MSN TV Blog - TV Buzz

As Carell departs after seven seasons, we're expecting another three-hanky affair

By Sona Charaipotra Apr 28, 2011 10:49AM

Photo courtesy NBC
After months (and months) of hype, the big day has finally arrived. Steve Carell departs the NBC hit "The Office" tonight after seven seasons of awkward moments, awkward hook-ups and awkward occasional song-and-dance routines.

The farewell episode's director, Paul Feig (who has also helmed other emotion-heavy episodes, like Pam and Jim's wedding), has said that we can expect some individual good-byes from Michael Scott to his staff. "It's a very satisfying send-off for Michael, but what I like is that it's not the final episode of the season," Feig told the L.A. Times. "That's very much like real life. Whether in a business or personal relationship or whatever, things end, adn then you have to get up the next day and keep dealing with your life. So I think it's poetic to do it this way."

If the rest of Carell's final season is any indication, tonight's episode is bound to have some sweet and sappy moments. But we're hoping for some real laughs from the very special 50-minute send-off, too. And with rumors rampant that guest stars might include everyone from Jim Carrey to Ray Romano to James Spader and Will Arnett, we might just get a few funnies after all. At the very least, there are bound to be a few more familiarly awkward moments. 

Case in point:
Will you be watching Steve Carell's final "Office" episode (tonight at 8 p.m. on NBC)? 
 

Learn more about your chance to win a $500 gift card or one of three gift packs

By MSN TV Apr 28, 2011 9:18AM
 

'In Plain Sight'/USA"In Plain Sight" is back! Season 4 of the hit drama returns Sunday, May 1, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on USA. Read on to find out how you can win a $500 dollar gift card from American Airlines of one of three nifty gift packs -- yellow, zippered pouches that each include a tank top, a travel tumbler, a Rumba watch and DVD sets for Seasons 2 and 3.

 

Bing: More about "In Plain Sight" | Mary McCormack

 

"In Plain Sight" stars Mary McCormack as Mary Shannon, a U.S. Marshal working in the highly secretive branch of the witness protection program (WITSEC), who relocates Federal Witnesses, most of whom fall into three categories: career criminals, whistle-blowers or innocents who had the misfortune of witnessing a crime.  They all have one thing in common: Someone wants them dead.  Mary's job is to see that doesn' happen, while at the same time attempting to manage her own dysfunctional family. In the upcoming season, Marshall will have a new love interest, Brandi gets engaged to Peter and Mary reluctantly helps plan the wedding!  

 

Ready to win a prize? Tell us what you're most looking forward to in the upcoming season. Leave a comment below and email us at winthis@microsoft.com. We'll select a response at random and send you your prize.

 

For more info about the show, visit the official "In Plain Sight" website for exclusive content and become a fan on Facebook.

 

 

Season 4 of "In Plain Sight" returns Sunday, May 1, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on USA.

 

Everyone shows off a shameless lack of smarts in low-key but amusing episode

By Miss Sarah Jo Apr 28, 2011 12:08AM
"Cougar Town" may be the cleverest TV show that consistently celebrates stupidity.  By embracing the trivial time-wasting behavior of a bunch of chronic imbibers, it has carved out a niche that sets it apart from the warm and heartfelt comedy of "Parks and Recreation" and the darker human foibles of "The Office."  It is purely, unabashedly silly, but that doesn't mean it can't have sincere moments as well.

Most of those truly sincere bits came from the guileless Bobby Cobb, who (seemingly) blows his big golf comeback opportunity by unwittingly hitting his opponent's ball. The fact that he is blithely unaware of this gaffe, riding his club around the green in victory, gets him dubbed Bobby "Wrong Balls" Cobb by the local media and everyone in this small Florida town. But Bobby takes the old maxim "Laugh and the world laughs with you" to heart, proving himself impervious to embarrassment and even capable of making a fresh start by a good-natured attitude to his own notoriety.  In turn, he helps Jules overcome her humiliation at the hands of the notoriously complex Pledge of Allegiance – after all, Richard Stands did sign the Declaration of Independence and God is invisible. It could happen to anyone.

Circling around the main story was Laurie doing her Laurie thing; in this case, blatantly cheating at bar trivia by having Travis text the answers to every question. Her inexplicable triumphs lead to a weirdly hilarious bar tantrum from Grayson and Ellie ("Out everyone! The bar is closed!" he yells, while she blindly smashes up the trivia machine in anger).  It serves them right; after all, "You can never judge a book by its front part."

  • "An army of jelly beans"
  • Nice call back to Bobby's mumbling
  • "I look like a super-sexy corpse."
  • "You OK there, buddy? You seem a little…dumb."
  • Dreams and rainbows ARE real and important.
  • "Mocking is bad."
  • "I grew up in the hood, y'all."
  • "Ben Franklin. He invented baseball, he was an awesome president and he made the first wig."
  • "You're so mean. I can't get over it."
  • Confidence dance!
  • "Dear @TheLarmy, Operation SuckIt is complete."
  • "Thanks Mr. Wrong Balls!"
 

A tense and emotional hour clears the way for an electrifying finale

By Miss Sarah Jo Apr 27, 2011 10:59PM

Jeremy Davies, Timothy Olyphant"You want me to share my feelings?" – Raylan Givens


It has all been leading up to this final confrontation for Raylan. And it's not with Mags Bennett or Boyd Crowder, although both stand-offs with them are dramatic. It isn't even with poor, pathetic Dickie Bennett., cringing and begging for his life a la "Miller's Crossing". It is between the two sides of himself, between the broken son of a criminal, the last descendant of a bitter century-old feud, and the flawed but morally strong man he is now. The man that his beloved Aunt Helen knew he could become.


It is really a shame that Timothy Olyphant will probably never get the recognition he deserves for "Justified" (just like he didn't get enough for his excellent work on "Deadwood"). Raylan's feelings often come out in contempt and anger, either against whatever low-life is impeding his righteous cause of justice or against his own kin like Arlo. So when he stumbles over his recitation of how Helen told him to be different than his father (even giving him the money to leave Harlan), and realizes that killing Dickie would be the worst betrayal of her memory imaginable, the moment is all the more powerful for being so rare. Just a great, great performance by a great actor.


Everyone else in the cast is pretty terrific as well, from the menacing Doyle to the utterly terrified Jed.  Best of all was Raymond J. Barry as Arlo; he is no double legitimately mourning his wife's death (albeit with generous amounts of Wild Turkey) but his stunning level of selfishness and greed still take precedence over more tender feelings.  Watching him blatantly lie to and manipulate his son in the very first scene just makes your blood boil, and as Raylan points out, he won't give up his pay-day from the Black Pike deal even to bring her killer to justice.  This twisted father/son relationship keeps paying off in spades.  It runs a close second to the Ma Barker side of Mags Bennett, who can give up her worthless son for dead one minute and then comfortingly embrace him the next.


"Justified" has excelled at presenting clear and straightforward storylines played out by folks with complicated motivations, constantly surprising us but never betraying the foundation of the characters.  It is perhaps inevitable that Mags Bennett will never settle down to a respectable life, that Ava will always be the gun-toting moll of an outlaw, and that Raylan can never totally escape the ties that bind him to his nefarious family. After all, his grave is right there waiting for him, in the cool and grassy shade of his father's house.

  • Adam Arkin has become the network MVP at F/X, as director and an actor (his chilling turn as a white supremacist in "Sons of Anarchy" was fantastic).  All of his choices were superb, from Raylan's slow-motion walk to the house/crime scene to the dim view of his profile as he breaks down while pointing a gun at Dickie in the woods.
  • It wasn't all doom and gloom; we did get that amusing conversation between our hero and Quick Draw McGraw on Jed's front porch ("It was rhetorical.")
  • It's about time we got Gillian Welch on this soundtrack.
  • "I want what's coming to me." Dickie, I have a sneaky feeling you will get just that.
 

Gaga-inspired life lessons through songs about your own personal brand of self-loathing

By MSN TV Apr 27, 2011 8:18AM
'Glee'/FOXBy Rachel Stuhler

Hulu

 

This week's lesson at McKinley High is acceptance, brought on by Finn (Cory Monteith) accidentally elbowing Rachel (Lea Michele) in the face. When her broken nose offers up the opportunity for free plastic surgery, Rachel struggles with her self-esteem. And thanks to Santana's (Naya Rivera) acid-laden insults, the rest of group is bothered by their own feelings of inadequacy. Mr. Schuester (Matthew Morrison) concocts a Gaga-inspired life lesson by asking the kids to sing about their own personal brand of self-loathing.

 

Bing: More about 'Glee' | Video: Full episodes and clips of 'Glee'

 

In other news, the battle for Prom King and Queen rages on as Lauren Zizes (Ashley Fink) tries to steal the crown from Quinn (Dianna Agron). The fighting gets dirty when Lauren unearths pictures of Quinn back when she was an acne-spotted, overweight brunette with dubious taste in sweaters. But the plan backfires and the school suddenly sees the always picture perfect Quinn as one of them. And Emma (Jayma Mays) is finally forced to deal with her raging OCD, which has impossibly gotten worse since she was abandoned by the hot Dr. Carl (John Stamos).

 

"Unpretty," TLC/"I Feel Pretty" from "West Side Story"

As Rachel toys with the prospect of a nose job, she realizes she must identify what her ideal face would look like. In a slightly "Single White Female" move, she zeroes in on Quinn's perfect little button nose and asks her sometimes-friend to pose for the surgeon. Rachel doesn't know at the time, but Quinn's nose is just as fake as the one the doctor wants to create for Ms. Berry herself. The two girls grapple with teenage insecurities through a duet/mash-up of TLC's ‘nineties hit "Unpretty" and "I Feel Pretty" from "West Side Story."

 

"I've Gotta Be Me," Walter Marks, in the style of Sammy Davis, Jr.

Finn is upset that Quinn is encouraging Rachel to change her natural appearance, and to show his support for being okay in your own skin, he and Mike Chang (Harry Shum Jr.) team up for a jazzy rendition of Sammy Davis Jr.'s "I've Gotta Be Me." Too bad Santana refuses to heed this advice; still unable to deal with coming out as a lesbian, she enlists Karofsky (Max Adler) to serve as her official "beard."

 

"Somewhere Only We Know," Keane

Part of Santana's plan is to bring Kurt (Chris Colfer) back to McKinley (and the glee club), win the love of the school, and then make her own Machiavellian bid for Prom Queen. She succeeds by forming an anti-bullying squad with Karofsky, who offers Kurt a partially honest apology. The Warblers are so sad to see him go, they make a lunchtime trip to McKinley to serenade their goodbyes with Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know."

 

 

"As If We Never Said Goodbye" from "Sunset Boulevard"

It's not Kurt's style to just let his return pass unnoticed. He turns his love for his friends into a heartfelt version of "Sunset Boulevard's" "As If We Never Said Goodbye." We love you too, Kurt.

 

 

"Barbra Streisand," Duck Sauce

Once Kurt's back on home turf, his first order of business is to talk Rachel out of her crazy plan. He invokes the sacred name of Barbra Streisand and forms a flash mob at a Lima mall, apparently to show her that if random masses of strangers are okay with her nose, she should be too.

 

 

"Born This Way," Lady Gaga

For the piece de resistance, the kids gather together to sing Lady Gaga's anthem of acceptance, "Born This Way." They each wear shirts emblazoned with the parts of themselves they hate, ranging from Mercedes' (Amber Riley) "no weave" to Kurt's fantastic "I like boys."

 

 

"Glee" airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FOX.

 

'Glee' goes Gaga with one very special (90-minute) episode

By Sona Charaipotra Apr 26, 2011 2:56PM
Photo courtesy FOX
Tonight's the big night! 

"Glee" goes GaGa with the very special, very-hyped 90-minute, bullying-focused episode titled "Born This Way," and it's all about acceptance tonight.

And if this preview of the Warblers singing Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" at McKinley High is any clue, tonight's episode promises to be another Kurt-centered tearjerker. (Major spoiler: Kurt isn't wearing a Dalton Academy uniform!)

Here's a sneak peek:
Will you be tuning in to "Glee" tonight?


 

Does anyone really care?

By Sona Charaipotra Apr 26, 2011 2:34PM
Photo courtesy CBS Evening News
Okay, so this is supposed to be a big deal in the TV world: Katie Couric confirmed to People.com today that she would be leaving her gig on "CBS Evening News" sometime in the near future.

"I have decided to step down from 'CBS Evening News,'" she told the celeb magazine earlier today. "I'm really proud of the talented team on 'CBS Evening News' and the award-winning work we've been able to do in the past five years, in addition to the reporting I've done for '60 Minutes' and 'CBS Sunday Morning.' In making the decision to move on, I know the 'Evening News' will be in great hands, but I am excited about the future."

So what exactly does the future hold for Couric. Well, she doesn't know exactly. With nothing ironed out quite yet (details, People reports, are "still being discussed"), Couric says, "I am looking at a format that will allow me to engage in more multi-dimensional storytelling. The bottom line is that I love doing all kinds of different stories. I have a lot of areas of interest, and I want to be able to fulfill all of that."

Essentially, like many of us, Katie is abandoning ship without another to jump into. But the bigger question is, does anyone really care? In these days of the 24-hour news cycle and life in motion on the Internet, most Americans hardly turn to newspapers or the evening news in the way they had in the past, even in the midst of happy-happy stories like the Royal Wedding or political dramas like the recent budget wars. In fact, combined, all three network evening news broadcasts are barely pulling in two million viewers. A sad fact, but true. And given that the latest soaps to be knocked off the TV sked bore similar numbers daily, could the evening news survive much longer?

Do you watch the evening news? Or do you get your daily dose elsewhere?

 
Tags: news

Veteran comedy actor discusses working with son on ABC comedy

By MSN TV Apr 26, 2011 12:31PM

'Happy Endings'/ABCBy Minh Nguyen
Special to MSN TV

 

Damon Wayans has been making us laugh with hit shows like "In Living Color" and "My Wife and Kids" for years. Wayans will be appearing on ABC's new comedy, "Happy Endings," Wednesday, April 27, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC as the father to his real life son's (Damon Wayans Jr.) character Brad.  Wayans plays an uptight father who will get a new lease on life once he gets a medical clearance. MSN TV had a chance to chat with Damon Wayans Sr. on being a Wayans, Eliza Coupe on the set and how he lightened the mood on "Happy Endings."

 

Bing: More about ABC's 'Happy Endings' | Video: Watch full episodes and clips

 

MSN TV: You and your family were an inspiration for us from "In Living Color." It was nice to see a family get along, work so well together and entertain us.

 

Damon Wayans: We really hate each other. We pretend.

 

You pretend to like each other?

 

Yeah. (Laughing)

 

How excited are you to be returning to ABC to play your son's father on "Happy Endings?"

 

I am very excited to play my son's dad as I know that role. I just love him to death so it's been really fun to see him start his career off and not do the Wayans brothers thing -- not that there's anything wrong with that. He's finding his own way. That's beautiful to me. I support him.

 

Can u please tell us a bit about the character you will be playing?

 

He is Brad's (played by Damon Wayans Jr.) dad. My character doesn't really know how to say, "I love you." He felt that taking care of his son and raising him was enough. In life, that's really not enough. The episode is about me saying that to him, and I have a really hard time, because my father never said "I love you" to me.

 

On "Happy Endings?"

 

My father in real life won't shut up with that "I love you" stuff.

 

"Happy Endings" is just starting its run. What was it like being on set for this new show? Was the cast bonding yet?

 

The cast is wonderful. We laugh a lot. Eliza is hilarious. She should be in sketch comedy. She is really, really funny. We just got along. It was like a family. I loved the way the show runners encourage the cast to improvise and play around and play it different ways. It is a very relaxed set. It is reminiscent of a Wayans brothers set. It's just fun. People hug, love and talk. It's Season 1, though.

 

Do you think they were intimidated when you came on because of your vast experience?

 

They might've been, but I did a prep fall just to loosen them up. That's what I do. I come in, I fall down and I hit my head on the camera, just so everyone knows I'm coming. (Laughing)

 

You've starred in a popular sitcom before. What advice do you give your son or others in the cast?

 

The advice I gave my son is to really find your character and find his voice. Television is a thing that people get very familiar with. They want to hear your voice in their head. You get back to Archie Bunker and George Jefferson, "I Dream of Jeannie", "I Love Lucy"  ... these are all the shows that you view because of the characters. When you find a really great character, you can't just say anything. That character wouldn't just say anything -- only say things the character would say. I think that my son embraced that.

 

How did you get approached to play this role?

 

My son was talking to the show runners, and they asked him, "Would your dad be on the show?" My son asked me, and I said, "Heck yeah!" It was pretty easy.

 

You have a huge family of actors and performers. Is it any surprise at all when your kids want to enter the family business?

 

No, I think all of us are very hesitant because we want them to really want it. There is a lot of pressure because you're a Wayan. People have certain expectations or a preconceived idea of what the funny will be. I think it is intimidating for my children and the other children in this family, but when they see it and they get that little twinkle in their eyes, we know what that is.

 

I just took my niece and my nephew with Shawn to see Janet Jackson. On the way there, they didn't know who Janet Jackson is. They know Michael, but they didn't know Janet, because they're only 10 and 8. My nieces are singers and performers, and when they saw Janet, they were blown away. They stood on the chair and watched with their mouths open, amazed, soaking everything up. It was beautiful to watch.

 

We read that your son, Damon Wayans Jr., did not initially use your family name. Was that your idea or his?

 

No, that was him. He used Kyle Green. I took him out on the road with me, and he didn't want that pressure. He would come on stage and people can be mean. "Bring out your dad. Bring out Sr." It was hard on him, so he would go on as Kyle Green. When he was working with me, people would say throughout his whole set, "That's his son. When he does that, he looks just like his father." So, he said, "You know what, I'm just going to use Damon Jr."

Now, he's come into his own. I think a tough road was great for him because, first of all, it's good to test him out to see if he has a love of the game. And two, it just makes him stronger like a warrior. Warriors aren't born they're made.

 

What else are you working on?

 

I am about to shoot a pilot on CBS which is based on Colin Cowherd's life. He is an outspoken sports radio guy who is married to a beautiful wife. He has a crazy ex-wife and a beautiful woman on his show. He is trying to manage three women in his life.

 

"Happy Endings" airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.