John From Cincinnati Cancelled

crap!!! hbo has announced that they have cancelled the very good John From Cincinnati after one season. this sucks... not only was it a good show, but it had been getting better as the season has progressed.

this isn't the first time david milch (the brilliant creator of the show) has had a show cancelled by hbo. he was also the man behind Deadwood - at least that show made it through season three

i know they are getting desperate for another big, marquee-type show with the end of The Sopranos and before that Six Feet Under and Sex And the City before that. and with other networks like showtime and fx on their heels with some high-quality programming of their own. however, that doesn't make it all better.

anyway, i guess there isn't much more to say here beyond my disappointment with hbo

Season Finales: The Shield & Weeds

ya, ya, i know i am a little behind, but since i don't get fx or showtime with my cable package (i don't know if any package in canada provides them) i have to catch up with some of my favorite shows on a bit of a delay. with that out of the way, i can tell you all that this week i finished season 3 of Weeds and season 6 of The Shield, and all i have to say is WOW!

especially for The Shield: last seasons finale was crazy and i didn't know how they were going to play this season out. then when macky found out who really killed lem and with only a few days left before he was going to be forced out, again i wasn't sure where they were going to take it. but they took it to some good and dark places. having shane playing both sides of the armenian mob and then having to protect macky's family was all intense, good stuff. not that you need a recap of the whole season. but lets just say it was another great one and keeps it easily in my top 5 favorite shows on tv. i was really disappointed that it was only a 10 episode season.

as for Weeds: season three was another good season and i liked how the whole married-to-the-fbi thing went sour. and of course justin kirk as the brother-in-law is always great (just now with two less toes). as for the season finale, the last 10 minutes were awesome! with the two gangs with the guns pointed at our 'heroes' and her on the phone with her son with the pot in his trunk and the perfect score/music playing, and then the police arriving at the car... that was some great stuff.

Weeds season three is just a couple months away, so don't forget to check that out and for the Shield you will have to wait till 2008.

What Does Seymore Butts Have Against Sleeves?

check out the deals on Family Business on DVD

adam glasser aka. seymore butts is one of the biggest and best producers, directors and distributors of adult entertainment around. while he has been in the business for about 13 years, his pop culture recognition has gone up quite a bit over the last few years with his reality show on showtime called Family Business, which follows him as he searches for love, raises his son and works with his family (his 60-year-old cousin and his mother both work with him).

it's a fun, often funny 'behind-the-scenes' show, and it does give you an interesting look into the adult industry that isn't the stereotype. it shows you that there are many normal, smart, non-drug addicted people in the business who love their families and are good people. sometimes it tends to feel really set-up, and by that i mean that some scenes almost feel performed just for the camera (not as bad as on The Hills though, so don't worry), but that doesn't take away from the show too much.

grade: B

anyway, so i was watching an episode of the show today and i noticed something that has been bugging me ever since i started watching the show... adam glasser hates sleeves! i know that is a bold statement, but if you have ever watched the show you must of noticed that the guy is always wearing tops with cut off sleeves. on the episode i was watching today, the crew heads to the caribbean to do promotion and shoot a movie. in the opening scene, adam is packing, and as the camera comes into the room he is folding a sleeveless shirt and putting it into a suitcase filled with other sleeveless/cut off sleeve shirts.

i don't know if adam was hurt by a sleeve when he was a kid, but for whatever reason they are just not a part of his clothing repertoire.

No Ragging On these Riches

i finally got around to watching the pilot episode of fx's new show, The Riches (i know it is late, but there is a lot of tv to watch people). anyway, needless to say i really liked it.

the show stars eddie izzard and minnie driver as a husband and wife who, with their kids, have spent their lives as con artitsts/moden gypsies. However, izzard has started to have a change of heart/midlife and spiritual crisis and decides that things need to change. this leads to the family taking over the identity of another couple and trying to live their lives: as izzard's character says, and it is a great line, "we are going to steal the american dream."

this is a dark comedy/dramady with strong writing an original concept, wit, interlligence and a very engaging cast - especially izzard who is wonderful. the opening scene at a high school reunion is a great way to jump into the show.

it is only the pilot, but it was a good one and one that seems to bode well for another smart and interesting show on fx, which is becoming quite a strong player in the quality-cable-tv wars with shows like The Shield, Rescue Me, Nip Tuck and now this. hbo better watch out - and showtime isn't looking to shabby either these days with the likes of Dexter, The Tudors and Weeds.

this is another show that i will definitely be checking out more episodes to see if it continues to live up to the promise of the pilot.

grade: A

Getting Tutored On The Tudors

The Tudors premiered on showtime a little over two weeks ago to good ratings for the network. the show, starring johnathan rhys meyers as king henry VIII is an historical drama/soap opera ala hbo's Rome, but set in a different time period.

needless to say i quite enjoyed the first episode. this was a pretty crazy time historically and the show is taking full advantage of it. you got kings, queens, sex, murder, deceit, politics and of course anne boleyn. of course they take liberties with certain aspects, but overall there is no need to when the truth is as juicy as this.

i have only seem the pilot episode so far (i have a lot of tv to keep up with people) but i am already hooked and looking forward to getting to the next ones. the show plays like hip masterpiece theatre, but without dumbing itself down to appeal to a mass audience that might be turned off by the historical nature of the drama. i am also pretty sure that many who might at first have been turned off by that will actually end up being drawn in in the end anyway.

grade: A-

Last Week Of Donnelly's On Television

so as i told you a couple days ago, The Black Donnelly's is getting canned. while that was initially supposed to happen in a couple weeks, nbc has announced that it will happen a week early. which means that two nights ago was the last airing on tv. i say it like that because the remaining six or so episodes will be streamed on nbc.com - that's at least something, but it doesn't make me less angry at nbc for canceling a quality show.

i was thinking that it would be great if fx or hbo or showtime picked it up, as it is the kind of show that feels like it should be on one of those networks. alas, i don't see it happening though.