Josh

House finale is a one hour retrospective, followed by the actual one hour final episode.

This is prime RiffTrax territory.

That's more or less my version of hell. I have to actively restrain my rage when such shows are discussed among my friends as a "guilty pleasure" or something.

That's a really fun story.

Speaking of The Office, if you go to NBC.com there's a short 4-part story they cut from the episode (I assume for time and the need to hurriedly wrap up every little sub-plot) that's actually better than most of the episode.

My DVR seems to think next week is indeed the season finale.

FINALLY got to watch Parks and Rec, as that was the only thing still keeping me from coming in here. That was a magnificent season finale. I was fully prepared for her to lose, so the win was so goddamn surprising and satisfying. That's as close to a perfect episode they'll ever do. Community was tons of fun, giving a new purpose to revisiting the fake clip show format. Pretty amped to see the giant-ass finale next week. 30 Rock was good, not great. It was solid comedy, but the two big events of the show came off pretty ordinary. This wasn't the finale though, right? I think that's next week, along with Community. I'm actually surprised to see that a couple of people liked that Office finale as much as they did. It definitely had some funny bits (anything with the penis coconut energy drink, Gabe's sad birthday, the revelation of Robert's real name, and his incredibly uncomfortable description of how he'll be spending the next few years), but after last week's tremendous set-up I feel they didn't deliver in as satisfying manner as they should have. I've been more patient with this season than most people have, and it was largely due to the methodical focus on Andy finding his groove as manager/returning to Erin and the mere presence of James Spader as Robert California. Turns out we're losing James Spader (which we knew, but I was expecting a more dramatic exit) and Andy's final return to power was anti-climactic. Unlike GoGo, I'm still plan on following the show next season, but I can't I'm satisfied with the way things stand. All that said, I'm happy to bask in the glory of a tremendous season finale (and overall season) of Parks and Rec, while looking forward to a heaping helping of Community's season finale (with a dash of 30 Rock.) With all the news that's been coming out about NBC's comedy future, I'm expecting that within 2 seasons I will have zero interest in network sitcoms in general. With that in mind, I'm going to savor next week and next season as much I possibly can.

Okay, so comic book artists (and likely writers and many readers) are still over-horny, immature, eternally pubescent boys then. Got it.

Ah. I haven't seen a comic book in years. Are they still that over-the-top?

Yeah, false advertising.

Came in here to say exactly those things, but GoGo stays on the AV Club better than I do.

I would very much like to find out that this is an overblown rumor.

Seriously. NBC? Die in a goddamn fire. No, wait, don't die. Just burn in fucking agony forever. Your network is now devoid of anything resembling a remotely redeeming quality. Fuck. Right. Off.

JEALOUS. If they see us, we've had it.

I get what you're saying, and having seen the previous films does greatly enhance your experience, but I don't think this is entirely analogous to the Star Wars saga. Whedon and the producers clearly tried to give first-time viewers a brief crash course in the essential plot points and character histories in about the first third of Avengers. Plus, there's hardly anything you need to know about Hulk going into this one. You can pretty much skip his film entirely (though I did enjoy that one too.)

One more role as the President of the U.S. and Bill Pullman gets a free hoagie. If Chicago Fire actually films in Chicago, I'm all for it. I'm for anything that gives Chicago actors more opportunities. That said, I hadn't heard anything about this until now. The Anne Heche thing sounds like they're just transcribing her life, switching in "God" instead of "aliens".

For 30 Rock, that feels appropriate. For P&R and Community, it's too soon.

Tremendous. Both that news and the film itself. It's not perfect, but it's very, very fun.

I was happy enough with all 4, even though 30 Rock and Community have had better episodes (they were both arguably following their own strongest efforts, too.) Parks and Rec was solid stuff. I'm gonna make special note of The Office though: that was easily their best episode since Pool Party, and maybe even better than that. Pool Party was just great for a series of jokes, but last night's episode was deliciously plot-heavy. Plus, it was funny. All 4 shows have now set off in the direction of "wrap up the big plotlines", so everything that remains should be interesting.

Just look at CM Punk Lineker's sig.

Ollie's House better be code for IRC Chat, 'cause otherwise he's a horrible fucking tease.

I may have to join in late, but I hope to be there. I echo Srar's question: do we just head for the IRC chat at that time?

I am so, so down for this, regardless of the pick. Hopefully someone knows a Completely Legal Way of finding the pick online so we can view together.

Community was actually so into the parody, that I'm certain I missed a lot that I'll only catch on further viewings. That's praise, to be clear. I was still tracking with the plot every step of the way, and I especially enjoyed seeing so many minor recurring characters play into things. I'm left with the impression that the ending will be the jumping off point for where the thrust of the remainder of the season is headed. Really a tremendous episode, and the end tag with the Dean was a fantastic cherry on top. 30 Rock live was just pure fucking goddamn Id. Early on, I was wondering if the gimmick would help or hurt a second time around, but it quickly became clear that this episode had to be live. It's hard to pick a favorite moment, although Jon Hamm doing blackface and Tracy Morgan having none of it makes a strong argument. Alec Baldwin as a Dean Martin rip-off was a lot fun too. I actually think my favorite bit was the almost completely under-the-radar runner of Fred Armisen as random background characters. Something about him as Frank was hysterical to me, especially since none of the live audience apparently noticed. I think seeing the Amos and Andy parody got me amped, so when Armisen just leaned right into Jimmy Fallon's shot I lost all control. They'll have to return to more semblance of a plot next week, but this was a side-trip that was completely worth it. The Office often sticks out like a sore thumb this season by being among three great episodes and just being decent-to-good. That disparity was much more noticeable last night, as the other three shows had tremendous outings, while The Office probably had its weakest episode in a long time. I'm not as down on this episode as some others seem to be, but the highest praise I can give here is that it was largely inoffensive. The Dwight story (which I thought really worked) and maybe Andy's aside, I thought the subplots were either meh (the whole state senator thing) or pushed the bounds of believability more than normal (how has Nellie never heard of a taco?) If there's a larger saving grace here, it's that it seems the show is intent upon making Andy's rise and fall as manager the super-arc of the season. I'm for that, but this particular beat in that larger story could have been done in a more compelling way. I'm holding out hope that this was the low point and things only get better from here. Parks and Rec wasn't necessarily laugh-a-minute (it would be hard for anything to feel that way after 30 Rock's effort earlier), but it was a very strong episode on the merits of plot and emotion. There were certainly laughs in there (Perd Hapley has quietly become my new favorite character by doing the same basic bit over and over; plus Donna being completely engrossed in Andy's retelling of old - often cheesy - movies), but the highlights here were all about Leslie's struggle and Ben supporting her. Having it not only lead to a moral victory, but to have Bobby Newport actually enjoy Leslie kicking ass was just compelling as fuck. With one weak link, it was still a tremendous block of comedy.

As promised, here's the official full list of nominations, including shows that were nominated but didn't gain enough points to make it in. A few notes, so you'll understand what you're reading: - The number of points gained in the nomination round is on the left. The name of the show is on the right. - The shows are listed from highest points to lowest points, i.e. the list starts with the number 1 seeds in from the tourney and ends with the shows that didn't have a prayer of making it into the tourney. - You'll notice a line break at the tournament cut-off point. Everything above that line made it into the tourney, and everything below it did not. - You will also notice that The IT Crowd qualified for the tourney while a few other shows with the same amount of points did not. This is because a) that gave us a neat 64-team tourney and b) The IT Crowd was on more ballots with more quality nominations (higher positions on those ballots.) Enough explaining. Here they be: 102 - Community 99 – Lost 87 - The Simpsons 76 - Arrested Development 71 - Seinfeld 71 - Doctor Who 69 - The Wire 66 - Scrubs 60 - The Walking Dead 58 - South Park 58 - Dexter 52 – Friends 49 - The Office (U.S.) 49 - Breaking Bad 49 - The Sopranos 45 – Angel 44 - How I Met Your Mother 43 - Buffy the Vampire Slayer 42 - It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia 38 - Parks & Recreation 37 - Blackadder 35 - Supernatural 33 - Firefly 32 - Futurama 30 - The Shield 30 - Farscape 30 – 24 29 - Twin Peaks 29 - Only Fools and Horses 28 - Mad Men 28 - House 27 - MST3K 27 - The West Wing 27 - Game of Thrones 25 - Oz 24 - Chuck 23 - Frasier 22 - Freaks and Geeks 17 - King of the Hill 17 - Six Feet Under 17 - Eastbound & Down 16 - Fawlty Towers 16 - Smallville 16 - Red Dwarf 16 - Peep Show 16 - Monty Python's Flying Circus 16 - Deadwood 15 - Curb Your Enthusiasm 15 - Columbo 15 - Bottom 14 - Father Ted 14 - The A-Team 14 - The Tick 13 - Batman 13 – Louie 13 - The O.C. 13 - Star Trek: The Next Generation 13 - Sons of Anarchy 13 - Roswell 13 - Prison Break 13 - One Tree Hill 13 - ER 12 - Boston Legal 11 - The IT Crowd ------------------------- 11 - X-Files 11 - Shameless (U.S.) 11 - One Foot in the Grave 11 - Friday Night Lights 11 - Boy Meets World 11 - Boardwalk Empire 10 - The State 10 - Kids in the Hall 10 - Frisky Dingo 9 - The Drew Carey Show 9 - The Day Today 9 - Stella 9 - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 9 - Soap 9 - Sliders 9 - Rescue Me 9 - Psych 9 - Justified 9 - Heroes 9 - Entourage 9 - Blake's 7 9 - Archer 9 - 'Allo 'Allo 8 - Yu-Gi-Oh 8 - Whose Line Is It Anyway? (U.S.) 8 - Three's Company 8 - Star Trek 8 - Mr. Bean 8 - Lie to Me 8 - Dead Like Me 8 - Bones 8 - Battlestar Galactica 7 – M*A*S*H 7 - Trailer Park Boys 7 - The Boondocks 7 - The Big Bang Theory 7 - Sharpe 7 - Harry Enfield & Chums 7 - Cheers 7 - Black Books 7 - Benidorm 7 - Alias 7 - 3rd Rock from the Sun 6 - Xena 6 - True Blood 6 - Strangers with Candy 6 - Riget (or The Kingdom) 6 - Nurse Jackie 6 - Modern Family 6 - I'm Alan Partridge 6 - Gavin & Stacey 5 - The Mentalist 5 - Speed Racer 5 - Keeping Up Appearances 5 - Hercules 5 - Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex 5 - Corner Gas 5 - Charmed 5 - Castle 5 - Bored to Death 5 - Adventure Time 4 - The Muppet Show 4 - Sherlock 4 - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 4 - Law & Order 4 - King of Queens 4 - Jonathan Creek 4 - Golden Girls 4 - Clone High 4 - Chappelle's Show 4 - Being Human 4 - Avatar: The Last Airbender 3 - Whitechapel 3 - The Royle Family 3 - The Office (UK) 3 - The League 3 - The Guardian 3 - The Carol Burnett Show 3 - Parenthood 3 - My Name Is Earl 3 - Midsomer Murders 3 - Life On Mars (UK) 3 - Fresh Prince of Bel Air 2 – The Pretender 2 - Yu-Gi-Oh 5DS 2 - Star Trek: Voyager 2 - Saved By The Bell 2 - Roseanne 2 - Porridge 2 - Daria 2 - Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe 2 - Bad Girls 2 - 30 Rock 1 – Happy Endings 1 - Yu-Gi-Oh GX 1 - That 70's Show 1 - Taxi 1 - Police Squad 1 - Numb3rs 1 - Jericho 1 - Home Movies 1 - Beast Wars