Weekend Wrap-Up

The home stretch to finals and graduation is kicking my butt, so I apologize for the dearth of updates. There were some exciting developments in both "The Office" and "Battlestar Galactica" over this long weekend, and they of course need to be talked about.

First and foremost, we know Jim has an engagement ring for Pam. A RING! And he bought it within a week of his & Pam's first date. And this is why every 'Office'-watching woman I know is in love with Jim Halpert. He is the perfect boyfriend. The whole "Pam...will you wait for me while I tie my shoe?" was hilarious. I really hope this becomes a running gag for the rest of the season. Until the finale, when he actually proposes, of course. Which will be in some fantastic, totally Jim way.

Also, is this really the end of Michael & Jan? He seems to want to move on. But I wonder if he's kicked her out of his condo yet -- is he living with Dwight? Inquiring minds want to know.

"Oscar Meyer Weiner Lover." Too good to go without a mention.

Poor Kevin. First Stacy breaks up with him, then he has to endure the long walk to the Scranton business park each morning. I'm glad he "won one." It was great to see more of him this week anyway, after he got pushed to the side for the dinner party last week. But when will we get more Stanley?

Nice to get a line from Creed this week. Can't wait to see what happens when he gets his three chairs.

And, in everyone's favorite sci-fi epic, a not-so-favorite character bites it, a Cylon unleashes her dark side, and a really cute baby almost gets airlocked. Oh, and Starbuck is probably crazy.

Kara and her skeleton crew (Gaeta, Seelix, Anders, and the Fighting Agathons) are drifting somewhat aimlessly through space while she sorts through star charts and paints pictures of the sky on her walls. I thought the butterflies in her stomach were telling her where to go -- are they out of commission now? Anyway, she and Sam have some kind of love/hate-filled tryst aboard the Demetrius, and Kara tells Sam that she only married him because it (he) was easy and safe. We knew that already, Kara. Sam thinks Kara is another Cylon. That's probably going to end poorly for him.

Zarek is back, and he's manipulating Lee, I think. At the very least, he's trying to undermine Laura again by telling Lee how much she is amassing power and using secretive means to do so. So Lee does Zarek's bidding and tells the Quorum and the press about some document she was planning to keep secret. I really the writers don't turn Lee into Zarek's unwitting puppet. Seriously? We just went through that with Lampkin last season, and Lee is an intelligent man, so let's not make him look stupid again, kay?

The Cylon civil war continues, this time with the Cavils playing like they want peace with the Sixes, Twos, and Eights but then destroying their basestars without a Resurrection Ship in range. Yeah. It sucks. Also, Boomer and Cavil are an item. Ew.

Cally has been seeing everything through a fish-eye lens, if the camera focus on her this week was to be believed. She's also been going slightly crazy, what with her constantly crying child and imagining an affair between the Chief and Tory. She sneaks into the wall where the Four (minus Anders) have a conversation about being Cylons. Hearing that her husband is a Cylon doesn't sit well with Cally, to put it mildly. She beats the crap out of Chief with a wrench and then attempts to airlock herself and her Cybrid child, Nicky. She's interrupted by Tory, who has taken a turn to the dark side, but she's eerily calm and composed about it. She talks Cally into handing over Nicky and then bitch-slaps her halfway across the airlock chamber. Some newfound Cylon strength, perhaps? And then Tory sends Cally out the airlock. The End. Only 17 to go.

For lighter fare, I should have the Dancing with the Stars recap up tonight, and I just taped a re-run of the first episode of "Mad Men" on AMC, so I'm way excited to watch that tonight, too.

A-FRAKKING-MAZING

Battlestar Galactica: Season 4, Episode 2. "Six of One"

I love this show. I loved this episode of this show.

I loved that Roslin actually shot at Kara...and when she missed, her bullet landed directly in the middle of a picture of her and Bill.

I loved the scene between the Admiral and Kara in the brig. He can be so terrifying (a la "Torn," but he clearly loves her still).

I loved "We're going the wrong waaaaay!"

I love Katee Sackhoff, probably more than is healthy.

I LOVED HeadGaius. The conversation between real Gaius and the Gaius in his head was priceless. I think I prefer two Baltars to one. But what happens when HeadSix comes back? Does Gaius get two imaginary friends?

I loved the rec room scene and the toast to "missing friends." I thought it was a nice call-back to the final scene of "Scar."

I loved that the show took five minutes to show a conversation between Adama and Roslin. These two know how to hit each other where it hurts, and while seeing Madame President break down is never easy, Mary McDonnell really makes you feel her pain.

The scene between Lee and Kara in the brig, and what it meant for the two of them. I really, really hope it wasn't good-bye forever, but if it was...

"I never could say no to anyone."

"Except me."

"Especially you."

"Good luck on your journey, Lee Adama."

"You too, Kara Thrace."

...what a way to say farewell to Starbuck and Apollo.

I loved Lee's Galactica send-off. I cried, of course. But for those who have been invested in this character since the beginning, that moment meant so much: it was a goodbye to life that he never really wanted to lead, but now that it's time to let go, it means giving up everything that has defined him since the beginning of the series. I can't wait to see where they take Lee's character. And, bonus: I love that Jamie Bamber can wear civilian attire now.

I loved the beginnings of the Cylon civil war. I can't wait to see what happens now that the Centurions are self-aware. What happens if the Centurions destroy the models? Does the Cylon race just return to what it was before?

I love that Six is the boss of everything. I love this new incarnation -- I think her name is Natalie-- and I love how she is totally distinct from every other version Tricia Helfer has created up until now.

I love that we finally can pair numbers to faces: Cavil is One, Leoben is Two, D'Anna is Three, Simon is Four, Doral is Five, Six is Six, and Boomer is Eight. I wonder why they skipped Seven? Speaking of numbers, I totally thought that Six was going to unbox the Threes, and D'Anna was going to walk through the door, not the Centurions.

I love that Tigh basically pimped Tory out. Am I wrong in thinking that she slept with him on her own volition? I mean, I don't think she had to do that, it was just something about the way he talked about life's harmony got to her.

I love that Adama let Kara go, in defiance of Roslin. I love that Helo helped.

I hate that there are only 18 more episodes.

Perfection.

Thursday Top Five: The Office is BACK, and we're celebrating

Tonight at 9 p.m. on NBC, our long national nightmare will come to an end. That's right, "The Office" is back after a long, LONG four-month hiatus. In fact, all of NBC's Thursday night comedies are new tonight, so after I suffer through an hour of American Idol results, I can cleanse my soul with "30 Rock," "The Office," and the soon-not-to-be an NBC comedy "Scrubs."

To celebrate the return of Jim and Pam (and all of our other favorite Dunder-Mifflinites), today's top five will celebrate relationships, the successful, the adorable, and the frustrating. In reverse order:

Honorable Mention: The "Most complicated but oh-so-intriguing" relationship: Starbuck & Apollo (Katee Sackhoff & Jamie Bamber, "Battlestar Galactica")

Will BSG creator Ron Moore put these two star-crossed lovers (?) together at the end of this, the final season? It's been foreshadowed all the way since "I thought you were dead," in the miniseries. These two have had to endure a dead brother & fiance, marriages to other people (one of whom is a cylon), their own emotional shortcomings, and now the fact that Starbuck is back from the dead and no one knows why. Is the "Starpollo" 'ship doomed to sink? We've only got 19 more episodes to find out, but I still believe, especially after seeing the "Unfinished Business" extended cut on the Season 3 DVD set. They're destined.

5) The "Who in the hell kept them apart for so long?" relationship: Luke & Lorelai (Scott Patterson & Lauren Graham, "The Gilmore Girls")

I absolutely love the final episodes of Season 4, starting with "Luke Can See Her Face." It's the culmination of four seasons of romantic tension, and when they finally kiss on Lorelai's front porch, I challenge anyone not to at least cheer a little. Luke may be the only one that can handle Lorelai's neuroses, but the producers only gave us, like, one season total of the two of them being happy, before Luke inexplicably becomes an asshole in season 6 and then Lorelai inexplicably gets married to Christopher in season 7. Thankfully, she divorces Christopher and sings "I Will Always Love You" to Luke near the end of the final season, and they live happily ever after. Alas, it is in a world in which Lauren Graham does not have an Emmy and William Shatner does.

4) The "So gay it's not gay" relationship: Turk & J.D. (Donald Faison & Zach Braff, "Scrubs")

What can I say? YouTube "Guy Love Scrubs" and you will witness the hands-down best male friendship on primetime TV. College roommates who grew up to work at the same hospital, Turk and J.D. redefine man-crush into man-love. Besides "Guy Love," the best moment in their relationship is when Turk comes home from his honeymoon with Carla, only to have a joyful reunion with J.D. at the hospital.

3) The "For God's sake, just DO IT already" relationship: Mulder & Scully (David Duchovny & Gillian Anderson, "The X-Files")

Ah, the days of X-Files and years of Mulder and Scully not kissing. First there was the forehead kiss in "Momento Mori" that should have been so much more. (She had CANCER, dammit, just kiss already!) Then there was the kiss-that-wasn't in "Fight the Future." Stupid alien-vaccine bee had to go and interrupt the almost kiss. Oh, and let's not forget "Triangle," where Mulder was trapped in the Bermuda Triangle in 1942 and kissed the Scully look-alike, only to wake up on a raft and discover that it wasn't the real Scully. FINALLY, we had "Millennium," where the real Scully and the real Mulder kissed each other on the lips at the stroke of midnight. Then there was "All Things," the did-they-or-didn't-they sleep together episode. It all culminated with "Existence," when Mulder (returned from his abuction experience) and Scully kissed over their weird alien baby. And then Duchovny left the show.

2) The "Wow, married life doesn't look so bad" relationship: Coach & Tami Taylor (Kyle Chandler & Connie Britton, "Friday Night Lights")

On FNL, the adult relationship between Eric & Tami is the heart of all things awesome. They bicker and they tease, but they love each other, and it is beautiful.

1) The "Oh, my God, could they BE any cuter?" relationship: Jim & Pam (John Krasinski & Jenna Fischer, "The Office")

Of course, it had to be them. And I apologize ahead of time for the cheesiness and poor production value of the video I'm about to embed, but no amount of gushing on my part can accurately describe the cuteness that is Jim & Pam. It has to be witnessed. And it's back on my TV tonight!!

Welcome Back, BSG

Some thoughts I had while watching the season premiere:

Kara's adventures in time-traveling: Moore & Eick and Cuse & Lindelof must be friends. First there was "Heroes" and the discussions of space and time, then there was the magical island where time moves differently, and now there's Kara Thrace's wormhole experience. It actually reminded me a lot of the movie Contact, where Jodi Foster meets the aliens for 16 hours but it was really only a few seconds. I really like that Kara has no clue, but I wonder if she remembers the part Leoben played.

Also, that revelation in "Razor" ("Kara Thrace will lead the human race to its downfall") is looking a lot more important right about now. What happens if they follow her? I still think the series ends with them showing up in present-day Earth's atmosphere, and Bush orders up some nuclear missiles and kills them all. Side note: the question of what time period they'll find Earth in is fascinating to me. Do they arrive before us? Or do they find the remains of our civilization and start over?

Tigh "shooting" Adama: I totally bought it at first. And I loved the way it was shot, with the kind of slow, dream-like quality.

More thoughts later, but I'm off to the Carrier Dome for a full day of lacrosse. Go Cuse!

Tonight, Tonight

"Even if you're skeptical of science fiction, "Battlestar Galactica" will make a true believer out of you. " -- Heather Havrilesky, Slate.com

We are currently six hours away from the final season premiere of Battlestar Galactica. This show is -- now that "The Wire" is no more-- the greatest thing on television, and the first of twenty episodes of its fourth season will start tonight. To celebrate this glorious day, I've been re-watching my favorite episodes from Season 3. The only thing tampering my excitement: there are only ten episodes scheduled as of right now. Due to the strike, Sci Fi is holding the final ten for some unknown airdate. Which sucks, because I do NOT think I can wait another 13 MONTHS for the final ten to air.

If you have not yet seen Battlestar Galactica, don't tune in tonight and expect to understand what's going on. Here is my special three-step process for understanding BSG:

1) Read this. It's the best argument I've ever seen for watching the show, and it's mostly in picture form.

2) Watch the mini-series that preceeded the showIf you're not hooked after that (which is almost impossible), watch '33,' the first episode of season one, and one of the greatest episodes in the entire run of the show.

3) Get to Netflix or your nearest Best Buy, so that you can catch up on the 60 epsisodes that have already aired.

OR: you could read this primer from Slate, which sums up all you need to know before watching the premiere tonight. (5 hours and 45 minutes from now!!!)

Here's a whole bunch of links to read before tonight's premiere:

The LA Times loves Battlestar. And thinks you should watch.

A great interview with Maureen Ryan with BSG co-creator Ron Moore. If you might be tempted by spoilers, avoid this one.

Here's an interview with Apollo himself, Jamie Bamber. (No spoilers)

My favorite TV critic, Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle, raves about the fourth season, although he gets a lot of the facts about the show's backstory wrong. (Major spoilers, if you have not seen season 3)

Alan Sepinwall gives another rave. Here's another. And another. And yet another.

This doesn't have anything to do with BSG, but two other shows that we watch here at TCB: Hereoes and Chuck will air 13 straight new episodes starting in the fall.

Make sure you're watching: Battlestar Galactica, Season 4, Episode One, "He That Believeth In Me." Tonight at 10p.m. EST on the Sci Fi Channel.

Weekend Top Ten: BSG Moments

Allie and I have been insanely busy, so unfortunately we didn't make the usual Tuesday Top Ten this week. But that's OK, because now we can start preparing for a week of Battlestar Galactica coverage heading into its fourth-season premiere on Friday night. Allie and I are both huge fans, so needless to say, it has been a difficult year without Lee, Starbuck, Laura, and Tigh on our TV screens. Like I did for Lost before its long-awaited return, here are my ten favorite BSG moments of all-time. (With help from a couple of BSG-fan friends, Jeremiah and Julie) One thing we noticed is that unlike Lost, which produces tons of great "moments," BSG produces great episodes. For example, any BSG fan can tell you that '33' is one of, if not the best, episode of the series. But it doesn't have any stand-out "moments," it's just a fantastic all-around episode.

Honorable mentions: Death of Pegasus (Exodus, Pt. II), Six snaps the baby's neck on Caprica (Miniseries), "I miss you." "I miss you too." Kara & Lee have a boxing match (Unfinished Business), Lee (almost!) drops his towel (Final Cut) -- Yeah, I'm shallow, and Jamie Bamber is gorgeous. So what?

10) "As of this moment, we are at war." (Miniseries.) The culmination of everything the audience has seen from the opening shots, and the 45-minute build-up to the declaration of war builds tension slowly and carefully all the way to Adama's speech to his ship.

9) Pegasus appears on the dradis. (Pegasus) Another battlestar! More colonials! Before we found out that Cain was a murdering bitch, the sight of another surviving ship lifted everyone's spirits.

8) Opening the Tomb of Athena. (Home, Pt. II) The moment when Kara realizes that they're all standing on Earth, surrounded by what we know as the Zodiac symbols, made everyone -- including Admiral Adama -- believe that they might actually get to earth one day.

7) The Cylons find New Caprica. (Lay Down Your Burdens, Pt. II) This is a season finale to beat all other season finales. But the sight of the centurions marching through rows of colonialists remains my lasting image of the episode. "Fight 'em 'til we can't," says Kara. So say we all.

6) The Blackbird is named Laura. (Flight of the Phoenix) As my (very manly) friend Jeremiah said, this was the moment that even men would cry at.

5) "I'll see you on the other side." (Maelstrom) Kara says good-bye to Lee. And the entire audience says "NOOOOOO!"

4) "All Along the Watchtower." (Crossroads, Pt. II)

3) Boomer shoots Adama. (Kobol's Last Gleaming, Pt. II) We all knew Boomer's programming would kick in eventually, but did it have to right after the successful destruction of the Cylon basestar? I mean, sending us off into the long wait between seasons one and two was very, very cruel when we knew that approximately half of Commander Adama's blood had already been spilt on the table in CIC. Thank the gods the Old Man recovered before Tigh ran the fleet into the ground.

2) "I've been to earth. I know where it is. And I'm going to take us there." (Crossroads, Pt. II) From a personal standpoint, the shrieking started with the reveal of the four cylons, increased when Starbuck appeared, and then crested with the spiral pull-back to our Earth.

1) Galactica jumps into New Caprica's atmosphere. (Exodus, Pt. II) Could it be anything else? Someone on televisionwithoutpity.com called it Adama's "Psychotic Act of Badassery." I think that sums it up perfectly. It also won the BSG team a visual-effects team an Emmy for this episode.

Only six days to go! And The Office is back a week later! I'm so glad my shows are coming back.

MADNESS!

That's right, the most wonderful time of the year is finally here -- and it has nothing to do with Christmas. Instead, the present that we get is hours upon hours of college basketball. And Gus Johnson, the best play-by-play guy in sports. Yes, it's sad that our beloved Orange aren't in the field of 65, but that won't stop me from skipping class to plop down on my sofa and watching basketball from noon to midnight.

For those, like my fellow blogger, who could care less about Xavier averting an upset this afternoon, there is Lost Madness, which is run by the Washington Post. Their bracket is made up of Lost characters, and they're down to their Final Four. Go here to cast your vote.

In case you missed it, the cast of Battlestar Galactice appeared on Letterman last night to read the Top 10 list. Clearly, the audience didn't have a clue what the hell the show was, but any fan will get a kick out of it:



Back to basketball. Lost recap tomorrow!

Battlestar Galactica in 8 minutes

This video has been making the Internet rounds, and for good reason. If you're a huge BSG fan, you'll appreciate how much they mangaed to cram into 8 mins. If you've never seen BSG but want to watch it someday, DON'T WATCH, because absolutely everything is spoiled, and it will ruin it entirely.

Playing Catch-Up, Part II: Links

Links about our beloved shows and other pop culture tidbits that have accumulated over the past week:

If you're into this kind of thing, Maureen Ryan has some Season 4 Battlestar Galactica spoilers. I'm staying spoiler-free, but if you want to know episode titles and a bit more, she's got good info.

She also has some promo shots for the season, one of which appears at the top of the post. Minor spoilers, I suppose, but I didn't see anything that upset me too much.

I love movies. I also love Matt Damon. It follows that I really love the Bourne movies. And apparently, because they've been so financially and critically successful, they're making another one. Yay!

Entertainment Weekly has put together "30 Under 30" best actor and actress lists. The actress list includes a few head-scratchers (Jessica Alba? Someone thinks she can act?), but the actor list is full of adorable and talented men. Check it out here.

I'm always on the lookout for news from Firefly alums. The A.V. Club has an interview with Summer Glau, currently appearing on The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

So, I was looking forward to the movie Fanboys (starring TCB fave Kristen Bell) last summer, but they've pushed it back and re-shot almost the whole movie, and now the real fanboys don't want to see it anymore.

ABC is going to offer an OnDemand service for its shows, but you won't be able to fast forward through the commercials. LAME. I have a DVR for the express purpose of avoiding commercials.

From Televisionary, this recap of last week's episode of Lost is phenomenal.

While we fight for its renewal, (On ANY channel, NBC, I don't care if it's CNBC or Bravo or what, just put it back on!!) FNL Season 2 is coming to DVD soon.

I have a lot of problems with the new Sex & the City movie trailer. Namely, the plot sucks. Big leaves Carrie at the altar? Are you KIDDING me? What did we go through 6 seasons of anguish for, then?!?!

Bill Simmons, better known as the Sports Guy on ESPN.com, and huge Wire fan, dedicates his entire podcast this week to discussing the finale. Obviously, huge spoilers if you haven't seen up to Episode 9.

Links, Etc.

The Lost recap will be a delayed a bit this week, because as soon as the episode ends tonight I will be heading over to Gate E at the Carrier Dome to camp out for the Georgetown game. And yes, I know the game starts at noon on Saturday. But sacrifices must be made. It's Georgetown.

Here are some post-strike plans: from NBC, we learn that Heroes and Chuck won't be back until next season. The Office and Scrubs will be back in April, though the fate of the series finale of Scrubs is still up in the air. Friday Night Lights...well, reference Allie's post below. Keep the 'Lights' on, NBC. I'm begging.

ABC has renewed Dirty Sexy Money, Private Practice, Grey's (duh), Lost (duh), and Ugly Betty, among others. Money and Practice won't be back until next fall, but the others will film at least a few more episodes before the end of this season. It has also announced that starting in April and after a mid-season break, Lost will air in the plum post-Grey's timeslot, Thursday nights at 10.

In other Lost news, co-exec producer Carlton Cuse spoke to Ausiello (Alli'e fav) about his plans for the remainder of the season. Among the highlights: we're only getting 13 of the 16 promised episodes this season. (Boo!) But those three episodes will be incorporated into the final two seasons somewhere. (Yay!)

Battlestar Galactica Season 4 premiere: Friday, April 4th. That is only 50 DAYS from now. And only 380 days after the Season 3 finale.

My half of the Tuesday Top Ten

These top 10 lists are hard. I needed to get Allie’s input to make my final cut. Here’s my top 5, in order:

5) Sex and the City Season 6, Pt. II (Series Finale) “An American Girl in Paris, Part Deux”
I still bawl with happiness every time I watch this episode. Carrie (finally) realizes that Alek and Paris are all wrong for her, and she leaves him...just in time for Big to come into the hotel and sweep her back to New York. Sam tells Smith that he means more to her than any man she's ever known, Magda tells Miranda what we already know: that she truly loves Steve, and Charlotte and Harry get their baby. Oh, and Big's name is John. The finale's joy hasn't dulled in four years, and now we can look forward to the "extra" finale in four months' time when the movie comes out.

4) The Office, Season 2 “Casino Night”
We're a bit too young to remember 'Cheers' and Sam and Diane, so when our generation wants an unrequited love story that pulls at our heartstrings, we turn to Jim and Pam. For two seasons, we watched Jim pine over the engaged-to-an-asshole Pam; and Pam, for her part, spent quite a bit of time flirting back. It all came to a head in the second season finale, when Jim confessed his love to Pam, only to have her say "I'm sorry you misinterpreted things..." But just a few minutes later, as she talks to her mom on the phone, Jim comes in and kisses her -- and she returns the kiss. It was a perfect moment...at least until the third season, when the writers spent an entire season keeping them apart.

3) Battlestar Galactica, Season 2 “Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II”
Really, all three BSG finales could have made my list, but this one does because of the sheer balls-out audacity of Ron Moore to skip his show ahead an entire year near the end of this episode. But before that mindfrak, we had Roslin trying to rig the election, but she gets caught by Adama and we welcome in President Baltar. The first thing the new leader does is have sex with Gina, who then goes and blows up herself and the Cloud 9. Then we flash forward a year, and most of the fleet has settled on the surface of New Caprica, Lee is fat, he and Starbuck aren't speaking, Starbuck is married(!) to an ailing Anders, Adama has a mustache and the Galatica is empty. And then the Cylons show up. President Baltar offers up the surrender of mankind and the centurions move in. Holy crap. How did this come in third?

2) Lost, Season 3 “Through the Looking Glass”
I've said enough about Lost this week, but just to recap: this finale re-invigorated the show after a semi-lackluster season. It introduced an exciting new element in the flash-forward, and of course, a whole bunch of new questions. In addition, we bid a tearful farewell to Charlie, Hurley and his magic bus saved the day, Sayid killed a man with his feet, Sawyer shot Tom, and oh, yeah: they contacted the rescue team. Who may or may not be an actual rescue team.

1) Battlestar Galactica, Season 3 “Crossroads, Pt. II”
I couldn't pick just one BSG finale, so Season 3 made the cut, too. Even though it's been an entire year since Sci Fi actually PUT THE SHOW ON THE AIR, the twists and turns of this episode have stayed with me. First and foremost: the identity of four of the final five cylons are revealed (to the tune of "All Along the Watchtower"), and they're people that we know. I mean, Tigh's a cylon?!? Seriously? Meanwhile, Gaius is acquitted, Dee leaves Lee (thank the gods!), Roslin's cancer is back, and in the middle of all of the chaos, the Cylon fleet attacks. Lee sheds his lawyerly suit and gets back up in the air, only to witness the return of Starbuck to the land of the living (is she a cylon? only in Lee's head?). As if her resurrection wasn't enough, she tells Lee that she's been to Earth, she knows where it is, and she's going to take the fleet there. And then we spiral out and we see our Earth. God, I miss this show. I want it back, yesterday.