The Simpsons Reign Over All

I did not expect Fox's The Simpsons to last for 500 episodes, and yet every time I watch an episode I am still surprised how relevant this cartoon can be.  Last Sunday's 500th episode was no exception, as it illustrated Springfield's frustration with the antics of this crazy family.  Of course, this was followed by the town's understanding that they needed this family more than Springfield itself.  We now have more than one generation who has learned about American culture through this eyes of this little yellow family.  At this point, maybe we need them more than they need us.

Matt Groening recently describes the nature of his creation in the LA Times,

"The Simpsons" from the very beginning was based on our memories of brash '60s sitcoms — you had a main title theme that was bombastic and grabbed your attention -- and when you look at TV shows of the 1970s and '80s things got very mild and toned down and ... obsequious. And I loved the idea of Mayberry — how in "The Andy Griffith Show" you got to know Floyd the Barber and Goober at the gas station and so on. We can do that with Springfield even more so; in animation you create your own universe, so we could populate the show with as many people as wanted. I thought it would work, but it worked better than I thought.

What is pretty amazing today is how ubiquitous cartoons have become on prime time (particularly Fox) with programs such as The Cleveland Show, Bob's Burgers, Family Guy, The Boondocks, Futurama, and American Dad.  Of course, prior generations grew up with The Flintstones, The Jetsons, The Critic, and even Beavis and Butt-head (recently restarted by MTV).  And just last month two new cartoons were added to the prime time line-up:

-- Napoleon Dynamite (Fox, January 15th, 8:30 pm ET):  An animated series based on the hit film, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE follows the comic adventures of America's most awesomely awkward teenager and his offbeat family and friends as they navigate small-town life in rural Idaho. Whether he's facing down bullies or discovering the meaning of friendship, NAPOLEON (voice of Jon Heder) proves that true heroes follow their own path - especially when they have secret ninja skills from the government.

--  Unsupervised (FX, January 19th, 10:30 pm ET):  Unsupervised is an animated, half-hour comedy about two eternally optimistic best friends "Gary" and "Joel," who are navigating the harsh landscape of adolescence and trying to do what's right despite having no parental guidance whatsoever. Gary's father took off years ago and left him with his absentee stepmom, while Joel's elderly parents remain unseen and uninvolved. And the adults that are actually present in Gary and Joel's lives are anything but role models. At first glance, Gary and Joel's world may be bleak but their worldview is bright as they guide themselves through life with each other to depend on.

I am not sure if the attraction is eternal youth among the characters, lower production costs (without big name stars), a return to our youth with Saturday morning cartoons, or something else.  But the formula seems to be working.  I would like to know if any other country is so reliant on adult cartoons for social commentary.  I have heard of puppets (and we had this as well with the prime time Muppet Show), but I am not sure about cartoons.  This is a topic for another day.

Who's the Boss?: Starz Knows the Answer

I was happy to see Starz's new series Boss was recognized at last month's Golden Globe Awards, with Kelsey Grammer winning Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama.  Season one was a dark take on the great city of Chicago, recently voted the most corrupt city in America by the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Institute of Government and Public Affairs. 

Grammer was profiled recently in the LA Times and stated he might be interested in a real run at political office:

Getting into politics has always been in my head. I was raised by my granddad, who was a military man, and he always said you had to serve your country. I registered for the draft when I was 17, but Nixon was withdrawing the troops, so I was spared that. But it has always been there that I want to do my part for my country if I can. Fred Thompson pulled it off — being both an actor and a politician — but I think I'd have to leave acting behind before I could do it. That's something I would do when I'm finally an adult [he chuckles].

I am not sure if Fred Thompson is the model I would use.  How about Ronald Reagan?  Whatever way he goes, I hope he knows that ear-pulling, infidelity, shouting temper-tantrums, and illegal drug use is not really part of the political process.  Okay, maybe it is for some, but let's agree it is not the case for most successful politicians.  

February Shows: Pants and Smash

February 2 saw the premiere of MTV's latest foray into television drama with I Just Want My Pants Back, a silly show that sadly is not much more than it's title.  After the 30 minute pilot involving refrigerator sex, snarky dialog, and the expected loss of one's pants (and not much else of value), you are left with an empty feeling.  You need to ask "Is the life of such young people really this bleak and aimless?"  Overall, this new show came across as a shallow New York version of Chicago's Happy Endings, where happiness still reigns among some of the youth in this country. 

February 6 was the start of NBC's Smash, the long-awaited adult version of Glee.  Then again, maybe not.  While the first season of Glee had humor and hope, NBC's new show starts off a tepid Fame-like material and does not offer much hope beyond that.  While I like the cast, Smash did not have the energy I expected with its back story of divorce, adoption, and bad blood between two artists/creators.  You seem to be walking into the middle of a well worn plot and not all that interested in catching up.  And even the idea of creating a musical from scratch sounded interesting until it became the tale of Marilyn Monroe.  Really?  That's what this new generation is clamoring for?  I just don't get it.  Smash is a dud.

Update:  I Just Want My Pants Back has been cancelled by MTV, whereas Smash is getting a second season.  Oh well, one down and one more to go.

Previews of a Show Yet to Come: Touch

The January 25th premiere of Fox's new show Touch was an intense teasing of the senses before going black again and forcing us to wait until March 19th to see what happens next.  This device, where the networks seed their later release, has some merits when you want to stand out in a crowd of new shows.

What we see in Touch was a struggling, underemployed father Martin (Keifer Sutherland) trying to find a way to connect to his 11-year old son Jake (David Mazouz).  And while the show seems to be attaching itself to unnecessarily large themes, such as the death of the boy's mother in the Twin Towers, it successfully shows us a family trying to cope with a larger world that cannot understand them.  Of course, it is not a normal family since young Jake can detect patterns in his mind that foresee complex events before they happen around the world.  A series of events, mind you, that are so complex that should you leave your seat for one minute to grab a snack you are most likely going to miss an important clue that makes it all work.

Yes, Touch is intense and draining, which means you should give the program your full concentration and not use it as light entertainment after a busy day.  This is a good thing, mind you, since too much of TV is repetitive with puzzles one can resolve in minutes. 

Touch will officially premiere simultaneously in 100 countries this March.  I can already detect a pattern and foresee a network with a hit on its hand.

Update:  According to ScreenRant, Touch was renewed for a second season. I lost interest in this show with so many other coming out at the same time, but this is one I might revisit at some point in the future.

Vote for Knope

In this political season, you may be looking for a candidate that represents your view of the world.  Well, I have a candidate for you.  Here are just a few planks from a platform that stretches far and wide:

-- Regulate heights of trampolines;
-- Memorial for those lost in the trampoline "incident";
-- Shutting down underground shooting range;
-- Free cookies at every street corner;
-- One school for every student; and
-- Require flattering mirrors in public restrooms.

Yes, Leslie Knope speaks to all of those concerns that others may think are daffy.  And while she is only running for a position on Pawnee, Indiana's city council, she may have higher aspirations down the road.  Given who we already see running for president, I would say she is pretty "electable."  For more on this fascinating campaign, visit Knope2012.  And for a terrific program that will keep you laughing from start to finish, try out an episode of NBC's Parks and Recreation.  (I bet you thought I was going to say the Republican debates.)

A Full Night of Law Men (and Women): Southland and Justified

Prepare yourself for a full night of great TV starting tomorrow night (Jan. 17) at 10 pm EST.  Of course, you will need to start up that DVR because FX's Justified and TNT's Southland will be dueling for your attention.  

Justified starts its third season of the adventures of Raylan (Timothy Olyphant), a Kentucky lawman who cannot get a break.  Whether taking on the local drug dealers or the distant mob, he tends to leave a few bodies where ever he goes.  And last season he even had to take out a mother (Margo Martindale) who guarded her nest of viper children.  Ms. Martindale won an Emmy for this role and deserved even more praise for her amazing performance.  Topping such a performance will not be easy in season three, but I am confident we will be provided with more dark characters who stay with us long after the episode is over.  And should you want to learn a little more about Elmore Leonard, the writer who created Raylan and all his adventures, then you can check out this WSJ interview, "Why He Writes, at 86:  'I Might as Well.'"

Southland starts its fourth season after quite a few bruised egos and bodies in the last season, as well as a very troubling death of a detective.  Los Angeles is about as far as you can get from the Kentucky hills, yet the crime and related violence is much the same.  And, as with Justified, you get tied up with the characters who seem to be more real than the mechanic, pretty officers you see on so many other shows.  This is more Hill Streets Blues than NCIS Los Angeles, and that works perfectly for me.  Whether its officer Ben Sherman (Ben McKenzie) helping his partner deal with drug addition or detective Lydia Adams (Regina King) dating her partner's son, you have a lot to deal with before the first sign of a wide-eyed, coke-head or  wild car chase.  It makes for great TV and we are lucky that TNT saw the value of this program when no one else did.  The big networks have left a lot of scraps at the table over the years and the eager, smaller networks are all the better for it. 

Alcatraz Starts Tonight

I could have sworn that Fox's premiere of Alcatraz was scheduled for January 23rd, but it appears it starts tonight.  Starring Sam Neill and a variety of others, it has been compared to ABC's Lost, which may be a bad omen.  I remember when another TV program, The Event, was compared to Lost.  And where is that now (cancelled after one season, in case you were less than certain)?  And just in case you miss the connection, Jorge Garcia (Hugo) from Lost is part of the action.  Oh yeah, the first episode includes Jeffrey Pierce from an earlier show The Nines, which I believe was also compared to Lost before it was cancelled after one season.

So what is this new show about?  Well, I have included Fox's spin at the end of this piece.  However, what I find interesting is that the website lists the program's description twice, as if no one cared to edit the publicity for awhile.  Not a good sign (and hopefully cleaned up soon).  So shifting dates, seeing double, and bits of Lost.  I am already dizzy and the program has yet to start.

The only redeeming quality about the program from the outset is the involvement of J.J. Abrams, though I think he is involved with one of every five shows on TV at this point (including Fringe, which is to his credit).  Given all the time travel in Lost, his movie version of Star Trek, and Fringe, maybe I am caught in a time loop and it is really January 23rd though my body says January 16th.  Maybe.

Fox's description of Alcatraz: 

From executive producer J.J. Abrams (FRINGE, "Lost," "Star Trek" and the upcoming "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" and "Super 8") and writer and executive producer Elizabeth Sarnoff ("Lost," "Deadwood") comes ALCATRAZ, the chilling new thriller centered on America's most infamous prison and one-time home to the nation's most notorious murderers, rapists, kidnappers and thieves. 

When San Francisco Police Department DET. REBECCA MADSEN (Sarah Jones, "Sons of Anarchy") is assigned to a grisly homicide case, a fingerprint leads her to a shocking suspect: JACK SYLVANE (guest star Jeffrey Pierce, "The Nine"), a former Alcatraz inmate who died decades ago. Given her family history - both her grandfather and surrogate uncle, RAY ARCHER (Robert Forster, "Jackie Brown"), were guards at the prison - Madsen's interest is immediately piqued, and once the enigmatic, knows-everything-but-tells-nothing government agent EMERSON HAUSER (Sam Neill, "Jurassic Park") tries to impede her investigation, she's doggedly committed. Madsen turns to Alcatraz expert and comic book enthusiast, DR. DIEGO "DOC" SOTO (Jorge Garcia, "Lost"), to piece together the inexplicable sequence of events. The twosome discovers that Sylvane is not only alive, but he's loose on the streets of San Francisco, leaving bodies in his wake. And strangely, he hasn't aged a day since he was in Alcatraz, when the prison was ruled by the iron-fisted WARDEN EDWIN JAMES (Jonny Coyne, "Undercovers") and the merciless ASSOCIATE WARDEN E.B. TILLER (Jason Butler Harner, "The Changeling").

Madsen and Soto reluctantly team with Agent Hauser and his technician, LUCY BANERJEE (Parminder Nagra, "ER"), to stop Sylvane's vengeful killing spree. By delving into Alcatraz history, government cover-ups and Rebecca's own heritage, the team will ultimately discover that Sylvane is only a small part of a much larger, more sinister present-day threat. For while he may be the first, it quickly becomes clear that Sylvane won't be the last prisoner to reappear from Alcatraz.

Through the course of the investigation, Madsen and Soto will learn that Agent Hauser has known about the prison's secret history and has been awaiting the prisoners' return. Soto will witness his life's work - the history of Alcatraz - come alive. Madsen will be forced to keep her supportive San Francisco cop fiancé, JIMMY DICKENS (Santiago Cabrera, "Heroes"), at arm's length from the highly classified assignment as she sees everything she thought she knew about her family's past shattered, all while fighting to keep the country safe from history's most dangerous criminals.

ALCATRAZ is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive-produced by J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk (FRINGE) and Elizabeth Sarnoff. Steven Lilien ("Kyle XY") & Bryan Wynbrandt ("Kyle XY") and Sarnoff wrote the pilot, and Danny Cannon ("CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "CSI: Miami") directed and executive-produced the pilot.

Update:   We will not see a second season for Alcatraz, according to Entertainment Weekly's Inside TV.