Media Consumed: A Ben Pearson Blog

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Sat, 04 Dec 2010 16:58:37 -0800

To be clear, this is not another entry into the CBS Photoshop...

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 21:03:27 -0700

To be clear, this is not another entry into the CBS Photoshop Pun War. If you’re looking for those entires, click here. Spoiler alert - I won. (Sorry Trehern.)

I just thought this was funny and threw it together in five minutes.

Season 2 is Here! Media Consumed: 09/22/10

Thu, 23 Sep 2010 18:14:59 -0700

In the past two weeks, I’ve seen a bunch of movies: Never Let Me Go, Catfish, The Town, The Social Network, Buried, and I’m getting ready to head out now to see Let Me In. All this is to say that I’m ridiculously busy, and pondered the notion of not even returning to this blog this season. But I know my schedule will ease up in the coming weeks, and I’d rather keep a log of my thoughts (however brief) than jump into discussing episode 4 of a show without having thrown out thoughts about the first three episodes.

So let’s get to it.

Hawaii Five-O, Season 1, Ep. 1 “Pilot”

I dig what I’m seeing so far. There’s an astonishing number of film directors moving to TV to tackle pilots of these new shows, and H50 is no different: Live Free or Die Hard director Len Wiseman directed the first episode of this resuscitated program. Daniel Dae Kim played a smaller role than I would have liked, but this is just the pilot and there was a lot of set-up to complete before we start getting into the meat of the season. Alex O’Loughlin was pretty average in my opinion, but Scott Caan (who excelled on Entourage this past season) will provide some solid comic relief. It may sound childish, but I like shows with “twists” - and even something as setting this procedural against the gorgeous Hawaii background is enough for me to keep watching, at least for the time being. Great guest spots here, too, from Norman Reedus (The Boondock Saints), James Marsters (“Smallville”), and William Sadler (The Shawshank Redemption).

Terriers, Season 1, Ep. 3 “Change Partners”

Here’s another one I like. In a recent episode of the Not Just New Movies Podcast, we called “Terriers” something like a “Justified” with an ocean beach breezy twist (there’s that twist again). I really enjoy Donal Logue’s performance, and the sun-drenched filters and haphazard nature of the characters add to a sense of California dreaminess that I appreciate even more since moving out here. Olivia Williams (“Dollhouse”) guest starred on this episode, and I’m hoping she becomes a recurring character. I like the dynamic between Hank and his ex-partner Gustafson, and the writing in the show - while highlighting some ludicrous plots sometimes - generates some fantastic scenes of television, like Hank’s absolute destruction of Williams’ character’s husband in this episode; he verbally abuses the dude straight to his face to the point where I was nearly physically uncomfortable. Good stuff, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Season 6, Ep. 1 “Mac Fights Gay Marriage”

This was a somewhat disappointing start to what has quickly become one of my favorite shows on TV after binging through the first five seasons to catch up. I laughed really hard at Charlie’s walnut comment, but aside from that I was a bit thrown off by the excessive product placement (Subway and Coors Light, anyone?). I’m still going to watch, and I’m still going to like it - I just hope they can bounce back from a lackluster premiere and this isn’t the beginning of the end.

Lone Star, Season 1, Ep. 1 “Pilot”

It’s a shame this one is in danger of early cancellation, since I thought it was really entertaining and had a whole lot of promise and potential. The lead actor did a great job pulling off the duality of living a double life, and there was a cameo by “24” hottie Nazneen Contractor. It was good to see David Keith (“If Tomorrow Comes”) as the father figure, since that guy definitely doesn’t get enough work in Hollywood these days, and Jon Voight always brings an air of class to whatever he does. I’m holding out hope for this one, but it’s not looking good. Marc Webb of (500) Days of Summer directed this one.

Running Wilde, Season 1, Ep. 1 “Pilot”

I don’t know about this one. I’m a big “Arrested Development” fan, but this re-pairing of Will Arnett, Mitch Hurwitz, and David Cross left me kind of unimpressed. Maybe if the kid wasn’t in the picture, I wouldn’t be so “meh” about it - but you know my feelings about kids on screen. (Spoiler alert - they’re useless.) Plus, Keri Russell is just not my cup of tea. Perhaps I’ll give this one a few more episodes to hook me, but they better turn this ship around ASAP.

Boardwalk Empire, Season 1, Ep. 1 “Boardwalk Empire”

This is a big one for the internet community. Everyone’s talking about BE being the savior of modern television, but I’m not quite convinced yet. I dug the first episode, and Steve Buscemi and Michael Shannon were fantastic, but I’ll reserve judgement until I get one or two more episodes in before I start really singing its praises.

Undercovers, Season 1, Ep. 1 “Pilot”

J.J. Abrams shepherds yet another TV project to the small screen, directing the pilot for “Undercovers,” my favorite of the new shows so far. In theory, it sounds like something I might hate - a married couple gets back into the spy game to spice up their love life - but every level of this production was solid. The casting is really great; I’ve never heard of the two stars Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, but I’m already smitten. They’re both phenomenal, and local UCB favorite Ben Schwartz was excellent as the ass-kissing supporting player. As expected from Abrams, the writing and the action were both top-notch as well. I’ve got a good feeling about this.

Glee, Season 2, Ep. 1 “Audition”

Looks like more of the same from this show. As long as we know what we’re getting into (insane storylines, quick pace, a mix of great and terrible musical numbers and heavyhanded messages), then we’re good to go. That opening scene was perhaps the most meta intro I’ve ever seen to a TV show. More on this show later.

(I have to leave now, but I also saw and enjoyed the premiere of “How I Met Your Mother.”) Keep it tuned here for more as the season progresses.

Site Update

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 10:05:31 -0700

I’m taking a break from this blog. I’ve got too much going on right now to give it the attention it deserves, so when shows like “Community” come back, I’ll be back to write about them. In the meantime, listen to the new podcast I started; we have a “Media Consumed” section where we talk about what we’ve been watching on TV lately, so that’s like a verbal spinoff version of this site until the fall lineup returns.

Man, I miss “Parks and Recreation” already.

Media Consumed, Day 35: 07/12/10

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 14:39:58 -0700

Yes, yes, I know - I apologize for my absence. I’ve been busy bouncing back and forth between job interviews, and eventually landed a part time gig at Paramount Pictures. So I’ve been working there on and off for a week or so and will be doing so for at least the next six months. In the meantime, let’s get on with what I’ve been watching.

Lie to Me, Season 2, Episode 15 “Teacher and Pupils”

I skipped writing about last week’s episode (which was pretty good, coincidentally), but I’m back on board for this one. Melissa George returned, and I’m kind of digging her character. She’s setting herself up as a love interest AND business partner of Lightman’s, and add to the mix the fact that she wants to learn his techniques. A brilliant writing move would be to have her learn the tactics from Lightman over the course of the season and then doublecross him at the end, using his own moves against him and pushing him back into Foster’s open arms.

I dug the use of Emily in this episode (partially because I saw Hayley McFarland, the actress who plays her, recently), mostly due to Cal’s overprotection of his daughter. He got so pissed when that dirty cop made a snide remark about Emily and slid up in that dude’s face like he was about to wreck him right there in the police station. Loved it.

I also surprisingly didn’t miss the Loker/Torres subplot. The episode did a good job of filling enough time with other stories that we didn’t need anything from them, and I’m glad they decided to (basically) cut them out of this one completely rather than waste a potentially fuller story that they can now explore down the road in greater detail.

Lightman’s powers of perception never cease to amaze me, and even though this episode had “gimmick” written all over it - “Lightman can read…uh…a paralyzed guy!” - it didn’t feel trashy and still kept the characters grounded in a believable reality.

Entourage, Season 7, Episode 2 “Buzzed”

It’s easy to say that Entourage has gotten pretty bad over the years, transforming from a once-interesting “pull back the curtain” look at Hollywood to a show where none of the main characters ever really mature, develop, or grow. That being said, I’m still watching it - mainly because the episodes are only 22 minutes, and I’m hoping for them to turn it around this season.

“Buzzed” was actually a solid episode of the show, featuring Ari Gold in a nervous state for the first time since I can remember and keeping the Lloyd/Drama/Turtle stuff to a minimum. Surprisingly, I felt that this particular episode struck a really great balance between the main characters; more often than not, the plot will rely too heavily on just one storyline. “Buzzed” built nicely on Vince’s adrenaline junkie kick, Drama’s career (or lack thereof), Turtle’s company and the relationships involved, and a nice look inside Hollywood with the press junket, the paparazzi, and the fallout from Cassavetes with the reshoots.

This is not one of my favorite shows on television by any means, but I almost feel pot-committed (Smallville style): I’ve seen every episode and might as well finish it out and cap it off by seeing the eventual Entourage movie that they’ve been planning for a while. I’m glad to see that Vincent Chase is actually getting some vaguely interesting stories so far this time around, because too often he becomes a wandering character with no personality even though the show is ostensibly based around him and his career choices. Here’s hoping Season 7 is better than the last few. Good luck snagging that football team, Ari.

Media Consumed, Day 34: 06/23/10

Wed, 23 Jun 2010 23:39:00 -0700

Lie to Me, Season 2, Episode 13 “The Whole Truth”

Even though I didn’t write anything about last week’s episode of Lie to Me, I WOULD have written about how this season (or half of the season, however the hell FOX is splitting up this series) has been chock full of great guest stars. In the first episode back from the break, we had Veronica Mars alum Jason Dohring; last week, we watched Angus MacFayden (Braveheart, the Saw films) as a troubled Irish ex-soldier; this week, we saw Melissa George (Alias, the little-seen-but-worth-checking-out movie Triangle) as a gorgeous would-be murderer set to benefit from her husband’s death AND another Veronica Mars alum Max Greenfield, who played Neptune cop Leo D’Amato and here appears as the miffed son of the deceased. And from the trailer for next week’s episode, we have a performance from Dollhouse’s Enver Gjokaj as a soldier with a screw loose. Somebody give Lie to Me’s casting department a bonus.

In “The Whole Truth,” Lightman’s banter with ex-wife Zoe comes to Boston Legal levels of ridiculousness in the courtroom: I half-expected to see Alan Shore standing in the shadows, smirking at their exchange. I’m still not sure how I feel about Zoe; it looks like the audience is being groomed for an eventual hookup between Lightman and Foster, but, as Lightman mentions in this episode, his feelings for her may be more platonic than romantic. Zoe is an interesting element in that equation, and she definitely has the stature to hold her own against Lightman, so there’s reason for her to stick around.

I’m generally a fan of the Loker/Torres subplot, but this week’s was embarrassingly stupid. Torres hooking up with a woman? An older woman? Come on. I’m not a script writer (or screenplay writer, or screenwriter, etc.), but that’s just a bad idea. Is that supposed to round out the character? Give us something that moves the plot forward a bit. The only good thing to come out of it was Loker’s playful suggestion that his competition for Torres’ affections might have doubled - an interesting addition since Karl (Sean Patrick Thomas) hasn’t been mentioned yet since the break.

Overall, I enjoyed the episode just like I’ll enjoy every episode of this show that ever airs. There wasn’t anything here that really jumped out at me, but any situation where I get to watch Tim Roth play Cal Lightman will be a pleasant one in my book.

Finally. Those treesluts at the Solar Sentinel have fallen off...

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 15:14:56 -0700

Finally. Those treesluts at the Solar Sentinel have fallen off their high horse and all but admitted that they’ve been nothing but hype for this entire competition. Their latest effort, “Sting of the Dill,” might be their worst entry of the contest (and that’s saying something). I can’t read your red text, and when I zoomed in on it, I actually wish I hadn’t. It takes him 8 weeks to learn about one type of food? Embarrassing. That’s all the effort you’re putting into your final entry? Put a pickle in Sting’s hand, and call it a day? Tsk, tsk. (insert Mutumbo finger wag)

Here’s my final entry of this series, “Camel-y Guy.”

These FOX shows have proven to be pretty terrible fodder for a Pun War, and I for one am glad that we’ve kicked this network into submission. See me in the judges’ hall, Trehern? Not if I see you first. And my name is Ben, you asshat, not Ben P.

The Solar Sentinel (and a few commenters across the web) seem to...

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:22:35 -0700

The Solar Sentinel (and a few commenters across the web) seem to think they have the FOX Photoshop Pun War on lock down. But this battle is far from over.

In response to “The Chimpsons” (nice yellow ear, Marge), I present “House M.C.” So you haters go ahead and hate all you want - but throw your hands in the air if you’s a true playa (and you dig this entry).

Media Consumed, Day 33: 06/11/10

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 18:37:49 -0700

Lie to Me, Season 2, Episode 11 “Beat the Devil”

Cal Lightman’s return to prime time encapsulated most of the aspects I love about this show. I’m a huge fan of the series, and as I’ve said before, Tim Roth’s Dr. Lightman is my favorite superhero. The show is in constant flux with showing Cal’s mastery of his craft and his fallability - occasionally he makes a mistake, but most of the time he’s vindicated with his decisions. Roth’s insistent confidence and brash tactics are really fun to watch, and even though most people could care less about this show I’m really looking forward to seeing how it develops over time.

This episode featured a great guest performance from Veronica Mars’ Logan Echolls, actor Jason Dohring. Dohring was genuinely creepy as a psychotic killer with a penchant for waterboarding his victims, and added a vivid reality to the most uncomfortable scene of television since Jack Bauer left the airwaves. Effective direction from Vahan Moosekian made the scene unforgettable for me, especially with the POV shot with Dohring pouring water on the camera lens.

The Torres/Loker subplot was a bit underwhelming, but typical of the series’ history so far. It’s interesting that I can’t stand shows like CSI and other procedural cop shows, but I’m totally hooked with shows that feature a twist on generic material (see: Lie to Me and Justified). There’s only so many of these types of stories you can tell, and when they double up on them in episodes like this, I feel like it’s going to be rare that both stories are equally entertaining. Even though this story felt like we’ve treaded that ground before, I was still glad to see Torres and Loker since it was like seeing old friends again.

It’s been a while since the last aired episode of the show, so I don’t recall exactly how the series left the Lightman/Foster romance (I think she left her husband), but I liked that they didn’t just jump straight into that subplot right out of the gates. The final seconds of the show was just the right amount of time to devote to that relationship; re-establish it, remind us that there’s sexual tension there, and move on to next week.

[I was disappointed that we didn’t see Emily Lightman in this episode, since I saw her a few nights ago (in person) at the UCB Theatre in Los Angeles.]

Media Consumed, Day 32: 06/08/10

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:48:31 -0700

Glee, Season 1, Episode 22 “Journey”

Fact: I’m one of the biggest Journey fans you know, so it’s easy to see why I appreciate Glee’s love affair with Steve Perry and Co. The pilot’s use of multiple Journey hits (among them the criminally underused “Separate Ways”) hooked me early, and the season one finale had me nearly frothing at the mouth by using the band’s name as the title of the episode. But I must say - even with the medley during Regionals, I was slightly disappointed with the lack of Journey songs. [Note - my disappointment stems from a selfish wish to see the group tackle a 45 minute Journey concert with no regard for standard storytelling practices, so take this mini-review with a grain of salt.]

While the series has taken a bit of a dive recently with the Gaga-infused “Theatricality” and the uninspired “Funk” airing last week (one of the season’s low points, in my opinion), “Journey” returned the series to its soaring highs and reminded us - and capitalizing on every opportunity to go over the top - how much fun this show can be when it loses all inhibitions and just goes for it.

I was as surprised as anyone when the Regionals performance came 12 minutes into the episode, as I naturally expected it to come near the end. “Faithfully” was great - boy, that Lea Michele has got some freakin’ pipes - but the rest of the mashup (“Any Way You Want It,” “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’,” “Don’t Stop Believin’”) didn’t match the intensity of the initial performance and left me a little unaffected. It was fun to rock out to some Journey, but I think they wasted an opportunity to explore some stuff that we haven’t heard yet (“Be Good to Yourself” seemed like the obvious choice). Finn and Rachel’s reconciliation was fitting with the finale nature of the show. Of course we all expected something like that to happen (ditto with Will and Emma), so I don’t feel the need to discuss those aspects further.

But the structure of this episode was well-conceived, allowing for the borderline brilliant piece of television that featured the birth of Quinn’s child edited against Vocal Adrenaline’s rendition of “Bohemian Rhapsody.” I call it “borderline” because I think it walked that line a bit too tightly and tipped over into some iffy territory at some parts, which - naturally - I’ll spell out for you now.

[Quick note: during the Journey medley, I told my friend that if I were a judge, I would preemptively award New Directions first prize based on song choice alone, and tell everyone else to go home without performing. I quickly amended that statement with, “unless, of course, one of the groups did a Queen medley, in which case I’d listen to it, and then award New Directions first prize anyway.” As you’re well aware by now, this exact situation almost came to pass, so I just thought it was funny and semi-prophetic.]

My problems with the “Bohemian Rhapsody” piece are with more than the drawn-out and uninteresting choreography of Vocal Adrenaline: I feel like the introduction of Quinn’s mom (who we haven’t seen in FOREVER) was included exclusively so the cutting back and forth would make sense with Quinn shouting “Mama!” along with the song lyrics. These types of touches are typically kind of cute in this show, but this one was a bit overkill for me. The editing was pretty great for the first half of this performance/birth, but at some point near the halfway mark, it lost its mojo and became too cliche for its own good. This is the balance that the show itself strikes on a weekly basis - it’s so cheesy that sometimes it heads into after-school special territory, but can occasionally turn out a great episode that feels confident and coherent.

Jane Lynch’s Sue Sylvester’s one liners were a thing of beauty this week, comprising some of the best writing for the character in the series so far. Her confidence in New Directions has been hinted at for a long time now, and for those who claim the first place vote for the Glee club was out of character, the writers came up with a creative way to answer those cries: have Sue be mistreated by the other “celebrity” judges, and play on her self-esteem and spitefulness. Personally, these were my least favorite sequences in the episode; I assume this is partly because of my utter indifference toward Josh Groban and my disgust with Olivia Newton-John and her general demeanor. Also: how is the news anchor any more of a celebrity than Sue Sylvester? At least Sue has won multiple national titles and is a known personality in her niche; Newton-John neglected to mention the anchor would also “stay in Ohio” after the performance was over, undercutting the entire point of her argument.

I’ve also decided that Principal Figgins is one of the most inept characters in the history of television. Blackmail or not, the guy never does anything but sit and listen to Will and Sue argue week after week. Get him out of the picture - he’s useless.

And considering this show’s propensity for breakneck pacing, I’m surprised and pleased that the writers chose to show a bit of restraint in this season finale. I worried that the epic nature of a finale meant they might amp it up and “out-Glee” themselves, but the showrunners wisely took the opposite approach: relationships were left unfixed (or at least, un-finalized; see: Will & Emma, Finn & Rachel), and they didn’t bother going through every character in depth to get a sense of resolve from each of them. Instead, they focused on the major character relationships that have been brewing all season and relegated the others to a series of small montage moments, a move that I found discouraging at first (since I generally like the secondary characters more than the main ones) but have since realized was probably a smart move. Artie, Mercedes, Kurt, and Tina have all had their moments throughout the season, so there’s no need to hurriedly revisit them and marginalize their characters even further.

And, gay as it may be, I enjoyed Will and Puck’s acoustic “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” to close the episode. I can see many worse situations - most of them literal - in which the show could have chosen to employ that song, but this one was unoffensive and fit well with the quietly triumphant tone that wrapped up an interesting first season of television.

At least, that’s the way I “C” it.

Justified, Season 1, Episode 13 “Bulletville”

If you somehow missed Justified this season, I implore you to go back and catch up on all thirteen episodes this summer. After worrying me in the beginning with some one-off episodes that didn’t matter to the overarching storyline, the serialized nature of the show returned in full force in the form of Boyd Crowder, one of the most interesting characters on any TV show that I currently watch. Walton Goggins does tremendous work playing that character, and tonight was a coming out party for him.

We finally got to see Boyd singled out in the woods, away from other characters and completely on his own in his element. Up until this point, the audience has been unsure as to Boyd’s true motivations: since Raylan is suspicious of Boyd’s conversion, the audience mirrors those concerns. We haven’t seen Boyd alone with himself since his conversion, so there was always the chance that he was putting on a show for people to hide some underlying scheme. But tonight we see that wasn’t the case - barring some epic “old Chinese guy with the fishbowl from The Prestige” reveal, it appears that Boyd truly practiced what he preached after he emerged from prison a changed man.

This was an excellent finale - Olyphant was phenomenal as usual, the episode was action packed, and everyone stayed true to their characters. The shootout in the woods was more tense than it would have been in other episodes since major characters were dying off left and right, so the threat of danger and consequence felt very real. It also raises some interesting questions about next season: what happens with the cartel comes to collect on their investment? Will Raylan hook back up with Winona, or Ava? (For the record, I prefer Winona - both personally and for Raylan.) Is Bo Crowder really dead? Consider me hyped for next season.

[They can’t kill Bo, right? He’s such a great character, and M.C. Gainey does a fantastic job portraying him. It’d be a shame to only have him for one season.]

The Solar Sentinel has been trying to come across as cocky...

Sat, 05 Jun 2010 13:46:49 -0700

The Solar Sentinel has been trying to come across as cocky lately, but it looks like they mixed up “Robbie’s World” with a stale batch of weak sauce. Hate to tell ya, bro - nobody wants to ask you any questions about that disaster except “what demon vomited all over your background?”

If you’re looking for a perfect score, Jack Bauer’s gotcha covered right here with “Denty Door.”

Looks like the Solar Sentinel has run out of ideas. Seeing the...

Mon, 31 May 2010 00:53:43 -0700

Looks like the Solar Sentinel has run out of ideas. Seeing the brilliant Photoshop work on display in Infested Development, they decided to essentially copy our idea and use the same “window trick” in their latest debacle, “Suturama.” Too lazy to cut out that human being on the right side of the image, huh? Pity.

But enough mediocrity. My newest entry brings us all the way back to a time when Jessica Alba wasn’t adorning certain apartment walls on Sin City posters. You may recall she used to be on a show created by James Cameron called “Dark Angel” - I never watched it, but Kovar was a big fan. Here’s my latest, “Shark Angel.”

Media Consumed, Day 31: 05/23/10

Mon, 24 May 2010 03:30:16 -0700

LOST, Season Six, Episode 17 “The End”

“I hope that someone does for you what you just did for me.” - John Locke

This is going to sound weird, but screw it - I wish LOST was a physical being just so I could repeat Locke’s quote to it. I have no qualms about sharing some love for this series, but let’s save that for the end and get to what the eff actually happened in (sniff) the series finale of LOST.

I’m going to put it like this: in the few minutes that I scanned Twitter and Facebook since the finale ended, I’ve seen a lot of hate out there for this show. These people (not all, but most) were setting themselves up for disappointment, setting expectations that even a two-and-a-half hour episode of television couldn’t meet. But those people missed the point of the show: this episode was not about cramming in answers to the thousands of questions posed by the show in its six year run. Instead, in typical LOST fashion, it presented us with just enough information to wrap up major storylines for our favorite characters, bringing the show to a stunning end and leaving us talking about what, exactly, we just witnessed.

So - what DID we see? I have a feeling people are going to be talking about this for a while. I’m sure there are countless theories flowing forth from the internet as I type, but I know I’ve come to one of my own. Here’s my stab at it.

(Take a deep breath, and stay with me here.)

You know all about the Flash Sideways by now. Imagine that only one of those parallel universes actually exists in the “real” world. I believe that the Island Timeline that we’ve seen all season (the one where Jack and Faraday’s plan doesn’t work and Oceanic 815 crashes on the Island) is the “real” version of what happened to our castaways. Jin and Sun drown in each other’s arms, Charlie drowns warning Desmond that the freighter isn’t Penny’s boat, etc. I think all of that actually happened. I think when the bomb goes off in the Season Five finale, triggering the Flash Sideways which presents a world where 815 lands safely at LAX, I think all of that didn’t happen in the same “real” universe that the Island stories occupied. I think this entire season’s worth of Flash Sideways storylines - Faraday the musician, Sawyer the cop, etc. - essentially depicts a purgatory for our characters to meet up with each other before they move on to their higher plane of existence: heaven, Nirvana, you name it.

This hypothesis makes sense (to me, at least) for a few reasons. When Charlie triggers Desmond to remember the “not Penny’s boat” scene in the Flash Sideways after veering his car into the water, it means that both Charlie and Desmond (and later, everyone else who remembers their Island lives) actually did live through those events on the Island. They have full memories of their time there: this is an inarguable point considering Sun and Jin’s instant recall of the English language. If they didn’t spend any time on the Island in “real” life, they wouldn’t know how to speak English.

All of the castaways are drawn to each other in the Sideways because that isn’t the “real” world - it’s a place, as Christian Shephard says in the finale, where they all decided to meet up before they moved on. The Sideways ends with a blinding flash of light in a church. I find it hard to believe that particular event is meant to be taken literally, as if it actually happens in the rest of the world the show has operated in since the pilot. So, if it’s not meant to be taken literally, then that means it’s a metaphoric gathering place for all of our favorite characters as they die and move on to heaven (or whatever your particular religion calls it).

There’s no body in the casket - Jack talks with Christian, who confirms that Jack is dead too. He says everyone waiting outside are all dead as well, but some have died already and others have yet to die. This church is a bus stop on the way to heaven, and the riders only get there when they die. This place isn’t “real,” but instead this meeting happens after everyone died - follow me so far?

So what does this mean in the grand scheme of things? It means that Jacob brought the candidates to the Island to protect the notion of heaven from the Man in Black, who wants to destroy it. This is on a global scale - I think if the MiB had succeeded in the end, it would have meant that no one on Earth would ever be able to get to heaven (or whatever you want to call it) again. It means that on the Island, in the “real” world, Jack accepts his destiny, sacrifices himself to protect the light, and dies watching his friends Frank, Miles, Richard, Sawyer, Kate, and Claire fly away overhead on Ajira 316. Rose and Bernard are left chillin’ on the Island, but it’s cool because Hurley and Ben are still there to protect it from any other threat that might arise. Their first task? Get Desmond reunited with Penny and their son Charlie. I’m sure they’ll be able to accomplish their mission - as Ben says, Jacob ran things a certain way, perhaps Hurley can find a better way. Claire and Kate are off to raise Aaron, and who knows what kind of crazy misadventures Frank, Sawyer, Miles, and Richard will get into once they touch down in Los Angeles. But it doesn’t matter, because this is where our show ends.

I like my theory because it validates the first five seasons of the show. Implying that they were dead the whole time (or something similarly dismissive) doesn’t sit well with me, because I like thinking that the characters I’ve spent all this time with were actually evolving and growing as time went on. If they were dead, none of that character development would really matter. So I dig my idea because it means that everything actually happened - from the first moment of the pilot to the final scene on the Island with Jack’s eye closing - and everything in the Sideways happened in some sort of other realm, a purgatory place where everyone lives happily ever after in constant slow motion montages.

It took me a few minutes to sift through, but I’ve decided that I loved this ending to the series. It’s such a crowd-pleasing conclusion, and though the Sideways story isn’t presented in a cut-and-dry manner, one thing is for certain: love conquers all. Even those of us who hated Shannon back in Season One had to smile when she reunited with Sayid. If nothing else, the show went romance-by-romance and tied up loose ends so everyone could be happy together in the end, even if it meant that everyone was together only so they could move on to heaven (or whatever you want to call it).

LOST has cemented itself as my favorite show of all time, and I don’t see anything knocking it from that perch in the near future. The way the show handled such complex philosophical, moral, and spiritual issues combined with phenomenal storytelling, exceptional production value, and - most importantly - great character work has elevated this series to an almost mythical level for me and changed the landscape of American television. That’s all I’ve got for now; I’ll see you in another life, brotha.

Random Thoughts:

Michael Giacchino absolutely knocked it out of the park tonight. He hit every emotional beat and carried the entire final five minutes of the show. Unquestionably one of the best composers working today.
I knew Frank Lapidus would make it back alive! I guess his character was essential after all - if he had died, nobody would have been able to fly our castaways out of there.
My only disappointment with the finale: no rendition of “You All Everybody” at the concert.
Did it seem odd to anyone else that Ben Linus’s “anyone else we need to kill?” line from last week wasn’t really followed through on tonight? That line seemed like a huge character shift after he killed Widmore, but then this week it was as if that shift never happened and he was back to normal, chatting it up on the radio with Miles. Did I miss something?
Jack vs. Locke - jump punch toward the camera. Coolest cut to black ever? Yep.
I really enjoyed seeing Juliet and Sawyer reunited. I’m sure some people never bought their love story back in Season Five, but I was always down with it. I was shocked at Juliet’s infidelity in the Sideways, but my shock was shortlived when someone pointed out to me that she and Jack were actually divorced.
Good to see Kate saving Jack and killing the MiB. There’s been some talk in recent weeks about how the women on this show have devolved into lovers and mother figures, and even though Kate technically fits into both of those molds, at least she stepped up and did some relevant work here. But I will also take this opportunity to say that she looked absolutely stunning in that black dress at the concert. Whew.
What does the cut on Jack’s neck mean about the connectivity of the Island Timeline and the Flash Sideways? I feel like that’s the only factor that has the potential to blow my theory out of the water.
If my theory is correct about the light on the Island representing the notion of heaven - and I think I’m right, considering Jacob’s analogy with the Island and the wine bottle - then it’s fitting that Jack sacrifices himself to save everyone on Earth. With his propensity (some might say obsession) for wanting to save people, it was great to see that come full circle and for his final act to be both heroic and personally fulfilling.

While The Solar Sentinel had a decent idea for a pun in...

Thu, 20 May 2010 00:28:27 -0700

While The Solar Sentinel had a decent idea for a pun in “Cuban Target,” the execution was childish at best. Really, Trehern? MS Paint? Step up your game. Or just go ahead and give up now, because I’m pretty sure “Infested Development” is going to be the haymaker in this boxing match.

Media Consumed, Day 30: 05/18/10

Wed, 19 May 2010 01:06:26 -0700

LOST, Season Six, Episode 16 “What They Died For”

Listen, I’m obviously the first one to admit that I hated last week’s episode. You can read all about it right here. I’m not going to apologize for those thoughts because I still think most of my criticisms hold true; but with that said, I will admit that last week’s episode works as a great piece of setup for this week’s episode. Hearing Jacob reference events from “Across the Sea,” even going as far as to repeat lines of dialogue (“Now you’re like me”), made me appreciate the foresight of the writers and had me regretting my lambasting of last week’s episode.

But enough about last week. Let’s talk about how amazing this episode was. I was lucky enough to see it five days early at the LOST Live event last Thursday night. Thanks to my friend Amy Barker, I got to see composer/conductor Michael Giacchino conduct a 47-piece orchestra at UCLA, playing music from the show with the occasional appearance by one of the 20 (!) cast members that also attended the event. After the concert, a theater-sized screen was lowered and the surround sound was kicked on because the powers-that-be decided to show us “What They Died For” early. Watching the show on a huge screen in a crowd of 1800 die-hard LOST fans was a really fantastic experience.

The writing here was some of the best of this season. Desmond was at forefront of the Flash Sideways, but that story connected seamlessly between Jack, Ben, Desmond, and Sawyer. I couldn’t stop smiling at seeing Desmond’s plan in action - everything from beating the crap out of Ben in the school parking lot to ending up in jail with Sayid and Kate to the breakout with Ana Lucia and Hurley. There is obviously going to be a huge charity concert event in the finale, in which I’m guessing David (Jack’s Sideways son) will play a concert with Drive Shaft and Faraday (I’m psyched already). The Dr. Linus/Rousseau storyline did nothing for me, but, not surprisingly, Desmond delivered my favorite line tonight in his exchange with Sayid in the back of the police van. I don’t remember it specifically, but it had something to do with running over a handicapped guy in a parking lot.

Back on the Island, Jack finally crosses the threshold from Man of Science to Man of Faith, taking Jacob’s job as protector of the Island. And what was up with Ben? Amy and I discussed this after seeing the episode on Thursday: I thought Ben had kind of redeemed himself and given up his killin’ ways; when he broke down for Ilana and essentially said all he wanted was for somebody to want him, I thought he had officially crossed over to the good side. Clearly, the show doesn’t want things to be that simple, so Ben finally kills Charles Widmore and asks SmokeLocke if there’s anyone else that needs to be killed. Is this all part of some bigger plan from Ben, or has he really reverted to his old self?

Anyway, this was freaking great and I’m going to stop talking about it now. I can’t wait for the season finale on Sunday, so in the meantime, read Myles’ 4000 word review of this episode over at Cultural Learnings; I haven’t read it yet, but if you love TV analysis (and LOST) I guarantee it’s worth your time.

Glee, Season One, Episode 19 “Dream On”

Getting the obvious out of the way early: I thought the NPH/Matthew Morrison duets were awesome - both “Piano Man” and “Dream On,” the latter of which I promptly bought on iTunes. Plus, you have to admit that Bryan Ryan is a pretty perfect name for NPH’s character.

As for the actual content of the episode, I’m not the first person to say “I saw that coming” to the notion of Idina Menzel playing Lea Michele’s mother considering the striking physical resemblance. Since both women are incredibly talented, I’m down for whatever ridiculous shenanigans will arise from that subplot as long as the two keep singing together.

While following your dreams was clearly the theme for tonight’s episode, the show seemed to handle Artie’s storyline in a particularly strange way. It glorified his pipe dream of being able to walk again with that ridiculous boy band mall dance (shot in a cool YouTube-y way by director Joss Whedon, though), but then used Emma as the dealer of harsh reality, timidly letting Artie know that there was no way he’d walk again for many years. That’d be fine if they left it at that, but the longing way Artie sang the final song left me a bit confused as to the show’s allegiances to its own theme: his evident sadness at the lack of realization of his dream seemed out of place with the speech he only minutes earlier gave Tina about being OK with his situation. I’m not too terribly concerned with the messages this show is presenting on a micro level, considering their macro message of “be yourself” is stamped heavily into the very fabric of the series, but this back-and-forth in tonight’s episode struck me as a little strange.

I also really appreciated the lack of Emma and Will drama, and hope that this streak is continued for at least a few more episodes. Although, I will say that the preview for next week made me ashamed to watch the show. I guess I’d call myself a supporter of Lady Gaga, but seeing the garish way that the show abuses her novelty in next week’s episode made me not even want to watch it. Granted, it’s just a trailer, so perhaps it will handle the content with a bit more maturity than initially indicated. With no new LOST to watch next Tuesday, I suppose I’ll be tuning in to find out.

Media Consumed, Day 29: 05/17/10

Tue, 18 May 2010 00:29:25 -0700

Family Guy, Season Eight, Episode 19 “The Splendid Source”

I haven’t written much about this show on this site (or ever, really), and it’s for good reason. The show hit a level of cultural overkill a few years ago, and I (alongside many others) abandoned it because, like The Hangover, it seemed to attract fans who loved to talk about their beloved property and nothing else. However, I came back to it about a year ago and started casually watching episodes again; while the show is nowhere near as brilliant or consistently relevant as South Park, Family Guy still provides an occasionally impressive episode that stays funny over the course of its run time.

For me, this past Sunday’s episode, “The Splendid Source,” fell into this category. Coming off a couple of terrible episodes (“Brian and Stewie” and “Quagmire’s Dad”), this week’s episode concentrated on Peter and his friends instead of marginalized characters like Brian or the kids - and I liked that approach. Reuniting the gang with Cleveland felt a bit forced, but since I’ve never seen an episode of The Cleveland Show the gag felt more like a reunion than a cross-promotional event.

I’ve always liked the episodes where Peter and his friends go on quests - the one with the legendary fish that (spoiler alert) ends up being mechanical is a personal favorite - and the writers mined some great material out of the hunt for the creators of dirty jokes. The humor was there for me the entire time, and it seemed like the show was a completely different program than the one that people (myself included) once decried for devolving into pointless flashbacks.

While none of this is supposed to be particularly revelatory, I just wanted to let you (and me, when I go back and read this down the line) know that I dug this episode in the grand Family Guy scheme. If the show can string together some more episodes like this, then I’ll be more willing to devote more time to it in the future.

The Big Bang Theory, Season Three, Episode 22 “The Staircase Implementation”

Frankly, I’m surprised with how well this show has handled Penny and Leonard’s breakup. Their relationship was almost completely unbelievable, and it essentially boiled down to a series of standard sitcom spats normally reserved for Bill Engvall jokes. However, by having Leonard move on to another woman so quickly in last week’s episode and painting him as a whore instead of Penny - which, let’s face it, would have served no other purpose than to reinforce the already-embarrassingly prevalent notion that beautiful women are sexually promiscuous - the show decided to reunite the two ex-lovers in a platonic way last week and continue their friendship through the events of this week’s episode.

Since the two barely had anything in common in the first place (my main complaint for the foundation of their relationship), the writers did a smart thing here and focused on the one aspect of their lives they DO share: Sheldon’s friendship. In a move reminiscent of How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory went to the comedic flashback bin and pulled out an entertaining episode that gave us a better sense of the history between these characters and gave us some fun insights into gags the show established long ago. Things like Sheldon’s spot on the couch, introductions of Howard and Raj, and the infamous roommate agreement were all covered in a way that made this one of the most enjoyable episodes of the season for me. And I’ve always wondered what happened with that elevator - now we know. TBBT answered some pretty cool questions in this episodes, questions that I didn’t even know I wanted the answers to. Hopefully the series finale of LOST (coming this Sunday!) can do something similar.

How I Met Your Mother, Season Five, Episode 23 “The Wedding Bride”

I don’t have much to say about this episode, but I liked what I saw. I assume the writers found it necessary to remind us of Ted’s struggles with Stella at this point near the end of the season because something big is coming for him next week, and I only hope that means revealing more details about who the identity of the mother. This was a fairly reserved episode considering the ridiculous antics the group normally gets into, but watching the movie-within-the-show “The Wedding Bride” was pretty excellent. (What the heck has Chris Kattan been up to these days?)

It’s sad that the fake film (and the audience’s reactions, and the movie’s financial success) is so close to something we’d see in the real world, but that parody was where this episode derived most of its comedy tonight. And Wikipedia tells me that “The Wedding Bride” was actually first referenced back in a season 4 episode of the show, “As Fast As She Can” - the one where Barney tries to talk his way out of a speeding ticket, so he constantly gets pulled over - so that was a cool bit of continuity in action for fans of the show.

24, Season Eight, Episode 22 “Day 8: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm”

Jack has gone off the deep end, and if you haven’t been watching this show I would highly suggest checking out this season from the beginning. Jack’s actions are more meaningful when you know what he’s been through this season, and the show is clearly toying with the audience and asking us to either morally justify Jack’s behavior or side against him. I like the game that it’s playing with us, and even I’m having a hard time coming down on one side of the fence regarding his situation.

After the evisceration of that Russian guy last week (Pavel, I think), Jack decides to pull a Heat and go freaking commando on people this time around. Solid acting all around, and the writing was especially strong this week.

I’m really loving the direction the show is going as it steamrolls toward the series finale next week, and I can’t wait to see how it ends up. There’s currently a writer working on a script for a 24 movie, and when I heard that I figured there was no way that Jack would die in the show. But as his actions and motivations become more clear in the show, I think we might finally see the death of Jack Bauer. The movie could always be a prequel or take place in one of the in-between years during the timeline of the series.

Media Consumed, Day 28: 05/11/10

Wed, 12 May 2010 01:35:00 -0700

LOST, Season 6, Episode 15 “Across the Sea”

I’m just going to come right out and say it: I thought this was the weakest episode in LOST’s history. Half of the episode was devoted to the Man in Black (still no name?!?!) and Jacob as children, asking obnoxious questions to a mysterious mother figure who is actually a murderer. And as she says, “every question you ask will only lead to more questions.” That may be the case, but I really don’t think we’re at a point in the series where that is an acceptable cop out anymore.

Besides being disappointed that there was not a single cut to the current timeline, I kind of hated this episode because we aren’t nearly as invested in the MiB and Jacob as we are in “our” characters - the ones we’ve spent six years with, learning the ins and outs of their personalities and watching them grow and evolve. Throwing us in with Jacob and MiB - especially these characters at varying ages in a single episode - is jarring and feels out of place for the show, considering the important fact that “Across the Sea” really didn’t answer any big questions for us. Look, I’m not a guy who HAS to have every answer, and I’m totally cool with being left in the dark on some things. But this late in the game, and in an episode that was heralded as a game changer? This was weak sauce.

There was an allusion to the frozen donkey wheel, but we don’t know how MiB figured out the science behind it (as if we could comprehend the science of turning a wheel and ending up in the Tunisian desert, but you know what I mean). And the Adam and Eve question was answered, but I didn’t really understand that whole reveal. If MiB is dead in a cave next to his mother, who was talking with Jacob on the beach in the Season 5 finale? Who’s been inhabiting Locke’s body this whole time? I suppose there is some sort of disembodied MiB soul floating around somewhere, latching onto bodies and such, but that still doesn’t answer the question of how MiB looked like, uh, himself while he was talking with Jacob on the beach the first time we saw him. Any thoughts? Please share in the comments section.

The only way I’ll be pleased with this episode is in a retroactive sense, and that’s only if A) this episode is referenced again in flashback and it’s revealed (as suggested by Myles) that a time-travelling Daniel Faraday suggests the Donkey Wheel to the MiB or B) this episode is referenced again and it’s revealed to take place AFTER the events of the show as we know it. Like, all of our characters’ stories come to an end, and parts of this episode are replayed as some of the final scenes in the series, implying that the entire cycle is about to start over again. I don’t know, even that sounds kind of lame. I’m disappointed in Cuse and Lindelof, but still hopeful for next week’s episode (which I’ll see Thursday night at LOST Live - thanks Amy!) and the finale.

Glee, Season 1, Episode 18 “Laryngitis”

Coming off of what I thought was a terrible episode last week, Glee turned it around with “Laryngitis” both musically and in terms of storytelling. Granted, there are the drastic shifts in tone (re: Finn’s paralyzed friend) that this show is known for, but I almost welcome those kinds of decisions if they’re supported by music that fits my personal tastes. Seeing Mark Salling’s Puck sliding across the floor singing Sammy Davis Jr. was a blast, and Santana and Mercedes’ rendition of Brandy and Monica’s “The Boy is Mine” brought me back to the good old days. (I once bought Monica’s album solely for that song, so I was unabashedly singing along tonight.)

If you know me at all, you’ll easily be able to guess my favorite song of the night: Finn’s rendition of “Jessie’s Girl.” The song seemed to fit well in Cory Monteith’s vocal range, and that song is so damn fun it’s impossible not to like. Lyrically, it was perfect considering Rachel’s relationship with Jessie St. James of Vocal Adrenaline, and in the fallout of last week’s “Run, Joey, Run fiasco” it’s clear the show wants us to start hoping for Finn and Rachel to get back together. This kind of posturing reminds me of what Community has been doing with Jeff and Britta over the past few episodes of that series, presenting more scenes with just the two of them interacting and putting their chemistry front and center.

Revisiting the whole “Kurt getting jealous because his Dad’s spending too much time with Finn” scenario seems a bit premature, especially considering they just devoted an entire episode to this topic not too long ago. I think they should have come up with another Artie story and pushed this one to Season 2. Puck and Mercedes’ relationship was almost completely useless, and essentially only served as a way to A) address the fact that Puck shaved his head and B) get Mercedes out of the Cheerios.

It’s strange that we get an episode with so little Sue Sylvester and not even a cameo from Emma, but you know what? I’ll take it. Emma and Will’s storyline always feels secondary to me anyway, so it’s nice to take a week off from that every once in a while. And I CAN’T FREAKING WAIT for next week’s episode (directed by Joss Whedon), featuring Neil Patrick Harris and Matthew Morrison singing Aerosmith’s “Dream On.”

Justified, Season 1, Episode 9 “Hatless”

I’ve never heard of Jere Burns before, but I’m taking extreme notice after tonight’s episode of Justified. Burns plays the sadistic Wynn Duffy, a guy who absolutely looks like a malevolent maniac ready to snap you in half at any second. He brings such a scary presence to that role…I’m really hoping that Duffy sticks around for at least a full season or two.

As for the rest of the episode, it was interesting seeing Raylan in a different light. I was just talking to my friend Joe today about this show, and he said he stopped watching because Raylan felt invincible and there were never any consequences for his actions. This episode was seemingly a direct response to those criticisms. Raylan, suspended from duty at the Marshal service, didn’t have the swagger that he usually has in spades. He got his ass kicked outside of a bar, (he was wearing a Florida Gators shirt, so all is right with the world), his hat was stolen, and he was essentially acting alone trying to put together the pieces of this mystery and protect Winona from her husband’s boneheaded decision to get involved with the Dixie Mafia. That being said, of course things come to a conclusion that benefits our hero, but at least there was a true sense of danger in this episode (again, thanks to Burns’ performance) and a feeling of punishment from Raylan’s superiors hovering over the events that transpired tonight.

I also thought the T Bone storyline was incredibly effective, and I felt like I’ve known that character from the beginning of this series. The man’s willingness to help a friend in need, and his ability to withstand the brutal consequences was admirable and made for some truly empathetic TV.

In response to The Solar Sentinel’s...

Sat, 08 May 2010 01:38:52 -0700

In response to The Solar Sentinel’s “rip/huck,” I present “Buried…With Children.”

I honestly don’t understand why Jonathan Taylor Thomas is playing Huck Finn in this version. Seems to me that someone was too lazy to find a picture of Brad Renfro. Will laziness prevail? Or will Media Consumed continue down the path of domination and win its second straight Pun War Title? Find out in the coming weeks as our battle continues.

Media Consumed, Day 27: 05/05/10

Fri, 07 May 2010 01:09:58 -0700

Community, Season 1, Episode 23 “Modern Warfare”

As good as LOST’s episode was last night, I honestly don’t think it held a candle to this comparatively inconsequential episode late in the first season of a new NBC sitcom. As predicted from last week’s brilliant teaser, this episode of Community was the best one of the season and will most likely go down as my favorite in the series’ (hopefully long) history.

In this wonderful ode to action films, “Modern Warfare” plays more like a brilliantly conceived short film than an episode of television. We already know the characters, and this story seems so self-contained that I could imagine seeing a longer version of it in a theater. The cinematic aspect of it is certainly aided by the director of this episode, who might come as a surprise to you if you breezed over the opening credits: Justin Lin, the director of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Fast and Furious. Lin brings his action movie sensibilities to this episode in a huge way, paying homage to legendary films but infusing the episode with a sense of style that

There were almost too many references to count in this episode, but that’s why I loved it. I’ve written before about this show’s reliance on pop culture and how that aspect is my favorite part of the series, but here it’s taken to new heights: the entire structure of the episode mirrored that of an action film. Every scene was a mini-masterpiece: Abed as a Terminator-esque figure (complete with slow-mo parkour), the “fake out” ploy by the chess team, a Mexican standoff in the bathroom, the “campfire” sequence where they talk about what they’ll do when it’s all over, the “death” scenes, the Warriors-inspired roller disco battle, the Rambo callback to shooting up the office, and the Ben Pearson Award-winning decision to use Senor Chang as a Chow Yun-Fat stand-in during a sequence that would have made John Woo proud.

I loved literally everything about this episode. The writing was incredibly solid, especially the way Jeff and Britta’s relationship was handled. Their sexual tension (as pointed out by the group) was at its height here, piggybacking off of last week’s episode and building toward that scene in the library where they finally act on their feelings for each other. But it’s not that simple - wisely, the writers decided to play with our heads a bit instead of presenting the situation plainly. Like the characters themselves, we’re unsure how much was real and how much was done for show, as a means to an end to win the prize. The constant double-crosses, including my favorite line from Jeff (“No bullets! What do you think, I’m stupid, Hans?”) and some playfully friendly feminist dialogue from Britta (keeping perfectly in her character). And at the end, we didn’t know if anything really changed between them, but as Abed noticed - and the audience sees the show through Abed’s eyes - something has definitely changed.

As if I weren’t heaping enough praise on this episode - get off me, Community deserves an Emmy for Best New Comedy Ever after a nearly-flawless first season so far - I’ll run through some of my favorite highlights.

Jeff pulling a Die Hard, from the white wife beater to the duct-taped gun on his back that I knew would be there.
The maniacal laughs of the Dean and Senor Chang in the office transitioning into “so what are your interests?”
Pierce’s man thong gag - cheap, but funny.
The acting from every member of the cast, who were all at the top of their respective games.
The look of those paintball guns. I really want to play paintball now.
Jeff’s slow motion dive out of the library when the paint bomb goes off.

Television comedy and action film references don’t mix any better than this.

Media Consumed, Day 26: 05/04/10

Wed, 05 May 2010 00:52:20 -0700

LOST, Season Six, Episode 14 “The Candidate”

Ho. Lee. Crap.

You know how some of the episodes this season have been kind of maneuvering characters around, not much happens, and it seems like they’re waiting for some bigger play down the road? This is not one of those episodes.

[If you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’re A) caught up with the show and already know the spoilers I’m about to reveal OR B) don’t care about the show at all, are reading anyway, and don’t mind reading the MAJOR spoilers I’m about to reveal.]

Jin and freaking Sun. How tragic was that? As soon as the guys moved that first metal locker off of Sun and we saw that she was still trapped, I started shaking my head; I knew if one of the Kwon’s was going down, then both were. After their triumphant reunion a few episodes back, and Sun returning his ring early in this episode, I should have seen this coming - but it blindsided me. Great, great television. What’s going to happen to their daughter? I’m banking on Kate raising her.

One thing I DID see coming was the old bait and switch with SmokeLocke and the backpack. They showed a cutaway to Locke holding the backpacks, and right then you could predict how the whole rest of the episode would play out (with the exception of the Kwon’s deaths, of course). And what about Frank? Did he survive that sub door blasting off into his chest? Is he going to make a dramatic appearance and somehow save the day a couple episodes from now? I’ll say yes, considering that his “death” wasn’t explicitly shown. I realize Lapidus is a minor character, but he at least deserves a close up if he dies. He’ll be back. And I had already almost forgotten about Sayid’s sacrifice - turns out he wasn’t completely consumed by the darkness after all. This bodes well for Claire, who I’m guessing might eventually come out of Crazy Town and return to Aaron by the end of the series. But freakin’ A, Sawyer - listen to Jack and none of that would have happened!

The Flash Sideways story was on point tonight, also. Jack’s obsession with fixing everything returns in full force, with the good doctor deeming Locke a candidate for a new spinal surgery he’s cooked up. Anthony Cooper isn’t looking so hot these days thanks to an (irony anybody?) plane crash, and since Locke was the pilot, Locke refuses Jack’s help so he can wallow in guilt over what he did to his father. And Jack’s line, “I wish you would have believed me,” was a perfect callback to Locke’s suicide letter to Jack seen back in Season 5’s “316.”

My favorite part of the Flash Sideways was Jack and Claire’s meeting at the hospital. The newfound brother and sister discover that (shocker) they were both on Oceanic 815, and Claire shows Jack a music box that Christian left her in his will. The box plays “Catch a Falling Star,” the song she sang to Aaron on the island all those years ago, and has a mirror built into it, allowing a great shot of the siblings looking at their reflections and keeping that trend going throughout this season. We’ve seen it many times before - Jack in the reflection at that tower where he saw his childhood home, Sawyer (as a cop) in his hotel room, etc. - and it represents the characters catching a brief glimpse into their parallel lives. I’m completely fascinated with how Lindelof and Cuse are going to end this particular timeline, especially now that there are more living cast members in the Sideways than in the On-Island timeline.

The death toll has really kicked up in the last few episodes, with Ilana’s exploding act and now the death of Widmore’s Chubby Employee, Jin, Sun, Sayid, and possibly Frank. It was also cool to see Bernard again, if only briefly, but I missed Ben, Desmond, and Faraday. Obviously we’re going to see them all again soon, so I’m not too distraught.

If you were complaining about this season being slow, then this episode was your remedy. We’re getting close to the end, and I can’t wait to see what happens. I’m willing to bet, though, that whatever happens, happens. (Heh. Little LOST humor for ya there.)

Glee, Season One, Episode 17 “Bad Reputation”

“Total Eclipse of the Heart” was the only redeeming quality about this episode. Other than that, I thought it was pretty worthless. I hate to be so dismissive, but seriously: Ice Ice Baby? Can’t Touch This? ”Glists”? Olivia Newton-John? What the hell?