My Favorite Hugh Laurie Roles

Apropos of nothing (other than rediscovering a slew of old Annie Lennox CDs in my collection and playing them for my music-obsessed two-year-old son and watching The Night Manager), here are my all-time favorite Hugh Laurie roles: 

(6) The Prince Regent in Blackadder

(5) Gregory House in House

(4) Richard Onslow Roper in The Night Manager

(3) Tom James in VEEP

(2) Bertie Wooster in Jeeves and Wooster

(1) Foppish aristocrat (quite possibly Prince George again) in Annie Lennox's "Walking on Broken Glass" video:

And, yes, that's John Malkovich as well.

In Awe of Eva Green on "Penny Dreadful"

Eva Green is again at the top of her game in an episode of Penny Dreadful that showcases fine deftness of her acting and its staggering depth, as we get another piece of Vanessa's tortured past — this time her incarceration in the mental hospital. A bottle episode that feels not only claustrophobic in the best possible sense but also forward-moving, even as it looks backward. Green manages to be catatonic, savage, guileless, beatific, and predator and prey in all the same scene. It's a performance of extremes and Green exerts a magnetic pull on the viewer in every second of the episode.

Remind me again why she's not won any awards for her incredible turn as Vanessa Ives?

What I'm Watching: "Marcella"

ITV's Marcella — which arrives Stateside July 1 on Netflix — is ludicrous, over the top, ridiculous fun. Anna Friel + Laura Carmichael + Jamie Bamber + a ruthless serial killer whose MO is suffocating people with plastic bags over their heads + a compromised detective with rage blackouts = perfect way to spend my Monday evenings during this eight-episode run. 

Marcella is compulsive viewing, even as it veers into the ludicrous, but is ultimately saved by the presence of Friel, who deftly balances grim and loony modes. She's the anchor at the center of a production that would jettison off to the upper atmosphere if she weren't there to keep it grounded.

The mystery itself is totally nonsensical (so many red herrings! so many suspects with beards! so many convoluted sideplots!) but I could not stop watching, and I do hope Marcella returns for another season of madness and intrigue.

Masterpiece Studio Crosses the 3 Million Mark!

Masterpiece Studio has now been listened to more than 3 MILLION times! 

Many, many thanks to everyone out there who has subscribed on iTunes and listened us as we've covered Downton Abbey, Grantchester, Wallander, Sherlock, etc. — there's much more to come!

Now That Was the Episode of "Game of Thrones" I Needed

About 800 things happened in tonight's episode of Game of Thrones that I thought we'd never get to see — and, honestly, that makes me so happy.

As a book reader, it's good to be incredibly surprised and not 10 steps ahead for a change. It was also just a stellar episode of television all around: Momentum, reunions, vendettas, and reversals.

Plus, fire. So much fire. I loved it.

About That "Good Wife" Finale...

A day later, I still love the series finale of CBS' The Good Wife. Alicia Florrick dusting herself off, straightening her peplum, and getting on with life is all the closure I need from this show.

The slap, Alicia's expression, and the fact that once again she'll have to pick herself up and reinvent herself is more than enough for me. Ultimately, whom she ended up with is less of interest to me than who she ended up being.

So many things came full circle and fulfilled Alicia's character arc from the pilot episode, in a finale that was filled with touches both big and small (Judge Cuesta, pitted evidence) that recalled the pilot. An ending with precision, poise, and promise that didn't wrap things up nearly but also offered a deep sense of closure and a fulfillment of the journey that this show took its viewers on over the last seven seasons. I'll miss you so much, Alicia and Co.

At the Cinema: "Captain America: Civil War"

Loved Captain America: Civil War. A little overstuffed (exactly as much as I expected), but immensely entertaining, from the philosophical implications to the fight sequences. The Russo Brothers did a fantastic job at managing the vast array of moving pieces and keeping them, well, moving swiftly — shifting from pathos to comedy and back to pathos over the course of a breezy two and a half hours.

Spoilers in the Age of Social Media, Binge-Viewing, and SEO

Apropos of last night's (very expected) "unexpected twist" on Game of Thrones, it's interesting to me to see how much the needs of journalistic outlets covering entertainment — SEO, heds, deks, and thumbnails, for example — continue to diverge from readers' needs, as outlets struggle to compete with one another for a chunk of the same readership. 

Outraged viewers scream, "SPOILERS," "How could you?" and level outrage over photo selections, plot-centric heds, etc., while writers and editors are going to try to position their stories to get the best clickthrough/share rates via social and homepage. Often, that amounts to language or image selections that are highly specific, hyperbolic, and/or plot-centric.

Given the increasingly fierce level of competition for entertainment outlets, is there any solution that will please both outlets and readers, particularly in an age in which social media and binge-viewing are oddly both de rigueur? 

And I’m especially curious — for TV reporters/critics, are you more or less sensitive to spoiler issues lately and do the demands of the trade to find and keep audience have anything to do with your choices in terms of story elements?

What I'm Watching: "The A Word"

Loved BBC One's The A Word so much. Six episodes were not enough of this remarkable, heartfelt, beautiful family drama. Need more ASAP, please.

While the entire cast of the Lake District-set drama is aces, Morven Christie is fantastically fierce as the mother of a child diagnosed with ASD — though the show itself isn't just about Joe's diagnosis, but instead follows each of the family members as they grapple with their own hard truths and uncomfortable situations. Joe is the thing that ultimately brings them together, rather than pushes them apart.

And I'm beyond thrilled that The A Word will return for a second season! Television needs more shows like this one: it's deft, nuanced, and impassioned.

(Season 1 comes to the U.S. on July 13 on SundanceTV. I highly recommend.)

What I'm Watching: "Line of Duty"

BBC Two's Line of Duty Season 3 is a masterclass in tension, escalation, and plotting. Absolutely electrifying from start to finish.

Daniel Mays plays, as always, a complex baddy with malevolent intensity and does so perfectly, while Keeley Hawes — so sublime in S2 — returns as disgraced copper Lindsay Denton for a tour de force performance that demonstrates Hawes at her finest and fiercest.

Seasons 1-2 are already on Hulu with Season 3 joining them on May 1. A true tour de force that ties together long-simmering plot lines from the first two seasons with grit and horror. I'm in awe of this show.

I Need More "iZombie"

Two hours of iZombie is exactly what the doctor ordered for tonight (don't ask), although I wish that it weren't the finale — I need more Liv and Co. in my life and this season has been so fantastic that I'm crushed that it's over already. (Remember last year when iZombie aired new episodes all the way into June? I do.)

Despite needing more iZombie in my life, I thought that this was a perfect season finale from start to finish — featuring a reveal (Clive finally knows!), a twist, two Rob Thomases (!), and a new enemy (frenemy? ally?). Who can say? All I know: The wait for Season 3 is going to be bloody painful.

Nothing Lasts Forever, Not Even HBO's "Togetherness"

Brett & Michelle & Alex & Tina forever. Togetherness, you'll be missed.

My Latest TV Obsession: The CW's "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"

Q: Could Crazy Ex-Girlfriend possibly be any better than it already is?

A: No, because it's perfect, especially this week.

I loved every second of this week's episode (#‎bearmergency), particularly as Rebecca (the always amazing Rachel Bloom) breaks her cycle of behavior — with Josh, Greg, Valencia, and Paula — and chooses a different path for herself. Plus, "Heavy Boobs" may just be the most inventive, witty, and unforgettable song ever written.

This show has it all: Humor, heart, subversion, and boba tea. What more could you ask for?

I'm in Awe of Tonight's Episode of HBO's "Girls"

Tonight's episode of Girls ("The Panic in Central Park") was nothing less than spellbinding, from the scene under the water to Marnie finally coming up to the surface.

I loved the randomness and precision of the Charlie story here: After failing and becoming addicted, this is how he would remake himself, as a tough guy. But his newfound confidence and cocksure charisma hide his true self:  a screw-up addict surrounded by guys who catcall women. Like the girl in the bathroom, Charlie's fantasy ruptured.

And so does Marnie's and she finally breaks free of Charlie's spell, her disillusionment, and her fears, and leaves Desi for good. An astonishing, beautiful, and heartbreaking half-hour, I thought.

What I'm Watching: "The Night Manager"

I just finished The Night Manager, which will definitely be going on my list of my favorite shows of 2016. An electrifying, intoxicating, heady brew that left me wanting more. 

Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman, Elizabeth Debicki (so great already in The Man from U.N.C.L.E.), Tom Hollander, David Harewood, and Hugh Laurie are all stellar here and the gorgeous direction by Susannah Bier is riveting, making this a "must-watch" in every sense.

What can I say about Colman in that incredible "sports day" scene? It is a masterclass in acting from start to finish. And after The Night Manager, I can definitely see Tom Hiddleston as James Bond. He's all sinew and charm as Pine.

What I'm Watching: "Happy Valley" Season 2

Season 2 of BBC One's Happy Valley was incredible: every single second of Sarah Lancashire's stunning performance, that final scene, the beautiful bleakness of the North, finding the language.

Bring on Season 3 of because the wait for more is going to be excruciating. Bravura television on every level. Bravo, Sally Wainwright.

If you want to see well-written television roles for women of ALL AGES, look no further than Call the Midwife and Happy Valley. An oasis.

I Cannot Stop Thinking About Amanda Peet This Season on "Togetherness"

My god, Amanda Peet this season on Togetherness? Absolutely aces.

Can we please all talk about that orange juice scene and the scene at the end of this week's episode? Please?

"Switched at Birth" To End Its Run

I'm so gutted to lose this show, which will end its run early next year, but I hope that it will get the perfect ending it so richly deserves.

Switched At Birth took its title concept and infused it with a nuanced exploration of identity, race, class, communication, and connection. Television is ultimately better for Switched at Birth existing. It was — and is (we still have one last batch of episodes to look forward to in 2017) — a beautiful, emotional, daring, brave show in every sense.

You meant a lot to so many. You'll be missed more than you know. 

"The 100," Character Deaths, and Loss

Fictional character deaths matter. They matter intensely, in fact. 

There’s an intimacy that comes with television as a medium; the characters on television are, after all, fictional people that we invite into our living rooms and bedrooms on a weekly basis. For some viewers, television characters might feel as real — if not more real — than the actual people around them. 

The relationship we have with television is inherently personal. These are characters that we see change and grow from the comfort of our couches and our beds, and with whom we spend countless hours week after week, year after year. If the cinema is popular culture’s church — a holy place of silence and darkness (which has sadly now been invaded by cell phones and loud talkers) — then television is the equivalent of popular culture’s confessional, a place where we can see ourselves reflected. It’s personal, it’s private, and yet we use it to commune with something larger than ourselves. 

All of this is to say that I’m not surprised that fans of The CW’s dystopian drama The 100 were shocked and angered and saddened by the death of one of its breakout characters on the March 3 episode (“Thirteen”). Lexa (Alycia Debnam-Carey) — the fierce and ferocious commander of the 12 tribes of Grounders that our main characters have encountered since returning to Earth — was a phenomenal character: strong and gritty, powerful and mysterious. She had so much potential in terms of story, both in terms of learning about the nature of mercy and how her leadership could change the century-old ways of the Grounders (how forgiveness could be more powerful than vengeance) and her relationship with the similarly flinty Clarke (Eliza Taylor), the teenage de facto leader of the Sky People, whose own sacrifices have powered the series to become one of the most brutal and uncompromising explorations of power structures and survival in the face of unspeakable horror.

The two leaders were in love, their scenes throughout the past two seasons sparking with the chemistry of sexual attraction, and their feelings were finally consummated in “Thirteen,” as when faced with the notion of separation, they fell into bed together. It was only through the machinations of Lexa’s chief counsel Titus (Neil Sandilands) that Lexa died inadvertently by his own hand, an ironic twist of fate as Lexa, hearing gunshots from Clarke’s chambers, rushed to her lover’s side to save her, only to be felled by a bullet from her own protector’s hand.

It was, like all things on The 100, brutal and bloody, though Taylor and Debham-Carey turned out remarkable performances for both the love scene between Clarke and Lexa and for Lexa’s heartbreaking death scene, one that unlocked a primary mystery about The 100’s backstory and resolved several questions about Grounder culture and customs while tying into the underlying mythology of the show. It was an immensely powerful scene of death and loss and love.

The dead lesbian trope has been well-played out on television and I couldn’t help but think about the murder of Tara (Amber Benson) on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, (who is similarly killed in the crossfire by a man who wasn’t specifically targeting her) when watching Titus accidentally kill Lexa on The 100. But I don’t feel that The 100 falls into this trope, per se. Yes, Lexa dies because of her relationship with Clarke, but only because she tries to save Clarke because they’re in a relationship. She’s in the wrong place at the wrong time, but she dies a hero, rather than a tragic victim. And the show has pushed Clarke to deal with the loss of a lover before; in Season 2, the show killed off her male lover, Finn (Thomas McDonell), by having Clarke herself murder him to prevent Lexa (!) from ritualistically and painfully killing him.

Neither Clarke nor Lexa’s defining characteristic was their sexuality — in fact, sexuality is always treated on The 100 as an aside rather than the sole thing that defined the characters. Lexa and Clarke’s relationship made no one blink twice, other than the political ramifications of their union. Their romance was problematic only because of the political, rather than sexual lines that it crossed. Lexa believed that feelings were weakness, but gave into her passion and sentiment for Clarke. She obtained a moment of happiness before her life was so cruelly cut short. I do believe that there are an immense number of story possibilities for Clarke that will emerge from Lexa’s death, which will leave a vacuum in the power struggle among the Grounders (and the Skaikru). I believe that Clarke will have to find the strength to live again, just as she did after Finn’s death. And I believe that the show will eventually find another romantic match for Clarke, although I do hope it’s another woman as strong and commanding as Lexa.

Would Lexa’s death have cut so deeply had she and Clarke not consummated their relationship? Absolutely. The show dangled their love in front of the viewer — look how beautiful, look how tender!, it said — before hermetically sealing it off, making the sting of Lexa’s death all the more palpable as Lexa and Clarke’s romance, after a season and a half of simmering, smolders with passion and then explodes into pain and grief and rage. All we’re left with is dust. But that’s all that anyone is left with, The 100 would seem to say: Life is short and survival is hard. But I also wouldn’t have wanted Lexa to die before she and Clarke could have been together. If she had been killed without having that sumptuous, gorgeous bedroom scene, wouldn’t that have been even worse? It might be cold comfort to think that Lexa went to her grave happy, but she had at least those moments of bliss with Clarke before her life was snuffed out.

Couples — whether gay or straight — rarely stay together on The 100. If the reverse were true, I’d have a far bigger issue with the killing of Lexa. But life on the Earth of The 100 is nasty, brutish, and short… and so are the romances between the show’s characters. To date, only one couple (Octavia/Lincoln) has made it through the last two and a half seasons with both characters intact, and with Ricky Whittle set to star in Starz’s American Gods, I can’t help but feel that Clarke will soon have someone else with whom to grieve before long...

Golly Gumdrops: Masterpiece Studio Crosses 1 Million Listens!

Absolutely huge news: MASTERPIECE STUDIO has crossed the 1 million listen threshold only a few weeks after launching. In fact, we've doubled in just three weeks, which is astounding.

Thanks to all of you, our MASTERPIECE Studio podcast crossed the 1 million listens mark- onward! cc: @televisionary pic.twitter.com/BGRJDGh86x

— Masterpiece PBS (@masterpiecepbs) February 22, 2016

A sincere thank you to everyone out there who has been listening, tweeting, Facebooking, and interacting with us. It's been a pleasure. And a thank you of a different sort to everyone who has worked so tirelessly on this podcast with me: Nathan Tobey, Kathy Tu, Rachel Aronoff, Barrett Brountas, Olivia Wong, and Bruce Kohl. You are amazing.

It's been, as Lady Edith might say, bananas.