Breaking Bad Review: All Quiet On The Western Front

The game-changing events Breaking Bad’s fourth season introduced in last week’s premiere set the somber tone surrounding each character’s behavior in the aftermath of Victor’s violent murder. Sunday’s sophomore installment, “Thirty-Eight Snub” was a slow, deliberately-paced meditation on the shock, guilt, grief and fear pulsating through Walt and Jesse and permeating into the minds of those affected by and involved with their increasingly serious stake in the underbelly of Albuquerque’s drug culture. Director Michelle MacLaren and series creator Vince Gilligan adopted an appropriate spaghetti western motif for the episode’s gait and structure, paying homage to Sergio Leone through establishing close-ups, long shots and strings of telling silence that aided in conveying the determined, if a bit naïve, desperation of Walt and consuming despair of Jesse. As both our (anti)heroes navigate their way through the dangerous desert of their own making, tension regarding their respective fates causes them to enlist different coping mechanisms and defense strategies in preparation for the worst.

The cold open finds Walt in a motel room with a sage, succinct black-market gun dealer, trying to find the perfect weapon with which to permanently end his fear of Gus’ wrath. Walt slings the piece with an amateur’s telling fumble, and the seller is prompted to ask whether Walt is seeking mere protection, or acting in specific self-defense. The question gives Walt pause before he declares “defense” as though he’s trying to convince himself as well as the gunman. The seller lists the gun’s features with the calm articulation of a legitimate professional, but alerts Walt that the filed-off serial number carries major consequences for a man without so much as a misdemeanor on his record. Walt considers his prospects and decides he’s better off with an illegal gun that can’t be traced in the event he ends up using it. “I’ll take it,” he announces, with the pithy rasp of Clint Eastwood.

While Walt is taking precise measures to salvage his safety, Jesse is imploding further into a self-destructive cyclone of anguish. Between witnessing Walt’s, ahem, run-in with Tomas’ killers and the brutal execution of Victor, the added memory of shooting Gale himself and perpetuating a terrifying new chapter in his deepening drug saga leaves Jesse unable to bear the torture of his own thoughts. He buys an absurd sound system in effort to find something louder than the noise in his head and enlists Badger and Skinny Pete in throwing a three-day bender that ensures his house will be full of ample distraction. When Andrea shows up in the midst of the festivities to confront Jesse about a wad of cash left “anonymously” in her mailbox, Jesse’s stoic yet crestfallen face expresses the defeat he feels knowing that neither the money nor the murder of Tomas’ killers can make amends for his own regret.

As for Skyler, her oblivion regarding the severity of Walt’s predicament allows her to press him about purchasing the car wash, in effort to begin laundering the drug money as quickly and discreetly as possible. Her phone calls and subsequent answering machine messages catch an increasingly paranoid Walt at the wrong time, and he barks at her for mentioning their business plans over a connection as insecure as a landline. So much for discretion. Unaware of Walt’s direct and indirect part in the murder of four people in the last few days, Skyler remains focused on the task at hand and perches herself outside the car wash to observe and record its customer activity. Once the numbers are crunched and a detailed proposal is drawn, she marches into the owner’s office and makes a well-prepared and reasonable offer. However, the owner’s jilted grudge toward Walt for his awesomely lewd manner of quitting a couple seasons back causes him to announce the business won’t be sold for less than the outlandish price of $20 million. Between the power of Skyler’s skeptical raised brow and the threatening emergence of Heisenberg, however, that number stands a chance of plummeting in the near future.

Hank’s growing obsession with minerals and bitterness about his condition, meanwhile, is corroding his marriage like rust. Marie’s overly chipper enthusiasm could certainly wear thin, but her look of pure heartbreak when Hank seethes “Get out” with pure, malicious disgust leaves little room for sympathy for him, spinal cord injury or not.

Back in the lab, Walt braces himself, new weapon in tow, as he hears familiarly ominous footsteps clicking the metal scaffolding above. When the arrival turns out to be Victor’s replacement and not Gus, Walt boldly asks Mike if he’d be able to “clear the air” with Gus face to face. Mike offers an incredulous snort and the cryptic revelation that Walt won’t ever see Gus again.

Aided by adrenaline-induced paranoia and instinct for survival, Walt creeps up on Gus’ property after sundown and dons his porkpie hat with deliberate delicacy; the shift in his persona is visibly evident. As he makes his carefully determined strides toward the property and draws his untraceable gun, a call on his cell phone interrupts his mission and a chilling “Walter, go home” promptly drains the Heisenberg out of Walt as though his own jugular had been sliced.

Mike has taken to spending his time outside the confines of Gus’ regime at a seedy bar, dwindling the hours away with nursed whiskeys and steely, distant gazes. As he discovers a crusty patch of dried blood on his sleeve, it’s made clear even he isn’t able to shake the trauma of a checkered past and uncertain future.

After a long-overdue Better Call Saul commercial provides some merciful levity, Walt enters the bar and approaches Mike with the unspoken air of a high-noon duel, but instead presents him with a strategy to try and help them both. After Walt attempts to enlist Mike’s support in ensuring Gus’ downfall, Mike responds with a condescending alert that Walt’s brand-new gun is painfully obvious and his naïveté regarding his standing with Gus is perhaps even worse. “You need to learn to take yes for an answer,” Mike advises, reminding Walt that he ended up keeping his job and not emptying the contents of his circulatory system all over the floor of the lab. Duly noted. Walt begins to protest, but Mike decides to make himself clearer as he sucker-punches Walt and gives him a couple steel-toed kicks in the ribs for good measure. “Thanks for the drink,” he snarls, and steps over Walt with a casual stroll out the door.

As Walt is left to reconsider his defense strategy, Badger and Skinny Pete plead for Jesse to let the escapism festival finally come to an end. As they slither off, Jesse is left alone with his robotic vacuum and ridiculous stereo, and the insidious remorse for what his life has become immediately begins to gnaw at his psyche. As he turns the music up as loud as he can stand it, Jesse, in the episode’s most distressing scene, crumples himself on the floor and leans his head on the booming speaker to deafen himself from any more pain the outside world and his inner torment could possibly offer.

Although Jesse’s inner war with his own demons is a poignant thread of this chapter of Breaking Bad, the quietness building up to Walt’s inevitable showdown with Gus is the beating heart of Season Four thus far. Some may express impatience with the methodical pace exhibited in these first two episodes, but Gilligan’s consistently crafty blueprint and shrewd aesthetic provide assurance that there are more than just tumbleweeds stirring in the wind.

What did you think of “Thirty-Eight Snub”? Will Walt convince Mike to flip? What could Gus be plotting? Is there any hope for Jesse? Is Marie adding the cost of Hank’s minerals to the medical bills she’s forwarding to Skyler? Does anyone remember Walt Jr.? Post your thoughts in the comment section below!

Season 4, Episode 2: Thirty-Eight Snub (originally aired July 24, 2011)

Don’t miss Breaking Bad Sundays at 10/9c on AMC.

Photographs courtesy of AMC/Ursula Coyote.

Comic-Con 2011: Power Rangers Samurai

As a kid, I never missed an episode of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. The strategically diverse group of Californian teenagers in color-coded costumes, wielding weapons and fighting evil in the form of monsters and extraterrestrials, were the objects of my envy. I wanted to wear a mask and brandish a sword after a normal day of roaming the halls and gossiping at school. Every other kid my age dreamt of the very same thing, which is why the cast members of the new Power Rangers Samurai can hardly contain their excitement these days. At a hotel nearby the convention center during Comic-Con 2011, I talked with them about their experiences on the show and behind the scenes.

On this 19th installment of the live action program based on the Japanese Super Sentai Series, the cast is made up of: Steven Skyler as Gold Samurai Ranger Antonio, Brittany Anne Pirtle as Emily in Yellow, Hector David, Jr. in Mike’s Green disguise, Erika Fong as Mia the Pink Ranger, Najee De-Tiege as Kevin in Blue, and Red Ranger Alex Heartman, called Jayden outside of his costume. Every one of the impossibly peppy stars is still fresh-faced and enthusiastic about appearing on the action-packed Nickelodeon show, which has been airing since February of this year. Each sporting a bright shirt in the same color worn by his or her onscreen persona, the young actors were led in verbosity and sheer energy by Hector. Explaining the concept of their project, he said, “It’s a revamp of Power Rangers; we’re bringing it back to what it was in it original form…It’s such an honor.” Nodding their heads in agreement, the rest of the cast copped to enjoying the series as children and being extremely nervous and competitive during tryouts (which Hector referred to as a “big, wide audition process” culminating in three-and-a-half-weeks of intensive samurai training). “We turned it into what we thought Power Rangers should be,” said Najee, gesticulating in his bright blue t-shirt with a smile.

The bubbly and adorable Brittany, sporting a yellow top to match her hair, didn’t try to contain her excitement while promising, “There’s so much new stuff thrown at you guys in the second season. Everything gets really intense.” Najee corroborated, revealing the show’s plans to “amp everything up,” while Hector exclaimed, “True fans will be so stoked!” The most physically demanding stunts are left to the Gold Ranger; Steven admitted, “My role is very demanding on a day-to-day basis. It’s physically very tough,” talking in a somewhat somber tone while the rest nodded in a rare moment of pensive silence. Though Steven may feel he gets the short end of the stick sometimes, Hector couldn’t be more thrilled about the fitness challenges they regularly face, remembering a day of filming where he “broke three or four swords” during a particularly challenging fight sequence. “We shoot really long days,” explained Brittany, who added that it’s been difficult enough just remembering to eat and drink regularly to maintain energy levels while keeping tight schedules. They all seem to see the finished product as more than worth their toil, with Brittany calling the upcoming season “so much more dramatic…exciting and exhilarating,” and Alex revealing that as-yet unaired episodes contain their “toughest scenes” to date.

Erika- demure, soft-spoken, and the most diminutive of the pack- claimed to have fought off Brittany for the role of Pink Ranger, since they both loved Kimberly as young girls. The casting callbacks were somewhat awkward for everyone, as it turns out, since they all had their favorite characters and entertained fantasies of becoming what they could only dream of during childhoods spent in front of the television. Nevertheless, the chemistry between the cast is now effortless and even a bit over-the-top. Our conversation was punctuated with cheers, inside jokes, and loud clapping, as if the unusually shiny and attractive crew had been downing energy drinks and trading affirmations before the session began. Spending so many grueling days together, often working in extreme heat and dry, sandy environments, seems to have bonded them for life, and I imagine they don’t spend too many moments apart these days. Indeed, they bicker like siblings, stopping at one point to playfully argue over which one of them is the most frequent winner in games of chess and solitaire, and there’s no getting through to them when everyone is talking at once, each fighting to be heard and validated by the rest. They’re nothing if not self-aware, though. “They wanted to put me on Ritalin,” Hector said when recalling his years in grade school.

The Power Rangers Samurai cast is as active in their rare moments of free time as they are in front of the camera. “I love surfing, hiking, camping…I love nature,” reported Erika, who also designs clothes on the side. Dark-haired dreamboat Steven is a singer/songwriter who adores playing soccer, and Hector surprised me by revealing his background as a professional dancer with a talent for parkour, gymnastics, and imitating Michael Jackson. Alex enjoys skateboarding and doing “everything outside,” while Najee was outed as the biggest video game addict and bookworm. “I’m kind of a nerd,” blushed the avid rock-climber and archer who would sometimes rather stay inside and build miniature models. Brittany, just like her icon Kimberly of the mid-nineties, is a gymnast who calls herself a “hippie” and searches for inner peace through yoga and world travel. If any of them silently wished for more time to spend on hobbies, it didn’t show, and with more episodes, a video game (to be released for the Wii and Xbox Kinect in November), and a feature film in the pipeline, they show no signs of stopping.

Power Rangers Samurai airs weeknights at 7.30pm est on Nickelodean.

Images courtesy of Lauren Tyree for Poptimal.com.

Pretty Little Liars Review: Bad Daddy

I’ve went a little MIA last week and missed out on recapping Pretty Little Liars for all of you lovely people, but I’m back now to keep you up to speed and in the know about our favorite scandalized teenage girls.

Two weeks ago ‘A’ truly stepped up the game by sabotaging the big fashion show event meant to honor Alison DiLaurentis. Not only were the girls horrified but it also gave quite a shock to the already traumatized mother of Alison. But one member of the DiLaurentis clan seems to be coping fairly well and that’s the mysterious Jason who keeps having more and more heart to hearts with Aria. And guess who’s falling for him slowly – Aria. Told ya that would happen.

But things got a little more awkward for Aria this week when her parents decided to throw a swanky dinner party and guess who they invited: Jason AND Aria’s secret/inappropriate/dreamy boyfriend Ezra Fitz. Both boys show up with flowers and look nice in their dinner jackets but old Mr. Fitz is pretty much instantly jealous and suspicious of the equally foxy Jason. But before things can get too heated with this love triangle, police show up at the door to announce that they’ve arrested Aria’s brother Mike for breaking and entering someone’s house.

Aria’s parents leave her alone with the dinner guests and they all leave pretty quickly until its just her and her two manpanions. You could call the fourth guest to this party Rising Tension and boy was it ever taking up a lot space. Things get weirder though when Aria decides to go on a rampage of Mike’s bedroom and finds the clay lantern pot thingy that Jenna made in their pottery class. Incensed, she makes her two boy toys leave (very abruptly I must say) and then rips into her brother for stealing from a blind girl when he gets home from the police station.

But then a strange truth comes out. Mike denies that it came from robbing Jenna’s house and instead was taken from Officer Garrett’s house. Hmmmmm…more on that in a minute.

Over at Spencer’s house this week her suspicious dad – or Bad Daddy (Nolan North) as we will call him from now on – hired her boyfriend, Toby, to do some major yard work for them. This seems like no big deal until Toby digs up a broken hockey stick that was buried in the dirt right on the property line they share with the DiLaurentis house. Bad Daddy takes the stick from Toby in a huff and Toby naturally tells Spencer what went down.

Spencer’s mind for conspiracy immediately fires up as she remembers a lot of recent angry conversations between her father and Mrs. DiLaurentis that he wouldn’t explain. We are then treated to a flashback that reveals Alison having that hockey stick in possession. Spencer also knows that it was in Alison’s house at the time she was murdered so she immediately suspects Jason of killing Alison and thinks this was probably the weapon.

Any attempt to analyze it is ruined though when Spencer catches Bad Daddy burning the hockey stick in the fireplace despite her pleas not to. With that option shot she turns to Officer Garrett in hopes that he knows what kind of weapon killed Alison but he still insists that it was Ian and that she should drop the issue. It is around then that Aria texts her not to trust Garrett. Granted, Aria is basing this on the fact that he was in possession of a clay pot that Jenna made. It’s not exactly a smoking gun but we’ll see how this plays out.

Emily and Hannah got a bit short-shifted this week. As you may have seen two weeks ago, Emily’s mom has allowed her to live with Hannah so that she can go to Texas for some loving from her hubby. Emily and Hannah are clearly the most mismatched of the four girls and we can already see the strain that’ll come from living together. “Its like a sleepover…even on weeknights,” laments Emily to Aria. Ouch. How long can this last?

But on the bright side, Hannah’s estranged parents are getting it on again and Caleb confessed some dark dealing of his past to Hannah making their relationship all the more intimate. I still wish someone would give that boy a haircut though.

The episode ended with A injecting some kind of liquid into some kind of container. It may have been meant to be scary but it was a little too vague for my taste. I guess that’s probably the point though. Tune in next week to check out the mystery liquid of doom!!

Pretty Little Liars Season 2, Episode 7: “Surface Tension” (originally aired July 26, 2011)

Pretty Little Liars airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on ABC Family.

Images courtesy of ABC Family.

Comic-Con 2011: The Vampire Diaries Press Room

If you didn’t see the season two finale of The Vampire Diaries then you missed out big time because it had to be one of the most on-the-edge-of-my-seat finales that I’ve seen in a long time. Any information we could glean off the creator Kevin Williamson and the cast members on season three was a welcomed treat. Firstly, the obvious question – what’s going to happen to Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Elena (Nina Dobrev)? According to Williamson, they’ll be figuring out a way to rescue Stefan (Paul Wesley) and at the same time grow in their own relationship. Fans have been curious whether Elena will switch over to the elder Salvatore brother with her current boyfriend gone with Klaus, but Nina Dobrev says that, “Just because he’s there it doesn’t necessarily mean that she’s going to fall into his arms.”

Williamson confirms that Damon loves Elena (obviously) and that Elena loves Damon as well. He added that Elena might face what Katherine told her at the end of last season, that it’s okay to love them both. Williamson stresses that the difference will be their actions. Elena isn’t necessarily going to do what Katherine did. Speaking of Elena and Katherine, Dobrev was happy to take on the challenge of playing two characters and understandably it was difficult. She says that changing her physical appearance definitely helps her switch from Elena and Katherine.

Damon will be struggling in his role as Mystic Fall’s new hero in residence. Somerhalder explains how his character is very much pissed off that he’s in this situation because Damon doesn’t know how to function as this person. He loves Elena and has to protect her but he’s also fighting his nature as a predator. Our favorite badass vampire isn’t going to get declawed though and we’ll see him struggle, taking one step forward and two steps back. As a part of his anti-hero persona, Damon will also feel like he has to watch out for Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen). It might also have something to do with killing the guy last season. Either way, when asked about Damon and Bonnie (Katerina Graham), Somerhalder said that the last thing his character needs is for Jeremy to come and tell him to stay away from his girlfriend.

Audiences can also expect to learn more about Klaus and his nefarious plans. Williamson said that they aren’t sure yet how much we’ll see of the original family and that he’s also hoping to bring Elijah back at some point. Joseph Morgan (who plays Klaus) was at the pressroom but sadly we didn’t get a chance to speak with him.

The early episodes of season three will also explore what’s happened to Jeremy. After being dead for an hour, Mr. Gilbert can now see dead people and the show will spend some time figuring out what exactly is going on there. Is he being haunted? What do these ghosts want from him? Are they trying to tell him a message? Jeremy will be working through these questions and it will be interesting to see how this ties to the other supernatural events happening around him.

Matt (Zach Roerig), our last human standing will be remaining that way. Williamson stressed that as of right now they want to keep him that way. With all of the paranormal activities surrounding him (even Jeremy has joined their ranks), how will he deal with all of this? His sister was turned into a vampire then was killed, his best friend is a werewolf, his ex-ex-girlfriend is a doppelganger, and his ex-girlfriend is a vampire. What’s a guy to do?

The Vampire Diaries continues to strive to take viewers on an emotional journey with their characters and it looks like we’ll be seeing a lot of that with Damon especially. Somerhalder mentioned how his character in the past two seasons has tried to get his brother to accept who he is as a hunter and killer, but with Stefan as Klaus’s indentured servant, isn’t that what the younger Salvatore brother has been forced to become? Somerhalder says that Damon hates Klaus, but Klaus was able to accomplish what he could not and make Stefan kill and drink human blood again. Since Damon will be experiencing a lot of changes as he reluctantly tackles the role of hero, Stefan will undoubtedly also be going through his own struggles. He must find a way to retain some part of his humanity and not fully become the hunter that I’m assuming Klaus wants him to be.

Season three is looking to be pretty exciting and I for one can’t wait to see how it turns out. Fall needs to hurry up.

For more Comic-Con coverage, click here.

The Vampire Diaries returns to The CW on Thursday, September 15 at 8/7c.

Images courtesy of Bilal Mian for Poptimal.com.

Actress Candice Accola Actress Candice Accola	Actress Nina Dobrev Actress Nina Dobrev	Actor Ian Somerhalder Actor Ian Somerhalder
Nina Dobrev Nina Dobrev	Ian Somerhalder Ian Somerhalder	Paul Wesley Paul Wesley
Ian Somerhalder Ian Somerhalder	Paul Wesley Paul Wesley	Candice Accola Candice Accola
Actor Joseph Morgan Actor Joseph Morgan	Ian Somerhalder Ian Somerhalder	Paul Wesley Paul Wesley
Nina Dobrev Nina Dobrev	Paul Wesley Paul Wesley	L to R: Candice Accola, Paul Wesley, EP Kevin Williamson, Ian Somerhalder, EP Julie Pec, Nina Dobrev, Joseph Morgan L to R: Candice Accola, Paul Wesley, EP Kevin Williamson, Ian Somerhalder, EP Julie Pec, Nina Dobrev, Joseph Morgan
Nina Dobrev and Joseph Morgan Nina Dobrev and Joseph Morgan	Ian Somerhalder Ian Somerhalder	Paul Wesley Paul Wesley
From L to R: Paul Wesley, Kevin Williamson, Ian Somerhalder, Julie Plec, Nina Dobrev, Joseph Morgan From L to R: Paul Wesley, Kevin Williamson, Ian Somerhalder, Julie Plec, Nina Dobrev, Joseph Morgan

Comic-Con 2011: Children’s Hospital Press Room and Panel

Adult Swim’s Children’s Hospital might be short at only eleven minutes per episodes but after interacting with the cast on the second day of Comic-Con, I can easily say that what their show lacks in length more than makes up for it in laughs and star power. Attending the Con this year to promote the show was star and creator Rob Corddry along with an gaggle of co-stars in the shape of Malin Akerman, Lake Bell, Erinn Hayes, Ken Marino, and of course, the brilliant Megan Mullally.

I got the chance to sit down with various groupings of this fantastic cast and it became clear within minutes that they love being together and are never at a loss to crack each other up. Up first at our press interview table was the tremendous trio of Bell, Hayes, and Akerman who swarmed down upon us with a burst of goofiness that kept us all on our toes. From hearing about their anger at being left out of filming the infamous Brazilian sequence to talk of baby-making on the set (especially of the girl-on-girl variety), scarcely a minute went by without everyone in hysterics.

One fact that might surprise many viewers is that the show is very tightly scripted and there is actually very little improvisation that goes on despite the seemingly random and off-the-wall style that the series exudes. Episodes are typically shot in only two days and, as Corddry later confirmed, the crew is surprisingly large and all union employees despite the very indie tone of it all. Despite these traditional production tropes, the ladies expressed their pleasure in the fact that the show doesn’t rely on traditional character arcs (or even continuity) which means they can basically show up on the day of filming and just make whatever is on the page funny. There are even times, according to Hayes, that roles are swapped around between actors for maximum impact without altering the dialogue or scenario as written, which keeps the production fresh, unpredictable, and at its funniest.

Beyond the show, I couldn’t help but ask the ladies a couple questions pertinent to their individual careers. For example, I was dying to know where Bell got the inspiration for her scene-stealing character in this year’s romantic comedy No Strings Attached. With great modesty she claimed most of it came directly from the pages of the script with a dash of minor tics and stumbles added in based on a friend she was unwilling to name in an effort to not offend said inspiration.

Akerman, a veteran of Comic-Con due to her role in Watchmen, is someone you might imagine fearing to come back and be attacked by mobs of comic book fans but she says she loves coming back here if only for the pure, genuine energy that the fans provide out of their love of what they do.

Up next at our press table was Mullally and Marino who both offered a lot of great insight and humor about the show…that is when Huebel wasn’t distracted by thoughts of the tacos he was craving. Delicious Mexican food aside, both agreed that the show is at its best when pushing the offensive/shocking envelope. Marino said they “can’t really perceive how others will take it but we think its harmless because it is so ridiculous.”

At one point in the interview I asked Mullally if she had any plans to return to Broadway in the near future and the subject seemed to hit a nerve. At first she simply noted that her most recent experience, Lips Together, Teeth Apart, went poorly and she is currently just happy in Los Angeles, which she considers an ashram compared to the small New York City theatre world. The conversation quickly moved on but when the round table interview commenced, Mullally asked me to step aside for some additional information on the topic of musical theatre.

As it turns out, her much publicized departure from Lips Together, Teeth Apart was the result of the abusive nature of the show’s director, Joe Mantello. I won’t use her exact descriptor words on request, but her treatment under the director was less than desirable and reached a tipping point when he tried to pit her against friend and co-star, Patton Oswalt. Mullally and Oswalt quickly realized what was going on and she decided it was worth breaching her contract to leave the show and avoid working in such a hateful and unhappy environment. However, musical theater is still one of her great loves and will likely be in her future again sometime.

She may not have to wait too long though as Rob Corddry revealed that they are actually considering a musical episode that they could then take on tour! Basically just imagine the show on a stage with live music to go along with it to picture the potential hilarity. No plans are firmly in place yet but it is definitely in the works and will hopefully be coming to stages near us all soon.

The cast then headed out to their panel discussion for the thousands of waiting fans and, as expected, the proceedings remained just as goofy if not more so. Some highlights include the airing of an entire episode, Marino sprinting from the back of ballroom to reach the podium where he hugged everyone (including the chairs), one fan questioner referring to Corddry as “that guy from Hot Tub Time Machine“, and Hayes dancing poorly to a beat provided by her castmates. This is a group that apparently lives to have fun and with luck they’ll be around to make people laugh for years to come.

Children’s Hospital airs Thursday nights at Midnight on Adult Swim.

Images courtesy of Matt Degroot for Poptimal.com.

Lake Bell, Erinn Hayes and Malin Akerman Lake Bell, Erinn Hayes and Malin Akerman	Megan Mullally Megan Mullally	Megan Mullally and Ken Marino Megan Mullally and Ken Marino
Rob Corddry Rob Corddry

SDCC 2011: Immortals Panel and Press Room

Swords. Sandals. Beautiful men. Beautiful women. Action. Drama. Gods.

These are the things that make up one of this year’s most anticipated films and together with its stellar cast and visionary director, Immortals is set to take the world by storm. The godly cast and crew of the film descended upon San Diego Comic-Con this past weekend to unveil new footage and give audiences a taste of the tone of this latest big screen, 3D epic.

Set in ancient Greece, the story of Immortals shows evil King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) on a quest to claim the legendary Epirus Bow that will allow whoever wields it to unleash the Titans and likely conquer the Earth. Unable to intervene in human affairs, the gods turn towards a peasant named Theseus (Henry Cavill) to save his people along with the planet.

It may sound like something you’ve seen before in movies like 300 and Clash of the Titans but the cast and crew were eager to squash those fears by insisting that this film is a lot darker and more intense than any of us are expecting. This assertion was quickly proven true in the stylishly gory footage show to convention-goers. They were also able to tout the visual flair of their director, Tarsem Singh, whose previous films, The Cell and The Fall, took stunning visuals to a whole new level. Everyone on the panel was quick to call him “a visionary” but he humbly dismissed such titles and stood by his mantra of coming up with great visuals and then building a story around it.

Singh was initially torn about making a movie about gods since he is an atheist but he also wanted to tackle a movie that explores such characters by deconstructing them critically and since doing that to a current religion would only bring controversy (and likely death threats) he decided to go with the dead Greek religion. In doing so he was able to tell a story about a man who has no special abilities but was chosen and trusted by the gods to prevail and that concept fascinated Singh.

To play this man, Singh and the producers selected someone who is sure to become a big star in the coming years – Henry Cavill. Cavill is best known for his role on The Tudors but will surely rocket to fame next year as the newest Superman in director Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. I wouldn’t normally say this but in all honesty – I have never been so starstruck and in awe of someone in my whole life. Not only is he stunning to look at but he has a sort of gravitas that makes him intoxicating to be around. It was next to impossible formulating words to ask him questions at our roundtable but I was able to pull it together long enough to learn about his extensive workout routine to get in shape for this role (which helped shape him for Superman), his long interest in Greek mythology, and the fact that the Man of Steel script is one of the best he’s ever read.

Mr. Cavill certainly wasn’t alone on this adventure with the press though. At his side were castmates Kellan Lutz, Luke Evans, Freida Pinto, Stephen Dorff and producers Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton who were all excited for the film’s prospects. Pinto was extremely excited to have worked with Director Singh after seeing his previous work and knows that this one will deliver as well. She also hinted at the added perk of being around the sexy men of the cast all day long. In fact, her first day on the set was a sex scene with Cavill. I’m pretty sure she said this just to make me jealous.

When Lutz and Evans were asked if there was any competition between the men to get the buffest body on set they said no and that it was simply a mutual desire to get into their best shape. “We were wearing skirts though…so we couldn’t get too macho about it,” added Lutz with a laugh.

Evans (who will also be seen as Bard the Bowman in next year’s The Hobbit) plays the younger version of Zeus in the film and is paired with classic actor John Hurt as the older Zeus. I was struck by their uncanny resemblance in both looks and voice and asked Evans if this was an intentional casting choice. “That’s very flattering but I actually don’t know who was cast first. You’ll have to ask the higher ups,” he said.

So I did.

According to Producer Mark Canton, “Luke was cast first but it was not intentional. I think it just worked out that way. But Luke can do voices and he’s always doing his John Hurt voice… so its perfect!”

There was also much talk about the film being in 3D which has gotten a sort of bad wrap lately due to sloppy 3D conversions done in post-production. The cast insists though that the fact that it was actually shot in 3D and Singh’s vision will deliver and take 3D to a new level. “I think it’ll be impossible for people to pick it apart visually once you see it. It’ll be that solid,” said Dorff who plays one of the film’s villains.

Singh himself seemed a little uneasy about 3D and its future but says it is a valid, aesthetic call that will work very well in a film like his where visuals take center stage.

Audiences will be able to put these claims to the test when the film hits theaters on 11/11/11.

Images courtesy of Matt DeGroot for Poptimal.com and Relativity Media.

Comic-Con 2011: The Big Bang Theory Adding New Variables To Next Season

Most traditional, three-camera sitcoms would seem out of place making an appearance at Comic-Con, the multimedia blitzkrieg that takes over San Diego once a year and celebrates all things the pop culture-savvy revere. But the cast and producers of CBS’ The Big Bang Theory have bucked the notion that a conventional format means a conventional show, and proudly basked in the glow of the celebrated nerdathon. After making themselves comfortable in front of the thousands of fans who attended the show’s panel discussion last week, and the room of reporters wanting a scoop on the upcoming season, the Big Bang crew proved once again they’re right at home at the Con.

Stars Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco and now-regular cast member Mayim Bialik were on hand with the show’s co-creators Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, and executive producer Steven Molaro, to discuss what’s next for TV’s most beloved geeks, particularly in the wake of last season’s cliffhanger that found Cuoco’s Penny waking up next to Kunal Nayyar’s Raj.

When asked how his character, Penny’s sometime boyfriend Leonard, reacts to this revelation, Emmy nominee Galecki kept it succinct.

“Well, I don’t think he handles it well, and I’ve been saying that I didn’t handle it well personally when I read that part in the script,” he said, acknowledging the inevitable rift the plot twist will create between the characters.

As far as Leonard’s attitude toward the unlikely bedmates, Galecki predicted a realistic mix of emotions.

“Oh, poor Penny. She really shouldn’t drink,” he joked, as Cuoco earnestly agreed, nodding her head. “I’d like to see a little regret. Maybe just an ounce of self-loathing,” he continued, expressing how he hoped Penny would be feeling the morning after.

Regardless of how Leonard and Penny approach their relationship after this incident, Galecki foresees serious damage to Leonard’s friendship with Raj.

“I would be surprised if Leonard is speaking to Raj,” he said, before Cuoco chimed in with a defense for her lovably scatterbrained character.

“But you have a girlfriend! Why do you care?” she pointed out, referring to Leonard’s current love interest on the show, Raj’s younger sister Priya.

“Because you shattered my heart,” Galecki declared.

Despite the increasingly convoluted nature of their love story, both Galecki and Cuoco are firm in their belief that Leonard and Penny will, or at least should, end up together.

“I hope so,” Cuoco affirmed, when asked if Big Bang will ultimately end with the two of them riding off into the proverbial sunset. “Deep down, at the end of the day, on the last day of this show, whenever it is, oh, I’m definitely one of those that’s like, ‘Oh, they’ve got to end up together.’”

Galecki agreed, but noted the certain evolution the characters need to experience before their happy ending. “I think they’re the loves of one another’s lives, but they really just have a lot to learn and it would take quite some time for that final episode to get there,” he said.

According to Prady, the show won’t waste any time before chronicling that necessary journey, and will address the multitude of relationship issues amongst the entire cast of characters immediately.

When asked how quickly Big Bang’s fifth season will tackle the fallout from the Penny and Raj debacle, Prady’s simple response, “In the first episode,” gives fans confirmation that the cliffhanger will serve a specific purpose besides simple shock value.

For additional complication, the idea that Priya’s announcement she’s moving back to India indicates the end of her involvement with Leonard was destroyed, as Prady revealed otherwise and noted that the two “are going to try and keep their relationship going long-distance.”

Molaro acknowledged the difficult road ahead for Leonard, saying, ““It’s a weird spot for Leonard … it’s an emotional gray spot that I think he’s in.”

When asked if the creative team behind Big Bang intentionally created the fluctuation of romantic involvement and friendship between the core characters, Prady says both producers and writers are just going with the flow.

“I don’t think there was a particular plan, I think that we’ve tried to stay true to what happens in a group [of friends] like this,” he said.

Molaro takes the effort of keeping a sense of realism in the show to heart, evident as he explained his dedication to the characters’ behavior.

“I’m sitting there trying to put myself in the head of that character, and how I would react,” Molaro began. “Sometimes Bill [Prady] thinks there’s something wrong. He’s like, ‘What’s the matter?’ and I’m like, ‘No, no I was just being Howard in my head.’”

Speaking of Howard, the aerospace engineer portrayed by Simon Helberg, his recent engagement to Melissa Rauch’s Bernadette will also be a major plot point throughout Big Bang’s fifth season. Despite fan rumblings that the wedding is already doomed, Prady insisted there’s no point in thinking that far ahead but acknowledged the couple’s troubles nonetheless.

“At this point I would say that nothing stands in the way [of the wedding] right now,” Prady confirmed, adding, “There’s some other things they’re going to discover about each other that they’ll need to work out first … Fundamentally, I think they never talked about what kind of life they wanted to have. Where they were going to live, what they were going to do, children. I think that Howard got so caught up in, ‘Oh my God, I love someone who loves me back,’ that they haven’t had all of those conversations. And every one of them will surprise the other. They don’t have the same ideas, [but] they love each other very much.”

As for Sheldon Cooper, the Caltech physicist portrayed by Emmy and Golden Globe winner Parsons, his relationship with Mayim Bialik’s Amy may serve as a catalyst for the notoriously antisocial genius to gain some emotional depth.

“As much fun as it is to watch Amy, I think it’s even more fun to watch Sheldon react to Amy,” Bialik said. “I think those are some of the really interesting, sweet moments. I mean, Jim is a very, very subtle, skilled actor, so I love to see what he comes up with in dealing with her.”

Parsons regarded his approach to Sheldon’s personality as one that he didn’t intend to come across as egocentric or condescending, two character traits often associated with the breakout character.

“I think perhaps I’ve always felt empathy for him … he’s always seemed very human to me. I’ve never suspected, from the moment I read his first line, that he had any nefarious meaning, or that he did lack emotion,” Parsons said. “This is just simply his way of dealing … he’s a lovely fellow.”

Despite Big Bang being known for its intellectually gifted, socially awkward characters (save for Cuoco’s perky, personable Penny) and wry, pop culture-laden dialogue, Lorre revealed that the idea behind the show wasn’t to create a subgenre sitcom that spoke to the Comic-Con demographic, but rather to portray an honest group of people with distinct qualities.

“I don’t think we were doing a show about mere culture, we were doing a show about people we liked,” he said.

Prady elaborated on this notion, adding, “The idea was that it wasn’t about nerds, it was about extraordinary people, and it still is. It’s about great people. Really amazing, wonderful people. And I think that for those of us who are members of a particular group, we don’t see ourselves depicted on television and it was fun to be a part of doing that.”

Judging from the jam-packed ballroom of cheering fans, it seems that particular group is larger than Prady might have ever thought.

Don’t miss the fifth season premiere of The Big Bang Theory Thursday, September 22 at 8/7c on CBS.

Check out Poptimal’s full coverage of Comic-Con 2011 here.

Images courtesy of Erin Biglow for Poptimal and CBS/IMDbPro

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comic Con 2011: Fringe Will Return…and So Will Peter Bishop

I think I may have said this once or twice, but Fringe is the best show on television. Most fully imagined, brilliantly written and executed, packed with talented actors, and filmed with a cinematic eye. Here’s where I go on a brief tangent on the fact that it’s a crime it received no Emmy nominations, particularly for Anna Torv and John Noble.

The season finale shocked us last year when Peter disappeared and the Observers told us he never existed in the first place. Joshua Jackson showed up as a surprise at the panel, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. He joked that he’s “still getting the checks,” so although we don’t know the how, when, or why, Peter will return to the show…eventually. Joshua also arrived dressed as an Obersever, which had everyone whispering and wondering. Later in the press room, he dispelled the thoughts that it might be a sign, admitting “I like the Observer theory, obviously, since I got all dressed up in Observer garb. I think that would be a super cool way to bring Peter back into the show…I was willing to shave my head but Fox/Warner Brothers wasn’t down.”

Of course there’s pretty much nothing that producers Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Wyman were willing to tell us about the new season, except what we’ve all figured out; we’ll be tossed into a new world, where the universes are combined and Peter Bishop never existed.

Jasika Nicole, who plays Astrid, commented “This season is kind of like being introduced to these characters for the third time. We had the alternate world, and now we have this universe where Peter never existed, and all of us are completely changed because of that. Astrid is out in the field, because there’s no Peter to go with Olivia. Walter is so incredibly different, definitely a Walter you’ve never seen before…he’s empty and depleted. So Astrid’s relationship with him is completely different as well.”

John Noble, who brilliantly plays both Walter and Walternate, has his own opinion. “We don’t know that it’s not ever (that there’s been a Peter). As far as I’m concerned, Peter existed as a child but they both died. This is my theory, because otherwise why would we have two universes?”

I have to say, the entire cast talked with eager anticipation in their voices, curious sparkles in their eyes, and smiles firmly planted. They obviously love the show they’re working on, and are just as fascinated with its twists and turns as the audience is.

Seth Gabel, who plays Lincoln, joined the cast for his first Comic Con. When asked about his reaction to the scripts on a first read through, he shook his head. “I get lost in it sometimes, forget that I’m going to need to play it. The quality of the show is so incredible…so much work goes into making this show look good and the effects…it’s so cinematic. What we see on the screen is even better than I imagined.”

One of my pet peeves is people who insist on seeing the alternate characters as evil enemies, and John Noble talked a bit in the panel about being able to justify Walternate’s actions. I complimented him on it during the interviews later, and asked how they see the characters from the alternate world. Anna responded first, saying “Never judge a character because as an actor, you’re taught to always fight their cause. The alternate Olivia isn’t bad at all, and Walternate has a completely justifiable reason for doing what he does.”

As for John (after he got done telling me I raised an interesting point!) he shared “we knew going in that because the audiences had come to like us, they would treat enemies as bad people. That’s kind of the nature of humanity…we kept asking the writers to humanize these people so the audience weren’t sure who to root for.”

Anna added, “The fact that they stuck with them too…not just giving a little taste of the alternate universe so people didn’t think they would have to invest…it’s great the studio and the writers stuck with it, it’s so important.”

I loved that. I also told Anna that I preferred the alternate Olivia, and she confided that she does as well.

My question for Joshua Jackson also revolved around the relationship between he and Olivia, and he and the alternate Olivia. I absolutely adored his response, and it made me think of the situation as I hadn’t before. I preferred Peter with Alternate Olivia, because they seemed so much more comfortable together, and he addressed the issue. “It’s telling that Peter had two years to be around our Olivia and nothing romantic ever happened between the two of them…there was definitely an animalistic thing between him and Olivia from the alternate world. It took all of eight minutes before they were naked and bouncing around together. But the first time that Peter ever grew as a man, outside of his relationship with Walter, because I think that’s progressed quite nicely, was when she came back and she was all pissed off, Peter took it like a man, never complained, gave her time, stuck by her. That was when I realized this was the true relationship, this is where his heart really lies because as a man you wouldn’t stick around for all that nonsense if you didn’t really care. The guy who gets defensive, he’s not really in it for the long haul. If he reacts any other way then that tells me this is a bs relationship. The fact that he’s willing to a) be honest with her and b) take it on the chin and let her work out her anger is really the moment that led to the sacrifice at the end.”

He convinced me.

I also found it interesting that he had some say in the shocking end of the season. “The big reveal was actually something we worked on together. This was one of the rare times we sort of built the idea together, and it was something that I was all for. To be the culmination of Peter’s story, it had to be that big. You couldn’t just half-ass it, all ride off into the sunset…it needed to be big and the most noble sacrifice you can make is to die for someone you love. For Peter, who had gone from being this completely selfish person, it just made sense to me that at the end of this path he would be the exact opposite. So if anyone’s pissed that Peter doesn’t exist it’s my own damn fault.”

Everything he said made so much sense, and I can’t wait to get back on the ride this fall and let the writers and actors take me where they will. I trust their vision, their talent, and I’m on this train for the long ride.

Fringe returns to Fox on Fridays this September.

Images courtesy of Trisha Leigh for Poptimal.com

Comic Con 2011: Being Human Only Gets Harder

Syfy is going to give us another season of it’s interpretation of Being Human, which found success previously on the BBC. The first season of the U.S. version, written by Anna Fricke and Jeremy Carver. The two of them are an adorable married couple who just had twins, and their passion for the series comes through whenever they speak about their work.

For Anna, her favorite part of Season 1 was “how powerful Sally gets at the end of Season 1, how she finds out how much she’s capable of.” Jeremy’s just “loves the fact that we didn’t get divorced,” which got a good laugh from the cast and crowd alike.

For his part, Sam Huntington felt “very proud of Josh’s journey in Season 1, he made a tremendous amount of growth. It’s exciting to me because we had this big seven month break and I’ve been looking forward to picking up where we left off…he’s stronger now and more in tune with what he is and he’s accepted himself a bit.”

For Meaghan Rath, who plays Sally, she’s happy her character has “learned more about herself in her death than in her life, finding out what she’s made of and figuring out her powers…it’s going to be brilliant to see where it goes.”

For the beautiful Sam Witwer, Aiden is all about his “struggling with this whole going clean thing…before he can really pursue this being human thing, Bishop shows up. You can’t hang out with your drug buddies when you’re trying to kick drugs, so he’s been trying to stay away from his vampire buddies but at the ending of Season 1 into Season 2 he realizes that’s not really an option any more.”

If you’ve watched any episodes of the show, you know the cast clearly has lovely chemistry. They spent the panel joking and laughing, largely at Meaghan’s expense as they treated her like a much loved little sister. She and Sam Witwer spoke to one another in Mario Kart voices, which drove Sam H. up a wall until everyone cracked up. Sam Huntington said it was “love at first sight for all of us…getting to go to work every day with people you genuinely love, with the exception of Meaghan of course, is the coolest experience in the world.”

Meaghan said during her interview that she doesn’t mind, and shared a story. “I finished a scene the other day and walked off, and both guys said at the same time ‘that was terrible. You’re ruining the show’ but I love it. I love working with them.”

When it came to the press room, Anna and Jeremy revealed they hadn’t seen the second season of the BBC version, admitting “We haven’t watched the second season on purpose. We love the show and there’s obviously going to be crossovers, but we’re not purposely taking anything from them. We wanted to go our own road.”

What can they tell us about the new season? Well, for one thing “we’ve got a whole new world of vampires, a whole new world of werewolves, and a whole new world Sally is exploring…the characters were put through the ringer last year, this year they’ll be confronting this thing that makes them monsters in a far scarier way. Some may embrace it as a necessary level, but on a human level we’re very excited for the emotional journey the characters will be taking.”

Also, I asked if we could continue to learn more about the characters past lives, about the things that shaped them into these people and beings. Anna replied “Backstory plays an enormous role in shaping this season. Every name you’ve heard, every relationship that’s changed these people, everyone is fair game to show up this season. They’ll constantly be facing people from the past, having to account for who they are now. We love the flashbacks.”

Interestingly, it’s all about choices. “What they’re trying to build with these roommates and their new lives is constantly challenged by everyone in their lives.”

Meaghan Rath talked about the stress of added pressure, now that the show is doing well. “To be honest, we didn’t really think about the pressure in the first season, if we were thinking about living up to this great series I think it would have been to the show’s detriment. It’s going to be something entirely new now.”

To my great pleasure, she revealed that “the whole Danny thing is finished, in fact I hope it is, I feel like we closed the book on that chapter. She got the closures she needed, now it’s about where she’s going to go from here.” Meaghan also hopes there’ll be more backstory, that “we get to see what Sally’s life was like before she died…see her with her family or friends, that could be really interesting.”

“What’s the most rewarding (according to Meaghan) is to know we’ve converted some fans from the British show and it speaks volumes for how great our show is, and how different.

Being Human returns to Syfy early in 2012.

Comic-Con 2011: Supernatural Pressroom – Season 7, Crowley, Cas and More

While sadly we didn’t get a chance to talk to all of the Supernatural team at Comic-Con this year, we got some great insight into where they are at with season seven. Showrunner Sera Gamble confirms that the demon king will be returning in season seven and assures us that Cas’s mysterious plans for Crowley are going to be revealed. Mark Sheppard, who plays Crowley, was incredibly surprised when the writers at my table informed him of this because he apparently had no idea! Sheppard also mentioned that he would like his own spinoff show called Oh Crowley and hopefully the powers that be get that memo.

As far as season seven goes, everyone was pretty tight lipped and did not want to give away too much, as they want to keep it a surprise for the fans. Gamble was able to tell us that they are returning to Supernatural’s roots, as mentioned in other interviews. She goes on to say that they are incredibly influenced by western tropes and that they’ve always viewed Sam and Dean as outlaw cowboys. This upcoming season they’re approaching the two main characters a la Butch and The Sundance Kid. Executive producer Ben Edlund adds that with the huge storylines that they’ve pursued over the years, they’ll be going for a B-movie feel this season because at this point it’s just too funny not to.

Right now they are still working on episode two of season seven. Gamble says that Cas will be back for the first few episodes and we’ll get to see what happens after last season’s explosive ending. Misha Collins was also quite secretive about how Cas’s character develops, but he did reveal that our favorite trenchcoat-wearing angel will be going the direction we first expect him to go early on and then it’s going to go somewhere else completely unexpected. But on Supernatural that’s pretty much the norm. Collins also adds that Cas isn’t looking for the heavenly father anymore and is satisfied that, “God has left the building.”

We can also expect to meet new hunters as well as Alona Tal returning as Jo. It might be as a ghost Jo since Gamble did mention that we’d be seeing them in season seven and I for one wouldn’t mind that at all. Colin Ford, who played young Sam Winchester, is also confirmed to be returning.

Gamble also mentioned that we’ll be learning new things about our favorite surrogate father Bobby Singer. Jim Beaver, who plays the character, was at the press room but sadly didn’t have time to chat with us.

Not to worry because we did have a chance to get some info from one Jared Padalecki. He explains that season seven Sam will be mellower and be more accepting of the life he has as a hunter. This has been something Sam’s struggled with all his life and it will certainly be interesting to see this version of him. Padalecki also spoke about how difficult it was playing Sam this past season. “So I was doing soulless Sam, post hell Sam and then doing season 1 and 2 Sam. And I was like where am I?  So it took on kind of a mind f-. It definitely took a lot of patience and hard work. And I love it,” he said.

Interestingly, Padalecki expressed how he felt that his own experiences have paralleled his character’s life. He began the show at twenty-two and just recently turned twenty-nine. During a time when Padalecki felt that he had to do everything to further his career, Sam was going through something similar. Now that he was a lot more calm and happy about being completely focused on the show, his character appears to have mellowed out as well. Padalecki definitely feels that he has ebbed and flowed with the younger Winchester.

When asked what other aspects of Sam’s life that we haven’t seen yet that he’d like to see explored, the actor answered by saying that awhile back he would have liked to see those few years that Sam was away from his family explored. But now he’s really more focused on the present and not worrying about the future. In the same way, Supernatural is also not looking back at the past in season seven but exploring what’s going on right now in the aftermath of everything that’s happened to the Winchesters, Bobby, and Cas.

Supernatural returns Friday, September 23 at 9/8c to The CW.

For more Comic-Con coverage, click here.
Images courtesy of Bilal Mian and Poptimal.com.

Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester) Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester)	Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester) Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester)	Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester) Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester)
Jared Padalecki (Sam Winchester) Jared Padalecki (Sam Winchester)

« Previous Page — Next Page »