Change Your Image
talksallabout-426-536345
Reviews
Web Therapy: Believe It or Not (2013)
The Universe Has Its Way
Fiona always wants to have her way, but it is clear that sometimes the universe has its way. And apparently the universe doesn't like Fiona very much. Why do I say that? I think it is obvious after viewing Showtime's Web Therapy, season 3 episode 3, airing on Tuesday August 6, 2013.
The universe takes delight is delivering "comeuppance" to Fiona.
Fiona has been telling Jackson that she is too good for him—she thinks he is a loser, but on this episode she learns that Jackson could buy and sell her many times over. He has become rich running a group called Quorum (Scientology, anyone?).This is where all his previously observed psychobabble is coming from.
Fiona also learns that the universe wants her two lovers to meet. Jackson has not met Austen yet, but I don't think it will be good for Fiona when Austen finds out she had a one-night stand with Pickett. (Of course, Austen had several nights' stand with Hayley to whom he is now sham-married so his heir will be legitimate when it is born, so perhaps he will be understanding.)
Web Therapy is wonderfully absurd, and Lisa Kudrow makes a magnificent Fiona. A lot of the show is improvisation, so the plot takes wild twists and turns as the actors try to surprise and challenge each other with bizarre responses. At the end of each episode, we see some outtakes, and we realize how difficult it is for the actors to keep a straight face.
Read the full review on my blogspot blog: Premium Cable Reviews
Dexter: A Little Reflection (2013)
Twisteroo
Anyone who thinks that Showtime's Dexter is losing its mojo, winding down in its last season, needs to see episode 6 of Season 8, "A Little Reflection", aired on August 4, 2013. The title "A Little Reflection" will carry a lot of meaning by the end of the episode.
Dr. Vogel has a new patient , Zach Hamilton. Dexter is interested in him also. He thinks that this young) is responsible for the murder of the Hamilton family maid. Turns out Dexter is right, and now the kid is stalking a second victim, Sophia, also a dark haired Latina woman. Dark haired Latina women seem to be his type. But in the "twisteroo" moment of the week, we discover that these women are not Zach's type, but his father's type.
Vogel asks Dexter not to kill Zach, but Dexter says, "He has to die." I'm feeling bad—the kid is a killer, but he's still only a kid.
When Zach comes to on Dexter's table he confesses to the murder. He says the maid was his first kill; he's had these urges to kill, but he had never killed before. He indulged his urge to protect his mother. His father's affairs were making his mother so unhappy that she was sick because of it. Dexter asks, "So you love your mother?" "Of course, I do," Zach answers. Dexter questions Zach about his urges to kill and realizes that he and the kid are very much alike. Dexter decides not to kill him. He has found a little protégé, a little reflection of himself.
Dr. Vogel had urged Dexter to consider teaching Zach "the code"; she called it her "little experiment." Would it work a second time? Dexter was opposed, but in the killing room he changes his mind. "You never had a Harry," he tells Zach who has no idea what he is talking about. The boy has his good qualities, he loves his mother, and he has a conscience as evidenced when Zach tells Dexter to go ahead and kill him because if he lives he will kill again. He seems to be such a nice young man, just like Dexter.
The second twisteroo—Hannah is back.
This is an excerpt from my review on my blogspot blog: Premium Cable Reviews
The Newsroom: Unintended Consequences (2013)
p Happy
The Newsroom episode #14 is titled "Unintended Consequences." I'm titling the show "Slap-Happy" referring to the characters on screen as well as to how I, as a viewer, feel.
The problem with this show is that it can't make up its mind. What kind of show is it? A serious drama or a sit-com? You can't mix the two without having the viewers feel jerked around. And in this last episode, we see some characters totally changing their character. People don't change their personality from week to week.
We see a totally new Maggie in this episode. Her long blond hair is gone, and she is now a redhead with a spiky pixie cut. Her public meltdowns and scatter-brained proclivities are gone, and she's all no-nonsense steely. Perhaps a trip to Arica and an attack by bandits can do that for a person. (Or maybe Sorkin, the series creator, just got tired of the constant barrage of "Maggie's an idiot" comments in the press, and so he did a character transplant.) On a better show, this incident in Africa where a young child who Maggie befriended is killed as Maggie tries to help him escape from the bandits would be poignant; on this show it just seems out of place.
This is an except from the full review on my blogspot blog: Premium Cable Reviews
The Newsroom: Willie Pete (2013)
The Big Dramactic Gesture
Was HBO's Newsroom just a little better in episode 803, "Willy Pete"? Well, Mackenzie didn't hit anyone during the episode.
But MacKenzie is still vying for "The-Most-Annoying-Ex-Girlfriend-Ever" title. During this episode she asks Will at least a dozen times about the phone message he left for her last season after covering the "Osama-is-dead" telecast. It was "Don't think I'm only saying this because I am high, but
" Mackenzie is pestering him to say what came after the "but. She pestered him about most of last season too, but now she has reached new heights on the "Pest-O-Meter.
This is an excerpt from my review on my blogspot blog: Premium Cable Reviews
Dexter: This Little Piggy (2013)
It's All in the Family
Showtime's Dexter #804 aired on July 26, 2013 was all about family. It begins with Dexter and Debra sitting with Dr. Vogel for some family therapy.
So Debra and Dexter are back together as a brother-sister vigilante team. This is "the- "family-that-kills-together-stays-together" moment of the show. At the end of the episode, we see Dexter Debra and Vogel on Dexter's boat as Dexter dumps Dexter's body into the bay. They talk about how beautiful it is out at night on the boat under the stars. Just one little happy family.
"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." is the first line of Tolstoy's Anna Karenia." It seems we have some unhappy families here. And I haven't even spoken about Vogel, kinda sorta adopting Dexter and Debra as her children. I have some serious suspicions about Vogel. Is she the "Brain Surgeon?" Remember the brain-surgeon killings are done by a puppet master. Yates was not the brain surgeon—it is not his M.O. Is Dr. Vogel using some of her little family of psycho ex-patients to kill? And why? This is an excerpt from the full review on my blogspt blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
Web Therapy (2011)
Fiona! the Musical
Fiona's baaack and Showtime's got her. And I can't get enough of her deliciously wicked humor.
Web Therapy is apparently the hot show to be on. Lisa Kudrow, the star and producer of Web Therapy, gets some amazing "gets". Three A-list guest stars in one show! poor Fiona.
A musical is being developed from her autobiography. She has no control over it and it is portraying her in a very bad light.
Poor Fiona, her whole life is out of her control. Is her skill in manipulation slipping?
Read my full review of Season 3,Episode 1, "Relax Reboot Revenge" on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
The Newsroom: The Genoa Tip (2013)
Use Your Words
Mackenzie McHale throws a drink in Will McAvoy's face. (This the "not-again" moment of the week and a nice variation on Mackenzie's habit of smacking people.) An exasperated Will shouts at her, "Use your words!"
There are plenty of words on The Newsroom, and they are great words as long as the words are about the news. The problem is the words put into the characters' mouths when they are talking about their personal lives.
A good use of words concerns a fictional news story (at least I think it is fiction) about a top secret government covert action named "Genoa". The news team is investigating a tip concerning the use of sarin gas in Pakistan to take out a suspected terrorist which killed many civilians in the process. It fits in nicely with the true drone story because it makes us think: "Is this where we are heading? How far will the United States go to take out terrorists in the Middle East?
I have some advice for the show-runners. Drop all the story lines that deal with the personal lives of the characters. Only show us the characters in their professional roles (acting professionally, please). Remind us about the recent important news stories and the issues around them, but don't be so heavy-handed with the specifying. Give us the behind-the-scenes glimpses into how a news show operates. In other words, use your words to give us good stories that inform us and make us think.
This is an excerpt from the review on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews
Dexter: Scar Tissue (2013)
Bubbling Up
The plot is bubbling over on Showtime's Dexter, season 8, episode 4, titled "Scar Tissue," that aired on Sunday July 21, 2013. Most seasons we get only one or two serial killers for Dexter to stalk and eventually kill. For this last season, we get a new serial killer every week. Who knew Miami is such a hotbed of serial killers? Dexter hasn't even dispatched last week's killer whose cuisine favors human organ meats, and he has another one to deal with. The next man on the list of Vogel's former patients, AJ Yats, might just be "The Brain Surgeon."
Towards the end of the show a seemingly rehabilitated Debra is in the car with Dexter. Debra asks if their father committed suicide. Dexter confirms that he did. Suddenly, Debra reaches over and grabs the wheel of the car, turning the car off the road and into a lake. This is the "does-suicide-run-in-the-family" moment of the week.
The car is beginning to sink and we see both Debra and Dexter, unconscious inside the car. A man who happened to be nearby fishing in the lake, jumps in and pulls Debra out of the car and gets her back to shore. Debra comes to just as the car is covered over by the water. We see the air bubbles rising .and Dexter in the car, still unconscious.
Debra dives into the water, swims to the car, dives under, and pulls the still -nconscious Dexter to safety.
This was an Interesting turn of events for me because this type of scenario was on my mind. Just before I watched this episode, I was wondering if the series will end with Debra and Dexter as a murder/suicide or a double suicide.
In this episode Dexter tried to kill Yates at the bedside of Yate's dying father who is in a nursing home. Yates yanked out his father's breathing tube in order to set off the alarm. The nurses came running in and Yates escaped. Later we hear Deter's thoughts: "To save his own life, Yates was willing to take his fathers'." Is this foreshadowing for something Dexter might do? Dexter thinks he is better than Yates when it comes to family. Is he? This is an excerpt of a review on my blog. Read the full review at Premium Cable Reviews.
Dexter (2006)
Lost
He's baaack! Showtime's Dexter began its eighth and final season on Sunday, June 30th. The episode is titled "A Beautiful Day." I've titled this review "Lost" because Dexter and Deb are lost in emotional tailspins, and even little Harrison gets actually lost for a short time.
I liked the way the pre-show vignettes. Before the show began, there were a few moments where some of the actors from previous seasons, whose characters were killed off, stand before the camera and talk about the show. It's a little foreshadowing, reminding us that the end is near.
A new character has been introduced, Dr. Evelyn Vogel, played by Charlotte Rampling. She's a middle-aged woman who has made a study of serial killers. She's playing little cat-and-mouse games with Dexter, asking questions about The Bay Harbor Butcher. She says that the brain scooping-guy may be a former patient of hers and she wants Dexter's help to track him down. She clinches the deal by giving Dexter an envelope.
And now we have "the-big-reveal" moment of the week. It's a shocker. Dr. Vogel knows Dexter's secret. It appears that she may have been his psychiatrist when he was first adopted into the Morgan family. The envelope contains drawings that appear to have been done by Dexter at this time.
Dexter is on the verge of losing everything. There's Dr. Vogel, there's this new serial killer that Dexter will certainly not be able to resist, and do not forget, his ex-girl-friend, Hannah, herself a serial killer. He done her wrong last season (he got her arrested, but she escaped from jail), and she is sure to be back for revenge.
This is an excerpt from a longer review on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.16 (2013)
It's A Scandal
It seems like everything is a scandal these days. In my review of episode #283 (5/17/13), on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews, I discuss the scandals that the media is all in a tizzy about—Benghazi, the IRS, and the A.P. leak investigation which are hardly scandals at all while ignoring the real scandals. The real scandals are the IRS failure to follow the letter of the law and refuse to give tax-exempt status to organizations that are not exclusively for social welfare purposes, the Obama administration firing first and investigating later, the failure t pass sensible gun safety laws, the House republicans wasting time and money repealing Obamacare again for the 27th time, the House Republicans hatred for America (Michael Moore) got it right, the sequester and the rest of the Republican attempts to destroy the economy, etc.
I also discuss how S. E. Cupp just totally "lost it" about midway through the show. One moment she was clam and the next moment she ban screeching. It was as if a switch had been thrown—she screeched and all but foamed at the mouth for the rest of the show as she uttered her absurd talking points with no factual basis. The audience even groaned at one point, but she was unstoppable. You can read the details on my blog, premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.15 (2013)
Crazy Glue
For the mid show comedy segment, Bill gave us part three of his ongoing segment "Craziest Congressman." He talked about Paul Broun, a Republican Tea party representative from Georgia. Broun believes that Obama is a Marxist who want to destroy the U.S. from the inside. It is one thing to disagree with Obama's policies and feel that they are harmful, but to claim that his goal is to destroy America is crazy. As much as I thought G.W. Bush was an evil person, I never thought he was trying to destroy America; I believed that he was destroying America because he was incompetent, not because he hated America. Bill said the Broun is a doctor who doesn't understand embryology, and opposes abortion because "it puts storks out of work." He's the one who said that science is "lies straight from the pit of Hell" guy. I'm glad he is not practicing medicine anymore.
This is an excerpt of a review on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews. I titled the review, "Crazy-Glue." Read the full review to see why I used that title.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.14 (2013)
Do We have Time for the Truth?
Bill used his monologue to opine on Republican nuttiness. He reported that a survey showed that 44%, nearly half!, of Republicans believe that armed rebellion against the government might be necessary in the next few years to protect our freedoms. Bill said, "I wish they'd start an armed rebellion because I want to see their faces when they walk out of The Waffle House and get smashed by a drone. Later on he talked about how Waco showed what happens when a well-armed group gets into a battle with the government. They are smashed. My opinion: These 44% are sick, sick, sick. Are there lives so drab that they have to entertain rebellion fantasies just to get through the day. The hatred and anger that they hold within themselves is what they should be worried about. If they would just stop listening to the rabid fear-mongers on Fox news, talk radio, and the internet, they might be able to relax and enjoy life. This is an excerpt from my review on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.12 (2013)
Weird and Weider
Bill talked about the Elvis impersonator who thought the government was selling body parts and so he sent letters containing ricin to Obama and others. (This is so weird that it sounds like Bill made it up. He didn't.) Bill joked that you can't intimidate us with bombs and poison. If you are a paranoid lunatic—this is America--you have to use a gun.
The above is taken from the review in my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
It turns out the story gets even weirder. The Elvis impersonator guy, who goes by the moniker, K.C., didn't do it. He was released and gave a goofy press conference promising to massage the feet of American women starting with his lawyer. The new suspect is another man who apparently tried to set K.C. up.
Reality is going to put comedians out of business.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.11 (2013)
Lies Told by Idiots
HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, episode 278, aired on April 12, 2013. It was an interesting hour of discussion.
So often when a Republicans speak it is "lies told to idiots" as Bill Maher described it. David Stockman, an economic adviser to Ronald Reagan and a panelist on the show on 4/12/13 is an exception. He hearkens back to the old days when Republicans were worthy of respect. He's intelligent, he speaks in a calm manner, and he knows what he is talking about. His views are moderate, even liberal. It's a good thing for him that he has no ambitions to run for office on the Republican ticket—he could never win a primary because he's not ignorant and crazy as most of the Republican candidates are or pretend to be.
Stockman asked, "Why would you believe an 18th century law about muskets applies to today's world?" He added, "The first amendment is the real protector of our freedom." And "You have to register your car, so why not your gun?" Yes, it is hard to believe, but a Republican actually said those things.
Read the rest of my review on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
Game of Thrones: Fire and Blood (2011)
Review of Season One
As a woman, I naturally gravitated to some of the female characters.
Young Arya Stark, daughter of Ned Stark, totally captivated me. You might call her a tomboy, except for the fact that she is proud to be a girl. "I'm a girl," she loudly claims whenever she is mistaken for a boy, which happens quite frequently. She is given a sword that she names "Needle." and she wants to learn how to use it. Her father indulges her with "dancing lessons." Everyone thinks she is taking dancing lessons, but in actuality she is studying with "sensei" (as we would call him) who is teaching her to be a fighter. Little Arya is going to be a regular Joan of Arc in a couple of years.
Another female character that captures my interest is Daenery's Targargen, a seeming frail blond beauty, now known at Khaleesa. She is sold off in marriage by her brother, Viserys, to Drogo, the leader of the Dothraki, a savage tribe of warriors. (Visery's believes that he is the rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms and Drogo promised him an army in exchange for his sister.)
Af first, Daenerys is a victim, mistreated by her husband and her brother, but she learns to win her husband's love and becomes a true partner to him and a strong leader of her husband's people. As she gains confidence and power, she rebels against her brother's treatment of her, and her brother is killed by her husband. (It's death by gold— this is the-not-to-be-missed-scene of the season.) Daenery's status is improved, in part, by the fact that she is carrying Drogo's child who everyone expects will be a son. Daenerys comes into her own when her child is born dead and her husband dies of a battle wound. She arranges a funeral pyre for her husband, and enters the funeral pyre herself along with three dragon eggs. By morning, when the fire has burned down, Daenery's is found unharmed with three dragon hatchlings. Dragons have been extinct for hundreds of years, but the Targargens are the people of the dragon. "A true dragon (i.e. a person of the Targargen dragon clan) can never be destroyed by fire," Daenery's proclaims. Most of the Dothraki deserted her when Drogo died, but she has assumed leadership of tribal remnants that have chosen to stay with her..
What is most compelling about Deanery's is her leadership skills. She can be kind and compassionate, but when the occasion calls for it she can be firm, resolute, and even cruel. I think she will one day be a great Dragon Queen.
This is an excerpt from my review on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.10 (2013)
Big Foot and The Mouth
The April 5, 2013, "Real Time with Bill Maher" could have been a great show. Bernie Sanders, a self-avowed socialist senator from Vermont (who is an Independent, but caucuses with the Democrats) was on the panel. I think he is the smartest person in the room, no matter what room he is in. Unfortunately, the discussion was brought down to a third-grade level by Big Foot (Steve Moore, conservative author and total moron) and The Mouth (Abby Huntsman, daughter of former Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, who currently writes for the Huffington Post).
During the show, Bill mentioned the Public Policy Poll, which discovered that Americans have some really stupid beliefs, especially Republican- Americans. He mentioned that 14% believe that "Big Foot" is real. If Big Foot is real, his name is Steve Moore. He sat on the panel and stomped on every intelligent thing anyone else said.
I nicknamed Abby Huntsman "The Mouth" because she interrupted the other panelists constantly and never had anything worthwhile to say. Her father is very good looking and she inherited his good looks--she's a beautiful young woman. Too bad she didn't inherit his brains—Jon Huntsman was the only intelligent person on the stage during the Republican debates. Instead of adopting the demeanor of her father-- calm, rational, well-informed--she choose to be a bombastic fool. And Abby, if you want to be taken seriously, tone down the makeup—you looked like you were auditioning for the Elizabeth Taylor role in "Cleopatra."
This is an excerpt from the review that appears on my blog: Premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.8 (2013)
New Ideas
Bill does a segment titled "New Rules" each week, so I thought I'd do a take-off on that and title this review "New Ideas." And when I say "new ideas", I mostly mean "no new ideas."
Bill discussed C-Pac—the conservative convention. Mark Rubio, senator from Florida, and new darling of tea-party gave a speech saying, "We don't need a new idea. We have an idea. It's called America and it still works." Bill mocked him. "Really? Climate change? America! Stagnant wages? America. Equal rights for women? Saudi Arabia!
Rubio is not ready for prime time. First there was the dreadful speech after the president's state of the union speech. and now this inane speech at C-Pac. First of all, Rubio—you just admitted that not only do Republicans have no new ideas, they don't even want any new ideas. Why have an idea when you can have a slogan? America! Bill didn't have to make a joke about it. It's funny all by itself.
Yu can read the full review of this show on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
Enlightened: Agent of Change (2013)
Square One
Season 2 of HBO's Enlightened ended with episode 18 "Agent of Change" which aired on March 3, 2013. It ends with Amy right back where she started in episode 1—friendless, jobless, and turning to her ex-husband Levi. She is back to "Square One."
This season finale could very well be a series finale. I hope there is a season 3. This show is one of the best on TV—unique, emotional, beautifully written and produced. The poetic voice-overs, the beautiful music, the quirky characters—everything is so well done.
"Enlightened" is listed as a comedy on the HBO website. I wouldn't call it a comedy; it doesn't make me laugh, although I smile wanly as I recognize myself in the characters. Yet it is not quite a drama either, if you define drama as I do—a show where the plot is preeminent—although there are plenty of plot twists. This show defies categories. Perhaps I can best describe it as an extended character sketch or a treatise of the philosophy of life.
This is an excerpt from my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
Enlightened: No Doubt (2013)
Everything Changes
The scene in which Jeff and Amy break up is so beautifully done. Jeff says that since Amy is named in his exposé, it would not be politic for them to be involved in any kind of personal relationship. He adds that they both had just let their emotions carry them away and now we need "to put the brakes on." He tells her it wasn't real and that, "We both knew that all along."
Amy is stunned and says nothing. Then she quietly collects her purse and heads for the door. Now for the "best-exit-line-ever" moment of the week, she turns back and in a soft, quiet voice says, "I didn't know that all along." You've got to watch this episode if just for that moment along. No tears, no accusations, just dignity and a quiet put- down. She says so much with those few words.
It's a nice contrast between how Jeff reacts when Amy breaks it off with him and how Amy reacts when Jeff breaks it off with her.
This is an excerpt of the review that appears on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
Enlightened: All I Ever Wanted (2013)
Be Careful What You Wish For
HBO's "Enlightened" just gets better and better--the show is so insightful, so emotional, so revealing about the foibles of its characters. Episode #16 (aired February 17, 2013) is titled "All I Ever Wanted." A great title—it led me to title this review "Be Careful What You Wish For." You know how sometimes you want something and you finally realize it is never going to happen so you start wanting something else, something better, and then you get it, but then you also get the thing you wanted in the first place, but you pass on t because now you have this better thing, only maybe this better thing will slip through your grasp and you will have nothing. If so, you can understand Amy Jellicoe's position. Actually, this scenario might describe quite a few of the characters on "Enlightened."
The above is an excerpt from my review on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews. I recap the main action of the show and give my thoughts about Amy's situation.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.5 (2013)
Bat-Poop Crazies and Popes
Bill is back in fine comedy form after a couple of shows weak on comedy. I reviewed this show on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews. Here's an excerpt.
Bill talked about Karl Rove trying to rein in the " bat-poop crazy" Republicans(Bill did not say "poop"; you know what he said, a word I cannot use if I want a "G" rating for this review.)so the party can go back to just regular bat-poop crazy Republicans. The craziness has become so prevalent because there are so many gerrymandered safe districts for Republicans that the politicians don't worry about losing the general election; they worry about losing a primary election to someone who is more bat-poop crazy than they are.
I titled my review this week "Bat-Poop Crazies and Popes." Bill had a lot of jokes about the Pope and about bat-poop crazies. Who were the who were the bat-poop crazies this week? Everyone who was the butt of one of Bills jokes -- John Boehner, the bat-poop crazy Republicans, Marco Rubio, reality TV stars-and Jaime Weinstein.
Weinstein reminded me of an over-eager puppy that jumps into your lap wagging his tail in your face while you are trying to talk with the grownups. He struck me as an over-eager kid. The kind of kid that was always waving his hand in the teachers face back in fifth grade while she was still explaining the lesson, before she even asked a question. The kind of kid had all the answers as long as it was an answer that could be memorized and regurgitated. He displayed no ability for critical thinking, you know, the ability to take in facts and arrive at conclusions. Weinstein interrupted the grown-ups in the room to regurgitate Republican talking points. One of his mainstays, typical of conservatives, was this response that I am labeling the "I-am-rubber-you-are-glue" moment of the week.
Enlightened: The Ghost Is Seen (2013)
I See You
What an absolutely wonderful episode of HBO's "Enlightened"—episode 15, "The Ghost is Seen," airing on Sunday, February 10.2013.
This episode explores Tyler's life. Tyler is resigned to being a "ghost." He has come to prefer it, actually. His voice-over monologue opens the episode and shows us that Tyler no longer even hopes to love and be loved. He says, "It's OK to be a ghost. No love to lose. No burden to be. So little to hold you down. You are free."
Dougie and Amy have hacked into the email account of Abadonn's CEO, Charles Szidon, but they have not been able to find anything incriminating. They realize that there must be a secret account, and the only way to find that account is through an assistant to Szidon.
Eileen (played by Molly Shannon) is their key to unlock this account. Eileen is Szidon's assistant and another lonely pearl who has no expectations. Tyler is sent to gain her confidence, but when he approaches Eileen, he is too shy to ask her out.
They eventually end up in bed together, but first Eileen has to give him a long speech about how she doesn't expect much, but could he please not hurt her.
She and Tyler are kindred spirits. A ghost. A pearl. This is the "can- two-sad-lonely-people-make- one- happy- couple?" moment of the week.
Everyone ends up happy in this episode, but I suspect they won't be happy for long.
This is an excerpt from my review on my blog Premium Cable Reviews.
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.4 (2013)
Bones Drones and orange Tones
What do drones, bones, and orange tones have in common? Bill Maher makes jokes about all of them on the the Real time with Bill Maher show episode 271 (aired on 02/08/13).
You have got to see Bill's take down of Donald Trump. Here's the set up. Last year, Trump offered to donate five million dollars to charity if Obama would release his college transcripts. Bill did a bit on his show where he offered to donate five million dollars to charity if Trump could prove that he wasn't the love child of a human woman and an orangutan. He was making fun of Trump's "birther" nonsense. Recently, he got a letter from Trump's lawyers suing him for $5 million. Bill thought the letter was a joke; turns out, Trump is serious.
Bill's response on the show was to pile on the insults. He said that Trump didn't know the difference between a joke and a contract—he thinks a joke is a legally binding agreement. He said that Trump should have sucked it up like other celebrities who become the butt of a joke.Instead, Trump got so angry that he couldn't stop throwing his feces. He said Trump really did look like he had orangutan heritage because the orange color of his hair is matched no where on earth except in the color of the hair on an orangutan.
Trump had sent Bill a copy of his birth certificate to prove that his father was not an orangutan. This launched a bunch more jokes. It was a short form birth certificate just like Obama's. Bill demanded to see the long form. Bill said that Trump's birth certificate was obviously false because it had a bar code on it—bar codes were not available in 1946, the year shown as the year of Trump's birth. Bill demanded more proof that Trump does not go to family reunions at the zoo. Ouch! This was the "I-almost-feel-sorry-for-the-man" moment of the week. But I don't feel sorry for Trump because he so richly deserves the ridicule that he has brought upon himself.
This is an excerpt from my full review on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews
Real Time with Bill Maher: Episode #11.3 (2013)
Reason and Unreason
HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher," episode 270 that aired on Friday February 1, 2013, was a rarity—everyone on the show was a believer in reason,--i.e. no right-wingers. But even reasonable people can disagree. But when reasonable people disagree it is a debate, not a brawl. The only problem with the show tonight is that it was not ten hours long. Bill likes to cover a lot of topics during each show and that doesn't allow for a full discussion and resolution of the issues.
Now for the voices of unreason: We have the Republicans in the House and Senate. The Republicans behaved disgracefully, browbeating Hillary during the hearings on Benghazi, and then being absolutely vicious to Chuck Hegal during his hearings for confirmation as Secretary of Defense. And Chuck Hegal is a Republican! Bill said that Republicans had turned against Hegal because since he was nominated by Obama "he has Obama's cooties on him." (It's true, Republicans act like children.)
There's a gun lobby. There's a defense industry lobby. Cory said we need a lobby to do rational things. The Reason and Rationality lobby--I like the sound of that.
This is part of a review that I did for my blog, Premium Cable Reviews.
Enlightened: Higher Power (2013)
Levi's Turn: Levi is the star of the episode as his life takes twists and turns.
Levi is coming to realize that he loves Amy. Levi talked with Danielle about Amy, referring to her as his ex, and a do-gooder. Danielle called Amy a bitch. Levi objected, saying that Amy was not a bitch. Danielle asked if he was still in love with Amy. "Some," he replied. (Amy, had she been asked, would most likely have said the same.)
When Amy was at Open Air, she saw a sea turtle and this turtle became a kind of totem for her. In his first letter to Amy, Levi writes that he has been looking for her turtle. He tells all that all he has found is garbage. He writes, "Your turtle, if it ever existed, is gone." At the end of the episode he writes Amy another letter. He says he goes out everyday looking for her turtle. He adds, "Even if I don't find it, I know you did."
In this second letter, he is recognizing his love for Amy. He tells her that during the meditation exercises everyone is asked to remember their best self. This makes him think of Amy. "You thought I was great. Maybe you are my Higher Power." This is the true-love-never-dies" moment of the week.
These comment are an excerpt from the full review I wrote on my blog, Premium Cable Reviews. I'll be reviewing each episode of Enlightened as it airs.