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An Afternoon with Joss Whedon

September 17, 2010 in Best Of, Entertainment, Shows

Joss Whedon at the 2009 Comic Con in San Diego.

Image via Wikipedia

I felt like a bit of a fraud attending Joss Whedon‘s one-and-only “show” at the Sydney Opera House a few Sundays ago.  After all, while I was in awe of the man’s undeniable talent and achievements (Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Dr Horrible, and in 2012, The Avengers), I don’t consider myself a hardcore fan.  To be honest, I had only seen bits and pieces of his stuff, unlike some of the fanatics in attendance who appeared to know everything Whedon has ever done since he was five years old and can recite entire episodes off the top of their heads.

That doesn’t mean I wasn’t excited.  To the contrary, I was very eager to find out how a seemingly normal dude became a cult phenomenon.

(Click on ‘more’ to read on)

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Series Finales: Lost and 24

June 1, 2010 in Entertainment, Shows

Well, I finally finished watching the series finales of two of my favourite shows of all time, 24 and Lost. Here are some thoughts.

24

“Dammit!”

I started watching 24 from the beginning while the show was in its fourth season (2005) and have watched every episode religiously.  To me, it’s one of the most addictive TV shows of all time.  It’s the only non-comedy show that I can watch episode after episode all day long without wanting a break.

Season 8 is the final season for the series, and while it doesn’t have the freshness of the earlier seasons, this one was by far the most explosive (well, at least since the third season when we found out the President was the baddie!) and the most strenuous for Jack (with the exception of that time when he died for a while).  In the 24 hour time frame, Jack was stabbed (twice), shot, tortured, beat up, lost the woman he loved, committed treason (technically) and almost single-handedly started WWIII.  Not bad for a day’s work.

I would rank Season 8 up there as one of the better seasons of the show, probably somewhere around the middle.  It’s probably a good time to end the series, given there are only so many national security threats writers can come up with.  There have always been minor variations on the plots but honestly it’s pretty much all the same.

As for the ending, there was no big battle scene where Jack saves the day, but it does finish on a more subdued note that went for the emotional angle.  At the same time, it opened up the potential for a full length feature film.  I’m not so sure how well that would work though.  The previous experiment, 24: Redemption, was not totally horrible but there just wasn’t enough time to give justice to the plot or the characters.  Unless the film is effectively an immediate continuation of Season 8 then I think it would be extremely difficult for them to pull off.

That said, I’ll still watch it if it is ever made!

Lost

The most apt title for a series ever.  I started watching Lost from the very beginning in 2004 and have endured every single episode up to the bitter end.  It’s been one of those shows that blew me away at the start with all its intrigue, compelling characters, mysterious setting and hidden dangers.

However, as the show dragged on, it also became one of the most frustrating shows of all time, as questions were answered with more questions and flashbacks became flash forwards then flash sideways (WTF?).  All I ever wanted was some answers, and thanks to my stubbornness and stupidity I stuck with it, hoping that in the end all would be revealed.

How naieve I was.

The sixth and final season of Lost brought back an excitement I hadn’t experienced since perhaps Season 2, back when the storyline was not so convoluted that I had trouble remembering what the heck had happened before, in the future, and in all the different parallel worlds they existed in.  This was the final season, and we were finally going to receive some answers to questions that have lingered for 6 years.  Or so I thought.

Alarm bells started ringing when halfway through Season 6, we were still getting more questions than answers.  That’s not hard when you’re not getting any answers at all.  I started to fear that the rumours were true — that the writers, despite saying they knew how it would end, were simply winging it this entire time.  Or perhaps they were telling the truth in that they knew they would end it with a big fat question mark and leaving audiences more confused and “lost” than ever.

If that was their intention, then they certain succeeded.  The lengthy finale I suppose was satisfying on an emotional level.  We got to see most of the characters over the years come together in one cheesy, quasi-religious reunion full of hugs and kisses.  Yay.

But what I really wanted, just a couple of freaking answers, never came.  The only thing that became apparent was that the flash sideways in Season 6 were a kind of purgatory, a limbo world where each of the characters went after they died, whenever and wherever that may be.  But what about all the other million unanswered questions from the previous 5 seasons?  What the heck was the island in the end?  What the heck was the Dharma Initiative?  What the heck is the smoke monster thingy?  What the heck is the light?  Where did all these people come from and what the heck are they doing?  Why did I watch this show?

I’m lost.

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Daniel Kitson: 66a Church Road

December 20, 2009 in Entertainment, Shows

I had never heard of Daniel Kitson before, but was recommended to see his show 66a Church Road: A Lament, Made of Memories and Kept in Suitcases by a friend of a friend.

Kitson is a 32-year-old, award winning English comedian who has been called a ‘genius’ on many occasions.  However, 66a Church Road is not your typical stand-up routine.  It’s really a 90-minute soliloquy; a one-man story about Kitson’s relationship with his flat in London’s Crystal Palace over a 6-year period.  There’s an occasional video-recorded voice over during breaks, but for the most part it is just Kitson sitting on stage surrounded by stacks of suitcases (many of which contain scale models of the apartment).

The reviews of the show have been overwhelmingly positive.  The Times says: “It is poetry shot through with laughter and pathos, a heartfelt reflection on what we mean by home….as good as anything Kitson has done.” The Sydney Morning Herald says: “You go home with a distinct feeling of absolute moral superiority.”

My own personal verdict?  The show sucked.  Really sucked.  Hear me out.

First and foremost, 66a Church Road is not funny.  For 90 minutes, the show probably elicited half a dozen smiles and a couple of forced chuckles.  Not a single laugh.

Yes, Kitson really knows how to talk (albeit very quickly).  He is supremely eloquent.  His delivery is poetic.  His musings are well structured and occasionally heartfelt.  But it’s totally misleading to call it a ‘comedy’ show.  66a Church Street is really a ‘story’ show laced with infrequent, barely amusing lines.

Maybe it’s just me, or perhaps I was wrong to expect a comedic genius to deliver…well, a funny show.  The crowd was split into two camps.  There were a few randoms scattered in the audience that literally laughed at anything Kitson said.  Especially the guy sitting next me.  Seriously.  Every single thing.  Not even jokes -  just normal, conversational stuff.  It was surreal.

Apart from the crazies, everyone else was on the verge of death.  The guy next to my wife covered his face in his hands at least five times and yawned uncontrollably every minute or so.  If we weren’t sitting right in the middle of the row, we would have left about 30 minutes in when we realised it wasn’t going to get any better.  Some luckier people sitting on the sides actually did leave.

So that’s it.  Fans of Kitson (like the guy that sat next to me) will undoubtedly lap it up.  But for everyone else, either avoid or don’t expect anything funny.

PS: I actually did laugh out loud twice, but it wasn’t because of the show.  The first was when my wife leaned over and whispered ‘I’m so sleepy’, and the second was right after the show, when she said ‘That was so boring I thought I was going to die’.

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Review: Jason Alexander’s Comedy Spectacular!

December 5, 2009 in Best Of, Entertainment, Shows

George Costanza is back, baby!

In my humble opinion, George Costanza (Seinfeld) is the greatest sitcom character of all time.  And naturally, the actor that plays George, Jason Alexander, is my favourite sitcom actor (and probably TV actor) of all time.

And so when I found out that Jason Alexander’s Comedy Spectacular was returning to Sydney, I didn’t hesitate to buy tickets immediately.  The chance to see the closest thing I have to a hero was too rare an opportunity to pass up.  It didn’t matter to me that the description of the show stated that Alexander was ‘hosting’ a night of comedy, which made me slightly concerned that they were merely using his name to promote a show predominantly featuring other comics.

The verdict?  Pure gold! By far the best comedy night I have ever been to.

This was truly Jason Alexander’s Comedy Spectacular.  Alexander featured all the way through the 3-hour+ extravaganza, and he was in superb form from start to finish.  The show began with a hilarious long solo stand-up act from the man himself (much longer than I had expected).  It wasn’t just recycled material either – there were plenty of references to more recent events (from the death of Michael Jackson to Tiger Woods’ indiscretions to Australia’s new opposition leader to of course, the wedding between 66-year-old Geoffrey Edelsten and his 25 year-old-bride Brynne Gordon which Alexander was paid to attend) and was full of improvisation and spontaneity.

Following the solo act, Alexander began introducing a stellar cast of local comedians.  On this particular night, he had stand-ups Glenn Robbins, Mick Molloy and Julia Morris, music-comedy trio The Axis of Awesome, and improv specialist Rebecca de Unamano.  For those who know a little about Australian comedy, this is a formidable line-up.  Good enough to sell-out venues even without the headlining superstar.  Here’s a brief review of each of the secondary acts:

Glenn Robbins – by far the funniest comedian of the night not named Jason Alexander.  He started off a little slow, but was absolutely on fire before it was over and had the crowds rolling in the isles.

Mick Molloy – the fat lady beside me sounded like she was about to die from laughter, but Mick’s comedy really didn’t do it for me personally – though to be fair he had a couple of good one-liners.

Julia Morris – consistent, female-oriented comedy with some decent laughs, but nothing that made me piss myself.

Axis of Awesome – great talents, but compared to the experienced and polished comics, felt a little amateurish – that was, until their final song, which was a bloody masterpiece.

Rebecca de Unamano – great fun because she utilised Jason Alexander’s talents and got the rest of the cast involved – and not a bad comedian herself.

The greatest thing was that even though the night was split between various acts, it was well and truly Alexander’s show.  He was there from the beginning, he was by far the longest act, and he continued to throw in gut-busting lines and jokes (often at Michael Jackson’s expense) between the other acts.  My favourite parts of the show were (in no particular order):

  • the Q&A session with the crowd before the intermission, which largely circled around Seinfeld, of course.  We found out what Jerry Seinfeld said to the gang before they went out for the last episode, what Alexander’s favourite George Costanza line is, and we even saw Alexander sign the leg of some dude in front of me who had George Constanza’s face tattooed on his leg!  No joke;
  • Jason Alexander’s amazing Broadway musical medley to kick start the second half of the show; and
  • the improvisation session with the entire cast which finished up the night – Alexander was at his absolute best, even outdoing the master of improv Rebecuitca de Unamano.

All in all, it was indeed a comedy spectacular!  Highly recommended if you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to see it.

5 out of 5 stars!

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