My last blog post was a long time ago, back around Thanksgiving. I've been back from my trip to Utah for quite a while but I just haven't been motivated to write a blog, and when I've wanted to I just simply haven't had the energy - it seems like I'm always drained from work.

Anyway, hopefully I'll get to doing blogs soon. It's almost 2008 - I can't believe it. 2007 flew by EXTREMELY fast, I mean I remember January of 2007 like it was only last month! It's sort of scary how fast time goes.

For the past week I've spent my television viewing time to Lost, I rewatched the entire series from "Pilot" to "Through the Looking Glass" and am all freshened up and ready for the fourth season in a month. Rewatching the series in such a short period of time has confimed for me that this is simply th best show on television. Anyone who thinks the the writer's are making the whole thing up as they go is either crazy or does not pay attention very well...at all. The characters have such depth, they are so realistically played, the show is so intricately plotted and well-crafted. Of course there are a few missteps here and there but no show is perfect. The show perfectly blends genres and real-world emotion with an otherworldly mythology and mysteries. While I admit I may be in a minority, I don't mind the slow-reveal process the show takes with unveiling its mysteries. I admit that sometimes I want the answers immediately but overall I think I feel more satisfied getting hints and teases before finally seeing the truth. I think, that once this series is over and people are able to view it as a whole, that many of the naysayers won't have a leg to stand on any longer and this will be known as a show as influential and important as Twin Peaks (although...I'm not a huge Twin Peaks fan, I think it's only okay).

Other than Lost, I've been watching season one of One Tree Hill through Netflix. I must say that while it's a far cry from genius storytelling it's a decent show and even when it's cliche and cheesy, I still feel compelled to watch it. I like the characters and the down-to-earth feel of the show. When I pop in a disc I fly through the episodes fairly quickly, and I should be done with the first season by Thursday or Friday (I have to send these discs back and wait for the last two; I've been getting two at a time with a movie because I have a 3-disc-at-a-time plan) and I'll start season two shortly thereafter.

In case I don't get to write a New Years blog later today, Happy New Years!

Tonight my family and I are leaving for Utah, we'll be gone until roughly December 1st. We're driving so it will take a few days and I doubt I'll be able to get online while we're there. I'll see you guys then, hopefully while I'm gone the strike will be resolved, that will be a nice Christmas gift.

Anyway, bye you guys!

Well, the strike has only been going on two days, but it's already forced me to make drastic changes to my viewing habits. Almost every new show I was watching this season has been getting mediocre ratings and I figure the strike will probably kill them off for good, so I'll be dropping a lot of shows until after the strike is over. Except for ABC's amazing Pushing Daisies and Chuck and Gossip Girl and Dirty Sexy Money, but those shows will run out of scripts soon.

I'll also continue watching most of my returning shows until they run out of episodes: Ugly Betty, Supernatural, Desperate Housewives, The Office, and CSI to name a few. But I probably won't feel the urge to keep up with them...I can let them gather on my hard drive and watch them when I feel like it.

But for the most part my television schedule has cleared up significantly. If the strike lasts a while, what will I be doing?

Catching Up on My DVDs

I have about 15 movies I've bought that I haven't watched, most I've had for a YEAR or longer. I'll use my free time to watch all of those. I also have several seasons of shows to watch.

Cleaning Up My Hard Drive

I have hundreds of episodes of various shows on my hard drive that I need to watch, from things such as Arrested Development to Battlestar Galactica to the first season of Dawson's Creek. I'll be giving a lot of these shows a watch now, and the ones I dislike, I can delete the other episodes of said show and for the others, just watch as many as I can while the strike is going on.

Doing Other Stuff

Reading, cleaning, writing, working out...ah the stuff I'll have time for.

...Shows I'll Be Watching/Rewatching

During the strike, I plan to rewatch some DVDs I haven't seen in a while and catch up with other shows. Here's an incomplete list:

- Lost (Rewatch my first two season DVDs)

- Desperate Housewives (Rewatch my first two season DVDs)

- Roswell (Watch my season three DVDs)

- Smallville (Watch my season five and six DVDs)

- Veronica Mars (Rewatch them all)

- Dead Like Me (I saw the episodes before but haven't finished watching my DVDs since I bought them)

- The X-Files (I have the first five seasons, since buying the DVDs I've only watched the first two.)

- Millennium (I've seen all the episodes a long time ago but since buying the DVDs I have yet to watch them)

- Bones (season 2)

- Nip/Tuck (finish season 2)

...........

So that's basically MY plans for this strike. Might as well make the best out of a bad thing.

Wow, not even a month into the television season and I've already fallen way behind. I guess I might as well not bother trying, I guess I'll stick to the shows I definitely want to keep up with and as for the rest, I'll just stay behind and on the weekends I'll try having mini-marathons. So far this is what I've been making absolutely sure I watch within a couple days of it airing a new episode:

Sundays: Desperate Housewives, Cold Case

Mondays: Chuck, Heroes, Journeyman, Aliens in America, The Big Bang Theory

Tuesdays: Reaper

Wednesdays: Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, CSI: NY, Gossip Girl, Bionic Woman, Back to You

Thursdays: Ugly Betty, CSI, Supernatural, 30 Rock, The Office, Survivor: China

Fridays: Nothing as of yet, but I plan on getting into Women's Murder Club, and as soon as I catch up on Ghost Whisperer I'm going to keep up with that this season

Shows that are getting slightly left behind? The Simpsons, Prison Break, K-Ville, Carpoolers, SVU, Bones (only because I have to finish s2 first), Life, Criminal Minds, Big Shots, Moonlight.

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Right now I suppose I could be watching an episode of a show I've fallen behind on. Or I could be watching one of the many unwatched movies on my hard drive. But instead, I feel like...I dunno, laying on my bed and reading a book, or working out, or something. It seems like whenever I have the time and oppurtunity to watch a ton of TV I feel like doing something else.

Wow, I had no idea how hard it would be, trying to be an avid TV viewer.

Last season I gave almost all of the new shows a chance, but I didn't like most of them and most of them were quickly canceled so my list of shows to watch was drastically cut down, and I didn't have much to worry about. So far this season, none of the shows I've bothered giving a chance have been given the axe, and most of the new shows have aired three episodes so far, and usually by then at least one show has been canceled.

And on top of that, so far I'm not disliking anything enough to flat out drop it.

I had also decided to pick up a bunch of returning shows that I'd fallen behind on and I'm liking most of those too.

New Shows I'm Definitely Keeping:

Pushing Daisies
Dirty Sexy Money
Women's Murder Club
Chuck
Journeyman
Bionic Woman
Life
Aliens in America
Gossip Girl
Reaper
The Big Bang Theory
K-Ville
Back to You

New Shows I Haven't Hated Enough to Drop Yet:

Cane
Moonlight
Big Shots
Carpoolers (def. on the fence)
Private Practice

Returning Shows That I've Been Watching Since They Were On:

Supernatural
Desperate Housewives
Brothers & Sisters
Ugly Betty
Bones
The Office
30 Rock
My Name is Earl
Heroes
Ghost Whisperer

Returning Shows I've Started Watching:

Everybody Hates Chris (fell behind during s1)
Cold Case (always liked, never got to keep up)
CSI (stopped watching regularly after season 4ish)
CSI: NY (like the darkness of it)
Survivor (originally stopped watching after season 4)
House (stopped watching after season 1)
Prison Break (fell behind after season 2 began)
L&O: SVU (have never watched regularly)

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I'm thinking of dropping Brothers & Sisters because it's just not that compelling and it's a tad too pretentious. I might drop House and then catch that later on DVD...same with SVU even though I do love that show. Private Practice may eventually go soon, not because it's bad, but just because it's not special enough to keep. I stopped watching Grey's Anatomy for the same reason.

My work schedule now has me getting off at 11 or 12 on Fridays. At least, until I get a second job. I think until that happens Friday afternoons will be my general day to catch up on TV, and during the week I'll just watch the major must-see shows, namely Pushing Daisies, Chuck, Reaper, Gossip Girl, The Office, Desperate Housewives, Supernatural, Dirty Sexy Money, and Heroes. But gee, even that's a lot.

So most of the new fall shows have premiered and I've gotten to see them. Here's how I rank them - so far. As for Pushing Daisies, which hasn't aired yet, I've seen the pilot so that's why it's on my list.

My opinions will almost certainly change over the next few weeks, but so far here's how I'd rank the top 15:

(I'll probably reupdate once most of the remaining shows have premiered, like Women's Murder Club, Samantha Who?, etc.)

15. Cane
14. Private Practice
13. Moonlight
12. Back to You
11. The Big Bang Theory
10. Life
09. Journeyman
08. Aliens in America
07. K-Ville
06. Bionic Woman
05. Chuck
04. Gossip Girl
03. Reaper
02. Dirty Sexy Money
01. Pushing Daisies

So premiere week is nearly over and after only four days I am way behind. And unfortunately, unlike last season, there aren't as many shows that I'm willing to drop. Here's how I'm doing so far:

K-Ville: I'm sticking with my decision to keep it, after watching the second episode. While mostly it's just a regular cop drama, I'm enjoying Cole Hauser (I've never really seen him act before, but he's good) and the New Orleans setting, and the show is just cool.

Back to You: The second episode was a decent improvement over the pilot. I'm attracted to the show for some reason, and since the second episode only dropped 20% of its audience I think it will stick it out for the entire season.

Kid Nation: Dropped! It's just not interesting enough.

Survivor China: I'm still going to keep it. Although if I don't drop more shows soon, I might have to drop this one because I always drop reality shows first.

Chuck: I saw the pilot back in the summer and I loved it, so of course this is a keeper. It's a great show, I really enjoy it, and I hope future episodes don't erode the audience too much because this show needs a few good seasons. NBC, I still hope you're choosing quality over stellar ratings.

Journeyman: I'm definitely keeping Journeyman but I'm worried it won't last the season, as the pilot lost a lot of its lead-in. But if it doesn't erode like "Studio 60" did last season, it might get the full season pickup.

Bionic Woman: Michelle Ryan. Need I say more?

Life: Keeping. It reminds me of a USA Network show. It's fun. Good cast. Plus it did WAY better in the ratings than I thought it would do.

CSIs: On the fence, all of 'em. The first one I'm most likely to drop is CSI: Miami. Horatio Cane is probably the worst television character ever created, although I do like the supporting characters well enough.

Reaper: Awesome show! Bret Harrison and Ray Wise rock the show. I'm definitely keeping and I hope The CW keeps it for several seasons to come.

Private Practice: This show was so much more entertaining than "Grey's Anatomy". I'm keeping it. It's fun. I love Addison. The rest of the cast is really great too, and they all have excellent chemistry.

Dirty Sexy Money: KEEPING! I loved this show to death, it's my favorite new show of the season behind Pushing Daisies.

In a few weeks I'll compile a list of the shows I'm going to regularly watch, since I'll definitely know after I've seen a few episodes of each (and by then a few shows will PROBABLY be canceled), and also a list of my top favorite new shows.

Hi, everyone, I'm back from my trip. I didn't give any details simply because I was running late last week, but unfortunately it's nothing really exciting. I flew out to Utah to visit friends there and to see if I wanted to go to the college out there (Utah Valley State College, which is becoming Utah Valley University next summer). I had a really good time and enjoyed myself but I'm glad I'm back.

Anyway, the television season has finally started! Here are the shows I've watched (that have premiered thus far) and what I'm doing with them:

Prison Break, Season Three: I stopped watching this show a couple of episodes into season two because it just got completely ludicrous, but this season is reinventing itself and I think it could be really good.

K-Ville: Keeping...but I may drop it before the season is over. Depends on where it goes.

Kid Nation: On the fence. I like the idea of it and I like the fact that kids are actually doing something and learning from it rather than just playing video games, but the end result is take it or leave it. I'll watch a couple of more episodes.

Beauty and the Geek: Dropping. I like it somewhat but I'm not really into the cast this year.

Gossip Girl: Keeping. It's pretty cheesy but fun in a guilty pleasure sort of way.

Survivor, Season Fifteen: Keeping. I haven't watched Survivor regularly since season four or so, but after getting into Big Brother 8 for some reason I just want to keep up with a reality show. The first episode was a lot more interesting than I had anticipated.

Back to You: Keeping for now. If it stays the same, I'll end up dropping it.

After months I have finally updated my profile banner. I made several and I didn't really like any of them but I thought that the Heroes one was the most different, so I chose that one, even though it's not my favorite show. (I'm not exactly sure it's even in my top five at the moment.)

So anyways:

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Big Brother 8

Does anyone else watch this show? I haven't ever kept up with this show regularly; the closest was during season one, and that's only because my dad watched it. But I have a friend who's super obsessed with it and he's been watching since season one and he's talked about it so much I gave in and watched the first episode this season, and I'm hooked. It's like a summertime soap opera, it's very fun and I enjoy watching the people interact. Nearly everyone has grown on me and it's hard to see em go.

Doctor Who

I've been catching up with the 2005 revival of Doctor Who. I'm only a few episodes in so far. It's a fun, humorous show and I've loving Christopher Eccleston. However, it's not an official favorite yet, despite the fun I get from viewing it. It's really cheesy, although I understand it's supposed to be. I'll continue to watch; I hope it grows on me.

Greek

I watched the first two episodes of this new ABC Family series today and I'm addicted! I didn't expect to like it nearly as much as I did, but this show is fun and it's very well executed. It really seems like it could air on network TV rather than ABCF but I'm glad they've added another great series to their lineup. I hope ABC Family continues in this direction.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I've been rewatching season four, which is my least favorite season, but this time, it's growing on me. I still dislike Riley and I think he and Buffy have no romantic chemistry but The Initiative is more interesting to me than before and I'm loving almost all of the standalone episodes. I think I could have loved The Initiative/Adam storyline had it all been approached in a different way.

Fall Pilots

To add to my pilots list I have Cavemen, The Big Bang Theory, and Bionic Woman. I loved BW and am looking forward to watching it each week. I hope NBC does right by this show and gives it a chance. The show's dark drama and humor isn't exactly mainstream but I think it could evolve into a cult series for NBC. The Big Bang Theory was much funnier than expected, and much more solid than the rocky start for The C l a s s, although I don't really care if it makes it: I'll watch if it stays but probably won't be too upset if it gets canned. Cavemen was pretty lame but there WERE some funny parts. One caveman - Nick, was extremely funny and his cynical views are awesome. Also, the drunken mother of one of the cavemen was also a keeper. The show is undergoing some major changes before it airs and I hope the one Caveman makes it. As bad as this pilot otherwise was, I'll watch the new pilot to see if it's improved.

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Top Songs to Download

"I Get It" - Chevelle (I am so obsessed with this song. It *rocks*. It's definitely one of Chevelle's best songs. Period.)

"Paralyzer" - Finger Eleven

"Brainstorm" - Arctic Monkeys

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Harry Potter

I'm still working on Deathly Hallows. I remember reading Goblet of Fire in TWO days, I've been working on this since the day it came out, I'm only on chapter sixteen. It's good, but I guess I'm just not as into it as I used to be, and I'm not desperate to know what happens. I've been avoiding spoilers for the most part even though I know who dies. Hopefully I'll have it finished in the next week.

I've seen the pilot for ABC's Pushing Daisies - the pilot I was most anticipating for the upcoming season. And not just once, but twice. And I will probably see it at LEAST three more times before the premiere this September.

Pushing Daisies is probably one of the most entertaining, thoroughly enjoyable pilots I've ever seen. It would be high on the list with other personal favorites such as Lost, Alias, Miracles, Supernatural, Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, Dexter, etc. But to be honest, in all of those pilots I could point out things I didn't like, but after watching this show twice, there's not one negative thing I can think of! And believe me, I tried. I hate sounding like those people who rate every show they watch a "10" and every episode of that show a perfect "10" as well and are never willing to point out something negative.

The casting is nearly perfect. My least favorite cast member is Chi McBride, I have absolutely hated him in the past, but in this he is suited fairly well and I didn't have any problems with him. Lee Pace was wonderful, charming, and funny. I never noticed him that much in Wonderfalls but here he makes a striking impression and I think many people will like him as Ned the Pie-Maker. Anna Friel is equally amazing and the chemistry between her and Lee Pace is astonishing. They are seriously the best, most lovable star-crossed couple in television.

I know this sounds silly, but I can already tell I'm going to be so into this show that I'll probably get upset when I see people bashing it. My mom watched it today and didn't like it (she loved "Chuck" though) and I was so irritated I couldn't even talk to her, lol. But then again my mom hates romance-themed stories. She just didn't get this show. Sucks for her.Regardless of whether or not you think you'll like this show, I think you'd do yourself a favor by watching the pilot, at least. Whether or not you like it, there's no denying that this is the most unique show on television right now, quite possibly ever. I don't think anything like this has ever been done on television. I hope this show is a success and makes it.

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My previous blog was deleted by those blowhards at Gamespot, I'm not even sure why. I don't recall a single offensive thing in it. Oh well.

To recap, I've watched basically ALL the pilots that are available now. Fortunately, all them them were great to good, and they will probably end up being the best new shows of the season. I

can't wait for midseason to see the continuation of The Sarah Connor Chronicles. It was action-packed and intense.

Aliens in America was a simply hilarious comedy and I think it will be the comedy that gets the most critical support this season. Reaper was good, not fantastic, but very enjoyable and I'll continue to watch. Chuck was awesome and I think it could turn into a hit for NBC if viewers will give it a chance.

The fall season is only about two months away. This season looks like it could be one of the best seasons in recent memory, at least in my opinion, with the combination of returning shows and new series, most of which look quite good...I only hope they live up to their promise, and their trailers.

Here are the top ten pilots I'm looking forward to. This is based on the premise, how interested I am, the trailers I've seen, and reviews. I'm sure the list will change as pilots are leaked on the net and more clips and spoilers are given.

10. Back to You / The Return of Jezebel James (FOX)

I don't know if either of these two new FOX comedies will make it to see another season. I'd rather not think about that right now, and just look forward to seeing whatever is made. Back to You is a fall debut and I think FOX will promote it pretty good. It has a wide slate of comedy veterans and while it's a traditional multi-camera show with a laugh track, I think it will be pretty funny. The Return of Jezebel James looks pretty funny, except that the laugh-track seems horribly out of place. I never watched Gilmore Girls so I don't know exactly what to expect but the previews look pretty charming.

9. Women's Murder Club (ABC)

I've sort of been looking for an interesting crime drama to get into, and I think this is it. The original CSI is okay, but I usually just watch it on DVD, and Cold Case is good but I don't have time for it in the season and it's not on DVD. Women's Murder Club - while obviously aimed at women - looks pretty good and dark, and I hope it doesn't let me down. I love Angie Harmon and the show also stars Aubrey Dollar of Point Pleasant, so I'm pretty intrigued.

8. Eli Stone (ABC)

This is a quirky new show from ABC about a guy named Eli - a lawyer - who begins seeing things and hearing George Michael songs in his head. Is he going crazy...or is he a prophet? The show features a great cast and looks fun. I hope it makes it in ABC's overcrowded schedule.

7. The Sarah Connor Chronicles (FOX)

I have to admit, I've never seen a single Terminator film. The basic premise never interested me and for that reason alone I had been hoping for months that FOX wouldn't pick this show up. But then, after I saw the promo, my attitude completely changed and I am now eagerly awaiting this show, which I hope FOX will air behind the Super Bowl. (Please, FOX! Don't air an established hit there, what a waste.) I only hope the show can sustain the amount of action that's featured in the pilot. And based on the reviews - there's LOTS of action.

6. Dirty Sexy Money (ABC)

I was sort of "eh" about this new ABC soap - the clips on ABC.com aren't very exciting but TV.com has a full promo which definitely grabbed my attention. Dirty Sexy Money features an all-star cast and tells the story of a filthy rich and crazy family and their lawyer. At appears to be a bit unique and mixes drama with quirky humor, and perhaps a dash of mystery. I hope it lives up to its hype.

5. Bionic Woman (NBC)

I hate the original, which was nothing but awful cheese (like most sci-fi of the era), but the re-imagining of this "cla s s i c" looks like a dark, kick-ass show which should attract many fans of ABC's now gone but awesome Alias. The show looks pretty cool based on the promos. I have read several positive reviews and a couple of mixed reviews, but overall I think this show will overcome any kinks that the pilot has and become a favorite of mine. It is supposedly NBC's favorite pilot and they plan on putting all of their promotional weight behind it. Can they make this their next Heroes?

4. Miss Guided (ABC)

ABC has a terrible rep when it comes to comedies - most of their comedies are extremely short lived and the ones that last are critically hated. But I have high hopes for this new midseason comedy, the previews of which make me laugh hysterically every time I watch them. The show is a single-camera quirky type of camera starring Judy Greer, who's done a lot of movies, as a nerdy girl who returns to her high school as a counselor. Rob Thomas, of Veronica Mars fame, has joined this show as a showrunner, which makes me very excited. I really hope this show is a success.

3. Reaper (The CW)

Starring Bret Harrison from my favorite recent FOX comedy The Loop, this show chronicles the life of Sam, who, on his 21st birthday, discovers his parents sold his soul to the devil - before he was born. Sam is enlisted by Satan himself to capture souls who have escaped hell. It's basically a comedic and better-looking version of Brimstone. Fortunately, my favorite critics loved this pilot as well so I think it will be okay. Unfortunately, it's up against Chuck. And BTW, this show is nothing like Supernatural so hopefully people be quit being morons and stop boycotting this show for no reason.

2. Chuck (NBC)

From Josh Schwartz, the creator of The O.C., comes a hilarious-looking new show about a computer nerd who gets all the government's secrets downloaded into his brain. The show blends humor and action and looks like an extremely fun way to spend an hour each week. Advertisers loved it and critics are loving it, and I only hope NBC's viewers love it.

1. Pushing Daisies (ABC)

This is Bryan Fuller's (Dead Like Me, Wonderfalls, Heroes) latest effort. In what looks to be the most original, intriguing television series in the history of TV, Fuller brings us the story of Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life. However, he can only bring people back for one minute or else someone else will die, and he can never touch them again or they will die forever. The show is a romance, mystery, comedy, drama, and fantasy - ABC calls it a forensic fairy tale love story. Every review so far has been positive and many of them have absolutely gushed over it. A fan of Dead Like Me and Wonderfalls, I can honestly say I am anticipating this show more than either of those and more than any other new show. ABC is heavily hyping this show...I truly hope their efforts pay off.

Other Honorable Mentions:

Moonlight (CBS) - Hopefully the addition of David Greenwalt and the massive changes will make this show good. The promo that was made from the 15-minute pilot presentation was horrible. But Greenwalt, from Angel and Miracles intrigues me.

Cane (CBS) - I hear good things about this lavishly-produced soap but I'm not sure it will last long at all on CBS and I'm not sure if I'll be into it enough to keep up with it during the season, even if I do like it. It seems like something I'd burn off in the summer.

Journeyman (NBC) - This show looks a little remarkable, and THANKFULLY unlike the horrible Quantam Leap which I cannot stand. Yet the show just doesn't jump out at me enough to make me excited for it, even though I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

New Amsterdam (FOX) - I'll watch this...for the six weeks it's on the air. Just kidding - I hope. This show looks pretty good and I like what I hear about it not being cynical when it comes to love - but I doubt today's fickle audience will embrace it and that FOX will let it have time to grow if it doesn't take off right away. I'm *hoping* that FOX will put this behind House to give it a good lead-in.

K-Ville (FOX) - Interesting, but looks like it could either get really good or really dull. And while the post-Katrina premise doesn't bother me one bit, will audiences watch it?

Gossip Girl (The CW) - I wasn't interested in this until a review assured that it had the same kind of humor that made me enjoy the first season of The OC. Whew. The trailers make it look humorless and overdramatic.

Returning Favorites

Lost (midseason), Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Ugly Betty, Supernatural, Everybody Hates Chris, Heroes, My Name is Earl, The Office, 30 Rock, Friday Night Lights, Bones, Prison Break.

I figured that I'd go blog crazy this summer - after all, it's summer, my regular shows are off the air, all I really am obligated to do is work...but I've blogged less this summer than I do during the regular year. Oh well - I've been working, occasionally hanging out with friends, watching crap on my computer, reading, working out, among other things. But for the next few days I'm going to try to catch up on TV.com and comment on my friends blogs and talk to people I've lost contact with, stuff like that.

I guess tonight I'll cover a few entertainment-related topics.

MOVIES

TRANSFORMERS

I saw this movie on July 4th with my mom and brother. The theater was effing packed...and when I say packed I mean in the every-seat-was-taken sense. We had to sit on the first row which totally SUCKED - my usual spot is the second from the top at the very back! Oh well. It was a pretty good movie, and this is coming from someone who hated "Transformers" as a kid. Never got into it at all. But the movie was cool. It was VERY funny in places, which is why I was able to connect with it. The whole idea of the Transformers and their backstory and the fact that there was a whole planet of robots is completely ludicrous but I was able to enjoy the movie. Shia and that hot chick were awesome, the Transformers were pretty cool, and the Camaro was great as well - although for the record I am a MUSTANG fan. The action scenes were well done, but like I said earlier, the humor is what made me like it. The parents were PRICELESS and I will buy the DVD just to watch them again. This was a fun escapist flick. Just pure fun. And for that...4/5.

1408

The only reason I saw this in theaters was because a friend wanted to go and HIS friend's sister is a manager at the theater and got us in free...but man I was glad we went, because this movie was a pleasant surprise. This is a cool and interesting thriller/horror movie based on a Stephen King story, as most of you know. Unlike most recent horror movies, 1408 does not substitute gore for fright. The movie takes a while to get to the actual cursed room - about 30 minutes - which is a good thing. Build-up is KEY, but most horror stories forget this. (Kripke, take a lesson for Supernatural.) The movie does actually manage to be pretty tense and while I was not SCARED, I was much more creeped out than I have been in a LONG time. And while most people dislike the somewhat happy ending, I found it refreshing. I give this one a 4/5 as well.

Knocked Up

Judd Apatow is now one of my favorite writers EVER. In addition to creating two of the best series I have ever seen - Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, he has delivered one of the most hilarious movies I have ever seen in my life. Almost everything about this movie is perfect. The casting is nearly flawless, especially Paul Rudd, Seth Rogan, and the sister of Heigl's character (I can't remember her name). This movie has every kind of humor - from raunchy and dirty to the clever kind of real-life humor that makes The Office such a great show. The movie balances chick flick with guy flick perfectly and seriously just comes out being one of my favorite comedies ever. 5/5.

The Reaping

Erm...I'm glad I didn't see this in theaters. I had really wanted to, religious horror movies are right up my alley (Rosemary's Baby, The Omen, The Order, Point Pleasant). The Reaping isn't a horrible movie. It starts out pretty darn good but then just starts to go downward and the ending is a little silly...it's entertaining but definitely not what I expected. It could have been so much better. I might would watch it again in a year or so. 2.7/5

TELEVISION

Hidden Palms

I had been looking forward to this for OVER A YEAR! Ever since it was announced last pilot season, I had been hoping for it to be picked up - a dark drama from Kevin Williamson? Count me in. I was thrilled when it was one of only two dramas picked up by The CW. I enjoyed the flawed pilot when I saw it last June, and I assumed the show would find itself and get better. Last Saturday, after the show had aired all eight episodes, I sat down and watched the entire thing. I have extremely mixed feelings about it - it's not a terrible show, but in the end the mystery seems pointless and has nothing to do with the main character - unlike the awesome first season mysteries of Desperate Housewives and Veronica Mars. The show wasn't dark enough and had a lot of bland plot lines. It was not as edgy as it wanted to be, either. Every now and then there were some great moments but the show just lost it in the end. It wasn't horrible, but it certainly wasn't good, either. I did like the seemingly sociopathic Cliff, but in the end he didn't turn out very dangerous like I had hoped. 2.5/5

Big Brother 8

I haven't watched Big Brother since the first season, when my dad watched it. I didn't want to get into it but I caved and watched the first episode. I liked it, dammit! I'm sort of disappointed in myself but I find myself loving this trainwreck. And there are some EXTREMELY hot girls this year. DAMMNNN. I don't know how long I'll keep watching - probably until the hot chicks are gone.

Other Stuff

- I'll be catching up on Traveler - which is as dead as Hidden Palms - later this week.

- Title of the blog comes from the movie, which I'm watching right now. It's pretty damn awesome.

- I'm pretty pissed that it's July and STILL no pilots have been leaked on the internet.

This weekend I watched the first two episodes of the British series Skins.

It's not a great show, at least so far, but very entertaining. My favorite character so far is Cassie. I find Tony to be somewhat interesting because of his sociopathic tendancies. Overall I can't say I really love any of the characters, and I don't know any teen whose life is what's portrayed on this show, and it's a bit cliche, yet I find myself enjoying it. The show does have occasional oddball, random humor that I love. (For example: Cassie and the cab driver moving their heads to a rap song in episode two. I found that hilarious.)

I'm going to download a few more episodes tonight and watch them tomorrow after work.

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Today I watched some episodes of Big Love. It's a show I'm a fan of, but I watched the first four episodes a long time ago and then sort of lost track. I have had all of the episodes on my computer ever since they aired but am just now getting around to it. I'm amazed at how much I love the characters, and I can relate since I was raised a Mormon. I can't wait to finish up the season and start on season two, which I will hopefully be able to keep up with episode-by-episode. This show might be my favorite HBO series (currently airing).

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I plan on doing a LOT of TV and movie watching this week. Thursday I have friends from Utah flying down, they're staying a week, so I will basically have zero me time to watch stuff while they're here, and I have so much to catch up on...I'll just have to cram as much stuff in as I can in the next three days.

So, it's summer. I had been planning on spending much of the off-season catching up on TV shows and such, and for the most part I have, but for the last few weeks, I've been spending time that could go to things I've never seen before to one certain show: Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

I had promised myself that after I finished season three I would stop and finish rewatching the series later, but I finished "Graduation Day, Part 2" today and then immediately started season four! I think what I'll do is just watch a couple a day while I also watch other stuff, because I have a hefty list of stuff I need to watch, including:

- About 20 movies that have been on my hard drive for a long, long time.

- Grey's Anatomy, season three. I've seen about 13-14 episodes of s3 so far. I plan on watching at least two tonight.

- Bones, the last five episodes of season one and all of season two.

- My Name is Earl, season two.

- October Road, the last four episodes, if the atrocious dialogue gets any better.

- Men in Trees, episode 7-onward.

- Friday Night Lights, season 1.

- CSI.

- The Riches, all.

- Medium, season three.

- Nip/Tuck, seasons 2-4.

- One Tree Hill, all.

Among many others.

How about I make this a Buffy devotion blog. I'll list my favorites of various aspects...

Favorite Seasons

(Ranked from least to most favorite.)

7. Season Four
6. Season One
5. Season Two
4. Season Five
3. Season Three
2. Season Six
1. Season Seven

Favorite Season Premieres

7. When She Was Bad
6. Buffy vs. Dracula
5. Bargaining
4. Lessons
3. The Freshman
2. Pilot (Welcome to the Hellmouth/The Harvest)
1. Anne

Favorite Season Finales

7. Restless
6. Becoming
5. Grave
4. Prophecy Girl
3. Graduation Day
2. The Gift
1. Chosen

Top Three Favorite Big Bads

- The Master
- Caleb/The First Evil
- Dark Willow

Top Favorite Non-Buffy Characters

Cordelia Chase - Funny, so very very hilarious, and hot.

Faith LeHane - Hot, interesting, great character and portrayed well by Eliza.

Anya - HILARIOUS.

Eddie - Buffy's friend from The Freshman, he died and became a vamp. I liked him.

Spike - After he came back in season four, that is. Didn't like him much in season two.

Top Favorite/Most Memorable Episodes (non premieres/finales)

***SPOILER***

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I guess that's it for now, I'll probably do another blog about more general things this week.

So, I'm *finally* - albeit slowly - getting caught up with the third season of Grey's Anatomy. If I don't force myself to watch it all now, I'll end up watching something else this summer and forget to finish before season four starts.

I'm eleven episodes in so far. I'm really enjoying it, for the most part. Izzie is finally becoming Izzie again, I'm starting to like Alex more, Addison rocks even more, and the show is still pretty darn funny a lot of the times, with a usually fair balance with drama.

And I just found a new favorite band thanks to Grey's Anatomy - Travis. One of their songs was featured at the end of part one of "Six Days", and I loved it. Unfortunately, it's not on their freakin' MySpace *but* their other songs are pretty good too.

The blog title has nothing to do with the actual blog but it's a kick-ass song from Within Temptation. Check it out. Anyway, two things I wanna talk about: 

1. Lost

2. Pushing Daisies

LOST

Wow, that was a mindblowing, amazing season finale. I loved it. Actually, while watching it I sometimes felt like it was going to be disappointing, but now that it's said and done, and I've had the time to absorb it all and digest, I realized that it was one of the best season finales I've ever seen. It was dramatic, funny, smart, exciting, sad, and shocking. It was classic "Lost", and better. I cannot believe that the fourth season won't air for another NINE MONTHS! It's going to be torture. It would be a lot easier to handle, though, if I knew exactly HOW the show is going to change. A lot is up in the air now and there are at least four or five different ways in which the show could change now. DAMMIT.

PUSHING DAISIES

ABC.com *finally* has a full trailer. I cannot praise this show enough, and I haven't even seen it. I'm sure that the show will live up to its hype - nearly every critic who's screened the pilot is saying it's the best show of the fall, and you can tell from the trailer that it is definitely THE most unique thing to EVER air on television. I cannot wait for this show. It's going to be my new obsession. Heck, it already is. Everything about it looks perfect! The cast is great and has excellent chemistry. The storyline is engaging. Everything looks beautiful and surreal. It looks hilarious, and sad, and morbid (in a funny way), and "cute".

View the trailer below:

http://abc.go.com/fallpreview/pushingdaisies/index 

For the past month or so, with May upfronts and all, I've been thinking a lot about TV. (Surprise, surprise.) This includes thinking about shows that get canceled before their time, especially a serialized show or a show with a central mystery that needs to be resolved. And at the same time I was reading a couple of different books/book series that I thought would make excellent TV shows - if they were short TV shows.

British TV has a long tradition of television in which shows usually consist of short seasons, sometimes just one shot seasons, which are basically an extended miniseries, or else plotlines will be usually wrapped up within a season. 

Now, I have no desire whatsoever for the US networks to adopt this model, even if they could find a way to make it profitable. I like shows that are able to get 22 episodes per season and run for several seasons, even though it's obviously very risky, with most of the better shows getting canceled. But, I do think that the networks should experiment more with limited series. Networks are constantly looking for ways to lessen the number of reruns the air. How about this? During the fall, their more succesful shows can run for 22 episodes, but end early in the season. And then, in March or so, a few of them could be replaced with limited run, 13-episode long shows that would run until May. They could do this with their more risky yet creative shows, and it would ensure that everything would get wrapped up. And when possible, if a show is a big enough hit and it would be possible to revive it without making it ridiculous, they could try that.

I think doing that would be particularly beneficial to sci-fi/fantasy/horror series that traditionally don't do very well on network television, since their "niche" type shows. But if people knew that they weren't going to go on forever, and end with a satisfying conclusion after 13 episodes, perhaps people would tune in.

I know it would never happen, but that's why I entitled this blog "TV Thoughts".   (I'll probably do more random TV Thoughts blogs.)

Hey, look. I'm finally in the mood to blog again. I guess that last one took a lot of energy out of me. But now here it us, after upfronts, and I'm all excited about the fall schedule. But first let me get other stuff out of the way, because I'll be talking about the new lineups a lot.

++++++++++++++

MOVIES

Spider-Man 3

This movie has been getting a lot of criticism. Personally, I enjoyed it and I don't think it sucked. It wasn't as good as the second film, but it was a fun experience. I didn't feel it was too long - there was so much material that nothing seemed to drag on for me. The movie had lots of humor. I loved the uber-cheesy scene when Peter was dancing down the sidewalk. Venom, my favorite villain in the Spidey universe, totally rocked. Sandman, eh I didn't like him that much. Topher Grace was one of the stand-out actors in this movie for me. I don't watch "That 70s Show" so I've actually never seen him in anything but he was great. He would have made a better Spider-Man than Tobey Maguire in my opinion.

My Grade: B-

Shrek the Third

I just saw this movie tonight, and I found it enjoyable. I was initially concerned by a review I had read, but while it wasn't as funny as the first two, it had its moments. During the somewhat morbid scence involving the frog, I just started cracking up. I don't know why, really, it shouldn't have been that funny. But I was literally laughing so hard I had to hold it in to keep from laughing extremely loud, and I couldn't breathe. There were tons of hilarious scenes in this movie. I'll love it until my youngest brother gets his hands on the DVD and starts watching it twice a day (which is what he did with the first two).

My Grade: B

+++++++++++++++

Television

Dead Like Me - I recently fell in love with this show for a second time. My mother wanted to watch it after she saw the season one set in my room. I warned her that the language was very strong - she doesn't mind mild language, but I knew this would rub her the wrong way - she insisted on watching it anyway so we watched the first two episodes together. She liked the show but gave up because of the language. Oh well, her problem. This show is HILARIOUS and AWESOME. 

Grey's Anatomy - I finally started season three today, I'm two episodes in. I'll be caught up well before the fourth season premieres. It's an addicting show. However, it's very cheesy sometimes. The cast tries too hard to be cute. The dialogue isn't as witty as it thinks it is. Yet, it's quite a fun show and I enjoy watching it. Sometimes.

Lost - Only a few days until the third season finale, and I cannot wait. I can't tell you how much I'm in love with this show. For a long time it had fallen pretty far on my favorites list (ok, not far, like to #5) but now it's my #1 again. Every episode since the hiatus has been great, and it's slowly been rebuilding itself to AWESOME status. Quite an exhilirating show, with excellent characters, a fantastic cast, smart writing, beautiful cinematography...this show has it all.

+++++++++++++

The 2007-2008 Season

NBC - I really like NBC's schedule. Why is everyone hating on it? It looks like their best schedule in a long time. Sundays are pretty much dead to me, as I do not like football. Come January I'll be watching Medium and I will check out the pilot of Lipstick Jungle, just because I'm a person who likes to sample a wide variety of shows. Mondays, I'll be skipping Deal or No Deal. I'll definitely continue to watch Heroes, and I plan on watching Journeyman. On Tuesdays, I'll be skipping The Biggest Loser, and watching Chuck and Law & Order: SVU. On Wednesdays, skipping DoND again and watching Bionic Woman and at least sampling Life. Thursdays, I watch all of those comedies and skip ER. On Fridays...well, I won't bother with the game shows. I like Las Vegas but am still on season one, so I won't be watching this season on air. And I like Friday Night Lights but I will probably wait for the DVD.

NOTE: When I say "watch", I do not mean watch live. I download everything I watch and then view them when I have time.

ABC - Oh, ABC. Once again you will be THE network for me. I love ABC. And I love the look of all of their new [scripted] shows, with the exception of sitcom Cavemen, which will most likely be the first failure of the season. What do I plan on watching on ABC this fall? Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Sam I Am, Notes From the Underbelly, possibly October Road if the ATROCIOUS dialogue improves, Cashmere Mafia, Pushing Daisies, Private Practice, Dirty Sexy Money, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Big Shots, Women's Murder Club, Eli Stone, Lost, and Miss Guided. 

I know most of the newcomers will PROBABLY get canceled by the end of the season, but I really, really hope that nearly everything gets renewed, ABC is probably going to have their best season (in terms of shows) that they've had in ages. I really wish they'd develop a horror series, then they'd have it all pretty much. Biggest show on ABC I'm looking forward to? PUSHING DAISIES. This is going to be my crack.

CBS - Erm, what can I say? I don't really HATE CBS, in fact I like a lot of their crime shows, but I do not keep up with them. I love Cold Case but I am very slow catching up with it, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is the only crime show I buy on DVD...I also somewhat enjoy Ghost Whisperer but I don't really watch it "in season" either. I will check out Cane, Swingtown (midseason), Viva Laughlin, and Moonlight (which will most likely suck). 

FOX - FOX...erm, I have very mixed feelings about their schedule. It looks OK, but way too much reality crap. I love Bones, I'm tired of House...their new comedies Back to You, The Rules For Starting Over, and The Return of Jezebel James look good. Til Death should be dead. New Amsterdam and K-Ville look promising, The Sarah Chronicles is something I wanna check out, but FOX is mostly holding everything good until midseason. I guess I can't blame them. But ya know, when FOX does sci-fi/fantasy/horror they usually churn out something that I get completely addicted to (their last show in this genre was Point Pleasant, which wasn't that good but I became completely addicted), but this season, neither sci-fi offering looks addiction-worthy. At least finally they have some good comedies.

The CW - I know Veronica Mars had to go for business purposes - it's been called the longest running unsuccessful show on TV - but I'm still highly upset that The CW let it go. I don't blame Dawn Ostroff - she's not the villain here, it's HER bosses. But, Supernatural is coming back which is awesome. New offerings...Reaper looks EXCELLENT, very funny. Aliens in America looks very edgy for The CW and I'm excited for it. Gossip Girl...well it's going to be girly but Kristen Bell's voice so I'm SO THERE. Life is Wild looks sorta bad. And what the HELL kinda title is that? That is a tagline, NOT a title. They should rename it Wild at Heart. 

Look's like I'm in for a lot of TV viewing...until the network's start axing away or until they get crappy.

(Note: This blog comes in two, parts: the first part is a rant about FOX, the second is typical blog stuff.)

It doesn't come as a surprise, but I'm still angry about it: FOX has cancelled Drive. I suppose there is a little bit of shock though...out of all the shows I've liked on FOX that have been axed, none of them were yanked as mercilessly as this one. Fox pulled it after only TWO WEEKS.

I feel quite upset by this cancellation: why probably receiving the most mixed reviews of any Tim Minear series, Drive is probably my favorite. It was on the scale of Lost for me: it managed to be cool and stylish and fast-paced, while also being smart, intelligent, thrilling, and it provided a great supply of characters, all of whom I cared for. I liked every cast member as well, which I think is an actual television first for me, when it comes to shows with ensemble casts.

The worst part is, apparantly the crew had only filmed six of it's ordered thirteen episodes, which means a DVD release is pointless. At least Wonderfalls and The Inside had their entire order filmed. This is just cruel...my favorite show this season has fizzled away into nothing thanks to its network.

I can completely understand why a network would cancel a show due to low ratings, but FOX pretty much screwed Drive over themselves. First, they gave it a two-night, three hour premiere. Why would the average TV viewer commit to that, especially when they don't know if they'd like the show or not? Not even 24 did that until it was a well-established hit and it knew the fans would watch. Secondly, the promos for the show were awful. They did not portray the show as it was, but instead as a shallow rip-off of The Fast and the Furious. FOX should have premiered this after American Idol to give it more exposure. More people would have watched and while there would have been a drop-off with the second episode, I am betting more people would have stuck around, possibly enough to keep it on for at LEAST thirteen episodes.

I have to give credit to Peter Luguori though, the president head. He was a fan of the show, he fought to get it on the air. Unfortunately, heads of networks are like any other CEO: they're a figurehead with not much power. And other executives at FOX apparantly hated the show and didn't want to go forward with it. So, Peter, thanks for trying. As to you other people at FOX: please go somewhere and be brutally tortured.

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Wow, I feel better after that rant.

Anyway, I recently read ABC's press release describing its drama pilots. I think most of them sound quite excellent, or at least potentially. The sucky thing is that so many of their shows are being renewed there's hardly any room for new shows. (Too bad I don't like that many of the shows ABC renewed.) Here are the ABC drama pilots I'd like to see:

Dirty Sexy Money

Eli Stone

Football Wives

Mr & Mrs Smith

Pushing Daisies

Suspect

Perfect Gentlemen

Private Practice (The "Grey's Anatomy" Spinoff)

Women's Murder Club (It's an idiotic title, but the show sounds cool.)

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And here are the FOX dramas I'd like to see (if they don't freakin' CANCEL THEM after TWO WEEKS!!!!):

The Apostles (I actually thought this sounded terrible until I read the press release. It sounds dark and potentially thrilling. If that's the case, bring it on. If not, I won't be watchin'.)

Company Man

K-Ville

New Amsterdam

Nurses (Only because of Eliza Dushku. )

Them

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That's it for now, I was actually planning a better blog and more material but I'm a little too depressed right now.