Okay, readers, this is it. The day has come. Eight months after starting this thing, we’ve reached the final installment of The Great Frasier Rewatch. It’s been awhile since part IV, so if you’re totally clueless, previous entries can be found here.
Previously, we discussed seasons 5 and 6. Today, we shall start with season 7 and go all the way to 11. Now, I have to admit, there are not as many stand-out episodes in the later seasons, but the ones that *do* stand out are pretty darn excellent.
So summer is upon is, and with that comes summer TV (or, in my case, summer DVDs). Usually by the end of May, I am worn out from TV. This year is no exception. While it was a strong season overall, a lot of my favorites (30 Rock, How I Met Your Mother, and don’t even get me started on The Office) were not up to snuff. They need to figure out how to return to their former greatness, and I need a break so as to not be bitter.
Still though, a pretty great year for TV, especially for new comedies: Modern Family, Cougar Town (trust me) and Community all proved to have strong freshman seasons, and I’m ready for seconds.
In the meantime, I am working my way through The Wire (currently on season 4, no spoilers, please!) and am also basking in the glory that is Daria.
Yes, Daria. Didn’t you hear? The series was released on DVD. FINALLY. While I haven’t yet bought it (but it will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine) I started watching season 1 and it’s just as great as I remember. Daria is awesome. She was my hero in high school. (Though I always fancied myself more of a Jane, despite not being able to draw a straight line with a ruler.)
If only Doug and You Can’t Do That On Television would be released, my childhood trifecta would be complete.
Not sure what else I will watch this summer. I’ve already tackled a few shows from my New Year’s list – among them, Freaks and Geeks (best show ever), Sons of Anarchy, and the part of The Wire. What next? Maybe Firefly, to complete my Joss Whedon experience? Mad Men? Breaking Bad? Suggestions are welcome – check out my original list and let me know. But before you suggest it, I think I’ll let the Lost fans calm down a bit before I start watching. Sorry, Lost fans. It’s too much expectation right now.
In the mean time, enjoy some Daria. Makes me feel like it’s 1997 again. (Which brings up a good point – is Daria dated? Does loving it officially make me old?)
Happy Easter weekend, everyone. I hope you all had a good time, and enjoyed the gorgeous weather. (If you live on the East Coast, anyway – I’m not sure what the weather was like elsewhere.)
I got the weekend to myself, and had a perfectly luxurious time. I ran a few errands, cleaned up stuff on my computer, did some reading, and reaquainted myself with some old friends from Stars Hollow.
Now, those of you who know me know of my former major obsession love of the Gilmores. And you also know of my disenchantment, anger, broken heart, and temporary break-up with Gilmore during its final season. I eventually caved and finished out the season, but since the show ended, I’ve only watched a handful of episodes.
Until this weekend.
I don’t know if it was the nice weather, the resurgence of Lauren Graham on my TV again, the fact I had a weekend to myself, or my rediscovery of this* coupled with my rediscovery of a Lorelai mix I made three years ago, but I found myself jonesing for some Gilmore all week long.
You know how you have those friends who you used to be really close to and now, for one reason or another, you don’t get to see them very often? Maybe you live in different cities, maybe one of you got married, maybe you’re in grad school and have no time for a social life, but you’re just not as close as you once were. Every once in awhile though, you get to see each other, and your bond is so close that it feels like you were never apart? That’s how this was. (Yes, I am aware that I am talking about a TV show, thanks.)
For me, Gilmore has always been a comfort. (Except when it wasn’t, but we don’t like to talk about that time.) It’s the TV-equivalent of pot roast and chocolate pie. And even though it’s been years, and things have changed, and I have changed, when I put in my season 2 DVD and started watching, it was as though I never stopped. I was back in my apartment in Chicago, watching my illegally-burnt copy of A Film By Kirk, pausing it to go get my roommate, because Sean Gunn dancing was something he had to see.
I decided to watch episodes I often skip over. I’ve seen Rory’s First Kiss and Last Week Fights, This Week Tights too many times to remember, but what about those hidden gems in seasons 2 and 3? I always gloss over seasons 2 and 3, in favor of season 4 (the ultimate season) and season 5 (because Luke and Lorelai are FINALLY together). So this weekend, I rediscovered hidden gems like Lost and Found, where Luke looks for a new apartment, and Dear Emily and Richard, which is both hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time. I watched Paris melt down on C-Span in The Big One and Emily battle it out with the original Lorelai in That’ll Do, Pig. These are episodes no one really thinks about, because they are episodes that don’t advance the plot much. Not a lot happens in these episodes, and yet everything happens.
So that’s how I spent my weekend. Should I have gone outside more? Perhaps. But I’m happy with my decision. I got reacquainted with an old friend, and remembered what made me love the show in the first place. I rediscovered the awesomeness of high school Rory, Lauren Graham’s amazing hair and beautiful eyes, and that Luke, was, on many occasions, a very funny man.
Now. The only problem with this is that…as many of you know…I had a…*slight* problem with Gilmore. As in, you know, some might say, a wee bit of an addiction. So my goal this week is to not spend it with my head halfway in Stars Hollow. I need to be in the real world. I think I can do it. I know I can do it. Because, even though I remember the girl who spent her nights locked in her tiny room in Chicago, watching those bootlegged DVDs, I am not that girl anymore. Really. I swear. I can stop any time I want to. Gilmore doesn’t control me, I control when and where Gilmore watching takes place. Seriously. Wait, stop. Don’t take the DVDs away from me. I can handle it! Where are you going? Stop!
Video of the Day: Enjoy some highlights from season 3. (Really, I forgot how much I love this season. If you have the DVDs, go back and watch. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.)
(*We’re never supposed to talk about it, but the Gilmore fandom produced a MASSIVE amount of fanfiction. Right around the height of it, I got my first post-college job – a job that required me to to absolutely nothing, and thus had a lot of free time on my hands between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. So, I got pretty familiar with the stuff – at least, stuff written from 2004 to 2006. A lot of it was crap, but that story is really, really good. So, if you have several hours to kill, check it out.)
Welcome back to the longest, most drawn out “best of” list in blogging history. We’re up to part 4 of The Great Frasier Rewatch. For those wondering how many damn parts there will be, I promise, only one more. Is it MY fault they had so many great episodes?
Ok, I can’t take responsiblity for the quality of the show, but I will take responsiblity for my anal list-making, and for the fact that I take said list-making so seriously that I can’t bear to leave even one of the 40 or so episodes I chose off this list. Or for the fact that I *may* have added some more to the list over the course of this exercise.
For those who have no idea what I’m talking about, you can catch up on the first three installments here.
So, we’re up to season 5. Ready?
Season 5
Much like season 3, this was a particularly strong season for Frasier. Inevitably there will be some worthy episodes I left out. In theory, most every episode from seasons 1 to 7 could be on the list. But that would mean at least 30 installments, and would take years to finish. With that in mind, my picks for season 5. Continue reading
It seems everywhere I look these days, there’s another Best of 2009 or Best of the 00’s list. And while you all should know by now that I love a good list, I’m finding these completely overwhelming. Seeing everyone’s favorites makes me think I should have a list, but the thought of comprising my favorite movies/tv shows/albums from the last ten years is just too much, even for me. (Though, off the top of my head: Gilmore Girls, Sex and the City, The Office, Extras, Six Feet Under, Dexter and The Daily Show would all make this hypothetical list. And The West Wing. And The Colbert Report. And 30 Rock. See – too stressful!)
The other overwhelming aspect of these lists is there’s so much I haven’t seen that I feel I should. Or, on the flip side, there’s these great shows, such as Deadwood, Arrested Development and the original Office, that I’ve seen, but not for years, and seeing them pop up on every list make me want to watch them again. There are only so many hours in the day and so many days in a year, people! Stop with the list making already!
With that in mind, I’m creating my own list, with a twist. The following are TV shows from the past decade I resolve to (finally) watch in 2010.
Retrowatching 