Rest In Peace Kim Manners

I’m sad to pass on the news that SUPERNATURAL executive producer & director Kim Manners passed away on Sunday night in Los Angeles, following a battle with cancer.

In addition to his work on Supernatural, Mr. Manners also worked on many other TV shows including “21 Jump Street” and “The X Files”

Below is a statement from “Supernatural” creator & executive producer Eric Kripke:

Everyone at ‘Supernatural’ is walking around in a daze, shocked and absolutely devastated. Kim was a brilliant director; more than that, he was a mentor and friend. He was one of the patriarchs of the family, and we miss him desperately. He gave so much to ‘Supernatural,’ and everything we do on the show, now and forever, is in memory of him.

Rae from RamblingsofaTVWhore.com had the chance to meet Mr. Manners during a visit to the set. Here she shares her personal feelings thougts on his passing.

HOUSE: Big Baby

Here is a quick word association game. What do you think of first when you hear the term, “crossroads?” Are you reminded of a big decision that you made as a teenager, perhaps choosing a prom date or a college? Do you find yourself thinking literally about a busy intersection that prompts regular symptoms of road rage? Perhaps you are like me, who finds it impossible to shake the image of Britney Spears on the big screen in the 2002 movie of the same name? Speaking of that forgettable film, Grey’s Anatomy fans disappointed by that show’s storylines over the past two seasons should know that Shonda Rhimes penned the witty dialogue Ms. Spears delivered in that road trip flick. If a love story involving a beautiful young doctor and her long-deceased fiancé sounds like a creative misfire, then it is fair to say, “Oops, Shonda did it again.”

This week’s House brought the program’s most pivotal storylines to a series of proverbial crossroads, with uncertain outcomes and a mixed bag of consequences for fans, both new and old.

Though I have defended Lisa Edelstein’s credentials in this space on previous occasions, I am beginning to wonder whether the producers intend for the character of Cuddy to retain any redeeming human qualities by season’s end. During Wilson’s series of visits to assist her with the transition to parenthood, I found Cuddy’s dialogue to be self-loathing and whiny. After spending the first half of Season Five building the Chief of Staff up to being the Chief of Moms, I was astonished to hear the broad twists and turns that we saw in this installment, as Cuddy swung from the brink of giving up on her foster child to embracing her new responsibilities because of a single moment. Was it fair to project symptoms of postpartum depression to a character who did not physically give birth? I believe that the writers are crafting parallels between Cuddy’s reluctance to accept the child and her hesitation to move forward romantically with House. As a mother, Cuddy quiets baby Rachel by raising her voice to a plaintive wail. As a boss, Cuddy asserts her position of power by yelling at House, usually for the purpose of ending an argument with no end in sight. At what point do we root for this person to have a happy ending?

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24: Day 7 | 1:00 p.m.- 2:00 p.m.

It’s going to be a short review this week. I’ve got three pages to write about old newspapers (long story) and, plus, there were only a few big moments this episode.

Debrief

• Fear not, true believers. As many of you mentioned in the comments from last week, Jack dispatched Chloe and Bill to go save Renee. The three of them joined up with Jack and Tony, who had taken over the kidnapping operation. Jack convinced Matobo and his wife to be kidnapped by Dubaku in an attempt to stop him.

• President Taylor refuses to pull troops out of Sangala. In response to this, Dubaku crashed two planes into one another, right outside the windows of the Oval Office. Still, with the possibility of Matobo being found, she isn’t willing to pull back. In the wake of her decision, her Secretary of State resigned.

• Brian killed Samantha and was in the middle of staging Henry Taylor’s suicide when Henry found the strength to take him out.

Agent Philboy’s Assessment

First off, I was completely uninspired by Agent Moss’ speech to the FBI team. Seriously, this was a chance to challenge Coach Boone in “Remember the Titans” and the best he could come up with is, “We’re the only ones she’s got.” Seriously?! Lame. This guy keeps going up and down on my radar. First, he’s kind of stalkerish. Then, he defends Janis to the ends of the Earth. Then, he loses an amazing oratorical opportunity.

Last week, I was so caught up in the moment of Renee “dying” that I forgot that Chloe and Bill were all over it and listening in on everything. One quick shot and our favorite new FBI agent was back with us, only slightly confused.

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Kyle XY | 9pm on ABC Family

Jessi moves into the Trager household; Lori dates Mark behind Stephen’s back; Josh is miserable after Andy goes away on vacation.

Tonight’s TV Spotlight…Monday, January 26, 2009

Wow…what’s with all the repeats tonight?  Is there something I’m missing?  I’m not really going to complain because I’m a bit behind on TV.  Tonight will be a great time to play catch up.

What will YOU be watching tonight?

The Bachelor | 8pm on ABC
The nine remaining bachelorettes must compose and perform a song to win a one-on-one date with Jason; six of the contestants go behind the scenes at “General Hospital” to act out their secret fantasies; one woman is sent home.

House | 8pm on Fox
“Big Baby”
Cuddy gives some of her day-to-day responsibilities to Cameron; the team takes on the case of a teacher who collapsed after spitting up blood during a class.

The Secret Life of the American Teenager | 8pm on ABC Family
“That’s Enough of That”
Amy has a chance to learn the sex of her baby; Ricky breaks up with Grace to protect her from his father; Jack makes a discovery while performing community service.

24 | 9pm on Fox
“Day 7: 1:00PM – 2:00PM”
Dubaku presses President Taylor to agree to his demands; Renee diverts her tense colleagues’ attention; Jack comes up with a formidable plan.

Kyle XY | 9pm on ABC Family
“Electric Kisses”
Jessi moves into the Trager household; Lori dates Mark behind Stephen’s back; Josh is miserable after Andy goes away on vacation.

John Krasinski and Amy Poehler Present at the SAG Awards

Despite being just a stone’s throw away from Sunday’s SAG Awards I sadly wasn’t able to see them as they don’t air live on the West Coast.  However, thanks to ALL* of you who emailed me, I was able to see what I can only guess would have been my favorite moment of the night.

Here’s John Krasinski and Amy Poehler’s bit before presenting Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

*I would normally post the names of the fine GMMR readers who sent along the link but since I received 26 emails about this same topic, I thought I would say a collective ‘Gracias’.

Back from L.A….(sigh)

As I type this I’m sitting at LAX waiting to board a plane heading back to Boston after a fantastic weekend in L.A. For those of you who follow my Twitter updates (twitter.com/gmmr) then you know just what I was doing on my latest TV adventure.  If you don’t follow (and/or you are a PUSHING DAISIES fan) then check it out here! So exciting!!

It might take me until tomorrow night to catch up on GMMR.  It’s Sunday night and this is the first time I’ve logged on since Friday morning.  I just posted a slew of reviews to post (30 ROCK, SUPERNATURAL and SMALLVILLE) – hope you’re still interested in talking about those shows!!

I’m going to be on an overnight flight and then heading to the office as soon as I land.  But as I said, one more day of GMMR randomness and things should be back on track.

Thanks guys and I can’t wait to talk TV with you soon!!

XOXO
(a very exhausted) Kath

P.S. I know I risk opening up the flood gates here, but I must say that on Friday I bought TWILIGHT and I finished reading it today…I kind of dug it.  The book was so much like the movie, but I enjoyed the book WAY more than the movie.  I bought “New Moon” today and have just started it, but I think I’m going to sleep on the plane so I don’t think I’m going to make much progress.

SMALLVILLE: Bulletproof (Yes, I Said Smallville)

Did you know that Sarah’s favorite show is SMALLVILLE?  Well it is, and because of this we are happy to have her now covering SMALLVILLE for GMMR.  I know this isn’t a show we have talked much about around here because I wasn’t watching it.  But if you are a SMALLVILLE fan please stand up and be counted.  Leave a comment and let us know that you are watching!!

……………………………

Hey GMMR! It’s Sarah and I’m back to recap the latest Smallville episode Bulletproof.

This week’s episode we saw Clark pose as an officer, alias Joe Foreman, in an effort to uncover who exactly on the inside at Metropolis’ 44th precinct shot Detective John Jones, aka Martian Man hunter. After giving up his own powers for Clark early on in the series John makes due with being a normal human and fighting crime the old fashion way.

The episode opens with Jones putting down a suspect wanted for 3 charges of attempted murder. After calling in back up to take the criminal away Jones looks like he might be calling it a night until he’s shot down by an unseen gunman. After hitting the ground we catch a glimpse of the gunman figure, of course not the face, and his Metropolis police badge. He doesn’t know it yet but it looks like Clark will be working double time between figuring out who shot Jones and tracking down the monster who took Chloe.

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Supernatural: Criss Angel is a Douche Bag

It’s finally here: the episode with the greatest title ever. I definitely thought that this installment of Supernatural was going to be non-stop laughs, like some previous comedy-based episodes of the show. There was definitely humour to be found, but it was also a pretty heavy episode too. To be honest, this is the second episode in a row that I’ve found to be just “meh”. Since the season overall has been so spectacular it’s bound to happen at some point and as I’ve said before, a “meh” episode of Supernatural is still a pretty good way to spend an hour.

We had another twist on the usual “Dean and Sam save the world from a supernatural being” as there was last week. This time there was a supernatural element, but the brothers didn’t do the saving. Oh, and Ruby is back and Sam is keeping some major secrets from Dean that will have a major impact on the direction of the show for the rest of the season.

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30 ROCK: Retreat to Move Forward

First of all, who wouldn’t want Liz Lemon as a camp buddy at a corporate retreat? What with the natural sunshine of her personality and her ability to make great first impressions in professional settings and everything. So thumbs up on the forced funtivities and cutthroat team building of Jack’s Six Sigma Retreat to Move Forward, which is just dumb enough, corporately speaking, to be a real name somewhere.

I always enjoy these little side trips into Jack’s simmering executive insecurities, especially when they’re played out before a party of his peers, which in this case is the vaunted Six Sigmas themselves: Teamwork, Insight, Brutality, Male Enhancement, Handshakefulness, and Play Hard. (Brutality in particular really seems to have it in for him.) Likewise the fact that Liz’s inherent bossiness will rise to the surface in any kind of group setting, right along with her meanness, and no more so than when Legos are involved: “Don’t stop talking, Jack! Always be talking!” (Nice take on one of Alec Baldwin’s signature roles there.) Try as she might to deny it, Liz Lemon (“from the entertainment division”) is just as much of a shark as he is, only less willing—or able—to button it up.

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Turning GMMR Over to YOU Because I’m Outta Here!

Hey guys, I know Fridays are a fantastic day to talk about TV, and it pains me to abandon you, but I’m gonna have to turn GMMR over to YOU today. I’m making a last minute dash to sunny L.A. and I won’t be around to bloggity blog about Thursday night TV. It’s killing me.  But come on, you guys don’t need me, right?  I fully trust you can take on each of the Thursday night shows without me, right?

If you’re game, here’s what I’m thinking.  If you’re so inclined why don’t you submit YOUR review of your favorite Thursday night show in the comments and let others read what YOU have to say about it.  Write a recap, share your favorite moments, whatever compels you.

Any show is up for discussion but do know that at some point Kari will be posting her take on 30 ROCK; Seeleybaby will be talking BONES; and Nicole will be sharing her thoughts on SUPERNATURAL…so you might want to wait for those posts before you start commenting away on those particular shows.

But even taking those three shows out of the mix there is plenty to talk about.  Need a kick start?  Alright…

Ugly Betty: I’ve maintained that the show is becoming too repetitive in its storytelling and acting.  The things that made UGLY BETTY such a stand out show aren’t working anymore because everything has a hint of ‘been there, done that’.  Am I right?  Do you disagree? Talk to me on how BETTY is doing this season as well as your take on last night’s episode.

The Office: I can’t tell you how often I get emails from readers asking if they can do recaps of THE OFFICE.  Well, now’s your turn.  Dissect last night’s episode.  Was it HOT or NOT?  And by hot I mean did you want to bang it? Of course I expect every reviewer to weigh in on the Hilary Swank issue.  We need to see where the people are at! Here’s one more thing to perhaps discuss.  Did anyone else find it odd that there was nothing on the Andy/Angela/Dwight situation this week?  Hmmm.  Ok, I’m done.  You’re turn.

Grey’s Anatomy: Oy vey! This week’s episode actually made me angry.  TR Knight, rent a jet pack if it will help you get off that show sooner.  I may have faulted you at first Mr. Knight, but now I full support your wanting to bolt.  The only other thing I ask is that you take Chandra Wilson with you…she’s so much better than this show.  If you want my full take on tonight’s GREY’S, then check out the latest TV Talk Podcast.  Dan and I saw the episode early so we were able to share our thoughts.  But weigh in on what worked and what didn’t (and by what didn’t work, I’m not talking about Sloan’s penis).

America’s Best Dance Crew: My Quest Crew brought it again this week.  I thought their performance was hot and the choreography so imaginative. Can someone tell me if that slow-mo turn was for real?  It was so well done I couldn’t tell if they got help from the camera or what?! Crazy!! They are still my favorite crew, but Strikers All Stars killed it last night.  That full crew monkey roll got a few replays on the DVR last night.  Even the cloggers stepped it up.  What crews are getting your vote this week?

All the other shows: My Name is Earl, CSI, Kath & Kim, the season premiere of Burn Notice, ER, Smallville, Eleventh Hour

The blog is yours…make me proud!!

BONES is Back…It’s About Time

Seeleybaby is back and taking care of BONES for us.  Make sure you show her the love as she covered not one but two episodes last night.  First up is “Double Trouble in the Panhandle” and then “Fire in the Ice”. Welcome back Seeleybaby and GMMR’s BONES fans.

Double Trouble in the Panhandle

It’s good to be back with BONES, isn’t it? I have to admit, I cringed a few times thinking about what this episode would be like, but I was pleasantly surprised. And I think I might be slightly in like with Mr. Vincent Nigel-Murray. But let’s talk about the episode. As Wanda Moosejaw would say, “prepare to be amazed”.

THE CASE:
The skeletons of conjoined twins, Julie and Jenny are found, and Booth and Brennan eagerly go undercover to determine how they were murdered. I thought it was going to be the doctor. Yikes.

THE SQUINTS:

• Cam:When Cam is having fun, she is fun. When she is annoyed, I find her annoying. She was good this episode, and I loved her interaction with my man Vinnie, and I loved her excitement about the webcam.

• Angela: She was good and artsy in the ep, and I liked how she created the scenarios for possible deaths. Is it just me, or does it seem like Angela has backed off on the B+B stuff? This episode was ripe with opportunity, but she didn’t really see it. Hmm…come on, Ange…we need you! How else is Brennan going to catch up to her own reality?

• Hodgins: Once he got the image out of his head, he was fairly useful to the case. Or did he actually ever get the image out of his head? Hard to tell.

• Sweets: Sweets was adopted. I don’t think we knew that. He also has a wealth of knowledge about carnival life. But I really wish he would stop stating the obvious. Which really means I wish the writers would stop having him state the total obvious, especially when it comes to Booth and Brennan.

• Mr. Vincent Nigel-Murray: What can I say? I want him to live near me. I want him to spout off fun facts all the time. I loved it. If we’re choosing faves for squint of the week, he’s absolutely my number once choice. I loved when he thanked Angela ‘ever so much’ for the question.

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Tonight’s TV Spotlight…Friday, January 23, 2009

Welcome to a kick ass night of TV my friends.  FNL, BSG, PSYCH and more! Are you excited?! I’m going to be flying tonight so I won’t be able to watch much TV.  Watch it and love it for me.

It might take me some time to get up the Saturday night TV spotlight as I’ll be traveling, so please be patient with me.

Here we go…

Friday Night Lights | 9pm on NBC
“Tami Knows Best”
Smash has confidence issues as he works with Coach Taylor to prepare for college tryouts; Tami finds that the community cares more about a new screen on the field than education; Matt faces a tough decision about his grandmother’s care.

Flashpoint | 9pm on CBS
“Haunting the Barn”
Ed is called to the scene when an SRU veteran locks himself in a safe room with the intent to commit suicide.

Monk | 9pm on USA
“Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door”
When Monk befriends an older woman (Gena Rowlands) while investigating a murder at a museum of oddities, he has trouble believing that the friendship comes without a catch.

Psych | 10pm on USA
“Earth, Wind and … Wait for It”
Shawn and Gus join with a local firehouse to prove a series of arsons are more than they seem. [GMMR: I’ll be honest, I’m a little behind on PSYCH.  I had planned on catching up this weekend, but that’s not going to happen.  I miss you Shawn and Gus.]

Battlestar Galactica | 10pm on Sci Fi
“The Disquiet That Follows My Soul”
Not everyone agrees with Admiral Adama’s plan to use Cylon technology in order to help the fleet find a new home. [GMMR: Check out the latest TV Talk Podcast for our thoughts on the Final Cylon and last week’s BSG season premiere.]

GMMR’s Useless Tidbit of the Day…

“People didn’t always say “hello” when they answered the phone.  When the first regular phone service was established in 1878, people said “ahoy”.

TV Talk Podcast: Episode #34

The TV Talk Podcast with GMMR and Ducky is back and we’ve got a crazy amount of stuff to talk about. BATTLESTAR GALACTICA revealed it’s 5th Cylon, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS returns with some hot Riggins action, DAMAGES still blows our minds, PRIVILEGED begins to get lazy, and GREY’S ANATOMY slips on the “Stairway to Heaven”.

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, VERONICA MARS and PUSHING DAISIES tempt us with films, IDOL auditions continue, LIE TO ME screws up their premiere, and AMERICA’S BEST DANCE CREW finally catches Kath’s attention.

Also, it’s the return of listener fave… TWO IDIOTS TALK LOST!

…and before the emails come flying in, please let me say that I do know that on BSG it’s all about the “resurrection ship”.  I said “redemption ship” about 5,000 times because I’m an asshat.  It’s as simple as that.

Podcast #34: Listen now: [audio:http://cdn1.libsyn.com/duckyxdale/TVTalkPodcast34.mp3]

Chime in on your thoughts on this latest podcast. Leave your comments here so Dan and I can respond back. And for general TV Talk comments, please share the love (or hate) over at our iTunes page.

• Subscribe via iTunes: Subscribe via iTunes and the latest podcasts will automatically find their way to your iPod
  

• Are you on Facebook? Why not be a fan of The TV Talk Podcast with GMMR & Ducky on Facebook!

• Interested in catching up on our past podcasts? Head on over to the podcast page where you can listen to all of our previous episodes.

LOST Season Premiere – Back to the Future

“When am I?”

So you’ve finally seen the season premiere of LOST! Got everything figured out already? Yeah? Liar.

While last night’s episode of LOST certainly gave us glimpses into answers we’ve been waiting a long time to see, it certainly left us with a myriad of questions that need to be sorted out before we can even begin to fully comprehend what we’re watching, and what we’ve been watching for the past few years.

I’ve already shared my thoughts on the first two episode of LOST, and I’ll be teasing what I saw in Episode 3 later this week.  If you’ve read my earlier piece then you know I loved these first few episodes and I’m so glad to have the show back…even if it is a mental mindfrak.

As the better half of “Two Idiots Talk Lost“, I’m not going to pretend that I can give you a full synopsis of what exactly went down last night. Who are we kidding. But I thought the important stuff should be covered by me and the speculation and analysis should be covered by the collective you (whom I am assuming are way smarter than me.) Deal?

Let’s start with….

The Dharma Initiative Strikes Again
The skipping record of doom let’s us know that something is about to go terribly wrong.

Dr. Pierre Chang (or Dr. Marvin Candle – just one of his many aliases) starts his day off like any other. He tends to his family, goes to work, slips on the lab coat and starts filming a Dharma training video. Just another ‘ol day on the weird, freaky island, right? Not exactly. Just as Chang informs us that The Arrow station was used to study the “hostile indigenous population” of the island (aka The Others), he is pulled away to handle an issue at The Orchid station. It seems that some drilling has gone awry resulting in some melted drills and a man severely injured. When it’s suggested that they abandon drilling and just blast, Dr. Chang goes all “hells no” on them and informs us all that behind the walls of The Orchid station is an “almost limitless energy source” that can harnessed to manipulate time, but if messed with incorrectly…well, let’s just say that we don’t want to go there.

As Chang leaves the station he bumps into a Dharma worker – a one Mr. Daniel Faraday. Wowza! Not looking a day younger or older than he does now, it seems that Mr. Faraday and his handy dandy notebook might know a thing or two about manipulating time and just how to deal with that pesky limitless energy source.

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