Have you been saved by TV lately?

Since I’ve been talking non-stop on the economy these past few posts, I am delighted to say that “YES! TV is back! And with a bang!” I finally have something else to talk about! Not that politics and the economy and other issues aren’t exciting anymore, but I’ve just been watching a lot of really great shows, old and new, and they’ve made me enthusiastic enough to push all that news brouhaha aside and get this blog back on track with the stuff I love talking about.

The cast of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, back for its sophomore season.

First and foremost, old shows that have come back: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, premiered last week. We all knew that Cameron was going to live (I mean, hello? How do you kill off Summer Glau, the awesomest Terminator ever?), so there was really no “Oh, whaddaya know?!” moment when she ended up emerging alive from the truck wreckage. However, it was corny to me how that awful rock n’ rolla music was playing in the background for like, 3 minutes while Cameron started to walk back up to the house. It was in horrible slo-mo too, and it was just so cheesy that I think I rolled my eyes enough to dry them up and had to go put some eyedrops in. But thank heavens some brilliant writer figured to add in a twist and she ended up coming back with a screw loose and intended to terminate Sarah and John. It was a fairly good season premiere; not as explosive as the first season, of course, but that is to be expected, I guess. Sophomore seasons are usually pretty tough on fledgling shows [see Prison Break, Gossip Girl] but with Terminator’s addition of the awesome Shirley Manson [from the band Garbage] to the roster, I’m sure this season will be pretty badass.

The cast of Greek on ABC Family

Another returning show is Greek, which I am absolutely in love with. See, I’ve been told that I watch politics a lot and that I seem to have too many opinions on things that matter, and that I need to enjoy Will Ferrell movies more (which I don’t intend to do, thank you), but I think that Greek makes the case for me that I’m not all that much of a bore. Greek is every bit the mindless fun that you want on your primetime viewing schedule, and I don’t mean that in an insulting way. When I say mindless, I mean that the humor isn’t crude or sarcastic like say, Real Time with Bill Maher, another show I happen to enjoy. The humor is clever, fun and current, you know, in the sense that it’s in a language that everyone speaks (e-speak, I call it, and it’s not the language you use to text, but the kind of language only young people can understand). Also, by mindless, I’m alluding to the fact that it’s a show centered around the Greek system: fraternities and sororities. It basically dives into all the stereotypes that are true for both groups: that they’re all about parties, drinking and slacking off in college. What I like about this show, though, is that the characters are really interesting, and the decisions they make often irritating but confounding in a good way. I like that the characters are all likeable, and that there’s just no one character that everyone hates. Also, with all the shows that feel like they need to end with cliffhanger episodes, it’s nice to actually watch a show whose episode controversies are resolved by 9:59pm. I also like the way they bring in new cast members. They don’t give them grand entrances or give them spectacular lines, they make them as relatable as can be, and so as an audience member you really feel like you’re developing an attraction to them. And finally, the songs on this show are pretty cool. They used Earlimart once and that really impressed me.

The cast of one of the best shows EVER, Mad Men, in an awesome Vanity Fair shoot.

One of my favorite shows of last fall was Mad Men, and the first couple episodes weren’t very spectacular, in the sense that they didn’t have the same pizzazz as the first season, but they were still very well-written, very visually-arresting, and of course, it’s always good to have the characters back. The nice thing about this show is that it was able to show that some changes happened after the last season finished. They set it up well and made sure that it was apparent to viewers that a year had gone by after the last season, and that the characters were changed somehow. For instance, Betty now takes up horseback riding, Peggy starts her new position as junior copy writer and she does end up keeping her baby (well, not technically, since her mom and sister take care of it), Joan Holloway is engaged and Sterling-Cooper gets a television department. One thing I didn’t like about this season was Don’s involvement with Bobbie, a manager of comedian Jimmy Barrett, a client of Sterling-Cooper. It irks me that Don keeps playing around behind Betty’s back (but that’s just the female in me, of course, nothing against the writers), but it was great when they had the episode where Don and Bobbie run into Rachel (who, if you remember, was one of Don’s conquests last season that came close to becoming an elopement) at a restaurant and Rachel gives him this look that is just so on point that I felt like screaming “YES! YOU TELL HIM!” at the top of my lungs. And also, I love that this show is so artistic. What I mean by this is that the writers have so much faith in their material and in their actors that they don’t even bother writing lines for certain scenes. They’d much rather demonstrate the gravity of a situation through actions or pictures. I love that they use metaphors a lot in this show. It’s so intelligent and refreshingly clever, and I feel like AMC is perfect for this show in ways HBO could not have been. 

Another comeback that was spectacular? SNL of course! Tina Fey came back to play Sarah Palin, and it was spot on. Amy Poehler, of course, was equally hilarious. I think that segment will make history as one of the most watched and most buzzed about episodes in SNL history. Very well-written, well-portrayed, and the audience was obviously hungry for some Fey.

Charlie Hunnam, the star of the new FX show, Sons of Anarchy.

On to the newcomers in primetime. My new obsession is Sons of Anarchy on FX. Okay, so I’ll admit that the reason I got drawn to this show was because of Charlie Hunnam. I am obsessed with him, and have been obsessed with him since Abandon and Nicholas Nickleby. He’s a really good actor, and it helps that he’s really good-looking too. I’ve noticed in his movies that he’s really intense, and I wanted to see how he would play this rough-and-tumble, tough-talking member of a California biker group called Sons of Anarchy when he has starred in a film like Nicholas Nickleby, of course, based on the Charles Dickens novel, a completely opposite character of Jackson in this new show.  At first I was a little skeptical when it started because I could see that he actually changed the way he walked so it looked more tough and rough, and as someone who actually knows who this guy is and has seen him play completely different roles, I was surprised at first. Later on I came to realize just how great of an actor he is. Now, enough about Charlie Hunnam! Sons of Anarchy, I think, is one of the really true gems in this fall line-up. It’s dramatic, well-written, perfectly-cast, riveting, but also soft and poignant when needed. I never thought I would be interested in a show like this. I mean, I’ve never been into films that were big on bikes or gangs and violence, but this one is actually different. It gives you an insider’s perspective into the way things work. Normally, the movies that are made about gangs are outsider stuff–for instance, they represent gangs or exclusive biker clubs like these from an outsider’s perspective. Sons of Anarchy shows how these gangs operate, how intelligent they are and how organized, and they also show that they are real people, with senses of humor and charm. I also like that they are character-driven and that they don’t rely on being flashy and promoting senseless violence. Also, coincidentally, the actress who played Rachel in a show I talked about before, Mad Men, Maggie Siff, is part of this show! I really like her and I think she’s a very eloquent actress. Other members of the awesome cast include Ron Perlman, Theo Rossi, Mark Boone Jr., the awesome Katey Sagal, and the seriously underrated Johnny Lewis. Got nothing to do next Wednesday? Watch Sons of Anarchy!

Ana Paquin and Stephen Moyer of the new HBO series, True Blood.

Another new show I am absolutely obsessed with is HBO’s True Blood. Now, when I found out that Ana Paquin was going to be in it, I was turned off by the show. She’s not my favorite actress, and seriously, her Rogue in X-Men was downright ridiculous and a little much, to be honest. But I figured I’d give it a chance, since it is about vampires, and it is created by Alan Ball, the genius behind Six Feet Under and American Beauty. Seriously, I’m beginning to think this guy can do no wrong. Also, it piqued my interest because at Comic-Con this year, there were posters everywhere of this drink called True Blood, and I seriously thought that it was an actual drink that was like, cherry-flavored or something. I actually went online to try and find the thing, and found out it was a show! Here’s where I ended up: http://www.trubeverage.com. So definitely great job to HBO for marketing this show, and props to whoever thought about the concept, since it was very clever. This show is set at a time when Japanese scientists develop synthetic blood for retail, True Blood, which now enables vampires to walk around like average, everyday people (only at night, of course). The story revolves around Sookie Stackhouse [Paquin], a regular waitress at a small town in Louisiana, who befriends a vampire, Bill Compton [Stephen Moyer].  I think it’s really interesting that they pitched the whole vampires-walking-around-like-normal-people thing as a minority war of some sort. They showed clips of vampires going on Larry King or something clamoring for more rights and less discrimination. I thought it was a very novel idea and one that was very well-incorporated in the first couple of episodes. The show is very explicit, so some people might be a little perturbed by the amount of nudity in it (although let’s be clear that The L Word still tops every list of shows with most nude scenes per episode), although the fact that it revolves around vampires should be disclaimer enough. I like that the humor is very straight to the point, and that’s what I like about HBO and FX–there’s no beating around the bush, and the characters (no matter how larger than life) can actually come across as normal people. I still think Ana Paquin is a little annoying as Sookie, but then she kind of reminds me of when Sarah Michelle Gellar was starting out as Buffy, and I hope that as the show goes on she will get better. Now, there is something to be said about the cute boys on this show. Stephen Moyer is perfectly cast as the vampire lead of this show. He’s definitely got the whole mysterious look going for him, and it helps that he’s sort of an unknown actor [The Starter Wife, and the lesser-known Prince Valiant with Katherine Heigl]. Also, a lot of parallels with Buffy, which I assume has some sort of inspiration for this show. David Boreanaz had the same thing going for him, in that he was a virtual unknown (he was discovered while walking his dog down the streets of New York) and it really helps when viewers don’t know who the heck you are and you just show up and you’re spectacularly good-looking. Ryan Kwanten (who plays Sookie’s brother, Jason) is also very much the eye candy. Anyway, enough of the crush talking. This show is really very well-written. It’s hilarious, it’s creepy, intriguing, and definitely a show that sets itself apart from what’s on TV today.

And finally, Fringe. Now, I’m not totally sold on this show yet, but I’m giving it a chance. I had seen the pilot when it had leaked on the net months before, and I had been sorely disappointed by what I had seen. I thought Anna Torv was miscast and I think she didn’t really do well as Olivia Dunham. She appeared charmless and unlikeable and even in the second episode, I found myself less and less riveted by her character and more and more welcoming of Peter [played by Joshua Jackson] and Walter [John Noble]. Fringe is basically The X-Files but exploring fringe science. I don’t care what anyone says, that’s what it is in a nutshell. Anyone who thinks it’s nothing like The X-Files is delusional. Creator J.J. Abrams said himself that the show was inspired by The X-Files and The Twilight Zone, and I think that the inspiration is very clear. Now, I’m not even going to waste my time by enumerating the various things about this show that are eerily similar to The X-Files, but I will say that this show is visually well-done. I liked the location stamps, although as the show goes on I find them rather irritating now. I think the set decorators and the prop and make-up department did a fine job pulling off the horror with the plane crash. I think that John Noble is great in this show, portraying sort of a mad scientist helping the FBI. One fundamental thing that this show has done differently than The X-Files, and which I will gladly give them credit for, is that it doesn’t seem to have the big over-arching storyline that The X-Files had well into seasons 6-9. I do think that the show tried a little bit too hard to make the characters interesting, and I feel like the writing may have been much sharper and less predictable, but I am intrigued enough to give the show a second chance. And of course, Lance Reddick is in it, so we’ll see if he does well enough on this show to leave Lost for.

That concludes my long post on TV’s fall comeback. I’m sure that as more shows come back for fall, such as Heroes, I’ll be blogging on TV topics more. Let’s just hope the TV line-ups continue to get more exciting so I won’t have to talk more about politics.

The week in politics

I’ve never been into politics. To me, politics has always been about a bunch of old geezers talking about how to save their own asses. This election has changed my perspective about politics. The people who are running are different this time around. You have John McCain, the Republican nominee–somewhat of a maverick and a bit of a goofball. He’s been in the Senate for a while now, and he’s certainly got the experience for him to be included with the “old politics” kind of thinking. McCain’s got the trophy wife who never talks, a black and white world view, and of course, thousands of rabid followers eager to make him the next President. On the other hand, you have Barack Obama. Interesting background, incredible story. Not so much experience in the political fray, but a lot of background in social work. He’s got a wife who is intelligent, down to earth, and unafraid to speak her mind. He’s got the inspiration factor, and youth is on his side, literally because he’s much younger than his Republican counterpart, and figuratively because young people have been drawn to him ever since he started his campaign for the White House.

Two very different candidates, two very different parties–both vying for the hearts of Americans this November. Unfortunately, the thing about politics that will always remain constant no matter how different the candidates are: the relentless media and the pundits who always want to put their two cents in, even when they compromise their judgment and objectivity. I’ve been following the Democratic National Convention, and it has surrounded by pressure and speculation from people all over the country. There is pressure for the Dems to reintroduce the Obamas as people who are just like your average American family. There is pressure on the Dems to reiterate the George W. Bush-John McCain connection. There is pressure on the Clintons to display more sincerity in their calls for party unity. And of course, there is tremendous pressure on Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and the rest of the speakers to blow people away with their speeches.

Of course, whether the same will be said for the Republican National Convention, that is definitely not the case. I feel like the media has been too easy on John McCain and the Republicans, and here’s why: People are tired of Bush and his failed government. They want change. Barack Obama stands for that change. He is everything America needs. Everything about him is new and fresh and dynamic. He brings a completely new perspective and a unique outlook to Washington. It seems that everyone believes that the Democrats are going to win this November, mainly because of so much dislike for the current administration. Basically, it’s Barack Obama’s election to lose, hence the pressure on him and his party to get their act together. I understand that because the political and social climate is favorable to the Democrats that pundits only feel it right to weigh down on them even more. However, I feel like the same should be done to John McCain and his party. Why is no one holding the Republicans accountable for the current social, economic and political climate? It’s their administration who’s responsible for this crisis that the country is in. No one is asking John McCain the tough questions.

Everytime you turn on the TV, some pundit is on CNN or MSNBC or Fox News talking about how Barack Obama needs to reach out to the American people, how his wife needs to show more patriotism, how his supporters need to reach out to the Hillary Clinton supporters…What about John McCain? No one clamors for Cindy McCain to deliver an incredible speech. No one asks what she has done for this country. I guess that when a woman like Michelle Obama is openly intelligent and outspoken, people just put her on a completely different and much higher standard than Cindy McCain, whose role seems limited to simply walking alongside her husband, looking pretty. Of course, being a former beauty queen, she’s gotten a lot of training for that job already. After all, Republicans are all about women hanging in the background while the big boys do the job. I’ve met a lot of Republicans, and most of them are conservative and traditional. They believe in god, guns and glory. The evangelicals are mostly Republican. The gun-wielding, NRA members are mostly Republican. And of course, those who still think that the Iraq war should rage on even when it’s a complete mistake, are mostly Republicans.

It honestly boggles my mind how people can still vote Republican even after such an epic failure of a Republican regime under George W. Bush. People are complaining and mouthing off about Bush and Cheney; they’ve been calling for better energy policies, and clamoring for the end of the Iraq war. And yet they will vote for a man [John McCain] who will do the exact opposite of what they need. Isn’t that insane? I mean, if you’re for lower gas prices and responsible energy, you would oppose off-shore drilling. Why? Because off-shore drilling will only make the country more dependent on foreign oil, which will then hike up gas prices due to demand, and how will that make anything different from the current climate? I remember when Hillary Clinton was still running and she and McCain favored the gas tax holiday, and Obama wasn’t for it. I agreed with Obama when he said that the gas tax holiday was only a temporary solution to a long-standing problem. If they are going to solve a problem, why not go to the root of it and fix it permanently instead of just stopping it for a few months? However, people didn’t like this rational approach. They wanted lower gas prices now, and they don’t care if it means it’s only temporary. The American people want instant gratification, and so they all went for McCain and Clinton. “Oh, they just understand where we are coming from, and they want to give us this gas tax holiday because every little bit helps.” Are you a moron? Whatever you saved from the few months that you have this gas tax holiday, you’ll lose every single cent because the gas prices go back up when it’s over. Obama wanted a permanent solution so you won’t have to pay $4.30 at the pump, and he got criticized for it. I can see why Bill Maher has such a pessimistic view of the American public.

Back to the Democratic National Convention. I am sick and fucking tired of hearing the Hillary Clinton supporters clamor for recognition and respect. GET IT THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULLS: The primary is OVER. It’s done. Barack Obama is your nominee. Get your act together and quit pining after your candidate, who has long since thrown her support behind Barack Obama. If you want to be loyal to your candidate, vote for the person who is closer to her: shocker, Barack Obama. I’m quite frankly pissed off because there are these highly intelligent individuals who come on to CNN and criticize the Obama campaign for not being generous enough to Hillary Clinton. Why are you still fueling the fire of this Obama-Clinton rift? Isn’t it time you shut the hell up and threw your support behind your nominee instead of being a brat and refusing to get in line? James Carville, for instance, pissed me off when he was at the DNC today. He has been a rabid Clinton supporter, and all he has to say about the Obama campaign is negative. Someone who has set a good example for Hillary Clinton supporters? Paul Begala. This guy was one of the most visible Clinton supporters out there, and yet he has gotten the hint that the primaries are over and that their nominee is Barack Obama, and he has openly revealed his support of him. Hillary supporters need to do the same. The primaries are over, Barack Obama is the next best choice. Use your brains and get in line!

It amazes me how dumb people can be sometimes. I cannot believe that the polls show McCain and Obama at a dead heat right now. How is this possible? McCain wants to stay in Iraq for 100 years. He has no real economic plan, but no one holds him accountable for it. Instead, everyone attacks Obama’s policies, which are more detailed than McCain’s. Obama has been more outspoken about clean and more efficient energy. All I know about John McCain is that he plans to continue the war in Iraq. I’m sorry, but to me it’s apparent who the choice is. It boggles my mind how people think otherwise.

I can’t vote, which is unfortunate. Otherwise, I’d be contributing more. All I have to contribute right now is my opinion, and right now my opinion is that Barack Obama is the best choice for president. Bill Maher said it best when he described Obama and McCain’s answers during the Saddleback Faith Forum. When asked what can be done about evil, John McCain said, “Defeat it!” My 4 year old cousin could have said that. And yet that drew more cheers from the crowd than Obama’s answer, which was “We have to fight evil, but we have to be humble about evil,” something which the crowd was too dumb enough to understand. What he meant was that evil is not black and white. It’s nothing like a comic book where the hero fights the villain and wins, the end. Evil is not all the way over in the Middle East. It’s right here in America, and the sooner that people get it through to their heads, the better understanding they will have of the task at hand.

Bottom line is, I really don’t want to see John McCain win in November. Not only will it make me feel completely pessimistic about the future, but it will probably turn me off from politics even more, which I believe a lot of young people will be feeling. But hey, the Republicans don’t really care about unity, and they don’t really care about bridging the gap between young and old, male and female, straight and gay. The Republicans are concerned about the war in Iraq, which they plan to continue for 100 more years, and that’s about it. If John McCain becomes president, you’ll find me hiding under a bomb shelter. Why? I have no doubt in my mind that at the rate he and everyone else is going, and how America is viewed by the world right now, someone is probably gonna fucking nuke us.

Heroes and villains

The long-awaited return of NBC’s Heroes is probably one of the most anticipated in the fall TV line-up. Still recovering from a lackluster season 2 that suffered from a bout of the Nikki and Paulo (as I like to call it when new characters are introduced during the middle of a show and then fail miserably), Heroeswent to Comic-Con this year and debuted the first episode of Volume 3: Villains to rabid fans who foamed at the mouth at the sight of Milo Ventimiglia. Tim Kring, creator of the show, proudly held up the disc that housed all the answers to the WTFs we had from last season. Did it do its job? Did the first episode of the wildly anticipated Villains blow me away? Yes, but not in a good way.

SPOILER ALERT - If you do not want to be spoiled, please go away. There will be extensive Heroes revelations in the post below.

Tim Kring, creator of Heroes, holds up the disc for the first episode of Volume III: Villains

Volume III: Villains opens with Peter Petrelli running for his life in a dark street. He has a scar on his face, which gives viewers a clue that this scene is from the future. He stumbles hurriedly into a dimly lit room and slams the door shut, staring at it with a frightened look on his face. “Hello, Peter.” It is Claire, standing behind Peter with a gun pointed at him. Hayden Panettiere is clad in some very dominatrix-ish gear in this scene. “I always loved you, Peter.” She says coldly. Bang! I won’t give away what happens next, but just to recap last season, we had Nathan Petrelli standing on a podium in front of a mass of reporters, about to reveal that people with “special” powers exist and that he is one of them. Out of the blue, we hear a gunshot and Nathan is down on the ground. Peter scans the crowd for the shooter, yet no sign of him. He was not able to get a good look. The season finale ends with everyone wondering who the hell shot Nathan Petrelli.

Villains reveals who shoots Nathan, and I am ecstatic to find out that I was right all along. I had guessed that future Peter had shot Nathan, only because I couldn’t think of anyone else who would have the motive to do it and at the same time could somehow foresee that whatever Nathan was going to do was going to be detrimental in the future. So yes, if you want confirmation, future Peter shot Nathan. I had wanted Claire’s Superman boyfriend to shoot Nathan, only because he definitely has the motive (he doesn’t want to be exposed) and it would cause considerable friction between him and Claire, and would actually be good because this would make the guy more interesting. But it was future Peter. Anyhoo, moving on. Don’t worry, more spoilers are on the way.

So I thought Nathan was dead. Gone. Kaput. But nooooo, apparently when you get killed off in Heroes, you can always come back. Wouldn’t it be nice if Lost was the same way? Wait, let me think about that for a second. No, it wouldn’t be nice at all. In fact, I thought it was lame that they didn’t follow through with that season finale. First off, the season finale with Nathan getting shot was by far one of the most shocking finales ever. I mean, everyone on the web was buzzing about a character who would get killed off, but no one ever expected it to be Nathan. I would have been very at peace with his death, even though I really liked his character, but the fact that the writers decided to bring him back makes absolutely no sense to me.

So guess what. Apart from Nathan being alive and

returning as some kind of Jesus freak, guess who miraculously cures him. Linderman. Yes, Linderman. Linderman who had been killed in season 1 by Leonard [D L Hawkins], the dude who could walk through walls. Now Linderman is alive, and I cannot for the life of me figure out how the writers are planning to explain this. See, here’s the thing about bringing back dead characters. There should always be a decent explanation that has nothing to do with whether they have powers or not. For instance, Charlie from Lost. Towards the end of season 1, when Ethan hangs Charlie up in the trees and leaves him to die while he kidnaps Claire, I thought he was a goner right then and there. But they had brought him back (sort of, because he didn’t really die, he merely lost consciousness and was brought back in the same episode, so it’s not really the same), and for a purpose. Charlie would configure into the later seasons in climactic episodes, particularly the finale for season 3. Anyway, the bottom line is that when you are brought back, you should be brought back for storyline reasons, and not for popularity or for lack of another way out. Linderman was better off dead, and I don’t see any reason why he would matter in the future of Heroes.

But whatever. It’s lame, I know. But moving on, we find out that Angela Petrelli can see the future. Lame. But whatever. I am happy, however, that Cristine Rose, who plays Angela, will be a series regular from here on out, which is awesome, because she’s a great actress. There are some interesting parts of this new season, such as, of course, Hiro Nakamura’s storyline. I felt like last season, he spent way too much time in feudal Japan and the big picture was missed. Although I really enjoyed David Anders (who played Takezo Kensei and Adam Monroe) in the feudal Japan arc,  I feel like he is the villain that deserves to be highlighted this season, and not Linderman. Back to Hiro, though, he is now head of his father’s company, but he is lacking purpose, so he watches a video left for him by his father that tells him about how the Nakamura men have been guardians of a secret and that Hiro needs to carry on this guarding of the secret. Anyway, it’s vague as to what the secret is exactly, but we are immediately introduced to a character who is a “Speedster”; basically she can counter Hiro’s power. He can control time, but she can speed up, so they kind of repel each other. Anyway, she steals whatever Hiro needs to guard and so he now has a mission: to find this chick and retrieve the “secret”.

Other interesting things that happened: Sylar finally gets Claire’s power. I thought this was one of the better parts of the episode, and I am glad Sylar’s power is finally complete. I mean, if there’s a badass villain, it’s Sylar. We also find out that Claire cannot die. Apparently she’s got Linderman’s ability as well or something. And another thing, sadly Maya is still alive and appears to be a mainstay, which is annoying, because I hate her character. She is now paired up with Suresh and they are both working together to find a cure for her amazing-black-eyes-that-kill-people power. Want anothe shockingly major disappointment? Suresh gets powers. Yes, he gets powers. Apparently he injects himself with whatever mutant DNA that he gets from Maya and he gets superhuman strength. LAME. So fucking lame. At this point I was really pissed off, only because I actually liked that Suresh was the only one in the whole show that didn’t have powers. It made him unique, you know? But now he’s just like everybody else, and the power they gave him is LAME!

Another shocker: Surprise! Jessica/Nikki is back, but in another form of course. I still don’t know what the fuck this chick’s powers are about, so i’m not even going to go into detail about it. All I know is, they killed off a bunch of people last season, but don’t worry, they were just punking you. Apparently killing people off on this show means absolutely nothing.

Here’s what I want to know: Where the hell is Elle? I mean, she [Kristen Bell] was the saving grace of last season, and yet they did not bring her back for the premiere episode. I thought they should have. Another thing I wanted to see was David Anders/Takezo Kensei/Adam Monroe! He was an awesome villain from last season, so what the hell? Another spoiler that I think is kind of lame as well: Ando fucking gets powers too! After getting his safeguarded secret stolen, Hiro travels to the future to see what will happen as a result of the loss of this secret that he’s supposed to guard. Utter destruction apparently, but in this future, Ando gets powers that resemble Gokou from Dragon Ball or Ryu from Street Fighter or some shit. It’s LAME! I always liked Ando for not having powers too. The fact that everyone’s getting powers now is just positively lame.

So yeah, that’s it. Villains, episode one, in a nutshell. This is all info from Comic-Con. Here’s some pics from the panel:

The cast of Heroes: Adrian Pasdar, Dania Ramirez, Zachary Quinto and Ali Larter, standing up to applaud the fans.

Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia

Frakked up and ready to go

Battlestar Galactica's resident Cylon: Six, played by Tricia Helfer

I don’t know why I have never had the inclination to watch Battlestar Galactica (the TV series) before, but after some people suggested I watch it, I figured, hey what do I have to lose (except, as it turns out, much sleep, because this show is awesome). I heard that it has some good writing and that it’s got a nice cast of characters, so I figured it can’t be half bad. I started watching the pilot episode for the miniseries and was completely blown away.

Basically the premise is that the human civilization is divided into 12 colonies, all ruled by one President. There was the creation of the Cylons, who started to go bad and attacked their human inventors and an attempt at a truce was never resolved. However, after some time the Cylons had stopped attacking and for about 20+ years the humans have had peace. After such a long time without an attack, the humans decide to shut down their space military operations, assuming that the Cylons have either annihilated themselves or that they were simply not hostile anymore. The Battlestar Galactica is the last operating battleship around and it has been turned into a “museum” of sorts after several years of no attack. And then, as you may have guessed, the Cylons attack.

There are some very interesting characters on the show, and unlike other sci-fi shows, this one doesn’t really bother with the kiddie stuff. They don’t try to sugarcoat scenes or try to dumb down the show so non sci-fi fans will like it. This is a show made for sci-fi geeks (like Yours Truly) and even if you weren’t a sci-fi fan I don’t think you would be at all bothered by all the gizmo-talk that the characters do on the show.

Capital D for drama! Battlestar Galactica's awesome cast. From left to right: Tricia Helfer, James Callis, Katee Sackhoff, Edward James Olmos, Jamie Bamber, Mary McDonnell and Grace Park.

The concept of the Cylons seems like Terminator meets Star Wars, though. For one, the older Cylon models look like storm troopers. And then the 12 advanced Cylon models are basically Terminators (cybernetic robots made of synthetic material), except you can uh…have sex with them (don’t ask me how, I don’t know). So far, I have only seen a handful of episodes, but the show already is pulling me in with its unique plot twists and the interesting characters. Although let’s admit that Edward James Olmos is not the most good-looking actor, he definitely brings something extra to his portrayal of Commander Adama. It’s also pretty action-packed, and it’s a pretty nice-looking show with intricate CGI and cinematography.

However, I have learned that this show is on its final run and is currently showing their fourth and final season. I think it’s a shame I only caught it as it was finishing up, but it’s a great show all the same. I wish Firefly was given the same chance as this show has been given, but hey. What the frak can you do, right?

The Chronicles of awesome

Summer Glau plays Cameron, the cybernetic robot from the future sent to protect John Connor.

I don’t know why I shrugged off Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles when I first heard it would be coming to Fox. I was never really a fan of Terminator, but I did love Terminator 2. I got the chance to see the first season and I have to say, man Summer Glau still kicks ass. To those of you who don’t know who Summer Glau is, you obviously aren’t Browncoats. Summer Glau played the awesome River Tam in Joss Whedon’s Firefly and Serenity. She was so great in that character, and she is well-known for her butt-kicking action as well as dramatic acting from the series. She was the sole reason I felt like watching Chronicles.

The pilot was pretty good. It felt like a really long episode, which I like, and I especially loved the classroom scene with the introduction of the first Terminator. The script could use a bit more tweaking, and Lena Headey seems to give a bit of a one-dimensional performance as the title character Sarah Connor, but who cares? As long as Summer Glau continues to be on the show it will be pretty good.

I heard that Fox has picked it up for a second season, and well they should. It has great potential, and I feel like Glau is only deserving to have a show that finally gets picked up for its brilliance, even when her stint on Firefly, in my opinion, was her best.

I like how they made Cameron [Summer Glau] say “Come with me if you want to live”, the famous Arnold line from T2. I thought it was great because it’s a classic line, and yet less cheesy now that someone different is playing it. I think that to have a female Terminator is important because the media knows that women kicking ass sells. Buffy, Alias, and even Kristanna Loken’s role as the bad Terminator in T3. I would give Chronicles a chance if you haven’t seen it yet, and I am definitely excited for season 2.

Obama FTW!

So it has been an intense and grueling journey for the American presidency, and I’m only talking about the battle in the Democratic side of the race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. The race ended yesterday after the final primaries in South Dakota and Montana were finished, and Obama emerged the presumptive nominee after crossing the 2,118 line of pledged delegates required to be the Democratic nominee. Finally! Many people have started to worry that Clinton was becoming this crazy, psycho weirdo who was somehow under the delusion that she would still be able to win the nomination, even though the numbers were against her.

Needless to say, I am extremely relieved the fight is over, and we can now move on to the bigger picture: November. I don’t think that John McCain has a chance in hell of winning the presidency, so I am banking on Obama and I am confident that the Democratic Party will come together and unite around him. Obama’s speech in St. Paul, Minnesota yesterday proclaimed: “This is our time,” and it seemed like after he said that, all over the nation people were either cheering ecstatically or bawling for Hillary.

Unfortunately Clinton still hasn’t conceded, although there are rumors that she will later this week. Hopefully she can put everything behind her and move on. Now the question on everyone’s mind is: Will Obama appoint her for the Vice Presidency? Will there be a dream ticket? Personally, I think it would be a bad idea to have Clinton for VP. I think she is so invested in the presidency that she’s not humble enough to take some consolation prize from Barack Obama. However, Obama does have a significant problem when it comes to getting Clinton’s supporters over to his side. Polls show that most of Clinton’s supporters claim to rather stay home in November than vote for Obama. So many people are trying to pressure Obama into submitting and into making Clinton his VP. Former president Jimmy Carter says this would be “the worst mistake that could be made”, and I agree with him. Clinton on the ticket would mean party unity yes, but it would not help Obama’s message of “change”. Clinton is also way too overbearing and way too persistent when it comes to pushing her points of view, so I think instead of being a harmonious pair, they would be a disaster.

My choice for VP would be Joe Biden, who is strong where Obama is weak: namely, foreign policy. This would create a really strong ticket, because Joe Biden is pretty well-known, and he’s got a great track record. Against John McCain, I think this would be the best pair. On the other hand, people are talking about a Barack Obama-Bill Richardson ticket. I don’t think it’s a good idea, because I don’t think that America is ready for a dual-minority ticket, even though the name Bill Richardson doesn’t exactly reflect which minority the governor of New Mexico belongs to. Caroline Kennedy is just one of the few people appointed by Obama to search for his VP, and in the next few weeks, it will be most exciting to see how this will all unfold.

In the meantime, congratulations to Barack Obama, and I’m looking forward to the debates he and John McCain have over the next few months. And in the meantime, as well, for you people who’ve got time on their hands, this video by Jerry O’Connell is hilarious. See young Hillary Clinton in this hilarious skit:

Got Apple?

I’ve always been a fan of the iTunes/iPod commercials, mainly because they’ve managed to perfectly encapsulate the love of music through their 30-seconds ads. I remember flipping out when at the first one I saw; it was the ad featuring Jet’s “Are You Gonna Be My Girl?” and it was so awesome. I know it made me want to get an iPod at the time.

Apple has become such a trendsetter that almost every artist on the planet acknowledges the power of the internet. Radiohead released their newest album exclusively online for about a month or two, and some artists have started to simply sell their stuff online and then coming out with the CD later. Apple has been able to also set the trends in terms of which artists to listen to. They basically put Feist on the map as a mainstream artist (which, as a music snob, I have to say, about damn time, since I’d been listening to Feist forever), and they also make already well-known artists seem even cooler by showcasing their new tunes, such as U2’s “Vertigo” and more recently, Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida”.

I have to say, Apple and Coldplay have completely outdone themselves this time around. I think this is the best commercial ever, and this is evidenced by the fact that I can’t stop watching this 30-second ad! I had to download it because it was so good. It’s 30 seconds of pure bliss, and everytime I watch it it makes me feel like I’m flying or something. The ambiance and the trademark silhouette visuals of the ad are particularly awesome, and add to that the excellent Viva La Vida track and the band rocking out…30 seconds of awesome!

I had some leftover credits from my last iTunes gift card so I used that to download “Viva La Vida” off iTunes. It’s definitely a cool song, and it should be, considering Coldplay teamed up with music maestro Brian Eno to produce this whole album. I am definitely excited to see what Chris Martin and co. have in store for us in this European-inspired album with the Frida Kahlo painting namesake.

Science fiction hero

If you don’t know who J.J. Abrams is by now, you are seriously out of touch with geekdom.

This guy has been fulfilling fanboys’ dreams everywhere by helming several successful projects that, frankly, I’m beginning to think this guy has more creativity in his pinky finger than all of the WGA combined. Okay, fine, if the name still hasn’t rung a bell…Felicity, Alias, Lost, Mission: Impossible III, Cloverfield…

Ring any bells? Thought so. Anyway, so J.J. Abrams seems to have a thing for airplanes, hot chicks who can kick ass, six degrees of separation (which was actually a title of a series he had launched before, but which, unlike his other ventures, did not do very well), spies, and a whole lot of science fiction. Sounds like a guy we’d like to pull an all-nighter with, huh? And he brings all that together in his new series Fringe, which is like The X-Files meets Event Horizon meets Conspiracy Theory. This guy’s view of science is so optimistic, most of his shows show scientific breakthroughs as being responsible for great catastrophes (or at least, a whole lot of killin’). In Alias, a lot of science is responsible for a lot of the ass-kicking going on between Sidney Bristow and a bunch of bad guys who want to use such scientific breakthroughs to their advantage. In Lost, it’s experiments with teleportation, time travel and even psychology that propel the Oceanic 815-ers into this web of mystery. In Fringe, science is once again the villain.

The show centers around this definition of Fringe: ideas, individuals, organizations, cultures and movements viewed as marginal or extremist by the mainstream. In other words, radical experiments or ideas that may not be very well-received by the general public. The show revolves around something strange that occurs inside an airplane–passengers are dead, and an FBI agent is determined to find out what could have caused their deaths–something that she will later find is bigger than simply some fluke. It’s all conspiracy and all action, with that X-Files atmosphere and even a borrowing of a Lost actor, Lance Reddick (who plays Matthew Abaddon in Lost). The show will star Joshua Jackson of Dawson’s Creek/Mighty Ducks fame, and John Noble, of The Lord of the Rings (he played Denethor) will be joining the cast as well as an informant.

I’m already excited about this series. To me, the premise is still something you need to warm up to, and it’s definitely got the same feel as when you first watch Lost, you don’t know what the heck is going on. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be the same thing. For Abrams, the hits just keep on coming, and I’m beginning to think that this guy has yet to peak.

Not quite sure what to look forward to? Here’s a sneak peek of what’s in store:

Zip codes and idols

So I don’t know if you guys have heard, but apparently The CW, the network responsible for teen soaps Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill is bringing back…wait for it…Beverly Hills 90210. Yes, it’s true. No, I don’t know much, except that there is already a rumor that Veronica Mars‘ Rob Thomas will be at the helm. Also, Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling will be returning to that famed zip code as grown-up versions of their old characters. I’m not really expecting anything, I mean, does The CW not know any other show to make except teen soaps? I mean, really? Where is your creativity, CW? Last I checked the WGA strike was over. Here’s the promo:

In other news, the American Idol showdown between David Archuleta and David Cook will air tomorrow on Fox. Like Simon said, it’s going to be a humdinger. My money is on David Cook, but with the prepubescent little girls texting their thumbs off, I think it will be a close one, and a definite upset if David Archuleta wins. But then again, it might not be all that bad for David Cook if he doesn’t win the Idol title. That way, he’ll be taken more seriously.

The truth in Real Time

I love Bill Maher. He’s probably the only political commentator who tells it like it is, with expletives and whatnot. His show is very well-written, honest and unafraid to dish on the news. I like the segment called “New Rules”, and I also like the way his panel is constructed, bringing in different people from different backgrounds, who can offer different perspectives on one issue, and yet who are able to reach a consensus on a certain point. I dislike it when people bring in two blatantly opposing sides and just make them argue on live TV. I mean, it’s 2008. We’re so past that now.

On last week’s segment, Maher talked about how the media blew up the issue of Barack Obama’s “bitter” comments about Pennsylvanians, and how Hillary Clinton, seeing a possible opening, jumped on the bandwagon and called him “elitist”. I agree with most of what Maher said and I think it’s just incredibly stupid how people choose to misconstrue someone’s perfectly well-intended statements. If you’re running as a presidential candidate, would you really intend to demean the people who you want to vote for you in less than a week? I mean, seriously? Is HRC really that stupid that she honestly thought voters would see her maneuver as something that was “in defense of the working class”? HRC who would be the last person you would think to be able to “relate” with working class people? She of the Clinton dynasty, a product of Yale who probably never faced economic hardships before in her life? I find it incredibly annoying how the media chose to blow this out of proportion, when the issues at hand are the soaring gas prices and the rioting in Tibet and China’s refusal to solve the problem.

I like that Maher was able to put the people in perspective. He asked, “What does it take to be an elitist these days?” I think the difference between Maher and the rest of the comedic political commentators such as Colbert and Stewart is that he doesn’t rely on caricaturing and physical comedy. Maher isn’t about to go perform a skit to emphasize a point. He’s a comedian who knows that all he needs is his material, which stands even better on its own compared to the writing for Stewart or Colbert. Also, both Stewart and Colbert are on Comedy Central, public television that your kid can access. How much are they really allowed to say? When you’re on HBO, you at least have more leg room for saying what is really on your mind.

Although I love Maher, I don’t agree with him on everything. I disagree with his points on religion; he maintains his dislike for organized religion, while I consider religion as completely relative and flexible depending on who you’re dealing with. For instance, he expressed his disdain with the Catholic church, and how the Pope should have been held accountable for all the child molesting going on in the Catholic churches. I see that as faulty reasoning, because as the Pope, how the heck are you supposed to stop something like this? George W. Bush can’t even control his own country, how much more a guy in a funny robe trying to moderate the pedophiles in church? It’s unreasonable, and I don’t think it makes much sense to blame him for the horniness of the priests. They should be held accountable individually, and the Catholic church is not to blame for individual choices and behavior. When he mentions the whole “good at covering up things” by the church, and how it seems like the Pope is more interested in sheltering the institution rather than the people, I disagree as well, because it’s not like this is exclusive to the Catholic church alone. The Protestant religion is pretty self-righteous itself and if you look at American history, you can see how much Protestants have done their share of “defending the institution” rather than “defending the flock”. Islam is the same–people go to war in the name of religion and if that’s not trying to “uphold the institution”, I don’t know what is. I just think religion is a tricky subject, but a subject that cannot be viewed in black and white.

But other than that, I like Bill Maher. He’s a funny guy. And thank God someone can actually stand up to Bill O’Reilly. Bill Maher, you’re my hero.