Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Hello To My New Friend Joe

The search is over and the Yankees have a new Manager Joe Girardi. I like this choice personally, Joe was a catcher on three of the four winning Yankee World Series teams. He was a bench coach under Torre for at least a year and he coached a young Florida Marlins team to a better than expected season, he also received the award for coach of the year. He was also fired from that job, a story that the media can't seem to let go of recently. Between ESPN, FOX and even MSNBC, they all think that Joe is going to rankle the Steinbrenner feathers and get himself booted. So let's clear the air about that little mishap in Florida. He was fired by owner Jeffrey Loria over disputes regarding personnel and clubhouse access, um okay, that's a strange thing to be fired over, I mean the guy won coach of the year for Christ sake. I guess it didn't help Joe telling his boss not to yell at the Umps during the game, but whatever, I don't think this kind of thing could happen in NY. He could be fired for not winning games but I doubt they would fire him for some dumb crap like clubhouse access. Loria seemed like an overbearing buffoon at any rate. Not to mention I believe he was the same dumbass who traded his entire team after they won the World Series a while back.

Anyway Girardi is here and he brings with him a wealth of knowledge. A few of the Yankees best managers have been catchers like Ralph Houk, Yogi Berra and Joe Torre. I really like catchers as Managers, in order for them to do their job they have to think like Managers anyway. They have to be able to build confidence in their pitchers, they have to call the pitches and a great catcher is always the smartest and most able to think on their feet.

There is a lot of uncertainty regarding the direction of this team. The Yankees are likely to lose A-Rod, and possibly Jorge Posada, Mo Rivera, Andy Pettitte, Bobby Abreu and Luis Viscaino. That's a pretty large portion of the team. So we will have to see as the winter presses on what kind of deals the Yankees hope to make. At least the pitching staff is still pretty solid. The Yanks still have Joba Chamberlain, Phillip Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Wang and the Moose. It sounds like they might be going after pitcher Johan Santana of the Twins. So there is a light at the end of this dark tunnel, but time will tell. It was an up and down season but I enjoyed it, and I look forward to the last season played at Yankee Stadium next year.

Friday, October 26, 2007

The Bucket's List of the Top 20 Overlooked, Underrated, and Underappreciated Screen Villains of All-Time

A couple years back AFI, or the The American Film Institute for the non-industry laymen, came out with their list of the 50 Greatest Movie Villains of all time. Now, while I have the utmost respect for The American Film Institute and whatever it is that they actually do, which I assume is something greater than just coming up with various countdown lists, their list of the 50 Greatest Movie Villains of all time is, to say the least, a wee bit pretentious. Unless you’re an esoteric, NYU film school brat, who dresses in all back, and wears a scarf in 70 degree weather, then you probably disagree that “Man” from the classic Disney film Bambi is one of the top 20 screen villains ever.

So, where is the list for the rest us, you ask? Well, just in time for Halloween, we here at The Bucket have answered the call and have put together our list of the Top 20 Overlooked, Underrated, and Underappreciated Screen Villains of All-Time.



20). Dracula (The Monster Squad): “Give me the amulet you BITCH"

I know we’re all thinking it, but I guess I’m the only one willing to man-up and put it in print: Duncan Regehr’s interpretation of Dracula in the 1987 Fred Dekker cult-classic The Monster Squad kicks, KICKS, Bela Lugosi’s Dracula in the nards! In the behind the scenes featurette on the new Monster Squad DVD, Fred Dekker admits that his first choice to play Dracula was none other than Liam Neeson. Who knows how that casting decision would have altered the lives of Neeson and Regehr? Maybe Regehr would’ve been nominated for an Academy Award for playing Oskar Schindler and Neeson would have nailed the role of John Dirks in the 2000, direct-to-video, film Krocodylus (yes, a movie so bad it had to rip off the plot of Lake Placid). But one thing is for certain, no way in hell Neeson brings one-fifth the amount of wicked dandyism and ambigious sexuality that Regehr brought to the role of Dracula. Now, give him his props, you Bitch!


19). Patrick Batman (American Psycho): "I ate some of their brains, and I tried to cook a little. Tonight I, uh, I just had to kill a LOT of people. And I'm not sure I'm gonna get away with it this time."


Maybe I'm a sick guy but when I first saw American Psycho I laughed my ass off. This was the first time that I saw Christian Bale after he was an obnoxious Newsie but before he was kick ass in everything from Batman Begins to 3:10 to Yuma, and he just blew me away in this performance. His Patrick Batman was a paranoid, self deluded namby pamby rich boy who was so self absorbed it took at least fifteen killings or so for him to recognize his own morality. Bateman is a vapid souless cog in the big wheel of industry and he likes to chop his victims up with a shiny axe-- Evil? Hell yeah, I'd say he's got evil down in spades. I also loved that this took place in the 80's and how he attributed most of his murders to the albums of Huey Lewis and Phil Collins. Just remember folks it is a satire and if you, like most audiences who saw this film, didn't get that then you probably hated it. But give it a second chance you may find you really love it, and now that Bale is a big honking star, you might appreciate it even more.


18). Buddy Ackerman (Swimming With Sharks): “You are nothing! If you were in my toilet I wouldn't bother flushing it. My bathmat means more to me than you!

Kevin Spacey is probably best known for his great villain roles in Seven and The Usual Suspects (for which he won his first Academy Award in 1996). But I think a lot of people overlook, or perhaps haven’t even seen, his stand-out work in the 1994 George Haung black comedy Swimming With Sharks. Spacey plays the Grand Dick of all Bosses, movie producer Buddy Ackerman. The film is based on Haung’s own experiences as an assistant in Hollywood, however, I imagine sans the kidnapping and torture part. Spacey plays Ackerman with a devilish sense of Schadenfreudism, as he needles, belittles, abuses, and berates his young assistant Guy. The best scene in the movie is when Ackerman passive-aggressively castrates Guy on his first day for bringing back a packet of Equal with his coffee, instead of Sweet-N-Low.


17). The Predator (Predator): Dutch: "You are one ugly motherfucker.

There is nothing more evil or frightening than a calm, no nonsense alien that decides to come to our planet to stalk and hunt down, The Most Dangerous Game style, a group of bad ass Commandos in the jungle. When I was a kid my mom wouldn't let me see movies like this at all--so I would always go around the corner to the kid's, whose name will remain nameless, (see Ma I don't rat out my friends) house. John McTiernan's classic action-Sci-Fi jungle romp was fun exciting and absolutely terrifying. Usually in horror movies the victims are dumb, un-athletic and you can just see the target signs on their friggin foreheads. They are normally pre-pubescent teenagers to boot. Now Predator is a completely different animal. In the beginning we see the crack commando team doing what they do best, killing with efficientcy and pure uninhibited testosterone. I mean who on this earth could actually kill Jesse Ventura's Blain or Sonny Landham's Native American badass Billy. How can any human being hope to snuff out Bill Duke's sniper hard charger, Mac. Well this Predator did it all, whacked the whole team one by one, and it was only through tactics and a mud camouflage that Arnold Schwarzenegger's Dutch was able to kill the ugly Motherfucker.


16). The Penguin (Batman Returns): You're just jealous because I'm a genuine freak and you have to wear a mask!”When people remember the Tim Burton’s Batman films, everyone talks about how great Jack Nicholson’s Joker is, or how surprisingly genius Michael Keaton’s casting was, or how hot Michelle Pfeiffer looked in that skin tight, black latex, get-up. But almost nobody gives Danny DeVito the proper credit for his performance as The Penguin in Batman Returns. So twisted, demented, and absurd you almost forget that it is teddy bear and fun drunk Danny DeVito behind all that grotesque make-up. DeVito, as The Penguin, gets to bite off a guy’s nose, call Michelle Pfeiffer a pussy, touch a really hot girl on her boob, and walk around in his long johns for 90% of the movie. I bet he had fun.


15). Captain Barbossa (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl): "It'll be one pistol as before, and you can be the gentleman and shoot the lady; and starve to death yourself."Of course everyone loves Johnny Depp's scallywag pirate Captain Jack Sparrow, but who, at least in the first film, embodies true and complete badness and shows utter contempt for morality, who else but Captain Hector Barbossa from Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. Jack Sparrow could be considered untrustworthy, selfish and a bit of a Brigand but he would never lay waste to Port Royale in the way that Barbossa and his pirate clan did. Geoffrey Rush's, Barbossa really encapsulates the vicious, cleverly funny and often times cruel nature of a pirate.


14). Damon Killian (The Running Man):

Ben Richards: “Killian... I'll be back!”

Damon Killian: "Only in a rerun.”


Wait, original Family Feud host and Match Game regular Richard Dawson? That Richard Dawson? YES. Isn’t he dead? NO. He’s very much alive and completely evil in the ahead-of-it’s-time, action-satire The Running Man. An absolutely genius bit of casting, Dawson plays Damon Killian, the sadistic, yet charming host and exec producer of The Running Man, a futuristic, post-apocalyptic game show where criminal contestants have to outwit, outplay, and outlast the The Stalkers, as they’re hunted for sport in front of a live studio audience. Survey says… it’s FUCKING AWESOME!

13). The Operative (Serenity): "I'm a Monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done."Now those few of you who have seen the short lived television series Firefly and the subsequent film Serenity will no doubt agree with this pick as fervently as I have. It comes from the wonderfully sarcastic mind of Joss Whedon the creator and writer for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and it's spinoff Angel. The story of Firefly/Serenity follows a crew of smugglers aboard their Firefly class space vessel as they try to protect themselves and there friends from one of the greatest allies or greatest enemy in all the 'verse, depending on which side you are on, The Alliance. The Alliance is not necessarily evil they help when they can but their covert operatives are a little less gray and a whole lot of bad. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays the Alliance Operative in the film as a half Samurai/philospher with a penchant, as he puts it, for killing anything that gets in his way including children. You see he is a zealot, someone who believes so strongly in what he is doing he has no problems snuffing out an entire planet if he feels his so-called freedom is threatened. He is tough, he is smart and the most intriguing thing--he has a conscience he just chooses not to use it.

12). Carter Burke (Aliens): You know Burke, I don't know which species is worse. You don't see them fucking each other over for a goddamn percentage.”

A lot of people argue that Paul Reiser played a better bad guy in Bye, Bye Love. I have not seen that film, so I am not at liberty comment. But what I can comment on is his performance as Carter Burke, The Company middle-man who’s secretly up to no good, in Aliens. Reiser’s Burke progresses from a good guy, to a smug weenie, to a treacherous bastard. By the end, you’re on your feet clapping when the character is delivered his just desserts.

11). Dr. Janosz Poha (Ghostbusters II): "Let me tell you something here, there are many perks in being the mother of a living god. I'm sure we could get a magnificent apartment, car, free parking..."
Yes Ghostbusters II, got a problem with that? Janosz Poha, as played by Peter MacNichol is brilliantly funny, and as we will establish delightfully evil. Janosz is the funny smelling little museum curator who lives on the Upper Vest side of NY. He also has a creepy obsession with Dana Barrett and once he has been possesed by Vigo his eyes act like a spine chilling set of high beams, he flies and honestly looks like the scariest Au pair I have ever seen. He is also a hilarious foil for Bill Murray's Venkman. Say what you want about Vigo and the general plot for Ghostbusters II but leave Dr. Poha alone for you are like the buzzing of flies to him.


10). Prince Humperdinck & Count Rugen (The Princess Bride):
“Tyrone, you know how much I love watching you work, but I've got my country's 500th anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife to murder and Guilder to frame for it; I'm swamped.”

“Get some rest. If you haven't got your health, you haven't got anything.”


And the award for Best Closet Gay Evil Duo in a Children’s Fantasy Film goes to… Prince Humperdinck and Count Rugen in The Princess Bride!!! Chris Saradon plays the fiendishly foppish Prince Humperdinck and Christopher Guest plays his number two, the cold hearted Count Rugen. I know this is a little bit of a cheat, since there are two of them, but they’re really like Peanut Butter and Jelly. You can’t have one without the other and together they are delicious… deliciously evil that is!

9). Johnny Ringo (Tombstone): "I want your blood. And I want your soul. And I want them both right now!"

When you think about the awesome western Tombstone you first think about Val Kilmer's performance as Doc Holliday, then you move to Kurt Russell as an amazing Wyatt Earp but most people forget about bad ass Michael Biehn's Johnny Ringo. Sure he didn't get to deliver some of the great lines that Doc Holliday got to, but that's because he was more the strong silent type. Johnny Ringo was basically The Man With No Name, y'know from those Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Westerns, except of course Johnny doesn't really care about the little things, like y'know, morality. One of my favorite sequences in the movie is the scene where the Cowboys are enjoying a little theatre, about Doctor Faustus and the Devil. Curly Bill says to Johnny "You know what I'd do? I'd take that deal n' crawfish, then drill that ol' devil in the ass. What about you Juanito, what would you do?" Ringo, has that great fearless look in his eyes and says, "I already did it." Ringo was just like Holliday, smart, tough and as Earp asks Doc what makes a man like Ringo do the things he's done, Holliday replies, "A man like Ringo has got a great big hole, right in the middle of him. He can never kill enough, or steal enough, or inflict enough pain to ever fill it....He wants Revenge--For being born."

8). Ed Rooney (Ferris Bueller's Day Off): “I did not achieve this position in life by having some snot-nosed punk leave my cheese out in the wind."


Real life creep Jeffrey Jones outdoes even himself in 80’s teen-comedy classic Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Jones plays indignant high school Principal Ed Rooney, a guy with a severe superiority complex and a proverbial ruler stuck up his literal butt. Knowing what we know now about Mr. Jones makes the character of Rooney even more of a sleazeball. I mean just imagine what could’ve happened if he had caught up to Ferris that fateful day off? Not so damn funny anymore, is it?!?

7). Roy Batty (Blade Runner): "I want more life Fucker!"Another film that I saw as a child that kind of freaked me out was Blade Runner. Darryl Hannah as Priss wearing that crazy outfit with the fro and the black eye makeup really made her look nuts. But the thing that gave me a chill was watching Rutger Haur's Roy Batty stalk Harrison Ford's Deckard in J.F. Sebastian's domicile and then later on the roof in the pouring rain. Batty is a sympathetic villain as his only true goal is to find a way to extend his life a few more years. Batty is a replicant, or an android and he's not too happy about that. He's super strong and super smart and in his desperation for a cure to his condition he is extremely deadly. Watching Batty howl to the moon with Priss' makeup running down his face and the crazed look in his eye, honestly scared the shit out of me.

6). The Cobra Kai (The Karate Kid): “We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak. Here, in the streets, in competition: A man confronts you, he is the enemy. An enemy deserves no mercy.”

Sensei John Kreese and his punk minions Johnny, Bobby, Tommy, Jimmy, & Dutch – The Cobra Kai. A buncha bullies clad in black Gis, The Cobra Kai viewed Karate as a weapon, instead of an art. Of course they were just a misguided band of angry teenagers, led down the wrong path by militaristic dickhead of a sensei John Kreese, played with wrathful brilliance by Martin Kove. Unfortunately for skinny Jersey kid Daniel Larusso (Ralph Macchio), he falls in love with the wrong girl at the wrong time, and proceeds to have his ass handed to him on a plate for about 120 minutes of a 127 minute film. Eventually, good karate triumphs over evil karate and everyone goes home happy. Props to Billy Zabka, who plays the Cobra Kai leader Johnny, for selling one hell of a crane kick to the face. Stuntmen are for the WEAK!

5). Gollum (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy): "We ought to wring his filthy little neck. Kill him! Kill him! Kill them both! And then we take the precious...and we be the master!"

Look at this guy--what is wrong with people when they say he's actually kind of cute. Is that before or after he strangles his best friend just so he can get a shiny little ring, or when, he lived in the Misty Mountains using the ring to trick people with riddles and then stalk them and eat them. If it wasn't for a resouceful Hobbit named Bilbo, Gollum would still be in drippy cave living out his Cannibalistic fantasies. Make no mistake the ring of power from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy holds a terrible sway over poor simple minded Gollum, but does that really excuse his behavior? Hell Bilbo lived with the Ring for 60 odd years and only then did it start to screw with him, so really what is Gollum's excuse. He's a petty, selfish miserable little toady and we love him in all of his badness.

4). The Fratellis (The Goonies): “The only thing we serve here is tongue! You boys like tongue?”

Before we fell in love with The Sopranos, we fell in love with The Fratellis – Mama, Jake, and Francis. The Fratellis put the funk in dysfunctional, a family so warped and twisted that they keep their deformed hulk of a son/brother Sloth chained up in their basement. Yes, it’s a kid’s movie! Led by sociopathic matriarch Mama, played by the gifted character actress Anne Ramsey, with her two favorite boys by her side, dimwitted Jake (Robert Davi) and weasely Francis (Joey Pants), they viciously chase our heroes The Goonies through the cavernous maze of boobie traps and pit falls in search of One-Eyed Willie’s hidden treasure. Over the course of the movie, The Fratellis store a man they’ve murdered in their freezer, threaten to puree a fat kid’s hand, and make a tied-up young girl walk the plank. Yeah, they could use some serious family counseling.

3). The Kurgan (Highlander): "Ramirez was an effete snob! He died on his knees. I took his head and raped his woman before his blood was even cold!"There Can be only one bad ass immortal and as much as I love the Highlander, Connor McCloud, it ain't him. The Kurgan, played by Clancy Brown is well...You read his quote. The ultimate warrior, if they had steroids back in the olden days of Scotland, I would've said that Kurgan was on some of that Balco crap. He has this deep dark voice and those crazy eyes, he's a madman I tell you. On top of that he can live forever and the only way you can get this psycho out of your life is to take a giant sword from the Middle Ages and slice his noggin off. When he isn't killing other Immortals, The Kurgan enjoys a nice drive in the country with Grandma on the hood of the car he just stole. He wags his tongue at her hoping that when she loses her grip that she'll get sucked underneath his Michelins. Crazy Bastard.

2). Biff Tannen (Back To The Future): “Since you're new here, I'm gonna cut you a break... today. So, why don't you make like a tree and get out of here?”

Everyone’s favorite big, dumb bully, Biff Tannen, played by underrated comedic actor Thomas F. Wilson. Jumble up his initials, you get WTF, as in What The Fuck happened to Thomas F. Wilson? The trivia section of his IMDB page says he paints portraits of children’s toys… well, I guess he’s got that going for him. Seriously though, the character of Biff Tannen is one of the great, iconic, baddies in cinema history. Wilson infuses him with a great mixture of intimidation and destiny… I mean density.


1). Khan Noonien Singh (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan): "You are in a position to demand nothing. I, on the other hand, am in a position to grant nothing."


And the most under-rated Villain in Cinema is......KHHHHHAAAN! That's right folks everyone's favorite genetic mistake from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Now most people look at Ricardo Montalban and say yeah he was funny but---. No question ol' Ricardo hammed him up a bit but if you look a little deeper you will see a guy who not only made Admiral James T. Kirk look like an unprepared school boy, he killed Scotty's nephew and had a hand in killing Kirk's number one science officer Captain Spock. And you know he did it all by barely lifting a finger. The entire film Khan is shoving torpedoes up the Enterprise's ass without any face to face with the plucky Admiral Kirk. Not to mention he put those little grub worm things in poor Chekov's ear. Now be honest, when you saw that for the first time it creeped you out a bit. I won't lie to you I was shoving a Q-tip in my ear for a few days after that scene. Khan is smart, angry and super strong (yes those are actually Montalban's actual pecs), and he's got some great dialogue to prove it.

________________________________________

So that's it folks, I hope you enjoyed Cody Dee's and Jeff's list of the most under appreciated villains. As always if you have some ideas of Villains we may have missed please leave us a comment letting us know. We would love to hear who you guys would pick. So from all of us at the Bucket have a safe and happy Halloween!

Jeff & Cody Dee Williams

Friday, October 19, 2007

FAREWELL TO MY FRIEND JOE


Joe Torre has no idea who I am. I've never met the man. The several times I've seen him in person was from the upper deck nose bleeds at Yankee Stadium, when he would make his trademarked, slumped over, slow walk to mound to take out a pitcher or argue a call or just give a reassuring word to his infield.

So why, as I sit here on Friday afternoon watching his farewell press conference, do I feel like I'm saying goodbye to a trusted, reliable, old friend who I've known for a lifetime? I haven't even been a Yankee fan for more than five years. But the probable reality that all Yankee fans are facing today is that Joe Torre, come December 2007, will no longer be a Yankee.

I continue to watch as Joe, handling himself with the kind of class and dignity we've become accustomed to over the years, artfully avoids taking the low road, as reporter after reporter bombards him with questions regarding the dodgy and downright insulting offer the Yankee brass put forth yesterday.

Whether you wanted Joe back next year or not, whether you are a Yankee fan or not, you cannot argue what Joe Torre has meant to the Yankee franchise, what he has meant to the city of New York, and what he has meant to the game of Baseball.

And all these things considered, you would expect a man and a Yankee the caliber Joe Torre to be treated with the respect he not only deserves, but has earned. Twelve post season trips in twelve years, 6 World Series appearances, 4 World Series wins, 10 AL East Championships, and the 8th spot on the all-time managerial wins list, does not add up to a one year contract extension, a pay cut, and the unnecessary and embarrasing addition of playoff incentives.

So all that is left for Yankee fans is the uncertainty of who will be selected to fill the shoes of Joe Torre. But one thing is for sure, if that lucky person is one-half the leader, father figure, and friend Joe was to his team, then the Yankees are sure to back next year and for many years to come.

Thank you #6.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

DAILY CELEBRITY ADVICE (10/17/07):


Andrew McCarthy says:

"Agalmatophilia... cool.
Motorcycles... cooler.
Agalmatophilia on a motorcycle... coolest."

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Fall Lineup 2007

It's that time of the year again where we analyze, chop up and spit out the new fall lineup of shows. I've actually been able to watch more than normal since most of the time I find myself holding Nathan on the couch watching TV. It actually keeps him pretty calm which is a nice relief. After watching some of them I have discovered that this is the year of the geek/nerd. Two of my favorite new shows revolve around the nerdy guy who can't seem to close the deal with the hot girl. There are also a few returning shows that I have been looking forward to that are starting in the next few weeks.

Monday
























Chuck is what happens when you take a show like The Office and throw it smack dab into the spy thriller show Alias. Chuck Bartowski is a typical smart guy who was expelled from Stanford and finds himself making ends meet as a Nerd Herder at a Best Buy like chain. Chuck gets an e-mail from an old roomate--the same roomate that had him booted from school. This e-mail contains all of the Intelligence information from the three spy agencies of the U.S. The NSA, the CIA and the FBI. His old roomate turns out to be a rogue CIA spy and poor Chuck's brain gets downloaded with all of this information. Needless to say he ends up smack in the middle of the spy game with a hot as hell CIA agent named Sarah and a hard as nails NSA officer determined to get the info out of Chuck's skull one way or another. So far this has been a really fun show, it doesn't take itself too seriously and did I mention the CIA chick was hot? Zachary Levi is great as Chuck he's funny and he carries the show. Yvonne Strahovski is the bad ass, Sydney Bristow lite, Sarah, she's pretty good given that I have never heard of her or seen her in anything previously. I also really like Joshua Gomez who plays Chuck's goofy best friend Morgan, he's funny and blends in great with this cast. It's also great to see Adam Baldwin picking up a little work after his departure from one of my other favorite shows, Firefly. Baldwin plays the hard nosed John Casey of the NSA. If you haven't seen Chuck you should go to your computer and watch the first few episodes on line.






Chuck aires Monday nights at 8PM on NBC


Heroes
It is now in it's second season and so far it's started off kind of blah. I've always had a love hate thing with Heroes. I like that they are trying to focus more on the characters and less on the "Save the World" mantra that got very stale from last year. I also really like that they upgraded mind reader cop Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg) to a much more pivotal role. Although it's starting to look very predictable. I can totaly tell where they are going with this storyline as they knock off the older heroes, but I will wait to pass judgement until at least sweeps. They also seem to be playing with some politics here as they recognize Hurricane stricken New Orleans as Micah goes to visit granny Uhura in the delta. One of my least favorite part of the new heroes are the Wonder Twin Mexicans with their lame powers. So far they are desperate to get across the border, find a way to the Big Apple, so they can receive help from Doctor Suresh. Again I hope they make it there soon cause so far their journey has been boring and annoying.


Heroes aires Monday nights at 9PM on NBC



Journeyman This is sort of a sci/fi drama that meshes pieces of the book The Time Traveller's Wife and one of my favorite shows from the early 90's, Quantum Leap. We follow reporter Dan Vasser as he leaps back and forth through time without any warning except for a headache that pains him right before he jumps. He is married and has a young son and his leaping adds to the strain in his home life. His jumps appear so randomly that the poor guy can't even drive his car, cause as soon as he disappears his car becomes a hazard on the road. Not to mention that when he leaps he finds himself face to face with a supposed to be dead ex-lover who seems to have the same leaping ability that he has. Kevin McKidd is great as Dan, you can feel his frustration as he tries to deal with his predicament as he leaps back and forth trying to make everything right in the past and the present. Tamar and I also really enjoy the little touches as well. He so far has jumped back as far as the late 70's but everytime he does it is accompanied by the hit song of that year and it's kind of fun figuring out which period he has leaped into. There are some structural problems with it that hopefully will be ironed out. Mostly that his family and boss seem very understanding for the most part when he just vanishes without a trace for a couple of days. They need to set up better ways for him to cover his disappearances. Plus he continues to make the mistake of doing normal things when he knows he may just vanish, which causes drama for the show but it also makes him kind of stupid. Overall the plotting seems fine and the stories are interesting it's just a little bit of tweaking and all will be well.

Journeyman aires Monday Night at 10PM on NBC



Tuesday



Reaper is another favorite of mine about a young likeable loser named Sam. His life is going nowhere as he works at a Home Depot like store and pines for the hottie behind the cash register. His life changes when his Parents drop a crazy 21st Birthday present on him, eternal enslavement to the devil. Apparently before he was born Sam's parents made a deal with the Devil giving up their first born to the Prince of Darkness when he turns 21. Now the Devil has come to collect and he wants Sam to be his bounty hunter on earth casting damned souls back down to the fiery pits of hell. This is such a crazy concept it might actually work, and in the capable hands of Director Kevin Smith it really becomes something really fun and hilarious. It's kind of a blend between Ghost Rider and the Ghostbusters. Bret Harrison is funny and carries the show well as Sam. The funny honors go to yet another sidekick though---Sock, played by Tyler Labine is hilarious. I mean the guy's name is Sock so y'know it's got to be funny. Not to mention Ray Wise, an old school character actor, who gets to chew up the scenery as a strange mix of Fatherly wisdom and evil bastard playing the Devil.

Reaper aires Tuesday at 9PM on the CW



Wednesday


Bionic Woman Honestly I would've been much more excited if they did a re-make of the Six Million Dollar Man but after watching a few episodes I found myself enjoying this action romp. Jaime Sommers gets a retread from Lindsay Wagner to newcomer Michelle Ryan. Ryan is cute and she seems capable enough. So Ms. Sommers is driving along with her boyfriend until they are blindsided by a Mack truck that puts Jaime into traction. Her boyfriend luckily is a top notch surgeon and he saves her life by replacing her dead body parts with cybernetic implants. So she has an eye replaced, both her legs an arm and one of her eardrums. So Jaime finds herself working for a secret government organization run by Jonas Bledsoe (Miguel Ferrer). So she's got super powers and she still has to come home to take care of her teenager sister. That's a lot to deal with. Not to mention there is a kick ass bad Bionic Woman (Katee Sackhoff) who like to make Jaime's life a little more difficult. I've really enjoyed the show especially Katee Sackhoff as the bad Bionic chick, she chews some scenery for sure but she's fun. It sort of reminded me of Alias and it has some potential to be great. Hopefully if this thing gets a second season maybe we'll see Steve Austin the OG Bionic Man. Do I smell Spin off show potential?


Bionic Woman aires Wednesday at 9PM on NBC





Thursday


My Name is Earl is now entering into it's third season. I have really enjoyed this series it's funny and has a lot of heart. Last season Earl found himself taking the heat for his ex-wife Joy's crime spree and heading off to the big house. So for the first few episodes he's been in jail trying to continue his deal with Karma and helping everyone he can while behind bars. I don't know if they will be able to sustain a viewership if he's in prison the entire season. It has been funny though as he's dealt with rival prisoners in love with each other--kind of a Romeo loves Jules story. As always Jason Lee's back up characters like Randy, Joy and Crabman are hilarious and completely ignorant.






My Name is Earl aires Thursday at 8PM on NBC


30 Rock has started its second season and it's been pretty good so far. It was nice seeing Seinfeld as the first guest star. The best thing about this show though has been and always will be Alec Baldwin as NBC Exec Jack Donaghy. I really hope that Baldwin decides to stay for a few more seasons. If you followed any of his public personal problems with his daughter you might have heard him say that he may retire from acting all together once his contract with the show is up. Tina Fey is great and all but this show does not work without Jack Donaghy, period. I did love the first episode where Jack tries to digitally put Seinfeld into ads and NBC TV shows. Hilarious.



30 Rock aires Thursday at 8:30PM on NBC






The Office is now in its fourth season and it already is better than ever. This is a great ensemble show. Steve Carell is awesome as always but anyone who watches the show knows that Rainn Wilson who plays Dwight steals the show every night. Poor Dwight is in the doghouse with uptight girlfriend Angela this season after he mercy kills her cat and stuffs it in the freezer. Star-crossed lovers Pam and Jim are now dating this season, I'm wondering how long this is going to last. Intern Ryan has also returned as Michael's new boss at corporate, it seems like he's the new Jan except he's gone bad. Jan is also back after she lost her job and living with Michael. They have also added Creed to the regular cast. It's a great show, if you haven't seen an episode you gotta Netflix it. Also check out the original British version with Ricky Gervais, it's pretty funny too.





The Office aires Thursday at 9PM on NBC






Grey's Anatomy This is the fourth season of the show. I've only seen the first two seasons continuously. It's a pretty decent show but most of the characters get on my nerves. My wife really loves the show and the spin-off show Private Practice, which I have not seen. It comes on Wed at 9 by the way. I put it on here cause my wife loves it and it's on a different network from NBC, which I now realize I have a lot of shows that I watch on the Peacock, so I'm trying to have some diversity. Katherine Hiegel is on this show and really she's pretty hot, so if you can deal with that whiney chick who plays Meredith Grey, then it's worth your time to see Katherine looking great.





Grey's Anatomy aires Thursday at 9PM on ABC






Big Shots I'm still kind of the fence with this new show. I've watched a couple of episodes and I'm not really that impressed. I really like Michael Vartan from Alias, Joshua Malina from West Wing and Dylan McDermott. They just whine a lot on this show about their wives, girlfriends and mistresses. I thought it was going to be about these corporate guys and what they do but really it is a male version of Desperate Housewives. I'm going to give it a few more viewings but if this becomes a trend I may just cut it altogether.


Big Shots aires Thursday at 10PM on ABC

Friday




Friday Night Lights is now in it's second season thankfully. This is one of the best of the new shows last year. It was almost terminated permenantly but thankfully NBC decided to give it another chance. Kyle Chandler is excellent as Coach Taylor. Now in the second season the Coach has moved on to be an assistant coach at TMU. Unfortunately his family has stayed in Dillon which causes a major commuting problem. Not to mention that the Coach's wife Tami, played by the awesome Connie Britton is stuck at home with a newborn and a randy teenager who is thinking of cheating on her boyfriend, star quarterback Matt Saracen. The drama can appear to be soapy but it's so well written and the acting is so good that it really transcends any of that daytime TV crap. It's a great drama that mixes teen angst and responsibility with some nice hard nosed football. What more could you want?


Friday Night Lights aires Friday at 9PM on NBC






















Real Time With Bill Maher is now in it's fifth season. I absolutely love this show! As long as W is in the White House only Bill can make me laugh about it. It's biting comedy but Bill is also a smart guy, he can be a smart ass too but mostly he's intelligent and funny and sometimes he says things that may rub you the wrong way but more than likely they turn out to be true. If you don't get HBO I'm sorry but you may be able to catch his show on the web or on Netflix.





Real Time With Bill Maher aires Friday at 11PM on HBO









Tell Me You Love Me is not quite a solid show yet. I've seen a few episodes and it is interesting at times but mostly you get to look at these relationships so closely that you find yourself watching the most mundane and trivial parts of their lives. Basically the show revolves around three couples and how they deal with different stages of their relationships together. One couple is married with kids and they can't have sex. Another is trying to have kids but can't. The third is about a couple who want to get married but have trust issues. The only time so far where I felt this show had some bite is when they have sex. The show tries to show the reality of sex so it shows a bit more skin then other sexy type shows, but again, it still doesn't make this show watchable for more than a season.




Tell Me You Love Me aires Sunday Night at 9PM on HBO

I also watched the season premiere for that show Moonlight on Friday nights on CBS. It is terrible, it is about a Vampire that is a detective and they try to do this whole Phillip Marlowe meets Interview with a Vampire thing. You would think that it was an intriguing premise but after watching just one episode I had to cut it out of my lineup. The guy playing the gumshoe Vampire is terrible, his acting is stilted and he looks like he belongs in one those trashy romance novels. Skip this one at all costs.






Now for your added viewing pleasure I will show you another great reason why these shows are so fun:

On Monday we have: Chuck























Heroes















On Tuesday:






















Reaper


















On Wednesday:


















Bionic Woman








On Thursday:


























My Name Is Earl
























The Office

























Grey's Anatomy







On Friday:

Friday Night Lights