ANTM 2.0

ANTM, just when I thought I never have to watch you ever again, you finally bring in GUYS to compete with the ladies. Oh you so cruel. 

Not that I mind that erm, "twist" in the competition personally. I mean, they probably should've played that card a cycle or two ago. I'm kinda hoping the old ice cream man that Tyra found makes it further than it's edited to look. 

I thought the makeover was going to be dramafree dull until they brought in the waxer for the manscaping. Watching those guys wince from having their legs waxed was a funny sight to behold. 

I'm not sure having Tyra insert herself even more this cycle, being there doing makeup for them on the weekly shoots on top of the picking, judging, mentoring and... I forgot something. I know I'm missing something. I know it's her TV baby and all, but really... this is reality competition helicopter parenting, as far as I'm concerned.

As long they keep the ridonk out (I never want to see, hear or have to type "Pot Ledom" EVER AGAIN), I'm in for this cycle.

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Random thoughts - Project Runway Season 12

Season 12 of Project Runway starts this week - is anyone still watching?

• Puppies falling from the sky?! Is that guy dumb or what?
• Guy who won the week's unconventional material challenge reminds me of Kiefer Sutherland - if he was a bearded ginger :P
• There's something a little wrong with the Russian dude. Okay, him and the guy from Wisconsin. 
• Guy from Wisconsin needs to just get off the TV screen already.
• Sustainability? Really?
• I feel bad for the guy's poor model - no shoes, hair or makeup. Don't blame her for crying.
• Either the judges closed one eye/did not notice about the vagina flash on the runway, or anything they said about it got cut out. I say it's the latter.
• No complaints about the new rules they've implemented this season. 
• I like how Tim is more involved besides mentoring - he now gets a front row seat to the runway shows instead of being (I imagine) backstage. How can you hate on the Tim Gunn Save? Really?! 

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King & Maxwell

When they announced the show King & Maxwell last year, which is a TV adaptation of David Baldacci's King & Maxwell series of books, which are about two former Secret Service agents turned PIs, I wasn't against it or anything. What raised my eyebrow was Jon Tenney being Sean King. If you're a fan of The Closer and Major Crimes, you know that he plays FBI agent/Brenda's husband Fritz Howard. Him playing another character on a different show on the same network was going to take some getting used to.

I personally didn't know about the books and I don't think I want to go delve into the source material now. It's created by current NCIS: LA showrunner and former producer of NCIS, Shane Brennan.

Having already seen the pilot, my first impression so far that it's a cross between Warehouse 13 and Moonlighting. So while I see why people say it's like Bones and Castle, but that's not quite how I see it; they're not strictly about PIs - they're with cops and federal agents.

The pilot is not bad, but it's not mind blowingly great. What I did like was the proper-length animated opening sequence tells the individual story of how they got to be PIs, but not so much how they met since they weren't in the Service at the same time. But I'm hoping it'll get better with time. I also read that Rebecca Romijn's husband Jerry O' Connell would be making an appearance on the show later.

What is anyone else's thoughts on the show (if you've seen the pilot)?

Leno, Fallon and Meyers, NBC Late Night

Finally got round to caring about the NBC late night shuffle: apparently Leno's quitting The Tonight Show (for good this time?), with Fallon taking over, which might mean that the show would go to New York so Fallon and his crew don't have to move across the country and SNL's Seth Meyers is taking over Late Night. All that happening next February. I think I got it straight, yes?

I haven't been watching The Tonight Show all that much ever since Late Night took over on CNBC on weekends. But whenever I do get to watch episodes on TV, I only watch for some of the easier to digest segments like Thank You Notes and the monologue. I really don't care for the audience participation made up game shows which quite frankly, make little sense to me. I think regular viewing of The Late Late Show has spoilt me rotten for other shows.

Seth Meyers holds up the Weekend Update desk alright (but I find the guests they bring on annoying), but the Late Night desk? I don't know. We'll just have to wait and see.

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Thoughts on the Hannibal pilot

• Hugh Dancy is attending the Hugh Laurie school of five o' clock shadow and pretty convincing American accent. 
• It may be violent and gory but definitely not as gross as some of the corpses on Bones... you know what I'm talking about.
• Mads Mikkelsen gets to keep his European accent as Dr Lecter. How convenient. 
• I hope that's animal lung he's chopping up, but it's a little too huge...?
• I wonder if the sausage was animal or human... noticed that he didn't touch the sausage, haha.
• Filmed in Ontario? Oh man... I thought the weather was a little too sunny for Minnesota :P I keed, I keed!
• Season preview seemed interesting - Eddie Izzard! Gillian Anderson (with long hair)! Holy cow!

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Not offended by The Jeselnik Offensive

Saw the first few episodes of The Jeselnik Offensive, and well... there's a reason why it's The Jeselnik OFFENSIVE, because nothing seems to be off limits to the guy. AIDS, cancer, necrophilia... the list of "oh-oh!" topics are at least a mile long and he's touched on most of them. All because of that freedom of speech thing. It must be great to be American :P

The show's format is still okay, I guess, but to me, running a little similar to Brand X with Russell Brand and Kathy Griffin's show, both of those supposedly "live". But that's for another time.

I've seen and heard other things over the years that offended me more than anything that's ever been said on the show, so I still find it pretty entertaining. Jeselnik saying those things himself is one thing, but having other comedians come on the show (as part of the "panel"; kinda wish he stop saying the word "panel" so much :P) and say stuff the rest of us are thinking? Wow.

So if you're easily offended... don't watch this. Find something else to watch. The title of the show is self-explanatory.

Fashion Star is back!

Fashion Star is back on NBC with some tweaks, namely the host swap out (from Elle Macpherson to Louise Roe), Express replacing H&M as one of the retail buyers and also the format (designers handpicked by the mentors to be in their "teams", yada yada). Not to mention the way bigger and posher runway - they got money now...

I've only ever seen Louise Roe from her guest stints on Fashion Police, but I think she'll be fine.

I personally am not familiar with Express, but it's similar (enough?) to H&M, yes? Can't even access the site right now - either it's overloaded or it got hacked :P

I forgot how much fun watching this show is; mostly because the clothes that come down this runway is meant to be accessible to the hoi polloi and trying to be avant garde at the same time. It's too bad I watch alone or else I'd make a drinking game out of whether any of them get bought (at all), or by whom. 

I've come to realise that it's not hard to tell which items might appeal to which store (which might be what the designers intended, maybe...?) - Saks tend to go with the expensive-looking items, Express the accessible ones and Macy's... a toss up between the two poles.

Because I'm such a sucker, I'll keep tuning in.

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The Face on Oxygen

This is based on me having seen the first two proper episodes of The Face. Don't ask me how since I don't get the Oxygen network.

Heard about The Face awhile ago on Fashion Police, and it's finally started on the Oxygen channel.

I appreciate that they didn't have whole episodes dedicated to the audition process - instead it was a quick cut of who the coaches (Naomi Campbell, Coco Rocha and Karolina Kurkova) picked to be on their teams. I didn't know that anyone on the planet can apply, which is a refreshing change. Neither did I know that Nigel Barker would be hosting this show as his post-ANTM gig. Good on him - haven't seen a decent male host a reality competition show in a while... okay, besides Colby Donaldson on Top Shot.

The format is (fortunately) is not too similar to shows of its ilk: the individual Test Shot challenges are conducted by one of the three coaches in their respective "specialties" (Coco's posing lesson; Naomi's styling class). At least the team challenges are actual shoots for actual brands.

I don't know how objective the supermodel coaches are gonna be on this show because they seem to be taking it personally when they have to send one of their own to be eliminated by the winning coach of the week's team challenges. Naomi keeping the less experienced contestant over the more experienced one (who's one of Karolina's team members) just seem like she's getting her revenge after having one of hers cut by Karolina in the previous episode. 

Luckily it's a limited engagement (8 episodes long), so it won't be so drawn out or all crazy like on ANTM.

Random thoughts:

• It's so weird to hear the phrase "Team Coco" when it's got nothing to do with Conan O' Brien :D Also, she's only 24 and has been modelling for 10 years? Oy vey :P
• Ulta Beauty? Really? I've probably come across the name in passing, but really?! They got to start someplace, I suppose...
• Margaux? Really? Huh...

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The Taste - Foodie version of The Voice?

A while ago, we all only know that Bourdain and Nigella were involved in some cooking competition show for ABC. It finally made its appearance, and it's called The Taste. Top Chef alum Brian Malarkey and Top Chef Masters veteran Ludo Lefebvre were announced later to round out the judging/mentor panel. 

Reading about the format, it reminded me of The Voice, but with food. I admit I don't watch The Voice, but I heard about how the auditions go.

Watching the audition stage, I found that it's interesting quite a number of professional chefs are getting passed over the home cooks for each mentor's kitchens. Not to mention the vegan/vegetarian cooks that try to slip the judges non-meat product unto the spoon, haha :D 

Am I the only one that thinks it a little weird that everyone else except (Brian) Malarkey go by first names? It's probably just me.

After watching the auditions, I don't quite understand how the judges "messed up" and didn't pick someone for their kitchen whose food they liked. What the...?! Maybe they had to vote so quickly, that's why they "screwed up" like that? I don't know...  Interesting that Bourdain picked the pretty ladies for his kitchen/team, but that's just a random observation. At least they have their 4 person teams and the competition begins!

Sucker that I am for food and cooking shows, I'll keep watching to see how the competition part plays out.

PS. Trust Bourdain to come up with these gems: "vomit in terror", "chute of terror".

Thoughts on...Asia's Next Top Model

This is after attempting to catch first airings (not sure who would bother uploading these on YouTube okay, you can find full episodes on the official YouTube channel...) of the nine episodes aired (as of this week)... I definitely missed a few, especially the makeover part, which I enjoy a little too much because it's fun to see some people's bad reactions to getting their hair cut short.

• There's a good mix of contestants - not too many people from the same places from the same countries, etc. Considering how many countries in this part of the world does not have its own Top Model show, that is.
• Can't help but snigger at some of these contestants' names, but I give Bei Si props for not picking her own English name (if her parents already hadn't) to go by in the competition.
• The blatant sponsor placement was a bit atrocious, but an evil necessity.
• Despite it being shot in Singapore, the Malaysian in me was gleeful that the Singaporean got booted first.
• There's a whole lot of fainting and panic attacks going on :P
• After watching America's Next Top Model judging go cray cray in recent cycles, it took some getting used to watching this panel really take things seriously.
• I think the producers' idea of "must also understand and speak English" is a lot looser than my own interpretation.
• To all the people who complained about how the half-white people are still in the competition - about half the eliminated contestants don't exactly fulfill the previous point.

Team Edition Project Runway

At a production meeting...

Producer 1: Season 11, and we're still on the air! Whoda thunk?

Producer 2: I know, right? So what's the gimmick for this one?

Producer 1: Viewers LOVE watching the contestants suffer - so instead of team challenges every few episodes, why not have them EVERY SINGLE EPISODE! The numbers would be through the roof!

Producer 2: Genius! That's settled... let's go for lunch!

[Disclaimer: That was just really fictionalized BS as to how they might have conjured up with the team challenge-only season of Project Runway. Please don't sue me - it was meant to be tongue-in-cheek.]

Just as PR fans are still reeling from the news of Kors' departure (but excited to see what Zac Posen will do - that's just me personally), the PR blog on Lifetime announced (which I found out via Tim Gunn on his official Facebook page) that Season 11 will be all team challenges. And I thought it was just a rumour :P

This move will definitely bring out the human drama, but will the numbers be any better? Also, would the designers be in The Fashion Show-esque "fashion houses" all season long, or would they be drawing buttons out of the velvet bag every elimination challenge?

Which begs the question - why don't they draw scissors out of a box like how they draw knives on Top Chef? LOL. I guess oversized buttons out of the velvet bag is cheaper and safer all around :P

Guess the only way to find out is to watch :P

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Kors out, Posen in?

Just as we're getting into the swing of the current season of Project Runway: All Stars, news broke out that Michael Kors will be stepping down as full time (or permanent) Project Runway judge due to "scheduling issues" (I wonder if it's code for anything, or he just wants more time to travel around to inspect/attend store openings overseas...or does he know something the rest of us doesn't?). All the other headlines you read about it online make it sound like he got fired, and not that he just doesn't have time to do the show. Besides, he's supposed to be back for the next season finale, so he won't stay away for good.

His snarky insights will be missed (some), but I know I won't miss seeing the Oompa Loopa skin tone on there anytime soon.

I can't wait to see what Zac Posen brings to that erm, table next season. 

PS. I read that next season is gonna be mostly team challenges? If that's true, I would hate to be a contestant on THAT season.

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Thoughts On: Next Iron Chef: Redemption

Finally sat through an entire season of Next Iron Chef Redemption; I just finished the finale and I'm glad Guarnaschelli won. I did have my concerns about Iron Chef Zakarian being on the judging panel this past season because she is usually one of his sous chefs whenever he gets called to battle. But he seems pretty objective, for all intents and purposes.

Only bothered to watch this season to see which of the former Next Iron Chef rejects were coming back. At least Spike wasn't the first booted this time round and Marcel made it to the final four, but I seriously doubt that Food Network would let Top Chef alum be Iron Chefs. Prove me wrong, Food Network.

She's only like the second female Iron Chef ever. I hope to see her first battle soon.

If there's ever a next season, who's going to compete? You would think they ran out of people already... I'm ready to be surprised.

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Bye, Dirty Jobs

Got the shock of my life going through the Twitter feed (@brieftvrants) when I saw a Tweet that Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs is cancelled after eight seasons. Mike Rowe says so himself here on the Huffington Post.

First response: WTF.

Second response (after some thought): Well, I think they've exhausted every dirty job to be had in the continental United States. It might be a little more interesting if it went global, but that'll make the show really expensive to make, which might give Discovery cause to cancel for that reason.

I wonder how much online backlash will there be if the same fate happened to Mythbusters. Of epic proportions, I imagine.

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CBS's Elementary - Liked it enough

I think I remembered being open to the idea of the American version of Sherlock Holmes.... sort of. Well okay, I had my concerns. Checked out the pilot and I don't hate it. While probably not as visually stimulating as Sherlock, but you have to bear in mind that it takes over a year for Cumberbatch and co to shoot three 90-minute episodes, and with both Cumberbatch and Freeman in the Hobbit movie trilogy and doing other projects, who the heck knows when the next series will happen.

One of my main concerns was that this Holmes would be American. So I was glad that Jonny Lee Miller finally gets to speak in his own English accent (or some version of it) after Eli Stone and that other show he was in that I can't remember now. Can't wait to see who his father is, and to see how long this goes. Aidan Quinn playing another cop so soon after failed American Prime Suspect was a bit of a *facepalm* moment.

I'll keep watching. Will you?

Thoughts while watching the Emmys...

• Opening sketch with Jimmy Kimmel getting hit by the female nominees in the bathroom to undo the botox "damage" was a bit funny. Even with Ellen offering him her pants to wear. Not sure why Lena Dunham was eating cake in the nude in the same bit, but whatevs.
• Barely heard the first few minutes of Kimmel's monologue. I don't know if it's them or the video I'm watching it from.
• Isn't there usually some guy who helps the ladies up the stairs, or am I confusing it with some other awards show...?
• I was hoping Louis CK win more Emmys than he did. That's just me.
• Most of the guys in Modern Family against one of the New Girl guys? WTF.
• The acceptance speech switch between Poehler and Louis Dreyfus? No wonder she got played off :P
• Not surprised The Amazing Race won.
• I laughed when Gervais went, "Not again.." when The Daily Show won for the kazillionth time at this point. Laughed even harder when Stewart so red-faced after being wrestled on the aisles by Fallon and Colbert.
• It's so sad that the 10 episode long show, Missing is considered a "miniseries, movie or dramatic special" in the Emmys. But at least it got nominated.
• I appreciated the little bits of injected humour into the proceedings.
• Give Ellen props for actually coming out sans pants. 
• I give Costner props for always getting away with the exposed chest look :P

ANTM: College Edition

Is anyone watching this college cycle of ANTM? I'm watching just to see how it'll turn out. 

Having this one be the college cycle reminds me of when they were searching models for the Victoria's Secret  Pink sub-brand comes to mind... you know, the one targeted at college-going women? It's too soon to tell how things will go this cycle, but having the public opinion count in the judging (through proxy Bryanboy) is certainly ONE way to revive this old hag of a show. Having young British male supermodel Rob Evans (conveniently also around the contestants' age) on the judging panel is another.

There's TWO things I personally look forward to:  watching the girls react to the makeover and the nude photoshoot - someone always says no and/or cries about it. Even the makeover part of the season is pretty low-key: now the contestants get to choose whether they want the makeover or not, but before they find out what it is. So shrewd, these producers. Also, so anticlimactic. Besides one breakdown, everyone else was happy with their makeovers. You would think that these girls would KNOW by now about the makeover stage of the season. Sigh.

I know I'm behind the times when it comes to YouTube celebs, but I didn't know the hairy fat guy is one of them. 

I'm such a sucker for trainwreck-y shows.

Thoughts While Watching The London 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony

Finally got around to watch the Olympics closing ceremony. Didn't watch it live, so I had to stream the show on YouTube on the official Olympics channel. Yes it's there, it might not be available to all countries, I think.

• I can't imagine having to sing (or lip sync) on top of a fast moving vehicle that's going around the stadium, so I give some of these people props. Speaking of which, the show would be way longer if some of the acts weren't driven to the middle of the stadium by motorised means. I was excited when some of them were driven there by the famous London black cabs.
• Love the STOMP! cast, and the use of the song, A Day in the Life.
• The athletes marching back into the stadium was a little long, but what are you gonna do about it.
• Even the British born models couldn't walk fast enough from their transport at the edge of the stadium to the middle and they walk for a living.
• I Am the Walrus isn't a sing-songy song, so one can argue that Russell Brand did an okay job miming it along with bond (the all female string quartet, not 007).
• Fat Boy Slim:  the octopus he came out on was left me wondering what was the point of it. At least he played his classic tunes: Right Here, Right Now and The Rockafeller Skank.
• At least Taio Cruz, Tinie Tempah and Jessie J got to do their songs and then some Bee Gees. Just because Americans don't know who they are, doesn't mean the rest of the planet doesn't.
• Was half expecting Annie Lennox to sing Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These). One can always hope.
• The Spice Girls didn't exactly sing entire songs in their set. They should definitely only be together on special occasions :P
• I don't think I've never seen Liam Gallagher perform sans eyewear before... his siderburns are nothing compared to Supergrass guys. Yes, the estranged brother wrote the song, but he was the vocals on this, so..
• I wonder how many people under 25 know who Fatboy Slim, the Spice Girls or Oasis are...
• Eric Idle confused by the bhangra dancers while singing Always Look on The Bright Side of Life was hilarious.
• I like how they didn't really pause in between acts because the show's pretty long and pausing to introduce the different acts would take up too much time.
• Muse: Love Matt Bellamy's see through and metallic looking piano. Did the bassist lose weight? Love the pyro work during the Olympic song.
• I only just noticed that Jessie J only has one sleeve and one leg of her nude-coloured unitard.. O_o But I don't exactly hate her for singing We Will Rock You with the elderly members of Queen - the song's been covered to death over the years, why not the London Olympics?
• Just as I thought I'd missed Alessandra Ambrosio, there she was. Why her, and not any of the other Brazilians like Gisele or Adriana? Just wondering...
• Pele? Whoda thunk?
• I thought Robbie had rejoined Take That? Why is it just four of them? Was that song during the Robbie-less years?
• Is the cauldron ever gonna burn out? Oh, there is goes. Wouldn't touch them petals right away..
• As far as some people are concerned, Baba O' Riley will always be known as the CSI: NY theme song.

This was an Anglophile's wet dream come true. 

End of The Closer, Start of Major Crimes {Spoiler!}

If you've not seen the very long awaited series finale of The Closer and the beginning of Major Crimes, then I suggest you go do that and then come back. I also suggest watching Major Crimes, at least this one time.

If you're a long time viewer of The Closer, you would remember that,

a) It's the last episode, and

b) It would be about finally getting that scumbag rapist lawyer Stroh.

I thought the episode was just okay. Brenda identifying Stroh by his walk from behind? It could've been Christian Bale for all anyone cared. You knew when she went nuts on Stroh at the station it wasn't just because of he said about her mother - you know it was because she needed DNA samples and breaking his nose would do it. What I didn't expect was the nose bleed to be all over her. I know (not first hand) that nose bleeds are messy, but really...?!

I didn't even shed a tear even when Brenda did as she was saying goodbye to the guys in the last five minutes. Perhaps it's just that we've known the news that Kyra Sedgwick is calling it quits so long ago, we've been bracing for landing ever since. I was more shocked seeing Brenda shoot Stroh through her handbag (oh no, they didn't!) than anything. But it was sweet (literally) when the guys gave her a replacement bag all filled with candy. I wonder how many of those bags do they still have around in the wardrobe department.

At least she didn't die or anything bad happened to her - as far as we (the audience) know, now she works at the DA's office with Gabriel. Even the last shot of her in the elevator eating the Ring Ding (or Ding Dongs?)? I found it an apt ending. At least she could guest star in Major Crimes down the road... and she left better dressed than she did coming in. Like, really.

Of course with Major Crimes right after that, at least some loose threads from the previous hour were addressed, like the Rusty angle. Remind me again why can't Brenda and Fritz take him in? Oh yeah, because Rusty had been attacked at Brenda's place. Whoops, forgot that.

You've got to feel a little bad for Provenza, having control of the division for only a week before he got supplanted by another woman he doesn't like right away (Raydor) as his boss. As anyone would've called it, it just reminded me of The Closer's pilot episode way back when. Even down to the one black person that liked the new boss right away - anyone remembered that? Uh huh. Well okay, it's practically The Closer, except in name :P

My only laugh out loud moments was Raydor finding Brenda's candy drawer and Fritz with the brown paper bag clearing it out at the end of the case, haha.

This new plea bargain angle would take some getting used to. I was okay with the episode, but not in love with it. But sucker me will keep watching to see how it goes.

Asia's Next Top Model

Until I read on the social media that Tyra Banks is (was?) in Singapore to promote Asia's Next Top Model, I honestly didn't know that it was an idea, let alone it actually happening.

I don't follow the other Top Model shows (because there are too many on my local pay TV subscription as it is), but this I would give a go only because the mothership has already jumped the shark in terms of how ridiculous it's gotten in recent cycles.

I guess calling it South East Asia's Next Top Model is too long and awkward to say really quickly. I don't know which countries are eligible to apply, but I would have to guess whichever South East Asian countries that don't already have their own Top Model show...

From the website...

Hosted by Nadya Hutagalung, the show charts the transformation of aspiring models into successful top models. With fashion director Daniel Boey, fashion photographer Todd Anthony Tyler and model mentor Joey Mead King guiding and mentoring the top model hopefuls, these young women will see themselves competing in a highly-accelerated modelling boot camp to top model fame.

One of the things I'm glad to see was that "You must also understand and speak good English" requirement. Which rules out Ris Low, I guess....LOL.