Sunday, December 6, 2009
"Twilight" the TV Show?
Is there such a thing as too much of a good thing? Yes, for sure. As someone who once ate through an entire box of Golden Grahams in one sitting and then regurgitated every last golden-y graham-y bit within minutes of digestion (I was 6 years old for chrissakes!) I know that some appetizing meals are best served in moderation, and unfortunately the Twilight franchise is no exception to the rule.
R-Patts and T-Lauts (who decided that this sort of name hyphenation system was cool anyways?) are still hotter than a pile of pancakes fresh off the skillet but could a television adaptation of the film adaptation of the book series be enough to squelch their meal ticket or will it continue to kick up some more royalties for the profiteering writer, Stephenie Meyers?
Yes, it’s true we may potentially be seeing a Twilight TV spinoff in the works. According to “ContactMusic Magazine”, Pattinson stands to make nearly 1.8 million dollars an episode for the series that Summit Entertainment is discussing bringing to the small screen as early as mid 2010.
If this is true that would put the release of the show, sometime shortly after the film release of Eclipse. How convenient. However, with the final installment of the film series yet to actually be filmed, Breaking Dawn, how exactly would the TV series fit in with the books/movies? Would it completely divert from the books, a true spinoff, or perchance could we see where the ever awkward and utterly inappropriate romance between vampire-hybrid, and daughter, Renesmee and Jacob goes... (Eck!) Details of the actual content of the show has yet to be released to the public.
Even with the 1.8 million dollar price tag could reprising this role on the small screen mark a crucial misstep in Pattinson’s film career? Some would wager a big fat YES.
Some would also wager that perhaps with the addition of The Vampire Diaries series added to the CW’s lineup, primetime television might already be inundated with enough teen-vampire drama. I mean does Twilight really need to monopolize every avenue of Vampire-centric entertainment? How about we let a show based on a book series written 15 years before Twilight have a chance at the market? (i.e. The Vampire Diaries).
Anyone? I guess I should wait until rumors are confirmed first before getting too fired up [sigh].
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
‘I’m Pregnant And….” TV Show Puts the Blues in Baby Blues
Discovery health has just added a new show to their Tuesday night primetime lineup, and it rivals some of the ever-downer television shows of A&E. People sure do love their train wrecks, and with a market inundated with plenty of semi-scripted reality shows, docu-reality programs such as Intervention and Hoarders on A&E have gained mass attention and Emmy-recognition, as poignant and evocative programs with a hardcore story to tell.
Discovery Health takes this concept to a new level, with its newest series that premiered last night, Tuesday, December 1, at 9:30 PM (ET/PT) I’m Pregnant and…This series documents the final stages of pregnancy and some time shortly after the birth, of a pregnant woman dealing with seemingly indomitable emotional and physical obstacles that go way beyond a really bad case of morning sickness. Some issues that will be touched upon in the series include homelessness, imprisonment, and eating disorders. That’s right, eating disorders on a pregnant woman, hmmm…wonder how that works.
Well, last night’s episode featured a women who was pregnant and addicted. Yep, pregnant and on drugs. This young woman, Colette, deals with pregnancy while nursing a serious addiction to heroin. The upside, is that Colette quits using the lethal drug while pregnant but the downside is that she, like most recovering addicts, weans herself off the drug and staves off withdrawals with the use of Methadone. Which means that her unborn child will more than likely be born with an addiction to methadone.
While it’s inappropriately comical to imagine a preemie stomping out of the womb demanding some smack, the truth of the situation is heart wrenching and Colette’s story is one that too often goes unrecorded and unrecognized.
Even though this brief glimpse into the heart of a heroin addict still drummed up feelings of resentment and often caused me to mutter “dumb biotch” at the tv screen, (especially when Colette’s monotonous and stoic tone of voice made her sound heartless), I still got a sense that this was a woman who wanted so desperately to change for her child and overcome the situation she had long been too overwhelmed by.
While I still feel the editing style, and production value of Intervention makes it a more dramatic portrayal of the human condition, the shock-value of the condition that these women find themselves in while pregnant is plenty to draw in viewers week after week, [train wreck after train wreck].