Wednesday, June 10, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

Set your DVRs! USA just announced that the premiere of Season 4 of Psych will be August 7. If you haven’t watched Psych before I highly recommend it. Shawn and Gus are two of the most entertaining characters on television. The show is an giant homage to the 1980s in addition to plenty of comedy and mystery to keep everyone in your family entertained.  I saw at Target this evening they have seasons 1 and 2 of Psych for $13.99 each (in-store only). They also had all three seasons of Arrested Development and a several others for that low price as well. I also picked up a DVD set of Superman I-IV (with Christopher Reeve) for $9.99. They had a few four movie compilations, including The Matrix Trilogy plus the Animatrix. Four movies for 10 bucks is a good deal no matter how you slice it.

Just a reminder that season 2 of True Blood starts this Sunday. HBO has posted some videos on their site to help you get in the mood. I’m excited to see what’s in store for the new season. I was visiting Charlaine Harris’ web site to see if there was any True Blood info and I saw she has a Sookie Stackhouse book coming out in October. It’s a compilation of her Sookie short stories called “A Touch of Dead“. You can pre-order the book on Amazon.com now. I had no idea the short stories even existed! I’m not surprised though. Janet Evanovich does a similiar thing with her Stephanie Plum series, except I guess you would classify them as novellas, really. Speaking of Stephanie Plum the next book, “Finger Lickin’ Fifteen” goes on sale June 23. It’s available for pre-order too.

I love pre-ordering on Amazon. When they lower the price by $1 just before release I feel like I’m getting a deal. I know it’s purely psychological but it makes me feel better. Most of the time Amazon does have the best prices on the web. Sometimes you can find better deals at Tower.com but the free shipping takes forever. Tower has all of the Sookie Stackhouse paperbacks for $5.99 right now, by the way. You’ll have to pick through the list to find them but it’s worth it. You can see the bibliography at the Charlaine’s web site linked above.

Well, that’s all for me on this fine Wednesday evening. Type again to you soon!

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Sunday, June 7, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

I’ve been having another quiet weekend at home rewatching seasons one and two of Psych and doing mundane tasks such as laundry, ironing and homework. Wow, my life is exciting.

I did watch the premiere of Burn Notice, albeit late because of a DVR malfunction. I saw my DVR was recording at the proscribed hour but when I went to view the show, Burn Notice was mysteriously absent from the list of recorded shows! I, of course, yelled at my poor cable box, to no avail, took a deep breath and then prayed that USA would show it again. I discovered they have a 6 a.m. replay on Saturday mornings. This time my DVR played nicey-nicey and I got to watch. I thought it was a strong start for the season and it had high ratings. Of course there’s not much competition right now, mind you, but kudos to USA anyway.

The real reason I’m writing tonight is because I wanted to let Firefly fans know about the Can’t Stop The Serenity (CSTS) screening for charity. In case you don’t know about CSTS, screenings of “Serenity” are held around the world in honor of Joss Whedon’s birthday (June 23) and the proceeds go to Joss’ favorite charity, Equality Now.

The Las Vegas Event is going to be held Saturday, June 20, 2009 at 7 p.m. at The Sci Fi Center, 2520 State Street (near Sahara and Maryland Parkway). Tickets are $5. You can get more information by contacting our local Southern Nevada Browncoats (of which I am a member) at SNBrowncoats@yahoo.com or by calling The Sci Fi Center at 702-792-GEEK (4335). This year’s screening will include prizes and raffles as well as a showing of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog, which is always great fun. Come out and join us!

If you’re interested in joining the Southern Nevada Browncoats visit http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/VegasBrowncoats/.

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Thursday, May 28, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

Happy Thursday to you all; one more day till the weekend!

Yesterday I promised to give you a list of the returning summer TV shows and discuss show renewals for the fall season.

Let’s start with our summer list. I’m not going to list EVERY show this summer just the sci-fi or “category: awesome” shows that I know I, and most everyone I’ve spoken with lately, am looking forward to watching, so here goes:

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Thank God for cable or we’d all be bored to tears in the summertime!

Moving on to a little farther in the future. The fall schedules have been released for each of the networks. Getting closer to the start of the season I’ll post a table with the shows and dates and such. I build a spreadsheet every year so I can set my DVR appropriately.

For right now I’ll just list the renewals and cancellations.

Renewals

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Cancellations

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That’s all for tonight folks. Type to you soon…

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Wednesday, May 27, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

I haven’t forgotten about all of you! I swear! I’ve just been swamped at work and school with catching up from my vacations this month. I went to Brian Head, Utah the weekend after my trip to Palm Springs and I just haven’t caught my breath yet. Whew!

I plan on writing a longer post tomorrow with a list of the returning summer TV shows and discussing the shows that were renewed (and canceled for that matter) in the official announcements last week.

For now, I will leave you with this tidbit of information for Vegas locals and our summer visitors…

The Regal Texas Station Stadium 18 is offering a Flashback Features series this summer each Wednesday at 6:30 p.m for $5 a ticket. The schedule is as follows:

For more information contact:
Regal Texas Station Stadium 18
2101 Texas Star Lane, at Lake Mead & Rancho in North Las Vegas
702-631-2206

Tonight they were showing Top Gun but I didn’t get the email in time. I think it would be cool to see some of these movies on the big screen again. I am definitely a child of the 80s!

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Friday, May 8, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

Well, I am happy to announce that J.J. Abrams is indeed THE MAN!

Star Trek was absolutely fantastic! I was half way through the movie and wanted to watch it again. There wasn’t a slow moment; the two hours just flew by. Just one spoiler (skip to the next paragraph if you don’t want to know), thank you J.J. for showing us how Kirk cheated on the Kobayashi Maru exam. So awesome!

Each actor did a great job of bringing our beloved characters to life. I could sit here and type all day about all of my fave actors in the movie (because I love them all) but I want to give special props to Anton Yelchin and Zachary Quinto who played Chekov and Spock respectively. While Anton didn’t have as much screen time as Zach, his accent was perfect and he was just so darn adorable. Zach, I love you on Heroes and in this movie you made me believe you really were Spock, which is saying something. Spock was always my favorite and I had a crush on Leonard Nimoy when I was a kid. Not sure what that says about me other than the fact I’d rather have a rational, logical man than a swashbuckling womanizer (ahem, Kirk) anyday! I don’t want to say much else because you really need to see this movie. Even if you’re not a sci-fi fan per se you’ll enjoy this film. You don’t have to be a Vulcan ear-wearing, suit-donning Star Trek convention goer to like this film. For the record, I have never, nor will I dress up for a convention. I may wear a T-Shirt but that’s the extent of my nerd-dom.

There’s plenty for fans of the series and movies too. Everyone cheered at the appearance of each character and when the catch phrases were uttered. Just another teeny tiny hint: see if you can catch the voice of one’s of Zach Quinto’s Heroes cast mates in one of the scenes. If you can’t figure it out I’ll post it at a later date. Bottom line, everyone of the actors were superb, the action and special effects were amazing and I could watch this movie 100 times and not get bored.

Before the movie they showed a few trailers for the next movies I’m looking forward to seeing: McG’s Terminator Salvation opening May 21st and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen opening June 24th. You can see Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese in Terminator Salvation as well (see, everything comes full circle). They also showed a longer version of trailer that premiered during the SuperBowl alongside Transformers. Now, don’t laugh, but G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra (which opens August 7th) actually looks pretty awesome. I hope it lives up to the trailer!

That’s all for today kids. I’ve got some homework to do and packing to leave the fair city of Palm Springs because I’m off to see my Mom just in time for Mother’s Day.

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Thursday, May 7, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

As you well know, I love a man in a kilt. I also love Nathan Fillion. Put those two things together and I am one happy girl. Nate was on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson last night wearing a leather Utilikilt in honor of Craig’s Scottishness. Hilarity ensued. Two very funny guys chatting about traditional kilt wearing is my idea of a good time.

Unfortunately, they haven’t posted the full episode on CBS’ website yet and I was only able to find part one of his interview on YouTube. Here it is for your viewing enjoyment:

Hunky Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who you may know as the Comedian in Watchmen and various guest spots on TV, was on Ferguson’s show Monday night. He talked about birds and the new suspense movie he’s about to shoot called The Resident with Hilary Swank, his co-star from P.S. I Love You—it will all make sense when you watch it. Here’s the crazy clip from YouTube:

Other TV news, the season finale hasn’t even aired yet but “Fringe” has been renewed for a second season by Fox. I’m glad that they are giving this show another season. I think J.J. Abrams has another hit on his hands. Leonard Nimoy is guest starring as Walter’s former lab partner William Bell on the season finale on May 12th. Be sure to tune in! Speaking of J.J. and Leonard Nimoy, I’m going to see Star Trek tomorrow morning so I’ll give you a review.

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Tuesday, May 5, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

Today we celebrate Mexico’s victory at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. I probably should have eaten some Mexican food today but I’ll do that later in the week.

I’m taking a much need vacation here is beautiful Palm Springs, California. Before I made the trek across the desert the most interesting thing about Palm Springs to me was that Cary Grant used to live here. Now I see the appeal of this little jewel in the desert. It’s nice. The weather is great; just the right mix of high desert temps and humidity for my liking. Nevada’s weather is awesome but it’s too dry for me and I have to sleep with a humidifier on just to breathe! Don’t get me wrong; I won’t be planning a move to the land of wind-powered turbines anytime soon. I may be more inclined to visit again in the future though. I thought this was a one-time shot but perhaps I was mistaken.

I also didn’t plan to do much site seeing here. I caved and decided to check out the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway to Mt. San Jacinto. The trams were, um, interesting. They installed new revolving platform trams in the early 2000s. It’s like riding a high-speed Space Needle up a mountain. It got a little hairy every time we went over one of the towers; the trams tend to sway “a bit” the conductor told us. I was holding on to the handrails for dear life a couple of times. You get used to it. By the time you take the tram down you’re a pro. People were even cheering! Not me, but, you know, other people were cheering. I’m just glad the tram didn’t take a header down the mountain and shatter into a thousand tiny pieces. Seriously, it’s safe. You should watch the video at the Mountain Station if you visit.

	Here’s one of the trams. I left the Valley Station and parking lot in the left of the picture for perspective.
	Aerial view of Palm Springs from the Mountain Station.

I got there just before 1 p.m. and didn’t take a tram out until 4:30! I loved it up there. I took a hike down to Long Valley and wandered around. I sat by a stream and watched the California Ground Squirrels play, listened to the wind in the trees and smelled that lovely pine scent.

	A meadow in Long Valley. Tranquility defined…
	One of the California Ground Squirrels that were hanging around the stream. This little guy was kind enough to pose for me sitting on a log.

It was like heaven on earth. There was still some snow in places and the temperature is usually about 30 degrees cooler up there.

	Just a little bit of snow left on Mt. San Jacinto.
	Here is a photo of me on one of the outlooks. It was really windy =]. An older gentleman that looked like shorter version of my step-dad took this photo. He was keeping up with the youngins!

On a totally separate note, TVbytheNumbers.com got the official word that “Life” has been canceled. Bummer! No word on “Chuck” yet. I am waiting with baited breath on that one. The season finale was so awesome! I know it was cheesy, but I LOVED it when Casey said, “Chuck me.” You’d know what I mean if you saw it.

That’s all for tonight folks. “Reaper” and “Fringe” are on tonight!

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Wednesday, April 22, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

Howdy, everyone. I’ve posted the photos for the Celtic Festival and Highland Games held this past weekend here in Las Vegas. I guess nagging does work because I didn’t watch TV tonight so these photos would be posted and I wouldn’t have to eat crow tomorrow. That’s right, I missed “Lost” and “Ghost Hunters” for you, Tina and Lisa. Thank God for DVR. Click here to view the photo page.

Just a few other things of note. There’s a rumor going around that there is lawsuit against Twilight series writer Stephenie Meyer from her college roommate claiming that Twilight is based on a short story she wrote in college at BYU. Rest easy because the lawsuit isn’t true and the hoax is certainly not affecting the filming of the next movie in the series, New Moon. In other Twilight news, SciFi posted a photo of the new members of the Quileute wolf pack on their web site (see below).

Photo from SciFi.com. Pictured left to right: Paul (Alex Meraz), Sam (Chaske Spencer), Jared (Bronson Pelletier) and Embry (Kiowa Gordon).

Wow, I definitely cannot wait for that movie to come out now! New Moon will be out in November closely followed by the next installment in the series, Eclipse. They are wasting no time making preparations.

In other vampire news, SciFi has posted a teaser clip for season 2 of “True Blood“, starring Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer. If you haven’t seen “True Blood” and you love the genre, it’s time to get on the bandwagon! It’s a great series, not kid-friendly or for the faint of heart mind you. “True Blood” is so great I even forgive writer/producer Raelle Tucker for leaving “Supernatural“. =]

I’ve read all of the Sookie Stackhouse novels and I can’t wait for the adventure to continue on HBO. I’m not usually into blondes but I have to say, I love the norse vampire character, Eric Northman, who is played by Alexander Skarsgård on the show. Charlaine Harris‘ next Stackhouse novel, Dead and Gone, comes out May 19. I’ve already pre-ordered on Amazon.

Time to walk the dog and go to bed. Talk to you soon.

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Wednesday, April 15, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

As you well know, today is last day to file your tax return without penalty. All you procrastinators get online and file your return or shoot on down to the Post Office and snail mail that puppy before midnight tonight or the government’s gonna come a-knockin’.

Speaking of procrastinators, did you know that Las Vegas is the number 10 city for tax procrastinators? As if we don’t have enough dubious honors. For the record, I am not one of them. I filed way back in February. I knew I was getting money back so why wait? Of course it went straight to my credit card bill. I’m still paying off the air conditioner I had to buy when my out-of-warranty decades-old unit died last July. Perhaps the reason why Las Vegans are so reluctant to file their taxes early is most of them owe Uncle Sam. I don’t blame them for waiting if that’s the case!

On to some TV news…

There’s been some more speculation regarding TV cancellations in past few days. Entertainment Weekly’s web site has stated that “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” is terminated. There’s still no official word yet from Fox.

Joss Whedon was interviewed at the Paley television festival in L.A. this week. First, let me give a shout out to my friends from Whedonopolis who are attending the event. Now, on to what Joss had to say…

He’s hopeful Fox will renew “Dollhouse” but because of what he calls “soft” ratings it doesn’t look good. I don’t know if you heard but Fox decided not to air the 13th episode of “Dollhouse”, opting to add it to the DVD release in July as an exclusive bonus feature. I’m sort of bummed about that because I just learned that Felicia Day from “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog” is a guest star in the episode titled “Epitaph One”. If the show does get cancelled, maybe they should just rename the episode “Epitaph” and call it a day.  Fox is counting on we loyal Whedon fans will shell out the money and buy the DVD set just to see the lost episode. What they don’t realize is we’ll buy it anyway; there’s no reason to pull a cheesy stunt like that. It’s akin to Sci Fi splitting the Battlestar Galactica seasons up and naming them like they’re a software update; or worse releasing one of the made-for-TV movies on DVD and then including them with the next season release six months later. Argh!

Now all we have to look forward to from Joss is the release next February of his foray into the horror movie genre The Cabin In The Woods. He says it’s about halfway through filming and it’s “going to be gorgeous”. I hope so, brother… I hope so.

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Saturday, April 11, 2009 by Alexandria Harper.

The regular TV seasons are almost over, some already are, and with sweeps coming around the bend TV fans are starting to chew their nails at the prospect of cancellation for their fave shows.

“Life” and “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” both had their season finales this week and there is speculation (see here and here) that it will be their last. Personally I’m bummed about that; I like both of those shows and “Terminator” has particularly stepped up to the storytelling plate this year. The finale of “Life” rounded out the story nicely, but “Terminator” left me wanting more. However, it’s not about how good a show is or what we, as fans, want, it’s about how a show performs in the ratings. Strictly based on ratings these two shows are goners.

Let’s talk about some Joss Whedon alumni and the state of their shows. Two of the shows are in the Monday line-up on NBC and ABC respectively.

Adam Baldwin is why I started watching “Chuck” but the total sum of the show is why I keep coming back for more. The whole world stops at 8 p.m. on Mondays (and Thursdays but I’ll get to that later). I record all of the shows I watch on my DVR. You know a show is good when I can’t wait for it to DVR before viewing! That’s right, I’m willing to suffer through commercials for “Chuck”–I love it that much. Word is “Chuck” may be on the chopping block despite critical acclaim and average ratings. You may have Jay Leno to blame for that. Hopefully another show will take the fall (Law & Order has run long enough!).

Nathan Fillion’s new show “Castle” started out strong but hasn’t performed well lately in spite of the fact that it’s awesome. I think that has something to do with the time slot; 10 p.m. is late for us hardworking people, although I have been watching “Castle” live since it debuted. I really hope ABC gives this show a chance. If you haven’t checked it out you should catch up on the show at ABC’s web site.

Joss Whedon and Eliza Dushku’s “Dollhouse” has seen poor ratings too. Is that Friday night time-slot really cursed (“Firefly” and “Dark Angel” anyone)? While adding in DVR numbers ups the ante slighty for “Dollhouse,” it’s not doing well enough. Granted, I don’t feel as married to this show as previous Whedon fare. There is a lack of Whedon’s trademark humor and a darker feel, but the last few episodes have been really good–last night’s in particular. So what if “Dollhouse” wasn’t a great show from the start? With only 3 episodes left, I won’t be surprised if Fox cuts its losses on “Dollhouse”, just a bit sad for Joss. I hope he’ll take the hint and jump over to the CW or maybe even one of the NBC-Universal cable networks. He could do so much more if he wasn’t hogtied by network TV executives.

I’ll keep you guys posted if (or when) the official axe comes down.

On a lighter note, “Smallville” and “Supernatural” received early pick-ups last month. I was disappointed in “Smallville” last season but this season has been really great, and not just because hunky Green Arrow (Justin Hartley) is a regular. =] The storytelling has improved over last season and I have to say I don’t miss Lana or Lex that much (sorry Kristin and Michael). “Supernatural” is my favorite show on television right now. It just keeps getting better and better. Last week’s episode, “The Monster at the End of This Book” was awesome! You gotta love a show that doesn’t mind poking fun at itself. The only thing I have to complain about is that the CW won’t be showing another new episode of my Thursday night boys until April 23. I’m seriously going into withdrawal!

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