BLOGS
Despite the mixed (to be put it mildly) quality of this fall's TV offerings, we can at least unabashedly be grateful for the opportunities provided to a handful of actors and personalities who had never been on our radar before this season. Some of them were previously getting by with guest gigs on Law & Order and the like, while others were apparently biding their time before unleashing their unique brand of crazy. But wherever they came from, we're just glad they're here for us now.
10. Jon Michael Hill (Detroit 1-8-7)
He's playing the newbie partner to Michael Imperioli's no-nonsense homicide detective, but what makes Hill a valuable player on this underrated ensemble drama is his ability to provide comic relief without being obnoxious. An ongoing gag about his cellphone, his frustrated expressions when his partner pranks him and his inability to cope well with dead bodies all really bring this character to life.
9. Jason Mantzoukas (The League)
El Cuñado may not be in the league anymore, but he'll always be in our hearts, just crapping out the booze, murdering drunk football players, stealing his friends' drinks and getting sodomized by Rob Huebel forever and ever. We hope Mantzoukas works a whole lot more in the future, but we really extra-super-special hope he just stays El Cuñado for every episode of the rest of The League's lifespan.
8. Seth Caro (Top Chef: Just Desserts)
This pastry chef packs ten pounds of crazy into a 12-oz. cup. We had no idea that this neurotic guy was going to go fully off of the deep end during the competition. From constant temper tantrums to basically crying for his mommy, he really lost it and had such a final meltdown that producers had to give some backstage insight so we could see his final freak out over ice cream and paper cups.
7. Lucas Neff (Raising Hope)
We've been surprised by how much we like this show, and though that's got a lot to do with Garret Dillahunt and Martha Plimpton, Neff is the show's lead and a big part of why it's so enjoyable to watch. The guy's adorable, he draws giant eagles like a pro and he's managed to stop throwing up on the baby. What's not to like?
6. Mondo Guerra (Project Runway)
When we first saw Mondo in his short pants and suspenders, we wanted to write him off immediately. But not only is he one of the best designers on the show, he's also the one who brought us to tears with the revelation that he is HIV positive, has been for years, and has been afraid to tell his parents. Sniff. We went through a box of tissues, and we'd be proud to see him win.
5. David Johnson (The Apprentice)
We far prefer the celebrity editions of this show, but if we have to watch regular folks who are out of work and looking for jobs, we'd rather have more of them be like the high-strung David. He is constantly hyped up, always ready for a fight or an excuse to get out of work (we're not buying the tooth issues, or that it wasn't his fault he got removed from a task) and loves to talk about his many, many children. We wouldn't want to be around him, but we can't take our eyes off him... like an unemployed creature in the zoo.
4. Zosia Mamet (Mad Men/Parenthood)
We're not enamored of her high school character on Parenthood... in fact it's weird to watch her in two such contrary roles. But hey, work's work, and she's a talented young actress either way. We just can't help it that we love her better when she's playing Peggy's awesome lesbian friend Joyce on Mad Men. Save us a stool at P.J. Clarke's, okay?
3. Carter MacIntyre (Undercovers)
There are a lot of fresh faces on Undercovers, but our favorite is definitely MacIntyre. His Leo is arguably the best thing about the spy show, as he's the ex of Mrs. Bloom, the former partner of Mr. Bloom and has a tendency to pop up unexpectedly in the most unexpected places and guises. And unlike the sycophantic Hoyt, we're always left wanting more from Leo each week.
2. Parvesh Cheena (Outsourced)
Don't get us wrong: we still don't really care for this sitcom. However, the one great thing about it is that we got to meet Parvesh Cheena, who plays the amusing Gupta. He has a knack for even making the most ridiculous, racist material seem funny. That's a true talent. He deserves a much better show.
1. Kody Brown (Sister Wives)
He's totally creepy and we're freaked out by him, but he certainly makes for fascinating television. We're not sure how this power-tripping patriarch managed to get four women to marry him and bear his many, many offspring. We're also not sure how he can afford sports cars with the amount of mouths he has to feed. But, somehow, this balding lunatic makes it all work. We just hope he can avoid jail time so we can enjoy a second season.
Watch what TWoP's editors had to say about fall TV's best new faces in this segment airing on the New York Nonstop news channel:
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We REALLY need to re-define what i means to "star" in something. To me it means having a certian amount of talent in acting - not in being some complete a-hole as seen in the above mentioned "reality" shows. There's no discernable talent needed to act like an overly emotional baker or designer.
And I think next year's installment of "Sister Wives" needs to be subtitled "The Girls Woke Up - Dumped the Bastard and Are in Heavy Duty Therapy" - hopefully said therpy includes a lot of slapping them around for being so incredibly stupid as to have gotten involved with that cretin. :)
I love Lucas Neff!!! He reminds me of a young Lee Pace. Not that Lee Pace is old. But he's not in his twenties anymore. Anyhoo, Raising Hope is awesome.
If it wasn't for the fact of him being on Tru Blood already, although I've only seen that a couple of times, I would include Michael Raymond James in this list. His role on Terriers is funny and weird.
This list is incomplete without Michael Cristofer from Rubicon. That show is full of unrecognizable actors doing fine work. There are four or five others who also would fit. But Cristofer takes the cake as the villainous Truxton Spangler.
I'd never heard of Scott Caan before, although he's been in a couple of movies I've seen. He's doing really good work on Hawaii 5-0.
re: 2. Parvesh Cheena (Outsourced). Really? He is the worst character on an awful show. Actually, 2nd worse... the whisper girl is worse.
David on the Apprentice looks (and sounds) to me like the unholy love child of two characters on The Office. Anyone else see it?
I couldn't disagree more with the selecton of David from The Apprentice. He is obnoxious, incredibly stupid, and psychotic.
I couldn't agree more though with Lucas Neff; he has been great. And I agree with Dan that many people on Rubicon have been great.
Thirding Rubicon love. Arliss Howard as Kale is my personal favorite, although I don't know how "unknown" he is.
I would prefer that the four (ex) wives tie Kody up and slap him around, while the 13 or so children are passing around popcorn and drinks. I absolutely agree with you that none of these reality TV cretins are "stars." Neither are any of the actors on this list, in my opinion. They can all go away. If this list was a year previous, then I think Danny Pudi of Community would rightfully belong. And...that's about it. I can't think of any other previously unknown actors that have impressed me much.
I've never been that convinced about the "racist" charge for Outsourced. It'd be obviously racist to show all examples of a race as being dumb, lazy, criminal, greedy, etc., which Outsourced does not. But is it also racist to simply 1) show Indians acting like Indians, 2) point out that Indians do in fact act differently than Americans, 3) mention ways in which the differences are funny? And the show doesn't portray the willing ignorance of another culture in a positive light. Racism and discrimination are despicable, but if those categories are defined so broadly then all the stand-up comedians who talk about how "black and white people do stuff differently" are also racist.
Also, Manmeet is obviously the best character on Outsourced. You're so busy making up racist stuff in the show that you're missing all the good parts.
If you're watching Outsourced and thinking "That's not racist, it's kind of funny", I've got news for you; you might be a racist.
Even if I'm Indian? Television uses caricatures for humor; frankly, I'm glad to be represented on the screen for once. I work in IT and know a few fellows (of differing races) who fit the stereotypes on this show.
You were represented on Heroes with Sendhil Ramamurthy, on ER with Parminder Nagra, on The Office with Mindy Kaling, with Kunal Nayyar on The Big Bang Theory, and so on, and none of them were/are caricatures of their ethnicity. So I sure hope you watched all those shows as well because you were so proud of being represented, along with Naveen Andrews on Lost and Anil Kapoor on 24.
And tv doesn't use caricatures for humour; lazy tv uses caricatures for humour. Indians being proud for Outsourced is like New Jersey people being proud for Jersey Shore.
If you're watching Outsourced thinking, "That's racist; there's nothing funny," I've got news for you: you might have no sense of humor and get all your opinions from TWoP.
Some people confuse noticing differences with racism. Some people would rather we pretend everyone's exactly the same on TV. Cows roam freely in parts of India? That's racist to notice that! They're just like us! Don't notice them!!!
In short, some people aren't too bright.
And speaking of Kunal Nayyar on Big Bang, was it racist when Penny responded to Raj's parents with "Namaste"? Was the Diwali episode of The Office racist? Or are you okay with a little bit of Indian every now and then on your white shows?
GAAAAH THANK YOU. I'm sick of the "Outsourced is so racist" mess that TWoP has been harping on for weeks now. I miss old TWoP. Like, a lot.
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