tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post8508382808278680239..comments2024-03-28T18:01:28.997-04:00Comments on What's Alan Watching?: My Boys: Talking with Jordana SpiroAlan Sepinwallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-72354657980278251892008-07-15T20:28:00.000-04:002008-07-15T20:28:00.000-04:00Whoever compares this fluff show to Cheers should ...Whoever compares this fluff show to Cheers should stop watching tv.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-25487977760031003392008-07-15T09:51:00.000-04:002008-07-15T09:51:00.000-04:00Add me to the list of those who really liked this ...Add me to the list of those who really liked this past week's episode. I thought everything was back on track. My only gripe was that there was maybe one Andy/Jo scene too many. I still think Nia Vardalos is adorable, but I also still think that "adorable" can wear out it's welcome quickly. Given that I loved every other character from start to finish (and Mike was back to "normal"), I could completely ignore that. It's not like there weren't a few season one moments that irritated me and those are the episodes to which I'm holding this season up against. <BR/><BR/>And if there's not a Stephanie/Kenny hookup before the end of the season, I'll be very surprised. They do seem to have amped up the animosity a bit this year and that must be going somewhere.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-70223818014854339052008-07-13T16:44:00.000-04:002008-07-13T16:44:00.000-04:00Sure, Cheers had lengthy story arcs, but the chara...Sure, Cheers had lengthy <I>story</I> arcs, but the characters didn't fundamentally change over the run of the show.<BR/><BR/>Whereas the humanizing of Hot Lips on M*A*S*H was that character's ruination -- or that of Fonzie on Happy Days, now that I think of it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-12481549697551104312008-07-13T14:23:00.000-04:002008-07-13T14:23:00.000-04:00I don't know that I'd be citing Cheers as an examp...I don't know that I'd be citing Cheers as an example of a sitcom that did a great job of being funny without arcs. If anything, it was one of the first sitcoms to have significant ongoing arcs, first with the various Sam/Diane/Frasier combinations, then with stuff like Sam trying to buy the bar back, Rebecca's dalliance with Robin Colcord and her bringing him to ruin, Woody with Kelly, Norm starting up the painting company, etc.Alan Sepinwallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-32572877988075033292008-07-13T14:13:00.000-04:002008-07-13T14:13:00.000-04:00Why oh why does every sitcom today have to have an...Why oh why does every sitcom today have to have an "arc?" Cheers (among others) proved you don't need one to deliver strong character-based comedy, while M*A*S*H (among others) proved that evolving your characters can actually <I>ruin</I> your show.<BR/><BR/>Just to cite two examples from shows Ken Levine has worked on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-53218856554225301762008-07-13T13:44:00.000-04:002008-07-13T13:44:00.000-04:00I'm glad I'm not the only who thought this was one...I'm glad I'm not the only who thought this was one of the better episodes this season. Most plots were clicking and while I don't know how I feel about PJ having planned Bobby's wedding, it was much less "the Wedding Planner" than I thought it would be. <BR/><BR/>Brendan is a lot less irritating now that he has character development to work with.Nicolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11317568565085893849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-35262092924492229872008-07-12T17:32:00.000-04:002008-07-12T17:32:00.000-04:00Am in total agreement w/Drew about this past episo...Am in total agreement w/Drew about this past episode of My Boys. It felt like "the good ole days," i.e., the first season. <BR/><BR/>Kenny is my favorite character. He never fails to amuse me. I love that his new-found popularity with the ladies is killing Mike.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-6611722900666800002008-07-12T16:55:00.000-04:002008-07-12T16:55:00.000-04:00A few good bites, there, Alan. I've really seen ve...A few good bites, there, Alan. I've really seen very little of her in an interview capacity, so I don't know what she's like, but I just have to imagine she's really a cool person. <BR/><BR/>Also, interesting about the sports metaphors and the evolution. I wonder how the show would have differed with the specific metaphors and references.<BR/><BR/>I actually thought the episode was the strongest of the season. It wasn't perfect -- the Mike/Jo date, for example, with the Jo/Andy flirting went on entirely too long and went from "yikes, this is not good for Andy" to "yikes, this is not good" very quickly -- but I definitely felt like it was more in-line with what we came to expect last year. <BR/><BR/>A few major highlights included a raised level of tension between Kenny and Stephanie ("People gave it 3 1/2 stars!" "What people?...illiterate people?" and then Kenny putting the book in the fridge), a funny scene where PJ had something in her teeth and an exasperated Stephanie refused to help her for long, and a nice joke progression about Brendan's clothes, ending in wine on the shirt.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10681286160847912071noreply@blogger.com