Quad Blogs

Welcome to the fifth and final day of the Best Episodes of 2010 celebration. Only five spots remain for a plethora of episodes and shows. And, really, only two shows will comprise the final five episodes of this humble celebration. I avoided using the word ‘list’ throughout the week because I only wanted to write about my favorite shows and their best episodes. I had no interest in listing them in a numerical way to determine their value. Of course, I used a sort of list format with the days of the week. As the week progressed, the more beloved an episode or series is. Naturally, on this Christmas Eve Friday in December, the final day of the Best Episodes of 2010 will belong to my favorite show of all-time–LOST (plus another show will join LOST before the post is done).

The final season caused many debates and arguments. The sixth season of the series will remain a season of contention for many years as new fans discover it and the old, die-hards either praise its virtues or criticize its vices in an effort to sway the new fans opinion of the sixth season. LOST fandom is crazy, and it’s smart to get some distance now that the series has ended. Who cares what anybody else thinks about the show besides yourself? If someone thinks the Man in Black/Jacob arc fell flat, then it’s fine and if someone loved that arc then that, too, is fine. If most people hated the time spent in the Temple while a minority enjoyed the further exploration of the culture of the Others then that is just fine.

For me, I had some issues with the final season. For the most part, I enjoyed the final season and I love a large portion of it. Allow me to write about the four episodes of LOST this year that were among the best episodes produced in all of television.

LOST–”THE END”–Written By Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse–Directed By Jack Bender

“The End” is an episode I love so much that I spent over 14 hours, from when the episode ended until the Flyers playoff game began, writing 10,000 words about the episode and the series. I view ‘The End” as not only the end of this wonderful story but also a love-letter to the fans. Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse understood the LOST fandom so well, and their relationships to the various characters who populated the world of LOST, and the two writers delivered powerful moment after powerful moment in “The End.” If the finale was a love-letter to the fans then my 10,000 word recap/review of the finale is my love letter to the show.

“The End” is probably the best series finale of all-time because the episode wraps up the season six arcs as well as the series–an insane task for a series, evidenced by the majority of finale episodes that fail to satisfy the fans–in a way that is satisfying and full of closure for the fans. And the repeat value is off-the-charts good because each time I watch the episode or select scenes I’m still moved by how powerful each and every scene it is. It’s masterful storytelling and direction. I hope one day I can write something as powerful as the series finale of LOST.

For my complete thoughts on the finale, please read my 10,000 word recap/review right here: http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/05/24/jacobs-foot-the-end-of-lost-and-jacobs-foot/

LOST–”DR. LINUS”–Written By Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz–Directed By Mario Van Peebles

Eddie Kitsis and Adam Horowitz are getting a ton of critical praise for writing the new Tron movie while their gem from the sixth season of LOST gets ignored by seemingly everyone who actually gets paid to write about television. One will see plenty written about “The End” or “Across The Sea” (because of how polarizing “Across The Sea” is) while the second best episode of season six gets nothing at all. “Dr. Linus” is also Kitsis’ and Horowitz’ best LOST episode ever. The episode marks the official transformation of Ben Linus from antagonist to redemptive soul. Until this episode, the writers had difficulty finding a balance between the sideways and the Island stories because the writers wanted to keep the curtain closed on the meaning of the sideways until the finale.

The perfect balance between the sideways and the Island A stories is found in the episode. It’s really a simple story about a man who hasn’t gotten over the death of his daughter, and a man profoundly changed by the death of his child–so much so that the audience doesn’t realize how profoundly Ben’s been changed until he tells Ilana why he did what he did to Jacob. With full knowledge of the sideways world, the episode becomes even more rich especially in the scene when Ben makes a different decision from the one he made when Keamy had a gun to Alex’s head. Michael Emerson plays the sideways Ben with such sensitivity and quietness that one wondered, when it originally aired, why Ben was so different–was it because he never went to the Island, had a better father without the Island? No, not at all it turned out. Ben became a good man and performed many good deeds as the number two to Hurley, and that part of his life explains the Ben we see in the sideways.

Also, the B story with Richard and Jack is awesome. This is the episode when Jack realizes his purpose in returning to the Island. When he sits down and lights that fuse, who didn’t cheer?

My original recap/review of “Dr. Linus” http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/03/10/jacobs-foot-dr-linus-recap/

LOST–”AB AETERNO”–Written By Melinda Hsu-Taylor & Greggory Nations–Directed By Tucker Gates

The origin story for Richard Alpert felt like a sweeping epic. For three seasons, we wondered why Richard never aged and who he was before the Island. “Ab Aeterno” reveals all of the essential elements of Richard Alpert. He was a broken man when the Black Rock crashed on the Island, like all of our other characters, who was terrified of the devil. The episode is like an old testament biblical story, too. Alpert’s a man terrified of a vengeful God and in search of forgiveness for his sins though he’s terrified of hell. It takes him over 100 years to forgive himself for not saving his wife’s life, and once he allows himself to remove that heavy guilt, he becomes a man and he puts the cross around his neck for the first time in over 100 years. It’s a wonderful moment in a wonderful episode.

Here are my original thoughts on the episode: http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/03/24/jacobs-foot-ab-aeterno-recap/

LOST–”HAPPILY EVER AFTER”–Written By Carlton Cuse & Damon Lindelof–Directed By Jack Bender

“Happily Ever After” gave us the first character to became aware of the surreality of the Sideways–Desmond David Hume. It’s an episode that many fans needed at the time because patience wore thin as the season progressed without new revelations about the sideways world. Well, Damon and Carlton delivered an extraordinary episode that set-up the endgame for the the sixth season and the series. Desmond brought the characters to the Island when he was late putting the numbers into the computer, which caused the plane crash so, naturally, he’d be the one who had to bring the characters together.

The episode is so exciting on first viewing because of all the possibilities that swirl around in one’s head. Charlie explains his dreams or visions of Claire and he’s frantic to escape this place he’s seen, convinced it’s not real because he needs to find her. As with every other episode of the series (besides the two origin episodes), the episode takes on greater meaning with the knowledge of the entire season. This place is, really, just about finding one another so they can move on together. To where, you ask? Well, that’s what they need to find out. Also, the music in the episode is out-bleeping-standing.

Original Thoughts on “Happily Ever After” http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/04/07/jacobs-foot-happily-ever-after-recap/

TERRIERS–”HAIL MARY”–Written By Ted Griffin & Nick Griffin–Directed By Ted Griffin

The episode aired only three weeks ago but Terriers destroyed every hour long show this Fall in quality. “Hail Mary” wraps up the first season, and series, rather nicely. Hank resolves the Zeitlan without getting himself or anyone else. Hank finds himself ready to move on past his failed marriage with Gretchen and decides to sell the old house. For the first time since we met Hank Dolworth, the man was both happy and healthy having overcome the demons that plagued him for much of the season. Britt and Katie reunite. Sure he’ll have to spend time in jail but Britt wants to be responsible, wants to become a good husband and father. And the series ends with two best friends, Hank and Britt, briefly thinking about a lifetime in Mexico on an eternal vacation but the two never will drive to Mexico. There’s too much left for them to do in Ocean Beach–people to save, families to start. What a show. I’ll miss it.

Original Review: http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/12/02/the-foot-terriers-hail-mary-review/

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

Welcome to Day 4 of the Best Episodes of 2010 celebration. There are only ten spots left for the best episodes of the calendar year. I wonder, will the likes of Boardwalk Empire, The Walking Dead, True Blood, How I Met Your Mother or LOST find their way into this celebration? For True Blood, hell no but the other shows might want to resist the urge to drop their head and walk in dejection to the sounds of the Charlie Brown music.

A brief recap of the week thus far: 15 episodes have made the Best Episodes of 2010 celebration in The Blog Formerly Known as Jacob’s Foot. The episodes have come from Community, Party Down, 30 for 30, The Vampire Diaries, South Park, Friday Night Lights, Eastbound & Down, Mad Men, Dollhouse, Luther, Sherlock, Louie, Treme and It’s Always Sunny Philadelphia. The only show to receive more than 1 episode is Community (with “Physical Education” and “Modern Warfare”). Some shows like Dollhouse and Friday Night Lights aired only three episodes in 2010 so their episodes were particularly strong considering the stiff competition from shows with more episodes.

Anywho, let us commence the fourth part of this exciting list:

TERRIERS–”RING A DING-DING”–Written By Angela Kang–Directed By Billy Gierhart

Not a weak episode exists in Terriers’ outstanding first and only season. “Ring-A-Ding-Ding” is the episode that made me a devoted fan to the show. Funny enough, Shawn Ryan and the other top dogs didn’t expect the episode to receive the adulation and praise it did. But it’s a special episode, a microcosm of what made the show so damn good. The episode delivers gut punch after gut punch. The marriage day between Gretchen and Jason approaches quickly, much to Hank’s dismay, while Britt knows he has to make a decision about the future for he and Katie–a decision about marriage. The third episode of the series receives tremendous praise for its case-of-the-week with Olivia Williams but the case-of-the-week is much more devastating.

A woman, Beth, is sick and dying. She knows her husband’s cheating on her but she just doesn’t know why, and the not knowing destroys her. She even reminds Hank of the promise every couple makes to one another on their marriage day: to love each other until death, and she just doesn’t know why her husband left her for another woman in her darkest hour. The woman’s grief is such a turn that it completely punches whomever is watching in the gut with the brunt force of emotion. Donal Logue deserves an Emmy nomination for his work in this scene alone, as he portrays the pain Hank feels from losing his marriage.

And the most heartbreaking line of the episode comes from Beth who, through tears, says “he’ll be sorry when he loses me” over and over again as Hank comforts her, and only responds with “yeah he will.” Terriers delivered great buddy-cop fun but it hit home because of its absolute fearlessness to tell these kinds of stories, and explore the deepest depths of human emotions. It is a FANTASTIC episode.

MAD MEN–”THE SUITCASE”–Written By Matthew Wiener–Directed By Jennifer Getzinger

“The Suitcase” is the best episode of Mad Men in four seasons. The episode’s all about the platonic relationship between Don Draper and Peggy Olson–an episode about five years of history between them. It begins with Don asking Peggy to stay late at work on her birthday, as her boyfriend and family wait for her at a restaurant and then greatness happens. The episode shows how much Don and Peggy need each other. He was there as she recovered from having a baby to give her advice: “It will shock you how much this never happened” and she’s there, in the present, when he receives the call that Anna passed away. After being with him in his darkest hour, the following morning Don takes her hand to show Peggy that he’ll never forget what she did for him and will continue to do for him.

MAN VS. WILD–”WESTERN PACIFIC”–Directed By Nick White

In August, I began writing weekly about the new season of Man Vs. Wild because the show is one of my favorites on television. The 5th season of the show might’ve been the strongest yet. When one thinks Bear Grylls will begin to settle down the challenges in episodes, he just ups the ante. In two episodes, he and his crew created extreme weather conditions so Bear could demonstrate survival in such catastrophic conditions. Whether Bear found himself under ice water for 4 minutes, buried beneath snow for 12 minutes and on death’s door after a freak collision with his Director of Photography, one wonders when Bear will say enough is enough. The two extreme weather episodes don’t even make the list. Instead, the episode to be celebrated is “Western Pacific

“Western Pacific” placed Bear in Pacific Rim (in Papua New Guinea), and what unfolded was legendary Bear Gryllls. The episode begins with Bear, in a helicopter, explaining all of the deadly creatures in the sea like tiger sharks, hammer heads, sting rays and jelly fish. Naturally, Bear decides the best thing to do is plunge into the water not more than 15 seconds after stating that fact that the ocean is a place where humans are very likely to be killed by sharks. The reason “Western Pacific” makes the Best Of celebration is because the episodes becomes Bear Grylls vs. Sharks. He embarks upon traveling through shark infested waters. Bear needed to travel to a certain piece of land but the entire region is broken up by water. In order for Bear to travel anywhere, the shark infested waters needed to be traversed upon. Bear offers simple and logical advice: never assume you’re safe when surrounded by land with over 100,000 sharks. Bear moves slowly and methodically, knowing that he shouldn’t draw the attention of the sharks through vibrations in the water. He gets bumped by a shark but keeps his cool. All the while, Bear only armed himself with a large stick should the group of sharks in the distance decide to attack the man. As Bear nears land, a shark moves at a fast speed toward him before veering off. Bear then gets out of the water as fast as possible.

Of course, once on the second island, Bear realizes he needs to get to the third island. Before you can say the word apoplectic, Bear tries to capture a shark in shallow water because he needs a good meal for energy. He’s unsuccessful and settles for coconuts and a lobster. Before long, Bear makes a poor raft, sails it in a rough, choppy waters as a storm develops but, like all episodes of Man Vs. Wild, he find rescue.

COMMUNITY–”EPIDEMIOLOGY”–Written By Karey Dornetoo–Directed By Anthony Hemingway

It was a tough call between the Halloween episode and “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” because both are fantastic but I love Halloween episodes, and Community produced one of my all-time favorite Halloween episodes with their zombie episode. After the Dean accidentally ordered rancid army rations, the students became sick with high fevers and the desire to chew on human flesh (spreading the disease). One by one the group become zombies until Troy saves the day by pushing the thermostat down to break the fever, thus curing everyone. It’s a great episode for Troy, who finally accepts that he’s a nerd, and it’s the first step in his transition into a man. The episode’s also just pure insanity with Pierce biting Star Burns, Chang and Shirley’s intimate experience in the bath room and the prolonged cat gag. Terrific show. Well worth anyone’s time.

PARTY DOWN–”PARTY DOWN COMPANY PICNIC”–Written By John Enbom–Directed By Bryan Gordon

The Party Down caterers get a rare day off but at a Party Down company picnic. Ron tries to convince Bolus Lugozshe to hire him as Operations Manager at the main office but with no luck until he meets Bolus’ daughter, Danielle. Since it’s Ron, some nonsense and weird romance happens. Meanwhile, Lizzy battles a man for the most trophies at the various Party Down picnic (such an awesome story) while Kyle coaches Lydia’s diva daughter, and he and Roman challenge Valhalla in a series of events to determine the best caterers. I love fun episodes and “Party Down Company Picnic” is fun and funny.

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

The Vampire Diaries is a wild hour of television each week. Kevin Williamson, Julie Plec and the writing staff won’t drag out storylines for the sake of wasting time during a season. Every minute counts and every word of dialogue means something. It’s a rare thing on television, it’s awesome, and the writers usually tell a good story each week.

With that said, the season two premiere of the show, entitled “The Return,” doesn’t miss a beat from last season’s finale. Before I completely dive into the episode, this is tell the readers that my reviews will resemble my LOST reviews. I assume anyone reading has seen the episode and possesses a good amount of knowledge about the show as a whole. Actually, all of my reviews except for pilot reviews will be written this way. If you haven’t seen the episode, a great big SPOILER ALERT is a given.

Kevin Williamson wrote the 1996 slasher hit, Scream. One of the most famous scenes in the movie, and in all of HORROR, is the opening scene with Drew Barrymore. The teaser of “The Return” gave me flashbacks to that iconic scene. I assume he penned it rather than Julie Plec, his writing partner in the series. Elena searches around the house for her doppelganger, Katherine, who returned to Mystic Falls to cause some chaos and kill John Gilbert for failing to get rid of every single tomb vampires. Katherine leaves without harming Elena. Stefan arrives at some point. Once Katherine’s gone, Elena and Stefan rush upstairs to check on Jeremy who awakes but he isn’t a vampire though he wanted to be.

The premiere has plenty of story to cover. The episode quickly deals with Caroline’s condition from the accident as well as Jeremy’s desire to become a vampire. Williamson and Plec want to give every character a meaningful arc this season, so there are scenes to plant the seeds for individual arcs. Every character, besides Alaric, is given a scene.

The A story of the episode is the return of Katherine. Her presence is established as well as her dynamic. Besides a flashback episode in season one and many stories about Katherine, she’s an enigma. She drives Damon bonkers while hoping Stefan will love her. She’s a sexy, evil vampire with a mean streak as long as the losing seasons of the Pittsburh Pirates. She has a plan but she won’t reveal it. On the surface, it’s about her desire to get Stefan back because she loves him. Stefan feels nothing for her though he hates Elena, a dead ringer for Katherine. But there’s a plan that will be involved as the season progresses; a plan that will tie into the events of season one with Isobel and the tomb vamps.

Elena, meanwhile, has to deal with her doppelganger’s arrival in addition to her murderous, vampire-hating father and Damon’s increasingly passionate feelings for her. She handles everything extremely well. Elena’s a great female character and a great role model for young girls. She’s a caring individual and loyal. Elena’s surprised Damon thinks of her as a girl who cheat on Stefan with his brother. After lying to her brother last season for his own good, she promises to never do that again. By episode’s end, the rift between she and Jeremy has mended.

Damon regresses into the vampire he was early in the series by episode’s end. Katherine’s influence over him causes bad behavior. The combination of rejection by both Katherine and Elena send Damon off the deep end. He snaps Jeremy’s neck and walks out, thinking he’s killed him which sends Elena into tears. Luckily, Jeremy wears the ring that protects humans from death. But Damon clearly crossed the line. Stefan tries to defend his brother, explaining that Damon probably saw the ring and did it to hurt Elena. She holds her brother in his arms and cries. Elena knows Damon wanted to kill her brother. She hates him. Jeremy awakens yet again, panicked but alive.

Katherine, as mentioned above, is focused on more than involving herself in a triangle. She has a plan. She visits Caroline in the hospital, introduces herself and wants Caroline to deliver a message. Her message is game on then she suffocates Caroline to death; however, Damon gave Caroline his blood early in the episode so she could heal. If someone dies with vampire blood in his or her system, he or she comes back as a vampire.

But Kevin Williamson promised a major death in the premiere. Caroline’s the only character who died. Was he bluffing? We shall see.

Some other thoughts:

-Nina Dobrev is awesome. She’s so wholesome and classy as Elena then sexy, evil and awesome as Katherine. Dobrev has chemistry with every single cast member.

-The new character, Mason Lockwood, is a surfer. Someone said he’s in search of the perfect wave. Bohdi from the great Point Break wanted the perfect wave. Yes.

-Huge fan of the character Bonnie and the actress. She’s gorgeous. I like this dark-witch layer that’s been added to the character. I’ll bet she learns enough witchcraft and has enough power to play a major part in taking down Katherine at season’s end.

-If Caroline is really dead, will Matt become some sort of vampire hunter like Alaric? His sister was killed by Damon and now another vampire murdered his sister. He’s done nothing interesting in the entire series.

-Ian Somerhalder is awesome as Damon. The writers give him the best lines. The role he’ll be remembered for won’t Boone, folks, because it will be Damon. Damon had a great line about his brother’s furrowed brow. It’s damn near Spike and Angel.

-Listen, I’m not trying to fool anyone or argue that TVD is on the level of genre shows like Buffy or ANGEL. It’s not. The Vampire Diaries is a CW show. I know Buffy and ANGEL were on The WB but Joss Whedon wasn’t interested in love triangles and the usual tropes of a teenage show so I’m stating right now that TVD is no Joss Whedon show. As much as I respect Kevin Williamson, he is a much different storyteller than Joss and this show is less interested in the adult themes Joss Whedon integrated into his shows. But it’s a fun show and it’s always entertaining. The characters are likable and it’s the best genre show on television. Yes, it beats out HBO’s True Blood. It’s an underrated show that is tightly plotted and well-executed. As the series grows older, adult themes might find their way into the show but this is a well-written show that captures teenagers better than many, many shows. Williamson is the same guy who once had his Dawson Creek character speaks like they had their MAs in English, so I think the man learned his lesson.

-Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec wrote the episode and J. Miller Tobin directed it.

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

FOOTBALL HAS ARRIVED. I’ve been in baseball mode for the entire summer. My excitement level was low during the preseason but then I watched the Boise State and Virginia Tech game on Monday night. I remembered football is awesome. My excitement level rivals that of a Twilight fan on the eve of Twilight 3: There Is No Spoon.

Before the Week 1 picks, here are my 2010 NFL predictions for the standings:

NFC EAST

1. NY Giants (10-6)

2. Cowboys (9-7)

3. Eagles (7-9)

4. Redskins (7-9)

NFC NORTH

1. Packers (12-4)

2. Vikings (9-7)

3. Bears (7-9)

4. Lions (6-10)

NFC SOUTH

1. Saints (12-4)

2. Falcons (11-5)

3. Panthers (8-8)

4. Buccaneers (5-11)

NFC WEST

1. 49ers (10-6

2. Cardinals (8-8)

3. Rams (3-13)

4. Seahawks (1-15)

AFC EAST

1. Patriots (11-5)

2. Dolphins (10-6)

3. Jets (8-8)

4. Bills (4-12)

AFC NORTH

1. Ravens (12-4)

2. Steelers (10-6)

3. Bengals (10-6)

4. Browns (6-10)

AFC SOUTH

1. Colts (13-3

2. Titans (10-6)

3. Texans (9-7)

4. Jaguars (5-11)

AFC WEST

1. Chargers (12-4)

2. Raiders (8-8)

3. Chiefs (6-10)

4. Broncos (5-11)

WEEK ONE NFL PICKS!

Welcome friends and well-wishers to the 5th Annual NFL Picks. I am your prognosticator. The goal is simple. I want a perfect week. Ideally, I’d like to have a 16-0 week of predictions but I’d settle for a perfect week when teams have byes. I don’t pick with the point spreads. It’s straight up win or loss. An argument can be made for the use of point spreads but that’d draw me closer to gambling with money. I have an english degree. The last thing I need is a gambling addiction. I haven’t gone perfect yet. I’ve come close but NO CIGAR. This season should be fun. We’ve got an impending lockout and two divisions that should begin the ‘BRING RELEGATION INTO FOOTBALL’ discussion. Yes, I’m looking at you, Spagnulo and the Rams front office. But why waste all my thoughts in this paragraph when I have 16 games to write about? LET IT BEGIN!

New Orleans over Minnesota

-I missed the second half of their NFC Conference Championship battle because I was duped into a prolonged dining experience at my local Wendy’s establishment. Not cool. Does anyone else experience the depression and regret I experience when a great, great game is missed in ANY sport? I somehow doubt the second half of this game will have the excitement of the conference title game. But I wonder: are the Vikings too underrated by the experts now? This has the making of the classic Vikings victory followed by the NFL Network analysts explaining why this wasn’t out of left field. Childress still has Adrian Peterson. He seems to be a forgotten running back. But perhaps I’m defending the Vikings so I can say the victory wasn’t far-fetched. The Saints offense is still spectacular. Speaking of their offense, Drew Brees is the starting QB for my fantasy team, The Love Isselfs. I’m trying to win my THIRD championship in a row. Bryan Funk fears me in that league. Brees nearly saved my team’s season (when it was called JAWN) a few years ago after PCA author DROPPED him. But, honestly, the Saints aren’t losing their first game in their dome since the Super Bowl. NO WAY. You can bet a plastic spoon ON THAT.

Miami over Buffalo

-Oh, the Bills. Of all the coaches they could’ve hired, they went with Chan Gailey. The suicide beards will grow in Buffalo. At least the Bills have the hope that C.J. Spiller will actually realize his potential. Marshawn Lynch is now THIRD on the depth chart. I once drafted him in the first round and he lost me a full point mid-week after games were done. I still don’t get it. The Bills are going to be awful. I wanted to pick them to finish with 2 wins but my gut says they get 4 and miss out on Jake Locker. As for Miami, a lot depends on Chad Henne’s ability. I think they could surprise in the AFC East like they did in 2008. Gus Johnson and Steve Tasker are calling this game. It won’t be a terrible game but Gus deserves better.

Chicago over Detroit

-This matchup ended the 2009 season for both teams. I don’t remember the game. Does anyone? Lovie Smith is still the Bears coach and Jay Cutler’s still a d-bag. Their three best receivers are Johnny Knox, Devin Arshomadu and Devin Hester. Bad times. People loves the Lions this year. Suh should be a beast in the league but Detroit isn’t going to be a whole new team this season. They won twice last year. Expect a Piranha 3D type effort from them. Gruesome at times but an improvement. No, I’ve never seen the movie.

Tennessee over Oakland

-Why are people in love with the Raiders? Yes, they added Jason Campbell but he could never get it done in Washington. Louis Murphy and Chaz Schillens are solid receivers but they aren’t transendent. Miller is Campbell’s best option. With Campbell, Miller should have a great season. Campbell likes his TEs. The defense is always solid though. The Raiders will have a solid year but there’s going to be mistakes in this one and they won’t win. As for the Titans, Chris Johnson pretty much won my second straight fantasy league title single handedly. He was so damn good last season. I expect more greatness from the man this season. I think he can run on this Raiders D. McClain isn’t going to be a game-changer in Week 1. Asogomha and CB Chris Johnson should shut down the Titan wide receivers.

New England over Cincinnati

-I’m hesitant to pick against the Patriots. The Bengals have a bandwagon because of last season combined with T.O. and Ochocinco as the top two wideouts. Mike Zimmer’s defense is always good. But it’s the Patriots. Brady’s completely healthy. Welker’s back. It’s a Randy Moss contract year. The defense is a worry but the Bengals offense isn’t exactly menacing. The Bengals didn’t have a single Pro Bowler last year. Of course, Odom would’ve been one if he hadn’t gotten hurt.

New York Giants over Carolina

-Carolina ended the 2009 campaign in a positive way. In my 14 team league, I have Smith AND Matt Moore. John Fox is one of the league’s best coaches so I think the Panthers can surprise here. The Giants spent time repairing the defense because it fell apart like an Alexandre Aja movie in the third act. Every week, there are games where I think ‘I should change this pick.’ I should change this pick. Will I? Doubtful. The clown is pretty much down.

Atlanta over Pittsburgh

-Last year, Denis Dixon managed the game well against the Ravens when he started so he isn’t a huge question mark. He’s a former Oregon Duck. We’ll see if Tomlin relies on the running game. The question remains for Tomlin: is he Jon Gruden 2.0? Not much has been written about the Falcons. Their defense is meh while the offense still has Michael Turner, Tony Gonzalez and Roddy White. Michael Jenkins is out for the season though. He’s a good number two. I don’t really know how this one plays out.

Cleveland over Tampa Bay

-I liked the heart the Bucs showed late in the year and the fact they played for Raheem Morris. It’s stunning Mangini remains the head coach of the Browns. The Browns lost Montario Hardesty to a torn ACL–one of the great names in the NFL. Massaquoi leads the pack of receivers. I think Delhomme has a solid season with his new team. Sheldon Brown will be great for their secondary. Is it any surprise that CBS gave Spero Dedes and Rich Gannon this game?

Denver over Jacksonville

-Greg Amsinger and Mitch Williams are the broadcasters for the MLB Network afternoon game in Denver. It hasn’t been pretty. Amsinger and Williams are good in the studio as host and analyst respectively. Trainwreck so far as broadcasters. Speaking of trainwrecks, it’s Josh McDaniels and Jack Del Rio. Jabar Gaffney’s going to be the number one target for Kyle Orton. Uh-oh. I drafted Moreno in my fantasy league so I’m hoping he taps into his full potential this season. The defense is still comparable to the sixth season of Dawson’s Creek. My apologies, B-Dawk. Garrard has the same problem Orton does: no one to throw to. Sims-Walker’s the best option. Marcedes Lewis is a solid option. Rashean Mathis is still their no.1 corner. He is great. Moving on now.

Houston over Indianapolis

-This might be the stupidest pick of the week by me. The Texans play the Colts well every year then they give the game away in the last five minutes. If the Texans want to be taken seriously, they will win this game. They’re home. The defense is above average. The offense hasn’t lost a step (well maybe at running back but Arian Foster will be fine). The Colts are the Colts though. If it wasn’t for the final quarter of the Super Bowl, the Colts would have a bandwagon the size of Russia. They’d be the favorite to win the Super Bowl. But I can see a Texans win and a lot of air time devoted to a Colts discussion about whether the Colts are on the down-slide. We shall see.

Arizona over St. Louis

-Derek Anderson won’t be terrible as Warner’s replacement. He’s got Fitz, Breaston and Doucet to throw to plus Beanie Wells running out of the backfield. The Cardinals have a shot at the division. Anderson nearly did the impossible once upon a time: take the Browns to the playoffs. The Rams have too many issues for Bradford to walk in and save the franchise. Remember, if they didn’t beat the Lions last year, they would’ve been the second team in as many years to finish 0-16. This team sucks.

Philadelphia over Green Bay

-The 2010 Eagles are most compared to the post-Favre Packers. The Packers went 6-10 in Aaron Rodgers’ first season as the starter. They also led the league with the most losses by 4 points or less. I see a similar season unfolding with the Eagles. The offense looked atrocious in the preseason. 0 TDs for the first string offense. I hope Reid and Marty quit using Vick randomly in third down packages though Domo made a convincing case for using Vick in third down packages; however, Vick makes too many mistakes. The offensive line is the same as the line last year. Jamaal Jackson has his hands full in his first full game back since tearing the ACL. He has to block B.J. Raji.

The defense looks like a whole new defense. Hopefully, the defensive line finally finds consistency. Graham looks like the real deal as the complement to Cole, and Patterson and Bunkley are two of the most consistent DTs in the NFL. I’m thrilled about the linebacker corp. Sims, Bradley and Jordan are going to be great. The secondary is still iffy. Mikkell needs to regain his pro bowl form. Nate Allen has a lot of responsibility at free safety. I’m not convinced Hobbs can replace Sheldon Brown. The secondary has good depth though.

I hope Bobby April, with his great special teams reputation, can make the special teams look, you know, good. They were dreadful in the preseason.

As for this game, I know the Packers are great. I really liked watching them last season and Rodgers is so good. Their missing some key guys on defense like Al Harris and John Jolley. We’re really going to see what the Eagles offense and defense are capable of Sunday. The defense faces one heck of a challenge and Kolb and his guys have to execute more efficiently on the field, especially in the red zone. Reid and his staff have notoriously struggled against 3-4 defenses. The defense has to pressure Rodgers, force turnovers and Kolb can’t turn the ball over. McCoy’s gotta show he can pick up blitzes. The linebackers need to cover Jermichael Finley. I’m tired of the poor tight end coverage by the linebackers.

This is going to be an interesting game for the Eagles. I’m stoked for the throwback green uniforms to celebrate the 1960 NFL championship.

San Francisco over Seattle

-Pete Carroll is a so and so. He fled the scene when the NCAA was going to punish USC for various infractions and violations. I think karma follows him. If you combine karma with the talent of this Seahawks team, they aren’t going to win a single game. Who are their receivers? I don’t know. I know more about Australian A League soccer than I do about the Seattle roster. Their RBs are talented though. Forsett and Washington (if healthy) can take pressure off of Hasselbeck and/or Whitehurst and his hair.

Dallas over Washington

-Jerry Jones is going to be disappointed when his team isn’t playing the Super Bowl in their stadium. Their defense was very fast but teams adapt quickly in the NFL. I don’t know. I just think the Cowboys will be average. I still have no respect for the Redskins. I’d like to root for McNabb’s success because I’m a McNabb fan. I hate his team though. Their fans are delusional. Shanahan employed four running backs who are past their prime. I hope the teams tie.

Baltimore over New York Jets

-I enjoyed the Jets’ Hard Knocks season. Last year, after watching Hard Knocks, I thought the Bengals were doomed because of what I witnessed. The coaches didn’t think they had good depth at any position. The Jets got in the playoffs with a 9-7 record. The defense will be awesome and the offense will struggle. I don’t know why they’re the favorite to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. I’m not sold. I couldn’t stand the team last season because they were terrible to watch. I’m still stunned they made the AFC Championship game and nearly won. I like Baltimore a lot this season. Flacco needs to find consistency but Harbaugh’s assembled a team that should win the AFC North and, possibly, represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

San Diego over Kansas City

-If the Chargers suffer any dropoff this season, they will still win the AFC West. I think the Chiefs are improved. I like their running backs, the receivers and the defense. But they’re inexeperienced. Remember, Rivers is crazy. He’ll will the Chargers to victory in the regular season and then choke in the playoffs.

Overall: 0-0

In case you missed it, here are my reviews for Hellcats, Terriers and the latest Man Vs. Wild:

http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/09/08/the-foot-review-of-the-hellcats-pilot-a-world-full-of-strangers/

http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/09/09/the-foot-review-of-fxs-terriers-pilot/

http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/09/09/the-foot-man-vs-wild-fan-vs-wild/

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

Last summer, Will Ferrell joined Bear Grylls for two days in Sweden to promote his movie, Land of the Lost. With another person to look after, Bear toned the intensity of the challenges down. Ferrell actually had a walk in the park compared to the two fans who won a chance to survive for two days in the Canadian wilderness with Bear Grylls. Bear’s mission is to push both fans, Joe Mesto and Sean Lacoste, to their limits. Bear also wants each man to face and conquer their fears. Joe fears heights. Sean fears water.

The challenges the two fans face aren’t fierce. Bear and Discovery can’t get these guys killed so there won’t be any fights between man and an actual bear for food. Bear used rope more than ever and might’ve repelled down a mountain more than ever. They are in British Columbia, in the Powder mountain range (I think).

As per usual, here are the highlights:

-The helicopter has no way to land on the mountain so the three have to rope down. Joe and Sean look terrified. Bear descends first and then shouts directions to the two men. Both reach the ground safely. Bear tells them they need to do two things: listen to him and trust him. If I’m in the wilderness with Bear Grylls, am I going to do anything but trust him? Surprisingly, Joe doesn’t give complete trust to Bear. More on this later.

-Whenever an episode begins high on a mountain, the first half is devoted to climbing down. You know what that means: REPEL. Bear uses a rock anchor for the descent via rope. For Joe and Sean’s first time, Bear puts the two together. Bear has to assure Joe that the rope will hold. It does. They are safe.

-Bear keeps the three of them tied together through rope a lot during the first ten minutes. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

-Bear worries about the guys becoming dehydrated. He and the fans gather snow in their bottles. Yes, Bear doesn’t advise anyone to eat snow for hydration in cold, dry air because eating snow lowers one’s core temperature. As the three continue to work their way down the mountain, the snow will have melted by the time they reach the bottom of the mountain. Bear also worries about the endurance level of the fans because of the high altitude. A new environment is a shock to one’s body and the British Columbia environment takes its toll early on Joe. During the narration, they using their hands and feet to climb down. You know, kicking deeply into the snow or digging their hands into the snow. Bear decides to glissade down the slope. Simon doesn’t crash into anyone this time. He doesn’t follow any of them down with a sled though. The three glissade safely. It looks fun.

-Bear and the fans navigated a glacier with many crevices. All that stood between them and solid, non-snowy ground was a fifty foot icewall that leads into a crevice. Bear and the fans dig an ice anchor for the moments. Bear has to assure Joe that the rope will hold, that the anchor is good. Sean repels easily. Joe struggles. He doesn’t trust himself or Bear. His feet aren’t planted flatly and he isn’t arching back; therefore, he sort of slides down the mountain. Bear wishes Joe would trust himself more.

-The three make camp. Bear brought dinner because he didn’t want the fans to kill for their food. Bear lets Joe remove the bad parts of the rabbit. Bear narrates about how most people like their meat in a pretty package. Bear feeds the fans the heart of the rabbit before cooking the rest of the animal. Joe actually enjoys the cooked rabbit. I guess it beats a raw rabbit heart. The three sleep in twenty degree temperature. I’m not sure if any of them sleep. In the morning they wake up for breakfast. They warm themselves up with tea. Bear instructs them to look under rocks for worms or grub. The fans collect a decent number of worms. The three of them eat. Bear describes the taste as simply “awful.”

-The time comes for Sean to face his fear of water. It’s rather dull. He freezes in the water but Bear pulls him across without stopping. After this experience, Sean repels down a mountain near a waterfall and swims in a glacial river. I think he was cured.

-Joe nearly breaks his knee repelling. He never trusts himself nor Bear. He does deliver the best quote of the episode: “I’m repelling down a mountain with Bear Grylls. This is awesome.”

The rest of the episode without any major highlights. Bear’s a good teacher. He shows patience and genuine concern for the individual fears of his fans. The fans clearly admire and respect Bear. Joe remarks that it’s amazing Bear does this (survive in the wild) for a living.

Overall, Fan Vs. Wild was a decent episode. Next week, Bear is in the desert and his crew will be creating the conditions to demonstrate how to survive in the desert. It’s the sequel to the “How To Survive In The Bitter Cold” episode that aired a few weeks ago.

I’ll be back in a bit with my 2010 Week 1 NFL PREDICTIONS. FOOTBALL HAS ARRIVED!

Oh, if you missed it here are my reviews for Hellcats and Terriers: http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/09/09/the-foot-review-of-fxs-terriers-pilot/ and http://blogs.wcuquad.com/2010/09/08/the-foot-review-of-the-hellcats-pilot-a-world-full-of-strangers/

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

The CW is the first to kick off the 2010-2011 Fall season. Will anyone watch? Doubtful. Perhaps The CW adopted the line of thinking that anonymous commenters have. You know, the commenters who simply write “first” after a story because the idea that they were first delights them though no one actually cares who is first. It’s sort of an existential act. The CW must want to get a head-start on the Thursday competition. Perhaps, if Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec deliver a kick-ass Vampire Diaries premiere, audiences will spurn Community, The Big Bang Theory and Bones. The theory remains the same for Nikita. The shows will continue to get the ratings that were lousy enough to cancel a show like Dollhouse and Sarah Connor Chronicles on FOX but good enough for five seasons on this little network.

The CW is a network I haven’t watched regularly since its existence. The president of the network made the unfortunate decision to renew One Tree Hill and 7th Heaven instead of the best written show from TheWB, Everwood. Let us not forget that 7th Heaven aired their intended series finale before being picked up. The CW has mostly developed dramas in the mold of One Tree Hill. But, like TheWB, The CW executives continue to develop more genre shows than any other network. Smallville’s about to air its 25th season (oh, it’s just the 10th?) while Supernatural is six years old. Reaper was a show that aired for two years and The Vampire Diaries has found their audience. It’s still the forgotten network though.

As per usual, I’m not evaluating which returning shows to review. I dislike reality television so Tyra’s show won’t receive a preview. I only preview returning scripted series.

Now, let me dive into the 2010-2011 CW schedule for a very timely preview.

The Show: 90210

What Season?: The Third

Returns To Air: September 13 at 8PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) The third season of 90210 welcomes the West Beverly kids to their senior year of high school. It’s the time of college acceptances and lovers’ rejections, the time of prom dates and promises betrayed, the time of spring break, break-ups and make-ups – but as is always the case in Beverly Hills, it all happens in a world of sun and fun, palm trees and warm sea breezes, success and excess. From the very beginning of the school year, the lives of the West Beverly group will be shaken up in a way none of them could ever imagine. And from this new starting point, their journeys will take them to staggering new heights and terrifying new depths.

What To Expect Part Two: A third season. Wow. I don’t get the sense that the new 90210 is beloved like the original series. I don’t foresee The Sports Guy Bill Simmons and Matthew Berry devoting over two hours of their time to celebrate this reincarnation.

In last season’s finale, Annie confessed to killing a guy (WHAT?!?) while Dixon charmed a girl with an astronomy project. Meanwhile, a girl named Adrianna, who is some kind of singer, managed to land a worldwide tour and reunite with her boyfriend. A boat was set on fire by a fellow named Jasper and a girl was sexually harassed by a teacher while another teacher drove his car into the school and possibly destroyed it. Also, the Principal got fired.

This season, as the press release says, will be senior year. I assume many familiar plots will be used during the season. Most likely, a character will be in danger of not graduating while the prom will be a place where drama happens and couples debate taking the next step. There will be tears as the characters realize high school is ending and a whole lot of unnecessary drama like the what happened in the finale.

The Show: Gossip Girl

What Season?: The Fourth

Returns To Air: September 13 at 9PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) Season three ended with a BANG! as a heartbroken Chuck Bass lay bleeding in the streets of Prague while Blair Waldorf and a newly-single Serena van der Woodsen jetted off to Paris for a fabulous summer abroad. Meanwhile, Nate Archibald fresh off his painful breakup with Serena, decided to take a page out of Chuck’s playboy playbook just as Dan Humphrey discovered he was going to have to settle down and be a father – to Georgina Sparks’ baby! Season four will open with a radiant Serena and Blair enjoying their grand and romantic summer in Paris… until Chuck mysteriously arrives in town with a new girlfriend and a new identity. Blair swore off Chuck forever but will this changed man woo Blair into having a change of heart, or will Queen B set her sights on ruling Columbia University? And as for that baby… ?

What To Expect Part Two: The CW should be sent flowers for their informative press releases. They laid out everything in a concise paragraph. I have nothing to add.

The Show: Life Unexpected

What Season?: The Second

Returns To Air: September 14 at 9PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) Returning for a second season, LIFE UNEXPECTED is a coming-of-age family drama that centers around 16-year-old Lux, who was given up for adoption at birth but never adopted. When she is put back into the custody of her estranged-since-high-school birth parents, radio show host Cate and bartender Baze, the three form an unlikely family, complicated by the fact that Cate is engaged to her co-host, Ryan. Cate and Baze struggle with becoming insta-parents and raising a daughter they are only now getting to know, while Ryan must deal with the fact that Cate’s feelings for Baze aren’t entirely in the past. Lux, meanwhile, tries to reconcile her past with her present, often torn between her old friends from foster care and her new family. As the unlikely trio begins to grow up together, Lux encourages Baze to reveal what she already knows – that he is in love with Cate, just like a part of Cate is in love with him. Baze tries to stop Cate’s wedding, but when he’s too late, Cate marries Ryan. Heading into next season, our unlikely threesome become a foursome as Ryan joins the family.

What To Expect Part Two: The press release paints a pretty picture for Life Unexpected. Critics responed well to the pilot last season and thought they show was a return to the classic WB coming-of-age drama. The show even drew Everwood comparisons . Two WB veterans are stars, Kerr Smith (who played Jack McPhee in Dawson’s Creek) and Shiri Appleby (who was the female lead in Roswell); however, the show’s progression only annoyed fans. TWoP described the finale as a mess and were more frustrated because they loved the pilot. Essentially, the show’s creator and the writing staff concocted one of the worst love triangles on TV. I’d like to add that the creator, Liz Tigelaar, chose some of the worst names for characters like Lux, Math and Baze.

The Show: One Tree Hill

What Season?: The Eighth (cue the Joaquin Phoenix sigh)

Returns To Air: September 14 at 8PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) After a seventh season that saw ONE TREE HILL continue to grow and break new ground, the show enters season eight with more than 150 episodes under its belt. The new season finds Brooke Davis happier than ever. Recently engaged to Julian, her wedding will be the captivating affair one might expect from a young, beautiful, successful fashion designer. As Nathan Scott prepares for his second season in the NBA, the Scott family is expecting their second child and Haley feels as though the baby will be a girl. How will she balance her pregnancy while raising Jamie and pursuing her music career? Also, Quinn and Clay’s lives hang in the balance, the victims of a brutal attack which affects all of their friends and family. Season eight of ONE TREE HILL will explore the delicate balance that contemporary twenty-somethings face as they endeavor to build and define what their lives will be, while overcoming difficulties and embracing the good things that they sometimes take for granted, shrouded in the pursuit of someday. It will be a celebration of the most important things, among them the quest for love, laughter, health, friends, career and family: timeless pursuits that have always mattered, and matter now, in a place called Tree Hill.

What To Expect Part Two: Why is the show still on? WHY? No writers in Hollywood can write something that will bump this show off the air? Really? They produced 150 EPISODES?!? This should’ve been cancelled FIVE YEARS AGO. To quote Simon Tam from Firefly: this must be what going insane feels like.

The Show: Smallville

What Season?: The Tenth

Returns To Air: September 24 at 8PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) Entering its explosive tenth and final season, SMALLVILLE culminates in the epic rise of the world’s ultimate hero – Superman. Finally working alongside the intrepid Lois Lane at the Daily Planet, Clark Kent had accepted his destiny as the guardian of Metropolis when General Zod arrived, challenging Clark’s authority and power. Just when the romance between Clark and Lois began to bloom, Clark was called into duty by the legendary Justice Society and his own burgeoning league of heroes to fight the gathering dark forces. As season nine drew to a close, Clark sacrificed himself to save the world from Zod. Season ten promises the classic reuniting of the timeless romance between Clark and Lois, and brings Clark face-to-face with his destiny as he overcomes his final trials and forges the iconic identity that will be known for all time.

What To Expect Part Two: I usually watch an act or two of a few episodes every season because I like the visual look of the show and then I feel depressed because zero short movies I’ve made looked good visually. It’s a very unique, sort of dreamy visual style. No matter how poorly Heroes was plotted, structured and written, the episodes always looked fantastic. I have no idea where the narrative is for Smallville. I watched the last ten minutes of the season nine finale and saw Clark’s sacrifice.

It’s the final season. Will old faces appear? John Schneider will show up in the premiere even though his character died a few years ago. Looks like Clark will be somewhere between life and death. Supergirl is returning. Chole’s going to leave the show but aren’t all the characters leaving the show since this is the end? Expect Clark to fight evil. Oh yeah, Lionel Luther is returning to the show as well.

The Show: Supernatural

What Season?: The Sixth

Returns To Air: September 24 at 9PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) Returning for its sixth season, this haunting series follows Sam and Dean Winchester, two brothers bound by tragedy and blood to their dangerous, other-worldly mission. This past season, Dean and Sam faced their toughest foe yet: the Devil himself. As the Apocalypse raged on around them, the brothers, aided only by a dwindling band of fellow hunters and rebel angel Castiel, sought a way to stop Lucifer and save the planet. Ultimately, they discovered a way to force Lucifer back into Hell and end the Apocalypse – but at tremendous cost: Sam’s life. Season six will be a season of mystery and shadow. Heaven and Hell have been left in complete disarray since the apocalyptic events of season five. And now, monsters, angels and demons roam across a lawless and chaotic landscape. And so Dean Winchester, who has retired from hunting and sworn never to return, finds himself being pulled back into his old life – pulled back by none other than Sam Winchester, who has escaped from Hell. The two reunite to beat back the rising tide of creatures and demon-spawn, but they quickly realize that neither are who they used to be, their relationship isn’t what it used to be, and that nothing is what it seems.

What To Expect Part Two: The show has a new showrunner in Sera Gamble who promised more monster-of-the-week episodes instead of the epic apocalyptic arcs that dominated the show the last few years. Fans seem glad that the show will return to a simpler time. Everything you need to know is in the press release.

The Show: The Vampire Diaries

What Season?: The Second

Returns To Air: September 9 at 8PM

What To Expect Part One: (From The CW Press Release) Returning for its second season, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES is the story of two vampire brothers obsessed with the same beautiful girl, and battling to control the fate of an entire town. During season one, Stefan and Damon Salvatore returned to their hometown of Mystic Falls, Virginia, for very different reasons – Stefan was determined to get to know Elena Gilbert, who bears a striking resemblance to Katherine Pierce, the beautiful but ruthless vampire the brothers knew and loved in 1864, while Damon was intent on releasing Katherine from the tomb where he believed she was trapped by a witch’s spell all those years ago. At the end of season one, Elena’s uncle set a plan in motion that brought the Founder’s Day celebration to an end amid chaos, destruction and death, and saw the return of the vengeful Katherine Pierce. Next season, the appearance of the villainous Katherine in Mystic Falls throws a wrench into the love triangle between Stefan, Elena and Damon, and the other residents of Mystic Falls must choose sides as they fall victim to a new breed of danger. New and unexpected friendships will be forged, allies will become enemies, and hearts will be broken. Stefan and Damon will be forced to face a villain more evil and diabolical than they ever believed possible.

What To Expect Part Two: TVD is a good show believe it or not. TWoP thinks this should could be Buffy’s true successor. The writers operate at a breakneck speed. So much happened in each episode that one wonders if they can continue on that pace. Kevin Williamson brought in veteran TV writers Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain for season two, bolstering an already strong writing staff. Williamson promised a major event occurring in the premiere as well as more focus on the supporting characters that were lost in a shuffle due to the focus on the three leads. I’m excited. Also, expect weekly thoughts about this show right here in The Foot.

The day is Wednesday and, as promised on Monday, The Foot is going to become a busy place. Tonight, around 11PM, I will post my review of the Hellcats pilot. And I’ll preview tomorrow’s content c after Hellcats.

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

The 62nd Annual Primetime Emmys took place last night in Hollywood. Rich people were paid to wear expensive clothing. Rich people were paid handsomely for work they already are paid handsomely for. Also, expensive gift bags were given to the rich people who attended. I digress.

In other years, the Emmys showcased an alarming lack of originality. Before last night, The Amazing Race won every year since it debuted. Top Chef took home the Best Reality Program award last night, ending The Amazing Race’s streak. New shows were rewarded as well as deserving actors and actresses who were deemed an after-thought by critics who had grown weary of the predictability of the Emmys; however, as the night wore on, the Emmys began irritating me. Perhaps the hour plus time spent celebrating mini-series and movies was the reason. Can there really be a category for Best Miniseries when exactly two miniseries are nominated? Obviously, the category existed. I would have bumped Tom Hanks and his mini-series to the Creative Arts show that occurred a week ago.

Here are my (mostly) complete thoughts about last night’s Emmy Awards:

-Jimmy Fallon hosted the show last night. While I had no problems with how he performed as the host, I wondered how much power Lorne Michaels has in television. For example, if I was a writer’s PA or writer’s assistant on SNL and I happened to trip over his shoe accidentally, would I ever work in the business again? Take a gander at Horatio Sanz’s career compared to Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers. Lorne Michaels doesn’t like Horatio Sanz. Sanz was abruptly fired from SNL. Since SNL, he’s worked small roles in Will Ferrell movies and landed a role on a Comedy Central series that critics hate; meanwhile, Fallon replaces Conan O’Brien as the host of the Late Show after struggling as a movie actor. I read Lorne made it a mission to find success for Jimmy Fallon. A year and a half after taking over Conan’s chair, Fallon is hosting the Emmy Awards on NBC.

Seth Meyers has been the head writer of Saturday Night Live for a few years now as well as the Weekend Update host. Let us remember that Seth Meyers never made the audience laugh in sketches. If there were laughs, credit goes to Will Ferrell or any other cast member who appeared in the sketch with him. Not only is Meyers the king of the SNL writing staff, he hosted the ESPYs in July. Damon Lindelof, co-creator of LOST, tweeted “Briefly met @sethmeyers21 backstage and got starstruck.” In the infamous words of Meyers, REALLY?!? Seth Meyers has overseen some of the worst SNL years in the show’s history. The ideas are unoriginal and the execution of the ideas is brutal. Like Fallon, the majority of laughs during Weekend Update occur when Seth Meyers can’t help but laugh at the jokes he just delivered.

I don’t get it.

-I almost turned heel on Mad Men last night because of my overwhelming LOST fanaticism but the frustration disappeared rather quickly and I watched the latest episode of Mad Men mere minutes after they won the award for Outstanding Drama Series. They won for the third year in a row. Matthew Weiner didn’t thank his writing staff. Instead, he thanked his wife for reading the scripts. I have no problem with Mad Men winning this award because LOST didn’t have a shot in Emmy Land. It’s a genre show and hadn’t been nominated since the show won in 2005 for the first season.

-I don’t think Matthew Weiner and Erin Levy should’ve won for “Shut The Door. Have A Seat.” Again, I’m biased but I think Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse deserved the win for “The End.” But Mad Men is the Emmy’s favorite child. The one award I wanted LOST to win was the writing award. I will now sigh heavily.

-Jack Bender did not win the directing award for LOST. Steve Schills won for an episode of Dexter he directed. I did want Bender to win the award not only for the greatness that is “The End” but for the entire six years he spent as the creator of the visual look and style of the show.

-I enjoyed the opening segment of The Emmys. I was surprised and overjoyed when Nina Dobrev jumped into frame. She is the star of The Vampire Diaries and an absolutely stunning looking girl. Holy moly.

Will she replace Emilie de Ravin as my fanboy crush? After watching her last night on The Emmys and seeing the TVD trailers for the second season with Dobrev in the Katherine look…I will answer with an emphatic yes.

-Aaron Paul won the supporting actor award for drama series. Paul once acted in a 2000 movie called Whatever It Takes and it’s one of my all-time favorite comedic performances. The majority of people in America won’t agree with me. I’ve read no supporting actor was more deserving than Aaron Paul. Very well.

-Archie Panjabi won the award for supporting actress in drama series. I hear she was outstanding. Good for her.

-Kyra Sedgwick won for Best Actress in a drama series. Many thought Julianna Marquiles was a lock. I wanted Connie Britton to win for her portrayal of Mrs. Taylor on Friday Night Lights.

-Bryan Cranston won the award for best actor in a drama series. This was a stacked category. Every actor deserved to win. I thought Matthew Fox had an outstanding season portraying Jack. Jon Hamm’s performance in “The Gypsy and The Lady,” especially the kitchen scene with Betty, is out of this world. Kyle Chandler’s been great for four years as Coach Taylor on Friday Night Lights as well.

-The only comedy series nominated that I watched was Curb Your Enthusiasm. The show earned zero awards. No surprise. J.B. Smoove wasn’t even nominated and I have no doubt that he’s funnier than every actor nominated for supporting actor in a comedy series.

-The show itself was poorly paced. Again, no one needs an hour plus devoted to mini-series’ and movies. The musical transitions performed by Jimmy Fallon were decent but the twitter stuff was a bad idea.

Overall, I regret watching the entire three hour program. I should’ve stopped when Nina Dobrev left the stage but I had hope LOST would win, at least, one award.

I thought I’d write about the Emmys and Beyond Survival in one post but my write-up on Beyond Survival will be online tomorrow.

THE QUOTE OF THE (YESTER) DAY!

Gio Gonzalez, A’s pitcher, on his relationship with the baseball

“I had a pep talk with the baseball today … It’s the first time. I guess he’s rubbing off too much on me,” Gonzalez said. “After Hamilton’s homer, I got the ball and started yelling at it. ‘C’mon, do your job.’ Then the baseball told me to calm down. I’m losing my mind.”

THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK

I have even more to write about “The Candidate” and other LOST things including the awesome LOST podcast. Let’s go:

Sayid’s death had the right amount of closure. In the flurry of the emotion of the episode and admist attempting to strike a decent balance between the shocking deaths and the important John Locke/Jack story taking place, one can forget to ruminate on the totality of Sayid’s personal narrative, his own arc. In “LA X,” he was broken, scared and full of fear. He asked Hurley what he thinks happens after death. Sayid was convinced he’d go to a place quite unpleasant. What he didn’t know was, upon his resurrection or whatever you want to call it, that unpleasant place was inside himself. Sartre, in his play No Exit, had one character exclaim that Hell is other people. Hell is sometimes your own self. Sayid made a deal with His Smokeness that infected him. He felt nothing. He did what he was told. “You’re evil,” Dogen told him. Sayid accepted that. “What will you tell her you did to bring her back?” Desmond asked. Sayid didn’t respond. We saw him on the beach of Hydra Island, telling Jack where they were. It seemed like he had more to say before MIB interrupted. Before Desmond was thrown into the well by NotLocke, NotLocke tried to rattle him, to scare him. Desmond wasn’t scared. What’s the use of being afraid he asked NotLocke. Perhaps, the profoundness of Sayid’s talk with Desmond lies in the not being afraid. We didn’t see how the conversation ended. We only saw a renewed Sayid. Perhaps Desmond told Sayid why it’s useless to be afraid. We won’t see the end of their conversation but I’ll bet we see the full scope of Desmond’s influence in the final three episodes so we’ll be able to understand how he saved Sayid’s soul.

Fans on various LOST messageboards have theorized about Jack offering Claire an Apollo candy bar as well as her rejection of the candy bar because that’s exactly what Jacob did with Jack after the dural sac incident that Jack eventually fixed (as told to Kate in the Pilot episode). My own humble opinion is: sometimes a guy offering a girl a candy bar and her not wanting it is just a guy offering a girl a candy bar and her not wanting it.

Fans have been clamoring for the Outrigger mystery to be revealed. I’d like to see that resolved as well. There wasn’t a huge chance of seeing that mystery solved because everyone is on Hydra Island. Why bring this up? I don’t know. It’s not a good segue but it’s a seque. Fan outrage has been more evident after this week’s episode. I can’t recall a more vocally angry internet outrage than the outrage about this episode because of the characters who died. I don’t agree with the naysayers. In fact, I probably wrote about how I wish they’d stop watching the show if they find so much wrong with it. It’s television and free. Chuck Klosterman wrote something, I imagine as a retort to all of the LOST naysayers he’s been dealing with, on Twitter. In fact, Klosterman did an awesome job on a BS Report podcast with ESPN.com’s Bill Simmons of defending the show. Simmons was in the majority of fans who felt that the show going to be a train wreck until it ended after seeing the first six episodes of the season (I wasn’t and remain a part from that community of fans). Klosterman essentially told Simmons that LOST is what it is and he suggested to just roll with it. He considers it, as do I, to be one of network television greatest shows of all-time. Klosterman describes LOST as ‘the most exclusionary show ever.’ I totally agree. He also compared it to reading a Russian novel. I’ve read a few in my life and I’d agree.

The point he essentially made then and made outright on Twitter is: “If you continue to watch a serialized TV show you actively dislike, you completely deserve your unhappiness.”

Listen, in less than two weeks, there’s going to be a 250,000 word recap of the series finale that at least one person will be reading besides myself (and I’m the author!). There’s less than 2 weeks to go now. Maybe after tomorrow’s episode, “Across The Sea,” the negativity and bitterness will cease. I hope it does so that the fan community, the loyal community who have been watching for six seasons without ever leaving, can enjoy the ultimate unwrapping of the Christmas gift (as DL and CC have said). LOST is a great Russian-esque novel. NotLocke, in “The Substitute,” told Sawyer that he’s so close (to the Number Caves in the context of the episode). We’re so close, fans. Embrace and savor the final three episodes because there’s never going to be a show like LOST again.

Other Things to Address:

–I forgot to add this in “The Candidate” entry. Lostpedia noted that only six season one character remain in the Island timeline: Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, Claire and Walt. It’s wild and sad.

–I listened to the penultimate podcast episode of The Offical LOST Podcast on Saturday afternoon. The penultimate podcast. Amazing how time flies. It seems like yesterday they announced their three-year deal that would end LOST in its sixth season on a podcast. But I shall save the podcast memories for the entry I write after the final podcast has been listened to. It’s coming this week as there won’t be any prehasing for the series finale. Expect the “Goodbye, LOST Podcast” entry sometime this week.

I’ll be back Wednesday with thoughts on “Across The Sea” as well as the LOST rankings.

Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final act of the final season has begun.

Does patience pay off? It does because we just got a huge progression in the tale of the sideways. Our characters are having vivid memories of their Island lives. Charlie saw his life with Claire as he lay dying on the Oceanic 815 Faraday felt love the first time he saw Charlotte as he walked in her museum and he had never met her but, that night as he slept, he dreamt about her and awoke to write a complex equation and Desmond kept seeing Penny throughout and began searching for her. In the end, he awoke from the electromagnetic event Widmore put him through with a sereneness about him and purpose. He asked Charles, “when do we start?” We don’t know what Widmore told him. The next thing we saw was Sayid attack two of Widmore’s men and allow Zoe to run. Sayid invited Desmond to come with him and Desmond said, “lead the way.”

Desmond is, indeed, special as Faraday told us last year in “Because You Left.” He is the connection between the sideways and the Island. This episode mirroed “Flashes Before Your Eyes” but mixed in a little bit of “The Constant” with some “Through The Looking Glass,” “Further Instructions,” “The Variable,” “Man of Science, Man of Faith,” and “Live Together, Die Alone.” The two most important episodes to remember while thinking about “Happily Ever After” are “Flashes Before Your Eyes” and “The Constant.” Desmond was our introduction to time-travel (although Hurley teased it during season two). Desmind is OUR constant. He’s been a man trapped by fate as Ms. Hawking told him in “Flashes Before Your Eyes.” Desmond wanted to change things, to propose to Penny but Ms. Hawking told her that wasn’t going to happen because his purpose was going to the Island and pushing the button so the entire world didn’t go bye-bye. In this episode, he seemingly has full control of his destiny and it looks as if it will come down to choice in the end. Allow me to dive into an episode that didn’t have one insignificant scene.

The opening of the Sideways story mirrored the opening of “what happened after Desmond turned the key in the Hatch” in “Flashes Before Your Eyes.” No, Desmond wasn’t on the floor surrounded by red paint. Instead, he stared at his reflection as he searched for baggage claim for Oceanic 815. Luckily, Hurley came by and directed him. As Desmond approached the baggage carousel (is that what it’s called?) he found Claire trying to get her bags. He helped her and they talked. He asked about her pregnancy but apologized for asking since he was, you know, a stranger. They had a nice talk. Desmond offered her a ride but she wanted to take a taxi. Before they parted, he told her that her child would be a boy. NOW how would he know that? (I ask knowingly with a gleeful grin).

He found his driver, George Minkowski. Minkowski, if you recall, was the communications guy on the freigher and was the suffering from the sickness of mind time-travel and eventually died. He and Desmond bonded during that time. Anywho, Desmond was the right-hand man of Charles Widmore. Ms. Hawking (or Mrs. Widmore in this case) told Desmond, later at the concert set-up, that he got what he always sought: the approval of Charles Widmore. That’s debatable but it’s worth mentioning. Their scene was full of references to old episodes. The most symbolic part of the scene was when Widmore shared a bottle of McCutheon whiskey with Desmond as that bottle of whiskey represents the how beneath Desmond is to Widmore in the Island narrative. Widmore had a job for Desmond: get Charlie Pace, the junkie rockstar of Driveshaft, and take him to the concert where Daniel was going to mix classical music with rock n’ roll.

Desmond did just that only Charlie walked right past him, across the street, and into a bar. Desmond caught up with him and they drank together. In the bar, we got additional context for why Charlie told Jack that he was supposed to die. On February 2, it seemed like a nod to fate, a nod to what happened in the Looking Glass station. But no, it wasn’t. He told Desmond a story about love. We were misled to think that Charlie fell in love with Kate but, no, the marshal merely motivated Charlie to go to the the bathroom to get rid of his stash of heroin through swallowing. He told Desmond that he swallowed it and that darkness overcame him. In that darkness, he saw the most beautiful blond girl (“rapturously beautiful” is how Charlie described Claire). He loved her and it was like they had been together for all of time and would be together for all of time. Just as he was about to be engulfed in it, Jack saved him. The experience convinced Charlie that he was living in a reality that wasn’t all real and he became suicidal because of his experience. Charlie became motivated to show Desmond the falseness of the reality in which they lived because he saw the truth. Charlie didn’t believe that Desmond was happy with his life even though he was successful. Couldn’t be. He didn’t see the truth.

They left the bar and entered a car. On the road, they continued to talk. Charlie told Desmond that he’d show Desmond what he meant. Charlie grabbed the wheel and soon he and Desmond found themselves in the boat harbor where Desmond was shot by Ben in Island story. He escaped, surfaced to catch his breath and then went back down to save Charlie. As he attempted to open the door, Charlie opened his eyes and put his hand to the window (“Through The Looking Glass” parallel) and Desmond began having flashes of Charlie’s death in the Looking Glass station. He did pull him out eventually. I think it’s right to assume that Charlie experienced that experience as he lay dying in the airplane bathroom because he died with the thought that the love of his life and her son would fly safely away from the Island. I think Charlie definitely felt that.

At the hospital, the doctor was concerned about his head while Desmond was concerned about finding Charlie. The doctor wouldn’t let Des find anyone without undergoing an MRI first to figure out if there’s anything wrong with his head. At the MRI, he was given a panic button. Desmond was alarmed by the word button because of his history with buttons. He entered and saw flashes of his Island timeline that was all Penny. He saw every important moment including the birth of his son. He pushed the button. The doctor freed him and then Desmond went looking for Charlie. He ran into Jack while looking for Charlie. They exchanged pleasantries. Jack expressed incredulousness when he heard that someone from Oceanic 815 was in the hospital (shades of old man of science Jack). Charlie appeared, running through the hospital and away from nurses. Desmond followed him and, after descending a stairwell, cornered Charlie. Desmond immediately asked about Penny. Charlie was glad that Desmond had felt it. Charlie told Desmond that he wasn’t going to play the show because it didn’t matter, that none of it matted and that the only thing that mattered was that they felt it. Charlie told Desmond to find Penny. I think Charlie was the MVC of this episode. His characters seems to have set-up the final arc of this sideways narrative. Desmond echoed the words of Jacob in the bar as he talked to Charlie, “there’s always a choice.”

Desmond quickly updated Widmore on the Charlie news. Desmond was tasked with telling Mrs. Widmore. He went to the house and told her. She reacted kindly like she knew that it would happen but she grew perturbed when Desmond wanted to look at the list of guests. She told Desmond that he wasn’t ready to find who he was looking for and that he had gotten the approval he sought for his entire life from Widmore. Her son, Daniel, listened to the entire conversation. Desmond left, entered the limo, poured himself a glass of alcohol and told Minkowski to just drive but Daniel knocked on the window and wanted to talk with Desmond.

Daniel talked about love at first sight and proceeded to tell him the story about Charlotte that I described at the start of the recap. He also talked about dream. Daniel then pulled out a journal which he wrote in after the dream: a complex quantum physics equation. He didn’t know how considering he was a musician and not a physicist. It would take years and years of study but he brought the equation to a friend. Daniel learned that the problem was of a new reality being created as a result of something catastrophic happening, of a huge bundle of energy being released, like a hydrogen bomb being detonated (JUGHEAD!). Desmond asked Daniel does he want to detonate a hydrogen bomb. Daniel said he thinks he already did. Daniel asked about Penny, the girl he’s been seeing flashes of and searching for. Desmond said that she was just an idea. Daniel said that she was not just an idea, that she was his half-sister and that he knew where and when he could find her.

Turns out that she likes to run up and down stairs in an empty stadium just like Jack and Desmond did in “Man of Science, Man of Faith.” Desmond introduced himself after she confirmed that she was Penny and they shook hands. Also, that stadium was where Desmond saw Penny for the last time before his race around the world. He was the one preparing to run up and down the stairs.

And then he awoke in the Island timeline. Seamus and Zoe were stunned that he survived all of that electromagnetic energy. Not Widmore. He knew that Desmond would survive because he survived the Hatch explosion. He needed Desmond to be prepared to sacrifice for the sake of his wife and child. He needed Desmond to be on the same page. Desmond was game to do what needed to be done. He had purpose and he believed in Widmore. We don’t know what Widmore told him or if Desmond saw something that we didn’t see. He eventually wound up with Sayid as mentioned earlier.

And then we were back in the sideways. He had fainted upon shaking Penny’s hand. He asked to have coffee with her. He made his case by saying he had just fainted in front of her. Penny was swooning. It was adorable. She agreed to meet him in an hour at a coffee shop. He went back to the limo, all smiles. Minkowski told Desmond that he would get whatever he wanted after Minkowski had asked Des whether or not he found what he was looking for to which Des said yes. Desmond had one request. He wanted the manifest for Oceanic 815 because he had something to show them. I think it’s certain he possesses the knowledge of both timelines, both realities. We do not know what the plan is yet.

This episode has really brought a new level of meaning to the flash sideways. I followed the advice of Damon and Carlton so I didn’t dive into much speculation. I noted the differences here and there but I mostly waited for the sideways to reveal themselves a little more and, now, we have some real information. New context has been given to the previous sideways encounters. I’m thinking of Kate and Jack specifically. They both shared looks outside of “LA X.” I wonder did Jack and Kate experience or, rather, feel their other life experiences? Jack seems to have felt his other life but, like his encounter with Desmond, might be shrugging off as something insignificant. More than any other character (not counting the characters in “Happily Ever After”), Jack seems to have been remembering. As we are now in the third and final act of the season, we’ve gotta see more characters experiencing or feeling their other lives. I think I can see the ultimate conclusion of this show forming in the distance. I can see the various plot threads and narratives forming into what seems to be an extremely emotional and heartfelt finale.

The episode blew my mind. It’s one of the great LOST episodes. I got goosebumps during various scenes. I had a lump in my throat during various scenes and I felt quite emotional as I realized the threads of the story are slowly being pulled together as this show nears its conclusion. I was overjoyed that the endgame really is going to focus on these characters that we’ve spent six seasons with. I’m excited. I’m ready.

Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse penned this episode and it was FULL of references to episodes past. So full that I’m going to wait until the “More Thoughts” section to detail every single one FROM MEMORY. I am a geek. I wrote an entry earlier today about my feeling that there would be some sideways revelations. I feel vindicated. I also argued for patience. Well, hopefully, people learn to settle down and just roll with the show with only 7 hours of the show left. But, anywho, let me dive into the central story of “Happily Ever After.”

Time for MORE thoughts:

–This episode most clearly mirrored “Flashes Before Your Eyes” as I’ve stated. Here’s the references I caught to that episode as well as all of the other references to past episodes:

Hurley was the first person to see Desmond in the airport after his conciousness shifted to the sideways. In “Further Instructions,” Hurley was the first person to see a naked Desmond running in the jungle after he turned the failsafe key.

In “Flashes Before Your Eyes,” Desmond can hear Claire calling for help from a mile away as she nearly drowns in the ocean. Desmond helps her with her luggage in baggage claim. The last time

Desmond was in a limo was “Live Together, Die Alone” where we also met Widmore for the first time. Widmore told Desmond that Des wasn’t good enough for his daughter and asked him to leave without a trace. In this episode, Widmore got a limo and a personal driver for Desmond.

Desmond’s task in this episode was keeping track of Charlie Pace. Of course, one of the big arcs of season three was Desmond trying and trying to prevent Charlie’s death even though he knew the universe has a way of course-correcting itself. In this episode, Charlie was suicidal and hell bent on dying because of what he saw as he lay dying.

His dual conciousness occured in “Flashes Before Your Eyes” and “The Constant.”

Desmond attacked Ben Linus and sent him into the harbor in “Dead Is Dead.” Charlie made sure they went into the harbor.

I think everybody noticed the “Through The Looking Glass” parallel/reference.

The only other significant bar scene in LOST that I can recall off the top of my head is the scene between Sawyer and Christian in “Outlaws.” The bar scene with Desmond and Charlie is pretty damn significant. Christian expressed regret that he couldn’t pick up a phone to tell his son that it’s allright. Charlie was obsessed with what we saw. Christian spoke about fate and destiny using the Red Sox. Charlie felt that he had witnessed his fate and destiny.

Desmond collapsed in a stairwell in “The Constant.” I expected that would happen as he chased Charlie in the hospital but it didn’t happen.

When Faraday knocked on the Hatch door in “Because You Left” and told Desmond that everyone was in danger and that he needs to find his mother, he awoke in bed with Penny. Penny asked him if he had a dream. Desmond said no. He thinks he just got a memory. In this episode, the characters dreamed these things they experienced but they aren’t dreams at all. They are memories.

Desmond and Faraday spoke about constands and time-travel in “The Constant.” We got a huge download of info in that episode. The same thing happened in this one with Faraday, once again, explaining complex stuff with simple terminology. I’ve missed Faraday. Jeremy Davies owns that role.

Widmore exposited the events of “Dead Is Dead” for the audience when Benny Linus shot Desmond. It’s sort of a reference.

–Dominic Monoghan was great in this episode. My favorite scene of the episode is Charlie telling Desmond about Claire. I almost forgot how big a fan I was of the two of them together. The music was very moving and the way Dom Monoghan played it was outstanding. Dare I believe there’s a happy ending for Claire, Charlie and Aaron together? That would make The Foot very dusty.

–I just re-watched the scene between Desmond and Ms. Hawking (should I refer to her as Mrs. Widmore?) and I believe she’s just as knowing. She told Desmond to stop because he has the perfect life. Is she, perhaps, trying to prevent the sideways from maybe crumbling? Who knows. We shall soon see.

–I’m a big fan of Seamus. He seems like a nice fellow. He hesitated with maximizing the electromagnetic energy. He looked relieved that Desmond was okay. I’m a fan. I don’t have much else. I also love the name. The name is a big reason why I’m a fan.

–I just re-watched the end when Desmond tells Minkowski, with clarity and purpose in his eyes, that he needs to show the people of Oceanic 815 something. Oh the goosebumps. The music is amazing. It’s going to be an immense final 6 episodes and 7 hours.

–Sayid was pretty nice letting Zoe go. I imagine Zoe has an important role to play. I don’t mind her. She’s better than Ana Lucia.

–It was cool seeing another old Dharma project. There’s no way Widmore brought that fancy contraception with him on the sub. Fun fact: electromagnetism was first introduced on the show in season one’s “Hearts and Minds.” Sayid theorizes about electromagnetism when trying to figure out the wonky compass.

–”Happily Ever After” is an episode that proves the creative masterminds always had a gameplan. Was it sketchy at times because of the fact that they are a network show? Sure. But it’s been there. I have the quotes and podcasts to prove it. Don’t believe me? Carlton gave away Tawaret IN THE “LIVE TOGETHER, DIE ALONE” REHASH PODCAST! Damon mentioned the possibility of flash-sideways in season four! Anywho, Desmond’s specialness was introduced in “Furthers Instructions” when he first saved Charlie’s life. His specialness became evident more so in “Flashes Before Your Eyes” and The Constant.” And then I’ve mentioned the other instances. My point: bravo, Darlton!

–This has nothing to do with the episode but I’m curious about what exactly was going on in that cabin that Jacob was not using.

–Widmore seemed taken aback when Desmond was on the same page with him. Could it be because HE HAS FLASHES OF THE FUTURE?!? Come on, Widmore! (I know he doesn’t know that but he knew Des is special). I also failed to mention Desmond’s beat-down of Widmore with an I-V stand.

–Desmond received two eyeball scenes. The first was when he awoke in the hospital bed. The second when he awoke…in a hospital bed in the sideways.

–I’m really excited to see how the two storylines will reconcile. I think it’s going to be tremendous.

–Last night, Damon accidentally retweeted a fan’s observation about Desmond’s missing wedding ring and wondered if it’s a result of the worlds bleeding into one another. Remember in “Recon” when Liam showed up to bail his brother out? Where in the world did Liam go? It could just be a case of Desmond beating Liam to the station. Also, last week, it sounded like Keamy told Jin he would freak if he told him what happened to the Island. Some people have opted to chalk that up to a sound glitch. But with the knowledge we got in “Happily Ever After” it might be very intentional.

–Henry Ian Cusick, Dom Monoghan, Sonya Walger, Jeremy Davies and Alan Dale were great. Damon and Carlton wrote one of the series best episodes (no surprise there). Jack Bender did an outstanding job. The ace team of LOST delivered yet again.

–Next week looks very, very good as well. It’s gonna be Hurley’s hour and it looks like some familiar people will be showing up.

TO THE RANKINGS!

THE OFFICIAL LOST RANKINGS

We decided to add Zoe to the rankings. I tried to add Seamus but no one even knows his name really so it’s understandable. So Zoe enters the fray with just 7 hours left in the show. But besides that, there were pretty much no changes at all in either rankings. Save for Zoe and the usual switcharoo STEVE does with Widmore and Hurley, it’s exactly the same as last week. Take a look regardless:

AFTER EPISODE 11

RANKED: 4/7/2010

CHRIS

1. Desmond

2. Jack

3. Ben

4. Hurley

5. Sayid

6. Jin

7. Claire

8. Locke

9. Miles

10. Sawyer

11. Kate

12. Richard

13. Frank

14. Sun

15. Ilana

16. Jacob

17. Man in Black

18. Zoe

19. Widmore

STEVE

1. Desmond

2. Man in Black

3. Jack

4. Richard

5. Kate

6. Ben

7. Miles

8. Sawyer

9. Sayid

10. Jin

11. Frank

12. Ilana

13. Locke

14. Sun

15. Jacob

16. Claire

17. Zoe

18. Hurley

19. Widmore