David Cross & Amber Tamblyn are Engaged!

Amber Tamblyn and David Cross Announce Engagement!

Does anyone else remember when news of Amber Tamblyn and David Cross' relationship first hit the blogosphere? It was wayyy back in 2009, and Tamblyn was 25 to Cross' 44. And there was just a little bit of an eww factor. Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate them both as actors, and find them incredibly talented. I still remember Tamblyn fondly from her 'Joan of Arcadia' days, and her recent role on 'House' was well done. And since I am one of the hugest 'Arrested Development' fans on the planet, I obviously appreciate Cross' extreme talent. I suppose an age gap of 19 years really isn't that huge (Ellen and Portia are 15 years apart, and no one said anything about that). I think the real issue is that Tamblyn looks sooo young, while Cross looks, well...sooo old.
But she's now 28, and he's now 47, and somehow that age gap seems a little more reasonable (until you realize that she's not even thirty and he's almost fifty! But I digress). They are officially engaged. In fact, they've apparently been engaged for weeks, but (smartly I think!) wanted to enjoy the engagement in private for a while before letting the whole world know. And considering they've been dating for three years it seems like they are a successful couple who will hopefully have a successful marriage. Really, congratulations are in order. And I mean that!

"Bones" vs. "Grey's"...all new episodes & sweeps

Do you watch "Grey's Anatomy" or "Bones"?
Here's when the new episodes are airing!
When they're both new, which one will you watch (take the poll)?

So, "Bones" is an all new episode tonight (the first of 7 new episodes!) and I couldn't be happier. In fact, I'm super relieved that I don't have to pick between "Bones" and "Grey's" (which is a rerun tonight). I've really liked the last couple of weeks where they've been alternating new episodes. It has almost lulled me into a 'awww, how sweet, Fox and ABC are taking turns' sense of calm. But, it's almost time for May sweeps, so pretty soon everyone's going to fight to the death cancellation.

I miss the good old days (of last season) when "Bones" was on at 8 and "Grey's" was on at 9. It was sooo perfect. "Grey's" had finally won me back (I originally quit watching around the 3rd season when Meredith was in her whiny look-at-me-suicide-who cares phase). And despite the disappointment of the musical episode I do care enough about Arizona, Callie, Mark, Lexi, and that baby that I'm willing to keep watching.


But just because I'm going to be watching "Grey's" doesn't mean I'll be watching it live. In fact, I'm really torn about which of the two shows I'll be tuning in during sweeps. I'm going to be watching the next two episodes of "Bones" (both new, while "Grey's" is still reruns) to see if there are hints of a Bones/Booth romance (and I mean a real one, not this game we've been playing for the last 3 years).
If Bones and Booth get together in any sense of the word, no way am I finding out about it online after the fact.

This happened once, will it happen again?

But then again, I don't want to miss the drama of Callie and Arizona's wedding either. And, lets be honest, "Grey's" is a little better at keeping it's promises than "Bones". At least Meredith and Derek ended up together, even if it took forever!

All I can say is, thank god "Bones" and "Grey's" aren't going to be competing again until they both have new episodes on April 28th. At least I'll have Hulu. Although I still think there's something special about the anticipation of watching a show when it first airs on television.

And not that it is in any sense a cancellation issue ("Bones" and "Grey's" are both way too successful), when April 28th comes I don't know what decision I'm going to make, do you?

Will You Watch "Grey's" or "Bones" on April 28th?

Grey's Anatomy Wedding Controversy

SERIOUSLY DON'T READ THIS IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO IS GETTING MARRIED ON "GREY'S" (also, there are spoilers about future episodes)

Well, all right, now that I've warned you...

The Grey's Anatomy Wedding

So, I was super concerned about the lesbian wedding that's coming up on "Grey's Anatomy". For one thing, is it even going to happen? We know how "Grey's" is at promising us things (Cristina and Burke?) and then taking them away. Luckily, there is now an 'official' date set for the wedding: May 5th. Of course, things are bound to go wrong. It wouldn't be "Grey's Anatomy" if they didn't.

There's been buzz on the internet that Callie's family won't be very accepting of her impending nuptials. In fact, there's some suggestion that her father won't walk her down the aisle, and that her mother's going to break the news. Well, at least that answers my one question about how shockingly accepting everyone seems to be on the show. This was also why I was pleased last week to see Mark Sloane's brief yelling match with Arizona, "You're not a family. Callie and I and this baby are a family! You're nothing!". Of course, Mark apologized before the end of the episode, and reassured Arizona that she was just as important as he was. There's now word that he'll be the one to walk Callie down the aisle, and that wouldn't surprise me at all.

Reviewing the Grey's Anatomy Muscial Episode & Looking Forward to a Grey's Anatomy Wedding

Was the Grey's Anatomy Musical Episode Bad?
(warning: spoilers!)

Unfortunately, I have to say "yes". Normally I watch "Grey's" sitting on the edge of my seat. Sure, I know that a lot of the drama is completely unrealistic and melodramatic, but I still find myself wanting to know what is going to happen next. Are they really going to take it so far that Meredith Grey is alone in an operating room with her hand on a bomb? Oh, they are? Well, then...
It's things like that which I have come to expect from "Grey's". And I didn't get any of that last night.

The drama surrounding Callie being hit (almost literally) by a truck and going into pre-term labor could have been shocking. I could have been sitting on the edge of my seat. But I wasn't, because every two minutes someone was singing. Singing next to Callie as she lay bleeding halfway through a windscreen, singing as they were in the operating room, singing and 'dancing' about sex (?) while life-threatening decisions were being made. Honestly people, do you want to distract me from the drama? How am I supposed to get sucked into such a melodramatic/improbable moment if you are making it even harder to believe? And, lets be honest, your singing isn't that great either. I wasn't even very impressed with Sara Ramirez (Callie) and she is a brilliant singer!

Shonda Rhimes, the show's creator, suggested that she'd like to do another musical episode. No thank you! I know that you drew a huge audience to this episode (13 million viewers!) but if last night's episode was anything to go by, those viewers won't be coming back.

Now, on to more important things. Is a "Grey's" wedding in our future?



Will Callie and Arizona really get married? I think we could use a wedding. Everyone knows you need at least one a season, and who else could possibly follow Cristina and Owen? I wonder how "Grey's" would handle a lesbian wedding, since gay marriage is illegal in Seattle (where the show takes place). The show has barely touched on political issues (probably for fear of alienating viewers). Sure, Callie's dad was not excited about Arizona, but other than that everyone has been fine with it. Is it really possible that none of the doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital are republicans or religious conservatives? I know Seattle is liberal, but none?? I'm not suggesting that "Grey's" should become a political battlefield (in fact, if it did I would probably stop watching the show out of pure frustration), but I am curious to see how they would deal with a lesbian wedding. For that reason alone I'm hoping the Callie and Arizona will really get married.

"Coming Out"

Coming out to America?

Have any of you been watching "Sister Wives" on TLC? In case you've missed it, it's a reality/documentary t.v. show that lets you glimpse into the lives of a polygamist family. There's a husband, Kody, and his three four wives (Meri, Christine, Janelle, and Robyn). In last week's episode ('Browns Out of Hiding') the cameras followed the family as they made their first appearance on national television ("The Today Show") as a polygamist family.

What I found humorous about the episode was the constant reference to "coming out". I immediately thought about how that term is almost exclusively used for gay people, and how bizarre it sounds when it is used in any other context.

But what makes the use of the term "coming out" in reference to a polygamist family so jarring? I think the largest issue is the relationship between gays coming out and religion. Typical understanding of this situation would suggest that once you come out your place in your religion is threatened (and more often than not this is true, especially considering certain denominations condemnation of the "gay lifestyle"). However, the Browns use religion to justify their standing as polygamists (as Kody Brown essentially says, "I made the decision of this lifestyle because of faith").

The sister wives* discuss the pros and cons of coming out (in the polygamist sense, not the gay sense...see how confusing this is?) throughout the episode. They frame it in many different ways. They talk about how they don't want to be ashamed of 'who they are' anymore, that they want to come out of hiding, that they believe that America has civil rights for a reason, and that they want those rights to be applicable to them. All of these statements could just as easily be said by someone who is gay and deciding to come out to their friends and family.

However, the sister wives are not gay (that we know of) nor are they necessarily accepting of the gay lifestyle. Just because they want their own freedom and safety to 'be themselves' does not mean that they recognize this right in everyone else. Sure, the "Today Show" did touch upon the relationship between their situation and that of gay people (Viera opened the segment by stating that America is full of different family configurations--"What defines a family has certainly changed throughout the years. These days family includes single parents, step-parents, even two dads or two moms"). Okay, so the "Today Show" loosely made the comparison, but why are news outlets jumping on the idea that Kody Brown and his wives are pro-gay marriage?




Their statements can certainly be construed to mean that:

"I really believe that something that works for somebody should work for somebody and it's nobody else's buisness."-Ellen Degeneres
"So do we."-The Brown Family

"I actually believe the state should never be involved in marriage. That is a religious choice, or it is a personal choice. It should not be something that the state is dictating."-Kody Brown (said in 'In Touch' magazine).**


I'm really not sure how I feel about this. In many ways I couldn't care less. If Kody Brown and his wives are okay being in a polygamist relationship then let them be in a polygamist relationship. Legally he is only married to the first wife, so really it is just a lifestyle choice to introduce three other women into the relationship. It's not bigamy since he is not claiming to be legally married to his second, third, or fourth wife. He is "married in faith" by their church. But that's not breaking any laws. If they ever argue that polygamist marriage should be legal I'm sure I'd be forced to take a real standpoint on the issue, but right now I'm okay with what they're doing. It's their life.

I do care slightly because I do believe that the polygamist faith can be built in such a way that it is demeaning to women, and although they could "just leave it" in many ways they can't. They don't have the resources, they aren't educated enough, etc. The fact that the Brown's dress in modern day clothes (unlike these polygamists) and are allowing their children to go to public school makes me feel better. But I'm not sure if any of those feelings are justified, or if I can really even hold such a oxymoronic opinion.

I also care slightly because I think it undermines gay marriage. Many Americans are definitely bewildered by polygamy, and I think a large majority would outwardly condemn it. Sure, we are willing to open our homes to it for an hour on Sunday nights, but it's highly unlikely we're willing to offer it legal protection. Aligning gay marriage with polygamy is problematic for this reason. Do we really want gay marriage to be lumped in with something that is (potentially) even more controversial. We've been arguing for so long that gay marriage should be legal because gay couples are in many ways just like straight couples. Everything in gay marriage (the depth of the relationship and the way that it functions) is similar to its heteronormative counterpart. The only difference is that in gay marriage there are two men or two women. Isn't it slightly problematic to link this argument with one that says that the number of wives/husbands can be endless? What I do know is that legal support of gay marriage is happening, but legal support for polygamy? I think that's a long way off.



*opps, if you don't watch this show/"Big Love" you may not know that all the wives married to the same husband are called 'sister wives'.
**I should point out that even if the Browns do support gay marriage, their church as a whole does not.

Here's another article that sort of agrees with me.