Sausage Links

Okay, so this post has little to do with Jimmie Dean. Here are some links I've been enjoying this week.

• The Hoff cries on TV!
  
  
• Check out Manolo's coverage of the recent Eurovision Song Contest. Awesome, frightening, and totally GWAR. I can't believe we aren't able to watch this over here. NBC could use the hit.
  
  
• Weathermen do have a lot of apropos names. This list doesn't even include our local Glen "Hurricane" Schwartz or Amy Freeze.
  
  
• If you have gone out to see The Rat's version of X-Men, you might want to check out Fametracker's insider info on X-Men 4: Mutants of Last Resort.
  
  
• There's a new idea: boost Superman's opening weekend take by lengthening the weekend to 7 FULL DAYS. At least this way maybe Warner can earn its way around their recent Poseidon disaster.
  
  
• Be careful out there: Michelle Rodriguez is on the loose again.
  

Why I Love Kiefer - A Saga in 72 Parts

Episode 42: The Attack on Christmas

I Even Hated Happy, The Dog (Who Was The Smartest One, BTW)

7th Heaven ended its reign of terror last night, and sane America breathed a collective sigh of relief. This show was one that my old roommate and I used to watch in order to cackle at the horrendous acting and get outraged at the moralizing. Oh yeah, and to sing the stupid theme song to each other in thick semi-drawls.

The Camdens were the biggest hypocrites on the planet, particularly when it came to sex. It's the only show I can think of that forced characters as young as 9 to contemplate their own dating lives. The mother was a horrible screeching harridan, who gave menopause a bad name. The father was a stalking lunatic. The annoying and infinitely stupid kids were sexualized way too early, and then given abstinence-only lessons on how WRONG pre-marital sex was because it always ended in babies and STDs. The guest stars were seemingly plucked of the streets. The celebrity guest stars included Tara Lipinski, Hilary Duff, Asslee Simpson, Ed Begley, Jr. and Lance Bass. Ewww.

In the finale, they even managed to out-annoy all other ridiculous plotlines with this gem:

Adding to the good cheer: Son Matt (departed original cast member Barry Watson, making a guest appearance) and his wife Sarah announced they are having twin boys. Pregnant daughter Lucy and her husband Kevin chimed in to say they're expecting twin boys, too. And, not to be outdone, daughter Mary (departed regular Jessica Biel, also back for the episode) and Carlos, reunited after a marital split, had their own scoop: They are expecting twin girls.

Six more Camdens to terrorize the world!?! Dear Lord. And you know they would have been totally special ed like the youngest twins the mother popped out for sweeps a few years ago because they refuse to cast people who can read.

God I hated this show. I'm choosing to ignore reports that the show could be resurrected on The CW for now. The thought of one of their precious programming hours going to this steaming pile of horse manure makes me cry in my heart. Good riddance, 7th Heaven.

UPDATE: The CW made the Baby Jesus cry. They've revived this craptastic enterprise after all. Cancelling the best family drama (Everwood) to bring back the worst in history. Pretty assy if you ask me. I guess it wouldn't be network TV if it didn't disappoint me.

"He Dances Like George Burns"

For your Friday afternoon enjoyment, I present Rhythm Impossible: 3. Also, I hope he will stop trying to dress like Kanye West. Kanye made a song for your movie Tom, he didn't ask you to steal his sunglasses.

Quality Mash-up

Here is a very cool song that I heard on Alias last week, and you can watch the video on Blondie's web site. Blondie vs. The Doors, Rapture Riders. You can get it on their latest Greatest Hits collection. I have the old one, which apparently wasn't really the greatest, but I digress. Oh, to have a crystal ball for use when purchasing greatest hit collections!

Can we trade Hurricane Schwartz for him?

An awesome CBS station in NYC had Dance Friday on their newscast last month. I don't know if I love the weatherman more for dorkily committing to the concept so fully, or the old fogies on the broadcast who don't dance and grumpily assert that Michael Jackson is the one who "had an affair with Liz Taylor." God bless Dance Friday! All local newscasts should follow take notice.

Further Proof Nick Lachey = Awesome

"I can safely say I have no interest in Lindsay Lohan, nor do I understand anyone else's."
--Nick Lachey, in a radio interview with the Charlotte, North Carolina-based Ace & TJ Morning Show

My Latest Guilty Pleasure

I'm going to just come out and say it. I watch Supernatural, and I enjoy it immensely, and if that makes me a lesser person, then so be it. Phew. That wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.

Supernatural is the perfect middlebrow meshing of WB pretty boys and The X-Files. It's even produced and directed by X-Files vets. The show is actually scary most of the time, and the effects are decent. One of the things that makes it resonate more than it would otherwise is that they tackle those urban legends and ghost stories we all heard and maybe even feared growing up, putting their own twist on it. The writing can get a little clunky during some of the supernatural expositions, but the humor and heart shine through.

The soundtrack features awesome and potentially meaningful classic rock anthems, which is such a welcome change in these days of corporate-sanctioned alt-rock new music samplers. The boys drive a kickass muscle car. And the ridiculous fake IDs and outfits they use to do research and worm their way into guarded locations is pretty hilarious to watch. There's nothing better than seeing them pretend to be police officers, priests, CDC representatives, Homeland Security agents, etc. with their goofy boy band hairstyles intact.

The boys have fantastic chemistry. Sure, Jared Padelecki is sometimes whiny and annoying, but he's still got a lot of credit to burn for playing Cute Dean on Gilmore Girls. Jensen Ackles has had hearts fluttering for years, but I have just discovered him. He just seems to be having fun, making fun of Jared constantly. He's good-looking, knows how to sell ridiculous lines, can hold a weapon like a pro, and is very funny. I see now what the fuss was all about. And on top of those two cuties, their dad is played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan, the gorgeous and gruff sweetheart who has a side gig on Grey's Anatomy as sweetheart patient Denny. He's delicious. It's ridiculous that he's playing the father of guys 10 years younger than him, but they gruff him up pretty well. He also drives a scary muscle truck, which looks like it gave birth to the boys' baby Impala. It's so cute when they are driving in a caravan together!

How can you not love a show described thusly:

Bound by tragedy and blood to their dangerous, other-worldly mission, the brothers travel from the Colorado wilderness to Nebraska farmlands and on to isolated Wisconsin lakes, encountering creatures that most people believe only exist in folklore, superstition and nightmares...Crisscrossing the lonely and mysterious back roads of the country in their '67 Chevy Impala, the Winchester brothers search desperately for their missing father - and hunt down every evil supernatural force they encounter along the way.

It's not in danger of winning any awards, but it's a fun show that never takes itself too seriously. The season finale is on Thursday. I'm hoping that they get drafted for the new CW lineup, because I would hate to part with them. I owe this show a lot: it helped me break my terrible OC habit. So keep on truckin', Sam and Dean. May your show live another season.