Results tagged “TV”

Because we couldn’t get the cast of New Moon (in theaters November 20th) on Suvudu, we decided to do the next-best thing and devote the next three Mondays to our current, favorite vampires.

Today’s feature is all about The Vampire Diaries. We had to limit ourselves to just 10, but there are endless reasons why we love The Vampire Diaries. Feel free to add your own reasons.

10. It’s on the CW and therefore accessible to those without HBO (sorry, True Blood).

9. It stars improbably beautiful people in high school, who seemingly never attend class.

8. Gotta love the overly-naïve townies who camp out in creepy, mist-ridden woods that are obviously home to vampires.

7. There’s always fog. Everywhere.

(credit: TV Guide)

6. And black ravens.

5. Damon Salvatore: seriously, how many good guys have you met named Damon?


(credit: TV Fanatic)

4. You don’t have to reside in abysmal Forks, Washington in order to live openly as a vampire. You just wear a really cool ring to keep your secret safe.

3. Because we truly believe in Elena and Stefan’s love.

(credit: Unreality Shout)

2. Superhot Stefan Salvatore: Paul Wesley

(credit: Snarky Two-Shoes)

And the #1 reason why we love The Vampire Diaries…

Steamy, vampire-human love connections. Need we say more?

Because we couldn’t get the cast of New Moon (in theaters November 20th) on Suvudu, we decided to do the next-best thing and devote the next three Mondays to our current, favorite vampires.

Today’s feature is all about True Blood. Feel free to add your reasons. We had to limit ourselves to 10 but there are endless reasons why we love True Blood.

10. It’s chock-full of supernatural creatures, including, but not limited to: vampires (duh) shape-shifters, maenads, and telepaths.

9. The fabulous Lafayette. LGBT friendly. Only on HBO.

(credit: The Costumer)

8. Gotta love a southern accent, especially on a vampire.

7. Generally, synthetic blood is underused and underrated and it’s an excellent alternative to the ketchup-like crap you usually see on other vampire shows.

(credit: Hollywood Hills)

6. Unlike most shows, season two is actually better than season one.

5. Major cliffhanger endings that make you feel like you’re going to die, literally, if you don’t catch the next episode.

4. We love that Todd Lowe’s prior television role was on Gilmore Girls and now he’s on a bad-ass vampire show on HBO.

(credit: Fandomania)

3. Because we truly believe in Bill and Sookie’s love.

(credit: Bloody Good Horror)

2. Superhot Swede: Alexander Skarsgård.

(credit: Stay Frosty)

And the #1 reason why we love True Blood…

Steamy, vampire-human love connections. Need we say more?

What better way to celebrate Halloween than looking back at 20 years of Halloween episodes from The Simpsons? Let’s face it — watching sex-crazed teens get butchered is always a blast (thank you, John Carpenter), but sometimes you need something more! So let’s take a look at our favorite ten segments of The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror” episodes.

Let’s get the ball rolling, starting with #10….

#10: Nightmare Cafeteria (ToH V)
One of the sickest Treehouse segments is a twisted riff on “Soylent Green” with the school finding misbehaving children to be the best source of meat for the cafeteria. And the “Chorus Line” song and dance number at the end remains a classic (“The family dog is eyeing Bart’s intestine….”).

Key Dialogue:
Lisa: Bart, does it strike you as odd that Uter disappeared and suddenly they’re serving us this mysterious food called “Uterbraten”?

And what a shame it is, seeing as how last week’s episode, “Belonging,” was the best yet of the second season. Above you’ll find a preview for the episode - I’d highly recommend going over to Hulu to watch the full episode. Plus SUMMER GLAU (from Firefly & The Sarah Connor Chronicles) is joining the cast this week!

But I digress. No new Dollhouse until December, when they’ll be airing two new episodes each Friday. Why? Because November is a sweeps month, which means Fox needs high viewership numbers in order to charge high ad rates. I just think it’s a darn, outdated shame.

Now, I’m certainly no expert to what goes on behind the scenes in the TV studios, but it’s obvious that Americans are increasingly watching TV on their own time. There’s been a spate of media coverage about how DVR & online viewership has been increasing - accounting for as much as 37% of a show’s total viewership (that 37% is actually the number for Dollhouse - not surprising). I sincerely hope that the overall viewership number is taken into account when determining ad rates, otherwise cult shows like Dollhouse are not getting a fair shake.

In any case, US fans aren’t too happy. Especially because it appears right now that over in the UK, Dollhouse episodes are going to keep airing on their regular schedule, which means that UK fans are going to see episodes before us!

Anyone else still watching Dollhouse?

It is one of the burdens of my life that I am a fan of the Detroit Tigers.

This isn’t nearly as bad as being, say a Chicago Cubs fan, but it does mean my season came to a rather abrupt end on Monday.

It also means I’m scrounging around for something to watch.

I don’t have a lot of time for TV in my life. Between the writing and the seven-year-old and wanting to spend a little time talking with the DH (Darling Husband), there isn’t a lot left over. And in the baseball season, I watch baseball, which I like to think of as the ultimate in Reality TV (although with steroids and all we could debate the reality part) and competitive cooking shows, which are an embarassing private vice that we need never mention again.

But I do like TV (as you can maybe tell from my last post on The Twilight Zone). I like dramas and mysteries and SF. Comedies, not so much anymore because they seem to have gotten very mean spirited. But I’m stuck this season as to finding something NEW to watch. Bones has jumped the shark past David Boreanez’s ability to salvage. Torchwood looks to be heading down a similar path. I’m wary of the new Dr. Who. I tried “Glee” because I adore musicals, but couldn’t get past the first 15 minutes and a lot of new dramatic TV, if you’re not watching every episode from the get-go (something even with DVRs I rarely get to do) you can’t follow the plot and as the baseball season ends some weeks after the new TV season begins, which kind of leaves me at a disadvantage.

So. What are you watching? What are you enjoying? What’s worth checking out this season, and more importantly, what can I get started on several weeks in?

Finally, Summer is ending. My apologies to those of you who relish and enjoy the season, but I’m excited for it to be over. There’s just too much to be excited about for the Fall.

Now, I’m jaded. I’ll admit I prefer Fall to Summer in every way. The weather, the colors, the smells*, the food (sure, you can make chili in summertime, but why would you?), the ability to wear sweaters. And Fall is when everything picks up again. Books, movies, television, events, we’re about to face another flood of them. Here’s some of what I’m looking forward to as we hike into the last few months of 2009.

Books

Death Troopers by Joe Schreiber (October)
(Click here for more details)

I’ll come clean. I’m a horror fan from nearly as far back as I can remember. To clarify, I’m a fan of horror fiction (I can’t do the movies though). Back in my high school days** as I was being barraged by reading assignments covering the Romantic poetry movement, or and endless array of long drawn out works, I nearly lost my interest in reading. Then I found Stephen King. It didn’t take long until I was raiding the county library and buying up paperbacks from genre racks near and far. But it was that first book, Tommyknockers that really gripped me. It intertwined horror and science fiction to make the story, equal parts Eureka and They Live, if you’re interested.

Well, Joe Schreiber will be taking horror to the Star Wars universe this fall and I’m excited to return to that particular part of the genre melting pot again. Schreiber is a writer who can turn a terse phrase and scare you with things happening on this world. I wonder (oh, how I do wonder), what he’s thought up for Death Troopers. We know there’s zombies. We know there’s Storm Troopers. But what happens when the two get together in deep space? Like you, I’ll find out next month. I can’t wait.

The Devil’s Alphabet by Daryl Gregory (November)
(Click here for more details)

His debut novel, Pandemonium, is the type of book you read and think, “Horsefeathers! This isn’t his first book!” Well, here he is again and I’m hoping for a similar ride. The brilliance of that first book, and what has me excited in the set up for this book, is that Gregory creates a world that is so very, very similar to ours. He just tweaks one thing here or there to set the stage and then his characters come forward and it isn’t long before you’re sucked in to the story, all sense of time gone, all hope of sleep abandoned as you push on for just one more page, just one more chapter.

That’s the kind of writer Daryl Gregory is. In this book, we come to a town that has been decimated by a mysterious virus. The virus has killed off a substantial portion of the population, mutated others, and occasionally left some residents alone. Or so it seems. Returning to this town is Paxton Abel Martin, who fled when he was 14 and the virus was raging at full tilt and fled town shortly thereafter. Paxton appears to be fine, but is he?

Here’s a bit from the book’s description that hooked me and vaulted this book to one of the highest spots on my Must Read list for 2009:

Having fled shortly after the pandemic, Pax now returns to Switchcreek fifteen years later, following the suicide of Jo Lynn. What he finds is a town seething with secrets, among which murder may well be numbered. But there are even darker-and far weirder-mysteries hiding below the surface that will threaten not only Pax’s future but the future of the whole human race.

Mmmmm…a town with mutants and deep-dark secrets. Sign. Me. Up!

Read on for a few TV shows worth watching (or Hulu-ing) this Fall as well as a couple movies I’m looking forward to.

(Sneak Peek of FlashForward, source: YouTube)

There’s another Paley Fall TV Preview Party coming up - tomorrow! See the season premieres of Hank, The Middle, Flash Forward, Modern Family, and Cougar Town before they air, for free! What could be better? Oh, and they have cushy seats and a nice big theater screen too. Boom, Wednesday night plans are DONE.

RSVP by emailing specialevents@paleycenter.org and telling them you want in for the ABC screening.

The Paley Center is located at 25 W. 52nd St (between 5th and 6th Avenues) in New York.

This ain’t exactly bookish or even SF, but it is something cool (and free) starting tonight in NYC. The Paley Center in New York (25 West 52 Street ) is hosting a week of free screenings — early glimpses of some of this fall’s biggest new shows — and you’re invited!

September 8, 2009
Free screenings at 6:30 pm: Glee, The Cleveland Show, and Brothers

September 10, 2009
Free screenings at 6:30 pm: Community, Trauma, and Mercy

September 11, 2009
Free screenings at 6:30 pm: Medium, Three Rivers, The Good Wife, and Accidentally on Purpose

September 14, 2009
Free screenings at 6:30 pm: Melrose Place and The Vampire Diaries

September 16, 2009
Free screenings at 6:30 pm: Hank, The Middle, Flash Forward, Modern Family, and Cougar Town

Interested? Want to go? Want to learn more? Get all the details at http://www.paleycenter.org/paleyfest-fall-2009-tv-preview-parties-ny!

I know - not Glee again! Blah blah blah that’s all Christine can talk about. Well, there’s a reason for it, and it’s staring at you in the face up above. Watch it. Let me know if you love it, and we can Gleek out together.

Aired last night on Fox. Season premiere is 9/9 on Fox.

Glee

Okay, so hear me out. I know you’re thinking, how the heck does a show about choir fit in with Suvudu? Well, I could try and make some totally far-fetched connection like, oh, the kids on Glee are nerds and Suvudu is a nerd-friendly site and maybe some of the kids even like to read sci-fi/fantasy, who knows, right?

Or, I could just say that this show is just plain good. And you should trust me and give it a shot. That’s not enough? How about this - in the 1st episode they aired all the way back in May, the kids band together at the end (after many a trial) and sing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” in a scene that I have watched approximately 6 times since. That’s right. But who knows. Maybe you’re someone who hates the inspirational, joyous sound of voices blending together in perfect harmony. Maybe you’re a little dead inside. Then this show’s probably not for you.

Premieres 9/9 on Fox, 9/8c

More tv shows after the jump…

Quick - were you watching Supernatural last night? If so, why don’t you send us a quick “here’s what went down at the end” message? We’re giving away a grand prize featuring Supernatural Season Companion Guides for each of the first three season. We’ll also be drawing two second place winners who’ll receive one copy of the Supernatural Season Three Companion book.

The live event, in so much as we can call it “live,” was last night. Now you’re going to have to turn to your DVR (or your friend’s DVR) to watch. You have till Monday to complete this assignment for a chance at free stuff.

Just a thought. Here’s the legal: Official Rules.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled Friday, already in progress.

Have you seen Supernatural?

If you have, then you’re likely a fan; if you haven’t, then what better time to get in on the show than when you could also win free stuff? So here’s the deal, all you need to do is watch tonight’s episode of Supernatural (“The Monster at the End of This Book”) and summarize the ending for us. Send your summary of the ending to info@suvudu and you’ll be entered to win.

And win what?

We’ll have one Grand Prize Winner who will walk away with Supernatural Season Companion Guides* for each of the first three season. We’ll also be drawing two second place winners who’ll receive one copy of the Supernatural Season Three Companion book.

Now, because we live in a crazy digital age, we know that you might DVR this episode to watch this weekend. Hey, we’re cool with that. So we’re giving you to the end of Monday (April 6) to send in your summary. So you can watch it live, watch it on DVR, watch it online. It’s up to you!

Books and TV, it’s like an entertainment smorgasbord and we’re serving up a combo hotter than bacon and eggs**! Come ‘an get it!

As always, you can also check out the legalese here: Official Rules

So in case you haven’t heard yet or if you’re like me and are consistently the last person to hear about these kinds of things, then you’ll be interested to hear that the Sci Fi Channel is about to update it’s name. And that update? Well….

Ta Da! It’s still pronounced the same way, but this new funk-tastic spelling pays homage to the other half of the channel’s programming. Want my opinion on the matter*? I like it. Aw heck, throw me on the bandwagon with an official looking purple shirt - I love it! I’ve been hoping that something like this would happen for a little while now.

In recent years we’ve seen a heavier listing of regular science fiction shows, such as the all-world favorite Battlestar Galactica, the long running Stargate series, and my personal favorite show, Eureka. However, the channel has also been the home to many fun fantasy shows and original movies like Sanctuary, Dead Like Me (originally from Showtime), and Moonlight. And finally, lest you think I’m leaving it out, the Dr. Who franchise that skirts the boundaries of both science fiction and fantasy.

So yeah, I love the change. But what do you think? There’s plenty of time to sound off on it as the change won’t take place until July, according to the Syfy website (still found at scifi.com). Of course, that’s not going to stop me from being an early adapter of the new name. As far as I’m concerned, it’s Syfy from here on out. Slick rebranding, Syfy; I’m with ya all the way!

You can read the Syfy Channel’s official press release HERE.

ABC has announced a pilot commitment to DC’s “Fables” comic book series. It’s being written by “Six Degrees” creators/executive producers Stu Zicherman and Raven Metzner. So far they’re keeping pretty mum about which characters will make an appearance, except for Bigby Wolf and Snow White.

Even as a reader who was recently introduced to the Fables series (of course, I was also an immediate fan - fairy tale characters living in the modern world? Sign me up!), I’m extremely nervous about this. What fan wouldn’t be? For one, the television series will have to tango with the FCC, which means none of the fun, risque stuff from the comic books. For another, can any actors really match up with six-years’-worth of fans’ imagination?

I am glad, however, that it’s being done on television, which allows more room for the story to breathe. Also glad that this will possibly introduce millions to the wonderful series. So it isn’t all bad.

Who would you cast? For reasons most likely related to Wolverine, I’m seeing Hugh Jackman as Bigby Wolf. As for everyone else, I’m hoping for some unknowns.

ABC to bring DC’s ‘Fables’ alive (The Hollywood Reporter)

That’s right, Gargoyles. How many ways can one love this low-budget, made-for-TV, schlocky-and-yet-really-frickin’-badass horror film? Here are my top five:

1. It has Gargoyles, quite possibly the most underused creature in all of folklore next to the Chupacabra and the Jersey Devil. How often in your life do you get to say, “I saw the coolest Gargoyle movie today”? Fair Warning: I already have my agent selling rights to the Jersey Devil script. It involves the devil just sort of hanging out at 7-Eleven wondering if he should go to the mall or not. I’m hoping Greg Nicotero will sign on for makeup FX gig.

2. Stan Winston (creator of the most iconic, non-computer generated creatures ever committed to film, literally) did the makeup effects and design for the gargoyles. Even though the paper-mache wings are laughable, for a 1970s TV movie, Winston’s Gargoyle makeup is pretty damn cool. Think the Sleestak’s from Land of the Lost, only evil. Hell, it even won an Emmy for special effects. Who knew the Emmy’s had an award for special effects? The guys from Rod Serling’s Night Gallery must have been ticked off.

3. Bernie Casey as the lead Gargoyle. That’s right, U.N. Jefferson. Nothing more needs to be said about that.

4. The worst use of a voice harmonizer ever with the possible exception of Parliament’s “Sir Nose d’Voidoffunk”.

5. A plea for educational opportunities for Gargoylian kind. In this election season, who can’t get with that?

Here are a few snippets…

I’m back! Production on The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia has kept me away the past few months…but that doesn’t mean it’s been all work and no play. To find out what’s been fueling my geek motor lately just jump…

I know this is blasphemy, but as amazing as the original “Twilight Zone” series was (and it is absolutely brilliant), I actually think the first season of the 1980s edition tops it. Now admittedly, I’m not talking about the 2nd or 3rd season, when the show underwent a dramatic shift both in format and style (30 minutes, and ultimately moved off of CBS to syndication). But that first season, available on DVD, remains the best genre anthology series ever created. Featuring a stunning array of directors, actors, and screenwriters (some basing their episodes on terrific short stories) coupled with the free-form format that allowed stories to be as long as they needed to be — five minutes, 20 minutes, a full hour, etc. — it came together to be sheer genre bliss.

See your guide to the best episodes after the jump….

With New York’s Fashion Week just around the corner, it’s time to take a closer look at science fiction and fantasy fashion, long unfairly maligned as an unreclaimable wasteland of silver lame unitards and zippered monster suits. But I would argue that, at its best, it can serve as the fictional equivalent of a haute couture laboratory, in which the fashion of the future—and of our dreams—can be brought to life.

1. Jane Fonda in Barbarella

I must begin with Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy, in which outer space is imagined as a fur-lined, groovetastic after-hours lounge where Stereolab is always on the turntable. This film is the Retro Style Bible, more sixties than the real sixties could ever have been. And though Barbarella may be better known for slipping out of her fabulous outfits than wearing them, Jane Fonda’s good humor and intelligence in this role are the perfect accessories for this awesomely bizarre spider-monkey dress.

More after the jump!

More was going on in San Diego last week than just Comic-Con! Here’s Del Rey author Marc Paoletti talking to Good Morning San Diego about his recent debut THE LAST VAMPIRE (with Patricia Rosemoor), the writing process, and his past career as a cinema pyrotechnician: yes, the person who blows stuff up for the movies.

Click-through after the jump -

Dispatches from the editorial jungle, while my esteemed colleagues are off in San Diego.

These great posters have been around New York for quite a while. They’re advertisements for the upcoming HBO series True Blood, based on Charlaine Harris’ wonderful Sookie Stackhouse series. But as of May 21st, the folks at HBO/Campfire were waging a fiendishly clever directed campaign: