Expedition: Africa Season Review

Overall I am a little disappointed.

It was epic. The shots of wildlife and the trek were amazing. The cast was dynamic. The whole concept was great. Plus it wasn’t just four people who were all nice, Mark Burnett and his casting team had gotten four people who all were leaders in their own right. They all thought they new what was right. This led for some very interesting discussions and a lot of good fights. I think the thing was it got very repetitive.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a good show and I am glad I watched it but I never felt like we went anywhere. The ending was nice with them all coming together, almost a little emotional actually but their whole hike felt very familiar. If they weren’t arguing about water they were arguing about Pasquale. If Kevin wasn’t getting lost he was being extremely naive and slowly them down. If Mireya and Benedict weren’t having their showmance they were making fun of the other two and say how stupid they were. Plus I hated the hypocritical nature of them all. It was like whenever one of them wanted to stop and look at a rock or an animal or if they wanted to talk to a local the others had a problem with it. But boy if someone got mad at them for doing the same thing they would throw a hissy fit. Biggest case in point was Pasquale talking about the rocks. Granted they are rocks but they fascinated him. Sorry Mireya that it isn’t a monkey. I know a lot of people hate Pasquale and he got on my nerves as well but everyone was just as bad as he was, and he even defended himself. He told us why he was this way with his emotional story of having to carry someone down from Mt. Everest.

I don’t mind people disliking each other on shows, the best seasons of Survivor, The Amazing Race, or Big Brother is when they are at each others throats. But I guess since their was no elimination or outcome it just felt annoying like we weren’t getting anywhere. The only people I truly liked were the Masai warriors and the porters, you actually cared for them and if they got hurt.

The highlight of the show has got to be Benedict getting malaria and becoming delirious it was fascinating to watch and Mireya was truly heartbroken. What a great episode that was. The other highlight has got to be the ending where the entire village surrounded them as they continued to walk, almost like they were in an impromptu parade.

If they did an Expedition: South America or an Expedition: Asia I probably would watch but they need to probably make sure they don’t exactly all hate each other…but it is a reality show and I’m not looking for everyone to get along. I just don’t need the same basic cycle every episode.

DVD: Californication Season 1

I picked this up cause I love David Duchovny in X-Files and it was on Showtime (which right now arguably has the best shows). I watched the pilot last summer and before picking up the DVD and just now had time to sit down and watch it. i wish I had done it sooner. Though it isn’t as addictive as Weeds I get the same feeling when I finish an episode…I have to watch the next one. Since each episode is only half an hour it didn’t take long before I finished them.

For those that don’t know, Californication is about Hank Moody, a washed up/sex crazed writer, struggling with writers block. He has had only one successful book which was turned into a crappy romantic comedy. He really has lost those he cared about. Karen, his ex-girlfriend (Natasha McElhone) and who he had a daughter with, is getting married. Basically Hank doesn’t know what to do and is trying to fills his life with sex while still pining over Karen. He is just kind of lost and extremely sarcastic and cynical.

Sounds kind of depressing? But like Weeds it is a dark comedy. Duchovny is great, you can see a lot of his wit from X-Files here. He basically knows how to play a jackass really well. Yet he isn’t to abrasive and you find yourself hoping that things work out for him despite being such a smartass. I don’t know Natasha very well except for her little stint in the Truman show but she is a tremendous actress as well. She knows how to play mixed emotions very well, which is very refreshing. She can be completely devastated by what Hank has just told her but can put on a very convincing brave face to her fiance. It really is an excellent acting skill that not a lot of people can master. However my favorites of course are probably the supporting characters.

Marcy and Runkle just make me smile. It is great to see  your favorite characters on the screen who always bring their A-Game. Marcy grew on me but the last few episodes when her storyline came more to the forefront really made me fall in love with Pamela Adlon. In fact I was surprised to find that I know Pamela Adlon’s voice very well. She is probably one of the top voice artists currently in the business. She is just so funny and Runkle is just so desperate and I want to say conniving (but more in a bumbling conniving way) that makes him also great to watch.

I was a bit worried about Madeline Zima, I find her to be the weakest of the group. Even in the final episode of the first season she was still struggling a bit. Yet she grew a lot from the first episode. Madeleine Martin is also good in her scenes and very convincing with the work she does.

The whole first season could be the show. It has a great beginning and almost all of the stories are concluded in the final few minutes. Even Hank is redeemed in the closing. So I am not really sure where they can go in the next season, but I am pretty excited about picking it up on DVD especially with the third season so close to air. Between this, Weeds, and Nurse Jackie it makes me want to order Showtime.

The DVD was kind of slim on bonus features but most Showtime shows are so that is ok. The best episode have got to be the Pilot, the excellent “Fear and Loathing at the Fundraiser,” and “California Son.” All three really drive the characters and “Fear and Loathing…” packs so much into its half an hour.

I feel like I always say that shows are great, but I really enjoyed this. I didn’t know if I would after just watching the pilot cause I thought it would just be about Hank having sex, which is a part of it, but the show goes a lot more deeper then that.