Survivor Week 7- Me Troyzan, You Lose

Troyzan gave Jack and Tippy a big boost in Fantasy Survivor this week, winning the immunity challenge and finding a hidden idol during this week's hour.  The week after the merge is so important in real Survivor, but it is also huge in the fantasy game, because there are so many votes at stake.  Jonas received 10 votes against him, docking Larry and Rizzo 40 points a piece.  Jack and I are starting to catch up to the defending Championship League winner, while Marsh, Tip, and Mags have a heated three team race going on in the Developmental League.

Champions League

Larry

Michael -7:  Votes (-8), W7 (+22)= +7
Kat -1: W7 (+22)= +21
Jonas +49: Votes (-40)= +9
Tarzan +57: W7 (+22)= +79

Last Week +98: Team Total= +116

Me

Jay +12: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +38
Chelsea -47: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= -21
Monica -5
Colton +25

Last Week -15: Team Total= +37

Jack

Troyzan +42: Reward (+4), Idol Found (+10), Immunity (+20), W7 (+22)= +98
Christina -4: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +22
Kourtney -45
Bill -45

Last Week -52: Team Total= +30

Jaydon

Matt -100
Kim -17: W7 (+22)= +5
Alicia +60: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +86
Nina -24

Last Week -81: Team Total= -33




Free Agents
Leif +70: W7 (+22)= +92
Sabrina +89: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +115

Developmental League

Marsh

Jay: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +26
Chelsea: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +26
Bill
Christina: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +26

Week 7= +78, Team Total= +314

Tippy

Troyzan: Reward (+4), Idol Found (+10), Immunity (+20), W7 (+22)= +56
Kat: W7 (+22)= +22
Colton
Monica

Week 7= +78, Team Total= +285

Mags

Matt
Kim: W7 (+22)= +22
Alicia: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +26
Tarzan: W7 (+22)= +22

Week 7= +70, Team Total= +281

Rizzo

Michael: Votes (-8), W7 (+22)= +14
Jonas: Votes (-40)= -40
Kourtney
Nina

Week 7= -26, Team Total= +73




Free Agents
Leif: W7 (+22)= +22
Sabrina: Reward (+4), W7 (+22)= +26

One Tree Hill 912 Review- If You're Happy And You Know It

Brooke- "Isn't that a lot like The Creek?"

Well, that was certainly a change of pace. After an episode that went into all out action mode with Dan yielding a shotgun, and one that tugged on our heart strings like they were trying to defeat John Cena in a game of tug o' war as Dan sadly left this world, "Anyone Who Had A Heart" was a much less strenuous hour.

The penultimate episode of One Tree Hill was just plain happy. All of the characters were happy, I assume it made all of the viewers happy and the fact that Sophia Bush was able to direct one of the final episodes of the series - one that focused a lot on how important her Brooke Davis was to the show - definitely made me happy.

Maybe nobody was happier than Julian Baker, who was inspired to turn Lucas's "Ravens" book into a television series. Not only did the studio buy his idea, thanks to Brooke's high school diary and her hot tub idea, but Julian even got to put himself into the story!

I love Julian, but seriously? You're going take this story written by Lucas, and then throw yourself into Tree Hill High School and steal a major event from the author himself? Not cool, bro.

To read the rest of my review of last night's One Tree Hill, head over to TV Fanatic.

One Tree Hill 912 - "Anyone Who Had a Heart"
Review
Recap
Quotes

Justified 311 Review- What A Dick!

Raylan- "Art I've got a daddy."

Art- "Yeah, I've met your daddy."

Raylan- "Fair enough, continue."

There have now been 11 installments of Justified's third season, and "Measures" certainly didn't fail to live up the excitement of the first 10.

Between the misadventures of Robert Quarles, Dickie Bennett beginning his attempt on Limehouse's money, and the buddy cop escapades of Raylan and Art, there was a lot to enjoy in the antepenultimate episode of the season.

Neal McDonough continues to impress me week after week in his playing of Quarles.  This time around it was the way he portrayed the Detroit mobster knocking over (or attempting to as was the case of the second incident) those pair of drug dealers that got me all tingly inside.

The mostly confident, well dressed man we have come to know, showing up for drugs with a stupid grin, acting nervous, and shaking all around, was absolutely joyous to watch.  What Quarles did next might have just been an embarrassment of riches for the audience.

To read the rest of my review of last night's Justified, head over to TV Fanatic.

Justified 311 - "Measures"
Review
Recap
Quotes

The Voice 209 Review- The Top 24 Is Set

The Battles may be over, but the war goes on: The Voice will begin its live shows next week. There were pop stars, quirky vocalists or rapping MCs making up the final members of each coach's team. Let's take a look at who were the final hopefuls to get to The Voice Top 24...

Team Cee Lo - James Massone vs. WADE - "True Colors"

The Battle: James was extremely nervous in practice, but it didn't really come through in his performance. If anything, he was way more confident than WADE, who struggled with a couple of critical notes. This was definitely the case of one guy having the potential to be great but failing this week, and the other being steady but probably won't go anywhere in the competition. WADE has much more power and range, but James didn't screw up at all.
My Choice: James
Cee Lo's Choice: James
Battle Grade: B

Team Adam - Nicolle Galyon vs. Mathai - "Love Song"

The Battle: Nicolle's advantage was her piano playing, and after Adam took that away, she sounded way to plain. Cee Lo called her "generic," and I agree with him. When Mathai first came in it was obvious that she was going to win. She just had the much more interesting tone of the two. I loved that Adam revealed how disappointed he was in the performance, especially since it was his own team members. That's something the X Factor mentors never would have done.
My Choice: Mathai
Adam's Choice: Mathai
Battle Grade: C

To read the rest of my review of last night's The Voice, head over to TV Fanatic.

Mad Men 501 Review- Spring Cleaning the Carpet

Peggy- "Clients are right all of the sudden? I don't recognize that man. He's kind...and patient."

The times they are a changin'. Although it was only seven or eight months since Don went to California with Megan in the Mad Men season four finale, everything felt different in "A Little Kiss."

Don and Megan couldn't keep their hands off of each other, even as they walked into work together, Pete and Roger were nearly at each other's throats attempting to gain the advantage within SCDP, Joan was at home taking care of her new born, and Peggy was working day and night, managing very little success.

Okay, so maybe that last one was exactly what we've seen from Peggy for a few years now, but there was definitely a different vibe to start the season. The period we were watching only moved from October of 1965 to Memorial Day of 1966, but the 1950s feeling of previous seasons was almost entirely gone, which was no more evident than at Don's surprise party.

The lighting, the decor, the attitudes, and a certain performance by a former secretary made the event seem like a portrayal of the changing times.

To read the rest of my review of last night's Mad Mean season premiere, head over to TV Fanatic.

Mad Men 501 - "A Little Kiss"
Review
Recap
Quotes

American Idol Top 10- Erika Pelted With Boos

I changed the scoring system a bit so that those who are in the bottom three but make it through get extra points.  This inevitably helped people like Rizzo and Jack, and hurt my scores, so you are all welcome.

Survivor
Me: W1- Phillip, W2- Hollie, W3- Skylar
Jack: W1- Hollie, W2- Deandre, W3- Joshua

Predict the Bottom Three
Jack copied my bottom three for the second straight week (Erika, Elise, Deandre), but unfortunately for the both us, it was wrong this time.  Our choice of Erika going home was correct, but sadly Heejun was in the bottom three instead of Elise.

Fantasy Idol

Larry
Phillip Phillips: Safe (+8)
Skylar Laine: Safe (+8)
Erika Van Pelt: Eliminated (-10)
Adam Brock
Brielle Von Hugel
Top 10: +6, Team Total: 58

Tyson
Heejun Han: Bottom 3 (-5), Safe (+8)
Hollie Cavanaugh: Safe (+8)
Jeremy Rosado
Hallie Day
Chase Likens
Top 10: +11, Team Total: 57


Rizzo
Jessica Sanchez: Safe (+8)
Shannon Magrane
Elise Testone: Safe (+8)
Aaron Marcellus
Johnny Keyser
Top 10: +16, Team Total: 50



Jack
Deandre Brackensick: Bottom 3 (-5), Safe (+8)
Baylie Brown
Joshua Ladet: Safe (+8)
Chelsea Sorrell
Creighton Fraker
Top 10: +11, Team Total: 37




Me
Colton Dixon: Safe (+8)
Reed Grimm
Eben Franckewitz
Haley Johnson
Jen Hirsh
Top 10: +8, Team Total: 29

Survivor Week 6- Curled Up Colton

Take these scores and like it...

Champions League

Larry

Michael -35: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= -7
Kat -29: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= -1
Jonas +25: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +49
Tarzan +33: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +57

Last Week -6: Team Total= +98

Me

Jay -16: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +12
Chelsea -75: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= -47
Monica -5
Colton +45: Health Leave (-20)= +25

Last Week -51: Team Total= -15

Jack

Troyzan +14: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +42
Christina -28: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= -4
Kourtney -45
Bill -45

Last Week -104: Team Total= -52

Jaydon

Matt -100
Kim -45: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= -17
Alicia +36: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +60
Nina -24

Last Week -133: Team Total= -81




Free Agents
Leif +46: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +70
Sabrina +65: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +89

Developmental League

Marsh

Jay: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Chelsea: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Bill
Christina: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24

Week 6= +80, Team Total= +236

Mags

Matt
Kim: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Alicia: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24
Tarzan: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24

Week 6= +76, Team Total= +211

Tippy

Troyzan: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Kat: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Colton: Health Leave (-20)= -20
Monica

Week 6= +36, Team Total= +207

Rizzo

Michael: Reward (+4), Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +28
Jonas: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24
Kourtney
Nina

Week 6= +52, Team Total= +99




Free Agents
Leif: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24
Sabrina: Merge (+8), W6 (+16)= +24

30 Rock 613 and 614 Review- Off The Charts, Kimosabe

Liz- "I thought you said a man should never wear pastel unless he's a black guy on Easter?"

30 Rock treated us to a double feature of laughs with The Office taking the night off this week, and while both episodes had success in the joke department, one excelled because of its inherently funny stories.

"Kidnapped by Danger," the second half-hour of the night, gave us the making of Avery Jessup's TV movie, Liz as The Blocker, and Jenna and Tracy attempting to maneuver around Weird Al's evil brilliance... all of which allowed the laughs to flow freely.

The table read for the movie itself was worth the entire storyline. The introduction of William Baldwin - playing an actor that was playing Jack Donaghy, who is played by his brother Alec Baldwin - was brilliant. Said actor doing an exaggerated version of Jack made it even better.

Liz's script was hilarious, Cynthia Nixon's portrayal of Nancy Donovan was just as overacted as Julianne Moore's, and when Liz admitted that she thought all people from Boston sounded like that, I almost lost it.

To read the rest of my review of last night's episodes of 30 Rock, head over to TV Fanatic.

30 Rock 613 - "Grandmentor"
Review
Recap
Quotes

30 Rock 614 - "Kidnapped by Danger"
Review
Recap
Quotes

One Tree Hill 911 Review- I Can See Daniel Waving Goodbye

Dan- "I know where you're going, but what about me?"

Keith- "Don't worry little brother, you're my plus one."

Dan. Effing. Scott. Whether you loved him, hated him, or loved to hate him, it is nearly impossible to argue that he didn't have one of the most intriguing and divisive character arcs of all-time.

He tormented his sons, his wife and everyone else in town for that matter. He was hit by a speeding car, poisoned, lost out on a number of heart transplants and attempted to hang himself.  Dan Scott even murdered his own brother.

He also treated his grandchildren - we mostly witnessed this through his joyous moments with Jamie - wonderfully.  When it came down to it, and someone he loved was in extreme danger, he put everything (including his life on the line), saving Nathan Scott for his family.

We got to relive so much of his journey over the course of these nine seasons of One Tree Hill in "Danny Boy," whether through spoken word or visual flashback, and it created for one Hell of an emotional rollercoaster.

To read the rest of my review of last night's One Tree Hill, head over to TV Fanatic.

One Tree Hill 911 - "Danny Boy"
Review
Recap
Quotes

Justified 310 Review- Somebody's Poisoned the Waterhole

Quarles- "He slipped the hillbilly rug right out from under my feet."

Raylan- "I'm just gonna file that under who gives a shit?"

"Guy Walks into a Bar," tells a U.S. Marshal he is going to kill him, prepares for a duel, and then says "night, night" with his hand as if he had drawn a face on it. That entire scene in the bar, combined with the rest of what was going on with Robert Quarles, was absolutely fascinating.

The character has lost his mind, and Neal McDonough continued to do a fantastic job portraying this mad man in this week's Justified. It all started to turn in the wrong direction for Quarles two weeks ago when his plan to take Raylan down fell apart.

The downward spiral continued when Napier was disqualified from running for office. Quarles had already stolen the sheriff's office, and was ready to run the shit out of Harlan County, but Boyd outmaneuvered him, and the Detroit man silently walked away from the situation.

It was as if he knew it was all over. Watching him slowly chew on pill after pill in almost a curled up ball in his trailer was sad. Hearing the story of his childhood, however, was much worse. When that kid pulled on him, I knew a Robert Quarles speech was coming, but I never expected what actually came out of his mouth.

To read the rest of my review of last night's Justified, head over to TV Fanatic.

Justified 310 - "Guy Walks Into a Bar"
Review
Recap
Quotes

The Voice 208 Review- Let's Duet In Ways That Make Us Feel Good

The solid duets were flowing like wine in the Cougar Town cul-de-sac during Part Three of The Voice's Battle Rounds. Maybe nobody was quite as impressed as mentor and former American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson, who said "I wish they woulda done that on the show I was from" about the interesting semifinal format.

While they may force a few dissimilar contestants to fight through songs that don't quite fit their styles from time to time, the Battle Rounds have also given the audience an opportunity to not only watch these world famous coaches give in-depth instruction, but to get into it and perform with the contestants in order to help them interpret their respective song.

I absolutely loved watching Blake Shelton rip it up with ALyx on the mini stage in his barn, and I couldn't get enough of Xtina going toe to toe with Jonathas on "No Air." Those personal touches are something no other singing show really gives us at this point. Now let's get to the battles...

Team Adam - Pip vs. Nathan Parrett - "You Know I'm No Good"

The Battle: This was a matchup that was unfair from the get go. There has been a lot of Pip publicity, and he had all four judges turn around in his blind audition, so it would be tough for Adam to justify sending him home. Thankfully, the kid made it easy for Adam, and knocked this performance out of the park. He was powerful while seeming effortless. While Nathan was good, and had a nice tone, he couldn't compete with Pip here. The two of them sounded good together, making for the first of a number of great duets this week.
My Choice: Pip
Adam's Choice: Pip
Battle Grade: A-

To read the rest of my review of last night's The Voice, head over to TV Fanatic.

American Idol Top 11- Shannon's Migraine

I think this season's Fantasy American Idol has become a two team race, as Larry's duo of Phil Phil and Skylar and Tyson's duo of Heejun and Hollie will battle this out to the end.  I definitely give the edge to Larry, though, because Heejun will have an earlier exit than the other three if the judges get what they want.

A few thoughts on the performances...I keep wanting to love Colton Dixon, but he has yet to impress me.  Phil Phillips is the type of artist I like, but he has been pretty average thus far.  Jessica Sanchez is the best female contestant this show has seen in years.  What she did with "Turn the Beat Around" was fantastic, and if any other Idol had done that song it would have been karaoke hell.  Skylar Lane is 10 times the country star that Lauren Alaina tried to be last year.  People like Hollie but she hasn't done much for me thus far.  Heejun is funny, and his tone is nice, but he needs a lot of work.  Josh, Deandre, and Elise are all good singers, but none do it for me.  Erika needs to go next.

Survivor
Me: W1- Phillip, W2- Hollie
Jack: W1- Hollie, W2- Deandre

Predict the Bottom Three
Both Jack and I picked the Bottom 3 of Shannon, Elise and Erika perfectly, but he correctly identified Shannon as the eliminated contestant, while I had Elise going home.

Fantasy Idol

Larry
Phillip Phillips: Safe (+6)
Skylar Laine: Safe (+6)
Erika Van Pelt: Bottom 3 (-4), Safe (+6)
Adam Brock
Brielle Von Hugel
Top 11: +14, Team Total: 52

Tyson
Heejun Han: Safe (+6)
Hollie Cavanaugh: Safe (+6)
Jeremy Rosado
Hallie Day
Chase Likens
Top 11: +12, Team Total: 46

Me
Colton Dixon: Safe (+6)
Reed Grimm
Eben Franckewitz
Haley Johnson
Jen Hirsh
Top 11: +6, Team Total: 21

Jack
Deandre Brackensick: Safe (+6)
Baylie Brown
Joshua Ladet: Safe (+6)
Chelsea Sorrell
Creighton Fraker
Top 11: +12, Team Total: 26

Rizzo
Jessica Sanchez: Safe (+6)
Shannon Magrane: Eliminated (-8)
Elise Testone: Bottom 3 (-4), Safe (+6)
Aaron Marcellus
Johnny Keyser
Top 11: 0, Team Total: 34

The Office 819 Review- Flowers Arranging Themselves

Jim- "The raise isn't real."

Dwight- "Money isn't real ever since we got off the gold standard."

If we were conducting Catherine Tate's The Office performance review like Nellie Bertram did of her employees at Dunder Mifflin Scranton - that is, on first impressions - she would also be receiving a raise.

Tate's first appearance last season was intriguing, and her stint as head honcho down in Florida was entertaining, but in "Get the Girl" it became obvious that Nellie Bertram as branch manager could be exactly what The Office needs to stay afloat.

She is very strange, but not in a way that is too similar to Michael Scott or Andy Bernard, nor in a way that is just too slow and boring most of the time like Robert California. Nellie proved she was upbeat, off the walls and that she can create a lot of weird situations for our favorite paper suppliers.

The way that she took charge and took over Andy's office was great. The meeting she ran, in which she used some weird voices and gave Kevin an awful nickname, was funny. Giving every one there a raise even though she had no authority might have been the best of all.

To read the rest of my review of last night's The Office, head over to TV Fanatic.

The Office 819 - "Get the Girl"
Review
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30 Rock 612 Review- Smells Like Green Spirit

Tracy- "It sure is rewarding as a TV viewer when someone you're invested in shows growth."

In an extremely meta moment, Tracy uttered those words about Liz on the St. Patrick's Day special he was hosting with Jenna. Yes, Liz Lemon did depict growth in 30 Rock's "St. Patrick's Day," but as I've noted before, that's not a necessity for a comedy.

There are those sitcom that need to fuse the funny with character development in order to be successful - take Parks and Recreation or Modern Family, for example - but 30 Rock is so out there and obviously after as many jokes as it can muster that the addition of growth seems unnecessary.

That's not to say that it wasn't welcome here, especially if it meant the return of Dennis Duffy! There is plenty of Dean Winters to go around, as those All State commercials never stop, but he's never better than his pop-ins at 30 Rock.

To read the rest of my review of last night's 30 Rock, head over to TV Fanatic.

30 Rock 612 - "St. Patrick's Day"
Review
Recap
Quotes

Survivor Week 5- The Switcheroo

The guys vs. the girls was not nearly as unbalanced as this new shake up.  Could they have made these more unfair if they tried?  Well yeah, athletically, switching Kat for Monica probably would have made the Blue Team the strongest possible, but they came pretty close to putting all of the athletes on one team.

It should make for an interesting couple of weeks in which Blue beats orange in every single challenge, and the inferior team slowly dwindles before the merge.  I like the idea of a four person alliance of Jay, Troyzan, Chelsea, and Kim making it all the way to the end, and that's not just because two of them are on my fantasy squad.

The Champions League is still anyone's game, but the longer Larry holds on to four players, the more likely he is going to be a back-to-back winner.  Even Jaydon, who trails first place by just under 130 points, has a chance if Kim and Alicia make it far.  The latter's decision to go with the flow and vote for Monica this week, is a good sign that she knows how to get ahead on Survivor.

Tippy still leads the Developmental League, but took a big hit with the loss of Monica, and Marsh is now creeping up on him.  Marsh has the same awesome duo as me, with Jay and Chelsea, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him take over Tip's lead at some point in the near future.

Champions League

Larry

Michael -60: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= -35
Kat -54: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= -29
Jonas +14: W5 (+11)= +25
Tarzan +30: Votes (-8), W5 (+11)= +33

Last Week -70: Team Total= -6

Me

Jay -41: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= -16
Chelsea -100: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= -75
Monica +15: Votes (-20)= -5
Colton +34: W5 (+11)= +45

Last Week -92: Team Total= -51

Jack

Troyzan -11: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +14
Christina -39: W5 (+11)= -28
Kourtney -45
Bill -45

Last Week -140: Team Total= -104

Jaydon

Matt -100
Kim -80: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), Idol Found (+10), W5 (+11)= -45
Alicia +25: W5 (+11)= +36
Nina -24

Last Week -179: Team Total= -133




Free Agents
Leif +35: W5 (+11)= +46
Sabrina +40: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +65

Developmental League

Tippy

Troyzan: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25
Kat: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25
Colton: W5 (+11)= +11
Monica: Votes (-20)= -20

Week 5= +41, Team Total= +171

Marsh

Jay: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25
Chelsea: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25
Bill
Christina: W5 (+11)= +11

Week 5= +61, Team Total= +156

Mags

Matt
Kim: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), Idol Found (+10), W5 (+11)= +35
Alicia: W5 (+11)= +11
Tarzan: Votes (-8), W5 (+11)= +3

Week 5= +49, Team Total= +135

Rizzo

Michael: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25
Jonas: W5 (+11)= +11
Kourtney
Nina

Week 5= +36, Team Total= +47




Free Agents
Leif: W5 (+11)= +11
Sabrina: Reward (+4), Immunity (+10), W5 (+11)= +25

One Tree Hill 910 Review- I'll Take Shotgun

Nathan- "Dad...it's good to see you."

It might have been annoying at certain points in this final season of One Tree Hill, but Nathan getting kidnapped and the subsequent events it caused over the first nine episodes were all worth it for what was maybe the most heroic rescue mission in television history.

I would be extremely surprised if I needed to convince anyone else of the greatness of Dan Scott - and Paul Johansson's portrayal of the character - after his performance during "Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will."

This was what we have all been waiting for, and what I've been writing about since "Catastrophe and the Cure" back in February: Dan Scott's redemption. I knew he would save Nathan, I just didn't know how. I knew it would be uber cool and super studly, but I couldn't have ever imagined how awesome it would be to watch him slowly walk through the building going through bad guys one by one with his shotgun.

Dan Scott is the man, and so is Johansson.

The journey we all took, watching Dan get to that point, was just as fantastic. Whether it was teaching Julian and Chris Keller how to shoot, using the third person after realizing neither knew what he was doing, or locking Julian out of the car and telling him to go home to his family, this was a great episode before we even got to the rescue mission.

To read the rest of my review of last night's One Tree Hill, head over to TV Fanatic.

One Tree Hill 910 - "Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will"
Review
Recap
Quotes

Justified 309 Review- Mine Your Business

Boyd- "Well Mr. Napier I'd like to think that if I was behind an attempt on your life, at the very least I would've messed up your hair."

Since there were so many interesting and entertaining events during "Loose Ends," I was surprised at my own reaction when it ended.  I wasn't amazed, which has been my feeling following a number of Justified episodes during this middle stretch of the third season.

It's been great, but during the majority of season two and the first three or four episodes this year, Justified was indescribably awesome.  That level of quality is hard to achieve in back to back seasons.

"Loose Ends" was very good though.  Ava's rise, Boyd's speech, everything to do with the land mine, and Raylan wrestling with Limehouse about Quarles were all fantastic in their own right, but it seemed more like an episode that was setting the scene for episodes down the road than an hour of pure entertainment in and of itself.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Ava's rise to power has been brewing for quite some time now.  Ever since she decided that she was okay with Boyd's ways, and we could tell she was willing to get involved herself, it was obvious that at some point she would take an even larger role in the criminal activity.

To read the rest of my review of last night's Justified, head over to TV Fanatic.

Justified 309 - "Loose Ends"
Review
Recap
Quotes

The Voice 207 Review- I Want To Know Who Jamar Is

Granted, there was no Jesse Campbell vs. Anthony Evans showdown this week. But Part Two of The Voice's Battle Round was filled with a number of good performers taking each other on in the ring.

If there is any reason for concern at this point in the competition, it is definitely that the coaches don't have as much opportunity to shine during the Battle Rounds. There just isn't enough time for Blake to crack a million jokes, and for Adam to gloat about winning season one when there is all this talent to showcase on stage. Let's take a look at said talent in this week's Battle Round...

Team Xtina - Geoff McBride vs. Sera Hill - "Chain of Fools"

The Battle: Surprisingly, Sera was kind of overpowering Geoff from the get go. Also strange, because I remember liking him during his audition, was that Geoff sounded sharp both in his practice and the battle itself. She did miss a pretty big note, though, so it was close to a toss-up for me.
My Choice: Sera
Xtina's Choice: Sera
Battle Grade: C+

To read the rest of my review of last night's The Voice, head over to TV Fanatic.

American Idol Top 13- She's The Sanchize

This is super late, and because of how busy I was this week, I only got to watch American Idol in the express style.  That is that thing where you only watch the performances, cutting out all judges comments, preview packages, and Seacrest filler.

My favorites of the night were Phil Phillips and Jessica Sanchez.  Jessica's performance was one of the best female performances I've ever seen on Idol, and blew away Jennifer Hudson's rendition of the same song at the Grammy's a few weeks ago.  She is pretty great, but Phil Phillips is still going to win this thing.

I picked Phil and Jack took Hollie Cavanaugh in the Survivor Pool, so we are both still in.  Neither of us realized how the Bottom 6 was going to work this week, so that didn't pan out as planned.  I thought it would be Erika, Elise and Jermaine with Erika going home.  Jack took Elise, Erika, and Jeremy with Elise going home.  All the people we chose were in the Bottom 6, so there's that.

Larry
Phillip Phillips: Safe (+5)
Skylar Laine: Safe (+5)
Erika Van Pelt: Bottom 6 (-3), Safe (+5)
Adam Brock
Brielle Von Hugel
Top 13: +12, Team Total: 38

Rizzo
Jessica Sanchez: Safe (+5)
Shannon Magrane: Bottom 6 (-3), Safe (+5)
Elise Testone: Bottom 2 (-5), Safe (+5)
Aaron Marcellus
Johnny Keyser
Top 13: +7, Team Total: 34

Tyson
Heejun Han: Safe (+5)
Hollie Cavanaugh: Safe (+5)
Jeremy Rosado: Eliminated (-6)
Hallie Day
Chase Likens
Top 13: +4, Team Total: 24

Me
Colton Dixon: Safe (+5)
Reed Grimm
Eben Franckewitz
Haley Johnson
Jen Hirsh
Top 13: +5, Team Total: 15

Jack
Deandre Brackensick: Safe (+5)
Baylie Brown
Joshua Ladet: Bottom 6 (-3), Safe (+5)
Chelsea Sorrell
Creighton Fraker
Top 13: +7, Team Total: 14

Survivor Week 4- Takin' It to the Tribal

I'm going to take a quick moment here to talk about the fact that for the first time in Survivor history a tribe won immunity and then decided to go to tribal council anyway.  While this was ridiculously dumb, as noted in my docking of 5 points to all members of the men's tribe, it was far from the dumbest move in Survivor history.

Anything done as a team can't possibly be in the same conversation as someone giving up an individual idol and walking out the door, or even as recently as Ozzy intentionally getting voted off so that he could come back from Redemption Island.  Sure, he did get to come back, but it was still dumb to take that chance...dumber than this move by the men.

Think about it.  Only one out of those nine guys was leaving the game on that day, so yes it was unbelievably stupid for Bill in this case, but he had no idea he was going to be the one going home at the time.  So again, you can't really put him in the category of dumbest players either.

The fact that this entire tribe is allowing Colton to make all their decisions for them is probably the dumbest thing of the season so far.  This spoiled brat - admittedly by him during this episode - is annoyed by Bill because he's poor, so you're all willing to head to tribal council earlier to vote him out?  This is the same Colton that was hanging out with the girls' tribe a few days ago because he had nothing in common with any of you, right?  Okay, just checking.

When did we miss the part where the group of misfits decided that Colton was their leader?  It seemed like at one point it just happened, and it will probably be the downfall of the guys.  I have no problem getting rid of your stronger players - I'd prefer it to come after you've won a few more team challenges - but it's something you're going to want to do at some point.  My issue is with the reasoning.  You don't vote someone out because they're annoying.  That's just playing Survivor emotionally, and that won't ever work.

Champions League

Larry

Michael -72: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= -60
Kat -65: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= -54
Jonas +12: Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +14
Tarzan +18: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +30

Last Week -107: Team Total= -70

Me

Jay -53: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= -41
Chelsea -111: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= -100
Monica +4: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +15
Colton +22: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +34

Last Week -138: Team Total= -92

Jack

Troyzan -23: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= -11
Christina -50: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= -39
Kourtney -45
Bill -22: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), Votes (-28)= -45

Last Week -140: Team Total= -140

Jaydon

Matt -100
Kim -91: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= -80
Alicia +14: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +25
Nina -24

Last Week -201: Team Total= -179




Free Agents
Leif +27: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), Votes (-4), W4 (+7)= +35
Sabrina +29: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +40

Developmental League

Tippy

Troyzan: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +12
Kat: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11
Colton: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +12
Monica: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11

Week 4= +46, Team Total= +130

Marsh

Jay: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +12
Chelsea: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11
Bill: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), Votes (-28)= -23
Christina: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11

Week 4= +11, Team Total= +95

Mags

Matt
Kim: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11
Alicia: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11
Tarzan: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +12

Week 4= +34, Team Total= +86

Rizzo

Michael: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +12
Jonas: Tribal (-5), W4 (+7)= +2
Kourtney
Nina

Week 4= +14, Team Total= +11




Free Agents
Leif: Immunity (+10), Tribal (-5), Votes (-4), W4 (+7)= +8
Sabrina: Reward (+4), W4 (+7)= +11