Talking Dead: Because Chris Hardwick Wants to Beat Ryan Seacrest

[CloudySky]

I actually thought this was a good episode of TD. It looked like everyone was having a good time and there were some good Q&A's. The guests were actually likeable this week (score!) and Chris actually seemed invested in the show rather than faking it. It also helped that the usual segments were back (all the polls, quiz, a call, fanart,...).

[frogzapper]

1 hour ago, CloudySky said:

I actually thought this was a good episode of TD. It looked like everyone was having a good time and there were some good Q&A's. The guests were actually likeable this week (score!) and Chris actually seemed invested in the show rather than faking it. It also helped that the usual segments were back (all the polls, quiz, a call, fanart,...).

I agree that the show is getting a little better, but it still seems like Chris is struggling to find interesting things to talk about to fill the hour. Hopefully there will be more things to talk about as the season progresses. It also seems weird that we're only what, 4 episodes in, and there have already been 2 repeat guests (Kim Dickens and Danay Garcia) on the couch? Is the pool of cast members that shallow that they can't get others to appear? Then again, I'm not sure who I'd even care to see anyhow! (Not Cliff Curtis, not Mercedes Mason, not Lorenzo James Henrie, so yeah, I guess the pool is pretty shallow.) I guess I'd be interested to see Frank Dillane as a guest - I could see him as either being a train wreck or delightfully charming. 

And another thing - up until lately it hasn't bothered me that Chris likes to give out some silly gift to the person who comes up and asks a question, but I seriously hope that he stops with the trying to top the previous gifts each week! I used to think that it was kind of cool for the questioner to get a fun little memento of his/her 15 seconds on the show, but when Chris starts hauling out big unwieldy props like the blood-filled dummy last night it's just too much! 

[JackONeill]

Next week, on a very special The Talking Dead, Frank Dillane reprising his role as The Train Wreck.

i'd tune in for that.

[Iguessnot]

For some reason I'm embarrassed to watch this show. I could only tolerate about 3 minutes and then I just ff in order to catch any previews. Anyway at the end they show next week's preview and some parents are trying to get their little girl to not freak out while they sneak out of the colonia. Chris talks about kids freaking out in the apocalypse and mentions Sam from the Walking Dead yelling mom, then everyone is dead. That pissed me off to no end because the show teased us with that bait then basically made it a figment of everyone's imagination. Chris really earned his shill certificate there.

Edited September 13, 2016 by Iguessnot
verb tense

[ChipBach]

The "Talking XXX" show(s) with Chris Hardwick are only useful for "good" (well written, fan favorite, run-away hit) type shows.  Shows that are well written (Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul) to discuss the depth of the writing and acting.  It was a good idea for "The Walking Dead" because the world of zombies was new and the decisions the characters made were compelling.  I am not too sure this show lends itself to the "talking" option.  The environment is already been rehashed during The Talking Dead and many of the same questions come up "why didn't they try to find a fort", "whats up with the walking with guts thing?", etc.  Also the characters are far from well written or compelling.  Spending a hour asking what Frank's motivation in making Nick a selfish dick is not fun TV.  Or watching how they make the zombie's eye pop out...  Been there, seen that...

[HighMaintenance]

ChipBach, I would agree.  To take it a step further... do we really need to have a 1 hour (minus AMC commercial interruptions) show to discuss a one hour show we just watched???  I'm including TWD in this.  Maybe a one hour show once a month could suffice.  That is, if TWD actually worked in some exposition to show what's going on (including hints on motivation) rather than having Hardwick and production explain TWD stuff that happened justoffcamerabythismuch so that the fans could figure out those missing pieces of the just watched episode. 

The first few seasons, a fan discussion show was interesting - even the infamous Marilyn Manson et. al. TalkingDead trainwrecks held come strange interest. Now, TTD holds much less interest for me, I rarely make it through a full hour of Hardwick before I change the channel.  Discussion of FTWD  - I don't know if I've every made it through more than 20 minutes of those cringeworthy programs.  I prefer the forums for any fan insight or discussion - ok, not entirely true ... I'm just here for the snark.

[Maverick]

 I haven't been impressed with what I've seen of the revived MadTV, but this sketch is pretty on point for this thread:

 

[ottoDbusdriver]

They are really polishing the turd that is trying to explain why Ophelia GTFO while Alicia was in the shower -- and then go all stealth ninja and leave the hotel with no one noticing.  And not leaving a note or something.  No matter how they try to spin that was just a shitty thing for Ophelia to do.  And Hardwick is acting like EVERYONE has been waiting with baited breath to find out what happened with Ophelia -- nope, most people forgot about her completely.

Oh noooeess, my mom is dead, my dad MIGHT be dead, and we have no idea where her fiance might be or if he is even alive.  Is she headed to New Mexico ?  Has she even mentioned that she had a fiance at any point in the show so far ?

And who is the guy in the middle seat on the couch ?  I have no idea.

Edited September 19, 2016 by ottoDbusdriver

[raven]

Yeah, a simple note "I'm leaving, don't worry about me" would have worked.  Not that anyone really worried anyway.

The actress who plays Ofelia is good here, great personality and fun.

Edited September 19, 2016 by raven

[mightysparrow]

Who is the middle guy on the couch?  He's a strange one.  He makes me long for D.B Smoove.

[HighMaintenance]

Otto is dead on!  

Ophelia has been, more or less, an unremarkable background character.  Now suddenly she gets a story line?  She had a fiance?  Did she forget about him when she was swapping spit with Sgt. Peckerwood in season 1 (to get information about where her Mom was)?  She's been the sheltered "child" her whole life, but suddenly, she is nonchalantly bashing zombie skulls and siphoning gas like a she's badass Carol in TWD.

I made it through 15 minutes of TTD.  I am now just tuning in to see what kind of fucked up 'do Chris Hardwick has done to his hair - it actually pisses me off that he can do bedhead and still look cute.  I didn't even have the patience to keep watching to see how many times Chris touched or pointed out his wedding ring.  15 minutes in and it was at least 2.

Yeah, who was that dwarf sitting in the middle?  Was that one of Hardwick's fellow nerdlings?  

[JackONeill]

Who was the suit on the end of the couch? I know he's one of TPTB. He barely had anything to say, not that they say much that's useful. But I thought it was interesting because Hardwick was noticeably upset about Madison turning on the hotel lights. He almost said, before he caught himself, "That was the stupidest thing I've ever seen." Right when Hardwick caught himself he glanced at that guy, I guess to see if he was mad at such blatant criticism. The thing about this show is that it can't be impartial. Not truly. So what's the point?

[CloudySky]

lol, Hardwick's slip up there was pretty funny.

Isn't the guy in the middle from Teen Wolf or sth? So they made that werewolf poll. He was pretty dull but not the worst guest there's been. Just not very dynamic.

Mercedes is cool and funny but it annoys me when actors can't accept/admit their characters faults. You can try to justify and twist something all you want, it doesn't make the action any more justified. It's okay to just say "my character was feeling this way and that way so they did this thing which was a very shitty thing to do but hey people can be selfish shitheads sometimes".

The surfboard was a neat present finally.

[candall]

Dead of Summer had a bizarre little segment at the end of each show where the writer/producers joined us for a five-minute commentary.  (It was--inadvertently--howling funny because they often filled in critical plot points they forgot to put in the show.)

STILL better than pretending their hour-long telecast was inspiration for an hour-long panel discussion every week.  FTWD really doesn't warrant that level of self-congratulatory exposition and everyone kind of knows it, including the host and the guests.  For example, I know who Ethan Embry is, as an actor, but his credentials for Talking FTWD were that he got killed on the other show, sometime back pre-Negan. 

I only scan "In Memorium" and the behind-the-scenes notes in popup bubbles.  Don't even need Chris Hardwick for those.

[SnarkyTart]

This week's episode will have Lorenzo James Henrie as one of the three couch guests.  He was one of the more engaging cast members last time he was on, even though I can't stand his character and think he's a mediocre actor at best.  He might not be boring on Talking Dead, but it does kiiinda make me miss the old days when having a cast member on the show meant that they died in the episode.  In other news, Drew Scott (one of the Property Brothers from HGTV) will be another of the couch guests.  I really like the Property Brothers, but wish it was Jonathon instead, because he's the funnier of the two. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

During the 'In Memoriam' segment, the only death in the entire episode was Baby James.  I don't even think we saw a walker.

The caption for James' death was 'Sorry .... bro' -- but it should have been 'Sorry .... not sorry .... Bro'.

Edited September 26, 2016 by ottoDbusdriver

[SoSueMe]

Property Brother guy (Drew?) is wearing a newer, cleaner, grandpa jacket like Nick used to wear :)

[nachomama]

I don't think it bodes well for Chris (the character not hardwick) that he's wearing a hat to cover up a haircut. If he's been given permission for new hair he may no longer be on the show.  And I don't care if Chris lives or not. 

[Artsda]

I disagree with the actor playing Chris saying Chris is the new Shane. I loved Shane, didn't want him gone for the show. Chris I want dead and gone.

[Madding crowd]

They shouldn't do the In Memoriam if only one person dies, it makes the tagline seem kind of silly. Chris' hair looked like he just rolled out of bed again. I did think Property Brother seemed like he actually watches the show, so that's a plus. 

[rjs]

The actor who plays Chris was on last week's Agents of Shield, for a quick scene. He was in a wheelchair with the Ghost Rider. Maybe he has a new gig?

[Iguessnot]

I did my usual fast forwarded to only watch previews, yet I so wanted Chris's mom to stand up. That oufit looked so clownish and I couldn't imagine what possessed her to put those pieces together. 

[CloudySky]

So Alycia and Mercedes are confirmed for next episode. Wonder if the third guest is going to be Cliff or Frank or someone else entirely. A bit strange that Mercedes is coming back on so soon after her previous appearance when from the synopsis it seems like Travis and Nick are front and center in the finale. Are they out of the country? Frank is awkward in interviews and I've heard he has social anxiety but putting him on the show with 2 other cast members might ease the pressure a bit.

[Nashville]

Did anybody experience TTD not airing in their area?

This past Sunday my DVR didn't pick up TTD, which can happen (albeit infrequently) when too many series shows get queued to record at the same time slot.  

So I didn't think much about it, figuring I'd just catch up on it later via OnDemand.

...that is, until I went to watch TTD on OnDemand - and found the most recent episode was missing there as well....?

[Iguessnot]

6 hours ago, Nashville said:

Did anybody experience TTD not airing in their area?

This past Sunday my DVR didn't pick up TTD, which can happen (albeit infrequently) when too many series shows get queued to record at the same time slot.  

So I didn't think much about it, figuring I'd just catch up on it later via OnDemand.

...that is, until I went to watch TTD on OnDemand - and found the most recent episode was missing there as well....?

The only problem I had last Sunday was that the new episode RH of Jersey was listed as To Be Announced. I have a Tivo and I believe last month there was a change in the guide provider. Most things are smooth except Comcast/Xfinity cleared out a number of duplicate HD channels a few months back and my Tivo adjusted just fine. However this new guide provider hasn't got with the program, and has relisted all those now invalid channels. I've been too lazy to deal with it yet.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Alicia Debnam-Carey looks hot -- liking those boots.

[nachomama]

never get a haircut in the zombie apocalypse. Buh bye Chris 

[HighMaintenance]

I like to see what new directions Chris Hardwick's hair will take.   Robert Kirkman, you're a fat twat and a waste of couch space.  Get your cholesterol checked!

[Giselle]

On 5/7/2016 at 2:15 PM, SnarkyTart said:

I love Chris Hardwick's "Talking" shows (whether TWD, FTWD, or Talking Saul).  Sometimes Hardwick's shows are more entertaining than the episode they're about.  Yvette Nicole Brown is the best guest.  If the writers put half as much thought into their characters and plot lines as Yvette puts into her almost Jungian analysis of deeper (often non-existent) themes, it would elevate any show 1000%. 

While I enjoy YNC I don't always care for TD/FTD. The show is a verbal blowjob and every episode is great and amazing which they are not.

[chick binewski]

"Tall Carl". Thank you, Hardwick we have achieved Troy nickname.

[raven]

"IT'S METAPHORICAL!!!!"  hee hee

Chris Sullivan is a good guest, funny and good personality.

[Red Fields]

I had no idea he wears padding to play Toby on This Is Us.

[SimoneS]

14 minutes ago, raven said:

"IT'S METAPHORICAL!!!!"  hee hee

Chris Sullivan is a good guest, funny and good personality.

He is better than the actress who plays Alicia, but I think she is stymied by what she can say without giving much away.

[Black Knight]

On 6/11/2017 at 7:31 PM, SimoneS said:

He is better than the actress who plays Alicia, but I think she is stymied by what she can say without giving much away.

Agreed, a problem exacerbated by having been on TD twice in a row. So she'd already used up what she can say, apart from commenting on the most recent episode's scenes, but since not much really happened in the episode, there wasn't much for her to comment on.

I suppose all the other actors were unavailable and/or being saved for their death episodes, but it really is a terrible idea to have the same actor go on twice in a row. It would've been better to leave ADC out of the premiere since they already had Cliff Curtis and the showrunner as guests for that one.

[SimoneS]

14 minutes ago, Black Knight said:

Agreed, a problem exacerbated by having been on TD twice in a row. So she'd already used up what she can say, apart from commenting on the most recent episode's scenes, but since not much really happened in the episode, there wasn't much for her to comment on.

When Hardwick said that Nick and the other guy became friends because they are both broken and asked for her opinion, the actress paused and it looked to me like she wanted to disagree, but she held her tongue and just repeated when Hardwick said about them both being broken. It made me think that they are now open enemies or the guy was dead or about to be.  It is a tough spot to put her in. Surely one of the guest actors were available and willing to raise their profile by come to TD?

Edited June 16, 2017 by SimoneS

[Black Knight]

37 minutes ago, SimoneS said:

Surely one of the guest actors were available and willing to raise their profile by come to TD?

I think after trying that once last season with one of the bro-migo guest actors and seeing how badly that went, they decided there should always be someone from the core cast on the couch...but since the core cast is small, that really limits their options. Ruben Blades will obviously be on next week, Mercedes Mason will be on whenever Ofelia finally reappears on the show, Kim Dickens and Colman Domingo are presumably being saved for bigger episodes, and Frank Dillane apparently has social anxiety. I suppose ADC was still in town after the premiere and so was called on again. I remain confused about why they didn't just save her for the second episode, but maybe they wanted to have a fellow FtWD actor next to Cliff Curtis to see him off (especially after the way Sonequa Martin-Green was sent off on her farewell TD episode, a massive lovefest with Michael Cudlitz returning, etc.).

The mothership TD of course has had entire episodes that just feature non-TWD celebrities, but FtWD doesn't have the kind of watercooler-talk episodes that make that workable. Even Yvette Nicole Brown would be hard-pressed to fill airtime. Unlike many here, I actually enjoy FtWD the vast majority of the time, but there's just usually not that much to say.

Edited June 16, 2017 by Black Knight

[ottoDbusdriver]

In the TV promos on AMC for tonight's Talking Dead, there are going to be 2 surprise cast members and one of the Property Brothers.

So probably the actors who play Strand and Daniel, Rubén Blades and Colman Domingo ?  Based just on the promo.

[candall]

Wow, this show is so much better when CH is not jumping around, fake peeing on himself, pretending it was the biggest, most action-packed, episode EVER.

It was a good episode, and the guests are giving thoughtful commentary.  Christmas in June.

[Nashville]

Next week's guest is... SNOOKI!?!?

Well, fuck me sideways with a 2x4.  That would be less painful, probably.

[ottoDbusdriver]

20 minutes ago, Nashville said:

Next week's guest is... SNOOKI!?!?

Well, fuck me sideways with a 2x4.  That would be less painful, probably.

Seriously, fucking Snooki ?  Wow, they really are scraping the bottom of the barrel if that's the only celebrity "fan" they could drum up.

Bring back Chris Jericho -- he was awesome.

[MrsRafaelBarba]

Snooki has been a fan of this franchise from the start.

 

Yes, she actually watches both shows.

 

Hardwick has read her tweets on air in the past.

[TVFan17]

Bring back Lou Diamond Phillips!  He is a great guest with a lot of enthusiasm for and insight into FTWD and TWD.

[Muffyn]

When the actor  who plays Jake said there was a lack of human connection, I immediately thought, "In every scene that Madison is in."

So they were clearly desperate for people to talk Fear; case in point - Snookie. What rock did they lift  to find her?

[Nashville]

9 hours ago, Muffyn said:

So they were clearly desperate for people to talk Fear; case in point - Snookie. What rock did they lift  to find her?

I dunno, but, like, omigod, I had to quit watching, like, twenty minutes in because, uh, the noise of brain cells, uh, like LITERALLY imploding every she spoke was, like, just TOO loud for words.  Uh, like.  :|

[raven]

12 hours ago, Nashville said:

I dunno, but, like, omigod, I had to quit watching, like, twenty minutes in because, uh, the noise of brain cells, uh, like LITERALLY imploding every she spoke was, like, just TOO loud for words.  Uh, like.  :|

Then of course there was the all important question to the actor who plays Jake about whether or not there was tongue when he kissed Alicia.  Ugh.  I ended up using the FF more often than usual.

[Iguessnot]

On 6/26/2017 at 9:55 PM, Muffyn said:

When the actor  who plays Jake said there was a lack of human connection, I immediately thought, "In every scene that Madison is in."

So they were clearly desperate for people to talk Fear; case in point - Snookie. What rock did they lift  to find her?

She said she had been trying to get on Talking Dead for a long time. Given her performance tonight, I'm glad I will never have to hear her opinion of any Walking Dead episode.

[dirtydi]

Minority opinion.  I didn't mind Snookie.  She is a fan and was excited to be there.   (And I hated The Jersey Shore, only saw one episode.)

[Nashville]

Chris Hardwick frequently mentions wanting to know more about Madison's "tortured past"; has he not yet figured out Madison killed her father? 

The writing has been telegraphing it pretty loud and clear for a while, I've thought.

[maystone]

5 hours ago, Nashville said:

Chris Hardwick frequently mentions wanting to know more about Madison's "tortured past"; has he not yet figured out Madison killed her father? 

The writing has been telegraphing it pretty loud and clear for a while, I've thought.

Whoa. That message zipped right past me. Until Madison started talking about her father this season, I was assuming that she was a recovered addict. Now we find out her dad was a drunk, and probably a mean s.o.b. at that. I don't doubt that Madison would have killed her father to protect her mom (or siblings is she has them. Have they ever been mentioned or hinted at?) Still, I missed those telegraphs. What was said that led you to think patricide?

[Nashville]

3 hours ago, maystone said:

Whoa. That message zipped right past me. Until Madison started talking about her father this season, I was assuming that she was a recovered addict. Now we find out her dad was a drunk, and probably a mean s.o.b. at that. I don't doubt that Madison would have killed her father to protect her mom (or siblings is she has them. Have they ever been mentioned or hinted at?) Still, I missed those telegraphs. What was said that led you to think patricide?

Madison doing in Daddy has never been explicitly stated, but there have been hints dropped throughout the course of the series going all the way back to the initial outbreak scenes in Madison's school in Season 1.  Most recently there was one strong indicator comment by Madison in one of the most recent 2 or 3 episodes, since the Clarks got to the Otto compound; if I can re-track it down I'll let you know where.