Yeah, exactly. There's an interview with David Finch at Vulture (http://www.vulture.com/2010… where they talk about how Finch was directing the actors to use this subtext, and to get the small details right because they say something about who the characters are.

I once had the dubious pleasure of working at a college where one of the students said to me, with no trace of irony, "you like Jon Stewart? You're such a typical liberal. I like Stephen Colbert, he really tells it how it is."

I once had the dubious pleasure of working at a college where one of the students said to me, with no trace of irony, "you like Jon Stewart? You're such a typical liberal. I like Stephen Colbert, he really tells it how it is."

I'm starting to wonder if the problem with The Newsroom is not the subject matter, but rather that Aaron Sorkin simply can't write subtext, or is genuinely unaware of the subtext that's coming across.

I'm starting to wonder if the problem with The Newsroom is not the subject matter, but rather that Aaron Sorkin simply can't write subtext, or is genuinely unaware of the subtext that's coming across.

Yes, but you're making death threats at Disqus instead of Nabin. Problem solved (for the AVClub)!

Yes, but you're making death threats at Disqus instead of Nabin. Problem solved (for the AVClub)!

Sorkin's play The Farnsworth Invention is great, because it contains the two leads needling each other like that for two hours. Brilliant.

Sorkin's play The Farnsworth Invention is great, because it contains the two leads needling each other like that for two hours. Brilliant.

@drdarke:disqus - Actually, I don't watch romantic comedies because they're lame and I'd rather spend my time, you know, actually having sex. But thanks for diagnosing me on the Internet! I totally needed that.

The contrivedness was more in Dana mentioning the possibility of Casey sleeping with Sally, when she hadn't mentioned Sally in several episodes. I agree that Natalie would logically think of it as a betrayal, but that doesn't mean it is in reality. If Sally had been using Casey to undermine Dana, that would have been…

This doesn't explain the Why of Eggnog. Dear god, why do Gentiles do something that awful to perfectly good alcohol?

@avclub-4370a09825ce603a74e42ef6eca56ef9:disqus  - SPOILERS I prefer season 2 Dan to season 1 Dan, because season 1 is a jerk, but season 2 there's actual self-examination. The therapy is heavy-handed, but it takes his asshole behavior here and puts it into context — he's not suddenly obsessed with Rebecca, he's…

@avclub-da496e2db2e50a068b4ae5549d4ae1b0:disqus - If the object of your affections is not enjoying your behavior, you stop doing it. If you don't, you don't get what you want. This isn't a masters class in Women's Studies, it's Interacting With Other Human Beings 101. 
Dan is hilarious in this episode. He is also,…

@avclub-da496e2db2e50a068b4ae5549d4ae1b0:disqus - If the object of your affections is not enjoying your behavior, you stop doing it. If you don't, you don't get what you want. This isn't a masters class in Women's Studies, it's Interacting With Other Human Beings 101. 
Dan is hilarious in this episode. He is also,…

Wait, he has Alison Pill not knowing the word "smug"? Seriously? It's one damn syllable and not exactly uncommon: for example, it comes up often in descriptions of Sorkin's work.

Wait, he has Alison Pill not knowing the word "smug"? Seriously? It's one damn syllable and not exactly uncommon: for example, it comes up often in descriptions of Sorkin's work.

Having rewatched the episode several times, I can see the episode kind of straining to make sure every moment is relevant — Dana oh-so-casually wondering if Casey would sleep with Sally and Natalie saying no, it would be a betrayal, when it honestly isn't planting the seed — but that moment is still incredibly…

Does that matter, when she is clearly, verbally, practically losing her temper as she says "no"?

Does that matter, when she is clearly, verbally, practically losing her temper as she says "no"?