They Killed Castle! Plus: The Best Monday at Work Ever!

Dammit!

They killed Castle, by far one of Jack Bauer's coolest yet most obscure comrades in arms (gotta love his badass name). Yep, you know it's that time of week again - when I'm talkin' some 24.

- Excellent episode this week, really upping the ante from last week's less eventful edition. Once again this show mixes high action with a satisfyingly cheesy does of cornball melodrama to produce a great hour of pulpy adventure. For example, on most shows the revelation that Sec. of Defense Heller's son is holding back information - because he's ... gay (!) - would be a ridiculous plot point. But here it's is so cheesy as to be hilariously entertaining, with just the right amount of confused reactions from Jack and Heller to make it work. I mean, doesn't the son know that feelings and emotions mean nothing when the country faces impending nuclear crisis? Gosh! But tonight's ep took time to rekindle the romantic fires between Tony and Michelle, and also to highlight Jack's desperate plea to Audrey: "How can I explain this ... I'm not usually a stone-cold mercenary who kills mercilessly for the greater good, it's just that, well, once a year, I have these really, really bad days ..."

- Seriously though, some kickass action tonight, good building drama as things go even more downhill for the good guys. Marwan escapes for the 5 billionth time, Naked Mandy, the enigmatically EVIL femme fatale mysteriously reapears, leaving a trail of blood in her wake, and just when things are looking up for good ol' Tony "Yeah ..." Almeda, he goes and gets himself taken hostage, in an exact parallel of what happened to Michelle in last year's climactic episodes. Next week's 2 hour season ender is going to be huge. This ep, with with a few meandering subplots (continued power struggles in the Oval Office, Trey from the OC's sexual preferences) didn't quite live up to what I was hoping for, but hey it's 24 and you learn to take the good with the bad. My grade: B+

TODAY:

Let me preface this by saying that I have to wake up crazy early tommorow and am therefore ogoing to refrain from going into full detail about today's events. But basically today myself and 5 other pages took a trip to Universal Studios to work at a presentation of upfronts - basically presenting our NBC fall schedule to advetisers to get them to fork over cash to buy ads during our shows. The event was actually taking place in NYC, but was simulcast in CA for West Coast ad agencies to get a peak. So while the big execs and stars of the new shows were in NYC, we watched on a big screen from within the Universal theme park.

THE PRESENTATION:

As with the last one of these thigns I went to, NBC was very good at using humor and honesty to admit they didn't have the best year, but were also very confident in predicting they'd soon be back on top. There was a funny special edition of SNL's Weekend Update to open the presentation which was very self-deprecating, but also took some well placed jabs at the other networks. Then a very funny video of NBC's Kevin Reilly's year from hell played, mocking the fledgling exec's first year at a company that was clearly headed for disappointment. Again, very funny and self-mocking. Then Reilly and Zucker came out to present the new lineup, which was surprisingly cautious. Only 6 new shows are premiering in the fall. Perhaps the biggest surprise though is that The Office is actually renewed for a second year, which despite my personal distaste for the show, I think is a good move on NBC's part. As Reilly stated, most comedies need to be nurtured before they break out and become hits. Plus, it is going to be paired with a show that was easily the highlight of the presentation, called My Name is Earl. Earl, starring Jason Lee, looked hilarious. I'd describe the style as Malcolm in the Middle meets Raising Arizona, if that makes any sense at all. Basically, Lee plays a white-trash Southern criminal who is basically a lifelong loser. Life keeps giving him lemons and so he seems stuck in a rut of crime and booze. But one day, he hears Carson Daly, of all people, say something about karma, and decides to right every wrong he's ever committed in his life, which amounts to approximately 268 items that need fixing. I know, it sounds weird, but the clips they showed were immediately hilarious and very refreshing in how different they were from anything else out there. Other than that, the E-Ring, a West Wing-esque show about the Pentagon, looked decent but kind of blah, and Fathom, a sci fi show about underwater alien life forms, looked kinda crappy but who knows, it was hard to tell what it was really about from the clips alone. Inconceivable, a soap opera based ina fertility clinic, looked pretty pointless, and Thick and Thin, a midseason comedy about a formerly fat women, had some decent moments but seemed too gimmicky to last. Three Wishes, an Extreme Makeover-esque show that grants ordinary ppl wishes hosted by Amy Grant, could attract a similar crowd and do well, and I'm sure the curiosity factor will drive people to check out The Apprectice: Martha Stewart, though I honestly could care less about Martha Stewart. Oh yeah, Four Kings, a midseason sitcom about four young guys in NYC featuring Seth Green, looked like a very boring, bland version of That 70's Show without that shows' charm or fun. My Name Is Earl is one to watch out for, E-Ring - maybe if you're into the political drama thing. Otherwise, don't hold your breath for a revolutionary fall season, or anything that matches an Arrested Development or Lost in terms of originality or style.

THE AFTERMATH:

Well after a relatively simple few hours of guiding people in and out of the theater, us pages got to chow down on some excellent catered food, served all you can eat buffet style for maximum foodage. Let's just say that the dessert table did not disappoint. Then, after some quick cleanup duties, we were done for the day! Which meant we were inside Universal Studios, it was only 3 o'clock, and sure, we were wearing our NBC page uniforms, but hey, screw it - it was time for some FREE THEME PARK ACTION!

Yep, it was awesome! We hit up The Mummy ride, Shrek 4-D, Jurrasic Park (with ridiculous-looking ponchos to protect our uniforms from getting soaked!), and more. I even won a big Shrek doll by making two, count 'em, two baskets in a row at a basketball carnival game. Niiiice. Oh yeah, did I mention I was getting PAID for all this? TV sneak previews, catered lunch, and a free day at Universal Studios. Now THAT'S what I call a good day at the office. Yep, my job is cooler than yours (well, at least for one day).

TOMORROW:

It's back to cruel reality as I work from 7:30 am to 5 as ticketbox head (ugh the mere thought of it is giving me a headache), and then at 5 is my big interview for the primetime programming assinment! Wish me luck! Oh yeah, Ellen is having a free outdoor Gwen Stefani concert at 5, so depending on how long my interview goes I may get to hit that up. And hey, can't forget that Star Wars comes out Thursday, getting hyped up ... and on one last note of nerdiness, holy crap, Sony revealed the Playstation 3 today! Doesn't come out until Spring 2006 but dayum that is gonna be sweet. Okay, big interview tommorow - can I be bright and cheery, and, um, coherant after 8.5 hours of the dreaded ticketbox? Hope so, and speaking of hope - come on, get your act together for tommorow's game, this is it, do or die, win or go home - play Foster more, feed O'Neal in the post, play good D, and get one mo' big game outta Reggie cuz lord knows it's gotta be Miller Time ... yeah, what I'm trying to say is, GO PACERS.