Top 10 Star Trek Uniforms, Worst to Best

I really should have done this one last year. With all the talk about the cool stuff on Star Trek from the effects to ship designs, there is one area I never really addressed. And that is those awesome uniforms that everyone wore. From classic TOS through the new movies, the uniforms were always awesome and were as much a part of the show as any other element. Would it be Spock without that sky blue shirt? It just wouldn’t be the same. It’s no surprise so many people have their own copies of them. So I thought it would be fun to go over the various uniforms and pick my favorite. And as I no nothing about fashion, don’t expect specific details we are going purely on superficial appeal.

Course it’s hard to separate DS9 from Voyager or the movies, which is a shame it’s the one series that didn’t have it’s own special look. And for simplicity sake, just Starfleet uniforms and I’m keeping it standard dress and no casual attire or else this list will go on all day (so no comments on the silly stuff Seven of Nine, T’Pol and Troi wore).


#10.Star Trek TMP

Anyone surprised? Pretty much everything about that first movie was wrong right down to the awful uniforms. It’s not just the bland as hell colors, they look like pajamas! I mean Kirk’s kind of looks neat with the white vest thing he has one, the rest are just ridiculous!

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 9, Part 4)

Time to wrap things up my friends……



Season 9, Episode 13
Sister-In-Law

Plot Summary-Ray doesn’t appreciate when Amy tries spending time with him

Nitpick of the episode-I’ll never get why Ray can’t sit with someone and just listen to them talk. There’s a great continuity nod I hope was intentional. In her first appearance Amy mentioned loving to eat raw cookie dough, and when Ray insults her that’s exactly what Amy eating in the kitchen!

Best Line-“We should get in there dads probably got the fondu pot on his head like Winnie the Pooh”…Ray

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-Robert tries to find out if Amy is still angry, Marie embarrasses Ray

Syndication Edit-The tag where Ray does talk to Amy…of course enraging Robert and Debra. Maybe Ray shuts up because he just can’t win?

Best Character-Amy, probably her best episode and she even gets angry which is nice to see. Though fondu date night? Really??

Worst Character-Ray, once again we see the simple act of sitting next to someone while watching a sporting event is too much for him to handle. The only difference is its Amy this time. Even she admits she knows Frank better than Ray!

Final Thoughts-One thing I didn’t get about this episode was how quiet Marie was, did they have nothing for her to say? She did have some lines in the deleted scenes so I guess that answers that. The episode addresses something which has come up before, why the hell is Ray incapable to talking to people? It’s why his conversation with Pat last season was so nice to see. He can do it! All he has to do is sit there and let Amy prattle, why is that so hard? To be fair Amy is a talkative person but when Ray can’t seem to talk to anyone it’s hard to put the blame on her.

Grade-B-

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 9, Part 3)

Season 9, Episode 9
A Date for Peter

Plot Summary-Debra tries to arrange a date for Peter, but Ray is enraged when Peggy is included

Nitpick of the episode-Anyone remember “Sleepover at Peggy’s”? Don’t feel bad if you don’t clearly Ray forgot it. More on this below. It’s amazing how they made Peter go from someone we hated to someone we fully sympathize with here.

Best Line-“what if they start dating? We already have enough horrible people in this family”…Ray

Episode Fun Fact –Obvious this episode is one last chance to see some recurring characters. We get Peggy, Stefania, and Peter (who actually does have one more appearance)\

Deleted Scenes-Ray giving Peter advice

Syndication Edit-teaser, we find out who the women in the back who never speak are during the party

Best Character-Debra, for once I’m on her side

Worst Character-Ray, ughhhhhhhhhhhh

Final Thoughts-This was the final episode on my “Top 5 Worst Everybody Loves Raymond Episodes” list, and it still sucks. I’ve talked a lot about the creators tended to add conflict when they didn’t need to. Is that why Ray is a jackass here? His reasoning is just lame, he accuses Debra of trying to set up Peter and Peggy so that Debra will have another solider in her war with his mother. Um, how? Even if they did marry, which neither are thinking of by the way, that’s Robert’s family and has nothing to do with Marie. And of course he has to bring up the cookie incident, and even Peggy can’t believe he hasn’t let that go yet! I admit I have no idea what the episode could have been filled with without this, but Ray is just plain ridiculous here. At least he apologizes in the end. Roberts panicking when Stefania appears  is lame too but this obviously just one chance to see her again.  By the way when Marie and frank storm over the creators didn’t even try to give a good reason, guess there isn’t any point by now.

Grade-C-,still annoying after all these years

My Five Comic Book Guilty Pleasures

So I was thinking about guilty pleasures. These are the things that are silly or stupid, but we love them anyway. I have plenty from movies (Independence Day, Star Trek Generations) and TV shows (Small Wonder, The superhero shows on CW). And I started to wonder, can there be comic book guilty pleasures?


And the answer is, sure there can be! Heck AT4W covers a lot of them from Game Boy Comics to Mr.T comics, to Brute Force and US 1. Linkara freely admit that the comic is stupid, but is o stupid that they’re fun! So I thought about it and came up with five comics which are either so silly they’re fun or were failures but I can’t help up but love them anyway.

Of course, only DC here :


CAMELOT 3000

I don’t think this one has ever been panned per se, though I don’t think that it was at Watchmen levels of popularity either. This is a guilty pleasure because it’s two things I normally hate. It’s not a story about superheroes (which I hate) and instead involves the legend of King Arthur (which I also hate) fighting an alien invasion in the year 3000. Yeah it sounds crazy but, it really works! Mike W. Barr is one of my favorite writers for a reason, and I enjoyed this and read it more than once. Though it’s been awhile since I picked up I do remember enjoying it.

Ten Awesome Ad Campaign’s That I Just Love!!

Last week I talked about advertising campaigns which just drove me nuts. So it seemed only fair to look at the other side of the coin. After all a good ad campaign does more than just inform you about the product. It gives ads you almost look forward to seeing, and in some cases the slogan and/or sales mascot in the ads become so popular that they become icons, growing beyond the ad, and become part of pop culture.



For example, can you believe there is an ad that was made in the 70’s that I remember seeing in the 80’s? Impossible! Not if it’s this one..

Once again this has to be a series of ads. Also no cartoon mascots, I’ve covered that before in another list (so no Energizer Bunny which is the best example ever!)



This is NOT you’re Father’s Oldsmobile
If I’m wrong please correct me, but these are the ads that made the phrase “it’s not your father’s…” popular. Of course in this case these were not your father’s Oldsmobile. To highlight this they would have children of celebrities talking about how much cooler their car is than their parents. A great idea, and the actual celebrities even appeared! Here’s an examples :

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 9, Part 2)

Season 9, Episode 5
Ally’s F

Plot Summary-Ray and Debra are concerned when Ally gets an “F” in math

Nitpick of the episode-Yeah that teacher may need vacation. I get teachers are stressed and even burned out, but geez! And if he knew what the problem w as with Ally why didn’t he pull her aside and discuss it with her? Isn’t that part of a teacher’s job? Even Debra realizes that the guy is a bit out of touch. Guess Ray is right when he says some teaches can’t relate to kids.

Best Line-“It’s just a midterm ok. It’s just a stupid grade and I’m gonna pass. God why do you have to overreact!?”…Ally

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-Ray and Debra arriving at the classroom to meet with the teacher

Syndication Edit-top of the teaser, which was a bad edit since we see ally talking on the phone foreshadowing the boy she liked. We also see in the teaser Ally favors Ray

Best Character-Debra, well it only took nine seasons for Debra to realize talking to your kids is a thing. That final scene between her and Ally is just great. I also give her credit for realizing the teacher is a bit high-strung and they it may not be all Ally’s fault.

Worst Character-Ray, I actually love it when he steals the teacher’s throat lozenges but what is up with that bit at the end when he acts like a jealous father? Maybe the idea was that Deb and Ray had changed places, Debra talking while Ray overreacts and yells, but  Romano cannot pull those scenes off.

Final Thoughts-I like this one because it’s the show exploring a common problem. Ally having trouble in math makes sense and the reason is perfectly normal for a teenager (she’s obsessed with a boy in her class). It’s also nice to see a little flaw in Ally. While I’ve said I liked her I’ll be the first to admit she often comes off as a little too perfect. Here she feels like a normal a teenager (and it’s jarring to remember her in season one; they do grow up don’t they?) The scenes with the teacher is funny. Again the family stuff feels a bit shoehorned, only there to give them some lines. But it’s not awful either as it does further the plot when we discover the real reason Ally is having trouble in math. The only complaint is that final bit where Ray gets all stupid and is yelling. It seems like when this show doesn’t have a joke to end on then making Ray a loon is the go to move.

Grade-A-, for season nine this is a true standout, it’s just Ray’s nonsense at the end which is lame.

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 9, Part 1)

Welcome to Season 9! As I mentioned last time the season was more the networks ides than the creators. In fact they had a the final episode all ready to go the season before but shelved it. They agreed to come back with an abbreviated season, only sixteen episodes. Which means these final articles will also be a bit abbreviated with only four episodes per article. So was the season any good or should did they stay to long at the party?


(My DVD crapped out on me so forgive me if I forgot something). Let’s start:



Season 9, Episode 1
The Home

Plot Summary-Frank and Marie shock the family by announcing they are moving to a retirement home

Nitpick of the episode-This a hard one to grasp, why would Marie and Frank suddenly want to move to a retirement home? And why are they suddenly getting along so well? This one requires a little suspension of disbelief though it’s not a shark jumping moment. And why weren’t the kids around to say goodbye to their grandparents?

Best Line-“Oh, Debra… do you know what your problem is? You’re always so dramatic. I’m fine with the way we are.”…Marie

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-Marie giving stuff away

Syndication Edit-top of the teaser

Best Character-Marie and frank, kudos for the writers for giving them something so against their character,  but at the same time keeping the characters in character. It works.

Worst Character-Debra, when Frank and Marie are finally moving its Debra who’s sad about it. DEBRA!! What the hell? Debra has spent more episodes than I’d care to count hating having the family so close and bitching every chance she gets. What??? Feels like filler.

Final Thoughts-I’ve commented before on how the writers will switch something up so an episode will go somewhere you weren’t expecting. This happens here, doing the idea which would have been an obvious finale episode as the premiere episode. Is it good? It’s feels a little odd, maybe because everyone is happily getting along here. The whole episode feels like one big act 1. Except you have to wait till next week to get the second half. The scene where Ray and Debra and Robert and Amy celebrate the announcement is pretty much all for laughs. I complained that it’d ridiculous Debra is sad but on the other hand why aren’t Robert and Ray even a little sad? They seem a little to eager to get rid of Marie and Frank.

Grade-B

Ten Annoying Ad Campaign’s That Drive Me Nuts!!

Hey have you seen those Chevy commercials where “real people” stand around a Chevy and act as if they’ve never seen a car before?

Yeah Chevy has been running these ads for awhile now and they drive me nuts. What am I supposed to think, that a random women said the car was “the jam” that means I have to get myself one??? Either these are not “real people” or they are coached because their reactions are not how people react (there are parody videos all over YouTube which illustrate this).


However, this is not the first ad campaign that drives me nuts. It’s one thing when we get a commercial that sucks, it’s one ad and you know it will go away eventually. Sometimes it’s so bad it never even air (Kendall Jenner anyone?) But a  “campaign” is another story. Endless ads with the same message all more annoying then the rest. Here are a few that I hated over the years. These aren’t necessarily controversial or even the worst out there, they just aggravated me :




The Burger King Guy
There are a lot of things that scream 90’s, this annoying jerk is one of them. As awful as that plastic Burger King thing they show is, at least he didn’t talk! He just glared at you…maybe that’s not better. Amway, this guy was Dan Cortese and he was so damn annoying! By the way in the ad below Burger King brags about bringing the food out to you. Yeah, how long did it take them to get over that stupid idea?

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 8, Part 4)

We’re finishing up Season 8 today. As you may recall the season was pretty strong in the start. Will it finish up that way?






Season 8, Episode 16
Security

Plot Summary-Robert is torn between being a security salesman or staying a cop

Nitpick of the episode-Where the hell did this security salesman stuff come from?

Best Line-“I didn’t get robbed till I got an alarm!”…Ray

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-Robert reflecting on the birthday party

Syndication Edit-top of teaser

Best Character-Amy, she actually stands up to Marie showing she has more of a spine then Debra

Worst Character-Robert, for the life of me I will never understand why Robert has such a hard time making a decision in this episode. Actually that isn’t so bad, the real question is what made him decide being a security alarm salesman was the way to go?

Final Thoughts-Well we’re back were we left off, with another episode that aggravates me. What the hell is up with that security system nonsense? It’s lazy sitcom nonsense that shouldn’t be on this show. And if that’s bad enough Robert is an idiot for the whole episode, why is that decision so hard to make? Amy says he has asked literally everybody! Even when he finally makes it he’s practically forced into it by Ray. To be fair the debate about why Robert should or shouldn’t quit is handled well and it’s nice to see Amy stand up to Marie a little bit. Marie is of course Marie, only caring about herself. It’s also cool to see pat and hank disagreeing, it makes them more human.

Grade-C

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 8, Part 3)

Season 8, Episode 11
Debra at the Lodge

Plot Summary-Debra volunteers to help out at Frank’s lodge

Nitpick of the episode-So is the lodge for old people only? Episodes like this it seems that way but then other times we get references to Frank going when the kids were little so he couldn’t have been very old. Oh and it seems like the lodge got the liquors license back that they had lost in The Bachelor Party

Best Line-“Your husband garbles heart pills because he’s had a 50 year love affair with ham.”…Frank

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-none

Syndication Edit-top of the teaser, Amy wants to play a game before Marie and frank run in yelling about pulp

Best Character-Frank, I love how he stands up for his daughter in law

Worst Character-Ray, his old man jokes get, well, old. What is he jealous of in this episode exactly?

Final Thoughts-I get the feeling that this episode was intended to convey the fact that Debra can be happy and even has a few skills under her belt. That’s basically all I get from it. Debra is pretty awesome In this one and it’s nice to see Patricia Heaton sing and have fun. Though she comes off a bit naïve she should be able to see thru the guy’s behavior. Since we of course needed a conflict after Debra helps in the lodge, the best the writers came up with is the fact that the guys are all drooling over her. Sure. And the fact that the wives of the men are blaming Debra is even dumber. Especially in the tag when they take a look at Rays posterior.  Is there such a thing as reverse sexism?

Grade-B-

Analytical Episode Guide:Everybody Loves Raymond (Season 8, Part 2)

Season 8, Episode 6
Peter on the Couch

Plot Summary-After staying with Amy and Robert for awhile, Peter goes home to find out that he’s been thrown out.

Nitpick of the episode-We finally soften Peter’s characters and he is more likable from now on.

Best Line-“Yeah, I noticed his underwear hanging on the doorknob. Which reminds me, if you go out today, pick up a new doorknob.”…Robert

Episode Fun Fact –

Deleted Scenes-more of ray and peter in the car, the family waiting for ray to get back

Syndication Edit-Peter and Robert Looking for food in the fridge

Best Character-Robert, I liked how sympathetic he is with Peter in the end especially considering his attitude at the start of the episode.

Worst Character-Ray, he’s just a jerk here when he it comes to driving Peter home

Final Thoughts-This episode serves no purpose aside from developing Peter’s character a little more. So if you don’t like him, this isn’t going to be your episode. Its nice to see Robert and Amy acting like a normal married couple. The first half feels like standard sitcom fare as peter disrupts Robert and Amy’s routine. I can relate to this episode after being stuck living with my parents again I know it is easy to get comfortable. But as Peter discovers, it can’t last forever.

Grade- C+