On TV

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    Finale fun … or not …

    19 Comments

    Note: I posted this over at Magical Musings last week, but I wanted to share it here too.

    So most of the fall TV shows have wrapped up, and the summer shows are starting. I’m looking forward to the start of Covert Affairs this month.

    For the most part, I’ve enjoyed all the season finales (and even the cliffhangers) over the past few weeks of shows like Arrow, The Blacklist, and The Good Wife, but there’s one finale that I’m still thinking about—the finale of How I Met Your Mother.

    Oh, boy.

    How I Met Your MotherI’ve always really enjoyed HIMYM, but I was not a fan of the finale. In fact, it sort of ruined the whole show for me, especially since the point of the show for nine seasons seemed to be Ted finding the Mother, the love of his life. But if you’ve seen the finale, you know the show was really about something and someone else entirely. I kind of feel like the whole thing was a bait and switch.

    Finales can be hard to do, especially with a long-running series like HIMYM. It can be difficult to wrap up every single plot thread and leave fans with a satisfying conclusion. But, man. I was not expecting everything that happened in the HIMYM finale, and it was not satisfying to me at all. I’ve enjoyed watching reruns of the show, but now that I know how it ends? Even the reruns have lost some of their charm. Like I said, the finale sort of ruined the whole show for me.

    I’ve been thinking about book finales too. The finale of the Hunger Games trilogy is another one that didn’t work for me. I kind of felt like everything that Katniss went through was for nothing, since a certain character doesn’t make it back home at the end of the series. On the other hand, I thought the end of the Harry Potter series was very well done and let readers leave the characters knowing that Harry and company were in a good place.

    Maybe it’s cliché, but at the end of the day—or TV show or book—I want the characters to get their happy endings. To me, those are the most satisfying finales.

    What about you guys? Did you enjoy the HIMYM finale? What do you think are some good book and TV finales?

  • Giving in to the buzz …

    22 Comments

    I have to admit that I’m a sucker for buzz. Hype. Buildup. If there’s something that it seems like everyone is talking about, I usually want to know what all the fuss is about, whether it’s books, movies, television shows, or music.

    Like The Walking Dead television show. Now, I don’t particularly like zombies. It’s just not something I normally enjoy reading or watching (brains!). But it seems like everyone loves the show, and a couple of my friends recommended it to me as well. So I bought Wheezley (who is a zombie fan) the first season DVD set of The Walking Dead for Christmas, with the idea that if he liked and recommended it, well then I could watch it too.

    Yes, there are lots of zombies (brains!) in the show, and it is visceral at times (that poor horse!), but I enjoyed the first season. I can see what all the fuss is about. (And I’ve also realized that I am woefully unprepared for a zombie apocalypse.)

    I’m glad I gave in to the buzz and gave The Walking Dead a chance. I think the next buzzy thing that I will try will be Game of Thrones. Not sure if I’ll start with the book or the first season DVDs.

    What about you guys? Have you given in to the buzz and watched The Walking Dead or something else? What television shows are you enjoying right now?

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    Oh, the plots we weave …

    8 Comments

    As some of you know, I am totally addicted to TV. Seriously, I watch waaay too many programs every week, and one of my favorites is Gossip Girl. Now, this year hasn’t been as good as previous years — until the writers decided to hook up rich bitch Blair with Brooklyn boy Dan.

    I am love-love-loving this pairing. Why? Well, for one thing, Blair and Dan have never liked each other, but they’ve slowly become friends this year based on their mutual love of movies and art. It’s been fun to watch them inch toward each other. They’ve always been two of the nicest and most loyal characters on the show — Blair with Chuck (who is an ass most of the time), and Dan with Serena (who is flighty and selfish most of the time). I like the idea that Blair and Dan could be loyal to and happy with each other for a change.

    But really, it’s the plot that’s got me hooked because it’s an enemies-to-friends-to-lovers plot. Romance readers and authors talk about plots all the time — the secret-baby plot, the friends-to-lovers plot, the second-chance-at-love plot.

    There are tons of them out there, but one of my favorites is the friends-to-lovers plot. Why? Because I think it’s one of the most realistic plots. Love (or lust) at first sight is great, but to me, there’s something magical about watching or reading about two people becoming friends, then realizing their feelings have turned into something more. It just makes me sigh with happiness every single time.

    This is probably why I’m also addicted to romantic comedies and all those cheesy TV holiday movies — because so many of them feature the friends-to-lovers plot or a modern-day variation of the marriage-of-convenience plot, which is another one of my favorites.

    So I’m rooting for you, Blair and Dan. May your friendship turn into something more. Even if it doesn’t last, I think it will be entertaining to watch. I just wish it was April and Gossip Girl was back from its spring break already …

    What about you guys? Which TV shows are you digging? Which plots do you love?

  • Bye, bye, Dixie …

    Being a Southern girl myself, I was very sad to hear that actress Dixie Carter passed away recently. I loved Carter on the TV show Designing Women, and I’d forgotten just how much until I stumbled over these tribute clips at Entertainment Weekly.

    Check them out. They’re worth watching not only for Carter’s excellent acting, but for the great dialogue. Carter really made words come alive, and these clips show that. Carter could deliver a smart, polite put-down like nobody else could.

    So rest in peace, Dixie. You will be missed. But lucky for all of us, your work will live on.

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    An epic clash …

    2 Comments

    There have been a whole lot of remakes lately, and one of the latest is the new Clash of the Titans movie. It hasn’t gotten fantastic reviews, but part of me still wants to see it.

    Why? Because every time we had a movie day when I was in school, we watched one of three movies — The Princess Bride, The Neverending Story, or, you guessed it, Clash of the Titans. So I have a certain nostalgic fondness for Harry Hamlin, stop motion animation, and a golden owl. Inconceivable, isn’t it? 😉

    I think this is part of the reason why remakes are so popular these days. You have folks like me who have fond memories of the original TV show or movie — a built-in audience who will go to the theater and tune in to see the remake. Easy money, in other words.

    Sometimes, the remakes are better; sometimes, they’re worse. And sometimes, the original should just be left alone. I hear there’s a Karate Kid remake coming out this summer. I’m sorry, Jackie Chan, but you are no Mr. Miyagi.

    There are some other remakes in the works too — The A-Team movie, of course, along with Hawaii Five-O and The Rockford Files. I’ll watch all three of these because I’m a sucker for a good action movie or a cool detective show. And yeah, I’ll probably go see the new Karate Kid too. Who knows? Maybe the villains will still be the guys from Cobra Kai. We shall see …

    What about you guys? Which remakes are you looking forward to this year? Share in the comments.