3rd Rock from the Sun

3rd rock from the sun is an old sitcom about 4 aliens on earth trying to "fit in". They were sent here to get information about the humans. I used to watch it here and there when I was a kid, but one night after not knowing what to watch, I decided to give it another try. After that, it totally gave me a different impression than I previously had. 



This comedy is actually very clever and you can learn a lot about humans. It can be very helpful if you are aliens walking among us. However, if you are not, there is a lot of cool and interesting things you can also learn. One of the first things that comes to mind is emotions. They are figuring out emotions for the first time and it is so clever. It is just genius how the writers give light to certain things humans do that we sometimes overlook. 




It just cracks me up to see these characters be clueless about things that seem so simple to us. I remember one episode, the characters come rushing into their home thinking it was the apocalypse or something because everyone was buying food and freaking out. 

HOWEVER, it was just thanksgiving. Once they figured out what thanksgiving was, they tried their best to have a "normal" thanksgiving dinner. And by normal, I mean completely NOT NORMAL. this show is very clever with what they are trying to say, or at least what I think they are trying to say. It makes you appreciate the human race, and be thankful for "human things.













The characters are so innocent and you can't help but love every single one of them. They are all so unique and different and it just give the show loose rains to work with. What I mean by this is that, they do say some offensive things about race, gender inequalities etc. But then you really can't get mad at them because they don't know any better. On the other hand, it also teaches good lessons. In one of the episodes Dick, the commander, was so confused about race. He has a secretary who is african American woman. One day when him, the secretary and one of his co-workers were talking about race and what they were, he was so confused why people are different races and he said that he didm't know the difference between the black and white woman. "All you people look the same" He said. He was meaning that all humans look very similar to him and he didm;t pick up on the difference in skin color. I think that scene is a very important scene. As much as this show makes fun of a lot of stereotypes, it also makes you realize that people really are all the same, and It shouldn't matter what race you are. We are all just humans.

'episodes' is my new favorite show!!!

I recently finished watching the first two seasons of Episodes.  This series stars two British actors Tamsin Greig & Stephen Mangan.  This series also stars Matt LeBlanc! This show is broadcast here in the US on Showtime.  In the United Kingdom this show is broadcast on BBC Two.  It is a British/American sitcom that I am really enjoying!

This Photo described what I thought going into the first episode of Episodes:

This show starts with a married couple Sean Lincoln [Stephen Mangan] & Beverly Lincoln [Tamsin Greig].  In the show they're writers and producers for this show in the United Kingdom called Lyman's Boys. Their show just won another British Academy Televsion Award.  At the award ceremony Merc Lapidus [John Pankow] talks to them about making an American version of Lyman's Boys. He tells them he will get them a house to stay in at while in LA and gives them deals they can't refuse. 

Merc is the head of what shows gets broadcast on a major network.  Merc later gets Matt LeBlanc [Matt LeBlanc] to join the team and star as a head master.  Matt LeBlanc is supposed to be playing himself in this series. 

Being a fan of Friends I love when Matt brings up things from Friends during the show!

Here is a perfect trailer of Episodes:  

My favorite interactions are the ones between Sean and Matt as well as anyone with Merc in it! Sean and Matt develop this bromance that was fun to watch.  Beverly and Matt were not friends at first and never have been in an episode I have seen.  

Merc is the biggest sweet talker ever. He literally tells people whatever they want to hear all the time. He cares more about making money than making a good show.  He is intense and his emotions change so fast, I laugh in almost every scene he is in!

I give this show a 8/10 and I will continue to watch the rest of Episodes soon. 

It's Cold in Ithaca, but "Hot in Cleveland"

Well, it is nearing that part of the semester where everything falls apart... luckily, I still manage to find time to relax a little bit to some fun, comedy TV. My latest hook has been on a show called "Hot in Cleveland," created by Suzanne Martin, that airs on TV Land. This wonderful comedy is about four older women, originally from L.A., who try to find a new life in Cleveland. Between midlife crisis and the men that fall in and out of their lives, these woman keep you constantly laughing. The four main actresses are Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, and (drum roll) Betty White!

All four women are fantastic actresses. I'm still astonished at how hard and how much Betty White works, but I'm so thankful because she is so talented! This show is really helping me keep a smile during this hard time of finals. The most interesting aspect of this show though, is that it is filmed in front of a live studio audience. In some of my acting classes, the difference in acting between shows that are just filmed for TV and those that are filmed in front of a live audience may seem subtle but is actually very different. When I first started watching this show, I was slightly thrown off by the theatrical hint in the acting. Then I noticed in the introduction that they mentioned that it was filmed in front of a audience. After that, it all made sense. It is almost like a different "dialect" of acting. It has to be more theatrical based on the fact that there is a live audience. I think shows like this would be fun to do; a combination of both a theatrical and film styles. Who would have known that acting and filming could be so diverse?!

~Amber Capogrossi