AltWeeklies Wire
'The Prisoner' Should Make Us Feel Right at Homenew
Let's welcome back one of the granddaddies of the paranoid genre, The Prisoner, which has been revamped for AMC in an effort to keep us tuned in now that another season of Mad Men has passed. Verdict: Yes, we'll stay tuned.
Ken Burns Worships America's Spiritual Resource in His Latest Docnew
His PBS 12-hour epic The National Parks: America's Best Idea is a selective chronicle of the evolution of the National Parks system and the changing roles protected lands have played in American culture since Congress validated Yosemite in 1864.
Boston Phoenix |
Clif Garboden |
09-24-2009 |
TV
'Bored to Death' is Full of Listless Ironynew
Since HBO's genuinely funny Flight of the Conchords is likely gone for good, the network could really use some original programming with a goofy sense of humor. Unfortunately Bored is far too smug and weak-willed to actually be funny, but at least it's sometimes light on its feet and has few pretensions to profundity.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
09-18-2009 |
TV
Is 'Project Runway' Walking in Circles?new
As I watched this season's 16 Project Runway hopefuls squinting into the setting sun during their champagne reception, it was hard not to view the scene as a sad little metaphor for the state of the show. What's supposed to feel like the beginning of something new sure looks a lot more like the end of something old.
Boston Phoenix |
Michael Brodeur |
08-27-2009 |
TV
The First New Episodes of 'Mad Men' Have Been a Disappointmentnew
So far this season is like finally landing your Carnegie Hall debut and discovering your violin is out of tune.
Metro Times |
Jim McFarlin |
08-25-2009 |
TV
Looking Back Through the Glass at the 'TRL' Pop-Culture Revolutionnew
Coming in the midst of a tsunami of Woodstock nostalgia, the news that Viacom is not renewing its lease on the Times Square studio where MTV staged Total Request Live didn't attract much attention.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Greg Beato |
08-20-2009 |
TV
Why 'Mad Men' is the Must-See Show of the Summernew
AMC's show about advertising executives in the 1960s, which has gone from a cult hit to the most acclaimed show on television, returns for its third season on August 16, and TV critics everywhere are salivating in anticipation. So is it worth the hype? You're damn right it is. Here's why.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
08-14-2009 |
TV
Can Chris Kattan be a Bollywood Hero?new
Here's something Chris Kattan probably rarely hears in real life: "In Night at the Roxbury, you were awesome!" Such, however, is the encomium proffered by two young Indian fans in IFC's new mini-series Bollywood Hero, which finds the former SNL cast member traveling to the subcontinent to star in a saffron-colored, jasmine-scented music-and-dance extravaganza.
Boston Phoenix |
Mike Miliard |
08-07-2009 |
TV
HBO's 'Hung' Mines Human Emotion from a Big, Purple Veinnew
Hung questions one of the most basic assumptions of manhood by suggesting that maybe all life's problems aren't solved by having a giant dick.
San Antonio Current |
Jim McFarlin |
07-29-2009 |
TV
Is Jon Stewart Funny in France?new
Each day my daughter is faced with the challenging job of translating Comedy Central's The Daily Show into French, rendering hip American cultural references, Yiddishisms, bleeped-out expletives, and quirky American slang into something a French audience will understand and find funny.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Jaime O'Neill |
07-21-2009 |
TV
'Iron Man: Armored Adventures' on Nicktoonsnew
Iron Man: Armored Adventures is a blatant attempt to make the runaway success of the Iron Man live-action movie appeal to the tween crowd. How do you do that? By stripping away almost everything that made the film such a success, apparently.
Weekly Alibi |
Devin D. O'Leary |
05-05-2009 |
TV
On the Beat: 'Southland'new
Give Southland a little time to unfold and you'll see a crime series almost as distinctive as ER was (at least initially) as a medical series.
Weekly Alibi |
Devin D. O'Leart |
04-14-2009 |
TV
PBS Puts a Human Face on Native American Historynew
In terms of exposition, inspiration, and cross-cultural outreach, you can think of We Shall Remain as the Native American Eyes on the Prize. Like that landmark documentary, this series reminds us that true glory lies in the honest histories of people, not the manipulated histories of governments.
Boston Phoenix |
Clif Garboden |
04-08-2009 |
TV
Animal Planet’s Blend of Documentary and Action Struggles for Balancenew
Whatever happened to good old-fashioned nature shows? You know, National Geographic specials with dry British narration and lots of scenes of lions chasing gazelles?
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
02-19-2009 |
TV
News From Waaay Outside the Mainstream: 'How's Your News?'new
How's Your News? is certainly groundbreaking: there's never been a program on TV hosted by people with disabilities.
Boston Phoenix |
Mike Miliard |
02-09-2009 |
TV
