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First Look: ABC's Defying Gravity

BuzzSugar — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:30:34 -0700

From everything I've read about ABC's upcoming series Defying Gravity, it's apparently something like the lovechild of Grey's Anatomy, Battlestar Galactica, and Lost . . . in space. The show follows eight astronauts - four men, four women - from a variety of countries who go up into space and, I guess, get it on. Reportedly, though, there'll be more than just soapy space shuttle romance: "some sci-fi elements will be heartily sprinkled throughout, including side-effects that affect each astronaut differently and a mysterious power that controls their final destination."

The promo video for Defying Gravity makes me giggle, but maybe it's just a matter of getting used to weekly space sex? I don't know. The 13-episode run will start Aug. 2 with a two-hour premiere. To check out the video for yourself, read more.

Check It: Season Five Preview For Lost

BuzzSugar — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 10:30:59 -0700

Here we go: a preview for the next season of Lost, which starts up in February 2009. The first part of the preview is a montage of certain plot points we've learned in the past, setting us up for some new footage we can look forward to in season five. After the fourth season with all the Oceanic Six stuff, the next season appears to deal with those six going back to the island:

Jack: "Everyone we left behind, they'd die too if I didn't come back."
Ben: "Well, thank God for second chances."

Want to check out the video and chat about it? Just read more.

24 Prequel, "Redemption," Looks Intense, Scary

BuzzSugar — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 07:00:26 -0700

I've had a love-hate relationship with 24 for a long time, now. When it's bad, it's preposterously bad, but when it's good, it's one of the best things ever. Like, jumping off the couch yelling, kind of thing. But whenever I return to the "hate" side, I always hope there will be something to lure me back.

The preview for the show's two-hour "event" in November might be just the bait. There's more of the same ol' 24 antics (Jack enduring outrageous horrors, Jack screaming urgently at pretty much everyone, an astounding barrage of gunfire - none of which manages to affect our hero at all), but this time Jack Bauer is "battling an international crisis" in war-torn Africa. Meanwhile, our shady Tom Lennox (Peter MacNicol) chats with the new President of the United States who is, in 24's timely fashion, a woman.

The seventh season doesn't actually begin until 2009, but this two-hour "prequel" will air Nov. 23. To watch the intense preview, read more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

TV Preview: True Blood

BuzzSugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:42:31 -0700

I don't think it will be a revolutionary statement that how one feels about Alan Ball's new HBO series, True Blood, will have a lot to do with how one generally feels about vampires. Me, they've never really been my thing; they're OK and all, but the mere mention of fangs wouldn't necessarily get me to tune in. This review, then, is for (and by) the vampire-agnostic.

So here's the takeaway: I don't doubt at all that True Blood could develop into a deeply fascinating series for people at all points on the vampire-fan spectrum. But in the two episodes HBO sent me, the vampire parts were something I just needed to get through so I could get back to Alan Ball's witty writing in the more human realm. The second episode is stronger than the first; I've heard from some critics who got a full batch of five episodes that each one gets better. But the fate of many a TV series has been determined in episode one, and in True Blood's case, that's cause for some concern.

True Blood's protagonist is Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a Louisiana waitress with an unfortunate "gift" for reading people's minds that makes her daily life a struggle to tune out the thoughts of those around her. It's somewhat of a relief, then, when a pale stranger named Bill (Stephen Moyer) settles himself into her bar one night and asks for a drink of Tru Blood, the synthetic blood substitute that has made it possible for vampires to live among humans. Sookie can't read his mind but still quickly figures out that Bill's a vampire; "Am I that obvious?" he drawls in return. Why yes; you just asked for fake blood at a bar at night. It's not hard to guess. For more on the highs and lows of True Blood, just read more.

What Ball has done best - in American Beauty, and then in Six Feet Under - is give a voice to people's unspoken fears: that intimacy is scary, that suburbia is soul-sucking, that death is really the end, or not the end. I'm not convinced that talent translates to the unspoken fears of the immortal. Bill's lines are the clunkiest, his characterization spotty. The second episode fixes that somewhat, giving Bill a set of chivalrous, 1800s manners, but in the first episode, I had a hard time understanding why Sookie was so attracted to this bloodsucker.

Part of that might be because of Sookie, who also could use a little more character development. Sometimes she's a Southern tart; sometimes she's a complete innocent. The second episode hints more at her family backstory, which was a relief; every little bit I learned about her helped. But in the first episode, I had such a hard time justifying her actions that finally I gave up trying to make rational sense of it.

The Sookie/Bill story gets some support from wild cast of supporting characters, some successful and some less so. To date, my favorites are Sookie's "My stars!"-saying grandmother and her sassy best friend, Tara, who can't stop running her mouth. Sookie's brother, the lady-crazed Jason, is introduced in a fairly odd way, but there's enough hinting at a dark past that I'm curious about him.

There's been a lot made of True Blood's sex and violence (or, maybe more accurately, violent sex), and it's true - there's a lot of it. There's definitely a spirit of abandon about the whole thing, which is something Ball's other shows have definitely lacked. It's more melodrama than drama, despite the occasional heavy reminders about how vampires are an oppressed class just trying to find their way in a world set on denying them their rights, and at times it's very, very enjoyable. But is it enough to - sorry, sorry - sink your teeth into? Well . . . that might well just depend on how you feel about vampires.

Source

TV Preview: Alan Ball's Next HBO Show, True Blood

BuzzSugar — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:30:03 -0700

At Comic-Con, I was lucky enough to catch some footage of True Blood, Alan Ball's (Six Feet Under, American Beauty) HBO adaptation of the book series by Charlaine Harris, and I was hooked. Now there's a trailer for the series, which premieres on HBO Sept. 7, so we can all discuss the show: whether or not it looks to be of the same caliber as Six Feet Under, how distracting the Southern accent attempts may be, how smitten we are or are not by Anna Paquin in this role, etc.

In the series, Paquin plays a telepathic waitress in a Louisiana town who meets a vampire when he walks into her bar and she discovers she can't read his mind.

Have you read these books? Does the show look like it will do the book series justice? To watch the preview for True Blood, read more.

Source

TV Preview: Secret Diary of a Call Girl

BuzzSugar — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:15:18 -0700

Watching Secret Diary of a Call Girl, which starts tonight on Showtime, is like getting let in on the juiciest piece of gossip ever. The show is sly and slick, pulling back the curtain on the world of sex-for-money in London and leaving you feeling like the ultimate insider.

The show stars Billie Piper as Belle, a high-class hooker - and the alter ego of Hannah, an everyday gal who prefers jeans and books to corsets and stilettos. In the first couple of episodes, Belle explains, in blunt and clever language, the mechanics of her job: Keep two closets and two cell phones, take the money first, give the client what he wants - and don't be afraid to enjoy it.

There's surprisingly little sex in Call Girl (and some of it is more funny than salacious, like when Belle puts a saddle on a particularly dorky, heavily sideburned client who has a thing for horses). The real seduction comes from Piper, who's eminently watchable as the confident, sassy Belle. Belle often speaks directly to the camera, not unlike Carrie in the early episodes of Sex and the City, but the narration doesn't seem forced or awkward. Indeed, it's all part of the fun, with Piper tossing her hair, cocking an eyebrow, and looking - it seems - right at you as she reveals another trick of her trade. It's clear, from the first few episodes, why people seem to fall in love with Belle left and right. I know I did.

The series premieres tonight at at 10:30 p.m. EDT and PDT. No Showtime (or can't wait)? You can check out the first two episodes online right now. To watch a preview with Belle talking about her life as a call girl, just read more.

TV Preview: Farmer Wants a Wife

BuzzSugar — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 08:15:25 -0700

When a network sends you a DVD screener, and the envelope is filled with real-life farm hay (completely with real-life farm smell), it's never a good sign. That, though, is exactly how my screener copy of Farmer Wants a Wife, a new CW reality show that premieres April 30, showed up at Sugar HQ. Once I dug the paperwork out from the hay, I learned that the show ships 10 city girls off to the country to compete for the affections of a tanned, frequently shirtless small-time farmer named Matt.

Of course, the women will be put through a series of farm-related tasks, including cattle milking, tractor riding, and corn picking. They'll have to adjust to life in a town with a population of 351 (or, well, 361 now), and they'll have to deal with all of the other country-wannabes as they live together in a farm house. Basically, it's like every other reality dating show you've ever seen, but with more flannel and cowboy hats.

Honestly, this one baffles me. Do women in general find farmers that sexy? Is that the question I'm even supposed to be asking? And, when it comes down to it, is this better or worse for the state of humanity than Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious? To check out the trailer and judge for yourself, just read more.

Photo courtesy of The CW

Get Lost in 8 Minutes and 15 Seconds

BuzzSugar — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 13:00:00 -0800

For anyone who didn't get into Lost right at the very beginning, all of its complex twists and complicated mythology must seem pretty intimidating. ABC clearly realizes this, and so in preparation for the premiere of the fourth season on Jan. 31, the network has released a video summarizing all three seasons in eight minutes and 15 seconds. That number itself is a reference to the number of the flight that crashed in the ocean to kick off the series, and it's just one of a zillion numerical clues you new-to-Lost folks have to look forward to. To check it out read more

Crazy Previews Galore: Extended Lost Season 4 and Heroes Volume 3!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:30:57 -0800

I know we already got a 30-second preview of the next season of Lost - currently scheduled to air on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m., starting January 31 - but now there's an even longer trailer with quite a bit more information, including another clip of future Jack yelling at future Kate that they "have to go back!" The anticipation for this next season of Lost is crazy. I can't wait for January 31!

As for Heroes, some footage has popped up online of the next volume "Villains." Apparently, some scenes from Episodes 12 and 13 were shot before the writers strike and this footage was shown at, of all places, the Jules Verne Adventure Film Festival of Los Angeles. So . . . there's that. The video is rather murky and we can't make much out besides Sylar being evil as usual, but it's fun to get a little sneaky peek at the next volume. Also, the video is pretty heavy on shots of Angela Petrelli, so maybe we'll actually clearly see her using her powers in the next episodes.

To geek out a bit with the previews for Lost and Heroes, read more

Lost Season 4 Extended Trailer:

Heroes Volume 3 Footage:

TV Preview: "John from Cincinnati"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 08:15:00 -0700

"John from Cincinnati," the newest drama in HBO's lineup, is described as a "surf noir" - and that's only the start of the craziness with this series. For one thing, Luke Perry (yes, that one) is in the cast. For another, characters can levitate and raise the dead. It sounds like a supernatural "Six Feet Under" from the mind behind "Deadwood," and the promos look so intriguing I'll have to see the show to believe it. The show starts at 10 p.m. Sunday after the series finale of "The Sopranos," then takes over Tony & co.'s 9 p.m. time slot the following week. To watch a couple of clips, read more