I’m telling you – you’re missing out on some good, original late night programming if you’re still writing off Jimmy Fallon over on NBC. I seriously think he’s doing a good job with the production and making that show his own. Here’s a great clip that explores what it’s like working for a late night talk show – and how the collaborative process over at LNWJF takes shape. Looks like a pretty sweet gig. Call me Fallon, I’m available for consultation.

-John

Figured I’d run through a few dope links that have been floating around on the internet as well as some sweet items from the larger pop culture universe.

Links:

A sweet link for you LOST fans yearning for our favorite castaways to be reborn in an old school computer RPG strategy game. I would definitely play this and try and ride on the polar bear.

Check out the promo posters for each country in the upcoming World Cup. I like the ones for Slovenia, Denmark, Algeria and the U.S. the best.

(links via PCC2C reader CC)

Cool TV Channels:

In the vast landscape of current digital cable packages, one can be truly overwhelmed by all of the selection. A choice overload. An impossible quest to justify your cable bill by viewing all channels and ensuring hidden gems haven’t escaped you. Well I’m here to help. A little. Here are two channels I’ve found in the midst of my digital catalogue that offer unique programming worthy of your time.

Chiller:

Horror flicks, murder stories, sci-fi weirdness and everyone’s favorite monster movies. You can check out things like Dark Floors this Friday night where a man and his daughter try to escape from a hospital terrorized by demons. I think most people consider their HMOs to be the demons, am I right? Hey-oh! Anyone? My favorite part about the promo picture is that the demon is wearing a leather jacket. Not enough for you? Next Friday is The Slaughter which features six college students awakening ancient demons after they’re hired to clean an old house. Is June national demon month? It’s the perfect channel for slasher flicks and all-around horror fun. They also show reruns of Twin Peaks and any station that supports Special Agent Dale Cooper is alright with me.

truTV:

Formally known as Court TV, truTv offers killer programming like Party Heat, which is about cops policing spring break destinations. It’s COPS meets Girls Gone Wild. Sign me up. I also watched a show on there one time about drinking. One part followed all these different people around the world as they took a camera out with them every night for a month, and they tried to determine if they had a drinking problem. I’m pretty sure this one guy in England was on the verge of alcoholism, but he seemed so happy you couldn’t help but pull for him to knock back another shot. It was a pretty awesome show, as all of the other segments revolved around drinking too. One was about sharing embarassing drinking stories and the hostess, a striking young brunette (of course), did not hold back. Good times all around. This channel is definitely worth an inspection as we approach the land of crappy summer television scheduling.

Fun & Games

And finally, I’d like to shed some light on a game that is going viral right as you’re reading this. A couple of weeks ago, three people I follow on Twitter, all in parts of the country very far from each other, wrote about icing someone down or getting iced. What could this mean? Was it as gross as it sounded? I needed to know more. I soon learned the origin of this strange icing and discovered it was a game. A drinking game. Perhaps the easiest drinking game ever devised. Since then I have been iced personally and done a bit of Cranberry-Lime icing of my own. Want to know what the hell I’m talking about? Head over to this site and find out all you ever wanted to know. Be careful, it could be habit-forming.

-John

We finally have to say goodbye to one of television’s finest dramas of all time. But not before your East Coast Host brings you a scintillating podcast discussing the series finale, the series as a whole and the show’s legacy and place in television history. While we no longer have Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley and the rest to enthrall us every week we do have the show’s good friend, Neal, to help wax poetic about all of the revelations and mysteries LOST has given us. An epic show needed an epic finale – but now it needs an epic podcast with epic hosts. Look no further, your candidates have been chosen…

[audio:podcastlostfinale.mp3]

Preorder the entire series now at Amazon

Here is a recap of LOST, seasons 1-5. Looking forward to a very bittersweet finale on Sunday; hard to believe it will all be over soon. Take note of the schedule on ABC below:

Saturday:
8:00pm – enhanced version of the ground-breaking pilot episode.

Sunday:
7:00pm-9:00pm – recap of the entire series
9:00pm-11:30pm – 2 1/2 hour series finale
12:05am-1:00am – Jimmy Kimmel’s “Aloha to LOST” show

-John

Executive producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindeloff have been out in force this week promoting LOST and the forthcoming finale this Sunday. Last night they stopped by Letterman and read the Top Ten list. #5 is incredible.

-John

This is from an old art show that happened back in December, but I think it’s worth revisiting as we draw closer to the final chapter of LOST. The picture above, plus many other fantastic pieces by gifted artists, can be found here at the LOST Underground Art Show – some of which are still for sale.

-John

As we get ready to say goodbye to one of television’s greatest shows, LOST (which is the best of all time if you ask me), let us relive the glory of another of TV’s priceless gems through the majesty of rap music.

(found via PopCandy)

-John

If you’re not ready, you’d better get ready…

-John

I usually go to bed around 11:00 every night – give or take 10 minutes or so. My typical routine is to scan a few channels and watch a little TV before I fall asleep, and in doing so, I’ve honed in on a few particular programs. Sometimes I’ll land on some MMA fighting on Spike, or a Real World rerun on MTV. I even watched most of the Jersey Shore on MTV reruns at 11:30pm. But those are all shows you guys probably know about. I want to highlight three shows you may not have heard of and that I have found myself following in their late night timeslots. It may help to know that I pretty much cycle through five channels while I’m in bed: ESPN, MTV, Comedy Central, Spike and FX. They’re all right near each other numerically on my cable provider so it’s easy to flip back and forth. Laziness has brought these shows into my life.

My Life as Liz – MTV

This show is not breaking through any new ground in terms of redefining high school drama. There’s our protagonist, Liz – the smart, different girl who’s into indie rock and doesn’t quite fit in. She has cool hair, wears sweet retro Nike’s and is cute but not pretty. Of course this all makes her kind of an outcast. There are her nerdy friends who sit on the social-scene sidelines, the popular blonde cheerleaders who make her life hell, and the smart, alternative guy whom she has a crush on. Textbook stuff. What kind of got me interested in the show is the way it’s shot. It’s all done on hand-held or common digital video cameras. It has a real documentary feel to it, although it’s not a documentary. There are a few times that Liz addresses the camera directly but it’s done in more of an inner monologue kind of way rather than an acknowledgement that she’s being filmed. The dialogue is also very realistic in that there are a lot of “umms” and “uhs” and the characters don’t speak in polished monologues like on Dawson’s Creek. In fact, they speak and behave like actual high school students. Kind of an interesting take but the genuine style still allows for some nice moments. There’s real tension during the talent show episode and a few poignant encounters between Liz and her classmates. It’s not the greatest show I’ve ever seen and may not appeal to everyone, but I kind of like it and recommend at least giving one episode a chance.

The Buried Life – MTV

This show comes on right before My Life as Liz so I usually end up watching at least part of the episodes. The basic premise is simple: four guys, who I think are from Canada, drive around in a bus going from town to town trying to cross off items on their list of life goals responding to the question: What do you want to do before you die? It’s kind of like making a bucket list (did the movie The Bucket List introduce that term into our social lexicon? If so, what a legacy for such a crappy movie) and then starting on it when you’re still really young. One caveat to that is that they find a random person in whatever town they happen to be in and help them accomplish something they really want to do. The premise could really take this show in an ultra-lame, overly sappy direction, a la Extreme Home Makeover, and have the guys just going around doing good deeds and saying that’s what they’ve always wanted to do. Not saying helping people is wrong, but let’s be realistic about what would actually be on such a list. Fortunately they have things on their list like: attend a party at the Playboy mansion, compete in a Krumping dance contest, compete in a Mexican boxing match, give a toast at a stranger’s wedding and tell a joke on a late night talk show. It’s cool to see what their goals are and how they try to achieve them. Sometimes they try networking, just greasing palms and making phone calls, and other times they try lying and trickery. They also have helped a guy get his song played on the radio, reunited some old friends at their childhood summer hangout and helped a girl get to her mother’s grave for the first time – several states away. These are nice moments and are just touching enough without being overly dramatic or mushy. This is a good, casual show that you can pick up easily in mid-episode and still watch to the end and enjoy it.

Archer – FX

This is FX’s stab at bringing some animated entertainment to their repertoire. I have to say, they did a good job. The show is about a secret agent named Archer who works for an agency directed by his mother. Archer is a good looking, sometimes smooth-talking agent who is extremely shallow and dimwitted in times of real crisis. The show is rounded out by the rest of the agency’s staff – office workers and other agents alike – with whom Archer generally finds himself at odds. The show’s appeal comes from hilarious oneliners, fast-talking dialogue, ridiculous character actions, strange plotlines, and just overall goofiness. It’s James Bond with a heavy dose of Harvey Birdman, a touch of Johnny Bravo and some definite Arrested Development influence. It’s a nice compliment to It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and some of the other more “mature” shows in FX’s current programming. If you’re a fan of Adult Swim you’ll definitely like this show.

-John

NBC has always tried to dominate the Thursday night lineup and their success in doing so made it become the marquis night for television, especially for comedy. It dates way back to The Cosby Show and Cheers and, over the 90s, evolved into the historic “Must See TV” that gave us mega-hits Seinfeld and Friends. But when Friends departed in 2004, many people pointed to that moment as the end of NBC’s reign, and to some extent, that was true. In fact, current ratings would suggest it’s still true. However, I contend that the current Thursday night lineup is as good as it has ever been. Maybe the best it’s ever been.

I’m not insane – think about it: has NBC ever put out a Thursday comedy lineup where all four shows where really good? Back in the Friends/Seinfeld days, they were fortunate to have Frasier as a quality addition for a little while (until it was moved to Tuesdays), but then there was also Will & Grace. Newsflash: even though that show was really popular, it sucked. I get it – gay people are different and therefore, apparently hilarious. Awesome. Let’s drag that premise out for, like, seven years. Mad About You? No thanks. Never was a big Paul Reiser fan and the show just didn’t seem very fresh or original to me. I’m not saying it’s as bad as Two and a Half Men or anything (nothing’s that bad, except for Two and a Half Men) but it just didn’t do it for me. The point is, many good shows have come and gone through the coveted 2-hour window, but NBC has never been able to throw strikes all four times. Until now. Let’s take a look at each one.

Community

I’ll keep this brief, because I just recently wrote about Community here, but I’ll just say the show continues to get stronger, utilizing each character as a cog in a well-oiled machine. There’s never too much screen time given to one person so the storylines don’t get stale and the A+ lines are spread around so that everyone is valuable to the scene. The recent episode where they go around the table eye-balling each other thinking about whether or not they would hook up with that person was just genius. All seven actors nailed it and turned a mundane scene on a script page into a brilliant piece of comedy.

Parks & Rec

The always insightful Whitney Matheson over at Pop Candy theorizes that this show has surpassed The Office and 30 Rock and is the star of the entire lineup. While I can’t crown it the best just yet, I will say it has been the standout the past two weeks (with Community a close second). The turn-around from last season has been dramatic to say the least. This is another large ensemble cast but Amy Poehler is allowed to drive the show. She is fantastic in possessing enough of Michael Scott’s cluelessness for some awkward gags, but having the distinct difference of being very responsible and committed to her job. It makes for a nice paradox. The supporting cast has really started to come into their own, with Chris Pratt, Nick Offerman, Aziz Ansari and Aubrey Plaza all doing outstanding jobs as Andy, Ron, Tom and April, respectively. Andy’s one-liners, April’s dead-pan looks, Tom’s ridiculousness (his LCD belt was awesome and how could anyone not like DJ Roomba? DJ Roomba!) and Ron Swanson’s strong and silent, manly hilarity all blend nicely and convey a sense or realism for their Americana, every-town setting. They use subtle looks and glances to convey moments of genuine emotion (the way The Office used to) and have just done a better job with their storylines this year. I think the writers have really found the comedic voice for each character, fostering their development, which allows the audience to get more invested. The show is knocking it out of the park and upcoming guest stars like Andy Samberg should only keep that train rolling.

The Office

The Office became the gold standard of television comedy once the show found its own footing and brand of humor in the second season. Everyone was enamored with Jim and Pam, baffled by Michael Scott and left in stitches by Dwight Schrute. Left in stitches? Do people say that anymore? Did anyone ever say that? Not sure where that came from. Most likely the 1920s. Anyway, over the past couple of seasons the show kind of tapered off a bit – although still was much better than 95% of the shows on TV – losing some of its bite. All shows have weak episodes, it’s inevitable, but something was happening with the characters. They were changing, and not for the better. That’s why this season (especially the last 3-4 episodes) have been so key. The buyout of the company by Sabre has allowed the show to return to its normal state via a plausible storyline. Having Jim as co-manager neutered his ability to be office prankster (the source of some of his best comedic bits), but now he’s back on the sales team. This is so important. The basic setup for any comedy team is the funny man and the straight man and Jim and Pam have served as that show’s straight man for a number of years. They are the audience’s voice of reason in a workplace full of bizarre personalities and general incompetence. Never has this been more evident than when Jim and Pam were on their honeymoon and every storyline was insane. Kevin cancelled their credit card, Michael, Dwight and Andy thought a customer was in the mob and Oscar and Co. collapsed under the weight of having to try and maintain order. That episode was a mess because good comedy needs a straight man. The Office needs Jim and Pam. The buyout has got them back on track recently and the show is showing some of its old form. The Office in the role of the old, recognizable name, regaining its stride amidst some shows on the rise is exactly what NBC needs right now. Sidenote – how hilarious was David Wallace as the unemployed former executive? Too funny. I hope they keep going back to that well for jokes, he was great.

30 Rock

Honestly, I’m probably not the best person to comment on this particular show since I just started watching it this season. The format of the show is why I never became such a devoted follower. There’s really not much structure to the plot. Storylines are pretty thin and serve to move the characters from one scene to another so they can get off one-liners and crazy jokes. This year I’ve learned to just accept it for the jokes, because usually they’re hilarious. So what if it doesn’t fit in to any really advanced plot point – “Meat Cat” is hilarious. What it lacks in form it more than makes up for in social commentary, pop-culture references, clever quips and flat-out silliness. It really covers all levels and styles of comedy, and I can certainly appreciate that. I think Liz Lemon is a great blend of intelligence and awkwardness and nothing is funnier than her with a moustache, spilling milk all over herself because she has no grace or feminine charm. Fey does a great job going and back and forth between those two character elements. Baldwin is a comedic genius, I don’t need to tout him here, and Tracy Morgan has become a legitimate comedy name thanks to this show. It’s a star-maker and I’m glad I learned to appreciate what it has to offer.

There you have it: four shows, four great comedy elements – all in succession. I think it’s the most complete Thursday night lineup NBC has ever had.

(sidenote: I also like how all of these shows do episodes centered around the holiday seasons: Halloween, Valentine’s, etc. All the great sitcoms used to do it, but not all shows do that anymore except for Christmas episodes. I like holiday eps – just saying.)

-John