中英双语新闻——203 Ready for more action

 　　For most fans of US TV series, it’s been a long summer. As the new TV season gets ready to roll out in the coming weeks, fans and critics are gearing up for the premieres of breakthrough hits, returning favorites, and potential new gems¹.

 

　　对大多数美剧迷们来说，这真是一个漫长的夏天。接下来几周，全新美剧季即将登场，剧迷和剧评家们准备齐整，迎接突破性佳作的首播、热门剧集的回归以及可能脱颖而出的美剧新宠。

 

　　Here are a few series to look out for with their long-awaited new season debuts².

 

　　以下是几部不容错过的剧集，人们为了它们全新一季亮相已经等上很久了。

 

　　Can a show survive its own backlash?

 

　　一部剧可以挺过逆境吗？

 

　　Remember when NBC’s Smash premiered to a standing³ ovation⁴ from critics? It may be hard to recall, considering the lashing⁵ the show eventually received from those same reviewers.

 

　　还记得美国全国广播公司NBC的剧集《名声大噪》一经首播便获得剧评家们的一致好评吗？听上去可能有些难以置信，该剧最终竟遭遇同一波人的抨击。

 

　　For its second season, Smash ditched its least popular characters and signed on some new guest stars. The question is whether audiences will return–and whether the show even deserves them back.

 

　　在第二季中，《名声大噪》弃用了最不受欢迎的角色，并签下一批全新客串明星。问题在于，观众们是否会买账？新剧集又是否值得观众们重新关注？

 

　　Meanwhile, HBO’s The Newsroom, long into its first season which critics hated so much, continues to make episodes far more captivating and less patronizing; while Girls returns as an Emmy-nominated hit hoping to win over those who were turned off by its “voice of a generation” hype.

 

　　同时，HBO电视网出品的《新闻编辑室》在第一季时，长时间遭遇剧评人的口诛笔伐，但仍不乏一些极具魅力且更加平民化的佳作。与此同时，《都市女孩》以获得艾美奖提名的热门剧集身份强势回归，期望能够重新赢回那些被其名为“一代人心声”的大肆宣传吓跑了的观众。

 

　　Will breakout shows keep up with their popularity?

 

　　突破剧集能够持续发力吗？

 

　　It’s a lot of pressure to follow up on a breakout first season. The challenge is if the show can maintain its quality.

 

　　第一季的大获成功之后，压力接踵而至，挑战就在于，剧集能否保持其一贯水准。

 

　　Fox’s New Girl initially⁶ divided critics with its quirkiness and reliance on Zooey Deschanel, but the show eventually evolved into a solid comedy and became a hit. The test will be whether or not it can keep up the momentum⁷. And 2 Broke Girls on CBS faces the same challenge.

 

　　尽管福克斯出品的剧集《杰西驾到》从一开始就因其离奇情节以及押宝佐伊?丹斯切尔的表演令评论者褒贬不一，但是该剧最终还是成为一部不折不扣的热门喜剧。考验在于该剧能否持续发力。而哥伦比亚广播公司CBS的《破产姐妹》也面临同样的挑战。

 

　　On the drama side, newbies Homeland, Revenge, Once Upon a Time, and Scandal are under pressure to keep up their solid ratings. But it’s not just new shows aiming to capitalize on a strong run last season. Raising Hope, The Walking Dead, and Downton Abbey also hope to continue their momentum.

 

　　现有剧情类剧集方面，新剧《国土安全》、《复仇》、《童话镇》以及《丑闻》都承受着收视率压力。然而，并不仅仅只有这些新剧想要保持上季的强势表现。《半路奶爸》、《行尸走肉》以及《唐顿庄园》这些剧集也都希望继续保持良好势头。

 

　　Have audiences had enough of sarcastic⁸ funny ladies?

 

　　滑稽女郎是否过剩？

 

　　The talking point of the last TV season was the success of women in sitcoms¹⁰. There were plenty of fast-talking, sarcastic and interesting female leads to choose from: Jess from New Girl, Max from 2 Broke Girls, Hannah from Girls, and Tessa from Suburgatory.

 

　　上一电视季的热门主题是情景剧中成功塑造的女性角色。其中有许多快人快语、辛辣搞笑的女性形象，像是《杰西驾到》中的杰西，《破产姐妹》中的马克思，《都市女孩》中的汉娜以及《郊区故事》中的泰莎。

 

　　The new season finds Mindy Kaling’s title character from The Mindy Project, Polly from How to Live With Your Parents, and Chloe from Goodwin Games joining the mix.

 

　　新一季中，我们还可以看到《剩女的混乱生活》中的主角梅迪?卡琳，《与父母同居》中的波利以及《遗产游戏》中的克洛伊，她们都加入了这场美剧混战。

 

　　This could either be an embarrassment¹¹ of riches, or too much for viewers to handle.

 

　　这可能会导致供过于求的尴尬，令观众吃不消。

 

　　Is it really the “new normal”?

 

　　“新标准”？

 

　　A look at the fall lineup raises the question of whether audiences, over a decade since the premiere of Will and Grace, have accepted gay characters as the new normal.

 

　　看一下秋季剧集阵容，我们不免心生疑问：《威尔与格蕾丝》播出十年后的今天，观众是否已经认为有男同性恋角色十分正常？

 

　　NBC will broadcast a new sitcom⁹ The New Normal, which is about a gay couple expecting their first child from a surrogate mother. CBS will premiere Partners, about best friends–one gay, one straight–and their respective significant others.

 

　　NBC将会播放一部新情景喜剧《另类家庭》，剧中讲述了一对同性恋人希望通过代孕妈妈来孕育出第一个孩子的故事。CBS将会首播《直弯好基友》，讲述了一对挚友（一位是男同性恋者，一个是直男）以及各自爱人之间发生的故事。

 

　　Among the returning hit series, Glee’s tackling of teen homosexuality is well-known, while Modern Family’s Mitch and Cam are among the show’s most beloved characters.

 

　　在所有回归的热播剧集中，《欢乐合唱团》对于同性恋青年的处理手法是众所周知的；同时，《摩登家庭》中同性情侣麦切和凯姆也成为该剧最受欢迎的角色。

1 gems   

growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长

参考例句：

• a crown studded with gems 镶有宝石的皇冠
• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。

2 debuts   

演员首次演出( debut的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He never really debuts the idea of taking money from his parents any longer. 他从此就再也没有认真起过向父母要钱的念头。
• This young soprano debuts next month at the metropolitan opera. 这位年轻的女高音歌唱家下个月将在纽约大都会歌剧院举行首演。

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 ovation   

n.欢呼，热烈欢迎，热烈鼓掌

参考例句：

• The hero received a great ovation from the crowd. 那位英雄受到人群的热烈欢迎。
• The show won a standing ovation. 这场演出赢得全场起立鼓掌。

5 lashing   

n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

7 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

8 sarcastic   

adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的

参考例句：

• I squashed him with a sarcastic remark.我说了一句讽刺的话把他给镇住了。
• She poked fun at people's shortcomings with sarcastic remarks.她冷嘲热讽地拿别人的缺点开玩笑。

9 sitcom   

n.情景喜剧，（广播、电视的）系列幽默剧

参考例句：

• This sitcom is produced in cooperation with Hong Kong TV.这部连续剧是同香港电视台联合制作的。
• I heard that a new sitcom is coming out next season.我听说下一季会推出一个新的情境喜剧。

10 sitcoms   

n.情景喜剧( sitcom的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This is the stuff most stadard TV sitcoms are made of. 这是大多数标注的电视幽默剧所采用的题材。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In most countries, prime-time Monday night television is dominated by sitcoms. 在大多数国家，周一晚上的电视黄金时段都由连续剧所占据。 来自互联网

11 embarrassment   

n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫

参考例句：

• She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
• Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。