Faulkner

I Googled Gregg Marx to see what he was up to and found this great interview. He talks a bit about why he left ATWT, Bill Bell offering him a role on Y&R, his friendship with HBS, coming out as a gay man, and his career in cabaret. (The site is flagged as NSFW, but I didn't notice anything racy on the mobile site.) He still looks amazing.

http://marcharshbarger.blogspot.com/2013/02/deeper-dish-with-gregg-marx.html?m=1&zx=e2640becc189fcf1

The writing for that first post-reboot season was incredibly uneven and was just finding its footing right before the regeneration. Would have loved to have seen Eccleston continue, but can't imagine how he might have played some of the Season 2 stuff.

It's my understanding that Tennant was a lot more open to Barrowman's BTS shenanigans and pranks than Eccleston was.

Yeah, can't imagine Eccleston suffering fools.

But as much as we were robbed only having Paul McGann on-screen for a mere two hours or so, we were also robbed only having Eccleston for a mere thirteen episodes.

And the fact that two of those thirteen featured the horrifying Slitheen.

Loved Captain Jack in "The Empty Child" when Barrowman was still hot and had a lot of natural charisma, but he got tired really quickly. He was always the weak acting link on Torchwood. Barrowman is clearly a great ambassador for the franchise, but I'm sick of him hating on Eccleston and slobbering over Tennant.

Man, I keep forgetting how moving and dignified Eccleston's regeneration into Tennant was. I always forget and it always gets to me.

I'm hoping Smith's regeneration is more like Eccleston's rather than Tennant's. Though I wouldn't mind a very brief glimpse at the Ponds for "old times sake."

Word. Tennant's was so maudlin and "look at me" with his "I DON'T WANT TO GO!" wailing. But Eccleston's had me crying buckets.

"Except... it means I'm going to change. And I'm not going to see you again... Not like this."

I don't know if anyone has posted this, but it's interesting. Critic Camille Paglia in praise of the "Real Housewives" franchise as the only thing worth watching on TV. I know she's pretty divisive, but some of her comments echo a lot of what you all have been saying:

http://www.salon.com/2013/08/21/camille_paglia_it_remains_baffling_how_anyone_would_think_that_hillary_clinton_is_our_party%E2%80%99s_best_chance/

When Salon interviewed you last year, you were feeling inspired by Bravo’s “Real Housewives.” Are you a fan of any other TV series out there?

No, I can’t stand the bad lighting, tinny voices, snarky scripts and fake cool of today’s TV shows.

Bravo’s “Real Housewives” series isn’t just entertainment for devoted fans like me — it’s an entire all-absorbing universe of pride and passion. I can watch the same episode four or five times. The series descends from tear-jerker “women’s pictures” during the Lana Turner era, which inspired TV soap operas from the 1950s on. The formula overflowed into blockbuster prime-time soaps like “Dynasty” and “Knots Landing” in the 1980s. But then daytime soap writers started to get uppity and craved respectability in the industry. They veered away from the flamboyant trash and flash that had once endeared them to their audience, and soaps committed slow suicide by boredom. It was really stupid — because by the 1990s, the mainstream audience was flocking to movies about over-the-top drag queens like “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.”

Andy Cohen, the executive producer of “Real Housewives,” was a longtime ardent fan of Susan Lucci (Erica Kane on ABC’s “All My Children”), and he has always understood the soul of soap opera as a female genre — its tender emotions, ruthless rivalries and theatrical sexual exhibitionism. Soaps are a major diva mode. But beyond that, Bravo’s ace technical team has refined “Real Housewives” into a feast for the eyes. I have such admiration for the amazing camerawork and deft narrative editing — the rapid scene-setting, the revelatory reaction shots, the touches of realism in how people get out of cars or shop or order a cocktail. Too much film and TV in our digitized era has lost a sense of space. But “Real Housewives” has the old Hollywood flair for knowing how to situate bold, dynamic personalities in tangible four dimensions — from chic or glitzy interiors to exhilarating landscapes. This is contemporary cinematography at its sparkling best.

This show is embarrassing. So much WTFery.

Laura went TGVN on Jeffrey's ass. "YOU GOT THAT?"

I really enjoy the actress who plays Veronica. She plays things with a lot of restraint, and she hits every emotion dead-on. Loved the scene where she realizes her husband's involvement in the scheme to frame Candace.

LMAO!

Last night's eppy was a mess! 50 steps forward [with the prior eppy] and 10 million back. The only saving grace for me was Veronica!

Kathryn loves her daughter? WTFev! Sh!tty time to break that news to her, Hannah.

I agree. I truly DID feel like I was watching Passions last night.

Capaldi is a terrific actor, though I've only ever seen him in dark comedies.

He's certainly very different from Smith and Tennant, which is a good thing, IMO.

Capaldi is so great in The Hour and Torchwood: Children of Earth. Both very hearty, emotional, and tragic roles.

I liked Matt a lot - Tennant not as much - but I'm pleased that perhaps the romantic angles between the Doctor and his female companions will be played down. Preferred Rose when she was with the Ninth Doctor and she wasn't mooning over him.

So... Peter Capaldi, ay? Amazing, intriguing choice and a top-notch actor.

Stevie J is an @sshole. And a butterface, too. It's a shame that Benzino is the only male on this show with a hint of moral decency.

Erica is stunningly beautiful. There are moments when she reminds me of Freema from Doctor Who.

"I hold the purse strings in one hand, and his BALLS in the other."

Moments like that are why I watch this show.

I legitimately LIKED tonight's episode after last week's unspeakable crapfest. The conversations actually pushed forward character.

I agree. It was good soap!

I'm digging Veronica. I know a lot of people aren't feeling the actress, but I like her a lot. She plays good bitch.

The characterization of Celine the maid is absurdly inconsistent.

Veronica is a witch. I hope someone plugs a bullet in that old, delusional broad.

She certainly stepped up her acting game this week. "Tall. BUSTY. Natural looking BLACK girls. That's all your father and I will ACCEPT."

Well, that last scene actually packed an emotional punch.

Missed this piece, but Racialicious goes in on both Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey.

Tyler Perry Hates Black Women: 5 Thoughts on The Haves and Have Nots

http://www.racialicious.com/2013/06/03/tyler-perry-hates-black-women-5-thoughts-on-the-haves-and-have-nots/

The writing's better tonight. The dialogue in the scene with Candace and David had a nice snap and crackle to it. "You better take that stick out of your ass. Unless you're into that sort of thing..."

I find Crystal Fox really credible (especially in her breakdown scenes - the repeating of "Help me, Jesus!"), and Tika's a blast, but otherwise this show's nearly unwatchable, even with the eye candy of Candace's brother and Wyatt.

Has there been an episode of this show in which a woman did not physically attack another woman? Just curious.

Hannah: "You have lost your mind"

Candice: "No, I never found it Momma. After growing up in a house with your crazy ass" *runs to the bed and tears away all the sheets & throws a pillow at Hannah*

OY. I cringed at that bit of dialogue. Not even Tika could make that work.

This show is sort of a mess, but damn, if Tika's not selling this to the hilt. She's fabulous as a bitch.

And John Schneider is in that Tony Goldwyn/Scott Bakula club of men who just get sexier with age.

Kenya tanked at the reunion. She thought whipping that ridiculous fan would make her stand out, but she just wilted in the face of Phaedra. She had to have been humiliated.

Porsha, who was a dud during much of the season, was riveting in that final part of the reunion. That speech was a trainwreck, but damn it, it had people talking. "Poor Porsha" was trending No. 1 that night.