Agreed. Tobais' entire premise also suffers from an extremely narrow and somewhat pretentious definition of "art." Sometimes, the best artistic decision is to do as little as possible and let the material speak for itself. Or maybe I misread every single critic on the planet writing with what I'm sure they considered…

Saying a nonfiction book is well-written is usually meant in the same sense one would compliment good editing in a straight documentary. They're not talking about the unexpected and bold switch to 2nd person narrative in the denouement, they just mean the author writes with clear, descriptive language that effectively…

Worked for Letterman.

So is NBC just filling the emotional void of Steve Carell's departure by having an executive who reminds them of Michael Scott around to pitch show ideas?

Can I watch a show about Carol Kane's character instead?

I think you're confusing variety show announcers with thoroughbred horses.

@avclub-cc225865b743ecc91c4743259813f604:disqus But again, I don' t think there's anything remotely ironic about Macklemore as a rapper, whatever you think of his skill level, just because he raps about a subject ironically (something 90% of all hip hop acts do). I think "Thrift Store" is a pretty clever send up of…

I think one of the horn players was actually mic'd, playing some flourishes over the recorded track, and the rest mimed it.

I have no idea what you think novelty means. Novelty is something exceptionally unusual that attracts a niche audience who are mostly just intrigued by the absurdity of the act, as opposed to the actual entertainment value. I've seen rappers be funny before, kind of a lot. He's a very straightforward rapper with an…

So um…that was the most astonishingly nuanced radical feminist critique on cable television in a drama about 80s Cold War espionage, of all things. Would never have guessed in a million years, but good for Melissa James Gibson getting that thematic arc in there. The intersection of sexual empowerment (but allowing for…

@avclub-1c3ba574dd5d0b83446d360ccb8f41b8:disqus Fair 'nuff, I'm not holding a grudge against the show for it.

Oh I was hoping someone would get to Blake. He's other worldly, and such an uncompromisingly radical artist. He'd shock people still today. I came to him through Songs of Innocence and of Experience, which is probably his most accessible, but my favorite is probably The Marriage of Heaven and Hell because I'll…

Alternate title: People who've read three poems in their life tell you their favorite. I'm just shocked no one went with Shel Silverstein.

@GhaleonQ:disqus Paradiso can get a bad wrap, it has a serenity that gets taken for boring. And you're right about the difficulty, especially what he does with the imagery and geography, it's just an astonishing picture he creates through language alone. My favorite bit in Paradiso, and I can't remember the canto, is…

@avclub-39df51c015ce671b473b8cf5a306d217:disqus Agreed, there no way Harmon didn't frantically take notes to the season premier, stick it in an envelope, and either put it in a locked draw or the fire place.

I thought it was the strongest of the season, but to be honest that's not saying much (even the second episode didn't land for me the way it apparently did for everyone else).

Holy shit the 7 year old! That only works because the person genuinely didn't know what was going on or that anything was supposed to funny, whereas the other guy kind of rolled with it. I got a mild anxiety attack just watching the terror in her face.

Wow, Paradiso. That's usually everyone's least favorite, but I'm definitely down with Canto 33. Personally, I always loved Purgatorio, particularly Canto 30. Beatrice arrives, but the way he deals with Virgil's departure so passively is oddly heartbreaking:

@avclub-1c3ba574dd5d0b83446d360ccb8f41b8:disqus I don't mind if the joke is explicitly that he's bisexual and he goes on about it to sound cool, which exists the way some people within any sexual identity make it their whole identity, but that joke takes a little longer to indicate. He said he's bisexual, smash cut…

Mickey Jones, he was Dylan's drummer when Levon Helm for some crazy reason didn't see the appeal of going out night after night to a sea of boos for going electric. Brass pair on Mickey, though. He's also done a bunch of bit part acting. Hulluva musician, probably best known for hitting that snare shot after "play…