Entertainment » James Poniewozik

Upfronts Watch: Fox Tinkers, NBC Laughs Through Its Tears

James Poniewozik — Tue, 15 May 2012 13:42:20 +0000

I was out of town yesterday as broadcast-network upfront season began, with NBC and Fox announcing their new fall schedules for advertisers. I’ll be attending and/or following the remaining announcements this week, and I’ll have some more thoughts on the new NBC and Fox shows later, when I’ve seen pilots, but here’s the quick-and-dirty on [...]

The Morning After: Smash Ends Its Season, With a Bombshell and a Whimper

James Poniewozik — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:24:06 +0000

Quick spoilers for the season finale of Smash below: …and so Smash concludes its first season as it began, wildly applauding for itself. The season-ender (NBC has announced the show will return in midseason next year) wrapped up the Karen-or-Ivy question by declaring itself Team Karen, and, apparently, assuming that we all were too. As [...]

Game of Thrones Watch: Prisoners and Free Folk

James Poniewozik — Mon, 14 May 2012 10:18:36 +0000

One issue resonates through this thrilling, horrifying episode: there are many ways to be imprisoned, and taking prisoners does not necessarily mean you are entirely free yourself.

Programming Note: Out of the Office, and Out at the Upfronts

James Poniewozik — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:23:01 +0000

I’m going to be away with the Tuned In family for a long weekend through Monday night, so I’m going to miss the first day of Upfronts Week, in which the major networks (on Monday, NBC and Fox) announce their fall schedules for advertisers. Fortunately, NBC and Fox have obliged me by announcing many of [...]

Dead Tree Alert: Mad Men—Now in Color!

James Poniewozik — Thu, 10 May 2012 12:43:42 +0000

My column in this week’s print TIME (subscription required) is a midseason update on Mad Men. In it, I look at how the show’s (literally) brighter, bolder 1966 color palette reflects (figuratively) the less subtle times it’s dealing with as well as the show’s bolder, more formally daring–and sometimes also less-subtle–storytelling this season. The show, [...]

TV Tonight: Around the World in 80 Plates

James Poniewozik — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:09:17 +0000

What do you get when you cross Top Chef with The Amazing Race? Sadly, disappointed.

NBC Gets a Jump on Upfronts with J.J. Abrams, Lots of Comedy

James Poniewozik — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:46:58 +0000

You may have heard that the NBC network has had a touch of trouble in the ratings lately. A slew of its new shows failed this season; Smash and Grimm will be back but have been, at best, far less than a smash and just better than grim; and its once must-see Thursday now does [...]

Girls Watch: You Gonna Put Up With That?

James Poniewozik — Tue, 08 May 2012 13:28:29 +0000

"Hannah's Diary" was themed around the question of how much the characters were willing to put up with in order to get something they need.

The Morning After: Is Veep Better Off Now Than It Was Two Episodes Ago?

James Poniewozik — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:41:47 +0000

At this point, you've seen as many episode of Veep as I had before I reviewed it. Does it have your vote?

Game of Thrones Watch: I Capture the Castle

James Poniewozik — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:10:45 +0000

In a busy, rushed episode, characters find that holding on to power is trickier than taking power, and that refusing to show mercy can be as dangerous as showing mercy.

TV Weekend: The Return of Sherlock

James Poniewozik — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:44:18 +0000

Thanks to inventive visuals and a captivating performance by Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock has figured out how to make thinking into a physical act.

The Morning After: American Idol Vs. The Voice

James Poniewozik — Thu, 03 May 2012 13:25:17 +0000

Why has NBC's singing show fallen back in the ratings? Idol, as familiar and even staid as it might be now, is designed to get more compelling as the competition goes along—whereas The Voice, if anything, is designed to get less so.

Mad Men Character Study: The Education of Sally Draper

James Poniewozik — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:43:22 +0000

Is it possible that Sally Draper is the secret protagonist of Mad Men? Her dad and his associates get more screen time, and they’ve done plenty to keep our attention this season. But it’s not uncommon for stories of the ’60s to be told from the perspective of the Baby Boomer kids who lived them–see [...]

Watching TV Without Cable? Fine. But You May Have to Pay for Cable Anyway

James Poniewozik — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:28:13 +0000

As some companies envision it, consumer choice for TV viewers is great--as long as every choice involves you giving money to a cable company.

The Morning After: You Can’t Go Home Again

James Poniewozik — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:57:45 +0000

Quick thoughts on the season finale of The Good Wife below: One concern I’d had as season 3 of The Good Wife went on was that the show might be attempting to hit the reset button, returning to the circumstances of the series’ beginnings, from having Cary return to the firm to giving Peter another [...]

Girls Watch: Ready for Their Close Up

James Poniewozik — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:07:12 +0000

With “All Adventurous Women Do,” you’ve now seen as many episodes of Girls as I’d seen before I reviewed it. Rather than recap the episode line by line, let me unpack two scenes from it that helped confirm I was sold on this show: the beginning and the end. I’ve written a lot in my [...]

Game of Thrones Watch: Three Wishes

James Poniewozik — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:18:01 +0000

The mysticism mounts and the death toll rises, in an episode that tells us power is not necessarily about having overwhelming force: sometimes it's about having a little bit, and leveraging it.

30 Rock Watch: Live-TV Love Letter

James Poniewozik — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:24:50 +0000

The last time 30 Rock did a live episode, I had a good time but didn't really want to see them try it again. A year and a half later, 30 Rock tried it again, and I'm happy that they did.

Best of Both Worlds: Fringe Gets One More (Final) Season

James Poniewozik — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:35:37 +0000

One mark of the way TV has matured as a storytelling form is that you can now be equally happy to hear that a show you love is getting renewed and that it’s going off the air. As dramas in particular tell more ambitious stories—ones that need to play out over years but that also [...]

Dead Tree Alert: The Year of the Nontroversy

James Poniewozik — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:21:44 +0000

Who’s nicer to dogs? Whose idiot supporters said more obnoxious things than the other guy’s idiot supporters? Who didn’t eat a cookie that it would have been more advisable for him to eat? These are some of the burning issues that have faced America as the general election of 2012 has gotten under way. And [...]