16 and Pregnant is Back; I Watched Glee

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Sunday:
The Simpsons (S22Exx): rerun this week. ep 4 next week, showing the Treehouse of Horror episode ON Halloween.

Family Guy (S09Exx): rerun this week. ep 4 coming up!

Monday:
Cake Boss (S03E19): this girl is a pusher! 10 foot cake going to South Carolina!!?! 200 sheets of sponge is a LOT. I don't really understand how two teachers could afford a cake from there, LoL. Buddy looks really tan, LoL. Must be just after they got back from vacation. Those ovens have been breaking forever, but Buddy mentions that it's only been happening for a few weeks... so I think this part took place BEFORE Italy, after all. Plus, it's the end of a school year, and I think that they went to Italy in the summertime. 2,000 pounds??!?!?! Whatever happened to finding a new location? Because are you really going to tear up the building to put in some ovens, only to move shortly afterward?? I don't eat peanut butter and jelly, but I thought that cake came out nicely. That side story about the apple cake woman was random. I didn't know Myrtle Beach had a boardwalk, and I'm kinda surprised that Buddy flew down for the cutting of the flip-flop cake... those people must have just bled money all over Carlo's Bakery, LoL!

Little People, Big World (S06E10): A free ark? Really? I kinda wanted the backstory on that. I love that we clarified right away that Matt didn't tell Amy about it immediately. haha, I think Matt was on Facebook when he and Amy were talking. Matt has torn down 40 or 50 barns??!? How is that possible, LoL? Whoa, animals??!? alligators in a petting zoo?? I like how Molly wasn't even really watching the arrival of the ark. I liked Amy's confrontation techniques, but it was ridiculous that she had to get into the car on top of the guy because he would not give his name. I didn't know that inspectors can get around trespass rules. I was surprised that Matt brought Amy out to see the ark before it was even painted or anything.

House, M.D. (S07Exx): rerun this week. Episode 6 coming up!

How I Met Your Mother (S06E06): the looks on Marshall and Lily's respective faces when they heard the name the other used was great. I agree with Lily... it's hard to use a name that you have a negative connotation for. Becky is SO bad, lmao. I liked Marshall's dad's advice for conceiving a boy, hahaha. Barney trying to pick up girls by talking like a 5-year-old was half amusing and half ridiculously annoying. Barney almost picking up another challenge was funny, too. hahaha, Lily's lemons. When Barney said "challenge completes," he really sounded like Doogie Howser, LoL. Jamie was a cute name for ten seconds, lmao. I'm glad Becky and Ted didn't last... that would've been REALLY annoying.

Tuesday:
Melissa & Joey (S01E12): haha, nice Kindle spotlight. That's not really a flattering outfit on Mel. Wow, having someone color-code your notes based on how likely the info will be on the test is funny. And smart. I miss having boys to do all my work for me. I took advantage of several boys in high school, and they all did such wonderful jobs, LoL. I loved how Mel liked all of those names she came up with for Joe's company. I like how Joe really wanted to sell his product, even though Mel just trusted his idea. The "I make a lot of noise" thing took me a second, and then I was surprised they included that. I wish I could wear a long necklace like Mel can... I can't seem to be able to pull that off. "nuggets of wisdom, not boulders of boredom" LOL. Dang, internet memes pop up again! So popular again! I'd like to see how Lennox gets her hair like that, I kinda love it. I also like that Joe is wearing full suits at home now, LoL. I don't know how Mel convinced Joe to do a video in a tanktop, LoL. We're trying too hard with the muscles on this show, it saddens me. Ryder should have been at the taping to help point out the flaws in this plan, LoL. At least the boy followed through and finished helping Lennox instead of dropping her outright. haha, "Christopher Columbus didn't set out to discover America either, but that worked out okay," LoL. I like how Lennox got upset when the guy turned her down, LoL. Poor Joe... he's sad that all people want to do is watch him exercise. I'm not sure how I felt about it being the season finale, but I guess they didn't want to do anything too cliff-hangy in case it wasn't renewed (which it was, yay!).

Glee (S02E05): This is a rare one for me, I know. BUT, it happens to be a Rocky Horror episode, so I'm taking my ban off Glee for the week. (I last watched it over a year ago.)
I liked the opening with the lips, the font, and the spoof on the title. Interesting that Emma enjoys Rocky Horror so much that she doesn't get upset over how gross it is (I remember that she's a germ-a-phobe or something). Now, I guess Will kinda likes her still, since he feigns love for Rocky Horror. I like how Emma brought up the "risky material" really early on. And that "you'll probably have to edit the whole thing out" hahaha. "Isn't that the whole part of the arts? to push boundaries?" wait... they pick their own roles?? That sounds like a crappy plan. Wait, Rachel and Finn are together now? I like Finn's body image issues. Haha, Sue as the Criminologist AND she gets to choose the script! Parents not cool with their kid dressing as Frank... yep, saw that coming. Wait... John Stamos has to audition but everyone else just picks their parts? And how can you be in the show when you're not a student OR a teacher?? Why is he singing Eddie's part when he's trying out for Frank?? Do the cheerleaders really ONLY wear their cheerleader uniforms? ALWAYS?!?? Whoa.... Mercedes, way to be! Awesomeness. Why would Sue say "you've got yourself an Eddie" just a minute after she said "I cut out Eddie's part in my re-writes" ??? I loathed the way Mercedes sang "Sweet Transvestite." I did like her outfit, tho. "sensational" instead of "transsexual" was an interesting edit. Will and Emma looked really stupid in the audience when Mercedes said "antici......pation." I don't like "Carl" being John Stamos' character's name. oh geez.... Will is going to play Rocky just so he can show off his body and get more rehearsal time with Emma?? CRAP. Seeing the cheerleaders peering in on Will and Emma doing "Toucha-Toucha-Me" and saying the lines of Columbia and Magenta was a great addition. Do the teachers usually sing in this show now? ew, Will is hairy. gross. Is Sue STILL rewriting the show, at the third dress rehearsal?? Poor Finn, just couldn't handle his part and did something silly. HOWEVER, the punishment of a MONTH of suspension was ridiculous. "Give me some chocolate or I will cut you" was strange. Where did this Becky come from? Is she a Cheerio or just like an athletic assistant of some sort? So they're going to cancel the show after all this crap? Poor Mercedes, who never gets a lead role otherwise, apparently. WHOA. They did it with NO audience?? I'm speechless I'm so flooded with anger. Brad and Janet aren't supposed to dance the "Time Warp" at the beginning, yet Finn and Rachel do. Although, maybe that is in the movie - I'm more familiar with the play (both the original and the revival).

Well, I'm glad I watched, but hopefully I'll never do so again. I can't stand the non-singing aspects of this show. Sometimes I can handle bad parts of some shows in order to get the good points (like I deal with Amber to get the Maci storyline on Teen Mom, LoL), but the singing isn't even worth the crap in this show.

19 Kids and Counting (S05E14): Okay, so this episode (at least the Michelle scenes) immediately follows the previous episode, since it's right after the gallbladder removal. haha on Anna mentioning that "getting up" is a big accomplishment. Nice play-by-play on how Anna makes rice cereal... but kinda boring at the same time. Yay Jana! Jason and the girls... that's an interesting combination. DANG. Mackynzie having 26 aunts and uncles is a lot... but I guess she'll have even more after the Duggars marry!! Anna is starting to get the accent that the Duggars have. 200 bathtubs of ice cream sounds conservative, but maybe I read the "past 20 years" part wrong? Why does a pinstripe indicate a car has been in an accident? I wonder if the 10% Josh and Anna donate is on top of their Christian tithing or in place of it... 23 things for $30 was good. But Josh and Anna with their unison "save the difference" was dumb. Anna really is into the cloth diaper, I wasn't expecting her to be so boastful!!

16 and Pregnant (S03E01): Mansfield, Texas junior. She's into racing cars.
Starts at 19 weeks. They got engaged two months prior to that and her wedding is a few days later because she "doesn't want to be fat at her wedding," LoL. um, her honeymoon is at the racetrack? Well, I guess if you come from a family where everyone marries young and spends their free time at the track, go for it. Her mom put condoms in the bathroom that she could use, LoL. ha! her mom found out through reading Brooke's text messages. I liked her hair and hairpiece, and thought that her jewelry matched her dress well. nice play on the old "first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage" rhyme. Jump to 24 weeks. haha, "cowtown speedway." Where are his parents? Her mom signed as the witness? Oh, I guess she's only 16, so she probably has to, haha. onto 25 weeks. That school has a bunch of teen moms. LoL, why is Brooke checking Cody's homework?? Brody and Emma are cute names, I like how they mixed "Brooke" and "Cody" to come up with it. Um, there's a math error if September was 24 weeks, October was 25 weeks, and November was 26 weeks pregnant, LoL. Wow... buying a pre-fabricated barn to live in on your parents' land, LoL. I like the mom's advice: "you're not going to appreciate what you have if you don't work for it." $400-$500 a month to live in a barn... haha. But, it's paid off in 6 years. Cody doesn't really care about his graduating or hers. Still November, now 27 weeks. He failed a test THREE times and got them to give him ANOTHER chance??!? December. Not a very cute baby shower outfit. January - 37 weeks. Is she having a planned c-section? Why can't she drive for 6 weeks??? I liked Brooke's hair at Cody's graduation party. She got an epidural at three hours into labor. Another hour later she's already pushing??!? ooh. she pushed for two hours tho. This was probably one of the more graphic births they've shown... the baby was totally filmed dirty. Um, that's a LOT of people holding the baby right away. Who bathes their baby AS SOON AS HE GETS HOME?!?? LoL. Nice to see a teen mom that not only stuck with breastfeeding but also pumped. She had an IUD put in to avoid another pregnancy... interesting choice. I feel like future contraception hasn't been covered a whole lot on this show in the past. They also did a good job up showing the exhaustion, and they're not even 100% on their own.

Wednesday:
Better With You (S01E06): YAY!! The parallel opening is back!! "come back and bite me when you're radioactive" hahahaha. awww.... I've always felt bad for kids who have birthdays on holidays, LoL. I love Maddie's commitment. I like Ben trying to get clues and Casey trying to figure them out. Strange tights for Maddie. haha, love how he got another clue from the parents. haha, "Davenport" is Casey's last name. love Dad's advice - if you mess up, get her a big gift, LoL. haha, "no affair, that'll save you money" LoL. "how many carats is it?" "do you know a lot about carats?" "no" "it's 12" "awesome" hahahahaha. The exchange of truths at the end between Casey and Mia was funny, but no end parallel gag! although the Chinese Candy was pretty funny, especially the money people were willing to throw to watch Casey try to eat all of that craziness!

South Park (S14E11): Mosquito. LoL. Why make MintBerryCrunch stay home? Captain Hindsight... wtf? The firemen just left a burning building?? What?!?!? haha, Cartman put alerts in the others' houses. haha, ToolShed took his dad's tools! Cartman implying that Butters eat his own excrement was shockingly disgusting. HAHA!! BP makes an appearance! hehe, Cartman wants to get Captain Hindsight into "Coon & Friends." wait... so the guy just tells people what they SHOULD have done, not what to do now?? haha, "coon-ference." I love plays on words. "sometimes being a superhero means helping in smaller ways" was a nice sentiment. Why doesn't someone free Butters?? omg, Cartman tore up Mosquito!! another dimension - ha! I thought BP should have changed their name another time or two after DP. the moon?? really? what!!?! aaaaaand.... a cliffhanger. boo. I feel like they generally don't make good storylines on this show.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Off season/Coming Up:

Burn Notice (back November 11)
Futurama (back November 21)
Wipeout (season 4 back in January)
Hot in Cleveland (season 2 to start in January)
Mr. Sunshine (starts in January on ABC)
Minute to Win It (season 3 to start...)
The Secret Life of the American Teenager (not sure, probably January)
Table for 12: (missing "summer," "busy day," "jumping in," "brace yourself," "back to school")
Teen Mom (no idea)
Kate Plus Eight (I'm moving this back down here because it hasn't been on in a month. not sure when it's returning.)

Coal Miners on TV & Other News,

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

ABCFamily's Friday Night Lights was canceled due to ratings.

CBS is really banking on Twitter. A THIRD show is now in development based on a twitter account. This one is being produced by Ashton Kutcher and will be called The Girls, based on things a guy overhears from his upstairs female neighbors.

SpikeTV has a Coal Miner reality show coming up in April. It's set in West Virginia, and was apparently underway before the Chilean mishap. It's gonna be called, Coal.

Angus T. Jones is now making $300k per episode of Two and a Half Men.

Jason Priestley and Luke Perry (aka Brandon and Dylan from Beverly Hills, 90210) are doing a TV movie together. It's called Goodnight for Justice and it's going to be on the Hallmark Channel eventually. Brandon is directing and Dylan is acting and exec-producing.

Bones spin-off planned by FOX.

I've never heard of The City, but apparently it's a spin-off of The Hills. Anyway, it got canceled.

Speaking of Paris Hilton, there's a new holiday tv-movie on the block: The Dog Who Saved Christmas Vacation. Doesn't sound thrilling, but yes, Paris voices a poodle in the flick. It'll be on November 28th at 8pm.

Better With You and No Ordinary Family both got the full-season go-ahead.

Lie to Me - "Double Blind"

by Jonathan Bredemeyer

(S03E04)

Two 'police officers' seem to enter a building with night vision after an alarm goes off and get shot by a 'rent-a-cop.' Torres gets a call from a client who hired Lightman to 'vet' his security staff and threatens to sue if she screwed up. Lightman shows up on the scene to defend her and then heads to the hospital to talk to the only remaining cop-robber alive. After getting rid of a nurse, he questions the robber as to what he was stealing. The 'item' they went in for is already sold to a buyer, but before Lightman can get any more details, he goes into cardiac arrest (thank you, House M.D.).

Foster shows up at the hospital to give Lightman 'company'. Torres explains the situation and seems genuinely upset, to which Lightman responds with a question: "What's the difference between a viceroy and and a butterfly, Torres?" "No." "Look it up." Lightman spots a hot blond about to be kidnapped and intervenes at the last second. He takes a seat next to her and tries to figure out her story. She claims she was there for a coworker, but he calls her on the lie. She asks about his reasons for gracing the waiting room, but he stonewalls her pretty hard and gets up to leave. She of course calls him back when the guy comes after her again. Lightman again takes a seat and starts guessing her problem. The nurse from earlier comes out and tells Lightman the second robber is dead from internal bleeding. At this news, the advancing guy gets up and leaves.

Foster is reassuring the mueseum boss that Torres didn't screw up. Lightman reassures the man that there's every reason for a second attempt at the robbery. The museum man leaves pissed. The blond (Naomi) comes to check on Lightman and meets Foster. She's convinced Lightman is dealing with a family member's death and takes him to coffee. He asks her to 'call me Lightman' and have real introductions when she notices he isn't in mourning. She confesses it was her ex-boyfriend chasing her in the waiting room and Lightman passes on his card for next time.

Foster wakes a sleeping Lightman back at the office and they get cozy on the couch. Loker bursts in on them and goes on about painting at the museum, but Lightman ignores him and finishes talking about the hospital janitor. Lightman jumps on Torres about not noticing the painters and bring ups his earlier question, which Loker knew the answer to... (The viceroy has natural camouflage to look like the monarch which are poisonous in order to passed over by predators). Lightman sends Torres in to interview the painters as he responds to a 911 text from Naomi. Torress switches to Spanish in the interview and learns the painter was threatened. Lightman shows up in a parking garage to Naomi's ex raging against her car. He scares him off with no physical contact (surprisingly).

Lightman questions Naomi about the government plates on her ex's car as Torres faces off with painter #2. She learns the curator is paying off someone in a towncar in regular intervals. Torres heads to the back rooms and learns that her interview was a decoy for a camera in the lobby that Loker was watching. They bring in the curator to review the video with Foster and Torres. They peg painter #2 as the inside man and Torres extracts her revenge on being doubted before as she hits him with a question about him paying loads of cash for towncars.

Meanwhile, Lightman is playing the flirting game with the hot blond... and winning as she offers him 'a bite.' After some heavy petting via dialogue, Lightman leaves her hanging and calls her bluff. Back in the fort, the 'lie girls' are confronting the curator about his drug problem. Lightman gets the tables turned on him a bit as Naomi starts questioning him about relationships, and specifically whether he was attracted to her. This of course leads to a make-out session that is interrupted by her 'ex', who Lightman gets the drop on him sneaking in the back way. Cal pegs him as an ICE agent and Naomi joins then in the garage. ICE guy calls Naomi the 'worlds biggest liar' and then leaves. Lightman confesses: "I have a habit of jumping into things."

Foster spots Torres beating herself up over the things she's missing and asks if Lightman's giving her a hard time. On cue, Lightman enters to interrupt and sends Torres to question Naomi in the bathroom.

Lightman: "Good news! My new bird is trying to play me..."
Foster: "Good news? You're working on it? For both of us?"

Torres baits her a bit, claiming Lightman's distracted, and leaves her to pretending to put on makeup. After coming out of the bathroom, Lightman actually reassures Torres over her screw up (why do they have him checking out every single ass that walks by nowadays?). Loker brings the 'inside guy' to Lightman in the hallway and he refers to Naomi as 'mistress'.
Painter: "When life gives you lemons.."
Lightman: "Chuck 'em at people."

Lightman confronts the painter about being involved after seeing how passionate he is about his paintings. Cal also questions him about his connection to Naomi, and the painter claims Naomi got to Lightman. Foster verifies what the robbers were trying to steal with the painters and they blackmail him in setting up a sting. (Yes! back to a diner... Sorry, I always get exiting when Tim Roth's in a diner...) Sitting in a booth with Torres, she realizes Lightman got played by Naomi and calls the cops on them while Lightman heads off to string her along a bit longer.

Setting a romantic scene, Lightman strings Naomi into thinking she's won (we see a flash of Sara Palin???). Lightman talks her into going to the Gala at the museum where the theft was to take place. Torres shows up all fancy (she dresses up quite nicely). Lightman tells her to watch out for a janitor from the hospital earlier and starts tailing his 'mistress' more closely. Loker claims all white people look the same as Lightman 'breaks up' with Naomi to let her wander by herself and goes to dance with Foster (to no music). A congressman passes out and Lightman recognizes it as the one Naomi passed a drink to. An alarm goes off and the emerald that is supposed to be stolen is gone. The entire 'Lie crew' is fooled temporarily and stands there (seemingly) dumbfounded. Lightman runs to Naomi, looks at her, then runs out to the street to see the janitor from the hospital getting away in a cab. He fake chases it and smiles after the smiling 'janitor' thinks he gets away.

Returning to the scene of the crime, Naomi is outside waiting for him. She tells him of the tragic history of the emerald that was just stolen. She explains 'Jack', her partner, got tired of freeing jewels and wanted money. Lightman confesses he didn't see her as a decoy... so apparently Lightman liked getting fooled. She offered him dinner and he walks away.

The next day, Foster's pissed and the FBI wants to question Lightman. After Lightman tells Foster that she looked good the previous night, he reveals that he switched the emerald for a fake. She gets mad she was kept in the dark, to which Lightman responds "It's cat and mouse, not cats and mouse."

Favorite Episodes: The Brady Bunch

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

It seems that everyone who has ever watched television has seen an episode of The Brady Bunch. It's been around a long time (premiered in the 60s and is still around in reruns here and there), and had a really wholesome family concept. Most episodes focus on an issue that affects the entire family, and I think that was one of the reasons it did so well when it first aired. The show is not without its flaws - the fact that no toilet was ever shown is something that many people bring up, and I always found it interesting that Marcia makes such a big deal about her braces, but nothing is said at all when Bobby gets them years later.

The Brady Bunch had a lot of good episodes. I think season 1 was my favorite, since it had Cindy's school play, Jan being allergic to Tiger, the trial for the kidnapping of Cindy's doll, the payphone in the house, Marcia and Greg both running for school president, the measles episode, Marcia's braces, Peter saving the little girl at the store, and my favorite, the stamp-book collection.

Season 1: "54-40 and Fight" (S01E15) The kids are up to 94 books of trading stamps, and since the store is going out of business, they have to decide on what to trade them for quickly. The boys want a rowboat, but the girls want a sewing machine. They end up building a card house (a HUGE one, I might add), and the dog ends up making the boys lose. I do love, however, that even though Marcia has a close call with her bracelet, she never takes it off, LoL. The girls head off to pick out something, and come back with a color TV, so everyone wins in the end. I liked both the card house competition and the fact that a TV, a sewing machine, and a rowboat were all comparable value at that time, LoL. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Season 2: "The Slumber Caper" (S02E03) Marcia is planning a big slumber party, and the boys are planning to play some tricks. However, Marcia drew a cartoon of a teacher, and somebody else put a negative caption. Marcia gets a week of detention, but she convinces her parents that she's not guilty, so they still let her have the party. At the party, she finds out who the guilty culprit is. The boys do get itching powder into the sleeping bags, but I was hoping for much more. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Season 3: "Dough Re Mi" (S03E16) Greg wants to make a record, but doesn't have enough money. He decides to enter a contest with his siblings to earn the money. It's coming along, but then Peter's voice changes and Greg has to write "Time to Change" to fit. It all works out, and it's one of the most replayed segments of the show. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Season 4: "Amateur Nite" (S04E16) Similar to my favorite from Season 3, this episode features Jan needing money to cover the cost of an anniversary gift for the parents. The kids join together and win $100 on a talent show. Alice watches the show and sees the kids performing live. This is the "Sunshine Day" episode. My favorite part is when Jan talks to the salesman on the phone, hahahahaha! Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Season 5: "The Cincinnati Kids" (S05E11) The family is at a large amusement park (King's Island), and they've split up to ride different things. Jan buys a poster, and the container is the same as Mike's blueprints. They inadvertently swap poster tubes, Jan loses the one with the plans in it, and it's up to the family to race through the park to find the tube and then get it back to Mike. They keep running into each other and passing off the poster so they can get it there - - in the nick of time! (though Mike states they only have ten minutes when they start the frantic search... practically impossible to cover the park in that amount of time!) I love watching the family all run through everything. In fact, this is my very favorite episode of the entire series (so definitely watch part 2!!). Once, when it was supposed to air and a different episode aired instead, I wrote an email to the cable company about not listing the correct episode on the guide, LoL. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Teen Mom is Over

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Sunday:
The Simpsons (S22Exx): baseball play-offs this week instead. ep 4 TBD

Family Guy (S09Exx): baseball play-offs this week instead. ep 4 TBD

Monday:
Kate Plus Eight (S01Exx): not this week.

Cake Boss (S03E17 & S03E18): Danny and Ralf got lost, haha. It kinda looks like they have Buddy's wife holing a flower to draw attention away from her pregnancy. Why is nobody taking photos of the pieces of art that the guy wants?? The pizza made me hungry, too. I didn't realize Lisa was bilingual, too. Neat. Poor Ralf, trying to paint when he's a sculptor. I wonder why she wanted to hurry up and see the fountain. My bet is a fertility wish. 9 flights of stairs??!? HOLY MACKEREL!! Dang. MORE family came out! Who's running the bakery??!? Who knocks with an open hand?? heh, apparently Lisa's fluent in Italian! I love that Joey said "you have to make a cake? can't we just go to the party for once?" hehe. Poor Lisa, she looked sad that Buddy was working again. Recipe trading was pretty cool. New York Cheesecake for Cassata. Interesting that they never talk to Buddy's kids... or that we never hear them talk at all! I LOVE that "cream cheese" doesn't translate and they just call it "Philadelphia" in Italian. I wonder how the people at the vintage party felt about it being recorded for American television, LoL. Lisa got away with not drinking at the vintage party but not at dinner, haha. Well, I guessed it, it's a pregnancy. Baby Valastro #4 is on the way!

Little People, Big World (S06E09): I don't like Zach with the really short hair. Why wasn't Molly helping load Rocky? Why are they keeping that cute kitten in a bathtub??!? Cute to watch Jeremy pull Rocky on the bed. Jacob seriously put the turtle in the room with the cat and dog?? LoL. whoa whoa whoa... genetic tests on a ten-year-old dog?? I dunno... I don't know that I could ever love a pet enough to spend thousands on them in medical bills. Rocky behaved pretty well during the blood draw. I'm glad that Jeremy is growing out his curls again. Interesting that mastiffs only have an 11-year lifespan... I kinda thought all dogs lived longer. Strange argument between killing the dog yourself versus having a veterinarian euthanize it. I didn't realize there were still people who would prefer to do that deed themselves.

House, M.D. (S07E05): I didn't like the voice of the girl taking the video in the beginning. I thought Foreman was looking like a self-indulgent pinhead when House told him to wipe that look off his face. hahaha, House calls Wilson for a "boys night in" so he doesn't have to watch the child alone. House's little kid voice is adorable. omg, I didn't think House was going to DITCH Wilson and Rachel!! "unlike you, I don't have a conscience" haha. Wilson went out the window! Love it! There was a nurse RIGHT THERE when the baby had a problem? Why couldn't we see the image of the dime in the ultrasound? Oh, now we get to, ok. I like how House tried to quiz the pediatric specialist to find out the best thing to do for Rachel, LoL. Jennifer Grey looks SO OLD in this episode! Not that she's young anymore, but I guess I was expecting a little much from her Dirty Dancing days. heh... skin cancer without ever being outside... that's a tricky one! A mole under her nail?? Dang that's hard to find! I'm kinda lost on why the older daughter is in this episode. House is stealing the equipment and they're going to scope Rachel at home??!? So the math proves there couldn't have been a dime. Heh. Now we've had three people hired for the team... two fired and one quit. Oh. Now I see why we need the daughter... because we're gonna make the mom die. I guess we're to assume the sister adopted her? That sucks. Interesting that Rachel ended up expelling a dime in the end anyway, and that she blamed House!

How I Met Your Mother (S06E05): One of the guys' penises looks like Winston Churchill? LoL. I love when Ted talks about hot architecture nerds... reminds me of Ross's geekiness on Friends. I feel like I've heard the "pillowcase full of batteries" multiple times this week... which is weird. "sweet wrestler name alert" LoL. haha, Ted said he was a veterinarian! Asians like Jews? LoL. Why is Marshall obsessed with the fact that his friend has a small penis?? The hug when the guy left the table for the bathroom was beyond awkward! WTF is with the billboard that got revealed all of a sudden??!? Barney with a pet rabbit could be neat. The snake legend was weird. I love Marshall's writing for Lily to tell Robin. I was surprised that Zoe ended up being married, since they really promoted that actress coming to the show for a while. I liked the ending with Robin doing something weird in the bathroom but the guys won't tell Marshall while they're in the locker room.

Tuesday:
Melissa & Joey (S01E11): Mel referring to Joe's Porsche as his penis was nice, but a little rough for that timeslot and network. Why are we running a Halloween episode now and not next week? Although, maybe it was originally slated to run on the 27th, but then when they showed two episodes the first week, it threw everything off?? That neighbor was WEIRD! I think it would have been better if the previews and blurbs about this episode didn't mention the fact that the dad was in the attic. I think a surprise would have been more fun. Especially since it's Halloween and an attic and all. Ryder's acting was funny. calling black licorice "sugar-coated tires" was good. Mr. Clean was a great costume for Joe. The sexy secret service agent was a bit of a stretch for Mel. The teenage witch joke was good. Cop, prisoner, and defense attorney was a fun theme. The kids held it together really well when their father was getting arrested. I was kinda upset that the dad schemed with the cop AND stole Joe's car, but I guess I should have expected something like that. :-/ Why did Mel and Lennox look at Joe weird when he took offense to the fact that they called his ziti a crazy noodle dish... who doesn't know what ziti is? I remember thinking it was weird when I first heard of it, but I was seven or eight, LoL.

19 Kids and Counting (S05E13): Anna doing the "on this episode..." was awkward. "Alert Cadet" umm... ok. "I think my brothers do, too. Of course they do" sounded forced. Jana and Jill doing the interviews was a nice change... although I like Jill's hair better straight. There's Joy holding a baby again! ONLY these Duggars had to wear nametags? Why not just have EVERYONE wear them?? That was a BIG bag on Anna. Cool, we met Mackynzie's namesake. Greasy foods anger gallbladder issues... interesting. "They had to give me, literally had to give me more... it knocked me out" ... weird place for "literally" in that sentence.

Teen Mom [season 2 wrap-up] I like that the very end section
Catelynn: what's with the facial piercing? ha! I had forgotten that they did that crazy couples counseling thing. I don't like her hair here. Who in the world would believe that Catelynn's mom really is over the adoption thing?? How does Catelynn know what Farrah goes through with the death of her baby daddy? Maci: Kyle had a weird look on his face when Maci talked to the Dr. about how she felt about him. I liked how Maci was full of good points when Ryan tried to blame all of his behavior on MTV. Looking forward to seeing Kyle and Ryan meet. Farrah: I don't believe that things with her mom are "good" now. It sounds funny when her mom says "baby daddy," LoL.
Amber: "Is there a reason I shouldn't love you" - Gary. Wait, first she blames her violence on "white-outs," then says she normally knows ahead of time what she's going to do. Hmmm. I'm kinda tired of Amber's drama. I'd be happy if she was written off of the third season, LoL.

Wednesday:
Better With You (S01E05): No 3-way parallel opening. :( haha, pool on whether it's a boy or girl. haha, Ben insulted everyone early on. So if Mia is four months pregnant (since she knows the sex already), we're two months or so from the pilot in tv-time. Ben's food desired leading to an identity crisis was funny. Casey freaking out about being around the baby was unexpected. "and be careful of this one, it has a virus" hahahahaha, love the mom! Mom acting out the emails was hilarious... dancing the "worm" was tops. Nice shout-out to Charlie biting a finger, too. "there is no 'close enough' with rhyming" haha. "Be honest with me... do I really like jazz?" LoL. A baby's mom can always feel the kick before anyone else can, so I'm glad that they kept true to that fact rather than let Casey feel it immediately. No parallel ending, either. :( I hope they didn't give that up!!

South Park (S14E10): Stan's messy locker makes Wendy think he's a hoarder?? and she called for help??!? why keep a sandwich with maggots??!? haha, Mr. Mackey is a hoarder, too. Sheep herder vs. sheep hoarder was funny. The dream thing with some Inception references was okay. I wasn't interested in seeing that movie, so perhaps that sequence was better appreciated by those who did. Overall, this was another crappy episode.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Off season/Coming Up:

16 and Pregnant (October 26th, 10pm, MTV)
Burn Notice (back November 11)
Futurama (back November 21)
Wipeout (season 4 back in January)
Hot in Cleveland (season 3 to start in January)
Mr. Sunshine (starts in January on ABC)
Minute to Win It (season 3 to start...)
The Secret Life of the American Teenager (not sure)
Table for 12: (missing "summer," "busy day," "jumping in," "brace yourself," "back to school")

Lie to Me - "Dirty Loyal" ... 3 good examples

by Jonathan Bredemeyer

(S03E03)

We get right to the point with this episode opening with Loker on the phone with a new potential job. Lightman strolls by and stops long enough to make fun of him and get the evil eye from Foster for it. He notices Foster's a bit off and shows Lightman a video of the new cop friend's partner kicking the crap out of someone. Apparently, Internal Affairs is hesitating giving the Lightman Group the case because of Cal's relationship to his partner. Foster's pissed about this....

Lightman heads to the shooting range (of all places) to confront this dirty cop about the beating. He ticks off the cop and then heads over to talk to his brand-new best friend, dirty female cop. She pegs him as working for IA and they have a 'close encounter' (including discussion about 'squeezing in the sack'). Lightman grabs a gun and proves he can cluster 3 shots in the crotch of a target. She gives a little and claims she can take care of herself, but a rebuke by Lightman and he grabs a flask out of her back pocket shows her otherwise.

She (let's call her Val this time around) and Lightman are off to talk to the suspect who got beaten (Prince John). "A Prince where I come from is a burden on a tax payer." After some smart-ass answers in front of his friends, they haul PJ into Lightman's clear room. Once there, Lightman determines the cop is out to kill PJ, but Val protests. Lightman sticks to his guns...
PJ: "You see me running?"
Lightman: "My advice to you: Dust off your sneakers, princess."

In the meantime, Foster, Torres, and Loker are in looking at pictures from the beating. Torres pegs Val as not having a poker face. Lightman walks in and he and Foster get a bit testy at each other. After kicking out the other four, Foster seems pretty pissed and presents him with IA pictures of Val and Lightman on a date. They get a call and head off to see PJ's dead body.

Val is at the scene and IA shows up to talk to Foster as soon as they arrive. Her partner is standing by looking scared as hell as Lightman grills Val on the situation. IA comes over and tries to arrest her for the murder, based on an eyewitness.

Lightman shows up at the jail and begins to mess with an unhappy Val dressed in an orange jumpsuit. Her partner shows up to speak with her alone. Cal goes and talks to the arresting IA blonde woman about the situation. She threatens him, he threatens her, and finally make a deal to let him interview Val's dirty partner if he turns over Val, too.

Lightman returns to the fort to find Loker listening to a 911 tape. "I thought I took your desk away." Loker ignores him and proceed to explain how the caller is lying. Lightman's skeptical of Loker's initiative. Foster joins the party and Lightman pretends she scared him. Foster disproves one of Loker's findings in the tape, and then she and Lightman head off to follow up with one of her leads. They arrive at one of PJ's gang friend's houses, and Lightman heads in to mess with him while searching his room. He finds a gun, disables it, and watches the kid leave. Foster finishes interviewing the woman and she confirms she definitely saw Val kill PJ.

Lightman and Foster go to another murder scene and see the kid who Lightman just chased out. Talking to Val's dirty partner, Lightman gets the background on them. Cal then skips off to pressure and pick a fight with Ronnie as his friends watch and re-question him again. After he says it wasn't the 'lady cop,' he lets him punch him in the stomach to look good, and takes off. Lightman asks Foster to have IA get him an interview with one of the other kids, as he pegs him as involved. This seems true as the gang member makes eye contact with the dirty cop before the facial examples of hiding something flash on the screen.

Lightman gets Val outta jail and pours them some wine for them. They talk dirtily about how dirty cops work... Torres and Loker are now providing their analysis to Foster on how Val has been gradually getting more disgusted with her partner. Torres & Loker think that Lightman has missed this even though he has watched all her interviews... Back to the dirty convo, Val gives Lightman examples of how she started her corruption. Of course, Lightman cuts straight to the point and asks her to skip to the two murders when they hear someone coming. The two immediately set up an intimate scene (without lube) and Val calls in a break-in. She loses her outer shirt and they grabs guns from her personal stash in the bedroom. What appear to be 2 gang members come in and start shooting up the bed with machine guns. Cal yells a distraction and Val shoots 2. They let the third leave, and Lightman suggests she ditch her illegal gun stash...

Lightman confronts Val about Foster's IA connection and claims he doesn't like betraying her by sticking up for Val. He claims he's doing it because he thinks Foster is sometimes wrong about Lightman in the same way.

Lightman moves on to confronting her corrupt partner in a waiting area. He accuses him of ignoring Suarez (leader of the problem gang) because he's his son. Lightman says, "Choose: your partner or your son." Val and Lightman leave him after that to talk to the IA woman. Apparently, Far (the corrupt partner) goes in and tells all because she then shows up at Foster's office wanting to yell at Lightman. The IA woman claims she's either going after Lightman or Val and one will go down. Clearly intimidated, Foster gives her the proof she needs. Lightman shows up to find Foster turning on him; Foster sees him.

Lightman goes to coach Val for her date in the cube, teaching her how to hide contempt. Foster and Torres prep the IA woman for the interview and explain how to question Val. It flashes back to Lightman still prepping Val for the lies she's about to tell. It's kinda neat watching Foster and Lightman prep to 'face off' (lets see that more...).

Torres questions Val in the cube. It's pretty obvious that she's beating them: Lightman makes Loker announce it. Lightman tries to makes Foster commit to claiming Val is clean, and Foster runs out.She , Lightman, and the IA blonde face off in the hallway and Foster lies for Lightman and says she's clean except for calling her partner a good father. Val's partner and his son get booked. Lightman starts laying into Val, and Foster actually defends her. They start talking and Lightman leaves unnoticed in hopes they'll talk more, but Foster denies Val's coffee invite. I'll guess these two will be squaring off for Lightman's attention in the future...

The 3 examples? Loker & Lightman, Lightman & Foster, and Corrupt Cop & son... you could make the case for Lightman & Val, but you'd be wrong...

Favorite Episodes: Flash Forward

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

I had unending love for this show. I thought the characters were all attractive, the storylines all sensible, and the style very teen-at-the-time. Although it only made it one season, Flash Forward was an amazing show. It's another Canadian show (what can I say, I like their teen shows, LoL), and I think it should have lasted longer. I don't cover one-season shows in my "favorite episodes" series much because that's kinda boring. But, at the same time, I don't want to write about each episode individually because it was a longer season, at 26 episodes. So, we're doing something unique today. It's a little out of the ordinary, but I'm going to talk about 5 of my favorite scenes from the series.

"Fresh Start All Over Again" (S01E01): I love the part when Becca thinks she can just get the principal to switch around her or Christine's schedule so they can have more time together. HA!

"On Your Toes" (S01E05): Tucker and Miles are running around trying to get a great candid photo to win a photography contest... this mainly involved them hanging around pep squad, LoL.

"Apeward Bound" (S01E18): There's a field trip to the woods, but Tucker wants to sneak out to a Planet of the Apes movie marathon during it. I like when they finally get there, haha.

"Mudpack" (S01E19): I love the very end where Tucker and Becca hold hands and jump into the mudslide together.

"Curtain Call" (S01E26): I like all the flashbacks when Tucker and Becca talk about the different times in their lives when they've liked eachother, but didn't share.

Most of Flash Forward is on Youtube, just be sure to search by the episode name if you want to find it, since there's another television show by the same title. I'd embed some clips here, but they're recorded off the Disney Channel so the quality isn't that great. Still, they're there if you want.

Really? A Napoleon Dynamite Cartoon??

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

ABC's Body of Proof is getting pushed to midseason so it doesn't get the 9pm Friday slot.

Fran Drescher is getting a talk show in later November. It's getting a three-week trial in limited areas before it might go national.

FOX has ordered six episodes of a Napoleon Dynamite cartoon.

Even though they canceled Huge, ABCFamily is coming out with FOUR new shows. One looks like a reboot of The Facts of Life, another a mix between Witch Mountain and The Parent Trap, one's about a fat girl trying to become famous in NYC, and the last one looks like they're taking Maeby's big storyline from Arrested Development and making it a series, except the girl works in fashion rather than film (it reminds me of Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, too). Any of these look good to anyone?? Oh, and it looks like each will be an hour long, except maybe the "get famous in NYC" show.

NBC moved Outlaw from Friday night to Saturday night, and most people are predicting its cancellation during the time it'll take to run the final four episodes.

You know how there's been some great writing throughout the years to cover pregnant bellies? CBS is going to do it by covering a broken leg rater than write it in. Let's see how well that works for The Big Bang Theory. This reminds me of a play I saw in college (This is Our Youth) where one of the three main actors broke a foot or something the week before the show opened. The director (who was my acting teacher the following year) had to re-block the show to accommodate a broken foot. It was brilliantly done (especially a fight scene that now took place with crutches!), so I think maybe they should've written it in for Kaley Cuoco, LoL.

E! has a show about the wives of rockstars coming out on November 7th at 10:30. I don't think this premise is overdue by any stretch of the imagination.

How I Met Your Mother must be doing strikingly well this season (I really need to start paying more attention to the viewer statistics), since they ordered an additional two episodes (putting us at 24 for the season, folks!).

Shaft is developing a crime-solving show for the CW called Hackshaw. THe protagonist is going to have Dissociative Identity Disorder and be in his 20s. Well, Monk has been off the air a while now, guess we need another detective with a mental disorder?

FOX has a "reverse-Three's Company" sitcom in the works, where a young girl moves in with three guys in NYC. Doesn't look promising.

ABC, who has tried doing Romeo & Juliet in both Chicago and New York recently, has decided to try it in Renaissance Italy. Why not... period shows are all the rage right now, and everyone seems to be dropping tons of money on sets. I wonder how the heck the storylines will play out, though.

Speaking of expensive sets, have you heard about FOX's Terra Nova? It's already cost $10M to make the pilot, and filming has not yet begun.

There's also a new fairy-tale television show in the works. At least that's somewhat of an original idea... and in this case, I mean not-currently-overdone, lmao.

Last, ABC's Wipeout is going to have the 4th season premiere in January, with 8 Winter Wonderland episodes. I'm really looking forward to this idea.

Cake Boss Back

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Sunday:
The Simpsons (S22E03): "I must not write all over the walls" being all over the walls was amusing. Freaky intro with the slave labor in the cave. I felt for Lisa when she met the Yale graduate.... every time I answer a question and the responder says "and..." repeatedly, I get flustered and my low self-esteem dominates. Lisa getting the positions wrong was strange, since it happened twice AND you'd think that, even not being interested in sports, the scholar in her would know the basics... I feel like she's been to a game before, no? Love how Lisa found a way to use statistics in baseball... much like so many characters find geometry useful in billiards. What's the difference between a "coach" and a "manager" in baseball? Long roller coaster ride. Lisa's elaborate signs for "I'm glad you finally respect me" and stuff was odd. hehehe, "if he makes it, that's my son!" LoL.

Family Guy (S09E03): The ships show was odd. Was with Alaska? What? Walrus fighters, huh? hehe, I was half-expecting Carter to hit Babs when he ran into the ballroom at the wedding. The "turn the Ms to Ws" thing was strange. Peter spitting out his food was gross. The strange comment that Carter made about taking Lois's temperature made me wonder whether he raped Lois as a child. Limo joust? If they got going that quickly and for so long, they must have been too far apart to hear one another shouting at the beginning. Love how Carter had to go to France and broadcast Peter's opinions. The catchphrases were strange. The three girls liking Carter was weird, but I liked how they all threw their drinks at him at the same time. A nice, slow, "Bird is the Word" song was cute. ha. "I'm too old to re-marry, so try to gain my trust again" "That sounds like a lot of work. Go to hell" LoL.

Monday:
Kate Plus Eight (S01Exx): not this week.

Cake Boss (S03E16): on the heel of Italy's boot. 5 hours AFTER the plane?!? It sounds fast that it was only 7 hours to fly from NY to Italy... I call shenanigans. 7 tiers?!? who says "absolutely not" to "how about 4 tiers," LoL? I like how Buddy told us it was symbolism... in case we didn't get that, LoL. heh... he never learned to make breads... interesting. haha, and they threw a baby shower cake at him, too. Sometimes I don't like those generalizations like "what pregnant woman doesn't like chocolate?" They weren't big fans of the room, so I'm glad that they offered up something else for them. Wow, using a scale with a rock to measure! Does Mauro speak better Italian than Buddy all of a sudden? The way they were playing up the "future baby" thing in the previews and in the early parts of the episode was interesting. Why was Mauro afraid of riding a scooter?? I like how he rode in his baker's uniform, not plain vacation clothes. Buddy's only 33... I keep forgetting that. Nice how we got both the history of "Bartolo" and "Buddy." Flour, butter, and white wine... interesting cookie ingredients. They're always doing things under the "hope mom doesn't find out" mindset... doesn't she watch the show AT ALL, LoL?? Mauro was totally afraid of the scooters, LoL! Buddy's overconfidence about fishing was funny. I mean, he lives in Hoboken... where does he fish, LoL?? That detail on the wedding cake was absolutely GORGEOUS! Wow. a wedding parade. how neat! Um, were the bride and groom taught to say those two phrases for the camera, LoL?? Ahhh! We didn't even see the scene that has the fountain wish teaser! boo! Overall, I did like how we learned about various Italian bakery techniques.

Little People, Big World (S06Exx): not this week, episode 9 of the season back next week.

House, M.D. (S07E04): Strange opening - I'm curious to see how the thunderstorm and the door affect the outcome of the patient. New doc is a psych specialist. "Shameron," haha. hahahaha, "Cameron had much smaller breasts... and by which I mean she was smarter." I'm surprised Wilson called Rachel "the kid." oooh... stolen identity... this could be interesting. I wonder if it's more of a "witness protection program" thing... LOVED the Wizard of Oz allusion. She was married to a freaky guy. And, not true witness protection... more of a DIY thing, LoL. Interesting theory Foreman suggested to Chase. I don't think House should have used "sad ending" there, LoL. I don't understand why the "editor" of the paper thing makes such a big difference either way. I like how Foreman called Chase on his cell phone with the update... they don't usually do that. haha, House found a picture of Chase with his mother. House got Cuddy a prostitute masseuse! hahahahaha. I loved how well he was able to know what she was going to say, too. I called schizophrenic about ten seconds before House did, LoL. I like how House asked for sex in lieu of cable, LoL. And Cuddy was quite to agree. Wasn't a big fan of how Kelly came around to Chase in the end, LoL. Funny that Rachel latched onto the cane.

How I Met Your Mother (S06E04): haha, "face. that's your strangest nickname for 'boobs' yet," LoL. Why do so many people see Maury Povich? LOVED how they all said something different for "You're not a real New Yorker until..." I don't agree that Robin could possibly know the city the best. "Stay sad, I'll be back" was classic Barney. The opening segment as a whole really intrigued me, and I was on the edge of my seat, trying to decide who to root for. At first I was a little thrown when they showed the map and everyone was running in entirely different directions, but then I remembered that some cities are like that. For instance, if there's traffic in Tallahassee, go the opposite direction, I promise you there's a better way to get there than what you think would be quickest. I've surprised about a dozen people with little tricks to navigate that circular capital, LoL. Mini-Marshall messing with Lily was funny. "I grew up here. I speak conductor" was awesome. ewww... a Bing spotlight. Love how Ted's seatmate faked sleeping, haha. The whole teacher-reviews-as-movie-reviews montage was cute. Barney's heart attack was a little unbelievable, but whatever. I bet an ambulance would've been a good idea. LOVED how the woman Robin stole a cab from JUMPED ON THE HOOD. Seeing Ranjit and hearing Marshall's song back-to-back was awesome. haha, Barney picked up Robin. Even the bus driver didn't want to hear Ted's facts! I was a little sad that we gave up seeing Lily's methods (tho I guess she just ran, too?) I burst out laughing when they decide to call it a tie, then everyone split again to race back to the bar! The rickshaw/pedicab was an awesome idea, but when Barney switched to peddling, I about fell off my chair. Lily in the subway car with Robin was weird, and her making fun of Robin was bad, but when she phoned Ranjit, I got excited again. Marshall thinking that the machines had won when he saw the calculator was awesome. I like how Barney tackled Ted. The only thing I don't get about this episode is how they're "heading back to the bar," but end up back at the steakhouse again...??

Tuesday:
Melissa & Joey (S01E10): early dig at Joey not having hair. Speaking of which, I loved Mel's in the opening scene. Were they going for as ethnically diverse as possible with Lennox's friends? HA on the "it's so pretty... does it come with an agenda?" Pantyhose with peep-toe shoes?? NO. hahaha, "can't be conveniently threaded together." I didn't like the red dress of Mel's. Loved that she batted that pig-in-a-blanket out of the mayor's hand. hahaha!! So... Joey is Mel's trainer now, too? It's MONA!! kinda funny. "great-grand-cougar" was AMAZING! Funny that Mel totally has a double-standard on Lennox's friends. Using a hotplate, good times. I was impressed that Lennox left a drinking/pot gathering... I totally would've pegged her as a "joiner." I wonder how much longer until we have an episode where Mel and Joey both try to teach her how to drive. Smart of Brett to tell his dad that it was all Lennox's fault. haha, Monda blurted out the email-snooping! That was LOW of Lennox to post Mel's secret on twitter!

19 Kids and Counting (S05E12): Jennifer isn't saying much these days. Strange shot of Erin Bates playing the piano outside. Nice that Jessa and Jinger were allowed to go on a trip with just other girls... no male chaperones! Erin's arrangement was pretty, but the beginning was just too high for so long! Overall, it was gorgeous! I hope that girl has opportunities to play beyond her home church, LoL! I really wanted to hear the name or catch a glimpse of the logo for this conference. What was Priscilla doing in Chicago? She didn't go to the conference, she was just there for sightseeing day... odd. I liked the pop-up that Chicago has more restaurants than Tonitown has people. I feel like they were trying hard to make Jessa and Jinger indistinguishable, LoL. I thought it was a dumb fact that you can't see the Duggars' house from the tallest building in Springtown (or whatever the actual pop-up said). Why WOULDN'T you try the ledge on the Willis Tower?!?! I thought it was rude that the group was taking so much time trying to get out onto the ledge when there were obviously tons of people waiting. "and I'm sure it has a lot of calories" LoL. I'm kinda curious, in the end, as to how Michaela and Erin chose Jessa and Jinger... I guess maybe they just get along better? Because, age-wise, they wouldn't be the Duggars I'd match them with, LoL. Sidenote, we don't see Jana and JoyAnna in this episode, so I'm not sure what they were up to.

Teen Mom (S02E12): [season finale]
Catelynn: 8 hours to West Virginia... dang, I thought they were closer for some reason. Why did Catelynn's mom say "don't forget about me" ?? I love ExcitedTyler. That's a REALLY weird photo to have on the cover of the scrapbook for Carly. The recordable book was really cool. I think that was just the perfect gift for an adopted daughter! Tyler looked so cute with Carly... mush cuter than Catelynn. Cute ending focused on them looking at one another in bed.
Maci: Ryan thought he was being slick changing the agreement and not telling Maci until she went to sign it. The look on her dad's face when Maci said she and Kyle broke up and that she's staying in Nashville anyway was interesting. Although, I must admit, I don't understand why she wants to stay there... she's talked about how lonely she is there. Ryan's nonchalance at the mediation bothered me. Ryan came out of nowhere with asking Maci if she thinks they should be together!
Farrah: Her mom is implying that Farrah picks really bad people to date when she talks about how she wants him to meet Julian, LoL. He seems just as weirded out by the setup as she does. I totally didn't like his shirt. Um, I bet Julian's dad knew Farrah had a kid, so I bet he told Julian. Farrah's mom was totally being realistic with the renting paperwork, Farrah was just being a brat. ugh. Farrah crying is so annoying.
Amber: She's teaching her daughter to answer the door for strangers??!? haha, Amber guessed where he was. HAHAHA, Gary took off when she showed up! I hate whiny Amber. I think Gary is a little obsessive about having no guys change Leah.

Wednesday:
Better With You (S01E04): haha, the first fight is over Casey being a couple hours late. The 47th fight is about yet another infomercial purchase by Ben. The 829th fight is about not falling asleep with a book. I totally think Ben had the best reason to cause a fight. ouch! Ben is anti-board games, tho! Boo! :( I'm kinda glad there's a semi-real theme song, LoL. I LOVE how Mom wants a big wedding, not caring that dad wants a modest affair. I love how flattery gets Maddie every time. lmao on the crossword puzzle, bottle-shattering, fake Mia event. haha, "1/2 of every pair I own." whoa... the prescription tennis goggles for someone just taking lessons?? How serious can she be? punching bunnies = bad. Why did Ben have issues hearing the nude theory and why does Maddie want to show Casey & Mia how to fight, LoL? hahaha, the mom wants the rehearsal dinner someplace where she's feeling the alcohol by the second drink. I did like how she figured out what the dad was up to and just ran out of the restaurant! "no, I never factor stuff in," LoL. Nice that Casey was protective of Maddie rather than gawking at her, too. Never would've guessed that Maddie would be naked in public, though. Who told the parents about the naked thing?? Zachary Taylor??!? How old is that hotel??!?

South Park (S14E09): I had a hard time figuring out if they were saying "muff cabbage" or "muff garbage" because of the accents, LoL. So, for stereotypes we have women calling everyone b!tch3s, everyone's skin is orange, they shave their eyebrows, and shrug off everything with "it's a Jersey thing." ha! Everything East of the Rockies is Jersey -- "Gulf of JerseyMexico" and "St. Louis, New Jersey" were my favorites. I thought it was funny that they say that they can control themselves unless they're around others from Jersey, because my Jersey accent comes out when I'm around other Jersey natives, LoL. I hardly notice it, but my husband is quick to point it out. So... Kyle's inner Hersey self made him do his hair and clothes like he's from Jersey... but he thinks he can hide it anyway?? Nice Teen Wolf throwback. haha, hoagies in Japan. I froze at the first Al-Qaeda comment, and was even more surprised when they "came through" just to fly planes into them. And I don't know that they should have been thanking Osama. heh... Snookie as Golem was creepy, but I about changed the channel when it started raping Cartman. Overall, not the best episode.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Off season/Coming Up:

16 and Pregnant (October 26th, 10pm, MTV)
Burn Notice (back November 11)
Futurama (back November 21)
Hot in Cleveland (season 3 to start in January)
Mr. Sunshine (starts in January on ABC)
Minute to Win It (season 3 to start...)
Wipeout (season 4 back next summer)
The Secret Life of the American Teenager (not sure)
Table for 12: (missing "summer," "busy day," "jumping in," "brace yourself," "back to school")

Huge got Canceled, Senate Passes TV Bill

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Hulu made the second season of Arrested Development available online. Now, I just finished the second season a week ago, but if you've never seen it, now's as good a time as any.

Huge got canceled. I'm sad, as I really liked that show. Ratings had steadily declined. However, there is an online petition to try to save it. Similarly, I hear that 19 Kids and Counting isn't doing well, so they may be nearing their end, too. Unless an announcement of #20 spikes things again...

The Senate passed a bill to force commercials to be quieter. As in, not louder than the show they are interrupting. It was unanimous. The House has already passed a similar bill (there are minor differences). This could be a law soon... and I have mixed feelings on it.

Um, it's October. But, plans for May sweeps are already underway. FOX plans to have all three Seth MacFarlane shows (Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show) have a giant crossover as a hurricane hits all three. Yes, you read right... it's hitting Washington, DC, Stoolbend, VA, and Quahog, RI.

All sorts of new things are going on with GoogleTV.

This isn't real-time news, but it's new to me: Shredder, the bad guy from the late-80s-early-90s cartoon Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was voiced by James Avery... aka Uncle Phil from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Crazy.

As if the show wasn't popular enough, Modern Family is considering doing a musical episode.

I don't watch these shows, but premiere dates for White Collar (Tuesday, January 18th, 10pm) and Royal Pains (Thursday, January 20th, 9pm) are up.

The blog "Awkward Family Photos" has gotten picked up as a tv series for ABC.

FOX got the rights to make a series based on Will Smith's Hitch. It's going to be an hour-long format.

You mom being on Facebook is no longer an issue. SNL addressed it, LoL.

9 Things About I Just Want You to Know

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

I know it's been a while since I wrote about the other two Gosselin books. And, in fact, it's been like four months since I read this book. But, since I've been doing that "drinking game" series, I haven't interrupted that to throw this in on a Wednesday. Today I don't have time to come up with a new game (yes, I'll admit that I think I've now posted all of the ones I already know, except Seinfeld, but I was saving that one for the finale of writing that series), so I'm finally posting this book review.

I had some difficulty in tracking down I Just Want You to Know, mainly because my library didn't get it immediately. I actually believe that I was the first person in my county to have it checked out (third tops, really, judging by the date of acquisition). I found it more interesting than the second book, but not as intriguing as the first. I chose nine points since the book focuses on the eight children and Kate, but not Jon. They're listed primarily chronologically, as I thought of them while reading the book, but there are a couple that interested me later, and others that are more overview-ish.

1. Kate was terrified of a nighttime fire in the house. She and Jon worked out plans multiple times about how they'd get the kids out in such an emergency. When the sextuplets were really little, the plan was to just throw them in the middle of a comforter and Jon would carry them out like they were in a sack!

2. At one point they lived in a neighborhood that had trash regulations. Since the littlest kids were still in diapers, they would regularly go way over this allotment and either keep the least smelly trash in the garage another week, wheel a can several streets over to a friend's house who never hit the allowance, or put it all out with some snacks, in hopes that the trashmen would accept the gift and take all of the refuse.

3. Kate claims they would go through 4 boxes of cereal or two dozen eggs PER BREAKFAST. Even if this claim was when the little kids were four years old, that would mean each ate two eggs per morning, which is a lot for a kid that young. And I'm pretty sure you can get 8 servings of cereal out of a box with ease... so that's 32 servings for 10 people... doesn't add up.

4. Mady knew how to use "thanks" in context when she was eleven months old. AND, she has a second middle name: Rene. Similarly, the baby that didn't make it was to be Emma Rose or Ella Rose... even though there is no definitive answer that it was a girl.

5. you know how Jon was always brushing the kids' teeth on the show? Apparently he didn't always do that, because when Mady was four, she had a tooth that was black and rotting before Kate noticed that there was a problem.

6. There are quite a few apologetic remarks throughout the book about how Kate was sorry for the things she said to Jon and the way she blew up at Jon frequently. She also does a pretty good job of convincing the reader to take her side, using ploys to talk about how stressed she was and tugging on single mothers' heartstrings. However, there is also some finger-pointing, and parts of the book are clear that she's not happy with Jon's "instability," among other things.

7. There are a few stories that are being retold from Kate's first two books. I'm not sure what her angle was in doing that, but perhaps it was simply because those particular anecdotes are indeed very important to her.

8. In addition to needing more space, the family needed to move again because they needed more privacy, and their old house wouldn't allow it because of neighborhood building codes.

9. The letters to the boys mention that Kate is sorry she can't act as a "father" to them... does she not think that girls need fathering, too?

oh, and as an added bonus? Book 4 is on its way: Love is in the Mix, a cookbook. Not sure how I'll review that one. But, there's not even a release date for it yet, so who knows when this will actually be a concern.

Lie to Me - "The Royal We"

by Jonathan Bredemeyer

(S03E02)

Great opening with Lightman knocking down the smoke detector after he burns toast from frustration from trying to write his book. Emily wants to help and tries writing the first line... which Lightman immediately changes to "Let there be Lightman."

Deaf intern girl makes her first appearance at the office as Lightman takes out his frustration on her by snapping at her bit, clearing Loker's desk, and sticking her at Loker's computer. Foster tries to make intros as he drives her guest away with smart-assness. In a rare appearance by the office admin, Lightman blackmails her into hacking into Foster's computer. Loker gets slightly annoyed as Cal put the deaf intern doing the red dot test at his desk...

Lightman heads off to the rehearsal of a beauty pageant to meet the pageant coordinator to vet the contestants. He notices the girl with an attitude towards her mom (pouring soda on herself on purpose), as he's told to leave by a mad dad. Foster and the coordinator show up as Cal pegs the seemly snotty girl as the favorite and predicting the cause of some future trouble. He continues to plead that the girl is screwing up deliberately and will cause trouble. Loker admits to job hunting to Torres as he searches for jobs on Lightman's laptop. (poetic vs pathetic justice... someone thinks they're clever.) The Lightman Group is doing 'preinterviewers' for the pageant. Lightman grills the Mom of 'attitude girl' and ticks her off pretty good. He then asks the girl if she's thought of suicide to which she says no but he spots as a lie. Next, he says it was abuse and they find a wicked bruise on her shoulder. The girl blames the pissed off dad from earlier which Lightman doesn't buy: "You just rang a bell you can't un-ring."

Lightman calls the 'dodgy' cop who's been drinking to scare the accused dad (Mr. Fletcher). Lightman makes fun of 'cop speak' as they briefly interview and then release the man. After a short exchange with the pageant coordinate, Lightman checks out Foster on the way out. He and Foster go to interview the mom and attitude girl and find no separation in their references to each other (the 'royal we,' perhaps?). They split the two to interview them separately: Lightman take the girl and entices her interest by stealing from the vending machine. (They're starting to add flashbacks to what Lightman sees in people...)

Back at the office, Admin makes an appearance again and Lightman asks if Loker has been at his desk. He smells him on his Mac and notices a missing pen. Attitude girl and her mom show up and this time they switch: Foster interviews the girl and Lightman and the mom watch from behind the glass. The girl tells a fake story of the Dad getting her alone and touching her. Lightman tells the mom shes enjoying her, lying in front of her. The pagent coordinator shows up all upset because two more girls have made the same accusations against Mr. Fletcher.

Cal and his dodgy cop show up to take Fletcher's daughter to social services. Someone has spray painted 'pervert' on the side of his motorhome. Fletcher now asks for 'Laura,' and Lightman starts the work of helping him prove his innocence. Fletcher mentions that Megan (attitude girl) did come by and attacked him with scissors. Lightman says Megan's getting what she wants. As Lightman and Fletcher rejoin the pageant people, Fletch takes a punch from a pissed-off dad of one of the girls accusing him.

Returning to the office, Loker apparently put deaf girl and boy on the red dot test for 10 hours to get back at Lightman (which he admits he's never finished). Torres has been going over footage of past pageants and discovers Megan's fake fall on the runway.

Lightman: "You know what causes that? Constant criticism and lack of affection."

Torres: "You mean how you treat Loker?"

Pause.

Lightman: "Who?"

At a meeting with the pagaent coordinator, Megan, and her mom, Lightman adds Fletcher and tries to convince the coordinator to disqualify Megan because 'pain is her drug of choice.' After refusing, Lightman exits with "enjoy the freakshow." Foster interviews the other accusers with the Dodgy Cop and discovers they are repeating the same story. D.C. gets a call about Megan going for a walk and not returning.

An angry mob has surrounded Fletcher's trailer. Loker shows up at the pageant site to confront Lightman about giving away his desk. Loker suggests one of the crowd knows where Megan is, as DC shows up. Fletcher's daughter is in intensive care and DC takes him to the hospital. After a 2nd badgering from Lightman, Loker returns his stolen pen.

Lightman goes to the hospital and waits in a hospital bed (where the injured girl is supposed to be) for Megan, who shows up and immediately gets close to him. After some taunting, he restrains her to find a piece of metal in her hand. She proceeds to show him the self-inflicted cuts on her leg. She threatens to claim Lightman attacked her if he tells, right before he throws back a curtain and reveals D.C and her mom.

Back at the fort (LG office), it's discovered the girls were reading Megan's mom's diary and repeating the attack story from there. Megan had been acting out her Mom's memories (She went to see Back to the Future...) from the diary in between pageants.

Now at the pageant stage, Lightman finds Megan dressed in her angel costume (ironically) up in the catwalk ready to jump. Lightman goes up and tries to talk her down by explaining that his mom killed herself. He explains he knows about the diary, and Megan finally breaks down and confesses to hating her mom's constant correction of her (hm... a dig at child pageant shows?). Lightman must convince her as Megan ends up competing in the pageant and getting second place, which pleases Megan and ticks off her mom (making Megan feel great).

Lightman gets the chance to comfort Megan's mom after the pageant and reveals he has her diary. Megan comes out and says she found it and wants to quit pageantry. The mom (still using the royal 'we'/'us' tense) protests and Lightman leaves. Returning to the office, Lightman plays soccer with the ball Fletcher sent him (being a soccer mom) in Foster's office. Torres tries to convince Loker that Lightman cleaned off Loker's desk because he wants him on the street, not behind a desk. Loker claims he applied for a job at the pentagon and will leave if he gets it. Torres is pissed.

Lightman returns home to Emily claiming she's warming dinner. Lightman actually opens up to her a bit (despite persistent urging from Foster earlier). Emily says she's writing a forward to his book as he starts dinner. He later sits down in the dark to begin Chapter 1 of his book for the third time. He starts with:

"Let me be clear. I understand very little, least of all the people closest to me."

Favorite Episodes: The Torkelsons / Almost Home

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

This is one of those shows that got re-tooled pretty heavily and still only lasted two seasons. The first season (The Torkelsons) takes place in Pyramid Corners, Oklahoma, and focuses on a single mom raising her five children on the verge of bankruptcy. The second season (Almost Home) features the same mother with only three children (poor Ruth-Ann and Steven-Floyd got the boot), working as a live-in housekeeper for a widower with two children in Seattle.

Both seasons had their charm. The first season had boy-next-door Riley and the second season had rich-kid Gregory, so there was plenty of eye-candy, LoL. The first season's storylines dealt with being have-nots, making due, and Dorothy-Jane being in love. The second season featured irresponsible kids learning what work is like, Dorothy-Jane continuing to seek out popularity, and more teenager issues.

Season 1: "It's My Party" (S01E19) Dorothy Jane is again going after popularity. She hosts a party, and wants everything to be exactly right. Millicent can't afford bottled water, so she thinks it would be just fine to get bottles from the recycling center and fill them herself. Meanwhile, Dorothy Jane only invites the cool kids (like Callie), and not her other friends, since she wanted to make sure there's nothing for the guests not to like. She even ignores a school commitment in order to hang out with the cool girls. Quality isn't the best, but here's Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Season 2: "Dueling Birthdays" (S02E08) Dorothy-Jane and Molly have birthdays close together, resulting in their sixteenth birthday parties coinciding. Molly's is your typical extravagant bash, while Dorothy-Jane is celebrating with her favorite meal with her family. While Dorothy-Jane longs for the excitement and adventure of a party with everything and everyone, Molly wishes for a more intimate affair with people who actually care about her. No video on this one.