tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post8181998612162702302..comments2024-03-28T18:01:28.997-04:00Comments on What's Alan Watching?: Sepinwall on TV: Recapping the EmmysAlan Sepinwallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-75321607006561881002008-09-22T20:15:00.000-04:002008-09-22T20:15:00.000-04:00I feel like I might have to turn in whatever cool ...<I>I feel like I might have to turn in whatever cool cred I might have (which might not be much), but I largely liked the Josh Groban thing. It was worth it for the South Park bit alone.</I><BR/><BR/>You're not alone. It was damned entertaining.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-10600868658193799502008-09-22T19:50:00.000-04:002008-09-22T19:50:00.000-04:00and i totally admire carell for not breaking chara...and i totally admire carell for not breaking character when his wife was dying next to him and rainn wilson was losing his mind behind him. i would have cracked. which is why i'm not a super famous comic actor. well, among many, many reasons why i'm not a super famous comic actor. <BR/><BR/>i find it hard to get too worked up about the hosts because aside from the fact that they were barely even there, i've watched people online whine about the show every year for the past decade. granted, we're not talking folks who are necessarily *smart* people, but they whine. loudly. and they bitch about conan hosting and ellen hosting and how this was boring and that wasn't funny and this was blah, blah, blah and it's irritating. it's a tragedy that neil patrick harris didn't get to do a bit (which it is) but if he had then we'd have pages and pages about "why did they make him doooooo thaaaaattttt?". the same fangirls who are crying in their pillows over the fact that hugh laurie wasn't there last night to present are the same ones who gripe about what they "make" him do on things like that. bleh. <BR/><BR/>and i've just whined worse than the people i'm complaining about. without proper caps, either. i'm regressing to a lazy usenet poster. <BR/><BR/>on a positive: it seems like it's popular to rag on josh groban, but aside from gervais/carell, that was the highlight of the night for me. he totally committed to the bit. i loved every second of it.<BR/><BR/>maybe i'm going easy on the emmys because so many of my favorites won (yay bryan cranston!!!!). maybe if i watched them again (which no one in their right mind should ever do) i'd hate them. but, for me they were fine.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-2879826872617587402008-09-22T19:13:00.000-04:002008-09-22T19:13:00.000-04:00And I'd sure like to know how Steve Carrell kept a...<I>And I'd sure like to know how Steve Carrell kept a straight face through all of that.</I><BR/><BR/>That was the best past of the bit, I thought--it brought to mind some of the squirminess of the original "Office" because the interplay between Steve and Ricky went on just a tad too long. Loved that neither of them broke character, not even after Steve handed Ricky the Emmy.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-58461829904552769622008-09-22T17:51:00.000-04:002008-09-22T17:51:00.000-04:00Zelko was under appreciated for years as ed Danver...<I>Zelko was under appreciated for years as ed Danvers on "Homicide". he was great. <BR/>... as a southerner myself, I am downright insulted when Hollywood does those fake, Hollywood version of southern accents - and Ivanek's on "Damages" was one of the worst I've ever seen...even worse than Sedgewick on "The Closer". </I><BR/><BR/>While I do like Damages, I concur on the accent and agree that Ivanek was very good on Homicide. Yet like all of Homicide (save Andre Braugher) he was ignored by Emmy. He also good on 24. It's nice to see good character actors rewarded for years and years of diverse roles and good work. But sadly, this was not even close to his best work - the accent completely ruins it for me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-4596022379494933692008-09-22T17:42:00.000-04:002008-09-22T17:42:00.000-04:00My 16-year-old daughter, who doesn't know Don Rick...My 16-year-old daughter, who doesn't know Don Rickles from Don Pardo, thought he was the highlight of the evening. For me, I gotta say, it's an interesting night when Kathy Griffin is the voice of reason in front of a camera.<BR/><BR/>And I'd sure like to know how Steve Carrell kept a straight face through all of that.wjmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14787297517207269385noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-47916722543233846882008-09-22T16:24:00.000-04:002008-09-22T16:24:00.000-04:00Ivanek’s accent was so bad that for the first few ...Ivanek’s accent was so bad that for the first few episodes, I felt sure it was a joke. The whole series had a kind of over-the-top, melodramatic feel to it, and the goofiness of him sounding like he was in a bad community theater production of a Tennessee Williams play seemed to fit right in. But I couldn’t stop watching and, Damn.... The guy is a very good actor and always has been. His story was the most human and believable part of the whole show and I couldn’t be happier that he won the Emmy. It’s great to see something like this for a solid, working actor.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-61973602747820870252008-09-22T16:09:00.000-04:002008-09-22T16:09:00.000-04:00Best moments: Ricky Gervais/Steve Carell and NPH/...Best moments: Ricky Gervais/Steve Carell and NPH/Kristin Chenowith. Either pair as a hosting tandem would be lovely next year. Also, Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert would be a fine tandem.<BR/><BR/>No reality show hosts. Well, maybe Cat Deeley.<BR/><BR/>I feel like I might have to turn in whatever cool cred I might have (which might not be much), but I largely liked the Josh Groban thing. It was worth it for the South Park bit alone.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-50167123638350085362008-09-22T15:03:00.000-04:002008-09-22T15:03:00.000-04:00Ivanek's accent was problematic, but the character...Ivanek's accent was problematic, but the character arc in his last few episodes was so good and so well performed by him that it makes up for it. I still would have gone for Danson, though, who manages to make you forget Sam Malone entirely as Frobisher.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00295270766215749309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-18082871953044065512008-09-22T14:59:00.000-04:002008-09-22T14:59:00.000-04:00I'm glad Zelko Ivanek won. I'm from Brooklyn and ...I'm glad Zelko Ivanek won. I'm from Brooklyn and I haven't met too many Southerners. And I also love DAMAGES. Glad it's returning in January.CarolMRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06357698369178272616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-70847472026078719022008-09-22T14:30:00.000-04:002008-09-22T14:30:00.000-04:00I have a soft spot for Tom Bergeron. Maybe it's be...I have a soft spot for Tom Bergeron. Maybe it's because my father and I used to watch Hollywood Squares together. I don't know. But I just wanted Bergeron's suffering to stop.<BR/><BR/>RE: The Laugh-In skit. I don't know what the point of it was. At first I thought it was a tribute, but the only clip shown was Nixon saying "sock it to me". (A classic, no doubt.) Then I thought it was to announce the nominees for whatever category was coming up. But the nominees names were repeated, because...why? What a mess.<BR/><BR/>On the good side, Don Rickles was brilliant,and Kathy Griffin seemed to be truly in awe. Seeing Tom Smothers again was terrific,and I love that he hasn't lost his edge one bit. <BR/>Tina Fey rocks.<BR/> <BR/>I think my head would have exploded if John Hamm had lost to either James Spader or Tony Shalhoub (nothing against Shalhoub, but the quality of "Monk" has dropped so much that his performance has suffered). I can live with Bryan Cranston, even if I'm not a fan of "Breaking Bad".<BR/><BR/>Mad Men! Woo-hoo!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-70340183496775774532008-09-22T14:23:00.000-04:002008-09-22T14:23:00.000-04:00I wanted to shoot myself when I first heard the ne...I wanted to shoot myself when I first heard the news that they were allowing five reality TV hosts to host this show. And then, it was worse than I imagined. Far, far worse. <BR/><BR/>My wife watches "Project Runway" and when Heidi Klum was uncomfortably flubbing all her lines and making me squirm on my couch, I turned to my wife and saidm "is she this BAD on Runway?"<BR/><BR/>I agree that Jeremy Piven AGAIN winning over Neil Patrick Harris is a ttravesty, but Piven ripping the hosts and the fact that he is pretty amazing as Ari Gold on "Entourage", I can live with it. It was seeing James Spader lose...and of all people to break the evil curse that Spader has over the award show...Malcom's dad! <BR/><BR/>But yeah, Bryan Cranston was amazing on "Breaking Bad" and I was shocked and thrilled for him. I love Jon Hamm but "Mad Men" won their deserved best series trophy, so everyone came away winners.<BR/><BR/>The award winner I had a major issue with was Zelko Ivanek. Zelko was under appreciated for years as ed Danvers on "Homicide". he was great. <BR/><BR/>But "Damages" was a boring show my wife and I turned off after just 3 episodes, and as a southerner myself, I am downright insulted when Hollywood does those fake, Hollywood version of southern accents - and Ivanek's on "Damages" was one of the worst I've ever seen...even worse than Sedgewick on "The Closer". <BR/><BR/>He didn't even deserve the nomination...if you think his performance is OK, you may not have met too many southerners.<BR/><BR/>I was also very pleased with the sweep for "30 Rock". Thank goodness Baldwin and Fey won this year.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-29973602169506444692008-09-22T13:39:00.000-04:002008-09-22T13:39:00.000-04:00"I do think the painful opening sure shows the nee..."I do think the painful opening sure shows the need for writers. And the fact that reality shows themselves do have writers for these hosts, even if the companies that make them won't let them be called writers or pay for them to have health insurance or a pension (i.e. be part of the WGA.)"<BR/><BR/>I think this is a stretch. They're all capable of speaking extemporaneously on their own shows; what didn't work were the scripted segments, which were no more scripted for them than they are for anyone else. I'm not sure this demonstrates anything about the need for writers, given that nobody goes out on an awards show and improvises an opening; they always need and use writers. This demonstrated a lot of things, but I think making it about reality and the WGA isn't really fair. There have been plenty of bad hosts over the years, plenty of whom have come from ranks other than reality-show host.Lindahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08184669198971626945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-39453962640645348102008-09-22T11:40:00.000-04:002008-09-22T11:40:00.000-04:00I tuned in just before Tina Fey won Best Comedy Ac...I tuned in just before Tina Fey won Best Comedy Actress, so it sounds like I missed most of the horrors (except for the Reality TV Host presentation ... that felt like it took years, I switched over to Packers/Cowboys at least five times before they finally got through that interminable bit). <BR/><BR/>I think the vast majority of the awards went to very deserving recipients (hooray for Mad Men winning best drama!), but is it OK that I'm still bitter about Neil Patrick Harris losing to Jeremy Piven AGAIN?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-26685910840228628632008-09-22T11:19:00.000-04:002008-09-22T11:19:00.000-04:00Kimmel would have done a good job hosting, but I d...Kimmel would have done a good job hosting, but I don't think the show necessarily has to be hosted by a comedian - as long as whoever's in that role can handle the formatics and "keep the show moving." <BR/><BR/>I like the idea of recognizing Laugh-In, but the execution was awful. Don Rickles has "still got it," but in other cases (like Chevy Chase), it's better to remember them as they were.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-34642672926905229552008-09-22T11:00:00.000-04:002008-09-22T11:00:00.000-04:00BTW, Lauren Conrad is not worthy to wipe Laura Lin...<I>BTW, Lauren Conrad is not worthy to wipe Laura Linney's nose, let alone hand her an Emmy. That was just plain wrong.</I><BR/><BR/>I think David Boreanaz agrees with you. He looked more grim than usual having to co-present with her. I bet he was wishing he really was Angel so he could have put an end to her right then and there ;-DAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-13018112502036483172008-09-22T10:39:00.000-04:002008-09-22T10:39:00.000-04:00Rickles and Gervais! Put those two on TV, unscript...Rickles and Gervais! <BR/><BR/>Put those two on TV, unscripted, for three hours and they'll be picking up the statues for it this time next year.Tim Windsorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00724144856429510796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-50784080576149823852008-09-22T10:37:00.000-04:002008-09-22T10:37:00.000-04:00Seeing 30 Rock, Mad Men and Breaking Bad get their...Seeing 30 Rock, Mad Men and Breaking Bad get their due balanced out the horror of the hosts.<BR/><BR/>But the greatest loss of the evening may have been whatever Neil Patrick Harris and Kristin Chenoweth tossed over the side for the sake of the clock. <BR/><BR/>Chenoweth's comment "Bitter: Party of Two!" and Harris' dig at Howie Mandel's time-chewing implied it was a last-minute, less-than-welcome change. <BR/><BR/>Maybe they'll post the rehearsal video...Tim Windsorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00724144856429510796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-50685238797164726192008-09-22T10:30:00.000-04:002008-09-22T10:30:00.000-04:00I wish they would take some time and do a highligh...I wish they would take some time and do a highlight reel of great moments from the season, just to remind us why we're watching and maybe spark som curiosity about some shows.<BR/><BR/>Moments like Don Draper's carousel speech, Desmond and Penny's reunion, Barney's wistful look in the hospital, Jack's therapy speech, Amber's death scene, and Gio telling Betty, "I want to be the guy," to name a few.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-45897296340910874412008-09-22T09:55:00.000-04:002008-09-22T09:55:00.000-04:00The Laugh-In bit demonstrates why timing is so ver...The Laugh-In bit demonstrates why timing is so very important in comedy. The timing was off by just a bit, and it killed what should have been a rapid-fire bit.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00295270766215749309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-62056216417357447382008-09-22T09:48:00.000-04:002008-09-22T09:48:00.000-04:00Adam - I agree there wasn't enough focus on the cu...Adam - I agree there wasn't enough focus on the current, nominated shows or performers. Too much unfocused, sentimental anniversary filler. <BR/><BR/>And did Gervais get the last seat available on the last flight out of Heathrow? Where were the rest of the Brits?<BR/><BR/>There should be a Final Approval Committee for the production of all future televised awards shows; the only people allowed seats on the committee are Gervais, Carrel, Stewart, Colbert, and Rickles.KLEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03467293647066420525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-87422666127745894422008-09-22T09:00:00.000-04:002008-09-22T09:00:00.000-04:00Glad to know I'm not the only one who thought the ...<EM>Glad to know I'm not the only one who thought the Laugh-In bit was awful. (While I've heard of the show, I'm entirely unfamiliar with it - I didn't even know Lily Tomlin was in it. So I was wondering whether I just didn't get the context of the characters.)<BR/></EM><BR/><BR/>I absolutely love Laugh-In (and I wasn't alive during its original run, either), and I wanted to crawl under a rock and die during that bit.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-64892000449435774142008-09-22T08:55:00.000-04:002008-09-22T08:55:00.000-04:00Glad to know I'm not the only one who thought the ...Glad to know I'm not the only one who thought the Laugh-In bit was awful. (While I've heard of the show, I'm entirely unfamiliar with it - I didn't even know Lily Tomlin was in it. So I was wondering whether I just didn't get the context of the characters.)<BR/><BR/>I loved the fact that even the hosts were making jokes about how bad Seacrest was last year. Of course, that's the only bit about the hosts that I liked. Well, that and the fact that everyone else in the entire show seemed to love ripping into the five for being so bad.<BR/><BR/>When they mentioned Josh Grobin singing 30 songs, I was dreading it, but he actually managed to pull off something halfway entertaining - he had lots of energy, and did a reasonable mimicry job in changing his voice to replicate some of the songs. <BR/><BR/>Other than that, I thought I was going to pass out from laughing at Ricky Gervais. I calso an't understand why hosts of a regular every-day show are in the same category as someone like Don Rickles who records a one-off special. That said, Rickles was bloody funny.Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08196372589248892579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-61513117193201437572008-09-22T08:49:00.000-04:002008-09-22T08:49:00.000-04:00If you knew nothing about Mad Men or Breaking Bad ...If you knew nothing about Mad Men or Breaking Bad before last night, what would you have learned about the shows during the broadcast?<BR/><BR/>Less miniseries/movie awards, more clips that put the year in context.Adamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02113168955236758821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-58197821525764931202008-09-22T06:51:00.000-04:002008-09-22T06:51:00.000-04:00My two favorite moments of the night were:- Kathy ...My two favorite moments of the night were:<BR/><BR/>- Kathy Griffin telling the audience to stand up for Don Rickles (which turned into a decent standing ovation for him) <BR/>- Tina Fey accepting her award from Mary Tyler Moore and Betty White (particularly her comment, something along the lines of "accepting this award from <B>these </B> two women... wow"<BR/><BR/><BR/>And I was happy that neither House nor Lost won for Best Drama, they're decent shows, but not in the same league as their competition.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-78136423994678657062008-09-22T06:02:00.000-04:002008-09-22T06:02:00.000-04:00Thanks for recapping the awards, I like to find ou...Thanks for recapping the awards, I like to find out who won what but I really cba to watch the Emmys myself.Rev/Viewshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09804033271271816142noreply@blogger.com