Question:
Are you unaware that luckily for those of us who are BBC America addicts, they rerun their shows during the late-night hours, from 11 pm to 5 am? You failed to mention that alternative in your column for this week's presentation of State of Play. — Raymond S.
Matt:
I am aware of that option, and have taken advantage of it on many occasions. I tend to limit my recommendations to hours when people might actually be watching live, but it's a fact that many cable outlets double-run their shows so if you miss it during prime time, you can catch it or record it in the wee hours. Very convenient. And for those who've been asking about BBC America, having seen the references in the good reviews for State of Play or in the many stories written about The Office, the bad news is that this channel still isn't available on many systems. I didn't get it until I went digital. And am I ever glad I did.
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Question:
When The Apprentice first came on, I was immediately taken by the show, but you seemed to have an utter dislike for the program, calling it "obnoxious" and stating "I'm not hooked, but I suppose I'll have to keep watching, however grudgingly" in your January 19 Ask Matt column. In your April 12 column, you seemed to have done a complete reversal, saying, "some weeks have gone beyond compelling to even illuminating." I was just curious what it was about the show that made you change your opinion. I love your columns, by the way — they make watching TV even more enjoyable, and you've made me take notice of great programming that I would have otherwise ignored and now cannot live without. — Brodie L.
Matt:
Glad to know that my critical inconsistency hasn't cost me a reader. And that's one of the things I love about following TV shows and trends: Even after all these years, I'm still on a learning curve. I've often discovered with reality shows that they gain in appeal as
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Question:
With the coming of the new Farscape miniseries, and the announcement that miniseries or "movie of the week" installments may be in the offing for the WB's canceled vampire drama Angel, it seems that a lot of genre TV is coming back from the dead. Considering a great majority of genre fans (and critics, yourself included) believe that shows like Farscape have been canceled before their time, do you think that the future of genre television will involve a short run, followed by less-expensive-to-produce miniseries offerings? It seems that the networks have less faith in narrow-band projects like genre TV, and don't know how to market them well. Could it be that the future of genre TV will be in bite-sized packages? — Tony R.
Matt:
Like you, I'll take this material however I can get it. And it may make more sense to package these sorts of shows as "event" miniseries or movies, continuing their life without asking for a weekly commitment. But there still needs to be a place
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Question:
I like watching ER, but I'm not a true-blue fan. If I miss a week I don't shrivel up into a wailing ball. However, I feel motivated to come to its defense on two points you've recently made negative comment on. The more recent is the death of Weaver's wife, Sandy, and what you referred to as DLS (Dead Lesbian Syndrome). You may have missed what I think the writers were going for: to depict how truly deep and solid a relationship bond can be between members of the same gender. Through the at-home glimpses and powerful acting, we saw just how "normal" and beautiful the love and marriage of two gay people can be, how similar it can be to the best of what that institution has to offer. We saw how agonizing losing that partner can be and we saw how vulnerable the survivor of that loss can be to the technicalities of their lack of legally recognized status. It gave us something the mean-spirited debate over gay marriage threatened to drain away, and that's the realization
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Question:
I have a comment and a question. First, I read in your column that the fate of Alias is unknown. But I read somewhere else that Jennifer Garner had spilled the beans and it was indeed renewed. Second, we've just learned Syd had a sister, fathered by Sloane. Is it safe to assume (and with Alias, I know few assumptions are safe) that this plot will take the place of the whole "Syd may be Sloane's child" storyline? I really hope so, because I hate the idea of Jack Bristow not being her father and of both Jack and Syd losing the only decent family relationship they have! — Amy G.
Matt:
I have no doubt Alias will return next season (even with the new changing of the guard at this most troubled of networks), but the reason the issue came up was because ABC issued a statement naming a bunch of shows they were renewing for next season, and Alias wasn't among them. Hard to say why. As for the Sloane paternity issue, it's fair to say that the new character has removed all
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Question:
I can't find the show Cracking Up in the listings. Has it been canceled or something? What gives? — Amber
Matt:
Like nearly every other midseason show this spring — Wonderfalls, Century City, to name a few others — this spring comedy was canceled pretty quickly, after only six episodes aired. I haven't a clue if Fox will air the episodes that were left on the shelf, but I doubt it.
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Question:
I was wondering why so many people, including you, think The Shield is such a great show. I watched a few episodes but couldn't bring myself to like any of the characters, and I don't understand why so many people appreciate, let alone watch, a show where the main characters are evil. Does this say anything about how corrupt our country is becoming? — Laurie G.
Matt:
I look at The Shield as an antidote to the countless number of TV shows that overglorify the world of law and order. It isn't meant to appeal to everyone — it's raw, it's nasty, and even its most admirable characters (CCH Pounder as Det. Claudette Wyms) have an abrasive edge — but there should be room on TV, especially, as it turns out, on cable, for shows to be able to explore the darkest sides of human behavior. That is what The Shield does excellently. It's a dramatic exploration, not a glorification, of corruption. Fans of the show might find themselves rooting for Vic Mackey at times, but we're never
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Question:
When The Apprentice started and NBC pushed Friends and Will & Grace together, they left out Scrubs, and I haven't seen it since. Then the other day I saw that it was on Tuesday and that things are moving along with Turk and Carla's wedding! I was surprised because I never knew NBC had moved it to Tuesdays! And I'm wondering has the show taken a big dip ratings-wise? Is it in danger? Oh, and I loved the Nick & Jessica show too, and would love to see it regularly. — Anthony W.
Matt:
Scrubs isn't in any danger, but it won't be returning to Thursdays as a regular, thanks to the success of The Apprentice. Because it's no longer airing aside a megahit like Friends, Scrubs' numbers have dropped, but by Tuesday's standards, it does well enough that it's part of the strategy to keep rebuilding that night next season post-Frasier. Personally, I wish it would swap with Will & Grace and see how that out-of-gas show fares on Tuesdays. As for Nick & Jessica, I think suggesting I
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When you're living among The Sopranos, death is the easy way out.
Just ask Christopher, Tony's hot-headed protégé. He nearly pays with his life after publicly threatening Tony, who he believes cheated with his fianc&aacue;e, Adriana. "I gotta live in this world," Chris bleakly mutters, looking none too happy about it.
Meanwhile, Tony frets that anyone would believe him capable of such a transgression (which only circumstance kept him from committing). "Am I that horrible? Really?"
Yes, Tony, you are. Horribly fascinating.
In this great fifth season, The Sopranos reclaims its title as TV's most diabolically entertaining, psychologically rich and emotionally provocative drama. More than ever, the show presents mob life as a terrible trap, a spiritual dead end.
Sounds like a downer, but the characters are so full of conflicted, frustrated life that it's a painful joy to watch.
Tony's estranged wif
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Last night, I said goodbye to Fox's Arrested Development with quite a bit of apprehension. Not just because the network has yet to renew the show — that decision may not be made until late next month, when Fox announces more details of its evolving lineup on May 20 — but because the episode billed as its "season finale" wasn't really intended to be.
The first season ended one episode short because a recent schedule crunch following a presidential press conference shifted 24 to Sunday, pushing this struggling comedy off the lineup. (As one of my co-workers suggested to me, why didn't Fox just replace one of its umpteen Simpsons repeats with that week's Arrested Development? It would have made sense, while also giving the show a chance to see how well it could perform in the more hospitable post-Simpsons time pe
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