tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post2769091446783635442..comments2024-03-28T18:01:28.997-04:00Comments on What's Alan Watching?: Freaks and Geeks Rewind: Tricks and TreatsAlan Sepinwallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-64504026695473558932007-06-28T22:44:00.000-04:002007-06-28T22:44:00.000-04:00I was actually still in high school when the show ...I was actually still in high school when the show ran and the geek sequences were painfully familiar. Not that I ever got beat up, but it was obvious that I was very low on the social pecking order (though I wasn't at the bottom, for whatever that was worth). I suppose the show should have made me depressed but it had such heart that it was impossible for me to stop watching. Eight years later and I still felt sad at the end of a recent Freaks and Geeks season viewing because there wasn't going to be any more episodes.<BR/><BR/>Man, I really wish Paul Feig would create another show or a movie.Ezrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10576091174894838044noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-11249529169669345442007-06-27T18:05:00.000-04:002007-06-27T18:05:00.000-04:00Have got to disagree w/ the claim that this ep has...Have got to disagree w/ the claim that this ep has the best Bill moment (though I agree that it is awesome). I would refer you to the cold open in <I>Noshing and Moshing</I>: <A HREF="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2418071274806076471" REL="nofollow">Bill gets funky</A>! (The deleted/extended version of the dance in particular is effing genius.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-13734866580477974892007-06-26T18:42:00.000-04:002007-06-26T18:42:00.000-04:00If anyone ever needs any more Martin Starr love he...If anyone ever needs any more Martin Starr love he also guest starred in How I Met Your Mother's first season as a Star Wars-esque geek.<BR/><BR/>I had almost forgotten about Freaks and Geeks until a few weeks ago when my roommates and I finally finished Arrested Development and we needed a new sitcom. I ran to the store and bought up Undeclared (I had lost my old discs due to shoddy dorm locks) and watching Undeclared triggered all of my Freaks and Geeks memories.<BR/><BR/>As I get older, I see F and G as less of a high school show and more of a "life is awkward in general" trip. As well-formed as the pilot was, it was the kids getting drunk on non-alcoholic beer and the anti-drinking assembly that really struck a chord with me.<BR/><BR/>In your reviews I really like that you're spending so much time discussing the little moments that really put the show above everything else. It wasn't about the big set pieces or heartfelt moments, it was about the unyielding commitment to every scene, every second ringing true to life.Steven Timbermanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01467454830869186297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-22064725610433695162007-06-26T18:09:00.000-04:002007-06-26T18:09:00.000-04:00Starr('s character) trying to impress college girl...<I>Starr('s character) trying to impress college girls by describing what a brilliant anti-comedy Freddy Got Fingered is stands as one of the funniest things in the Apatow & Company oeuvre.</I><BR/><BR/>That was him?! I love that episode of Undeclared but I never realized Theo was played by Martin Starr. (I should really pay more attention to the credits.) <BR/><BR/>Starr disappears so completely into Bill's character that it doesn't seem like he's acting at all. It's really an amazing performance. For a long time I just figured they found Bill's real-life counterpart and told him to act like himself in front of a camera.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-64812883657556514452007-06-26T17:13:00.000-04:002007-06-26T17:13:00.000-04:00Spurred on by Alan's recaps, I decided to revisit ...Spurred on by Alan's recaps, I decided to revisit F&G over the weekend, and to my surprise, I found myself in hysterics at one of the smaller moments in the episode: the exchange between Kim, Millie and Daniel and the bus stop.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-11458402308712135882007-06-26T17:08:00.000-04:002007-06-26T17:08:00.000-04:00I tried this show for about 15 minutes when it air...I tried this show for about 15 minutes when it aired, but it was waaaay too close to the bone, I couldn't laugh at it. Maybe I'm old enough now to enjoy it.<BR/> Also, "The Nude Bomb"? Listen, I knew it was network television and all, but part of me was convinced that they couldn't put the word "Nude" right in the title of the movie and NOT have any nudity in it. Very disappointing. Let's just say it was no "The Girl, the Gold Watch, and Everything".Homertojeebushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14716825626940216299noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-82887294394984111562007-06-26T16:55:00.000-04:002007-06-26T16:55:00.000-04:00I really loved the first two episodes of this show...I really loved the first two episodes of this show when I went through them, but this was the one that made me know it would end up as one of my favorite shows. Sam saying "Nobody thinks you're cool, you know" and Lindsay responding with "Trust me, I know" was probably the moment for me. Well, that and Bill in front of the mirror.Ty Keenanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17017621898637884658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-85150449735177328902007-06-26T16:27:00.000-04:002007-06-26T16:27:00.000-04:00The commentary does note that the episode had to b...The commentary does note that the episode had to be shot during the daytime because they couldn't shoot at night. I don't recall whether that was budgetary or because the actors were too young to shoot late at night. It is a great episode, and I don't find it quite as bleak as others do, for some reason (though it definitely has a sad undertone).Marty McKeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02084642122976337263noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-45083492757936200262007-06-26T15:38:00.000-04:002007-06-26T15:38:00.000-04:00I have only seen this episode once, when it origin...I have only seen this episode once, when it originally aired, but the the words "I'm not a little girl, I'm a bionic woman!" will forever be burned in my brain.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-19680589623818499932007-06-26T15:02:00.000-04:002007-06-26T15:02:00.000-04:00Remember when Martin Starr showed up on Undeclared...<I>Remember when Martin Starr showed up on Undeclared? It wasn't quite the same, but it was still cool.</I><BR/><BR/>Starr('s character) trying to impress college girls by describing what a brilliant anti-comedy <I>Freddy Got Fingered</I> is stands as one of the funniest things in the Apatow & Company oeuvre.Bret LaGreehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12000566742639583055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-78680596064811922412007-06-26T14:29:00.000-04:002007-06-26T14:29:00.000-04:00Bill, my wife used to feel as you did. I'd have to...Bill, my wife used to feel as you did. I'd have to distill the particularly funny or sweeter-natured scenes, such as Haverchuck as Jamie Sommers, and she'd skip the misery. Then she read Paul Feig's memoir <I>Kick Me</I>, and realized the real-life stories the eps were based on (including dressing as a woman for Halloween) were far worse than anything onscreen. After that, she devoured the show whole.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16187789921765904795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-31444023993027938102007-06-26T13:52:00.000-04:002007-06-26T13:52:00.000-04:00Yeah, I think it was important for them to call th...Yeah, I think it was important for them to call the next episode "Kim Kelly Is My Friend" because that's the reason they wrote it.<BR/><BR/>Remember when Martin Starr showed up on Undeclared? It wasn't quite the same, but it was still cool.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-41537278195173295932007-06-26T12:51:00.000-04:002007-06-26T12:51:00.000-04:00Bill, I'm not going to argue the larger point, as ...Bill, I'm not going to argue the larger point, as the bleakness factor was certainly a large reason why this show never became a hit, but as I said in the recap, this is one of the bleakest episodes they did. Usually, there are awful moments mixed in with sweeter, funnier stuff.Alan Sepinwallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-33043273279431689202007-06-26T12:23:00.000-04:002007-06-26T12:23:00.000-04:00Man, that recap depressed the hell out of me; I no...Man, that recap depressed the hell out of me; I no longer feel bad about having missed the show. Maybe that's one reason why the show failed. There was a time I'd take enjoyment in a depiction of the misery of the human condition and I guess that time has passed. Kind of like why I stopped watching ER and other hospital shows--no longer found any entertainment value in watching people die in hospitals, no matter how well the story was told. Not that I've given up on all dramas, but when it comes to the few minutes a day I can waste watching TV I'm usually looking for something lighter (examples: <I>30 Rock</I> and <I>Man Vs. Wild</I>).billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16116980864333670109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-82416677924645943202007-06-26T12:20:00.000-04:002007-06-26T12:20:00.000-04:00I too grew up during that "razor blades/poison" sc...I too grew up during that "razor blades/poison" scare, in southern Michigan, and remember handouts for parents from school about how to check your kids' candy and what to throw out. I remember being daring enough to eat a Rice Krispie bar once (the homemade kind, not the stuff they package these days). <BR/><BR/>Martin Starr's audition tape is hilarious--it's an extra on the DVD set. He goes into detail about how different hits can kill you (such as the Hitler punch to the kidney, where it hurts so much you go insane and kill yourself). His unique delivery has the people off-camera laughing constantly. It's his fleshing out of the "geek" character that I appreciate--he's not a one-note, "revenge of the nerds" stereotype. His character develops quite a bit in a very short time (love the story line with the gym teacher). <BR/>~KatieAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-7712612897669130152007-06-26T11:28:00.000-04:002007-06-26T11:28:00.000-04:00To me, the trick-or-treaters' refusal to take Jean...To me, the trick-or-treaters' refusal to take Jean's cookies is one of the most resonant details in the show's entire run. I was of prime trick-or-treating age in 1980 and I remember those crazy rumors circulating about razor blades in candy and how we were supposed to check the wrappers to make sure their integrity was still fully intact. To this day, it makes me sad to reflect on the implication that your neighbors could no longer be trusted and that doing something special for them-- baking cookies as opposed to passing out the same pre-packaged candy bars as everyone else-- would be looked upon with suspicion. It's kind of heartbreaking when you think about it, and Jean's thread in this episode never fails to put a lump in my throat.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-71913596360657936452007-06-26T10:59:00.000-04:002007-06-26T10:59:00.000-04:00Even when rewatching this episode I still yell out...Even when rewatching this episode I still yell out "Floyd" when Harold wears the Dracula costume. I'm Canadian so I would be deported if I didn't know my SCTV. <BR/><BR/>I think that I truly became addicted to this show after this episode aired (yes I actually watched it live) because it had heart and both the freaks and the geeks seemed very real, as opposed to the plastic teens of the era (90210, Saved by the Bell).<BR/><BR/>Martin Starr is wonderful in this series, and I often think that casting directors probably don't use him because he looks so different without the glasses on.Nicolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11317568565085893849noreply@blogger.com