Where have all the epic season finales gone? (TV commentary)
For as long as I can remember, TV has served up an epic season finale or two every May. In recent years, up until 2010, there were the season-enders of “24” and “Lost.” Before that, […]
First episode (of new season) impressions: ‘Friday Night Lights’ (TV review)
“Friday Night Lights” (7 p.m. Central Fridays on NBC) continues to do the little things well: In the fifth-season premiere, Landry goes through his own version of “American Graffiti,” playing one last show with Crucifictorious, saying […]
Meta to the max: If it’s all been done before, then what’s left to say in ‘Scream 4?’ (Movie review)
Eleven years after “Scream 3,” the casting director of “Scream 4” had a lot of lost time to make up for. While the original film in 1996 brought big-screen attention to “Party of Five” star Neve Campbell […]
‘LOLA’ returns with cast shake-ups, but it’s still ‘Law & Order’ (TV commentary)
“Law & Order,” and now its spinoff “Law & Order: Los Angeles” (9 p.m. Central Mondays on NBC), have never been character-centered, but there were at least four major character developments in this week’s two-hour “LOLA” midseason […]
All 21 episodes of ‘The X-Files’ Season 8 (2000-01), ranked
TV review: “The X-Files” finds its second life as Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish join the cast and David Duchovny steps aside.
First episode impressions: ‘The Killing’ (TV review)
“The Killing” (9 p.m. Central Sundays on AMC), which instantly became the best show on TV with its two-hour premiere last Sunday despite the fact that it’s technically a cop show, exposes how we as TV […]
‘Star Wars: Red Harvest’ a slog through blood and gore (Book review)
I found “Star Wars: Red Harvest” (December 2010, hardcover) to be a disappointment both as a “Star Wars” fan and as a horror fan. Despite short chapters that should’ve made it an even breezier read […]
Chewbacca and Ahsoka team up in ‘The Clone Wars?’ OK, I’ll buy it (TV commentary)
Long before the prequels started filming, George Lucas announced that R2-D2 and C-3PO would be in all six “Star Wars” films, so we had time to accept the huge coincidence that these two droids just […]
Jedi-Sith romance is at the heart of ‘Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi – Vortex’ (Book review)
You hear a lot about how women always go for the bad boy, but in “Vortex” (November 2010, hardcover), the sixth in the nine-book “Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi” series, it’s Ben Skywalker who […]
I can’t curb my enthusiasm for the ridiculous, hilarious ‘After Lately’ (TV review)
In the early days of “Chelsea Lately” (10 p.m. Central Mondays through Thursdays, E!), the show started with the roundtable, then had a comedy sketch, then wrapped with the guest. Today, it does two sessions of the […]