Two key Spinoff writers share a dirty little secret: they’ve never seen any of the defining ‘important’ TV shows of our time. They launched Catch Up Club to save them (and possibly you), beginning with the smoky glory that is Mad Men. // Alex: It was the launch of Catch Up Club, a glorious opportunity for … Read more
SURVIVOR SAN JUAN DEL SUR BLOOD VS WATER 2 POWER RANKINGS 14) TERRIBLE GAMEPLAY I thought the orange tribe was bad. This was way worse. This blue team has maybe the worst strategic since the first season of Survivor. Almost everyone was bad. Old mate Keith, who was on the rise, really screwed the pooch. … Read more
We talked to “The Social Media Buddies” aka Sam and Dan from My Kitchen Rules New Zealand about getting trolled by school teachers, the big lamb screw-up and having major Mum beef with Sean Connolly.// Sam and Dan were the youngest MKRNZ team by far, two early twenty-somethings from Auckland who were coined “The Social Media Buddies” (because they … Read more
Jono and Ben at Ten employee Guy Williams has watched every minute of every episode of Jono and Ben at Ten ever made. This makes him uniquely qualified to pick the five best Jono and Ben at Ten sketches of all time. // 1. Guy Williams interviews the Pakeha Party (These aren’t all going to … Read more
While the stars of critically acclaimed cable dramas snag the glory, Aaron Yap believes 24‘s weary, brutal Jack Bauer can stand proudly alongside Walter White, Tony Soprano and the rest as an elite golden age anti-hero. Being a 24 fan can be a lonely experience. The number of people who I know really watch this show (i.e. those I … Read more
Joseph Harper falls deep into the pit of fake Parks and Recreation band, Mouse Rat. // I always loved a good fake band. Whether it was Doug’s beloved Beets, Uncle Jesse’s unbelievably sensual contributions, Landry’s borderline unlistenable Chirstian Metal outfit, Crucifictorious, or even Drive Shaft, with their surprisingly believable take on waning Brit Pop. All … Read more
Two key Spinoff writers share a dirty little secret: they’ve never seen The Wire, Mad Men, Breaking Bad or any of the other defining ‘important’ TV shows of our time. Catch Up Club is here to save them, and possibly you too. // Alex: Hello Joseph, you have not seen a lot of fancy TV … Read more
There are few sub-species of humanity more ridiculous than the successful TV magician. Here Alex Casey chronicles the most successful practitioners of what is somehow not a dying art. // I have always had a bit of a soft spot for television magic shows. Maybe it’s the hairstyles, maybe it’s the showmanship, maybe it’s wasting forty … Read more
Each Thursday a Spinoff correspondent will discuss a nugget from television’s rich and distinguished past. This week José Barbosa argues for the enduring tensions of A Dog’s Show. It’s become part of our vague national perception of New Zealand culture to catalogue A Dog’s Show as a crusty anachronism. The show played during a time when stubbies (sartorial … Read more
There’s a growing cult building around Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch, and Rose Matafeo has fallen under the actor’s spell. Here she attempts to decode his appeal.// Late last year, I was flown down to Wellington to interview the cast of The World’s End at its New Zealand premiere. It was the fanciest media thing I’d been invited to in … Read more
Over the weekend I found myself at an the official fan gathering for New Zealand fans of the sprawling-time-travel-historical-romance series Outlander. Aside from the overwhelming sense of passion and community within this fan group of 30 or so women, itself part of a forthcoming feature, there were some incredible discussions. Over plates of eggs benedict and french toast, … Read more
Yesterday, MediaWorks announced that Paul Henry will be hosting New Zealand’s first cross-platform live breakfast show in 2015. If having him on your TV, your radio and your computer is not going to be enough, there will also be an elite range of limited-edition products released to make sure you really get the most Paul Henry out of every … Read more
With the news that Paul Henry will be taking over TV3’s breakfast television and radio, Joseph Moore imagines the final episode in the fake-book laden late-night lair of The Paul Henry Show (please note this work is entirely fictitious although, has anyone actually seen Jesse Peach recently?) // “2 minutes, Mr. Henry!” a voice from a … Read more
Shortland St. Two words which make TVNZ’s ad sales warriors 50% stronger while TV3’s equivalents suppress waves of nausea at the very mention. For 22 long years it has had a monopoly on the New Zealand soap scene, but news broke Wednesday that from 2015 it will finally have competition. TV3 have announced plans for a five-nights-a-weeker … Read more
For this throwback, we skip school to look at a failed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off television reboot starring a young Jennifer Aniston and a scary Scott Disick clone. // This week in TV has been all about old favourites getting a reboot in this golden/platinum/silicon age of television. The world put the collective coffee on at the news of Twin … Read more
New Lightbox acquisition Transparent, an Amazon Original from a key Six Feet Under writer, is already being touted as one of the year’s finest.// “Are you saying you’re gonna start dressing up like a lady all the time?” “No, my whole life I’ve been dressing up… like a man.” Transparent is the brand new comedy-drama from Jill Soloway, producer … Read more
The first couple eps of Survivor San Juan Del Sur: Blood vs Water 2 played out as you’d expect. Pretty low-key. Mostly getting to know the key components. In episode one the blue team won both challenges and the orange team kicked off twinnie Nadiya. It was a fine, if a little unspectacular ep, where … Read more
We talked to “Beauty and the Beast” aka Tracey and Neil from My Kitchen Rules New Zealand about cyberbullies called Doreen, experiencing the perfect chip and just giving everything a bloody shot. // I met Tracey and Neil on a sunny Ponsonby afternoon. Neil arrived bang on time, a vision in bright blue from his Kathmandu polar fleece to the … Read more
Tuesday – Episode 21 Welcome to week six – the Nearly Halfway Point of The Block NZ. Say it isn’t so, Mark! Damo and Jo look a bit flash – is it Date Night? Nope, they’re just too lazy to wash their regular clothes, plus Damo melted his pants on an industrial heater. That’s almost … Read more
Please enjoy this week’s episode of Shorty Street Scandal, revisiting the past week of Ferndale funny business. This week seemed very genital-heavy. Grace had a rather distressing birth in Fiji and Nicole’s unborn baby had his weiner put under the microscope. Dallas and Bella decided to stop sleeping together until their wedding night, which lasted about … Read more
For young parents everywhere, Yo Gabba Gabba might be the best children’s television out. Henry Oliver takes us through some of the show’s best guest appearances so far. // The key to a good kid’s show is simultaneously appealing to both young and old. Of course, I say this because, as an adult, I want … Read more
X-Files obsessive David Farrier chronicles the show’s strengths through three very different episodes of the sci-fi classic. // “I don’t know anybody in the world working in film, and that’s what we work in here even though it appears on television” – Chris Carter, circa 1996 One of the happiest days of my life happened six years … Read more
As reality TV pioneer Survivor opens a mind-boggling 14th year, superfan Joseph Harper details its increasingly meta evolution in previewing season 29. // “If quick, I survive. If not quick, I am lost. This is “death.” – Sun Tzu, Ancient Chinese military strategist. “You got to hustle if you want to make a dollar. Everybody … Read more
Seinfeld’s best episodes were the ones about nothing: the ones that embraced unremarkable social situations with absurdist nihilism, writes Henry Oliver. // From today’s vantagepoint, it can be hard to remember how different sitcoms were before Seinfeld. The most popular comedies of the era – Cheers, Full House, The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Who’s the … Read more
Our resident The Block NZ analyst Tara sums up the week that was. This week the teams served up a piping hot round of Dinner Wars, with a sumptuous side dish of bathroom and laundry.// Tuesday – Episode 17 It’s bathroom & laundry week! But first, let us behold the weekly Bitter-Contestants-Judge-Each-Other’s-Rooms competition. Will the teams agree … Read more
The Grey’s Anatomy team learn how to save a life through the majesty of music. // I don’t if anyone knows this, but the Grey’s Anatomy world is still going strong. The last episode of Season 10 airs next week on TV2, creator Shonda Rimes is rocking a new TV show every five minutes, and (spoilers) Isaiah Washington … Read more
A chance encounter in LA lead David Shamy to the lair of Dr Phil, America’s premier unlicensed clinical psychologist. // You find two types of people on Venice Beach: the watchers and the watched. The watched are pirouetting on roller-skates, barely concealing their intimate parts. Or: they’re oiled up and pumping iron, barely concealing their … Read more
Before Buffy, before Veronica Mars, there was Xena. David Farrier looks back at the original bad babe. // When Lucy Lawless’ Xena first appeared in 1995, it was as a bad dude on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Except she wasn’t a bad dude, she was a bad babe. Which is sort of extraordinary, because there … Read more
If you have been living deep within a gutter (black), an Outrageous Fortune prequel is on its way to our screens. Set in the 1970s, it will follow the hijinks of legendary safe-cracker and canny-career-crim Ted West, his wife Rita and their son Wolfgang. For the role of Wolfgang, TV3 and South Pacific Pictures have sounded an exciting wolf … Read more