Morning Coffee (7/9/14)

New Harry Potter story! "Does Hermione Granger prove that a witch really can have it all? (No – look at her hair.)" Hee.

Awesome: George Clooney takes on the Daily Mail.

Wow: The New Yorker is making everything available online for three months and then instituting some sort of metered paywall.

What I Learned From Talking to Tinder’s Justin Mateen About Women

I still haven't watched the Warren Jeffs biopic, but this liveblog is great.

xkcd is so good at what it does.

Yahoo is trying to purchase credibility with the Community renewal

Dirtbag John Milton

October 19th Is In Your Heart

God, I love this show.

Morning Coffee (5/24/12)

Hey, it's my brother's birthday! Happy birthday, Dave!

I'm going to have to drastically limit the amount of Olympics coverage I let myself watch, because otherwise I will try to watch everything, and OMG there's so much. Also, a good point: "British people are going to see everything happen five hours before we do and then write about it on Facebook and ruin it for us."

Here's a good primer on the Euro Zone crisis.

I don't agree with all of GQ's new rules of TV, but they're definitely worth a read.

An important read for Community fans: The Hard Truths Behind Dan Harmon’s Community Ousting

Seamus Dever + guitar + puppies. You're welcome.

Hailee Steinfeld in Why We Broke Up? Works for me, I think.

Matthew McConaughey as JFK? John Cusack as Nixon? Alan Rickman as Reagan? Is this a real thing that is happening?

The evolution of Zooey Deschanel

Joshua Jackson and Diane Kruger, just hanging out with Bill Clinton. Awesome.

Morning Coffee (5/22/12)

In case you missed it last night, I have the first official poster for Sorkin's The Newsroom up at TheTelevixen.com.

WWI movies seem to be in. I am not complaining.

Important: Don’t Pirate ‘Community’ to Protest Dan Harmon’s Firing. Because that's really really dumb.

Weird: Toby Keith and Kristen Bell are hosting the CMT Music Awards. Huh.

An Oscar Wilde biopic starring Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Emily Watson, and Tom Wilkinson? Sign me up.

Oh, Paula Deen. This should not be a shock.

I promise you want to read this Rules of Engagement renewal story even if you have no interest in the show.

Essential Reading & Quick Thoughts on the Community Situation

Rumblings had been around for a while, but news officially broke last night that creator Dan Harmon will not be running Community next season. Josef Adalian has a good writeup at Vulture of the situation. It's important to remember that both sides in this have their own motivations, and neither should be necessarily taken as gospel, but for what it's worth, here's Harmon's side. To sum up, he says that he was fired, by which he means that his contract (which ended after the just-finished third season) was up and he did not receive any communication from NBC or Sony before reading the press release that announced that his replacements (Moses Port and David Guarascio, of Aliens in America and Happy Endings) had been hired. You should read Alan Sepinwall's analysis as well.

My quick thoughts:
1. Ugh. NO ONE should hear about losing their job via press release.
2. As a Community fan, I'm extremely sad that Harmon's very distinctive voice will be gone from the show, and that the show we love will inevitably change, probably drastically.
3. As someone who follows TV news and reads Harmon's Tumblr and tweets, I have no trouble believing that he's not necessarily the easiest person to work with, especially as a manager. And while it's easy for us on the outside to say "He's such a good writer that that shouldn't matter," that's just not true. One person cannot make a TV show all alone, so managerial skills, interpersonal dynamics, etc. are completely valid concerns.
4. I know everyone's upset about this, but it's not Moses and Guarascio's fault, so please, please don't direct your vitriol at them.
5. Community as we know it is gone. That's clear. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the new Community will be bad. Just different. It's too early to say.

So, yes, I'm sad. But I'm not ready to write the show off. I'll reserve judgment, follow it to Fridays, and give it a chance. And I'll really look forward to seeing what Dan Harmon does next.

What I Watched: Community & Missing Finales & More

Live-ish: Missing, "Rain on the Evil and on the Good (EP110)" - For about the first half of the season, I was watching this for "so bad it's good" reasons, but by the last few episodes, it actually came somewhere approximately close to good, and now I'm sad that it's gone - and with that cliffhanger! But was it a cliffhanger? I have a theory, but am curious what others think. If anyone else was watching. And I really hope Sean Bean, Cliff Curtis, and Adriano Giannini all get new shows soon.

Community, "Digital Estate Planning (EP320)," "The First Chang Dynasty (EP321)," "Introduction to Finality (EP322)" - I realize this is ridiculous to say, because I marathon shows all the time, but three episodes in one night seemed like a bit much, if only because it meant that each gimmick had less of an impact and it's all getting a little muddled in my mind already. That said, these were great, of course, especially the finale, and while I'm thrilled that the show will be coming back, that would have actually served very well as a series finale. And yes, I'm a complete sucker for Jeff's inspirational speeches.

Awake, "Two Birds (EP112)" - Ugh, this show is so great, and it keeps getting better, but it's not coming back, and that's so sad. At least Kyle Killen says he's satisfied with the way things will be left with next week's finale.

Live+7: White Heat, "Eve of Destruction (EP102)" - This continues to do a good job of showing both the way that big social and political changes affect peoples lives and the way that specific personal things affect the sides people take on these issues. I'm completely hooked.

Catching up: Grimm, "Game Ogre (EP108)" - My favorite moment: "There's coffee in the kitchen. Nick, you know where it is." Aww. Secret hidden bromance! I think the most interesting part of this show for me is the way the important people in Nick's life interact with each other (or don't) and the way he has to juggle them all in order to be himself. I'm expecting it all to blow up toward the end of the season, and I can't wait.

On the list... Scandal, The Mentalist

What I Watched: Vampire Diaries & Secret Circle Finales & More

I was home sick yesterday, and after sleeping for half the day it meant I managed to catch up on some things . . .

Live-ish: The Vampire Diaries, "The Departed (EP322)" - I wasn't as blown away by this finale as I have been in previous years, but I thought it was good, and I'm THRILLED with what it set up for next season. I know a lot of people are upset about some things that happened, and I understand why, but this is definitely a time when I think my viewing experience is improved by not having a horse in the shipper race for this show. I particularly loved Jeremy and Matt in this episode, and I'm so glad that neither of them were killed off. Snarky Damon is my favorite Damon, and I can't wait to see what happens now that Elena will remember everything.

The Secret Circle, "Family (EP122)" - This finale was very strong, and led me to write the phrase "Witch Hitler Casanova" for the first time in my life, and this show has improved so much overall that I will be very sad if it doesn't come back next season. The finale set up some REALLY interesting ideas for where they could go with it.

Awake, "Say Hello to My Little Friend (EP111)" - THIS SHOW. Why is no one watching this show? I know everyone else was crying over vampires and witches, but this was the episode last night that really got to me. Jason Isaacs is astonishingly good, and I will never listen to "Bohemian Rhapsody" the same way again.

Community, "Curriculum Unavailable (EP319)" - I usually love Community's moments of darkness, but I watched this episode after the previous three shows mentioned last night, and I was perhaps a little too tired and drained for it. But still, it was very good, and I love when they "remember" things they never showed us (as in the "clip show") because the idea of characters having whole lives we don't see is one that knocks us off balance in an interesting way.

Live+7: Revenge, "Legacy (EP120)" - This flashback episode was fun, but it didn't necessarily do a whole lot to advance the plot or keep up any sort of momentum. Update: Nolan is still the bestest.

Veep, "Catherine (EP103)" - I'm enjoying this show more with each episode, and I thought newcomer Sarah Sutherland did an amazing job as the sort of uber-Ellie Bartlet. I hope she's back in future episodes, and I hope her interesting chemistry with Jonah is explored.

White Heat, "The Past Is a Foreign Country (EP101)" - Loved it. Quick Pilot Thoughts post will be up later today.

Catching up: Gossip Girl, "It Girl, Interrupted (EP519)" - I'm not sure how I got so far behind on this show, given that I think Dan and Blair is the best thing to happen to it in a long time. And I loved Nate actually scheming semi-successfully in this episode. Nate Archibald: Serious Businessman is such a thoroughly delightful surprise this season.

How I Met Your Mother, "Now We Are Even (EP721)" - I know exactly how I got behind on this one - Bones moved into its timeslot. Anyway, I liked this episode and especially the way it handled the Ted/Robin friction, but I am becoming ever more worried that on Monday we will discover that Barney is marrying someone other than Robin, and that is UNACCEPTABLE.

On the list: Scandal, Missing

Morning Coffee (4/12/12)

Attention, West Wing fans! Bradley Whitford will be on Live! with Kelly on ABC sometime next hour (9-10 Eastern). I'll try to get the clip posted here tonight.

Speaking of, here's a fun Whitford interview. Yes, Cabin in the Woods comes out tomorrow. Before I remembered that, I was a little confused about why all this was happening.

And while we're on the interview subject, here's a great Q&A with Alison Brie and Gillian Jacobs of Community.

Beautiful Creatures update: Ethan Wate has been recast for scheduling reasons.

Trying to figure out the current ebook legal stuff? Maureen Johnson explains all.

Morning Coffee (3/15/12)

Happy Thursday! Vampire Diaries and Community come back tonight. In Plain Sight and Fairly Legal return tomorrow. It's a good week.

Tumblr of the day: Least Helpful Reviews

If you need some outrage in your day, read this comment thread about whether women need to act like "ladies."

L.L. Bean ice cream? YES PLEASE.

Your creepy news story for the day.

Calvino's list of types of books found in bookstores is a classic.

10 Women Who Took Titles Normally Reserved for Men

Morning Coffee (2/22/12)

Good morning! One of these days I will presumably learn that I can't possibly keep up with more TV shows than I have leisure hours in the week. But today, she said as she stared at her spreadsheet, does not seem to be that day.

Community will be back on March 15. THANK GOODNESS.

Downton Abbey paper dolls! Awesome!

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's new puppy is named Lupo. Cute. I hope we get a picture soon.

The Olympic Closing Ceremony Concert is shaping up to be . . . kind of interesting, really.

The Cranberries have a new album? The Cranberries still exist? Huh.

Apparently Hitler might have had a son. Wow. Would his descendants even want royalties?

Community: In Defense of Jeff and Annie

(Includes discussion of events through two episodes ago, but nothing specific about last week.)

Is this the season of Jeff and Annie? The musical number in the premiere (which was, of course, happening in Jeff's head) suggested that it might be, and their conversation in the Model U.N. episode made it clear that that's how they're thinking - but also that they realize it's kind of weird and icky. And Community fans seem quite divided over whether the ickiness outweighs everything else, whether the show should even go there at all.

First, about that ick factor: yes, he's significantly older than she is and has a lot more life experience. The show often codes him as an adult and her as a child. To some extent, though, I think both Jeff's cynical world-weariness and Annie's determined naivete are personas they put on to preserve certain images and protect themselves. And by the standards of TV relationships viewers are asked to accept and often root for, this is nothing. She's well past the age of consent and he's not her teacher or her boss. Neither of them are running around killing people or hurting each other. Sure, one or both might come out of this with a broken heart, but come on, this is college. That's what's supposed to happen.

For me, the potential ickiness is outweighed by the reasons why their relationship seems natural and the ways that they actually seem to be good for each other. Again, this is college, and Jeff is exactly the guy a girl like Annie would go for. (And really, under everything, Jeff is a pretty decent person, so Annie could do much worse for her "bad boy" phase.) Other than perhaps Abed, they're the most intellectual of the group, so the pairing is natural from that standpoint. Sure, Jeff is presented as a slacker and cheat, but don't forget that on another show, this same basic character would be - and is, actually, hi Suits! - presented as a brilliant boy wonder who used his innate talents to con his way into a prestigious career.

But most importantly, they seem to actually care about each other and be good for each other. When Jeff is with Britta, she feeds into his cynicism and they fall into a spiral of negativity, but Annie calls Jeff on his nonsense and makes him admit that a lot of the cynicism is an act. And Jeff protects Annie to an extent but also makes her engage with the real world. They see through each others' acts, which allows them to relate in a more genuine way with each other than with almost anyone else. And really, that alone is reason enough for the show to give this relationship a try.

Community, "Biology 101:" It's Back to School Time!

Man, I miss school. I mean, I don't want to go to that school, but it makes me remember how much I miss school in general. ANYWAY. I thought this was a solid premiere. More after the break.

Tonight's TV Premiere Reminders: 9/22/11

For these first few weeks of fall TV, I'll have quick posts up at 9am each day reminding you of which shows start that night, with times and channels and maybe a quick thought or two. Remember, you can see my whole fall TV spreadsheet here. (All times Eastern.)

8 p.m.:
Big Bang Theory season 5 premiere, CBS
This is another with back-to-back episodes on its first night. Practically everyone I know loves this, so I should really give it a chance at some point. But tonight in this timeslot is not the time.

Charlie's Angels series premiere, ABC
It seems a show like this could be mindless fun, but nothing I've heard about it suggests that it's actually fun. And yet I like several of the people involved, both in front of and behind the cameras, so I'll give it a try.

Community season 3 premiere, NBC
This is my favorite comedy. If you aren't watching, for goodness' sake, why not?

8:30 p.m.:
Parks and Recreation season 4 premiere, NBC
I've just started catching up on this one and am liking it quite a lot.

9 p.m.:
Grey's Anatomy season 8 premiere, ABC
I had given up on this one, but I actually found that I missed it, so I'm trying to catch up. We'll see.

The Office season 8 premiere, NBC
What will it be like without Steve Carell? We'll find out! (Well, I won't, since I'm basically the one person in America who doesn't watch this show.)

Person of Interest series premiere, CBS
A former CIA agent and mysterious billionaire team up to prevent crimes by using . . . some sort of vaguely futuristic technology, maybe? I'll catch a repeat over the weekend and let you know what I think.

9:30 p.m.:
Whitney series premiere, NBC
Not even the promise of Jane Kaczmarek could make me watch this.

10 p.m.:
The Mentalist season 4 premiere, CBS
This one had quite the season finale, and I'm pretty curious to see how they write themselves out of the box where they left things.

Prime Suspect series premiere, NBC
A remake of the classic British detective show. I've heard mixed things, but it's probably worth a try.

A Random List of My 10 Favorite Current TV Shows, In Order

I love lists. I'm always making lists in my head, making myself sort and classify things. And no one's been clamoring for my list of favorite shows, but I've felt like I should have one handy, and it finally coalesced in my head last night. I managed to put them in order, even! (For now. May change with my mood. You know.)

1. The Vampire Diaries
2. Burn Notice
3. Castle
4. In Plain Sight
5. White Collar
6. The Good Wife
7. Justified
8. Haven
9. Doctor Who
10. Community

Interesting note: There are three shows from USA Network (my favorite, I love them, they have my heart), but then not more than one from any other channel: ABC, BBCA, CBS, CW, FX, NBC, SyFy.