All of TVGuide.com Videos Only

Starved on FX

2005, TV Show

Starved: TV Guide News

Darkly satiric misadventures of four New Yorkers who struggle with eating disorders.

I am writing in response to a ... | Matt Roush | 6/30/2006
Question: I am writing in response to a letter posted in your 6/26 column concerning Rescue Me. While I found Tommy's attack on Janet upsetting, I also feel you have to remember everything that Tommy has gone through recently: his son's death rite, his wife blaming him for it, his own brother sleeping with his wife, his father's declining health and his own attempts to stay off booze and cigarettes. While I am not saying this is an excuse, I am simply pointing out that the man has hit his breaking point and temporarily lost it. Rape is not about sex but about control. His life is absolutely out of control, and this was not something that he had planned out. It happened out of blind rage. As for the grin when he drove away, I think that was meant for his brother, which was tacky, but I think his feelings were very testosterone-driven and an in-your-face, "I did Janet while she was with you" sort of thing. Yes, Tommy is very hard to take at times, but there is a good person at the core, ... read more
STICK A FORK IN IT | Today's News: Our Take | 10/7/2005
FX has lost its appetite for Starved. The network has opted not to renew the critically thrashed eating-disorder satire for a second season. However, fellow freshman comedy It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia will be back. read more
I have a question about FX's ... | Matt Roush | 8/26/2005
Question: I have a question about FX's Starved. I originally stumbled upon it when I discovered that the übertalented Broadway actress Laura Benanti was in it. I think she's one of the only good things about the show. I don't really consider the show a comedy because it seems like all the jokes take place in the first five minutes. To be fair, the show has improved since the pilot, especially when they focus less on Eric Schaeffer's Sam character and more on the lives of the other three, who come off as more sympathetic. Don't you think the show would work a lot better if it focused less on the gross-out humor and more on the relationships?
Answer: In a word, yes. Because, as you noted, it just isn't funny. But even a shift in emphasis probably wouldn't be enough to make this unpleasant show very palatable ... read more
Are you following Lisa ... | Matt Roush | 8/22/2005
Question: Are you following Lisa Kudrow's HBO show, The Comeback? It's almost like we're supposed to laugh at all of the embarrassment that Lisa's character must go through. It's not really funny, but at the same time I don't feel pity for her character, either. What's your take on the show? Answer: It's one of the weirdest, least satisfying shows I've ever had the bad luck to experience. Kudrow is, as always, terrific, but I find the show painfully obvious (not painful in a good or poignant or hilarious way, as some of the show's defenders seem to argue). I've had friends in the industry tell me they enjoy The Comeback because the details are so real. That may be true, but again, it doesn't tell me anything new about the soul-crushing world of show business or the insipidity of network sitcoms or the phony world of reality TV. Case in point: When her young costars were upset by the network retooling and the addition of two idiotic new comics to the cast, and they suggested skipping ... read more
I am so excited to see a ... | Matt Roush | 8/19/2005
Question: I am so excited to see a network like FX that for once takes chances on racy shows! Even after seeing only a few episodes each, I love the FX shows Starved, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Over There! I love how Starved takes a twisted look at diet obsession and how Philadelphia brings us back to real honest comedy, which often lies in the common stupidity of mankind. And Over There takes a chilling look at the not-too-farfetched realities of the war in Iraq. I am glad there is a network out there that isn't afraid to take a chance and can have such risky and different shows all at the same time. Looking forward to the fall, when we will find out the fate of Christian on Nip/Tuck! How do you feel about these shows and the network? Answer: It's hardly a secret that I am a major champion of FX, especially its dramas, including Over There, which is probably its riskiest show yet, at least in terms of timing. I tend to find their shows exhilarating, daring and extremely ... read more