Pop Damage | Josh Hatala

INTERVIEW w/ The Vampire Diaries’ Ian Somerhalder

By Josh Hatala ⋅ September 8, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Entertainment Weekly recently crowned The Vampire Diaries’ Ian Somerhalder the “ultimate sexy beast” in genre programming, beating out rivals from those two other vampire franchises. The seasoned television actor, whose past credits include Lost, has always had fandom roaring for him, particularly in his current role as Damon, the scheming, manipulative Salvatore brother on The CW’s drama.

Nikita “2.0″ Pilot

By Josh Hatala ⋅ September 7, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Fans of Luc Besson’s La Femme Nikita probably won’t find themselves too far out of the loop if they tune into The CW’s new take on the titular assassin’s tale. In spring of 2009, rumblings were The CW, hoping to capture some of the old-school WB aesthetic, was looking for a female-driven action series. The result, Nikita, is more or less a would-be sequel to the 1990 French classic.

INTERVIEW w/ Kevin Williamson + Julie Plec of Vampire Diaries

By Josh Hatala ⋅ September 6, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments

The CW’s breakout freshmen hit The Vampire Diaries at first look seems like diet True Blood or another attempt to cash in on Twilight-mania. Trust me on this, take a closer look and you’ll find a soapy guilty pleasure more satisfying than either of those former franchises.

INTERVIEW w/ the cast of Being Human

By Josh Hatala ⋅ September 2, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

BBC Three’s drama Being Human, aired in the U.S. on BBC America, may be the perfect cure for everyone out there suffering from a Twilight/True Blood hangover. The series follows stars Russell Tovey, Aidan Turner, Lenora Crichlow and Sinead Keenan as a vampire, werewolf and ghost living together.

INTERVIEW w/ White Collar’s Jeff Eastin and Jeff King

By Josh Hatala ⋅ September 1, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

USA has always been the home of great character-driven dramas. Their sophomore heist series, White Collar, follows the exploits of Neal Caffrey, a former convict now cooperating with an FBI agent on high profile forgery cases, among other things. Last season, Agent Peter Burke helped Neal reconnect with his missing girlfriend Kate, who boarded a plane that would take the two of them away from New York City, which tragically and mysteriously exploded.

INTERVIEW w/ White Collar’s Matthew Bomer

By Josh Hatala ⋅ August 24, 2010 ⋅ One comment

On USA’s White Collar, Matthew Bomer plays Neal Caffrey, a charismatic ex-con who collaborates with the FBI on high class and high profile cases in New York City. After spending last season chasing his lost lover Kate, only to lose her and be left to solve the mystery of an antique music box, Neal’s world in season two pushes him deeper into the FBI and towards a larger mystery.

Comic Con Weekend Highlights

By Josh Hatala ⋅ August 16, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

True Blood! Chuck! V! The Vampire Diaries! More from Comic Con!

Comic Con Thursday Highlights

By popdamage ⋅ July 26, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

San Diego’s Comic Con International convention has reinvented itself over the years, evolving from the world’s largest comic book convention into Hollywood’s hottest launching ground for new properties. SDCC, which now celebrates all of the popular arts while still retaining its grass roots fanbase, is home to panels showcasing new and fan favorite television programs, [...]

The Tudors

By Josh Hatala ⋅ April 10, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Jonathan Rhys Meyers isn’t your father’s Henry VIII. He doesn’t even resemble Shakespeare’s take on the titular tragic hero. Meyers is a hard-bodied monarch driven equally by lust and his will to rule in Showtime’s landmark drama The Tudors, which kicks off its final season this Sunday. I was recently given a preview of the first two episodes of the new season and I’m here to tell you, I like what I saw.

Top 10 Pop Culture Trends of the Decade

By Josh Hatala ⋅ December 16, 2009 ⋅ One comment

As the decade comes to a close, I thought it might be fun to reflect on the phenomena that have deeply affected our pop culture identities since 2000. Over these last ten years there were a lot of flashes in the pan when it came to trends — keeping this in mind, I’ve assembled a list of things that I think will stay with us long past 2010.

Josh Hatala