Thursday, November 12, 2009

Glee: Wheels

Two weeks without Glee is TOO LONG. I've missed this show so much, I was thrilled to have it back again. From giving us a new perspective of Sue Sylvester to solving one of the big nitpicks I've had with the show, it was a triumphant return. I was glad there was finally an episode devoted to Artie, who used to actually be part of a boy band (NLT). Here's a pic of him in those younger days.

Highlights:
• Artie telling Tina that his penis still works. Hahaha!
• Sue's comment to the newest Cheerio: "You think this is hard? Try auditioning for Baywatch and being told they're going in another direction, THAT'S hard."
• The revelation that Sue's not actually up to anything, but has a sister with Down's Syndrome. Sue has a heart?! I love it.
• Tina admitting she doesn't actually have a stutter. Thank goodness!! I thought that actress put on the worst stutter in the universe, so I'm glad that's resolved.
• Kurt and his dad. Sweet. So sweet. I knew he was going to blow that high note. (Though for as much as I adore Kurt, I thought Rachel actually was the better singer... you could actually hear the autotuner on his voice.)

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before...

As you've probably heard already, Variety has reported that Dollhouse has been officially cancelled. As if to offer us a lollipop at the funeral, Fox has added that they will be incredibly generous and air all 13 episodes. Aw. How generous of them.

I know that back when Dollhouse was first announced, I blogged right here that I thought Joss should be riding a short bus to school for agreeing to go back to Fox, and said there's no way the show would last through a second season. But this is the one time I wanted to be SO wrong. Sigh.

The show got off to a bit of a shaky start, and had its ups and downs, but by the end of the season it was showing off some pretty stellar stuff. This season has been amazing, and the last episode -- where we got "Sierra's" backstory, was incredible.

There was no love lost between Joss and the WB by Buffy's fifth season, but that network at least gave his little show a chance. They gave both Buffy and Angel five seasons and a total of over 100 episodes each, which is about seven times the number of episodes Firefly got, and five times the number of Dollhouse eps.

Joss has already commented on the cancellation, in his weary yet comic style. I don't care how many times you get cancelled, Joss... I will always love you for things like this:

Hmm. Apparently my news is not news.

I don't have a lot to say. I'm extremely proud of the people I've worked with: my star, my staff, my cast, my crew. I feel the show is getting better pretty much every week, and I think you'll agree in the coming months. I'm grateful that we got to put it on, and then come back and put it on again.

I'm off to pursue internet ventures/binge drinking. Possibly that relaxation thing I've read so much about. By the time the last episode airs, you'll know what my next project is. But for now there's a lot of work still to be done, and disappointment to bear.

Thank you all for your support, your patience, your excellent adverts. See you again. -j.


This will probably just give people one more reason to say they're going to stop watching TV and will only watch TV series on DVD from now on. I'm starting to be with them on that.

Remember...

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

We Like Lost

40 Years of Sunny Days Sweeping the Clouds Away

It's hard to believe, but today Sesame Street officially celebrates its 40th anniversary. That's right... 40 years of shows brought to you by the letter A and the number 8. My brother and I watched Sesame Street all the time as kids, had the little stuffed Bert and Ernie that came with the soft car where the wheels didn't really turn... the little Sesame Street playhouse that opened up into the apartment building with Hooper's shop in the bottom and the little plastic nest where Big Bird sat (and the chalkboard in the middle). We could sing all the songs, we probably learned how to read by watching it, and I think back on it with immense fondness. It was a show that used muppets and real people to tell its stories and teach concepts to children, and it was set on an inner-city street, not some swish middle-class neighbourhood. There were all sorts of languages and ethnicities and worlds that Sesame Street opened up to little kids, and is one of those shows that probably creates universal recognition among anyone in their 30s or younger. I mean, what kid who grew up in the 70s and 80s doesn't occasionally find THIS song in their heads:



Ah, 70s grooves and the Pointer Sisters. You can't beat it.

Today Sesame Street is still on the cutting edge of issues, music, and parodies, every celebrity seems to be clamouring to get on it, and it can still be enjoyed by the parents as much as the children. For example, as much as I like Feist, when I find myself singing her music to myself I usually sing the Sesame Street version, "Whoa-ah-oh, we're counting to four!"



Their parodies are timely and charming, and seem to get it in a way that most sketch comedy shows don't. Check out the recent Mad Men sketch:



Happy birthday, Sesame Street. Here's to 40 more wonderful years. Please don't ever change.

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Flashforward 1.07: The Gift

I apologize that I didn't get a chance to blog on last week's Flashforward. By the time I'd actually watched it, I figured most of the chatter was probably over. And it was more of the same for me -- it had crazy cheesy moments (when Mark was racing after the guy he'd seen in the mask and they were blaring a BAD version of Bowie's "Scary Monsters," it just seemed odd... it's like the music supervisor knows how to pick good music, but the editor just doesn't know how to use it subtly. The music is always turned WAY up and then it cuts off immediately, rather than having it slowly play throughout the scene); it had some good moments, like the looks on the faces of everyone when Simcoe and his kid both showed up at the Benford house; it had rare moments of humour, like when Simcoe ran to the nurse's station and had to describe his son as dressed like "a... uh... um, well... pimp." It had another good moment when Mark and Olivia fought in the kitchen and he blamed her for an affair she hadn't yet had, and then when she tried to blame him for a drinking problem he hadn't started up again, he told her she couldn't imcriminate him for a crime he hadn't yet committed. RICH. To which she basically said, "Oh, RICH." That made me happy. And it had one moment in it that I adored: Simon talking about Shrodinger's Cat. It still presented numerous questions for me: if Charlie is actually talking to Dylan during his flashforward, then why was her response to her own flashforward that nothing would ever be good again and that "D. Gibbons is a bad man"? Where did that name even feature in the flash we just saw? So the episode still fell a little flat. Better than the previous week, but nothing stellar.

A few of you sent me an article that stated that David S. Goyer, the creator of the show (who is known for writing Batman Begins, Dark Knight, and Blade) was paired up with another guy who was trying to show him how to draw out the story, and that guy was recently booted off, leaving Goyer to his own devices. This week's episode, "The Gift," was the first one that would be a Goyer episode only.

To which I say, "HALLELUJAH!!!" This episode was GREAT. (Oh thank you thank you thank you... our patience has paid off!) It wasn't an hour of semi-boredom with a shocker of a cliffhanger. It was DARK, really dark, with sudden movement in tone, many backstories getting filled in, NO REPEAT OF OLIVIA'S FLASHFORWARD (bless 'im), the fabulous Alex Kingston joining the group (which is interesting to me... she used to be married to Ralph Fiennes, Joseph Fiennes' brother, and I remember at the time it wasn't an amicable split, so... awkward? Probably not, since it was over a decade ago...)

The whole story of the Blue Hand club was amazing and creepy and made me think, What DO you do if you didn't see anything in your flashforward? If you knew you were going to be dead in 6 months, would you just drink and do drugs and commit crimes and have a lot of sex and just go crazy? Is there a segment of the population that could soon create utter chaos? (But then I also think, what if you were JUST SLEEPING in six months? Or drunk and passed out? Or having surgery and were unconscious? I mean, you can't tell me that on April 29, 2010, at 10:02pm PST, NO ONE is asleep on the planet. Come on.)

But finally... FINALLY... we had our first step forward in the puzzle when Al stepped off that building, effectively cancelling out his flashforward and changing Celia's, Fiona's (who won't be reading a report with him now), and anyone who knows Celia. Her boys might have had sad flashforwards, but now they'll be happy ones. Is that the end of it? Maybe not necessarily... maybe "Celia" will still come forward and be killed in another way, but who knows. What I love is that there's now hope that you can change your destiny. Olivia doesn't have to have that affair; Mark doesn't have to be a lonely alcoholic; and maybe Demetri doesn't have to die.

Callum Keith Rennie is here! SO excited to see his name in the opening credits. Leoben from Battlestar, Billy Tallent from Hard Core Logo (PLEASE see that movie if you haven't... and yes, the band took their name from his character)... the guy is freakin' amazing. And he's a Canuck (therefore = evil).

The writing was better, the storytelling devices were used effectively, and even though we saw that bird hit the window a few times, it never felt like we were being bashed over the heads. It actually worked structurally, as if we see that bird flying into the window over and over, the same way Fiona and Al have it flashing through their heads over and over. We moved into new characters, with Bryce telling Nicole about his Japanese dream (and please assure me that I wasn't the only person on the planet who did NOT know that Nicole is played by the same woman who plays Jane, Roger Sterling's young wife, on Mad Men?! Someone told me that this week and I just stared at them... then watched this episode with an "Oh. My. GOD." reaction... talk about a versatile actress; I didn't even RECOGNIZE her!!)

And then there's Aaron. We finally see more of his story, the scene of Tracy by the road, and then.... AAAAAHHH!! Now THAT was an ending. How it aligns with her lying in the desert in Iraq isn't clear and won't be for several more months, but I'm more than intrigued.

And who is Annabelle? Simon was fingering a bracelet with her name on it.

Last night's episode saved Flashforward, in my mind. It had all the elements I've been looking for, and intrigued me enough to actually make me look forward to the next ep, rather than feel like I'll be begrudgingly tuning in waiting for it to get better. Everything about this ep raised it up. No, I still don't know anyone's names (I've been relying 100% on IMDB to get the names right for this write-up) but that will come in time.

So... was anyone else similarly cheered by last night's ep?

Modern Family

A bunch of people have been emailing me or posting in the comments asking if I've been watching ABC's "Modern Family." And I'm happy to say yes, yes, I am. And I LOVE it. I think it's one of the funniest things on TV and it's only because I haven't had time yet that I haven't posted on it.

It's the story of wealthy Jay (Al Bundy) and the much-younger Gloria, his new gorgeous Colombian wife who he married after 35 years married to Shelley Long (remember Diane from Cheers?) He's rich and sarcastic but loves his family very much, she's fiery and sassy and has a precocious and wide-eyed optimist for a son (who provides some of the show's biggest laughs). Jay's two kids -- Claire and Mitchell -- are fully grown. Claire, who we know best as Jack Shephard's ex-wife Sarah, is married to Phil, a dopey real estate agent who thinks he's a barrel of laughs but is just plain annoying. They have three kids -- a very smart little girl, a slightly stupid boy in the middle, and a teenager whose hormones are running wild and who brings home guys they just don't approve of. Mitchell, Claire's brother, is gay and married to Cameron. Mitchell is the more timid and sensitive of the two, always assuming that people are mocking him for his sexuality, while Cameron rolls his eyes, makes a quick excuse for Mitchell, and gets them both out of the situation. They have just adopted a new baby daughter from China and are learning all about parenting, whether it involves sleepless nights or dressing her up in ghetto fabulous costumes and taking her portraits.

Together they form a family that is at once at war while also loving each other very much. The result is absolute hilarity. The show is told through the documentary style that Parks & Recreation and The Office both use (in this case it's not clear why they're talking to the camera and on a purely structural level comes off as a cop-out, but on the other hand it TOTALLY works and that's where most of the humour comes from). I only tuned in the week Shelley Long made her appearance as dear old crazy mom, and we got a flashback of Jay's wedding to Gloria, which was HILARIOUS, and I was instantly hooked. I'm looking forward to catching up on the earlier episodes I missed, but I'm so happy to have found it.

If you haven't watched it yet, check it out. And if you're a fan of Arrested Development, you'll find this show is very similar in tone and humour. Here's a quick preview clip ABC sent out before its premiere:

What Makes a Good Pilot?

I wrote a version of this in the comments postings on my latest blog post on the V pilot, but I can't stop thinking about it, so I thought I'd expand it into a full column: What makes a good pilot? Many people are chattering about the pilot for V, saying based on it they'll watch it to the very end (if they loved it) or will never watch another episode (if they hated it) or will give it another shot (if they thought it was somewhere in the middle). But can we really tell from a pilot if a show is going to be any good?

The only way to really know if a pilot was any good is by looking at it in hindsight. But after much, MUCH experience with pilots, I'm not sure if they can be reliable indicators of how good a show is going to be. I've seen great pilots that basically used up all the writers' best ideas in one go, only to leave us with a limping series to follow. I've seen meh pilots that turned into amazing shows. I've seen good pilots for good shows, and good pilots for great shows, and good pilots for awful shows.

So let's look at some pilots that have (in hindsight) left a big impression on me. And for the most part, luckily, I can remember how I felt after watching them:

Lost: Possibly the best pilot episode I've ever seen. It introduced us to many characters, but didn't expect us to remember all of them, and instead focused on Jack and his relationship with the other characters. The special effects were extraordinary, and by creating utter confusion and fear in us by introducing a mysterious monster from the get-go, the show managed to make us as baffled and scared as the people on the island. What better way to align us with these characters. It was an extraordinary pilot that turned into an extraordinary show.

Buffy: It felt like a one-off episode, because it was the one that was meant to pull us in. It had great moments, like Giles plopping the Vampyr book on the library counter and Buffy backing away slowly, or like Xander overhearing the conversation, or Cordy almost being staked. It established the characters and we actually remembered their names by the end of it. But was it mindblowing when you put it in the context of what was to come? No. I don't remember being blown away by this episode, but it gave me just enough to want to keep watching, and by the middle of season 2, I was so in love with this show it hurt.

Angel: We'd just seen the end of season 3 of Buffy, and many fans were still hurting over the painful breakup between Buffy and Angel, so to see him in L.A., and to realize this was going to be less teenage angst and more adult loneliness was jarring. Cordy wasn't quite meshing, Angel was a little too broody, and the side plot of the evil vampire lawyers was boring. Most of season 1 turned into a monster-of-the-week show, but by the end of the season, the series had been lifted into a new stratosphere. By season 3, it was rivalling Buffy for my affections. I LOVE this show.

Heroes: WICKED pilot. Cheerleaders jumping off 10-storey buildings and healing. Bad guys. Good guys. Dreaming guys. Flying guys. The names were printed right on the screen so I knew who was who. The relationships were foggy, but I knew they'd be important. There were so many questions raised I couldn't wait for week 2. This show went on to prove itself again and again... until the finale. And after that it never, ever mustered the strength of its opening episodes, and instead fizzled into nothingness. What a waste.

The Sopranos: Mafia presence established. Check. Tony goes to the psychiatrist. Check. Tony has anger-management issues in front of an HMO building. Check. He's a family man, and a "family" man. But did it grab me? No. I moved onto the second episode hoping it would be better, and it was. Thus began my love-hate relationship with HBO pilots -- for the most part they're slow, and refuse to throw everything they've got into it. And for that, I now love them because I realize they're saving their best stuff for after the pilot.

Six Feet Under: One of my all-time favourite series. But the pilot? Great opening scene of a bus running into the funeral hearse. But then it dragged. Family established, quirkiness is there, but beyond that... kinda boring. I put it away and didn't watch the second episode for months. And WOW was I happy I did. Again, HBO used the opening to just introduce things. It was in the second and third episode that they pulled us in entirely.

The Wire: Another HBO outing, another opening with a LOT of information, characters who just didn't have my sympathy, humour that wasn't funny yet (because the inside jokeyness was yet to be established), and SO complicated it hurt my head... yet there was something there that really intrigued me and made me go straight to the second episode. There was no waiting this time. And it turned out to be the smartest show on television EVER, and one of the most compelling, heartbreaking, beautiful pieces of television of all time. (Anyone who's watched it knows I'm not exaggerating here.)

Glee: Fun, funny, and joyous, this show just seemed to completely nail it on the pilot and hasn't stopped. Unlike every other show on television -- possibly ever -- they rolled out the pilot on its own like a one-off movie and then sat back to see how everyone would handle it. And it proved to be the way to go. The characters have remained largely consistent, funny, and heartbreaking, and this show hasn't made a misstep yet, in my mind.

Flashforward: I really enjoyed the pilot of this one, but I wasn't head-over-heels in love with it. The second episode, on the other hand, was awesome, and then by the third episode it was dreary and hasn't picked up yet (here's hoping tonight's episode, the first one helmed completely by Goyer without anyone slowing him down, will prove to be the turning point). Too much was thrown at us in the pilot, and the rest of the series has just felt like a retread of everything we saw there.

Entourage: I hated hated hated that pilot. Hated it. I watched it, couldn't BELIEVE the hype about the show, and thought it was just a stupid stupid show for little boys who want to compare penis sizes and then brag about it. But a friend of mine whose opinion I really respect begged me to give it another chance and just get to the second episode, so I finally did (very begrudgingly) and was pleasantly surprised to see those same little boys being brought down, being made fools of, and then having to laugh at themselves, which they did. The show's had its ups and downs -- this season, sadly was a huge down -- but it's been a pretty good show, overall. And you just can't beat Ari Gold.

The Office: I was a big fan of the UK version of The Office, and I'll never forget interviewing David Denham for my Angel book (he played Skip the Wonder Demon on Angel) and we were chatting casually at the end of the interview and I asked him what else he was working on, and he said he was in a pilot of an American version of The Office. You can actually HEAR me lose interest on the tape. "Oh. Isn't that nice." (My hostility of US shows trying to adapt UK shows knew no bounds at the time.) And instead, he was featured in one of my favourite series of all time. (He played Pam's lug-headed fiancé.) But when I tuned in to the pilot, it was almost shot-for-shot the UK pilot, which apparently had been the idea, and then after that first episode they went off on their own. A REALLY stupid idea, in my opinion, because of how popular the UK one was here, and how many people -- like me -- who watched it and went, "Really? They're even doing the stapler in the Jell-O mold?!" and turned the channel. I didn't turn it back until the show was in season 2. And then I realized what I was missing...

Friends: I remember years and years ago tuning into this show for the first time, the night it first aired, and found it unfunny, staged, and ridiculous. The jokes fell flat, and there was only one moment where I smiled (Phoebe started going on and on about her mother committing suicide and mental illness running in the family or something and everyone sat there silent before Ross said, "The word you're looking for is, 'Anyway...'" and I remember thinking that was hilarious) but otherwise, I thought there was no way that show would survive. Boy, was I wrong there.

So... what does all of this tell us about V? Well, there are probably indicators in a show of whether it will be good or not. In every instance where I ended up liking the show a lot, you could tell it had a great cast and there was usually some moment in there that I liked so much I tuned in the following week. But then again, the same could be said of the shows that fell flat.

Do you think you can honestly tell if a show's going to be good on its first episode? Should shows be judged by their pilots? Or should the pilots only be judged in hindsight, in relation to what the show later became? While I loved the pilot of Lost, there's NO WAY I could have seen the topsy-turvy universe that was going to unfold later. There was no DI, no Ben, none of that juicy stuff in that pilot. But it had all the makings of that, and smartly, the writers didn't decide to throw everything at us from the outset.

What pilots do you remember being good or bad indicators of what the show would later become?

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

V: The Pilot

Tonight was the premiere of V, the much-anticipated new ABC show starring Elizabeth Mitchell, or, as EW refers to her, the "recently departed Juliet." (Which irks me every time... we didn't see her die, and technically, if she died when hitting the bomb, then EVERYONE is dead. But I digress...) The show was off to a bit of a slow, methodical start, but I'll take it. After all, I find most HBO pilots are show and take some getting used to, and 90% of the time, they pay off. So I'm willing to let this show take its time to get going, as long as the momentum is up by the third episode or so (though someone just posted on one of my other posts that the show is going to air 4 episodes and then take a hiatus until March... true?)

Like Flashforward, V has a stellar cast, and one that I know from other shows. Aside from Juliet on Lost, it stars Inara from Firefly, Alpha from Dollhouse (or Wash from Firefly), Owen from Taken (or Tom from The 4400, whichever other alien drama you want to refer to), Carrie from 24, Kara from Smallville, Bailey from Party of Five... another eclectic cast that represent blasts from my past.

Now, unlike many viewers, I didn't actually watch the mid-80s miniseries (I was too young at the time and my parents wouldn't let me... I remember walking into the room when they were watching it -- and I was probably supposed to be in bed -- and this baby was born with lizard eyes, and then this creepy thing crawled out of the mom right after... it sorta stayed with me and traumatized me throughout my adolescence). So I didn't know much about the premise going into it. I enjoyed the tension, the mistrust, the questioning. And because, unlike with Flashforward, they've never touted the show as "the Next Lost," I'll refrain from trying to make comparisons to the show... Though it would be kinda funny to see Hurley tagging trees with "DI." (Dammit. I just can't help it.)

Highlights:
• The Christ statue falling, as if to suggest that religion no longer has a place in the world.
• The ubergeeks arguing about the alien ships being like Independence Day.
• Alan Tudyk.
• The idea that people would just get on a shuttle and fly up into the spaceship without questioning it at all. I totally buy that, actually.

Other stuff:
• So we see Anna speaking in different languages in different countries, but what if you were in NY and didn't speak English? Maybe we're to take that scene as suggesting that whatever language you speak, she was speaking to you in it?
• I guess people in Moscow were probably asleep. How many of them missed the fact there was an alien ship above their city?
• I asked my husband at one point (who had seen the miniseries when he was younger), "So... is the purpose of this that they want to breed with the humans?" And then we couldn't stop quoting Kit Ramsey from Bowfinger: "Alien love? ALIEN LOVE?! Who said anything about alien love?!"

Nitpick:
The death of Alan Tudyk's character. FRAK. The moment they suggested there was an inside source telling people what was happening, I said out loud, "Please don't let it be Dale... please don't let it be Dale." I really liked the Flirty McFlirt scenes between him and Erica, and I was SO upset when he ate it. Will he be back? Do aliens regenerate or something? Even if they do, I just kinda wanted him to be the good guy for a bit. Wah.

Verdict: I'm definitely tuning in next week. What did you think of the pilot ep?

Monday, November 02, 2009

Hannigan & Denisof: Today's Cute Overload

I just saw these pictures this morning and they made me howl with laughter... laugh out loud... chuckle heartily... smirk sardonically. (Whew... that works. I wouldn't want to come off as a complete loser for laughing at something I thought was funny!)

This is Alyson Hannigan and Alexis Denisof taking their new baby daughter, Satyana, out for her first Halloween:



And just in case you're thinking Wesley didn't quite embrace the outfit the way Willow did, check out the shot from the back:

Friday, October 30, 2009

Finale Title: Last Chance!

With 242 comments so far (many of them offering up to five titles) there's been no shortage of suggestions for what the Lost season finale title will be on the Lost Rewatch blog. But if you've had a sudden flash of brilliance, you've got about 24 hours left to go and contribute! Go here to log in your vote for what the series finale title might be. And before you leave it, do a quick search on the entries that have already been suggested, just in case someone's already come up with it. I'm closing the posts tomorrow evening, and then when the finale title is actually announced, we'll see if any of us came close! Good luck.

Lost Rewatch Update

And on this eve of... All Hallow's Eve... let me take another minute to remind you to come on over for a particularly rip-roaring week of Lost Rewatching!!

3.13 The Man from Tallahassee
Locke is introduced to the concept of The Box:
Ben: What would you do if I told you there was a Box on this island that contained something you longed for more than anything?
Locke: Does it have the KFC Family combo in it? With the little brownies? Damn, what I would give for those 11 herbs and spices...
Ben: Wha...? Uh... no, John, it doesn't, it...
Locke: A new shiny bicycle? I've never had a new bicycle.
Ben: No. John... you're missing the point. By "Box" I'm being...
Locke: Oh my GOD it's the Complete DVD set of Sex and the City, isn't it? I never DID find out if Carrie ended up with Big...
Ben: JOHN! Listen to me! I'm being all metaphorical and creepy here, and when I say Box I'm referring to...
Locke: WAIT! I've got it. It's an actual box, isn't it? Did you know how many uses the common everyday box has? You can draw on it... you can make little houses out of it...
Ben: JACOB?! Are you getting all this? THIS is who you've Chosen?! Are you INSANE?!
Locke:... you can pack books in it -- not too many, or it'll be impossible to carry -- you could put your new Sex and the City DVD box set in it...
Ben: I give up. Richard? Shoot him.

3.14 Exposé
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! Funniest Lost episode EVER. Watch and find out why I'm suddenly more in love with a Medusa spider than with Desmond and Sawyer combined. And read all the way through the post to watch the video at the end. It's classic.

3.15 Left Behind
Kate wastes her time trying to get her cold, fishlike mother to love her, and she meets Cassidy along the way. Together they meet Brad Pitt and eventually drive their convertible off a cliff, holding hands while... wait. I think my TV switched channels partway through... OK, back to the episode, Kate and Juliet are handcuffed together and they find a convertible on the island with Brad Pitt in the back, drive it off a... dammit!

3.16 One of Us
Jack and Co. return to the beach camp, bringing an unwelcome Juliet with them. When she rushes off into the woods to get some medical supplies to save Claire's life, Sawyer and Sayid slink after her, confronting her about her past, and she throws it back in their face, glaring at them. Sawyer is completely turned on, picks a flower and gives it to her, changes his name to LaFleur, and all is forgiven. Or maybe I'm getting ahead of myself...

Next week: Pilots fall from the sky, Sun has an Island Ultrasound, Cooper and Sawyer re-enact the Jabba the Hutt death scene (sadly, without Sawyer suiting up), and we find out Ben likes to play with little wooden dolls.

Happy Halloween!

Posting a day early to wish everyone a safe and happy Halloween out there. May the vampires among you be modeled after Spike, Angel, Bill, or Eric, and NOT Edward, and here's hoping there are a few Echos, Sawyers, Starbucks, and Tim Rigginses out there this year. (I will simply be navigating an Ariel and a tiny monkey through the fray.... I couldn't talk my husband into getting the "Female Vampire Killer and Vampire" generic couples costume that I found in one Halloween store... drat.)

And for those of you looking for last-minute pumpkin carving ideas, please go check out Jorge Garcia's hilarious blog for his rundown of his annual pumpkin carving party and more.

And for the REALLY ambitious among you, I dare you to try carving the ultimate pumpkin... the Death Star:



Come on, Jorge. I know you can handle this. Instructions are here.