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In their newest podcast venture, Hannah & Edward leverage their old age to delve into 40 years of TV-watching.
~TV Party Tonite 01×00 – Pilot
Tonite: TV Past, Present, Future. Our favorite educational programming. Scary 70s freeze-frames and Large Costumed Characters. The Surly Blondes of Earth. Friends: The New Generation. Whither SNL and The Simpsons? The ultimate question discussed: The Wire OR The Sopranos? Answer: Breaking Bad!
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
TV Party Tonite 01×01 – Two Dollars on Trouble to Win
We are dedicated to our favorite shows: Justified! Downton Abbey! The Office (maybe)! Dexter (decreasingly)!
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
Notes on TV Party Tonite 01×01 – Two Dollars on Trouble to Win
I’m pretty sure the “short-lived show” we were trying to recall, that Timothy Olyphant was on before Deadwood, was his brief guest appearance on The Office as Danny Cordray, the slick salesman who became Jim’s nemesis for a couple of episodes before abruptly disappearing (to star in Justified?).
Olyphant, of course, was terrific on Deadwood as sheriff turned hardware merchant Seth “Mister Furious” Bullock. Even though the character didn’t require a particularly broad emotional range (Barely Suppressed Simmering Rage -> Actual Expressed Rage), he did have to come across as genuinely dangerous, while also conveying enough charm to make Bullock sympathetic. Unfortunately, when Olyphant isn’t playing a guy teetering on the edge of extreme violence, he runs into problems. Seth Bullock was a good role for him because he was never, as far as I can recall, called upon to grin. (Another actor who should probably avoid grinning? Willem Dafoe.)
Olyphant has one of the creepiest grins I’ve ever seen. His face looks best when it’s rigid and unsmiling; when he grins, some unpleasant alchemy happens with his eyebrows and hooded eyes that makes him look like a man under the effect of some hallucinogenic who’s just remembered a really funny joke as he’s about to approach an attractive woman. On Justified, though, he seems to be moderating his expressions of levity so that his face stops just short of creepiness.
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TV Party Tonite 01×02 – Testimony of Evil
Tonite: Downton Abbey and the horrors of WWI. Justified: approaching Breaking Bad greatness? Top Chef? More like Top Racist amrite? A fond look back at local TV news. Also: Possibly the most unlistenable intro song yet!
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
TV Party Tonite 01×03 – A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread, and Death
Tonite: Downton Abbey. Justified. Comic Book Men. A look back (and forward, and to each side) at our favorite cooking shows. TV PARTY TONITE!
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
TV Party Tonite 01×04 – And Down Will Come Baby
Tonite: Hannah’s mom discovers a great new show called Bad Breaks! Shows we wish we could watch again for the first time. Brief Cat Talk interlude. Bob’s Burgers: Hannah laughs, Edward laughs but incrementally less so. Also: British comedy, Ramsey’s Best Restaurant, Top Chef.
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
TV Party Tonite 01×05 – The Deadly Inheritance
Cold open in a cold automobile. Hannah calls the Midwife. The Voice. Tim & Eric: hostile? One final Downton Abbey blowout — with Special Guest! Our three favorite British historical dramas.
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.📺
TV Party Tonite 01×06 – When Dues Come Down
Hannah & Edward do a “Cougar Town” and retool their format. Tonite: Luck’s cancellation. Riding James Gandolfini. Frodo soils his pants. Also: whistling.
Listen on Internet Archive. Listen on Google Drive.