Mid-Season - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

The fast-paced holiday season is luckily always balanced out by a stall in new television programming. This allows for a nearly audible brain-shift in priorities for television zombies such as myself, wherein we can, for a couple blessed weeks, stop obsessing over how Elena just NEEDS to stop fooling herself and just KISS Damon already... or how it's possible for a show with a cast like Ringer to be so utterly boring... or how down-right A-MAZING Emily VanCamp is at getting Revenge. Instead, we use our otherwise wasted brain-power to concentrate on the important things, ie; stealing holiday goodies from the workplace, mentally forcing ourselves to go the gym to work off said holiday goodies, shopping endless hours for the perfect present for our boss (what, we can't BUY a work promotion?) and making sure our homes are the picture of gaudy (or classy) holiday celebration. And, if you're like me, discover that somehow our DVR is still filled to the brim with recorded shows (damn you holiday specials!).

Despite the onslaught of holiday responsibilities, let's find some time to sit back and discuss the first part of this television season.

Let's start with what DID NOT work for me:

A Gifted Man - I tried, I really, really did try. I adore Patrick Wilson and I have respected Jennifer Ehle ever since I first watched the BBC version of Pride & Prejudice, but this show was just too slow and God-awful boring. Despite Wilson's tremendous acting presence and even his semi-interesting character, there was still not enough to keep me hooked. After four or so episodes, I let it go.

Person of Interest - This show had the same problems as A Gifted Man: great cast, tedious plot lines. I just cannot seem to get into procedural dramas. No matter how you spin them, they are just about as moving as a paper clip documentary. Even Jim Caviezel's manly stubble and bad-boy, emotionally damaged lead couldn't keep me interested. Far worse, Michael Emerson was horribly under-used and his "side-kick" character too constricting for his considerable talents. After five or so episodes, I let it go the way of A Gifted Man.


What's NOT WORKING, but I'm still watching anyway:


Ringer - This is simple. My loyalty to Sarah Michelle Gellar and my interest in nearly all the male leads (Kristoffer Polaha, Ioan Gruffudd and Nestor Carbonell) are the only things tying me to this show. There are such things as good soap opera dramas... and this isn't one of them. I hate to say it, mostly because I hate to dig at anything SMG is attached to, but the truth cannot be denied; this show is a mess. I hold to the small hope that perhaps the story will get better and the twists and turns of the incredibly moronic plot lines will start making some sort of sense, but more than likely I hope in vain. I'll keep watching, but if this show fails to improve, any possible second season will have a hard time making it onto my 2012 list (and let's be honest, a second season pick-up is highly unlikely).



Supernatural - See previous post regarding this show. Season 7. *sigh* I will NEVER stop watching this show. I love the characters too much for that. However, even with Sup-shaped beer goggles on I can see the problems with this show, problems that started half-way through Season 6 and followed us into Season 7. Let's hope the writers start showing our boys some respect, cause I've just about had it with all the doom, gloom and hellfire - and not even a hint of sunlight on the road before or in front of our characters' beloved Impala.



Grimm - Grimm is one of fall's two new ventures into fairy tales and unfortunately it's the one that isn't working out very well (see Once Upon a Time below). The lead, though easy on the eyes, is less easy when it comes to the acting part of his job. As the viewer, you can't help but feel like there's nothing really to him. He gives off little to no emotional weight, especially in the high-intensity situations that he often finds himself in. Where a normal person would ogle, scream and dart away to commit themselves to the loony-bin when they see a suspect shift and morph into a feral, fairytale creature, our lead merely stands there looking confused and constipated. One of the few saving graces to this show is our lead's unwilling "side-kick", a reformed werewolf who loves Christmas and plays the cello. Actor Silas Weir Mitchell brings to Grimm all the heavy emotion that our lead fails to deliver - and he's a wonder to watch. I will keep watching if only for him, and for the Buffy connections that got me to watch in the first place.


What I am LOVING:



Revenge - This is such a given, right? If you've been anywhere near a water-cooler lately, you'll have heard of the soapy greatness of this show. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to enjoy this show as much as I have. It creeps up on you and despite your best intentions (you WERE going to watch only Emmy-worthy shows this season, right?), you can't get enough of VanCamp's cold-eyed stare and merciless hunt for revenge. And the fact that the guy from Roswell (Nick Wechsler) plays a lead character in the show doesn't hurt much either. This show is fun, campy and despite what you may think, actually a lighter fare than some of the other shows on television right now.



American Horror Story - The word "insane" barely covers it. This is one of those shows that you cannot even find words to describe, mostly because you have no idea what in the hell is going on. And somehow, it works. You can't hate crazy like this, and you certainly can't ignore crazy like this. This should have been an unmarketable show, a show that normal, non-psycho humans would take one look at and place in the "DO NOT TOUCH - NIGHTMARES" pile at home. As it turns out, my generation (and the one before it and the one after it), love bat-shit crazy shows. Go figure. And you know what? This is the most fun I've had cringing on my bed since watching the first three Freddy Kruger movies back-to-back at the tender age of 13. Bring it on, Ryan Murphy. We can take anything you throw at us - even a dead serial killer in a rubber sex suit.



2 Broke Girls - Anyone who knows me knows I'm not a sitcom-lover. I mostly stick to dramas, they are just more my speed. Every now and then I run across some really great comedies; How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, Modern Family, New Girl, Happy Endings. 2 Broke Girls is one of these hidden gems, like Revenge, that you just didn't see coming. I enjoy this show SO much and thank goodness I watch it alone, in my own home, because I would hate to laugh like this in public. Kat Dennings is my hero and I want to be her so much it hurts. I don't know much about comedy; not the timing or chemistry or any other important aspect that makes it work - but whatever it needs to work, and work well, 2 Broke Girls has it in spades.



Once Upon a Time - I heard bad reviews on this show before I even saw one scene of it. Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut. And I am so glad I did. This show may not be for everyone. Fairy tales are everywhere right now and it's only logical that people are going to start digging into our modern representations of them. In the end, it's all about the writing. Good writing can take a horrible idea and make it into gold. Bad writing can take a great idea and turn it into poo. That's the simple truth of all writing, whether it's for novels, movies, television, plays, etc. Of course, thousands of other aspects go into the making of, let's say, an episode of television. It doesn't all hinge on good writing, but it will come to nothing without it. I trust these writers. These are LOST writers and producers. Even if they were serving up some crappy procedural (ie: see Person of Interest), I would still give it a try. And I am loving Once Upon a Time. You can tell that the few episodes that have aired have barely scratched the surface of the mythology behind this show. I am already seeing the beginnings of Lost 2.0: Storybrooke Island. And there's nothing wrong with that; if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I can't wait to see where the writers will take us with this tale. Every episode is exciting adventure; pretty, emotional poignant and even passingly clever.


Looking Forward:



Justified - The FX promos are blowing me away, and that comes from someone in the television promo business. January 17th can't come soon enough. I am in desperate need of my Timothy Olyphant fix.




Spartacus - This is such a bittersweet return. With the passing of its first season's star, Andy Whitfield, a sad cloud hangs over the show. However, Whitfield's replacement, Liam McIntyre, is a force to be reckoned with in his own right. And he looks eerily similar to Whitfield. I am very much looking forward to the return of the show and I can't wait to see how McIntyre stands up in this role. Plus: blood, sex, tears! Returns January 27th on Starz.



Downton Abbey - And here I thought I was the only one who watched British period mini-series. Apparently I am not the only one who appreciates great writing and even greater acting, British-style. This show's first season received critical acclaim and it's second season is said to be just as good. Watching snotty, uptight British nobility sip tea and recite class prejudices will be a great counter to Spartans bloodying Roman nobility, also over class prejudices. Returns January 8th on PBS.

Alcatraz - I know next to nothing about this show - but the few things I do know, I'm totally on-board with: Alcatraz (ever since The Rock, anything dealing with this prison-island is a good thing, in my opinion), Jorge Garcia (this guy can do no wrong in my book), and creepy, mysterious ghosts (always a good hook). Premieres January 16th on FOX.


Of course, there are so many others I am not mentioning, but still chugging away at; The Walking Dead, Terra Nova, Happy Endings, The Vampire Diaries, Dexter, Castle, Glee, and countless more. But our days are not endless and I do have a job, after all. For the record, I am watching and enjoying all the shows listed above - they just don't hit on my fall highlights list. But that doesn't mean they aren't worth watching.

Here's hoping your holiday is full of candy, cheer and perhaps enough downtime to catch up on your backed-up DVR, because a clean DVR is a happy DVR.

Happy Holidays!

Supernatural Round-Up

We all know (and if you didn't know, now you do and shame on you), that Supernatural was set to end after five seasons. That was Eric Kripke's (the creator) plan. He set up a five-season plot arc for the Winchester brothers, with the fifth season culminating with the final battle against Lucifer. A battle that had five seasons of set-up; five seasons to develop and bring these two wonderfully complex characters to their ultimate destined stopping place, or at least to the most important place of their lives.

But the television industry (coughhollywoodcough) is a twitching, ever-changing machine and even the best laid plans.. yadda yadda yadda. As you probably figured out (and if not, shame on you) that Kripke's five-year plan has been extended. Five seasons has now become seven, with the possibility of more to come.

A year ago, you'd find a cupid shaking your hand in greeting before you would find me doubting the decision to keep Supernatural on the air. However, three episodes into the seventh season, I'm not so sure. And that's hard for a long-time fan like me to admit.

Now, Supernatural has never been the brightest show on television. The cinematography, if fact, is deliberately set to portray the bleakness of these characters lives. It's a horror show - one that is the everyday life of these brothers and hunters. But in past seasons, there has always been an outline of light in an otherwise dark hotel room. That outline could be a talking, stuffed bear or a naked, hugging cupid. It could be a forced walk through TV Land or ancient demons disguised as an old couple in Christmas sweaters. But there was always something, and more often than not each episode would show that outline of light, even if it was as simple a single line of dialogue or a 1-second Dean reaction shot. That is one of the reasons this show is so great. It can take such a depressingly dark story and with one look, give that story (and the audience) hope.

I realize that we are only three episodes into the seventh season, but people, the outlook is bleak. The end of the sixth season was no fluffy cake-walk and I was hoping things would turn around in the seventh season. We were told that the show was getting back to the basics - back to the fundamentals that made it great in the first couple of seasons. That sounded promising, but the monster of the week format only really worked for this show while it could laugh at itself (and on occasion have the characters laugh as well). With the added background mythology, that is what helped make the show work. Without it, it's just another procedural. And like Dean, I HATE procedurals.

What will happen to this show and these characters if the writers can't screw in a light-bulb for us? As Mo Ryan deftly points out, Dean has already suffered from anti-characteristic behavior, behavior that funnily enough, recalls an earlier, less sympathetic version of the character. IF this is what the producers mean by "going back to the basics", then I am NOT on-board.
Of course, the doubting part of me takes up only 50% of my brain. The other half is just happy and grateful to have the opportunity to continue watching two of my all-time favorite television characters, despite the fact that the writers are now slowly leaching away all the light in my life - curiously akin to the what they are doing to their characters' lives.

Here you have a couple write-ups that agree with this line of thinking:

Sandra Gomez at EW.com wonders if Dean went too far in last weeks episode. SPOILER ALERT!!! Do not read unless you're caught up with the show.

Mo Ryan over at AOL is one of my favorite writers. She's amazing and wildly perceptive when it comes to the writing on shows. She too is worried about the path the show is going down and better articulates the problems that such a dark outlook can produce for the audience and the for development of the characters themselves.

The 'Supernatural' in 'Lost'

Or the Lost in the Supernatural. Whichever works for you.

One of my favorite writers (or blogger, if you will), Maureen Ryan, has recently written a fun little article focusing on the strange similarities between Lost and Supernatural - two of my all-time favorite shows. This is why I love Ryan. She always tends to enjoy the same shows I do and she always has a great perspective on these shows. You can check out her Lost/Supernatural list here. I've included a couple of my favorite observations below:

Minions of powerful forces and factions battle each other for control of the fate of the people on the island.
Minions of powerful forces and factions battle each other for control of the fate of the entire world on "Supernatural."

Mark Pellegrino plays a powerful "Lost" character named Jacob -- who appears to be inhabiting a human body (and may have upgraded into Sayid's body?).
Mark Pellegrino plays a powerful "Supernatural" character named Lucifer -- who appears to be inhabiting a human body (and wants to upgrade to a Winchester body).

The characters on "Lost" have lots of daddy issues.
The Winchesters have lots and lots of daddy issues.

Also, thanks to the miracle of Twitter, the great and powerful Damon Lindelof tweeted a link recently to a blog entitled The Final Season of Lost as Seen by Someone Who Has Never Seen Lost. Sounds awesome, right? Yeah, D. Lindelof thought so too - and so do I. It's absolutely hilarious and definitely worth the time to check out. You can read the Introduction here and this guy's take on Episode One, Two and Three are linked. Let's just say, he thought Jack's name was actually Jake and that's just the tip of the this-guy-is-totally-confused iceberg. The funny is all in the concept and the fact that he's not far wrong on how confusing and convoluted this show really is, even to fans who have loyally watching it from the beginning. Oh, and it's also in his horribly drawn pictures - pregnant Claire smoking is my favorite.

As for Supernatural, you can check out the news on the renewal of the show for a surprising sixth season here, along with the news of Kripke's step-down and Sera Gamble's possible step-up.

As always, I apologize for the lack of posting, but life (coughWORKcough) often gets in the way. Plus, I'm relatively positive that not a one person is missing my amateur writing and blogging skills.

Hazzah!

Supernatural & The Vampire Diaries

Hello Evil, it's me Lauren.

One quick question, if you have the time to spare. I know your schedule is pretty busy on Thursday nights, so you're probably sleeping in right now but if I could just have a second of your time...

Evil, why do you get all the crazy awesome people? Honestly. Why does Good get all the boring, brooding tool-belts and you get all the delightfully stirring, wickedly amusing recruits? I know Lucifer is bad and all, but when you put him in that totally yummy Mark Pellegrino suit, I just can't help but be tempted to the Dark Side. That's not to say I don't still swoon over my two favorite demon-hunters and their trusty angel sidekick - there is Much Ado About Swooning during the 9 o'clock hour on Thursday nights - but even our good guys are now walking the thin(ning) line between Good and Evil. Watching them slap around a bunch of oafish angels is almost more fun than watching them kick demon butt up and down the US of A for four years. As for Good, if Stefan was any more of an sulking, brooding, Angel wannabe, Paul Wesley will have to start referring to himself as Boreanaz, David. His whole "I Want to Drink Your Blood But I Don't Want to Hurt You Because I'm Like a Cuddly Vampire Puppy Dog" conflict is so very obvious and so "been there, seen that a million times already". But Damon, though he too reflects a certain bleach-blonde Buffy alum, has such deliciously complex potential - with just the right amount of evil BA-ness and charming playfulness - there's just no contest between the two. Sure, Damon enjoys to eat people every now and then and as someone who considers herself pretty Pro-Good, I shouldn't really be into that, but at least he's got some charisma, some depth to him. And what about Sam? I'm already dreaming of the good old days when Sam would celebrate a hard day's work of demon smack-down with his own version of demon smacking, nay, snacking down. You catch my drift? With the topsey-turvy world of Sam and Dean forcing them now to fight against the forces of good, therefore knocking them out of that category altogether (capturing an Arch Angel? Really Dean? That is sooooo bad), I'm thinking your side, Evil, is looking pretty good right about now.

So, when's your next meet and greet? And if I swear to join your side, do you think you could introduce me to Ian Somerhalder?

Best Wish With All Your Evil Endeavors,

Lauren

O Death - Supernatural

Ok, all - you can now download Jen Titus' song, "O Death", from the new Supernatural Season 5 promo that I posted earlier. Download it here.

Pretty creepy, huh?

Supernatural - New Season 5 Promo

I love this promo. The music is dead on, eerily beautiful; an old child's tale about the rising of Lucifer. It brings to mind the Buffy episode, "Hush". The sneak peek of the return of Alona Tal and the shots of Casitel give us a little something extra to look forward to. Now all we need is a shot of Lucifer himself - the great Mark Pellegrino. September 10th can't come soon enough.






EDIT: Per Watch with Kristin, the song in the promo is called "O Death", sung by Jen Titus and produced special for the show. It should be up on cwtv.com at some point. I'll let you know when.

Supernatural Season 5 Promo

It's possible, in all the Comic-Con writing frenzy, that I failed to express how fired-up I am about the next season of Supernatural. We didn't get any new footage during the panel at the Con, but just discussing where the story is headed with the creators was enough to throw me into a serious tizzy. Actually, scratch that - learning that Mark Pellegrino was cast to play Lucifer - THAT was tizzy-creating knowledge. I don't believe there is anything that man can't make gold out of. So, without further ranting, raving or swooning, here's a new official season 5 promo. If only Turner would allow it's producers this much creative leeway, we'd be swimming in far more viewers than we are now. Just sayin'!




Pretty aesthetically pleasing, no?

San Diego Comic-Con - Day 4

You might not believe me if I told you that four days of hanging with the geek elite in sunny, beautiful, 75 degree weather can actually tucker one out to near exhaustion...but it would be the truth, boy howdy. In the end, it was Katie who fell first. She fought hard and valiantly for Nerd-Girl Pride, but as our fourth and last day dawned she would not be moved from her bed for all the glimpses of Tom Welling, Justin Hartley and Misha Collins the universe might offer her. We had our last two, Must-See panels early on Sunday morning. Tina, toughing it out, and I dragged our now blistered and tired feet out of bed at 6am and made our way back to the convention center and it's inevitably long and boring panel lines. Luckily, we had Batman and Superman too keep us entertained and a nice, big tent to keep us shaded while we waited.

While we waited, I periodically checked my Twitter to see if Nathan Fillion would make his much-teased-about appearance at the Con later that day. More on that later...

The room holding our last two panels (Smallville, followed by Supernatural) was unexpectedly set in a much smaller room than our usual one. This found us a little anxious about actually making it into the room at all, let alone finding a couple close seats. I'd heard the day before, via the Twitter grapevine (it really does come in handy!), that Tom Welling would be making his first ever Comic-Con appearance at the Smallville panel. Considering that we were already bummed about the absence of our two favorite demon-hunters (Jensen and Jared), this completely lifted our Totally-Psyched! levels. After a couple hours in line, we were herded (like fanboy and fangirl cattle) into the panel-room. Up until the Smallville panel, the Lost panel was the only one where I had received "gifts" when entering the room. We were handed black, baseball hats with the Smallville logo written across the top. Now, I would never say no to a free gift, but I'm pretty sure I won't be walking around Atlanta with that hat on (or anywhere else, for that matter). My ex always told me I was way to obvious about my geekiness. I'm thinking wearing a Smallville hat around would be a little overboard, even for me (who has been recently spotted sporting a new Empire Strikes Back t-shirt).

Anyhow, we entered the room and even though I know tons of people didn't make it in, our 6am wake-up time paid off and our seats weren't that bad at all. The Smallville panel was nearly as big as the True Blood panel. As the audience yelled and clapped in welcome, Justin Hartley (Green Arrow), Cassidy Freeman (Tess) Erica Durance (Lois Lane), Tom Welling (Clark Kent), Allison Mack (Chloe) and Callum Blue (Zod) walked onto the stage and took their seats.

*Just as side-note, there have been so many seasons of Smallville, one can totally forget how many great actors have guest-starred on this show. Jensen Ackles played in 22 episodes, James Marsters played in 13 episodes, Ian Somerhalder (Lost and Vampire Diaries) played in 6 episodes (totally forgot about that!), Kyle Gallner (from Veronica Mars) has been in 3 episodes, Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica and Dollhouse) played in 3 episodes, Neil Flynn (from Scrubs!) played in 2 episodes, Jonathan Taylor Thomas (JTT!) was in 2 episodes also and even Shawn Ashmore (who's twin brother, Aaron played Jimmy Olsen) played in 2 episodes. Wait, did I say "great actors"? What I meant was...totally hot and/or adorable MALE actors. *swoon*

Anyway, back to the panel at hand. Jeph Loeb, who has played producer on Smallville, Lost, Heroes and was even going to produce the Buffy Animated Series, moderated the panel. I'm a really crappy fan since I cannot for the life of me remember the other, non-actor, peeps on the panel, but I'm sure they were a couple producers...I might have to get back to you on that one. Anyhow, we were shown an amazing montage (that a lot of the actors hadn't even seen), with tons of shots from the next season, that totally pumped up the whole room (even Tina, who had stopped watching the show years ago). After seeing that footage, I can honestly say that I am completely and amazingly excited about next season. It looks totally badass. As for the actors, I have to say that, besides True Blood, this has got to be the best-looking cast on television right now. There was not one decent-looking actor up there; they were all stunningly beautiful. Everyone seemed really excited to be there and everyone got the chance to put their two cents in. Justin Hartley's two cents, for example, was to continually defend himself (his character) on the fact that Lex Luther really WAS dead (after multiple fans asked questions about that sticking). "No, I killed him. He's dead"! His (mock) offense at the fans questioning his killing abilities was very cute and it got lots of laughs. Allison Mack was extremely out-going and by far the funniest of the group. You could tell that she was more than happy to talk through the whole thing, if they had let her. Tom Welling was, understandably, a little hesitant and shy but he did well for his first time. Which takes us to my...

Favorite Moment:

When a cute, little fangirl walked up to the mic and addressed Tom Welling, asking him some generic question and adding, "...and could you take your time answering so you can just stare at me for as long as possible"? The audience busted out in laughter, but it couldn't drown out Allison Mack's ringing laughter from beside Tom Welling. She thought it was the funniest thing ever. Tom smiled indulgently and even with little amusement, if I remember it correctly, and said, "Wellllllllll.........I...........think........", drawing out his sentence very slowly and staring dreamily into the girl's eyes. It was a hoot and I like him even more now for that kind and gracious act for an over-zealous fan.

Scoop/Spoilers:

In case you haven't heard, Brian Austin Green will be guest starring in a couple episodes as Metallo. We got a couple shots of him in the montage for the next season and I have to tell you, I haven't been so excited about a half-human, half-machine-thingy since Iron Man was released last year. It's going to be LEGENDARY!

The Supernatural panel followed immediately after Smallville ended, so Tina and I kept our seats for our last hour of 2009 Comic-Con panels. I felt myself getting slightly depressed at the thought of leaving. It had been an extremely stressful and tiring trip, but well worth it and I still wasn't ready for it to end. But seeing as the girls' aunts were already on their way from Huntington Beach, I wouldn't even get a last chance to take on the Exhibition Hall. Depressed, indeed. But I rallied for our last two panel guests, Misha Collins and Jim Beaver, Castiel and Bobby from Supernatural.

It was a small panel, with only those two actors, the creator Eric Kripke and two other writer/producers, but Misha and Jim made the best of it. It was Misha's first time at the Con, but I'm not sure about Jim. They both did spectacular and it was a great panel, despite the absence of the show's two stars. Misha and Jim are both really outgoing people, so they had no problem entertaining the over-crowded room.

Favorite Moment:

When a fan asked, "How does it feel to know you are just as important to the show as Jensen and Jared"? Misha and Jim, without any obvious communication between themselves, starting ranting about how, "those boys are important and we let them believe they are the stars of the show so as not to hurt their feelings"...and so on and so forth. In the end, they almost had us believing that we watched the show for them and could care less about seeing Jensen and Jared onscreen.

Scoop/Spoilers:

Again, in case you didn't already know, Mark Pellegrino (Jacob from Lost and also from Dexter), will be playing Lucifer next season. In a very Supernaturalesque twist, the writers are writing him as a very sympathetic character; his feeling are hurt by the Angels/God that banished him and he comes off as misunderstood. Personally, I cannot wait to see Mark in this role. He is fast becoming one of favorite actors right now and I'm very excited to see what he will bring to the role.

So there ends our Comic-Con adventures. Soon after we left for the hotel, I saw a tweet from Nathan Fillion, saying he was going to be in the Exhibition Hall for the afternoon and later saw he had surprised all the people who showed up for the California Browncoat screening of Dr. Horrible (or maybe Serenity). I could not have been more upset about missing him, but such is life. Perhaps I will have another chance to stand open-mouthed and brain-fried in front of him as he signs his autograph and I walk away without saying anything beyond a whispered, "Thanks, Nathan". I can only hope.

If you're afraid you may miss my exciting and stimulating accounts on Nerd Nation, fear not, for Dragon Con is right around the corner and yours truly shall be attending all four, fabulous days. Until then, Viva la Nerdias!

Scoop o' News

I begin this post with a piece of devastating news. Andy Hallet, who played Lorne on Angel, died Sunday night from heart failure. Lorne was a fan favorite on Angel and one it's most endearing and colorful characters (literally). Personally, I believe the show was at it's best when he was on screen and he was a key part of some of the best episodes. He is in our thoughts and he will be be sorely missed.

For more information, go here.

Here is a small scene from Season 2 of Angel, featuring the great talents of Andy Hallet.






In other, lighter news, the premiere for True Blood season 2 has been confirmed for June 14th. Some new photos from the second season have been posted online and they are getting me seriously keyed up. Bring on the gore, sex and forbidden love!

For more pics, go here.


Alyson Hannigan and Alexis Denisof are the proud parents of a baby girl, Satyana Denisof! She was born March 24th, giving her the same birthday as her mother. Congrats to the new mommy and daddy!
Side note: Not that I don't LOVE Alyson and Alexis, but seriously, what is WITH celebrities and crazy baby names? It's like the two just go hand in hand. Sheesh.

TV Review


What's Getting Good:

1) Dollhouse. Since the first episodes, which were ok but lacked the tell-tale Joss greatness, I have held onto the hope that we would soon start to see a story that pulled deeply to us, one like Buffy's story and Angel's story and Malcolm Reynolds' story. Even like Dr. Horrible's story. As was expected, my faith has been rewarded and Dollhouse is now blowing me away each week. I cannot wait to see more of it, especially when it comes to the obviously damaged, but incredibly intriguing eye-candy that is Paul Ballard. Ummmm...Tahmoh.

2) Heroes. Yes, I know, I know. Most people are SO over this show. But if you were EVER going to give it a second chance, now is the time. Bryan Fuller is officially back on the writing team, the story is starting to level out and our characters are slowly coming back to themselves. Sylar is finally over his daddy issues and back in the Fugitives game and just as I suspected, he is teaming up with Danko. What was unexpected in this development is the hilarity that the two evil masterminds bring to their evil plans. Who would have thought those two dark and sinister characters could bring out the chuckles?

3) Supernatural. We are finally back to the real struggle. Angels vs demons vs humans. The "been there, done that" filler episodes have been benched and we are now getting back to the nitty-gritty, ploughing inevitably towards the season's final battle between our favorite Winchester brothers and also an unknown character death. Let me just say, if it's Bobby, I'm writing a strongly worded email to the writers.

What's Losing It:

1) Castle. I'm not 100% decided on this show yet and it's still entertaining enough but something new needs to be introduced into the formula to keep this show from turning boring and repetitive. As you know, I'm all for Nathan Fillion and his performance is as witty and adorable as usual, but the truth's the truth.

What's New:

1) Kings. So far, so good. I'm not really one for politics and that's certainly what this show seems to be centering on, but even that doesn't keep me from enjoying it. It has a unique way of spinning an unoriginal idea (the noble man/soldier against a corrupt city/government) and making it seem original, mostly due to the fact that it looks like our world, it feels like our world, but it's not our world. But it COULD be our world. It contains surprisingly deep and complex characters and behind them all lurk dark and mysterious secrets. It's compelling, interesting and not without it's own baby-faced, handsome hero.

2) Cupid. It premieres tonight so I'll keep you updated. The main reason I am giving this show a try is because it's Rob Thomas' (Veronica Mars) baby and I know what that man can do. So far the reviews haven't been great, but I'm willing to see for myself. Stay tuned.

Heroes - 2/2 - A Clear and Present Danger

"So, who am I?", Sylar asks with an excited and, let's face it, lethal twinkle in his eye. Isn't that just the question? Leave it to Sylar to go straight for the heart of the matter. One of the best aspects of this show is the reality that you can find in all the unreality. Our world isn't colored black and white and it seems, neither is the Heroes world. It's a great theme to explore and I just love it when shows decide to put it front and center (ie: see Supernatural's angels and demons). As a rule, the world is made up of shades of gray and just because you're a fictional world, doesn't mean you should be exempt from that rule. As for Heroes, we've watched as our favorite good guys have stomp proudly down the path of the dark-side and we've watched as others also have stumbled, uncertain and unsteady, down that same path. We've watched as our favorite bad guys have dipped their toes into the good-side, shielding their eyes from the bright light and trying it on for size. Some have stayed, enjoying the bright view and some have raised their bushy eyebrows in disgust and moved away, back into the dark, where they believe they belong. Needless to say, people (aka, heroes) change over time and in the end, they all think their cause is the righteous one.

Speaking of righteous, Nathan Petrelli is just hell-bent on tearing my heart out with a spoon every Monday night. The writers could not have chosen a worse hero to turn bad (well, maybe). Seriously, how many times has Peter saved his life and now's he just going to throw him to the wolves? Well, ain't that just brotherly love! Ok, I'm acting surprised, but I'm really not. We knew this was the way it was going to be. What I WAS surprised about was...

HRG!!!!! Now why, oh WHY, would he choose Nathan's side? Well, ok, yes, he worked for the company for like...ever, finding and capturing evil people with evil abilities, but his own daughter is "special"! It's possible that HRG made a deal with Nathan, telling him he would help round up people with abilities if his daughter (and Nathan's biological daughter) would be allowed to stay free. Nathan would agree to that, I think. I guess Nathan's new mission works pretty well with HRG's own beliefs about people with abilities (and it seems Mohinder's also, but by the end of the episode, I'm thinking Mohinder has changed his tune). Still, I'm holding out that maybe HRG is playing undercover-guy and is really secretly helping the captured heroes and not Nathan. But we'll just have to see.

This episode had two great scenes, one of course, centering on Sylar. How could it not? The man is drama gold and no matter how evil he goes, I'd follow him right down to hell, skipping happily along. I watched this whole episode, sighing is resignation and frowning in frustration as each of my heroes were tazer-fied and captured. But when those SWAT wanna-bes got to Sylar, all I did was smile, shake my head and say to no one in particular, "not him". They could try to take down any other hero and succeed, but not Sylar. The man is powerful, there's no denying that and I have to admit to a nice, fuzzy feeling in my stomach as Sylar ripped that team apart. Call me evil, call me twisted, but after seeing those men take all my favorite people...it was nice to have Sylar give them a taste of their own medicine. Yes, I love him, I just can't help myself!

The other great scene was the last scene, the scene in the plane. This was an awesome mixture of action and emotion. More times than not, Claire gives me a headache, what with her incessant whining and strangely straight hair. But I just couldn't help thinking, "you go girl!" while she kicked the poo outta her poor driver, ran to the moving plane, snuck aboard and proceeded to help release and ulitmately unify all the good and evil captures aboard. I'm not saying it was the perfect escape, but it'll do. And let's not forget the "eekkk!" moment as she walks up to find her dad in the cockpit. Ouch, that stings.

Ok, so a couple other minor thoughts:

- "Umm, hello governor". Tracy is a political whore! Maybe a bit cruel, but still the truth. If I had to pick between her and Nicki, I think I like Nicki better.

- The concept of "normal" was in almost every scene. Peter wants to be normal, Parkman wants to be normal and it seems that Nathan and Claire are the only ones who know that that is no longer an option, for any of them. I think the sooner Peter sees that, the sooner he can step up and actually pose a real threat to his brother. Someone's gotta do it and I'm pretty sure a brother vs. brother theme will be just what Heroes needs to step up it's own game.

- I'm loving the idea of Parkman as the new Isaac. Parkman's spirit guide is right, someone needs to paint the future for our heroes and I think Parkman is the perfect guy for the job. He's a good man and there are so few left of them.

I'm getting a serious X-Men vibe coming from this new Volume. It's all about fearing what you don't know or in Nathan's case, fearing what you can't control. I'm not sure what made him feel like he couldn't trust his own kind (perhaps Sylar killing his father?) but the whole thing seems to be moving in a humans vs mutants direction and I gotta say...I'm loving it.

Until next week, Heroes lovers!

Scoop 'O News

Spoiler Warning...

First and by far most importantly, an eye-popping Supernatural scoop, straight from Kristin Dos Santos, from E! Online. In her recent Spoiler Chat post, Kristin hinted that...OMG...there might be another Winchester brother!! Holy cow in a hand-basket. I can't even fathom it! Now, if you aren't a Supernatural fan, then this post is meaningless to you. But if, however, you're a fan of Winchester and Sons, Demon Hunters since 1983, this is a life-changing plot twist. Not only do we now get the thrill of waiting to see which new hunk 'o actor is going to prove to have the sexy Winchester genes, but we get the happy job of brainstorming on how the HECK John Winchester has another son floating around out there. Did he have the secret son with Mary (a full brother) or did John have an affair and it's the son of another woman (a half-brother)? I just can't believe that John Winchester would have an affair, not as obvious as they have made his love and devotion for her. So what, maybe a first born, making Dean the middle brother? What could have happened to this lost brother and what will this revelation do to Sam and Dean? I'd guess that an extra, secret brother is only going to cause...trouble, big hunk 'o trouble. The only good thing that I can see coming out of this is the probable and exciting screen time for Jeffery Dean Morgan. We've missed you John. Come back to us.

On another Supernatural note and spoiler, who's the "fan favorite" that's going to die?? I can only guess either Bobby or Castiel and either death will be heartbreaking. Say it ain't so! *Sob*

Ok, I'm moving past it....

And I'm good. Moving on...

In some New Moon/Twilight news, Taylor Lautner is still in the running to keep his job as Jacob. We will know this week, via Summit. Go to HisGoldenEyes for more info. If I have anything to say about it (which I don't), Taylor will stick as Jacob. I know a lot of people who hated him playing the part, but I thought he was fantastical. A little time at the gym and a little CGI/special effects work and we've got our perfect, 7-feet tall, manly, New Moon Jacob-werewolf. If you want to fight about it, you know where I'll be.

Also in related Twilight Zone news, the cover art for the DVD has been released and it sure looks snazzy. Sure, the film was a disappointment, but at least now we know and we can move on and enjoy some special feature goodies on the DVD. Thanks to HGE for the picture!

And now for your QotD, another from Mistborn. I'm slowly making my way through the book, slowly because I've got way too much good tv to watch and it keeps me from my pages, and it's been very good so far. I'm still waiting on some romance and I may never get it, but here's hopin'. I just love my romance. *Sigh*

"...The right belief is like a good cloak, I think. If it fits you well, it keeps you warm and safe. The wrong fit, however, can suffocate."