How disappointment turned to excitement

So, Thursday was our big day. Two panels Stephanie and I both wanted to see and two sets of interviews to be conducted.

We had the chance to interview the casts of "Psych" and "Burn Notice." But, the scheduling was a complete nightmare.

First was the "Psych" interviews, but they were going on at the same time as the "Burn Notice" panel. Right after that was the "Burn Notice" interviews, but they were going on at the same time as the"Psych" panel. Gotta love great planning.

Stephanie and I worked it out that I would handle "Psych" and she would take "Burn Notice," although I'm not sure if Michael Shanks being at the "Burn Notice" stuff helped her choice or not.

So, Stephanie got into Ballroom 20 for the "Burn Notice" panel and I went to interview the cast of "Psych." I had a blast. Everyone was so funny and nice.

Finally got what they think of "The Mentalist," which is basically a dramatic version of "Psych." Steve Franks, creator and producer of the show, basically called "The Mentalist" a generic version of "Psych," which I kind of agree with. Sorry Simon Baker.

Dule Hill and James Roday are probably the best duo on television today and sitting down to talk with them only proved that fact. They seem to have that friendship and chemistry like they do on the show. They played off each other during the interview so well.

And don't get me started on how beautiful Maggie Lawson is in person...

I asked the network people if there was a way for me to get into the "Psych" panel that was happening in just a few minutes, since a huge line had formed while I was interviewing the cast.

"Run really fast," she told me. Lovely.

I get out of the interviews and the sheer amount of people in line tell me there is no way I'm getting in there. I call Stephanie and we work out that she'll just stay in the Ballroom while I do the "Burn Notice" interviews too. I felt bad, I did. This was supposed to be a two person job, but there were really no other options.

Of course it's common knowledge that Bruce Campbell rocks. I got breaking news from Campbell and creator Matt Nix that they are working on a television prequel movie about Campbell's character on the show Sam Axe. That was cool.

Campbell was also asked what part he would play in Sam Raimi's "World of Warcraft" movie that was just announced.

"Probably a garbage man," he said.

It was a great few hours to be had and Stephanie even enjoyed the panels. I wouldn't say we both won, but the best was made out of a crappy situation.

First panel of Comic-Con

I was going to have my first panel of Comic-Con be the Entertainment Weekly's Wonder Women one, but saw that Ballroom 20 was near empty for the panel right before that one with "Quantum Quest."

I thought "Well, at least I'll be able to sit down..."

"Quantum Quest" is a CGI animated film that is based around real scientific space data about surfing protons.

Yes, surfing space protons. With dreadlocks.

From what Stephanie tells me, almost the same exact panel was shown last year, with the same special video clips by Neil Armstrong and Chris Pine being shown at last year's Comic-Con too.

Three things that stood out during this panel:

1. The filmmakers are really pushing that they want this film to not just entertain, but educate children about science. I have an 8-year-old niece, she won't want to see this movie. I can guarantee that.

2. The movie does have one thing going for it, it has voice work by two Darth Vaders (Hayden Christensen and James Earl Jones) and two Capt. Kirks (Pine and William Shatner). Which, no matter what I think of the film, is still pretty freaking cool.

3. Actors Doug Jones ("Hellboy") and Robert Picardo ("Star Trek: Voyager") both are really funny men and should do a buddy movie together. I would pay good money to see that. I think if they were not on the panel it would have been very, very boring.

Comic-Con: Day one or Tim LOVES crowds

So, preview night of Comic-Con has come and gone.

And I survived... barely.

The convention opened up from 6-9 p.m. to gives attendees a sneak peek of what the week's events. And a crap load of people came out.

I'm not kidding, there were thousands and thousands of people waiting in line and milling around when I showed up at 4 p.m. to check in.

The checking in process was painless and I spent the remaining waiting time in the press room.

Some highlights of "Preview Night:"

I met "Green Lantern" writer Geoff Johns and had him sign my copy of "The Sinestro Corps War" TPB. Also got my hands on a Black Lantern ring.

Also met "Wonder Woman" writer Gail Simone. She was awesome and very nice. She signed my copy of "Villains United."

More to come...

New episode up... and an editor's note

This episode we talk about the Emmy nominations, what's coming to theaters this week, the best and worst of the year so far and Stephanie makes a bold attempt to stump Tim.

Also, remember starting Wednesday evening we'll be at Comic-Con with live coverage. There might be some Lego Rock Band action, maybe a celebrity interview or two (or three) and of course "Twilight" mania runs wild in San Diego.

What not to see at Comic-Con

Next week this blog will be taken over by a massive wave of Comic-Con goodness. Seriously, I am thinking about my total lack of sleep next week and it's scary.

But, hey, I'm a committed journalist. And maybe after all the madness I will be a journalist who is committed.

Over the past week Stephanie and I have been pouring over each day's schedule and making plans (and plan b's). Trust me when I say there is a TON of things to see and do there. I could just sit through panels alone and be busy the whole time, not counting the show floor and any hands on demonstrations.

There is, though, a few things that I do not want to see. Things I couldn't get paid enough to see.

One show that I used to love, "Heroes," is going to have a panel afterall, but it is offsite at a nearby hotel. Now I wouldn't have walked a few feet to see a "Heroes" panel, so I am not going out in the hot sun to hike over and see one. Once you lost Bryan Fuller, you lost me. Apparently Stephanie's friend IS going to the panel. I wonder how much I can offer her to ask Tim Kring why he still has a job after running the show into the ground. Scratch that, running the show underneath the ground.

For my next choice, I'll just paste what is in the schedule and let it speak for itself:

12:00-1:00 The Middle Special Pilot Screening— Emmy winner Patricia Heaton (Everybody Loves Raymond) makes her Comic-Con debut to introduce a special screening of The Middle, a new comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations. Frankie Heck (Heaton) is a superhero. Well, no, not an actual superhero—but sometimes it seems as though getting her kids out the door for school every morning is a superheroic act. Middle aged, middle class, and living in the middle of the country, this harried wife and working mother of three uses her wry wit and sense of humor to try to get her family through each day intact. The Middle will air Wednesdays at 8:30 PM ET/PT on the ABC Television Network this fall, premiering September 30.

Yeah... how does this appeal to any demographic at Comic-Con? Seriously.

Be on the lookout over the next week for more prelim Comic-Con stuff.

Analyzing the Emmy nominations

This morning the Emmy nominations were announced and while most of my wish list was snubbed, a few new names were added to the recycled list of nominees.

Simon Baker as lead actor in a drama for "The Mentalist" and "Flight of the Concords" and "Family Guy" for outstanding comedy series were among the surprise nominees.

The domination of cable programming is particularly evident in the drama series category, as only two shows, "House" and "Lost," are from broadcast networks.

Even though the television academy did recognize a few new names, there were some very deserving shows and people left off the list. How could they not nominate "The Shield" and stars Michael Chiklis and Walton Goggins for the fantastic work they did on that show's finale?

Also snubbed was "Battlestar Galactica" and Mary McDonnell for that show's last season. The academy traditionally ignores sci-fi, but come on those final episodes were ridiculously good.

I'm also a little disappointed that they didn't recognize "ER" one last time. I'm not usually a fan of sentimental nominations, but in this case I'll make an exception.

Those are my only real complaints, all in all it is a solid list of the best TV has to offer, although I'm still completely perplexed by the appeal of "30 Rock." Oh, and Charlie Sheen was nominated again, so there are some flaws in the system.

The Emmys will air live on CBS on Sept. 20 with nominee Neil Patrick Harris serving as host.

For the full list of nominees, which includes "Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-Long Blog" and two Justin Timberlake nominations for hosting "Saturday Night Live" and co-writing "Motherlover," click here.

Who deserves Emmys?

Tomorrow morning the Emmy nominations are announced and while we will discuss them at great length in the show, I thought I would take a minute and give my list of perfect nominees in a few of the categories.
Outstanding Drama:

• "Battlestar Galactica"
• "24"
• "ER"
• "Burn Notice"
• "The Shield"

Outstanding Comedy:

• "Chuck"
• "How I Met Your Mother"
• "The Office"
• "psych"
• "Eureka"

Lead Actress in a Drama:

• Mary McDonnell-"Battlestar Galactica"
• Mary McCormack-"In Plain Sight"
• Kyra Sedgwick-"The Closer"
• Cherry Jones-"24"
• Connie Britton-"Friday Night Lights"

Lead Actor in a Comedy:

• Alec Baldwin-"30 Rock"
• Colin Ferguson-"Eureka"
• Tony Shaloub-"Monk"
• James Roday-"psych"
• Zachary Levi-"Chuck"

As you can see my choices heavily favor cable shows, reason being cable is producing television that is so much better than the networks. Unfortunately, these nominations are a pipe dream because the Emmys tend to nominate the same people year after year.

If the academy really honored the best shows on TV, they wouldn't keep nominating "Two and a Half Men."

Once again enjoy our full coverage of the Emmy nominations on the next episode of "Viewpoints On..."

200 posts, who saw that coming?

How quickly time goes by? This post is our mind-bending 200th entry.

In that time this blog has undergone a lot of changes, but one thing hasn't changed, our fearless leader Tim Guy.

Tim started this blog and recruited the rest of us to participate. I just thought that I would use this post to say thank you.

I have the great pleasure of working with Tim on a daily basis and he is responsible for not only the growth of this project, but, the high level of journalism that we strive for. Now I know when he reads this he'll think I wasted an entry talking about him, but since it's my day he has no choice.

So to my partner-in-crime, the Murtaugh to my Riggs, or perhaps the Shawn to my Gus, thanks and congratulations.

Ok, enough emotions, tomorrow we will resume our regularly scheduled program of nerdy observations and time consuming pop culture analysis.

Box office Monday

As predicted "Bruno" took the No. 1 spot at the box office earning around $30 million dollars. "Ice Age 3" was close behind with $27 million.

It's kind of hard to compare Sacha Baron Cohen's first film "Borat" to "Bruno" because when the first film opened in 2006, it was only screened on 837 screens, compared to "Bruno" on 2,756.

A $30 million dollar opening weekend is still a good chunk of change no matter what. I'm sure somewhere Cohen is laughing and plotting his next move into the big screen.

Also, as predicted, "I Love You Beth Cooper" couldn't crack the top five and had to settle for No. 7 with a little less than $5 million dollars.

One interesting thing that is developing is that "The Proposal" starring Sandra Bullock is still making good money and is on track to become her highest grossing film (with her in the lead role). Her No. 1 film right now is "Speed" at $121 million. "The Proposal" has about $8 million to go and should have no problem doing that in less than two weeks (My guess-timation).

New episode up... and some breaking news

In this episode we talked about the casting rumors of the new "Green Lantern" movie. Well, just a little while ago, the Hollywood Reporter reported that Ryan Reynolds has gotten the lead part of Hal Jordan.

Wasn't our first pick, but it is by no means a horrible pick. Should be interesting to see if he can pull it off. This might have to be more "Smokin Aces" aka more action and drama and less "Wolverine" which was a lot of action, but mostly comedic relief.

Check back Monday for a more in-depth look at this choice.

My summer show picks

To start, I have not seen a lot of the new offerings for the summer television season. "Hawthorne" is still sitting on my DVR and "Nurse Jackie?" Well, even I can't go there. Even for journalistic curiosity.

So my two picks for good things to watch over the summer are "The Philanthropist" and "Top Chef Masters."

I know Stephanie didn't dig "The Philanthropist" too much, but I did. I like that Jesse L. Martin is back on television and even Neve Campbell is good. Sure, it can get a little preachy now and then but what show doesn't nowadays.

The visuals are excellent, including the first episode where the backdrop was a flood in Africa. James Purefoy, who you might remember from the first "Resident Evil" movie, is great. He is sort of a Bruce Wayne/Batman type character, just without the tights and super kung fu moves. He has some rough edges, but doesn't mind spending tons of money to help out those who need it.

It is inspiring also. It is much better than just watching murder and death all night.

I also really like "Top Chef Masters" mostly because it is devoid of that manufactured reality show drama. I want to see talented people cook, not talking about each other in coffessionals or long scenes of them away from cooking. These top chefs, very famous ones, are there for charity so they don't act like idiots.

Plus, some of their food actually looks good.

Summer TV so far

With a few new shows and some old favorites, summer TV has become as complex as fall. Here is a recap of how the season is going so far.

"The Philanthropist"-With a strong cast, I had high hopes for this show, but the first two episodes were slow and unfocused. James Purefoy is charming as the title character but his transformation feels forced and with shoots taking place in international exotic locales this show seems way too expensive. Verdict: Don't get too attached.

"Warehouse 13"-This new sci-fi show features charming leads with good chemistry and a fun premise, however, it has a long way to go to become appointment television, which is what every great sci-fi show aspires to. Verdict: Still out, the jury's not done deliberating.

"Hawthorne"-Jada Pinkett Smith as a tough nurse, working around the system to help patients. Though it's definitely a star vehicle for Smith, the supporting cast is helping this show hit its stride. In particular the producers should really take note of the chemistry between Smith and Michael Vartan. Verdict: Another strong hit for TNT.

"The Closer"-This show just gets better every season. The way the squad works to solve crimes and the balance that Kyra Sedgwick brings to her character makes this one of the best show's on TV. Verdict: The best of summer.

With more favorites like "psych," "Leverage" and "Project Runway" premiering later in the summer, look for more updates coming up.

Box office Tuesday

A day late, yes, but the Michael Jackson story bumps everything it seems. Plus, Stephanie makes a real important point that everyone should read and understand.

Now, onto the box office!

"Transformers 2" took the weekend again, barely, defeating "Ice Age 3" by a little more than $600 thousand. Yes, that sounds familiar to a few weeks ago when "The Hangover" just narrowed out "Up." Another thing the two movies have in common is they are the only films of the summer, so far, to hold onto the No. 1 spot for two consecutive weeks. It should also cross the $300 million mark soon, making it the first film of the year to do so.

"Public Enemies," the other new release of the week scored third with $25 million for the weekend and a total of $40 million (It came out on Wednesday.) It's budget is $100 million, so it has a lot of work to get there. It has an OK rating at Rotten Tomatoes, 65 percent and early Oscar buzz. Should help a bit, maybe.

As predicted on Friday, "The Hangover" crossed the $200 million mark making it one of the most successful movies of the year. Domestically it has made $205 million with a $35 million dollar budget.

"The Proposal" almost made it to $100 million, making a total of $94 to date. It should cross the mark by either the start of the weekend or Sunday for sure.

Another film about to cross another milestone is "Star Trek" which is within striking distance of $250 million. Another week should throw it over.

Check out the next episode of "Viewpoints On..." for more indepth coverage and a look at what's being released this week.

Let Michael rest in peace

As a longtime, loyal Michael Jackson fan I have to say I'm ready for the media coverage to move on. Without getting into the debate about how he should be remembered (I choose to honor the music) I think we can all agree that the coverage has become repetitive and more of a guessing game than solid journalism.

I know the memorial is tomorrow and that it will consume the news cycle, however, once it's over I think it's time for the media to move on.

As a fan, I'm finding it hard to deal with my emotions with the constant news coverage populating my television. I can only imagine how this must be affecting his family. As a journalist I understand the need to stay on a story this big, but at this point the media is just speculating and prolonging the grieving process.

So for the sake of Jackson's children, family, friends and fans, CNN, Access Hollywood and all the rest need to let the man rest in peace, which is all he ever wanted when he was alive.

New episode up... and some box office predicitions

OK, before we get to the episode I wanted to post some predicitions of what the box office might look like by Monday afternoon.

1. "Transformers" will overtake "Up" as the No. 1 movie of the year. Poor "Up" only had about a week at No. 1.

2. "The Hangover" will cross the $200 million mark. Most likely making it the most successful movie of the year (In terms of budget to gross ratio).

3. "The Proposal" will either cross $100 million or make it REALLY close. Hey Sandra Bullock, you're baaaaack.

Now, onto the show:

The Emmys: NPH edition

Following last year's disastrous show, in terms of both quality and ratings, The Emmys have made a move to make this year's awards, legen-wait for it-dary.

That's right, it was announced today that Neil Patrick Harris will be hosting The Emmys this year. This is a step in the right direction for show producers. I understand that they were trying to be edgier by having five different reality hosts emcee last year's awards, but we can all agree it was just bad.

Fresh off the tremendous jobs he did with The TV Land awards and The Tonys, NPH is pretty much the perfect choice. He's funny, can sing and dance and understands the job of a host is to basically keep the trains running on time while not boring the audience.

Way to go, television academy, let's hope the nominations and awards are as popular as this decision.

How long is too long?

A few days ago, Tim sent me an e-mail about Bryan Fuller leaving "Heroes," and he asked if I would still watch. My answer was I don't know.

On one hand, "Heroes" hasn't been up to par in a while, but on the other hand, I feel like I've invested so much time and energy, I have to keep watching in case it gets good again.

The more I thought about it, I realized I have the same problem with "Lost" and "Smallville." I have watched both shows since day one and while they may not be as strong as they used to be, I have to see them through to the end.

Unfortunately, this creates a backlog on my DVR and creates more shows that I have to keep up with. So my question is, how long is too long? When is it time to give up on a show and move on.

Don't get me wrong, I have no trouble giving up on shows when they go bad, but with sci-fi and serialized programs if you miss too much you'll never be able to jump back in. So it always comes back to what happens if I stop watching and the show suddenly gets good again.

While I don't see "Heroes" suddenly turning things around, there's the tiniest bit of doubt. I guess what it really comes down to is what else is on and how much DVR space I'll need.

Maybe Tim would like to share what shows he knows he should give up on but can't because he's invested too much.

The demise of Vibe

With today's announcement that Vibe magazine is ending publication, I have begun to wonder if anyone is still reading magazines? However, I quickly realized that it's not that people aren't reading magazines, it's that they're not buying them.

Despite cutting circulation, workdays and staff, Vibe magazine has become the latest casualty of the recession.

For the uninformed, Vibe was a urban publication that focused on hip-hop and r&b and became popular in the 90s when hip-hop became the most listened to music on the planet. It also frequently covered issues important to the African-American community, like race relations, hip-hop controversies and problems facing Black families.

Vibe was famous for its covers, which often featured the hottest artists of the moment, usually before they hit Rolling Stone or Blender.

Vibe was also known for its interviews, where subjects would say things that they would never say to more mainstream magazines. Many of today's biggest stars like Lil Wayne and T.I. were discovered in the pages of Vibe.

The demise of Vibe is not just a blow to the media industry, it is a huge hit to African-Americans.

The voice of a community has been silenced. We can only hope that when the economy recovers Vibe will be able to bounce back, stronger than ever.

Box office Monday

Welcome to a new feature here at Inscape'd. Each Monday we'll look at the box office numbers and do some analysis.

The big news of this past weekend was the release of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen." Everyone was expecting this to do huge numbers, even with some seriously lousy reviews. It has a 20 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes with 159 negative reviews and only 40 positive reviews (Armond White, please stand up!).

Including its Tuesday night showings the grand total of box office receipts for "Transformers" came out to a little more than $200 million domestically with another $200 million overseas. Huge, huge numbers.

But, not a record. For just the weekend, "Transformers" came in seventh for all time best weekend numbers. "The Dark Knight" holds that record.

For five day grosses, "Transformers" clocked in at No. 2, behind "The Dark Knight."

And for Midnight screenings? "Transformers" made $16 million, falling behind "Revenge of the Sith" in second and... guess what in No. 1? "The Dark Knight."

Another big thing happened over the weekend, we have a new No. 1 film of the year. If you remember "Paul Blart Mall Cop" held that title for many weeks before being knocked off by "Monsters vs. Aliens." Then "Star Trek" came along and blew everything out of the water by becoming the first film of the year to pass $200 million. Well, this weekend, "UP" dethroned "Star Trek." But, I suspect the reign will be shortlived as "Transformers" will undoubtably take the title in a few short weeks, maybe days.

The only way it won't would be a catostrophic drop in second week viewings, I'm talking like a 85-90 percent drop. Right now the biggest drop in recorded history is 86.4 for the movie "Undiscovered." Thanks to Box Office Mojo for that little bit of history.

Stay tuned for more analysis in the next "Wanna See It?"

Editor's note

Yesterday was a long, sad day in the world of entertainment. Both Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson died.

I emailed Stephanie, who is still on vacation, and when she gets back from Atlanta we'll really go into detail about what happened today. More than likely on the next episode of "Viewpoints On..." which is aiming to be out on Friday.

I'm sure there will also be a post or two in this location in the next week.

Getting ready for Comic-Con early

Stephanie and I will be headed down to Comic-Con at the end of July to brave the masses to cover the giant pop culture event. Usually the program for the event is released about two weeks prior to the opening night.

Well, word has begun to leak out about some television show panels that will be held during the show. And two of them have me getting REALLY excited.

Both "Psych" and "Burn Notice" will have panels of some kind! Two of my favorite shows, I couldn't be any more excited. I was telling Stephanie when we heard about "Psych" being there that if I only went to one panel, that would be my choice.

Now I have to amend my original statement to two shows.

Some other shows that have been somewhat announced that I might be interested in: "24," "Bones," "Dollhouse," "Fringe" and "Smallville."

Wait... "Smallville?" Yes, because there are rumors floating around that the CW and the producers are going to announce some kind of "Smallville" movie. Don't know if it's a television movie or a movie-movie.

I want to be there for the big scoop.

Also, be on the lookout for us announcing some things in this space coming up. We are putting together plans on our coverage now and hope to have some exciting things to do.

Breaking news! SHOCKING!

http://www.oscars.org/press/pressreleases/2009/20090624.html

Yes, that's right, this next Academy Awards will feature TEN nominees for Best Picture! That is an increase of five from the normal five nominees each year.

Wow, the implications of this announcement are huge!

One of the big things that should come out of this are more commercially successful and publicly popular films will get a chance to be nominated now. This would have been great this year with movies like "The Dark Knight" and "Wall*E" both were hugely successful and popular with critics and audiences alike.

This is also a turn in the right direction for the Academy. I think they recognize that the Oscars are old and somewhat boring. It is time to spice things up a bit and throw a curve ball that will get people talking.

With ten nominees there, more than likely, be a nominee that each person can be happy with and root for.

If you take into account box office receipts (to show popularity) and critical acclaim (top ratings on RottenTomatoes.com) the two leading films this year are "Up" and "Star Trek." "Up" has grossed $250 million worldwide and has a 97 percent rating. "Star Trek" has grossed $363 million worldwide and has a 95 percent rating.

The last Best Picture winner "Slumdog Millionaire" had a 94 percent rating.

We will continue to follow this story, with probable predictions and speculation as the time to the Oscars gets closer.

Academy Awards nominations will be released on Feb. 2 with the awards show being held March 7.

Today, I feel really old

There is a Web site that I go to every day, io9.com, which covers fantasy and science fiction. This week it had a huge story about how Tim Burton's "Batman" film turns 20 years old today.

I vividly remember seeing it in theaters.

Yes, I am somewhat dating myself here too.

I can't believe it has been 20 years already. I had the T-shirts, all the toys, even Batman Converse shoes! I remember children at school making fun of me for liking "Batman" so much.

So, 20 years later, does the movie hold up to today?

I think so. It nowhere compares to the Chris Nolan versions, but still is much, much better than the Schumacher films (I'll still go on record and say "Batman and Robin" is one of the worst movies ever made).

What else will make me feel really, really old soon?

'Sha na na na, sha na na na...'

If true, then there is a 0.000 percent chance of me watching ever again:

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/41490

The 100 greatest episodes: Tim's edition

I'm going to do something a bit different, in two parts. Rather than list my top ten, I am going to make two lists. One is my agreements with episodes I believe belong in TV Guide's list. The second will be a non-ranked list of my own.

TV Guide List:

84. "Alias" - "The Telling" - A great, great episode where Sydney finds out that her best friend Francie is an evil spy (the real Francie was murdered) and they duke it out. The episode also ended in a cliffhanger with Sydney waking up in Hong Kong and realizing she is missing two years of her life. I remember it clearly because we all thought "What the heck? Where are they going to go now?"

68. "Heroes" - "Company Man" - I've gone on record many times saying this is probably "Heroes" best episode ever.

47. "CSI" - "Grave Danger" - The Quentin Tarantino directed episode with Nick being buried alive. Just a fantastic episode.

38. "The Shield" - "Possible Kill Screen" - I would include this in my second list as well. This is where Mackey finally admits to every illegal and horrible thing he has done since the pilot episode... and the list is massive. Kudos also to Laurie Holden for her reaction to hearing all of this spewing from Mackie.

36. "Star Trek: TNG" - "Best of Both Worlds" - Picard as a borg and Riker takes command and outsmarts Borg Picard. Great cliffhanger and also good for affecting the franchise for years to come.

19. "The Office" - "Diversity Day" - My favorite "Office" episode, would go on my second list too. Best part was Dwight trying to guess Pam's card.

10. "24" - "Season 1 finale" - Devastating. I watched from day one and that ending punched you in the gut.

My favorite episodes that SHOULD have been on the list:

"ER" - "All in the Family" - Also known as the episode where Lucy Knight dies. Some of the best acting ever on that show. Best part was normal a-hole Dr. Romano's reaction to Lucy dying. YouTube it.

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" - "The Body" - The best episode of "Buffy" EVER. "Once More With Feeling" might have been funny and everyone loves "Hush" but this episode rocked the "Buffy" universe and was totally amazing.

"South Park" - The "World of Warcraft" episode was comedic genius and deserves to be on the list ahead of "Trapped in the Closet."

Got Kleenex?

Was about to post my response to Stephanie's post about the top television episodes (will post them on Monday), then I saw this story.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/pixar-up-movie-2468059-home-show

This story hit me hard. It is extremely uplifting (no pun intended), but at the same time very, very sad. I'll fully admit that I teared up reading it.

A couple of notes about the article. One, Pixar is one heck of a company. You never, ever, hear a bad thing about them. Their employees are happy, they put out an excellent product and they do things like this (and then don't comment on the article, which makes it a little classier too).

Second, if you have seen the movie or heard about it, the parallels between the movie's plot and what happened to this little girl are so similar it's a little sad.

And the reporter who wrote the story ended it PERFECTLY. Exactly how I would have ended it.

The 100 greatest episodes: Stephanie's edition

In the latest issue of TV Guide they published a list of what they think are the 100 greatest episodes of TV ever.

While I agree with a lot of their choices I have to take issue with some of the top ten. It isn't the shows they've chosen that bother me, it's the episodes. I chose a lot of the same shows as them, but very different episodes.

I decided to list their top ten and my top ten and let the audience (and Tim) decide whose list is better.

TV Guide

1. "Seinfeld"-"The Contest"
2. "The Sopranos"-"College"
3. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"-"Chuckles Bites the Dust"
4. "I Love Lucy"-"Lucy Does a TV Commercial"
5. "Lost"-"Pilot"
6. "ER"-"Love's Labor Lost"
7. "The Honeymooners"-"Better Living Through TV"
8. "Mad Men"-"Nixon vs. Kennedy"
9. "All in the Family"-"Cousin Maude's Visit"
10. "24"-"Day 1: 11 PM-12 AM"

Stephanie

1. "The Andy Griffith Show"-"Opie the Birdman" TV Guide's no. 18
2. "I Love Lucy"-"Lucy Does a TV Commercial" TV Guide's no. 4
3. "ER"-"Love's Labor Lost" TV Guide's no. 6
4. "Star Trek: The Next Generation"-Best of Both Worlds Part 1" Tv Guide's no. 36
5. "The Cosby Show"-"Happy Anniversary"
6. "Battlestar Galactica"-"Exodus"
7. "24"-"Day 1: 11 PM-12 AM" TV Guide's no. 10
8. "The West Wing"-"In the Shadow of Two Gunmen"
9. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"-"Hush"
10. "Moonlighting"-"Atomic Shakespeare" TV Guide's no. 48

I know some of my choices are based on personal preference but, I think it is also a more well-rounded list than TV Guide, who chose to cater to more popular, safe choices.

Pick up the current issue of TV Guide for the full list.

A good way to explain the 'Star Trek' alternate timeline

Cryptic Studios is currently working on a massively multi-player online roleplaying game for the "Star Trek" franchise that takes place more than 30 years after the last episode of "Voyager."

Part of the making the game includes keeping the timeline that "Star Trek" has made. So everything that happened in the original series, next generation, etc. happened in this game.

As well as Nero's home planet of Romulus being destroyed.

As we, tried to, explain in a previous episode of "Viewpoints On..." Nero and Spock didn't go back in time to alter the original timeline. They went back in time AND into an alternate universe.

Well, the makers of the game made a nice, fancy chart to fully explain things a lot better than Stephanie or I could.

http://www.startrekonline.com/startrek_xi

Breaking news (potentially geek worthy)

Forbes, last night, ran a story that could potentially have giant ramifications on the geek world.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/06/14/afx6541803.html

Now on the surface it just looks like a story about movie companies merging. Companies merge all the time Tim, what makes this so special?

Let's take a look at this. Paramount Pictures, which will no doubt have a great summer with "Star Trek" and "Transformers 2" is looking to merge with another studio, like Sony or Universal.

For geeks, this is earth shattering because Marvel Comics has a deal in place with Paramount to make and distribute a lot of their movies. This is different than the other deals Marvel made with other companies like Fox, because Marvel is intimately involved in the making of these films. Their first two films made together "Iron Man" and "The Incredible Hulk" were both great movies that stayed true to the comics.

What Marvel and Paramount did was lay the foundation of creating a Marvel universe within the films, where characters from different movies will interact. Like Robert Downey Jr. showing up in "The Incredible Hulk." Marvel and Paramount have a blueprint to make other films like "Thor" and "Capt. America" in the same way that will all lead up to 2012 where we will see all of the characters combine into one giant film "The Avengers."

OK Tim, that is nice and all but what does it have to do with mergers.

Well, something huge.

Sony Pictures owns the rights to two Marvel properties: "Spiderman" and "Ghost Rider."

You with me yet?

If this merger is done with Sony in the next year (as the article states) then there is a good possibility that Spiderman could be joining Iron Man, Capt. America and Thor in "The Avengers." Or at least the possibility of cross promotion and opening up the world of Spiderman to the rest of Marvel properties.

Luke Cage appearing in the next "Spiderman" movie? Could happen. Or a team up with Dr. Strange? Might be interesting.

Merging with Universal would bring nothing to the table as Universal owns nothing from Marvel.

OK, you can geek out now.

A new summer movie box office record

"Wolverine," "Star Trek," "Angels & Demons," "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" and "Up."

All of these are the first No. 1 films of the summer season. And they all held the No. 1 spot for exactly ONE week before being dethroned by the next big blockbuster.

But, now we have the first film to stay atop the box office for two straight weeks: "The Hangover" or how its known now "The little comedy that could."

Granted the first weekend for "The Hangover" was close, it only beat "Up" by $841,053 which is extremely close by box office standards. But the history books won't remember how close it was, only that "The Hangover" was No. 1.

This last weekend it repeated by fending off "Up" yet again as well as new films "The Taking of Pelham 123" and "Imagine That." This time there was a $2 million dollar difference between No. 1 and No. 2 ("The Hangover" and "Up").

As of today (Monday afternoon) "The Hangover" has grossed over $104 million dollars! And if you take into account the budget of the film ($35 million) it is making pure profit every single day.

And yes, they are already writing the sequel.

New episode up...

'Land of the Lost' a mis-marketed mess

We have our first big "bomb" of the summer movie season and the numbers tell us that the honor goes to the Will Ferrell children's television show remake of "Land of the Lost."

How bad did it bomb?

Well, the reported budget on Box Office Mojo was $100 million.

Its first weekend, its gross was around $18 million. Yes, in Hollywood a movie grossing that much is considered a "bomb." Especially considering the budget.

That begs the question, why did it bomb so badly?

The original show, from the '70s, was very popular and has a cult-like following. You would think that would be a built in audience right there.

No, this movie has identity issues. Is it a sci-fi movie? Is it a children's movie? Is it a gross out comedy?

No one could tell. The trailers showed off the great visual effects with some comedy thrown in. I had heard of some inappropriate jokes (sex, drugs) in the film and was going to tell my sister not to take my niece to see it. She had wanted to.

It was too late, they had already seen it.

Here is my niece's response to my question of "How was the movie?"

"I could tell why it was a PG-13 movie, it had a lot of bad things in there like the hairy boy touching the girl's booby the entire movie and other stuff."

Yes, it's my sister's fault for not recognizing the PG-13 rating. But, the movie should have made the inappropriate humor more clear.

E3 2009: Hands-on 'Super Mario Bros.' Wii

At this year's E3, Nintendo unveiled its latest console Mario effort -- "Super Mario Bros. Wii." The latest Mario outing comes in the form of a four-player co-op experience, not unlike Media Molecule's 2008 hit, "LittleBigPlanet."

At E3, I had the chance to play a couple of the game's levels. I wasn't blown away, but I did walk away looking forward to getting my hands on the full game.

"Super Mario Bros. Wii," as its title implies, is a 2D sidescroller for the Wii. However, considering that up to four can play together simultaneously, this installment plays a little differently than past Mario Bros. games. The best way to describe the game is that it feels very similar to "LittleBigPlanet" -- only it's a Mario game.

On hand at E3 were 10 different stages. Not all of them employed significant co-op elements, but some did. For instance, in one stage, some players traverse an underwater cave while one player uses a search light to illuminate the area. The level is infested with enemies, so without the light, players won't last long. Obviously, the level requires that players work together to complete it.

However, in other levels, very little co-operative play is required to progress. In these stages, "Super Mario Bros. Wii" feels just like any other Mario Bros. game -- only there are four characters running around. Both in levels where playing cooperatively and levels where there's very little cooperation required, it's often more fun to work against your team mates. While the game is oriented around working together, it definitely has a competitive component to it. After all, the player with the most points at the end of the stage is declared the winner.

As a result, "Super Mario Bros. Wii" features a chaotic but fun combination of cooperative and competitive gameplay. For instance, at one point during my hands-on time with the game, I helped one of my team mates respawn by freeing them from a bubble, only to have that player immediately betray me. While I was jumping over a chasm, he jumped on my head, sending me straight into the pit. Why did he do that? No particular reason, other than it was funny (for him).
While Nintendo's latest Mario Bros. game is admittedly a fun four-player experience, at least some of the Mario Bros. experience doesn't translate to multiplayer. For me, at least part of what made past Mario Bros. games so much fun was trying to speed through levels as quickly as possible. However, that's not something you can really do in "Super Mario Bros. Wii." The Wii version is fundamentally slower, thanks to the addition of other players.

From my playtime with the game, "Super Mario Bros. Wii" seems to be an enjoyable and considerably unique addition to the Mario Bros. series. Essentially, it's a "LittleBigPlanet-style" refresh to the series, and while it's not really a very impressive game, it's hard not to have fun playing the game. I definitely look forward to playing more when it hits store shelves this fall.

Why I love Mark-Paul Gosselaar

Last night on Jimmy Fallon, Mark-Paul Gosselaar was a guest. Since I spent my teen years completely engrossed in "Saved by the Bell," I've never stopped loving Gosselar. I thought he was great on "NYPD Blue" and his current show "Raising the Bar" is just beginning its second season.

I, like most, assumed that Gosselaar would come out, talk about his new show and answer Fallon's questions about the "Bell" reunion Fallon's been trying to get together.

However, Gosselaar surprised all by doing the whole interview as his "Bell" character Zack Morris. He had an awesome blond wig, wore cuffed jeans and made lots of references to classic episodes. At one point he even took a call on his ginormous, early model cell phone and confirmed not only himself, but Elizabeth Berkley for the reunion.

I fell even more in love with Gosselaar when it turned out that he was such a good sport and doesn't take himself too seriously.

The interview is available for viewing at NBC.com and I highly recommend it to anyone who spent at least one Saturday morning hanging out at The Max with the crew from Bayside.

What you missed on The Tonys

I know that outside of New York the only people who care about the Tonys are theater geeks like myself. However, last night's show had enough entertainment and surprises to make the most hardened non-musical fan get up and dance.

The show opened with a number that featured all the nominated shows performing together in the biggest, most expensive opening number ever. With big stars like Sir Elton John, Dolly Parton and Liza Minelli.

Host Neil Patrick Harris was a perfect fit, mixing Broadway showmanship with his hilarious brand of humor.

Highlights included Broadway legend Angela Lansbury winning her fifth Tony and the three young actors who play Billy Elliot winning for lead actor in a musical.

Revivals of "West Side Story" and "Hair" made a big splash with fantastic performances that must've helped Broadway's struggling box office.

The night's big winner was "Billy Elliot" which took home 10 awards including best musical. "Hair" was named best revival of a musical.

The Tonys are always a great commercial for why theater is so timeless, unfortunately, the ratings are never what they should be for a show this entertaining.

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I'd like to first apologize for the late update! But I promise to make it up with some rewarding pictures and information straight from the Electronic Entertainment Expo...

Beginning with one of my personal most anticipated releases is Valve's Left 4 Dead 2. From the same company who brought us Portal and Half Life, Valve will have the sequel out later this year. The initial, as well as shocking, difference players will recognize is the bright atmosphere and colorful visuals. Unlike the eerie, dark city-scape of the first Left 4 Dead - L4D 2 is set in the sweltering south of New Orleans... and in the daylight. Along with the new environment, new characters have also been introduced: Nick, Ellis, Coach and Rochelle. A new elite zombie, "charger" who runs into players at full speed to knock them apart, has also made an appearance. Despite the dramatic changes, Left 4 Dead 2 remains loyal to its specialty as a cooperative four-player game.




Halo 3: ODST which was formerly named Halo 3: Recon is Halo 3's standalone expansion that is scheduled to release this September allows the player to play as an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper (ODST) instead of the enhanced super soldier, Master Chief. It features the same story line, but offers a all-new perspective on a subplot. Players cannot jump as high or run as fast as in previous Halo games which offers a more "human" type of outlook.



I'd like to turn your attention towards some less corporate products now: Pluff. Pluff is a fuzzy stuffed... thing. Pluff introduces innovative thinking to virtual pets and Pluff features sensors that are wired to react with players on the screen. Though Pluff was connected by a wire at the convention, he is normally wireless. Pluff reacts when you pet or tickle him, cover his eyes, and turn him on his back or tummy. Someone had unfortunately punched Pluff prior to my visit and harmed the sensors involved with his eyes and tickling - but I was still able to pet him and witness his tricks as I turned him on his head. Since Pluff does not rely on motors, speakers, or batteries which involve clunky hard parts, he is completely plushy and great for smaller kids. Pluff and his maker are part of the indie game convention.



While we are in the area of virtual pets, let's briefly take a look at a fun little game called ant nation for Wii. You, as the player, look over an ant colony. You have a lot of choices like giving and then leading the ants to a delicios piece of cake or cheese or stomping on them or lighting them on fire with a magnifying glass. The ants even have "levels" and the vague objective of the game seems to be to "train" the ants.



E3 consisted of three jammed pack days of walking, looking, lights, and of course: game play. Three days is certainly not enough time to wait in all the lines and play all the games. I hope that you've enjoyed the few highlights this blog has offered - I have included an assortment of photos from inside the convention.

Day 3 of E3

Hey this is Adrian again here for the last and hardest day of E3. It was mostly hard due to the fact all the games Tim wanted me to check out were over an hour wait to play, with lines that wrapped around the back. So the games I really wanted to check out like "Rock Band: Beatles" were out of my reach. Although it speaks volumes about a game when you've got people waiting over an hour in front of a facade of the "Abbey Road" recording studio where the Beatles use to make their record hits. I tried to hit up as many booths as possible, trying to take in as much as I could while playing as much as I could, but in the end there was simply too much see, and way too much to do.

Anyway, moving on, I really got to let loose on the games at the booths today. A few games in particular struck my interests, "R.U.S.E" by Ubisoft was one of those games.

"R.U.S.E." is a real time strategy (RTS) game that is World War II based. I don't know if this is true of the actual game, but during the demo the demonstrator was using a 40 in. plasma screen placed on a table, the game was played on a touch screen like the way a commander would see the battlefield. You would think this would make the game more difficult to play, but what if it was played with a touch screen and moved your units like you were able to move chess pieces giving the meaning of real time strategy a whole new meaning. If you find that impressive, then the fact that in "R.U.S.E." you have over 1 billion polygons to make each map will just be a drop in the bucket for you. "R.U.S.E" uses a series of tatics called 'ruses' in order to help find out or hide from your enemy in order to give you the upper hand. This game will include a multi player mode, where you can, hopefully, use your 'ruse' tatics to outsmart your opponent.

While on the subject of RTS games, one that I found highly impressive was "Order of War" by, of all people, Square Enix. The people that brought you "Final Fantasy" now bring you a World War II based game, but more historically accurate than any game of this kind that I've ever seen. When the game was made developers went to WWII history to brush up on their history so as not miss a detail. They got everything, leaving nothing to chance, they even put down the weight of the bullet cartridges. Gamers get the privledge of playing historically accurate missions that let you see their battles like movies. In "cinema mode" you are able watch as you send exchange blows with German soldiers. At times it can get a little confusing because of how the map is set up, but other than that, a solid game. I swear that watching a man blow up, has never looked so good, because even after your men die, their remains still occupy the battlefield.

A first person shooter to look for to this year is "Mag" for the PS3. A massive Multi-Player online otherwise known as MMO (i.e. World of Warcraft). The twist is that you're allowed to fight in almost city sized maps in deathmatches with players from all over the country.

A game I thought was fun for the whole family was "Super Mario Bros." for the Wii. It has a 4 player mode and (from what I saw in the demo) 10 playable levels. Although the game doesn't give you all the classic "Mario Bros." characters, like the Princess or toad, it makes up for in game play. You are allowed to play in a co-op/competition type mode where you are allowed to mess with your friends by using them as weapons and throwing them at your enemies, but if you want to, you can always play nice.

And finally the game I thought was one of the best of E3 was a title by Sega called "Bayonetta." "Bayonetta" is about a witch who has lost her memories in the witch hunts 500 years ago, but it was 20 years after present time that she sets out to recover them. The game is extremely action packed and filled with plenty of "Devil may Cry" type action. You fight off hoards of enemies using plenty of combinations of your sword and bullets, using controls that are easy to use and easy to understand after a few minutes of game play. Hack, slash, and (on many occasions) shoot your way through demonic/angelic beings that are sent to stand in your way. This is definitely a game for hardcore action fan gamers.

There are so many games to look forward to this year, that if I kept blogging I would need another hour to write it all. The games of this year look extremely impressive, for those of you who don't own an X-BOX 360 or a PS3 you need to invest in one immediately.

This concludes the last day of E3. Bye for now!!!1

E3

Hey everyone! This is Roxann updating with photos from the Electronic Entertainment Expo... E3!

Just click the thumbnails for a full-scale picture.

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Hey this is Adrian reporting today from the first day of E3 at the Los Angles Convention Center. I spent most of the looking around, but spent a little time playing games also. Well ok so I spent a lot of times playing video games, but man was it worth it.

A few that I felt were really strong were "Wet" and "Rouge Warrior" both titles games from a company called Bethesda. First one up was "Wet," a free form fighting game based on a hot chick with guns and a samurai sword. To sum up what free form fighting is think of putting "Kill Bill," "Dynasty Warriors," "Devil may Cry," and "The Matrix" all in one package and you have the game. To put it simply, you get all of the strengths and none of the drawbacks, you use acrobatics, slow mo and use your ability to pull the trigger as fast as you can. The guns at your hips, and the sword on your back are only small part, the entire environment is your weapon, if you can jump it slide on it, climb it or run off of it, use it to your disposal.

"Wet" is the story about Rubi a gun for hire who takes on dirty jobs loads of cash. Specializing in "wet" jobs (jobs that get your hands wet... with blood), she uses all her athletic abilities to either put a bullet in the enemy or put that sword to good use by taking the enemy apart limb from limb (no seriously, limb from limb). If she gets pissed enough, Rubi enters "Rage" mode, after that all bets are off, she enters an animation mode where red is the main theme color and all you see are silhouette of white that become blood smears on the wall.

Next up is "Rouge Warrior."

"Rouge Warrior" is set in the cold warrior era of 1986 based on a book by Dick Marcinko. Marcinko is the personality of the game and the director. Specializing in counter-terrorism and a former navy seal all of Marcinko's tatics and training are in this one game. A first person shooter (FPS) that let's you feel what it was like to be the one a real one man army. You use stealth moves that kill your enemies instantly called kill moves. It's not exactly for children as the use of strong language and the fact that watching a knife go through a man's head isn't something you want a child to see. Other than that real time sneaking mission based on real counter-terrorist tatics. For those hardcore "Metal Gear" fans this one is for you, but if you just like being a trigger man don't hold back. "Rouge Warrior" is all about being able to the trigger as it is a FPS. If stealth isn't your style be loud about it, watch enemy after enemy pour in, be ready to pull the trigger and watch them fall at your feet.

That concludes Day one see you tomorrow.

The 2009 MTV Movie Awards Recap

Last night the 2009 MTV Movie Awards aired and in what has to be the biggest non-surprise in the show's short history, "Twilight" won everything.

I get that the MTV audience is the perfect age for the movie, but seriously, everything.

First of all, we all know that "The Dark Knight" and "Iron Man" were the two best films of the year. "Twilight" can't even begin to touch them. However, because the show is really a glorified popularity contest, it was able to win.

Also Kristen Stewart won best female performance over Oscar winners Kate Winslet and Angelina Jolie.

My real problem with all these wins is that most of the cast seemed like they had better things to do. Stewart and co-star Robert Pattinson won best kiss and were completely underwhelmed by the honor.

Also the non-stop screaming every time someone mentioned "Twilight" or "New Moon" got old very quick.

The show was hosted by Andy Samberg of "Saturday Night Live" and The Lonely Island. While he was funny and did a few of his signature digital shorts, he started out nervous and seemed to warmup as the show went along.

The big story is the stunt featuring Sacha Baron Cohen as Bruno and Eminem. Cohen, in character, was flying in from the ceiling with angel wings and his butt hanging out when he suddenly dropped and landed in Eminem's lap.

Eminem's entourage forced Cohen off of him and batted him around as Eminem angrily stormed off.

There are questions this morning of whether or not Eminem was in on the stunt. Because he has a new CD out and the way the stunt happened, it seems to point to him being in on it. However, MTV did have Eminem perform very early in the show, which makes me think that they knew what his reaction would be.

All in all it was an underwhelming, lackluster show, unless you love "Twilight" then it was the greatest night ever.

New episode up...

"Land of the Lost" will suck

It seems that lately I can't turn on my TV without seeing a commercial for the new film, "Land of the Lost."

The movie is a remake of the classic 70s children's show created by children's TV pioneers Sid and Marty Kroft. The show was spectacularly cheesy with the worst effects ever and crazy stories.

The story centered around a family who gets caught in a time tunnel and ends up in prehistoric times.

Well now Will Ferrell is remaking the classic with a giant Hollywood budget and top notch special effects.

The film would seem to have everything a movie needs to be successful, but the way it is being marketed makes me think that it will probably suck.

All the trailers and commercials feature the same few scenes which generally means they're showing you all the funny scenes in the commercials.

Of course it's Will Ferrell so I have to give it the benefit of the doubt, but right now it just seems that "Land of the Lost" will probably suck.

Just one more way Hollywood is mocking my childhood.

Bravo used to be good

Remember a time not long ago when Bravo was good. They had "Queer Eye For the Straight Guy," "Project Runway" and "Top Chef."

Bravo was the groundbreaking channel that had all the most interesting shows and was clearly ahead of its time.

Boy, have times changed. Now it's all "Real Housewives" all the time.

It started with Orange County, then they moved to New York, Atlanta and New Jersey. Well now Bravo has announced that they're casting for "The Real Housewives of DC."

Hasn't this show run its course yet. I mean by the fifth installment are these women doing anything new.

An average episode consists of them sitting around drinking, maybe shopping and calling each other names. Wow, that sounds like fascinating television.

The real problem is that everytime I go to my channel guide to see what Bravo is showing, it's always a marathon of the stupid "Real Housewives."

With all the shows that NBC has, couldn't they use Bravo as a place for people to catch up on established shows or discover new ones.

This is all just another example of how NBC can't seem to save itself, from itself.

New episode up!

This one is chock full of news about the television network upfronts. Lots to delve into and figure out. Once we see all the previews we'll do a comprehensive roundup of all the new shows.

'Star Trek' set its phasers on kill toward 'Wolverine'

Tuesday marked a big day for the new "Star Trek" film, it blew past "Wolverine" in the box office race for the crown of "Top summer movie."

As of Tuesday evening, "Star Trek" has grossed $155 million dollars compared to "Wolverine" with $153 million.

Now a two million dollar difference might not seem like a big deal, it is important to realize that "Wolverine" has been out for a week longer than "Star Trek" and "Wolverine" had a huge first to second week drop off, while "Star Trek" held on to a good chunk of the box office.

Another huge milestone is that the new version is now the highest grossing "Star Trek" film to date.

The CBS Upfronts

Today it was CBS' turn to announce their fall schedule and they didn't really provide any surprises.

Canceled shows include: "The Unit," "Without A Trace" and "Eleventh Hour." While all these shows are enjoyable, we already heard that they were on the bubble, so no one is really shocked.

CBS did decide to pick up "Medium" from NBC and pair it with "Ghost Whisperer" on Friday nights. You know it's only a matter of time before the inevitable crossover episodes.

Their new shows have already got the hype machine going for various reasons so I know their excited about that. The new schedule includes:

"NCIS: Los Angeles"-The highly anticipated "NCIS" spinoff starring LL Cool J and Chris O'Donnell was already launched with a two-hour pilot early this month during an episode of "NCIS." This looks like an exciting, technologically advanced version of "NCIS," however, it may take them awhile to generate the same team chemistry as the original.
"Three Rivers"-This medical drama about an organ transplant team stars "Moonlight's" Alex O'Loughlin and is set in Pittsburgh, hence the show's title. If O'Loughlin's rabid fanbase follows him to this show then it is guaranteed big numbers.
"The Good Wife"-This drama follows a lawyer's return to the courtroom after her husband is sent to jail. The show is a vehicle for Julianna Margulies return to series television. Margulies has struggled to find a hit since leaving "ER," but I suppose the third time's the charm.
"Miami Trauma"-This midseason replacement is about trauma room set in Miami. Think "ER" with the doctors in bikinis. It is produced by Jerry Bruckheimer which pretty much guarantees success.
"Accidentally on Purpose"-Jenna Elfman returns to comedies as a San Francisco film critic who finds herself pregnant after an affair with a younger man. Apparently hilarity ensues when she decides to keep the baby.

Fans can also look forward to the return of all the "CSIs," "How I Met Your Mother," "Two and a Half Men" and most of CBS' schedule. They renewed the majority of their schedule.

Next up The CW and a NBC recap.

ABC upfronts a little boring

Stephanie and I have been talking about the new ABC drama "Flash Forward" for weeks, so it's only fair that a few other new shows get the spotlight here.

It's too bad that ABC doesn't have a lot of very cool, interesting shows to talk about?

What about "Eastwick?" Yeah, that show is really up my alley. It's more "Desperate Housewives" than "Fringe" I'm sure.

One show that might have some promise is "V," the remake of the original mini-series that spawned a few sequels. It stars Elizabeth Mitchell from "Lost," Scott Wolf from "Party of Five," Joel Gretch from "The 4400" and Morena Baccarin from "Serenity."



While the religious overtones are a little heavy handed, it still looks like a great Sci-Fi thriller. And a little creepy, which is a good thing.

Plus, I am in love with Mitchell.

FOX: My new favorite network

This week the rest of the major networks will be holding their upfront presentations. FOX kicked things off today with the official announcement of its new schedule.

Returning shows include all the franchise hits you would expect plus a few surprises like "Dollhouse," "Lie to Me" and inexplicably "Til Death."

The other big fall announcement was that the reality hit "So You Think You Can Dance" will now have a fall season, which means I'll get two awesome seasons a year of the dancing favorite.

"Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" and "King of the Hill" have been officially canceled.

Among the new shows are the heavily hyped "Glee" and "The Cleveland Show."

The rest of the new schedule includes:

• "Brothers"-a sitcom starring Michael Strahan as a just retired NFL player. Wow that really sounds like he's stretching himself.
• "Human Target"-A DC comics story about a bodyguard who becomes his clients in order to protect them. It stars Mark Valley ("Fringe") and Jackie Earle Haley who is always good.

The schedule is rounded out by "Past Life," "Sons of Tucson" and "The Wanda Sykes Show," a Saturday late night talk show.

In a question and answer session that followed the announcements, FOX executives said that they felt that Joss Whedon's loyal fan base would help grow "Dollhouse" and that the network was very excited about "Glee."

They also mentioned that "So You Think You Can Dance" producer Nigel Lythgoe had a few changes planned that would help keep the show from becoming stale, with two cycles a year.

With FOX and NBC already done, that leaves us halfway through upfront season with CBS tomorrow and ABC later in the week. And of course, at some point, we'll discuss The CW.

New episode up... and some GREAT news

It has been widely reported today (The Hollywood Reporter broke the news) that FOX is going to pick up "Dollhouse" for a second season! WOOT!

Then, just as I was done with the video editing, Deadline Hollywood Daily is reporting that ABC is going to renew "Castle!"

A very good day indeed.

A correction to a previous topic

A few weeks back when "ER" was ending, we talked about other great television series finales.

Well, Stephanie and I screwed up.

Big time.

It came to both of us when we were watching "Star Trek," we forgot a great finale.

The "Alias" finale.

Yes, the JJ Abrams spy show had an excellent finale that wrapped up all the storylines and gave each character a chance to shine (something more shows should do.)

But, what happened to the villain of the show, Arvin Sloane, was the best part of the show. A little background... Sydney had shot him numerous times, but he fell into a pool of strange liquid, which healed him and made him immortal.

But, Sydney's dad knew how to fix that...



What the clip doesn't show is Sloane, alive under tons of rubble. Buried alive so to speak... forever.

A fitting end to a man that caused so much pain during the five years the show was on.

Movies I really can't live without

On Stephanie's request I am also going to present a list of the top five movies that I love. These are movies that I can sit back and watch over and over. Of course they might not be the best movies ever made, but for one reason or another I can't help but watch when they come on.

1. "So I Married An Axe Murderer" - A little seen film by Mike Meyers (Before "Austin Powers" about a regular guy who is paranoid about relationships who comes to think he is in a relationship with a murderer. Very funny. I can recite lines from the movie right now. I actually saw it in the theater and probably have seen it a couple dozen times since then.

2. "Men In Black" - I saw it in the theater four times! I even went to the world premire in Los Angeles and got into a special screening. I don't know what it is about the movie, but I can just watch it over and over. The effects are great and the script is really funny. It's too bad the sequel is horrible.

3. "Willy Wonka" - The original. Now, I love the new version. I think it follows the book better, but in my elementary school years I just loved the original one. It was a dream come true back then. The songs are great and Gene Wilder is beyond excellent.

Those are my top three. I also love "Jurassic Park," "A Time to Kill," "Serenity" and "The Dark Knight."

"SNL" and Justin Timberlake: A perfect pair

This week's "Saturday Night Live" featured Justin Timberlake hosting with musical guest Ciara.

As usual Timberlake was hilarious. This is his third time hosting and because of that he seemed more comfortable and acted like he was just another cast member.

Highlights included his costumed street performer who uses comedy versions of popular songs to sell products. The sketch, "Surgery Center," featured a particularly funny medley of Lady Gaga's "Just Dance" and "Poker Face," where Timberlake really got into character while trying to sell plastic surgery.

There was also the immigrant tale of how Timberlake's great great grandfather thought Justin's life would turn out. With a subtle jab at ex-girlfriend Britney Spears, this sketch elicited the night's longest laugh.

The best sketch of the night was Timberlake and Andy Samberg's return to their "D**k in a Box" personas for a mother's day digital short titled "Motherlover."

Not only did it have guest appearances by Susan Sarandon and Patricia Clarkson but it featured the awesome chemistry between Samberg and Timberlake.

Lately "SNL" has been hit or miss, with the jokes mostly missing, so the hilarious turn by Timberlake provided it with strong momentum heading into the season finale hosted by Will Ferrell.

Editor's note and "Star Trek"

Show postponed until Monday, I'm still a little under the weather and didn't get to see "Star Trek" until the late afternoon.




Which, by the way, was awesome. More details to come in the next "Viewpoints On..." as well as our "Wolverine" thoughts, which we joked might take a whole segment. I can give you a hint, we loved one of them and really didn't like the other one.

"Star Trek:" Instant review

So I just saw "Star Trek" and my instant review is that it's awesome. From top to bottom, J.J. Abrams has delivered a perfect movie.

There's enough attention to detail and history to make "trekkies" happy, and enough backstory and fun to entertain "Trek" virgins.

Best Performance: Karl Urban as Dr. McCoy. He steals every scene he's in.

Honorable Mention: Zachary Quinto as Spock. He's way too good for "Heroes."

Best Moment: Kirk, Uhuru and Spock at the transporter near the end. I don't want to spoil it but it's good.

Actor who should be in every movie: Simon Pegg, every scene was in was hysterical, he didn't waste a single minute of screen time.

All in all just a spectacular film. With "Alias," "Lost" and now "Star Trek" J.J. Abrams may be heading into Joss Whedon territory.

Movies I can't live without

Today I was watching "The Princess Bride" for the millionth time and thought "this movie never gets old." That got me thinking about other movies that I could watch a million times and love every time. This is my list of the top five films that I just can't live without.

1. "The Princess Bride"-Cary Elwes will forever be Wesley to me. This is one of those movies that can make me happy no matter how crappy I feel.
2. "Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back"-This is really Han Solo's film. This is where he proves himself to be the hero we all knew he was.
3. "Hot Fuzz"-I swear it's funny every time. Even though I know all the jokes, it gets me every time and I'm always discovering little moments I previously missed.
4. "Casablanca"-A classic love story, political intrigue and Humphrey Bogart. What more do you need?
5. "Titanic"-I know it's really girlie of me but I still hope Leonardo DiCaprio will somehow live every time I watch.

So, those are the films I absolutely can't live without. It may be a little nerdy and crazy but I think it's a really fun list.

The new NBC

Earlier in the week NBC held their upfronts presentation and it seems like they're trying to find a way to get back on track.

In addition to already announced favorites like "Heroes," "Friday Night Lights" and "Law & Order: SVU," they have picked up four new dramas and two new comedies for the fall season.

NBC will also broadcast the Winter Olympics in early 2010 and those always bring in big ratings.

And of course there is the highly anticipated 10 o'clock Jay Leno show, that will be eerily familiar to the 11:35 Jay Leno show.

Unfortunately, they have yet to make a decision on "Chuck" and have decided to cancel "Life," so it's not all good news.

Dramas:

"Day One" is a miniseries about how a group of people survive after a disaster destroys the world. I enjoyed this show the first time, when it was called "Jericho."

Desperate to replace the irreplaceable "ER," NBC has two separate medical dramas in the works. "Mercy" is about nurses, while "Trauma" focuses on paramedics. Neither one sounds very original, so we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

"Parenthood" is based on the Steve Martin movie and stars Peter Krause and Maura Tierney in the lead roles. It has a good pedigree so it gives the network something to be hopeful about.

Comedies:

"100 Questions" follows a woman as she answers 100 questions about love that leads her to reexamine her past loves so she can figure out what she wants. From "Ex-List" to "Being Erica" these shows always make women look like desperate loons, so I'll pass.

Chevy Chase stars with "The Soup's" Joel McHale in "Community" about the wacky goings on at a community college. I'll watch Joel McHale read the phone book, so I'll definitely give this familiar sounding premise a chance.

Not really a new show is "Saturday Night Live: Weekend Update." This is an extension of something they did during the election and I'm not sure if it can hold up without a central theme driving it. Will anything be so crucial that they can't wait until Saturday to make fun of it.

NBC has their work cut out for them if they plan to return to their former glory. The new season is just the first step in a long journey.

"Dollhouse:" Alpha revealed

Friday's episode of "Dollhouse" featured two huge revelations. First of all, we finally meet Alpha, the first "doll." And secondly, Agent Ballard finally gets inside the Dollhouse.

Up until now we have only seen glimpses or have been told in flashbacks how Alpha escaped from the Dollhouse.

Joss Whedon cleverly intertwined this reveal with Ballard's ongoing investigation, by having Ballard enlist the help of the Dollhouse's creator, Steven Kepler.

Kepler, played spectacularly by Alan Tudyk, is a paranoid, agoraphobic, pot farmer who created the environmental systems for the Dollhouse.

He and Ballard engage in an operation to rescue Caroline/Echo from the house and in the process form the funniest buddy cop duo since Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte in "48 Hours."

If FOX doesn't renew "Dollhouse" Whedon should pitch them "Ballard & Kepler" as his next big thing.

Anyway, while Ballard and Langton have a kick ass fight all over the house, Kepler reveals himself to actually be Alpha. He confronts Dr. Saunders and slices up Victor before he puts Echo in the chair and gives her the personality of his lover, whom he had vowed to rescue.

They then take the elevator and calmly stroll out the front door, Bonnie and Clyde style.

While all this has been going on Ballard has been taken upstairs where he is confronted by Ms. DeWitt. She has to decide what to do with him now that he has actually discovered their secret.

This episode just worked on so many levels because it wrapped up storylines and answered questions while simultaneously creating new ones.

That is what Whedon is so good at, he keeps fans constantly engaged in the stories and the characters. And unlike other shows he creates an atmosphere where viewers really never know what will happen next.

"Dollhouse" as a series is really hitting its stride and it will be a shame if FOX doesn't renew this smart and classy show or at least give fans some closure.

New episode up...