Reviews and More

Entourage 7×09: I didn’t catch the episode title because I was watching the Emmys when this came on and was switching back and forth. This ep pushed several of the storylines further along (finally) and seems like it’s setting up for a big season finale. I liked that Vince is so messed up now that he doesn’t care about being high in front of E anymore — but that he’ll still deny it and act outraged at the mere suggestion of drug use. I wonder what’s going to happen. I can see him causing big problems on the new movie set, costing the studio tens of millions of dollars, and then having to start his career over again.

Speaking of E, I can believe he’s a millionaire! That throwaway comment from Vince about making E millions over the years kind of got my attention. I knew E was well off, but a millionaire? Hmmm.

At the opposite end of that scale is Turtle, who is still trying to find a way to make money on his own. I don’t understand why the tequila company owner was so up in arms about Turtle trying to secure financing. That’s what the guy needs, right? So why is he always such a jerk? I loved how Mark Cuban said maybe he’ll just buy the whole operation! I could totally see him adding tequila wholesaler to the long list of titles on his resume!

And Drama finally agreed to do the monkey cartoon show. As we knew he would, of course. After all, he’s completely out of cash, is losing his house, and desperately needs to be in the spotlight somehow. I hope this show embarrasses him.

Burn Notice 4×12 — “Guilty as Charged”: This was the summer season finale, and it was a pretty good one. The producers promised that Michael would be in a very bad situation at the end of the ep, which they certainly delivered on. He was shot through the shoulder, survived a car wreck, and had the Simon Escher Bible stolen by an as-yet unknown person. Yikes! Obviously Michael will survive, because there wouldn’t be a show without him, but they still managed to work a cliffhanger in there. I just wish Sam hadn’t explained about Jesse shooting through Michael to help him. That would have been a nice little mystery to ponder until the series returns in November.

I was surprised they included a job-of-the-week — until I remembered that they always do this during finales. The case itself was kinda boring, but it was fun to see Danny Pino. I remember him from when I used to watch Cold Case. Even though they tried to scuff him up a bit for this role, I recognized him right away. It was also cool that he mentioned Barry. I always picture Barry as hanging out by the outdoor chaise lounges near the pool at a fancy hotel, sipping Mojitos all day long while he casually moves millions of dollars between off-shore accounts. Of course Barry knew this guy’s clients!!

It felt like Fi and Sam didn’t have much to do in this ep. Here’s hoping they’ll have a big part in Mike’s rescue, though!!

It’s been a long time since I cracked open my M*A*S*H DVDs. I purchased the entire series collection back when I was ambitious enough to think I could watch all 11 seasons in order. What I didn’t realize was that M*A*S*H is a very uneven show in terms of quality. Some eps are great, but some are pretty bad. This makes it kind of hard to watch everything, ya know?

Anyway, I recently went on a mini-marathon and watched 8 eps over the course of a single weekend. They were: “The Moose”, “Yankee Doodle Doctor”, “Bananas, Crackers, and Nuts”, “Cowboy”, “Henry, Please Come Home”, “I Hate a Mystery”, “Germ Warfare”, and “Dear Dad”.

None of these were particularly memorable, but the two I liked best were “Henry, Please Come Home” and “Dear Dad”. I enjoyed the first one because anytime Hawkeye and Trapper try to outwit Frank, it usually leads to a few laughs. The second one was interesting because we got to hear how Hawkeye described the camp to a total outsider (though I have to say, would he really have gone to the front lines to operate on someone without bringing any friggin’ medical equipment with him???).

The other eps were kind of lame, especially “Yankee Doodle Doctor” and “I Hate a Mystery”. Oh, well — even when the eps are bad, I can at least ponder other facets of the show, such as how those soldiers lived in tents all year round. Korean winters can get very COLD and uncomfortable, so I don’t envy the 4077th at all. I didn’t expect them to have insulated cabins with king-sized beds, down comforters, and Elkay sinks with gold-plated fixtures, but those flimsy tents must have been unbearable — especially for a surgical unit full of doctors unused to rough conditions.

At any rate, I can’t believe I haven’t even finished season one yet. It’s gonna take a couple more marathons to get through the last 12 eps here!!

Entourage 7×08 — “Sniff Sniff Gang Bang”: Is it just me, or is this entire season progressing very, very slowly? It seems that each week we barely inch forward with the various storylines. Seriously, how long is the “Drama doesn’t want to be a monkey” crap going to drag on? All that guy has been doing is bitching about being out of work since “Five Towns” ended. You’d think he’d be a little less picky about what comes his way. Sure, I think the show looks like crap too, but it would be a paycheck, ya know?

Speaking of doing things for the paycheck, I HATE the Vince/Sascha storyline. Why is it that every single storyline in the history of film involving strippers/dancers/porn stars comes down to a new boyfriend demanding that the woman stop doing whatever and/or offering to pay the same amount of money for the woman to turn down the job. As soon as this came up in Entourage, I thought back to West Wing where Sam Seaborn offers to pay Cuddy (forgot her name on the show) to give up her escort gig. I’m sure there are countless other examples as well. Ugh, so overdone!

I don’t get what Mrs. Ari’s problem is. Why are they in marriage counseling? If anything, Ari should be taking anger management classes, not sitting through therapy sessions where his wife just tramples all over him like that. Yes, he’s a loud, obnoxious, pompous ass, but those sessions really are dumb — especially when they occur RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WORKDAY!!!!

Burn Notice 4×11 — “Blind Spot”: This episode seemed kind of choppy and uneven, so when taken as a whole, I didn’t really like it. But I did enjoy certain parts, including the job of the week and the final minute when Jesse confronted Fi about the burn. I love it when Sam and Fi work together because they’re just so funny as they play off each other. They had several good moments this week too, and I thought this (from Fi) was hilarious: “The guy’s a sleazy womanizer — clearly a job for Sam Axe.” And I like how there was some continuity in terms of Fi getting worked up over men taking advantage of vulnerable women.

The Bible stuff was kind of boring, if only because it seemed like a bunch of filler until Robert Patrick could get into town. I am curious, though, as to what the coded message in the Bible says. A guy as powerful as John Barrett wouldn’t just drop everything and rush down to Miami unless it was for a VERY good reason.

Ha! to Maddie smoking Morley cigs!

Can’t wait for the finale next week!

Entourage 7×07 — “Tequila and Coke”: I thought Vince passing out by the pool last week was going to be more of an issue. No one even mentioned it in this ep? If that was typical behavior from him, I could understand how nobody would think twice about it. But when has Vince ever passed out like that? And now he’s doing coke? He’s truly on a downward spiral. I hope the writers take this all the way and let him do some very self-destructive things. I’m tired of seeing his buddies bail him out just in the nick of time. Let him crash and burn!

The Drama-as-a-gorilla thing sounds (and looks) dumb as hell. I have no idea what E was laughing at during Billy’s pitch. I do think Drama should look into voice work, but not that ugly-ass gorilla thing.

Anyone who has ever met Ari knows that he is a foul-mouthed a-hole, so why would anyone be surprised, shocked, or outraged to learn that he calls his staff derogatory names? That’s supposed to be the big blackmail material? Gimme a break!

Lots of cameos tonight: Mark Wahlberg, Diddy, Chris Bosch, Jerry Jones… I know some people don’t like those, but I do. They’re supposed to be in L.A., after all, so it’s only natural that they’d run into other celebs from time to time.

Burn Notice 4×10 — “Hard Time”: I’m kinda in a hurry this morning, so this post will be pretty short. I don’t have much to say about the ep anyway. It was mostly boring for me, since most of it took place inside the prison where Michael was essentially working alone. I prefer it when the gang works together as a team.

The Simon parts were interesting, and it looks like we’re actually getting some progress with Michael’s burn notice. That’s good, since that’s supposed to be the whole point of the damn show! Also, it was nice to see Maddie involved in Fiona’s little plot — though I am getting a bit tired of the crying-old-lady shtick. Don’t get me wrong; I love Maddie. I just wish the writers would be more creative about what her involvement in a plan can entail.

I am not a fan of science fiction shows/movies, but my stepfather is. He loves Star Wars, Star Trek, and Battlestar Galactica. I’ve tried to watch those things with him, but I just can’t get into the characters or the storylines. Nevertheless, I do respect his choices, and try to buy him appropriate gifts whenever possible.

Since his birthday is coming up next month, I’m thinking about getting this Battlestar Galactic Complete Series box set for him. The television show starred Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell (among many others), and aired for four seasons. This complete box set contains 25 discs featuring all 75 episodes of the show, as well as more bonus footage than I could possibly list, including interviews, commentary, deleted scenes, blooper reels, and other behind-the-scenes looks at the show.

What makes this box set distinctive is that the packaging looks very cool — even to someone like me who isn’t even a fan of the show. The box opens in a unique way, and the product also comes with a collectible Cylon figure as a nice little bonus.

Usually this Battlestar Galactic Complete Series box set retails for $279.99, but it’s currently on sale for $171.95 at Buy.com. That’s a good price, so I better think about ordering this very soon even though my stepfather’s birthday isn’t until the middle of September. I can’t afford the regular price, but can probably swing the discounted one!

As you know, I always try a few new television shows over the summer. This gives me a chance to keep my blog going with new material, and also helps me work out my fall viewing schedule. If I find a really good show over the summer, I’m likely to insert it into my lineup of regular shows to replace ones that I quit watching. For example, I’m not going to be watching House anymore, so I need something to fill that slot.

Anyway, I’ve recently tried watching the pilot episodes of The Middle, Parks and Recreation, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Unfortunately, I think they all pretty much sucked. I couldn’t even finish Parks and Rec because it reminded me so much of The Office that I didn’t see the point. I tried Secret Life because of Molly Ringwald, but seriously, I am just too old for high school dramas now. The Middle was the best of the three, which isn’t saying much, but was far too predictable for my tastes.

I’ve never had this many false starts before because I usually stick to trying new shows that have earned good reviews from critics or viewers. Ugh… what a waste of time!

Entourage 7×06 — “Hair”: I was surprised to see Billy Walsh back. I don’t read spoilers, so I had no idea he’d be showing up again. I like the new Billy much better than the old one. And he actually has a pretty good idea about Drama. He would probably be great at voice work… if his ego can handle the idea that he’s not good-looking enough to carry a show on his own.

I wonder what the deal with Vince is. Is he going to have to go to the hospital and have his stomach pumped? Will it turn into a huge scandal? Who knows.

I don’t like the way the Lizzie storyline went in this ep. It seems like that plot is going to run its course fairly soon. What does that mean for Autumn Reeser? I hope she sticks around.

Meh to everything else that happened last night.