Television

The Lincoln Lawyer Headed to TV

ABC is reportedly developing a new TV series based on the 2011 thriller film The Lincoln Lawyer.
The film followed the story of Mickey Haller, a criminal defense
attorney in LA who is chauffeured around in a Lincoln town car.

The
film’s protagonist has thus far appeared in five novels by writer
Michael Connelly, giving scope to feasibly turn the film into a show.
Connelly is reportedly co-writing a pilot script with The Lincoln Lawyer’s screenwriter John Romano, according to Variety.
Matthew McConaughey played Haller in the 2011 film but is not expected
to reprise his role in the television adaptation; as of now there is no
word as to who may replace him if the series goes ahead.

Eureka Cancelled!

Syfy has announced that comedy/drama series Eureka will end after the fifth season. Just
a few days ago it was announced that the network was close to renewing
the show for a sixth and final season comprised of just six episodes,
but these plans have now been abandoned in favor of ending the show on a
high.

In a statement,
Syfy said: “After painstaking consideration, we have had to make the
difficult business decision to not order a season six of Eureka… We
are very grateful to [executive producers] Bruce Miller and Jaime
Paglia, their team of incredible writers, and an amazing cast and crew
who have consistently delivered a series we continue to be very proud
of.”

True Blood – Cold Grey Light of Dawn

It may have taken seven weeks, but I finally know what the fourth season of True Blood
is about! “Cold Grey Light of Dawn” was a colossal return to form for
the show that has been fairly terrible for weeks now, and it achieved it
in the simplest of ways: following one story from multiple perspectives
for the entire episode. Okay, so technically there were a few other
stories intertwined with the main thing, but for the most part, it was
50 minutes spent explaining what the hell had been going on for the last
six weeks. In short, Antonia – the necromancer that has seen fit to possess Marnie – is back with a vengeance. It really is that simple. Sadly for the True Blood
team it has taken them at least three episodes of doing absolutely
nothing to get to that point and essentially admit that the story really
is that shallow, but now that they’ve actually done it, they might just
have a chance to do something.

Entourage – One Last Shot

After exploding out of the gate in week one and slowing things down in week two, week three of the two-month goodbye tour for Entourage
saw fit to throw some drama into the lives of Vince and his band of
merry men. Until last season the drama in the show had always been
heavily, if not entirely, based around movies for Vince, or Drama trying
to get any kind of job going. Taking on a slightly more serious tone
with Vince battling a drug addiction (although he didn’t see it as a
problem at all) was a good move for the show even if it wasn’t executed
particularly well, if only because it allowed season 8 to go in the
direction that it’s going right now.

Haven – Sparks and Recreation

After
last week’s sentient machines, “Sparks and Recreation” was clearly
built around a much better idea, or more accurately, much better ideas.
It had all the ingredients of a remarkable story, and although it never
got the spark (pun intended) to ignite the whole, it was still a good
episode of Haven. Besides showing how good at multilayered
stories the writers are getting, its greatest achievement is to have
introduced two interesting characters that deserve to stay with us for a
while.

There
was a lot to like about this episode’s main storyline. There was the
fact that we had not one but two troubled residents. There was also the
fact that a non-afflicted person exploited that knowledge and almost got
away with murder. And finally, there was the fact that Audrey was very
often wrong. Mayor Brody’s ability (to attract people’s affection and
consideration) was an interesting one, and the show did a great job
giving it to a politician who, of course, shamelessly used it. The actor
playing the part had the perfect smile for it. Having the mayor’s wife
scheming was also good. It is always interesting when the motive is as
personal as jealousy and when elements allowing us to understand it are
properly distilled over the hour as they were here.

Breaking Bad – Bullet Points

With “Bullet Points” the fourth
season of Breaking Bad finally saw the plot progression it has
been lacking. A lengthy scene of dialogue managed not to feel
drawn-out thanks to some humorous lines of back-and-forth, it also
led to a shocking discovery for Walt. In addition, Jesse’s emotional
breakdown finally sees advancement when it draws some unwanted
attention. This episode had the action, drama, and black humor that
are trademarks of the series, and showcased why they are.

One of the best things about Breaking
Bad is its cold opens, and it proved that again this week. Mike
almost loses a few tail feathers of his own when a Los Pollos
Hermanos truck is shot up by a couple of interlopers looking to rip
off the shipment of meth hidden in the buckets of batter. The scene
was certainly over-the-top(particularly when both guys came flying
out of the back of the truck as a result of Mike’s pistol), but it
was nonetheless an impressively shot piece of stylized violence.
Particularly so in the choice to stick with the interior of the truck
for the first few moments as Mike listens to the muffled voices
outside and the gunshot that tells him he is about to have a very bad
day. In addition to getting batter on that nice parka, Mike gives up
a chunk of his ear, but comes through relatively unscathed; which is
more than can be said of the two cartel thugs. Likely trying to send
a message to Gus that he can still be hurt regardless of his efforts
to cut them out of the business, Mike simply stamps the cartel’s
message “return to sender.” Killing those two won’t be where it
ends though, and the scene is really meant to establish early on that
Gus is facing problems in addition to his two little lab rats, and
why even more so than normally, he cannot accept the risk of working
with a junkie; especially one who is on such a downward spiral.

Television Critics Association Awards Results

The
non-televised award ceremony honored the best of television as chosen
by the critics and journalists that make up the 200 members of the
TCA. Nick Offerman, of Parks and Recreation, hosted the
awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. In addition to
the honor of emceeing the event, Offerman was awarded the title of
Individual Achievement in Comedy, along with Modern Family’s
Ty Burrell, in a rare draw. Friday Night Lights –who was also
awarded the title of Outstanding New Program the year it debuted-
took home the big prize with the award for Program of the Year.