Nussbaum: Betrayed by DexterSeason five of the show had lots of things that made no sense, and, worse, felt exploitative — something I’d rarely thought about the show.
Nussbaum on Boardwalk Empire“Still, if ‘Boardwalk’ doesn’t have original ideas about the men who kill for money … that’s very easy to ignore when you’re dizzy with the fun of it all.”
ByWilla Paskin
in the magazine
Why We’ll Miss Law & OrderIn this week’s magazine, Emily Nussbaum remembers ‘Law & Order,’ recently canned by NBC after 456 episodes.
The Real Smithers Revealed!Nussbaum discovers in John Ortved’s new ‘The Simpsons: An Uncensored Unauthorized History’ the identity of the guy who inspired Waylon Smithers.
ByLane Brown
surf
Nussbaum on the Mistaken-for-Gay CharacterAt Surf, Emily Nussbaum ponders the history of straight TV-sitcom characters mistaken for gay, from Jack Tripper through Andy Bernard.
ByLane Brown
surf
Nussbaum Blogs!Today marks the debut of Surf, the new blog by ‘New York’ TV critic Emily Nussbaum.
Emily Nussbaum on ‘Lost’: We Are John LockeTonight’s premiere may feel a bit like being stuck at the peak of a really fantastic roller coaster, except that it’s a ride you can barely remember getting on and that looks suspiciously like it’s made of off-brand particle board.
‘30 Rock’: Two Thumbs Finally Up, Way Up
Dedicated Daily Intel readers no doubt remember Emily Nussbaum and Adam Sternbergh’s IM review of 30 Rock’s premiere. Emily liked it; Adam not so much. (He likened it to wallpaper.) Five months later, how do their first impressions stand up? They checked in with each other on IM after last night’s episode to find out.
Sternbergh: I’m so excited to tell everyone to run to their TVs and watch 30 Rock — oh, wait. It’s being yanked off the schedule for six weeks.
Nussbaum: What??
Nussbaum: Oh, man.
Sternbergh: Didn’t you see the promos for Andy Richter’s new show?
Sternbergh:Andy Barker P.I.?
Nussbaum: No, I was too out of it. Oh, the sorrow of it all.
Nussbaum: People! You’re watching the wrong TV!
Sternbergh: NBC finally comes up with two shows you want to watch.
Sternbergh: And schedules them IN THE SAME TIME SLOT.
the follow-up
Saying Anything About ‘Say Everything’How do you get people who spend all day talking about themselves to talk about you instead? You talk about them. “Say Everything,” Emily Nussbaum’s cover story for last week’s New York, explored the ways the brave new Webby world changes the ways kids share information — and creates a nearly unprecedented generation gap. And, of course, the blogs have been responding. Some of our favorites:
• Slob: “Wow — so the Internet generation has collectively huge balls.”
• Leesean.net: “One of the girls they profile was born in 1989 — that makes me feel old. But I totally identify with them. I’m a total Net Narcissist Exhibitionist Extraordinaire.”
• Bout Manje : “The idea that this is essentially a *generation* gap is a bit overplayed. It is a magazine article, after all, and therefore sensationalized.”
cultural capital
‘30 Rock’: One Thumb UpTina Fey’s 30 Rock, her new sitcom-cum-infomercial about a variety-show writer and the glories of the General Electric Company, debuted last night. Was it any good? As the broadcast ended, New York pop-culture gurus Adam Sternbergh and Emily Nussbaum fired up the IM to discuss.
Sternbergh: So, did you laugh yourself silly?
Nussbaum: Yes! I actually liked it a lot, weirdly. Maybe my expectations were low, but I laughed out loud a bunch.
Sternbergh: Boy, then we’re going to have something to talk about.
Nussbaum: So, you hated it?
Sternbergh: I didn’t hate it. This was my second time seeing it — I also saw the first pilot with Rachel Dratch in the Jane Krakowski role. (Or rather, Dratch in the Dratch role, now played by Jane Krakowski.) Both times, same reaction: pleasant comedic wallpaper.
Nussbaum: I think my low expectations helped. And also the fact that I hate Studio 60: so much.
Nussbaum: I was just plain relieved to find it funny and sort of obnoxious.
Sternbergh: I think at this point we can let the Studio 60: comparisons alone. 30 Rock: is about comedians making comedy, while Studio 60: is about Aaron Sorkin making comedy, which is a whole other ball o’ wax.
Sternbergh: So what exactly did you find funny?
