Son of a Witch

I did not have high expectations for Eastwick. I enjoyed the movie back in the day, but never read the book and thought the show looked like it was trying to be too cutesy. Three gorgeous women! Who are witches! And meet a mysterious stranger who may or may not be the devil! And there are hijinks!

And while all those things are true, the show has a dark streak I wasn't expecting. I won't go into to much detail since I don't want to spoil it, but suffice it to say I was surprised by some of the plot points, especially those involving horrible death. Which, I don't know about you, is always welcome in my television shows.

I was also surprised by the clever writing. The show has some very funny bits (usually coming from Rebecca Romijn's character), but all the characters are likable and get in some quips. Also, Paul Gross as the mysterious Darryl Van Horne is clearly having a ball. While not as seemingly evil and crazy as Jack Nicholson (but who is, really?), he has that devilish charm thing down pat. And I've basically been in love with him ever since he played Constable Benton Fraser, a Canadian Mountie, in the dearly departed show Due South, circa 1997.

So to sum up, I really like the show, find none of the characters annoying, and am pleasantly surprised by the dark streak running through the show's core. I was sure the basic plot premise would be difficult to maintain, but they seem to be setting up some interesting mythology and arcs to carry onward. Y'all should watch it; all three current episodes are available on ABC's website.

Oh, did I mention the eye candy?

Rowr.

As long as the braces come off this year, I'm happy.

While Ugly Betty had a stellar first season, the shows seems to have lost a bit of its sparkle as it's gone on. The perfect balance of comedy/drama/soap opera that the show started with seems to have petered off. All the characters are still wonderful, and the show is still bright and sparkly, but it just seems to have floundered a bit.

One of fans' biggest complaints is why Betty hasn't gotten the memo to spruce herself up a bit. While you can definitely see how her wardrobe has gone through some improvements since the first season (no more ponchos thank GOD), her hair, eyebrows, and braces haven't really changed. And her relationship with prints could use some TLC. I know the show is called "Ugly Betty," but she works at a fashion magazine for goodness sake.

But, wait! There is hope on the horizon! Season 4 is starting next Friday and in anticipation ABC has released some promo photos of the cast. And check out this one:


The hair! It's pretty! And the eyebrows looks more...separated. And the outfit is classy, professional, and appropriate. Could it be? Has Betty finally stepped up her look? I see the braces are still there, but I've heard rumors that they are coming off this year. Which frankly, is still way over due. I mean she's been wearing them for over four years, come on now. Even I only had to wear them for three, and my jaw was crooked.

If you want to check out the other cast photos you can find them here at Just Jared. And remember that the new season of Ugly Betty starts this coming Friday at 8pm on ABC.

I Know It When I See It

I finally got around to watching the first few episodes of Secret Diary of a Call Girl (courtesy of Netflix), previously blogged-about here. And ... yeah. Have you ever seen soft-core pornography? Neither have I, but I know it when I see it. Or rather, when I see Billie Piper's boobs. Props to Billie, though, for letting it all hang out. In a show about a prostitute, it would be kind of strange if there wasn't any nudity. And she didn't, as I previously feared, completely obliterate her curves with an all-celery diet. The protagonist, Hannah, is more Bettie Page than Kate Moss.


Don't get me wrong - there's lots more to the show than the sex. It portrays a woman who chose to become a prostitute because she (a) loves sex, (b) loves money, and (c) is inherently lazy (her words, not mine). But neither is she a "happy hooker" - Hannah struggles with the consequences of her career choice, and does her best to keep it separate from her personal life. Of course she can't keep them completely apart, which seems to be the central conceit of the current story arc. In the last episode I've seen, she essentially "comes out" to her best friend, Ben. Now I have to wait for the next disc to see the fall-out. Which means watching more pr0n. *sigh* The sacrifices I make...

Secret Boyfriend of the Week: Adorable Gay Edition!

He can dance, sing, kick the shit out of a football, and is pretty much all around adorable. This week's Secret Boyfriend is none other than the multi-talented Kurt from Glee.

Hello, ladies.

More than any other character on Glee, Kurt has really hit a chord (get it?) with members of the audience. After all, the first time we saw him he was getting thrown in a dumpster...who wouldn't sympathize with that? And he also looked fabulous, making sure to spare his couture. Sensitive and smart.

But the big connection for me and Kurt came from the episode Preggers, when he 1) performed Beyonce's Single Ladies dance, 2) taught the entire football team how to dance, 3) won the big game (and looked stylish doing it), and 4) came out out to his Dad.

The scene where Kurt tells his Dad he was gay could have gone so wrong, could have been handled so poorly, but Glee managed to balance realism with a happy result. And Chris Colfer was simply beautiful in it. He expressed fear, vulnerability, hope, and longing for acceptance from his father. Until that scene, we didn't know that Kurt's mother was gone, that it had just been him and his Dad. But it just made so much sense. I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried and yelled at the screen (something like, "just tell him!" as Kurt paused to get out the words).

But come on, enough of this heavy stuff. The reason we here at TV Sluts love Kurt is because of his overall fabulousness. Not everyone could rock a black unitard in one scene and wear a football uniform in the next, but Kurt pulls it off with aplomb. He's all adorable, but remains enough of an outcast that we'll always root for him. But more importantly, he knows who he is and doesn't care if you like it or not. He is always true to himself, and how many nice people can really say that?

But I'll let him speak for himself. Hit it, girls.

Tempy and Seely, sitting in a tree...

... T-E-A-S-I-N-G.

Last night, I got home around 8:30 with the intention of finally watching the season five premiere of Bones (bless you, Hulu) and turning in early. Three hours later, I'm powering through the latest episode (damn you, Hulu!) in a fit of Brennan/Booth shipper glee. Booth has been hit with a giant-sized clue hammer, in the shape of the kick ass, Love-Letter-to-All-Fangirls season four finale/coma dream. Hearts and flowers, he sweeps her off her feet and they live happily ever after, right? Ha, of course not.

Before our boy can confess his feeling, Cam and Sweets introduce a seed of doubt - Brennan seems all tough and robotic, but underneath is a scared little girl. No one actually said, "if you fuck this up, we will fuck you up." But I thought it was rather implied.

So he does the logical thing. He tells her he loves her - and then takes it back. Anybody else flashing back to The Nanny? The actual line is, "I love you ... (awkward pause) ... in a professional, atta-girl kind of way." *shoulder punch* I laughed my ass off. The beauty is that Brennan fails at emotions, so even though he's giving her the Soulful Puppy Eyes (SPE) the whole time, she doesn't get it. The next two episodes include further SPE moments and further obliviousness from good ol' Tempy.

I imagine that hardcore fans of the show might be tired of the writers teasing them like this. They're probably screaming 'JUST GET IT ON, ALREADY!' and trying to reach into their TVs to force Booth and Brennan's faces together. Or maybe last season's finale was enough of a pay-off that it will keep the rabid fangirls at bay ... for now.

Personally, I've joined the party late enough that I still find these shenanigans amusing. Plus, there's definitely a feeling that something big has changed (at least, for Booth). I don't get the impression that they're going Mulder-and-Scully us forever. In the meantime, enjoy this picture of the Soulful Puppy Eyes.

Awwww...

Cheryl, our amazing field reporter

Okay, this is why I suck: ages ago, our friend Cheryl went to the Gleek Tour location in her area, and agreed to write a blog post about it. She waded through the sea of teenage goths at Hot Topic, only to have her brilliant article drop through the cracks of my email inbox. But now I've found it and am able to present, in all it's glory, Cheryl's awesome article about the Gleek Tour:

Y’all remember back in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s when the Disney Channel was subscription only? I used to beg and beg my parents to sign up for it, but, they never would. So I did something I’m not very proud of – I befriended a girl for her cable package.

Every day after school, we would go over to her house, her mom would make snacks and we would watch The New Mickey Mouse Club. We never missed it. So, when it was announced on the show that they were going to be coming to our local mall (our mall!), we were so there. I still have my poster with Ricky Luna’s autograph. Britney, Christina, Timberlake, Fergie and Ryan Gosling must’ve known even then that they were too big to sign autographs in a suburban Texas Sears.

Which brings me to Wednesday and the Hot Topic Gleek Tour. Even though this time I was able to drive myself there, and I was surrounded by kids that were in diapers when Jamie and I freaked out over the Mickey Mouse Club, the only real difference I saw in this mall tour was how much savvier TPTB have gotten in the last two decades. They’ve realize there’s a business in this. Eight-year-old me only had to show up and hope that she was there early enough to get a spot in line. Considerably older me had to buy a $25 t-shirt to get a wristband that got me in to the meet and greet. It guaranteed me a spot, though, so whatever. And this way also had everyone in line, some 200 people in Dallas, in and out in about an hour as opposed to the four or five the old way took.

Credit for pictures goes to Crystal Xia,
who agreed to be Cheryl's photographer.

Of course, that meant basically it was just an autograph assembly line, though. We were only allowed in three or four at a time and as soon as you were done getting your stuff signed you were very politely but firmly shoved out the door by a man with a headset. But, being that this was at Hot Topic, Headset Guy was a forty-something dude with an earring so his intimidation factor took a pretty big hit.

So, I wasn’t able to hang around (which would have been weird anyway) but I was able to talk with the cast a little bit while I was getting my stuff signed. The one thing that’s been bugging me since the pilot aired in May is the name of the school, McKinley High. My favorite TV show of all time, Freaks and Geeks, used the same name for their high school and, given the very similar tones of the two shows, I had a feeling it wasn’t a coincidence. I asked if I was right and Cory Monteith, who plays Finn Hudson, confirmed that it was an homage. If I wasn’t a fan before, that would’ve done it. Freaks and Geeks reference=good TV in my book.

Overall, they were just incredibly sweet. They really couldn’t have been more gracious. Even after all the press the show has been getting this summer and the hordes of fans they’ve seen this past week and a half alone, they still seemed to be genuinely pleased and surprised that people like what they’re doing.

After the meet and greet, there was a scheduled Q&A in the mall court that was open to the public. I had gotten a pretty good spot in line for the signing, so I was able to get through and out quickly and subsequently got a pretty good spot for the Q&A as well. They were setting up the mics as I got there so I was sure to get a spot with a clear line of sight to the tallest mic, which I assumed was for Cory Monteith. I think I speak for all tall girls when I say thank you Hollywood for all the tall, cute guys you’ve been putting on our TVs lately. Keep it up.

Earlier, while I was standing in line for the signing, a totally edgy and not at all conformist Hot Topic employee came around and asked if we had any questions about the show. Now, like I said earlier, I really like the show, but I have the same problem with it as Monkey Sri and Maggie and tons of other people do, namely that the only minority characters in a show about outcasts seem to be one dimensional stereotypes. For now, I’m willing to give Ryan Murphy the benefit of the doubt based on what a phenomenal job he’s done on nip/tuck and Popular, but it’s still something I’m curious about. So, I grabbed a slip of paper and asked Monkey Sri’s Comic Con question again. And again the censors got to it and it didn’t get asked. This is a PR tour after all. They’re looking for softball questions, and boy did they get them.

All the usual suspects were there:
Are you anything like your characters?
Did you sing at all before you got the part?
Who’s the practical joker of the cast?
Who’s the best dancer?

Blah, blah,blah, we’ve all heard it before. Chris Colfer, who plays Kurt Hummel, was able to keep it interesting though. His answers were either brilliantly crafted or painfully honest but either way they were so funny. When they were asked who they hung out with in high school, he said the lunch ladies, and his hero in show business is Mickey Mouse because he made it okay to be a guy with a high-pitched voice. Between that and him being so nice at the signing about my kindergarten-level artwork, Kurt is my favorite now.

Oh and, last thing, seriously guys, you gotta check out the routine they did to “Push It.” While we didn’t get a screening in Dallas, they did show that clip. It hasn’t been officially released so I won’t provide a link here, but it’s all over YouTube and absolutely worth a look. I had a lot of fun, I’d tell you guys to check it out in your area, but it’s almost over now. If you happen to live in LA, though, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Thanks for sharing, Cheryl!

Sexually Frustrated by NCIS

If you aren't an NCIS fan, I wouldn't suggest you jumping on the bandwagon now. If you can watch it from the beginning I suggest it.

It is one of the more underrated shows on TV. When I tell people how much I like it, I get mocked. But the show is great. There are interesting plots, fun cases and GREAT characters. I think the characters on NCIS are some of the most well rounded characters on television.

In fact, Abby Sciuto (portrayed by Pauley Perrette) is one of my favorite characters on television. She is a lab Genius in black gothic make up and pony tails...I think I just had a great idea for Halloween.

If you do watch, Wow, the first two episodes have been great. Ziva turns out to be dead. Tony, filled with the desire to avenge Ziva's death goes after the evil terrorists. He gets tortured, but then tada Ziva is alive. They save her and there is big fan fare.


So we have a series of these great Tony & Ziva moments. Which continue until last night's episode, where Ziva rejoins the team. We know they looooove each other. He rescued her in Africa from terrorists! And we keep getting these almost kisses.....

The season has been great so far...BUT GET IT ON ALREADY.....!

A kinder, gentler ... House?!?

The problem with watching House, M.D. on Hulu is that damned 8-day delay. Everything I have to say about the season premiere is already outdated, since the second episode aired last night. I am this close - *pinches an appropriately minuscule amount of air* - to giving up on Heroes in favor of catching my favorite snarky diagnostician in primetime.

Anyhoodle, as we all recall, last season ended with Wilson dropping House off at a mental institution. We return to find him detoxing, and it's a pretty gruesome sight. But he makes it through, with his typical irascible personality intact. More House-ness ensues - he tries to outsmart his doctors and manipulate the other patients in order to get what he wants, a letter from his shrink stating that he's fit to practice medicine. Pretty much par for the course.

And then he nearly gets this guy killed.

If you're a fan of the show, you know that House is all about two things - finding the truth and saving lives. He goes against both of these principles when he indulges a fellow patient's Superman delusion, with disastrous effect. His psychiatrist, Dr. Nolan (played by the wonderfully gritty Andre Braugher), accuses him of no longer caring about anything. For House it was a distinct 'aha' moment. He turns his life around - he starts taking his medication, connecting with other human beings and having fun. There's even a tooth-achingly sweet moment where he helps his roommate, a man named Alvie with bipolar affective disorder, finish his rap during the psych ward's talent show.

Yes, that's Booger from Revenge of the Nerds in the background.
And no, I will not let Curtis Armstrong move on with his life.

Sure, as a counselor I think it's great that House got the help he so desperately needed. As a TV Slut, however, I'm like WTF, mates? I realize that House's life can't just be a never-ending series of increasingly soul-destroying tragedies. But after the darkness of last season, I'm scratching my head as to what a new, possibly fluffier season will hold. Can a tortured hero still be heroic if he stops being tortured? Only time will tell ...

Holding out for a Heroes...that doesn't suck.

It doesn't take a genius to see that most people have given up on Heroes. This season it's been averaging about 6 million viewers, down from 16 million in it's first season. Yikes. That's...substantial.

Every year it's the same old story and the same old questions. Can Heroes recapture the promise of it's first season? Can it halt the hemorrhage of viewers? Will people at least agree that the show doesn't suck anymore?

And every year I hope that this will the season, that this time the show will be more interesting than boring, deep rather than shallow, and actually say something meaningful.

So far, I'm not impressed.

To be honest, I'm not even sure why I'm sticking around. So many other people have given up on Heroes, I don't know why I continue to subject myself to the heartache of watching a once promising show flop around in never-ending death throes.

Because here's the thing. Here's the dirty secret nobody is saying out loud. Heroes was never great. It was barely even good. From the beginning it had pretty production values, pretty people, and occasionally surprising cliff hangers (remember Claire waking up on the autopsy slab?), but it was never great. The best that could be said of it was that it was promising. Sure we thought Hiro was adorable, but there have always been too many characters wandering around unconnected to one another, too many dropped storylines, and frankly, too much time travel and other ridiculous plot devices.

I think the core problem is that the show's writers and producers have been much too impressed with their own cleverness. They act like their show has Jesus magic or something, that it has the power to change lives and heal the sick. When all it really is are a series of confusing plots recycled from better sci-fi comics and movies. Sure it has good looking people and a handful of talented actors, but...for all that happens, nothing seems to happen. The producers are so in love with their actors that they can't bring themselves to actually kill any of the characters off. I mean, for god's sake, how many times does Nathan need to die? And yet, HE'S STILL ON THE SHOW. And as much as I love Zachary Quinto, it's time for Sylar to go away. These characters are just not interesting anymore.

But despite all this...I'm still watching. Maybe it's because I hate quitting. Or that I can't shake my love for Zach Quinto's eyebrows. But it all just makes me really sad at this point, to see so much wasted potential. While the carnival aspect of the current season is kind of cool, I just can't bring myself to care anymore. Watching Heroes makes me feel like I'm just going through the motions.

If You Need a Vamp Fix, This Isn't It!

This year I committed to trying new things, experiencing new shows, and in some cases this has been beneficial. For instance, community, which MaggieCats blogged about last week was a GREAT success. And then there has been the awful. This installment of the awful is devoted to CW's Vampire Diaries. I am aware of the great risk I was taking by giving this show a chance.
For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of being bored by this show, it is based on the Vampire Diaries books by L.J. Smith. These books have been doing pretty well amidst the fame of the Twilight Series and the Sookie Stackhouse series. I have not read the books. I thought Sookie and Bella were enough for me. The show is centralized around Elena, played by Degrassi Alum, Nina Dobrey and her love interest (and coincidental vampire) Stefan.

Ok lets be flat out about this. Stefan, or Paul Wesley, makes me long for the awful and horrid acting of Robert Pattinson. The TV execs are even trying to knock off the token Edward Hair. Its just sad.

The plot is ok, there are ups and downs (mainly down). Overall, I give the plot a C-. So far we have a witch, vampires, drug dealers and football players. So the cast is meh. The acting I give a D- (primarily because Paul Wesley is the worst Vampire actor since Jim Carrey in Once Bitten).

The one small bit of hope is Ian Somerhalder. Ian plays Damon our token Bad Boy Vamp. But overall Ian is sexy and can actually act, which is a breath of fresh air for this show.

If you missing True Blood or Twilight, don't expect Vampire Diaries to fill this void!

Community

Why should you watch Community on NBC?

1. Joel McHale

2. John Oliver

3. Chevy Chase

4. Hilarious Indian (maybe?) guy who is a pop culture lover and provides numerous references to movies like The Breakfast Club, Dirty Dancing, and Adventures in Babysitting. And might have aspergers syndrome.

I really enjoyed the show; it's funny, charming, and fluffy. It's not great art, think of it as the marshmallow cream of comedies. Tastes great, less filling. But it's not mindless or dumb, I have a feeling the show has things to say, it's just going to need some time to get there.

The main character, Jeff, is a lawyer who is in danger of disbarment unless he can get a legit law degree. He enrolls in community college (where his old friend--played by John Oliver--is a professor) and forms a fake spanish study group to try to hook up with a cute girl. When word gets out of the study group, a bunch of motley fellow students assemble. After some well-done exposition about each of the characters, they fight, make up, and then BOOM. A community is formed.

I would rank the show as between funny and hilarious, it's kind of Diet Arrested Development. More grounded in reality, but with it's share of ridiculous.

Watch it. You'll like it. Thursdays at 9:30 on NBC.

Hurray for Kristin!

She did it! In the biggest surprise win at the Emmys of the night (at least for me), Kristin Chenowith took the prize for Supporting Actress in a Comedy!

Even though Pushing Daisies isn't on the air anymore, I'm so thrilled that the Emmys recognized the show and how amazing funny and wonderful Kristin Chenowith was on it. I read this morning that she had to get treatment for a migraine (ouch!) after talking to the press, but I'm so pleased she had her moment to shine!

You go, girl!

Also, major props to the Academy for giving the Supporting Actor Emmy for a Drama to Michael Emerson from Lost. It was a well-earned honor. And if they hadn't given it to them, I would have reached through my computer screen and choked the life out of Neil Patrick Harris, who was acting as their agent by being the host.

Oh, and I thought he did a great job, by the way. The Dr. Horrible interlude was adorable and the opening song was actually funny and classy. A hard to achieve combination.

Finally.

You know, I was really optimistic when this season of Project Runway started. The show didn't seem to suffer much from the move to LA, the judges were the same, the initial challenge was fun, and of course Tim was as awesome as ever.

But in recent weeks, something has changed. Nina Garcia and Michael Kors have been conspicuously absent (I think this makes three weeks in a row) and the challenges have only been ho-hum. Basically, they've amounted to "make a pretty dress with a $100 budget" and people, that's lame. We watch Project Runway to see creativity and talent at work...and to hear bitchy comments from Nina and Michael. Ok, and also to see how progressively orange Michael Kors can make himself, but still.

This week, FINALLY, we had a decent challenge. The designers were instructed to create a garment entirely from newspaper (they were allowed a muslin base). And surprisingly, almost everyone came up with something attractive and innovative. While our main judges were still missing (sadness), the show seemed to have recaptured some of its original spark.

And there was drama too, of course. Johnny, after making some kind of red monstrosity and being told how ugly it was by Tim, decided to switch course and make a new dress that looked slapped together. When called on it by the judges, he crafted this elaborate story about how the original dress had been ruined by the iron or the steamer or some such bullshit. One of the other designers totally called his ass on it, and Tim even made a comment to the other designers that he couldn't believe the "utterly preposterous spewing of fiction" that took place from Johnny. And I could tell he was pissed when he told Johnny to clean out his work area, all while fussing with the cuffs of his suit jacket. There was no hug for Johnny.

In case you were wondering, here's the winning design:


So keep it up, Project Runway. And for God's sake, bring back Michael and Nina! I'm going into withdrawal.

New Season, Same Old Crap.

Ah, Gossip Girl. The show that is like hostess snacks. Addictive. Yummy. But in the end, not filling and can have a weird after-taste. And while it's clear there's a lot of money parading across your television screen (what with the designer clothes, fabulous jewels, limos, and penthouses), the show this year feels kind of cheap. Mostly because of everyone's ratty hair.

The new season started this past week, and although three months have passed, the characters (for the most part) seem stuck in the same old ruts. Vanessa is a judgmental selfish ho with bonus terrible wig/weave, Jenny is annoying with consistently inappropriate clothing, Nate proves that his instincts/judgment are wrong with every single choice he makes, Serena is doing bizarre and crazy things but totally has an explanation, like for real you guys, and Dan is just....Dan. Whiny. Obnoxious. You get the drill.

In fact, the only characters who seem to have grown at all are Chuck and Blair who are flailing their way through a somewhat mature relationship. They're playing little games with each other, but hey, they're grown-ups now. More power to them. And as soon as Blair seemed uncomfortable, Chuck backed off. He told her he just wanted to make her happy, and darn if I don't believe it. It's nice that my two favorite characters on the show are happy, healthy, and hopefully a little wiser.

We'll see if it holds.

I burned through the first two seasons of this show, but frankly I'm starting to get a little bored. The constant plot recycling and characters hooking up with one another is starting to get old. They need to inject some new blood into the show, and so far Scott (the secret sibling of Dan and Serena, gasp!) is not doing it. Hopefully, having the characters begin school next week and meet new people will make things more interesting.

If not, I'm not sure how long I'll stick around.

The one reason to watch MTV award shows

We've gone on and on about the increasing irrelevance of award shows. And I can't think of any more ridiculous than the MTV Video Music Awards. First of all, everyone knows that MTV doesn't play music videos anymore. So their hosting an award show to recognize excellence in that field is kind of ironic.

But you can always count on MTV to have something buzz-worthy, usually unintentionally. Remember when that dude climbed to the top of the set and they had to shut the show down to get him down? Or when that weird guy ran out and danced jerkily while Bob Dylan was performing? And I'm pretty sure someone from Nirvana whacked themselves on the head one year after throwing his guitar in the air.

But this year takes the cake. Moments after Taylor Swift wins her award for Best Female Video, Kanye West jumps on the stage, rips the microphone out of the poor girl's hand, and proceeds to give props to Beyonce for her Single Ladies video. Taylor looks horrified, perplexed, and sad. She had just finished saying how she had always dreamed this would happen but can't believe it actually did....and then some douche interrupts her acceptance speech. Beyonce has the grace to look shocked and confused with nervous laughter.

MTV Shows

I mean, look her face!


Kanye, seriously, get a grip. A friend told me that your mother died recently and that you must still be grieving...but if you aren't capable of behaving yourself in public because of something like that, DON'T GO OUT. He apologized on his blog, but still. Ugh. get over yourself, keep your ass in your chair, and keep your mouth shut.

And now, bonus Beyonce performance, because it was seriously awesome.

Beyoncé - New Music - More Music Videos

The Boys are Back!

Spoilers for the season premiere of Supernatural below, so proceed at your own risk!

When we last left our intrepid demon-fighters, they had just broken the last of the seals keeping Lucifer trapped in hell, and he was breaking out. And we pick up right where we left off, except instead of dying in a supremely painful way as expected, the Winchester boys get white-lighted to an airplane directly above where they were standing and out of harms way.

Who in the what? My first thought was that it was Castiel, but whoops. He's dead. So Sam and Dean getting saved didn't seem to make much sense. And it's probably not going to help cure Dean's fear of flying, since the plane had to do some tight mauevering to avoid Lucifer's giant pillar of "I've breaking out of hell!" light.

BUT THEN. We find out that the big guy, G-O-D himself, decided to intervene and save the boys and reassemble the blown-apart bits of Castiel to take on Zachariah and his Matrix-y looking minion angels. I gotta say, the fight scene was kind of bad-ass.

So what did I think of the premiere? I liked it. There were constant surprises, most involving Bobby (he's possessed! He's stabbing himself to save Dean and probably going to die! He's unlikely to walk again but alive!). I think I yelled "nooooo!" a lot during most of the bad stuff involving Bobby, because as I am sure you all know, I absolutely adore him. I bet the neighbors thought I was watching some kind of crazy sport on tv by how vocal I was.

And I'm loving the new Dexter-like title card. Gruesome!

But there were also some really hilariously cringe-worthy parts, mostly involving Becky, the zealous Supernatural novel fangirl. She's the webmistress of MoreThanBrothers.net, a Supernatural slash website. Kripke is pretty much willing to make fun of anybody, including his own fans. But I think the Supernatural slashers have it coming, because while I have nothing against slash in general, they're BROTHERS people! It's squicky to ship them!

Anyhoodle, Becky was a riot, especially when she couldn't stop touching Sam ("you're so firm!") and when she saw Dean ("You're....not what I was expecting). Love her!

Yeah, I probably would grab Sam Winchester's boob too if actually confronted with him. It's a normal response.

Some things that didn't seem to work so well are the characters constant use of folksy language and insults. Look, I get that they are from the midwest, but lay off the slang, Kripke. It's getting old. Also, the whole "emotional confrontation between Sam and Dean at the end of the episode" has worn out its welcome. It was really sad hearing that Dean doesn't trust Sam anymore, not that I blame him after all the crap that went down last season, but this is ground that got covered many many times last year. And it doesn't really jive with Dean telling Sam earlier that they need to just move on and work to clean up the mess they made.

Other than a few isolated missteps, the premiere was full of action, surprises, laughs, tears, and all the good stuff that Supernatural can deliver. It did a great job of setting up this year's arc, especially as Lucifer has found his human vessel and we now know Dean is intended as a vessel for archangel Michael, but I'm not sure how stand-along episodes are going to factor in. When you raise the stakes so high and have such imminent danger, it makes it a little more difficult to have a side-romp or feature the boys hunting down some random ghost.

Still, as always, I'm happily along for the ride. As long as the show has more of the action and less of the angst. Is it too much to ask to just see some hot guys kick some demon ass and blow ocassional shit up?

Now listen show. You know the deal. You are not allowed to kill Bobby. I'm cool with his being in a wheelchair if that happens, because he is so badass he could still kick butt, but you MUST NOT KILL HIM. Capish?

Cake Boss

Until last night, my only experience with cake-baking on television was with The Food Network's Ace of Cakes. Set in Baltimore only an hour from me, I viewed Charm City Cakes as the end all be all of cake making.

Until last night.

Getting a DVR a few years ago drastically changed the way I watch television. Since I usually have so many things stored on the hard drive, I never just flip through channels to see what's on. This has the unfortunate side-effect of meaning I miss out on a lot of the random shows that clog the cable airways. But since we haven't gotten to Fall premieres yet, and my DVR is pretty much empty of summer fare, I found myself in the unique position of flipping around the channels last night, looking for something to watch. And I found Cake Boss on TLC.

It's similar to Ace of Cakes, in that we basically get to see the bakery (Carlo's Baker in New Jersey) creating several special order items in an episode, with narration from the bakery's manager, Buddy Valastro. He's a fourth generation baker whose parents purchased the bakery in 1964. Since then, it's been the family business. And how.

So while Duff from Ace of Cakes is the poster boy for chill, surrounding himself with friends with a very rock vibe, Buddy is surrounded by his loud, large, and did I mention loud, Italian family. These people yell at each other all day long.

Buddy's four older sisters run the front counter of the bakery, but find time to pop into the back and yell at Buddy about various things: how the bread looks burnt, how that cake is unacceptable, why did you do this that way...it's crazy. And Buddy has no problem yelling at workers (almost all family members) to hurry up, and even will shove them out of the way, grabbing pastry bags from their hands to show them how it's done, etc.

While this sounds intolerable in print, it's actually really entertaining and hilarious. I don't come from a large family and we're not really down with the yelling so seeing a group of people express themselves by hollering in each other's faces is interesting to me from an anthropological view. And I find Italian people funny...as long as they aren't yelling at me. If they want to yell at each other, I say go for it. They never reach Gordon Ramsey levels of vitriol, it's clear there's no malice behind the raised voices, it's simply how they communicate with one another.

It's also clear that while the Valastro family is, shall we say, passionate, they are passionate about baked goods. Things go wrong in this bakery, and Buddy will flip out. He'll wring his hands, have a mild panic attack, and while most things work out, it's nice to see someone who is so emotional about cake. He definitely has his hands full, and it's clear he's the Cake Boss not just because he's in charge of cakes, but also in charge of an entire clan. A loud clan of emotional Italians. Good luck, dude.

There may actually exist someone who cares more about cake than me.

Television Is Back!

September is my personal Xmas. Sure getting gifts is nice, but I very much enjoy sitting back an opening a brand new season of my favorite shows. And like Xmas, you are going to get gifts you don't want, gifts you don't understand, and gifts that you will cherish forever.

This summer was incredibly disappointing for me. Law & Order CI was a bust with Jeff Goldblum, Burn Notice and In Plain Sight didn't hold their own. Top Chef masters was HORRID. And even TrueBlood bit...(hahah get the pun, the shows about Vamps). The only thing that made the summer tolerable was an endless supply of Big Brother.

BUT! It is back. The fall season is joining us soon and I am ready for it. I have decided, like maggiecats to give you a taste of what I will be watching this fall:

Monday:
8pm - House (Fox), Heroes(NBC) and HIMYM(CBS) (I have no idea how I will watch 3 shows at once, even Tivo can't do that, but how else to cope with changing schedules...)
9:30 - Big Bang Theory(CBS)

Tuesday:
8pm - NCIS (CBS)
9pm - NCIS - LA (CBS) They previewed this one last year. LLCOOL J and Chris O Donnell....we will see how long i watch

Wed:
9pm - Glee (Fox) EXCITED! and L&O SVU (NBC)
10 pm - Eastwick (ABC) have to try some new ones

Thurs:
8pm - Vampire Diaries (CW) Gotta support the degrassi alum(at least for the pilot)
9pm - The Office (NBC)
930pm - The Community (NBC) Gotta support John Oliver!

Fri:
8pm - L&O (NBC)
9pm - Dollhouse (FOX) & Ugly Betty (ABC)
10pm - Numbers (CBS)

Sun (My Husbands Day of TV)
8pm - Simpsons (Fox)
8:30pm - The Cleveland Show (Fox) Until it gets canceled of course (I bet 2 weeks)
9pm - Family Guy (Fox) & Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO)
10pm - Brothers & Sisters (me not andrew) (ABC) & Entourage (HBO)

Fall Schedule

Ah, the end of summer. When a girl's mind turns to thoughts of Fall television. And trying to figure out what the heck I am going to watch. Luckily, TV Guide has my back and has helpfully posted a guide to all the Fall television shows in handy dandy grid form.

Go here tv-philes.

Note: this only includes network television. I still need to check out the cable schedule so I know I'm not missing anything cool on some cable channel.

So what is my Fall schedule looking like?

Monday

8:00-Heroes and House (thanks, DVR!)

9:00-Gossip Girl

10:00-Castle

Tuesday

8:00-So You Think You Can Dance, V

Wednesday

8:00-So You Think You Can Dance, America's Next Top Model

9:00-Glee, Law and Order: SVU

10:00-Eastwick (at least for a few weeks)

Thursday

8:00-Vampire Diaries (again, I'll at least give it a try)

9:00-Supernatural, Fringe, and The Office (back-up VCR, FTW!)

Friday

9:00-Ugly Betty, Dollhouse

Saturday

HAHA! You're funny. Like the networks would ever show anything good on Saturday night. But I think Robin Hood is airing this night over on BBC America...

Sunday

Nada. Network television FAIL.

TV Marathon Watching

Some shows are well-served by marathons. The West Wing, Veronica Mars, Buffy, Battlestar Galactica, Mad Men...all of these are shows that you can easily sit on the couch and watch for hours on end.

But not every show makes for good marathon viewing. Case in point: Gossip Girl. Last weekend, my friend Chris and I settled in a for a mini-marathon of Gossip Girl, since we need to get through Season 2 before Season 3 starts this fall. We made it through the first four episodes (disc 1, natch) before we realized it was time to call it quits for the day.

Look, I really like Gossip Girl. I couldn't believe how addictive it was when I started watching, but viewing episode after episode of it doesn't really work. There's only so much bratty, whiny, rich (or in the case of Dan Humphrey, bourgeoisie) bitching you can take before you want to throw something through the television.

It's funny how after repeated viewing of the show, the only characters I could stand were Blair and Chuck, the supposed villains. Hey, at least their honest about what they want and are true to their characters. If it's in their best self-interest they're all for it. I find that kind of consistency refreshing.

The thing that is NOT refreshing is Dan and his hang-ups, Serena and her "oh woe is me the beautiful leggy blond" and Jenny with her annoying perkiness.

What are the chances the three of them get taken out by a bus/train in the second season finale? Considering how I know they all end up at college next season (well, except Jenny who is only 16), not great.

These are Mad times, I tell you, Mad!

We are now two episodes into the third season of Mad Men and there's been a lot of discussion and speculation as to whether the show could sustain the brilliance of its first two seasons.

Short answer: yes.

Long answer: the beauty of Mad Men for me is that it works on several levels. I can watch it week to week and enjoy the plots, the characters, the amazing costumes and sets, but then also go back and watch the show in long stretches and catch the themes and symbolism inherent to the arcs of the show.

And so far, I am loving where the characters are going, especially Peggy. All along she has been discovering how much of a weapon her femininity can be, but last week she really ratcheted it up by using some practiced Joan and Ann-Margaret skills to see if she could reel someone in. Her whole scene in the bar had a definite experiment vibe to it; Peggy wanting to see what she could get away with. Although I did hate seeing her disappointment in Don when he failed to understand how far ahead she is of the curve (and other copy writers) when it comes to understanding how women think and how that can aid them to sell products.

As for Don and Betty, I'm not really sure of where they are in their marriage. In the season premiere, Don got up in the middle of the night to warm milk for her, which may have been a small action, but it certainly showed that he cared for her. But from then on, they seemed to be a couple that was merely going through the motions; especially since Don took the first opportunity he had to bang some random chick. Although the fact that it was a random encounter and not an actual mistress was, I guess, a step up for him?

Betty's bitterness this season is interesting, and I seriously fear for the health of her child with all the smoking and drinking she has indulged in lately. I wonder how her father moving in with the family will further affect the dynamic?

Obviously there are a billion other characters to talk about, but my fingers are starting to hurt (I've been typing all day, yo), so I'll leave with two final thoughts. First, does anyone else get the feeling that there is a giant ticking clock over this season counting down to the Kennedy assassination and what it is going to do everyone? I don't think it's really anything that the show creators have explicitly done, but I am sensing serious tension for the future. And second...

More Joan Holloway, plz thx.

He's back!

Jeesh, I go away for work for one week at the end of summer thinking I wouldn't be missing anything...and holy puckered hems, Batman! I miss out on the premieres of Mad Men and Project Runway! And when I say miss, I mean MISS, since my lame-o hotel didn't have Lifetime or AMC. I mean, really. Although the free happy hour every night made up for it. Almost.

Anyway, despite forgetting to set my DVR for Project Runway (d'oh!), a quick call to mom confirmed that she could record it for me and on this past very rainy Saturday afternoon we settled in to watch the Season 6 premiere of PR.

I know everyone has pretty much already said it, but I couldn't really tell a change with the show at all, even with the move to Los Angeles. Sure the workroom was a little different, and the designers have new digs....but you have the same whackadoodle designers, the usual tough, bitchy, and in the case of Michael Kors, orange, judges, and of course. The Silver Fox.

All is right with the world now, chickadees. Tim is here.

Oh, Tim Gunn! I hadn't even realized how much I had missed you until you walked onto the tv screen and back into my heart. You're impeccably groomed, always well-spoken, and when you furrowed your brow and considered the first (of many) heinous garments, I wanted to cheer.

It's just nice to see the return of a competitive reality show that requires genuine talent, creativity, skill, and celebrates things that are lovely. And of course it gives me an excuse to visit the boys over at T.Lo (formerly Project Rungay) as they rip on the runway.

So do I have any early picks for the winners? Eh, it's really too early to tell. Nobody really stood out for me so far...it always takes a few weeks for me to get a good idea of what's going on, but I agree with the judges that Ra'mon could be great if he moves just a little outside the box. And I thought Christopher definitely deserved the win.

In the meantime, they're back, bitches! Let's just sit back and enjoy the drama, pretty clothes, and general catiness. Bring it!

Big Brother?? Really?

Ok, so I like to think I have a decent taste in television. I can tell an awful show from a great one. But this summer I am OBSESSED with Big Brother. I don't know how it happened or why, but I can't get me enough Big Brother.

Last night's episode had me yelling at the screen when drunk Lydia decided to lose her mind and Chyma got thrown out for tossing her mic in the hot tub. I can't help it, I HAVE TO KNOW WHATS HAPPENING NEXT. My husband and I even find ourselves tuning in to Big Brother After Dark on Showtime.....Aw!

Yes folks, I am checking myself into Rehab at the end of the season.

Gleek Chic

So ... Hot Topic. This store is the object of much scorn from mainstream and fringe groups alike. In trying to be "different," many of the shoppers at Hot Topic end up with a look that is depressingly conformist. And I know this sounds like sour grapes (see the end of Maggie's post for further details), but I can't help but think ... Could there be a better venue for the Gleek tour?

Gleek = Glee + geek. Sadly, I did not get this at first.

Glee's marketing department is either brilliant or completely obviously to irony, and has booked the cast to appear at several Hot Topic stores across the country. The tour started yesterday in Massachusetts and will finish next Friday in California. In our neck of the woods, they're going to be stopping at the Fair Oaks Mall on August 20th. Anyone interested in attending, and then reporting back? Let me know!

P.S. Thanks to Cheryl for sharing the link!

Comic Con: Glee

On Saturday afternoon we joined the throngs of red-shirted Glee fans (apparently they have special red Glee shirts?) for an advance screening of the second episode and a Q+A with the show's cast and producers.

So, how was it? The episode was SO GOOD OMG. It was even better than the pilot. And I really enjoyed the pilot. They managed to cram in so much plot and also the following songs:

-Le Freak

-Gold Digga (Kanye, what up)

-Push It

-I Say a Little Prayer for You

-Take a Bow (Rhianna)

In one episode! Six songs! It was crazy. And watching it with a huge crowd (probably at least 1000 people) was a seriously cool experience. People were laughing hysterically, clapping, shouting, and just really really enjoying themselves. It made me wish I could watch every episode with a group that big. And then wonder how I would fit them into my one bedroom condo. Space-saver bags maybe?

I also liked how the show seems to be moving things along plot-wise at a really good clip. So many shows just draaaag things out forever (like sexual tension and relationships), but not Glee. Someone actually asked the producers a question along the lines of "why are you moving things forward so quickly?" and they replied that they had a lot of stories they wanted to tell and didn't see any reason not to just get to it. As a viewer, I really appreciate that. Especially since I am so impatient.

Ok, so here's the scoop for the Fall. They have recorded 60 tracks of songs for the coming episodes, including songs by Barbara Streisand, The Rolling Stones, and Van Halen. There will sometimes be as many as six or seven songs in an episode, and the first (!!!) soundtrack album will be available in November. Future guest-star include Kristin Chenowith, Josh Groban, Victor Garber, Deborah Monk, and Eve.

The cast is currently traveling around the country as part of a tour, but they aren't making too many stops. 10 cities in 12 days, and are stopping in (gulp) Hot Topic stores. So, WTF, Hot Topic? I don't know, maybe the girls in the cast have run out of clean Twilight tees or something.

As for the central conceit of the show, the creators stated that they didn't want their characters just randomly bursting into song, but the music in the rehearsal sessions and in the characters minds should be used to explain their inner feelings. They have definite rules for when music can be used, so it doesn't seem too jarring.

During the Q+A portion of the panel, Monkey Sri had a really great question that she tried to ask, but got rejected by the screeners. She was planning to ask the creators, "for a show that is ostensibly about social outcasts, why is the main cast all white straight people?" Which I think is a great question; I know the show has also gotten flack for having stereotyped characters, the diva black girl, the white jock, the skinny gay kid, etc. But apparently the screeners thought it would "put them on the spot" and sent her back to her seat. And trust me, after listening to all the bullshit questions other people had asked at other panels, that kind of pissed me off.

But despite that little hiccup, Glee definitely rates up there as one of the best panels I saw, and now I feel all too cool for school having gotten a look at the next episode.

And no, I won't tell you any spoilers. You'll just have to wait!

Congratulations, Jeanine!

After a season that was equal parts tedium and rapture, So You Think You Can Dance crowned it's newest winner last night: Jeanine Mason.

It was an unexpected win to be sure, but delighted me to no end. I think America got the top two right; it came to Brandon and Jeanine, but honestly I would have been happy if Jeanine, Brandon, or Kayla had won. But having Jeanine take the big prize just made me really happy. It's not like I know her or anything, but I always really liked her and loved watching her dance. Plus, she's funny in interviews.

Jeanine has been a strong performer this entire season; she was paired with Phillip at the beginning, which made me feel a little sorry for her. While a great street dancer, Phillip was, let's face it, a terrible partner, and his popularity was basically the only thing that kept them from being booted those first few weeks. Still, Jeanine seemed to impress everyone by keeping up with Phillip during their hip-hop routines and and basically out shining him in everything else.

But when Phillip left the competition and Jeanine got paired with Jason, then we really got a chance to see her bring it. She could handle any style the judges threw at her, and her contemporary number with Jason (with the heart locket) pushed her into the forefront. At that point, you knew she was a contender.



By the time the top 8 rolled around, Jeanine had a chance to dance with Brandon, and in my opinion, finally got a chance to partner with a dancer as strong as she was. After a lackluster night, she and Brandon came out and performed a pop-jazz number that was pretty awesome. After watching it in the clip below, it doesn't have quite the same impact, but trust me, after an hour and a half of meh, it felt like an adrenaline jolt.



But I think what really clinched the win was Jeanine's solo in the performance finale. Which is amazing, since to me the solos always feel like an after thought. We have seen some great solos this season, but the dancers are only given 45 seconds or so to perform and sometimes it's not long enough to make an impression. Also, a lot of them seem very frantic; trying to cram as much as they can into that time (I'm looking at you Brandon and Kayla), but Jeanine always took the time and made her solo a full performance. And her tango solo at the finale was just woah. I couldn't find it on you tube, but you can see it here beginning at 3:50. And I really suggest you check it out. It's gorgeous.

So congrats, Jeanine! Hopefully you'll get a chance to enjoy being this season's winner, because it won't last long. Season 6 starts in less than a month on September 2. So smoke em if you got em!

Comic Con: Dollhouse

The big attraction on Friday was Joss Whedon. The whole day had been structured around getting into the Dollhouse and Joss Whedon panel; from deciding which of the morning’s panels to attend, to eating times, to getting into line 3 hours before Joss was even due on stage.

We were going to see Joss no matter what.

And we did, hurray! It meant sitting in at the Bones panel (see below), but we were able to move a bit forward before Dollhouse started and had a great view of the stage and the man. He came out with no ceremony, just walked out to the crashing cheers of the 3000 people gathered in Ballroom 20. He looked good, maybe lost some weight? Anyway, after a quick introduction, we were treated to the “missing” episode of Dollhouse, Epitaph One.

The episode was set a few years in the future, and the Dollhouse technology has leaked out to terrorist use, and any exposure to radio waves could mean the wiping of your personality (it had a very post-apocalyptic Terminator feel actually).

Look, it’s no secret that I am not a huge Dollhouse fan, but after watching Epitaph One all I could think was, “can I watch that show?” That one hour episode we saw was more interesting and well-acted than the entire rest of the series had been. Of course, Eliza Dushku was only in it for like 5 minutes, which might have been the reason for the improvement in my mind, but it was just so much meatier than anything else we had seen so far.

After the episode screening, Joss and Eliza came out and did a solid hour of question and answer with the crowd. The questions were great and hit on things I had been wondering. For example: Joss decided to cast Alan Tudyk as Alpha based on his reading of Caesar in Antony and Cleopatra during one of Joss’ famous Shakespeare nights.

Some scoop for season 2 was also provided; Alexis Denisof would be appearing as a guest star (this news was met with great whoops from the audience) and the show would have a new director of photography. Joss promised that they would stretch the parameters of what was possible in the world he had created and characters from Epitaph One (yay Felicia Day!) would make an appearance, even though the episode had never aired.

Overall, seeing Joss and listening to him speak was just as fun and amazing an experience as I had hoped. He’s the kind of guy that makes you think, “he should get to know me, we would get along really well.” He’s such a geek himself, that you can’t help but be drawn to him. And it left me more excited for Dollhouse’s return, which after all, was kind of the point.

Comic Con: Bones

For the record, I don’t watch Bones. I think I made it through the first two or three episodes before I decided to throw in the towel. I don’t think it’s bad, but it just seemed like a standard crime procedural and even my love for David Boreanaz couldn’t keep me interested.

Having said that, I know a lot of people are crazy about it (including my Dad and Stepmom) and I kind of keep an eye on what’s going on with it just from reading about tv news. For example: I know that Booth is in a coma and apparently had some big hallucination where he and Brennan were married. I know that Hodgins and Angela dated, and I know that Zack was apparently in league with the bad guy last season. So I wasn’t totally in the dark when I ended up sitting in on the panel at Comic Con (I was there since it was scheduled right before the Dollhouse panel).

However, since I don’t really follow the show, and in an effort to get more posts out, I’m going to present the news and scoop from Bones in bullet points. You have a problem, take it up with management. Except there is none, so haha!

--David Boreanaz couldn’t attend due to the pending birth of his daughter. Everyone was sad.

--The producer of the show described last seasons’ finale as a “love letter to the fans” who wanted to see Booth and Brennan together. The he realized he screwed up because all those same fans were royally pissed with the coma twist. He said that loyal fans would get it, but causal fans wouldn’t. Hmm. Judging by the audience reaction, I wouldn't be so sure of that, buddy.

--Emily Deschanel wants the characters together eventually but knows it’s tricky on television (everyone references the Moonlighting debacle).

--Emily is quick with the sexual innuendo and likes making fun of the other panelist. I like her.

--The new season’s premiere will pick up 6 weeks later and is concerned with whether Booth can bring himself back to work and deal with the confusion of his feelings for Brennan.

--The frozen sperm will be addressed next season. Uh, yay?

--David Boreanaz is directing the show’s 100^th episode.

--Cyndi Lauper will guest-star next season playing a character named Avalon Harmonia who is, you guessed it, Angela’s psychic who leads the team to a few dead bodies arousing suspicion.

--Tamara was the most squeamish actor on the show.

--The show would love to have Zack back, but the actor has moved to NYC and they would have to make sure it would fit with his schedule.

--Episode 5 or 6 of next season deals with the trial of the Gravedigger and we will likely find out what Brennan wrote in her goodbye note.

Comic Con: Spartacus Blood and Sand

Spartacus: Blood and Sand is the cable channel Starz’s foray into original programming. Apparently, they are tired of seeing HBO and Showtime get all the glory, and so have stepped into the ring.

The show is based on the story of Spartacus (duh), a Roman sentenced to slavery as a gladiator and end up leading a slaves’ revolt. The creator described the show as being about how a group of hard, different men come together and almost take down the Roman Empire.

Did you catch that “almost?” Spoiler alert!

Of course, if you’ve seen the movie, you know how things end for our hero. But along the way the producers have promised a lot of sex and violence, to which I say, woot!

The show is modeled on the “hyper-reality” format used by Zack Snyder in 300 and also has obvious echoes of Rome and Gladiator. But like I said, with more sex and violence.

Alright, I’ll just say it—Lucy Lawless is in it and she gets naked. So if that floats your boat, more power to you. She plays a villainess Roman citizen and her husband is played by John Hannah (the brother of Evelyn in The Mummy).

We were shown a trailer of the show during the panel, and my very initial impressions are that it looks awesome. I’m pretty sure I won’t be running out and signing up for Starz (I am sort of frugal after all), but the show will definitely be going on the top of my Netflix queue when it comes out on DVD.

Interestingly, the show will promoted through a tie-in comic book, an Ipod game, and a motion version of the comic (think Watchmen). A copy of the first comic was included in our pretty rad swag bag (along with a t-shirt and poster), and it’s pretty good.

Final thought? To quote Lucy Lawless, “it’s big fun on the small screen.”

There are mostly naked men and they fight and have sex. A lot. Sign me up! But not literally.

Torchwood: Children of the Earth

I now take a brief break from the Comic Con write-ups to bring you this review of the recent miniseries/season of Torchwood.

Woah.

That pretty much sums it up. I haven't been the biggest fan of Torchwood, I pretty much hated the first season and tolerated the second, but this miniseries was really great. There were some shocking surprises (SPOILER ALERT) like the deaths of Ianto and Jack's grandson, Simon, but it was extremely tense, scary, and full of twists and turns.

It's nice to be reminded of what Russell T. Davies is capable of when he goes balls out and doesn't give us any sparkly Doctor Jesus crap, and the acting was really stepped up this go around, especially from John Barrowman and some of the supporting players.

If you haven't checked it out yet, I suggest you get the DVD, since it's definitely worth the price of admission. I'm not sure where they can go from here, but I am all about finding out.

AHHHHH! Creepy children!

Comic Con: Female Power Icons

This panel wasn't strictly about television, but hey, close enough, right?

The participants on the panel were Sigourney Weaver (Alien and like 20 billion other movies and shows), Eliza Dushku (Buffy, Dollhouse), Zoe Saldana (Center Stage, Star Trek), and Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost, V).


First impressions: wow, they all have such pretty hair! Not a very empowering observation, but it's true.

Now, since these actors weren't gathered to discuss a particular subject, the conversation, while interesting, was kind of meandering. The panel just responded to general questions from the moderator and from the audience. So I'm basically just going to report responses that I found interesting. You want more than that, you can go to Comic Con yourself.

Seriously though, the initial question asked each woman was how they got into the sci-fi genre. Other than the obvious, "um, they were willing to hire me?" the responses were pretty interesting. Sigourney was not initially interested in doing the movie Alien, but was won over by Ridley Scott's concept drawings of the alien eggs. She also commented that sci-fi often provides many opportunities for being part of an ensemble, which also convinced her to do Alien.

When Zoe was asked the same question, she noted that in the world of Star Trek there simply is no discrimination. The bridge of the Enterprise is considered truly color blind, and Uhura is not identified by her gender or color (a black woman) but by her abilities and how well she does her job. Zoe viewed the opportunity to become a character who had no experience with discrimination or being viewed as something less than capable due to her gender and race as fascinating.

While answering a question about what motivates women in the genre, Sigourney noted that female action figures are about drive and ferocity. They respond to challenges with their whole being.

Elizabeth Mitchell made a good point when asked about why there are so few strong women in television and movies. She talked about how Hollywood is afraid of female sexuality (which I absolutely agree with it...watch the documentary Not Yet Rated if you don't believe it) and that sci-fi provides the opportunity for women to be strong and vibrant.

But Sigourney cautioned that people should not look to Hollywood if they are hoping to see a movie toward social change. She mentioned that society is changing faster than Hollywood understands, and that the onus is on us to make our voices heard about the kind of strong female characters we want to see. Zoe reiterated that the audience (you) is the consumer, and you have to be sure to ask for what you want, or all we'll get are the same old stories.

You probably noticed that there isn't a lot of commentary from Eliza Dushku here, which is sadly because she didn't seem to have that much to contribute. She took Kristen Bell's (Veronica Mars) place on the panel since a panel Kristen had for Astro Boy from Summit got moved to earlier in the day. I can't help but think of how much more awesome Kristen would have been....but like I said, Eliza definitely had pretty hair, so I'm glad that worked out for her.

So what are my two cents? I think you see such a (comparatively) large number of strong, capable, badass women in sci-fi because the genre deals with fantasy. Sad, but true. The Hollywood establishment is not comfortable with putting these types of women in more realistic situations, because the establishment is mostly run by men who speak as they find. But in fantasy, anything goes, and we aren't restrained by our present day biases and prejudices and its easier for some to accept the concept of a strong woman.

I agree completely with the idea that it's up to us as the consumer to support media that reflects progressive roles for women and other historically disenfranchised groups like racial minorities and homosexuals. Unfortunately right now this means supporting material more on the fringe and independent side of the industry, but hopefully that will start to change. And as the number of women behind the scenes in media increases (directors, comic writers and artists, screenwriters, and actors), it will become less unusual to encounter strong women in pop culture.