swimmyfish

The father of another student in the kid's class is a writer on Gotham. We met actually met him a few episodes ago - he's married to the woman who hosted the party Angie was embarrassed to deliver the groceries to. Why him writing for Gotham is a joke, I can't explain. I unfortunately find myself liking this show less and less as it goes on. Although I think Leighton Meester is doing the best she can, Angie is so erratic and inconsistent. She doesn't make any sense from week to week. And Rory has really gotten on my nerves for the past 3 episodes. I get that all the kids are supposed to be grown-up, but that dating game thing he put together for his mom's date was too over the top, and it really bothered me that the writers of the show would think he was in the right. Like, the whole purpose of dating is supposed to be to get to know the other person and find out what you have in common and how you work together; that they can't answer a bunch of ridiculous questions (oh, excuse me - scenarios) when they haven't spent any time together shouldn't be a sign that they can't be happy together. It should be a sign that the kid needs to mind his own beeswax. And then this week, lying to Will's boss? Unacceptable. Although she at least had the sense to call out Scenarios for the nonsense it is. I would hope that all of this is moving toward some kind of lesson or come-uppance for Rory - and also Poppy, for encouraging this. But this doesn't seem like the kind of show that would do that to one of its characters. And it's not that I think a child being punished makes for a great sitcom plot. But Rory's behavior has moved to a degree that it's not funny to me anymore, and I don't know if I can continue to watch a show where 1/3 of the storylines are this bad. It's a shame, because I really had high hopes for this show. It's overall a strong ensemble, and I do like how the kids have all their different personalities.

A reference to the creepiest episode of Without a Trace AND a shout-out to the General Wayne Inn, all in the same episode? That's why you guys are the best.

For The Good Place, I would have married Tahani - she is certainly a lot, but she has an impeccable home, travels in style, and throws a tasteful party. Plus, she confirmed that Jason, due to his complete lack of awareness of his own ridiculousness, is quite good at sex. So that makes f-ing Mr. Mendoza the most reasonable option. (IMO, of course) Poor Chidi, though.

This is probably a dumb question, but since the Extra Credits are now part of the main podcast, can I unsubscribe from the EHG Minis feed?

In solidarity with Murray, my cat was also *extremely* curious about the source of those ape sounds during the Sally4ever clip.

I really enjoyed the first two episodes of The Conners. I tuned in last week mainly out of curiosity - I didn't watch the revival because of Roseanne's real-life hostility, but I still liked a lot of the characters from the original run. The Conners may not be appointment viewing, but I got the same sense of comfort from the second episode that I get watching re-runs of the original - this new iteration serves the characters very well, and it's nice to see that, despite the hardships they've faced, the family is still sticking by each other.

I think Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee started to sour for me during the Louis CK episode. Not because of I knew anything about the allegations about him way back then, but because he told (what felt like) an incredibly long story about his boat running aground, and I could not for the life of me figure out why I suppose to want to watch two wealthy assholes sit around talking about the challenges of boat ownership. Hooray for Making It being the Winner of the Week! It really is such a charming show; I am excited to see what they do in Season 2.

One of my super-ultra-basic cable stations plays 2 hours of Frasier every week night, and it is really amazing to see how funny that show still is. And one thing in particular that really stands out to me is that, even when Niles & Frasier are the butt of the joke (which they very often are), the show still likes those characters. It's much more gentle than, say, Modern Family, which seems to cycle through completely hating at least one of its characters every episode. Also, slightly off-topic, but right before Frasier comes on there's an episode The Nanny, and it has been very surprising to see the caliber of guest star that show up in the closing credits - Elton John before he was a Sir, most notably. The Nanny pulled, you guys.

I don't think Chase forgot about the coyotes. Renegade, who seems to have a bit of ethics behind her operation, probably would not have agreed to kidnap a human against her will. Additionally, the initial reason Chase wanted to capture Renegade was to send a message to the other coyotes that their smuggling had to stop; that message would have been diluted considerably if there were another coyote out there who could spill about Chase hiring him/her for a kidnapping.

Jian Yang has smoked a few times on previous episodes of Silicon Valley. I don't remember specifically which episode, but he and Erlich went to Laurie for funding, but then lost it when Laurie caught Jian Yang having a celebratory cigarette in the hallway.

I started reading McNamara's book over the weekend in anticipation of this discussion, and so far I'm enjoying it (insofar as one can enjoy reading about gruesome crimes.) I also hadn't heard of the Golden State Killer before, which really is surprising considering how prolific he was. McNamara does, I think, an excellent job of laying out the details of the crimes without being ever becoming sensationalist. She also is very good at reminding the reader of key details and similarities between the many, many, many crimes committed by this man, without it ever seeming repetitive to read. I'm only half way through, but so far I would say it's a very solid account of a complex case. The only negative, and this is more about reaction to the book than the book itself, is that some people seem pretty certain that this book will lead to the case being solved. On the one hand, I think that's a lovely testament to how they felt about the book, but on the other hand, you know, sometimes it just doesn't work that way. I think you guys mention this in the podcast (I've also only had the chance to get about half way through that today too), but with what everything Michelle lays out, it seems highly unlikely that there's just that *one* piece of evidence that needs to be uncovered that will break the whole case wide open. There's a lot of evidence, and this guy, abhorrent as he is/was, also appears to have been very smart. That he has evaded capture this long isn't because the crimes weren't being thoroughly investigated, but because he's been able to escape detection; unless someone in his life reads this account and recognizes him, I don't think he'll ever be caught. That feels like a real down note to end my post on, but I did enjoy both the book and the podcast! I know this is specifically a tv podcast, but if there good book tie-ins to future topics, I'm always happy to get a recommendation.

This episode just played on my local COZI tv station, and Harriet's test ride of the horse is hilarious but also a little concerning. I mean, her daughter *just* got thrown from a horse not even half that spirited - was she not at all concerned that Nellie might really end up paralyzed if she couldn't manage this one?

The Night Man credits are amazing. There's so much that seems to be happening in them, but no indication why any of it matters. Who are those people are? What is their relationship with Night Man? What is up with his red eye in the suit? Why is he so cautious when he's stepping out of the comic book frame? Could he fly a helicopter before he was Night Man? How does an actor deserve an "and" if no one's ever hear of him? I will miss The Littlest Hobo updates, but I need answers.

Honestly, to go through all that just to end up with Jane and Rafael together again is really anticlimactic. Also, Anezka better really be dead this time. And Petra better not impersonate her to get her hotel shares from Lisa.

I love Rosa a lot, but my favorite is when Stephanie Beatriz breaks. She doesn't do it a lot, and she's really good about keeping it hidden, (although it does seem like- maybe because it is so rare - the directors almost go out of their way to make sure to keep it in the shot?). So, in honor of her restrained breaking, I'd have her replace Jimmy Fallon on SNL. And not just in the skits where he broke, because I think her dancing background would play really well in the Barry Gibbs talk show, and I'd love to see the level on anger she'd bring to Fallon's non-speaking role in the "Wish it Was Christmas Today" sketch.

I might vote for an all Rob Lowe Community. The absurd seriousness he brought to The Grinder, as well as the extreme silliness he got to display on Parks & Rec demonstrate a real comedic range that you'd need to be able to cover multiple roles; he's much more belieavable in the 'cute guy' role than Joel McHale; he'd pull off all the Dean's various costumes with an aplomb never granted that character; and, even though he has had a long and successful career in both television and movies, he never acts like he's so much better than everything and everyone around him, like that effing show did. And, on a very shallow note, he'd have to do a lot of running in the various paintball episodes, and I'd like to see that.

I felt like there was something off in the timing of this episode. Not that I love exposition, but it seemed like the set-up for every plot was clumsily rushed through so they could get to what ended up feeling like very manufactured situations. A lot of the jokes were good, but they didn't land as strongly as they could have, IMO. Partly because it also seemed like the audience was laughing in all the wrong places? I wonder if they had to re-cut this a few extra times before it finally aired. As for Leo - I mean, who cares? I like Harry Connick Jr., but it felt like they knew he was available and decided to make room for him, rather than that they'd had a real compelling need to tell a Leo story. It worries me for Vince's return; I thought he was great, and I am afraid what they'll do with him this time around. Favorite joke: Jack checking his neck before deciding not to eat the cookie. Sean Hayes played that really well. I would've liked to see Will at the Princess Di exhibit. I don't feel like we got enough Will this episode.

Man. I know they can't control the news cycle, but this was maybe not the best week to air an episode where real sexual harassment turns out to be all in service of a retirement payout.

I know this was not at all the brief, but as I was listening I decided that I think the best person to take on the Black Dahlia case would be David Simon. He'd handle the old-timey Hollywood aspect competently, but without the rosy-eyed nostalgia I think we might get from Murphy, but also handle the police investigation in a way that really delves into why the case remains unsolved without getting led astray by the many, many conspiracy theories that have grown up in the decades since her death the way that I believe Wolf would.

I believe that Michael tells Eleanor in the very first episode that most artists end up in the Bad Place. Considering the 800+ reboots of Michael's Good Place set-up, we can assume several years have passed since Tahani's death - it's very possible that Kamilah is already in the Bad Place. I don't know if it's on the writer's agenda, but I would really love to see some afterlife interactions between Tahani and Kamilah - especially if part of Kamila's torture is believing that Tahani did indeed get into Good Place.

My only experience with Missing Maura Murray is other properties discussing how insufferable it is. Which actually makes it kind of intriguing, but mostly because of the train-wreck appeal. I mean, I also am not a doctor, but I kind of think they may be crackpots? They are spinning wild yarns out of nothing, yet are fully convinced that they've uncovered the "truth;" they are obsessed with minor details that they believe have major significance; and they have so much attachment to a case that is certainly terrible for the people involved, yet do not recognize that it doesn't involve them in the slightest. Maura Murray is their PizzaGate, and it's very weird.

I was pleasantly surprised by this show in the first season, but I don't feel like this episode really lived up to its full potential. Part of that I think wasn't entirely the show's fault - it had a lot of ground to recover after the very strained Will & Grace premier; I think the zany surrealism of Great News would be a much more natural pairing with the carefully constructed "reality" of The Good Place than with any show set in the actual world. Mostly, though, I don't think that Tina Fey's character is really necessary at this particular point. We're still just getting to know these characters and how they relate to each other. Having them suddenly have to react to this new element isn't that interesting, because it hasn't really been fully established how they react to their 'normal', every day situations. On the other hand, I did think Fey's scene with Carol was an episode highlight - her humor and timing fit in very well with this world. I also didn't really care for Nicole Ritchie's character trying to help Michael Higgins Clark's character. I think Ritchie is fantastic on this show, actually - she is a surprisingly talented comedic actress. But somehow that story for me veered uncomfortably from "today's 'news' is harming our country" to "let's make sure older white guys are comfortable with change." Modern Family is already telling that story, and I'm not more likely to watch it on NBC than ABC. So not an auspicious start to the new season. Hopefully it will right itself over the next few episodes.

I agree that this was mostly a placeholder episode, but I still enjoyed it. It hadn't occurred to me at all that Agent Foster's last name would have been made up and was from her time in the foster system; that was a sad revelation, but I though Nasim Pedrad played it nicely. I also was totally shocked that the game night had anything at all to do with Eric's master plan! Jerry hasn't had a ton to do since he returned from his 'experience', so I'm hoping there's some payoff to his sidelining next week. I also thought Richard's story was handled very nicely. Richard is, I think, a tough character, because he's exactly the kind of kook you'd expect when you imagine someone who claims he's been abducted by aliens, which makes him kind of annoying particularly in a workplace setting. However, the show does a good job of demonstrating that he is a good friend, and it was nice that he recognized that he deserves better than to be the constant butt of his office's humor, even if he is wildly overestimating how far he'll get with a one-time $75K settlement. I didn't even notice Don wasn't in this episode until the end. I really love Don, and I thought the episode was weaker for his absence, but at the same time I don't know how his good-natured bumbling would have fit into the alien's story. Finally, is it weird that I think Jonathon Walsh is my favorite character? I love matter-of-fact he was with Jeff about his feelings for Kurt, and his enthusiasm with Nancy in an earlier episode about being addicted to junk food was great. Michael Cassidy has done a good job, I think, of pivoting from being basically a jerk at the beginning of the series, and I've really enjoyed how his character has progressed. In fact, as upset as I was that Ozzie died, I was more relieved that it wasn't Jonathon.

It's the first or second episode of the series, I think? When Ozzie visits Star Crossed and all the members recount their experiences - it's a flashback shown when Chelsea is talking.

FOR REAL. I mean, I'm sure it's easier to film on a large bus than in a van, but that was distracting.