S08.E18: Five Minutes

[partofme]

Bring back Dylan!

[hoodooznoodooz]

I liked the Lifetime movie titles: "From Straight A's to Straitjacket" and "Yale to Jail."

Edited March 31, 2017 by hoodooznoodooz

[biakbiak]

25 minutes ago, partofme said:

Bring back Dylan!

Please no! I feel sorry for the actor and understand its a psychological thing bit I find the actor disturbing to look at.

[partofme]

20 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

Please no! I feel sorry for the actor and understand its a psychological thing bit I find the actor disturbing to look at.

Well that's how I feel about Andy.    Was so glad he left.    Dylan is funny

Edited March 31, 2017 by partofme

[biakbiak]

Just now, partofme said:

Well that's how I feel about Andy.    Was so glad he left.    Dylan I see funny.

I am referring to the numerous plastic surgeries the actor has had becuse of his body dysmorphia not the character.

[HoboClayton]

Dylan for sure. He won me over singing to himself on the Dude Ranch episode, and his random "Neeeeigh!" 

Andy skeeves me out. Like, he's got bodies buried somewhere. 

This was a cute episode. I don't expect much anymore. I got a few chuckles, which is good enough for me, seeing as this show is mostly just background noise for me at this point. 

[Artsda]

I totally would love Dylan back, he was funny and he fit with the show and has all that history.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

10 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

You don't get to judge people, you ate a spider!

She just swallowed a goldfish - when did she eat a spider?

[SanDiegoInExile]

22 hours ago, Vyk said:

No Luke, Lily, or Joe, though.  What the hell is with these writers excluding them from episode to episode?

It's how you cut costs. Expect more of it next season, though I expect we will always see the 6 principals every week.

[SanDiegoInExile]

18 hours ago, Ina123 said:

I enjoyed all of it except, (and I know it's a comedy TV show) Manny kept hitting cars and just driving away. Nope, you at least get out and look

I believe Jay said Manny was hitting "curbs" while trying to parallel park. (Jay doesn't have a self-parallel-parking car?)  The other interactions seemed to be mostly the typical SoCal daily road rage drama. Clearly the weakest part of the show.  The conversations were decent (which arguably was the whole point), but why is Manny driving them to the movies? Or carting around a capp machine?

[DrSpaceman73]

14 hours ago, Rowsdower said:

A significant segment of the Internet disagrees, at least when it comes to Ariel Winter in real life.  (I don't recommend seeking out the relevant message boards, on which she's been shamelessly objectified since her early teenage years.) 

Of course, the rules of fiction dictate that eyeglasses can instantly transform Superman into Clark Kent or make any woman appear plain.

That's how the characterization has been bastardized, presumably to justify her social unpopularity.  No apparent in-universe explanation exists for this shift.  She always had a sarcastic streak, but nothing over-the-top.  She was intellectually advanced, but she wasn't a haughty know-it-all.  For the most part, she seemed like a nice, normal (by sitcom standards) kid.

Because the writers jettisoned that aspect of her personality.  About four years ago, they had her doing this.  Then they decided that a one-dimensional depiction would be easier to handle, evidently.  And her only recent character development has been the emergence of a self-destructive tendency to rush into unhealthy, borderline-fetishistic sexual relationships at the drop of a hat.

I am well aware of the Ariel Winter the actress glorification all over the internet.  But for one, that is still the actress not this character.  There is still a difference in how she dresses and how she looks on the show vs. in real life.  And honestly even in real life, despite her, in my opinion, misguided efforts it seems to play up her sexuality, I still don't think she is super attractive.  I would call her above average in real life and average on the show.

And I disagree about her not being a haughty know it all on the show.  that is exactly how I have always viewed her character. 

You can argue about how the writers have treated her character, a valid point, but its still the direction they have chosen with her, whether that is right or wrong. 

10 hours ago, LADY J82 said:

I hated Rainer glad it looks like he is out. Bring back Andy!

I don't want Andy back.  His character I never found that interesting. 

[luna1122]

I preferred Dylan over Andy as well. I know the actor has had some issues, but I think he's still very cute, and Dylan is dumb but sweet and endearing. Not like Haley is part of any braintrust. Andy and Haley began so squickily, with the cheating and sneaking around, that I could never root for them, and tho I like Adam Devine, and I like Andy, I never really bought them as a couple.

I also think Alex is just as pretty as Sarah Hyland and while I'm all for her dating cute geeks, as I think that's what she'd go for, the idea that nobody at Caltech is asking her out is bizarre.

[Rowsdower]

59 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

I am well aware of the Ariel Winter the actress glorification all over the internet.  But for one, that is still the actress not this character. 

I noted the distinction.

Quote

There is still a difference in how she dresses and how she looks on the show vs. in real life. 

Of course.  But there's only so much difference a pair of glasses and a bulky sweater can make.

I'm reminded of the live-action Scooby-Doo films.  Messages to the effect of "That's supposed to be Velma? Why is she prettier than Daphne?" permeated online discussions.  (Actually, many posters were far less tactful and far more explicit in describing fantasized acts involving Velma/Linda Cardellini.)

Quote

 

You can argue about how the writers have treated her character, a valid point, but its still the direction they have chosen with her, whether that is right or wrong. 

I haven't suggested otherwise.  My point is that it doesn't ring true (in my opinion).  Alex's failings are self-inflicted and inconsistent with her previously established strengths and values.

[DarkRaichu]

7 hours ago, SanDiegoInExile said:

I believe Jay said Manny was hitting "curbs" while trying to parallel park. (Jay doesn't have a self-parallel-parking car?)  The other interactions seemed to be mostly the typical SoCal daily road rage drama. Clearly the weakest part of the show.  The conversations were decent (which arguably was the whole point), but why is Manny driving them to the movies? Or carting around a capp machine?

Where did Manny learn to drive? That car has a rear view cam / monitor which should make it very easy to avoid curbs and parked cars

Also, can somebody explain the punchline at the end?  What did Mitch find in his bag? 

[Beezella]

I think they deliberately left what's in the bag to the imagination of the viewer.

Very few laughs in this episode for me. I laughed when the cart driver deposited them at gate 32, from a half a gate away. The parking/story telling bit was lame. The proposal/breakup was painful. Kind of funny at the end with the cowboy hats and the adorable doggie.

Cuidado! Caution, one of the few Spanish words I remember.

[chitowngirl]

3 hours ago, DarkRaichu said:

 That car has a rear view cam / monitor which should make it very easy to avoid curbs and parked cars

 

My daughter and husband cannot back up the car with the rear view cam (to be honest, my husband can't back up the car at all!) My son and I can. Some people can use it and some are not able to.

[biakbiak]

3 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

My daughter and husband cannot back up the car with the rear view cam (to be honest, my husband can't back up the car at all!) My son and I can. Some people can use it and some are not able to.

Yeah I have no problem parallel parking in fact I am excellent at it but I seriously cannot use the backup cam on people's cars I find it disorienting and distracting.

[DarkRaichu]

57 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

Yeah I have no problem parallel parking in fact I am excellent at it but I seriously cannot use the backup cam on people's cars I find it disorienting and distracting.

Interesting.  I find the back up cam on van/minivan helpful because it shows me exactly where the back of the vehicle is in relation to curbs & other cars.  I most likely won't need it for sedan or other smaller cars, but I never actually drive a sedan with a backup cam

[Quickbeam]

I completely loved Jay's "boy with a speech impairment story". I literally cheered at Ed's tag line on that. He's such a great actor. 

[Phishbulb]

I thought this was a really interesting episode. Before the episode started, the announcer guy said something about "real time", which led me to believe that each of these 5-minute stories was actually taking a real 5 minutes. 5 minutes for each story times 4 stories would equal 20 minutes, which is probably about the length of an episode minus commercials and the final tag. 

It meant that the show, which is usually super fast with the quips and cutting from story to story, had to slow down and the pacing of the show became much slower and more talky. The Gloria/Jay/Manny story, for example, was essentially just 5 minutes of the three of them in a car having a conversation. It went on and on and seemed like an eternity in sitcom time; went on for much longer than a normal scene would in a sitcom. It started to seem like a David Mamet play or something. 

Also, were these stories supposed to be taking place at the same time? I kinda thought so when the thunderstorm happened during the Haley/Rainer story, when earlier in the episode there was that electrical malfunction that caused the power to go out on the plane with Cam and Mitchell.  If so, then the structure of the episode was kind of like "Pulp Fiction" in a way I guess (compounded by the briefcase-like gag with Mitchell and the bag at the end).

[mikem]

I thought this episode was interesting as an experiment.  With the notable exception of the Mitch/Cam storyline, the scenes were like little playlets.  The scenes were very dialogue-driven in a single setting, taking place in real time, with very little physical comedy (or movement at all), and no glancing at the camera or talking-heads-on-the-couch.  They were shot and constructed in a very different way than the scenes usually are.

While I appreciated the attempt at something different, I didn't love the execution.  The Manny/Jay/Gloria and the Haley/Rainer scenes just weren't very funny.  They didn't seem to be written to be particularly comedic.  The Manny/Jay/Gloria scene in particular just seemed like a lot of rambling until the last few lines.  And maybe I've watched the final episode of The Sopranos too many times, but I was just waiting for Manny to get into an accident. 

[CleoCaesar]

1 hour ago, mikem said:

the scenes were like little playlets.  The scenes were very dialogue-driven in a single setting, taking place in real time, with very little physical comedy (or movement at all), and no glancing at the camera or talking-heads-on-the-couch.

I kind of liked the departure from the usual formula. This felt like a "quieter" episode. I wouldn't want it to become a regular thing, but I thought it worked here.

[pennben]

On 3/29/2017 at 8:53 PM, chitowngirl said:

I was wondering why this show suddenly became Life In Pieces, then I came here and saw the episode description.

 

On 3/29/2017 at 9:02 PM, partofme said:

Yeah that's what I was thinking that they stole the script from that show on CBS that I couldn't think of  the name of.

I had to chuckle at these thoughts, because when Life In Pieces premiered, many critics noted that it was setting itself up as a successor to the Modern Family formula.  What will the next iteration look like?!

[Cocojo]

This is one of the best shows on TV. However, if this episode were the first one I'd ever seen, I wouldn't ever watch it again.  Not funny, not clever, not engaging, not entertaining.  It didn't endear any of the characters - maybe one bright moment as Haley showed some maturity, but nothing positive for the rest.  I don't want to see Gloria and Jay unhappy with each other - they are best when they get along. Poor Manny wasn't getting any help.  Cam and Mitchell's scenes were amateurish. We all knew Alex had a dude in her room and wasn't depressed.  Saw that coming in the first second of that scene.  Blah, blah, blah.  My point is:  This show is one of the best out there; it was simply disappointing this week.  Perhaps it was a filler for another time. I'm confident it will return to its stellar glory.

[CofCinci]

Sarah Hyland looks like her health problems have returned.  Poor thing. I remember reading a few years ago that when she was sick and awaiting transplant that she couldn't even stand so they'd film lots of Haley sitting scenes.  I'm seeing more of those types of scenes.

[DrSpaceman73]

19 hours ago, Cocojo said:

This is one of the best shows on TV. However, if this episode were the first one I'd ever seen, I wouldn't ever watch it again.  Not funny, not clever, not engaging, not entertaining.  It didn't endear any of the characters - maybe one bright moment as Haley showed some maturity, but nothing positive for the rest.  I don't want to see Gloria and Jay unhappy with each other - they are best when they get along. Poor Manny wasn't getting any help.  Cam and Mitchell's scenes were amateurish. We all knew Alex had a dude in her room and wasn't depressed.  Saw that coming in the first second of that scene.  Blah, blah, blah.  My point is:  This show is one of the best out there; it was simply disappointing this week.  Perhaps it was a filler for another time. I'm confident it will return to its stellar glory.

In regard to Alex, yes we as the viewer knew she wasn't depressed and had a boy in her room because we already knew about her and Ben.  Her parents didn't know though, which is what the scene was about. 

I give them credit for at least trying something different and the concept of the "five minutes", even if it didn't work for everyone. 

I felt the same way you do about the episode with Claire on her laptop at the airport, another "concept" based episode that I thought missed more than it hit. 

[Scott]

On April 1, 2017 at 7:19 AM, Phishbulb said:

Also, were these stories supposed to be taking place at the same time? 

I didn't think so, because the driving and the airport were visibly in daylight, and I thought they had mentioned it being "Saturday night" at the dorm.  (Plus I think it was dark outside the restaurant window even before it started raining, although I suppose that could have been the impending storm).  That could also explain where Lily was--with one of the other families when it wasn't their five minutes.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

2 hours ago, Scott said:

That could also explain where Lily was--with one of the other families when it wasn't their five minutes.

Eventually Lily will be old enough to babysit Joe, and we can stop asking these questions!

[ButterQueen]

On 3/31/2017 at 2:22 PM, biakbiak said:

Yeah I have no problem parallel parking in fact I am excellent at it but I seriously cannot use the backup cam on people's cars I find it disorienting and distracting.

......and that's exactly why I hit my neighbor's car....the backup cam distracted me.  : p

Edited April 5, 2017 by ButterQueen

[HawaiiTVGuy]

On 3/30/2017 at 8:31 AM, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Are we supposed to believe that Manny would go into the movie and leave the cappuccino maker visible in the front seat?  (He mentioned not strapping it into the front seat, but would putting it in the trunk be equally bad?)  I also think that the Pritchett-Delgados would have a car that automatically parks for you.  At the very least, that would have been a great spot for an automobile commercial touting that feature!

 

I assumed that Manny needed the driving practice.  He certainly needs the parking practice.

I was actually expecting that was what was going to happen, that Manny would hit a couple buttons and not touch the wheel.  They were kind of product placing the Priuses for years, but I guess this was definitely not a Prius, but Toyota has other self-parking technology lines, I think the Highlander Hybrid?  Or would that not be considered "luxury" enough for Jay?

I think what distracted me all episode is I knew they were supposed to be 5 minute snippets, but each segment, except for the birthday one, seemed way longer than 5 minutes.

[Vyk]

9 hours ago, HawaiiTVGuy said:

I think what distracted me all episode is I knew they were supposed to be 5 minute snippets, but each segment, except for the birthday one, seemed way longer than 5 minutes.

I timed Cam and Mitchell's segment, for sure, and it was just below five minutes.

[HawaiiTVGuy]

12 hours ago, Vyk said:

I timed Cam and Mitchell's segment, for sure, and it was just below five minutes.

I am surprised they were able to fit so much in 5 minutes.  I guess one can really rush from security to the gate at the last minute.

[indeed]

Only in television...or a really, really, really small airport.

[biakbiak]

On 4/11/2017 at 0:53 PM, HawaiiTVGuy said:

I am surprised they were able to fit so much in 5 minutes.  I guess one can really rush from security to the gate at the last minute.

But they didn't have to go through security and their gate was only 2 or 3 down from their original one.

[HawaiiTVGuy]

16 hours ago, biakbiak said:

But they didn't have to go through security and their gate was only 2 or 3 down from their original one.

True...although, did they count the 5 minutes from when they first started filming them?  Inside the original airplane?  So they would have needed to drag their drugged up butts out of the plane, stagger across the jetway etc.  I think overall, it just seemed the segment seemed long.  Makes me think i could make a mad dash in that period of time (after clearing TSA of course).