When Yahoo picked up Community, it seemed fitting that this weird little show would land in the most unlikely and random place. I hadn’t heard of Yahoo’s free video service, but I thought it was a smart marketing decision to pick up Community and boost Yahoo Screen’s numbers with one of sitcom television’s most outspoken and loyal fan bases.
Now the show’s 6th season (a milestone I honestly never thought the show would reach) is here. The first two episodes premiered today with new episodes made available each Tuesday. All of which are available on a free app from a site that gave me my first email address almost two decades ago. Continue reading →
Yesterday NBC released a trailer for Season 5 of Community
It’s no secret that Community has had its fair share of struggles and controversy in the past. It’s never had impressive ratings (or average ratings for that matter,) there have been issues with cast members (notably Chevy Chase,) it lost its showrunner and creator at the end of the third season, and all of these issues culminated in a disappointing season 4. In fact, disappointing doesn’t really describe it well enough. So one can’t really be blamed for looking forward to Season five of Community with more than a bit of apprehension. Continue reading →
Pilots are interesting beasts in the television world. They’re used to convince a studio to shell out more money for more episodes. In order to do that, a pilot needs to succeed on several more fronts of storytelling than any other single episode. A pilot needs to introduce the major characters of a series in an engaging, often standalone, story that will leave the audience clamoring for more.
Furthermore, a good pilot needs to rely on a strong cast to build a rapport in a short period of time. Writers working on pilots also have to gauge possible long-term onscreen relationships completely blind of actors’ chemistry. Because of these factors, I live by one steadfast television-viewing rule:
Never judge a show by its pilot.
But some series have such strong pilot episodes that you can and should judge them on the pilots. And so, here I have compiled a list of some of my favorite pilot episodes. They aren’t necessarily my favorite shows ever, and they aren’t exactly the best episodes of said shows. These episodes are just the most engaging series-starters that I’ve seen. They also introduce the characters and story arcs in a highly satisfying way.
You can click the episode titles in the list to buy them digitally on Amazon.
Rewatched this while working from home solely because I've been working on a Top 19 Stephen King Movie/TV Works list for an eventual Tower Junkies episode.It's currently at my number 19 spot on my list. I really don't know if it's because there's such a glut of sub-par/objectively terrible King adaptations out there or if Sometimes T […]
Last movie of 2020, specifically because I started the year with a rewatch of Her.This movie was terrible. Some of the vulgar humor worked for me. The "sex" scene with Jexi surprisingly made me laugh quite a bit. And it was refreshing to see Adam Devine in a likable role, even if everything in the movie is absurd and over the top. It probably would […]
Finally got around to watching this. What a delightful documentary covering a piece of our culture that has all but become extinct. The nostalgia trip that this doc provides is so wonderful.But the most satisfying and fascinating thing about The Last Blockbuster is how much it's about how this massive corporation that was once a dominant force in its in […]
Cheer or fear? Belsnickel is here! I judge your Netflix sequel…as impish!The first Christmas Chronicles was fun, cheesy, and overly sentimental. Basically, everything I want in a Christmas movie. Part Two becomes a bit too wrapped up in its lore and doing cutesy North Pole stuff, though. It loses sight of what made the first one so solid and doesn't giv […]
