV projects that has a Lost connection as Jorge Garcia is one of the leads. The plot from EW.com:

Alcatraz follows a San Francisco police detective (Sarah Jones) who teams with an expert on the prison (Garcia) after a murder suspect turns out to be a Alcatraz prisoner who disappeared from the island about 50 years ago. It seems the killer wasn’t the only prisoner to vanish — or the only one to return. And now they must stop the Alcatraz escapees as they re-enter modern society without having aged — and try to solve the mystery of how this is happening, and why.

The trailer looks pretty gripping and I rather like Sam Neill. The networks seem to loooove procedural shows and this one has some of that, but with more puzzles and mysterious twists along with dynamic action stuff. A certain amount of mystery can’t hurt, but hopefully it won’t have too many twists though. I mean the reason I wasn’t too interested in Lost is that it seemed like all the enigmatic buildup gets to be too much that too many questions remained unanswered in the end. This TV.com article said ‘there oughta be a TV genre called “J.J. Abram-edies”‘ as this one has that similar formula.

Anyway, the 60s flashback stuff will be interesting to watch as well as seeing the world’s famous prison cell used as the real filming location. Oh, I hope the guy who plays Jack Sylvane (Jeffrey Pierce) is going to appear in more shows besides the pilot. He’s pretty easy on the eye :)


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PAN AM (ABC, Sundays 10/9c)

The shows above are rather dark, mystifying stuff. So I think this one about the glory days of air travel would be a fun one to end the week. I wasn’t expecting to see Christina Ricci in this but I think she’d add an edgy flair to the show amongst the cookie cutter drop-dead-gorgeous girls on TV.

Set in the ’60s, the drama centers on the loves and lives of stewardesses (led by Christina Ricci) of the iconic titular airline. Although lauded as symbols of sleek, Jet Age glamour, their personal lives are full of turbulence.

This series had a pretty big presence at Comic-con last Summer, at the time I had no idea why there was a faux Pan Am plane in the exhibition hall, that’s when I found out about the series. It reminds me of Catch Me If You Can, the era when working for an airline is such a coveted and cool career and air travel is certainly a heck of a lot more enjoyable :( I like the fact that women are the stars of the show here, and the trailer looks pretty amusing. “Are you wearing your girdle?” Oh boy, in that sense, I’m glad we’ve come quite a long way since then.


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Anybody else interested in any of these shows? Please also share which series (new or returning) you’re looking forward to this Fall.