Archive for the ‘Television’ Category

Queen on The Sing-Off


02 Nov

Normally when I hear that someone is going to attempt to sing Queen, I cringe. Freddy Mercury had a once in three or four generations voice. Even when people attempt the “simpler” Queen songs, they end up sounding thin. So I was nervous when I heard that the Dartmouth Aires had gotten Queen for their superstar medley. I really enjoy this group on The Sing-Off, and was a little afraid for them.

Apparently the way to pull off Queen when you’re an amateur is to have lots of voices to pull from. They did an amazing job. I was thrilled.

 

MythBuster (ep 175)


27 Oct

Modern explosives are stable- especially ones carried by the military- you know where they have to possibly carry them through a warzone in a pack on a soldier’s back? Yeah, the military is not using anything that blows up on impact. I don’t know that I’d want to cook with it, though, even if you can.

LOVED the throwing guillotines, though I really thought Grant might end up losing a finger. I was glad Tory’s simple design was the one that worked best because it actually seemed like something that could have existed in the era the myth was from.

Finished Watching: BattleStar Gallactica (new version)


22 Oct

Finished watching the last season of BattleStar Gallactica on Netflix last night. Overall the show was really well done. I remember how hooked I was during the first two seasons, how it was must watch television.

But this fourth and final season, it seemed like they were trying to do too much, like they had a ton of story ideas and instead of concentrating on the best ones, they decided to throw them all in there. Heck, the mutiny could have been a season (or a summer web series, like New Caprica) all on its own. Instead, barely two episodes.

MythBusters (ep 174)


20 Oct

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a MythBusters where everything was plausible or confirmed. Even with that, here are the lessons I took away from the episode:

Guys who operate excavators are crazy. Actually, I’ve met a number of heavy machine operators, and I think crazy might be a good adjective for all of them. They say don’t try this at home, but they only got these “myths” because the excavator guys already had.

I would rather take a ride in the duct tape sailboat than in the duct tape plane. I can swim, but I can’t fly.

Movie Review: Knights of Bloodsteel


18 Oct

I know it’s true that there is no such thing as a truly original story. And I know the classic tropes are classics for a reason; still, it would be nice if people could try and inject a little originality into their characters.

Knights of Bloodsteel was a 2 part Syfy event, lasting somewhere between 3-4 hours long. The story itself wasn’t bad, but every single character was a classic trope, and a badly written one at that. (Nor was the acting great.) But really, did the loner swordsman who was “not from these lands” really need a Scottish accent?

MythBusters (ep 173)


13 Oct

People naturally walk in circles, who knew? Apparently lots of people since that was the actual myth Adam and Jamie were testing. I did wonder why they used the earphones, blocking out additional sensory information. This wasn’t a myth about people who couldn’t see and hear walking in circles, just about people who couldn’t see. I think it would’ve been a truer test without blocking hearing.

Watching a truck go flying at 300mph toward a parked car in slow motion is cool. But no explosion. Apparently, there’s a reason special effects people choose to work with this stuff- it’s safe.

What I’m Watching: The Sing-Off


07 Oct

We miss the first half hour of The Sing-Off because we’re watching How I Met Your Mother, but after that, it’s the definitive choice for filling the time until Castle comes on.

I appreciate the skill it takes to be an a cappella group. There were times last season when it sounded like some of the groups had bands backing them up.

I like the judges on this show more than any judges other than those at The Voice. Ben Folds is terrific. Their critique is constructive and overall positive. How’s that for a concept? Help your singers get better.

MythBusters (ep 172)


06 Oct

I want a Newton’s Cradle- the one with the 2.5” ball bearings or even the 6” ball bearings. Something that could double as a coffee or dining room table would be fine. However, we weren’t surprised by the largest scale results. Energy may have been directly transferred in to the steel plates, but it doesn’t travel in a straight line, it disperses in three dimensions, meaning the concrete absorbed a lot of it.

For the tipping point of the car, we thought they should have started with tethering and overbalancing the car then pulling it back to the balance point.

What I’m Watching: The New Girl


04 Oct

I think Zooey Deschenal is just adorable. (I think the same thing about her sister Emily on Bones.) I really enjoyed the Tin Man on SciFi, and was excited to see her new sitcom.

The pilot has a number of sweet and very funny moments. I loved the douchebag jar, and was sad that it didn’t seem to make an appearance in the second episode.

I’m not really certain what point her best friend, the model, has in the series so far, but hope to see that relationship a bit more, even as Jess’s relationships with her new roommates develop.

What I’m Watching: How I Met Your Mother


03 Oct

We didn’t start watching How I Met Your Mother when it first started. Don’t ask me why, I love Alyson Hannigan and Neil Patrick Harris. The first episode I saw was the slutty pumpkin. But we still didn’t watch regularly.

I’m not certain when How I Met Your Mother became can’t miss TV for us, but it has. It seems these last two seasons that it’s starting to wind down. My only request is that we meet the mother BEFORE that last episode. Let the last episode be their wedding, if necessary, but let us get to know the girl.

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