Monthly Archives: December 2009

TLC and the Celebrity Family

Posted on by Colleen Claes
6

Kate Gosselin and her eight children. Photo credit: INFphoto.com

Yes, TLC is an acronym for “The Learning Channel,” but within the past few years, you might as well call it, “The Famous Families Channel.” (Though I’m not sure how catchy the acronym TFFC is.)

How did this all start? Well, Jon & Kate Plus 8, of course. Before it was a full-blown weekly series, it was a few specials. Back then (in 2007), Jon and Kate Gosselin were just two parents with two sets of multiples. They let the TLC (or Discovery Health, previously) cameras into their home and hospital rooms. They seemed…normal. An average couple with an extraordinary circumstance.

TLC caught on quick – “This makes for good TV.” Thus, the series. But what most people probably didn’t expect was the fame, the tabloids, the paparazzi, the diva stories, the public controversy. All of a sudden, it was as if TLC’s relatable big family from Pennsylvania was on the same step of the Fame Ladder as Mariah Carey.

Now Jon & Kate Plus 8 is no longer, with the series finale airing on November 23. A “spin-off” – Kate Plus 8 – is probably going to happen though. Fans can’t get enough of The Gosselins, yet they are disappointed in their fame-induced corruption all the same.

With The Gosselin family no longer really contributing to the “wholesome” family image that TLC wishes to present, the network has brought on some other options.

Just when it was looking bad for The Gosselins, 18 Kids and Counting started to become more marketable for the channel. The Duggar family seems more religious, more humble, and far less destined for paparazzi doom than Jon and Kate.

The other, Table for 12, sounds eerily close to being a desperate replacement for Jon & Kate Plus 8. The official website’s TV show index even describes the show with the following snippet: “Betty and Eric Hayes are raising three sets of multiples, totaling ten children.” The show is fairly new and currently in its second season.

I don’t know which question to ask – What happened to family? or What happened to television?

With the success (or failure, depending on how you look at it) of Jon and Kate Gosselin, is this the new trend? Parents with multiple children going on TLC for hopes of the same fortune? When did the media start caring about families in this way? Do you just have to have a lot of kids and a controversial divorce? Or are we so disillusioned with family life that we’ll sit and watch anyone with more than 2.5 kids?

And when did you get to become a celebrity just by being a parent on reality TV?

I have a lot of unanswered questions, and a lot of sincere confusion and discomfort about the whole situation. Whatever the answers are, I’m afraid that they all point to a modern-day lack of understanding of the importance of family, as well as a lack of original content and creativity on television.

I do have one suggestion for TLC though: Why don’t you put a gay-parented family on air already? Seriously, try it. Your viewers might actually learn something.

Things to Look Forward to in 2010, #1: ‘In Treatment,’ Season Three

Posted on by Colleen Claes
Reply

Promotional image for Season One

A friend recommended In Treatment to me about a year ago, and I started watching season one. I became addicted to the show pretty quickly, and luckily season two was there to keep me engaged in the story for another month.

This wait for season three, however, has been pretty dismal. For a while, In Treatment fans on message boards were speculating that there may never be another season.

The show is not like other HBO series.This one is intense with drama, but not the most popular or well-known series on the network. But critics and the dedicated fans become hooked by its stories, characters, and eerily realistic (though amped up for drama) dialogue and acting.

Irish actor Gabriel Byrne plays the enigmatic, brooding and eager-to-help therapist, Dr. Paul Weston. Most of the scenes take place in his office. When it airs on HBO, each season comes on for a half hour Monday through Friday. The audience gets to watch sessions with one of four patients Monday through Thursday, and on Friday (usually, though this changed a bit in season two), Paul goes to see his own therapist – mentor and complicated friend, Gina (played amazingly by Dianne Wiest.)

As a study of life, life’s problems, and how people interact with one another, the show doesn’t seem to play out like a TV show or a mini-film. Instead, it feels like watching a perfectly rehearsed play with highly-trained actors, whose dialogue and movements are fluid, true to life, and yet still grippingly entertaining.

But not entertaining in the way that Entourage or even The Sopranos was. In Treatment did not get ideal ratings for HBO, though it received a large amount of critical acclaim.

On October 23, Variety released a story with HBO’s announcement to renew for season three. As for the not-so-high ratings?

‘The viewership isn’t as big as we’d like but creatively the show works so well for us, if we’re true to who we say we are, we had to pick it up,’ Michael Lombardo, president of the programming group and West Coast operations for HBO, told Daily Variety. ‘We’re not just into ratings and the awards game. We’re here to deliver shows with distinct voices.’

And thank God. Though this show will not start filming until next year and will most likely be aired towards the end of 2010, I am already marking it down as one of my top things to look forward to in the new decade.

For anyone who hasn’t seen the show, I suggest you watch the first two seasons. And really, you have about a year to catch up on it anyway.

Switzerland in the Media, Pt. II: Minarets Ban

Posted on by Colleen Claes
4

Poster (in German) reading: "Stop/Yes to the minaret ban"

I don’t want to spend this whole post outlining the history and politics of the minaret ban in Switzerland, but this article from the BBC in 2007 provides some good background on the controversy. (Please note especially the quotes from Oskar Freysinger.)

Aside from my view that this compromises the promotion of dialogue between religions and cultures in Europe, there are several things about this situation that make it controversial, offensive, and troublesome. One of those things being the feminist argument of this ban.

The Times Online wrote an article that provided details as to why feminists were boosting the Swiss efforts to ban minarets.

Pictured is a widespread Swiss poster aimed towards feminists to promote the ban. Take a closer look at it. What does it say to you? What does it represent? Can one ad speak volumes of a whole continent’s feelings towards minority groups?

Switzerland in the Media, Pt. I: Polanski

Posted on by Colleen Claes
Reply

Photo by Rita Molnár; Wikipedia Commons

For the past week it’s been reported that Roman Polanski will most likely be released on bail. The latest report from Variety says:

Roman Polanski will remain in jail until Friday as the filmmaker raises the $4.5 million bail, Swiss authorities said Tuesday.

Polanski will basically be under house arrest – mind you, in his “chalet” in the Swiss Alps – until the government decides whether or not to extradite him to the U.S. to be charged for the crime he fled in 1978.

But what if Polanski tries to escape yet again?

I, for one, don’t see why Polanski wouldn’t try to escape this yet again. The fact that he has a family and is almost eighty years old seems to give him more reason to flee.

I guess we’ll have to see what happens. Until then, I am not doubting that he will be released on bail (Variety also reported that in Switzerland, the bail has to be paid in full). After all, if things are still the way they were in early October, Polanski has all of Hollywood behind him.

You can read more about the Polanski case and my initial thoughts on it in this post from October.

Why ‘Audition Day’ is One of the Best ’30 Rock’ Episodes…Ever

Posted on by Colleen Claes
4

EDITOR’S NOTE: I’ll admit it – I just got into 30 Rock. But to be fair, in about two weeks’ time, I became officially caught up with all past three seasons. And I’m currently watching the fourth one as it comes on every Thursday. In case you’re still questioning my true devotion, I’ve watched maybe half of all the episodes at least twice.

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains spoilers for anyone who has not seen “Audition Day,” episode 4 in the fourth season of 30 Rock.

'30 Rock' title card screenshot, Wikipedia Commons

I can’t think of many other shows that utilize the art of “cultural referencing” as often and as successfully as 30 Rock. One of the things that makes the show so uniquely funny is its nod to relevant pop and daily culture.

I’ve been hearing people say that the show is “not that funny” this season. Seeing as how I was doubled over with laughter while finishing the third, these comments worried me. But once I started catching up with the current season, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was laughing just as hard as I was in season three.

“Audition Day” – the fourth episode – is already a favorite of mine. I’ve watched it about five times since it aired. (Thank God for Hulu.) There are so many reasons why this particular episode makes that embarrassing snort escape from my nostrils while laughing too hard.

And trust me, I know that it’s not funny to point out why something is funny. So in the below list, I’ll try to just commentate briefly on my favorite moments:

  • The Liz Lemon audition tape from 1996: As Liz and Pete attempt to “rig” the auditioning system to get Jack to pick the actor they want, Liz expresses that she feels a little guilty using the other actors in this process. “So much rejection,” she reflects, as the flashback cuts in and we see an old audition tape of her trying out for a carpet cleaner commercial. “My name is Liz Lemon, and I am represented by Suzanne’s B+ Talent.”
  • Jack has bed bugs: And because of this, he is ostracized from the office and meetings. (“Did you just MUTE me?!”)
  • “Beat it, Grizz or Dot Com” – Jenna, to Dot Com
  • Jack on the subway, where he does the “homeless guy” speech, reworded to fit his own bed bug sufferings.
  • The whiny violin music behind all of “rejection” scenes. Very reminiscent of the sad Charlie Brown music.
  • “I’m not gay – I’m biiiiii-laarrrrrioussss!“: While gay humor does not…humor…me, I felt this was actually funny because it pointed to the ridiculousness of the “Funny Gay” stereotype. For another example, Tracy Morgan yelling, “I repeat, all funny gays into the car!”
  • The doughnut-eating woman “Hmmm-mmmmm”-ing onstage: This is the most random and nonsensically hilarious thing I’ve seen on TV in a long time.
  • And last, but certainly not least, dowdy Kathy Geiss doing the Susan Boyle “I Dreamed a Dream.” At this, I laughed so hard I cried as I watched this…on Hulu…alone in my apartment.

So there you have it. So much comedy and so many references packed into 30 (well, more like 21 with commercials) minutes. Yes, I say – 30 Rock’s still got it.