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The Cosby Show: Bookworm (1988)
Cliff causes a rollercoaster of reactions at the book club
Cliff accepts Clair's invitation to discuss the book her book club has been reading. As the date draws near, Clair is increasingly concerned that Cliff has not read the book. Meanwhile, some of the kids are over at Elvin and Sandra's apartment for dinner and an evening of fun. Neither the dinner or the entertainment come easily at their far from luxurious apartment. The action soon returns to the book club meeting where requests for Cliff's thoughts on the book cause fear of embarrassment in Clair until she realizes Cliff actually read the book and understood it very well. Despite his unexpected literary chops, Cliff soon talks himself into an awkward place among the book club crew.
I like that this episode has a fully developed A and B story. The book club is all about Cliff and Clair (and a bunch of one off guest stars that fill out the book club) and the B story gives the kids a memorable evening that fits into the ongoing Sandra and Elvin housing story arc. The timing of the entire book club set scenes in particular are spot on.
The Cosby Show: That's Not What I Said (1987)
One of the best adult focused Cosby Show episodes
This episode almost entirely revolves around a conflict between Cliff and Claire. Cliff brings Theo home from the police station where he ended up after riding in a car with a friend who, like Theo, only had a learner's permit.
Cliff and Clair then fall into an amusing argument in the kitchen that basically happens because neither of them is listening to the other. The disagreement them moves into the living room and finally the bedroom where, despite a marital pledge, they go to bed angry with each other.
The next scene shows Clair at work negotiating a settlement with a member of opposing counsel on a case. Cliff calls and she reluctantly takes his call during which he starts the reconciliation process but Clair can only respond with terse lawyer like responses. This scene is incredibly charming and one of a handful of episodes where Claire gets to speak Spanish.
The end of the episode is back at home where the argument is put aside and they realize they were really upset with Theo not each other.
I think this is one of the most relatable and romantic episodes about adult relationships that has aged very well.
Last Man Standing (2011)
Season 8 seems like a return to form
Like many people I thought the multiple changes in cast for Season 7 were jarring. I agree that the new Mandy lacks depth but i'll give the actress the benefit of the doubt that her character is held back by writing not acting skills. Unlike a lot of people I actually think foreign exchange student Jen is funny.
This season I'm finding more of the episodes to be at least enjoyable, sometimes touching or even moving, something I didn't feel during season 7. I just watched 'Keep the Change' and that episode, to me, holds its own against any other LMS. I also like the continuing plot line of Kyle's marriage and contemplation about becoming a pastor or priest.
MasterChef (2010)
Season 10 shows some maturity that is appreciated
I love MasterChef for the entertainment but there have been too many seasons of the same shtick. Things such as a judge taking one bite of something then saying Oh dear in a worrisome tone then whoosh out to commercial. Only to come back from commercial (30 seconds of review) and then say it's great. That might have been entertaining once a season but for a while they did it once an episode or more.
Season 10 has been mostly free of that tiresome cliche. Also I feel like the judges criticisms have been more nuanced and not as artificially polarized as before. Overall the MasterChef franchise is aiming for a different goal than Top Chef. Its more like Worst Cooks in America. Entertainment first, food second. Still, there is plenty to see and a little to learn watching the MasterChef seasons progress. If you want more focus on fine dining and Cheffiness, Top Chef is probably worth checking out. We love both, especially watching with no commercials streaming. I think my opinion of both shows would be lower if each episode really took an hour to watch.
BearCity 2: The Proposal (2012)
Raises the standard for gay movies
This second movie in the BearCity trilogy is a very good film. In my opinion it is a good movie overall not just good for a gay film.
The plot picks up nicely from where the first movie ends. There are only a few minutes spent in NYC setting up the plot and then they are off to Provincetown. Where the first movie seemed to go out of its way to beat you over the head with the setting (here is a subway, here is a collage of NYC landmarks, etc) with Provincetown I felt like the setting was super obvious but also very naturally presented. It really is an over the top place during festivals. The dialog and the cadence of the dialog are much improved over the first Bear City.
One of my favorite character pairings in BC2 is the will they or won't they between Tyler and Big Dan. The man who plays Big Dan apparently doesn't have any other acting credits which makes his performance really surprising. Roger and Nate seem totally well cast as ex's too.
I'm a huge fan of Bear City 2 and it has held up through about 4 viewings for me and still has laughs, cringes and emotional impact each time.
Colonial House (2004)
Time travel isn't always pretty
I am a huge Colonial House fan. I watch it about once a year and it never fails to move me and make me appreciate how much life has changed in 400 years.
So many of the reviews have been very harsh about the cast members failure to completely transform into eager colonists. The living conditions and drudgery that these people endured for FOUR months was astounding. I think people are so used to watching commercial television reality shows that they really fail to appreciate the magnitude of difference between this experiment and a show like Survivor. The first season of survivor took 37 days to film, Colonial house was 120! For 120 days the cast went without access to running water, showers, toilet paper, most foods, fresh produce other than blueberries, mirrors, vehicles, telecommunications, electricity, mirrors, shampoo and hundreds of other everyday items. They ate off of insect covered dishes, consumed rancid bacon and bacteria covered salted fish and mountains of dried peas. When they boarded the boat at the start of the series they didn't know if they would be a servant, governor, a freeman etc. Another important difference between other reality shows in Colonial House is that the cast of Colonial House wasn't competing for 100K dollars. From my point of view there was very little joy to be had and I think the cast made a huge effort and is fascinating to watch and get to know.
The other common criticism of the show is how indifferent the governor and council were towards colonial era laws. The show clearly documented the struggles they experienced in enforcing those laws. Half of the labor force was staked out in isolation at one point for various infractions. It was deemed too disabling to continue so some compromises were made. There were some people on the show who were more willing to commit than others.
If you want to see a bunch of people instantly transform into happily industrious automaton pilgrims for four months, this show will disappoint. If you want to take a really good look at how our physical and social worlds have transformed in 400 yeas, Colonial House is time well spent.