Strangest Six Feet Under couples

post from TV Squad on 03 July 2008 04:03:00 PM. © TV Squad

Filed under: Retro Squad, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, Six Feet Under

The characters on Six Feet Under were fascinating to watch, but they often made horrible romantic choices. Even the couples that stood the test of time had their issues. Most of the truly memorable train wrecks didn't last, though. Here's a look back at some of the show's weirdest relationships.

Ruth Fisher and Arthur Martin - Ruth and Arthur's relationship was arguably the most awkward pairing in Six Feet Under history. Apart from the significant age difference, the relationship suffered from a lack of physical intimacy. You can't build a romance on nuzzling and spooning alone; it didn't take long for Ruth to figure that out. Ruth dumped Arthur, and things took a turn for the worse when she suddenly married George Sibley. Arthur showed his jealousy by arguing with George over the origins of the word "formica" and labeling his food. They finally parted ways after the "poo by mail" misunderstanding.

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Lost ratings

post from Not Confused Just Lost on 03 July 2008 04:00:28 PM. © Not Confused Just Lost

You may or may not have noticed, but I’ve added another page to the blog. Right beside About[...]

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Summer Fun: Big Brother and Project Runway

post from midseasonreplacements on 03 July 2008 03:54:42 PM. © midseasonreplacements

Howdy MSRites. We many of you are heading off to the outdoors also known as "the big room" and "The place with no cable" this holiday weekend. Before you do, we'd like to remind you that there's much fun to be had indoors once you come back to nurse your hangovers, sunburns, mosquito bites, stds, shark-bites, and candiru. Namely, Project Runway and Big Brother. We will be there to recap them both. Promos (sounds way classier than commercials, doesn't it?) after the jump.

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The Baby Borrowers Stirring The Pot

post from TVgasm Blog on 03 July 2008 03:37:00 PM. © TVgasm Blog

baby borroers

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry are trying to get The Baby Borrowers on NBC canceled. The president of the academy, Robert Hendren, said, "A child's sense of security should not be gambled with"

I agree Robert, but anything for good television, right?

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Shear Genius: Exit Interview - ...Oshun's
Fifteen (are thankfully up)...

post from TVgasm Blog on 03 July 2008 03:34:00 PM. © TVgasm Blog

As if the humiliating (and really, it should also be rather humbling) experience of being the first "stylestant" axed from Season Two of Shear Genius wasn't bad enough for Mr. Oshun (of the Motion Lotion Potion), I discovered his awesome exit interviews on BravoTV.com are filled with incredulity, incoherence, and a big side-order of incompetence...

"It's not faaaaaaaaaaaair!"

...mix in a generous portion of self-delusion (he truly is Cleopatra, Queen of Denial) and you won't believe some of the amazing and magical things he said about his being ousted first! See my (attempt) at transcription after the jump. "I do not deserve to lose, HELL no, I didn't deserve to lose in no form, shape or fashion because, like I said, there were other stylists out their work was far off base than mine was, so, no, I didn't deserve and I don't know why I'm going home but I'm gonna deal with it."So, basically you're saying that you didn't deserve to be sent home, not because you were better, but because other stylists were much more suckier than you, huh? And you're dealing with it by bitching about it...

"I know you are, but what am I?"

"When, um, the judges made their, uhhh, final decision, I'm like, man, they gotta be crazy, man, I mean, if you look at overall looks, my look was fluent and, you know, but that's what the judges want and that's fine."Yes, Oshun, your look was certainly "fluent"... in the language of craptacular..."Being the great stylist that I am, it's just opinion of the judges. I just came in a season that they didn't see what I saw. There was five other stylists that had immunity that I know they didn't follow NONE of the criteria, their hair was garbage, so I'm like, what w-what was the judges thinkin' about?"I'm guessing they were thinking that you misunderstood the "criteria" was not to make that poor girl's face look wider....

"Blah, blahdy, blah, the judges are all stupidy-doopity-heads!"

"The person I know that shoulda went home was Gail, Paulo and Meredith. If you look at their total work, I believe it was just not... has no symmetry, no... no movement, didn't have any direction and it got, they got immunity, I just couldn't understand it."Hmmmm, I don't remember seeing a stylestant called GailPauloandMeredith..."I was like, 'Kim, are you blind?!? What do you mean unpolished?', you didn't see any flyaways, you've seen smoothness, you've seen variations of the hair, you've seen it move like figure-eights, I'm like 'What do you mean undone and polished, you know?' I put, man I laid that hair to the side... laid it, dyed it, fried it to the side, so I don't know what he's talking about, so what Kim was saying, it was just his opinion so it didn't matter to me. It's just life."Kim Vo may be a lot of things (I'm beginning to suspect he might be of an alien race of gay pixies, or gayxies, if you prefer, that flit around the world judging hairstyling reality TV shows) but he certainly seems to have full use of both his eyes (and those freakishly smooth lips)! And, as Daddy Tom Colicchio recently said to one of the ass-munch cheftestants on Top Chef Season 4 "Unfortunately, my opinion is the one that counts!"

"You all can just fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuudge off!"

"I didn't think I was in the bottom six at all, really, tell you the truth, I was like 'What the hell is going on, man?' I'm like, I should be in... I should be having immunity SERIOUSLY, so I... I couldn't really fathom that I was gonna be in the bottom six again!"Fathom it, sweetie... you should be used to that, because fathoms are a part of OSHUNS!"And I don't think nobody in that whole room could've cut that hair no better than I could, being that she wanted that short and her hair was midriff to her back, so I'm like, hey, I'm cool, I can live with, I can hold my head up high, 'cuz I'm telling you, I am the best. I'm at the top of my game, I'm not even worried, I am the best genius... SHEAR genius!"Yes, and that's how this show Best Genius works... they send the best stylestants home first!

"Asphinctersayswhaaaaaaaaaaaa??"

"When I saw my client coming down the runway, I was like 'Man, I had a hard challenge and I pulled it off!', and she loved it, when she got in front of the judges she said the same thing, and see, the bottom line is what the client wants, what they like."That is hysterical, because when I saw your client coming down the runway, I was like "Man, she looks like a hot pile of steaming country dumpage!" and if the client wants to look like Mrs. Soon-To-Be-Divorced-Potato-Head, you should certainly put that dream within reach..."I wish I could have picked a different model with different texture of hair and I probably should have did my model a little more simpler, you know, more.. more uhh,.. just more low-maintenance, not try to give her no flair, 'cuz I think that people that did get immunity, they didn't really put a lot of oomph in it, it was only just about color, and it wasn't about the whole overall look of the hair, you know?"Oh, so now it's the model's fault??!? Her absolute insistence on flairiness and oomphiness was what handicapped you? (Re: He wishes he didn't get stuck with a big fat girl)

...This is the expression after some fantasy nut-punching on my part...

"I be like, cool, I'm in the bottom three, but I'm gonna have another time to really shine and, uh, quit playing around basically, because you know I felt my strategy was to, you know, fend people off, you know, let 'em think I was the weakest link, and then just blow and just win all the rest of the challenges, but they caught me, you know, I... they caught me quick, so , hey, what can I say, I got nipped!"Yup, you blew all right. And got nipped. And caught. And pwned."I didn't learn anything from what the judges said because, like I said, I'm a professional! I've been doing this over 18 years, and I don't think nothing they could have told me could have even swayed my judgment, my movements, the way I, uh, tackle my projects, cuz like I said, I done made it to the top, I've been nominated for a Emmy, I've got all kind of ackulades (seriously, he said the word as "ackulades" so I felt to be true to his intent I should spell it phonetically... J-Mo) so I mean really, it's just opinion to me, it's not nothing I'm gonna take to heart!"Way to learn from the experience, there, Oshun... that's why Kim Vo is a master colorist, and you're working on "Passions" and lying about awards (unless... can anybody in L.A. confirm for me what in the name of Jeebus he's talking about being nominated for an Emmy for a hairstyle?... I am stumped by this!)

**"A Emmy! No, TWO Emmys!!! And ackulades!!!"**

"The playing field wasn't as, uhh, fair as I wanted it to be, you know I got the last uh, I got axe on the first challenge, you know I got the baaaad set of... I mean the hair was not in great shape, so you know, you can only do what you can do, I'm not a musician, you know, I don't do magic, you know, I'm a hair stylist!"Ahhh, I see, now it's the poor hair's fault... well, I imagine that most musicians do find it quite hard to do magic... (my big hairy belly still hurts from busting out laughing when I heard that clip the first time, I had to listen to it at least 73 more times before I began to tire of it... owie!)..."Where I go from here, I go back to television, films and doing what I've been doing, letting my work go all over the world, so it's not a big deal to me because I... I'm in the business, so, you know, a lot of them, they're gonna have their first start, I'm in the business, I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do, my work is gonna shine, so it's no love lost. I just wish I could've stayed on a little longer so America could see my beautiful personality, but it's cool."

Yes, America... see all the beautiful personality we're going to be missing out on???...duhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

"What I'm going to take away from this experience was, don't always be willing to push people... don't be willing to push my creativity on other individuals, I must, sometimes I have to have a little more open, a open mind to different ventures, different, um, different tactics, you know, I'm so stubborn about my work, so I-I really tend to just stay in my own groove, my own movement, so basically I'm going to take that to heart, next time just be more attentive, listen a little more and look at what the picture and what the judges are looking for."Actually, that's good advice... a glimmer of hope that he's not going to be a complete anal fissure...I want to tell America, do not let anyone deter you from what you believe, believe in you, believe in anything that you put together, create, mold, you believe in it, you stand by it, that's what the Oshun did, I believed and I stood behind it, America YOU know, YOU log in and tell 'em, I shouldn't be off this show right now, it's all other kind of work shoulda been off this show, man, they trippin' ... but it's cool, but I can deal with it, I got thick skin, so I'm not even mad!Oh yes. Yes you are, mad. And we're going to miss that about you for the next 3.... 2.... 1.....

"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!"

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Rufus on Bush

post from Planet Homo on 03 July 2008 03:33:00 PM. © Planet Homo

The ever delightful Rufus Wainwright has an interview in a British newspaper where he addresses many issues, among them, the Bushes. Here's a sample:You used to socialise with Barbara Bush Jr. Is she fun to booze with?
I only did that very briefly. The thing about the Bushes is even thoughthey?re the spawn of Satan they are extremely charming and congenial. Iliked Barbara, she?s a fag hag.
for the rest, head here.

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Tue, Jul 1st, 08 - Perfect Strangers, My Boys,
Good Morning Miami, Avengers, Sentinel, Acapulco HEAT, Roughnecks

post from A Briefing With Michael on 03 July 2008 03:19:00 PM. © A Briefing With Michael

06:30    Perfect Strangers
07:00    My Boys
09:30    Good Morning Miami
10:00    The Avengers
11:30    The Sentinel
12:30    Acapulco HEAT
01:30    Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles

Perfect Strangers. Episode 3. "First Date" The joy of this show is in watching Balki, who is clueless about everyday life, learn about stuff from Larry, who is also clueless but hides it better. It's all rather sweet how they lean on one another for support and - somehow - manage to educate each other as they stumble along. The other joy, of course, is the flawless slapstick. While the concept for the series is strong, and guaranteed to provide opportunity for laughs no matter who was cast, the slapstick/chemistry is a different matter. Nobody but these two actors could have accomplished what Mark Linn-Baker and Bronson Pinchot. Their easy genius at their roles is a shart contrast to the rest of the season 1 cast: Lise Cutter and Ernie Sabella who are bland and forgettable. Basically it feels as if two characters from an inferior sit-com have wandered onto the Perfect Strangers set. And while the early episodes are still wonderful, the show won't truly be complete until Jennifer and Mary Anne arrive. No sign of them this week (but they are not far away) and romance is in the air, as Larry teaches Balki how to meet women. Classic.

My Boys. Season 2, Episode 3. "The Shirt Contest" The joy of this show is the friendships between the group. I honestly can't think of a sitcom that so perfectly captures the feeling of being in a group of friends. Aside from the chemistry of the cast, the show manages to tell interesting stories. This episode has PJ trying to write a book with a sports celebrity and not making much progress. While Brendan meets his ex in a very embarrasing (and relatable) situation. And while all this is going on, the gang banter as usual.

Good Morning Miami. Episode 2. "Power Failure" The pre-credits sequence of this episode is awful. It's not funny and the main character comes across as jerk. I wonder how many potential viewers were driven away by that opening? It's a pity, because once the credits have rolled, everything at follows is comedy gold. Particularly the staff meeting where all the regular characters are on-screen together. Penny and Frank get all the biggest laughs, but everyone is on top form.

It's a pity that they aired the hero-behaves-like-a-jerk-until-he-learns-his-lesson episode this early. When you think about it, the show has an unappealing concept and lead character. Yes, everything that happened in the pilot was wonderrful and romantic but - once he realised that the object of his affections was in a long-term relationship - the hero of the piece should have backed off. It's really the only heroic thing to do. Everything that he does in the series that follows could be seen as the actions of a jerk trying to break up a couple on his own whim. That's not very likable. What was needed here, I feel, was an opening/episode where Gavin regrets taking the job and decides to leave Dylan alone. The audience might like him more for doing that. Instead of behaving in such an arrogant manner. Gavin wasn't like that in the series that followed: it was circumstances that kept throwing him and Dylan together.

So, I feel, this episode - while funny - dropped the ball completely by not driving home the concept of the series at a time when it was imporant to do so.

The Avengers. Episode 143. "Noon Doomsday" For a show to have a cult following it must be rewatchable. The episodes must have a quality in them that allows fans to go back time and time again and always enjoy what they are seeing. If a show creates a strong sense of place, for instance, then fans will happily go back time and again to "visit" that place. This episode of The Avengers (like many/most episodes of the show) creates a wonderful sense of time and place and populates the location with fascinating characters. It's a truly pleasureable hour of TV.

Steed is in hospital. A hospital that looks like a country farmhouse. A well-guarded country farmhouse, that is. A heavily-armed agent prowls the perimeter and the whole place is surrounded by a minefield. The minefield is intened to keep enemies out. Unfortunately an enemy of Steed's is coming to get him and he's managed to get an inside man to kill the heavily-armed agent on duty and he's on his way by helicopter. So it is Steed, in fact, who is held back by the minefield. Plus, he's recovering from injuries. Luckily, all this happened on the same day that Tara popped by for a visit...

And there you have it. Lots of running and shouting and action, and all of it takes place inside, between and on top of the buildings of this 'quiet' settings. It's superb stuff. With a story modelled after High Noon, Tara finds that none of the other hospitalised agents are willing to help (an injured) Steed take on his foe.

This is a great Tara episode. She's constantly running around. One minute pleading with someone to help, the next minute she's in a life or death struggle with some bad guy or others. The fact that she's only a novice agent makes everything all the more exciting. Steed thinks she hasn't a hope, and he has every reason to think so. I don't think that it's a bad reflection on Steed that he has no faith in his 'partner'. Rather he is very much aware that she is no Emma Peel and could very well get herself killed.

It's also interesting that Tara has no knowledge of Steed's injuries or the mission he was on when he got them. It drives home the fact that they are not 'partners' at all and really do have more of a mentor/pupil relationship. Which is one of the things I love most about this era of the show's history.

I also love the Opening Title sequence (with Steed and Tara in a field of Knights). I read earlier this week that it was filmed on July 3rd, 1968. But I can't find the website now where I read that!!

The Sentinel. Season 3, Episode 8. "Storm Warning" As I've written before if a show creates a strong sense of place then fans will happily go back time and again to "visit" that place. This is true of The Sentinel as much as of any cult show. Most episode have that wonderful rainy city backdrop and other episodes take the characters to some unique place for an adventure. This episode, for example, takes Jim (the cop with super senses) and Blair (his observer/watcher) to a remote island which is being besieged by heavily-armed drug-runners during a storm.

The Sentinel is very much a hit-and-miss show. Some episodes hit their mark to perfection, and other episodes are so wide of the mark you have to wonder how it could even be the same series. This one, thankfully, falls into the former category. The episode does everything right. Every element, every guest actor/character, every glance between Jim and Blair, every action sequence, every twist in the story, etc. All are just right. It's great fun from start to finish.

Jim only uses his powers twice in the episode and neither of those times has any real impact on the story. That often happens on The Sentinel. His powers are often irrelevant to the story (unless they are the story). This week, it's just a standard cop thriller. And it's a very good one: it's got at least one example of a siege, a shoot-out, a chase and a double-cross. As well as all the action, you have likable main characters and a solid entertaining story. Exactly the elements I want from an episode of The Sentinel.

Acapulco HEAT. Episode 6. "Feminine Intuition" Although still beset by low production values and wooden acting (from the guest stars) this episode of AH is a step up in terms of story content and story intent. The story not only engages us by having Ashley go up against and old partner (who has now turned bad) it establishes that the team are a potent force for good in their part of the world.

Too many scenes just look like actors sitting around their hotel rooms (which is basically what it is, I suppose) and none of the guest cast can make their characters work. But, luckily, they don't get much screen time. The regular cast are great in this. The scenes devoted to the mission are solid, as are all the downtime scenes, showing the team members having fun and hanging out. The topic of female intuition is a recurring topic of conversation all through the episode and it works perfectly against the man story. Not only as a source of (genuine) amusement, but it also (cleverly) feeds into a super-cool bit at the end when Mike shoots a bad guy behind a closed door without knowing where he would be hiding.

Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles. Episode 1. "Freefall" Here you have an exceptionally cool show about war, which doesn't make war seem cool in the slightest. Instead the mood is depressing and oppressive. This first episode does a great job introducing the regular characters and establishing their personalities.

Highlight? The Sentinel

Read The Full Article:
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-my.html

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Tue, Jul 1, 08 - Perfect Strangers, My Boys, Good
Morning Miami, Avengers, Sentinel, Acapulco HEAT, Roughnecks

06:30    Perfect Strangers
07:00    My Boys
09:30    Good Morning Miami
10:00    The Avengers
11:30    The Sentinel
12:30    Acapulco HEAT
01:30    Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles

Perfect Strangers. Episode 3. "First Date" The joy of this show is in watching Balki, who is clueless about everyday life, learn about stuff from Larry, who is also clueless but hides it better. It's all rather sweet how they lean on one another for support and - somehow - manage to educate each other as they stumble along. The other joy, of course, is the flawless slapstick. While the concept for the series is strong, and guaranteed to provide opportunity for laughs no matter who was cast, the slapstick/chemistry is a different matter. Nobody but these two actors could have accomplished what Mark Linn-Baker and Bronson Pinchot. Their easy genius at their roles is a shart contrast to the rest of the season 1 cast: Lise Cutter and Ernie Sabella who are bland and forgettable. Basically it feels as if two characters from an inferior sit-com have wandered onto the Perfect Strangers set. And while the early episodes are still wonderful, the show won't truly be complete until Jennifer and Mary Anne arrive. No sign of them this week (but they are not far away) and romance is in the air, as Larry teaches Balki how to meet women. Classic.

My Boys. Season 2, Episode 3. "The Shirt Contest" The joy of this show is the friendships between the group. I honestly can't think of a sitcom that so perfectly captures the feeling of being in a group of friends. Aside from the chemistry of the cast, the show manages to tell interesting stories. This episode has PJ trying to write a book with a sports celebrity and not making much progress. While Brendan meets his ex in a very embarrasing (and relatable) situation. And while all this is going on, the gang banter as usual.

Good Morning Miami. Episode 2. "Power Failure" The pre-credits sequence of this episode is awful. It's not funny and the main character comes across as jerk. I wonder how many potential viewers were driven away by that opening? It's a pity, because once the credits have rolled, everything at follows is comedy gold. Particularly the staff meeting where all the regular characters are on-screen together. Penny and Frank get all the biggest laughs, but everyone is on top form.

It's a pity that they aired the hero-behaves-like-a-jerk-until-he-learns-his-lesson episode this early. When you think about it, the show has an unappealing concept and lead character. Yes, everything that happened in the pilot was wonderrful and romantic but - once he realised that the object of his affections was in a long-term relationship - the hero of the piece should have backed off. It's really the only heroic thing to do. Everything that he does in the series that follows could be seen as the actions of a jerk trying to break up a couple on his own whim. That's not very likable. What was needed here, I feel, was an opening/episode where Gavin regrets taking the job and decides to leave Dylan alone. The audience might like him more for doing that. Instead of behaving in such an arrogant manner. Gavin wasn't like that in the series that followed: it was circumstances that kept throwing him and Dylan together.

So, I feel, this episode - while funny - dropped the ball completely by not driving home the concept of the series at a time when it was imporant to do so.

The Avengers. Episode 143. "Noon Doomsday" For a show to have a cult following it must be rewatchable. The episodes must have a quality in them that allows fans to go back time and time again and always enjoy what they are seeing. If a show creates a strong sense of place, for instance, then fans will happily go back time and again to "visit" that place. This episode of The Avengers (like many/most episodes of the show) creates a wonderful sense of time and place and populates the location with fascinating characters. It's a truly pleasureable hour of TV.

Steed is in hospital. A hospital that looks like a country farmhouse. A well-guarded country farmhouse, that is. A heavily-armed agent prowls the perimeter and the whole place is surrounded by a minefield. The minefield is intened to keep enemies out. Unfortunately an enemy of Steed's is coming to get him and he's managed to get an inside man to kill the heavily-armed agent on duty and he's on his way by helicopter. So it is Steed, in fact, who is held back by the minefield. Plus, he's recovering from injuries. Luckily, all this happened on the same day that Tara popped by for a visit...

And there you have it. Lots of running and shouting and action, and all of it takes place inside, between and on top of the buildings of this 'quiet' settings. It's superb stuff. With a story modelled after High Noon, Tara finds that none of the other hospitalised agents are willing to help (an injured) Steed take on his foe.

This is a great Tara episode. She's constantly running around. One minute pleading with someone to help, the next minute she's in a life or death struggle with some bad guy or others. The fact that she's only a novice agent makes everything all the more exciting. Steed thinks she hasn't a hope, and he has every reason to think so. I don't think that it's a bad reflection on Steed that he has no faith in his 'partner'. Rather he is very much aware that she is no Emma Peel and could very well get herself killed.

It's also interesting that Tara has no knowledge of Steed's injuries or the mission he was on when he got them. It drives home the fact that they are not 'partners' at all and really do have more of a mentor/pupil relationship. Which is one of the things I love most about this era of the show's history.

I also love the Opening Title sequence (with Steed and Tara in a field of Knights). I read earlier this week that it was filmed on July 3rd, 1968. But I can't find the website now where I read that!!

The Sentinel. Season 3, Episode 8. "Storm Warning" As I've written before if a show creates a strong sense of place then fans will happily go back time and again to "visit" that place. This is true of The Sentinel as much as of any cult show. Most episode have that wonderful rainy city backdrop and other episodes take the characters to some unique place for an adventure. This episode, for example, takes Jim (the cop with super senses) and Blair (his observer/watcher) to a remote island which is being besieged by heavily-armed drug-runners during a storm.

The Sentinel is very much a hit-and-miss show. Some episodes hit their mark to perfection, and other episodes are so wide of the mark you have to wonder how it could even be the same series. This one, thankfully, falls into the former category. The episode does everything right. Every element, every guest actor/character, every glance between Jim and Blair, every action sequence, every twist in the story, etc. All are just right. It's great fun from start to finish.

Jim only uses his powers twice in the episode and neither of those times has any real impact on the story. That often happens on The Sentinel. His powers are often irrelevant to the story (unless they are the story). This week, it's just a standard cop thriller. And it's a very good one: it's got at least one example of a siege, a shoot-out, a chase and a double-cross. As well as all the action, you have likable main characters and a solid entertaining story. Exactly the elements I want from an episode of The Sentinel.

Acapulco HEAT. Episode 6. "Feminine Intuition" Although still beset by low production values and wooden acting (from the guest stars) this episode of AH is a step up in terms of story content and story intent. The story not only engages us by having Ashley go up against and old partner (who has now turned bad) it establishes that the team are a potent force for good in their part of the world.

Too many scenes just look like actors sitting around their hotel rooms (which is basically what it is, I suppose) and none of the guest cast can make their characters work. But, luckily, they don't get much screen time. The regular cast are great in this. The scenes devoted to the mission are solid, as are all the downtime scenes, showing the team members having fun and hanging out. The topic of female intuition is a recurring topic of conversation all through the episode and it works perfectly against the man story. Not only as a source of (genuine) amusement, but it also (cleverly) feeds into a super-cool bit at the end when Mike shoots a bad guy behind a closed door without knowing where he would be hiding.

Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles. Episode 1. "Freefall" Here you have an exceptionally cool show about war, which doesn't make war seem cool in the slightest. Instead the mood is depressing and oppressive. This first episode does a great job introducing the regular characters and establishing their personalities.

Highlight? The Sentinel

Read The Full Article:
http://abriefingwithmichael.blogspot.com/2008/07/tue-jul-1st-08-perfect-strangers
-my.html

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Movie Preview: The Day the Earth Stood Still

The modern remake of the 1951 sci-fi film The Day the Earth Stood Still attempts to update the older version, shifting its themes from Cold War political tension and the threat of human violence to the imminence of environmental retaliation from an abused Earth. Keanu Reeves, who plays the protagonist in this new version, explains:

The first one was borne out of the cold war and nuclear détente. Klaatu came and was saying cease and desist with your violence. If you can?t do it yourselves we?re going to do it. That was the film of that day. The version I was just working on, instead of being man against man, it?s more about man against nature. My Klaatu says that if the Earth dies, you die. If you die, the earth survives. I?m a friend to the earth.

The movie joins a few other recent films with possibly green messages. This one, with its apocalyptic setting, also stars Jennifer Connolly, Will Smith's kid Jaden, and Mad Men's Jon Hamm. I love most of the cast (though not all of it), but I don't know how I feel about the trailer for this one; it's just not pulling me in. The Day the Earth Stood Still opens December 12. To check out the trailer,

Turtle and E spill the beans about Entourage

Filed under: Entourage, WGA Strike, Reality-Free

Have you been jonesing for the entourage from Entourage? Do you need a little Ari Gold to get your blood flowing? Well, new shows aren't coming back until September (thanks to the writers' strike), but HBO is giving fans a chance to enjoy the most recent shows starting tomorrow, July 4th. Every Friday at 10 p.m. (ET) on, HBO will replay season 3: part 2, and season 4.

That's good to know -- especially in these dog days of summer TV -- but if you want to know what's going to happen next, read on. Both Jerry Ferarra and Kevin Connolly, Turtle and E, got a little chatty with OK! magazine's Oliver Coleman.

If you don't want to know how things are going to unfold in season five, don't read after the jump.

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