Bastet

This episode highlighted two of my favorite things about the show: the friendship between Mark and Susan, and that between Peter and Elizabeth. Speaking of Susan, and of Abby being attacked, I like that Susan invited Abby to stay with her until the guy was caught.

Luka; it happened at the end of the episode in which she was attacked and went to the hospital. He'd listened to her tell the police where the guy hangs out, so went to that bar to find him. He confessed, apologized, said he just flipped out when she "took [his] wife from [him]," the usual abuser's litany, and said he was going to go turn himself in to the cops, but Luka chose to beat the crap out of him, never mind how that might jeopardize her case.

Well, that was a given after the ridiculous time slot they stuck season three in, but it's still disappointing to have it confirmed. At least season three ended in a way that serves as a good series finale.

Josh and Toby Tie breaker: Toby and Sam

I realized the reason I don't like Gethsemane is I hate pretty much everyone in it. Bill Jr., obviously, Mulder is being an obstinate jerk who isn't listening, Scully is being snippy rather than explaining (plus looking like the illogical dope she always looks like when religion comes up), and Ma Scully is completely out of line asking the priest to come badger Scully when she's just trying to have dinner in peace. And let's add the priest to my list, because he acknowledges this is totally awkward and seems to maybe even understand it's inappropriate, but then plows right ahead. No wonder Scully got the hell out of Dodge when Mulder called instead of telling him to put a sock in it and she'd see him in the morning. But, through all this, what stood out to me is how Mrs. Scully's house and dinner party look like something Mrs. Mulder would be hosting instead. Complete with throwback maid costumed servant.

Ah, yes - it has all come back to me why my previous attempt at a re-watch stalled out after Detour. I did manage to make it through PMP this time (still a steaming pile of shit), but I only got through about three minutes of Tara in Christmas Carol before I decided sleep was a far better use of my time. It was interesting to discover Redux is a little better than I remember it, and Redux II a little worse. Redux still isn't great - it's CC writing VOs and using stock footage, after all - but it does have good pacing, and tells a believable story. Redux II has stellar moments, but the Samantha shit really bogs it down. This time I fast forwarded through the religious stuff; great performance by Gillian, but I just can't with this. I recall well all the hoopla caused by DD wearing his wedding ring in Travelers, but I didn't remember that Mulder is wearing a ring in Unusual Suspects, too. I do not enjoy that episode at all. Well, maybe for Belzer/Munch. But I cannot stand Susanne Modeski (because I can't stand Signy Colman), nor can I stand Byers' mooning over her. I want to be interested in how the Gunmen got started, but I'm just not. I generally love Vince Gilligan's writing, but that episode falls flat for me. I'll try again with CC/Emily tonight, because at least they have Kresge. I'd just skip to the next disc, but Kitsunegari isn't much better. Actually, it probably is; it's probably an okay episode on its own and only seems like it sucks because it's so inferior to Pusher. But, still - it's a long slog to get from Detour to the Chinga, Kill Switch, Bad Blood part of the season, and then there's not much I'm into after that. It's clear why season five is when the show went from something I was obsessed with to just something I watched.

Now that I might try, because I don't much care for rice and hardly ever eat it, but there are some saucy dishes that really do call for it, in which case I make some brown rice. Next time I'll try cauliflower rice instead.

Josh and Toby Tie-breaker: Sam and Toby

I couldn't (or anywhere else in Ireland), because all that rain would make me a depressed hermit, but it's probably my favorite city in Ireland.

Aw, according to Kim Manners' commentary on Max, the actor who played Pendrell absolutely loved working on the show (and had his own little crush on Gillian), and was really sad to get killed off. I cannot listen to CC do commentary; he drones on in a way that makes me stabby. The others have been hit and miss, but listening to Manners was easy - he hardly speaks. It was kind of funny. But he's to the point; when Gillian delivers Scully's Apollo 11 monologue, he says, "John Kennedy couldn't have done it better." I listened to Vince Gilligan's commentary on Small Potatoes, and there were times his sympathy for Eddie was bugging me, but when it got to the scene where Skinner and Scully clearly identify Eddie as a rapist, Gilligan redeemed himself by saying something like it was important to include, that while he sympathizes with Eddie in several respects, the guy belongs in jail and it's good that the episode ends with him locked up. He also wishes he'd stolen one of the Superstar hats, which amuses me greatly.

I love roasted cauliflower, but I don't like cauliflower versions of things not normally made with cauliflower (e.g. pizza crust). I'm not big on substitutions in general for things I really like/am totally used to, really - for example, I like turkey, but you will not find me eating a turkey burger. When I want a burger, I want beef. If I was eating too many of them and thus consuming too much fat, I'd eat fewer burgers, not start eating burgers made out of the "wrong" meat.

Halloween marathon right now on TVLand; these episodes never get old.

Oh, in her shoes, I wouldn't go unless John asked me to -- the only reason she'd be there would be to support him -- and I don't think he'd ask her to put herself through the exercise; I think he'd be happy to just have her check in on him separately. I just wondered whether Carter or his dad made any reference to her not being there, hoping the answer is no -- I wouldn't want it made into a thing, given the great final scene we saw between Carter and her. The difference between the two is striking, and I think the way they did it with Carter's family is a lot better and more appropriate to the show. I like Abby, but that run of episodes with her mom got pretty hard to slog through; I'm not looking forward to more.

I liked the closure Abby finally got from her mom's visit, such that I'd overlook the all-Maggie-all-the-time focus as it played out to conclude it was flawed but worthwhile storytelling and move on. Except they're going to pick it up again. Contrast with Carter, who also got some closure with his mom, in a similarly high profile guest appearance that, this time, didn't eat the show, and was wonderful to watch - for what it gave "our" character and for what it taught us about the parent we'd heard about through the character's narrative but not met until now. I don't remember: When Gamma dies, do they give a reason Eleanor isn't at the funeral? I don't have an issue with Eleanor cutting all ties with that family other than her son, and thus skipping the funeral but spending time with Carter as he grieves, so I can fanwank it as a "they couldn't get Mary McDonnell for this, but the John/Eleanor progress we saw resulted in an off-screen visit." I'm just curious whether they leave it open for that or make a point of her not being there.

I enjoyed Stranger Things for the '80s nostalgia, but that was it; the story itself left me completely uninterested. I'd have thrown in the towel halfway through season one, but my friend who was relying on my parents' Netflix access wanted to see it through, so the next time I was kitty-sitting at my parents' house she came over and we finished it. I liked it better than the first half - or maybe I just drank more - but I still came away utterly convinced the show is all hat and no horse: It dazzles with its "OMG, I had that!" props, but has little else going for it -- it's just an okay, "eh, there's nothing else on" show.

Josh and Toby Tie-breaker: Sam and C.J.

When was he on his own? He was feeling tired, but Millicent said he just needed some fresh air after being cooped up all winter, they all went to France on vacation, and thus he wasn't diagnosed until they got back. So Eleanor felt guilty about not getting him checked out before they left (but Carter said it only delayed diagnosis for a month, and wouldn't have made any difference in the outcome). I love that Corday looks wretched, rather than having the usual glamorous TV flu. In a show sort on subtlety lately, I'm impressed the storyline in which Mark counsels a dad against yelling at one kid for endangering the other and the one in which he yells at Rachel for endangering Ella happened in two different episodes.

I'm glad Chen came back, but she has some nerve acting like she didn't screw up, too.

"I will be right there." Oh, Mulder. This is why I can't quit you despite you being such a fucking punk most of the time. I listened to the commentary by Frank Spotnitz on Memento Mori, and while they had decided over the summer to give Scully cancer (some had argued it must be done, since they'd set up the fact all the other women abducted with her got cancer, while others had argued it was too melodramatic for the tone of the show; obviously the first group one), they hadn't intended to do it this early in the season. But as they were writing Leonard Betts, they found out Darin Morgan's script - which was supposed to be the next episode - wasn't going to materialize. Since they were writing about a cancer-eating guy, they decided to scramble: tack on the "I'm sorry, but you've got something I need" and nose bleed to imply that Scully has cancer and then quickly write the story of Scully being diagnosed. That's why MM has four writers -- they had to come up with the story very quickly. (Not in only a week, though - Christmas vacation provided time for CC to turn the draft done by the other three into a final script.) The only thing other than the horrible CC-penned opening VO I don't like about the episode is that stupid "Vegreville" snow globe password thing, so I laughed out loud at learning CC was responsible for that, too. Since this was the first time in eons I'd seen Unrequited, I had forgotten it featured another appearance by Larry Musser (Detective Manners/Jack Bonsaint/the sheriff in DHDV).

I, too, am not at all pleased to see the stupid "bros" commercial is back. It seemed like at least a year since it polluted the airwaves, and lately it's everywhere again.

Yeah, when that casting was announced, I said that while I didn't know anything about her acting ability - I don't watch the show she's on, but the fact she's transitioned on it from child to young adult actor hopefully bodes well - she certainly looks like Darlene and David's kid! Almost eerie casting on that front, and I hope that's not the only way in which she's right for the role. As for Lecy, that's just how she talked then, sounding like every other overly-earnest and -deep person of that age, especially when speaking to a wider audience than normal. She didn't sound like that in her roles of that time, so I never thought substance abuse, just your stereotypical mostly interesting/partly annoying artist of a certain age.

In my first "real" (post-college) job, there were five of us in the department, all women, and we all became friends outside of work as well. We're all still friends, even though we haven't worked together in 20 years. But that was an anomaly for me; other than that, while I like and socialize after work with many of my co-workers, there aren't any I consider friends -- I don't share much about my personal life with them, I don't see them on weekends, I don't expect to keep in touch via more than the occasional email once we no longer work together, etc. I don't use social media, but if I did, I wouldn't "friend" any of them on Facebook.

Great touch playing the music from the stabbing episode as Carter walks away from encountering the patient who stabbed him. That's a nicely-done story all around, with Abby trying to get the guy shoved out the door, Susan - who wasn't there, yet does care about Carter - refusing to transfer him until she makes sure he's stable for transport, Paul wanting to get the hell out of County and being genuinely sorry for Carter to have come across him, and, of course, Carter reacting to learning he's out on conditional release.

Carter and Benton had my favorite relationship of the show, and their good-bye is pitch perfect. For Carter to get him something sentimental, and get emotional saying good-bye, and for Peter to tell him the El doesn't use tokens anymore but ultimately hug back - and then jog off with a sarcastic remark and a smile. All wonderfully in character.

It's similar to the original, obviously, in that they're both plaid with the same general colors, but that's a different fabric on the couch. The original didn't have that green in it, there were light red horizontal stripes making a faint crisscross pattern, and the buttons may have been different, too.