I enjoyed the solos last night.  Four is easier for me to stomach than six.  Don’t know why but they usually bore me.  No one stood out though.  There was no clear winner.

I wish I had more time to talk about Wednesday nights show.  It was just unbelievably good.  Except for the one dud everyone blew my mind.  I am really growing to love Sasha but Jordan I think is still my favorite.  It’s just so sad that she’s probably going home soon because the rest of America doesn’t love her the way I do.  Melanie and Marco though are still shining on their own.

I’m pretty sad that there will be new all stars next week.  I loved these ones and I for sure want to see Twitch again.  I’m just glad Pasha will be back.  Hubba hubba.

Here are your all stars for next week:  Ivan (Season 2), (S3): Jaimie, Anya and Pasha, Lauren G. and Neil, Ade (S5), Lauren F. (S7).

Sent home this week are Mitchell and Clarice.  I think the judges are right and everyone is just so good there’s nothing bad to say about them.  They’re amazing.

I really, really wish I had time to go through every dance from Wednesday and talk about it.  It’s just not happening this week.  Here’s to hoping next week will be just as amazing and I’ll have more time to talk with you about it.  Seriously, pretty much the whole show took my breath away.

SYTYCD is on Wednesday at 7pm MT on FOX.

You know I hate ballroom but I will say right now I will watch and love any number that Pasha is in.  I didn’t watch his season so this is my first time with him and I am blown away.  So sexy.  He makes the girls look so good.  Anyone would look good dancing with him.

I cannot believe how incredible last night was.  I cried.  I was amazed.  I loved Neil Patrick Harris.  He is so hot right now and I love him.  It was fun with him on the show last night.  Can’t wait to see him dancing on How I met Your Mother. That’s seriously one of my favorite shows.

Gotta run but WOW last night was spectacular.  Who do you think is going home tonight?

SYTYCD is on tonight (Thursday) at 7pm on FOX.

And the two new choreographers.  Where has Chucky been all my life?  He’s probably been living with Sonya Tayeh.  I am in love with him.  Quirky.  That’s the kind of stuff that gets my heart pounding and keeps me coming back for more.  What great additions to the show.  I can’t wait to see more from them both.

The two group numbers were awesome but the girls stole the show for me.  I agree with Cat.  I want to be in their gang.  It was cute to me that one of the girls described themselves as evil but I think a group of hot, sexy women ridding the world of evil men is something to aspire to.  Sign me up.  Especially if we get to dance while we do it.  I’m all in.

I really like the intros this week.  It was fun to see where everyone came from.  I loved how supportive all of the families were.  Even Mitchell who was homeless for a while had a mom who loved him and made sure his dreams were came true.

I just wasn’t feeling most of the show this week.  Sure there was Mitchell and Caitlynn and the group numbers but that’s not enough for me.  What did you think?

SYTYCD is on Thursday at 7pm MT on FOX.

Act Two, Scene One

Growing up in the enchanted Thèâtre Illuminata, Beatrice Shakespeare Smith learned everything about every play ever written. She knew the Players and their parts, but she didn’t know that she, too, had magic. Now, she is the Mistress of Revels, the Teller of Tales, and determined to follow her stars. She is ready for the outside world.

Enter BERTIE AND COMPANY

But the outside world soon proves more topsy-turvy than any stage production. Bertie can make things happen by writing them, but outside the protective walls of the Thèâtre, nothing goes as planned. And her magic cannot help her make a decision between—

Nate: Her suave and swashbuckling pirate, now in mortal peril.

Ariel: A brooding, yet seductive, air spirit whose true motives remain unclear.

When Nate is kidnapped and taken prisoner by the Sea Goddess, only Bertie can free him. She and her fairy sidekicks embark on a journey aboard the Thèâtre’s caravan, using Bertie’s word magic to guide them. Along the way, they collect a sneak-thief, who has in his possession something most valuable, and meet The Mysterious Stranger, Bertie’s father—and the creator of the scrimshaw medallion. Bertie’s dreams are haunted by Nate, whose love for Bertie is keeping him alive, but in the daytime, it’s Ariel who is tantalizingly close, and the one she is falling for. Who does Bertie love the most? And will her magic be powerful enough to save her once she enters the Sea Goddess’s lair?

Once again, LISA MANTCHEV has spun a tale like no other—full of romance, magic, adventure, and fairies, too—that readers won’t want to put down, even after the curtain has closed.

And here’s my Goodreads review from the first book Eyes Like These:

This book is absolutely delightful. Wicked full of Shakespeare but that made it fun. I just didn’t know going into it. I can’t wait to follow Bertie’s adventures in the next book.

This second book is just as delightful and very adventurous.  I love the way the love triangle works out.  It’s not every day we see that kind of ending.  And Bertie turns out to be a very, very independent young woman who doesn’t take handouts or help very lightly.  She comes in this book to discover her magic and it’s a very empowering journey.  They’ve left the ending open for a third book and I can’t wait to read that too.  The Theatre Illuminata series is different from any series I’ve ever read and I like that.

Oh, and the covers…they are what made me pick up this series in the first place.  I seriously love them.

The movie was 2 1/2 hours long.  That’s at least 1/2 hour longer than it should have been, maybe more.   And you know it was too much when I say this next bit.  I think it had one too many fight sequences.  What!??!!  I know, I said.  Too much robot fighting.

Also, there were too many Decepticons.  I honestly couldn’t keep track of them.  At one point I thought Megatron was dead and then all of a sudden he was there again.  That means some other robot looked so similar to him that I couldn’t tell the difference.  I don’t like that.  I like knowing who is who.  I don’t want to be confused when watching a movie.

And this is totally shallow and petty but I don’t like the girl they got to replace Megan Fox.  You want to know why?  Because she looks just like her with those big, huge, pouty lips.  It drove me nuts to look at her.  I wish they would have gotten a completely different type of girl.  But I guess that’s the kind of girl they like.  Hot body and full lips.  Maybe I’m just jealous?

So there are so many things that drove me nuts about this movie but I got a night out with friends without my kids and got to see stuff explode.  That’s worth the money to me for sure.  Oh, and Leanord Nemoy is one of the Transformers!!!!  What the what?  I know.  It’s crazy but he is and I would watch the movie again just for that.

This movie is getting really mixed reviews.  Not as good as the first for me, but better than the second for sure.  What did you think?

Transformers:  Dark of the Moon is in theaters now.

I seriously think this is my new favorite movie.  It’s definitely up there with Bride and Prejudice, The Bourne Movies, Pirates of the Caribbean movies (Still haven’t seen the last one.  Really afraid to.) and Whip It.  This is an English comedy with really dry humor.  I was seriously cracking up the whole time.  I mean from start to finish belly laughing.

Here’s the summary from Netflix:

When veteran hit man Victor Maynard (Bill Nighy) finds himself unable to kill his latest target, Rose (Emily Blunt), he winds up with an unexpected sidekick, Tony (Rupert Grint), who thinks Victor is a detective in this action-packed comedy from Britain. Now, with Rose and Tony tagging along, Victor tries to deal with the dual forces of his overbearing mother (Eileen Atkins) and a very angry client (Rupert Everett) who wants Rose dead.

Victor is a totally straight shooter (no pun intended) and he has OCDs and he’s wound up tighter than a clock.  Rose is a 100% free spirit and a cleptomaniac to boot.  There’s a sequence where she steals a whole outfit plus accessories just by walking through a market.  Tony is just a happy go lucky, believe anything you tell him kind of guy.  I just want to say real quick that I LOVE Rupert Everett.  I thought he was the absolute best part of the Harry Potter trio.  He was brilliant in this movie.

What I loved is that even the violence is funny.  Victor kills an innocent by accident and I laughed out loud when I figured out what had happened.  No gore in this movie.  A little blood but nothing to haunt you  afterwards.

I’m only writing this next part for my most sensitive of readers.  There’s a sex scene in the beginning but you hear it, you don’t see it and the sequence of Victor listening in is super funny.  It’s over the top which makes it ridiculous.

My husband did not like this movie because “I don’t like hit men with a softer side.  Wife and kids.  I just don’t like it.”  He thought the movie was funny and quirky and cute but couldn’t buy Victor’s situation.  Oh well, more for me.

Wild Target is available from Netflix.  It’s not Watch it Now so you have to wait for the disk but I say that it’s totally, completely worth the wait.

And what about Jennifer getting called out at the top of the show? How embarrassing!! Poor girl tried to please the judges and just made a really big mistake. If it had been an elimination round she would have been gone no question. I felt so bad for her. I was cringing thinking about how stupid she must have felt. Poor girl. But her dessert was good so she lives to cook another day.

I haven’t talked about how mellow Ramsey is yet.  Or that all these chefs are home chefs.  No training.  I’m assuming that’s why Ramsey is not cussing them out 24/7.  All the judges are very honest and truthful with the contestants but no temper tantrums yet.

MasterChef is on Tuesday at 7pm MT on FOX.

The movie did not disappoint, in my opinion.  My questions were answered, even if those answers left a disturbing kind of distrust for the kind of power our government can wield when it wants to.  Granted, it’s based on the books written by her and her husband, so they could have spun the story a bit.  And if you’re a big George W. Bush fan, then you won’t be happy with how this makes him and his top cabinet members look.  I actually loved how they spliced in real footage from different press conferences, however, because it shows how important the words they say really are.

Sean Penn definitely stole the show as Joe Wilson, Valerie’s husband and former ambassador, and his empassioned speech at the end definitely made me think.  Naomi Watts felt a little lukewarm to me as the spy mom, but regardless of her performance I found Valerie’s real life story incredibly fascinating and worth two hours of my evening.

The movie kept us guessing.  Along with suspense, there was drama and romance that added to the story.  And of course it was an actual werewolf movie, a fact that my husband greatly appreciated.  (He’s not as big of  a Twilight fan as I am.)  I honestly didn’t know until the wolf was revealed who it would be, and my husband hadn’t guessed, either.  He can normally guess the endings of movies from the beginning, but the director didn’t give it away too early.

Incidentally, the director was Catherine Hardwicke, who directed the first Twilight movie.    Now, I love me some Twilight, but Red Riding Hood was a much better movie.  A few of the actors were better at looking good than they were at acting, but for the most part, I really liked it.

Four out of five stars.

Going into this movie, I thought I knew a little about Queen Victoria, only to realize as I was watching it that I didn’t.  Her name is everywhere in London, as is her husband’s, Albert, not to mention the British Columbian city that, growing up in Seattle, I visited quite a bit.  The whole regency thing felt vaguely familiar, but apparently Hollywood’s ability to teach me history is more impacting than a textbook or museum plaque.  Go figure.

While I enjoyed learning about her life and the fascinating family/political relationships that affected her from such a young age, it was her relationship with German-born Prince Albert that drove the story forward.  I felt so bad for both of them, the way they were “guided,” more like controlled, by their family and advisors.  How would that feel to be so surrounded by people and yet feel terribly alone?  You could see how they understood each other from the start.  Of course that understanding grows into something more, something almost palpable it’s so strong.  But, like all real couple, loving each other is not as easy as it seems when you’re faced with the realities and difficulties of daily life.

Before I give away too much, go rent this now that it’s on DVD.  It will not disappoint.

I just assumed it was Cole who cheated.  I never suspected Lucy.  She seems so straight arrow.  I guess the pressure just got to her.  I did love how Cole was like, I pretty much own this place so I don’t care what kind of grades I get.  What a jerk.

I was not expecting to find out Drew was married.  That came from left field but I’m glad Denise could look past it.  I really like them together.

I was really happy to see Catalina from My Name is Earl playing one of the patients.  I love it when my TV families meld together.

I was really skeptical of this season at the beginning but it’s coming together for me.  Maybe I just love Scrubs so much that I’m willing to take what I get.  I don’t how.  How are you feeling about it?

Scrubs is on Tuesdays at 9:00pm on ABC.

Well, she’ll be back around sooner or later but the question is did the vampire at the end single her out or was it just bad luck she was driving down the road?  She’s not wearing the necklace anymore so will he get her to do evil things for him?  Obviously he’s not going to kill her but what exactly is the plan here?  Will he use her to bring back Katherine and the other 28 vampires?  I’m assuming this is Logan’s sire.

Speaking of Logan how did Alaric know he was a vampire? Could he smell him?  Stefan and Damon knew he was “dead” and now he’s “alive” so it didn’t take too much to figure that out but I’m super curious about the teacher.  I sure hope they tell us and don’t just leave us guessing on this one.  I don’t remember him ever being in the room with Stefan or Damon so maybe he doesn’t know they are vampires yet.  I still don’t quite understand what his role is in the show yet but I’m enjoying him being around.

Now to the exciting stuff.  Do you think Travis is a werewolf?  This is where reading the books would have come in handy.  It’s just they had that scene where he said he didn’t know what was wrong with him and the full moon was behind him.  Am I reading too much into this.  I don’t know.  Totally aggressive guy and full moon.  Spells werewolf to me.

I’m glad things got shaken up a bit.  How long do you think it will take Elena to forgive Stefan?  However long it takes for him to save her, right?

The Vampire Diaries are on Thursday nights at 8pm on The CW.

So, I really don’t have much to say about the challenge, except that I’m SO glad Russell was on the winning team. (And I can’t believe Natalie didn’t fall out!) He may have found the 3rd immunity idol without the clue, but it would have been pretty tough. Instead, wasn’t it fabulous watching Dave follow him, and then Russell breaking out into to sprint to lose him?! I couldn’t believe it when he went back to the same spot and actually found the idol! Seriously, you can’t deny that the guy is good! I was literally laughing out loud.

After that, the immunity challenge was a little anticlimactic. But, all that mattered was that Laura didn’t win, so I was happy with it.

Now, the last 15-20 minutes of the show were the best. Well, really the last 5 minutes. But I just love it when there are so many deals trying to be made, when people make fake deals, the scrambling to scam others… THAT is why I watch this show. I love that Russell didn’t fall for Monica’s plan. He knew exactly what she was doing. And, the outcome was awesome! That was one of the best endings I’ve seen in a while. The whole tie-breaking vote system was interesting. If it came down to a tie twice in a row, any single one of them could have gone home. So, it was so perfect that John was rubbed the wrong way just enough to realize that! If I were him, I would have done the exact same thing. You either vote out one of your teammates, or you risk having a 1/8 chance of going home yourself. So, that was seriously the best ending anyone could have asked for! I cannot wait to see what happens next. I wonder if Russell will be a little more hesitant about sharing that he has the idol this time. We’ll see…

Because next week is Thanksgiving, Survivor will be a recap of everything. A new episode will resume the following Thursday, at 8pm PST, on CBS.

Q& A Link for Stephenie Meyer

I really enjoyed the sequence on the runway with the fabric and the wind.  I thought both girls did an amazing job with part.

It seems like the judges always choose the girl that has the worst commercial.  I remember thinking that the last several cycles.  I guess the emphasis of the top model job is not acting but runway and photo shoots.  And in that regard they totally picked the right person.  Nicole is stunning.  Just standing around she’s gorgeous but you get her in front of the camera and she comes so life.

I am so happy with the results.  Are you?

Meanwhile Meghan and Cheyne showed just how sporty they are by winning the volleyball–which looked ridiculously hard in that mud, by the way– in what appeared to be a much shorter time than the other teams.  They are tough competitors, but I don’t feel very strongly about them one way or the other.  I don’t love them, but I also don’t hate them.  They’re so solid as a team; they’re just not all that interesting.  I would pay good money to have legs like Meghan’s, however.  Wow.  She was the only one rocking the underwear out there.

The Globetrotters/Gay Brothers rivalry was getting kind of old by the end of the show, considering they all but drove that one into the ground.  Clearly they were trying to build up for the big fall at the end, but when they showed the footage the second time it really did look like an accident.  Flight Time was trying to pass Dan, tripped and fell, and accidentally brought Dan down with him.  Really not that big of a deal.  Or maybe I’m just biased because I like the Globetrotters way more than I do the brothers.

Amazing Race is on CBS, Sundays at 8 pm.

I didn’t understand until this episode that the underworld is where everyone goes after they die good or bad.  I was so shocked to see that monk surrounded by all the writhing, rotting bodies.  I guess last week I just didn’t think about it enough to figure it out.  But if the underworld is where you go after you die, it’s where you go after you die.

OK, the banelings.  They get to come back to the mortal world as long as they kill while they are there thus supplying the underworld with even more inhabitants and soldiers.  Good plan.

How hilarious is it that Cara tries to do something nice and ends up sending the locket away?  They got it back though in the end as well as the boy that carries the mark.

I can’t wait to see what the Keeper throws at them next week while the rift to the underworld is still open.  How about you?

Legend of the Seeker is on Saturdays at 2pm on WGN.  It’s also on several other channels at different times so check your guides.

I am devastated about Eastwick.  I don’t understand at all why this show would be cancelled.  It’s got a great plot line and terrific actresses.  It’s safe to say this is one of my favorite shows on TV right now.  And my gosh, it’s in the 10pm time slot.  Does it really hurt anybody if it just hangs out there?  I mean really?  I feel totally betrayed by ABC.  How dare they tempt me with this beautiful show and then take it away.  Aargh.

Why do I even bother with new shows?  They all get cancelled in the end anyway.  Oh well.  Are you as sad as I am?

Here’s the link the the article at /film.

So first of all.  We go from Darken Rahl, a bad sorcerer type guy to the Keeper of the Underworld.  Really?  That seems like such a jump to me.  They couldn’t have found someone in between.  I mean I’m coming up blank for options here but where are they going to go next once he defeats the Keeper?  I’m just going to forget about that for now and focus on this season.

Have I mentioned before that I love the Mord-siths?  Maybe it’s TMI but I would love one of those outfits.  Those girls are beyond sexy and totally badass.  What’s not to love?  And Cara is just about one of the most beautiful girls I’ve seen and she’s a good girl now.  It doesn’t get any more awesome than that.  Can you imagine the fights they’re going to have between Cara and Kahlan.  I don’t mean bar fights I just mean they’re not going to trust each other at all.

Speaking of Kahlan.  Why was she ever considering leaving the Seeker.  I don’t care if she’s the Mother Confessor she’s Richard’s Confessor and she should know better than to leave him.

I’m intrigued by this prophecy that Richard will fail but know that everything will work out in the end.  It always does.

So anyone else excited the show is back on again?

Legend of the Seeker is on Saturdays at 2pm on WGN.  It’s also on several other channels at different times so check your guides.