Hope everyone had a great Labor Day as the weather was quite exceptional. Now with the official end of summer behind us, some are heading back to work and others to school. Retirees, your endless summer has been spared. Often this time of year reminds me of notebooks and syllabuses, much to the chagrin of my friends. The perpetual student in me always sees the changing of the leaves as study season. However, I sometimes wonder what it would be like on the other side of the school desk.
English Teacher is the brainchild of Brian Jordan Alvarez, an actor bubbling under the radar in shows like Get Shorty and the reboot of âWill and Grace.â Here he takes center stage as Evan, a beleaguered educator trying to do right by his students without ruffling too many feathers. His principal, played Veronica Mars star Enrico Colantoni, in the first episode addresses an incident where Evan kissed his then-boyfriend in front of students which put off a parent. The show goes through all the pitfalls that faculty go through in order to just conduct their jobs. Being pitted between students and their parents is something touched on, but not to the same degree this show has.
Whereas a show like Abbott Elementary plays to the broadest of audiences, here we are given slightly more nuanced characters. Yes, the scenarios might on paper seem cartoonish, but the framing and delivery comes off as natural. Even Evanâs âfriend,â Coach Markie, is more grounded despite his wacky off-color comments. Within three episodes (as of writing this), we get a sense that these might have been our teachers as some point. In no way does Evan or his colleagues feel out of place in the real world; he reminded me of my own freshman English teacher.
FX has been a great home to shows such as this. Developing talent that might not be ready for prime time, their track record with âThe Bearâ and âOnly Murders in the Buildingâ on Hulu (which is back by the way) has been superb. Catch Evan and his fellow teachers on network or streaming and you wonât be disappointed.
Now what if you want some more literary entertainment as part of your extracurricular activities? As the spooky season approaches, it is time to talk about the most underrated show of the summer. After the auspicious first season aired, AMCâs âInterview with the Vampireâ had been radio silent until this spring. Having just finished its run in June, the second season ended on a very peculiar note. Spoilers for the first installment ahead; when we last saw Louis and Claudia, they had dispatched their maker Lestat and ventured off to Europe in search of others like them. After what could be called a meandering yet thought-provoking few episodes, we land in Paris circa late forties. There, they encounter the Theatre des Vampires and the payoff from the reveal of Armand at the end of last season.
As the story progresses, Louis and Armandâs relationship is developed, as well as a flashback involving our interviewer Daniel Molloy played beautifully by Eric Bogosian. Some changes have been made, aging up Claudia as well as recasting doesnât harm the story at all. Another interesting change involves the introduction of her friend Madeleine, who with the post-World War Two setting, is given a tragic Nazi capo backstory which gives shades of gray pathos to an underused character in the original film.
Without telling the ending, show runner Rolin Jones and his writers have crafted a sweet reunion that can serve as a definitive conclusion if the series isnât picked up. But with all the images of Sam Reid as 80s rockstar Lestat floating around the internet, I doubt they would leave it here. And I canât wait for it.
