Conan O'Brien returns to the small screen on November 8 and I can't wait. I love a good underdog story.
TBS has welcomed Conan with open arms and if the promos are any indication, we are in for quirky greatness.
Conan's sense of humor is not for everyone (my dad doesn't find him funny and despises his red pompadour, which he tells me with conviction whenever the subject comes up). It obviously wasn't NBC's cup of tea when it came to The Tonight Show.
Conan was witty and unique on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, which followed The Tonight Show for 16 years. His humor definitely appealed to my Gen X sensibilities. I watched the show faithfully for many years. I even attended the taping -- granted the rehearsal taping -- of the show's fifth anniversary. Yet, after six or seven years I turned to other shows (mostly sitcom reruns). Nothing against Conan, but I was disappointed by the departure of Andy Richter. When I did tune in, I was never disappointed. Tears welled in my eyes during his Conan's last show.
I watched The Tonight Show for awhile, but again I tuned out after awhile. I think it had to do with his having to change his act a bit for the earlier time slot. I did, however, think he was right in stepping down because NBC wouldn't let be true to The Tonight Show the right way (staying at the 11:35 p.m. time slot, not because of his brand of humor. While touted as not being an appropriate way to resign, I thought it was true to Conan's style.
Sure, Conan has been playing the publicity game, but I plan on sticking with the new show anyway. And I wish I could be a research intern there, but unfortunately I live in New York and the show is now in California. What luck!
P.S. - My dad, who hates Conan, once again told me how much he can't stand CoCo's pompadour.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Saturday, October 2, 2010
TV office translations
I'm working on a paper for a management course for library and information school. One of our options is to analyze a movie or television show where there is an organizational situation. Yes!
My first thought was, of course, to pick "The Office." Yet, I know that either the majority of the class will make the same choice or the instructor has read too many papers discussing Michael Scott's incompetencies as a manager. I love the American version of "The Office." I have no problems with the original, British version. I just prefer a workspace with Michael, Jim, Pam, Dwight, Andy, et al.
I decided to resign and pick another office to analyze: the basement-level department on BBC's "The IT Crowd." The show follows the computer geeks -- Roy (played by Chris O'Dowd) and Moss (played by Richard Ayoade) -- at a large corporation, whose manager -- Jen (played by Katherine Parkinson) is oblivious to the inner workings of a computer. She proclaims herself the relationship manager in charge of improving the department's (i.e., Roy and Moss's) reputation(s). The show, which has run from 2006 to the present, is hilarious. It also shares a common thread with "The Office." In 2007, an American version was made for NBC. Well, the unaired American version of "The IT Crowd" version sucked.
I've known about this version for a while because it stars Joel McHale from "Community" and "The Soup," who I adore. But tonight I finally found the only episode that was made and man, what a disappointment. I can't complain about the American pilot being almost exactly like the British pilot, because that was the case with "The Office." Something just didn't work for me. And a lot of it had to do with Joel's performance. Maybe I'm too attached to him as Jeff Winger at Greendale Community College or as the caustic critic of reality TV, but I didn't buy him as Roy. I felt sorry for him. The rest of the cast, which included Richard Ayoade from the original (a highlight), didn't do much for me either. It was flat and boring (and the British version made me laugh ... a lot). I can't imagine what would have happened if the introduced the Americanized version of my favorite character, the former go-to guy of the company's CEO, now goth Richmond (played by Noel Fielding of The Mighty Boosh).
Oh well, cross-overs can't always work! I should probably get back to my paper.
Here are a few videos, so you can see for yourself.
British version:
American version:
Addendum: I just read that another American version of "The IT Crowd" is in the works. I stand behind my veto. At least Joel McHale is unavailable for this version.
My first thought was, of course, to pick "The Office." Yet, I know that either the majority of the class will make the same choice or the instructor has read too many papers discussing Michael Scott's incompetencies as a manager. I love the American version of "The Office." I have no problems with the original, British version. I just prefer a workspace with Michael, Jim, Pam, Dwight, Andy, et al.
I decided to resign and pick another office to analyze: the basement-level department on BBC's "The IT Crowd." The show follows the computer geeks -- Roy (played by Chris O'Dowd) and Moss (played by Richard Ayoade) -- at a large corporation, whose manager -- Jen (played by Katherine Parkinson) is oblivious to the inner workings of a computer. She proclaims herself the relationship manager in charge of improving the department's (i.e., Roy and Moss's) reputation(s). The show, which has run from 2006 to the present, is hilarious. It also shares a common thread with "The Office." In 2007, an American version was made for NBC. Well, the unaired American version of "The IT Crowd" version sucked.
I've known about this version for a while because it stars Joel McHale from "Community" and "The Soup," who I adore. But tonight I finally found the only episode that was made and man, what a disappointment. I can't complain about the American pilot being almost exactly like the British pilot, because that was the case with "The Office." Something just didn't work for me. And a lot of it had to do with Joel's performance. Maybe I'm too attached to him as Jeff Winger at Greendale Community College or as the caustic critic of reality TV, but I didn't buy him as Roy. I felt sorry for him. The rest of the cast, which included Richard Ayoade from the original (a highlight), didn't do much for me either. It was flat and boring (and the British version made me laugh ... a lot). I can't imagine what would have happened if the introduced the Americanized version of my favorite character, the former go-to guy of the company's CEO, now goth Richmond (played by Noel Fielding of The Mighty Boosh).
Oh well, cross-overs can't always work! I should probably get back to my paper.
Here are a few videos, so you can see for yourself.
British version:
American version:
Addendum: I just read that another American version of "The IT Crowd" is in the works. I stand behind my veto. At least Joel McHale is unavailable for this version.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)