2008-10-31
2008-10-30
I Really Have Nothing To Say...
...but we watched a several week episode of How I Met Your Mother tonight - the one where Stella tries to get Ted to move to Jersey.
And I just have to say... just when I thought it was impossible for that show to be any cooler... first, they mention Bruce Springsteen.
AND THEN THEY PLAY SPRINGSTEEN!
AND NOT JUST ANY SPRINGSTEEN BUT ONE OF MY FAVORITE SPRINGSTEEN SONGS! Simple awesome.
And I just have to say... just when I thought it was impossible for that show to be any cooler... first, they mention Bruce Springsteen.
AND THEN THEY PLAY SPRINGSTEEN!
AND NOT JUST ANY SPRINGSTEEN BUT ONE OF MY FAVORITE SPRINGSTEEN SONGS! Simple awesome.
2008-10-29
2008-10-28
Stop 13
cool cause I can feel the ocean spray.
2008-10-27
Monterey
Went to the Monterey Aquarium today. It was amazing and made us feel
a little guilty about going to a seafood place for dinner.
a little guilty about going to a seafood place for dinner.
Our hotel is on the beach and we can see/hear the ocean from our
room. Very cool.
I'm going to have the Missus put up a few of the photos she took on
her iPhone today in a bit. Stay tuned.
Sent from my iPhone
2008-10-26
Flashback party
Death Cab rocked it as they always do. Surprisingly, the Pumpkins are
next which means there's a stretch of Josh Groban, Norah Jones, and
Jack Johnson before Neil comes back out to close. It also means odds
are high someone will fall asleep before then.
next which means there's a stretch of Josh Groban, Norah Jones, and
Jack Johnson before Neil comes back out to close. It also means odds
are high someone will fall asleep before then.
Sent from my iPhone
The heat! My god, the heat!
okay. Wilco was pretty cool - made me want to see them in a smaller
venue. Death Cab is up next.
Chinese Food, Bad Service, & Small Town Racism
Tommy's Wok was amazing! I quite honestly think it was the best Chinese food I've ever had in my life. We had the Crab Cheese Puffs for an appetizer. Those are a common appetizer that you see at almost every Chinese food place - even the fast food places like Panda Express - but these were bar none the best I've ever had. We followed that up with the Tommy's Chow Mein and the Sesame Beef. The Chow Mein had chicken, BBQ Pork, and shrimp in it - all of which were amazing. But the crown jewel of the meal was the Sesame Beef. The perfect amount of breading, not overly saucy, and just the right hint of spice - I'm drooling right now thinking about it. Luckily, we had a small box of leftovers for later. So, obviously, I thought the food was awesome. The service was lacking a bit as there was only one server for the whole place. But since the place is on the small side to begin with, I guess can understand why. Super friendly staff though and I highly recommend this place to anyone who happens to be in Carmel.
With plenty of time to go in the UFC show, we crossed the parking lot over to Ody's - a local bar that had a review on Yelp that a] mentioned they show UFC shows and b] likened it to the Regal Beagle - two requirements for an amazing bar. We walked in to find a pretty light crowd and took a side table away from the bar. Again, a very small place not much larger than our living room. It's a far cry from the typical sprawling Orange County bar. I didn't see much that reminded me of the Regal Beagle so I was a little disappointed in that though. We got quick service as we settled in to watch the Clementi/Maynard fight. Some nice slams in that one to get some people in the crowd buzzing.
There was a high level of intoxication in the air as some guy at the bar drunkenly slurred to me about if we were there to see "Anderson Silva against that other guy in the Main Event." I said we were which apparently made me the bar's MMA expert as every once in a while, he'd shout a question in my direction. At the other end of the bar, a group of older former veterans were screaming about Obama being a socialist - a conversation that made us laugh because we had discussed the whole socialism debate at dinner. Oh, and they later started marching in place shouting cadence - a good time had by all.
But my favorite by far was the little old man about ten feet away taking photos with his iPhone. The female bartender shouted at him, asking what he was doing and if he had remembered what she told him. Apparently the week prior, he was "taking photos of her tits and ass" and had been warned that if he did it again, he was going to be kicked out. She actually sent another bartender over at one point to check his phone to see what he was taking photos of. She was quite spunky as she got attitude with several customers throughout the night. One of the benefits of a small town, I guess, is that you know the customers have no other place to go and will always come back so you can do whatever you want. It's like the opposite of an Orange County bar where the bartenders can afford to be rude because they know there's always someone coming to replace you soon enough.
The Koscheck/Alves fight brought some cheers from the crowd for the brutal kicks of Alves. Lots of cheers for Koscheck which made me a little nauseous. I did enjoy a really drunk guy yelling, "He's a soldier! He's a soldier!" when Koscheck didn't crumple like a bitch from the beating he was taking. I was glad to see Alves take the win but the lack of a KO disappointed me.
Oh, and I was still on my first drink even though it was sitting empty on the table. I didn't care that much or I would have just gone to the bar but I did find it kind of odd that the bartender wasn't coming back to see if we wanted anything else. Again, only two servers for the whole place though.
Did I mention they had a Wii hooked up to the TV too? That seemed absolutely brilliant to me. Imagine a bunch of drunk guys playing Wii Sports? Pure comedic gold.
So, the Silva match comes on. The people with the slightest bit of MMA knowledge seemed to be very solidly behind Silva but the others... For a long time, there's been live reports from UFC shows saying that non-white fighters got lower amounts of support than white fighters at the shows. The writers always implied that there was a very clear level of racism present at the shows. I never really saw it because I don't watch many shows with the "unwashed masses" but now that I have, I understand it a little better. There were quite a few comments about "I'm rooting for the white guy!" although they were a little uncomfortable with Cote getting kisses from his corner - not surprising considering all the "Yes On 8" signs I've seen up here.
Anyways... it was a little uncomfortable to hear how angry some of them were at Silva, especially when he started showboating a bit. "Kill that arrogant fucker!" is a comment that comes to mind. I think these guys would've fit in well at a McCain/Palin rally actually.
The finish was deflating for the whole bar - and the bartender made it worse by running around implying that Cote was faking it because he was "being a bitch." Eh... whatever. I would've obviously preferred a finish but we paid our bill and were on our way [oh yeah, they finally brought me a second drink] - sixteen bucks for two Jack and Cokes - YIKES!
Some crazy fog on the way back to the hotel but we made it. We're already running late this morning because the Missus is feeling a little under the weather but we've got to get going soon to make it to the concert by 2 PM. On the way up, we decided we're going to do a joint review of the show when we get home but until then, I'll probably still do a little bit of liveblogging at the concert.
I know you're excited for that!
With plenty of time to go in the UFC show, we crossed the parking lot over to Ody's - a local bar that had a review on Yelp that a] mentioned they show UFC shows and b] likened it to the Regal Beagle - two requirements for an amazing bar. We walked in to find a pretty light crowd and took a side table away from the bar. Again, a very small place not much larger than our living room. It's a far cry from the typical sprawling Orange County bar. I didn't see much that reminded me of the Regal Beagle so I was a little disappointed in that though. We got quick service as we settled in to watch the Clementi/Maynard fight. Some nice slams in that one to get some people in the crowd buzzing.
There was a high level of intoxication in the air as some guy at the bar drunkenly slurred to me about if we were there to see "Anderson Silva against that other guy in the Main Event." I said we were which apparently made me the bar's MMA expert as every once in a while, he'd shout a question in my direction. At the other end of the bar, a group of older former veterans were screaming about Obama being a socialist - a conversation that made us laugh because we had discussed the whole socialism debate at dinner. Oh, and they later started marching in place shouting cadence - a good time had by all.
But my favorite by far was the little old man about ten feet away taking photos with his iPhone. The female bartender shouted at him, asking what he was doing and if he had remembered what she told him. Apparently the week prior, he was "taking photos of her tits and ass" and had been warned that if he did it again, he was going to be kicked out. She actually sent another bartender over at one point to check his phone to see what he was taking photos of. She was quite spunky as she got attitude with several customers throughout the night. One of the benefits of a small town, I guess, is that you know the customers have no other place to go and will always come back so you can do whatever you want. It's like the opposite of an Orange County bar where the bartenders can afford to be rude because they know there's always someone coming to replace you soon enough.
The Koscheck/Alves fight brought some cheers from the crowd for the brutal kicks of Alves. Lots of cheers for Koscheck which made me a little nauseous. I did enjoy a really drunk guy yelling, "He's a soldier! He's a soldier!" when Koscheck didn't crumple like a bitch from the beating he was taking. I was glad to see Alves take the win but the lack of a KO disappointed me.
Oh, and I was still on my first drink even though it was sitting empty on the table. I didn't care that much or I would have just gone to the bar but I did find it kind of odd that the bartender wasn't coming back to see if we wanted anything else. Again, only two servers for the whole place though.
Did I mention they had a Wii hooked up to the TV too? That seemed absolutely brilliant to me. Imagine a bunch of drunk guys playing Wii Sports? Pure comedic gold.
So, the Silva match comes on. The people with the slightest bit of MMA knowledge seemed to be very solidly behind Silva but the others... For a long time, there's been live reports from UFC shows saying that non-white fighters got lower amounts of support than white fighters at the shows. The writers always implied that there was a very clear level of racism present at the shows. I never really saw it because I don't watch many shows with the "unwashed masses" but now that I have, I understand it a little better. There were quite a few comments about "I'm rooting for the white guy!" although they were a little uncomfortable with Cote getting kisses from his corner - not surprising considering all the "Yes On 8" signs I've seen up here.
Anyways... it was a little uncomfortable to hear how angry some of them were at Silva, especially when he started showboating a bit. "Kill that arrogant fucker!" is a comment that comes to mind. I think these guys would've fit in well at a McCain/Palin rally actually.
The finish was deflating for the whole bar - and the bartender made it worse by running around implying that Cote was faking it because he was "being a bitch." Eh... whatever. I would've obviously preferred a finish but we paid our bill and were on our way [oh yeah, they finally brought me a second drink] - sixteen bucks for two Jack and Cokes - YIKES!
Some crazy fog on the way back to the hotel but we made it. We're already running late this morning because the Missus is feeling a little under the weather but we've got to get going soon to make it to the concert by 2 PM. On the way up, we decided we're going to do a joint review of the show when we get home but until then, I'll probably still do a little bit of liveblogging at the concert.
I know you're excited for that!
2008-10-25
Tommy's Wok
The Missus and I decided on a place in downtown Carmel for dinner
called Tommy's Wok. Yelp, my latest iPhone app said it's the best
Chinese in the area.
called Tommy's Wok. Yelp, my latest iPhone app said it's the best
Chinese in the area.
There are two doors into the place apparently. The first one we found
led directly into the dining room which is basically smaller than our
living room. There was no sign of a hostess so we bailed out to look
for another door. We found one on the other side of the building that
led into the kitchen - surprisingly this is the right door. You can
wait outside in the cold or inside in the kitchen. I picked the
former, she picked the latter and is now sniffing her hair.
While waiting I saw a review for a bar 15 feet away that apparently
shows UFC shows. Curse my luck. Well, I really only want to see
Silva fight so maybe I'll make it still.
Stay tuned!
Sent from my iPhone
Carmel
Mexican restaurant behind the hotel named "Hola!". You've gotta
respect a place that's "keepin' it real" enough to basically just
admit it's not "authentic" at all.
Check out the funky mood lighting on the headboard.
On The Road Again
Just a quick note to let you all know that the Missus and I are headed out of town this morning for the Bridge School show up in Mountain View. We're making stops on the way up and back so this is a little mini-vacation for us before the holidays arrive.
That being said, expect this blog to be a bit of a travel blog over the next few days. Lots of pictures and short posts, I'd imagine. But I may liveblog [sorta] between sets from the show thanks to the wonders of my new iPhone! Look forward to that, kiddies!
As always, I'll make my very best effort to at least spit out some random rambling every day.
Now someone find me a sports bar in Carmel so I can watch Anderson Silva!
That being said, expect this blog to be a bit of a travel blog over the next few days. Lots of pictures and short posts, I'd imagine. But I may liveblog [sorta] between sets from the show thanks to the wonders of my new iPhone! Look forward to that, kiddies!
As always, I'll make my very best effort to at least spit out some random rambling every day.
Now someone find me a sports bar in Carmel so I can watch Anderson Silva!
2008-10-24
Makeup, Please!
I tried to avoid jumping on the bandwagon for bashing the Republicans for their decision to clothe Sarah Palin and family. I tried to stay off this one because, quite frankly, the punchlines write themselves and even if they hadn't, every comedian, political commentator, and even some Joe The Plumbers have made their own.
But...
Well, I just couldn't resist this little gem.
She tried to dance away from the controversy with a "oh gosh, oh gee, not me" at a speech today claiming that her favorite clothing store is a secondhand clothing store called "Out Of The Closet."
...
Yep, you can write your own punchline for that one too.
Oh, Stephen Colbert had the best political joke of the week I've seen so far too. For your amusement...
But...
Well, I just couldn't resist this little gem.
The highest paid staff member on the McCain campaign is Sarah Palin's make-up artist, it emerged today, in a fresh blow to the vice-presidential candidate's image as an average "hockey mom".
Just as Mrs Palin was struggling to defend herself against criticism of her $150,000 wardrobe budget, it was revealed that Amy Strozzi, who once did makeup work on the television show "So You Think You Can Dance?", received $22,800 for the first two weeks of this month, more than the candidate's chief foreign policy adviser, Randy Scheunemann, according to a filing report.
She tried to dance away from the controversy with a "oh gosh, oh gee, not me" at a speech today claiming that her favorite clothing store is a secondhand clothing store called "Out Of The Closet."
...
Yep, you can write your own punchline for that one too.
Oh, Stephen Colbert had the best political joke of the week I've seen so far too. For your amusement...
It's No Sweet Child Of Mine But...
As a follow-up to the GNR post, here's the first song released. It's the title song off the new album "Chinese Democracy." Now to decide if it was worth the wait...
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
More Than Meets The Eye?
Earlier this week, news broke that Universal was developing a Transformers attraction for both the Hollywood and Singapore parks. The news was met by initial apathy from me because I think the last the last time Universal made an effort to really put something special in the Hollywood park was Jurassic Park [although I haven't been to the park in years.]
But as the press release went on, it quickly sounded like this was no mere stunt show or small add-on to the Tram Ride or any number of "quick-fix" attractions that Universal Hollywood is known for. This sounded like a serious effort to put a high-dollar, high-entertainment attraction in the park. So, I was cautiously enthused by the announcement and started wondering if Universal putting big money into Transformers and Harry Potter [in Florida] would drive the Mouse to step up their game as well.
I remain enthused - but I had to share Michael Bay's thoughts on the project because... well, he's a jackass. An incredibly rich jackass but a jackass nonetheless. Take a look...
It's an amazing thing to see someone who is pretty much treated as a punchline to most "bad director" jokes take himself so seriously.
But hey, he's rich and making a movie that I'd gladly kill him to have the chance to make so I guess I have little ground to stand on.
But as the press release went on, it quickly sounded like this was no mere stunt show or small add-on to the Tram Ride or any number of "quick-fix" attractions that Universal Hollywood is known for. This sounded like a serious effort to put a high-dollar, high-entertainment attraction in the park. So, I was cautiously enthused by the announcement and started wondering if Universal putting big money into Transformers and Harry Potter [in Florida] would drive the Mouse to step up their game as well.
I remain enthused - but I had to share Michael Bay's thoughts on the project because... well, he's a jackass. An incredibly rich jackass but a jackass nonetheless. Take a look...
The Transformer Ride at Universal making all the press rounds - not sure yet - they had me in a press release saying I supported it - but Universal has a long way to go in my mind. I don't support it - I'm not involved and not sure the story of the ride works, and I know Optimus is not going to just show up to be directed by some new people that have never worked with him. I hate when people bullsh*t a quote from me that I never said.
I'll keep you informed. Maybe the guy making the rides at Universal will direct Transformers 3????
It's an amazing thing to see someone who is pretty much treated as a punchline to most "bad director" jokes take himself so seriously.
But hey, he's rich and making a movie that I'd gladly kill him to have the chance to make so I guess I have little ground to stand on.
Manny Watch: DAY 9
I talked about it a little bit last night but this morning, according to this article, the Dodgers have made a two year, 60 million dollar offer to the big slugger.
Wow.
That's a lot of dollars, no?
The NY Post reporters in the article listed above speculate the Dodgers know there's no chance in hell that Satan Boras will accept such a deal and that's simply a PR offer so the McCourts can shrug their shoulders and say "We made a fair offer" when Manny signs elsewhere.
It's possible but it's also possible they consider it a legit offer as we've seen them go high dollars/low years on several deals in the past few years [Furcal, Andruw Jones.] Whatever the situation is, I don't expect Manny/Boras to accept the offer as they'll definitely be shopping around to see how long of a deal they can land.
The plot thickens.
Oh, and another Dodgers note from that article, apparently Larry Bowa has yet to tell the team whether or not he'll be returning for next season. The Yankees have their eyes on him to fill their third base coach slot as well so he's got another job waiting in the wings. Personally, I hope they manage to keep him because I think he's one of the few guys left in the game that can provide some fire in the belly for a team and I still love him for calling out the team for their lack of heart back in September.
Wow.
That's a lot of dollars, no?
The NY Post reporters in the article listed above speculate the Dodgers know there's no chance in hell that Satan Boras will accept such a deal and that's simply a PR offer so the McCourts can shrug their shoulders and say "We made a fair offer" when Manny signs elsewhere.
It's possible but it's also possible they consider it a legit offer as we've seen them go high dollars/low years on several deals in the past few years [Furcal, Andruw Jones.] Whatever the situation is, I don't expect Manny/Boras to accept the offer as they'll definitely be shopping around to see how long of a deal they can land.
The plot thickens.
Oh, and another Dodgers note from that article, apparently Larry Bowa has yet to tell the team whether or not he'll be returning for next season. The Yankees have their eyes on him to fill their third base coach slot as well so he's got another job waiting in the wings. Personally, I hope they manage to keep him because I think he's one of the few guys left in the game that can provide some fire in the belly for a team and I still love him for calling out the team for their lack of heart back in September.
2008-10-23
Random Stuff
Some thoughts on some stuff from my Google Reader...
Does Heroes Need Help?
I've made no secret that I think Heroes started off very badly this season. Once one of my favorite shows, it quickly turned into a show that I only watched out of habit and hope. The Missus has abandoned said hope with the horrible first couple of episodes from this season and hasn't come back to the fold yet. I'm of the opinion that the show has gotten better in the past couple of weeks and while it hasn't returned to the list of my favs, I don't dread watching it for the time being.
This would be considered the opposite of Heroes - a show that totally redeemed itself after some challenging periods and has once again become the number one show on my list of most anticipated and this quick teaser does little to whet that appetite. The shit be on.
Now, Harry from AICN called this the greatest thing he saw today. I have to agree - even with the awesome Lost teaser footage. Check it out.
Double Dose Of Dodger Good News
Kim Ng lost out on the Seattle job. While I hate to celebrate the fact that she was unable to become baseball's first female GM, I have to be a little bit happy she remains in Dodgertown... for now. Also, early news says the Dodgers will be deep in the mix for Manny. Details are sketchy but it appears they'll go big on dollars if they can go short on years. Boras wants six. Reports are the Dodgers may look as low as two. I expect they'll meet in the middle when all is said and done. Expect either four guaranteed or three with a mutual option. Now, the dollars? That's another story. Early rumor says McCourt may be willing to cough up A-Rod type dollars if the years are right. That's a looooooooot of money. We'll find out soon enough.
Rays Come Back To Tie Series
A Philly fan at work tried to rub it in today that the Phillies were "one win closer to being World Champions." My legit, non-sarcastic response was: "What? The World Series started?" Who knew?
And that's that for now!
Does Heroes Need Help?
I've made no secret that I think Heroes started off very badly this season. Once one of my favorite shows, it quickly turned into a show that I only watched out of habit and hope. The Missus has abandoned said hope with the horrible first couple of episodes from this season and hasn't come back to the fold yet. I'm of the opinion that the show has gotten better in the past couple of weeks and while it hasn't returned to the list of my favs, I don't dread watching it for the time being.
This would be considered the opposite of Heroes - a show that totally redeemed itself after some challenging periods and has once again become the number one show on my list of most anticipated and this quick teaser does little to whet that appetite. The shit be on.
Now, Harry from AICN called this the greatest thing he saw today. I have to agree - even with the awesome Lost teaser footage. Check it out.
See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die
Double Dose Of Dodger Good News
Kim Ng lost out on the Seattle job. While I hate to celebrate the fact that she was unable to become baseball's first female GM, I have to be a little bit happy she remains in Dodgertown... for now. Also, early news says the Dodgers will be deep in the mix for Manny. Details are sketchy but it appears they'll go big on dollars if they can go short on years. Boras wants six. Reports are the Dodgers may look as low as two. I expect they'll meet in the middle when all is said and done. Expect either four guaranteed or three with a mutual option. Now, the dollars? That's another story. Early rumor says McCourt may be willing to cough up A-Rod type dollars if the years are right. That's a looooooooot of money. We'll find out soon enough.
Rays Come Back To Tie Series
A Philly fan at work tried to rub it in today that the Phillies were "one win closer to being World Champions." My legit, non-sarcastic response was: "What? The World Series started?" Who knew?
And that's that for now!
2008-10-22
In Other News, PIGS HAVE WINGS!
It's the day that so many rock music fans have waited ages for - if you believe it.
Today, Guns N' Roses announced that Chinese Democracy will at long last be hitting "record stores" (how many of those still exist?) on November 23rd.
If it happens, this will be GNR's first new album release since 1991 when both Use Your Illusions were released in a shocking dual release. Apparently, they're jumping on the AC/DC bandwagon and going with an exclusive release - this one limited to only Best Buy stores. That kinda annoys me but I'm eager to hear the finished product.
Of course, I heard some of the songs when I saw them in concert a couple years ago but hearing the actual recordings will be the real test. I have to admit that I was stunned at how fun the concert I attended was so I'm really hoping the album lives up to that night.
And even more exciting is that you have to assume that they'll tour in support of the album... and I seem to recall someone who was too drunk to remember the show and made me spend the evening a] searching for him, b] carrying him to the car, c] watching him urinate all over the place, d] be very concerned he was going to vomit in my car... wait, where was I going with this?
Oh yeah. I'm pretty sure he said he was buying tickets for us the next time they come through!
Rock on, people.
2008-10-21
Liveblog: The Shield (10-21-08)
Alright, alright... before I press play, let's clear the air. The Missus says I may have gone a little too far in my rant against Halloween last night and that I may have hurt some feelings in the process. Let's be clear that it wasn't my intention to hurt anyone's feelings. I was just being me. And me at that particular period of time wanted to discuss how I'm sooooooo sick of everyone at work gushing over Halloween, I just had to rant about it for a bit. I'm not a fan of the holiday - if you are, rock on and more power to ya. Oh, and for future reference, I probably shouldn't write after getting out of bed because I get cranky.
In summation, if you felt stung by my words from last night, I apologize.
Now, for tonight's words of wisdom, let's stick with something a little less controversial - The Shield. I've made no bones about the fact that I think The Shield is the best show on TV right now and I've been super-stoked about tonight's episode. Between bad days at work, my family situation, the Dodgers, and all that jazz, I've really had a pretty shitty week and I'm hopeful tonight's episode of The Shield will knock me off my feet and make things all better.
Thus? A liveblog!
10:00 - VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED! Hell yes it is.
10:01 - Previously On The Shield - Bad, bad shit went down to set up tonight's episode that looks like even more bad shit is going to go down. This is gonna rock. ROCK!
10:02: Shane has gloves on and a gun in hand. Uh oh. Bad combo. He looks quite anguished. Maybe killing a second friend isn't easier than the first. He's plotting with the Missus, setting up an alibi for himself. Must be nice to have a spouse who'll cover for you killing someone.
10:05 - Mackey has to try to extort the closing of a church. "I wouldn't want to piss off Jesus along with everyone else." May be a little late for that, Vic.
10:06 - Someone takes a shot at Ronnie! Is that Shane? Nope. Shane's hanging out in Vic's apartment, ready to blow his best friend away. Whoops! Ronnie called Vic just before Vic walked into the waiting trap. Shane's plan got FUCKED! Cue the Opening Credits! Two attempts to kill cops before the credits? This show rules.
10:12 - Vic and Ronnie figure out that Shane's involved. That didn't take long. Ronnie says he's going to find the guy himself - but he looks pretty pissed when he tells Vic to take off. Anyone getting the feeling that Ronnie's going to play the key role in ths finish of this show?
10:16 - God damn, that hooker's ugly. Someone would actually pay for that?
10:18 - Hey! The priest that Vic went to talk to is that guy who played Haywire on Prison Break. I just can't take him seriously as a priest after seeing him on PB.
10:21 - Pezuela offers to help make Aceveda mayor with the help of the Blackmail Box. "I've got leverage you can't begin to understand." Wouldn't be sore sure about that.
10:24 - Rookie cop nails Two-Man, Shane asks nervously, "Hey, is he, uh, talking yet?" Dutch and Billings get first crack at him. That should be interesting.
10:31 - Oh jeez. Shane snuck into the interrogation room to try and find out where the gun is. What an idiot. Claudette spotted him too. And saw that he turned off the camera.
10:33 - Vic trying to get the Feds to let him work with them undercover. Awesome! Aceveda is in to talk to ICS too! A spinoff with Vic and Aceveda as buddy cops would be almost as cool as the Sylar/HRG buddy cop spinoff idea. Vic tells Aceveda, "Don't worry. Pezuela wants you taken out, I'm the one he hires to do it." Now THAT would be a fun way to end the show. God, this rules. Vic Mackey is one of my favorite all-time TV characters.
10:44 - Ronnie catches Shane trying to give hand signals to Two-Man. Ohhh my. This should be fun. OHHHH SNAP! The guy is gonna spill it! Two-Man is ratting him out! Shane's trying to run for it! Shane's in the parking lot! RONNIE AND VIC ARE GOING AFTER HIM! JULIAN TOO! SHANE'S PEELING OUT OF THE PARKING LOT! OHHHH SHIT! Too late! He's gone!
10:52 - Shane's wife goes to see Vic's ex. Shit be goin' down now. Ohhh shit! She's telling Corinne about Terry, about the Money Train... ohhhh damn.
10:55 - Corinne confronts Vic. Holy shit. Good scene. She says she'll help Vic one last time and then her and the kids are out of Vic's life forever. That's "the price he has to pay."
10:59 - AHHHHHH! VIC QUIT! He told Claudette to "kis his ass." Two guesses where he's going and who he's going after. Claudette threatened to lock "his corrupt ass up" if he interferes in the Shane search. Vic turned in his gun. Holy shit. He's done! I can't believe it. I never thought he'd be out of the Barn before the season ended.
Next time on THE SHIELD...
Vic's on the rampage
Claudette's on the hunt
HOLY FUCK!
Either that was deceptive editing or Vic finds Shane next week! EEEEEEKS!
This is as close to some of those "oh fuck, how can I wait til next week?" feelings I've had since Lost.
Well, shit - that definitely made me feel better.
In summation, if you felt stung by my words from last night, I apologize.
Now, for tonight's words of wisdom, let's stick with something a little less controversial - The Shield. I've made no bones about the fact that I think The Shield is the best show on TV right now and I've been super-stoked about tonight's episode. Between bad days at work, my family situation, the Dodgers, and all that jazz, I've really had a pretty shitty week and I'm hopeful tonight's episode of The Shield will knock me off my feet and make things all better.
Thus? A liveblog!
10:00 - VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED! Hell yes it is.
10:01 - Previously On The Shield - Bad, bad shit went down to set up tonight's episode that looks like even more bad shit is going to go down. This is gonna rock. ROCK!
10:02: Shane has gloves on and a gun in hand. Uh oh. Bad combo. He looks quite anguished. Maybe killing a second friend isn't easier than the first. He's plotting with the Missus, setting up an alibi for himself. Must be nice to have a spouse who'll cover for you killing someone.
10:05 - Mackey has to try to extort the closing of a church. "I wouldn't want to piss off Jesus along with everyone else." May be a little late for that, Vic.
10:06 - Someone takes a shot at Ronnie! Is that Shane? Nope. Shane's hanging out in Vic's apartment, ready to blow his best friend away. Whoops! Ronnie called Vic just before Vic walked into the waiting trap. Shane's plan got FUCKED! Cue the Opening Credits! Two attempts to kill cops before the credits? This show rules.
10:12 - Vic and Ronnie figure out that Shane's involved. That didn't take long. Ronnie says he's going to find the guy himself - but he looks pretty pissed when he tells Vic to take off. Anyone getting the feeling that Ronnie's going to play the key role in ths finish of this show?
10:16 - God damn, that hooker's ugly. Someone would actually pay for that?
10:18 - Hey! The priest that Vic went to talk to is that guy who played Haywire on Prison Break. I just can't take him seriously as a priest after seeing him on PB.
10:21 - Pezuela offers to help make Aceveda mayor with the help of the Blackmail Box. "I've got leverage you can't begin to understand." Wouldn't be sore sure about that.
10:24 - Rookie cop nails Two-Man, Shane asks nervously, "Hey, is he, uh, talking yet?" Dutch and Billings get first crack at him. That should be interesting.
10:31 - Oh jeez. Shane snuck into the interrogation room to try and find out where the gun is. What an idiot. Claudette spotted him too. And saw that he turned off the camera.
10:33 - Vic trying to get the Feds to let him work with them undercover. Awesome! Aceveda is in to talk to ICS too! A spinoff with Vic and Aceveda as buddy cops would be almost as cool as the Sylar/HRG buddy cop spinoff idea. Vic tells Aceveda, "Don't worry. Pezuela wants you taken out, I'm the one he hires to do it." Now THAT would be a fun way to end the show. God, this rules. Vic Mackey is one of my favorite all-time TV characters.
10:44 - Ronnie catches Shane trying to give hand signals to Two-Man. Ohhh my. This should be fun. OHHHH SNAP! The guy is gonna spill it! Two-Man is ratting him out! Shane's trying to run for it! Shane's in the parking lot! RONNIE AND VIC ARE GOING AFTER HIM! JULIAN TOO! SHANE'S PEELING OUT OF THE PARKING LOT! OHHHH SHIT! Too late! He's gone!
10:52 - Shane's wife goes to see Vic's ex. Shit be goin' down now. Ohhh shit! She's telling Corinne about Terry, about the Money Train... ohhhh damn.
10:55 - Corinne confronts Vic. Holy shit. Good scene. She says she'll help Vic one last time and then her and the kids are out of Vic's life forever. That's "the price he has to pay."
10:59 - AHHHHHH! VIC QUIT! He told Claudette to "kis his ass." Two guesses where he's going and who he's going after. Claudette threatened to lock "his corrupt ass up" if he interferes in the Shane search. Vic turned in his gun. Holy shit. He's done! I can't believe it. I never thought he'd be out of the Barn before the season ended.
Next time on THE SHIELD...
Vic's on the rampage
Claudette's on the hunt
HOLY FUCK!
Either that was deceptive editing or Vic finds Shane next week! EEEEEEKS!
This is as close to some of those "oh fuck, how can I wait til next week?" feelings I've had since Lost.
Well, shit - that definitely made me feel better.
2008-10-20
All I Wanted To Do Was Go To Sleep
I take plenty of grief from all y'all about "mailing it in" or just tossing up a YouTube vid instead of actually writing stuff every day but man, it gets tough. It's actually gotten even tougher since I started working in retail again. With the wonky hours, it takes a conscious effort to find time to write every day - let alone find something interesting to write about.
Tonight, I got home at 8:45ish, had dinner, watched some TV, and went to bed.
Which then prompted a "God dammit, I didn't blog yet."
So, I dragged myself out of bed to the computer to try and find something worth writing about.
...
Obviously, I had no luck.
Here's one for you...
What is the big deal about Halloween?
I think Halloween is actually my least favorite holiday - is it even really a holiday? I don't even know if I really liked it as a kid. I remember costumes I wore for Halloween but I don't remember if I actually wanted to wear them or if it was my family of females playing dress-up with a small human. And as I got older, I got more annoyed by the "holiday."
Apparently it's a big party night - who knew? The twenty-somethings around my work were all atwitter over the past couple weeks trying to position themselves to get that night off, discussing their costume options, all that jazz. I just don't get it. I suppose it's partially because Halloween is also apparently an occasion for most girls to dress super-slutty and "disguise" it as a costume.
Hrmm.
Maybe if I went to more parties like that when I was younger, I'd have a greater appreciation for it!
Instead, I have to listen to people talk about their costumes and their big party plans and how awesome it's going to be. I just shake my head. I really can't stand it. Someone's dressing as a shower. How original! Well, unless you saw Karate Kid. Someone else wants to be Nick Fury. I guess it's a good excuse to buy an eyepatch. Someone else said Adam West Batman. At least I thought that one was clever.
But I still don't understand the obsession with adults playing dress up - even if it's just for one night. And the people who claim Halloween as their favorite holiday? Good lord. Just ship them out right now because they do not belong in any country of mine, gosh darnit!
I'm rambling, I realize... but in closing, my bottom line is that if you don't have kids dressing up for Halloween, calling Halloween your favorite holiday really should be a bit embarrassing for you.
2008-10-19
Baseball Season Ends
Technically, it ended a few days ago as I really couldn't bring myself to care after the Dodgers were eliminated but since I consider the Sox my "American League team" and have done so for over twenty years now, I maintained the slightest bit of interest until tonight. With the Sox out of it and facing the idea of a Tampa Bay/Philly World Series [Bud Selig may kill himself tonight,] it's officially time to say "Wait til next year."
But the Hot Stove season is already in full effect with the majority of speculation falling in three spots: Manny, CC, and Peavy.
Let's take a look at some of the early rumors regarding the Dodgers so far...
It's pretty much a given that Lowe is gone. Penny is probably gone too. I'm guessing Saito will be gone. Blake too. I'm thinking Raffy will stay.
Really, that just leaves Manny.
McCourt was wishy-washy about it, talking about how it takes two to tango and all that jazz. It was him preparing Dodger fans that it's not gonna happen. I'm guessing the Dodgers will offer three years with an option for a fourth. Unless they highly overpay, I don't think that'll get it done. I can't imagine someone won't go four guaranteed. Maybe even five. I don't think anyone will go six like Boras is looking for but four or five shouldn't be a problem and I'm guessing that takes the Dodgers out of the Manny market unfortunately.
Joe Torre wants pitching - and made no secret about it. With Lowe and Penny gone, that'll leave Kuroda, Billingsley, and Kershaw in the starting rotation. McDonald might be a possibility for the fifth spot since he did well in his limited action in the callup. So, if you figure the Dodgers are shooting for at least one starter and maybe two, there are some targets already being mentioned that are pretty intriguing.
CC Sabathia is obviously the number one target for starting pitching for all teams this offseason. The Yankees are going to go in and go in big for CC. The rumors all say that Sabathia wants to stay on the West Coast but it'll take a pretty big offer to make him turn down the kind of dollars the Yanks are going to offer him. The Dodgers will make a big offer, I'd imagine - if for no other reason to make it look good that they tried. If I had to guess, I'm thinking Sabathia won't end up in Dodger blue. And frankly, I don't know if I'm that upset about that. Long-term, big dollar deals for starting pitching hasn't worked out so well in recent years for my team.
The number one trade target for pitching is going to be Jake Peavy. We've already heard that Peavy picked five teams that he'd waive his no-trade for with the Dodgers being one of them. The Pads are looking for middle infielders and young pitching to make the deal. I'd dangle Hu and McDonald - see what happens. If they want a lot more, move on.
There's been pretty persistent rumors of the Dodgers' interest in Robinson Cano for a while with Yanks fans thinking a Cano for Kemp was fair. While I wouldn't go that far, it's probably a conversation worth having since they apparently don't feel that Blake DeWitt is a good long-term solution at second base. With Kent likely to retire, second base will be a hole that needs to be filled this winter.
Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones have both requested trades if they won't be played. I have no problem with either of those - but I'm sure Ned Coletti will have quite a problem with making a deal for either. Both would require taking on a bad contract in return. Any ideas?
Nomar thinks he might retire. Might not be a bad idea for him. If he wants to stick around as a super-sub/pinch hitter for cheap enough, I'd keep him for that purpose as long as he knows his role.
Some talk about Randy Johnson possibly coming to the Dodgers or Angels. I could live with that as a 4th or 5th starter. It'd kinda be like Greg Maddux but... well, a lot different. If the price is right, I'm cool with that deal.
Saw some speculation today that the Cubs might be interested in Manny and might try to move Soriano or Aramis Ramirez to the Dodgers to clear payroll to accomplish that. I'm not overly fond of either of those deals but they're interesting ideas.
Okay... so, I know it's the time of year for weird rumors but this one took the cake for sure...
The Dodgers might be exploring trades for Russell Martin?
I'm going to hold firm and deny, deny, deny there's any way that's true until I hear more details.
It's gonna be an interesting six months.
But the Hot Stove season is already in full effect with the majority of speculation falling in three spots: Manny, CC, and Peavy.
Let's take a look at some of the early rumors regarding the Dodgers so far...
It's pretty much a given that Lowe is gone. Penny is probably gone too. I'm guessing Saito will be gone. Blake too. I'm thinking Raffy will stay.
Really, that just leaves Manny.
McCourt was wishy-washy about it, talking about how it takes two to tango and all that jazz. It was him preparing Dodger fans that it's not gonna happen. I'm guessing the Dodgers will offer three years with an option for a fourth. Unless they highly overpay, I don't think that'll get it done. I can't imagine someone won't go four guaranteed. Maybe even five. I don't think anyone will go six like Boras is looking for but four or five shouldn't be a problem and I'm guessing that takes the Dodgers out of the Manny market unfortunately.
Joe Torre wants pitching - and made no secret about it. With Lowe and Penny gone, that'll leave Kuroda, Billingsley, and Kershaw in the starting rotation. McDonald might be a possibility for the fifth spot since he did well in his limited action in the callup. So, if you figure the Dodgers are shooting for at least one starter and maybe two, there are some targets already being mentioned that are pretty intriguing.
CC Sabathia is obviously the number one target for starting pitching for all teams this offseason. The Yankees are going to go in and go in big for CC. The rumors all say that Sabathia wants to stay on the West Coast but it'll take a pretty big offer to make him turn down the kind of dollars the Yanks are going to offer him. The Dodgers will make a big offer, I'd imagine - if for no other reason to make it look good that they tried. If I had to guess, I'm thinking Sabathia won't end up in Dodger blue. And frankly, I don't know if I'm that upset about that. Long-term, big dollar deals for starting pitching hasn't worked out so well in recent years for my team.
The number one trade target for pitching is going to be Jake Peavy. We've already heard that Peavy picked five teams that he'd waive his no-trade for with the Dodgers being one of them. The Pads are looking for middle infielders and young pitching to make the deal. I'd dangle Hu and McDonald - see what happens. If they want a lot more, move on.
There's been pretty persistent rumors of the Dodgers' interest in Robinson Cano for a while with Yanks fans thinking a Cano for Kemp was fair. While I wouldn't go that far, it's probably a conversation worth having since they apparently don't feel that Blake DeWitt is a good long-term solution at second base. With Kent likely to retire, second base will be a hole that needs to be filled this winter.
Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones have both requested trades if they won't be played. I have no problem with either of those - but I'm sure Ned Coletti will have quite a problem with making a deal for either. Both would require taking on a bad contract in return. Any ideas?
Nomar thinks he might retire. Might not be a bad idea for him. If he wants to stick around as a super-sub/pinch hitter for cheap enough, I'd keep him for that purpose as long as he knows his role.
Some talk about Randy Johnson possibly coming to the Dodgers or Angels. I could live with that as a 4th or 5th starter. It'd kinda be like Greg Maddux but... well, a lot different. If the price is right, I'm cool with that deal.
Saw some speculation today that the Cubs might be interested in Manny and might try to move Soriano or Aramis Ramirez to the Dodgers to clear payroll to accomplish that. I'm not overly fond of either of those deals but they're interesting ideas.
Okay... so, I know it's the time of year for weird rumors but this one took the cake for sure...
The Dodgers might be exploring trades for Russell Martin?
I'm going to hold firm and deny, deny, deny there's any way that's true until I hear more details.
It's gonna be an interesting six months.
2008-10-18
Blue's Reviews: Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling
I just hit play on the DVR for tonight's UFC show that I'm quasi-looking forward to but I can't imagine it'll be anywhere near as fun as Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling that I just finished watching.
When they first announced the concept, I said that it'd live or die based on the people they booked for it. Then the talent list got announced and with names like teen pop star Tiffany and Tabitha from Bewitched, the show looked doomed. But then some clips started to surface and again, my interest was piqued a bit.
Tonight, the debut of Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling hit the airwaves and I loved every second of it. Sure, it's corny. Sure, it's a little silly to see Screech delivering clotheslines but some of those guys looked like they were having the time of their lives and - shockingly - seemed to have a little bit of talent for it.
Screech, Butterbean, and Bonaduce seemed to be the best from the first episode. Todd Bridges looked athletic but didn't do much. The girls haven't shown much at all so far. Rodman looked alright but he should look better since he's done wrestling before.
How crazy is it that I now have to say... "I can't wait for next week!"
Oh, and I said when the Sox came back to win Game 5 that it was the kind of win that can change a series - just like I knew that Game 4 of the NLCS was the kind of loss that could change a series.
Yeah.
It ain't over yet for the Rays but... well, it's nervous time if you're a Tampa Bay fan.
When they first announced the concept, I said that it'd live or die based on the people they booked for it. Then the talent list got announced and with names like teen pop star Tiffany and Tabitha from Bewitched, the show looked doomed. But then some clips started to surface and again, my interest was piqued a bit.
Tonight, the debut of Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling hit the airwaves and I loved every second of it. Sure, it's corny. Sure, it's a little silly to see Screech delivering clotheslines but some of those guys looked like they were having the time of their lives and - shockingly - seemed to have a little bit of talent for it.
Screech, Butterbean, and Bonaduce seemed to be the best from the first episode. Todd Bridges looked athletic but didn't do much. The girls haven't shown much at all so far. Rodman looked alright but he should look better since he's done wrestling before.
How crazy is it that I now have to say... "I can't wait for next week!"
Oh, and I said when the Sox came back to win Game 5 that it was the kind of win that can change a series - just like I knew that Game 4 of the NLCS was the kind of loss that could change a series.
Yeah.
It ain't over yet for the Rays but... well, it's nervous time if you're a Tampa Bay fan.
2008-10-17
Keep Your Politics In Your Own Bedroom Please
Fuck it.
Since I was already on my high horse the past couple days about the horrific, pathetic state of the American health care system, I might as well take a few jabs at the latest attempt to pass off bigotry as "traditional values."
Check these fantastic ads done in the tradition of my favorite commercials out...
Since I was already on my high horse the past couple days about the horrific, pathetic state of the American health care system, I might as well take a few jabs at the latest attempt to pass off bigotry as "traditional values."
Check these fantastic ads done in the tradition of my favorite commercials out...
The Return Of Top Five Friday!
First off, I want to thank everyone who left a commment or sent an e-mail or called or texted or whatever in support yesterday. It was a very difficult day for myself and my family that really made the health care system problems in our country starkly apparent. Bad stuff, people. Bad stuff. Think about things like that when you wonder why I spend so much time supporting Barack Obama on this blog. Anyways, my thanks again for your thoughts and prayers.
On a lighter note, since I'm sitting at home today, I thought it would be a good time to revive Top Five Friday - a long-running feature that got pushed aside when I started working every Friday. It was always one of my favorite posts of the week and I was getting a little bummed out that I wasn't doing it anymore.
To get back in the swing of things, I thought I'd throw myself a softball. It's no secret that I've been quite underwhelmed with the offerings on television lately [thank God for the MLB Playoffs and the return of the Lakers and all the debates] but there have been a few things that still rock my socks. Therefore, I thought I'd give them a little shoutout today.
TOP FIVE FRIDAY: The Top Five TV Shows I'm Watching
DISCLAIMER: There's a lot of highly-regarded shows out there that I'm not watching yet - things like Dexter, Mad Men, etc. There's also a pair of shows that would probably make the list if I was caught up on DVD [Prison Break, Battlestar Galactica.] Also, no shows that haven't returned yet [24, Lost, American Idol, Scrubs, 30 Rock] are included. And finally, there's a handful of shows that I've got on DVR that I'm not caught up on yet [How I Met Your Mother, Fringe, Gossip Girl] which'll affect my rankings.
HONORABLE MENTION: General Hospital & GH: Night Shift
I don't know why but I had a hard time comparing these to the rest of the list so I decided to give them their shoutout in a different area. I've been watching GH on and off since I was... well, to hear my family tell it, since I was born. I can spout off and recall random GH storylines from the past two decades +. In recent years, it's gotten very mob-centric which is a little dull so when Night Shift came along focusing on the hospital again, it was like a breath of fresh air. Both shows are very different from one another but from the same family, it's very cool to see.
MORE HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Entourage - Started off pretty slowly but has really picked up steam starting with the ep where Ari got the Ferrari and carrying all the way through last weekend's which was might be my favorite of the season.
How I Met Your Mother - Due to a DVR error, I'm a few eps behind on this but the first episode of the season was fantastic. This is one of my favorite shows so I can't imagine the rest of the season hasn't been golden but I couldn't rank it based on one show.
Gossip Girl - Same as above. I'm 2 or 3 eps off on this one but what I've seen so far has been awesome. One of my favorite shows on TV easily.
TOP FIVE!
5. The Office
The Office, while still funny as hell, has felt a little off to me this season. Maybe it's the lack of Pam in the building but I haven't felt the same kind of magic that the show usually has. It still has some incredible moments but it's been a little off so far. I haven't seen last night's episode yet so I'm hoping that picks things up for the show.
4. The Amazing Race
Easily my favorite reality show, I remain so disappointed they don't shoot this thing in HD because it would be absolutely gorgeous if they did. TAR serves as the ultimate travel show, showing off some amazing places in the world while featuring some of the most fun characters in reality TV. The great thing about TAR is that we don't get overloaded on one character or another like you tend to see in Survivor or the like so we get just enough to love, hate, or be indifferent towards them without feeling like they're overexposed.
3. Pushing Daisies
This might bump up once I see last week's episode but I adore this show and every time I hear that it might be close to cancellation, I weep a little inside. Wonderfully quirky and adorable all at the same time, this show is one of TV's best and a cancellation here would rank right up there next to Arrested Development and Firefly as true tragedies in the course of TV history. If you're not watching this show and spreading the word, you're part of the problem, people! If Pushing Daisies gets canceled, the terrorists win!
2. Desperate Housewives
I know, I know - I'm not supposed to like it but dammit, I just can't help myself. After a lackluster second season, DH has been perhaps the most consistent show on television year after year. After pulling what many viewed as a ratings stunt by "jumping ahead" in last season's finale, they have really knocked things out of the park so far this season. We almost ditched this one when we dropped Grey's but I'm glad we stuck around because it's been a ton of fun.
And the #1 show I'm currently watching...
1. The Shield
SPOILER ALERT! You know a show is well-written when the death of a fairly minor character at the hands of another character is enough to make the Missus despise the killer so badly that she refuses to watch it anymore. The Shield has put out some of the most compelling and thrilling television that you could ever imagine seeing and it'll be a true loss to television when they wrap things up in about two months' time. This season has been a scorcher from moment one and last week's was simply awesome. Things are really heating up and I can't wait to see how it all ends. I'm guessing it won't be with the screen cutting to black.
On a lighter note, since I'm sitting at home today, I thought it would be a good time to revive Top Five Friday - a long-running feature that got pushed aside when I started working every Friday. It was always one of my favorite posts of the week and I was getting a little bummed out that I wasn't doing it anymore.
To get back in the swing of things, I thought I'd throw myself a softball. It's no secret that I've been quite underwhelmed with the offerings on television lately [thank God for the MLB Playoffs and the return of the Lakers and all the debates] but there have been a few things that still rock my socks. Therefore, I thought I'd give them a little shoutout today.
TOP FIVE FRIDAY: The Top Five TV Shows I'm Watching
DISCLAIMER: There's a lot of highly-regarded shows out there that I'm not watching yet - things like Dexter, Mad Men, etc. There's also a pair of shows that would probably make the list if I was caught up on DVD [Prison Break, Battlestar Galactica.] Also, no shows that haven't returned yet [24, Lost, American Idol, Scrubs, 30 Rock] are included. And finally, there's a handful of shows that I've got on DVR that I'm not caught up on yet [How I Met Your Mother, Fringe, Gossip Girl] which'll affect my rankings.
HONORABLE MENTION: General Hospital & GH: Night Shift
I don't know why but I had a hard time comparing these to the rest of the list so I decided to give them their shoutout in a different area. I've been watching GH on and off since I was... well, to hear my family tell it, since I was born. I can spout off and recall random GH storylines from the past two decades +. In recent years, it's gotten very mob-centric which is a little dull so when Night Shift came along focusing on the hospital again, it was like a breath of fresh air. Both shows are very different from one another but from the same family, it's very cool to see.
MORE HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Entourage - Started off pretty slowly but has really picked up steam starting with the ep where Ari got the Ferrari and carrying all the way through last weekend's which was might be my favorite of the season.
How I Met Your Mother - Due to a DVR error, I'm a few eps behind on this but the first episode of the season was fantastic. This is one of my favorite shows so I can't imagine the rest of the season hasn't been golden but I couldn't rank it based on one show.
Gossip Girl - Same as above. I'm 2 or 3 eps off on this one but what I've seen so far has been awesome. One of my favorite shows on TV easily.
TOP FIVE!
5. The Office
The Office, while still funny as hell, has felt a little off to me this season. Maybe it's the lack of Pam in the building but I haven't felt the same kind of magic that the show usually has. It still has some incredible moments but it's been a little off so far. I haven't seen last night's episode yet so I'm hoping that picks things up for the show.
4. The Amazing Race
Easily my favorite reality show, I remain so disappointed they don't shoot this thing in HD because it would be absolutely gorgeous if they did. TAR serves as the ultimate travel show, showing off some amazing places in the world while featuring some of the most fun characters in reality TV. The great thing about TAR is that we don't get overloaded on one character or another like you tend to see in Survivor or the like so we get just enough to love, hate, or be indifferent towards them without feeling like they're overexposed.
3. Pushing Daisies
This might bump up once I see last week's episode but I adore this show and every time I hear that it might be close to cancellation, I weep a little inside. Wonderfully quirky and adorable all at the same time, this show is one of TV's best and a cancellation here would rank right up there next to Arrested Development and Firefly as true tragedies in the course of TV history. If you're not watching this show and spreading the word, you're part of the problem, people! If Pushing Daisies gets canceled, the terrorists win!
2. Desperate Housewives
I know, I know - I'm not supposed to like it but dammit, I just can't help myself. After a lackluster second season, DH has been perhaps the most consistent show on television year after year. After pulling what many viewed as a ratings stunt by "jumping ahead" in last season's finale, they have really knocked things out of the park so far this season. We almost ditched this one when we dropped Grey's but I'm glad we stuck around because it's been a ton of fun.
And the #1 show I'm currently watching...
1. The Shield
SPOILER ALERT! You know a show is well-written when the death of a fairly minor character at the hands of another character is enough to make the Missus despise the killer so badly that she refuses to watch it anymore. The Shield has put out some of the most compelling and thrilling television that you could ever imagine seeing and it'll be a true loss to television when they wrap things up in about two months' time. This season has been a scorcher from moment one and last week's was simply awesome. Things are really heating up and I can't wait to see how it all ends. I'm guessing it won't be with the screen cutting to black.
2008-10-16
I have to admit that I did not expect to blog today from a hospital.
I'm fine, don't freak out. No postgame suicide attempt.
My grandma is suffering from Alzheimer's and had some kind of attack a
few days ago that has landed her in the hospital so here I am.
It really is an odd and scary disease. It's hard to see someone
devolve so quickly to an almost unrecognizable person. A year ago,
she was at my wedding dancing, laughing, and having a good time. Now
she's in a hospital bed barely coherent.
My mom thinks it's almost over but the doctors disagree. Now my
family is faced with the impossible choice to either take her home
which would be almost a certain disaster since she apparently has lost
the ability to walk OR put her in a nursing home which is
heartbreaking as well. This is the choice presented to my family by
her HMO - oh, and we have to decide today. Heartless fucks. Remember
that when you visit the polls in a couple weeks.
Anyways, I'm stalling because she was asleep when I got here and my
family hasn't arrived yet. I just wanted to vent a little.
Obviously, I expected to write about a much different topic today but
well, life sometimes has an odd way of adjusting your priorities.
Take care of yourselves today, guys.
Sent from my iPhone
2008-10-15
Fine! I'll Talk About It!
Alright, I guess I should say something about it.
Game 4 was a heartbreaking, thrilling game to watch - let alone be at. I had so many moments where I was overjoyed and just as many where my heart was ripped out of my chest like Mola Ram and that poor Thuggee dude in Temple of Doom.
But in the end, the bullpen couldn't hold the lead and the Dodgers find themselves on the brink of elimination after a roller coaster ride of a season.
So, now what?
Chad Billingsley needs to shake off the effects of Game 2 and ignore the media who wants to put his entire career at stake in one game. It's one game, kid. Win or lose, you had a hell of a year and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
For the rest of the team? Suck it up and remember, you've got to play them one game at a time. You only need to win one...
...for now.
I'll be at work during the game unfortunately so I won't get to live and die with every pitch like Dodger fans around the world. But I'll be with them in spirit - right there at Chavez Ravine like I was on Monday night, cheering my heart out and waving my rally towel.
When I was discussing the playoffs with someone at work, they said that they were an Angels fan but that they really didn't care if they won or not. Or to quote, "My life doesn't change one bit if they win or lose."
I'd say that I wish I could be the same way but I really don't, you cold, heartless, soulless fuck!
It starts with one game. Hamels vs Billingsley. Let's get it on.
Oh, and of course...
You've gotta believe.
Game 4 was a heartbreaking, thrilling game to watch - let alone be at. I had so many moments where I was overjoyed and just as many where my heart was ripped out of my chest like Mola Ram and that poor Thuggee dude in Temple of Doom.
But in the end, the bullpen couldn't hold the lead and the Dodgers find themselves on the brink of elimination after a roller coaster ride of a season.
So, now what?
Chad Billingsley needs to shake off the effects of Game 2 and ignore the media who wants to put his entire career at stake in one game. It's one game, kid. Win or lose, you had a hell of a year and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
For the rest of the team? Suck it up and remember, you've got to play them one game at a time. You only need to win one...
...for now.
I'll be at work during the game unfortunately so I won't get to live and die with every pitch like Dodger fans around the world. But I'll be with them in spirit - right there at Chavez Ravine like I was on Monday night, cheering my heart out and waving my rally towel.
When I was discussing the playoffs with someone at work, they said that they were an Angels fan but that they really didn't care if they won or not. Or to quote, "My life doesn't change one bit if they win or lose."
I'd say that I wish I could be the same way but I really don't, you cold, heartless, soulless fuck!
It starts with one game. Hamels vs Billingsley. Let's get it on.
Oh, and of course...
You've gotta believe.
2008-10-14
A Change Of Subject
I'm not going to talk about it.
But, I did stumble upon something yesterday that I thought would be fun to take a look at. Gamer website ugo.com did an article of the Top 50 WTF? moments in comic book history. I thought it might be entertaining to take a look at the list and comment on a few of them.
Number 49 was the resurrection of X-Man Colossus. Personally, I found this one to be a WTF? moment because I thought it was a horrible idea and really ruined a prior story - something most comic writers don't care about at all, I realize. But with Joss Whedon penning it, I had higher expectations. For those unaware, here's the story. Colossus died years ago saving the mutant world from an AIDS-like virus called the Legacy Virus. It was quite the heroic farewell - but in my opinion, it was ruined by the revival of Colossus by Whedon who revealed that Colossus hadn't actually died but was being held captive by an evil villain who was using Colossus to figure out a way to "cure" mutants of their powers. The X-Men universe is full of deaths/revivals but this one came across particularly bad to me.
#39 finds Lex Luthor as the President of the United States in the DC Universe. Now THAT is a WTF? moment. I read very little of that story arc but I remember being more than just a little WTF? when I heard about it. But... well, considering the world we live in today where we've seen elections stolen, civil rights snatched, and bold face lies told to the public to engineer a war... is a super villain as President really that far fetched?
#30 finds the Breaking of the Bat. Ahhh. This is the story that got me back into comics back in the late 90's after years of being out of them. I was always more of a Batman guy than a Superman guy. It's probably something to do with the "normal guy does extraordinary things" theme. So, when on the heels of the Death of Superman story that drove most people into comic stores back then, DC announced the breaking of Batman - I was hooked. I spent an entire summer driving all over Southern California with my friend Danny trying to find every issue of the "Knightfall" story. It was a beautiful idea. Arkham Asylum broken into and all of Batman's worst enemies freed. That made Batman have to work extra hard to put them all back in jail so when he finally met the man who was responsible for the breakout, Bane, he was physically and mentally wrecked and easy prey for the steroid-cooked supervillain. The stories that followed with Bruce Wayne getting back into shape and retaking the Bat mantle from the man who he had picked to hold it in his place were lots of fun and remain one of my favorite arcs in comic history.
Checking in at #25 is another one of my favorite stories ever and another one that makes me remember fondly those days when I used to drive to the comic store once a week after school and grab the latest and greatest. Fatal Attractions was an X-story that crossed all the books [big shock, I know] that all built up to a big showdown between the X-Men and Magneto. In the climax, Wolverine finally gets a shot at Magneto - and gets his adamantium skeleton ripped out of his body by the Master of Magnetism THROUGH EVERY PORE IN HIS BODY! It was amazingly cool - and was only helped by an issue or two later when Wolvie tries to pop his claws and has bone claws rip through his flesh. Simply awesome.
At #23 [and making me wonder what the hell is in the Top 20], Superman dies. Well, not really. Everyone knew Superman wasn't going to die permanently but SUPERMAN WAS GOING TO DIE! I remember going into comic stores with friends searching for that black bagged comic that they would never open. Me? I bought the TPB years later. It was a hell of a story actually but it was all pissed away with the Return of the Supermen story. Ah well.
#21 is the death of Captain America - which I can't imagine how that ranks above the death of Superman or the breaking of Batman but whatever. It was a big one. I remember hearing about this one on CNN and having to race to the comic store on my lunch break to see what the hell had happened. It was another well done death story which is really the last major comic story I read before my current hiatus from comics [which may be ending soon as I'm intrigued by the Ultimatum storyline.]
Let's skip all the way ahead to #8 with the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin. Jason Todd was a fucking prick. He was a punk little bitch and the fanboys hated him. So, in true American fashion, DC gave the fans the choice - should we kill Jason Todd? The voting was clear - Robin must die! And in truly awesome fashion, The Joker got to deliver the fatal blow, just turning up the heat in the never-ending war between The Joker and Batman.
There were lots of other WTF? moments mentioned throughout the story that deserved mention but I didn't want to make this post any longer than it already is. If you want to check out some of the others, hit up the article for the rest.
But, I did stumble upon something yesterday that I thought would be fun to take a look at. Gamer website ugo.com did an article of the Top 50 WTF? moments in comic book history. I thought it might be entertaining to take a look at the list and comment on a few of them.
Number 49 was the resurrection of X-Man Colossus. Personally, I found this one to be a WTF? moment because I thought it was a horrible idea and really ruined a prior story - something most comic writers don't care about at all, I realize. But with Joss Whedon penning it, I had higher expectations. For those unaware, here's the story. Colossus died years ago saving the mutant world from an AIDS-like virus called the Legacy Virus. It was quite the heroic farewell - but in my opinion, it was ruined by the revival of Colossus by Whedon who revealed that Colossus hadn't actually died but was being held captive by an evil villain who was using Colossus to figure out a way to "cure" mutants of their powers. The X-Men universe is full of deaths/revivals but this one came across particularly bad to me.
#39 finds Lex Luthor as the President of the United States in the DC Universe. Now THAT is a WTF? moment. I read very little of that story arc but I remember being more than just a little WTF? when I heard about it. But... well, considering the world we live in today where we've seen elections stolen, civil rights snatched, and bold face lies told to the public to engineer a war... is a super villain as President really that far fetched?
#30 finds the Breaking of the Bat. Ahhh. This is the story that got me back into comics back in the late 90's after years of being out of them. I was always more of a Batman guy than a Superman guy. It's probably something to do with the "normal guy does extraordinary things" theme. So, when on the heels of the Death of Superman story that drove most people into comic stores back then, DC announced the breaking of Batman - I was hooked. I spent an entire summer driving all over Southern California with my friend Danny trying to find every issue of the "Knightfall" story. It was a beautiful idea. Arkham Asylum broken into and all of Batman's worst enemies freed. That made Batman have to work extra hard to put them all back in jail so when he finally met the man who was responsible for the breakout, Bane, he was physically and mentally wrecked and easy prey for the steroid-cooked supervillain. The stories that followed with Bruce Wayne getting back into shape and retaking the Bat mantle from the man who he had picked to hold it in his place were lots of fun and remain one of my favorite arcs in comic history.
Checking in at #25 is another one of my favorite stories ever and another one that makes me remember fondly those days when I used to drive to the comic store once a week after school and grab the latest and greatest. Fatal Attractions was an X-story that crossed all the books [big shock, I know] that all built up to a big showdown between the X-Men and Magneto. In the climax, Wolverine finally gets a shot at Magneto - and gets his adamantium skeleton ripped out of his body by the Master of Magnetism THROUGH EVERY PORE IN HIS BODY! It was amazingly cool - and was only helped by an issue or two later when Wolvie tries to pop his claws and has bone claws rip through his flesh. Simply awesome.
At #23 [and making me wonder what the hell is in the Top 20], Superman dies. Well, not really. Everyone knew Superman wasn't going to die permanently but SUPERMAN WAS GOING TO DIE! I remember going into comic stores with friends searching for that black bagged comic that they would never open. Me? I bought the TPB years later. It was a hell of a story actually but it was all pissed away with the Return of the Supermen story. Ah well.
#21 is the death of Captain America - which I can't imagine how that ranks above the death of Superman or the breaking of Batman but whatever. It was a big one. I remember hearing about this one on CNN and having to race to the comic store on my lunch break to see what the hell had happened. It was another well done death story which is really the last major comic story I read before my current hiatus from comics [which may be ending soon as I'm intrigued by the Ultimatum storyline.]
Let's skip all the way ahead to #8 with the death of Jason Todd, the second Robin. Jason Todd was a fucking prick. He was a punk little bitch and the fanboys hated him. So, in true American fashion, DC gave the fans the choice - should we kill Jason Todd? The voting was clear - Robin must die! And in truly awesome fashion, The Joker got to deliver the fatal blow, just turning up the heat in the never-ending war between The Joker and Batman.
There were lots of other WTF? moments mentioned throughout the story that deserved mention but I didn't want to make this post any longer than it already is. If you want to check out some of the others, hit up the article for the rest.
2008-10-13
I May Not Always Love You...
On my day off as I sit here "preparing" to go to Game 4 tonight, I've been digging through some mp3 blogs to add some stuff to my collection and I uncovered a real gem.
I'm a firm believer that most people end up getting a large chunk of their musical tastes from the people directly around them. Example - I'm a huge Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band fan but I can't imagine I would have become that on my own if I hadn't spent a huge chunk of my childhood with my aunts listening to Bruce at every turn. Same thing goes for Rod Stewart, Tom Petty, and so on... yes, even Barry Manilow. Likewise, I can pick individual bands out from my musical tastes and point out who influenced them. I still remember the first time I heard Nine Inch Nails' "Pretty Hate Machine" was on a crappy boombox shoved under the front seat of my friend Brian's car back in the day. You get the idea.
But oddly, for the most part, I barely remember my Mom listening to any music growing up. I knew that my aunts teased her for having "Lay Lady Lay" as her favorite Dylan song. I knew she liked Elvis and a lot of the 50's and 60's bubblegum pop but I never really heard her play it around the house.
The only band I can recall my Mom listening to or talking about a lot was The Beach Boys.
The Beach Boys don't get a lot of love from your typical rock music fan because they're treated as the aforementioned bubblegum pop but I defy one and all to not crack a big ol' smile when you hear the music. Back in '06 when the Missus and I attended Bridge School Benefit for the first time, Brian Wilson was on the bill and in a crowd filled with people there to see Pearl Jam and the Dave Matthews Band take the stage, Brian Wilson stole the show by rockin' the night away with the old Beach Boys songs that had that entire crowd up on their feet singing along.
Now THAT'S what I call music.
The good folks over at Aquarium Drunkard posted an amazing set of Beach Boys studio rehearsals from back in 1967 that the writer claims is his favorite Beach Boys recording ever. After a quick initial listen-through this morning, I can't deny he may have a very legitimate argument. If you're the slightest Beach Boys fan at all - or even just want to give ol' Blue a chance at being right, take the time to listen to the songs on that post and tell me I'm wrong.
I defy you!
I'm a firm believer that most people end up getting a large chunk of their musical tastes from the people directly around them. Example - I'm a huge Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band fan but I can't imagine I would have become that on my own if I hadn't spent a huge chunk of my childhood with my aunts listening to Bruce at every turn. Same thing goes for Rod Stewart, Tom Petty, and so on... yes, even Barry Manilow. Likewise, I can pick individual bands out from my musical tastes and point out who influenced them. I still remember the first time I heard Nine Inch Nails' "Pretty Hate Machine" was on a crappy boombox shoved under the front seat of my friend Brian's car back in the day. You get the idea.
But oddly, for the most part, I barely remember my Mom listening to any music growing up. I knew that my aunts teased her for having "Lay Lady Lay" as her favorite Dylan song. I knew she liked Elvis and a lot of the 50's and 60's bubblegum pop but I never really heard her play it around the house.
The only band I can recall my Mom listening to or talking about a lot was The Beach Boys.
The Beach Boys don't get a lot of love from your typical rock music fan because they're treated as the aforementioned bubblegum pop but I defy one and all to not crack a big ol' smile when you hear the music. Back in '06 when the Missus and I attended Bridge School Benefit for the first time, Brian Wilson was on the bill and in a crowd filled with people there to see Pearl Jam and the Dave Matthews Band take the stage, Brian Wilson stole the show by rockin' the night away with the old Beach Boys songs that had that entire crowd up on their feet singing along.
Now THAT'S what I call music.
The good folks over at Aquarium Drunkard posted an amazing set of Beach Boys studio rehearsals from back in 1967 that the writer claims is his favorite Beach Boys recording ever. After a quick initial listen-through this morning, I can't deny he may have a very legitimate argument. If you're the slightest Beach Boys fan at all - or even just want to give ol' Blue a chance at being right, take the time to listen to the songs on that post and tell me I'm wrong.
I defy you!
2008-10-12
2008-10-11
Early Morning Politics
I saw something on CNN last night before I went to sleep that made me regain a little bit of respect for John McCain. It's puzzling to me that during the early part of the campaign, McCain was the guy that seemed the most reasonable of the Republican noms and someone who carried themselves with dignity and honor - but after he was clearly the nom, all hell broke loose. This scene gained a little bit of that back for me:
I think John McCain down deep is a good person who has served his country proudly and with dignity over the years that has just kinda... lost his way... over the past few months. He's devolved into the typical mudslinging politician that turns people off on politics all the time. But with the clip above, I have hope that he's returning to form.
I think John McCain down deep is a good person who has served his country proudly and with dignity over the years that has just kinda... lost his way... over the past few months. He's devolved into the typical mudslinging politician that turns people off on politics all the time. But with the clip above, I have hope that he's returning to form.
2008-10-10
MANNY!
I picked the right time for lunch. It's not over yet. Let's go Blue!
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
AHHHHHH
THIS is what happens when I go to work on a game day! Down six fucking runs after three?!?
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
2008-10-09
Spending Money On Science? Perish The Thought!
Look, I know that science isn't exactly the favored... well, science... of your average Republican but even I knew this one would cause McCain some problems. When he cracked on a planetarium overhead projector during the debate, two things came to mind...
1] "Well, there goes all his votes in the scientific community - if he had any to begin with."
2] "Science is a hell of a thing, John. You might want to look into it some time."
So, when I saw this story a few moments ago, I thought I'd share it with the class.
1] "Well, there goes all his votes in the scientific community - if he had any to begin with."
2] "Science is a hell of a thing, John. You might want to look into it some time."
So, when I saw this story a few moments ago, I thought I'd share it with the class.
Gotta love it. Election year craziness is better than ever this year.If there's one rule in election-year politics, it's this: Don't mess with the science crowd. OK, labor unions and the NRA matter too, but John McCain may want to brush up on his stars and planets after Tuesday night's debate.
In the debate, McCain portrayed Barack Obama as an excessive spender, and he punctuated his attack (twice) with this example:
"[Obama] voted for nearly a billion dollars in pork barrel earmark projects, including, by the way, $3 million for an overhead projector at a planetarium in Chicago, Illinois. My friends, do we need to spend that kind of money?"
Turns out, a lot of people think we do. This is no ordinary overhead projector from your 5th grade classroom. The blog Cosmic Variance sums it up:
"If you've ever had the pleasure of visiting the Adler Planetarium, you'd probably guess that the 'overhead projector' he's talking about is the spectacular 'Sky Theater' -- one of the most engrossing, gorgeous venues for displaying visuals about space."
The science community is notoriously tight-knit, especially when rallying to a cause, and boy are they are rallying to this one. Alan Boyle's Cosmic Log has a great summary of the uproar:
-"For McCain to use this as a political zinger is insulting..." (Bad Astronomy)
-"Planetariums are Bridges to the Future, and America would be a much better place if all the congressional earmarks went to projects like them." (The Perfect Silence)
-"The logo for Senator John McCain's campaign has a star in the middle. I wonder what his guide star is? It can't be the same one that ten million children have seen at the Adler Planetarium. Why should anyone want their star to dim?" (Discovery Space)
The Adler Planetarium even issued a statement, noting that the request, ironically, was not even funded:
"To clarify, the Adler Planetarium requested federal support -- which was not funded -- to replace the projector in its historic Sky Theater, the first planetarium theater in the Western Hemisphere.... To remain competitive and ensure national security, it is vital that we educate and inspire the next generation of explorers to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math."
Linking a planetarium to national security may be a bit of a stretch, but the point is clear: McCain probably shouldn't count on the "science vote" this year
2008-10-08
Random Thoughts On Random Stuff
I'm a little under the weather so I'm enlisting the assistance of my Google Reader for some stuff to write about tonight.
NEWS: Guillermo Del Toro To Fly Solo On 'Hobbit' Directing Duties
REACTION: Wow. The article goes on to state that GDT actually has turned down an offer from Peter Jackson to assist as director or even to man a second unit himself. That's nutty stuff. I can't decide if it's incredibly ballsy on the part of GDT or if it's just a slap in the face to the man who actually managed to make Tolkien's work an amazing visual reality.
NEWS: Palin Porn On The Rise [no pun intended]
REACTION: Earlier this week, I Shared a story from my Reader that involved details on Larry Flynt's planned Palin-a-like porn including a three way with a Hillary-a-like and a Condy-a-like. High quality faire right there. But in case you were concerned that this was an isolated feature, check out this listing from Craigslist I found on one of the LA blogs I visit: "NEED SARAH PALIN LOOKALIKE ASAP FOR ADULT FILM (LA). Looking for a Sarah Palin lookalike for an adult film to be shot in next 10 days. Major adult studio. Please send pix, stats etc. ASAP. Pay: $2000-3000. No anal required."
Well, I don't know about you but I'm very happy to hear that there's no anal required because after hearing some of her beliefs on gay marriage, foreign policy, and Joe Sixpacks among other things, I'm quite convinced she has a nice, big stick already lodged up her ass.
NEWS: Lamar Odom Doesn't Get Points For Performance
REACTION: I missed the Lakers' first televised preseason game this week but apparently Lamar Odom played pretty poorly or to quote Phil Jackson, "He looks like he's either curling or doing some other kind of sport. He's not playing basketball." Wow. Did he really look that bad? Or was this just another typical Lamar game? Combine this with his early training camp bitching about coming off the bench, I expect his expiring contract will be danged early and often to every team in the league soon.
I couldn't find a headline for this one but how about the news that broke this week from a couple of Seth Petruzelli interviews where he heavily implied that EXC paid him to stay standing with Kimbo rather than try to take him down. Granted, that's not an out and out "fixing" of the fight but it's not far off. Paying a fighter to take one stylistic approach to a fight is a very dangerous road to walk. Some will view it as EXC trying to make it a "more exciting fight" but some will, very accurately in my opinion, assume that they were trying to get him to fight a gameplan that would play into Kimbo's hands. Interesting, no?
And I guess that'll do... oh wait... there's one other exciting piece of news, huh?
NLCS STARTS TOMORROW! GO DODGERS!
NEWS: Guillermo Del Toro To Fly Solo On 'Hobbit' Directing Duties
REACTION: Wow. The article goes on to state that GDT actually has turned down an offer from Peter Jackson to assist as director or even to man a second unit himself. That's nutty stuff. I can't decide if it's incredibly ballsy on the part of GDT or if it's just a slap in the face to the man who actually managed to make Tolkien's work an amazing visual reality.
NEWS: Palin Porn On The Rise [no pun intended]
REACTION: Earlier this week, I Shared a story from my Reader that involved details on Larry Flynt's planned Palin-a-like porn including a three way with a Hillary-a-like and a Condy-a-like. High quality faire right there. But in case you were concerned that this was an isolated feature, check out this listing from Craigslist I found on one of the LA blogs I visit: "NEED SARAH PALIN LOOKALIKE ASAP FOR ADULT FILM (LA). Looking for a Sarah Palin lookalike for an adult film to be shot in next 10 days. Major adult studio. Please send pix, stats etc. ASAP. Pay: $2000-3000. No anal required."
Well, I don't know about you but I'm very happy to hear that there's no anal required because after hearing some of her beliefs on gay marriage, foreign policy, and Joe Sixpacks among other things, I'm quite convinced she has a nice, big stick already lodged up her ass.
NEWS: Lamar Odom Doesn't Get Points For Performance
REACTION: I missed the Lakers' first televised preseason game this week but apparently Lamar Odom played pretty poorly or to quote Phil Jackson, "He looks like he's either curling or doing some other kind of sport. He's not playing basketball." Wow. Did he really look that bad? Or was this just another typical Lamar game? Combine this with his early training camp bitching about coming off the bench, I expect his expiring contract will be danged early and often to every team in the league soon.
I couldn't find a headline for this one but how about the news that broke this week from a couple of Seth Petruzelli interviews where he heavily implied that EXC paid him to stay standing with Kimbo rather than try to take him down. Granted, that's not an out and out "fixing" of the fight but it's not far off. Paying a fighter to take one stylistic approach to a fight is a very dangerous road to walk. Some will view it as EXC trying to make it a "more exciting fight" but some will, very accurately in my opinion, assume that they were trying to get him to fight a gameplan that would play into Kimbo's hands. Interesting, no?
And I guess that'll do... oh wait... there's one other exciting piece of news, huh?
NLCS STARTS TOMORROW! GO DODGERS!
2008-10-07
2008-10-06
Sorta Liveblog: Monday Night Raw (10-6-08)
Eh... what the hell? I can't think of anything else to write about and I haven't actually watched Raw in a while.
My DVR was taping something else so it starts a little late. Jericho is in the ring, mouth all busted up from his ladder match with Shawn Michaels last night. No Mercy sounds like it was a hell of a show and I should probably check it out at some point. Apparently, Jericho is playing the role of GM for the night as he announces HBK vs Lance Cade in an "anything goes" match [I think that's what he said at least.] He says he's done with HBK and has nothing left to prove to him. Cue Batista.
You know, for someone who is presumably a pretty tough guy, Batista looks quite metrosexual in his tank top. Oh, but he's got a wallet chain. Back to the tough guy status for sure. He'll kick anyone's ass. The crowd goes wild for Batista's entrance but really seem like they couldn't give a shit after he gets to the ring. Batista's challenging Jericho for the title since he won the #1 contender match last night. I like Jericho as the champ but I don't know if I care about Batista as his challenger.
Oh, and Batista's sunglasses don't do him any favors either.
This promo is awful. Jericho holds up his end but when Batista speaks, my hand creeps towards the remote. Oh god. He spinebustered Jericho and yelled, "You mess with the bull, you get the horns." Wow.
Matt Hardy/Rey Rey vs Mark Henry/Kane is hyped for later in the show. I really have no desire to see that.
Recap of the Batista spinebuster. I never understood why they show so many "moments ago" recaps. So, during the commercial, Jericho announced that Batista will defend his #1 contendership against JBL. Alllllright. That makes zero sense. JBL lost the first time in five minutes. Jericho hates JBL and wouldn't want him to be the #1 contender either so... oh, Jericho's going to ref. Well, that'll suck.
Regal's at ringside. Cue Jamie Noble and Mickie James for a mixed tag match. I'm super-stoked that Noble is getting so much TV time lately And in a feud with Regal no less. YES! This mixed tag is against Glamarella. This just became worlds better. Santino's got a mic so the segment just got a thumbs up in my book. Santino apparently has been criticized for being "too ethnic" so he has adopted a new favorite NBA team - the Oklahoma City Thunder. I'm guessing they're in Seattle from the boos. Not my favorite Santino promo but still worlds better than most of what we'll get on this show.
Santino's wearing the OKC Thunder t-shirt under his singlet - awesome. Glamarella wins with a Santino schoolboy when Noble was distracted by Beth. Didn't get enough time to be worth a damn unfortunately. That could've been a lot of fun, I think. Regal/Noble brawl at ringside. Awesome. It kinda reminds me of that really cool Val Venis/Rikishi feud a few years ago that really came out of nowhere but just rocked the midcard for a month or so.
HBK promo with Todd Grisham. Uh oh. It's serious HBK. He's got his silly cowboy hat in his locker that says HBK on it. Tee hee. Clenched teeth promo - that's when you know HBK means business. He says he's going to show everyone he still has gas left in the tank. That's good but unless Cade's getting a huge push, I'm not sure what's next for HBK.
Kofi Kingson out next. He has been kinda stuck in a rut since losing the IC Title. Here comes Priceless. So, apparently even though Cole said it's a tag match, it's going to be Dibiase vs Kofi. I really like the second generation stable but they really could use something to make them stand out a little more and not make them look like mini-Ortons. Here comes CM Punk... I guess he's going to be in Kofi's corner. Whatever.
Kofi always looks like he's having so much fun in the ring. You would think that with the popularity of Punk, Bourne, and Kofi, the WWE might get the idea that the fans don't want everyone's wrestling style to be the same. Heeeey! Dibiase with a double stomp off the middle rope. Nice. Anyone else think Kofi could be a Tito Santana for this generation? Occasional IC champ, maybe a tag champ once in a while. Can pretty much always lose and never lose heat. Dibiase wins with the Million Dollar Legsweep which I kinda enjoy. I'm not sure about Manu yet. I don't even know if I've seen him wrestle. He can't play the Wild Samoan thing though which hurts him, I think.
ECW Main Event: Punk/Kofi/Bourne/Ortiz vs Rhodes/Dibiase/Morrison/Miz. Holy crap. That might be the best thing I've heard in ages. That could be a ton of fun.
Jericho backstage with Orton. Did Orton get more ink done during his injury? Jericho says he's going to "put Orton to work." Ooooh - mysterious.
John Cena health update. They're making the Cena/Batista match from Summerslam look like some kind of epic war. I don't remember if it was any good or not. Batista's putting over that he fucked up Cena's neck with the powerbomb but that Cena was still able to get up. Cena's doctor! I love these. They always remind me of that nutty looking guy they had do Steamboat's injury updates during the Savage angle. Showing Cena in rehab. 3-4 months the doctor says. So, that means Cena will be back next week, right?
Kane! Mark Henry! TONY ATLAS! WHO GOT A CELLA PHONE? Dolph Zigler might. He introduces himself but no one cares - probably no one at home either.
Rey Rey on his way to the ring. Here comes that tag match that I really think might blow ass. And I'm going to predict that it'll be Kane who fucks it up. Cause Mark Henry throwing Rey Rey around? Golden. Mark Henry bitchbeating Matt Hardy? Amazing. I don't really get the Kane/Rey feud - I guess it's the mask but... eh, whatever. Matt Hardy comes out. Man, Mark Henry has come a long way from fucking around with Mae Young and Chyna. Plus, he's got Tony Atlas with him. TONY ATLAS! Here comes Kane with quasi-new music. I'm guessing he's had that for a while and I just never noticed. Rey adjusts his mask while Kane stalks down the aisle. I wonder if that was intentional because it's kinda cool psychology.
Oh! Enzugiri seemed to catch Kane in the cheek. Matt Hardy in there with Kane and I feel safe in betting no one will mention their prior feud. Sekshul Choklit in the ring. Double dropkick on Kane makes me wish Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson were still around.
Awesome. We came back from commercial in a chinlock. That'll put asses in the seats. Crowd's pretty hot for this one. Some nice legwork on Henry. Beautiful clothesline by Henry. He really has settled into the big man bully offense so well. Rey Rey with a weird springboard legdrop on Henry. Tony Atlas has a shirt with no sleeves and a tie. I think they may be bringing back the Right To Censor. Yeah, Kane's in the ring and this match just went downhill in a hurry. Okay, Henry's headbutt just looked so much better than Kane's. How is that possible? The crowd stayed hot but Kane and Henry won when Kane pinned Matt Hardy. I have no idea how that makes any sense at all. Okay match, I guess.
Pete Rose getting Tombstoned is your 24/7 moment.
HBK vs Cade is next. It's odd how Cade and Kendrick started getting pushes at the same time. How pissed do you think Paul London is? I always thought Lance Cade had potential but even with this recent push, I haven't seen it. Spinebuster through a table in about two minutes. I'm hoping this ends soon or that was just silly. Cade's got a chair. This would be a good time for Paul London to save HBK and defend his honor against Cade for a couple months. Nope. HBK fighting back. Chairshot on Cade. Chair beatdown on Cade. Way to sell that table spot, Shawn. And that's that. Horrible. Absolutely horrible.
Shawn beats him down some more with the chair after the match. He's got a mean look on his face. HBK heel turn? The fans are going batshit for him though. The announcers are still hyping a Jericho/Michaels feud. Really? The ladder match isn't the end of it?
They announce that Smackdown last week was the highest rated show in the history of MyNetworkTV. Well, that's really not saying much, is it? HHH vs Show for the gold on Friday. Might be cool.
Lawler in the ring announcing that Santino is going to be defending the IC Title at Cyber Sunday against a fan-picked opponent. Roddy Piper, Goldust, HONKY TONK MAN~! are your choices. Personally, I'm going for HTM. Goldust might be a better match but I'm still waiting for Dustin to come back and feud with Cody over the way he talks about Dusty.
Great Khali is here. Announcers talking about Johnny Knoxville. Is that one of the Jackass guys? Khali promo time. The crowd yelling, "WHAT?" which actually is accurate for the first time probably ever. They're showing the Knoxville clip now. So, Khali got pissed because Knoxville implied Khali's junk is small. Wow. This better be leading to a feud with Val Venis. More Khali promo. Where's a "HELLLLLLO LADIES" when you need it? Aw christ. Khali wants Knoxville to come to Raw next week. Okay... Khali is hosting the Kiss Cam. That's kinda funny. The camera showed Lilian who then got one laid on her by Khali. Man, I hope she gets paid well. First, the world's greatest love machine Viscera and now Khali.
Miz and Morrison sitting in on commentary. Awesome. Jillian singing Kurt Cobain. Not so awesome. Miz says he's losing the will to live - and cue Kelly Kelly. Kelly is looking more and more like Trish every week. Probably the goal. Cryme Time coming out too - they're going to be on commentary too. This is fantastic. Morrison yells, "I'm SORRY I have great abs!" They should let these four commentate on every match. This is the greatest segment in history. Morrison said, "Your dad is so nerdy, he wears his pants higher than HBK. Your mom is so fat, she has to borrow Mark Henry's belt extender." Morrison and Miz are owning this verbal showdown. I wonder how much of this is ad-libbed. I heard a "Vanilla Ice ain't got nothin' on me" in there too. Kelly won but the commentary saved a bowling shoe ugly match.
Batista's warming up. Yay.
Another video putting over Cena. What the hell? They've got HBK, Mickie, Batista, HHH, Maria all putting him over for going to the TV taping the same day as getting his surgery done. He must be coming back soon. This is a bit too much hype for weeks down the road.
Here comes Jericho. JBL's in. And cue the shenanigans. Regal is the guest timekeeper. Orton is a guest commentator - who actually gets a bit of a face pop when he's announced. And I hate to say it, but I think Orton's music is growing on me.
Typical guest ref booking. Jericho with slow counts for the face. Fast counts for the heel. Batista's going after the leg for some reason. Ric Flair mention for a Batista Figure Four. Orton hasn't said a word since he was asked a direct question early. Kinda cool. Regal works over Batista while Jericho "admonishes" JBL. Adamle sends in a new ref when Jericho gets bumped to the floor. Batista Bomb for the three count. Pretty solid match.
Adamle on the mic. Shane and Steph want things "shaken up." Adamle announces Jericho vs Batista for Cyber Sunday with the fans picking the guest ref. I'm guessing this is where Austin fits in. Choices are: Randy Orton, Shawn Michaels, or Steve Austin. Another wasted Austin appearance, it sounds like.
Show's over. It was... okay. Nothing that I would've been bummed that I missed for sure. Oh well - it's just another manic Monday.
My DVR was taping something else so it starts a little late. Jericho is in the ring, mouth all busted up from his ladder match with Shawn Michaels last night. No Mercy sounds like it was a hell of a show and I should probably check it out at some point. Apparently, Jericho is playing the role of GM for the night as he announces HBK vs Lance Cade in an "anything goes" match [I think that's what he said at least.] He says he's done with HBK and has nothing left to prove to him. Cue Batista.
You know, for someone who is presumably a pretty tough guy, Batista looks quite metrosexual in his tank top. Oh, but he's got a wallet chain. Back to the tough guy status for sure. He'll kick anyone's ass. The crowd goes wild for Batista's entrance but really seem like they couldn't give a shit after he gets to the ring. Batista's challenging Jericho for the title since he won the #1 contender match last night. I like Jericho as the champ but I don't know if I care about Batista as his challenger.
Oh, and Batista's sunglasses don't do him any favors either.
This promo is awful. Jericho holds up his end but when Batista speaks, my hand creeps towards the remote. Oh god. He spinebustered Jericho and yelled, "You mess with the bull, you get the horns." Wow.
Matt Hardy/Rey Rey vs Mark Henry/Kane is hyped for later in the show. I really have no desire to see that.
Recap of the Batista spinebuster. I never understood why they show so many "moments ago" recaps. So, during the commercial, Jericho announced that Batista will defend his #1 contendership against JBL. Alllllright. That makes zero sense. JBL lost the first time in five minutes. Jericho hates JBL and wouldn't want him to be the #1 contender either so... oh, Jericho's going to ref. Well, that'll suck.
Regal's at ringside. Cue Jamie Noble and Mickie James for a mixed tag match. I'm super-stoked that Noble is getting so much TV time lately And in a feud with Regal no less. YES! This mixed tag is against Glamarella. This just became worlds better. Santino's got a mic so the segment just got a thumbs up in my book. Santino apparently has been criticized for being "too ethnic" so he has adopted a new favorite NBA team - the Oklahoma City Thunder. I'm guessing they're in Seattle from the boos. Not my favorite Santino promo but still worlds better than most of what we'll get on this show.
Santino's wearing the OKC Thunder t-shirt under his singlet - awesome. Glamarella wins with a Santino schoolboy when Noble was distracted by Beth. Didn't get enough time to be worth a damn unfortunately. That could've been a lot of fun, I think. Regal/Noble brawl at ringside. Awesome. It kinda reminds me of that really cool Val Venis/Rikishi feud a few years ago that really came out of nowhere but just rocked the midcard for a month or so.
HBK promo with Todd Grisham. Uh oh. It's serious HBK. He's got his silly cowboy hat in his locker that says HBK on it. Tee hee. Clenched teeth promo - that's when you know HBK means business. He says he's going to show everyone he still has gas left in the tank. That's good but unless Cade's getting a huge push, I'm not sure what's next for HBK.
Kofi Kingson out next. He has been kinda stuck in a rut since losing the IC Title. Here comes Priceless. So, apparently even though Cole said it's a tag match, it's going to be Dibiase vs Kofi. I really like the second generation stable but they really could use something to make them stand out a little more and not make them look like mini-Ortons. Here comes CM Punk... I guess he's going to be in Kofi's corner. Whatever.
Kofi always looks like he's having so much fun in the ring. You would think that with the popularity of Punk, Bourne, and Kofi, the WWE might get the idea that the fans don't want everyone's wrestling style to be the same. Heeeey! Dibiase with a double stomp off the middle rope. Nice. Anyone else think Kofi could be a Tito Santana for this generation? Occasional IC champ, maybe a tag champ once in a while. Can pretty much always lose and never lose heat. Dibiase wins with the Million Dollar Legsweep which I kinda enjoy. I'm not sure about Manu yet. I don't even know if I've seen him wrestle. He can't play the Wild Samoan thing though which hurts him, I think.
ECW Main Event: Punk/Kofi/Bourne/Ortiz vs Rhodes/Dibiase/Morrison/Miz. Holy crap. That might be the best thing I've heard in ages. That could be a ton of fun.
Jericho backstage with Orton. Did Orton get more ink done during his injury? Jericho says he's going to "put Orton to work." Ooooh - mysterious.
John Cena health update. They're making the Cena/Batista match from Summerslam look like some kind of epic war. I don't remember if it was any good or not. Batista's putting over that he fucked up Cena's neck with the powerbomb but that Cena was still able to get up. Cena's doctor! I love these. They always remind me of that nutty looking guy they had do Steamboat's injury updates during the Savage angle. Showing Cena in rehab. 3-4 months the doctor says. So, that means Cena will be back next week, right?
Kane! Mark Henry! TONY ATLAS! WHO GOT A CELLA PHONE? Dolph Zigler might. He introduces himself but no one cares - probably no one at home either.
Rey Rey on his way to the ring. Here comes that tag match that I really think might blow ass. And I'm going to predict that it'll be Kane who fucks it up. Cause Mark Henry throwing Rey Rey around? Golden. Mark Henry bitchbeating Matt Hardy? Amazing. I don't really get the Kane/Rey feud - I guess it's the mask but... eh, whatever. Matt Hardy comes out. Man, Mark Henry has come a long way from fucking around with Mae Young and Chyna. Plus, he's got Tony Atlas with him. TONY ATLAS! Here comes Kane with quasi-new music. I'm guessing he's had that for a while and I just never noticed. Rey adjusts his mask while Kane stalks down the aisle. I wonder if that was intentional because it's kinda cool psychology.
Oh! Enzugiri seemed to catch Kane in the cheek. Matt Hardy in there with Kane and I feel safe in betting no one will mention their prior feud. Sekshul Choklit in the ring. Double dropkick on Kane makes me wish Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson were still around.
Awesome. We came back from commercial in a chinlock. That'll put asses in the seats. Crowd's pretty hot for this one. Some nice legwork on Henry. Beautiful clothesline by Henry. He really has settled into the big man bully offense so well. Rey Rey with a weird springboard legdrop on Henry. Tony Atlas has a shirt with no sleeves and a tie. I think they may be bringing back the Right To Censor. Yeah, Kane's in the ring and this match just went downhill in a hurry. Okay, Henry's headbutt just looked so much better than Kane's. How is that possible? The crowd stayed hot but Kane and Henry won when Kane pinned Matt Hardy. I have no idea how that makes any sense at all. Okay match, I guess.
Pete Rose getting Tombstoned is your 24/7 moment.
HBK vs Cade is next. It's odd how Cade and Kendrick started getting pushes at the same time. How pissed do you think Paul London is? I always thought Lance Cade had potential but even with this recent push, I haven't seen it. Spinebuster through a table in about two minutes. I'm hoping this ends soon or that was just silly. Cade's got a chair. This would be a good time for Paul London to save HBK and defend his honor against Cade for a couple months. Nope. HBK fighting back. Chairshot on Cade. Chair beatdown on Cade. Way to sell that table spot, Shawn. And that's that. Horrible. Absolutely horrible.
Shawn beats him down some more with the chair after the match. He's got a mean look on his face. HBK heel turn? The fans are going batshit for him though. The announcers are still hyping a Jericho/Michaels feud. Really? The ladder match isn't the end of it?
They announce that Smackdown last week was the highest rated show in the history of MyNetworkTV. Well, that's really not saying much, is it? HHH vs Show for the gold on Friday. Might be cool.
Lawler in the ring announcing that Santino is going to be defending the IC Title at Cyber Sunday against a fan-picked opponent. Roddy Piper, Goldust, HONKY TONK MAN~! are your choices. Personally, I'm going for HTM. Goldust might be a better match but I'm still waiting for Dustin to come back and feud with Cody over the way he talks about Dusty.
Great Khali is here. Announcers talking about Johnny Knoxville. Is that one of the Jackass guys? Khali promo time. The crowd yelling, "WHAT?" which actually is accurate for the first time probably ever. They're showing the Knoxville clip now. So, Khali got pissed because Knoxville implied Khali's junk is small. Wow. This better be leading to a feud with Val Venis. More Khali promo. Where's a "HELLLLLLO LADIES" when you need it? Aw christ. Khali wants Knoxville to come to Raw next week. Okay... Khali is hosting the Kiss Cam. That's kinda funny. The camera showed Lilian who then got one laid on her by Khali. Man, I hope she gets paid well. First, the world's greatest love machine Viscera and now Khali.
Miz and Morrison sitting in on commentary. Awesome. Jillian singing Kurt Cobain. Not so awesome. Miz says he's losing the will to live - and cue Kelly Kelly. Kelly is looking more and more like Trish every week. Probably the goal. Cryme Time coming out too - they're going to be on commentary too. This is fantastic. Morrison yells, "I'm SORRY I have great abs!" They should let these four commentate on every match. This is the greatest segment in history. Morrison said, "Your dad is so nerdy, he wears his pants higher than HBK. Your mom is so fat, she has to borrow Mark Henry's belt extender." Morrison and Miz are owning this verbal showdown. I wonder how much of this is ad-libbed. I heard a "Vanilla Ice ain't got nothin' on me" in there too. Kelly won but the commentary saved a bowling shoe ugly match.
Batista's warming up. Yay.
Another video putting over Cena. What the hell? They've got HBK, Mickie, Batista, HHH, Maria all putting him over for going to the TV taping the same day as getting his surgery done. He must be coming back soon. This is a bit too much hype for weeks down the road.
Here comes Jericho. JBL's in. And cue the shenanigans. Regal is the guest timekeeper. Orton is a guest commentator - who actually gets a bit of a face pop when he's announced. And I hate to say it, but I think Orton's music is growing on me.
Typical guest ref booking. Jericho with slow counts for the face. Fast counts for the heel. Batista's going after the leg for some reason. Ric Flair mention for a Batista Figure Four. Orton hasn't said a word since he was asked a direct question early. Kinda cool. Regal works over Batista while Jericho "admonishes" JBL. Adamle sends in a new ref when Jericho gets bumped to the floor. Batista Bomb for the three count. Pretty solid match.
Adamle on the mic. Shane and Steph want things "shaken up." Adamle announces Jericho vs Batista for Cyber Sunday with the fans picking the guest ref. I'm guessing this is where Austin fits in. Choices are: Randy Orton, Shawn Michaels, or Steve Austin. Another wasted Austin appearance, it sounds like.
Show's over. It was... okay. Nothing that I would've been bummed that I missed for sure. Oh well - it's just another manic Monday.
2008-10-05
Kimbo Is The Real De- errr... Maybe Not
Well, that was a bust.
Just when I thought things couldn't get worse for Elite XC, they have lightning strike them and totally fuck up their world.
The first bit of bad news came in the form of a text message informing me that Ken Shamrock had his head busted open while "warming up" for his fight with Kimbo. He required stitches to close the wound and no doctor would clear him to fight, effectively killing the highly-hyped showdown that EXC was counting on to save their collective asses. Now, why Shammy was having that kind of training on the day of the fight is another story altogether.
The second bit of bad news was the total scramble to fill the spot in the Main Event. Apparently Frank Shamrock was considered but the ultimate decision was made to promote former The Ultimate Fighter contestant Seth Petruzelli off the non-televised undercard into the Main Event - a decision apparently that did not sit well with Kimbo and his camp. This decision wasn't even announced to the arena crowd until ten minutes before they went on the air on CBS. That's just bad business no matter how you try to spin it.
The show itself was okay. A couple decent fights that failed to make absolutely any impact on me to the point where I can't even remember who was in them less than 24 hours later. The women's fight was fun. Gina had a decent showing and set herself up nicely for the big fight with Cyborg at some point in the future. Of course, the show also ran long again. Their time management is atrocious. They can't even manage to cut their video promos when they realize they're running long so of course, my DVR cut out before the Main Event which meant I had to catch all 14 seconds of it on YouTube.
Kimbo gets KTFO in absolutely no time flat.
Where does EXC go from there?
You have to book Kimbo vs Seth II and hype the shit out of it and pray that Kimbo dominates a rematch. There's money in a rematch but if Kimbo loses twice, his days as a cash cow are likely over.
Simple, huh?
My money's on the EXC fucking it up.
Just when I thought things couldn't get worse for Elite XC, they have lightning strike them and totally fuck up their world.
The first bit of bad news came in the form of a text message informing me that Ken Shamrock had his head busted open while "warming up" for his fight with Kimbo. He required stitches to close the wound and no doctor would clear him to fight, effectively killing the highly-hyped showdown that EXC was counting on to save their collective asses. Now, why Shammy was having that kind of training on the day of the fight is another story altogether.
The second bit of bad news was the total scramble to fill the spot in the Main Event. Apparently Frank Shamrock was considered but the ultimate decision was made to promote former The Ultimate Fighter contestant Seth Petruzelli off the non-televised undercard into the Main Event - a decision apparently that did not sit well with Kimbo and his camp. This decision wasn't even announced to the arena crowd until ten minutes before they went on the air on CBS. That's just bad business no matter how you try to spin it.
The show itself was okay. A couple decent fights that failed to make absolutely any impact on me to the point where I can't even remember who was in them less than 24 hours later. The women's fight was fun. Gina had a decent showing and set herself up nicely for the big fight with Cyborg at some point in the future. Of course, the show also ran long again. Their time management is atrocious. They can't even manage to cut their video promos when they realize they're running long so of course, my DVR cut out before the Main Event which meant I had to catch all 14 seconds of it on YouTube.
Kimbo gets KTFO in absolutely no time flat.
Where does EXC go from there?
You have to book Kimbo vs Seth II and hype the shit out of it and pray that Kimbo dominates a rematch. There's money in a rematch but if Kimbo loses twice, his days as a cash cow are likely over.
Simple, huh?
My money's on the EXC fucking it up.
2008-10-04
Game ON!
"When this postseason started, our magic number was eleven. Now we've got eight more to go."
-- Dodger Owner Frank McCourt
Need anything else be said?
I won't get to use my tickets tomorrow but hell, it was worth it.
-- Dodger Owner Frank McCourt
Need anything else be said?
I won't get to use my tickets tomorrow but hell, it was worth it.
2008-10-03
Shamrock vs Slice + More From EXC
So, a lot is on the line for Elite XC tomorrow night with their latest CBS Prime Time special.
Obviously, their big meal tickets are Kimbo Slice and Gina Carano - so with both fighters in action tomorrow night, this show becomes very important - perhaps key - to their future as a company. There's been a lot of talk that they're bleeding money, big layoffs at the offices, and even some discussion of having to sell the company to save it. Showtime has been rumored as a possible suitor as has a merger with Affliction. But one thing is for sure, if they fail miserably tomorrow night, the offers may dry up completely.
The weigh-ins today seemed to have some excitement - sex and violence. First, the violence. Apparently, all hell broke loose when Kimbo turned his back on Shamrock instead of posing for the obligatory staredown. Shamrock reacted in typical Shamrock fashion, shoving Kimbo from behind and screaming, "Don't you turn your back on me!" or other such nonsense. I guess it serves the purpose of some last minute hype for the fight though. The sex was a lot more interesting though as Gina Carano failed to make weight yet again and was forced to strip down to not a stitch to eventually make the weight.
Awesome.
Anyways, the big deal is the Shamrock/Slice fight and it has obviously drawn some attention from casual fight fans. A few people who I would deem that have asked me about the fight in recent weeks. It's a freak show fight in all honesty that would surprise me if it's worth a damn. This isn't a fight designed to be a masterpiece - it's designed for some star power to collide and ultimately, they hope that it's a big name KO for Kimbo to make people forget the James Thompson debacle.
Hrm.
Shamrock is obviously not Shamrock from ten years ago but I can guarantee you that if Shamrock gets Kimbo down on the ground, he won't fail down there like James Thompson did. I don't think Shammy has what it takes anymore - and I think he'll make the big mistake of trying to stand and throw - so I'm pretty sure that Kimbo takes this one but... well, it may be more interesting than some people expect.
Oh, and Game 3 is on too.
Did someone say there was a fight happening tomorrow night? I suddenly lost interest.
Obviously, their big meal tickets are Kimbo Slice and Gina Carano - so with both fighters in action tomorrow night, this show becomes very important - perhaps key - to their future as a company. There's been a lot of talk that they're bleeding money, big layoffs at the offices, and even some discussion of having to sell the company to save it. Showtime has been rumored as a possible suitor as has a merger with Affliction. But one thing is for sure, if they fail miserably tomorrow night, the offers may dry up completely.
The weigh-ins today seemed to have some excitement - sex and violence. First, the violence. Apparently, all hell broke loose when Kimbo turned his back on Shamrock instead of posing for the obligatory staredown. Shamrock reacted in typical Shamrock fashion, shoving Kimbo from behind and screaming, "Don't you turn your back on me!" or other such nonsense. I guess it serves the purpose of some last minute hype for the fight though. The sex was a lot more interesting though as Gina Carano failed to make weight yet again and was forced to strip down to not a stitch to eventually make the weight.
Awesome.
Anyways, the big deal is the Shamrock/Slice fight and it has obviously drawn some attention from casual fight fans. A few people who I would deem that have asked me about the fight in recent weeks. It's a freak show fight in all honesty that would surprise me if it's worth a damn. This isn't a fight designed to be a masterpiece - it's designed for some star power to collide and ultimately, they hope that it's a big name KO for Kimbo to make people forget the James Thompson debacle.
Hrm.
Shamrock is obviously not Shamrock from ten years ago but I can guarantee you that if Shamrock gets Kimbo down on the ground, he won't fail down there like James Thompson did. I don't think Shammy has what it takes anymore - and I think he'll make the big mistake of trying to stand and throw - so I'm pretty sure that Kimbo takes this one but... well, it may be more interesting than some people expect.
Oh, and Game 3 is on too.
Did someone say there was a fight happening tomorrow night? I suddenly lost interest.
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