TV Junkie: Oscar Redux - We Hope Someone Learned Something
They looked nice but not many people enjoyed what James Franco and Anne Hathaway did at last night's Oscars. If ABC's goal was to get younger viewers, they failed in that effort, with a 12% drop in the 18-49 demographic.
In an effort to look forward to the future and progress, we want to acknowledge that there will be excellent new episodes of "SouthLAnd," "Lights Out," "Raising Hope," "Modern Family," and "Justified" this week.
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Crapping on this year's Oscars is like shooting fish in a barrel, so let's load up with lots of ammo. We were happy to get 14 out of the 20 categories we picked in our Saturday Oscars post and we were even happier to make and consume 3 of the cocktails that we suggested in that post. 14 out of 20 beats Roger Ebert and all of those high-falutin' Chicago film critics who claim to do this for a living.
As predicted, Joel McHale's hosting of Saturday's Film Independent Spirit Awards was more fun, interesting, and shorter than the Oscars. We're not some Johnny-come-lately who craps on this year's Oscar host and then looks back at them with rose-tinted glasses, claiming they were great. We've been supportive of prior hosts Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin, Jon Stewart, Chris Rock, and particularly David Letterman, all of whom knew how to tell a joke and could keep the show moving along with the right amount of respect that "America's Royalty" wanted.
Were Anne Hathaway and James Franco the worst hosts that could ever have been picked? No. But they weren't a good choice for what the Oscars wanted: increased viewership from a younger demographic. Overall viewership numbers are projected to be lower than last year's by 9% and down 12% in the 18-49 category. ABC and the Academy, for weeks, published press releases about the incredible amount of time spent in rehearsals but it just didn't feel like those rehearsals happened, particularly where the hosts were concerned. There were a lot of tweets last night about James Franco being stoned - whatever he was, he wasn't with it and seemed to be phoning in the work. Hathaway, while bubbly and enthusiastic, was probably too bubbly and enthusiastic, and thus, lacked the gravity to deliver any feeling of respect, seriousness, or accomplishment to the nominees and winners. As for the words they were saying, the writers didn't give them much to work with, certainly a large portion of the blame for the host performances resides with them.
Beyond the beleaguered hosts, for whom we have sympathy, a lot of the presentation of the show just didn't work for television. It seems as if the show designer and director forgot about the millions of people watching the Oscars who weren't actually in the Kodak Theater. The hosts and presenters referred to items on the stage or video that was shown to the theater audience but never actually made it onto the TV screen. This kind of bad directing also shows a lack of rehearsal.
The list of items to complain about is long, but are any of these new? ABC's horrible horrible horrible red carpet crew who spent more time talking to each other than the talent; deceased performers, writers, and directors not included in the "In Memorium" segment, including a nominee at last night's awards; decisions being made to play off some recipients and not others, for example, Melissa Leo rambling on and on with an F-bomb to boot while Aaron Sorkin had to rush through his concise, informed, and astute acceptance statement; etc. When the camera cut to the director's trailer we were shocked to see actual humans inside it, instead of the pack of chimpanzees we expected.
The Oscars are an awards show and awards shows suck, we know. But what makes the Oscars so frustrating is that it is supposed to offer the best that Hollywood can provide and when it falls flat, if forces one to question the entire system. This year, in particular, after the Golden Globes where Ricky Gervais called out Hollywood for being thoroughly populated by pompous narcissists he was called "inappropriate and disrespectful" but how can one call a show as lame as last night's Oscars "appropriate and respectful" in the professional sense of those terms? Obviously the system needs to be shaken up but that's not going to happen with ABC locking in the Oscars through 2020. Next year we'll provide you with yet another list of libations for self-medication, we hope you'll join us.
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What kept us going last night was knowing that we had a new episode of "Shameless" to watch on Showtime and we were pleased to hear this afternoon that both "Shameless" and "Episodes" have been renewed for another season.
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Charlie Sheen: We watched this morning's TMC livestream of Charlie Sheen being interviewed in the backyard of his house. ABC must be very angry that their "exclusive" interview with Sheen, scheduled to air tomorrow night, has been preempted by both the "Today Show" and now TMZ. While we have engaged in some of the banter about this man, it's sadly obvious that things aren't going to end well for him as he is in complete denial about all of the problems facing him. Not only is he in denial, Sheen is outright combative and is issuing statements that could potentially have legal repercussions of their own. Those legal issues are secondary to the health risks he is posing for himself and potentially anyone around him, including his children. We probably won't write too much more about Sheen in this column as there are enough people writing about him already and we're not eager to add fuel to this fire.
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The TV Junkie Must-Watch Plan: "How I Met Your Mother," "The Chicago Code," "Fashion Police," "Conan" (Marisa Tomei, Harland Williams, Fitz & The Tantrums performs), Fallon (Topher Grace, Jim Gaffigan, Glasser performs)
8:00pm How I Met Your Mother CBS - Barney's growing feelings for Nora make him worry about his heart; Robyn dates a man who acts like a dog.
8:00pm Chuck NBC - Chuck encourages Vivian (Lauren Cohan) to get in touch with her inner villain for a mission; Morgan's search for a new roommate has unexpected results.
8:00pm House Fox - A patient has a severe rash after being exposed to caustic chemicals at work; House must choose between attending a charity event to support Cuddy and staying with his patient; Chase and Masters learn about relationships.
9:00pm The Cape NBC - Scales decides to make a controversial pact with Fleming and bring a dangerous villain (Grant Bowler) to the city; Fleming battles his alter ego.
9:00pm Top Gear BBC America - Buying second-hand convertibles; Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.
9:00pm Being Human Syfy - Aidan confronts Bishop; Josh attends a dinner at his parents'; Sally makes contact with Bridget.
9:00pm American Experience PBS/KOCE - The 1911 fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York's Greenwich Village resulted in legislation ensuring the most comprehensive workplace safety laws in the U.S.
9:00pm The Chicago Code Fox - When a bomber blows up a city building, additional targets and people are left in danger; a teenage armed robber threatens Alderman Gibbons.
9:55pm Hawaii Five-0 CBS - The team must protect a ruthless dictator from an assassination.
10:00pm Fashion Police E! - The 2011 Academy Awards
11:00pm Conan TBS - Marisa Tomei, Harland Williams, Fitz & The Tantrums performs.
11:00pm The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Comedy Central - Howard Stern guests
11:35pm Late Show With David Letterman CBS - Journalist Brian Williams; producers Trey Parker and matt Stone; Zac Brown Band performs.
11:35pm The Tonight Show With Jay Leno NBC - Actress Christina Applegate; TV host John Fulton; Michael Franti performs.
12:00am Lopez Tonight TBS - Actor Owen Wilson; actress Aly Michalka.
12:05am Jimmy Kimmel Live ABC - Talk show host Bill Maher; Esperanza Spalding performs.
12:35am The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson CBS - Designer Isaac Mizrahi; actor Patton Oswalt.
12:35am Late Night With Jimmy Fallon NBC - Actor Topher Grace; comic Jim Gaffigan; Glasser performs.