'Model' Talk, 'Earl' of the Rings and Skating Through 'Trace!' Plus NBC Renewals and ABC's Sweeps

Most fans of America's Next Top Model were shocked to see Nnenna eliminated during this week's episode. The 24-year old chemist from Houston, Texas started off the competition very strong, but seemed to fall off in her last few weeks. Troubles with her boyfriend, John, back home seemed to occupy most of her free time, but Nnenna insists that she is fully responsible for her elimination. "I don't want to blame the situation on my boyfriend," she told bloggers last night during a teleconference. "I think it was a combination of different issues." During the show, it seemed like Nnenna was always on the phone arguing with her boyfriend, who was missing her, but she says that what you saw wasn't necessarily what happened. "I used the phone two days. Every episode they would play a little bit of the same argument on the phone," she explains. Things seemed especially bad between Nnenna and John when he was the surprise visitor for a challenge reward. Nnenna seemed disappointed, but she says that things got better between the two as John's visit came to a close. "We really talked and I cooked for him and we made up."

Nnenna (Left, waiting for her mermaid shoot. Photo courtesy UPN) also received a lot of heat from viewers for her friendship with fellow contestant Jade. She says that the viewers don't get to see the whole picture. "The audience just sees bits and pieces of Jade, the negatives," she explains. "Human beings have negatives about them and positives." One issue that she would like to clear the air about is what happened when Miss J taught the girls how to walk the runway with accessories. In the show, it appeared that Nnenna laughed at Brooke when she kept messing up, but Nnenna says that she was laughing at the faces that Miss J was making during the lesson. "I laugh very easily. I'm easily amused. My nickname, even at work, is 'Smiley' because I'm always smiling," she explains. Despite the misconceptions, Nnenna insists that she learned a lot from her Top Model experience, and she's moving to New York next month to pursue her modeling dreams. But before she goes, she says that she'll be working on her expressions so she can improve her photo shoots. "I'm going to spend a lot of time in front of the mirror to work on my facial expressions," she says. As far as who she thinks will win the competition, Nnenna says that she was impressed with all 13 of the girls. "Every girl at that point had something special about them that I admired," she says sincerely. "I am definitely supporting each and every one of the [remaining] girls. They're all great girls." America's Next Top Model airs Wednesday nights on UPN. The final 6 contestants pose for a group photo while preparing for their mermaid shoot in Thailand (photo courtesy UPN)

Instead of talking about last night's mediocre -at -best episode of CSI, I thought I'd switch it up and discuss the wonderful episode of My Name is Earl that aired last night. Loved, loved, loved how they did a subtle parody of Lord of the Rings, but instead of the ring that puts a spell on them, it was a stolen police badge. Seriously, how funny was the scene where they were all turning against each other and Earl tells us (through narration) that they realized that they had to get rid of the badge before it destroyed them all? I was laughing so hard. What made this episode even better was the fact that it even had its own "My Precious" guy (as you can tell, I'm not a huge LOTR fan, so I have no idea what the characters names are). Rodney looked exactly like that little computer-generated ring thief, and even slinked around just like him. He was always trying to get his hands on that stolen police badge. I have to say, though, after watching this episode, I will not be storing any valuables in my shoes while I bowl!


I'm not sure how I feel about last night's Without a Trace. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. I guess it just falls somewhere in between love and hate. I would have thought the Jack story line would have driven me crazy, but it wasn't THAT bad. I mean, I'm getting a little tired of his relationship with Anne, but I'm not burned out yet. I'm hoping they keep it at a minimum the rest of the season so that I don't reach that point (like I did with last season's divorce story line). It was nice to see Kate again. I've been thinking that it's a little weird that Jack seems to NEVER see his girls. I know they live in Chicago, but still. The case was just OK for me. It kind of went along at a steady pace, but then it picked up at the end. I didn't really feel the family's pain over losing their son to suicide until Sam found Kelly up at that pond where she learned to skate. Seeing the effect it had on her was emotional. One thing I am getting tired of on this show is the consistent MO it has followed lately. And since I am no longer making requests for American Idol, I'm moving on to this show and we'll just have to see how that pans out (Yes, I know that the series has more than likely wrapped for the season, but these requests hold true for next season as well). Is there anyway we can have a case where the victim doesn't voluntarily leave? I mean, it's pretty anticlimactic when we learn that the person was just visiting her sister because of some bad news she received or when we learn that a figure skater was simply meeting with a prospective new coach. And what is up with these victims returning and no one notifying the FBI? This happened last night and with the pregnant AIDS victim, and it's driving me crazy. If they're actually missing, then they need to be missing. I need to feel like these people are in danger. OK, so those are my requests for now, and hopefully, we'll start getting some better cases soon.

About Last Night...CBS dominated the first night of sweeps, winning each of the three hours. At 8, Survivor took the prize, followed by NBC's Will & Grace and My Name is Earl (r) and ABC's American Inventor special. At 9, CSI landed in first, followed by NBC's My Name is Earl and The Office and ABC's American Inventor. The final hour of the night went to Without a Trace, followed by NBC's ER and ABC's Commander in Chief. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - ABC airs the 33rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards with hosts Kelly Monaco and Tom Bergeron. Over on CBS, it's part one of the 2-part season finale of Ghost Whisperer. In it, Melinda must help the victims of a airline crash cross over.

@9 p.m. - During a murder trial Annabeth discovers that the victim, who was strangled the night before her wedding to another man, was hiding a secret from her friends and family which may have led to her murder on CBS' Close to Home. Over on NBC, Ed and Jillian set off on a retreat that proves to be anything but peaceful on Las Vegas.

@10 p.m. - The ADAs have a tough time prosecuting a case where the teenager died playing the "choking game" on NBC's Conviction. Over on CBS, Charlie gets caught in the crossfire when an assailant storms the FBI office with a gun on Numb3rs.

SUNDAY EDITION
@8 p.m. - Lilly and the team tackle a 1945 case involving an ambitious reporter recently demoted to writing trivial advice columns after a heady period covering Eleanor Roosevelt on CBS' Cold Case. Over on NBC, Santos is wrapped up in choosing his new Vice President while Helen is overwhelmed by the issues facing the new First Family on The West Wing.

@9 p.m. - Baby Lily's father shows up on ABC's Desperate Housewives. Over on NBC, Detectives Goren and Eames investigate when the body of a former school chancellor is fished out of the Hudson River on Law & Order: CI.

@10 p.m. - Izzie grills George about the personal details of his life, Addison takes Alex to task about a sensitive case, and Burke feels the pressure when he treats his musical hero, on ABC's Grey’s Anatomy. Over on NBC, Macy tries to deliver some personal effects of a deceased elderly man to his family and finds a young boy being held captive on Crossing Jordan.



QUICK CUTS

*NBC is renewing all three Law & Order series, Crossing Jordan, Medium and Las Vegas for another season. The new pick ups join the already renewed My Name is Earl and The Office. No word yet on whether Jordan and Criminal Intent, which both air on Sunday nights, will be held until midseason to accommodate NBC's new Sunday night NFL programming. We'll find out what other NBC shows make the cut when the network announces its fall schedule next month.

*And finally, ABC is releasing its plans for May sweeps. Look for the movie Seabiscuit (May 6th), the 2-part season finale of Grey's Anatomy (May 14th and 15th), the 2-hour season finale of Boston Legal (May 16th), the first season finales of Invasion (May 17th) and Commander in Chief(May 18th), the 2-hour season finale of Desperate Housewives (May 21st), the 2-hour series finale of Alias (May 22nd), the premiere of Stephen King's Desperation and the 2-hour season finale of Lost (May 24th). For more on all of these events and more (including spoilers), click on over to The Futon Critic.

That's all for today. Be sure to tune in Monday for thoughts on Cold Case and Desperate Housewives. Plus all the latest television news! And be sure to check back here later today for another exciting edition of Friday Fun where you'll get the inside scoop on your favorite TV stars' summer projects! Stay Tuned...

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