Fool Me Once: Preview & Trailer

Vampire Diaries: Children of the Damned

Um. I love this show. I could’ve done with some Matt-Caroline action this episode but otherwise — so happy.

• Love how Katherine said the “other animals” will take care of the bodies like she knows she’s one of the animals and loves it.
• Genius line: “If i see something i haven’t seen before i’ll throw a dollar at it.” I also love the “menage a threesome team thing,” Damon.
• Honoria Fell! I’m on book 3 of the Vampire Diaries series and they are awesome. Love the pieces that are picked up in the show.
• Theory: Anna’s mother Pearl is SO in the tomb.
• Master slayage weaponry on Alaric!
• Fact: Damon looks hot in 1864 and 2010.
• Fact: Nina Dobrev can rock the 1864 look or the 2010 look. She is genius.
• How could you not answer truthfully to Damon, whether or not he compels you? Those eyes. (Sorry this is turning into a fan girl swoon festival.)
• “Hot trumps weird. Trust me.”
• “Thanks to Emily”: witchcraft is behind Katherine and Pearl’s ability to walk in daylight.
• Prejudice lesson on The Vampire Diaries: can we judge vampires as all evil, all the same? No, my friends, we cannot.
• “Damn, you’re strong for a little thing.”
• Stefan’s betrayal! I don’t know that I would run for the sheriff if my dad was keen on killing my lover.
• Ah! Logan got all “poser slayer” — totally, Anna!
• Nicely played, Bonnie, but he’s not that dumb. Scary!
• There is some disagreement amongst the Knitting Clubbers: Damon just wants to trust his brother and Stefan is being a jerk, or is Stefan right to not trust Damon? Damon crushes people’s hearts with his hands, sure, but all he wants is his true love back, right? Either way, that expression of infinite sadness Stefan made pulling open his father’s grave broke my heart.
• “The only one I can count on is me. You made sure of that many years ago, Stefan. But you, you had me fooled.” Heart = broken.
• I do not like vampire muzzles. They upset me. When did I develop so much empathy for random vampires??
• Such a cliffhanger.

I adore this show. Ahhhh. Cannot wait to rewatch.

Lost ft. Boomon

Was it just me or was Ian Somerhalder’s Boone WAY more Damon Salvatore-esque on last night’s Lost episode? Maybe I was just jazzed to get a double dose of Damon in one week. I dub the season 6 version of Boone “Boo-mon.” (That is also what a Jamaican ghost says.) I fear that — based on Ian Somerhalder’s interview with Regis & Kelly — his scenes with Locke on the plane are the only ones we’ll be getting. Unless there’s more he hasn’t yet filmed. . . .

Nikki Stafford, author of the fabulous Finding Lost series, is blogging up a storm over on Nik at Nite; her post on “LA X” is here.

My rudimentary thoughts on the episode:

• For a show so popular and with a presumably large-enough budget, why can’t Lost figure out how to get some good CGI?? The underwater reveal of the island was terrible, just like all the other special effects like this in the history of Lost.
• I used to be on the other team, but now I hope Jack and Kate get together — or at the very least Sawyer and Kate don’t. Sawyer/James was pretty torn up about Juliet and I’d like that to be honoured, please and thanks Darlton!
• Is Sayid a good reanimated corpse or a bad reanimated corpse? Can Jacob, now that he’s dead, take over Sayid’s body? Or is he being inhabited by the Man in Black? (Who, btw, needs a name stat because my roommate keeps singing “here comes the man in black…galaxy defenders” every time he appears.) Or is he just Sayid-Sayid, all Christ-like returned from the dead?
• How many more secret groups of people are there on that there island?
• So if the Man in Black is the Smoke Monster (and it’s not just his servant-killer), then that suggests he was testing all the Losties that he killed looking for the right vessel to enact his plan. He tested & killed Eko; he didn’t kill Locke. Did he always know Ben would be his murder weapon, so to speak? And he just needed the right body to use to convince him? HMMM. I do not know.
• Are there now two realities co-existing and when Juliet said “it worked” she somehow knew of other universe’s existence? It’s a little bit Fringe-y, having the two neighbour universes. Maybe characters can jump between!
• Though the Roommate and I agreed that we are not emotionally attached to any of the Lost characters (weird, eh?), I found the scene between Jack and Locke at the Oceanic missing cargo counter particularly touching. Definitely my favorite scene in the episode.

And tomorrow we get the real Damon on a flashback-heavy episode of The Vampire Diaries. Win!

I <3 GG NYC

Spotted in the lobby of the Empire: Chuck and Blair in "How to Succeed in Bassness"

Not that every weekend trip to New York City isn’t the bestest, but my last trip was extra Gossip Girly and therefore extra awesome. Erino was going to see A Little Night Music on Broadway, and I was going to be a “special guest” on the On Location Gossip Girl tour. We stayed at the Empire Hotel — which is of course the hotel Chuck Bass bought this season to build his very own Bass Empire.

Chatting with the concierge on check-in, I learned that his favorite character is Chuck Bass; that it’s very cool to watch Ed Westwick switch in and out of his American accent while filming; and that while it’s great for the hordes of Gossip Girl fans who hang out outside the hotel while GG films inside, it’s kind of a drag for the regular guests who can’t use the front door, yada yada. Not that the hotel is small by any stretch of the imagination, but it definitely looks larger on TV. All about the angles, I suppose.

The Lobby Bar at the Empire is everything you want in a hotel bar (I really like hotel bars): dimly lit, cushy seats, amazing cocktails. Amazing Gossip Girl–themed cocktails. Twas difficult to choose, let me tell you. I opted for the “Jenny’s Tartlet”: Montecristo White Rum, Mint, Ruby Red Grapefruit, and a Lollipop. The lollipop happened to be my #1 favorite lollipop — a ChupaChup Strawberry & Cream. I cannot overstate how delicious this concoction was. Erin went for the “S” & loved it. It is a travesty that we didn’t try them all. Next time.

jenny's tartlet

"S": Zyr Vodka, honey water, Champagne & Lemon Pappabubbles (b/c of S's daddy issues??)

The other genius thing about the Empire Hotel is that it is literally a stone’s throw from the Lincoln Center. (I did not TRY to throw a stone at the Lincoln Center from the hotel but I am sure I could have. Moving on.) We popped

Calhoun: Live at the Lincoln Center

over on the Friday afternoon to see what was on that night and picked up $20 tickets for the New York City Ballet’s performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It was the most wondrous thing I have seen in a really really long long long time. (I want to say EVER but it’s possible I’m forgetting some genius experience I had when I was a wee child. A Chinese circus I saw was pretty effing cool. Moving on.) The costuming, the set design and lighting, the music (Mendelssohn), the choreography (by Balanchine), the execution of the choreography, and the little children dancing as fairies — we are convinced that we will never in life see a more realistic representation of fairies than those little sparklers.

Inside the David H. Koch Theater, which you will recognize from CENTER STAGE

I went back the next night to see a modern ballet (not as genius). It was “Naive and Sentimental Music” followed by “Who Cares?” which was set to Gershwin; the big finale was to “I Got Rhythm.” Despite one dancer having a bit of a tumble, it was my favorite part as I fondly think of Gene Kelly in American in Paris when I hear that song. I have now resolved to see the NYC Ballet for $20 — you cannot beat that — every time I visit the city. It kind of breaks my heart that I will miss the rest of their Classics Revisited program this winter.

how to improve on the perfection of a grilled cheese sandwich? make it Gossip Girl–themed.

Sunday was the Gossip Girl tour! We met at the Palace Hotel and I could tell which of the lurking-about people were waiting for the tour. Surprise, surprise, we were mostly female! Some from Europe, some fellow Canadians, some native New Yorkers. While I was waiting I spied on the menu at Gilt (the hotel bar where Serena and Blair had a drink in the pilot episode, where Chuck then picked up a drunk S, and where Dan picked up S’s phone after Chuck tried to attack S). Next NYC trip: have the Gossip Grill at the Palace.

Our tour guide was Lindsey and she was awesome — super friendly, hilarious, and a total GG expert. Once we were all aboard, she gave us a rundown of what to expect — they have a DVD with clips of the episodes so you can remember which scenes took place at the locations you’ve visiting. And that way the driving-to-places part won’t be boring! On this particular tour, we didn’t have to worry about boring. Maybe 10 minutes into the tour, when the bus driver was making a totally normal, legal right-hand turn, a cabbie decided to pass us on our right side and drove right into the bus. For real. No one was hurt, the vehicles just got a little crunched. But seriously. Only in New York. While Lindsey figured out how to get a new bus over to our location, I hit the mike to talk about Spotted, and my fellow tour-takers were super friendly and curious about how one gets to write a book on Gossip Girl. (Have an awesome job already seems to be the way!) We had a few copies of the book to give away to some lucky winners, and I had made up some jazzy GG-themed postcards for the gang. (So everyone was a winner.)

Since we were close to the first stop on the tour, we walked over to one of the filming locations for Constance–St. Jude’s: Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church, at 75 East 93rd Street. Photo op! We kept moving cuz, you know, January in NYC is not the friendliest time for outdoor walkabouts, and headed to the Waldorf Penthouse at 1136 Fifth Avenue. Then we loitered in the lobby of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum (2 E 91st St) where Lily and Bart got married at the end of season 1.

The new bus arrived but sadly for me, I needed to get to the airport to fly home hella early so I hopped on the bus to take a pic of my new GG pals and then I was off! Luckily I did see a bunch of the locations last June when I did my own walking tour to take photos for Spotted but next time I’m in NYC, I hope I can take the tour again and actually stay for the whole thing!

More info on On Location Tours here; you can get 10% off the ticket price with the promo code CCALHOUN. Big thanks to Meagan and Lindsey for being so welcoming to me!

Erin took some more photos of our trip (she is infinitely better at photography than yours truly) and her photos are here. (more of mine on my flickr.) Also, if you’re wondering where some scene or another was filmed, check my Gossip Girl Locations google map. It’s color coded!

View Larger Map

Epically long post for an epically fun trip! And, my friends, only five more weeks til Gossip Girl returns with new episodes! Holla!

Crazy Heart

After watching Crazy Heart last night, I’m in love with Bad Blake and Jeff Bridges. Bridges is Bad Blake, a broke alcoholic country singer on a crappy road tour through New Mexico, Texas, who meets reporter Julie (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and takes a shine to her. I really loved this movie: the music, the beautiful shots of the country, the performances, the songs, and the Bad Blake wardrobe. (I used to have the perfect jean shirt, not unlike Bad’s, but it got left behind and worn out. And now it’s lost forever. There’s a country song in that, I betcha.)

Jeff Bridges has always been awesome. He’s The Dude. There’s just something about his voice, his face, his manner, and that hair that compels you to love him. He hit the perfect mix of lovable and repulsive necessary for Bad Blake. After the movie, both Erino and I were talking about how much we thought about what Bad must’ve smelled like — smoking all the time, drinking, sweating, driving long distances peeing in a bottle. Rank, rank, rank. And we loved him.

Two thumbs up, you guys!

Unpleasantville Recap of Recaps!

Looking for more Vampire Diaries coverage? Give Me My Remote’s recap is up.

Lindy hop your way over here my friend. How fun was it to see Stefan loosen up a bit? He looked like he was actually having fun with his girlfriend. Keep shining. Keep smiling, Stefan. I like it.

And/or head to Zap2It’s post: “Twists and turns, while a history teacher yearns.” And TWOP’s recaplet is up, and has my favorite line from last night as its title: “Your Diabolical Plan: The Sequel.”

**Mandi Bierly’s recap is up on Popwatch. She is hilarious and has great points about the Buffyness of the episode & its genius moments.

Preview for next week! “Children of the Damned” (thanks Vampire-Diaries.net!)

And on a sidebar note: Malese Jow who plays Anna — can poor Jeremy never find a girl who’s right for him?? — once played Miranda Cosgrove’s look-alike on iCarly. (These are the fun facts you learn working on the ECW Crew!) And if Malese ever needs a look-alike to play her, I nominate my former housemate, actor Michelle Adams. (Who I happened to run into on the streetcar on the way to watch TVD last night!)

TVD: Unpleasantville

So here I am at knitting club. Not knitting, drinking wine. Kind of a lot of it? (Little bit tipsy.) And watching The Vampire Diaries. An awesome episode. here’s a pseudo live-blog.

The cast of Knitting Club characters: Sarah (Team Stefan), Amie (Team Damon), Erin (Team I’m Not Really Watching), and Charlie (Team I Am in Another Room). Plus me.

Sarah: Are you writing a blog? I better think of some witty things to say.
Crissy: Evil pizza guy??

[During the super cute Caroline & Elena scene, where E gives C the "lesbian" necklace, there was a debate over whether or not that was still Candice playing Caroline.]
Sarah: She looks a little different.
Charlie: I think it’s a different actress.
Sarah: Her eyebrows, her forehead?
Charlie: It’s a different actress. Isn’t she?
Amie: You don’t even watch this show.

Another new character! Hot bartender guy. Good or evil?? Uh oh. Elena’s mysterious caller… Totally like Scream. A creeper in the hoodie.

Stefan and Elena kiss!
Sarah: “Yay!!”

Back to Caroline:
Sarah: Maybe her bangs have changed. Bad eyebrows?
Crissy: I think i might be in love with Matt.

Erin: I like Elena’s Harry Potter scar.

So Elena’s mother’s name is Isabelle. Hope her last name isn’t SWAN.
Love the Stefan line to Damon: “…your diabolical plan. the sequel.” He does funny so well, but so rarely.
Uh-oh. uh-oh: mysterio vamp lurking at Elena’s.

The knitting club transcript:
Sarah: oh no oh no. Can she hear it? (the compass)
Sarah: Son of a bitch!
Amie: what does this fucker want?
[during commercial break]
Amie: I’m so glad Stefan arrived in time.
Sarah: Me too.

I like Caroline’s dance outfit the most. That sweater is genius. So who is the mystery vamp? Not a loose one from the tomb. Not someone who thinks she’s Katherine. (Because why would he try to drink the blood of a vampire?)

On the charms of Damon:
Sarah: He does the eye thing, you know.
Amie: He’s got that smirk.

Loved this line: “Tonight was so much better on paper.” — Caroline. Did not love the Awkward Island moment following her ”washed-up jock” moment.
Amie: See. Words hurt.

Sarah: I want to see Stefan dance. [Elena asks Stefan to show her some moves.] Come on, let’s go. [they start dancing] Ooooooooh wooo!! [dance over] Genuinely, that made me happy.

What! Double vamps! Evil stalker-hoodie-vampire-dude Noah and evil Anna!

Oh no, a decoy! Regular teenage boy in a hoodie! Elena does her best slayer imitation, pretty good for a human! Total Buffy flashbacks being in a high school and using found wood objects for stakes. Love it.

Is Alaric’s wife Elena’s mother?? A little Life Unexpected teen mom moment here? I love the Anna character a lot more now that she’s an evil vamp.

OK! Knitting Club wrapping up. We cannot wait for next week. Want more TVD.

xoxo

Preview clips: tomorrow’s TVD “Unpleasantville”

after last week’s multiple & awesome reveals, The Vampire Diaries returns tomorrow night with the sock-hop! Previews, webclips below! I’m going to attempt to blog on the ep from my, errr, Knitting Club — which could more accurately be called the Drinking Wine and Watching TVD club. Can.Not.Wait.

the trailer

the preview

web clips after the jump!

The Redeeming Qualities of NBC

It’s hard for me to get really riled at NBC, despite their recent wave of idiocy, and it’s because of four shows: The Office, 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, and Community. Even this week’s Office clip-show had me tearing up during the Pam & Jim montage. 30 Rock’s return in 2010 has included a Gossip Girl plot line (with a scene filmed at the Waldorf penthouse!), a Kevin McHale reference, black-light comedy, and a lot of mocking of poor poor Lutz.

Last season Parks & Rec was a pretty major disappointment, but whatever they changed over their hiatus worked: the show is consistently hilarious and it no longer feels like a crappy Office knock-off. I love them all (Ron Swanson forever) but I think April Ludgate (the dour looking one on the right) is my absolute fave. Especially now that’s she’s Ron’s assistant and the storyline with her and Andy is so underplayed and perfect. Love this show. (Thursdays, 8:30)

On to the next lovable ragtag gang of small town weirdos: the Spanish study group on Community. Troy and Abed are the stand-outs with their end-of-episode moments of genius. The biblioteca rap, for example:

Some of the earlier episodes were a bit hit and miss — sit through the mediocre for moments of awesome — but the past 5 or so eps have been start-to-finish solid. And it’s kind of nice to see Chevy Chase every week, let me be honest. Also if you’re wondering why the cardigan-wearing Annie looks familiar, that’s because she’s Pete Campbell’s wife Trudy from Mad Men (played by the excellent Alison Brie). (Thursdays, 8 pm)

So start watching if you aren’t already! Episodes available on NBC.com for my American friends, and on CityTV.com (Community here, Parks & Rec here) for my Canadian compatriots.

TVD Night!

New Vampire Diaries tonight! woooooo. Reminder to Canadians: CTV is airing the episode at 7 p.m. EST, a whole hour before the CW does, so make sure you are comfortably seated in front of the telly.

Cannot wait to see Damon & Elena & Stefan again. Look how pretty and fierce they are.