Tuesday, April 15, 2014
TV Land Picks Up Hilary Duff, Sutton Foster Sitcom; Episodic Review: New Girl - "Big News" Airing Tonight on Fox
TV Land has picked up comedy pilot Younger, which is written, executive produced and directed by Darren Star (Sex and the City), to series with a 12-episode order. The 30-minute single-camera comedy stars Tony® Award-winning Sutton Foster (Bunheads), Hilary Duff (Lizzie McGuire), Debi Mazar (Entourage) and Miriam Shor (GCB) and will premiere fall 2014 on the network. The series will shoot in New York – a first for TV Land. The new comedy follows 40-year old Liza (Foster), a suddenly single mother who tries to get back into the working world, only to find it’s nearly impossible to start at the bottom at her age. When a chance encounter with a young guy at a bar convinces her she looks younger than she is, Liza tries to pass herself off as 26 – with the help of a makeover, courtesy of her best friend Maggie (Mazar). Armed with new confidence, she lands a job as an assistant to the temperamental Diana (Shor) and teams up with her new co-worker and 20-something Kelsey (Duff) to make it in the career of her dreams. Now she just has to make sure no one finds out the secret only she and Maggie share.
On the next...New Girl:
By: Vincent
Fox's Tuesday adorkable sitcom starring Zooey Deschanel airs Tuesdays at 9:00pm and we have just watched the next episode that airs tonight (April 15). In the episode airing tonight, "Big News," Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Nick (Jake Johnson) scramble to keep their break-up a secret from the loftmates. Meanwhile, Schmidt (Greenfield) tutors Cece (Hannah Simone) for her G.E.D. and Winston (Lamorne Morris) passes his police academy entrance exam, demanding that the gang throw him a "Honey Roast."
In its previous episode, New Girl made the curious decision to break up with Nick and Jess, who have been the shows' central focal point for over a year now. In a way, this seemed inevitable. While Nick and Jess have undeniable chemistry and clash in ways that make them an incredibly interesting relationship, they're fundamentally different in so many aspects. Much of the third season of New Girl has been focused on exploring these differences and questioning whether or not people should feel the need to compromise for the sake of a relationship. This season has had a lot of messy elements, but its strongest aspect has easily been the in-depth analysis of the Nick and Jess relationship. The Nick/Jess stories have provided a fresh take on the weary old friendship-turned-relationship concept, and "Big News" offers a similarly refreshing spin on what happens when that relationship ends. Since they live together, Nick and Jess's dynamic is different than most sitcom couples that have been in this situation before, and the way the episode allows Nick and Jess to almost mourn the end of their relationship together is the most interesting thing it brings to the table.
"Big News" isn't necessarily just a Nick/Jess episode, as it also features a prominent Winston storyline and gets the rest of the group actively involved in dealing with Nick and Jess's fallout. In fact, "Big News" felt like the biggest ensemble episode in quite some time, and it seems to reaffirm that this isn't only a show about Nick and Jess. There's a vocal group of New Girl fans who feel the Nick/Jess relationship has sort of silenced the rest of the characters, and much of this episode seems to be a comforting conformation that this simply isn't the case. Similar to last seasons' post-Cooler episodes, "Big News" is just as much about how Nick and Jess's dynamic affects everyone else as it is about Nick and Jess themselves. What I wanted more out of "Big News," though, was - as usual - Winston's story. "Big News" sort of acknowledges how Winston's adventures are often sidetracked, but it doesn't quite go far enough for me to say that it's a successful acknowledgement of this recurring problem. Winston is a hilarious character who could certainly do a fine job in a storyline of his own, and it's slightly disappointing that the show can never quite jump the gun and give him the same treatment as the other roommates, even if he does get some strong moments in this episode. Still, "Big News" was overall a strong aftermath episode that grounded itself in not just Nick and Jess's characters, but the characters of everyone in the loft. B+
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Friday, April 24
Happy's Place - "Everyone's a Critic" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Bobbie lets Isabella try giving the staff a "compliment sandwich" during their performance reviews, nobody is pleased with the outcome.
Happy's Place - "Couples Counseling" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
After Bobbie starts serving patrons at the speakeasy, Isabella accuses her of stealing customers, causing the sisters to attend couples counseling; Emmett tries his best to gently break up with Monica.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 20)
Friday, April 24
- Zach Galifianakis (Baskets) - Watch Zach on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Sterling K. Brown (Starved) - Sterling appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He also talks about Paradise on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock) - Rachel is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Ellen Burstyn (The Ellen Burstyn Show) - Ellen talks about Poetry Says It Better: Poems to Help You Wake Up on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Nia Long (Uncle Buck/The Cleveland Show/The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) - Nia talks about Michael on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Kathy Griffin (Suddenly Susan) - Kathy chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Laura Marano (Austin & Ally/Back to You) - Laura talks about Original Sound on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Ayo Edebiri (Big Mouth/The Bear) and Don Cheadle (The Wonder Years/Black Monday/House of Lies/The Golden Palace) - Ayo and Don talk about Broadway's Proof on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am. Don will also be on in the 9am hour.
- Melissa Peterman (Happy's Place/Young Sheldon/Baby Daddy/Working Class/Reba) - Kit and Melissa check out How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie and Sunny Anderson are joining Drew for the news and Val is telling Drew about her Lifetime movie on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Jill Kargman (Odd Mom Out) - Jill tells Drew about her new movie Influenced on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
09/30 - Touché Turtle and Dum Dum - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
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