Regarding those changes I was hinting about...

I'm starting a new blog.  This one won't be going anywhere, you will still be able to access all of the archived posts and I'm not sure I'm going to entirely abandon it just yet.  But as of right now, I will no longer be posting here.

The new blog is called My TV and Me, and the web address is http://mytvandme.wordpress.com.  As the blog title suggests, it will deal almost exclusively with television matters.   I would like to say that I decided to narrow the focus of the blog on my own, but in fact it's been happening for a while now. My online presence has become increasingly fractured by Facebook and Twitter - FB is where I post most of my photos and share funny videos and interesting news items with family and friends and Twitter, well, it's yet another diversion.  I have been a terrible blogger in recent months, and I'm hoping that starting all over, with a more specific focus, will light a fire under my ass.  It hasn't been an easy decision for me to make - I've had this blog since 2001 (!), and I'm not as fond of change as I would like to think I am - but I do believe it's time.  I chose Wordpress because of its behind-the-scenes functionality and cool designs.  And it's also free.

So, thank you for visiting thisisgina, whether this is the first time you've been here or you've been reading this blog for years.  Seriously, thank you :).

See you at my new site!

Today's Tweets

Via @ebertchicago - A British cemetery encased in caterpillar silk

Via @Movieline - Daniel Craig in talks to play Mikael Blomkvist in US film of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" (Oh, please please please PLEASE!)

Via @feliciaday - Animals with their tongues sticking out!

Today's Tweets

Via @vanityfairmag - Liz and Dick, the Ultimate Celebrity Couple

Via @EW - 10 Rookie Shows Ken Tucker Wants to See (Of that list, the only ones that appeal to me are No Ordinary Family and Undercovers. Otherwise? Meh)

Via @npr - Artist Tattoos Indelible Iraq Memorial Into His Skin

Via @televisionary - HBO's new True Blood trailer!

The Daily Otter

How did I not know about The Daily Otter??  How have I managed to live out each day without a dose of these guys?? I feel like I have been living a life half full.

Not any longer.

LOST: The End

"Remember. Let go. Move on."
~Damon Lindelof, Twitter, May 23, 2010, midnight

My God, where do I even begin? There is no way I can do a thorough recap so soon, so I will give you my immediate, knee-jerk reaction (which often times is the most reliable): I thought that it was, by far, the best series finale I have ever seen. It was about as close to perfect as it could have been, at least for me and what I was wanting out of a finale. Would it have been nice to have had the mythology of the show addressed a little more directly? Perhaps, but certainly not at the expense of anything we saw last night.

I have dissected (or tried to dissect) the mysteries of this show right along with the geekiest of LOST geeks, and the tantalizing weirdness of LOST was a big part of the appeal for me. A great television show, however, does not survive on mythology alone. How far would The X-Files have gone if it weren't for the iconic Mulder and Scully? And look at how much the series finale of that show suffered for its emphasis on tieing up an already messy mythology. No, for me, the plot should always serve the characters, and not the other way around, and I would have lost interest in LOST very early on if I hadn't gotten so invested, so quickly in these characters.

There was so much about the finale that I loved, but let's get a couple of questions out of the way, first:

• So what exactly happened when Juliet detonated the bomb? Nothing? I was assuming it had because of her saying "It worked" to Sawyer right before she died; but we now know that "it worked" was really just what she said to Sawyer about the candy machine trick. Was it the detonation of the bomb that created the sideways place?
• Why was the Island at the bottom of the ocean in the sideways world? Perhaps this one is connected to the first question.

I know I have more questions than that, but these will be a good start.

I'm going to take the easy way out and bombard you with bullets. No! not the kind that are always flying around on this show, this kind:

My favorite parts on the Island:

• Rose and Bernard are alive! Vincent is alive! Richard Alpert is alive! Frank Lapidus is alive!! Man, that was a great way to start things off.
• I admit to laughing out loud when poor Ben got hit in the face one last time by Sawyer
• Jack and Locke's epic fight on the cliff was the best fight scene on LOST, ever. As well it should be.
• I'm not a huge Kate fan, but I was pleased that it was she who shot Locke and then got to carry out one last badass move and jump off of that cliff before Sawyer did.
• The scene where Jack hands the baton to Hurley was note perfect.
• and, of course, the final scene. By the time Vincent came and laid down next to Jack, I was a blubbering idiot.

My favorite Sideways parts:

• Hurley's face when he saw Charlie. So much love and affection.
• Sun, Jin and Juliet - that's where the crying began.
• Then Claire, Kate and Charlie had me nearly sobbing.
• But it was Sawyer and Juliet who put me over the edge, especially when he whispered, "I got you, baby" in her ear.

From that point to the end I was crying like a baby. I was wrecked.

I think the thing I took away from the finale - and the show as a whole - is that it is our relationships with others that sustain us through our life and beyond, and that what was important was the they all found each other again. Live together, or die alone.

OK, that's about all I can write for now. What did you all think?

This is my final review of LOST. I can't believe it. I want to thank everyone - however few you may be! - who took the time to come here, to listen to my ravings, and to share in the discussion. I will miss watching LOST, miss it terribly, and I will miss talking about it with you.

Namaste.

LOST

So this is it.

For good or bad, there was never a television show like LOST - innovative and interactive, at times frustrating but mostly rewarding - and I doubt there will ever be another one like it.

I'm not sure what to expect tonight, but I am almost certain I will love it no matter how it ends. This will be the very last LOST episode, ever. Enjoy it.

LOSTapalooza III

Jimmy Fallon grills Fox, Lilly and Garcia:



Remember this?

LOSTapalooza II

Fabulously long Vanity Fair interview with Michael Emerson

Mo Ryan's favorite LOST characters (i.e., just about all of them!)

A graphic guide to LOST

The entire series of LOST re-enacted by cats in 1 minute:

It's a LOSTapalooza

I'm just going to keep posting LOST stuff all weekend, as I find it, until it's over.

Jorge Garcia says goodbye to LOST. *sniff*

Auditions for the Smoke Monster:



The shirtless men of LOST, ladies!

LOST Reading Recs

Alan Sepinwall loved it.

Mo Ryan liked it

I don't think Vanity Fair's Mike Ryan liked it.

Televisionary really liked it.

And Tom and Lorenzo called it the most satisfying episode of the season.

LOST: Episode 6.15

What They Died For

"We're very close to the end, Hugo."
~Jacob

What makes a LOST episode great, amazing, unlike anything else on TV? I'd say it was a combination of things: emotionally resonant character interaction, heart-stopping action, moments of humor, and just plain freaky shit. (Richard! No!) And that pretty much describes last night's fantastic episode.

What did I love about it? I think just about everything, but mostly the great character moments. Let me count the ways...

Alt-Desmond - well, the night was an embarrassment of riches for him, wouldn't you say? Particularly the scenes in the jail and the prisoner van.

Ben - I think the same can be said for Ben, in both timelines. The selflessness of alt-Ben, juxtaposed with the self-preservation skills of Island Ben. I love that the rumored romance for Ben (which frankly I had forgotten about) turned out to be with Rousseau. When his breath caught after learning he was like a father to Alex, I almost lost it. Loved the kidnapping line, too.

Alt-Locke - He was amazing in the scene in Jack's office. What an expressive face TOQ has.

Jack - His acceptance of Jacob's job has long been predicted, yet it didn't feel anti-climactic to me. I think it's because his character as come so far to get here. I loved the breakfast scene in the alt world. I hope that happiness doesn't get shattered by the real world.

Sawyer - Poor, poor Sawyer. What a shitty week or so he's had, huh? I am so glad he acknowledged his part in the sinking of the sub, but my heart broke for him.

Even Alt-Sayid and Alt-Hurley had their moments - Sayid's snarky "Oh of course, sure, I promise!" and Hurley's effusive "Hey, Ana Lucia!" - in the middle of all the madness. And Miles, of course, rocked the smartass stuff. I guess when you spend 6 years building strong characters it only takes a line or two.

OK, the random stuff and the questions:

• When Desmond started the car I actually said out loud to an empty room, "He's not going to try again, is he?!"
• Who let our Desmond out of the well? Sayid told Jack he was in there, so it wasn't him. Claire, perhaps?
• What's going on with alt-Jack's neck? And what purpose does telling him that the airline found his father's coffin serve?
• Has Ben regressed to his old ways? I don't think so. I think the memory of Alex's death was fresh (because of Miles), that when he saw Widmore all he wanted to do was to get revenge. Then when he saw what MIBLocke did to Richard (Richard! No!), he knew he had no chance of defeating him, at least not on his own. He's got something up his sleeve. He always does.
• So all of the events of the sideways world are leading up to the concert - I'm assuming David's concert is the same as the museum one. Attending so far: Jack, David, David's mother (Juliet?), Miles (with Sawyer?), Desmond, Kate, Hurley, and Sayid. I wonder how (or if) Jin, Sun, Ben and Locke will get there?

So what do you think? Will MIBLocke succeed in destroying the Island (remember, the Island is at the bottom of the sea in the alt world)? And will that be the point at which "none of this will exist anymore", leaving the sideways world as the "real" one? I can totally see that happening. And I can imagine the final scene - or at least one of the final scenes - being Juliet, after meeting Sawyer at the concert, asking him out for a cup of coffee. I will bawl my eyes out, but I think I could deal with that ending.

Oh, and one more thing: Kate? the next time a sexy Scotsman gives you a little black dress and tells you he's taking you to a concert in a smokin' red Camaro, just say "OK".

Three and a half hours and then it's over.

Tonight is the penultimate episode of LOST, which will be leaving our TV screens forever - FOREVER! - in less than a week. This time next week, it'll all be over. GAH!

The Internet is of course awash in all things LOST in the lead-up to "The End", so I thought I'd point out a few things that you may have missed.

New York Times interview with Lindelof and Cuse

Reflection on LOST from the stars, fans and bloggers

Dana Carvey's LOST Spinoff:

Dana Carvey's LOST Spin-off from Dana Carvey

Televisionary previews tonight's episode - without spoilers:

While "Across the Sea" felt like an entirely different series, a parable slotted in right after a particularly tense and heartbreaking episode, "What They Died For" feels entirely like a penultimate episode of Lost should: it sets the stage for the final chapter (airing Sunday evening, of course) and kicks the action into high gear, signaling in no uncertain terms that the end is about to arrive.

Enjoy the show.

Fan-Made Trailer for LOST Finale

Get psyched!

LOST Reading Recs

Alan Sepinwall liked it (the discussion in his comments really illuminated some stuff for me)

Mo Ryan hated it

And Tom and Lorenzo can't get over the "big, glowing vagina."

LOST: Episode 6.14

Across the Sea

WARNING: Heavy Exposition Work Ahead!

This one? Eh. I'll take it for what it was: Backstory and exposition. We need it, they have to give it, so here it is. I had very little emotional connection with any of the characters, but I did love the last 10 or 15 minutes.

This is what I think went down:

Mother is one in a long line of Island protectors. I think her years (decades? centuries?) of isolation on the Island have made her a little crackers, as well as a bit homicidal. She sees the opportunity for recruiting candidates for the replacement position when a pregnant woman washes ashore. So, after the babies are born, she kills her and raises the twins herself, Jacob and the one with no name, who I will continue to call MIB. She shows them a stream leading into a cave filled with a golden light, telling them that is what they need to protect, but they can never enter it. Whoever did would suffer a fate worse than death. "Mother" favors MIB, possibly because he seems to be the brighter of the two, but his intelligence/inquisitiveness/thirst for knowledge will eventually lead him away from her and Jacob.

30 years later, and MIB is thisclose to getting off the Island for good when Mother ruins everything - destroys his donkey wheel contraption and murders all of his "people". Afterward, Mother annoints Jacob as her successor, letting him drink from the cup of everlasting life. When MIB discovers what Mother has done, stabs her with his special dagger and kills her. Then Jacob in a fit of rage beats MIB and tosses him into the golden cave where I believe his soul is ripped from his body and released in the form of the Smoke Monster (pure rage?). Right? Sounds downright Shakepearean, doesn't it? Or maybe Biblical is a better description.

And if I'm looking at this screencap correctly, the light has gone out of the cave. So Jacob had the job for what? A few hours before he destroyed the source of all life or whatever that light is supposed to be? The Island seems to be the source of all life, right? Or maybe just the soul?

Anyhoo, Jacob finds MIB's dead body, which he brings back to the cave and places next to Mother's body, placing with them the small pouch with the black and white stones. Adam and Eve explained. The origin of the Others, where the statue came from? Not explained.

Does all of that sound about right?

Some random thoughts:

• I did think it was interesting that MIB was the one who was supposed to have the job, and that he was 'special' like Hurley, with the ability to see dead people. Jacob, on the other hand, seemed more than just naive - he actually seemed a bit dim. Jacob also seemed to be the one with the violent tendencies, almost beating his brother to death those two times. MIB not only seemed more on the ball, he possessed a cynicism and world-weariness even as a boy.
• Here are a few things that I did not like about the episode (and they were kind of big things): 1) I thought that Allison Janney, who I usually love, was miscast. Her affect was too flat; 2) I thought the dialogue was very clunky, and suffered from the fact that MIB had no name; and 3) You're telling me that these ancient people understood the electromagnetic powers of the Island/its light and figured out that if you build some kind of contraption, hook it up to the light and install a donkey wheel, that you can turn that donkey wheel and get off the Island? Maybe end up in Tunisia somewhere? Come on. I would rather have not had that answer!
• The writers have said that they knew all along who Adam and Eve were - thus implying that they pretty much had the story mapped out in their heads from the beginning - and we would have proof of that when we found out who they were. Just the identity of the man and woman, though, wouldn't have been enough to convince me that they knew from the beginning - they could make any scenario work at this point, e.g. Rose and Bernard, or Jack and Kate - and pretend that they knew it was going to be them all along. It's the black and white stones in the pouch that Jacob places with his Mother and MIB and that Jack and Kate found with Adam and Eve way back in season 1 that leave me convinced that they really did know how things would end when they started.

Well, now that we've gotten the Jacob/MIB origin story out of the way - and I do think we needed this episode - let's get back to the people we really want to see!

LOST Scraps

A few tidbits in the lead-up to tonight's episode...

New York Post Michael Emerson Interview

Hurley gets the EW with Sawyer on the cover (so did I, but I'm not complaining!)

Dharma product labels, just in time for your LOST finale party!

(all links via tvtattle)

Maybe it's really a head bandage *disguised* as a bandana?

OK, before I say anything else, I want you all to know that I am very happy that Bret Michaels seems to have recovered nicely from his cerebral hemorrage. Really, I am. He's a cheeseball with terrible taste in women, but he also seems like he's a pretty nice guy.

So anyway, I was just wondering if anyone finds it hilarious that he's wearing his bandana in that inset photo? I bet he's got his guyliner on, too.

Today's Tweets

Via @CuteOverload - Baby Otter Webcam!

Via @Movieline - Lost's Jeff Fahey on the Fate of Frank Lapidus and that Machete Trailer

Via @fuggirls - Anne Hathaway really knows how to pick 'em.

Today's Tweets

@vanityfairmag - The LOST Good-Bye

Via @fuggirls - The Fug Girls' Annotated History of Mickey Rourke's Fashion Choices

Via @EW - This week's cover: The End of LOST

Via @redwingx (my friend) - Sunrise over Bryce Canyon

Via @popcandy - Downloadable PDF season finale calendar

LOST Reading Recs

I thought I'd point you in the direction of some great reviews/recaps of last night's LOST episode. Enjoy!

Alan Sepinwall's review

Televisionary Jace's review

Tom and Lorenzo

and

Mark Lisanti's "23 Questions About LOST Episode 614 Answered"

A big thank you to all of the above for helping me to make sense of what I just saw.