Last Week in Pop Culture #18

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Two reviews from me this week, one for Ms. Marvel #1 (which was mostly excellent) and Wolverine #1 (which was mostly not).

Super Bowl XLVIII
Boy, that game sure did suck, didn't it? 

New Girl: Prince

I'm not the world's biggest Prince fan (despite being Minnesotan, I basically have no strong opinions on him), but I love the idea of casting him as some kind of impish relationship guru with magic powers and butterfly familiars, and in general appreciate that, as much as this was still Prince, the show made a character out of him, rather than just dropping him into their big post-Super Bowl episode for the sake of having an attention-getting guest star.

Last Week in Pop Culture #7

The Simpsons: Four Regrettings and a Funeral

Look, you can either be structurally clever, or really funny (or, ideally, both). This episode tried to do both and succeed at neither.

In case you're wondering, Fox was supposed to air "Bart the Lover" in the 6:30 slot, in remembrance of Marcia Wallace, but apparently had issues getting the episode back from syndication, so they aired "The Ned-liest Catch" instead, making Bart's sad chalkboard message that opened "Four Regrettings and a Funeral" the best tribute of the night. 

Last Week in Pop Culture #1

Welcome to the first "Last Week in Pop Culture" post, the latest evolution of my weekly "Last Week in TV" posts. Of course, this post is jam-packed with TV stuff, as a ton of new and old shows premiered in the previous week. Enjoy, and be sure to let me know what you think of the new format.

The 65th Annual Primetime Emmys

In brief:

The good - NPH's middle number, the salute to choreography (which was just fun to watch), a break in the Modern Family cast's stranglehold on the supporting comedic actor Emmys (I like the show but it's far less consistent these days, and there are better shows/performances out there), and the relative unpredictability of the wins in general.

The bad - NPH's opening number/bit, the largely-superfluous and time-sucking Elton John and Carrie Underwood performances, and the numerous "In Memoriam" tributes independant of the main "In Memoriam" tribute (which were appropriate, but did make the whole show seem sadder, and ate up more time).

Also, with nearly every winner getting played off (only Merrit Weaver escaped that fate, since she didn't stick around long enough for the orchestra to cue up), and nearly every one ignoring it, the end result was simply having the ends of acceptance speeches feel like they were being underscored for dramatic value, which was mildly amusing.

Last Week in TV #14: Midseason Report

Before diving back into new TV next week (this week's How I Met Your Mother and Top Chef will be covered in next week's post) let's take a quick look at the state of the numerous new shows that debuted this season which I've been watching. 

Pan Am
Despite featuring one of my favorite pilots of the season, after three episodes there wasn't enough narrative urgency to keep this from slipping further down the queue as my TV time got crunched. Now, it seems like a dead show walking, having played out its string but unlikely to get picked up for any additional episodes. I'll finish it out, thanks to the style and characters, but probably not until other, more urgent or intriguing shows, bow for the summer. 

Once Upon a Time
Another strong pilot and one of the show's I most regret falling behind on. Hoping to catch up with it soon. Definitely not perfect, but seeing fairy tale characters re-imagined (both in the flashbacks and the modern day) plus a Lost-ian style ongoing narrative is enough to keep me watching.