SUMMER TV!!!!

Lets be honest , the first half of summer TV sucks!!! Everything ends, your left with crappy reality shows or random new shows that the networks are hoping might do something. The second half of the summer however is great , You got big premieres and then its not long till Fall TV starts.


Without a doubt the No.1 Summer Premiere that i have been waiting for is Breaking Bad Season 4. Did Jessie kill Gail???? (i hope so) Did the Chicken Man have Walter killed? THe only thing i can think about is the chilling end to last season with Jessie standing in the doorway pointing a gun at Gail, realizing he doesnt want to kill him , but basically its Gail or He and Walter.
It's situations like that, that make me love Breaking Bad. Its such a morally challenging show , How far will you go to get what you want and protect the ones you love??? Thats the world Walter White finds himself in , Here is a guy who was a mild mannered boring Chemistry Teacher in season 1 , now with Season 4 getting set to open he is fighting for his life as a meth chemist for a drug kingpin. Walter has killed people, watched people die and will definitely probably have to do more of the same.
The writing on Breaking Bad is spectacular , Acting is amazing , its just very very well done. According to Show Creator Vince Gilligan the show will end after Season 5, So two seasons left to end this story. I just dont see this one having a happy ending , i think it has to end with Walter dead either at the hands of Drug Kingpins or by a cancer relapse , he may or not have been able to take care of his family and its 50/50 whether Jason makes it or not. All i know is i will be there every step of the way with Mr.White for the ride!!!!



Next would be the final season of Entourage, now wait NO i am not trying to put Entourage in the same class as Breaking Bad , Entourage is definitely more of a guilty pleasure type show. It does have some great acting in it by certain people, Ari Gold (jeremy Piven) is a great character but other than him the best thing Entourage delivers is a inside look at hollywood and a guy fantasy of what it would be like to be super rich with your buddies. There are some funny moments of crude-guy humor. Entourage is a show i have been in on from the beginning and will see through to the end and part of me will definitely be sad to see it go.

Others im looking forward to unfortunately wont be coming on till late august- earlly September when Fall Tv gets kicking again.
Sons of Anarchy Season 4- This is a new love but one im definitely all in now. Cant wait to see what Jax and the boys in Charming have waiting for them when they get out of Jail.

Dexter Season 6- Now there are Dexter haters out there now including my boy who is on this very blog. I am the first to admit the Season Finale to Season 5 sucked Donkey Balls. It was the worst season finale of the 5. With that being said I have been in on Dexter from the beginning and it has been one of the top shows on tv consistently from the beginning. THere is a silver lining to Dexter , they finally started to hint at what the eventual end of the show will be , the ultimate confrontation when who Dexter truly is gets revealed to Deb and what she chooses to do. Will she be Harry and try to embrace it , or will she Capture or kill her murdering brother??? I personally believe that the sixth season could be it , they might could squeeze a seventh but i dont know , either way i look for it to rebound this year and will not give up on Mr. Morgan.
I believe my boy Dearing and i plan to either relaunch this blog or get a new one going and be a little more active in bloggin once our shows come back on. It should give us a little more material for you the reader of the media hero.

THE FAB FIVE

I know , I know this the Media Hero but i gotta touch the sports page a documentary film sparked this so HEY, it qualifies.
The Fab Five were a group of freshman baskettball recruits at the University of Michigan in the early 1990's. They were all together for 2 years , and went to national title games losing both. The fab five were a polarizing group who had a us against the world mentality. The documentary shows the crazy fanatical college fan, really asks the question should college players be paid? and were the fab five a bunch of thugs?
Before i get into the meet of the documentary i wanna talk about my interest in the fab five. These guys more or less opened my eyes to college basketball, I knew it existed previous to them , but they were the first team that ever peaked my interest and caused me to be a fan of college hoops. I was a massive fan of Michigan hoops , even going so far as stealing my older brother's michigan gear , wearing it to school and putting it back in his closet when i got home.

Chris Webber,Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose ,Jimmy King and Ray Jackson made up the Fab five. They all committed to Michigan and are considered to be one of the greatest recruiting classes of all time, all five were in the top 50 in the nation , which is something unheard of in baskettball. They stepped on campus and begin to have a big influence on college sports. They brought the "Michael Jordan look" to ncaa hoops , that being getting away from the short shorts of the 80's and going to the baggy shorts that are so popular now. As freshman they made there way through the tournament and came up just a little short against Duke in the National Title game.
Beyond just general interest because I was a big Fab Five fan growing up , there were two fascinating things that came out in this documentary. The first being the financial impact these guys had on the Univeristy of Michigan. They showed a chart showing that in the couple of previous years to there arrival Michigan made 1.5 dollars in merchandise and gear sold. In the following two years the number went up to 10.5 MILLION DOLLARS!!! This is a complete and total different argument , but that to me makes a case that College athletes should be paid.
THe second thing was the incredible amount of racism this group faced from fans. The crazy thing about that is alot of it wasnt from other schools , it was from Michigan alums and boosters. People who didnt like the fact here was group of black guys who played with a swagger and had an attitude. They showed a bunch of letters that were sent to both Coach Steve Fisher and the players themselves that had profanity laced racist tirades including calling the guys the "n" word. I just thought that was truly shocking here your team is a National Power and your sending offensive letters out to your team. Then of course we have the emphamis TIMEOUT.









As i said earlier the fab five made two straight title games the second loss ended in spectacular fashion. So the crew roles into the 92 title game the odds on favorite against North Carolina. Michigan is down 2 at the end of the game , they have no timeouts, Chris Webber gets the ball , walks (ref's dont call it) dribbles up the floor and calls a timeout. Well when you dont have a timeout and call one , it results in a techincal foul. Michigan went on to lose , Webber went onto the NBA and the fab five was no more. The crazy thing about this is that 20 years later all five guys remain friends and they dont speak about it. Chris Webber has never spoken about it. Dont get me wrong I would be devastated by that , but Never speaking about it seems really crazy to me.
A few years later after the guys were in the NBA or in Jimmy and Ray's case being in the buisness world it came out that there were some under the table things at Michigan. It came out that Chris received in the neighborhood of 300,000 dollars from a booster. Hmmm maybe thats why he decided Michigan over Duke?? The booster gave Jalen money as well but not near as much as Chris. Chris plead guilty to perjury chargers for lying to a grand jury. Michigan went under a 10 year ban of not recognizing that Chris Webber was a part of the University.
The Fab Five did leave a legacy , Uniforms in College basketball , Black Socks , They were the beginning of UnderClassmen making an impact in College Basketball. This documentary was shot from a very pro Fab Five perspective, they called themselves "Revolutionary" , now i was a big fan , still am but i cant agree with this. I think you have to win a National Title to boast like these guys do. The Fab Five are defintiely infamous , and will be remembered but revolutionary??? I dont think so. Nonetheless it was another masterful documentary in the ESPN 30 for 30 Franchise and a must watch for Sports fan in my opinnion.

That was EPIC... now what?

So after a week without 'church', the Big Dawg and myself called everyone (Blake, Caty and I) to the table last night to knock out the rest of Season 3 of Sons of Anarchy. We had three episodes to go and the clock was already at about 9 oclock when we fired the first one up. It was inevitably going to be a late night. The episodes flew by and the frustration and confusion grew quickly in me. I thought I had an idea to how this season was going to conclude based on what I saw and I was almost completely right. If you have not gotten to the finale of season three PLEASE click the following link and don't read this post until you are finished watching the season... Spoilers are coming.

Full Episodes of Sons

Ok... seriously stop reading if you haven't already seen the finale. I don't want to be the one that ruins the greatness for you.

So we get to the finale with a feeling of complete and utter chaos in my opinion for the club. Jax is a borderline rat, Opie is on the verge of re-marriage to a porn star, bail hearings are looming, Gemma is still on the run, and oh yeah Tara has been rescued BUT she is preggers. The build up from some friends that had already been through season 3 worried me about this finale. Season 2 was some of the better television I had seen and as we know from other shows I love (cough cough Dexter) there is always the potential for complete let down after a much hyped and built up finale.

There is so much I can say about this episode but I don't want to get into deep detail. We learned ever further that Stahl is a cold hearted bitch. She would do anything to keep her nose clean and become the "big time" ATF agent she wants to be... even if it means offing her lesbian lover. Gemma is willing to go to jail forever to save her son from what could happen if he does become the rat. Tara is diving even further into her role as Jax's Old Lady. Tig and Cosik are fighting over a damn dog (Sutter please revisit this next season!). There is so MUCH going on and the club is basically broke.

Then the Russians enter and are willing to sell Jimmy to the Sons for 2 mil. Chucky the Maturbator gets some fake scrilla and makes it happen. This is where all hell breaks loose. The show has focused for about 6 episodes on how Jax's is 'in bed with the devil' Agent Stahl. Well he signs over his information and statement to her and she then rats on him to his club starting an uproar in front of the shop. Long story short... the club was in on Jax working with Stahl all along and Unser joins up as his last hoorah in Charming as chief and tricks Stahl into telling her agents to leave. Piney and the boys show up. Chibs gives Jimmy an Italian Smile and a knife in the chest, Opie gives Stahl the "Donna Treatment". The Boys rip up Jax's deal with Stahl that outs the IRA as gun runners, but keep the shortened jail time clause. Jax and all the boys laugh it up when they know everything is cool.

Can I just officially shift my allegiance in the club over from Jax to Opie? I have been wavering alittle between the two for two season now but after the Stahl vs. Opie match at the end of the last episode and the complete and utter calmness he shows before he blows her head off... Opie is the man.

Next season has ALOT of potential. Tara knows how John Teller died now, The Russians are pissed, Hale is the new mayor, and the sheriffs run Charming... not to mention the majority of the club is in jail from anywhere from 14 months to 3 years.

I am ready for Season 4 and it is so damn far away!

So here I sit, Medio Hero, in the same predicament I wrote about 3 months ago. This time I am pleased with the finale of the show I just watched... unlike Dexter (still bitter can't you tell)... and I have 4 months till Breaking Bad comes back... I have 4 months till my wedding... and 6 months till Sons and Dexter come back on. I need something to fill my time. The Big Dawg suggests The Shield. I am going to do a run through of Spartacus for sure then probably jump on The Shield.

For those fo you still wondering... I was up till almost 1 last night thinking about the finale and getting ready for work today... woke up at 545. Life is tough in a MC sometimes.

JD

The Ricky Gervais Show

There has been alot of posts about TV shows here , and here is another one. Ive got another show rocketing up my favorite lists , The Ricky Gervais Show on HBO. In its inception it was a podcast with Ricky Gervais , Stephen Merchant, Karl Pilkington, now it is an Animated 30 minutes eries for HBO.


The show's namesake and most famous star is Ricky Gervais, Ricky who starred as David Brent in The Original Office in England. Ricky is also the exec producer of the American Office , has starred in multiple movies and done numerous standup specials. Ricky is known most notably right now for his quite abrasive run hosting The Golden Globes.I thought he was hilarious , but there is no doubt he left a bad taste in alot of people's mouths.


Stephen Merchant is the man behind the man when it comes to Ricky Gervais. Steven is Ricky's close friend co writer and co-creator on most everything Ricky is involved in. Steve can be seen without Ricky in the upcoming Farrelly Brothers movie Hall pass.


The Star of this show is undoubtebly Karl Pilkington , Karl is not an actor or comedian(at least on purpose) he was a radio producer that Stephen and Ricky met when they had a show on british radio. Karl is one of a kind and has very unique opinions on everything. Karl is the source of most of the comedy in the show.


The show is real basic , being taken straight from there podcast , its an animated show with Ricky, Steve and Karl sitting around a table and talking, what you do when doing a podcast. They discuss different scenarios and stories and there are animated cartoons that follow. The Show to me really boils down to 2 elements Karl offering his unique and most of the time Crazy opinions , or stories. Then there are Steve and Ricky's reactions which usually is Ricky laughing uncontrollably , telling Karl he is an idiot , calling Karl's story "bollucks" (the british word for balls) or telling Karl "Don't talk S**T!) accusing him of lying.
An example of Karl would be Karl explaining how he came up with a good idea for a movie on the spot saying " if you just talk i find that your mouth comes out with stuff" If you use your brain sometimes it doesnt happen just keep talking and eventually your brain will come out with stuff. Karl also writes poetry on the last episode he debuted a poem of

It would be spiteful
to put jellyfish
in a trifle.

I know its hard to justify the humor in this show by writing about it , but i think its absolutely hilarious the combination of Karl's off the wall opinions and stories and Ricky calling him out and laughing hysterically is a great oombo. I dont know anyone else who watches this but me , I must get the word out!

TOP 5

Let me throw this out there right from the start : Im not saying these are the 5 best shows to ever hit Television. These are my 5 favorite shows , the shows that have sucked me in the most and left me at the edge of my seat waiting more.

When thinking about this I found a couple of constants among each show. The first one being there all drama's , that doesn't mean i dont have love or respect for the sitcom but it is what it is. The second thing was every show revolves around a Central Character who is a very conflicted person , often times struggling with juggling a secret life. They often times tug that line between Anti-Hero (meaning bad guy that you still root for) or what often times they really are a Criminal and sometimes a psychopath!


ON TO THE LIST


No. 1


The Shield- This was a landmark show in a number of ways but mostly it was one of if not the first show to tote that line of being a show worthy of being on HBO but they did just enough to pass to be on cable.
The Shield is based around the fictional Farmington Division of the LA Police Department and Detective Vic Mackey played by the great Michael Chiklis. Vic Mackey personifies the Anti-Hero , in the very first episode of this 7 Season long Drama , Mackey shoots a fellow cop and kills him. This sets the tone for a man who stops at nothing to make busts as a cop , or protect his friends and family. Vic faces moral crossroads and usually always chooses the easy way or the criminal way out.THe duality of his character though often times showed him to be a very loving father who cared greatly for his kids. The Shield is also a show that i think avoided the peaks and calley's that hit most television shows. The Shield got constantly better as the show grew older and evolved. The Shield Series Finale is my favorite finale episode and ending to a Television show ever.The Shield was the cornerstone of the FX Network and played a significant role it getting to where it is now. To me the Shield is the greatest Cop show in Television History.

No. 2


The Soprano's
Another Landmark show for Television history , the first of its kind and the show that put HBO's making Television shows on the map. The Soprano's centers around a New Jersey family both in the normal sense and a Crime Family. The lead character is the father Tony Soprano who is balancing his life as the head of a New Jersey crime family , with his life of being a husband and father of two kids. Like Mackey in the Shield , Tony Soprano often times found himself at a moral crossroads , balancing the criminal , do anything at any cost part of his mind , with his loyalty to his family.
In its run The Soprano's hit peaks and valleys but was always strong , held up by its fantastic cast and there great acting. The two main characters of the show James Gandolfini and Edie Falco (Tony and Carmella Soprano) were almost always nominated for awards and most times one them. The only complaint that could be made is that Show creator David Chase would put in a crazy off the wall episode in every season but all in all The Soprano's defnitely has its place in television history.

No. 3



This is a shared favorite between me and the Media Hero. Breaking Bad the story of Walter white aka Heisenburg, a Chemistry Teacher, Genius,Cancer Patient, Father and Drug Kingpin.
This show is quickly rising up my list and could be no.1 by the time it completes its run on TV. The AMC Drama is set around Walter White and his family and his ventures into the world of Crystal Meth cooking and distrubiting , Initially because he needed a way to leave his family some money behind when he thought he was dying from cancer. Walter and his partner and former student Jessie make a the best meth known to man! As the lead charcters in the other shows did , they often find themselves in the situations where they have to make decisions they know is wrong , but it is best for them to keep doing what there doing.
Breaking Bad was created by Vince Gilligan , its filmed on a fairly low budget in Alberquerque, New Mexico. I can honestly say that there is not a show that sucks me in and keeps me totally engulfed and interested in an episode like BB. It is an 45 minutes of tenseness every week and i cant wait it for to return for Season 4.

# 4



Dexter- Dexter is a Showtime drama starring Michael C Hall. It centers around Dexter Morgan a Blood Spatter Analyst for the Miami PD who moonlights as a serial killer. Ohh but wait!!! There's a twist he only kills people who kill people, he is a good guy serial killer, if there is such a thing??
This is another show that the Media Hero and I share a fondness for. Dexter hit a serious valley this year , but before this year had its finest year. They have a knack for finding fantastic season long guest stars every year , and its needed other than Michael C Hall is who is awesome , the rest of the cast kind of struggles. Although Dexter's sister Deb does touch the comedy base with some random combinations of cuss words. Dexter still takes its place on this list , but without a rebound in its sixth season , its gonna be knocked off.


#5



24- Now let me set the record straight here , 24 is not in the stratosphere of The Shield or The Sopranos. 24 is more of what you might call a guilty pleasure , is it landbreaking TV?? No probably not. What 24 was able to do , was master the art of edge of your seat television, what i mean by that , is 24 is a non-stop adrenaline rush for the season , you never know who is gonna die , who is gonna blow up , who is turn out to be an undercover terrorist. Anchored by Keifer Sutherland as the Super Government Agent Jack Bauer a man who can die , be brought back to life and kill someone 30 seconds later. He to struggles with doing what he deems neccesary to complete his missions , whether that means harming himself , or others around him , He has killed partners , lost his wife , killed his father , Jack is the definition of a Patriot!!! Is 24 a great Television show , thats debatable is it a easy show to do get addidcted to absolutely!!!!!


Narrowly missing the list




Sons of Anarchy- Not gonna go into a long explanation here since I just blogged about it. Sons is quickly working its way up my list and if I do this list again , it will most likely have passed 24 and possibly Dexter. Fear the Reaper


LOST
I couldnt explain this show accurately if i tried. If i could you wouldnt believe me or you'd say that's stupid. With that i found myself locked in week and week out completely enthralled in the world of Lost. I had one thought at the end of every episdoe though: What the hell just happenned?.


Shows I need to checkout:
The Wire- I have been told by multiple people how great it is , with some saying its the best show in the history of television.

Mad Men- Like the wire i have heard the greatness of Mad Men touted by a number of people. I have heard however it is very slow moving.

Boardwalk Empire- I started this but didnt finish the first season , Its an HBO drama that has Martin Scorsese attached , two big things to make you watch. It also is sweeping most of the awards show's.

Another SOA Post

Hi. Media Hero Here...

First off I would like to welcome The Big Dawg to Media Hero. As I am sure you have noticed I suck something awful at this whole posting blogs thing and I am hoping his presence will help boost me to post more. He will be posting often as well I assume. But as many of you know "This may sound cocky but I used to work in TV" so The Big Dawg should have known when I started talking about this show that it would be an instant classic.

Since Big Dawg stole my thunder and posted about this series before the namesake of the website had the opportunity, I won't waste anyone's time with details about individuals in the show or information about the writers. I will just spend a few minutes of your day talking about my favorite characters and a few aspects about the show that really got me interested when I started watching. I, like the Big Dawg, had heard great things about this show from so many different people ranging from close friends to radio guys that talk about their Tivo all the time. So since I am the person that has to watch everything I DVR, I set up my DVR to record the entire season 3 of SOA knowing that I would be forced to watch the first two seasons before I watched 3. I bought season 1... knocked it out in three days... Then during a freak ice storm/gift from God, I bought and watched Season 2 in about 19 hours. Addicted. Plain and Simple.

Who do I identify with the most in this series:

At first I would have started out with Jax but after two plus seasons, by far my favorite character is Opie. He is the quiet yet strong best friend of Jax. For those that are watching the show and think he looks familiar... He is definitely the guy from Remember The Titans (Gerry Bertier). He is a father of two young children and he struggles mightily with the balance of being a single father and a club member. His character has gone from almost an outsider when he came out of jail to what I see as one of the more powerful members in the club. His influence is all over almost every decision Clay and Jax make.


After a long debate with the four or five people that are seriously addicted to this show that I hang out with, it has been determined that as much as I want to be Opie in our MC we plan on starting, I am not Opie. I am Tig, the speak first, think later smart ass ex Marine. I can handle that because even though I hated him for his role in the ending of Season 1. Tig has proved himself with some solid one liners and also he is simply a hardass. Tig and Clay have one of the type of friendships that only certain people can understand. So, I do accept my role as Tig in the Mansfield SOA Chapter.

Another thing I really dig about this show is the way that they incorporate covers of songs into each episode. The season finale of season 2's finale montage is set to a cover of "Gimme Shelter" originally by The Stones and the way the montage was shot and edited to the music makes it rank in the top 5 of most epic TV moments I have seen in the last 10 years.


This show, for me, is just something I can finally get into that I look forward to catching up and hosting 'Sons' night at the house for all the guys and the old ladies to come over and hang out. I love me some Breaking Bad and Dexter, but the lack of new Breaking Bad in my life over the last year and Dexter's last season flop of a finale has really elevated the excitement over a new show to get into. I am still very dedicated to Dexter and Breaking Bad, and I know the excitement for those will go up as their new seasons approach... but right now I am hardcore SOA.


A shout out to my "Old-Lady" Media Hero-ette who has a love for Tara, Jax's Old Lady. I must say the more she transforms into the role of "Old Lady" of a Son... The more I like her but also the more I realize she could completely kick my ass.

S.O.A.

Snowpocalypse 2011 has brought many things , A Clean Apartment , Laundry getting done , Lots of boredom, an onset of Cabin Fever and yes quite possibly a new TV show to latch onto.

Over the last couple of years , I've heard from multiple people tell me you gotta try out Sons of Anarchy , its really good. I never did , but then my boy the Media Hero started it , he got hooked and has been talking it up non-stop ever since!! This guy honestly talked it up to the point to where it was kind of annoyying, but in the end i got to hand it to him , He was right.

Sons of Anarchy is set in the fictional town of Charming California and is based around a Motorcycle Gang , there lives and there business. The show's lead character is Jax Teller the Vice Prez of the Sons of Anarchy , younger than most members but Jax sits second in command only to his Step Father Clay Morrow. I cant lie Jax is pretty much the definition of a hard-ass, although sometimes he does look like a complete and total Cholo with his flannel shirts buttoned all the way up. Jax's mother is married to Clay so running the Motorcycle Gang is pretty much family business.
The show also has the great Ron Perlman in it , if you IMDB'd that dude he has been in a crap load of stuff! Katie Sagal is Jax's mom , she is probably best known for being Peg Bundy , not a bad gig to land as one of the lead's of this show , although i guess it doesnt hurt when your married to the show's creator. There are a bunch of other actors in it , that you recognize from Movies over the years. The show's creator is Kurt Sutter , Kurt is a guy who was a writer of and very influential in The Shield another huge hit for FX and quite possibly this blogger's favorite TV show of all time. That was definitely one of the things that hooked me to the show , when I learned Kurt Sutter was the creator , Sons has a very Shield feel in the way it's shot , not to mention the adult nature both in content and violence. FX definitely allows guy's like Sutter to tote that line where it's just barely passible for cable , basically it doesn't say the F Word and doesn't show complete Nudity so it doesn't have to be on HBO. Ill fully admit though if Sons was on HBO it would be way better!!!!!

Considering i watched Season 1 in the span of a bout 15 hours , I'd say I'm pretty much hooked , I will be getting seasons 2 and 3 knocked out shortly and be jonesing for Season 4 to roll around. As of right now it still ranks behind Breaking Bad and Dexter and probably Boardwalk Empire although i still have a couple of episodes to finish season 1 of it. Sons has made a quick jump up to the top of my TV charts and after Dexter's lackluster season I could see it jumping up to No. 2 behind Breaking Bad possibly. who knows what the future holds. And to the Media Hero- Nice Job my friend you did not lead me astray SOA- GOOD TV!