Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip: Season 1, Episode 7 – “Nevada Day, Part 1”

studio 60 nevada day

Originally written on November 08, 2006.

With declining ratings, there is much talk of Studio 60 being canceled.  Being the best show on television right now, I for one hope it isn’t so.  Before I get into this week’s episode I am going to rant for 446 words.

The Rant:

In the article I just linked to and all across the internet there is quite a bit of heated discussion about this show and Aaron Sorkin in general.  As is typical for internet discussion the talk quickly turns nasty and we get a fine bit of banter consisting of “this show is too smart for the stupid, slovenly masses” and “Actually I’m a genius and this show has terrible writing.”

All of this has made me ponder why I like the show so much, and as my captive audience, you get to follow me through it.

I’ve always dug behind-the-scenes looks at whatever and especially dig behind-the-scenes looks at movies.  I’ve never seen a movie about making movies I didn’t like, and it is fascinating to me to watch these guys struggle to make TV every week.

The fact is I haven’t watched Saturday Night Live in years, but I don’t care.  This show isn’t SNL.  It isn’t even a behind-the-scenes look at SNL.  It’s fiction.  The argument that SNL isn’t relative anymore doesn’t make sense to me.  This isn’t a show about how awesome sketch comedy is, it’s about making a sketch comedy show.  Are the characters passionate about making their show?  Certainly, but why is this a negative?  Should they just throw the slop together?  In its prime SNL was top-notch comedy, and you can bet it took a lot of work to make it.  That’s what these guys are trying to do.

I also love the ensemble and that we get to follow multiple storylines.  If the show lasts, this will make for better TV as we have so many characters’ lives to take part in.  Though the show is taking hits for taking shots at Christianity I find that it is carrying on some of the most thoughtful debate on religion in the media.  Harriet is the kind of Christian that I find in real life, not the ones you see on TV.   She’s not Catholic nor the die-hard fundamentalist that runs from everything liberal.  She’s a normal sort of person trying to live her life right but is still kind to those who don’t believe.

Sure, the non-Christians get the better lines, but there is a real dialogue going on which is more than you can say for most outlets.

I like the writing, I like the dialogue, I like the actors.  Geez, I even like Matthew Perry and he’s usually as annoying as crap.  I don’t care if others don’t like it or think the dialogue is crap.  I’m not better than them.  But I do hope enough people watch to keep the show going.

The plot:  This is the first part of a two-parter which will conclude next week.  It was also an experimental episode chronologically, meaning that the opening scene actually takes place at the end of this episode and most likely in the middle of the action of the two parts.  From the opener, the rest of the episode jumps around in time explaining the peculiar events that we see as the show opens.

The peculiar event is Tom (who is dressed as Jesus) who has been arrested and put into a Pahrump, Nevada jail.  There to rescue him are Simon (who is there because Tom was wearing his jacket, which contained a marijuana joint), Danny, an NBS lawyer, Jack, and two unknown Chinese people.

Tom is dressed as Jesus because he was rehearsing for a skit when the LA police arrested him.  He was arrested because he assaulted a gay man.  He assaulted a gay man because the man and his buddies were harassing Harriet.  They were harassing Harriet because she was quoted in a tabloid as having said that the Bible condemns homosexuality.  She was actually misquoted and her real speech spoke more towards tolerance than condemnation.  He is in a Nevada jail because there was a warrant out for his arrest.  He has a warrant against him because he got a speeding ticket there and never showed up to pay it.

Jack is at the jail because the older Chinese man (who could be responsible for a very lucrative NBC deal) is there.  He is there because his daughter (and translator) is there.  She is there because she wanted to meet Tom, and was willing to take a detour from her flight to New York.  And Tom is there because…well you know why Tom is there.
The review:  ***1/2

Another very good episode.  The whole Pulp Fiction time blender was both interesting and annoying.  Interesting because it is fun to see the weird ending and see how they got there piecemeal.  It is annoying for basically the same reason.  That maneuver kind of ruins the impact of the events.  When the dog finds the pot in the jacket, we already know there is pot in the jacket and that the cops will find it.  We only don’t know how they find it, but when they do it isn’t a surprise, and thus not emotionally impacting.  This type of thing has also been done plenty of times before, but every time it is done they act like it is innovative.

It isn’t.   Stop doing it.  Show the events in order.  It’s better that way.

Otherwise, I liked it.  I really do like the Harriet character.  I really do like that everyone mocks her beliefs but she hangs tight with them.

I still say the skits are funny.  Everybody else disagrees.  But Jesus as the head of Standards and Practices is funny.  The skit a few episodes ago with Simon in the rain was funny.  Sure, not all of them are killer (at least what we are allowed to see) and Harriet isn’t brilliant with impressions, but what I’ve seen here is much funnier than the last skits I saw from SNL.

Oh, and I loved John Goodman as the judge.

Best Lines:

Harriet: I said the Bible says it’s a sin. It also says judge not lest ye be judged, and that it was something for smarter people than me to decide.
Matt: “Ye” is a word you don’t hear a lot.
Harriet: I manage to see every piece of my press.
Matt: We have a press department, I get a daily press packet. They highlight what they want me to see – this one has a highlight, an arrow, and a sticker!
Harriet: Well, as I said, they left out the second sentence.
Matt: Yeah, can I ask you something? Does your ass hurt from straddling the fence like that all the time?

Matt: It’s one thing to be asked to respect someone else’s religion, it’s another to be asked to respect their taboos. In my religion, it’s disrespectful to God not to keep your head covered. You don’t see me insisting that the cast of CSI: Miami wear yarmulkes.
Danny: That’d be an unusual creative direction for CSI: Miami

Matt: You don’t like kids and dogs?
Jordan: Yeah. Or orphans. Why? Is that bad?
Matt: Half the shows in prime time start with two strippers getting strangled after a lap dance, and that’s fine with me but if it’s also fine with Jesus then I don’t see the need to tiptoe around his name

The Simpsons: Season 18, Episode 4 – “Treehouse of Horror XVII

treehouse of horror

Opener: Point of View Camera wanders, and stumbles, through a haunted house, ending upon an opened coffin that lets loose a pile of animals finally revealing Mr. Burns as the “Master of Scare-a-Monies” which Smithers finds hilarious, but Moe rejects before he is killed by an iron maiden. His blood then spells out “Treehouse of Horror XVII.” For which Moe asks us to look at “my genius blood with the fancy Roman numerals and everything.”

Story I: “Married to the Blob”

Plot: A comet lands in the Simpson’s backyard and Homer immediately eats the oozing goo coming out of it. This gives him an insatiable appetite (even bigger than his normal one) and he begins eating anything and everything including the Simpson’s cat, local teenagers, and Dr. Phil. When Marge scolds him, they decide he needs to do something for the greater good, which turns out to be eating all of the homeless people.

Parody Song: “Baby Likes Fat” to the tune of the Sir Mix-A lot’s “Baby Got Back”

Best Lines:

  • Homer when the comet goo begins oozing out of his orifices, “If I can keep down Arby’s, I can keep this down.”
  • Marge scolding Homer for trying to eat Bart, “You won’t eat my stuffed peppers, but you’ll eat our son.”

Review: The Dr. Phil gag as well as the parody song were cute, but barely got more than a grin out of me. Homer growing fat has been done, so him growing grotesquely fat just isn’t that funny.

Story II: “You Got to Know When to Golem”

Plot: Bart discovers the Golem in Krusty’s prop room and promptly steals him to do his petty bidding (beating up the bullies, kicking Homer in the balls, and killing Principal Skinner.) Lisa orders the Golem to speak, believing that it despises doing such horrible things and as it turns out, he does (and also makes lots of bad Jewish jokes.) Marge makes a Play-Doh girl golem and the two marry.

Best Lines:

  • Groundskeeper Willie to a cut-in-half Skinner, “You’ll make better mulch than you made a man.”

Review: Weak, weak, weak. The Golem story is a great one and had comedy potential, but making it do Bart’s bidding was just blah.

Story III: “The Day the Earth Looked Stupid”

Plot: A parody of the hysteria following Orson Welles’s reading of “War of the Worlds” with Springfield getting the hysteria and then being attacked for real by Kang and Kodos. The ending mocked the war in Iraq. Unhilarity ensued.

Best lines:

  • Big Band Stu, instead of Disco Stu (since the scene takes place in the 1940s)
  • Homer after the rioting “I’m proud of what I achieved during my rioting. It was either kill him or kill no one.”
  • Radio announcer during “War of the Worlds,” “Astronomers say the ominous capsule originated from Earth’s closest neighbors.” Homer: “Flanders?”

Review: Parodies of this have been done. And that much better. Big Band Stu was the best line of the night, which isn’t saying much.

Episode Review: I’m a big fan of the Halloween episodes, but like the series they have suffered over the last few years. With three segments per episode all of the gags have to be dead on, and that’s got to be tough to do with a horror theme for 17 years straight. This one was especially disappointing since this season has turned out to be a refreshingly funny one. On top of that, the long break between new episodes had me salivating for tonight. Oh well, there is always next week.

Time Zone Blues

Originally written on November 03, 2006.

I grew up in Oklahoma, which is in the Central Time Zone.  It is an odd time zone, TV-wise in that the prime time programs begin at 7 in the PM, instead of 8.  As a child growing up, this was a particularly marvelous thing as it allowed me to see many programs that I would have never seen living in the Eastern Zone where Prime Time starts at 8.

As a youngster, my bedtime for many years was 9 o’clock.  However, Mother would allow us to stay up until ten one night a week.  Normally this night was reserved for Remington Steele, but I can remember many a long internal debate during special events such as the Olympics or the Grammy Awards when I would have to decide as to what to stay up for.

Many’s the time I thanked my God for letting me live in the only sensible time zone that allowed me to catch my favorite programs, and even one special show a week, instead of those other awful zones keeping people up until 11 for their prime time viewing.   What would I do, I thought to myself, if I lived in South Carolina or New York City and was not allowed to see such amazing detective comedies?

Post college I have lived almost solely in the Eastern Time Zone and have come to dearly love it.  Really, seven is way too early to start a television regiment, and being a big boy I don’t mind staying up late to finish up the good programming.

This week I am visiting my parents in Oklahoma and am back to the old Central Time Zone.  Not staying long enough to move my watch back an hour I am perpetually thinking I’m late, or that it is later in the day than it actually is.  This is not always a horrid thing as I have been helping my father with some work.  He starts his day at a quarter to seven and eats his lunch at the ungodly hour of 11 AM.  But to my glorious Eastern brain, that’s a quarter to 8 and the much more mundane luncheon time of straight up noon.

Ah, but here’s the rub.  Tonight I sat with great anticipation for My Name is Earl and the best comedy on TV otherwise known as The Office, while catching a rerun of The Daily Show and the Colbert Report.  Tick Tock Tick Tock, I waited and waited through the political jokes and barbs.  At 7:45 I began searching through the channel guide looking for NBC and thus the correct channel for my television fix.

Ahhhhhhh!  The Office is already halfway through!  How can this be?

Damn you Central Time Zone and you’re early prime time arrangements.  Of course, my show was nearly over as The Office starts at 7:30 in Oklahoma instead of 8:30 like the rest of the bloody world.

I knew there was some reason I moved and have never came back.

Lost: Season Three, Episode Five – “The Cost of Living”

lost the cost of living The Revelations:

  • Desmond understands that the Pearl station can be used to communicate with the Others
  • It was Ben’s spinal x-ray in the previous episode
  • The whole purpose of capturing Jack was so that he would operate on Ben
  • Mr. Eko is one bad mother, until he dies.

The Plot: Mr. Eko awakens from his coma to find his dead priest of a brother telling him to confess. He rushes through the jungle to find him, or rather the body in the plane, only to find it empty. He is looked upon by the big black smoke but it runs away when Eko flashes his knife. At least for a moment. Eko eventually catches up to his spirit brother only to say that he will not confess. He feels everything he has done has been for a purpose and he does not feel guilty.

The big black smoke appears again, and beats the living crap out of Eko, eventually killing him. While doing so the smoke appears kind of like a big animal which leads to questions about the smoke possibly having formed into Eko’s brother and perhaps other mysterious animals on the island.

Meanwhile, The Others are playing nice to Jack, but Jack isn’t quite ready to accept them as pals. It starts with a stroll with Ben to Colleen’s funeral and ends with Ben admitting that Jack’s capture was all a ruse to get him on their side so that he would be willing to operate on his spinal tumor.

Later Juliet talks with Jack asking him to please do the operation all the while a video tape plays with her holding up signs reading her displeasure with Ben and that Jack should operate, but only to kill him.

The Flashback: Keeping with the Eko-centricity of the episode, the flashback gave further details of Eko’s past. Mainly Eko involves himself in terrible deeds to help his brother and feeling no remorse for it.

The Rating: ***1/2
The flashbacks, though important to understanding Mr. Eko, were kind of boring. Watching him kill the gangsters in the church was cool, but overall the back story was way too long and only served to say that Eko isn’t sorry for the life he has lived.

The long trek to Pearl was also dull. However, the second half of the show really kicked into high gear. Who the crap is the guy with the patch? Are all the mysterious things we’ve seen thus far really the big black smoke in disguise? Will Jack make friendly with Ben and save him? Or will he hook up with Juliet and kill? Or is the whole murder plot just another Other misdirect? Very cool stuff and super exciting.

House: Season Three, Episode Five – “Fools for Love”

house fools for love

Originally written on November 1, 2006.

The Lead In:  A young, mixed race, married couple are finishing up dinner in a diner when the diner is robbed.  Playing the hero, the young man attacks the robbers and wins only to find his wife lying on the floor unable to breathe.

The Plot:  Thinking the wife, Tracy (Jurnee Smolett) could be having an infection that only shows up when she is active; Foreman puts her on the treadmill.  Even though she complains of abdominal pains, and the husband, Bobby (Scott Rinker) screams, Foreman makes her continue running.  Soon the husband has similar pains and, as it turns out, has the same illness.

Tracy later has a hallucination that Bobby’s pill-popping racist father is in the hospital telling her to leave Bobby alone, and for Bobby to not touch the girl as he begins to break his arm.  From the hallucination, she goes into a coma.

The team eventually decides that they need to do a biopsy of Tracy’s brain stem, but they need Bobby’s permission to do so.  There is much discussion of the ethics behind this, because Bobby may grant permission to do so simply because it could help cure him.  It is decided that Wilson may do the asking as he has a way with people.  Bobby refuses the biopsy, afraid of the risks, and decides that they should do it on him.  The problem is that he does not yet have those symptoms and would have to go off meds to do so.

A biopsy isn’t needed as Bobby’s intestines begin to rot and a new diagnosis is given.  It turns out that the two lovers are related and Bobby’s dad isn’t so racist after all.  In fact, he is Tracy’s father as well and the illness is related to the incest.

Oooh.

The subplot:  On one of his clinic stints, House ticks off a patient (David Morse) who calls House on his perpetual rudeness.  In retribution, House gives the patient a rectal thermometer and leaves work before it is extracted.

The patient raises crap with Cuddy who tries to make House apologize.  House refuses and ticks the patient off even more.  Turns out the patient is actually Detective Tritter who nails House for speeding at the end of the episode.  Well, speeding and drug possession, for carrying his pills without a prescription.  The episode ends with House being arrested.

The Subplot Part II:  House notices Wilson chatting up a pretty nurse and automatically suspects they are dating.  This irritates House because a) House is alarmed that Wilson will screw up another relationship or b) House fears Wilson will wind up in a happy relationship and not need him anymore.

Much betting goes on between House and Foreman as to the actual nature between Wilson and the nurse until it is disclosed that it is Foreman who is dating the woman.

The rating:  ***
This episode seemed a little off to me.  The actual patients seemed to take a bigger back seat to the internal bickering and subplots.  The incest conclusion seemed more tabloid than usually allowed on the show, and in the end, I didn’t particularly care about the patients at all.

The whole Detective Tritter arrests House plot should prove very interesting though.

The excuse:  I watched the episode after having driven some 600 miles to my parent’s house.  Watching with them is an interesting experience as they tend to talk loudly through the proceedings.  That and the exhaustion made my viewing experience a little lax and most assuredly has an effect on this review.

A Day in the Life of a Cat

Originally written on October 29, 2006.

We live on the second floor of an apartment building. We have a small porch on the back side of the apartment that overlooks a lovely forest area. It is a beautiful little thing and we have made use of it with flowers, herbs, and other assorted greenery. Also, there are two birdfeeders hanging down which are kept full and can generally be seen with various birds enjoying a free meal.

It has also become a favorite spot for our cat, Thumbelina. Generally, she and the birds get along as the birds immediately flee when the door is open, and the cat doesn’t spend her entire day outside to allow some good bird feeding. Once or twice the two have met and Thumbelina has landed herself some prey. This is something that the wife abhors, but I understand is the nature of the beasts and all.

Today, being a fine, beautiful October day, I opened the back door and allowed the cat to enjoy the sun as well. She loves it when the door is kept open as that allows her the freedom of to-and-fro. I enjoy it as well for it allows me to not have to continually open and close the door for a finicky cat.

Moments ago I found the cat inside chasing what I thought was one of her many playthings under the couch. It wasn’t long, however, when I realized that this plaything, might not be a toy after all. For one thing, the cat was completely engrossed in getting this thing out from under the couch – normally when her toys become unreachable she simply gets bored and moves on. For another, I heard a chirping noise and none of her toys chirp. As you might have surmised, it was a bird.

I quickly tore the cat away from the couch and shuffled her into the bedroom, door closed. I then carefully began moving the cushions away from the couch and then pushed it away from the wall. Finding no bird, I wondered if I wasn’t a bit mad, but continued turning the couch over.

Sure enough, a little bird flew out and banged its head against the window. Poor thing desperately wanted to escape but wasn’t clever enough to recognize a piece of glass (and believe me this isn’t a crystal clear window like in the commercials.)

I opened the doors to give it an escape route and donned a pair of gloves as to not get scratched or bitten. I then tried to grab the bird to throw it outside.

Whoosh, it went, grazing my hair and banging into the far wall where it quickly slid down into the relative safety behind the bookshelf. After removing many books I finally made my way to an opening where I could reach the bird. Unfortunately, the cranny was too small and all I could do was move my fingers menacingly at it in hopes it would change position.

It did and flew to another bookcase, this time landing in front. It was obviously frightened and pushed itself frantically at the books hoping to find another haven.

Finally, I was able to grab it and let it loose outside. It moved like it was hurt in some way, but it was definitely able to fly so I figured it had a decent chance of surviving on its own. The cat was then unleashed and has spent the rest of today desperately looking for its capture.

Random Shuffle (10/25/06) – Robert Earl Keen, Johnny Cash, The Band, Morrissey, & Bruce Springsteen

“Then Came Lo Mein” – Robert Earl Keen
From Picnic

I first discovered Robert Earl Keen through some friends of mine. I think I attended a concert before I’d ever listened to an album. It was a great concert and as I soon discovered, very typical Robert Earl Keen. That is to say full of great subversive country music, raucous and bawdy jokes, and the biggest throwdown of the year.

This is a great song and a great showcase of his songwriting skills. It is a love song with bad jokes and a heart full of something meaningful. It throws together lines like “I was steamed I was fried/But you stood by my life/When I had my nervous breakdown” to make a pun about the Chinese restraint they are in and make an acute observation about the power of relationships.

The music is a soft, rolling thing made into a beautiful duet with Margo Timmins.

Keen is never going to find his way to the top of the charts nor be decried as the next Dylan. His music is like a pot of warm stew in February. It is hearty, filling, and sometimes all you need, but it won’t ever flash or glitter and get your attention like Crème Brûlée. But sometimes all you need is a solid songwriter to get you through the long winters.

“Wayfaring Stranger” – Johnny Cash
From American III

I think there are few songs that I love deep down in my soul like “Wayfaring Stranger.” I’m generally not one for religious lyrics in pop tunes, but this one hits me in a way few things can. I think it is the notion of being a traveler, not bound for one land for long that appeals to me most. I’ve spent most of my life moving about so I know the feeling of being a stranger, yet also understand the joy of coming home.

I don’t spend much time writing about my own spiritual beliefs, but the idea of leaving the harsh realities of this world and crossing over Jordan to that heavenly home sounds somehow comforting.

And when you get Johnny Cash to sing it, well, I think I’m already over that river and headed towards home. I love that Cash makes the recording sparse, just a fiddle, some light strumming guitar, and that Voice. Johnny Cash had the voice of God.

If I get to choose the songs for my funeral, this one is going in.

“Ophelia” – The Band
From Last Waltz

Truth is I’m not much of a fan of The Band. So much praise has been lauded on Music From the Big Pink, but I mainly find it a bore. I love “The Weight” and I think that love ruins the album for me. While it has this great acoustical instrumentation, great lyrics and some perfect harmonies, the rest of the album sounds way too slow and the vocals are just one long whine. I’ve tried many times to relisten to it and find can see what all the praise is about, but it always comes up short.

I’d pretty much given up on the band, in fact, until I watched The Last Waltz on television a while back. This is the Band I’d dreamed about. Great music, great performances, and a group worthy to be the most famous incarnation of Dylan’s backup band.

It wasn’t just the assortment of all-stars, including Dylan, joining them for this last dance. The Band cooked like fried rice. These guys were obviously having fun and holding their own with some of the great artists in music.

“Ophelia” is just the Band, no celebrity filler and it still kills. This is the type of music that floats in my head most of the time. A big band with blazing guitars, thumping bass, keys, and horns all meshed together in a brilliant ménage a groovitude.

“Certain People I Know” – Morrissey
From Your Arsenal

Morrissey, with or without the Smiths, is a musician I’ve pretended to love for many years. It’s not that I don’t enjoy his music, because I certainly do, but rather that I’m just not terribly familiar with it. Not enough for the amount of name-checking I’ve done with him anyway.

The Smiths are one of those bands like the Sex Pistols or the Clash that give extra cool points to those who profess their love for them. I admit I have used them all to gain an edge on new friends or to feel a little more special to an extra special girl.

Morrissey is the only one I actually really dug a record from (I’ve never managed to really get the Sex Pistols and only have recently found the joys of the Clash). Your Arsenal is the record of choice as it came about during my finer years and in the midst of the whole alternative is a huge ordeal in the early 90s.

A recent run to the local library has yielded a bustle full of new Morrissey records and I am in the midst of a rebirth in his music. This one is an oldie and one I’ve enjoyed for many years. Not exactly typical as it has a more rockabilly feel than most of his work, but still a good one.

Maybe now I can whisper to my wife how awesome I think the man is, and really mean it.

“Buffalo Gals” – Bruce Springsteen
From We Shall Overcome

I’ve mentioned before that I’m not much for Bruce Springsteen. I can see he is a good writer and performer, but he’s always seemed just a tad too earnest for my tastes. Whenever I listen to Springsteen or hear the devotion from his legion of fans, I get a little nervous. It’s a bit like having die-hard Jesus freaks over for dinner. I get what they are saying, but they’re just a little too into it to make me feel comfortable.

At least I did feel this until I heard his Pete Seeger tribute. Man that album rules. “Buffalo Gals” is probably my favorite tune in the bunch. There is such joy in this music. It’s a group of outstanding players playing their hearts out and having fun at it. It’s the fun part that wins me over. This is Springsteen finally tossing out the fire and brimstone and enjoying himself.

This is a hoe down of a song, a real barn burner. It makes me wish I could play an instrument or have some rhythm to dance to it. It makes me glad to be alive. It makes me happy. And if that ain’t the point of it all, then we might as well all give up now and go home.

Lost: Season Three, Episode Four – “Every Man For Himself”

islands.jpg

New Revelations:

  • Desmond sees the future
  • Sawyer did time in prison
  • Jack, Kate, and Sawyer are on a second, smaller island

Plot:

Desmond is the new Locke.

At the beginning of the episode, we see him approach Claire and tell her that she needs to move while he fixes her roof. Claire and Charlie look at the roof but see no problems with it. Desmond then borrows a golf club from a character we haven’t seen before and creates a big giant pole with it. The club is at the top and has an electrical wire attached to it, stretching to the sand below.

Towards the end of the episode, Hurley and Desmond are talking, and Desmond asks Hurley to step back just as the storm hits. Claire, Charlie, and the baby are soaked under the roof and a bolt of lightning strikes the golf club, causing damage to itself but no one else.

I say again, Desmond is the new Locke.

The second island is the new hatch. Each season there is a single mystery that captures our attention for the duration. Last season it was the hatch and those numbers, this season it will be the second island.

In captivity we see the Others dragging a very injured Colleen past Sawyer and Kate. Sawyer uses this distraction to plan a means of escape. He uses his oddball food distributor to create a puddle of water outside the cage, hoping someone will step in it allowing him to use the electrocution device to knock out an Other and him to escape.

Ben, having watched this plan on the video, comes to Sawyer, and allows him to try the plan, but the electrocution has been turned off. Ben then beats Sawyer and drags him away. Inside several Others strap Sawyer down and stab a needle into his heart.

When Sawyer awakens Ben shakes a rabbit to the point of death. He tells Sawyer that the rabbit had the same heart injections, which stops the heart beating when it gets too excited. Sawyer now has a heart monitor and is told that if his rate goes above 140 he will die. It is also threatened that if Sawyer tells Kate about any of it, she will be given the same treatment.

Meanwhile, Juliet asks Jack (who is forced now to watch cartoons) to help Colleen, as she is dying. Jack tries to heal her, but she is too far gone, and without a defibrillator, he can do nothing but watch her die.

This displeases Colleen’s husband, Pickett, who rushes outside and beats Sawyer to a pulp. He repeatedly asks Kate if she loves Sawyer and only stops the beating when she admits she does.

Inside Jack is handcuffed to the table holding the dead Colleen until Juliet frees him. While there, Jack asks about the X-rays he saw on his way in. It appears this person’s spine has a large cancer on it, and Jack asks who it is he is supposed to save. (In next week’s preview, it appears it will be Ben.)

Outside, Kate learns that she can escape her cage by climbing through the bars at the top. She does so against Sawyer’s wishes and then attempts to free Sawyer. He begs her not to and tells her to run. They argue over Kate’s “love” while Sawyer continues to refuse to tell her what happened to him. In the end, Kate climbs back into the cage.

Later, Ben takes Sawyer to the top of a mountain where he explains to Sawyer that the heart problem was a lie conceived to make Sawyer obedient. He then takes Sawyer to the top of the mountain and shows him another island. That island is the one where all the survivors are, while he is being held on this smaller “Alcatraz.”

The flashback sequence consisted of Sawyer being in prison for one of his cons. While there a woman shows up claiming she has had Sawyer’s child. Sawyer feigns disinterest but later proves he has a heart.

Sawyer also learns another convict has ten million dollars stashed away. Sawyer earns this man’s trust enough to learn where the money is and then uses this information to buy his way out of prison. By telling the feds where it is, they release him early and apparently give him part of it in return. This money he has deposited into a band for his daughter.

Rating: ****

The Sawyer heart injection was one of the most intense moments of the series. This season they’ve been making the Others out to be decent, if terribly mysterious folks, and this moment put them right back to total evil territory.

I was quite relieved when it turned out to be fake as I was already tired of the monitor. It was a good gag to have the warning beep go off when Kate was changing clothes, but then to have the monitor register the same amount when Sawyer was getting beaten was ludicrous. I began to fear they would be using this device continuously throughout the series, and I knew that would be quite irritating.

Desmond becoming some sort of mystic psychic is quite interesting. I hope it doesn’t diminish Locke’s role as the same, but his character could prove to be quite fascinating.

Jack starting to help the Others as the doctor could go either way for me. It kind of ticked me off at first, because I felt that Jack would be so pissed off at them by now that he’d use it as a bargaining chip. But the doctor in him seems to be winning, and perhaps he is beginning to feel no other choice but to cooperate. We’ll see how it goes in the upcoming weeks.

I was reminded during the preview that they have actually only been on the island for two months. Being the third year for viewers it is easy to forget the actual timeline is much shorter, making the situation slightly less desperate.

Overall I am still growing tired of the constant tension and begin to wish there was a conclusion coming. However, the show still has me hooked and the tension sure is exciting.

Brewster’s Halloween Bash

DSC06497Originally written on October 26, 2006.

As a middle-aged couple with no children, it often becomes difficult for me and my wife to take part in the childish things we love. My wife and I have a collection of children’s books – from Dr. Seuss to Roal Dahl – but no one to read them to. We have children’s films – from Bugs Bunny to Toy Story – but no one to watch them with. We fly kites every May and carve pumpkins every October.

For Halloween, we throw a big adult party to disguise our love for such a children’s game.

We’ve made it a big annual affair filled with food, music, big prizes, and lots of gooey pumpkin mess.

Each year the affair has gotten bigger and bigger. Originally, it consisted of a few friends and some snacks and has now ballooned to a house full of guests, a democratic voting on the best pumpkin complete with generous prizes, and more food than anyone could possibly eat.

This year my wife went all out in the food department. We had sautéed chicken with peanut sauce, home-made spinach artichoke dip, an enormous cheese plate with a variety of French and Italian breads upon which to place them, strawberries with a chocolate fondue, some kind of fancy cheese bread with a bit of prosciutto melted into it. To top it off we served pumpkin spiced cheesecake with apple cider for dessert.

It was delicious.

DSC06491This was the first year I have used an MP3 mix tape for the proceedings. Normally I spend many hours sorting through my music collections making a handful of carefully selected CDs to spin during the party.

You see I am an old-style lover of the mix-tape. A great mix is a piece of art. The flow of songs from Track 1 Side A through the end of the tape is something to be chosen wisely, the music should make a statement and be a true expression of the tape maker. Frankly, this year I just didn’t have the time to make the proper mixes and threw a large stew of my favorite MP3s onto one disk and hit Shuffle.

The guests arrived and we began enjoying the bountiful feast my wife had prepared. Being a graduate student in French Linguistics my wife’s friends tend to be an international lot, and this year was no exception. We had guests from China, Korea, and Russia with us which made for a lovely mix of culture and ideas.

Coming from a family that makes any game, no matter how trivial into a full-fledged contact sport I laid down many a taunt over my supremacy in to pumpkin carving field. The boasting was made doubly so as I had one last year’s contest.

As what usually happens when I becomDSC06487e boastful, I screwed my pumpkin up royally. I had planned on being experimental this year and chose a two-sided pumpkin carving. The idea was to carve a ghastly skeletal ghoul on one side and his sickle on the other. This way, when fully lit and placed near a wall, the sickle would create an ominous shadow.

A prize winner for sure, in theory, but in practice it was too difficult. I accidentally cut too far into the face, destroying my skeletons eyes and right ear.

Disgruntled and cursing I took a peak at the rest of the gang. Our Asian friends, having never carved before, were creating a simple triangle-eyed face. While on the other side of the spectrum, Daniel made a winking devil creature with his battery-powered, electrified pumpkin jig-saw!

With a half-pumpkin disaster, I had to start over on the other side and this time chose something simple – a young man looking into a mirror only to see a horrid reflection. As everyone was already finishing up, I rushed myself and once again screwed up. It looked more like a poorly designed ghost instead of an eerie mirror face.

DSC06492We took our pumpkins outside and placed them on the deck railing. Candles lit they created an eerie picture lighting the crisp night air.

Votes were tallied and our new friend Bryana, from Kansas, won with a giant spider.

Dessert was served, and pictures were made as everyone shuffled out to their homes. Well almost everybody, a few stragglers stayed for a few Simpson Halloween specials before I warned them off with a dozen yawns.

Around midnight my wife and I shuffled off to bed. A kitchen full of pumpkin guts, dirty dishes piled high, a contest lost, and dreams of next year’s bigger bash on my mind.

Concert Review: Tea Leaf Green – Bloomington, IN (10/19/06)

I should have known better than to attend a concert while still recovering from a rather rotten head cold.  “But it’s Tea Leaf Green,” my wife pleaded, and “we haven’t been out in so long.”  And so there we went out in the cold and the rain, sniffling, sneezing and all.

To tell the truth, it was a bit odd to hear my wife excited to see Tea Leaf Green as she wasn’t at all familiar with the band’s material.  Me either except for their recent DVD release, Rock N Roll Band of which I had recently played numerous times and reviewed right here.  But she had enjoyed what she had heard, and the idea of going to a concert always has its appeal.

We showed up early, nearly half an hour, as it was general admission and we wanted to get a seat, instead of standing for the entirety of the performance.  Early wasn’t needed, as the place was nearly empty.

We sat, the two of us looking ragged and full of head germs, and waited.  Nine o’clock came and still there were but a few folks gathered about.  We pondered the meaning of the sign announcing “56 Hope Road” and showing us a cute little deer’s head.   “Could it be a brand of beer?” we pondered.  “Or perhaps it is a new teen show on the WB.”  “I know,” I declared, “It has to be Locke’s home address on Lost.”

As it turned out it was the name of the opening band.  They played for the few folks standing about as if they were at Madison Square Garden in front of a full crowd.  I was duly impressed.  They jammed out every song and had a good thing going, though it was hard to discern more than the electric guitar and drums from the distorted sound quality.

A few more folks came, including a large group of college kids who plumped down right next to us.  I feel like an old man on a rotating record when I complain about the kids today, but dang they sure don’t have any respect for anything.

Though there was a band playing their hearts out right in front of them, and though they had surely paid good money to hear this band, they paid no mind at all to the performance.  Instead, the men applied their attention to the ladies, scooting their chairs right up against them so as to look deeply into their eyes, and entwine legs like a spider.  The ladies meanwhile, retracted their cellular phones from their purses every two minutes as if they were expecting a call for the next world summit.

Meanwhile, some sparkling good music played on.

56 Hope Road played a good hour set and Tea Leaf Green came on around 10:30.  The room had since filled up to about half capacity, but what was there was energized and ready for the headliners.

It is always an interesting thing to attend a concert where you aren’t familiar with most of the band’s work.  There are no songs to sing along to, nor grooves to groove along with knowingly.  It’s all shake it as you can.  We remained seated as our bodies were in no shape to groove anyway.

Seated it was still a darn fine groove thing.  The band plays like a well grooved machine and they know how to work the crowd.  The thing is on the aforementioned DVD it kind of irked me to watch the lead singer, Trevor Garrod, work the crowd like a crazed cross between a Southern Baptist preacher and PT Barnum.  Grabbing the microphone like a dagger he’d swagger and sway with the music while singing his lyrics like the Holy Word.  It irked me because I tend to prefer musicians who approach music with importance and leave the posing to those on TRL.  However, in person, it is quite impressive, and it must be said that young Trevor hits the keys as much as he shakes it for the crowd.

Despite our illnesses, the wife and I both forgot everything and fell into the trance of great music.  I got up into the crowd and swayed and moved like a teenager once again.

The darned kids were still at it with their cell phones and make-out moves.  The two girls seemed to be texting each other back, while another guy somehow managed to talk to whomever, though standing but feet from a fat round of speakers.

Kids today and their rock and roll.

The first set concluded around midnight.  It was a high performance and we’d had a grand time, but old age and illness took hold.  My wife declared that she could barely hold her eyes open any longer, and I knew I wasn’t long for this cognizant world, and so we headed home.

A younger me would have cursed the day I ever left a concert before the last note was played, but the older me has learned when I’ve had enough no matter how killer the show.

I’ll never know what madness occurred in the second set, but having seen the first half I’ll surely catch the band the next time they come around.