Written by Russell K Davies

Those of you know me in real life are probably beginning to wonder if I’m OK. Why? Because it’s been four days now since the new episodes of Doctor Who started airing in the United Kingdom and I have yet to mention anything about them.

For those of you who don’t know, I’m a huge Doctor Who fan. I stumbled across the show close to 20 years ago and it’s been an obsession of mine ever since. The show ran for 26 seasons in the UK before taking a short 16 year break and now, it’s back. Three weeks ago, the first episode of the new series leaked out onto the Internet. Many of my good Doctor Who friends on-line made me aware that I could preview the episode early.

But, I decided I’d have will power. I’d wait for the episodes to play here in the United States. Surely some network executive would see the light of picking up new episodes of the greatest television show ever made and airing it. Alas, that hasn’t happened yet, proving once again that most network executives are idiots.

My will power lasted all of five seconds. Within seconds, I was getting the software needed and pulling down a copy of the first episode. I couldn’t wait to see it. I watched the little percentage meter throughout the day as it slowly scrolled up and up. Finally, I had the entire episode.

I burned it to CD and sat back to take in the first new Doctor Who I’d seen since the 1996 FOX movie.

Starting it up, I have to admit I was a bit nervous. For years, Doctor Who has existed and been kept alive by the fans. There have been novels, audio stories, all kinds of fan fiction. And the best part was—if an audio story or novel didn’t jive with yow you saw Doctor Who, you just ignored it. You said—it’s not a TV episode, so that doesn’t count. But now, we’ve got a new series, one that is run by an admitted fan of the show. The biggest danger is that the vision that producer Russell K Davies has for the show might not be the same one I have—or that a zillion and one other Whovians out there have. This could be very, very dangerous.

Also, I have to admit that while I love Doctor Who, I’m not necessarily the target audience anymore. Much has been made of the fact that Doctor Who is made for the intelligent 12 year-old. Yes, there are things for the older crowd in there, but I’m long past the age where I’m a target audience for my favorite show. So, while I was happy it was back, I was also taking the approach that the show wasn’t being made for just me, the way I wanted it. It was being made for a new generation of fans. Let’s face it—they had me watching just because it said Doctor Who. The real challenge was going to be bringing in the new Doctor Who fan.

All this was going through my mind as I sat down to watch the first episode of the new series.

Well, that and “Cool! New Doctor Who!”

The prospect of new Doctor Who just thrills me to the tips of my toes, to be quite honest with you.

So, I’ll admit I went into the first episode of the new series with cautious optimism. I was determined to give it a fair shake, but hopefully not be too gushing of a fanboy about it. But I also didn’t want to dismiss it too easily if it didn’t meet up to my huge expectations for it.

One episode into the new series and I think we’ve got something here.

Wisely enough, Russell K Davies spends the first hour of the new Doctor Who re-introducing us to the universe of Doctor Who. How?

By introducing us to the companion first.

Over the years, the best way to get to know a new Doctor is through how his companions or friends react to him. This was, in my mind, one of the huge shortcomings of the FOX movie back in 1996. It not only had to get us a new Doctor, but also a new companion as well. As an audience, we had no way to know much about the new Doctor because we didn’t know much about anyone he was interacting with.

This time around, Davies takes care of that. The episode is called “Rose” with good reason. It focuses on the new companion, Rose. We follow her around and see her life, her various interactions with the new Doctor and her learning more about who the Doctor really is. The new Doctor, played by Christopher Eccleston, is on screen for about half the episode, if not less. The only times we see him are when his path crosses with Rose. I love this for a couple of reasons. One is that for years the central mystery of the show was just who is the Doctor. That sense of mystery has returned a bit with this storyline. Also, by establishing Rose a bit, we the audience have a way to get to know and understand the Doctor. We get a few hints about the new Doctor—he seems a combination of Tom Baker, Patrick Troughton and Sylvester McCoy. But Ecceleston brings something of his own to the role. What it is yet, I’m not quite sure. There is a definite chemistry between the Doctor and Rose—in that the new Doctor seems to need an audience for his brilliant feats and his defeat of alien monster. Rose seems to fit that bill and I like the give and take between the two. It feels like some of the best Doctor/companion teams for the original series.

That’s not to say “Rose” is really all that original a story. It’s not breaking a lot of new ground. It’s a re-telling for the classic Pertwee era story “Spearhead from Space” which introduced us to the third Doctor. That’s not exactly a bad thing. If you’re going to emulate a good first story for a Doctor, you might as well go for one of the best. “Rose” borrows heavily from “Spearhead from Space” even down to the main villain of the piece, the Autons. And just like in the 70s we see the real terror of the Autons is that they can make normal every day things made of plastic become scary. Back in the two original Auton stories, things like phone chords, plastic flowers and policemen became scary. Here it’s trash bins and shop dummies (also used in the original). And it works. The Autons work well as villains and monsters—even taking over Rose’s boyfriend at one point and making him one of them to lead her into a trap and flush out the Doctor.

They know the Doctor can stop their invasion, by defeating the Nestenes. In the end, the Doctor does this by using a bit of “anti-plastic” No technobabble here. The Doctor, typical to the Pertwee era, just comes up with some stuff that defeats the enemy and saves the day. We need no long-winded ground in hard science explanation. The Autons use plastic as a weapon, so the Doctor uses anti-plastic to defeat them. Makes sense to me. Just in the same way that mushrooms can clean up toxic waste and defeat giant maggots. It makes sense within the context of the story.

So, overall, the story is a nice one. It’s not great, but it’s still twenty times better than the story that started the McCoy years with “Time and the Rani.” It shows some potential. It’s left me curious and wanting to see more. It’s done what a good pilot should do—hook you into the characters, the series and the premise and left you wanting for more. I am hopeful that as the next twelve or so episodes unfold, it continues to build on all this.

All I know is that, for now, I'm satisfied. The new Doctor Who is exactly what I'd hope it'd be. And the most exciting part is that next week, we get a new installment. It's been 16 years since I could look forward to new Doctor Who for any length of time (the FOX movie doesn't count for me since it was a back door pilot for the show in the U.S. and never got picked up...all I could do was cross my fingers and hope). I can't wait for next week to see what happens next...er, I mean...until they pick it up in the U.S. to start airing it. Yeah, that's it!

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The hiatus pauses
For those of us out there suffering from withdrawals for new episodes of Lost, ABC is helping out a bit. Instead of making us wait six weeks between new episodes, we get the first of two new episodes tonight. (I think the fact that ABC is luanching a new show, Eyes, has a bit to do with this since Alias tends to do better with new Lost as a lead-in).

Tonight's episode is a Locke-centric one, which I have high hopes for. The last Locke-centered one was the brilliant "Walkabout" that pretty much cemented Lost as a "must see" series for me.

USA Today features an article about Terry O'Quinn who plays Locke. A lot of it is stuff we've heard before in an article a few weeks ago. But hey, it's still interesting.

In other Lost news, the season finale has been expanded from 90 minutes to 2-hours. That's good news for Lost. It's also scheduled to air the same night as the bloated, overhyped, overexpanded final episode of American Idol. I hope Lost kicks American Idol's tail in the ratings that night. I just hate how every reality show these days has to have a 2-hour wrap-up show when, honestly, the 2-hour episodes would be better at the beginning of the season when there are more people to fill the time rather than just aimlessly trying to fill 2-hours of air time (I'm looking at you Survivor and The Apprentice).

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/30/2005 03:17:00 PM | |

Ransom note
Saw this over on Anna Bannana who got it for Buzz-a-Roni who got it from...well, you know how that goes.

You can try it out for youself here.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/30/2005 11:01:00 AM | |

Too hot for Harvard?
A female librarian, Desiree Goodwin, at the Harvard has filed a suit against the University, alleging that she was discriminated against because "she is black, female and dresses too sexily."
In the suit, Goodwin alleges that she has been passed over from promotion 16 times in the past several years, all by people who are "less qualified" than she is. An article in the The Boston Globe says the following.

In her lawsuit, Goodwin alleges that in December 2001, a female supervisor told
her she'd never be promoted at Harvard because she was viewed as a ''pretty
girl" who wore ''sexy outfits," including low-cut blouses and tight clothing

Thanks to local talk show host, Steve Gill, we have to pictures of Ms. Goodwin. This morning, Gill was asking people to go to his web site and decide if Goodwin was "too hot for Harvard."

Looking at these photos, I'm going to assume that these are not the types of outfits that caused the suit in question.

What I am curious about it are there any photos out there of what she allegedly wore to work and that caused her to get passed over for promotion? No, I'm not curious just because I want to see a hot woman on the Internet. Heaven only knows that if I wanted to see an attractive woman in revealing clothing, I could just surf over to a myriad of web sites. No, what I'm curious about is were the clothes a reflection of her attitude or her professional perception. Having done the whole job search thing in the past year, I know that what you wear to an interview can say just as much or more about you than the words on your resume or the answer you give to the interview questions. Or was there a dress code within the system that she chose to ignore or perhaps tried to push the limits of? There are ways for men and women to be both fashionable and professional in the attire they wear to the office. But it can sometimes be a fine line.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/30/2005 09:54:00 AM | |
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
24: Day Four, 9-10 p.m.
It's inevitable in every season of 24 that there's a bit of lull in the action of the day. Last year, we had the infamous trip to Mexico and this year, it seems as if the past three or so episodes have been a bit of a holding pattern. I'm going to have to agree with Barry that the last couple of weeks 24 has lost a bit of the focus that held the early hours of this season together so well. It's seemed as if CTU and Jack were chasing their tails, pursuing whatever wild goose chase cropped up this week for the team to go after. Meanwhile, we only get hints of Marwan's plan--which apparently involves infilitrating an Air Force base and stealing a stealth bomber. In a lot of ways, the whole plotline of the Air Force base infilitration reminds a lot of what's going on over at Alias with Jack and Sloane hinting that some evil plan is in place but not really bothering to give us any solid hints or clues as to what it might be. But, by golly, it sure is evil!

During the latest hour of 24, I found myself second-guessing a lot of what was going on. I had to laugh out loud when Marwan told his lackies to get CTU on the phone and two minutes later, he's talking to Michelle Dessler. First of all, is CTU listed in the phone book? If so, do they go under "Spies" or "Anti-Terrorism" in the yellow pages? And apparently, CTU doesn't have a night answering service, since the calls is routed right into the main headquarters of CTU. Yeah, how many prank calls a day do they get that way? No wonder Edgar is so short with everyone. I'd be pretty upset if I spent all day chasing down Mr. I.P. Freely.

Then, we have the whole getting on the Air Force base agenda. Now, I am probably coming at this as my father was career Air Force so I can quiz him on things that could NEVER happen. Such as the traitor guy being on the flight line with a cell phone. Not allowed and since it's clear the phone wasn't on vibrate, then surely somoene else heard it. Also, what'd he do with the body of the technician he killed? Finally, you'd think with a top secret plane being out there that maybe someone would notice--hey the tech guy and the guy claiming to be a captain of the plane look a lot alike. And do stealth bombers only need only pilot to fly them? Surely the Air Force wouldn't let a stealth bomber go up with just ONE pilot, would they?

I know, I know--willing suspension of disbelief. But you've got to make it at least slightly plausible, you know.

Now that I've got the nitpicking out of the way, I found it interesting that Marwan worked so hard to distract CTU from his real plan when the inefficienty and pissing contest of Chloe and Edgar did it for him. I liked the tension around should we exchange Behrooz for Jack and seeing how Marwan pulls everyone's strings to get them to do what he wants. But here's another point. Marwan isn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. I realize that for the sake of drama, we have to keep things moving, but his exchanging Jack for Behroozz within thirty minutes of his bad-guy hang-out doesnt' make much sense. Why? Because now CTU can say--hey, he's within a half-hour radius of here. Heck, I think CTU missed a huge opportunity here...if you know he's with that radius, you cordon it off so that when he does try to move after making the trade for Jack, he can't get out of a contained area. Why is is that no one came up with this idea?

And Jack was exactly right when he stated that he was not worth trading. Of course, since he's the hero and the hero of the show can't die, we all knew they'd go through with this. For a few minutes, I fully expected CTU to say, "No, not doing it" and Audrey to pull rank or call Heller to order CTU to get Jack back.

Speaking of Audrey--so, last week she was concerned beyond concern about Paul. Yet this week, all she can think about is--will Jack be OK? This after wondering if she really could love Jack or be with him based on what she knows about him now. You know, this woman's loyalty to the man in her life changes more often than most of us change pants. I am beginning to go back to my original suspicion that Audrey is somehow connected to the terrorist plot. It seems to make some sense--she knew where her father would be to start the day. I'm not sure if this is how it should go because in a lot of ways this makes Audrey too much of a pale retread of Nina. But, we've got to give her something more interesting to do than sit around ,wringing her hands at the fate of the two men she's romantically linked to.

Every day of 24 has lulls in the action. At least this week, the lull was used to maybe try and kick-start some plot. 24 is generally broken up into eight hour blocks. So, I just hope that the last block of stories get things back on track to how intriguing the events were in the first few hours of the day. I'm not losing patience with the show--I'm addicted as ever. But there needs to be some edge-of-your-seat, thrill moments to come in the next few hours.

Either that or we need to bring Kim back and have her threatened by a cougar...

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/29/2005 08:33:00 AM | |
Monday, March 28, 2005
Interview meme: Logtar

And last but not least in my interview meme is my good buddy, Logtar, who volunteered late Friday afternoon to be part of the fun.

1. May I call you Loggie? No, I guess not. For those of you who don't know, Logtar was born in Columbia and spent some of his childhood in Columbia. Could you share with us some of your memories of growing up in Columbia, please?

2. Logtar is lucky enough to have met Ceilo and fallen in love with her. Also lucky for him, she loves him also and has agreed to marry him. Alright buddy. Tell us about the first time you met Cielo.

3. Often when I've chatted with Logtar on-line, he's invited me up to visit him and hit the big city of Chicago for some fun. If I were to come up to visit and we could only visit one thing in Chicago, what would it be?

4. Another thing I like about chatting with Logtar is that his faith is very important to him. I think this is one of the first things you'll notice about him if you do chat with him or by reading his blog archives. Please tell us about about the importance of your faith and your daily walk.

5. You used to do movie reviews on a regular basis, but of late not that many. Not any movies worth reviewing or just no time? What is the best movie you've seen? The worst?

Thanks to Barry, Stacy, Misti, Becky, Aaron and Logtar for all playing this. I've enjoyed the experience. Now the challenge is for y'all to find five people to interview in your blog (I will return the favor if you'd like.) And I will post links to everyone's answers when I see them on-line!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/28/2005 04:19:00 PM | |

Interview meme: Aaron
A couple of weeks ago, I was surfing around blogs and came across the He Says, She Says blog run by Aaron and Tami. I enjoyed what I read there and added their blog to my BlogRoll. Last week, Aaron threw caution to the wind and volunteered to be part of the Interview Meme challenge. So, here are his five questions.

1. Last week, you revealed in your blog that you had not seen Star Wars: Episode I or II when they were released in the theaters. As a Star Wars fan, I have to ask--did you enjoy seeing the original trilogy when you were younger? And what kept you from seeing the movies when they were released in the theaters?

2. I find it interesting that you share your blog with Tami. Tell us a bit about Tami. How'd y'all meet? How long have you been together? Details...we want details!

3. Whose idea was it to have a "He said, she said" type of blog?

4. In your blog, you confess to being a bit of a neat freak. Are we talking about a neat freak like Jerry Seinfeld on Seinfeld where he tore his whole apartment apart to find out what one of his girlfriends put in the toliet after he dropped her toothbrush in the toliet and then didn't tell her? (Extra credit if you can tell me what the girlfriend of the week put in the toliet to drive Jerry crazy).

5. When you first commented on my blog a few weeks ago, you made a note about my orange and white color scheme. This makes me wonder--what teams--college or pro--do you pull for?

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/28/2005 03:42:00 PM | |

Where does George Lucas get his ideas?

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/28/2005 12:13:00 PM | |

TV Round-Up
Battlestar Galactica: By Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part One
Is it just me or have the past 11 or so weeks just flown by? It seems like just yesterday I was tuning in for 33 and Water and now, here we are only one episode left from the end of season one. And, what a great ride it's been in the first season for Battlestar Galactica. (And the best news--unlike the original, we will get a season two.)

I'll be honest here--I was really looking forward to this episode. I've heard a lot of good buzz from the fans in the UK who saw this episode weeks agao. I've stayed away from SPOILERs for specific details, but the general buzz on-line that this one was not to be missed.

All I can say is--I'm hopeful that part one was about putting pieces in play and part two is about knocking them all down. I have a feeling that Ron Moore and company intended this to air as a two-hour movie rather than a two-part story with a week's gap in between. Because this first hour felt like it was tying up a lot of things and then spinning them off in a new direction.

Like the Baltar/Kara/Lee triangle. As the teaser unfolded, I thought we were seeing some flashes of moments from Lee's life. Becuase for a good bit of the teaser, it seemed as if we were being teased that Lee and Kara had finally got together. Then, we find out it's not Lee, but Baltar. This serves as a catalyst to not only send Six off on a jealous tangent (after telling Baltar last week that it was OK for him to sleep around and not even really seeming to mind when he hooked up with the female reporter) and having Lee get his nose out of joint. Interesting that in a lot of ways what Baltar and Starbuck do here in terms of fraternization is exactly what Boomer and Tryol were doing as the season started--and we see the dim view that Tigh and others took of that relationship. Somehow, I don't get the feeling that Starbuck and Baltar will become a long-term thing. I can't imagine Six allowing that to continue--again, in light of her jealousy here. To the point that she manages to slam Baltar's head into a mirror and he ends up hurting himself. As Ron Moore brings up in his podcast, this puts the whole Six/Batlar thing in many disburbing new lights--if she's not real, that's disturbing, but if she is, she has a lot of control over his body. Or is she really there?

Meanwhile, Baltar's journey into the non-redemption continues. The scene were Baltar goes to Boomer and encourages her to kill herself was really well done. Baltar's manipulation of her--to cover his own tracks--was very well done. And I have to wonder--did Boomer really miss or did some part of her Cylon programming make so she couldn't kill herself and thus, not complete her purpose on Galactica?

And the question continues to linger--is Roslin slowly slipping into the same madness and ego-centricity that Baltar is? Think about it. Roslin believes that the fleet has found Kobol. She sees a vision in the map and believes that she is fulfiling prophecy. So much so that she betrays Adama's confidence that he has no clue where Earth is in order to forward her own agenda--she wants to be the Moses of the fleet, leading her people to the promised land. Also, you have to wonder if the Cylons aren't manipulating Roslin. A few weeks ago, a Cylon agent says they will find Kobol. And then when they apparently do, the Cylons have a base-star there waiting. Could the Cylons have jumped ahead and been waiting for the fleet to fall into their trap?

Roslin's telling Starbuck that Adama lied about where Earth was was a great moment. As was Kara's calling to ask Adama about it. The episode ends with Starbuck following the instructions of Roslin to go back to Capria, retrieve the Arrow of Apollo and return it. That way, Roslin can fulfill her destiny. Somehow, I have a feeling not everything is going to go smoothly and that a lot of relationships have been damaged by the events set in motion here.

All that said, I'm eager to see where the final hour of the season takes us. I'm hoping for a bang to end the season.

Arrested Development: Sword of Destiny
Sometimes this show is just too hysterically funny--like with this week's episode "Sword of Destiny." The references to FOX reducing the order of episode for this year and the huge ads for Family Guy that pop up on screen were great (And interesting that Family Guy will take over AR's slot in a few weeks) . Good to know The Simpsons aren't the only show that can get away with this. And that FOX apparently has a good sense of humor about the whole thing. I loved everyone's comments about the order reduction doesn't look good and then the company having to lower costs to survive--are these hints that the show might just make it after all? Meanwhile, Ben Stiller guests star as a rival magician to Gob and hilarity enuses. I can't believe FOX didn't make more of Stiller's guest appareance on the show.

Also, the ending where George Michael's attempts to make a Star Wars video of his own and falling into the hands of the FBI were classic.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/28/2005 11:10:00 AM | |
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Friday's Feast
Ack! I forgot to play on Friday. Hopefully better late than never!

Appetizer - What is the worst movie you've ever seen?

That wasn't made fun of on MST3K? LOL.

Part of me wants to say Wing Commander but it actually did have a few redeeming values. I think it's underrated but that still doesn't make it good. And thankfully I skipped Battlefield: Earth. I'm almost tempted to say the last hour and a half of the Postman when Costner veered off from the novel and turned it into, well, a crappy Kevin Costner movie. The first half is good...the last half is unwatchable. And Tom Petty shows up in the second half...ugh!

Soup - Name something that reminds you of your childhood.

When I was growing up, I had a ton of those Power records about various super heroes--Spiderman, Batman, Superman, etc. I love listening to those--in fact, it was those that helped me discover my fandom that is Star Trek. When BrainBoy was little, I was hopeful they'd release some of them on CD for the nostalgia value and so I could buy 'em and share 'em with him. But, alas, not yet. Now that Davis is getting older, I am hoping they will release them on CD so I can get them and share them with him.

Salad - If you had to live in a large city, which one would you want it to be?

I'm going to be boring and say Nashville. I like the city, honestly.

Main Course - What's a "big word" you like to use to impress people?

I've been accused of being too intellectual and using big words to try and impress people. I am not sure if there is one particular word that I enjoy more than any other.

Dessert - Describe your hairstyle.

Messy. I have several cowlicks so my hair has a mind of its own most days. But I do part it and comb it over. I also keep it short on my neck. Helps with the swimming.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/27/2005 12:27:00 PM | |

Hoppy Easter
Happy Easter to everyone out there in the BlogSphere. Hope the Easter Bunny was good to you!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/27/2005 12:09:00 PM | |
Friday, March 25, 2005
Interview meme; Becky
And now it's time for victim number four--Becky from over at April Fool. Here we go...

1. For those of you who don't know, Becky lives in Hawaii. Now, I've been fortunate enough to live in Hawaii also when I was much younger and to have visited when my parents were stationed there again in my mid-20's. My question for Becky is this--if we were to visit you in Hawaii, what is one thing off the beaten path or not a huge tourist spot that you'd take us to visit?

2. Your work in real esate. Who do you prefer to work with--buyers or sellers? Why?

3. You've shared a lot of great stories about your family. Is there another good story about you growing up that you can share with us?

4. Any good stories about Reese (Becky's dog) that we should know. Any new pictures? And how did you teach him to drive? What are the insurance rates for a small dog to drive these days?

5. Once upon a time, you told me the story about some freinds of yours encountering Kiefer Sutherland while he was filming 24. Cool story. Could you share it here?

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/25/2005 02:37:00 PM | |

Another interview with me!
Yesterday, I posted a series of questions for Barry as part of the Interview meme. Now, it's my turn in the hot seat to answer questions for Barry...

1. You've been an "uncle" to my kids, whose real uncle lives far away. You're always a new uncle to your sister's new children. What does being an uncle mean to you, and how important should the concept of "village raising", i.e. other family and friends assisting the parents, be with children today?

I'm a Christian who goes to a Methodist church. And one part of the baptism ceremony is when the congregation responds that we will help to raise the child. I take this vow very seriously because I am accepting responsiblity for helping in the nuture and loving of the child. Now, this does not mean I'm anywhere near as important as their parents in raising the child, but it does mean I have a role. I work hard to be a good influence on the kids. There are a lot of things I can do to help raise a child. I can teach Sunday School, volunteer with the youth, etc. One of the biggest I think is that I can show them through my life that--hey, you can be a Christian and still have a sense of humor. Last Sunday, I dressed up as the Easter bunny at church for the kids. Some of the youth said--man, I wish I could that next year. So, I see that as an immediate sort of impact--getting them to realize that it's easy and fun to help others. Also, I am pretty open about my life and the mistakes I've made. I think that the best example a young person can have--of any age--is that the person who says, "Yep, I've made mistakes, I'm not proud of it, but I know I'm forgiven."

And, of course, the best thing you can give anyone is the gift of your time. Yes, I had fun picking out the Full House DVDs for BrainyBoy, but if I didn't spend any time getting to know Craig and what he liked, how would I know to buy those for him? The best thing you can give a kid is a bit of yourself and your time.

2. I first met you at the Methodist Student Center at UT, and you attended my church in Knoxville for a while. Now you go to one in Nashville. How important is God to you in your life, and can you describe a particularly spiritual experience that you've had?

If there is anything the past couple of years has made abundently clear, it is that God is very important in my life. He's pretty much the center of my life and I try to live in His will. Funny you should ask this as the other day a friend asked me what did I mean by "living God's will" in a meme I posted here. And I told her about my Quantum Leap theology. If you saw the final episode, Sam leaps to this bar where he meets people from his previous leaps and a bartender who it's heavily implied is God. Sam wonders what he's doing leaping about--is he making a difference? It all seems to random to him. Sam asks--can I go home? And the bartender/God replies, "Sam you could go home all the time. You know how." Also, there is discussion of how the Leaps build on each other--getting harder as time goes along. And that God has a definite purpose to Sam's leaps--but it was Sam who chose the way to get there. He could take the easy way--by following God--or the more difficult route by following what Sam wanted. Either way, you get to the same place. So, for me, this is how I see things. God has a purpose in my life, but He leaves it to me to figure out how to get there from here. I can be like Sam and try to do it all msyelf or I can be faithful, surrender and follow God's path. Also, my faith and acceptance of Jesus does not mean life is gonna be easy. In fact, it is only going to, at times, be harder as Satan does not like this choice. But I take comfort in knowing that if God leads me to it, He will be with me through it and beyond. But it's taken a lot of heartache and being broken to my lowest point to realize all this.

As for a time in my life that was spiritual. So many. I am gonna tell a good story about Barry here.

In the summer of 2001, my sister was expecting she and her husband's first child. She lost the baby and due to some complications, we almost lost her. I got a call at work from my my mom to go home and be ready to come to Nashville as it might be the last time I'd see my sister. (This only weeks earlier thinking how lucky I was to have a sister) . I sent out an e-mail to friends for prayer and went home. I was a wreck. I hit my knees, begging God to save her. During all this, I made plans to drive to Nashville, not in a state where I needed to be anywhere near a road. Barry called or e-mailed, I forgot which and told me that if I had to go that night, he was driving me...no if's and's or but's about it. At that moment, I realized that I had cried out for help to God...that I needed someone to help me through this, to be strong for my baby sister. To me, that was a huge moment...because God heard a prayer that I had said in my heart, but hadn't said outloud and answered it before I knew it.

That's just one of many, many stories....

3. Tell us about your mother and father and sister and what they mean to you.

My family. Very important to me. My father was career Air Force. He spent 30 plus year serving our country and retired a full colonel. He's also one of my best friends. He's called me his "buddy" since I can remember. He takes good care of our family. He is very much a the head of the household as described in the Bible. The thing I think about when I think about Mom is that she was a stay at home Mom while my sister and I were in school. She would work part time but be home for us in the afternoons.

And my sister. Until about her 9th grade year, we didnt' get along. Then she went to high school and I realized she was pretty cool. I am definitely a big brother...very overprotective. I am going to give BB some good lessons on how to be a great big brother when your baby sister starts dating..

4. Next, tell us an amusing story about when you worked at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg

This is revenge for the Theta games question isn't it?

For those of you who may not know, I worked at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA for three summers while at UT. Loved it. Great fun and great way to meet new friends--my parents moved away from where I gradudated high school. I am sure Barry would love it if I had a picture of the embarassing outfits I had to wear while working there, but alas, I don't. (I am sure my Mom does though). There were so many stories--including the time that Mariah Carey dropped by my shop. Or how Gretchen and I would pick a Seinfeld line to say to each other at random times the day after it aired. Or Antoinette Theresa Anastasia DeRose...wow, what a girl.

But one thing I remember is working near the best roller coaster in the park, the Big Bad Wolf. It was as suspended roller coaster and it swung out. It was awesome. The best part was that I made friends with the crew that worked on it and so, after hours, when the park was closing down, we'd ride on it. Without anyone else around. It was awesome. I will not reveal that we turned off certain safety features to make it more exciting either...

5. Finally...The Washington Redskins vs the Tennessee Titans are playing in Super Bowl XXXXI. I'm sitting right there with you watching the game and so are 400 of your closest Titans fan friends. Whose jersey are you wearing?

First of all, I could only dream that this is the match-up for this year's Super Bowl. If only.

Let me now explain my complicated fandom. Growing up a military brat, I was always a Tenenssee fan. Vols that is. Well, we lived near D.C. in the early 80s when the Redskisn were good and won their first SuperBowl. I got hooked then. I have been a fan since then, seeing them through good and bad and the Spurrier regime. Well, then a while ago, the Titans pulled into Tenenssee and suddenly I had a new tema to love. But I couldn't turn my back on my first love. So, it's like this--I pull for the Redskins and Titans every week...unless they play each other. And then I' m all for the Redskins. So, I'd be wearing my Redskins jersey.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/25/2005 12:29:00 PM | |

Interview meme: Misty
Next up in my Interview Meme challenge is Misty from Seductive Kisses. I'd like to thank Misty for volunteering to be part of this great experiment. So, now onto her five hard-hitting questions...

1. It's obvious from reading your blog that you are a big West Virginia fan. Congratulations on how well they're doing in the tournament. Now, I know that you are probably like I am with Tennessee when it comes to pulling for the Mountaineers--you root for all teams, all the time. But do you have a favorite sport the Mountaineers play and which one is it?

2. The name of your blog is interesting. How'd you choose it? Is then name of your blog influenced by Cruel Intentions or Dangerous Liasons?

3. You also seem to be a big Stephen King fan. What is your favorite Stephen King book? What is your least favorite?

4. Congrats! . For those of you who don't know Misty is expecting a baby girl. I won't ask what names you've picked out here. Instead, I must ask--are there aunts and uncles in waiting ready to spoil your baby when she gets here?

5. Tell us all one interesting or unusual story about your childhood.

So, there you go. Thanks to Misty for playing!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/25/2005 08:59:00 AM | |

Interview meme: Stacy
"And so it begins....there is a hole in your mind..."

Oh wait, sorry, that's the opening credits from season five of Babylon Five. Stacy of Outwit, Outblog, Outsnark has volunteered to be the next victim in my interview meme game. Being a journalism major at the University of Tennessee, I pondered long and hard to find five hard-hitting in-depth questions to ask her that would really reveal the true, inner snarkiness that is Stacy.
So, here we go into the question...

1. In your blog, you talk a bit about the priviledge of getting to work from home. I have to admit I'm kind of jealous as I'd love to work from home in my comfortable bum-around the house clothes. That said, what are the upsides of working from home? What are the downsides and do you ever feel yourself getting stir crazy?

2. Like me, you watch a good bit of TV and comment on it in your blog. What is your favorite scripted show of the moment and what is your favorite reality show? Also, what is that one show that ranks number for you of all-time?

3. Do you have any snarky influences? If so, who are they?

4. Tell us a bit more about the first time you met the man who became UberHusband.

5. You've recently started your own meme, Aloha Friday. Talk about what inspired you to do so and how you work to keep it different from the other memes lurking out their in the BlogSphere.

Thank you to Stacy for joining in the fun! I must say I do still need one more volunteer to have my five interviewees for the meme.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/25/2005 08:36:00 AM | |

Aloha Friday
Share an anecdote from your life that shows us just how much technology has changed in the last 20-30 years.

Well, Stacy already took the remote control one. I will have to say that being an Air Force brat and moving about that e-mail has been a life-changing technology. I'm able to keep up for actively with freinds and family who are scattered all across the globe. And I also get to meet a whole lot of interesting other blog people and chat with them. How can you not like that?

How many of those little reward card/keyfob thingies do you have? Which stores?

I've got six of the little guys on my key chain. I've got Kroger, BiLo, CVS and FoodLion (which I still refuse to buy any perishable items there even all these years after the stories about bleaching the meat and putting it back out. I just don't trust them). Also, my library card goes on my keychain as does my Y membership card.

Spread the spirit of blogaloha…whom should we visit this week?

Drop by and give Ashlie K at MaeveKerry a bit of love this week!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/25/2005 08:15:00 AM | |
Thursday, March 24, 2005
Too many repeats?
Fans of Lost and Desparate Housewives are complaining about the long hiatus between new episodes in this article over at MSNBC.

Says Marcia from Michigan: "All of us at work watch ["Lost"], however, we are becoming very discouraged & may quit watching it. This is a show that you have to follow closely EVERY week. Then BANG, [the network] throws 2-3 reruns in the middle of everything! So please, let’s keep the show running, so that people can follow the story. I'd hate to see it go off the air for that reason."

Reader B. Williams says: "I have watched 'Lost' from the beginning and was a huge fan. The suspense was awesome, the good guys good, the bad guys bad and the plot was actually in existence. (Rare for reality-swamped television.) The problem is they keep showing reruns. At this point in time I don't care where Claire's baby is, where Ethan (or was it Evan? see, I can't even remember their names anymore) came from, whether or not the French woman is really crazy, why there are polar bears on the island, etc. ... Too bad because this show had serious potential."

You know, I'm not a huge fan of the long hiatuses myself, but I understand it's a necessary evil in today's television world where we get fewer episodes spread over a longer period of time. Also, the flip side is that such a hiatus allows new viewers to join the party and see what all the buzz is about.

Now, I don't watch Desparate Housewives (despite my acknowledged love for all things Teri Hatcher), but I do watch Lost. And it seems to me that Lost is one of those shows that rewards multiple viewings.

Also, I just have to laugh at the complete lack of attention span of the people in this article. "Oh, I am confused...I don't know what is happening!" Yes, it takes such a huge commitment of mental resources to figure out if you've seen the episode or not and to remember how it fits into the overall mythology of the show. Come on people--surely you can't be that dense! And I love the attitude of--well, it's hard to figure out so I will just give up. Yes, it's thanks to people like this that the infinite clones of CSI and Law and Order thrive.

And ABC has nothing on the WB who every year goes top heavy on new episodes and then makes you wait almost two months for new episodes in the spring. I still remember the huge hiatus in Buffy's second season when the show moved from Monday to Tuesday. By the end of Feburary we had seen 18 of the 22 episode that year and went into two months of repeats. So, a few weeks hiatus ain't nothing to me.

UPDATE: 3/25. USA Today's Robert Bianco addresses the repeats issue in today's What To Watch column. I couldn't agree more..

Finally. After an extended break, ABC has a new episode of Desperate Housewives (Sunday, 9 p.m. ET/PT), featuring the return of Sharon Lawrence as Maisy. Yes, I know the wait for fresh shows has been annoying — but as with every network series, Housewives produces fewer episodes than there are weeks in the season. So you either get repeats or gaps. Deal with it, people.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/24/2005 01:55:00 PM | |

Interview meme
Last week, I came across an interesting meme over at Misplaced Keys. Jon was looking for five victims volunteers to be interviewed via the BlogSphere. I volunteered to join in. A few days later, my questions appeared, and I answered them here. At that time, I issued the challenge to see if I could find five blog readers who would be brave enough to be interviewed by me.

So far, only one soul has been brave enough--my best friend, Barry. Thank you, Barry!

I've known Barry for going on 14 years now. So, coming up with some hard-hitting questions to interview him was difficult. But I think I've succeeded.

1. Over the years, I've recommended a variety of shows to you from The Simpson to Quantum Leap to The X-Files. (But yet, you've never given into the Buffy thing). This question is two-fold. Of all the various shows I've recommended for your viewing, which one have you enjoyed the most? And besides The West Wing, what is one show you'd say I should give a try to?

2. I knew Barry before he married Laura and they had BrainyBoy and GiggleGirl. (One of the coolest moments in my life was Barry calling me to tell that he and Laura were expected BB. I was so happy for them.). Tells us the story about the first time you met Laura.

3. What was your least favorite "Theta game"?

4. What is the worst episode EVER of Star Trek (any series)? Share with us why it's just so unwatchable.

5. Barry was a theater major at UT. He's directed and worked on a lot of great shows over the years. What is your favorite show you've worked on and why? And is there a show out there you yearn to work on?

So, there are Barry's five questions. See, it wasn't too painful and I didn't ask anything really embarassing. So I guess what I'm looking for here is four more volunteers to sign up and play!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/24/2005 09:24:00 AM | |

Alias Round-Up
The Orphan
This is how I imagine the conversation going in the Alias writing room.

"You know, we need to do a backstory on Nadia. I see that those flashback storylines are really working over on Lost. Let's try that with Nadia! I'm sure that will work!"

It pains me to say this because I like Jeffrey Bell, one of the co-writers of this story. But it just didn't quite work here. Thankfully, it wasn't the usual Alias gimmick of, let's start the teaser with a shocking twist and then go back 72 hours and fill in how we got here. That dead horse has been beat one too many times for my liking. Instead, it was an almost Lost-like flashback of Nadia'a life on the street, her becoming an uber-spy and falling into the Argentinian version of SD-6. Only difference was that once the betrayal comes out, Nadia goes and kills the head of her version of SD-6 while Syd worked from the inside to bring it down. Now, I'll give you that the similarities to the situation that Sydney faced in season one and Nadia faced during her time as a young spy were pretty interesting. But five compelling minutes out of an hour do not a good episode make.

In a lot of ways, Nadia is turning into this season's Lauren. Lauren came into the show last year with the potential to be a good dramatic conflict for the show and instead it never went anywhere until Lauren turned evil (and we found the limits of Melissa George's acting range). Then, suddenly, there was new and exciting tension again, as well as a lot of dirty looks by Melissa George at Sydney. This year, I feel like we're heading down that path again--we have Nadia who has come into the little wacky SD-6 family and her loyalties and agenda aren't really all that spelled out. And we've had seeds sewn for her to go the dark side and turn against our heroes--esp. Jack and Syd--by season's end. I am hopeful that maybe they'll pull it in a different direction or that even if they follow this path that it's more interesting than we had last year with Lauren. At least they're putting pieces in place for Nadia to go evil unlike Lauren's transformation last year where it just came out of left field as they had no idea what to do with the character.

OK, let me ask this--who else laughed out loud when Sydney cautioned Nadia about not letting personal feelings be an issue on a mission? That's the pot calling the kettle black just a bit, don't you think!

And I guess I'm supposed to be compelled by Vaughn's search for his father, who in good Alias fashion kept his offspring in the dark about certain aspects of his life. Forgive me, but I'm really actually kind of bored by this whole plotline. First of all, if Vaughn can afford to take off all this time and afford to go jaunting all over the globe at the drop of a hat, are we paying our CIA operatives too much? I know, I know--it's a fictional show and I'm sure they don't make that much. But if they are, I'm just saying, that could easily eliminate the deficit if we pushed a few to early retirement. Now, I did like the scene between Vaughn and Marshall in the beginning of the show. That was actually a good scene. Completely throwaway, but good.

You know, two weeks ago, I was enthusiastic about Alias again. The show had managed to put together a string of three great episodes in a row and I hoped this might mean the season had turned a corner. Instead, it looks like these were the exception to the rule and to be honest, the preview for next week didn't do much to make hope that a turnaround is coming soon.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/24/2005 08:00:00 AM | |
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Bizarro

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/23/2005 03:30:00 PM | |

Who Am I?
I saw this over at Outwit, Outblog, Outsnark and thought it looked like fun...

My name is: Big Orange Michael

I may seem: strange and offputting.

People who know me think: I am probably a bit too obsessed with UT sports and Doctor Who.

If you knew me you’d probably: realize that I am a bit too obsessed with UT sport and Doctor Who.

Sometimes I feel: like I've missed my calling in life. Or that my calling is different and I'm just choosing to ignore it.

My days are pretty: normal, quite frankly. I have a routine and I tend to follow it pretty much.

Yesterday: got up, went to work, worked all day, worked out, swam laps, went home, watched TV, watched the Lady Vols win the 880th game for Pat Head Summit, went to bed. Woke up by the storms in the night.

In the morning I: have a bowl of sugar-free cereal with a banana on it for breakfast.

I like to sleep: as much as possible.

If I could be doing anything right now I would be: taking a nap as the storms waking me up meant I didn't sleep well.

Money: easily spent on DVDs and books.

One thing I don’t have that I wish I did is: a house that I owned.

One thing I have that I wish I didn’t is: I'm pretty satisfied overall.

All you need is: cable!

All I need is: cable TV!

If I had one wish it would be: to live each day to the fullest and not look too far ahead nor be too trapped by the past.

Love is: exciting and new...come aboard...we're expecting you!

If I could see one person right now it would be: I can only pick one?!?

Something I want but I don’t really need is: Every episode of Star Trek on DVD.

I live for: spoiling my niece and nephew.

I am afraid of: doctors.

It makes me angry when: things don't go the way I want them to.

I dream about: finding that right person to share my life with, raising a family together. Doing God's will in my life.

I daydream about: taking a nap and food from Sonic.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/23/2005 11:19:00 AM | |

Bueller....Bueller...

You are Ferris Bueller (from Ferris Bueller's Day
Off)! You're a smooth talker and a
resourceful, quick thinker, and you play by
your own rules. Fortunately, you use such
things for fun and not to hurt anyone else.
God only knows what would happen if you crossed
paths with Lisa from Weird Science.

Which John Hughes Character Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Tip of the hat to Jon over at Misplaced Keys for the quiz.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/23/2005 11:05:00 AM | |

Number 880!

Congratulations to Pat Head Summitt, the coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Vols, on her record-breaking 880th career win last night. The Lady Vols got number 880 for Summitt in a NCAA Tournament game over the Purdue Boilermakers. After the game, UT renamed the basketball floor "The Summitt" in Pat's honor. This record could not happen to a better person. And Pat deserves every honor and accolade poured upon her. It's more than just numbers, but if you're interested in the staggering numbers, head over here. As Pat kept saying, "It's about relationships" and it is. The most impressive thing is Pat has a 100% graduation rate on her team. Pat Head Summitt represents everything that is good with with college atheletics today and is one of the many reasons I am a die-hard UT fan.

But there is still business to take care of. Winning number 880 means the Lady Vols make the Sweet 16 for the 24th straight season and can continue their pursuit of a 7th national championship.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/23/2005 08:12:00 AM | |
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
My new job...
Sunday at church, we had the annual Easter Egg hunt. Part of this entailed filling approximately 17,000 eggs (OK, I'm egg-agerating here! It was a lot less) with candy for small children.

A couple of weeks ago, members of the committee in charge of the Easter Egg hunt approached me about helping out with the big Easter egg hunt. Seems they wanted me to help the Easter Bunny out by making an appearance for him at the event (he is busy this time of year!) So, I agreed.

Sunday morning, I took a change of clothes to church--no way was I wear a shirt and tie under the Easter Bunny outfit. I changed into shorts and a t-shirt, dressed up like the Easter Bunny and had a good time hopping about and bringing smiles to the faces of children. Some of the children were not quite sure what to make of me, despire the fact that you could see my face. (There was a nose that came down and I could lift it up so they could see it was me and be less uncertain). Gracelyn and Davis saw me and smiled from far away but were a bit more wary up close.

Which, my sister told me today that Gracelyn has now decided that Uncle Michael's job is being the Easter Bunny....

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/22/2005 01:37:00 PM | |

Celebrity Birthday
Happy Birthday to William "Captain Kirk" Shatner. Shatner turns 74 today. Looks like I'll be cranking up an episode of classic Star Trek in the DVD player this evening to celebrate this momentous day.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/22/2005 12:43:00 PM | |

24: Day 4, 8-9 p.m.
Most weeks, I can put aside the issue that the internal clock/time on 24 is not consistent. But then there are some weeks where it just drives me nuts. This week was one of those weeks. Some of the things that bugged me.

• Paul gets shot at the end of the last hour. Let's say 7:55 p.m. By 8:01 p.m., he's been patched up, a helicopter has flown in, loaded him up and got him most of the way to CTU. Also ironic is the fact that the helicopter ride took six or seven minutes whereas we all know by the rules that govern 24, everywhere in L.A. is about two to three minutes away by car! So, wouldn't Paul have been better served to ride in the ambulance than a helicopter? Of course, that's not nearly as dramatic.
• Once again, everywhere in L.A. is two minutes apart--this time it turns out terrorist connection guy of the week, lives approximiately two minutes from CTU.
• Michelle calls in Chloe to help out and Chloe is there within five minutes. Did anyone else think that it looked like Chloe was monitoring the CTU info from home?

Also, the show is starting to repeat itself. To prove her loyalty to Marwan, Dina is given a gun and told to shoot Jack. Apparenly Dina skipped that day of bad guy loyalty class where it's revealed that in most of these situations, the gun is empty and it's testing you. Hell, we saw this LAST SEASON on 24 with Jack pulling the trigger on Chase to prove his loyalty to the Salazars! It's not that suspenseful when we've seen it before and know how it's going to come out. Plus, the fact that Jack is our hero and would probably sneeze at the right time to make Dina miss or something like that.

Of course, I figured she was not long for this world when we had the rather long goodbye to Behrooz. Too much hugging. All Dina needed was to pick up her red shirt on the way out of the CTU offices.

And then, Jack comes up with the plan to infilitrate Marwan's group by having Dina help them out. He uses Behrooz as negotatiating bait. But in all this, I had to wonder. OK, so Jack and Tony go in and out of the room with Dina approximately 17 times per episode. With little or no regard for her seeing them punch in the secret pass code to get out. What is to stop her from watching, figuring out the passcode, biding her time and escaping? OK, OK, I'm nitpicking..but that is what make my life worth living some days.

Also, according to my dad, who served in the Air Force, saluting inside a building is not done. I'm just pointing this out to everyone.

Finally, you have to love how far Jack goes to sell his cover. Last year it was get addicted to drugs. This year, he stabs himself in the gut so Dina can sell that she captured him to the terrorist contact.

And you have to feel for Jack. Once again, it looks like CTU and his job will cost him something he loves--in this case Audrey. This seeds were sewn last week as she questioned if she could love Jack based on what he had to do out in the field. Now her concern from Paul and the re-kindling of her love for him look like Jack is on the outside looking in. Which is why your number one dating rule should be--never get involved with anyone who is married ever for any reason. It does look as if Jack will be left outside when Audrey goes back to Paul--assuming that Paul makes it. Even if he doesn't, I don't see Jack and Audrey working out. And, so, once again, Jack's devotion to the job has cost him a personal life.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/22/2005 08:57:00 AM | |
Monday, March 21, 2005
Reading meme
Over the weekend, I read an article in the Tennessean about how boys don't like reading as much as girls. One of the young boys quoted in the article said he "hated" reading. I cannot imagine. I can barely remember a time in my life when I didn't know how to read. I remember feeling in some kind of huge rush to learn how to read so I could make all the words on the pages make sense and read the stories myself. I felt like if I didn't learn to read soon, all the words might disappear or the stories might all change without my knowing about it.

I'm still a big reader. I always have a book with me and I've always got a huge pile of books I want to read either that I've purchased, check out of the library or put on resereve. I got excited last week when one of my favorite authors, Elizabeth George, published a new book--one that I had no idea was coming out until the day it did. Thankfully, Barry, Laura, Craig and Erin gave me a gift certificate from Amazon for my birthday which I used for the new book. Now I only have to wait a few days to tear into it instead of eight more weeks on the waiting list at the library.

So, it's interesting in light of all that that Dawn over at Clarified tagged me to be part of this new game...

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?
I'm going to assume that this is a book that we don't like and would want to see destroyed. I have to say, I've read more than my share of books that were not thrilling in my lifetime, but the one that stands out is Lord of the Flies. I remember reading this my freshman year of high school and going--what the hell?!? This is a great work of literature?!? You must be kidding! The discussion of the story in class and how my English teacher went on and on about how great it was really didn't help much. It's just an OK book and I often wonder if Goldman really put all that symbolism and meaning in there or if bored English teachers made it all up to torture us all...

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
If we're talking TV world, then yes...agent Scully from The X-Files. If we're talking in the literary world, then I'd have to say there was a book I read as a teenager--can't remember the title of it. But it was first-person narrator about this young girl who learns about life and love one summer. I loved this girl because she seemed so real and it made me realize that girls had the same weird questions about life that I did at the same time and sometimes they were just as clueless about guys as guys were about girls.

The last book you bought is:
Star Trek Titan: Taking Wing.

The last book you read:
As I said, I read all the time. I finished reading the third Anita Blake novel last week, Circus of the Damned. (Enjoyable in a light, bubble gum reading kind of way). I also finished DisneyWar which is an inside look at the Michael Eisner run Disney.

What are you currently reading?
Why only read one book at a time, I say! Right now, I am reading A Scanner Darkly by Phillip K Dick, The Gospel According to the Simpsons and Triggerfish Twist by Ken Dorsey. Which one I pick up depends on my mood.

Five books you would take to a deserted island.
1. The Bible--preferably New King James Translation
2. The Stand by Stephen King
3. To Kill a Mockingbird
4. My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers
5. Front Porch Tales by Phillip Gulley

Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why?
1. Barry over at Inn of the Last Home because he reads as much as I do.
2. Becky over at April Fool because I am interesting to see what she'll say.
3. Stacy over at Outwit, Outblog, Outsnark for the same reason as Becky.

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/21/2005 04:27:00 PM | |

TV Round-Up
Battlestar Galactica: Colonial Day
I have really got to stop watching new episodes of Sci-Fi's two Stargate series after Battlestar Galactica. They just pale by comparison in the light of that is Battlestar Galactica.

"Colonial Day" is an episode that makes you think it's going to be one thing, but instead suddenly veers off into far more interesting territory about halfway through the episode. What could have just been just an episode about the attempted assignation of Laura Roslin instead becomes something more during the course of the episode--a look at the politics of the fleet and where different parties stand. Now, I will have to admit I agree with my good friend Barry, that it seems a bit unlikely that only thirty plus days out of the destructive Cylon attack on their home world that the fleet would be so bitterly divided as we saw here. Or that there would be so many well organzied factions. Of course, I also have to consider that what we've seen is the leadership struggling to help the population as a whole survive--from finding water to fighting for fuel last week. So, it may be possible that there are groups in there that are becoming vocal in their protests and organized. But I am not sure that I find Tom Zerek's push for power to be all that strong given that most of the fleet seems to think of him as nothing more than a terrorists who will blow up a building or two to get what he wants or push forward his agenda.

In a lot of ways, you have to wonder if Zarek is any better than a Cylon? He's a human who is not above using their methods of killing the innocent to get what he wants. Of course, we're not quite sure what Zerek's overall agneda is on the show just yet. For all we know, he could be a Cylon. But it was fun to watch Zarek make a deal with Ellen Tigh. The implication is, of course, that Zarek got her to kill the assassin and thus erase the evidence of Zarek being behind the whole plot. But was there more to it than that? Why is Zarek seizing power now?--he has waited this long and seems to be setting himself up in a cat-bird seat. Of course, a vaccum at the top may be what the Cylons really want and need--hence Helen uses aerek's political aspirations to gain a favor in much the same way as Six plays upon Baltar's lust for the ladies (ably shown here when Baltar gives the female reporter an "exclusive.")

It was interesting to see Roslin finally begin to play the poltical game and play it well. Sensing her vice presidential candidate is doomed, she jettisons him for Baltar. Batlar, the man a few weeks ago she suspected of being a Cylon agent is now who she wants a heart-beat away from assuming her role of leading the people. Because the alternative of Tom Zerek is too distateful for her. Man, when everyone finds out that--oh yeah, Baltar has betrayed everyone as deeply as he has, that is going to be one hell of a blowout.

Give credit to the new Galactica for not just making the Richard Hatch character a one-shot ratings grabber stunt cast, but instead using it to the advantage of the storytelling on the series.

Meanwhile, back on Caprica, Hilo puts all the pieces together and figures out that Boomer is a Cylon. This on-going plotline has been well done and executed all season. The question is--now what? Will Hilo escape the planet or will he now fall into the Cylon hands without Boomer's help?

Spring Break Shark Attack
Before you hit the comment button and begin to ask me what I was thinking by watching this movie, hear me out. I knew going in that it would be bad. I was just tuning in to see how bad it could possibly be. My answer: Pretty much as bad as I thought. And according to the ratings, I was not alone in my curiousity.

The plot is pretty transparent. Our heroine, Danielle, wants to meet up with her friends for Spring Break. but Daddy says no. So, Danielle cashes in her plane ticket to work with Habitat for Humanity and heads off to Florida for Spring Break. Oh yeah, her brother is in the same city studying sharks and has some cool device that if it works right will scare off sharks. Now, it started off well, with people immediately becoming shark food, but then the movie stupidly decides--hey, we need some character development. So, Danielle meets a guy named J.D. who's preferred seduction method is the ruffies and Shane, the loveable poor guy from the other side of the tracks (as in he can't yet go to college as he can't afford it). In a wacky twist of fate, Shane's mom (played by Kathy Baker who apparently lost a bet and had to be in this) owns a boat rental company and rents out a boat to this guy who is up to no good. Unfortunately, they spend a lot of time with this whole plot thing, when we were honestly there to see sharks lining up at the buffet to eat stupid people. Alas, that doesn't happen until well into the second hour. Along the way, we party a lot, which had me wondering if the sharks had invented some kind of reverse scuba system so they could come in and feast. Unfortuantely, not so much.

Along the way, we have lots of gratitous women in bikini time and I'm not really complaining. I mean, I've not seen The O.C., but I will give you that Shannon Lucia, who plays Danielle is not displeasing on the eyes.

One good reason to watch...

But, there are some huge leaps of logic here. First of all, Danielle packs enough clothes for a six or eight week stay in one small suitcase. And her parents don't trust her enough to apparenly leave the house alone or get on-line but yet they send her off to the airport by herself after she's said she'd rather go to Spring Break in Florida. Hello? Of course, J.D. is kind of an idiot for keeping his stash of roofies with him at all times on the off chance he needs to get with some hot girl.

Finally, we head out to sea and the sharks go nuts. Turns out mysterious bad guy man is chumming the water and there's this new reef that makes shark attack. Why we're not quite sure as it's not really explained. J.D.'s dating technique comes to light just in time for him to become shark bait. Danielle's dad shows up just as she, brother and Shane lure all the sharks out to sea using brother's shark repeller. Suddenly Daddy is proud of Danielle and by golly, she can sure do anything and she's so grown up. She then goes and kisses Shane and they joke they should go to Cancun next year.

I have not even come close to doing justice to this movie. It was so bad. So many leaps of logic and things that if you think about for even ten seconds don't make sense. Also apparently if you are surrounded by hungry sharks and you hold really, really still, they will leave you alone. Never mind that you and all your friends were thrashing about like dervishes before.

But my favorite part--we have a guy out using a parachute to ski on the water and he skiis right into the mouth of a waiting shark. Damn that shark had some good timing!

posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/21/2005 02:38:00 PM | |