THE New Normal — Page 13

I find her disgusting and can fully understand why her mother was never around.

Ivy Lynn is wretched. I second her getting hit by a bus. Rotten human being. I hope she dies from the pills. Poorly written character who gets none of my sympathy.

Back to the New Normal. I watched last night due to Jackie being on and she surprised me by grounding the show. Barkin needs to go. Her character is a sore thumb. This is a sitcom. It shouldn't get as ugly as it did with Barkin calling her one night stand "fat".

Also, it highlights Ryan's horrible writing skills. He can't write a character arch. I think he writes every character from his persepctive on any given day. He's not true to them.

If Nana did have a one night stand (which seemed unlikely), a woman as closed as her would not go to the enemy to discuss it, much less open up about it at a picnic to a stranger. Women like that don't work like that.

I'm reaching a little here, but it is also hard to believe that a woman who oozes sex and sex appeal like Barkin would be unware of sex. Barkin is walking sex. Maybe she was cast wrong for the role of a conservative marm. She walks like she's had many orgasms and talks like she knows the ways of the world and has experience with men.

I'd cut her loose, add Hoffman and bring the show down to earth.

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Comparing "Smash" to "The New Normal" is like comparing Arby's to a mouthful of glass.

I would like to go to Arby's with Ivy Lynn.

Or a euphemism.

Goin' down to Arby's
With my girlfriend Ivy Lynn
What a lucky guy I am
I wish she had a twin

Cuz that roast beef is delicious
And them buns at half bad, too
And when you put 'em both together
There's only one thing I can do

I'm gonna lap up all that roast beef
French dip it with my tongue
And Ivy's gonna love it, boy
That's why this song was sung.

After you scrape all the cheese off, of course.

I find the critical analysis like the "gaycism" article really right on the money. I think it's important to look at the overall comedy scene, not just sitcoms, to find out who in which generation is out there on the stand-up stages giving people permission to be "politically incorrect." In this era, I lay this squarely at the feet of Lisa Lampanelli, former copy editor, SPY magazine.

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Lisa Lamanelli? Isn't she that touchy hothead from The Celebrity Apprentice?

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Lampanelli's the Andrew Dice Clay of her generation, giving people pop cultural permission to give in to their basest prejudices.

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I absolutely LOVE that it took Jackie Hoffman (of all people) to ground this show a bit. They should make her a regular.

Ha, now I'm curious what the Brokeback fracas was (aside from I know among gay people I knew who really disliked it, their main criticism was it was boring). Unless it has to do with the fact that it wasn't all that groundbreaking to have a mainstream gay movie--which shows a tragic romance.

Sarah Silverman was actually someone I was thinking of who at times--and like yous ay much more in her older stuff--I do get a bit uncomfortable laughing at her jokes. Obviously she's smart in her humour, and aware of what she's doing--one reason I think her act has improved vastly over the time, but... (I admit, I have some issue with the beloved Louis CK and some of his bits, like why the F word should be embraced and used, even if I can still appreciate that he's being smart about it).

Robbie, Ryan Murphy shows tend to cause that reaction in general (well, aside from the fact that they usually outstay their welcome, and by the final years of Nip/Tuck and the last couple of Glee, most people seem to have given up discussing the shows). I think it's not helped by the man himself, who likes to put himself out there as a controversial figure who causes these reactions that he seems to think cause society to realize deep truths about themselves.