Sunday Morning Musings

OK, so technically, it's Sunday afternoon, but these musings have been in my head all morning. It just took me a bit to make it to the computer.

First of all, congrats to my spunkybean colleague, EJ, on his first "blogiversary". Why doesn't Hallmark make a card for such a momentous occasion? It's nice to get something other than bills in the mail, ya know? I think I'm gonna make a call. Anyway, good job EJ! We often joke that we share a brain on all things pop culture, but one area in which he has me beat hands down is Lost. If you're like me, and often find yourself fascinated but totally confused, look no further than EJ's recaps of each episode on the 'bean. He's super-insightful and also obsessed, which only benefits his readers.



Onto Survivor, where the "Fans vs Favorites" edition recently kicked off with the first tribal council vote-off (or "quit", if you ask Probst) of Jon Dalton, whose stupid nickname I will not repeat. Good riddance. This week, more time was spent with the "Fans" as the show attempted to introduce these ten people. As usual, it's going to take a while to get really exciting. I mean, the poor girl who got kicked off, Mary, had made no impression beyond the way she filled out a bikini. But, she was apparently alligned with the guy--Mikey B (ew, stop that)--who had big plans to run the show, only to be stopped by Joel, who is very large and hulking. Meanwhile, the goofy 40-something lady who still wears pigtails and looks a little like Ruth Buzzi is still there. (I know, I know, she had an immunity idol--it's gone now, as she soon will be). Also, Ozzy, sweetie? Word of advice. If you want to keep Amanda around for some more jungle lovin', best not to try to unhinge your jaw and swallow her whole, OK? Just relax.


Celebrity Apprentice drags along as well. I was sucked in early, and thus cannot escape its grasp. This week, Omarosa came full circle and was back in megabitch mode, calling Piers Morgan nasty names, bringing up his personal life and family in the context of a game show where money is being raised for charity, all in an effort to get him fired. Can we stop indulging this woman already and banish her from TV? Also, Stephen Baldwin called upon the cutest Baldwin, Billy, to help his cause this week. (For those keeping score, Alec is by far the most awesome Baldwin, but Billy's very pretty.) I totally saw Billy having drinks at bar at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills with Chazz Palminteri last August. Of course, no one I was with knew that's who he was having drinks with. (This is why you people call me at all hours of the day and night. Because I know this stuff!) So, who's Stephen going to trot out next? His sister-in-law Chynna Phillips? Maybe she can get that big Wilson Phillips reunion together. You know you want it. If you want some more laughs, EJ has the task of recapping this as well.

American Idol is kickin' into high gear at long last, with the announcement of their Top 24 this past week. A lot of these kids sound pretty good, but there are also many we've never seen before, which drives me buggy. Don has gone into painstaking detail on all of this, and I have a feeling he may even talk to someone who made the Top 50, but got no screentime, in the very near future. It'll all be at--you guessed it--spunkybean.com!

Project Runway is wrapping up, and they eliminated Sweet P this week, which was to be expected. She was a nice lady and made some nice stuff, but doesn't have all the tools to do an entire line. I agree that Christian and Jillian do, as long as the latter gives herself enough time to complete things. And that leaves Rami and Chris to have a "Three Look-Off" for the last spot at Bryant Park. Sounds like something out of West Side Story. You know the producers were snickering when they let Rami loose in the Greek and Roman room on the Metropolitan Museum of Art to get his inspiration for the last challenge. Like he even cared about the other two rooms he had to choose from. Giving Rami to choice to drape or not to drape is like giving Amy Winehouse the choice to smoke crack or not. The answer is obvious. I still think he'll end up beating Chris for the spot.

Lastly, if you're into Big Brother at all, I'm your girl. This special winter season started out of the gate quickly with the "couples" twist, meaning that the houseguests play in teams of two, including being voted off that way. Precious few of these people are very bright or very mature (I actually watched a little of Big Brother After Dark last night, and it was one of the most vapid things I've ever seen. But I watched it for about a half hour anyway.) and the crazy factor is way high. You have at least a month until anything new comes back, so please, join me!

Circus of the Stars Returns!

Well, not really, but NBC did greenlight this piece of junk from Endemol Entertainment, the good people who bring you Deal or No Deal and Big Brother. The thing that gave me the biggest laugh in the press release was this paragraph:

"This show will draw our favorite celebrities out of their comfort zone and into a stunning and magical circus environment that allows them to showcase their unseen skills," said Plestis. "It's a fresh concept from our friends at Endemol and is unlike anything else currently in the TV landscape."

So many untruths in there. First of all, I highly doubt this show will feature very many of my favorite celebrities. Secondly, I really don't think many actors secretly practice tightrope walking or lion taming, or even driving a tiny motorcycle around in one of those metal cages. And most of all, this is anything but a "fresh concept." I happened to catch a few minutes (OK, fine, hours) of I Love the 80's 3D this past weekend, and they totally showed a whole package of Circus of the Stars clips...Brooke Shields training dogs, Slater and Zack on the trapeze and Allan Thicke being sat on by a donkey, which I didn't really think was a skill. Anyway, this ain't nothin' new, is all I'm saying. Also, "stunning and magical"? Really? Maybe if you're five.

What they really need to bring back, and do it correctly (not with stupid reality stars and eliminations), is Battle of the Network Stars. I want to see Hugh Laurie against Steve Carell and Patrick Dempsey in that kick-ass obstacle course with the tires, and I want to see it now!

And since I'm here, let me remind you to check out spunkybean for all your American Idol and Celebrity Apprentice recap needs once again. Coming soon: Lost and Big Brother, which is my assignment, God help me.

Idol is Back!

It's here, it's here! The show that will save American television from ruin! Yes, folks, that guiltiest of pleasures, American Idol, returned to our parched and dusty airwaves last night with a whole new season. I already feel like there's something brighter and shinier about the show. Maybe it was the way Simon was genuinely nice to that overweight girl who plays football and has a sick mother? Maybe it was the way they actually showed more than one contestant make it through to Hollywood? Oh I know--it was the way in which Paula seemed lucid for most of the 2-hour premiere. Whatever it was, Don's got it all covered, and then some, over at spunkybean! Check it out! (you also have to read EJ's Celebrity Apprentice wrap up. Bring a lunch, read 'em both; they're that good.)

And since I'm way late on The Amazing Race, let me just say that I am over the moon that Nate and Butt-Chin were eliminated, on her birthday, and, it would appear, as a direct result of their bickering and her fuming over TK and Rachel. If she would have just focused on herself, my guess is they would have lived to race another day. As it is, I will be happy for anyone who wins this. Yes, even Ron, who seems to have been learning an ongoing lesson and truly strengthening his relationship with his daughter during the race. I guess we'll see on Sunday. The big question now is, when does the next Race start?

That was a Relief!

Well, even though I didn't actually see it happen, and therefore don't believe it completely, I understand that my faves, TK and Rachel, were saved from certain elimination last night on The Amazing Race by the second and final non-elimination leg of the race. This almost never happens to a team I'm rooting for, so that is great news to me. Where was I, you may ask? (You probably didn't ask, but I tend to overshare). Cleaning up and comforting my one-year-old, who puked his entire dinner up in his crib. Poor little guy!

I guess having two stops from India to Japan was what really did them in, and I really hate when one slip that's non-challenge related (though you could certainly argue that getting the best flight is one more challenge on each leg) costs someone the game. Of course, I would be singing a completely different tune if this were Nate and Butt-Chin, who tried desperately to win me over with a Borat reference ("King in the castle!"), to no avail. But, alas, there they were, all happy skippy in first place...until Jen thought Nate wasn't paying enough attention to her and...BAM! Another second place finish! I hope that's their entire story arc--never finishing first, ever.

Ron and Chris did a solid job this leg, but the man shouldn't be congratulated just for not berating his daughter. It's hardly something to boast about. And Don and Nick, AKA Grandpa Crusty and his Bitch (Don's word, not mine) benefitted immensely from TK and Rachel's bad luck, which, again, since they're my other favorite, is fine with me. I assume we have one more elimination until the race for the finish line.

I was also subjected to part of American Gladiators last night, which my husband tried to convince me means he does actually like sports. Mind you, he couldn't tell you the name of a current NFL quarterback or an MLB pitcher, but he likes sports, based on his love of this show and the late, lamented Battlebots, which had remote-controlled robots "fighting" each other. Sure you do, honey. Ah, well. Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali get to read stiff scripted "banter" with the contestants and the Gladiators also have horrible dialogue to spew before (and sometimes during) an event. It's really quite painful. But, if you take that part out, it's not completely without merit. Some of these people are insanely strong and agile, which is inspiring and entertaining to see. But not in place of Heroes. That's just wrong!

I also just saw this morning that another putrid, returning reality show, which will not be screened in my house (unless the producers wish to pay me) is Search for the Next Pussycat Doll: Girlicious. Yes, you read that correctly. The show has a subtitle this time around and it's "Girlicious". Which is way too close to "Fergalicious" for my tastes. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.

One more note today, which is to make sure you are checking Spunkybean often, as we are always adding great stuff to the site. This week we'll have EJ's hillarious take on Celebrity Apprentice (with, let's hope, less porn-oriented comments than on this blog) and The Don's Idol Preview, plus music and sports content if that's more your thing. Plus, get ready for my latest piece...an in-depth analysis of male celebrity hair in pop culture. There may still be a strike on, but at Spunkybean, we laugh in the face of bad TV...literally!