The 2013 Academy Awards - TV Review

Ellen DeGeneres brought some friendly, safe blandness back to the Oscars after last year's misogynist show with Seth MacFarlane. It wasn't that funny or exciting but it had its own pleasures.

Highlights:
- The actual speeches. My favorites were Lupita Nyong'o, Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, and the Lopezes.
- The Best Selfie Ever.
- In Memorium. Tastefully done.
- The running pizza gag.
- The Best Song nominees. All four were actually good songs (the fifth would have been too if the Academy didn't decide to later disqualify it.)
- Bill Murray's quick tribute to Harold Ramis.
- Pharrell getting Meryl and Amy Adams to dance.
- The surprise come-from-behind Best Picture win for 12 Years A Slave.

Lowlights:
- Montage tributes to "animation" and "heroes." Why?
- Bette Midler's "Wing Beneath My Wings."
- Ellen walking through the crowd with comments that didn't lead anywhere.
- Not seeing more of the award ceremony that gave Oscars to Angela Lansbury, Steve Martin and Angelina Jolie. Would much rather have watched that than Midler and montages.
- John Travolta's silly hairpiece and pronouncing "Idina Menzel" as "Adele Dazim."

Looking forward to what Tina Fey & Amy Poehler do with it next year.