Culturally Preconditioned

Seriously? This is the entire Top 36 this season? Seriously? Well, okay then. Let’s see what the remaining contestants performed tonight :

Von Smith - “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues” (Elton John)

Thank goodness he didn’t screech his lungs out tonight. Can he sing? Well, yes, but just based solely on my personal preference, I sure hope as hell he doesn’t make it through. Between him and gay Adam, I’ll take fake Adam any time - and that’s really a compliment to either of them. 5 out of 10.

Taylor Vaifanua - “If I Ain’t Got You” (Alicia Keys)

Not mind blowing but it was a pretty decent for a song that’s been sung to death on this show. I like her name.. Vaifanua.. say it with me, people. Vai-fa-nua. Anyway, Kara is really starting to get on my nerves with her comments “we don’t get to see who. you. are!!!”. Apparently on this show, the only way for people to know who you are is by having a dead wife, being partially blind, have moms in jail, unemployed single moms, be a foreigner working hard to hide accents, and being overpimped by the judges. Singing voice? Who cares? 6 out of 10.

Alex Wagner-Trugman - “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues” (Elton John)

He sounded okay, but I can’t help but made me think that song made him sound ancient. It was pretty unforgettable until he started throwing down the mike stand. alol. And Simon nailed it with the ‘growling’ comments cause I thought the same thing - i just couldn’t find the word to describe his grunting. 5.5 out of 10

Arianna Afsar - “The Winner Takes It All” (ABBA)

Did you guys know she’s half-Bangladeshi? Anyway, Arianna.. Arianna.. Arianna.. you dumb (but pretty) girl. You could’ve chosen a more contemporary song, but mmm well, you didn’t. And the arrangement was hideous. I don’t care if the other idiots are calling you PageantBot, but you kicked ass for your audition (the Corrine Bailey Rae song she did was so much better than Megan’s last week) and you have a good singing voice. But.. bad bad song choice. I still hope she’ll be picked for the wildcard. 6 out of 10.

Ju’Not Joyner - “Hey There Delilah” (Plain White T’s)

I don’t like this song but I do like Ju’Not’s voice. His rendition was slow as fuck and I thought he could’ve been off with a much better song, but that was pretty okay. We haven’t got an R&B guy this season in the Top 12, so he just might make it through. 6.5 out of 10.

Kristen McNamara - “Give Me One Reason” (Tracy Chapman)

She sounds like an aging slut. That is all. How awesome would it be if I was a judge on the show and I simply say “I thought you sounded like a cheap floozy whore in a country bar… What? Ryan gets away with all the sexual innuendos comments, and I get blasted for telling the truth???”. 6 out of 10.

Nathaniel Marshall - “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)” (Meat Loaf)

ohmigod.. the song choice. I did not see that one coming. It was not that bad, to tell you the truth, but I’m still not a fan, though. He didn’t come off as annoying as I thought he would be (like in the Hollywood rounds), so I guess that’s good. 6 out of 10.

Felicia Barton - “No One” (Alicia Keyes)

One of my least favourite songs by Alicia Keyes but she actually sounded quite okay. Something about her voice didn’t quite sound natural at first, it’s not a huge thing, but I just can’t put my finger on it. I still like her and thought for an UNDERPIMPED contestant, she did pretty well. 6.5 out of 10.

Scott MacIntyre - “Mandolin Rain” (Bruce Hornsby and the Range)

I don’t get it. I honestly don’t fucking get it. I thought his performance was cohesively choppy up to the point of being really terrible and so bloody out of tune in certain parts. Ohmigod.. the overpimping for this one is just too fucking overbearing, it’s too fucking ridiculous. But we all know he’s gonna make it through. Oh for fucks sake. His performance wasn’t that good, it wasn’t good at all. Seriously are you fucking kidding me with all the excessive biased praise. Fuck me. Seriously 5 out of 10.

Kendall Beard - “This One’s for the Girls” (Martina McBride)

She sounds like a typical generic country singer, It wasn’t bad but.. I dunno.. it’s all just a big pile of MEH to me. 6 out of 10.

Jorge Nuñez - “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” (Elton John)

This guy reminds me of Enrique Iglesias, and that if FAR from good. I can’t believe he actually made it to Top 36. Interestingly enough, it was nowhere being a disaster that I fully expected. I’m not a fan, but overall, it wasn’t too shabby IMO. 6.5 out of 10.

Lil Rounds - “Be Without You” (Mary J. Blige)

Not quite sure why she was all excited being likened to Mantasia during her auditions but whatever. Next to Felicia, (and by a close margin), probably the best of the night but I dunno.. the whole episode tonight left me so blah. I mean, that’s it? The Top 36? For real? Mmmkay. 7 out of 10.

Overall rankings for the night :

1. Lil Rounds - 7 out of 10
2. Felicia Barton - 6.5 out of 10
2. Jorge Nuñez - 6.5 out of 10
2. Ju’Not Joyner - 6.5 out of 10
5. Taylor Vaifanua - 6 out of 10
5. Kristen McNamara - 6 out of 10
5. Nathaniel Marshall - 6 out of 10
5. Kendall Beard - 6 out of 10
5. Arianna Afsar - 6 out of 10
10. Alex Wagner-Trugman - 5.5 out of 10
11. Scott MacIntyre - 5 out of 10
11. Von Smith - 5 out of 10

Predictions :

Highest votes : Lil/Scott (gag). Next highest vote getter : Ju’Not/Jorge. Wildcard : Felicia

And my predictions for the wildcard show (I have no idea how many they’re bringing back) :

1. Tatiana
2. Anoop
3. Anne Marie
4. Ricky

5. Mishavonna
6. Kai
7. Jasmine
8. Matt G

9. Ju’Not/Jorge (whichever that doesn’t make it)
10. Felicia
11. Kristen
12. Arianna :p (I don’t care.)

I wonder if anyone noticed that the latest season of TAR has just started airing last night. I couldn’t tell based on the non-existence of TAR14 previews on AXN. But then again, I’ve been boycotting the channel ever since I heard news that those two narcisstic delusional idjits from the abomination that is called TARA2, is hosting their own show called The Duke on AXN - I’m guessing some fuckers at AXN really has a major hardon for these two attention whores. Seriously? I can’t think of anyone who would actually tune in to the show, other than the group of hardcore Pinoys (by hardcore, I mean those who think they are bigger than other Asian countries/people) and wannabe pimpled face tween boys and lusty tweeny girls. Oh, and Michael McKay too. Give me a break.

Anyway, The Amazing Race 14 .. just started.. last night. My initial thought was…. WHAT THE FUCK DID THEY DO TO THE OPENING THEME MUSIC AND WHY DID THEY BASTARDIZED THE FUCKING LOGO?? Oh the humanity. I don’t know.. I just .. hate it. It doesn’t feel like watching the Amazing Race (and on this note, I have to say.. the Survivor editors are not doing any better ever since they start cropping the opening credits in China), but apparently a friend of mine loved the change. Ew.

The first episode was pretty decent. Teams started off in South Beach, California and are instructed to head straight to Switzerland. They needed to take between two predetermined flights (Lufthansa Air, landing in Zurich - and Air France, landing in Milan). On reaching their destination, teams had to travel by trains to a town called Locarno. Once at Locarno, teams had to take numbers at the San Antonio Church, and are bunched up in three different groups - which determined the time they would start their race on the following day. Teams camp out for the night, and we see some initial bonding between the groups.

The next day, teams left in batches (at 7:15 am, 7:30 am and 7:45 am) and were given postcards as their next clue - which has a picture of the Verzasca Dam on it. On reaching the dam in Ticino, teams discovered that there is a roadblock, where one of the team members had to perform a 70-storey bungee jump. It was noted that this was the second highest bungee jump in the world! Holy fucking shit, batman! After the bungee jump, teams had to once again travel by train, and this time head to Interlaken (Kleine Rugen Weise).

On reaching the destination, teams had to transport 200 pounds of cheese (that’s 4 huge wheels) from up a hill to a location down hill. They were instructed to use the traditional cheese carrier, but somehow, it seemed that most (if not all) of the teams basically just carried the cheese in their hands, rolled it down the hill, pushed it etc. I guess the producers overlooked the fact that it was close to impossible asking the teams to carry the cheese using the medieval apparatus without having 20 years of experience on them.  The challenge looked really hard, but I thought it was pretty good… even though I have to say that the cheese wheels that didn’t make it.. dayummmm what a fucking waste!

After finishing the task, teams needed to head to Stechelberg to find their next pitstop (by listening and following the sound of yodelers). In the order of the arrival at the pitstop :

#1  - Margie and Luke aka Mom and Deaf Son. They did a pretty kick ass job with the cheese challenge. I’m helluva impressed. They have yet to get on my nerves. I just hope they’re not going to overplay the Deaf People Can Do Everything Too schtick. Phil telling that they were team number One in sign language was a really nice touch.

# 2  - Tammy and Victor aka Asian Siblings. They’re pretty okay so far..  although I think they might be slightly overbearing in the episodes to come. However, they remind me of Henry and Bernie somewhat… so we’ll see.

# 3 - Mark and Mike aka Stunt Midgets. To tell you the truth, I didn’t realize they were ‘little people’ until after I see them standing next to the Asians. LOL. I actually like this team the best so far. They’re awesome.

# 4 - Mel and Mike aka Gay Dad and Gay Son. I recognize the gay son from some television shows (and from the movies). They did pretty okay so far.. surprisingly bland, actually, given their impressive resume and back story. Maybe we’ll see more of that later.

# 5 - Amanda and Kris aka One Of The Boring Token Dating Couples That Is Still On The Show. Seriously now.. who?

# 6 - Brad and Victoria aka Older Couple. I like this team and they seem pretty okay so far. I also think it’s funny that we have a Victor/Victoria this season.

# 7 - Cara and Jamie aka Cheerleaders. They sound like they’re trying to be the bitchy team based on the interviews, but they were just meh in this episode. If you’re gonna be bitches, BE bitches .. not wannabe bitches (like that vile cunt Corrine from Survivor Gabon. Most vile creature in the history of humankind ever. ps. and she’s fugly too).

# 8 - LaKisha and Jennifer aka The Sistahs. Pretty tame this episode. Not sure if they’re gonna be the stereotypical bitchy, loud African American ladies (I’ll be disappointed if they weren’t).

# 9 - Steve and Linda aka The Hillbillies aka Bama Part 2. Kinda felt bad for Linda when Steve was ragging on her for being too slow (even though he’s absolutely correct). This team is toast and will probably be philiminated next.

# 10 - Christi and Jodi aka Flight Attendants aka Blondes. I dunno but they seem like a blundering, incompetent team. They got reaaaallly lucky at the end when they overtook the other team to become the second last team to arrive at the pitstop. Not sure if they’ll be as lucky the next time around.

# 11 Preston and Jennifer aka One Of The Boring Token Dating Couples That Is Not On The Show. What’s up with two Jennifers, two Mikes and two Victor/Victorias this season? Anyway, it’s ironic that this team’s photo is one of the girl piggybacking on the guy, because that’s basically how they got eliminated. When you know you’re in a foot-race for a possible elimination.. YOU RUN! You don’t piggyback! FOR FUCKS SAKE. What retards.

All in all, a pretty decent premier.. I love the fact that teams had to travel in many different ways (plane, train, cabs) to get to their destination.   It’s still too early to tell, but I hope this is going to be a good season.

no, literally.. i was having fun with wordle.net to see what beautiful word clouds will be generated from my blog.

I was actually a little disappointed with the lack of see you next tuesday’s and if you seek amy’s  from the first word cloud :

so I did a second one (using my comments feed), which turned out so much better (having ‘retard’,'boring’ and ’shit’ in the same cloud as McKay actually made my day) :

And before I forget.. a belated Xmas, New Year, Gong Xi Fa Cai to all of you out there. American Idol has started, but I probably won’t be writing much until the elimination round (I blopdy hate sob stories.. but I kinda like the guy with the dead wife). OH and TAR14 will be premiering soon. W00t!

For those of you who’s waiting for the tv shows to resume after the Xmas hiatus (and for new tv show premiers), here’s the complete list of the next air date :

WINTER PREMIERES

* Denotes series returning from a winter break, rather than season or series premiere.

Monday, Dec. 29

The City (MTV)

Sunday, Jan. 4
Desperate Housewives (ABC)*

Monday, Jan. 5

The Bachelor (ABC)
Gossip Girl (CW)*
Momma’s Boys (NBC)
One Tree Hill (CW)*
Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family)
True Beauty (ABC)

Tuesday, Jan. 6

90210 (CW)*
According to Jim (ABC)*
The Biggest Loser: Couples (NBC)
Law & Order: SVU (NBC)*
Nip/Tuck (FX)
Privileged (CW)*
Scrubs (ABC)

Wednesday, Jan. 7

13: The Fear Is Real (CW)
Damages (FX)
Knight Rider (NBC)*
Law & Order (NBC)*

Thursday, Jan. 8

30 Rock (NBC)*
ER (NBC)*
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)*
Kath & Kim (NBC)*
My Name Is Earl (NBC)*
The Office (NBC)*
Private Practice (ABC)*
Ugly Betty (ABC)*

Friday, Jan. 9

Flashpoint (CBS)
Monk (USA)*
Psych (USA)*

Sunday, Jan. 11

24 (Fox)

Monday, Jan. 12

Samantha Who? (ABC)*

Tuesday, Jan. 13

American Idol (Fox)

Wednesday, Jan. 14

Wonderland (DTV 101)

Thursday, Jan. 15

Bones (Fox)*
Smallville (CW)*
Supernatural (CW)*

Friday, Jan. 16

Battlestar Galactica (Sci Fi)
Friday Night Lights (NBC)

Sunday, Jan. 18

American Dad (Fox)*
Big Love (HBO)
Family Guy (Fox)*
Flight of the Conchords (HBO)
King of the Hill (Fox)*
The L Word (Showtime)
Secret Diary of a Call Girl (Showtime)
The Simpsons (Fox)*
United States of Tara (Showtime)

Monday, Jan. 19

House (Fox)*

Tuesday, Jan. 20

Fringe (Fox)*

Wednesday, Jan. 21

Lie to Me (Fox)
Lost (ABC), two-hour premiere

Thursday, Jan. 22

Burn Notice (USA)*

Monday, Jan. 26

The Closer (TNT)
Trust Me (TNT)

Wednesday, Jan. 28

Life on Mars (ABC)*

Thursday, Jan. 29

Hell’s Kitchen (Fox)

Monday, Feb. 2

Chuck (NBC),* 3-D episode
Heroes, Vol. IV: Fugitives (NBC)*
Medium (NBC)

Thursday, Feb. 12

Survivor (CBS)

Friday, Feb. 13

Dollhouse (Fox)
Terminator (Fox)*

Sunday, Feb. 15

The Amazing Race (CBS)

Sunday, March 8

Breaking Bad (AMC)

Monday, March 9

Castle (ABC)

Tuesday, March 17

Reaper (CW)

Thursday, March 19

Kings (NBC)

Tuesday, March 24

Cupid (ABC)

Wednesday, April 8

The Unusuals (ABC)

Thursday, April 9

Harper’s Island (CBS)

EXACT DATES TBD

• Amy Poehler, Beyond Thunderdome premieres on NBC in April.
• Law & Order: Criminal Intent returns to USA in March or April.
• Life returns to NBC in February.
• Prison Break and ‘Til Death return to Fox in the spring.
• Rescue Me returns to FX in March or April.
• Rules of Engagement returns to CBS in the spring.
• Saving Grace returns to TNT in March.
• The Tudors returns to Showtime in April.

Other notes :

I’ve been downloading 11 shows a week last Fall.. but I’m definitely cutting down on some shit, and some thoughts on last season :

• 90210 - let’s face it.. I only watched the show for the old cast members (Brenda, Kelly etc).. the new cast? Not so much.. Nothing (apart from the brilliant grandma, who plays the exact same part as she did on Arrested Development) sets this apart from other annoying tween shows.
• Californication - the first season was brilliant. Second season.. made me lose interest. Same old hedonistic, same old narcistic, same old annoying emo cunt daughter… leaves me zero apathy.
• Heroes - Third season was an utter shitfest. It was really good somewhere in the middle, but tapered off with the finale. And Mohinder reminds me of a Suriname Toad. Season 4’s teasers looks like it’s going to be a rehash of X-Men 2 (or 3?), but I’m pretty sure I’ll keep on downloading this new season.
• Ugly Betty - Still as camp. Stll as good. Knows not to take itself too seriously which makes the show fun to watch.
• Desperate Housewives - The writers are brilliant, and totally deserve an Emmy for writing (especially if they kill off Susan and Mike for good)
• Survivor : Gabon - Most mind numbingly boring winner ever. Hated everyone in F3, but if Sugar gave a shit to her Final TC performance, she definitely deserved the final votes - cause she really did outplay everyone. Season had a boring start (thank god for Dan Kay), had a promising merger, and the most boring end game imaginable. Also produced two of the most hated contestants ever : Corrine and Marcus. Survivor Tocantins can’t possibly get any more worse than this.
• The Amazing Race - The last season was pretty okay. But I can’t wait for the new season to start
• Little Britain USA - Less funny than the original.. although I loved Ellie Grace’s “I love you more than cumshots” line. Hilarious. And Carol Beer’s definitely topped herself.
• Worst Week - an adaptation of BBC’s Worst Week of My Life. Not as tart as the original, but pretty good.
• Psych - I’m still dumbfounded as to why not more people are watching this brilliant, brilliant, brilliant show.
• Dirty Sexy Money - show has gotten downhill thanks to the excessive unnecessary Blair Underwood’s storyline, and Lucy Liu’s appearance on the show (seriously, can this bitch play something other than a cold hearted bitch on tv?).
• Top Chef NYC- not getting any Top Chef vibes from any of the contestants.. not quite a big fan of that Italian dude.. but his “This is not Top Scallop” had me in stitches. That is so going to be on the next Top Chef T-Shirt.
• Lost - OMFG THE NEW SEASON CAN’T START SOON ENOUGH!!!!! SAWYER FOR THE WIN!!!!
• Supernatural - OMFG THE SEASON CAN’T CONTINUE SOON ENOUGH!!!! DEAN/CASTIEL FOR THE WIN!!
• True Blood - OMFG SUMMER CAN’T GET HERE SOON ENOUGH!!!! TARA/LAFAYETTE FOR THE WIN!!
• The Tudors - OMFG SUMMER CAN’T GET HERE SOON ENOUGH!!!! HENRY THE EIGHTH FOR THE WIN!!

In case you don’t already know, our Singaporean neighbours will soon get to watch the latest episodes of Heroes and a few other top shows, just hours after it airs in the States this new TV season. (Ah, remember when we get to watch Survivor just 12 hours after it aired in the States, until fucking ntv7 decided to simply stop showing the show? Buncha dipshits..). So until ASSTRO improves it’s services, I guess it’s time for the rest of us to start updating our torrent schedules.

TUESDAY, AUG. 26
“Greek” (ABC Family), 9 p.m. - huh?

MONDAY, SEPT. 1
“Gossip Girl” (CW), 8 p.m. - ick
“Prison Break” (FOX), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere - for those of you who enjoy this show
“One Tree Hill” (CW), 9 p.m. - as tweenly disgusting as High School Musical
“Raising the Bar” (TNT), 10 p.m.* - what?

TUESDAY, SEPT. 2
“90210″ (CW), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere* - i’m KINDA excited about this one
“The Shield” (FX), 10 p.m. - ho-hum

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 3
“America’s Next Top Model” (CW), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere - not for me
“Bones” (FOX), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere - I’ll catch this on Astro
“Sons of Anarchy” (FX), 10 p.m.* - never heard of it
“Top Design” (Bravo), 10 p.m. - not for me

THURSDAY, SEPT. 4
“The Moment of Truth” (FOX), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere - this could be interesting

FRIDAY, SEPT. 5
“Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” (FOX), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere - fun show but not worth downloading, just catch it on Astro

SATURDAY, SEPT. 6
“COPS” (FOX), 8 p.m. - meh
“COPS” (FOX), 8:30 p.m. - meh
“America’s Most Wanted: America Fights Back” (FOX), 9 p.m. - meh

SUNDAY, SEPT. 7
“True Blood” (HBO), 9 p.m.* - MUST WATCH
“Entourage” (HBO), 10 p.m. - SATC for men who need assurance. I like The Pivert but this show is fluff.
MONDAY, SEPT. 8
“Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (FOX), 8 p.m. - yawnsies
“Prison Break” (FOX), 9 p.m. time-period premiere - huh? again?

TUESDAY, SEPT. 9
“Fringe” (FOX), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere* - not interested
“Privileged” (CW), 9 p.m.* - could be interesting

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 10
“‘Til Death” (FOX), 9 p.m. - nope
“Do Not Disturb” (FOX), 9:30 p.m.* - what?

THURSDAY, SEPT. 11
“Kitchen Nightmares” (FOX), 9 p.m. - hmm yes

FRIDAY, SEPT. 12
“America’s Toughest Jobs” (NBC), 8 p.m.* - yawn
“Don’t Forget the Lyrics” (FOX), 9 p.m. - might be as boring as Asnil’s show

SATURDAY, SEPT. 13
“MADtv” (FOX), 11 p.m. - interesting
“Talkshow with Spike Feresten” (FOX), midnight - who dat?

TUESDAY, SEPT. 16
“House” (FOX), 8 p.m. - BORING
“Lincoln Heights” (ABC Family), 8 p.m. - not interested
“Fringe” (FOX), 9 p.m., time-period premiere - again.. what?

THURSDAY, SEPT. 18
“Smallville” (CW), 8 p.m. - people still watch superman?
“Survivor: Gabon” (CBS), 8 p.m. - NOTHING WILL TOP SURVIVOR FANS vs FAVORITES!!!!!!
“Supernatural” (CW), 9 p.m. - yay!
“It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” (FX), 10 p.m. - zzzz

FRIDAY, SEPT. 19
“20/20″ (ABC), 10 p.m. - not interested

MONDAY, SEPT. 22
“Dancing with the Stars” (ABC), 8 p.m., two-hour performance premiere - so not for me
“The Big Bang Theory” (CBS), 8 p.m. - boring
“How I Met Your Mother” (CBS), 8:30 p.m. - it’s just not funny
“Heroes” (NBC), 9 p.m., two-hour premiere - YUMMY!!!!!
“Two and a Half Men” (CBS), 9 p.m. - slightly funnier, but not worth downloading
“Worst Week” (CBS), 9:30 p.m.* - If it’s anything like the British version, this is a MUST WATCH!!!
“Boston Legal” (ABC), 10 p.m. - legally boring
“CSI: Miami” (CBS), 10 p.m. - why are people still watching CSI?

TUESDAY, SEPT. 23
“NCIS” (CBS), 8 p.m. - meh
“Opportunity Knocks” (ABC), 8 p.m.* - might be interesting
“Dancing with the Stars” (ABC), 9 p.m., special performance show - yawnsies
“The Mentalist” (CBS), 9 p.m.* - could be interesting
“Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (NBC) 10 p.m. - yay for Chris Meloni!
“Without a Trace” (CBS), 10 p.m. - I’ll catch this on Astro

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 24
“Dancing with the Stars: Results Show” (ABC), 8 p.m. (special day and time) - STOP THIS SHIT
“Knight Rider” (NBC), 8 p.m.* - oooooooohhhhh worth checking out
“The New Adventures of Old Christine” (CBS), 8 p.m. - title pun boring giler
“Gary Unmarried” (CBS), 8:30 p.m.* - nope
“Criminal Minds” (CBS), 9 p.m. - nope
“David Blaine Special” (ABC), 9 p.m., two-hour special - so fucking overrated
“CSI: NY” (CBS), 10 p.m. - stop it
“Lipstick Jungle” (NBC) 10 p.m. - I can’t believe this wannabe show got renewed

THURSDAY, SEPT. 25
“My Name Is Earl” (NBC), 8 p.m., one-hour premiere - fun but not worth downloading
“Ugly Betty” (ABC), 8 p.m. - This oughta be good.
“Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC), 9 p.m., two-hour premiere - if you watch this, i want you off my list
“The Office” (NBC), 9 p.m., one-hour premiere - definitely fun.. too troublesome to download
“ER” (NBC), 10 p.m.) - boring

SATURDAY, SEPT. 27
Crimetime Saturday - drama repeats (CBS), 8 p.m. - nope
“48 Hours Mystery” (CBS), 10 p.m. - nope

SUNDAY, SEPT. 28
“60 Minutes” (CBS), 7 p.m. - nope
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (ABC), 7 p.m., two-hour premiere - I’ll catch it on Astro
“The Amazing Race” (CBS), 8 p.m. - AWESOMENESS!!
“The Simpsons” (FOX), 8 p.m. - Astro
“King of the Hill” (FOX), 8:30 p.m. - funny but not worth downloading
“Cold Case” (CBS), 9 p.m. - nope
“Desperate Housewives” (ABC), 9 p.m. - I heard there’s 6 characters this time around. <3 fat gabby <3
"Dexter" (Showtime), 9 p.m. - I've been meaning to watch this
"Family Guy" (FOX), 9 p.m. - not interested
"American Dad" (FOX), 9:30 p.m. - nope
"Brothers & Sisters" (ABC), 10 p.m. - it got boring
"Californication" (Showtime), 10 p.m. - OMGYAYGASM!!!!!!!!
"The Unit" (CBS), 10 p.m. - nope
"The Life & Times of Tim" (HBO), 10:30 p.m. - no thanks

MONDAY, SEPT. 29
“Chuck” (NBC), 8 p.m. - meh

TUESDAY, SEPT. 30
“Dancing with the Stars: Results show” (ABC), 9 p.m., regular day and time premiere - seriously, fucking stop it

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 1
“Pushing Daisies” (ABC), 8 p.m. - boring gilarrr
“Private Practice” (ABC), 9 p.m. - meh
“DIrty Sexy Money” (ABC), 10 p.m. - YES YES FUCKING YESSSS!!!!

FRIDAY, OCT. 3
“Everybody Hates Chris” (CW), 8 p.m. - not downloading, watch on Astro
“Ghost Whisperer” (CBS), 8 p.m. - this got renewed? Wow.
“Wife Swap” (ABC), 8 p.m. - not for me
“The Game” (CW), 8:30 p.m. - dunno
“Supernanny” (ABC), 9 p.m. - nope
“The Ex List” (CBS), 9 p.m.* - hmmm might check this out
“Life” (NBC), 10 p.m. - nope
“Numbers” (CBS), 10 p.m. - n0p3
“Sanctuary” (Sci-Fi), 10 p.m.* - will read the synopsis

SUNDAY, OCT. 5
“America’s Funniest Home Videos” (ABC), 7 p.m. - are you kdding me
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (ABC), 8 p.m., regular day and time - catch on astro

MONDAY, OCT. 6
“Samantha Who?” (ABC), 9:30 p.m. - who what?

THURSDAY, OCT. 9
“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” (CBS), 9 p.m. - zzzz
“Kath & Kim” (NBC), 9:30 p.m.* - ???
“Eleventh Hour” (CBS), 10 p.m.* - will read the synopsis
“Life on Mars” (ABC), 10 p.m.* - might be boring

FRIDAY, OCT. 10
“The Starter Wife” (USA), 10 p.m. - nope

MONDAY, OCT. 13
“My Own Worst Enemy” (NBC), 10 p.m.* - sounds interesting

TUESDAY, OCT. 14
“Eli Stone” (ABC), 10 p.m. - nope

FRIDAY, OCT. 17
“Crusoe” (NBC), 8 p.m., two-hour premiere* - definitely giving this one a shot
“Crash” (Starz), 10 p.m.* - unsure

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 29
“Stylista” (CW), 9 p.m.* - maybe

THURSDAY, OCT. 30
“30 Rock” (NBC), 8:30 p.m. - nope

After years of using iTunes… Malaysians can finally fucking REGISTER for an iTunes account!!! OMFG!!!! I’ve been wanting to do this since I got my first iPod mini. I know we all mostly rip the songs from our CD collections, but there are some amazing freebies on iTunes.. the only drawback to downloading these freebies, is that you HAVE to have an iTunes account. Well now I have.. and all Malaysians can register too! This is a good sign cause it’s probably indicating that the new iPhone 3g might officially be released here soon. Squeeee!!!!

edited to add : unfortunately for now, we can only access the Applications store. I can’t seem to get on the songs/podcasts/audiobooks/movies/yet.. which is understandable because of the copyrights and shit.

I’m a pessimist.I’ll be the first one to admit that. I mean, why fucking not. if the worst that I was anticipating turned out to be true, I could go “Pftt I knew it.” Or better yet “I told you so”. But when things actually turns up better than I was expecting, well.. there’s no denying that it’s always nice when that happens - As opposed to being optimistic, where one is almost always get turned down when things don’t go their way. You set such a high expectation, then you get burned down. Setting yourself for a big let down. Why would you do that to yourself? That’s just sadistic. Optimistic? Nah, I probably wont describe myself as that. Pessimistic is the way to go. It’s a win-win situation. You cannot lose.

Being a pessimistic was fun this week. I received a phone call from this random girl on Monday. This was similar to a phone call I received last year. I almost brushed the caller off because I thought she was trying to sell me insurance. Turned out I won the grand prize of having the Meet and Greet session with the cast of Heroes in Singapore. Well, this girl on Monday turned out to be the fantabulous Suanie who told me that the haiku I wrote just won me a ticket for the premier of The Dark Knight  (sponsored by Nokia). Whenever I enter a competition, I am almost always positive that I’m not going to win. That way, you don’t set yourself up for a huge let down when you don’t. So it’s always a pleasant surprise when you find out you actually won. Again, this is opposed to entering some contest and hoping so bad that you’re going to win. But then you don’t. It happens 90% of the time. Why do so many people conveniently keep forgetting this fact? I’m not bragging (even tho I just won a Canon competition last week - LOLlers), I’m just saying being a pessimist is not a bad thing at all.

In fact, the haiku that I wrote too contains elements of pessimisms :

an ode to joker-san

world is now buzzing
an Oscar coming your way
even tho yo dead

I wrote that in jest, of course. What I really meant to say was “only because” and not “even tho”. Truth be told, I did not get the overhype over all the Oscar buzz. I did not think Heath ledger was a brilliant actor worthy of even a mention (I thought his role in brokeback was so fucking overrated - I swear I see a lot more emotions from the guys at menatplay.com). The haiku was drenched with sarcasm, whether you noticed it or not. I was more than convinced that the buzz was only because its the kind of the normal fabricated Hollywood fairytale. “ooh what a powerful performance before the final curtain drew on him yada yada yada.” I was convinced. And last night.. well I had never been more glad that I was a pessimist.

Heath Ledger fucking pwned it. Full stop.

The preview was fun. It was one of those hush hush restricted private viewings that had RELA members frisking you and scanning you with metal detectors to ensure that you’re not trying to take recordings of the movie. There were the media folks as well bloggers. Some new faces (lainie and tiffany among others), some really old faces. One face in particular face in particular, won the brand new Nokia phone for dressing up as a pretty convincing Joker - I had the privilege - or some may say, disadvantage, of sitting next to Klubkidd (the lucky bitch who won the phone) in the cinemas (where we almost resorted to some x-rated lesbionic actions).

It’s been ages since I last wrote a movie review (oh I can already feel my editors snickering at this statement). And when I do, it’s either because I feel strongly about the movie, or it’s because I am extremely bored and at my wits end, or just felt that I needed to resharpen my blunt writing knives again. Well, this is the former.

I have to admit the only reason that I was so looking forward to this movie is because of the golden trifecta of Christopher Nolen, Christian Bale and Michael Caine (the absolute anti-Christ of M Night Shyamalashit, a random A-list actor, a random A-list actress). They had proven with The Prestige and Batman Begins, that the movies that work in together, well.. works. I was initially cautious that the hooplah over the whole Heath ledger being dead thingy was going to overshadow the movie. And after watching the movie, I have to say that it did. But I mean that in the nicest way possible.

Without giving too much away, the sequel does not disappoint. It pretty much still has all the elements that we witnessed in Batman Begins.. and possibly even more. Figuratively and literally that is. The literal part may come off as a turn off to some people. The movie spans over two and a half hour, and some might perceive it as being too long (you know you are!) but that didn’t bother me. A lot of surprising and WTF moments in the movie, none of which really derailed the movie much from the main plot. An excellent balance of acting from one of the best ensembles on screen, a strong plot, terrific action sequences.. and some of those obligatory humanitarian lessons that leaves you thinking, as you walk away from the theaters (yes, I know that line is beyond gag inducing).

Batman Begins is one of my all time favorite movie ever, so The Dark Knight certainly had much to live up to. So did it live up to it’s expectations? The movie has its flaws, but to answer the question : a resounding yes, yes, YES! It may not be the best movie of the year (that title still belongs to The Kite Runner), but it is damn well one of the finests movies I’ve seen this year so far.

Normally I don’t care much for movie critics. All they care about is what they think. They will only like another review if it validates some of their points. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I do categorize myself as one of these elitist snob assholes. But for once, I think almost every one of the movie critics got their review for The Dark Knight right on the point. The good ones, and the bad one (singular). I know what you’re thinking. Just do me a favour. Be a pessimist and walk into the theater, and prove me wrong. I dare you.

ps. contrary to what you might believe, this review and post was not sponsored by Nokia. Or Menatplay.com at that.

I was resynching all the songs from my old CDs into my iPod.. when I stumbled on this golden nugget. Whatever happend to Blink 182? Whatever it is, their The Mark, Tom and Travis Show (The Enema Strikes Back!) Live CD is probably one of the best live performances CD around. Anyway, this is a personal favourite of mine. Shyamalashit should take a lesson or two from these folks if he’s looking for ’surprise endings’.

(ps. the clip contains expletives.. so proceed with caution…. on second thought.. Oh please.. you’re at my blog for fucks sake).

Here’s the other brilliant track from Madonna’s Hard Candy. Totally reminds me of Gaynor’s I Will Survive. Not a big fan of Kanye, but this is definitely doing down as one of Madonna’s classics.

I have to admit that I initially found Madonna’s Hard Candy disappointing. I mean, some of the songs are absolute rubbish. I still think half of the album is absolute trash, but this album does contain some rather good songs, 4 Minutes.. Heartbeat.. Miles Away. And I think Madonna has come up with possibly two of the best songs in her career. I’m posting a video a fan made out of the first one - Devil Wouldn’t Recognize You.