crony

Not your average family, and not your average ****'s very funny, but it is also real, with moments of poignancy. There are moments that are truly surprising; the lack of hackneyed, formulaic writing is refreshing. So is the absence of precious kid scenes. The child actors are quite accomplished,and the stories are relatable, even though Sam, the mom, struggles with a career most of us only fantasized about, she definitely struggles. Mostly, though, and again, it is FUNNY. In this current atmosphere, which is riddled with angst, and various social issues, funny seems in short supply. But not here! Louis C K's hand is lighter than expected, and sometimes almost gentle. All tolled, this is a terrifically fun ride.

Lo, how the mighty have fallen. This last season of True Blood is surely going out with the wimpiest of whimpers, and the least provocative of bangs. The writers are clearly so "written out" that there can be no suspension of disbelief, willing or otherwise. The so-called plot lines are disorganized, the actors seem burned out, their characters are made to speak lines so insipid it's hard to correlate who these once engaging fictionalized people are now with whom they were in seasons past. As a die-hard loyal fan of the books and the series I feel insulted, unappreciated and ripped off. In a word, I'm done. I'm not going to watch any more of this drivel. Why should I waste my time on this product when it's obvious the True Blood writers and producers haven't bothered to spend any of their time or creativity making a last season designed to leave the viewers wishing the show would never end, and instead have managed to present us with the opposite--a last season which will leave us saying, "Thank God this tripe is over?" This last season fiasco represents the degree of contempt in which we loyal viewers are held, and it's a truly disappointing example of the lack of creative integrity that permeates Hollywood and its attitude towards a viewing audience who have lowered its expectation for quality to such a depressing degree that, by our continuing agreement to watch this garbage, makes it abundantly clear that, to shamelessly paraphrase one of our founding fathers, shows that viewers get pretty much the television content they deserve.