Bones- The Santa in the Sewer

Christmas came a little early to Bones (a bit too early for my taste but I will take a new episode any time) and not only did we get a great holiday mystery, Bones and Booth got in some major lip lock (and gum exchange) in a moment that seems to have affected both of them more than they want to admit.

The dark humor in this show is the main reason I love it so much, and the way the mythology of Santa was woven into the story was hilarious, with all of the supporting characters getting into the holiday spirit and Temperance learning more about the joy and mystery of the holiday season.

The subplot with making Christmas happen for her dad and brother in prison was great, and Booth showing up at the end with the Christmas tree was great, I really hope the strike ends and we get more episodes. The end of the mystery part of the episode and all the Santas bearing down on the bad Santa and singing " Santa Claus is coming to town" was brilliant... and scary as hell.

The standout scene for me (besides the kiss) was Booth and Bones in the diner with Sweets... him wearing the hilarious elf hat and telling them he was all ears... just too brilliant. Happy holidays to my gang of squints....hopefully we get more of you in the New Year.

Dancing with the Stars - The Final Week

Finally at the grand finale week and we are down to our last 3 teams. Each of the teams have to do a Judges' Choice and then a Freestyle round, and the judges seem to be pretty persnickety with their scoring....

Marie and Jonathon do an okay first dance, and get triple 8s for their Samba. Marie seems a little jumpy tonight, it might be nerves but for the first time I am enjoying her less and have the feeling she won't be in the finale. Their Freestyle round comes later and Marie disappoints with her Doll inspired floppy thing that defies description. The judges aren't too kind and I can't blame them, it wasn't what I expected from her and know she could do better. The scores are the lowest of the evening with and 8 and two 7s. I still have to give her kudos for going so far.It's no surprise that she is eliminated and that leaves Mel and Helio to battle it out for the trophy.

Mel and Maks have a pretty good night of dance.Their first dance is the Cha Cha and they score a nice double 9s with a 10. Later is it time for their Freestyle and Mel doesn't disappoint with some hot moves.I loved the chair work and her making Maks her boy toy (as usual) but the Judges feel she could have done more. She gets triple 9s and the Spice Girls boo the judges from the audience. I don't think that I was alone in thinking that Mel was going to win with her outstanding performances all season. She certainly was the hottest dancer there after Sabrina got the boot.

Finally we get around to Helio and Julianne. Their first dance was the Jive that had a mediocre response from the judges and earned them two 8s and a 9. Nothing too impressive and for their Freestyle they rocked the judges' world (it was pretty good) and they get a 9 and two 10s. When all is said and done there is a point difference between Helio and Mel, with Mel leading.

I won't get into the ridiculous results show dances that our two teams did, as they both scored perfect scores and changed nothing. It was great to see all of the other teams and sheer joy to see Sabrina and her boyfriend Mark dance again. I still can't believe she didn't make it to the end and hope they do an All Star edition or something where she can come back and kick some ass, she is too talented. It was kind of a shame that some of the other teams didn't dance, but at least Cameron kept his word and off came the shirt for the finale.... very super indeed...

Anyways after all the requisite filler and our Walk of Shame with the ousted dancers, Celine sings a couple of tunes (that woman has pipes) and then we finally get down the the big moment and shock of shocks, horror of horrors, Helio wins.

I will give him credit for working so hard and being a giant grin, but we all have our winners and Mel B is definitely my choice.

Project Runway Canada- Swimming with Sharks

This week's challenge was all about making swimwear, each designer being inspired by a different era of fashion, and as an added bonus had a regular and a plus size model.

Biddell was even more the pompous ass than the previous week, all because he had immunity and thought he could just coast through this challenge. Mr Bully (aka the douche) reminds me of one of those chunky guys that over compensates for his flab by being a prick... and the other designers have all started noticing this as well and there is no love lost between any of them. I think Kendra said it best when she stated that she had never seen so many high maintenance guys before... honey it's the fashion world and most of the guys that work in it are extremely high maintenance.

The challenge is great and I love the fact that they have to design for a plus size as well. After all the drama and Biddell getting a kick in the ass from Brian, we finally get past all that and off to the runway.

The results were pretty much yawn for the most part.

Lucian's Gypsy inspired suits are actually quite nice but not a hit with the judges, but he gets through to the next round. The bully Biddell manages to get a passing grade but still thinks he is the best designer. Stephen was nice in a Greek nymph kind of way,and puts his foot down with Biddell who is shocked that someone would actually talk back to him so he pouts in the corner. This makes me smile.

Shernett was atrocious with her flapper inspired suits (yikes!) and Kendra had difficulty channeling Marie Antoinette into her suits which leads to her demise. I figured Shernett to be booted and was surprised.

Marie Genevieve rocked the house with her UK punk inspired suits and won the challenge. Pretty good for a designer who had never made swimwear before.

Heroes - Truth & Consequences

In what may be the penultimate episode of the season, things got pretty busy with our Heroes last night, and best of all Sylar started getting his evil mojo back on. The best news, Wonder twins, one down and one to go.

Suresh is turning into a more complicated character than I expected, and the resurrection and sequestering of HRG is adding to this mystery. Suresh sure seems to think he is playing on the side of angels but I think he will be in for a nasty surprise. We all know it's not a good idea to piss off HRG...

Monica and Micah do some super heroics to retrieve his dad's medal which doesn't end up all that well so hopefully we will find out some resolution next week. Micah's powers are very cool and I wish Monica had truly gone all St-Joan and used some of those martial arts moves on the gang.... are there more limits to her powers that we don't know? I thought she could pull out these photographic reflexes anytime... anyways I still love both characters and was ecstatic to see Nana for even a minute. Niki is waiting for a cure and hopefully she will be around for awhile... her character is too fascinating and it would be cruel for Micah to lose both parents.

Claire and family are trying to deal with the apparent death of HRG and Claire actually impressed the hell out of me last night. Great emotional scenes, and her confrontation with Elle was great.... hopefully we will get some knockdown action next week and see her kick some electric ass.

Peter and Hiro both learned more about the deadly virus (the infamous #138), and Hiro discovered more about Adam and with a quick trip in time even saw his father back in the 1970s... great acting there again and I just wish Ando was around more to be more of a balance for Hiro, they make a great dynamic duo. Peter is learning the truth about Adam slowly but surely, and with Hiro confronting him at the end of this episode it will be interesting to see on what side he will play. There is a storm gathering in Odessa and rumor has it 2 heroes will fall next week..... my guesses are Adam and Maya.... mind you with Sylar holding Molly hostage and waiting for Suresh it could be anyone...

Chuck VS the Nemesis

Things certainly started off well today, it looks like our favorite nerd has been picked up for a full season! Now if this Writers' Strike thing will end we will get all new geekiness.

I absolutely loved last night's episode; the return of Bryce (not so rogue and not so dead), the continuing drama between Chuck and Sarah, Casey being as abrasive as ever, and the hilarity that is called Black Friday at the Buy More.

When things get to the point in retail that you need a code word to signal disaster, (and to use the word Pineapple) you know some hilarity is going to ensue. The rampage scene complete with Jeff being knocked down by various objects was hilarious. The Buy More gang is growing on me more and more each week but still not sure how things will turn out with Anna and Morgan... complicated stuff. Big Mike was hilarious and I loved his slow motion run to the doors, vaulting counters and it was pretty damn impressive.

Thanksgiving dinner happened with Chuck and family and included Bryce and Sarah reconnecting and some more strife for Chuck. I was in awe of the Klingon coding between Chuck and Bryce against the new rogues, Fulcrum That is one bad ass dude in charge and he looks like a good returning villain. The fight scenes with Bryce and Sarah against the bad guys, how "super spy" they both looked, all perfectly coordinated and bouncy and shiny was great, and although they looked so damn sexy together you know I was still pulling for Chuck. Anyways the episode ends with Bryce going back underground, and Sarah deciding to go with him or to stay with Chuck.... we all know how this is going to play out...

Amazing Race - No chicken, no check-in

This may not have been the most exciting episode of the Race so far this season, but it still had some great challenges, the nifty new U Turn and one of the most graceful exits that I have seen in the history of the show.

The teams are still in Bingo, Burkina Faso, and all the teams have to get a gift from the village Elder before getting the next clue and continuing on their way. You might have guessed that they all get a chicken... which they need to bring with them on this leg of the Race to the next Pit Stop.

Our blondes decide to name their chicken Phil... I don't usually try to name my dinner as it complicates things later....

The challenges are interesting again, Shake your Pan or Shake Your Booty, and the majority of teams decide to do some tribal dancing to get their next clue. The challenge is very cool, you get to choose a dancer and learn some local culture, and Jen and Nate and Ronald and Christina were penalized 10 minutes for not being that good.... Jen will never live this one down being a dancer (huh?) and all....and I was chuckling to myself thinking that Christina must have insisted for Dad to dance as it would probably aggravate his hernia. Azaria and Hendekea performed well and finished first and later Kynt and Vyxsin rocked the house (loved the freestyle ninja warrior stuff) and the blondes bumped and grinded their way on.... meanwhile at the Gold Panning challenge Gramps and Nicolas finished quickly and were followed by TK and Rachel who decided the dancing was too hard and went for the gold. Loreena and Jason are still way behind everyone as they finish up the detour and head off to the next clue, which has the new U Turn. You can use this option once in the Race to make one of the other teams go back and complete the other Detour, and all of the teams pass on this option except the Blondes, who decide to slow down Loreena and Jason even more.

The games continue with the Roadblock, loading up a bike with tons of stuff and having to navigate the marketplace to find the recipient. The teams had a rougher time with this, the language barrier being the biggest challenge, and once all was said and done Azaria and Hendekea arrived almost neck and neck at the Pit Stop with Nate and Jen. Jen is quite the sore loser and whined about not arriving first and that all the teams deserved to win atleast once, and all I can say honey is that it is a RACE and you have to win the leg to get the prize.

My fave couple, the Goths, arrived 5th, and showed how much heart they have by actually being touched by the poverty around them. I think I love them even more each week.

Loreen and Jason arrived last, but even before arriving Jason impressed the hell out of me supporting his partner and saying that money doesn't make you rich,and his obvious love and compassion was the highlight of the episode. Good people who unfortunately left the Race too soon, and the Blondes better watch their backs as they have a huge target on it now.

Battlestar Galactica - Razor

Things don't get much better than this. After months of drought, we finally get something "new" in the BSG universe and it's a hell of a ride.

I won't get into a length recap of what happened, there are tons of blogs with those around, but this movie pulled out all the stops (as usual) and is still one of the frakking best things written out there.

It was sheer pleasure to see more of what happened before (and maybe doomed to repeat its self?) as we got to see what happened all those months ago when the war began and how the Pegasus survived to finally meet up with the Galactica. Although the story wasn't centered on Admiral Cain (the great Michelle Forbes), we did get to see her slow descent into hell as she tried to balance survival, deceit and more moral dilemmas than you can possible imagine.

The revelation that Cain had been intimate with Six (aka Gina the network administrator) was one that I did not expect, and I have to applaud the writers for including a lesbian relationship that seemed completely normal and accepted by all around.... I think this is the first time we have had even a hint of a gay character (although you would think there are several of them on the show) but how accepting everyone seemed to this.... kudos to the writers. Once Cain and the others discover that Gina is a Cylon, Cain's coldness and dismissal of her shows how polarized she is, and her hurt over the betrayal is pushed even further when Cain tells the interrogator, “I want you to interrogate our prisoner. Pain? Yes, of course. Degradation, fear, shame — really test its limits. Be as creative as you feel you need to be.”

The development of the XO character, Shaw, and her struggle to deal with betrayal and the new world order was fascinating and heart wrenching. No other show deals with characters on such a deep and intimate level. I kept wondering exactly how close to Cain she had been, there were more lesbian undertones than you could shake a stick at in the film. Shaw's acceptance by Cain is highlighted when Cain says, “Sometimes we have to do things we never knew we were capable of, just to show the enemy our will. You have to drop all natural inhibitions and become a razor for as long as you have to be.” The juxtaposition of morality and survival is tested over and over again and the scene in the colonist's ship is extremely disturbing.

It was fascinating to see how the story wove so easily through the past and present, and it was a great shout out to the original series seeing older versions of the Cylons (including those who spoke in that mechanical voice) and the Guardian models, the first in the human/Cylon hybrids. The back story via the flashbacks with a young Adama were great, and the haunting voice that kept repeating “All this has happened before and it will happen again” that was repeated multiple times with different characters added another level to the mythology.

The big shocker at the end, with the hybrid saying that “Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its end — she is the herald of the Apocalypse, the Harbinger of Death. They must not follow her” makes me wonder if it is the end for the Cylons or the humans.... and now with the writer's strike we may not know for months.. frak!

America's Most Smartest Model

I have already admitted that I am a complete trashy reality show junky, and have been catching episodes of this very nifty show on VH1 for the past few weeks. How can you not like such a cleverly named show that is trying to find that perfect mix of brains and beauty... and has the stellar Ben Stein as part of the judges.

The show is just best mixture of eye candy and stoopid people that makes it an extremely entertaining car wreck of a show to watch. Even better than StripSearch or that crazy Paula Abdul Show... but let's get back to this episode.

So the competition has been bitching and posing it's merry way for the past few weeks, and the last episode had the gang celebrating Daniel's birthday but unknown to them (seriously?) it also included the requisite "Edge Challenge", giving one of our models an advantage in the next Callback challenge. It was all about networking with some LaLa land VIPs, and only a couple of the models caught that and most were drunk and more stoopid. Russian guy Andre spent most of his time trying to get jiggy with some bar chick, Daniel was hammered for his birthday, Rachael was incoherently drunk, Angel thinks some creepy guy is hitting on her, Pickel is too friendly and very animated with his hands, but VJ and Brett catch on and do well. Once the gang finds out that it is a real challenge and not just a night out, it all hits the fan and Daniel has one major meltdown, which also entails him running around in his underwear and having one major tantrum. VJ wins the Edge and the next day has the most amount of time for the photo shoot and will select how much time each model has for their respective shoot.

It's all good TV. VJ is on a power trip and most of the gang hates him.

Finally we get to the Challenge and it's for some

Jeans Company and you have to pose with an animal. Oops!

VJ gets to choose first, and goes for the horse, Angela takes the goat, Rachael gets the donkey, Pickel snatches up the chicken, Brett gets the pig, Andre takes the llama and that leaves Daniel stuck with the ostrich.

Since the models have different amounts of time, VJ has lots of time to get his very gay pose down much to the chagrin of the photographer and judges. Andre thinks its stoopid, but he thinks everything is.

Angela gets too "posed" with her goat and Rachael doesn't fare much better with her donkey.

Things finally pick up when it is Pickel's turn, not only does he get in tons of shots, but he seemed to be the only one that really connected with his animal. It probably sounds more perverted and scary than it is, but it was great.

Brett manages to get a couple of snaps before losing the pig, and is traumatized for life from the squealing ... someone should send him a copy of Deliverance to see his reaction.

Andre gets all butch with his llama and actually gets the best shot and ends up winning the challenge.

Poor Daniel has no luck with the ostrich, and gets nothing but a panic ridden shot that ends up sending him home. Before the big elimination we are treated to another blow out between the guys (just a bunch of bitchy girls it seems...) and I loved how Andre was taking his shirt off while yelling at VJ... the boys are trying to unite against VJ and it's funny to watch them preen and strut. Like I said... more quality TV.

Project Runway Episode 2 - Sarah Jessica Parker's Sweatshop

The designers were in a literal tizzy when guest judge and fashionista Sarah Jessica Parker arrived this week with their next challenge, to design a 2 piece ensemble for her fall and winter Bitten clothing line.

The gang had to make a sketch, and then SJP would choose her faves and the designers would work in pairs to complete the project. After meeting with all the designers and choosing the projects, the designers are all worried about who will have to work with our organic crazy one, the way out there Elisa. Sweet P is paired up with her and it's time to shop and get to work.


I loved the idea that it was to be a design accessable to all, and that they had a huge 15$ to spend on materials so you knew it was going to be a great challenge.Things move along nicely, Sweet P gets freaked out by Elisa spit marking her fabric and there is lots of drama and bitching as the designers work furiously to make their designs with the hope of winning and getting their design in stores.

After all is said and done, Christian creates a monstrosity that is not well received by the judges, but it is Marion who fails the test and is dismissed. Victorya wins, and Elisa gets kudos for her work, showing that you can be kinda crazy to work in fashion, in fact it probably helps.

Pushing Daisies - Death by Scratch 'n Sniff

Last night's episode was sweet, not only did we get Paul Reuben's guest starring , but we got an interesting hommage to the Wizard of Oz, naughty Pop Up Books, Pie Cakes , Aunt Lily almost cracked a smile and a lovely rendition of Morning has Broken by Aunt Vivian. Can this show get any better?

The storyline was hilarious, our gang getting involved after a poor assistant gets blown up by a Scratch 'n Sniff book, leading to much witty banter and the usual unusual suspects. Our victim/villain is none other than author Napolean LeNez, who amongst other things has a super smell. Emerson smells like cigars, cologne and wool, Chuck smells like honey and death... whoa!

Chuck tries to get Ned to relax and accept the concept of Pie Cakes and continues in her plan to save her Aunts with Olive, Phase 1 hasn't been working that well so time to go to Phase 2, and to get those Mermaids back in the water with Sunshine in a box (chlorinated pool tablets).. this show is just too brilliant. Olive gets to try on a mermaid costume (wow) and bonds more with Chuck, although more than she is ready for.

The gangs discovery of the plot and their quest to follow the " Yellow thick hose" had me rolling on the floor, and our friend Paul Reubens as Oscar was brilliant. Oscar will hopefully be coming back as he has noticed something odd about Chuck...

I was a very happy camper to finally see our Darling Mermaids finally back in the pool, and their costumes were a real hoot. Best of all they showed in the preview for next week that Molly Shannon is guest starring and how much better can this show get?