TVSquad

There are a lot of things that suck about Hollywood awards shows (the self-important attitude of the whole thing and the cheesy dialogue come to mind). But the most prominent annoyance is the 'Thank You' speech. I don't know about you, but I don't care about Reese Witherspoon's lawyer and I can't help counting when... um... Jonathan... um... Demme... wins for... um... Silence of the Lambs.

This year, producers for tonight's Academy Awards are trying to avoid the 45-second long lists of thank yous from winners by offering them the 'Thank You' cam. It's a camera that winners can turn to when they exit the stage and finish their list of 'thank yous'. The video will be immediately broadcast on Oscar.com. The host of the 'thank you' cam says, "It takes the pressure off. Don't worry about the list, say what you want to say from the heart and the rest will live on the internet."

First of all, who the hell is going to watch this? Second of all, it sounds doomed to fail. Most of the people who win feel obligated to thank a million behind-the-scenes folks with deep wallets in order to get more work/money.

So... sit back with the mute button at the ready. Or find something else to do tonight.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, TNT has already renewed The Closer for a third season. The show is on fire now, and we're only three episodes into its second season. It broke a ratings record for a basic cable original scripted series with 8.3 million viewers. TNT has ordered another 15 episodes for 2007.

I started watching The Closer when it premiered last season because I've always liked Kyra Sedgwick. She plays a great fish out of water as Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson, with her 'Thank Yous' that mean a thousand things and her heinous wardrobe. I think the writing dramatically improved this year over last. Several times last year, I solved the crime at least twenty minutes before Brenda did, but so far this year the writing is more complex and storylines are getting more creative. My one request is to see Brenda fail. She can't knock it out of the park each time with suspects. I want to see how her character reacts to professional failure (we've seen her fail at her personal life time and again).

(S02E03) I loved the beginning of this episode. The editing and the dialogue made it look like we were starting off at another crime scene where a famous person died, but it turns out Brenda was out on a tour of stars' homes with her mama and her beau, Fritz. Great opening.

The show doesn't waste any time getting to the crime. Brenda's called away to a triple murder--an apparent gang shooting--leaving Fritz alone with her mother. The victims are teen-agers and one is the son of a friend of Det. Taylor. I found the monologue where Brenda was telling Det. Gabriel how to notify a family of a death to be riveting. That was very effective storytelling: cutting from Brenda's instructions to the interaction with Det. Gabriel and the parents of the murdered boy. Stirring line from Brenda: "You're about to become the main character in somebody's worst day ever." Remarkable.