I think I Might Be Maturing... And Other Startling Pop-Culture Related Revelations

My love for the redeemable bad boy has been well chronicled on this site, and with my ever-abiding and increasing love for Glee's Puck and HIMYM's Barney as continuing proof, I suppose it hasn't really ended. But recently, while rewatching Veronica Mars Season Three (because, well, if it's a season that I can't quote entirely from memory, that's just not okay) I realized that I might, just might, be maturing a little. Suddenly, Logan's whole broody bad boy thing seemed unfounded and off-putting. I'm sure season one's break light cracking, FBI-punching version might still make my little heart go pitter patter, but I actually found myself rooting for... you guessed it... Piz.

And it's more than just that. I watch early Gilmore Girls seasons and think, "Milo Ventimiglia is cute and all, but does Jess have to be such a grump?" Where before I saw deepness and sexiness, I'm suddenly all, "young people these days don't know how good they have it.*" I find myself increasingly worshipping at the altar of the Chucks (from Chuck) of this world, rather than the Chucks (from Gossip Girl).

Even Twilight, my enjoyment of which certainly seems like the greatest evidence one could find against my continued maturation, seems to be trying to remind me that I'm not a moony eyed fourteen year old anymore. Gone are the days of angsting away after the Edward Cullens of the world. I'm suddenly loving the more emotionally healthy werewolf best friend.

It's one of the most fun parts of being a popular culture junkie that I can truly measure growth in my life by my relation to popular culture, but this one took me a little by surprise. I wonder what farther reaching complications it has for me?

I'm trying to think of other, similar revelations. I remember watching Freaks and Geeks before high school and getting a completely different message out of it, but I think that's to be expected. And I certainly appreciate aspects of Buffy's later seasons a lot more now that I'm on a different side of the adolescent divide.

What about the rest of you? Any deep revelations spring up for you while watching your regularly scheduled programming?

*Which should not be misconstrued as jumping ship to Team Dean.

Things I Love...

Tonight was a good night for television. Scrubs' revamped new season is really pretty great; I love the Denise focus. Last year's best new show, Better Off Ted, is back on the air as of tonight and it's just as great as ever.

But the best thing about tonight's TV? The Daily Show. Now, Jon Stewart and Co. are consistently fantastic but I almost never write about them. I watch the show every single night, and despite the occasional (and understandable) boring episode, The Daily Show usually makes me laugh and or think. But tonight's episode was particularly exceptional.

First off there was a segment about India, featuring Aasif "drywit" Mandvi, which was one of those segments that stops you in your tracks and makes you think about the state of American warfare in more simplistic and startling terms than you might be prepared for.

Next up was one of the best segments I've seen the show do. It wasn't just a standard shot at FOX news and their ironic, ludicrous mistakes like showing a poll that adds up to 120% during a segment about exposing falsified data. It was a call to action. Jon Stewart, it seems, has run out of rope on just making fun of these people; he's reached the point where he just needs them to smarten up, for everybody's sake. So instead of editing together a montage of Gretchen Carlson failing to understand basic terms like "Tsar" and leaving it at that, The Daily Show spent their time and resources proving that the Fox & Friends co-host was a smart and accomplished woman capable of much more than the dopey character she plays on morning talk TV. Instead of putting down the violin playing Stanford grad, The Daily Show did something refreshingly different and asked her to stand up.

The show ended with an interview with my absolute favourite Daily Show guest. As far as Republicans go, I'm really kind of fond of Mike Huckabee. I think he's a good guy, whatever his politics may be. For one, he's a 3 time guest who is up for debate, isn't scared off by the liberal demographic and is never afraid to take a hit from my beloved Jon (unlike Lance "stupidhead" Armstrong who basically sat there and said "please don't pick on me"), he's smart and gracious and open to opinions that aren't his own. When Mike Huckabee's on The Daily Show a rare thing happens: two smart people with opposing ideologies find a way to listen to each other and have a real live discussion about things that matter, without party lines and random resentments crowding in. When Mike Huckabee's on The Daily Show, Jon Stewart suits up to play hardball and actually has an opponent as capable and willing to play as he is.

It really was a remarkable day at The Daily Show.

Permanent Casting News

In some of the greatest casting news I've heard in a long time, True Blood has finally realized the potential of Kristen Bauer. As the slightly villainous and oh so devious Pam, Bauer steals every seen she's in. While most of this past season's True Blood love was directed toward Alexander Skarsgard's Eric (and rightly so), it's reassuring to hear that the big wigs also appreciate the very under appreciated Pam

Starting this season Bauer moves to series regular status. More screen time means more laughs. Nice move.

HIMYM Packs a Guest-Starry Punch

Week after week the show I look most forward to seeing is How I Met Your Mother on Monday nights. It's consistently packed with great writing, great performances and great stories with wonderful little surprises at every turn. This week, those little delights came in the form of two of my favourite television actors: Jamie Kaler and Joanna Garcia.

The guest spots by the stars of My Boys (Kaler) and Privileged (Garcia) came as a surprise to me (someone who is sorely behind on her entertainment news these days) and I couldn't have been happier to see them. Garcia really is the ultimate girl next door, a fan (and My TV) favourite and the perfect actress to play Ted's missed opportunity of the week. I'm never unhappy to see Jamie Kaler on the small screen, even without the rest of the perfect My Boys ensemble, and his role as Garcia's sweet coworker was a complete 180 from My Boys' Mike, a nice change of pace for the comedian.

All in all, the Maggie story was quite lovely. Ted's bit with his students was cute but ridiculous, Robin's role was worth a chuckle or two but not much more (one of her weakest episodes in a very long time- Cobie's been a highlight of the last couple seasons for the most part) and Barney was up to some of his least amusing antics ever. But the mediocre episode was saved by HIMYM's secret weapon: an oversized, sugar-coated marshmallow heart. Not only was Marshall's B-story typically sweet but at the center of all the crazy swirling around the A-story was what Ted called "the second greatest love story [he'd] ever heard", and that's always welcome. It also means that the Maggie incident has put Ted on the right track, one that will lead him to that titular mother. I have a feeling he might get there soon, say right around the show's 100th episode, coming later this season.

Spotted: An (Almost) Heartwarming Hour

Tonight's Gossip Girl had all the elements for a great hour of my favorite guilty pleasure: more Jenny/Eric feuding, tons of Chuck and Blair moments, near-death drama, big reveals, and scandalous secrets. It could have been the perfect episode but things sort of went limp toward the end.

The interesting aspect is that the thing I absolutely loved about this episode also lead to what I absolutely hated. After a tense argument with the untrustworthy Trip, the duo almost run into some wolves (?) and get in a pretty nasty car wreck. In a distasteful throwback to Ted Kennedy, our Senator Van Der Bilt decides to call an ambulance but otherwise leave Serena on the verge of death. He even goes as far as moving her to the position of driver so it appears she was alone. But this brings us to one of the best moments this episode had to offer: everyone dropping their lives and rushing to the hospital. There's always something reassuring about the fact that even though these characters fight constantly and that some generally hate each other, they still truly care about one another. The tears almost started pouring when Chuck and Vanessa were two among the men to rush to her side, especially considering pne has had her qualms with Serena and the other is a quasi-soulless individual. This show can clearly be melodramatic and far too gossipy (for lack of a better word) so it's reassuring to have the writers bring it back to reality and show some general human kindness.

But then something horrible happened, and as is the case with most Gossip Girl episodes, the kindness was really just a ploy to solve or create more problems. The show is clearly heading on break for a few weeks as made evident but the quick reconciliations of story lines (see Jenny and Eric make up even though Jenny is still a raging bitch and Eric is much better, see Dan confess his love for Vanessa but her blowing it off as post traumatic craziness, see Serena smile at the adorable Nate in realization that he is the better man than his nasty cousin, and see Chuck and Blair make-up and Chuck finally deal with father's death). Not to mention, this episode also set up several overly dramatic plots for the spring season (see Rufus contemplating leaving Lily after discovering the mysterious letter from Serena's dad, see Jenny get knee-deep in drug dealing, see Chuck's MOM?!?!?!...well maybe).

On second thought, this is why Gossip Girl is amazing. Regardless of the melodramatic plots and ridiculously hasty reconciliations, it's still one of the most entertaining hours of television.

Most adorable moment of the night: Nate punching Trip in the face to the sounds of Gossip Girls wonderful quote, "Spotted: the fall of a politician and the rise of a hero."

Most annoying moment of the night: Chuck's hallucinations/visions/remembrances of his father. Really? I belive Chuck is mourning but I don't want to question his sanity, thank you.

The Battle of the Naomis

I recently caught up on two trashy TV shows: Private Practice and 90210. Both have me hooked so I watch every episode, despite bad writing and outrageous plotting. But while Private Practice inducing little more than eye-rolling, 90210 sometimes makes me care about its characters. So while I didn't care about Addison's struggles with her parents, I invested in Silver's quest to reconnect before her mother died. But the most pronounced difference between these two series, (both of which are about overly dramatic teenagers, including the one with no teenage characters) is the Naomis.

The creative redirection that 90210 took for its second season put the character of Naomi Clark right at the center of the action. Naomi plays into the TV convention of the "bitch with a softside", luckily for her that might just be my favourite archetype. She may not be on new territory, but AnnLynne McCord's character is consistently engaging, funny and interesting. She's also fiercely loyal once she's on your side, my favourite quality in a character. Oh, and her wardrobe can't be matched.

Over at Oceanside Wellness, however, their Naomi is lowpoint of my TV week. Audra McDonald's self-righteous fertility specialist is the preachiest on a preachy show. Naomi's holier-than-thou attitude plus best friend's brother bedding and co-worker abandoning makes her the most hypocritical character I've seen in a long time. She's grating and cautious and irrational and needy. And any fertility specialist who accidentally puts the wrong embryo in the wrong uterus can't be as capable as this show pretends she is.

Ding, ding, ding, this round goes to 90210.

MORE AMAZING NEWS!

The next season the The Amazing Race is currently filming. While CBS remains quiet about the cast and claims they won't be announcing the new teams for a while, many fans are already snapping photos of the teams which they're encountering at airports. And one couple just so happens to be Jeff and Jordan from Big Brother! Jeff previously stated he wouldn't be opposed to doing some sort of reality show with girlfriend Jordan so it seems fitting that TAR would have them on. This burrowing of reality contestants is nothing new to the race. In the past, Rob and Amber of Survivor fame and Allison from season 4 of Big Brother have all appeared as teams on the show.

I personally cannot wait to have Jeff and Jordan back on the screen. I expect lots of Jeff demeaning Jordan and her being unable to complete tons of roadblocks.

So excited!

Amazing Finalists

Something strange is happening this year in television...specifically reality television. For the first time in forever, my favorite contestants are making it to the finals and winning. Typically I have my favorites which I route for throughout the season and they tend to get close to the end but never really make it. That has been flipped upside down this year starting with Big Brother and continue with Top Model. In both instances I watched the finale with an unusual amount of carelessness because all the finals were deserving (granted I was probably leaning a bit more toward Laura winning over Nicole and Jordan winning over Kevin, but either way it was okay).

Well, my favorite picks are continuing to surprise me with the best final three in Amazing Race history. I've been obsessed with the race all fall and I've rediscovered why it is the only reality show to continuously win the Emmy. From the beginning, I was routing for the brothers and the inter-racial couple. While both these teams have proven to bicker and annoy me at times, they have also continued to entertain throughout. Sure Sam and Dan scream at one another more than any team this year but their friendship clearly overpowers any sibling rivalry. I just about cry every time the two make up. And while Ericka tends to bitch and moan at every roadblock, her relationship with Brian is nothing but pure adorableness. The two are clearly meant for each other and I cannot remember seeing such a strong couple ever on this show. Arguably, Meghan and Cheyne are clearly the strongest team in the race, and the favorites to win, but Meghan tends to be more annoying with her constant desire to scream her boyfriend's name. The fourth pair left in the race were the Harlem Globetrotter's. While these these are obviously a favorite of the production team, they left me with a bitter taste in my mouth. As the cockiest players this season, it came as no surprise when the pair butted heads with the other teams constantly. Furthermore, it was a huge laughing riot when they accused Dan of pushing them when the footage shows the Globetrotters at fault.

With my new found reality luck, the Globetrotters were unable to unscramble the letters in the name Franz and took a four hour penalty. Dan was initially working with Big Easy to solve the clue but went back on his word by refusing to give the correct answer. This was the second time the self-proclaimed villains cause delays in another teams game (they stole Ericka and Brian's cab last week causing their last place finish in a non-elimination round). Is this poor gamesmanship? Of course not! In a race around the world for one million dollars, it's necessary to fight for your team in any way possible. With the brothers finally destroying the basketball players, Ericka and Brian were able to overcome their last place finish from the previous week and slide into the final 3.

Who will win this season: the dominating dating duo, Meghan and Cheyne, who continue to destroy the competition week after week, the bickering brothers who manage to finish near the top regardless of their constant fighting, or the interracial couple that has placed last in two non-elimation rounds and are the clear underdogs? More importantly, who cares? With three deserving and entertaining teams, I'll be satisfied with any ending.

Obsessions

This poster for Big Love's new season.

Eli Stone. I just watched all of season 2 in 3 days and I've gotta say, there's almost nothing wrong with this series. It's really quite a remarkable feat of network television and its cancellation will always be one of the great tragedies of the 08-09 season.

Fantastic Mr. Fox. Wes Anderson's stop-motion adaptation of the book from my favourite childrens author Roald Dahl is really remarkable. With superstar voice talents (led by the ever smoothly fantastic Mr. George Clooney), remarkable aesthetics, a great script and a brilliantly paced story, Fantastic Mr. Fox is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time.

Anticipation of the Top Chef Finale. My money's on Brian Voltaggio for the win with the final showdown being between him, his brother Michael and Kevin (who might surprise me and take it all, though I'm firmly rooting for Brian). I'll miss the Volts when the season ends.

Chelsie Hightower and Louis Vito on the Dancing with the Stars finale. She's proven over the past two seasons that she might just be the best teacher they've got on the show. She's continually paired with a guy's guy longshot and has them dancing like a pro just a couple weeks in to the competition. The couple's fast-paced routine (set to the lovely tune of Donny singing) was a highlight of the finale and Louis came off as delightfully charming. Other great performers include the too-early eliminated Aaron Carter who performed the most entertaining quickstep I've seen in awhile, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and her partner Mark "I should not be a popstar" Ballas and the Olympic swimmer who got voted off really early despite being a really great dancer, as evidenced by her performance on the finale. One last highlight was the phenomenon that is the show's pro dancers livening up a depressing performance by the decaying Whitney Houston with some absolutely incredible vivacity and ballroom skill; when the pro dancers are free from their partners (like in the first week of the show when they have a featured dance), you really get to see how truly remarkable they are.

The Project Runway Finale Results. She may be a bit nasty but it's really nice to see the best designer win the competition over her nice but unexceptional fellow designers. Meana Irina had the best taste of the season and deserved every win she got, even with an all-black final collection.

Mark Salling. I don't think I know anyone who would chose Finn over Puck. Not only is Puck more attractive, smarter, funnier AND a better singer but he's a more developed character. Mark Salling brings a lot of depth to the best character Glee has to offer, taking him from villainous jock to sympathetic fan favourite without losing his edge or abandoning character consistency. And that bone structure...

Kelly Osbourne threatens to stalk Louis Van Amstel. Priceless!

The Grey's Anatomy Holiday Episode. It's not the holidays until the TV says it is and Grey's Anatomy officially kicked off the season with their weeks-spanning episode that carried the characters through to New Years. While it does mean that we'll all be going Greys-less for quite some time, the episode was so enjoyable that I really didn't mind. The standout? The episode confirmed Arizona as my favourite character of the season so far.

That Dove ad that uses "Do Your Ears Hang Low". I love their campaigns and this one's particularly sweet.

The fact that Scrubs is back. It's such a charming show. I love Denise and like that she's becoming one of the new focuses. I like all the changes and that they've somehow managed to maintain some of their original fibre. I like the new girl, even if she is a little perky. And Denise's boyfriend is fantastic, I can't wait to watch their fascinating dynamic unfold.

Show Tyme's choreography on SYTYCDCanada. My favourite hip hop choreographer by far on the show, his House routine for Everette and Tara Jean was one of my favourites of the season.

The West Wing season 1. In the perpetual cycle of West Wing episodes that my father and I are locked in, we've recently come round on season 1 again. Man that's a good show, and season 1 contains every reason why (except Ainsley Hayes, she comes later).

The recurring SNL sketch with the alien sportscaster. I have no idea why I find it so amusing but Bill Hader is FUNNY.

Sebastian Pigott on Being Erica. The addition of Kai has revitalized Being Erica's second season, giving it a shape that was neither expected or unwelcome. The new direction they're taking with Dr. Tom, the ramifications of Kai's therapy on Erica's life and the beginnings of exploration into the mythology of the therapy all make for promising earmarks of a bright future for the show. Also, Pigott's musical interludes never go unappreciated.

The Guild season 3. Watch it online at watchtheguild.com, you'll feel cool for having done so.

Kevin Pollak's Chat Show. Live every Sunday with full episodes available anytime online, this lowbudget online show is literally Kevin Pollak (Sam Weinberg, comedian and perpetrator of the best Christopher Walken impression in the business) sitting and talking to a guest for 2 straight hours, unedited. The result can be monotonous if the guest isn't interesting but it can also be fascinating. Instead of a pre-selected "funny anecdote" carefully rehearsed then delivered to Ellen or Letterman or whoever in a 3 minute segment, you'll witness guests rambling, searching for words, going off on tangents and actually telling the truth; it's really quite refreshing. And then, if you can make it through the whole ordeal, you're rewarded with the one "bit" that Pollak has on the show: the Larry King Game. Guests have to do a bad impression of King revealing something personal on the air then go to the phones. Standout episodes include Seth McFarlane and Josh Molina (especially if you're a Sorkin fan) though the award for best Larry King Game submission goes to Matthew Perry's spot on impression while delivering "I'm sitting in my own sauce. Wichita, hello"

and

Better Off Ted premieres next week. Could not be more excited.

Congratulations Dancing Winners!

In the last few weeks in the overly crowded world of television dance competitions, two very deserving winners won two very different competitions.

On So You Think You Can Dance Canada, early favourite Tara Jean took home the win, marking the first time that the best dancer has actually won a SYTYCD season (I love Nico but Vincent was the better technical contemporary male, Kayla could outdance Jeanine by a small but notable margin, Katee deserved the season 4 US win, Danny should have had season 3 wrapped up, Travis should have had season 2 and there's a reason Blake McGrath is entirely more relevant than season 1's winner Nick). In fact, the top 2, which included runner-up Vincent (the token adorable Frenchman of the season), was exactly right. Two of the most entertaining and engaging dancers as well as the top performers in their (contemporary and ballroom respectively) and every other style, Tara Jean and Vincent's success shows that audiences are finally getting it right. And because of that, this pair of twenty-year olds will finally get their big break.

On the other end of the spectrum, the last thing Dancing With The Stars' winner needs is a big break. In fact, he could not be more of a showbiz legend. I know I predicted before the season started that Mya would win that heinous mirror ball trophy but I couldn't be happier to be wrong (though you've got to give me props for calling her top 2 finish before the show even aired). I've loved Donny Osmond since I was 6 years old and I saw him play the title role in Joseph and the Amazing Technicoloured Dreamcoat. Mock me if you must but that man has the prettiest voice there ever was; he is, after all, the voice of Mulan's prince. Kelly Osbourne may have improved the most and won a surprising number of hearts but Donny won me over every week with his hard work, dedication, sense of humour and humility. He was also endlessly goofy, incredibly charming and could actually dance. His partner Kym Johnson also proved charming and fun throughout the season. Call me dorky or crazy or old lady-ish but my favourite won Dancing with the Stars and I love him all the more for loving his mirror ball trophy.

Grey's is Growing Up

Lately Grey's Anatomy has been substantially more enjoyable than it's been in years. Not since we lost Burke and Addison over the course of one hiatus has Seattle Grace been populated with actual adult characters.

With the additions of complicated adult characters like Owen and Teddy and the personal growth and maturity that's come to the original characters over the last few months (Meredith and Derek finally committing, Callie and Mark finding reasonable partners, Bailey prioritizing her life), combined with the absence of Izzie (aka drama) and the wonderful grounding presence that is Arizona (my absolute favourite character at this point), the staff of Seattle Grace is beginning to seem less like high-schoolers and more like interesting adults.

Now if that influence could only extend over to the disaster that is Oceanside Wellness...

Dear Diary

The Vampire Diaries is my number one guilty pleasure tv show, a better scripted, equally-well-ab'ed Twilight for the slightly older set. But the thing that actually elevates it above other crappy guilt fests? Ian Somerhalder. As Damon, the bad boy older brother vampire, he's having so much damn fun that you want to have fun right along with him.

Plus, the show doesn't take itself and its mythology over serious.

It still has a serious charisma hole at its center in the form of Elena, and although they both look good shirtless and do good "smoldering eyes from across the room," Elena and Stefan's compatibility never seems more than looks based. And I still wish that a single female character ever seemed fully formed (I'm pumped about witch-girl, and Elena's sister has potential, and ditzy blonde Caroline is actually shaping up to be my favorite, but there's still not a relateable, root-for-able lady amongst the lads).

But the guys in the show are where the action is at, which I guess is how I can tell this is a crappy CW show and not a brilliant genre-defying masterpiece by Joss Whedon. Although Somerhalder is the stand out among the bunch, Paul Wesley as Stefan does more with his cheek-bones and ridiculous abs than Twilight ever allows Robert Pattinson to do. The episode where his female vampire best friend shows up and Stefan finally lets loose and gets goofy with his bad self, Wesley is practically aglow. And it's this air of mischief behind the "brooding good guy" that kept Angel alight for three years on buffy and five on angel (it's also what's missing in Edward Cullen, although that's a subject for a much longer and ridiculous post). Even recurring characters like Logan (newscaster-turned-vampire-slayer-turned-vampire) are so much ridiculous complicated bad guy fun that it keeps the show afloat.

On top of that, the plots are actually pretty decent. The slow roll-out of the vampire mythos, the building of the town conspiracy, even the goofy-witchcraft-ghost-epic-love story works well with the show's semi-ironic aesthetic. Just look at the goofy trailers that the CW puts out to promote the show (randomly shirtless boys, mirror talk a la "It's cool not growing old. I like being the eternal stud." ~wink~, admissions that the show is basically 90% longing looks) to see a pretty honest view of how the show sees itself. It may be Dawson's Creek and Twilight's awkward love child but at least it's self aware enough to know it.

All of this is basically a plug for CW's Vampire Diaries marathon starting on December 5th, where you can catch up on all the ridiculous shirtlessness in one wonderful week.

Less than GLEE-full

I can't think of two shows more different in style than The Office and Glee, yet this week's Glee gave me exactly that, "Oh s---, I simultaneously wish this wasn't happening and can't stop laughing," feeling that is the Office's stock and trade.

Most of it, especially the Rachel and Mr. Schuester stuff, amused me.

But I have a pet peeve. I really like the character of Mercedes, or at least the potential there, but this week the show asked her to play "sassy, black voice of reason" and it was just obnoxious. First, it was obnoxious because "sassy,black voice of reason" is a ridiculously overused cliche, and this show should not be falling into it this early. But, more importantly, overall, the show's relationship with fatherhood (with the notable exception of Kurt's dad) is ridiculously lacking. I've found the whole "Finn thinks he's the daddy but it's really Puck" thing intriguing, but the idea, as expressed by Mercedes, that Puck "owes it" to Quinn to keep his trap shut about his spermination of her is just... well, backwards, misogynistic bullshit. It takes two people to make a poor sexual decision, and judging by the ridiculous amounts of sparks that still fly when Puck and Quinn are in the same room, I'd say that was a very much so mutual moment of condom-less lust. And Puck has a right to tell Quinn this. He didn't "ruin" her, because this isn't the 1950s, and the whole point of feminism was that women have their own sexual rights and impulses.

Plus, Puck totally loves her. It's not just like he used her for sex and now wants nothing to do with her. He was willing to sell pot cookies for her (that's noble, right?). And he's just so dreamy, he should be given the opportunity to do the right thing.

On top of that, Finn's a damn nice guy. He protected Kurt way before they shared a mutual love for high notes! He sings to sonograms! He gets a job to support his pregnant girlfriend (Admittedly by pretending to be handicapped...)! Mercedes reaction should have been pissed as hell that Quinn was letting Finn give up his whole life for a baby that isn't his, and that Quinn was continually lying to him about the fatherhood of said baby. When the Glee club decided to sing to the two "parents-to-be" I should have felt moved (and I suppose a part of me did), but instead I mostly felt pissed off as hell that the song wasn't "it's not your baby" (which I don't know if that's a real song, but it should be, for just this reason).

It's interesting because I mostly agree with Kelly's theory that the show is sometimes to quick to paint Quinn as a villain, and I greatly prefer the episode's like this week when Quinn is given layers and sympathetic monologues, but it pisses me off that the show is just writing off what a hugely messed up thing she is doing to Finn. Every time I see her berating Finn or letting him make huge life changing decision based around a baby she is planning on giving up for adoption that ISN'T HIS ANYWAY I want to vomit and/or punch my television. I like when characters are complicated, and that means exploring the good with the bad.

Overall, I liked this week's episode a lot more than this monologue would imply. I especially liked the introduction of Finn's mom and the shirt that Puck was wearing in his scene with Mercedes (it helped to make me feel better about how annoying the storyline was, 'kay?). Still I'm looking forward to all the baby-related secrets coming out, because they frustrate me so badly.

Kelly Calls for a Breakup

I wish it weren't the case but I think it's about time for Erica Strange to break some hearts.

Though her and Ethan's relationship began as very sweet (if entirely unoriginal), lately I can barely stand to watch them together. Every episode shows them bickering and the show's wonderful leading lady looses a little bit of her shimmer when she steps into a scene with her love interest. Last season the very thing that convinced me that Ethan and Erica should be together even though they would be a cliche was that she lit up when in the same room as him, he had made her a little better and vice versa. Nowadays, she doesn't seem to understand him (what was her problem this week with the sex life stuff, does she not know Ethan at all?) and he seems to be bogging her down. The show has been ignoring everything that made their relationship interesting (his 10 year marriage to a manipulative woman and all its ramifications, the differences in their relationship experiences, their many years of friendship making for an awkward beginning when it turns to something more, etc...) and is instead creating drama where there should be none.

The relationship is taking two lovely characters and tearing them apart by forcing them together. Maybe Being Erica should take a page out of the How I Met Your Mother rulebook: maybe too awesomes don't make a right? Or the Dawson's Creek book, which states that soulmates and trueloves can be two different things. Or maybe, they can make like FRIENDS' Joey and Rachel and backtrack, pretending they never ruined their awesome friendship by entering into a dysfunctional relationship. Any of these options is fine by me, but either way, they can't be together forever, it's simply not working out.

Another One Bites the Dust

Although at this point it's semi-old news, it must be shared anyways:

Joss Whedon's intriguing, yet little watched, series Dollhouse has officially been canceled. After poor ratings it's sophomore year and a move to Friday nights, it comes as no real surprise. The biggest hint of the series' failure occurred a few weeks ago when Fox announced they would be removing Dollhouse from the November sweeps schedule.

Luckily, Fox is going to air the full 13 episodes and the remaining ones will begin on December 4th. Joss is still shooting a few more and promises that the series will continue to improve. No word yet on whether or not he'll fully be able to find some closure for our wonderful dolls.

Sad face.

Mother of all Confusions

I never really knew quite where I stood with the Barney and Robin relationship on How I Met Your Mother but I finally found out this past week.

Barney is legend---what for it....I hope you're not lactose intolerant cause the next word is---dairy. But seriously, he's one of the main reasons for the awesomeness of this series. And while his womanizing ways are entertaining, it was interesting to see him settle down with Robin. The best part of this pairing was that Robin really is the female version of Barney, just less slutty. Robin continues to be the character whose comedy grows on me more and more each episode so I assumed these two would be perfect.

The weird thing was they kind of were. I can't help but compare HIMYM to Friends so I'm going to. Monica and Chandler ended up being one of the best couples on television who nobody saw coming and I had some high hopes that Robin and Barney would be too after last season, but I still wasn't sold on the idea. And then "The Rough Patch" happened.

Once again, there were so many parts of this episode I loved. Alan Thicke's guest appearance was random and hilarious (especially the ending bit about him and Robin's variety show). I also always love when Lily is badass and scheming so seeing her come up with the ultimate break-up plan was wonderful. Then again, the break-up scheming really rubbed me the wrong way. I understand that Ted, Marshall, and Lily know their friends fairly well and therefore could see that the relationship was harming them both, but it seemed cruel. It's one thing to break Ted up with his annoying girlfriends, but breaking up two of your closest friends seem so wrong.

HIMYM was also reminiscent of Friends tonight with the fat suit. Barney pulled it off just as well as Monica. What could normally be used as a last ditch comic device actually worked in this episode. I loved watching Barney scarf down food and look generally unappealing. Robin's aging had a similar effect.

This blog entry seems kind of random, but that's sort of how I feel about this episode: mixed up. I find it hard to believe that Barney and Robin would break up because of some mutual desire to be free from one another. After spending an entire season with Barney realizing he liked Robin, it was all too fast-paced to have them break up in one episode. It should have been more drawn out and dramatic. I know this is a comedy but I feel as though the break-up trivialized their relationship as simply a friendship with sex. Granted, there's a good chance the pair will reunite in the future (are they the new Ross and Rachel?), but as for now I'm disappointed....and for a show that always makes me happy, this is one ending I cannot be satisfied with.

Top Model is Back on Top

When it first began to air, I was obsessed with America's Next Top Model. As with most reality series, I lost interest after a while. I'm proud to say that I'm back on the wagon and I frankly could not be happy.

I wish I'd spent more time blogging about how awesome this season was. It started off as another gimmicky year: the girls are all short models and Tyra wants to prove that even tiny girls can be supermodels (although "tiny" is apparently 5'8). But gimmick aside, what really has made this season so unforgettable is two girls: Nicole and Laura.


Nicole is probably the most socially awkward contestant ever. She doesn't get along well with the other girls, and you get the feeling that she's not a very social person period. But once you throw her in front of a camera Nicole comes alive and destroys the competition (she's never been in the bottom two and continues to destroy every competitor). Nicole has the looks but her personality is lacking, even though it continues to grow each week.


Laura on the other hand has both. She is hot as hell and is a southern belle. Laura is also clearly not the typical hottie but she has the most bubbly personality, I dare you not to love her. Laura has been a gem to watch week after week. It may her the southern accent, her friendly and cheery personality, her adorable preference to wear her grandmothers homemade clothing, or her resemblance to Amber Benson, but something about this girl makes me so darn happy.

Tonight the models were in for a shock when Jay announced that the final 4 would be cut down to 2 after one photo shoot (a first for the series). The final 4 consisted of Nicole, Laura, Jennifer, and Erin. Jennifer continues to have decent pictures and the judges seem to like her but she also is kind of mean to the other girls. I realize the confessionals are a place for the models to speak open and honestly, but Jennifer always pushed the envelope. Erin is probably the worst of the bunch. She was on top in the beginning but was bottom two for three consecutive episodes. The judges continue to let her slide past over much better competition (like the adorable Sundae who prematurely left last episode). On top of her unfair staying power, Erin is the most whinny/annoying contestant this season.

So tonight all four modeled in Hawaii and the final 2 were selected. Nicole was the first chosen which was the biggest non-shocker in the world. I predicted this girl would win week 2 so I'm glad she made it to the finals. The second photo of the night had me on edge. If Laura won, the most perfect pair ever would make it to the finals and this would be the first season where two beautiful, deserving, and NICE models made it. The problem was that the judges LOVE Erin and with her well-reviewed photo I was worried she was a given for the finals.

Thankfully, I was wrong. The final two were announced and Nicole would be facing off against Laura for the title of America's Next Top Tiny Model. YAY! It seldom occurs when my two favor ties from the beginning of a reality series make it to the finals (by seldom I mean never). I couldn't be more excited for these two deserving girls.

Sidenote: Reality tv is good again. I realize it was always pretty damn good, but lately I find myself looking forward to ANTM, Survivor, and The Amazing Race more so than any other scripted series. Why are sitcoms and dramas so boring this year???? I still have mad love for How I Met Your Mother and Grey's, but other than that I find scripted series lacking.

XOXO

There were so many things about this week's Gossip Girl that I absolutely loved. In fact there were (insert number here):

1/ The Threesome: So the infamous threesome has been making headlines for a while now. It was a big question as to who would participate. From the beginning I had a good feeling about who it would be and as the episode progressed it became obvious that Vanessa would finally get some Dan action...just this time with Olivia in the mix. I sort of liked how adorable it was that Vanessa and Dan wanted to give Olivia the ultimate college experience before she was forced to shoot her upcoming film, and while threesomes were clearly not my college experience, I guess it's understandable that Olivia would want to get experiment with her two closet college buddies.

2/ Hilary Duff- Really? Did I actually just admit to liking her on this show? So it took me several weeks, but I think I finally enjoy Olivia. Her and Dan are not at all annoying together (unlike most of Dan's conquests) and her relationship with Vanessa is fairly believable minus the whole threesome thing. I was fairly certain this would be her final episode until the shocking ending when we see the text about her cancelled movie....OMG so good! But, seriously, who isn't looking forward to the Olivia v. Vanessa show down and the inevitable revelation that Vanessa has totally love Dan forever...lolz....GG is all over this one. I really cannot wait to next week's episode.

3/ BLAIR- So her whole storyline is a tad pathetic this year. I dislike that she keeps getting involved with the Constance heirarchy. She seems so above that, but I have faith that she's still in the process of passing the torch and we will soon see her blossom at NYU. But she was amazing in this episode because not only did she attempt to scheme and bring Jenny down, but she recognized her defeat and still managed to give Jenny props in true Blair form. On top of that Blair consistently has the best one liners in the series and continues to bring more humor than any other character. Also, her and Chuck are so damn cute.

4/ Eric- It's no secret to my friends who watch this show with me that I have a huge crush on Eric (what?!?! it's totally legal...I think). It was nice to finally see him get in on the main storyline and he totally tried to pull a Blair. The best part was once he failed Blair had to team up with him to bring Jenny down. Jenny is such a huge biotch (and not in the good Blair way) that cannot wait to see Eric continue to plot against her. Can Eric really be the new Blair? And can he finally get a boyfriend that doesn't break up with him for stupid reasons? I realize that the original Constance crew is still the main focus of the series, but I wouldn't mind a little more new-Constance screen time so long as it focuses on Eric humiliating Jenny.

5/ Tripp- So this whole Tripp and Serena thing is creepy when you consider Serena's age. And Serena once again proves to be the least interesting character when she makes up with Blair but then ignores her to spend time with Tripp, but these two really have some chemistry. I'm going to thank Tripp for that....he's cute and clearly conflicted...he shouldn't like Serena, but then again his wife is kinda evil since she planned that whole "hero" thing last week. I just finally find Serena kind of interesting because Tripp does too....hmm.

6/ Nice Chuck- When Chuck puts aside his badass nature and schemes for the greater good, I melt like butter. Reconnecting Blair and Serena was selfless and adorable on his part. And it's nice to see that no matter how good Chuck can be, he still is a bit of a douche (telling them kissing to make up won't count as cheating).

7/ GAGA!!!- Okay, so the music genius won't actually be on GG till next week, but I can still be excited right?

Things I disliked about this week's GG:

1/ JENNY: Really? I don't by for a second that she is the new queen. Blair may have been a bitch but she was fun....Jenny is horable, unwatchable, and far too skinny.

2/ Predictability: for the past 3 weeks I've guessed everything that has happened on this show. I miss the shock and awe of realizing who was behind certain plots. Granted, I still love it!

TV's Worst Workers

Catching up on this season of Private Practice, an idea for a new list came to mind. You know what there are a lot of on TV? Characters who are very bad at their jobs (whether the writers meant for that to be the case or not). Sadly, on this list, only one of these characters is comically bad at their job, the others are just written that way because the writing on their show sucks- oh the state of television!

Violet Turner (Private Practice): worst therapist ever! Endlessly self-involved, Violet has always excelled at making her patients' troubles all about her, thus failing to truly help them more times than not.

Marvin "Mouth" MacFadden (One Tree Hill): worst sportscaster ever! I don't think Mouth has ever accurately reported on a story in his entire run on the show. Instead of doing his assignments he goes live with biased and obtuse monologues about his friends and his life.

Dee Reynolds (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia): worst bartender ever! It's not exactly a hard job but clueless lowlife Dee's skills don't extend much beyond opening a beer.

Izzie Stevens (Grey's Anatomy): worst doctor ever! She's killed all sorts of people at this point, spent an entire episode trying to save a deer and generally gets so emotionally involved with her patients that it surprises me every time she DOESN'T offer to donate her own kidney to a stranger. No wonder she got fired.

REALLY ?!?!

It was so good to see Amy Poehler on Saturday Night Live this weekend. Her bit with Seth Meyers on Weekend Update was hilarious. The dynamic between these two is always great to watch. Good to see you, AMY!

Really?!?!?! THAT WAS AWESOME!




Some other highlights:
-Taylor Swift was funnier than I thought she would be.
-T.R.A.A.A.P.D. love it.
-The Twilight spoof was great, too. Gotta love it.

Yay! for a truly funny SNL.

you know what's always funny?

Brian Williams jokes! They are always funny, as evidenced by this week's 30 Rock, last season of SNL and many many Daily Show episodes.

Other 30 Rock highlights this week include:
- the Horberger system
- a Susan Boyle shout-out
- Tracy and Jenna working together
- a flashback to Liz's auditioning days
- facetious product placement
and
- everything about Dot Com!

Obsessions of the Week

Manny: the only truly great thing about super overrated ABC sitcom Modern Family is the creepily mature, naively proud and generally delightful stepson/uncle/brother Manny (Rico Rodriguez).

One Tree Hill: Julian's adventures into brohood, Nathan's willing decent from superman status, Brooke/Haley bonding time, some fun Skills moments and a good campfire nanny Carrie story= one very funny episode of a show that really should be considered a comedy.

Community: last week's episode was hysterical and it's been solidly hilarious for weeks now. Jeff is a fantastically engaging character to follow as he skulks through the college halls (and Joel McHale plays him impeccably), Britta is a surprisingly refreshing female lead, Annie and Abed are delightful and used with the perfect amount of restraint needed with such quirky characters, Troy is an absurdist foil to the high energy craziness and Shirly has quickly become one of my favourite characters to watch. The only weak point in the show at this point is Chevy Chase, who's over-hyped existence on the show was destined to be over-the-top. Here's hoping that viewers and critics alike get their heads on straight soon and abandon ABC's mediocre Wednesday comedy line up and get behind NBC's Community and CBS' Accidentally on Purpose before they get the freshman axe.

Wanda Sykes: with a talk show kicking off, a prime character on Old Christine, a great interview on The Daily Show and a stellar standup comedy special that aired this week, Sykes is, and deserves to be, on top of the world right now.

Dear Mark and Derek,

Stick to Dancing.

Your performance with "Ballas Hough Band" on Dancing with the Stars tonight was simply strange. You may be two of my favourite pro dancers on the show but your pseudo-boyband skills don't measure up to your ballroom prowess and performance charm.

Love,
Kelly

In other DwtS news:
-Rod Stewart is creepy, no one wants to see that! But it's great how they have pro couples dance along with the musical guests so it seems a little less like a waste of time.
- Why don't fans vote for Aaron Carter? He had the highscore of the week and was in the bottom 3. Is it because he's slimy? It's certainly not because he can't dance, because he's one of the best on that floor.
- Donny Osmond is still adorable. He seems genuinely surprised every week he doesn't get eliminated. That said, what was with that green outfit?
- Are Kelly and Aaron really close? They were being really cute at the end of the show.
and
- Michael went home after his best night of the season and Mark left after losing the dance-off to Aaron, having landed in the bottom because his partner (SYTYCD's Lacey Schwimmer) was sick.The eliminated couples danced a strange yet sweet little circle dance as the credits rolled, it was oddly endearing.

Farewell Koji

The worst thing about this week's Project Runway elimination of slow-talking hipster designer Logan was that his model was eliminated alongside him. Koji was my favourite model from day one with her edgy look, down to earth attitude, motherly nature and guitar playing, Irish brogue-ing, fun and genuine energy. It seemed that every single week Koji would be the last model saved from elimination, and every week I breathed a sigh of relief that the sanest girl in the house lived to walk another day. Sadly, with Logan's elimination, the last designer hip enough to work with Koji's look has left the show, leaving her as the odd woman out in a race filled with designers who are very loyal to their favourite models. Though Models of the Runway continues to be the perfect little post-PR treat, it'll be just a little less fun without Koji there to root for. So who to throw that support behind? I'm saying Go Katie Go!

Hey, 30 Rock's Back To Being Hilarious...YAY!

The Best Part? All of It.

- Tracy tries to kill Betty White by calling her and yelling "boo" then tries to bludgeon Jimmy Fallon after asking him if he's famous: "I did a movie with Queen Latifa once".
- Jack forces Liz to head down south instead of to Toronto or San Francisco to find the new cast member, prompting lots of fun about what's "real" America, what "real" Americans want and why that can't come from Canada or "the people's gaypublic of drugaphornia" (aka San Fran).
- Jenna forces herself on the writers and defends her actions to her gay friends: "oh, don't look at me like I'm a football game"
- Lutz, Toofer and Frank's pathetic Halloween party flashback complete with costumes
- Liz fights Jack's assessment of southerners with TV references galore:"stop calling them simple... sure some of these people are simple, but some of them are smart like Matlock; or wholesome like Ellie May Clampette; and some of them are skeezy dirt bags like the Dukes of Hazaard, driving around like maniacs, children use those roads".

Welcome Back Tina & Co. I've Missed You.

Is it Luck or Talent?

For the past several weeks Robin on Top Chef has somehow managed to avoid the axe. How? She is consistently in the bottom three; her dishes are deplorable; and her talent is sub-par compared to the rest of the contestants. This past week she outlived Mike Isabella. Sure, he's not the best chef on that show--but my problem is that the decision came down to Mike and Robin! Robin?!?! Robin has not demonstrated why she belongs on this show....Which leads me to this: is she really talented and we (the audience), due to editing, never see this talent? Or, is she just a victor in someone's misfortune?

Obviously, Robin is not going to win the show. It has been clear from the beginning who the top four chefs are going to be: Jenn, Bryan and his brother Michael, and Kevin. But how long are the judges going to keep her around if the audience never sees her produce anything worthy?

My belief: Robin is possibly one of the luckiest contestants that I have ever seen on a reality TV show. Hopefully, this streak of luck will end soon.

Oh Canada!... that's what she said?

How I Met Your Mother may have taken me and my American counterparts to a fictionalized accent-filled Toronto last week but it wasn't until I watched the latest from CBC's Being Erica in contrast that I realized what it really is that sets Canadian TV apart from its powerful southern neighbour's weekly offerings.

Canadian TV sports accurate Canadian accents and Torontonian locales; the people look more like really beautiful human beings than otherworldly supermodels; our reality show judges are fair and supportive; we air small human stories that resonate widely as opposed to broad melodramatic ones... Alright, I'll just say it, it's the sex.

Even the most scandalous of primetime American broadcast shows are heavily regulated by the FCC. The Gossip Girl kids are just misbehaving teens really, the prostitute on Melrose Place is never seen doing much more than leaving a room and the Oceanic 815 castaways generally haven't taken the "lost on a desert island" thing to the dirty conclusions one might expect. Cable's the place to find the shows that make me blush; I don't think I'll ever recover from that shot of inside the airport janitor's closet in the Six Feet Under pilot. But generally, on broadcast, they keep the nitty gritty off the screen and leave us viewers with the suggestion of what happened between edits.

And then there's Being Erica, a mainstream, primetime, network broadcast dramedy that set much of its most recent episode in a sex club. And the gratuitous shots that called to mind the reason that I gave up on The Tudors after only an episode and a half because I was simply embarrassed, made me realize something: this particularly fancy free episode wasn't a rarity, it was a norm on Canadian TV.

Whether it's a jazz number that makes even hard-nosed American hip hop choreographer Dan Karaty blush on So You Think You Can Dance Canada, the unintentional brushing hands of strict Muslims Rayyan and Amar on Little Mosque or the fact that Erica's job this season is to edit a sex book, Canadian TV always seems to be pushing the boundaries of modesty, wherever those boundaries might be.

So then, my question to Barney Stinson would be this:
1) Do you want to be Canadian?
2) No more questions. I thought so.

Good Bad News

It's bad news for her, but good news for the audience: Ashlee Simpson-Wentz will be moving away from Melrose Place as of January. Her and the hot chef guy have both been fired so the show can move in "a new direction", whatever that means. The Sydney mystery will be wrapping up and new characters will be introduced for the back half of the season.

In a statement released to E!, Simpson-Wentz said "playing a creepy, unstable character was something I always wanted to do"; what that sentence says about her mental state, I'll leave up to you to infer.

So with their weakest link gone and ratings ringer Heather Locklear scheduled to show up in the coming months, does Melrose Place actually stand a chance of making it to a second season? For the sake of the super adorable Michael Rady, I kind of hope so... did I really just say that?

The Blame Game

A few years ago I was obsessed with Grey's Anatomy. It was the number one show I looked forward to watching week after week. Several friendships were created over the show and I'm sure a few here or there were harmed by it (not being available on Thursday nights in college can be rather difficult for socializing). But then I lost interest. It was right after the whole GIzzie fiasco but I definitely don't blame that relationship for ending my love, I simply got busy.

The reason I haven't gone back is simple: I feared Grey's would inevitably turn into the new ER: new characters every season, over-the-top drama, a few good actors but overall just a medical procedural.

I was done. But then...George died (or so I heard). I just had to go back and watch the premiere to see how the original interns reacted...their reactions sucked by the way. But then something even crazier happened, Grey's really did become the new ER and a flood of Mercy Wester's joined the cast.

The crazyness continues: I kind of love it again....or at least did for (most of) tonight's episode. The whodunnit investigation kept me on the edge of my seat and the tension was so well played my heart was racing. The Chief actually scared me for once and typically I find him to be the most boring character in the series. Lexie was incredibly sympathetic with her emotionally inappropriate outburst. Yang showed a softer side when she saw the error of her ways and gave Reed some much needed back-up. Alex was heartwrenchingly adorable in his quest to contact Izzie and the ramifications of his hanging up on her. That big guy whose name nobody knows was annoying but in an incredibly watchable way. I also quickly fell in love with the adorable April who sort of exudes innocence and likability. I found myself easily interested in how these characters would continue to interact within the episode and the upcoming season. The only individual that drives me crazy is Reed. Granted, I may have an unfair bias against Reed and for April. Sarah Drew was one of the favorite actresses in Everwood and her portrayal of Hannah was spot on, while Reed was one of my least favorites in both Everwood and Heroes (she always comes off as a bit too bitchy).

So this brings me to my major problem with tonight's episode: after 10 minutes I knew the ending would piss me off. The mystery behind whose fault it was for killing the patient was solved from the beginning, at least for those viewers who have any intelligence. April's painstakingly obvious failure to check the patient's throat was clearly always going to big the big mistake. And if you are anyone who ever reads television blogs (which clearly you are) then you probably already knew that someone was getting fired on tonight's episode. So the amazingly talented Sarah Drew is no longer on the cast, and quite frankly I now dislike Reed even more for giving up her friend and also being just as distracted and calling attention to what initially distracted April.

DAMN YOU GREY'S!!!! Way to get rid of the most exciting new character.

Granted, I still liked the episode even knowing the end of the mystery so I suppose that's saying something...I'll be back next week.

A COMMUNITY I Really Want to Join

Community may just be the best written show on television. The lines in Community could be the most quotable, loveable wonderful television shows on the air. Emotional breakdown that starts with a teary eyed, "I've peed alone my whole life?" Check. Fun, only slightly-dated popular culture references that also serve as character analysis? "Annie also said she found Benjamin Button compelling. She's a smart girl, but sometimes she's JUST wrong." Double check.

So far, they've walked a brilliant line between caustic satire of ridiculousness, hearty gooey typical televisiony-ness, and wonderful, lightning fast one liners that are at once topical, witty, and completely unexpected. With a show that is so interested in just tossing jokes out at the speed of light, it would be easy to lose sight of the plot. Yet every episode thus far has deepened one of the supporting players, shown us fascinating new sides of Jeff, and also provided some surprisingly timely satire.

Take for example this exchange:

Annie: You're right, I could never be as good [at manipulating people] as you, probably because I actually care.
Jeff: True, but technically meaningless. And don't try and do that thing that girls do where they walk away and try to make you feel like crap, because it won't work... Crap.

It was at deeply funny and witty and served as a brilliant character moment for both characters. Annie realized the depth of her feelings for Troy, and Jeff had a defining moment of breaking through his own crap and giving up his own selfishness.

In summary, Community is the kind of brilliant that where it's almost unfathomable it made it on the air.

EXTRA QUOTE-Y GOODNESS:

• "I think not being racist... is the new racist." (Jeff about the attempt to make a Human Being mascot)


• "Bing Bong sing along. You're teams Al Gores cause your views are wrong." (Troy's ridiculous conservative rap)


• Every part of the discussion of Jeff's hair.


• Jeff: I just think we were both wrong.

Annie: Really? Because I'm an 18 year old girl and you made me cry in public.

Jeff: Okay... maybe I was a little more wrong.

• "We solved racism. What's next?" "Maybe we should do something for little people."

Best Restaurant Wars Restaurant EVER?!?

1) That quickfire challenge was COOL

2) I Love Restaurant Wars! It's always one of the best episodes of the season.

3) The splitting up of the teams was brilliant; putting the Voltaggios together on the same team as Robin (the weak link) and pitting them against Jen and Kevin (the other two frontrunners) was great. The concept of "picking teams" is always fun and competitive and to make the two team captains Michael and Jen really made for dynamic groups. It also meant that the top 4 (Michael, Bryan, Jen and Kevin), 2 let-downs (Robin and Laurine) and 2 middle-dwellers (Mike and Eli) were all divided equally, giving each team a solid chance at the win and guaranteed that one of the 2 worst chefs would deservedly go home.

4) The editing around the Michael Volt sequence was flat out mean. To edit in scenes of him yelling and stressing out around an interview where he declares the importance of calm leadership and decorum in the kitchen seemed like a blatant attempt by producers to cut down the obvious fan favourite (the younger/cuter of the two genius brothers). That said, it was kind of hilarious, in a sad kind of way. And they had a point, Michael's intensity is even getting to cool-headed big-brother Bryan.

5) Aww, Michael split the money with his team. The mean editing did NOT work- bah, he's awesome!

6) The right person went home. Laurine did the worst job this week. Even though the general consensus among the chefs is that Robin shouldn't be there anymore, she did well this week. Her dish was among the most successful of the night (though Michael V did help her out a lot), it didn't hurt, though, that she was on the better team (has Bryan ever been in the bottom? Ever?). But why was Kevin so upset? Did he think someone else on their team should have gone home? Or was he just upset about having screwed up at all?

All in all, fantastic episode! I think this may not just have been the best restaurant wars restaurant ever on Top Chef, I think this may just be the best season of Top Chef, period. It's certainly not hurting for talent, drama or character (three characteristics each Voltaggio has in spades on his own, put them together and you've got one hell of a TV show. Did someone say Food Network?)