Cutthroat Kitchen, Food Network Star, Master Chef and more

Cutthroat Kitchen is now in its second season, and it's going like gangbusters. For those who might not know

what this is, this is Food Network's own Alton Brown as an evil host who starts out with four chefs who are trying to best one another, through various nefarious means, and emerge victorious. Each contestant is given $25k at the beginning of the show, and this is what they use for the auctions in each round. First Alton announces what dish he expects them to cook, then he gives them 60 seconds to shop for ingredients from his pantry. If, at the end of that time, someone is caught in the pantry, there is a penalty to be exacted. I've only seen that happen once.

Then the fun begins, as the cheftestants bid on the sabotages that Alton introduces, in order to burden their fellow chefs with them. One of the most infamous sabotages is the tiny kitchen. Another is to have two chefs chained together. Or use strange items as tools. Or strange heat sources. When it comes time for judging, a guest judge arrives, having no knowledge of the sabotages used and not caring, and tastes the food. One chef is eliminated in each round. The regular judges are Simon Majundar (whom I refer to as Simon Majumjum lol), Jet Tila, and Antonia Lofaso. Once, Geoffrey Zakarian was a guest judge, and you can imagine how thrilled I was that night!

This is a really enjoyable show (and no, Alton isn't that mean, it's an act. Seriously?) One of my favorite memories involves a chef that was on Food Network Star and lost (and I didn't like her on that). She was a contestant on CK, and had a slight altercation with a blender. You can see it in the opening credits lol

Food Network Star is entering its last couple of weeks, and we are down to the last four - Lenny, Luca,

Nicole and Sarah. At the beginning of the season, I had two favorites - Luca and Lenny. But Luca was eliminated in the second week, for not looking at the camera, so I set my sights on Lenny. After winning in the last chance kitchen, Luca came back, but I'm still going with Lenny. Sarah was rooting for Loreal, the Butcher Babe, but she was eliminated, so now she's rooting for Luca. Should be interesting, although I think Lenny has pretty well outshown everyone else most of the time. When he's good, he's very good. He has charisma in spades, and I think he'll do well with his own show. I'd certainly watch it.

Master Chef is almost down to ten contestants now, and I honestly can't say I have a favorite. This is not really their best season yet. There is one person I'd love to see eliminated, and I'm sure she will be, after they take advantage of the bitch-factor she projects. Her name is Courtney, and she is just obnoxious. I like Leslie, the guy who's about my age from Malibu, but I'm not sure he has what it takes to win. I like Jamie, who is quiet and shy, but she needs to step forward and shine more. She has time, though. At this point last season, Luca hadn't begun to really shine,  but the last half of the season saw him do just that. I like Big Willie too. It's just not a very exciting season. Side note; Graham looks like he's lost a bit of weight, good for him!

Hell's Kitchen ended its season recently, but we didn't even bother to watch the finale, so disgusted with their choices of who was to compete - Scott and Jason. What a crock. Rochelle was better than either of them and should never have been eliminated. A disappointing season.

On the other hand, Hotel Hell is back, and Gordon Ramsey is visiting some very disgusting hotels that he has to work miracles with. Similar to what Robert Irvine does with restaurants. The difference is Gordon isn't hampered by a $10k budget, obviously. He has some very generous sponsors, which makes sprucing up his hotels much easier. $10k wouldn't go very far, but Robert does amazing things on a small budget. I look forward to an interesting season of Hotel Hell. Apparently, there will be no more Kitchen Nightmares. Can't blame the man, he has a lot going on.





Hell on Wheels starts again tonight, can't wait! We started watching Face Off this season. I'd been told by a

few people that I should watch it, I'd like it, and they were right! Make-up artists compete for a major cash prize, creating make-up and effects to specifications. We've seen two episodes and are impressed. One of the contestants is from St. Louis, so go Drew! Next episode has to do with aliens, should be fun!



Well, all for now, gotta get in some writing before it's Svengoolie and ice cream time! Tonight he's showing Son of Dracula! I'm sure it's a real stinker lol

Next time I hope to talk about Ray Donovan, Masters of Sex, Halt and Catch Fire, The Kitchen and more!

Later!

Why Dr. Smith is a better father to Will Robinson and other Sundries

There's a station called ME TV where you can watch lots of vintage shows. Some are classics, some are

gems, and some are not so good,  but there are a lot of memories there. On Saturday nights, they show Lost in Space, right before Star Trek TOS. I've seen Lost in Space, of course, grew up on it, loved it. My favorite character was Dr. Zachary Smith (maybe that says a lot about me, since he's supposed to be the villain of the story, or maybe it says something for the others that he's the most interesting person there lol). When the film was made, and that role went to Gary Oldman, I was ecstatic. Not so much when the film came out, which is not Gary's fault, and it didn't stop me from seeing it a few times at the theatre.

And actually, what I'm about to say holds true for the movie as well as the series, but it's the series I'm talking about right now, because it's fresher in my mind.

Dr. Smith, for all his faults, was a better father to Will than John Robinson.

He spent more time with Will, there's no denying that. John Robinson spent little time with his family, the quintessential working father so common at that time. And yet, he certainly wasn't working a 9-5 40 hour job. He could make his own hours. He chose to do what he did.



Dr. Smith was a mentor to Will, a role-model, if you will. Will obviously cared for him, and looked out for

him, stood up for him and pleaded leniency when maybe he didn't always deserve it. Obviously, he learned a lot from the Doctor, including compassion. Great job, Zachary! And fie on you, John Robinson, for failing as a parent. And no, Maureen wasn't much better, but she was a little more attentive.

I'm a little behind on what I've been watching, but here goes. Hell's Kitchen ended last night, and quite happily, with Ja'nel winning a spot as Gordon Ramsay's chef, beating out Mary. I knew Mary couldn't win, she didn't have it in her. I had made an early prediction that the last two standing would be Ja'nel and Jon. I came close. Jon was cut at the last moment. Great job, Ja'nel!










Master Chef is down to 7 chefs now. In a surprise move, the top 6 chefs didn't cook in tonight's episode.

Instead, each of the judges brought back a contestant they felt had gone too soon - Bime, Brie and Linn. They competed against one another to see who would come back to Master Chef. The challenge involved cooking as many perfect fried eggs as they could. In that challenge, Linn was eliminated, leaving Bime and Brie to duke it out. They had to cool a huge Alaskan salmon, with potatoes and asparagus, and the six contestants were to judge, along with Joe, in a blind taste test. In the end, the vote went to Brie, and she's back. My favorite is still Luca. He's emerging as a strong contender these days, so don't go counting him out!

For all intents and purposes, Food Network Star is done. The final three made their pilots, and America voted. Now we wait the result, in next Sunday's episode. I was sad when Chad was eliminated. I still think he has what it takes. But I'm rooting for Russell now, and I hope he and his culinary sins make it!







A new season of Chef Wanted with Anne Burrell just started. The show is okay, if somewhat predictable.

There's also a new season of Top Chef Masters. I've got two favorites there, Chef Neal Fraser and Chef Sang. There is a twist to this season. Each chef brought a sous chef, and the sous chefs compete first, and their actions often come back to haunt their chefs. Sometimes immunity, sometimes a penalty. Tonight's episode was very interesting,****Spoilers**** with the masters feeding the cast of Days of our Lives. They were divided into three teams to represent Sex, Murder, and Greed, and their food had to reflect those themes. Three chefs, thanks to their sous chefs, had penalties. One sat in jail for 30 minutes, one was in a coma for 30 minutes, and one was in a crime scene for 30 minutes, at various stages of their cooking. In the end, Chef Odette was sent packing.

Well, that's it for right now, but next time I want to talk about Crossing Lines, The Glades and The Bridge. And Hannibal too, even though the season is done.

Until next time, take care!

♥ Julie

Playing catch up

I apologize for my laxness in keeping up with my blog. I got a temp job in June, full time, and it severely constricted my time to do other things, including editing, writing, and blogging. But I promise to do better in the future, as much as possible. I'm doing data entry, and while the work can be strenuous at times - we have to wrestle with heavy files and push often heavy (and stubborn) wooden carts around, I like my co-workers, and I'm grateful to have this job.

A little update on my writing. I am currently writing the fifth book in my gay YA series, Southern Comfort - well, co-authoring. The first three books have been released, but the fourth is still in edits, what I like to refer to as the edits from Hell. I requested the first editor be removed after his insensitive remarks about "guys that date trannies" and knowing people "of that species", not to mention he tried to tell us we were wrong for only putting one space after periods instead of two. The book should have been released August 4th, it's in the hands of some other editor, and I won't even go there because the situation is past ridiculous. Thank God the fifth book does not have to be subbed there.

Other than that, I wrote my first horror story, and Muse it Up accepted it, for which I am delighted to no end. I don't have a contract or release date yet, but I'll keep you posted. It's called Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, and it's something different for me in that it is not a m/m story. I think it's good to be diverse. I don't want people to think I'm a one trick pony.

WIPs - I'm working on a story for a winter/holiday anthology for a group I belong to, It's Raining Men. That will be done by September 1st. I also have two books that I'm working on. When Will I See You Again is a m/m paranormal that I am almost 48 into. The main characters are Raoul Marchand and Alexx Jameson, and it takes place in the seaside town of Crescent Bay. Raoul is a werewolf, part of the strongest families around. He's a cynical, pleasure-seeking man, who has been shaped by tragedy in his life. Alexx  works in the mailroom of the Crescent Bay Chronicle, and yearns to be a crime reporter. When he's given his chance to write a story, although it isn't quite what he wanted, he finds himself at Raoul's nightclub, Charisma, and that is where they meet.

I'm also writing my first PI novel, which will be the first in a series about the main character, Holden Heidegger. The first book is called Personal Business, and it's what happens when your past catches up with you unexpectedly.

I watched the season premiere of Grimm this morning. As you'll recall from the end of season one, Juliette is in a coma, thanks to Adalind, who was a bit pissed after Nick drained her of her powers and became vengeful. No one knows where she is now, including her mother, the hexen beast. Also, Nick came face to face with the woman who was stalking him and lo and behold discovered it was his thought-to-be-dead mother. Nimura, who tried to kill Nick for the coins, was taken into police custody. Monroe and Rosalee work to concoct a serum to combat what was given to Juliette, racing against time. Funny thing is, someone else is shopping for those same ingredients. James Frain appears as a guest star, and things are really getting interesting. I look forward to seeing more of this.

 

The Glades just ended its third season, and it was an excellent one, what with Jim and Callie's relationship being tested with her being in Atlanta to work and study for her boards, and him having his methods called into question by a state investigator, Jennifer, who showed too much interest in Jim for my liking. There were a lot of interesting cases, and this season was strong in all the right places, including plot, acting, character development.  *****SPOILER ALERT****  I have to say that I was on edge for the last episode, as the previews made it seem that Jim was going to leave Callie, unable to take the current situation, but I was thrilled to be wrong, and I admit I cried over what did happen. I can't wait to see season 4.

Hell's Kitchen and Master Chef are both drawing to a close. Frankly, this season of Hell's Kitchen isn't up to snuff in my opinion. I really don't care much for any of the chefs and can't imagine making any of them head chef in one of Gordon Ramsey's restaurants. That being said, I think the two I do like the most are Christina and Barbie, and thank God Robyn finally got cut. In Master Chef, last new episode, David Martinez got cut. I was sad, even though I didn't expect him to make it to the end. But the sadness was ameliorated when Graham told David that when he went back to Chicago there would be a job waiting for him there in one of his restaurants. I think that was the best possible outcome for him, and one that he very much wanted. Of the remaining chefs, I am rooting for Monti and Christine, and I hope Frank gets eliminated soon. I think he's a major ass.

On Top Chef Masters, the two gay partners were reunited when the second one was eliminated. This season isn't my favorite, I have to say, but there are some interesting chefs on it. I like Takashi and Patricia the best, and hope they do well.

Hell on Wheels began its new season, but I haven't seen it yet. I'll get back to you on that. The new season of Flipping Out starts September 3rd and Once Upon a Time September 30th.  I think October for The Walking Dead. It remains to be seen how well I'll keep up with these shows, but I'm going to try. We're taping a BBC show tonight, Copper. I'll let you know about that too.

That's about it for now. Thanks for bearing with me! Until next time, take care!

♥ Julie

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight

Gordon Ramsey's Back Where He Belongs - in the Kitchen and on my Television!

Last night I watched the return of two shows I really enjoy, and they both happen to feature Chef Gordon Ramsey - Hell's Kitchen, in its tenth season, and Master Chef. They'll be on again tonight, and that's where I'll be too.





*****SPOILERS AHEAD****8

They say this season of Hell's Kitchen is going to be very intense, and from I saw last night, I can see why. They're revving up the chefs and encouraging violent actions and reactions. I think we'll see a lot of yelling this year, and a lot of stupid mistakes.



As usual, the chefs were divided into two teams - male and female, red team and blue team. They began by making their signature dishes, at Chef's bequest, and then comparing them two by two. The women scored the first victory, and were sent off for barbecue cooked by two previous season winners, while the angry men were left to scrub the kitchen.

At dinner service that night, no one did themselves proud, and stupid mistakes were made. The women could not get the Beef Wellington right, but at least they got through the appetizers, the men never did, before a disgusted Chef Ramsey closed their kitchen, and then closed the Red Kitchen. Several chefs were told to get out over the course of the evening, including one very short woman whose name I forget, who could not cook the scallops right. On the men's side, though, their scallops were horribly butchered in preparation by a 22 year old executive chef named Tavon. When it came time to put up two men for elimination, some wanted to put up both prep chefs, Tavon and Royce, but some argued that Royce was worth keeping so they wanted to put up Don, whose only crime was looking clueless as he never got a chance to cook, dinner service being called off before the entrees. Chef Ramsey saw through their subterfuge and turned down Don in favor of Royce. But in the end it was Tavon that was eliminated.

 

On Master Chef, it was the first night of eliminations, of seeing who made the cut to be on the show among the many contestants, who all were to cook one dish, and then finish it before the judges in 5 minutes. There were some very strange and off the wall contestants, including some woman who kept dancing, and another who made cakes with the three judges heads (she made it in, the dancer did not).

There was an 18 year old high school student who made carrot cake. She was bright and bubbly, but Gordon told her to come back next year. There were a few contestants that I liked.and some I wasn't sure of. Right now, names and faces don't stand out, but I'm sure that will change over the course of the season. Gordon's co-judges were back with him - Graham and Joe. I think Graham lost weight, probably a result of being on the Fat Chef series. The most unusual contestant was a blind woman, the first for Master Chef. I question whether she'll be able to carry out the various challenges that will be required of her, but that remains to be seen. Tonight will come more eliminations, more giving out of the white Master Chef apron. The previews look promising - one guy rides in on a horse. I have to wonder if some of that isn't as staged as the opening of Hell's Kitchen where the sous chef demanded that the chefs shave their heads, as he did eight years before, to show their commitment to Chef Ramsey. That turned out to be a hoax. The woman sous chef wore a skull cap, and the two "chefs" who had their hair shaved were actually not chefs, but friends of the sous chef. Good television, even if an illusion.

**SPOILERS***

Season 3 of the Glades started Sunday on A&E, and I was thrilled to death! I love this show so much! And if the first episode of the new season is any indication, we're in for another good one. Jim and Callie are dating openly - hooray! - but on the downside, Callie is unemployed and jobs are hard to find, but she doesn't want Jim to say or do anything about it. A young couple doing some canoodling in their car in a deserted spot see strange lights, followed by loss of power in their vehicle as well as their cell phones, and while chasing the lights they  make a gruesome discovery - a dead body. Investigating the death leads Jim and Carlos to a group of victims of alien abduction. The victim was a supporter of the group. He left behind a very young, nubile widow, who stands to inherit his sixty million dollars. This episode was a lot of fun, and Daniel got a chance to show as the resident expert on strange and esoteric things, such as alien abductions.

 

I can't say enough good things about this show, I'm glad I took a chance and began to watch it. It's funny, upbeat, quirky, and the mysteries and police cases are well done and interesting. The characters are real, and fun to watch. I hope it stays with us for a long time to come.






***MORE SPOILERS***

 

Only two episodes of the Borgias left. I love this rich historical drama even more than I did the Tudors, and that's saying a lot. In Sunday's episode, Cesare runs across Caterina Sforza's son, believed to be dead, and learns the true story of the siege of Forli, which is certainly not the pack of lies that his brother Juan fed their father, the Pope. Of course, Juan has other problems - wounded at the siege, the physician says he may lose his leg, and his disposition is not helped by the fact that he's also got syphilis, and is bound to go mad over time, at least. Lucrezia is being pressured into marriage, but the trouble is no one has caught her eye, and she really doesn't care for the condition of being married. But then she sees someone who pleases her - unfortuantely, he is not the groom to be, but his brother. But her mother gives her some sage advice - "You're a Borgia. You can have what you want." So she agrees to marry the one, while cuckolding him before the marriage has even been performed, with his brother.

Meanwhile, Savanarola is still causing all sorts of trouble, and general consensus is he must be silenced. And naturally, Della Rovere is bent on no good. He's been training a young boy, with the aid of poison, to kill the Pope. Now that the boy has a tolerance for it, he is ready to become the Pope's food taster. The trouble is that position is already filled. No problem - a gentle push, and whoops, there's a vacancy in the Pope's household.

When the Pope asks Cesare if he'd been allowed to set aside his eclesiastical robe and assume command of the Papal army, would the outcome have been different at the Siege of Forli? To which Cesare replies that he would have remained until the end, an obvious dig at his brother, although at this point they didn't realize Juan had run from the battle, like a coward. Or that he tortured Sforza's son. In his turn, Juan accuses Cesare of having knowledge of the surprise attack that trapped him and his men, which Cesare denies. I see these two coming to a head at some point. My money is on Cesare, cause he's dead sexy, and a hell of a lot smarter than Juan.





Still watching Chopped and Restaurant Impossible and Sweet Genius. I'm going to start watching a show on Cooking Channel, Baron Ambrosia, but not until Sarah gets back from Indiana, so I'm recording it for now. I've started watching Ouran High School Host Club, which I'm enjoying, and plan to watch both seasons of Black Butler. And I found out Beelzebub is on Crunchyroll, so I'll watch that too when I can.

That's it for now, got lots to do - editing and writing, and rping. Job hunting.

Until next time, take care!

Julie

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight

Flipping Out, More True Blood and Food Stuffs cont.

The fifth season of Flipping Out began a couple of weeks ago. Strictly speaking, Jeff Lewis isn't flipping  houses any more, he's doing designs. The economy just didn't support his flipping houses any more, so he had to find alternative means of making a living. However, he seems to be doing well with this, despite having to have more customer interaction, and being forced to do as the client wishes, rather than as he sees fit. That being said, we start the season with the same cast as were there at the end of four, with one addition - Gage, who is the business manager and also Jeff's significant other. He's 26 and very cute, they make an awesomely cute couple! Check him out! I think he is a great addition to the show.

Last week, I thought we'd finally see Sarah get fired, but no such luck. She's a complete fuck up, I find her ridiculous and she isn't as cute as she thinks she is; her make up is ridiculously overdone, and she's a brainless twit, pretty much. I like Jennie, but she's cut back on her hours in order to puruse her other career in acting. It's too bad Sarah hasn't worked out. They were looking for people to interview for an intern position - Jeff's qualifications are ridiculous. He values looks first; he should look at qualifications more, then he wouldn't end up with someone like Sarah. It doesn't help that her sister is married to Jeff's brother. Although I know he'll fire her when push comes to shove, he's just taking forever to do it.

In one episode, Jeff went to see about doing a rental house, talking to the owner and her husband. Turns out that her husband's a musician, so Jeff starts asking him questions - does he play, does he write songs, is he in a band. I missed the guy's name, and I didn't recognize him, especially with his back to the camera. But when the guy answers, yes, Styx, I took notice. Holy shit, it was Tommy Shaw! Jeff was embarrassed that he didn't realize it, and Sarah was clueless. His wife does most of the talking for them, she's very forthright and no nonsense.

They're still working on Cole, which is the salon owned by Chaz. It's interesting, but now that I've seen him there, I recognize him in informercials I occasionally run across on TV. Jeff's also doing his salon in NY, but I think Chaz is getting impatient at how long it's taking. Jeff and Zoila are at it - again. Nothing new there. Haven't seen much of Jett, but he's there too. Second season off to a good start so far.



I finished watching the third season of True Blood, and all I can say is Wow! Sookie knows about her fae blood, so do too many other people. Eric almost killed himself in order to kill Russell Edgington, to save Sookie, because he wanted her blood, thinking it would make him a daywalker. Wrong, Russell! Hoyt and Jessica are back together, but I think Hoyt's mama aims to do something about that. Sookie knows the truth about Bill, and that relationship is pretty well torn. It ended with the heartbroken Sookie going off with her fae kin. I wish I could watch the fourth season before it comes out on DVD, but so far no such luck.

I watched last night's Master Chef this morning. Now we're down to the final 10, after today's elimination.  The first challenge, which utilized two mystery boxes, one that was set in front of the chefs, and a ginormous one that was in front of the judges, and turned out to be a tank full of lobsters. The chefs had to grab their own! Jennifer won that challenge and got a huge advantage in the next one. The theme was aphrodisiacs, and she got to choose between three of them - oysters, artichokes and truffles. She chose truffles. Then she got to sit it out in the gallery if she wished, drinking champagne, but she chose to cook, a decision which almost cost her dearly. She and Adrien came close to elimination, but Erryn was the one to go with his burnt steak and not cooked well vegetables. Christian's attitude is getting worse and worse, I used to like him, but not so much now. I still like Ben and Adrien and Giuseppe. Giuseppe was finally one of the top three with his pasta and lobster. I recorded Hell's Kitchen last night, more about that after I watch it.

I'll also talk more about the convention that I worked last weekend, 24 Hours of Potter. But another time, when I have more time to do the topic justice. Not tomorrow, that's Silver Flash.

So for now, I'll say good-bye. What do you think of these shows? What shows do you like to watch? I'd love to hear from you!

Take care!


♥ Julie

The Glades Keeps on Delivering, Food Stuff, and more

This morning I watched last night's episode of The Glades, and I have to say this is one show that never stops  delivering. Every week, each episode crackles and vibrates with plot, drama, characterization, wit - and a really good-looking Matt Passmore as Jim Longworth, the main character of the series. It's very realistic, in that bad things happen to good people, and life is complicated and that there are definite areas of gray in between those black and white. Take Callie's husband Ray. Most of us probably find him a bad guy, but not his son, naturally enough. And like a lot of kids his age, he doesn't understand why they can't all live together, or why it would be difficult to just yank up their roots and follow Ray into witness protection. Callie has her reasons, and yes, one of those is Jim Longworth, but it's more. Since Ray's imprisonment, she's made a life for herself, pursued her dream, worked long and hard hours to get ahead and make a better life for her and Jeff. But it isn't always easy for kids to see the big picture when all they know is they want their daddy. I'm hoping Jim and Callie work their way back to one another, because they make a really smokin' couple, and I really like how Callie has become a forensics nurse, working with the department when she'd needed. That gives her more opportunity to broaden her character outside of her relationship with Jim, and gives them time on the crimes together. The Glades is on A&E every Sunday night. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it.

Sarah and I watch Network Food Star. I don't know yet about last night's we were at a meeting and recorded it, but I know the numbers are narrowing. Someone I thought was a strong contender, Orchid, didn't make a good show of it last week, I hope it was just a temporary thing because she has a personality that is made for the camera. Vic Vegas is only getting better - he is one of the top contenders, in my opinion. On the other hand, Whitney, although sweet, doesn't project well enough. And Suzy is downright annoying. While Penny is a complete bitch and I want her out as soon as possible. Jyll has personality, but I don't think it's strong enough. Same with the sandwich guy, whose name I've forgotten, but he may surprise us. This week they did a food truck challenge, should be interesting.

Master Chef - I started a few episodes in because I didn't know about it, but my daughter Katie clued me in and I really didn't miss that much. I've been watching for a few weeks now. This one has Gordon Ramsey and two other chefs. A few people I like have been eliminated, but some remain. Suzy, though, is not one of those, and I'd love to see her off the show quickly. Christine too. And Esther, who totally threw her team under the bus in the biker beach bbq episode. I liked Max, but he's gone. I like Ben, and Giuseppe. And Adrian. Christian too, although sometimes he gets cocky. Derek is full of himself. I think we're down to twelve now. They show episodes on Monday and Tuesday nights, but I don't know if tonight's will be new or not, last Monday was a re-run.

Hell's Kitchen starts next week, looking forward to that. I hope they do more Top Chef, especially shows that bring back past chefs. Like Fabio. Yeah, he's damn cute, I admit it.


We started season 4 of Six Feet Under, but are only a few episodes in.

**********possible spoilers********* One of the biggest issues is the aftermath of Lisa's death. They haven't come out and said it, but it's obviously a matter of suicide. I'm sorry, but the woman was unstable. She convinced herself that she was losing Nate and that he was only with her because of Maya, and she drowned herself. Nate isn't dealing well with this, mostly because of his guilt issues. I think deep in his gut he knows she did it and why - it was right after they discussed separating. But hells bells, that's no reason to off yourself! She had a kid, one that needed her. Suicide, in my opinion, is a coward's way out, of not having to cope with things. Sorry, life is not meant to be easy, but it's the bad times that make you appreciate the good times all the more. You can get through anything, if you are determined to do so. Ruth's sudden marriage to George, a virtual stranger who attended a funeral at Fisher & Diaz, has its ups and downs. She unfairly accused Arthur of sending excrement to them through the mail out of unrequited love. The poor guy decided enough was enough and he left. Right after Nate left the business. Poor David. Turns out it wasn't Arthur but a son of George's whom he forgot to mention to Ruth. David and Keith are cute as ever. Keith is working security for celebrities, but it's stressful cause he isn't out at work, and David isn't happy about that. Clare had an abortion, and she and Russell are done, mostly because he had a thing with the professor. Poor Clare always seems to get the shaft. One of my least favorite characters, Brenda, is actually doing well, and I actually like her relationship with her neighbor, Joe. I think maybe he can stand up to her bitch of a mother too (who, btw, is not schtupping Clare's professor - these two deserve each other, they both suck).  My favorite character is still David. It's just amazing to me to see him in SFU and then turn around and watch Dexter - both awesome performances.

Sarah and I recently began to watch the first season of Burn Notice. We borrowed it from Katie and since we're going back to Indiana in early August, thought we should watch it. It stars Jeffrey Donovan as Michael Westen, an agent who received a burn notice from the people he works for while in the field on a sensitive case. Now he has to figure out why and what he can do about it. In the meantime, life is, to say the least, difficult, since they've frozen all his assets and virtually made it impossible for him to operate above the radar. Good thing he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve.  I remember Jeffrey from another series he did about 7 years ago, Touching Evil, which I really liked. It never had a chance -  it was good. Also in Burn Notice is veteran B actor, Bruce Campbell, whom my Katie adores. Probably a big reason why she started watching the series. I know I'm way behind, but wth, it's fun to play catch up. The next thing about that is if you get dvd's, you don't have to wait a week between episodes. Also in the series is Sharon Gless, whom you may remember as Michael Novotny's mother in Queer as Folk. How funny that she plays the mother of another Michael in Burn Notice.

I'm going to stop there, cause I just realized this got lengthier than I figured on, but next time I'll talk about True Blood, season 3, and the differences between the series and the books, as well as the new season of Flipping Out.

Feel free to drop a comment, ask a question, or just say hi! I'd love to hear from you!

Til next time, take care!

♥ Julie