Game of Thrones (01:30-26:30): As we mentioned in the episode, the entire world has Game of Thrones Season 8 takes. Below are a few interesting columns, blogs, and podcasts we’ve come across since the finale aired:
Entertainment Weekly‘s recap podcast with Darren Franich and James Hibberd. Hibberd visited various sets and interviewed actors during filming so he knew many of the plot points that were to occur, yet he still wasn’t keen on its final product (as conveyed in his own finale recap).
Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone‘s equally unimpressed blog specifically focusing on Tyrion’s kingmaking
This amazing GLoP podcast in which guests Ross Douthat (New York Times) and Sonny Bunch (Washington Free Beacon & Washington Post) join co-hosts John Podhoretz and Jonah Goldberg, and the normally level-headed Ross has a few, er, choice words to say about showrunners Benioff and Weiss.
Lastly, this AV Club essay by Myles McNutt takes a contrarian, positive take on the finale, noting its thematic consistencies. Worth a read, as much as we might not agree with his view of the final product.
Aladdin (26:30-39:30):
Flashback to Episode I and our ranking of the 57 Disney Animated Classics. Look at Number 1 on all 3 lists!
Cartoon Jafar sings “Prince Ali,” which was left entirely out of the new movie. Speaking of missing Jafar scenes from the 1992 original, wasn’t live action Jafar’s transformation into a giant cobra so cool to see on the big screen? Oh.
Knights of the Old Republic(39:30-42:30):
The news. Ugh. Here is the original trailer for the award-winning 2003 RPG. It plays automatically whenever you start up the original Xbox game, and I get chills every time. (The torture scene towards the end, which plays a major role in the plot, is very similar to this scene in The Force Awakens, and the only time my interest was piqued while watching Episode VII.)
Not really much to say about this one. Some news about its box office numbers, as it was more successful than the previous two movies in its opening weekend.
Avengers: Endgame(49:00-51:00):
This Half in the Bag review from the always-great Red Letter Media is comprehensive and sensible.
We were both annoyed by Fat Thor though we never mentioned it in the podcast. Apparently, Chris Hemsworth fought to keep him in the movie?
Everything is Terrible in Episode V of Ruminations! When writing about our last episode, I quoted T.S. Eliot since cruel, cruel April brought us the ending of two of our favorite franchises. Little did I know how cruel it would actually be! Another Eliot quote is appropriate now (this one the conclusion to The Hollow Men):
This is the way the world ends Not with a bang but with a whimper.
Whimper to its conclusion Game of Thrones did–and its lackluster finale takes up the full first half of our episode–but it wasn’t alone in its dullness. The live action Aladdin remake and the much-hyped John Wick Chapter 3 – Parabellum, released in back-to-back weekends, were also quite lame, to put it mildly. To top off this whirlwind of recent mediocrity, a bit of (potentially) soul-crushing Star Wars news also leaked this week. When will the suffering end?
Avenger: Endgame was pop culture’s only saving grace and we gladly left it out of our lamentations (until, ya know, the end of our episode, when we decided to actually talk about it. Oops?)
Listen and complain along with us! And, as always, SPOILERS!
For the fourth episode of the Ruminations Podcast, we discuss the long-awaited endings of our beloved Game of Thrones and The Avengers. (“April is the cruelest month,” as Eliot said.) We recorded hours before the premiere of GoT’s 8th season, but we spend more time talking about the past 7 seasons anyway, so it’s not outdated yet! (One of Chris’s predictions has already come true! Psst. It involves dragons.) For both our GoT and MCU discussions, SPOILERS GALORE!
Edit 3: Overall, 9/25. I should never actually gamble. However, I am happy with most of the outcomes of the evening, although I’d rather Birdman had won for Best Musical or Comedy, and while I didn’t necessarily care for Boyhood, I’ll admit that its feat should definitely be recognized. On the TV end, I really overestimated the love for True Detective, which was all but shut out by Fargo (YES!) and The Normal Heart. And I guess Amazon is the new Netflix, with 2 wins for Transparent vs. 1 win for the latter company (Kevin Spacey for House of Cards’ second season). Also, who has actually seen The Affair?? Yeah, me neither.
Edit 2: NEW CATEGORY!! The “George Clooney Award for Being George Clooney” with the only nomination and winner… George Clooney
Edit 1: With less than half of the show left to go…. my ballot is coooompletely off. More to follow afterwards…
Tonight is the 72 Annual Golden Globe awards! Super comedy duo Tina Fey and Amy Poehler return as co-hosts, and with many close races that will serve as a possible preview of February’s Oscars, it should at least be an interesting night.
MOTION PICTURES
Best Drama
Boyhood √
Foxcatcher
The Imitation Game
Selma
The Theory of Everything
Best Comedy
Birdman
The Grand Budapest Hotel √
Into the Woods
Pride
St. Vincent
Best Director
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Ava Duvernay, Selma
David Fincher, Gone Girl
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Birdman
Richard Linklater, Boyhood √
Best Actress in a Drama
Jennifer Aniston, Cake
Felicity Jones, The Theory of Everything
Julianne Moore, Still Alice √
Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Reese Witherspoon,Wild
Best Actor in a Drama
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher
Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game
Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler
David Oyelowo, Selma
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything √
Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy
Ralph Fiennes, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Michael Keaton, Birdman √
Bill Murray, St. Vincent
Joaquin Phoenix, Inherent Vice
Christoph Waltz, Big Eyes
Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy
Amy Adams, Big Eyes √
Emily Blunt, Into the Woods
Helen Mirren, The Hundred-Foot Journey
Julianne Moore, Map to the Stars
Quvenzhané Wallis, Annie
(Really, HFPA? This is by far the most bizarre category of the night.)
Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood √
Jessica Chastain, A Most Violent Year
Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game
Emma Stone, Birdman
Meryl Streep, Into the Woods
Best Supporting Actor
Robert Duvall, The Judge
Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
Edward Norton, Birdman
Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash √
Best Screenplay
Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, and Armando Bo, Birdman √
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Graham Moore, The Imitation Game
Best Foreign Language Film
Force Majeure Turist, Sweden
Gett: The Trial of Viviane Ansalem Gett, Israel
Ida, Poland/Denmark
Leviathan, Russia √
Tangerines Mandariinid, Estonia
Best Animated Feature
Big Hero 6
The Book of Life
The Boxtrolls
How to Train Your Dragon 2 √
The Lego Movie
Best Original Song
“Big Eyes” from Big Eyes
“Glory” from Selma √
“Mercy Is” from Noah
“Opportunity” from Annie
“Yellow Flicker Beat” from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1
Best Score
The Imitation Game
The Theory of Everything √
Gone Girl
Birdman
Interstellar
TELEVISION
Best TV Comedy or Musical
Girls
Jane the Virgin
Orange Is the New Black
Silicon Valley
Transparent √
Best TV Drama
The Affair √
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
The Good Wife
House of Cards
Best Actress in a TV Drama
Claire Danes, Homeland
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Ruth Wilson, The Affair √
Robin Wright, House of Cards
Best Actor in a TV Drama
Clive Owen, The Knick
Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards √
James Spader, The Blacklist
Dominic West, The Affair
Best Actress in a TV Comedy
Lena Dunham, Girls
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Gena Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin √
Taylor Schilling, Orange Is the New Black
Best Actor in a TV Comedy
Louis CK, Louie
Don Cheadle, House of Lies
Ricky Gervais, Derek
William H. Macy, Shameless
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent √
Best Miniseries or TV Movie
Fargo √
The Missing
The Normal Heart
Olive Kitteridge
True Detective
Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman √
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Frances McDormand, Olive Kitteridge
Frances O’Connor, The Missing
Allison Tolman, Fargo
Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Martin Freeman, Fargo
Woody Harrelson, True Detective
Matthew McConaughey, True Detective
Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart
Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo √
Best Supporting Actress in a TV Show, Miniseries or TV Movie
Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black
Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Freak Show
Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey √
Allison Janney, Mom
Michelle Monaghan, True Detective
Best Supporting Actor in a TV Show, Miniseries or TV Movie
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in “True Detective”
These are my predictions for tomorrow night’s Emmy Awards. It should be a big night for Breaking Bad, True Detective, and Fargo, to say the least. I am not familiar with some of the shows nominated, such as The Good Wifeor Orange is the New Black, the latter of which is up for a multitude of awards and will probably win for Best Comedy Series. In cases like that, my predictions/thoughts will be based on the general consensus that I have gathered from friends and family who have watched these shows as well as from reviews and thoughts of critics online.
My predicted winners are in red and any additional thoughts of mine will be underneath each category in green.
Writing for a Comedy
David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik, Episodes Louis C.K., Louie Liz Friedman and Jenji Kohan, Orange Is the New Black Alec Berg, Silicon Valley Simon Blackwell, Tony Roche, and Armando Iannucci, Veep
Directing for a Comedy
Iain B. MacDonald, Episodes Paris Barclay, Glee Louis C.K., Louie Gail Mancuso, Modern Family Jodie Foster, Orange Is the New Black Mike Judge, Silicon Valley
Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
Colin Hanks, Fargo Jim Parsons, The Normal Heart Joe Mantello, The Normal Heart Alfred Molina, The Normal Heart Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart Martin Freeman, Sherlock: His Last Vow
Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
Frances Conroy, American Horror Story: Coven Kathy Bates, American Horror Story: Coven Angela Bassett, American Horror Story: Coven Allison Tolman, Fargo Ellen Burstyn, Flowers in the Attic Julia Roberts, The Normal Heart
I would really, really, REALLY like Allison Tolman to win for Fargo. She went head-to-head against Billy Bob Thornton and Martin Freeman and was equal to, if not better than them a majority of the time.
Allison Tolman, Fargo
Writing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special
Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, American Horror Story: Coven Noah Hawley, Fargo Neil Cross, Luther Larry Kramer, The Normal Heart Steven Moffat, Sherlock: His Last Vow David Simon and Eric Overmyer, Treme
Hawley wrote all 10 episodes and completed the absurd task of creating a TV series based on one of the most critically-acclaimed movies of all time that can be called a masterpiece in its own right.
Directing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special
Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, American Horror Story: Coven Adam Bernstein, Fargo Colin Bucksey, Fargo Stephen Frears, Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight Ryan Murphy, The Normal Heart Nick Hurran, Sherlock: His Last Vow
Fargo‘s pilot was incredible.
Writing for a Variety Series
The Colbert Report The Daily Show Inside Amy Schumer Key & Peele Portlandia The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
Fallon has been absolutely wonderful since taking over for Jay Leno earlier this year. He is a breath of fresh air in the late night talk show universe.
Guest Actress in a Comedy
Natasha Lyonne, Orange Is the New Black Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black Laverne Cox, Orange Is the New Black Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live Melissa McCarthy, Saturday Night Live Joan Cusack, Shameless
Guest Actor in a Comedy
Bob Newhart, The Big Bang Theory Nathan Lane, Modern Family Steve Buscemi, Portlandia Jimmy Fallon, Saturday Night Live Louis C.K., Saturday Night Live Gary Cole, Veep
Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory Julie Bowen, Modern Family Allison Janney, Mom Kate Mulgrew, Orange Is the New Black Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live Anna Chlumsky, Veep
Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine Adam Driver, Girls Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Modern Family Ty Burrell, Modern Family Fred Armisen, Portlandia Tony Hale, Veep
Directing for a Drama
Tim Van Patten, Boardwalk Empire Vince Gilligan, Breaking Bad David Evans, Downton Abbey Neil Marshall, Game of Thrones Carl Franklin, House of Cards Cary Joji Fukunaga, True Detective
Gilligan and Fukunaga both did amazing jobs on BreakingBad and TrueDetective, respectively, but it is Marshall and his 50-minute Battle of the Wall that served as the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones who deserves this directing award.
Writing for a Drama
Moira Walley-Beckett, Breaking Bad Vince Gilligan, Breaking Bad David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Game of Thrones Beau Willimon, House of Cards Nic Pizzolatto, True Detective
Walley-Beckett’s “Ozymandias” is one of THE great TV episodes of all time, and this award is a no-brainer, even considering Vince Gilligan’s ability to tie up all loose ends in one of the neatest series finales of all time, “Felina.”
Guest Actress in a Drama
Margo Martindale, The Americans Diana Rigg, Game of Thrones Kate Mara, House of Cards Allison Janney, Masters of Sex Jane Fonda, The Newsroom Kate Burton, Scandal
I mean, she poisoned King Joffrey. Give her ALL the awards.
Guest Actor in a Drama
Paul Giamatti, Downton Abbey Dylan Baker, The Good Wife Reg E. Cathey, House of Cards Robert Morse, Mad Men Beau Bridges, Masters of Sex Joe Morton, Scandal
This.
Supporting Actress in a Drama
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey Lena Headey, Game of Thrones Christine Baranski, The Good Wife Christina Hendricks, Mad Men
Supporting Actor in a Drama
Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad Jim Carter, Downton Abbey Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones Josh Charles, The Good Wife Mandy Patinkin, Homeland Jon Voight, Ray Donovan
Peter Dinklage’s speech at the end of “The Laws of Gods and Men” is one for the ages.
Television Movie
Killing Kennedy Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight The Normal Heart Sherlock: His Last Vow The Trip to Bountiful
Miniseries
American Horror Story: Coven Bonnie & Clyde Fargo Luther Treme The White Queen
Variety Series
The Colbert Report The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Jimmy Kimmel Live Real Time With Bill Maher Saturday Night Live The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
Please not SNL. I’d rather Bill Maher won over SNL.
Reality Competition Program
The Amazing Race Dancing With the Stars Project Runway So You Think You Can Dance Top Chef The Voice
Lead Actress in a Comedy
Lena Dunham, Girls Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie Taylor Schilling, Orange Is the New Black Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Lead Actor in a Comedy
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory Ricky Gervais, Derek Matt LeBlanc,, Episodes Don Cheadle, House of Lies Louis C.K., Louie William H. Macy, Shameless
Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Coven Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Coven Helena Bonham Carter, Burton and Taylor Minnie Driver, Return to Zero Kristen Wiig, The Spoils of Babylon Cicely Tyson, The Trip to Bountiful
Lead Actress in a Drama
Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife Claire Danes, Homeland Robin Wright, House of Cards Lizzy Caplan, Masters of Sex Kerry Washington, Scandal
Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
Chiwetel Ejiofor, Dancing on the Edge Martin Freeman, Fargo Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo Idris Elba, Luther Mark Ruffalo, The Normal Heart Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: His Last Vow
Can there be a tie? Martin and Thorton were both exquisite in Fargo, but if I had to pick one, I’d go with the actor who had to show a much greater range, and that was Martin Freeman as the loser insurance salesman-turned-murderous creep.
Lead Actor in a Drama
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad Jeff Daniels, The Newsroom Jon Hamm, Mad Men Woody Harrelson, True Detective Matthew McConaughey, True Detective Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
Hey, if Jeff Daniels won last year, maybe he can upset again this year…right? I think I’d throw my computer at my TV if that happens. While I would love Jon Hamm to FINALLY win an award for playing Don Draper, this race is definitely between Bryan Cranston and Matthew McConaughey. Cranston was perfect in the final 8 episodes of Breaking Bad, especially “Ozymandias,” but McConaughey has the story and the hype and the momentum (AND THE OSCAR) behind him. Purely the fact that Craston already has three Emmys for playing Walter White says that McConaughey will get it this time. And poor Woody. He was great in True Detective too, but not existential meltdown-good.
Comedy Series
The Big Bang Theory Louie Modern Family Orange Is the New Black Silicon Valley Veep
Ah, screw it. I said Orange might win above but I think Louie could manage an upset. Let’s go with that.
Drama Series
Breaking Bad Downton Abbey Game of Thrones House of Cards Mad Men True Detective
The final award of the night is definitely between Breaking Bad and True Detective. Game of Thrones was great (and my personal favorite of all the shows nominated), but it wasn’t as good as past seasons and some rare “off moments” (coughincestrapecough) soured its overall taste in my mouth. MadMan was the same as ever, slow and smoldering with some awesome moments to close out the season, but its time in the Emmy limelight has clearly passed – any chance at another win will have to be next year for its final season. I have not seen DowntonAbbey so I cannot say whether it has a chance or not for myself, but I did see House of Cards, and this season was… well, it was quite bad. (Thanks for taking Hannibal‘s spot, dude…)
Last but not least, I would much rather have had TrueDetective in the Miniseries category as it will not have the same cast next season, just like Fargo and American Horror Story. Also, while I really enjoyed TrueDetective, especially the performances from its two leads and the long take at the end of Episode 5, I felt it was a lot slower than it should have been, and its ending – which I happened to love – divided a lot of people who had been watching the show from the beginning. Breaking Bad had the more perfect eight-episode block, and I personally have never been more engaged by a show than when its final season aired last summer. The time in between episodes seemed insurmountable! From Hank confronting Walt early on, to Jesse’s betrayal, to the cut-to-black in the middle of a climactic gunfight in the desert… those cliffhangers caused me heart problems! The final four episodes, “To’hajilee,” “Ozymandias,” “Granite State,” and “Felina,” will be studied by filmmakers and storytellers alike for years to come. THAT is how you end a television show.
Ruminations Podcast @ Flipp's Quips 