Too Scared to Watch Bad Things

I am a pop culture enthusiast. I love TV, movies and music. I love them. Sometimes when things come out, I'm like "this could be the best or worst thing ever." And I am too scared to watch it. 

You know how I feel about NBC's Smash. Season one was strange, it has more downs and ups. I do like the musical numbers occasionally, but the writing, the pace, the tone, as well as the acting were all over the place. I am too scared to watch season two. It's a matter of watching it in one go when the DVD is out, so I would only suffer 10+ hours (but do I really want to pay to watch it if it's crap?), or do I download it now and suffer for over ten weeks? 

I love Ewan McGregor, I'd watch anything he is in it. I watched The Island for him to show my support. Now, I know Jack and The Giant Slayer is due to come out and I am thinking I will watch it for Ewan and Stanley Tucci, no matter how bad this movie might be. This movie certainly took advantage of the genre trend -- we have Once Upon A Time and Oz The Great and The Powerful, and Snow White and the Huntsman etc. I consider myself as a semi-big fairy tale genre fan, but why am thinking twice about watching this film?

I love Wicked! This is the one thing I wish someone is making a movie based on my favourite musical of all time. I'll watch it ten times! But then Oz the Great and the Powerful came through. I mean, it won't be another few years until we are ready to watch another movie based on the Wizard of Oz. Damn you Oz the Great and the Powerful. The trailer looks great and I have heard some good comments about it. This week, I will watch it twice with different friends. If it's worth blogging about, I will write a review about it.

Recently, I was being a good friend and watch Anna Karenina with my friend. I have never been so bored in my life watching a movie, the last I was cursing the script and everything about a movie was Van Helsing. I appreciate the artistry of Anna Karenina, but the pace wasn't carried out in the entire film. The cast performance was good, but too good it was depressing (which was kinda the point) and I wasn't in the mood for depressing movie. And there was a rat in the cinema during the last 15 minutes of the movie. I was freaking out. I lost my concentration completely, but kinda hoped that the rat appeared earlier so I could go home early! And I had no idea how the movie ended except Anna Karenina killed herself. By then I was ready to walk out.

And then there is Hansel and Gretel, I don't care what anyone said, I'd watch it for Jeremy Renner, who I think it's hot! But I've been putting it off for weeks, now the movie is no longer playing in my local cinema! Crap!

But, good things do happen. And they will happen very soon!!! Iron Man III and Star Trek Into The Darkness!! Hello!!!!! I've been watching far too many Star Trek related interviews of Chris Pine, Zach Quinto, William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy on YouTube than I should!I don't know what happened there, but I fast tracked the end of my data usage the other night. I think I am a little obsessed with J.J Abrams than I care to admit. I think the rewatch of Star Trek is imminent.

This Week In TV - Revolution; OUAT; Smash; The Walking Dead

It seems that I've watched a lot of TV this week (more like last week) and I am also doing a Supernatural season two and Lost (from the beginning) rewatch.

Revolution -- Nobody's Fault But Mine

This mid-season finale is really epic. You can go read Nicole's review on this for more details. Nobody's Fault But Mine is a great way to wrap up a few storylines. It has the Kripke trademark and I think his team is mastering the arts of story-telling. Most important, this tells me the series is well planned. To me, this mid-season finale is the end of one chapter. While there are heaps to reveal, others things that should be wrapped up were wrapped up. Everyone who should be rescued, got rescued -- Danny and Rachel. Nobody died and nobody got left behind. Charlie is growing up as a strong young woman and learning to stand up for her family. And she finally found Danny. Thank you! Rachel helped Bass to switch the power back on. To what extend? Time will tell. The helicopter scene at the end was like watching a 'supposedly not operational Death Star' functional. The show down between two best friends -- Bass and Miles were definitely the highlight of this episode and the first half the season. We still don't now what made the best buddies to turn against each other, but the guys were bitter and angry. Bass is playing sympathy for the devil, but I am sure there is more to his past. David Lyons definitely has one of the best man cries on television, like Matthew Fox on Lost or Jensen Ackles on Supernatural. Lyons' tears have so much anger, you cannot help to feel his pain when Miles told him he meant nothing to him, he was not family...Ouch! This mid-season finale did not disappoint. I really enjoyed it! Bring it Georgia Federation! Whatever you're gonna do!

Revolution is now on a super long hiatus! It returns on Monday, March 25, 2013.

Once Upon A Time -- The Crocodile and The Doctor

I know! I am a few episodes behind! There are so many shows to watch, some of them will have to wait until they get fast-tracked to Australia. Channel Seven is treating OUAT pretty good this season, we get two episodes per week -- Tuesday and Thursday. I watched The Crocodile and The Doctor, which were aired last week in Australia.

The Crocodile took us back to the weak and helpless Rumpelstiltskin in the past, which I love to watch! And I really love to see the contrast of a character's past and present all in one episode. My bro finds it confusing, but I survived Lost, so OUAT is a piece of cake! The contrast helps me to understand the story and the complicity of the character. I think this is a great way to tell a story. A show has got to give viewers layers, otherwise it will be as boring as James Bond.

I was really looking forward to see Killian Jones (aka Captain Hook). I have heard nothing but great things about him. What I love about OUAT is that you get to see the backstory and transformation of the iconic fairy tale characters. I particular enjoyed Pinocchio and Mad Hatter, who are two of my favorite characters and now Captain Hook is growing on me. 

The Dark One, Rumpelstiltskin, continues to be one of the best written and performed character on the show. Rumpelstiltskin is a very mysterious character, but now we know he and Captain Hook had a history, it makes it more interesting. Don't you love it when you see two villains face off against each other? It's not the traditional good versus evil show down. It's like watching Alien versus Predictor. One question remains, where the HELL is Baelfire?

The story of The Doctor focused on Victor Frankenstein -- he is obsessed with science, not magic. The Doctor was directed by Paul A Edwards, who also directed last week's Hunteri Heroici of Supernatural, I thought I mentioned that! What I love about this episode is the visual presentation of Dr Frankenstein's lab, this kind of black and white, almost metallic look was awesome! It kinda reminds me of Dr Horrible too! Did I see it coming -- Dr Whale being Dr Frankenstein? No. But now that I know he is Dr Frankenstein, it makes his Dr Whales more interesting, because to be honest, Dr Whales was as boring as my cupcakes! I love that he is in the story but he is probably the only one who believes in science more than magic. Where is the bride?

One more thing, I thought Regina's not-so-evil-self in Storybrooke is weird. She is somewhat powerless and her power is limited. What will happen when her mother arrive? Regina is our Evil Queen. Be evil! I do feel sorry for Regina, her backstory is really interesting. Every girl can cry for a guy, Regina is no exception.

As for Emma and Snow, I miss them! We don't see them on every episode and when we do, there ain't enough! Also does Emma still call Snow as Mary Margaret? Will we hear her saying 'Mum' soon? 

Season two of Once Upon A Time returns on January 6, 2013 on ABC.

Smash -- Boomshell

I should know by now what to expect when it comes to Smash. This show could have been a smash hit. I get the theater business drama, backstepping, the girl next-door blah blah, the music and the story, the material was good, but it wasn't as well written as I expected. It's like my banana cake, I know I miss a step, I know I forget to add oil. I know there is something wrong with it, but it still looks ok and tastes ok. Just ok.

But I keep coming back for more! I secretly hope Smash to be a great show. It is just not! While there are heaps of WTF moments, but I still watch it! I still compare it with Glee. Now that Glee is following Rachel and Kurt to New York, every fiber in my body tells me "this is how Smash should be". I know they are different shows and of course the writers have different way of exploring the uniqueness of the shows. Anyway... 

Boomshell is a better episode of Smash. It was a good season finale. Everything was wrapped up and Karen was the chosen one to play Marilyn. I don't really care about a lot of them including Dev and Ellis. Whatever. I've learnt how to accept Smash, just watch it and don't yell at it. Don't expect anything! I particular didn't like the montage of the musical Boomshell, and we only got one full song in the end. The look on the faces of Julia, Tom and Eileen look relieved rather than proud. May be they are proud. But I see that as a relief to see the show begins and ends with no major problem on stage and off stage. As an audience, I feel relief too. Thank GOD this season is over! We can now move on to Jennifer Hudson! I saw the promo for season two the other day. Promo is always good even for The CW's Beauty And The Beast, but I think and I hope Jennifer Hudson's voice will at least move me the way Rachel does for Glee.

Smash season two returns on February 12, 2013 on NBC. Not sure how many episodes it will get. I guess depends how good or bad it is. Season one didn't exactly live up to the expectation.  

The Walking Dead 

I've started watching The Walking Dead! Yay! The first episode really grabbed me! I love a good nonsense zombie drama. It's not just zombies eating people or people kissing zombies -- who does that except Robert Carlye, right? It's one of those shows I need a break from it every two to three episode because it's so depressing! And because of the hot and sticky condition, I don't recommend watching it during a very hot Aussie summer day (or night). The show is into its third season, I am very behind. No spoilers please. Just let me enjoy it! 

It certainly has the I Am Legend vibe. But like IAL, I don't find one-man-show boring, Rick (Andrew Lincoln) is a very good actor, I've loved him since Love Actually! The story gets more interesting as more characters are introduced.

As 2013 approaches, apart from Supernatural and others, I am super excited about A Game of Thrones. I am half way through A Dance With Dragons, and I am starting to care about what Melisandra has to say. She is either very good at what she does or sucks at her craft. Either way, I think Jon Snow is the real deal in every sense of the word! 

On that note, see ya!

Last Week On TV - Supernatural 'Bitten'; Arrow 'Lone Gunman'; NBC 'Today'; CNN's Anderson Cooper

I didn't miss Supernatural 8.04 Bitten and Arrow 1.3 Lone Gunman. In fact I got back to the hotel earlier than usual to catch Arrow and Supernatural. I had the BEST BURGER EVER IN MY LIFE! Thank you Shake Shack, your Shack Stack was amazing, I cannot get over how yummy it was! The 'shroom' is hands down the best thing a burger joint can cook. 

Supernatural's Bitten was pretty good. Jensen talked about this episode a bit during the Chicon Breakfast. There are a lot of criticism and also a lot of love from fans. The show has to take risks and think outside the square. I love that fact that Supernatural does and not afraid to go creative. As much I love to see more Dean and Sam, it wasn't all bad to see a group of teenagers doing their own investigation the Cloverfield way. And through that, we witnessed the transformation of werewolves. The story was revealed to us from a different perspective. The documentation of the process of werewolves transformation reminded me a little bit about The Fly, the movie. It is one of those most-debated episodes, I think mainly because Dean and Sam weren't in the episode much, but the story wasn't bad. But if I am turning into a werewolf or my friend is, I am not sure if I will document it. My first impression was that it was a weak episode -- forgetful yes, but not a bad episode at all. Good effort! Other than that, Bitten still holds a special in my heart because I don't often get to watch a live Supernatural episode on my TV with East Coast viewers. And it was great to watch Dean on my screen during this time.

What happened in Arrow that week? Lone Gunman was pretty cool! He revealed his secret to Diggle. I didn't see that coming at all, at least not this soon. Considering Chloe or Pete didn't know about Clark's secret until later in Smallville. But I like it! And I like the introduction of Felicity, who really reminds me of Lucius Fox in Batman and the Watch Tower Chloe. The only deadshot I know was from Smallville, but I like Arrow's take on it. Speaking of Arrow, there are loads of Arrow street ads in New York and Chicago. I've taken a few photos. Watch this space for more!!! Here is one on Michigan Ave. 


While I was in New York, I was hoping to get up early to go to the NBC Studios at Rockefeller to catch all the live action during The Today Show. I did go, but not until in the afternoon. LOL! But it's my holiday habit to turn on the TV and watch NBC as I woke up. It's always good to watch the local news and weather. 

When I was in Chicago, I turned to CNN. Timing could not work out better! I left New York a few before the Super Storm, and I got into Chicago without trouble. When I planned my trip, I thought about going to New York after the convention in Chicago. Lucky I didn't go with this plan!!! Very lucky!! And also very lucky that the weather was all good during my transit to Chicago for the convention. Should Sandy hit earlier, I might not be able to make it to Chicago.   

Not that I was in the hotel all the time, but whenever I turned on the TV, Anderson Cooper was always there!! Does he sleep at all? I mean, the coverage has been brilliantly and I do appropriate how hard journalists work during horrible events such as Sandy to bring us stories. I hope everyone can get some sleep. 

I also caught an episode of Chicago Fire and Park Avenue 666. Park Avenue 666 didn't grab me at all. Chicago Fire has potential, it looks like one of those shows that Australia will love. I hope it will air in Australia soon.

I also managed to finish the entire season of Smash during my flight to New York. Thank you Qantas!!! The last few episodes weren't too bad. I try not to be too negative about the story line, but it is not one of the best things ever on TV. In fact, the only reason I keep watching it is because I WANT this to pick itself up and show me something epic. And it should be epic. This show should have been great. But Smash fell short in many ways I cannot even bother to write about. When I compare Glee and Smash, I know why Glee was so much better. It connects with viewers, the characters are more interesting, the songs are great, the stories are better. There is always something I like about each episode. I hope season two of Smash will be better. PS -- I am finally convinced to download Let Me Be Your Star.

My Thoughts on Smash - And I Don't Mean To Compare It With Glee

Do I like Smash so far? I guess I like it enough to keep watching it. My friend recommended this show to me awhile ago. "If you love Glee, you are going to love Smash." Her words. 

I got really excited when I saw the TV commercial of Smash on television. Since I've heard so much about it, I really wanted to check it out! The ad campaign of the show ran for a long time. I find that TV networks in Australia would run the ad for a few weeks without telling you the air date and then when they finally tell you the air date, you still have to wait for a few more weeks. The ad featured the audition scene with the series star Katharine McPhee performing Beautiful, it was repeatedly advertised pretty much every second commercial break during prime time. And now that I know it was the audition scene for the series' Marilyn The Musical, I thought to myself what an odd song choice for such audition?! That audition has American Idol written all over it, may be it was intentionally? Anyway... 

My expectation for Smash was certainly high. My impression is that this show is executive produced by Steven Spielberg, it is a show about a star-in-the-making, it is her journey to stardom -- the typical inspirational kind of story set in Broadway. It has the buzz. It has all the right elements. It cannot go wrong! I wasn't disappointed with the Pilot. In fact, I thought it was good. Good enough for me to keep watching. But there is something that is not quite right about Smash. It took me weeks to figure it out. 

I know there are people who compare Smash with Glee, and there are those who don't want to compare because they are two different shows. To me, as a viewer, they are not too different. They both depict the behind the scene journey of a group of very talented performers who sing and dance, and dream to be become a star. It comes down to the characterisation, the focus, the pace, the story and, most importantly, the way music is incorporated into each episode. Without the musical influences and the musical numbers, Glee is another high school dramas like 90210 or Hellcats or Dead Poet Society; and Smash is The Devil Wears Prada without the Broadway stuff.

I may be in the minority when I say this, but one of the things I love about Glee is Mr Schuester because he is the kids' constant, he is their mentor and he is the unsung hero of the story. Without Mr Schuester, there is no unity, there is no Glee. Sure, we have a group of extremely talented kids who perform great musical numbers weeks in weeks out, and they are more than capable in carrying the show on their own. But what holds the Glee club together is Mr Schuester, who also has his own Broadway dream. Another thing I love about Glee is that there is always something inspiring or something heart warming about it. The story of Kurt inspires many viewers; Rachel is true star-in-the-making who nails every song from Broadway to Pop; the Kurt and Rachel Wicked performances are one of the best things ever on TV; even Finn's dance move is inspiring because he really tries even though he is really bad at dancing. I think each character is given a good song to perform when the timing is right. Like Santana, she is awesome as Anita (West Side Story); there is no better person than Artie to do Thriller and Blaine to do Wanna Be Starting Something. 

Television viewing can be personal, and sometimes it is that personal connection viewers are looking for. I was in a school choir and we were going to something similar to a sectional. I had so much fun, those were the best days of my high school years! So to me, Glee reminded me of good times, and there is a connection there between me as a viewer and the show. Glee is written to inspire, I think. There is a 'feel good' element to it, and I like that. When real life is not so inspiring, when real life people shoot down every single idea you propose and when you have no where or no one to turn to, you turn to popular culture to be inspired. Stuff like this is part of your journey to be something greater. 

What about Smash? I know Smash is supposed to be this huge Broadway-inspired show that is executive produced by Spielberg, the script and performances are supposed and expected to be great. Some even call it the grown-up version of Glee. But what Smash is missing is the inspirational factor. I know it is a different show with different stories and characters, but I think Karen is no Rachel or Kurt, Julia is no Mr Schuester and Eileen is no Figgins (wait.. what??). The musical numbers haven't given me the goose bumps, the bitchiness of Ivy is pure annoyance and not as entertaining as Santana, and I am sure sooner or later everyone will be sleeping with everyone. The positive thing is, the musical numbers have been fine, and they are more polished and more grant. But you don't really expect anything less. 

But I want more from Smash, starting from the heroine's journey of Karen. If Karen is written to remind me of someone, it is Andrea Sachs from The Devil Wears Prada, I can't help but think Smash is the Broadway version of The Devil Wears Prada. But that's fine, right? Karen is this stereotype star-in-the-making character, she is talented but I don't think she has been the centre of the story and she should be the centre of all things in Smash. I want more first person point of view, I want the story to focus on this character more. I don't think she has been given the opportunity to shine, and I think McPhee can be a bit wooden when she sings. It doesn't matter what songs she sings, she always has the same expression on her face and her voice is not as powerful as it should be. She shouldn't be singing as McPhee, but she should be singing as Karen. 

When you see a character, even before she becomes a star in the story, you can see the star quality in her, you know she is going to have a well deserved epic ending. Like Rachel, her big voice delivers every song whether it is a Wicked or Bonnie Tyler's song, and she gives a powerful vocal performance week in week out, you know she is a star even before she becomes one. But with Karen, I know the story is steering towards her stardom, but you know Ivy is a better choice as Marilyn, despite sleeping with the director. I don't feel that Karen deserves the role because I, as a viewer, is not convinced that she is Marilyn. Her voice is not as powerful as Ivy, her performance as Marilyn is not convincing, and her life as a waitress with a decent boyfriend and a supportive family is not that interesting. You don't just want to feel sorry for her, you want her to nail it, you want her to kick ass. But she hasn't. 

There is enough there for me to keep watching Smash. I hope the story and characterisation will get better. I am still hoping to be inspired. I am still hoping to see that Defying Gravity moment that every Broadway star-in-the-making deserves. I am looking for this one moment where the character, Karen, really shows us what she's made of. Defying Gravity is the moment for Rachel and Kurt. It is the unofficial theme for these characters and this song is the symbol of hope and stardom. This scene defines their characters and what they are made of. I am still looking for similar moment that belongs to Karen. I am still waiting for Smash to be a smashing hit.

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