Which one is adopted?

I'm not sure, but after watching tonight's episode of 24, I'm leaning toward Jack being the one that's adopted. There's no way he's related to those people. Maybe we'll find out later in the day that Jack's real father is Donald Sutherland, and these weasely wimps belong to some unsuspecting family that didn't realize they'd adopted a superhero. Then again, maybe not.

Buffy's Emma Caulfield has a Lifetime movie for Valentine's Day. I really hope it's better than Amber Benson's movie. I love the Buffy cast, but I can only torture myself so much watching their stuff. Please, guys, hold out for better roles...

CBS is interested in a pilot called "Twilight" about a vampire private eye in love with a mortal woman. As Zap2It says: Yes, we liked the show quite a bit when it was called "Angel."

This made me laugh - who would be your custom GPS voice? I (predictably) would go with James Marsters.

Disappointing

Did anyone watch Amber Benson's Gryphon on Saturday? Ouch. I tried, but it was so awful that I had to turn it off after about 20 minutes. From what I saw, Amber was good... but the plot just seemed so dumb, and the dialogue was awful, and the CGI effects were just laughable. Poor Amber.

I did watch all of The Dresden Files last night. I thought the second episode was a little bit better than the first - I liked that Murphy was a bigger part of the story, although the possessed cop thing kind of reminded me of something they did with Kate on Angel. (In fact, Murphy in general reminds me of Kate, she did even more so in the books where she was blonde.) I still want Harry to use more magic - he's a wizard, that's the whole point of the show!

I think what bothers me is that the show's pace is kind of slow... it's like Buffy without the action sequences, which leaves just the Giles expositiony scenes. Bleh. The thing I loved about the book was that it was so fast-paced. I mean, we start right in with a grisly double murder, and then bam! Harry's pulling all-nighters, summoning faeries, tangling with vampires, and getting whacked by mobsters with baseball bats, all while trying to prove to the police and the White Council that he's not the killer, even as more dead people are turning up with connections to him. Not a chapter went by where Harry wasn't threatened, beat up, kidnapped, arrested, or knocked unconscious by something. Now, while this episode featured a nice drive-by shooting, it still didn't pick up the pace enough to make the series compelling. I'm not asking for it to be 24 or anything (which is on in about 5 minutes, by the way), but still... twists and turns, people. Intrigue. This is a detective show, with magic. It can't be hard to make that interesting. Also, it should be funnier. Especially Bob.

Officially unemployed

Yep, today was my last day of work. *sniffle* I'm gonna miss it. I really did enjoy my job, and I learned a lot about the campaign and fundraising, and it was a really great experience with a lot of awesome people. Soooo glad I didn't choose grad school.

So while I file for unemployment, here's some things to keep you busy.

• Amber Benson's movie Gryphon airs on Sci-Fi tomorrow night at 9pm. Watch it - because Amber's cool!
• There's a discussion at Whedonesque about how the producer of Supernatural loves Buffy and wants James Marsters to guest star. I'm in favor of that idea.
• Also, an update: Drive, that Nathan Fillion series I know nothing about but keep mentioning, is set to premiere April 15 on Fox at 8pm.
  

This one's especially for Kelly.

I felt like you could use this advice. (However, this is not to say that you should cease talking to me on IM or reading my blog in order to stop procrastinating.)

Also, it looks like Fox has a mole. Oh, the irony.

And Knox College offered to send Stephen Colbert a fire-proof degree when he threatened to set his on fire on-air because Bill Clinton was succeeding him as commencement speaker. I have two things to say to that. First, Sunnydale High School should've invested in those degrees. And second, what the hell is Knox College that they get waaaaaaaaay better commencement speakers than us?

A random assortment of things

In no particular order...

Good news for those of you who didn't catch The Dresden Files on Sunday night - You can watch the pilot on the website or get it free from iTunes. Also, if you want to hear James Marsters' lovely voice, you can listen to the first few chapters of Summer Knight, the fourth book in the series, and the latest to be recorded as an audio book.

It sounds like Ed Helms (formerly of the Daily Show and currently on The Office) is a really nice guy.

Here's a podcast interview with writer/director Steven DeKnight, who talks about his work on Buffy, Angel, Firefly, and Smallville, among other things.

Are you wondering why they didn't get Donald Sutherland to play Kiefer's dad on 24? I was. Here's why.

Your daily dose of satire:

• Who wouldn't want Joss Whedon's grocery list?
• Like I said before, everyone in the universe is running for President. Except John Kerry. (Thank goodness.)

Oh, and by the way, the CIA is now on Facebook. No, really.

The state of our union is...

Well... strong (do they ever say anything else?), but it took the Prez almost the entire speech before he worked up the nerve to put that one out there. If you're like me, and skipped the live broadcast, you can catch up with this NYTimes transcript, which also has helpful links to other articles and background information on what the President has promised in past speeches or previous agenda items. Or go here for the Cliffs Notes version.

It seemed pretty obvious that this was a different President than the one who's addressed the Congress the past 6 years. I think we've finally broken his spirit. (Heh.) He seems to have grasped the fact that most people don't like him or his policies, the country is looking for a new direction, and everything he's worked on has either failed or is a disaster. Okay, maybe he hasn't figured out all of that, but at least he knows he has to be nicer to Democrats now.

As he usually does in the State of the Union, he called for bipartisanship and proposed several things to get the Dems on their feet applauding. However, unlike previous years, I don't think he can just disregard all of it and do what he wants when it comes to actually putting the agenda through. There was also a significant lack of huge, disastrous conservative ideas, like overhauling Social Security or No Child Left Behind or banning gay marriage.

The bulk of the speech was, of course, dedicated to terrorism and the situation in Iraq - about both of which there are few positive things to say. He sounded mildly less delusional than he has in the past, and fortunately, didn't provoke war (or throw out "fightin' words") with any new countries.

If you're curious about how the speech was received, this article seems obsessed with who clapped when, who stood up, who was sleeping, etc.

A few odd things I feel compelled to point out... that guy who saved the man's life on the train tracks? What the hell was that? That guy was milking it. Okay, I get that you're a hero, but you're not Elvis. There is no need to be blowing kisses to the audience when the Prez introduces you. What happened to a polite smile, nod of acknowledgment, maybe a little wave? Seriously, the guy practically did an endzone dance.

Also, is it just me, or is it a little tacky for the President to be signing autographs as he walks out? I don't remember that ever happening before (or maybe I just never made it through the end of the speech before) but it seemed wildly inappropriate. Although, my mother tells me that those are the most coveted seats, and Congressmen send their interns down as early as NOON to save seats (side note - what a crappy internship), so maybe they're expecting autographs. Hand-shaking I could understand, but the autograph thing is a bit much.

And finally, the Democratic response. Jim Webb? Seriously? That's the best face of the Democratic Party? I can understand needing to find someone neutral, since everyone else is running for President, and you can't give one a platform over all the others (that's what the spin room interviews are for), but they really should have picked someone who a.) was more well-known, and b.) had a more dynamic personality. I understand the whole war connections reasoning, but still... I'm sure he's not the only one who's fought in a war or has relatives in Iraq. I thought the actual text of the response was pretty good, though.

Be honest...

How many people watched the State of the Union last night, and how many people watched Veronica Mars? Since I find VM a lot less throw-things-at-the-TV inducing, I caught up with the Prez later. (More on that in a bit.)

So, anyone else besides Becky want a pet monkey after last night's episode? I must say, that episode seemed very much in keeping with our grand theory on who murdered the Dean. (The evil TA, in case you're wondering. No spoilers, Becky and I just figured it out, because we're S-M-R-T.) And I'm excited to see Mac (especially with a new boy) and I'm squee!ing at the LoVe, even though I thought Piz was absolutely adorable. I miss Wallace. And Lamb. Where the heck is Lamb? For being upgraded from a guest star to a regular cast member, he hasn't appeared in any more episodes than before.

If you don't mind a few vague spoilers, you can read Whitney's interview with Jason Dohring (I'm so jealous) at her Pop Candy blog, and check out pictures of the gang at Sundance.

24: The lighter side of terrorism

I don't know when 24 got this hilarious, but I seriously laughed through a good portion of this episode (in a good way). First of all, Jack's brother? OMG, was he adopted? Could there be less family resemblance?

And, oh yeah... he's EVIL. (If you need a refresher, he was the guy behind the nerve gas and the assassinations in season 5.) So I really didn't mind that Jack's borderline psychopathic tendencies led him to punch, tie up, and suffocate his brother. In fact, from the moment he showed up at the house, I was encouraging him to "make with the pummeling, Jack!" And - who'd have thought? - he listened to me.

But, again, I'm skipping to the end. This whole episode was pretty much begging for the color commentary. I mean, Chloe asking, "Why does everyone around me die?" Well, um, because you work for CTU, Chloe. Have you not watched the last five seasons? That place is pretty much a death trap. Not to mention, anyone within a ten-foot radius of Jack tends to, you know, suffer unimaginable pain and death.

And Jack and that helicopter... kind of hilarious, though I'm not entirely sure why. I feel compelled to transcribe the conversation:

Jack: I'm at the corner of whatever those street names were.
Mom: Kind of. Look up.
Laura: Just look for the big flaming helicopter. I'll be on the roof.
Dad: There's no way he pried that door open with an aluminum antenna.
Mom: And what happened to (whiny voice) "I can't do this anymore"? He's kind of a slacker. Four hours on the job and he's quitting already?
Laura: Well, he's back now.
Mom: Yeah, one minute he's puking up on someone's lawn, but the adrenaline rush from saving that one guy in the helicopter was enough to propel him back into action.
Laura: The bomb thing probably helped.

In other TV news, The Dresden Files premiered last night. The reviews are in, and they're... not so good. I have to admit, I was not as thrilled as I would have liked to be. I liken this to tuning in to Studio 60 (which I'm watching now, by the way) with West Wing expectations. A few of the problems I saw with the show:

• First of all, they didn't follow the book's plot. I had heard that they were going to do a two-hour show based on the first book (Storm Front). Now it turns out that's going to be a one-hour story in episode 5. The plot they used for the opening episode was convoluted and did very little to show off Harry's magical or detective skills.
• I felt a serious lack of voice-over. Maybe it comes from listening to the audio books, but one of the things that really makes the story is hearing it told with Harry's snarky narrative comments. Even though there was some slim voice-over action, it didn't really fill in the way it ought to. I was expecting a VMVO kind of thing, and instead got... well, I don't really know of any examples of lame voice-overs, but whatever.
• Maybe the voice-overs could have helped with this, but some things seemed confusing to me, and I've read all the books. Like, wanna explain who the High Council is for those not in the know? (Actually, it's the White Council, but I won't quibble, except that there's a whole color thing with the black and the white and the red vampires.) Oh, and who the hell is Laura the waitress?
  
• For someone who has one of the largest roles in the book besides Harry himself, Lt. Karrin/Connie Murphy made very little impact on me. (I hear they changed her name because there's a real Karen Murphy in the Chicago PD.) She's also not quite as "cute as a button" as she ought to be.
  
• I'm having a bit of trouble making the mental leap required to accept a character called "Bob the Skull" being played by a full-bodied human being. I think he's got enough spunk in him to provide the appropriate snark factor - "where there's children, there's snot" - but he's a little too wise, and not nearly lascivious enough.
  
• I would have liked to see more of Chicago... I had distinct mental pictures in my mind of what the places looked like, and it would be nice to see it. Of course, that might be difficult, considering they film in Toronto.
  

But, on the plus side, isn't Paul Blackthorne yummy? And just scruffy enough to pull off Harry "I laugh in the face of hygiene" Dresden. He almost makes me forget that he's not James Marsters. I think the show has potential, based on the source material, and I'll stick it out at least until the episode based on Storm Front, but sadly, right now, I'm not so impressed.

And now, for the sad news... Veronica Mars is getting shelved for eight weeks and, for inexplicable reasons, felt the appropriate slot-filler was "Pussycat Dolls Present: Search for the Next Doll." If that doesn't make you want to gouge your eyeballs out with a fork, I don't know what will. The irony hurts me.

She's in to win.

Unless you live under a rock, you've heard that Hillary Clinton is running for President. Along with everyone else in the universe. (And those are just the announcements from the month of January.)

Does anyone else feel like we're moving too fast? I'm still recovering from this election, I've barely made it back to work after the inaugural, and you want me to pick a candidate for President already? I mean, not that I'm not in a hurry to get this one out of office, but seriously, this is getting out of control. On the other hand, if anyone has picked their candidate already, let me know. I may be looking for a job.

Yep, this is my last week as an employee of the Rendell for Governor campaign. *sniffle* I will be moving on to (hopefully) bigger and better things. I did get an interview with the PA Department of Education for a legislative affairs position, so I'm not totally left without a future, but I'm really hoping for something in the Office of Health Care Reform and I'm waiting to hear back from them (if Rosemarie Greco ever gets back from her reform rollout bus tour). Keep fingers crossed!

TV talk

So, basking in the glow of the 24 premiere, this week coming up will see the premiere or return of most of the shows I'm excited about, starting with a new show Sunday night, that I'm recommending to everyone, sight-unseen. It's the Dresden Files, and if you look over there on the right at my links, you'll see that I'm a fan of Jim Butcher and his series of occult mystery novels. Well, lo and behold, they're making a TV show out of it, and if you like Buffy and Angel, you'll probably like this, too. In case you haven't heard my spiel, it's about a wizard named Harry (no, not that Harry) who works as a detective in Chicago, solving mysteries with a supernatural flair. I've seen a few commercials for it, and it looks good, although it's a bit disconcerting to not hear James Marsters as the voice of Harry (he recorded the audio books, and was subsequently offered the role of Harry, which he turned down). I wonder, if this series catapults Paul Blackthorne into superhuman fame, will James be jealous? Or kicking himself? We'll see. Anyway, Sunday night at 9pm, on the Sci-Fi channel.

Also returning this week is Studio 60 and Veronica Mars, at their regular times. The former is trying to re-brand itself as a romantic comedy, focusing less on the sketch comedy and more on the relationships. We'll see if that works out. As for our intrepid girl detective, Television Without Pity has an interview with Rob Thomas about the past, present, and future of VM. It's ridiculously long, but a good read.

Other shows that are on my radar screen for the future: Drive, the new show from Tim Minear, has added fellow Angel alum Amy Acker (aka the actress playing Becky in the movie of my life) to the cast, as Nathan Fillion's wife. Also, you may remember that waaaaay in the beginning of this blog, I pointed you toward a YouTube video of Nobody's Watching, a sitcom pilot that never got picked up. Well, somebody must have been watching, because it's going to be a primetime special in March. Woohoo! I hope it gets picked up as a series.

And finally, your daily dose of random: Become an M&M with the M&Ms character creator. Then you can make pictures and movies with your M&M character.

Good morning!

So did anyone watch the Scrubs musical episode last night? I only watch the show sporadically, but I kept hearing that their musical episode was almost as good as Once More With Feeling... plus, the writers and the star of Avenue Q were involved, so you know I just had to watch it. I thought it was cute... it seems like it would be hard to do a musical in just half an hour. How many songs could you possibly cram into that short amount of time? But they managed to sing AND still have a moderately coherent plot, which is good. I loved Dr. Cox's rant and the "Guy Love" song (it kind of reminded me of the "Surgeon and a Doc Above It All" song from whenever that was). And who knew Carla had an awesome voice? And the janitor! Everyone else was kind of so-so, but what do you expect when you force non-musical actors to sing?

A few more inaugural stories for you... I did indeed get to wear a pretty dress, Kelly. In fact, I wore two pretty dresses - one on Monday night, and one on Tuesday night (okay, one was a skirt/top combination, but it was all black, so it looked like a dress). I didn't get a chance to go to the spa... I thought about it on Tuesday afternoon, when I wasn't busy, but it's kind of expensive. I did, however, use the complimentary chocolate soap in the shower. It's kind of fun to smell like chocolate, once you get past the gross factor of using a brown bar of soap with little black chunks in it...

Another thing that I thought was hilarious was that the Governor, at the inaugural gala, FORGOT to introduce the Lt. Gov. It's the very end, and Bon Jovi's done his thing, and they bring out everyone to do a group sing, and then the Gov's like, "Oh wait, I forgot something," and brings up CBK. If that isn't indicative of her standing in the state, I don't know what is. So she gets up on stage, and we're all, "Oh dear God, she's gonna speak." (In case you don't know much about CBK, she's crazy. Like, really. Total batshit old lady crazy.) So she didn't speak, which was a relief, but she brings up her date, which is, weirdly, Mickey Rooney, and then he starts to speak, and don't ya know it, he's crazy too!

(Random side note for CBK story: When a president or a governor has to undergo surgery that requires anesthesia, they sign a document handing power over to the VP or LG temporarily, in case some crisis arises while they're unconscious. See The West Wing season 2 episode "In the Shadow of Two Gunmen" for more details. Well, apparently, the Gov had to have some kind of surgery and he utterly refused to sign the document. He supposedly said, "I'd rather risk a constitutional crisis than allow that woman to be in charge for five minutes." Which - ha!)

I'll post some fun links later today (if I get the chance), but I have to give a huge shout-out to Tim, for identifying my mystery FBI guy from 24. He's played by Scott William Winters, who you might recognize from a guest appearance on Angel, or the "do you like apples?" guy from Good Will Hunting, but I remember him best from his role as Cyril O'Reily on Oz. I knew it! I knew, in my head, I was thinking, "That guy played a retarded guy... I know the role I recognize him from, he was mentally retarded." And I was right! And I feel so much better now, having identified him. I shall sleep easier tonight.

More 24 talk

I'm a little behind, since I was in Hershey on Monday and had to tape 24, but I watched the second half of the FOUR HOUR TWO DAY season premiere last night. I thought the second half was slower than the first - I even found myself pooh-poohing the nuclear bomb thing, since they did that whole plot in season 2... until the damn thing went off! I definitely didn't see that coming. I thought it would take a few episodes and then Jack would stop it. Didn't expect prison break dude to set it off right then and there. That was a definite OMG moment.

But I'm kinda skipping to the end here. I'm curious why Jack had to go through all that trouble of tracking the guy back to Fayed... didn't he just escape from Fayed? Maybe if you went back to where you came from, you'd find him. Or at least a clue. Pay more attention when you escape, Jack. At least hostage family came in handy. Hope they don't all die of radiation sickness.

The whole Chloe love triangle thing bothers the heck out of me. I'm getting a definite amnesiac cougar vibe from that business. First of all, Milo is WAY too cool for Chloe. (Milo is way too cool for everyone. Jack Bauer tells him to do something, and he casually eats his popcorn.) They would never have dated. Second of all, anyone fighting over Chloe is kind of laughable. I mean, is this the same "I don't have time for your personality, Chloe" that we used to know? While I love Milo, and anyone with an accent, the girl herself was more fun when she had the social skills of a walnut. Bring back rude inappropriate Chloe!

OMG! Jack shot Curtis! That came as a surprise, mostly because I felt it was kind of unnecessary. Like, I realize he was holding the other guy in front of him, but you couldn't have found a less lethal place to shoot him, Jack? The sad truth is, though, Curtis was kind of just background noise... he never had the vibrant personality of a Tony Almeida (*sigh*) or even a Mason or Chappelle. He was just cardboard CTU agent. I'm actually surprised he survived as long as he did. And, of course, with Curtis out, Bill Buchanan will need a new lead field agent. Cue nuclear bomb to wipe the "I don't know how to do this anymore" right off Jack's face (or maybe that was vomit... eww).

Whitney has a discussion thread on her Pop Candy blog, and I c&p'ed two of my favorite quotes from the comments:

• "Don't get up" nearly made beer flow through my nose. That guy is probably still in the middle of the street waiting for Jack to come back.

• Okay, here’s what I can’t figure out (and which hopefully will be answered in a future ep). Bald terrorist guy spends the first 3 and a half eps trying to get the package containing the detonator and put in motion his plan to free nuke scientist guy. Said guy promptly blows himself, the one detonator and part of LA to smithereens. Then at the end of the episode we find out there are four more nukes.

  My question: where are they getting the other four detonators? Radio Shack?

Damn good question, there. Inquiring minds want to know.

Take that, Maria Shriver!

It's snowing! Whee! Snow is always fun - when you're looking out the window in your office building and don't have to walk/drive/shovel.

So today is my first day back at work after several days of adventures in Harrisburg/Hershey. I went up for the Governor's inaugural events - I drove to Hershey on Monday for the pre-inaugural dinner (the fundraiser Michelle and I have been working on) and it was foggy! Whew... but, random observation - when driving in heavy fog, listening to the Hush Suite from the Once More With Feeling soundtrack makes everything scarier. That stop sign looming by the side of the road? Becomes a spooky stop sign. That bus traveling down the road in the opposite direction? Becomes a spooky bus. I kept waiting for the Gentlemen to pop up on the other side of a hill or something.

Anyway, the campaign paid for me to stay at the Hotel Hershey, which is awesome. I could really get used to valet parking and Hershey kisses on my pillow and all that good stuff. We had the pre-inaugural dinner (black tie, very swanky) at the Hershey Country Club, which was also awesome, even though I got lost (in the fog, naturally) trying to get back to the hotel. And after the dinner, since most of the guests from the dinner were staying at the same hotel, there was an impromptu night of drinking and debauchery with the Gov in the hotel bar. (Although the Gov left before most of the debauchery.) It was truly a lesson in how not to behave in social situations. There were at least two people who got slobbering drunk and made themselves look like idiots in front of the rich and powerful of PA. I, on the other hand, made friends with the union guys, who bought me drinks and charged them to their boss's room. Heh, union guys.

The swearing-in ceremony was, well, really friggin cold. Naturally, we couldn't have the outdoor ceremony on Monday, when it was a balmy 50 degrees out. No, we waited until Tuesday, when the cold front rolled in. Seriously, whose idea was it to hold inaugurations outside in January? That was a stupid stupid person. Fortunately, the Gov kept it short... except the damn Rabbi talked longer than the Gov... we were all, "Get the cane! Get him off the stage!" And it wasn't even just that he was long-winded, he was also marvelously inappropriate (check the Philadelphia Inquirer for his comments on the Governor's many sins). But I was on PCN, so woohoo for me. I was standing next to Jaclyn and Dan Fee and there was this guy with a camera pointed right at us, so we're all, "Act natural." Then Jaclyn gets a text message from someone saying, "You're on PCN. You look good, but Dan Fee's hat is silly."

I got minorly lost driving back and forth from Hershey to Harrisburg, mostly because I didn't think to ask for directions, so I kind of just made them up. I looked upon it as a learning experience, which I call "getting to know the area" since I will be moving there soon (if Steve Crawford ever gets his ass in gear), and will need to find my way to Hershey so I can visit Christi (who, by the way, was too cool to spend time with me while I was up there. Like med school really demands so much of your time).

The inaugural ball was Tuesday night at the Farm Show. Yes, that's right. There were animals in the very building we were in, not one week before. All of us, black tied and fancy dressed, and last week there were cows. Fortunately, it didn't smell too bad. I was expecting much worse. The concert was awesome - there were lots of different acts, but the highlight of course was Jon Bon Jovi, who sang a duet with the Judge (that would be Mrs. Rendell). Which of course prompted the Gov to give me the title of my post - which is rivaling "Place your left hand on the bible, dear" as best quote of the inauguration.

Then after the concert came the eating and the drinking and the mingling and the dancing. Got to see a lot of people I haven't seen in awhile, spent some time hanging with Ben Donahower, who I think knew everyone at the ball. Then had a fun little adventure where Ben tried to break into a parking garage after midnight in order to get his car out. I watched. (He did get his car, by the way.)

And so, after a much less spooky (no fog, and different music) drive home, I am back at work (I did get the day off yesterday, which was nice), looking out my window, watching the snow.

I mean, working.

Drop the coffee!

Was that not hilarious? I mean, usually it's all, "Drop the weapon!" But no, Jack's like, "Drop the coffee!" I think he's losing his edge.

So, unless you're completely uncool, you watched the first half of the FOUR HOUR, TWO DAY season premiere of 24 last night. Or maybe you taped it. If you taped it, stop reading now, because I'm gonna talk about it. Okay? Good.

So... OMG! (That's pretty much how I start out all my comments about 24.) This season definitely started off with a bang (literally) - it's so interesting to see the show set in an America where terrorist attacks in the U.S. are becoming regular occurrences. When you think about it, 24 is kind of set in the future, since they keep adding years in between the seasons (by my calculations, the show is around 2010 by now). I have to think, though, that the idea of suicide bombers on our buses and subways seems a lot less frightening now than it did right after September 11th - like the fear has kind of worn off by now.

But hey - Jack's back! And, like season 2, he's got a beard (albeit much more Mosesy) which he shaves off by the end of the first episode. That's how we know he means business. Way to break my heart with that "dying for something instead of dying for nothing" line, Jack. But of course, we all knew he was gonna break out. I loved the looks on everyone's faces when they found out - like, "that's insane, how did he do that?" but also, "well, yeah, it's Jack..." and of course, within minutes, he's snapped back into his usual role of knowing what's going on, and being all commanding about it, and NO ONE listening to him. PEOPLE! When will you learn?? *shakes head in dismay* I know the man's been tortured by the Chinese for a year and a half, but still, he's got game.

Speaking of which, OMG Jack bit a guy! I had a brief moment where I thought, "Hey, maybe Jack's a vampire. That could be why he's so hard to kill. Then the Slayer's son/President would have to stake him." And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go write a Buffy/24 crossover fanfic in which Jack fights vampires with a girl who kinda looks like his daughter, except with less cougar. And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go write a fanfic involving Buffy and a cougar.

One thing I found disconcerting (and when you hear what it is, you'll probably find me disconcerting) was that, when Jack was in the subway, he didn't buy a ticket! He's getting on the train, and I'm like, "Jack! You didn't buy a ticket! You're breaking the law!" I think the next time I'm on the train and I don't have a ticket, I'm gonna say, "I'm a federal agent, there's a terrorist on your train, don't make a fuss," and see how it works. I think it's hilarious that a.) Jack still calls himself a federal agent - is he even working for CTU, really? I mean, technically he hasn't had a job since season 4, right? And b.) the conductor doesn't even ask to see ID or a badge or anything (which is a good thing, since Jack doesn't have them anyway, having just escaped from his frying pan/fire torture situation).

How heartbreaking though, when he stops torturing the guy and is like, "I don't know how to do this anymore." I kind of get that... I mean, the man was the KING of torturing terrorists, and now he knows what it's like. I think he finally understands exactly what his job has done to him, as a person, and it's going to make it very hard for him to just jump back into it the way he always has in the past. I mean, he's had obstacles, like not wanting to lose his family, and feeling like he has to distance himself from anyone he loves to keep them from getting hurt. But that always got pushed aside in the name of duty when he had to come back and save the world (or at least, L.A.). This time, though, the struggle is entirely internal - can he be the same Jack Bauer after everything he's been through? And it looks like the country is depending on him to do just that.

Final thoughts on the rest of the cast (yes, they do exist) - Milo! *squee* I'm so happy he's back, although I'd really like them to explain why and how he's back, after disappearing mid-season 1 to eat popcorn. I'd also think he'd be more sympathetic to Chloe's feelings, since he knew Jack personally too... Speaking of, love Chloe, but she did a STUPID thing, almost getting Jack killed for nothing. Wayne Palmer as President? Kennedy much? He's not as good as his brother, I can tell already. Although there must have been a bit of deja vu with the whole "asking Jack to die for his country" bit, since Palmer the First (that would be the Allstate guy) did that in season 2. (Although I guess there's not much 24 hasn't done...) I get the sense that the Palmer sister is going to be this year's "plot that no one cares about" except that that one FBI guy (the one who did most of the talking) looks SOOOO familiar, it's going to drive me crazy. Oh, and how cute that Bill Buchanan and Karen Hayes are married? I always hoped those crazy kids could make it work.

Well, I think that's all for now. Class dismissed. Your reading assignment is a USA Today article about 24. Oh, and sadly, I won't be able to watch the second half of the FOUR HOUR TWO DAY season premiere, since I'll be partying it up black-tie style at the Governor's inaugural to-do. I'll be back on Wednesday. Till then, watch 24!

The most hilarious thing ever.

Ever been listening to someone who was so boring you just wanna throw your head back and slide right off your chair onto the floor?

Now, ever done it on television while doing the news?

OMG I'm gonna go crazy

This place is NUTS. You wouldn't think that, with only 3 people in the office, there would be the potential for mayhem, but apparently, it's possible. Phones ringing off the hook, fax machine working overtime, lots of cursing and freaking out and such.

The problem being that we're about $1 million over budget for the inaugural... (On an unrelated topic, if you'd like to contribute to the inaugural or would like to purchase tickets, please let me know. Judging by Brian's stress level, I think it would be much appreciated.) Hilarious side note - Maria, the inaugural chair, went into Wachovia to get a loan (because they're so desperately broke), and ended up getting a contribution from them while she was sitting there - she's so awesome.

So now that I've shoveled my lunch into my face while sitting at my desk - because I don't have time to actually take a lunch - and will soon be getting indigestion, I'll post some stuff to keep you busy while I lose my mind.

Lots of 24 news, since it's coming back next week. ( FOUR HOUR TWO-DAY season premiere is Sunday 8-10 pm and Monday 8-10pm - holy crap.) If you just can't wait that long, there's an E! True Hollywood Story about the show on Sunday at 6pm. Looks like there's some exciting stuff in store for this season... and hey, she may be dead, but at least Slayer Nikki Wood can be proud that her son is the President. Personally, I'm just excited for the "Jack Bauer on a cell phone piloting a hijacked plane blindfolded" action figure.

Checking in with my other TV shows... Stephen Colbert and Bill O'Reilly will appear on each other's shows on Jan. 18th. I can only imagine how hilariously awesome that will be. (In case you live under a rock, Colbert based his persona on Bill O'Reilly's actual personality. Whether that makes O'Reilly seem funny or absurd is up to you.)

Tommy Schlamme (the lesser-known half of Aaron Sorkin's brain), oddly enough, had an interview with a Christian satire magazine, The Wittenburg Door, and talked about Studio 60. (News flash: Harriet Hayes is based on Kristin Chenowith. In other news: Duh.)

And finally, if anyone still cares about Gilmore Girls, Lauren Graham talked about the end of the show in this interview.

Okay, now back to work (a.k.a. running around like a chicken with its head cut off).

Because Megan is a funny girl

And because it's been awhile and I don't have much to say. Megan sent me this, and I thought it was really funny (it's funnier if you've ever ridden the Tube) so I'm posting it for all to enjoy.

+-------------- Bizarre Train Announcements ---------------+

Enjoy this list of actual announcements that London tube train drivers have made to their passengers:

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I do apologize for the delay to your service. I know you're all dying to get home, unless, of course, you happen to be married to my ex-wife, in which case you'll want to cross over to the Westbound and go in the opposite direction."

"Your delay this evening is caused by the line controller suffering from E & B syndrome: not knowing his elbow from his backside. I'll let you know any further information as soon as I'm given any."

"Do you want the good news first or the bad news? The good news is that last Friday was my birthday and I hit the town and had a great time. The bad news is that there is a points failure somewhere between Stratford and East Ham, which means we probably won't reach our destination."

"Ladies and gentlemen, we apologize for the delay, but there is a security alert at Victoria station and we are therefore stuck here for the foreseeable future, so let's take our minds off it and pass some time together. All together now... 'Ten green bottles, hanging on a wall.....'."

"We are now traveling through Baker Street... As you can see, Baker Street is closed. It would have been nice if they had actually told me, so I could tell you earlier, but no, they don't think about things like that".

"Beggars are operating on this train. Please do NOT encourage these professional beggars. If you have any spare change, please give it to a registered charity. Failing that, give it to me."

During an extremely hot rush hour on the Central Line, the driver announced in a West Indian drawl: "Step right this way for the sauna, ladies and gentlemen... Unfortunately, towels are not provided."

"Let the passengers off the train FIRST! (Pause...) Oh go on then, stuff yourselves in like sardines, see if I care - I'm going home...."

"Please allow the doors to close. Try not to confuse this with 'Please hold the doors open.' The two are distinct and separate instructions."

"Please note that the beeping noise coming from the doors means that the doors are about to close. It does not mean throw yourself or your bags into the doors."

"We can't move off because some idiot has their hand stuck in the door."

"To the gentleman wearing the long grey coat trying to get on the second carriage - what part of 'stand clear of the doors' don't you understand?"

"Please move all baggage away from the doors. (Pause..) Please move ALL belongings away from the doors. (Pause...) This is a personal message to the man in the brown suit wearing glasses at the rear of the train: Put the pie down four-eyes, and move your bl**dy golf clubs away from the door before I come down there and shove them up your a**e sideways!"

"May I remind all passengers that there is strictly no smoking allowed on any part of the Underground. However, if you are smoking a joint, it's only fair that you pass it round the rest of the carriage.

Personally, I was always partial to this conversation with Sarah:
Train conductor at every station: Mind the gap!
Me: What does that mean, 'mind the gap'?
Sarah: (thinks for a moment) Uh, don't fall in the hole?

*sigh* Now I miss London.