My Asinine Thoughts

I’m a HUGE Daria fan.

I MISS Daria.

Where are the dvds? MTV, hello?

It’s a good thing Allen gave me avi copies of all Daria episodes a few years ago, but still.

It’s that time of the year again. My tv watching is going to be disrupted so soon after it was disrupted for several months because of the writer’s strike. It’s a good thing I have a lot of tv shows I haven’t seen yet tucked away in my hard drive.

Bones (3rd Season)

I never thought that the Gormogon apprentice could be Zack, maybe it’s because I’m thick and therefore the perfect audience for this type of tv show. I should have known that Sweets was too obvious a suspect to be a suspect. Anyway, this recent development might help shake things up a little bit for this tv show I once liked so much.

CSI (8th Season)

Not as interesting as the 7th season, and two majors characters leaving didn’t help any. I liked the last episode but it would have kicked ass if no one had a clue weeks beforehand that Gary Dourdan’s character was going to be killed off. I didn’t mind Jorja Fox’s character leaving because I was not a major fan of Sara Sidle, but I liked Warrick Brown even if his screen time was sometimes almost non-existent. Oh well, I can’t wait to see the team avenge Warrick’s death next season (also heard Jorja will be back for that episode).

House, M.D. (4th Season)

Perfect back-to-back episodes to end a very good season. Mind you, I cried like a baby in the end seeing Wilson all torn up and House so guilt-ridden, but it’s ok. It’s for the good of the tv show and I can’t wait to see what happens next season, which is what season finales are all about anyway.

Medium (4th Season)

It was nice to see Medium end in such a good note this season ( a total departure from last season). No more money problems, both Allison and Joe are gainfully employed again, everyone knows about Allison so that cat’s out of the bag, all the kids are alright and Davalos is back in power. Thank you writers. I think Allison and Joe have enough problems with her visions to have to worry about money as well. This season also had Anjelica Houston for a few episodes and her story arc was really heart-wrenching. Kelly Preston also did just fine with her story and character. All in all a wonderful season.

NCIS (5th Season)

The director’s dead. Good riddance. I didn’t like the way they wrote Jenny Shepard’s character. She was so irritating that I was glad to see the back of her. And what? They’re breaking up the team? Nooooooo! I’ve suspended disbelief about Ziva not going back to Mossad long enough to suspend it even longer.

Criminal Minds (3rd Season)

Hmm, more than anything, what disturbed me about the last few minutes of the season finale was how much the whole team wasted gas by almost each one of them driving off in an SUV aka gas guzzlers. So who blew up? I’ve visited several forums to find out what other more obsessive fans have observed about the last episode and the only thing that’s sure is it’s not AJ since she’s pregnant. Or are they sure? Hmm, people will be guessing for months so I suppose it was an effective season finale.

Not working for almost 10 months made me even more of a couch potato than I already am, and this time I did it in 3 countries!

US - I believe I’ve left a permanent impression of my butt on atsi’s couch.
PI - my xbox (which plays avi files) is still reeling from being overused last month.
TWN - Jeeves has been complaining of late. It’s a good thing I’ve got work now.

TV Shows I’ve been watching this season (2007-2008):

1. Battlestar Galactica
2. Bones
3. Californication - cable show! David Duchovny is great! Guys will love all the t&a shots.
4. Criminal Minds
5. CSI
6. CSI New York
7. Dexter - Dexter rocks! A wonderful premise to differentiate it from other forensic procedurals.
8. Doctor Who
9. House, M.D.
10. Medium
11. Men in Trees - goodbye! This show was a combination of Northern Exposure and Sex and the City. Too bad it got canceled, I’m sure there are other tv shows that are more deserving of being off the air than this show.
12. NCIS
13. Numb3rs
14. Stargate Atlantis
15. Supernatural
16. The Closer - new season starts in July, I’m ready!
17. The Office
18. Torchwood - I love James Marsters! I’m hoping to see more of him next season.

I haven’t watched these tv shows (in my hd) yet:

1. 30 Rock S2
2. Gossip Girl
3. Grey’s Anatomy S4
4. New Amsterdam - canceled right away!
5. Reaper
6. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Joss Whedon regular Summer Glau is in it!)
7. The Wire - I’ve got 5 seasons of this show, so I’m sure my summer is going to be just fine.

I gave up on these TV shows this season:

1. Dirtysexymoney
2. Life - I love Damian Lewis but not his female partner! She’s a drag and should be replaced next season. I’d probably try to finish the first season when I’ve ran out of tv shows to watch alang-alang kay Damian.
3. Moonlight - the lead is hot and Jason Dohring is in it but they’re not enough to keep me interested.
4. Private Practice
5. Pushing Daisies - everything looked good during the first couple of episodes but Anna Friel’s character turned me off for good.

New Shows to Look Forward to next season!

1. Dollhouse from JOSS WHEDON!!!
2. Fringe from J.J. Abrams
3. Life on Mars - time-traveling police procedural (Sold!); Jason O’Mara in the lead (about dang time! Sold!); Colm Meaney co-stars (Solid!)

I just watched the latest episode of “The Office” tonight. It never fails to cheer me up but this episode made me sad a bit because Michael and Dwight looked so defeated. Steve Carell can act like the biggest jerk of a boss but when he plays Michael who has suddenly had a moment of clarity, it’s affecting. And poor Dwight, who couldn’t even muster enough enthusiasm for the glowing review that Jim and Pam gave to his Beets Motel on TripAdvisor. It all kind of works out in the end but I’m hoping that Dwight solves his love problems soon.

I realized that most of the expressions I use are those that I’ve been using for the past 5 years or so. Does anyone say hassle anymore? Or gimik? Or wheels? Eep! I’m really a lot older because we used to say gimik and wheels even way back in high school. Ok, ok so maybe my expressions are a bit older than 5 years. It’s more like 12 years? Ai! Ai! Ai!

I promised myself when I was younger that I was going to try and keep up with the times, the trends, the music and all that but it’s so difficult! How the eff would I know what kids are saying these days? My brother is still in school but we don’t communicate that way. My friends and I communicate a lot but I suppose all of us are also dated since I haven’t learned any new expressions from them. I think.

I just thought of something, maybe the way kids communicate these days is also the way they text? Nyecheche (another old expression… dammit!)

There was this Californication episode where David Duchovny’s character ranted about the use of LOL and other internet slangs in a radio interview. He’s a writer and I suppose he took offense that people young and old, educated or not would do that to the English language. I’m not a professional writer but I think there’s a time and place for using internet slangs and shortcuts as well. They really ruin the flow of a sentence.

Man, I suck when it comes to text messages. I believe I text more than I should because I just can’t fit all the damned words in one message. Sometimes when I’m feeling thrifty I would go back to the start of my message and start hacking my words to pieces. It’s a little revolting but what can you do? One must exercise frugality from time to time and no great work of art is going to come out of text messages anyway.

The summer season doesn’t really bring a smile to my face. It’s hot, my freckles multiply, and I’d have to wait several months before I could watch my favorite TV shows again. Some TV shows that come back during the summer hiatus (The Closer, The 4400, Doctor Who) lessen the pain of waiting, but not by much.

The Office season finale:

I had mixed feelings about the finale halfway through the episode, but that ending! Wow! Jim returning to Scranton and Pam came as no surprise but Ryan becoming Michael’s boss? The episode couldn’t have ended sweeter than Ryan’s smile as he got that call from David (and telling Kelly they were done). I can’t wait for the next season! Go Dundies!!!

CSI season finale:

Only a couple of minutes were left before the end of the season finale and I thought…”Oh fuck.” The three words I’ve always dreaded to see on TV finally appeared… to be continued…

Dammit! I think the writers of the show did a great job for the 7th season. I suppose there was more pressure to be more creative with Grey’s Anatomy showing at the same time slot on a competing network. The whole miniature story arc has been great, the fascinating Lady Heather coming back for one epi, and the Liev Schreiber guesting was handled well although I wish he could’ve stayed for a few more episodes. I love Liev! There were some unusual episodes like Toe Tags (the dead bodies talking to each other in the lab) and Lab Rats (that rat coming out of the stomach of one of the dead bodies scared the shit out of me) to shake things up a bit. All in all, great season.

Veronica Mars:

I’m still waiting for the last 2 episodes but dammit! Veronica Mars has finally been cancelled. I was kind of hoping the Veronica Mars FBI pitch would work out, but at least the show had 3 seasons. Look at Firefly!

NCIS:

I’m pretty sure that the season finale has got something to do with the Frog, but what I really want to know is what’s the deal with Jeanne Benoit? There’s got to be more than just Tony getting serious about a girl for the first time.

I love this show. There are so many crime shows on TV that it’s sometimes difficult to tell them apart, but once you get past the confusing name (NCIS, CSI, NCSI? ), this show has got its own thing going. It’s a lot lighter in terms of character and dialogue, but the storylines are compelling and relevant to what’s going on in the world today. Once you watch an episode, I’m betting my book collection that you won’t stop watching until you get to the last one. Joyce and I have proven this.

Continuing on with my TV-show obsession…

Two words, bitch.

No, seriously. I’m in a Battlestar Galactica moment. I’m this close to ordering a Cylon shirt online. Theeees cloooose!

When I first started watching Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis, I also noticed another show on the Sci-Fi channel roster called Battlestar Galacatica (BSG), which I duly ignored because the title sounds a little iffy. I’ve heard of Andromeda, Babylon 5, and Farscape and I just combined all these shows together in my head as something that even I would not stoop to watching. I have nothing against Sci-Fi, I love all kinds of stories! But even after Firefly, which I loved by the way, I was skeptical about this one. And then the mid-season break for the 2 Stargates happened and I was bereft of my “spaceships” fix. Thus the foray into BSG. And life was never the same again.

BSG is a combination of The Matrix + Star Trek + Lost + Current Events. It’s more than Sci-Fi, in fact it transcends the genre because of its willingness to put the characters first, sociology a close second, and science fiction third. It’s awesome! Okay, I think I’ve been infected with an adjectivore here, but bear with me. Battlestar Galactica is totally AWESOME!

Intro:

Battlestar Galactica was a TV show first shown in 1978, following the Star Wars boom. It was only on for a season due to high production costs and was later revived a couple of times without much success. Then 2003 came and a re-imagining of the TV series came into fruition via a three-hour miniseries. There were a few major changes from the original and the purists got angry, but since there weren’t a lot of people who actually saw the original TV series, who cares? This re-imagining rocks!

The show:

It’s about this galaxy far far away where 12 worlds / colonies of man existed. These 12 colonies have 7,000 years of recorded history and have all originated from one world called Kobol. There’s talk about a 13th tribe who set out from Kobol and eventually settled on Earth but history is a little fuzzy and since it happened such a long time ago, the colonials think Earth is a myth. So while the 12 colonies prospered, they created robots called Cylons to help them in their labors. In true A.I. style, the robots became sentient and rebelled against their creators and thus began the one thousand year war between man and cylons. A truce was reached sometime later and the cylons left the 12 worlds to find a world of their own. For the past 40 years, both the cylons and the colonials were at peace until one day the cylons came back (looking human!) - and nuked them all out.

That’s the start of the story, what follows is how a group of survivors (numbering 50,000, more or less) in various starships headed by an obsolete warship called Battlestar Galactica strive to stay alive and find another planet to live in called Earth, wherever it may be.

Conclusion:

I suck at summaries, just check out the damned show. You will not regret it !!!

I’ve written diddly squat in over a month. To say that I’ve been incredibly lazy is no surprise but I think I broke a few records the past couple of months. Say, longest time I’ve lain supine; longest time since I called my mom; longest time before I could persuade myself to leave the apartment (and only because I’ve ran out of Coke Light); tv show marathons for days on end. Which brings me to the reason for my lack of posts: TV shows.

I’ve been a TV addict for as long as I can remember, even during those days when we didn’t have cable. Watching local shows wasn’t such a pain that time. I remember watching Todas, Goin’ Bananas, Eat Bulaga, Lovingly Yours, Palibhasa Lalake, Ober da Bakod, Tropang Trumpo, Showbiz Lingo with Butch and Christie, and oh, this weekly show starring Manilyn Reynes.

My dad was a TV addict as well but he had to be at our restaurant from late afternoon to early in the morning so more often than not, he would miss these TV shows. So what he made us do was record all the TV shows for him (using betamax!) at night so that he can watch the shows the next morning. When he’s feeling sadistic, he would require us to record with no commercials. My family was the first TIVO.

I must’ve done this more than my brother or sisters because I seem to have carried this over into my adulthood. I have tons of vhs tapes back home which I used to record tv shows, movies and music videos that I liked. But then DVDs came out and then TV boxed sets and then HDTV. I stopped recording and concentrated my efforts on ordering online and downloading.

Technically, I haven’t watched TV in more than a year and I haven’t been able to follow the episodes of TV shows I used to watch back home. You can just imagine my backlog. I’ve been trying to make up for it this year by downloading as many shows as I possibly can and it got to the point that when summer came, I had more than 400 GB worth of TV shows. There were old shows that I wanted to watch again, current shows I’ve missed, and since it’s September and new TV shows are sprouting patay na! Of the new shows I’ve seen Jericho and Heroes look the most promising to last more than a few episodes. I haven’t watched Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip yet but I have so much to watch first. I’m still only on the 3rd season of Stargate SG-1 and it’s currently in its 10th and final season! So since I’m in a TV phase now, books, movies, emails, and even blogging would have to take a backseat. I’m on a mission baby!

Some of the shows I’ve watched / I’m currently watching:

Dr. Joel Fleishman (Rob Morrow) is a talented physician from New York who is required to serve the town of Cicely in Alaska for four years as an exchange for getting his scholarship financed by the state of Alaska. He doesn’t actually go there kicking and screaming but it’s close. As he slowly acclimates to the environment, he encounters a slew of eccentric characters that people the town of Cicely. There’s Maurice, the town patriarch; Maggie, the beautiful but cursed pilot; Holling, the gruff but honorable bartender; Chris, the intellectual DJ; Marilyn, the stoic assistant; and Ed, the endearing filmmaker/lackey. Quirkiness ensues.

I was only able to watch a handful of episodes when this was showing back home because it started late and I was still in high school, but it has left an indelible impression on me. Life in Cicely may be quiet but it can also be oh-so-absorbing. The quality of the videos I downloaded is crap but at least I can still get to watch without having to purchase the (overpriced) DVDs .

A man gets framed for the murder of the American vice-president’s brother and he will soon get the chair. The secret service guys working for the VP are doing all they can to make sure that this happens asap to cover up something big. They don’t count on the accused man’s genius brother to care enough to land himself in prison so that he can break out with his brother. Wentworth Miller brooding intensely into the camera ensues.

I started watching as soon as the first season was over so that I can watch it from start to finish. Cliffhangers are not for me. The only repercussion in watching more than 14 hours worth of episodes is that I now have Wentinitis. Too much of the beautiful Wentworth Miller in my head.

Surgical interns: Attractive surgical interns. Talented attendings: Very attractive attendings. Sex and more sex ensues!

4 Reasons to watch Grey’s (in no particular order):
1. Isaiah Washington
2. McDreamy aka Patrick Dempsey
3. McSteamy (hot hot hot)
4. Sandra Oh

The wealthy and dysfunctinal Bluth family experience a reversal of fortune when George Bluth Sr., the patriarch, is imprisoned for “dubious accounting practices.” We’ll find out later on that among his many sins, we can also add treason to the list. The only sane member of the family is Michael Bluth, played to perfection by Jason Bateman who I thought would never really amount to anything after being in some forgettable movies back in the 80’s. He’s the one trying to rein all of the crazy family members in while at the same time trying to be a good father to his son, George Michael and keeping the company afloat. Lots of laugh-out-loud moments ensue.

Oh my. This is such a GREAT show! It’s shot documentary style with an accompanying narration by Ron Howard (who also serves as executive producer of the show) to help move the story along. While the humor and dry wit of the show sets it apart from others, it is the cast that truly shines through more than anything else. Each actor completely owns its character’s idiosyncrasies.

I watched 3 seasons straight and followed it up with 2 seasons of CSI: NY. It was an interesting week I must say.

There were some outstanding episodes from the 5th and 6th which I completely missed since I came here. There was that whole drama during the 5th when Ecklie got promoted and broke up the team thus making Catherine even more unbearable than before; the introduction of Sophia Curtis (Louise Lombard) as a possible love interest for Grissom; Greg leaving the DNA lab to become a CSI and of course, the Quentin Tarantino-directed episode Grave Danger. The 6th season started with the team back together again, finally! Warrick is married! Catherine is pissed! Lady Heather returns! Grissom & Sara together finally! Dead bodies ensue.

While I like CSI:NY infinitely better than CSI: Miami, the first season just didn’t do it for me. The lab setting was off-putting, the cast didn’t have great chemistry, and a lot of scenes looked too blue/dark and depressing. Enter the second season with a major change in the cast, a new lab and Hawkes working in the field. It’s a whole new ballgame! With the replacement of Vanessa Ferlito with Anna Belknap, the episodes became lighter and more humorous despite the work that they do. Belknap’s character is like a breath of fresh air for the morose bunch in the CSI lab. You can see more camaraderie between the characters and more humor, not to mention the Danny-Lindsay thing. I admit, I’m a shipper!

Reasons to watch CSI:NY - the hotness of Eddie Cahill; the hotness of Hill Harper; the cuteness of Carmine Giovinazzo & Anna Belknap; and the hotness of Eddie Cahill.

I just finished watching the season finale of Veronica Mars and all I can say is… Holy Shit!!! After visiting a couple of forums I found I wasn’t the only one. The second season hasn’t been as good as the first in my opinion, primarily because the mystery this time was a lot less tight and should not have lasted 22 episodes but hey, the 22nd episode more than made up for it.

For the uninitiated, Veronica Mars is about a teenage girl with serious sleuthing skills and a whole lot of sass. The first season started off with Veronica trying to solve the mystery of her bestfriend’s death as well as helping her father out in his P.I. business. While there’s a major mystery for each season, there are also stand-alone mysteries each week which Veronica tries to solve while juggling school, boys and the occasional gang out to get her.

This show has often been compared to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and it’s not too far off. In lieu of monsters and vampires we get privileged spolied brats and their rich, snooty parents - not a lot of difference if you ask me. There’s also the witty quips that is greatly missed by Buffy fans everywhere including me. While Veronica does not have Buffy’s super strength, she’s got a mean taser, Backup the Dog and one big brain. To further connect this show with Buffy, Joss Whedon has made a cameo appearance and Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia) and Allyson Hannigan (Willow) are recurring characters in the show.

What makes Veronica Mars special? There’s a confluence of things such as great acting, smart stories, and superb writing. And Logan. I just had to write that.

Sick of being Sick:
It’s a Sunday and I’m stuck at home. Just when I decided to buy myself an iPod at long last… I get sick again. Is that a sign? I’ve been feeling poorly for 3 days now - fever, muscle pain, hot eyeballs, sore throat, nausea, headache, low energy, chills - no wonder I thought I was dying. Finally I gave in and went to the doctor this morning. My mind was running wild already, did I have influenza? SARS? Coxsackie Virus? Actually there’s more on my list after doing research on the net last night but in the end what I had was a common but highly pestiferous tonsillitis. How this can make even blinking my eyes hurt I have no idea.

Movies:
Elizabethtown - I’m looking forward to seeing this movie for 3 reasons: (1) Cameron Crowe (2)the Music (3) Orlando Bloom. Most guys can’t understand what’s so special about Orlando. He’s not obviously beautiful like Brad Pitt, but there’s just something about him. When I figure it out I’ll let you know. Anyway, there’s a rumor going around about Elizabethtown being one of Crowe’s best scripts to date. That’s saying a lot so I’m there baby!

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Johnny Depp looking like an extermely unhinged Willy Wonka? Tim Burton directs? A movie about chocolates? This is a foregone conclusion. While Gene Wilder was magnificent as Willy Wonka, the 1971 film had drawbacks like special effects, bad acting, too many songs, and most importantly the unimpressive chocolate river which was only saved by Pure Imagination.

Batman Begins - Christian Bale has been on the verge for way too long now. American Psycho is an acquired taste but his performance there made a believer out of me. I think it’s about time people recognize his magnificent talent and if it be a movie about a man in a batsuit, then so be it!

Matchpoint - Another man on the verge, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is spellbindingly beautiful… and Irish! Even if I believe him to be a bisexual at least, I still think he’s fine (and I wanna make him mine nananana). Coincidentally he starred with Christian Bale in Velvet Goldmine. Any guy who can wear tons of make-up and still look hot is just too hot. Okay, I’m steaming here. There’s also Scarlett Johansson in the cast and Woody Allen directs so this is bound to be an interesting movie with quick and witty lines to watch out for.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - I like watching coming-of-age stories as I’ve yet to come of age myself, or rather act my age. Also, the title is cute and America Ferrera stars. I like fat girls with talent.

Pride and Prejudice - the 1995 BBC version is a classic, no one and I mean no one can ever embody Darcy the way Colin Firth did. But I’m a Jane Austen fan enough to want to watch this latest version starring Keira Knightley. She looks pretty drab in the trailer though, and all P&P fans know that Elizabeth Bennet is anything but drab.

Memoirs of a Geisha - The book was an absolute page-turner so hopefully the movie will also be done well. The cast is star-studded and I think Zhang Ziyi has enough beauty and talent to pull it off. Ken Watanabe is also part of the cast as the Chairman. Now I can understand the attraction Sayuri felt

TV:
No TV set actually, just watching downloads. I’m going to finish Desperate Housewives today, there’s nothing much to do anyway.

Can’t wait for the second season of Lost and find out which major character is going to get whacked next. Michelle Rodriguez as Anna has yet to be seen on the island but many viewers are already wishing for her demise. Fine by me as long as they keep Jack, Sawyer and Hurley.

One Tree Hill - I’m going through the second season bit by bit, and getting bored bit by bit.

Music:
New albums to check out are Jack Johnson and Coldplay. Lifehouse’s Enhanced rises to expectations. They still sound great to me.

Tidbits:
1. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes engaged? Tom acting like a lunatic? Weeeeeiiiird!

2. Kris Aquino and James Yap engaged? James is so cute and Kris is so, so… words fail me ladies and gentlemen.

3. Syoti has started school already, was surprised to find out that Ateneo does not have air-conditioned classrooms. So what’s the energy fee for? Lights? Electric fan?

4. My sister Pebbles is now a Filipino citizen after a lot of time, hassle and expense. Yehey!

5. Watched Constantine the other night, a Filipina was possessed during the first few minutes of the movie and she said to Keanu…”Papatayin natin silaaaaaaa!”

6. The other day my discman started skipping (that was the day I decided to replace it with an iPod). Just weird that various electronic devices weird out on me. The radio used to skip stations, the tv used to skip channels, now my discman is skipping on the songs. When I go home to Pinas I think I need to pay a visit to an arbularyo and find out what the hell is going on.