7A - Wednesday, September 9, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 7A - Wednesday, September 9, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com PRANKED * From Page 5A on CollegeHumor.com is a perfect example of dis- comforting gags done right, with a premise that's basic enough: Seidell and Blumenfeld pull pranks on each other. But their willingness to escalate the situation and the subsequent uncomfortable chaos (in one memorable episode, Blumenfeld secretly arranged a public proposal from Seidell to his girl- friend at Yankee Stadium) makes that series work well. It's a shame that "Pranked" can't muster up any- thing near the same level of ingenuity. The clips each episode features are banal enough to make "Ameri- ca's Funniest Home Videos" seem classy. So far, the show has featured clips of assorted sophomoric shamings, various gags involving private areas of the body being inserted into non-private areas and in one confusing case, a man pranking his cat. The problem is the inherent unpleasantness in the featured clips. Instead of clips that could be funny by themselves, the show's bread and butter is less "laughing with" and more "laughing at." For example, the pilot episode featured a son playing a series of pranks on his redneck dad who would make Jeff Foxworthy look like a New Yorker subscriber. The pranks the son pulls are unimaginative - he sprays the living room with a stink bomb and tapes down the sprayer head on the sink - but when the dad starts swearing and vowing to "beat the shit" out of his son, it's hard to know whether to laugh or call child services. With all the clips being selected from the mas- sive goldmine that is the Internet, good videos occa- sionally surface on "franked," but they're few and far between. Hosts Blumenfeld and Seidell do what they can with their material, but their banter and commentary is mostly forgettable. Overall, it's easy to see what niche "Pranked" aspires to fill. So long as the sun continues to rise and fall, people are always going to find a well-done prank amusing. But "Pranked" has a mentality that's insulting to anyone with opposable thumbs. And with so many better outlets delivering the same thing today, it's hard to find a reason to bother watching it. PONYO From Page 5A what G-rated movie doesn't?). With "Ponyo," Miyazaki doesn't seem to be aiming as high, thematically, as he has in the past. At its heart, the film is a cute fairy tale, albeit one that's breathtak- ing to look at. All the life forms in the sea are lovingly detailed, and there's a bravura action sequence when Ponyo breaks free of her underwater prison by riding on the back of a school of fish. As with Miyazaki's previous Disney-distributed films, Pixar vice president John Lasseter ("Toy Story") supervised the dubbing while also serving as an executive producer. Determined to reel in mass American audi- ences, he lined up an A-list cast for the English-language version, including Liam Neeson, Tina Fey and Matt Damon. Ponyo is voiced by Miley Cyrus's little sister Noah, and Sosuke by the "lost Jonas brother" Frankie Jonas; the two up-and-comers can take solace in knowing that, with this one film, they've already gar- nered more critical acclaim than the combined efforts of their older siblings. When it comes down to it, "Ponyo" isn't meant to be taken as anything more than a children's flick. And in truth, there really isn't anything wrong with that. The little kids in the theater abso- lutely adored it, and witnessing their admiration for a Miyazaki movie was incredibly rewarding. Every young generation needs a special movie to act as a "gateway film" for more sophisticated mov- ies. For the children of the late 2000s, that film could be "Ponyo." Moments before a gruesome death. CRASH COURSE From Page 5A nothing more than another cheap reality show. For now, the show's competitors are fashioned after those on "The Price is Right," but it won't take much for a "Flavor of Love" attitude to take over. The art of being a game show host has somewhat diminished over the years as game shows have shift- ed into reality programming. But the hosts of "Crash Course" are refreshing and talented. Dan Cortese ("What I Like About You") and Orlando Jones ("Drum- line") have no reservations about ridiculing the con- testants, often saying exactly what those at home must be thinking. Their painfully honest style of hosting is hilarious and they work well as a team. Whilethesubjectson"CrashCourse"arefuntowatch, the show's gimmick - cars getting wrecked by average Joes - is why people should (and will) tune in. Unfor- tunately, of the four obstacles per show, only one each episode has been anything remotely dangerous (read: totally kickass). The final course is exactly the same on each episode and the finale is extremely anticlimactic. And though the show's running time of one hour is way less than those never-ending NASCAR races, itstill feels alittle toolong for too few crashes. "Crash Course" is great to watch for an episode or two. The contestants are eccentric, the hosts unabashed and the crashes satisfying. The producers ought to introduce more dangerous stunts and contin- ue to carefully select the competitors in order to make "Crash Course" something worth watching on a regu- lar basis. But really, if you can sit through NASCAR, you can sit through anything. WRITE FOR ARTS. (CRITICAL) MASS MEETING TONIGHT. Come watch the Daily implode at 8 p.m. 420 Maynard Street "Boy. My mommygave me way too much medicine" COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY PICTURES/STUDIO GHJBL THE BIGGEST & NEWEST BACK TO SCHOOL os TERSAI Most Images Only $7, $8 and $9 Visit us at: www.postersale.com