At the recent Television Critics Association Press Tour, SWINGTOWN executive producer Alan Poul promised that, “The season ends with a cliffhanger, but it’s also a completely satisfying ending. So, if we go forward, there are many new things that are set up to explore. And if we don’t go forward, there’s no feeling that we’ve been left with something incomplete.”
Huh?
Did SWINGTOWN executive producer Alan Poul actually watch his show’s season finale on Friday night?
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Good News: Turns out ,there are enough fans of SWINGTOWN within CBS that the show might survive to see a second season. Bad News: On cable. [Source]
Good News: THE OC’s Benjamin Mackenzie is in talks with John Wells to join the NBC ensemble drama LAPD. Bad News: Putting to rest any hope that he will be joining the Walker clan on BROTHERS & SISTERS this fall. [Source]
Good News: Neil Patrick Harris and Sarah Chalke have been tapped to host the Emmys this fall. Bad News: And by Emmys, we mean the non-televised Creative Arts Emmys that we’ll be wishing we were at as we suffer through one-liners courtesy of Howie Mandel and Jeff Probst. [Source]
Good News: The TV Addict just completed DEXTER’S Psycho Therapy Test. Bad News: Turns out I may have some ‘issues’! [Find out if you need Therapy by clicking here.]
By: Amrie Cunninghame [My Take on TV]
I don’t think I’m overstating anything when I say that this summer has given us some of the best TV I’ve seen in a long time. I’m still not caught up on the few weeks I missed due to our trip to San Diego, but I still feel like I’ve seen some quality TV that I’m glad we have in the summer so these shows don’t have to compete with my regular fall viewing. Here are my favorite shows from the summer (if not listed, it’s because I’m just not caught up and I can’t say it’s my favorite if I haven’t seen it…I’m talking to you, THE CLOSER).
My five favorite summer shows this year:
BURN NOTICE – Ever since my visit to the set, I feel connected to this show. I’ve had the chance to spend time with the people that make the show possible, so to me, that makes season 2 even more spectacular than season 1. Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) is a great character – he’s sarcastic, which is perfect for me – I sometimes feel like sarcasm should be my middle name. I love Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar, who I can’t say enough good things about) and I think she’s even better this season than last. No one compares to Sam (Bruce Campbell) and, say what you will about Madeline (Sharon Gless), I think she’s a fantastic character. I have enjoyed every episode of Season 2 so far. It’s funny, whip smart, and just an easy way to pass the time. I understand the plight of viewers who think the Carla thing has dragged on a bit too far, but I personally am on the edge of my seat, waiting to see how the mid season “finale” goes (since we’ll get more BURN NOTICE in January this year) and what more we find out about the mysterious Carla (Tricia Helfer).
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It’s official: Three episodes in, SWINGTOWN is officially my favorite show of the summer. And really, what’s not to love? Don’t be fooled by the implication that this is a smutfest. Instead, SWINGTOWN is an examination of evolving — and devolving — friendships, and it’s hard to decide what’s more unexpected: the show’s unexpected but undeniable charm, or its ability to examine changing social and sexual mores in a non-judgemental light. I have to think that if this series wound up anywhere but on CBS, it would have wound up trading sentiment for sleaziness, and that would have been a real shame. From the beginning, my favorite character has been Miriam Shor’s Janet, who represents the old guard being forced to face that nothing stays the same… no matter how hard we might wish it would. (Best moment last night: Janet stoically declaring “I am going to eat a pot brownie!” before shoving the tampered-with treat into her mouth.) She is a portrait of heartbreak and a study in conflict, and the perfect frenemy to Lara Parrilla’s luminous Trina. Best of all, the changing times aren’t only viewed through the eyes of adults. We’re treated to teen boys who find their friendship being tested by the girl next door, and high schooler/budding feminist Laurie’s crush on a teacher. In the dead zone of summer television, populated by increasingly lame and mean-spirited reality shows (HOPKINS and SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE aside), SWINGTOWN is breathing new life into Thursday nights.
I’ve only seen the first 15 minutes of the debut episode, but HOPKINS seems determined to prove that reality TV needn’t be the black sheep of programming. The stakes are life and death, and the players in this game are people, not the caricatures who populate THE HILLS or THE REAL WORLD. Given that it is populated by doctors, it’s appropriate to dub this appointment television.
If all reality competitions were as full of energy, honesty and life as SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, there’d be a lot more worth watching. This week’s episode featured several truly stunning performances, my personal favorite of which was Mark and Chelsea’s emotional hip-hop number to the tune Bleeding Love. (If you missed it, youtube it… trust me!) I hate the fact that the snarky, nasty, pointless critiques of AMERICAN IDOL put that show at the top of the ratings heap while the honest, helpful, constructive criticisms of SYTYCD’s judges make this show a hit by summer standards, but keep it from being anything near the blockbuster IDOL is. Sometimes, America, you make me hate you. I’m just sayin’.
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Good News: Hulu announced the addition of Comedy Central’s THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART and THE COLBERT REPORT to their digital library. Bad News: I still can’t take Hulu episodes on a plane, train or automobile. Not to mention watch them outside of the US. [Source]
Good News: 20th Century FOX has been quietly working on a pilot based on the Canadian hit series LITTLE MOSQUE ON THE PRARIE. Bad News: The last show that featured a Muslim protagonist — ALIENS IN AMERICA — was quietly cancelled when nobody bothered to watch. [Source]
Good News: We’re that much closer to a FRIENDS Reunion. Bad News: Because FX cancelled Courtney Cox’s pet project DIRT. [Source]
Good News: SWINGTOWN just received the endorsement of a lifetime, albeit from an incredibly unlikely source. Bad News: The Parent’s Television Council never learns. I mean who isn’t tuning into SWINGTOWN after PTC President Tim Winter calls it “one of the most sexually indulgent programs we’ve seen on broadcast television in a long time.” [Source]
Sometimes, I just don’t know what people want. The critics were fairly brutal where SWINGTOWN is concerned, and yet I found it — and no one is more surprised than I to have this be the first word which comes to mind — charming. Every moment seemed to offer a new flashback to an era I kinda sorta vaguely remember (having been a pre-teen in 1976). People smoking on planes, the funky fashions, references to The Omen and oh, that glorious, wonderful parade of cheesy songs! I’m sure those who tuned in expecting a smutfest left wildly disappointed, as the series is driven more by character than plot and, despite having sexual mores as it’s central theme, tends to take a less-is-more approach. But if you go into it looking for a good time, well, you’re gonna leave as satisfied as the party guests who ventured down into Tom and Trina Decker’s basement. Sure, it’d would have been nice if the doe-eyed couple who move from Eden to Gomorrah had taken a tad longer to be corrupted. By the end of the first episode, Susan had popped a Qualude and ditched long-time gal pal Janet (the delightful Miriam Shor) for life on the swingin’ side of town. But heck, who could resist the charms of deliciously sleezy Tom as personified by Grant Show? Given the way Janet’s hubby was eyeing Susan (and that “Geez, do we really have to leave?” look he gave his wife after she accidentally wandered into an orgy room and demanded of her happy-to-be-there spouse, “Do you know what kind of party this is?”), I’m dying to see where things go. Sorry, but in a summer filled with reality and reruns, you’d have to be a total square not to dive into this groovefest. The writing’s on the (bathroom) wall: For a good time, call the residents of SWINGTOWN.
While I abhor the endless AMERICAN IDOL auditions which seem to stretch for months, I’m wishing that SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE would show us more of the episodes in which they search for finalists. In part, this is due to the fact that while IDOL focuses on the negative, DANCE nearly always finds a way to spin things in a positive manner. But more important is the fact that we seem to miss out on key steps in the audition process. Personally, I want to see the dancers trained by contestant-turned-choreographer Travis, which we get only snipets of. And certainly when we got to the highly hyped “Vegas week”, which consisted of a single episode, I was dying to see more of the grueling process through which these talented young people go. So while it’s true that with IDOL, less would definitely be more, the complete opposite is true where DANCE is concerned.
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Because this TV Addict really isn’t sure.
On the one hand it’s summer, which means there’s virtually nothing else on in terms of quality scripted television dramas. Also in SWINGTOWN’s favor is that it features MELROSE PLACE alum Grant Show sporting an awesome 70’s-porn-star-moustache and a series premiere that was compelling enough that I’m asking, “what happens next?”
On the other hand, was anyone else slightly perturbed with how quickly Susan and Bruce Miller threw caution to the wind and cast aside their oldest/dearest friends in order to sign up for this new and exciting lifestyle? Not to mention the far more pressing issue — the fact that SWINGTOWN is a series that CBS has relegated to the summer — meaning that it’s more than likely already cancelled in the minds of the proverbial Powers that Be. Thus should I really be investing my time into a show that’s sure to follow in MOONLIGHT and JERICHO’s footsteps?
With that in mind, please feel free to post away with whether or not you’ll be returning to SWINGTOWN next Thursday, what parent’s Susan and Bruce must have been smoking to name their kid B.J., and your prediction as to whether or not uptight neighbor Janet Thompson’s marriage is falling apart because she seems a little too attached to her best friend Susan! Yes, you know what I’m talking about!
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