Rafael Is Cool But Rude: Smallville, movies, MORE

Man, what a great month for the movies. We have a movie based on a Frank Miller comic (300), a movie based on a parody of a Frank Miller comic (TMNT), a throwback to the glory days of ET and Flight of the Navigator, etc (The Last Mimzy), a new Fincher film (Zodiac), a new Will Ferrell comedy (Blades of Glory), and then right after that we get Grindhouse. I mean, if you're a 12 year old kid you must be foaming at the mouth at the prospect of all this coolness. I know I am, and I'm 24.

I just got back from a really fun experience over at Universal. Me, L-Squared, and two other up and coming NBCU employees participated in a panel discussion for a bunch of interns looking towards their next step in the entertainment world. It was a great time answering questions and imparting my vast wisdom on these young minds, but honestly, the best thing was seeing how enthusiastic they were. Several people came up to me and were like "Wow your job is so cool," and the like, which was pretty energizing. While my day to day involves a lot of number-crunching, email-writing, and corporate red tape, it was pretty cool to have other people remind me why I should be excited about my job. It's kind of crazy though that these college students seem to have things so together. I mean some are only sophomores and they already seem to have their next 5 years planned out. One even told me she wished she could fast-forward and be out of college. I was like, "what?!?!" I want to rewind! Anyways, it was a great time, and really brightened up what otherwise has been kind of a monotonous work week.

TV STUFF:

- Last night's SMALLVILLE was yet another mediocre episode in what has been one of the most lackluster seasons of the show to date. While I enjoyed the fact that the ep had some nice action scenes (more action in the first five minutes than in all of Superman Returns!), the plot here was just total weak-sauce. Oooh, an underground fight club, never seen that idea used before. Not only that, but this ep had every lame Smallville cliche that we've all come to know and hate. I mean, who DIDN'T see it coming that, moments before Clark was forced to use his powers, Lois would conveniently get knocked out cold? Such lazy writing. And Clark just lets himself be broadcast on an internet site, without even wearing a mask or something? By this time, everyone in the universe knows that Clark Kent is superpowered in the world of Smallville. Finally, I could not believe how haphazardly they had Clark kill the phantom-zone escapee. I mean, one of THE biggest things with the modern Superman is that Superman doesn't kill. Yet rather than address Clark's stance on killing in a nuanced, well thought out manner, we get some trite throwaway bit of angsty conversation between Clark and his mom, in which he barely regrets his action for a minute. How such a MAJOR plot point could be done so half-assed is beyond me. Meanwhile, we had more whiny Lana, no Lionel, and fairly craptacular "acting" from the WWE's Kane and Ashley. I was actually surprised at how bad Kane was, seeing as how he's starred in his own movie. At least he got in a nice-looking chokeslam somewhere in there. In the end, this was a thoroughly below-average episode that delivered a few nice action scenes but little else, and, disappointingly, totally glossed over what should have been a huge deal in Clark actually taking a life.

My Grade: C -

- I hope everyone out there is watching ANDY BARKER, P.I. -- the show has so mmuch potential, it's scary. Like 30 Rock or The Office in the beginning, Andy Barker is still kind of finding its legs and while the premise is there, the laughs aren't as plentiful as they should be. But just watching the first two episodes, you could already see some nice development in that department, and last night's ep had a few genuinely laugh out loud moments. Watch this - make sure it has a chance to blossom from very good to great.

My Grade: B+

- I've been so into CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM lately. I just finished up the third season on DVD and began the fourth. So far, I'm not as into the 4th season's overarching anniversery storyline, but man - that finale to Season 3, with Larry David and co unleashing a barrage of profanity at his new restaurant's grand opening - is simply classic.

Alright everyone - I'm out - have a great weekend.