TVSquad

Where do you write from?
Somewhere in the great state of Massachusetts.

Craziest/funniest TV Squad comment you've seen?
I had no idea how many Jay Leno fans hate Conan O'Brien, and the desperate passion they put into communicating that to the rest of the world. The comments aren't as crazy as some of what comes through the tips e-mail, where sometimes people address TV Squad as if it were the controlling entity of all television everywhere. "Dear TV, please put me on Big Brother, I want to introduce my daughter to Jessie and..."

If you were only able to watch one TV show, what would it be?
Probably Monty Python's Flying Circus. You can watch those shows over and over again without losing a single laugh. Although I have rediscovered Doctor Who in recent years, and if you go back to the original doctor, I'm pretty sure I'd still be trying to get through the full run of the show by the time I were rescued.


Most overrated and underrated TV show (current or past)?
Overrated: I hate to say it, because I respect the show and its creator, but I'd have to say Seinfeld. Not because it's a bad show – it isn't – but because it has been given more credit for revolutionizing the sitcom than I think is warranted. That said, it was a fantastic and consistent show for most of its run.

Underrated: This one is tough. Every show has an armed cadre somewhere out there on the Web that is willing to fight you for disparaging their life's treasure. I thought The State was underrated for a while, but there are a lot more fans of that show now, maybe more than when it originally ran. I'll mention two more (sorry to hedge here) – I like Action when it came out, and would like to have seen go another couple of seasons. And I think the Billy Connolly version of Head of the Class was funny, but I haven't seen it in years. (This question is just going to lead me to spend the rest of the day on YouTube.)

Best benefit of writing for TV Squad?
Looking for more unusual or unheralded shows and having the opportunity to tell some people about them (even if they hound me out of the room for it).

Where else can we see you on the web?
I'm a full time freelance writer, so you can see me a few different places. If you go into the Boston Globe archives at www.Boston.com, you can see about eight years of my following the local and national comedy scenes. I write a blog about Boston comedy at www.funnygrownhere.com. I am hoping to revive my other blog, www.optimisticcurmudgeon.com, at some point. You can see my contributions to another AOL blog at www.Spinner.com.

If you were able to interview a TV character -- not the actor or actress -- who would it be?
Kermit the Frog. I'm a Muppets freak. I would also take Animal, Gonzo, Pepe the King Prawn, Sweetums, The Swedish Chef (if I had an interpreter), Rizzo, Dr. Teeth, Miss Piggy, Zoot, Janice, Beauregard, or Crazy Harry. I still think there's an exclusive to be had interviewing Marvin Suggs' Muppaphones, to hear their tales of abuse.

You can read all of Nick's posts here.

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