The two best Idol performances from last night.

I gave up watching American Idol at the end of the David Cook season, and hadn't watched it since. Not until, that is, Katie Stevens - who hails from my hometown - made the cut. Of course we had to watch. And so, once again I have been sucked in by that evil show.

I think Katie is very talented (and adorable), and I wish her all the best, but I have to confess that she is not my favorite. That would be Crystal Bowersox. There were two performances last night that I loved: Lee's "Treat Her Like A Lady" (wow, welcome to the competition, Lee!), and of course Crystal's "Midnight Train To Georgia". Enjoy.

Today's Tweets

Via @ebertchicago and @nytimes - Father reads to daughter 3,218 nights in a row

Via @moryan - All you wanted to know about "V", and more!

Via @televisionary - Five reasons to tune into tonight's return of "V".

I'll miss Sawyer.

I spent the weekend in NYC - saw the Tim Burton exhibit at MoMA, photos coming! - and I'm going to use that as an excuse for not having my recap of last week's episode done. What can I say? I'm a son of a bitch!

Nothing like a good cup of Joe.

True Blood returns on June 13 with the season 3 premiere!

LOST: Episode 6.8

Recon

March 23...I don't have my recap ready - I realized this morning that I never finished it! - so this post will act as a place holder for now. I hope to post more when I get home tonight, before I watch the new ep. In the meantime, consider this:

Am I the only one distracted by Josh Holloway's physical appearance this season? He seems changed. There's something about his face that's different. New teeth? Perhaps. He looks puffy, too. And if he didn't have on a wig or at least some sort of hairpiece or extensions in last night's episode, I'll eat my tin foil hat. It's really bothering me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two days later...Well, I wasn't really successful in putting together a coherent recap/analysis of this episode. I'm not sure why. I do know that I felt a little detached while watching it, and I think that's because it aired following one of LOST's best episodes - "Dr. Linus" - and wasn't as emotionally resonant for me as that one was. It was also really plot heavy, which I don't always mind, but when there's so much going on it can be tough to connect with the characters on screen on a meaningful level.

So what I've got here are a whole bunch of notes and questions that I am going to pretty much just transcribe here. Sort of willy-nilly.

• I loved that Alt-Sawyer is a cop, but still obsessed with avenging his parents. He's clearly made better choices in this timeline of his life, and the portrayal of his alternate character fits with the others we have seen so far: They still have their central conflict, or characteristic, but they don't let it define them. Except perhaps for Kate. And Sayid.
• There were tons of callbacks to prior episodes/characters/episode details in the Alt scenes: Miles and Charlotte were the obvious ones (Charlotte looked beautiful but I really would have preferred she turned out to be Juliette); Charlie's brother Liam looking for him at the police station; the code word "LaFleur"; Little House on the Prairie, which Sawyer admitted to watching in a previous ep; "Watership Down"; and Sawyer bringing Charlotte the sunflower, like he did for Juliette.
• So, if Sawyer is a cop, why did he let Kate go at the airport? Now that we know he's a cop, though, it makes his admonishment to Hurley about people taking advantage of him sincere and credible.
• Do you think Sawyer was planning a con against MIBLocke from the very beginning, or at least since the cave, or do you think it wasn't until he found out that MIBLocke is the smoke monster and killed all of the people at the Temple?
• Sayid and Claire really are off their respective nuts. I think they are lost for good.
• What the heck was MIBLocke talking about when he was telling Kate about his crazy mother? For a second there I thought he was implying that, through some time loop thingy, that he was in fact Aaron and Claire was his mother, but I've since abandoned that one (this show makes you think crazy things). Could he have been manipulating Kate into killing Claire? I'm actually starting to feel bad for Kate.
• OK, so MIBLocke's big plan is to leave the Island on the Ajira plane. Who is going to fly it? Or is he just telling a tale to get people to follow him and help him escape? I doubt he can just get on a plane and fly off the Island. I don't know, it just seems too easy. There must be some reason he is gathering followers, something that he needs them for, like maybe he needs to pay a "ferry man" to get off the Island and the toll is like, 20 souls or something. I'm just not seeing a logical plan yet.
• Speaking of a plan, who's going to pilot the submarine, Sawyer?

And speaking of the submarine, what in the world is behind that padlocked door?? I'd like to think it was Desmond (please please please), but I'm not sure that Widmore would have to keep him locked up like that. Next week's episode is called "The Package", so I think it's a good bet we're going to find out.

I will try to get something posted about this week's fantastic Richard Alpert episode tonight, but I am going to NYC in the morning for the weekend, so I may not get to it. But I will try!

Crystal. Kicks. ASS.

Today's Tweets

I haven't posted tweets in a long time. Facebook and Twitter are seriously impeding my blogging, and I apologize for that (if there are any of you still coming here). I'm not sure how to change that without weaning myself off of one of them. Perhaps it's time to cut back on Twitter. It *is* awfully addictive.

That said, here are some tweets for you! Heh.

Via @reduced - LOST Reduced:



Via @nprmonkeysee - Miley Cyrus as an Idol mentor?? They're joking, right?

Via @popcandy - Banana museum for sale!

TV Talk: Drive By

Very quickly:

Justified premiered Tuesday night on fX, but I haven't watched it yet. Will let you know when I do.

True Blood is back on HBO for a third season beginning June 13, 2010. Woohoo! (HBO's re-airing season 2 beginning on Sunday, March 21)

Discovery's 11-part series life begins on Sunday, March 21 at 8PM.

Not sure I mentioned this here, but Futurama is coming back to Comedy Central with all new episodes in June. Woohoo again! Here's a teaser trailer.

And last but not least, I have half a draft of my recap of this week's LOST episode done, but I don't expect to finish it for another day or so. Don't forget to check back!

LOST: Episode 6.7

Dr. Linus

I went into this episode convinced, based on the "next week on LOST" preview, that Benjamin Linus was going to die. As much as I didn't want that to happen, it made sense: Ben's story seemed to have run its course and his character has been marginalized so far this season. It made sense that he would have to pay for killing Jacob - among other nefarious deeds - by being killed himself. And so I watched with dread as Ilana discovered the truth about Ben's part in Jacob's death and set him to work digging his own grave.

Then MIBLocke appeared and offered Ben a way out of his death sentence. I didn't want him to die, but I also didn't want Ben to accept MIBLocke's offer since doing so would be choosing to go down a path - one in pursuit of power and his own personal interests - that was much like the one that got him into his current messy predicament. Much to my great delight, instead of being his final episode, "Dr. Linus" turned out to be a very emotionally satisfying redemption story for Ben. And it proved once and for all that Michael Emerson is one of the best actors on TV.

I loved this episode, and would rank it as one of my top 5 favorite LOST episodes.

OK, some stuff:

Alt-Ben

I'm still grabbing at straws when it comes to figuring out what these alternate realities actually are, besides being great character pieces. Alan Sepinwall has formulated the theory that they are in fact an epilogue for each character, they we are being shown what reality each person will be "gifted" with as a result of the outcome of whatever war is currently brewing:

"For now, I'm sticking with my theory that the flash-sideways are an epilogue in advance - that this is where and when the characters all wound up in the aftermath of the war between Smokey and Jacob's forces. (I have no idea if I'm right, nor will I be upset either way when the reveal comes, but right now it's important for me to have some idea of what the alt-timeline scenes mean, even if it turns out I'm completely wrong. Otherwise, there's no weight to them this late in the "real world" timeline.)"

I do agree that there is a need at this point to know what they are, but I can't say I buy the epilogue theory. I'm still leaning towards the idea that the time stream split in 1977 when Juliet detonated the bomb, and the universe will course-correct and eventually the two timelines will converge, probably in the finale. Why does everyone so far in the alternate timelines seem to be happier, and make better choices? I don't know. My brain can only process so much.

Alt-Ben is still a little Machiavellian, but it appears that a healthier relationship with his father has stemmed some of his more evil tendencies. In the end, he makes the choice that our Ben, until now, would never have been able to make: the happiness of someone he loves over his own lust for power. He is able to save Alt-Alex this time, choosing her, elevating her needs above his own.

So, we learned a few things in the scene with his father, one being that Alt-Ben has the same microwave as I do! I mean, he could totally be standing in my kitchen in that picture. Ha! We also learned that even in the alternate timeline, the Linuses joined the Dharma Initiative and went to the Island. I suppose that means that they left shortly after they got there (before the 1977 explosion), when Roger was unhappy about being hired as a "Workman". Also, great touch having Ben "gas" his father in the alternate reality, only this time it's just oxygen.

Jack, Hurley and Richard

So we got sort of a confirmation that Richard was on the Black Rock, perhaps in chains as a slave (or a prisoner?). He's been so controlled all along that I love watching him freak out now. The dynamite scene with him and Jack was, well, dynamite. It seems that perhaps Jack is finally beginning to believe. I think he's also going a little crazy, but I suppose that's to be expected since it was only about 11 days ago in LOST time that Jack was going to kill himself by jumping off the bridge. Can you believe that? (check the LOSTpedia Timeline) Check it out:

Jack finds out about Locke's death in 2007 L.A. and tries to jump off the bridge;
5 days later, he's on the Ajira Flight 316 and it crashes and he flashes to 1977;
He spends only 4 DAYS in 1977,until Juliet detonates the bomb;
they get sent back to 2007 at the beginning of this season, and only 2 days have passed since then. That's why this show works SO well on DVD.

Island Ben

There's really nothing more to say about the scene with Ilana except that it was amazing and heartbreaking. Only Michael Emerson could make you love such a weaselly character.

Like I said last week, LOST really knows how to end an episode, and the slo-mo beach reunion this week was awesome. As was the arrival of Charles Widmore! I don't think I speculated here about who the man was that Jacob said was coming to the Island, but I thought it was Widmore right from the start. What his intentions are, I dare not speculate - look how Ben's character has turned around! - but I think there is one big question that must be answered: Is Desmond on that sub?

Desmond's Replacement

I bought a new t-shirt today. If you would like one, hurry: they're only available for a little over 9 more hours.

One of the best fan tribute videos, ever.

TV Talk: Post-Olympics Lull and Randomness

Now that the Vancouver Winter Olympics are over, there has been nothing on TV. Or at least none of my shows have been on except for LOST. It's like the Olympics scared them all away and they won't come back until they're absolutely sure it's safe, which seems to be some time in the next few weeks:

V returns on Tuesday, March 30 at 10:00 PM, right after LOST. I'm looking forward to it.

I'm about 90% sure that I will not be returning to FlashForward when it comes back on Thursday, March 18 at 9:00 PM. I just don't care about it, even if Gaius Baltar has joined the cast, I just don't want to set myself up for that disappointment again. I must be strong...

Fringe is back on Thursday, April 1 at 9:00 PM, and guess what...FOX has renewed it for a full third season! Yay! Best TV news I've heard in a long time, and I don't think there's another show out there that deserves renewal more than they do.

Did you love Discovery's Planet Earth series? If so, then you probably already know about life, Discovery's "sequel" to Planet Earth. It looks AMAZING:



Finally, the new show I'm most excited about: Justified, based on a character created by Elmore Leonard, played by Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant, it premieres on fX on March 16:

Say hello to Bachelor Number One.

Convicted serial killer won on 'Dating Game'

This story is disturbing in so many ways, from the fact that this guy had already raped an 8 yr old 10 years earlier, to the creepy introduction on the show - "Bachelor No. 1 is a successful photographer who got his start when his father found him in the dark room at the age of 13, fully developed" - to the fellow contestant who has somehow made this story all about him.

Weird, weird, weird.

LOST: Episode 6.6

Sundown

Shit just got real, people! For fans looking for some forward plot momentum, this episode was a goldmine. I loved it, but boy was it a dark one.

The scales that balanced the good and evil inside of Sayid were always tipped toward evil - he showed himself skilled at killing even as a boy - and his life as we've seen it has always been about the struggle to overcome those baser impulses and be a good man. This week's episode saw him, under the influence of MIBLocke, finally give in and embrace those impulses. His story has always been one of the most moving on the show, and it was very sad to see what appeared to be the loss of his soul.

Now, with that said, I have to wonder: How much of the real Sayid were we watching this week, or for that matter, have we seen since this season began? He is not the same man: First off, he was dead for 2 hours - remember "dead is dead"? Second, I swear his accent is altered (if only slightly); and finally, I'm sorry, but the Sayid we know would never, ever say he was a good man. Who exactly is this new, infected Sayid? And was his "infected" soul already damned before he spoke to Locke?

There are a lot of comparisons being made to Stephen King's "The Stand", and I believe I read that the show's creators were greatly influenced by King and that story. You can see the parallels beginning to take shape now, with the players taking sides; I'm thinking it will come down to a "war" between MIBLocke and Jack, who will ultimately be Jacob's replacement, harkening back to the "Man of Science vs. Man of Faith" theme the show has been using throughout.

This was not the Sun/Jin episode I had supposed it would be, but it was so good that I didn't mind. I loved all of the action and the kung-fu fights, and I couldn't believe it when I saw Keamey! My God, he makes Christopher Walken look like as harmless as Bing Freaking Crosby. And how about Jin! In the freezer!

LOST has always known how to close out an episode and this one was no exception, from the surprise appearance of Ilana, Frank, Sun and Ben, to Smokey's terrifying rampage through the Temple to the slo-mo final scene of MIBLocke and his army forming ranks and heading into the jungle, I was riveted. The cherry on top? Ben's "Oh shit" face when he realized that Sayid had gone over to the Dark Side. Priceless.