Category: TV

Episode Review: Star Trek:TOS – 1×01 – “The Man Trap”

Naomi Starsiak Leave a comment

Captain’s log, Stardate 1513.1. Our position, orbiting planet M-113. On board the Enterprise, Mister Spock temporarily in command. On the planet the ruins of an ancient and long-dead civilization. Ship’s surgeon McCoy and myself are now beaming down to the planet’s surface. Our mission, routine medical examination of archaeologist Robert Crater and his wife Nancy. Routine but for the fact that Nancy Crater is that one woman in Doctor McCoy’s past.

The episode really does pack a punch – lost loves, alien life forms and an ethical struggle.  The alien costume seemed kind of corny now, but the effects, like Nancey’s transformations, still hold up.

Things That Stood Out:
Uhura’s silver nail polish and Jance’s woven hair-do. They’re both just too cool.

“He’s Dead” count: 2

Episode Review – Star Trek:TOS – The Cage (Unaired Pilot)

Naomi Starsiak Leave a comment

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Buy Star Trek: The Original Series – Season One (DVD/HD DVD Combo, Remastered Edition) on Amazon || Watch Star Trek on YouTube

The copy I found aired after the first movie came out. It had an introduction by The Great Bird of the Galaxy himself, in which Gene talked about the process that brought about the pilot, the reasons way it was rejected and how parts of it managed to make into the show.

The special effects really got my attention. While today we can have a computer make a life-like rendering of a ship moving through space, back then a lot of thought went into how to do things – the credit shot with the backdrop, moving stars, scale modal combo is effective in conveying motion.

Also, I need to mention the fact that Jeffery Hunter was hot!

Moments That Really Stood Out:
1. The character of Spock – in this episode he isn’t the Vulcan we know, but just some alien who is fine smiling when he comes upon a humming plant.
2. The line said by Vina – “They rebuilt me, everything works, but they had never seen a human. they had no guide for putting me back together.” This stood out because of it similarity too a line from the Doctor Who episode Empty Child/Doctor Dances.

Why You Should Watch Vengeance Unlimited (if you can)

Tabz Leave a comment

vengenceunlimitedNot many people remember the short-lived TV series Vengeance Unlimited. It ran in 1998 to 1999 for one season and only had 16 episodes, having succumb to the overwhelming power of it’s rival for the time slot – Friends.

Michael Madsen plays the lead character, Mr. Chapel. You may know Madsen better from his tough guy roles in various films including his memorable character, “Mr. Blonde” in Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs. He brings the same flavor of tough guy, slightly crazy acting to his role as the mysterious Mr. Chapel and his performance in the role is one of the highlights of the series.

The show’s premise is Mr. Chapel’s line of work – Vengeance. Much like the A-Team if you have a problem and need help you can hire Mr. Chapel to exact revenge on those who have wronged you. Dishing out his special brand of justice isn’t for free of course: clients either pay $1 million dollars or promise to do Mr. Chapel a favor in the future. The favor of course can be anytime, anywhere, doing whatever Mr. Chapel requires. Sometimes this favor borders on the illegal and unethical and sometimes it’s the mundane. One of the longstanding jokes of the series is when Mr. Chapel cashes in the favor and it’s been paid he tells them they’re off the hook and the former client response “thank God!”

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Destroy Build Destroy!

Scott Williamson Leave a comment

dbd_32
Want to build and destroy at home? Play Blast Works: Build, Trade, Destroy for Wii!

Watch Destroy Build Destroy tomorrow (June 20th) on Cartoon Network!

Ok. We’ve all seen Robot Wars and it’s variants – the shows where teams build, well, robots and try to inflict enough damage to another teams creations to win a competition. And then we’ve seen Junkyard Wars, where people take stuff that looks like it was left over from a massive Robot Wars competition, build a solution to solve a problem and win a prize. Yeah. Great. But wait – Coming to Cartoon Network, branded under a “CN Real” tag, is combining the best bits of both – and adding explosives.

And judging from the promo clip, rocket launchers.

“Destroy Build Destroy” does just what the name implies, the show wrecks vehicles, machinery, what-have-you and then the two teams of teenagers (yes – teenagers …with rocket launchers…) go to work. With help/cheerleading from the host, Andrew W.K., two teams build working gadgets from the wreckage and then… destroy them. According to tv.com, the premier pits Skaters against the Math Club, who are tasked to “build flying machines that attack each other”.

You know, I used to be amazed – and maybe a little jealous – of the really cool toys that weren’t around when I was little – like Mindstorm Legos, or even the pirate sets. Now they’re giving teens freakin’ rocket launchers! I so could have used one of those.

Promo:

So You Think You Can Dance – Top 18

Naomi Starsiak Leave a comment

Last week saw Paris and Tony’s departure from the contest (I so called it!).

The big fluff bit of the week was “Big Secrets!”, so we found out about Randi talking to her dog on the phone, Ade’s full name is even harder to pronounce then Kupono’s, Caitlin can do a dinosaur impersonation, Brandon has never been to a gym, Asuka blows spit bubbles, Max likes to cook (OMG! Likes to dance AND COOKS!!! Marry me!!!), Jonathan sings — badly, Jeanine has a teddy bear and on her first day of school, Ashley threw up.

On to the dances!

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11 Big Reasons to watch Big Brother

Heidi Leave a comment

Big Brother is a reality show that comes around every summer, and one winter during the writer’s strike.  They stick a number of people in a house and let them fight it out until the summer’s end.  Well, sort of.

This year’s Big Brother begins July 9th.  Check out the details at http://www.cbs.com/primetime/big_brother/

Since this is season 11, here are 11 reasons you should watch Big Brother this summer.

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TV fans to raise $150,000 for Charity at the 4th Annual “Can’t Stop The Serenity” Worldwide Movie Screenings

Tabz Leave a comment

cstsFrom May and September 2009, fans of popular cult television and film writer/director Joss Whedon, will gather worldwide to raise money for Equality Now, a charity dedicated to promoting the human rights of beleaguered women and girls.

For the fourth year in a row, thousands of people around the world will participate in “Can’t Stop the Serenity” fund-raising events to benefit Says Amanda Sullivan, director of Equality Now: “Amazing as it is, we are heading into our fourth season of CSTS global screenings! It is a difficult time for us and a difficult time for everyone right now. So it’s especially important for all of you to know how grateful all of us at Equality Now are, and will always be, for the commitment to gender equality the Browncoats have demonstrated through their hard work and generosity.” Browncoats, like many other television fans, are dedicated to their fandom. The story of Firefly and Serenity is an interesting case in popular culture. Firefly premiered on the Fox Network experiencing a short run from September to December of 2002, before being cancelled mid-season due to low ratings and artistic disagreements with its creator, Joss Whedon. Many fans believe the show was a victim of poor promotion coupled with a bad time slot. Not content with the show’s release on DVD in 2004, the Browncoats grew in number, thriving on any content related to Firefly and bolstering DVD sales enough to merit creation of a movie epilogue to the series in 2005: Serenity.

Most fan stories usually end there, but inspired by Whedon’s fiery post on Whedonesque.com in response to the senseless “honor killing” of young Du’a Khalil, his fans continue to go above and beyond to focus their enthusiasm and community into a force for good. He says, “…All I ask is this: Do something. Try something. Speaking out, showing up, writing a letter, a check, a strongly worded e-mail. Pick a cause – there are few unworthy ones…”

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Why You Should Be Watching Tru Calling

AthenaMuze Leave a comment

truecalling
Buy Tru Calling – The Complete First Season on Amazon.

Tru Calling has a lot to offer the average Joss fan, not the least of them being our beloved Eliza Dushku. Eliza plays the title character, and as Tru she crusades about saving helpless victims using a supernatural talent that came upon her suddenly. Sound familiar? The show takes this theme and delves into new ground, exploring the idea of a normal girl gaining the power and responsibility of saving lives. Though in this case, Tru is an adult rather than an adolescent, and her power does not put her in danger as much it does those around her.

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