Let's use some of those tags I've got there...

Remember when I used to post TV news here? Well, it's been a long, slow summer, but we're starting to get more interesting things to talk about again.

First up, HIMYM tidbits for next season. Two words: musical episode.

Also, David Anders will be on next season's 24. He is, like, my second favorite blond, immortal misunderstood TV villain with a fake British accent. (On Heroes, anyway. No word on whether he'll be doing the accent on 24.)

And finally, in honor of the season premiere Sunday night (omg I love this show), Which Mad Man are you? I'm apparently Salvatore, which cracks me all up.

Oh, and for those of you who might be jealous, Megan and I will be in New Jersey this weekend, as James Marsters has decided to come visit our Garden State again. :)

Happy chocolate bunny day

Hope everyone had a good Easter. Mine was remarkably uneventful, despite the history-making dinner hosted by my cousin and her boyfriend, which included all of his family, all of our family, two dogs, two cats, and a baby. The best part was when Aunt Judy showed up with the convent's dog, Sister Penny, and Mike's dog, Robo got verrrrry interested. We're all, "Robo, she's a nun! She's never seen a male dog before!"

Anyway, fun stuff for today: working around the HIMYM baby bumps, and the Modesto Bee talks about their hometown boy, James Marsters ("That kid is gonna get his @*# kicked.").

Also, if you haven't heard about Amazonfail yet, you're not paying attention. There are plenty of theories, including the hacker theory and the incompetence theory, but the one I'm not buying is the Amazon hates gays theory - even if they didn't have a reputation for being liberal, they're not going to do something this blatant when it hurts their bottom line.

Plus, once I ordered something from Amazon and it took them three tries to find my house. I'm voting for incompetence.

Linky stuff

This is so unfair: Kal Penn gets a job at the White House, and I can't? WTF?

Interview with Rashida Jones about Parks & Recreation.

This is kind of weird - CBS made a Barney/Robin video called BRo Love. It kind of looks like a fan video you'd see posted on youtube, not something produced by the network, but I guess HIMYM has always been a little unusual.

Speaking of youtube, I am dead from cuteness: James Marsters playing guitar with his son. Also, check out their other videos - they made an "epic film." :)

Stuff

Went to the dentist today - I have cavities. :( Funny, my teeth felt fine before, but now that I know, they hurt.

Anyway, Ted is getting another new girlfriend on HIMYM. DirecTV will be airing canceled shows, and is working on a deal for more Friday Night Lights (yay!). And depression on the Veronica Mars movie front.

More stuff!

Took a time-out from work to watch the Inauguration ceremony, and now I'm back with a whole bunch of TV news (since I know that's what you really care about).

Interviews with both the final Cylon and the character who died in Friday's episode. (I'm not spoiling because I want you all to watch the show!!) Also, Tahmoh Penikett talks about BSG and Dollhouse.

Good news on the Mad Men front - Matt Weiner's contract issues have been resolved, so he'll be back at the helm for season 3.

Rob Thomas is writing the Veronica Mars movie!! Which puts them one step ahead of the Dr. Horrible sequel, which is still in the "everybody wants to do it, but Joss hasn't actually written it yet" stage.

And finally, more casting news: Ted is getting a new girlfriend, but she's probably not the Mother.

Happy Inauguration Day!

I'll be back with more stuff later on, but first I wanted to post a few links from Friday that I never got up.

Casting news: Scott Bakula will be playing Chuck's father, and Amy Ryan is coming back to The Office. Plus, an interview with Josh Radnor.

I think Battlestar Galactica fried my brain this week (in a good way). Between that and Friday Night Lights, it might be too much awesome for one night.

Some interesting stuff

Well, apparently a decision has been made on my grad school application (or so says my email from GW), but they don't seem to want to tell me what it is. I was informed via email that I would be receiving a letter in 5-7 days, and I could view my admissions decision online. Except... I go online, and it still says "application is being reviewed." What does it mean??

This makes it all better, though: the HIMYM cast acting out the best moments of 2008. Also, Rob Thomas has started production on show #6457 since Veronica Mars... did we know about this one? It stars some VM alums, Ryan Hansen and Ken Marino, and has Paul Rudd as an executive producer. Plus, Kristin Chenowith has a new show already, in which she plays an occasionally psychotic lawyer named Skippy.

My TV thoughts, let me show you them

Okay, so I've been dropping the ball a lot lately on the TV watching, but I managed to catch up over the weekend. I finally got around to watching 24: Redemption, which I thought was pretty good. Mostly it just got me anxious for more 24, which I guess was kind of the point, but I did like the whole Jack-in-Africa deal (I kind of love the idea of him traveling the world doing good deeds to make up for all the bad things he's done), and I'm glad they got a chance to do it, after scrapping it from season seven.

The plot itself was a little predictable (I knew Jack was going to trade his freedom for the kids as soon as they handed him the subpoena), but no one watches 24 for its unpredictability anymore. We watch it to see Jack kick ass, which he did pretty well. I admit, I laughed my ass off when the African dude tried to torture Jack, like, "You pathetic amateur! This is Jack F'ing Bauer. You think you can break him? Dream on, baby."

I also watched the Psych Christmas special, which for some incomprehensible reason aired in November. (I've given up trying to understand the schedule monkeys.) Best part of the episode was definitely Gus and his sister: "Forehead!" "Ears!" How great is it to have such a close relationship that you can insult someone without actually insulting them, all you have to do is name the body part?

Also caught up with last week's HIMYM (naked Barney!!!!) and Bones. Can we please knock it off with the "Booth is dumb" storylines? He's not, okay? He's an FBI agent. They don't let idiots into the FBI, trust me, I've applied. He may not be as geeky as Brennan and the squints, but he's not stupid. Take note, Show, you're on notice.

Stuff!

Would you believe it, Cobie Smulders is pregnant? Must be something in the water at that HIMYM set. Whatever it is, Craig Thomas is willing to capitalize on it. Also HIMYM-related, the 50 reasons to have sex napkin from last week's episode and Neil Patrick Harris answering some questions.

Also, a summary of every episode of House ever. I admit, I totally lost it at "patient poops a lung." LOL!

A really good review of Leverage, an interview with David Tennant, and OMG Joan paper dolls!!

I also watch TV

So, while the election is certainly the most important thing happening today, there's also lots of other stuff to mention. (Also, there's nothing to do in work and I'm bored. This is what happens when ever single legislator and their staffers leave town to campaign.)

Let's start with interviews. The showrunners of Bones and How I Met Your Mother both have interviews on where the shows are headed this season. There's also the first part of Christian Kane's interview about his new TV show, Leverage. And someone finally tracked down Jimmy Smits to see how he feels about the whole Obama/Santos comparison.

There's also a new Joss Whedon interview, in which the interviewer seems to be really, really defensive of Buffy and really, really hates the new vampire series True Blood. I'm not entirely sure why, other than "It's not Buffy." Joss, however, is happy to talk about both the Buffy comics and Dollhouse.

And finally, Jenna Fischer's got a new movie.

Hi!

Lots of stuff today. Since Mad Men's season finale is this week, here are two interviews with its creator, Matthew Weiner. In Mother-land, no decisions have been made about whether Alyson Hannigan's pregnancy will be worked into the show. Dominic Monaghan (who was on Lost, but will always be known to me as Merry the hobbit from LOTR) will be guest-starring on Chuck, and - this makes me happy - Jason Dohring will be starring in Washingtonienne, a new HBO series about three women working on Capitol Hill. And finally, watch Barack Obama dance on Ellen.

Shoulda stayed in bed

Today is seriously the longest day ever. We're really slow in work, which is good, because I'm cold-medicated (as John said yesterday, "It's like being drunk, but without the fun") and sleepy. (My nighttime meds totally didn't knock me out sufficiently, and I woke up at 4am. I did have a nice James Marsters dream, though. Shut up, Kelly, it wasn't dirty.)

Anyway, I don't usually post stuff like this, but Alyson Hannigan's pregnant. (Sidebar: What is up with Alexis Denisof's ridiculous grin in that photo?) I'm curious if they plan to work that into HIMYM, or if they'll try to film around it. A lot of people have pointed out that Lily didn't drink her scotch in the flash-forward last week and speculated she might be pregnant, but the filming of those episodes would be a long way off, so the timing really wouldn't work out. Maybe she'd just had the baby?

In other news, apparently politics affects your TV show choices, and clearly I'm in the wrong party, as I like Damages and Doctor Who from the GOP column. But I also watch The Colbert Report and My Boys from the Dems' side. I'm definitely not an independent, because those people watch way too much shitty reality TV. I wish they'd included network TV instead of just cable shows - I'd be curious to see what the preferences are.

And finally, the cast of Fringe talk about their characters. I seriously have to quibble with the characterization of Anna Torv as a "hottie." Sorry, she's not. She's bland (both in looks and personality). Now, Joshua Jackson? There's a hottie.

Break out the Sudafed

I'm very, very tired today, and if the number of tissues I've gone through today is any indication, I think I'm getting a cold. But I persevere to bring you these important links: the movie "Once" is headed to Broadway and Zeljko Ivanek (from 24 and Damages) is headed to Heroes. (But I won't be watching him because I'm DONE with Heroes!! I almost reconsidered when Chuck ended last night... I was like, "Eh, too lazy to find the remote." And then they killed Adam off in the first 7 minutes, and I was like, Click. That was just the thing I needed. No more Adam means no more reason to watch.)

Now, for a show I DO watch: a review of The Bro Code, written of course by HIMYM's Barney Stinson.

Okay...

That was a little bit mean, since I know Kelly doesn't care about politics. So here's some TV talk, too.

Let's see, the last time I checked in, I was almost caught up with all the shows I'd missed. Since then, I managed to watch all the recent episodes of Chuck, which I'm still a big fan of. I'm still bummed that it's on at the same time as HIMYM, because those two shows have become the only bright spot on a previously packed Monday night.

This is partly because I've given up on Heroes. Not even the digging up of Adam Monroe can save it for me. I watched it last Monday, and about halfway through, I realized I didn't have a clue what was going on (mostly because I'd zoned out a few times, but also because the show makes no logical sense). And more importantly, I didn't care. So, yeah. I'm done. I'm slightly bitter that I even bothered to get invested at all, going against my instincts that it wasn't as awesome as the hype, only to have the show spiral into such nonsensical drivel that even people who were completely obsessed with the first season are now calling it crap.

My other Monday night hopeful was the Jekyll and Hyde spy show, My Own Worst Enemy, starring my beloved Christian Slater (I met him!! In London!! There are pictures!!). Maybe watching Heroes right before it meant that I was already in a troubling state of ennui, but my reaction was pretty meh. It was decent, but not outstanding, with several logic holes that could've been glossed over had the show been more interesting.

Elsewhere on TV, I watched the first episode of Life on Mars. I was really afraid of this one, because those imported Brit remakes rarely go well, but this one was pretty good. I guess it helps that I've never seen the original (which I do plan to rectify eventually). I missed the second ep last night, because Danielle called me so I was on the phone for the first half of it, but I liked it enough to catch up online.

Also, somewhat confusingly, I'm enjoying Life (confusing because of the titles, not because... never mind). I'm noticing the trend seems to be heading towards "procedurals with a twist." It's not enough anymore to be a dry, impersonal CSI or Law and Order, but people seem to be leery of serial shows after the post-Lost spate of serials crashed and burned a couple years ago. So now it's all "cop show... except one cop is from 2008, transported to the 1970s" or "spy show... except the spy has a split personality." Even older shows like Bones and House seem to fit into this pattern. And with Life, it's "cop show... except one cop just got out of jail after being wrongfully imprisoned for 12 years." I watched the whole first season on DVD, and then what's aired so far of the second season online, and it's great. I thought it would be an "I can wait till it comes out on DVD" show, but I'm totally into it. It's on Friday nights, which is a bummer, but that's what the internet is for, right?

And finally, I'm still watching Fringe, but I pretty much agree with this article on how it could be much better.

Remember when I watched TV?

Before I went on vacation, that is. I've spent the last few days catching up on the hours and hours of fall TV that I've missed, so here's a quick rundown:

HIMYM: Love it, even though Ted totally dissed New Jersey last night. But Marshall's hilarious rant about being too big for New York completely made up for it. Plus, I didn't think it was possible to love Barney even more, but OMG how cute is he being in love with Robin while still being very, very Barney. (Also, I think my Dr. Horrible love is bleeding through.)

Heroes: Holy God. I didn't think these characters could get any stupider, but wow, did I underestimate them. With Peter, we now have double the stupid (and sadly, Future Peter shows that he only gets MORE stupid as time goes on), Hiro almost won the stupid-off hands down when he opened the safe, but Mohinder once again reclaimed the lead by injecting himself with superhero juice. HRG still rocks my socks, and I like the speedster chick (though I question her judgment being married to Parkman in the future). Also, Sylar as a '50s housewife totally makes up for the rest of the Four Years Later plot totally sucking. I can't wait for Elle to show up again (she IS coming back, right?) and OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG Adam!!!!! I can't tell you how much I love him, mostly because he's always trying to kill Hiro.

Fringe: I'm still into it. My love of Joshua Jackson is strong, even though the show itself isn't as compelling as it thinks it is. Anna Torv bothers me, though (she reminds me a lot of what's her name, who played Kate on 24).

Bones: Started off shaky (much as I love London, that season premiere was weak), but I am LOVING Sweets this year. I was so happy to see Zack back as well, even though he creeps me the fuck out. The revolving door of assistants has been hit or miss. Hodgins and Angela just need to get back together - the reason they broke up was stupid in the first place. And is it just me, or have they been focusing on Seeley's "Cocky" belt buckle an awful lot lately?

Dirty Sexy Money: So far, I've only seen one episode, and this show is kind of on the bottom of my list of shows I care about. I do love Peter Krause and Donald Sutherland, but it seems to have gotten more soap opera-y and less funny.

The Office: Again, only one episode, but at least they seemed to be better with the pacing on the hour-long ep than last season. Still funny.

Mad Men: OMG I love this show. Watch it. That's all.

I still haven't caught up on Chuck, but I'll probably do that tonight. I'm also working on season 1 of Life, which so far seems good, but probably not must-see. I may just wait for the second season to come out on DVD. Ditto for House and Brothers & Sisters. I also started watching Arrested Development. I only got in a couple episodes before I left for vacation, and so far I'm finding it funny, but not nearly as brilliant as everyone's made it seem.

Now for the fun stuff

Interviews with Neil Patrick Harris and Carter Bays on HIMYM! More on Dollhouse! Chuck's new season! And Katee Sackhoff's new show!

I'm just trying to acclimate you...

...to not having frequent updates, as I'll be away for much of the next three weeks.

But because I've been lazy the past week, I've got a shitload of pop culturey links for today. (See? I'm giving you a break from the politics.) Okay, I think lists are the way to go here.

Casting news: The Battlestar Galactica movie posts an updated cast list, including Admiral Adama and most of the Cylons, How I Met Your Mother's got a sister for Stella, and Chuck's Sarah is getting a dad played by Gary Cole (not to be confused with Gary Coleman, who just hit someone with his truck).

Shows that have been temporarily shut down and/or retooled: 24, Dirty Sexy Money, and Dollhouse, which might be causing some concern.

Interviews: John Slattery and Jon Hamm (both of Mad Men), as well as Amy Ryan and Paul Lieberstein on The Office.

And finally, a preview for 24: Exile and a review of Fringe, which I totally meant to watch on Tuesday except I was out drinking, but there's an encore on Sunday night, so I'll try to catch that.

Linky linky

Lots of links today.

First, New Clue disturbs me. Don't mess with my childhood!

Big (spoilery) developments on How I Met Your Mother. Plus, Regis Philbin guest stars. Also HIMYM-related, which NPH character would make the best VP for Barack Obama? I vote for Barney.

Friday Night Lights casting news: It'll be a rough year for Matt Saracen, since his estranged mother is apparently popping up, and there's a new hotshot quarterback in Dillon.

And finally, links to interviews with Tahmoh Penikett (where he talks about BSG and Dollhouse) and Aaron Sorkin (where he talks about why Studio 60 failed, and how much we all miss Sports Night).

Everyone's a hero in their own way...

You, and you, and... mostly me, and you!

Seriously, people. Not. Getting. Old. (Well, not for me, anyway...)

I swear, last Dr. Horrible article. I promise. Until the next one.

Also, more HIMYM scoop. I think Dr. Horrible has made me even more excited for this to come back, because, as I've mentioned before, NPH rocks my world.

Oh, so did I mention I went to see Mamma Mia on Friday night? Christi and I went out for clichéd Mexican food and clichéd movie night, where I regaled her with my most recent adventures in dodging creepy guys. :)

So, I saw Mamma Mia years ago, when it first opened on Broadway, and it's a manic, cheesy, makes-you-feel-like-you-just-did-a-lot-of-drugs kind of show. And OMG, that feeling is, like, magnified by 10 watching the movie. It was fun as a play, but it might be a little too out there to work well on screen. In any case, I was again impressed by the singing voices of famous people (apparently, Meryl Streep has had opera training?), and awesome, Amanda Seyfried from VM was the daughter! I didn't even know she was in it until I was looking up show times and saw her in the ad. Holy crap, Pierce Brosnan got old, but Meryl Streep did a good job acting like she was 20 years younger than she actually is.

You wanna know what's super disturbing, though? The chorus. Seriously. I don't know, maybe it works better on stage, but these random Greek people would pop up in the most inappropriate places to sing the chorus parts, and I kept looking at Christi and going, "OMG, that's creepy!"

I think this is what pain feels like!

Well, it's all about Dr. Horrible today. I hope you watched Act III this weekend, otherwise you'll have to buy it from iTunes. But who are we kidding? I'm gonna buy the DVD anyway. And the CD, even though some wonderful person on LiveJournal posted all the songs for download.

So, I'd be curious to hear people's thoughts. Without totally spoiling the ending, I was completely shocked... and then realized I shouldn't be, because this is Joss, and that is what he does. Suffice to say, it takes a turn for the serious. I was taken in by the singing and the silliness (there are songs about LAUNDRY, for crying out loud - how angsty could it be?), and I forgot who we were dealing with. But the more I watch it, the more awesome I think it is. (I'm really, really, restraining myself from making a "legendary" joke. I hope you all appreciate that.) Dr. Horrible's creepy "Slipping" is pure Sondheim, and Act III is worth it just for that. And of course, I've had various songs from the show running through my head all weekend.

Anyway, if you haven't seen it yet, I recommend shelling out the $4 on iTunes. I'll pay you back if you don't like it. Also, check out this interview with Neil Patrick Harris, who is my new TV boyfriend.

Now, on to NPH's day job - lots of news about HIMYM in this article. Apparently, Barney's Bro Code is being published, and Sarah Chalke will be back for four episodes. Also, more Barney/Robin! OMG!

Quick updates on other things - BSG will be back in January (yay!) and the Office spin-off is shaping up to be less of a spin-off and more of, well, a completely different, unrelated show. Whatever.