Boob Tube Bondsman

ITAS: The Depth of Depp

2007-11-28T15:39:37Z

This Review appears on the Geeks of Doom website. Over the years, Johnny Depp and I have enjoyed a healthy, long term, committed relationship. And by 'healthy', 'long term' and 'committed', I of course mean 'unhealthy', 'obsessive' and 'stalkee-stalker' respectively. My admiration for the man goes beyond the realms of sanity. Currently, his movies occupy the 4th, 9th, 13th, and 25th positions on my Top 50 List. His creative processes, personal philosophies, and overall outlook have all been a source of inspiration to me personally. It is fitting, then, that my first review published by someone other than myself is James Lipton's quest to lead us all into the psyche of the Teen-Idol, turned Hollywood Rebel, turned Acting Legend that is Johnny Depp.

DVD Review: Inside the Actor's Studio - Johnny Depp

The world of video interviewing consists of several styles. There is the Pop Culture Talk Show Interview that consists mainly of humorous antectdotes, rambling banter, and the plug of a new movie, show, book, or plea of insanity. There is the Larry King School of Comfort interview where the interviewer's job is to relax the interviewee into a casual conversation and get answers to the questions that intrigue the audience. Finally, there is the James Lipton School of Exhaustiveness where every possible question is meticulously researched, written on blue index cards, and delivered to the subject in biographical and chronological order. The advantage of Lipton's style is the assurance that every topic revolving around the interviewee is approached. The disadvantage is that it makes for very boring television. As a result, the original filming of each episode poses a nightmare to editor Jeff Wurtz. In some instances, as with the instance of Johnny Depp, there is a profusion of knowledge to be had (fitting for the student audience that sits in on the show), and no way to fit all of it into the allotted forty-five minutes. The result is a patchwork of information where answers and questions don't seem to add up and elaborations on answers are lost. The insights that fell to the editing floor in this particular epsiode are likely as intriguing as anything in the Martin Lawrence or Matt Damon iterations (the former being little more than a class clown, and the latter being a poster boy for Hollywood smugness). However, that lone weakness in this DVD speaks volumes to its strengths. James Lipton interviewing Johnny Depp is intrigue incarnate. It is for those that find passion in the passions of others; it is food for the creative spirit; it feeds that unquenchable desire for knowledge, insight, and inspiration; it is fodder for writing long run-on sentences riddled with semicolons. As always, we begin at the beginning... The DVD opens with an introduction from Lipton that was not a part of the original broadcast. He divulges on the experience - the mob scene outside of the studio, the standing-room-only audience inside the studio, and the ovations Depp recieved during the interview. The original broadcast airs with Johnny Depp entering stage left, and sparking up a rolley (Bali Shag, for those interested). From there, Depp is immediately stretched out on a table, sliced from scrag to scrotum, and explored from inside-out by Lipton himself. Depp's roots and Native American Ancestry are touched upon before delving into his career, and the admirable decision to move away from mainstream, leading man roles. His reasoning is admirable, if not financially misinformed. Tom Cruise should be sending a gift basket to Depp every Christmas for avoiding his corporate machine. If he hadn't, film audiences might be remembering Depp for A Few Good Men, Jerry Maguire, and Mission Impossible. What is your favorite curse word? The most intriguing conversation between Lipton and Depp is not in the number of tatoos (9), his favorite curse word (sh!t), or his desired response from God ("Wow!"), but how Depp prepares for a role. This is where Lipton reaches into his dissected subject, pulls out a large, heaving mass and violently delcares to the audience, "This is what genius looks like!" Despite having only taken a few acting classes, Depp has an almost metaphysical grasp (he likens acting study to seeking religion) of what it takes to portray a character. When developing characters, Depp feeds off of imagery that he associates with the source material. For Edward Scissor Hands, he envisioned a new born baby, and his unconditionally loyal dog. For Ed Wood, he used Ronald Regan, The Tin Man, and Casey Kasem. When he portrayed Hunter S. Thompson in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, he spent two months in Thompson's basement using God-knows-what chemical enhancement to create visions of indisputably unspeakable horrors. Truly, he is a man dedicated to his craft. Here are your students... Mixing method and system, Strassberg and Chekhov, angora sweaters and pre-pubescent girls, Depp has built foundations for characters that act as building blocks for an enviable career. While this episode of Inside the Actor's Studio lacks the pizzazz of a guest like Robin Williams or the star power of Tom Hanks, no interview fits the title of the series like Johnny Depp. The viewer will learn more about acting here than they could possibly hope to from the more popular Dave Chappelle or Angelina Jolie interviews. This is bare-bones Actor's Studio. For better or worse, it is what the series was made to be. Grade: B+ The next thing I'm in line to review is Sweeney Todd, featuring the dream team of Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Sacha Baren Cohen, and Director Tim Burton. You can look for that around the 22nd of Decemeber, that is, unless I'm swallowed by a bed. Tschüs!

The Black Donnellys - Gaying up The Mafia

2007-03-04T06:34:22Z

I don't think I watch as much TV as a should. If you've been reading, you know I'm a big fan of Entourage, South Park, and House. I'm also pretty big on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Office, and 30 Rock - although you won't see me breaking appointments for those like I would for the previous three. I don't watch 24 or Lost like so many other TV geeks out there, but those shows never really got to me. I don't think I've watched a new sitcom since Family Guy. Maybe it's because I was disenchanted with TV for most of the beginning of this decade, or maybe it's because TV just sucked for a long time. DVD box sets (and subsequent marathon watching sessions) got me interested again, and lately I've been trying to give new shows a chance - especially if I'm met with a topic that sparked some interest. This is how I got into 30 Rock, and even how I started wandering back to NBC. I don't think I've given the Peacock any real attention since they lost the NBA, Seinfeld disbanded, and Will Ferrel left for greener, Hollywood pastures. Conan was a solid late night choice if nothing else, but NBC generally sucked for a long time. But things may be turning around... Up until recently, NBC's Thursday night consisted of the afformentioned 30 Rock and The Office as well as Scrubs and My Name is Earl. All of these shows are very watchable, and it looked like NBC was trying to get back to the glory days. However, a quick glance at the scheduling for this week shows that they've jumbled everything up! Why? You almost had me tuning in weekly, and now you're going to go with a different lineup? I know 30 Rock and The Office will both be back eventually, but when and where? Why are you trying to screw everything up NBC? Are you that sore about passing on Lost? It seems like they'll make crazy decision after crazy decision in a psychotic, prideful attempt to get back on top. Enter Heroes and The Black Donnellys. These two dramas seem to be an attempt by NBC to show America that they are in fact paying attention. If America wants addicting dramas where the plot progresses episode to episode, then NBC will bring it................very, very poorly. Ok, maybe I shouldn't lump Heroes in with The Donnellys. The plot is fairly interesting. It reeks of X-Men, but it doesn't have the full-on "this should be a cartoon" comic book feeling. I was never really hooked on it, but I can certainly see how an addiction could happen. My problem with the show is that it's a big tub of maize and mozzarella. Corny line after corny line and cheesy situation after cheesy situation. I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next, but I had to wade through gobs of gouda and produce to get to it. And then when I got there, I was unsatisfied (which is strangely similar to the same unsatisfaction of eating an entire bag of Orville Redenbacher's. But that, in no way, compares to the abomination that is The Black Donnellys. Paul Haggis, what have you done now?! For those who haven't caught it yet, the show revolves around 4 Irish 20-somethings coming of age in New York's Hell's Kitchen. I don't know where that is or what I should think of it, but it sounds like a rough place to grow up. Donnellys aspires to enter the mafia show pedigree and join the ranks of The Sopranos. I mean, Paul Haggis is arrogant and certainly a hack, but to think you can move in on Sopranos territory? The man should be stoned! At the same time, his Irish angle isn't even original. I've been told Brotherhood on Showtime is an infinitely better Irish mob show. I will look into it and get back to you. But why do I hate this show so much? Well, let me show you...(Warning:There is a mild spoiler in this clip, but it's not really anything huge. It's the first episode of the series, afterall.) That clip pretty much somes up everything that's wrong with the show. Two of the main characters are way too baby-faced to be mobsters of any brand. Imagine if Tony Soprano, Frank Costello, or any one of the Corleones (except Fredo) were to come across one of the Donnellys? Tommy Donnelly would crap himself if he had to go up against Sonny Corleone! And I'm supposed to watch this show and think he's a badass? And the music! What is that? Is that supposed to create intensity? Wait wait, let's compare that to the Soprano's intro... Now that's what I'm talking about! It's manly, it has grit, it feels like the mob! Where is this in Donnelly's? The Donnelly's doesn't have grit, it's got a bunch of pretty boys wandering around to music of Snow Patrol and Andain. It's a mob show for chicks. That's all there is to it. My buddy Carl said I was describing "The Sopranos meets Grey's Anatomy". He hasn't seen the show (I've advised him not to), but I couldn't think of a more accurate description. After the first episode, I figured this show was pointed at women, but by the 3rd episode I was certain. In episode 3, Tommy Donnelly gratuitously strips down to his plain white briefs (does anyone still wear these?!?), to reveal he's more ripped than anyone who pays to see The Kansas City Royals. The guy has abs on top of abs. Does anyone not see what they're getting at? Ugh. I'm disgusted. I need to stop thinking about it. What can I do to get this terrible taste out of my mouth? I know...! That's much better. As for NBC, I don't think they'll stay down forever. Saturday Night Live could get better again real soon. And hey, they might even find a good drama as well! Let's pray they milk 30 Rock for all it's worth. Maybe they should just go back to airing reruns of Seinfeld. Tschüs!

Sweet, Sweet Nostalgia

2007-02-20T03:44:29Z

I was a bit of a loner as a child. I wasn't much for "playing outside" or "making friends" or "not throwing stones at the neighborhood kids". As a result of my antisocial childhood, I found myself in front of the TV for most of my pre-adolescent years. Nickelodeon was a staple and ABC and Fox both provided decent Saturday morning distractions. The Cartoon Network was a little bit late to the show - I think I was about 14 when it made it to basic cable. I liked a lot of the same shows that other kids watched. I was swept up by the Power Rangers fad like so many other blood-thirsty pre-teens still waiting for their testicles to boot up. I enjoyed reruns of oldies like The Flintsontes and their Space Age counter part, The Jetsons (Anyone else have the VHS of when they met?). I watched Garfield and Friends, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Tiny Toon Adventures, and even The Simpsons (when my parents weren't looking). So for those of you who remember these times, here's a few kids' shows that you may have forgotten that you remembered:

David the Gnome

David the Gnome was awesome nap material back in the day. 10 seconds into the intro, and I was already in a zombie-like state. There was something about the ambiance, the gentle sound of David's voice, and the entire world created within the series that just sucked me in. David the Gnome owned my afternoon cartoon time back in the day. Credited on IMDB as "David el gnomo", it was one of the first shows that Hollywood mega-producer Harvey Weinstein was heavely involved with. David was voiced by Tom Bosley who was best know as the Dad from Happy Days. My buddy recently downloaded the first two seasons from falling off the back of a truck. The "truck driver" sent us an excited message, saying "I'm glad to see somebody is finally downloading these". We were excited to have them.

Denver the Last Dinosaur

Now, I seem to remember Denver the Last Dinosaur being a Saturday morning offering on Fox back in the day. I say "seem to remember" because I think I only watched about 10 or 11 episodes in my time, as opposed to several seasons of the rest of these shows. The main reason I'm writing about it is that incredibe intro. Is that not the most ridiculous thing you've ever watched? It's got camp written all over it. The one I have above is the Japanese version, which I like better for some reason. At the bottom of this entry, I have posted the American version if you'd like to compare. The song is the same though, which is really the only reason to watch. Of my limited memory of the cartoon, I recollect a group of gen-Xers finding a Dinosaur egg from which Denver hatched. They constantly had to escape from some scientists that wanted to study Denver, and they were always engaging in extreme sports and rock music. Truly, these were the most happening people during the 80s - 90s transition.

Fred Penner's Place

The freedom of YouTube was not available for Fred Penner, but you can stillview his intro here. Somehow, I have to think Fred Penner's Place is the most esoteric offering in this blog today. I'd like to believe it used David the Gnome as its popular lead-in, but I certainly don't remember for certain. In either case, it's certainly from the same point in my childhood. Fred Penner was a nature nut and a bit of a hippie. Come to think of it, a lot of the stuff I watched as a child was geared to get me to hug a tree. It's strange that I didn't turn out to be an environmentalist wackjob. Politicians without any friends aside, Fred Penner's Place was another pre-naptime show. The forest atmosphere and the songs he sang just put you in the mood to pass out on the rug in front of the TV with a sippy cup of juice. I remember one episode in particular where he had a guest artist on the show. She specialized in drawing music. Fred played some whimsical tune on his guitar, and the woman drew the music that Fred played. The show seems like some acid induced trip fest now, but looking back, I dearly enjoyed the antics of Fred Penner and his friends.

Eureeka's Castle

I don't know if it's because they ended every show with that summon to the fabled "Picnic Time", but I have the strangest feeling that I watched Eureeka's Castle before lunch everyday. This may or may not be true, but I have distinct memories of the show. My favorite character's on Eureeka's Castle were Quagmire and Bog(the orange and pink ones on either side of the dragon, Magellan). I think it was because I identified with them. Their brother-sister squabbling was a lot like that of my younger sister and I. They loved peanut butter, and their lava-lamp like movements when they swam in the moat where just plain mesmerizing. Why am I starting to feel like everything I watched as a child was designed to brainwash me?

Beakman's World

In the vein of Bill Nye the Science Guy and Mr. Wizard's World (seen below), Beakman's World was easily the zaniest of the children's science shows. Featuring Beakman and his co-stars (a rat named Lester and and a science hottie dubbed Josie), Beakman's World consisted of a series of experiments used to demonstrate scientific principles that viewers of the show wrote in about. I vaguely remember writing in with a question to Beakman, but I don't know if he ever got it or could understand it, because I'm fairly certain I was barely writing at the time. The most memorable episode consisted of a question where Beakman was asked why guys in movies don't bleed when they break glass. The resulting experiment had Beakman create a pane of "movie glass" using sugar, water, and whatever else goes into movie glass. The climax came when Beakman punched through the newly created movie glass. I wrote down the recipe, but never made any myself. I was clearly too engaged with solving the puzzle of how Beakman's hair seemed to defy gravity.

TMNT

Just because. Denver American Version Mr. Wizard's World Tschüs!

The Loved and the Lost

2007-02-10T16:10:07Z

It happens all the time. Every fall and spring, the major networks roll out their new offerings to the awaiting public. We watch the trailers during sporting events and MOWs and we think, "Ooooo, that might be good" or "Meh, looks like a cheese fest" or "Damn reality TV and damn the horse it rode in on!". Some shows we watch, and some we don't watch. Inevitably, the better number of these new shows get cancelled and cancelled quickly. Maybe the show was poorly marketed, or maybe it didn't have a favorable timeslot, or maybe it just plain sucked. Whatever the case, it comes with the territory that something I enjoy will get cancelled. Thusly, I am taking the opportunity here today to chronicle the shows that I found favor with before they were cancelled. Most of them weren't very good, but they satisfied some of my baser TV needs. But before I get to that, some rules:

No show that ran a thorough lifespan may be on this list. Shows like Seinfeld or Frasier don't belong here. There's not necessarily a cut off point, but a show that retired to stud and a show sent off to the glue factory are two very different things.
No shows from networks that shouldn't be on the air: MTV, ABC Family, UPN, the WB. If your network shouldn't be on the air, you never should have been made.
Shows on HBO don't count either. They'll run good programs regardless of how bad the ratings are for years. The only reason an HBO show gets canned is because it sucks.
No show from Comedy Central. They've had two great shows in their history (South Park, Chappelle's Show), one good show (The Daily Show), and a few good syndicated programs. They also employ Carlos Mencia. This is never a good thing.

Ok, let's get to the list.

Fastlane This one here comes from the boys at Fox. For nearly an entire season, I was in front of my TV every week. At the time, I was a junior in high school. I was just begining to learn what I liked in my entertainment, but I knew that I liked car chases, explosions, and boobs. That's pretty much all this show was - and I was thrilled. It was like watching a bad action movie for 30 minutes every week. Tiffani Thiessen was trying to prove that she was still hot and still relevant long after her heyday on Saved By the Bell (She succeeded in one of these tasks). The show revolved around a "specialized" under cover police force with an unlimited budget and 21st Century attempts at Crocket and Tubbs in Peter Facinelli and Bill Bellamy. The show reached it's pinnacle (and most desperate attempt to stay on the air) when Thiessen's character dons a bikini and seduces Jaime Pressly in a hot tub. Read the IMDB summary. This show was far too ridiculous, sexy, and action packed for adolescent teens not to watch. I'll never understand why it didn't get higher ratings.
Undeclared Undeclared is one of those little gems that no one seems to know about. It revolved around a group of freshmen in a co-ed dormitory trying to remake their lives into something better than it was in high school (Does any of this sound familiar?). The nerd loses his virginity his first night in college, the big, loveable Canadian (played by the even more likeable Seth Rogen) gets laughs in every scene, and the snobbish Brit is a snobbish Brit. And you may notice Monica Keena, most recently of Entourage fame, is up to her usual bitchy exploits. This show captured the college essence, and I wasn't even in college at the time. I found it to be another Fox foul-up that it got taken off the air after a measly 16 episodes. You've got to feel bad for Rogen, he looks like he aged about 15 years between this and The 40 Year Old Virgin. This is a man who is funnier than what his career has become. As for Undeclared, well, maybe you can catch it on DVD.
Firefly Ask any nerd what the best cancelled show was in the last 10 years, and Firefly is the inevitable answer. This nerd tends to agree. Joss Whedon has one of those excellent creative minds that just hasn't been put to proper use. The show was your typical, 26th century, sci-fi-western (I'm sure you watch one every week). The concept is an oddity at best, but the execution is flawless. Mankind reverts back to western pioneer tactics in order trailblaze the stars to far-off planets. It's not a completely unthinkable scenario. The backdrop of civil war and interstellar totalitarianism has a Star Wars feel at first glance, but when the savage "Reapers" are added to the equation, you can't help but feel you're playing cowboys and indians in the new-old West. Nathan Fillon leads the crew as Captain Malcom Reynolds (or Mal) and ship engineer Jewel Staite (playing Kaylee) has got one of those faces you were sure you recognized from Nickelodeon as a child (maybe Hey Dude or Salute Your Shorts? Speaking of Hey Dude... I had to do it. That definitely belongs in the Nostalgia Hall of Hame. Back to Firefly). This show had so many amazing details: pioneer speak mixed with mandarin curse words, a strange new term for "God" in "Gor" (tip toeing those censors has never been so easy!), wit, humor, action, and plain old fun. I could write a whole blog on Firefly, but I'm just going to recommend you watch it. It had another two seasons left in it at least.
Sports Night Here's a show that probably would have been better suited for HBO. It just never found its niche, and it was probably a little ahead of it's time. For someone who's been watching Sportscenter since infancy, there were few shows more intriguing to me during the late 90s than Sports Night. The show records the back stage problems and every day lives of running a daily sports highlight show. A not-quite-famous-yet Felicity Huffman empowers a cast including Josh Charles, Peter Krause, and the always delightful Robert Guillaume as the head of the network. The show was dramatic and subtly hilarious. There wast he ever-looming possibility that the "4th highest rated sports highlight show" could be cancelled at any moment, and the co-anchors of the show constantly crack wise at one another (Imagine what Scott Van Pelt and John Anderson are like off camera!). If they released it today, it may still be before it's time. Late in it's short life, the producers thought it wise to add a laugh-track to this program. Have a taste of the original: What a terrible waste. I should probably stop talking about it now, I'm getting misty.
Playmakers Playmakers is an example of a cancellation by the Powers that Be. I don't recall ever reading that it got poor ratings, but if ESPN wanted to pick up licensing rights with the NFL, Playmakers and its edgy, real account of professional football had to go. Outside of doing cocaine, impregnating random strippers, and spousal abuse, Playmakers mostly depended on the drama in the running back contreversy. Veteran running back Leon Taylor (played by Russel Hornsby) is often at ends with young stud and coke head Demetrius Harris (played by the strangely placed Omar Gooding. Wild & Crazy Kids anyone?). The show was intriguing, and I watched it in the comfort of my bed every monday. I believe it helped usher in a new era of TV drama. It was right there with 24 and CSI in their early days. Had this show been about anything but the most powerful athletic organization on the earth, it might have really done something for ESPN's Original Entertainment department.

Tilt

Rambling through the Air Waves

2007-01-31T14:40:08Z

Alright, you pigs. I know what you're doing. You're slopped in front of your computer at work, or school, or your dorm room just like you were slopped in front of your TV before you sat down at your computer. You know how it is: you live your life a half-hour or an hour at a time allowing your brain to be drained away into a world created by people not quite attractive enough to be in the movies. God bless you. I'm right there with you. Well, sort of. The sports blog on this site and this TV blog could very easily be combined. Currently, I'm a 21-year-old college student. So while I spend a whopping 16 hours a week in class, a good chunk of those other 152 are spent within 10 feet of a TV tuned into ESPN. Scott Van Pelt, John Anderson, and Stuart Scott are like friends of mine. Growing up, Linda Cohn was like a second mother to me, Chris "Boomer" Berman a father, and don't tell my G-pas, but I'd trade them both in if Peter Gammons would take over. I believe there have been few experiences more traumatic than being reduced to basic cable for 6 months in high school. I am certain the lack of ESPN dropped by GPA a good 2 tenths of a point. Sportscenter has consistently been the reason to get up in the morning. But between Cavs games, Tribe games, Browns games, Buckeye games, hours of Sportscenter, Baseball Tonight, PTI, and Around the Horn, I do get a chance to watch some scripted TV comedy and Drama. But let's get a few things straight.

I hate reality television. Reality television is not reality television. Survivor, Big Brother, The Amazing Race, and American Idol are glorified game shows edited and fanagled to be made into semi-entertaining television. Road Rules and The Real World are one step removed from Girls Gone Wild. If I want GGW, I can have GGW. Why would I settle for any cocktease MTV can provide? No, Sports are the only true reality TV.
Anything on HBO (Entourage notwithstanding) should be watched sporadically. The Sopranos, The Wire, and Deadwood (among others) are cinema quality entertainment. You'll never find anything like these on any other station. But you won't see me in front of the TV every week when the new episodes air. Why? Because they're too good for TV. Too intense. I watch a lot of movies as it is. When I want light beer, I drink light beer. When I want lager, I drink lager. A combination of the two is probably dangerous.
Everyone should watch Entourage. Everyone. It's the funniest thing on TV, bar none. The acting from Adrian Grenier(Vince) and Kevin Connolly(Eric) can be suspect from time to time, but you're just missing out on the best TV has to offer if you don't get your weekly dose of Ari Gold and Johnny Drama.
Dr. Gregory House is the best written, best acted, best overall character on television. Hugh Laurie is a breath of fresh air. He's better than every actor on TV doing their native accent. His character has depth, flaw, intelligence, and wit. The show is a must watch (though lately I've found it questionable). The cases are interesting, and if you watch enough of it, you start trying to diagnose the cases yourself. I think I'm about a season and a half away from being able to diagnose Lou Gehrig's Disease (or ALS for the avid fan). I'm very serious about this.
I have always loved Primetime animation, but lately, I'm starting to doubt. I've been a diehard Simpsons fan since I learned of its existence. However, the last few seasons have been a far cry from from the first nine. Any show that can stay this good for this long deserves to be ranked up there with the best ever, but I continue to wonder when the end is going to come. Where I was once laughing hysterically four or five times an episode, I'm now down to once every two or three episodes. That's still a better ratio than 80% of television, but maybe this show pony needs to be put out to stud. Going further...
- Family Guy is hysterical, but only the first or second time. There's no depth to any of the jokes, so they don't stay funny. Shock comedy is great, but you'll never hear me uttering something asinine like, "OMG, Family Guy is so much better than the Simpsons!" If that happens, stop reading this blog, because I'm dead.
- Adult Swim started out very fresh, but has evolved into a poor man's Family Guy. It's all shock comedy, and anything that aspires to be more than that is poorly executed and ultimately more annoying than funny. Bring your weed, because this psuedo-network requires it.
- South Park is perhaps the heir to The Simpsons' throne. Trey Parker and Matt Stone possess both a talent for shock comedy (predominantly in the early seasons), and a savvy satirical bite. Everything in the latest season has been gold, and I'm very much looking forward to the second half of that.
- I will continue to watch all of these cartoons every week.
Like a father whose son has joined the majorettes, MTV is dead to me. The days of controversial music videos, pushing the envelope of both the social consciousness and musical culture, and straight up entertaining us are gone. Whether it be a mini-marathon of Next, Rob and Big, or My Super Sweet 16, MTV's programming will subtract points from your IQ. I would very much prefer a colonoscopy to reliving high school or watching spoiled teeny boppers. Carson Daly was wise to get out when he did.
Carson Daly's show on NBC will be cancelled very soon.
We are in the midst (or possibly the end) of one of the fabled Saturday Night Live troughs I've been told about since I was old enough to watch. Phil Hartman begat Dana Carvey, who begat Mike Myers, who begat Adam Sandler, who begat Chris Farley, who begat Will Ferrel. Well, it wasn't quite like that, but there was a lot of funny from the mid-nineties into the beginning of this decade. Then Will Ferrel left before passing the torch. I was actually upset when Jimmy Falon left! Jimmy Falon! When you get upset about Jimmy Falon leaving, the dark days have already started. I haven't been a regular watcher of the show in some time, but I still recognize the hole in my variety show life. Chappelle's Show filled it for a while, but I think Dave recognized that you get out while you're hot. I suppose I'll just have to wait until SNL overcomes this trough like they have in the past.

House

Entourage

South Park