Nine Conversation-Starters for Upfront Week

amp8220Game of Thronesamp8221 Is Working Our Last Nerve amp160Damnamp160 This show sure knows how to get people going doesnamp8217t itamp160 It may not be advertiser supported even if it did feature the most talked about product misplacement of the year see object at lower right in photo aboveamp160 But it is the only thing on television that everyone is talking about right nowamp160 First came the April 28 episode The Long Nightamp160 So many complaintsamp160 It was hard to seeamp160 Certain plot elements made no senseamp160 Others felt decidedly anticlimactic amp160How did Brienne Grey Worm and Jaime fight off thousands of white walkers for so long without losing any body partsamp160 How did Arya get from there to there so quicklyamp160 How can we care about much else after our heroes literally defeated deathamp160amp160Above all I thought the episode was way too long amp160and yet I thought the battle contained therein should have gone on longer with a little character advancement or something tossed in just to keep it interestingFrankly it should have ended when spoiler alert the Night King menacingly revived his thousands of minions that had already died in the battle while Jon Snow stared in disbelief and defeat amp160Millions of GoT fans would have been losing their sht all week long in fervid anticipation of the May 5 episode The Last of the Starksamp160 About that amp160Putting aside the crazy thing with the contemporary coffee cup I canamp8217t remember the last time an episode of a longrunning series upset so many peopleamp160 I donamp8217t think I have read or heard a single positive comment about itamp160 The two shocking deaths at the end seemed to shake people more than the thousands of deaths the previous week even that of poor Theonamp160 I hate when a show I have spent years watching amp8220rewardsamp8221 me for my time by turning on me and making me regret all that wasted timeamp160 At this point Iamp8217m not sure the remaining two episodes can possibly change my opinionamp160 Weamp8217ll seeamp8220Barryamp8221 Has Goneamp160Berserk In the Best Wayamp160 Telecast backtoback with The Long Night and right before a gamechanging episode of Veep the April 28 episode of this very dark comedy helped make it a night to remember for HBO amp160Those bloody battles between Barry and Ronny the boyfriend of Locheamp8217s exwife first in Ronnyamp8217s house then in a local market were somehow simultaneously epic and intimateamp160 That would have been enoughamp160 But I have never seen anything quite like the ultraviolent showdowns between Ronnyamp8217s young daughter Lily a scarygood martial arts fighter and Barry and Fuchesamp160 I like when shows surprise me in fantastic ways without a shark in sight amp160Jesse Giacomazzi as Lily gave the performance of HBOamp8217s night brave bold scared seething vulnerable vicious and always in command of a very dangerous situation not of her makingamp160 Between Barry and Now Apocalypse Sunday nights have gotten increasingly surrealamp8220Now Apocalypseamp8221 Is Bringing Sexy Backamp160 Speaking of Now Apocalypse Iamp8217m surprised there isnamp8217t more talk about this boundarypushing sexy pleasure from filmmaker Gregg Araki that is one of the strangestamp160and yet most normalizing series to come along in foreveramp160 At a time when television is on the verge of becoming increasingly chaste due to a collective push from a spectrum of societal pressures Starz39amp160Now Apocalypse is pushing right back with a fearless judgementfree exploration of sex in multiple permutationsamp160 The show loses none of its heat in those rare scenes that are not about physical pleasure what with a lizard man from another dimension running around LA an angel or something played by Tyler Posey appearing to lead character Ulysses Avan Jogia and other inexplicable occurrencesamp160 As unapologetically steamy as it gets though it can suddenly become profoundly moving especially when the characters dare to acknowledge the fresh hells that come with being in one39s 20samp160 I havenamp8217t seen a group of young actors so willing to amp8220go thereamp8221 since BBC Americaamp8217s Skins which gave us Nicholas Hoult of the latest amp160XMen movies Hannah Murray and Joe Dempsie of Game of Thrones Daniel Kaluuya of Get Out Dev Patel of Slumdog Millionaire and the remarkable Jack Oamp8217Connell among many other talented kidsamp160 Similar stardom should come to the cast of Apocalypse nowBut Shonda Rhimes Got There Firstamp160 Long before Avan Jogia and Tyler Posey got it on on camera Shonda Rhimes was heating up television like nobodyamp8217s business with outstanding resultsamp160 Who hasnamp8217t enjoyed Greyamp8217s Anatomy Scandal How to Get Away with Murder andor Station 19 among many othersamp160 But at a time when millions of people are fearful of losing their jobs if they so much as look at a colleague the wrong way or bump into each other in the hall has anyone noticed that Rhimesamp8217 past and present shows on ABC have virtually spun around behavior in the workplace that would get the rest of us cannedamp160 Coworkers hump bump flirt and fornicate whenever they canamp160 And yet not a peep of protestamp160 Quite the oppositeamp160 Meamp160 Iamp8217m not gripingamp160 I have long believed that broadcast television needs to grow the fck upamp160 Now I canamp8217t wait to see what Rhimes does over at NetflixquotJeopardyquot Is Once Again MustSee TV amp160At a time when everything about television has to be bigger and better and bolder and somehow edgy enough to try to stand out amid the chaos of it all this decadesold enduring and endearing basic game show amp8211 one that dares to educate viewers as its contestants compete for cash prizes amp8211 has once again risen to the top offering more drama and excitement and entertainment than just about anything elseamp160 The rapid advancement of James Holzhauer pictured above and his endurance as a seemingly unstoppable winner has been engaging on a level most scripted shows never achieve let alone maintainamp160 He hasnamp8217t won more money yet than alltime champ Ken Jennings but his perepisode winnings have set recordsamp160 Meanwhile beloved host Alex Trebek continues to share his thoughts about his current cancer battle speaking to viewers at home as if they are dear friendsamp160 In this case I believe they areamp8220Gee Your Hair Smells Terrificamp8221 Goes from Complimentary to Cringeworthy amp160With apologies to anyone who might be offended every time I see Joe Biden I now think of the ubiquitous amp821670sera commercials that featured people smelling each otheramp8217s hair and exclaiming amp8220Gee your hair smells terrificamp8221 the actual name of the productamp160 I seem to recall that some of them were strangers paying each other complimentsamp160 Was Biden simply responding in a subconscious way to the power of advertisingamp160 Isn39t that the desired result of a great adamp160 Maybe that campaign was more powerful than Madison Avenue thoughtamp8220Dynastyamp8221 Is on Fire amp160Quietly doing its thing on Friday nights The CWamp8217s Dynasty in its second season has morphed from an awkward reworking of the original into a show so batsht crazy it is giving Now Apocalypse a run for its moneyamp160 I couldnamp8217t believe what I was watching when Alexisamp8217 longlost son Adam an evil bastard shoved his mother facefirst into a blazing fireplace scarring her so badly that she required reconstructive surgeryamp160 This plotscorcher was executed to accommodate the departure from the show of Nicolette Sheridan pictured above without losing her critical characteramp160 But that wasnamp8217t enoughamp160 Devious Adam then manipulated the plastic surgery team into giving Alexis the face of her nasty daughter Fallon played to sublime snottiness by Elizabeth Gilliesamp160 Not even the legendary Moldavian massacre can top thatamp8220Saturday Night Liveamp8221 Revivedamp160Opera Manamp160 How great was it to see Adam Sandler accompanied by Chris Rock and Kristen Wiig back on the SNL stageamp160 And how wonderful was it to have Opera Man back behind the Weekend Update desk after quot24 years and 24 poundsquot as he sang about current eventsamp160 His best lyricquotGropa gropa Sniffa sniffaYoung or olda Make no diffaJoe for this You wonamp8217t go faroTo win White House You need to bang porn staroquotamp8220General Hospitalamp8221 Star Max Gail Gotamp160His Emmyamp160 At least some things in this crazy world are working out the way they shouldamp160amp160Remember you read it here firstClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160

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Nine Conversation-Starters for Upfront Week

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Ed Martin

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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Nine Conversation-Starters for Upfront Week

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Ed Martin

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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