HIMYM: No Pressure

On tonight's 'HIMYM', Marshall agreed with me (first time I've ever written that in a sentence). He explained to Ted that his big 'platonic friendship' gesture with the Christmas tree lights was really an admission of his love of Robin.

And Ted did admit to both Lily and Marshall (and to a certain extent even Barney) that he really did love Robin. Of course, Robin found that out too, because he told her.

But by the end of the episode we'd learned a couple of things:

1) Marshall and Lily have been betting on their friends' lives for years. Writing bets on pieces of paper like, "Marshall bets Lily Ted will go bald and he'll pull it off", or "Lily bets Marshall that Ted and Robin won't end up together".

2) Marshall and Lily made a sex tape one time, and even though Barney found it, he couldn't decide if he wanted to watch it or not, so the obvious answer was to break Ted's VCR.

To the sex tape!

3) Robin told Ted that she doesn't love him, they ended their "if we're still single at 40 we'll get married" pledge, and she moved out of the apartment.

4) Ted told Barney that Robin was in love with him. Barney admitted the heartbreak he'd experienced (how he broke up with Nora for Robin, and then she stayed with Kevin). Ted told Barney that Robin and Kevin broke up, but he didn't react with a lot of emotion. I think that goes to show how much Barney really does care about Robin, and how hurt he was. Barney then even went so far as to tell Ted that if Ted ended up with Robin, it would be all right, because he just wanted her to be happy. (Or as he said, "Bros before Hos. And Robin's my bro"). Ted tells Barney he has really grown, and he's right.

5) Robin clearly still cares about Barney too, because when Ted confronted her and stated that she loved Barney, she protested a little too abruptly.

6) The worst part of this episode was the end. Ted, in voice-over, made a statement about how he was glad to be able to permanently close the door on any possiblitiy of ending up with Robin. And I thought to myself, thank god that potential plot is gone. But no, the writers/producers have to never ever make anything concrete, and the episode concluded with Lily trying to get Marshall to pay her because of the bet ("Lily best Marshall that Ted and Robin won't end up together") and he states: "not yet".

Seriously, writers? At a certain point you need to stop playing with loyal fans of the show. It is legitimately getting to the point where I may stop watching. Allow us some progression, you seem to always make small promises regarding plot development and then snatch them back. Stop it. Thanks.

Oh good, we're not getting back together.

New Girl Play By Play: "Valentine's Day" Recap

'New Girl' Play By Play: "Valentine's Day"


Minute one: Schmidt has already said "holla".

Minute two:  First dates on Valentine's Day are a bad idea. Even Schmidt knows this. Get a clue, Winston.

Minute two: Is one night sex the new one night stand?

Minute three: Did Jess just refer to her vagina as "little Jess"? Huh.

Minute five: "Bombing emotionally" is not good one night stand material.

Minute six: Schmidt and Cece make a great team. They both like the Phantom Tollbooth! Clearly they're soulmates.

Minute eight: Cece's boyfriend is high on magic mushrooms. Time to break up?

Minute eleven: Schmidt doesn't trust the youths in Jess' potential one night stand's sketchy neighborhood. He kinda has a point.

Minute eleven: Does anyone else think Schmidt has been suspiciously insightful this episode?

Minute sixteen: Everyone is fighting. Everyone. (Except not Julia and Nick, cause they have some weird/not so important B-story going on)

Minute nineteen: Schmidt just carried Cece out of the fight over his shoulder.

Minute twenty-two: Making out while someone is eating tacos is pretty tricky.

Minute twenty-three: That random hook-up guy isn't a web creator, and Jess isn't a player. Boy, what a surprise.

Minute twenty-three: Is Nick going to work for Julia's law firm now? Because that is not a good idea. Ever.

Minute twenty-four: Does anyone else think that Jess and Julia are looking more and more like each other with each new episode? Boy has a type.

Minute twenty-five: Now this is getting depressing (re: Winston and potential girlfriend).

Minute twenty-five: Depression resolved (re: Winston and potential girlfriend).

Minute twenty-six: Sometimes I actually want Schmidt and Jess to get together. Weird.

Minute twenty-six: And now she is actually thinking about having sex with him. Is this actually going to happen?

Minute twenty-seven: Oh wait, here's Nick. Ugh, I actually kind of wanted that to happen. Now I feel guilty saying that.

Minute twenty-seven: Oh good, Cece is having sex with Schmidt. The fact that Jess and Cece have similar taste in men is vaguely disturbing. I mean, they both wanted to sleep with him cause he smells good?!

Minute thirty: Jess calls Cece on the phone. She's telling Cece that she almost slept with Schmidt. But Cece is in bed with him. Awkward.

Apparently at some point Jess is going to make out with this guy.

Castle S4Ep15: Pandora's Box is Full of Jealousy

"Pandora"--Season 4, Episode 15. Henceforth to be known as: the episode where Beckett gets super jealous and shows it.

I loved "The Blue Butterfly" last week, but I was still excited to step away from themed episodes and back towards a more traditional episode  of 'Castle'.  I didn't want 1940s flirting, I wanted present day flirting.

We didn't get a lot of flirting in last night's episode ("Pandora") but we may have gotten something better, a jealous Beckett. Proof positive that Kate really does care about Rick.

The episode began, as 'Castle' episodes often do, with a body that had fallen out of a window. I wish they'd come up with other ways to introduce the dead, because at this point I'm becoming concerned that it's actually one big serial killer conspiracy, where they've all agreed ahead of time that pushing people out of windows and onto parked cars/wagons is the best way to kill.

Sorry, I got distracted.

Anyway, this guy isn't just dead, he's dead dead. As in, he was killed in multiple different ways, just to ensure that he was really and truly dead. Castle and Beckett and Lanie examine the body, and then suddenly Alexis pops-up. Turns out her newest internship is shadowing the medical examiner. I can only assume that the writers wanted to utilize Molly Quinn more, because there's no way that this is: a) a legitimate internship or b) that anyone in their right-mind would let a high school around murder victims where she might compromise evidence. Then again, this is a world where Castle is allowed to accompany an NYPD Homicide Detective on cases, so I guess I'll let the whole Alexis improbability issue slide.

Castle is less than thrilled with the addition of Alexis, because he says it will compromise the integrity of the team. I think that in reality he's worried for two reasons:
1) He's worried that it will distract/interrupt his flirting with Beckett.
2) He knows that he is mixed up in something with the mystery man and Beckett's mother's death that may become dangerous, and he wants to protect Alexis.

His apparent jealously of his own teenage daughter seems less childish now, doesn't it?

Beckett and Castle arrest a man who was almost definitely responsible for the murder. But he doesn't seem at all worried, even insinuating that all of their evidence will soon disappear. Shortly after this, Castle and Beckett wander down to the morgue and discover that the body is missing. When they return to the precinct, the murderer is missing too!

They look up information on both men, but no data exists.

Castle and Beckett pursue a woman who is apparently connected to the two men. When they enter her apartment they find her dead on the floor. Beckett orders Castle to stay put, while she checks that no one else is in the apartment. When she enters the kitchen, she notices a steaming cup of tea, and realizes that someone else was just there. She calls for Castle, and reenters the living room, only to find Castle standing there with a bag thrown over his head and a gun pointed at him. She is forced to drop her weapon, and her head is covered with a bag as well.

Beckett and Castle are driven to a secret location, and then the bags are removed and they are handcuffed. They are place in an elevator and taken deep underground. Once there they are greeted by men in black suits and tons of technology. A woman approaches them, who Castle immediately recognizes.

It's Sophia Turner, a CIA agent who he shadowed while he was writing his first book. As soon as Kate hears this, you can literally see the jealousy in her face. She is not happy.

It doesn't help that Sophia Turner (Jennifer Beals) and Castle have some sort of weird/intense eye-contact thing going on. Or that Sophia insinuates that she and Rick slept together. Or that basically their relationship mirrored the one that Kate and Rick have--he shadowed Sophia, he wrote a book about her, it appears he fell in love with her--the only difference being that Sophia one-upped Kate because she actually had a "real" (read: sexual) relationship with Rick.

Anyway, I was so busy interpreting all of this that I almost missed the rest of the case. Luckily I regained focus, because there's a lot more:

Turns out Gage (the murderer) is a rogue CIA agent, and the man he killed was a current operative. Gage is involved in some sort of terrorist plot. Turner makes Beckett and Castle promise that they will keep this classified information secret, and that they will share any leeway they make in the case. Castle immediately agrees (with puppy dog eyes), while Beckett tentatively does so.

Turner gives them special buttons on their phones so that they can contact her direct line. Castle's is big and round and simply says "PANIC". Kate is less than thrilled, admitting that Sophia really does know Rick.

Anyway, to cut a long story short (too late, I know) Beckett and Castle find a briefcase filled with surveillance equipment that is linked to the dead woman. As they are retrieving it, Gage finds them and locks them in a trunk (I'd think a guy like Gage would just shoot them, but then the show would be over, so...). Castle makes a funny reference to when they were handcuffed together, and how this is better, but Beckett points out that they're going to run out of air. She manages to break out of the trunk, but as she is doing so she sees Castle's face and realizes that he pushed the panic button. She is clearly upset that he asked for Sophia's help, rather then having her do the rescuing. This shows how deep her jealousy goes, because obviously she should just be happy to be alive.

Sophia uses her fancy spy equipment to triangulate who was making phone calls to the dead woman, and it turns out that it's a former CIA asset who everyone thought was dead. They get super freaked-out at this point, because he is known for his complex math problems where he would find one catalyst, one linchpin, that could set off a series of catastrophic events. They are able to figure out what he was saying during the phone call, but it makes no sense, it's all chess moves.

Beckett and Castle are ordered to leave, and Beckett does so happily, she just wants to get back to solving murders. Castle is more hesitant, and Beckett interprets this as feelings for Sophia. Beckett and Castle fight.

He goes home to try and solve the chess puzzle, she goes to the precinct. Castle actually cracks the code, and he takes it straight to Beckett. It is clear she feels a little better when he tells her that she is his partner, and he is not bringing the information straight to Sophia.

Rather stupidly (jealousy can make you do stupid things) Kate and Rick go to the meeting place that was indicated in the code, and meet the former CIA asset. He drags them to a dock, saying it is a matter of life and death, he also admits that he accidentally released information about the linchpin that would cause total economic ruin in the United States.

Suddenly, the asset is shot. And Beckett and Castle's car is pushed forced off of the dock and into the water by a black SUV.

END OF PART ONE

That's a lot of eye-contact, Castle. Stop it.

Cougar Town Wasn't Cancelled!? (It's new tonight & you should watch it)

If you're a fan of 'Cougar Town', you know that the show initially got off to a slow start. The beginning of season one, wayyy back in September of 2009, revolved around Jules (played by Courteney Cox) and her attempt to date younger men. Unsurprisingly, people didn't really find this an enjoyable half hour of television. I actually abandoned the show after two episodes.

But about a year later, I saw an episode of 'Cougar Town' on an airplane. I was shocked. The show was smart and funny and I wanted to watch more. So I did. I re-watched all of the episodes I had missed, and I grew to love the show.

In the middle of the first season, the show stopped dealing with Jules' "cougaring", and instead focused on friendship-dynamics, and the dynamics of a new (age-appropriate!) relationship.

Unfortunately, the show is still called 'Cougar Town', even though it now has nothing to do with women dating younger men or actual cougars. Everyone involved with the show's production recognizes how ridiculous the title is, and they poke fun at it during each episode's title sequence:

Despite the fact that the show is now an incredibly enjoyable half-hour of television, people weren't watching it. Whether it was the unappealing title or the fact that they thought they knew the premise is hard to say, but the numbers just weren't there. Even now, when I mention how excited I am about the show coming back, people know nothing about it (I enlighten them, of course).

Earlier this year, ABC finally decided that season three of 'Cougar Town' would air (almost 9 months after the second season finale). Focused on its other, more popular shows, the network hasn't been doing a lot of promoting. Bill Lawrence, the show's creator, and the rest of the cast decided to use a grassroots campaign to try and garner more viewers.

Using Twitter as a way to reach the show's fans, Lawrence and the rest of the cast tweeted about viewing parties that would occur around the United States. These parties would be attended by members of the cast, and would offer fans a chance to see two unaired episodes from the upcoming season, drink free booze, and generally have a good time. Limited tickets were available for all the viewing parties, and were awarded based on who emailed first (this may be the first time that Gmail has been used to promote a show).

Even though I didn't initially win a ticket, I was luckily enough to be able to attend Boston's party, thanks to a person I had never met before offering an extra ticket via Twitter (Thanks Christine!). I got to talk a little bit with Ian Gomez and Brian Van Holt, and I saw the season three premiere.

I absolutely promise you that the show is just as funny (if not funnier) than ever. While it may be a tad confusing for brand-new viewers, you should watch it even if you've never seen the show before.

Jules (Cox) is told by her boyfriend, Grayson, that she is "predictable". This leads her to do everything in her power to prove that he's wrong. Her friends, of course, side with Grayson.  Oh, and there's also a marriage proposal in this episode! And a scary kid wielding a hammer!

I ran into a friend of mine at the bar where the viewing party was taking place (long story), and she watched the episode with me. Even though she'd never seen an episode of the show before, she thought it was hilarious and agreed that she'd watch it again.

Basically, what I'm saying is that you should watch it too. Watch it tonight, and then catch up later. Give the show the numbers it needs so that it doesn't get cancelled. Please?

'Cougar Town' airs tonight, February 14th (Valentine's Day!) on ABC at 8:30/7:30C.

HIMYM: The Drunk Train

Tonight's episode of 'How I Met Your Mother' wrapped up loose ends and introduced new characters. In other words, it was pretty damn important.

Once again, Marshall and Lily were relegated to the sidelines. I can only assume this is because once the baby comes they will be the central characters in several episodes. The show normally does a good job of focusing on a few members of the gang at a time, and this week definitely belonged to Barney and Robin.

Unfortunately, it didn't belong to Barney and Robin. (I'm really never going to get over wanting those two to get together).

The Robin storyline wrapped up loose ends. We all knew that Robin and what's-his-name (just Googled it: Kevin!) played by Kal Penn were going to break-up soon. After all, Penn had only signed on for a limited number of episodes. The storyline dealing with Robin's infertility was brought up again too.

Kevin proposed to Robin, and she told him about her infertility. He told her he wanted to marry her anyway. But then Robin explained that it wasn't just that she couldn't have children, she didn't want children. Even though Kevin had always wanted children, he said he wanted to marry her anyway. However, Robin was sensible (for once!) and after some coaxing Kevin admitted that he did want children. So, they broke up.

Meanwhile, Barney and Ted decided to ride the drunk train together (aka the last train from NYC back to the suburbs). The only reason Ted agreed to accompany Barney was that he had made Barney go on a double-date with him, and Barney claimed it was horrible. He could not stop complaining about a girl named Quinn.

It turned out that Quinn (Becki Newton) had noticed all of Barney's normal tricks and shot him down every time. Eventually, though, she had agreed to sleep with him. Barney was clearly obsessed with her, especially since he complained about her often (much as he used to complain about Robin).

So, the Barney storyline introduced new characters: We've been told all season that Barney will have a new love interest who will be as much as a player as he is. Quinn is clearly that person. If we were in any doubt, the fact that it turned out she was a stripper at Barney's favorite strip club (a fact that she had hidden from him, and that he still doesn't know) highlights it.

The Robin storyline concluded with her being depressed in front of Ted (this is becoming a bit of a pattern). She was upset, and admitted to Ted that she wasn't sure she would be able to find anyone who wanted to be with her. Ted then told her that he wanted to be with her, and that he loved her.

Ugh. Okay, so I've actually seen this coming for a while. I even suggested it during my long rant about the episode that cruelly told us that Robin wasn't pregnant and could never have babies. Ted was the only one Robin told about her infertility during that episode, making him her person. He also did a big gesture (decorating the apartment with lights), and in Ted's world big gestures always seem to be romantic.

Even if Robin and Ted do get together for a bit this season, they clearly won't last. For one thing, Ted's children always refer to her as Aunt Robin. And he has two children. Unless, of course, the whole series has been a fake-out like Robin's pretend children were.

(Please no, I want Barney and Robin together! Ted is my least favorite, so he can end up with whoever).

In 'Glee' Winning is Everything

A Critique of "Michael", Season 3 Episode 11 of 'Glee'

There are two major problems with the Michael Jackson 'Glee' episode.

First, having Artie walk in a fantasy maybe, sort of works. But having Artie stand up in the real world before the musical number switched to black and white fantasy mode stuck out like a sore thumb. For a split second I actually thought, "He's walking?!". Also, Artie spent a lot of time early on in the series battling against his diagnosis, and eventually learned to be happy with who he was. So, why does he have to walk? It just lessens the show's prior message.

Speaking of messages, I think we can all agree that Sebastian purposefully throwing rock salt in Blaine's face was wrong. He knew it was going to hurt someone. And he did, he damaged Blaine's eye to the extent that Blaine needed surgery. He's quite the little psychopath. So, why does said little psychopath get away with his crime? Santana didn't resort to any horrible punishment against the Warblers, she simply got Sebastian's confession on tape. A confession that absolutely should have go to the principal. Sebastian purposefully hurt another student, and has no remorse. But instead the show makes high and mighty Kurt say that turning in the tape is not going to help them win against the Warblers, and he only wants to beat them with Sebastian. True, the tape may not help them win...but for once maybe 'Glee' should focus on something other than winning. Stop equating beating someone in a competition with doing the right thing. The right thing would be to turn Sebastian in so that he doesn't hurt anyone else.

The show likes to have their characters say that winning isn't everything, maybe they should show it in their actions as well.

These issues are exactly the reason that I stopped watching 'Glee' at the end of last season. Now that I've seen this episode I don't think I'll be back any time soon.

Zooey Deschanel is on SNL Tonight!

In case you've been completely cut off from pop culture for the last week, Zooey Deschanel is hosting SNL tonight.

If you're willing to drag yourself away from the new baby photos of Blue Ivy, check out Deschanel's earliest TV appearance ('Veronica's Closet', 1998).



Oh, and I guess you might be interested in watching her SNL promos as well:



Zooey Deschanel will be hosting 'Saturday Night Live' for the first time tonight (2/11/12) on NBC at 11:30/10:30C.

'Bones' is Back!

'Bones' is coming back on the air in April. Or, to be more precise, on Thursday, April 5th at 9/8C on FOX. New episodes will air for at least seven weeks, although it's possible that it will be expanded to 11 weeks.

UPDATE: FOX has revised its Spring schedule, and 'Bones' is going to be on Mondays! The season returns on Monday, April 2nd at 8 pm.

Get excited!

'House' is Over

FOX hasn't renewed 'House' for a ninth season. The current season, season eight, will be the last.

I loved 'House' from the very beginning, and even loved it as the cast lost Jennifer Morrison (Cameron), and gained Olivia Wilde (Thirteen).

This season, the loss of Wilde and of Lisa Edelstein (Cuddy) hurt the show a great deal. The cases have still been interesting, but the show has lost its tempo.

That being said, it's the end of an era, and I'll be sad that I won't have new episodes of 'House' to look forward to every week.