Archive: January 2010 (261-270 of 461)

Jan 15 2010 07:50 AM ET

'Community' recap: Jack Black attacks!

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Filed under: About Last Night, Community and tagged: , ,

Welcome back, class! Hope 2010 (Two thousand and ten, not twenty-ten, right?) has been treating you splendidly so far, which, unfortunately, was not the case with Community‘s first mid-season episode. Like the college student who’s returned from winter break and suddenly has to wake up before noon again, the show seemed to be in a bit of a fog. To me, it was going through the motions without complete conviction, and it introduced a comedy tradition that it honestly didn’t need — the big celebrity guest star.

Jack Black frequently straddles the thin line between genius (School of Rock) and annoyance (nearly everything since School of Rock), and as the study group’s newest member, Buddy, he most definitely crossed that line. I would have cherished a Jack Black who played someone other than a Jack Black caricature. Alas, we received exactly what we expected. And then Owen Wilson materialized for 30 seconds (Black and Wilson costarred in Heat Vision and Jack, a 1999 pilot episode written and produced by Community creator Dan Harmon). It was a pleasant surprise to see Wilson — he’s been lying low the last couple of years — as the ringleader of the “cool” Español study group. But the actor was given nothing compelling to do; it was as if the writers thought his mere cameo presence would be enough to get us through the scene.

Yet even at its worst, Community manages to sprinkle in enough jokes to make the whole thing worth consuming. As proof, last night’s best gags are after the jump: READ FULL STORY »

Jan 15 2010 07:10 AM ET

'Parks and Recreation' recap: Will Arnett can see your insides

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Filed under: About Last Night, Television and tagged: , , ,

parks-and-rec Remember the comedic gold that was Brad Pitt on Friends in 2001′s Thanksgiving episode? Well, last night another real-life couple shared the small screen with hilarious results when Will Arnett played Leslie Knope’s blind date on Parks and Recreation.

Leslie, looking to get back into the dating world, asked Ann to set her up with a man. Despite having shared a spark with Ann’s lawyer friend Justin (guest star Justin Theroux), Leslie ends up getting paired with MRI technician Chris (Arnett). Their date was the best worst first date I’d seen on TV in a while, but more on that in a bit. READ FULL STORY »

Jan 15 2010 01:28 AM ET

'Ugly Betty' Bites: 16 killer lines from Wednesday's episode, 'Back in Her Place'!

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Filed under: About Last Night, Mini TV Watch, Television and tagged: , , , , ,

Sorry for the delay with this week’s Ugly Betty Bites, PopWatchers, but I had DVR troubles last night and had to watch online tonight instead. Ugh, I know! Anyway, besides loving 16 great lines (below) from Wednesday night’s episode of Ugly Betty (which gloriously featured man meat Grant Bowler, shirtless, at left!), my big question is: Now that Matt is out of the picture (at least for the time being), is there a chance that Henry can make his return? Let’s hope so! I miss Chris Gorham. Anyway, without further, enjoy the best quips from Wednesday’s episode:

“Audrey Hepburn, she’s so boring—I hated at Breakfast at Tiffany’s. But if you tell one gay person I said that, I will deny it. I will!” —Marc, after Betty says that she was fascinated by Audrey Hepburn’s biography

“Betty Suarez—keeping the dream alive for hookers with hammertoe!” —Marc, after Betty gets an assignment on high heels for Mode

“I’m sorry, I’m working like an 8-year-old seamstress here, trying to turn this magazine around. I don’t have time to replace him now!” —Wilhelmina, on why she needs Marc to come back and be her assistant

“I no longer feel betrayed by you—that’s compensation enough!” —Marc, after asking whether he’ll be compensated for doing extra work as both Daniel and Willy’s assistant

“You’re not paid for your voice. You’re paid to imitate mine!” —Wilhelmina, after Betty wants to change her assignment on high heels

READ FULL STORY »

Jan 14 2010 07:51 PM ET

'Project Runway' premiere: Are you in?

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Filed under: Reality TV and tagged: , ,

The seventh season of Project Runway begins at 10 ET/PT on Lifetime — and they’re offering it in HD now, so take advantage of that if you can, fancypants. I know I will. I’m almost as excited to watch Runway in HD as Heidi the wild leopard and her friend Tim the silver fox are to be back in New York City. Finally, right? The concept and physical presence of Tim Gunn simply makes more sense when he’s in front of a skyline. Look at him, clasping his hands with pride in his natural habitat of steel and gray. He’s really making that blue tarp work, too.

Are you in it to win it for the new season, or are you still hesitant to recommit after the lackluster season 6? Chat about tonight’s show here, but be sure to come back later for my TV Watch! I’ll update this post when it’s live. UPDATE: The recap is live! Come read my creepy fan fiction about Anna and why I already can’t stand the drawling Southern lady named Anthony…

Jan 14 2010 06:55 PM ET

'Wall Street 2': A serious appreciation for Michael Douglas' hair

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Filed under: Movies and tagged: ,

I don’t know that I ever truly appreciated Michael Douglas’ gorgeous head of hair as much as I did in Romancing the Stone, until I saw it blowing in his Annie Leibovitz photo shoot for the February issue of Vanity Fair at age 65. Enjoy it in the behind-the-scenes video below. As for Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps, the accompanying article says Douglas’ Gordon Gekko emerges from a 20-year prison sentence looking to redefine himself. Shia LaBeouf plays Jake Moore, a young hedge-funder who dates Gekko’s estranged daughter, Winnie (Carey Mulligan). Gekko tries to help Jake get revenge on his boss, Bretton James (Josh Brolin), who Jake thinks was involved in the murder of his mentor. Douglas vs. Brolin — I like the sound of that mane event.

Jan 14 2010 06:36 PM ET

'Pants on the Ground': Did Larry Platt borrow a riff from Moby?

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Filed under: American Idol and tagged: , ,

I have no desire to take away from Larry Platt’s fearless originality of songcraft during the Atlanta auditions for American Idol. But am I the only one who, upon hearing “Pants on the Ground,” was instantly reminded of the great Moby song “Flower”? The track isn’t nearly as famous as some of Moby’s others, because it was created during the sessions that produced Play but appeared only on the soundtrack for the 2000 Nicolas Cage-Jerry Bruckheimer remake of Gone in 60 Seconds; it’s heard over the film’s opening credits. (It was then released four years later on Play: The B Sides.) Influence or coincidence? You decide.

Here’s Moby’s “Flower”:

…and “Pants on the Ground”:

Jan 14 2010 04:54 PM ET

Clip du jour: Kids reenact 'The Jersey Shore'

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Filed under: Jersey Shore, Reality TV, Those Crazy Kids! and tagged: , , , ,

Just when I thought the Jersey Shore parodies had stopped, here comes one more, this time in gruesome child-o-vision. See you in my nightmares, baby guidettes!

PopWatchers, this is approaching Oompa Loompa levels of freakiness for me. You?

Jan 14 2010 04:19 PM ET

'Army Wives' returns April 11. But what about 'Drop Dead Diva'?

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Filed under: Television and tagged: ,

Lifetime has confirmed that Army Wives will return April 11 with its fourth season. I’ve yet to watch the network’s most popular show, but I am a big fan of Drop Dead Diva. So big, in fact, that now and then I feel like that friend that Annie Potts’ character references in Pretty in Pink: “Once in a while she gets a terrible feeling, like something is missing. She checks her purse and her keys, she counts her kids, she goes crazy. And then she realizes that…nothing is missing. She decided it was side effects from skipping the prom.” But in my case, it’s a direct result of not knowing when DDD will return with season 2. I just checked in with Lifetime (for possibly a second time), and the best they can tell me is “in the summer — exact date tba, but early summer!”

Am I the only one waiting impatiently…?

Photo credit: Delaney: James Bridges/Lifetime, Elliott:Bob Mahoney/Lifetime

Jan 14 2010 03:30 PM ET

Wes Anderson gets animated for awards speech

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Filed under: Movies and tagged: , , , ,

Wes Anderson gets cooler every day. When he won a prize at the National Board of Review this week, he did a stop-motion animation acceptance speech in the style of Fantastic Mr. Fox. It’s a very cute idea, but beyond that I love that in just this short clip he’s using those note-perfect details that made the film so great — like the sunglasses and mobile phone around his neck, that buddy on the left scurrying in with the award, and the showbunny having to guide him off stage. Someone please give Mr. Fox a few more awards so we can see furry friends at awards shows!

Jan 14 2010 03:17 PM ET

Uh oh: SpaghettiOs creator dies

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Filed under: Food and Drink and tagged: , , , , , ,

Donald Goerke, creator of SpaghettiOs, has died of heart failure at 83. R.I.P. to the salty wind beneath the wings of millions of deliciously sludge-y meals, and thank you, sir, for going with the O instead of baseballs or stars. I think that worked out well. Below is a 1986 SpaghettiOs commercial featuring TV’s Urkel, Jaleel White, and a particularly rage-inducing smaller “cherub” with a penchant for mischief. That sing-songy punk thought it’d be cute to yank a tablecloth topped with bowls of piping hot SpaghettiOs onto the floor? In what universe? Who invited him to the family-style dinner sans parents? (Casting director.)

I was always kind of fascinated by the tagline “Uh oh, SpaghettiOs” – it made sense in the “Bloopers!” context of the commercials, but not in my head as I fantasized about the Os themselves. It sounded like whoever was eating SpaghettiOs was disappointed, or that the decision to have SpaghettiOs for dinner had been accidental — neither of which seemed plausible to me. I have two cans in my apartment and will be eating one tonight while watching Will Arnett attempt to woo his real-life lover on Parks and Recreation. Uh oh! Justin Theroux is in the episode, too! (See, it doesn’t make sense.) What about you? PopWatchers, I need to know when is the next time you will be eating SpaghettiOs.

Follow Annie on Twitter: @EWAnnieBarrett

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