It's A Kind of (Strange) Magic: The Prestige, Nightmare Before Christmas 3-D, and MORE

What's up, party people? Back again on another oh-so-delightful Monday afternoon, ready to share with you the latest news and views from here in the middle of Hollywood.

I'll do this one Memento-style, and take you backwards through my last few days like my name was John G.

To start with, last night I saw The Prestige, and I have a lot of thoughts ...

... unfortunately most of my thoughts are actually questions, and most of those questions have to do with the specifics of the story, and if I were to get into said specifics it may in fact spoil the movie for any who haven't seen it. And since my ultimate thoughts on this movie include a plea for any and all of you to run out and see it if you haven't already, I don't really want to spoil it for you. Got it?

THE PRESTIGE Review

- Let's face it, The Prestige is a walking geekgasm of a movie. Batman, Wolverine, David Bowie, Scarlet Johansson. The director of Memento and Batman Begins. A Victorian London setting. Nikola Tesla. Magic. What's not to like? But those going into this movie expecting some kind of comic-bookish, Joel Schumacher-esque cluster#$%* are going to instead be presented with something much different. Something dark and twisted and haunting, that reminds you of something that Alan Moore or Neil Gaiman might have conjured up whilst in a particularly sinister mood. If anything, this movie will remind you of Christopher Nolan's own Memento - because, like that masterpiece, The Prestige is a winding, labrynthine movie - shifting timeframes and perspectives, building intensity as the movie methodically but powerfully leads you to its shocking final act. This isn't Harry Potter, people. The Prestige is one dark, messed-up, mind-$#$& of a movie.

To sum up without giving away too much, The Prestige centers around two stage magicians, played by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale, each apprenticed by the same mentor - a saavy veteran illusionist played by Michael Caine. While Bale is the one with the innate talent for magic, Jackman is the natural showman. While training for their own acts, Bale and Jackman act as audience plants for another magician, whose apprentice is Jackman's wife. During one performance, a water-tank trick goes awry, and Jackman's wife is killed. Jackman blames Bale, and a rivalry forms between the two magicians that spirals deeper and becomes increasingly more vicious. Things really reach a head when Jackman witnesses Bale perform a confounding trick known as the Transporting Man, which even to his trained eye seems impossible to pull off. Desperate to know the secret of Bale's trick, Jackman is led to the eccentric American inventor, Nikola Tesla - played by David Bowie.

What happens from there - well, that would be revealing too much ...

Suffice to say, a LOT happens. And you can't help but be enthralled as Nolan weaves yet another Memento-esque yarn, with each turn of the screw leaving your jaw hanging on the floor. This is an ambitious movie - from the way the narrative is framed to the spiralling structure to the scope and lofty implications of the plot - this is a movie that leaves you with profound moral and social questions flitting through your head as you leave the theater. But is it trying for too much? Does it drown under the weight of its own ambition? Honestly, it's very, very ahrd to say after only one viewing. I don't think there is any kind of consensus yet, as only repeat viewings will allow for the kind of scrutiny that this movie's plot demands.

To be honest, if you asked me right now what, exactly, happened in this movie, I'm not sure if I could tell you the correct answer. Already I've heard differing theories, contradictory interpretations of the various plot points. It's just too early to say if this movie is, in fact, an amazingly put-together mind-trip that fits together like a jigsaw puzzle, or simply an only sem-decipherable riddle that doesn't lend itself to one particular narrative conclusion. I think that one of the big complaints about this movie will be that, while it started as a grounded character study of two magicians, it soon takes a sharp left turn into twilight-zone territory that never quite gels with the tone of the rest of the film. I think that criticism is valid. Unlike Memento, there seems to be a lot of extraneous stuff in this movie that ISN'T a part of the larger narrative puzzle. Some of the pieces don't "click" in the end. Unlike Memento, where the final scene is a grand "aha!" moment - The Prestige left me similarly breathless but also pretty confused. And it might be that this is a movie that can only be judged after multiple viewings - already I've re-examined certain scenes in my head and realized how they in some way fit into the larger picture. But some things still don't gel, like the relative ambiguity of Michael Caine's character, for example - whose side was he on - what was his motivation?

Anyways, forgetting the twists and turns of the plot for a moment - this film was pure enjoyment to watch in many ways thanks to the greatness that Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman brought to the precedings. Like the duo of Damon and DiCaprio in The Departed, there is something so natural yet exciting about seeing these two face off against one another. Bale in particular brings a Batman-like intensity to his role, and seeing him here brought my level of anticipation for The Dark Knight to a new level. I think Jackman is only slightly less interesting, maybe simply because he (and Johansson) have just been in SO many movies lately. In fact, The Prestige is an odd melding of the casts of Batman Begins and Woody Allen's Scoop - in any case, there's a lot of familiar faces here. But hey, if there's any role that Scarlett Johansson might have been born to play, it's that of a seductive, corset-clad magician's assistant - so, um, yeah, you won't hear me complaining about that one. And of course - Michael Caine - basically gravitas in a bottle, is great as always. Like I said, his character is tough to get a read on, but there's no denying what Caine brings to the performance.

Then, there is David Bowie as Nikola Tesla. I have to admit, I've always been fascinated not only with Victorian times, but with Tesla in particular. I remember I used to get these catalogs in the mail - you know, probably from subscribing to Nintendo Power or something. They had all kinds of stuff that thrills the imagination of a young boy - magician's kits, practical jokes, remote control cars, and books. I remember seeing in those catalogs these ads for books on Tesla - "Read the true story of the man who, over 100 years ago, discovered the secrets of teleportation, anti-gravity, and even time-travel!" Who was this guy, I remember thinking. Anyways, Tesla is a key figure in The Prestige, and played by David Bowie no less, sporting an oddball German accent looking appropriately creepy. I will say, there was something a bit jarring about Bowie's performance here - he definitely stood out amidst a cast and story that up until Tesla's introduction, was grounded in grim Victorian reality. Bowie as Tesla is really kind of an oddity in this movie, seemingly out of place, but in many ways I guess that's the point.

After reading all this, you're probably wondering what I actually thought of this movie. Well, as of now, there's no doubt in my mind that this is a must-see, a spectacular journey into the unknown. This movie is grim, disturbing - don't expect Jackman or Bale to be playing typically heroic characters - both magicians are driven, vicious, downright twisted people by the movie's end. But that's part of what is so captivating about The Prestige - it goes places that no other movie has gone, carrying out its plot to the absolute extremes - examining the grotesque implications of its characters actions in a manner both captivating and highly distrubing. I got the feeling that the people in my theater wanted to clap out of appreciation when the film ended, but were so stunned into meditative silence by the film's wrenching third act that most of us were just sitting there, trying to wrap our heads around what we had just seen. But is this movie a classic, or just an extremely ambitious but flawed attempt at creating a magical epic in the twisiting narrative style of Memento? Again, I can't say, not yet at least. Like I said, I'm still digesting what I saw, and still wondering how it will hold up to repeat viewings. For now, I would just say to go see it, because even if my grade doesn't reflect it (instead reflecting my latest train of thought, in which I almost love the movie but question certain aspects of its plot), this is one that, as the years go by, may indeed become a movie to revisit over and over again.

My Grade: A -

Now, continuing my backwards voyage through time, I take you back to last Thursday, when I got to attend the opening night of The Nightmare Before Christmas in 3-D at the El Capitan in Hollywood, thanks to a bunch of tickets made available on the cheap via Boston University. The scene was crazy, with hardcore Burton fans lined up dressed as their favorite characters from the film, and all manner of Disney-provided street performers walking and dancing around, as skeletons and other creatures of the night roamed in front of the El Capitan theater in Hollywood. Inside, as smiling pumpkins and other Halloween-themed decorations filled the halls and main auditorium, we were treated to a Q and A with a number of the personnel involved with the film, including the voice of Oogie Boogie, Ken Page, who did a live rendition of his featured song from the movie. Pretty cool ...

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS IN 3-D Review

First of all, the 3-D technology used for this movie is amazing - definitely the best 3-D I've seen, in terms of the sheer clarity and sharpness of the images on screen. The screen at the El Capitan is fairly small compared to that of a big multiplex, but as the movie started I was amazed at how the 3-D effect seemed to make the entire screen pop out at you, giving the illusion that you were looking at a much bigger image than you actually were. Aside from the opening logos and intro, there weren't really any traditional "stuff popping out at you" style 3-D scenes, but the overall effect was incredible. The stop-motion animated puppets felt completely vibrant and real, and everything just took on a seamless, larger-than-life, totally immersive quality thanks to the depth of the 3-D visuals.

As for the movie itself - well, it's Nighmare Before Christmas - in my estimation one of the true modern classics in terms of family entertainment, and Tim Burton at the height of his mad-genious-like creative powers. The story is simple and immediately intriguing. The characters are instantly lovable and captivating and funny and just plain cool to look at. The songs mix the whimsical catchiness of classic Walt Disney with the breadth and pathos of the best broadway musicals. Finally, the movie, visually, is simply an unmatched work of art - the entire production bleeds with gothic style and drips with carefully-constructed atmosphere. The character design is perfect, timeless. Just from looking at this movie, the care, and heart, and precision and detail that went into every painfully and delicately arranged shot is just remarkable. Even after all these years - Nightmare looks and feels like nothing else that has come before or since.

If you live anywhere near a theater playing The Nightmare Before Christmas in 3-D, I can't think of any better way to usher in Halloween than by revisiting this newly-improved classic.

My Grade: A

TV STUFF:

- Man, so much stuff to catch up on. I still have to watch last week's Smallville and I've been meaning to watch my recorded Night of Too Many Stars that Comedy Central aired last week. All I've seen so far is the Borat segment, which is, predictably, gut-bustingly funny.

- Really liked both My Name Is Earl and The Office last week. The Office in aprticular had some simply hilarious sequences with Dwight's initiation for hapless former-temp Ryan. Dwight demanding that Ryan metaphorically wrestle his fears by fighting Dwight's cousing mose, decked out in a "Fear" t-shirt, had me dying of laughter. "Get in the coffin!" Bwahahaha .... hilarious. The Office is on a total roll with me lately ... I can't understand why more people aren't watching! Hey, at least it's the number 1 show on I-Tunes! In ya face, broadcast TV, I-Tunes users clearly have better taste than the typical TV-watching tube-zombie.

- I'm very curious to see what kind of episode Heroes comes up with tonight. I think the sheer cool-factor of last week's ending made many (me included), willing to ignore the fact that the rest of the episode was not exactly A-level material. So Heroes has raised its own bar a little, which is a good thing. But I hope it can build off of that momentum and not disappoint. We'll see. A random internet review I read said it best - it's like Hiro is the star of his own much cooler, much better show that somehow got downsized to simply being a subplot within the tapestry of Heroes. Let's hope the rest of the show catches up.

- Also curious about tonight's Studio 60. I thought last week's ep built a lot of positive momentum that looks to continue into tonight's installment, and the inclusion of Lauren Graham as a guest star can't hurt things. NBC needs to get this show to a different timeslot, pronto.

- I also never got a chance to write about last week's Locke-centric episode of LOST. To sum up, the episode totally captivated me for the first ten minutes or so. Locke's hallucinatory dream sequence was tres cool and was a definite TIVO moment, but it was all downhill from there. The flashbacks seemed to add an unnecessary additional layer to Locke's character, and didn't seem to tie organically into anything else about Locke's past that has been revealed to this point. Also, i think this show far too often falls back on meaningless conversations about faith and destiny in place of actual insight into characters or plot points. The entire search for Mr. Eko and the crazed polar bear was just so random and in many ways lame, as were the various explanations for what happened to the castaways caught in the hatch "implosion." Charlie was fine and acting like nothing had happened. Eko was randomly near death in a bear cave. Locke inexplicably couldn't speak for all of ten minutes. And Desmond was randomly wandering around naked on the island, raving like a lunatic (moreso than usual) and apparently gained the ablity to forsee the future? Whaaaa?!?! This ep exemplified many of the key recurring problems with Lost by just throwing about a dozen different concepts against the wall, seeing if they stick, and asking us to just throw all logic out the window and go along for the ride. Part of my disappointment with the ep probably stemmed from how much I've enjoyed previous Locke eps, but this was also undeniably an uneven and ultimately frustrating installment of Lost, a definite come-down after the relative high quality of the last few weeks.

- I am continuing to like 30 ROCK, and Tracy Morgan continues to make me laugh more than anyone on network TV not named Dwight Schrute. While the sitcom as a whole is still not completely gelling, as much of the cast seems to be lost in the shuffle, the humor has been spot-on. I mean, the NBC Page, in full uniform, smiling like a dope while being grinded on by an overeager female intern? Comedy gold. Yep, NBC Pages are inherently funny. As for 20 GOOD YEARS, I did get a few hearty chuckles from last week's ep, as the situational comedy veered into only-in-sitcomland-style craziness, with Lithgow and Tambor contemplating sharing a mutual love interest, going so far as to almsot have a threesome. You can imagine the zaniness that ensues ... EW this week had a funny little Love Him or Hate Him piece about Lithgow. Personally I'm a fan but can see how he can be annoying. But in the case of 20 Good Years, I think Lithgow's sheer enthusiasm and energy is what saves the sometimes uninspired comedy at play.

- Alright, that's all I've got for now. If you've seen The Prestige, hit me up and let me know what you make of the ending, it's one of those movies I'm chomping at the bit to discuss in detail. And with that, I say Abracadabra, and goodnight.

Quick Reviews: Veronica and Gilmore

Just some quick reviews for you here:

VERONICA MARS:

Overall, this was probably my favorite episode of the season to date. It was great to see Weevil back (even if he's apparently been hitting the donuts while in jail ...), and his presence made the episode feel a little more like classic Veronica Mars. Also, Ed Begley Jr. is always welcome on anything as far as I'm concerned, and he is a great addition to the cast as the Dean of Veronica's college and a great new foil for our main character. I agree with the fans who have complained about the changes to the show's formatting / editing style though - I miss the old format of having an extra-long cold open that drew you into the story before the old (good) theme song began to play and get you pumped up for the episode ahead. The newly remixed themesong is just so drab ... But, anyways, the dialogue here was just crackling, and there was a lot of good character interaction as well. Weevil had some great scenes with Keith Mars - it's too bad they didn't have more of a build up to his losing it and going ballistic on the crooks he was tailing - that would have been a cool scene if we had actually seen it after some build up, perhaps over a span of a few episodes. Well, I guess one thing you can't accuse this show of is Lost-style decompression. Also, I know that some people are critical of Logan acting like a jerk in this ep, which is supposedly out of character for him. I am fine with it though, as Logan has, mostly, been characterized as a jerk, and his recent star-crossed romance with Veronica has been an exception to his usually erratic behavior. Logan even said it in this ep - Veronica has a problem in falling for bad boys, so I think it's only natural for the real Logan to come out after theh oneymoon period of their relationship is over. So yeah - good episode, nice little mini mystery here as well as some good stuff that planted more seeds for plot threads to come. And hey, any show that repeats the "Larry, is this your homework?" scene from The Big Lebowski verbatim, yet does so totally in the context of the story, has attained a level of storytelling genious that you've gotta recognize. This still isn't hitting on the level of Season 1 or 2, but it's getting there.

My Grade: A -

GILMORE GIRLS:

Yes, this WAS easily the best episode's of Gilmore's season to date. After spending last weekend watching Edward Herrmann play a vampire mastermind in Lost Boys, I have a newfound respect for his acting range - but there's no denying that he completely owns as Grandpa Gilmore, and tonight he delivered yet another great performance. Kelly Bishop stole the show though as Emily Gilmore -- both her and Herrmann are so overdue for Emmy Awards it's not even funny. Overall, this ep felt by far the most natural of any ep since the move to the CW - the dialogue all felt on target, and the excahnges were practically overflowing with quotable lines. Paris was hilarious as always, and she even went on an extended rant about the Hartford Courant! Nice ... Also, I am probably in the very small minority of people who has grown to love Luke's daughter April. The young actress playing her is great, and I got a real kick out of her interactions with her hapless dad in last night's ep. Rory's encounter with the two artsy girls was pretty amusing as well ("genious!"). Excellent ep - good to see Gilmore getting back on track.

My Grade: A

My Name is Daniel-San. I'm From the Future.

Well, I was pretty proud of myself last night. Not only did I finally do some jogging but I also went to sleep before midnight. And yet, after an all too quick eight hours of sleep, I could still barely drag myself out of bed in the morning ... how do most people do it?

RANDOM QUESTIONS:

- Why do most barbers / hairstylist people have odd or unflattering haircuts?

- Why is my office parking garage equivalent in complexity to a Zelda level?

- Why do people post one or two blogs on their MySpace profiles, then never update, and in doing so make their MySpace pages really depressing since all they have is some list of complaints about life from like last March?

- Weren't all those cable TV workout shows in the early-mid 90's basically just porn movies without the nudity? Think about it ...

- Is it weird that I answer my work phone by just saying "Hello?" ...? I mean, what am I supposed to say?

- Is it normal for me to basically feel like a complete idiot whenever I wear a button down shirt tucked into khaki pants to work? I've never liked this look, and yet I go with it on average about 3 out of 5 days a week.

- Doesn't it suck that by living in a city where you drive everywhere, you are missing out on all the natural excercise one gets in a pedestrian-oriented city like New York or Boston? So, what, now I have to spend an extra half an hour wasting time, running around, all because I drive to work? Hmm, I guess I'm also saving a lot of time by driving, but, then again, not really, considering how bad the traffic is.

TV STUFF, aka: NBC has a good night.

- Yes, I'll say it loud and proud: NBC did good last night. Care for me to elaborate? No? Too bad, keep reading.

- The first time I was really into HEROES was when I read the original version of the pilot script. I was totally captivated and giddy with excitement over the show's potential.

The second time I was really into Heroes was last night, during the show's last 5 minutes.

Last night, Heroes finally "got it." Yes, much of the ep was still hampered by wooden acting and bland dialogue. But, plot-wise, the show finally seemed to grasp a very important truism. You see, until now, Heroes has been all about aping the specificities of comic books - the powers, the archtypes, the on-the-surface trappings. But last night, the show finally captured what it is that makes people fall in love with comics to begin with - more so than the powers or the costumes, it's the wonder and excitement - the feeling that, unlike your typical serialized TV show, anything can happen. And that's why I loved last night's cliffhanger ending so much - it was a true "holy $%&!" moment, not just visually, but story-wise. It was a moment that basically blew the doors off this series, so that it isn't just a comic book with all the fun stripped out anymore - now, it is still grounded in reality, still dark and moody, but it now, finally, has that X-factor, that "anything can happen" feeling. Great stuff.

Fortunately, the coolness of the ending helped overshadow much of the lamer stuff on the show. Mohinder's aimless character still feels like he changes from week to week, with no real purpose other than as a master of pretentious exposition. Pete, the older of the two brothers, is just about as bland as can be. And Ali Larter's kid is still way too annoying. The actress who plays teenaged Claire does seem to be growing into her character, but, still, the writing has prevented us from really getting a feel for her character.

But, for the first time since I read that original script, I feel invested in what happens on this show, and am excited for the directions that the plot could go in.

My Grade: B+ (B- for most of the ep, A for the ending)

- Then, I was pretty impressed with last night's Studio 60. I thought the focus on the characters helped to minimize the annoying political preachiness that has marred the last few episodes. Some of the humor finally took a self-deprecating attitude, bringing things down a notch and giving some perspective that this was, in fact, a sketch comedy show here - not a control room at the Pentagon or something. Take the guy-dressed-as-Lobster interrupting Christine Lahti's speech about how culturally signifigant the show is - a great little moment that helped remind everyone - on the show and us watching at home, that we needn't take things so seriously. Speaking of Lahti, she also seemed to tone it down a bit from last week, and did a great job here. It was also great to see Ed Asner again, and the old vet made more of his few lines than most actors do with an entire episode's worth of dialogue. While the Studio 60 crew focused on character moments, Amanda Peet and the network people were left to deal with the weekly great American debate on ethics, art vs. commerce, etc. Yet another semi-annoying Peet-as-crusading-I-have-the-moral-highground-exec subplot, but as I mentioned, the inclusion of Ed Asner gave a previously unforseen level of gravitas to the storyline's resolution, so it came off a as a lot easier to stomach than it might have otherwise. So yeah, good stuff - now let's see what they can do about making the comedy bits actually seem funny. But hey, at least Matthew Perry was bold enough to bitingly call a sketch "almost good" here - a welcome change from the last few weeks where lame Gilbert and Sullivan bits and jokes about over-diagnosed schoolkids have been passed off as brilliant satire. Steps in the right direction.

My Grade: A -

Alright ... that's all I've got for now. But yeah, last night, between Future-Hiro on NBC and Kevin Federline getting his ass beat in a wrestling ring in front of thousands of jeering fans on USA, there was plenty of televised entertainment to be had yesterday.

END TRANSMISSION.

Today's blog brought to you by Spy-der ....

Monday once again, and it's back to work after a packed weekend of horror-filled fun.

Friday night, my annual Halloween Horror Movie Marathon kicked off the weekend with a bang. It was a small but enthusiastic group this year, though that is probably ideal for a gathering such as this, where everyone was primed and ready for some hardcore movie watchin'. Not to mention, had any more people tried to pack into my studio apartment, seating might have become an issue. But anyways, I was very happy with the movie selection this year, as it was a nice mix of the weird, the campy, and the straight-up scary. Things started off the right way with the traditional viewing of a Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episode, and then as more people started to arrive, we segued into Lost Boys - a highly enjoyable but extremely 80's-riffic cheese-fest replete with mullets galore, two Coreys, a young Kiefer Sutherland, and hard-rocking vampire biker gangs. Suffice to say, some of the scenes and lines in the movie are just classic. As a few more people arrived, we got serious with the original Friday the 13th, highly appropriate considering Friday's date. Anyways, the movie was full of vintage scares and had some legitimate creepiness. Since my knowledge going in was fuzzy at best, I was surprised to find that this movie has no hockey masks in sight and Jason Voorhes, who later became synomonous with the franchise, only makes a cameo appearance in the original film. Oh well, it is easy to see how this, along with Halloween, became the prototype for endless slasher movies to come. Finally, as our eyes grew bleary and stomachs became full from pizza and candy, we settled in for the trip-tastic mind$#%& that is Donnie Darko - not quite a horror movie per say but plenty weird enough to make it appropriate for the occasion. While I've now seen it a number of times, I still get a kick out of trying to wrap my head around just what the hell is going on in this movie, and watching it with a group always leads to some interesting interpretations. So yeah, overall, it was another great chapter in the annuls of Halloween Horror Movie Marathon history.

Saturday there was no rest for the weary, as a group of adventurous souls shook off the cobwebs from the previous night's festivities and headed down to Buena Park for our second annual excursion to Knott's Scary Farm.

Again, I can't help but wonder -- why is it that last year so many people were game for a trip to Knott's, yet this year so few were up for it? I honestly don't get it - it's October, it's a once a year event, it's tons of fun at one of the country's best Halloween attractions. Why WOULDN'T one want to go? I just can't get over how lame it is that we couldn't get a good group of ten to twenty people together like we did last year. But in any case, our smaller group still went and had a great time - I just am of the opinion that for things like this, the more the merrier.

But yeah, Knott's was lots of fun - the haunted mazes were as crazy as ever, and for sheer comedy value there's nothing quite like watching scared-out-of-their-mind preteens running at full speed around the park to escape the clutches of chainsaw-wielding evil clowns in hot pursuit. Oh man ... hilarious. And yes, despite arriving late thanks to truly horrific traffic outside the park (and a somewhat shady dinner at Paul's, the only slightly-less-sketchy alternative to nearby Hoff's Hut ...), we still managed to hit up all the big haunts -- Lore of the Vampire, Hatchet High, Redbeard's Revenge, and Lost Vegas were just some of the places we braved in the darkness and fog-engulfed landscape.

And yet one other minor complaint - sure we were all tired and worn out after a few hours of haunted thrills ... but, why is it that in like 3/4 of all photos of me I end up looking like a total weirdo? Honestly, I had to immediately delete like a quarter of the pics I took because I end up looking like a complete freak in them. I swear, cameras hate me.

But in the end, Knott's was an awesome time, and a great bookend to a truly terrific weekend of terror.

Sunday continued to be busy, as I rested up from the late night Saturday and the nset out to meet my great uncle Josh and his wife for dinner in Brentwood. A nice time was had and it relaxed me for the week ahead ... But man, with all the Halloween-related excitement this weekend, it's hard to beleive that the day itself is still weeks away.

- Which leads me to a question ... the big Halloween bash (the spiritual sequal to last year's superlative Page-O-Ween, I guess ...) that was supposed to happen on pre-Halloween weekend is now postponed to the first week of November on order of its organizer! This means that, a.) that, like FOX's annoying habit of airing the Simpsons Halloween specials in November, the party now loses much of its seasonally-contingent luster, and, b.) I have no idea what I'm doing the weekend before Halloween. So, if anyone has ideas or is doing something exciting, let me know!

TV STUFF:

- Last week's SMALLVILLE was a very entertaining ep until the ultra-sappy last 10 minutes, during which I had to check to make sure I wasn't watching a Lifetime original movie. That ending sequence was just so long and pointless and awkward -- do we really need it spelled out for us that Lana Lang and Lex Luthor are now sleeping together? I hate when this show veers into semi-scandalous territory like this - it just clashes unpleasantly with the show's generally innocent and fun and all-ages-appropriate nature. I hate when this show goes for the cheap ratings boost by inserting extra skin and scandal. And it sucks, because aside from the ending, this was a really fun ep - lots of cool f/x with the villain of the week, and the notion that a bunch of alien badguys escaped from the Phantom Zone along with Clark is a fun idea and great fodder for future storylines. I thought the writing was especially sharp for most of the ep as well, with some great moments for the suddenly-likable Jimmy Olsen and Chloe, some interesting Ollie Queen stuff, and some long-needed pointed exchanges between Lex and Clark. But with my complaints being what the are, I can only give this otherwise excellent episode a grade of: B

- Finally watched last week's STUDIO 60. I continue to enjoy the character dynamics on the show but like many, I'm getting increasingly put off by way that the writing equates each little hurdle for the characters and show-within-the-show to the goings-on in, say, the West Wing. Too preachy and too self-important, I continue to feel that the show's best and most enjoyable moments are when it allows the characters and situations to be goofy and actually reflect the fact that it is about a sketch comedy show. Case in point - I thought Matthew Perry's baseball bat-through-the-window gag was the highlight of an otherwise way-too-angsty and pretentious lecture on plagiarism and the lengths that the show would go to to apologize for its error. Finally, I loved Christine Lahti on Jack and Bobby and was happy to see her here, but am wary of yet another hitch-up my bra-and-powerwalk female character on the show. My Grade: B -

- Anyways ...

That's about all I've got for now. Take it easy everyone - now quit readin' and get back to work.

Friday the 13th - The Weekend of Terror Begins

"There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone. "

Yes, today is Friday the 13th. And for me tonight kicks off a Weekend of Terror that begins tonight with my annual Halloween Horror Movie Marathon (early this year to coincide with the uniquely eerie date today), and continuing tommorow with a return trip to Knott's Scary Farm.
Kickass. I love this stuff ...

OTHER STUFF:

- By the way, Chag Sameach in honor of Succott. I miss the days at BU when we always had a good time at the anuual Hillel dinner beneath the Succah along Com Ave. That always seemed to be a time when you'd be guaranteed to meet new people and have some interesting adventures, even if it was always a pain to carry a wobbly tray stuffed with food down that narrow staircase of the old Hillel building and into the Succah, where we were all packed like rats into the enclosure. But it was nice to have somewhere to celebrate the holiday and fulfill the mitzvah of shaking the lulav and holding the etrog. Plus I always thought the various laws and rules pertaining to observing the holiday and building / living in a Succah were kind of interesting for how detailed and arcane they were. Then, of course, Succott culminates in Simchat Torah, which is a celebration that I never quite took to at BU - too crazy for me to be around so many drunk orthodox Jews dancing around with the Torah, but quite a sight to see nonetheless. I still smile when I think about me and Aksel walking by Chabad and encountering these crazy drunken Chasids, making a new l'chayim every minute or so, and randomly yelling at everyone who passed: "Are you Jewish?!?! Are you Jewish!?? Half Jewish?" Hilarious.

- Last night, I attended a dinner in honor of three NBC pages leaving the program - Kelly, Adam B, and Johanna. Very surreal, as these are almost the last remaining pages left who overlapped with my time as an NBC page. Sure, I've now met some newer pages at various parties and stuff, but it's not quite the same ... This is it - the end of an era. But I hope that this isn't the end of gatherings like last night, where a good 30 or so people came out for the occasion. Good times.

- Really looking forward to The Prestige next week. I love the theme of magic, I love the turn-of-the-century setting, and I love the casting of Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, David Bowie, and Scarlett Johansson. Mostly though, after Memento and Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan has yet to disappoint, and is one of the few big budget blockbuster directors to understand the importance of mood, character, and script. This should be great.

- Terrance Howard in Iron Man, as the man who will become War Machine? Awesome.

- Sascha Baron Cohen oppositte Johnny Depp in Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd? Also potentially awesome.

- That trailer for Robert Rodriguez's half of he and Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse, aka Planet Terror? Yes, once again, awesome.

- John Cena's first starring role as The Marine? Well the fact that it has had ZERO screenings for critics, and that the few early reviews have been horrid, does not bode well for Cena's prospects of being the next Rock. And this coming from a big Robert Patrick fan ... I mean he WAS Agent Doggett ...

QUICK TV REVIEWS:

- THE OFFICE - Yet another hilarious episode, I figure this one will be a crowd-pleaser since it had both a ton of random humor as well as an extra-helping of heart (heart perhaps layed on a bit too thick in the overly heart-string tugging ending). But overall this was another excellent ep, continuing a string of hilarious installments of The Office, currently establishing itself as the best comedy on TV right now. My Grade: A -

MY NAME IS EARL - Another fun if somewhat light-weight episode, especially funny since I love Ethan Suplee as Randy and find him pretty hilarious at times. Plus, as The Simpsons has shown us (and 30 Rock tried to), Cat Lady's are pretty inherently funny. My Grade: B+

- But hey between Ethan Suplee on Earl and Ryder Strong on Veronica Mars, Boy Meets World lives on! Now yank that girl who played Topanga away from her National Lampoon Dorm Daze movies and get her back on network TV!

- Have yet to watch Smallville from this week, but it seems promising ... Green Arrow!

Alright ... time to firmly plant one foot in reality, and the other in The Twilight Zone. Fun times ahead. Bwahahahahahaha ....

"I'm Straight-Up Trippin'!"

Man, what a long, tiring week. I guess after two Monday-less work weeks in a row, going the full five days is really taking its toll. This is also one of those weeks where I wanted to leave my weekend completely open, as I've got a lot of stuff planned. That means that getting home from work every day only leads to a seemingly neverending assortment of errands and chores. Laundry, cleaning, groceries, etc. All of that combined with the fact that I watch too much TV does not make for a relaxing week, and I've been getting much too little sleep over the last few days. Also, strange, messed-up dreams are pretty normal for me, but the last few days I've just been waking up in a cold sweat from the sheer weirdness and horrific nature of some of these dreams I've been having. I guess the Friday the 13th vibe I've been on is starting to seep into my dreams or something.

In any case, this weekend should be a good one. Friday is my annual Halloween Horror Movie-Thon, which has been going strong since the BU days. Saturday, me and a few intrepid thrill-seekers make a return visit to Knotts' Scary Farm, which has gotta be one of the absolute coolest places to visit during the Halloween season. Basically, the entire theme park (normally a Six Flags-esque park called Knotts' Berry Farm), is converted into a dark, sprawling labrynth of haunted mazes, each amusingly themed, covering the gamut of horror faves from vampires to pirates to killer clowns. They really do a great job - the only comparable experience I've been to was when they used to have Haunted Happenings in the old G. Fox building in Hartford, though that was one giant haunted hause whereas this is like fifteen separate attractions scattered throughout the park. And, the haunts here definitely beat the cheesy attractions in Salem, MA, although you can't beat the sheer atmosphere of walking around Salem in all its authentic haunted glory. That's one thing about being here in LA in October - it just doesn't have the same feel to it as being in New England - as the leaves turn orange, the air begins to chill, and it really begins to feel like Halloween as October comes 'round.

Anyways, this weekend should be great. My only other regret is that I am already kind of nostalgic for last year when we had a great group of NBC pages who participated in all of these events. Now, many have gone their seperate ways, and getting a big group together for anything these days is about the equivalent of pulling teeth.

But yeah ... tommorow is Friday the 13th, a slight chill is in the California air, and I'm primed and ready for a weekend of scary fun. Hopefully, there's also time to catch up on a little sleep ...

TV STUFF:

LOST - I thought last night's ep, like the premiere, was a really well-put together hour of TV. Excellent acting from all involved, and I almost always enjoy the Jin and Sun-centric episodes. Just the mere fact that tens of millions of typically xenophobic Americans are tuned into an episode of a show that is primarily subtitled really amuses me. But aside from that, the Jin/Sun eps tend to have a kind of simplicity and intensity to the flashbacks that I enjoy - they really do take on the rythems of a foreign film in some ways. And man, the Others were real bastards in this ep, so I was all excited when Sawyer began to kick some Other ass (btw, I still laugh out loud whenever Jin says "Others" - just something funny about that to me). But yeah, this show is amazing when it comes to manipulating emotions and heightening the tension. And mostly, this ep got away with having little to no plot advancement because, from the start, it was almost purely about the character dynamics. So I wasn't too bothered by the continually glacial pace at which the show reveals information. And I love how the diehard Lost fans are like "No! A ton was revealed! Now we know that they live in 2004 and it's been 69 days since they crashed and they are in the real world!" Um, no. Whoever said they WEREN'T in the real world? Giving an answer to a hypothetical question is not plot advancement, fanboys. If it is, then I cant wait for the next big series of revelations, where it's revealed that the Castaways are NOT in outer space, that they are NOT in an alternate dimension, and that they are NOT actually figments of the imagination of their genetically-mutated clones. Jeebus. But hey, the Redsox bit was funny, I admit, and the episode had a lot of cool character moments and nearly every scene was gripping and had my full attention. The Sawyer-Kate stuff, the Jin/Sun backstory, the Henry Gale / Benjamin Linus scenes, and the continuing intrigue behind the character of Juliette - all top-notch. For now, I'm just watching in leave-brain-at-the-door mode. But sorry, it's against my nature to be that way for long.

My Grade: B+

And since all the geeks are disecting the name Benjamin Linus ... well here's my own two cents ... Benjamin = the youngest brother of the Bible's Joseph - the one innocent one who did NOT participate in assaulting Joseph in the famous incident involving the Coat of Many Colors.
Linus = the innocent boy-child of Peanuts fame, who goes nowhere without his security blanket and waits and waits for the Great Pumpkin to appear every Halloween to minimal success.

Thusly, the man formerly known as Henry Gale may be the boychild who has lost his innocence - the prodigal son of the Dharma initiative's founders who has now been hardened by his responsibilities as leader of the group.

Still, I feel like the key to Lost's plotline may lie HERE - in the Twilight Zone episode "It's a Good Life," in which an omnipotent little boy uses his powers to keep a town wrapped around his bratty fingers, which means that Linus may indeed be "a bad man, a very bad man!" Thoughts?

HEROES - Again, I find myself loving anything on this show having to do with Hiro. A great, fun character, and that scene with him stopping time to save a girl from getting run over was awesome. But nearly everything else about this show is marred by poor casting, wooden writing, and bland plotting and characterization. I don't mind the show being dark, in fact I respect the fact that it's willing to go into some pretty out-there, creepy territory (ie the shocking ending visual, which due to less than ideal f/x came off as slightly cheesy ...). But, in a show about, well, heroes, they need to mix in a sense of wonder, of awe, in with the brooding darkness. Only Hiro so far brings any of that element to the show. I'm also increasingly souring on Claire, aka Cheerverine, who has become almost comical as a walking death-magnet, getting assaulted, mauled, or fatally injured in each episode to date. The two brothers are just not working for me, and neither are Ali Larter, her annoying son, the Indian professor and his totally nonsensical scenes, or the psychic cop who is about as bland as can be. Plus, that heavy-handed narration has got to go. There are glimmers of greatness in this show (mostly in the form of Hiro), but there's way too much that is falling flat.

My Grade: B -

VERONICA MARS - Well, the latest EW echoed my concerns that this season will be Veronica-lite, and this ep continued with an entertaining but still slightly off installment that had all the great dialogue, character, and style I expect from the show, but slightly less bite. But man, talk about cool cameos. Freaks and Geeks' Sam Levine! Boy Meets World's Ryder Strong! Hahaha, talk about a blast from the past. As only Veronica Mars is capable of, this ep took a somewhat pedestrian mystery on the surface and turned it into a Hammett-worthy potboiler. I still just feel like the main storyarc feels a bit too OC, and the Kieth arc, dark and gritty to compensate, is still confusing and has yet to really draw me in. But these are the critiques of a huge Mars fan -- this is still barnone one of the best TV shows out there, and I have faith that this opening arc is merely the calm before the storm.

My Grade: B+

GILMORE GIRLS - Sorry, but there's something awkward and slightly creepy about seeing eternally innocent Rory and Lane having extended conversations about phone sex. There just is, I don't care how adult little Rory has become. That aside, this was another good ep made all the better by the welcome return of grandparents Richard and Emily. The etiquette class that Emily taught was hilarious, and these two actors just bring a totally different level of class and quality to this show. Overall good stuff, but I can't take much more of Rory and Lorelai being so, well, dirty. More wholesomeness with my Gilmore Girls, please.

My Grade: B

- So I also tuned in Tuesday to watch Ken Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz on Spike TV. I flipped back to Veronica as the fighters were introduced, flip back at the next commercial, and the fight was over! Talk about anticlimactic ... this is why UFC has nothing on fake wrestling - I like my epic grudge matches to actually be epic, thank you very much.

30 ROCK - NBC's latest sitcom is pretty friggin' funny so far, thanks largely to Tracy Morgan given freedom to do his thing. I've been a huge fan of Morgan's comedy since I first saw him go back and forth with Norm McDonald on SNL's weekend update as Dominican Lou. Morgan's over the top delivery, randomness, and general insanity had me rolling, and of course there's also Alec Baldwin doing his deadpan thing to great effect. This show definitely had more laughs than most. I do feel like, so far, it's a bit uneven. While it had plenty of great one-liners, it had a kind of thrown-together feel that left me questioning how invested I was in any of these characters. Plus, I liked it better with Rachel Dratch in a lead role. Still, this was good stuff - a much welcome lighter look at the TV biz compared to the overly serious Studio 60. And yes, the NBC Page character is hilarious, and I give points for the authenticity of his polyester uniform, hideous tie and all.

My Grade: B+

20 Good Years - The old school charm of this show is tempered by a distinct feeling that everything is forced. While Lithgow and Tambor give it their all, there's only so much tht these two verteran talents can do with a by-the-numbers script that is saved only by the sheer enthusiasm and charisma that the two leads bring to their roles. But man, that laugh track really stood out to me - more so than on other traditional sitcoms, this one felt like a smart, hpotentially hilarious single camera trapped within the confines of the multi-camera, laugh-track sweetened boundaries. Still, I get a kick out of Lithgow's ranting and raving and Lithgow's put-upon grimacing - I just wish they had material that was more worthy of their natural abilities. I want to like this show, it just doesn't feel as funny as smart or as sharp as it could be. But yeah, "I am the reborn!" got a hearty chuckle out of me.

My Grade: B -

Alright, peace - out until next time.

You Talkin' To Me? THE DEPARTED Review and Much MORE

Back from the weekend, and not quite ready for another Monday. I'm telling you, the world is a scary place right now. North Korea testing nuke - yeah, I mean everyone on earth not named George W. saw this one coming, but the prospect of Kim Jong having the power to level a major city is not exactly pleasant. My already paranoid mind went into overdrive last night, as I fell asleep after staying up too late watching CNN and MSNBC, and had all these crazy dreams involving nuclear warfare. One in particular was really strange ...

DANNY'S MESSED-UP, NUCLEAR-PARANOIA-FUELED DREAM:

I was at some special screening of the Borat movie, that for some reason was held at this huge high school somewhere. Before the movie, everyone was mingling on the football field having a good time. I saw Sascha Baron Cohen emerge in full Borat getup, and went over and started talking with him, joking about Kazakhistan and whatnot. Suddenly, Cohen breaks character and in his normal voice starts yelling expletives, and I was like what is going on? I look up and there's like 25 giant missles coming right towards us. I started running for shelter than woke up, moments before I was to be vaporized. Crazy huh?

ANYWAYS ...

So yeah, it's just a messed-up world sometimes. The entire concept of a nuclear arms-race is just totally absurd when you think about it (if you're not convinced, watch Dr. Strangeglove ...), and the fact that we've been in a prolonged war with Iraq while allowing an insane dictator to openly test a nuke is, similarly, fairly mind-boggling. And meanwhile, conservative Republicans are writing scandalous emails to 16 year old Congressional pages while preaching about family values. Lesson: don't mess with pages!

But while I'm moping about the seemingly impending nuclear apocalypse (hey, wonder if JERICHO will get bumped up in the ratings now?), a movie came out this weekend that was the perfect catharthic experience for those feeling nihilistic. Yep, I'm talkin' 'bout ...

THE DEPARTED Review

Now this, my friends, is a movie. A movie with texture, with layers. A movie that it's okay to find flaw in, because it works on so many levels that it invites the kind of analytical criticism that a great novel or play warrants. Was this scene the best way to emphasize that theme? Was this character used as effectively as possible? Whatever the case, Scorcese is back, and he's darn sure given us something meaty to think about with his latest, The Departed.

So far, The Departed is up there with my best of the year to date. It's Scorcese's return to the dark, gritty, violent, world of organized crime, and any fan of movies knows that that means that one of the best director's of the last thirty years is making a return to the genre he does best - in other words, this is a cause for celebration.

Of course, we as filmgoers are lucky, because Scorsece has assembled an amazing cast here. Aside from the quality of the performances, which I'll get to in a minute, it is unspeakably exciting to see young actors like Damon, DiCaprio, and Wahlberg mix it up with the likes of Jack Nicholson, Alec Baldwin, and Martin Sheen. This movie has a real "passing of the torch" feel to it that gives it an added layer of weight and depth that is exciting to watch as a fan of these actors. It's like the film equivalent of watching an aging but still-kicking Jordan match up with a hungry rookie named Kobe.

But yeah, DiCaprio and Damon each turn in career-best performances here. While Damon will probably be a bit overlooked, as his character was written in a lightly more over the top manner, DiCaprio brought an emotional depth and scrappiness to his role that made it a very memorable, perhaps Oscar-worthy performance. But watching Damon and DiCaprio play off of one another, despite scants amount of actual screentime together, made for a classic cat and mouse game. The tension between their characters was palpable even when not in the same scene, up to and including a climactic moment where they each have the other on the phone, too cautious to say anything and each waiting for the other to make the first movie. Classic.

Jack Nicholson is pretty great here as well, but what do you expect. Given the "rockstar" nature of his character, Jack is given creative license to be over the top, and he does so with the charismatic blend of scariness and zaniness that has made him one of cinema's most enduring stars. Sure, there are one or two moments where he probably oculd have toned it down a notch, but mostly, his schtick fits, because The Departed isn't so much a dead-serious film like Casino, but more so a black comedy a la Resevoir Dogs (Actually the two have much in common). So Nicholson's antics are fitting, hilarious, scary, fun, and don't overshadow everything else, because his theatricality works within this film's overall tone.

Alec Baldwin and Mark Wahlberg are total scene-stealers in this movie. Baldwin does a slightly more self-mocking version of his "brass balls" character from Glengary Glenross, and proves yet again that nobody does self-important comedic deadpan like he does. The man can do it all - from drama to black comedy to sitcom humor (hello, 30 Rock). Wahlberg really surprised me in this movie. At first glance, his character is a typical ball-busting asshole cop. By the end of the movie, he is the surprise breakout character of the film, thanks to impeccable comedic timing and snappy line-delivery by Wahlberg. Baldwin and Wahlberg have some absolutely hilarious exhanges and individual lines that had the audience I saw the movie with applauding out of sheer appreciation.

The rest of the supporting cast is similarly great. Martin Sheen lends some added class to an already classy-production, but he centers the movie as one of the concious and father-figure to his two-faced colleagues in the police force. All of the other smaller roles are well-filled as well.

Also, relative newcomer Vera Farmiga does a very nice job as the woman caught between Damon and DiCaprio. Her storyarc is probably the toughest to swallow in the film, as it rings as being a bit too convenient .... but Farmiga is extremely solid and it's great to see a lead actress in such a star-filled cast who is legitimately talented, multi-layered, and believable, and not simply another star shoehorned in to complete an all-star lineup of name-actors. That being said, she has some great scenes with the two male leads, and does play a key part in completing the almost Shakespearian plot of the film.

Yes, I said Shakespearean. From its dark humor to its theatricality to its sometimes over-the-top plot twists, and especially with its classic Shakespeare-style ending (you almost wait for the characters to yell "I hath been smote!" as they systematically drop dead towards the end in increasingly sudden fashion), this really does feel like Scorcese's attempt at crime drama-as-Shakespearean tragi-comedy. But it all works. The narrative flows effortlessly, and the crisp directorial style heightens the mood and intensity but never overshadows the characters. This movie pulls off the tricky feat of gritty crime drama mixed with flashy humor with ease and grace.

Also, as a New Englander and BU grad, I love the way in which the film captures the feel of Boston. From the accents to the music (Dropkick Murphys!), to the bleak scenes of the T's rustic orange line to the local pubs to the overarching mentality of Irish scrappiness - this was a real film of and about Boston as much as some of Scorcese's other movies are films of and about New York.

Finally, as much as this was a classic Hollywood tale of cat and mouse games and guys caught on the wrong side of the law and betrayals and gunplay and snappy dialogue, it was also for me a movie that really came together thematically. A movie about the high price of lies and deception, about the inevitabilty of death and the self-destructiveness of criminals and those who hunt them. This, in the end, in spite of one's individual critiques or issues with it, was undeniably damn good movie-watching in the classic sense. They don't much make 'em like this anymore, so go to the theater, enjoy, and discuss.

My Grade: A

... So yeah, good movie watching this weekend. Also saw The 300 trailer on the big screen ("Tonight, WE DINE IN HELL!") and a few other solid-looking previews for The Black Diamond and a few others.

- Also, I finally, finally saw Network. I know, I'm about 30-odd years late in jumping on this bandwagon, but see this movie if you haven't already. Especially those of you who work in TV. Amazingly, it is as fresh a satire today as it must have been then, and it's scary how many of its visions of an entertainment and ratings-obsessed television industry have come to pass. So yeah, see it. A classic - a masterwork of superb acting and the potent combination of Sidney Lumet's directing and Paddy Chayefsky's words. And, also, an obvious precursor to Studio 60.

TV STUFF:

- No new FOX stuff to report on, as most shows are on hiatus for the baseball playoffs.

- Like I said, I was all ready to dump Jericho but I have to admit, I am now almost more morbidly curious about what if any parallels exist between the show's fictional nuclear attack (hinted to be caused by North Korea) and our current real life political mess. If only the show were actually halfway decent. As it stands, it is atrocious. What a shame.

- You know, I'll go on record as predicting big things for 30 Rock and Twenty Good Years. On Friday, I saw the Departed in a fully packed theater, and the entire audience snickered and smiled when Alec Baldwin first appeared on camera -- it was clear that his hilarious character from 30 Rock was on everyone's brain. Those commercials have been doing a great job of promoting the show, and are just really funny. Everyone is pronouncing the sitcom dead but NBC, I am proud to say, has two pretty good ones coming up this Wednesday.

COMIC-BOOK ROUNDUP:

- A quick update on some good stuff I've been reading lately. Still have Brian K. Vaughn's "Pride of Baghdad" sitting on my coffee table. I'm waiting for a open weekend day where I can really sink into it, as I've been reading nothing but superlative reviews thus far. But anyways, here's some stuff I've been digging lately:

- PAUL DINI on DETECTIVE COMICS - Dini, you may know, was the mastermind, along with artistic collaborator Bruce Timm on the seminal Batman: The Animated Series. So to any Bat-fans out there, having Dini write Batman comics on a monthly basis as the new regular author of Detective Comics, is a dream come true. While Dini started off a little slowly, somwhat hampered by inconsistent art teams, with this month's ish Dini is firing on all cylinders. Clever dialogue, guest appearances galore, and gorgeous artwork thanks to Don Kramer. If Dini can keep this up, this is, no doubt, quintissential Batman.

- Y: THE LAST MAN - If you've read my blog consistently you know how much I've loved Y for the last few years. Simply put, this is epic, funny, exciting storytelling. This past week saw the release of the landmark issue # 50, and it was, as usual, a great read, filled with simple, clean, but amazingly emotive artwork from Pia Guerra. Set to end at issue 66, this issue was a reminder to savor the last year and hald of Y, possibly the best ongoing comic of the last 5 years.

MARV WOLFMAN on NIGHTWING - Marv Wolfman is a legend of comics. In the 1980's, he turned a poor-selling book called Teen Titans into the No. 1 comic on the charts, and did so by including unprecedented realism, maturity, and by taking beloved characters like Wally West and Dick Grayson (the original Robin), and actually having them do the impossible in the realm of comics -- grow up. Wolfman took Robin the Boy Wonder and turned him into Nightwing - a new incarnation of the hero who instantly became a fan favorite. Of late, Nightwing has had some rough times, not from any particularly dastardly supervillain, but from the menace of hack writing and lack of respect from DC editorial. So it was a huge relief to see Wolfman, who knows Nightwing better than anyone, come in to replace writer Bruce Jones, who in only several issues churned out some of the worst and most off-putting Nightwing tales ever told. Wolfman's writing is decidedly old-school, with some stilted narration and familiar plotting, and the art by Dan Jurgens is a bit inconsistent and not Jurgen's best. But man, after the atrocity that was Jones, the first Wolfman-penned ish felt was a very welcome return to familiarity. Even with its lack of new-school style and polish, the voice, the tone, the attitude felt right.

52 - What started as an experiment in weekly storytelling has quickly become a must-read for comic fans. As the story expands beyond the initial cast of primary characters, it really has begun to feel like a weekly glance into the fantastical world of the DCU rather than a conventional serial story. Half the fun is the spotlight on lesser-know supporting characters, including this past week's emphasis on Dr. Will Magnus, the pipe-smoking, plad suit-wearing ingenue and creator of the Metal Men. While this series has had its ups and downs, it's always the first thing I read every week, as it really does feel like a series where anything can happen.

OTHER STUFF:

- Whoah, Google bought YouTube for an insane amount of cash. I don't know about this one ... YouTube's grand social video-sharing experiment has yet to amount to much more than a bunch of clips of old TV shows and of girls dancing to Aqua songs. Similarly, Google's video offerings have thus far been weak. Can two wrongs make a right ...?

- Leave it to the local LA News to cover car chases and celeb scandal when the North Koreans are poised to blow us to kingdom come. Unbelievable.

- And yeah, I haven't mentioned it yet, but you may have noticed that the blog has surpassed the 15,000 hit count! Not too shabby, I dare say.

- Alright, thanks as always for reading. Keep reading, and I'll keep fighting the good fight.

My Blog: It's Good. Soooo good. OFFICE, STUDIO 60, SMALLVILLE, and more.

Sweet lord, thank you that the week is just about finito. After much craziness last week, this has been one of those "getting back into the groove" weeks where attempts to return to relative normalcy mean lack of sleep, poor time management, and a general lack of real productivity. Oh well, this should be a pretty laidback weekend, kicked off by a viewing of Scorcese's latest, The Departed. Can't wait for this one, as it's gotten almost nothing but stellar reviews, and looks to be a can't-miss movie that should prove more than Oscar-worthy.

This will be a pretty quick entry, but I do want to mention some good TV viewin' that occured last night.

TV REVIEWS

First of all ...

THE OFFICE

As much as I've been critical of this show on occasion, last night's ep, in my humble opinion, was off-the-charts hilarious. I mean, seriously, I haven't laughed that hard at a TV show since, since ... hmmm ... maybe since the Arrested Development finale last spring. Pretty much everything that Dwight said or did last night had me rolling on the floor laughing (ROTFL for you internet chatroom abbreviation geeks). But yeah, man, the Macbeth-like interaction between Dwight and Angela as they plotted how Dwight could usurp Michael as Office Manager--- just truly inspired comedy. Michael trying to pry the truth out of Dwight via offering him M&M's after a supposed destist appointment ... freaking hilarious. Ed Helms popping up in the Stanford branch, as a foil for Jim who takes his videogame playing way too seriously? Awesome, great casting there. Dwight covertly meeting with Jan at the Liz Claiborne outlet? Too funny. One of my Top 5 episodes of this show to date -- best laughs I've had in a while.

My Grade: A

MY NAME IS EARL

Another very solid ep of Earl. Funny stuff with the sideshow freaks and their interaction with Earl and especially Randy. Ethan Suplee continues to be hilarious, and yeah, sign me up for the Jamie Pressly bandwagon ... who knew she had this level of comedic timing and charisma? Not always laugh out loud funny, but the last two eps have been highly watchable and consistently entertaining.

My Grade: B+

SMALLVILLE

Nice. This was more of the Smallville that I know and love, in an ep that had a high level of semi-whimsical charm, a low level of cheese, and another top-notch performance from Michael Rosenbaum. Even Lana was semi-interesting this week. And yeah, even though the guy they got to play him seems to have the acting skills of an inanimate carbon rod (the same guy who was the lead in the ill-fated Aquaman pilot ...), I admit that I totally geeked out for the appearance of Oliver Queen, aka Green Arrow. It's too bad the guy can't act too, because I really enjoyed the way that the Emerald Archer was written, and all the little details that made him instantly recognizable to longtime fans of the character. Having him be an old schoolmate of Lex is a nice twist that fits into the schematic of the show. And man, I even kind of dig the costume, complete with green hood. But yeah, that ending, of Ollie calling his mark and hitting it - even if it was a city on the giant Daily Planet globe - was pure coolness. Any comic fan knows that Ollie is one of the most interesting characters in the superhero pantheon - a liberal hipster who uses his wealth to wage a Robin Hood-style crusade against corporate fatcats and above-the-law bigshots. That modus operandi makes him a perfect fit for the Luthor-dominated world of Smallville, so this should be interesting. The Clark-Chloe-Lois stuff here was a lot of fun as well. My main complaint is with the falling back on a number of lame Smallville cliches ... Lex not being able to remember his time as Zod, Clark walking right into Lex's mansion despite its beefed-up security, Clark saving the day yet again without being seen by Lex or Lana who were of course just feet away from him ... the good character moments shouldn't have to be undermined by this kind of lazy plotting. Oh well, as a whole I really enjoyed this ep - made me smile and look forward to next week's Clark-Ollie team up.

My Grade: B+

STUDIO 60:

Finally saw this week's ep, the third episode of the show thus far. Overall, I love some of the dialogue and character moments, but I have to admit I'm starting to sour on the show as a whole. For one thing, like many critics have pointed out, the actual comedy of the show-within-a-show is pretty lame and somewhat absurd. The "Science-Shmience" sketch had me cringing at how preachy and unfunny it was, for example. Apparently in Sorkin's world SNL-style sketch comedy is more akin to filmed versions of liberal internet blogs or something. I mean, Gilbert and Sullivan, Renaissance humor, Scientology jokes ... this is the content of the fictionalized Studio 60? And people are watching this? I know that Sorkin is trying to make a point about art and commerce, but sketch comedy, above all else, needs to be funny to be successful, and the show needs to reflect that. In addition, the tone of this show is just too heavy-handed. Again, I realize it's all a kind of commentary on how self-important people in the TV business are, but isn't that just the pot calling the kettle black (or something to that effect)? How could a network exec having gotten a DUI eight years ago possibly register as important enough to be a national scandal? It's melodramatic artistic license like that that makes this show slightly obnoxious. Isn't it about a sketch comedy show that airs on Friday nights? As important as any show like that can be to a network, this isn't exactly Lawrence of Arabia-type material here. It's why the moments of levity with Matthew Perry interacting with Bradley Whitford are so welcome. On one hand, I respect this show for striving for intelligence and relevance. On the other, it also really needs to tone things down a notch.

My Grade: B-

Alright ... bring on the weekend. Have a good one, everybody. CYA.

Hey Kid, Get LOST - Lost Season 3 Premiere - Reviewed! Plus: Jericho and The Nine, and that 300 Trailer!

So last night was the Season 3 premiere of Lost, hyped by one TV Guide reviewer as being the best single episode since the pilot (meaning it topped such gems as "Walkabout" and "The Long Con"). Was it, in fact, a five-star episode, as Ain't It Cool News boldly declared? Was it, thanks to the pensmanship of JJ Abrams and Damon Lindeloff, a modern TV classic?

Well, all in all it was typical LOST. 50% killer, 50% filler.

I mean, that opening - wow. For 5 minutes, they totally had me. The Others in suburbia, debating the merits of Stephen King (just as King, via EW, debates the merits of LOST ... cool!), as everything goes to hell as the plane carrying our heroes fatefully crashes on Fantasy Island. Friggin' sweet.

Oh, who am I kidding here. For just about all of this episode, I was totally sucked in, on the edge of my seat, hanging on every word spoken by Jack, Sawyer, Henry Gale, and new character Juliette. Hell, Evangeline Lilly didn't even have to say anything and she had me at hello. And seeing Lost again after all this time made me appreciate a number of things about this show all over again, in the wake of so many wannabe shows that just don't get what makes Lost so special in the TV drama landscape.

First of all, this cast is ridiculously good. The three actors featured in this episode, and their characters of Jack, Sawyer, and Kate, are, by themselves, better than any other trio on any other TV drama. Compelling characters, great actors brimming with charisma ... classic. Nevermind the fact that some of the show's best and hardest-hitting actors, Terry O'Quinn as Locke and Naveen Andrews as Sayid, for example, didnt even appear. After seeing shows like Heroes, Jericho, etc struggle with the transition from the page to the screen, with characters that fail to pop and actors that fail to captivate - Lost came back and completely schooled them on what it is that makes great television characters and how said characters should be cast.

Secondly, Lost looks amazing. This episode was directed with theatrical flair, which meant epic shots, atmospheric lighting, and bold closeups. Each scene looked different, from the bright, serene beaches of the island to the rustic camp where Sawyer was imprisoned to the dank, grimy hatch where Jack found himself, this is how a show of this nature should look. If only a show like Heroes could recognize that there's a power in the bright, the bold, the fantastic when appropriate to the subject matter.

Finally, the dialogue in this episode crackled with energy. Despite all my criticisms about the plotting and, occasionally, about the characterization, no one can say that Lost has not had some pretty snappy dialogue over its two year run. And give credit to Josh Halloway, for instance, who has created a great character in Sawyer, who delivers each line with flair.

But as much as this was a cool episode, as much as it had me on the edge of my seat, it kind of came unglued for me at the end, when once again the show seemed to inch forward only to take two steps back into yet another mess of ambiguity and pointless lack of logic.

Take the exchange between Jack and Juliette - Jack finally, at one point, seems to blurt out the questions we've all been wondering. Who are the Others? Are they connected to Dharma? And most poignantly - What the hell is going on here?

Finally! A character had come to his or her senses and asked the most obvious question of all! But just as the show itself poses these questions, it fails to ever follow up. So I have to wonder - why pose them at all? Be vague, be mysterious - whatever. But you can't have it both ways. You can't continually set up the expectation that something will be addressed only to not address it. The writers and producers COULD have decided that, hey, it's all just one giant head trip and we'll never answer anything and just really mess with everyone's heads (think David Lynch). Fine, that could work. But the show can't seem to decide if it wants to reveal anything or not. I don't know if I'm supposed to be breathlessly waiting for some answer as to what the smoke monster was, why Locke can walk, who the Others are, why there was a Polar Bear, why there was a giant four-toed statue, et al, or just address each new mystery by saying something to the effect of "Oh, a giant four-toed statue - interesting. Next!"

That inconsistency in tone reared its head yet again in this episode. One minute Jack seems to have a breakthrough, finally daring to ask the Big Question of what the hell is going on. Moments later, when presented with the proposition that Julliette and The Others are somehow all-knowing (of course, how they are all-knowing is yet another mystery!), Jack forgets his previous curiuosity and merely asks the extremely subjective question, with regards to his ex-wife: is she happy?

Is she happy? IS she HAPPY? Whaaat?!?! Now, obviously in the context of this episode, where we were shown a number of flashbacks about Jack's falling out with his wife, it makes contextual sense that Jack would ask about his wife. But unless there's some metaphysical craziness going on that we don't know about, it's not as if these characters are actually RELIVING the episodes they flash back to! Sure, WE as viewers are given these flashbacks because they thematically relate to the story at hand and flesh out the main characters. But let's look at Jack at this moment in time, at this point in his narrative:

He's been imprisoned against his will by a seemingly malevolent group of Others, on a strange island that is home to Polar Bears, smoke monsters, and four-toed statues. His friends are also captured, the other survivors may be in danger. He's looking for something, any reason to trust his captor, or any validation of his instinct that she is NOT to be trusted. At this point in time, his main thoughts are of escape, of his safety, of his friends, and also, a creeping, horrible realization that his whole situation is really, really messed up. Remember, only we as viewers have relived Jack's past - he has been locked up in a strange prison, left to contemplate, as he himself wondered - what the hell is going on.

So of all the things to ask, of all the things to wonder about - it's is his ex-wife happy? Thematically, I see how it makes some kind of sense. Logically, narratively, it is totally ridiculous.

UGH. That one moment took me out of the show. I was expecting a grand revelation about the identity of Jack's wife's new man that would tie everything together, some shocking statement from Henry Gale that would lend credence to his claims that the captives were about to experience a prolonged period of pain. Maybe even a return to the captivating intro scene - some new insight into how or why the Others anticipated the plane crash or what, exactly, they intended to do about it.

So there you have it. One step forward, two steps back. In almost every way, Lost is head and shoulders above most everything else on TV. Amazing cast, top-notch production, and an uncanny ability to create tension and prolonged instensity that keeps even us critics continually coming back for more. It's just that, when it comes to plotting and advancing the story and mystery in a way that makes sense, this show can be absolutely maddening. But yeah, I'll be there next week. At this point I'm hooked.

My grade: B+

- But anyways, who cares how last night's Lost was - the real story here is that on ABC on Wednesday nights - the legacy of Party of Five lives on! Matthew Fox at 9, Scott Wolf at 10. Now get Neve Campell and Lachey Chabert in a 24-meets-Charlie's Angels-style spy thriller at 8 and we'll really be in business. Do you hear me ABC? Do you?!?!

- But yeah, what about THE NINE ...

Well, damn, the NINE has the most unintentionally funny premise ever, which for a show that takes itself deadly seriously, can't be a good thing. It's too bad, too, because the cast on this show is superb. Sorry not to name names, but basically, we've got the pricipal from Boston Public, the funny guy from Out of Time and Enterprise, the Voice of Superman, and Audrey from 24. Niiiice. But I don't get this show. Why am I supposed to care about any of these characters? And how does keeping the supposedly horrible events that took place while they were hostages a mystery make this show any more compelling? As it stands, the fact that we are left to imagine the atrocities that went on during the nine's time as hostages leaves, well, A LOT to the imagination. And so every time a character whispers, in hushed tones, about how they'll never be the same after the events of those two days, about how they still can't get over what THEY made HER do to HIM and what HE did to HER when no one was looking, and so on, well those of us with active imaginations can only think of some pretty absurd stuff. I mean why leave this to the imagination, so that I am now led to picture the bankrobbers forcing everyone to strip, dress in clown uniforms, and hop on one foot for three hours while singing Michael Bolton songs for seven hours straight? I mean, what could possibly have gone on in that room that is a.) not sick, perverted, or just gross and b.) interesting enought that I should care. I mean, the whole thing is stupid.

Just a way overqualified cast stuck with a terrible idea for a show that gives you zero incentive to tune in past the pilot.

My Grade: C -

Oh, and yeah, I watched one more episode of JERICHO, likely my last since next week 30 Rock and 20 Good Years premiere in this timeslot. But wow, Jericho takes the word trainwreck to whole new levels. This show is just mediocre on every level. The sad part is I love the premise and it has moments, however small, that give us a glimpse of the potential power of the premise. Take this episode. It had ONE cool moment - when everyone is gathered around the TV and a seemingly Korean broadcast comes on, an interesting development that has all kinds of intriguing implications. But sadly, the small problem of NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST and AMERICAN INVASION BY A HOSTILE NATION is quickly forgotten, in place of the pressing issues of teen crushes, awkward tension between Skeet and his ex, and an overzealous citizen who rubs the mayor the wrong way. And oh yeah, let's not forget the SHOCKING CLIFFHANGER, where our outcast teen hero amazingly discovers a giant food supply truck, since, you know, after ONE DAY of isolation, the people of Jericho are all starving to death and ultimate salvation takes the form of a truck full of canned goods. As amusing as this show can be in a so-bad-it's-watchable kind of way, enough is enough. Please, stop watching it. It's not worth it, even to satisfy morbid curiousity about just how many cities were blown up and who did it. Right? Please tell me I'm right.

My Grade: D+

- Tonight - The Office, Earl, and Green Arrow comes to Smallville.

OTHER STUFF:

- Great Zeus! The trailer for 300 is KICKASS. Bring on March 'o7, this is now at the top of my most anticipated movie list. Check it out ASAP and commence drooling:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/300/

- Bring on the Halloween season! The next few weeks promise trips to Knotts Scary Farm, the annual Horror Movie-thon, and more.

- And I have more to say, but I've got to jet. Until next time ...

Review-O-Rama: Veronica Mars, Smallville, Heroes, and MORE

Alright, so the Fall Season in TV Land is heating up and it's time to weigh in ...

First up:

VERONICA MARS

- Last night's Season 3 premiere was, again, a huge breath of fresh air amidst a glut of network dramas that try to pass themselves off as intelligent and adult, when in fact they feel produced by-committee and fresh off the development assembly line. Finally, a show that continually blows me away with the originality of its voice and its stubborn refusal to fall neatly into any single genre. Finally, I found myself watching a show that felt smarter than me - a show where, as an aspiring writer, I found myself watching and admiring the cleverness of the dialogue, the richness of the characters, and the intricacies of the plot and its many unraveling mysteries. Finally, Veronica Mars was back!

As a whole, VM was as slick, intelligent, and fun as always. However, the premiere did have an unusally lightweight feel to it compared to the past two season openers. There was no real sweeping, epic mystery unfolding - everything was on a much smaller scale, and overall things felt more, well, laid-back than usual. Even Veronica looked less rebellious and both figuratively and literally she seemed to let her hair down. But hey, that opening scene where Veronica out-sleuths everyone else in her Criminology class was classic Mars. I have to say though, I was kind of clueless about what Keith Mars was up to with Ms. Casablancas. Maybe I missed something, but I felt very in the dark about what was going on with his subplot. Hopefully it will be clarified sooner rather than later. Ultimately though, this was an excellent ep that just happened to feel more like a midseason episode than the huge, earth-shattering season premiere I was sort of expecting. It set up Veronica's new life at college very well, introduced some great new characters (you have to believe that that Criminology prof. is going to play a large role), had the usual sharp dialogue, and had Vinnie Van Lowe to boot.

But wait - one HUGE complaint. CW, WHAT THE #$%& were you thinking when you changed the opening theme song?!?! The new intro is okay, but that remixed, slowed-down version of The Dandy Warhol's We Used To Be Friends SUCKS. Bring back the old version ASAP, ya' hear?

Otherwise, good stuff, and I'm sure it will only get more interesting from here. Keep in mind, this was a great ep, but I hold VM to a high standard than many shows as it so regularly churns out A-level episodes.

My Grade: B+

GILMORE GIRLS

- Another episode that felt slightly off, very ambling in places, but ultimately won me over thanks to some great scenes. Namely, the opening was amazing - Luke punching out Chris was as cathartic for us viewers as it must have been for Mr. Danes. The humor with Kirk opening his own diner was kind of hilarious as well, though I think they did go a little overboard in making Kirk kind of a douchebag rather than merely annoying. The bits with Lane were okay, but the whole sex/pregnancy angle felt forced to me and too soon, as we haven't even seen her take on the role of wife yet, and already she is going to be a mother? The Rory-Lorelei scenes were also kind of long and rambling, but ended in a good payoff with Rory's revulsion at her mother's reunion with Chris. But, I know Lorelai and Rory are more like sisters than mother-daughter, but I was definitely cringing as Rory repeatedly yelled at her mom for sleeping with Chris. Just very awkward to watch. Still, I thought Luke's scenes were handled very well, and a nice little theme was established with him and his semi-dysfuntional family. Some good stuff, but still very hit-and-miss in the post-Palladino era.

My Grade: B

- Sidenote 1: Odd that both CW shows last night, Gilmore and Veronica, both featured very prominent references to Battlestar Galactica. I'll have to get around to checking it out sometime, but even without any knowledge of BSG lore, the inner geek in me loved both Luke's discussion of the space/time continuum and, most of all, Veronica's gleeful use of the word "Frak."

SMALLVILLE

I know, I know, this one is late. But I didn't watch until Friday evening and I somehow forgot to mention it in yesterday's blog. As far as the premiere of Smallville goes though, well, it was disappointing in that it was a decidedly mixed bag. I say disappointing because, while it was a pretty good episode, past season premieres of Smallville (along with season finales), have more often than not been total home-runs, one of the few times when the show could be utterly counted on to knock one out of the park. This wasn't a home run, but it had its merits.

Basically, this show still squarely resides in a yellow-tinged zone of pure cheese. Exhibit A: Clark being trapped in the Phantom Zone = cool. Clark immediately meeting a hot girl also trapped in the Phantom Zone who knew his father before Krypton exploded = pretty lame. Zod wreaking havoc on earth = kickass. Zod doing so via a ridiculous looking mechanism that triggers a computer virus (hello, Independence Day) = lame and cheesy. But man, give some credit to Michael Rosenbaum as Lex / Zod. Under any other actor, Zod inhabiting Lex's body would have been all kinds of ridiculous, but somehow, someway, Rosenbaum made it work, even if this is now the approximately 1 billionth time that someone on Smallville's mind has been taken over by an outside entity. I also thought the intro of Jimmy Olsen was kind of lame ... why take one of the all time classic geeky-cool fictional characters, Superman's pal, he of the signal watch and bowtie, and make him into just another WB-ized pretty boy. This show continues to stick to an endless array of tired, played out, mind-boggling cliches - new characters introduced as slightly modified Type A WB model-actors, people traveling great distances to speak one line in person rather than using a cell phone, characters randomly entering each other's homes at will, mind-control as the uber plot device to end all plot devices, trips to the Smallville medical center more frequent than Robin Williams' trips to rehab .... the list goes on and on.

And yet it continually saved by stellar performances from Rosenbaum and John Glover as Lex and Lionel Luthor, a steady and dependable Tom Welling as Clark Kent, and a feeling that, even though the writing on this show can be aneurism-inducing, that, somehow, its heart is in the right place as far as staying true to the legend of Superman is concerned.

To that end, this ep did some things very right - great action between Zod and Clark (even if the line "Kneel Before Zod" was milked to its absolute limit), great visual f/x in the Phantom Zone that put just about every other scifi show on TV to shame, and an overall sense of scope that really made this episode, for all its weaknesses, feel more Super in many ways than Superman Returns. Yes, it had to be said people.

This remains one of the most up and down shows on TV - at times totally mired in formulaic writing and frustrating logistical gaps, yet continually worth watching for its momentary flashes of greatness that remind us why Superman is one of our most enduring modern mythologies.

My Grade: B

Now, as for that OTHER superhero show on network TV ...

HEROES

Well, I said this show has potential, and I still feel that way. But the problem with a show like this, where nearly every character and situation feels directly influenced by something else, is that when I think about where it's headed all that comes to mind is: will it be like this comic book, like this TV show, like this movie? Because as much as I want to like this show, I just don't feel like it has anything original to say as of yet. Unlike Lost, which came out of the gate with a spectacular pilot brimming with characters and mysteries that begged for further exploration, Heroes seems to be kind of coasting along, merely connecting dots from Point A to B to C.

So far for me and I suspect most others, Hiro is, BY FAR, the standout character on the show, and his scenes are far and away more interesting than any of the other characters'. Hiro feels original, like a fresh thought, a fresh take on the disaffected Japanese office drone. His situation is interesting - how does someone so immersed in fantasy culture react to becoming a living, breathing embodiment of the comic and scifi heroes he obsesses over? So far, Hiro is fun, interesting, easy to root for -a great character. I wish the same could be said for the others ...

Nearly every other character on Heroes feels ripped from some other work of speculative fiction. Sure, some of these sources are rather obscure, but I think that most people can tell when a character or situation is an original labor of love rather than a variation on a theme. It's why the brilliant creations of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby survive and thrive to this day - they are iconic, larger than life, yet relatable. And sure, a character like The Hulk is a variation on the Frankenstein myth, which is itself a variation of the Golem legend. But these larger mythological themes are fair game to be adapted to new situations and eras. What doesn't fly is taking the specifics of a character or story - the powers, the personalities - all the minutiae that Heroes borrows from comics and sci fi - but lacking the power of the overarching themes, the iconography, that make superheroes the new mythology of modern America.

My point is - two episodes in and I'm thinking - okay, we've got people with powers, the threat of nuclear disaster, interconencted characters - all elements I've seen before. So, the larger question is --- What the heck is this show ABOUT?

Right now, it just seems like it's throwing all these bits of pop-cultural goo at the viewer. For example:

Claire - the teen cheerleader / reluctant hero reminds me a lot of Courtney Whitmore, aka The Star Spangled Kid, created by Geoff Johns - she even looks similar.

Her powers and possible manipulation by a government agency of some kind, of course, brings to mind the X-Men's Wolverine.

Her videotaping her powers is similar to a storyarc in Will Pfeifer's seminal comic H.E.R.O. (an award-winning comic which also explored the theme of what normal, everyday people would do if suddenly given powers).

Her keeping her powers a secret from her high school classmates, except for from her crushing, geeky friend, and other aspects of her character strongly remind me of the series Bad Girls from a few years back.

Ali Larter's character - her dual / hidden personality brings to mind the DC character Rose and Thorn.

The psychic cop - we've seen variations of this on shows like Pretender, Millenium, and others, and also recently via the DC character Josie Mac, created by Judd Winnick.

The computer that can track people with a metagene of some kind - anyone's who's seen X-Men can spot the similarity to Charle's Xavier's mutant-spotting device Cerebro.

A superpowered serial killer who is knocking off fellow metas - reminiscent of Alan Moore's classic Watchmen murder-mystery (as is the ominous threat of a nuclear disaster that can only be stopped by metahumans), and more recently of J. Michael Strazcynski's Supreme Power - a realistic take on how society and the government would react to a sudden emergence of super-powered beings. The entire concept of Heroes, in fact, is similar to Supreme Power and JMS's Rising Stars.

The two brothers with differing personalities but linked powers calls to mind the comic characters Hawk and Dove, and the one brother who tries to downplay his powers in order not to overhsadow a promising political career is similar to Brian K Vaughn's Ex Machina.

And of course, the interconnected characters, mysterious symbols, and ambiguous themes of purpose and destiny and fate are all, intentionally I'm sure, similar to TV's reigning fantasy hit - Lost.

And so on ...

Of course in this genre of fiction bits and pieces of past works inevitably work their way into new stories. But my point is that Heroes needs its OWN identity, its OWN premise, its OWN characters in order to thrive and live up to its potential. I see that potential in Hiro, and in bits and pieces of the story, but mostly I feel like I'm seeing what amounts to Watchmen-lite, to Supreme Power-lite, to Lost-lite.

That's my main gripe, though the stilted dialogue (esp. from the Indian cab driver - everytime he talks I wanted to flip channels), uneven pacing, and unimpressive f/x (the flying needs work) don't help either. But like I said, so far I'm at least somwhat entertained, still intrigued, and hopeful that things will soon pick up.

My Grade: B -

- Speaking of LOST, I am very excited, once again, for tonight's Season 3 premiere. JJ Abrams is cowriting for the first time since the series' pilot, and early reviews indicate good things. Even if tonight's ep really is all that and a bag of chips, I hope that that only means we can look forward to a new season that recaptures Season 1's brilliance and takes the show to the next level. Adapt or die, I say.

- Will maybe give JERICHO one last shot tonight, it's one of those trainwreck-y shows that, like I've said, is pretty bad but just makes me wonder where the writers will take it next. I wonder if the ratings will be affected by Lost's premiere?

- Speaking of ratings, the CW has just been getting killed thus far. Didn't the WB's top shows like Smallville and Gilmore, in their peaks, score in the 4's or even 5's? I might be wrong on that, but it makes me wonder where Veronica's low-2's rating places it in relative levels of CW-measured success. With only one new show (Runaways, already a bust), and no big in-its-prime returning show other than low-rated Mars, CW is really in a tough place. One little piece of advice - if you want shows like Gilmore and Veronica to grab a broad audience, maybe even attract more male viewers based on positive buzz, don't make me feel like a total tool while waching by running those Aerie Girl vignettes or whatever, with a bunch of teenage girls sitting around and discussing each show during commercial breaks! As if it doesn't already take enough convincing to sell my male friends on the merits of Gilmore and VM, now us guys have to be subjected to this de-masculating filler?

- Alright, I am out for now. Back later, as the countdown to Halloween begins ...

Tekiyah G'dolah: Birthday Aftermath, Yom Kippur, Prison Break, MORE

Well it's back to work after - a.) one (1) weekend of birthday insanity, and b.) one (1) Day of Atonement.

First, the birthday ...

Thanks to everyone who came out to Pasadena for my b-day bash. It was an awesome time and filled with plenty of good friends, good food, good music, and partying down. Special thanks to:

a.) my friend Bradd for coming down all the way from Newport Beach for the festivities
b.) my friend Aksel for coming all the way from San Diego and living up to his legend, bad leg and all
c.) everyone who was in for the long-haul
d.) everyone who showed up and made it a great time

I have to say I am a little perplexed by the whole e-vite thing. This was the first time I've ever used an evite, and I know that in this day and age of electronic communication it's hard to establish any kind of real formality for these types of things. But the way I've always understood it, when one replies "yes," they are coming, you would expect them to actually show up to the party. Otherwise, why reply yes? I also don't quite get the people who just randomly don't show up ... as if they have anything more important to do than celebrate my birthday ...? But, whatever, their loss!

It was great having such a big crew out and about in Old Town, and it was an interesting mix of NBC alums, hometown friends, and other assorted randomness. Everyone was in rare form, and a great time was had by all. Between dinner at Moose's and the after-party at Union Cattle, the night was a rockin' one, and a memomorable and fun way to bring in year number twenty-four.

Let's do it again next year.

Of course, I was still reeling from the festivities when, on Sunday, it was time to shift gears and get ready to begin the annual day of fasting and praying that is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Thanks to Paul L and his friend Noam, I was able to get tickets to attend services at Adat Ari-El in Valley Village. I went there for Kol Nidre on Sunday night after a final pre-fast meal, and again in Monday morning at finally again on Monday night for Neillah. It was a nice synagogue - very bustling with an obviously huge membership. It was filled with a boistrous mix of young families, lots of teenagers, and more elderly members, and had three different services to accomodate everyone. I had tickets to the more traditional service, which was fine by me, as I've never really been big on organs and choirs and whatnot being a part of a service that is supposed to be more introspective and solemn. It seems that synagogue rotated rabbis throughout the services, so on Sunday night we had one older Rabbi who I really liked, while the younger Rabbi on Monday was good also, but a bit preachy in his highly-politicized and somewhat overly-simplistic sermons which focused on the Israeli-Arab conflict. Overall though, the services were enjoyable and went by pretty quickly.

Of course, as with last year in Burbank, it felt really, really odd to be by myself in a synagogue mostly teeming with young families and established congregation members. At a place like that, everyone is so familiar with their surroundings and their fellow congregants that coming in as somewhat of an outsider can feel very awkward. Also, even though I just turned 24 and celebrated it with a bunch of similarly-aged friends, going to a synogogue like this makes you feel like the only 24 year old on the planet. From what I understand, there are some more youth-oriented synagogues in West LA, so maybe I'll have to check those out at some point, but you'd think that in such a huge congregation just outside of LA, with three services and thousands of attendees, I'd be able to spot at least one friendly face who was someone in a similar situation as I. I mean, is there just a population gap of people my age? Do they just not go to Yom Kippur services? Do they not live in LA? Is every twenty-something in LA at some crazy new-agey Jewish gathering that I don't know about? Or do people my age tend to simple fall on either the ultra-observant or ultra-reform ends of the Judaic spectrum, making our presence at a conservative synagogue minimal if not entirely absent? Whatever the case, as nice as the services at Adat Ari-El were, the whole thing felt weird to me. But I guess I got in my praying, asked for my forgiveness, thought of ways to repent and better myself, did my fasting, and heard the shofar blown, so that's what's important, for now.

Oh yeah, the one other negative about Adat Ari-El is the terrible parking situation. For some reason the main lot was reserved for people with parking passes only, so everyone else had to park blocks and blocks away on whatever street parking could be found. Not cool!

Oh well, I was glad that I got to attend a nice synagogue for Yom Kippur, and was lucky to be given tickets since most synagogues charge pretty ridiculous sums of upwards of $100 for high-holy day tix (perhaps THAT is why no one my age is to be found at these services? probably!). I prepared myself a nice break-fast meal, and after a day of hunger it was great, as always, to finally eat something.

A good Yom Kippur, but reminiscing with Aksel on Sunday over brunch at Dennys about Rabbi Polack's hilarious Yom Kippur sermons at BU Hillel (no annointing! no schmearing! no marital relations!) made me nostalgic for the days when the break-fast could be spent munching on bagels with numerous friends in the heart of Boston.

But yeah, Yom Kippur, as I've said, is such an important holiday for one to celebrate. A day that drives home the importance of repentance, of asking forgiveness, of forgiveness - what a concept! With all of the stupid arguments and feuds that I and my friends and family seem to get in, being reminded to do away with those burdens of argument and conflict to have a clean slate for the new year is key. So if I have offended you in any way, please accept my apologies. And if you have offended me, well ... haha, fine, I will do my best to forgive you as well.

But finally, once again: Shana Tovah!

Anyways ...

TV STUFF:

- For the love of all that is holy, whether you're a fan or a sadly-deprived person who has somehow remained outside the loop until now --- watch tonight's Season 3 premiere of VERONICA MARS~! - 9 pm, TONIGHT, on the CW. From what I understand this season is going to contain a number of mini-arcs focusing on different mysteries rather than one, season-long uber-mystery as in year's past, so it should be very new-viewer friendly and accessibly. Just trust me - my brother Matt is only one of the many converts to this show -- it is one of the most smartly-written, atmospheric, enjoyable shows on TV in years. It will be interesting to see how being in the "dream" timeslot following Gilmore Girls affects the ratings, but here's hoping that critical buzz and word of mouth makes the premiere a huge success. Watch it!

- Will be very curious to see how NBC's premieres do this week. Friday Night Lights is definitely worth checking out if you enjoyed the movie. While I prefer my high school drama to be of the cynical, biting, tragic kind (Veronica Mars, Freaks and Geeks), I also like a good underdog sports story if it's done well, and FNL has potential and is superbly directed - very feature film-like in its appearance. But I'm really looking forward to tommorow's premieres of 30 Rock and 20 Good Years ... I still feel like 20 Good Years could be NBC's dark horse. You've got John Lithgow in rare form and Jeffrey Tambor, who is both hilarious and has plenty of cred with the cool kids thanks to Arrested Development ... and, it has enough old-school sitcom-y charm to win over the older crowd as well. Could be interesting.

- No new FOX shows on Sunday. I did finally check out last week's Simpsons, which I thought was decent. A solid B-ish episode that I hope spells good things for this year's Halloween ep - once, an annual TV highlight, lately, pretty much a pale reflection of past glories.

- But man ....

Last night's PRISON BREAK was friggin' AWESOME. Best episode of the season so far, I'd say, as the show finally ditched the cheesier tone its had of late and ratcheted up the intensity factor to 11. William Fichtner owned it last night, going full-blown CRAZY and delivering a gravitas-packed performance. The government consipiracy storyline finally delivered some payoffs, as the governor's suicide/murder means that things are starting to get interesting. Fernando's betrayal of Michael was pretty unexpected, but cool and effective nonetheless. While the show takes a brief hiatus for baseball, it has really gone out with a huge bang, delivering multiple cliffhangers and reclaiming that "can't-miss" feeling of old.
Kickass, plain and simple. My Grade: A

- Have yet to see the new ep of HEROES or the last two weeks of STUDIO 60. Plan to catch up on those soon.

- I meant to record the premiere of SNL on Saturday night, but totally forgot. From what I hear it was a pretty underwhelming return, and I haven't heard about any particularly buzz-worthy sketches ... I think the show has a pretty good cast, though it seems to be heavy on specialty players and lite on real utility guys a la Phil Hartman who can do it all. And of course, the writing has just been mostly subpar since, oh, after the 2000 election, with the main standouts since then being independetly produced material from Robert Smigel or the Digital Shorts guys. With all the hype around SNL-themed shows like Studio 60 and 30 Rock, I wish that the real deal could step up and return to form ...

MOVIES:

- Finally watched Kiss Kiss Bang Bang on DVD on Friday. Pretty excellent movie, with the same kind of twisted, dark, slightly psycho vibe of a Boondock Saints, but with a very polished Hollywood sheen and gloss thanks to the writing and directing of Lethal Weapon's Shane Black. I had extremely high expectations for this, so I couldn't help but be slightly underwhelmed (I was also close to passing out from exhaustion while watching), but the sharp dialogue and gritty ambiance made this a fairly classic crime flick with memorable performances from Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr. Bring on Iron Man.

- Ahhhh, still need to see Fearless! Also, a ton of Oscar-worthy movies coming out now, most notably Scorcese's The Departed, which is pretty much guaranteed to kick seven kinds of ass. Also very, very curious about The Last King of Scotland, which looks to be an award-winning turn from Forest Whitaker as Idi Amin, and also marks the return to the big screen of Gillian Anderson~! I'm sure there's some other big movies out this week, but those are at the top of my list right now. Oh yeah, not sure where it's playing but I'm very, very curious to see Jesus Camp, which looks to be a scathing documentary that exposes some of the stranger and disturbing practices of radical evangelical summer camps for kids. Looks very interesting to say the least.

OTHER STUFF:

- Love that new single from The Killers ... have heard that their new album is underwhelming though and sounds like Springsteen-lite? Any opinions?

- Still on a Tom Petty kick from last week's concert.

- Also have had Kim Wilde's 80's anthem, "Kids in America" stuck in my head since I heard it while out like three weeks ago.

- Alright, time to jet. Back with more later. Cya!