Television Junkie (Part 1 of x)

Over the last few months, I have been watch a helluva lot of television. I have been mostly watching British shows and a few from Australia.

Shows that I have watched:

Kath & Kim (Aus): Series 1-4
Grownups (UK): Series 1-3
Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (UK): Series 1-7
Gavin and Stacey (UK): Series 1-2
Summer Heights High (Aus): Series 1 (soon to be airing on HBO)
The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle (UK): Series 1


I discovered It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia on Hulu.com, and this show is awesome. To me, the show is a mix of Seinfeld, Strangers With Candy, and Friends. I watched from the beginning starting this past Friday and caught up to season 4 in 4 days. Check it out if you haven't already.

Shows I plan on watching before the end of the year:

Mad Men (US): Seasons 1-2
Blackadder (UK): Series 1-4
The Wire (US): Seasons 1-5

Convalescing

Hey all!

It's been a really long time since I've posted a message on my blog. I have been battling a virus which wiped me of my energy and I have been out of work on a medical leave since 5/7/2008. I have been laying on my couch for 5 weeks trying to recuperate, and I am about 90% recovered. I will need another month or so for rest and exercise before I am back to 100 percent.

The most upsetting part of being out of commission for weeks is that I missed tennis tournaments in May and will not be able to participate in tournaments in June. I am looking to get back into things in July but I need to practice because I haven't touch my racket in 5 weeks. I played this past Sunday and I was winded during the 10 minutes warm-up. I had to take several breaks during the 1.5 hour session so I only player for about 40 minutes. It was good to be back on the court and hitting balls after being laid up for weeks -- but I have lost some of my game. I will be using June to regain my fitness and tennis form.

I am finally back at work, and it is good to be back. I like going to work because it gives me a sense of structure and it allows me to plan the rest of my day. And besides, you can only watch so much television before it because kind of boring. But, I was able to watch a number of things while being on my couch for weeks:

- The Simpsons (Seasons 16, 17, 18 ,19)
- American Dad (Seasons 2-3)
- The Secret Diary of a Call Girl (UK Version, but now being shown in the US on Showtime)
- Code Monkeys (Season 1)
- Australia's Next Top Model (Season 4, eps 1-7)
- French Open Live Coverage

So I had somethings to keep my occupied.

Things are getting back to normal so I should resume normal postings next week.

Did you miss me?

Election 2008: John McCain's Turkey Neck

I was, again, watching the Today Show and they showed some lowhighlights from the Republican debates last night when I noticed some different with John McCain.


Why is this skin on his neck pulled so tight? You can see that this skin is being pulled in some way. Is he trying to compete with the chiseled jaw of Mitt Romney?


I think so.

Cut to earlier that same day when Rudy (boo) Guiliani (BOO!) endorsed John McCain for the Republican candidate:


See the prominent jowls and the fat trying to escape from his shirt collar? He must bought some industrial strength Duck Tape to hold all that down for the debates.

I remember a time when I used to like John McCain. At that time he was a Republican who often broke from his party and was more "liberal". That all changed with him visiting Jerry Falwell's Liberty University to appear more "conservative" to get the Evangelical vote.

Do we really need any more reason to dislike him? Oh, here's another.

Election 2008: The Real American Gladiators

I was watching the Today Show yesterday morning before work, and I saw this ad for Chris Matthews show on MSNBC:



I knew it looked familiar but I couldn't place where I have seen it before. It took about a minute, but I figured it out:


How lazy is NBC's graphic department for using the same logo template?

I would love to see Hilary and Barack battle it out against American Gladiators for the Democratic nomination. But not with the new gladiators. I want the old school American Gladiators with name names like Malibu, Lace, and Nitro.

They should totally consider doing this in November to determine the next president. Think of the ratings! If it comes down to Hilary and McCain, I got my money on Hilary. She had about 40 lbs and 5 inches on him.

Project Runway 4 - Episode 5

Is Kit making fun of Heidi during the opening credits? Probably not since Heidi was clearly added later in post-production. She too busy having "naked time" with Seal and her pups.

The episode starts out with "Sweet P" mourning the loss of Chris. If someone casually overheard this conversation, you would think he was dead and not voted out of a reality TV show. There are more serious things to think about "Sweet P", like the bangs:


You look younger with the hair away from your face.

The Challenge:

Create a new look for everyday women using their old clothes
The models for this challenge were women who lost a significant amount of weight, as explained by Heidi:

"The clothes they are wearing were their favorite outfits before their transformation."
Bullcrap. There is a woman in a wedding dress, and you are saying that is her favorite outfit? Is this what she wears when she runs to the market to pickup some milk or to have lunch with a friend? I sense the producers had a hand in this. All the other woman at a least 2 pieces of casual clothing, and this woman has a wedding dress? I smell a fix.

Heidi pulls from the "magic bag o' buttons" and Steven got paired up with thewoman wearing the wedding dress. He is so screwed, and he knew it.

I wonder how many expletives are going through his mind at this moment?
While Steve was crapping his pants, Kevin, for a straight man, showed his very gayest hand wave:


But he was quickly outdone by Ricky:


He claimed it was done for design research for his model since they are about the same size. Make it work, Ms. Ricky. He ended the tear drought,


so I will cut him some slack.


As you may know by know, Jack had to leave the competition because of a medical condition. He began to develop a MRSA, which he has had before, which could become very serious if left untreated. His leaving was quite dramatic with tear from everyone (except Kevin) but I didn't feel much. Maybe because I knew he was going that I didn't allow myself to attach to him. He stated that this illness is not HIV/AIDS related at all and that anyone to could get. At least we have this to remember him by:


Adios, Jack. But like a flamboyant Pheonix rising from the gay ashes of fashion,


Chris is reborn, and the redemption can begin.

The results:

Winner: Christian, Auf'd: Steven, My Fav: Christian
Steven was in a futile attempt to save himself from elimination. During judging he was told that his garment looked like a French maid uniform, but I think that was the look he was after. He told the hairstylist to make his model look "French". And for all we know his model could be a French maid.

When Steven was being auf'd, I saw this:


He looks pretty good in this picture. The light and shadows makes him look a bit David Beckham-esque. Your dry wit will be missed.

Did anyone see how Jillian totally cheated?


The dress she made was create from all new fabric and only a fraction of the model's old pant for the piping. Steven used more original material than she did. What was the point of the brief if you don't have to adhere to it? But his garment was a big mess and "slapped together with glue and a prayer." So ultimately, the judges' decision was justified.

I am very happy to report that my show is no longer broken. This episode was the best of the whole season thus far. The Tim Gunn I loved from previous seasons return and made me laugh:

"I have more bad decisions at 3 o'clock in the morning than I can list."
I will leave you with Michael Kors sharing one of his bad 3 o'clock in the morning decisions:

"I went to a bar last night and met this guy... "


" ... and he left after breakfast."

Fin.
______________________

Ricky Cry Tally: 9

Project Runway 4 - Episode 4

This recap will be short and sweet because I wasn't feeling too inspired to write because this episode was such a bore.

With that said, let's start off on something positive:


Kevin should be required not to wear a shirt.

Something else positive:


Jack set the mood for the episode by stealing Ricky's model. You know he has been planning this coup since working with Ricky in episode 2. Ricky was not happy, but did not cry. Damn it!

The Challenge:


The designers were asked to pair up with one another and we have these four groups of three:


Christian has official become annoying. His overconfidence, his fixation on designing jackets, his camera-whoring .... looking at him try to steal camera time from Kit:


If you notice Project Runway is using him extensively to narrate this season. I am not sure whether no one else was outwardly bitchy during filmin, or they are foreshadowing that he is in the finals. In any case, I am growing tired of Christian.

Victorya, "...I didn't even know you were a bitch." (to quote Eva Pigford Marcille - ANTM Season 3).


The would have never guess Victorya was like this. She seemed like a sweet girl when she won in episode 2 with Kevin. Unless there were somethings intentionally cut out that episode in preparation for this one. Where did this shrew of a woman come from? During their sketching time she said she didn't want to be the leader, only to say the following Ricky:

"...I, in fact wanted to ask you, why did you want to be team leader?...I didn't take [team leader] because I like that fact that someone stepped up to the plate. But I excpeted that person to fulfill those responsibilities."

Which elicited a major eyeroll from Ricky:


And from me as well while I sat and watched on my couch.

Guest judge:


Donna Karen, who looks lovely, and actually gave useful critiques to the designers during judging.

Results:

Winner: Jillian, Auf'd: Chris, My Fav: Kit
I feel bad Chris. You knew he leaving after he said this:

"A lot of people have me in a pigeon-hole. There's Chris with a 10 foot wig, and a big, giant costume made out of like 200 yards of fabric. But as the group leader, I finally got a chance to show that I can design anything just as good as anyone else in the room."
He sealed his fate when he decided to be come the team leader. Have people ever this or any other reality show before, you never want to be the leader of team. The leader most always gets kicked off when losing a challenge. His choice of shoulder pads didn't help, either. Victoria Beckham rocked some shoulder pads this past June at the UK Glamour Awards where she accepted "Woman of the Year."


I think shoulder pads are coming back, if not,


Patricia Fields totally hates Kim Catrall. (sidenote: Have you seen the new Sex and the City movie trailer?)

Ricky did not increase his cry count and my surplus of tears is running low because of it. I need nourishment, Ricky.

Other than that, this episode was pretty boring. I hope things pick up next week, or else it will be a long season.


I know how you feel, Kevin. I am falling asleep as well.

Project Runway 4 - Episode 3

Episode 3: Fashion Giant

So how do I begin this recap? I know:


How about some shirtless Kevin. You're welcome!

This episode of Project Runway was kind of dull because the challenge was about menswear. Heidi lauded this challenge as a first for project runway, but I don't understand why. Yes, it is the first time they worked with male models, but this is not the first time the designers worked with menswear or had males walk down the runway. Let me refresh your memories:


The Challenge:

Design a menswear outfit for Tiki Barber
The build up was kind of a let down, but I was nice to see the designers work out of their comfort zone. The special guest was Tiki Barber, which explains the menwear angle of this episode. So we go from "pop culture and fashion icon" Sarah Jessica Parker to a football player who is now a correspondent for the Today Show? Since Bravo and NBC are both NBC Universal companies that this is just corporate synergy at work. It may not be a bad idea to cross-promote consider when Tim announced Tiki Barber the only person who recognized who he was was Kevin.


Probably because he is a NY Giants fan ... and straight. From the look on Victorya's face, she got an eyeful of Tiki and liked what she saw:


But she may want to watch her back:


Ginny Barber may destroy her. I am just sayin'. According to Christian:

"... I love Asians. Asians are fierce!"
I think he meant "fierce" in the Tyra Banks American's Next Top Model sense, and not that in the menacingly wild or savage way. But whatever he says is always subject to interpretation.

Okay, let's talk about Jack. I didn't want to lead with this I thought it would off-putting but needs to be mentioned. But the shirtless picture may make the transition a bit smoother:


In the beginning of the episode, it has finally been revealed on the show that Jack is HIV positive. It hard to tell if everyone on the show knows, but it probably safe to assume that his roommates know because he seems pretty open with his pill taking. This is the first HIV positive designer on Project Runway, but not it's not a first for a Bravo reality show. John from Top Desgin was the first HIV positive contestant that I am aware of (correct me if I am wrong), and if you've know the spoilers, then you know then end up with similar fates.

In a weird juxtaposition, Jack is shown carrying Christian in a handbag.


Maybe the producers and/or Jack want to show the audience that he is still a strong, virile guy, despite his HIV. Or maybe Christian just lazy.


I think it probably a little of both.

There was a bit of drama while at Parsons. Jack asked Tim whether he could take his shorts off ... and before he could finish Tim instinctively said he could. Okay, that didn't happen, but with the right editing it could. Jack want to take off his shorts to use them as a pattern. He did,


and several people then wanted to borrow his pattern to design their pants. I don't see a problem with this considering that Vincent did the same thing during season 2:

still from season 3 coming soon
Rami was not pleased, and in an act of defiance, he flaunted the pants he made with the use of draping.

"And they aren't trace from a pattern, like some other pants. I am not accusing anyone ... I am just saying some did."

That side-eye is vicious, y'all.

Now it's time for a melange of male models:



The models are pretty obedient. They are told to take of their clothes and they offer no resistance.

Even while being fisted
The designers where were assigned male models, but for some reason they were not given their measurements. I think the producers of the show were just being sadistic by withholding this information. The stress of it caused Jillian to get all verklempt:


Back at their apartments, they are all trying to find ways to deal with the stress:


I guess the guys don't deal with stress as well as the women:

PMA = Positive Mental Attitude
This reaks of the new age-y-ness that is Elisa.

The results:

Winner: Jack, Auf'd: Carmen, My fav: Kevin
I really don't understand how Jack won this challenge. This shirt with the front and pocket stripes on the bias, just looks strange to me. I liked Kevin's pieces but the look is too young for a TV anchor, so I understand why he didn't win. Tiki mentioned that the look was "avant-garde", which is I guess something you can't have when hosting hour 12 of the Today Show.

The most shocking moment:


Ricky only cried once! In a hat that he stole from Colonial Williamsburg:


He only cried out of relief after avoiding being auf'd by Heidi for a mess of an outfit. Now, Ricky -- don't go all dry eyes on me because I use your tears as sustenance. I wouldn't have the energy to do these recaps if weren't for the tears that copiously flow from your eyes. Luckily, I have built up a surplus. But Ricky, you must promise me two things:

1) Cry at least twice per episode.
2) Never wear those manpris again:


They cause me physical pain, and Nina Garcia does not approve.


You know you messed up when Nina is giving you the "head shake of disapproval" and "the middle finger" combo.

And for no reason at all, I give you this:


Kevin channeling his inner Wolverine. Why are all the good men straight or Republican senators?
___

Ricky Cry tally: 7