Court upholds 'under God' in Pledge of Allegiance

Hopefully this court decision will put the whole "Under God" thing to rest for good.  I do find it interesting to hear Christians celebrating this, when the court is essentially saying, "Go ahead, use the phrase under God, it doesn't really mean anything anyway."  That is what "ceremonial" means, right? This is exactly why this stuff is a distraction and not a worthwhile use of our energy, there is no valuable, practical endgame to it. (cough... War on Christmas... cough).  Keeping a group of words in our pledge and on our coins doesn't change anyone's heart, (Half the people who say it don't mean it, and half the people who mean it don't feel the need to say it), and it doesn't make the nation any more or less Christian (setting aside my usual nations aren't Christians, people are, rant).  People on both sides of the issue know there is really only symbolic victory to be had here in a cultural war that we really should be trying to end instead of win.

Pixar and Nintendo at GDC

Just a couple quick links from the 2010 Game Developers Conference that you might find interesting as passed on by IGN.

- First is some great info (as well as some great sidestepping) from Nintendo of America's head honcho Reggie Fils-Aime (pronounced Fees-uh-may, I think)  In this interview with Reggie he drops knowledge on Pikmin 3, the new Super Mario Galaxy, and refuses to hint that a new Zelda may be coming this year.  He also deftly avoids mocking the PlayStation Move, Sony's new tangible admission that Nintendo got it right and they are playing catch up.

-  Second, here is a quick must read of lessons in storytelling from Pixar (the greatest movie studio of all time) that they present to game makers to try to inspire them to quit telling the same story over and over again.  It's simple but profound stuff and will take you all of 90 seconds to read through.

Betty White to host 'Saturday Night Live'

Might Makes White.

So SNL gave in and allowed the internet that puppy they've been begging for.  Now they just have to promise to feed and take care of it and clean up it's messes.  If you don't know the backstory, just know that somehow a group of random strangers started to coalesce around the idea that this golden aged girl would make a great SNL host and it snowballed into a curious but effective viral infection.  The truth is, it's a no lose situation for NBC and Lorne Michaels (who picked mother's day weekend for White's debut).  If she does well the show succeeds, and if she does poorly it's the internet's fault.  Either way, the publicity will be up enough to guarantee a few extra eyeballs and offers SNL a relevance in pop culture it hasn't had since Tina Fey pronounced maverick with a northern accent (an idea, by the way, that the internet could also claim as it's own, though to be fair, that one was a gimme.).  The real question, though, is how can "we the people" of the internet leverage this power for more than just novelty SNL hosts?  Can we start a viral that leads to Russel being retroactively declared the winner of Survivor 19?  How about one that forces Carmen out of retirement to do a full album of "story songs"?  Better yet, someone quickly start a Facebook Fan page to get Dave Ramsey instituted as our new Secretary of the Treasury ("The first thing you need to do United States is put $1000 into a savings account for emergency purposes.")  Point being, if the whiners heroes of the internet can get Betty White in as host of SNL, what other glorious victories might we accomplish?

Well, Hi There!

Well, looky here.  I have a blog.  What so ever shall I do with it?

OK, to be honest I don't want to spend long here doing the whole, "Sorry for not blogging for so long, this time I promise to stick with it" routine, because the internet is littered with enough of those type of posts already (I think there's probably three of four of them in my own archive).   Also they assume two things that I'm not sure are really true:

1) That you even realized I had stopped.

2) That it won't happen again 2 months from now.

The point is I wanted to relaunch rollinwithdice.com not just with a new look (cause really, who doesn't want 2/3rds of their giant head plastered at the top of every page) but also with some new features that will hopefully make my incoherent ramblings on pop culture more accessible and user friendly to the select few who find them interesting or entertaining (Hi Dad!).

Before we get into that though, just an update on life in general.

I'm a Missourigander now, at least that's what my son called us when we moved down here from Michigan in February.  I'm sure the actual term is something like Missourian or Missourite or something along those lines but as former Michiganders it made sense to him.  I'm also sure I could Google it in about 5 seconds and know for sure, but I'm just that lazy.  I will tell you this though, whatever you call them, these Missouri people are amazing and have been overwhelmingly welcoming, encouraging, and generous.  I now do the morning show at 88.3 the Wind in Springfield (we have an Iphone AND an Android ap.... take that Apple!) and spend my days gorging on the many local eateries, including Lambert's Cafe (where they throw your food at you they want you to have it so bad) and Andy's Frozen Custard (where they have an item called the James Brownie Funky Jackhammer that is just as delicious as it's name is confusing).  They also have TWO Chick-Fil-As, a fact that remains a primary reason I took the job (people continue to believe I'm joking when I say this, but I promise you, we don't joke about Chick-Fil-A in my house), that and it was 75 degrees on March 10th.  Sure, there is the occasional house eating tornado that drops in, but it seems like a fair trade for a moderately warmer climate and easy access to the occasional Chick-n-mini for breakfast.

So I figure with all the life change going on, now is as good a time as any to better focus and relaunch my own personal online pop-culture venting machine known as rollinwithdice.com.

Some differences you may notice:

1) Less Videos - Don't get me wrong, I enjoy them and will certainly do more, but to be honest, I miss writing.  There's something about being able to construct humor in sentence form that I find tremendously appealing.  Ok, fine, substitute "trying" for "being able" in that sentence if you must, but it is a pursuit I find challenging and worthwhile.  I've been inspired lately by what Jon Acuff is doing over at "Stuff Christian's Like" and really believe there is a place for my voice to come through here in a way it can't on video or even over the air on my daily show.   I will likely still do videos for my reviews (I just don't have the time it takes to craft a real review) but my commentaries and lists will almost solely be pounded out on a keyboard from here on out.

2) More Posts - but shorter.  In fact, Rollin will become more of a true blog in that most of the posts will be links to found content with brief commentary.  My goal will be to allow my addiction to consuming pop-culture content turn into your freedom to not need to.  If you have an interest in movies, tv, music, technology, gaming, or the internet and how that relates to your faith (or lack thereof, not judging, just want to be inclusive) then I can be your pop culture blood hound, seeking out our common interests, bringing you back what I find, and dropping it, tail wagging wildly, at your feet.

3) A Better Archive - I've taken the time to apply labels throughout my archives to give you better access to the things you are interested in.  Only want to read about technology stuff? Click tech.  Only want to see the reviews?  Click reviews.  Want to relive the horror of me ranking American Idol higher than The Simpsons in 2006? Just click Best of 2006.  As the content becomes more voluminous this will be key in you zooming in on the stuff you find most intriguing.

In my four years of doing rollin', and the previous three running hookedonsiphonics.com (long story, maybe later) I've always seen this space as my own personal outlet to record and proclaim my pop culture proclivities, and if you can find some use from it all the better.  Thanks for checking in, and let's get rollin'!

From the archives: The Incredibles Review

Before blogs existed I wrote for an actual website.  Scary, huh?   Check out this classic gem.

That's Incredible!!
("The Incredibles" PG)
(Monday Review 11/15/4)


Going to a Pixar film is more of an event than just seeing a movie. It's never just about the opening to ending credits, it's about the entire experience. It's the anticipation, then the kids talking through the movie ("Mommy, that's the same way Buzz Lightyear starts!"), there's the previews (including the debut of the new Star Wars and Pixar's next film "Cars"), and of course the Pixar short that directly precedes the feature (In this case a wonderful piece of encouragement called "Boundin'").  It is a testament to Pixar's genius that all of these things somehow work to enhance the main event and not distract from it. It's like the chef who knows his meal is more than just the final entree.  It's the perfect appetizers, the immaculate presentation that, though amazing in their own regard, really ultimately serve to prepare the way for the main course, and what a main course it is.

"The Incredibles" is the story of your prototypical Superhero family whose bane is that there really is no such thing as a prototypical Superhero family. Forced to hide their identity as "Supers" from the world, each member of the clan struggles to fit in and make due. Mom (once Elastigirl) and Dad (once Mr. Incredible) attempt to make married life work and suffer the slings and arrows of the workaday world and the domestic duties of the home. Preteen Daughter Violet disappears (literally) from sight as she struggles with fitting in at school and getting a sense of her self worth. Her younger brother Dash isn't handling school too well and can hardly contain his super speed. Only baby Jack Jack seems blissfully unaware of the difficulty of being an extraordinary person in an ordinary world.


The Wow Factor

Pixar continues to make technological strides that result in some of the most gorgeous images you will see on a movie screen. Pixar never forgets that making animation is not about trying to look amazingly real, it's about taking advantage of the fact that it isn't real to make it look amazing. You can see it in the way Dash's hair flies when he runs or the way the supersuits have the perfect sheen for the material. Once again Pixar sets the bar exceedingly high for all animation (computer or otherwise).  It's not just the technical achievement though that makes your head shake in amazement, it's also the sheer creative force that Pixar continues to be. I would have loved to have been there when they brainstormed ways that Elastigirl could use her stretchiness and watched how some of the ideas germinated. Without giving away too much let's just say she embodies what it means to be a mom stretched thin to meet the needs of her family (a fully intentional metaphor to be sure.)


The Whoa Factor

If "wow" is embodied by shaking your head in "How did they do that?" amazement then "whoa" is the drop your jaw adrenaline of absolute cool. There is no better example of this then the chase scene where Dash fully unleashes his abilities and you get 15 full minutes of your 5 year old yelling "WOO-HOOO!" or maybe that was me yelling. Either way, the action in this movie is the best superhero action of the year, if not ever (and that includes the amazing "Spiderman 2").  Now, I'm all for huge chunks of eye popping action, but it's the story that gives it the weight. Pixar's main mantra has always been "story first" and it once again shows in "The Incredibles".

The Awww Factor

At the heart of this story is family. This family that deals with the same issues as most other families. Dad deals with missing the "glory days", daughter Violet deals with fitting in at school, son Dash deals with needing an outlet for his ADHD personality and Mom deals with holding it all together. It's no accident that their superpowers reflect the issues they deal with. Mr. Incredible's brute force is an metaphor for his need to be strong for his family. Violet (as in shrinking violet) wears her hair in front of her face and hides every time the cute boy in class is around, so it's no surprise her powers are invisibility and the ability to create a force field around herself. Dash's super speed is a perfect fit for every pre adolescent hyperactive boy, and Mom's elastic limbs represent her need to be a million places at once and the flexibility every mom needs to survive. Each member learns over the course of the movie that they are strongest using their "powers" together instead of all going their separate ways. Though this family unity theme is certainly important, the message of their gifts goes deeper.  It's also about how the gifts are used. As if taking a page right out of I Corinthians 12 (that's in the Bible) there is a large emphasis on how the family must use their gifts for good. Though this is certainly a common theme in any superhero story, it's one that is touched upon more deeply here. Each family member must come to grips with how their powers fit in a world that is no longer welcoming them, which brings us to the final message that this movie slams home. "In a world where everyone is super, no one is."  These words are spoken by both Dash and bad guy "Syndrome" at different points in the movie. It is a purposeful commentary on a culture of forced mediocrity and false equality. It certainly resonates in a world where kids are told they are all the same, and grades are discontinued in favor of gold stars and candy bars. The point is some people are better at certain things than others. It doesn't make them more valuable as a life, or more important as a human being, it just gives them more ability. If a child is "super" at academics, athletics, arts, or any combination of these and other gifts it's not something that should be "dumbed down" so the rest of the class feels better about themselves. It should be celebrated, cultivated, and allowed to grow. The people who use their gifts to their fullest and for good are truly the ones we should refer to as "The Incredibles" and we shouldn't let jealousy detract from their greatness.

The truth is "The Incredibles" is well.... Incredible. And we have the superheroes at Pixar to thank for using their superpowers for good and not being afraid to be leaps and bounds better than any other studio working today.


Overall: A

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: #6 Alice in Wonderland

The countdown hits full stride as we enter the 6 movies that I am not just anticipating but am fully geeked for. The uncompromising Tim Burton kicks it off as he takes us through his own personal looking glass.

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: #7 Clash of the Titans

Powerful beings in an all out war? Sign me up! Clash of the Titans comes in as the 7th most anticipated movie through next summer.

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: #8 Kick ***

The General Mills cereal sponsored preview continues with thoughts on a movie with a title Dice can't even bring himself to say out loud.

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: #9 The Lovely Bones

The cereal enhanced preview continues with a look at Peter Jackson's next project, The Lovely Bones.

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: #10 Christmas Carol

Kickin' off the most anticipated list with a look at Jim Carey's latest face bending performance with a little help from the ones and zeros.

Holiday and Beyond Movie Preview: 2012 Review

A look at the spectacle that is Roland Emerich's 2012 kicks off the Holiday (and beyond) Movie Preview sponsored by General Mills cereal.... sort of.

Is the Droid an Iphone Killer?

Can Verizon's new phone the "Droid", take a bit out of Apple? I'm not sure, but it may just be the first convergent phone I put on a wish list.

Momentum: Day 4

Thoughts on today brought to you live from the best ride at any of the Disney parks.

The Surprise Assignment.

The Surprise Reversal.

Momentum: Day 3

Curbside report from Day 3 of Momentum 2009 in Orlando.

The infamous Barlowgirl intro.

Momentum: Day 2

A look at Day 2 of Momentum 2009

This is how I roll.

Momentum: Day 1

Video blog of my adventures in Orlando at the Momentum Conference. Here's what happened on day 1.

21 Hours of TV Fall Preview (Weekend and Final Tally)...

Thank God it's Friday. I've already packed the rest of my week with 18 and a half hours of TV, leaving just 2.5 hours of weekend viewing. The good news is that the networks are in the utterly ridiculous habit of using the weekend for a dumping ground of shows that are either A) lousy or B) a repeat of something from earlier in the week. It's all based on the theory that people are out doin' stuff on Friday and Saturday night and don't care to sit down and watch TV, which again, is all fine and dandy if your audience has never heard of DVRs or "the internets". Whatever the case, it's a nice respit for someone who is trying to squeeze everything into 21 hours. Let's see if we can make it happen!

Friday

The only thing worth mentioning on Friday night is the second season of Joss Whedon's "Dollhouse". Though it started off shaky at the beginning of it's debut season, it eventually caught momentum in the last handful of episodes and I now find myself pretty invested in the world of actives and dolls. There are some really interesting philosophical and practical conversations to be had at The Rossom Corporation and I'm anxious to see where they lead. With four kiddos in my home between 4 and 10, I've also briefly flirted with watching "Suppernanny"..... wait, I mean "Supernanny", though I suppose we could use a supper nanny as well..... point being, I imagine at the end of the day it would be like watching "The Dog Whisperer" where you marvel at the magic man who can communicate with dogs, and then as soon as you try his tactics, your miniature dachshund urinates all over the couch.

The color coded breakdown:

Green = Will be programmed on my DVR
Blue = Not for me, but feel free.
Red = Move along, nothing to see here.

8PM

ABC - Supernanny
CBS - Ghost Whisperer
CW - Smallville
Fox - Brothers

NBC - Law & Order

8:30PM

FOX - 'Til Death

9PM

ABC - Ugly Betty
CBS - Medium

CW - Top Model (repeats)
Fox - Dollhouse
NBC - Southland

10PM

ABC - 20/20
CBS - Numb3rs
NBC - (Can't believe it but yes once more it's) Jay Leno

------------------------------------------------------------------

Saturday

This "repeats" show must be pretty amazing to have two networks airing it on the same night! It must be like a Presidential address or something....

Keep it moving...

Nothing to see here...

The color coded breakdown:

8PM

ABC - Saturday Night College Football
CBS - Repeats
Fox - COPS
NBC - Dateline NBC

9PM

Fox - America's Most Wanted
NBC - Repeats

10PM

CBS - 48 Hrs. Mystery

--------------------------------

Sunday

The two longest running prime-time entertainment shows of all time occupy my time on Sunday nights. The Simpsons is entering season 21 and AFV is crotch shotting it's way into it's 2oth. Both shows still make me laugh out loud (seriously, it's rare, but it happens) and I'm glad to see that some shows still embrace who they are enough to realize that sometimes evolution leads to extinction, and "if it ain't broke don't fix it" is the key to longevity. Speaking of not being broke, another season of "The Amazing Race" will be kicking off on Sunday nights and should be a blast. The race remains one of the only reality shows that includes "teamwork" as part of the equation all the way through. It's an added dynamic that makes for extremely compelling TV. Not much else here for me, I've never really gotten "The Family Guy" thing, and Extreme Home Makeover is great TV, but gives me too much trouble with commandment 10. I also gave up on Cold Case in the "great procedural purge of 2008" so there is no interest there either.

The color coded breakdown:

7PM

ABC - America's Funniest Home Videos
CBS - 60 Minutes
Fox - The OT
NBC - Football Night in America

8PM

ABC - Extreme Home: Makeover
CBS - Amazing Race
Fox - The Simpsons

8:30PM

Fox - The Cleveland Show

NBC - Sunday Night Football

9PM

ABC - Desperate Housewives
CBS - Three Rivers
Fox - Family Guy

9:30PM

Fox - American Dad

10PM

ABC - Brothers and Sisters
CBS - Cold Case

Weekend's Total: One hour drama, One half hour sit-coms, Two 1 hour Reality, 3.5 Hours

Final Total: 9 hours drama, 3 hours comedy, 9 hours Reality, 1 hour Musical = 22 hours

-------------------------------------

DOH! 22 hours. 1 hour to cut before we can call it a day. "Modern Family" would be at the bottom of my list and would make an easy cut, but I hesitate to cut any new shows out of the mix and really there isn't much else in the half hour category to cut so I'd be off on my numbers. Plus I'm already running low on my comedy for the week so it makes more sense to cut something reality or drama. It might also be useful in this situation to see where my DVR is on overload (it can only record two things at once) and cut something there. The two slots where "three's a crowd" are Thursday (8PM, SNL/Parks - Survivor - FlashForward) and Monday (8PM, SYTYCD - Biggest Losser - Shark Tank). I'm not cutting any of the Thursday stuff (I'll catch SNL and Parks on Hulu) which leaves Monday.

Hmmmm....

I've got it. Here's what happened... uh, sorry... channelling Monk there for a second. Here's what I'll do. Since "The Biggest Loser" is already a bloated show (ironic, eh?) and nothing really exciting seems to happen until the weigh ins, I'll cut the first hour of The Biggest Loser, and bingo, we are in business. Of course then midseason hits with "Chuck", "Better off Ted", "30 Rock" and "The Celebrity Apprentice" and the process begins anew.

Until then, DVR away my friends!

21 Hours of TV Fall Preview (Thursday)...

Thursday continues to be the most compelling night of TV. Let's start with NBC who has had me locked into their Thursday night comedy programming since we gathered as a family 25 years ago to watch Cliffy, Claire and the kids lose things in the fridge and invent zrbtts. This year is no exception with "Community" easily looking like the best new comedy of the season. "The Office" and "Parks and Recreation" continue to be very funny, and Seth Meyers on "Weekend Update" is one of the most underrated SNL cast members of all time. Add to this the most anticipated new show of the year, "FlashForward", the grand daddy of all Reality TV, "Survivor", and the two best new shows of last season, "Fringe" and "The Mentalist", and Thursday is inching me ever so close to my 21 hour limit with the entire weekend still to come. This is despite me having given up on CSI after the Fish took over for the Grish last year. Not only that but rumor has it there are people who enjoy Grey's Anatomy and Bones as well. Which brings me to my main question, why, in an age of DVRing and Internet downloading, is everything on the same night?! Move some of this stuff to Saturday night for Pete's sake. Pete has a DVR and he will set it and watch it another night when Pete is home, I promise.

The color coded breakdown:

Green = Will be programmed on my DVR
Blue = Not for me, but feel free.
Red = Move along, nothing to see here.

8PM

ABC - FlashForward
CBS - Survivor: Samoa
CW - Vampire Diaries
Fox - Bones
NBC - SNL: Weekend Update Thursday

8:30PM

NBC - Parks and Recreation

9PM

ABC - Grey's Anatomy
CBS - CSI
CW - Supernatural
Fox - Fringe
NBC - The Office

9:30PM

NBC - Community

10PM

ABC - Private Practice
CBS - The Mentalist
NBC - (Yes, really, it's even more) Jay Leno

Thursday's Total: Three 1 hour dramas, Four half hour comedies, one 1 hour reality, 6 hours

Overall Total: 8 hours drama, 2.5 hours comedy, 7 hours Reality, 1 hour Musical = 18.5 hours

21 Hours of TV Fall Preview (Wednesday)...

Only 2 days in and I'm almost half way to my weekly limit. I may have to do some pruning of the DVR tree after all. Wednesday seems to hold mostly cookie cutter comedies and Crime shows, which results in lots of red on my chart below. There really isn't much of interest for me except for FOX's pairing of the "So You Think You Can Dance" results show and new musical "Glee". I'm on record saying that Glee is lousy TV in every way except the musical numbers, but those musical numbers are soooooo good, that I just can't help wanting to see what the next one will be. It's like golfing, in that you walk around the course chopping holes in the ground and hitting the ball sideways, swearing you will never play again, then just as you are fed up, you nail a sweet 250 drive down the center and feel like it might actually be the greatest game every invented. The only other thing I will be watching midweek (for at least 3 episodes) is the comedy "Modern Family". The buzz is good on it, so I'll drop my anti sit-com bias just long enough to scoff at it a few times. I'll also try to keep my Christian judgometer at bay as the new parents at the right of the picture seem to be setting it off (must.... judge.... homosexuals.... can't.... help.... myself).

The color coded breakdown:

8PM

ABC - Hank
CBS - New Adventures of Old Christine
CW - America's Next Top Model
Fox - So You Think You Can Dance
NBC - Mercy

8:30PM

ABC - The Middle

CBS - Gary Unmarried

9PM

ABC - Modern Family
CBS - Criminal Minds
CW - The Beautiful Life: TBL
Fox - Glee
NBC - Law & Order: SVU

9:30PM

ABC - Cougar Town

10PM

ABC - Eastwick
CBS - CSI: NY
NBC - (Still) Jay Leno

Wednesday's Total: One half-hour comedy, One 1 hour reality, One 1 hour Musical 2.5 hours

Overall Total: 5 hours drama, .5 hours comedy, 6 hours Reality, 1 hour Musical = 12.5 hours

21 Hours of TV Fall Preview (Tuesday)...

The 21 hour challenge continues with what appears to have become "Reality Show Tuesday" for me this year. With House's move to Monday night, 8PM Tuesday now holds three of the best reality shows on TV, all of which worth a look. Shark Tank apparently will take up permanent residence in that slot after a stellar kick off on Sunday nights (I say apparently, because all online sources still have it as debuting on Sept. 29th, but unless it's a mass delusion I think I've already seen 4 episodes.) and The Biggest Loser remains compelling and features a returning contestant this season for the first time. The highlight, though, has to be the move of "So You Think You Can Dance" to a fall slot, where it can show that lousy "celebrity" dancing show what real dancing looks like. When you watch SYTYCD you don't ask frivilous questions like "Will Tom Delay manage to stay on his feet and sweat less than a contestant at the World Sauna Championships, you ponder things like the power of addiction or a friend's fight against cancer. Yeah, yeah, I'm getting a bit high and mighty for a guy who loves "Wipeout", but there is a lot of heart and depth to this reality show and it should be getting a little bit more attention than it does. The only other show that looks interesting is The Forgotten, if for no other reason than to see if Christian Slater can have back to back failed dramas in consecutive seasons (That would be a record, right?) It's also worth noting that CBS has apparently decided that they want to air nothing but procedural dramas from here on out, adding NCIS:LA to NCIS while continuing to run CSI, CSI:NY, CSI:Miami, and Criminal Minds. Enough is enough already, we get it. Now that I think about it, it's actually hard to believe that there is any make believe crime even left with all these brilliant investigators on the loose.

The color coded breakdown:

8PM

ABC - Shark Tank
CBS - NCIS
CW - 90210
Fox - So You Think You Can Dance
NBC - The Biggest Loser

9PM

ABC - Dancing with the Stars
CBS - NCIS: Los Angeles
CW - Melrose Place

10PM

ABC - The Forgotten
CBS - The Good Wife
NBC - Jay Leno (again)

Tuesday's Total: One 1 hour drama, One 1 hour Reality, Two 2 hour Reality 6 hours

Overall Total: 5 hours drama, 5 hours Reality, 10 hours

21 Hours of TV Fall Preview (Monday)...

Welcome to the 3rd annual 21 hours of TV Fall preview. Everyday this week we will look at the current day of the week and what will be on that night (Friday, we will look at the weekend). It's my self imposed task every year to limit my TV viewing each week to 21 hours (14 without commercials, just so you understand I'm not as addicted as you think.). In going through the daily schedules I will rate each show red, blue, or green. Green means I will be watching (at least initially), blue that I won't but I won't hold it against you if you do, and red that I refuse to believe anyone of sound mind could be interested. At the end of the week I will add my total hours up and cut what I need to get down to the required 21, which this year appears as if it might be an incredibly easy feat with Mr. Leno's completely unappealing endeavor taking up a full hour each night.

Monday

Once again this year I will be one of the few who just isn't interested in "Dancing with the people you might or might not have heard of at one point." The show is completely unappealing to me as I like my reality competitions to eventually have some actual talent on them. The other programming that I won't be partaking in, that many of you will, is the Monday night CBS comedy block. I've heard really good things about "Big Bang Theory" but I gave up laugh track sit coms a few years ago, and I don't plan on ever going back. Can you imagine a drama putting in GASPS or SIGHS in the audio to cue us into when we are supposed to be scared or relieved? Filming in front of an audience should be completely reserved for sketch shows and sports, and I'm too insulted by the practice to wade through the canned response to find real humor. I did, however, manage to find four hours of TV on Monday nights that I will once again lock into my DVR, all returning shows. "House" and "Lie to Me" are absolute musts, and "Heroes" and "CSI: Miami" remain pleasant distractions despite thier many flaws. CSI:Miami might be the one show on TV where a laugh track might be helpful, just so I know the writers and producers are in on the fact that this show has become much more of a comedy than a drama. The only other show that I might revist if I've got hours to spare is "Castle". It looks fun and I've been rooting for Nathan Fillion since "Firefly" was so badly mishandled.

The color coded breakdown:

8PM

ABC - Dancing with the Stars
CBS - How I Met Your Mother
CW - One Tree Hill
Fox - House
NBC - Heroes

8:30PM

CBS - Accidentally on Purpose

9PM

CBS - Two and a Half Men
CW - Gossip Girl
Fox - Lie to Me
NBC - Trauma

9:30PM

CBS - Big Bang Theory

10PM

ABC - Castle
CBS - CSI: Miami
NBC - Jay Leno

Monday's total: Four 1 hour dramas, zero comedies, zero reality = 4 hours today, 4 hours total.

Review: Wii Sports Resort

Nintendo's follow up to the best selling Wii game of all time. Can it live up to the original?

Queue Tips: Mamma Hancock Torino

A few movies that might be worthy of a trip to the top of your Netflix list.

Nothing says Fall like the 3 Ep Test...

Sure for some fall has arrived when the colors change, when the kids go back to school, or when the Detroit Lions blow their first game, but for me it's all about fresh new TV. I love filtering through the new offerings that the networks throw at us and picking a few to try on for size. I call it the 3 ep test and it's based on the theory that any new show can be fully embraced or dismissed by watching the first 3 episodes, no more, no less. Last year (linky link) of the 8 shows I vetted 3 failed (Life on Mars, Hole in the Wall, and Crusoe, all of which have disappeared since), 2 passed but were still cancelled (the so-so America's Toughest Jobs, and the under appreciated My Own Worst Enemy) and 3 passed with flying colors (Dollhouse, Fringe, and the brilliant Mentalist). This year I'm planning on giving the triple dip to these 6 shows, listed in order of anticipation from least to most.

Modern Family
Wednesday, ABC, 9 (Sept. 23rd)

It takes a lot for a comedy to get me interested, too much probably. Other than The Office or Arrested Development, there really hasn't been a recent example of a show that blipped my radar from the get go. I'm so done with the "sit-com" thing that I often dismiss shows out of hand that might actually end up being hilarious. I'm still kicking myself a bit about missing the boat on "Big Bang Theory" which I hear is great, but I just can't bring myself to start watching. All of this to say that "Modern Family" is only on this list because I felt like I needed to give more sitcoms a chance and it seemed like the most interesting.

Glee
Wednesday, FOX, 9 (Sept. 16th)

Glee is already one episode into the 3 ep test and I just can't figure out where I'll land on this show. Sure, I hated just about everything in the debut episode that wasn't a musical number, but when those musical numbers hit this show was pure magic. If they can just find a way to increase the quality of the rest of this show by even the slightest bit, I may just have to stick with it.

The Forgotten
Tuesday, ABC, 10 (Sept. 22nd)

My annual pick for show I will fall in love with that gets cancelled. I'm not sure why I would think that, considering it's not every year that a major network pulls together a high concept drama staring Christian Slater. I mean there's no way that could fail, right?

Shark Tank
Tuesday, ABC, 8 (Sept. 29th)

This is the second show on the list that I've already had a chance to partake of and it's probably not fair to consider it "anticipated" as I'm already on record as saying it's the best new reality show I've seen since The Biggest Loser debuted five years ago. There are no gimmicks here, just real business people, with real money, looking for real investments. Each "shark" has his or her own distinct engaging personality and watching them devour these prospective entrepreneurs is both entertaining and educational.

Community
Thursday, NBC, 9:30 (Sept. 17th)

The only new comedy of the season that I am genuinely geeked for. The promo spots are clever, endearing, and best of all FUNNY! The cast looks stellar and I can't wait to see if the writing each week can live up to the promise of these first few pieces.

Flash Forward
Thursday, ABC, 8 (Sept. 24th)

ABC has stationed Flash Forward to snag momentum from LOST's final season and become the new serialized water cooler drama that everyone is trying to figure out. They even cast one of every one's favorite losties, Dominic Monaghan, to put the cherry on top. They've got quite a lot to live up to to maintain LOST's voracious fan base, but if they can figure out how to balance the questions with the answers and move toward a conclusion they just might have something here. One things for sure, I'm geeked to see it and I'll be on board, well, for at least 3 episodes.

Review: Expelled

Ben Stein tries on Michael Moore's clothes for size. Do they fit?

Avatar and uh... Avatar

I can't decide which Avatar movie I'm more excited for, but James Cameron sure does know how to play the hype card.

Queue Tips: Doubting the Frost in NY.

I've seen about 70 movies on DVD this summer, here are three you might want to check out.

Rollin' Return and Shark Tank Thoughts

Some thoughts on what's to come at Rollin' as well as a quick look at TV's Shark Tank.

Review: Transformers 2 (Movie)

Thoughts on the latest Transformers, and Michael Bay's penchant for the immature.

M. Night Website

Thoughts on an interesting website experience, and asides on all things M. Night ShamWow.