...Set: Life Unexpected 2x03 "Criminal Incriminated"

I noticed while the credits were rolling in tonight's episode that one of the producers has the last name Basile. Is that a coincidence? How common can that name be? Anyway, like any episode of our dear Life Unexpected, this one was filled with melodramatics and much of the getting mad and yelling at each other, followed by understanding and making up. Really, that's every episode in a nutshell.

But what were the melodramatics about this week? Lux is feeling the pressure from both sides when Baze wants her to join the basketball team while she still has to get A's on her English tests, of which there is a brand spanking new one right after the midterm she just took/cheated on to get an A. She has a run in with Jones at school and overhears his friends talking about cheating on the upcoming test, so uses Jones to get in with the cheating ring. The jig is finally up, this time, and she and the other dudes are caught fake-blue-book-handed. Math manages to get her sentence minimized to detentions rather than a suspension. Jones feels betrayed that she used him, but it turns out he'd rather just make up and get to the making out... sometime. Lux is open to the idea, but then! Then she goes to meet with her new tutor, and who is it but... Mr. Eric Daniels! Did anyone not see that one coming? And if she's having problems in English, why is a math teacher her tutor? And wouldn't they do a peer tutor first? All questions left unanswered.

Meanwhile, Baze has started up his new job at the finance place. His first task is to help get some celebrities to appear at a golf tournament to try to land this new client. Though he is at first unsuccessful, he ends up coming up with the obvious plan of getting Ryan and his new co-host Kelly to do it. But when Cate comes along to the tournament, things take a turn for the bad when she "accidentally" hits Kelly in the head with a golf ball and Cate, Ryan and Baze all get into a tiff right there on the course. Things are looking rather grim with the potential client dude, but Baze goes and talks to him after hours and manages to use his charm and honesty to get him to sign on, much to his boss', and I'm sure his own, surprise.

So what was Cate in such a tizzy about? Well, when is Cate not in a tizzy about something? But this week she was annoyed with Paige, Ryan's layabout sister who was also the one whose cigarette burned down Baze's bar. A bunch of money goes missing from Cate's wallet, and she is convinced it was Paige who took it. Ryan wants to give her the benefit of the doubt, and they have a whole big thing about it. Eventually it does come out that Paige did in fact take the money, which she used to start to pay off her debt for the aforementioned fire-starting. They kick her out and she ends up taking the empty room in Baze's loft. And Cate and Ryan decide to pay Baze the $10,000 she owes him for the bar. Man, radio must pay pretty well for them to just have $10,000 lying around.

I have to say, though it was certainly cheesy, I rather enjoyed the ending basketball scene of Cate, Baze, Lux and Ryan all playing basketball together. They can all get along sometimes! At least when it's the end of an episode, anyway!

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

...Set: Glee 2x02 "Britney/Brittany"

I think I can safely say that tonight's Britney Spears tribute/theme of an episode did not disappoint. I was a little bit worried that they might overuse Brittany S. Pierce after her surge in popularity, but I'm so glad my worries were unfounded. She had so many quotes, and nearly all of them were gold. And damn, Heather Morris, I love it when we get to see you really go crazy and dance! Awesome.
All of the Britney mania was inspired by an upcoming pep assembly at McKinley. The kids wanted to do something by Britney, while Mr. Schue was set on adult contemporary. Their Britney mania only intensified when Carl, Emma's new dentist boyfriend, played joyfully by John Stamos, put so many of them under anesthesia while doing dental work. Therein followed some great Britney homages courtesy of Brittany, Santana, Rachel and even Artie.

Will's resolve slowly weakened over the course of the episode when he was continually called uptight by multiple people, including Emma, Kurt, and Carl. He tried to remedy this by buying a car and joining the kids in a Britney group number at the pep rally, but after a sex riot gone wrong, found out that that's not what Emma wanted him to do at all. She just wants him to relax and be himself. These two will probably eventually get together, but not for some time yet.

Meanwhile, Finn is still feeling the sting of being cut from the football team. Rachel, meanwhile, starts to gain in popularity when she takes a page from Britney and starts dressing sexy. That all stops when Finn makes it back onto the football team, though (Artie gets to join, too, as Coach Beiste realized she was wrong about Finn's motives in asking to let Artie join). Rachel goes back to dressing normal and wants Finn to quit the team, despite him trying to reassure her that she's the only girl for him. She even tests him by having Quinn pretend to want to get back together with him, which he refuses. In the end, she realizes she was wrong, and we get a second Rachel solo of the evening, and the only song not by Britney Spears, in The Only Exception. You like how the song also nods to the fact that it's the only exception in an episode of Britney songs? Wink!

And that about wraps it up. Here's a rundown of the Britney performances featured this evening, in order from my favorite to least favorite.

I'm a Slave 4 You - Brittany

Me Against the Music - Brittany and Santana


Stronger - Artie

Toxic - Group Sing (a little overproduced, in my opinion)

(Hit Me) Baby One More Time  - Rachel

Quotes... and there are a lot of them:

"All right, who can tell me who Christopher Cross is?" - Will
"He discovered America." - Brittany
And Finn nods in agreement!

"Kids can't sing without teeth right?" - Will
"No, it wouldn't be singing, it would be gumming." - Carl

"I don't brush my teeth. I rinse my mouth out with soda after I eat. I was pretty sure Dr. Pepper was a dentist." - Brittany

"This room looks like the one on that spaceship where I got probed." - Brittany

"Are you a cat?" - Brittany

"I look forward to the day the paparazzi provokes me and I attack them." - Rachel

"Is this real life?" - Rachel

"You see what I'm talking about? They're personifying me!" - Finn
"Objectifying." - Rachel
"Whatever!" - Finn

"It looks like a Jewish cloud." - Brittany

"You look like a cast member of Kids, Incorporated." - Emma

"It's a Britney Spears sex riot!" - Sue

"I'm gonna take your house, your car, your extensive collection of vests. I mean seriously, you wear more vests than the cast of Blossom." - Sue

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

...Set: Chuck 4x02 "Chuck vs. the Suitcase"

Though Chuck's premiere last week was solid, I think this week really stepped things back up. Just look at the amount of quotes I have this week versus last week! Of course, that is mostly due to the fact that we got to see more of our side players this week, with the return of Jeff and Lester, and the lovely Captain Awesome himself, Devon.

So what exactly have Jeff and Lester been up to since the Buy More blew up? They've been living in Jeff's van, evading the po-po, and being generally creepy, I'm sure. But how do they get back into the loving arms of the Buy More? It's all thanks to Morgan, who informs General Beckman that while the CIA version of the Buy More may run more efficiently, it's all too much. She agrees to let him bring back some of the old crowd to make it look more normal, and in the end hands him the reins of store manager. What does this mean for the future of Big Mike?

Devon, meanwhile, is going a little bit psycho over Ellie being pregnant. He's buying 10 different sound machines and vegan baby food and generally not letting her lift a finger. Eventually, it becomes too much for Ellie, and she wants to know why he's acting crazy. He confesses it's because he doesn't want her to take on too much and not ask for help since she basically had to raise Chuck by herself without her mom around. Ellie convinces him they need to just work as a team like they always have, but in the end we see that she does have worries about her mom, which is convenient since I'm guessing about 1/4-1/2 of the season is going to be about finding her.

Before I get to the big Chuck and Sarah story of the evening, there was also a little side bit with Casey that also showcased the night's big theme of planting roots and coming home. He's been brushing off his daughter Alex, but gets a wake up call from Morgan that if he's ever going to feel at home in Burbank, he should step up and spend time with her. In the end, he calls her. Aww.

Of course, the big story of the night that also played into the spy story of the night was Chuck and Sarah. On the spy side, they had to track down this spy/model Sofia Stepinova who has been selling special bullets that have tracking devices, or something. On the personal side, Chuck is worried about their relationship because Sarah hasn't unpacked her stuff, even though she's been living there for 8 months. These issues play into their mission, which seems to otherwise go well until they realize the weapons they manage to get from Stepinova are actually fakes. That means they have to go back and therein follows a whole bit where Sarah wears a dress made of tracking sequins and ends up fighting Stepinova straight out onto the catwalk.

In the end, Sarah decides to unpack, and everything looks like it's all peaches and cream. That is, until Chuck mentions that maybe they are headed in the direction of Awesome and Ellie - marriage, kids, the works. Her eyes pop wide and we can tell that is most certainly not where she envisions her life going. Surely more drama to ensue!

This week also featured a small guest appearance by Lou Ferrigno as Stepinova's lovestruck bodyguard, as well as the Old Spice guy, Isaiah something, playing one of the spies in the Buy More. And next week Steve Austin and Nicole Richie are both reappearing. Is Chuck becoming the new go-to show for random semi-famous/formerly famous guest stars? It seems like there's at least one every week!

Quotes:

"You're a very tiny man, aren't you?" - old spice guy, not sure he had a name?

"Dude, what is up with the Buy More? Everyone is, like, scary and efficient." - Devon
"Hadn't noticed." - Casey & Morgan

"Put some clothes on." - Sarah

"Day 184. Still running from the po-po. Oh sweet Buy More, why and how did we ever burn you?" - Jeff
"It's been dark days. We've been taking gigs at the Whisper Lounge for scraps of ???" - Lester (I could not make out what he said, feel free to help me out in the comments)
"And we live here now. In the wild. With my van. Where no one can find us." - Jeff
"It's not all bad. Expanding my understanding of the universal mind. Jeff has a new pet rock named Bruce. I asked him, "Why Bruce?" and he said when he hits it, it doesn't bruise..." - Lester

"Do you ever miss Ace of Base?" - Lester
"Always." - Jeff

"What are you talking about? Cars have been following us for months." - Lester
"How do you know they weren't just driving behind you?" - Casey

"But, I was in the Buy More. Everyone there was super attractive and highly skilled. It was like I worked there. And why would I work at the Buy More... unless I was a spy?" - Devon

"Rumor has it you're pregnant. Is there room in there for two?" - Jeff

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

...Set: Supernatural 6x01 "Exile on Main St."

I kind of don't know what to think about this premiere quite yet. I'm writing this before I go about and read everyone else's reactions, so as to be fresh and of my own opinions, but... what exactly are my opinions? Hmm. Hmmmmmmmmm..... Oh, what do you think of the new glass shattered title card? Not as cool as the blood splat, but rather fitting, it would seem. Illusions, shattered. Perfections, shattered. Everything, shattered!

Let's just get into the recap, and perhaps I will form more opinions as I go. Yes, that is a winning plan, to be sure! It's been one year since the events of last season's finale, when Sam jumped into the cage. Just like he promised, Dean went to Lisa and Ben, where he has been living ever since. The impala is under a tarp in the garage while Dean drives a truck to his new construction job. Instead of salting doors and windows, he salts some eggs on the stove. And his new drinking buddy is Sid, the regular neighbor friend dude. All seems well. OR IS IT?!

Because nothing good can last forever for our dear Winchesters, soon enough Dean hears something in a conveniently located hotel in the midst of a remodel, where he could investigate for approximately 10 hours to find nothing but some scratches and blood. This was soon followed up by him seeing some more scratches, and walking approximately another 10 hours to get to a shed that is inhabited by a truly fearsome little dog! Still feeling twitchy, though, Dean sends Lisa and Ben off to the movies so he can have a face off with the evil beastie that surely must be lurking about, and that's when ole Yellow Eyes shows up! What! I think we've all figured out by this point that Dean is hallucinating or something. And indeed, because right as he's about to pass out from YED strangling him, Sam appears and sticks him right in the chest with some kind of white goopy liquid in a syringe! I had to rewind that to make sure I was seeing it right. But yes, it was white, it was goopy, and it was in a syringe.

Dean comes to in some ramshackle building, to find Sam sitting there. And it's really Sam, as he proceeds to prove by cutting himself with a silver knife, drinking some holy water laced with salt, and such things as we once saw Dean have to do in front of Bobby upon his resurrection. Dean finally believes that it's Sam, and we get one of the rarely seen Winchester hugs! But that hug is to be short-lived once Sam starts explaining how he doesn't know how he came back and that he's been trying to figure it out for some time. About a year in fact. A year! He's been back this whole time! Dean is duly peeved at such news, even after Sam explains that he was just trying to give him the normal life he wanted and deserved, but Dean doesn't have long to give Sam the stink eye before he is hit with some more news whammies. And that's that Sam has not been hunting alone all of this time. He has, in fact, hooked up with some other hunters, who all bear the same last name - Campbell. Which happens to be their mom's maiden name. And which also belongs to their formerly dearly departed grandfather, Samuel, who was also brought back to the land of living for reasons unknown. You got all that? Good.

Basically, the news is this: there are some djinn in town, and they are on the hunt for Sam and Dean, for their previous adventures and eventual slaying of that other djinn way back when. And things are surely even stranger now, because they can pass as normal people, and all it takes is one touch from their poisonous skin before the person getting the dose will die. Not only that, but Samuel informs Dean of the equally lovely news that not only are the djinn going wacky, but all sorts of monsters and ghoulies they haven't seen before are rearing their ugly, ugly heads.

Anyway, Dean decides to take Lisa and Ben (who we have heard approximately one word from so far) to safety at Bobby's place, where he learns that Bobby also knew about Sam being back for nearly the whole damn year. Dean goes to say goodbye to Lisa, feeling it is what he must do, and she is most upset with him, saying that despite any issues he may have had, it was the best year of her life. Weep!

The Campbells and the Winchesters head back to Dean's place to try to lure the djinn out and there is much fighting and derring-do (this thing is telling me derring-do is not a word/expression, but I tell you, it is). Do I need to explain all the fighting? Dean's neighbor friends are killed by some of the djinn, he goes to try to save them (though they are already dead) and ends up getting double juiced by the djinn, leading him to have some more hallucinations about YED killing Lisa like he did Mary and Jess, and making Ben suck his demon blood. Sam, meanwhile, fights off another djinn, aided eventually by the Campbells. As he runs off to save Dean, Samuel has them load off one of the djinn in their truck. Whatever are their possibly nefarious plans for said lady djinn? We shall find out, I'm sure.

In the end, Dean tells Sam that he can't re-join him hunting, that he is going to stay with Lisa and Ben, on the one hand, to protect them since he's exposed them to his world, and I think we all know on the other hand that he loves them both and doesn't really want to leave. Sam is disappointed, because he wanted Dean to go off with him, but they part ways in seeming amicability, even though Sam turned down taking the impala when Dean offered it to him! How rude!

Random thoughts:

- I'm not so sure about the addition of this new family of hunters heretofore unknown, despite one of them being the former Parker Lewis.

- No scene of Sam doing the shirtless pull-ups! That was in the promo, how dare you tease us so!

- I'm interested to see how they get Dean back into hunting without ruining everything with Lisa and Ben. I really wanted to see more of Dean and Ben's relationship, of which we saw hardly any.

- I liked how Samuel commented that Dean is a lot like Mary. Very true.

- Really, could those scenes of Dean investigating have been any more tedious? Good grief. We've seen enough prowling through abandoned dark buildings on this show that we don't need a whole solid minute of it, twice in one episode. And if they weren't that long, they sure felt that long. Nay, longer.

- So exactly how long was Sam down in the cage if he's been back for nearly as long as Dean's been living with Lisa and Ben? I know time in Hell is faster, but... yes. Curious.

- Jared could still use a haircut. Just saying.

Quotes, of which there really weren't that many:

“It’s like chicks specifically dig unavailable guys. Who knew?” – Dean

“Oh yeah. Opossums. Opossums kill.” – Dean

“My god, you have delicate features for a hunter.” – Gwen

“Golf. Really.” – Sam
“It’s a… it’s a sport.” – Dean

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

Supernatural's Top 10 Episodes (Seasons 1-5)

Well, look where we are! Tomorrow is the premiere of Supernatural's sixth season (TNT is also showing a huge marathon of episodes tomorrow to get you pumped up), and thus the end of my notorious/infamous countdown lists! Whatever will you do without them?! Oh right, you'll have my recaps to get you by. No need to hyperventilate. So, after all of the many lists I have foisted upon you this summer, it all comes down to this one - the top 10 episodes. Ever. Are you ready? I hope you're ready, because if you've come with me this far, there is no turning back now...

Remember, each title is a link to a favorite clip of mine from each episode. Are they clips you've already seen me post here? One never knows. Even I'm not sure. What's that? You want the list already? Okay then!

10. The End (5x04)

What, you ask? But you didn't even include this one on your list of the best episodes of season five! What a liar you are! Here's the thing. I know a LOT of people thought this was the best episode of season five, and I am nothing if not accommodating to others' tastes. And, yes, I can see why a lot of people view this one as the best of season five. The production values, Jensen's performance, etc. etc. And I get it. The fact that it would not be in my personal top ten? Well. I'm okay with that. For the record, the one I would have placed here would have probably been My Bloody Valentine. But now we're just splitting hairs.

9. Point of No Return (5x18)

Supernatural's 100th episode wins the spot of number nine. I'm not sure what to say about these anymore, guys. I've grown tired after so many lists. How about I mention some random tidbit from each episode that always gives me pause/catches my eye/whatever other idiom-like-saying you like? Okay. Two things. One: the opening, when Dean is virtually packing up his life. Awesome, yes. But the music, I found really distracting. It was so... floopy. Floopy is not a word, but it is the "word" that comes to mind. Two: when Castiel goes to find Adam, the ground is, like, pulsing. Is that really what the ground would look like if someone were trying to push themselves out? It distracts me every time. But, uh, hey. It's a great episode! I'm supposed to be talking about good things! Dude, I already did that back in the top 5 of season five. Get over it.

8. A Very Supernatural Christmas (3x08)

Whatever ridiculous might have happened with Dean's necklace later, you have to admit that finding out how he got it was great. Why, wee little Sammy gave it to him back when they were just young lads alone on Christmas because of course John was being the terrible dad he usually was by not even showing up for Christmas! Let's see, what bit of this episode can I pick apart (muahaha)? I always fast forward through the opening with the random kid. But that's not really news, I do that with most episodes after the first watch, since a lot of them start out with the supernatural death to be investigated before getting to the boys. Do the rest of you do this too?

7. Devil's Trap (1x22)

Look at that, this is the only season 1 episode to make the top 10 list. Not to dis on season 1, but it's true. There just weren't a TON of knock-you-out-of-your-seat great episodes. But this? This is one such episode. Except for the stuff with exorcising Meg, because I actually find that whole section rather tedious myself. Once Sam and Dean go off to find their dad, though, the episode really picks up, and the ending scene in the cabin, leading right into the HOLY CRAP final moments, are so great that they make up for some of the boringness of the beginning. And it may just be me who gets bored by that beginning, anyway. I am fickle, in case you hadn't figured that out quite yet.

6. On the Head of a Pin (4x16)

Oh man. What a great episode. But you know what! There are bits I don't like about it too! I am never perfectly pleased, it seems! I don't know why I chose the top 10 list to go over my grievances, but what the hell. Might as well. Look, a rhyme! Anyway, the only thing that I didn't care for in this episode was alllllll of the angel stuff. I mean, there was a LOT of angel stuff going on. Castiel, Uriel, Anna. I loved any and all of the Alastair and Dean stuff, and finding out just how far Sam had gone to work his demony mojo, but I really could not give a hoot about Castiel questioning Anna about what he was supposed to do. It was nice to see Anna give the ole boot-a-roo to Uriel, but still. The ending scene, with Castiel and Dean, really gets me every time. My heart just breaks for him.

5. What is and What Should Never Be (2x20)

And here we are, starting off the top five with a doozy of a head spinner for Dean. He gets juiced by a djinn and is set off to live in a world where one wish came true - that his mama never got fired up on a ceiling. Like all alternate realities, however, this one was not meant to last, because it was not so perfect after all. Of course, it was also all just in his head and not even real, so... yeah. The one thing I don't particularly love about this episode, however, is at the end, once Sam has found Dean in the real world and he comes back. Sam starts fighting off the djinn, and of course ends up getting choked, because what else is new, and then Dean, who is looking rather horrible from his ordeal, still manages to kill the thing even though he looked like he might pass out at any moment. I don't buy it! I realize he needed to kill it because of his ARC and WHATEVER, but... still. STILL.

4. Lazarus Rising (4x01)

I just had a real debate of whether this one should go above the next one, but, ok, I've made the decision. It's going here. And you know why it's going here at number four instead of number three? Because for whatever weird reason, I nearly always fall asleep right as Dean and Bobby are going off to try to trap whatever brought Dean back from Hell. I don't know why! It's so weird, but I know I have watched the beginning a countless number of times, but the ending not nearly as much. It's weird, I agree. But that opening is really one of the best openings in the show's history.  Random: does Dean still have that hand mark on his arm? We so rarely see his arms! I know he did partway through season four, but have we see his shoulder since then? I think not. Please correct me if I am wrong. And surely this must be reconciled!

3. All Hell Breaks Loose, Part II (2x22)

You know what I almost said? I almost said: "as far as season finales go, I think we can all agree this was the best one." LOL, I only just did a ranking of the finales two lists ago! What a doofus. And yes, this one was number one in that list! ANYWAY. It's not only one of the best finales, it's one of the best episodes, period. Choose the screencaps for the above graphic became increasingly difficult, as there are just SO MANY. I tried to choose different ones each time I featured this episode in some list or other, so if you want other screencaps, feel free to go back through the lists and see them. But, yes. So much happened in this episode, setting so many things in motion. Dean sold his soul for Sam, he also got to kill Azazel, John escaped Hell through the Devil's Gate, along with any number of demons. If I had to pick something I don't like? I am coming up blank! WHAT! Well, it's true. We are now entering the top three episodes, of which I love every second.

2. In My Time of Dying (2x01)

And you know what? I think I figured out what I love about every second (this is a continuation of my previous sentence. I hope you're not just skimming...) of these episodes. It's the fact that they focus so heavily on the brothers themselves, without so many side characters and other bits. And, whoa, I just noticed that this is the third episode from season two that made not only the top ten, but the top five! You can probably now see why I ranked season two as the top season. In any event, this episode is awesome. The only reason, really, why it doesn't get ranked number one is because, while it is certainly great, it is a very serious episode, and my top one has the full spectrum of Supernatural stuff (ie. lots of humor). In any event. I remember being rather floored by John's death. After so much to find him and reunite, he dies!

1. Mystery Spot (3x11)

Do you know, every time I write down the episode number of Mystery Spot, I always want to write 3x16? Then I have to remind myself that no, that is wrong. I think I figured out why I do that - because I'm pretty sure that's around the number the episode would have been if season three had been a full 22 episodes rather than only 16. Okay, that was a large digression. I apologize. Anyway! As I said above, the reason this episode beats out IMTOD is because it has the full range of what makes Supernatural great - angst, drama, and lots of humor. The episode starts out being very funny, but eventually veers off into really dark territory when Sam actually has to live through months without Dean. The only thing I find upsetting is that they didn't really make it change Sam that much in the rest of the season, and I really think something like that would have changed him a lot. So that's not so much a fault in the episode itself, but rather the season. Because this episode is my favorite. It would take something really crazy in season six to topple this one off the number one spot.

And there you have it! I am spent! I hope you have all enjoyed my various lists over the last few months, and that you'll stick around once I get back to recapping the episodes themselves. But before I go, you know I can't leave you without a...

To check out my other various Supernatural lists: Click!

Psst! Hey you! You should totally go like my Facebook page. I'd love you forever and ever. Click and like: http://www.facebook.com/freshfromthe.com.  

...Set: Life Unexpected 2x02 "Parents Unemployed"

This week's episode featured Cate, Baze and Lux each facing their own problem to overcome. Cate and Baze both need jobs (right when the school is hosting a career day where one of them should speak! My! What a coincidence!), while Lux needs to get an A on her upcoming English test or risk failing out of school. She also has added drama with new teacher Eric Daniels, who she shared a kiss with in last week's episode before he knew she was only a mere sixteen years old and one of his students to boot.

Honestly, Lux was being rather ridiculous about the whole situation. She was acting like he was being something of a douche for not wanting to have anything to do with her after all of that. But, hello, miss thing, it's his career and also his life that would be ruined if anyone ever found out about it. He eventually admits to her that it did mean something to him too and blah blah. I suspect this is not quite over. Lux's other issue was the test, which Cate tried to help her study for, but which she felt supremely overwhelmed about. It came as not at all a surprise after they so helpfully showed that Math carries around his test in his bag, that Lux eventually looked at the answers and questions for the upcoming test, thus CHEATING and getting her an A.

Baze, meanwhile, has an interview at some kind of financial firm that his dad owns, and is less than enthusiastic about the job at first, thus bombing his interview (with guest star Emma Caulfield - aka Anya to any fellow Buffy fans out there). He eventually decides that he actually does want the job, and fights for it. So, he gets it. Apparently he majored in economics in college? He went to college?

Cate is also having job procurement issues. Her agent basically informs her that there isn't a whole lot out there, but her old show would like to hire her as a producer rather than on air talent. This is something Ryan apparently set up, which pisses Cate off. She tries to get a position at another morning show, but unfortunately they meant very early morning, as in 2am-6am. After Ryan saves the day at career day and reminds her that sometimes a step back can be a step forward, she decides to take the producing job.

The other development of the episode was that Baze found out that Paige, the girl he slept with whose cigarette burned down the bar, is actually Ryan's sister. It appears that everyone else finds out next week. How soapy.

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

...Set: Glee 2x01 "Audition"

All of our favorite gleeks were back in action tonight (except for Matt!!), with a few new faces thrown into the mix as well. While Will and the rest of the club thought that their showing last year would have made them more socially viable, they soon discovered things are just the same as always. With a couple twists.
One, there's a new football coach in town, and her name is Beiste. I'm not sure the last time I heard a character name so on the nose! With her arrival also came the news that there would be some budget cuts in other departments - namely the glee club and also, to Sue's horror, the cheerios. This caused Will and Sue to form a tentative coalition to get rid of the Beiste together, which led to some immature pizza shenanigans that eventually turned more sinister, since this is Sue we're talking about here. Will saw the error of his judgmental ways and eventually came to Beiste's aid, which put him back on Sue's bad side. What would the world be without these two against each other?

While the "adults" were dealing with the new coach, the kids were trying to entice new members to join the club. First, they did a group number to Empire State of Mind in the quad area, which didn't really help any. But then, Finn and Rachel both met a couple of people that were serious possibilities. Rachel met Sunshine Corazon, a Filipino exchange student with a powerhouse voice. After having a mini face off in the bathroom set to Lady Gaga's Telephone, Rachel decided to sabotage the poor girl's attempt to audition by instead sending her to a crack house! Eventually the rest of the club found out and gave her a big solo audition in the auditorium, where she rocked Listen from Dreamgirls. The club was ecstatic, but their happiness was short-lived, because Vocal Adrenaline (thanks to a tip from Sue) came and snatched her away. This all led to a solo by Rachel, who had repeatedly been saying that she sabotaged the girl because she was concerned about the club when we all know it was her concern for herself that did it. Anyway, her solo was What I Did for Love. My least favorite tune of the evening, to be honest.

Finn, like I said, also found someone he thought would make a great addition to the club. That would be Sam Evans, a new kid in school who is also on the football team. He and the other guy gleeks performed Billionaire (I think my favorite song of the night) and things looked great. But then, he didn't show up for the audition for the rest of the club. Whatever could have happened?

This is what happened! Artie, hurt after Tina broke up with him and started dating Mike (hello abs!) over the summer, asked Finn if he could help him try out for the football team so he could win Tina back over. But when Finn tried to propose the idea to Beiste, she took her anger at Will out on Finn and kicked him clear off the team. No protestations with Principal Figgins got him back on the team, which led to a rather hilarious sequence of Finn trying out for the cheerios. I'm sorry Cory Montieth, but you are not a great dancer! That was so funny/bad. So anyway, Sam saw how easily Finn could be kicked off the team for being associated with glee, and being the new kid, didn't want to take such a chance. I think we can guess that he'll join eventually, though, right?

Other news: Santana apparently had a boob job over the summer, which leads to her getting kicked out as head cheerleader, paving the way for Quinn to swoop back in to claim her former role. 

And that's about it for this week! Next week is the Britney Spears episode, which I have to say looks kind of awesome.

Quotes:

Brittany: "People thought I went on vacation, but actually I spent the summer lost in the sewers."

Sue: "I guess they lost their humanity a little bit. One girl ate a pigeon. Several others started worshiping a possum carcass as their lord."

Puck: "Dude, your mouth is huge. How many tennis balls can you fit in there?"
Sam: "I don't know, I've never had any balls in my mouth. Have you?"

Mercedes: "So is that a men's sweater?"
Kurt: "Fashion has no gender."

Sue: "Oh, and Boobs McGee? You're demoted to the bottom of the pyramid, so when it collapses, your exploding sandbags will protect the squad from injury."

Brittany: "Stop the violence."

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

...Set: Chuck 4x01 "Chuck vs. the Anniversary"

Welcome back to the spy life, Chuck fans! And, as it turns out, Chuck himself. What! Spoiler alert! In case you'd forgotten, which I actually had, Chuck had told Ellie that he was getting out of the spy life, right before finding out that his dad had been on a search for his mom, and wanted Chuck to continue said search. And, Chuck and Sarah are a sweet, happy couple. Kissy kissy, huggy huggy.

But, as ever, things cannot be all rainbows and unicorns, because Sarah is still a spy, and has to go on a mission with Casey. That works out to Chuck's advantage, though, as he and Morgan go on a worldwide search for his mom, that eventually leads to... nowhere! Except for a mysterious Chinese food takeout menu that was so conspicuous you had to be a total dimwit not to see that it was the clue that would tie everything together.

Basically, Sarah and Casey encounter this Russian bad guy, who I only will know as Dolph Lundgren because I don't remember ever hearing his name on the show, so we'll just call him RBG for short (Russian Bad Guy). He is working for some dude and/or organization called Vokoff that is making terrible EMPs which is, you know, bad.

Meanwhile, after being unsuccessful in his search for his mom, Chuck has to get back to the real world and try to find a job. None of his interviews go well, and he ends up back at the brand spanking new Buy More, which, it turns out, General Beckman is now running as a super secret spy center. She tells Chuck that she's not letting him out of the spy life, which leads to him helping out Casey and Sarah figure out where the Vokoff guy supposedly is, as well as helping him figure out that the aforementioned Chinese takeout menu was a real clue. Because it's not a menu for Chinese takeout, it's actually a menu for weapons of derring-do! Or, evil. One of the two.

Long story short, Casey & Sarah end up captured in this Russian facility thanks to RBG, but it just so happens that Chuck and Morgan also end up at the same Russian facility following their lead! What a strange random happenstance! Chuck must save the day, but in doing so, he must give up his first real lead on his mom, whose spy code name, we soon find out, is Frost.

In the end, Chuck decides he must re-join the spy life in order to find his mom. He wants to come clean with Ellie about it, but when he goes to tell her, she startles him with some news of her own - she's pregnant! There's going to be a baby Awesome! So, Chuck decides he can't break the news to her quite yet.

Chuck also finds out that his mom didn't actually leave him, Ellie and their dad when Chuck was a wee lad. Rather, she was captured! And at this point we cut to his mom, talking to RBG about Vokoff, then she totally unloads some whoop ass onto the guys, because hey, this is the erstwhile Sarah Connor here. Or, Linda Hamilton. Whatever, she can still kick ass. 

Not much from the peanut gallery (aka Lester, Jeff, Big Mike, Ellie and Awesome) this week. Hopefully we'll find out what they're up to next week, because I find I rather missed them. And, though this premiere was good, was it great? I'm not sure. All I know is, I sort of miss Chuck's flopsy hair.

Some quotes:

Chuck: This is not the opening to a TV show. This is real life.

Chuck: We are an offshoot of The Ring. The New Ring.

Sarah: Where are we?
Casey: Desolation. Frostbite. Must be Russia.

Sarah: He thinks we're sexting.
Casey: What? What does that even mean?

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

Supernatural - Ranking the Seasons (Seasons 1-5)

TV premiere week is upon us, my fair friends. This blog is about to go into overdrive with recaps. Will I be able to handle it, after such a break? One can only hope. But before all that! Today I am here to give my ranking of the seasons of Supernatural. Get ready for some larger graphics!

On Thursday I will be going over my top 10 episodes of all time, to get you pumped for the season six premiere on Friday, Sept. 24 at 9pm (8pm central).

5. Season Five

Oh, season five. What high hopes I had. What high hopes. Unfortunately, the season did not quite live up to my hopes. The main problem with season five is that it was just all over the place. Sure, there were some great moments and good episodes, but there were also a lot of ones that felt superfluous and unnecessary when things had gotten so dire. There were also way too many "ah ha!" revelations going on that weren't so much revelations but confirmations of ridiculousness. The boys being pre-destined vessels with bloodlines back to Cain and Abel, the Trickster was actually an angel, Dean's amulet is some stupid God-finder that never even found anything.... need I go on? No, I need not. (Interestingly, season five features my favorite title card. That blood splat? Amazing!)

4. Season One

Look at you, season one. Season one was also a little bit all over the place, but it's a bit more forgivable since the show was just finding its footing. The monster of the week stories that peppered the first half of the season weren't very compelling (bugs, racist truck, hook man, to name a few), and were really just there to give us the viewers a chance to see the hunters in action. But once things started to get more personal for the brothers, that's when the show kicked into gear. And that finale? Still awesome. I would have been so pissed if that finale had been a series finale, right when it had started to go from good to great. But, luckily, that was not the case!

3. Season Three

Season three, much like season five, is a little bit all over the place. There are some truly awesome episodes, and some truly forgettable ones. We also had two new female characters thrown into the mix with Ruby and Bela, which received rather vehement reactions, particularly Bela. So if this season was uneven, then why does it rank higher than the other two? The season storyline was more interesting, at least to me. There were some great brother moments, some great little bouts into humor (I don't care if you didn't like Ghostfacers, I loved it), and just look at the graphic above. How Dean starts out all happy & thumbs up, to there at the end, in Hell.

2. Season Four

Season four started things off with a bang and didn't quit. Suddenly we had the introduction of angels, which prior to this point, didn't even seem to exist in the Supernatural world. You can argue that maybe the show went a little too hog wild with the angels, and I would not disagree with you, but it also provided so much interesting new ground to cover. Many did not like the slow dissolution of the brothers' relationship, but it was sort of necessary at this point in the game, and was hinted at for so long that it would've felt like a cop out if they hadn't actually gone there. The season as a whole was so strong and cohesive, with only a few clunkers along the way (Family Remains, anyone?), even though it eventually led to the let down of season five.

1. Season Two

Season two! Oh, season two, how I love you. After the awesome ending to season one, season two picked up right where it left off, blazing a trail of solid episode after solid episode. What worked so well about season two was that nearly every episode had a pinch of the season-long storyline (except for maybe Roadkill, what a pointless episode). In the seasons to come, for some reason they often decided to make an episode either about the overall arc or not at all about it, and it's just better when they do it like they did back in season two. The arc itself was so great as well, starting with Dean being saved by a deal, to him making a deal to save Sam. Round and round they go.

Don't forget to check back on Thursday for my top 10 episodes post! And Friday night or Saturday morning for my recap/review of the season six premiere. :)

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Supernatural - Ranking the Finales (Seasons 1-5)

Have you all seen the new season six promo? Can we say, awesome? Already looking better than season five. What's that? I just gave away that I didn't much like season five? OH WELL. Today I'm going to rank the finale episodes of the last five seasons. This is a tough one. The premieres were much easier to rank! I even left off numbers in the graphics so I could switch them around if I was feeling unsure at the last minute! Or does that just make me indecisive? Whatever! I AM sure about my top two, so there!

This one may have some dissent among readers, I'm not sure. I suppose the poll will tell me the answer to that! And (hint, hint) comments!

5. Lucifer Rising (4x22)

Just looking at that screencap of Sam/Jared makes me want to reconsider putting this one last. Beautiful intro shots of both boys in this finale, actually. But! It felt like a lot of waiting around, not a lot of action. I mean, that was basically all of Dean's plot for a good 3/4 of the episode, waiting in the waiting room. Honestly this is still a good episode, so I'm not really faulting it, I just find I would rather watch one of the other finales, if given a choice. That's basically what I went on here, gut decisions. I can certainly appreciate if this is someone's favorite finale, but at this point the story was starting to veer into season five... and yeah. Season five. Sigh.

4. Swan Song (5x22)

But, what's this, you ask? Did you not just sigh at the mere idea of season five? Okay, yes! I am full of contradictions. But there was something so emotionally investing about this episode, that I find I would rather watch it than the season four finale. This could change over time, of course. I am changeable and fickle. In the end, I think this finale didn't necessarily make up for a lot of the choppiness of season five, but it did end it on a better note, though I think I would've preferred if some of the deaths had actually been permanent, seeing as not a one of them seem to be (except maybe for Adam... but knowing this show's propensity for bringing people back, we can't completely count him out). I really liked the ending when Dean shows up, and all the memories flooding into Sam. And I think it has set up season six to be rather interesting. So... yes. I'm still not sure, but for now, it's ranked number four.

3. No Rest for the Wicked (3x16)

Apparently a lot of people were surprised that they actually sent Dean to Hell after all. I wasn't. I would've felt a bit betrayed if they had come up with some last second deus ex machina to save everything. Anyway, this was a strong finale. Really the only parts I did not like were any of the ones featuring creepy child Lillith. I find I fast forward through them any time I watch this episode. Necessary to the plot, I suppose, but it's just one of those things. What is really great about this finale is the last, oh, 15 to 20 minutes, once the boys have infiltrated the house and everything is coming literally right down to the last second. The Hellhounds tear Dean to shreds while Sam has to watch helplessly, pinned against the wall by Lillith, who has taken over Ruby's body. She tries to kill Sam with her white light hand, but isn't able to, so vacates the joint and leaves Sam to weep manly tears over his dead brother that he was unable to save. And then, we got the very cool descending into Dean's eye straight down into Hell. What a way to end the season!

2. Devil's Trap (1x22)

Now this was probably the most cliffhanger ending to any of the seasons we have ever had. Perhaps that is doubled by the fact that it wasn't clear the show would be coming back at all when the finale first aired. Of course, once you find out that it is coming back, you know the boys are both going to survive, but still! Still. What really set this episode over the top was the whole part near the end in the cabin, when we find out that the YED has taken over John's body. He torments the boys a while, then starts making Dean bleed and bleed and bleed while Sam is, yet again, pushed against the wall by a demon's powers! This seems to be a trend! How did I not notice the similarity to the season three finale before?! I'm usually so observant. This is ridiculous. Anyway. This episode really put a feather in the cap of season one, which took a while to get going. And without this episode, we would not have had the amazing In My Time of Dying that followed. And we all know how awesome that episode is.

1. All Hell Breaks Loose, Part II (2x22)

Still, the best finale of them all has to be All Hell Breaks Loose. While technically it was a two-parter, I think we can all agree that the second half was better than the first. All season Dean had been dealing with the death of his father, and now he is faced with the death of his brother too, leaving him virtually alone in the world. Unable to fathom the idea of living without any of his family, he sets into course a whole host of events by going to make a deal with a crossroads demon - his soul for Sam's life. This episode was also filled with the action of the devil's gate stuff, and the boys coming face to face with Azazel, who had set this whole thing in motion. Dean gets to kill him with the Colt, while John's ghost escapes from Hell to vanish to, we assume, Heaven. It was just a great episode, period. And that's all I have to say about that.

Next week will be my final two lists before season six begins and I go back to recapping. I'll be ranking the seasons and going over my top 10 overall episodes. Get excited.

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...Set: Life Unexpected 2x01 "Ocean Uncharted"

Confession: I completely forgot this was premiering tonight. I noticed my DVR was recording something and turned it on to find: oh! Life Unexpected returned tonight! Ummmm.... I suppose I did not miss it oodles and oodles?! I did love all of the various Portland references in tonight's episode, though. Yes, it's "set" in Portland, but it's always nice when they actually refer to it specifically in the show itself. (In case you forgot, I'm from Portland. So, you know, Portland for the win!)

Anyway, on to tonight's premiere. It pretty much picked up where things left off in the finale last season, only a couple weeks or so later, once Cate, Ryan and Lux get back from a Vegas honeymoon of sorts. Cate and Ryan are lovey-dovey, Baze is mopey that he missed his chance with Cate, and Lux is avoiding Baze because she told Cate to choose Ryan. The drama-rama has not abated.

First up, let's talk about Lux. She went to visit with Bug, and then he did something completely idiotic. He asked her to marry him. Really, Bug? The girl is sixteen. I don't care how much life she's lived already, that is still only sixteen. She says yes because she feels obligated, but clearly she is not feeling that yes. Later, she meets this new dude, Eric Daniels, at the bar. They end up going on a spontaneous road trip, trying to get to the beach so that Lux can "see what's out there" or something. He somehow runs out of gas, and they have a super special moment, leading to a kiss. Surprise, surprise! Lux decides to tell Bug she can't agree to marry him at this point in her life, he gets all huffy puffy about it and takes off. Then, back in school, Lux finds out that this Eric dude is actually a new English teacher! I was not at all surprised by that turn of events, then again I think I already knew about it.

In the land of Baze, he's still hung up on Cate. He decides he's going to tell her even though she's already married now, and she reacts poorly. He takes out his sorrows in drink and sex with the new bartender, Paige, who ends up leaving her cigarette in a trash bin (idiots all around tonight), which sets the bar on fire. Baze and Cate don't know where Lux is at this point, and, thinking she might be in there, Baze runs into the burning building. She wasn't in there, of course. Cate visits Baze in the hospital (he'll be okay, obviously), and they patch things up. Baze has now determined that he is going to set his life straight after all of this.

Cate and Ryan are back at the radio station, but things are changing up there too. First, they are introduced to a third co-host in Kelly something, a born again virgin marriage expert. Cate is of course most displeased by her addition, and voices her displeasure at every turn. The producer lady decides that she's had enough of that, and decides to fire Cate and hire this Kelly person full time to do the morning show with Ryan.

And, Paige? It turns out that she's Ryan's sister. That is one twist I, in fact, did not see coming. There was also mention of a mysterious Julia from Ryan's past, who sent some kind of fancy vase to the newly married couple. You know she'll be turning up at some point.

That's pretty much it. Does anyone even care about these recaps? If I have too much on my plate this TV season, I might have to drop a show, and this one would most likely be it.

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

Supernatural - Ranking the Premieres (Seasons 1-5)

With the season six premiere of Supernatural only a week and a half away, I've got four final lists for your perusal. Today I'm going to be ranking the premiere episodes. Where will season six's fit in? We'll find out soon enough! Later this week, I will rank the finales. And next week I'll rank the seasons and finally give you my list of the top ten episodes overall. I've gone over the top five from each season, but this will be just ten from all 100-something episodes!

Back to the business at hand. The premieres! The premiere episode of a season can really set the tone for what's to come. It can be awesome, or it can be disappointing. How do Supernatural's premieres stack up against one another? Let's take a look!

5. The Magnificent Seven (3x01)

I remember being so completely pumped for this episode after the epic season two finale. And then? Major let down. We're introduced to two hunters we never hear speak of again, the seven deadly sins weren't very deadly after all, and then Ruby randomly appeared too. It was a bit of a jumbled mess of an episode, which I guess was rather apropos for season three, which had some very high highs, and some very low lows. You see how I said the premiere episode can set up the tone of the whole season? I was not just saying that to sound smart, people.

4. Sympathy for the Devil (5x01)

The premiere of season five wasn't necessarily bad, but it wasn't really totally awesome either. Though, just looking at Sam's puppy dog face in the graphic above, how can I resist? He has the best puppy dog expression, doesn't he? In any event! Sam was given a lot of flack for this whole "starting the apocalypse" business here and in the future as well, but what bothered me is how no one ever really addresses how Dean played a role as well. He broke that first seal, hello! Also, this episode was just the beginning of many "ah ha wow" moments that peppered season five. And not in a good way.

3. Pilot (1x01)

Not only did the pilot have to set up season one, it had to set up the series as a whole. This is where we first met our erstwhile Winchester brothers and saw what happened to their mom, and eventually, Sam's girlfriend Jessica. It sets up the strained, jokey relationship between Sam and Dean, and the search for John. The only thing about this episode that I have never liked was the contained ghost story in the episode itself. Necessary to set up just what the show is about and how it generally went week to week back then, but meh. Not that exciting. Woman in white, killed her babies, killed herself. Stalks unknowing unfaithful men on highways. Yada yada yada. Again this episode just showcases season one as a whole. Episodes that focused on the overall storyline? Good. Monster of the week episodes? Ehhhh. We all remember that racist truck, people, no matter how much we'd like to forget.

2. Lazarus Rising (4x01)

Oh yes. Now this is a good one. Dean comes back from the dead, and we don't know how! The brothers are reunited! Bobby! We meet Pamela and she gets her eyes burnt out! Sam's been using his super secret evil demon powers! An angel was the one who brought Dean back from Hell - and they have plans for him! My oh my, so much happened. Probably by far the most revelatory of all the premiere episodes, in terms of "oh wow" moments. The episode set up Dean's upcoming struggle with his trip down to Hell, how the angels were going to become a big part of the storyline, and Sam's use of his demon powers. There was nary a dull moment, and the same can said for season four as well. You see, I am not letting this comparison die. I'm not, I'm not.

1. In My Time of Dying (2x01)

Still one of my favorite episodes of all time (uh oh, spoiler alert for my top ten episode list?!). Though there isn't a lot of action and heroics in this episode, it's still really engrossing. Dean's dying, Sam doesn't think John is doing anything to help, but meanwhile he's working to summon the yellow-eyed demon to make a deal to save Dean. The Impala is smashed to bits. Dean struggles with the idea of death and letting go, and just when he's about to do it, he's brought back. John tells him some super special secret we don't hear for a while... Okay now I'm just describing what happened. You know what happened, I'm sure. If you're reading this, I would think you do. If not, why are you reading this? Weirdo. This episode was just downright great, and in the end when John actually dies? I'm not sure how many people actually saw that coming, but it set up a lot of what the boys would be going through over the course of the season, how they are constantly sacrificing themselves for each other. Awesome.

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Supernatural's Top 5 Season Five Episodes

We're in the home stretch! Only two and a half weeks to go until the premiere of season six! Today, I'm going to be going over the top episodes of season five. Arguably the most uneven season of the series to date, season five was a bit of a mixed bag. There were still, however, some quality episodes. I have a feeling the order of this list will be the most hotly debated of the bunch. I had internal debates myself. And I KNOW I am going to get some flack for not including a certain episode in the top five. All I can say is, it didn't affect me the same way it did a lot of other people.

As ever, the title of each one is a link to a youtube clip of one of my favorite scenes in each episode.

5. Dark Side of the Moon (5x16)

I was in love with this episode up until the point when they found Joshua and had that whole conversation. I was not a fan of the inclusion of GAHHG (for those who have not read my recaps, GAHHG stands for Great Almighty He Him God) in the show, no matter if never explicitly shown (I refuse to believe Chuck was GAHHG, so shush). But, I did love all of the flashbacks throughout the episode. The fireworks scene in particular, of course. What I also felt, however, was the glaring absence of Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Papa Winchester, especially during the part when it was the night Sam left for Stanford. I want to see that scene, you know! Alas, JDM. Too busy making movies and whatnot. Sigh.

4. The Song Remains the Same (5x13)

I remember when this episode first aired, I was taken aback by how much I had liked it. I thought to myself, "Finally! Season five has finally kicked into gear!" And, well, yes, all of my best episodes of the season are in the latter half of it, so this was sort of a turning point on that end. I always love it when we get to see into the past lives of Mary and John. We also got to meet Michael for the first time, as well as see Anna get burned to a crispy crisp. And Sam got to finally meet his mom! Aww. Let's just dismiss how much Mary and John grew up in the four years from when Dean was almost born to when Sam was six months old. Otherwise you'll just start laughing like me.

3. Swan Song (5x22)

This is a bit of a love or hate episode. Either you love it, or you hate it. I lean in the direction of love, mostly because of how emotionally invested I found myself. If I'm not getting emotionally invested, then it just doesn't sit as well with me - one of the main reasons another episode did not make the top five. Really, this episode makes it so high because of the whole ending, from Dean driving up, Lucifer beating him to a bloody pulp, the montage of flashbacks, Sam taking control and jumping in (no matter how basically ridiculous Sam/Jared looked when he was leaning back to fall in), and Dean's subsequent slump of despair. Imagine if it had actually been a series finale. Man, that would have been a little too gut-wrenching.

2. Point of No Return (5x18)

I contemplated putting this one as number one, and honestly right now I am sort of wavering on the point. But, whatever. I already made the graphic, I didn't save it as one to be edited, so here it stays. In full disclosure, I love it when Dean's in pain and feeling especially downtrodden, so I am perhaps predisposed to like this episode based on that fact alone. But it was still good, the way Sam was so overwhelmed by the situation, how Adam was resurrected and his personality was so completely different from the ghoul version of him we first met, how Castiel gave Dean a beat down and eventually sacrificed himself so they could save Adam, how Dean finally turned around and decided not to say yes after all. I kind of wanted him to, honestly, but oh well. Better to have Sam and Dean finally get back on the same page? I suppose the fans would say yes to that.

1. My Bloody Valentine (5x14)

"What! You don't have "The End" as number one?!" No! I do not! So there! I know a lot of people are in love with that episode, but I'm not. I'm not saying Jensen didn't have a great set of double performances, he did. And of course it's a strong episode overall, but I just wasn't emotionally invested. Maybe I'm crazy, but I loved My Bloody Valentine so much more. The way things amped up more and more throughout the episode. And Famine was so gross. I was grossed out a lot in this episode, but also rather enthralled. The Evil Cupid fake out, Castiel having burger after burger, Sam eventually unable to contain his desire for demon blood, Famine telling Dean he was dead inside. The only parts I did not like were the bits with the random couples in the beginning. I know they were necessary, but I almost always fast forward through those parts in every episode after the first viewing! Whoops.

Honorable Mentions: The End (5x04), Changing Channels (5x08)

Next week I am debating between either: ranking the seasons, the finales, or the premiere episodes. The following week, the week of season six's premiere (Sept. 24th at 9pm on The CW), I will be doing a list of the top 10 episodes overall.


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Peach Shortbread Crumble

I was in the mood for something kind of breakfast-y and fruity the other day, and after seeing this recipe for a peach shortbread thing on Smitten Kitchen that looked easy enough, I decided to go for it. I'm not even a big peach fan, but I can take them in small amounts. And baked into things usually means they don't taste too peachy. It sounds like reverse psychology or something! But seriously, eating what was left of the peach itself, I was on the verge of a gag. Yep. Peaches. Not my favorite fruit.

I'm calling this peach shortbread crumble because it does have a crumbly top. No, it doesn't have oats or even brown sugar like a normal crumble - but it counts! Because I say so! Her recipe is one that asks for a 9 x 13" pan, and since I am but one person, I decided to halve it. Below find the halved recipe! You can click above if you'd like to see the original.

Peach Shortbread Crumble

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/16 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) softened unsalted butter
1/2 large egg (or I suppose 1 small egg)
 1 peach, pitted and thinly sliced (between 1/8 and 1/4-inch thick)

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter an 8×8 inch pan, or spray it with a nonstick spray. In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, baking powder, flour, salt and spices with a whisk. Using a pastry blender, fork or your fingertips, blend the butter and egg into the flour mixture. It will be crumbly. Pat 3/4 of the crumbs into the bottom of the prepared pan, pressing firmly. Tile peach slices over crumb base in a single layer. Scatter remaining crumbs evenly over peaches and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until top is slightly brown and you can see a little color around the edges. Cool completely in pan before cutting into squares.

This would be all of the dry ingredients. Can you even tell there is cinnamon and nutmeg in there? It's there, I promise!

Here we've got the butter and 1/2 egg, which I used a fork to mix in. Yes, a half egg. I cracked an egg into a cup, beat it up, then poured half of it into the mix. I then microwaved the rest to eat as a bit of scrambled egg! 

Tip on softened butter: In this case you really don't want it melty. So, I heated mine in the microwave for 20 seconds at Power Level 6 (or 60, depending on your microwave). It had a tiny bit of melting, but not enough to disturb things.

Here it is patted down in the prepared pan. I just used the fork to pat it down.

And the layer of thinly sliced peaches.

The rest of the crumbly stuff goes on top. And into the oven!

Out of the oven. The edges are just starting to brown. 

Mmmmm....

So I may or may not have proceeded to eat four pieces. Um, what? That's normal. In fact, it's not so bad. I hadn't eaten breakfast, so that was basically my breakfast and lunch. In any case, it's very yummy. And if you like peaches, you'll probably love it all the more!