Musings on life and culture
by Sarah
Art, Classical and Popular Music, The West Wing, Allison Janney, Richard Schiff, Bradley Whitford, Aaron Sorkin, David Strathairn, Helena Bonham Carter, Tim Burton, Firefly, The X-Files, Battlestar Galactica, Mary McDonnell, Robert Downey Jr., Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, sci-fi goodness, as well as general geekdom...and possibly some insanity.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Thirty - Saddest character death
It’s very rare for me to cry during movies or TV shows. But I bawled at the end of Battlestar Galactica. Why? Laura Roslin. I thought her death was inevitable. Even though the creators of the show temporarily solved the problem of her terminal breast cancer in season 2, they still had the prophecy to deal with. I loved the mythos on Galactica, and really liked how they ended the show by bringing together the opera house scenes and even “the dying leader’s” death.
I hated that Laura had to die, but at the same time I know it was the right ending for her character. The relationship between her and Adama made it even sadder, but it was the right ending for his character, too. The whole show had a bittersweet ending.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Nine - Current TV show obsession
Um, Game of Thrones. It’s the beginning of this obsession, so it has tons of room to grow and mature and all that. But yes, it is an amazingly excellent show. I came into it really late, and I still haven’t read the books (I’m starting the first tonight!), so I’m a total newb. Only having seen the first season, my favorite characters are Eddard Stark, Catelyn Stark (who just kicks some serious ass), Daenerys Targaryen (!!!!! who kicks so much ass by the end it’s ridunkulous), and, by the end of the season, Tyrion Lannister. My hatred of the Lannisters is only quelled by Tyrion.
GOT has the kind of characters that you either love or hate, and I really found myself taking sides. You know you’re obsessed when you’re screaming at a TV screen in regard to the lives of fictional characters in a fantasy realm. Man, that’s good TV.
Also, my BSG and West Wing obsessions are still going strong, so they totally still count as current obsessions.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Eight - First TV show obsession
Well, it depends on “obsession.” The first show I marathoned through was Seinfeld, which I of course still love. But the first TV show I actually got involved in fandom-wise was Studio 60, which was unfortunately short lived. Had I known what fandom was and been a bit older, I’m pretty sure I would have been very into The West Wing’s online fanbase, seeing as my Sorkin obsession is pretty intense. Studio 60 is going to win this one, because thought I was already involved in some other fandoms, it introduced me to the world of TV fandom.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Seven - Best pilot episode
I loved Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip’s pilot. It hit its stride pretty instantly, and I loved the introductions to all the characters. I think that Sorkin is exceptionally good at pilots. Look at The West Wing’s pilot, or even Sports Night’s. He introduces characters very well, comes up with situations that are both dramatic and hysterical, and gets you caring about his shows from the start.
30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Six - WTF? finale
That’s a tie. The first one is The West Wing’s season one finale, in which shots are fired after a presidential lecture in Virginia. The screen goes black, and we hear secret service agents yelling that people are hit. Then the season ends. It’s pretty freaking suspenseful. Thankfully I didn’t have to wait more than three days for season two.
The second is Battlestar Galactica’s season two finale. There’s a skip in time after Gaius Baltar wins the presidency. Not a few days. Not a few months. A YEAR. We skip a year in about 30 seconds, and find the Colonials settled on the dusthole that is New Caprica. And once we’ve got a general idea of what the characters are doing, the cylons come back. And the season ends. Those last shots, of cylon raiders streaking across the sky and centurions taking the city, are reminiscent of the Nazis storming Paris. It’s pretty chilling.
Two honorable mentions! The first season of BSG is evil, with my man Adama getting shot. And the first season of Game of Thrones was amazing, with Daenerys’ rise and her kickass baby dragons. I’m a sucker for season finales.
30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Five - A show you plan on watching
At this moment the first one that comes to mind is The X-Files, which I have seen intermittent episodes of but have never watched through entirely. It’s one of those massively popular shows with a huge fandom, so I know if I start watching and get really into it, it’ll be a huge commitment. I apparently have commitment issues.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty Four - Best quote
Tom Zarek: You have to think about the people of this fleet now, and surrender.
President Laura Roslin: No. Not now. Not ever. Do you hear me? I will use every cannon, every bomb, every bullet, every weapon I have down to my own eye teeth to end you! I swear it! I’m coming for all of you!
Yes. This.
30 Days of TV Challenge: Day 23 - Most annoying character
At the moment I’m going to have to say Joffrey Baratheon from Game of Thrones. He surpasses ‘annoying.’ That little cut-throat, inbred weasel is…frustrating, to say the least. He makes my blood pressure skyrocket, and did from that very first shot of him when the royals visit Winterfell in the first episode. If a fictional character can do that to you, you know his despicableness is exceptionally well written and acted. ha
Notable mentions are Gaius Baltar from BSG, Amy Gardner on The West Wing, and Amber on House.
30 Days of TV Challange: Day Twenty Two - Favorite series finale
Most finales disappoint me, I gotta say. There’s all that build up and expectation, and it’s really difficult to live up to. There are a few shows who memorably had good finales. I quite liked the Battlestar Galactica finale. NYPD Blue’s was pretty nifty. But, arguably, one of the greatest finales of all time was the M*A*S*H finale. My goodness was that good television. Yes, there were most definitely tears involved.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty One - Favorite ship
I’m gonna assume that this means ship as in relationship and not ship as in, well, ship (though both come from the same show!). Adama/Roslin from Battlestar Galactica wins this one out with no contest. I would even venture out to say that their friendship and romance was one of the best relationships in TV history. Their transformation from enemies to allies, and then from friends to lovers, was characterized masterfully. They were almost mythic, the leaders of humanity who took solace in each other.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Twenty - Best kiss
The Adama/Roslin kiss from The Oath probably wins this. That’s such an amazing scene, and I felt that Mary McDonnell and Eddie Olmos played it to its emotional extreme. The characters don’t know if they’re ever going to see each other again, and after such a long, tumultuous friendship and romance, I feel like this was a wonderful climactic point. Plus there’s that HORRID cliffhanger after it. Just a great moment overall.
Oh, and there’s the added bonus of the kiddies all standing around awkwardly. teehee
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Nineteen - Best TV show cast
The cast of The West Wing in its first four seasons was perfect. They were extremely lucky to get a group of actors with such great chemistry. It felt like, from the very first episode, Martin Sheen and John Spencer were old friends. Same thing with Allison Janney and Richard Schiff. Then there’s the brotherly connection between Schiff and Rob Lowe, and the bantering perfection of Bradley Whitford and Janel Maloney. I really can’t think of a show with that much talent in its cast.
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30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Eighteen - Favorite title sequence
Even though I just started watching it, I think I’m going to go with Game of Thrones. The titles are really well conceived, and the music is also quite awesome. I love BSG’s titles also, but my one complaint with them was they never changed the footage throughout the whole show. It was all from the miniseries! So GoT wins.
30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Seventeen - Favorite miniseries
Does the BSG miniseries count? No, I’ll use something else. I loved From the Earth to the Moon. It documented the space race of the 60’s, with a new director and creative staff every episode. I’ve always been fascinated by space, and if you are too, definitely go for this series.
30 Days of TV Challenge: Day Sixteen - Your guilty pleasure show
Oh. Well. I do watch me some Project Runway, and as I am mightily opposed to reality TV, I have some guilt. Yeah, there’s some definite guilt there. But I love fashion, and I want to be Tim Gunn’s best friend, so that show works out for me.
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