The Illusion That Is The Goodell NFL

For years now the NFL has dominated the main stream sports landscape in America.  The Super Bowl is a national holiday, Fantasy Football is a staple of any group of friends and and gambling on games is more popular than ever.  In all regards, the NFL has been viewed as an untouchable commodity that could do no wrong.

I'm here to tell you that its all smoke and mirrors, and has been for a few years now.

There has been many a diatribe written today about what happened in the Monday Night Football game last night between the Seahawks and the Packers.  If you are reading this, I am sure you know what happened and it is pointless for me to rehash it.  The call was blown and it was obvious to everyone. The NFL has looked like a joke now for 3 straight weeks, all because they refuse to pay that people that keep the game in line, the officials.  The replacement refs that have been brought in have been a disaster.  Not only are these people unaware of all the rules of the game, they can not keep the game in control.  When there is a disagreement on the field, it is taking 10 minutes to clear it up.  The games are starting to go over 4 hours long.  It is anarchy and most people will say that its very uncharacteristic of the NFL.

However, i contend that it is very inline with how the NFL acts, or at least has been acting in this era of Roger Goodell.  Goodell has set himself up as a dictator during his reign as commissioner of  the most powerful league in the country.  This is not always inherently a bad thing in the sports world.  David Stern has been the dictator of the NBA for 38 years now, and more often than not has been highly regarded.  This is not the case with Goodell.  This debacle with the referees has been the tip of the iceberg, but people love the NFL so much, that they have turned a blind eye to everything else

Roger Goodell champions himself as a guy who cares of player safety.  This has always been his reasoning behind handing out harsh penalties for hits that may or may not actually be against the rules.  I think that Roger Goodell is full of crap.  If he really cared about player safety, he wouldn't be trying so hard to push for an 18 game regular season.  Right now a 16 game season is such a grind for these players, its a miracle if you escape the season unscathed.  By adding two more games, you can expect many more injuries.  Now, why would a guy who cares about player safety be so adamant about adding these games?  Easy, the almighty dollar.  Goodell has always been guided by the dollar.  Last season when the NFL was locked out, everyone knew no games would be missed, because Goodell would never let the owners miss out on that money at the gate.  The fact remains that Goodell didn't care about player safety until people outside the NFL started researching the long term effects football has on the body and more specifically the brain.

This leads us to the idea that Goodell makes his word, and only his word, the final word.  He is the judge, jury and executioner.  When the Saints Bounty gate was exposed this past summer, most people were disgusted by it but few were surprised.  Many former players around the league had stated that this type of stuff happens in every locker room.  When it came time for Roger Goodell to doll out punishments to the players involved, he did so without hearing from the players and with no consultation.  This resulted in very stiff penalties and no real process for appeal because the appeal would be heard by Goodell, and why would he appeal his own decision?  Makes no sense right?  Making it even worse, Goodell refused to provide the proof he claimed he had of these bounties and of how he knew which players were involved.

As you can see, Roger Goodell has had a rough stretch as the commissioner of the NFL.  In his time span, even though the NFL has been as popular as ever, Goodell has been boneheaded, greedy, and arrogant.  This replacement referee situation is the tipping point.  I think that Goodell's hubris lead him to believe that the ref lockout was actually a good thing for the league.  It put the league in the news weeks before the season even started.  It took the attention away from Bounty Gate and concussions.  I don't think he ever thought the situation would get as dire as it did last night on Monday Night Football.  What he does next could very well define his place in NFL history.

A famous old British historian named Lord Action once said "Absolute power corrupts absolutely".  Lets hope the power trip of one man doesn't continue to ruin the sport we all love.

Week 1 NFL Picks

With fall comes a cool breeze, pumpkin deliciousness and of course football.  This season, we get a mid week game all 17 weeks, except for week 1 where we get the opener on Wednesday night game.  Here are my week 1 pics against the spread.  I used the Las Vegas Hilton's current lines.  If you choose to use this for your gambling needs, i am not responsible if you lose.  I better get a cut if you win though.

Dallas Cowboys @(-3.5) New York Giants-  The Cowboys start the year with a lot of offensive line problems.  The Giants are the last team you want to play, what with their plethora of great defensive linemen.  Tony Romo will likely be without his favorite target Jason Witten and his second favorite target, Miles Austin, is banged up.  Add that to the fact that the defending champs always seem to win these season openers, i think they Giants are a very safe bet.  Giants minus 3.5

Indianapolis Colts @(-9.5) Chicago Bears-  Andrew Luck is getting thrown into the NFL deep end and i do not think the results are going to be pretty.  Lovie Smith has made his money destroying young, inexperienced quarterbacks, and Julius Peppers is salivating at the chance to welcome Luck to the league.  Look for the Bears to show off their new offensive toys early, and then ice the game with their revamped running back core. Bears minus 9.5

Jacksonville Jaguars @ (-3.5) Minnesota Vikings- I think the Jaguars have a chance to be comically bad this year.  The rebirth of Blane Gabbert this past preseason has been much exaggerated and i don't see MJD being much of a factor in week 1 after just reporting to camp a day ago.  I still think the Vikings would be better off with Joe Webb as their quarterback, but they should have enough in the tank to beat a team like the Jaguars at home. Vikings minus 3.5

Buffalo Bills @ (-3) New York Jets-  While the Jets still have a decent defense, they have a chance at being one of the two or 3 worst offensive teams in the league.  The Bills on the other hand,  had one of the hottest offenses in the league last year until Fred Jackson was put on the IR and Ryan Fitzpatrick was forced to play through injury.  The Jets do not have the firepower to exploit a Bills defense that has only gotten better with the addition of star DE Mario Williams. Bills plus 3

Miami Dolphins @(-12.5) Houston Texans- An argument could be made that the Texans could have been Super Bowl champs last year had they not been down to their third string QB.  The Texans will look to get a lot of pressure on Dolphins rookie quarterback and first-round pick Ryan Tannehill. Tannehill will be running for his life whenever he drops back to pass. With so few weapons at the skill positions, he still won't find someone to throw to most of the time.  Texans minus 12.5

New England Patriots @ (+5) Tennessee Titans- Could the 2012 version of the Patriots offense be even more explosive than their 2007 counterparts?  I happen to think the answer is yes.  With 2 solid young running backs, as good of a receiver tandem as any in the league and the best tight end duo ever, look for the Patriots to score early and often.  For what its worth, i think the titans should have stayed with Matt Hasselbeck if they wanted any chance at being competitive.  Patriots minus 5

St. Louis Rams @ (-7)Detroit Lions-  On paper you would think this would be a no brainier.  The Lions were one of the most explosive teams last year while the Rams struggled to put any points on the board.  However, i think the addition of Jeff Fisher as a coach has really gone under the radar for the Rams.  Fisher can do amazing things with a running game and he hasn't had a running back as consistent as Steven Jackson.  Sam Bradford has a horrible combination of injuries and a Sophomore slump last season.  Look for him to bounce back.  I like the Lions to win but i think the Rams keep it close.  Rams plus 7

Washington Redskins @ (-7)New Orleans Saints-  As a rule, i try to stay away from "bad karma" bets.  Teams that seem to have bad karma on their side can rarely over come it.  This past weekend i went against that rule and backed Penn State.  We all know how that turned out.  That being said, I think in this first game, the Saints come out with a "Win one for the coach!" mentality.  They are very tough at home and i think RG3 might be a little overwhelmed in his first NFL game.  Saints minus 7

Philadelphia Eagles @ (+8.5) Cleveland Browns- If Mike Vick stays healthy, the Eagles have a shot in every game.  Seems like you can just say that every week.  However, i am fairly certain the Eagles could start me at quarterback and still beat the Browns.  Brandon Wheeden instantly becomes the worst starting QB in the league.  Seriously, who drafts a 28 year old rookie QB in round 1?  It boggles my mind.  Look for the Browns to lose big here en route to 0-16.  Eagles Minus 8.5

Atlanta Falcons @ (+2.5)Kansas City Chiefs-  The Falcons have trouble playing tough road games.  That has been proven over the last couple weeks.  Arrowhead is a tough place to play.  I really like the Chiefs this season.  With Jamal Charles back in the mix and Peyton Hillis to re leave some of his workload.  the Chiefs should be able to run opponents in to the ground.  The Falcons are a trendy pick this season but i just don't see how they have improved much over last season, while a lot of other NFC teams have improved.  This is my upset special of the week.  Chiefs plus 2.5

San Francisco 49ers @ (-5)Green Bay Packers-  Who will win when the best offense squares of against the best defense?  In this day and age thee safe bet is on offense.  The Niners offense is a little better than last year with the additions of Randy Moss and Mario Manningham, but if this game goes to a shoot out which i believe it will, i just don't see anyway that San Fran hangs with the Packers.  Packers minus 5

Seattle Seahawks @ (+2.5)Arizona Cardinals- I don't understand why this line is so low.  It could be 10 points and i would still take the Seahawks.  The Cardinals have an awful offensive line to go with some of the worst quarterbacks in the league.  Larry Fitzgerald can only do so much if no one can get him the ball.  While i don't fully support the decision to start Russell Wilson over Matt Flynn, i do think the Seahawks have enough weapons to compete for the division.  They for sure have enough weapons to destroy the Cards.  Seahawks minus 2.5

Carolina Panthers @ (+2.5)Tampa Bay Bucs- The Panthers were better than their record last year.  Cam Newton took the league by storm and despite a less than stellar second half, should be ready to build upon that this season.  The Bucs are a trendy sleeper pick this year but i just don't see it.  I don't think Josh Freeman can carry an NFL team.  The only real thing the Bucs did to improve was hire a new head coach and i don't think that's enough to beat a young and hungry Carolina team.  Panthers minus 2.5

Pittsburgh Steelers @ (-1.5)Denver Broncos- The Steelers are really banged up on both sides of the ball.  That's before you take in to account that their safety can not play in the mile high altitude.  All eyes will be on Peyton Manning, who will be taking his first meaningful snaps in a year and a half.  With all the defensive injuries for the Steelers, coupled with the fact that Manning always delivers in these Sunday night games, i like the Broncos for the early season upset.  Broncos minus 1.5

Cincinnati Bengals @ (-7) Baltimore Ravens-   There is a lot of Joe Flacco buzz coming out of the preseason.  I don't buy it.  If Flacco was going to break out, he would have done it already.  The Ravens lost so much with the injury to Terrell Suggs.  This once majestic defensive unit all of a sudden looks a little old and a little thin.  I am not the biggest Bengals supporter either, but 7 points is a lot in a divisional match up to start the season.  I say take the points.  Bengals plus 7

San Diego Chargers @ (-1)Oakland Raiders-  I understand the Chargers weren't that great last year, but how is Oakland favored in this game?  I expect this division to be a two horse race between thee Chargers and the Chiefs.  Every year i hear about the rebirth of the Raiders, and every year i don't believe it.  This year is no different.  Chargers plus 1

Breaking Bad Review: Buyout

                             

                           "Everybody Wins" - Walter White

Boy oh boy things can go from high to low very quickly in the world of breaking bad.  Up until the very end of last weeks episode, things were going as well as they could go for a meth empire.  With one trigger pull last week however, things began to descend into familiar territory for Jesse Pinkman and Walter White.  And while i look forward to seeing just how bad things are going to get, to see what exactly drives Mr. White to need an alias and a machine gun one year from now, this is the first episode this season to really feel like it was cramped by the 8 episode format.

That's not to say i disliked the episode.  On the contrary, i loved many parts of the episode.  I loved the opening montage, with no words, showing just how good this group of people has become of disposing bodies; a skill that they wish they never had to use.  I also loved the scene at the White household, with not only Jesse being allowed in, but even staying for dinner and trying to make conversation with Skyler.  The scenes between Anna Gunn and Aaron Paul have been VERY few and far between, but i can imagine an alternate sitcom that pairs the two of them as some wacky mother son duo.  I loved Walter White as a modern day spy, working his way out of being restrained by Mike.  Heck we even got a Saul Goodman sighting, which i always love.  All these things were pretty good, but in the end the episode seemed bloated and haphazardly put together.

First, the beginning scenes with the fallout of Todd shooting the child.  I feel like they brushed over the reactions too quickly.  We've seen how Jesse Pinkman reacts to death or harm to child.  It normally would send him in to a tailspin..  The show has done Pinkman in a tailspin quite a bit, so i understand not wanting to go back to that well again, it just seems like something more could have been done.  I also feel like they jumped to the "I'm out" decision too quickly.  I can see it from Mike's perspective.  They established that these tails were not going to drop off of Mike anytime soon., despite Saul Goodman's best efforts at, well, being Saul Goodman.  But Jesse? As far as Jesse knows, Walter has been by his side the whole time, through thick and thin.  He does not know about Jane, or Brock.  I feel like there should have been more discussion between the two before Pinkman even brought up the idea of getting out of the Meth game

In a normal 13 episode season, all these things could have been spread out between multiple episodes.  There is still a lot of questions to answer.  What will come of the investigation of the missing child?  Will Todd become an even bigger wild card?  What exactly does Walter White have up his sleeve?  What kind of suit will Saul Goodman where next?  We still don't know if this season will have your typical cliff hanger ending that all season finales do or if it will just end on a normal Breaking Bad episode and just pick up next season.  Right now the latter seems to be the case.  All we know long term is that in a year, Walter White is going to have to no be Walter White, and he is going to have to purchase a heavy duty machine gun.

An entertaining episode for sure, just not one that is on par with some of the best Breaking Bad episodes.

NFL Predictions: NFC North

The preseason is underway and with comes hundreds and hundreds of expert predictions that will be rendered meaningless by November.  So why not throw my opinion into the mix?  I did things a little differently.  Instead of assigning arbitrary records to every team and picking favorites, i went through every game, week by week and picked the winner and then put together every teams record that way.  Lets start with the NFC North

                                                                                          Reunited an it feels so good!

Minnesota Vikings 3-13 (2011 record: 3-13)

Christian Ponder had an average debut season last year, but didn't really show me anything to be optimistic about.  I frankly think the team looked better behind the explosiveness of Joe Webb.  Adrian Peterson is usually as solid as they come but how will he rebound from ACL surgery? While adding rookie Tight End Kyle Rudolph is an upgrade on offense, there is little else to be thrilled about in the passing game, unless the inconsistency of Percy Harvin is turned around.  On the defensive side of the ball, Chad Greenway and Jared Allen are nice names, but this defense is way to susceptible to the big play to compete in this division

Detroit Lions 9-7 (2011 record 10-6)

There is no question the lions will continue to be a powerhouse in the passing game as long as Calvin Johnson is catching passes.  The thing people forget is that a year ago this time, not one person would have bet on Matt Stafford playing a full season.  So after one season, we now need to assume that it is a given?  I think Stafford misses a couple games at some point and the Lions will struggle in those games.  The defense showed us last year that they can be very good but they also showed us they can be very immature.  A small step back for the Lions is to be expected 

Chicago Bears 12-4 (2011 record 8-8)

Go ahead and call me a homer if you would like.  While people may see a team that was 8-8 last year, i see a team that was cruising along until their 2 best players on Offense got hurt.  Jay Cutler is back, is healthy and now has his favorite pro receiver (Brandon Marshall) and his favorite pro coach (Jeremy Bates) to go along with his favorite college receiver (Earl Bennett).  Gone is the idiotic Martz offense.  Gone is the idiotic philosophies of Jerry Angelo.  Sure the defense is another year older, and the Brian Urlacher surgery has me a little worried, but the schedule is easy and the Offense should be explosive.

Green Bay Packers 13-3 (2011 record 15-1)

Last year, the Packers were content just running teams death on Offense that defense didn't matter.  An then the New York Giants came calling in the playoffs.  The showed teams that there is a way to slow down the great Aaron Rodgers.  Which is why, while i think they will still won the division, reaching that 15-1 mark again is going to be a long shot.  The offense could be even better, with Aaron Rogers, Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb all with another year under their belt, and with the late signing of Cedric Benson.  Like last year though, if the Packers are going to have problems, it is going to be with the secondary.  With Charles Woodson moving to safety, it will be interesting to see who can step up at Corner for this team.


Offensive Player of the year:  Aaron Rodgers

Defensive Player of the year: Julius Peppers
Most Intriguing player:  Brandon Marshall
Most Intriguing rookie: Kyle Rudolph

Top 10 Shows of 2011

With 2011 coming to an end, its time to name my top ten shows of the year.  With LOST going off the air, the number 1 spot was vacant.  Without further ado i give to you my top 10 of 2011.  In parenthesis you will find the ranking the show had last year.  NR= Not Rated

Honorable Mention:  I usually don't do an honorable mention category because it feels like such a cop out, but then i realized i was going to have a top 10 list without Chuck on it.  Sure Chuck had a down season for its standards, but it still ended with a bang and they first few episodes of what is for certain the last season has given us hope for an epic finish to what has been a fantastic ride.

10.  Modern Family (6) -  While the ratings have not suffered for Modern Family, i do think the quality has just a bit.  Back in season 1, almost every episode was a hit, but now it seems like the have an off episode every couple of weeks.  The good episodes however are still among some of the best stuff on TV.

9.  Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia (NR)  It is really rare for a show to have one of its strongest seasons so far into its run, but the Sunny crew did just that.  Every episode was a winner with the exception of "Franks Brother"  and fat Mac really was the joke that kept on giving

8.  Curb Your Enthusiasm (NR)  Curb came back from an extremely long hiatus in a big way.  "The Palestinian Chicken," "The Vow of Silence" and "Mister Softee" were 100% pure, concentrated "Curb" brilliance, and the rest of the episodes were strong to.  The New York setting really gave the show some new life.

7.  Sons Of Anarchy (NR)  Last season, i disliked SOA until the season finale.  This season was reversed as i thought it was a brilliant season that only suffered because of a lame, rushed finale.  I do like where the show seems to be going next season and there was enough fantastic acting with the addition of Rockmond Dunbar to the ensemble to overcome a bad finale

6.  Homeland (NR)  The only rookie show to make it on my list.  Homeland is such a great blend of tension plot and character development.  Featuring to award caliber performances by its 2 leads (Claire Daines and Damien Lewis)  This is a show i can only see moving up the ranks next year.

5.  Community (4)  When "Community" is at its very best (the D&D episode, the fake clip show, the alternate timelines), almost nothing else on TV can touch it.  The only down episodes they have tend to be when the show gets over ambitious, and there is no shame in that.  NBC should feel very dumb about leaving this gem off there winter schedule in favor of crap like "Whitney"

4. Louie (10)  This is a comedy that decided in a later season it would probably rather be a drama - and got better as a result. Like "Community," here was a series where you never knew exactly what kind of show you'd be tuning into in any given week - and one that tended to have a higher batting average on its experiments. What made "Louie" unlike everything else on television, was its powerful, unmistakable authorial voice. It's not just that Louis CK writes, directs, edits and helps score every episode, on top of being the only actor to appear every week. It's that the show is so unapologetically shown through his worldview, which is at once self-lacerating and yet surprisingly openhearted.

3. Parks and Recreation (5)  Its usually very hard for a straight up half hour comedy to crack my top 10.  But as  the months went along, the harder it became for me to ignore what an absolutely transcendent year "Parks and Recreation" was having. The spring episodes comprised the most flawless, satisfying comedy season I'd witnessed in years, and while the fall episodes have had a few stumbles], overall it's been a very strong season, and one that quietly, brilliantly built towards last week's fantastic Christmas episode, which summed up all the reasons why this is my number one comedy show of the year.

2. Friday Night Lights (2)  Holding steady at number 2 in its final year. Even if I'm only counting the six episodes that DirecTV aired from January on, this was still an epic, moving farewell to the people of Dillon, TX .  Almost everyone got a happy ending, but with enough bitter to keep the sweet from being overwhelming . We were reminded again and again why Eric and Tami Taylor are among the most realistic, compelling married couples in TV history, and in Michael B. Jordan's Vince, we got a latter-day character who wound up as rich and memorable as the kids we met in the first season. Thanks to the DirecTV deal, we got five seasons of "Friday Night Lights" where it otherwise might have ended after that unfortunate second one. And now we have so many great memories from the show that I will remember. Always and always and always.

1. Breaking Bad (3)  With Lost going off the air, the number 1 spot was wide open, and boy did Breaking Bad grab that spot with authority.  Season after season, the thing that impresses me most about "Breaking Bad" - yes, more than Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul's acting, more than the gorgeous cinematography, more than the moments that make me gasp and the others that make me laugh - is simply the patience of it. Vince Gilligan and company will take their time, thank you, and they will make everything better for making you wait. Just think about the boxcutter scene from the season premiere: what Gus (Giancarlo Esposito, brilliant all season) does with the boxcutter itself is riveting, but what makes the scene immortal is what happens before and after, when we watch him dress and undress twice, just because that's how Gus rolls and because Walt and Jesse have to sit there and watch him do it (twice). Or think of how carefully the show doled out Gus's backstory, until a lot of viewer sympathy swung wildly away from Walt and towards Gus. Think of how perfectly three seasons of hearing Tio Salamca ring that bell paid off in the season finale. This is a show that moves carefully, thinks through all the angles and then smacks you upside the head and down with its genius. If "Breaking Bad" season 3 put the show into consideration for the all-time pantheon, season 4 confirmed that the show belongs there. And if you don't believe me, ask The One Who Knocks

Checking In on Glee Season 3

 “I’m proud of what we’ve all done.”


Back at the end of season 2 of Glee, I wrote a post about how bad the show had become.  It really was a parody of what it was in season 1.  The performances, relationships and all the story lines seemed very forced.  It all culminated in what was an awful season finale.  When this new season started, it seemed to be going on the same path as the last.  I was basically ready to check out on this show.  But then a funny thing happened; Glee put together a string of their best episodes to date, and seems to be on track to making season 3 even better then season 1

A major reason for this renaissance has been the refocusing of the show on the students.The 'kids" in the cast are all really talented, and with so many of them being of different genders, races, religions, economic backgrounds, and orientations; the show has a lot of story to milk their.  The problem they ran into is that Jane Lynch was so good in a supporting role in season 1, they felt the need to jam her down our throats in season 2.  It is sad to say, but a major reason this season has been so strong is because Sue's screen time has been minimal compared to last year.  That is not to say that the show needs to rid itself of Jane Lynch, because the few times she has been on this season, she has been great, they just need to know how to do good things in moderation.  Another role that has been largely marginalized has been Matt Morrison's.  In his case though it was never an issue of talent being overused, i just find his role here to be really draining.  Its been shown that his performances are never popular on the show, and every story line he enters into just seems to stop the show dead in its tracks.  Are he and Emma even together right now?  I cant remember, nor do i care.  Lets keep the focus on the kids, and i think the success will continue.

At its heart, Glee is a musical television show and i think the performances have been much stronger this year.  I am very happy that they have not really had any theme episodes this year so far.  I feel like the last year, the writers would come up with a theme for an episode, and then let the them dictate their writing.  This is not the way to write a successful TV show.  The office has often had similar problems with its guest stars, announcing the starts first and then writing a character for them.  The theme episodes often seemed disconnected and boring.  This year, they have given a nice variety of songs and have been able to blend top 40 hits, oldies and songs from musicals almost seamlessly.  It also has been nice to see different people get to perform their own songs.  Last year was so heavy on Rachel and Finn, its been really nice to see people like Mike Chang, and Puck get to have the spotlight

Glee is not going anywhere anytime soon.  the ratings are still very good and the show still gets recognition come award times.  And while it could have just stayed the course after a terrible second season, i feel like they should be commended for listening to the critics and turning it around.  Usually, Ryan Murphy shows come out the gate strong and right around season 3, they start to delve into the territory of annoying and ridiculous.  It seemed like Glee was on that same path, but here's hoping this run of great episodes continues on.

My Thoughts On: 50/50

"You can't change your situation. The only thing that you can change is how you choose to deal with it"

Subtlety.  Its something that is lost in this age of 3D and big budget explosions.  The ability to express emotion and a message without beating your audience over the head with it is truly something that is on the endangered species list. 50/50 manages to bring the idea back to life.

The Movie focuses on Adam, a young man (Joseph Gordon Levitt) who lives an average life.  He works for a radio station, has a serious girlfriend and boneheaded best friend (Seth Rogan) that he kills time with.  He has loving parents, although his father has been stricken with Alzheimer's.  After experiencing back pain, Adam goes to see a doctor, and soon after finds out that he has a rare form of spinal cancer.  The news effects him and everyone around him.  The only solace he is able to find is in his discussions with his grief counselor (Anna Kendrick).

The main thing that needs to be mentioned about this movie is the acting performances.  I have always been a big fan of Gordon Levitt.  He seems to be able to play these "every guy" roles with such ease and believability that you forget that this guy is a big time Hollywood actor, and just think of him as some guy you meet on the street.  Here he shines again as an overwhelmed twenty something who thinks he has his life together and one day, everything he knows is wrong.  Theres a point in the movie where he says he just feels a nothingness inside of him, and in that moment, you can see the very expression on his face.  Rogan, while playing his usual stoner self, adds a little twist on his normal character.  Yes Kyle likes to go out, get drunk, get high, and hit on girls; but he also is such a caring friend and loves Adam so much, that he would do anything in the world for his friend.  Kendrick is fantastic as Adam's therapist and Anjelica Huston almost steals the show as Adams mom, dealing with a son who has cancer and a husband who has Dementia.

Jonathon Levine is a relative unknown as a director, and this is by far his most mainstream work yet.  For someone with such little experience its refreshing to see him realize the talent he has involved in this movie, and he lets the actors carry the film.  He does not aim to tug at the audiences heart strings, nor does he try to make the actions of Seth Rogan to over the top.  He just lets the fantastic cast do there thing, and the result is a motion picture that makes you laugh and cry all at the same time

50/50 is one of the best movies i have seen this year.  A lot of people have not seen this movie because they think it will be too sad and too much of a downer.  I'm not going to sugarcoat it, there are definitely moments in the movie that made me cry.  But these moments are so genuine and earned.  The movie is a roller coaster ride of emotions, and that is why i enjoyed.  So yes you may cry, but you will also smile, and laugh, sigh, and swear.  I guess that's my not so subtle way of telling you to go see this movie

Rating: 9 out of 10

Top 5 New Shows of The Fall Season

Every fall season, cable and broadcast networks roll out a bunch of new shows.  Its not often that every show they roll out is a hit, but in the last few years, finding hits has become more and more rare.  This was no exception this year, as this may have been the weakest slate of new shows.  Among all of them, i only see one as being a must watch in terms of quality.  There are however are a few other shows that are at least decent.  Here are one mans thoughts on the top 5 new shows of this fall season.

5.  ONCE UPON A TIME (ABC) - One of 2 fairy tale themed shows to debut this fall.  While Grimm suffers extremely by the blandness of its lead actor, OUAT has multiple strong performance from an ensemble cast.  It is very creative take on the fairy tale formula.  This may be even higher on the list if the show spent more time on the present day stories and less time on historical stories.  I find those stories to be kind of forced, but they can get better with time and character development

4.  UP ALL NIGHT (NBC) - I had high expectations for this show going in to the season and so far it has not disappointed.  The chemistry between Arnett and Applegate is great.  It is fantastic so see Will Arnett playing an actual person finally and now just rehashing some half assed version of Gob Bluth.  It does seem like the show does not always seem to know how to use Maya Rudolph.  Its crazy how talented she is and yet there are so many instances where people just don't know how to use her.  Bonus points for using Jorma Taccone as a guest star.

3.  SUBURGATORY (ABC) - This show really came out of nowhere for me.  I had zero expectations for this show and it has turned out to be one of my favorite new shows of the season.  It fits in nicely on ABC as they have established a nice block of quirky suburbia based comedies.  Paired with The Middle and Modern Family, this show seems to have found a worthy home and deserves to be checked out for its ability to produce consistent laughs.

2.  THE NEW GIRL (FOX) - There was no doubt that Zooey Deschanel would win the hearts of critics and audience members.  She has a great screen presence and certain brand of "adorkability".  The big question with this show was going to be how the ensemble developed around her.  So far i have to say that it has developed pretty well.  Losing Damon Wayans Jr. was a big blow, and his replacement really has not gelled as part of the show yet, but Max Greenfield as Schmidt has more then made up for it with his comedic timing  and Jake Johnson as Nick has shown that he will make a good companion for Deschanel's character down the road.

1. HOMELAND (SHOWTIME) - This is not only one of the best new shows this season, but also one of the best shows on TV period.  That's a bold statement to make after only 6 episodes, but the premise of the show is so original, and the acting is so good, that it is hard to imagine the show dropping off at all.  Claire Daines is almost assured an Emmy nomination and it would be a shame if Damian Lewis did not at least receive consideration as well.  Combining suspense, great acting, great writing, and great directing, i can easily see Homeland joining Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, and Mad Men in a competition for best drama on television.

My Thoughts On: Modern Family "Go Bullfrogs!"

"I have 3 kids, I've been tired since 2005"

When Julie Bowen won an Emmy for best supporting actress a few weeks back, i was shocked. Not because i don’t think she is a talented actress, but on a show with so many funny characters, Claire Dunphy is usually the straight woman. When she is funny, it’s because she is playing off of the other very funny members of her family. Last night, we see Claire away from her family for the most part, and for the most part the episode did not really work for me. Every storyline seemed very forced, especially hers. The show has fallen into this pattern this year with putting Claire in embarrassing situations and the comedy comes from watching her squirm. The thing is, it’s just not all that funny.

The Phil and Haley storyline seemed like it should have been so much funnier than it was. Sure it had its moments, like Phil attempting to do a cheerleading routine along with the squad, but for the most part, it seemed out of character for Phil to freak out so much. One of the reasons last season’s Good Cop Bad Cop episode was funny because it was Phil playing out of character intentionally. This felt like they were attempting the same thing, but this time it wasn’t part of an inside deal between Phil and Claire, it was just Phil not acting like the Phil that we know

The Manny storyline also felt very forced. I see the comedy in Jay becoming invested in a Spanish soap opera, but again, it just felt very out of place for him. The one saving grace of the episode was the Mitchell and Cam storyline. While i feel like it was a story that we’ve seen before with these two, the 2 actors play off of each other so well that it still seemed fresh to me. I could listen to Eric Stonestreet was nostalgically about pot pies all day.

Not the strongest effort by Modern Family but I feel they were due for a clunker. It’s funny how the episodes that i don’t like always seem to have a very minimal amount of Luke in them.


5 out 10

My Thoughts On: Parenthood "'Tales from the Luncheonette"

"We are business partners here and you just gotta go in there and make good music. Kick ass"


A show with as of an ensemble cast like Parenthood often struggles to balance out the various stories going on in the world of our characters. This usually bothers me a lot. The thing with Parenthood though, is that even when the focus of an episode is on one story, they execute it so well that it really does not get to me. Such is the case with this week’s episode, where Adam and Crosby’s adventures at the new studio are a pretty central focus. Despite NBC's insistence to try and force a judge from The Voice down our throats (Cee Lo Green guest stars) Every scene with the two brothers felt so real and it was nice to see a role reversal here with Adam being the easy going brother and Crosby the one on edge. We are used to Adam displaying his temper (something that we see he gets from Zeke later in this episode) so if they had him be the high strung one when facing the loss of a client, it would have been more of the same. But by making Crosby the one who gets angry and flustered, we not only get to see a new side of Crosby, but we also realize that Crosby is in this with Adam 100% and that he is completely serious about it.

Meanwhile, while not as a big a focus, I appreciated the way the Seth issue played out. Mark, while very unhappy with the role that Seth has taken in Sarah's life, knows that he has to be understanding and that fighting history is a futile effort. It’s very similar to the issues that are going on the in Haddie Kristina storyline. Yes Haddie is very annoyed by the fact that not only does her mom not have time to read her essay, she actually falls asleep right on top of it. She knows though that with a new baby and her dad starting a new company, things are going to change. It’s a common theme in this episode where people show maturity in the face of situations that they may not be pleased with

While i hate the Joel and Julia get a baby from a coffee cart storyline, i can’t end this review without mentioning how awesome Joel continues to be. It seems like the show focuses the least on him and Julia and that just may be because he is so awesome that there really is not any drama on that front. The way he stood up to Zeke in this episode was easily Sam Jaeger's finest moment of the show so far.No new Parenthood next week.  I feel as though the show is in a good place right now and that a one week break is not the worst thing in the world.  Very strong episode.


7.5 out of 10

My Thoughts On: Entourage "The End"

"We basically lived together our whole lives"

Normally I would try to open with a clever intro that had something to do with the plot of this episode.  Not this time.  I am going to get this out of the way.  I have never been so happy that a show I watch religiously has come to an end as I am with Entourage.  This last season especially has made me ask whether Entourage has ever actually been a good show.  I came to the decision that season 2 and half of season 3 were good, as were the last couple episodes of the season before this one.  That’s it.  That’s a lot more bad than good.  And this last season was one of the worst seasons of any TV show ever.

The finale does not do anything to redeem this season or the show in general.  If you expected this episode to have a rich plot and a new found depth because it was the finale, then you just have not been paying attention to the show.  It is like they are just trying to top themselves with ridiculous plot resolutions.  I don’t know which one is more asinine, this week’s Vince getting married to a person who refused to even have a drink with him 2 days ago, or last weeks “I secretly bought your stock shares and now you’re a millionaire.”  And if Vince’s storyline is not bad enough, when he tells his friends, they briefly entertain the idea that he is back on drugs, but within 1 minute are happy for him and ready to see him off at this wedding.  What the hell?

At first I was kind of upset that we didn’t see this 24 hour date Vince went on.  I wanted to see exactly how they got to the point of marriage.  Then I saw how easy E and Sloan, and then Ari and Melissa reconciled their problems, and I realized that if they did show us the date, it would just leave me angry and frustrated.  Now I actually enjoyed the Ari storyline this season, it has been the only one that I feel even made an effort.  However after all the effort it made to make us believe that these people could really be headed for divorce, the resolution, as always is the case in Entourage just seemed too easy.  I realize that the scene after the credits maybe throws a wrench into the plan, but that is set up for a possible Entourage movie, and I don’t know how smart it is to use a series finale of a show that people have followed for a long time to set up a hypothetical movie.

So now Entourage rides off into the sunset.  How will I remember it?  I will remember it as a fantastic idea that started with decent execution but a show that quickly went into the crapper and became one of the most exhausting and frustrating ways to spend my Sunday evenings.  I will probably see the movie when it comes out, and chances are, I’ll be back here saying the exact same things.  Rest in Peace Entourage, May you Hug It Out while you burn in TV hell.

Raw Rundown 08/08/2011

Welcome everyone to the Raw Rundown!

We start off with The music of the COO, The game HHH.  Basically the gist of the segement is that the champion vs champion match is going to be one for the ages and it needs to have an undisputed finish.  In order to do so it needs a larger then life refferee and HHH believes that to be him self so he will officiate the match.  He also says both Cena and Punk will be in matches tonight with Cena's right now.  Cena comes out and they exchange some words off mic.  

I dont know how i feel about HHH as the ref.  I think the match was big enough on its own and it does not really need him to put it over the top.  It also makes me think that Cena is winning because of something HHH does, so that will further the HHH/ CM Punk angle.  While that program might be very entertaining, id rather see Punk march on as the champ.

John Cena Beats Jack Swagger Via Pinfall @ 5:21

Your typical boring Cena match.  1.5 stars

Next we hear from Alberto Del Rio, who will be facing CM Punk.  He call Punk the voice of the gutless because he ran way when Del Rio was going to cash in MITB.  Tonight he is going to show Punk what would have happened that night in Chicago if Punk stuck around

We get a recap of the start of the Truth/Morrison feud.  We then get a standard R Truth promo that makes no sense.  he says he hates spiders because they are creepy and quiet.  He yells at the audience to stop "Whating" him.  He says his mom used to make Spider Stew and the only person who ate it was little Jimmy.  Tonight he is going to step on John Morrison like a spider and squash him.  Ok....  Next up is Rey Vs Miz

Miz attacks Rey from behind on his way down to the ring and really goes to town on him.  After being stopped officials, Miz walks to the ring to be interviewed by Michael Cole.  Miz is mad that he doesnt know who he is facing at Summerslam.  He is sick of the attention Punk And Cena are getting.  He is the one who is all over doing PR and he is the most must see champion in history.  He demands a ref come down and call him the winner via forfeit.  A ref comes down and says that HHH has decided that Miz needs to compete in a new match now.  His opponent will be Kofi Kingston.

The Miz Beats Kofi Kingtson Via Pinfall @ 10:31 (With commercial)

Decent little TV match.  2.5 stars. 

We go backstage to hear from CM Punk.  Punk says he is not surprised that HHH made himself the ref because he has a bigger ego then his father in law.  For someone who resigned Punk because it was good for business, he should know that whats good for business is him keeping his big nose out of the match.  Whats good for business is CM Punk beating John Cena.  Whats good for business now is him kicking Alberto's teeth down his throat.

CM Punk Beats Alberto Del Rio @ 4:40

Kind of surprising they put Punk over so easily, but i dont mind.  2 Stars

We get a recap of the Beth Phoenix heel turn last week.  Its about damn time.

Beth Phoenix Beats Eve @ 2:52

After the match Beth grabs a mic and reasserts how sick she is of women like Eve and Kelly Kelly in the WWE. Beth says there will be no more "booty popping" or "stinkfaces" and then goes to leave, but she gets jumped from behind by Kelly Kelly with the Diva's title.

Alex Riley Beats Dolph Ziggler @ 1:33 via DQ (Vickie Slap)

Not rating this match.  Sure it was just done to have Riley earn a title shot for Summerslam this Sunday.

R Truth beats John Morrison @ 4:04 Via Pin

Seems very strange to not only blow off a 4 month feud in a 4 minute match, but on a Raw 6 days before a PPV?  Not really sure about this.  1 star from me.  Very confused by this booking

Everyone should watch this raw just for the Punk/Cena recap video.  It is pretty epic.

Next week, Rey faces whoever is WWE champ after SummerSlam

Christian is backstage and says he has a major announcement to make on Smackdown on Friday.  He says he thinks HHH should be there

We cut back to the ring for our main event contract signing with Triple H and John Laurinaitis​ already in the ring. Punk is out first, followed shortly by Cena. Both men sit down at the table in the middle of the ring but before they can sign the contracts, Punk picks up a mic and decides to talk for a bit. He wonders out loud when the last time was when they had a contract signing that didn't end in a physical confrontation and he asks Cena if he should just flip the table over now and get the fight started already. Punk talks about feeling like a movie star getting ready to plug his latest film on Conan and then takes a shot at Triple H for the dismal sales of The Chaperone. Punk says he in fact does have a clip from a movie star for Cena, and introduces a clip from none other than The Rock! In the clip The Rock cracks some jokes about Cena's goofy ring attire and calls him a bloated transvestite Wonder Woman​ lookalike among other things. He mimics Cena's theme song and does his usual Cena impersonation. He talks about Cena going to his own hometown in Boston and getting booed and about how the majority of men around the world don't like Cena because they see through his bullshit and can smell a phony punk from a mile away as the clip wraps up. Crowd really liked that last bit Rock had to say. Cena goes on a rant about how he knows that he'll never win over alot of WWE fans and he begrudgingly agrees with Punk about his recent comparison of Cena to the New York Yankees. Cena continues to get some pretty big heat here from most of the men in attendance, but he puts over his own fans again and we get the usual rousing cheers from the women and children. Cena turns the tables on Punk and accuses Punk of being a phony for continuing to play up his role as the "voice of the underground". Triple H agrees with Cena on that and Punk asks Johnny Ace if he personally let the recently released Vladimir Kozlov​, Chris Masters​, and DH Smith​ know they were fired. He's (sort of) shooting again kids! Punk talks about when he won his first title in the WWE (the ECW title) and how Cena went up to him afterwards and told him that he had "almost given up on him", and Punk accuses Cena again of being a phony and a failure, bringing up his bodybuilder training and his time spent in UPW. Punk promises to walk out this Sunday the Undisputed champion and we wrap things up with both men signing their contracts and getting into each other's faces. Punk knocks Johnny Ace down and Triple H separates him and Cena again. Punk asks Hunter if "the fix is in" and we go off the air with the crowd chanting "CM Punk!" as the two champions stare each other down.

This was a fantastic promo to close the show.  CM Punk really is in the zone, and crowds are reacting which is great to see considering they are no longer in Chicago.

My Thoughts On: Breaking Bad "Bullet Points"

""  Oh, God. How did everything get so screwed up?"

Breaking Bad, much like most AMC programming, is show built on the development of its characters.  Because of this, the show often moves at a pace that some may describe as slow.  I feel like this can be one of the shows strengths, but i also realize that it is not for everybody.  For those of you complaining that the beginning of this season has been too slow, I am guessing you werent complaining after this episode

What started out as an episode that seemed like it was not going to feature Jesse at all, became very Jesse centric by the end.  The episodes starts with a long scene between Walter and Skyler.  They are basically scripting out the way they are going to lie to the rest of their family.  They are very committed to the "Walt has a gambling problem" lie, going as far as attending a gamblers annonomoys meeting to see how those people talk.  I know a lot of people don't like Skyler, but i think that those people are not looking at the situation as a whole.  By keeping this awful secret from her, Walt has put her in a position where she can either cut him out of her world compeltly and go flat broke, or take his money and forced to live the rest of her life as a lie.  Does she go way over-the-top in preparing for the dinnertime confession to Hank and Walter Jr? Absolutely.  But its what Walt does all the time, and what the show is about.  She is, at this point, Walt's only moral compass.

In a way, no body is really thinking all to clearly in this episode other then Jesse.  Its clear that everything has become or is about to become a huge mess.  Clearly we show that Gus is far from done with the fall out from murdering Cartel members last season.  Walt is so busy going forward and ignoring his horrible deeds in the past that he's especially thunderstruck to see Gale singing karaoke at him on TV.  Jesse on the other hand has no false images of what he is at this point.  He is a cold blooded killer and criminal.  The only way he can get through the day is by keeping a group of degenerates around him, and a steady flow of narcotics inside of him.  In fact, when his partner Walter brings back the awful memory of what Jesse did to Gale, all Jesse can do is pay someone to throw him out.  Aaron Paul is amazing here just with his facial expressions.

But Jesse can not continue living life like this forever.  Either he is going to completely lose it, or he is going to cause a lot of problems for Walt, Mike, and Gus.  They realize he is a liability and something must be done.  Walt can't get through to Jesse. Jesse's not afraid of Walt, and no doubt blames him for what his life has become. But Mike at least has the gravitas and muscle to put Jesse in a car to a destination and solution unknown.  Clearly i don't think this is the last we have seen of Jesse Pinkman.  Walt discovering that the moving camera in the lab cant follow both of them sure ensures that we will see the return of Jesse.  But that leaves us with the question, Where is Mike taking him?


QUICK HITS:

Saul Bring up a way for Walt and his family to disappear.  Could this be how the show will end?

Hank believes Gale was Highsenberg, How long will that last?

Brain Cranston may be the best at acting without saying anything

We see the brief return of Gus on screen.  With him being a series regular, i would have to assume his role is about to pick up

Fantastic episode.  9 out 10.

My Thoughts On: Big Brother 13 "Week 5 Nominations"

Last we left our Big Brother hamsters, the Veterans were dealt there first big blow with the elimination of Brendan.  Danielle knew she know had an x on her head.  That coupled with the fact that as the outgoing HOH she could not compete in the next HOH competition, pretty much made it a must that Kalia had to win HOH.  Much to the relief of Ms. Donato, Kalia did win HOH and that brings us to tonight's episode where we find out who is going to go up on the block.

Prez Obama better not fuck with my DVR tonight.

Adam is sadly out of his elf suit.  I think i enjoyed Enzo in the penguin suit last year more.  I miss the brigade.  Theres no good alliances this season.  We start with 5 solid minutes of recap.  Kalia is very happy about being HOH.  She starts crying.  Rachel is not happy.  This was basically the worst case scenario for her.  Jeff thinks hes in trouble.  Jeff also realizes that Porsche kind of screwed there alliance over by making him and Shelly go against each other.  Porsche realizes she may have pissed off Jeff and is now trying to be buddy buddy with Kalia and Danielle.  Rachel is crying alone in the have not room. Enter Porsche and Jordan to console her.  Its like the First Wives Club, without the big musical number at the end.  This week, the person that gets evicted will have the chance to come back.  After a pep talk from Jeff and Jordan, Rachel is back into fighter mode.  Oh goodie.

Kalia's HOH room is like every other HOH room.  Shocking!  Something about her mom makes her cry like a baby.  The highlight is Rachel standing right behind her smirking.  Ah, nothing says high school girls like Big Brother.  Danielle is coaching Kalia.  She tells her not to agree to anything.  Rachel is the first one in to try to butter up Kalia.  Rachel asks Danielle to leave the room.  BURN.  Rachel now respect Kalia because she won an HOH.  Kalia does not seem to care.

Were back with Kalia and Shelly and Kalia talks about her hard life as a black woman.  I think im going to throw up.  Kalia is now sleeping on a hammock and Shelly feels the need to be a prankster.  She sneaks under the hammock and freaks out Kalia.  Its finally time for the Have/Have not competition.  Its a food competition.  There are two teams and someone on the team has to mix a disgusting drink and the other team mates need to guess whats in it.  Jeff starts for team Blue and Lawon for Red.  Jeff guesses first and guesses correctly.  He also gets the 3nd ingredient correct.  He gets the last one wrong however.  Lawon also gets 2 of 3.  Now they need to chug there drinks to see who wins.  Jeff wins the point.  Porsche beats Shelly in the next round to tie it at one point each.  Last round is Danielle for Red and Jordan for Blue.  They tie and now have to have a chug off!  Oh man this is gross.  Danielle wins.  So the have nots for the week are Jeff, Jordan, Shelly, and Rachel.  Jordan is sad she made he team have nots.  Shes adorable, i must say.  The Have Not menu is Coconut and Catfish.

Jeff and Jordan are in the have not room and Jordan is angry at the amount of floaters in this house.  I have to agree with her, there are so many people this season who are just blah and not doing much.  I guess that was the flaw with giving people a pass for so many weeks until they were in the top ten.  Kalia calls Shelly into the HOH room because she doesn't know where she sits.  Shelly has been the biggest flip flopper so far in the house.  She says as much in her talking head.  Jeff and Jordan are next in line to talk to Kalia.  Kalia wants to put up Rachel and Jeff so Jeff and compete in veto.  J and J don't like this at all.  Kalia insists shes straight shooting, but Jordan has had enough of Kalia's bullshit and chews her out and leaves.  Atta girl!  Now Jeff is tearing her a new one.  Kalia just really screwed herself over.

Kalia has locked in her nominations.  I'm fairly certain  we are seeing Rachel and Jeff here.  In a hilarious scene,  Rachel literally sits right next to Danielle, like almost on top of her.  Danielle scoots over, and Rachel follows.  How i love cattiness.  and in a shocker to nobody,  the nominations are Jeff and Rachel.  Kalia goes into normal excuse mode.  She makes some awful analogy about having wings.  Rachel tries to instigate Danielle again.  Jeff calls her Big Kalia!  That was classic.  See ya guys Wednesday!