Archive: September 2009 (111-120 of 437)

Sep 23 2009 02:00 AM ET

'90210' recap: Why we're loving it

Categories: 90210, TV Recap

Three episodes in, we can call it: The new, improved new 90210 may not be Mad Men, but it is officially a fun, fizzy bitchfest of a show. Herein, five things we loved about this week’s episode:

1. The exact right amount of truth-telling. In the first scene, when Dixon was in the principal’s office — a.k.a. his dad’s office — for punching that slimy guy who took Annie’s now-infamous naked picture, and he was being all coy about why he punched the guy, I thought we were in for an episode of let’s-keep-this-from-dad subterfuge and high jinks. Instead, Dixon came out and told Dad, then asked if he could go to lunch already and stop defending himself. Dad agreed. Bravo. READ FULL STORY »

Sep 23 2009 01:00 AM ET

'Melrose Place' recap: The doctor is in (trouble)

melrose-place-grand_l

Things kicked off with David breaking into his dad Michael’s house, getting caught and then changing the subject to accuse his father of murder. That happens all the time at your house, right?

It turns out Michael has a strong motive to kill Sydney — after he helped her fake her own death, the police uncovered her ruse and sent Syd to prison for six years (how about an Sydney-in-Oz spin off!?). On the night of her death, Sydney threatened to expose his part in the plot to the medical board. And we previously learned in the first episode that she had threatened to tell his wife about their affair. So that’s a double motive.

At least Michael has some helpful distractions, such as his thieving son and aspiring doctor/call girl Lauren, who landed herself a spot on Dr. Mancini’s team. He’s already called her ambition “adorable” so it’s only a matter of hours before they are sleeping together. And since this is Melrose Place, only a few hours after that until she’s also sleeping with his son. Heck, why stop there – would a father-son-neighbor threesome be allowed in prime time? READ FULL STORY »

Sep 22 2009 06:57 PM ET

'30 Rock' dream guest star: Paul McCartney or Rob Pattinson?

Only a few more weeks until 30 Rock‘s Oct. 15 premiere. But how in the world can we cope without it until then? By picking some dream guest stars, that’s how! Sure, we’re all lizzing in anticipation for guest spots from the likes of Betty White, but Alec Baldwin told People on Emmy Sunday that he’s hoping a specific star will stop by Jack Donaghy’s office: Paul McCartney.

Awesome choice, no? Baldwin’s daughter, Ireland, disagrees. Instead, Ireland suggests a guest star of her own: Robert Pattinson. So who would we rather see flanked by Grizz and Dot Com? (You know NBC would need TGS‘ hard-working bodyguards for these guest appearances.) A musical legend, or a blood-sucking legend-in-the-making? Here’s what I think: Why not both? After all, these two have plenty in common: They both have — or had — the ability to make lusty teen girls faint, and are, in Mugatu’s words, so hot right now (thanks New Moon and Beatles Rock Band!). And with 30 Rock still needing all the viewers it can get, why not let Team Edward — and straight jacket-wearing members of Beatlemania 2009 — race to the remote?

PopWatchers, make your choice: Would you rather see Paul McCartney or Rob Pattinson guest star on 30 Rock?

Sep 22 2009 06:37 PM ET

Is it cosmically fair that Jesus from 'Big Lebowski' won't get a movie but MacGruber will?

According to MTV Movies Blog, despite John Turturro’s years of insistence that Big Lebowski filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen should pen a spin-off movie for his memorable Jesus character, the brothers don’t see it happening anytime soon. “That movie has more of an enduring fascination for other people than it does for us,” Joel said as he metaphorically stuck a “piece” up loyal Jesus fans’ collective ass and pulled the f–ing trigger ’til it goes…”click.” So, somewhat sad news, but just FYI: a quick perusal of YouTube reveals plenty of DIY versions of “The Big Lebowski Jesus scene” — so many that they’d probably equal a full-length (horrible) film if cobbled together. I also enjoyed the following unofficial music video for Muse’s “Hysteria.”

Just for fun, we want to know if you’d be more likely to watch a Jesus movie than SNL‘s in-production feature film based on the MacGruber sketches. Or! Maybe Hollywood should just combine the two and provide us with a sure-to-be-religious experience: Will Forte Finds Jesus.


Sep 22 2009 05:10 PM ET

'House' season premiere's winners and losers

Categories: About Last Night, House

House-Hugh-Laurie-premiere_lLast night’s two-hour premier of House, “Broken,” was totally unlike other episodes of the series — for better or worse depending on your love of Princeton-Plainsboro. (Our own Ken Tucker didn’t like the change.) Set within the Cuckoo’s Nest of Mayfield Psychiatric Hospital, the ep followed a recuperating but resistant Greg House on the road to mental wellness. Or! Was! He! There were winners, there were losers, and I kept score: READ FULL STORY »

Sep 22 2009 04:01 PM ET

'NCIS: Los Angeles' video: Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool J chemistry definitely growing

NCIS: Los Angeles (premiering tonight at 9 p.m. ET on CBS) is an ensemble drama. But let’s get real: It stars Chris O’Donnell and LL Cool J, and the show’s success is going to depend on their chemistry (at least in the early weeks). If the video below, shot at our Fall TV Preview issue photo shoot, is any indication, the boys are on their way to a beautiful friendship. Note LL’s superior giggle when Chris confesses that he’s still addicted to Survivor (LL prefers The Tudors). Look at Chris, showing more personality than I would have given him credit for and retroactively validating the crush I had on him circa 1995, cracking a joke about how LL’s been blaring the Loggins and Messina. (Click here, LL, to find out who they are).

Are we psyched for NCIS: Los Angeles? (Not sarcasm: I'm DVRing.)

More Fall TV:
14 exclusive shots from our Fall TV Preview issue photo shoots
21 New TV Shows: Which are worth your time?
EW's Fall TV Central

Sep 22 2009 03:02 PM ET

Ellen DeGeneres: 'I think 'American Idol' is ready for its first blond judge'

We have an African-American president and a Hispanic Supreme Court justice, so the next step in the interest of equal-opportunity for positions of national power is clearly to have a blond lady sit next to three dark-haired people and judge a televised karaoke contest. Ellen’s logic does seem infallible here. On today’s Ellen DeGeneres Show, Ellen felt she needed to further explain why she’d be a good American Idol judge: “I have spent my whole life being judged, so I know what it’s like to be judged. I will be an honest judge without being mean.” So if that whole “I’ll be the people’s judge” campaign didn’t speak to you, perhaps “I’ll be a judge who is able to identify with contestants” will. Ellen also got a good-natured dig in at Paula Abdul’s spoof of her dance moves on Thursday’s Vh1 Divas concert. It’s true; I’ve been watching Ellen dance for years and I’ve never once noticed her tap her own ass.


Have any of you changed your minds about Ellen after letting the news roll around your head for a few days, or roughly the amount of time it takes Simon Cowell to complete an eye roll? Personally, I never thought Ellen’s appointment was a bad choice. Michael Slezak disagrees with me (and does so beautifully), but I just don’t happen to take American Idol as seriously as he does and believe there are likely a few (million) Americans out there who approach the show the same way. (I save my ultra-serious critiques for Dancing With the Stars.) Basically, I was surprised when I heard Ellen would judge Idol, but now that I’ve thought about it awhile, I don’t see a problem with having a smart comedian get involved in an ultimately silly show. What about you?

Sep 22 2009 02:48 PM ET

Wii prices drop: What's the best way to spend $200 on games?

Categories: Games, Videogames

wii_lIn recent weeks, both Sony and Microsoft dropped their prices on the PS3 and Xbox 360, respectively, and now Nintendo’s getting in on the price-cutting action by dropping the Wii’s sticker price to $199 from $249. That makes Wii the cheapest — Xbox 360 and PS3 still run $299 — and Nintendo no doubt hopes to revive the console as the it-gift for the holidays this year. (Xbox Arcade is still $199.)

So what is the sweet-spot price for a gaming console? Is the $200 mark it? Can it possibly be, given how successful Wii was at its previous price? Is a Wii better bang for my gaming buck than, say, the $199 8GB iPod touch, or a DSi? Part of me wonders how big a difference that $50 makes over the lifetime of the console, especially if game prices don’t drop, too.

Okay, PopWatchers, given $200 to spend on games, how would you distribute your funds? Buy a Wii? Or a few solid Xbox games? Or dozens and dozens of apps?

Sep 22 2009 01:49 PM ET

Josh Wolk's Pop Culture Club reminder: Watch 'Bored to Death'!

Bored-to-Death-street_lAttention, all Pop Culture Club members: Don’t forget to watch HBO’s neurotic-private-dick comedy Bored to Death so we can discuss it on Thursday, here on Popwatch. If you don’t have HBO, you can still watch the pilot for free on Amazon. (My apologies: turns out that Amazon’s free viewing expired. Well, time to freeload off an HBO subscriber!)

When watching it, keep in mind these talking points:

1) Is this what it would look like if Woody Allen created a sitcom?

2) Is Jason Schwartzman delightful or irritating?

3) Is Ted Danson delightful or delightful? (That’s right, there will be no criticizing Ted Danson under my watch. THE MAN IS A TV GOD!)

See you on Thursday!

PHOTO CREDIT: Paul Schiraldi/HBO

Sep 22 2009 01:26 PM ET

Ricky Gervais should know he can't make Conan O'Brien look ugly

Doesn’t Ricky Gervais realize that dousing Conan with an entire mug of water will only make us reminisce about his sexy “I run like the wind” promos for The Tonight Show?

Okay, so Conan did end up looking kind of gross, but we do love how he’s consistently up for anything. At least the pair didn’t engage in Gervais’ other favorite game, Offal Jim Jim, which involves playing with oneself through the hole of pajama pants, then pulling out “a little bit of skin” and asking the other “player” to guess its origin: “Cock or ball?” Are you so turned-on right now that you’ve just made mental/sexual plans to see Gervais’ film The Invention of Lying on Oct. 2?

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