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TV Guide: Aaron Sorkin's STUDIO 60 Gets Full Season!!
I am – Hercules!!
TV Guide’s Michael Ausiello says he just got word that NBC is giving “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip,” Aaron Sorkin’s acclaimed ensemble romantic comedy-drama, a full-season order.
Find all of Ausiello’s story here.
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It's not great, but it doesn't deserve to be cancelled.
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They're both entertaining enough
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I think Studio 60 can get a bit preachy...
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...of new viewer confidence in this show. That said, I've been enjoying it. I just wish it didn't feel so carefully constructed. It's so tightly written that nothing feels completely natural and it creates just a skooch more distance between me and the characters (and the world they inhabit, for that matter) in terms of believing them and relating to them as real.
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Hope they make the best of it.
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i lost faith in nbc's decision making process when they totally murdered kidnapped (online only?! not even on on saturdays? wtf?) and kept friday night lights....for a while, i thought they would shelve studio 60 before you could say crazy christians! never underestimate the power of aaron sorkin....'s contract!
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But I appreciate it nonetheless. A full season? Sweet. Pleeeease let it turn into two...
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I like the show, but it still hasn't gelled for me. And after seeing 30 Rock for the first time, I fear S60 may suffer in comparison. For a show about comedy, they don't bring the funny nearly enough.
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Man, I hope it not one of those things where by the time Heroes finishes an entire season, they don't get picked up for a second season but Studio 60 does. I like both shows but I think 'Medium' should be behind Heroes and Studio 60 should be on Wednesdays around 8 o'clock.
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love it
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Aaron Sorkin is a fucking junkie hack. My stool is more watchable that this "show."
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...now if they pick up Friday Night Lights, my loser life of watching tv every night of the week will be a tad bit more justified...or not...
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I do enjoy the Aaron Sorkin... great show.
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This deserves at least that long. It's not perfect, but it's better than most of the crap out there.
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You watch your stool? ... Gross, man, don't actually admit to that kind of thing.
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hopefully now the flamers will stop posting in here just to get attention, when they have nothing legitimate to say about the show. oh wait, there's El Scrocho...nm...
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...as someone who was looking forward to this show more than any other this season...and someone who has been sadly disappointed in it so far...thank you for putting this in proper perspective. Indeed, judged against all that survives on television, Studio 60 surely does deserve a full season.
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i just don't think it's that good. especially given the talent behind it.
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Go fuck your mother, then get some sleep, you'll need it when your father comes home and wants his.
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...At least it is on my TV. All I needed to do was change the channel and *poof* away it went. Someone let me know if it ever stops sucking. Thanks.
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I must say, this is great news! We must prove the haters wrong!
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And I know a second season looks grim, but there is a lot of time to change stuff around and for Sorkin to have talks with the network. I only ask that the finale of this season is called "What Kind of Day Has it Been Today?" but judging by their short, serious titles, this unfortunately doesn't look like it will happen.
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hey bud you wanted someone to let you know when it stops sucking. So I suggest you watch it this monday cuz it's gotten really really excellent the last eight weeks. Cheers!
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I want to be a writer on studio 60...sitting around in a big room, not doing shit, no pressure, cashing my check, launching shit ideas so I don't have to write anything.
If Jennifer Elkburg or whatever wants to save the network some moolah she can cut about 20 writers since only one guy and a couple of actors on the show are the only ones doing the sketchitude. -
It's too self-important and thinks it's wittier than it really is. At least they dropped doing most of the lame-ass skits.
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Nothing legitimate to say about the show? 1. For some reason in Studio 60 land, the entire country hangs on every trivial and unfunny thing that happens behind the scenes at Studio 60, a fake show on a fake network. 2. Did I mention that the now 'cutting edge' Studio 60 show is so unfunny it hurts? And yet Matthew Perry and Malcom's Mom's Husband are really turning it around! This show requires more suspension of disbelief than Heroes or Lost. 3. Since when do studio presidents hang out behind the set of one show ALL THE TIME? Are there any other shows on this fictional network? Maybe they are actually funny. 4. The obvious attempts of leftwing writer trying not to appear leftwing. We can bash Christians as much as we want as long as we have a comedian that's a die hard Christian. In fact, we'll do it every episode, because appearently that's all that Studio 60's crack comedy writers can come up with. Maybe Sorkin should tackle some -actual- hot button issues. His religious riffs might have had some edge five years ago. Now it all feels, much like this show, incredibly stale.
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It's been getting nothing but bad press since.
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Yeah, not to be cranky, but you know as a Christian I don't think we're free of faults. We frequently miss the point of our own religion--that we're all sinners without the grace of God and thus have no right judging/condemning each other--so in many ways I see criticism of Christianity as important to our overall growth--not the triumph of Satan or something. But at the same time, I think that Harriet should have nailed Matt with some of his bullshit arguments (anyone who can turn "judge not lest yee be judged" into an excuse for eltist thinking is trying too hard), but then I get that he wants her to do just that and she knows he wants it and on it goes. Or maybe she doesn't know it, she seems kind of dumb at times. Anyway, in closing, I think I am in love with Amanda Peet. And I love that the Studio building has it's own history. I'd like Judd Hirsch to reappear though so that he could give them some kind of blessing; I feel there's unfinished business with him. Also I think Nathan Fillion should guest star on this show. Nathan Fillion should guest star on every show. The skits haven't been very funny either. I felt cheated not seeing "Crazy Christians." And Science-Schmience was as lame as something the real Saturday Night Live would do! But did I mention I love Amanda Peet?
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Nice responses, guys. You know this show sucks, just admit it. I actually watched half an episode and ended up blacking out and waking up in some foreign country with a hockey stick protruding from my left shoulder, the words "kill Aaron Sorkin" echoing in my brain for at least 5 and 1/2 hours. This show fucking sucks. Aaron Sorkin couldn't write his way out of a paper bag, let alone a show with such a hamfisted and awkward cast.
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thank you so much, you've proved once again, my main point. if these things you mention (none of which bother me, it's a TV show, it doesn't have to be 100% realistic to entertain) really irk you, then why are you still watching? STOP WATCHING IT. this show isn't for everyone, it's an acquired taste, that is never going to appeal to a viewer like yourself. which is fine, no harm no foul. watch something else. people like to complain on here just to rile up those of us who like it. what's the point? flame on, brother.
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It's a great ensemble cast, and I am well pleased that they are going to a full season. Was a bit worried when I read the doomsaying that was turning up on other sites...
Coincidentally, I have been converted to the easy charm of Matthew Perry. I Didn't like Friends, thought it was a bit puerile, but I quite liked his WW cameo in season 5.
Kefrif -
It's the same fucking arguments over and over. I love the show, and you guys are making a valid argument, but when one person states an opinion in post three, there is no need for every subsequent poster to echo the exact same thing, while adding some seemingly clever diatribe about how Sorkin's dialogue makes them grind their teeth, seizure, black out, etc. It's covered, calm the fuck down, and just pretend it got cancelled if you don't like it. Also, the phrase, "Did I mention..." is so fucking stupid. I look forward to reading all of your identical arguments ("Tell me when it stops sucking", "I couldn't make it through half an episode") in the summer, when the season finale/fall schedule renewal talkback comes. I'm not normally an antagonistic person, but we get it, a lot of people don't like the show. It's not your goal in life to get this view across, move on, and let us enjoy it.
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but I would take "Studio 60" ANY day of the week rather than have another cookie cutter "According to Two and a Half Kings of Queens." And twice on Sunday.
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Good news and nobody wasted the first six posts saying first, miracles do happen.
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Nov 10, 2006 2:08:45 AM CST
People on that shit link complained FNL wasnted getting
by silentbobafett2
a full season review! Like WATCH THE FUCKING FILM!!!!!!!! you pricks!!!! Hmmm Friday Night Lights - good looking teens in drama. Or watch teh brilliant film BY the same fucking people ON the same STORY! I mean how interesting can their characters be for fucksake! AND Studio 60 is for fucking adults so they can fuck off! How ever I'd like to state that I feel my mind here is not of an adult! YAY FOR STUDIO 60! FUCKING YAY! WELL DOEN NBC!!! BULLS! FUCKING BULLS! :-)
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I stopped watching after the third episode. Much like the rest of the country. To say it's an aquired taste is suggest it's some higher form of entertainment that some people just don't 'get'. It's a pompous, elitist show about sketch comedy - a huge contradiction if there ever was one. I just don't see the appeal, but if you do, by all means watch it.
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...on craptacular shows like Studio 60, it's completely ignoring one of the best shows on TV, Friday Night Lights, a show that actually deserves a full season.
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Studio 60 is for adults? What part? You obviously haven't seen Friday Night Lights because nothing you say about it rings true. I've seen both the movie and the show and there's not a storyline they share between them. And since I have seen both shows, I can attest that FNL is far more adult than Studio 60. It's a poorly written show by elitist fucks about sketch comedy. It's not even in the same ballpark as FNL.
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...after West Wing, I hoped for more. Studio 60 just isn't as good as it should have been. Love the cast, though (xcept Peet).
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NBC is running football now on Sunday nights. After NBC is done with the NFL in January, expect NBC to put the show on Sundays. The Calista Flockhart show on ABC at 10/9 central has a large audience but I say its success is based on the fact it has no competition. Studio 60 should be able to eat into that audience. Studio 60 cannot stay on Mondays, it is getting killed by CSI: Miami. By moving Studio 60 you also allow Medium to return to Mondays at 10/9 central, following Heroes, where it built a large loyal audience who are now watching CSI: Miami. Another winner could be Law and Order. While not as successful as a few years ago, it is still a "prestige" show, and with Medium going to Mondays L&O will be able to move from Fridays back to Wednesdays. Just my take gang.-----later-----m
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Why oh why would anyone want to see a soap opera about a Southern football team? Whining white people! Marginalized black people! FOOTBALL. Like I said, boring. At least "My Name Is Earl" has funny rednecks. Why should anyone want to see suffering rednecks?
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Great cast. Especially like DL Hughley and Nate Corddrys characters. Bring on a full season!
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A boarderline sociopath exec. Great performance.
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Sorkin needs to throw in a high as a kite Danny Tripp/drunk Jack Rudolph smackdown towards the end of the season...if you're gonna go out, go out properly I say.
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The Office this week was fantastic. Had a total, series finale, vibe to it. And Tucker Gates has been busy this week. He directed not only this week's episode of The Office, but this week's Lost.
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Is that Danny and Matt do not have the same bantery discussions tht Casey and Dan. Sure, they stll get into them, but Casey and Dan would go on for a while..."Days of Yore", "In the zone", so many great things, and I wish these two had that. Also, some group meeting scenes involving everyone together wouldn't hurt.
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Why is it fare game to bash on Christians in shows like Studio 60? Why edit God out of the Veggie Tales cartoons on Saturday Morning? Any other religion would be shown a little respect and where are the cries of censorship from the public?
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no. As you can see from the rest of the talkback lots of us aren't impressed with the show. We post and pay attention because we so WANTED to be impressed with it. It has an excellent original premise, a giant budget and a very talented cast and crew. Yet the writing is preachy, tin eared and pedantic. Look, every show will get someone to like it. For a few episodes I had an unhealthy affection for John Doe (remember that one?). And every show will have someone who hates it. I literally could not sit through the first DVD of desperate housewives. It was like fingernails on a blackboard for me. Now with all of that out of the way: I am voting on this one with my feet. I watched every early episode. I am EXACTLY the audience studio 60 wants. and I am DONE with the motherfucker. And no, I wont be coming in every week to the talkbacks to keep saying so. I wish it a long and profitable life. I like so many of the people working on it. They have families to feed. or in the case of matthew perry, a heavy cocaine addiction. I am happy to see them employed. That having been said, my time is better spent not wincing at heavy handed anti-christian bullshit in an era when islamic terror and totalitarianism is kinda the problem of the moment, ya know. I cant watch a show with a ridiculously ill-written precociously cute and shiny network president. I cannot watch a show that is basically Aaron Sorkin's ranty blog. I hope someday someone does this behind the scenes SNL concept right. It should be dystopian. It should include a John Belushi / Chris Farley composite dying from a drug overdose while his (or her) mouth is covered in bubbling vomit. It should include a lorne michaels character who has to be cold and aloof from his actors because he may need to fire them at any time or never give them screen time. It should demonstrate the sheer sweat shop exhaustion of working on SNL. And the sketches should be HILARIOUS. In the alternative, the bad sketches should be identified as such by the program. This show is self indulgent claptrap. Some of us see that. Some of you don't. Those of you who don't, please, continue to enjoy it. More power to you. Those of you who see what I see... please let me know sometime if it stops sucking. Lots of shows improve over time. I know some of you have my email address - I know because I once asked for the transformers script and am still getting spam from the AARP and something called "Horse Sense" (fuck you, by the way, whoever did that.) So yeah - that is all. I'm off to watch something competent like the Wire or Criminal Minds or Oz or Sopranos or CSI or Prison Break or Lost... etc. etc. etc. Ciao
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You nailed it Cory849. What's worse, it's Aaron Sorkin's ranty blog about his failed relationship with Kristin Chenoweth. Sorkin is Matt, Chenoweth is Harriet, and I am just plain sick of it. It's like those times when we think of something witty to say an hour after we could've said it. After they broke up, Sorkin thought up all these "witty" retorts to Chenoweth's faith positions, and now he's dramatizing them to satisfy his sense of failure.
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People say they can't understand why they would cancel Studio 60 over Friday Night Lights. Or that it was a big mistake for NBC to cancel Kidnapped. Or if Joey can get two seasons, NBC should give Studio 60 another season. You do realize NBC is in the business to make money, not put quality programming on (no matter how much they claim it is about quality programming)? I know the fictional NBS President will pass on a reality show that has low production costs and huge ratings for an expensive drama that will draw an HBO sized audience. In the real world, the NBC president is considering scrapping scripted television in the 8 o'clock hour for reality shows because it is more cost effective. Joey only got a second season because of Matt LeBlanc's contract made it more expensive to cancel the show than to actually give it another season. Friday Night Lights is still on the air because it gets better ratings than Studio 60, probably costs a lot less because they don't have any marquee names, and actually got 500,000 more viewers than Studio 60 when it was in Studio 60's timeslot one week. The fact that NBC gave this show that is expensive to produce and doesn't generate great rating a full season is over and above what most networks would do. If ratings don't improve and this show is cancelled at the end of the season, I feel NBC has gone over and above what they usually do to give this show a chance.
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Two things.
The people complaining about the show not being funny are idiots. It's a fucking drama about a comedy show. D-R-A-M-A. Yes, there will be funny bits, but that's not what the show is about.
Idiots.
Go back to your X-box.
Two, the skits aren't always supposed to be funny. Hell, *I* don't think SNL is funny 99% of the time, even during it's "golden years." Most of the time, you're not even supposed to be laughing at the skits...if you are, you're probably missing something else.
As for preachy.........good God, that's your complaint? Did you WATCH West Wing? Sorkin IS preachy...he always has been. If it didn't bother you in West Wing, I really don't understand why it's bothering you now.......
Oh wait, that's right, most of the posters on here still have pimples. Guess what....you're not the demographic. -
AnotherAaron just nailed it. too bad about that name though, no one is going to take it seriously...
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I disagree--Fillion should not guest star on every show. He should *star* on every show.
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I don't want the non-SKETCH parts to neccessarily be funny, but the stetches should be or removed all together. They slowdown the show and Sorkin gives them far too much screen time for them not to be at least midly amusing. I found many of the years of SNL pre-mid-90s funny and even hilarious and at least at the very least entertaining. You can't say that about the "brilliant' sketches on Studio 60. I have no problem with them cutting them out, but ruin the timing of the show forgetting about it detracts from the realism of the show. As for Sorkin's preachiness, he could be preachy in the West Wing. It was a political show that was about a Democrat Presidency. Sorkin's view on the Religious Right and other of his liberal beliefs fit in well with the show. Studio 60 is about a late night television show. Constant bashing of the Religious Right doesn't really fit in well with the overall concept. Even when SNL gets political, they tend to be unpartisian and tends to bash both sides fairly evenly depending on what is going on in the world. During the 2004 election, they successfully bashed both Bush and Kerry. Don't get me wrong. There is enough good about this show to keep me watching, but it will never be a must see for me as long as they give screen time to painful sketches and Sorkin continues to hammer his elitist views on American Society. I get it. Unless you are an atheist liberal from a blue state, you are either evil or an idiot or both. Can we move on and not bash at least one red state or Christian every episode?
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I am not a Republican or conservative. I came off that way in the last post. I agree with some of Sorkin's views, but if I want politically bent entertainment I will tune in to the Daily Show or Colbert Report. Those shows are designed for that type of stuff, Studio 60 isn't. It is just a distraction because of the show's subjects.
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cancelled this and made another West Wing with Alan Alda playing Vinick in the Prez's seat. S60 is well written, has good directing and some good acting, but the stories/situations and characters are all rather ho-hum and no strong central theme/feature/soul to keep an audience coming back. Also, politics just naturally makes for much better drama.
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This week is pissing of the right people. Ah, bliss.
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Sorkin has said from the beginning that this was going to be a political show dealing with issues that come up involving the mass media.
I will grant you that they need to spend a little bit less time on the skits...but they have to spend at least SOME time on it the beginning in order to set up the context the characters exist in.
A LOT of SNL humor depends on recent news items....Sorkin and his writing crew can't do that. The shows are filmed and written months before they air. That's a pretty nasty restriction combined with the skits short so they don't take over the show.
As for the network making a big deal about the writers' return...networks do that all the time. Every fall we're told the newest lineup of sitcoms is going to be the funniest thing ever. It's just PR. (Autographs are believable too...hell, people lineup outside the Today Show for autographs. It's just tourists. I'm sure SNL got the same thing even during its worst years.) -
I made it up to the Jon Goodman episode. Then my head got soar from being bashed against the wall.
Sorry, I was just expecting more of what West Wing Great. Like quality writing, good characters, funny one liners and intriguing storylines. I think Studio 60 tripped right off of the starting line by casting actors who don't have good comic timing or comedic sensibilities as the "comedians." Seriously, have you ever been around a real comedian? They're funny even off the set--or at least are constantly mugging for attention. That's why they're comedians. These people are too darn serious for me to buy as real comedians. They come off more as self-important indie actors caught up in their own ideas.
I hope they make this show work because it definitely has the potential to be good, but so far I'm just not getting into it. Maybe I'll check in again in a few weeks. -
But what should it have as a lead-in? I would love to see it paired with The Black Donnellys, but is that a 9pm show? Anyway, it needs something with a similar audience profile because Heroes is a completely different audience. Heroes and Medium, on the other hand, is an ideal fit.Oh, and I also agree with someone above who said that Matt and Danny need more banter together. From the pilot it looked like this was going to be a 'buddy' show like Sports Night. We really need to see why these guys are friends. And, indeed, that they *are* friends rather than just colleagues. Dan and Casey. Josh and Sam. Now do the same for Matt and Danny. Because, for me, Whitford and Perry make a great combination.
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Was on the fence about this show until this week's excellent episode. The best yet. Oh, and they acknowledged that the sketch comedy on the show is sometimes "all over the place" and "on the nose." A step in the right direction.
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there. But I do agree they could have done more, borrowed more heavily from the darker side of SNL's history. Hopefully they will be able to do this with future episodes. Setting the series in the show's 20th year (or is it 25?) allows them to have a history they can play with. I hope they have an episode with a Chevy Chase like character who was the first big star of the show and comes back to host and is a complete asshole to the cast. Or an episode dealing the death of a previous cast member whose drug addiction was fueled by the show. But I see where you are coming from: I doubt we will ever see a scene where all the writers are hanging around the set for the weekly cocaine shipment to come in.
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I knew it would happen. This show definitely needs a full season to prove itself (not to me - I was sold at the beginning and still am). As far as money goes, lots of money was put into the show, so they want to see some return first. It's not like NBC is all risk-taking now. only1ofme, I don't know which comedians you know, but it seems like many comedians are actually quite shy with lots of issues when they're not 'on' so it's not a stretch to believe that Studio 60 performers are the same way. And the two main actors who play comedians (Nate Cordry and D.L. Hughley) ARE comedians (and the two background guys have worked as comic actors quite a bit), so their 'comedic abilities' are just fine. That argument just doesn't hold water. You can blame the writing if you want, but this show is just starting. There's plenty of time to explore other shades of the characters.
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me. Like NBS. It's either NBC or it's not. NBS sounds stupid. I cringe every time I hear it. I would have preferred if they had either used NBC or been a little more creative in coming up with a fictional network. Yeah, I get it, it's a combination of the big 3 networks: Nbc, aBc, cbS. It's like if on the West Wing Barltett had been a member of the Republocrats (or the Democans, take your pick). And since there is an SNL in Studio 60's world, can we assume there is an NBC? A world with both an NBC and an NBS - the average tv viewer in such a world would go mad with confusion. "Tonight on NBC - Deal or No Deal", "Tonight on NBS - Good Deal/Bad Deal".
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Now all the wonderful questions I have will be answered! Will Matt and Harriet get back together? Will Jordan save the world with her "Nations" show? Will Nathan Corddery grow a beard for a new, hilarious Judas Iscariot and Jesus, BosomBuddies skit? Will Matt write the greatest comedy skit of time that makes people actually DIE from laughing?
Oh man! This show has caused me to care SOOOOO much about all of these things! I can't wait!
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The reason the sketches need to be funny is because the characters are CONSTANTLY blowing sunshine up each others asses about how the shitty sketch we just was unbelieable comedic genius. It's an insult to the audience to show us something that sucks and then TELL us that it's brilliant - that's just a pointless circle jerk. And I don't think Sorkin is a christian basher, he's had tons of positive stuff about religion in West Wing. I just think he hasn't found the right tone, and the stuff in S60 is too heavy handed and his intent isn't clear. He obviously hates closed minded extremists, and I honestly think he hates people who stereotype religious folk. He seems to be trying to bash people who bash mainstream Christians but doing a really awful job of getting his point across.
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Not nearly as good a show as some say.
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And appearently the only issues that come up are Jesus and Christians? Maybe five or six years ago, that would have been a hot topic. From what I've seen (and granted I only watched the first three episodes) they don't seem to be 'dealing' with anything. And you absolutely MUST have funny sketches if the characters are saying how funny they are. That's why I think this shows makes you suspend your disbelief more than shows like Lost. In Lost, their world is SUPPOSED to be strange. We can except when things in their world are out of wack. Studio 60 is supposed to be in the real world, yet it's like a hammer to the head every time a character talks about how great a sketch was and it was actually totally lame. And I also agree with the guy and/or lady that complained about the network name NBS. There's nothing that takes you out of a real world setting like a phony name. It's like when watching the movie 'Any Given Sunday' and trying to get past all those fake pro football names. This show is doomed to be a one season wonder. Either that or it'll drag on until someone at NBC is fired and it's put out of it's misery.
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Remeber that this is somewhat of a show based on Saturday Night Live, so anyone throwing punches at the show for the lame skits should remeber that SNL is probably the most un-funny thing on tv right now. I remember when we used to laugh at 60% of the material, now we laugh at 5% a says "..well that skit was witty.." So in fact Studio 60 is pretty much perfect in the way they show the skits. I do agree that they can have a better show for the most part, but it's not that bad. If they keep it on for a couple more shows they'll start making better stories. Right now I figure at least half the show is good, the other half could'e used more work, but it still better than some of the crap out there. Heck last episode with the whole arrest thing got me going... it was one of their best.
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I just had to say it. Dylan Killington can be the guy who overdoses and dies. Then for the rest of the series, Nate Torrence will visit Matthew Perry from beyond the grave to help him with his writing ala the cop partner guy in Witchblade.
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so long as the characters don't think they're funny.
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This is supposed to be a show about a sketch show that's as lame as SNL in the first episode, but becomes comic genius in the second. Or at least that's what the characters tell each other about a dozen times an episode. If the sketches are ass, it's pretty hard to buy that it's so "brilliant".
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I can't believe the amount of underserved praise that get heaped on that show by critics. It's torrid teen melodrama with people walking slowly in the rain while top 40 ballads play on the soundtrack. The football scenes are completely fucked up and unrealistic. The continuity is all over the place when it comes to blocking the vhoreogtraphy for the games. The line of scrimmage keeps moving around. Every game comes down to the last play. Every plot development is cliched and predictable. The non-football stuff is just a vaccuous soap opera. The acting is overwrought, The characters are mostly self-absorbed and irritating. I agree with whoever it was upthread who said the movie is already perfect and the tv show is a waste of time. It's geared directly at 16 year old girls who don't know anything about football. I can't wait for that show to get cancelled.
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I think the reason that the first episode worked, and was generally quite well critically received, is that it sold us on the fact that the "Crazy Christians" sketch was worth the old producer losing his job over, worth hiring these two high-profile writers over, etc. etc., and it sold us on it without actually showing the sketch. We compared our imagination of what a really daring, cutting-edge, funny sketch would be with our knowledge of how safe and redundant SNL has become. So it worked - but at the same time, it sort of served as Aaron Sorkin throwing the gauntlet down, saying, "sketch comedy can be great, but has become really lame - here's a show reminding us of how great it can be." The natural expectation is that his show will give us a taste of that greatness. Which means that it would include some glimpses of really funny sketches.
So when we don't actually get to see Crazy Christians, it seems a bit strange after all the buildup, but we accept it. But then, when we see their first show's opening sketch, and it's an awkwardly unfunny musical number, our suspension of disbelief is broken just a bit - is this what they're talking about being so different and funny and groundbreaking? But we accept that maybe the musical number is meant as more of a mission statement than an example of humor at its funniest. But then we see "Science Schmience," a nasty, mean-spirited attack on religion that, instead of being funny, is nasty and mean-sprited.
Now, don't get me wrong - I agree with the sentiment behind "Science Schmience". I think that the fact that people are letting unfounded supernatural belief trump actual logical proveable scientific knowledge is horrifying; I myself have religious beliefs to bias me against the sketch. But just pointing out this horribleness isn't FUNNY. Having a Tom Cruise impressionist say the EXACT SAME things that Tom Cruise said isn't funny in and of itself. That's the problem that the actual modern SNL keeps having - they don't know how to take absurd real-world situations and put the sideways comedic twist on them that catches you off guard and makes you laugh. And since a lot of this show is about the nature of good and bad humor, and the role comedy can play in the real world of important issues, it really hurts the show if all it proves to us is that it itself doesn't understand comedy any better than the people the show is meant to be throwing down the gauntlet to.
So could the show work without any sketches? I'm not sure. A movie or a TV show about a great basketball player, in order to be great, would probably be about his life in the real world, how being a great basketball player affects him - but we probably wouldn't accept that if we never actually saw him play basketball. It ESPECIALLY wouldn't work if we saw him play basketball, and the actor was a terrible player. If any of you have ever read "Seymore: An Introduction" by J.D. Salinger, you probably noticed that reading over and over that the (fictional) title character is the best poet in the past hundred years is not convincing when we never actually get to read his poetry. It violates the primary rule of writing: "show, don't tell." Studio 60 got away with telling rather than showing for its first episode, but if it kept going in that direction, going on and on about how their comedy is so brilliant and on a level above other comedy without ever letting you see it, I don't think it would work for long.
So, in my opinion, there are two viable options. Either (1) the show must stop talking about humor qua humor so much, and let the show be very much in the background as they talk about politics and relationships and whatever else. That would be a pretty dramatic change in direction for the show, and is probably not the show Aaron Sorkin wants to make. Or, (2), Sorkin should hire established comedy writers whose sole job would be writing the few minutes of sketches we see. The thing is, despite the world of bland comedy this show wants to tell us we're in, there's actually some really good comic writing being done right now: The Daily Show/Colbert Report, South Park, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, etc etc. Get Jon Stewart or Trey Parker or Larry David or somebody to write you forty-five seconds of really great material per week, and then maybe the show will actually be able to get away with making the grandiose claims of greatness it does. Because right now, all the show seems to be saying is, "We deserve the right to make fun of the right without actually being funny," and making the left seem out of touch and up its own ass, which, in reality, it's not. -
... but not for me?
-
So I am totally in love with heroes and s60, sure they both have there flaws but its better than a 3 hour block of deal or no deal or worse yet another vapid reality show. i would prefer if they moved heroes to 8 and s60 to 9 cause i have a job that requires really early mornings. I think a lot of people are missing the point if you want comedy watch Tina Feys show if you can stand it. If you hate aaron sorkin you probably have for a while so don't watch it. As far a the sketch thing I am sure they try to make them suck , because if they were funny then people would be watching the show just get laughs from the sketchs. Sports night didn't have any sports but you still believed it was about a sports show right? If you remember west wing wasn'tsupposed to be about the president Martin Sheen was only going to basically cameo but test audiences liked him so he became more of a focus , which later caused the show to lose Rob Lowe. Sure they could hire a team of brilliant writers to create skits so funny you wet yourself but the ensemble cast that everyone at least agrees is awesome would suffer. so leave the sketch business to snl .As far as the preachyness I say I would rather some tell there honest opion than have to watch wifesawpnannyidol garbage anyday of the week. One last thing saw pick of destiny this week fucking hilarious
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