Episode 3.10: Tricia Tanaka is Dead (Hurley-centric)
Airdate: February 28, 2007
Happy days are here again when Hurley enlists Sawyer, Jin and Charlie to help him get that metal wreck started. Sawyer, meanwhile, sets a new record for most pop-culture references uttered in a single Lost episode. In addition to a Little House shout-out, the con artist formerly known as James Ford name-drops IHOP, Hooked on Phonics and Skeletor. Rocky III even gets a little plug, but that one Sawyer can't take credit for. I'll tell you that the Feb. 28 episode of Lost also features a touching scene between Hurley and "Libby" and marks the return of a certain four-legged castaway.
Guest starring are Mira Furlan as Danielle Rousseau, Rodrigo Santoro as Paulo, Kiele Sanchez as Nikki, Lillian Hurst as Carmen Reyes, Billy Ray Gallion as Randy, Cheech Marin as David Reyes, Caden Waidyatilleka as young Hurley, Suzanne Krull as Lynn Karnoff and Sung Hi Lee as Tricia Tanaka.
Hurley's discovery of an old, wrecked car on the island leads him on a mission of hope not only for himself, but for a fellow survivor in need of some faith. Meanwhile, Kate and Sawyer reunite with their fellow castaways, but Kate is still torn about leaving Jack behind with "The Others."
Wednesday, February 28
Idol Boys
All in all, the boys were much improved this week. Still nowhere near the excellence of the ladies, but at least the boys stepped it up a little.
Sundance-redeemed himself last night. let's see if he can keep it up. i still love him
Phil-great voice but where's his personality?
Brandon-Cyndi Lauper?
Sanjaya-reminds me too much of a certain pedophile
Blake-i really liked him.
AJ-please let him go home!
Chris R.-judges loved him. me? not so much.
Jared-will make it by on looks.
Nicholas-time to cut him loose
Chris S.-i still really like him but he'll have to work hard for votes cuz he won't get by on looks
Sundance-redeemed himself last night. let's see if he can keep it up. i still love him
Phil-great voice but where's his personality?
Brandon-Cyndi Lauper?
Sanjaya-reminds me too much of a certain pedophile
Blake-i really liked him.
AJ-please let him go home!
Chris R.-judges loved him. me? not so much.
Jared-will make it by on looks.
Nicholas-time to cut him loose
Chris S.-i still really like him but he'll have to work hard for votes cuz he won't get by on looks
Friday, February 23
Thursday, February 22
Networks Criticized.....
Networks Criticized for Lack of Anna Nicole Smith Coverage
CNN: We Dropped the Ball
A media watchdog group today blasted the major news networks for failing to provide enough coverage of Anna Nicole Smith’s death in the 72 hours following the blonde bombshell’s passing.
The media watchdog group, which calls itself The Media Watchdog Group, took the nation’s 24-hour news networks to task for what it called “scant coverage” of the life, death and legacy of Ms. Smith. At a press conference in Washington, Carol Foyler, a spokesperson for the group, hit hard at the all-news networks for giving the Anna Nicole Smith story “short shrift.” “Instead of staying on the Anna Nicole Smith story nonstop, the networks would sometimes cut away to coverage of the war in Iraq for seconds at a time,” Ms. Foyler said. “For a nation struggling with its loss, this was like twisting the knife.”
At CNN headquarters in Atlanta, network president Jon Klein apologized for failing to provide seamless, wall-to-wall coverage of the Smith story, telling reporters, “We dropped the ball.” “I was watching our coverage of Anna Nicole Smith’s death and without warning we cut away for an 8-second story on Darfur,” he said. “I can assure you that that sort of thing will never happen again – not on my watch.” Mr. Klein added that for the foreseeable future, “at least 29 of the 30 video monitors on Wolf Blitzer’s ‘The Situation Room’ will feature Anna Nicole Smith, and the other will have that crazy astronaut chick.”
Elsewhere, Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell vetoed a bill that would have made English the official language of the city, saying that it would have discouraged President Bush from visiting.
CNN: We Dropped the Ball
A media watchdog group today blasted the major news networks for failing to provide enough coverage of Anna Nicole Smith’s death in the 72 hours following the blonde bombshell’s passing.
The media watchdog group, which calls itself The Media Watchdog Group, took the nation’s 24-hour news networks to task for what it called “scant coverage” of the life, death and legacy of Ms. Smith. At a press conference in Washington, Carol Foyler, a spokesperson for the group, hit hard at the all-news networks for giving the Anna Nicole Smith story “short shrift.” “Instead of staying on the Anna Nicole Smith story nonstop, the networks would sometimes cut away to coverage of the war in Iraq for seconds at a time,” Ms. Foyler said. “For a nation struggling with its loss, this was like twisting the knife.”
At CNN headquarters in Atlanta, network president Jon Klein apologized for failing to provide seamless, wall-to-wall coverage of the Smith story, telling reporters, “We dropped the ball.” “I was watching our coverage of Anna Nicole Smith’s death and without warning we cut away for an 8-second story on Darfur,” he said. “I can assure you that that sort of thing will never happen again – not on my watch.” Mr. Klein added that for the foreseeable future, “at least 29 of the 30 video monitors on Wolf Blitzer’s ‘The Situation Room’ will feature Anna Nicole Smith, and the other will have that crazy astronaut chick.”
Elsewhere, Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell vetoed a bill that would have made English the official language of the city, saying that it would have discouraged President Bush from visiting.
Lost 3.09 Recap
Courtesy of EW:
Dear Folks Behind the Lost Spoilers,
Please take it down a notch! I want people to tune in every week, too, but you've got to stop hyping how many Lost Secrets will be revealed in every episode. The writers are doing a fabulous job at unspooling the mystery slowly and subtly, but it feels anticlimactic because I'm preparing to be conked over the head by the latest revelation.
Sincerely,
Hannah Tucker
What I'm trying to say is, this Jack-centric episode wasn't as earth shattering as the commercials promised, but it was damn good. Relationships took baby steps forward (Jack and Juliet) or two big steps back (Sawyer and Kate), and yes, we received some long-awaited answers... which, in true Lost form, raised more questions.
But let's begin hotly debated hottie guest star, Bai Ling. I'll admit it: while writing this TV Watch brings me joy, when it's late and I'm trying to remember things like who the heck Ethan is (scary dude who kidnapped Claire; now deceased) without the requisite amount of caffeine in my system, I can get a little punchy. Sarcastic even. But was Mystery Everywoman Achara not just a teeny tiny bit ridiculous? Some of her lines — ''Stop asking questions, let's just have fun'' — were pretty bad, and the hair was downright inexcusable. How can she see anything, let alone a person's true self, through those bangs? On the bright side, Achara solved two important mysteries: one, the point at which eye shadow goes from serious to seriously misguided and two, where Dr. Shephard got those tattoos. And thanks to Isabel — the latest Other, eerily placid like so many others — we know what they mean: ''He walks amongst us, but he is not one of us.''
Stewardess Cindy and the children, who had been captured by (presumably) the Others, were... wait for it... on the island with the Others. Now, I was glad that nothing dreadful had befallen the little teddy bear-toting munchkins (Karl claimed they wanted to give them a ''better life''), but I kept hoping for a bit more in the answers department — this deliciously creepy scene was over too quickly. What do you think Cindy meant when she said ''We're here to watch''? There wasn't much to watch except Jack — could observing him be part of an initiation process for Cindy and the kids?
Kate, Sawyer and Karl have returned to the island from whence they came and boy, things are not looking good for Karl. He was spouting lines from the room 23 video — ''God loves you as he loved Jacob'' — and going through girlfriend withdrawal. Sawyer's heart-to-heart with Karl was a spectacular failure as a pep talk, but it was possibly my favorite part of this episode. Sawyer began by punching Karl in the arm, then abruptly shifted from tough love to after school special-style rhetoric (''I've been with a lot of girls...''). Finally, however, he went with the ol' risk-execution-to-find-your-gal bit, which is not only very bad advice but also, as Freud would say, Sawyer is clearly projecting. We learn that Sawyer thinks Kate only slept with him because she thought the Others were going to kill him — at least, that's how I interpreted his accusation. Harsh. Judging from Kate's expression, she wasn't taking the suggestion lightly, either.
But speaking of executions, how close do you think Juliet came to escaping one? She was sentenced to death for killing Danny — as Alex explains to Jack, ''an eye for an eye'' (one of two Exodus references in this episode). But after a last-minute reprieve from Ben, she isn't executed but is ''marked'' or branded with a scorpion-like symbol. This prompts a moment of tender hand-to-waist contact between Juliet and Jack, whose tattoos also make him a ''marked'' person. But as with everything involving Juliet, there is the possibility that some or all of the trial and near-execution business was an elaborate performance to see how Jack will respond. I've noticed that when we're looking at Juliet from Jack's perspective, we're often seeing her face just before a door closes between them. Since I don't know what's happening on the other side of that door, I search her expression for clues and, though it could be my imagination, I often see the beginnings of a smile.
Now let's talk episode title (''Stranger in a Strange Land''), shall we? It's the title of a sci-fi novel by Robert A. Heinlein, and can also be found in Exodus 2:22. The plot of Heinlein's novel (a man comes to Earth after being raised by Martians) is analogous to the Thailand flashback, in which Jack is the Martian-reared outsider who doesn't know how to fly a kite. Furthermore, feeling (and sometimes behaving) like a stranger in a strange land is pretty much Jack's modus operandi, whether he's in America, Southeast Asia, or on the island.
What did you think? The episode's final scene: too sentimental or just right? What will happen to Karl and Alex? Do you think it's tragic that Karl has never experienced The Brady Bunch? What (other than respect for human life) will keep Jack from pushing Ben into the water en route to the Others' ''home''? And what do you think of Lost's pacing in these past three episodes?
Dear Folks Behind the Lost Spoilers,
Please take it down a notch! I want people to tune in every week, too, but you've got to stop hyping how many Lost Secrets will be revealed in every episode. The writers are doing a fabulous job at unspooling the mystery slowly and subtly, but it feels anticlimactic because I'm preparing to be conked over the head by the latest revelation.
Sincerely,
Hannah Tucker
What I'm trying to say is, this Jack-centric episode wasn't as earth shattering as the commercials promised, but it was damn good. Relationships took baby steps forward (Jack and Juliet) or two big steps back (Sawyer and Kate), and yes, we received some long-awaited answers... which, in true Lost form, raised more questions.
But let's begin hotly debated hottie guest star, Bai Ling. I'll admit it: while writing this TV Watch brings me joy, when it's late and I'm trying to remember things like who the heck Ethan is (scary dude who kidnapped Claire; now deceased) without the requisite amount of caffeine in my system, I can get a little punchy. Sarcastic even. But was Mystery Everywoman Achara not just a teeny tiny bit ridiculous? Some of her lines — ''Stop asking questions, let's just have fun'' — were pretty bad, and the hair was downright inexcusable. How can she see anything, let alone a person's true self, through those bangs? On the bright side, Achara solved two important mysteries: one, the point at which eye shadow goes from serious to seriously misguided and two, where Dr. Shephard got those tattoos. And thanks to Isabel — the latest Other, eerily placid like so many others — we know what they mean: ''He walks amongst us, but he is not one of us.''
Stewardess Cindy and the children, who had been captured by (presumably) the Others, were... wait for it... on the island with the Others. Now, I was glad that nothing dreadful had befallen the little teddy bear-toting munchkins (Karl claimed they wanted to give them a ''better life''), but I kept hoping for a bit more in the answers department — this deliciously creepy scene was over too quickly. What do you think Cindy meant when she said ''We're here to watch''? There wasn't much to watch except Jack — could observing him be part of an initiation process for Cindy and the kids?
Kate, Sawyer and Karl have returned to the island from whence they came and boy, things are not looking good for Karl. He was spouting lines from the room 23 video — ''God loves you as he loved Jacob'' — and going through girlfriend withdrawal. Sawyer's heart-to-heart with Karl was a spectacular failure as a pep talk, but it was possibly my favorite part of this episode. Sawyer began by punching Karl in the arm, then abruptly shifted from tough love to after school special-style rhetoric (''I've been with a lot of girls...''). Finally, however, he went with the ol' risk-execution-to-find-your-gal bit, which is not only very bad advice but also, as Freud would say, Sawyer is clearly projecting. We learn that Sawyer thinks Kate only slept with him because she thought the Others were going to kill him — at least, that's how I interpreted his accusation. Harsh. Judging from Kate's expression, she wasn't taking the suggestion lightly, either.
But speaking of executions, how close do you think Juliet came to escaping one? She was sentenced to death for killing Danny — as Alex explains to Jack, ''an eye for an eye'' (one of two Exodus references in this episode). But after a last-minute reprieve from Ben, she isn't executed but is ''marked'' or branded with a scorpion-like symbol. This prompts a moment of tender hand-to-waist contact between Juliet and Jack, whose tattoos also make him a ''marked'' person. But as with everything involving Juliet, there is the possibility that some or all of the trial and near-execution business was an elaborate performance to see how Jack will respond. I've noticed that when we're looking at Juliet from Jack's perspective, we're often seeing her face just before a door closes between them. Since I don't know what's happening on the other side of that door, I search her expression for clues and, though it could be my imagination, I often see the beginnings of a smile.
Now let's talk episode title (''Stranger in a Strange Land''), shall we? It's the title of a sci-fi novel by Robert A. Heinlein, and can also be found in Exodus 2:22. The plot of Heinlein's novel (a man comes to Earth after being raised by Martians) is analogous to the Thailand flashback, in which Jack is the Martian-reared outsider who doesn't know how to fly a kite. Furthermore, feeling (and sometimes behaving) like a stranger in a strange land is pretty much Jack's modus operandi, whether he's in America, Southeast Asia, or on the island.
What did you think? The episode's final scene: too sentimental or just right? What will happen to Karl and Alex? Do you think it's tragic that Karl has never experienced The Brady Bunch? What (other than respect for human life) will keep Jack from pushing Ben into the water en route to the Others' ''home''? And what do you think of Lost's pacing in these past three episodes?
Idol Women
Would someone check to see if there are any men in this competition? Last night? Now THAT is a competition, my friends!
LaKisha Jones! Need I say anything more? She was my fave going into last night and now she's my pick to win it. There. I've said it.
Melinda. Amazing. Simply amazing.
Stephanie. First out of the blocks last night and clearly set the bar for all the rest. Loved the dress as well.
Sabrina. Not bad. Far better than any of the guys, that's for sure!
Jordin. Mildly interesting.
Amy Krebs. Zzzzzzzzzz
Antonella Barba. Big disappointment. Go back to Jersey and have daddy buy you some more fancy clothes or something.
Nicole Tranquillo. Not good. Not good at all.
Alaina Alexander. Will get through for a few weeks based on appearance only.
Gina Glocksen. Still better than all the guys put together. But not good enough to be in with the women.
Haley Scarnato. Broadway. Better yet... go work for a cruise line.
Leslie Hunt. Okay, not great. Fairly awkward.
LaKisha Jones! Need I say anything more? She was my fave going into last night and now she's my pick to win it. There. I've said it.
Melinda. Amazing. Simply amazing.
Stephanie. First out of the blocks last night and clearly set the bar for all the rest. Loved the dress as well.
Sabrina. Not bad. Far better than any of the guys, that's for sure!
Jordin. Mildly interesting.
Amy Krebs. Zzzzzzzzzz
Antonella Barba. Big disappointment. Go back to Jersey and have daddy buy you some more fancy clothes or something.
Nicole Tranquillo. Not good. Not good at all.
Alaina Alexander. Will get through for a few weeks based on appearance only.
Gina Glocksen. Still better than all the guys put together. But not good enough to be in with the women.
Haley Scarnato. Broadway. Better yet... go work for a cruise line.
Leslie Hunt. Okay, not great. Fairly awkward.
Wednesday, February 21
Lost 3.09
Episode 3.09: Stranger in a Strange Land (Jack-centric)
Airdate: February 21, 2007
Guest starring are M.C. Gainey as Mr. Friendly/Tom, Tania Raymonde as Alex, Blake Bashoff as Karl, Kimberly Joseph as Cindy, Bai Ling as Achara, Diana Scarwid as Isabel, Shannon Chanhthanam as Thai boy, Siwathep Sunapo as Thai man and James Huang as Chet.
0A power play ensues between Jack and "The Others" as Juliet's future hangs in the balance. Meanwhile, Kate, Sawyer and Karl continue on their journey away from "Alcatraz."
This episode reveals more flashbacks about Jack on his travels to Bangkok and Thailand. He recalls the intriguing people he met, in particular the unforgettable Sherry and a talented tattoo artist.
Bai Ling reveals: The episode I have, it's very deep. My character says, "I can see who people are." [...] I am a very important character in [Jack's] life; like, his tattoos have something to do with me. [My character name is] Achara [...]. But, you know, what is funny about my part... she seduces him, and she's really forward, and she behaves the way she wants, which is really beautiful. It's very healthy and honest and very powerful, in a way. We're lovers, but I am kind of a mystery to him. He doesn't really know me. I don't allow him to visit me, I don't allow him to know what I really do — we're together, we sleep together, we hang out together, we're lovers. And there is a mystery, he never knows what I do. There is also a psychological twist and betrayal.
Lost fans can expect things to heat up next year when Bai Ling joins the cast for an episode. The Chinese actress appears when Jack, played by Matthew Fox, has a flashback of his old lover. [...] She went on to explain that her character, who is responsible for Jack’s tattoos, stays shrouded in mystery, keeping the doctor at a distance, despite their passionate relationship in the bedroom.
Airdate: February 21, 2007
Guest starring are M.C. Gainey as Mr. Friendly/Tom, Tania Raymonde as Alex, Blake Bashoff as Karl, Kimberly Joseph as Cindy, Bai Ling as Achara, Diana Scarwid as Isabel, Shannon Chanhthanam as Thai boy, Siwathep Sunapo as Thai man and James Huang as Chet.
0A power play ensues between Jack and "The Others" as Juliet's future hangs in the balance. Meanwhile, Kate, Sawyer and Karl continue on their journey away from "Alcatraz."
This episode reveals more flashbacks about Jack on his travels to Bangkok and Thailand. He recalls the intriguing people he met, in particular the unforgettable Sherry and a talented tattoo artist.
Bai Ling reveals: The episode I have, it's very deep. My character says, "I can see who people are." [...] I am a very important character in [Jack's] life; like, his tattoos have something to do with me. [My character name is] Achara [...]. But, you know, what is funny about my part... she seduces him, and she's really forward, and she behaves the way she wants, which is really beautiful. It's very healthy and honest and very powerful, in a way. We're lovers, but I am kind of a mystery to him. He doesn't really know me. I don't allow him to visit me, I don't allow him to know what I really do — we're together, we sleep together, we hang out together, we're lovers. And there is a mystery, he never knows what I do. There is also a psychological twist and betrayal.
Lost fans can expect things to heat up next year when Bai Ling joins the cast for an episode. The Chinese actress appears when Jack, played by Matthew Fox, has a flashback of his old lover. [...] She went on to explain that her character, who is responsible for Jack’s tattoos, stays shrouded in mystery, keeping the doctor at a distance, despite their passionate relationship in the bedroom.
DWTS 3
Debuts March 19 with the following "celebrities":
Joey Fatone
Heather Mills
Apolo Anton Ohno
Ian Ziering
Vincent “Big Pussy” Pastore
Billy Ray Cyrus
Laila Ali
Clyde Drexler
Shandi Finnessey
Leeza Gibbons
Paulina Porizkova
Joey Fatone
Heather Mills
Apolo Anton Ohno
Ian Ziering
Vincent “Big Pussy” Pastore
Billy Ray Cyrus
Laila Ali
Clyde Drexler
Shandi Finnessey
Leeza Gibbons
Paulina Porizkova
Idol Men
Blake Lewis-Best of the night. Loved the chose that Keane song.
A.J. Tabaldo-Not so bad. Will make it through to next week.
Chris Sligh-Smug, baby. Smug. Disappointed but did love his jabs at Simon with mentions of Tellytubbies and IlDivo.
Nick Pedro-Not completely impressed with this guy. Will see if he can step it up or not.
Jared Cotter-Meh.
Phil Stacey-Started out baaaaad but ended pretty decent.
Chris Richardson-Timberlake-wannabee. Made me sick watching all that dunking and bobbing.
Brandon Rogers-Not bad. Cute guy.
Sanjaya Malakar-I can't get past the hair. Did he sing?
Rudy Cardenas-Bad. Go away.
Paul Kim-Bad. Go away. Buy some shoes already!
Sundance Head-Biggest Dissapointment of Idol. Ever.
A.J. Tabaldo-Not so bad. Will make it through to next week.
Chris Sligh-Smug, baby. Smug. Disappointed but did love his jabs at Simon with mentions of Tellytubbies and IlDivo.
Nick Pedro-Not completely impressed with this guy. Will see if he can step it up or not.
Jared Cotter-Meh.
Phil Stacey-Started out baaaaad but ended pretty decent.
Chris Richardson-Timberlake-wannabee. Made me sick watching all that dunking and bobbing.
Brandon Rogers-Not bad. Cute guy.
Sanjaya Malakar-I can't get past the hair. Did he sing?
Rudy Cardenas-Bad. Go away.
Paul Kim-Bad. Go away. Buy some shoes already!
Sundance Head-Biggest Dissapointment of Idol. Ever.
Monday, February 19
The Osbourns
Kelly Osbourn announced that someone in her family has HIV. Thoughts on who it could be? Since everyone except Sharon(as far as I know) has had major drug issues so it could be almost anyone, though this doesn't necessarily mean it is someone in her immediate family.
Thursday, February 15
Hume, I Presume?
Read up on philosopher David Hume here. Maybe you'll pick up a few more answers to Lost.
LOST Recap 3.08
From EW:
Let me see if I understand: Desmond ended up on the island because he broke up with Penny and then entered the sailing race to show up her scotch-hoarding father. Then it was three years of stationary-bike riding and obedient button pushing, et cetera, et cetera. Right up until the day Desmond turned the fail-safe key and the Hatch blew up. Then, he traveled back in time and was offered another chance not to break up with Penny, enter a sailing race, and get shipwrecked. What's to keep a guy from choosing Door #2, a.k.a. the option where you don't live alone underground for three years? Oh, right: Everyone could die if he doesn't.
I can see why Desmond was unnerved by the woman who wouldn't sell him the ring — she was also pretty creepy in that Nicole Kidman film called...The Others. I'm positive I still don't understand what Desmond's ''secret'' tells us about how time works on the island. At first, the whole thing seemed a bit nonsensical. The white-haired woman pointed out the man in the red shoes to illustrate determinism — he was going to die; the question was simply when and how. Yet she told Desmond that if he didn't find his way to the island and push that button every 108 minutes, ''every one of us will be dead.'' So Desmond must have had the ability to not do these things: free will. Thanks to a quick Wikipedia refresher course on philosopher David Hume, however, it all makes sense. Kinda. Basically, Hume's theory of compatibilism posits that free will and determinism both exist, and that what we do with our lives is essentially the result of these two concepts butting against each other. In other words, things are going all Sophie's World on us: Desmond Hume is living one of David Hume's theories.
Compatibilism aside, I simply enjoyed Desmond's flash. (I'm not certain yet whether is was a flashback or not.) It gave Henry Ian Cusick a chance to do so much more than just brood and generally not explain himself. And the twist at the end — when we learned that Desmond had been trying to save Charlie, not Claire, from imminent death — was excellent and unexpected. And here I thought we were going to spend this episode hearing Locke go on about how the island killed Mr. Eko. (Not that I have anything against Mr. Eko; I'm just not ready to revisit the whole polar-bear thing yet.)
I think it's clear, however, that Charlie cannot die. You're with me, right? The balance on the island would be completely upset. Claire needs a partner, Hurley needs a buddy, we all need to see backstories where a character sings Oasis songs. It just wouldn't be the same without Charlie. Desmond must know this, and that's why he's fighting to save Charlie's life rather than accept defeat or, as it were, determinism. But none of this is up to us TV Watchers...or is it?
What do you think? Can you find any significance in the name of the scotch: MacCutcheon? Like Desmond, is Juliet also privy to glimpses of the future (such as her ex getting hit by the bus)? Is the white-haired woman the first ''outside'' person (i.e., not one of the future castaways) who has betrayed knowledge of the island in a backstory (or simul-story) sequence? Did Claire always have bangs? Is Alan Dale the only actor who's allowed to play rich SOBs on TV? And who else is excited about (maybe) finding out what happened to the children next week?
Let me see if I understand: Desmond ended up on the island because he broke up with Penny and then entered the sailing race to show up her scotch-hoarding father. Then it was three years of stationary-bike riding and obedient button pushing, et cetera, et cetera. Right up until the day Desmond turned the fail-safe key and the Hatch blew up. Then, he traveled back in time and was offered another chance not to break up with Penny, enter a sailing race, and get shipwrecked. What's to keep a guy from choosing Door #2, a.k.a. the option where you don't live alone underground for three years? Oh, right: Everyone could die if he doesn't.
I can see why Desmond was unnerved by the woman who wouldn't sell him the ring — she was also pretty creepy in that Nicole Kidman film called...The Others. I'm positive I still don't understand what Desmond's ''secret'' tells us about how time works on the island. At first, the whole thing seemed a bit nonsensical. The white-haired woman pointed out the man in the red shoes to illustrate determinism — he was going to die; the question was simply when and how. Yet she told Desmond that if he didn't find his way to the island and push that button every 108 minutes, ''every one of us will be dead.'' So Desmond must have had the ability to not do these things: free will. Thanks to a quick Wikipedia refresher course on philosopher David Hume, however, it all makes sense. Kinda. Basically, Hume's theory of compatibilism posits that free will and determinism both exist, and that what we do with our lives is essentially the result of these two concepts butting against each other. In other words, things are going all Sophie's World on us: Desmond Hume is living one of David Hume's theories.
Compatibilism aside, I simply enjoyed Desmond's flash. (I'm not certain yet whether is was a flashback or not.) It gave Henry Ian Cusick a chance to do so much more than just brood and generally not explain himself. And the twist at the end — when we learned that Desmond had been trying to save Charlie, not Claire, from imminent death — was excellent and unexpected. And here I thought we were going to spend this episode hearing Locke go on about how the island killed Mr. Eko. (Not that I have anything against Mr. Eko; I'm just not ready to revisit the whole polar-bear thing yet.)
I think it's clear, however, that Charlie cannot die. You're with me, right? The balance on the island would be completely upset. Claire needs a partner, Hurley needs a buddy, we all need to see backstories where a character sings Oasis songs. It just wouldn't be the same without Charlie. Desmond must know this, and that's why he's fighting to save Charlie's life rather than accept defeat or, as it were, determinism. But none of this is up to us TV Watchers...or is it?
What do you think? Can you find any significance in the name of the scotch: MacCutcheon? Like Desmond, is Juliet also privy to glimpses of the future (such as her ex getting hit by the bus)? Is the white-haired woman the first ''outside'' person (i.e., not one of the future castaways) who has betrayed knowledge of the island in a backstory (or simul-story) sequence? Did Claire always have bangs? Is Alan Dale the only actor who's allowed to play rich SOBs on TV? And who else is excited about (maybe) finding out what happened to the children next week?
Wednesday, February 14
Bonnaroo
::: 2007 INITIAL LINEUP IS HERE!
2007 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Confirmed Artists:
The Police
Tool
Widespread Panic
The White Stripes
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Wilco
The Flaming Lips
Manu Chao
The String Cheese Incident
Franz Ferdinand
Bob Weir & Ratdog
Damien Rice
Ween
Gov't Mule
Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers
The Decemberists
Kings of Leon
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Wolfmother
Regina Spektor
Galactic
The Black Keys
DJ Shadow
Gillian Welch & David Rawlings
Spoon
Keller Williams (WMD's)
Sasha & John Digweed
STS9
Old Crow Medicine Show
The Hold Steady
North Mississippi Allstars
Fountains Of Wayne
Hot Tuna
Feist
Hot Chip
Lily Allen
John Butler Trio
Ralph Stanley & the Clinch Mountain Boys
Aesop Rock
The Richard Thompson Band
Dierks Bentley
Xavier Rudd
Gogol Bordelo
Junior Brown
Tortoise
T-Bone Burnett
Mavis Staples
Clutch
Cold War Kids
Dr. Dog
Paolo Nutini
Brazilian Girls
RX Bandits
The Nightwatchman
The Slip
Girl Talk
Railroad Earth
Martha Wainwright
Rodrigo y Gabriela
Annuals
Tea Leaf Green
Sam Roberts Band
Elvis Perkins in Dearland
Charlie Louvin
Sonya Kitchell
Mute Math
Apollo Sunshine
Uncle Earl
James Blood Ulmer
The National
The Little Ones
Ryan Shaw
Comedians:
Lewis Black & Friends
Dave Attell
David Cross
More Artists to be Announced!
So the headliners are The Police, Tool, and Widespread Panic. Talk about eclectic.
Tuesday, February 13
The Police
are confirmed to be one of the headlining acts at bonnaroo. The rest of the list comes out tomorrow. (so excited)
Monday, February 12
ANS
Anna Nicole Smith. We all know she died unexpectedly. Or did she?
This story is just getting weirder and more bizarre and convoluted by the moment. Now there's pix of her in bed (clothed) with some big-wig Bahamian dude; they've pulled Howard K. Stern in for questioning and there's the possibility her late husband (you know, the one with all the dough) may have fathered the kid with frozen sperm.
You can't make this shit up, folks!!!
This story is just getting weirder and more bizarre and convoluted by the moment. Now there's pix of her in bed (clothed) with some big-wig Bahamian dude; they've pulled Howard K. Stern in for questioning and there's the possibility her late husband (you know, the one with all the dough) may have fathered the kid with frozen sperm.
You can't make this shit up, folks!!!
Kick Ass Grammys
Hell-o! Christina Aguilera you are amazing! Thrilled to pieces the Dixie Chicks won (and won big, I might add!) and loved the Police reunion. I thought the James Brown tribute was classy. The John Mayer/Corrine Bailey Rae/John Legend collaboration was borrrrring (and I adore John Legend!), Carrie Underwood was the surprise of my night. I am totally impressed with her voice. Gosh... so much happened last night! One of the best Grammys in a very long time.
Winners:
Album of the Year: "Taking the Long Way," Dixie Chicks.
Record of the Year: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Dixie Chicks.
Song of the Year: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Dan Wilson (Dixie Chicks).
New Artist: Carrie Underwood.
Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Be Without You," Mary J. Blige.
Pop Vocal Album: "Continuum," John Mayer.
Pop Collaboration With Vocals: "For Once in My Life," Tony Bennett and Stevie Wonder.
Country Album: "Taking the Long Way," Dixie Chicks.
Rap Album: "Release Therapy," Ludacris.
Rock Album: "Stadium Arcadium," Red Hot Chili Peppers.
R&B Album: "The Breakthrough," Mary J. Blige.
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Rick Rubin.
Traditional Pop Vocal Album: "Duets: An American Classic," Tony Bennett.
Female Pop Vocal Performance: "Ain't No Other Man," Christina Aguilera.
Male Pop Vocal Performance: "Waiting on the World to Change," John Mayer.
Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "My Humps," Black Eyed Peas.
Rock Song: "Dani California," Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers);
Solo Rock Vocal Performance: "Someday Baby," Bob Dylan.
Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "Dani California," Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Hard Rock Performance: "Woman," Wolfmother.
Metal Performance: "Eyes of the Insane," Slayer.
Alternative Music Album: "St. Elsewhere," Gnarls Barkley.
Dance Recording: "Sexy Back," Justin Timberlake and Timbaland.
Electronic/Dance Album: "Confessions on a Dance Floor," Madonna.
Rap Solo Performance: "What You Know," T.I.
Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "Ridin," Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone.
Rap/Sung Collaboration: "My Love," Justin Timberlake featuring T.I.
Rap Song: "Money Maker," Christopher Bridges and Pharrell Williams (Ludacris featuring Pharrell).
Urban/Alternative Performance: "Crazy," Gnarls Barkley.
Male R&B Vocal Performance: "Heaven," John Legend.
R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "Family Affair," (Sly and the Family Stone), John Legend, Joss Stone With Van Hunt.
Contemporary R&B Album: "B'Day," Beyonce.
Female Country Vocal Performance: "Jesus, Take the Wheel," Carrie Underwood.
Male Country Vocal Performance: "The Reason Why," Vince Gill.
Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Dixie Chicks.
Country Collaboration With Vocals: "Who Says You Can't Go Home," Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles.
Country Song: "Jesus, Take the Wheel," Brett James, Hillary Lindsey and Gordie Sampson (Carrie Underwood).
Short Form Music Video: "Here It Goes Again," OK Go.
Long Form Music Video: "Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run," Bruce Springsteen.
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Walk the Line," Joaquin Phoenix and Various Artists.
Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Memoirs of a Geisha," John Williams, composer.
Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Our Town (From Cars)," Randy Newman (James Taylor).
Musical Show Album: "Jersey Boys."
Winners:
Album of the Year: "Taking the Long Way," Dixie Chicks.
Record of the Year: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Dixie Chicks.
Song of the Year: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Dan Wilson (Dixie Chicks).
New Artist: Carrie Underwood.
Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Be Without You," Mary J. Blige.
Pop Vocal Album: "Continuum," John Mayer.
Pop Collaboration With Vocals: "For Once in My Life," Tony Bennett and Stevie Wonder.
Country Album: "Taking the Long Way," Dixie Chicks.
Rap Album: "Release Therapy," Ludacris.
Rock Album: "Stadium Arcadium," Red Hot Chili Peppers.
R&B Album: "The Breakthrough," Mary J. Blige.
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Rick Rubin.
Traditional Pop Vocal Album: "Duets: An American Classic," Tony Bennett.
Female Pop Vocal Performance: "Ain't No Other Man," Christina Aguilera.
Male Pop Vocal Performance: "Waiting on the World to Change," John Mayer.
Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "My Humps," Black Eyed Peas.
Rock Song: "Dani California," Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers);
Solo Rock Vocal Performance: "Someday Baby," Bob Dylan.
Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "Dani California," Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Hard Rock Performance: "Woman," Wolfmother.
Metal Performance: "Eyes of the Insane," Slayer.
Alternative Music Album: "St. Elsewhere," Gnarls Barkley.
Dance Recording: "Sexy Back," Justin Timberlake and Timbaland.
Electronic/Dance Album: "Confessions on a Dance Floor," Madonna.
Rap Solo Performance: "What You Know," T.I.
Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "Ridin," Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone.
Rap/Sung Collaboration: "My Love," Justin Timberlake featuring T.I.
Rap Song: "Money Maker," Christopher Bridges and Pharrell Williams (Ludacris featuring Pharrell).
Urban/Alternative Performance: "Crazy," Gnarls Barkley.
Male R&B Vocal Performance: "Heaven," John Legend.
R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "Family Affair," (Sly and the Family Stone), John Legend, Joss Stone With Van Hunt.
Contemporary R&B Album: "B'Day," Beyonce.
Female Country Vocal Performance: "Jesus, Take the Wheel," Carrie Underwood.
Male Country Vocal Performance: "The Reason Why," Vince Gill.
Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal: "Not Ready to Make Nice," Dixie Chicks.
Country Collaboration With Vocals: "Who Says You Can't Go Home," Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles.
Country Song: "Jesus, Take the Wheel," Brett James, Hillary Lindsey and Gordie Sampson (Carrie Underwood).
Short Form Music Video: "Here It Goes Again," OK Go.
Long Form Music Video: "Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run," Bruce Springsteen.
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Walk the Line," Joaquin Phoenix and Various Artists.
Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Memoirs of a Geisha," John Williams, composer.
Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Our Town (From Cars)," Randy Newman (James Taylor).
Musical Show Album: "Jersey Boys."
Thursday, February 8
SXSW on DirecTV
DirecTV is airing live acts from South by Southwest on Channel 101 from March 14-18. Cool! Here's the tentative lineup, but no times:
Pete Townshend
The Stooges with Iggy Pop
David Byrne
Ozomatli
Taylor Hicks (WTF)
Amy Winehouse
Buzzcocks
Interpol
Razorlight
Hot Hot Heat
The Bravery
Booker T
Pete Townshend
The Stooges with Iggy Pop
David Byrne
Ozomatli
Taylor Hicks (WTF)
Amy Winehouse
Buzzcocks
Interpol
Razorlight
Hot Hot Heat
The Bravery
Booker T
New Music
The Apples in Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (I love this band, and I love the church organ blaring throughout the set.)
Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (I love this band, and I love the church organ blaring throughout the set.)
Lost: Television Without Pity
Talk about a terrible surgical assistant; despite the fact that Ben's undergoing tricky surgery (made even more complicated by the fact Jack's pulling a whole diva routine and refusing to operate until his friends are safe), Juliet's daydreaming about injecting her sister (who has…I want to say cancer?) in some sort of beach clinic/holistic healing place on Miami Beach, where Ethan Rom is some kind of intern/member/creepy guy wandering around for ambience. Kate and Sawyer kick some ass on Danny and the other Others so they can hightail it out of there, and you know what? IT'S ABOUT TIME. Six episodes of watching the A-Team being beaten down was enough for me. Then Juliet, back to reality in the operating room, grows a pair and calls Jack's bluff: she doesn't think he'll let Ben die.
See, Kate doesn't know that Jack doesn't know that Juliet knows that Jack doesn't know that they're not on the original island anymore, or that Monica and Chandler are doing it. So duh, Jack amends the demand to telling Kate and Sawyer where they can get a frickin' BOAT, but Danny and his posse have by this time caught up with K&S on the beach, and they fire off many bullets, but nobody gets hit -- until Alex Oakley the slingshot wizard shows up in time to spitwad the Others into submission and squirrel Kate and Sawyer into a little underground hidey-hole. Jack spills the beans to Zeke about Juliet asking him to kill Ben (which she denies), and Zeke's unsure what to make of this. And then Ben starts to wake up. He asks for a little alone time with Juliet, after which she asks Jack to finish the surgery, and she'll help his friends escape. Alex is already trying to do that, but she wants them to help her rescue her boyfriend first, like some kind of Lost Quest video game where you have to complete a side mission before you can get the key or the boat or whatever.
Back in Miami, Dr. Juliet (Burke, we learn) is using her sister as a guinea pig for experimental treatment, for which she's pilfering the injections from the lab where she works. Too bad her ex-husband, who happens to run the lab (when he's not busy boning sexy potential research assistants, or being a bureaucratic dick on many other shows), finds out, and he blackmails her into giving him a piece of whatever benefits her genius reaps. So when a dashing rep from a privately funded lab just outside of Portland tries to recruit her because she can get male mice pregnant, she (rather inappropriately) says the only way her ex-husband will let her go is if he gets hit by a bus. Turns out her sisterly injections are to see if she can get pregnant, which she does. She tells her ex-husband, who…gets hit by a bus. I understand the driver will be written out of the show soon, but the official word is it's because he's pursuing other projects.
Kate and Sawyer and Alex rescue Carl from…well, from A Clockwork Orange, actually. Contrary to Ben's orders, Danny tries to stop them, so he's shot down by Juliet. More gunfire is more better! Less Kate blubbering into a walkie-talkie as he makes her promise not to come back for him would also be better, but what are you gonna do? Oh, and Ben is Alex's father.
So what did Ben say to Juliet so she'd let Jack (who, despite a slight bobble, successfully removes the tumour) fix him? Interspersed with flashbacks to the Portland recruiter (and his colleague, ETHAN ROM) knowing way too much about Juliet's situation and admitting that this Portland lab is not in Portland, we find out Juliet's a prisoner on the island, has been for the last three years and change. And Ben has said he'll let her go.
See, Kate doesn't know that Jack doesn't know that Juliet knows that Jack doesn't know that they're not on the original island anymore, or that Monica and Chandler are doing it. So duh, Jack amends the demand to telling Kate and Sawyer where they can get a frickin' BOAT, but Danny and his posse have by this time caught up with K&S on the beach, and they fire off many bullets, but nobody gets hit -- until Alex Oakley the slingshot wizard shows up in time to spitwad the Others into submission and squirrel Kate and Sawyer into a little underground hidey-hole. Jack spills the beans to Zeke about Juliet asking him to kill Ben (which she denies), and Zeke's unsure what to make of this. And then Ben starts to wake up. He asks for a little alone time with Juliet, after which she asks Jack to finish the surgery, and she'll help his friends escape. Alex is already trying to do that, but she wants them to help her rescue her boyfriend first, like some kind of Lost Quest video game where you have to complete a side mission before you can get the key or the boat or whatever.
Back in Miami, Dr. Juliet (Burke, we learn) is using her sister as a guinea pig for experimental treatment, for which she's pilfering the injections from the lab where she works. Too bad her ex-husband, who happens to run the lab (when he's not busy boning sexy potential research assistants, or being a bureaucratic dick on many other shows), finds out, and he blackmails her into giving him a piece of whatever benefits her genius reaps. So when a dashing rep from a privately funded lab just outside of Portland tries to recruit her because she can get male mice pregnant, she (rather inappropriately) says the only way her ex-husband will let her go is if he gets hit by a bus. Turns out her sisterly injections are to see if she can get pregnant, which she does. She tells her ex-husband, who…gets hit by a bus. I understand the driver will be written out of the show soon, but the official word is it's because he's pursuing other projects.
Kate and Sawyer and Alex rescue Carl from…well, from A Clockwork Orange, actually. Contrary to Ben's orders, Danny tries to stop them, so he's shot down by Juliet. More gunfire is more better! Less Kate blubbering into a walkie-talkie as he makes her promise not to come back for him would also be better, but what are you gonna do? Oh, and Ben is Alex's father.
So what did Ben say to Juliet so she'd let Jack (who, despite a slight bobble, successfully removes the tumour) fix him? Interspersed with flashbacks to the Portland recruiter (and his colleague, ETHAN ROM) knowing way too much about Juliet's situation and admitting that this Portland lab is not in Portland, we find out Juliet's a prisoner on the island, has been for the last three years and change. And Ben has said he'll let her go.
Lost Recap 3.07
Courtesy of EW:
Like many Lost watchers, I found the earlier episodes from this season to be increasingly tedious. I like a good mythology as much as the next person, but it needs to be balanced with a healthy dose of relatable human drama. So I felt like applauding after this week's installment, which nailed the balance of action, mystery, and meaningful glances.
But although Lost benefited from streamlined storytelling this week, that's not to say it's easy to summarize. When we last saw our castaways, Kate, Jack, and Sawyer were being held by the Others on a separate island. Jack was going to let head honcho Ben die on the operating table unless the Others let Kate and Sawyer escape. Meanwhile, 1500 other subplots are waiting in the wings. Out of a great hour, I chose what I thought were a few of the best moments.
In an excellent (and long-awaited) backstory, we learned that Juliet, a doctor in her past life, was being courted by Mittelos Bioscience, a research group that — as its representative Mr. Alpert, when pressed, admits — is ''not quite in Portland.'' One suspects that ''not quite in Portland'' is a handy little euphemism for ''nowhere near Portland, the Pacific Northwest, or the continental United States.'' Another possible clue: the organization's name. In German, mittellos means ''indigent,'' ''poor,'' or literally ''without means.'' A biomedical company without means could still run the kind of research lab one might find on a remote island: low on supplies but flush with stranded guinea pigs. That interpretation of the name might be a stretch, but most Lost hypotheses are, in my opinion.
Seeing Juliet's ex-husband — who, like Ben, is a smooth-talking menace — provided a nice insight to her personality. The three years Juliet has spent on the island have changed her from a woman who says tearfully, ''I'm not a leader — I'm a mess'' to one who can shoot Pickett and plot to kill Ben with eerie placidity.
Speaking of creepy, when Ben woke up on the operating table, I got serious goosebumps. Lost has always been good at the polar-bear- or smoke-monster-generated scare, but this was a truly chilling moment. And the fact that Ben can make Juliet look like she�s crying after speaking just a few words (while he�s lying helpless with his spine exposed) is an excellent indication of his manipulative power.
The ever-resourceful Alex had a boat! But there was a catch: She needed help to free her captive boyfriend, Karl (who had tried to escape along with Sawyer earlier in the season). This provided Kate with an excellent opportunity to get out some of the anger that had been building during her captivity (They beat up Sawyer! They made her wear a dress!) by whacking someone with the butt of a rifle. They find Karl in room 23, which, if it weren't being used as a torture chamber, might be a decent place to hold a rave. It kind of makes you wonder what's in rooms 4, 8, 15...yeah, you see where I'm going with that. I'll leave it to those more fluently versed in Lost minutiae to dissect each and every frame of the video, but ''We are the causes of our own suffering'' did jump out at me. The phrase could be a Lost-mythology clue (it supports the Survivors in Purgatory hypothesis), but it's also a great example of the kind of hard-line moral authoritarianism that governs the Others. Organized as they may be, however, if one group is going to go all Lord of the Flies on us, my money is on the Others. Sure, they have book clubs, but good novels are no substitute for good neighbors, and the Others have already shown they are ready to betray each other.
In any case, Kate, Sawyer, and Karl are on their way back to their island. What will happen now that the Jack-Kate-Sawyer love triangle is broken up by two miles of ocean? Will Sawyer use the opportunity to win Kate's heart all for himself, or will he — as bad boys are wont to do — lose interest with his competition out of the picture? After watching Kate nearly shoot a man in the knee, I'd recommend Sawyer opt for romance over rejection. And as for a possible Jack-Juliet love connection — well, those kids still have a few things to work out. Juliet doesn't seem at all apologetic about locking Jack back up, which might make a guy feel used, especially after he nearly let Ben — with whom Juliet has ''history'' — bleed to death at her behest.
When it's all said and done (until next week), many questions still remain. What will Jack and Juliet's fate be now that the other Others know about their plot? What about Juliet's research project made it so attractive to the Others/Mittelos? What do you think Tom was going to say when he began talking about ''ever since the sky turned purple'' (i.e., when the Hatch blew up)? And what's been happening to the other survivors while all this has been going on?
Side note: Juliet's husband, Edmund Burke, has the same name as an 18th-century British politician and writer who was known as sympathetic to the American Revolution and critical of the French Revolution. Can you see any significance to that, or to the fact that both Lost and Grey's Anatomy have physician characters named Burke and Shepard (though McDreamy spells his last name Shepherd)?
Like many Lost watchers, I found the earlier episodes from this season to be increasingly tedious. I like a good mythology as much as the next person, but it needs to be balanced with a healthy dose of relatable human drama. So I felt like applauding after this week's installment, which nailed the balance of action, mystery, and meaningful glances.
But although Lost benefited from streamlined storytelling this week, that's not to say it's easy to summarize. When we last saw our castaways, Kate, Jack, and Sawyer were being held by the Others on a separate island. Jack was going to let head honcho Ben die on the operating table unless the Others let Kate and Sawyer escape. Meanwhile, 1500 other subplots are waiting in the wings. Out of a great hour, I chose what I thought were a few of the best moments.
In an excellent (and long-awaited) backstory, we learned that Juliet, a doctor in her past life, was being courted by Mittelos Bioscience, a research group that — as its representative Mr. Alpert, when pressed, admits — is ''not quite in Portland.'' One suspects that ''not quite in Portland'' is a handy little euphemism for ''nowhere near Portland, the Pacific Northwest, or the continental United States.'' Another possible clue: the organization's name. In German, mittellos means ''indigent,'' ''poor,'' or literally ''without means.'' A biomedical company without means could still run the kind of research lab one might find on a remote island: low on supplies but flush with stranded guinea pigs. That interpretation of the name might be a stretch, but most Lost hypotheses are, in my opinion.
Seeing Juliet's ex-husband — who, like Ben, is a smooth-talking menace — provided a nice insight to her personality. The three years Juliet has spent on the island have changed her from a woman who says tearfully, ''I'm not a leader — I'm a mess'' to one who can shoot Pickett and plot to kill Ben with eerie placidity.
Speaking of creepy, when Ben woke up on the operating table, I got serious goosebumps. Lost has always been good at the polar-bear- or smoke-monster-generated scare, but this was a truly chilling moment. And the fact that Ben can make Juliet look like she�s crying after speaking just a few words (while he�s lying helpless with his spine exposed) is an excellent indication of his manipulative power.
The ever-resourceful Alex had a boat! But there was a catch: She needed help to free her captive boyfriend, Karl (who had tried to escape along with Sawyer earlier in the season). This provided Kate with an excellent opportunity to get out some of the anger that had been building during her captivity (They beat up Sawyer! They made her wear a dress!) by whacking someone with the butt of a rifle. They find Karl in room 23, which, if it weren't being used as a torture chamber, might be a decent place to hold a rave. It kind of makes you wonder what's in rooms 4, 8, 15...yeah, you see where I'm going with that. I'll leave it to those more fluently versed in Lost minutiae to dissect each and every frame of the video, but ''We are the causes of our own suffering'' did jump out at me. The phrase could be a Lost-mythology clue (it supports the Survivors in Purgatory hypothesis), but it's also a great example of the kind of hard-line moral authoritarianism that governs the Others. Organized as they may be, however, if one group is going to go all Lord of the Flies on us, my money is on the Others. Sure, they have book clubs, but good novels are no substitute for good neighbors, and the Others have already shown they are ready to betray each other.
In any case, Kate, Sawyer, and Karl are on their way back to their island. What will happen now that the Jack-Kate-Sawyer love triangle is broken up by two miles of ocean? Will Sawyer use the opportunity to win Kate's heart all for himself, or will he — as bad boys are wont to do — lose interest with his competition out of the picture? After watching Kate nearly shoot a man in the knee, I'd recommend Sawyer opt for romance over rejection. And as for a possible Jack-Juliet love connection — well, those kids still have a few things to work out. Juliet doesn't seem at all apologetic about locking Jack back up, which might make a guy feel used, especially after he nearly let Ben — with whom Juliet has ''history'' — bleed to death at her behest.
When it's all said and done (until next week), many questions still remain. What will Jack and Juliet's fate be now that the other Others know about their plot? What about Juliet's research project made it so attractive to the Others/Mittelos? What do you think Tom was going to say when he began talking about ''ever since the sky turned purple'' (i.e., when the Hatch blew up)? And what's been happening to the other survivors while all this has been going on?
Side note: Juliet's husband, Edmund Burke, has the same name as an 18th-century British politician and writer who was known as sympathetic to the American Revolution and critical of the French Revolution. Can you see any significance to that, or to the fact that both Lost and Grey's Anatomy have physician characters named Burke and Shepard (though McDreamy spells his last name Shepherd)?
Wednesday, February 7
Ozzfest 2007... For FREE
I've never attended Ozzfest, and I doubt this will make me go. Nothing against the music, just not my crowd. I think this is a cool diversion from the constantly rising concert costs. A free festival, when is the last time that has happened? Woodstock?
Here is a rolling stone article, though I've seen it reported in several places: http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2007/02/06/ozzfest-becomes-freefest-for-real/
No doubt the concert will make money in some other way. Maybe corporate sponsorship? I'd be interested to know how much pull a corporate sponsor would get. Would they be able to specify what bands could and couldn't play?
What are your thoughts?
Dirt
More like trash. I go back and forth - even in one single episode - of whether I enjoy it or not.
The Lost Reviews are in...
And I am horny for Lost now. By the way, I stole this compilation from Aint It Cool News:
Entertainment Weekly gives it an “A” and says:
… It's good. Really good. Like season-one, stuff-gets-answered, can't-wait-for-the-next-episode good. …
USA Today gives it three and a half stars (out of four) and says:
… Best of all, tonight's return is designed to start moving the story off of The Others' island and back to a beached ensemble that has been much missed. … As Lost episodes go, it's a good outing …
TV Guide says:
… The mystery deepens, the plot thickens, and — most critically and thankfully — the action takes a mighty leap forward as Lost makes a welcome return … riveting …
The Los Angeles Times says:
… for now, I'm operating on the theory that the producers concluded, over mai tais one night in Hawaii, that absolute certainty, in art as well as life, is overrated. I quite agree …
The Chicago Tribune says:
… As Benjamin Linus, who's apparently the head of whatever wacky experiment is taking place on the "Lost" islands, Michael Emerson has given us a complex and calibrated performance that mixes creepiness, intelligence and a twisted form of charisma into one quietly frightening package. And as Juliet, Elizabeth Mitchell has been a wonder. … Mitchell makes Juliet's steely resolve and her carefully hidden vulnerability fascinating, which is some feat. Right now, Juliet's by far the most interesting woman on the show. …
Variety says:
… even with flaws, "Lost" remains one of TV's zestiest stews. …
Scripps News Service says:
… It's far too soon to say if "Lost" has returned to form. But judging only by the opener, it's safe to assume that giving up on "Lost" might not be a good idea at this point. … an inspired hour of television … It's dangerous, fast, thrilling and elusive. …
Ain’t It Cool says:
… the best episode of “Lost” since its third-season premiere. …
Entertainment Weekly gives it an “A” and says:
… It's good. Really good. Like season-one, stuff-gets-answered, can't-wait-for-the-next-episode good. …
USA Today gives it three and a half stars (out of four) and says:
… Best of all, tonight's return is designed to start moving the story off of The Others' island and back to a beached ensemble that has been much missed. … As Lost episodes go, it's a good outing …
TV Guide says:
… The mystery deepens, the plot thickens, and — most critically and thankfully — the action takes a mighty leap forward as Lost makes a welcome return … riveting …
The Los Angeles Times says:
… for now, I'm operating on the theory that the producers concluded, over mai tais one night in Hawaii, that absolute certainty, in art as well as life, is overrated. I quite agree …
The Chicago Tribune says:
… As Benjamin Linus, who's apparently the head of whatever wacky experiment is taking place on the "Lost" islands, Michael Emerson has given us a complex and calibrated performance that mixes creepiness, intelligence and a twisted form of charisma into one quietly frightening package. And as Juliet, Elizabeth Mitchell has been a wonder. … Mitchell makes Juliet's steely resolve and her carefully hidden vulnerability fascinating, which is some feat. Right now, Juliet's by far the most interesting woman on the show. …
Variety says:
… even with flaws, "Lost" remains one of TV's zestiest stews. …
Scripps News Service says:
… It's far too soon to say if "Lost" has returned to form. But judging only by the opener, it's safe to assume that giving up on "Lost" might not be a good idea at this point. … an inspired hour of television … It's dangerous, fast, thrilling and elusive. …
Ain’t It Cool says:
… the best episode of “Lost” since its third-season premiere. …
Sayid Has A Cat?
In honor of LOST (finally) returning tonight, here's is some required reading, courtesy of EW:
You've got questions, we've got answers — straight from the mouths of Lost exec producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. We sifted through more than 2,000 queries from EW readers and presented the most pressing to the powers that be.
What happened to Michael and Walt?
CARLTON CUSE: We put a pin in the Michael and Walt story for the season, but by no means is it over. It would be very strange for the end of Michael and Walt to just send them off in that boat without any acknowledgment of what has happened. But if you look at the bigger picture of Lost, there's a circularity to the way that story is going to unfold in the overall mythology, and that is a long, planned approach. Yes, we'll get back to the Michael and Walt story, and it will be really compelling when we do. But that's most likely a year 4 story.
DAMON LINDELOF: Michael and Walt are the first characters on the show to ''get off the island.'' But the pervasive question remains: What is ''off the island''?
Are we going to get the history of the Others in one shot, or will this be revealed over time?
LINDELOF: It's definitely unfolding. We will begin to find out how certain members of the Others joined the Others. Episode 7 should play as a surprise to some audience members that Juliet was not born on the island — she came off the island and was recruited by the Others. So some of them were born there and some of them were recruited, but what they are there to do will be revealed before who put them there and why.
CUSE: The connection between the Others and Dharma gets revealed in episode 11.
When will we see Libby again? Will we ever learn how she got into the mental hospital with Hurley?
CUSE: Given everything else we have to tell, that's going to be a mystery that's going to have to get answered in year 4.
LINDELOF: There's really one significant missing piece to Libby's story. We saw in the season finale last year that she met with Desmond, she gave him his boat, and we know that her husband died — and then we know that subsequent to that, she spent some time in a mental institution, the same one as Hurley. The question the audience wants answered is, How did she get from A to B — from Desmond to the mental institution? We know the answer to that question, but the only way to tell that story is through another character's flashback, and that character would have to be another character on the show who is not among the beach dwellers.
What is the significance of the horse that Kate saw?
CUSE: People seem mystified by this. I would say this: We have seen a number of apparitions on the island, from Jack's dad to Kate's horse. You'll be getting more of an understanding of those apparitions during the course of this season.
LINDELOF: What is the nature of those apparitions? By definition, an apparition shouldn't be something you could go up and touch, or that other people should be able to see. And yet, Kate's horse is real. It is living in the physical world. Sawyer sees it; Kate goes up and touches it. Does the horse bear a striking resemblance to a horse that provided her an escape in her past as a fugitive, or is it the same exact horse? That is a fundamental question. But look at the show in total. Here's Christian Shepherd [Jack's dad]. Here's Yemi [Eko's brother]. Here's the horse. Here's Walt. [Remember, Walt appeared to Shannon, and later to Shannon and Sayid in a backwards-speaking vision.] Are all those things the same thing, or are some of them different things?
CUSE: We're also using these things to set up an animated sitcom spin-off called ''Kate's Horse and Sayid's Cat.''
LINDELOF: That's right. Sayid's cat is coming up in episode 11. We're not joking.
CUSE: Except for the animated part.
What is the meaning or significance of the two skeletons that Jack and Kate found in the cave of season 1?
CUSE: The answer to that question goes to the nature of the timeline of the island. We don't want to say too much about it, but there are a couple Easter eggs embedded in [the Feb. 7 episode], one of which is an anagram that actually sheds some light on the skeletons and hints at a larger mythological mystery that will start to unfold later in the season.
LINDELOF: There were certain things we knew from the very beginning. Independent of ever knowing when the end was going to be, we knew what it was going to be, and we wanted to start setting it up as early as season 1, or else people would think that we were making it up as we were going along. So the skeletons are the living — or, I guess, slowly decomposing — proof of that. When all is said and done, people are going to point to the skeletons and say, ''That is proof that from the very beginning, they always knew that they were going to do this.''
Last season, we saw in Ana Lucia's flashback that she witnessed an argument between Christian Shepherd and a woman in Australia, in which Christian demanded to see his daughter. The burning question/conspiracy theory that fans have is this: Is Claire Jack's half sister?
CUSE: We're not going to answer that question — but the show will. In the next six episodes.
Did Desmond's failure to press the button REALLY cause the plane to crash — or is there more to this story?
LINDELOF: In terms of the pragmatic reality, Oceanic 815 never would have crashed had Desmond pushed the button. But is there a larger, more faith-based, spiritualized reason that these people happened to be on that plane when he failed to press the button? If Desmond hadn't run into Jack at that stadium, would he have made the same choices that he made in his life? They all impact each other's lives. The fact that that guy is on that plane up there, and Desmond brings that plane down, it speaks to an interrelatedness among characters, why these people, why do they all connect. No amount of mythological answers will ever speak to this. That's the one thing that when the show ends, you won't have a causal explanation for why did all these people interconnect. Why some, why not others? The answer is just that they just do. The show is a massive Rube Goldberg device, in which all the components of the machinery are humans.
Even though The Hatch blew up, will we return to the mystery of the Dharma map that Desmond's previous Hatch occupants were painting on the retractable blast door?
CUSE: We will be visiting another Dharma station soon. But the map becomes less important, because when they visit this new station, they'll be getting some new information that helps them understand where the Dharma people lived and where their stations are.
Will Penelope ever become a significiant character, and when will we get a follow-up to the monumentally dramatic revelation at the end of season 2 that the EM burst was detected off the island?
CUSE: Penelope's story continues in episode 8 [Feb. 14] in Desmond's flashbacks. We put that scene at the end of the season finale for a reason, and like the anagram, they're components to a larger revelation. You'll learn more about why we put that scene at the end of season 2 by the end of season 3.
Does time pass differently on the island than off the island?
LINDELOF: That's a really perceptive question. We know that the Others taped the Red Sox win the World Series in 2004... so that would seem to indicate that time flows the same both on and off. But then again, when the sky turns purple and the ground shakes... wait. Hold on. Carlton is wringing my neck.
CUSE: Yes. Time passes very slowly because they don't have American Idol to watch.
In the ''death of Mr. Eko'' episode, it was my interpretation that the Monster was able to assume human form, i.e., Eko's brother. Am I crazy for thinking that? And will we learn anything more about the Monster's origins this season?
LINDELOF: You're not crazy. You will see the monster again this season. Its origins, however... well, you'll have to wait.
CUSE: Whether or not you learn more about it will depend on how obsessive you are. If you enjoy recording the program and studying individual frames, you might. But really, is that healthy?
Is there a mystery you will never solve?
LINDELOF: We will never give story time to revealing the construction of the infamous rope bridge.
CUSE: And honestly, we're never going to tell you why the French lady has a Yugoslavian accent.
You've got questions, we've got answers — straight from the mouths of Lost exec producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. We sifted through more than 2,000 queries from EW readers and presented the most pressing to the powers that be.
What happened to Michael and Walt?
CARLTON CUSE: We put a pin in the Michael and Walt story for the season, but by no means is it over. It would be very strange for the end of Michael and Walt to just send them off in that boat without any acknowledgment of what has happened. But if you look at the bigger picture of Lost, there's a circularity to the way that story is going to unfold in the overall mythology, and that is a long, planned approach. Yes, we'll get back to the Michael and Walt story, and it will be really compelling when we do. But that's most likely a year 4 story.
DAMON LINDELOF: Michael and Walt are the first characters on the show to ''get off the island.'' But the pervasive question remains: What is ''off the island''?
Are we going to get the history of the Others in one shot, or will this be revealed over time?
LINDELOF: It's definitely unfolding. We will begin to find out how certain members of the Others joined the Others. Episode 7 should play as a surprise to some audience members that Juliet was not born on the island — she came off the island and was recruited by the Others. So some of them were born there and some of them were recruited, but what they are there to do will be revealed before who put them there and why.
CUSE: The connection between the Others and Dharma gets revealed in episode 11.
When will we see Libby again? Will we ever learn how she got into the mental hospital with Hurley?
CUSE: Given everything else we have to tell, that's going to be a mystery that's going to have to get answered in year 4.
LINDELOF: There's really one significant missing piece to Libby's story. We saw in the season finale last year that she met with Desmond, she gave him his boat, and we know that her husband died — and then we know that subsequent to that, she spent some time in a mental institution, the same one as Hurley. The question the audience wants answered is, How did she get from A to B — from Desmond to the mental institution? We know the answer to that question, but the only way to tell that story is through another character's flashback, and that character would have to be another character on the show who is not among the beach dwellers.
What is the significance of the horse that Kate saw?
CUSE: People seem mystified by this. I would say this: We have seen a number of apparitions on the island, from Jack's dad to Kate's horse. You'll be getting more of an understanding of those apparitions during the course of this season.
LINDELOF: What is the nature of those apparitions? By definition, an apparition shouldn't be something you could go up and touch, or that other people should be able to see. And yet, Kate's horse is real. It is living in the physical world. Sawyer sees it; Kate goes up and touches it. Does the horse bear a striking resemblance to a horse that provided her an escape in her past as a fugitive, or is it the same exact horse? That is a fundamental question. But look at the show in total. Here's Christian Shepherd [Jack's dad]. Here's Yemi [Eko's brother]. Here's the horse. Here's Walt. [Remember, Walt appeared to Shannon, and later to Shannon and Sayid in a backwards-speaking vision.] Are all those things the same thing, or are some of them different things?
CUSE: We're also using these things to set up an animated sitcom spin-off called ''Kate's Horse and Sayid's Cat.''
LINDELOF: That's right. Sayid's cat is coming up in episode 11. We're not joking.
CUSE: Except for the animated part.
What is the meaning or significance of the two skeletons that Jack and Kate found in the cave of season 1?
CUSE: The answer to that question goes to the nature of the timeline of the island. We don't want to say too much about it, but there are a couple Easter eggs embedded in [the Feb. 7 episode], one of which is an anagram that actually sheds some light on the skeletons and hints at a larger mythological mystery that will start to unfold later in the season.
LINDELOF: There were certain things we knew from the very beginning. Independent of ever knowing when the end was going to be, we knew what it was going to be, and we wanted to start setting it up as early as season 1, or else people would think that we were making it up as we were going along. So the skeletons are the living — or, I guess, slowly decomposing — proof of that. When all is said and done, people are going to point to the skeletons and say, ''That is proof that from the very beginning, they always knew that they were going to do this.''
Last season, we saw in Ana Lucia's flashback that she witnessed an argument between Christian Shepherd and a woman in Australia, in which Christian demanded to see his daughter. The burning question/conspiracy theory that fans have is this: Is Claire Jack's half sister?
CUSE: We're not going to answer that question — but the show will. In the next six episodes.
Did Desmond's failure to press the button REALLY cause the plane to crash — or is there more to this story?
LINDELOF: In terms of the pragmatic reality, Oceanic 815 never would have crashed had Desmond pushed the button. But is there a larger, more faith-based, spiritualized reason that these people happened to be on that plane when he failed to press the button? If Desmond hadn't run into Jack at that stadium, would he have made the same choices that he made in his life? They all impact each other's lives. The fact that that guy is on that plane up there, and Desmond brings that plane down, it speaks to an interrelatedness among characters, why these people, why do they all connect. No amount of mythological answers will ever speak to this. That's the one thing that when the show ends, you won't have a causal explanation for why did all these people interconnect. Why some, why not others? The answer is just that they just do. The show is a massive Rube Goldberg device, in which all the components of the machinery are humans.
Even though The Hatch blew up, will we return to the mystery of the Dharma map that Desmond's previous Hatch occupants were painting on the retractable blast door?
CUSE: We will be visiting another Dharma station soon. But the map becomes less important, because when they visit this new station, they'll be getting some new information that helps them understand where the Dharma people lived and where their stations are.
Will Penelope ever become a significiant character, and when will we get a follow-up to the monumentally dramatic revelation at the end of season 2 that the EM burst was detected off the island?
CUSE: Penelope's story continues in episode 8 [Feb. 14] in Desmond's flashbacks. We put that scene at the end of the season finale for a reason, and like the anagram, they're components to a larger revelation. You'll learn more about why we put that scene at the end of season 2 by the end of season 3.
Does time pass differently on the island than off the island?
LINDELOF: That's a really perceptive question. We know that the Others taped the Red Sox win the World Series in 2004... so that would seem to indicate that time flows the same both on and off. But then again, when the sky turns purple and the ground shakes... wait. Hold on. Carlton is wringing my neck.
CUSE: Yes. Time passes very slowly because they don't have American Idol to watch.
In the ''death of Mr. Eko'' episode, it was my interpretation that the Monster was able to assume human form, i.e., Eko's brother. Am I crazy for thinking that? And will we learn anything more about the Monster's origins this season?
LINDELOF: You're not crazy. You will see the monster again this season. Its origins, however... well, you'll have to wait.
CUSE: Whether or not you learn more about it will depend on how obsessive you are. If you enjoy recording the program and studying individual frames, you might. But really, is that healthy?
Is there a mystery you will never solve?
LINDELOF: We will never give story time to revealing the construction of the infamous rope bridge.
CUSE: And honestly, we're never going to tell you why the French lady has a Yugoslavian accent.
Tuesday, February 6
VH News
The dysfunctional family known as Van Halen is reuniting for a 40-city summer tour featuring crazy Diamond Dave. I kinda hope they'll be passing by my area so I can check them out. Would love to compare Sammy vs. Dave.
Friday, February 2
Source: Microsoft Zune Phone In the Works
From the article:
We’ve just received a sound tip that Microsoft is working on its very own phone to be branded under the Zune moniker. Our tipsters inform us that Microsoft execs are in meetings today hammering out details of the device and developing strategies and timescales for its release.
Source: CrunchGear » Blog Archive » Source: Microsoft Zune Phone In the Works
I say the more competition the better. :-)
Thursday, February 1
AskMen.com - Top 99 Women 2007
Beyonce at number one? I have to say I disagree.
Anyhow, if you want to check out who they think the top 99 are then CLICK HERE.
Cartoon Network = Terrorist Organization?
You Decide!
I'm sure you have heard all the news surrounding key transportation pathways being shut down in Boston yesterday due to 38 blinking electronic signs promoting the Cartoon Network TV show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" on bridges and other high-profile spots across the city. The signs featured a character from the show giving the middle finger. It looked like it was created on a Lite Brite toy to me (if you remember what these are). Anyhow, it caused mass overreaction/chaos and the two guys that hung the advertising were arrested.
I found the following video hilarious. It is a news conference with the two accused terrorists. Enjoy!
Exxon Mobil Reports $39.5B Annual Profit
They beat the record for profit that they set last year while we continue to pay ridiculous gasoline prices. Hopefully with a democratic congress in power now they'll investigate the corruption within the big oil companies.
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