Ellen’s Summer of the Binge

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Summer gives us some great movies, but the television is bit limited (other than Big Brother and SYTYCD, of course). While some may bemoan this, I celebrate it by using this time to watch a whole lot of shows that I don’t always have the time to get around to during the regular TV season. My bingeing is greatly aided by the fact that I can watch while I am at work.

I thought I would run through the shows that I have been watching this summer, in particular order. Unless, “the order that I remembered them” is considered an order.

Chuck (First Time) – As mentioned in last week’s Crush of the Week, I fell pretty hard for both Zachary Levi and the show itself. It can be a bit corny at times, but overall, I really loved it. Fun, funny, and heaps and heaps of sexual tension.

Buying & Selling (First Time) – I definitely prefer the original Property Brothers or the OG PB as the cool kids call it. Of course, this didn’t stop me from watching a lot of it. I think my main problem with this version is that the buying is my least favorite part of OG PB.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Re-Watch) – Much like the other Fey/Carlock joint, the rewatchability factor on this is high, there is just so many hidden gems that come out on repeat viewings.

Spaced (Re-Watch) – I feel the need to bust this show out every now and then because I just love it so much. This time around, I watched each episode, then again with the original commentary, THEN AGAIN with the guest commentaries for the special edition DVD. Fun bit of trivia: My first post for this site was about Spaced. I just love it that much.

Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp (First Time) – This one may warrant it’s own post, so I may not say too much here. Much like the OG WHAS, the humor here may not be for everyone but I have a major soft spot for David Wain and Co. Even if the brand of humor is not for you, the cast alone may be enough reason to watch.

The X-Files (Re-Watch in Progress) – This show was on every Sunday night in my house growing up because my mom was a huge fan of both the show and David Duchovny. I figured that I should give it a re-watch in preparation for the new series.

Rehab Addict (First Time) – Another show that is not my favorite, yet I watched all of it. While I do like her design style and dedication to restoration, Nicole gets on my nerves and it drives me nuts that it takes multiple episodes to get through one house.

Flip or Flop (First Time) – The reason I don’t like Rehab Addict is the reason I like Flip or Flop. Tarek and Christina are by no means my favorite, but I like that they get through a whole flip from buying to selling in only 20 minutes.

Fixer Upper (First Time) – BY FAR my favorite of the HGTV genre. I love their houses, I love the format, but mostly I just love Chip and Joanna so much. That being said, I wish Joanna was out of the picture so that I could marry Chip and run a renovation company with him.

Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries (First Time and then Re-Watch) – I lost track of how many times I watched this show because when I was really obsessed with it, I would just put it on in the background. Just because. If you want more of my thoughts on this one, go here.

The IT Crowd (Re-Watch) -I watch a lot of these shows while I am working, so it is nice to have an easy comedy that I can not pay a lot of attention to and still enjoy thoroughly. Very British and very silly but so funny and Chris O’Dowd is so cute.

Love It or List It (First Time) – You might be able to tell, but I went on a bit of an HGTV bender this summer. This is yet another that is not my favorite, but it was mindless entertainment for a couple days at work.

Derek (First Time) – I wrote a lengthier review of this one after I had watched all of it. I’m really surprised that it took me so long to get to this one being the fan of The Office and Extras that I am. It is very sweet and melancholy in the same way as those shows.

Catastrophe (First Time) – If you are a fan of funny yet realistic romantic comedies then this one is for you. The chemistry between the two leads (Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney) is very sweet and grounded and made fall in love with Rob. I dare you to watch and not do the same.

RuPaul’s Drag Race (First Time) – Honey, you better work. This show is just fabulous and eleganza extravaganza. Shantay, you stay on my DVR list because honey, if you can’t love yourself, how the hell you going to love someone else. Can I get an Amen? (This review is brought to you by the catchphrases of RuPaul)

Inside Amy Schumer (First Time) – This has been deemed as the Summer of Amy Schumer by media outlets, so I figured I would get on board and watch her show. I was not disappointed. Like most sketch shows, not all of the skits are amazing, but there is a lot of joy to be had from the good ones (my favorite being her Friday Night Lights spoof)

Game of Thrones (Catch Up) – I had fallen behind on this one and catching up seemed like an insurmountable task, but that’s what summer is for. Some of my experience was tarnished by spoilers I had learned through the grapevine, but this show is still pretty nuts.

Silicon Valley (First Time) – I will always support the comedies that get nominated in the Best Comedy category that are actually, you know, funny. I was happy to discover that this is one of those shows, which is not surprising when considering the people behind it and the cast.

Justified (Catch Up) – This is a show that I love but fell behind on when I didn’t have cable. This one is a really great drama that doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Also, I will never be mad at Timothy Olyphant in a hat.

Orphan Black (Catch Up) – If you caught a whiff of the excitement around Tatiana Maslany’s Emmy nomination and wondered why everyone was making such a big deal, watch this show and you will totally get it. I had already watched the first season but needed to catch up on the 2nd and 3rd. I know that the 3rd has gotten some mixed reviews, but I will always love getting more Helena.

Humans (First Time) – There wasn’t a lot to binge here because it is fairly new, but I did watch all episodes one Saturday a couple of weeks ago. I found this show quite interesting and hope that more networks start picking up British imports.

I know. I have a problem.

–Ellen

11Jun2015

Sweet Streams: Derek

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Our category of “Sweet Streams” has never been more because this show is “sweet” both in the “sweet, brah” sense and in the “awww, how sweet”. This show has been around on Netflix for a quite a while now and I am not sure how or why I went so long without watching, but in the course of two days, I recently watched both seasons. When I told my mom that Ricky Gervais was in a show that was very sweet, she thought I was being sarcastic, but fans of Extras and The Office may not be as shocked.

Derek follows, you guessed it, Derek, played by Gervais, and his cohorts at the senior home where he works. Derek is a little odd, but with a heart of gold, caring most for little animals and his friends. Chief among those friends his Hannah, the manager of the home who has a lot on her hands trying to care for the residence, but more efforts seem to go towards wrangling Derek and his friend Kev. Her big sisterly love for Derek is the real heart of the show.

If you, like me, sometimes crave a good cry, then this is the show for you. Even if you ar not a crier, there is no way that this show won’t tug at your heart strings. Its main message of surrounding yourself with good people who understand what is really important in life is touching. Give it a watch.

– Ellen

3Jun2015

Sweet Streams: Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

This is the time of year when I start scouring the streaming services for shows to watch. While I admittedly tend towards re-watching my old favorites, I do sometimes give those unknowns in my “Recommendations” section a chance. I kept seeing Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries pop up and took it for one of those Miss Marple-type shows that Masterpiece Theater was putting out in the 80’s. While the show is a Miss Marple-type show, it is decidedly more modern. Even though it is set in the 1920’s.

The show is a recent hit out of Australia based on a series of mystery novels by Kerry Greenwood. Both the novels and TV show follow “lady detective” Phyrne Fisher, played by Essie Davis on the show, as she works with, and sometimes against, the Melbourne police force on, you guessed it, murder mysteries. Phyrne is a forward-thinking, glamorous, wise-cracking woman who you could dislike for how cool she is and how many men fall at her feet, but she is just so dang likable and good to the people who are close to her. My favorite among those people is her demure, ultra-Catholic maid who often helps Phyne in matters outside those of the domestic variety and begins a sweet romance with the equally guileless but Protestant (gasp) Constable Collins. These two are just too adorable. In contrast, the simmering sexual tension between Phyrne and Detective Jack Robinson is equally satisfying if not quite as actualized on the show. The characters make the show for me more than the actual cases, but the mysteries are still dealing with a lot of issues, such as homosexuality, sexual politics, and drug use that you don’t get from some of those old Masterpiece mysteries.

I know that several of our readers, like me, enjoy a good period drama and are sure to enjoy this cheeky, period murder mystery and it really is perfect for some light summer viewing with a dash of intrigue.

– Ellen

13Apr2015

Run-On Sentence Review: Daredevil

Posted in Run-On Sentence Reviews, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

I spent my weekend watching all Netflix’s first collaboration with Marvel and maybe you did, too or maybe you have more of a life than I do and spent your weekend being social and getting outside, but I digress, as I usually do with these things, but if you haven’t checked out this new series I definitely think you should give this a watch because it completely redeems the character from his previous, lesser, portrayals and this is quite a departure for Marvel because it is grisly, dark, and layered, without ever having the DC and that is something I can get behind because if you like superheroes and/or Breaking Bad this just might be the show for you because it puts a troubled hero with some super powers (keen senses due to radiation, which is pretty par for the course in comic books, apparently) into the seedy underbelly of the crime world and it is fantastic with really great performances all around but especially by Charlie Cox as the titular masked vigilante and some of the most kick A fight sequences that I have seen and certainly that I have seen on TV (well, Netflix).

Verdict: Only you can know if this could be up your alley, but if it even sort of sounds like it might, you need to check it out.

6Mar2015

Sweet Streams: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Posted in Get with the Program, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Netflix released the first season of their new show Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt today, so of course, I have already watched the whole thing. And I loved it. That is going to be pretty much a guarantee if you attach Tina Fey to a new project. Tina and fellow 30 Rock executive producer Robert Carlock bring us this new show about an unbreakable girl named Kimmy Schmidt (get it?) who moves to New York for a fresh start after being released from an underground bunker where she has been living for 15 years with her apocalypse cult sisters. Did you follow that?

Admittedly, I wasn’t immediately sold on this show after the first episode, but much like 30 Rock and every other comedy, it really finds its groove as it moves along. Ellie Kemper is utterly charming as the titular Kimmy, who is just rife with sunny optimism, 90’s pop culture knowledge, and a middle school naivete (she was kidnapped 15 years ago, remember?). The rest of the cast gets plenty time to shine with Tituss Burgess as Titus Andromedon, Kimmy’s new roommate, Carol Kane as Lillian, their eccentric landlord, and Jane Krakowski as Jenna Maroney, I mean, Jacqueline Voorhees, Kimmy’s rich boss who hires her as a nanny.

The best praise I can give this show, though, is that it is very similar to 30 Rock in it’s pacing and humor with the sunny optimism of Parks and Recreation. If you know me at all, you know that is high praise indeed. The jokes are rapid fire, making rewatchability high, the guest stars are high caliber (I wouldn’t dare spoil some of them for you), the pop culture references are a plenty (the Olsen twins are actually the Olsen octuplets), and there are moments so bizarre that they rival “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah” (VH3’s Joe Invisible Millionaire, anyone?). Kimmy, who responds to someone calling her a bitch with “A female dog? The thing that makes puppies?”, has the same can-do spirit as Leslie Knope. Also, at first glance she may be misjudged as weak given the whole cult thing, but really she is a strong, independent woman who doesn’t get taken down easily. Also, if you like snappy theme songs that are based on fake viral videos, then this is the show for you.

To sum it all up, I’m already eager for season 2 (the only issue I have with the Netflix model of entire seasons at once) and I recommend that you join me in the wait.

–Ellen

3Mar2015

Sweet Streams: Friends

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Have you heard of this quaint little show? It’s kind of under the radar, but I really think you should give it a shot.

Friends is the first show I remember actively watching. I’d tune in every week or, if that wasn’t possible, get my neighbor to record that week’s episode on an old VHS tape. If you have ever read this blog or know me at all, then you know that this was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between TV and myself. And as they say, you always remember your first.

Like I’m sure a lot of you, I have been taking advantage of Netflix’s recent addition of the show’s 10 seasons to binge my old fav and it really is like hanging out with an old friend. But only if that friend ended up being a lot more dirty than you remember them being, to the point of calling your mom and asking why she let you hang out with said friend, to which your mother may respond that you didn’t understand any of their dirty jokes anyway. However, I’m fairly certain it is this humor (that went over 8-year old Ellen’s head) that is causing me to enjoy it more this time around because I get the jokes! And these friends are some dirty birdies! Am I the only person who didn’t realize how much this show was about sex? Why did I love it so much if I didn’t understand what was going on? How I’d love to remember what I thought they were talking about when discussing things like erogenous zones.

Besides the flip phones, Rachel haircuts, and clothes that I tried to mimic in middle school, this show totally holds up. Perhaps I am enjoying it more now because I am the same age as the gang circa season 3. Give me a moment. I have to stop and let that sink in, I mean, Ross had already been married. Just the first marriage, but still. Or maybe I am just enjoying the nostalgia factor, but either way I’m finding it very enjoyable.

So let Friends be there for you, like it’s been there before.

– Ellen

1Oct2014

In with the Old: The Mighty Ducks

Posted in In with the Old, Movies, Nostalgia, Sweet Streams by Ellen Lloyd

Recently, I found myself with some time on my hands and saw that all three of the Mighty Ducks films were on Netflix and thought, “Eh, why not?” I am an adult, therefore, giving me the ability to choose to spend my day watching stupid kids movies. I had a lot of thoughts while watching and thought I would share them with all of you.

Pretty sure that this movie gave me a misconception about the 1970’s. I thought they were a very hazy time… Actually, maybe it wasn’t too much of a misconception.

Sometimes I think that Disney is a little too heavy-handed in pointing out that someone is a bad boy. Beer! Loud music! Sassing cops!

Am I too logical in thinking that this prank wouldn’t work on someone driving by? A passerby, sure, but someone driving by is going to come to a screeching halt to stop in the middle of the street and steal a purse? Maybe I’ve seen too many Russian traffic cams of truckers saving kittens.

I’m glad that at least the closed captioning gave credit where credit was due. Also, I posit that a kids sports movie cannot exist without the snarky trash talker (see also: Ham from The Sandlot, Tanner Boyle from The Bad News Bears, etc.)

Seriously, inquiring minds would like to know, is that a phone?

FART JOKE!

Gordon Bombay. Possibly the best name in film history. Also, the best shoulder pads in the biz.

Bombay, you know how movies work, right? Of course, it had to be the Hawks.

Pretty sure that my brother and I were incapable of going to hockey games between the years of 1993-present (?) without saying this.

Ah, the good old days when teenage boys had to make do with issues of Sports Illustrated.

You know it’s a 90’s movie when the menacing gang is on roller blades.

Hans is the Yoda of this movie. So wise. So sage.

Little baby Joshua Jackson!

Oh, movie, I don’t need you to tell me when Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch is playing.

Do I need to call Social Services on this 22 year old movie?

Again, this movie is really delivering on the 90’s awesomeness. Roller blading through the mall?!

The movie the made quacking a haunting battle cry to all 90’s kids.

It’s so convenient that the entire team is in this one Chemistry class, despite the fact that some of them look like they are 5 years apart in age.

Gordon, stop quacking!

Don’t we all, Banks. Let the rich kid play, Ducks! The cake-eater has two more movies to do.

This has to be either the weakest net ever or this puck just defied the laws of physics, right?

What publication is this that has front page headlines about a Minnesota Pee-Wee hockey team?

Haha hijinks. Even as a kid, I thought Emilio laughed weird.

Yeah, go for it, Bombay. She will never be able to resist you in that Cosby sweater. What woman could?

Does Disney have a contractual stipulation that there must be a contrived romance that nobody watching the movie will really care about and that won’t last into the sequel?

Again, what is this “Hockey Publication” and where did they get these pictures of these pee-wee hockey coaches? I would really like to see a Newsroom like TV show about this paper.

What kind of douchebag father isn’t going to root for his son’s team? I don’t care how rich your friends are.

Aw, Banks. You took the stick out of your butt. Presh. See you in MD2!

Um, Bombay, you need to win. Haven’t you seen a Disney sports movie?

You just know that they were so stoked on this shot. “Aw man, this is going to look so cool.”

I cannot believe this worked. I’m supposed to believe that these kids who are growing up on the ice have never seen someone do a scratch spin?

Flying V! Ducks fly together!

Bombay, you are not helping the “Coach’s Pet” taunts that he has been getting. Also, what exactly has Charlie done to elicit this confidence? Other than let you bone his mom.

QUACK, QUACK, QUACK! Now THAT’S how you end a Disney sports movie. Wah-wah, Hawks. It’s because you didn’t have a humorous yet cool chant and, most importantly, because you weren’t having fun out there. Hold the phone. Bombay is leaving his lucrative law career to possibly be a minor league hockey player? At his age?

It must really suck for Charlie that he is the only one of these kids with a present parent. She really cramps his style.

Who wants to go watch this movie on Netflix now? Sorry if I spoiled it for you.

– Ellen

18Sep2014

Fangirly Love Letter: The Gilmore Girls

Posted in Get with the Program, Sweet Streams by Whitney Weldon

Being a Latchkey Kid was the best. My parents both worked full time, so in the afternoons I was left to my own weird devices. It usually went as follows:

1) walk inside, dump my backpack where ever convenient (almost always constituted a fire hazard)

2) Eat until the lower half of my face was numb from exhaustion

3) Get dance-y to whatever Now That’s What I Call Music album was collecting dust in the living room stereo

4)Try on all my mom’s old bridesmaid dresses

5) Drink rootbeer out of our fancy dinner glassware and “unwind”

…All of which took about 10-15 minutes. Then it was time to dial into The Gilmore Girls.

There is not one show, not Veronica Mars, not Buffy The Vampire Slayer, not 30 Rock, that means more to me than TGG

Everything I learned about the kind of woman I want to be came from this Amy Sherman Palladino brain baby. (My mom is a super close second). This mother-daughter double act was so funny, so clever, so heartwarming/ breaking that Act 1 Whitney was in perpetual awe. In fact, I can date my media mania directly back to Gilmore. Suddenly there just wasn’t enough of this show to meet my consumption needs.

Lorelei and Rory were so classy,

So articulate,

So forward thinking.

And then, seemingly out of nowhere, the ax fell.

Gilmore Girls, a network staple and my TV spirit animal, was canceled. It was over almost as soon as it began.

But from the ashes, a hero emerged. One who would help me to piece together the shambles of my Gilmore-less existence, all for the super-low price of $7.99. That’s right dweebs, Netflix has the streaming rights for Gilmore Girls. Those of us who loved the show will, on October 1, have a chance to relive the magic again and again, and those of you who didn’t love the show will have a chance to pull your head out of your butt. (Sort of joking. Mostly serious).

Give it a chance guys. You will not be sorry.

–Whitney

9Sep2014

Fan-Rants: Hulu Commercials

Posted in Fan-Rants, Sweet Streams, TV, Web by Ellen Lloyd

As I write this post, I am marathoning The Mindy Project, mainly because I wanted to re-watch Danny and Mindy’s mounting sexual tension, but also in preparation for the new season. I am using my Hulu Plus account for this marathon and I have a complaint. Unlike most Hulu users, I have gotten over the fact that I have to watch commercials on a service for which I am paying. (Okay, actually, confession: I log into my mom’s account for which she pays, but my complaints are still valid).

So, no, I don’t care that I have to watch commercials, I care that I have to watch the same commercials. Over. And over. I realize that I am bound to see some repeats when I watch 15 episodes of The Mindy Project in a row, but can’t Hulu spring for more than 4 commercials? I swear, if I have to watch that Honda Fit commercial with Nick Thune one more time, I am going to toss my work computer out the window, then I’m going to get fired and it is bound to turn into this whole thing and then my unemployment will be on your conscience, Hulu. Can you deal with that? I can’t imagine that you don’t have various products (that I will never buy) that don’t want to be on your service, so please, on behalf of all of us who have a TV-watching problem, get some more commercials

– Ellen

4Sep2014

Sweet Streams: Whitney’s TV Binge and Purge

Posted in Sweet Streams by Whitney Weldon

If TV is my addiction, then Netflix it absolutely my enabler. Because like any junkie, I tend to gorge myself on any trash I can get my hands on (Say Yes to the Dress, Hoarders, Family Guy, any CW show), and Netflix is always ready with my next fix, at 19 second intervals. Not that the streaming site exclusively offers garbage; there are plenty of quality, critically acclaimed movies and shows that have been sitting in my queue, gathering dust. Stuff that I always meant to watch, but decided could wait until I was finished re-watching all seven season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Again. An idea that always seems good at the time, until I go all Carol Anne-y…

But a girl can change. I am embarking on a strict media diet, and each week I will bring you my picks for the best streams that won’t make you feel like a total TV burnout.

The Obligatory Rom-Com: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

Because you can only watch Clueless so many times. (False, but you get what I mean.)

The Odd-Ball : Mary and Max

Let’s just call this one a palate cleanser.

The EW Must-List Rip Off: A Young Doctors Notebook and Other Stories

Ok Entertainment Weekly, stop haranguing me already! You had me at Hamm.

The Academy Darling: Breaking Bad

Can I be cool now, please?

–Whitney

29May2013

The Reviews Are In: Another Take on Arrested Development Season 4

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Yesterday, Whitney gave her review on Arrested Development‘s 4th season. While I will always respect her opinions, no matter how wrong they may sometimes be, I felt like I needed to step in and give my opinions, as well. Not in contradiction to her thoughts, but in addition.

I feel that it is impossible to not be somewhat disappointed by things you are excited about, especially when it comes to TV and movies. AD was facing a huge obstacle with this girl considering that I have been waiting with bated breath for this moment for 7 years. At first, it was just a dream, a silly fangirl’s whimsy, but when it was announced that a fourth season was actually going to happen I was more excited than Lindsay with diamond cream. Every production photo made scream like Tobias at a fire… sale and the trailer made me weep like Gob (“Taste the happy, Michael”).

When I watched the first few episodes, I will admit to being slightly disappointed. I missed having all of my Bluths together eating Skip’s Scrambles, doing chicken dances, or asking Michael for money. The jumping timelines were also confusing and I was having difficulty figuring when everything was supposed to be taking place.

However, around episode 5, when Tobias was getting ANUSTART, I realized Hurwitz and Co. were using this fourth season to build on what always made me love AD so much: this show makes you work for the best laughs. I have always loved that I could go back and watch the past seasons over and over and still find new jokes or small nuggets of information that I had previously missed. It seems that with this new season, they are really catering to that quality of the show. They are trusting that we, the stalwart fans who were smart enough to realize the brilliance of this show, are smart enough to connect the story line dots. After a few episodes I was doing just that and being reminded anew of that brilliance, born again to much more daunting levels with this fourth season. I was loving the reveals of everyone’s part in each other’s stories, I was noticing the recurring bits (tipping African-Americans, sexual predators, etc.), and I was getting more and more excited to re-watch all of it to catch all the things I am sure to have missed. The only question now is: How soon is too soon to do just that?

What did you think, “bluepies”? Have you been disappointed? How far have you gotten through the fourth season? Who has your favorite plotline? (I loved Gob, Buster, and Tobias).

– Ellen

25Apr2013

Web Bytes: Clip from New Arrested Development

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV, Web Bytes by Ellen Lloyd

I think I just blue myself. You can look forward to a forthcoming ode to Arrested Development on this blog, but I am trying to rein in my excitement and not write a million posts (instead I just post a million Facebook statuses about it). Nothing has ever been more difficult.

To whet your appetite until my more lengthy soliloquy, check out the exclusive clip that Entertainment Weekly posted today and try and get as excited as me. I dare you. Unless you’re a chicken. Coo-coo-ka-cha.

Nothing made me more happy than the “all new episodes” at the end.

– Ellen

23Apr2013

Fangirly Exposed: Teen Wolf

Posted in Fangirly Exposed!, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

In preparation for the forthcoming Arrested Development season (!!), I set the necessary goal of re-watching the first three seasons. Upon finishing all of the episodes in an embarrassingly short span of time, I browsed Netflix looking for something else to put on. I am going to blame boredom for making me start watching Teen Wolf, but I have only myself to blame for watching the first two seasons in the span of two days. Yep, that happened. Not that me watching a lot of TV should come as shock anymore.

The “embarrassing” factor comes into play when I tell you that Teen Wolf isn’t that good. But like most entertainment that isn’t very good, it’s a pretty fun ride and it isn’t all bad. I would find myself guffawing at a poorly delivered line and then a second later I would get wrapped up in a genuinely sweet moment or hit play on the next episode because I had to know what happened next.

Also, let’s not beat around the bush, the boys on this show are adorable. I use the words “boys” and “adorable” because they are all younger than me and I feel the need to tread lightly. WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?! I suppose when I left that key 18-24 demographic. But really, Stiles (played ever so endearingly by Dylan O’Brien) is the best part of the show and “awwed” every time he and his little puppy face came on screen.

If teen supernatural shows are in your wheelhouse (I’m looking at you, TVD fans), then I think that you would get hooked, too. Check it out! Seriously. It’s a good time.

–Ellen

13Mar2013

House of Cards: The Future of TV?

Posted in Sweet Streams by Whitney Weldon

Even with rave reviews and one of the best casts in TV history, I was not super eager to watch the Netflix original series House of Cards. To tell the truth, hard-boiled political dramas are just not my thing. Last night, however, I was in the perfect TV watching mood (acute ennui and a fierce reluctance to do homework) so I gave it a try. Folks, it’s pretty great.

Just to give you an idea, House of Cards is sort of like Richard III meets Party Animals. Antihero Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) soliloquizes and back stabs his way through Washington with the help of his equally ambitious wife Claire (Robin Wright). And even for those of us who don’t know a platform from a pork barrel, the political intrigue is pretty fascinating.

The truth is, however, I don’t think that House of Cards is going to be remembered for what a great show it is. It’s going to be remembered for the way it has revolutionized TV. Sites like Netflix and Hulu are offering quality shows like this without the commercial breaks and week-long intervals between episodes. And while I am not at all looking forward to the death of network television, it’s pretty clear that this web series thing is the way of the future. And really, if it’s good TV, does it matter what type of screen you’re watching it on?

-Whitney

19Feb2013

Fanmanly: Archer

Posted in Fanmanly, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Just to clarify, we don’t think of this “Fanmanly” feature as focusing on entertainment that only appeals to bros, but more focuses on entertainment that is more bro-friendly. That being said, let’s dig into one of my favorite dude-favored shows right now: Archer!

What can I say about Archer other than it is hilarious? As it progresses, I love that this show is similar to Arrested Development in that it totally caters to the fans. “Phrasing” (see below), the danger zone, Archer’s fear of robots, his love for Burt Reynolds, “yuup” and “nooope“, and anything Pam says are all a hundred times funnier when you have watched and loved all of this show.

The voice talent alone should be enough to convince you to watch this show. You have H. Jon Benjamin (Bob’s Burgers) as Archer (who I am ashamedly attracted to and on a related note does anyone else find Benjamin’s voice super sexy?), Jessica Walters (Arrested Development) as his cold but overbearing mother, Aisha Tyler (I remember her from Friends) as the more competent agent at ISIS, Judy Greer (another Arrested alum) as the ditzy, kinky receptionist, Chris Parnell (SNL) as their brainy accountant turned agent, and the unknown to me Amber Nash as the worst HR Director out there.

I will recommend this show with the caveat that it is not for the faint of heart. It is filthy and has its fair share of animated violence, but all that just adds to its…charm? Well, it at least makes for a pretty rollicking, shocking, hilarious, stylistic, spy comedy. Those exist, don’t they?

–Ellen

Archer is available on Netflix Instant

23Jan2013

Sweet Streams: Spy

Posted in Anglophiles Anonymous, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

The hipster in me loves finding new delights from across the pond. “It’s some show, you’ve probably never heard of it. It’s British.” Or even better, when the show inevitably gets adapted for American audiences, I can say, “The British version was better.” (See: Coupling, The Office, Sherlock, Da Ali G Show, Being Human, Trading Spaces, What Not to Wear, etc.). Of course, the Anglophile in me, also loves saying that last one.

Now, when the awfully funny Spy gets adapted for American TV, don’t you want to be a cool kid, too? Well, you can be because it’s on Hulu. In case, Hulu hasn’t already gotten you with their incessant self-promotion, let’s see if I can sway you.

Spy is about the unassuming Tim Elliot, a man who is always trying to impress his ambitious and genius son, Marcus. To up his game, Tim decides to get a better job and accidentally applies to be an MI-6 agent. The show becomes part workplace comedy, complete with the kooky boss and office crush, and part family comedy as Tim fights his ex-wife and her new boyfriend for custody of Marcus.

This show is so rife with hilarious characters that I have a hard time picking my favorite. Is it Marcus, who runs gambling rackets out of his bedroom or runs his student council with the kind of iron fist that would make Stalin cower? Or maybe it is Tim’s boss, known only as The Examiner, who eagerly awaits his next torture and opportunity to impress Tim? It could be Tim’s friend, Chris, who could be a lawyer but finds it easier to just hack bank accounts.

Just check out the first episode below already. Of course, I’m mourning the fact that the second season just ended and it will undoubtedly be another year before the third season starts. Crazy Brits and their weird TV programming schedules.

– Ellen

24Oct2012

Anglophiles Anonymous: Being Human

Posted in Anglophiles Anonymous, Sweet Streams, TV by Whitney Weldon

These days, there’s nothing I find more annoying than sexually driven supernatural TV shows (I’m looking at you, True Blood). They are everywhere, and although I remain an avid fan of The Vampire Diaries, I was starting to find the vampire/witch/ghost/werewolf monster-mash melodrama a bit tedious. Then I discovered that there are some shows that are so witty, so well written, and so awesome that they can transcend their spooky, sordid roots. Enter Being Human.

Ok, yes, it’s a show about vampire Mitchell (Aidan Turner), ghost Annie (Lenora Crichlow), and werewolf George (Russell Tovey) cohabitating and trying to navigate their respective supernatural situations. And if that were all there was to it, I would have stopped watching a long time ago. But this British import is also hilarious, sweet, and surprisingly poignant. The best example of this is probably George, who lost his job, his girlfriend, and his family after getting mauled by a werewolf while on a Scottish vacation. Here’s a clip of George going bananas.

This show has experienced quite a shake up since last season, including the arrival of three new lead characters, but I think season 5 is going to rule nonetheless. The first three seasons are available to stream on Netflix, something to keep in mind the next time you get a hankering for quality British TV. Which, of course, is always.

-Whitney

9Oct2012

Spooky Streams!

Posted in Sweet Streams by Whitney Weldon

It officially Halloween season (for us, anyway), and we’re celebrating by naming all of the scariest TV episodes available to stream on Netflix. It wasn’t easy, but we finally narrowed it down to the top five TV episodes that we find totally terrifying.
5) “Home”, X-Files season 4– I don’t know if spooky is the right word to describe this episode about homicidal inbred hillbillys. Revolting, maybe? My official recommendation is that this episode should be watched with a in a well lit room. If this episode teaches us anything, it’s that incestuous weirdos love dark corners.

4) “Family Remains”, Supernatural Season 4– There are plenty of Supernatural episodes we could have gone with, but in the end we settled on this one about a family who moves into a house haunted by a very pissed ghost. OR IS IT?

3) “Hush”, Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 4– For a show about daemons and vampires, Buffy was rarely ever really scary. Here’s one of the best exceptions to that rule. In this episode, all the inhabitants of Sunny Dale lose the ability to speak (and scream) when The Gentlemen come to town.

2) Harper’s Island– It would be impossible to pick one single episode from this awesome murder mystery series, so just go ahead and watch all of it. Because really, nothing says Halloween like a show about a group of strangers trappedon an island with a raging psychopath. Right?

1) “Blink” Doctor Who season 3- We pretty sure that our deep distrust of any kind of carved statue can be traced back to this exact episode. If you do choose to watch this episode, we recommend you stock up on eye drops, because you will never want to blink again.

-Whitney

27Sep2012

Get with the Program: Bob’s Burgers

Posted in Get with the Program, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

Airs: Sundays at 8:30/7:30c starting September 30th on FOX (Also available on Netflix Instant)

TV show equation: Bob’s Burgers = same slighty off-kilter with a smattering sweet comedy as Parks and Recreation + obvious connection to The Simpsons in that it is also an animated show about a family of 5 x voice talent and music stylings of Flight of the Conchords – New Zealand x Coney Island-esque setting

Premise in a Sentence: A struggling burger restauranteur finds it difficult to manage his employees, who happen to also be his children.

Oh Bob’s Burgers, how can I say in a mere blog post what it’s taken me two seasons to understand? You’ve got it, mister. I’m yours, all of me.

I had to borrow that line from a family classic because I’m having a hard time figuring out how to appropriately gush and educate at the same time. So, what I think I am going to do is run through the Belcher clan:

1. Bob – One of Bob’s most refreshing elements is that instead of having a crazy, bumbling dad amidst a more straight family, Bob gets to play the straight man in this brood punctuated by H. Jon Benjamin’s dry delivery. (Don’t ask me why, but I find his voice really sexy. Don’t look at me like that!) Sure, he has his moments of crazy, but his best moments come when he has no choice but to laugh at how ridiculous his kids can be.

2. Linda – I can’t rave about John Roberts’ performance here enough. With Linda, he and the writers have created this perfect mom character that is equal parts fun-loving, kooky, nagging, and invested in her family. I swear to you, the way her/his lines are delivered will have you quoting them non-stop. At least that’s what I have been doing.

3. Tina – Probably my favorite character. Why? Hmm, maybe because she writes erotic friend fiction. Or maybe because she is mainly concerned with the location of her crush, Jimmy Jr.’s butt. Or maybe because her budding sexuality is getting all mixed up with her nightmares, causing her to fantasize about slow dancing zombies. You be the judge.

4. Gene – He finds music everywhere he goes, whether it be in the walls of an abandoned taffy factory, in his own farts, or in the noises his grandparents make while getting intimate in the room next door. Also, being the middle child he is typically trying to get attention in the worst ways at the worst times.

5. Louise – Don’t let the pink bunny ears fool you, Louise is an evil genius. Whether she is convincing an entire town that their burgers are made of human flesh, coaching Tina in kissing by making her tie a banana peel with her tongue (“A kiss is like a fight with mouths”), or trying to get out of PE by lying about doing synchronized swimming.

Please, just trust me when I tell you that if you laugh even once during the video below, then you should be watching this show. And if you don’t then there is something wrong with you. Alright!

– Ellen

27Aug2012

Anglophiles Anonymous: Spaced

Posted in Anglophiles Anonymous, Sweet Streams, TV by Ellen Lloyd

For our inaugural post, we decided we needed to write about something very dear to us. Something that is an essential for fangirls and fanboys, for that matter. It is for this reason that I am going to try and convince you to watch Spaced (available on Netflix Instant).

Spaced is written by and starring Simon Pegg (Mission Impossible: Ghost Prots, Shaun of the Dead) and Jessica Hynes née Stevenson (Son of Rambow) and directed by Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim, Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead). Now, in my opinion, all of that should be enough to convince you, but I’ll keep going.

The show centers on Tim (Pegg) and Daisy (Stevenson), two aspiring artists, comic book and writer, respectively, who lie about being a couple to get an apartment. The initial premise becomes less important as we follow them and their friends on their crazy exploits. The “crazy” comes less from what they are doing and more from what happens when this group does them, as is evident in the following clip where Tim and his friend Mike (the awesome Nick Frost) explain “male telepathy” and what happens when Tim and Daisy are set upon by a group of ruffians:

The best thing I can equate Spaced to for us American audiences is Community (six seasons and a movie!). Both shows aren’t afraid of genre-bending here and there, they both find time to focus on the relationships amidst the chaos, and both are aware that we as a society use our shared experiences of movies, TV shows, etc. to communicate. Take, for example, this clip from the premiere of series 2 that aired the summer after Star Wars: The Phantom Menace came out:

When I sat down to write this post, I was struggling to find a way to sway you readers into watching. The reality that I had to face is that not everyone is going to love Spaced as much as I do. Should they? Yes. But can I make them? No. It’s a quirky little show that makes obscure references. But it is for these reasons that I love it. There is a moment near the end of the series that references the obscurest of my favorite movies. I’m talking about Bugsy Malone. This movie is so far off people’s radars that when I meet someone who has seen it, we become instant friends. That’s how I know Spaced and I have formed an unbreakable bond and I think that if you watch, you too can find your Bugsy Malone reference. .

– by Ellen

Fangirly

Where smart girls go stupid for pop culture

Category Archives: Sweet Streams

Ellen’s Summer of the Binge

Sweet Streams: Derek

Sweet Streams: Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries

Run-On Sentence Review: Daredevil

Sweet Streams: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Sweet Streams: Friends

In with the Old: The Mighty Ducks

Fangirly Love Letter: The Gilmore Girls

Fan-Rants: Hulu Commercials

Sweet Streams: Whitney’s TV Binge and Purge

The Reviews Are In: Another Take on Arrested Development Season 4

Web Bytes: Clip from New Arrested Development

Fangirly Exposed: Teen Wolf

House of Cards: The Future of TV?

Fanmanly: Archer

Sweet Streams: Spy

Anglophiles Anonymous: Being Human

Spooky Streams!

Get with the Program: Bob’s Burgers

Anglophiles Anonymous: Spaced