A journal of television and new media

Archive for February, 2011

<strong>R.I.P., <em>F.N.L.</em></strong> <br/> <em>Janani Subramanian / University of Southern California</em>

R.I.P., F.N.L.
Janani Subramanian / University of Southern California

The final season of Friday Night Lights has concluded on DirecTV but will be resurrected in April, 2011, on NBC. This column is equal parts clear eyes and full heart in delivering the show’s eulogy.

<strong>Screen Text</strong> <br /> <em>Julia Lesage / University of Oregon</em>

Screen Text
Julia Lesage / University of Oregon

A consideration of how the iPad and other new media products facilitate on-screen reading and change the face of both academic research and leisure time.

<strong>The Visual Style of Jet Lag in the Work of Fiona Tan</strong><br/><em>Konrad Ng / University of Hawai’i at Mānoa</em>

The Visual Style of Jet Lag in the Work of Fiona Tan
Konrad Ng / University of Hawai’i at Mānoa

An exploration of jet lag as fragmented pulls of disorienting imagery in the work of visual artist Fiona Tan.

<strong>“My Wife Calls Him My Boyfriend”: Gary Barlow and Robbie Williams’ Reconciliatory Bromance</strong> <br /> <em>Hannah Hamad / Massey University</em>

“My Wife Calls Him My Boyfriend”: Gary Barlow and Robbie Williams’ Reconciliatory Bromance
Hannah Hamad / Massey University

This article explores the media narrative and constant scrutiny of the “bromance” between Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow, members of the “boy band” Take That.

<strong><em>Never Say Never</em>, Insurge Pictures, and the Future of Independent Film</strong> <br /> <em>Robert C. Sickels / Whitman College</em>

Never Say Never, Insurge Pictures, and the Future of Independent Film
Robert C. Sickels / Whitman College

The “independent” film Never Say Never, the initial production of Insurge Pictures, signals the difficulties faced by independent filmmakers attempting to break into the film industry.

<strong><em>Black Swan</em>, Cinematic Excess and the Full Body Experience</strong> <br /> <em>Amanda Klein / East Carolina University</em>

Black Swan, Cinematic Excess and the Full Body Experience
Amanda Klein / East Carolina University

In this piece, Amanda Klein explores how Black Swan employs the conventions of art cinema in order to engage the mind, and uses the conventions of horror, melodrama, and pornography to engage the body.

<strong><em>Drunk History</em> and Displaced Vocality</strong> <br /> <em>Lisa Coulthard / University of British Columbia</em>

Drunk History and Displaced Vocality
Lisa Coulthard / University of British Columbia

An examination of displaced voices in Drunk History

<strong>The Problem of YouTube </strong> <br /> <em>Aymar Jean Christian / University of Pennsylvania</em>

The Problem of YouTube
Aymar Jean Christian / University of Pennsylvania

Aymar Jean Christian dissects what’s wrong with everyone’s favorite video channel.

<strong>It’s Okay to Watch a Show Called Cougar Town</strong> <br /> <em>Lucas Hilderbrand / University of California, Irvine</em>

It’s Okay to Watch a Show Called Cougar Town
Lucas Hilderbrand / University of California, Irvine

Lucas Hilderbrand celebrates the pleasures of the ABC sitcom Cougar Town and assures us, “It’s okay to watch.”

<strong>You Haven’t Seen <em>Avatar</em> Yet</strong> <br /> <em>Charles R. Acland / Concordia University</em>

You Haven’t Seen Avatar Yet
Charles R. Acland / Concordia University

The DVD set for the film Avatar invites viewers to “extend the journey,” exemplary of the elasticity of the film’s boundaries.

<strong>Problems, Potential, and Place in <em>Portlandia</em></strong><br /><em> Esteban Del Rio / University of San Diego </em>

Problems, Potential, and Place in Portlandia
Esteban Del Rio / University of San Diego

Can the enviro-slacker audience of IFC’s Portlandia laugh at themselves?

<strong>“Who Lives?”: Notes on a Cinematic Moment</strong> <br /> <em>Murray Pomerance / Ryerson University</em>

“Who Lives?”: Notes on a Cinematic Moment
Murray Pomerance / Ryerson University

In the true, unfolding experience of watching cinema, in our actual presence with the image, our sense of being struck depends on our relation to telltale moments.