Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Spy Bambina #2

UPDATE: The baby's name was revealed by People Magazine....

SERAPHINA ROSE ELIZABETH


Congrats to the Garner-Afflecks! Ben and Jen welcomed their second daughter into the world today! No news yet on name, perhaps Sydney??

We here at Let's Talk would like to congratulate them and wish their family all the best!!

PS. Hi, by the way! Its been a long time. I stop in every once in awhile to admire SRG's hard work and dedication to my tiny little blog. Thanks again to SRG for holding down the fort. Much appreciated by all!!

64 comments:

SRM said...

Hi GS! I heard about the happy news earlier and am very happy for them. :)

Page48 said...

OUCH! Jen and I just wasted 5 minutes of our lives together. She was appearing in the TV version of Cyrano on PBS and I was watching. At least she was getting paid for her time. I, on the other hand, was wondering, "how did it ever come to this?".

SKlaft said...

LOL - Page.

Nice to see you stopping in again GS.

For all:

I am about to embark on a comparative study of ALIAS vs. Le Femme Nikita.

At the time when ALIAS was growing in popularity and everyone was agape at the raised level of TV greatness, there were some critics saying "its already been done, and done better with La Femme Nikita." I doubt it highly, but if it even approaches the quality of acting, dialog, and action, I could surely use a little spy-nourishment for my TV hankering.

Anyone else seen any of it? Netflix should be delivering the first disk this week, and it would be great to chat about it with my ALIAS friends.

Page48 said...

Assorted trailers for "The Last Templar" (starring a couple of dudes who have logged considerable Jen-time) are available here and here.

Robetron, LFN (or just plain "Nikita", as it was known in Canada) was a dark, brooding affair as I recall (haven't seen an eppie since the 90's I'm sure). No Marshall Flinkman here to relieve the tension. A very lonely existence for the Femme, I must say.

Ana Espinosa herself (okay, Gina Torres) paid a visit in a 1998 episode. Also recognizable is Alberta Watson, who was dishing out orders to Jack Bauer a few seasons back.

Good series, although there are many episodes that I have never seen and I didn't follow it with the same intensity as I did with "Alias". To say that "Alias" was previously 'done' in the form of LFN is a stretch, although Nikita and Syd faced some similar issues and situations. I'm pretty sketchy on the details as it hasn't aired here in a dog's age.

It, like "Alias" lasted partway thru a fifth season.

uncle111 said...

I watched an epidsode of LFN a few years ago. It didn't really appeal to me. Maybe I didn't give it much of a chance.

SKlaft said...

Okay, after the first three episodes, I feel confident in saying the idea for ALIAS must have been inspired from Le Femme Nikita. I think Le Femme Nikita must have also inspired the movie, "Point of no Return" with Bridget Fonda.

(LFN began in '97 and PONR hit the theaters in '98)

Part of the inspiration of other shows, in my determination, probably happened when they saw the advertisement for LFN and thought, "This is a great idea."

Then they saw the show and said, "Man! Who wrote this?! The dialog is awful, the stories are stilted and lame, the direction is pathetic, but that may have more to do with having little or no budget to do the special effects. I know it can be done better and people will love it."

That is how I thought about it while watching it. The writing is amateurish, but I keep watching. Two reasons I keep watching is, 1.) It is remarkably similar to ALIAS in concept during season 4 (where there was no centralized, main bad-guy group), and I keep thinking that if it lasted for 5 years, the writing must improve; and 2.) I cannot take my eyes off Peta Wilson, who seems to be growing more attractive each episode.

LFN has abundant potential, and I am not willing to give up on it just because it has no budget. ALIAS had those moments when they were obviously walking in front of a Green Screen, and I suspended my disbelief because the show was generally good. I think Nikita doesn't approach ALIAS-greatness, but with the hope of writer-improvements, I am going to keep watching.

(I find it amazing that they are getting away with a $75 price tag at retail outlets for each season. I would have been angry to have paid that and gotten a low grade European imitation of American spy movies. I am so thankful for Netflix!)

Page48 said...

Peta Wilson is rarely seen on TV (or film for that matter). Last time I saw her was a brief airplane scene in "Superman Returns". She had a larger role in "League of Extraordinary Gentleman" with Sean Connery, but she's one celeb you won't get sick of seeing every 5 minutes, cuz you really have to look hard to find her.

Re: the low budget of LFN, Robetron, I have just one word for you....Canadian. Cheap is how we roll.

SKlaft said...

I was just reading reviews at Amazon.com, and it turns out, there was a "Le femme Nikita" movie in 1991, which apparently started the whole thread of inspiration (using the term loosely).

Evidently, "Point of No Return" was an American remake of the original French film by Luc Besson (who made the highly underrated "The Fifth Element"). I had no idea the connection was as close as it was when I made that comparison in the above post.

I had been wonder where I had seen Peta Wilson before, and I was shocked to discover she had been in my own movie library for a couple years. She was the Vampiress in one of my favorite films, "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen."

She was amazing in that movie, and it is a tribute to her acting ability that I was never able to make the connection. She looked differently, behaved differently, and completely convinced me she was an entirely different character than her role as Nikita.

I thought you all might like to share in my discoveries, especially since nothing seems to be happening here lately.

SKlaft said...

Page, I didn't know Nikita was filmed in Canada... that is what you were saying, right?

At any rate, I meant no offense. there are clearly good ideas coming out of Canada these days. Its unfortunate when good ideas cannot find proper funding.

Page48 said...

Robetron, I wasn't offended. Cheap IS how we roll. Canada produces, with very few exceptions, unwatchable dramas and absolutely wretched sitcoms.

A few shows (like "The Border" & "Flashpoint") try to be like their big American cousins, but they all seem to fall short, lacking quality in the writing department.

With the historically significant gap in the currency exchange rate, many American shows, "X-Files" being a prime example have made their home in Canada, employing Canadian crews and almost always some lesser known Canadian actors. The difference is really in the caliber of writing.

I think the Brits also produce high quality TV and film work, but up here in the frozen tundra, we're forced to look elsewhere for the good stuff, and look elsewhere, we do.

Fortunately, however, we ARE able to supply LA with some excellent acting talent, like Victor Garber, which our US friends are able to put to good use.

SRM said...

FYI they released the baby's name the other day, it's Seraphina Rose Elizabeth Affleck. That's quite unique I'd say. :) Here's the People.com article about it.

Page48 said...

Jennifer Thomas 'bemoans' the loss of "Alias", thinks "Dollhouse" has a shot.

uncle111 said...

Is anyone still watching Fringe or Heroes? I stopped early this season.

Page48 said...

Uncle, I pulled the plug on "Heroes" about 3 eppies back. What took me so long, I don't know. It's become unwatchable crap and I don't watch unwatchable crap.

Having said that, I'm still watching "Fringe", although it's been on hiatus for a month. Still waiting for it to amount to something. Looks like it will be picked up for 2nd season. You watch this sucker, it will run for twice as long as "Alias" did. Thanks for 10 incredible years!

BSG kicks off the home stretch this week, BN next week. "Lost" is back soon. Things are looking up.

SKlaft said...

Yes, I still watch Heroes because I became invested in the characters while it was good, and I tend to be hyper-loyal, even when I have complaints. I have no idea when the next episode is scheduled, though.

I never liked Fringe all that much, and never grew attached to the characters. I have only seen the first three or four episodes, and I gave up on it.

Last year's "24" fell flat at the last 5 episodes, but the new show is looking good, if only a little warmed over. I'm still amused to note all the phrases such as, "We're running out of time!" I'll hang on to Jack Bauer til he's done. It sort-a looks like he's in for another rough day.

I am ready for a big night when LOST comes back. I am actively avoiding any spoilers like advertisements and such.

BSG on Friday at 10 eastern! Woo Hoo! I'm taking the night off work for it. The SciFi Channel has never done anything even close to it, and will have a hard time replacing it when the season is over.

I have no idea how well "Caprica" will do. I'm not sure how far that can be taken without the BSG characters, or in view of making whatever happens fit with the mythos previously established. I will certainly give it a fair shot.

I may be the only one who loves The Unit, but I do. Yes, it has its rough patches, but the acting (by some), writing, direction, and development is truly engaging. I look forward to it every Sunday night at 10 eastern on CBS.

Page48 said...

Yeah, I watch "24" as well. Like "Alias", you're only dead until your next storyline.

They've made a big change this year in dispensing with CTU, but I like it. As long as they don't kill off Chloe and Buchanan. Chloe is Jack's Marshall Flinkman and I'd like to see her more involved in the action. Remember the time she killed a guy a few years back? I like the bond between her and Jack. They're indispensable to each other.

I love the fact that "24" goes wire to wire without a 4 month hiatus each mid-season. Not only that, but you can't call it "24" without producing 24 hours of programming, bucking the trend of increasingly shorter seasons on network TV.

I'd like to see Jack Bauer team up with Sydney Bristow to inflict serious pain on those who richly deserve it. You know, the way Magnum used to team up with Jessica Fletcher. Well, maybe not quite like that.

SKlaft said...

Let's not forget the upcoming season of BURN NOTICE.

The season premier is January 22, at 10:00 PM... only on the USA Channel.

It looks like it will only get better. I'm charged up about this too.

Bonkers for Bristow said...

Robe- you are not the only Unit fan. I don't what it is about the show, because the premise is pretty cliche and there is no press on it, but it keeps plugging away and making me love it. Maybe it's the acting like you said. Dennis Haysbert is awesome but I really like Mack and Bob, too. The girls are ok, with Kim being the least intresting but they're not the main act. I also like how not ever mission is a success and they have my full respect for killing off a chacter like they did last season. That was done well - shocking and quick, with respect and grief afterwards.

As for Heroes - I've given up. My husband still likes it, though, so we continue to watch. Me, I think it's terribly inconsistent and I've stopped caring about anybody but Sylar.

The two shows starting up soon, BN and Lost - I am looking forward to BN more even though last season's Lost was one of the best yet. I think the large cast of Lost is harder to concentrate on vs BN which has three main characters.

last comment - I am disgusted with the following Fringe has. How can something so lame make it this far and get press? Unless it has really picked up after the "man who ages super fast" episode, I just don't see it.

Page48 said...

Bonkers, sadly I need to report that "Fringe" has stuck very closely to the freak-of-the-week formula. Why they chose this route, who knows?

However, it's not just the formula that irks me, it's the comic book nature of some of the characters. Walter is bad enough but The Observer is the worst example. I'm not saying that "Alias" was based on a true story, but it was PLAYED serious, with the possible exception of the other Mr. Sloane.

JJ's track record since "Lost" is not going to look good on his resume. "Six Degrees", "What About Brian?", total busts. "Fringe" is a workable premise, but why roll it out like a live-action cartoon? "X-Files" had some off the wall types (Cigarette Smoking Man and the Lone Gunmen), but they were portrayed realistically to the extent that such characters can be.

"Fringe" will now benefit from the "American Idol" lead-in, which will likely boost its viewership and ensure that ratings lead to a renewal for next year.

I'd like to know how "Alias" would have fared on FOX, with all those "American Idol" cultists getting hooked on the opening scene before they have time to change channels. Gotta be better than that 4:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon slot it enjoyed in Canada for the last two seasons.

SKlaft said...

My, oh my, oh my!

No one, NO ONE tells a story like the people making Battlestar Galactica.

I'm stunned.

I need to catch my breath.

uncle111 said...

No spoilers please. I don't know when I'm going to get to watch.

Page48 said...

Got BSG queued up for Saturday evening viewing.

uncle111 said...

Just watched BSG online. Wow!! I won't go into theories until after Page sees it and no one expresses objections.

Page48 said...

I've officially watched BSG. It's gonna be fun running out the clock on this series. As long as it doesn't end with Starbuck pointing rockets at London and Washington.

SKlaft said...

Personally, I think last season struggled more than in the rest of the series, but man, did they ever come back swingin'. (That's a fight-reference, not a perversion reference.)

You are drawn into the palpable despair among them. They have fought so hard, endured so much with the hope of Earth spurring them on to keep going. Then, when they're hopes are finally realized, Earth turned out to be in worse condition that Caprica when they left it.

The fact that the "final five" Cylons were originally earth-dwellers, and somehow they remembered their lives thousands of years in the past while walking on the burned out surface... I'm astounded at the creative direction!

I'm a little disappointed in who the fifth secret Cylon is. I never liked that character, and was glad not to have it around anymore. The flashbacks and delusions were bad enough, but now we are guaranteed a return of some sort.

How freaky was that for Kara Thrace to walk up on your own wreckage and find your own corpse? That will warp you for certain.

Man, I'm going to love Fridays again.

uncle111 said...

Robetron,
One of the things the episode was intended to do was make us ask, "What the heck is going on?" At least 3 of the final five have memories of being on earth when it was nuked. Kara found what appears to be her fighter and charred body in the fighter's burned out wreakage.
This leads to 2 questions:
1- Why do these 3 Cylons have memories of being there 2000 years ago when they only came to be within the last 40 years?
2- How did Kara die on Earth and yet live to find her body? And related, how is she the harbenger of death in a way that scared the Cylon?

Possiblities on question 1:
A- this isn't really Earth and it wasn't nuked 2000 years ago
B- The Cylons' memories of it were implanted as part of a Cylon plot.
C- The history of the Colonies is wrong and the humans were the creation of the Cylons.

On question 2:
A- Kara was killed in the crash and she is a recent, or ancient, Cylon model.
B- She passed through some kind of space warp when it looked like her ship blew up and split into 2 Karas, one of which crashed on the planet.
C- Her whole exerience is part of an elaborate Cylon plan.

Any thoughts?

SKlaft said...

Uncle, to your first question, "Why do these 3 Cylons have memories of being there 2000 years ago when they only came to be within the last 40 years?" I have a theory.

My theory is that the former earth-dwellers were a very advanced society; and, when they knew the bombs would be dropped, some of them found a way to store their own human memories within a data bank, which was sent into space with the living humans who ran from earth. The natural development of the pioneering humans brought them to create sentient machines with the technology found in that data bank. The natural human tendency to rebel against oppression caused the first Human / Cylon war. The Cylons grew increasingly aware, called for armistice, and used their own technology to create what the humans would call "the skin jobs," implanting them with the memories of those humans from Earth. There are a few holes in the theory, but they can be eliminated literarily (meaning, by skillful writing).

To your second question, "How did Kara die on Earth and yet live to find her body? And related, how is she the harbinger of death in a way that scared the Cylon?" I haven't figured this one out yet. Except to say that, in order for the "final five" to be hidden among the humans (going along with my above theory), and in order for the self-aware skin-jobs to be programed to avoid thinking about the "final five," someone had to know what they were doing, putting the whole thing in motion. I believe there may be some former Earthlings back at the Cylon home-base, wherever that is, who are pulling the puppet strings, trying to get the human race back together to re-inhabit Earth... or something like that.

These are pretty wild and complicated ideas, but one thing I have learned about the writing on BSG is never to underestimate the complexity of their creativity, nor their skill at being able to explain it all by showing us rather than telling us.

I do not know how many more episodes we have left, but it is going to be a great ride!

SKlaft said...

OH!...

The salient point, about all of that explanation as it pertains to Kara...

I think, when Kara took the nose dive into the nebula, somehow, there was a warping of time and space, bringing her to the attention of those who are putting all of this into motion. "They" saw her pass through the nebula in a burning ball and fall to Earth. "They" captured her thoughts, or her "essence" as it were, and created a new body a fighter for her to fly, especially programed to call out the "final five" at just the right time.

Being a religious man, and taking it quite seriously, I prefer that they do not touch on the subject of the One True God, but from the beginning the subject has always been an element of the show. I cannot eliminate the possibility that the elusive creatures claiming to be angels, and making themselves only see-able by Baltar and "6," could be among those who have been manipulating everything from the start.

I won't say it is God, either fictional or non-fictional, but they have been subtly influencing the outcome of every tight scrape and direction. In order to resolve the show to a satisfactory level, this will come into play, somehow. I think it fits well with my theory.

What do you think?

uncle111 said...

Robetron,
Sorry I haven't replied sooner. I've been distracted by economy related business problems. I am going to try to give your ideas a thoughtful examination later today and reply accordingly.

uncle111 said...

Robetron,
Is this a fair summation of your 2 posts?
1- the original inhabitants of earth learned they were going to be nuked, stored their thoughts and memories and sent them with a few escaping Earthlings into outer space.
2- those refugees found and colonized the 12 colonies and created the Cylons.
3- the Cylons rebelled, started their own colony, created the skin-jobs and gave them "repressed" memories from some of the humans that died on earth when it was nuked.
4- some of the Earthlings who fled earth still live and are orchestrating what we are watching as a way of getting the humans to flee back to earth with some of the skin-jobs to recolonize it, and they have hidden the final-five amongst the humans to keep anyone, including the final-five, from knowing who they are. And I assume they have been given some kind of knowledge of how to get to earth and how to carry out the mission.
5- Kara's dive into the nebula caused a space/time warp that motivated the refugee earthlings to catch her essence, create a new body and fighter and send her back to jump start the final-five's ability to lead the humans and the skin-jobs to earth.

If this is what you are guessing I'd have to say there are problems with it. I will have to think more about it to be able to state them cogently, however.

In the meantime, do you think there series has a maguffin like Alias had with Rambaldi?

Also, I'm interested what they are up to with the ongoing one true God of the evil Cylons vs the Greek type pantheon of the good guys.

uncle111 said...

I forgot, Here is a site that I ran across when I was Googling Battle Star Galactica. I haven't explored it to see if they have any ideas- I imagine they do:
http://forums.scifi.com/index.php?s=740e146d6a66bdd666299bad22a02db6&showforum=24

uncle111 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
uncle111 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
uncle111 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
uncle111 said...

Sorry, I've been playing with a new avatar.

SKlaft said...

Uncle,
That's not exactly what I was saying, no.

What I was saying is that those fleeing Earth and creating the Cylons did not know they were putting into motion the plan of those who stored their memories (which really is a person's "essence" or, soul, if you will - we are all products of our own decisions and resulting memories).

Regarding "those" that seem to be orchestrating all that we have seen, they have been taking on the forms of people familiar to the ones to who they are making themselves known, and they call themselves angels. They seem to have the ability to appear and disappear at will, and to be able to take on a corporeal form. (remember "6" appeared to Galactica in order to accuse Baltar back in season 1 - but in reality, she managed to cast all doubts from him in the end, leaving him free to do everything he did?)

They (the writing staff) may be leading us to the conclusion of the One True God setting the whole thing in motion as a result of the colonies scorching the Earth and turning pantheistic. (It would not be the first time God purged polytheism out of a widespread influence by incremental nudges over a vast period of time.)

I'm saying that whoever it is, there must be someone designing the whole scenario from the get-go. The forced journey to a scorched Earth is just too coincidental. The Cylons themselves seem subject to the influences, and they were as disappointed as the humans. It has to be a third party. I was positing that it might be the ones claiming to be agents of the One God who are doing it, and that they were the ones who "resurrected" Kara.

The final four (or five) were not implanted with the knowledge of how to return to Earth. That was embedded in the "new" fighter Kara piloted back to Galactica. She didn't do this on her own. Someone else clearly did it. It could not have been the Cylons either, for, if they knew the location of Earth, they would have gone there directly, ruining the plans of the third-party to bring them all back to Earth.

The first Kara is clearly dead. The third party, who ever it is, managed to clone Kara and give the close her memories, essentially make her Kara, but not a Cylon. The third party clearly has a technology similar to the "resurrection ships" of the Cylons. One wonders if their influence is what gave the Cylons this Technology in the first place.

I've theorized long enough. The truth is, I have no idea, and I'm going to love finding out with al lthe rest of you (who watch).

uncle111 said...

Robetron,
That makes it clearer. I can see the possibilties in it. I too can only guess, but am anticipating seeing what they come up with.

One of the things the "angels" have said repeatedly is that "all of this has happened before, and all of this will happen again." How do you think that might fit in to what is ahead? That is a more Hindu/Karma concept that would be at odds with their monotheism.

Page48 said...

Uncle, is that avatar an official ABC promo pic for Season 6?

uncle111 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
uncle111 said...

Page-
I misspoke. It's for an upcoming miniseries. I'm trying to get them to write you guys into it also.

Page48 said...

Okay, obviously things work a little differently in the Cylon world, because ONLY in the Cylon world does a hard drinking, chain smoking, one-eyed, grizzled senior citizen like Saul Tigh get a crack at Number Six. That would be a lot to ask for on "Fantasy Island".

Speaking of Number Six, Tricia and BN are back. I seriously object to a show taking 6 months off and expecting me to remember what happened in the first half of the season. However, I'm glad it's back.

uncle111 said...

Page-
With BSG and Burn back, the only thing that would be better is if Alias was back.

SKlaft said...

Well...

I don't quite know what to say. I've never seen a show that remains consistently far an above most any other, in terms of quality, like Battlestar Galactica... and then have an episode like this passed Friday that is about as boring and droll as a CSI show without the witty repartee.

I don't quite feel right about complaining about it so soon after being so completely flabbergasted at how great the previous episode was.

And yet, I was more disappointed than I would have expected to be, even when they have "off days." Obviously, in the past, some episodes have been better than others, but this one... did anything actually happen? Did the story advance at all?

I suppose they are showing us how Felix-the-one-legged-bisexual is instigating mutiny, but time to resolve the problems is running out too quickly to be wrapping the insurrection in a series of non-events like the "tillium" ship not getting away.

Maybe I expected too much. I'll try to curb that. If the writers and prodicers didn't want me to lower my expectations, they wouldn't settle for a Jerry-Seinfeld episode where nothing happens.

SKlaft said...

Burn Notice was good, but like you said, after 6 months, I needed to refresh my memory of what was happening. I guess I can go back and watch the last few just to remember.

Thing about it... because Burn Notice only takes itself seriously 3/4 of the time, I don't mind a little mediocrity. It IS consistently entertaining. That is all I expect from it.

..and... oh yeah... did you all see the abs on Fiona? Ridiculous!

Page48 said...

Robetron, I loved Fiona playing 'army men' with Jack. Girl loves her guns. BN looks especially gorgeous when you're knee deep in the jaws of winter.

Not much face time for Starbuck this week on BSG. This week was little more than table-setting, and certainly a let-down from last week's stunner.

Victor Garber's "The Last Templar" tonight and Monday night on NBC. Poor man's "Da Vinci Code"? Probably. VG gets to use a few of Jack Bristow's skills in this one, but I fear he does not have the moral high ground this time around. Can't win 'em all. Gotta feel like a step up from "Eli Stone" and "Justice" though.

uncle111 said...

Yes, the BSG episode was dull and, I found, tedious. But I'm sure what they are doing is what would be logical to do- show the devolution a society goes through that suddenly loses religous faith.

What I'm wondering is what they have planned to bring them out of their dark night of the soul. Will it be a whopping cool event/mystery, or just the struggle to survive a revolution? Will they be brought back to faith, or just a utilitarian will-to-survive reflex.

And, is the Tigh's baby really his, and if so is he REALLY Cylon?

uncle111 said...

I finally got around to watching the final MOWE. If they had gotten to this point earlier they might have been able to last.

Page48 said...

Here's my 4-word review of Part One of VG's "The Last Templar":

The boredom was relentless.

uncle111 said...

I taped the last of TLT tonight and will watch it soon. Maybe I'm punishing myself, but I have to see what they did...and if there is any glimmer of Jack B.

uncle111 said...

I'm watching TLT. Not toooo bad. The female lead just had some Syd type fighting and afterward told the downed bad guys, "I'm nobody's baby." Kind of like "I don't want to be no man's woman."

SRM said...

I'm currently enjoying the much-hyped show FireFly...and yeah, it's definitely lived up to the hype. ;-) I've only seen 5 episodes so far so please, no spoilers!

Page48 said...

SRG, be sure to cap it off with "Serenity".

....Miranda.

Page48 said...

JJ designed "Fringe" to be largely stand-alone episodes so that the 'casual viewer' could drop in 3 times a year and get the equivalent bang that a die-hard fan would get.

By his own admission, he chose this route because, while watching "Alias" at Grunberg's house one night, it occurred to him that "Alias" was way to friggin' opaque for him to follow. He apparently concluded that if he couldn't follow it, what the hell chance did the rest of us have?

All this brings me to ABC's treatment of "Lost" for the last few seasons, where new episodes are preceded by a fully-captioned version of the previous episode, helping out with little explanations and catch-up notes, presumably to help with the opaqueness factor of "Lost".

What kills me here is that clearly "Alias" didn't warrant this kind of consideration from ABC. It was easier to just call it too hard to follow and get rid of it. On the other hand, the network devotes 2 hours each week to rolling out the "Lost" saga. I find that kind of kid-glove treatment a little galling actually. Has there ever been another show this coddled by it's network?

While I'm bitching, I hate having a TV show brought to me by Season 4 of "Lost" now available on Blu-ray. Where are the shows brought to me by five incredible years of "Alias" now available on Blu-ray?

There, that's it, back to watching "Swing Vote" for me.

SKlaft said...

JJ is a doofus for thinking we are all as dense as he is. If he was not able to follow the show of his own creating, it is an obvious indication that he spun the ALIAS-globe, turned his back, and let it run down without the slightest care whether it was being done right or not. It lets us know that any criticism we might have about the show or its canceling should be directed precisely at him.

I'm still a LOST fan, and I do not need the pedantic, condescending, and sometimes dumb commentary to tell me what is happening in each episode. I purposely skip it.

If it is anything that irritates me, it is a bunch of TV execs or a metrosexual-TV-show-producer assuming they are smarter than I am, and if they cannot follow a story, then I must not be able to either. I'm not alone in being, obviously, a great deal smarter than they are, and more clever than they give us credit for being, because there was a very large number of fans who have no problem with ALIAS or LOST. Some of whom still come here to talk about good TV (or the lack thereof).

I suppose one of the reasons why I couldn't care less about Fringe is because they write it with the assumption that people couldn't follow it if they increase the depth of characters or story.

On a more positive note, the previews for Joss Weddon's new show looks better than I thought it might. I hope they can move beyond the "oh look, a pretty, near-naked woman is on the screen" appeal, and get right into some weighty conflicts and action. Considering Weddon's history with "Buffy," "Angel," and "Firefly," I'm not certain it will, but I look forward to seeing for sure.

Burn Notice tomorrow...

Page48 said...

Robetron, I suppose it should also not be overlooked that tacking on that extra rerun of "Lost" every week means ABC doesn't have to spend a dime on new scripted programming for that primetime hour.

I love "Lost" as well, but I get the feeling that "Alias" truly is the Rodney Dangerfield of JJ's collection.

"Fringe" (last week) sported no fewer than 4 "Alias" writers (JJ, Orci, Kurtzman, and Pinkner) and yet the story was dishwater compared to "Alias". This tells me that one of two things is in play here: either they can't write that caliber of TV anymore, or they are, as you suggest, trying to go easy on infantile viewers.

I'm jacked for "Dollhouse". I just wish it would get here so we can render a verdict. The endless promo photos and trailers just don't cut it anymore. I want the real deal. I even did a little homework this week, downloading a couple of episodes of "Tru Calling" just to see who this Dushku chick is. Of course, she's six years older now. I never watched "Angel" or Buffy (okay, 3 eppies of Buffy), so FF is my only experience with Whedon's 'verse.

Anyhoo, I hope DH is worth the wait and all the re-writes/re-shoots, cuz quality is in short supply, at least on my TV.

SKlaft said...

I never watched "Angel" or "Buffy" either. If you made it through more than 15 minutes of a Buffy episode, you've endured more than I. Firefly was my first real exposure to Whedon also. I was basing my judgment (above) on my opinion of the first two in contrast to Firefly/ Serenity. I think Dollhouse has the potential to play the line between them nicely.

What was Tru Calling, and what was your opinion of her in that show? Decent? A pretty face is nice, but it won't hold my interest by itself; she has to be able to really act (unlike Jessica Alba).

Page48 said...

"Tru Calling" was just another formulaic procedural. Girl worked in a morgue. Dead folks asked her for help at which point she relived the day those people died and went out of her way to alter events so that the morgue would not fill up.

I only watched 2 episodes, but I can see where it could get tedious real quick. Her acting was no better or worse than average as near as I could determine.

SRM said...

Yup I'm definitely planning on seeing Serenity once I'm done watching Firefly. :)

I'm also excited for Dollhouse. For me I'll always know Eliza D. as the Governator's daughter in True Lies (one of my fav movies). Her part was rather minor in the movie but she played the grunge-rebellious teen well. I caught Tru Calling a couple times, it was entertaining enough but never got me programming it into the VCR. I'm thinking Eliza's got to have some acting chops to pull off her roll of the girl-who-can-be-anybody in DH, don't know if anyone can do it like our beloved JG...

Page48 said...

SRG, I don't know how many times I've seen "True Lies", but I didn't realize Eliza was the daughter. It certainly was Tom Arnold's finest hour, though.

Eliza did deliver a nice high kick to the teeth in one of the "Tru Calling" eppies I saw. Of course, that's a lot easier when you're 23 than when you're 29.

Page48 said...

And BTW, I would love to the the Governator recalled or otherwise turfed out of office so he can go back to making action flicks. Anybody can be a disappointing politician, but not everybody can make great escapist movies.

Find what you're good at and stick with it, Arnie!

SKlaft said...

LOL... Page, that is the best, positivist point of view for a politician who needs to be bounced that I have ever seen.

"Get him out of office!!! ...so we can have more great movies!"

Does the irony tickle everyone else like it does me? I can't stop chuckling over it.

uncle111 said...

Arnie- Movies yes; Politics no.

So what do you think of the latest BSG and Burn episodes?

Page48 said...

BSG was way better than last week's sleeper. I love Starbuck's take no prisoner approach. On the other hand, I think her massive tattoo is unsightly at best.

BN was more of the same. I foolishly thought they were going to drop a cliffhanger on us with Fiona's status unknown, but noooooooo. Oh well, Miami looks awesome when you've spent 2 1/2 months in a snowbank.

SKlaft said...

I was away from home Friday night, and I finally had time to watch BSG on SciFi.com.

Much improved. I moved, quite literally, to the edge of my seat. I can see how the last episode was designed to set the stage for Gaita's mutiny, though, I am still convinced they could have done it in a more entertaining way with a side story fleshing things out a bit more. The romance between Madam President and the Admiral has been developing slowly since season 1. It's just an opinion, but I'd rather it be a little more understated or left implied. Watching them swap denture-cream on camera was less than aesthetically pleasing. That notwithstanding... yeah... it's good to have Kara back to her old inappropriately aggressive self again. I hope the answers regarding her apparent resurrection / clone-status will be coming forthwith.

I'm also looking forward to Zarek getting his just deserts. I hope it's Lee, and I hope it's in hand to hand combat with a neck-breakage. It's been coming to him since Lee negotiated his release from the prison ship way back when.

Anyone think I may have anger issues? Hmm...

Anyway, Burn Notice was a little bit "more of the same," but I'm liking how Carla (aka, "6") is showing her cards a little with Michael. I know he is noticing it with the increased smugness he displays with her, letting her know he sees the weakness.

I may have enjoyed a cliffhanger too, but not at that point. Michael finding his repressed attachment to Fiona was more than he expected or could resist at a time of extreme danger... it was very natural and well set up by the writing staff. We, as the viewers (I guess I should speak for myself) felt that panic setting in as he saw the house engulfed in flame, and no answer on her phone. I thought it was very well done.

Soooo... it was a professional demolitions expert hired plant the bomb at Michael's door, and he set another trap in his own home, as though he expected company. And he doesn't work for Carla. Weird. I guess we have to tune in every week to get more info on what happened. Overall, Burn Notice never fails to entertain.