December 01, 2005
It's a Girl
Congrats, Jen! Even though your hubby is a bad actor - not to mention a big headed, show killing, blow hard - STILL, a healthy birth is always cause for celebration. A baby girl! That’s nice.
This headline from Defamer kind of cracks me up though.
Posted by lk at 01:23 PM | Comments (2)
November 26, 2005
And so it ends …
It's over. Surprised? No. But I’ll admit to being a little disappointed. The writing has been on the wall since the end of last season but still. This is probably the funniest article recapping the demise of the aliasverse – a bit heavy on the snark but basically true.
I just hope JJ & Co. don’t cheap out on the finale… Oh, who am I kidding?! The J-Man is too busy wrapping up with (wacko) Tom Cruise and basking in the glow of LOST. He’ll probably leave the finale to the Angel/Buffy people to screw up instead of doing it himself.
Posted by lk at 12:28 PM | Comments (0)
November 21, 2005
A Riddle
Q: What do JJ Abrams and Takashi Murakami have in common?
A: They both like an elephant with underpants!
OK so maybe that was too obscure, even for fans of primetime SpyDrama or those who favor otaku. But I still think it’s a good joke. So, backstory? Here you go:
Last night I was watching a tape of the last two Alias eps that I missed and I noticed something funny. In the last moments of the "Solo" Syd sits in her super-cool but heartbreakingly empty beach side apt, holding a tape recorder to her belly as it plays back Vaughn’s voice from an old mission. Sniff, sniff (and did I mention that I miss Vaughn? Cuz I do! Even tough I think that photo of him in the corner looks super lame). Then the camera pans around her bedroom and you see this:
I thought those elephants were so cute that I stopped the tape. Then I remembered that I saw some similar pachyderms in pampers over the summer in NYC:
Chinatsu Ban
V W X Yellow Elephant Underwear/H I J Kiddy Elephant Underwear, 2005
These sculptures were on view from April through August on the plaza at the southeast corner of Central Park. I think the photographer must have taken this pic at 6am because there's not a kid in site.
When we visited in July, Wasabi Sister #1 admitted that this was the cutest public art she had ever seen. I added that it was certainly the sweetest public art “poop” I’d ever seen!
The kids really loved these sculptures. I doubt that there was a moment all summer when the elephants weren’t covered with kids and surrounded by parents struggling to keep them from falling off and breaking their necks!
Here are some thoughts on S5 if anyone is interested...
Thus far S5 has been underwhelming, to say the least. The downhill slide in ratings is no surprise to loyal fans, given that TPTB changed night and time (again!), added a bunch of new characters that are nowhere near as intriguing as the orig cast and axed Vaughn (aka my imaginary boyfriend). But whatever. I'm a diehard. I'll stick with this silly show till its dead and buried and the DVDs can be found in the 99 cents bin.
Even though I don't really like Rachel and I would prefer that Syd stay APO once in a while and actually design a mission (instead of hauling her enormous belly around in really silly outfits), there are some things I'm enjoying this season. First, I think SpyGrandpa is awesome - VG has been very funny and sweet especially in the last ep. Also, I like the chemistry bet Tom Grace and Dix, they make a good team. I hope that they get to do more missions together. I also think that the build towards finding out more of Grace's background is a lot of fun. Personally, I believe that he's Jack's kid but even if this turns out not to be true, he's clearly got some crazy, twisted, juicy, family history that I CAN NOT WAIT to find out about. Also, I love, love, love all the shout outs to S1-4. Seeing Professor Choy (aka Mr. Wu, aka Keone Young) was funny and so sad at the same time. "Someone from another life" ... total heart in the throat moment...sniff, sniff.
On the negative side….. Oh, where to begin! The writing is not as good as in previous seasons. 1. Sloane’s goes from good to evil, and then back to good at least 3x per episode and it’s getting old 2. There has GOT to be a better, more interesting way to get Rachel up to speed in the spy game. I happen to think she is dull and timid and after seeing the rest of her relatives in "Solo", I also think she's comes from a family of clones (could those people look more generic?!), but that's just me. She's got boobs and blond hair and she can speak English, which basically covers what I imagine JJ must have told the casting director. 3. And as previously stated, I think it's dumb that Syd needs to go out on almost every mission and ... do nothing really because she is pregnant and big as a freakin' house. OK, OK, the casino scene was funny. I thought she used the pregnancy well in that ep, but she needs to stay at APO and be on comms a bit more, like Vaughn was for her. I just don't see how she can fly around the world and be hangin out with the bad guys all the time when she's, well, HUGE and not at her most agile. I'm not saying that a pregnant woman can't do anything but sit around but I still think she is in the field too much and it looks silly. Plus, it would be interesting to see her react to being sidelined for a change. She's not the hot shot anymore, so let's see if there are other aspects of the spy game that she might be good at. I mean she's got to realize that if everyone is worried about the pregnant agent on the mission, then they are not working at their best.
Final note, I think the music is worse this year. The score seems thin and the pop songs are not as fun as they used to be. Guess the budget has shrunk along with the audience.
Posted by lk at 03:06 PM | Comments (2)
October 14, 2005
How do you make a Mini!Syd?
Oh, JJ! Why oh why did you introduce a new character if all you’re going to do is recycle the S1 storyline? A new character should equal slightly more than a change in hair color and a cuter car. I’m happy to watch Syd become the mentor (now that she’s big as a freakin’ house and can’t quite pull off the costume changes), but let’s at least give the newbie a fresh story. On the other hand, I kind of like the Thomas Grace kid (I can’t believe I am actually in favor of the Getty, heh!). Don’t get me wrong I certainly don’t want to overstate his charm. I really miss MV and Balthazar is no master thespian but is character seems credible. At least his back-story doesn’t appear to be lifted entirely from “Truth Be Told”!
Posted by lk at 07:23 PM | Comments (0)
September 30, 2005
TV Times
The PALIAS Report, because someone actually asked!
Kelly and Dauphine,
Thanks for humoring me. I’m sure no one else really cares. Here is a brief recap** if you are unspoiled do not read any further **
The premier was strangely lacking in grandeur. Compared to all the reshuffling and new sets they threw at us during the 2hr premier of LAST season, ep 1 of season 5 was much less spectacular. I am very, very, very sad that agent V is dead. I almost got teary eyed during the hospital scene – very sweet and sad. But then again, I was laughing pretty hard at all the shots of JG where they are desperately trying to hide her big-ol-belly! I mean, come on - Pashmina draped over her out stretched arm, big hand bags, shots of Syd running stupidly beside a moving train, and running through a cornfield on the way to Santa Barbara (because, you know, next to Kansas, it's really coastal California that has all the corn!). They did A LOT of dumb stuff to conceal the belly. The plot, with a fat lot of new details about agent V’s dad, was a bit hard to follow. Plus, Angela was nowhere to be found and that was very disappointing. I was hoping that we could see more of her this season taking charge and dealing with Sloane...
Things I liked - MV speaking French with JG was very cute. Also, I thought Marshall had some funny lines. Jack rocked in all his scenes and, as I mentioned before, the hospital scene was quite touching. Dauphine, the French actress was ok but she really didn't have a very big scene. Hope she gets more interesting stuff to do in future. So, I'm still a fan (because I'm hopeless) but it was probably the least exciting premier they've had. The first show of Season 4 was a lot more fun.
Overall grade = C+.
Posted by lk at 09:40 AM | Comments (1)
September 29, 2005
A few things “on view” this evening
Tonight's the night!
That's right kids, after a long, hot, rumor-filled summer Alias is back with extra big belly JGarner and two young (totally unnecessary) new agents in tow! Let's hope tonight’s premier is better than last night's eppi of LOST. YAWN! JJ, you are officially on notice. Do the right thing tonight and no one gets hurt.
OK, OK, I realize most of you may not be as interested in JJBC and the fate of Michael Vartan as I am. So if you MUST do something cultural and you live in NYC, you should probably check this out tonight. If you are in LA (and prefer art to the spy life), go see Basquiat. It’s a great show and MOCA is open late tonight. On the other hand, if you reside in the city by the bay, go to SFMOMA. They are also open late tonight and there’s tons of new stuff to see. Robert Adams and Edgar Arceneaux would be my picks.
Enjoy!
Posted by lk at 08:26 AM | Comments (2)
July 24, 2005
Waitin' on the netflix
The ep that has launched 1,000 theories …
And the show that just might save me this summer …
HBO's The Wire is a gritty show about cops and dealers set in Baltimore. It's also my new fave show and the one that's going to keep me busy for the next few months as I try to keep myself unspoiled in the aliasverse.
My apologies to The Dickwolf but my old favorite, Law and Order, just ain't what it used to be. The L&O is totally off balance now that that the “law” part has two goodfellas sorting out the crimes. The cops are too similar. Plus I keep thinking Tony Soprano is going to bust in any minute and blow Christopher's scam. Surely he is just "playing" a cop - workin' some angle. Chris may be workin' it but it's not working for me. My advice, Dick: "Switch it up!"
But back to the Wire … the situations are grim, the writing is sharp, the plot is Dickensian in the extreme and it’s full of morally grey characters. Oh and the acting is fucking excellent! Who would have thought that I would end up loving Wendell Pierce (the actor that made me cringe in “Waiting to Exhale”) and Clarke Peters? These two put Fontana and Falco to shame. Plus, now I get plenty of Michael K. Williams. Who knew that before he was Roberts he was a total drug dealing badass, and gay?! The lingo on The Wire is another treat. “Natural police”, “suction”, "the parley"… this is good stuff and examples will soon appear in the “top 5 words” category.
I don’t know why I didn’t take to The Wire when it first aired. It probably had to do with the slow pace and the fact that it takes a few eppies before you can understand what the hell everyone is saying. Between the Baltimore accents and the lingo, man, you really have to pay attention. You can't even be folding your laundry while you watch this - you need to be focused! Don’t get me wrong, I like the way the story and the characters slowly come into view. I guess it was just hard for me to keep momentum back then. But now with Netflix (a.k.a. the best $18 I spend a month) I can watch when I want. I can even take them two or three at a time, which seems to work better for me and my erratic sleep patterns.
So if you're like me and missed this one when it first came out of the box, start on the DVDs! It's really an excellent show!
Note to spyfans:
I’ve got plenty to say about JJ and the re-vaughnification of the aliasverse. My head is full of THEORIES folks, but I'm going to TRY to keep it under control. So, if you want to read my ramblings about the show just look for:
Posted by lk at 09:44 AM | Comments (3)
June 05, 2005
I’m still kind of in shock over the season finale. While I don’t feel ready to fully comment on what Jabrams did to me during the last 15 seconds of S4, I will share some thoughts on the top 5 names for Vartan’s character on Alias.
1. Not!Vaughn (courtesy of TWoP)
2. Faughn (Faux Vaughn)
3. Bastard (because now you are a lame plot twist and you’ve killed my imaginary boyfriend!)
4. Braughn (or Brother of Vaughn, because the only way this makes sense is if he is Michaels Vaughn’s Brother. Yeah, I know, I’m grasping at straws.)
5. Rambaldi
bonus
6. ϕ (Like Prince did with the glyph. Remember that?)
Posted by lk at 05:42 PM | Comments (1)
May 19, 2005
tv times ...
Wherein Kitty muses on dreams, mirages, descents and rescues, and then questions the sanity of the powers that be (otherwise known as the writers) of the Alias-verse.
Well let's just get this out of the way at the beginning:
WHAT THE HELL!
Right. Now I can proceed. I just had to get that off my chest because I still don't know why the writers have a) shoved the stupid Weiss/Nadia pairing (aka WADIA) down our throats all season, then b) proceeded to give Dix and Chase a torrid affair - OFF SCREEN and then c) give us about 45 minutes of a good ep spread across two bloody hours, so that d) we only have a one hour season finale next week while all the other shows get two hours. And by "all the other shows", I really only mean 24 and LOST, since that's all I watch on network these days. AGAAAAAAH!
So now that the complaining is almost finished, I will say that I enjoyed some of what went on last night. I did laugh out loud a few times at the whole Vaughn asking Jack's permission sequence and also the rough sex comment fully audible on comms (HA!). It was fun to see Lena Olin again. Of course she looked fabulous and I really enjoyed the scene where she and Jack have that slow dance on what looked like the set of the Titanic... Also loved, loved, loved the secret stairwell smooch between our favorite - though never seen - interoffice romance (Dixon and Director Chase)! But come on, I can't be the only die hard fan who is having just a little bit of trouble buying this stuff!? Clifford, The Big Red Ball, hovering over some Russian city? The whole stupid third Derevko Sister plot (I do love Sonia and she does look terrific, but I think her story line is La La La Lame). Also, after waiting half the season for more Angela, we finally get her all over this ep but there is no real understanding of what or who her character IS.
OK. Now the complaining is really over. Now comes the musing.
The last three weeks this show has been all over the map. Some good stuff but also lots weird stuff, non-continuity and gore. Which begs the question: If this was season 4, what on earth do they have in store for us next season when JG is all preggers and we are thrust into the never-never-land of Thursday nights when no one will be watching except, well, me.
YIKES.
PS I still miss Roberts. They should never have killed him off.
Posted by lk at 10:30 PM | Comments (1)
May 11, 2005
Should she quit her day job?
Tonight we find out if Jennifer Garner has been paying attention to what goes on BEHIND the camera for the last 4yrs. Did she pick up any cool directing tricks from JJ and Ken Olin? I hope so.
I also hope that SpyDaddy and Syd get to have a heart to heart. After all the crazy hallucinations and gross hand-digging and syringes, I think it's time for Jack to be in a scene where he simply has a normal conversation with someone whose, like, you know, really there! Will we get a little more Arvin Cloane? Will we see even a glimpse of Angela!!?? Some online sources say more Sark is on the way, but WHEN? So many promises have been made this season but I'm still waiting.
Don't get me wrong,the last 2 weeks have yielded some fun moments, as for example, the emergence of Pimp-DaddyDix. I used to love Dixon's understated wardrobe but lately he's been sporting some really Huggy Bear like spyduds. I am glad he is getting more to do on missions, but seriously, some of these outfits? Hi-Larious. And what's up with the continuity? Didn't Vaughn shoot Dix a few weeks ago? And Dixon kind of saw it was him when V (stupidly) pulled up his mask! It seemed like there would be a little tension between those two or there would be unresolved questions for the APOers about V going rogue. But we got nothing!
Well, let me just calm down with all my questions… If you need proper recapping (or just a good chuckle), check Erin's latest.
Posted by lk at 03:55 PM | Comments (2)
May 07, 2005
Alias cast members (and former cast members) in new shows
AliasMedia tells me that Anna, Willage, Agent Sean AND the former Mr. Jennifer Garner will all have new shows this fall. I particularly liked the blurb on Scott Foley's poorly named series The Unit "... starring Amy Acker and Scott Foley as members of a special forces unit, is considered a shoo-in, and something of a male Alias, or Malias, if you will. The former missus will be so proud". Guess Alias Media likes a portmanteau word just as much a Kitty does.
Posted by lk at 05:35 PM | Comments (0)
April 30, 2005
top 5 names
top 5 names for Mr. Arvin Sloane:
1. Homegrown Sloane
2. Sloane, Original Recipe
3. Uncle Inappropriate
4. Sloane 1.0
5. Capt. Crackers
top 5 names for the "Other" Mr. Sloane:
1. Arvin Clone
2. The Unbeknown Sloane
3. Flyblown Sloane
4. Sloane 2.0
5. Sly of The Family Sloane (thanks, NK)
More on "A Clean Conscience" later ...
Posted by lk at 10:12 AM | Comments (1)
April 23, 2005
tv times
Hi, I'm Syd. Fly Me!
Hi, I'm Arvin. I'm Batshit Crazy!
Well, if you missed this week's Alias, you missed the best (and ironically also the worst) ep of the season so far! Email me and I'll get you a tape because, this one? Not to be missed! Funny, bazaar, and filled with questions! Sloane's whole story was stellar and I loved all the S1-3 shout outs, but Good Lord, team APO are the WORST. SPIES. EVER! Why, oh why, did they give Roberts the REAL coil!!!!
Last week's "Another Mr. Sloane" provided much for spyfans to love, and also hate. I thoroughly enjoyed the many, many shout-outs to previous seasons. And there were even a few instances where I fell out of bed laughing when it seemed the writers had lifted jokes and jargon straight from the TWoP forums (Arvin Cloane, anyone?)! We got to see Michelle Forbes standing in for Christian Slater's kidnapped scientist a la S2, as well as another huge warehouse with a new and CGI improved Red Ball of Death (think Taipei only brighter). Also on tap was a hilarious installation of artifacts on view at the New Museum of Rambaldi Art – a.k.a. the DSR. These scenes were funny. On the flip side, a good deal of the ep was genuinely tense and quite creepy. For example, seeing Jack come this close to putting a bullet in Sloan's brain, in an eerily deserted (yet cavernous) bathroom, and the last 5 minutes when Arvin beats a fellow to death with a metal rod! These scenes were scary. Ron Rifkin’s final close-up is like something out of The Shining!
But I still have so many questions... Who on earth is Jacqueline? Does Jack believe he killed Irina, or is he just trying to make everyone ELSE think that he killed her? And the big one, are the two Sloane's in league with each other, and if so, what's their plan? And if not, which one is crazier?!!
Can't wait till Wed when apparently our stoic SpyDaddy starts to shed his radioactive skin! EEWWW!
P.S. I miss Roberts.
Posted by lk at 12:10 PM | Comments (2)
April 19, 2005
palias report
OK, so I didn't write anything about last Wednesday's totally delicious ep because I got swamped with work late in the week. Also, I am really, really trying to curb my total obsession with this show (I swear, it's like I revert to a 9th grader when I get on this topic). BUT, then I decided "Who Cares! I likes, what I likes". Plus, someone actually ASKED me about it... I'm totally late for an appointment right now, but I will post a Vaughn-lovin' recap later today!
Life IS a Cabaret...
If you missed last week, you missed some fun stuff. I know a lot of folks in the nerd spyfan community thought that the DaddyVaughn story moved too slowly and didn't have enough of a pay off - but I enjoyed it. The Boy Scout finally broke with protocol for his own reasons (not for Sydney's). Also, I found his irrational obsession with his father's death kind of endearing in an odd way. I guess I could relate to it and so I was willing to go along with this storyline, even if the business with the needle in the library was a bit much. For me the payoff was seeing the growing desperation of MV's character. It also gave him way more screen time than last year. So, YEA for that! Plus, last week Vaughn got to go all MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, speak French AND hang out with that cute blackmailer, Roberts! I could have dealt with maybe one more ep of rogue behavior or counter missions with him and Syd, but all in all "Pandora" was cool.
In other news - Isabella was back and being her mysterious an gorgeous self, there are now 2 Mr. Sloane's and I have to keep vigil for poor Jack who is completely radioactive (but being extremely stoic about it).......If you are still reading (and still interested), go read Erin's recap at TWoP - her description of "Arvin Clone" is Hi-larious! I actually think Joel Grey is sooooooooo creepy but perfect for this role.
Promos for tomorrow's ep look good, too! I mean, anytime you see Jack holding a gun to Arvin's head in the MEN'S ROOM, well...........
Posted by lk at 10:30 AM | Comments (2)
April 09, 2005
Informal poll:
Would you inject yourself with -God knows what - to find out the truth about someone you loved but thought was dead????
(I probably would, but I'd also probably mess it up because my hands would be so shaky and I'd be so freakin' scared! Hate Needles. Just Hate 'Em!)
Posted by lk at 12:24 PM | Comments (0)
April 08, 2005
tv times
"Braids, fishnets ... it's pretty spectacular!"
A description of Toastkitten's sultry Friday night attire? Sadly, no. But this week's installment of Alias almost makes up for the fact that my real life was kind of a mess this week... My life (no not the one where I'm shacked up with lovely Michael Vartan in a mid-century modern beach pad, and have designer clothes and many exotic wigs in my closet, my real life), is still kind of in flux. What with working on a bunch of different freelance gigs and shlepping around town on the bus etc. (plus I still can't quite afford the hair I want) let's just say this wasn't my best week. At least I was treated to a stellar show on Wednesday night! SpyDaddies were scheming, Vaughn was injecting himself with an unknown substance in order to get the poop on Vaughn Père, and Marshall hugged Sloane in a fit of emotion! All that AND a minimum of Nadia! I couldn't have asked for a better mid-week pick me up. Loved It! Best ep of the season so far! Can't wait to see Vaughn go rogue. What will happen to poor Jack? What is Sloane's endgame? Will Syd ever say "I love You " to Vaughn, or Will Weiss finally come out of the closet and beat her to the punch? So many possibilities...
As far a my super geeky spy-fan websites are concerned, we are now done with stand alone episodes. No more villain-of-the-week. Thank God. In the next two months we can can expect full tilt continuity, story arcs, Derevko sisters and possibly Rambaldi. My friend from up North doubts that we will see a complete return to form this season, but at least JJ has one more turn at bat to make it right....
Posted by lk at 10:07 PM | Comments (4)
March 17, 2005
TV Times
OK, so last night's installment of L/Alias was disappointing, to say the least. LOST was a repeat - AGAIN - and Alias, well... Let's just say that watching Syd drag around some oafish civilian in faux Salzburg, while trying to disable a deadly toy helicopter, really made me question my allegiance to JJ. I should have known the whole thing was doomed when she showed up in the first scene with a ridiculous fake nose a reddish hair! Seriously, she looked like some freakish cross between Julia Roberts (whom I loathe) and Nicole Kidman from The Hours! Fun to see Jack and Vaughn having individual story lines, but in general, Kitty was not impressed. Let's hope next week we get more on evil Daddy Vaughn and more flirting between Dix and Angela... Meh, meh, meh. Check out Erin's recaplet if you want the full blow by blow, or if you just need a laugh - like I did after this dismal ep.
Needless to say, by 10 pm I was in no mood for L&O's investigation of two college students who were participants in a secret testing program on a new anti-depressant - and who subsequently committed suicide because of the drugs! Man, talk about depressing!
Posted by lk at 08:10 AM | Comments (0)