The Remote Island : Curb Your Enthusiasm

Blast from The Past: Jason Alexander For The McD.L.T.

Jake Kalish — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:33:00 GMT

The news of an approaching Curb Your Enthusiasm/Seinfeld comedy tornado got us thinking on the cast of that show about nothing, remembering our favorite Seinfeld moments from each of them. And then, when we got to George Costanza, we realized our favorite Jason Alexander moment may not be from Seinfeld at all, but rather an utterly ridiculous 80's musical commercial for McDonald's McD.L.T.

The burger failed, but this commercial can be called nothing but a huge comedic success...

The cool stays cool, indeed.

Here Comes Larry

Jake Kalish — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:30:00 GMT

Curb Your Enthusiasm is coming back. Production starts next week, and the show's seventh season will premiere in September. Which means along with being the co-creator and head writer of TV Guide's greatest show of all time, Larry David is the creator and star of HBO's longest-running series ever. He better step it up, or he'll never make it in the television biz. Nobody needs to help this bald brother out...

"Californication": Wherein We Nibble At The Hand That Feeds Us

Bryan Christian — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 18:11:00 GMT

Do you guys care about Californication? Yes, we know, right now they are paying the bills. (Thanks, guys.) But we really do want to know. 'Cause we sort of do, but maybe that's just in light of recent events that indicate that the show's isn't so much Showtime's middle-aged version of Entourage as it is David Duchovny's version of Curb Your Enthusiasm: a televisual delivery system for the most- and least-attractive aspects of the star's unruly id?

In any event, last night Hank got a vasectomy, accidentally went down on someone other than his wife at a party, they got into a fight in the car, and he wound up in jail. Also: his daughter Becca's nervous, Marcy's loving the blow, and Leoben from Battestar's the guy who was throwing the party, and in this universe he is apparently a music producer who's gonna wind up hiring Hank to write his biography. Which has been illustrative of our main problem with this show: he falls up. He screws something up, it works out. He gets laid. People tell him exactly what they need from him. And still, he screws something else up and it all happens again. You know, if we wanted to be in a room full of people that adore David Duchovny, we'd go to X-Files conventions. But maybe that's all about to change this year? Rumor is, this season's all about the emptiness of happy endings. Guess we'll see.

Anyhoo, for our money, the most interesting thing that happened last night was that Hank, still smarting from getting snipped, ran into to the hippie from Season One, played by Sports Illustrated model Michelle Lombardo. Not only is she scary hot and one of the few women on the show to not appear topless -- YET -- but she was also eating a popsicle while chatting with Hank. So we hope to see her again. A lot.

"The Newsroom": One Of TV's Great Missing Links?

Bryan Christian — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:28:00 GMT

Full disclosure: we knew someone involved with the first incarnation of The Newsroom. (We'd say "know" but, aside from Facebook, we haven't communicated with them in a few years.) So, when we tell you it's a truly great show, and that an appreciation of the bitter, verité workplace comedy like Salon's is more than overdue, you're just gonna have to believe us: if you haven't seen it, and you're a fan of The Office or Curb Your Enthusiasm, it will probably blow your mind.

"The Newsroom" ran for three seasons, garnering critical acclaim (including an International Emmy for best comedy series), a small but loyal following north of the border, and a re-airing on PBS. It's not entirely surprising that the show didn't find a larger audience; when it first aired in 1996, it was, in many ways, ahead of its time. Long before "The Office" gained fame for its use of hand-held cameras, prolonged awkward silences and horrendously painful humor, "The Newsroom" employed the same strategy to skewer the racism and sexism of the male-dominated workplace, applied it to television news, and took on much meatier targets.

Ehhh... Sure. There's that. Also: there's an endless and supremely entertaining parade of extremely vapid, selfish people. (That's the part we like!)

Tyra Banks: More Popular Than Letterman, Crushing On Larry David

Bryan Christian — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:20:00 GMT

Did anyone here order 8,300 words from the paper of record on Tyra Banks? 'Cause it sho'nuff showed up in this weekend's Bulldog™. Not only does the girl have two shows of her own and a few more in production, but it sounds like she's pretty much after our job too.

“When I’m coming offstage after my show, I’m thinking about what’s on my TiVo,” she said. Banks and her mother both have crushes on Larry David, and she never misses an episode of his show, “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” Every fall she watches the new prime-time network offerings and bets on which shows will be successful. “I’m usually right,” she told me.

Um, may we humbly suggest Aisha Tyler play Tyra whenever the Larry David part of that inevitably becomes a plotline on Curb Your Enthusiasm? 'Cause God love the girl, we're just not convinced that she can do comedy.

The Off-Season: Characters We Are Missing Right Now

mandaleem — Wed, 28 May 2008 17:02:00 GMT

The writers' strike forced some of my favorite shows into an unexpected, summer-long hiatus and delayed the return of others. I'm grateful that shows like Lost still have new episodes, but the second half of this TV season hasn't felt the same. I especially miss the promising new series that were cut short.

It feels like other shows have been on hiatus forever. Flight of the Conchords was supposed to return this year, but had its premiere pushed back until 2009. I miss Bret, Jemaine, and their strange circle of friends. I've been wondering about the fates of several absent characters lately. So many storylines were left unresolved.

Here's a short list of some of the faces I can't wait to see again:

Murray Hewitt, Flight of the Conchords - I love all of the characters from this show, but Murray's mix of desperation and formality makes him completely lovable. No one wears a pair of shorts like Murray, either. The image of his pasty white legs kept me laughing for a long time. Murray had a rare stoke of luck at the end of season one, but there's no way his success will last. It can't -- he's at his best when he's dealing with failure. He belongs with Bret and Jemaine, struggling to get them free soup as compensation for a gig. I'm dying to find out if (and how) Murray reunites with the band.

Susie Greene, Curb Your Enthusiasm - I'm not always a fan of profanity on TV, but Susie Essman makes it an art form in her portrayal of Susie Greene. One of the best scenes from the season six finale was the argument between Susie, Loretta, and Larry. Susie's always good for a tirade, whether the target is Larry or her husband, Jeff. I think about Susie anytime I want to get in touch with my anger. If the rumors about an upcoming seventh season are true, I want to see a rematch between Susie and Loretta.

Charlie Kelly, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - Nobody yells like Charlie Kelly. He's one of the most unstable characters on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and that's saying something. Charlie's poor literacy skills, a running joke on the show, cost the gang their bar last season. I can't wait to see how they get it back, and what kind of schemes he and Frank get involved in. Danny DeVito and Charlie Day make a great pair, mainly because of their nearly identical deranged looks. Every season of It's Always Sunny feels way too short, but I'll take as much of Charlie as I can get. I just hope he keeps up his songwriting.

Olive Snook, Pushing Daisies - Ned is in love with Chuck, but Olive stole my heart in the first season of Pushing Daisies. She sings a song when the moment takes her, gets to the bottom of things, and has an adorable haircut to boot. Her name is even fun to say. Try saying "Olive Snook" without smiling a little; I dare you. I was heartbroken when I learned that there wouldn't be any new episodes of the show until fall. Pushing Daisies was the most charming new show of the year, and its season ended abruptly. Viewers were introduced to a vivid, magical world and cruelly dropped back into reality. I'd like to revisit that world soon.

Clark the Driver, Dirty Sexy Money - Clark is one of those wonderful minor characters that always leave you wanting more. He'll pop up every once in a while to deliver a clever line and retreat into the background. As a loyal Darling family employee, Clark is privy to the Darlings' drunken ramblings and is occasionally an accomplice in their bad behavior. He's a lot like Nick George, but without the law degree. It's almost as fun watching Clark react to the Darlings' craziness as it is watching the craziness itself. Shawn Michael Patrick had better be on the show when it returns in the fall.

Which characters do you miss the most?