A Letter to Ryan Murphy

I know, sadly, this blog has been lacking a lot of Glee content. And this post is going to be a little bit of complaining and personal opinions, so don't hate me. I just need to voice it.

Dear Mr. Murphy,

Glee was perfect in the first 13 episodes. I loved it almost as much as I've ever loved any TV show before. I slowly fell in love with the characters of Rachel, Quinn, Finn, Brittany, Puck and Emma. I loved the music too and listened to it repeatedly.

But somethings been missing in the back 9. Story lines have seemed forced. My favorite character, Quinn, barely had any lines. She disappeared. Also, you seemingly kicked Emma to the curb as well. I don't think we've really seen her in an episode for quite some time either. You brought in too many guest stars (whom I love--NPH, Idina Menzel, Kristen Chenowith) but they were given more solos than Quinn, a main star of the show, had during this whole half of this season. I would have loved to see these guys more spread out over the entire series, but they just took over, and I missed my main characters (who are the reason I love the show).

But you did give the show one redeeming thing in the back nine--Jesse St. James (Jonathan Groff). He's what kept me watching. He became like a main character in my mind (and in my heart). But, Mr. Murphy, you didn't use him right. Yes, I realize he had to break Rachel's heart (Mr. Groff will be starring in a musical in London this fall, making his season 2 return improbable). But why does Jesse St. James go from this character who admits that he has feelings for Rachel in one episode (Dream On) and then up and leave for Vocal Adrenaline claiming he's been done wrong and no longer loves her two episodes later in Funk? Something felt like it was missing: it shouldn't have gone from him telling Shelby he has feeling for her to that he didn't belong in New Directions and it wasn't going to work out. It felt like a scene was cut--or even worse--the writers did some seriously sloppy writing. We should've seen the McKinley High kids being meaner to him. We should have seen Rachel and Jesse interact before things completely fell apart or how they fell apart. (Also--did the "Here's what you missed on Glee" thing say something about how Jesse and Rachel had broken up or was that just me hearing things?) This sudden breaking of Rachel's heart just happened so you could nicely tie up the season finale bow of Finchel. It wasn't right.

So you may have finally gave us Quinn lovers some Quinn in Funk, but you took away our St. Berry. And not kindly, might I add. I'm not sure I can keep watching Glee unless it starts to shape up better. Especially given the numerous ill-sounding rumors you've put out about season 2, which I don't even want to get into.

So, what will it be, Mr. Murphy?

Please stop ruining Glee.

Community Wrapup

This is a guest post brought to you by Joe. Check out his blogs On Repeat and Pizza Prospects.


By far the show I was most fond of this season, or maybe any season ever (1), was NBC’s underdog/fanart-stimulator/Soup -host-vehicle/Channel 101-mastermind-masterminded/community-college-set Community. In 09-10, while most people were getting too-involved with the conclusion of Lost (2), I was trying to figure out how to make .gif files so I could join in all the fun people were having with the Community ensemble on Tumblr and Livejournal (3). Speaking really broadly: I liked the show a lot and I think it worked on a whole lot of levels.

(More specific now!) The show sometimes gave me butterflies and I think its first season excelled because it featured: a great ensemble led by a fairly-recognizable anti-Seacrest who is able to make my DAD laugh; an exaggerated but accurate portrayal of a few aspects of college that haven’t yet been beaten into a desk (classroom puns!); inter-character chemistry that became a shipper’s dream; fans that (I think probably) mostly experienced and expressed love for the show on the web; the Dan Harmon that listened to those fans; and Alison Brie.

A laundry list of stray observations that are related to most of the laundry-listed reasons above, written both now and over the course of the season:

Nailing “It”

Community has, in perfect, realistic amounts, been nailing aspects of college that nothing else has nailed. Last week (episode 121, "Contemporary American Poultry,") it was chicken fingers... or rather the fetishization of edible cafeteria food. This week (episode 122, "The Art of Discourse,") it goes a step further/deeper and examines the inner-clique tensions that rise towards the end of the school term. I don't know about you but when the semester starts reaching its end, I notice, plainly, people getting sick of each other. I'm obviously not exempt. And in that same episode, Community acknowledged that a lot of times you have to stoop down to the level of annoying high schoolers and how hard that can be. “You have to bang his mom!” Britta Perry exclaims.

Abed

I like that the writers don't overdo it with Abed. I think Abed is two things: a TV character with Asperger's and great meta-commentary on how everyone wishes their life was more like a TV show and will go to distant ends to make that a reality. It would have been really easy to: have the entire character (and maybe even entire show) revolve around the fact of Abed's Asperger's... the entire show would devolve into jokes about his "social awkwardness" (in most college lecture halls and conversations, being "socially awkward" is considered a disease unto its own) and Abed's storylines would be centered around trying to get him to assimilate into, like, normal society or whatever, and the lessons it would teach would be "it's OK to be different!" (Which it is, and I don't have a problem with that being "a lesson that is often taught," but it would get tired.) Also it would be really easy to have each episode be some amalgam of sitcom tropes and Abed would sort of ground the whole thing by calling everyone out on it. This is something the show does do a lot but not to excess. Abed isn't a crutch the show leans on... he really is like some kind of commentator keeping each character in check. In that way he works to the show's total advantage. Just as the audience is catching on, saying to each other "Hey this is just a riff on _________," Abed steps in and calls everyone out on it.

Comedic “Synergy”

Sometime midseason, Community hit on a new weirdness that utilized actors’ ability to do physical comedy and tempered that with their great dialogue/chemistry. I think it created comedic “synergy” that carried it through the rest of the season. Moments like Britta being hit with a switch by Troy’s grandma didn’t make viewers uncomfortable like they probably should have.  We were just delighted that Troy and Britta were getting an episode together and it was working out nicely.

______/______

And in keeping with that _____/______ episode thing, here is a listicle of different combo episodes in order of how well they worked, least to most. Actually they all worked surprisingly well and without feeling forced. What do we owe that to? Dan Harmon seems like a really great guy to work for, for one. Also, none of these people were exactly stars going into the show. Alison and Joel and Yvette have shows on now that reach a medium sized but demographically particular audience (4). Chevy Chase, probably the biggest “star” of the lot, hasn’t had a big role in years though was likely responsible, along with Joel, for a bulk of the shows early viewers. I doubt there was much ego-butting on set.  Judging by their Twitter feeds, the cast seems to be an actual community that gets together pretty often.


-Troy/Abed episodes *

-Jeff/Britta episodes

-Jeff/Annie episodes *

-Jeff/Shirley episodes **

-Jeff/Pierce episodes

-Jeff/Abed episodes

-Britta/Troy episodes

-Britta/Shirley/Annie episodes

-Britta/Shirley episodes

-I think one or two Annie/Abed episodes

-Pierce/Shirley episodes (or maybe just one of those.)

-Pierce/Britta episodes

-Troy/Pierce episodes


Without drawing a chart for you, I think you can gather that these characters all shared functional, laugh-inducing/memorable screen time with each other.

Is this really what you want?

Because of a vocal web, creator Dan Harmon was really in tune with what people wanted out of the show, for better or for worse. Case in point: Jeff and Annie. Up until the debate episode, I thought I was a Jeff/Annie loner (I had yet to really explore the concept of “shipping” but I was a kind of quiet shipper.) Actually, I’m having trouble stringing together dates here. At the start of the season, things were clearly going to be Jeff/Britta. Then, either before or after Debate, I don’t really recall, people started becoming more vocal about Jeff/Annie. This may be post-debate, actually, because I don’t think people really knew what they wanted until they got it. So Harmon teased that nothing was really written in stone and that since people seemed to be into Jeff/Annie, Jeff/Annie might be what we get. Things kind of cooled off for the middle of the season, which was a totally smart move. I’m really glad the writers didn’t get couple-happy; chemistry was milked, slowly. And then, just when things were starting to turn out Jeff/Britta and I was kind of cool with it, we are given Jeff/Annie in the finale. A finale that gave us a little bit of everything, actually. It was definitely a reward for dedicated fans, especially because it was written before NBC ordered more episodes and a second season, and it made my stomach turn with apprehensive “glee” (5). Although it’s thrilling that a well-loved show like Community would recognize those that love it, to me it didn’t really feel like the writers’ finale, didn’t really feel “true.” However, I’ll reiterate: I’m fucking thrillllllled we got to see Alison Brie and Joel McHale make out again. I’ll be back for more.



Footnotes:

1.    Have really avoided getting too attached to a TV show until this season, season 5 of “Lost” aside. However, I have grown too attached to TV shows through DVD rewatches: Veronica Mars, Arrested Development, Radio Free Roscoe etc.

2.    Which I watched, and was often thrilled with, somehow managing to only go on Lostpedia once or twice.

3.    I’m not exactly well-versed in sitcom fandom on the web but it seems like Community has attracted a lot of fans that have shipped and .gif’d at an above average level.

4.    Those willing to subject themselves to the “wow, those sets and their behavior and outfits are really period appropriate!”-borefest that is Mad Men, people willing to get past the contradiction that is a comedian making fresh fun of celebrities on the E network (a contradiction that Joel would be the first person to point out,) and fans of Nickelodeon’s Drake and Josh, respectively.

5.    Glee became a really great in-joke on Harmon’s Twitter feed and in bits of dialogue. You’re pretty much in one camp or the other when it comes to shows about schools filled with
“loveable misfits.”

So I'm Still Completely LOST

Not that I really expected to not be lost after the finale of LOST.

Note: This was my first time watching Lost in about 3 years. I gave up watching long ago when they killed off Charlie. The recap before the finale helped clear up some of the murkiness of what on earth sideways-verse was, but not totally. I get the that in the end, yes, the plane crash did happen (I would have been entirely too upset had it not) and that sideways-verse was kind of the way to allow all of the losties to find each other again and be happy. And I'm glad it ended happy and that I got to see all my favorite characters again like Boone.

But still: I want more explanation of how they traveled forwards and backwards and forwards again. I think a gigantic Lost re-watch is in order.

How did you feel about the Lost finale?

Sorry I've been Gone

But I'm coming back.

When the semester ended I  kind of just put this blog on the back burner and spent a lot of my time watching movies and TV series on DVD (like Veronica Mars) that I had seen a billion times before.

This week I should have a review (not really a recap since I'll likely have not that great idea of what's going on) of the series finale of Lost (which I haven't watched since season 2, but I'm going to work on refreshing myself this weekend), as well as the season finales of HIMYM, NCIS and The Big Bang Theory (two of my new favorite shows) as well as recaps of Glee including this week's Lady Gaga episode.

Enjoy the rest of the week and the weekend!

Twin Beds

Don asked Robin to move in with her—well at first just asked her to move in on the couch, but then asked her to move in after Robin got confused. As the group discussed this, Ted mentioned he wants Robin out because she leaves empty cartons of milk in the fridge to remind herself to buy more milk.

Don learned that Barney and Robin had dated and that Ted and Robin dated. Don thought Ted was gay—which may have happened because Ted watches Project Runway and is following Cher on tour. Lily spilled the secret, that’s not a surprise. Don is iffy about their relationship. Don leaves the bar. Later he comes back and admits to being a total drama queen, asking Ted if that’s offensive.

Barney decides he must have Robin back. Ted suspects its like a little kid who throws away a toy but wants it back when another kid has it. Ted tells him about the letters he writes a letter to remind himself why not to get back together with ex-girlfriends. He made Barney write one when they broke up, and he brings out that letter when Barney thinks about that, but its mostly about boobs, and only makes Barney want her more.

Lily and Marshall went on vacation and wanted to complain that they had twin beds, but ended up sleeping the whole time. They struggled at home when they had to share a bed again, so they agree to get a mini fridge (random, but funny) and separate beds.

They get separate beds, but plan on getting another bed to just be a sex bed, and a beanbag for special birthday activities.

Don also thought twin beds were a good idea to have like Lily and Marshall, but they made him and his ex-wife grow apart, and he says he’ll get a king size bed if Robin movies in.

Lily is worried the same thing that happened to Don will happen to them, but Marshall still likes the idea because Lily kicks and is a thousand degrees.

Marshall kicks Lily out of his bed, but they end up in the same bed before morning.

Don likes the empty container reminder, so when Barney eats wasabi to impress Robin because Don loves spicy stuff, there’s nothing to help him feel better because they’re out of milk.

Ted looks at letters that mention how he stole the blue French horn but Robin didn’t want a serious relationship so she wasn’t right, but also learns he wants Robin back. So they decide to hold a calm, rational discussion about who deserves her more, but it results in them yelling at each other, but ultimately determining they have to get rid of Don figuratively. Then Barney suggests they literally get rid of him, and begin to worry they are becoming killers.

Barneys says he’ll take her until she’s forty, then Ted can have her. Barney runs to the bathroom, and both guys call Robin at the same time, very drunk. Barney beats Ted up. Barney says he has to get out there before something bad happens, and they both run to Robin’s. Ted brings the blue French horn, and Barney claims Ted is just holding it for them. Don is there. Don and Robin have to go to work, but he suggests the two boys just sit and watch TV until the get back, but Robin sees it as him putting two kids to sleep in their beds, leaving the viewer to think this is going to make Robin dislike Don, but that isn’t the case.

Ted and Barney wake up in Don’s twin beds. They say they just want to make Don feel part of the group. But Robin says she can’t hang out with her ex-boyfriends, so she’s moving in with Don and distancing herself. Ted decides they can’t do something like this again.

Ted finds an empty container of milk in the fridge, but Robin has moved out, but the blue French horn is still there.

My promise to be a better blogger

I know I've missed a lot of recaps, but I promise, once this semester is over (and trust me, it's fast approaching) I'll be a better blogger and I'll post more often. I will.

But coming up tonight I will have a recap (as asked for!) and a review of the second last episode of this season of How I Met Your Mother.


What I want to know is, what TV shows would you like to see me feature over the summer? Although the summer is historically sparse on the options for television, there are always plenty of DVDs and online episodes to catch up on. Plus, I promise to check out anything you suggest at least once!

A couple of things...

Finals and the usual end of the year stuff has kind of prevented me from posting here. That, and with HIMYM being repeats and Glee not holding my interest all that well (I'm still into it, I just haven't been crazy about it like I normally have been). I've been watching a lot of Everwood lately, and I'll probably do a post about it sooner or later.

I've also be spending a lot of my time on tumblr as well. Here's a link to mine: http://kristengilmore.tumblr.com/ Please post or send me a link to yours if you have one so I can start following you!

Also, if your interested in the VMars rewatch, remember that it starts tomorrow! Information about it is here: http://community.livejournal.com/vmarsrewind/ and your welcome whether you've ever seen Veronica Mars or not.