Thriller

Happy Halloween :-)

Glee

Nowadays there’s not that much on network TV to really get excited about. Some of it is okay and even better than okay…but most of it is just there (or worse shouldn’t be there at all.) But almost every season I find something that just flat out makes me happy…it usually doesn’t last long (the show gets canned or, worse, it jumps the tracks and crashes and burns) but I enjoy it while it lasts.

The first season of Heroes made me happy (not so much since then…)

And during the last two television seasons the quirky charm of Pushing Daisies made me happy.

This season, Glee makes me happy. Some of the subplots veer towards the soapy (a fake pregnancy…a real pregnancy with the boyfriend’s best friend really being the father…closeted effeminate gay boy…etc.) but the show manages to stay out the weeds with its quirky (there’s that word again), subversive pluck.

And the musical numbers are gloriously compelling and unabashedly over the top (from Journey’s ubiquitous “Don’t Stop Believin’” to Kanye West’s infectious “Gold Digger”…the breadth of tunes that they got cleared is amazing and almost all of them are used to good, sometimes surprising, effect.)

It’s a delightful confection…an enormously entertaining cross between Fame and Freaks & Geeks with a sterling cast (extra credit for the guest shot by the wondrous Kristin Chenoweth, late of the aforementioned Pushing Daisies)…that I just adore.

Glee makes me happy.

How Photographers Created Rock And Roll - The Picture Show Blog : NPR

How Photographers Created Rock And Roll - The Picture Show Blog : NPR

Her Morning Elegance

Oren Lavie with a clever and charming stop motion video for his wistfully romantic song "Her Morning Elegance"

Thursday Night TV

Wonder of wonders, with the help of my handy remote control Thursday night turned out to be a pretty good night of television (a big change from most days since the new season started.)

Started on ABC with the intriguing FlashForward (you can view the episode at the link to the left), a spooky mind-bender keying off the premise that everyone on the planet goes unconscious at the same moment (for just over 2 minutes) and experiences an apparent glimpse of the future (six months hence.) The first episode moved right along despite the need to introduce the sprawling cast of characters. It obviously is going for that Lost vibe (even to the point of having Lost alum Dominic Monaghan join the cast soon...and then there's the enigmatic kangaroo...) and I'm not sure how this plays out in the long run if it becomes a hit (the date everyone sees happens in April of 2010) but I'm interested enough to give it shot (while fully realizing that something like this can easily slide off the rails and become a frustrating mess...yes, Heroes and Lost, I'm looking at both of you.)

At 9 I moved over to CBS for the season premiere of the original (and still the best) CSI which began with a trippy slow motion action scene and then flashed back to show how it got to that point. One old friend came back, another cast member was gone (not really a big loss), and the plot was convoluted, occasionally silly, and helluva lot of fun (in other words, a good way to kick off a new CSI season.)

Capping off the night with Project Runway and Models of the Runway over on Lifetime made for an entertaining evening of TV watching...gotta take those when you can get 'em :-)

Astro Boy

When I was a youngster, Astro Boy was one of my favorite cartoons...every weekday afternoon I would come home from school (Menlo Avenue Elementary in Los Angeles) and watch it with rapt attention and glee. When I heard they were making a new movie I wasn't that interested (these things go so wrong so often) but after watching this clip I'm totally down with it (yeah, I know it's geeky but "the little child inside the man" (thanks, John) doesn't care about that one little bit...cool is cool :-)

My Love Will Not Let You Down

Bruce is 60 years old today. Happy Birthday to "The Boss" :-)