The Death Toll on Shonda Rhimes’ Shows are Reaching Serial-Killer levels
The death toll on Shonda Rhimes’ shows are reaching serial-killer levels
That’s according to Gwen Ihnat, who argues that “death is an easy shortcut to drama” and that “Rhimes has gone to the shocking-death well so often that it has lost all significance.” Ihnat adds that Rhimes “may be a romantic, but she also has a ghoulish side: She loves to use death as a hand grenade, blowing up plotlines for the sake of a stunt. Untimely demises have become so commonplace in Rhimes’ work that fans know what to expect when they hear schlocky ABC promos in the vein of ‘Tonight, they say goodbye to one of their own,’ or ‘The episode you’ll never forget.'” PLUS: Grey’s Anatomy has been robbed of any hope of a happy ending, and Patrick Dempsey tweets: “I want to thank all the fans, what an incredible 11 yrs, I love you all.”
NBC News’ Brian Williams probe found 6 instances of embellishment, including a new Daily Show discrepancy
An internal investigation has expanded to the NBC Nightly News anchor’s comments to Jon Stewart in a February 2011 appearance about what he witnessed in Iraq’s Tahrir Square.
Will ABC’s Bruce Jenner interview become a watershed moment?
By advertising the Jenner exclusive in a nondescript manner, ABC has done the transgender community a service, says Daniel D’Addario. “A network that could well have sensationalized the news has, to a surprising and fair degree, toned down the provocation,” he explains.
Spouses to swap marriages on The Seven-Year Switch
The FYI reality show will feature married couples “bravely” trading their spouses for a “new partner” for a couple weeks.
Deadliest Catch renewed for Season 12
Season 11 debuted to 4 million viewers.
Fox News host lashes out at Jon Stewart for referring to him as “the dumb guy” on The Five
Eric Bolling responded to Thursday’s Daily Show interview with his fellow co-host Dana Perino by saying: “It’s sad, the guy is so obsessed with hating Fox News that he spent a lot of the time taking shots at us, especially me.”
Report: The Royals has hurt morale at E!
Joan Collins will try to rescue the buzz-challenged series, which was renewed for a 2nd season before its premiere.
Letterman teaches Jerry Seinfeld how to run across his stage
Seinfeld always wanted to run like Dave.
Real Housewives of New Jersey‘s Amber Marchese is battling breast cancer for the 2nd time
The reality star underwent surgery this week to remove a cancerous lump on her breast.
The Walking Dead‘s Norman Reedus: My Atlanta house is not for sale
“That’s not even my house,” Reedus says of reports his home was for sale, which sparked rumors that he was exiting the AMC series.
This week’s Louie commented on police brutality by not commenting on it at all
The Cop Story episode didn’t address recent police brutality cases. “And yet,” says Aisha Harris, “it’s impossible to view this episode without hearing the echo of the past few months’ news headlines in the back of your head, something that C.K. is surely aware of. Without saying anything at all about the current public image of police, he says a lot.”
Why The Americans is TV’s best period drama
Unlike other period dramas, every reference to the past serves a purpose. “The Americans doesn’t make a big deal out of the relevance of showing us an in-drag Dustin Hoffman; the choice to reference it is quiet but deliberate,” says Jen Chaney. PLUS: Frank Langella will be back for Season 4.
What’s next for Daredevil?
Departing showrunner Steven DeKnight reflects on Season 1, and tells what to expect in Season 2.
Downton Abbey cast members battle it out with lightsabers
Watch Thomas take on Mr. Bates between takes.
California State Assembly unanimously approves of the Robin Williams Tunnel
The California State Senate will now vote to rename the rainbow-colored Waldo Tunnel north of San Francisco after the late comedian.
Cecily Strong is no longer “truly terrified” to host the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
“For the past couple of months I was truly terrified,” says the SNL star, “and then it’s like, ‘Well, now it’s public so I can’t back out. But now that it’s closer I think I’m having less time to be scared because more and more time I have to be working on it.” PLUS: Strong juggled filming 2 movies this month while prepping for the dinner, Strong’s journalist dad was initially contacted to see if she would be avaiable to host, and Strong promises: “There won’t be blood afterwards. Unless I trip and fall, which I’m still worried about.”
Why James Corden should host the Tonys
The Late Late Show host would be perfect for the job, especially since he works for CBS and he’s already won a Tony.
Silicon Valley‘s T.J. Miller: “Yeah, I’ve made some real friends in Silicon Valley”
“A lot of people say to me, ‘In my start-up, I’m you!” says the actor.
The Good Wife teases how Kalinda might exit the series
“Kalinda always lands on her feet,” says co-creator Michelle King.
How long can the Lip Sync Battle gimmick last?
“Probably not much past three or four years,” says Dave Schilling. “Eventually, you’re going to run out of celebrities, or if you don’t, you’ll lose the surprise factor of seeing your favorite sitcom star dressed up like a ballerina.”
How the rejected Bob’s Burgers pilot differs from what aired
Tina was originally a boy named Daniel. PLUS: Aziz Ansari sings Maneater for Bob’s Burgers.
Here are 20 1-season shows on Netflix that you can quickly binge on
From Accidentally On Purpose to The Crazy Ones.
Orange Is the New Black promotes Jackie Cruz
The actress, who plays Flaca Gonzales, will become a series regular in Season 4.
Parent-child relationships are the best part of Game of Thrones
“If it’s bad when parents in Westeros care too much about their family legacy, what happens when they don’t is even worse,” says Nate Jones. PLUS: How Gwendoline Christie became a sci-fi star, “Tommen” is nervous about the prospect of TV sex, Maisie Williams got legally drunk and received a present from Doctor Who for her 18th birthday, and Microsoft Word recognizes the name of nearly every Game of Thrones character.
Watch a supercut of Veep secretary Sue’s best zingers
As Slate notes, “Veep has no shortage of fast-talking, insult-slinging bureaucrats, but there’s no question Sue (Sufe Bradshaw) is the fiercest of them all. As Selina Meyer’s deadpan secretary, Sue is the show’s most competent civil servant and also the one most dripping with disdain.” PLUS: Watch Timothy Simons prepare for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, with Funny or Die’s help.
Candace Cameron Bure goes back to her Full House bob
So will D.J. Tanner have shorter hair on the reboot?
Chris Pratt recalls the mouse-infested home he lived in while shooting Everwood
Pratt recalled his mouse problem during a Reddit AMA, when a Redditor asked if the Salt Lake City house he was renting had once been occupied by Pratt.
How Friends ruined sitcoms in the ’90s
It resulted in many copycats trying to make pretty people funny. PLUS: What if Friends used social media?
Bloodline‘s pacing will be sped up in Season 2
We knew we were taking our time with the storytelling and as the season progressed, it turns into a thriller. So in the second season, we’re no longer in that place,” says exec producer Todd A. Kessler.
Showtime’s Happyish: Misconceived, off-putting and impenetrably shrill
Showtime’s new comedy, says Hank Stuever, “has its head stuck so far up its rear end and is so filled with personal rage and rotten people that just a small dose of the show should easily dissuade half its viewers from sticking around. The other half will perhaps sense a melody beneath all the foul-mouthed diatribes and self-absorbed whining.” PLUS: Happyish appears to be written by somebody who hasn’t watched cable in 15 years and thinks his stuff is edgy, Happyish takes the fun out of whining, Happyish is like that guy at the party who boasts about not watching TV, yet another show about a sad married rich white dude, it’s funnyish yet annoyingesque, Showtime should’ve reigned in the creator, there are sparks of promise, how Happyish reshaped itself after Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death, and Steve Coogan talks about replacing Hoffman.
