The Show Remembers its Title

The show that I refer to is How I Met Your Mother.  I have mentioned before how I started watching it last month and am now obsessed with it.  Because it's great.

It was really hard for me to pick a topic to discuss today.  I am really supposed to be writing about this operation in the Vietnam War in January of 1967, but this is more interesting to me.  All of the other topics I had to talk about were genius brilliance and I still plan on writing about them, so just wait for another entry.  This one can't wait, because pretty soon it won't be news to anyone.

Right now my facebook status is a link to an article on Entertainmentweekly.com that validates that the How I Met Your Mother season finale will reveal who the ellusive mother is.  I know that some people have already seen the link on my facebook.  But I am so excited.  I was so sure in the pilot episode that Robin was going to be the mother.  The show seemed to have forget the premise that Ted (Bob Sagot) was telling his kids the story of how he met their mother, in exchange for a more fun plotline, telling the story of Ted and his ridiculous friends.  While I love all of the storylines, it's seriously exciting that the show remembers its goal.

One thing I was always most impressed with by this show was its ability to remember everything they have said or done in past episodes.  Ted's accidental tramp stamp didn't go unnoticed, nor did his claim to be "vomit-free since '93," or the infamous "slap bet."  It's smart writing and I cant wait to see what they have next.

I Like Lists; Volume 2: Cancelled before I Was Done Edition

I read this Website, Television Without Pity, and a while ago, it made a list of shows that it thought were cancelled too early.  I am sure that countless websites or magazines have made this type of lists, so I figured, with another recent cancellation of a show that I like, that it's time that I make one.  Here it goes...

(warning, I accidentally get really into listing the cast members.  it gets pretty drawn out.  additionally, this is really way too long.  feel free just to skim.)

10.  Pushing Daisies- An obvious choice, but for a good reason.  It was clever, interesting, and had a killer cast.  I loved the coloring and visual effects.  And I still wish that I knew what happened with Ned's dad.  I'm still waiting for the one final episode that is set to air soon.

9.  Related-  I'm really not surprised that this one was cancelled.  It was fairly unknown, with a largely unknown cast and no overtly sexual, mysterious, or funny themes.  But it was cute.  A comedy about four sisters living in New York.  My sisters and I loved it.  But it was bound to meet its end, as it came to The WB, just as it was becoming The CW.

8.  Grosse Pointe- Most people don't remember this show.  Which is really sad, because this comedy about the making of a teen television drama, very similar to 90210 was hilarious.  It starred Big Red from Bring it On, Ross's girlfriend, Mona, from Friends, and this adorable guy, Kyle Howard, who you will recognize from whatever. He was actually on Related also.  Fortunately, my sister bought me the dvds, so I can watch it whenever.  Unfortunately, it ends without the chance to see the start of the romance.

7. Reunion-  Not the greatest show ever, but maybe on of the most attractive casts ever.  I'll explain that after I get a chance to explain the real tragedy behind the cancellation.  It was a mystery.  I have no idea how the mystery ends.  I NEED TO KNOW.  But yeah, it has the cute brother from Brothers and Sisters, the older brother, JJ, from American Dreams, sexy Sean Faris, from Sleepover and Life as We Know It, Meredith's sister, Lexi, from Grey's Anatomy, and Hailey Nichol from The O.C.  I was upset when the show started because it meant the ends of two shows (both on this list) and one character I liked, but I got attached.

6. Off Centre-  I can almost guarantee that no one other than my sisters, myself, and the cast remembers this show.  It was created by the makers of American Pie and starred Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) and John Cho, best known for playing Harold in Harold and Kumar.  It was hilarious.  But I guess no one watched it, so buh bye.

5. Undeclared-  Judd Apatow.  Brilliant.  College comedy.  Only 17 amazing episodes.  It was after Freaks and Geeks, but in typical Judd fashion, it retained a lot of the same cast.  Seth Rogen and Jason Segel came from Freaks and Geeks, some other of the stars came to guest star.  Jason Segel played an insane boyfriend who worked at a copy store.  His girlfriend was played by period blood girl from Superbad (also known as Carla Gallo).  She is in a lot of Judd's work.  So is the lead character, Steven Karp, played by Jay Baruchel.  Love him.  It also had Dawson's Creek's Monica Keena.  She is amazing.  And the beautiful, like beyond beautiful Charlie Hunnam.  And Rufus Wainwright's dad, Loudon Wainwright III.  Singer of "Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road."  I almost cried when the dvd series stopped for this tv show.  Best comedic guest stars I have ever seen on a tv show.

4. Life on Mars-  This is the one that propelled me to write this absurdly long list.  I just read on EW.com that it's being cancelled.  Fortunately, it's getting a proper send off, with a real finale and everything.  I loved this show.  Because I love American history and cities.  And this took place in New York City in the 70s.  But the main character, who is apparently British, came from 2008, so he retained all of the same awareness we have.  I like the crime solvings, and the slow to come mystery of why he is in 1973.  I don't want it to end!

3. Life as We Know It-  Before it came out, people thought it would be the male equivilent of My So-Called Life.  Angsty boys moaning over their families and relationships.  The boys were hot, like really really hot, the dialogue was snappy, and it was partially written by the writers of Freaks and Geeks.  Weirdly enough, Kelly Osbourne was on it.  Some people mocked her for being fat, but her boyfriend and pretty, popular best friends didn't mind the weight.  God, Sean Faris, Chris Lowell, and the non-hot one, Jon Foster.  His brother is Ben Foster, from the hilario movie, Get Over It.  This show really shouldn't have ended.  But it totally predicted the eventual popularity of Snow Patrol.

2. Freaks and Geeks-  An obvious choice.  The obvious choice.  In an era where the only comedies worth seeing are the ones written by Judd Apatow and his gang, there is really no need to even explain.  

1. American Dreams-  Typical American family living in Philly in the 1960s.  It uses culture from the era and real American news to propel it.  It was seriously smart, and seriously entertaining, with weekly musical guest stars appearing as singers from the 60s on American Bandstand.  Brittany Snow (pre Hairspray, John Tucker, and the Lily VDW GG spin-off) starred, alongside a ton of other insanely talented actors.  The show lasted 3 seasons, which is better than the one-season runs of the rest of the list, but the show had so much more it could do.  And what's worse, the music rights from the show make it nearly impossible to put to dvd.  I bought first season after waiting two years for the pricing to drop from $100 to $45.  But I'm still waiting for those next two...

p.s. My So-Called Life was a little too angsty for me.  I'm not that upset it was cancelled.

p.p.s. sorry this was so long.

Living in the Moment

I really don't have anything remotely resembling carpe diem on my mind.  When I say "living in the moment," I really mean my version of living.  Which is watching movies and tv.  Or Sims 2, but that's another story.  Lately I have been watching a lot of period pieces, depicting the different decades in the twentieth century.  I love putting myself in those times, seeing what those eras were really like.  But I guess that watching stuff made in 2009 (and probably before) about the 60s or 70s doesn't really show me what those times were like.  

And in comes Natalie Wood.  Others are soon to come, but right now its about Natalie Wood, the beautiful movie star who died a tragic death long before her time.  Ah the melodrama.  She helped revolutionize the 1950s by costarring in the classic Rebel Without a Cause.  The three stars of the movie all died before the age of 45.  Just mentioning that, because I think that it brings the movie that extra level of awe.  

I don't know why I have never thought to watch old movies to help fulfill my desire to time travel.  I have watched a lot of old movies in my film classes, but it never occurred to me to link them with my history fetish.  I have gotten so hooked on movies about the past, that I have forgot that primary sources are the best resource.  Even though all of my professors stress that fact.  

Oh yes.  Natalie Wood.  In the 40s, she was the adorable child actress from the original Miracle on 34th Street.  I have never seen it.  I am sort of just copying that from all of the stuff I read on IMDb, Wikipedia, and EW.com.  In the 50s, she was the beautiful, rebellious teenager, who slept with the director to get the part.  According to legend, but I think it's true.  In the 60s, she became this cool, groovy, sex icon who starred in the swinger flick Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.  She was Carol.  Ross and Monica's dad was Ted.  His back was incredibly hairy.  I gagged a little.  But these movies take me back to all of the times that I love hearing about and show me the way people dressed, the way they interacted, the way they spoke, and everything that I want to know more about.

I have been watching the show Swingtown lately, which came out last summer, about the sexual revolution during the 70s.  I also watched a little bit of Mad Men, because Entertainment Weekly does not stop raving about it and its sweet take on the ad execs in the 60s.  Both of them are really fun to watch.  Great depictions of those times, but they are so clearly from today.  The way that the shows discuss politicians show that they have seen how those politicians have turned out.  The cool, emaciated teenage chick who dates Kostos/Max loves Carter, because libs are the way to go, especially after Nixon.  The lame ones are the only ones who like the Repubs, because we all know that Hollywood is uber-lib, which I totally don't mind, but it does impact tv. Carrie's politician bf from SATC who wanted her to pee on him, who also dated Grace on Will and Grace and married Gabby before getting killed in a tornado on Desperate Housewives, mentions that Dick Nixon is the way to go, in an obviously ironic way. 

See, the real stuff is better.  No inclination of how things will turn out.  Rebel Without a Cause shows that time for what it was, unaware of the impact that it would have on the following years.  It's so cool to me.  Go watch old movies.  It's the thing to do.  And still, watch Lucy's video.  On youtube or facebook.