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Caught the rest of the Reunion. "Challenged Awards"? Ugh. And Thomas was nominated for "Wants To Go Home"? Didn't he leave because his girlfriend was sick? MTV, man. Those people fucking suck. Also sucking . . . nobody in the streets of New York pummeling Johnny out of general principle. Doesn't he look like the sort that would need a beating? I mean, Wince asks for it more, but still . . .

Bumping up because MTV Classic ran RW1 today, and they'll be doing it again next week. I figure that if one of us sees the network putting up a marathon, this would be the place to post about it. I wouldn't be hellbent on seeing RW3, for fear of seeing You-Know-Who. I think the safe bet would be Pedro and Sean's wedding. And Judd putting together the This Is Your Life birthday surprise for Pam, complete with shoving the boyfriend in a closet. That came after the departure, right? ETA: Looked at the RW2 thread. There's gonna be a Los Angeles marathon on August 20. It isn't not funny!!! Also, can you name all nine roommates without looking them up?

It should be a one-sided relationship. I've read a few trade paperbacks of the Palmiotti/Conner run on Harley Quinn. As overblown as that property can be, Harley can be a kickass solo act, with her own supporting cast. And maybe Poison Ivy in an "are there/aren't they?" relationship.

I was busy today. I would have liked to have seen Gouda. Sucks that Great Danes don't live that long. I wonder if Norman still likes that breed.

Turns out it's a play. Also, I'll be going to an anime con that weekend, but it'll take place in NYC, so I can totally swing both. Once again . . . who's up to seeing a Sarah who isn't pitiable?

So . . . when will #13 be retired? And A-Rod will be going into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee, right? ETA: In 1969, Steve Carlton struck out 19 Mets and lost. Is that relevant?

Spent too much on my ticket, because I wanted to go to a comic shop nearby, where an old acquaintance from college was supposed to be. He didn't show up. On the up side, the lines at the stands were too long, so I didn't eat or drink anything. Wound up spending three dollars-plus on a bag of popcorn and a Coke Zero bottle at 7-11 because I am an addict. The movie? Step in the right direction for DC, but it still pales to Marvel's efforts. I felt that a lot of the good stuff was spoiled in commercials and trailers. I didn't think Jared Leto deserves to be targeted any more than Jesse Eisenberg in BvS. On the other hand, Leto does pale next to Heath Ledger. To be fair, the guy died after The Dark Knight. Leto could've had his voice replaced by Mark Hamil, and it would still be a letdown. I liked Enchantress, until she turned on the team and got the cleaned-up look. I'm not Squad-knowledgable (I have read the Ostrander-written run in trade paperback) . . . does his brother have a name? I'm going with "Enchantor." I will admit that both looks probably work better than the old-school look, where June Moone turned into a witch with the stereotypical hat. I think that was the case even a decade ago in Shadowpact. I'm good with Will Smith as Deadshot. And Margot Robbie as Harley. I don't think Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (thanks copy-and-paste!!) needed to see cannibal footage to get into his role as Killer Croc. I mean, Leto/Joker, I get, but Croc is mostly muscle. And Captain Boomerang should've been more of a wanker. In the Eighties book, everybody busted his ass, especially Waller. And he let Mindboggler get killed in the second issue, which explains why he tested the implants with Slipknot. And seriously . . . a rope-themed villain? Even if I wasn't familiar with comics, I would've fitted him for a red shirt. ETA: Anybody else hitting the Funko blind box figures? I got my last two at Hot Topic, because I'm addicted to all sorts of things. I would up getting my second Harley, as well as El Diablo. I also have a Katana from last month.

This week: Perona's weakness is revealed . . . her Negative Hollows can't do shit when they go through somebody as negative as Usopp. Her reaction compares to that of Eneru, when he discovered his lightning-based attacks couldn't harm Luffy. Meanwhile, Franky gets his build on, Absalom tries to seal the deal with Nami, and Oars gets a new hat.

Is there a way to get character names without getting spoiled for the current arc? The only recognizable names I have are Gon, Leorio, Kirapika (the "pika" part makes him stand out), Killua, Hisoka and Tonpa.

I think we need to start placing names to these characters, because the action is heating up at the Chunin Hunter Exam. *deep breath* Gon continues to hunt Hisoka. Hisoka is allied with Pinhead Robot, who turns out to be Face-Changing Robot. Or is it Face-Changing Diglet? I hope he doesn't show up at week's end as Face-Changing Dugtrio. That applicant also killed Sniper Guy, and Hisoka fended off Dying Spear Guy. Meanwhile, Leorio encountered Tonpa, who was allied with Guy With Monkey Sidekick. Leorio's badge is taken, but then Kurapika shows up, and Tonpa and GWMS (and the monkey) are tied up and relieved of their badges. Leorio's target is Token Chick, so you know he'll botch that. Elsewhere, Killua is wandering the forest, stalked by one of the Asshole Brothers. Oh, and the guy who is hunting Gon doesn't show up. I'm guessing he'll pop in at the absolute worst moment for Gon, because that's pretty much how anime works. Watched last week's episode. Forgot the part where Gon reveals Hisoka's number, and we get a visual of Hisoka licking his lips. Ewwwwww.

I've gotten past forty minutes on the Reunion. Sarah would have been within her rights to have choked Johnny out, and I don't think a jury would have blamed her. I still don't like Wes and Devin for being anti-Johnny because I find them to be elitist. Amazing that nobody brought up Devin & Cheyenne losing the first Jungle. On the bright side, Sarah articulated how her move in BOTE2 was nowhere near as ugly as Johnny's. I feel bad for her . . . the only way she can get over looking like an object of pity is to come back and steamroll the competition again, or retire and hope people have short memories. I can believe that Wince and Camila didn't hook up. I can also see why they would deny it . . . Wince wouldn't want to "stick it in crazy," Camila probably doesn't want to be seen grinding on the same family tree and its small, gnarled branches. Is the Wince/Jenna rumor still in play, or is that squashed? ETA: Nessa congratulating Johnny & Sarah on their win? Fuck you, Nessa. Sarah could have knocked her out, and I wouldn't have blamed her. This show brings out the worst in everybody, myself included. ETA2: Wince got a full-ride scholarship to Penn State? Wow. Make your own Jerry Sandusky joke. I guess some people don't have standards.

This week: Two manga volume cover boys in Mumen Rider and Speed O'Sound Sonic. Saitama manages not to murder Hammerhead and Sonic. I guess you don't get killed if you go crotch-first into his fist. On the other hand, Sonic beheads the shit out of most of the Paradisers. I don't remember if he did that in the manga. Also, I don't recall Genos's doctorfrom there, either. And we'll be getting into the Hero Association soon. Next week: Pre-test sparring!

Been reading Injustice: Gods Among Us from the library. I'm into the third volume. Part of me loves how off-the-rails the story goes, as Superman goes corrupt like a Justice Lord, and plenty of fun moments can be had. I'm tempted to get two redesigned characters sketched. And they got at least one character maimed, in the mighty DC style! I've also been looking up the video game sequel online. Supergirl! Gorillla Grodd! Atrocitous and Dex-Starr!! And I'm still borrowing stuff from Comixology, including the first Faith miniseries. I can see why she's a popular character . . . she's truly one of us, maybe moreso than Kamala Khan. ETA for any DC fans: does the company explain how Harley Quinn "works" in her own title and Suicide Squad. I peeked at the Rebirth issues, and I would guess there are two Harleys . . . given DC's latest plot twist, that might not be out of the question.

I think this counts . . . Rick Reilly tries to hit every event in Barcelona on a very limited budget.

Looking through MTV Classic's site . . . if you miss any part of the marathon, you can tune in on Tuesday, August 16, starting at 1 p.m.

Reposting some more stuff from 2012 . . . (Note: the IOC has reinstated baseball and softball for the 2020 Games in Tokyo) (Saturday Night Live) (Doctor Who)

Problem is, Derrick is a punk. He sucked on The Island and The Ruins. I'm guessing the missus hated going down on her knees all the time. Y'know, to kiss him. Thanks for the report, scrb. I might listen to that in order to properly identify Simmons as a banana-muncher, but your abridged version would save me the headache. ETA because it could spill into media: Anybody else think Johnny might pop up on Any Given Wednesday? That might be enough to turn me off Bill Simmons. And I bought both of his books, albeit in paperback. Even got the second one autographed.

Good lighting ceremony. Beats Seoul 1988, where three torchbearers lit the cauldron with doves still inside it. Sucks that I have a job, because I'd try to see the quirkier sports in the afternoon. At least I'll have the weekends.

I might as well ask . . . what's the deal with the guys wearing hats and facepaint? I keep going back and forth between "Green Hornet" and "Hamburglar." ETA: Didn't the original Girl From Ipenema show up on the second season of The Amazing Race? Or am I remembering incorrectly?

I came up with a theory and posted in on Johnny's thread. You can read it on my blog. It's a little gruesome, but I feel it makes a lot of sense.

Anybody else have HBO? Bill Simmons took Bartolo behind the woodshed on the latest Any Given Wednesday, bringing up his girth and secret family. I don't consider myself to be an apologist, but I don't think Bart gets a pass because of his gut. Part of it is also an age thing. Also, he's still a good pitcher at 43. He got his tenth win last night. All the Mets asked of him was to compete every five days when one of their thoroughbreds was resting, and he's done a good job.

I'm guessing Bill partook of Johnny's ass. That's so disappointing. Not like I'd want him to still have posters of CT on his bedroom wall, but he has crap taste in people he admires. Once I gut my way through the reunion on DVR, I'll try and write about it on my blog.

I think the Mets once got into an unassisted triple play to end an game. Only them, y'know?

How messed up that BMP has only had three guys with any Asian in them on their shows? Yes, Steve and Noor. And Curtis from "The Lost Season" doesn't count. I'm about 6-7 minutes into the Reunion. Is there any semblance of a happy ending? I'm pulling for Sarah taking a baseball bat to Johnny's ride, screaming, "THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU FUCK A TEAMMATE IN THE ASS!!!" I mean, I've been hard on her for the second half of the season, but she could have used a good chunk of the money on therapy. ETA: Has any Challenger been screwed as hard as Sarah? I wouldn't think so . . . not even Paula getting thrown under the bus by Johnny in The Island. Maybe somebody out there has a better memory than me. ETA2: What songs would you assign to Challengers? Obviously, Johnny is "Liar" by Rollins Band. Stan Bush's "The Touch" works great for Timmy.

Got two more minutes into the reunion before tapping out for the night. Did anybody get the vibe that Sarah was intentionally putting on a show? I mean, I wouldn't expect that from her, but I can't see why she'd be at the Reunion. Did MTV promise her that they'd clean the cameras long enough for her to sucker-punch Johnny? I'd ask for a taped segment explaining why Johnny is such a fucksuck. Sarah might sue the show? I wish her the best. Once again, I would not be surprised if she spent more time on the stump, and BMP gave the points to Johnny to create a better ending. Can't have anybody getting one up on Johnny twice, right? BMP should pack it in in 2017. It will be 25 years since the original season of The Real World. What better time to pull the plug? And it would explain why Johnny pulled his move . . . if he split the money and MTV cancelled the show, he'd have six months worth of money before he'd be put out on the streets. Speaking of the dough . . . a split of $275K would still have been the biggest payout in Challenge, right? And to think I got mad over Eric Fucking Nies getting $60,000. Johnny is a greedy motherfucker.