There was a time when I was watching a lot of shows on HBO (Oz, The Sopranos, Sex and the City, Six Feet Under), but since then it’s felt like there’s always one or two shows I’ve been interested in (most notably The Wire, but also ones like Carnivale, In Treatment, and Flight of the Conchords), but never much more than that. This April, though? I’m thinking it might finally be the return of there being three shows on HBO that I’m watching simultaneously. Phew!
The obvious one is, of course, Game of Thrones Season 2. I’ve been a fan of the book series since the very beginning (no, you may not have my original hardcover of the first volume), and it’s been a rare pitch-perfect adaptation in the shift from book to screen.
Game of Thrones Season 2 Trailer
There are two other shows that debut a little later in April, though. Veep is starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the Vice President of the United States who’s quickly learning her job is not all it’s cracked up to be. I adore Louis-Dreyfus; ever since the positively weak show Day by Day (where she was the bitchy next door neighbor) I’ve realized that she’s someone who is funny even when the show gives her little to work with, and in a show where she’s given good scripts she’s dynamite.
The other is Girls, from the creator/star of the indy film Tiny Furniture. I’ll admit I have not seen Tiny Furniture, and I only heard of Girls because of Michael Penn providing the score for the show. But you know what? I like this trailer. I like the voice it’s using. I think it’s got potential. I’m in.
I probably shouldn’t get my hopes up, but after 2011 being a rather uninspired year for films, I’m down with the idea that 2012 can deliver some good quality television. Don’t prove me wrong, HBO.