GRChereck

Just found this nice interview with Forte weighing in on the COVID crisis and some of the things the show sort of predicted about it: https://observer.com/2021/01/will-forte-covid-19-the-last-man-on-earth/ Also, along similar lines, about a year ago the TV Ratings Guide blog posted an interesting analysis of the "Got Milk" episode (it was edited later in the spring and the fall): http://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2020/03/revisiting-last-man-on-earth-in-wake-of.html

One more year-end list -- I thought this was sweet... Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR): 50 Wonderful Things From 2019 :)

Aww... :( Cosmo, who played Pepper in s.2 and 3, passed away earlier this week after complications from surgery: https://tvline.com/2019/12/16/fuller-house-cosmo-dead-dog-dies-surgery-complications/ (Since he was also a regular on Fuller House, I'm guessing that might explain his sporadic appearances in s.3...) Tributes:

Year-end and decade best-of lists: Paste: 50 Best TV Shows of 2019 (#29) USA Today: 25 Best TV Shows and Series of the 2010s (#23)

Okay, NOW Amazon has a page for the s.3 DVD! HERE :D

Paste: 25 Best Shows of 2019 (so far) -- 'Speechless' made #19! :) *** According to TV Shows on DVD, Season 3 was released on MOD DVD last Tuesday (I didn't find out about it until over the weekend); unlike s.1 and 2, it won't be available on Amazon (at least for now). https://www.moviezyng.com/024543637455.aspx More info on MovieZyng Warehouse -- About Us & FAQs

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauradorwart/2019/06/20/no-stunt-double-a-qa-with-micah-fowler-of-abcs-speechless/ Micah's first interview since the cancellation, as far as I know -- he weighs in on the show's impact, his experience working on it, disability representation in general, and his hopes for the future. :) *** Semi-OT: THR had an interesting piece earlier this week about what appears to be a promising development for disability inclusion in Hollywood. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cbs-signs-pledge-audition-actors-disabilities-1219640

https://www.emmys.com/ballots/2019 Final-season Emmy submissions: Art Direction/Production Design for a Narrative Program (Half-Hour) -- "L-O-N-- London (Part 2)" (3x2) Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation -- "U-N-R-- Unrealistic" (3x22) Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation -- "U-N-R-- Unrealistic" Directing for a Comedy Series -- "W-H-- Wheelchair P-L-- Planet" (3x16) (Christine Gernon), "S-P-- Special B-- Boy T-I-- Time" (3x17) (Robert Cohen), and "U-N-R-- Unrealistic" (Bill Purple) Writing for a Comedy Series -- "The S-T-A-- Staircase" (3x21) (Greg Gallant and Zach Anner) and "U-N-R-- Unrealistic" (Scott Silveri and Matt Roller) Comedy Series Lead Actress in a Comedy -- Minnie Driver * Supporting Actor in a Comedy -- Micah Fowler and Cedric Yarbrough * - Minnie was also submitted for her guest turn as Lorraine Finster on 'Will & Grace' ("Anchor Away"). (John Ross Bowie was submitted for one of his three guest appearances as Barry Kripke on the final season of 'Big Bang Theory' -- "The Plagiarism Schism.") :) *** Metro (UK) -- a brief Q&A with Minnie Hollywood Reporter -- an in-depth conversation with JRB and his wife, Jamie Denbo (creator of the new Lifetime series 'American Princess') ❤️ ❤️

How'd I miss this? Congrats to Emily on her transition! :) Here is a short but sweet piece she wrote about the show back in January: https://www.vox.com/2019/1/28/18201364/speechless-best-tv-shows-abc I somehow missed this, too... *** OregonLive: TV shows canceled in 2019 -- sad goodbyes, and good riddance (sorry!) (includes kind words for both 'Speechless' and TKAA)

Oh yeah, I recall seeing a similar headline about (I think) 'Whiskey Cavalier.' :\ Not to mention she failed to take the possibility of future syndication into account -- 'Speechless' was just one full season away from almost reaching the minimum 88 eps (it would've had 85), and probably could've eked out a shortened s.5 to bring it closer to the preferred 100 episodes. As it is now, ABC has only one comedy (AH) that is close to syndication without yet being there; as for the newer comedies that got renewed, as much as I like 'Single Parents' and (to a lesser extent) 'Bless This Mess,' with the kinds of numbers they've already been pulling I doubt either will even get a third season. :p *** Chicago Tribune: With 'Speechless' canceled, hardly any broadcast TV series prominently features a disabled actor -- why representation in Hollywood matters TV Insider: 7 network TV cancellations that hurt the most -- photos (also, "Ask Matt" weighs in on the ABC comedy cancellations / renewals, Constance Wu's tweets and 'Modern Family' ending)

Make of this what you will... Deadline: Canceling 'Speechless' was a "gut-wrenching" decision for ABC chief Karey Burke On the ABC 2019-20 schedule, the 1-hour TGIF block will continue with 'American Housewife' moving to 8 p.m. / 7 p.m. Central, bumping FOTB into 'Speechless'' former slot. (Gee, I wonder how much more ABC will actually promote their TGIF shows now -- and of course, there won't be a FOX comedy block to contend with...) *** And a pair of nice essays: The Federalist: Why ABC made a mistake canceling 'Speechless' Leanne Leeds (blog): Mother's Day reflections (from a heart mom)

Aww... :') *** Semi-OT: Last Thursday, Micah presented at the EasterSeals Disability Film Challenge Awards (he was also one of the finalists for Best Actor). https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/05/13/1822870/0/en/Entertainment-Industry-Unites-for-Easterseals-Disability-Film-Challenge-Awards-to-Honor-Filmmakers-Who-Inspire-Change.html :) About "Second Date" YT playlist for all 71 of this year's entries

From two of my favorite fan Twitter feeds: From the lady behind the @RenewSpeechless campaign: And last but certainly not least, from Cerebral Palsy Foundation: *** A lovely write-up from Pop Culture Uncovered: https://popcultureuncovered.com/2019/05/11/review-brew-speechless-we-hardly-knew-you/ And semi-OT, but a nice interview / photo spread with JRB: https://rowingblazers.com/blogs/dispatches/this-is-john-ross-bowie ❤️ (I'll keep an eye out for further series tributes, as well as any end-of-season / end-of-year best-of lists...)

Oh man... :( TKAA was easily my favorite of the four new ABC comedies -- I thought the parents were great to begin with, and I really grew to like all those boys over the course of the season. I hope so too; and yeah, I will definitely miss talking and writing about this show here with y'all, as well as on The TV Ratings Guide (s.1 & 2 "musical moments" article and s.3 recaps/reviews) and elsewhere. :') *** More comments from cast and crew: And from some of the critics who have been most supportive of the show: Linda Holmes (NPR / "Pop Culture Happy Hour" podcast), Alan Sepinwall (UPROXX / Rolling Stone), Todd VanDer Wurff (Vox), Kristen Lopez (TV Guide), and Daniel Feinberg (Hollywood Reporter)

And a little write-up on TV Line: https://tvline.com/2019/05/10/minnie-driver-speechless-cancelled-season-3-abc/ I'd also like to add: 1) I will miss seeing this adorable bunch on my screen, and I wish them -- as well as everyone else involved with the show -- all the best in their future endeavors; 2) I hope it will at least have some small influence on future conversations (in Hollywood and elsewhere) about diversity, representation and inclusion with regards to disability; 3) I'm glad the show had a chance to end with some sort of closure for all the characters -- a new career and friendships (with Kenneth and Melanie) for Maya, a chance for Jimmy to pursue his dream career in earnest, college for JJ and a chance to further pursue filmmaking, self-awareness for Ray and some help from the girls in his class, some privacy for Dylan (recall the garage door in the bedroom), and a new job and a relationship for Kenneth (as well as a chance for him to go back to college).

http://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2019/05/speechless-canceled-after-three-seasons.html So sad -- not just for myself as a fan, but also for all the individuals and families in the disability / special-needs community who have commented on the show's and cast members' official social media accounts about their appreciation for how the show reflected their lives in funny and heartwarming ways (without turning into doom-and-gloom, preachy "after-school special" stuff, or "inspiration porn"). :'(

Tracey Phillips (@RenewSpeechless and FanFest) started a save-our-show petition: https://fanfest.com/2019/05/06/speechless-petition-renewal-season-4/ https://somanyshows.com/speechless-fans-petition-for-renewal (blog post) https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/renew-speechless *** Variety: Ruderman Foundation salutes 4 TV shows for disability depiction, but no films

Programming Insider: Live+3 ratings And Live+7 ratings Yesterday was the season finale of Zach Anner's 'Speechless' podcast -- a lengthy chat (45 minutes, about double the length of the average episode) with creator / show-runner Scott Silveri: :)

Not to mention that when JJ said he didn't want to go, his reasoning was similar to 3x14 "J-I-- Jimmy V-A-L-- Valentine" (when he admitted he knew how awkward the date would be with Kenneth there, but would rather have that than be left alone with Izzy and risk messing things up himself) and 3x19 "P-R-O-M-P-- Promposal" (when he initially said he would do whatever Izzy wanted to do rather than go to the prom). If anything, I was a little more puzzled by NYU being his dream school -- so much so that his parents would encourage him to go even after his girlfriend didn't get accepted there, and Izzy would rather break up with him than be the main reason he decides not to go there -- considering it apparently didn't even occur to him to apply until he found out Izzy had. On the other hand, I do recall him saying something like "it's not just because of Izzy, it's a great school" at the start of "W-H-- Wheelchair P-L-- Planet," so I suppose it's something he could've briefly thought about before (especially their film school) but simply considered too out-of-reach until she encouraged him to try for it.

Programming Insider: Friday Final Ratings (Live+Same Day, including demographic break-down) TV Insider: Ask Matt --

Beautiful bedroom, yes. :D Also, I liked how 'The Middle' had both Axl and Sue go to a school fairly close to home (East Indiana State University) -- given the Hecks' economic situation, as well as for storytelling purposes (they could have their own story-lines at college, while still getting to come home frequently and share plots with their parents and brother).

At the end of "Game Night" (3x15), when JJ said "Izzy's going to college in New York," I was under the impression that meant she'd already been accepted -- I guess maybe he just meant that she had applied there as her "top choice" (as opposed to a "safety school," which I'm guessing the one she ended up getting into, Chapman University in Orange County, was), and he only wanted to apply there so he could have a chance at it too. But anyway, damn, this one made me cry! So JJ did get into NYU after all, but he decided he wanted to go with one of the other schools that accepted him closer to home (University of California-Irvine) -- which prompted Izzy to break up with him because she didn't want to hold him back. The first part that really got me was his conversation with Maya right before he had to go give the speech for his graduating class: And then the speech itself -- which JJ finally did get around to writing but decides to scrap when Kenneth, Dylan, Ray and Jimmy get too emotional trying to read it: As for the rest... I thought the Dylan/Jimmy plot was a fine sequel to their pairing in the s.2 finale: There, he realized it was better to be open and honest with her, including about his disdain for his job; and here she says she's proud of him for landing an interview with an architecture firm (scheduled a month in advance, which seems unusual to me, but I suppose they figured he would need all that time to design and build a sample project). And of course, Ray's side-plot was funny (I like how one girl bluntly says, "You got too tall too fast" xD ), but his vulnerability with the girls in his Junior class (after they accuse him of being "so busy trying to get us to notice you, we don't get to know you") did something better than merely get him a date -- it opened the door for them to want to help him (since deciding to work on himself at the end of s.2 ultimately didn't come to much). Choice cue: M83, "Outro" (2011) (during JJ's speech, and the closing tag with him in New York)

Don't know how I missed it, but I just found another interview M&J did around the same time: KNTV 'Morning Blend' (4:45) Also, for what it's worth, ABC actually made a TGIF promo ad (near as I can tell, the first since the Feb. 15 Valentine's episodes) for tonight's finales: *** FanFest: 3x22 highlights :)

According to this preview clip from the s.3 finale (supposedly not a spoiler), neither JJ nor Izzy get into NYU (so given what JJ said about her "going to college in New York" at the end of 3x15, I assume she must've applied to another New York school that did accept her -- unless I had that wrong and JJ simply meant New York was where she most wanted to go...), but they both have been accepted to schools closer to home (Chapman University for her, and he says he got into Irvine).

IIRC, at the end of "G-A-- Game N-I-- Night" JJ said she was "going to college in New York" without saying where she'd been accepted, and he wanted to go to film school there (specifying NYU as a "great school" for that at the beginning of the next episode).