Glee 3-11: "Michael" 2012.01.31

Human Nature was GORGEOUS and I loved the performance. I don't even care that she technically has a boyfriend. I don't know him well enough to really care and honestly, it was absolutely adorable. I'm disappointed Glee went that route again, but I'll have to see what happens in the next episode. The reactions is what usually decides it for me, not the act so much given that it wasn't premeditated. They looked like they were caught in the moment, and I just had this big stupid grin on my face the entire time.

Scream - Harry and Kevin, let me love you all the way down. Hated this arrangement, but that performance made me happy. I liked NCSG because of the context, not the vocals. Quinn, I love you again. Santana was flawless (minus Smooth Criminal, though I liked her at the end). Underboob killed me.

I laughed so much during this episode for all the wrong reasons. Everything Finchel-related made me laugh, especially IJCSLY. The faces were too much. I laughed when I thought she didn't get in, but then I was happy she did because I didn't want to hear her complain about it for the rest of the season. Rachel's face when she realized she got in after accepting Finn's proposal = me rolling on the floor. Blaine's eye patch, the Bad performance, just so much hilarity.

Burt being happy for Kurt was adorable. And I loved Artie snapping on Mr. Schue. Damn straight, Artie! Enough is enough. Sane!Quinn seems to be permanent and I love it. I also loved how all of Glee's continuity is in her locker. Hm.

Hated Ben, IJCSLY, Bad, Smooth Criminal (cellists were amazing, though), WBSS was so painful...basically everything but Human Nature, NCSG and Scream was awful but the performances helped. Didn't like Kurt's sudden change to play nice - again. Come off your pedestal, Kurt. I swear it won't hurt much.

Overall, a bad episode that was thoroughly enjoyable for the wrong reasons. Can't wait for what is bound to be an offensive episode next week.

Gossip Girl 5-13: "GG" 2012.01.30

Ok last night’s episode.

Overall I loved it apart from two things.

The God pact BS resurged again. If they want to revisit Chair again (!) fine but suggesting the only thing that could possibly separate them is the will of God is insufferable in the light of all the crap he put her through in the past. Honestly!

They seem to be hinting that Dan might have been the one who sent the video (Chuck’s snide remark on the phone, Dan’s admittedly guilty expression). Again, for the love of god, if they want to put chair back again fair enough, but why does every single character be sacrificed on the altar of Saint Chuckles.

Positive parts:
They managed to stop the wedding without making Chuck relapse again and did it whilst giving him some choice (S1reminiscent Chuck) lines. ‘I don’t play those kinds of games any more, father’, using Mexican water to turn the father’s bowels against him. That is the Chuck I like to see on screen.

Absolute favourite moment the two Princess Bride references. The obvious one from Cyrus and the (cute move writers) ‘one dad is not enough’ from Blair. Wonderful pop culture reference that simultaneously packed an emotional wallop.

The misdirect leading us to believe that Blair would take the obvious route and call Chuck only to have Dan steal a Rolls. What is it with these two and road trips in classic cars? Again cute move by the writers.

Nate keeps being the most likeable man on the show, possibly even the CW network.
I liked the callbacks to the pilot.

I was genuinely surprised about the identity of GG, at least the current incarnation. Not entirely sure how GG posted while she was stuck in Belarus. Still have to check the previous seasons to see whether the GGless interval coincide with the most infamous Georgina walkabouts. My money was on real Charlie, who BTW who seems like an actual person (kudos writers!) and possibly precisely the company Nate needs right now.

Hugo Becker shocked me by actually acting something out believably. Really his 19th Century style royal revenge was chilling and finally added some flavour to the character. No reaction from Blair to Dan writing the vows, unless that was an added deciding factor in calling him for help, rather than him merely being the one person she can always count on.

Loved the fact that Blair unwittingly gently told Serena that Dan wasn’t currently in love with her whilst pushing her to take her chance (very Rufus earlier on in the season). ‘You are looking at him the way he USED to look at you’. Ouch Serena and very telling on how Blair see things, it hints that she thinks it is merely a matter of time before Dan falls for Serena again, which I rather suspect is why she never pushed him in S4 when he unconvincingly told everyone the kiss had meant nothing to him. Double ouch for Serena BTW, Georgina telling her that everyone could see Dan was madly in love with Blair except her apparently. Georgina maybe the devil but she did have a point there .

More importantly for the first time this season I am excited in a good way for next week’s ep.

Once Upon a Time 1-11: "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree" 2012.01.29

I enjoyed the episode, although I find that interesting since the focus was on a character who isn't even in the main cast. But Giancarlo Esposito is doing a great job. Loved the twist that Sidney used to be the genie (from Aladdin I'm assuming) before becoming the Mirror, and how it was his own damn fault that is happened. He knew that wishes had a way of biting him in the ass, but his love (lust?) for the Evil Queen did him in.

Always great to see Richard Schiff. King Leopard had some nice moments, but between him, Midas, and King Charming, it seems every king in fairy-land is kind of off in some ways. While not evil like Charming, reading the diary was uncool and kind of creepy of him. And the fact that he knew he was showing EQ the love she needed, but still wanted to hunt down the guy she was crushing on and punish him, felt unnecessarily mean. It didn't sound like he merely wanted to find him and banish whoever the guy was; I think he had more sinister plans for the guy.

Emma was really off her game in this episode and it was painful to watch.

Still couldn't give a damn about the Stranger. On the other hand, Mr. Gold continues to be awesome.

Screen Actors Guild Awards Winners List

Motion Pictures

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
JEAN DUJARDIN / George – THE ARTIST (The Weinstein Company)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
VIOLA DAVIS / Aibileen Clark – THE HELP (DreamWorks Pictures / Touchstone Pictures)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER / Hal - BEGINNERS (Focus Features)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
OCTAVIA SPENCER / Minny Jackson - The Help (DreamWorks Pictures/ Touchstone Pictures)

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
THE HELP (DreamWorks Pictures/Touchstone Pictures)
JESSICA CHASTAIN / Celia Foote
VIOLA DAVIS / Aibileen Clark
BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD / Hilly Holbrook
ALLISON JANNEY / Charlotte Phelan
CHRIS LOWELL / Stuart Whitworth
AHNA O’REILLY / Elizabeth Leefolt
SISSY SPACEK / Missus Walters
OCTAVIA SPENCER / Minny Jackson
MARY STEENBURGEN / Elaine Stein
EMMA STONE / Skeeter Phelan
CICELY TYSON / Constantine Jefferson
MIKE VOGEL / Johnny Foote

Primetime Television

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
PAUL GIAMATTI / Ben Bernanke – TOO BIG TO FAIL (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
KATE WINSLET / Mildred Pierce – MILDRED PIERCE (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
STEVE BUSCEMI / Enoch “Nucky” Thompson – BOARDWALK EMPIRE (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
JESSICA LANGE / Constance – AMERICAN HORROR STORY (FX)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
ALEC BALDWIN / Jack Donaghy – 30 ROCK (NBC)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
BETTY WHITE / Elka Ostrovsky – HOT IN CLEVELAND (TV Land)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
BOARDWALK EMPIRE (HBO)
STEVE BUSCEMI / Enoch “Nucky” Thompson
DOMINIC CHIANESE / Leander Cephas Whitlock
ROBERT CLOHESSY / Ward Boss Jim Neary
DABNEY COLEMAN / Commodore Louis Kaestner
CHARLIE COX / Owen Sleater
JOSIE & LUCY GALLINA / Emily Schroeder
STEPHEN GRAHAM / Al Capone
JACK HUSTON / Richard Harrow
ANTHONY LACIURA / Eddie Kessler
HEATHER LIND / Katy
KELLY MACDONALD / Margaret Schroeder
RORY & DECLAN McTIGUE / Teddy Schroeder
GRETCHEN MOL / Gillian Darmody
BRADY & CONNOR NOON/ Tommy Darmody
KEVIN O’ROURKE / Mayor Edward Bader
ALEKSA PALLADINO / Angela Darmody
JACQUELINE PENNEWILL / Lilian
VINCENT PIAZZA / Lucky Luciano
MICHAEL PITT / Jimmy Darmody
MICHAEL SHANNON / Agent Nelson Van Alden
PAUL SPARKS / Mickey Doyle
MICHAEL STUHLBARG / Arnold Rothstein
PETER VAN WAGNER / Isaac “Icky” Ginsburg
SHEA WHIGHAM / Sheriff Elias Thompson
MICHAEL KENNETH WILLIAMS / Chalky White
ANATOL YUSEF / Meyer Lansky

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
AUBREY ANDERSON-EMMONS / Lily
JULIE BOWEN / Claire
TY BURRELL / Phil
JESSE TYLER FERGUSON / Mitchell
NOLAN GOULD / Luke
SARAH HYLAND / Haley
ED O’NEILL / Jay
RICO RODRIGUEZ / Manny
ERIC STONESTREET / Cameron
SOFIA VERGARA / Gloria
ARIEL WINTER / Alex

Lifetime Achievement Award
MARY TYLER MOORE

SAG Honors For Stunt Ensembles

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 (Warner Bros Pictures)

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
GAME OF THRONES (HBO)

The Game Season 5 Ep 4. The Black Episode

Its a sad day when Jason is the most likeable part of the show. I hate this ridiculous feud it feels like a low rent Real Houswives. I loved the female relationships on this show and I hope we get them back soon. Oh and someone needs to smack Tasha hard.

90210 -4×14- Mama Can You Hear Me?

All right, I think my favorite moment tonight was Vanessa telling Annie, the girl who has literally killed someone and whored herself for her brother's rehab money, to watch out because she didn't know what Vanessa was capable of. Hey Vanessa, Annie isn't a wimp like you, when she runs someone down, she finishes the job. And even more to the point, if Liam wants to stay with the criminal who ran him down and lied about it, then let him have her. Dude is not worth it.

As for the rest, blah. I find it bizarre that Silver's boyfriend a month or two is asking her to move away with him to New York. And Navid is seriously a huge loser. In no uncertain terms is the whereabouts of Adrianna's crack baby his business. I realize that Navid has shown over and over that he has horrible judgment, but damn. Way to mess with a three year old's life in what is basically an attempt to get back at and/or with Silver.

I did like Naomi's storyline, and I didn't mind Ivy and her boyfriend who desperately needs a haircut. I'll roll my eyes if Naomi opens a business, but in terms of this show, it makes complete sense that an 18 year old who interned with an event planner for a month or so is now opening her own shop to plan events.

And I can honestly say I don't care for a minute if the show's two most boring characters burned down half of LA.

84th Academy Awards Nominations

Best Picture

“The Artist” Thomas Langmann, Producer
“The Descendants” Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Producers
“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” Scott Rudin, Producer
“The Help” Brunson Green, Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan, Producers
“Hugo” Graham King and Martin Scorsese, Producers
“Midnight in Paris” Letty Aronson and Stephen Tenenbaum, Producers
“Moneyball” Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz and Brad Pitt, Producers
“The Tree of Life” Nominees to be determined
“War Horse” Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers

Directing

“The Artist” Michel Hazanavicius
“The Descendants” Alexander Payne
“Hugo” Martin Scorsese
“Midnight in Paris” Woody Allen
“The Tree of Life” Terrence Malick

Actor in a Leading Role

Demián Bichir in “A Better Life”
George Clooney in “The Descendants”
Jean Dujardin in “The Artist”
Gary Oldman in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
Brad Pitt in “Moneyball”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Kenneth Branagh in “My Week with Marilyn”
Jonah Hill in “Moneyball”
Nick Nolte in “Warrior”
Christopher Plummer in “Beginners”
Max von Sydow in “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

Actress in a Leading Role

Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs”
Viola Davis in “The Help”
Rooney Mara in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
Meryl Streep in “The Iron Lady”
Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn”

Actress in a Supporting Role

Bérénice Bejo in “The Artist”
Jessica Chastain in “The Help”
Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids”
Janet McTeer in “Albert Nobbs”
Octavia Spencer in “The Help”

Animated Feature Film

“A Cat in Paris” Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
“Chico & Rita” Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
“Kung Fu Panda 2″ Jennifer Yuh Nelson
“Puss in Boots” Chris Miller
“Rango” Gore Verbinski

Foreign Language Film

“Bullhead” Belgium
“Footnote” Israel
“In Darkness” Poland
“Monsieur Lazhar” Canada
“A Separation” Iran

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

“The Descendants” Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
“Hugo” Screenplay by John Logan
“The Ides of March” Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
“Moneyball” Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin. Story by Stan Chervin
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay)

“The Artist” Written by Michel Hazanavicius
“Bridesmaids” Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig
“Margin Call” Written by J.C. Chandor
“Midnight in Paris” Written by Woody Allen
“A Separation” Written by Asghar Farhad

Art Direction

“The Artist” Production Design: Laurence Bennett; Set Decoration: Robert Gould
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
“Hugo” Production Design: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
“Midnight in Paris” Production Design: Anne Seibel; Set Decoration: Hélène Dubreuil
“War Horse” Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales

Cinematography

“The Artist” Guillaume Schiffman
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Jeff Cronenweth
“Hugo” Robert Richardson
“The Tree of Life” Emmanuel Lubezki
“War Horse” Janusz Kaminsk

Costume Design

“Anonymous” Lisy Christl
“The Artist” Mark Bridges
“Hugo” Sandy Powell
“Jane Eyre” Michael O’Connor
“W.E.” Arianne Phillips

Documentary (Feature)

“Hell and Back Again” Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner
“If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front” Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman
“Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory” Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
“Pina” Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel
“Undefeated” TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas

Documentary (Short Subject)

“The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement” Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin
“God Is the Bigger Elvis” Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson
“Incident in New Baghdad”James Spione
“Saving Face” Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
“The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom” Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen

Film Editing

“The Artist” Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius
“The Descendants” Kevin Tent
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
“Hugo” Thelma Schoonmaker
“Moneyball” Christopher Tellefsen

Makeup

“Albert Nobbs” Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnston and Matthew W. Mungle
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ Edouard F. Henriques, Gregory Funk and Yolanda Toussieng
“The Iron Lady” Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland

Music (Original Score)

“The Adventures of Tintin” John Williams
“The Artist” Ludovic Bource
“Hugo” Howard Shore
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” Alberto Iglesias
“War Horse” John Williams

Music (Original Song)

“Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets” Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
“Real in Rio” from “Rio” Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown Lyric by Siedah Garrett

Short Film (Animated)

“Dimanche/Sunday” Patrick Doyon
“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg
“La Luna” Enrico Casarosa
“A Morning Stroll” Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe
“Wild Life” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby

Short Film (Live Action)

“Pentecost” Peter McDonald and Eimear O’Kane
“Raju” Max Zähle and Stefan Gieren
“The Shore” Terry George and Oorlagh George
“Time Freak” Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey
“Tuba Atlantic” Hallvar Witzø

Sound Editing

“Drive” Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” Ren Klyce
“Hugo” Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl
“War Horse” Richard Hymns and Gary Rydstrom

Sound Mixing

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Bo Persson
“Hugo” Tom Fleischman and John Midgley
“Moneyball” Deb Adair, Ron Bochar, Dave Giammarco and Ed Novick
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Peter J. Devlin
“War Horse” Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson and Stuart Wilson

Visual Effects

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson
“Hugo” Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning
“Real Steel” Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes” Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Matthew Butler and John Frazier

The Oscars will be televised live on February 26 with host Billy Crystal

Gossip Girl 5-12: "Father and the Bride" 2012.01.23

Huh, I kind of liked the Beatrice and Blair interactions better this episode. Her being a non-minion buddy of Blair's to butt heads over Serena could be fun. The only thing is while I got Beatrice becoming sympathetic to Blair when Blair explained her reasons for marrying Louis and giving up Chuck, I still would think that Beatrice wouldn't like that Blair was settling for her brother and Louis would be second best in his own marriage.

Still loving sneaky, professional hot suit wearing Nate.

Bummer that Trip's exit is his being a blame shifting near manslaughterer. He was slimey but they wrote him out on all time low.

I'm appreciating Serena having to work to get a man for once. Dan's not trying to be completely clueless to her feelings but he has seemed to have put Serena in his past so he's just not open to realizing that she's back into him again.

Interesting that in a way they set up Blair to start falling for Dan in that way via the wedding vows he wrote for Louis. Although, WTH, Louis, you have Dan- another guy your girlfriend hangs out with a little too much for comfort- write your wedding vows? Why are the writers making him so unrootable and just...dumb?

The paralleling of Chuck and Dan's actions in this episode and how they show they love Blair was interesting: Chuck isn't giving up on love (admirable) but is going to sordid lengths to bring Blair back to him, Dan is hiding his feelings (which some may see as cowardly) and is only allowing him to show his love for Blair in a way that won't hurt her or the path she's committed to and trying go give her what she wants.

As an admitted Dair fan while the reveal of Dan writing Louis' wedding vows did make me go awww, the non-Dair Dair moment I liked more was when they were at the police station and Blair is giddy and laughing about having shots and Dan smiles/laughs at how giddy she is and Blair cuts her eyes back to him with a smile and laugh in response. It wasn't really a Dair moment but it the laughing look between them was cute.

Desperate Housewives -8×12- What’s the Good of Being Good

I really liked the fight during the bake sale when Mrs McCluskey said that the wife of the guy Bree had just slept with didn't know who she was after she had just called her the town whore and Bree had said, yes she did, then said she needed a drink and then walked out the room. I absolutely loved that scene. Watched it several times. I think that was old school DH. I think Bree's storyline (The downfall/self-destruction of Bree) is what I am enjoying the most about this season.

Lynette was fun too. Self-aware, but true to her character. I hope there is actual growth after tonight.

Gaby's story needed more time to develop. I loved all the acting, but Claudia's turnaround was so quick. I wish that was handled differently. And I wish that Gaby and Claudia's understanding ended with a stronger sense that Claudia would not tell on Gaby and the girls.

Renee got a lot of time. And Vanessa Williams is a great presence and she deserves it. She could certainly hold her own as one of the ladies, if she was given better material on a routine basis. The series has never really figured out where her character is the most successful. But I just enjoy seeing her on the screen.

Susan wasn't in a lot. Actually enjoyed how she was called out twice for being stupid enough to give Claudia a check. And as stupid as she is, I still love Susan, mainly from what I remember from Seasons 1-3. If she had stronger writing, she'd be a dynamite character.

Once Upon a Time 1-10: "7:15 A.M." 2012.01.22

Just when I think that I can't love this show any more than I already do, it proves me wrong. I loved seeing Red incorporated into the flashbacks; she looks so much more like Snow's age as Red Riding Hood, but for some reason I think of Ruby being younger than Mary Margaret. Anyway, Ginnifer and Josh smashed my heart into tiny little pieces, but it was well worth it just to see David and Mary Margaret reunited. I hope that he properly left Kathryn before kissing Mary Margaret, though; that would be very sleazy and un-charming of him if he promised to work on their marriage and then kissed another woman in broad daylight. I kind of expected Kathryn to catch them, but Regina seeing them probably works just as well.

Speaking of Regina, I liked her scene with Emma. It was good to see the two of them come together in defense of Henry instead of being at one another's throats. I'm also thrilled that, after that tormenting speech, we finally got to find out what's in the box (I like the idea above that he wrote the Once Upon a Time book). When Regina mentioned that the Stranger seemed familiar to her, I wondered... if we accept that the Evil Queen is the miller's daughter, could the Stranger possibly be the Queen's son? It would be a nice dose of irony for the Queen's son and Snow's daughter to fall in love, as the writers were hinting tonight.

I feel bad for Charming every time someone calls him "James". I wonder when we'll finally find out what his real name is (along with the Queen's, please!)? When he went searching for Snow, though (and how did he manage to break off the engagement?), I knew that she would have already taken the potion. I love how these backstories are only getting more complex, though.

I also loved that the scene with Snow walking with the dwarves tied in with what the Queen saw in her mirror last week. Don't you just hate it when you miss the first five seconds of a scene and then you're just lost after that? I still can't figure out what moving, reflective surface there was in the forest that the Queen was able to use to spy on Snow White, but I suppose I'll just have to let that go.

Also, I really want to know what Rumpelstiltskin wants Snow's hair for. I'd appreciate it as well if he'd stop with that creepy giggle, too. :/

The Vampire Diaries 3-12: "The Ties That Bind" 2012.01.19

 

WEEEE!!! Elijah is back! I screamed. No lie.

(No wonder Daniel Gillies was radio silent on Twitter. And Ian's tweet showing all of the "Men of TVD" chairs...makes total sense now. They are all a bunch of liars, LOL.)

Awesome surprise, TVD. Awesome.

I also adored the fact that Damon was the one to unstab Elijah...it was the smart move. I don't know why no one did it before this...b/c seriously, if anyone has a bone to pick with Klaus and is powerful enough to do it (and angry enough) its Elijah. Plus...now Klaus is back to being an Original's problem...like it should have been in the first place. Let the Originals deal with their own and leave the Mystic Falls residents out of it.

I liked Elena showing some backbone and not being the shrinking violet she has been before. All those lessons from Ric and Damon have paid off...nice bit of continuity there.


Loved all of the Tyler scenes. I'm glad Bill finally came around about Caroline wants to protect her by helping Tyler break his sire bond. But transforming over and over again? While I see his point, yikes poor Tyler. I guess if he wants to be with Caroline bad enough though he'll go through with it. I hope so because they're awesome together!

Kat Graham really impressed me in this episode. She hit all the right notes

Interesting how the witches backed off Klaus when he threatened to kill Bonnie. They didn't care when Klaus threatened to kill their descendents but they immediately back off when he threatens to end the Bennett line.

Abby Bennet is like this shows smartest person EVER. Yeah, ditching your kid is selfish but selfish/selflessness aint got nothing to do with brains. This chick saw an out from a doomed existence and ran with it. Jeremy brought it up a couple of episodes back but Abby fucking did it. You get on with your bad self girl (although you're headed back to Mystic Falls :/)

I still don't trust Meredith and I kinda love that. I'm hopefully she's still batshit.

Revenge -1×13- Commitment

Just when Victoria gains some momentum in the sympathy department, she blows it to smithereens. Shit, she loved this guy but then was involved in a conspiracy to accuse him of terrorism, went out of her way to put his 9-year-old daughter in some sort of an institution and now she accuses him of rape post mortem. Conrad should count himself lucky that she doesn't love him. He's better off for it.

Checking Amanda's DNA had to have been for Amanda, not for Charlotte. She very deliberately took Conrad to bed when she found out that she was pregnant. She had to have known the child was David's, if it could have been Conrad's there'd have been no need for sexing him up. Her wording is also making me reconsider her asking Frank to stay over that one time. I believe she used the exact same words with him. I couldn't bare to be alone tonight.

I'm also back to thinking that Daniel is the dead body. I don't think Emily will pull the trigger but accusing David of rape thrust him into the eye of the storm and he doesn't strike me as the survivor type.

Modern Family -3×13- Little Bo Bleep

Best episode of the season. I died at the autotuned Phil and Claire. And that wedding!

Claire at the debate doing all the moves and gestures the family had told her not to, and then trying to correct herself and look natural while still talking was just freaking hilarious.

Loved Alex being proud of Claire and Lily saying "fuck" to cheer Cam up at the wedding.

Gloria running in that dress...Thank you show.

New Girl -1×10- The Story of the 50

This episode was pure gold but proved once again that the show is really New Schmidt at the point. Bless Max Greenfield.

They REALLY need to give Winston some personality. I like the actor and the character but couldn't help thinking the whole ep that we know so much more about Nick and Schmidt compared to Winston.

Jess planning the whole thing out of her comfort zone was just so sweet and awesome and I loved her bullhorn and party planning binder. Nick and Lizzy Caplan were charming as well.

The Game -5×3- No Money, Mo Problems

Mel perhaps should have been put her place, but the way they treated her was so unnecessary and downright hurtful. Tasha turned a professional issue into a personal one and Derwin straight up lied to Melanie. He could have told her no and explained why, but to lie to her just to placate her? Naw. The truth is, all the characters in the show tries to have it both ways--Melanie is no exception. Tasha could have been blunt about Melanie's lack of experience, but she had to tell her personal business to make "med school" feel bad about herself. Melanie did play the "friend" angle, but seriously, I want Tasha to be put in check as well as Derwin. They are the most hypocritical characters on the show and this is coming from someone who loves them.

I love where they're going with Malik and TT. TT's probably a multi-millionaire while Malik's just a perpetrator. I would hope he'd learn something from this, but it's Malik, so probably not. Had to call his mama to pay his bill at the club...damn shame.

90210 -4×13- Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot?

This is something that must be said. If you are going to insert a lame ass commercial into a storyline and present it as though it is an actual plot point, try being slightly subtle. In no way will a teenage character marveling over an insurance quote ever be subtle.

As for the rest, I think my eyes rolled back into my head and fell out over the big "reveal" that Silver's new boyfriend is the adoptive father to Adrianna's crack baby. It's just too ridiculous and the only message I'm getting is that adoption records should be forever sealed so nut job birth mothers who essentially are just creating drama because they are bored and are dating losers like Dixon don't suddenly decide a few years down the road to get their baby back.

I'm meh with the other plotlines. I'm not sure what kind of PR/event planning agency would put an intern in charge of an event, but I actually did like Naomi.

Also, am I the only one who was screaming: "Yes, the whole thing actually is your fault! You were making underage porn and fled to save yourself!" when Navid's dad acted like he was making a big sacrifice by turning himself in to help Navid? Also, did Leela just die at some point off screen? Navid mentioned her, but I don't recall being given any clue as to what actually happened to her.

And finally, I'm sorry, but Liam and Annie will never be interesting. I mean, let's take a look at the prize Liam is giving up for his new con-artist. A killer hooker with awful hair.

Glee 3-10: "Yes/No" 2012.01.17

I liked it.

Look, I've let go of Season 1. That show does not exist anymore. So based on what we know and where we are now, I felt this episode moved some plots along. The music was good and these characters at least felt like people I know. The tone of this episode felt familiar in a way it hasn't in a while. Don't get me wrong, there were definite issues, but nothing I can't get pass.

Finn/Rachel: I can't get up in arms over that proposal because we all know there is next to no chance that they are actually getting married.

Will/Emma: Was it sappy? Yup, but it was still sweet and Jayma and Matt, brought it yet again. I don't think Will was wrong at all to be concerned about if Emma could handle marriage and to talk with her about it. I also thought Emma was right to tell Will he needed to be honest with her and himself so as not to string her a long. They were both in the right and I thought handled it like adults. I've dealt with depression in the past. I know not quite the same as OCD, but I would fully expect a discussion about that an its impact on my life and any relationship I'm in with a future significant other. I think that is why I teared up at Emma and Will's discsussion. What Emma said to Will about not being able to promise to be cured, but trying everyday to get better and how much she loves him. And Will's honesty with her about his concerns and how much he loves her. That conversation rang very true to me. So yeah, by the end when they got to the proposal I was all in.

Sam/Mercedes: Still loving it. Still cute. Still no cheating which is good. Let's just have a clean break with Shane and go from there.

Santana/Brittany: Did anyone else notice that whenever they had Santana and Brittany look at each other, that Santana was giving the longing, loving looks but Brittany just looked bored. The only time that wasn't true was during the locker room scene, during the song. The look they gave each other there was cute. But the rest, Brittany just looked blank.

I kind of have to think on this ep a little more, but all in all, it didn't suck.

Gossip Girl 5-11: "The End of the Affair?" 2012.01.16

That episode was IMO the worst of the year. I felt embarrassed for all the actors especially Leighton, Ed, Penn and Blake. You know a gossip girl episode is horrible when the presence of Louis is not even one of the top 5 issues. God vs. Chuck/Blair is one of their dumber plots and may replace "When Jenny binged cancer" as my go to when explaining why the show is ridiculous. No Priest would support this and neither would her friends. Real friends would be slowly helping Blair towards some therapy because actually marrying someone else because you think you are in a pact with God is a big deal. Serena and Dan were huge friend failures in this episode and I feel like the idea that Dan and Blair are the smart ones is forever dead. I am at least willing to give credit for Serena wanting to talk to Blair and believing in her enough to know that she would not betray Serena with Dan. The friendship between the two girls has been severely lacking this season and I am always so happy when they get a scene. IMO they are the heart of the show and they need to actually interact.

My biggest issue was the way the baby was dealt with. If you do not have the guts to show the repercussions of losing a baby don't do a miscarriage story. The fact that the fate of the baby was pretty much shared in one line by Chuck right at the beginning is awful. Don't do the story if you can not complete it. The complete cop out nature of it makes me willing to just pretend it never happened. Blair was never pregnant. There must have been a movie made at some point about a woman losing a baby that the writers could have stolen from.

Sherlock Nate is the only bright light in an episode of stupid. From mocking Dan about how untrustworthy he is (finally someone says it) to actually looking into the accident I am loving him this season.

Chuck and Blair continue to be both heartbreaking and frustrating. Ed and Leighton killed it last night. I am so so sick of the neverending obstacles for this couple. I mean God is what is keeping them apart. So insane. I think it is really time to let them be happy. Focus on another couple for the will they wont they drama. After this and 510 how can you sell Blair with anyone else? Or Chuck?

Desperate Housewives -8×11- Who Can Say What’s True?

Mysterious shadowy figure watching from the car had a man’s hand, so I guess that rules out Karen as the note-sender. Unless the guy watching from the car is Orson, in which case maybe he’s not related to the note-sender and is merely stalking Bree.

Renee’s asking Bree if she was upset because her friends had suggested she needs Botox was hilarious. “I was mad the first time my friends suggested it to me.” Please, what part of Marcia Cross hasn’t already been Botoxed, her elbows?

Susan’s plot wasn’t completely ludicrous for once, though she did have to muck it up with the check. I liked how she picked up on the fact that Alejandro was molesting his step-daughter, and tried to comfort the girl.

Looks like Mike is going to be in trouble with the mob now. Yawn.

Lynette saying “I spent years learning the world of finance” – no you didn’t; you were in marketing. I guess this is consistent with Tom making the transition from marketing to CFO, but they really aren’t interchangeable fields.

Grimm 1×08 — Game Ogre

I really liked it. The villain was really creepy and the creature face was even creepier. I was really impressed.

I like these types of shows where the obvious hero doesn't save the day for once and somebody else does. It shows that people are human and cannot always do their job. So it was nice to see Hank and Monroe more in action and saving the day with Nick's assistance with the rifle. No crime/supernatural show really does this. They always make the hero save the day, no matter how injured or incapacitated he or she may be. That's why I was afraid they would have Nick get out of bed to go help his partner. So glad that didn't happen.

Monroe continues to be amazing. I love his geeking out with the watch and with the trailer and I liked his little slip up with the coffee. But he definitely looked overwhelmed by the end. He just killed another creature and he has seen Nick's trailer of Grimm weapons and spells and potions.

I was yelling at Juliet to run out the door instead of toward the kitchen, afraid she would fall down and the villain would get her and Nick would have to save her. But I was pleasantly surprised when she grabbed the boiling water and burned his face. It's nice to see that he's not totally immune to pain. So she gets off my complete 'useless' list and goes to the 'she has potential' list.

Poor house. It's gonna take a while for Nick and Juliet to fix that house. Or, in TV time, an episode or two.

I really did like the episode. It showcased everyone equally and gave some more action to the secondary characters and Monroe.

Once Upon a Time 1-9: "True North" 2012.01.15

I liked the episode. I was greatly annoyed by Hansel but I loved Gretel. I did notice that the actor for Hansel didn't get much to do or say. Mostly, he just stood in the background while Gretel did most of the work. I wonder if this is because of the actors or if it was just weird writing.

I would have loved to see more of her Emma Caufield preferrably in Storybrooke but I guess this is her only episode...unless she does pop up in Storybrooke or in the Queen's flashbacks.

Emma and Mary Margaret are an awesome pair. I also liked the use of Mr. Gold.

I am curious to find out who this damn stranger is. At first, I thought Regina called him in but judging by the previews, I'm not so sure. Maybe he's a client of Mr. Gold? Nonetheless, I don't know if I'm gonna like this new guy. I hope he's not Emma's love interest...or Mary Margaret's.

Oh, and at the beginning of the episode, I loved how Henry seemed fond of Ava, then Nicholas came up and he looked dejected...until he was introduced as her brother, then he perked right back up. I'm sensing a little bit of fondness going on? Nonetheless, that was a really cute moment and I'm sad that it ended so abruptly. Also, have we ever seen that clerk guy before? The one that accused Henry of stealing? He seems familiar...and that Mr. K person as well. I'm trying to figure out what roles they have in Fairytale land and if we've seen them before.

The 69th Golden Globes Winner List

TELEVISION
Drama Series: Homeland

Comedy/Musical Series: Modern Family

Actor — Drama: Kelsey Grammer, Boss

Actress — Drama: Claire Danes, Homeland

Actor — Comedy: Matt LeBlanc, Episodes

Actress — Comedy: Laura Dern, Enlightened

TV Movie/Miniseries: Downton Abbey

Actor — TV Movie/Miniseries: Idris Elba, Luther

Actress — TV Movie/Miniseries: Kate Winslet, Mildred Pierce

Supporting Actor: Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones

Supporting Actress: Jessica Lange, American Horror Story

FILM
Drama: The Descendants

Comedy/Musical: The Artist

Director: Martin Scorsese, Hugo

Actor — Drama: George Clooney, The Descendants

Actress — Drama: Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady

Actor — Comedy/Musical: Jean Dujardin, The Artist

Actress — Comedy/Musical: Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn

Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, The Help

Screenplay: Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Animated Feature: The Adventures of Tintin

Foreign Language Film: A Separation, Iran

Original Score: The Artist, Ludovic Bource

Original Song: Madonna, "Masterpiece," W.E.

Parks and Recreation -4×11- The Comeback Kid

Chris and Ben did not disappoint. I'm still thinking on the take on Chris saying one thing and revealing the truth to the camera. I think he was just trying to build Ben up. Maybe not think about it too much or something. I was glad to see those two together.

Same with the group falling on the ice. It was so funny but mercifully wouldn't end! And yes the music added to it. Reminded me of a Carol Burnett skit - guess who's Carol Burnett? Or the final ep of Mary Tyler Moore and the classic group hug trying to move.

But the dog stole the show for me. Yes he must stick around. You know this show will keep him on. Look at the tribute to calzone and bringing that back. I fell in love with the dog the first scene. And as someone else said - no back story and none needed. We love dogs! (Cats too). Ben's asking if the dog was that way when they got it was the line of the night for me. At first you chuckle; then think about it. Yes it really is a legitimate question with A&A.

Really liked the ep but where was Donna? Even more questionable when so much of the ep was about the ensemble - "Leslie's team." Donna would be part of that team for sure. I think this show is so packed that there isn't even a throwaway line where she is. Same with Chris's hair earlier this season.

The Secret Circle -1×11- Fire/Ice

Adam reached amazing levels of douche-baggery. He pretty much asked his ex-girlfriend to tell her friend that it was okay to date him. I wanted to kill him right then and there.

Cassie was impressing me with her morals up until the end. Stupid girl.

Faye, Faye, Faye. On one hand, I can see she's being childish, annoying, and selfish. On the other hand, she's interesting! I see her faults, but I am so on her side! She's badass, but she does care about her friends. Her rant to the Circle about Cassie was just amazing. Neither of them started out to hurt anyone, but they both did (although Cassie got two people killed). Sure, Faye's motives were less pure, but it's not like she's evil.

Jake coming back was pretty obvious. I'm ready to see who Jack Blackwell's other daughter is (here's hoping it's Faye!).

The Vampire Diaries 3-11: "Our Town" 2012.01.12

I loved this one. I love EvilStefan, I can't help it. However, I'm not a fan of NiceDamon, but I guess it would be too much if they were both out of control. Anyway, Stefan is scary. Paul Wesley is so good at this.

Klaus and Caroline ? Bring it on ! I'd love to see him take an interest in her, but I think he mostly wants to get back at Tyler. Anyway, it will be interesting. And I've really been loving Klaus this season. I miss Elijah, but I think Joseph Morgan is growing into the role very nicely.

Glad Bonnie told off Elena, and I'm glad they didn't brush over the issue. What Elena did was wrong, although understandable. Bonnie continues to be a moral compass, which I like.

I'm gonna bet that Meredith Fell killed Bryon because she may have suspected that he was a vampire. Either that or she's sending some sort of message that I don't understand yet. Eh, but I did get a kick out of her leaving a scene and Stefan coming in literally three seconds later. Funny that he missed having a scene with his own wife.

Revenge -1×12- Infamy

Haha! So it's basically confirmed that Charlotte is, indeed, David Clarke's daughter! This is a huge bombshell that nobody saw coming. Perfect.

I knew Emily was going to burn down Mason/Leo's house, starting with the only copy of his memoir. But he was a slimeball, even worse than Victoria, so I'm glad she got her revenge on him. He blatantly lied to her as a kid just for money and fame, I presume.

It was nice to see no proposal. On the downside, I didn't realize there was no Ashley until she showed up halfway through the episode and I felt like the Declan/Charlotte thing took away from the episode a little bit, but it wasn't too bad.

So Victoria and David know about Charlotte being his child and so does Mason and now Emily. But who else knows? Obviously not Charlotte and once this gets out to her, how will she react? Hmm, I'm very intrigued now.

Good episode, though. I laughed at the shooting range scene. Oh Nolan, he really does need a lot of work.

Modern Family -3×12- Egg Drop

Awesome episode! It also brought back memories from my egg drop contest days. I used a bunch of diapers and was successful.

As much as I adore silly Phil, I love that he got a little real this week. For once it was less about being the jokester and more about the fact that he really just needed his family's help. That presentation was important to him. He's such a pushover. I'm glad Gloria pulled his true emotions out, no matter how nutty that sounded.

The Game -5×1&2- Skeletons & The Truth Pact

I really don't know what to make of this season opener.

All of the storylines were stupid, but Jason's really bugged me. I don't recall Jason having an issue with black women before, so where's this coming from? Just because someone dates/marries outside their race doesn't always mean that they have some deep-seated issues with their own race. Also, who the fuck cares? Jason's always been rude, but the shit he was saying to Brandy at the bar was OTT even for him.

I didn't care about Malik's almost-dead supermodel. They should've called the clinic or her sponsor and told them to come get Jenna. Suppose she did die? Since they didn't want the police involved, were they going to bury her in the yard and build a gazebo over her body?

I'm sick of Derwin's holier-than-thou attitude. It's a pattern with him, so at least the show's being consistent in that regard, but to say to Mel that friends ask him what he sees in her should've had her fuming. Mel is very extra when she wants to be, but that's a shitty thing to say to the woman who put her career on hold for you (nice dig about it being debatable if she's really a doctor), and who accepted his son. And yes, this whole thing started with Drew Sidora, so Derwin really needs to have a seat. He set the whole chain of events in motion.

Once Upon a Time (2011) -1×8- Desperate Souls

Glad the show is back.

So, Rumpel got his powers from Brad Dourif? Great casting there; it was small, but if anyone can match Rumepl in creepiness, it would be Brad Dourif. Loved Rumpel's backstory; that he use to be a decent, if cowardly guy, only to become evil at the end. And it shows why he's so ****-bent with his contracts, because he knows first hand how not getting all the information can screw you over. Robert Caryle was amazing as always.

The election story-line was OK, but very predictable. I knew that no matter what, Emma was going to win. But I loved Mr. Gold using it to his advantage and confrontation between him and Regina is fun. I like that both are clearly up to no good, but there doesn't seem to be an alliance between them. They tolerate each other and might even work together, but I can see either one of them cutting the other ones' throat if it would help them further their goals.

I actually felt sorry for Sydney. I really don't think he wanted to be the sheriff and he seems to be just as scared of Regina as everyone else.

So, next week we will meet Hansel and Gretel. And I read somewhere they will be played by the child actors that played young Olivia and Peter on Fringe. If that is true, that is kind of funny.

Desperate Housewives -8×10- What’s to Discuss, Old Friend?

Great episode! Best of the season probably, there were a ton of terrific scenes.

Bree and Renee stole the show. Each of their scenes was powerful, I wasn't expecting Renee to be the one to stop her. The scene in the church discussing both Renee's mother's suicide and Mary Alice's was especially strong.

Really curious about Susan's new mission and what will happen as a result. She's obviously dumb for doing this but it makes sense for the character and should be interesting.

Tom and Lynette were also great tonight, I loved how both perspectives were made clear to the other person.

The Secret Circle -1×10- Darkness

Yay Grey Damon! Hopefully he'll be better utilized here than on Chloe King (and FNL), and the fact that he's tied into a subplot with Faye and Melissa almost guarantees that! I'd like if Faye's quest for individual power wouldn't involve Cassie, but who am I kidding? Everything must eventually revolve around her.

I wasn't too impressed with the grandmother. Anyone with any sense wouldn't have bought her story about removing the dark magic. Luckily for her, she only had to convince Cassie.

I like Adam and Diana, but I'd rather have had him tell Cassie from the get go that he wasn't in the habit of keeping secrets from Diana, and she would just have to deal with it.
And..Jake's back. Yawn.

The Vampire Diaries 3-10: "The New Deal" 2012.01.05

I've started three posts now about this show and deleted them because I don't even know where to begin. I loved the episode, top to bottom.

Elena's paranoia was well done and I'm glad they showed some real human fall-out from their exchange with Klaus in Homecoming. It totally makes sense that she'd be scared that he'll show up anywhere at any time so I'm glad that was addressed.

I'm kind of okay with Damon compelling Jeremy and them writing him out like that because Jeremy wanted to leave but Elena knew he'd never go without her. She cares enough about him to give him a chance at the normal life he asked for. We all know the compulsion will wear off or Jeremy will figure out why he left or they'll be some plot-twist that brings him back to Mystic Falls, so he can go learn to be a vampire killing badass in Colorado and show up to save the day and then be all "your technique is rusty" to Damon just like Bill Forbes was.

With Alaric and the ring, maybe it only half worked because it was only a half-supernatural death??? (I'm reaching, I know.) The car was obviously not a supernatural object but the hybrid driving the car was somewhat acting under his own agency due to his siring and not because he'd been compelled to run Jeremy over. Eh. I don't know.

I think the sealed coffin contains the Original Witch, which may just be the ultimate weapon to kill Klaus. I think that's why Bonnie saw Klaus in the coffin with the Original Witch's necklace.

Stefan and Damon's exchange outside the house is what I love about those two. They're fighting each other and still managing to have a serious conversation and the actors just make that dynamic work so well. I loved that whole part with them.

The kiss at the end was a great moment, I thought. I like Elena with Damon for reasons I won't get into because I know it's off topic, but that worked for me. I liked the "if I'm going to feel guilty, it's going to be for this" line. And I don't think Damon will tell her about his plan to work with Stefan because that's not Damon's style. It'd be very much a Stefan thing to do and while I do think the writers are trying to show that there are multiple sides to both Stefan and Damon, I don't think they're trying to have the two completely switch places. Damon not telling her will be a nuance to his character and a way he'll be different from Stefan.

Revenge -1×11- Duress

Hmm, this episode certainly was intense and a good way to start off a new year.

I hate to admit it, but I'm kinda gonna miss Tyler. Sure, he was nutso and a danger to everyone in the Hamptons, but that's what made it fun. Eh, a tad overdramatic but this is more like a soap opera anyway so embrace the overdramatic acting!

I half hoped Tyler would shoot Declan or even Ashley. She pisses me off more than anyone.

I honestly thought that when Tyler showed up at Nolan's house and started taking off his tie, he was gonna rape Nolan. I don't know if that actually happened or not, but seriously messed up.

But now who is gonna be Nolan's love interest now that Ty-Ty's gone? Gotta admit they were really hot together, so I'm gonna actually miss them a little bit.

Now, let's see if I can predict this right. The police are gonna try to pin Frank's murder on Tyler but new evidence will surface and point at another person (perhaps Amily, perhaps somebody else) and Tyler will somehow escape jail and pop up just in time for the engagement party. Maybe. I just know that we'll see Tyler before the season's end.

Modern Family -3×11- Lifetime Supply

Benjamin Bratt should do more comedy. He's terrific at it. I loved the moment when he & Manny crossed themselves in unison.

Lily: "Are you gonna die?"

Phil: "I don't know! There's still a 5% chance I'll make it!"

I love that Walt is back. Philip Baker Hall is terrific. "Death is my roommate." Hee. And *shiver*.

Good for Mitchell for realizing he was acting like a 15-year-old girl about the trophies. The Pritchetts aren't usually so self-aware.

Cam and Mitchell were hilarious ogling Javier. I don't blame them.