Heinberg will probably go down as one of those creators whose ideas were better developed by other people than him. His idea of introducing teen sidekicks to Marvel actually turned out to be good, and some of the characters he came up with are going to be around for a while, but they're all getting more development in…

My impression with Children's Crusade was that it fell victim to company politics - it was originally pitched as one storyline in a second volume of Young Avengers, and it kept getting held up, presumably over arguments about whether it would be allowed to bring back Scarlet Witch and Ant-Man. The final result took…

Poor Gary Sandy. Forever doomed to be a byword for "sitcom lead who doesn't get to to anything funny."

I think if there's more experimentation going on in half-hours it's not really saying all that much for half-hours, which are pretty formula-ridden these days, with a few exceptions. (For example nearly all broadcast half-hours are locked into the formula where you have multiple plots per episode and you have a lesson…

I think if there's more experimentation going on in half-hours it's not really saying all that much for half-hours, which are pretty formula-ridden these days, with a few exceptions. (For example nearly all broadcast half-hours are locked into the formula where you have multiple plots per episode and you have a lesson…

That's true, but MWFT isn't only a sentimental melodrama but a social-problem picture - whatever McCarey's own politics were (and I don't think he'd moved right yet), what comes through in the movie is basically a manifesto for why we need programs to make sure that elderly people can afford to stay together in their…

That's true, but MWFT isn't only a sentimental melodrama but a social-problem picture - whatever McCarey's own politics were (and I don't think he'd moved right yet), what comes through in the movie is basically a manifesto for why we need programs to make sure that elderly people can afford to stay together in their…

The general consensus seems to be that somewhere through season 2 it becomes less of a cheesy show with moments of genuineness and more of an ambitious show with a cheesy coating. The "Surprise/Innocence" two-parter is where it starts, though some put the shift earlier ("Lie to Me" earlier in season 2, or "Prophecy…

The general consensus seems to be that somewhere through season 2 it becomes less of a cheesy show with moments of genuineness and more of an ambitious show with a cheesy coating. The "Surprise/Innocence" two-parter is where it starts, though some put the shift earlier ("Lie to Me" earlier in season 2, or "Prophecy…

I only just realized that in maybe the first SIMPSONS he produced, "Homer Goes to College," Homer is basically turned into Chris - a happy idiot who's so determined to live life according to media clichés and doesn't seem to notice that things play out differently in "real" life. Homer had been dumb before but I think…

I only just realized that in maybe the first SIMPSONS he produced, "Homer Goes to College," Homer is basically turned into Chris - a happy idiot who's so determined to live life according to media clichés and doesn't seem to notice that things play out differently in "real" life. Homer had been dumb before but I think…

I don't think the show plays well with the track turned off, actually. Partly because you can hear the crew laughing, and partly because the whole show is shot and mixed around the laugh track. If they were doing it now it would have a lot more incidental music and sound effects and fast cuts to make up for the…

I don't think the show plays well with the track turned off, actually. Partly because you can hear the crew laughing, and partly because the whole show is shot and mixed around the laugh track. If they were doing it now it would have a lot more incidental music and sound effects and fast cuts to make up for the…

I recall reading that episode was based on Marshall (or Belson?)s own experience as a punch-up man for Broadway plays, where they really would do that - hire a guy to rewrite and not tell the author where the new lines are coming from. One of the great things about TDVDS is that it was a repository for all the real…

I recall reading that episode was based on Marshall (or Belson?)s own experience as a punch-up man for Broadway plays, where they really would do that - hire a guy to rewrite and not tell the author where the new lines are coming from. One of the great things about TDVDS is that it was a repository for all the real…

Among minor early Jones series, I've always liked Inki better than Sniffles. The depiction of Inki means they haven't been on video for a while, but because he doesn't talk, he's a better "cute" character than Sniffles, and the mynah bird is incredible. Mendelssohn's music is forever associated with that weird bird.

Among minor early Jones series, I've always liked Inki better than Sniffles. The depiction of Inki means they haven't been on video for a while, but because he doesn't talk, he's a better "cute" character than Sniffles, and the mynah bird is incredible. Mendelssohn's music is forever associated with that weird bird.

The famous change in the Cunninghams' house between the second and third seasons is the perfect illustration of the different types of sitcom set design. In the single-camera years, each room was built separately like in a real house of the period, so you had the living room, the kitchen, and the dining room. (They…

The famous change in the Cunninghams' house between the second and third seasons is the perfect illustration of the different types of sitcom set design. In the single-camera years, each room was built separately like in a real house of the period, so you had the living room, the kitchen, and the dining room. (They…

It's even crazier in the later years when everybody gets the applause, even Potsie. He only gets a little bit of applause, which in a way is more of an insult than getting none at all.