Thought this would be a good conversation starter! Everyone has their personal favorite comedy shows (sitcoms), but have you ever ranked them? I sat down and tried ranking my top 10 recently, and actually listed the top four very quickly, as to me, they stand out from the rest. I found the 5th-10th spots a little tougher to place. Coming up with the shows wasn't a problem, but ranking them was a bit difficult. Again, these are my favorite shows, not what I necessarily consider the best. Here's what I eventually came up with:
1. I Love Lucy- To me, this is the show that started sitcoms as we know it. And it still holds it own. Love the California and Europe trips! Always thought Desi Arnaz was underrated as a sitcom actor. You never hear his name when the all-time best sitcom actors are mentioned. He was hilarious, and a vital piece to the success of I Love Lucy.
2. Seinfeld- A close second. For most sitcoms, a single episode will usually feature one memorable storyline. But it wasn't unusual for a single Seinfeld episode to feature two or three unforgettable storylines. And it consistently did this for nine seasons! That's what you call great writing.
3. Get Smart- I'm probably in the minority here, but this is still one of most hilarious shows ever on TV. James Bond meets Inspector Clouseau. Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and Buck Henry were a great writing team. And I particularly liked Hymie the robot!
4. All in the Family- Ground breaking, brave comedy. Very well written. There weren't very many sitcoms where I laughed and was moved to the point of tears in the same episode. Happened more than once in All in the Family.
5. The Larry Sanders Show- Very funny, well written parody of late night television (in front of and behind the camera), particularly in the early to late 90's when the show was on and the Carson/Letterman/Leno drama was at it's peak. The casting was dead on, in particular with Garry Shandling, Jeffrey Tambor and Rip Torn. .
6. Barney Miller- Hilarious spoof on every day life in a New York police precinct, sprinkled with some pretty decent drama. Hal Linden makes the whole thing work as the Captain of the station. As the "straight man" of the group, Linden frequently sets the table for all of the humor in the show.
7. The Odd Couple- Terrific small screen version of the Broadway play. The chemistry between Jack Klugman and Tony Randall is as good as it gets. Their banter plus the great writing makes for episode after episode of laughs.
8. Arrested Development- This show wins the award for the darkest comedy on my list! Only lasting three seasons, this Ron Howard-created (and narrarated) show about a disfunctional family is quite different than the other comedies listed as you'll either love it or hate it. There's no inbetween!
9. M*A*S*H- Not much to say about this all-time classic. It's probably lower on my list then other lists, but it has to be on it. The most impressive thing about this show to me is how it survived not one, but three major casting changes in it's first five years without skipping a beat. Great casting, great writing, great acting!
10. Friends- Probably a contraversial inclusion, but I can't help by laugh whenever I catch an episode. The show was on almost 10 years, with the quality of the writing remaining strong nearly the entire time. There are other long running comedies where they can't be said.
Next 10 (no particular order): Cheers, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Mary Tyler Moore Show, Happy Days, The Munsters, Frasier, The Office (BBC), The Monkees, Green Acres (yes, Green Acres!).
So those are my 10 all-time sitcoms. Feel free to chime in with yours and why you chose them!
JW
Saturday, September 8, 2012
The Dark Knight Rises......barely
I know, "The Dark Knight Rises" has been out for a while now, and it may be a little late for a review, but Amy and I didn't get around to seeing it until fairly recently. Regardless, I thought I'd still discuss it while it's still somewhat fresh in my head!
Personally, if a super hero movie is going to keep my attention, the villian has to be equally, if not more, interesting than the hero. That's why I consider the X-Men movies (particularly the first two), perhaps my favorite super hero movies. Magneto was a fantastic villian (being played by Ian McKellan didn't hurt) who was equally as intelligent as his foe, Professor X. Watching them try and out think and out do each other was a real treat (good writing doesn't hurt either). As far as villians go, though, Heath Ledger as the Joker in "The Dark Knight" was perhaps the best villian yet portrayed on screen. Ledger's Joker wasn't just an over-the-top kooky clown character, but a very disturbed, angry, psychopathic human being who's parental physical abuse as a child drove him over the edge, and continues to haunt him. I remember watching him and thinking this really could happen to someone. Unfortunately, the deadly shooting incident in Colorado during the premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" in July showed that perhaps it did.
And that brings me to "The Dark Knight Rises". It's villan, Bane, didn't do much for me. He was basically just an over-muscular thug. I didn't find him interesting at all. That, unfortunately, really effected my view of the movie. But it wasn't the only thing. Where were Batman's brains in this movie? The majority of the time he was reacting with his heart rather than wits. Why in the world would you attack someone in a hand-to-hand battle who you know was as skilled (or more) than you were? Let alone twice as big! And not once, but twice? Getting the tar kicked out of him the first time didn't seem to register anything in the ole Bat-brain. Didn't he have any Bat-goodies in his utility belt that would have done the job from a distance? Catwoman finally figured that out towards the end of the movie! To me, Batman was portrayed as being much weaker than in the previous two movies, which was disappointing.
Speaking about the end of the movie, that little plot twist involving the Miranda character was a little lame. A very hollywood thing to do. I couldn't help but roll my eyes when it happened. I was disappointed that the talented Christopher Nolan would resort to something like that. His plot twists are usually more subtle. The very ending was confusing to me as well. I understand that Bruce Wayne faked his death and was retired in the little Italian village Alfred had always dreamed about, but is Robin replacing Batman as Gotham City's chief crimefighter? Is Robin becoming the next Batman? Didn't get it.
I did like some things in the movie though. I thought they did a great job portraying Catwoman and her complex relationship with Batman. Gary Oldman was solid as Commissioner Gordon again. Morgan Freeman held his own. And Joseph Gordon-Levitt was actually very good. I particularly liked the cameos from Liam Neeson and Cillian Murphy (both appeared in "Batman Begins").
Anyhow, that's how I felt after leaving the movie theater. Feel free to share your views and opinions on the movie if you'd like, or discuss what your all-time favorite super hero movies are and why.
JW
Personally, if a super hero movie is going to keep my attention, the villian has to be equally, if not more, interesting than the hero. That's why I consider the X-Men movies (particularly the first two), perhaps my favorite super hero movies. Magneto was a fantastic villian (being played by Ian McKellan didn't hurt) who was equally as intelligent as his foe, Professor X. Watching them try and out think and out do each other was a real treat (good writing doesn't hurt either). As far as villians go, though, Heath Ledger as the Joker in "The Dark Knight" was perhaps the best villian yet portrayed on screen. Ledger's Joker wasn't just an over-the-top kooky clown character, but a very disturbed, angry, psychopathic human being who's parental physical abuse as a child drove him over the edge, and continues to haunt him. I remember watching him and thinking this really could happen to someone. Unfortunately, the deadly shooting incident in Colorado during the premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" in July showed that perhaps it did.
And that brings me to "The Dark Knight Rises". It's villan, Bane, didn't do much for me. He was basically just an over-muscular thug. I didn't find him interesting at all. That, unfortunately, really effected my view of the movie. But it wasn't the only thing. Where were Batman's brains in this movie? The majority of the time he was reacting with his heart rather than wits. Why in the world would you attack someone in a hand-to-hand battle who you know was as skilled (or more) than you were? Let alone twice as big! And not once, but twice? Getting the tar kicked out of him the first time didn't seem to register anything in the ole Bat-brain. Didn't he have any Bat-goodies in his utility belt that would have done the job from a distance? Catwoman finally figured that out towards the end of the movie! To me, Batman was portrayed as being much weaker than in the previous two movies, which was disappointing.
Speaking about the end of the movie, that little plot twist involving the Miranda character was a little lame. A very hollywood thing to do. I couldn't help but roll my eyes when it happened. I was disappointed that the talented Christopher Nolan would resort to something like that. His plot twists are usually more subtle. The very ending was confusing to me as well. I understand that Bruce Wayne faked his death and was retired in the little Italian village Alfred had always dreamed about, but is Robin replacing Batman as Gotham City's chief crimefighter? Is Robin becoming the next Batman? Didn't get it.
I did like some things in the movie though. I thought they did a great job portraying Catwoman and her complex relationship with Batman. Gary Oldman was solid as Commissioner Gordon again. Morgan Freeman held his own. And Joseph Gordon-Levitt was actually very good. I particularly liked the cameos from Liam Neeson and Cillian Murphy (both appeared in "Batman Begins").
Anyhow, that's how I felt after leaving the movie theater. Feel free to share your views and opinions on the movie if you'd like, or discuss what your all-time favorite super hero movies are and why.
JW
Scripture to Ponder: Hebrews 13:2
Hebrews 13:2- "Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it."
This has always been one of my favorite scriptures, and one that stayed with me since I first began reading the bible some years ago.
What does this scripture mean to you?
This has always been one of my favorite scriptures, and one that stayed with me since I first began reading the bible some years ago.
What does this scripture mean to you?
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