Mike's Bloggity Blog

>It takes months to put a tv show together. Sometimes seemingly longer. Countless hours are put into the writing, casting, taping, editing, sound and marketing. So the new TV season really kicking into high gear tonight, I figure why not start with my new column in…99 Words

It may take the industry months to put the show together, but it only takes me 99 Words to take it apart. Now I’ve never liked the idea of a critic, I feel there are enough of critics in the world. However I do feel that it is my place to allow anyone out there reading this to know what is worth there valuable time! Comments/Questions? Post them below!

The Class (CBS)

When I first sat to watch Friends: The Sequel, “The Class”. I had high hopes, so its hard for me to know if these high hopes got in the way seeing this show for what it really is. It’s a fun show, the cast is bubbly (see = slightly promiscuous). Lizzy Caplan (Phoebe) is stand out. There’s Joey’s girlfriend cheating…AGAIN! The show felt nice enough, but it tied everything up. Unanswered questions? Nope. Jason Ritter is the “Rachel” of the group. Newly single and ready for the new world. But along with his grade 3 classmates? That’s just weird.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)

The pilot of S60SS is just as smart, biting and truthful as any of Sorkin’s shows. Peet and Perry (Chandler is no where to be seen) are stand outs in this show that reveals the deepest darkest secrets of a sketch variety show. It is clever and engaging. The cast is a mixed bag of talent and the potential is there for a show that can truly revolutionize the way we watch certain shows (ahem…SNL…awkward silence.) I find it interesting that with such an amazing cast, why was I so intrigued by lowly PA and a housewife named Felicity.

>So my friend emailed me a pop culture question. I did my best to answer it, and feel maybe this might be a secret calling of mine!

Question:… so, The Descent … a horror movie (popular genre) … excellent reviews (83% on rottentomatoes) … why did it do so poorly at the box office?? ~Rodger

Answer:
Hey Friend, failure at the box office is relative. The studio paid like $10 million for it, so really it did all right. There are several reasons that it wasn’t a huge success. Most movies in August don’t do that well. It also has a completly unknown cast. Horror movies do well when they are part of a series/Franchise (Freddy vs. Jason) or remakes(The Ring, The Grudge). Or if they have developed a cult following (ie Blare Witch). Most horror movies don’t make more then $50million. Compared to some movies The Decsent did great. (Stay Alive, The Pulse)

Do you have a question? Post it here and I’ll do my best to answer it!

On Monday night be sure to watch the Premiere episode of Studio Sixty on the Sunset Strip. Its created my Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing) and stars Matthew Perry (Friends) Bradley Whitford (The West Wing) and Amanda Peet (Identity, The Whole Nine Yards.) She has recently announced she is pregnant so lets keep this woman employed!

>Dear Calgary,
I like you, I really do. We struggled in our relationship at first. I didn’t know what I wanted and that confused you, I get that. We worked through our trouble and for the past couple of months we’ve been great. Really great, in fact. But this weekend, you changed. I feel like I don’t even know who you are anymore. I didn’t know if you are mad at me or what, but I’ll make this short and sweet. September 15th. -5 degrees. Snow. I don’t know what I did to deserve this. Is it because I loved another? Los Angeles, meant nothing. It was a fling. You are my home now and you can’t continue to treat me like this. I’m willing to forgive you, but I have a hard time forgetting. You better be working on a Chinook.

We’ll talk more later

~Mike

>The other day at my office we all received this lovely festive email:

“MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

I know it is early…..but…..Just to let you know, we have booked our
(Company Named Removed) Calgary, Children’s Christmas Party at
the Calgary Zoo for Sunday, November 19th, 2006 from 9:00am – 12:00pm.

Eligible children will be employees children – ages 10 and under.

If you might be interested in attending, please let me know by email.
We just need to get a rough head count for now.

Thank you!”

***please note the original was in pretty colors with cute christmas clip art.***

THE NEXT DAY, we received this email:

“Sorry the Kids Xmas Party has been
cancelled due to lack of interest. “

Seriously. There is a 30 hour time difference between the two emails.
And its SEPTEMBER!

>It’s happened. Finally. I know many of you put it right up there with me getting a full head of hair. But I’ve fallen in love. Unfortunatly, for some, it may be a bit uncoventional, but it is love none the less, and I don’t feel one bit bad about it.

Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve been hanging out and now I feel the time in to announce my true feelings and intentions. The subject of my desire is none other than then the promotional ad for the upcoming third season of Grey’s Anatomy. You know the one, starring “How to save a life” by The Fray. it’s true. I Michael Morrison am in love with a TV commericial. Don’t laugh, don’t mock. “You don’t know me!”

The following is a love letter that I have written to my new love. I feel comfortable enough to share it.

Dear Grey’s Anatomy Promotion Ad,

Mike

Do you want to include your love letter here too? Feel free.

>

There are very few things that terrify me. They include: Wolf Blitzer, Old people with bookbags and ANYTHING to do with bathrooms. Anyone that knows me at all know that the lengths I will go to secure a private bathroom. This includes talking about it, hearing about it ( or “it” at all!) seeing it, pretty much anything. I wouldn’t let my old roomates pause movies, for fear of them hearing me pee in the bathroom. I made my new landlord install a bathroom fan, so I wouldn’t be subjected to hearing people go to the washroom! Its a problem. I’m aware.

So last night, as I settled into my seat at newly opened Grand Theatre in downtown Calgary, I asked myself, why was I sooooo excited to see my third showing of the hit musical “Urinetown: The Musical” What is Urinetown you might ask? Unfornatly I cannot tell you, for fear of myself being sent there. But what I can tell you that Urinetown is an unforgettable experience, and the production that I witnessed last night was as high of quality that my friend natalie roy and I saw in New York City several years ago.

The jist of the show is that, our way of life is unsustainable. The town’s water dries up and private washrooms are closed and citizens must now pay to pee! I know what your saying, but why Michael do you enjoy this so much. You hate bathrooms. I do, I know this, but how can I hate anything put to music. (see: Buffy the Musical episode, and this season look for a Scrubs musical episode.) To lay it all down, the show is a satire of both the way we live our lives and musicals as a whole. (Shout outs to Les Miserables are abundant.)

Sally: You know Officer Lockstock, I don’t think people are going to like this musical.
Officer Lockstock: Why’s that Sally, don’t you think people want to know that their way of life is unsustainable.
Sally: That, and the title is awful!

Highlights of the show include, the Act 1 finale, Don’t be the Bunny, Snuff the Girl and anything before during or after those numbers! If you are in Calgary, or in a city where there will be a production of it, you MUST see it.

Also, The Grand Theatre has Unisex Bathrooms, aside from feeling like I was on Ally McBeal, please add this to the list of things that terrify me!

> 

>For years as I was slowly losing my hair, I was constantly devastated by those who had great hair. Josh Harnett, David Shwimmer and yes Joey (nee Joseph Lawrence.) I always thought that if I had good hair like those guys, then everything would be fine. I eventually got over my need to stare at celebrity hair and had come to the conclusion that we both had different features and i would just have to live with that. That is until i saw this picture today……

How quickly they succumb to the sheer awesomeness of being bald. Welcome Joey Lawrence. Welcome to the world of shampoo bottles lasting you for 3 years, of sometimes excepting charitable donations because “you are just sooo brave” and welcome to the world of KNOWING that the hair in your food that you are eating, is without a doubt not yours. Welcome.

>

>So the other day I was browsing through trashy magazines while waiting for my flight at the airport and i came across a picture so disturbing it shook me to my core. It made me sit up (although I was already standing.) It made me look around and it me gag. (Just a little.) Ladies and Gentleman may I present to you the picture that changed my life.

Thats’s right that is Val Kilmer! Val “Batman” Kilmer. (Side note: I’ve never in my life written the words Val Kilmer, let alone, twice, while I guess now thrice)

“What the heck happened Val?!?” I asked myself, while holding my big mac, big slurpee, while wiping my face from the remnants of the chili dog. And then I saw it. My future, if a movie star could look like that. What could the star of an early 90′s New Brunswick government commericial turn into?

So this is when the new Michael comes into play. I HAVE to start eating better. I would say excercise, but let’s be honest with eachother, that ain’t happening. So yesterday, I started on my no pop for a week fast. Along with the my most expensive trip to the grocery store ever. $50. Not alot you might say, but considering, all I usually buy is milk (both chocolate and white), cereal and Special K bars, this was huge for me. Everything I bought was considerably more nutricious than I’m used to. Last night I cooked supper in my new apartment and ate on my new patio. And this morning I made a good breakfast, mixed with a better lunch.

I’m really excited about this new change in my life. I hope I can maintain this healthy lifestyle. I think my biggest challenge will be pop. We never really got it alot as kids, so to me I still consider it like a treat. I don’t drink alot of it, I’m not that guy going in for surgury on “Supersize me” who drinks 6 litres a day, usually a top myself off at a can a day. But still that really adds up. I’m still going to have pop in my life. But I’m going to control it!

And Val, next time we meet on a the beaches of sunny california, we will look at eachothers stomachs, and say….”nice stomach.” Well that’s what will say in our heads, we don’t actually have to say it to eachother. Unless you want to Val, cause that’s totally cool. Whatever you want. Either way, I’m cool.