Song of the Day: 'Forever' by Jane Wiedlin

Wow. Amazon’s “Forever” is the most wonderful and emotionally devastating thing I’ve seen in ages (in a good way). Bravo to everyone involved. ‬The only missed opportunity was using this Jane Wiedlin song as its theme ...

The End of 'Good Girls Revolt'?

After a bit of a slow start, with some journalistic faux pas that rubbed me the wrong way, I finally got pretty invested in Amazon's "Good Girls Revolt," a fictionalized account of the female researchers at Newsweek magazine suing for the right to be reporters. (Damian and I have been doling them out, with the finale slated to "air" in our living room tonight.) Naturally I should read in today's Washington Post -- owned by the same man who owns Amazon -- that the show has not been renewed for a second season. (What a surprise that something about women gets the, um, shaft against its will.) So many of the issues in the series mirror today's plights -- Black Panthers/Black Lives Matter, workplace discrimination, sexism, unequal pay -- that at times it's almost depressing to watch. Still, the three lead women are so compelling that I find myself rooting for them despite knowing how little things have changed even 50 years later. Here's hoping another network breathes life into this important story.

Erin Darke, who plays the ever-evolving Cindy, spokes to The Post about the show's fate, saying:

I am shocked and saddened by Amazon’s decision not to renew “Good Girls Revolt.” I have been deeply affected by living in Cindy’s skin, telling this story and I am honored to have represented the journey of the real women of Newsweek in 1970. It seems like now, more than ever, we need stories like this. Stories about women finding their strength and community. Stories about standing up for equality. I hope that another network recognizes the desire for these voices and gives the show a new home. Regardless of what happens, it has been my privilege to be a part of this show.

Keep reading HERE.

UPDATE: Finale was fantastic and definitely set up a second season. Come on, TV magnets -- this story needs to be told in its entirety.

A Minor 'Trans'gression

Couldn't resist telling them how I really feel.

A Sophomore Slump for 'Transparent'?

  Was unpleasantly surprised by the first three episodes of season 2 of "Transparent," which officially returns to Amazon Prime today. They weren't bad, but the show -- whose debut season was one of the finest things to ever air on television -- is suddenly flirting with the supernatural in a way that I don't think serves it well. It could turn out that what I've seen sets up the greatest thing in the history of television. But as of now, the only thing I like about the new season is the heavy dose of Colton -- (horrible) Josh and former babysitter Rita's teenage son -- played by a young Tom Brady lookalike named Alex MacNicoll who is just begging to be sexually abused at a family reunion. Anyone else tuning in yet?

Song of the Day: 'My Kinda Lover' by Billy Squier

Craig Roberts reminds me of Ash on "Vicious" -- and it turns out they're both Welsh, although Craig does a great American accent

After being a little underwhelmed by the pilot, Amazon Prime's "Red Oaks" is proving to be a sleeper favorite of mine. (That season 2 of "Doll & Em" and the current season of "Please Like Me" were/are insufferable may be helping.) Heard this Billy Squier song in the last episode I watched and had to admit in retrospect that it was better than I gave it credit for in junior high school!

Season One of Amazon Prime's 'Red Oaks' Is Finally Here

The Amazon Prime series "Red Oaks" -- a tennis friendly show set in the 1980s that's been called a cross between "The Graduate" and "Caddyshack" -- got picked up on the basis of its pilot, but it's taken nearly two years for season one to arrive ... until now. Vulture is lukewarm on the debut season -- I had the same "I want to like it more than I do" feeling about the pilot -- but I'm still looking forward to checking it out. Any show that has a dad (Paul Reiser) dressed in Fila -- then Ellesse -- and features Jennifer Grey and Amy Heckerling directing can't be all bad. Look for it on Amazon Prime starting today.

Page 1 Consider (01/14)

A little surprised Woody Allen's Amazon deal made Page 1 news -- including the lede of USA Today.

Transformation

Boy Culture makes a hilariously astute observation about Jeffrey Tambor's Maura Pfefferman, which just won the longtime character actor a well-deserved Golden Globe, as did the brilliant show, "Transparent." Read HERE.

Amazon Primed to Make Me a Believer

Finally bit the bullet and watched "television" on my laptop last night -- in bed, full-screened -- so I could see what all the hype was about surrounding "Transparent." (My DVD player is preloaded to allow me to stream Netflix and Hulu Plus but not Amazon Prime.) Wow -- just wow. Have only watched the first three episodes, but I can't say enough about this family drama. Although it is about the transition of the Pfefferman family patriarch, the show is much more like "Six Feet Under" than anything I've seen since. All three of our heroine's children have huge and discrete story archs -- which because they are all so self-absorbed have little do to with their father's decision to live his truth -- so the show is much more than a show about transgenderism, although that part is beautifully realized too. I doubt many people base their TV-watching on what I say, but I did want to take a second to mention that I am thoroughly impressed and moved by Jill Soloway's show. Might be time to get a Roku.

Also got to see the pilot of "Red Oaks." It's very enjoyable -- set in tennis club in 1985(!) -- and our lead Craig Roberts is utterly adorable. I think the show has a lot of potential, but I doubt it will win enough votes from Amazon Prime viewers to be turned into a full series. With that said, I will try to think of it as an adorable TV special I happened upon.

UPDATE: I was wrong!!!!! (I was so sure I was right I didn't even investigate.)

Amazon Picks Up ‘Red Oaks’ to Series

Directed by Sundance award winner David Gordon Green (Pineapple Express) and executive produced by Academy Award winner Soderbergh (Behind the Candelabra, Traffic), Red Oaks stars Craig Roberts (Submarine) as David Myers, an assistant tennis pro at the Red Oaks Country Club in suburban New Jersey in 1985. David is reeling from his father’s heart attack and conflicted about what college major to declare in the fall; his father Sam Myers is played by Richard Kind (Luck). While there, David meets a colorful cast of misfit co-workers and wealthy club members including an alluring art student named Skye, played by Alexandra Socha, and her corporate raider father Getty played by Paul Reiser (Mad About You) and Ennis Esmer as Nash. A coming-of-age comedy set in the “go-go” 80s that is equal parts hijinks and heartfelt, Red Oaks is about enjoying a last hurrah before summer comes to an end—and the future begins. Red Oaks also stars Jennifer Grey (It’s Like, You Know) as Judy Myers, Oliver Cooper (Californication) as Wheeler and Gage Golightly as Karen. Red Oaks is written by Gregory Jacobs (The Knick) and Joe Gangemi (Eliza Graves). Soderbergh, Green, Jacobs, and Gangemi are executive producers.