There are many relationships on TV but only few are chosen… by me to someday emulate. Many are fraught with drama and while those are fun to watch, I hope to someday have one that is more like the following:
10. Monica and Chandler (Friends) – These two were my first OTP (internet speak for “One True Pairing”). Shmoss and Shmachel, I only cared about Monica and Chanandler Bong. I like that his amount of dorky is the perfect match to her amount of crazy.
9. Bob and Linda Belcher (Bob’s Burgers) – The Belchers are not only a relationship goal but a family goal. Someday I hope to raise a similar band of weirdos. Bob and Linda stick together and accept each other’s eccentricities amidst all the chaos.
8. Jim Halpert and Pam Beasley (The Office) – Speaking of chaos, in a different bunch of weirdos, these two found each other. They might have had a few (infuriating) bumps along the way to find each other but they did it. I always loved that their relationship felt real. They initially bonded over shared jokes and stayed together through hard work. Continue reading →
It does not bode well for me that the TV character I most relate to is an awkward, hormonal, 13-year old but that’s where I’m at right now. That’s right, Bob’s Burgers‘ Tina Belcher is my spirit animal and there is a lot of proof in the pudding.
We are avid romance readers and writers and sometimes our art imitates life. Guilty, so, so guilty.
The athletic arts are not exactly our strong suit. I got a C in PE in the sixth grade because I couldn’t throw or catch a ball.
Sometimes life is hard on us and we respond accordingly. I feel ya, sistah.
We have curious minds and aren’t afraid to get straight to the facts. I settled for Cosmo articles, but she is more ballsy.
We are not the smoothest operators. But Tina gets more action than I do.
We are not the best with makeup. This one hits so close to home. I am about as capable of keeping makeup on my face as a toddler.
We have very sensual, realistic dreams. I mean, I don’t want to reveal too much…
Our glasses are both our identity and our struggle. Four-eyed salute.
We are not exactly graceful. I can’t do yoga in public places because it is far too embarrassing.
Hence the reason we like to practice at home. I am a fan of the at-home workout due to the uncoordinated thing.
Our first times driving were pretty much the same. Our dads were about the same, too.
We stand out at dance parties. For our awesome but subtle moves. I go for the shoulder shimmy.
We agree on the real reasons to go to sporting events. I once spent an entire Dodgers game checking out right field’s hinder.
And to cap it off, we both wanted the same thing for Christmas.
Some of these qualities are not quite enviable or flattering but I could not be more proud to be like this strong, sensual woman.
If I had to pick one word to sum up last night’s Emmy Awards, I would have to go with unprecedented. I mean, who could have possibly foreseen that Modern Family would pick up Outstanding Comedy Series for the fifth consecutive time? Or that the dark horse nominee from Breaking Bad (you know, Malcolm’s dad) would take home the award for Outstanding Lead actor? Not to mention all the other left-fielders like The Big Bang Theory, American Horror Story, and Steven Moffat’s little known passion project Sherlock. And while all the wins last night were richly deserved, we decided to recognize all those performances that would otherwise have gone unnoticed. We present to you, our seven readers, the 2014 Femmie Awards.
Outstanding Use of Grocery Bags, Loose Fitting Clothes, and Tony Goldwyn’s Knee to Hide a Baby Bump in a Drama Series
And the Femmie goes to…
Scandal!
Most Outstanding Comedy Series to Ever Get Cut Down in It’s Prime, Thereby Denying Viewers What Should Have Been Years of Comedy Gold
And the Femmie goes to…
Subergatory! (Kind of a Win/Lose)
Outstanding Performance by a Smart, Strong, Sensual Woman in a Comedy Series
And the Femmie goes to…
Tina Belcher! (Bob’s Burgers)
Outstanding Miniseries that Attempts to Make the Idea of Getting Knocked Up by Patrick J Adams Less Appealing, and Ultimately Fails
And the Femmie goes to…
Rosemary’s Baby! (NBC)
We here at Fangirly would like to extend our congratulation to all our winners! You will be going home with… nothing. Statues were not in the budget.
This weekend I did something a little crazy. Ok, a lottle crazy. In a recent issue of Entertainment Weekly there was an article written by Marc Snetiker on how to best prepare for the Emmys next Monday. Well, how to best prepare for the Emmys in only 24 hours and because I’m a weirdo, my first thought was, “I could do this. I should do this. I’m GOING to do this.” I honestly don’t watch a lot of the Emmy shows, especially in the Drama category, so I saw this as the perfect opportunity to get myself edumacated.
I prepared by making sure I had all of the recommended episodes or at least access to them and by placing an order with Amazon Fresh to make sure I had a cavalcade of themed snacks. As you should do for any binge.
Oh, and I live-tweeted the whole thing. And it turns out you can tweet a lot in 24 hours.
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?
We here at Fangirly firmly believe you can buy happiness. How do we know? Because nothing brings us more joy than wearing our matching Supernatural T-shirts or tacking our Bones calendars up on our walls. That’s happiness, people. And in an effort to bring you the same joy, we’ve comprised a list of what we consider ‘Must-Have’s’ for any nerd worth their salt. All this happiness may put a dent in your checking account, but the envy in your friend’s eyes when they see your awesome swag will be worth every penny.
River Song’s TARDIS Journal: Spoilers! This replica of River Song’s diary in the shape of our favorite blue box is a great place to record all of your adventures in time and space. If you’ve just gotta have it, you can get your very own TARDIS journal here. Just don’t read ahead, because we’re pretty such it will create a rift in the space/time continuum. Be sure to time travel responsibly!
Fringe Division Sweatshirt: Do you ever come home from a long day of rebelling against the Observer overlords and just wish you had something comfy to put on? Well now you can be cozy, AND identify yourself as a part of the resistance with this awesome Fringe Division sweatshirt! You can buy this little piece of the Fringe universe here at CafePress.com.
Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness Poster: There is a LOT of fab swag for Parks and Rec, mainly because there are so many things that come straight from the show. Take for example the Lil’ Sebastian shirts, the Pawnee Porpoises shirts, or the Knope campaign buttons. Perhaps the best P&R swag, though, is this glorious purpose. Glorious in it’s stand alone hilarity and it’s educational value. Where else are you going to gain nuggets of wisdom such as “Honor: If you need it defined, you don’t have it” or “Intensity: Give 100%. 110% is impossible. Only idiots recommend that.” (Click that image for the other gems). This poster is available on NBC.com and probably other sources that I am too lazy to look up. That’s how they get you.
Tina “Butts” Shirt: If you still aren’t watching this show, shame on you. What are we going to have to do to convince you? If you are watching, you know that if there is one thing that Tina loves, it’s butts. Most of her energy goes into getting a glimpse at a good butt. And its hilarious. We love Tina. We love her fascination with butts. And we love this shirt. All Christmas gift-givers out there, take note, because none of us yet own it. This shirt is available at BustedTees.com (which has a lot of other really fun shirts, as well). -Whitney and Ellen
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!
Fangirly 