Podcast, blog and book notes
Previewing the next week of coverage, plus a 'Revolution Was Televised' excerpt
The "Lost" cast waaaay back in the pilot.
A few bits of housekeeping and book pluggery while I ponder what Chuck Lorre might write in a vanity card about Angus T. Jones...
* As Dan and I warned you two weeks ago, this week's Firewall & Iceberg Podcast will be recorded and posted sometime tomorrow.
* As mentioned in last night's "Homeland" review, the final three episodes of season 2 won't be done in time for critics to see them in advance. I found out today that AMC also won't be making Sunday's "The Walking Dead" mid-season finale available for advance review. So here's the plan: 1)This week, because "TWD" airs an hour earlier, I'm going to watch that, write my review, go to sleep, and watch and write about "Homeland" on Monday morning. 2)The remaining two Sundays of the season (when there won't be any "TWD" — or "Boardwalk Empire," or "Tremé," for that matter), I'll endeavor to follow the "Mad Men" plan and stay up to cover those "Homeland" episodes, endurance-willing. If not, Monday morning.
*
Lots of great stuff related to my book has started popping up around the web. The Hollywood Reporter and The New Yorker both ran very positive reviews (and the book was discussed briefly at the end of a pre-Thanksgiving episode of NPR's "Pop Culture Happy Hour" podcast), and today Grantland ran an excerpt from the start of "The Revolution Was Televised" chapter about "Lost." I'll also be doing several podcast and radio interviews about the book this week, and will do another short post like this one to link to them when I have several collected. As always, if you have a question about the book, feel free to either post a comment here or email me.
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November 26, 2012 at 5:19PM EST Reply to CommentCongrats on the attention the book is receiving! I look forward to hearing the interviews when you collect them.
sajid anwar
November 26, 2012 at 5:27PM EST Reply to CommentWill the B.S. Report be one of the podcasts? I always enjoy you two discussing sports and tv.
ChampSkins Simmons better get you on the BS report...
November 26, 2012 at 5:46PM ESTTedd I know Simmons has read it, he tweeted something about it last week.
November 26, 2012 at 9:10PM ESTMeh
November 26, 2012 at 5:48PM EST Reply to CommentLoved the book, Alan! Looking forward to hearing you discuss it on some podcasts!
Dean Winchester
November 26, 2012 at 5:49PM EST Reply to CommentAlan, since you self-published I assume Louis CK type money is about to start pouring in. Despite now being able to buy and sell Dan 10x over, please promise us that you'll still deign to do the podcast?
Goes without saying, loved the book.
Dan
November 26, 2012 at 5:50PM EST Reply to CommentI loved the book. My main question was why you didn't include The West Wing. Or ANY British or non-American TV shows—not even as a reference in the prologue or epilogue. (Doctor Who comes to mind, though I suppose it's a bit of a stretch).
Also... Sopranos spoilers in the LOST and Mad Men chapters and random references throughout.
sepinwall This isn't a book about the best TV shows ever. It was about a specific creative movement, and a specific moment in time in American TV. And even though West Wing largely overlapped with Sopranos, and was a great show, it was also a very traditional network drama, not part of the story I was telling.
November 26, 2012 at 6:07PM ESTDan I would have guessed West Wing (largely in its snappy dialogue, but also its directing, scope, and plotting) was influential to the other shows in the book, but perhaps not. (Were Buffy and FNL that much more a part of the movement?). I can't think of any network dramas that were really similar to West Wing when it came on.
November 26, 2012 at 6:13PM ESTTedd I kind of agree with Dan. It seems like Buffy (at least it style and form if not execution) is more traditional than the West Wing. Buffy looks a whole lot like a ton of other semi-serialized monster-of-the-week shows from the 90s--Hercules, the X-Files, Xena, etc.
November 26, 2012 at 9:17PM ESTThe only real obvious antecedent for WW that I can think of off the top of my head would be Sports Night, and WW is far more popular/influential.
Not that it really matters, of course. *Shrug*.
Don in Germany
November 26, 2012 at 5:50PM EST Reply to CommentI'd like to add my congratulations on the book. While I'm going to buy the Kindle version, is it also possible to purchase the hardcopy and have it autographed?
Ed G.
November 26, 2012 at 5:56PM EST Reply to CommentAngus T Young, ahahahahahahaaahaha. Just couldn't handle hanging with Miley!
Highway to Hell Angus Young - AC/DC
November 27, 2012 at 1:20PM ESTAngus JONES - 2 1/2 Men
There is a difference.
Guy
November 26, 2012 at 6:44PM EST Reply to CommentAre you planning on doing a post-mortem interview with Terence Winter after the Boardwalk Empire finale like you did last year?
ed w
November 26, 2012 at 7:22PM EST Reply to CommentThanks for linking to the Grantland piece, I'd missed it.
I'd have liked to see the show that would have resulted from Braun's long quote about Lost and Survivor since that is not what Lost ended up being at all. Sounds like a better show, a more human one; they didn't need the mystical stuff.
It did whet my appetite for the book. So mission accomplished for you and Grantland. :)
Jamison Oh, you mean a LOST more about the characters?
November 27, 2012 at 4:25AM ESTWell, well
Trevor
November 26, 2012 at 7:41PM EST Reply to CommentLoved the excerpt from the "Lost" chapter and I can't wait to read the whole book. It's very engrossing; Congratulations Alan!
JedyKnight
November 26, 2012 at 10:20PM EST Reply to CommentI'm tracking my amazon deliver of the book day by day.. cant wait. =)
Justin
November 26, 2012 at 10:23PM EST Reply to CommentHave you considered an open thread/book discussion group by chapter on your website? I think it would be fun to chat with like minded tv folks.
JanieJones
November 26, 2012 at 10:53PM EST Reply to CommentExcellent book, Alan. I'm sure your family and friends are very proud.
Frankly, many say that you changed the face of television analysis and reviews. I would agree as I came of age when I was interested in reading analysis and reviews based upon many of favorite shows.
I've always appreciated that the body of work you've created.
Cheers!
Dan
November 27, 2012 at 12:09AM EST Reply to CommentAlan, I enjoyed the excerpt from your book on Grantland, but I'm wondering — Is that the full breadth of what you wrote on LOST? Or is that chapter longer? It's my favorite show, so I'm curious if there's more. Thanks
sepinwall Chapter is significantly longer. That only goes through season 1.
November 27, 2012 at 12:39AM ESTBilly
November 27, 2012 at 2:10AM EST Reply to CommentHey Alan - The best compliment on your book is a recap of my day. I read the Grantland link at work before I left for the day, read the Amazon preview on the train ride home then bought the book when I got home. I haven't put it down since. I'm now forcing myself to go to bed so I will be able to wake up for work tomorrow. three chapters to go and I wish there was more. And this is from some one who barely ever reads non fiction. Great job, honestly.
aj0125
November 27, 2012 at 2:20AM EST Reply to CommentGot the hardcover in the mail the other day and can't put it down, thanks Alan.
Hank Scorpio
November 27, 2012 at 10:45AM EST Reply to CommentJust finished the Kindle version, great deal and great read. When is the comedy sequel coming out? We need some insights about Seinfeld to Curb to Office to Community to Louie
andrei
November 27, 2012 at 10:55AM EST Reply to CommentAbout your "As soon as..." teaser - is it weird that my mind went from Chuck Lorre and Angus Jones to Chuck Jones and falling Acme safes? Maybe it's just the Geico commercial....
Anyway - congrats on the book! I bought the Nook version, and will read it as soon as I finish my current one (and believe me, yours will be a lot more fun to read than Nietzsche!).
.
Hank Scorpio Explainabrag!
November 27, 2012 at 11:01AM ESTJason
November 27, 2012 at 11:32AM EST Reply to CommentTo Alan, or anyone who has read the book, does it need to be read sequentially? I've watched most of the shows, but am taking this as my opportunity to finally catch Oz and 24. I would hate to stumble upon spoilers.
Hank Scorpio Does not NEED to be read sequentially, but it helps in understanding the progression of tv drama as a genre. I haven't seen Oz, but after reading the chapter two days ago, I can't remember the spoilers. There are spoilers, but if you don't know the show very well, you probably won't remember them. 24 spoilers are much simpler, but that chapter is towards the end, and can easily be skipped.
November 27, 2012 at 11:48AM ESTJason
November 27, 2012 at 11:34AM EST Reply to CommentTo Alan, or someone who has read the book, does it need to be read sequentially? I'm taking the opportunity to catch up on Oz and 24...
Neosmith
November 27, 2012 at 12:18PM EST Reply to CommentDear Mr. Sepinwall,
I just read the chapter on "The Wire" and learned about "The Hall", the Carcetti spinoff that never was. Only then did I find the Salon.com interview, where Simon discusses it a little.
I was wondering - I recall reading a review, where you stated that Simon wanted to have a 3-hour mini-series prior to Season 4, which would've allowed the new season to start with Carcetti already as Mayor. Was this supposed to be another iteration of "The Hall" that similarly was rejected?
Also, I didn't find any reference to the 5th season being shortened from 13 to 10 episodes and its impact on the season's quality. Was that originally something that was included? Was there any new interview information that would shed light on the decision?
sepinwall Yes, that would've been "The Hall."
November 27, 2012 at 12:37PM ESTAnd Simon and I didn't discuss the episode order this time out. As I recall, when he's mentioned it with me and others in the past, he says that if he pushed HBO to do 12 or 13, they would've said yes, but he ultimately felt comfortable telling the story in 10 (and a half) hours.
Beechercraft
November 27, 2012 at 12:41PM EST Reply to CommentBeing something of a degenerate, I've just read all the free materials I could find. The Grantland excerpt and whatever pages the Amazon preview would gift me (including the ending Acknowledgments--oddly engaging!). Now, of course, I now have no choice but to buy the whole shebang. My small glimpses of the Deadwood/Milch segment alone would've been worth the price of admission; Milch's line about reclaiming fallen times-- beautiful stuff. Thanks, Alan!
S
November 27, 2012 at 4:12PM EST Reply to CommentReading the book now, and loving it so far. Just wondering why the Lost chapter appears where it does in the book? Chronologically, it seems like it would be after Buffy and 24.
sepinwall Chronologically, Buffy would be before everything else. It's not purely chronological. The four HBO shows at the beginning are in their respective order, and the two AMC shows at the end are the two most recent to premiere, and after that it was more a case of gut instinct and deciding which parts of the story I felt I wanted to tell next.
November 27, 2012 at 6:30PM ESTSamuel
November 27, 2012 at 9:38PM EST Reply to CommentHey Alan, I'm loving the book, haven't been able to put it (my iPad, rather) down since I started. I thought it would be interesting to mention one revelation the book has caused me to have so far.
In reading about The Sopranos in the past, I'd seen many writers mention "College" as the real breakthrough moment, the thing that really cemented the show as something groundbreaking. And I never understood why. I even gave it another watch to try to understand what it was about this specific episode, but I just wasn't getting it.
Having now read your Sopranos chapter, I understand it was Tony's murder of the rat, and seeing the main character of a show commit such an act. By the time I'd first seen the episode, this was nothing new and so it didn't faze me at all. It was a real eye-opener to understand that this was the first time something like that had been done, and the impact it must have had on audiences at the time.
notWalt
November 30, 2012 at 12:41PM EST Reply to CommentHey - just stumbled across the excerpt on Grantland... it was very very good, and your book is now on my xmas list!!
Neosmith
December 4, 2012 at 9:58PM EST Reply to CommentDear Mr. Sepinwall, thank you very much for writing this book.
I really like that it features all new interviews with many of the people behind the shows, especially with Damon Lindelof, who was surprisingly more candid about the series than I've seen in recent years. I never knew that 6 seasons was a compromise, and that it the series could've potentially gone even longer. (I'm still peeved that he doesn't even wish to acknowledge various plotlines the show obviously abandoned over the years, like Ben's mom and the full purge. )
I was wondering - are all the interview segments in the book excerpts from longer interviews? If so, would you be willing to publish those interviews as well one day unabridged?