Toy Story 3

Impressions before seeing it
If you're part of generation X like me then you probably grew up with Toy Story and its sequel. And, like me, you probably enjoyed the first two because they're good movies. I knew Toy Story 3 was going to be good so I did my best to avoid spoilers (I think the only thing I kept hearing from people was that it made them cry) and was finally able to see it on Blu-ray. I may not have seen it in 3D at the movie theater, but there is nothing more visually stunning than a Pixar movie on Blu-ray.

How was it?
I was surprised that this one felt a little darker and more mature than the first two, but I suppose it makes a lot of sense: Andy has grown up and so have the kids who loved Toy Story when it was first released in 1995. And as Andy loses interest in his toys and they long to be shipped off to a daycare, we learn why Woody is special: because while the other toys just want to be played with and loved, Woody is the only one who loves in return. The toys were very quick to dismiss Andy, and I think it's because of this reason, not because they believed beyond a doubt that their owner was throwing them in the trash. Later, when they regret their choices and realize Woody was right, they learn that love is faith and loyalty, not indulgence or selfishness. Also they almost got destroyed.

I loved how the opening sequence was like a more souped up, fantasized version of the same scenario Andy was playing in the opening sequence of the first Toy Story. It's been several years since I saw the first movie but I recognized it right away and was delighted by the nostalgia. I did find some parts predictable, like *Spoiler alert!* when Lotso the teddy bear turned out to be the villain, which I was expecting soon after his entrance because he reminded me a lot of the Prospector in Toy Story 2, and when they were assigned a certain room at the daycare I knew a bunch of toddlers were going to run in and rip them to shreds, but as much as I dislike predictability it didn't affect my enjoyment at all. I still love the idea of toys coming to life when no one is looking, and that will always be fun to watch.

Recommendation
Play with your toys, kids. They're better at developing your imagination than video games are. Oh, and see this movie. Not all trilogies/franchises are able to maintain their quality from movie to movie (*cough*Shrek*cough*), but this is one of the good ones.

This Week in Television - Dec. 19-24, 2010

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone who visits "What I'm Watching". It wasn't until I added the counter at the bottom of the site that I realized there might be a few more people reading than I thought... Or one or two people who come here way too often. Either way, thank you. :)

Survivor: Nicaragua (Season Finale)
So after screwing over a lot of people, instead of trying to earn the jury's respect by keeping people who deserve to be there, all season all anyone kept talking about was bringing people the jury hates to the finals. However, Fabio somehow managed to do both because Dan and Holly didn't deserve to stay and the jury was pissed at Chase and Sash (though Chase did collect a surprising four votes). Chase is dumb; Marty's question about a "dumber than a bag of hammers" award was not "BS". I understand that he was trying to complain about the bias of not being able to choose Marty, but that is an irrelevant bias since Marty was far from the dumbest player. I do call BS on Naonka's question, though. It seems like something the producers told her to ask in order to get an emotional reaction out of Fabio, because it otherwise served no purpose whatsoever, and while Naonka is certainly not above stupid and pointless, I don't buy that she would want to ask whether Fabio loves his mother. But it was funny how Fabio laughed every time the jury attacked Chase and Sash. He knew he had it in the bag, and I have to take my hat off to him because at the beginning I thought he was just a dumb, shallow meathead who wouldn't make it to the end and now I actually have some respect for him and am glad he won. Didn't realize he was 21 though; that makes me feel old somehow, and I'm only three years older than he is. For once I was glad for Jeff Probst's douchiness when he cut off Shannon at the reunion, even though it sort of sounded like he was going to admit that Sash was not gay because he had met his girlfriend. Saw it coming that Jane would win player of the season. I was surprised at the number of former Survivors in the audience though, because there was really no reason for them to come except to keep their faces in the spotlight (though I heard a rumour that Boston Rob and Russell Hantz are returning next season for a showdown that involves them having automatic immunity until the merge).

Kenny vs. Spenny (Series Finale Christmas Special)
That...wasn't what I was expecting. It was almost like an Americanized version of what the show has become: a showcase for Kenny and his weird characters while Spenny tries to be taken seriously from the background. This was the apex of what Kenny vs. Spenny has been turning into. If you're a loyal enough fan to remember season one, you'll remember that it was a show about competitions that happened to be funny, as opposed to a show that is about crazy, raunchy humour and happens to have competitions. There was a competition here (who can stay in a pine tree the longest?), but it was shown in snippets between sketches with humour so distinct that you could tell, for example, that "Silencio vs. Goldar" was written by Kenny and the Santa sketch with the corny, vaudevillian style jokes was written by Spenny. Not the best send-off for a show that started in a completely different fashion, but the reappearances of several Kenny characters was, at best, appropriately nostalgic. The only thing I laughed at (and fairly hard, too) was the actor playing Spenny. Everything he did was hilarious and at first it actually took me a moment to figure out that it wasn't Spenny. But the bottom line is that Kenny vs. Spenny was supposed to be a reality show, and while there were certainly numerous moments throughout the series that felt fake and scripted, this one was the most fake of all. None of it felt sincere until the final moment in the end credits: the guys hugging while Spenny apologizes for destroying the set and Kenny responds with "Nah, I thought it was funny." I guess they are friends after all.

Hero of the Week: Whoever that guy was playing Spenny on Kenny vs. Spenny. The one brilliant part of an otherwise mediocre Christmas special.

Douchebag of the Week: Shannon from Survivor. Voted off months ago and only spoke for another few seconds this week; still a dick.

This Week in Television - Dec. 13-17, 2010

Survivor: Nicaragua
That's the second time Chase promised to take someone on a reward and then didn't. He'll already be down at least three jury votes if he makes it to the finals. At least Fabio got him back by winning immunity. I was surprised that everyone voted for Jane. That was a selfish move because she deserved to win more than, say, Dan and Holly. But they were probably right in their suspicions that she would've taken the jury vote. Sunday's finale will be in next week's post (I'm rooting for Sash now. Everyone else who deserved to win got booted... maybe Fabio as a backup choice.), along with Thursday's special series finale of Kenny vs. Spenny.

Hero of the Week: Jane, for going down with a fight.

Douchebag of the Week: Chase, for being shady.

This Week in Television - Dec. 6-10, 2010

Glee
Last year Glee didn't get a Christmas episode because they ended the fall season with sectionals. I'm kind of glad they did this year because I generally enjoy holiday episodes of shows and this one wasn't too shabby. Sue as The Grinch was fun (though I'm aware that I praise everything Sue does except for last season's Madonna debacle), and Brittany's wide-eyed belief in Santa and magic was cute, and I had to laugh when those two arcs came neatly together in a recreation of the scene where The Grinch first meets Cindy Lou Who (Brittany even had the hairstyle). Brittany is the second best character on Glee (there is no third), and I must admit, grudgingly, that I was charmed by her whole storyline, from her conversation with Coach Bieste as Santa to her giddy reaction when Artie took his first step. But props to Mike for telling the mall Santa that he wants Channing Tatum to stop being in stuff. Me too, Mike. Me too.

Running Wilde
I was expecting a Christmas episode since all the other shows are doing it this week, but seeing as how Running Wilde probably isn't returning after the holidays, they might've had one in there but it looks like FOX isn't planning to air the last five episodes. Anyway, I thought this one was a little more fun than the last couple of episodes but it's still having some trouble being outright hilarious. Once again, we get another story where Steve and Emmy compete to prove each other wrong, and while this formula is getting old I'll let it slide this week because it was interesting to see them try to live each other's lives. They were successful at first, but ironically failed once they took on each other's mannerisms because they were basically carbon copies with all of the negative qualities that come with the job but none of the skill to perform adequately. With an eye-patched Fa'ad stealing the show again as he tries to become an A-lister.

Survivor: Nicaragua
If I were Sash I'd stop blindsiding people and start worrying about jury votes. I thought he was making a mistake after ignoring Fabio's request to tell him if his name comes up, and it turned out not to be necessary since he didn't go home, but it probably would have benefited him to say something to Benry. The reward challenge was hilarious because you could just hear Jeff getting a boner as Chase breezed through each round. Chase heard it too because he asked Jeff if he wanted to hug him. I almost thought he was going to accept.

Community
Ever since I first heard about it and then saw the promo photos, this episode was probably the television event I've most been looking forward to this season (except for maybe the return of Parks and Recreation). To be honest I ended up finding it slightly underwhelming. I mean the animation was awesome and it had some good moments (like the nerd that I am, I got excited at seeing the Lost season 1 DVD play a part), but it was lower on laughs, the singing was a little bland (although the songs were original - take that, Glee!), and while I'm a big fan of Abed and saw what they were aiming for, it somehow didn't affect me like it should have. But still enjoyable because I love stop-motion, and Teddy Pierce was weirdly cute.

30 Rock
Jack has always had issues with his mother and her harsh criticisms, and it was nice to see him trump her for once. I don't really consider her fake heart attack to be a proper retaliation because it was more of a cheat than anything else, so Jack still wins it. Tracy's career tends to take turns parodying either Eddie Murphy or Martin Lawrence (this time Eddie and the Norbit/Oscar loss situation). I think I'd rather see him just be an original character, although I always enjoy some obvious hand-over-the-mouth hose barfing. The two black swans costume was a good gag too, but I don't think it's a rekindling of Jenna and Paul's relationship. They were just two people who love to entertain.

The Office
This felt a lot like a classic episode from earlier seasons of The Office, thus making it awesome. It had some really funny gags (Erin thinking Holly is plain and uninteresting, Dwight having a wig for everyone in the office, Creed for some reason thinking Holly was a sassy black lady), and in spite of most of the characters experiencing some sort of Christmas disappointment, some sweet moments when things started to look up for each of them. I thought having Jack Coleman on the show would be cool, but as of this episode all it's done is given Angela yet another reason to act like she's better than everyone else. But it might make up for a funny storyline or two in the future, as it appears he is gay and might not even realize he is dating Angela. When I saw all the snowmen in the parking lot, I knew Dwight wasn't going to be in any of them. Too bad Jim didn't.

Fringe
This episode turned out to be a surprisingly deep character study. We rarely see Olivia so broken (not even when held captive on the other side), we've never seen Peter deal with being in the wrong and having a lot to apologize for (not that I can remember, anyway), and we've never had such a remorseful and well-intentioned "villain" (we may have come close when Peter Weller guest starred last season). The ballerina corpse puppet dancing scene and that whole storyline reminded me of the movie May - creepy and disturbing, but with sweet and moving undertones. And I actually kind of liked Peter and Fauxlivia together because, truthfully, she was more fun and laid back while our Olivia is mostly all business. But Olivia makes a good point: if you love someone, you would know when something is off. So did he just not love Olivia, or was he in denial about all of the signs? It might be more that he was just blinded by lust; he certainly responded strongly every time Fauxlivia wanted to get physical.

Hero of the Week: Pam from The Office, because that comic book actually was a really, really awesome present. She shouldn't have bothered to show it around because Phyllis isn't the type of dorky young person who would "get" it, and like Angela, Ryan likes to be a pretentious prick whenever possible.

Douchebag of the Week: Angela from The Office, for pointing out too many times that her boyfriend is a senator no one had even heard of until she started dating him. I don't hate Angela as a character, she can be funny, but this week her arrogance just got annoying.

Son of the Beach - Volume 2

Son of the Beach is probably my biggest guilty pleasure. It's stupid, cheesy, offensive, poorly acted, full of corny sexual innuendos and bad special effects - basically of low quality all around, yet I get a big kick out of it anyway. In order to properly appreciate this show, one must understand it on a satirical level: Son of the Beach is a parody/satire of Baywatch, a show which, while I've never seen it, I'm assuming shares all of the qualities I listed above yet is supposed to be a drama. It was probably begging to be made fun of.

Volume 2 consists of the second half of season two (which contained mostly strong episodes) and all of the third and final season, where some very unfortunate changes were made. First, Mayor Massengil was booted from the show because for some reason the network wanted to fire Lisa Banes, and Porcelain Bidet (Amy Weber) was added as a new lifeguard. Huge mistake. Porcelain was a one-note character: a spoiled, selfish gold-digger, and as with Jenna from 30 Rock, I just don't find that type of self-centered character to be funny. Mayor Massengil was a lot funnier and provided a lot of great (yet silly) storylines revolving around her rivalry with Notch in the first two seasons. Problem number two was that in the third season, they started using their money to improve the show's special effects. Normally that would be a good thing, but not on this show because I always found the cheesy low-budgetness to be part of the overall joke, and making things look better subtracts from that. My third problem with season 3, although a minor one, is that they changed Professor Milosovic's laugh and for the life of me I can't fathom why. The professor, a Stephen Hawking-like wheelchair-bound scientist, is easily my favourite character because of his hilarious computer voice and admittedly offensive jokes about his paralysis. His laugh was also one of the best parts because it was a robotic "Ha. Ha. Ha.", but in season 3 they suddenly decided to speed it up and make it sound more human. Lame. And in general the season 3 episodes just weren't as funny as the season 2 episodes in this collection, which I got a LOT of laughs out of.

Best episode: The one that was probably the funniest to me was the season 2 episode "It's Showtime at the Apollo 13!", where Jamaica becomes the first black lifeguard in space and Notch has to go undercover as a high school student to save her when the mission goes haywire due to a teenage hacker. Yes, I know it's a ridiculous plot - the lifeguards on this show often act as policemen, investigating crimes, going undercover, and making arrests - but that's part of the show's ongoing joke.

Eagle Eye

Impressions before seeing it
I remember being intrigued by the mystery of the trailer (who is calling these people and giving them random instructions, and why?) but then I didn't hear a lot of good things after its release so I didn't seek it out until it appeared on TV last night.

How was it?
The "cold opening" before the titles didn't draw me in because it was just some boring stuff about the American government trying to catch Middle Eastern terrorists (plus it had Michael Chiklis, who has never impressed me in anything and probably never will unless I decide to watch The Shield), but then afterwards we get to Shia LaBeouf playing Poker and it instantly becomes fun, because he is the kind of actor who is fun to watch. It gets even better when Jerry (LaBeouf) is framed via a huge stash of weapons planted in his apartment and he starts receiving phone calls from a woman's voice (an uncredited Julianne Moore) giving him specific and often dangerous instructions. Michelle Monaghan's character also starts getting these calls. I love stories where weird and mysterious things like this are going on - and perhaps it was also because the phonecalls reminded me of the early Matrix scenes where Morpheus calls Neo to guide him out of the office - so this was right up my alley.

However, once they started answering questions and revealing things, Eagle Eye lost its appeal for me. Not just because the mystery was gone, but because the answers were uninteresting, preachy, and a little silly. I found myself thinking of Arnold Schwarzenegger's The 6th Day, and how the first 20-30 minutes of it are actually cool and then it gets dumber and funnier as time goes on. But I think Eagle Eye is generally a better film than that one. There are some good performances here - I really enjoyed the scene where Billy Bob Thornton has Shia LaBeouf in an interrogation room and is trying to use a combination of good cop (without a bad cop) and reverse psychology to make him admit he is a terrorist - and there is fun to be had, I was just disappointed with the last half.

Recommendation
If, like me, you enjoy those "WTF is going on?!" type plots, then you might get a kick out of at least the first half. Eagle Eye is entertaining and, I suppose, not too shabby if you don't mind it jumping on the "our government is problematic" bandwagon like a lot of things are doing these days.

This Week in Television - Nov. 29-Dec. 3, 2010

Glee
The worst Glee episodes are the ones without Sue Sylvester. Not just because Sue is awesome, but because in her absence they tend to fill the time with even more of that high school relationship drama crap. This was one of those episodes. And it was Sectionals too, there should have been more tension and urgency and epic performances, but there weren't. Especially not from The Warblers, who were mediocre and only tied New Directions so the writers could have Kurt at Regionals. And why was there a club of old people? Yeah, last year's Sectionals was a much better episode. At least I got a laugh out of the song selection - Mr. Schue loves his 80's music!

Running Wilde
I didn't really laugh at this episode until the last few minutes, when a ridiculously blond-haired Fa'ad and Jonathan from 30 Rock were pretending to be doctors. Almost turned into an inside joke when Steve claimed not to have heard of 30 Rock when Will Arnett has made several guest appearances on it.

Survivor: Nicaragua
I know Jeff Probst hates quitters, and I can understand that, but it was still unnecessary for him to rub it in their faces and humiliate them further. They know it's embarrassing and the audience can form their own opinions about it without Probst telling the viewer to hate them. But, you know, he's probably going to win Best Reality Host again at the next Emmys. But I can't say it wasn't nice to see Naonka leave after all her smack talk and bragging that she was going to win.

Community
Not being part of the drinking scene, I can't say this episode resonated with me, but it did have its moments (Pierce trying to cut the birthday cake, Shirley's drunken past that was no doubt an inside joke stemming from the season 1 commentaries). And it's nice to see them using Annie a little more this season, because last year she was often a little too straight to have anything funny to do, but this week and the previous episode have showcased Alison Brie's comedic talents better. But Troy and Abed were right when they said, respectively, "Alcohol makes people sad" and "This is a really dark chapter in our group's story," because this episode was more about putting the characters in depressing situations than making us laugh. Luckily I love the characters, and the fact that Community can do something completely different each week and still be great.

30 Rock
Even though Jenna and Paul's relationship is a weird one, it was the perfect situation for both of them since they're both obsessed with Jenna. I actually kind of felt sorry for them when they broke up, although it was necessary because obviously Will Forte can't stick around forever. Loved Jack putting down (twice) men with curly hair and people who need glasses as lesser beings. Not necessarily saying I agree, just thought it was funny. Tracy's fake son's ideas were also funny due to being so shady and stupid, but the best part was Liz at the end, having the "chain reaction of mental anguish" come back to her via the dude in the Godzilla costume. "DAMN YOU, GODZIRRAAAAAA!"

The Office
After some sub-par episodes, I really liked this one. I always liked Oscar though, because he is probably the most normal and sensible person in the office, and maybe it's not such a bad thing for him to correct everyone because most of the people there are either dumb or crazy. Andy is coming off as a lonely guy, clinging to Darryl the way he stalked Michael when he first arrived in season 3. Always funny to see Dwight's failure to understand and/or care about how to please people, but I think my favourite moment was Erin's unfounded suspicion that they hired her so they could kill her and collect her life insurance, followed by Michael's reaction to it.

Fringe
Very cool episode. I love how each week the opening titles have been telling us which universe we're going to see, and this week even the credits switched back and forth because that was the format. I liked that the previous episode was a set-up for "Foyles" to help our Olivia get home (I had a minor fear that he might turn her in after being suspicious of her FBI comment). Peter was in the zone this episode, testing Fauxlivia and the shapeshifter for their identities and taking swift action when they failed. As was Walter for coining the term "vagenda". But now that both Olivias are back, the only loose thread is the crazy doomsday device, which I'm honestly not that interested in at the moment, but I hope they'll work on it.

Hero of the Week: Peter from Fringe. Walter is generally awesomer, but Peter was cool this week.

Douchebag of the Week: Jeff Probst from Survivor again. I don't care if everyone else is hating on the quitters, the dude is not nice.

Love & Distrust

Love and Distrust is another collection of short films I picked up. Mini reviews of each below.

The Summer House
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Talulah Riley
This one was one of the worst pieces of crap I've ever seen. It was like a fan fiction written by a 13 year-old girl - which isn't far off either, given that Robert Pattinson is in this. Basically it's about a girl visiting her aunt in 1969, they pick out a dress for her to wear to their moon landing party, her ex-boyfriend shows up wanting her back, she rejects him, interspersed with footage of the moon landing. The end. I'm glad this was only a short film, because if it was full length I would have blown my brains out.

Blue Poles
Starring: Sam Worthington, Emma Randall
I imagined this was one of Sam Worthington's first roles because his performance wasn't very good, but IMDB says he'd been acting for four years before doing this one. The short itself wasn't too bad though. It's a little road trip story about a guy who picks up a free-spirited hitchhiker and they fall for each other when staying in a motel. Doesn't stand out, but isn't terrible (although after The Summer House, anything would've seemed good).

Grasshopper
Starring: James Franco, Rachel Miner
In this one, James Franco plays a snooty businessman who shares a train car with a whore (Miner). He accidentally leaves his palm pilot on the train, the whore finds it when he calls the number, and they arrange for her to give it back to him. Sounds boring, but I didn't want to spoil the interesting part. I liked this one, although it was a little sad and depressing.

Pennies
Starring: Amy Adams
I bought the collection for this one because I'd already seen it online and liked it. Amy Adams plays a desperate waitress trying to make money in a short amount of time before a knife-wielding man on the other end of the phone cuts her daughter. There's a cool little plot twist at the end that completely changes the tone of the movie, and I like Amy, so thumbs up.

Auto Motives
Starring: Michael Imperioli, Robert Downey Jr., James Cameron, Allison Janney, Jim Rash, Melissa McCarthy, Moon Unit Zappa, Octavia Spencer
This one was like a short film made up of even shorter films. Directed by actress Lorraine Bracco, Auto Motives is a series of unconnected stories involving people and their cars. There's a creep trying to lure women into his convertible; a couple of robbers who lost the keys to their getaway car; a middle aged woman in a limo seducing a midnight cowboy to spite her ex-husband; two women in an RV seeking to be country music stars; a dweeb who gets stuffed into the trunk of a car after trying to run from the mob with their money; and my favourite, two car washers who work for director James Cameron, appearing as a douchebag version of himself in a big black Hummer. Apparently these were improvised, a credit to all of the actors except McCarthy and Zappa (the ladies in the RV) because their part was annoying and not funny. But this was a fun one and it was a nice surprise to see a lot more familiar faces than I thought I would (including Jim Rash, the Dean on Community!).

This Week in Television - Nov. 22-26, 2010

It's a short week this week due to the American Thanksgiving, so just this once I thought I'd extend the post by adding my thoughts on three pilot episodes I downloaded during the week.

Glee
Sue marrying herself was awesome. Even though there are already at least one or two movies with that very plot, I still found it funny because it's Sue Sylvester. How can you go wrong with a track suit dress? Also very cool how she handled the situations with Kurt and her mother. I'm indifferent about Kurt leaving (I don't believe that he'll be away for long anyway) because, although he is apparently a fan favourite, he is an uninteresting stereotype to me. Bonus points for having a throwaway line about Lost guest stars and then having an actual Lost guest star on the show.

Survivor: Nicaragua
Recap episode this week.

Mad Men (Pilot Episode)
The written introduction about the advertising executives coining their own nickname tells us everything we need to know up front: these guys are confident, motivated, smooth-talking alpha males. The interesting thing about the pilot is that it pretends to set up Don Draper as being slightly different from the others - a more morally sound and socially conscious ad man - but it turns out that this, too, is only a dishonest image being sold to the viewer. At the end of the episode, Don proposes a shady marketing angle for cigarettes and then goes home to his wife and kids, who until that point we didn't realize he was cheating on. The show itself becomes the ad man and we are the consumer. Well played, Mad Men. Well played.

The Walking Dead (Pilot Episode)
I'm not huge on zombies but I'm starting to enjoy them after recent experiences (Zombieland, Dead Rising). I liked that, in this one, we skipped all of the initial craziness and carnage and came upon the zombies slowly, as our main character was in the hospital and only awoke once the zombie apocalypse was already over, and even then he was only coming upon the walking corpses one at a time at first. Also the zombie makeup/effects were very well done. Good production values all around, basically. I don't know if I can say the pilot has hooked me, but I am interested enough to watch another episode.

Eastbound and Down (Pilot Episode)
When it comes to comedy, you can't go wrong with a main character sporting a mustache and a curly mullet. Danny McBride plays a former baseball star who becomes washed up and has to teach gym at an elementary school. I liked the montage of his deteriorating skills as we see the speed clock measuring his pitches getting slower and slower over time. Like a lot of great characters, Kenny Powers is another of those who would be far from likable in real life but makes a hilarious TV character. He is arrogant, obnoxious, lazy, and dumb, but we root for him because he's funny and because his life has become really sad and pathetic after he once lived the dream.

Hero of the Week: Sue Sylvester from Glee. Even though I generally praise her every week, this is her first time making Hero of the Week.

Douchebag of the Week: Pete from Mad Men, because he already seems like the douchebaggiest of all the "mad men".

The Shoe Fairy

Impressions before seeing it
Here's a new one: I saw the first few minutes of this on TV a while back and I thought it looked interesting, but I never got to see the rest of it. And then I never heard about it again, because it's obscure over here and there is no Region 1 DVD. Then I finally found a region free version. Yay!

How was it?
To be honest, when I popped in the DVD and saw those first few minutes again, I couldn't remember why I had found it interesting. Not that the opening was boring, but back then I remember thinking this was going to be one of those cool, charming foreign movies, and this time it didn't feel like the beginning stood out at all.

Anyway, in The Shoe Fairy, our main character Dodo is addicted to buying shoes. This is about to sound sexist, but as a male I couldn't care less about shoes. However, I do love to buy DVDs and Blu-rays so I was able to identify with the concept of obsessive collecting. Nice save, Shoe Fairy. Then it kind of turns into a love story when Dodo hooks up with her dentist (at whom I giggled immaturely when it was revealed that his name was Smiley Wang). The movie tried to make their relationship endearing by creating cute little moments between them but it didn't have the same kind of charm as, say, the relationship in Life is Beautiful. For example, when Dodo sleeps in the morning, Smiley Wang (hehehe) blocks out the sun for her by sitting in front of the window and placing numerous hats on his head (their curtains shrunk in the laundry), which is kind of cute but the same effect could be achieved if he would simply stand up, or put something else in front of the windows. And finally, this movie just has way more background muzak (that's what it is, it sounds like the generic background muzak of an instructional video) than is necessary for a movie. It's like the opposite of No Country for Old Men, there is music in almost every scene.

Recommendation
A little lengthy for its simple - and slightly weird - story, but it does have a bit of charm to it. Maybe check it out if you ever find it on TV, but I can't really say it's worth hunting down the region free DVD. Thought it would stand out more, but it's kind of average.

This Week in Television - Nov. 15-19, 2010

So apparently FOX is moving Fringe to Fridays at 9 in January. Translation: FOX hates the crap out of Fringe and wants to create an excuse to cancel it. You're stupid, FOX. In other news, Community's Christmas episode in a couple of weeks will be done in stop-motion animation. If that show was a woman, I would marry it.

Glee
Gwyneth Paltrow was another good choice for a guest star, although seeing as how glee club is an extra-curricular activity and not a class, realistically they would just cancel the meetings until Mr. Schue got back, not insert a substitute teacher (even if Kurt did ask her and it wasn't the school's doing). Actually I would've preferred that as a storyline, the kids get all pent up and crazy with no glee club for them to musically release their emotions, driving Sue to hatch a wacky scheme or something. No, wait: PRINCIPAL Sue. Booyah!

Survivor: Nicaragua
Clearly the only people Jeff Probst ever respects are the ones who can win the challenges. It really wasn't necessary for him to rag on the yellow team, and once again I have to point out that as host of the show he's supposed to be unbiased. And it looks like the players themselves hate smart people because Brenda's exit makes Sash the only smart one left. At this rate, Fabio will end up in the finals simply because he's the dumbest, and then the jury of smart people will vote for whoever is with him instead.

Community
This was a great episode, but I will say it felt a little bit different because Britta, Pierce, and Shirley were barely in it and Community is usually about the group dynamic. But Jeff was right that he never learns: we know he faked his degree and that cost him his lawyer job, and then he tried to get test answers from Duncan and was duped, and here he tries to fake a credit and gets busted, but we probably haven't seen the last of cheater Jeff. All of the ridiculous conspiracy stuff and fake shootings were awesome, as was Troy and Abed's blanket fort, complete with Turkish District and Natural History Museum.

30 Rock
I love computer voices - the less human-sounding they are, the funnier they are - and while Jack's voice wasn't as funny as those generic computer voices, it worked because of the choppy intonations of different words and the things it said. However Pete came off as needy, gullible, and a suck-up when he showed enthusiasm for "Jack's" invitation, and it felt out of character to me. Well, maybe not the needy part, there is a lonely side to him because he doesn't like spending time with his family and thus he probably spends most of his leisure time alone. Liz's storyline kind of reminded me of the episode with the teamster subs.

The Office
Once again The Office coincidentally does the same joke as a show that aired immediately before it: pranking someone using voice recordings. Again, I'm not saying one stole from the other, but airing last puts The Office at a disadvantage when this happens. And I think the only time I really laughed at this episode was when Michael said he wasn't sure how Creed came to work at Dunder Mifflin. Ryan is a tool and we don't really need an episode with him in the foreground, and Dwight's Hay Place was actually kind of boring (although it was cool to see Jack Coleman show up as a possible love interest for Angela, and Kevin getting lost in the maze was mildly amusing). WUPHF is almost like a Michael Scott idea because it's the kind of thing that is stupid but can almost seem brilliant if you think about it a certain way. It could be convenient to access all of someone's social networks and contact media at the same time, sure, but doing that then makes all of those accounts redundant because WUPHF would be the only one you need, and if it's the only one you need then it doesn't serve its own purpose of accessing multiple communication methods. But hey, Twitter is even more useless and that caught on. The Office hasn't been as good this season, but I intend to stick it out... mostly out of loyalty and sentimentality.

Fringe
I think emotionless masks are creepier than "scary" masks, so The Candyman stuff...might have been effective if I'd seen it as a kid. This was a good episode for Broyles though. Up to this point his character development has been fairly thin, and in a way I guess it still is since this was Alt-Broyles (Foyles?), but it's something for Lance Reddick to do anyway. Loved the ending, too. Things are coming together not-so-nicely for the Olivias.

Hero of the Week: Olivia from Fringe, because when Peter got the call I audibly went "Yesss!" And because she probably knows that Ronald Reagan wasn't in Casablanca.

Douchebag of the Week: Ryan from The Office. Again, he was very much acting like Michael in that he has no business plan and is just trying to get by on presentation alone and the appearance of his self-imposed frat boy "coolness".

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

Impressions before seeing it
Never read the comics, but a while back I saw a clip from the scene where Scott (Michael Cera) fights Lucas (Chris Evans) and I thought it was really cool how they were writing the sound effects on the screen, like an updated version of the technique used in the old Batman TV series. +4 Interest gained!

How was it?
As I was watching this, one word came to mind: hyperreal. And I'm not just saying that because of the fancy special effects and video game structure. The writing of the characters is also stylized (especially Scott Pilgrim himself) because they sometimes have a way of being overly fast, energetic, and cartoonish, which could be viewed as a misstep because usually you want your characters to be down to earth and relatable. In another movie I would have deducted a lot of points for that, but it works here because of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World's overall package: a sprightly, action-packed adventure that blends video games (points and stats appearing on screen), comic books (panel-like split screens, visible sound effects, animated cut scenes in the style of the Scott Pilgrim comic), and the fantasies of an adolescent daydreaming boy (dream sequences, crazy powers, young love). Obviously this movie wasn't meant to be realistic - it's more like reality with everything cranked up to 11 and some to 11,000 - but even the weirdest and craziest movies need something for the viewers to connect with, and here it is not necessarily the characters themselves, but their relationships. At its core, Scott Pilgrim is about young people making fickle, impulsive decisions based on love (even as Scott complains that Ramona [Mary Elizabeth Winstead] is guilty of this, it seems to have slipped his mind that he chased a girl he'd only met once while still dating Knives [Ellen Wong]). +1 Knowledge!

And I wholeheartedly agree that young people are irresponsible about love, and that's why daycares and kindergarten classes are currently being flooded with children who you know have young parents because they were named something awful and pretentious like Cadence or Grayson. -9 Appetite!

Recommendation
It will be easy for you to enjoy this movie if: a) you are a huge enough nerd that the idea of watching a live action video game sounds awesome to you, and b) you can suspend your disbelief just enough to accept the hyperreality of something with such a premise. I qualified for both. +8 to Fun!

This Week in Television - Nov. 8-12, 2010

Glee
For once I don't mind the way some of the after school special issues were handled. I still think Coach Bieste looks like a man in drag (and no doubt the students on the show do too), but this was a reminder that she is a woman with feelings, and in the Kurt storyline I like how nothing really changed, because there probably is no way to change the mind of an adamantly homophobic jock. Also liked Mr. Schue's very accurate observation about how nothing screws us up more than high school, and Sue's hilarious comments about the disgusting things she was being forced to picture.

Running Wilde
It was a nice change to have some of Puddle's narration done instead by Fa'ad singing Medieval style couplets, but we've already seen episodes where Steve and Emmy are involved in a battle of stubbornness. I did enjoy the jokes about the manipulation book (the title of which is an acronym spelling "BUY ME") and how Steve had multiple copies of it.

Survivor: Nicaragua
Jeff Probst is such a dick. He's always asking loaded questions at tribal council to intentionally stir up trouble and then acts shocked when the Survivors blow up at each other. And this, along with his reputation for favouring the muscular challenge dominators, gets him Best Reality Host at the Emmys? Marty had a good double-function plan for the vote, but neither function worked. Possibly because he has been one of those people getting in arguments at the last few tribals. But it was hilarious when he exaggerated his walk just to piss off Naonka.

Community
I was just thinking the other day that some of my favourite scenes are when the whole group is together in the study room, and that there hasn't been enough of that this season. Imagine my delight when they aired an episode where they locked themselves in the study room for the whole half hour and did a very solid, satisfying, and funny episode that was simply about the characters and nothing else - not even Annie's pen. I think this one might go down as one of the best episodes in the entire series when it's over. My reaction to the possibility that Shirley may be pregnant with Chang's baby was about the same as Troy's, but I kind of hope it happens because it could lead to a lot of really funny storylines. Apparently you do actually see Annie's Boobs take the pen at the beginning of the episode. I really should pay attention to the background more.

30 Rock
Loved the stuff with Congressman Steve Austin being so shady that he encourages people to think he is either the wrestler or the Six Million Dollar Man just so he'll get more votes, and his campaign commercials with diapers and shotguns were gold. Also some really hilarious lines like "Your mother exploded," and "Lesbian Mario Brothers!" Liz's butt did look good in those jeans, but it was supposedly a butt double and not Tina Fey. FAIL.

The Office
I of course agree with Kelly that Glee is flawed, but not for the reasons she cited. It was funny when, in true middle-aged lady fashion, Phyllis thought Glee was the name of one of the characters, when Michael threw the pizza dough into the ceiling fan, when Creed read the Chinese without translating it, and when Darryl described Andy and Gabe using very simple, superficial facts about each because he doesn't really care about them, but I think they've been doing a few too many episodes away from the office this season. We haven't even returned to the Packer/Danny double-hiring conflict and that was like three episodes ago. Also I'm a little bored with the Jim/Pam/baby storylines.

Fringe
The numbers were an interesting way to connect the "monster of the week" story with the serialized main story. And it's always cool to see the typewriter-mirror communication room. I can see the mysterious device (vacuum?) playing a big part in the season finale, or perhaps even the series finale if they stretch it out that long. There are a lot of pieces to find first. Astrid is the best lab assistant ever, but on the other hand I feel that neither her or Olivia really have any character flaws, or at least none that have ever been explored on the show.

Hero of the Week: Steve Austin from 30 Rock for his campaign commercials and general craziness (casinos on the moon!)

Douchebag of the Week: Jeff Probst from Survivor. You're supposed to be a neutral mediator, not a biased third party trying to influence audience opinions!

Mystery Team

Impressions before seeing it
I think the poster sold me, and reading a quick little review of it that my buddy wrote. Thanks, Corey!

How was it?
Mystery Team is dumb and silly, but the good kind of dumb and silly because you know it's intentional and because it's funny. The main characters are basically three young adult losers who refuse to grow up, solving trivial childish mysteries for kids half their age (they've been doing it since they were kids themselves) and being belittled by everyone they know. That is, until the trio gets involved in a mystery that is very much for adults.

It plays a little like an episode of South Park at times - one of those episodes where the kids are playing some game, playing in adult roles in adult situations without realizing how serious it is - or like Step Brothers, only instead of middle-aged men acting like little boys, it's young men acting like little boys. And since I like Step Brothers and South Park (those episodes I described are some of my favourites), that's fine with me. I am also becoming a fan of Donald Glover (who stars in Community and co-wrote this movie) and Aubrey Plaza (of Parks and Recreation), and it's great to see people from two different NBC comedies starring together. It did get somewhat serious at the end, which contradicted the silliness of the rest of the movie, but I just attribute that to character development and a lead-in to the ending, so I'm not complaining.

Recommendation
Basically just a good, entertaining laugh. Check it out if you like some of the similar titles I mentioned above.

This Week in Television - Nov. 1-5, 2010

Survivor: Nicaragua
I do think it was unfair that Naonka made all the tortillas and everyone else ate them and she got the smallest one, but she should've just said something instead of taking the crazy way out like she always does, which was to steal food. Was it stupid to vote out Alina over Marty? Not necessarily. Marty may be the more strategic player, but at this point he is also desperate and powerless so others can get leverage over him, making him a useful tool.

Community
There was really no reason for the "head mean girl" to be played by Hilary Duff, or anyone famous, but the Robocop stuff with Abed was fun, and Chang's exaggerated reactions to the burns. Even better was the secret trampoline of tranquility (tranquiline?) storyline, although I saw it coming when Pierce's spy copter followed Jeff and Troy. Also really cool to see Troy and Abed in the Morning make a comeback. And, like everyone else, I will continue to refer to Star Burns as Star Burns no matter how many times he asserts that his name is Alex.

30 Rock
I liked the characterization in this episode, illustrating what Liz and Jack mean to each other by keeping them apart, and that neither Jonathan, Tracy, nor Jenna have all of the qualities of an ideal protege - apparently Liz is the only person at NBC who does. The joke about Googling one's self is kind of old by now (Craig Ferguson does it regularly in his monologues), but then they flashback-whipped to Tracy using Liz's office to do it and that made it funny.

The Office
I don't think I really laughed at this episode (except for the beginning with everyone sneezing on Dwight), but I guess it was a good one for Michael's character. We've always known how lonely and needy he is, and it makes a lot of sense that he would enjoy a church youth group, the kind of people who would automatically accept him with open arms. And then in true Michael fashion he gets bored on the bus ride and realizes he just signed up for 3+ months of manual labour.

Fringe
I liked the second half of the episode better than the first half. Briefly visiting the other side in order to prove who she is was a cool way for Olivia to finally admit that she is not Fauxlivia (and her visions of Peter are a clever way for them to keep Joshua Jackson in the episodes since he's only in one universe.) The plot with the Ashmore twins wasn't really that interesting, though.

Hero of the Week: Hero Cat from 30 Rock. Why not, he's already a hero.

Douchebag of the Week: Joshua from Community, for secretly being racist. That came out of nowhere! OR DID IT?

Battlestar Galactica - Season Two

Not that season one was bad in any way, but I think season two was a big improvement, mostly because when I wrote up my post for last season there was really only the one candidate for best episode, and this season has several because of some really cool, high tension storylines.

I haven't really changed my opinions of which characters I like and dislike (although Col. Tigh's wife Ellen is easily worse than he is, but I knew that last season). Even as Starbuck went into a disastrous downward spiral and President Roslin's approval ratings dwindled as she made some difficult decisions, I still liked and respected them as characters, and that is a testament to the show's writers. I suppose I dislike Gaius a little since he is so shady and tends to be morally grey a lot of the time, but he also provides comic relief so I don't hate him. We're also given two more Cylon models and a look into their motives. I was puzzled last season when they seemed to place a lot of emphasis and both love and God, both of which should be irrelevant to a machine, but here it is explained... sort of.

One thing I will say that bothered me slightly is that some of the romantic relationships seemed rushed, like we were only given a short time to see two people fall in love and then were suddenly supposed to just go with it (which I did, because there was no other choice), Lee and Dualla especially. But only a minor complaint, because I am loving this show.

Best Episode: For me, one of the coolest parts was in the season finale, "Lay Down Your Burdens: Part 2", when we jump a year ahead and see where everyone is at, because I've always liked seeing the shocking differences between then and now when you saw nothing in the middle (like in The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time when you go back and forth, or like My Generation should have done better but didn't). However my pick for best episode - and I'm going to cheat a little here - is "Pegasus" and "Resurrection Ship" Parts 1 and 2, a three episode arc in which the Galactica finds a lost battlestar from the fleet, but the commanding officer outranks Adama and a civil war ensues because she is a cold bitch trying to take over the fleet, and seeing the crew of the Pegasus is almost like a Bizarro version of the Galactica crew. Awesome stuff.

This Week in Television - Oct. 25-29, 2010

ABC may have picked up No Ordinary Family for a full season, but I am dropping it because I've had enough of the bland, watered down writing. I'm surprised there were so few new episodes airing this week though, a lot of shows missed out on Halloween episodes.

Glee
I guess this episode was kind of fun, because it's the first time New Directions has done a play (in this case Rocky Horror Picture Show for the Halloween episode) instead of just performing songs, and I've always found the process of casting characters as other characters to be interesting. Kurt was a shoo-in for Frank but it was nice to see that he didn't want the part, given that his character is already a stereotype and that would be too obvious. Sue heckling the rehearsal was great, but Meat Loaf and Barry Bostwick (probably the only two Rocky Horror castmembers who weren't doing anything) had pointless cameos.

Survivor: Nicaragua
At first I thought Marty had made a dumb move, because he could have achieved the same end result by playing the idol and then it wouldn't be in the hands of the opposing alliance, but now that I think about it, this was a better choice for him because it's less selfish and therefore could gain him some respect and trust (and also because it looks like they're merging next week and that totally gives him a better chance, but he wouldn't have known that yet). And I have to say that in all the seasons of Survivor I've watched (which is all of them), I don't think I've ever seen anyone have more fun in a challenge than Alina and Benry in the ball ramp tile smashing challenge. But I'm highly disappointed that Jill went home since I was rooting for her.

Community
Bonus points for the Halloween title sequence! I knew right away that Shirley was Glinda the Good Witch, but it was funny that nobody could tell (Annie guessed Miss Piggy.) Didn't know Chang's, but only because I'm not familiar with figure skaters. Pierce's Captain Kirk costume did indeed "reach a new level of authenticity" when he got all sweaty and puffy. And then, for no reason at all, George Takei ends the episode by doing a favour for people named Kevin. Awesome.

The Office
I can't blame anyone for plagiarism because it was probably a coincidence, but it made The Office look bad when they followed Community by using two of the same jokes as them (a man dressed as Lady Gaga, and people assuming that one's race is part of their costume.) But I did appreciate the role-reversing irony of Todd Packer as a nun (albeit a pregnant one) and Angela as a slutty nurse. I could tell Kelly was Snooki (yet I don't even watch Jersey Shore) and I thought Ryan was "The Situation" to complement her, but apparently he was Justin Bieber. Both costumes still made sense for their characters. Andy and Meredith as Bill and Sookie from True Blood is interesting if you think about the story behind that, which I'm guessing is that Meredith heard about Andy's costume plans and planned accordingly in a twisted attempt to get in his pants. In the past I enjoyed Jim's simple yet still somewhat creative costumes, but that was "independent Jim", so it was kind of cute when the Halperts had their family costume moment. Also funny when Oscar won the costume contest due to the number of nutjobs at Dunder Mifflin (Creed's line about it being the best Edward James Olmos costume he'd ever seen nailed it).

Hero of the Week: Jeff Winger from Community. Still cool as a zombie!

Douchebag of the Week: Fabio from Survivor, for peeing in the pool during a challenge, being crappy at blocking the shots, and generally being an airhead.

HALLOWEEN BONUS - Best Costumes: Troy and Abed as Ripley and the Alien on Community, Michael as MacGruber on The Office, and Becky as Sue Sylvester on Glee. And Dean Pelton made a better Lady Gaga than Gabe, because he is weirder.

This Week in Television - Oct. 18-22, 2010

No Ordinary Family
This week's episode felt like it was trying really hard to be a sitcom. There were a lot of moments that I could tell were supposed to be funny but weren't because, like everything else about this show, they were bland and unoriginal. JJ only looked smaller than the other football players because he actually looks like a high school student, whereas the other guys were clearly in their 20's. And then he makes the football team because of ONE complete pass? Coach, don't you think you should make sure he can do it more than once, as well as test his abilities in other areas? That was even worse than Artie joining the football team on Glee. The only good scene was when Daphne tried to blackmail the variety store cashier and it didn't work because she had no proof.

Running Wilde
I didn't laugh too much at this episode, except for the scene where Steve and Fa'ad discuss their low scale "unnecessoirees" and then lapse into tiredness and Fa'ad steals the idea for a hooker-filled cocaine dome. That scene was great, but the rest of the jokes felt a little lazy and predictable.

Survivor: Nicaragua
Marty's story about being a Grandmaster in chess might have been believable if he hadn't added the part about beating a renowned player twice as a kid. But I guess that's irrelevant when you're talking to "Fabio". I didn't really understand the logic behind either of the votes in this episode, possibly because they edited it that way to make it surprising. Well, I suppose they only wanted to flush out Marty's idol and not vote him off, but I don't get how the other tribe would unanimously vote Eve after Dan kind of talked himself into a hole. Oh, and kudos to Jill for cleaning up at the challenge.

Community
So true that Professor Duncan would waste Anthropology time by showing Youtube videos in class. I know we've all spent hours watching movies in English class (and others, but mostly English) for no educational reason. With the leather pants and no beard, Abed looked more like Michael Jackson than Jesus, and I was expecting one of the characters to point this out but since no one did I guess it wasn't intentional. For an Abed storyline, though, it wasn't that great, although I found it funny when they were watching a rough cut and Star Burns - the editor, I assume - kept looking over at Abed to check his approval. And I liked Britta's line, "I don't even believe in God, but I love me some Abed."

30 Rock
Kudos for getting that one-take commercial filmed multiple times, unless they only did it once and then snuck a cut in there. Jack's solution for Tracy was awesome, and not unlike putting peanut butter on the roof of a dog's mouth for a talking animal movie. Liz's weird/gross/embarrassing stories are always great, and flashbacks of her playing her younger self are even better. Also liked all of the stupid cake typos, even if the bakery staff should've become suspicious at the same person constantly returning misprinted cakes (I know they made a point of mentioning there were two clerks, and that they were ordering from one and returning to the other, but nobody ever switched roles so they would've caught on.) P.S. Happy Blirthday, Jennica!

The Office
It's good that once in a while they do an episode like this, where Michael actually accomplishes something (in this case the hiring of Danny), because we need to be reminded that he does actually have some sales skills and that's why he made manager. Although it was also backhanded in that he "forgot about Packer", which might lead to an amusing firing (or at least a conflict between the two traveling salesmen) in a future episode. I like that Andy was bummed when Creed liked his song - even though Creed (both the character and the actor playing him) was part of a bluegrass band at one point, so he has musical abilities, it's probably not a good thing if Creed agrees with you on something. The best line in the episode was Dwight's about the "Penis Museum", where tickets are a thousand dollars.

Hero of the Week: Britta from Community, for the line above which was QUOTED FOR TRUTH!

Douchebag of the Week: Kelsey Grammer from 30 Rock, playing a version of himself that was pretty evil. FRAAAAJERRRRR!

JCVD

Impressions before seeing it
I am not a fan of Jean-Claude Van Damme. The only other movie of his that I've seen was the atrocious (and occasionally funny) Street Fighter: The Movie, and I am under the impression that his entire career is basically a cheesefest (though good for a laugh, I'm sure.) I wanted to watch this movie because I knew it would be something completely different from the rest of his work.

How was it?
Okay, I have to give credit where credit is due: Van Damme was excellent in this. Even with his English lines, and a lot of English-as-a-second-language actors aren't very good in English (again, see his previous work). But if you had never heard of Van Damme at all and watched this movie, you might think he was a renowned and well respected actor. Maybe part of the reason his performance works so well is because it's so surprising, like part of a master plan to build up a false sense of mediocrity with years of hokey action flicks and then suddenly bust out an Oscar caliber performance.

Anyway, in JCVD our title actor plays himself as he goes into a bank for money for his child custody battle and is soon taken hostage by bank robbers, who then place him in front so that everyone outside thinks he is the crook taking hostages. That part reminded me of Amos and Andrew, but in this case it is revealed through some non-linear editing and multiple viewpoints so I didn't mind. On the other hand, the whole hostage situation wasn't many notches above average, but the movie turned out to have other redeeming qualities.

There is a scene during Van Damme's court case where his daughter, on the witness stand, says "Every time my dad is on a TV show, my friends make fun of me." My first reaction to that was to laugh, but it was also a very sad moment for his character, both personally and professionally, and most of all there is probably some truth to it. Later, Van Damme takes a little break to float up out of the movie (literally) and directly address the camera with a single-take monologue that is honest, personal, emotional, beautiful, and exceptionally delivered. Although I was enjoying the movie up to that point (I love me some French cinema!), the honesty of the monologue and his daughter's quote are what single-handedly saved it. You hear of actors poking fun at themselves in comedies all the time, but here Van Damme is simply poking.

Recommendation
I imagine some people would need an open mind to even want to watch this movie, or at least think they need one, but here Van Damme is not an action star, but an actor, and that makes all the difference. I would at least recommend looking up the monologue scene on Youtube.

This Week in Television - Oct. 11-15, 2010

No Ordinary Family
Funnily enough, after my complaint last week I don't think the word "family" was said even once this episode. This show still fails to do anything new though, and the storylines this week were all quite predictable, but I forgot to mention last week that I like the idea of Stephanie's healing powers, because it would make things more interesting if everyone turned out to have more than one power (for a moment when Jim started leaping across the city I thought it was a new power, but I guess it can just be attributed to super strong leg muscles. Maybe Stephanie's healing is simply an extension of the same power as well since it's rapid and all). Also it bothers me to see grappling hooks because I'm pretty sure the only people who use them in real life are rock climbers, and even in a show with super powers I can't accept it.

Glee
Ugh, too much high school relationship drama and not enough Sue Sylvester. And if Rachel and Finn wanted Sam to win, why wouldn't she just team up with Sam instead of throwing the competition? I would think one of them would at least suggest it.

Running Wilde
Puddle's voice was not needed to tell us that the kid thought Emmy was hitting on him or that his dad (Andy Richter) thought Steve was hitting on him. But I'll forgive it for the disturbingly funny car wash scene and Fa'ad's unintentional but dead-on Alan Alda impression.

Survivor: Nicaragua
Why were they arguing over whether to eat a chicken? I mean, yes, it would cut down egg production, which is why they could have eaten THE ROOSTER that came with the two hens. Either they already ate the rooster and edited out that fact, or nobody knows anything whatsoever about chickens. Also I didn't appreciate Jeff commenting on how surprised everyone looked at the tribe swap, because a) it was like Survivor trying to proclaim how brilliant it is, and b) it wasn't surprising in the least to us as viewers because we saw it in the previews. A twist isn't much of a twist if we know it's coming! I would honestly be more surprised if they advertised a twist and then didn't have one.

Community
Wow, more KFC after Running Wilde's stunt last week. But this episode was awesome. I love when Community parodies a genre, in this case Apollo 13 type space movies. I was kind of expecting SANDERS to go crazy like HAL, but instead it was Pierce. And cardboard box spaceships: priceless.

30 Rock
There wasn't much point in doing a live episode. Mostly it just added a laughtrack, which is never needed, but I did appreciate some of the gags that poked fun at their own gimmick. I guess what's supposed to be "exciting" about live shows is that someone could crack up or have a wardrobe malfunction, which were both teased in the storyline but the cast was professional enough that neither one actually happened.

The Office
I saw the preview for this episode and it sounded like a fun concept, and it was to an extent, but it just kind of felt like one long joke instead of a collection of jokes. But it was cool to catch up with Michael's old flames, and funny that he was meticulous enough to include Oscar because of the kiss from four seasons ago. Michael's phone conversation with Holly was cute - she is one of very few people who gets him - and it's always great to see Dwight being so gullible when people are joking about a car crash.

Fringe
Cool, Broyles finally got to do a little ass-kicking! After this episode I am appreciating the parallels between the Olivias, both of them struggling with what pretending to be the other is doing to them, and a third parallel in this episode with the shapeshifters coming to love their pretend families. Also every time Newton shows up I find it funny (and strangely appropriate) that he looks a lot like Chef Gordon Ramsay.

Hero of the Week: For the second week in a row, Michael Scott from The Office, for his message to Holly at the end of the episode. For years we've seen him misinterpret every one of his relationships, but this time he was finally right while Holly was sweeping a good thing under the rug because of her relationship with AJ.

Douchebag of the Week: The cop shapeshifter from Fringe (played by Paul Giamatti's brother!) for the speech he gave to his son. I know he meant well and was trying to soften the blow of what might happen to him, but I think "there are no monsters" would have been a better response than "monsters aren't bad".

Grindhouse

Impressions before seeing it
I missed this in theaters and refused previous DVD releases because they split up the two movies, but recently they finally released the entire Grindhouse package in one. I had been looking forward to it for a long time after the Tarantino/Rodriguez team had given us Sin City.

How was it?
Of the two films, I think Planet Terror is the one that relies more heavily on the Grindhouse gimmick. The scratchy old film look is very prominent, there's plenty of violence, sex, explosions, and cheesy lines, and it's slightly more fantasy based. I'm not saying that's a weakness, it adds to the entertainment value (or rather it is the entertainment value) and the '70's feel, even if there are text messages involved in the story. I'm not huge on zombie stuff, and the infection was somewhat zombie-like, but I didn't mind because the movie was just a fun, campy ride.

Death Proof works a little differently. The film scratches were barely noticeable here, and a large majority of it is just the characters talking, but that's not a weakness either because of Tarantino's impeccable ear for dialogue. Additionally, I'm glad he went in a different direction than Rodriguez because it might have gotten tiring to see him use all of the exact same tricks we just saw in Planet Terror. But the scene in the hospital was a nice way to tie both movies together, and the ending was funny in its abruptness. I have one small gripe, and that is that when Stuntman Mike was trying to knock Zoe off the hood of the girls' Challenger, it seemed like they had several opportunities to stop the car and let her get off and back inside, but they never did. Although I understand that it's a movie and that would be a less exciting solution, so I get why it didn't happen.

Recommendation
Neither film really has any substance, but I think Grindhouse movies were meant to be fun, not artistic or profound. This is a cool, fun package with a big cast of actors, not to mention the awesome fake movie trailers before the films. However, after watching some of the special features, I realized there was missing footage I hadn't seen, and I'm not talking about the intentional "missing reel" gags. The individual movie releases contained extended versions of Planet Terror and Deathproof, but I buy the SPECIAL EDITION of Grindhouse and they're only the regular theatrical versions? How is that fair?! So, yeah, if you want to see the extended versions you might have to buy them separately.

This Week in Television - Oct. 4-8, 2010

No Ordinary Family
The most annoying thing about this show is that every character says the word "family" about 10-20 times each in an episode. WE GET IT, IT'S A SHOW ABOUT A FAMILY! However this week's episode was less hackneyed than the pilot and I hope it continues to improve, but I still find myself not caring about the characters because they're boring and generic. I'm glad it wasn't the water that caused the super powers, because that would have been kind of a lame and easy answer.

Glee
Ah, the old religion debate. Sue made some good points except I believe that the separation of church and state is an illusion, because clearly a politician's religion is of major concern to the voting public, and that says it all. As silly as the "Grilled Cheesus" storyline was, Finn is dumb enough to buy into it so it worked in that sense, but I found myself more moved by Sue and her sister than by Kurt and his dad.

Running Wilde
Sneaky move, FOX, having a joke about Steve discovering KFC and then going directly to an actual KFC commercial. I like this show, but Puddle's narration isn't as good as Ron Howard's on Arrested Development, and I'm thinking it might get canceled before the season ends. P.S. Fa'ad has the same chest hair as Austin Powers.

Survivor: Nicaragua
I found it funny that Jimmy T. would refer to himself in the third person when stating whether someone is "a fan of Jimmy T.". Naonka is still crazy for seemingly no reason, but again I'm sure editing plays a part, and even with an idol I guarantee she will not win.

Community
I think this week's episode was season 2's "Social Psychology", meaning it felt a little off and wasn't quite as funny as the other episodes tend to be, at least to me. The Duncan/Chang forcefield thing was fun though, and I totally missed it but apparently there was another storyline going on in the background about Abed helping a pregnant student give birth, which becomes awesome when he shows up near the end of the episode to say that he hasn't been up to anything.

30 Rock
Loved Liz mispronouncing Donald Glover's name to make it sound more black, Rob Reiner saying "rhubarb, rhubarb, peas and carrots" into the mic like extras in a crowd scene, and Dotcom's cheesy sitcom (the talking dog had two dates, and they both showed up at the same time!) Not really a fan of Queen Latifah though, or of storylines involving Jenna.

The Office
I found it funny that Darryl was insistent on listening to the play's overture so that he would be able to recognize the musical themes when they come back later. While he has displayed an ear for music in the past, he didn't seem like someone who would care about musical themes in an amateur play. Also Michael acting out an entire episode of Law and Order as an audition for the play was awesome, and very well acted by Carell because he genuinely projected nervousness (and thus it was not well acted by Michael.) And how did Creed become a theater critic? Was there even anyone on the other end of the phone?

Fringe
I liked the "death by chain reaction" concept here - sort of like Final Destination, except not ridiculously over the top and actually caused by a person. It's also interesting if they're going to go back and forth between universes every other episode, although I don't know how long they can keep it up. If Olivia still retains some of her memories and has the ability to jump between worlds then I suppose it won't be dragged on too long.

Hero of the Week: Michael Scott from The Office, for his Law and Order performance, complete with musical cues.

Douchebag of the Week: Grilled Cheesus from Glee. YOU'RE NOT REAL!

Dexter - Season Three

It's appropriate that the title of the show is Dexter, not simply because he is the main character, but because the primary purpose of every season's arc is to explore who this character is beyond a serial killer. In season one, we learned about his dark past and how he learned to kill without getting caught; in season two, we saw him with his back against the wall and watched him shape his own opinions about himself. This season, we see what happens when Dexter tries to take on a partner, played by Jimmy Smits.

To me, the murders themselves are the least interesting part of Dexter. What I like about the show is watching him try to juggle his double life, and seeing how he handles it when he comes close to being caught. I usually don't like Jimmy Smits much but he did well here, beginning the season as an honourable man and ending it as an angry scumbag, only he was secretly the latter the entire time. As messed up as Dexter's emotions might be, it makes sense that he would give partnership a try, because it's a relief and kind of a joy to be able to share secrets with someone, even the darkest ones. And add to that Harry's post-mortem fall from grace so that Dexter is less inclined to do what Harry would do, and you got yourself a third season arc. I also appreciate that the supporting characters went in new directions too, with Angel becoming Sargent, Deb becoming detective, and Masuka trying hard to be taken seriously (for a little while anyway). LaGuerta, however, saw another man she deeply trusted and loved exposed as a murderer, probably scarring her for life at this point. Ah, well, I still don't like her.

Best Episode: I think I would go with "Go Your Own Way", in which Dexter and Miguel (Smits) are locked in a power struggle of threats and blackmail while publicly maintaining the appearance of a friendship. Also Masuka plans Dexter's bachelor party, which was more fun to watch than the party itself.

Battlestar Galactica - Season One

On a whim I decided to get into Battlestar Galactica, so I downloaded an episode and then bought the complete series on Blu-ray.

It started off a little slow, but after a few episodes I really got into it. This is not just a science fiction show, it's a smart and strongly acted character piece. I was particularly impressed with some of the scenes involving Edward James Olmos and Katee Sackoff as Adama and Starbuck, who grew to be two of my favourite characters (although I more or less like everyone except for Colonel Tighe, who is a drunken old douchebag.) Third favourite is probably President Roslin, who for some reason many of the characters have a problem with even though she is an intelligent and capable leader.

To be honest the plot isn't even that complex: in classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers style, there are evil robots (Cylons) who look, feel, and act human so that it's very hard to tell who is one, and the crew of the Galactica, the last surviving members of humanity as far as we know, are trying to fight them in order to make their way home to Earth, which to them is merely a myth because they're so far into the future. There are only 12 Cylon models, and in the first few episodes we are shown 4 (possibly 5 if the ones who don't look human count). I imagine the rest of the series will bring us many cool reveals on the other 7 or 8, and no doubt some will be people we've already been introduced to - for example, Leoben tried to tell Roslin that Adama was a Cylon but, assuming there is any truth to that, he didn't say which Adama.

So, yeah, I find this show impressive because sci-fi can sometimes be corny or heavily reliant on action and visual effects (not that Battlestar is lacking in those departments), but instead we get a whole lot of interesting characters and scenes that mess with our heads a little as Galactica tries to survive in the void of space. Nice shocking ending too, I'll probably start season two almost immediately.

Best Episode: "Flesh and Bone", in which Starbuck interrogates a Cylon and a lot of dodgy mind games are played.

This Week in Television - Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 2010

No Ordinary Family
I know ABC is owned by Disney but wow, this definitely felt like a watered down Disney project. Was the title "No Ordinary Family" meant to be ironic? Because I found the family to be incredibly ordinary and bland - except for the super powers, of course. And even in that respect the pilot fails to bring nothing new whatsoever to the superpower genre because everything in it has been done before in Heroes, The Incredibles, and all those Marvel movies (and in each of those cases, it was probably done better). In spite of this I might keep watching for a bit, though I don't even know why. I guess it's the nerd in me who enjoys seeing superpowers in action. I miss Heroes already.

Glee
This episode was dumb, if only because I don't understand why anyone would find it appealing to watch the cast of Glee do shot by shot remakes of Britney Spears videos (not to mention Rachel was singing "Baby One More Time" one or two octaves too high when the sluttiness of the song is meant to be accented by a low growl like Britney's). I mean the musical numbers on Glee are already largely unappealing and I still don't understand the popularity of nobodys singing famous songs that Glee and American Idol have cultivated, but now we have to watch them butcher music videos too? It was like watching that horrible show on MuchMusic where they give average people makeovers to look like singers and then remake a music video with them lip-syncing the song. At least Sue was awesome in the scene where she threatened to sue Mr. Schue after being injured in the "sex riot", and when she told Becky to be ready to make a citizen's arrest.

Running Wilde
I thought this week's episode was funnier than last week's. Good to see David Cross return, and I liked the running gag of Fa'ad seeming to subtly seduce everyone with his strange classy charms.

Survivor: Nicaragua
Whoever is editing these episodes together is making Naonka look like a cartoonish stereotype - not that she isn't, but I'm sure they're just throwing her worst moments together to make it look like she's like that all the time. So far I'm rooting for Jill on the old tribe, because she is one of the few people who hasn't said or done anything stupid yet.

Community
Drew Carey looks weird without all that weight. Good to see Rob Corddry though, I usually find him funny as the wild douchebag types he tends to play (as he did here). I suspect Chang has ulterior motives for wanting into the study group, which should be fun in a later episode when he finally makes it in.

30 Rock
The funniest part of Paul Giamatti's guest appearance was how the woman he had a crush on looked like she was from the '80's. Also enjoyed Jack's tapes to his future child and Kenneth wearing a Tracy mask (which actually fooled his drugged up wife). Season five is going well.

The Office
Michael trying to mess with Toby was fun, but it was kind of a nice moment when he made Toby laugh with his Gabe impression. I figured there was a good reason why Dwight wasn't allowed in that store, but I thought it would just be that he went during closing hours without realizing it. Hope Pam doesn't get busted. Pretty sure what she's doing is illegal.

Fringe
I liked this one better than last week's episode. I don't mind the weekly case formula as long as they include the continuing story as well, which they did. Now that Walter owns Massive Dynamic, maybe he can rein Nina in so she stops being so shady. Bonus irony points for shooting a deaf guy with a silenced weapon.

Hero of the Week: Jack Donaghy from 30 Rock, for being voted "Most" in his class at Harvard Business School. Rock on, JD!

Douchebag of the Week: Alan (Rob Corddry) from Community, for ratting out Jeff back in the day, and Jeff still did him the favour of convincing Ted (Drew Carey) to make him partner. Not cool, man!