…and neither can we. I was lucky enough to see an early screener of tonight’s fall finale episode (the show returns on Jan. 22) and I can easily say that it will rock you like a hurricane. Indeed, as the ads have promised, a Hero will fall. But, even better, to hold your mind and your nervous system hostage until it comes back, tonight’s episode features not one, but FOUR cliffhangers. Catch my last TV Watch of the year tomorrow morning.
Not as exciting, however, is the news that, in another sign of Studio 60 sinking deeper and deeper into its increasingly meta-tastic rabbit hole, the show has recruited Heroes‘ Masi Oka (pictured) — who plays the hit show’s lovable time/space traveler Hiro — to appear as himself as host of the terminally unfunny show within the show. Seems to me to be a cynical attempt to keep even a small fragment of the approximately five million viewers that change their channels come 10 p.m. every Monday night.
Still, after listening to Oka talk in subtitled Japanese and jabberin pidgin American for 11 episodes, I would like to see him speak inthe stone-cold, Brown University-educatedEnglish that is his everyday voice. I sorta hope he plays himself as ajerk, which would be funny and completely antithetical to what we’vecome to expect from his geeky persona. What this news really instilledin me, however, is a nostalgia for the days of character crossovers,like those couple of ones they did way back when with Law & Order and Homicide, or when Hanna-Barbera made that Flintstones/Jetsons movie. Studio 60 and Heroes, however, might not be the best pair of NBC shows to experiment with (I would rather see The Office take a field trip up to the city and run into some 30 Rock people on a tour). Are any of you Heroes fans actually going to watch this particular episode of Studio 60?
In other Heroes news (collected by TVTattle): Seems like NBC is finally, FINALLY, retiring the whole, "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World" ad campaign.Obviously, since Claire was saved in a hyped, but ultimatelydisappointing episode, there’s no more need for it. Still, we wouldalso like to point to this.Now, I love Family Guy more than most here at EW do, but once you’vebeen spoofed on Family Guy, you’re pretty much five minutes ago.
And apparently, the more successful the show gets, the more it mighthave to pull its punches. Remember those first few episodes, whereClaire mangled her hand in a garbage disposal (resulting in a lawsuit) or found herself sliced open from chin to bellybutton on an autopsytable? We might be seeing less of those moments, as show creator TimKring remarks, "I feel like we have to back off some of the very graphic stuff." Sad. Can we be adults here, people?
Most heart-warming, however, is Zachary Quinto (Sylar) finding time for an interview with his hometown newspaper,in which he admits that even he’s not sure whether his character eatshis victims’ brains or not. Whatever the answer, it can’t be as bad as having to be attacked by a group of cats on Charmed or playing Tori Spelling’s best friend on So NoTORIous. I think I’d rather eat my ownbrain instead.
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In the past week I have seen Masi Oka on re-runs or Gilmore Girls and Scrubs! He really is everywhere!
The thing I like best about Heroes is that they wrap up stories – you know – ok let’s move on from the save the cheerleader thing and it’s good to see that we will be after tonight. The writers of LOST should really check out this show!
Speaking of Zachary Quinto, am I mistaken–or wasn’t he the personal assistant to that crazy Princess who wanted to be a country singer… The show was on E! and called ‘Love is in the Heir’ (and was awful, in case that synopsis didn’t clue you in!)
Did anyone else watch that/remember him on it?
I don’t appreciate the graphic violence as much as I do the rest of “Heroes,” and I think there’s nothing juvenile or immature about that opinion. I can’t imagine why it is that not preferring “the very graphic stuff” gets equated with not being adult. Adults can have their preferences, can’t they?
Count me as one of the few people who don’t watch Heroes, but tunes in for Studio 60. I picked two or three new shows to invest my time in and most have gone away(Kidnapped?). So I missed Heroes at the beginning.
NBC revives its cross-appearence bit from the 90s Thursday Night Line-up. They did a Mad About You/Friends gag, Is it Phoebe or Ursela, the waitress?
i saw masi oka on an episode of reno 911 and he was too funny. don’t know if i’m willing to watch studio 60 just to see him. i tried in the beginning because of perry, peet, and paulson but was disappointed quickly. maybe i’ll just wait for the repeat of conan. as for the graphic injuries they haven’t bothered me in the slightest and i am the queen of queasy.
Love Masi Oka, but I promised myself many weeks ago that I would staple my ear to my lip if I ever deigned to watch Studio 60 again. I plan to have all my facial parts in the appropriate place tomorrow. They could get Osama Bin Laden to guest host and I still would not watch. So sorry Studio 60, but you’ve lost me forever.
Crossovers didn’t exactly die out at NBC; witness “Crossing Jordan” and “Las Vegas.”
That said, “The Office” / “30 Rock” idea must happen!
I watch both shows and can appreciate them both for what they are. Heroes rocks, and it’s appointment television at my house. I do have to admit to a little frustration with those who keep banging on Studio 60 because they think it’s not funny enough. Funny show about late night = Thirty Rock. Ironic wordy “Sorkinesque” show about late night = Studio 60. Get over it!
A little SPOLIER alert! I heard that at least one character might die or go away on tonight’s episode after the producers f**ked up the contract negotiations with an actor and they wanted more money. My money is either on Ali Larter or Milo Vilo (too lazy figure out how to spell his name). Now, don’t those two kind of remind you of thoes actors who always thinks they’re the reason the show is a hit? Look at the David Caurso. He did it with NYPD Blue and now the horrible actor came crawling back to TV in even worse form. Don’t you love karma? Oooh, I just can’t wait until tonight’s episode!
Won’t watch Studio 60, WILL watch Heroes!!!
I love Hiro, and Masi Oka is equally adorable in real life. But I simply can’t bring myself to watch Studio 60 again. I’d just spend the whole hour yelling at the TV. And besides, the whole “Get the Star of the Popular Show” thing reeks of desperation.
But an Office/30 Rock cross-over would be killer! Can you imagine Michael Scott and Jack Donaghy together? Comic gold.
According to People Magizine, Santiago Cabraro was suppose to be in Heroes, what happened?
While it disappoints me a little to hear that Studio 60 is doing this, I can’t help but think that it might not have been entirely their idea. This seems exactly like something NBC brass might have “suggested” they do to beef up ratings. That said, I still expect better from Aaron Sorkin…
LOVE the Flintstones/Jetsons movie!
I love Masi Oka, but I hate Studio 60!!!
Is it just me, or do you get the sense that aaron sorkin must’ve beat up EW.com staffers and stolen their lunch money when they were all kids? Seriously, between this random snarkiness and Scott Brown’s inability to stop using the caps key when writing/screaming about the show, it’s like the mean spirit of Rex Reed hangs over PopWatch cackiling. Studio 60 isn’t as good, yet, as the West Wing, but it’s been on for all of eight or so eps, and it’s certainly offered enough entertainment and stimulation that it doesn’t deserve this website’s hysterical, Ebert-defending-Crash style vituperativeness.
And Heroes? Eh. It’s Smallville on a bigger network. They can be heroes, just for one season. Next year, when the premise gets old and the characters remain dull, I expect there will be much renting of garments at EW over “What went wrong??,” a la Lost. At that point, the show’s producers can consult aaron sorkin on how to cope with being defrocked.
I have to say I’m also getting sick of all the “Studio 60″ bashing here. The sketches on the show-within-the-show have improved immensely over the past few episodes.
I’m not liking this crossover idea, it interferes with the suspension of disbelief. I’m watching Heroes to see the world of Hiro and his evolutionary compatriots. I don’t want to be reminded during the show (through promos of Studio 60) or immediately thereafter that Hiro is just a character played by a smart, talented actor named named Masi Oka. I’ll deal with that reality at another time, like when I read TV Watch on Tuesday morning.
If Studio 60 wanted to do a clever ratings-grabbing gimmick, they could do something like having ex-President Bartlett host (as Bartlett, not Martin Sheen). Bartlett: “You know, Danny, you remind me an awful lot of this guy I used to work with…”
In a crossover with Heroes, one of the Studio 60 characters could be found to be “special.” Maybe the power could be the ability to hold onto an important role creating a sketch comedy show, despite having no sense of humor whatsoever. Sylar could then wipe out the whole Studio 60 cast trying to retrieve the brain of this new “hero”, thus sparing us further hand-wringing from all those trying to prop up a show that just isn’t working.
I agree that everyone at EW needs to stop hating on Studio 60, though I’m not sure I can state my case as eloquently as cinephile (did you seriously use the word “vituperativeness” in a sentence? Remind me not to play Scrabble with you).
If you think about it, the Masi Oka guest bit is a perfect opportunity for a self referential bit, much like the Howie Mandel guest spot a couple of weeks ago. I mean, why do people host SNL if not to plug something (like a successful television show)? Just like the storyline a couple of weeks ago about product placement, it gives Sorkin another opportunity to skewer the industry that he’s so much a part of (though he does at time seem ashamed to admit it).
This casual Heroes viewer has watched every episode of Studio 60. Doesn’t SNL also pick its hosts from popular TV shows? Sorry, the cynical attempt is your own, Mr. Cruz.
Maki Osa is the most amazing character in Heroes, but not even him can make me watch Studio 60. Sorry, but I’ll be turning the tv off the minute heroes is done; because nothing and no one will ever give me back the time i lost trying to watch studio 60, not even a time traveller.
I’m so tired of people whining about how much time they “lost” trying to pick up Studio 60. (This isn’t just about you, Mozz–you just happened to be the straw that broke this camel’s back.) If you’re all so worried about losing valuable time, try not spending it moaning about TV shows you didn’t get.
Studio 60 just had another NBC personality on last week: Howie Mandel. They plugged Deal or No Deal so hard I almost forgot I was watching a different show. Ugh.
So… I tried watching Studio 60.. again, for the umpteenth time and still.. a dud.
For those who like this show, sorry guys.. I don’t. It’s not like I didn’t like it because others don’t, I really tried to like it but there’s something about that’s just not right with me. We all have different tastes and this is just another example of that. I won’t be wasting my time after Heroes on Studio 60 again.
Not so hard to figure Hiro speaking in his normal voice if you saw his recurring role of Franklin the lab guy on Scrubs.
Sorry to all the Studio 60 haters out there, but the show is improving. A little less preachy, it’s bringing the funny a little more (Christmas skits: 3 Wise Guys)and that great Sorkin dialogue. Glad NBS (oops, C) is sticking with it.
Gotta agree with Rob – St60 is on the way up and is the far superior show. Heroes will burn out and ultimatley disappoint. The crossover potential is tremendous, and don’t kid yourself, Masi Oka can do comedy (long live Franklin on Scrubs) and will be a further boost to what is now hands down the top show on TV. Bravo St60!
I gave S60 a chance last night, and, sorry to all you S60 lovers out there, but it truly sucked. It was *very* preachy last night, referencing websites that attempt to disprove the Nativity.
Note to Sorkin: next time you try to be smug and explain away the beliefs of over a billion people, make sure you avoid referring “The Immaculate Conception” to Jesus, but in actuality is a Catholic reference to Mary. “Immaculate” means clean. “Immaculate Conception” means one who was conceived without sin. To be technical, Adam and Eve were conceived without sin… and yet Adam and Eve made no claims to Divinity. For Catholics who believe Mary to be born without sin, it was only because the weight of carrying God-With-Us was so great that she had to be so.
In short, you meant to say “Incarnation.” That you didn’t, proved yourself to be woefully inadequate in preaching to us.
Also, Heroes truly rocked last night.
So, I’m not really clear… Does the author of this (article? blog post? editorial?) like Studio 60 or not.
Y’know, I thought the point of the writers’ room debunking the Jesus myth was that they were all being jerks, harshing on Matt’s vision of Xmas.
And I think anyone who referenced virginbirthsdebunked.org has a clue about the Immaculate Conception v the Incarnation. Of course, since the Feast of the IC is on Dec. 8, that just makes the episode more timely.
Masi Oka was on Conan recently, and was very personable. He’d be a perfectly cromulent /S/N/L/ S60otSS host.
Kevin
(yes, scarred by a Catholic childhood)
I love both Heroes and Studio 60! While they dont exactly go together, I love the crossover idea. What do the people who dont like Studio 60 watch at 9:00? CSI Miami? David Caruso is like a semi-talking mannequin. Im so glad there is something touching and funny to watch at 9:00. Cant wait for these shows to come back after the holiday!