Category Archives: Winterfallen

2020/01/02 · 12:59 am

The Best of the Decade: The Teens

9CDA76C9-73D6-47DC-BF34-75D1738744F3 Hello old friends! It’s the first day of the 2020s, so this feels like the appropriate time to look back on the last decade (and post our first article in about half a decade). As Jumped The Snark was alive (or in a deep sleep) for the entirety of the 2010s, it will likely stand as the iconic decade for this blog, and it was a ten-year period rich with memorable TV shows, movies, performances and viral videos. Instead of breaking it down by genre or format (mostly as a TS (a time-saver)), I’m just going to present my “ten best” (whatever that means) things from the teens. And away we go:

Honorable Mention: BoJack Horseman, Mad Max: Fury Road, La La Land, Master of None, Crashing, Billy Joel at MSG, 2013-2014 NY Rangers, Frasier on Netflix, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Darth Vader hoverboard, Barry*, several seasons of Survivor, Adele Dazeem

10. Watchmen (2019) – Damon Lindelof’s dense and ambitious “remix” of the graphic novel came in just under the wire (not the HBO show). It felt like the culmination of Lindelof’s TV journey, mixing the mystery box elements and non-linear storytelling of Lost with the philosophical reckoning and real-life relevance of The Leftovers, creating something entirely new and incredibly assured. It was as if the were making Lost but knew all the answers, and more than that, knew how to slowly but successfully reveal them. It’s not an easy show to watch – it demands full attention (and a rewatch) – but it’s so rewarding. A swing that big shouldn’t be a home run, but Watchmen knocks it out of the proverbial park. Is this recency bias you ask (I ask)? Would the show be on my list if it came out a year earlier? I don’t know, but I hope so.

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Filed under Better Late Than Never, Brilliance, Lists, LOST, The Roaring 10s!, Winterfallen

2014/06/10 · 5:14 pm

You Need Me Watching That Wall, You Want Me Watching That Wall

Like with “The Mountain and the Viper,” I was fortunate enough to be given a look at a deleted scene from this past Sunday’s Game of Thrones, the epic “The Watchers on the Wall.” Similar to that alternate take on the battle between Prince Oberyn and Gregor Glegane, this scene between Jon Snow and the acting Lord Commander provides a different insight into their relationship and sheds new light on Sir Alliser’s commitment to Castle Black.

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Filed under Monster Mash, We'll Get It In Post, Winterfallen

Tagged as A Few Good Men, Battle of Castle Black, Colonel Jessup, Game of Thrones, Jack Nicholson, Jon Snow, Night's Watch, Sir Alliser Thorne, Watchers on the Wall, You can't handle the truth

2014/06/09 · 3:59 pm

Aaron Sorkin’s “The Mountain and the Viper”

I had a chance to check out the original edit of last week’s epic Game of Thrones showdown between The Red Viper Prince Oberyn Martell and The Mountain Gregor Clegane, and I have to say I think I find this version a bit more compelling. Certainly more star-studded.

At the very least, this certainly opens up a lot more doors for Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.

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Filed under It's gross., We'll Get It In Post, Winterfallen

Tagged as A Few Good Men, Demi Moore, Game of Thrones, Gregor Clegane, Jack Nicholson, Kevin Bacon, Prince Oberyn Martell, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, The Mountain, The Red Viper, Tom Cruise, Trial by Combat, Tyrion Lannister

2014/06/06 · 3:25 pm

‘Survivor: Cagayan’ Look Back: A Case For Kass; Plus Look-Alikes!

First, an apology: I was derelict in my responsibilities during this last season of Survivor, posting only a single recap in spite of yet another strong entry into the series. I can offer neither excuses nor reparations, just the promise that I will try not to be so negligent again. Trust me, I missed the recaps more than you, so it’s something I really hope to get back to. I can’t promise that this won’t happen again. But I promise I’ll try.

Now that my mea culpa is out-of-the-way, let us go ahead and – despite the season ending weeks ago – discuss the Survivor: Cagayan finale, as I finally got to the last few episodes this week and it’s still fresh in my mind. Cagayan continued what has been a string terrific, engaging, surprising Survivor seasons, a red-hot streak that has been the show’s renaissance, proving the series to be just as entertaining and relevant in its 28th season as it was in its first. And this season featured, if not one of its best players, one of its boldest, not-cop cop Tony, the Sole Survivor and winner of the million. To use a phrase that I really don’t care for, Tony played balls-out from day one, making alliances, immediately breaking them, swearing on his dead father’s grave like it had the weight of a Facebook RVSP, digging up Immunity Idols, lying about Immunity Idols, creating paranoia, letting his own paranoia persuade him to blindside players in his alliance, building #SpyShacks, and totally vexing his fellow Survivors and, often, himself in the process. It wasn’t the cleanest Survivor game ever, quite the opposite, but it was effective. Tony played big, was never out of the spotlight, but always managed to hang onto control of the game, partly because of his “bag of tricks,” but partly because no one else wanted to sport his bullseye. But being so omnipresent, so visible, often seemed to take Tony out of the discussion for elimination. Like the purloined letter, he was hidden in plain sight, deftly (sometimes) keeping his alliance committed and loyal and keeping himself safe. In the end, especially in a final two against Woo(!), Tony deserved to win the million. However, while Tony did the most to earn the victory, I was surprised at the lack of respect for Kass’s game, who likewise played a bold, unpredictable, cutthroat and successful (but just not successful enough) game.

Read on: Goats and Llamas

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Filed under Analysis, Better Late Than Never, Century 21 Reality, Look-Alikes, MS Paint, Tribal Council, Winterfallen

Tagged as #ChaosKass, Always Be Chaos Kass, Cagayan, Crow T Robot, Damon Wayans, Dermot Mulroney, Doogie Howser, Dylan McDermott, Game of Thrones, Goat, Herb & Jamaal, In Living Color, Jefra Bland, Jeremiah Wood, Kass, Keno, Koala, Mariah Carey, Men on Film, Morgan McLeod, MST3K, Punky Brewster, Robb Stark, Sarah, Survivor, TMNT: Secret of the Ooze, Tony, Trish, Varys, White Walker, Woo

2014/05/30 · 12:58 pm

Don’t Cry Because It’s Over, Smile Because It Happdeaned: Five (and Maybe More) Seasons of ‘Community’ and the Truly Jumping the Snark

Lately I’ve noticed a disturbing trend about myself: I don’t get as excited about things as I used to. Perhaps it’s a merely function of getting older – I just hit the big 3-0 six months ago, after all – or, maybe, all the years of crushing cynicism and relentless snark has finally caught up to me. Passion, perhaps, is the provenance of the young and the unencumbered, and I’m no longer either of the two. For example, it would have shocked the ten-years-younger version of myself, maybe even the 2009 model, to learn that it took me, a devoted Wes Anderson-ophile, two months to see The Grand Budapest Hotel, especially after making a pilgrimage to see The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic during their respective opening weekends, and attending a screening of The Darjeeling Limited by myself because I just couldn’t wait any longer, even if that meant sitting alone in a small theater on a Tuesday afternoon. Likewise, I’ve yet to see X-Men: Days of Future Past, and that’s already been out for a whole week and is possibly the X-Men movie that I’ve been praying for these last fourteen years. There are spoilers abound and I run the very real risk of having the movie ruined before I get around to seeing it. It’s a danger I’m well aware of, and one, for some reason, I’m at peace with. Perhaps most egregiously – and this something I’m very much ashamed to admit on this blog – I’ve yet to watch last week’s Survivor finale. Yes, I was out-of-town for two weeks, but I’ve been back for four days already. Really, what good excuse could I possibly have for not immediately marathoning the last three episodes, including the two hour-finale and post-show live cast reunion? Heresy, is it not? Not only am I liable to inadvertently stumble upon the final result at any turn, removing any drama upon viewing, but shouldn’t this be tearing me up inside? It’s Survivor, the subject I’ve perhaps committed more space to on this blog than any other, and, yet, I’ll get to it when I get it to it. Urgency, shockingly, I do not feel. It’s not apathy or indifference – that would be truly alarming – but, rather, caring a bit less, being more patient. It’s an odd, peculiar, somewhat concerning notion to not experience the same sense of pressure, immediacy, and life-or-death importance about these shows and films and bands that I always did. Am I depressed? Should I look into Lexapro? But the change is also freeing in a way. There is a flipside to caring a little less. It means that it doesn’t hurt so much when something you love is taken away from you.

More: Graduate Psychology 101

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Filed under Better Late Than Never, Brilliance, Count Bleh, Discos and Dragons, Greendale Human, Must See TV, Team Zissou, Tribal Council, Winterfallen

Tagged as Cagayan, community, Dan Harmon, Dave Matthews Band, Freeks and Geeks, Game of Thrones, Glee, Greendale, Joel McHale, Journeyman, NBC, Party Down, Remedial Chaos Theory, sixseasonsandamovie, Sports Night, Survivor, Taxi, Terriers, Twitter, Wes Anderson, X-Men

2013/04/03 · 11:12 am

‘Survivor Caramoan – Fans vs. Favorites 2 Legit 2 Quit’ – Celebrity Doppelgängers and (Remaining) Player-by-Player Odds

Well, this was a long time coming, but now that we’ve reached the all-important game-changing merge and oxygen-sucking loudmouths Shamar and Brandon are gone, it seems like a good time – perhaps the only time – to deliver our Survivor: Caramoan – Fans vs. Favorites 2 Legit 2 Quit celebrity look-alikes and player odds (for those Survivors still in the game). Let’s do this a little differently this time around and look at the Favorites then the Fans. We’d tell you to buckle up, but that seems really unnecessary considering you’re probably just sitting on a couch or at a desk or maybe on the subway, and even then it’s the movement of the train and not the content of this article that is most likely to create some turbulence.

FAVORITES

Andrea: If we want to talk about people who really learned from Boston Rob (as opposed to Former Federal Agent(?) Fillip), then Andrea might be the one in that discussion. Her acuity for the game is what hurt her last time – and her infatuation with Matt – as Boston Rob respected her ability and intelligence but more importantly recognized her as a threat. There’s no one as cunning as Boston Rob on Caramoan, so Andrea has a shot to put it all together this time, especially now that she’s made the merge with the new powerhouse Goya tribe. However, there’s something in those smokey eyes that tells us that she’s going to play the game a little too hard and a little too paranoid, and that will be her downfall (much like Tara Reid experienced a similar fall. But that was due to the shots of Patrón and required several stitches). 11:1

The rest!

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Filed under Century 21 Reality, MS Paint, Tribal Council, Winterfallen

Tagged as 2 Legit 2 Quit, 28 Days, Allie, Andrea, Baxter Stockman, BMX Bike Sales Matt, Boston Rob, Brandon Hantz, Brenda, Caramoan, Carl Weathers, Cochran, Corinne, Dawn, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Eddie, Erik, Evil Grimace, Fans vs. Favorites, Former Federal Agent Fillip, Francesca, Girls, God Save the Gay, God's Shoes, Good Will Hunting, Grace Jones, Hope, Jane Curtain, Jon Snow, Julia, Kat, Kate & Allie, Laura, LeBron James, Mabel, Malcolm, Married with Children, Matt Damon, McDonaldland, Miami Heat, Michael, monkey, Napoleon Dynamite, Phillip Sheppard, Pitfall, Pitfall Harry, Pixar Cars, Powder, Predator, Reynold, Sandra Bullock, Shamar, Sherri, Shoshanna, Survivor, Susan St. James, Tara Reid, The Proposal, TMNT

2013/04/02 · 3:42 pm

‘Survivor: Caramoan’ – Vanilla Gorilla

Previously on Survivor: Caramoan – Fans vs. Favorites 2 Legit 2 Quit we found out that Corinne has a truly curious and rather unsettling affection (affectation?) for gays. Well, it seems that everyone is letting all their skeletons out of the closet now, as this person who is apparently named Julia has decided she wants to pretend she has some semblance of a personality and reveal something very private and kind of gross.

TMI, Ju…damn, forgot her name.

Michael is taking the loss of his partner in crime (the crime being losing every Immunity Challenge) BMX Bike Sales Matt surprisingly well. In fact, he’s single and ready to mingle. And he’s in luck! Corinne is more than eager to envelop Michael and keep him close to her bosom, Mama Corinne keeping him safe in this game as long as she can. Good thing she’s been quiet about her love of gays or else someone in her alliance might start to grow suspicious. Way to play it close to the blue bikini top!

In case you’ve missed every episode so far, Former Federal Agent(?) Fillip is in phenomenal shape. The guy is a freak of nature. Unbeatable in anything that emphasizes upper body strength, which, as we know, is every Survivor challenge ever. He’s so strong that he can even beat a physical specimen like John Cochran at arm wrestling. JOHN COCHRAN! A pasty yet sunburnt indoor kid who could serve as Captain America’s “before” photo; someone who is probably half Fillip’s size (which means that if Cochran played basketball at Fill’s gym then he’d be balling against guys four times his size. Wow!). So how could FFAF defeat the Hulk-like Cochran (Hulk-like in so far as he’s probably really good at physics)? Well, he’s got a can’t-lose technique.

Read on: Phil goes over the top, but is he too top heavy?

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Filed under Analysis, Century 21 Reality, Count Bleh, Golden Girls, Tribal Council, What? Too fabulous?, Winterfallen

Tagged as 2 Legit 2 Quit, Allied Powers, Always Be Comatose, arm wrestling, Art of War, Back to the Track, Batman, Bea Arthur Golden Girls, beach run, BeKool, Big Toss, Bill Cosby, Boston Rob, Breast feeding, British Bulldog, Caramoan, Cochran, Combustible Huxtable, Corinne, Dan Quayle, Dancin' Homer, Dawn, Dead People, Erik, Fans vs. Favorites, foopah, Former Federal Agent Fillip, Game of Thrones, Gay, Girls, Goya, grappling hook, Gulliver's Travels, Haley Joel Osment, Jeff Probst, Jim Carrey, Julia, Lex Luger, Lifeguard, Lloyd Bentsen, Malcolm, Malcolm & Eddie, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Michael, Mike Skupin, Nutty Cuckoo Super King, Over the Top, Palau, Pontiac Aztec, Poseidon Adventure, Reynold, Ring Around the Rosie, Robin Arryn, Shoshanna, Sixth Sense, SNL, Stealth 'R' Us, Survivor, Sylvester Stallone, Team Bro, The Cosby Show, The Real World, Tom Westman, UPN, WWE, You're no Jack Kennedy

2013/03/18 · 5:00 pm

‘Survivor: Caramoan’ – The Devil’s Hantz

Well, we all saw this coming. We saw this coming back on South Pacific when he accused Mikayla of being an evil temptress, and we saw this coming when he went back and forth and back with his relationship with God and spoke of battles with inner demons. And we saw this coming in episode two of Fans vs. Favorites 2 Legit 2 Quit when, in beautiful night vision, his neck tattoo glistening in the twilight, he threatened to go on a rampage. So no one – no one – should have been surprised when Brandon Hantz finally lost it on Survivor: Caramoan. Which isn’t to say it was predictable, or that it wasn’t riveting, truly unsettling television.

But first, who’s that girl next to Michael and Eddie?!

Oh, right, Julia. That person that exists on the Fans tribe. At this point, she’s our pick to win it all, solely because everyone will keep forgetting that she’s there and no one will ever write her name down. Also, she might be a ghost.

More: Seriously guys, you should really hide rice and beans…

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Filed under Analysis, Century 21 Reality, It's gross., The Worst, TV Killed the Music Video Star, Winterfallen

Tagged as 2 Legit 2 Quit, 30 Rock, Alex Trebek, Always Be Crazy, Ants in the Pants, BeKool, BMX Bike Sales Matt, Brandon Hantz, Bro Body Douche, Caramoan, Dane Cook, Don't Break the Ice, Eddie, Fans vs. Favorites, Fighting, Former Federal Agent Fillip, Game of the Thrones, Ghost Whisperer, Goya, Grenada, Jackass, Jeff Probst, Johnny Appleseed, Julia, Legends of the Hidden Temple, loco, Long Island Medium, Michael, Mikayla, Pedro Zamora, Phillip Sheppard, Puck, Pyat Pree, Real World, Reynold, Ric Flair, Rocky, Russell Hantz, San Francisco, SF, Shamar, South Pacific, Spaceballs, Superman, Survivor, Vulcan Nerve Pinch, Woo

2012/09/13 · 11:58 am

Whenever You Play the Game of Cable News, You Either Win or Die.

There is no middle ground.

We’ve been diligently posting remixed Newsroom opening credits over on our sister site A Newsroom A Day, and we thought we would be remiss if we didn’t share today’s entry here. We think this is our favorite one so far, although it makes us miss Game of Thrones oh so much.

And while we’re on the subject of Game of Thrones mash-ups, we’d also be remiss if we didn’t use this opportunity to point you towards this brilliant GoT meets Parks and Recreation illustration done by our very close personal friend Steve Ponzo.

And, sadly, winter is coming.

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Filed under A Newsroom A Day, Intersection of the venn diagram of things that I love, It's Not Television, Other people's stuff, We'll Get It In Post, Winterfallen

Tagged as Aaron Sorkin, Game of Thrones, HBO, mash-up, Parks and Recreation, The Newsroom

2012/06/01 · 7:26 pm