Monday 19 October 2009

TV

The Armstrong and Miller Show
2x01 Episode 1
That rarest of things, a sketch show that's consistently good. Nice to finally have it back.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

House
6x03 Epic Fail
After the highly irregular events of the opening two-parter, House takes another episode to put things back on track. Yes, we're back in Case of the Week territory, but at least it's with an interesting patient.

How I Met Your Mother
2x07 Swarley
Nice Friends reference. Nice Cheers reference. Nice to see yet another Joss Whedon chum turn up in this show. Nice episode all round.

It's Only a Theory
1x02 Episode 2
It seems I completely forgot to mention watching the first episode of this new series. Oops. It's an odd'un, part panel comedy part discussion of concepts, which I suppose is why it's on BBC Four. It has some potential, but it's not ever going to be a breakthrough success.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Articles

Disney predicts 'profound changes' for films by Oli Simpson
(from Digital Spy)
the DVD business continues to decline by double digits annually... the advent of high definition Blu-ray discs has not halted the slide, noting that the average family already owns around 80 movies in their libraries but are not replacing their older discs with Blu-ray equivalents.

...in order to bolster the home video business, the window between the time a movie is released in cinemas and on DVD must be shortened. ... the long delay from cinema to DVD has given pirates an opportunity to capitalise. "In South Korea, it obliterated the secondary market so much so that we [Disney] closed our home video operations"


If a tree falls in the forest and there's no one to hear it, can Carter-Ruck ban all mention of the sound? by Charlie Brooker
(from guardian.co.uk)
Another current major news story beautifully deconstructed by Mr Brooker.