ER: "Old Times"

ER was Old-Home Week -- nostalgia heaven. And it was wonderful. "Old Times" was truly "800cc's of liquid gold", as Peter Benton might say.

The most beautiful thing about seeing all of the original characters lied within the construct of the story. Everyone had their own little bubble of the universe and were nicely oblivious to anything and everything going on outside of it. Doug & Carol -- happier and more content than ever, it would seem -- saved Carter's life, yet they went on, completely unaware of their connection.

"And the kidney too -- went to some doctor. Not bad for a day's work, huh?" -- Carol Hathaway

If the stories had overlapped and Carol knew that the kidney was going to Carter or Carter knew that Doug was the doctor of the kidney donor, the entire episode would have fallen flat. The stories would have felt unbelievably contrived, both on a character level and on a medical level. But in staying true to how the world of medicine operates, the entire episode gelled together and felt natural, from beginning to end.

Speaking of natural, the chemistry between Eriq La Salle and Noah Wyle hasn't diminished in the slightest. The rhythms and abiding affection are still there, as is the utter joy that comes from seeing Benton lightly rib Carter. And how wonderful was it to see the original renegade surgeon himself carefully run through a pre-surgery checklist (that ultimately saved Carter's life)? Fifteen years ago, Dr. Benton would have balked at the idea of a checklist, but he's clearly grown up and his priorities have shifted. He's always been a great doctor, but I'd hazard a guess and say he's now one of the best.

Seeing Carter call Kem after his surgery -- at Benton's incessant urging (See? Priorities.) -- was also a nice throwback. Hearing him ask her if he woke her up reminded me of all of the other times when they spanned different continents and would be calling each other at all hours of the day and night. Neither Carter nor Kem minded then, and I'm sure they don't mind now, despite the rift in their relationship.

One of the episode's highlights came in the realization that George Clooney was unequivocally Dr. Doug Ross and not George Clooney. I feared that his mega-status might pull me out of his moments onscreen, but instead, I forgot about his mega-status. He was simply Doug. George might now be a bona fide movie star -- charisma, power, larger-than-life persona -- but first and foremost, he's damn talented. And I think that once he put on those scrubs, he transformed back into Doug. And it was beautiful. (As beautiful as the electricity was between he and Julianna Margulies.)

My favorite moment, though, was the conversation between Doug, Neela, and Sam, and the ultimate awareness that they are all only connected by a building now and not by people. It made sense that Doug wouldn't ask about Carter because Doug would be under the impression that Carter was still in Africa. And it makes sense that neither Neela nor Sam would mention him because he's not working beside them at the moment, but is instead at Northwestern awaiting a kidney. Neela and Sam wouldn't mention him because they're medical professionals and his privacy is foremost. Doug asked who was still around, and even though they all know Susan Lewis, they wouldn't bond over her because she's not on any of their radars. While Greene may be the heart of County, and Ross and/or Gates may be the pulse, Kerry Weaver is the connective tissue. They all know her because as it stands with the end of this series in sight, Laura Innes will go down in history as ER's longest running consecutive cast member. Noah Wyle may have appeared in more episodes, but Innes threaded through all of the various cast of characters and she links them, and it was only appropriate that she was the first person that Doug asked about. In the end, though, it's the skeleton that holds a body together, and as many will go off to bright futures, County General will stand firm. County has housed them all, and it will go on to house many more.

Randoms...

• While it jarrs me to see Susan Sarandon now playing the grandmother roles, I must say that in her limited screentime, she was quietly devastating and my heart broke for her. I envision this show adding at least one more Emmy nomination to their historical cache.
• Ernest Borgnine seemed wasted, but I believe that his story continues through the series finale, so hopefully we'll see him get the material worthy of his considerable talents.
• One bone of contention: Carter's needing a kidney is a complication of his stabbing all those years ago. Another complication of his stabbing was his ensuing drug addiction. His recovery was very important to him and something that became etched into the fabric of his character. So... fentanyl? I understand that transplant surgery is unbelievably painful, but fentanyl is a narcotic and Carter is a drug addict. And a doctor. You'd think that he would have actively searched out another alternative. And having Benton be the one to hand it to him was somewhat of a slap in the face given that it was Benton who ultimately convinced Carter to go to rehab. Meh.

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

American Idol: Top 13 Performance Night/ Results Show

I am not going to review the American Idol contestants one-by-one in this recap (I will in the future, but I'm late this time around), but I will discuss the stand-outs and the ones bringing up the rear.

And, of course, I have to discuss the new little change to the format... eight seasons in!

First off, the "Judge's Save". It's not as bad of an idea as I was expecting, but it could have its drawbacks. No matter what, this new addition does override America's vote no matter what Simon says, but thankfully, it only does it once... the entire season. It's like a collective Free Spin that has the potential to extend one person's quest for the title if America theoretically "gets it wrong". It has the potential to galvanize fans. But it also has the potential to galvanize fans to the point of sending another "wrong person" home the following week. Or... the judges might believe that their save could allow this person to take the crown when in fact that very same person might simply go home one week later. It does override America, but only to a point. And that's okay. Because America sometimes does "get it wrong".

One bone of contention, though... They used Chris Daughtry and Tamyra Gray to illustrate their points of "contestants who went home too soon", but given that the "Judge's Save" is only valid until the Top 5, the likes of Daughtry and Gray would have been ineligible for the reprieve. Just sayin'...

All I have to say about the contestants at this point is that I think it's abundantly clear that Adam Lambert and Danny Gokey are the ones to watch. They are very different performers, but they do have a few things in common. They are both unpredictable. They both own the stage. And they are both talented as hell. Lil, Alison, Matt, & Alexis are all very strong contenders, but they're not in the same league. Not by a mile. This might very well be a fun ride.

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

Castle: "Flowers for Your Grave"

Castle is a show with potential. It has the entertaining premise, the quippiness ("Oooh, bondage! My safe word is apples." -- Rick Castle), the tight pacing, the two very pretty leads, and at least a couple of quirky secondary characters (Oh, Susan Sullivan, how we've missed you!).

It's just not quite there yet.

Homicide cases are homicide cases, and on a procedural show, the inevitable outcome is the resolution to the murder mystery. That's standard. And if their pacing and editing keep up, it will be tense as well. But the set-up -- a reluctant no-nonsense detective forced to be shadowed by a charming know-it-all crime author -- should allow for some intriguing friction and animosity between Castle (the charismatic Nathan Fillion) and Detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic). And there will certainly be a fair share of sexual tension too.

For most of the episode, I was unsure of the chemistry between Fillion and Katic. I thought it was fairly lacking for two-thirds of the episode. And then she whispered in his ear. Suddenly, the TV screen went electric and I saw lasting promise.

The potential is there. Now they just need to capitalize on it. I'm not going to hold my breath, but happily, I do have hope.

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

The L Word: "Last Word"

"Yeah, I think her heart's in the right place. I think she's just misplaced her meds." -- Bette Porter

In The L Word series finale, Bette was referring to Jenny Schecter with that statement. Subconsciously, though, she was thinking about Ilene Chaiken, the series creator/killer, when she said it.

Seriously... what the frak was that?

From the opening scene in the premiere, this final season was set up to be the "Who killed Jenny?" show, despite the fact that in six seasons, this has never been a show about mystery. The L Word has never been Desperate Housewives. Yet, I gave them the benefit of the doubt, hoping that it could be a fun ride nonetheless and certainly willing to enjoy the mind-boggling depths of crazy of which Jenny is capable. And the season definitely had its moments -- Bette & Tina's once-and-for-all total commitment to one another and their so-very-hot dance, Kit finally getting a man worthy of her awesomeness, the girls' hilarious reactions to Jenny & Shane dating, Helena & Dylan getting back together in the most painfully and simplistically beautiful fashion, etc. And then the curtain call arrived and... nothing. Jenny's dead, and? Nothing. There was no closure to the season-long story arc. There was no big reveal for the whodunit. Jenny was just dead.

WTF?

Memo to Ilene Chaiken: It's one thing to leave a story open-ended, giving the audience the sense that "life goes on". It's another thing entirely to leave a story -- A SERIES! -- hanging. There was very little resolution across the board, and zero closure to the over-arcing season-long storyline, and instead of letting these wonderful women go on with their lives, we left them in the interrogation room. In the middle of the interrogation! If this had been a season finale, it could have worked, and worked well. But this was the supposed celebration of the run of a ground-breaking series and the only feeling that it instilled in its audience in its final moments was disappointment. And perhaps anger. Maybe confusion too. That's how we are supposed to remember this series and these women? That's crap.

What is also crap is the bits of character assassination that needed to occur to get all of the various characters to the point of having motive enough to want to off Jenny. Niki is now solely a completely vapid, classless whore who wants nothing more than to party and to get in Shane's pants? That's not the sweet, sincere albeit confused Niki that we saw fall so deeply in love with Jenny last year. Dylan, despite betraying Helena in Season 3 and being so profoundly, wretchedly anguished about it, is now willing to lie to her about being aware of the test instead of coming clean right off the bat? That's not the Dylan we know who so desperately wanted to start fresh, begin anew with a clean slate with Helena, the love of her life. There's no point, nothing to gain in Dylan lying to Helena from the moment she realizes that she's being tested. Dylan is far too intelligent to risk Helena finding out about yet another lie that Dylan told. So why would she? That's right. Because she needed to fit into the little box that was designed for her to suit the story. Ugh.

All of the little threads that were left dangling in the wind -- are Alice & Tasha back together or is Tasha simply Alice's friend there in a time of need? Beats me. Is Max keeping his baby or just finally accepting that his body has a few changes to go through before he can move on with his life? Who knows! -- just remind us of how uneven this show often was. But the true fans didn't care because they finally saw themselves represented in primetime TV. All that was asked for was a fitting tribute to the beloved series that helped change the face of television. Instead, we got a three-hour long documentary tribute that included some asinine entries (Jodi? Thanking Bette & Tina and wishing them well? Really?).

The only fans that could walk away with any semblance of peace and joy were the fans of Bette & Tina. They finally got their happily ever after. They were content, settled, wholly committed, and crazy in love. And they were set to begin the new chapter of their lives together. In New York. As an engaged couple! Bette & Tina received their closure, but they're the only ones.

The few nods to history were lovely -- the salute to the pilot episode with Bette & Tina on the porch saying good morning to Shane who's just heading home, the familiar faces (Tim! Peggy Peabody! Carmen! Ivan! MARINA!) -- but they weren't enough. This show, this "framily" of friends deserved better. And amazingly... so did Jenny Schecter.

Oh, yeah. And Lucy Lawless? Seriously, she stayed behind on Earth for that? A handful of lines and barely any screentime over the span of two episodes? What was she thinking?

Talk about going out with a whimper...

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

Battlestar Galactica: "Islanded in a Stream of Stars"

Grief has five stages. In the Battlestar Galactica universe, we have seen all five stages play out through these various and varied characters as this transcendent series has drawn ever-closer to its inevitable end. And for many of these characters, the final stage has come: acceptance.

Now, if only I could say the same thing about myself...

The love story of Laura Roslin and Bill Adama has been captivating. We have seen them through their initial wariness, to their animosity, to their reluctant alliance, to their dependence, to their friendship, to their unbreakable bond, to their love that cannot be contained by ship nor space.

"I don't think I've ever felt truly at home until these last few months here with you." -- Laura

Battlestar has always been about the philosophical and the mythical and nothing can encompass those ideas more inherently than the term "soulmate". Soulmates are intangible and impossible to define, and yet I can say with absolute certainty that Bill and Laura are soulmates. No matter where the end of this magnificent series takes Bill and Laura, we know that they will always be connected. Forever.

Laura knows this too. And she's accepted her fate. I think she accepted it a long time ago. Does she want to leave Bill? Not at all. But does she know it's unavoidable? Absolutely. And she knows that it's now her duty -- a term Bill knows all too well -- to get Bill to that all-important place of acceptance also. But he's not going quietly. Or easily. Laura presented him with only one option: "Bill, if you don't get us off this ship, you may lose both of us at the same time. Why don't you give us a chance?" Bill needs to accept Laura's mortality, but unfortunately, I think that he's now of the mind that if he gives up Galactica, he can keep Laura. But as we all know, the universe is not that kind. It is interesting to note, however, that Laura states (without a hint of judgment or bitterness, no less) that Bill probably loves Galactica more than he loves her. And yet, when he accepts that he has to make a choice, he chooses Laura. And that acceptance? Effortless.

Soulmates.

Randoms...

• Laura & Bill getting baked in sickbay and discussing her (their?) cabin by the lake. The episode's writer, Michael Taylor, gave us a beautiful nod to one of the best episodes in this show's history, "Unfinished Business". Also, we were treated to another lovely moment of Bill reading to Laura. A nice touch, considering that their mutual love of books was one of their first bonding elements.
• The idea of -- soon enough -- no longer having the pleasure of watching Mary McDonnell and Edward James Olmos gracefully playing off of and with each other, all the while being individually mesmerizing, is just devastating. The television landscape will be ever so slightly dimmer for this.
• Speaking of devastation, Helo and Athena were just heart-breaking! The fact that she couldn't look at him and the fact that he was coming apart at the seams while imploring Adama for a raptor made for a jarring audience experience. Helo and Athena's love and Helo's stoicism have been staples for so long now that it seemed damn near impossible to witness anything but. Tahmoh Penikett and Grace Park knocked it out of the... well, park.
• I keep waiting for Boomer to make the right choice, but she just can't seem to break free of Cavil's evil little clutches. Her anguish by episode's end, though, seemed to be a step in the right direction. Maybe we are going to see her make the ultimate choice, the ultimate sacrifice by series' end and finally prove her true allegiance? No matter, all of the scenes between Grace Park and the little girl who plays Hera were electric. That little girl has got some chops!
• Hera seemed to project very easily. I got the sense with Tyrol in "Someone to Watch Over Me" that projection was a learned ability and something that took a lot of energy and focus. But Hera seemed to not only do it effortlessly, but without any concentration at all. Kind of like Starbuck in "Someone to Watch Over Me"? Perhaps that's a hybrid gift? Although, you'd think that the Final Five could project better than anyone, but I guess not.
  
• Speaking of the Final Five, Ellen and Tigh also knocked it out of the park. Ellen has finally settled since returning to the fleet, and I think that the Ellen of this episode is the one, true Ellen -- a beautiful combination of the regal, insightful, all-knowing mother of "No Exit" and the emotional, petty trollop of "Deadlock" and "Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down". The amalgam is delicious. Almost as delicious as Michael Hogan and his Amazing Acting Eye. "I had a child. He died." "You're wrong, Saul. You had millions." Shivers, I tell you.
  
• Kara on the toilet while talking to Baltar was an interesting and humorous touch. She bared her secret to him -- more than likely knowing that he would make her revelation known to all -- and seemingly so much more. Heh.
• If Kara is an angel, then we're all screwed. I'm more inclined to think that she's a hybrid who resurrected (is that resurrection ship still within Earth's orbit?) and then returned to the fleet. I don't believe she's an angel. Or a demon. Or anything of the like that's just as abstract. Kara is and will always be flesh and bone. She just may have a few electrical circuits to boot.
• Kara finally made a choice -- finally! -- and she chose Anders. Kara's upbringing never allowed her to implement much trust in her personal life, and she was therefore doomed to waffle and waver and self-destruct for eternity. That is, until she accepted herself and her surroundings and the people in them. And in turn, she was rewarded with clarity: she loves Anders and always has.
• Lee and Kara finally accepted what they are to each other... whatever that is. They're not friends. They're not lovers. They're so much more than that. They are family. And their bond in its truest form is a beautiful thing.
• Apparently, Sam's truest form is that of a hybrid? I think we possibly learned just how the hybrids came to be. Skinjobs who were injured in some capacity and placed in a goo bath and plugged in with the idea and intention of jump-starting them (like a car!), only to discover that they tapped into the energy and electricity of that to which they were connected to the point that they could no longer be disconnected for fear of death or contamination? Or something like that. Wow.
• The funeral, with all of the various factions mourning in their individuals ways, was spectacular. Initially, I thought that the different groups were separated, but ultimately we saw that they were all saying their goodbyes together. The blending has already begun, indeed.

Just as the characters were saying their final farewells, so was the audience. "Islanded in a Stream of Stars" was an elegy... to the characters, to the Galactica, and to the series. And I think it served as an anguished set-up for our final good-bye. It will not be easy for us to let go, but our acceptance has begun.

That's right. I'm accepting my ass off... over here in the corner... in the fetal position... sob...

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

Terminator: "Ourselves Alone"

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles might be getting it's groove back. Just ask Stella. If "Ourselves Alone" was any indication, the show might finally be on the right track.

Now, if only the writers could figure out Sarah...

I love Lena Headey. I think that she's wonderfully talented and sexy as all get out, but Sarah is flat. This is not the Sarah of "Terminator 2". This Sarah has the same purpose -- to protect her son -- but that seems to be all she has. Sarah has no dimension, no imagined life of her own. She seems about as hollow inside as Cameron actually is. And that? Is sad. Sarah Connor is an iconic character, and has been since about 1991. Unfortunately for Headey, Linda Hamilton made Sarah Connor so indelible that unless the writers step it up and flesh her out, Sarah is the weak link of the show. And here I thought that the weak link would be John...

Randoms...

• Is Jesse a villain? I've been wondering for a while now whether or not she was playing some angle and it now seems as though she is. I've also found it really intriguing that Derek's never introduced her to the family. Seems now that she's wanted it that way all along.
• Even before we learned that Riley was brought back from the future, I knew that she wasn't long for this world. John has more pressing things to do -- like save the world from the apocalypse -- than find true love. But I never imagined that Riley would die at the hands of Jesse. Cameron, maybe. But not Jesse. Jesse appeared to be her protector. Like a big sister, or maybe even a lover. Riley did love Jesse, as we now know.
• The Jesse/Riley showdown was pretty kick-ass. Although, Riley's moves seemed to be limited to strangulation. Didn't anyone ever teach her that you have to keep your opponent guessing if you want to win? Oy.
• So Cameron's breaking down? Is she truly beyond repair? The moment when she gave John the detonator and gently told him that he would, without a doubt, have to use it one day was unexpectedly sweet. Cameron may not be able to feel, in the emotional sense of the word, but I think that she knows on an intellectual level what those feelings would feel like and those would-be feelings are present in her harddrive. Particularly when it pertains to John.
  
• Judging by John's reaction in that moment, I'm not so sure that he would unilaterally side with Riley should anything have happened to her at Cameron's hands. I think Jesse's plan for Riley was doomed from the start. Because in spite of himself, John cares about Cameron. Deeply.

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...

30 Rock: "Goodbye, My Friend"

Never would I have guessed that Harry and The Hendersons would be such an invaluable source of life lessons. But alas... 30 Rock proved me wrong on that.

"Fine, Lithgow! I'll do the right thing! GOD!" -- Liz Lemon

"Goodbye, My Friend" was funny... enough. There were certainly a number of laugh-out-loud moments (as referenced above), but something was missing. I guess I just thought that it could have been... bigger? More ridiculous? Something...

I enjoyed the Jack/Frank dynamic -- I especially enjoyed Patti "Francis Rossitano canNOT become a lawyer!" LuPone! -- but after the glorious Jack/Tracy/"Dyn-o-mite!" spectacle that was "Rosemary's Baby", I just feel that for any attempted male relationship of Jack's to succeed, it has to be SO far gone, SO off-the-wall, that the audience has no choice but to pee their pants. I just... wanted more.

And for the Liz/Becca storyline to truly succeed, Liz would have had to become a full-blown crazy before finding her redemption via John Lithgow. Unfortunately, we all know that Liz ultimately has a heart of gold. So, while she may go cocoa for cuckoo poops at times, she's not a complete monster... and she really never could be. The storyline worked. It was entertaining. But it was also predictable.

I was, however, thoroughly amused that Becca called Liz "cool". Heh. Poor girl. If she only knew...

My one area of certainty in this episode was Jenna. I realized that I don't much like her. Especially when she featured so heavily. She's only tolerable in little bursts, because she's a cardboard cut-out of who she has the potential to be. And until she grows some dimensions and reaches that potential, she's grating and obnoxious. All of this is very unfortunate, too, because Jane Krakowski is so much better than Jenna gives her the freedom to be. Meh. At least the Jenna/Tracy/Kenneth maniacal laughing bit was funny.

Thoughts?

Follow the yellow brick road...