Veep, Season 2, Episode 4: “The Vic Allen Dinner” Written by Simon Blackwell and Armando Iannucci Directed by Chris Addison Airs Sundays at 10pm (ET) on HBO Numerous politicians over the course of history have seen their credibility get lost in the blink of an eye, with a single off-handed statement, or an unfortunate picture, …
Christopher Guest has, over the course of his filmmaking career, developed a distinct comedic style, one that has garnered him critical acclaim and a loyal following. Like many auteurs, Guest will soon be taking his talent to the ever-growing television medium, having inked a deal with cable channel HBO to co-create a show with Jim …
Game of Thrones, Season 3, Episode 5: “Kissed by Fire” Written by Brian Cogman Directed by Alex Graves Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Remember last week, when Daenerys Targaryen and her dragons unleashed literal hellfire and everyone declared it the greatest thing ever? Though most of its pleasures are far subtler, “Kissed by …
Speeches are a key part of any politician’s career. A good speech can immortalise a politician, while a bad one can weigh down the rest of their career like an anchor. The amount of time politicians and their staff spend on the specific wording of any given speech, and the message it conveys, thus makes sense in this context, but nonetheless remains an absurd exercise, and it is this aspect of politics that Veep tackles this week, in an episode that displays the human side of Selina Meyer while turning the spotlight on the one-upmanship politicians play with civilian lives.
Veep, Season 2, Episode 2: “Signals” Written by Simon Blackwell and Armando Iannucci Directed by Chris Addison Airs Sundays at 10pm (ET) on HBO One of the major concerns with Selina Meyer in the first season was how her position affected her personal life. Her inability to even have a fight with her partner without …
Game of Thrones, Season 3, Episode 4: “And Now His Watch Is Ended” Written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss Directed by Alex Graves Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO The usual drill: I haven’t read the books, so don’t spoil future plot events in the comments. Why does Daenerys Targaryen have it so …
Game of Thrones, Season 3, Episode 3: “Walk of Punishment” Written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss Directed by David Benioff Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Apologies for the tardiness; life happened. The usual stuff: I haven’t read the books, please do not spoil future events in the comments. Thank you kindly. Game …
Veep, Season 2, Episode 1: “Midterms” Written by Will Smith and Armando Iannucci Directed by Christopher Morris Airs Sundays at 10pm (ET) on HBO While viewing politics through a cynical eye is nothing new, the HBO series Veep managed to put an effectively fresh spin on it, building a stable of characters around Vice President …
Is there are doubt at this juncture that women are the true rulers of Westeros, at the very least in commanding our attention, if not outright color of law? All through “Dark Wings, Dark Words” (a deeply foreboding title for an episode in which much is discussed but not a whole lot actually happens), Game of Thrones spends most of its time catching us up with the female denizens of the Seven Kingdoms, often making their male counterparts come across a little on the dull or at least undistinguished side in the process.
Earlier this year, when Netflix released all of House of Cards’s first season simultaneously, it prompted industry-wide speculation about the implications, and whether or not other series or networks might follow in their footsteps. It’s to our collective detriment that HBO probably won’t be adopting that sort of release strategy for any of its programs for the foreseeable future, because Game of Thrones is an obvious candidate.
While Aaron Sorkin has recently found success in the film world with movies such as The Social Network and Moneyball, he has left his mark on television with highly acclaimed shows Sports Night and The West Wing. His return to television came in 2012, this time with HBO, as he tackled the world of journalism in …
Girls, Season 2, Episode 8: “It’s Back” Written by Bruce Eric Kaplan Directed by Richard Shepard Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Too many Freaks, not enough circuses – AA counselor’s t-shirt Introducing a new aspect to an established character is a tricky business. You run the risk of continuity problems with what’s come before, …
[quote by=”Synopsis”] Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as violently as ever, as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey, of House Lannister, sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of the land of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands …
Girls, Season 2, Episode 7: “Video Games” Written by Bruce Eric Kaplan and Lena Dunham Directed by Richard Shephard Original air date: February 24, 2013 In an episode totally in the spirit of season 1’s “The Return”, this week’s episode of Girls sees Jessa and Hannah take a little trip to the countryside to meet with …
Girls, Season 2, Episode 6: “Boys” Written by Murray Miller & Lena Dunham Directed by Claudia Weil Original Air date: 17 Feb 2013 A compelling follow-up to one of the more contentious episodes of the series, we move forward from Hannah’s realization that she wants the white picket fence to a cluster-fuck of characters in …
Girls, Season 2, Episode 5: “One Man’s Trash” Written by Lena Dunham Directed by Richard Shephard Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Hannnah Horvath can be a deeply tiring individual. She’s self-centered almost to the point of pathology, she has a probably-inflated sense of her own talent, and she has an infuriating tendency to reject …
Girls, Season 2, Episode 3: “Bad Friend” Written by Lena Dunham and Sarah Heyward Directed by Jesse Peretz Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Filling in for Justine Smith, who shall return post-haste. “What does cocaine make you feel like? It makes you feel like having more cocaine.” – George Carlin Coke is …
Girls Season 2 Episode 2 Written by Lena Dunham & Jennifer Konner Directed by Lena Dunham Original Air Date: January 20 2013 In this episode of Girls we move into the consequences and effects of the season opener: Ray and Shoshanna get all cutesy, Marnie gets a pretty person job, Jessa is perfectly happy and …
Girls Seaseon 2 Episode 1: “It’s About Time” Directed by Lena Dunham Written by Lena Dunham & Jennifer Konner Airs Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO Courting with controversy even before it hit the air, Girls has been lavished with praise, criticism and outrage as it portrays the awkward lives of a group of twenty-something …
Over the last decade and a half, much has been made in critical circles about the “coming of age” of dramatic television programming. Since The Sopranos began to become a cultural touchstone, HBO has been a central part of that discussion, with some broadly suggesting that its most beloved dramas – particularly The Sopranos (1999-07), …
The Return of Arrested Development Nobody was really paying attention to Netflix’s talk about ‘original programming’ until they snatched up the rights to Mitch Hurwitz’s classic family sitcom, bringing it back for a fourth season after more than half a decade off the air. The details of the season are being kept under wraps for …
10. (tie) The Thick of It Is there a better tonic for election-year hype than an Armando Iannucci series? The apparently-final series of the show that made Iannucci’s name, The Thick Of It, upped the ante on its pitch-black style, stripping nearly all of its characters of any remaining semblances of humanity and daring us …
When it came to devising a list of what I felt were the top ten Television shows of 2012 I contemplated sticking with the theme of “Hey You Geeks!!” and centering the list solely on the best sci-fi and nerd related shows on TV. I generally group “Geek TV” into a segment of shows exclusively …