AKA

Posted on July 17, 2013 by tgacuk

I live in a multiverse.

And that’s mostly because I live in Toronto – every time I turn on my television, I have an 18%* chance of seeing the characters I love running around my city. But calling it another name. For example:

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Last night’s episode of Suits, lovingly filmed here in the downtown core of Not New York. Except – that’s not an airport, that’s the Direct Energy Centre. But it doubles nicely – I especially love that the Gates 4-5 sign pretty much points to the bathrooms.

Mostly, I just like the thrill of seeing something from my real life in Harvey’s fake life – even if it is just the place I got to a craft show every year. Keeps life interesting – and gives me excuses to point at the show and shout “I’VE BEEN THERE!!”

What can I say, I like to feel connected.

*No calculators where harmed in the determining of this percent. Or used at all.
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Money$kirt

Posted on July 16, 2013 by tgacuk

I would write a show called “Money$kirt”.

It’s the heartbreaking, yet gently encouraging story of a woman named Penny who’s family passes down, from generation to generation, the secret of succeeding in a world dominated by men who couldn’t figure out tights if their lives depended on it.

I’d write the hell out of that show. I’d watch the hell out of that show. And I would watch it knowing that it was a tongue in cheek nod to the current sociopoltical conversation surrounding women and what it means to succeed in the world. And yet, when delivered by a fictional president of the news division of a major broadcast network without any sense of wrongdoing, it makes me itchy.

Itchy. In the way that isn’t quite mad, but isn’t prepared to let go. Itchy in the way that made a tiny, uncontrollably fast part of my brain stand up and say “HEY.” Itchy in a visceral way that made me react as though I’d be cocooned in the scratchiest blanket in existence. It made me tilt my head, pause, and think for a second about how wonderful the day will be when the critically acclaimed writers of a popular show will write that same line, and know its audience is in on the joke, not the joke itself.

Money$kirt. Coming to HBO Fall 2016.

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Rule 42.

Posted on July 15, 2013 by tgacuk

I really, painfully embarrassingly, love NCIS.

I know. It’s a police procedural that isn’t exactly The Wire. They’ve got fancy gadgets, a bad guy of the week, a coroner who talks to dead people – and the reputation of being your father’s favourite show. And yet, when it’s running new episodes every week, I can not wait for it to be Tuesday. NCIS is more than a show – it’s a family.

A family that starts problems in season 2 that don’t get cleared up until season 7. A family that knows the pecking order but can always count on the others to rally behind. A family that has more rules than situations that apply, and twice as many secrets. A family that has made it into my living room once a week for over 11 years and counting. And it has some of the best story arcs I’ve seen on television, hands down – smart twists and thoughtful ideas that keep the pace and my interest.

I’ve spent years defending my love of this show – and I’ll do it until someone cuffs me on the back of the head. And then some.

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(Type)Cast

Posted on July 14, 2013 by tgacuk

I have a type.

Television has always been a huge part of my life – from nights spent gathered around episodes of The Amazing Race with my family, to days spent polishing off the entire season of The IT Crowd, squealing in joy at my computer. And in almost two decades of viewership, I’ve learned two things:

1. I really, really like shows that demand great actors play AU versions of their characters.

2. When I watch a show, I talk as though everyone watching the show is next to me.

Both of those things stuck me while watching a rerun of Fringe that followed a truly excellent episode of Orphan Black, which is my new favourite flavour of SciFi. The first? Is a function of incredibly talented writers trusting their actors to be brilliant now matter what’s thrown at them, and being right. The second? I’m in clear need of a blog.

I have a type – and it’s freaking awesome television. Let’s explore it!

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