Dowel Jones

So, Archie Panjabi is coming to the show. Can we expect some sharp edged jabs at the legal profession? Or will it be Dembe's long lost girlfriend?

I stopped the video to read it and, although grainy, it was something like "This concludes our business in regards to Grace. We will not be in contact with you again." The amount on the check was something like $400,000.

Well, I imagine all the principal actors had to take some long showers after these episodes. And the construction crews, having to take down the sets. Ugh. Was that Beausoleil who was arrested sleeping in his car? Was he murdered later, or am I confused about identities?

Brenda isn't the brightest star in the sky, is she? Now that Camilla's crew has murdered DEA agents, her empire should be on shaky ground, even if she allies with the Jimenez cartel.

Not to mention their inability to find Sophie after only a few minutes escape time. No helicopter available? No extra people to scour the neighborhood? Pity. And also the fact that Allison made a secret, illegal deal with the union officials to unfairly swing arbitration in their favor. But, after the meeting was broken up, it wouldn't be so secret anymore. Then there's the puzzle of how Sophia manages to knock Cam down and pin him to the ground, with Cam all the while mumbling "Hey, what's going on? Where did this big huge body on the floor (that I should have seen beforehand) come from?"

What the hell does the SEC have to do with transferring prisoners between institutions? And why wouldn't the Bureau of Prisons step in and put a stop to it, as Gallo had been transferred to the Danbury Bed and Breakfast to gain information on corruption in the first place. Oh well. In addition, he had served 12 out of 16 years for a murder conviction, which should indicate something less than 1st degree, which should make a difference at the parole hearing. In any case, Mike feeling safe after release is an illusion, as he could come calling after his release. Plot complications aside, Mike never actually represented himself as a licensed attorney, as he admitted. He could file that lawsuit, I would think, as a member of the public and explain that he wasn't doing it as an attorney. But both he and Snowflake seem to be continually obsessed with the illusion that they really are lawyers. Thanks, Louis. Another beer down.

Let me say this right off the bat. I am certainly glad that the computer industry was taken over by adults by the time I became familiar with the products. If this show were biographical, I shudder to think.... Boz realizes that he is viewed as the comic puppet, useful only for show and glow. That would make anyone with an ounce of self-respect more than just a bit morose. Did Gordon ever bring his ailments up with Donna last season? It would seem that it would be Topic A between them. My much younger self gloried a bit in the ham radio sequences, but I never knew that CQ came from a French phrase. Then Gordon lost it for me by droning on about his home troubles over public airwaves. I was just waiting for his contact to shoot himself while on the air.

You're all assuming that was Mitch's blood spattered on the floor. Maybe he got his defiant pupil on and dispatched the UA mascots. Maybe he was an Aggie graduate? Anyway, 10 years later, he's large and in charge, and Clemmie wants revenge for naming her after the world's worst folk song.

Does it smell like carrots in here? Whoops, sorry, wrong show. In hindsight (RIP, redshirt archer), wouldn't it have been better to use a straight point on that arrow instead of a barbed broadhead, so the arrow would pull out of the cat immediately after, instead of playing Ahab and the whale? At least they left a meal for the cat. Good idea, kids. Shoot the vest. Not the exposed skin. Of course, since the dose is set for some kind of fierceosaurus, it probably would have killed Logan, if anything can. Poor Mitch. Even after death, his dad dumps on him by using Elizabeth as a password key. And what the hell with the sacrificial lamb stunt? The animals weren't breaking through the fence at 75% power, so why couldn't he run out the back door with the others? But Trotter says they can't take off because all of the airspace is closed? Like the FAA is going to slap their wrists? I guess the Shepherds had been on that island waaay too long, being stuck with booting up Windows to power up the fence. I could just see the gears turning in Logan's mind. "Say, Jaime, since we're all sterile now, and no chance of you getting pregnant, howzabout we slip off to a scenic bed and breakfast somewhere?"

Chandler and Tex scrounge up some parts in San Diego, and with Sasha's newfound engineering expertise, cobble together the world's first 4WD Burke-class destroyer. They then proceed up and down the highways and byways of the former USA, fighting for truth, justice, and unlimited Cheerios. Celebrity cameos abound in each episode.

All that stolen wine, those $700 saute pans, not to mention the exquisite drawings in the kid's notebook. Gone forever, without a clue. The horror, the horror. I claim dibs on the T in the Thirio sign, though (just for the hidden cocaine).

I was initially surprised at Hodiak's suppressed hatred and anger toward the Japanese-American prisoner, but then, on reflection, I could see that sentiment still burning in men of his generation, particularly since once again we were involved in an Asian war where racism was never far from the surface, if not overtly there in the first place. It's also rather scary that the plotline is almost laying the series of events at the feet of Terry Melcher and Dennis Wilson, as in "if they had only paid attention to Manson, none of this would have happened." Of course, that's not even remotely true, but it just feels that way sometimes.

If the James was 40 miles offshore when the Chinese destroyer was sunk, how did the StarTrek team get ashore? No helicopter anymore. And, while we're standing in a heavily guarded depot, let's all take some time for a group reunion in plain view of anyone. So the heads of the five families are already feuding, and even Allison Corleone can't quite keep them together. What was your grand plan again? By the way, Sasha, firing a bullet into hard ground usually results in a ricochet, making anyone downrange an unfortunate target. I did like the short, "Here is how you fire a pistol, Mr. President" lesson. So you now have separate territories with, presumably, guards along each perimeter. What are they guarding against? Other members of the previously US Army units? Have they all been suddenly brainwashed to believe that they have to protect their own territory against the outsiders? And not one soldier will ever talk to another soldier to see what's going on? Meanwhile, the Canadians and Mexicans are no doubt looking on in total disbelief.

I thought that the Manson group had already settled in at Spahn Ranch back in Season 1. So where was that house that they were so lazily passing the time (not Dennis Wilson's place, but the rural house)? Welcome to the age of COINTELPRO. History will, and should be, exceedingly harsh on J. Edgar Hoover. I often wonder if Nixon was a pawn rather than an equal partner in the madness of that era.

The writers are just glossing over the fact that Harvey and Cahill illegally colluded to get Sutter convicted of illegal trading. That's a big deal in the legal world, but apparently, since, Sutter has been written as a nasty guy, it's okay. I would laugh if Sutter recorded his last conversation with Harvey, and spilled the beans on him to the bar and the press. Then Mike and Jessica could take hours away from building the firm back up to pursue Harvey's case. Gallo and Mike aren't done yet. That won't end well, either.

One drink for every impossibly glamorous, non-workplace set of clothes worn at work (either gender).

One wonders what kind of bedside manner she will have if she goes back to her practice after all this. Cogswell may have saved the day, at least temporarily, but he is an absolute rookie tactician. Move your forces down a narrow street in hostile territory? You're trapped, idiot. Line up against the other side point blank so that you can assure that large numbers of your troops are killed right off the bat? That's just plain stupid.

Watched it a bit late due to other commitments, but I have to tip the hat to Capt. Slattery on how to fire a missile: "It's the same in every language". On the other hand, as far as actual gonads go, I have to hand it to Shaw. He might be President, but Oliver comes across as a guy who needs a recipe to boil an egg. What would have made the press conference scene so much funnier would be for Oliver to reappear in a window, struggling, and the guards grabbing him again, but wait! He breaks free yet again and they finally beat him down with candlesticks, and all the reporters outside say "Wow, that was weird." I assumed those were all members of Takehaya's crew and were thus emotionally expendable. I didn't understand quite why the boarding team didn't just shoot the Chinese sailors when they burst into the bridge. Not all of them, but remember, these guys are the enemy, and we're not playing fair anymore, and the fastest way to get compliance from the survivors is to immediately kill some of the group.

I will defer to Jon Stewart: Don't confuse cancellation with failure.

One drink every time Louis's personal life is upended. Oh, my aching head. Although, I was amused by his reaction to her offer. He definitely got Litt Up. His next obvious question should be "What's my deadline?" What I don't get is the premise that Gallo is transferred to a minimum security fed prison in order to get something on someone. Presumably it is the corrupt administration and guards, but no matter. He walks around threatening other inmates as if he can't be touched, when in reality someone could easily yank his rug out and he'd be gone back to his old clink. And then there's Mike, demanding to know what Kevin knows, as if no one has ever heard of jailhouse informants before. In reality, Mike would find himself chasing his teeth down the hallway. And why did Harvey have to become Gallo's lawyer to file the petition? Didn't Gallo have an original attorney when he was tried? Snowflake has once again proven that she will never, ever be a lawyer, unless it's a backoffice deal with Daddy Zane. She let the parent push her almost to tears until she was saved by Gretchen. Her attitude should have been something like "I'm right and he's innocent, please excuse me." Besides which, proving his innocence should put the police back on track to finding the killer. And, from the shallow end of the pool, who was Donna dating?

What made that even more amusing, to me, was his insistence that "We have to talk about everything." It would make so much more sense if Barry would have just spoken to national security and used some vague terms such as "justice will be done", instead of a declaration of war, plot contrivances notwithstanding. Then he could go covert ops on Ihab and anyone else in the caliphate, even using mercenaries to do whatever is necessary. That wouldn't even have to be completed by the elections, if he paid in advance. Then, it becomes much more personal, as it should be. But no, Barry is so full of "I'm the President, I will rescue this country if I have to destroy it." General Cogswell is about the least adept person I have ever seen on tv on concealing his affairs. Anyone who followed him around for whatever reason would soon drop to the fact that he is involved with Leila.

What was it with the "8 blocks that Jesus walked" line? You know, if the world as we know it is ending in four days, is it really necessary to file flight plans anymore? On a side note, the distance between Ipswich England and Helsinki, Finland is just over 1000 miles. Quite a feat for a helicopter. MVP line to Mitch when Jaime remarked about the mess in the bar area. "Somehow, it always gets cleaned up, even if we don't have a crew on board." How exactly does that happen, writers? Since Jurassic Park is on the table, I guess I can tell my joke: What's the difference between Jurassic Park and Branson, Missouri? One is a theme park for dinosaurs, and the other is a movie.

The problem with the walls is not the height, but the length. Assuming Canada and Mexico still exist as nations, walls would have to be constructed around all sides of each little nation-state, else people could just do end runs around them. And that's not even considering water borders, such as the Great Lakes. Prisons only work in a (theoretically) free society when the majority of citizens agree with their use. Each governor will face a daunting task trying to convince his subjects that so much of their time will need to be devoted to infrastructure and so on. Maybe they should print thousands of copies of 1984 for distribution first. In any case, a West Point style chain needs to be stretched across the Mississippi at some point to inhibit the triumphant return of the USS Chandler Nathan James.

Interestingly enough, a British company remade this into a local murder mystery, called The Tunnel. It's showing on my PBS station and follows the original plot fairly closely, using a French actress and and English actor for the two leads. Much of her dialogue is in French with subtitles, but she is also fluent in English.

The problem there, not that it would make a dent in their heads, is that the money was destined for one of the deploying ships, as I understood it. That way the loss would not be noticed for several days at sea, and the investigation would be derailed after that. Plus, another raid on the base would entail a LOT of planning and perfectly timed sequences to outwit the Marines again.