Pilot Season

While sports fans have their fantasy leagues, TV buffs are placing bets on which pilots will actually make it through a season. In a mix of comical book adaptations, spinoffs, and a few original programs, the Network's have chosen who will stay, who will get a chance to premiere more episodes, and who is already kicked to the curb. This year adds in more competition with Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon creating their own scripted programming. Out of ABC's 14 comedies that were pitched, four were chosen to continue. Surprisingly, not on the list of picked up pilots was Chevy Chases' comedy (called Chevy) about grandparents who suddenly have to raise their grandkids alone. In addition, ABC saved 7 of 12 pilots in the drama category, with an equal mix of political and social plot conflicts. 

In the other neck of the woods, CBS only secured 2 out of 9 comedy projects, while 4 are still being reworked in order to see another day. CBS had 9 drama as well, and gave 5 of them a series order. FOX only had 8 comedies to show, giving half of them a chance to premiere their seasons. And with only 7 dramas, FOX decided to order seasons for 5 of them, and have yet to cancel the other two.  Meanwhile, NBC came out hot with 14 comedies, 6 have ordered more episodes and 5 are stilling fighting to stay alive. With 10 dramas, NBC has decided to continue 6 of them, leaving two on the bubble. 

Last but not least, the CW produced 5 drama pilots, and only 2 made the cut. 

If you're looking for your next new favorite show, some to look out for include Dr. Ken (ABC comedy with Ken Jeong), Angel From Hell (CBS comedy with Jane Lynch), Minority Report (FOX drama), and The Player (NBC drama). 

Click here if you want your complete guide to the 2015 pilot season.

Weird Loners on FOX

Weird Loners is a new series that premiered at the very end of this past March on FOX. It was created by Michael J. Weithorn and is a single-camera comedy about four people who are afraid of relationships and form an unlikely friendship in their Queens home.

In the series there are four main characters, including Caryn (Becki Newton) a hygienist who was engaged but breaks it off after a brief romantic encounter with Slosh. There's also Eric (Nate Torrence), a goofy toll collector whose father unexpectedly passes away his estranged cousin Slosh offers to move in to "look after him" (which is completely untrue) Slosh (Zachary Knighton) has actually just lost his job because he is such a womanizer and he then lost his apartment. And then there's Zara (Meera Rohit Kumbhani) who becomes friends with Eric after buying one of her odd paintings. She has a lot of angst and gets fed up with the others fairly easily.

There are a number of interesting relationships on the show. Caryn and Slosh have a strange sort of rivalry going on, even though they are clearly attracted to one another. It definitely doesn't help that Slosh is such a womanizer and Caryn becomes entranced very easily. Flirting with Slosh once made her break off her engagement for crying out loud! Eric and Zara also have an interesting relationship because they are both so odd. I'm interested to see how these relationships develop throughout the season, especially since the whole premise of the show is around people who are bad at maintaining relationships.

The show's production value is definitely high, and the production design is actually really nice. The character's rooms fit their personalities well and the rest of the set decoration is very detailed. A lot of thought was definitely put into each frame and I really admire that. The costumes are also very well done and fit the characters' moods, which is very important

I personally am not a huge fan of the show. I think the characters are very outlandish and I have a hard time believing them. The jokes on the show are a bit childish and that contributes to my dislike of it. I do think the design is good, but the show just doesn't work with me because the characters are so annoying.

Empire has Taken over the Television

So over the break besides the long periods of sleeping and not thinking of homework or anything of that manner.  My roomie convinced me to watch this show:

May I just say a round of applause to the writers, producers, directors and every other aspect of this show.  This show has reached a potential that I have never seen in any other show. It has the music, the plot twists and most important the talent to pull off such an amazing production. So worth while!

Empire was picked up on FOX in May. It is a musical drama television series, that centers around hip-hop music and an entertainment company---EMPIRE ENTERTAINMENT. The show was created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong and stars Terrance Howard and Taraji P. Henson.

Rapping up this seasons finale this Wednesday. With an astounding amount of flips and turns, punches and blows. Leading someone to do some time...... 

According to Vulture.com---

**With the season finale it probably topped those number all together**

This is an amazing mind blowing show that continues to accomplish it's goal in pleasing their audience every week. I look forward to season 2 of EMPIRE ! 

Like Lucious Lyon said "This isn't over!

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

After tearfully finishing the series finale of Parks and Recreation, I needed to immediately watch another show to pick me up out of the post-finale sadness. I turned to Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a sitcom co-created by Daniel Goor and Michael Shur (Shur co-produced Parks and Rec in addition to The Office). So I figured this would be a good choice. As far as pilots go, it definitely caught my interest.

The sitcom follows smart but immature NYPD Detective Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) and his fellow detectives plus conflict with the new commanding officer Ray Holt (Andre Braugher). The pilot opens with a very close up & melodramatic monologue from Peralta. Even though the opening is meant to be comical on Peralta's part, it still drew me in because there was dramatic music, a close-up shot to show intense emotion, and even some slow-motion movement. It was a quote from another movie, but nonetheless it made me want to keep watching. Peralta's monologue is cut off by his partner Detective Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero) trying to solve the crime, and changes to a single-camera shooting method with many fast zooms. (very similar to The Office and Parks and Recreation styles). Throughout the episode, Peralta finds that all of his work methods are under scrutiny by Holt, including, but not limited to, his lack of cooperation to wear a tie, slightly offensive comments, and method of capturing criminals.

The secondary characters (the other detectives) are introduced by the Sergeant; there is b-roll of the character doing something ridiculous while he narrates the basic characteristics of their character. They include Detective Rosa Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz), Detective Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), and Gina Linetti (Chelsea Peretti). They are all very funny, have great chemistry with the main characters, and contribute a lot to the story.

The seeds of other funny storylines have also been planted, such as the rivalry between Peralta and Santiago. They have a bet for who can make more arrests; if she makes more arrests then he has to give her his nice car, and if he makes more arrests then she must go on a date with him. There is clearly a lot of sexual tension between them, so I suspect some sort of relationship will develop. It was also revealed later in the episode that the new captain is gay, so future episodes will probably lean on that fact heavily. 

I really enjoyed the pilot, and will most likely watch more episodes in the near future. (Especially since Andy Samberg is one of my favorite comedy actors).

Brooklyn Nine-Nine has been a hit so far and has recieved very positive reviews and awards! At the 2014 Golden Globes it won for Best Television Series (Comedy) and for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series (Andy Samberg). It has also just been renewed for a third season! 

You can catch episodes of the series on Hulu.

'The Last Man on Earth' Pilot

I found this show under New Series on Hulu.  I didn't hear or see any promotion for this show, but since it's a show on a major network I thought it would be worth a try. It starts out in the near future "Novemberish 2021" showing a man, Phil Miller [Will Forte] traveling the US in an RV, crossing out states on his map.  He has been searching for another living human for what seems to be over a year. It is mentioned that he is the last man on earth after a fatal virus hit a few years ago.
        Here is a promo for the show:

My favorite part of this episode is when Phil is watching the movie Cast Away starring Tom Hanks.  He is watching the scene when Hanks' character draws a face on a ball and starts talking to it as a friend; Phil says he will never become that crazy.

Photo from 'Cast Away'

 It then cuts to 6 months into the future and he has multiple friends who are different balls he drew faces on. I thought it was clever but also could actually happen to someone that has been living in a city with no people around for multiple years.
Eventually Phil starts getting depressed and keeps asking to see a woman one last time.  He hits a breaking point and decides he would rather kill himself than be alone any longer.  Right before he tries to kill himself he sees smoke in the distance and tracks down where it is coming from.  To his surprise there is a women there! She is the last women on earth Carol [Kristen Schaal]. Phil soon realizes that he might regret what he wished for after talking to Carol.

Even though there is another character in this series, I feel like the premise doesn't seem like it would last for multiple seasons. Since there are only 2 characters left on earth, I am not sure how interesting it will be to only watch 2 characters throughout a whole series. I can't see this showing making another season but I will continue to watch this show as it airs.

 I rate the Pilot 6/10, this episode was funny and I enjoyed it, but I can't imagine where else this show can go.  I feel like they used all their best jokes for the pilot.

The Arrested Development Pilot: One of the best pilots EVER

Arrested Development aired it's pilot on FOX on November 2nd, 2003. Since then, throughout its four seasons, the show has received 6 Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and recognition for being one of the funniest shows aired on television.

In my personal opinion, the pilot of this show is one of the strongest pilots for a television series I have ever seen. Typically, pilots are ruled out to not be considered the best, but this show breaks that rule. In this episode, you are introduced to every important character in the series. The main character, Michael Bluth, played by Jason Bateman, narrates the episode and gives a detailed description of his highly dysfunctional family members. The fast paced editing and highly saturated coloring make the episode even more intriguing to watch. Lower thirds are used as well as many graphics to point to certain things and create different vectors.

Another aspect that I found interesting is that when they go from one setting to another, they don't just cut it, they create two different boxes on the screen and then bring the next scene into full. I have never seen that done on a TV sitcom before. The dialogue that is used is absolutely hysterical and the conflicts that arrive are so coincidental and unrealistic that they make you laugh out loud. The killer cast of Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, Portia de Rossi, Will Arnett, and many more add hilarious antics with each of their lines. Overall, this pilot was incredible and really set a high standard for situational comedies.

THE ARE YOU HUNGRY FOR BOBS BURGER, BURGER?

All honesty I think I might have fallen for a different late night cartoon sitcom. Its not Simpsons, its not American Dad and lastly I have fallen out of love for Family Guy. I know I know, the shows that you have been loyal to for almost your whole teenage life. Well, now all of thats changed and Bob's Burgers is where its at!

Bob's Burgers is an animated sitcom that was created by Loren Bouchard. The show is based on a family known as the Belchers--- we have Bob and Linda (the parents) , and their children Tina, Gene, and Louise. The family runs a hamburger shop that is named "Bob's Burgers" (what a coincidence)!

This show is not afraid to go all out it. There are so many moments in each show that are just so memorable to the audience. Bob's Burgers show the more realistic situations but all and all it brings laughter to people with every episode.

In every aspect each character is different and has there own set style. For example my two favorite character are Tina and Louise. Why?  "Duhhhhhhh"... Is Tina's most famous line. Tina is not afraid to be herself in many ways she is weird but she is weird and cooky in her own way. She is never afraid to tell lit like it is. Not matter how it sounds after she says it. If you ever need a confidence booster--- just look inside and find your inner Tina! She knows the way.

TINA IS GREAT! SHE ADDS JUST A LITTLE MORE LIFE TO THE SHOW!

Louise is amazing. She gets me with every episode. She is mostly t

he brighter of the three Belcher children. She is funny, evil, manipulative and we rarely ever see her nice side. EXCEPT when someone takes of her hat. Even when they do she continuously plans her revenge for every mission.

In every way BOB'S BURGERS really nails the idea of family and its importance. Maybe, this is why I feel more connected to this show then many of the other animated sitcoms I watch on FOX. This show is a keeper!

Dr. Gregory House: a morphing character

Starting in December, I began the journey of watching the complete series of House M.D. At first, the show was a little off-putting because Dr. Gregory House (played by Hugh Laurie) is SUCH an unlikeable character. The man is extremely sarcastic, manipulative, and is known as "the doctor who everyone hates". But since he's a genius diagnostician, Dean of Medicine Lisa Cuddy, (played by Lisa Edelstein) the head of the hospital (and a constant love interest) keeps him around.

House is a troubled man--he has a chronic pain problem (from a leg muscle injury), he pops Vicodin pills like they're candy, he has past issues with his father that still linger, and he believes that "everybody lies". He also neglects a huge role of being a doctor--actually interacting with the patients. He usually delegates doing the patient history, procedures, breaking into patients' houses (weird??!!) and general patient care to his "team" of 3-4 doctors.

House is the epitome of the benign violation theory---his jokes are insulting, but the benign aspect is that he is always in a position of power over those he insults, so there are no repercussions. Therefore the situation becomes "acceptable", so to speak. I emit a small chuckle for these jokes to combat some the uncomfortable feelings I get from the jokes made.

When I reflect on the nature of the show, I think "why on earth do I watch this?" The medical cases are often gross and the main character is a pill-popping jerk, but I stick with the show because the characters are so interesting. Even though (in early seasons) House is really unlikable, as a person he is very intriguing and the way his character is developed always makes the viewer hungry to know more.

I am now well into season seven (out of eight), and the has been a dramatic change of character from the first few seasons to this one. As previously mentioned, he doesn't interact with patients because he just doesn't like them. But an event in season six was the turning point for House--he finally went to rehab for his Vicodin addiction. After he left rehab (a whole two episodes!) he was still sarcastic, manipulative, and generally disliked; but now he's more considerate of others and actually interacts with the patients and cares about them.

I am interested to see how the writers end the series, and especially how they tie up the loose ends of Greg House's story.

Why Fantastic Mr. Fox is the Best Wes Anderson Movie...Ever

Wes Anderson is an enormously polarizing director. I know people who can't even sit through the first ten minutes of his films, and people who see them 10 times...in theaters. His work is quirky to say the least and his highly stylized films are products of complete creative control. Every single thing in the frame in a Wes Anderson film has been carefully thought out, color coordinated and placed with extreme care. This is perhaps what makes Fantastic Mr. Fox the best of his films, because he is able to control every single detail and movement through stop animation. It is the absolute peak of creative control. He doesn't even need to depend on actors to look the right way because he could physically create all the characters. If he wants a room full of golden hard cider, he doesn'tneed to create a life size one he can make one digitally or in miniature.

.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is also amazing because many of the things that may have come off as pretentious or too quirky or weird in a live action film, come across perfectly in animation. Also the characters themselves are allowed to be strange caricatures of themselves because they're animals. For example, Mr. Fox would be a totally obnoxious character if he were played by George Clooney in the flesh, not just voice acted by him. But instead, he is a funny and strange character whom we can rally around.

This film has also succeeded in making a mature animated film that kids also enjoy. Based on the classic Roald Dahl book, Anderson makes complex characters with flaws and journeys, something that is not often found in animation, especially not the maturity part. By having the animals voice acted by famous actors, Anderson was able to entertain adults and by making the movie a delightful and funny movie, kids are entertained as well. He really helped to heighten the opinion of animated films, and please a large group of people.

Stop animation is so perfectly suited to Wes Anderson's style that I don't know why he doesn't use the medium more often. Many fans do not even consider Fantastic Mr. Fox when they are ranking Wes Anderson's best films, but for me it belongs at the top of this list. I don't think his style will ever be better captured than through an eccentric band of woodland animals stealing squabs and hard cider.

Syndication at its finest

The Simpsons, one of the greatest shows of all time is at it again with its debut on FXX cable network. With a whopping 530 episodes, the Simpsons can be played for 52 weeks without repeating one show.  As a conglomerate trying to air a syndicated show, the Simpsons is definitely one worth looking into, but how much is it worth it? The financial terms with FXX were not disclosed yet it is estimated that anywhere from 800 million to 1 billion dollars was spent on its purchase. Not bad for a animated T.V. series don't you think? The show has never before screened on a cable network so it is bound to grow an even larger audience than it already has. Other media conglomerates like Time Warner Cable Adult Swim, and Viacom bid for the show but ultimately left empty handed. To have a syndicated show is a cash cow for everyone involved. The owners of the show make millions off the 200+ channels who purchase rights to air the show, the affiliates make money off advertisement money, companies make money off the advertisements selling products, and the viewers are happy they get to view a popular T.V. series. It's not always as perfect as it may seem though. Many times in hopes of reaching syndication many shows are dragged out with poor scripts just so they can reach that 100 episode mark. Many could argue that the newer Simpsons episodes are not as good as they use to be but that comes down to personal opinion. Overall FXX made a very large purchase and I hope it works out the way they planned. 

Bob's Burgers or The Simpsons?

Which do you prefer: classic Simpsons, or modern-day Bob's Burgers? In 2011, Fox premiered its newest animated family sitcom " Bob's Burgers". This show is based around a dysfunctional family of 5 that own, run, and live above a burger joint. Bob, the father of the family, is constantly going through the struggles of trying to provide for his family, remain on good terms with his nagging yet loving wife Linda, and somehow be a role model for his three children Tina, Louise, and Gene all while dealing with the daily conflicts of life.

Bob's Burgers has a tough reputation to beat when being compared to The Simpsons. Airing in 1989, The Simpsons has been the classic " All-American, dysfunctional family". As time went on, the writers of The Simpsons had to up their ratings. Complaints about the show losing its relatable plot lines and character development, have been brought up by fans for years. The show now has taboo and out of the ordinary episodes, but still manages to maintain some of its original spark.

Bob's Burgers has lost quite a number of viewers from the airing of season 1 to season 2, however season 3 has been bringing back many of the shows original viewers, and welcoming newcomers. 

Bobs Burgers is one of my personal favorites because it is so relatable. The plot lines are not all over the place and abnormal, they are everyday situations and sometimes with some extra spark.



http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2014/01/bobs-burgers-tops-the-simpsons

Why I Might Watch Almost Human

Good sci-fi shows are a rarity. In part, it’s because they cater to such a niche audience; the general population likes to stick to a blend of mostly drama/reality TV, and that usually does not include futuristic societies, robots, aliens, or any combination of the three. The first truly weird and successful sci-fi-esque show would have to be the Twilight Zone, created by Ithaca’s own Rod Serling. It was incredibly ahead of it’s time, and combined fantasy elements with current-day

issues to create a show that was a crazy and wonderful kind of social commentary. Few shows have really broken through the mold since then. The ones that have, however, have been mostly excellent.

In the mid 90s, the X-Files proved that it’s totally possible to have a successful procedural show about aliens, which is something people didn’t realize they were missing until the show debuted. A few other great sci-fi shows came during the mid 2000s, some recognized for their greatness (the adventure/drama/crazy shit-show that was Lost and the surprisingly critically acclaimed Fringe - thanks J.J. Abrams) and some that were not (you’ll always have Netflix, Firefly). Besides the love it or loathe it Battlestar Gallactica, no other shows immediately come to mind, which just goes to show that networks either don’t care for sci-fi shows anymore or that sci-fi shows, basically, just need to get better. 

Which is why I’m so intrigued by Almost Human. FOX has really been pushing this show for a while now, airing commercials for it almost constantly since before the World Series. It’s gotten to the point where I’m embarrassed to say that I’m interested in it; every time I see an ad, my roommates lampoon me for ever bringing it up. And yet, here I am, on Hulu, with my curser hovering over the ‘play’ button on the pilot of Almost Human. 

Part of me wants to give it a chance. For me, personally, it has a lot of similarities to Fringe when that first aired: it’s on FOX, it’s very much a science fiction show, and I know next to nothing about it, despite all the commercials. From what I gather, Karl Urban is a hard-ass cop living in a society that embraces robots. I think he gets hurt or something, and wakes up with a new robot partner, which he isn’t happy with. It’s like a buddy-cop movie, just instead of a person, one buddy is a robot. And they’re not buddies. So. 

The other part of me, though, doesn’t want to get hurt again. Knowing the life-spans of sci-fi shows, I know that the chances of it being good/getting picked up for multiple seasons is slim at best. That being said, the reviews have been mostly positive so far (even though only the pilot has aired and that has to be good) and people seem to be truly enjoying it. It’s also another show that J.J. Abrams has slapped his name on, so you have to expect a certain level of excellence from it. Well. It’s decided then. Despite whatever flak I might get from my roommates, I will sit myself down over Thanksgiving break and watch Almost Human. 

Maybe. 

Commissioner James Gordon series on Fox?

Between the three most recent Batman movies with Christian Bale and now this new Batman movie with Ben Affleck, there's been a lot of talk about Batman and it's clearly become a popular topic. But recently I came across an article talking about a new TV series about Commissioner James Gordon called Gotham. The series will be about James Gordon in the early days before he met Batman. It's very much playing with the Smallville idea they did with Superman but just applying it to Batman.... except Commissioner Gordon, not Batman. Fox finally landed the show from Warner Brothers for next fall after a bidding war and the DC vs Marvel battle continues. Bruno Heller, creator of the Mentalist, was also picked up as the dominant writer for the show, telling the origins of Gotham City and how it got to where it is. They are talks of playing around with a lot of old villains from the comic books and I can only imagine how they will play with Wayne Industries.

I think this is an incredible idea. In fact I think it's a better idea than the new Batman movie they're making. After the trilogy of amazing Batman movies Christopher Nolan did, I think it's still too soon to make anything that will even compete with those. The James Gordon spin off is a great way to leave that legacy untouched but also develop it more. James Gordon was a major player in the trilogy but not big enough where he could go untouched. It's also a nice bit of fresh air in the midst of the dozens of cookie cut out detective shows.  It combines the whole super villain aspect which is just so interesting to me. Plus there is such a huge amount of villains and characters to pull from all of the different Batman and DC universes so this show in my mind has a lot of potential. Next Fall with fox gives me hope for good TV again.

Sleepy Hollow

There's a reason Sleepy Hollow has already been picked up for a second season and if you have yet to watch it there's no better time than the present. Now, we've heard the story before but we've never head it quite like this.

The show repurposes the legendary tale of Sleepy Hollow, and gives us a whole new twist as it brings its iconic characters into present times.

Ichabod Crane returns to our households, as a soldier out of his time. One moment he's fighting in a war beside George Washington, and the next he's waking up in a cave by the city limits for the show's titular town. While stumbling around this "brave new world," he has to figure out what brought him back to life and what exactly they want from him.

Here's where it gets interesting. Meet, Lieutenant Abbie Mills:

She's the show's other lead character, and boy does she come out swinging. Not only do we see a woman of color gracing our screens and taking an empowering position, but we see her shake off the two-dimensionality of a power-woman figure in mainstream television. Sure, she doesn't take no underlying-misogyny or racism from Ichabod, but she's able to joke around and have a personality outside of his future-shocked distress. She's a character who's given her own backstory and whose characterization stands up to the status she's been given. She gets scared by the axe-weilding horseman, but she's an officer (a Lieutenant) who's just made it into Quantico and the show doesn't let us forget that. She can handle seeing her father-figure's headless body, and she can damn well call for backup while doing it.

She finds herself suddenly dealing with the supernatural, as she too works to discover just what forces are driving the events of Sleepy Hollow. Therefore, it's no coincidence that she finds a partner in one time-jumping Ichabod Crane.

Nicole Beharie and Tom Mison go toe-to-toe, as their characters start off on rocky ground: one who's deemed insane and the other who's just shaken a similar stigma away. Still, their mysterious pasts intertwine their fates and they take off as an unlikely, semi-unwilling, yet pleasingly unconventional crime-fighting duo.

All shows have suffered from pilot-itis, and while Sleepy Hollow is no exception it doesn't leave that sour aftertaste that other pilots so often abandon in their new-born wake. The writing is unique, especially with the dialogue of its characters. There's something realistic about the way the deputies converse, how Abbie speaks, and how Ichabod stutters around this futuristic period.

It's a show that could easily fall into the plot holes that so often riddle classic television tropes: a man out of his time, a woman with a secret past, a town full of the occult. These are things that we might often shake our heads at, or worse, turn the channel from. But the show never really toes that delicate boundary.

It gives us a story that draws us in. We want to know more about the "Horseman of the Apocalypse." We want to know what part George Washington had in all this. We want to know more about Ichabod's witchcraft-dabbling wife. We want to see how the Sleepy Hollow of our childhood has been modernized into this version of our adulthood.

It's creepy, it's foreboding, it's intriguing, and it delivers a swiftly-massing cult-classic.

A great thing about both the writing and the production of this show, is that it doesn't take itself too seriously at places where others might cop-out. It fully recognizes that a headless horseman galloping around in 2013 is quite frankly ridiculous, but it keeps us watching through the siren's call that lies within the mythology already blossoming in the series.

For every frightening moment we get equal parts comedic and amusing. They take good care to poke the "Ichabod doesn't understand the future" punchline just enough that we can both sympathize and relate to his character without it becoming over-played.

In all actuality, I was completely fine with how the graphics came out (for being a pilot). Not only do I think the beheadings looked more realistic than most hollywood movies, but even the Horseman's red-eyed stead didn't make me pause and shake my head. All in all, high-fives to everyone in post for setting the tone and bringing these ghoulish characters to life.

The executive producers (Kurtzman. Orci, Wiseman, and Kadin) have to be given a lot of credit for not only making a show with a female person of color, but for adding in both people of color and woman into the background. So far, they have yet to use these as a prop but rather as an extension of the world they've created. It's 2013 people, woman can be cops and people of color can be leaders.

If the plot doesn't sell you, I'd watch it for the creative cinematography of Morgenthau. While the set designers/wardrobe/makeup/etc. did a stupendous job with dressing up both the scenes and the characters, the camera-work really put in an extra emphasis to all that was seen within a shot.

It propels us upside down, put us on windows and mirrors, and even allowed us the honor of being beheaded by Death himself. It treated the viewer as another character, one who watches from all angles, and there was something within this technique that had me completely enthralled with the action of the show.

Yes, it has quite a ways to go but I'd really push for you not to give up on the first episode. As far as pilots go, Sleepy Hollow leaves a lot to favor. Go ahead and pick it apart if you must, just don't lose you head over it.

The Mindy Project

Mindy Kaling stars in her kind of new show The Mindy Project as the main female heroin Mindy Lahiri. The second season premiered on Tuesday night. I laughed out loud numerous times throughout the first season and this week’s premiere. Specifically, I remember a scene from the first episode of the series where Mindy is in the pool drunkenly talking to a Barbie doll and then another scene where she is riding a bike yelling she is Sandra Bullock.

Besides all of the comedic moments, the thing I love the most about the show is that there is not that much focus on Mindy’s weight. Our society has such crazy ideas about what women should look like and I feel as though every show at some point has a female character that has body self-esteem issues. However, there aren’t any sad disapprovals from Mindy’s character about wanting to be thinner, having an insane diet, or having an eating disorder. Yes society has a lot of body image issues so I guess facing the issue in some way on the show would be realistic but I like that they approach it as an “it just is what it is” attitude. I think that everyone should have this just love your body approach that The Mindy Project is portraying. 

The Mindy Project has a variety of weird and quirky characters starring Chris Messina, Ed Weeks, Ike Barinholtz, Zoe Jarman and more. They have a lot of chemistry and are very entertaining to watch as their stories unravel. Besides Mindy’s focus on finding the right guy we also see an intelligent, imperfect, motivated and strong woman who has a lot of other "important" things to focus on. 

Truthfully, I think the show is torn between a workplace comedy and a romantic comedy but it still does make me and many people I know laugh A LOT.