Something next to normal, that's the thing I'd like to try

Hello again. So, I was sick and miserable through most of March - including my birthday :( - and then I started new drugs and now I'm feeling better and also have learned how to give myself injections, which is a thing I have been avoiding for like 5 years, but it turns out it's not that bad. (It probably helped that prior to the first shot, I was so sick I was like, "I will literally stab myself with anything if it will make me feel better.")

I also went to Boston (less snow than I expected!).

A month's worth of links:

* Sutton Foster talks about turning 40 and passing for 26 in her new series, Younger.

* Masters of Sex gets a July premiere date.

* This video is from a few weeks ago, but it's so adorable it deserves to be linked: Robert Downey Jr. gives a 7-year-old an Iron Man bionic arm.

* Homeland is once again changing things up for the next season.

* Here's two parts of an interview with Joss Whedon talking about Avengers: Age of Ultron. Plus, an article on the supertwins, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, and a cute behind-the-scenes featurette.

* With Mad Men ending soon, here's an oral history of the show, an interview with creator Matthew Weiner, Weiner and Kiernan Shipka talking about Sally Draper, an interview with Jon Hamm, and one with John Slattery. 

* The rumors are true: The X-Files is coming back for a six-episode limited run.

* Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper talk about working together, and Jen mentions that the next X-Men movie will be her last. 

* For those of you who've always thought Arya Stark would make a great companion, you're in luck - Maisie Williams is guest-starring on Doctor Who this year.

* In other fandom crossover casting, Arthur Darvill will be on the Arrow/The Flash spin-off.

* Trevor Noah will be taking over hosting The Daily Show. No idea how he'll be as a host, but his stand-up is hilarious.

* The Americans has been renewed for season 4.

* This is a great piece on Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany, which includes references to "licking the butter" - which seems like it should be a euphemism for something but is not.

* Behind the scenes on Community season 6 on Yahoo.

* A really long, but great read from one of the writers of Lost about the early years of the show.

...while I am binge-watching Orange is the New Black.

* Here's an interview with the OITNB creator, cast, and Piper Kerman. Also, key differences between the show and Kerman's real-life experience.

* Howard Stark will apparently be part of the Agent Carter TV series, though it's unclear in what capacity. (Also, I don't see why the AV Club is making a big deal about Dominic Cooper and John Slattery both playing the role. They look reasonably similar, given that they're playing the character 30 years apart.)

* The Doctor Strange movie has a director, as does Ant-Man (again) finally.

* Clark Gregg talks about his movie Trust Me and Agents of SHIELD.

* The Fantastic Four reboot has been downgraded from "gritty" to "not as goofy as the original."

* Of course Mad Men would have the best "For Your Consideration" ads.

* Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie have been cast in the new Star Wars film. Lupita also has another new project in the works. Glad to see she's getting good post-Oscar roles. I was worried for a bit there.

* Kind of an odd pairing, but here's an interview with Emmy Rossum and Tatiana Maslany. I don't know why they would tease us with the existence of a "Someone To Watch Over Me" duet and then not provide video of it, but whatever.

* Video from a panel discussion with the cast and crew of The Americans.

* Apparently, people mock the Tony Awards because "the contenders are unknown to the public and that theater-going is an elitist, esoteric habit." LOL I feel like this would be more believable in a year when the nominees didn't include such unknowns as Woody Allen, Bryan Cranston, and Neil Patrick Harris, in shows no one's heard of, like Les Miserables, Aladdin, or Shakespeare. But whatever, the point is, people should appreciate the Tonys and the theater, which is good.

* ABC Family is developing a musical comedy TV series. Because that has worked out so well in the past.

* I had never heard of Outliving Emily until Jeremy Jordan was cast, but it sounds like an intriguing premise, and the cast is pretty great.

* Robert Downey Jr. is producing a new series about recovering addicts in a rehab facility for Showtime.

* This baby goat was cracking me up all day in work yesterday.

* I never saw Avatar, so I don't really care about the sequels, but James Cameron's explanation of writing three movies simultaneously is very interesting, and perhaps something more franchises should attempt.

* I hope you are watching the last four episodes of Enlisted, airing this month.

GEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHHHH.

Why yes, I DID just watch Hannibal, how did you know?

* So Agents of SHIELD aired its season finale this week, and it... actually turned into a good show? I think this is a fair assessment of what it did really well, and areas that still need improvement. Also, here are a couple post-mortems with Jed and Maurissa, and executive producers Jeph Loeb and Jeff Bell.

* Hayley Atwell talks about coming back to Marvel for Agent Carter.

* It's actually kind of handy that Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson are both in Godzilla, because it means they can spend their entire press tour talking about Avengers: Age of Ultron, lol.

* Meanwhile, Bryan Cranston proves he is a master of the "Godzilla roar."

* I don't know anyone who would object to a Good Wife spinoff featuring Elsbeth Tascioni.

* Here's a preview of the second season of Masters of Sex.

* A long but fascinating interview with Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner.

* CBS did NOT pick up How I Met Your Dad. I'm FREEEEEEE!!!!!

* Neil Patrick Harris was offered David Letterman's Late Show gig, but he passed. (Probably a good move for him.)

* Viggo Mortensen throws some shade at Peter Jackson's love of special effects.

* Gone with the Wind is getting a prequel novel about Mammy (whose real name, it happens, is Ruth). Which reminds me, I never posted my GWTW meta/reaction post that I started writing last summer and never finished. I should maybe get back to that sometime.

* It never occurred to me that Winnie the Pooh needed an origin story film, but apparently he's getting one anyway.

* Coulson's cellist is finally making an appearance, and she looks a lot like Amy Acker.

* Over the last week or so, I've been binge-watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I watched the pilot back when it first premiered and wasn't really feeling it, but after hearing people rave about it for a whole season, I decided to give it another shot and I liked it! So here's an interview with Mike Schur, the co-creator. Plus, what the show can learn from Parks & Recreation.

* Matthew Weiner talks about Mad Men and is actually interesting, even though he still gives nothing away.

* Bryan Cranston talks Breaking Bad and his new role as President Lyndon Johnson on Broadway.

* Here's a recap of the Community panel at PaleyFest.

* Dan Rydell was temporarily resurrected when Josh Charles made an appearance on Keith Olbermann's show.

* Revisiting possibly the greatest thing HIMYM has ever brought us, Neil Patrick Harris and Jason Segel once again sing "The Confrontation" from Les Miserables.

* Here's a sneak peek at Captain America's new uniform, which is changing yet again for Age of Ultron. (Also, am I displaying my obsessive nerdery if I point out that's clearly a stunt double and not Chris Evans, as the article states?)

* New trailer for Orphan Black, which returns April 19, and one for 24: Live Another Day, which premieres May 5.

* Cristin Milioti talks about HIMYM and addresses the theory that the Mother is dead.

* I'm a big fan of competence porn, so I enjoyed this piece on why we like characters who are good at their jobs.

* Matthew Weiner talks about the final season of Mad Men, and again in another interview here. There's also a great piece on Elisabeth Moss, who would be perfect if only she weren't a Scientologist.

* Amazon has picked up four of its pilots for series, including Transparent, which is the only one I watched (it was really good).

* Laura Benanti will be guest-starring on The Good Wife.

* Another interview with Emmy Rossum about Shameless.

* The other two detectives talk about working with Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in True Detective. Also, the real life case that may put the "true" in the title.

* And inspired by True Detective's season finale, an interesting look at how the internet has impacted our expectations for finales. (No TD spoilers.)

* Another Game of Thrones trailer is out. Also, the showrunners basically tied George R. R. Martin to a chair and made him tell them how the series ends.

* Here's an Oscar diary from the person we all wish we were - Jennifer Lawrence's BFF.

* I am extremely curious how they plan to make a Fantastic Four reboot that is "very grounded." It's the FANTASTIC FOUR. Isn't that kind of like calling the Guardians of the Galaxy characters "realistic"?

* Chris Hemsworth talked about Avengers: Age of Ultron. Plus, the first videos of production in Johannesburg have surfaced.

* I confess, I have completely lost track of which Captain America teasers I've linked to and which ones I haven't (clearly I am too dazzled by Chris Evans' face), so here have some more.

* If you really can't wait until Friday, you can now watch the first 8 minutes of Veronica Mars online.

* Casting news: Anna Gunn will be appearing on The Mindy Project, and Vince Gilligan will be making his acting debut on Community.

* How I Met Your Mother is doing an entire episode in rhyme. This show, man. You can't make this shit up.

* Harry Hamlin talks about Mad Men.

* A series of videos with director Francis Lawrence talking about Catching Fire.

* Unsurprisingly, there is a rumor of another crossover/tie-in between Agents of SHIELD and a Marvel movie, this time Captain America: Winter Soldier. Is it just me, or is this starting to feel kind of desperate?

* I'm not sure what it says about Tom Hiddleston that I would not be surprised if he did cry on the red carpet? Well, if this is his last Marvel premiere, at least we know he's a shoo-in for the Magic Mike sequel.

[1-62] Orange is the New Black
[63-82] Graceland
[83-89] Zachary Levi (with Krysta Rodriguez)
[90-95] iconthat (Luther, Mad Men, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, True Blood)
[96] Lost
[97-98] The Avengers

Preview:



( Read more... )

* Kiernan Shipka is totally grown up OMG, but still not allowed to watch Mad Men.

* On the other hand, OMG Maisie Williams is SIXTEEN? She looks so much younger on Game of Thrones.

* Neil Patrick Harris and family are moving to New York after HIMYM ends.

* Klaus will apparently still be pining over Caroline in The Originals. AS LONG AS HE'S NOT DOING IT ON MY SHOW ANYMORE.

* Julianna Margulies talks about this season of The Good Wife.

* While I don't necessarily agree with all the specific points, I am definitely feeling a sense of diminishing returns when it comes to Doctor Who and this new ~mystery of Clara.

* I totally want a TARDIS refrigerator, though.

* A Guys and Dolls movie starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tatum? I have a lot of conflicting reactions, lol.

* LOL! During press for Iron Man 3, RDJ calls Gwyneth Paltrow a snob, and then she smacks him.

* Scarlett Johansson on the set of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. What have they done to Black Widow's hair? :(

* First trailer for Thor: The Dark World. Heh, compared to Iron Man 3, this seems so terribly meh. Also, needs moar Loki.

(Sidebar, what is it with Marvel and annoyingly long titles? And why is Iron Man the only franchise that escapes?)

* Matthew Weiner talks about the Mad Men season premiere.

* How The Americans uses interpersonal conflict to tackle global politics and plotlines.

* Ten things you need to know about Syfy's new drama, Defiance, which stars Julie Benz and was created by Rockne S. O'Bannon (aka the creator of two of my favorite sci-fi shows, seaQuest DSV and Farscape).

* Is Doctor Who too sexy and complicated now? While I giggled at the handwringing over the Doctor's snogging (gasp! horrors!), I would not say no to a companion who wasn't a young, attractive female.

* If the Saul spin-off happens, it's likely to be a comedy. I think that's actually better, because f they're going to do this, I'd rather have enough distance from Breaking Bad that it feels like its own show and not just a lame attempt to keep the BB audience watching AMC. Related: do spin-offs that elevate minor characters work, or is it too much of a good thing?

* Natalie Dormer will be playing Irene Adler (in flashbacks, apparently) on Elementary. I still haven't made it past the first episode, but that's A+ casting right there.

* Aubrey Plaza has the most awkward interview on Ellen, and yet it somehow manages to be completely adorable.

* Ever wondered how they made all the dinosaur noises in Jurassic Park? Lots of animals having sex, apparently.

* Robert Redford is confirmed as playing "the head of S.H.I.E.L.D." in Captain America: Winter Soldier.

* Iron Man 3 trailer #9,202, plus a clip of Tony talking to a gaggle of reporters. At some point, I won't even need to see the movie.

* The J. August Richards S.H.I.E.L.D. role I linked to the other day has been confirmed.

* Aaron Tveit's new USA drama, Graceland, has a series premiere date.

* Is Matt Weiner's Mad Men spoiler phobia making unreasonable demands of TV critics? I mostly think he's being silly, since NO ONE watches Mad Men for the ~shocking twists.

* Apply for a job at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce! I apparently would make a good copy writer.

* If you missed the last five minutes of this week's episode of The Americans, FX has apologized for the DVR snafu and made the episode available online. Good thing, because those were a killer five minutes!

* I love oral histories. This one's for Jurassic Park. Also. the scene from the movie that real paleontologists say is unrealistic. It's... not ANY of the ones you'd expect.

* Jason Segel has written a series of YA books. I'm actually kind of curious to read them...