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Wednesday, June 27, 2012
1:00 pm
11 Comments
While Don continues to swing his dick, reminding Jim who’s boss, Neal magically puts two and two together and realizes that there may be a massive oil leak on top of the missing crew members. I wonder how he figured that all out so quickly. It’s almost like he’s psychic. Meanwhile, Don pulls Jim aside to tell him that Jim’s stepping on his toes and to knock it off. Then he asks about some Rose Bowl story while Jim gets a call.
As Jim runs out to take it, Will is talking down to Mackenzie like she was a naughty girl, letting her know that when he hires his new EP that person will interview all her people. Remember, he’s the “hero” of the series. She tries to give her staff one last pitch, but he dismisses her with a promise they’ll get a fair shake and he needs to write his script for that evening’s broadcast. Mackenzie gets up to leave but is suddenly overcome with the need to speechify.
Buckle up, Will. It’s Sorkin Time.
She farts on about how when there’s no information or, worse, wrong information it leads to calamitous decisions like Oklahoma being governed by Sharia law or Jersey Shore and that’s why she produces the news, but Will’s become a mewling celebrity who’s so afraid to lose what’s left of his audience he’s one pitch meeting away from doing the new in 3D. (Please, that’s AC 360.) They argue about integrity v. profitability and whether or not the American people are preternaturally stupid, but she believes that if they do a news show with integrity someone, somewhere will watch it because we’re Americans and we can do better. Will stares at her briefly then tells her that whole speech did nothing for him. Again, he’s the “hero.”
Back in the newsroom, Jim ambles up to Maggie asking to speak with Don. Don gets his panties all twisted because Jim won’t respect his AU-THOR-I-TAHbut Jim wants to let him know that a “source” of his is an engineer with BP who’s been in meetings discussing how to cap the well. He won’t give up his source, but he does have two pages of notes, and Don walks off like Jim’s turning into Brundlefly. Meanwhile, Jim and Neal share a look because Jim’s noble and Neal’s British. Then Jim gets another call because he’s just that on it.
Oh wow, I’m overwhelmed by how few fucks I give.
Back in Will’s office, Mackenzie tries to shine Will on by allegedly quoting Cervantes, in modern English, and Will corrects her it was Man of La Mancha. But her point stands, regardless. It’s time for her to start tilting at windmills and she needs Will to be her ass donkey. He tries to blow her off, again, by saying he needs to write his script so she starts parroting the news about the Icelandic volcanic eruption that brought air travel to a halt but ending with the fact that the US was in no way responsible and is a country he still loves despite his going off the deep end…and we’re back in speechifying mode.
Will doesn’t want to get into the same old shouting match but she thinks she could help him win it, this time. When he asks what that looks like to her she says, and I quote, “Reclaiming the fourth estate.” Who talks like that besides the crazy voices in Aaron Sorkin’s fevered mind? Then as the music swells she continues speechifying about making journalism a noble profession, again, but…Network came out in 1976 and Broadcast Newswas in 1987. That fight was lost decades ago, if it ever existed, no matter how distinguished William Hurt looked in his suit. (The trick is to sit on the hem of your jacket.)
Not so much a cautionary tale as a blueprint.
Mackenzie ends with one last flourish about a tipping point and being able to frame the debate and the piano tells us Will’s relenting because he loves a good Broadway reference as much as the next New Yorker.
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11 Comments
Loved your recap, Valleygirl, but I didn’t come close to loving the show as much as you say you did. Maybe that’s because I worked in and around television news for sixteen years (the fabu career portion of my life) and I couldn’t help but nitpick the really showbizzy, stupid stuff that never happens like applause by EVERYone at the end of a seat-of-the pants newscast. Really? Not bloody likely! And an open, obvious liquor bottle in the news set–not unless you want to get fired, and there is certainly someone higher up than Charlie in the network. I won’t be watching that silly treacle anymore, but I will be reading your recaps because they’re waaaay better than anything Sorkin could write.
I think the record-scratching noise in my head when I reached the end of this recap may have been loud enough for vallegirl to hear. Because, if this was a show she liked, I seriously want to read a negative recap of hers!
I liked it…but I never said I liked it because it was good. It has a lot of kinks to work out and isms to get over, but Sam Waterston was pretty great. (Even if he would have been fired for drinking in the office.) And, despite being the designated jerk, I rather liked Don, too.
But maybe it was seeing Alicia Corwin in the opening scene that threw me.
Judging from the lack of commenters, I’m guessing that this show is not going to be a hit with Gasmii. Don’t let that discourage you, Vallegirl, from recapping it.
Oh, I’m in it for the season. Unless they bring on a Safe Haven baby.
*coughs* POI? *coughs*
Oh. DUH. You WERE referring to POI there, weren’t you? I forgot that one amidst all the other plot disasters. So that was the straw that broke your back? Because I did wonder.
Nah, that was just the beginning of the end. It was a perfect storm of things that came together. But the baby really started the ball rolling.
I became obsessed with the Gawker recaps of “Girls,” did you see them? The comments afterward that complained about them made me think of you. People would be like, “Why are you recapping this show if you hate it so much?” I really appreciated your analysis of why POI was going south and I think it’s important to point out intelligently just what makes a show bogus. So I hope you stick with this show even if it gets bad — you put your snarky finger on things so well!
I don’t mean that I want this show to get bad. I realize that comment may have come across like that.
Something I just realized. Mackenzie shouldn’t have been able to alter Will’s title card by changing a chyron. The title of his show is in the clip. Even if a title card is just a still image, you can’t just hop onto your chyron program and change the embedded text. I’m pretty sure they designed it that way so producers couldn’t be assholes and give the program a new name whenever they feel like it.