Things I Just Love-Boston Red Sox

I am not a sports nut. I have a passing interest infootball. Basketball and hockey I can do without. And I find golf and NASCAR  to be incredibly boring (yes, Isaid it. I find NASCAR to be a giant bore). But there is one exception and thatis what I want to talk about today.

I have loved The Boston Red Sox for as long as I can remember. I don’t remember much from back in the early 80’s, but I do remember playing with a handheld baseball game and I knew the starting lineup of the team even then. I even remember liking Yaz and he retired in 1982! I wish I hada great “my first day at a ballpark” story but I don’t remember the first time I saw a game live.  Before anyone asks, yes I played little league and I sucked.Now let me clarify, I am not an obsessive fan. I don’t watch every second of every game. I don’t keep track of every stat or obsess about the standings. I will accept if the Sox are playing horribly. But I am not a fair weather fan either, I watch in good times and bad.

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 6, Part 4)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 6, Part 4

Season 6, Episode 20

The One with the Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E.

 

Plot Summary-Joey lands a role on a new TV series but Chandler almost blows it when he fails to give him a message (yeah that’s about it)

Funniest Line-“Joey, if you get this, you'll be the star of your own TV show. You'll be like the big cheese. Or the Big Mac. Hey, you love those!”….Rachel

Nitpick of the episode-The way Chandler forgets to leave the message for Joey is a tad forced, this is only the second time we see the birds all season it’s no wonder they will disappear for good the next year.

Standout Character-Monica, she only gets one real scene but that is a classic Monica moment when she brings up her phone pad

Syndication Edit-Nothing really in this one

FinalThoughts-Yeah, another clip show. This is one of the weaker ones to. A few highlights:Chandler talking to the birds about having moved out, the scene with Chandler being consoled by Monica and Rachel, and the end when Chandler and Joey realize they hug a bit too much. All in all this is a filler episode andit really feels like it. The big problem with clip shows is that when we see clips from the early days it makes us miss the way the show was when it was fresh and new.

Grade=C-

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 6, Part 3)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 6, Part 3

Season 6, Episode 13

The One with Rachel’s Sister

 

Plot Summary-Joey gets in trouble for giving free food away, a sick Monica tries to convince Chandler she is not sick, Rachel agrees to help her little sister out

Funniest Line-“Are you saying that you don't wanna get with this?”….Monica

Nitpickof the episode-Always had a problem with Monica insisting that she never gets sick. She has been sick on the show and handled it just fine those times.Sometimes the writers forget that she is competitive but not obsessive.

Standout Character-Rachel, Jill is a great way to look back at how Rachel started and see how far she has come

Syndication Edit-The missing tag where Monica's gotten Chandler sick and Joey's stolen all of the food out of their refrigerator to give away in the coffee house. Think this was removed because it causes a major continuity error with the next one.

Final Thoughts-I actually kind of liked this one. Yes the Joey story is painfully boring. It’s not bad but it’s just dull, we get it he works at the coffee house! And while you could argue Monica trying to convince Chandler she is notsick is silly, it kind of works especially that scene where she puts vapo rubon herself. And as I stated, seeing Jill really gives us an idea how far Rachel has come and we also stir up the Ross/Rachel stuff a bit when Jill goes out with Ross. More on that next episode. The one bad thing is that Phoebe really gets nothing to do here.

Grade=B

Seven Sitcom Face-Off's I Will Never Do!

 I have been doing the sitcom face-off's for a while now.Except for the episode guide's these articles are probably my favorite towrite. It gives me a chance to discuss and analyze some of my favorite shows inan engaging format. However there is some face-off's which seem perfectly logical but I will not do them. Here is why.

  VS

This seems like a perfectly logical face off since I Dream Of Jeannie was intended as a Bewitched clone sort of. The problem is that I adored Bewitched growing up, whenever I was home from school I would get up at 8:30 to watch the re-runs. But Jeannie…..not so much. Aside from loving Barbara Eden I just don't think I have enough good to say about that show to do a fair analysis.

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 6, Part 2)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 6, Part 2

Season 6, Episode 7

The One Where Phoebe Runs

 

Plot Summary-Rachel is embaeassed by the way Phoebe runs, Joey gets a sexy new roommate, Chandler tries to clean the apartment for Monica

FunniestLine-“Look, Chandler, Monica is really weird about this kind of stuff. Believeme, I  lived with her for sixteen years. She is going to freak out. Oh my God,she's going to sit on you.”….Ross

Nitpickof the episode- I always love when Monica tells Chandler she would never expect him to follow her neurotic ways. Funny considering she did expect Rachel and Phoebe to follow them when they lived with her. And how in the world did Chandler not know Monica would freak if her apartment was not exactly the way she had it?? It’s so crazy Ross even brings it up in the episode.

Standout Character- Joey, funny to watch him try to not attract Janine

Syndication Edit-The discussion about how Chandler and Ross repel women was longer

Final Thoughts-Phoebe’s story is delightfully pointless. Not much else to say about that one. We get introduced to Janine who did not do anything for the show really. Though the discussion Joey, Chandler, and Ross have about her is kind of funny. Chandler acts like he just met Monica in this episode, but it works in the end.

Grade=B-,could have been worst

Sitcom Face Off-Saved By The Bell vs Boy Meets World

Sitcom Face Off finally returns with a unique match up:

  vs 

Two school comedies which were big in the 90’s. One was a Saturday morning staple, the other a very important member of the TGIF family. One was corny; the other trended to more serious stories. But in the end, which was better? As always this is just opinion.

  
 

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 6, Part 1)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 6, Part 1

Season 6, Episode 1

The One After Vegas

 

Plot Summary-Ross and Rachel deal with the consequences of their drunken night,Monica and Chandler decide to slow down and try living together, Phoebe and Joey drive back to New York

Funniest Line-“This is not a marriage. This is the world's worst hangover!”…..Rachel

Nitpick of the episode-A lot of people point to the fact that Ross and Rachel have the ink mysteriously disappear from their faces. However, the truth is the creators had worked to explain it. The ink had faded enough for make-up to cover it.There was a Chandler line where he was supposed to say that Ross got married and became a woman in the same night. They dropped the line but the fact it was considered means I will give them a pass on that one.

Standout Character-Chandler, I love that he is the one who asks Monica to move inwith him

SyndicationEdit-The opening scene with Ross and Rachel was longer

Final Thoughts-Thank the lord the creators wised up! I accepted the fake proposal back in “The One with the Girl who Hits Joey” but having them rushing to the altar in the season final was too much. Good to see them realize that, and the decision to move in together makes perfect sense. It’s especially cool because it’s Chandler who comes up with it. Ross and Rachel’s story continues, not sure what Ross is thinking not quickly ending the marriage but I guess I wouldn’t want three failed marriages on my record either. The only weak part of the episode is the Phoebe/Joey stuff which is boring. It takes hours and hours to travel from Las Vegas to New York non-stop, how much did Joey sleep? I also was amused how they took Joey’s movie, which was a big deal in the previous two episodes, and just swept it under the rug.

Grade=B

Five "WTF??" Sitcom Episode Endings

Sitcom’s are not loved by everyone, and I am sure one of the reasons for that is because they follow a strict formula. We know the drill: people in sitcoms never get sick, they don’t have real problems; every problem is solved in 23 minutes (that one pisses me off, just because the episode runs 23 minutes doesn’t mean the events of the episode did!! People accept that with movies why do sitcoms get the hate?).

The point is that sitcoms can be predictable in the things they do. But once in a while a sitcom episode will throw us for a loop, and do something different. Sometimes it will be an entire episode which is a bit odd,like a dream sequence show where all kinds of odd things happen. And other times, it will be one scene at the end of a show which is just weird. It can be dead serious or hilarious but is always out of left field and leaves you saying WTF was that??

Here are five examples of what I am talking about.

#5. The Cosby Show “Vanessa’s Bad Grade”

This one has baffled me for ages. This is a typical Cosby episode, the main plot has Vanessa doing bad in school and stealing a sweater from her sister because she is so obsessed with her boyfriend. So in the end after a fight between Denise and Vanessa and the typical parent talk, the stories get resolved. Cliff and Clair tell Vanessa and her boyfriend Robert tonot see so much of each other and all seems well. Then something very odd happens, Clair walks into the living room to find Rudy watching Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech on TV. Now let’s ignore how and why Rudy got there, what happens next is the family ends up converging to watch this speech,and that’s the end of the episode. Now don’t misunderstand me, it’s a beautiful scene but it comes out of absolutely nowhere! The episode aired around Martin Luther King Day so that may be a reason for it, and the speech does get worked into the plot a bit as we see Vanessa and Denise make up. Nice, touching moment but where did that come from??

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 5, Part 4)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 5, Part 4

Season 5, Episode 19

The One Where Ross Can’t Flirt

 

Plot Summary-The gang gathers to see Joey’s new TV role. Rachel looks for Monica’s sunglasses, Ross tries flirting with the delivery girl, Chandler discovers Monica flirts with men

Funniest Line-“When you flirt with a guy, you think, "I'm just flirting, no bigdeal." But the guy is thinking, "Finally! Somebody who wants to sleep with me."….Chandler

Nitpick of the episode-As funny as it is, Ross has a pretty successful dating record so I get the feeling his trouble flirting was invented for this episode. At least it stayed afterward.

Standout Character-Ross, sometimes his goofiness works and others it doesn’t. Here it works.

Syndication Edit-Extra scene with Caitlin and Rachel talking outside.

Final Thought-I’m sorry but I love this episode! Yeah it’s a bottle show and all, butthe gags are so great. Ross’s attempt at flirting is just hilarious. Just laughout loud funny. It’s true the stories are kind of weak but how can you go wrong having the friends together in one room for an entire episode? My favorite moment is when Chandler asks Rachel if she minded Ross flirting with other women.She responds that it did bother her when he slept with other women. Great moment!

Grade=A-,Love this one

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 5, Part 3)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 5, Part 3

Season 5, Episode 14

The One Where Everybody Finds Out

 

Plot Summary-Ross decides to move into Ugly Naked Guy’s apartment which causes Phoebe to catch Monica and Chandler

Funniest Line-“Oh yeah! Oh my God! That is our friend! It's Naked Ross!”…..Rachel

Nitpick of the episode-Just want to say one thing-it’s about time!

Standout Character-Phoebe, tough choice but that scene where she sees Monica and Chandler is simply one of her funniest of the series

Syndication Edit-Longer teaser, a scene showing naked Ross hanging with Ugly Naked Guy,lots of little gags episode went long

Final Thoughts-What can I possibly say about this? It’s hilarious! We have been waiting half a season for this and the episode did not disappoint. It would have been easy for the “reveal” to be a letdown but it works. I also like the idea or Ross moving across the street, and the Ugly Naked Guy gag had been played so no loss there. This is one of those episodes where every character is clicking and every joke works, and I can’t say enough about it.

Grade=A+,another top 5 episode

Top 5 Reasons I Hate Reality TV!

A year or so ago I talked about five subjects I will never discuss because I hate them. Today I am going to go back on my word to discuss something I hate in more detail.
 RealityTV!

It’s hard to believe all we had for “reality” TV was “Real People” in the early 80’s, COPS in the late 80’s, and “The Real World” in the early 90’s. Then came the end of the 90’s, and a little show called Survivor changed everything! I admit I was caught up in Survivor’s first year, though I was late to the party (as usual), but it didn’t take long for me to lose interest (the show aired opposite Friends, which do you think I picked?). I was into The Apprentice for a few years and admit I watched America Idol and Fear Factor mostly thank to my wife.

The last few years I have abandoned reality TV despite its obvious staying power. Why? Here are five reasons why.


#5. COHABITATION
A few years ago I was interested in a show called Last Comic Standing which was a competition to find the next stand-up comic. That sounded like a neat idea. One thing, THE CONTESTANTS LIVED TOGETHER IN THE SAMEHOUSE! WHY??? I mean in Survivor, Big Brother and in a way The Apprentice this made sense, but does every show have to do this? A new one came out called “Kingof the Nerds” and guess what? THEY ALL LIVE TOGETHER! Why do they have to do this? Hell's Kitchen, America's Top Model, The Biggest Loser...obviously it's to create drama in the show. Well I have enough drama in my own life thank you.

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 5, Part 2)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 5, Part 2

Season 5, Episode 8

The One with all the Thanksgivings

 

Plot Summary- The gang recounts horrible Thanksgivings including when Chandler met Monica

Funniest Line-“Well sorry doesn't bring back the little piggy who cried all the way home!”…Chandler

Nitpick of the episode-Phoebe’s “story” is real far-fetched even for her

Standout Character-Monica, a little character development never hurt anyone

Syndication Edit-Another stupid edit! When Chandler discovers why he lost his toe he mentions being called sir limpsalot. That line is cut, BUT the response when Ross takes credit for the name remains and makes  no sense! Dumb!

Final Thoughts-This is a great episode, but I always had a couple problems with it. Why don’t all friends get equal story? Why establish when Chandler met Rachel when we already saw it? Did Monica really lose all that weight in under a year? Well while this episode raises some questions; taken as it is it’s still a strong one. I did like when we get the flashback of Chandler and Monica meeting we see Ross pining for Rachel. It was a nice reminder of Season 1 Ross. Of course the highlight is the end when Chandler finally tells Monica that he loves her.

Grade=B+,decent as far as Thanksgiving shows go

Analytical Episode Guide-Friends (Season 5, Part 1)

Analytical Episode Guide:

Season 5, Part 1

Season 5, Episode 1

The One after Ross says Rachel

 

Plot Summary-Ross tries to locate Emily, Monica and Chandler are unable to hook up again

Funniest Line-“Could have been worst. He could have shot her”….Chandler

Nitpick of the episode-There is a point in the episode when Ross decides to stop looking for Emily because for all he knows she is trying to find him but hasn’t because he keeps moving around. Ummmm…how did he come to that conclusion exactly? All evidence would suggest Ross may want to keep looking.

Standout Character-Monica & Chandler, they’re failed attempts to hook up are hilarious

Syndication Edit-Joey talking to Ross’s parents

Final Thoughts-While it’s true that there was no way to follow up the season ender, this episode does a decent job picking up where that one left off. I will be talking lots more about this but this is the first we see of the rage-aholic  Ross we will get for thefirst half of the season. Here it’s ok. Monica and Chandler are great, and the best part comes at the end. It looks as if their affair is wrapped up and that’s it, until Chandler comes back in. This is our first indication this isn’t going away. Rachel getting stuck on the plane to Greece at the end was agreat gag which I am sorry to say will not really go anywhere, which brings us to the next episode.

Grade=B,not quite as strong as the last

Five Underappreciated Films That I Love!!

There are some movies which transcend the medium and become a part of pop culture. They are remembered for years and have loyal fans.  But what about those other films, the ones which seem to fade away and get forgotten no matter how popular they were when they came out.

Here are five films which I loved that which were huge hits that seem to have faded away from collective memory (in no particular order).

#5. City Slickers

When people hear Billy Crystal they think Oscars, but everyone seems to have forgotten his huge hit from the early 90’s. Bill Crystal plays a man going through a mid-life crisis until his buddies take him on acattle drive. The film also stars Jack Palance who is the best thing in it.Yeah the film is corny by today’s standards but has genuine laughs and real heart.

#4.Three Men and a Baby

Give confirmed bachelors Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, and Ted Danson a little baby to take care of. How could that go wrong? As it turned out it was great idea and a smash hit. Yeah some of the gags are corny but it’s the strength ofthe three guys that sells this premise. Leonard Nimoy directed and this film does have one legacy, that “ghost” urban myth which if you don’t know about is up there with the hanging munchkin  as a Hollywood urban legend.