1) American Idol - I thought about this last year and the previous years, but was there really any worldly necessity to bring back the Arsenio "dog pound"? I remember doing that in Elementary School during kickball games and memories of it makes me sick. And can we officially agree here and now that NO ONE, EVER AT ALL should ever sing a Stevie Wonder song for serious entertainment purposes unless they're Stevie Wonder? PLEASE! What if the whole cast gets voted off tomorrow night?!?! For the record, I'm currently about to watch Melissa. So far we've seen: Ace Young (TERRIBLE. He got through cuz if his pertiness. But can you say OVER BREATHING?), Kellie Picker (definitely a cutie but, Simon was right - BORING), Elliot (I think he was nervous, I think he definitely under-performed tonight), Mandisa (she was aiight), and Bucky (not his thang. he got a pass for actually performing).

Okay, so now we're on Melissa singing a completely new rendition of Lately - and it's not terrible. But still, the except-if-you're-Stevie Gag Rule qualifies. Making your own rendition might be the smartest route.

Lisa - one of the young bucks, who with the superstar make-up treatment looks a lot better this week than in the past. I think it's the bangs - they cover her bothersome eyebrow structure. I'm mean. Oh, and the performance is terrible.

Really, this is like sending South Africa into a pool of Domincan, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Japanese, American, and even Korean baseball players. You can't throw these amateurs in front of millions of TVs and say, "here, sing Stevie."

Kevin - this is actually my first time ever watching this kid. I give it up to him. Definitely the most entertaining. Vocals? Can he sing? Well, not really? He WAS in tune. But, you know - dork's got charisma. He's not really part of the competition, though, is he? I mean seriously? How the hell's he in the top 12 and Sway's not?

And on that note - I hope Taylor does well tonight and that Katharine shakes her booty.

-okay- i just published and I had to edit.

aside from my crush on her, but for real, Katharine just ripped it up. She definitely breaks the gag rule. YUM.

-second edit- Taylor is frickin sick! BEST performance, hands down!

-third edit- Paris was great too. Ridiculous vocals. Ultra natural and wonderful stage presence.

GREAT way to take it home.

2) I think it's a shame how broadcast companies are so un-loyal to their shows. It's understandable since viewership means all in the "all we're really doing is trying to sell ad space" world. Alias gave ABC four great seasons helping to bring more action dramas to TV. But since they struggled a bit last year - and they shipped it off to network hell (Thursday 8pm), the ratings have further struggled - their run might be cut shorter in this final season than expected. "Thanks for everything, now get the fuck out." It sucks.

- john

0 Proof Potent

This isn't as much a review, but a response to the most recent fresh episode of One Tree Hill. (I guess, in an honest world, a review should be a response more than what they generally are. Whatever they are.)

The episode, titled "With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept" was thrown upon us somewhat fast. I guess, in essence, the episode's foundation began from the first show, when brooding Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) begins his transformation from loner to cool kid. This episode basically covers, in a short nutshell, how one of Lucas' outlier friends lost his mind and soul due to isolation and being bullied. Jimmy, the friend, in a previous epsiode was shown to have extremely grating commentary about the high school social environment exposed prematurely when the school's video time capsule was released and shown at school and via the internet. This exposure not only turns isolated Jimmy from the forgotten to the notorious - and he subsequently gets beat up for his comments.

Now, this new episode, has Jimmy stressed out about the day and unwittingly turns another bullying attack into a teen-carrying-and-shooting-gun traumatic incident.

Having experience within the schools as both a student and a counselor, I thought the initial portion of the show was irritatingly manufactured. I thought some of the reactions and reasoning behind some of the actions were empty and shallow. I mean, how much can we really expect from One Tree Hill? (I mean, though I've only watched the show on DVD within the past 3 months, there hasn't been any real heart to the show or dedication to the humanity of the characters since mid first season.)

But basing a show on such a sensitive topic demands responsibility, and for the most part I'm still weighing whether or not the topic was handled responsibly. Were the characters fairly depicted? Was Jimmy a real young man in a dire condition? Was the abruptness of this episode a mirror to the reality of the generally abrupt, yet obvious, build up to this type of incident in real life? Were Jimmy's biting monologues honest to all the kids who are experiencing the real thing? Is it honest to say that bullying and isolation will lead to a similar situation?

I guess the answers won't be adequately answered until we see the responses in the next episode(s).

The writing obviously wanted to depict the situation in completely grey matter. It wasn't who was right or wrong - it just happened and in the end no one deserved any part of being any part of the situation.

What I did like about the episode was seeing the responses by the characters - by the youth characters. I hope that the young people who watched the episode were able to internalize EACH of the characters just because they ran the gamut of reponses and personalities AND roles.

What I HATED was the writers/editors need to advance the regular plot of the show at the end of the episode, where resident villain Dan ends up killing resident hero (and his brother) Keith so he can subsequently mask his murder with a murder-suicide scenario on the hand of Jimmy. Couldn't they wait? Couldn't it have been done differently?

There was so much emotion in this episode based on such real scenarios that could affect our young folks, and to end the episode on some stupid plot advancement seemed unnecessary.

And with that - no more One Tree Hill responses.

- John

0 Proof Potent