The production value is great so far, but it's quite a dark start to the series. Reviews so far are mixed with the positive ones indicating you may take all the available episodes to get hooked. Discuss here!
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Spoilers "The Morning Show" Discussion Thread (May Contain Spoilers)
- Thread starter AustinIllini
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I started to watch the first episode, got about two minutes in and then I had to pause it to take a damn phone call ON MY FIRST DAY OFF of a four day weekend!!! Then I started doing something else, and I have yet to restart the episode.
I just have a feeling this is going to be good though. I mean look at the talent...Witherspoon, Aniston, Carell. They do not just do garbage movies/shows. Aniston is part of one of the most successful TV shows in modern history...Friends. I never got into Friends, but basically all of my friends did, and loved it. Reese Witherspoon has been in several great movies, I always liked Cruel Intentions, and though she did not have the biggest role in that movie she still did great, in my humble opinion. Steve Carell was hilarious in The 40 Year Old Virgin, but that was a comedy, however, he has proven he can do more than comedy.
Looking forward to watching this ASAP!!!
I just have a feeling this is going to be good though. I mean look at the talent...Witherspoon, Aniston, Carell. They do not just do garbage movies/shows. Aniston is part of one of the most successful TV shows in modern history...Friends. I never got into Friends, but basically all of my friends did, and loved it. Reese Witherspoon has been in several great movies, I always liked Cruel Intentions, and though she did not have the biggest role in that movie she still did great, in my humble opinion. Steve Carell was hilarious in The 40 Year Old Virgin, but that was a comedy, however, he has proven he can do more than comedy.
Looking forward to watching this ASAP!!!
The acting is incredible. The dialog goes off the rails at times (the coal tirade), but yeah overall the three leads are all pretty believable.
Watched the first 3 episodes and am really enjoying it. Not had a chance to watch any of the other shows but if everything else is as good as this then its a positive start for Apple.
Really hope they add a “skip intro” button in the future like Netflix has, it’s long.
The first three are given to you and then the follow up episodes are weekly, I think.
Yes, this is correct.
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Also I just watched the first episode and I enjoyed it a lot. I pretty much love anything with Reese Witherspoon though.
What device were you watching on? I was watching on my iPhone and didn’t see an option.
Edit: It wasn’t showing for the second episode for some reason, but appeared for the 3rd episode.
Actually check the edit I made. I think they wanted us to sit through the opening credits for the second episode (the first episode didn’t have opening credits), then we can skip it on the episodes after.
I am concerned the show tries a little too hard to be The Newsroom, which people liked but was actually a pretty terrible show. When it's not trying too hard to be Sorkin rapid-fire nonsense, I like the show so far. Of course, it's also great to see these three actors together on a show like this.
Only saw the pilot so far. Really hope it improves, because that was just as bad as all the reviews suggested. I can picture Paul, June and Jason on the How Did This Get Made? podcast being bummed out that this wasn’t a movie so they could tear it to shreds.
I’m all for protesting coal, but that scene where Witherspoon preached the ’5 facts about coal’ while a protester behind her nodded fervently was laughably bumbleheaded. You slide it in elegantly, you don’t turn the character into a politician delivering prepared talking points. I was half expecting it to turn into a GI Joe style PSA where they guy says”now I know!” and Reese responds ”and knowing is half the battle!”
The scene with her family was super clichéd. ”He’s an addict!” (Oookay?). And that mother roaring ”YOU ARE RUINING DINNER!!!!”... a prime candidate for ”Exquisite Acting” on Hollywood Babble-On. Also a prime candidate for creating more nightmares than Friday the 13th.
Aniston’s performance when Alex went on air to announce the news about Mitch’s firing was equally over the top. She gets $2M per episode out of the Apple war chest for this B-grade nonsense? Watch Savannah Guthrie announce the firing of Matt Lauer after learning of it moments earlier. She’s a bit shaken, but professional. But Aniston lays it on t-h-i-c-k. Maximum drama, DEFCON 1. Forget JFK assassination, Challenger disaster, 9/11, Vegas shooting... THIS is the big one, the official end of the world: ”Mitch” was fired.
Speaking of Mitch, his long defensive rant that culminated with him demolishing the TV while screaming like a lunatic was another candidate for ”Exquisite Acting”.
The scene where Witherspoon is interviewed by Aniston is downright cringeworthy. Her angle is bonkers and totally unrealistic - they’re doing a feelgood segment about a clip that went viral, and she goes into full gotcha interrogation mode, hell bent on exposing Witherspoon as a phony? What?
Then there’s the comically eager product placement. I expected some, sure. Did not expect iPhone ads with every single character introduction in the first few minutes.
- In the very first shot of a character (Chip), the first thing that happens is that an iPhone X/Xs on the floor next to him lights up with an incoming call.
- Next shot: Carell’s character introduction. Starts with... iPhone X/Xs next to him in bed, incoming call.
- Next shot: Aniston’s character introduction. Starts with... iPhone X/Xs next to her in bed, incoming call.
- Minute 4: Closeup #4 of iPhone display (call). Closeup #5 of iPhone display (text).
- Then an entire minute passes without iPhones. The 6th iPhone appears in the hand of some old dude at 6:30. Ahh, caught up with the placement-a-minute-minimum policy.
- Minute 8: iMac.
- Minute 9: Girl answers non-Apple landline phone!!! How can this be? Oh wait, never mind, she’s showing off her Apple Watch.
You’d think they’d throw in non-Apple tech here and there to look a little less sleazy, but no. It’s an all-Mac, all-iPhone universe. Aniston had a regular analog watch, maybe that’s the one token non-Apple alibi they would allow. After hours of fists banging on boardroom tables.
I hate ”Steve Jobs would never have approved...” arguments but honestly, I think he wouldn’t have settled until Apple TV+ was to HBO what Pixar is to Dreamworks Animation. This is bush league quality. Mobile Me original launch quality.
I’m all for protesting coal, but that scene where Witherspoon preached the ’5 facts about coal’ while a protester behind her nodded fervently was laughably bumbleheaded. You slide it in elegantly, you don’t turn the character into a politician delivering prepared talking points. I was half expecting it to turn into a GI Joe style PSA where they guy says”now I know!” and Reese responds ”and knowing is half the battle!”
The scene with her family was super clichéd. ”He’s an addict!” (Oookay?). And that mother roaring ”YOU ARE RUINING DINNER!!!!”... a prime candidate for ”Exquisite Acting” on Hollywood Babble-On. Also a prime candidate for creating more nightmares than Friday the 13th.
Aniston’s performance when Alex went on air to announce the news about Mitch’s firing was equally over the top. She gets $2M per episode out of the Apple war chest for this B-grade nonsense? Watch Savannah Guthrie announce the firing of Matt Lauer after learning of it moments earlier. She’s a bit shaken, but professional. But Aniston lays it on t-h-i-c-k. Maximum drama, DEFCON 1. Forget JFK assassination, Challenger disaster, 9/11, Vegas shooting... THIS is the big one, the official end of the world: ”Mitch” was fired.
Speaking of Mitch, his long defensive rant that culminated with him demolishing the TV while screaming like a lunatic was another candidate for ”Exquisite Acting”.
The scene where Witherspoon is interviewed by Aniston is downright cringeworthy. Her angle is bonkers and totally unrealistic - they’re doing a feelgood segment about a clip that went viral, and she goes into full gotcha interrogation mode, hell bent on exposing Witherspoon as a phony? What?
Then there’s the comically eager product placement. I expected some, sure. Did not expect iPhone ads with every single character introduction in the first few minutes.
- In the very first shot of a character (Chip), the first thing that happens is that an iPhone X/Xs on the floor next to him lights up with an incoming call.
- Next shot: Carell’s character introduction. Starts with... iPhone X/Xs next to him in bed, incoming call.
- Next shot: Aniston’s character introduction. Starts with... iPhone X/Xs next to her in bed, incoming call.
- Minute 4: Closeup #4 of iPhone display (call). Closeup #5 of iPhone display (text).
- Then an entire minute passes without iPhones. The 6th iPhone appears in the hand of some old dude at 6:30. Ahh, caught up with the placement-a-minute-minimum policy.
- Minute 8: iMac.
- Minute 9: Girl answers non-Apple landline phone!!! How can this be? Oh wait, never mind, she’s showing off her Apple Watch.
You’d think they’d throw in non-Apple tech here and there to look a little less sleazy, but no. It’s an all-Mac, all-iPhone universe. Aniston had a regular analog watch, maybe that’s the one token non-Apple alibi they would allow. After hours of fists banging on boardroom tables.
I hate ”Steve Jobs would never have approved...” arguments but honestly, I think he wouldn’t have settled until Apple TV+ was to HBO what Pixar is to Dreamworks Animation. This is bush league quality. Mobile Me original launch quality.
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The Newsroom is on my list of top 10 shows of all time. It could be bewildering, had to use the pause button a lot to get time to analyze what was said before something else happened. Very intense. It was concerned with events, ideas and presented them in new ways. It was also very people oriented both in the very strong and contrasting newsroom personalities, and in the interviewees. Will they show? What will they say? Are they lying? It gave me a much greater understanding of how difficult it is to find and present the truth. I put it in the same category as "The Post" and "All the Presidents Men".
The Morning Show. slick as it is, is a pale reflection of its predecessor. The ideas and debates are recycled dialogues, some years old. I only got through one episode, started the 2nd and thought that I really don't care. If they took on the really tough questions, the questions which are threatening democracies these days, and actually had something to contribute it would be worth it. But that would be too polarizing, so all we get is blandness.
I quite like it too. I don’t watch an awful lot of television but it has me hooked just enough to perhaps watch it to the end of the season.
Out of interest, in episode three, around 45 minutes in, does the tv playing in the background feature footage from a morning television programme in your location?
Just asking as here in the United Kingdom we have a programme called This Morning and was wondering if it was worldwide or just localised to the relevant countries.
Out of interest, in episode three, around 45 minutes in, does the tv playing in the background feature footage from a morning television programme in your location?
Just asking as here in the United Kingdom we have a programme called This Morning and was wondering if it was worldwide or just localised to the relevant countries.
I was initially somewhat put off by listening to Reese Witherspoon whining in her first scene. It's part of almost every character she takes on to have these mini whine rants.
A way into it and she had an even bigger whine rant about something and I couldn't bear it anymore.
Unfortunate because other than that it seems well made.
A way into it and she had an even bigger whine rant about something and I couldn't bear it anymore.
Unfortunate because other than that it seems well made.
I watched the first two episodes. I started the third and I just wasn't really motivated to keep going.
While I like the three main actors, (for some of their work outside of this series) I found the storyline to be weak, cliched, and in many instances implausible. I believe the rampant and needless cursing is thrown in to try and hide the fact the show doesn't have much substance that drawers the viewer in and makes them care about the characters.
Speaking of storyline, it is very predictable. You know what is about to happen long before the bad cursing dialogue gets to that train station. And the overacting didn't endear me to want to care and keep watching.
I want to see Apple succeed. However, this show and some of the others they made are any early indication of the quality the viewer can expect down the line, the new service is in trouble.
Grade: C-
While I like the three main actors, (for some of their work outside of this series) I found the storyline to be weak, cliched, and in many instances implausible. I believe the rampant and needless cursing is thrown in to try and hide the fact the show doesn't have much substance that drawers the viewer in and makes them care about the characters.
Speaking of storyline, it is very predictable. You know what is about to happen long before the bad cursing dialogue gets to that train station. And the overacting didn't endear me to want to care and keep watching.
I want to see Apple succeed. However, this show and some of the others they made are any early indication of the quality the viewer can expect down the line, the new service is in trouble.
Grade: C-
I think it’s more to illustrate the contrast between the vanilla goody-two-shoes image of people in morning/daytime/family programming, and who they really are behind the scenes.
Take Bob Saget. On America’s Funniest Home Videos his humor was super clean cut har-de-har for all ages. But it’s well known that he is privately as blue as they come. His personal take on the infamous ”aristocrats” joke is so no holds barred filthy it makes Gilbert Gottfried look like a nun.
My main concern is that history hasn’t been kind to this show idea. Neither in comedy nor drama form. There was Sorkin’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Cancelled after one season. There was Great News, cancelled after 2 seasons. Sports Show, ran for 3 season I think. The Newsroom, also 3 seasons. The exception would be 30 Rock which lasted 7 seasons, but the rest of them were gutterballs. Writers appear to think that TV behind the scenes intrigue is infinitely more thrilling than the audience does.