TV

Want To Be Like Brad Pitt? Do This:

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

CaptureIf you ever doubt your dream due to your current lot in life, try watching “The Tonight Show.” (I personally adore Jimmy Fallon, but really this experiment works with any late night talk show.)

You’ve seen it before. The host will ask the celebrity guest about their earlier work. The guest will hem and haw about their humble beginnings. Inevitably they tell an amusing story about the bad commercial work they had to do to pay the bills.

Then the host will “surprise” them by digging up said commercial and broadcasting it to the world. A commercial like this: Continue reading →

Why Bad Things Happen To Good People

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

johnoliver_hboYou’ve probably seen a clip from John Oliver’s HBO series “Last Week Tonight” shared on your Facebook feed over the past few months.

Just about every Monday one of his segments obliterating the likes of the Miss America Pageant or for-profit universities goes viral. (I couldn’t find one clean enough to show on the blog. But you know where to find one if you want to watch.)

“Last Week Tonight” is, for better or worse, my primary source of news these days. I’m glad John Oliver is enjoying his success. He was hilarious on “The Daily Show” for many years.

Funny thing though – John Oliver did not score his HBO show on talent alone. He got the show because something terrible happened.  Continue reading →

Is It Time To Change Your Opening Credits?

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

new-girl-cruise“New Girl”, my favorite comedy on TV right now, took a tremendous risk last week.

No – the show didn’t kill of any of it’s main characters. It didn’t end in some unpredictable cliffhanger. There wasn’t a game-changing revelation.

“New Girl” changed their opening credits.

This may not seem like a show-altering move on the surface. Here’s why it was. Continue reading →

Why Homer Simpson Has To Die

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

Homer-Simpson-Images-540x405Homer Simpson has to die. 

You may think this is a crazy thing to say. After all, The Simpsons have been in a bit of a renaissance of late.

First there was the “Every Simpsons Ever” marathon on FXX, which shattered ratings records for the struggling cable network. Then the cast celebrated 25 years on the air with a live performance of classic musical moments from the show at The Hollywood Bowl.

Just last night featured the highly anticipated Simpson family crossover on an episode of “Family Guy”, which, aside from a bizarre and laugh-less fight scene between Homer and Peter Griffin. was surprisingly clever and funny.

Plus there was the actual season premiere of “The Simpsons” which garnered a good amount of mainstream buzz for promising to kill off a major character.

Of course, despite a few teases, Homer Simpson didn’t die on either episode. And I’m not saying I want to live in a world where “The Simpsons” actually kills off their patriarch.

I just think to truly be appreciated that “The Simpsons” must die.  Continue reading →

The Salvation Of Seinfeld

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SeinfeldI don’t think Jerry Seinfeld is worried about his salvation

I’m not talking about Jerry Seinfeld the man. It’s hard to say if the current Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee host thinks much about his eternal future.

I’m talking about Jerry Seinfeld the character from the classic show Seinfeld which turned 25 years old this year.

While I imagine Jerry Seinfeld is a kind, generous, thoughtful and loving person in real life, his television counterpart was nothing of the sort.

Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer were self-centered, egotistical, perverse, and sometimes downright despicable. And for 9 hilarious seasons the world loved them for it. Continue reading →

The One Sobering Question You Must Answer Every Day

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Do you think you could pass a 5th grade history test? Do you think you could still do it if you were drunk?

That’s the question “Drunk History” asks. The Comedy Central series (based on a series of Youtube videos) shows what happens when drunk adults try to retell the history lessons they learned in elementary school. The results are jumbled, bungled, and hilarious. (And often full of explicit language, although this clip is clean).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-mU4pf3ywU Continue reading →

Life Is A Maze

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Today, the 4th of July, we celebrate the true American heroes – The American Gladiators:

(Click Here if you can’t see the video above)

Not to take anything away from the men and women who fight everyday to protect the United States.

I just don’t think the men and women who fought every Sunday morning on syndicated television defending the gladiator arena get enough love.

After all, American Gladiators taught me an important lesson during my youth: Life is a maze.  Continue reading →

What Friday Night Lights Gets Right

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FNL_S2_DVDFriday Night Lights was a well-respected, Emmy Award Winning drama series that ran for 5 years on NBC. But you might have completely missed it.

During it’s original run it was bumped around the schedule and nearly cancelled multiple times. The show was always a critical darling, but mainstream audiences were slow to catch on.

It’s become one of those shows everyone tells you that you should go binge watch ASAP, like Breaking Bad or The Wire. And rightfully so.

Friday Night Lights is far more than a football show. It’s a realistic drama about a Texas High School coach and the down-to-earth problems his family and team face over the course of a career. It’s gritty, it’s funny, it’s relatable. It’s a pretty great show.

Except for the 2nd Season. The 2nd Season of Friday Night Lights is downright awful. Continue reading →

3 Words Mad Men Taught Me About Success

/ Alex Doriot / 3 Comments

6351651If there has been one overarching theme of this final season of Mad Men, it’s been the reestablishment of Don Draper against a rapidly changing business climate.

As the world he once dominated quickly evolves past him, Don must work his way up from the bottom to reclaim his identity and to identify exactly what his identity is.

Mad Men often parallels the work of the creative team at the ad agency with the internal struggle of all writers and creative thinkers. One scene from the penultimate episode of this half season with Don and Peggy brilliantly breaks down the conflict a writer goes through when their work is good, but not quite good enough.

Ultimately though, the biggest struggle Don faces is not against his creativity but against his willingness to do the work at all.  Continue reading →

Is God Funny?

/ Alex Doriot / Leave a comment

It’s funny the things you remember.

I have this vivid memory of playing at a park with a friend in elementary school. His father sat on a bench reading and keeping an eye on us as we pretended to be Power Rangers.

At one point I looked over and saw him laughing. As I walked by him later I asked him what he had read that had been so funny.

He told me it was The Bible. The Bible had made him laugh.

This startled me. How could someone laugh at The Bible?  Continue reading →