a99kitten's Musings

So I DVRed and am finally caught up on 3 new shows this season:

Ringer
American Horror Story
Revenge

I caught up on Ringer first since I saw the panel at SDCC and thought it looked pretty good. Plus it has Buffy in it :) It’s quite addictive and has GREAT clothes.

I started watching American Horror Story solely based on the cast. I don’t really like horror stuff. Too many scary movies. Who needs it. But I love Dylan McDermott (sorry…he is HOT and 50!! FIFTY! Whoa!) plus Mrs Coach (from Friday Night Lights) and Jessica Lange who is truly fantastic. Plus the rest of the cast is great. All of them. Really. It’s disturbing. And creepy. I will not ever watch it when I am home alone. But it’s great writing.

After I got my 2nd spinal cortisone injection on Tuesday, and had to stay home resting, I watched the 4 episodes of Revenge I had DVRed. LOVED it! What a guilty-pleasure fun show! Of course I love the bad girl, Madeline Stowe – she is so much fun to hate :) Great show about getting revenge – nice!!! No BS moral quandary – revenge for a huge wrong! Muahuahauhuaha!!!

My problem with all 3 of these shows is that while they are all very entertaining and fun to watch, I have to wonder how long they can last. Can they go past 1 season? Shows like this need to be written for the storyline. Like Lost. Like X-Files. They should not be kept going solely because they become sensations. And they get popular with good ratings so they get written to drag on. It happened to Lost (although they redeemed in their last season.) And don’t even get me started on X-Files. Such a FANTASTIC show that was dragged on for no good reason when they should have wrapped it up on a high note.

We’ll see. Personally I do not see how any of these 3 shows can go past season 1. Their plots are written to be a great story told. And then that’s it.

I hope their season 1 is a crazy, high ratings whirlwind that the actors and writers and studios make tons of money, ratings and awards from. But please do not drag them on. Stay true to their currently awesomely fun plots/story lines. Or be really, really creative if you intend to continue. Because I do not accept a past season was a dream sequence. Or that a main character is kidnapped by ?aliens? (or someone) or that their are others spying on Others of relatives of others from an island that doesn’t even exist…..

Cuz I’ve been there and done that. Plus I’m still convinced it was Vincent’s dream all along…

Doing stuff around the house and work on my computer this afternoon so I turned the TV on. I like the noise. I can generally put on show or movie that I like, that is familiar, and can have it on in the background and get stuff done too. Occasionally, it can’t work in the background and I get sucked in (hello Star Wars, Raiders or The Godfather…) Today I put on Sex and the City. Love that show. The clothes are drool-worthy and the girls are fun! But I’ve seen most of the eps so many times that I won’t get too sucked in.

The shows that were on today is the arc with Carrie and Petrovsky played by Mikhail Baryshnikov (the final series episodes.) I have loved him since I was a kid. Not sure why – never really been into ballet or “the arts” (nose stuck up in the the air.) But I saw “White Nights” and loved him :) I went and saw him live when he came with his White Oak Dance Project. Amazing. And truly – I am NOT into “the arts” (I say pooshah to those people!) But he is amazing. I remember when I knew he was going to be SATC when it was first run – I was excited! I was not an Aidan fan so a good boyfriend (after Big) for Carrie would be great!

Watching the show now, his character is so, so perfectly romantic. Everything he does for Carrie. He is so storybook. Of course, in that TV/movie boy kind-of-way. He wants to take her to the ballet, read poetry to her, stay for days in his apartment hanging out and reading without needing to leave, go out to dinners in cocktail attire and drink champagne, make dinner at home in his fantastic apartment in cocktail attire and drink champagne! Plus he has a cool accent :) But then they are sure to show the self-absorbed artist side as well. But they make sure you fall for him before really showing too much of that.

But at the end of the day, when Big comes back and wants to win Carrie back, I can’t help but root for him. Big, for all of his many faults and mistakes, comes back and realizes Carrie is for him. Realizes that he made a huge mistake in letting her go and does whatever he has to do to get her back. He doesn’t give up. He flies to Paris for her! Sigh….To get her back from this “fairy-tale” that she is in with Alexsander in Paris. He can’t give Carrie up. And THAT, not his money or job or driver and car or house in Napa or nice suits or blah blah blah, is what makes girls keep rooting for him over all others. He wants her. And he doesn’t give up. Although I’m sure all men in the world would argue that. But then they are all searching for the 25 year-old supermodel nymphomaniac who will dote on them like King Henry, keep the house, run all the errands, cook dinner AND make a million dollars.

Now…let’s be real..Big is a TV/movie guy too. I am 100% convinced there are no men out there like Alexsander or Big. The rich guy cheating part – oh, that’s real. The guy who wants an awesome girl to be at their side but not more than their own selfish needs? Oh – that’s out there plenty. They definitely make Big more awesome than the real life guy would be. They make him a great movie/TV guy. And I can’t help but root for him. But just need to keep remembering it’s all Hollywood folks.

And just to make sure you remember that – E Online runs commercials for pure tacky, ghetto trash like The Kardashians, RuPaul’s Drag Race, The Dance Scene and other horrific “look at me” shows to make sure you don’t get too caught up in storybook fantasy. Society sure has taken a digger when this is popular entertainment. Gross.

Oh – look! Moulin Rouge is on! Listening to Obi Wan sing “Your Way” or “Come What May” (can listen to him sing this song over and over…this is where I developed my Ewan crush) is definitely decent romantic snowy Sunday afternoon fare :)

I have 3 DVRs. I try and record the TV shows that I will want to watch. I very, very rarely watch non-sports related live TV. Cannot handle it. Although – I will say that when I do, I run around doing stuff during the commercials doing stuff so it is productive. But I usually have time for 1 show at night and then 1 show while I am exercising on my stepper.

So what bugs me is even with this many DVRs I thought I was missing shows. And I might be. But it really seems that shows have not been on for weeks. All I have is re-runs of a lot of shows. In March.

Growing up, I seem to remember that TV shows ran from late August/early September with a hiatus during the holidays and then again in January through May or early June. Kinda like school. But now, you are lucky to get 3 or 4 new episodes in a row. WTH? These are shows I really like – Bones, Big Bang Theory, Grey’s Anatomy, The Good Wife, Criminal Minds. I do really love watching them. But I don’t have time to look around and check my DVR for missed episodes, etc.

Blue Bloods is a new police show on CBS. They scheduled it for Friday so I assume they didn’t want it to succeed? But it did do well (I really like the show) so they moved it to Wednesdays and the ratings popped up. But then back to Fridays and then preempted because of March Madness. WHY??? Keep it on Wednesdays! Or a night/slot where we can know when to watch it. And play it through. No re-runs or skipped weeks.

It’s bad enough that well written and acted shows with story lines are canceled and crap reality shows like Jersey Shore, The Bachelor, The Kardashians, etc etc are kept on the air. But then the few great shows that kinda make it, are moved around or not given a good chance or supported. I look at shows like Friday Night Lights, Damages or Stargate: Universe and wonder how people cannot be sucked in to these excellent character and story driven shows?! But Jersey Shore and Teen Mom gets renewed over and over. Is the majority of the TV-viewing public just a Borg collective of mental retards who can’t process shows that makes you think at all or remember plot lines or sit through weeks of charter development? I can’t find another explanation.

No wonder the major networks are losing market share and networks like TNT, USA, FX and SyFy are making original shows (ignoring HBO and Showtime who both produce fantastic shows and runs them straight through so we can be sucked in!)

You know what was smart? When 24 and Lost realized they need to run their episodes back to back – no reruns – to keep their audience sucked in and loyal because of the nature of their shows and plots. Yes! Exactly! Guess what? I never missed one of those episodes. Why play 2 or 3 and then run a few re-runs and then run a few more news ones, etc etc etc.?!?!?

Guess what networks – fans like (some of) your shows. But fans don’t want to play guessing games with when they will be on. People have shorter and shorter attention spans. So give them reruns, they will turn away. Sad but true. And TV viewers – you need to watch the quality shows so they stay on the air. Studio execs only care about the bottom line – numbers/ratings.

Meh. I should just read more anyway.

These 2 scenes have to be my favorite dancing moments on TV. David Boreanz as Angel (or Angelus…yes, where I got the name) dancing is AWESOME. The little clappy thing he does = priceless. I remember when I first saw this episode and how much I laughed.

and of course…Ross and Monica doing “The Routine”…classic…

I can watch these over and over again :)

Last night I finished the final book of the Rizzoli and Isles series. I really liked this one. Although it did stress me out. There is a young man (whose type of character will always remind me of my brother no matter what they story) and a dog…so I get stressed that they will be OK! So I had to finish this book!!

I got hooked on this series this summer because of the new TV show that premiered on TNT based on the books. The show does a good job of following the characters but they are different. It’s weird how different and yet very similar they are. I think the show has done a good job with that. Obviously the books are more detailed and the show doesn’t actually follow most of the actual plot lines from the books. But the character development is good. Plus Angie Harmon is always great. She plays Jane Rizzoli who, in the book, is described as being short and not terribly attractive. So they hired a super gorgeous former model – heh :) But she comes across how the character is written – so it works very well.

Several of the books stand out as my favorites. Those tend to take a jump from the standard crime formula into superstition and the occult. Love that. But without becoming sci-fi or fantasy. They do stay grounded in “reality”. My favorites are the last 3 written – The Mephisto Club, The Keepsake and Ice Cold.

The main characters are strong women characters. Not that I look for that specifically in my books but these 2 definitely are without being made out to be “perfect” by any means. Plus the author keeps a few recurring characters in addition to the supporting characters that re-appear.

If you are looking for a a new series of books to get hooked on – here you go:

* The Surgeon (2001) introduces Det. Jane Rizzoli
* The Apprentice (2002) introduces Dr. Maura Isles. The pilot episode is based on this novel.
* The Sinner (2003)
* Body Double (2004)
* Vanish (2005)
* The Mephisto Club (2006)
* The Keepsake / Keeping the Dead (US/UK 2008)
* Ice Cold / The Killing Place (US/UK 2010)

I can’t wait for the next one! But now I must go to Amazon and search for my next book…

Holy vampire!  I have had the Buffy Complete Series in my cart at Amazon for months. But I KNEW it would go on sale so I refused to pay the almost $200 for it. I got my Angel Complete Series through the Gold Box deal at Amazon a couple years ago!

So I just kept checking back at Amazon weekly and YAY! Today it went down to $70.99!!  That’s also no tax and free shipping! YAY!!!

Go people!! Get yours! Wheeeeee!!!

It’s true I do only LOVE the first few seasons, and feel the addition of Dawn and altering of Spike’s character were HORRID, but it’s Buffy…she kicks serious ass in cute outfits AND high heels. And Angel pops up for cross-overs :) So I have to own it…

I finished watching my Stargate: Universe season 1.5 DVDs this weekend. And then watched the season 2 premiere that premiered on SyFy (still hate that change) this past week.  Loved it!

I discovered this show at San Diego Comic Con this summer. To be honest, I was sitting in this panel from the beginning so that I could see Bones and Big Bang Theory and had no interest in these panels.  But I sat through the Caprica and SGU panels as they were on first.

I started watching Caprica when it first started and well…I did got a little bored. But I think I only made it through the first couple episodes only. And from what i saw in the panel – it gets MUCH more exciting!

I saw the Stargate movie years ago mainly because I love James Spader (and liked it) but never watched any of the shows. But both of the panels at SDCC made me excited to watch the shows! The casts/panelists were very interactive with the audience and with each other and the clips they brought made me want to get into both shows. This is how I got sucked into BSG actually. I went into the panel since Bones was going to follow the BSG one. And the cast was SO great, that I had to start watching it!

I bought Season 1 of SGU and blew through it quickly – it was SO good! And then ordered season 1.5 and I think it took me 2 days to get through it.  I had to see what happened next!  Well acted, well written. I loved BSG and this goes down that same darker, not so happy go lucky path. But not *quite* as dark as BSG.

If you are looking for a really good show to be entertained by but that’s not too many seasons in – check this one one out for sure.

Now I need to get Caprica and try to catch up fast! They were going to start their Season 1.5 in January (at SDCC anyway) but moved it up to October – argh!

Hmmmm? Long time ago it was…

Gaius to a young Merlin…

“It was real. But it was just one reality. The future is as of yet unshaped. It is we that shape it.

The decisions you make. The actions you take. Remember that.

Now eat your soup, before it gets cold”

So wise these wizards, sorcerers, Jedis are…they also push eating….

I really liked the Lost finale last night. And not just because I hosted a fun party for it :) Made some yummy junk food, someone brought a Dharma cake, cocktails were made. The most fun was that then whenever a long-lost character showed up or a plot line took a wacky turn, we all OOOOHHHed, AAAHHHed, DOHed! at the same time. Was a very fun viewing :)

And I feel they wrapped up enough to make the story seem complete. Did they fully explain a myriad of smaller plotlines and devices? No. Why there was a rampaging polar bear? What was real and what was “purgatory”? Did anyone actually survive that crash? Or was it all purgatory? I could think of a 100 questions without even really thinking hard! And then 100 more just from last night’s episode!

In the first season I called the “island as purgatory” scenario. I was obviously not the only one. The writers were asked this exact question at the Comic Con panel years ago where they flatly denied it was. Now, does that mean they lied to people? Or does it mean they chickened out on an original storyline they had planned and chose this path as the easy one in the last season? Who knows. But it wrapped up nicely. And really – why would they answer that question honestly if it would then give up so many future plot line surprises. Who cares if they lied about it? I’ve read more than one person moaning about this online and it annoyed me. Why should they give up their storyline to a reporter or fan at a panel just because you asked? They weren’t on trial or testifying at a Congressional Hearing. Besides, if they were alive on that island, then it wasn’t purgatory. If you don’t watch the show, you are scratching your head right about now…heck, if you do watch the show you probably are too :)

I like that the show was always a fight between the belief in faith or science (like X-Files was at the beginning.) And how the people who fought those battles changed. I like that they chose to end the show on a more upbeat note even while not shying away from subject of the death and the demise of popular characters. I like that the show made me tear up or just flat out cry and NOT in a Lifetime movie way :) But in an ohmygodicantbelievetheyjustdidthat! way.

I loved the characters. Even the ones I hated! Jack’s constant stress of being a leader. Locke’s constant challenging of Jack’s disbelief in believing. Locke’s plain ol’ kick assness. Sawyer’s wise-ass remarks and name calling (and yes, ok..his chest.) Hurley’s Star Wars references (and Sawyer’s. And Miles’) Sun and Jin. Ben (Henry Gale!) Desmond…being Penny’s Constant. Sayid’s bad-ass-ness. Every character on this show was great – even ones that were pretty obvious redshirts. And ones that were very much bad guys. It’s probably one of the only TV shows (or books or movies) where I didn’t have an obvious front-running favorite character. They were all so good and fun to watch. It was a character-driven show and, in The End, that was more important than the mythology of the show. The writers wrapped up characters, not necessarily plot lines. I am OK with that.

Do I have a million unanswered questions? Yes I do. Am I sad I will no longer get answers to any of them? Yes I am. Am I sad I no longer have watching Lost to look forward to? Very much so. I think any story – TV, movie, book comic book, etc that can wake me up in the middle of the night pondering what happened and asking questions and having endless debate with friends about characters and plots is evidence of a good story with good writing and characters. And I will miss it. Television is filled with a bazillion channels of a gazillion hours of vomit-worthy “entertainment” so it’s sad when something that is actually good and captivating goes away, only to be replaced by some mind-numbing reality show.

I woke up at 4am this morning thinking about Jack’s end. And the last minutes of the show. And stressing about it. Sad about Jack dying there alone. Was Jack ever alive on the island at all though? Did they all just crash land and die and then were in purgatory/the way station/whatever you want to call it? And most importantly, if they did die – who the hell was going to take care of Vincent?! Which started me stressing about my doggies. Which is likely where the initial stress came from since I was taking Storm to the vet this morning. My mind just doesn’t like to shut off…:)

But besides giving fans some closure on where these characters ended up, they really made me happy that they brought Vincent the dog back. Every single review of the finale and blog about it today mentioned this as a triple bonus-points move. And he was there at The End along with my tears…

Jack and Vincent

Ok, this clip rules! I love Jane Lynch. I don’t watch Glee but I think I might start just to watch her. She is so awesome in everything I see her in. I even like her so much in those commercials with Julia-Louise Dreyfus hocking some frozen food brand that I actually watch the ad instead of fast-forwarding through it!

I also really loved Madonna’s Vogue (and of course the magazine ;) ) I’m not into her new stuff very much. But Vogue is a forever classic for me. It also reminded me of a very funny night (to me anyway and this is MY blog!)…

I went to an art benefit – black tie soiree (I was wearing what my friend called my Jessica Rabbit dress, although black and not red, hiiigh heels (loved that dress!) years and years ago with my boyfriend at the time and another couple of best friends. We were the only people there who were under the ago of 40 (which at that time was like almost in the coffin to us!) so we had our own table. We mingled the requisite amount but mostly kept ourselves amused.

The event was held in a castle – at least a home built to look like a castle high up in the hills out here. Rumor was it was built using stones brought over from a real castle in England but I have no idea. Good story though. Very cool place to hold events, that’s for sure. It was raining, thundering and lightning out which is very unusual for Northern California in the summer. But it definitely added to the castle/black tie event vibe!

They had a mingling/dinner/after dinner band playing but then a DJ started after that. And the DJ played the lounge and jazz stuff appropriate for everyone’s attire but then played Vogue! So the 4 of us got up and started (well, as best we could anyway) Vogueing/Madonna’s moves from this video. Everyone else stopped and watched up and clapped when we were done. And we of course ended with our hands around our face like the video and we did strike a pose! I’m sure we looked GOOOOOFY but we laughed and laughed and it pretty much made the entire the night. Definitely made it memorable as I still remember it and giggle to myself. A good memory to hold on to.

But Jane here does it better – watch the video!