Week 2: So Many Critics!

Roger Ebert
I first discovered Roger Ebert while I was taking my Junior Composition course last summer. Roger Ebert recently passed away last month of cancer. What I enjoyed about Ebert's movie reviews is that he would judge movies based on content and with reason. If he felt like a movie deserved a good rating, he would explain the reasoning. For example, in his review on Cloud Atlas, anyone who has viewed this movie should know that it can be difficult to decipher. What Ebert did to address this is that he took the film as a riddle. It was a great movie and a great opportunity for its actors and directors. He commented on the director's success on breaking the chains of the narrative continuity. Ebert gave Cloud Atlas a pretty good rating. To get the other end of the movie rating spectrum, I read Ebert's review on The Human Centipede. I have never watched this film, but I find iEbert's response to The Human Centipede hilarious.

"I am required to award stars to movies I review. This time, I refuse to do it. The star rating system is unsuited to this film. Is the movie good? Is it bad? Does it matter? It is what it is and occupies a world where the stars don't shine."

Ebert takes it how it is and doesn't give a rating because the movie is certainly "different".

http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/cloud-atlas-2012
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-human-centipede-2010

Leonard Maltin
I've read some of Maltin's movie reviews, they are systematic compared to Ebert's articles. This, of course, is not a bad quality. In Maltin's review on Cloud Atlas, Maltin deciphers Cloud Atlas by separating the movie into phases. Phase 1 is to set the environment, phase 2 is to understand the story, and phase 3 is to see the story conclude. Although I disagree with Maltin in his systematic approach concerning Cloud Atlas (not everything can or needs to be answered), I commend Maltin because he tried. In the end, Maltin comments that Cloud Atlas tries to reveal the audience's optimistic or pessimistic view of mankind and that love conquers all. I'm not so sure that I agree with Maltin's conclusion that Cloud Atlas is a story of where love conquers all,  but I suppose it is a good thing to see that there are opinions that contrast with mine. It is never a bad thing to hear two ends of the story.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/critic/leonard-maltin/
http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmaltin/cloud-atlas

Adam Sessler
Back when I first discovered TechTV and X-Play on television, Adam Sessler became one of the first video game critics that I actively watched. Whenever Sessler would review a game, he would be relentless and tell the audience the hard truth. Whether he loved the game or was just plain outraged, he would always express what he felt. He was recently fired by G4TV last April for some unexplained reason and now is an executive producer at a new revision3.com. There is never a dull moment with Adam Sessler. He definitely is one of the most influential people in the video game industry.

http://revision3.com/host/adam-sessler
http://kotaku.com/5991439/internet-killed-the-video-star-the-extraordinary-journey-of-adam-sessler

Week 1: Slate articles

Although I do not read many articles from critics like Alan Sepinwall or Josh Levin, these two articles had an interesting view on what it means to write about television. In Levin’s first article, The TV Guide he asks if it is possible to be a rabid fan and a thoughtful reviewer at the same time. For example, Levin is trying to analyze where the line is where someone simply becomes a fan writing about a show like Lost or a critic writing about Lost.

To answer this, Levin states that for a week-to-week critic, being a fan is an occupational requirement. “You wouldn’t commit yourself to writing 24 weekly reviews of a series unless you liked it” (Murray). Meaning that it is definitely possible to be a fan of a show and a critic at the same time.

In the second article, Levin goes even further in depth as to say although it is true that you wouldn’t commit yourself to writing 24 weekly reviews of a series unless you liked it, but it is still worth pondering where to draw the line between writing about TV and cheerleading for it. In this article, Levin now asks although it is good to be a fan about a series you write about, when does it simply become endorsement for the show. For example, Levin remarks on Sepinwall’s intentions when he made a cameo appearance on Community, a show where Sepinwall reviewed each week. Sepinwall does make a statement saying that he does regret his Community cameo because of the blurring of the line it caused. It questioned his own standards as a critic of the show.

As for the two links I decided to follow, I chose to take a look at Levin’s link to Lost and Sepinwall’s deviation from the guidelines of the New York Time ethics policy. 

In the Lost article, it was about how there were many fans for example, Chadwick Matlin, the writer of this article that really enjoyed the show because of its storyline on redemption. He argues that the finale of the show during the sixth season fundamentally changed Lost’s thematic message very abruptly and without regard to style. I agree with Matlin’s statement here, while I was watching Lost I enjoyed the show because it was always about trying to better yourself and live on. In regards to the finale of Lost I also thought it was rather rushed. I certainly did not feel content with it.

In the second article I read, I followed it because of Levin’s remark that although Sepinwall is a fantastic critic, some of his behavior would not be kosher if he operated under the New York Times policy. This is probably due to the fact that New York Times has a strong image of being reliable because they maintain a neutral standpoint in their articles. Sepinwall, on the other hand, broke his neutrality by making a cameo appearance on Community and by his questionable intentions when writing about Chuck. Was Sepingwall writing just to please his audience of Chuck?

While looking through the comments of both articles, there has been some conversation in both of them. But from what I read I enjoyed what Miles McNutt was saying in regards to Sepinwall's coverage of the show Chuck. McNutt simply states that he does not think that Sepinwall has been tainted as a critic or that some of his objectivity has been tarnished. Instead, McNutt states that Sepinway and himself simply do not watch Chuck in the same way.

Week 1: Lists of Shows

1. Shows I've been watching since school’s been out

• Game of Thrones
• The Walking Dead
• Breaking Bad

I really like the storyline in Game of Thrones, there is always something that keeps me interested. I recently started to read the books and it is amazing.

I first heard about The Walking Dead while I was taking my freshman English course. My professor was pretty interested in the zombie sub-genre and she introduced us to the Walking Dead comic. I was really excited to hear it became a TV show and I've been following it ever since.

I started watching Breaking Bad because I saw it on Netflix, I really like the characters in this show. I especially like seeing the character development of Walter White. (I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't watched it)


2. Peripheral Shows -- Shows I watch because someone else is watching them

• The Mighty Boosh
• Bad Education
• QI - Quite Interesting
• Top Gear - UK only.
• Black Books
• Family Guy 
• Futurama

My roommate introduces me to a lot of British Television shows. I think they are more interesting than American. I enjoy British Comedy over American.

As for Family Guy and Futurama, I used to watch these shows all the time at home, but I've stopped and only watch these shows if somebody else is watching them.


3. Guilty No-Go -- Shows I think I should watch because other people like them

• Seinfeld

Seinfeld is a pretty popular show I hear, but I'd only watch it if I were in a hospital bed or something. I'd watch a couple other things before watching Seinfeld.


4. Guilty Pleasures

• Power Rangers
• Justice League
• Power Puff Girls

I used to watch these shows all the time as a child. I always liked how the Power Rangers had their robots transform into a bigger robot to combine their powers. As for the Justice League and Power Puff Girls... I suppose I generally enjoy shows that have some sort of superpower. Plus, Mojo Jo-Jo is just hilarious.


5. All-Time Favorites

• Doctor Who

I started to watch Doctor Who a couple years ago when Christopher Eccleston was still The Doctor. I've loved this show ever since and I don't think I can ever stop.


6. Shows I used to like, but not anymore

• Dragon Ball Z
• Heroes

I used to watch Dragon Ball Z after school. I've tried re-watching DBZ, but I can't take it seriously anymore. There are just too many "powering up" scenes. 

As for Heroes. My friend and I were all about this show when it aired during high-school. But after the first season, it just got less and less interesting.


7. Shows I resisted for a long time, but now I'm a fan

• Lost 
• Game of Thrones

I first heard of Lost during high-school, but I didn't watch it because I thought it was a reality show like Survivor. When I found this show on Netflix, my friend recommended that I watch it and told me it was a supernatural/Sci-Fi, I gave it another chance and couldn't stop watching. 

I didn't watch Game of Thrones at first because I thought it was just a medieval show. Then, when I found out there were zombie-like creatures (White Walkers), I instantly became interested and started to watch it. I was also watching The Walking Dead at the time and I wanted another zombie show. When I also found out about the dragons and the amazing storyline, Game of Thrones became a favorite.

 
8. Shows I would rather eat charcoal than watch these shows

• Some Reality Shows
• Here Comes Honey Boo Boo
• Jersey Shore
• Recent Cartoon Network Shows
• Adventure Time
• Chowder
• Regular Show

I generally don't like shows like Here Comes Honey Boo Boo or Jersey Shore, these shows do not interest me whatsoever.

I tried watching some recent Cartoon Network Shows like Adventure Time and Regular Show, but I from what I've seen a lot of it is just nonsense and I cannot make myself sit and watch these shows.  


9. Anime and other Cartoons I enjoy

• One Piece
• Hunter x Hunter
• Sword Art Online
• Yu Yu Hakusho
• Samurai Jack
• Avatar the Last Airbender
• The Legend of Korra
• Dexter's Labratory

I grew up watching Japanese Anime and other cartoons. As a child, I always enjoyed drawing and making little animations. These shows are just my favorites.