Posted Jan 28th 2010 12:02PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S07E04)
"I think, in a way, we all feel responsible." - Sean Just when it looked like we were on our way to a major break-up,
Nip/Tuck threw fans a curve ball last night as we head in to the series' final five episodes. For as much as Sean may despise Christian, what he's done, and how he acts, sticking with him for 25 years has left a scar -- Sean may see himself as the opposite of Christian, but the rest of the world views them as one and the same.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Sheila Carlton
Posted Jan 21st 2010 12:32PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S07E03)
"This is something I want to do. Something I probably should've done a long time ago." - Sean
Nip/Tuck's final season continued last night and the deep examination of Sean and Christian's relationship got fleshed out even further as the rift between the two of them continued to grow. These two are set on a collision course by the end of the season, though Sean seems to be doing everything in his power to just walk away.
It's becoming increasingly clear that Sean is the key to all McNamara/Troy's success and the closer he gets to reclaiming the life he always wanted, the more on edge Christian is becoming. The problem with that? Their conflict is starting to spill over into the lives of their loved ones.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Joel Seabrook
Posted Jan 14th 2010 1:10AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S07E02)
"For once in my life, I just want to be able to walk down the street and be ignored." - Willow Banks
Imperfection. Though it's something that
Nip/Tuck has tried to buck since its inception, and despite the claims of Drs. McNamara and Troy being able to make you perfect, the notion of imperfection has, in a way, always been the core issue of this show. But just like the surgeries performed week in and out, there are layers upon layers that make up the idea of perfection vs. imperfection and, more importantly, how different people perceive that battle.
This week's episode of
Nip/Tuck tackled that issue in what was arguably one of the most nuanced and, yes,
layered, episodes in the series yet. Considering that we're in the midst of
Nip/Tuck's swan song, "Willow Banks" might very well turn out to be one of the show's most important installments when we finally have the opportunity to look back on the series as a whole.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Willow Banks
Posted Jan 7th 2010 12:02PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S07E01)
"What are you gonna do when it all catches up with you?" - Sean
With only eight episodes left in
Nip/Tuck's run, I know I'm not alone in hoping that Ryan Murphy and Co. have a solid plan for ending what's arguably been one the most groundbreaking shows of the past decade. Don't forget -- season one nabbed the Golden Globe for best drama. It's not that the show has become less buzzworthy since its stellar freshman year, but in some regards the plots in subsequent seasons have always felt like something far more important was being put off. While entertaining, stories like The Carver or the organ smuggling ring have really just been diversions. What happened in last night's season seven premiere was a long time coming and it sets in motion a conflict that's been simmering since Sean and Christian bought all those spiral hams in the pilot episode.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Dan Daly (season premiere)
Posted Dec 17th 2009 11:55AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E10)
"Besides, we've seen people die before. I mean, hell, we've thrown them in a swamp." - Christian
This deep into
Nip/Tuck, it's hard sometimes to remember the original sin that took place in the pilot episode all those years ago -- Sean and Christian wrapping a body in spiral hams and dumping it deep in the Everglades. The two of them, they're not innocent -- not by a longshot -- and it always creates an interesting dichotomy when they try to elevate themselves ethically (Sean, especially).
Within the final moments of last night's superb finale (I mean it --
best episode of the season), it's easy to make the argument that all has been forgiven, but with nine episodes remaining (the seventh and final season premieres in just a few weeks on January 6th), it's probably a safe bet that we just witnessed the calm before the storm.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Wesley Clovis (season finale)
Posted Dec 11th 2009 6:09PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: Late Night, OpEd, Lost, Nip/Tuck, Survivor, Festivus, Sons of Anarchy
Festivus is upon us once again here at TV Squad and regardless of whether or not I've been naughty or nice, all my wishes had better come true because I've already sat through all ten crappy episodes of
FlashForward -- I
deserve all this.
- First off, as you can probably tell by the picture above, I've got high hopes for David Simon's upcoming HBO drama Treme. Set in a post-Katrina New Orleans, I am in no way asking for this show to be The Wire meets the bayou, but I do want it to be good. Judging by the cast (Wire alums Wendell Pierce and Clarke Peters, Steve Zahn, and Khandi Alexander to name a few), I'd say Simon already has another hit on his hands.
Continue reading All Jonathan wants for Festivus
Posted Dec 10th 2009 10:25AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E09)
"Being related by blood doesn't make a family." - Christian
As
Nip/Tuck's penultimate season winds down, I'm having a hard time getting excited for next week's finale knowing that
the final season kicks off right after the New Year on January 6th. With only a few weeks in-between the episodes, next week doesn't feel like the event that a
Nip/Tuck finale usually is. Regardless, FX's scheduling plans were obviously not on the table when Ryan Murphy and Co. shot these final episodes and as far the creative team was concerned, it was business as usual. Despite a few odd plot choices, "Benny Nilsson" set-up what could arguably be McNamara/Troy's biggest challenge yet -- staying in business.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Benny Nilsson
Posted Dec 3rd 2009 12:16PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E08)
"Do I need to start smoking again?!" - Kimber
With only two new episodes left in season six of
Nip/Tuck (although,
season seven does start right up again in January), I feel pretty confident in saying that "Lola Wlodkowski" will probably go down as the best of this penultimate season's 10 episodes.
For the most part, it stood alone in terms of plot and only loosely tied into the season's overarching arcs. Instead, it provided what was arguably one of the series' best takes on what beauty is while at the same time, reaffirming the differences between Sean and Christian. Hats off to Jennifer Salt for writing a helluva ep.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Lola Wlodkowski
Posted Dec 1st 2009 4:01PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: Industry, Programming, Nip/Tuck, Damages, Reality-Free
Hot on the heels of FOX, its parent company's
midseason schedule announcement, FX today released their upcoming schedule after the ball drops for 2010.
For the most part, the basic cable network's upcoming slate of originals is what everyone expected, save for one fairly big surprise.
Full details and premiere dates after the jump.
Continue reading FX sets midseason schedule: Damages to Mondays, Nip/Tuck finale in March, and more
Posted Nov 26th 2009 5:44PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E07)
"That's why we need to play dirty." - Sean
Gotta give credit where credit is due -- despite the fact that Teddy's story was so poorly wrapped up, Ryan Murphy and Co. crafted a helluva one-two punch to make us forget about it. At first, I was a little disappointed with
the return of Erica last week, but it turned into what's arguably been the best arc of the season. If this ends up being the last time we see Vanessa Redgrave on
Nip/Tuck, at least she went out with a bang.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Alexis Stone II
Posted Nov 19th 2009 11:46AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E06)
"That's the wonderful thing about raising children -- they keep you young!" - Erica
With Teddy's murder now come and gone (I could go on for hours about how displeased I still am with the way her story ended),
Nip/Tuck returned to safe territory last night in "Alexis Stone" by bringing back one of the most loved (and hated) characters to ever grace the show -- Julia's mother, Dr. Erica Noughton (played to icy perfection by Vanessa Redgrave). With Erica around, conflict is always guaranteed and this was no exception. Calling her the mother (and mother-in-law) from hell would be the understatement of the year.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Alexis Stone
Posted Nov 12th 2009 11:15AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E05)
"Why is it that we see what we want to believe and we don't believe what we see?" - Sean
I don't really have a ton to say about this episode; suffice to say that it wasn't my favorite. I argued last week that I hoped Teddy's run in with John Doe (I don't think we caught his name) didn't turn into an easy way to end her story and that's exactly what happened. I liked how it played out but only to the extent that it sent Sean off into this delusional "what the hell am I doing with my life" haze. I'll have a lot more respect for what happened in "Abigail Sullivan" as long as the consequences are worth it.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Abigail Sullivan
Posted Nov 5th 2009 9:01AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E04)
"Yes! She punched me in the face with her breasts!" - Christian
This is really starting to shape up into one of
Nip/Tuck's best seasons in quite some time. Not only did "Jenny Juggs" put an excellent twist on the season's main plot (Teddy's plan), but it also added life to a plot that has, up until now, been pretty stupid (Matt, the bandit mime). Add in the laughs from Christian and Jenny and you've got some vintage McNamara/Troy action. Remember that?
Nip/Tuck always used to be this good.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Jenny Juggs
Posted Oct 29th 2009 11:57AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E03)
"I don't know... she must've thought I was someone else." - Teddy
Season six
of Nip/Tuck, congratulations -- you have arrived. After two enjoyable, but largely disposable episodes to start the season, the focus has finally returned to the one dangling plot from season five -- Rose McGowan's Dr. Teddy Rowe. While it took some guesswork to recall everything the two-faced (three-faced?) anesthesiologist has done (the "previously on" sequence lacked anything to jog your memory since the season five Teddy was played by Katee Sackhoff), "Briggitte Reinholt" did a pretty decent job of explaining her past sins.
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Briggitte Reinholt
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 9:28AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Nip/Tuck, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
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S06E02)
"Watching them bleed makes me feel less... alone." - Vivian
Despite being depressing as hell, "Enigma" was still a refreshing episode when compared to last week's light-hearted pseudo-documentary take on Sean and Christian's financial troubles. Nip/Tuck doesn't always focus solely on one of the main characters, but when the show does take that angle, it's often quite good. This episode could have just as easily been called "Sean McNamara II." (The first Sean-centric ep was back in season two.)
Continue reading Review: Nip/Tuck - Enigma
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