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It's been a fairly anticlimactic season of Modern Family. Some episodes were fun to watch, some were slightly grueling (especially in the first half of the season) and now after "Baby On Board," we're left with a little bit of heartache. The writers are so skilled at crafting gay characters and portraying the struggle of adoption... but next season, it looks like a good portion of our time will be dedicated to Gloria's pregnancy. Suddenly I long for Mitchell and Cameron to get into a really big fight just so that we don't have to see what that poorly acted nightmare is going to look like.
While it still hasn't been made official, it's safe to assume that this weekend's Mick Jagger-hosted season finale of Saturday Night Live marked the last time that Kristen Wiig will appear in Studio 8H... as an ensemble player at least. (We suspect she'll be back as a host somewhere down the line.) After all, considering that teary send-off to the tune of "Ruby Tuesday" it'll be strange if she returns in the fall. And although Andy Samberg (who may also be leaving) didn't get quite as obvious a farewell, his season-ending Digital Short -- which sequelized the skit that got launched the whole franchise seven years ago, "Lazy Sunday" -- suggested that it was a wrap for him as well. The only question mark now is Jason Sudeikis, another supposedly departing cast member who barely appeared in any sketches at all. While we wait for the formal announcement about casting changes, here are the episode's most memorable send-offs.
Bran Stark, Tomb Raider and other revelations from last night's Game of Thrones episode, "The Prince of Winterfell."
I'm one of the few people who isn't horribly annoyed by Hannah as a character or Lena Dunham as an actress, so the fact that she was front and center in this episode didn't bother me -- especially since it meant we got to see her parents again. (Raise your hand if you thought there'd be more exploration of her dad allegedly being gay!) What I didn't like about "The Return," however, is that the quality of its writing felt more like a student film -- especially in its pacing -- and that I instantly compared it to last year's dark comedy Young Adult. I know it's my own fault, but when you're writing about an unhappy and sexually frustrated young female writer coming back to her hometown from the big city with hopes to confront a few demons, it's hard not to draw a few comparisons. Unfortunately for Dunham, she's no Charlize Theron (to say the least) and so indulging in a proverbial trip home wasn't as powerful as it was supposed to be.
Let's all take a moment and breath a deep sigh of relief that last night's triple dose of Community won't be the last we see of the series outside of DVD viewing parties and its inevitable syndication run on Comedy Central. To the relief of many and the surprise of a few, NBC has renewed the series for one more 13-episode season, slated to air on Fridays in the fall. Naturally, we'd be happier with a full-season pick up, but an additional 286 minutes at Greendale is better than none at all.
I liked every storyline in "Tableau Vivant" and thought it was a pretty funny episode. The only problem with it, really, is that last week's episode was maybe the best of the season and the fact that Arrested Development will forever be (in my heart) the king of the live art episode with "In God We Trust." Unless Phil reveals he's a never-nude, that's probably how it's going to stay. In any event, let's take a look at the best moments of the night.
What can I say about Desperate Housewives? Once a clever, black humor soap opera about life as a woman in the suburbs, Marc Cherry's series eventually became a Sunday-evening afterthought that only the most devoted of fans watched and even then, it was mostly to see it end. In Season 1, it averaged 23.69 million viewers -- in Season 8, it never quite reached the 10 million mark. Now, Desperate Housewives has left us... and against all odds, takes a tiny bit of each fan down with it.
The leadership of Qarth goes from 13 to one and other highlights from last night's Game of Thrones episodes, "A Man Without Honor."
Something I really liked about "Hard Being Easy" is that the writers made it clear in this episode that our Girls leads are supposed to be selfish and completely unaware of what other people actually think of them or how they present themselves to the world... who knew?! That said, it wasn't my favorite installment so far this season -- I'd chalk it to up to too little Shoshanna -- though it did finally get me to realize that Jeff (Jessa's babysitting boss who obviously wants to sleep with her) is a dead ringer for Sister Wives star Kody Brown. So there's that. Let's get down to business and look at what did and didn't work.
I know I should probably be stressing out over Parks and Recreation still being in limbo for a Season 5 (at least as of this writing) while deciding whether "Win, Lose, or Draw" was better than last year's Season 3 finale, "Li'l Sebastian," but honestly, all I want to do right now is sit in a high-quality leather chair and reflect on a season of television that made me happy.
MOST RECENT POSTS
Modern Family: Best Lines of the Season 3 Finale
Saturday Night Live: The Most Memorable Farewells
Game of Thrones: Our Weekly Westeros Scorecard
Girls: The Good, the Bad and the Funny
Community: School's Out For Summer
Modern Family: Best Lines of the Night
Desperate Housewives: A Eulogy
Game of Thrones: Our Weekly Westeros Scorecard
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