Pop Culture Curmudgeon

The Trouble with True Blood

You know I love me some vampires. And, despite all of its flaws, I still love True Blood. The camp. The gore. The Chris Isaak-impersonating theme song singer. And the decidedly David Lynch-esque opening sequence. (See Lynch’s book Images if you don’t immediately see the similarities.)

But, while I was watching another of my favorite summer shows, My Boys, I realized why True Blood can be challenging to watch: too much drama. Mr. PCC and I ticked off the list of storylines this season, and we gave up trying to count them all at 10. And all of the sometimes intersecting storylines are at full blast all of the time. There is no set of characters who are allowed to be happy for longer than 20 minutes.

The show would be easier to watch if the sheer volume of storylines were cut to even five and if the drama were balanced with a little more happiness. I think the only person so far this season who is happy is Terry, and we’re just waiting for him to find out that the baby probably isn’t his.

What do you think? Is the volume of drama the source of all of True Blood’s problems? Or is it something else?

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Pop Culture Roundup, June 24

Want to skip directly to the Supernatural stuff? Here you go.

The Golden Age of Hipper Than Thou CD Fetishization Begins Now
Remember when our parent all claimed records were way better than CDs? Now, we can tell our kids that CDs are way better than these silly digital files.

An Industry Split in the Comcast/NBC Universal Deal
The Director’s Guild of America and the Writer’s Guild of America have diverging viewpoints on whether the Comcast/NBC Universal merger is a good idea. Both sides have valid points, but I can’t help but think too much consolidation is a bad thing. I mean, I still can’t get Comcast Sports NW in the northwest unless I subscribe to Comcast cable, so I can’t help but think that putting Comcast in charge of NBC will eventually mean less access to NBC on other cable/satellite providers.

Your Ex-Boyfriend, Pop Culture, and You
This blogger started watching True Blood with her ex, and kept the show after she dumped him. What about you: what new tastes did you pick up from your exes, and which things can you never watch or listen to again?

Television Review: Memphis Beat
It was nice to see Earl back on the screen, even though Earl looked weird in a sport coat. And, yes, I am implying that Jason Lee’s new character needs a little work before it is distinct from Earl, other than the different look. Did you watch Memphis Beat? If so, did you like it? I’m not sold yet, but I’m also finding myself much more discriminating about my television shows these days.

Sage Professor Blends Pop Culture and Academia
Why did they not have classes like this when I was in college? I mean, I took some great classes, such as Media Theory and Criticisim and Women, Minorities, and the Media. And my State and Local Politics class somehow got co-opted into All Malcom X, All the Time (the movie came out that term). But, I never got to take a class where I could discuss current popular literature, let alone anything with sci fi, fantasy, or supernatural elements.

TV Review: The Gates
I finally caught an episode of Pretty Little Liars, but I missed The Gates this week. I am going to have to get more comfortable watching my TV shows online, because nothing seems to work with my schedule, and I know it’s just going to get worse after the baby is born. Anyway, I know our loyal reader Katie was not blown away by the gates, but I’d love to know what the rest of you thought of it. Or if you even bothered to watch yet another vamp show.

Amanda Bynes: Is Her Retirement Real?
So, this is the weirdest story of this week. Who retires on Twitter?

True Blood Stars Maintain Their Sexy Reputations
Ryan Kwanten is releasing a sex guide, and Alexander Skarsgard will star in Battleship. When I first heard about Battleship, I decided that Hollywood was much too desperate for new ideas. But, if Eric Northman is there, so am I.

Supernatural News

The Winchester Brothers Get Animated in Alleged Supernatural Concept Art
I like the Sam concepts, but Dean doesn’t quite work for me. But, I’m not really the target, as I’m not a big anime fan.

Supernatural Lead Actors Voicing Two Episodes of Anime Adaptation
More on the anime show. Everything is so up in the air with these details that it is hard to know what it true. But, I think it would be great of the boys provided their voice talent–good for the anime series, and good for the boys’ earning power.

Early Look: Supernatural Season 5 Blu Ray and DVD
Looks like there will be some fun special features on the disc set. Are you going to replace your older DVD sets with the new Blu-ray editions as they are released? Or will you just keep them and switch to Blu-ray with this season?

Also, there are some spoilers coming out, so visit the spoilers page if you want to know.

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Pop Culture Roundup, June 17

Want to skip directly to the Supernatural stuff? Here you go.

Superfan Lindsay Lohan Not Wanted on True Blood
Schadenfreude? Yes.

Sam Raimi Circles Wizard of Oz Prequel
Well, it’s probably not the worst idea. (A remake of Arthur is the worst idea.)

Game Changer? Paramount & Red Box Enter Pact to Release Day and Date in the Sell-Through Market After 10-Month Test
Well, that title, possibly the longest ever, sums it up. The execs at Paramount realized that Red Box is not the reason for poor DVD sales. People who would buy won’t be affected by the availability of rentals. Hopefully, the other studioes will follow suit and will craft the same agreements with Netflix.

Pretty Little Liars Bucks the Trend, Retains 100% of Its Premiere Audience
I admit it: I haven’t watched Pretty Little Liars yet. And I don’t know why. It looks like I will love it.

Feminism and Pop Culture
This looks like a book I will enjoy. I’ll have to check to see if we have it at our library.

Supernatural News

Could Jensen Ackles or Nina Dobrev Win an Emmy?
Well, I don’t think any of us expect such a thing to happen, but it is nice to see the network get behind its popular shows and campaign for them to get an Emmy nod.

Teen Choice Awards 2010: Supernatural Nominated as Best Fantasy/Sci Fi TV Show
This is an award that is a little bit more likely. Visit the post for a link to the voting–you can vote once per day.

Supernatural: Confirmation that Jensen Ackles Is Directing an Episode
It’s always fun to see the results when a star moves behind the camera.

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What Will You Be Watching This Summer?

Now that all of the shows I care about have aired their season finales, I’m ready to think about the summer shows.

Royal Pains
I enjoyed this show last summer, and I expect this seasons to give me more of the same: frothy fun and funny situations. And it starts June 3, which is only a few days away.

True Blood
True Blood will be back June 13, and I can’t wait.

You know I don’t like to be spoiled, so I’m not watching any promos or reading any episode guides, but if you like that sort of thing, check out this page and this one.

Rookie Blue
I like Missy Peregrym, so I’ll give this show a chance. I’m not a huge fan of cop shows, though, so it will take either a really great show or a really boring summer to keep me around. This one premieres June 24.

What Else?
Most of what I’ve seen is reality crap, so I’m thinking I’ll be watching a lot of reruns and DVDs this summer. I’m hoping they will play all of the Vampire Diaries so I can get caught up. I watched the first few episodes, but then I started watching Flash Forward instead. Probably not the wisest choice I’ve ever made, but you know how it is.

What shows will be lighting up your TV screen this summer?

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Pop Culture Roundup, May 13

Welcome to this week’s collection of fun pop culture stories.

TV Stories
Supernatural
Random Stuff

TV Stories

Lo Bosworth Talks about Reality of The Hills on Bonnie Hunt
This is an interesting look at what is actually real on reality TV.

GLAAD: Newsweek Articles Sends a Damaging Message
The flap over whether an openly gay actor can play straight heated up again this week with the publication of the essay “Straight Jacket.” Do you think an actor’s personal life affects your ability to suspend your disbelief? I think it does in most cases. If it doesn’t work, it’s a problem with their acting, not their personal life.

I still hold Harrison Ford in low esteem because of his comments that no one would believe Anne Heche as a straight woman when she was cast as his lead in Six Days, Seven Nights. I mean, people believe her when she plays someone who isn’t insane. (She did have a nervous breakdown. And it’s been long enough that it’s funny, right?)

Supernatural

Supernatural Episode Recap: Two Minutes to Midnight
Just in case you don’t remember what happened last week.

First Finale Look: Vampire Diaries and Supernatural
I can’t believe it is already the season finale tonight! Here’s a little preview of what is to come.

Swan Song Finale Clip
A clip from tonight’s episode.

Sneak Peek #2: Supernatural 5.22 “Swan Song”
And another.

Joe Schreiber Talks Supernatural, The Unholy Cause
Another piece on the newest SPN tie-in novel.

Exclusive Interview with Jim Beaver
Beaver talks about the reasons Supernatural has stuck around so long and his other projects.

Random Stuff

Goodbye, Sookie
When is it time to break up with a series? I’ve talked about this before, and I think it is perfectly okay to stop reading or watching a series when you realize it no longer brings you joy.

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Countdown to New Shows: Spring 2010

I’ve been enjoying the returns of Chuck and Gossip Girl so far, but there are still so many other shows I need back on my screen. Here’s my countdown.

Flash Forward: March 18 (Only 2 short days)
The United States of Tara: March 22 (6 days)
Supernatural: March 25 (9 days)
True Blood: June 13 (89 long days)

What shows are you awaiting?

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Pop Culture Roundup, February 4

How did it get to be February?

Anyway, here are the links from the past week that I found interesting and amusing.

Random Pop Culture Stuff
TV Stories
Supernatural

Random Pop Culture Stuff

Men at Work Stole Tune in 80s Hit “Down Under” from “Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree”
The lovable guys from down under could end up owing a lot of money to the company who owns the copyright to this song (no, not the person who wrote it or even the descendants of the writer, some company). They are asking for 60% of the total royalties earned since the release of the song.

Colin Firth: By Anyone’s Measure, a Leading Man
This is a nice interview of Firth by NPR, focusing on his Oscar nomination and the role that earned it for him.

Why Are There So Few Female Film-makers?
In this Guardian article, Kira Cochrane explores the issues that keep women out of the director’s chair. She provides an interesting history of the treatment of women in popular cinema that made me think back to a paper I wrote in college comparing the lesbian characters in lesbian cinema with those in mainstream film. I always meant to gussy it up and submit it to an academic journal, but I never got around to it. Perhaps one day, I will revisit the topic with a longer-term focus.

TV Stories

Scoop: Heroes Star to Play Alcide’s Sister on True Blood
The casting announcements for season 3 of True Blood are coming fast and furious. This article includes links to the other recent additions to the cast, including Alfre Woodard as Lafayette’s mom. (Have I mentioned lately how happy I am that Lafayette didn’t die at the end of season 1?)

Lost Faces a New Reality in the Final Season Premiere
Need a little help with Tuesday’s season premiere? Ryan at Zap2it has detailed and understandable recaps each week.

Supernatural

The Hardy Boys Are Both, Like, Stuck in this Suckfest
Demian at Television without Pity gives the best recaps. Useful if you missed the last episode, and great fun to read in full even if you didn’t.

Inside the Supernatural 100^th Episode Party
How many times over the years did we worry that our awesome show wouldn’t make it until 100 episodes? But it did, and this is your TV Addict-sponsored look at the party.

Are You There, God? It’s Me, Supernatural: Scifi Series Spins Bible Stories into a Final Fantasy
An interesting look at the mythology of Supernatural and the Bible.

Lost and Supernatural: Have They Become the Same Show?
Maureen Ryan looks at the parallels between Lost and Supernatural. I was thinking the same thing when I was watching Tuesday’s Lost premiere.

Supernatural: Preview of Episode 5.13 “The Song Remains the Same”
Get ready for tonight’s episode with a synopsis and a clip.

Supernatural Countdown Number 12: Driver Picks the Music
More of the countdown of all that is awesome about Supernatural, with some clips of the most effective and fun uses of music on the show.

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What Summer Shows Are You Looking Forward To?

I can’t wait for True Blood to come back to my TV screen, and my mom has been hassling me for months about when Dexter would be back on the air.

What summer shows will lure you out of the sun and fun? What will you completely ignore?

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The Trouble with HBO Shows Spoilers for True Blood

In general, I am a fan of HBO series. They have tighter writing, they aren’t constrained by sponsor input or censoring, and they tend to get some of the best actors–those who wouldn’t think of doing network television are still drawn to HBO shows.

After watching the cliffhanger of True Blood last night, though, I was reminded of the worst part of getting hooked on an HBO series: the horribly long hiatus. We have to wait until summer 2009 to find out how the cliffhanger elements play out.

* Spoilers follow *

At least seven months to find out what is up with Mary Ann. Seven months to find out where Sam is going with all that money. Seven months to find out just how annoying a newly created vampire with a Christian chip on her shoulder can be. And seven months to find out whether my wonderful Lafayette is dead, knocked out, or turned into a vampire.

I think I will have to read the entire series of books by Charlaine Harris. I don’t know if I can stand to wait so long to find out what is up.

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Last Night's Episode of True Blood

Who was the mysterious woman in the road? That actress looks so familiar!

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