The Small Screen Podcast, Episode 22: Shiny. Let's Be Bad Guys

"The Small Screen Podcast" is back for Episode 22. Sorry, for the break but sometimes life gets in the way of podcasting. During this installment, Kristal and I chat about a lot of TV news including the cancellation of Luck, renewals by FX and CBS and a Firefly reunion on Castle. We also brought back the Topic of the Week as well as shared what we've been watching and what we're looking forward to. Spoiler phobes can check out the episode breakdown below.

Episode Breakdown:

Intros: Start - 1:30

TV News: 1:31 - 21:37

• Cancellation of HBO's Luck: 1:31 - 4:25
• FOX's Mid-Season Shakeup: 4:26 - 9:26
• James Spader Leaving The Office: 9:27 - 13:50
• Renewals: 13:51 - 19:07
• Firefly Reunion on ABC's Castle: 19:08 - 21:37

Topic of the Week: Other TV Reunions We'd Like to See: 21:38 - 24:27

What We're Watching: 24:28 - 41:32

• Breaking In: 24:28 - 29:34
• Smash: 29:25 - 38:05
• GCB: 38:06 - 41:32

What We're Looking Forward To: 41:33 - 43:53

• Community: 41:33 - 42:31
• The Vampire Diaries: 42:32 - 43:53

Closing: 43:54 - End

Check out the episode below, or download it over at iTunes:

For more, follow us on Twitter:
Kristal: @kristal_bailey
Marcos: @poppas2cents

The Small Screen Podcast, Episode 8: ONCE UPON A TIME, There Were THE WALKING DEAD

"The Small Screen Podcast" is back for Episode 8. This time around, Kristal and I talked about the Return of Trouty Mouth to Glee, Happy Endings on Yahoo! TV, Once Upon a Time, our favorite Halloween episodes, what we've been watching, and what we're looking forward to (i.e. Chuck).

Episode Breakdown:

Intros: Start - 1:05

TV News & Discussion: 1:05 - 18:15

• Chord Overstreet's Return to Glee: 1:05 - 6:38
• Happy Endings Preview on Yahoo! TV: 6:39 - 10:20
• Our Favorite Halloween Episodes: 10:21 - 15:33
• Once Upon a Time's Ratings Success: 15:34 - 18:15

What We've Been Watching (SPOILER ALERTS): 18:16 - 37:03

• Once Upon a Time: 18:16 - 26:53
• Psych: 26:54 - 30:03
• The Walking Dead: 30:04 - 37:03

What We're Looking Forward To: 37:03 - 51:59

• Chuck: 37:03 - 46:42
• Grimm: 46:43 - 51:49

Closing: 51:50 - End

Check out the episode below or download it over at iTunes:

For more, follow us on Twitter:

Kristal: @kristal_bailey

Marcos: @poppas2cents

My Instant Gratification

Netflix just got a billion times better because I just found out that every season of Buffy, Angel, and Firefly can not be instantly streamed to my HDTV. I even added all three seasons of Arrested Development (still trying to figure out the appeal of that show), Season 1 of Dollhouse, Season 1 of Better Off Ted, and Seasons 3 & 4 of Bones.

Add these shows to a queue that already includes Leverage, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, and Torchwood, and who really needs cable or DVDs for that matter. If Hulu became this extensive, I'd definitely consider ponying up some coinage for the service.

Man, I get way too excited about my TV shows...

My Vamp Overload

Apparently, last week the idea of CBS resurrecting Moonlight started to hit the Internet mostly due to the fact that vamp related media is booming.  I tried watching a few episodes of Moonlight, and they were OK, but nothing special.  To be honest, Angel did a helluva lot better job as a vampire P.I. than Mick St. John ever could.

Maybe I'm biased but if a vampire show should be brought back it should be either Angel (doubtful since Bones is doing so well) or some other Buffy spin-off because Joss got it right way before True Blood and The Vampire Diaries were a real consideration for a TV show.  Moonlight had its chance and it wasn't successful, so move on.

I'm not trying to hate on Moonlight, but it's not like the show was before its time.  Vampires are not a new source for storytelling, and if it were good enough it would have stuck around and been credited for reigniting the vampire boom rather than letting True Blood and Twilight take that honor.

Another thing to think about is the audience and why vamps are such a big deal right now.  With the exception of True Blood, all of the vampire shows are aimed at young women (Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, Buffy), whereas Moonlight skewed older.  So unless CBS is planning on making a new show that is Angel meets Veronica Mars, I doubt Moonlight 2.0 would do much better than the original.

Then again, maybe I'm wrong and the world is ready to embrace yet another bloodsucker TV show (although they all seem to be the same), and the Moonlight fans will have something to celebrate.  I will give the show some credit, the opening sequence was pretty cool...

Catching Up On: ANGEL

Maybe it's because of all of the vampire hype due to Twilight, True Blood, and The Vampire Diaries, but I decided to catch up on one of the most famous teeny-bopper/brooding vampire franchise, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

I liked the first couple of seasons of Buffy, but I really liked David Boreanaz's Angel character, so naturally I had to check out his spin-off series, and to be honest, I enjoy Angel way more than Buffy.  Sure, my favoritism has something to do with my man-crush on Boreanaz, but I do find Angel's character way more compelling than Buffy.  The whole brooding, vampire with a soul shtick really works, especially when he takes a more devious turn.  Plus, Boreanaz plays the tortured, noble bloodsucker way better than Patts and Moyer.

Also, the show works because of its darker tone.  Buffy had its dark moments, but at the end of the day it was still a teen-oriented show while Angel ranks up there with some of the best noir and pulp films/shows out there.  While Angel is pretty morose show, it still has some wonderfully black comedic moments, which beats out Buffy's Valley girl-isms.

I know that I'm just on season two, but I'm pretty confident that Angel will rank up there as one of my favorite shows.  Damn you, David Boreanaz...

News: DOLLHOUSE Canceled

I'll admit right off the bat that I'm not a fan of Dollhouse, but I do tend to like all things Whedon, so I was a little bit saddened for the DH fans when I read that their beloved show was officially cancelled by FOX.  I think most fans were not blindsided by the news since it's been getting anemic ratings while being sequestered on Friday nights, but I'm sure it still stings a little bit.

On the bright side, I'm sure Joss has plenty of ideas to keep him busy.  First, we need the sequel to Dr. Horrible ASAP.  While I know this is never going to happen, I kinda want him to go back to his Slayer days.  I'm not advocating a resurrection of Buffy per se, but a decent spin-off could do well, especially in the current vamp crazed environment (which you could argue Joss was responsible for kicking off). 

Now, I know there have been whispers about a Faith or Giles spin-off, but he could start from scratch without reinventing the wheel.  The Slayerverse is rich with content that could make for a good show, and it could be a modest hit if it's on cable or the CW.  Plus, there's always the possibility of cameos.

Then again, I'm sure there are some original ideas floating around in Whedon's head, and I hope his next venture is better appreciated than Dollhouse and Firefly.