After The Simpsons' truly terrible response to criticism of its character Apu, we talk about what The Simpsons has done wrong, and how weird it is for a show to absolutely refuse to change over time. Then we talk about the pilot episode of ER for our latest book club, and Margaret and Andrew are very patient while Kathryn goes a little bonkers over tracking shots.
This week, Kathryn gives another round of TV recommendations to a listener who’s looking for a show she only has to mostly pay attention to. Then, we spend an hour with the magical ABC crime procedural Deception, and we detail both the kinds of magic we would like to see in future cases and the far-fetched occupations we’d like to see teamed up with the FBI.
SHOW NOTES:
Sports Night: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165961/
Justified: http://www.fxtv.com.au/justified
Elementary: https://www.cbs.com/shows/elementary/
Pitch: https://www.fox.com/pitch/
Timeless: https://www.nbc.com/timeless?nbc=1
New Girl: https://www.fox.com/new-girl/
Terriers: https://tv.avclub.com/terriers-perfect-one-season-run-defied-description-ma-1798246162
Deception: http://abc.go.com/shows/deception
In fulfillment of another patreon request, Andrew tells Kathryn and Margaret all about a two-part episode of Quantum Leap. This involves attempting to explain the premise of Quantum Leap, much to everyone's delight and confusion. Afterwards, we talk about news clips and news anchors on TV, which includes a celebration of Perd Hapley.
This is our Roseanne revival episode. We are unequivocal in declaring Roseanne Barr to be reprehensible; unpacking her show (and the response it has prompted, at least so far) is more complicated. Come and join us on this frustrating quest!
BEHOLD, A SEA OF ROSEANNE TAKES:
The Roseanne reboot and ABC's "heartland strategy": https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/29/business/media/roseanne-ratings-trump.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur
How TV depicts Trump supporters, explained: https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/3/30/17174720/roseanne-2018-reboot-controversy-trump-explained-review
When different viewers like the same show for different reasons: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/04/07/the-great-divide-emily-nussbaum
On the divide between the old Roseanne Conner and the new one: https://decider.com/2018/04/04/new-roseanne-advocates/
ABC tries to separate Roseanne the show from Roseanne the person's toxic political views: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/roseanne-boss-asks-viewers-separate-revival-controversial-stars-persona-1099523