Deputy Leo and Veronica Mars Reunited?: 4 Other TV Reunions I Would Have to Watch

I watched the pilot of New Girl, but I didn't find the show compelling enough to keep watching. Recently, New Girl's Max Greenfield talked about wanting Kristen Bell to appear on an episode of the show. As a huge Veronica Mars fan, there's no way I'd miss a Deputy Leo/Veronica Mars reunion, and I'd definitely be suckered in for an episode. This made me think about other reunions that I would be compelled to watch.

1) Hart of Dixie: Seth and Summer

I like Rachel Bilson, and I really wanted to like Hart of Dixie. I watched the pilot plus some of the third episode. Honestly, it was kind of boring, and the acting was pretty bad. I did, however, watch all four seasons of Rachel Bilson on The O.C. as Summer Roberts. So if Adam Brody were to appear on Hart of Dixie, there's no way I would miss it. Adam Brody even acknowledged the possibility in this interview with Wetpaint Entertainment, but the suggestion was sadly made in jest.

2) Ringer: Pretty Much Any Buffy the Vampire Slayer Reunion

I'm kind of cheating by including Ringer because this is already happening. I'm also kind of cheating because I've actually been watching Ringer. But I'm not really attached to it, and an increase in the number of Buffy reunions might fix that. I've seen several different online comments that have suggested that Charisma Carpenter join the show by playing Juliet's mom (including one on the following link), but sadly, that's not happening. In any case, the more Buffy reunions that take place on Ringer, the happier I'll be. Since Jason Dohring is on Ringer as well, I'll also gladly accept any Veronica Mars reunions.

3) Hawaii Five-0: A Massive Lost Reunion

Hawaii Five-0's promos have made me well aware that both Daniel Dae Kim and Terry O'Quinn are on the show. As much as I love Lost, I have zero interest in Hawaii Five-0, and I'm going to need a little more than that for me to watch. I wouldn't be too picky about the who, but I'm talking several main characters (and no Kate please). This is kind of a ridiculous request, but this is also kind of a ridiculous list. Make it happen, CBS.

4) Pretty Little Liars: Any American Juniors Reunion

Back in the summer of 2003, American Juniors was my show. I was pretty much obsessed. I watched every episode (even taping a few of them on videotapes), fantasized about appearing on the show one day, followed the contestants careers via the internet, and bought the two CDs associated with the show. I honestly thought it was just about the coolest show ever. So when one of the contestants, Lucy Hale, began to appear in various roles, I instantly recognized her. Nowadays Lucy Hale is most well know for her role as Aria Montgomery in Pretty Little Liars. I know a lot of people love Pretty Little Liars, but after two episodes, I just gave up on it. However, if there were to be some kind of American Juniors reunion on the show, I would totally watch. Or you know, at least watch the appearance on Youtube later.

Now that I've shared four TV reunions I'd love to see, I want to hear what reunions you're hoping for. I'd love to hear your suggestions in the comments.

Link Roundup: Volume 10

Josh Radnor's movie Happythankyoumoreplease had a pretty limited release, but it's now available on Netflix streaming. For what my opinion's worth, I thought it was a bit pretentious and not a standout but cute and a nice effort from Josh Radnor.

I will always love Full House, but Full House Reviewed, which is full of loathing for the show, is my new favorite blog. In the past few weeks, I've read the entirety of the blog. No regrets.

Three of my favorite shows, Modern Family, Happy Endings, and Revenge, are returning with new episodes tonight. Find out here when other shows are returning (and premiering).

This video is so old, but I couldn't help but share. Check out this hilarious prank interview between Dominic Monaghan and Elijah Wood.

28 Netflix Streaming, free Hulu, and TheWB.com TV Recommendations: Part 2

It's time for part two of my Netflix Streaming, free Hulu, and TheWB.com recommendations. I hope you all enjoyed my first 14 picks in part one. Here's a reminder as to how to list is set up:

First of all, Netflix Streaming recommendations have red text next to them, Hulu recommendations have green, and theWB recommendations have blue. Secondly I've put parentheses next to each suggestion with the available seasons and the total number of seasons. For example, if it says (2/5), that means that season 2 is available and that there are five total seasons. That does not mean that the first two seasons are available. Lastly, the second set of parentheses is either (sc) for series complete or (ca) for currently airing.

Quirky

These shows are all creative and somewhat offbeat. While they all lasted at least at least two seasons, none lasted beyond three. After watching one of these picks, you can join the legion of fans who are outraged at its cancellation.

1. Arrested Development (1-3/3) (sc) Watching Arrested Development will allow you to understand a much larger percentage of references on the Internet. This off-beat show is loved by many, and if you give it a shot, you'll likely join in on that love. It's funny on many, many levels and is ridiculously witty. Even after watching the series and reading some trivia lists, I'm sure there are plenty references and jokes I've missed. The show centers around Michael Bluth, a man dealing with his crazy family and trying to keep their family business afloat after his dad lands in jail. There's much more to the show, but it's best if you just discover it for yourself.

2. Better Off Ted (1-2/2) (sc) After you watch all three seasons of Arrested Development and are in the process of waiting for its new episodes to appear on Netflix, you can watch this gem to tide you over. It's not quite as good as Arrested Development, but it reminded me a lot of it. It has that quirky feel and it features Arrested Development's Portia de Rossi. Better Off Ted is a strange, satirical show about an evil corporation, Veridian Dynamics, and a single father and fairly-nice guy Ted Crisp who works there. I'll be honest, it took me a couple of episodes to really get into Better Off Ted, but once I did, I breezed through its short list of episodes.

3. Eli Stone (1-2/2) (sc) Eli Stone has one of the most ridiculous premises I've ever heard of: a lawyer with a brain aneurism begins have hallucinations (often in the form of a song) that lead him to help people. Yet somehow it manages to be a pretty great show. It's been a while since I've watched an episode of Eli Stone, but I remember really enjoying it. If you're looking for a quirky show, this one definitely manages to bring the quirk, along with some fun musical numbers.

4. Pushing Daisies (1/2) (sc) Pushing Daisies has to be one of the cutest shows about murder ever created. The show centers around Ned, a piemaker with the ability to bring the dead back to life with a touch. He must touch them again, taking that life back, within 60 seconds or someone else will die. Once he reawakens his dead childhood sweetheart, they and Ned's grumpy friend Emerson Cod use Ned's power to solve murders. There's a surreal fairy tale atmosphere to the show, and visually it's stunning. Each episode is truly a unique treat.


Foreign

These shows all come from either the UK or Canada. So, check oot what they're all aboot, and grab a cup of tea as you watch these blokes. No, that previous sentence wasn't forced or full of blatant stereotypes at all.

1. Downton Abbey (1/2) (ca) Downton Abbey is very much like a Jane Austen novel in television form. It follows an aristocratic British family and their servants in the early 1900s. It took me a while to warm to the series, but once I did, I was hooked. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the Crowley family's and their servants' drama. This is the kind of show that the phrase "clutching my pearls" is perfectly fitted for. I've yet to watch the second season of Downton Abbey, but if it's anything as good as the first, I know I won't be disappointed.

2. Doctor Who (revived series) (1-5/6) (ca) Doctor Who is about a time lord from another planet who travels around time and space in his TARDIS. Typically he brings a human companion with him in his travels. It's a show that can be pretty cheesy, but it's almost always fun. After hearing a lot of hype about it, I first tried watching Doctor Who last summer. To be honest, I thought it was pretty stupid. I was expecting some cheesiness, but I decided I just couldn't take it after watching three and a half episodes. Many months later, I thought I'd give it another shot and watched a highly-praised season three episode, "Blink," and I actually enjoyed it. So, I started with season two and found myself quickly sucked into Doctor Who. Plenty of people actually like Doctor Who from the beginning, but if try it and don't, you may want to try watching it in my order.

3. Being Erica (1-3/4) (?) Like Doctor Who, Being Erica features time travel; however, it's really more of a drama than a sci-fi show. The show begins with Erica running into therapist Dr. Tom after a terrible day. Unlike most therapists, Dr. Tom has time-traveling abilities and sends Erica back into different moments in her past to try to fix her regrets. Being Erica could have easily strayed into saccharine territory, but the lessons she learns almost always manage to seem fresh. Plus, time travel is always fun. Being Erica is a cute, sweet, and enjoyable Canadian gem that you shouldn't overlook. The series seems to be completed, but I can't find any definitive word as to if it is.

Comedy

I feel like I should have come up with a funny way to introduce these shows, but if you really want to laugh, that's what these are for.

1. How I Met Your Mother (1-6/7) (ca) If you've never watched How I Met Your Mother, you might be kind of turned off by its name. It's true, the series uses the framing device of father explaining a long winded story to his kids about how he met their mother. Besides that, it's pretty much a Friends-eque "group of friends hanging out" comedy. It's kind of ridiculous how much I love How I Met Your Mother. I've seen every episode at least once, but I've seen the episodes in the first four seasons a ridiculous amount of times. It's got a great cast and plenty of hilarious moments. I could gush about How I Met Your Mother for paragraphs, but I'll just leave it at this: watch this show.

2. Parks and Recreation (1-3/4) (ca) I'd probably say that Parks and Recreation is my favorite comedy currently on television. It had a bit of a rough start; season one was uneven and was too similar to The Office. However, season two and onward have been hilarious. Parks and Recreation is about the Parks and Recreation department in the town of Pawnee, Indiana. The main character is Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) a go-getter with high ambitions for the departmen, but Parks and Recreation is one of those shows where every character is so likable that I just can't choose a favorite. I just want to smile the whole time that I'm watching it.

3. The Office (U.S.) (1-7/8) (ca) Go ahead. You can laugh at me for including The Office. I feel like 99 percent of television-watching people have seen at least part of an episode of The Office at some point. In fact, there's probably no reason for me to include a short synopsis, but for those of you who haven't seen it: it's a mockumentary about an inappropriate boss, Michael Scott, and the paper company he works at. Anyway I'm including The Office for two reasons. One, I wanted to make those who are big fans of The Office aware that it's available on Netflix. Two, if you've only ever casually watched The Office, I'd recommend marathoning at least the first few seasons in order. There are definitely some good episodes in the later seasons, but there's a freshness in the early episodes that works well for episode-marathoning.

4. Raising Hope (1/2) (ca) I've previously written about Raising Hope in more detail, but I'll briefly talk about it again. Raising Hope follows the Chase family as the son, Jimmy, raises the daughter he received after a one night stand with a serial killer. The show gets a lot of humor out of the Chase family's tackiness, but it always manages to laugh with them rather than at them. Plus, the babies who play Hope are among the cutest tv children I've ever seen.

Reality

This list is really short because a lot of my favorites aren't available on Netflix streaming or for free online.

1. Solitary (1-4/4) (sc) I think the fact that I enjoy this show says something disturbing about me. The premise of Solitary is that nine contestants are placed into individual pods with only the voice of Val, a computer companion, as company. They are forced to undergo uncomfortable situations and challenges during their time in this solitary confinement. I almost feel bad for enjoying this show, but it's pretty fascinating.

2. Primetime: What Would You Do? (2-5/5) (ca) I've never been able to figure out the pattern for when Primetime: What Would You Do? airs on television. My sister and I would just set it to record on the DVR and be pleasantly surprised when it appeared in our recordings. Primetime: What Would You Do? is a show where actors act out various situations such as a boyfriend speaking abusively towards his girlfriend or a shop owner showing racism. Then the show documents various people's reactions towards the situation. The situations are not necessarily the most accurate social experiments and the show has a tendency to villanize bystanders, but the show is interesting and enjoyable.

Short-lived

This really should have been placed in the previous list with the others in the short-lived category. However, I had only watched one episode at the time I posted my last list. Since then, I've managed to watch all 13 episodes. I can now say with certainty that it deserves its spot on my list.

1. Terriers (1/1) (sc) When I first read about Terriers, I took one look at the name and thought "thanks, but no thanks." Weeks into the show, however, I read an article that compared it to Veronica Mars. If you read part one of this list, you know that I adore Veronica Mars. So I checked Terriers out as soon as I saw it had been added to Netflix streaming. Terriers focuses on Hank and Britt, two unlicensed PIs who become involved in a scandal that's much bigger than they initially realized. It's not Veronica Mars, but it shares some similarities and is an enjoyable detective show.

Well, that marks the end of my list and my realization that I watch far too much television (okay, maybe that's more of a reminder than a realization). Hopefully, you found something interesting to check out.

If you want to share your thoughts on any of the shows in this list or add another suggestion, please feel free to leave a comment.

28 Netflix streaming, free Hulu, and TheWB.com television recommendations: Part 1

Services like Netflix streaming make it easy to watch a show marathon-style, but sometimes it can be hard to find a good one. So I'm going to help you Netflix streaming subscribers find a tv show that you'll enjoy. I've also included a few suggestions from Hulu (free, not Hulu plus) and TheWB.com (also free). The WB site changes it's selection of available episodes pretty frequently, so if you're seeing this list much later than the date I posted it, their selections may have changed by now.

I've watched at least some portion of all of the shows posted in this list. Some of them are cheesy and light; others are high-quality television. All of them, however, are enjoyable in my opinion and come with my recommendation.

Before I get to the actual list, I'd like to quickly explain a couple of things about it.

First of all, Netflix Streaming recommendations have red text next to them, Hulu recommendations have green, and theWB recommendations have blue. Secondly I've put parentheses next to each suggestion with the available seasons and the total number of seasons. For example, if it says (2/5), that means that season 2 is available and that there are five total seasons. That does not mean that the first two seasons are available. Lastly, the second set of parentheses is either (sc) for series complete or (ca) for currently airing.

Now, without further ado, here's my list:

Realistic Fantasy
These were a little hard to categorize, but they all deal with a world similar to our own but where something out of the ordinary exists.

1. Lost (1-6/6) (sc) Lost is a show about a group of plane crash survivors who arrive on a mysterious island. It's a show that a lot of people hate and a lot of people love. I fall into the second camp. The characters are interesting, the mysteries are intriguing, and the plot twists are exciting. I'll admit the last season was slightly lackluster and the mysteries aren't all solved, but overall, it's a great show that's well-worth watching.
2. Dollhouse (1-2/2) (sc) Dollhouse is a Joss Whedon show about a company that programs humans with different personalities, loans them out, and then erases those memories. One of these humans ("dolls"), Echo, starts to retain memory of the various personalities she's been given. Dollhouse poses some really interesting questions about identity and is fascinating to watch. I don't think it ever lived up to its full potential (I wish it had been quicker to move beyond the "case of the week" format into the overarching story), but it's still a really good show with moments of greatness. 
3. Heroes season one (1-4/4) (sc) Heroes is a show about ordinary people who deal with having superpowers, or at least, the first season was. It got somewhat convoluted as the story went along, and although I watched the first three seasons, I can only wholeheartedly recommend the first. There's something really fun about watching ordinary people deal with extraordinary circumstances, and the first season of Heroes deals with this masterfully. There's a lot of characters, but it manages them well. The main villain, Syler, is scary and mysterious (sadly, he loses both of these qualities in later seasons), and the "heroes" are fun to root for. 

Teen Dramas
I'm an absolute sucker for teen dramas. If you are too (and honestly for the first two, even if you're not), watch my following recommendations.

1. Friday Night Lights (1-5/5) (sc) Friday Night Lights is about Dillon, a small town in Texas where high school football and family play a central role in many of the residents' lives. After my last sentence this is going to sound kind of funny, but you really don't have to be a huge sports fan to enjoy this show. While I can enjoy watching a football game from time to time, I'm not a supremely sporty person, but I adored Friday Night Lights. It's really easy to get invested in Friday Night Lights' characters, and, as a viewer, you begin to feel like a resident of Dillon. Outside of season two (which contained some ridiculous plots), there's really a realistic feel to show. It's definitely one of the highest quality teen dramas I've seen.
2. Veronica Mars (1-2/3) (sc) Veronica Mars is about a outcast teenage girl (Veronica) who investigates mysteries, including the death of her best friend. It may sound like a cheesy Nancy Drew knock-off, but it's absolutely fantastic. In fact, it was the first show I can remember marathoning, and it very well may be my favorite show on this list. Veronica is a witty, likable heroine but has enough flaws that she's far from being a Mary Sue. Each episode typically contains a self-contained mystery, but there's also overarching mysteries each season. Do yourself a favor, and watch this show. I doubt you'll regret it.
3. The O.C. (3/4) (sc) To be completely honest, The OC is a little out of place on a list with a Veronica Mars and Friday Night Lights. It's my guilty pleasure pick for this list. If you like teen dramas, definitely give it try, but if you don't, you should probably skip it. The show begins with Ryan, a kid who's taken in by the Cohen family (including dorky Seth) when he ends up without a place to live. It's got plenty of silly drama, but it's also really sweet at times. Adam Brody is pretty hilarious as Seth, and Benjamin McKenzie is so likable as Ryan that it's hard not to root for him. TheWB cycles through the seasons, so you may want to wait until the first (and best) season of the OC is available.

Supernatural
Coincidentally (although if you refer to my description for teen dramas, not all that coincidentally), three of the following shows can also, for at least some of their seasons, be classified as teen dramas. If you aren't a fan of the follow shows, you might side-eye me for these choices. You might, however, be surprised at how entertaining they are if you give them a shot.

1. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1-7/7) (sc) This marks my second Joss Whedon show on this list. Buffy is hard to sum up into a short synopsis because it sounds like kind of a dumb idea for show. A young girl, chosen as the slayer, fights vampires and other monsters with the help of her librarian and friends. She also falls in love with a vampire. You probably just did some of that side-eyeing that I mentioned above. Maybe you drew some kind of Twilight comparison, but Buffy really is a show that's better than it sounds. It's surprisingly relatable for a show about monsters. In fact, a lot of the monsters, particularly those in the earlier seasons, are metaphors for real-life issues. The first season is super-campy (and while still enjoyable, probably my least favorite), but the show turns it down and gets infinitely better after that. It's typically divided into two segments: the first three seasons are the lighter, campier high school years, and the last four a somewhat more serious and span college and beyond. One thing that always impressed me about Buffy is its characterizations. Most of the main characters are well developed, and for better or for worse, they do evolve throughout the seasons. While it may not be the show for you if you aren't into the whole vampire thing, do trust me that it's infinitely better than Twilight.
2. Angel (1-5/5) (sc) If you weren't aware, Angel is actually a spin-off from Buffy (and thus is my third Joss Whedon pick). It centers around the aforementioned vampire that she falls in love with and his attempts to "help to helpless." It's a bit darker in tone than Buffy (although not overly so) and has some pretty tragic moments. It's also surprisingly good for a spin-off. I don't think it's quite as consistently good as Buffy, but when it's good, it's very good. Some people recommend watching it alongside Buffy (season one matches up with Buffy season four) because there are some crossover episodes. Outside of watching maybe one crossover while I was watching Buffy, I just watched it afterwards to save myself confusion.
3. Roswell (1-3/3) (sc) Roswell opens with these lines: "September 23rd. Journal entry one. I'm Liz Parker, and five days ago, I died. After that, things got really weird..." The show is about a teenage girl who discovers three teenage aliens in the town of Roswell. This is kind of my O.C. pick of the supernatural category; it's the cheesiest out of the shows listed here. In fact, and don't let this turn you off, it's probably more like Twilight than Buffy is. That is if Edward were an alien, Twilight weren't terrible, and Twilight actually had any plot that didn't revolve completely around true love. I mean, Roswell had a scene where Liz and Max, Roswell's brooding leading man, are lab partners sharing a microscope (of course, Roswell came first). If you like late 90s/early 2000s teenage supernatural cheesiness, this is the show for you.
4. The Vampire Diaries (1-2/3) (ca) The first few episodes of the Vampire Diaries are not very good. In fact, they were what I expected this show to be when I first saw the promos for it. I mean two of the main characters actually write in diaries with corresponding voice overs. Another transforms into a crow and fog. Ick, right? But then, around the fourth or fifth episode or so, something happens. The show actually starts to get good. Then, about half-way through the first season, it starts to get really good. The Vampire Diaries centers around Elena Gilbert who encounters newcomers to town (and also vampires) Stephan and Damon Salvator. Look, even at it's best, this is a CW teen-oriented show about vampires. It's not perfect. The acting and dialogue can be cheesy at times, there are some plot holes, and I'm not always pleased with every direction the show takes. That being said, it has about a million twists and turns, and it's extremely fun. Often, after the first commercial break, I'll feel like enough has happened to fill a whole episode. Similarly, the show progresses so quickly that episodes that could be season finales occur multiple times throughout a season. Plus, I have almost as much fun reading Price Peterson's semi-mocking but semi-admiring photo-recaps as I do actually watching the episodes. 

Dramas
I know, I know. It's kind of odd to classify Mad Men and Grey's Anatomy under the same category, but both do contain a lot of drama.

1. Mad Men (1-4/4) (ca) Oh Mad Men. Since it was added to Netflix this summer, it seems that everyone and their mother has starting watching it, myself and my mom included. It's about an ad agency in the 1960s. The series' main character is Don Draper, a somewhat terrible guy who cheats on his wife. Then again, you can't completely root against him because he's got issues and is played by Jon Hamm. There's a reason why Mad Men has won so many Emmys; it's a really good show on several levels. First of all, it's visually stunning. Watching it, I get taken away to a world of beautiful dresses and glamorous locations. However, there's also not-so-glamorous aspects of the 60s that are touched on. Almost all of the characters are extremely flawed. Granted, I don't know a whole lot about the 60s, but I do known that there was plenty of racism and sexism. Mad Men doesn't romanticize that past so much that it forgets its flaws. It's an adult show in that it does touch on some heavy issues and dark sides of human nature, but it also shows that things like cheating rarely lead to happiness. It's also pretty thematically deep. I love reading Alan Sepinwall's recaps of the episodes because he manages to catch a lot of things that slide by me.
2. Grey's Anatomy (1-7/8) (ca) I sat here for a minute thinking about what to say about Grey's Anatomy because I know it often gets made fun of. Well, the simple truth is, I enjoy watching it. Like many shows, the first few seasons are the best. And yes, there were some times where it struggled a bit (the interns' medical fight club, Izzie's romance with a ghost, the musical episode). However, I think it's improved a lot lately from that, and I've really enjoyed the current, eighth season. Anyway, it's about the doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital. One of those doctors, Meredith Grey typically opens each episode with a monologue (likely you've seen at least one of these quotes pop up on your Facebook news feed). Basically, everyone in the hospital gets together with someone else in the hospital (or many someone elses), and they take medical cases. It's sad at times, funny at times, gross at times, great at times, terrible at times and dramatic at all times. Grey's Anatomy even produced one of the most stressful and terrifying episodes of television I've ever seen when a shooter comes into the hospital in the two-part sixth season finale.

Short-lived
These shows are great if you're not wanting to dedicate yourself to a multitude of seasons. Each only ran for one season and contains 14 episodes or less.

1. Harper's Island (1/1) (sc) If you judged me for Grey's Anatomy, you're really going to judge me for this one. The acting is worse, and the dialogue is cheesier. But I managed to zip through Harper's Island in a couple of days. It's not a high quality show, but it's a super-high fun show. It's also a super-high body count show. The show begins with a wedding party boarding a boat to travel to Harper's Island for the wedding. Once they get to the island, however, they realize (but only after a multitude of people go missing) that there's a killer in their midst. It's part whodunnit and part gory slasher. Plus, there's some attractive people in it. What more could you ask for? The show was only intended to last one season, so all is revealed by the end. 
2. Firefly (1/1 plus a movie) (sc) This is the fourth Joss-Whedon-created tv show I've put on here, but I promise it's the last (of course, he's only created four shows so far). You've probably heard of it or heard/seen it referenced if you've read a list of tv shows cancelled before their time, watch Castle, watch Community, watch The Big Bang Theory, or have simply spent much time on the internet. If you're unfamiliar with Firefly, it's classified as a sci-fi western. It follows a ragtag crew aboard a spaceship in the future (lead by Nathan Fillian's Mal Reynolds) who makes money through unscrupulous jobs. They run into River and Simon, a brother and sister who are on the run from a group called The Alliance. Honestly, it didn't sound like that great of a show to me, and the first two or three times I tried to watch the pilot, I gave up on it. However, its legion of fans and the fact that Joss Whedon created it convinced me to watch past the pilot, and I actually really enjoyed the show. There's a reason that it has such a cult following.

On that note, I'm going to end part one of my recommendations. Next time, I'll share my other 14 picks for the following categories: quirky, foreign, comedy, and reality.

Have you watched any of the shows I've listed above? Do you plan to watch any of them? Do you completely disagree with some of my picks? What are some of your favorite shows available online? Let me know in the comments.

Link Roundup: Volume 9

What do you get when you combine the musical stylings of Robin Sparkles with Doctor Who? Magic!

Community fans, you might be surprised to find out the identity of one of the writers of the much-hyped The Descendants.

Guess which Big Brother couple is rumored to be on the cast of The Amazing Race next season.

Office fans, Dunder Mifflin paper is now a real thing.

This list of common movie poster cliches is fabulous and hilarious. My favorite has to be "Tiny People On the Beach, Giant Heads in the Clouds." You can also visit the site where these examples originated for more of them (I included the first link because much of this site is in French).

If you love Once Upon a Time as much as I do, you should check out this first look of Emilie de Ravin as my favorite Disney princess, Belle. Maybe I can finally forgive her for what Tess did to Alex on Roswell.

Speaking of Once Upon a Time, I'm disappointed in myself as Lost fan for failing to catch this Apollo candy bar reference. 

While I'm on the subject of references I missed, this one from Community is both brilliant and ridiculously subtle.

Bringing these links back around to Doctor Who, you'll never guess (okay, you might) which cartoon of the 90s contained a Dalek reference.

Trailers of the Week Roundup: The Hunger Games, The Vow, and More

Movie trailers and Breaking Dawn seem to have invaded the Internet this week. I'm not going to touch the second topic at the moment, but due to some extreme Spanish-studying procrastination, I would like to share my thoughts on the first. Here's this week's trailers in order from the movie I'm most excited about to the one I'm least excited about.

1) The Hunger Games



If you've been on the Internet much this week, you've probably either seen the trailer for The Hunger Games movie or have least heard that the trailer has been released. I just finished the Hunger Games books about a month ago. So I was pretty excited to see a preview of the film, and I must say, it didn't disappoint. I was initially a bit dubious about Jennifer Lawrence being cast as Katniss, but after watching the trailer, I'm convinced that she'll be great in the role. From the casting to the sets to the costumes, most everything in the trailer fits how I'd imagined it, and I can't wait to see to see this in March.

2) Brave



The Hunger Games trailer isn't the only trailer featuring a female archer that was released this week; a trailer for Pixar's upcoming movie Brave also shows a girl who's handy with a bow and arrow. I think Pixar is pretty fantastic, and I'm a sucker for princess movies. So I'm pretty excited for this upcoming release. I adore the Scottish accents in the trailer, and I just realized while writing this that Craig Ferguson's voice is among those accents. So there's another reason to be excited about Brave.

3) Gone

I like Amanda Seyfried (although it's hard to think of her as anything other than Lily Kane or Karen Smith) and maybe this is just a bad trailer, but Gone just doesn't grab me or strike me as particularly original. Still, it looks like a possibly-entertaining, mindless thriller that I wouldn't mind seeing eventually, particularly if it were on Netflix streaming.

4) The Vow



Since when is Hallmark able to snag stars like Rachel McAdams? Oh wait, this isn't a made-for-tv movie? You could have fooled me. Look, I can enjoy some sappiness from time to time (shout out to both the Walk to Remember book and movie), but this movie does not look good. The Taylor Swift song, the falling in love all over again montage, the brief glances at scenes featuring tears and dramatic outbursts followed by lighthearted moments, the tagline "Can the love of a lifetime find a second chance?" slowly appearing across the screen, and Channing Tatum's (or is it Tatum Channing? I can never remember.) "acting" are just too much for me handle. I think Rachel McAdams is fantastic, but she can do much better than this.

5) Mirror, Mirror



I love fairy tales and princesses as much, if not more, than the next person, but this looks 20 kinds of terrible. To be fair, I've never been much of a Snow White fan (although I'm loving Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White on Once Upon a Time), but even if I were that wouldn't excuse dialogue such as "Snow White. Snow Who? Sno-way." Plus, Julia Roberts' performance as the evil queen looks absolutely dreadful. Visually, the movie looks pretty (which shouldn't be a surprise given that it's directed by Tarsem Singh who directed The Fall), but that's about the only nice thing I can say about it. I can definitely enjoy some campiness (which Mirror Mirror seems to provide in spades), but this looks like campiness of the worst kind.


Did I miss any of this week's trailers? Which of these trailers are you most excited about? Whether you agree with my opinions or think I'm way off base, I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments, as always.

A request to Hollywood: Please stop killing Matt Bomer

Warning: This post contains spoilers about deaths in movies and television.

Dear Hollywood and Other Entertainment Industries,

In July, Pajiba put together a death reel for Sean Bean's characters, proving they die quite often. There's another actor who seems to suffer from this syndrome. His death count can't compete with Sean Bean's, but it's too high for my taste. This fellow frequent death sufferer is Matt Bomer.
(Fun fact: Matt Bomer and Sean Bean both appear in Flightplan, but neither actually die in the movie.)

This realization came from my watching the trailer for the upcoming movie In Time. I was excited to see Matt Bomer included in the cast, but just over a minute into the trailer, he dies. Seriously? This was a disappointment but, sadly, one with which I'm familiar.

I first saw Matt Bomer, then credited as Matthew Bomer, in the wonderfully cheesy Tru Calling, a show in which the dead are often saved from death. His character Luc (yes, these spellings are correct) was an absolutely adorable romantic interest. When it first aired, I watched Tru Calling from time to time, but I never managed to see the first season finale. The promo toted that someone would die without coming back, but it wasn't until years later, upon receiving the DVD set, that I realized who this unfortunate character was. Any guesses? That's right; it was Matt Bomer's Luc. The series only ran for another six episodes, but those were six episodes in which he was sorely missed.

As I often do with attractive actors (don't judge me), I looked up Matt Bomer's IMDB page to find out what else he was in. I decided upon watching Chuck. I'd heard some positive buzz about the show, so it seemed like a good choice. All was going well until his character died in the opening scene. Again, I repeat, seriously? I couldn't even get a full episode's worth of Matt Bomer. I think he had some flashbacks throughout the course of Chuck, but that just wasn't enough. Despite my disappointment, I tried watching Chuck for several episodes, but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe it just wasn't my kind of show, but perhaps my disappointment clouded my judgment of the show.

Now, I haven't seen more than five minutes of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, but according to its Wikipedia page, Matt Bomer dies in that as well. I don't watch Guiding Light, but Soap Central reveals that his character commits suicide. I can't vouch for any of the other works that he's appeared in, but even if those are his only character deaths, that's still 5 out of 13 characters of his that have died. Not cool, Hollywood. Not cool.

I guess I should make a small admission of truth here. Matt Bomer's biggest role is that of Neal Caffrey on White Collar. As this is a USA show and he is one of the main characters, I doubt he'll fall victim to Hollywood's scythe in this role. However, I never got into into White Collar. I loved the pilot, but the next few episodes lost me, and I didn't keep up with the show.

Even so, please stop the madness. I have to ask you, Hollywood: Could you please stop killing Matt Bomer's characters? I'd be ever so grateful.

Signed,
A Matt Bomer fan