From WB: Dean (Jensen Ackles) is contacted by his first love Cassie (Megalyn Echikunwoke), an African-America girl, who asks him to come to Mississippi to investigate a string of racially motivated murders. Each murder is linked to a mysterious truck that seems to have no driver and leave no tracks. Sam (Jared Padalecki) is stunned to see this new side of his brother as Dean struggles to come to grips with the residual feelings he has for Cassie.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Tonight's episode titled Route 666 reunites Dean with a past love, his first love to be exact. Cassie calls on him for his help after a string of deaths occur in her hometown, all of them appearing to be racially motivated and involving a black monster truck. Dam isn't sure why Dean must pull them off their next assignment, but it quickly becomes apparent that they have ghost monster truck going after people. Three black men are killed, one by one, all African American. Cassie's own father being one of the men killed. The last man isn't black, but the white mayor of the town.
Things heat up quickly between Cassie and Dean, their love rekindling, even if it is only when they are there together. We're treated to one of the hottest love scenes I've seen on television in a long time. I was actually a bit shocked it was allowed to air at all on broadcast television. It is obvious Dean still has feelings. She is the only person outside of family that knows the family secret. Sam is a bit upset when Dean tells him he told her. His telling Cassie was part of the reason they broke up. Cassie heard the story behind what he does and it scared her.
Dean and Sam begin to further investigate the appearances of the black ghost car, and they find out it is possibly controlled by the spirit of a man that disappeared over forty years ago. The new killing began after work began on his house. This looks to have awaken his spirit and put him back into action on a killing spree with the truck. A similar set of deaths occurred forty years ago.
After Cassie is attacked by the ghost car in the house, her mother opens up about the history behind the man that disappeared. Turns Cassie's father killed the man, and then he pushed the man's truck into the swamp. Once the two brothers learn this bit of information, they are after the truck and the man. They pull it out the swamp, and they then take out the skeleton of the man. When they begin to burn the body, the black truck appears. Dean drives off to allow Sam to figure out how to finish off the spirit.
Sam isn't sure what to do, but after looking through their father's book, he gets an idea. A quick call to Cassie gives him the needed information, and he directs Dean to drive to a specific location. Once there he is told to stop and allow the ghost truck to go at him. Once it does, it disappears. Dean had stopped on hallowed ground. The site of a church that had been burnt down in order to stop the wedding of Cassie's mother and father before she was born. Back in those days interracial couples weren't accepted, especially in small town Mississippi. The church did burn down with a youth choir inside. With the ghost truck disappearing, the spirit is at rest. Dean and Sam leave town, but not before Dean and Cassie have a final good-bye.
Another fantastic fresh episode for Supernatural fans this week. I truly enjoyed this story about the ghost truck. I also enjoyed learning more about Dean and his past. He isn't always Mr. Macho tough guy, and his interactions with his first love, Cassie, showed that. I can't wait to see next week's episode.
TV Review: Supernatural Episode 1.13
TV Review: Surface Episode 1.14
FROM NBC: Rich (Jay R. Ferguson) and Laura (Lake Bell) go to see Lee (Ian Anthony Dale) for answers, and Lee winds up learning more than he would have ever expected. Concerned about the escalating violence she sees in Rich, Laura decides to pack it in and return home to see her son. The townspeople grow increasingly fearful as Miles (Carter Jenkins) behaves more and more like Nim. After being attacked by a bully at school, Miles brutally retaliates, and an angry mob calls for him to be arrested. Leighton Meester also stars. TV-PG
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Another exciting episode of Surface. Only one more episode remains before the season finale. They finally said season. The way they had been saying things up to this point, it sounded like the series was a one season epic deal, but now it looks like we will have more of Surface to come.
Last week, Laura and Rich had found a video with something very interesting on it. There was footage taking forty years ago of an expedition to what appeared to be Asia. On this tape, they saw Lee. Now they make it there mission to find him because they believe he is the missing link that leads to all the answers they have been looking for. On this week's episode, they have gone to find Lee and Rich tricks him into appearing by mentioning Kessler's name. When Lee appears at the designated point, Rich overpowers him and the two kidnap him.
They take him to a motel and they begin to question him about the tape and what it means. Laura believes that Lee has been cloned from the earlier man, since she knows Kessler had found a way to clone a sheep long before its time. It is also possible he found a way to clone man. From what it looks like, Lee has no idea that he is a clone. When he isn't forthcoming with any answers, Rich tricks Laura and gets Lee to himself. He beats him up a little, and he finally gets access to his cell phone. There is a lot of phone calls from the Wilmington area, which we know is where our third star, Miles is.
Laura gets back in just before Rich shoots Lee, and they let him go. Rich wants to go to North Carolina, but Laura backs out. She goes home to find her son, and Rich leaves to go to North Carolina. Once n North Carolina, Rich finds a way into Iderdex, and he finds incubators with every known species to man, in both female and male forms. Rich compares it to Noah's Ark. He is discovered, and that is the last we see of him.
Meanwhile, Laura has gone to see her son, but the school calls the boy's father, who then turns her in to Lee. Lee and his men take her captive, and it looks like Lee plans to kill her. Rich even calls her from North Carolina. However, the information Laura has revealed to him hits Lee, and he lets her go. Whether she lives or dies, things have been set into motion anyway. There is no way to stop it.
What things have been sent into motion? We soon see. A massive earthquake is set off by the creatures off the coast of Puerto Rico. The earthquake, ranked a 9.4 on the scale, sets of a tsunami that demolishes San Juan before heading to the south eastern US. North Carolina is in its path.
Miles is there, and he has woken up after his night leading the smaller creatures to the ocean. He returns home, and then he goes to school. A mistake on his part because one of the school bullies decides to go after him that day. By the end of the school day, the other teenager has attacked Miles, but the tables quickly turn once Miles is provoked enough to shock Greg. He burns the teenager, and once this happens the townspeople now come after him. Things get quite hectic, and the townspeople eventually get into Miles house.
They take him captive, but once they reach outside one of the deputies tells them to all listen to the news on his radio. News of the tsunami on their way sets people into motion to get out of its way. Next week, we will see the tsunami hit, and three main characters, plus Miles little girlfriend, will all have to find a way to survive. Not only will the tsunami hit, but I think there might a creature or two right along with it. Nim has gone off again as well, after once again returning to Miles. He tracks the boy to a diner, where the other patrons and staff are shocked and terrified by the small creatures appearance.
This was another wonderful episode. I truly love this series, and things keep twisting each and every week. Next week's season finale appeared to be a perfect way to end this season for the series. I do hope it is just a season finale, and not a series finale. I think this is truly one of the most underrated shows on television, and I do hope more people discover this series next season.
TV Review: The L Word Episode 3.04
From SHO: Jenny freaks out after Moira disappears all night; Bette takes on Capitol Hill; Carmen spins for Russell Simmons; Billie Jean King interviews Dana at a tennis match; Kit wonders if she's made the right choice with Billie as The Planet's new charge des affaires; and Helena falls for a documentary filmmaker.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Tonight's episode called Light My Fire was the best episode of this series all season. What a difference a couple of weeks makes because when the third season began, I truly wasn't happy with the turn this series had made since middle of season two at all. It felt like a totally different series, and I had felt disconnected from it. That disconnection had only gotten worse with the start of episode three. Alice had gone crazy. Jenny was off and hooking with Moira, and not even in Los Angeles. It seems with her return things began to click back into place last week. Our girls definitely appear to be better together.
Tonight's episode opens with Jenny in the backyard burning her manuscript. Moira enters, and Jenny immediately questions her on where she has been. Moira's disappearance has certainly put Jenny on edge, and you have to wonder if the old Jenny is still there underneath the service. Moira being out of touch, even for that short amount of time, has pushed Jenny a bit close the edge. The immediate result is a negative attitude about her writing. This is nothing new to fans of this show. Jenny isn't Jenny if she isn't talking about her writing or how bad it is.
Her negative attitude only continues on when Moira and her are invited to a small get together Billie is having at his place. The girls attend, and Billie automatically starts talking to Moira about her aspirations about becoming a man. This is a first for Jenny to hear, but it was a natural progression of things with the conversation being had. One of the others at the party is telling them about a screenplay he did about a girl turning into a boy. This train of thought isn't followed further, but we do see Moira a bit more at ease with herself. She even attends Shane's opening night party dressed comfortably as man. It looks like we might get to see more of Max, Moira's male alter-ego, in the future.
As for Shane, it is the opening of her new place at Wax, the skate board shop. However, the night of the opening, Carmen is offered a job that could literally set her career on fire. Russell Simons calls Kit to ask about Carmen dj'ing a party he is having that same night. Carmen wants to drop the job and go to Shane's party. Shane talks Carmen into taking the job, and when Carmen is missing at Shane's opening it raises a few eyebrows. Jenny even mentions it to Alice how wrong it is Carmen isn't there. It's small moments like this that always make me wonder if the writers behind this series are foreshadowing a future hook-up between Shane and Jenny. You never know. It is possible. Carmen does show up at the party, and she has Russell Simons in tow. "She has her priorities straight," Russell says. Carmen also has a surprise for Shane, a mix she made especially for her and her party.
A good portion of this episode does focus on Tina and Bette. Tina is now at work full time, and it is obvious the stress is already getting to her. It's only her first week too. Bette is still trying to work on getting funding back for the Patriot Act. Once the woman that is set to speak at the senate hearing injures her back, Bette needs to fly to D.C, to take her place. This causes a tense moment between Tina and Bette, who doesn't understand why she has to go. Plus, the two are now doing what they said they wouldn't do by depending on their nanny to raise their daughter.
Bette does go to D.C., and she testifies in front of the senate committee. Dana Delany comes in as one of the senators on the committee, and she is quite impressed with Bette's speech that basically puts one of the committee members in his place. She likes Bette so much, she invites her to a party that night and then back to her place. The senator puts the moves on Bette, and she calls Tina to tell her what is happening. Tina shows no care what Bette does. She basically gives her permission to sleep with the senator, who is married but has an arrangement with her husband. Nice arrangement, if you ask me. Bette doesn't sleep with her, and in fact she leaves immediately after she calls Tina.
This couple is in the most trouble this season, and that is the one surprise of this season that I'm still not all thrilled with. Things seemed to be getting back on track at the end of season two, but at the start of season three it is clear things have fallen apart. What has happened in the six months between now and then? Why the changes in the relationship? Is it just the birth of the baby? The changes seem to be a bit much if that is all we have happened during the off-time of the series.
Dana in this episode wins a big tennis match, which sets her career back on track. She does seem a bit ill on the court, but she pulls through. All her friends watched her win via television, even Alice. At Shane's party, she is the center of attention of all the girls, and once again Alice talks to her, but it seems finally crazy Alice is gone. She's still hung up on Dana, but seems to be handling it better. However, her rant on George W. Bush and his penis probably got her fired from The Chart. We learn Dana's fate on the biopsy on next week's episode.
Lastly, we saw Kit and Angus cozying it up again. He finally makes his move, even if Kit is old enough to be his grandmother. She quickly douses the flames by telling him she is going through menopause. On another romantic front, Helena seems attracted to a new documentary producer. She hasn't made her move yet, and I think Tina may have gotten the wrong person. from the previews for next week.
This really was the best episode of The L Word this season. It had more of a season one feel to it, and this a good thing. Season one this series held nothing back. It was provocative and fun. The characters made us want more, and with this week's episode I can't wait to see what happens next week. You can find a download of the preview for next week's episode here courtesy of Titan on MediaBlvd.com.
TV Review: Grey's Anatomy 2.15
From ABC: The nurses at Seattle Grace Hospital go on strike, leaving the doctors to fend for themselves; Meredith's mistake in treating an elderly patient is brought to light by the patient's friends (June Lockhart, Betty Garrett and Rae Allen) and Izzie treats a pregnant teen.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
In tonight's episode titled Break on Through, the nurses follow through on their threats of last week, and they are now on strike. They are picketing outside Seattle Grace Hospital, and the episode opens with our interns standing out side, wondering how to cross the picket line. Cristina is the first to cross, but they have patients inside. She gets pelted by food and other items. Seeing this, Izzie soon follows suit, but George isn't sure he wants to cross. Both his parents have gone on strike before, and if they knew he crossed a picket line to go in to work, they might not be too thrilled with him at all. He decides to not cross, and he joins in with the nurses on their strike. The only time he enters the hospital is to follow the patient directions given to him by the nurses because those are their patients too. By the end of the episode, Webber has backed down and conceded to the requests of the nurses.
We have three cases on this week's episode, and we also see the new attending that is now taking the place of Bailey until her return. Little Miss Mary Sunshine, as I am calling her, immediately gets on Cristina's bad side. The first case they deal with is a woman with a bad rash. Once they go in to biopsy it, Alex, Cristina and the new attending discover they have a case of flesh eating bacteria on their hands. They immediately need to make a decision on how to proceed, so they go to her new husband. They can either amputate or spend hours trying to save the leg. Cristina votes for amputation, but the husband is reluctant to do that because the young woman, played by actress Leisha Hailey of The L Word, is a runner.
They go back in to save the leg, and Yang goes to Burke and tells him the new attending is killing the patient. Burke then goes in, and he is put into place by the new attending. This causes some friction between the couple. Burke realizes he crossed the line by going into the operating room because his girlfriend came to him upset. He now can see why residents and interns shouldn't date. Alex and the attending are able to save the leg, and Cristina is forced to apologize to the attending for crossing the line and going to Burke.
Meredith has a case of her own this week, and it brings to light issues she has in her own life. When she finds an elderly woman having trouble breathing, she immediately puts the woman on a ventilator. Only she finds out, that the woman was not to be resuscitated in case of death. Her friend's are at the hospital, and they immediately tell Meredith of her error. However, she just can't take her back off without permission of someone in the woman's family. Webber comes onto the case as well here, and the woman's daughter is called in from Oregon.
Once she arrives, Meredith proceeds to pull her off, and they wait for her to die. Once she passes on, it hits Meredith that she doesn't want her mother to die alone. She has also discovered during this episode that Webber has been visiting her mother at the home she's in. She breaks down, and Derek is there with her. He calms her down, and for a split second there I thought the two were going to kiss. I wanted them to kiss. They did tease us, and then the moment was gone. I even screamed at the screen in frustration after that moment. Things are certainly heating up, but they are dragging it out now too. Just have them get back together again already!
Lastly, Izzie has a case with a pregnant teenager. Her baby has a tumor, and it needs to be removed before the baby can be fully delivered. The young woman comes from a poor family, so it is thankfully covered by the hospital. With this case, we learn even more about Izzie. It turns out she has a daughter she put up for adoption. She talks to the young woman about her choices, and she ponders giving her baby up as well.
On this week's episode, the medical drama of the episode definitely pulled out things out of our characters that we didn't know. Usually the interactions of our characters are separated from this cases. However, this week we needed the cases to find out more from each of our interns. I think this was probably one of the best episodes of this season. It was open and honest, and it allowed us to learn more about our interns and surgeons. We saw real emotions on this episode, and in some cases it was heartbreaking. It was real though, and that is what makes this series only get better. Next week, Grey's Anatomy will follow the Super Bowl with an all new episode. We'll finally learn what a Code Black is! I can't wait.
Saturday Night Premiere: Elektra
Tonight's Saturday Night Premiere comes to us from HBO in the form of the Jennifer Garner action adventure film, Elektra. This movie is the sequel to Daredevil, minus Colin Farrell and Ben Affleck. I'd heard much about this movie in the past. In fact, I heard it wasn't that good of a movie, and if I recall correctly it was a box office bomb. All this made me a bit skeptical about the movie. I wasn't expecting much from it in all honestly. I am a huge fan of Garner and her role of Sydney Bristow on Alias, and I enjoyed her role in Daredevil, but this movie almost felt like a totally separate entity from that previous film. The character seemed profoundly different.
In this movie, we see Elektra after she has been brought back to life. She is now a hired assassin. We see her start out the film on a job, and then we see her obtain her next assignment from her agent. Although, she is put into position before she knows who she has been hired to kill. She meets a single father and his daughter, and a bond begins to form. However, she soon learns that they are her assignment.
The remainder of this films follows her as she opts to protect the family she has been hired to kill. The father is played by Goran Visnjic, known best for his role as Luka on ER. The daughter, Abby, has more to her than meets the eye on first look, and we learn she has secrets of her own. During the film, we see high action and mysticism.
As I said, I wasn't sure how good this film would be. It isn't the best of films, but I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that it wasn't half bad. I did find myself staying focused on the film, and if I don't like a film or if it is boring staying focused isn't easy for me to do. I love Jennifer Garner, but as a sidenote I don't think red is the best color for her. It just seemed harsh on her. However, that is Elektra's trademark color. She looks much better in black in my opinion.
I'd recommend this film if you're a fan of Garner and looking for some good action adventure. This film certainly does give you that. However, with this film being a sequel, it certainly didn't feel like it was connected at all to the Daredevil film. It worked better on its own, but Daredevil had already been made.
If you're interested in checking this movie out for yourself, check out Amazon and J & R
Dancing With The Stars Week 4 Elimination
Well, it finally happened! Rapper P Miller also known as Master P was eliminated from the competition tonight He had held on week after week by a great viewer voter turn out. This week he ended up in the bottom two with Tia Carrere. That actually surprised me.
In my mind, Tia was one of the better performers on last night's show, but the viewer vote put her in the bottom two. Is Tia not winning the voters over? Why? She has done well. There has been improvement each and every week. I don't see why she is the bottom two this week. If memory serves me right, she's been in the bottom two before as well, possibly last week. Why doesn't America like Tia Carrere?
TV Review: The O.C. Episode 3.13
From FOX: While Marissa does all she can to get to know her sister, Kaitlin just stirs up trouble for the gang as she prepares to celebrate her birthday. Sandy encourages Seth about college, but Seth finds a better alternative. Sandy and Matt work together to secure a contract for the new hospital. And Julie continues her quest to put her family back together again.
My Ratings: 3 out of 4
This week's episode of The O.C. titled The Pot Stirrer definitely shows how new arrival Kaitlin Cooper is going to be stirring up the pot when it comes to The O.C. She has her hand in everything this week, and she us definitely causing trouble for all involved. She is no longer the sweet and innocent Mini Cooper that left the series back when it starter. Let's talk about tonight's episode.
This week, it is Kaitlin's fifteenth birthday. A fact that her older sister remembers, but her mother somehow forgets. She even had a date with Mr. Roberts set for that night, but once Marissa mentions it is Kaitlin's birthday, Julie immediately promises to cancel her plans. When she goes to Summer's dad to cancel the date, he offers her his house for a birthday party for Kaitlin. The damage is already done however. Kaitlin is upset over the fact her mother didn't even remember her birthday. She has left the house, and is off walking alone with Seth approaches her.
Seth has his own nerves to deal with because an interviewer from Brown has requested an interview with him. We also learn he wants to interview Summer that same day. It is finally hitting Seth that he could be going away from home for good, and this is unsettling him. Kaitlin can see his nerves, and she offers him some pot. An offer he doesn't take her up on then, but as his nerves grow he finally goes to her for some pot.
He smokes some the day of his interview, and it hits him very hard. Not sue how someone can be that high from their first time with pot, but he was pretty bad. Luckily, Ryan is the one to find him, and when he finds the pot in Seth's room, he works to sober him up and get him to his interview on time. He even has Summer stall the interviewer as long as she can. However, once Seth is standing out there alone waiting to go in, he decides to not go in. He misses the interview.
Meanwhile, back at Summer's house, the party is in full swing for Kaitlin's birthday. Johnny is even in attendance. these two have been hanging out a lot, and they were even caught by Marissa and Ryan at The Bait Shop the night before. Kaitlin tells Johnny and Ryan in her own way that Marissa was jealous of seeing her with Johnny. Johnny keeps denying he has feelings for Marissa, and he even says he likes Kaitlin, but even with her turning fifteen, she is too young for him. This doesn't stop her from getting her birthday kiss from Johnny in one of the bedrooms upstairs.
By this point, Ryan has told Marissa about the pot because Seth told him he had gotten it from Kaitlin. This angers Marissa. She feels like she doesn't even know her little sister anymore with the events that have occurred since her return. She approaches Kaitlin as she comes down from upstairs with Johnny. Kaitlin leaves angry, and Marissa has to go tell Julie her younger daughter left her own birthday party. She doesn't say why the two argued because Summer's dad is standing right there, so Julie blames Kaitlin leaving on Marissa. This leads Mr. Roberts to tell Julie they should reevaluate where they are going as far as they are concerned, and I really feel bad for Julie here. She appeared to really have feelings for him, even if she did have some dollar signs in her eyes too. Hopefully, these two can talk and repair things. I really do hope the two younger Cooper's don't ruin this for their mother.
By the end of the episode, we see all the Coopers, Ryan and Seth in their own places alone. Seth is smoking pot again, and this concerns me. Also it feels a bit of place. If anyone on this series would have a drug problem, Seth seems to me to be the least likely candidate.
A smaller sub plot on this episode had to do with Sandy and Matt trying to land a bid on a new hospital. They are competing with another group, and they seem to be falling behind. The other group takes the high end by wining and dining the customer, but Sandy believes on using his business sense to win the client. It looks like he fails, so he tries another tact - taking the client on a walking tour of the area affected by the new hospital. When this doesn't appear to work, he decides to play hardball and take the client out to a fancy dinner, as Matt suggested he do in the first place. This doesn't set well with Sandy because by the end of the episode, he is in his office drinking alone. Furthermore, I'm not really all too sure why we have Matt around. He doesn't do much, if anything, and he feels a bit of waste.
This episode felt a bit slow to me, but it did show that their are things to come. It is leading to what looks to be a powerful episode next week from the previews shown. I actually have spoilers up on my forum here that could definitely relate to what happens next week. I'm hoping things heat up soon because this episode, while in some ways good, left me a bit cold.
TV Review: Dancing With The Stars Week 4
Dancing With The Stars enters its fourth week of competition, and we now have seven couples competing for the coveted Dancing With The Stars Mirror ball Trophy. This week the couple's had the choice between the elegant fox trot and the serious pasa doble to learn and perform. Let's talk about this week's performances!
The show opened with a pasa doble from George Hamilton that took George into the role of Zorro. Last week, he scored in the bottom two, and it truly appeared he would be eliminated from the competition. however, in a surprise development Giselle Fernandez was cut. This week, he had an improved performance which earned him a 21 from the judges. Compared to the others, he doesn't have the dance skill. What he does have is charm and performance style. That is what is keeping him there at this point in the game. Next up, we had Tia Carrere, who danced a fox trot with her partner. Tia is one of the most improved dancers in this competition. She is a new mother, and that showed in her earlier performances. She was just a bit out of shape. that has changed, and she is one I consider an outside contender for the win.
Following Tia, we saw another performance by Master P, and if we see him stay in the competition after tomorrow's results show, there will be outrage. Not only the part of myself, but on the part of many other fans. This week, his performance of the pasa doble had none of the elements of this serious dance. Ashly even had her own frustration show, and when interviewed post interview, she was definitely gracious and supportive of her partner, even if it did appear she wanted to say something. his score of 8 definitely puts him in dead last place, and if the viewer vote added to it is able to save him once again from elimination, I'm not sure what people are thinking. Compared to the other celebrities performing, it was pointed out by the judge that he has only rehearsed 20 hours in comparison to the 130 hours of some of the other couples. Keep-P-Dancing.com is putting a forth a strong effort to keep Master P there, but I have to ask myself why.
Next up, we had the two stars of this competition, Stacy Keibler and Drew Lachey. During the first three weeks of this competition, these two celebrities have been on top in regard to the judges votes. Tonight, they both did well once again. Stacy performed a lovely fox trot, and Drew pulled out an exciting and fun pasa doble to Michael Jackson's Thriller. He earned the best scores of the night for his performance, and his was also the dance I most enjoyed.
Last up, we had Jerry Rice and Lisa Rinna. Jerry Rice had a bit of a problem with last week's performance, so he needed to step it up this week if he wanted to stay in the competition. He did that, and he even went the extra mile by taking ballet lessons to improve his posture and soften his dance moves a little for the fox trot. I really enjoy his performances, and in my mind he is the next best male on the competition behind Drew Lachey. Lisa Rinna finished up the night with a wonderful pasa doble performance with her partner. She has really come into her own since the first week. She is also one of my outside contenders for a win here. If she keeps on improving as she has been, Lisa has a real shot here. She tied Stacy for second place this week.
Who will be eliminated this week? Will Master P supporters vote en masse and keep him from elimination yet another week? Or will the lowest scoring person week after week finally bid this competition farewell? Check back here tomorrow night for the results!
Scores:
George Hamilton - 21
Tia Carrere - 25
Master P - 8
Stacy Keibler - 26
Drew Lachey - 28
Jerry Rice - 24
Lisa Rinna - 26
TV Review: Lost Episode 2.12
From ABC: When Charlie's vividly surreal dreams lead him to believe Claire's baby, Aaron, is in danger, Locke suspects Charlie may be using again. Meanwhile, Sawyer encourages Hurley to act on his attraction to Libby.
My Rating: 2 out of 4
Tonight's episode of Lost titled Fire & Water lost me almost from the very beginning. In fact, I didn't see this episode as necessary to move things forward with the story of the plane crash. This is a Charlie centric episode, and we continue forward with the story line of him keeping the Virgin Mary statues filled with heroin. No one knows that he saved some of the statues from the fire.
Claire still wants nothing to do with him, but this feeling gets considerably worse once things begin to happen. Charlie begins having real weird dreams involving her baby, Aaron. In fact, during one of them he appears to sleep walk and take the baby from its crib. Claire wakes up to find the baby gone, and she freaks out. By that point, Hurley has spotted Charlie and the baby, and he alerts everyone else once he hears Claire's frantic screams. Claire takes the baby from Charlie, and all doesn't bode well for the two. In fact, she looks even more angered with him than before.
Charlie mentions about his dreams to Eko, and the other man suggests that the baby needs to be baptized. This puts the idea into Charlie's head. Locke also approaches Charlie, and the two talk. Charlie makes clear that the statues were all burned. Locke believes him, or he appears to in any case. Charlie ends up trying to go to Claire to tell her the baby is in danger and needs to be baptized, but everyone seems to be protecting Claire from Charlie. Kate won't allow him near her. She does hear what he has to say, and she is confused by it. She later asks Locke about what Charlie said, and Locke explains baptismal by calling it the way babies are sure to get into heaven.
Locke ends up following Charlie after this encounter, and Locke finds the statues Charlie had been hiding. He takes them because he states Charlie no longer has a choice when it comes to the statues, but it appears he doesn't Claire about the find. That night Charlie takes the baby again to the ocean with the intent to baptize the baby himself. First, he sets a fire so the islanders are all distracted, so he can get close enough to take the baby.
When Claire notices he has the baby, she begins to scream, and everyone's attention is averted to her and the baby. They all approach Charlie, and Locke starts to talk him down. At first, Charlie lashes out at Locke, but he ends up giving him the baby. Once the baby is safe in his mother's arms, Locke punches Charlie a few times, and then Charlie watches as everyone leaves him there. The next day Jack comes to Charlie to fix him up. Jack makes sure that Charlie doesn't have any future plans. Claire approaches Eko about the baptismal, and Eko proceeds to baptize her and the baby.
Charlie's problems weren't the only story in this episode. We also had a minor sub plot having to do with Hurley and Libby. His crush on her is deepening, and Sawyer discovers it. Sawyer encourages Hurley to go after the woman, but he is shy. Jack and Ana Lucia also have a scene in which they discuss the events of last week, and she asks him about he and Kate. I loved that short scene. I wish we saw more of the tallies, other than Eko.
I just didn't feel this episode did much for the series. It didn't move anything forward. We know Charlie had a heroin problem, so the flashbacks only show us why he is acting the way he is with the baby. It didn't introduce anything. In fact, this episode took us back by reintroducing the story line with the baby, and its possible connection to something evil. The baby is in danger, and he has been, even before he left Claire's womb. This episode brought that back to the surface, but then made everything well with the baptismal.
I feel this is probably one of the weakest episodes of this season, and it just lost me altogether. I also didn't really appreciate how the series has now made Charlie some huge villian and outcast. Sure, he has problems, but he thought he was trying to help. He just went about it the wrong way.
If you missed tonight's episode, you can find it on iTunes in the morning. A preview for what's next on Lost can be found here courtesy of txvoodoo on live journal. For all the latest in Lost news and discussion, head on over to my forum, where you can find my Lost thread here.
TV Review: Bones Episode 1.10
From FOX: Dr. Temperance Brennan and FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth travel to Los Angeles to determine the identity of a woman whose body parts were found near Los Angeles International Airport. With Booth at the wheel of their convertible rental car, the pair is assisted by young FBI agent Tricia Finn, who is a little too eager to help. Brennan is surprised to learn Agent Finn knows her books inside and out, and, in typical fashion, Brennan downplays a meeting with a Hollywood producer about making her latest book into a movie. When Brennan and producer/director Penny Marshall meet face to face on the set of an entertainment news show, Marshall is impressed and a little taken aback by Brennan’s dedication to her latest case. Brennan’s skills are put to the test as she discovers the victim’s identity is hidden by the fact that she’d had extensive plastic surgery.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Bones returns to FOX tonight in an all-new time slot, which will change once again in March. However, that is still a month away. Let's talk about tonight's episode titled The Woman at the Airport. Booth comes to Brennan looking for help in identifying the body of a woman found at the airport, but instead of the body coming to her. Brennan has to go to the body. This is something she isn't to thrilled about because she has work to do at the Jeffersonian. However, Booth goes over her head and convinces Dr. Goodman the case would be good publicity for the museum.
The case takes Booth and Bones to Los Angeles, California. Bones almost immediately determines this case is going to be difficult. The structure of the woman's face has been so altered by plastic surgery that determining her identity might be next to impossible, and this frustrates Temperance because she hates anonymous deaths. Everyone deserves to die with their identity known if they need to die at all in such a senseless manner as murder.
Booth and Bones do go forward with the case, and the crew back in D.C. also help out as much as they can. Brennan even takes her frustrations out on Angela when Angela tells her it might not be possible to reconstruct the woman's face with all that has been done to it. Bones and Brennan do start to pick up some clues. They find that it appears the woman was a call girl, and her name was Rachel. That was the name she used at the service in any case.
It appears everyone that knew her knew her by another name, even her doctor's. She seemed to love plastic surgery, perhaps a bit too much. That is why so much work was done on her. This work totally changed her, and the only way Booth is able to find her identity is by searching through old papers about a young woman suffering a crushed leg in some accident. He does find out who she is by the end of the episode though, and this does help Brennan's mind at ease. However, this case has more twists and turns to find out who the young woman's killer is.
In a surprising twist, we find it was the woman's best friend that killed her out of one of the oldest reasons in the book, jealousy. Her friend was taking her man, or so she thought. The only thing "Rachel" was getting from the doctor is unlimited plastic surgery. That is until he cuts her off. Booth has even interviewed the young woman earlier in the show, and you could see the discovery she was the killer saddened him.
Booth also had some dealings with the FBI agent assigned to assist him and Brennan while they were in town. She seemed to be using the agency as a stepping stone to her big career. She wanted to write screenplays. In fact, when she learns that Bones will be meeting with a producer in Hollywood to talk about turning her book into a movie, the young agent is all over that. However, something this major in Brennan's life doesn't even seem to register in her mind at all as important.
Meanwhile in D.C., Dr. Goodman has taken over the identification of a man that died 1500 years ago from Brennan, but there are problems almost immediately apparent when Hodgins doesn't see eye-to-eye with the anthropologist. In fact it gets close to the point where Goodman wants to fire him, but we know he won't Hodgins doesn't only work at the Jeffersonian. His family is one of the financial contributors to the museum as well. Firing him might be a huge mistake.
I had missed this series during its hiatus. Yes, another hiatus this season. We've had two now, and I hope we don't have another. My main concern right now is seeing how Bones holds up against Lost. It won't have to compete for long because Bones will be moving to an hour earlier time-slot in March.
TV Review: American Idol Week 2
American Idol comes to us once again this week with three hours of auditions from the cities of Greensboro, North Carolina and San Francisco, California. The auditions in Greensboro were much hyped because of the number of American Idol contestants that have done well after auditioning in the city - Fantasia Barrino and Clay Aiken among them.
Only nine contestants continued on past the two day auditions to Hollywood from North Carolina. Eighteen made it passed the audition process from San Francisco. Yes, there was a few that stood out in my mind. Let's first take a look at the Greensboro auditions!
First some highlights:
Kellie Pickler - This North Carolina native was just plain adorable, and she has a great voice. It is a lot country, but she can definitely carry a tune. I was really glad to see her continue on to Hollywood.
Paris Bennett - Seventeen years old, and she has a voice on her that can blow away just about anyone. It's in her genes though as Randy does point out to the audience. I'm calling her my early on favorite to make it to the top ten. She definitely has the voice, and she is another one that is just too adorable for words.
Halicia Thompson - I really liked her too. When she announced her song, I was immediately taken back to the television series, A Different World. I loved the show, the song, and I love Halicia. I don't know if she has the powerful voice to make it past Hollywood, but she definitely deserves a shot.
Stephen David Jr. - Who wouldn't like this guy? Paula sure did. Sure, it broke protocol for the show, but the two of them dancing together was cute. He can sing, but can he sing well without the gimmick? Also, Paula really shouldn't have been pushed to dance with him. If it turned out that he wasn't married, could we say another scandal could have been on Paula's hands similar to the story that broke out last year with Corey Clarke?
Now the low lights:
Shawn De Salazar: Yes, he was kicked off, but I really liked him. Yes, the tux was a bit much, and the poster board too. However, I thought he sung well. I was actually shocked he didn't get at least two out of three to pull him through to Hollywood.
Cedric Robinson - This guy was singled out because he is related to past American Idol winner, Fantasia Barrino. He certainly didn't look like he had any genes shared with her at his audition though. My ears hurt. Let's hope he can sing elsewhere. It might have just been a bad audition.
Rhonetta Johnson - The minute they showed her the first time I knew she was trouble. The dress stood out, the way she walked in singing "just as a joke," and her attitude just screamed she wasn't going to Hollywood. If she was going to come in singing, come in singing well. Blow them away the minute she stepped in if she wanted to do that. She was quite harsh to both Paula and Simon. If someone could give Simon a run for his money on the comebacks department, it is Rhonetta.
As far as the San Francisco auditions go, there was no great stand-outs as far as auditions. We had good singers, but no great singers in my mind. The only two I think have a shot in Hollywood are Katharine McPhee and Jayne Santayana. Most of the focus of the San Francisco audition was not on the singers, but on the interaction between our three judges.
Randy and Paula were stuck on Simon having a bad day. He was a bit harsh on these auditions, but I even found myself agreeing with him on a couple of the auditions. Randy and Paula finally set Simon off, and he leaves with one audition left to go. He just gets up, and then goes out to his limo and back to his hotel. Something tells me we'll see more cat fighting between the judges in Vegas. For all the latest news and discussion, check out my American Idol topic on my forum here.
TV Review: Surface Episode 1.13
From NBC: After it’s revealed to Laura (Lake Bell) that a cadre of top scientists created this new species, she wakes up in a field after being drugged and Rich (Jay R. Ferguson) comes to her rescue. Fearing the end of the world, Laura and Rich are determined to find the mysterious corporation that funded this experiment gone awry, but nothing could prepare them for what they discover in an abandoned laboratory along the way. Meanwhile, Miles (Carter Jenkins) joins Blum and his crew of aquarium workers on a boat excursion to find the egg field containing millions of unhatched creatures. Surprisingly, Miles later agrees to help law enforcement find Nim. Leighton Meester and Ian Anthony Dale also star.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Surface comes to us tonight with an all-new episode, and things are definitely getting strange as the weeks pass. This week's episode added even more to the suspense. also I'm really starting to wonder about Surface. We have only two episodes left, and the more I hear about it, I am starting to think Surface might have been a one season deal. At the end of tonight's episode, the promo for next week definitely leads to that conclusion.
Let's talk about tonight's episode. On our last episode, Laura had been taken to meet with the mysterious voice that had contacted her via computer. We learn the voice belongs to a scientist, and this week we learn her name is Samantha Morris. She gives Laura some startling information about the origin of the species. As it turns out, the species isn't alien or some prehistoric creature that somehow survived undetected all these millions of years at the bottom of the ocean.
The creature is in fact man-made, and Samantha is one of the one's behind its creation. She tells Laura even more this week. We learn Samantha was approached after earning her Ph.D in 2000 by a genetics company. This company hired her on for an ungodly sum of money, and they tell her they have been cloning long before Dolly the sheep was cloned in 1996. They have even cloned a creature that has extinct for many many years.
As the woman starts to continue on telling Laura things, Laura starts to feel disoriented. The woman has drugged her, and next she knows she wakes up in the middle of nowhere, and Rich comes to her rescue. Laura takes what information the woman does give her, and with Rich's help they begin to dig. With the date's she is given by the woman, they begin to look into companies that have made large donations or spent a great deal of money during that time period. This leads the two to pharmaceutical companies involved with the drug Nortide. The information they do turn up is classified, which is strange. They then decide to approach the company themselves, but that plan quickly falls through, when they are discovered.
They then follow the lead to another branch of the company, and they go to their headquarters. When they arrives, the buildings are deserted. It looks like people left in quite a hurry, and not that long before Laura and Rich's arrival. The two split up to search the building, and Rich finds what he thinks to be a young girl. It turns out to be something else entirely. Another creation of this company. That is definitely possible. Laura and Rich continue on there search using the names of those involved with the pharmaceutical company. They make another startling discovery. They find footage of Lee that is nearly forty years old.
Laura and Rich aren't the only ones with things happening on this happening. Miles has his own things to deal with. The people of the town he lives in are in an uproar over the creature and the killings, and they devise a plan to use Nim to get the other creatures. They have Miles tag Nim, and then set him free. He ventures to a cove, and the other creatures do show up. When they do, the townspeople are ready and waiting with guns blazing. As much as they fire upon the creatures, nothing seems to phase them.
Miles arrives on seen, and he is able to settle the creatures down, but then he joins them. He leads them back out to the ocean. As we recall, he had been changing since Nim healed him a few weeks ago. The min-creatures, with Nim's help, now see him as some type of leader. Things are definitely strange, and with the townspeople attacking the infant creatures, they are only asking for trouble. My first thought was what will the big creatures do? From the previews, it looks like we will get to find out before the series ends. I'm really hoping there is more to this series, but it is really looking like it might have been a one season deal. With words like epic and phrases like all your questions will be answered in the final two episodes, it doesn't look good for this series continuing on past February.
I've enjoyed the ride though if that is the case. This series has had enough twists and turns to keep me and many others on the edge of their seats each week. If the ride is over, then I'll be sad to see it end, but the ride was more than worth it. Check out my discussion topic for this series on my forum where you can find all the latest news and discussion for this series until its gone! Also, don't forget if you missed seeing tonight's episode, you can download it on iTunes in the morning. Check my sidebar for the link!
TV Review: The L Word Episode 3.03
From SHO: Shane sets up at Venice Beach's coolest new skate shop WAX; Jenny brings Moira home to LA and introduces her to the girls; Kit finds a friend in Angus, Bette and Tina's nanny; Alice continues her descent into a black hole over losing Dana; Bette refuses to curtail her spending habits; and Tina goes to work for Helena.
My Rating: 3 out of 4
Tonight's episode of The L Word titled Lobsters is the first episode this season that I found myself enjoying the episode. There were a few problems, but I didn't feel they outweighed the positives in this episode. Our girls are finally all together with Jenny's return to Los Angeles, and perhaps that is what makes the difference here. Something felt really off the last couple of episodes, and I am really wondering if Jenny being away caused the weirdness. Time will only tell next week.
As mentioned, Jenny makes her return this week. Shane is happy to see her, as is Carmen. However, they are both a bit thrown off by the arrival of Jenny's new friend Moira. Neither knows what to make of the new woman in Jenny's life, and Carmen is definitely not happy about having the additional roommate just thrown at them. Moira is a bit different than they are used to. She's even more butch than Shane.
The group decides to take Jenny out for a welcome home dinner, and things don't go as well as planned. Not only do we have the awkwardness with Alice and Dana at the same table, but Moira doesn't fit in at all with the group. Her anecdote about female lobsters doesn't help matters much either. When she's had enough, she leaves dinner and Jenny stays. When Moira doesn't return home, Jenny puts the blame onto herself for not leaving with Moira. The group is really snippy with Moira though, and I can see why she didn't feel comfortable.
Now I'm not sure if I'm the only one that sees it, but Jenny and Shane always seemed to have these moments that border on coupledom. We had another brief one tonight near the end of the episode, and Shane's welcoming home of Jenny by carrying her around definitely raised an eyebrow here. The episode ends with Moira having an intense moment by herself. I really feel for her in this episode. It can't be easy trying to join this group of friends.
Let's go back and talk about what happens to everyone else in this episode. First, let's talk about Bette and Tina. Things are beginning to look bleak on the financial front. Bette loses the funding on her project, and this causes her to lose her stipend. Tina talks to Helena, and she is offered a job working with the woman at her film studio. Helena offers her a job based on her psychics recommendation. The whole tarot thing is really freaky to me because I just don't see Helena being the tarot cards and psychic type of gal.
Tina tells Bette about the job offer, and Bette doesn't seem all that thrilled, but Tina knows it is there best option. Soon they might have to fire the nanny they just hired, and they need him to look good for the social worker. Bette looks into selling one of her prints, but she doesn't tell Tina she is doing this. I'm actually a bit relieved the cyber story line wasn't brought up again this week, but I know it will be at some point. That story line just doesn't fit Tina's character at all.
As for Angus, he is fitting in nicely with his new job. He meets Kit one day while out with Angelica, and these two hit it off well. In fact, a bit too well. Sparks are already beginning to fly the one night Kit goes to the house when everyone else is at dinner. It might be a bit sudden, but I actually like that these two held back this week. They have a flirtation with more here, and I think that works nicely. As much as I miss the Ivan and Kit story line, Kit is straight. No need to fight that really. Just because this is labeled a lesbian show, it doesn't mean a straight couple couldn't fit in the equation.
Now onto Dana. She finally goes to the doctor to have the lump her and Lara found looked at. She has her first mammogram, and the doctor does find something that needs more examination. She will have to have a biopsy, probably next episode because it didn't happen tonight. As for Alice, she is still obsessed, but I think she is trying to work on it now. She is still over the top though, and at dinner Alice does corner Dana in the bathroom. However, the talk between the two was not as bad as it could have been, and that is a small blessing in this episode. Let's get Alice not crazy soon okay?
I really loved the dinner scene, even with its awkward moments. It was nice to see all the girls together again. Jenny looks wonderful here, but we can tell there is still trouble brewing under the service. We saw that last week as well with her staring longingly at the razor she found in Moira's glove compartment. Alice's craziness was more funny this week, but I still wish she would be not so obsessed over Dana.
I hope this improved episode this week means this series is making an improvement. I haven't been all that thrilled with the last two episodes of season three, but I found myself settling in and watching this episode more without wanting to scream at the screen like I have been doing the last couple of weeks. You can download a preview of next week's episode here courtesy of titan from Media Blvd. Don't forget to check my discussion topic on my forum for all the latest in L Word news and episode discussion.
TV Review: Grey's Anatomy Episode 2.14
From ABC: The truth is in short supply as Meredith and Cristina lie to each other about the status of their relationships. George is given the unpleasant task of discharging an elderly patient who's no longer sick, but refuses to leave the hospital; and Alex learns his fate after re-taking his medical exams.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Tonight's episode of Grey's Anatomy titled Tell Me Sweet Little Lies is just another example of why this series is one of the best television programs on television. Sandra Oh once again shined in this episode, and we can definitely see here why she won the Golden Globe this week. The focus this week was not on the medical aspects of the program, but on the internal relationships between the interns and staff of Seattle Grace Hospital.
This doesn't mean they didn't have patients to handle. Far from it in fact. This was your normal busy day with a high patient load. In fact, that patient load leads to some problems with the nursing staff. They feel overworked, and the head nurse on staff goes to Webber to discuss the matter, but he doesn't give her much to go on. This leads the nursing staff to pull a sick out and give the hospital a ten day warning before they go on strike.
This warning is administered during the operation of one of the patients, a Japanese eating champion, who has come in to the ER with hiccups. After Bailey, Izzie and Alex look into things, they find she has a tear in her esophagus that is causing the hiccups. Bailey informs her coach that her career is over, and she needs surgery if she wants any hope of continuing to eat at all, much less competing. The coach doesn't listen, and pulls the patient out against doctor's orders. She is later brought back to the hospital after collapsing.
Bailey doesn't just have this patient to deal with, but her pregnancy becomes an issue when she goes into early labor. Addison looks into her case, and at first it looks like false labor. However, when Bailey is operating on the young woman, she feels pain again, and Izzie tells her it looks like Bailey is in labor. Webber is called in to finish the operation, and Bailey is put on bed rest the final two months of her pregnancy. I really hope Bailey is back because I really enjoy her character.
The other case belongs to Derek and Yang. A guitarist comes into the hospital after having an accident that severs three of his fingers. They can repair the damage, but he needs to quit smoking. This is a problem, and it leads to some tense moments between Yang and Shepard. Derek operates, and it appears to be successful. My question here is why don't these two interact more? I loved their interaction on tonight's episode. I loved Cristina cornering Derek in the elevator. She's right about so much happening in there. A lot of important moments between Meredith and Derek have happened in the elevator. Derek took Cristina's words because she knew in a way she was right, and Meredith is her best friend. If anyone had a right to speak up,other than Meredith, it is Cristina.
Burke also realized the importance of Meredith to Cristina, but he has his own issues that he isn't even aware of yet. Cristina has moved in, but not moved in. She still has her apartment, but Burke doesn't know that. Meredith and Cristina go back and forth being not totally truthful the entire episode, but they finally come clean. Cristina hasn't totally moved in, and Meredith knows that her and Derek are not just friends. He is still her McDreamy.
More problems develop on the home front for George, Izzie and Meredith. The dog is causing more problems than joy, and George is now threatening to move out. Meredith wants to keep the dog, and it angers George that she would choose the dog over him. He has his own patient to deal with. An elderly woman that is perfectly healthy, but doesn't want to leave the hospital for the bed waiting for her at a nursing home. George deals with her the best he can though, and I really do adore George more and more each episode. Him standing up for himself with Meredith was another scene that just made me love this episode. However, I am a bit confused about the final scene of the episode with Meredith giving the dog to Derek. That just seemed odd, but there was more there that just what was said.
As for Alex, we finally learned his fate. He was given his results at the start of the episode, but we don't learn what they are until the near very end. He can't even open the envelope himself. He has Izzie do it for him, and he passed. So it looks like he is sticking around. I thought he would be the one of the cast leaving, but if what happened tonight with Dr. Bailey is any indication, I think we might not see much more of her for a bit, even if she has her eye on the interns from home.
I really loved tonight's episode. This episode never disappoints me. I loved tonight's interaction between all the characters so much. We never have a lack of knowing what is going on with everyone each week, even if their air time is shortened we know they are around and are a part of the action. I can't wait for next week's episode. If you want to discuss tonight's episode, hop on over to my discussion topic for Grey's Anatomy on my forum found here.
Saturday Night Premiere: Miss Congeniality 2
Tonight's Saturday Night Premiere comes to us from HBO in the form of Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous. I am a huge fan of Sandra Bullock, and I enjoyed Miss Congeniality so much, I knew I would tune in to see the sequel. Last time we saw FBI Agent Gracie Hart go undercover and deal with joining the Miss United States pageant in order to solve a crime.
Now that case is solved, and Gracie is back to her normal FBI life, but there is a huge problem. Now that everyone knows her from the pageant, undercover work is next to impossible. She discovers this when a bank sting goes bad when someone recognizes. This leaves her little options. She can either ride a desk job or become the new face of the FBI. She chooses the latter, and we jump forward in time almost nine months.
She is now stylish, and working as the FBI spokesperson. She even has a partner doing all her dirty work, but things get messy after her friend Cheryl, Miss United States, and Stan, are kidnapped in Las Vegas. She heads off to Vegas, but the FBI brass in the city wants no help in solving the case from her. Regardless, she gets involved, and we see her go step by step in solving the case that the FBI can't.
This is a good movie, and I found myself enjoying it from beginning to end. The relationship between Gracie and her new partner Samantha Fuller develops nicely. Fuller is basically what Hart used to be. A tough tomboy type of character. Gracie and her should get along fine, but there are many bumps along the way.
With the first film it was mostly a romance, but this movie drops the romance with the knowledge that the man she fell for in the first film has transferred to Miami, thus breaking up with her. Miss Congeniality 2 is more of a buddy film, and it does well on that front too.
I really liked this movie, and as I mentioned before I love Sandra Bullock. This movie is great for date night, and I highly recommend picking it up. If you want to check it out for yourself, you can find the movie at the following retailers: Amazon
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An Announcement
As many of my regular readers know I have another blog over on Media Village called Thoughts from the Couch. That blog covers entertainment news daily with a focus on television and movies. I am now happy to announce that I now also have my very own forum on Media Village. The forum is also called Thoughts from the Couch, and in that forum I'll have topics covering the shows I review here with episode discussion and series news. I will also have topics covering series I don't cover on here but still watch on a weekly basis. In addition to the expanded show coverage, I'll also have hot topics covering news from the entertainment world that interests me! The forums over at Media Village have been in operation a few months now, and we have a team of moderators covering everything related to television and media imaginable. Come join in on the discussion!
Blog of the Week!
I have a new Blog of the Week! This week's renter from Blogexplosion is The T Blog. T looks to be short for Tanya, and if you hop on over to her blog you can find her thoughts on a lot of different things including movies and television series, same as I have on here. I've seen her around over on Battle of the Blogs recently, and I think you should really check her out. Just look for her blog on my sidebar and click to head on over!
Dancing With The Stars Week 3 Elimination
Another shocking elimination this week on Dancing With The Stars. The couple with the lowest score when judges and viewers vote were combined was Giselle Fernandez and Jonathan Roberts. This just shocks me. Master P and George Hamilton were both saved from elimination once again. George was actually in the bottom two tonight, and I thought for sure that meant he was set to be sent home. However, Giselle was the one given her walking papers. Last night, she earned a twenty-two.
She had done superb in earlier performances, and she felt last night's performance was one of her best. The judges disagreed with her, and it also looks like the American viewers did as well. The same happened last week with actress Tatum O'Neal. Week one she did well, but week two she didn't. This earned her the boot week two. This competition is now getting tougher, and do Master P and George Hamilton both continue to belong there at this point in the game? In my mind, no.
Last season, Kelly Monaco also performed poorly week after week until the final weeks of the competition. Yet, she remained in the competition and was the season one winner. Please tell me the same won't happen here with Master P pulling out a win at the end? I love his partner, and he has shown some improvement. However, not enough to keep him there.
TV Review: The O.C. Episode 3.12
From ABC: Kaitlin Cooper, age 14, returns to the O.C. during her winter break from an exclusive Montecito boarding school, bringing a lot of attitude and a few secrets of her own. Much more in the mold of her mother Julie Cooper than her sister Marissa, Kaitlin turns heads as she tries to get closer to her family the only way she knows how.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
An all-new episode this week for The O.C, and we definitely have some changes afoot when Mini-Cooper, little sis Kaitlin blows into town looking for her mother within the first few minutes of tonight's episode titled The Sister Act. When we last saw Mini-Cooper, she was eleven and in love with her pony. My how things change and quickly too! She is fourteen now, and my my my Mini-Cooper isn't so mini anymore as Willa Holland joins the cast.
We can immediately see she is trouble from the first minute she enters the Cohen's house. However, she changes her tune once her mother and older sister, Marissa arrives. The three begin to bond, but Marissa has school. Marissa and her younger sister have lost touch over the years. Marissa does want to try to rebuild their friendship, and the two go out shopping and to meet up with Johnny and Chili after school. Within minutes, Kaitlin has figured out that Johnny is in love with Marissa, and she makes her play for the guy. She is not your ordinary fourteen year old, and this is obvious to see. She definitely takes after her mother. She is now living in the trailer with her mother and older sister.
Soon after she arrives in town, we learn she isn't there for just a family visit during break. She is receiving threatening phone calls from a young man, and he even shows up on the Cohen's doorstep looking for her. Ryan answers, and he handles the situation, but he does approach Kaitlin. She gives him a story about the guy stalking her, and Ryan takes her word for it. He calls the guy, and when they meet up, the guy expects Kaitlin to be with Ryan. When he sees, she isn't he approaches Ryan and tells him the real story behind his being there. Justin, the young man, had been dating who he thought was a sixteen year old girl, Kaitlin. Taking her to a frat party so she can meet his brother, Kaitlin ends up stealing the money from the door cover charge and leaves for home.
Ryan once again approaches Kaitlin once he finds the bag that had contained the money Justin described, and she gives him another story. This one being that she stole the money to help pay for the abortion of her friend that was dating the brother she was taken to the frat party to meet. This story turns out to be untrue as well, and Ryan finally goes to Marissa with what has been happening. Marissa goes to her younger sister, and they catch Kaitlin before she can run off again. The two sisters share a moment, and Kaitlin tells Marissa that she stole the money so she could come home.
Somehow everyone at her school found out her mother now lived in a trailer because someone at the school's parents owned it. She knew all along where her mother lived, and she wanted to make sure her family was okay. I'm really not sure this story is true, but it could be. also young Cooper has moves that would make her mother proud. Kaitlin is definitely trying to win over Johnny's affection.
As for Johnny, Marissa finds out he lied to get her to go back to Harbor. When she approaches him, he tells her he never wants to see her again. The next day he regrets it, and he searches out his friend. Things definitely seem to be promising if Kaitlin keeps up her pursuit.
Elder Cooper, Julie is heartbroken tonight when she discovers that Neil Roberts is out on a date with Veronica Townsend, Taylor's mom. Veronica played a trump card to get Kirsten to set her up with Neil. Either set up the date, or she would make the last few months of Marissa's time at Harbor a living hell. She has the power to do it too. Neil and Veronica go out on one date, and that is all fine and good. However, we learn he is going for a second, and this is when red flags go up with almost everyone.
Summer, Seth, Kirsten and Sandy have a little powwow once Julie confides in Kirsten about her developing feelings for Neil. Summer and Seth devise a plan to get rid of Veronica the night of the launch party. Just in time too because Veronica and Neil were about to go off for private time. However, that is halted once Seth tells Taylor that Summer's father has genital warts. Taylor runs to her mother, and Veronica makes a quick exit! With Veronica out of the way, Neil approaches Julie and asks her for a date, which she quickly agrees to. Didn't I say these two would end up hooking up? It was only a matter of time.
All in all this was an enjoyable episode of The O.C. Kaitlin Cooper might just be what is needed to bring new life into this series. The story lines have been a little lacking for me this season, but tonight's episode was definitely one of the better ones. I'm excited to see what Kaitlin does next. Download a preview of next week's episode here courtesy of OCFans.org.
TV Review: Dancing With The Stars Week 3
Dancing With The Stars enters its third week of competition, and the intensity is certainly picking up as we now have had two eliminations. A third couple will be eliminated on tomorrow night's result show. With only a third performance under each contestant's belt, it is becoming clear who the leaders of the competition are. Before we talk about that, let's talk about tonight's performances.
On tonight's show, the couples had to choose between two dances, the jive and the tango. Usually the males do one type of dance and the females another. The males started with the jive, but George Hamilton decided to perform a tango with his partner. The same happened on the female side with actress Lisa Rinna opting to perform a jive with her partner. The couples all stepped up their performances a notch. George Hamilton and Master P aka P Miller also stepped up their own performances, but did they step it up enough to stick around another week?
In my mind, no. Both male celebrities aren't up to par with the rest of the competitors. George Hamilton has charm, but as one of the judges pointed out tonight that won't win him this competition. Master P gets an A for effort. He definitely stepped it up a notch this week, but he is still not up to this competition. Ashly, his partner, is wonderful, and I think having to switch partners early on the competition definitely hurt her. She also has a smile on her face though, and I really do enjoy her dancing. Jerry Rice having done well in earlier performances seem to falter this week, and the judges scored him low. He had done well in the past, so I'm hoping he doesn't suffer the same fate that Tatum suffered last week in which one bad performance gave her the boot on the results show.
As for the stand out performances on this week's show, both Drew and Stacy have kept up their winning dance moves, and they both earned twenty-seven points this week from the judges. These two are the clear stand outs to win this competition, but they do have competition. Both Lisa Rinna and Tia Carrere did well this week, and they also earned decent scores from the judges. Lisa really came out of her shell dance wise this week, and she looked amazing out there. The training sequence where they showed her break down with her partner Louie was also touching to see. He is an amazing partner and good support for her in this competition. Tia Carrere also has improved week after week, and this week she came in third with a score of twenty-six for her tango. This competition is still wide open.
My pick to go home tomorrow night is Master P. He has shown improvement, but he is definitely not up to par with the rest of the dancers. I'll be sad to see Ashly go, but this is a competition, and the weeks are passing.
This week's scores are as follows:
Jerry Rice/partner: 19
Giselle Fernandez/partner: 22
Drew Lachey/partner: 27
George Hamilton/partner: 22
Lisa Rinna/partner: 25
Stacy Keibler/partner: 27
Master P/partner: 14
Tia Carrere/partner: 26
Tune in tomorrow night at 8/7 for the hour long results show to find out who America decides to vote off from the competition this week!
TV Review: Lost Episode 2.11
From ABC: Jack, Locke and Sawyer pursue a determined Michael after he heads into the jungle toward the dreaded "Others" in search of Walt. Meanwhile, Sun has a surprising reaction to Jin's desire to join the search party, and Hurley and Charlie commiserate over the age-old conundrum of "what women want."
My Rating: 3 out of 4
All right, I admit this episode titled "The Hunting Party" didn't really grab me at first. In fact, up until the point the mysterious man showed up, I was rather disappointed in this episode. This probably saved the episode in my eyes because up until we were finally able to see the others, the episode had bored me. Let's talk about it though.
The episode opens up with Locke knocked out on the floor of the gunroom. When Jack finds him, Michael comes up behind him and locks them both in the gunroom. He is now off to find Walt. We don't see him at all again the entire episode. With Locke and Jack in the room locked up, concern about the button comes into play, but Kate and Sawyer show up soon after, so Jack can change Sawyer's bandages. As soon as they are released, Jack and Locke load up on guns, and they are off after Michael. Sawyer joins them, and Kate wants to, but Jack stops her. Somebody is needed to take charge of the button.
The men are off with Locke tracking Michael. They hear gunfire in the distance at one point, but they continue on. Sawyer and Jack snip at each other some, and Jack even blurts out that Sawyer loves Kate in a moment of anger. It isn't pursued though then. When night falls, Locke loses the trail, and he says they should return to camp. Jack doesn't want to, and it is then that we see the mysterious others for the first time.
One of them approaches them, and the rest remain in the shadows. This was definitely a tense moment, and the man tells the three that they are still alive on the island because they are allowed to - kind of scary if you ask me. When the man asks for three men to leave their weapons and go back, Jack is adamant on continuing on to find Michael, but his tune soon changes when Kate is pulled out. She had followed the men after having Hurley take over button duty for her. The others had captured her. With this presenting itself, Jack and the others have no other option but to do what they have been told to do. Kate is released, and they start the journey back to camp. Jack is obviously upset with Kate, but Sawyer tells her he'd have done the same in her shoes.
Meanwhile, back at camp, we see many of other survivors. Charlie and Hurley talk over their female woes. Claire had thrown Charlie out last week after the drug discovery. Sun and Jin also have airtime this week with Sun stopping her husband from following after the three men. This doesn't set that well, and Jin confronts her by the end of the episode. However, Sun stands up for herself basically telling him she had only done what he had been doing to her the last four years. He finds no argument in that, and all appears well. We see Claire and Ana Lucia briefly when Jack and Locke return to camp. Jack goes to Ana Lucia, and Locke stops to talk to Claire. I see Jack allowing himself to develop some kind of emotions for Ana Lucia since he feels Kate is unobtainable with how she feels for Sawyer. Jack also asks her about how long it would take to train an army. In fact that is how the episode ends.
Since this was a Jack flashback episode, we see more of Jack's past, and his relationship with his wife comes to the forefront. We see him working on another miracle case of an older man. His daughter is also a huge part of things, and she develops feelings for Jack. When her father dies on the table, she turns to Jack for comfort, but he pushes her away after kissing her. When he returns home, Sarah tells his she is leaving him and she has been having an affair. This after he tells her he killed the old man's daughter no less. Her plans to leave him were already in play at the time though.
As I said when I began this review, I didn't really like the episode until the others showed up. Even then it felt a bit of a letdown. I don't know but I think I'd wanted to see the others for so long I expected more. It did improve the episode for me though. I was excited to see the others. I just expected more. The episode felt really sluggish at points near the beginning. I loved the Sun and Jin interaction as well.
Another criticism I have of this episode is this - another Jack centric episode? I like Jack, but I think another episode following him when we just had one not too long ago is a bit much. That might be only my opinion, but as soon as I saw it was a Jack episode, I was immediately unhappy. I had pretty much figured the history with his wife from previous episodes. This episode only confirmed my suspicions. Next week we have an all-new episode, download the preview here courtesy of voodoo_in_tx on live journal.
American Idol Week 1: The Premiere
American Idol is back for another season. Season five to be exact. Over 35 million people tuned in for Tuesday nights premiere. This week we had auditions in two cities. Last night it was Chicago, and tonight American Idol hit the mile high city of Denver, Colorado! Until competition gets fully underway, I will have weekly recaps. Once we get down to our top ten, I will cover the completion the night the show airs and have a results post that night - like I have been doing for Dancing With The Stars.
This week though we had auditions in those two major cities. We had the good, and we had the bad. Then we also had the bad that were so bad it was just plain ugly. Simon seems to be in rare form this season. His barbs are just a bit rougher. He certainly won't be winning any awards for nice guy this year, but when has he ever? I think he might even be getting on Paula's nerves, and it is only week one.
Here are some of my highlights and low lights from Chicago:
Chicago had a lot of other moments since we had a two-hour broadcast. One that comes to mind is the mother giving it to Simon when he doesn't send her son through to Hollywood. I loved Ryan here. He let her say it all because he really couldn't. We had some strange people too; statue of liberty boy comes to mind here. What you have to give it up for when it comes to series of this type: the people that have the guts to try out and audition have to be applauded for TRYING.
Some highlights and low lights from Denver:
Denver was an only an hour-long show, so there are only a few moments that stand out in my mind.
American Idol has only just begun. We have more auditions ahead for next week. We have a long road for season five of American Idol. Keep tuned here for all my thoughts of the weeks ahead.
TV Review: Supernatural Episode 1.12
FROM WB: While battling a demon, Dean (Jensen Ackles) is electrocuted, resulting in permanent damage to his heart and leaving him with only a couple of months to live. A despondent Sam (Jared Padalecki) searches desperately for a way to save his brother and believes he may have found an answer through a preacher who claims to heal the incurable. However, Dean and Sam discover that the preacher is getting help from the Grim Reaper who is trading one life for another he feels is less worthy.
My Rating: 4 out of 4
Supernatural comes to us tonight with a fresh scary episode called Faith in which a reaper comes calling. After Dean is electrocuted while working with Sam to battle a demon, Sam is told the incident caused Dean to have a massive heart attack that damages his heart. The doctor gives Dean only weeks to live. It was odd seeing Dean in such a sick state. Sam immediately begins to work on finding a cure for his brother. He puts a call into their father, and even calls all his father's contacts in his journal. When Dean shows up on his hotel room doorstep after having checked himself out, Sam thinks he has a cure, and he takes his brother to Nebraska.
Dean thinks Sam has found him medical means to cure him, but Sam takes him to a faith healers tent. Dean is skeptical, and he says as much, but it appears Dam has enough faith for them both. The service begins, and Dean is chosen by the healer to be healed. He is successful, but in the split second after he wakes up Dean sees an old man next to the healer. This immediately gets his mind working.
After visiting a doctor, Dean discovers he has been healed, but he also learns the day before a young man died of a heart attack. This raises suspicions in the brothers, and they decide to investigate. Dean returns to the healer to talk and learn more, and Sam goes to find out about the young man that died. He discovers the young man the same exact moment that Dean was healed.
The two brothers talk, and they deduce that a reaper is taking a life for a life, with Roy the faith healer's help. They figure they have to stop him, but Sam won't kill the man. That would make them no better than he is. While all this is happening, Dean finds himself developing an attachment for a young woman with a brain tumor also looking to be healed. In fact, she is chosen next, but Dean has to stop her healing in order to stop another man being killed. The healer will not be deterred. He plans a private session for the young woman that night. Dean also finds it isn't the healer that is bringing the reaper into town. It turns out to be the healer's wife that is using spells and black magic to summon the reaper.
Once she is discovered, her next choice to be taken by the reaper in exchange for the young woman is Dean. What she has given, she can just as easily take away. That night, the repeat does call coming for Dean, but Sam is able to stop the reaper when he rips the amulet used in the woman's spell and breaks it. This sets the reaper after the woman that had been summoning it, and she dies of a stroke. This doesn't allow the young woman to be healed. Sam's quick actions do save his brother though, and they prepare to leave town. However, before they do Dean must say good-bye to the young woman, whose life he knows will end shortly, barring a miracle happening.
I loved this episode of Supernatural. Dean is such a tough guy. It was nice to see him a bit weaker, and it also allowed Sam the ability to take the lead. This is mostly left for Dean to do since he is the older of the two brothers. Dean is also growing as a character, and I love the character development we see each week as the series progresses. The two brothers are getting closer and closer as each week passes. No preview followed tonight's episode, so I guess that means no new episode next week. I'm sure the brothers will be back soon.
TV Review: The L Word Episode 3.02
From Showtime: Billie Blaikie, a flamboyant party promoter sets up shop at The Planet; Alice refuses to let Helena throw out the life-size cut out of Dana; Jenny wants to be more than just friends with Moira; and Bette feels her life is out of her control.
My Rating: 2 out of 4
Last week, The L Word returned for its third season on Showtime, and I was a bit unhappy with some of the episodes events. Alice had gone off the deep end, Dana was with Lara, Shane was in a dress, Helena is nice, and Bette and Tina are having serious problems. We learned that season three takes place six months after season two, but we aren't really given much in the way of information for all the changes that occurred in those six months.
Tonight's episode titled Lost Weekend picks up where last week's left off. Jenny and Moira are on their way to Los Angeles in Moira's pick up truck. The two are quite friendly, but a label hasn't been defined on their friendship yet. They haven't called themselves girlfriends yet. They stop in each night in a different gay bar somehow finding the one gay bar in each town. One night Jenny and Moira drink a bit too much, and when Jenny turns her back Moira moves onto the dance floor with another woman. This causes Jenny to pull the jealous girlfriend act, even if the two aren't officially dating.
This leads to a confusing scene between the two back at their hotel room. Moira wants to know what Jenny wants from her, and Jenny wants to take control of things in bed, which Moira won't let her do. Nothing at all is resolved with the interaction. We still don't know if the two are dating. In another scene, we also see the two in a battle with some of the townspeople in one of the towns they stop to get gas in. Moira is thought to be a man because of her appearance, and this leads to some heckling. In order to stop it, Jenny threatens the man that has taken Moira with a taser gun. Once he lets her go, Jenny shoots him with it anyway just before they drive off. The two don't make it to Los Angeles by the end of the episode, but Jenny does call home to let her roommate know she is on her way.
Meanwhile back in Los Angeles, things are busy. Alice has joined a support group for her obsession with Dana, but I don't see it doing very much to help her. She still believes she will get Dana back, but that is looking like it will never happen. Alice and Helena are getting closer, and Helena is trying to help Alice with her problems with getting over Dana. She even hires Alice a lesbian maid. Once they arrive at Alice's apartment, Helena finds the shrine and life-size Dana cutout, and she tells Alice they have to go. She even finds a box of Dana and Alice's sex toys and in a mildly amusing scene; Alice takes these to The Planet and returns them to Dana. Some of the toys are a bit eyebrow raising. I knew the two were kinky, but a full on mask and gag ... yikes!
At The Planet, Kit is setting up for a casino night named Vulva Las Vegas with the help of party promoter Billy Blaikie played by guest star Alan Cumming. In my mind, he is a wonderful addition for the cast, and he will be around for at least half the season. He helps put together the event and emcee's it. The night goes off without one problem, other than the ones that occur after David arrives. He seems to be a bit homophobic, and it looks like the issues between mother and son have returned this week. Bette is looking to have David help her and Tina with the social worker, but with his attitude that won't happen. We see this the next day when Rebecca comes for her second visit, and David speaks up right in front of her about he cannot support Bette adopting Angelica because he believes a child should be raised by a man and a woman.
Meanwhile Shane and Carmen are attending Carmen's cousin coming of age party. Yes, Shane is once again in that God-awful dress, but not only that, but now we get to see her in a wig. This is not our Shane. She looks uncomfortable and out of place. For a minute, I thought it was Dana with brown hair. I just felt really bad for Shane in this episode. She is going totally out of her way and acting out of character for her just for Carmen. I know love makes you do strange things, but this might be a bit much.
This isn't the only party had in this episode. Bette and Tina decide to throw a six-month birthday party for Angelica, but they forgot it was also Alice's birthday the same day. Alice thinks they are throwing her a surprise party under the guise of a party for the baby. When she shows up at the house with Helena, she can quickly see it a kid's birthday party. Helena quickly goes to Bette and Tina, telling them it is Alice's birthday, and they add her name to the cake. The day is saved. Bette and Tina also find a male nanny for Angelica, which might help their cause with Rebecca.
The day isn't over though. That night while Tina is logged online, a man in a chat approaches her, and she proceeds to cyber with him. This scene disturbed me in so many ways. The main reason being that this behavior is totally out of character for Tina, and it just doesn't seem to fit with her at all. She is the one I'd see least likely to cyber in such a manner, even if it were between her and Bette.
I wasn't all that enthused with this episode. Some of the ways the writers are dealing with the characters just didn't mesh with me. They are foreshadowing later events in the season. One being with Dana and the lump Lara found last week. This week Lara is trying to get Dana to go see someone to have it checked, but this was the only interaction for them this episode. We barely saw a shocked reaction for when Alice dumped the box in front of them at The Planet. There were a few highlights during the episode though; one of them being the scene at the end between Shane and Carmen. These two are just hot together.
This just is not the same series I fell in love with season one and the beginning of season two. Things have changed here, and I hope things improve before they get any worse. For a preview of next week's episode, Lobsters, check here.