New Season, New Format

We're changing up our episode recaps and remarks for the new television season, mainly to shift our focus to covering new series and specials before they air rather than after. We believe this will help you make more fitting choices as to what to watch, and it will also help out our subscribers not to receive as many articles about shows they potentially have no interest in, as our current lineup is very broad.

But, we're not dropping recaps with remarks completely. We will still cover pilots we deem promising, and we'll be writing about holiday episodes of those and of our returning favorites. Plus, we are continuing to cover some series in their entirety, particularly cable shows that are tougher for you to catch up on elsewhere. What does this mean for your favorite show? For all of the series we were currently recapping, here are their fates:

                                                      16 & Pregnant: regular posting
                                                      19 Kids & Counting: regular posting
                                                      2 Broke Girls: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Bob's Burgers: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Buddy's Bakery Rescue: discontinued
                                                      Cake Boss: regular posting
                                                      Cake Boss: Next Great Baker: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      Falling Skies: discontinued
                                                      Girl Meets World: regular posting
                                                      Hot in Cleveland: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Instant Mom: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Last Man Standing: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Little People, Big World: regular posting
                                                      Melissa & Joey: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Mistresses: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      South Park: regular posting
                                                      Switched at Birth: regular posting
                                                      Teen Mom 2: regular posting
                                                      The Big Bang Theory: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      The Exes: regular posting
                                                      The Goldbergs: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      The Middle: holidays and special episodes only
                                                      Under the Dome: fate to be determined if series is renewed
                                                      White Collar: holidays and special episodes only

what do you think of the posting schedule? sad to be losing regular updates? excited for more new program coverage? 

Cake Boss: Hot Air Balloons, Napoleons, and a Party

Is it just me, or has this series really turned into one of those random shows that runs, then stops, then airs a handful of episodes (sometimes multiple in a single night), then disappears again? You're never really sure when new episodes are running, or what the cancellation status is... it gets confusing! Cake Boss in particular is past 150 episodes now, and even Buddy has admitted in a roundabout way that everything has been showcased, and because of that, customers just want bigger and crazier cakes, which is becoming very challenging for his team. Sure, there is never-ending drama when you consider the family, and employees come and go in the bakery, but even I am starting to wonder if this show has had a full life...

DCL

The Cake Boss "Up, Up, & Away" (S06E28) [season finale]: Howard, who runs the New Jersey Festival of Ballooning, wants a cake delivered via hot air balloon. [first of all, I' from New Jersey and have never heard of this festival! second, I loved the term "balloonatics."] The basket isn't large, and landing isn't always smooth, so they need to build it shorter than 30". They decide to make cotton candy clouds, but it keeps melting, which is a shame. [it is a really beautiful cake, though!] When it comes time to get into the balloon, Buddy doesn't think it will work, but he and Maurizio get in to go for it. Buddy fought to keep the cake upright as they nearly crash, but it's salvageable.

Pierre (a chef) & Talita (a restaurant owner) want a cake for Bastille Day, July 14th. It'll be a large napoleon, and Buddy worries about the pastry cracking when supports are added, so they use bamboo skewers instead of traditional dowels.

The rest of the episode focuses on family issues - we learn that Momma heads back to Israel to get the cultivated stem cells from her brother, Dominic. We review that her children are 47, 46, 44, 38, 36. We learn that Ashley is moving on from Carlo's and is starting her own bakery, and Buddy gives her some advice.

Buddy has Marco and Sophia help him make chocolate-covered strawberries for the company party cake, where the employees vote for "Most Valuable Baker" and "Most Valuable Decorator." [Buddy makes sure nobody is voting for his or herself, haha.] Lou wins for baker, and Jessica B. earns decorator, so both receive gift cards for massages. [a dunk tank?] Three days later, Anthony decides to move to Florida without an explanation. He hadn't been doing great at the bakery, and was resisting Buddy's efforts to assist him in making cream puffs correctly.

Cake Boss: Bigger and Bigger

Do you guys remember when Joe was supposed to decide between the bakery and the firehouse? Guess he managed to find a way to make both careers work! And, props if you remember the firetruck cake Buddy references, which happened two episodes before my first recap of the show. Anyway, although the new firetruck cake is leaps and bounds more advanced that the one five years ago, it also must be hugely more expensive. In fact, with a lot of the cakes that have been showcased on the series lately, I've been wondering what prices people are paying for garbage disposal cakes, hydraulic car cakes, and more... especially when so many of the customers make comments regarding how the bakery went above and beyond their wildest dreams!

Cake Boss "Fiery Competition" (S06E27): Joey is a lieutenant at the fire station now, so Grace throws a party and the guys make a special cake, complete with real working hoses that put out a flambe on top of the cake. [I still don't completely believe it was fully edible after all of that!] As they build the masterpiece, they learn that the ladder is too close to the cake to reach the top of the building, so they must reposition it. [moving ladders = awesome.]

DCL

Buddy does a cake for a charity bocce tournament, and they use cake balls to make the bocce balls. The bakery also enters a team, consisting of Buddy, Mauro, Joey, and Lisa's dad, Mauro, who has a bocce ball court in his backyard. [I didn't realize Lisa's dad sold the pizza parlor and worked in the bakery. or maybe I forgot? it explains why Lisa's brother, Anthony, is still around, though!]

Cake Boss: Field Trips, Tricky Cakes, Family Drama

I wanted to see more of the underwater cake they were decorating! I also enjoy seeing the old-fashioned designs, so seeing Mauro's fancy stringwork was neat. However, I'm not sure why we're seeing work that is obviously not Carlo's best... take the Samurai cake featured below for example... some rows of design clearly have thicker yellow lines, others thicker red, and a few that appear very even... why so much disconnect? Yes, it's easier to pipe all of one first and go back for the other, but that's what causes it to look mediocre in places.

Otherwise, the monotony of this series is starting to get to me... the producers are mixing great cakes with troubles projects and throwing a little family drama here and there... while each is interesting in its own way, the mix has seemed off lately, and I need it to get back on track. It is nice to see more "field trips," though. Any thoughts on what we've been seeing of the bakery lately?

DCL

The Cake Boss "Sicilian Samurai" (S06E23): The bakers take a class in samurai martial arts so they can prepare to make a cake for a group of practitioners. The traditions will be presented on the cake, and the details need to be authentic. [Buddy never talks about the tips he uses, so the promotion of tip 199 was interesting. that said, it did not appear to be their neatest work.] Later, Buddy rents some sumo wrestling suits and a mat and has some of the employees duke it out. [weird.] When it comes time to deliver the cake, they struggle because it's too tall for the elevator while on a cart, but the elevator is too small for multiple people and a cake. Luckily, they manage. 

The parents of the new mayor of Jersey City order a patriotic, celebratory cake for their son. [Buddy didn't attach those cakes in that hat structure?] They add a confetti cannon, which is risky because it's loud and could damage the cake. [plus, who wants to ear confetti on cake?!?]

The Cake Boss "Down the Drain" (S06E24): Christina plans a surprise 41st birthday party for her Irish boyfriend, even though he hates surprises. [so she did it because it made her feel/look good? annoying!] She wants a cake to fit his "human garbage disposal" persona, so the guys decide to put a garbage disposing device inside, and make the recipient eat whatever comes out. [seriously??] Ralph and Mauro work with a real garbage disposal, but the results resemble vomit, so they try using the sausage grinder attachment for a mixer... which results in having to build a mixer into the cake! [did the customer have to buy the KitchenAid?? because that's like $300 extra!] They create foods out of fondant and modeling chocolate covering cereal treats. The overall appearance is a bit tacky, but the birthday boy does eat a concoction made from chips, chocolate, and beer! Buddy takes a similar game to the bakery, bringing in pig's feet, tripe, lamb's head, quail eggs, and other gross items to see who's willing to eat that stuff. [I thought the decorators betting each other was funny, but Mauro digging in without being paid was just weird!] 

Matt & Michelle are getting married, and want a wedding cake getting winched by a tow truck. It's tough, but the bakers pull it off, complete with some old-school piping on the wedding cake.

Family: Anthony has been the manager of the baking room for about a year, but his biscotti dough is the wrong consistency so he's not perfect.

The Cake Boss "Icing the Cake" (S06E25): Buddy does a cake for the NHL Draft, and gets to see some of the new players in action. [he only got a couple of days of notice on this one?] He decides to go with a life-size goalie, which turns out well. There's also a second job with the project, as Buddy designs a prank cake for one of the announcers so that a pie flies up to hit the recipient in the face. [that was cool, but I bet you could get a better idea of what was going to happen if you were close.]

A woman comes in, wanting a delicate stringwork design for a replica cake, as she's been turned down by multiple bakeries. [hanging sugar IS tough, which Buddy has mentioned in the past.] Buddy agrees to do it, and puts Mauro in charge of making it work on-location. [it's pretty, though not perfectly even. The recipients were so surprised!] 

Family: Momma is improving a month after the first round of stem cell treatment, so she decides to return to Israel for another round. [her faith that it will work is encouraging.]

The Cake Boss "Birthdays and Biceps" (S06E26): Buddy does a cake for a family of arm-wrestling champions. [wow. now that's an activity I haven't heard about in ten years!] The cake has battling arms coming out at an angle, with a turntable to showcase the veins in the arms. When the hole isn't big enough and there's no access door on the cake, they trim the cake to fit. [reapplying that diamond-looking fondant covering must have taken a lot of time!] After adding some lights and bells, they go to deliver the cake, and learn that the turntable slid down inside during travel. [ugh! what a disaster!] Buddy and Mauro are able to salvage it to its original state, luckily.

Family: Mauro talks to his kids about doing something special for Madeline's birthday, so Mary, Dominique, and Buddy are in charge of making a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs with salad. [the kids must take after Grace and not cook, LoL.] It's up to the youngest to distract Madeline while Mauro and the girls get everything set up, but she realizes quickly that something is happening. [what was the filling? prunta crema?] Everything works out, though it appears they didn't have time to make the salad. [loved that there was a present inside the cake!]

Buddy this Week: Cake & Bakery Boss

I decided to combine Buddy Valastro's TLC shows into one post this week because of Garrett. That probably doesn't make a lot of sense, but Garrett was a competitor on yet another of Valastro's shows, Cake Boss: Next Great Baker, but wound up withdrawing from competition due to his anxiety. Ashley went on to win that season, so the focus on her in this week's Cake Boss seemed to be linked to Lidia's issues in Bakery Boss. On that note, I had forgotten that Buddy suffered from anxiety here and there, though it has been mentioned before. I've had obsessive-compulsive issues since I was seven, and while I am rarely physically affected in an interfering way, I can relate to being unable to control oneself when certain situations arise. I was intrigued that Lidia went from being fairly nonchalant about the bakery's success to being gung-ho and ready to lead, given her uncertainty over whether she knew what she was doing. Of course, on that note, I agreed with her - it probably would have behooved her to work for someone as a decorator or baker for a while to see what sells, how to display/market your goods, etc., but maybe it'll all work out.

Cake Boss "Next Great Bride" (S06E21): Ashley and her fiance have moved to Tennessee with their chickens, dog, and cat. [but she's still at the bakery in New Jersey? or the interview was just later?] The couple will be married at a winery with a hot air balloon to go up and down, and Carlo's is going to do both the wedding cake and the groom's cake. [that's a lot of cattails!] Ashley wants pinwheels on the cake and a hollow heart inside one of the layers, plus the whole thing will be topped off with a taxidermied mice cake topper. [yeah...] The groom's cake features their pets playing ping pong and fishing. [I thought it was a really cute idea, as was the beans & eggs thing.] Anthony makes fun of the cake, so Buddy challenges him to ping pong - if Anthony wins, he'll have an easy summer schedule. But, he loses, and he has to have his whole body waxed. [doing it in the bakery was rough and kinda gross!] Danny and Anthony deliver the cakes to Kentucky [I didn't care for Ashley's wedding cake... so weird.] Ashley's mom isn't thrilled for the dead rodents on the cake, [I've never seen someone freak out like Ashley before the wedding. or during the ceremony, for that matter!]

DCL

Cake Boss "Carlo's Cowboys" (S06E22): Some "East Coast Rodeo Cowboys" ask for a cake for a bull-riding clinic, and Buddy does a six-foot tall cake that is a rider on a horse, complete with a spinning lasso! [loved Ralph's puns! also, that cake looked amazing! see for yourself to the right!] a lot of the family members go to the delivery, and Anthony and Maurizio get to try riding bulls, lasting 7 and 5 seconds, respectively. The other guys gets to ride horses while the girls muck the stalls. [Mauro was funny.]

Ben and Anne are getting married in a surprise ceremony, so Buddy does a cake for them that incorporated the lace designs in Anne's gown. [I like watching Buddy and Liz work together.]

Bakery Boss "Lidia's Bakeshop & Cafe" (S01E06): Buddy visits Dobbs Ferry, NY, an affluent town 45 min N of Manhattan, where Lidia is pushed by her mother into running a bakery. [Lidia never does say what she was doing that wasn't "in-field" before starting this project.] Though Lidia does want this career and has degrees in culinary arts, she feels like she was rushed into this at a young age and without the proper experience. They've been open six months and make $200-$400 a day (they're open 6 days/week), with four employees. Lidia isn't sure how big the loss is, though, as her mother owns the building so they use it rent-free, and the woman also invested about $100k in renovations and appliances. [holy cow! That $5-10k/month estimate is probably right!]

There are big organization problems, the feel isn't "bakery," the showcases aren't full,and they don't sell cakes (sliced or whole). [that recipe search was disastrous!] Their biggest seller, in fact, are panini, which is odd for a place with a big sign that says "bakery." The cupcakes are frosted to order, but when things aren't out to see, it's hard to order them. [she really believed that she should wait until the last possible second to ice them?] The cupcakes are good, the pignoli is really hard and looks boring, and although the brownies are individually wrapped, they are so hard that they break a fork! [MY brownies aren't that hard in four days!] 

When a customer comes in wanting 20 cupcakes, and they have none because the freezer is full of cookie dough, Lidia attempts to get them made in 45 minutes. However, the rush causes her to have a panic attack, so Buddy asks the group to close the store and go home. He chats with Lidia about the situation, and when she seems determined to make it work, he has her show him her cake decorating skills the following morning. The reason the store doesn't sell fondant cakes is because Lidia feels she's too busy to do them, even though she does a great job. [she definitely has an eye for this!]

Buddy does some renovation to the front of the bakery, including making room for dummy cakes on the shelves. [I'm SHOCKED they didn't have any!] Lidia will also be able to decorate behind glass for customers to watch. [I'd have been wary of installing that in a store where the lead baker has frequent panic attacks...] The kitchen got a sheeter, too, along with a nice new inventory and cash register system.] There's an easy menu for the staff to handle so that Lidia will be able to focus on cakes, and Buddy even shows her some decorating techniques. [I actually wanted to go into my kitchen and make a chocolate tart, LoL.] Then, they have a grand re-opening and Buddy even arranges for Lidia to make a sweet sixteen cake for 40 people. Though it's due the same day, she is able to incorporate "pink" and "jewelry" and even do the cake in the window. [I thought the middle tier was a bit plain, but maybe I'm just so not a pink person that I couldn't process its pros. also, personal pet peeve, I hate it when vendors promote themselves at events. and, the kids at the party seemed way younger than 16 for the most part.] A few months later, they're selling 30% more. [I don't know that I would have done away with the panini entirely, as it was their big money maker... plus, 30% more is only making $520/day max, so let's hope she meant 300% more?]

RETURNING: Cake Boss: Gators, Guitars, Mariachis, Cars

Back again with episodes taking place last Spring/Summer, as I *think* Sofia has a summer birthday (July?) but Willie's birthday is in April. Other clear markers like Cinco de Mayo exist, but it doesn't much matter how TLC decides to piece the cakes together for the most part. Ashley getting married will be a big factor in this half of the season, as will Buddy's mother's outcome from having the experimental procedure done for her ALS. The show has really gotten cut and dried at this point, and you know what to expect - it's more of how-did-they? than anything else if you're a longtime viewer. In the first four episodes of this session, I think the cake that stood out to me most was the car cake, but I didn't think the look was as impressive as the action. The gator cake was lifelike, but I tend not to enjoy the carved cakes as much as the layered ones, so I'm inclined to choose the spa cake, really. You?

The Cake Boss "Gator Bite" (S06E17): The Adventure Aquarium asks for a life-size cake for a 14-foot, 800-pound alligator! Buddy is allowed into the exhibit to help with a feeding so that he can really understand how gigantic the animal is, and that inspires him to make the cake's mouth open and close. [I bet!] They work hard on the textures and colors, and when it's all said and done, it's 16 feet long and weighs 1,000 pounds! Buddy says it belongs in their "Top Ten Cakes" list. [I's really love to know what else makes that list!!]

http://www.tlc.com/tv-shows/cake-boss/photos/buddys-sketchbook-season-6-part-2-pictures.htm

The 2010 Mrs. New Jersey asks for a cake to give the pageant director. It needs to be classy and glamorous, but she has no other guidelines other than suggesting incorporating the looks of the sash and tiara. Buddy pipes and adds bling to the design, but it's not enough for her, as she wants more va-va-voom. [eye roll!] He wipes the piping off the fondant and she watches as the new vision comes together. She then thinks it looks too plain, and asks for roses, so she gets roses. [I was so sick of her by the end! next time, hit the internet, find some ideas, and bring them with you!]

At the St. Francis Church in Hoboken, Momma prays for the stem cells from her brother, Dominic, to help heal her ALS. Mary also goes with them to Israel, and Skypes Buddy and the other sisters with information. Momma is very weak, but it takes 3-4 weeks to see improvement, so only time will tell. [hoping for the best!] 

The Cake Boss "On the Road Again" (S06E18): The bakery is charged with creating a replica guitar for Willie Nelson's 80th birthday. [I had no idea he had been playing the same guitar for 40 years!] It takes time to get "Trigger" to look dinged up, have engraved names, and get the hole with the puffing smoke just right, but the cake is one-of-a-kind with potato chips, popcorn, and pretzels in the chocolate fudge filling as a "munchie food" thing! [that sounds kinda gross, but whatever.] There are also cave drawings on it to poke fun at how long Willie has been playing. [I thought that was random.] Buddy, however, is unable to deliver the cake because WifeLisa is being honored the same night for her charitable work with the Make a Wish Foundation, so he sends a cardboard cut-out of himself to photograph with the legend. [okay, who else thought this was really weird??]

Sophia turns 10, and she's into gymnastics and girly things like makeup. She gets a bright pink cake with a cheetah pattern, ruffly flowers, and makeup. [anyone think it was weird that she's into it but not allowed to wear it? or is that a phase I just skipped as a child?] She wants a cell phone, and though WifeLisa is skeptical, Buddy gets it for her, with the rules that no boys can call, and she can't use it after 9pm. [I can't even imagine having a phone at 10!]

The Cake Boss "Viva Cake Boss" (S06E19): A mariachi band wants a cake for a Cinco de Mayo party, and Buddy will need to dress as a mariachi and sing "La Bamba" upon delivery. [apparently Buddy sings?] Buddy wants to do a bigger/fancier cake than the customers asked for (even though they had a specific vision), with lots of detailed cut-outs and decorations, but at least they seem happy. [the personalized sombrero was a cool touch.]

The salon where Frankie gets his hair cut is opening a new location across the street from the Ridgewood location and wants a special cake. [did they barter makeovers for the cake?] WifeLisa becomes a redheard, SisterLisa gets her hair straightened, Grace gets more volume, Madeleine gets extensions, and Mary... has very little changed. [Madeleine looked so different!] Buddy likes the red on his wife much better than she does. The cake has a flattened pebble layer, a tranquil turquoise layer, and a trendy black leather layer. [cool concept.]

The Cake Boss "Pimp My Cake" (S06E20): Some car guys want a lowrider cake that uses hydraulics. Ralph is very skeptical of the bouncing system, wondering if it will be stable enough, but it works in the end!

An event guy wants a Roman cake, so they go with modeling chocolate columns. [really straightforward project, I wonder why they chose to include it on the show?]

Buddy's lower back has been bothering him, so he sees a physical therapist, who encourages him to try yoga. He and some of the bakery folks try it, but not everyone takes it seriously. [no real surprise, LoL.]

NEW SHOW: The Michael J. Fox Show Starts with a Double!

It certainly seems as if there are too few families spending any time together anymore. The Michael J. Fox Show attempts to be the antithesis to this, with the patriarch insisting on the family sitting down to meals together, only for everyone to choose to jet off in their own directions. Instead, the other family members seem to prefer eating on the go for every meal, as pictured below.

(Photo by: K.C. Bailey/NBC)

Fortunately, with a family this difficult, it might be a great thing that Mike is returning to work, as he will be able to spend more time fixing the problems there instead of in his own home. This will, of course, wreak at least some havoc as everyone makes the transition, but that will be half the fun! 

The Michael J. Fox Show "Pilot" (S01E01): Mike Henry left the workplace five years ago due to Parkinson's and has been pouring all of his energy into his family ever since. Teen daughter Eve isn't super-serious about school and is failing English (the very subject her mother teaches) when she doesn't take a The Grapes of Wrath project seriously. [she's also rather annoying.] Younger son Graham is an average boy, interested in LEGOs and whatnot, but whose room has been invaded by older brother Ian, who failed out of Cornell. Mike and Annie don't know that Ian failed out when his Economics class was graded on a curve, as he has been claiming to be starting his own search engine, u-search.net. Also in the mix is Mike's sister, Leigh, who lives in the basement of the building (near Amsterdam and W. 72nd, so Upper West Side), thanks to Mike helping her with rent. Leigh writes 200-word tidbits for US Weekly and is desperate to marry and have a baby. [and for attention in general, really.]

On his way to take the kids to school, Mike runs into his old boss, Harris, who tells him he should return to work. After some thought, Mike decides to go for it, and the family is very excited that he'll be out of the house more. [so excited, in fact, that it was Annie who set up the whole random meet-up between her husband and Harris.] Mike does a story at City Hall, and is supposed to be promoting his comeback on Today, but breaking news interrupts. [it could also be that Matt Laurer is his nemesis, and that's how the cookie crumbles, LoL.]

The Michael J. Fox Show "Neighbor" (S01E02): Mike goes upstairs to confront a neighbor's loud television, and soon has a small crush on the new resident of the building, Kelly. [she's watching Cake Boss! HOW do you forget to turn on the oven??] To make things less awkward (he talked in his sleep about Kelly), he convinces Harris to come over when Annie invites Kelly for dinner. The two hit it off, but Mike starts cock-blocking, seemingly unable to help himself. [haha! "Who wants to see my Emmys"?!]

Eve's friend, Reese, a lesbian, is coming over, so Eve tells her parents not to be awkward. Ian is the awkward one, though, right up until Eve learns that Reese isn't actually a lesbian, she just kissed a girl at a party. [this was random and we could have done with something more interesting, especially so early in the series.]

And, in a mini-storyline, Leigh is at the playground with Graham when some women think she's a single mother. Loving attention, she goes with it and vents about her struggles. [thankfully this didn't last!]

Happy 5th Birthday!

Today marks five years of posts on this site. Way back on this date in 2008, I was watching a Cheers rerun while surfing Monster.com, Craigslist, and the like for a job. I was a few months out of grad school and a few weeks from landing a job as a researcher. A lot has changed over the past half-decade, and we went from 89 posts in the first year to closing in on 1900 over the past four years. Not every article you read is from me anymore, as we have three other writers with various specialties - and our cartoon guy has recently returned!

I remember a lot of firsts. I remember the first time over 100 people hit in a single day. I remember when I had a solid month of 100+ hits every day. I remember the first time I got 1,000 hits in a day. I remember the first time I had 30 people on the site at the same time. I remember the first time someone sent me a link to something where TheTalkingBox was quoted. I remember the first time a publicist reached out and offered me exclusives in exchange for publicity. I remember my first screeners. I remember the first time someone else in "the biz" contacted me about growing the site. I remember the first month we had a hit from every state in the US.

We've had 600+ posts that aren't recaps and remarks, and a few make the list of Our Ten Most Popular Posts of All Time, though most of those slots belong to the articles folks search for to find out what happened and what we thought about various episodes. Let's take a quick look at the posts in that list...

Deal or No Deal
Who's Who on Season Three of Cake Boss' The Next Great Baker 
Giveaway: Hunger Games Poster! 
Futurama: October, Germany, and Neanderthals
New Competitions: Bridalplasty & The Next Great Baker
Hot in Cleveland: Meet Joy's Grandson 
Next Great Baker: Final Predictions
Favorite Episodes: Roseanne
NEW SHOW: Abby & Brittany
Cake Boss: Car Cake for Danica Patrick

The biggest surprise? Half of those posts are about shows on TLC, a network that covers a very wide variety of programming, with dozens of shows we never cover.

When I started, I didn't think about where this site would be in five years. Now, it's still tough to imagine what might change between now and 2018, but we hope to be here and doing even more!

Rather than list more accolades and milestones, I'll just throw out another THANK YOU, especially to the readers who never come to the site but read loyally over various means (like Google Currents!), and hope that you choose to celebrate our birthday by passing on a favorite article to a friend.

Cake Boss: Momma is Only 65; Sandy Cleanup Continues

Every time Buddy talks about the special Italian liqueur the bakery uses in some of their recipes, I try to figure out what it is so I can try it out, too. (though the original source went out of business a few years ago anyway.) I have never had luck, but I am also not positive what I'm searching for, as it sounds like Buddy is saying "samratsano" and I don't know much about Italian spelling so beyond maybe "semret sanno," I'm shooting in the dark. Regardless, the cream puff cake that they made with it was lovely, as was the Atlantic City cake. Unfortunately, this was a double-length episode without much emphasis on the culinary masterpieces, choosing instead to appeal to the human nature side of the audience with the family doing community service and trying to help Buddy's mother.

The Cake Boss "Momma's Birthday Surprise" (S06E16): The employees work on a cake for Atlantic City to celebrate the comeback from Hurricane Sandy, though Buddy only assembles the final product, as he and the family do a project for Habitat for Humanity all day. [neat to use glowstick tubes for brightness!] Mauro knew what he was doing because he was a builder before the bakery, but a lot of the other family members are lost. [Habitat is a favorite for TLC shows... the Duggars have done it, too.] The girls decide to do some gardening instead, actually. Chris Christie shows up, thanking the family for inspiring others to help. Everyone comes together to see the cake in the end. [nice to see multiple body types and shapes were represented.]

DCL

Buddy's mother is turning 65, so a big celebration is planned. [we know Buddy is 35, and he is the youngest of five children. It's exhausting to think about having five children at my age. that's all I'm saying!] Relatives fly in, including three of Momma's seven siblings (though one has passed away). All agree to get tested to see if they might be a bone marrow match for MommaMary, in hopes that an experimental treatment in Israel might help her ALS. [not being able to use your hands must be excruciating!] Buddy makes a tiered cream puff cake for her, which is rare because of the french pastry and sponge layers. [it is GORGEOUS!] Buddy plays a 1993 video of the family working in the bakery. [Momma was SO animated!] 

Cake Boss: Cakes for Day Camp and Dodgeball

Reading the title of the episode, one might expect that Buddy was going to run a cake decorating day camp or something out of Lackawanna. That would have been an interesting episode, but could also probably have turned into a miniseries of some sort on its own. Instead, it just referred to one of the cakes that the bakery employees put together, which was incredibly detailed and very beautiful (see picture below). Though the construction and operation of the cake were thoroughly covered, the end result seemed very disjointed and out-of-place, not just because the styles of the cakes were drastically different but also because the wedding cake replica did not seem to fit in when the celebration was really for the anniversary of the camp. Regardless, the fact that all three siblings are dedicated to the family business was nice, and right up Valastro's alley.

Cake Boss "Camp Carlo's" (S06E15): A summer camp family wants a big cake to celebrate 20 years of owning their own day camp. [not gonna lie... day camps don't really impress me. but they're an entirely different animal from resident camps, so I also can't fairly compare too closely.] They want a surprise cake to pop out of a normal cake, so Buddy works on a replica wedding cake that to pop out, showing his oldest son some of the piping techniques in the process. They can't test the pop-out factor much because the top cake will start to pull apart and fall onto the bottom cake, but it works out!. [so many campers all over the cake! but what was with the mummy?? a guy who got TP'd?] The bakers also compete in a tug-o-war war and win against some of the staff/family.

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A female dodgeball team wants a cake to celebrate their championship. Buddy wants to put together a team to play against the girls, and the guys will take the trophy if they win, but the girls would get a free cake. [I'd play under those terms! and I'm terrible!] Plus, the winning team gets to pie the losing team. [I thought that there was a bunch of space under the "Dodgeball Champions" placard, so they totally could have put "2013" under it or something.] The women easily win.

Cake Boss: Paul's Submarine Send-Off

Paul is moving on from baking to sales, at a bakery supply company. It may not have the creative side where Paul excels, but it could also be a more steady income with more conducive work hours to raising his family. This should allow Ashley to stand out more for her work and less for her ongoing feud with her former competitor, though it was still very generous of Buddy to help out Paul in a time of need. Paul's final project was an interesting one, with lots of detail and a combination of reality and fantasy. Similarly, Mauro's cake this episode incorporated both the legacy of a family as well as a young teen's wishes, resulting in a masterpiece to please all. However, with neither project really facing any big difficulties, it seems that an overly complicated cake will pop up next episode!

The Cake Boss "Buttercream Submarine" (S06E14): The Navy invites Buddy to the submarine base in CT, and then ask him make a cake for a ball. Paul has been on a submarine, so he's a leader on the project, his final one for Carlo's Bakery. [good riddance! not that I'm anti-Paul, but the drama between him and Ashley is beyond annoying.] There's some argument over the ocean floor... Buddy wants colorful coral, even if black caverns would be more realistic. The cake also has a propeller and a moving periscope. [I really liked the look actually, and the squid and whale were okay, but the mer-man??]

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Mauro needs to design a bat mitzvah cake that has purple and blue animal print, with rosettes on the bottom tier, and is both topsy-turvy and round, as mom and daughter have different ideas. [that's a lot to meld together! I think some of the sophistication died out, but it was still perfect for a thirteen-year-old.]

Cake Boss: Bribes and Bibles

note: Recaps and Remarks are going up later than usual due to Comic-Con and TCA.

I was never a fan of voting being a popularity contest. In middle school and high school, it almost has to be, as there really is no power behind those positions so there's nothing you can really use as a platform. But, in adulthood, one would hope that elections could be more than that. Apparently not, as this episode depicts a woman trying to buy votes with a custom Carlo's Bakery cake. It's sad and annoying, but, then again, it's for a group where the common denominator is facial hair, so it probably doesn't really matter. The title of the episode would fit both storylines better if it was called "Bribes and Bibles," rather than "Hair Raising," but the lack of alliteration this season continues to disappoint.

Cake Boss "Hair Raising" (S06E13): A member of the Gotham City Beard Alliance (which competes in beard and mustache competitions) is running for President and wants a cake that grows facial hair to impress her cohort. [facial hair as a hobby... I've never heard that one before!] So, Buddy asks Ralph to do a balloon mustache that can be pumped up.  [ewww! didn't that styrofoam get all over the cereal treats? those things are sticky! and styrofoam is so full of static!] The woman is very happy with the cake [exceeds expectations?? what was she hoping for?] Mary wants Ralph to kiss her so she can see how kissing someone with a mustache is different, and although he avoids initially, he does go through with it. [awkward much?? his reaction that it was like "Christmas and puberty all at the same time." was also odd.]

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Buddy Jr. is having his First Holy Communion, and WifeLisa has a black-and-white theme, but she's still skeptical of black fondant on a communion cake. [why not flash back to Sophia's communion cake? or Mary's kids' communion cake, for that matter?] Fortunately, the stenciling and rosary beads keep it from seeming grim, though most of the bakery workers agree that Buddy may have gone overboard with decoration. [that stenciling is such a time-consuming process! but what was with the gaps? also, I agreed about the busyness of the cake!] Joey bakes loaves of bread to give out at the celebration, though WifeLisa finds that to be a strange gift. [I found it very appropriate. however, I did not like those huge centerpieces!]

Cake Boss: Fire and Ice

Rather than play on some contrived alliterative title, "Fire and Ice" encapsulates both cakes appearing in this episode. With one, the customer specifically wants a "fire and ice theme," but in the other, firefighters saved a man from icy mud. Of course, this means that the two cakes were probably made at very different times (and, note the absence of Paul), but that's not bothersome when you consider one of Buddy's comments. When working against Ashley, he mentions that "I'd rather die trying than lose to her." Sure, he's a competitive guy and has 20 years more experience more than she does so he doesn't want to be shown up, but it's a pretty hefty statement for a guy who has four children and runs a large company. But, maybe he's making changes all around, as we did see him asking the employees' opinions on the design of both cakes, which is not something he commonly does.

The Cake Boss "Fire and Ice" (S06E12): Two brothers from a supper club ask for a cake for a theme party, with a Fire and Ice theme. The group thinks two different cakes would be good, and Ashly winds up taking on Buddy for a four-hour competition. She does the Ice cake, utilizing isomalt, while he does the fire cake, spending a good chunk of the time working on his utilization of fire, even putting glue on a board to see if he can get it to burn nicely. The bakery votes Buddy's to be better, though Ashley does receive a few votes. [not only is Buddy's clearly a better cake, but hers was so simplistic and puny next to it that I would have been upset to receive these as a customer! why not bulk up the Ice cake somehow?]

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A subway worker got stuck in icy mud 75 feet below ground level for four hours, and it took about 150 firefighters to get him out. Several of the first responders were injured in the process, so the survivor wants a fancy cake to thank everyone. [loved the helmets, patches, and bronze statues!]

Cake Boss: It's Easter on TLC

April, July, what's the difference? For viewers of Cake Boss, perhaps not that much. Rather than an episode filled with patriotic cakes and the family celebrating Independence Day with a BBQ, they were treated to Buddy Valastro decorating an Easter cake before the extended famiglia gathered to celebrate the holiday with Mama Mary, a snowbird returning to New Jersey for the summer. While most reality series (including Cake Boss: Next Great Baker, another of Valastro's four TLC series) screw with the timeline in order to air timely episodes for audiences, ignore seasonal changes, or even carry over the previous year's holidays in rare instances, Cake Boss continues to time-delay their tapings, even though TLC has proven on many occasions that it can turn around film in two or three weeks (like the births of Carlo Salvatore Valastro or Marcus Anthony Duggar). Why this happens in general is not clear, but this specific instance was pushed back in order to show both the opening of the Ridgewood location, and the problematic post-Sandy episodes. Here's to hoping we see some big wedding cakes and other summery creations soon.

The Cake Boss "Easter Basket Case" (S06E11): It's Easter time, which is hectic enough with only one bakery to run, so obviously Buddy is swamped with work, which only compounds when the bakery at Lackawanna can't keep up with the demand at the stores.

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An autism group is having an Easter egg hunt and orders a cake for 100 people. Buddy demonstrates a basket weave on the outside of the cake, and the decorators slice fondant into thin strips for Easter grass and adds lots of spring flowers to the cake board. [I LOVE the basketweave! When I learned it in my Wilton class, I was in love! It IS time-consuming, but it turns out gorgeous!] Buddy brought Sophia, Marco, and Carlo to the cake delivery and was even invited to kick-off the egg hunt. [haha, Buddy's countdown counted up!]

Buddy's mother has returned from her winter in Florida, and it seems that her ALS has spread to her chest, which can affect her breathing. [not to be morbid, but that's NOT a good sign.] Madeline's kids put together a scrapbook with all the cousins for their grandmother.

Over at the bakery, the hot Easter items are wheat pie, Easter bread, a special cookie, and cold cut pie. [cold cut pie?? I've never heard of such a thing and am struggling to figure out how that would work... maybe if it was like a quiche? actually, a little research reveals that it IS similar.] The wheat pies are time-intensive, both before and during baking, but it's what the customers want!

Cake Boss: The She-Hulk and a Proposal

I didn't realize that there were careers where your main job is to plan proposals for others. I guess it's kinda like a pregnancy concierge... if you pay enough, you can get anything. I'll have to tell my sister that this exists, as she's about to start her final semester in college to become an event planner. Anyway, this wasn't the most exciting episode (unless you're really into proposals, which I know a lot of TLC's audience probably is), and the one cake we did see the crew work on was rather hideous. But, maybe if you're into bodybuilding, you enjoyed it?

The Cake Boss "Muscles and Marriage" (S06E10): A female bodybuilder wants a cake shaped like her with everything she likes but hasn't been able to eat. [tilapia and asparagus for every meal for two months?? I really like those two together, but that's ridiculous!] So, Buddy builds it to include carrot, red velvet, vanilla, and chocolate cake. [oh, this is fun. I'd do vanilla, red velvet, banana, and pumpkin!] They add candy and nuts, along with some cheesecake filling. To build the woman, however, Ralph went "too big" at first and had to cut it down, though it still looked masculine. Buddy fixes that by adding roses, drapes, and bling. 

Image Credit: DCL

A proposal planner, Sarah, and one of her clients, Mike, talk to Mauro about rigging a class so that Mike could propose during a baking class at Carlo's. Sarah would "plant" all of the students, and each would use a different monogram letter on their cake to spell out "Will you marry me?" [cute idea, but that's gotta be really costly!] Mauro moderates the class but wears an earpiece so Sarah can help direct things as needed. [did she really need like four assistants when all they did was watch from another room??] Things go pretty smoothly throughout, but at the last minute, the soon-to-be-groom jumps the shark and gets down on one knee before the cakes are turned to read "will you marry me?" [and Mauro was the one who had to comment on that, LoL.]

Cake Boss: A Clown Cake, a Black-Light Cake

I really, thoroughly enjoyed watching Buddy decorate the clown cake on the fly! I've read that Wilton used to teach a buttercream clown in their old courses, but not anymore, so I was a little curious as to how that would work... and now I have a good idea! Like the customer, I was pretty confused as to what was being done to the sides of the cake, but the elephants turned out REALLY cute! I generally find "the circus" to be a great theme for parties, decorations, kids' rooms, bulletin boards, games of charades, etc. so I was quite happy the customer chose that theme. But, the other cake this episode was just as spectacular! I was very intrigued when the customer asked for a black-light-responsive cake, as I had no idea how one might accomplish such a task. Well, now I know, and I might have to remember that tip about the edible neon body paint! I mean, look at how neat this turned out!

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The Cake Boss "Glow in the Dark Cake" (S06E09): Buddy shows up at the Ridgewood bakery to make sure they have the right supplies and that Marissa is running it okay. A woman comes in to order a cake for 20 people for the next day, so Buddy tells the customer that they generally don't do that short-notice. Still, he wants to help her, so without fondant and using limited tools, Buddy does a circus cake on the fly. He airbrushes the cake, then does some clowns and elephants, and it's beautiful. Buddy gets the idea to have a "cake bar" where customers can watch cakes being decorated. [seriously impressive.]

A tattoo modeling company has teamed up with a special effects artist to have an alternative zombie modeling show. [I'm going to refrain from getting "political" right now.] They want a black-light cake that is "gory yet fashionable," so Ralph and Ashley are called into the consultation. Ashley winds up invited to take part in the show. [Ralph's monsters were so cute!!] They have to do some trial-and-error to figure out how to get the glow-in-the-dark effect to be awesome, but Ashley's edible body paints do the job. [LOVED that bright colors! and, Ashley made up to look like a zombie was crazy cool!]

Cake Boss: Ridgewood Opening, Russian & Action Figure Cakes

Was it just me, or did Buddy really make the opening time of the new location out to be a much bigger deal than it was? I mean, sticking to what you've publicized is important, but if there's a big safety concern, nobody is going to fault you for prioritizing people over paper. At least, they shouldn't. The bakery didn't seem to show any signs of defeat when they did open, however... tons of folks showed up to buy treats. I'm curious as to how many cakes will really be ordered out of that location, though, when everyone from miles around goes to the Hoboken bakery. I mean, it's not THAT far, but the Russian restaurant cake was ordered for Brooklyn. They made an excellent choice in Carlo's for that item, though! The details were just exquisite, don't you think??

Image Credit: DCL

Cake Boss "Snowed Out" (S06E07): Mary is doing more consultations because Buddy is busy with the Ridgewood location, but she needs Ralph's help when it comes to an action figure cake with a bubbling volcano. Ralph uses a Jello and dry ice technique to make it happen. [I liked the cake but felt it looked a little more "mainstream" than a lot of the cakes that come out of Carlo's.]

Buddy meets the mayor of Ridgewood, and he suggests that they delay the opening for safety purposes. The bakery waits a day and uses the time to train new employees behind the counter, plus Marissa, who will be the back manager. [are the lobster tails really everyone's favorites?? I definitely can back up how wonderful their crumb cake is, though!] When they do open, the line is 200 people long, and there are fluctuation problems with the oven, but it all works out in the end. 

Cake Boss "From Russia with Cake" (S06E08): A Russian restaurant is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and they want a fancy cake. St. Basil's Cathedral (built 1561) in Red Square is similar to the restaurant's interior, and they want a breath-taking masterpiece, so the team decides to replicate the complex icon. Ralph is put in charge of it, and the construction is a nightmare, but as you've already seen, the result was fabulous! [I thought that the restauranteurs were very picky.]

Anthony has Ashley demonstrate greasing lobster tails for Paul, and that just adds to the butting of heads between the two former competitors. [SO annoying.] The constant bickering lands them in an intervention with Mary and Grace, and the two demonstrate some appropriate teasing. [weird, but maybe the techniques worked in this case.] 

And, we learn that Mauro got his lapband tightened, forcing him to eat only liquids for a few days.

Cake Boss: Hoboken and Ridgewood

I see that we're back to the alliterative titles... that's nice. But, it seemed forced, as "rebuilds" is a little bit of a stretch, don't you think? On the flip side, I've been happy with seeing the organization of the new location and all of the problems that go along with that. I hope there's also a little bit about the Manhattan location, even if there's no baking on-site there. Though, I have been wondering who is watching all of the children while the entire family is at the Ridgewood location, LoL. And, speaking of questions I have, did you guys notice that Anthony has a bald spot already? Because I totally didn't! I was definitely shocked at how well the airbrushing worked! I bet it made his head sticky, though... 

The Cake Boss "Rebuilds & Raw Fish" (S06E05): Tourism is down and the bakery is down 40% in business, so when the Hoboken mayor asks Buddy to make a cake for a sandy recovery fundraiser, he's excited about it. The clocktower is a symbol of the city, so it's a major part of the cake. [then why was it so little in the first round? And, surely it must have been fake the second time... they wouldn't have had time to carve that, would they?] For the bottom tier, lights and old photos of the city really reunite everyone with the past. Then, Ralph paints a mural on another layer. Thank goodness that "Lackawanna" was misspelled (missing an 'n'), as that forced the employees to come together and make a new version in the final hour. ["Garden St." didn't look great.] They unexpectedly auction the cake. [why in the world would you buy a cake that you're going to share with everyone there anyway??]

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A family who owns two hibachi steakhouses (Mt. Fuji) want to do a cake that looks like a sushi boat. Buddy agrees to do it but wants to cook on the hibachi in return. [a bit of an odd request, but I'm not surprised.] Mary brings in all kinda of sushi for lunch, and they load up the wasabi on some pieces of salmon nigiri to give to Ashley and Anthony. [ha!] The final cake impresses everyone. [I thought the tuna didn't look the most realistic...] Buddy gets behind the grill, where he clangs the utensils, builds the onion volcano, and tries flipping a shrimp into his hat.

The Cake Boss "Seeing Double" (S06E06): The Ridgewood location is getting ready to open, and if it's successful, hopefully many more locations will be in Carlo's future. Everyone pitches in to clean, test the ovens, and brainstorm. The main problem is coming up with ways to pick up smaller orders, as the average person now thinks that they only handle huge projects. [they are a bit pricey, especially in the northeast where there's so many competitors!] So, Buddy wants to make a bunch of dummy cakes for display to show that they make cakes for small occasions, and it takes a lot of time to arrange the displays. To top it off, a blizzard is set to blow in the day before the grand opening. [I actually don't know how that works out for them...]

Twins Debbie and Lisa want a cake for their mother's 70th birthday, but they can't agree on the look. One thinks that it should be classy, purple, and have butterflies. The other thinks it should be more "fun" and have English bulldogs. They also argue over the flavor, but in the end compromise is key, and Mary figures it out. [I think that the petal ruffles looked better before they were steamed.] Mary, her husband, and her children (twins themselves) deliver the cake. [rare sighting of Joe, her husband!]

RETURNING: Cake Boss: Sandy, Birthdays, Paul, Exercise...

When Hurricane Sandy happened, I worried about Carlo's Bakery and searched for Buddy's family on twitter to find out how bad things were. It wasn't difficult to find out that they were up and running pretty quickly after the storm, and I'm fairly certain that anyone and everyone knew by now that it didn't take them "months" to recover. Therefore, the attempted suspense built in "Hurricane Sandy Strikes" didn't mean a whole lot because of the huge gap between when the Hurricane hit, when the show introduced it as a concern, and this season's premiere. Still, I was intrigued to see cakes being done with very little lighting and no big equipment, and it was also interesting to me to learn how much cake is frozen and then used!

TLC

Similarly, we got a few more nuggets about life at Carlo's... they have 170 employees (I would not have guessed it was so many!), and the typical progression in decorating goes from fondant cakes to sheet cakes to wedding cakes (fondant before piping seems so foreign to me!). What did you learn from the first few episodes this season?

The Cake Boss "Hurricane Sandy Strikes" (S06E01): Lackawanna was damaged by the storm, but the main bakery was completely spared. After the storm is over, there are still 48 specialty cakes to do over the weekend, but there's no power. Some orders are cancelled, others are rescheduled, and the rest are finished via generator and low lighting, with some help from styrofoam layers. [I remember an early episode where Buddy talks about how they never sell cakes that aren't 100% real. I've nitpicked some of the decorations here and there before, but this definitely qualifies as a red flag. I understand it's an emergency and all, but you also have to wonder how often it regularly occurs if they have that many styrofoam pieces around...] The group also donates some thawed cakes to a hurricane relief center. 

The Cake Boss "Welcome Back Robin!" (S06E02): It's been a couple months since Sandy. [proving that the only reason the previous episode was held so long was to boost ratings for the start of the new season...] Buddy is opening another Carlo's in Ridgewood, NJ, half an hour west of Hoboken. [are they really going to become a chain? because that's REALLY different from what they were before all the TLC fame...]

Buddy does a cake Good Morning, America's return of Robin Roberts. The color palette is based on an inspirational bracelet. [I liked the color scheme but the end result itself was just too busy... especially around the letters!]

Noa, a spin instructor, has lost 150 pounds, and wants a cake to thank his mentor. Mauro is trying to lose weight (having recently had the same lap band surgery that SisterLisa had), so he is excited to work on this cake, which is supposed to be "as healthy as possible." They do a carrot cake with fresh cream and fruit, and also get some of the family members (Mauro, his wife, and 2 of his kids, Danny, Mary, and SisterLisa) to try the 45-minute spin class. [I wasn't in love with the spin cycle cake.]

The Cake Boss "Cake Smash" (S06E03): Paul lost his job after filming Cake Boss: Next Great Baker, and then he lost his home in Hurricane Sandy, so he's in desperate need of work. With Ashley working in the bakery, it's a hard call to make, but Buddy gives Paul a job in the bakery. [wow. didn't see that coming!]

A bridal salon wants a cake shaped like a wedding dress, so they bring in some gowns for inspiration. [lovely gowns but those designs required SO MUCH CAKE!] To figure out how to make the cake look like it flows, Buddy has the dresses modeled: WifeLisa puts on one, Ashley puts on another, and Anthony wears the third. [haha! but it was sad to see the cake pulled apart so quickly in search of the coin that wins a dress from the boutique!]

A photographer wants three cakes for first birthdays in a very girly, specific color palette, with an old-fashioned whipped cream look. Buddy has Carlo play with some cake to learn more about smash cakes, but the boy doesn't like to be messy. [I can relate!] 

The Cake Boss "Sugary Slopes" (S06E04): Paul is introduced to the bakery staff, and Ashley wastes no time pulling a prank on "the new guy." [I kinda hate the prank wars on this show...]

Buddy is hired to do a cake for Windham ski resort, and it needs to have a working chairlift, replicate the mountain, and be delivered over snow. [tall order!] It will require a thousand trees and tons of people, and the chairlift can actually pick up and drop off people! [wow. so cool!] As the employees work on the cake, they talk about their winter sports abilities, prompting a race down the mountain between Anthony, Ashley, Paul, and Maurizio. Paul, the loser, gets pelted with snowballs. [he lost TERRIBLY! why bluff so much??]

Buddy and WifeLisa both have birthdays in the same week, so Lisa bakes a cake for the occasion, using fondant for the first time. [It turned out decently well, I thought, especially for doing the whole thing in one day!]

Cake Boss: Superheroes, on and off the Page

I thought that the pairing of Buddy's mother's charity fundraiser with Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy in the same episode was well done. After seeing such a terrible and debilitating disaster, having "I Will Survive" in your head definitely inserts a ray of hope. Ending the season on such a cliffhanger is rough, though... and yet another reason why reality shows are difficult to watch. Much like Teen Mom and Teen Mom 2, the aftermath of SuperStorm Sandy is something that we've all read about online, so seeing what some characters on television do about it four months after the event is bit humdrum. I'm not sure when Cake Boss is planning to return to the airwaves, but any lapse at this point is only going to make those episodes even less relevant. It's not the nicest thing to say, but it's the truth. All of that said, I thought that the superhero cake was neat, but just too busy.   

Cake Boss "Superheroes and Bakers Unite!" (S05E29): Buddy heads to Marvel to discuss a Spider-Man cake, which will also include other characters and a lot of movement. [pause to giggle at Buddy's impression of Hulk] Buddy really wants to blow it out of the water, so they work on lighting it up, creating a sinkhole, and using firecrackers. [not impressed with the latest prank on Marissa. and her confetti cannon just made a mess!] Ralph gives some ideas on how to make the effects work, and the gang dresses up as superheroes to deliver the cake. [I want to know who was running around the bakery dressed like Spider-Man, though!]

It's still Ashley's first week and she shows up really late, having overslept from being out late the previous night. [man! making it look more and more like Jen should have won, LoL!]

The sisters and WifeLisawork on the fundraising gala, hoping to raise $250k.

Cake Boss "We Will Survive" (S05E30): First, let's finish up talking about the gala for the Momma Mary foundation, in mid-October. The sisters work hard to find items to use in a silent auction. [and a regular one, apparently.] Everyone at Carlo's makes a bunch of cakes and pastries for the event. Al Roker and Randy Fenoli attend the event, but the big deal is Gloria Gaynor, who comes to sing "I Will Survive" with MommaMary. [I don't think I've ever noticed before how much Buddy's mother sings!] In the end, they raise $265K. [wow!]

http://tlc.howstuffworks.com

Ashley learns to make a chocolate mousse cake but struggles to stop it from being lobsided. Frankie helps her with the sides, but at the end of the day, she failed. She doesn't think it's that bad, though, and that bothers Buddy. [she's just proud. we saw that on Next Great Baker.]

A family-owned furniture business is honoring a father with a cake, and they want it to be a replica of a best-selling chair. [this mini-project got the short end of the stick this episode... perhaps they shouldn't have bothered including it.]

After Sandy, Buddy learns that the Lackawanna basement is flooded, and the transformer might be, too. There's a possibility that it will take months to recover. [according to SisterLisa, the bakery was open in less than two weeks, though I assume she's referring to the main storefront, not Lackawanna specifically.]