Coming Show: His Dark Materials

If you are a fan of Philip Pullman's fantasy series, and I am, you will be happy to hear that BBC One has committed to bringing the story to television.  You may remember the so-so film The Golden Compass, which covered the first book in the series.  I think BBC can do better by sharing the story of Lyra and Will over multiple episodes rather than a two-hour film.  Mr. Pullman's rich material needed more time than Hollywood could provide.  

I also do not know why the US market needs different names, such as The Golden Compass rather than the original Northern Lights.  The same thing happened with the first Harry Potter book, going from the British title Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to the American title Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  What do we have against philosophers?  Did it sound too intellectual?  To British? And I read the third book in Pullman's trilogy, The Amber Spyglass, was censored for the US market because it dared to show Lyra experiencing puberty.  I expect the BBC to be more faithful to Mr. Pullman's vision since it will be made for a British audience that has no fear of sexuality (nor philosophers).

Speaking about the new series in an interview, Mr. Pullman noted:

In recent years we’ve seen the way that long stories on television, whether adaptations (‘Game of Thrones’) or original (‘The Sopranos, The Wire), can reach depths of characterisation and heights of suspense by taking the time for events to make their proper impact and for consequences to unravel.

I agree.  Mr. Pullman's trilogy deserves the full treatment, and I am confident BBC One can do it right.  Let's just hope US viewers do not get a censored version of the original again.

Netflix: W/ Bob & David

Looking for entertainment on a Friday night? Tonight on Netflix you can try out a new series W/ Bob & David. 

What is it?  It's a sketch show starring Bob Odenkirk and David Cross.  I was not a watcher of their earlier Mr. Show on HBO, buy I am willing to try out their latest project. Four episodes are available tonight.

In a Toronto Star interview, Odenkirk stated:

...we were talking about a live tour for the 20th anniversary of Mr. Show. We’d actually done a tour a few years ago and it was really fun, but you realize how hard it is to tour and how much work goes into it. So David and I started thinking that if we’re going to work that hard, instead of performing for a few people in a few cities, why not just make a show? Then we pitched around to a couple of places and started working. So by the time that Netflix was in, we had already been writing for a few months and probably had six or seven sketches that we were happy with.

Again, Netflix to the rescue. I am glad the streaming service is battling Amazon and Hulu to be a true competitor to the older networks.  We get more programming and the networks cannot stand still. The viewers are the winners. We just need more hours in a day.

Update: I enjoyed the first episode. The linked stories and ending made the whole greater than its parts. The main skit, Better Roots, seemed like a long-planned piece released at the wrong time given the state of race relations, but American comics (particularly away from the big networks) cannot avoid controversy if they want to remain relevant. 

Coming Show: New Star Trek Series

With all the attention on Star Wars, could look like CBS is late to the party announcing a new Star Trek television series, but if anyone knows how to milk a series it is the owners of the Star Trek franchise. The 1960s series has already spawned multiple television shows as well as movies. 

Information on the new series is thin, but since the creators come from the latest movies that rebooted the whole story,  it would seem the old timeline is dead. This provides ample room to expand the story while still throwing in some favorites from other parts of the galaxy (aka Klingons and the Borg).

Does CBS care about Star Trek or its new online service All Access, which will sell the new show for a fee when it is released in 2017? That is like asking if George Lucas believed in his Star Wars story or simply wanted to sell toys. If the end result is a good show, then the motives are less important. 

I mean how far can this idea go? It's not like the franchises are building theme parks. Oh wait...

Lower Photos: Disney's Star Trek Experience (top) and Spain's Paramount Park Murcia (bottom).

Sunday Night: Ballerinas and Secret Agents

Tonight you can capture a ballet drama on Starz called Flesh and Bone.  It portrays the dark side of the arts in New York City, which is not much of a surprise.  I cannot think of any sunny portrayals of the sausage-making arts world.  Annie this is not, or maybe it is but a very adult version.  Of course, since this is a television show competing against every other show, you need to throw in incest, Russian mobsters, and more.  Ballerinas seem to be a small part of this tale.  

Design and Trend notes:

"Flesh And Bone" isn't for the fainthearted. It not only shows ballerinas seemingly floating on the dance floor with their graceful moves, cherubic expressions and body-bending techniques but there's ample dark drama and sex to shock and awe viewers.
 
And if you need something other than dark dancing, you can watch the two-hour premiere of Agent X on TNT tonight.  Here is the trailer and pitch:

In times of extreme crisis, when traditional law and government aren't in a position to help, there is an unseen hand that works to protect this country and its citizens from all manner of threats by any means necessary. Hidden from the view of the public -- and even from the President -- there is a top secret agent who is trained and ready to serve, deployed only at the careful discretion of the Vice President. This is Agent X. 

That's right, the vice presidency finally has some powers.  Wouldn't it be great if Joe Biden could secretly solve the crisis in the Middle East while President Obama stays home to handle the domestic issues?  Who said being Vice Presidency was "not worth a bucket of warm piss"?  Actually, it was Vice President John Nance Garner, but that is not the point.

Aziz Ansari in Master of None

Aziz Ansari is contemplating fatherhood in the pilot episode of Netflix's new series Master of None.  The episodes were posted yesterday (November 6), and after watching the first half hour episode, called "Plan B," I am already hooked.  Ansari plays a single man in New York watching others grow up around him.  The pilot included googling during sex, a birthday party for a one year old, babysitting, divorce, and plenty of contemplation.  It was a full half hour with him roaming around New York in a Louis sort of way but without all the zaniness.  This trailer shows you some of the highlights of what is to come.  

The show was created by Ansari and even stars his own parents playing his character's parents. And this character is very different from the one he played in Parks and Recreation where contemplation was not really one of his strengths.  His new character is someone more of us should be able to relate to.

Critic Hank Stuever in the Washington Post sums the show up in this way:

...the overall effect of “Master of None” is one of fullness and fun. It doesn’t amount to any meaningful hill of beans, but, as I understand it, that’s no longer the point. This seems like a long way of invoking the Seinfeldian concept that “Master of None” is another show about nothing, minus all traces of the inherent distrust and disdain of Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David.

The show is worth a look.  You won't be disappointed.

Angel or Just Hell?

Jane Lynch is fun to watch, yet usually in small doses. As a high school coach in Glee she was the perfect foil for the other more-hopeful characters. Now she is the star of CBS's Angel from Hell premiering tonight.  Here is the basic story:  

ANGEL FROM HELL is a single-camera comedy about Amy, a colorful, brassy woman who insinuates herself into the life of an organized and seemingly perfect young woman, Allison, claiming to be her “guardian angel.” Allison is an intense, driven doctor who is sure that Amy is just an inebriated, outspoken nut, until every one of her warnings proves true. Cautioned by Amy not tell anyone about her, Allison can’t discuss this over-the-top oddball with her father and business partner, Marv, a doctor who shares an office with Allison, or her younger brother, Brad, a sales rep who lives in a guest room over her garage. As Allison tries to push Amy away, Amy makes her final pitch: her sole mission is to provide Allison with helpful guidance that nudges her in the right direction in life – and it’s her final chance to prove herself as an angel. With that, Allison agrees to this unlikely relationship because maybe a weird friend is exactly what she needs… and what if Amy really is her “guardian angel”?

So, is she an angel, stalker, or weird friend? You decide. This long trailer gives you a better idea about what you can expect. I think it could be a fun movie, but I am less certain about a television series.

Another Set of Amazon Pilots

It is that time again to view a slate of Amazon Originals pilots and decide which ones you would like to see as a full series.  My favorite from the last batch was The Man in the High Castle, due to be available as a full season on November 20th. 

 
But what about this latest batch?  Well, you can view the pilots starting tomorrow.  Prepare for cowboys, spies, Southern Belles and more from these new stories.  Here is a quick summary of each pilot from Deadline (trying to find this on an Amazon site was impossible). 

Edge:  Based on George G. Gilman’s best-selling book series of the same name, which has been described as “the most violent western in print,” Edge showcases the sly, raw power of the western genre. Set in 1868, Max Martini (Pacific Rim, Captain Phillips) stars as Josiah ‘Edge’ Hedges—a Union officer turned cowboy, who prowls the post-Civil War American West doling out his own peculiar (and savage) brand of justice. When we meet Edge in the pilot, his mission is personal and his vengeance hath no fury. Edge also stars Ryan Kwanten (True Blood) as Merritt Harknett, and Yvonne Strahovski (The Astronaut Wives Club, Chuck) as Beth. Edge was developed by Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, Iron Man 3) and Fred Dekker (Tales from the Crypt, Star Trek: Enterprise), teleplay by Dekker and Black, is directed by Black, and executive produced by Black, Dekker, Barry Josephson (Bones, Turn: Washington Spies), and David Greenblatt (Battle Los Angeles).

Good Girls Revolt:  In 1969, while a cultural revolution with a soundtrack to match swept through the free world, there was still one place that refused to change with the times: newsrooms.Good Girls Revolt follows a group of young female researchers at “News of the Week,” who simply ask to be treated fairly. Their revolutionary request will spark convulsive changes and upend marriages, careers, sex lives, love lives, and friendships. Good Girls Revolt stars Genevieve Angelson (Backstrom) as Patti, Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect) as Jane, Erin Darke (We Need to Talk About Kevin) as Cindy, Chris Diamantopoulos (Silicon Valley) as Finn, Hunter Parrish (Weeds) as Doug, Jim Belushi (Show Me a Hero) as Wick McFadden, Joy Bryant (Parenthood) as Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Grace Gummer as Nora Ephron. A co-production with TriStar Television, Good Girls Revolt is written and created by Dana Calvo (Made in Jersey), directed by Liza Johnson (Return), and executive produced by Calvo, Lynda Obst (Interstellar), Darlene Hunt (The Big C),Don Kurt (Justified) and Jeff Okin (Dark Skies, Stanley Park). The pilot is inspired by the landmark sexual discrimination cases chronicled in Lynn Povich’s book, The Good Girls Revolt.

Highston:  Highston Liggetts (newcomer Lewis Pullman) is a 19-year-old with a wide circle of celebrity friends—that only he can see. His parents, Jean (Mary Lynn Rajskub, 24), and Wilbur (Chris Parnell, Saturday Night Live) force him to get psychiatric help, but his Uncle Billy (Curtis Armstrong, American Dad!) thinks he’s just fine. Highston is a comedy about what it means to be normal in a world that’s anything but. The pilot guest stars Shaquille O’Neal (Thunderstruck) and Flea (The Big Lewbowski), and is written by Oscar-nominee Bob Nelson (Nebraska), directed by Independent Spirit Award winners Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine), and executive produced by Sacha Baron Cohen (The Dictator), Todd Hoffman (Love Stinks), Nelson, and Todd Schulman (Bruno).

One Mississippi:  A dark comedy, loosely inspired by Tig Notaro’s (Boyish Girl Interrupted) life, One Mississippi follows Tig as she deals with the complex reentry into her childhood hometown of Bay Saint Lucille, Mississippi, to deal with the unexpected death of her mother, the interminable life of the party, Caroline. Reeling from her own recently declining health, Tig struggles to find her footing with the loss of the one person who actually understood her, with help from her older but not always wiser brother, Remy, played by Noah Harpster (Transparent), and her emotionally distant stepfather, Bill, played by John Rothman (The Devil Wears Prada). A surprise visit from Tig’s girlfriend, Brooke, played by Casey Wilson (Gone Girl) only compounds the reality of how out of place Tig is in a world without her mother.  A co-production with FX Productions, One Mississippi is written and executive produced by Notaro and Diablo Cody (Juno), executive produced by Louis CK (Louie), Blair Breard (Louie), and Dave Becky (Everybody Hates Chris), with pilot directed and executive produced by Nicole Holofcener (Enough Said).

Patriot:  The political thriller Patriot follows the complicated life of intelligence officer John Tavner (Australian newcomer Michael Dorman, Wonderland). His latest assignment is to prevent Iran from going nuclear, requiring him to forgo all safety nets and assume a perilous “non-official cover” — that of a mid-level employee at a Midwestern industrial piping firm. A bout with PTSD, the Federal government’s incompetence, and the intricacies of keeping a day job in the “front” industrial piping company, cause a barrage of ever-escalating fiascos that jeopardize Tavner’s mission. The pilot also stars Terry O’Quinn (Lost) as Tom Tavner, John’s State Department Director of Intelligence father, Michael Chernus (Manhattan Project), as John’s older brother Edward Tavner, a young Texas congressman, Kathleen Munroe (Call Me Fitz), as John’s wife Alice, Aliette Opheim (Sandor slash Ida) as Agathe, a brilliant young homicide detective from Luxembourg hot on John’s trail, and Kurtwood Smith (That 70s Show) as Mr. Claret, John’s stickler of a new “boss” at the piping firm. Patriot is written and directed by Steven Conrad (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Weather Man), and executive produced by Conrad, Gil Bellows (Temple Grandin), Glen Ficarra (Crazy Stupid Love, Focus), Charlie Gogolak (Focus), and John Requa (Crazy Stupid Love, Focus).

Z:  Z is a bio-series pilot based on the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, the brilliant, beautiful and talented Southern Belle who becomes the original flapper and icon of the wild, flamboyant Jazz Age in the 20s. Starring Christina Ricci (Monster) as Zelda Sayre, Z starts before she meets the unpublished writer F. Scott Fitzgerald (Gavin Stenhouse,Allegiance), and moves through their passionate, turbulent love affair and their marriage—made in heaven, lived out in hell as the celebrity couple of their time. The series travels through the wild parties, the wicked jazz, the dissolute artists of the era, as well as the alcoholism, adultery and struggle with dashed dreams and mental illness that characterizes their later years. Z dives into the fascinating life of a woman ahead of her time, an artist determined to establish her own identity in the tempestuous wake of a world-famous husband. The show pulls back the curtain on her triumphs and dark secrets. It’s a modern take on one of the most notorious love stories of all time, played out in salons and speak-easies from Montgomery, Alabama to the Cote D’Azur. Z is written by Dawn Prestwich (The Killing) and Nicole Yorkin (The Killing), directed by Tim Blake Nelson (Anesthesia), and executive produced by Pamela Koffler (Still Alice) and Christine Vachon (One Hour Photo) of Killer Films, as well as Ricci. The show also guest stars David Strathairn (Good Night and Good Luck) as Judge Anthony Dickerson Sayre, Kristine Nielsen (Savages) as Minnie Sayre, Maya Kazan (The Knick) as Livye Hart, Sarah Schenkkan (30 Rock) as Eleanor Browder, Jamie Anne Allman (The Killing) as Tootsie Sayre, and Holly Curran (Alpha House) as Tilde Sayre.