152 insights into my soul

Hmm, saw several movies since coming up here that I hadn't yet seen. Besides watching Ninja Assassin with the boys today, watched Donnie Yen's Flash Point (I had caught a lot of the fight scenes, but this was the first time I've seen the whole actual movie), strange Japanese Western with Tarantino cameo Sukiyaki Western Django, and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. I still think Alexis Dziena is kinda cute, even if certain people think she looks like an underage Russian prostitute. Ditto for Kat Dennings, and not just because she has huge knockers. ( spoiler cut )

Also caught most of Wall-E. A little more than half, but it was the part with the major plot points. Maybe I shouldn't judge yet since I haven't seen all of it yet, but I thought Up was more heartwarming and compelling. Managed to catch the ends of Sex Drive (with the babealicious Katrina Bowden, and the also kinda hot Amanda Crew and skinny and cute Alice Greczyn) and Fired Up! (with the nice-assed Sarah Roemer, Naomi from 90210, Rachel from OTH, Shia Lebouf's gf on Even Stevens, the Asian tech chick on the new Knight Rider and the chick from Wildfire who wasn't Ruby 2.0/that one guy's supposedly dead daughter on FlashForward). And since the parents have a DVR now, just set it to record War, Inc. as I type this before I turn into bed.

TV Commentary:

Glee- I cannot believe I forgot to mention in my Glee commentary in my previous post about how ridiculously hot Rachel looked in that one outfit after her makeover (the cleavage-y skimpy top and the really short pleated skirt?! YOWZA!)

Monk- the first half of the series finale. Wait, was it always the case Trudy was blown up right before Christmas? And what's Natalie's brother in law doing back? Are they still seeing each other? He was like in that one ep, but I don't think they'd shown him since. Anyways, ( spoiler cut )

TV Commentary:

Monk- Okay, I'll admit, I did laugh pretty hard at the sight gag of Monk press-slamming a fat dude off a roof. ( spoiler cut )

Psych- Ah, its good to see Alex Mack getting work. She's still one of my celeb crushes after all these years. Though what was up with the recurring, "Anna Paquin was in Almost Famous?!" jokes? Like who didn't know that?! ojv('Man, its obvious!') Its like common knowledge or something. All the Band-aids were famous actresses. Kate Hudson of course, but then you had Anna Paquin, Fairuza Balk, and Bijou Phillips!

( spoiler cut )

I saw the top of this article over the roomie's shoulder as I was asking him something last night before I left to watch Extract, but forgot to check out what it was after I got back, because why would you not check out an article where the accompanying pic is two hot chyx' mugshots? Apparently, this is Vampires Diaries related, because the chyx on the show were arrested in Forsyth, Georgia for flashing motorists on 75. I had to look it up, but I didn't realize Vampire Diaries was filmed down there.

So which chyx on the show were booked? Well, the main chick, Elena, (as I've mentioned previously, played by Degrassi hottie Nina Dobrev), Vicki (played by Kayla Ewell, whom you may remember as Johnny's gf on the OC, the new girl on Freaks & Geeks whom the geeks didn't want the cheerleaders to steal away, or that girl in the running for the Kane Scholarship on Veronica Mars who was paying off the doctor so she could have medical excuses to get out of tests and schedule them for a better time. Alas, hot bod, but giant chin!), Caroline, and surprisingly, not Bonnie, but Aunt Jenna. Though the article claims the actress playing the Aunt is 22. I'm a little skeptical though. That means she's playing around her actual age while the rest of the cast is playing younger. In any case, I'm totally amused how they're all smiling brightly for their mugshots, but I guess they were amused at the BS charges.

Actually, after seeing the "Whip It!" commercials, I can see Ellen Page as Cammie in the Gallagher series now. But I finished the latest one of those, so now on to the final Night Angel book, "Beyond the Shadows". ( spoiler cut for both )

In any case, pulling out of the cut briefly, I'm egg-cited, because you know how much I love plans where its, "We have X, Y, and Z separately against us. Lets trick them into fighting each other and then swoop in while they're killing each other!" Such marvelous chaos! Plus, it means you'll get a huge variety to put on your kill sheet!

I've never been good at strategy, though I think I do okay with tactics. Although even then I think its more perseverance, luck, doing something illogical because you don't know any better and unintentionally confounding your opponents, and underestimation (and maybe a little bit of playing dirty, though I do feel guilty when I do that). With my propensity for lists and my slight OC-ness, you'd think I'd be someone who's by the numbers, come up with a detailed plan before hand. But I'm also a firm believer in the adage, "No plan survives the first five minutes (or is it seconds?) of battle". So why bother wasting time with a detailed plan when you'll eventually have to change it? I mean, just come up with a general idea and stick with it.

Which is why I totally suck at Chess and other strategy games. It involves a lot of thinking ahead, and that's something I've never done well. I do better with tactics, because I see them as sound rules of advice to follow, and just rely on luck and hopefully being skilled enough to get me the rest of the way through. Which is why I've always been a fan of the aforementioned get a whole bunch of enemies to fight each other and bushwhack them plan. Since I have no strategy, frak everyone else, just trash all their strategies and put everyone on an even keel and hope I get lucky enough to win out in the end.

( back to spoilers )

TV commentary:

Quick Monk comment. I'm glad the show is finally ending soon. I'll watch it until the end, as I'm guessing he'll have to solve his wife's murder, but the show is so ridiculously predictable now, which wouldn't be as bad if the predictably wasn't predicated on illogical things happening. Its like, gee, here's some random person/event were showing that has nothing to do with the actual case. Only, you know it has everything to do with the case, even that it would make no sense whatsoever for the two to be connected!

Argh, something happened with the cable so the boxes lost signal from 2150 to 2207. But, the TV in my room isn't on a box, so I was able to switch to that TV before I missed more than a minute of FNL or any of BSG. But that means my recording of Dollhouse is mussed up and missing the last 10 minutes. Hopefully its up on hulu or fox's website.

TV commentary:

Monk- Hey, the magician's assistant chick is mad cutie Peyton List, whom one may remember as Lois' younger sister Lucy on Smallville, or appearances on various teen dramas and crime procedurals. I would say I'm surprised she doesn't get more work, but apparently she had a short stint on Mad Men recently. ( spoiler cut )

( BSG )

( FNL )

( Sarah Connor Chronicles )

( Degrassi )

( Psych )

You know, I figured the guy in the mirror in that Skittles "Reflect the Rainbow" commercial was speaking Tagalog. I may not speak the language (why can't everyone just learn English?), but I at least recognize it. And while I do seem like someone who doesn't put too much stock in heritage, I do think its cool that the Filipino martial arts represent the pinnacle of knife fighting technique.

Anyways, I was watching the Soup last night. Firstly, they had this Mad Men joke where the guys from Mad Men (well, Connor from Angel and two of the other guys) made a cameo, doing some thank you for winning some award, but Levar Burton was with them. Since I don't actually watch the show, at first I was "Levar Burton is on Mad Men?!"! But then I realized he obviously wasn't. cpv('Yes, Ted, that was the joke.')

Then they had Topanga promoting her new Soup-like show on the Style network called "The Dish". Then flicking through the channels, she was hosting this special on Fuse about "Top 20 celeb cameos in videos". Cool, I didn't realize Topanga was still doing things.

But speaking of the "Top 20 celeb cameos in videos", I don't think it really counts if its before they were famous. At that point, its just a job. I mean, Christinas Applegate and Milan and Eva Longoria in a Jessica Simpson's "Public Affair", or all those peeps in Nickelback's "Rockstar", those are celeb cameos. But Courtney Cox in that Bruce Springsteen video, or Alicia Silverstone and Liv Tyler in the Aerosmith videos, weren't those before those chyx were really famous?

TV commentary:

( Monk )

( Psych )

Damn, I'm hungry. All I had for dinner was a microwave five cheese pizza and some tostitos. That's one of the sucky things about being on nights, my food choices are limited to whatever I bring with me. I mean, places like Waffle House and Checkers are opened 24 hours or really late, but Checkers especially looks shady at night. Last time I was at their drive thru at 3am I had my hand on a weapon the whole time, what with all the thuggish looking people hanging out there at that time. Is the Mcdonalds on Northside open 24 hours? I seem to remember someone saying something to that effect.

I could really go for a double bacon cheeseburger topped with chili or something right now, but I'll have to settle for a Stouffer's salisbury steak and mac and cheese with some chips from the vending machine.

TV commentary:

( Monk )

( SGA )

( Psych )

Wait, there's a Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2?! I mean, what other misadventures can Joan of Arcadia, Ugly Betty, Rory Gilmore and Serena Van Der Woodsen get into while wearing magic pants?!