Heroes: Cautionary Tales
Yes, I'm making up for not posting all week. And yes, I agree that this photo is a spoiler, but if you haven't watched this week's Heroes yet, you're slower than I am, which is pretty darn slow.

This week's episode of Heroes was a good one. However, because we had so many bad weeks I'm finding that my husband is rolling his eyes at every little thing that happens, even if the things were moments we'd have been watching with intrigue a year ago. I have to admit that I've become more questioning of things. So first, things I liked:

-Hiro seeing little Hiro.
-the scene between Matt and Angela, and Matt forcing her to talk and her begging him to stop. Every scene between these two has been fantastic, a bright light in an otherwise dreary season.
-Matt telling his boss that Angela and co. were involved in some organization back in the 70s, and the guy, without changing his serious face, saying, "Like a disco?" Ha!
-Noah cracking Moronder in the nose. Awesome. Maybe if he managed to wedge a piece of cartilage into his brain, Mo would actually learn to THINK.
-Elle stuck in the chair with her feet in the water. Kristen Bell has a great scream.
-The freeze-frame effect of Adam and Kaito hanging in the air
-The recreation of Bennet's death from the painting. The layout was exactly the same, from the angle of his head to the way his arm dangled. Loved it.
-The ending, which mirrored the season 1 episode ending where Claire woke up with her ribcage open, and said, "Oh sh--". Bennet says the same thing.

Things I didn't like:
-when Hiro saw little Hiro, Kaito was standing right behind them and little Hiro didn't notice that was his dad? He looks the same!
-Molly offering to help Matt... don't you think the kid would be a little more traumatized? (I forgot to mention last week that fb must have been FURIOUS that Molly didn't die! haha)
-Elle being so skanky with everyone. Is it because of her zappiness that she hasn't been able to get close to a lot of people, and it's made her a little... needy, shall we say?
-the effects when Flyboy takes HRG up in the sky. As crappy as the freeze-frame was cool.
-Bennet NOT shooting Moronder. A year ago I wanted the cute guy to stay. Now I CANNOT STAND HIM.

What is WRONG with Mohinder? Why do the writers consistently make him the most confused person on television? "Guess what, Noah? I'm IN! We are inside The Company and we can finally take them down after months and months of research... oh just a second, I have a call on the other line... Hello? Bob. How are you? What?! Noah's evil? Um... OK, we were actually infiltrating The Company from the outside, I'm sorry. Let me help you take Noah down. Just a second, I have a call on the other line... Noah? Hey... oh right, The Company is bad. I hate to tell you this, but I've been working for The Company, and they're going to kill you. Yes, I will help you. OK, talk to you later.... Bob? Sorry, had to get rid of that call. OK, yes, you got me, it was Noah. Oh, you're right. He's evil. Yes, let's kill him."

It would be one thing if he were a double agent like Sydney Bristow, but he's not actually playing both sides against one another, he's switching sides due to his own stupid gullibility. This guy is too much.

Am I being too hard on Moronder? What do you think? Is Heroes getting better? Did the first few bad episodes ruin the rest of it for you or are you willing to give it a chance?

Dexter
Lots of little blog posts today. This past week's Dexter was SO good, that, as has been the case the past few weeks with this show, when the end credits run I moan out loud, SO disappointed that I have to wait a whole week to find out what happens. (This is why people wait for DVDs...)

Lila has turned out to be a psychopath. As much as I loved her character, I always found it a little too convenient that she's a former addict, yet always seems so together. In the last couple of episodes, we've seen that Lila knows exactly how to get what she wants, and will go to criminal lengths to get it. Her addiction stems from her fear of abandonment, and now she thinks Dexter will be the one to leave her. She's set fire to her house, and now broken into Rita's home. When Dexter finally confronts her after she does the unthinkable and forces him to meet the man who killed his mother once again, hoping it would bring them closer together, he is truly frightening. If she decides to push things further, we might see Dexter come closer to his breaking point than ever before.

I LOVE this show.

Battlestar Galactica Returns!
Hey all you BSG fans... this weekend marks the return of BSG to our screens (yay!) though it's not the cast we're used to. Battlestar Galactica: Razor will air on Saturday night on Space in Canada, and at some point on the Sci-Fi Channel in the U.S. It's a 2-hour prequel to the series. The actual show will begin in April (APRIL!)

Ron Moore had an interesting blog where he talked about the impact of the writer's strike, and how he's halted production, which could mean the ending of BSG would be shelved forever, but this strike means too much to him. Go Ron Moore! (Can I just use this moment to not downplay Ron Moore, but to say that I ADORE Ellen Degeneres from the bottom of my heart and that's why I'm so disappointed that she's crossing the picket line to continue her show? Sad... I know she's the producer and she stands to lose a lot from it, but as a comic, and therefore someone who has to write a lot of her own material, her support in the strike would be really crucial. But anyway...) Back to Ron Moore: Kudos to you for having the conviction and the strength to fight for your rights.

And while I've got the attention of BSG fans, I wanted to mention that my good friend Jo Storm has a new book out called Frak You: The Ultimate Unofficial Guide to Battlestar Galactica. It's awesome, and has the complete episode guide to the first three seasons, photos, bios, etc. Definitely check out this book if you love the show.

Pushing Daisies: Smell of Success
Death by scratch 'n' sniff. Only on Pushing Daisies.

This week's episode... what can I say? Every post I just say it's better than the one before it, and this one was no different. I loved the premise, the opening at the boarding school reached a new low of pure sadness (how did Ned grow up to be so sweet?), LOVED Paul Reubens (his performance didn't quite reach the perfection of his inbred prince on 30 Rock last year -- with his little porcelain hand... hahahaha! -- but it was pretty awesome. I didn't even recognize him at first!), and the ending was such that he just might be making a recurring role, since he seems to be on to Chuck.

There was so much to love in this episode, but as with every ep of this show, there was once again one moment that was truly sublime: the ending, where we finally see the Darling Mermaid Darlings take to the water. The animation was stunning, Lily singing "Morning Has Broken" actually brought tears to my eyes (!) and it was a moment we'd all been waiting for.

No Pushing Daisies this week coming up, but there will be one the following week, thank goodness. :) LOVE LOVE LOVE. When will they be coming out with the action figures?!

What was your favourite moment?

Jamie's Chefs
If you've only seen Jamie Oliver's cooking show, where he prepares dishes at a manic pace, staring at someone just behind and off to one side of the camera while nattering away the whole time, then you haven't seen the most entertaining things that he's done. A couple of years ago, he had a reality show where he tried to train 15 dysfunctional kids to run their own restaurant, and he dealt with people mouthing off at him, not showing up for shifts, or just plain buggering off completely. The winner became the chef at Fifteen, a restaurant that Jamie shelled out 2 million pounds of his own money to start up. Now he's continuing the endeavour with his Fifteen Foundation, starting up similar programs for inner city kids in other cities, by donating money from the sale of his books and DVDs.

There was the other show, Jamie's Lunches, I think it was called (School Lunches? I can't remember) that I actually missed and would love to catch at some point, where he went and exposed the British school system for all its fried foods, showing how important (and easy) it is to make healthy lunches for the kids who are supposed to be the country's future.

Now he's back with Jamie's Chefs. The first episode just aired Sunday night on the Food Network, and he's taken 4 of the chefs from his Fifteen experiment who didn't make it, and he's seeing which one of them can take over a restaurant he's buying with the Foundation money, called -- seriously -- The Cock. It's a pub. (There's a great scene where Jamie comments on all the "cocks" that are decorating the place.) We watch as he narrows the group to four, then runs those four through a series of tests, and further reduces them to three before giving them a big challenge. Each one can excel at a different side of being the head of a restaurant, and it's fascinating to see one step up in one challenge, and fall flat on their faces in the next.

This is a four-part series, so catch it if you can, Food Network, Sundays at 10. If you missed the episode from the other night, it'll be repeated this Thursday at 10pm. To get yourself in the mood, read this interview with him from this past weekend's Globe and Mail. He talks about the experiences he's had with the Fifteen endeavour, and his fellow celebrity chefs Gordon Ramsay and Anthony Bourdain. Addressing the fact that both have called Oliver a TV hog and a long time ago referred to him as a bit of a hack for being on TV so much, he says:

"I wasn't saying I was the best chef in the world, and I still don't now, and I wouldn't dare," he shrugs. "Before Gordon [Ramsay] did much telly, and Anthony Bourdain, they hated TV chefs. And the reality is, they turned into them. Gordon and Anthony have done more telly than I've ever done, and I've been doing telly longer than them. I spent two years doing four one-hour documentaries on school dinners. ... I guess what's slightly upsetting me, is when you rate someone [like Mr. Bourdain] and then they think you're a bit of a pussy. It's not very inspiring."

TV Roundup: The Week So Far
I still have a lot sitting on my PVR, but here are my thoughts for the week so far:

Heroes:
I finally got around to watching it last night, and I must say it was the best episode of the season. Of course, I still had nitpicks (for example, Elle says she caused a blackout in 4 states when she was 8, then was put into a room attached to a lithium drip when she was 9 while psychiatrists tried to figure out what to do with her, and then The Company stepped in, and she's spent the last 16 years of her life with them. Then she says she's 24... she'd be 26 if the writers could actually add). But going back 4 months just felt right. Unfortunately, there should have been 2, maybe 3 episodes before it, rather than making us wait almost 2 months for some answers. And apparently it's not important what happened to Parkman, Mohinder, Molly, Claire, Noah, Hiro, and Ando, although... when you think about it, their stories are pretty much self-explanatory. Regardless, I thought it was really well done. I hope next week's is more of the same. I might just be persuaded to go back to doing full posts on it. :)

Dexter:
ROCKED. Dexter stepped up his game this week, and actually brought his life as a serial killer into the office to help him get rid of his arch-nemesis. The scene with him and Doakes alone in the room, with Dexter whispering, "I own you" and what followed, is possibly my favourite of the series. Everyone on staff thinks Dex is this quiet meek little man. They have no idea who they're in the company of, and that's what's so much fun about this show.

Ugly Betty:
I forgot to mention last week that playing the show out to Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah" -- despite it being one of my all-time favourite songs ever (especially as covered by him) -- was SO 2002. And so overdone. Every other show on television used that song years ago, and now Ugly Betty has to get on that train late. That said, this week's was great. The final reunion of Claire and Bradford; Betty and Mark saying, "The Secret Sex Room" and then pointing at each other in shock; Wil telling Mark that she's worried Bradford will leave his money to charity, and Mark saying, "Then we need to hunt this Charity down and kill her" (HA!); and the final scene with Alexis and Daniel sitting by an empty space. Loved it. I think it's even better this season than last. Oh, and Mo'nique was BRILLIANT.

The Office:
This week's, like last, was kind of meh. It had its moments, but it was actually far more interesting to watch it as a drama than a comedy. Steve Carell is amazing in the scenes with the lawyers, as he goes from goofily compliant to stupid to upset to hurt to furious to vengeful. He's put his loyalties in the wrong place, as usual. It was actually a little disappointing to have it end with him and Jan casually talking about what to eat for dinner. The drama was so important, and then deflated in the end. I think the scene of Dwight and Mose playing ping-pong was the highlight of the episode (though I did LOVE Kelly's distinction between trash talk and smack).

America's Next Top Model:
You know, I've kinda been with Bianca on Heather for a long time... she's beautiful, yes, and she seems to take a great picture and handles Jay's suggestions perfectly. But critique her and she falls apart like a house of cards. She just does not have the tough skin required for the business, and if she wins, it could destroy her.

Kitchen Nightmares:
Boring. I actually have the second half of it still running in the other room as I type this, and stopped watching. Yawn. That said, if you want to see Gordon Ramsay in a HILARIOUS scene with Ricky Gervais, check it out:



Pushing Daisies:
LOVE LOVE LOVE. See post from yesterday.

Gossip Girl:
I still like this show, and its soapy goodness. I'm glad Nate didn't go through with what his parents wanted, because he's right: I saw Blair all excited on the bed thinking they're going to get back together, and all I could see her was as a socialite years from now, alone while her husband is off with another woman. So I'm glad he saw the error of his ways early. Why am I talking about this show so seriously? It's campy awesome. :)

Dirty Sexy Money:
Haven't seen this week's yet, but last week was just too tied up in the whole quest for Nick's father's killer. I hate that storyline, and just want to focus on the Darlings.

The Next Great American Band:
OK, I've been wanting to post on this show FOREVER now. No one is talking about this show, for some reason, like it's the poor man's American Idol, but I am SO completely hooked. This show is where bands perform for the lead singer of the Goo Goo Dolls, Sheila E. (!) and some judge from Australian Idol named Dicko. (Seriously.) Unlike Simon Cowell, who just says stuff to be funny, this guy is good. Every time a band performs my husband and I are critiquing them for one thing or another, and 80% of the time Dicko says exactly what we'd just said. He's always got good advice, even when the stupid audience is booing. Speaking of which, whenever they boo dude from the Goo Goo Dolls he gets SERIOUSLY pissed and upset and begins complaining about it like a big whiner. It's worth it just for that. :) My favourite band in the competition right now is Sixwire, a country band. Yeah, I said it. A COUNTRY band. I HATE HATE HATE country music. HATE IT. (The other day I'm in a store and over the sound system comes this line: "I want to kiss you out in the sticks/ I want to check you for ticks." I stopped what I was doing, thought, I couldn't have possibly just heard what I think I heard. And then I did. Came home, googled it, and it's apparently some huge hit for Brad Paisley. What the hell is WRONG with country music fans???? Anyway.) But Sixwire has a lead singer that looks like a slightly heftier version of Josh Holloway (if you don't believe me, tune in) and they are brilliant. There's a retro 60s band called Tres Bien, who were fun in the beginning and now are kind of boring. Last week this screechy grrl band called Rocket got booted (thankfully) but we are still subjected to the horrors of this tiny hardcore metal band called Light of Doom, where all of the members are between the ages of 9 and 11. Seriously. They were awesome in the beginning, now creepy and weird (especially since all of their moms are in the audience screaming for them and drooling... ew...) My other fave is The Clark Brothers, a sort of gospel band (yeah, I said it... oh forget it) who are unbelievable. The thing about this show is, typically the band I'd be listening to would be more along the lines of one called Dot Dot Dot, a guy who wants to be the lead singer of The Killers but appears to be too coked out to even focus on the judge's critiques, but when you're watching this show, you don't care about the STYLE of music being played, it's how good they are. And the country band is stellar, as is The Clark Brothers (and the lead singer of the Clark Brothers is seriously hot.) Franklin Bridge is another wicked band, and they play sort of a funk/rock thing, kinda Jimi Hendrix. It's on tonight: TUNE IN. I love this show... it's seriously addictive. Unlike the trumped-up karaoke night that is American Idol. The best part? You don't have to suffer through an annoying results show. Instead, they make everyone prepare a song for the following week, and then one by one they announce the bands who made it, and they come out and perform. At the end there are 2 bands left in the green room (which is, literally, green), and they're booted. Bwaaaahahahahaha. Awesome. I have a feeling this week we'll be saying goodbye to Denver and his Mile-High Orchestra. Awesome name, but not very good.

Friday Night Lights:
The show I will miss the most (equally with Pushing Daisies) during the writer's strike. Last week Landry's dad found out what was going on, and what he decided to do as a result was nothing short of shocking. Would any of us do it for our children? Probably. That's why I love this show. Good parents teach their children it's wrong to murder. Special parents help their children cover up that murder. Awesome. Did anyone else think that Jason was going to be killed off the show two weeks ago, by the way? Whoa...

Aliens in America:
This show just cracks me up to no end. It exposes the subtle racisms that we seem to all accept, and makes them look ridiculous. This week the mom -- who talks like Margie in Fargo -- runs into the breakfast room and says, "This is my running partner I told ya about... ya know, the one with the black husband?" Last week Raja got a job working for an Indian boss in a convenience store (causing the sister to say, "What are you, a total stereotype?") and the boss kept muttering under his breath that he was a dirty dog eater. I always thought the actor who plays Raja was over the top and not particularly good, just funny for sitcom's sake, but this week when they showed him screaming in nicotine withdrawal, I thought it was some of the funniest stuff this show's ever had.

Reaper:
I think I'm behind on this one, too, but last week with Leon trapped in the snow globe was particularly hilarious. I loved the actor who played Leon, especially when you just heard his voice calling them douchebags.

Chuck:
Still one of the best new shows on TV. If you're not watching this show and they rerun it during the strike, tune in. It's SO hilarious. I love Casey, who's so hardcore and wanting to kill everyone in sight... Chuck is great, his friend Morgan is funny, Tang is awful (as bad as he is on Dexter), and the premise just doesn't get old. I love this show.

30 Rock:
Haven't watched last night's yet, but last week's was brilliant as usual. I'm so glad Alec Baldwin stuck with the show. A couple of weeks ago he was pretending to be Tracy's father and I was doubled over. Baldwin is a comic genius.

Journeyman:
A couple of weeks behind on this one too (man, all the shows I watch with my husband I'm behind on!) but while it started out strong and then faded a bit, it's definitely back on track and I think it's great. Another one to check out if you haven't yet. Now that his son also knows what is going on, it's definitely stepped up things. It's only a matter of time before they have to let the brother know what's up.

I think that's everything. I'm sure I've missed something. :) Oh, I've dropped Everybody Hates Chris. It was just getting too samey. And, you know, that extra half hour was TOTALLY eating into my week. Har.

Pushing Daisies: Bitches
It's been two weeks since the last episode, and two weeks is TOO LONG! Oh, what will I do with the writers on strike and missing my Pushing Daisies?! But the return was SO brilliant. This show has not given me a dull moment yet.

Highlights:
-the title of the episode
-That wonderful claymation moment at the beginning when we flash back to Ned's childhood
-Little Ned and Little Chuck wearing her crazy hats and looking at the moon
-EMERSON!! "That girl dropped a bomb in your subconscious with her saliva."
"Some women love like ganstas. They all like, 'Ooh, baby, you're bleedin', how did that happen?' while they're hiding a razor in their weave."
-The scene of how the polygamist died, and how he was stabbed multiple times because of his "tenacity" and slipping on the coffee, stabbing himself over and over. I was doubled over with laughter.
-the four of them going undercover to interrogate the wives, and none of them actually being very undercover
-Emerson being controlled by the dog trainer's snapper
-The Collador-Russell-a-poo
-the Snuppy's Puppies corporate headquarters, with the giant puppy rotating head
-the trio waiting in the Snuppy's breeding room, and you see a bunch of covered crates rocking back and forth with the dogs inside, breeding (ha!)

But the absolute gem of the episode was the Vertigo dream that Emerson has. I've seen that film half a million times, and to see it parodied with Emerson's head instead of James Stewart was a new level of genius for this show. I especially loved the closeup of his head, and the confused look on his face, followed by the silhouette of his body free-falling into the pies.

Wow... can this show GET any better??!! I hope so! :)

The Writer's Strike, Part 3
Our fave writers speak out about the strike. Joss Whedon:




And Damon Lindelof, here.

The Writer's Strike, Part 2
You know, I've been complaining that so many articles and blogs are being written about how the writer's strike will affect the average Joe sitting at home on his couch, yet they aren't focusing on the strike itself, what it's about, and what the writers are asking for.

And then I went and did the same thing. D'oh.

If you want a really quick and dirty explanation, this is it. It's less than 4 minutes.



Basically, the studios cut writer's residuals on home video sales by 80% in the '80s so they could fund the burgeoning home video market, and writers agreed. Two decades later, the pay cut still stands, and they make a tiny percentage of what the studio gets (for a $20 DVD, they make 4 cents). Now that same pay is being given for any internet viewings, whether it's free streaming or a paid download. The writers are simply asking for another 4 cents on both. They want 8 cents for a $20 DVD. And the studio says that's too much (?!)

You can go here to read the daily reports from the strike lines. Here's my favourite line of the bunch:

William Mapother, aka "Ethan Rom" from "Lost," walked the picket line Wednesday... BUT HE WASN'T ON THE MANIFEST!!!"

HAHAHA!

Apparently this Friday is going to be BSG picketing day, and they were joking that they'll probably do it in costume. WICKED.

Let's show our support to those writers. Our TV season could be over because the stupid networks won't recognize the importance of them.

Think of it this way, for Office fans (the Office writers have a great complaint YouTube video here, including Ryan, Toby, and Kelly, who are all writers on the show): Two weeks ago we saw an awesome and hilarious episode where Stanley was going to quit. This past week, featuring exactly the same cast but a different writer (Steve Carell, unfortunately), the show was a dud, and other than Michael singing falsetto in the woods, I barely chuckled at all. It's not the cast of a show that can make or break it, despite how much we love this cast. It's the writers.

You can sign the petition to support them here.

Lost: Mobisodes
Are you dying for Lost to start up in 2008? Worried how the writer's strike will affect it? Wondering if Jack ever had a nice moment with his dad?

Worry no further: The little Lost mobisodes have begun as of today. From now until the show begins in February 2008, the ABC website will be featuring little "missing pieces" of previous episodes so we can see a little bit more of each character. Of course, this could end up being about as gripping as those previews were last year for the show to begin in February 2007, but so far the first one was actually pretty compelling, considering it's only 2 minutes and 40 seconds. And -- shockingly -- they're allowing people who don't live in the U.S. to actually watch them.

Go here to see the episode, and there will be a new one every week.

Writer's Strike
Several people have been asking me what my thoughts are on the writer's strike, and I've had a few newspaper columnists emailing me asking for a quote or two on it. So I thought I'd finally blog on it, if for no other reason than to get more answers from you on my comments board.

Before the writers walked on Monday (when the original date was set for midnight on Halloween) I'd read a lot about it, and several points kept popping up. If the writers walked, the following would happen:
*late night talk shows would cease immediately, since a lot of their subject matter is based on things that happened that day
*daytime talk shows would probably have 3 or 4 eps in the can, and then they, too, would stop
*soap operas have sketchy story lines that would get them through November, but by December they'd be doing clip shows or reruns (of soaps?! I don't think I've ever seen a soap rerun in my life, but wouldn't it be cool to go through the vaults and show people old episodes from 20 years ago?) But seriously, I thought this was kind of funny... I mean, don't soaps usually write themselves? I speak as someone who hasn't watched a North American soap opera since about 1988...
*network shows would have a few episodes finished, so they could continue probably until the end of November, and then they, too, would be on indefinite hiatus
*reality television would invade our sets in droves. They do have writers, but they don't belong to the writer's guild because they, well, suck
*shows like SNL would go into immediate reruns because they're filmed, well, live

And one show just kept coming up in all the discussions: Lost. And the basic rumour was this: Since Lost has 7 or 8 episodes in the can, scheduled to run in February and March, they're WAY ahead of the game on this one. If the strike went until January and then the writers were back on the job, other network shows would be scrambling to write and film episodes for March, while Lost would be coasting through on their finished ones and would be writing for April, giving them a lot of extra time. As a result, Lost would become the blockbuster show it was in the first season, because other shows would continue to be off the air while Lost was showing super-awesome new episodes.

The best news for me (yes, even better than Lost) was that the final season of The Wire (aka the smartest television series EVER) is completely finished and in the can, and scheduled to run in January, so while the rest of television would be a vast wasteland of reality scum, The Wire would be the one shining light, and there's a chance viewers would tune in in droves, making The Wire a well-watched show. And if ANY show deserves that, it's The Wire (by the way, major Wire plug here: THERE IS NO LONGER ANY EXCUSE NOT TO WATCH THIS SHOW. I was in Costco the other day and all seasons are there for $38.99... seriously. For an HBO show... not $80, not $100, but $38.99. Please buy this, watch it, and be blown away. I cannot stress this enough).

And then... the writers went on strike. And suddenly there's a WHOLE new tune being played.

For, it seems that those writers? Well, they plan on being out for a VERY LONG TIME. As in, rest of the television season long. Which means Lost has 8 episodes of 16, and no more. Word came out at the beginning of this week that Team Darlton was looking to pull the show completely, and that season 4 would start in February 2009, not 2008. I think that spells DISASTER. Fans are already grumbling about waiting almost a year, do they honestly think they'll wait TWO? Especially when the time between the DVD and the show will be about 15 months? Uh uh... won't happen.

Today ABC announced that regardless of what happens, they will run the first 8 episodes starting in February. This has Darlton a little worried, because they now believe that running 6 episodes of season 3 in the fall of 2006 before a 3-month hiatus was a huge mistake, and they think if it's done again... bigger mistake.

So what will happen? Will Lost go off the air indefinitely, probably spelling the end of the series? Will they run the first 8 episodes and then disappear, ruining the momentum of the season?

Man, this is worse than if Nikki and Paulo were resurrected... oh wait... what am I saying...

And I'm not even talking about the rest of our shows. The Office may be going into hiatus effective immediately, and they'll either show reruns of the American version, or there's talk of airing the UK original version with Ricky Gervais (which I love, but I've already seen -- several times -- so I don't need to see it again). 30 Rock, Ugly Betty (which is REALLY GOOD this season!), Heroes (which, um... isn't, but I'd still miss it terribly), Friday Night Lights (Nooooooo!), etc.

And what about the new shows? Pushing Daisies just got a full season order, will it ever make it to a season 2 if season 1 isn't allowed to finish? (WAAAAAAAAAHH!) I also adore Chuck, Journeyman, Reaper, Gossip Girl, Dirty Sexy Money... what will happen to them?

And think of the DVD sales (or lack thereof). How do you sell a season when you only have about 6 episodes, and yet the show hasn't even been cancelled?

That's another trend that's been apparent this season -- nothing's being cancelled. It's like the networks needed to hold onto every last show in the hopes that they might be able to stagger them through the season or something.

One thing that's showing through as a major strength in all of this is the cable programming. As I said, The Wire is already in the can. Dexter is finished, and is running right now and will continue to run to the end of the season. The final season of The Shield is also finished, and scheduled to begin in the new year. Maybe other series need to look to this model as the one to follow. Get an entire season written and shot before airing the first episode. But that takes big bucks, and the networks can't pony up for that the way HBO can.

But HBO will be the clear (and only) winner in all of this, I think. Next year's Emmy Awards will go to HBO because it was the only one with complete seasons. But what about this time next year? If HBO has to work a year in advance, then a year from now they won't have any shows, because none were written. So this will affect the cable networks much later, whereas the big networks will be affected immediately.

Or... they could just admit the writers are the most important people on a tv show, give in to their demands, and get their damn shows back on the air. Because the alternative seems to spell disaster.

Random Things for a Tuesday
For anyone who doesn't watch Heroes, scroll down for pictures of supercute kids instead. :)

Ok, so last week I said Heroes was a little better than the week before, and got beat up on the comments board, but I'm going to say it again. It was better this week, and actually ended with a very intriguing cliffhanger! Could Takezo's entire story have been set up by Adam just to change history?? Hiro was more charming in the one-minute scene with Ando than he's been all season.


However, it's still not anywhere NEAR what it was the first season, and every week is exposing the inadequacies of the show more and more. In the past week I've been thinking about the show a lot (and have decided, for now, I'm not sure if it's worth devoting an entire blog post to it anymore). We're supposed to assume that the action we see week to week is happening simultaneously, right? So how is it that Peter meets his Oirish Garl in Cork, gets to know her, falls in lust, sees her brother get killed, travels to Montreal, and time travels.... and in that same time the Dunder Twins travel 50 feet to the Mexican border? Maybe we're not supposed to see it as simultaneous.... hm.


Anyway, this week had too much Niki, and the momentary return of DL (no, GOD NO, not MORE of that family, we're supposed to be killing them off one by one) but happily, no Monica or Micah. Whew. But no Sylar, either, and he's been awesome this season, unlike everyone else.


Hiro's back, so FINALLY no more Japan, which is a blessing. Moronder looks like more of an idiot than usual, and now spills his master plan to Bob. (Sigh.) The Flying Doofus finds out his girl is the daughter of his nemesiseses when HRG shows up, and HRG blows his top when he discovers Claire's been dating a guy and using her powers for stupidity.


I was a little disappointed with the Matt storyline. It seems like in one week Kring's decided to suddenly jump the story forward, despite plodding it along for weeks, and Matt takes down Daddy and saves Molly a wee bit too easily for me.


And where the hell is Elle? Was Kristen Bell (whoa... check out my ell rhymes there) just dangled in front of our faces to make us think Veronica was coming back? I want more Elle.


So I know it's a week past Halloween, but I want to post pics of my little kiddies in their costumes anyway. I rarely post pics of my kids on here, but they're just too cute for words, so here they are:
























That's my daughter Sydney as the cutest chicken ever, and Liam as a superhero. I'm not sure what his powers are, but they've got to be more interesting than any of the ones this season on Heroes.



I didn't get a chance to post on Pushing Daisies last week, but it SO rocked. Emerson and Olivia are the greatest characters on TV right now. LOVE THEM. There were so many moments where I was howling. I wish I had time to list them all.




My brother showed me this last week and I thought it was hilarious. It's funny the first time you watch it, funnier the second, and hysterical the third time. This is a British comedy duo called Mitchell and Webb, and I could watch this all day. Dundundundundundundun-Dundundundundundun-Dundada-da-da!!

I think my pal CK will like that one. Speaking of her, another thing that's made me howl recently was posted on her site. She and I are big fans of finding crazy Bollywood musical clips on YouTube, and she's found the mother of all of them. Go to her site and check it out there. It's priceless (even if you don't like Bollywood musicals, you'll find this funny). Enjoy!

UPDATE: I realized that link no longer works, so try this one.

Finding Lost Contest Winner!

Hello all! I posted a contest a couple of weeks ago, and thanks to it being mentioned on a couple of Lost sites, I had a lot of entries in the end, and I want to thank everyone who entered. I loved reading your entries, and what I've decided to do is post my favourite response here, and leading up to Lost I'll post some of my other faves. Maybe together we can lure back some of the "lost" Lost viewers through your heartfelt pleas. :)

It was a really tough decision, and in the end I've decided to give away two books. One for someone who won the contest, and one as just an extra gift to someone who made me laugh out loud. I randomly chose Heroes as the television show that these hypothetical one-time Lost viewers defected to, and as a result I inadvertently received a lot of contest entries bashing Heroes and showing the love for Lost, and that's not what I meant when I was posing the question. My bad: as much as Heroes is rubbing me the wrong way this season, I certainly wasn't looking to come down on it as the worst show or anything (I reserve that for According to Jim...) However, one entry in particular that chose that road made me laugh out loud, and I thought it was brilliant. So I shall give away two books as a result.

The entry that actually wins the contest is from Christopher Cross. He doesn't give away any spoilers (a man after my own heart) yet he brings up almost all of the high points of the show in such a mysterious way that I think he'd manage to lure back a ton of fans. In fact, in my own plea, which I will post before the February return of the show, I think I'll use his same tactic and list off my favourite things without giving anything away. So without further ado, here's the winning entry who is speaking to the Lost defectors in general:

Dear Bandwagon jumper,
While I won't take the David Chase way of handling fans, I will state that you do have one strike against you for leaving your favorite show in favor of something else with mediocre plotting and storylines (Yes, I am looking at you Heroes and Grey's Anatomy). But here you are reading this probably trying to figure out if you should run out and buy that Lost - Season 3 dvd and maybe catch up on what turned out to be, arguably, Lost's strongest season creatively.


Since I am believer in second chances, I have done you the favor of making a list of the top then things you missed out on without actually telling you anything that happened. No spoilers here! So here we go...


Top ten things you missed while you were away (without spoilers)
10. You missed how Locke ended up in the wheelchair.
9. You missed the guest appearance of Cheech Marin
8. You missed Kate and Juliet frolicking around the jungle in the rain together (I guess this only applies to guys)
7. You missed Sawyer in numerous scenes w/o his shirt...also in the rain (This applies to women?)
6. You missed some of the best scenes ever between two actors at the top of their game ( Terry O'Quinn & Michael Emerson). Both were nominated for the same Supporting Actor award at the Emmy's this year. Terry (Locke) won!
5. You missed Desmond's one of a kind backstory.
4. You missed the "real" Sawyer revelation.
3. You missed the Ben backstory
2. You missed the departure of one of the most beloved characters on the show.
1. You missed the greatest cliffhanger in television history (and this is not even close, therefore it's not up for debate)


Runner ups: A family connection amongst a few of our Losties. The emergence of Juliet as another strong female character. The return of an old friend. Did someone say Boone?


Lost has three seasons left before it's over and gone. Sure you can wait until then and buy all the dvds. But then you will miss out on the fun as it unfolds. You will risk the chance of someone ruining it for you by letting the cat out of the bag.


PS: Were you watching Heroes this season and thinking "Wow, I am digging Nathan Petrelli's I-am-depressed-so-that-I-am-going-to-rock-a-ratty-beard-look?" Well, I have news for you. Lost did it first! Wink Wink.


Namaste

Now, the other winner, who answered my question as it was posed by showing why Lost was better than Heroes as Chris Martin (and no, I don't have a thing for guys named Chris... it just happened that way). He chose to send me his entry as a graphic, following my request to be as crazy and unorthodox in your responses as you'd like to be, and he gave us a chart showing why Lost is heads and tails above Heroes. If you're trying to lure back the particular Lost fans who defected to Heroes, this is the way to do it. Great job, Chris, and thanks for giving me such a laugh. I hope y'all enjoy his entry as much as I did! It might be a little hard to read, so I've put a translation underneath:

First boxes have pictures of Sayid and Moronder: Sayid's says, "Middle Easterner with amazing instincts." Moronder's says, "Middle Easterner with not-so-amazing instincts." Second line says, "Audience can find subtle numbers throughout the episodes." Heroes column says, "Audience is hit over the head with the same symbol over and over." Third line says, "Dramatic kite-flying scene" with a pic of Jack and Skank Ling. Heroes column says, "Dramatic double-dutch scene." (He calls a draw on that one.) Fourth line has a pic of Rose saying, "If you say live together, die alone one more time I'm going to punch you in the face." Heroes column says, "Save the cheerleader, save the world." Final line, my fave, says in the Lost column "Finale blows our minds." Heroes column: "Finale blows." Ha!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered, and keep checking back here for postings of the honourable mentions leading up to the February premiere of our favourite show!

The Finer Things, Indeed
It just keeps getting better. Last night's episode of The Office was Joss Whedon's second directorial foray on The Office, and it was almost as funny as his previous one (though topping Michael's awkward speech at Ryan's business school and Dwight chasing a bat through the office would be a feat unto itself). Stanley says he's going to take a job at the Utica branch, and Michael and Dwight carry out a cockamamie scheme to sabatoge the Utica branch to show them just how supercool they are. Karen returned as the regional manager of that branch, and by the end of the episode it was clear that the main criterion for becoming a regional manager is being slightly unstable.

Meanwhile, back at the office, we find out that Pam, Toby, and Oscar are all participants in the VERY EXCLUSIVE Finer Things club, where they read books, discuss paintings, and eat cucumber sandwiches in an attempt to escape the drudgery of life at Dunder-Mifflin. Michael and Dwight kidnap Jim and pull him into their scheme to go to Utica, and we see Jim angrier than ever (seriously, he was so angry I thought someone had done something to Krasinski to make him act like that). He's so ticked that Michael and Dwight have pulled him into their stupid prank, and clearly thinks he's above them, yet by the very end, when Pam allows him to join her club, we see that he's actually just a rung or two above them, and in the end is a bit of a doofus himself. (But a less terrorist-looking one.)

Fave moments:
Stanley's deadpan questioning of Michael's stupid Ferris Bueller dummy: "I don't understand why sleeping at your desk is better than you not being here."

Michael: "You cannot take the hilarious black guy from the office!"

Stanley saying "Money" over and over while Michael tries to talk to him.

Oscar: "Besides having sex with men, I would say the Finer Things club is the gayest thing about me." (I loved how soon they flash to Toby after he makes this comment... Toby is clearly only in the club because Pam is.)

Michael trying to get Karen to take Toby, and then acting like there's something disgusting in his mouth and blurting out: "I can't do it. Toby is the worst... that was a bluff."

Michael asking Karen to put her through to her best salesperson. Ha!

Michael's awkward discussion with Ben Nugent, the top salesman in Utica. "Aren't you the guy that hit the woman with the car?... Didn't everyone from Stamford quit immediately??"
Michael: "No, I fired them, and you're next." [pause] "So what do you say?"
Ben: "Seriously?!"

Toby standing in the doorway with his china mugs and bowtie, and Michael's response: "Oh... my... god. That's why people are leaving. I have no words."

"Utica! Utica! Utica!"

Jim's serious anger when they throw his cell out the window. Krasinski is really believable in this scene; I thought he was going to quit the show at one point. (I do love that they go back for his phone when he says it has pics of his brother's kid on it.)

The look on Jim's face when they have materials to build a bomb in the back of their car. "Are you kidding me? We've been driving around with this in the trunk the entire time?"

The mustaches.

The name tag on Jim's outfit that says "Madge."

The freakout in the car when they catch Dwight peeing in a can. "OH MY GOD!" Michael veering the car.
Jim: "Michael! Watch the road!"
Dwight: "Hey! You're making me spray!"
Michael: "How could you? That's disgusting, man!"
Dwight: "Ah! I think I cut my penis on the lid!"

Andy trying to get into the Finer Things club.
Andy: "The Finer Things club is the most exclusive club in this office. Naturally it's where I need to be. The party planning committee is my backup, and Kevin's band is my safety."

The fact that Dwight, Michael, and Jim sitting in the car in grey outfits with thick mustaches makes them look like a bunch of terrorists.

Dwight insisting he needs to put the chalk in the guy's eyes, and Jim saying "Nothing in the eyes!"

Jim putting his seat all the way back in the car.

Andy referring to Stanley as his Uncle Remus.

Dwight updating Jim way too much on the walkie. "We are climbing some stairs. I am breathing heavily."

Dwight: "I can see the security guard's eyes. I have to do something to his eyes!!"

"The eyes are the groin of the head."

The look on Jim's face as they dump the photocopier down the stairwell.

Jim trying to hide when Karen returns, and Michael urging him to make love to her. "Just climb on top of her and think about Stanley." HAHAHA!!!

Dwight keeping his mustache on after Michael and Jim take theirs off while Karen is interrogating them.

Michael and Dwight threatening to "burn Utica to the ground."

Michael giving Stanley the plastic USPS box that's not his property. "Fly away, sweet little bird. Fly away."

Michael's want ad: "Wanted. Middle aged black man with sass. Big butt. Bigger heart." HA!

Stanley: "How on earth did Michael call my bluff? Is he some kind of crazy genius?" Starts laughing. "I'm sorry, sometimes I say crazy things."

The outfits everyone is wearing during the Angela's Ashes discussion.

Jim: "I really liked it. It was a fun read."
Toby: "Fun? Really? What was fun about it, the death of the twins?"
Jim: "No... that wasn't fun."
Oscar: "Who's the main character?"
Jim: "Angela. Nope. The ashes."

Oh...My...GOD
There's a scene in the book, Shelf Monkey, where a bookstore employee -- on Halloween, no less! -- runs through the store after having heard the best news she's heard all year, yelling, "OhmyGODohmygodohmygawdohmygodOHmyGODohMYgawd..." It's November 1st, so imagine me without the Halloween costume, but running through my house, sleeping infant in my arms, whispering the same words with gleeful excitement.

Then imagine me reading the REST of the article and slumping to the couch in dire disappointment.

Yes folks... I have awesome news, awesomer news, and terrible news. Prepare thyself.

Awesome news: Joss Whedon has developed a new sci-fi TV show and IT HAS BEEN PICKED UP!!!!!!

Awesomer news: His star? Eliza Dushku. GAAAAH!

And now, the terrible news...

It's been picked up by FOX.

Sigh... Joss, how could you?? Didn't you learn from the perils of your buddy, Tim Minear? Didn't they hurt you enough when they killed Firefly? Haven't you noticed that sci-fi + Fox = certain cancellation??

For now, let's rally together and vow to get every friend, family member, enemy, and casual passerby to watch this new show. If it can get the numbers of "When Good Chickens Go Bad" then they'll be sure to keep it...

Oh come on, a girl can dream, can't she??

The new show will be called Dollhouse (love the title already!) and here's the basis:

"Dollhouse" will feature Dushku as Echo, part of a group of young people programmed with different personalities and skills for different assignments (the trades are a little fuzzy on what these "assignments" consist of or who's sending the people on said assignments). In between gigs, their minds are wiped clean and they return to live in a lab/dorm known as the Dollhouse. Things go a wee bit pear-shaped when Echo begins having actual memories and she tries to seek information about her past.

Variety quotes Dushku as saying, "He's my favorite genius," Dushku said. "And my favorite friend. He's been like a big brother ... and the only person out here I've ever wholeheartedly trusted, because he's never let me down."

Aw... and the always funny Joss says, "It was a mistake!" Whedon said. "I sat down with her to talk about her options, and acted all sage, saying things backwards like Yoda and laying out what I thought she should do. But in the course of doing it, I accidentally made one up. I told it to her, and she said, 'That's exactly what I want to do.' "

You can read articles on it here and here. In the meantime, who wants to take out the URL, http://www.savedollhouse.com/??

Heroes: The Line

A wee bit better, but one thing is for certain: in a season that's nowhere near as good as the first, Zachary Quinto's Sylar stands out above everyone else on the show. The scenes with him are terrifying and as good as anything in season 1. It was nice to see HRG all badass again.

Peter: He and his girlo head to Moan-tree-al, as Americans pronounce it, where they find a note from Monroe, the guy Bob has warned Mohinder about. Then they teleport to an apocalyptic NY in June 2008, in one of the most fake uses of a green screen I've ever seen. It was SO clear they were standing on a soundstage with a photoshopped picture of Times Square in the background, right down to the echo of their voices. Now both Peter and Nathan have seen this.

Claire: Last season we were led to believe that when times get tough, certain humans evolve to become heroes. This season we've learned that superpowers have been given to certain people so that they'll either totally rock in double-dutch, or they can play practical jokes on the bitchy cheerleading captains. While the trick was kind of funny, last season it seemed these heroes had a purpose, something their powers were given to them for, and this season they're just horsing around with them. I think that's the main reason why this season just isn't working with fans. Is Tim Kring a one-trick pony? Did he look beyond season 1 at all? Is there a second act?? At least on Lost, CC and DL had a vision. I don't think Kring knows what the heck is going on anymore, because this season doesn't seem to be leading up to anything.

Moronder: He finally grows a pair and refuses to inject Monica with the new virus, and instead storms into the room where Bob is standing and hurls a syringe against the wall, no doubt sending that live virus flying all over the room. Let's hope it wasn't airborne. Where the heck did this guy go to school?!

HRG and Haitian: They go to see Ivan, HRG's old "friend," who knows where the paintings are hidden, and these scenes were particularly compelling. The Haitian removes all traces of the memory of the early years with his wife, including their marriage and honeymoon, and the guy finally spills all when HRG threatens to remove the memories of his deceased daughter. And then he shoots the guy anyway. Wow... These scenes also reminded me of season 1, especially when he nonchalantly stops in the middle of the torture session to answer a phone call from Claire Bear.

Nikki and Paulo The Wonder Twins The Whiny Twins Alejandro and Maya: Alejandro, i.e. the non-stupido, says he doesn't trust good ol' Gabe, and he's right. Sylar sucks up Maya's power, or at least tries to, while she kills several rednecks hanging out on the U.S. border trying to keep those dang Mexicans outta their country. Then, in the best scene in the episode, he tells Alejandro he's going to kill him and his sister as soon as he's done sucking up their powers... but he does so in English, a language Alejandro can't speak.

Hiro: He finally steps on that cockroach in the past and alters the future, kissing the girl and pissing off Kensei, who turns them all over to the dogs. One question: if guns had been outlawed in Japan, how did her father know how to make them?

Monica: Bob leaves her be (yeah, right), with a file of phone numbers to call in case of emergency, and an iPod with every skill she might ever need on it. I'm sure The Company will totally leave her alone now. (Actually, if they do, then this show really HAS lost it.) Cheesiest line: "Look around: it seems this town could really use some amazing."

Nikessica: Says she's Moronder's new partner (great... Dumb and Dumber are reunited). And she's clearly not Niki, despite Doofus thinking she is.

The paintings: Looks like Niki pounding on a door, Hiro and Kensei fighting, a crazed Nathan holding a gun, a hand holding a vial of the virus, presumably... what DOES it mean?

So what do the paintings mean? Who is Adam Monroe and why did he know Peter could get there? Next week's preview shows a bunch of more interesting characters coming back, and Bob saying Peter is the line... ooh. Looks like it might actually be a really good one (and for Canadians, it's at a different time, so just check the PVRs for that).

Dexter: Season 2
No Spoilers here for anyone who hasn't been watching yet:
When I saw the last season of Dexter, it followed the mystery of the ice truck killer, a serial killer who was murdering women and draining them of blood, and who started sending messages to Dexter... ALSO a serial killer (by night; by day he's the forensics blood spatter expert trying to find other killers). By the end of the season, the storyline had taken a turn that made the show brilliant, but it also made me wonder how the heck they could go onto a season 2? And then, this year, I saw exactly how they could do it.

If you're not watching this show, you should be. Go back to season 1, watch it, and then start in on season 2. You will not be disappointed. I will tell you now -- it's gory, it's dark, and you might want to stop after the first episode or two. But trust me: Stick with it. It's genius, and surprisingly, HILARIOUS. Seriously. The darkest of dark humour, but hilarious nonetheless.

Sunday night's episode was awesome. I can't tell you how many times I gasped, or put my hand over my mouth, or said, "oh my GOD" out loud, etc. All in one hour. And now... the spoilers for those watching: Just highlight the paragraph below (if you're not watching, stop reading here and skip down to the next part).

Last night's episode revealed that not only did Dexter's foster father KNOW Dex's mother, but he put her in the container as bait, promised that nothing would happen to her, AND seemed to have been having an affair with her. Through the help of his new Narcotics Anonymous sponsor, he hunts down the one man still alive who murdered his mother, and when they finally come face to face you think this guy is SO gonna get it... and then he doesn't, because the sponsor is able to pull him out of the situation. Meanwhile his sister is dating a guy who she can't trust because the last guy tried to kill her, and when she finds out he's selling a book to publishers called The Ice Princess, she thinks it's a tell-all about his relationship with her, only to discover he writes children's books. AND THEN the episode ends with Dexter spraying his boat for blood still on it with a fluorescent light, and the camera pulls back to reveal the cops have put CCTV on the docks, and someone has just seen Dexter erasing his tracks. I cannot wait to see how he gets out of this one.

Season 1 was all about Dexter finding out that there's someone out there just like him, because he went through the same hell Dexter did. Season 2 is about who Dexter really is, and why he is the way he is, and whether or not he is able to change himself. I think this show is amazing, and why Michael C. Hall hasn't gotten an award for this is just insane.

Dexter airs in Canada on The Movie Network Sunday nights at 10pm, the same time as new episodes air on Showtime in the U.S. Please check it out!

Heroes recap coming soon!

A Few of My Favourite Things
(plucking daisy petals): I love the show... I adore the show... I love the show... I adore the show... I love the show... I adore the show!! Yes, Pushing Daisies continues to be my big love of the fall 2007 TV season. This week's highlights all involved a pigeon that Ned accidentally brings back to life. From Olive and Vivian singing They Might Be Giants' "Birdhouse in your Soul" in the backseat of the old car Lily was driving to Lily putting a new wing on the bird using a bejeweller, to the crazy fake bird that was flying in the sky, the whole bird storyline reached the sublime this week. Chuck and Ned dancing at the end in their beekeeper suits... who knew that a lack of touching could be so darned romantic??


This week's The Office was also hilarious. Fave moments:

• Michael using the word "urban" as a synonym for African-American (Phyllis is a less-urban Aunt Jemima)
• Jim saying people think Dunder-Mifflin sells mufflers, muffins, or mittens
• Jim's Second Life avatar: "Philly Jim" as Pam called him, and the fact he's not the Jim we know, which led a friend of mine to comment that we really don't know Jim at all, come to think of it...
• Kevin doing his Kool-Aid Man face
• Andy unable to figure out the ad for "Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat Bar." (Best line is when he comes up with applesauce, and the look on Jim's face.)
• Meredith saying she's not used to so many people being around when making videos
• Dwight's happiness at hearing that Angela said, "Oh, D," when making out with Andy (and Andy thought it was Dee for An-Dee).
• Pam clearing Michael's phone lines: "Beep beep beep beep! Okay, clear."
• Darryl's jingle, and how good it was: "Dunder-Mifflin, the people person paper people!"

Of course, all of that led up to the brilliant commercial that Michael had done. The writers on the show could have gone for the low comedy on this one, and just made it the worst commercial ever. But instead they let him make something that on the surface appeared to be a pretty effective commercial, with paper being used everywhere, until the entire thing is undercut by the final words: "Dunder Mifflin: Limitless paper, in a paperless world." And then you realize the futility of it all -- all of the things you saw paper being used for in the ad have been replaced by the Internet, or in the case of the Dwight/Phyllis scene, SPEECH. ;) I LOVED that he cast Stanley as the criminal by the side of the road, and then it cuts to the guy having a job at Dunder-Mifflin, causing viewers to wonder just what kind of person is being hired at DM. Or that the one artist in the company actually uses computers to make her art, and not paper. It was genius. (Did anyone else think the actual Dunder-Mifflin ad sucked?)

The last two weeks have turned Dwight into a seriously sad character. Last week when Jim found him moaning in his room I almost cried myself, it was so sad. This week watching him watching his second life self flying through the streets was heartbreaking. (Though the fact he's the same person in both lives is hilarious.) I was so happy to see him smile again.

Just a quick note that the Lost contest has been extended to November 5. I've only received a few entries, and a lot of emails from people saying they already bought it. So I'll extend it, and if I don't get more entries I'll postpone it until Lost is actually coming back. :) Thanks to those who have entered so far!

The Lost Curse Continues...
And now, Daniel Dae Kim has been arrested for DUI. What is WITH that show?! The article makes a valid point, something my husband and I wonder aloud every time a celebrity is caught with a DUI -- can't they afford drivers? Or a cab? What is WRONG with them? Keifer Sutherland would rather have his mug on the front of the papers after trying to kill several people with his car than pay a guy to sit in the car all night and wait for him. And apparently it's in the contracts of the Lost cast to NEVER give your keys away if you're a little tipsy. I think this cast needs a serious seminar on what to do when you've been drinking and need to get home. Either that or complete prohibition. Man...

My First PVR Casualties
Well, it was too good to last. I've finally deleted two "events" from my PVR. The first... Bionic Woman. I can't believe this is the same show I was SO excited about all summer long. But after 5 weeks (feels like 15) it is so dull dull dull and dead boring. Every episode is exactly the same and goes absolutely nowhere. You know what, David Eick? Forget hiring writers. I'll give you the skeleton script you've been working with, and you just need to fill in the "bad guy of the week."

Intro:
Jaime sits alone in a room while emo music plays, rain falling against the window, sad about her lot in life.

Cut to Sarah, threatening someone. Probably has the shakes, or not, depending on if she's had her fix.

Back to Jaime and her sister, and Jaime lies to her sister, sister looks suspicious.

Jaime at the agency, and the bald guy (I haven't bothered to learn names) mentions she's worth $50 million.

Jaime figures out some new part of herself, but in the heat of battle, takes something like 10 minutes to actually use it.

Cut to Jaime doing martial arts with Asian guy, while Asian guy thinks about Sarah.

Sarah meets up with Jaime, threatens her sister.

Jaime goes back agency, yells that she's her own person and they don't own her. They talk her into doing the mission anyway. INSERT MISSION OF THE WEEK.

Sister finds out Jaime's lying about something. Sarah is caught. Then gets away. Threatens someone. Vows to get Jaime.

Jaime goes home to her sister, they argue, emo music plays, she tells her sister how much she means to her.

END.

Blah.

The second show is Cane. It started out great, but now it just feels week after week like King Lear meets The Godfather. Brothers all stabbing each other in the back, no one is loyal to the family, dad's going to die, Mom is all pretty and dominant. I just cannot get past the incestuous relationship between Smits and his wife, and the terrible casting. They cast some woman in her mid-30s to be married to Smits, in his mid-50s. Every time she walks on screen I think it's his daughter, until he kisses her in the way you don't kiss a daughter. I find it boring, and just don't have time for it with other good things on TV.

And one of those good things is Pushing Daisies, which I'm THRILLED to report has been picked up for a whole season!!!!! YAY ABC!!! I'm so happy. (Thanks for the link, Sarah!)

Heroes: Fight or Flight
Sorry it's taken me so long to get around to posting this. While I don't think Kristen Bell has saved Heroes, I think last night's episode was by far the best of the season. I was so happy to enjoy so much of it. There has been FAR too much exposition and lead-up in recent episodes, and finally there's intrigue and some revelations.

Not to mention... ding dong, the leprechaun's dead! RIP, boyo.

Elle: We don't know too much about her... she might be Bob's daughter, or the daughter of someone else, but she's someone's daughter. She shoots electricity from her fingertips (OOH, never seen THAT power before!) Ahem. Looking forward to more Veronica coolness in upcoming eps.

Peter: He knows his name but is upset that his little box doesn't reveal much more, until he goes all white-eyed and begins painting. It was great to have the throwback to Isaac from last season, and to get a hint of things to come, even if it's not clear what's up. I don't see the chemistry between him and the Oirish girl, though, so that's a little much. Apparently Montreal is in his future. Go, Canada!

Hiro/Ando: Interesting that Ando takes the strips to a forensics person to try to read them more easily, but will that give anything away? (I thought the forensics guy was hilarious... "Does Hiro survive?!" "How would I know?" haha!) Hiro is more and more in love with the girl, but if there's one person who will set aside his own needs for the greater good, it's Hiro. Can he do this? And how exactly will they take on such a giant army?

Monica: So it's not just TV, but she can copycat anything. Think of the possibilities of this one! She didn't really intrigue me last week, but this week she was more interesting. She can be a pro wrestler, or Glenn Gould. Though killer piano skills probably won't help her much in the next Kirby Plaza showdown...

Micah: Dull, dull, dull. He says to Monica that she must miss her mother, who is dead, and then says "I miss my mom, too." Um... what about your DAD, who is dead? I realize DL hasn't really been in Micah's life lately, but you'd think the kid would miss him just a wee bit and be a little down about it, but he acts like it never happened. Weird.

Matt: After a domestic dispute with his new live-in partner, Mohinder, he heads off to find the Bogeyman, a.k.a. Daddio. This was definitely the best part of the episode, as he hooks up with Nathan (who looks like hell) to go to Dad's place, only to find out he's as much of a swindler now as he ever was. He's not a mindreader: he's Freddy Kreuger, apparently. He puts Nathan and Matt into their own worst nightmares, and then walks away, leaving them there (did anyone else notice when Matt pushes Nathan off him, he clocks Adrian Pasdar's face onto the door frame? OUCH.) It looks like Janice was actually the woman who gave birth to the 17-pound baby in Siberia, and they named it Gigantor (did you SEE the massive arm on that kid??) It sounds like Janice had the child, told Matt it wasn't his, but he knew deep down it was, and left her anyway. (She must have told him this before the baby was born; isn't all of this supposed to be just 4 months later? Janice wasn't even showing at the end of last season.)

Nathan: As I was told last week by an anonymous commenter on my blog, the burn victim is indeed Nathan, and he seems to be dogging him. It's like burn victim Nathan is an alternate universe Nathan, and in his nightmare, NY was blown up. Loved that scene. Nathan has a serious dark side.

Bob: Gonna die.

Niki/Jessica: Looks like The Company is running tests to bring Jessica out, but they can't corral her when she does.

Moronder: Takes Molly to The Company, knowing they're the bad guys. Great. Nice one. How could such a hot guy be so braindead? (Don't answer that.) And now he's on Monica's doorstep. Great.

Quick reminder about the Finding Lost book contest. Send in your entries now! I forgot to mention that I won't be collecting addresses for anything, so don't worry about that. I'll delete emails when the contest is over. Looking forward to reading more entries!

Finding Lost -- Season Three: The Contest!

Hey all! My new book, the season 3 installment of Finding Lost, is finally in my hot little hands (okay, it was put there 2 weeks ago, but I move slowly these days...) and it should be available in stores probably next week (or the following, depending on how long it takes the stores to remove them from the boxes and place them on shelves) or you could order it from Amazon by clicking on the link to the left.

But in the meantime, I wanted to offer a contest to win a personalized autographed copy. All you have to do is answer this question (and there's no right or wrong) and I'll choose my favourite response and post it on my blog. Check back here and I'll announce the winner on Monday, November 5, on the blog.

Question: You have a friend/brother/sister/relative/enemy who was a diehard fan of Lost in season 1, began complaining about it a bit in season 2, and after watching the first six episodes of season 3 they quit and decided to move on to Heroes because they thought Lost was lame. And by quitting, they missed out on the best episodes the show had aired yet. So... what do you tell them to lure them back so they can return in time for season 4?

Don't post your answers on the comments board: email me privately with your response. Put the word CONTEST in the subject line. Send me funny, serious, or completely whacked responses: I am entirely objective. Unless, of course, your response is to watch season 3 for the awesomeness of Nikki and Paulo. I'll have to disqualify you right there. It takes a bigger person than me to be objective on THAT one.

I hate to limit the audience for this, but this is open to Canadians and Americans only; shipping outside of North America has become too insanely expensive, so I'll have to limit it to those, sorry!

I look forward to your responses!

Pushing Daisies, Ep 3: The Fun in Funeral
Oh my god, this show just gets better and better.... there were so many moments where I laughed out loud in this ep, and just loved every minute of it. I've already watched it twice, it was THAT good. I hope this show lasts forever.

And when I said last week that I feel like this show was written just for me, it REALLY seemed like that this week. When Emerson got stuck in the window, all I could think was that he was like Winnie the Pooh stuck in Rabbit's doorway, mostly because I had JUST read that story to my daughter last night. And then... Chuck says, "you're just like Pooh!!" and by the time she yelled, "Kick, Pooh, KICK!" and he spontaneously kicked his leg, knocking out Woodruff, I was howling (my son had just dozed off in my arms and he startled awake, I was laughing so hard).

Other fave moments:
-Emerson being so annoyed that Chuck is at his "private meeting" that he shuffles out of the booth, practically knocking her on the floor.
-Olive asking the herbal remedy salesman if he'd ever felt like the oxygen going out of the room, and the storyteller explaining that the man had a pathological fear of just that, and that he'd be sucked out of the earth's atmosphere... hahaha!!
-Olive treating him like a drug dealer: "This is a pie house, not some herbal craft den!"
-the flashback to Ned as a little kid discovering the one-minute rule
-The 1950s feel to everything -- the costumes, the cars, the decor, the travelling salesman...
-Louis wearing the Darling Mermaid Darlings T-shirt
-Aunt Lily lifting her eye patch so the pool of tears can fall out, HA!
-Olive dramatically ducking in fear as the bird flies over her during the pie delivery, and then holding her chest as she runs down the stairs... I love this actress!
-the discussion of the name of the Pie Hole
-Emerson telling Louis that The Rapture killed them all
-"Gimme your paws, Pooh!"
-the story of the Chinese slave who became a Civil War hero, and the accent Wilfred has, making him sound like he's from the deep south. I laughed out loud at the bit about his great great great great grandfather running southeast when everyone else ran north. "Some say it was the hand of destiny, while others thought it was heatstroke."
-Ned channeling his inner Jedi
-Ned listing off the choices we make in our lives and including, "Kiss her or keep her." Awww...
-"Kick, Pooh, Kick!" hahahaha... it never gets old!
-Chuck and Ned gift-wrapping all of the stolen stuff.
-The line, "I'm gonna see if I've got some plastic wrap" actually being the most romantic line I heard on TV all week.

Heroes, Ep 4: The Kindness of Strangers

Okay, any minute now this show will become a little more interesting. Everyone dumped on the beginning of season 3 of Lost saying they hated it, it was boring, they couldn't figure out what was wrong with the show, and they were jumping ship to the far superior Heroes. I argued that you can't compare one show's first season to another's third, because the first season of a show is always the one that pulls us in; it's sustaining it that is the hard part. I said it'll be interesting to see if Heroes is still this good in its season 3. Now I'm reading everywhere that people are sick of Heroes and jumping ship and complaining that they wish Lost was on because it's the better show. Ah, the fickle fan. I'm still hanging in there... I have faith it's going to get better, because of that stellar first season (minus the finale). (And, just for the record, I really liked all of Lost's season 3...)

I finally got around to reading the EW cover story from a few weeks back (the issue that had Hiro on the cover) because I didn't want to see any spoilers. In it, Tim Kring actually says that he thought most people didn't like the finale last year because they clearly couldn't follow one long complicated arc over the season (so this season will be divided into two), and because the show had done so many great things in the year it put FAR too much pressure on the finale to live up to the season. So, he concluded, they learned their lesson. So... does that mean this year will be kinda sucky so we don't have any great expectations of the finale? Not the way to go there, Tim. The other thing I'm curious about is Bryan Fuller. Watching last week's Pushing Daisies again, I saw his name on it and realized he was one of the head writers on Heroes last year, so by leaving the show to go to this one, does that mean their creative force has left? Because Pushing Daisies ROCKS, and Heroes... does not.

Maya and Alejandro: So... I've been championing the Wonder Twins as the ones I'm most interested in simply because they're new, but... um... did anyone else feel like this week they'd suddenly turned into Nikki and Paulo? They're harboring a very dark secret; they're on the run from the law; they've committed murder; they're trying to get into the U.S. illegally... and with ALL of that going on, Maya goes and spills absolutely everything to Sylar moments after finding him on the side of the road. HUH? How stupid IS she? It'll be interesting to see if Sylar is able to eventually absorb both of their powers, thus allowing him to go black-eyed and plaguey, but able to control it with Alejandro's powers. I'm still curious to see what Alejandro's absorption of her black-eyedness is actually doing to him.

Monica: Whoa. Her power is... seeing something on TV and replicating it. Like no 12-year-old has ever seen a body slam on WWE and done it to his brother. (I once worked with someone who told me her son watched a wrestling move on TV and then did it to his brother, and she took the TV, unplugged it, and put it out by the curb for garbage pickup and they never had a TV in the house again. Um... yikes?) While I thought the spin around the pole and kicking the bad guy was pretty badass, let's hope she's not watching any creepy porn any time soon. Did I miss something, or did the manager seem way off-base in telling her that her "home situation" meant she couldn't get a different job, since she lives with her brother and guardian? Um... isn't that EVERY teenager?? I could see if the rude kid at her house was actually her SON that her home life would be taken into account.

Claire: Goes to the top of the Hollywood sign so she and West can chit chat and he can dare her to jump off, saying she has to lose her fears. Which makes perfect sense, since if HE jumped, he wouldn't have to suffer the consequences of bones sticking through his skin afterwards. He seems to realize that and Claire, showing she'll do anything for Loverboy, jumps, but he catches her and they float up in the air. Bah. I hate that guy. That said, Claire comes up with a pretty brilliant plan to get onto the cheerleading squad, arguing with her dad that she wants to be "normal." Because, as we know, the majority of girls in high school were cheerleaders.

Matt: Ooh, Daddy is the Bogeyman!! I didn't see THAT coming. I'm intrigued. Very intrigued. Since this season is called Generations, I wish they'd actually move to that theme, looking at the ancestors of each of the current-day heroes and dealing with those. I thought we'd go back in time and see Linderman discovering his powers and Granny Petrelli, etc. but instead they're just being offed one by one and that seems to be it (and Takezo Kensei seems to be some sort of ancestor of Claire's, and therefore Nathan's and Granny's, if his powers being the same as hers is any indication). How is Matt going to help Molly now that she seems to be lost in her own head? Does he have to kill his own daddy in order to bring her back?

Nathan: After trying to reconnect with his sons and being sent away, he shaves, and then goes to meet with his mom and she actually seems to have a heart for the first time ever. I want to see more of this storyline. I loved the scene of her talking in Matt's head.

Micah: Sorry, but the kid who plays Micah just has NO charisma for me. His character annoyed me last season, and now he's the little polite kid with the curly hair who's so meek and sweet you just want to hit him. That said, I wanted to slap his cousin into tomorrow, too, so it looks like that family is one of extremes. Either meek as hell or rude as hell.

Absent: Niki (THANK YOU!), Peter and his Irishmen, Hiro, Ando

Next week: Kristen Bell arrives. YAY, VERONICA!!!

Other Heroes news: Here's an interesting interview with Zachary Quinto in TV Guide. Here's Matt Roush complaining about this season of Heroes. Interview with Jack Coleman. EW pleads with viewers not to give up on Heroes. And finally, George comics:

Saving the World: A Guide to Heroes

'Tis Monday, the day where we all hope that this week's Heroes will be better than previous weeks this season, and then discuss it tomorrow when I finally get my act together and post something quick on it. (Gone are the days of my long posts... sigh... okay, don't scroll down and discover that's a total lie.)

So in the meantime, I wanted to mention a new book that's out in stores now called Saving the World. This is a sometimes-academic, sometimes episode guidey companion to the show, and it's great. Full disclosure: I worked on it and helped edit it, but I work on half a dozen books a year and I only mention books occasionally on my blog. Here's the cover:

I also want to mention proudly that I'm in this book as part of the "Finale Face-Off." My blog entry on that disastrous finale appears, followed by a rebuttal by author David Lavery, and then I get the final word. So if you liked the finale and hated my post on it (or if you totally agree with me that it could have been WAY better) then check out this book. There are also chapters comparing Heroes to Lost, on how Hiro follows the journey of a question hero, on the kaleidoscope of themes, on the comic book ties of the show, and lots of tables, episode guides, encyclopedic entries, etc. It's definitely the perfect companion going into the show, and I felt much better tackling season 2 after having read it. :)

This Week's SNL Digital Short
Sometimes I wonder what the weather is like in Andy Samberg's world. I've watched this about 5 or 6 times and laugh out loud every time. Just when you think it's totally insane, it gets insaner.





P.S. This is my 300th post! Yay anniversaries. :)