Michael Arndt's first day of writing Star Wars: Episode VII features some serious real talk: revisiting Toy Story 3, getting food delivered with a side of therapy, and making the blub-blub lip noise. The only difference between the creative process of a genius and the creative process of an idiot is that a genius puts his cup of liquid on a side table instead of directly next to his laptop.
Free-associating on the official poster for Mad Men's sixth season: Draper crosses paths with Draper (maybe the embodiment his Dick Whitman persona?) as they head in different directions (past! Present! Future! A spring suit and a winter suit!); we have entered the fashion era of bad sheer sleeves; the moral or actual police are on to Don for either going the wrong way down Madison Avenue or for being a cad or maybe for some new secret crime yet to be unearthed; granted, this is a sketchy illustration, but I don't see a wedding ring on Don's left hand. Time to get out the magnifying glass. It's going to be a long three and a half weeks.
Wreck-It Ralph
After seeing the trailer, I assumed that Wreck-It Ralph would be a feature-length nostalgia-fest for '80s kids, what with the 8-bit game the titular character hails from and the cameos from Pac-Man ghosts and the like. So when I actually saw the movie, I was not just pleasantly surprised to be wrong, but thrilled to have seen such a sweet, charming, genuinely funny story that I really hope joins the pantheon of classic Disney films.
Man on a Ledge
Sequels: Man on a Drawbridge, Man in a Fridge, Man by a Hedge. Sam Worthington is the man, and Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Oliver, or Edward Burns are the ledge. Pablo F. Fenjves, the screenwriter, has previously written mostly TV movies with titles like Trophy Wife, The Devil's Child, Bloodhounds I & II, and When the Dark Man Calls.
The Women of Beverly Hills 90210 Are BFFs: "The scene was perfectly set for a showdown. Shannen Doherty had just marched into Jennie Garth's 40th birthday bash sporting killer boots and her trademark smirk — looking every inch like Brenda Walsh at her fiercest." YES. "The Beverly Hills 90210 vets, once such mortal enemies that costar Tori Spelling claimed they had a fistfight, strode toward each other and … hugged." Hugged?! Reunited and acting "just like real friends," the former "Kelly and Brenda have called a cease-fire to their 20-year war." Why now? "A Doherty pal attributes the bonding to the simple matter of growing up — and feeling nostalgic for the Peach Pit days: 'It's like high school friends that you fought with but now love. They're a big part of your past.'" OK, sure. "Shannen and Tori were in New York doing press, and they were warm. The '90s were a long time ago." They sure were. At least they all still hate that bitch Valerie (Tiffani Thiessen).
Things You Don't Know About Ice-T (Excerpts):
When Fox's Bob's Burgers returns for its second-season premiere this Sunday, it will directly follow the 502nd episode of The Simpsons. Given that there are now several years' worth of college graduates who've never lived in a world without The Simpsons, it's natural that the show would have started to seem somewhat careworn over the past year, or the past few years, or the past decade and a half. Bob's, on the other hand, has a similar premise — it also revolves around a working-class family with three kids — but since it's still so early in its run, Bob's has so much fresh ground to cover. Not only that: Bob's can also explore subjects and territory that The Simpsons has long since exhausted or abandoned: In fact, some of the Five Things Bob's Burgers Does Better Than The Simpsons are actually Things Bob's Burgers Does That The Simpsons Doesn't Do Anymore, But Probably Should. If you miss the show The Simpsons was in its glory days, and you need a break from rewatching your DVDs, here's why you should give Bob's a chance.
The Thanksgiving episode of The League (the show about friends in a fantasy sports league) that aired last night was one of the strongest episodes of any sitcom I've seen recently. Like the best outings of its FX sister shows Louie and It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, it was a perfect pitch delivered with intensity and precision, culminating in a series of escalating gags that made me laugh as hard as anything this year. It was another reminder that cable allows for possibilities even the new raunchier networks won't.
On Thursday, NBC officially got back into business with a polarizing wild-card named Silverman. Fortunately for the network — though unfortunately for those of us who cover it — former network president (and tiger aficionado) Ben Silverman remains bro non grata in Burbank. Instead, the peacock welcomed comedienne Sarah Silverman into its nest with what Deadline calls a “hefty” put pilot commitment for a new sitcom. (A “put pilot” deal is a development contract that guarantees the filming of a pilot and comes loaded with penalties that kick in if the pilot is not aired. In other words, you will see this show, one way or another!) The proposed program would have producer Ron Howard taking an active role behind the scenes much as he did with another left-of-center network comedy project, Arrested Development, and center on a woman’s experiences on the single scene after a decade-long relationship.
The writers responsible for The Smurfs — David Stem, David Weiss, Jay Scherick, and David Ronn — will be back for Smurfs 2. In fact, because the live-action/CGI combo thing takes so long to produce, they’ve already turned in a draft of the screenplay for the 2013 sequel. People hoping for topical political humor are probably out of luck. Grade: C [HR]
Sarah Silverman’s working on a new show — about a woman re-entering single life after a decade long committed relationship — and ABC, NBC, and FOX all want it. Also, it’s being produced by Ron Howard’s Imagine TV, and Howard is apparently so into the concept that he’s tagging along to pitch meetings. Can they just make a show about Ron Howard and Sarah Silverman in pitch meetings? Grade: B+ [Deadline]
