tv echo

If Felicity is "superhero catnip" (love the term, Ceylon5), I like the fact that it's her brains - not her looks - that first attracts these superheros to her. Oliver first came to Felicity for IT help. Barry first bonded with her when they talked science stuff and worked together. It sounds like Ray Palmer will first become interested in her because of her IT expertise.

If J.R. Ramirez has insane chemistry with KC, then I don't think it'll matter how well-known or not an actor he was before this show. Laurel's journey should be the B or C storyline because the show is called Arrow. That's why I didn't like how Sara/Black Canary seemed to hijack so much of Season 2. If Oliver also hooks up with Katana in Hong Kong and she dies, after he hooked up with Shado on the island and she died, then I'll be getting a serious Madame Butterfly/Miss Saigon/South Pacific vibe - not a good thing. I like this part of that article because it acknowledges how natural and organic the whole evolution of the O/F relationship has been and will continue to be:

I like it when actors show enthusiasm for their roles. https://twitter.com/CW_Arrow

This is kinda interesting... Why Keeping The Arrow / Flash Universe Away from Man Of Steel Universe Isn't a Bad Thing http://moviepilot.com/posts/2014/08/04/why-keeping-the-arrow-flash-universe-away-from-man-of-steel-universe-isn-t-a-bad-thing-2158790?lt_source=external,manual#!bvkwOX I think SA is better than "okay" as an actor now. I agree, though, that Arrow and The Flash are still going through their origin stories, which would clash with the DC movie-verse right now.

When I see someone like Angela who clearly shouldn't be on a reality TV competition because she can't handle the stress, I blame the show's producers. They want drama to boost ratings so they cast a mixture of personalities that will clash with each other and they cast people who they know will cause drama. They want someone to break down on the show. They want designers to fight with each other. They want catty confessionals. They amp stress by giving the designers deadlines and difficult challenges. Next, they'll have the designers run an obstacle course and shoot arrows before they can use a sewing machine - just kidding, but Top Chef did something like that two seasons ago which brought down the integrity of the show. Almost all reality competition shows seem to be like this now. Producer manipulation of results seems to be prevalent as well because they're thinking of which winner will make them the most money after the season ends.

I don't really care for any of the three finalists. Nicole is kinda boring and she came across as trying too hard in her pilot. Luca is okay but I find him difficult to understand, although his food looked good in his pilot. They both seem like nice people, though. I find Lenny completely repugnant and offensive - he's always come across as fake to me.

I stopped watching every episode of this show, so when did Weaver stop leading the 2nd Mass and turn leadership over to Tom? I still can't stand Lexi - her fake blonde hair and the bad actress who plays her. Why couldn't they have at least physically transformed her when she came out of the cocoon? Again, alien DNA somehow gives her superpowers but not good hair? From the preview, it looks like If this show were edgier, they'd have Lexi kill Ben when he goes to try to reason with her, which would cause a split between Tom and Anne. But of course, they won't. Everyone will die but the Masons and their significant others, Lexi will be redeemed somehow, and - like Noah and the Ark - the Masons will seed the future generation of humans on earth.

Foreign terrorists are willing to kidnap American diplomats and hold them hostage in exchange for fertilized human embryos. Yet no one is concerned that someone might try to kidnap, say, the scientist who successfully fertilized those embryos and claims to have almost found a cure for infertility? Dr. Lennon has been on TV - everyone knows who she is and what she looks like. Yet she is free to go about her life on her own and unprotected. What if someone kidnapped her when she went into that bar alone? Even if the U.S. closed its borders to non-citizens, anyone in the U.S. (citizen or non-citizen) could easily kidnap her and sell her to a foreign government or terrorist group for tons of money. Or someone who doesn't want a cure found could easily track her down alone and kill her. So the key to the cure for infertility is a deadly disease? Hmmm.... sounds familiar. Wait - wasn't a deadly disease the key to vaccinating against the zombie virus in World War Z?

I think the EPs just love bringing in comic book characters onto the show - and they love origin stories. Otherwise, how coincidental that both the Atom and Wildcat come to Starling City (and become love interests of two major female characters)! They may not show their fully developed superhero personas on Arrow. Maybe they're testing out possible spin-offs - like the Flash, the powers don't show up until the character goes off on his own spin-off show. This is kinda interesting (nothing new, though)... 10 Things We Learned From Arrow’s Season 3 SDCC Trailer http://whatculture.com/tv/10-things-learned-arrows-season-3-sdcc-trailer.php

This is pretty cool... Marvel's Phase 1 & 2 - A Look Back Published on August 1, 2014, by Marvel Entertainment Marvel releases a full recap of Phase 1 & 2, from 'Iron Man' to 'Guardians of the Galaxy http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report-marvel-releases-a-full-recap-of-phase-1-2-from-iron-man-to-guardians-of-the-galaxy-2007820 (Warning! This article contains rumours regarding Tony Stark's future.)

I love Sebastian Stan as an actor (he's slightly offbeat) so I would love to see another movie about Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier. I also liked him as Jefferson/The Mad Hatter in Once Upon a Time.

Now that we know who's been cast as Felicity's mother and that they're keeping details secret, I'm going to go all out on my speculation (assuming they're not going to keep her mom a normal person)... Previously I was speculating that Felicity's mysterious dad was an ARGUS agent and/or computer genius who has a one-nighter or fling with Felicity's mom. Now I realize that was kinda sexist thinking on my part. What if Felicity's mom was the former ARGUS agent and/or computer genius? As a young agent, she used an alias and cover of a Vegas showgirl (adopting a ditzy blonde persona) to hide her real work. She also spent a lot of time away from home under the pretense of being on touring shows.. Now she uses the cover of a Vegas waitress to hide the fact that she still does jobs for ARGUS, although she's mostly retired from field work. As a younger agent, she got involved with someone on the job (Felicity's father) who remains mysterious for now. Her pregnancy was accidental. In order to protect Felicity, she never told her the truth. Her alias is the name "Smoak" to mask her real identity ("smoke", get it?). Her real name could be a name known in the comics. Yeah, too wild, I know.

I think the EPs have developed the Oliver and Felicity relationship rather nicely over the past two seasons - slowly and organically. I can only hope (fingers crossed) they continue to do so if it turns romantic. I would be more confident if it wasn't the CW network. Another pic of Charlotte Ross (this pic makes me think former Vegas showgirl) and some speculation about what it means: http://wegotthiscovered.com/tv/arrow-charlotte-ross-felicity-smoak-mother/#!btKkfs

'The Walking Dead': 10 spoilers for Season 5, courtesy of Gale Anne Hurd http://www.zap2it.com/blogs/the_walking_dead_season_5_spoilers_gale_anne_hurd_interview-2014-08 The Walking Dead Season 5 Filming Spoilers: Father Gabriel in Trouble — Limping and Chased? http://www.wetpaint.com/walking-dead/articles/2014-07-31-season-5-gabriel-trouble-chased 'The Walking Dead' season 5: Beth in love triangle with Andrew and Daryl? http://www.christiantoday.com/article/the.walking.dead.season.5.spoilers.beth.caught.love.triangle.daryl.andrew/39162.htm

I watched The Quest, which debuted on ABC this week, and kinda liked it. Here's an article on it: http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/07/31/abc-the-quest-review-larping/

I meant that they could give Oliver a new love interest in Season 4, depending on how Season 3 plays out and the reaction to it.

I think TPTB have a rough 5-year plan but they also know that ratings determine renewal. The EPs know that a lot of viewers love Sara as the Black Canary and hate the idea of Laurel replacing her. Therefore, I agree that the EPs are going to use Season 3 to test out possible future directions for the show. Like others have said, they're going to test viewer acceptability of Laurel as training (with Ted Grant?) to be some kind of fighter. They're going to test viewer likeability of Laurel if she's removed as a love interest for Oliver and given a new love interest. They're going to test viewer acceptability of Felicity being paired with another guy. And they're going to test viewer acceptability of Oliver as being committed to one woman and not being a womanizer. If people love the new badass Laurel, then I think Sara will either (1) die (with Laurel becoming the new Black Canary in Season 4 or 5) or (2) be spun-off into her own Black Canary or Birds of Prey show, thus expanding the DC tv-verse (with Laurel becoming Manhunter or some other superhero). However, for all we know, CL may be getting offers from other networks to star in her own TV show. Given her popularity, I'd think the CW would like to lock her up on one of their shows. So she may not be available for Arrow in the future. If there's minimal backlash against Felicity and Ray Palmer, then I think they'll give Oliver another love interest (old or new), probably temporary. If a lot of people find the one-woman pining Oliver boring and too unlike the comic book womanizing Oliver, then I think he'll get brand new love interests. After all, this is the CW network which has an apparently limitless pool of pretty young actors to trot out. Whatever the case, I don't want Oliver and Felicity to get together romantically too soon because I don't trust a CW show to handle a committed relationship well without messing it up. They'll just create drama with love triangles and break-ups. But regardless of what any fan wants, I think the EPs will decide who Oliver ends up with at the end of the series run (however many seasons that may be) - whether it's Felicity, Laurel, Sara or some brand new character - and make it seem like this person was meant to be with Oliver once he finished his hero journey and became the man he was meant to be. There's this scene in Dawson's Creek when Dawson realizes he loves Joey as more than a friend and he's running around town looking for her. There's a background song playing about how he's gone off in all different directions but all roads lead back to her because she's his Northern Star. (Of course, after that, they broke up and she ended up with Pacey.) I can see the Arrow EPs justifying whoever they decide on in the end for Oliver in a similar way if it's Felicity or Laurel or even Sara ("it's always been you, all along, even though I slept with a zillion woman along the way") - or maybe they'll have Oliver end up alone.

I have not seen Guardians of the Galaxy or any of the Hulk movies, so here's my Marvel rankings: 1. The Avengers 2. Iron Man 3. Captain America: The Winter Soldier 4. Captain America: The First Avenger 5. Iron Man 3 6. Thor 7. Thor: The Dark World 8. Iron Man 2 I don't necessarily think The Avengers was the best movie, but I loved having all of the superheroes in one movie and thought the director did a great job of juggling all the stars' screen times. I have an affection for the first Iron Man movie because its success started the whole franchise ball rolling.

I don't think Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn would be a good analogy or model for Ray and Felicity. Tracy & Hepburn were a prime example of opposites attracting. He often played the gruff, tell-it-like-it-is, 'man's man' kind of guy in the movies. She often played the rich or upper-class, somewhat snooty, independent woman. What I didn't like was that their movies often seemed to involve Tracy's character taking Hepburn's character down a peg (see Adam's Rib). In real life, he was much older and they had a 25-year love affair even though he was married. Actually, since one of the Arrow EPs previously compared Brandon Routh to Cary Grant, a better analogy for Ray & Felicity would be to use Cary Grant & Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story. It's funny but I had speculated previously in this thread that Ted Grant, former boxer, and Laurel, snooty lawyer, could engage in Tracy & Hepburn-type bickering. The original bickering pair was Benedict and Beatrice in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing - two people who masked their attraction for each other behind adversarial verbal sparring and ultimately discovered that they were in love. I hope the Arrow EPs provide some motivation for why Laurel would "start trying to walk the path that her sister walked."

I am a fan of Joss Whedon, but that doesn't mean I like everything he's done. On TV, I liked Buffy, Angel, and Firefly. In movies, I liked The Avengers, Much Ado About Nothing and Serenity. I did not like Dollhouse or the original Buffy movie. While I hated that he killed off Wash in Serenity, everything else about that movie worked for me - esp. the transformation of vulnerable River Tam into an awesome fighting machine. That role was Summer Glau's best work. I don't like what's becoming the current trend of killing off main characters for the sake of realism or ratings or whatever, I get that it has to happen on shows like The Walking Dead, but I don't like it and the trend seems to be spreading to other shows where it's totally unnecessary (The Good Wife). I also invest in characters on a TV show. I watch shows with characters I like. If I dislike all of the characters, then I don't want to watch the show no matter how great the plots may be. On the other hand, if I like at least some of the characters, I may continue to watch even if the show has horrible plots. When actors become well-known or celebrities, they attract both critcism and worship - sometimes extreme on both sides to the point of rabid attacks or stalkerish behavior. Unfortunately, the anonymity afforded by the Internet allows those fringe elements to post death threats, etc., while hiding their true identities. But extreme behavior or remarks by this tiny minority of fandom should not be ascribed to the larger group of fans. Personally, I try to avoid websites that aren't monitored by mods.

Additional pics of J.R. Ramirez and comic book Wildcat... Arrow season 3 spoilers: Has Laurel’s Black Canary trainer been cast? – details http://primetime.unrealitytv.co.uk/thursday-arrow-season-3-spoilers-laurels-black-canary-trainer-cast-details/

I confess I have not been a fan of Thea. I've found her bratty and spoiled. After she fails to sign those papers that would've saved the Queen family fortune, she never has to struggle to earn a living because she goes off in the stretch limo with her rich bio dad, Malcolm Meryln (wearing her expensive black leather pants, no less). I hope that this season will see her grow up and mature. As yet, I don't think she's earned anything. However, I do like WH based on her interviews.

Before this episode, I thought the competitiveness between the sisters was one-sided (on Laurel's part). But I can't believe that Sara didn't realize how insensitive and hurtful it would be to bring Oliver to the Lance family dinner. It was, consciously or unconsciously, a dig at her sister. Here's your ex-boyfriend who I slept with and am now sleeping with. The dinner was meant to reconcile the Lance family.

For snarky forum fun, I go with sci-fi/supernatural shows that have "magical" science and some ridiculous plot threads... so I recommend (in addition to Under the Dome) The Lottery, Dominion and Falling Skies. Also, coming up this season, The Scorpion looks like it'll contain lots of fodder for snark. On the other side of the coin, I really wish I had Starz so that I could watch the new mini-series Outlander (debuting August 9) The opening title credits and trailer for that show (both viewable on YouTube) look amazingly beautiful.

I don't think this has been posted yet - I don't recall reading this spoiler before... http://www.tvguide.com/News/Mega-Buzz-Once-Sons-Greys-Spoilers-1085057.aspx