Allison Keeps it All in the Family

I know I've been begging Medium to reinstate Devalos and pair him back up with Allison and Scanlon, but giving Van Dyke a terminal diagnosis was not exactly what I had in mind. I spent this entire season loathing the man, but this week, I felt terrible for him, his wife and his children. That scene at the end with Allison was so heart wrenching. The man wanted nothing more than to ease his family's suffering. He wanted it so badly he was trying to find out how he can find Allison after he passes. All of this sadness put a huge damper on my "Yes! Devalos is back and he re-hired Allison" celebration, so I guess I'll have to wait until next season for it to commence.

I was, however, able to kick off the "Yes! Joe got a quarter of a million dollars, a new job that has him working on his quarter million dollar idea, and he gets to stay in Phoenix" celebration. I have to hand it to Meghan Doyle for pulling off quite the con savvy brokering. She had me fooled right along with Joe and Allison. Although, I would have wanted a lawyer to look over that paperwork she had drawn up to make sure it was on the up and up. Little good that would have done me!

This week's case still has me scratching my head. So, Kelly married her brother then killed herself and framed her husband to make it look like he killed her and staged it to look like a suicide all in an attempt to get back at her father? For serious?! Umm, shouldn't she have been focusing on getting back at her mother for killing her baby brother??!! Or better yet, reconsidered the whole "I'm going to kill myself -- that'll show you" routine because, quite frankly Kelly, you really only hurt yourself in the end. Maybe Kelly was harboring the same breed of crazy as her mother and that explains all of this insanity. Either way, Medium got me again. And I can't complain about that.

Photos courtesy nbc.com. If you missed last night's outing ("Drowned World"), check it out for free at Hulu.com.

Allison's Shattered Dreams

I know I've lamented about the evils of network promos. They either reveal too much or completely mislead you to believe the episode is about something its not and/or includes something that, when viewed, is nothing like how it seemed in the promo. Oh, I HATE them. Scratch that, I LOATHE them!! I swear, they hurt shows more than they help. Such was the case with this week's Medium outing. If you saw one of the ubiquitous ads, then you knew that guest star Miguel Ferrer was playing a double role as twins. That's all well and good except for the fact that we weren't supposed to know about the twins!! Nice one, NBC. Ruin the surprise. Luckily, this is Medium, so we were in for more than one shocker. Still, it isn't right.

Apparently, Teddy Carmichael died after a run-in with some dangerous types. But, he lived on through his brain-damaged brother. His spirit was able to control his brother's body and enact revenge on those responsible for his death. Secretly, I kinda wished this could really happen because there are far too many senseless murders in the world. Realistically, it's probably a no-go, but it made for an interesting episode. Poor Allison was having dreams that were conflicting with what Scanlon was telling her and she had me scratching my head right along with her.

Joe, Joe, Joe -- when are you going to catch a break? Here I was thinking that this new business venture, although sketchy, would turn out the way he wanted, but then his controlling partner started her own little version of Disclosure. Obviously, he did the right thing, but the right thing isn't always the easiest. It just sucks that Meghan Doyle has the controlling interest in his idea. Somehow I knew that was going to come back and bite him. Looks like it's back to the unemployment line for the DuBoises.

Photos courtesy nbc.com. If you missed last night's outing ("Being Joey Carmichael"), check it out for free at Hulu.com.

Allison Goes For a Ride

I'm not psychic, but I'm pretty sure if I had a dream where my car exploded right when I turned the key -- I wouldn't be starting up my car any time soon. So, I completely understand why Allison saw it necessary to grab her kids and stand across the street when Joe insisted on starting it up. Of course, I'm also pretty sure that I wouldn't allow my husband to turn the key until I had a certified mechanic check things out. But Allison's car didn't explode because it was dead. Don't you just hate opposite dreams??!! I mean, I'd rather the opposite be the better outcome, but there's no need to get all worked up when it's only a fried electric system. All of this led to Joe buying Allison a used-new car that came with something not listed on the Carfax report -- a murder. First, it looked like a carjacking gone terribly wrong, but things soon took a turn for the bizarre (as they often do for Allison). Her car's navigation system had a mind of its own and navigated her to the victim's house where Allison learned that the woman's husband concocted an elaborate system to trigger a gun to shoot and kill his wife. Yikes! Now, I'm going to be totally freaked out about those hanging tennis balls in people's garages and don't even get me started on the navigation system!

Meanwhile, Joe was logging some long hours at work waiting for some news about his patent to come down. Everyone expects Joe to spend long hours when he's trying to launch a business and get his idea marketed, but once again we have an Allison dream throwing a kink in the system. She dreams that Joe gets the good news about the patent from his very attractive partner and then things turn notso-professional between them. When Joe calls her just as he did in her dream, she heads down to his office, but Joe is alone. This must have been another opposite dream, right? Not so much. The next night, things begin to go down just as Allison dreamed, but the episode ends with another dreaded "To Be Continued...!" For the record, I don't think we need to worry because Joe isn't the cheating type. For Allison's sake, let's hope I'm right.

Photos courtesy nbc.com. If you missed last night's outing ("Car Trouble"), check it out for free at Hulu.com.

Allison Has the Cure

Most of the time, I consider Allison's gift to be more curse than blessing. But when Scanlon asked her to shut her eyes because he was about to get out of bed and he wasn't wearing any clothes, I was definitely leaning more towards blessing. Of course, if I were actually in Allison's shoes then I probably wouldn't feel the same considering her dreams were causing her to pry into her friends' bedroom. Talk about an awkward morning after! I imagine it's one thing to have visions about complete strangers and another to have them about people you know. It's made more difficult when those friends aren't completely onboard with what you're seeing. Ever since the whole Allison's- role- in- the- DA's- office- got- Devalos- fired thing, Scanlon has been less receptive to her dreams and much slower to act on them. This is disappointing for me because it basically means less Det. Hottie and when we do see him, he tends to be at odds with Allison. So, I was thrilled to see Allison call him on it this week. And, he did come around at the end after she realized that the husband and the other victims' family members plotted the murders before boarding the same flight at New York's JFK airport. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that we get an Allison/Scanlon/Devalos reunion asap.

Once it was revealed that other family members were involved in the string of pain medication poisonings, the story started to sound a little familiar. You see, one of the side effects of the 3-month writers strike was that I spent a lot of my free primetime hours watching my TV on DVD sets. These sets included the first two seasons of Bones, and one of the episodes from one of the seasons included a potential serial killer that wound up being a group of victims' family members who created a scheme where each of them killed another person's loved one for them. The crimes were similar because they were linked through this "murder club." We had a comparable case on this week's Medium. And yet, I still didn't have it figured out until Allison dreamed about the initial meeting at JFK. What's that expression again... fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Oh, who am I kidding? I'm always in fooled on Medium! That's what makes it so great. Well that and Joe's kickass scene at the optician's office.

Photos courtesy nbc.com. If you missed last night's outing ("A Cure for What Ails You"), check it out for free at Hulu.com.

A 'Medium' Sized Dilemma

Imagine if Allison did have someone on "the other side" who could help her out -- now, wouldn't that be intriguing? Of course, this someone would have be from the non-murderous breed (and yes, this does exclude vigilantes like our trigger happy FBI agent and my fave serial killing do-gooder Dexter). Like the aforementioned serial killer/vigilante from another network, our FBI agent in Phoenix was killing the people who got away with killing others. Obviously in principle, we all disagree with the murders. BUT in practice, that becomes a little more gray. If Allison's FBI ghost was right, then he spared more people from the heartache that the first three victims and their families went through (especially the prison nurse and her three children). It's a moral dilemma that I wouldn't want to be in the middle of, which brings up reason number 502 why I'm glad I'm not Allison.

Actually, I'm kinda glad I'm not Joe right now either. There is no way I could justify giving someone the controlling stake in my idea, and yet, how could he not when he's unemployed (and has been for some time) and trying to get financial backing when the pickings are slim? Of course he had to take the offer! It just sucks that his back was up against a wall and he might have just compromised his own invention. Bummer. Before I sign off on this episode, I'd like to once again commend the Medium writers for their extremely accurate portrayal of the DuBois children. I come from a family of three girls, and let me tell you, that breakfast table scene was ripped from my childhood! These scenes always give me a laugh.

Photos courtesy nbc.com

'Medium's' Sister Act

You guys know that any episode of Medium that features one Det. Scanlon in an extended role is a welcome outing here at PTR. Besides being tremendous eye candy, he sorta oozes sexiness. Apparently, women aren't the only ones picking up on it either. So, what happens when you put Det. Hottie in an elevator with a successful publisher, "an extra ticket to the Suns game," and an invitation to dinner and some hoops? A recipe for a rock-solid arrest. Scanlon is so hot, he's causing murderers to come forward without them even realizing what they just confessed to and to whom they did the confessing. That's some powerful sexy! As Scanlon was about to enter that elevator and the case was circling the bowl, I glanced up at the clock and I thought for a brief moment, "NOT ANOTHER 2-PARTER!!! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!!" Alas, we were spared from a third 2-parter in a row thanks to the world's most costly pick up line.


I'm not really sure why Allison was seeing her sister the Cougar author as the murderer when it was her publisher (other than to feature the fabulous Rosanna Arquette more prominently, which if this is the case, no complaints here. All of the Arquettes are quite fabulous, so this special 2-fer was several levels of awesome). Maybe it was just a case of the facts getting jumbled in her head or maybe the writers didn't want Rosanna (who, by the way, was the inspiration for one of the most fantastic 80s tunes EVER!! Toto's "Rosanna," as in "I bless the rains down in Africa" Toto) to be a killer. Of course, I spent most of the hour trying to distinguish features that hint toward Patricia and Rosanna being related (I finally decided they basically have the same eyes -- that's it), so I may have missed a thing or two here and there. In the end, I wasn't sure which was more awesome: Rosanna starring alongside her sister or the fact that the second victim was killed with a nail gun leading to an endless litany of "nailed" jokes. But I digress. Medium claims another victory sorta like Devalos will come election day after that kickass pre-emptive strike.

Photos courtesy nbc.com

'Medium' Justice

I can't even imagine the grief, frustration, and anger that one must feel when they learn that their child has been murdered and there's not a shred of solid evidence to out the b*stards away who did it. I can't even imagine the kind of grief that would lead one to take justice in her own hands and kill the smug, psychotic creep who stole her daughter away 10 years ago. And yet, I got a pretty good idea thanks to a top-notch performance from Angelica Houston. That ending scene with Cynthia and Allison was so poignant, disturbing and shocking that it left me with a feeling of emptiness. Did Joanna deserve what she got? Yes. Did Cynthia do what she thought was the right thing to do in order to give her daughter justice? Yes. Then why did everything feel so wrong at the end? Perhaps it's the two-wrongs-don't-make-a-right thing or our own moral barometers or even the thought that Cynthia will probably spend the rest of her life paying for murder while the real sociopath got off easy.

This episode demonstrated how Allison's dreams can only take us so far; show us only so much. They can't always give us the smoking gun that leads to the right people rotting in jail. And while they're a great crime-solving tool, they're not always going to lead to the result we want. That has to be a tough reality for Allison. As she told Joe, she feels responsible for Cynthia's grief, and this was before the bleeding body on the floor at the end. It's too bad they didn't have Philadelphia's finest on the Case -- Lil would have gotten the confession that Allison and Cynthia so desperately needed.

Yesterday, I commented on how gorgeous Lilly looked the other night on Cold Case, so I have to point out how great Allison looks this season. She looks FABULOUS!!

Photos courtesy nbc.com

Joe Has a Dream

I can't believe this was another 2-parter from Medium!! I was watching last night's episode on my DVR, so I was completely unaware of the time and then it just ended. Just like that! We see the "missing Joanna" laughing at Susie, admitting her role in the kidnapping scheme, and suddenly killing her with a sharp blow to the head and then Allison wakes up! She gets up and the credits role!! I couldn't believe it. I guess I should have paid more attention to all of the advance warning we received about this episode being a 2-parter, huh? And it isn't just the mystery that has me intrigued for Part 2. I'm curious to see how this Joe invention story line pans out. Obviously, his idea is brilliant. No doubt. But, if someone beats him to it, he's totally screwed and his kids don't get to go to college. I guess what I'm saying is, I see both sides. Gambling with your kids college fund = never a good idea. But, sitting at home collecting a measly unemployment check each week isn't either. If this continues much longer, they may have to dip into that fund anyway. At least with Joe's idea there's a decent chance that they'll get it back and then some. It's risky, though, either way.

I was really happy to see Hannah again (for some inexplicable reason, everyone from Everwood will always be known as their character from that show. Take Amy (Emily Van Camp), for instance, she's on Brothers & Sisters now, but whenever I catch a glimpse of her on there I immediately think, "Hey, there's Amy!" And for the record, I had no idea Sarah Drew was going to be on this show last night, so my selection of an Everwood clip as Video of the Week was a sheer coincidence. Or maybe I'm psychic like Allison). We saw her on Cold Case last season, and now as Cynthia's missing daughter. Her abduction was so freaky because it could happen to anyone. I was utterly baffled the entire hour, and it only seemed to increase as the story progressed. So, I was so excited to finally have a grip on the story (Joanna isn't a victim, she's an accomplice!) and then it was gone. You know, this show pulls the switcheroo so much that you'd think I'd see it coming, and yet I keep taking the cheese and getting shocked. Or perhaps, I'm just defining the word "Crazy" as Joe pointed out to his unemployment counselor last night, and I just keep expecting a different result. Either way, I'm happy that this show still manages to shock and surprise me since so few do anymore.

Photos courtesy nbc.com

Devalos Gets it Right

The DA sure bungled the case in this 2-part episode of Medium! And then he was publicly humiliated in the court room when Devalos revealed that the murder "victim" was alive and well and had been living in Barcelona since she and her partner faked her murder and framed her husband (so they could get her $7 million life insurance policy). Of course, both of them face a host of charges, including the murder of the real victim, and they won't be enjoying any of that $7 million either. So in the end, justice was served, but it was Manny who was serving it. Perhaps, the wheels have just been set into motion that will take the current DA out of office and replace him with our Manny! Scanlon is temporarily re-assigned, which means that he and Manny won't being going toe-to-toe anymore (thankfully). Now, we just have to get that DA out of office so Manny can get back to putting the bad guys away and Scanlon and Allison can complete the kickass bad-guy-putting-away tri-fecta.

I'm trying to decide whether or not I agree with Allison's decision to lie to her mother-in-law about her dream. The power of positive thinking and all aside, I just don't know if it was the right thing to do since Joe's mom firmly believes anything Allison tells her. What if she's wrong? On the positive side, at least the lie avoided that big fight I predicted last week between Joe and Allison.

A big PTR kudos to reader John for correctly predicting the mystery to this 2-part episode. In the comments to last week's post, he wrote:

My guess (and it is just a guess - I have seen no spoilers) is that the woman who was supposedly murdered actually murdered the hooker with the help of the dentist. He removed the teeth to make it impossible to identify the victim. She was framing her soon to be ex-husband at the same time.

Looks like he had it figured out before Allison!

Photos courtesy nbc.com.

'Medium' in the Middle

Interesting... they pitted Devalos against Det. Scanlon in this 2-part episode of Medium. On the one hand, I'm just glad to have the gang back together, but on the other, I'm having a hard time rooting against Manny (because, clearly, if you put Scanlon against him, I'm going to choose my Det. Hottie no matter how much I like Manny). I guess that was kinda the beauty about the end of last night's outing -- things were beginning to look like Devalos was right about his client and the gang was about to be on the same page. We're this close to getting our old Medium back and I couldn't be happier about these latest developments. Yes, they're only baby steps, but at least they're baby steps in the right direction.

You just know that Allison's dreams about the dentist with a it-takes-all-kinds fetish are somehow connected to this burned woman crime (and Ariel's dream). My favorite theory right now -- the dentist was the woman's first husband. Of course, I'm never very good with interpreting Allison's dreams (or my own for that matter), so we'll just have to wait until next week to find out how it all relates. And then there's Joe's mother. I knew something was up, but I wasn't quite expecting that something to be a possibly terminal illness. And Allison has to keep it from Joe! This has "HUGE explosive fight" written all over it!

Photos courtesy nbc.com

'Medium' Rare

Hannibal Lecter, party of one? How creepy was Allison's opening dream this week on Medium?? In fact, I'm pretty sure this one falls into the nightmare category. This episode felt more like a classic outing because we had Devalos back (not in his old DA role - yet), more Scanlon involvement, and dreams that Allison had to put together like scattered pieces of a puzzle in order to ascertain what happened in that POW camp and how it related to this most recent murder. It was a case of "things aren't always what they seem, and yet, they aren't that far off either." As in, cannibalism was alive and well, but not in the way Allison's first dream implied. So it seems, Mr. Lecter would not be invited to this dinner party.

The central question in the episode was whether or not the Senator should be held responsible for his role in the death of two men. The first one in the POW camp (as icky as it was) -- not so much. Those men were in unimaginable conditions and they were all going to starve to death. I can't condemn them for what they did to survive. The second one -- well, this one is a little trickier. Technically, he should be sitting in a jail cell next to his other POW buddy, but I'm not so sure that I disagree with what he said to Allison at the end. That man was doing nothing to honor the life and memory of his fallen comrade and to make it worse, he was exploiting those who were still suffering from the repercussions of what they did in that camp. It was just a yucky case all around and I ended the episode feeling bad for the doctor who honorably took the fall for the rest of his soldiers. In other words, I felt as confused and torn as Allison.

Photos courtesy nbc.com

'Medium'-For-Hire

If I were to make a famous Rory Gilmore "Pros and Cons List," then the fat paycheck that Allison received for her "medium-for-hire" gig with a slimy defense lawyer would top the Pros column. Of course, having to earn that paycheck by working for said slimy defense attorney would top the Cons column. And thus we have the fundamental dilemma this week on Medium. Do you work for the money or your conscious? Tough choice. I'm not so sure Allison will be so quick to choose money again. The fact that the real killer is walking the streets (and has a history of violence) did not sit well with her. And I can't say I blame her. I'm not so comfortable with the killer on the streets either, but I'm not broken up about the outcome.

An innocent man is in jail by his own choice. He confessed and took the wrap for his daughter knowing full well what he was doing. I didn't get why this bothered Allison so much. He was protecting his daughter. Not so fast you say? What about the small detail about him thinking his mentally handicapped daughter was responsible for his wife's death when, in reality, it was his other non-mentally handicapped daughter? And you have a point. A good one. This is where it gets a little sticky. Would he have done the same for her? Hard to say. Should he have been given the chance to decide for himself? Absolutely! There's no question that the guilty daughter is dangerous and should be in jail over her innocent father. But the man sacrificed for his child. Argh! All of this medium-for-hire stuff is making my head hurt. Bring back Devalos! Finally, how cool was that silent movie-style opening??!! Loved it!

Photos courtesy nbc.com

The Sound of the Silence

Silence is deafening, right? Well, it's certainly a major pain in the a$$ when you're a psychic trying to help an investigator locate a missing deaf girl. Laptops, notepads, hand/arm motions, failed attempts at sign language and of course, my personal favorite, the ol' speak louder and slower technique were all anybody could use to communicate with Allison. It was terrifying watching the kidnappers snatch the young girl because you knew that she had no warning. She didn't hear the window break like her cat, so she didn't discover that she was in danger until it was too late. And then there was Allison's struggle to come to terms with her sudden deafness and how it affected her ability to work the case. The silence effect worked really well as we could actually feel the frustration that Allision was feeling whenever something would happen. There was commotion, but we couldn't hear it, thus, we didn't know what was happening. Luckily for Allison (and every other person in peril who needs her help in the future), her deafness was short lived.

I appreciate the effort to include my Det. Scanlon in this one, but come on -- the man had like one measly scene. When, I ask you, is this show going to bring the old format back? I appreciate a break from the norm every now and then just as much as the next viewer, but this break is dragging on too long now. I want my old Medium back. Where's DA Devalos? I see he makes a cameo in next week's outing (which, BTW, sounds awfully familiar. Did NBC air something out of order because I swear they advertised that "Medium for hire" episode right after the season premiere. Hmmm...). Let's hope things return to normal soon. At least they kept the DuBois family stuff in tact. Without that, we'd have no deal.

Photos courtesy nbc.com

'Medium' Will Always Have Paris

"Dream the dream, find the girl, get the job." If only it were that simple. Well truth be told, it would have been had the father of the missing girl not sold the company to which Joe was applying to Joe's former employer. Talk about your bad luck. Looks like Joe will be standing in the unemployment line for a little longer (at least four more weeks thanks to a network hiatus). Anyone who has gone through the job search process knows how grueling it is, so I feel for Joe. The good thing about being an aerospace engineer, though: it's so specialized that there aren't a lot out there. The bad thing: there also aren't a lot of jobs. Oregon, anyone? In the meantime, Allison kept having those pesky, confusing dreams about an American couple in Paris. It sounds like a bad knock off of a 50s film, and in reality, it wasn't too far off. When the episode first began, I thought that the Paris set looked really fake. I chocked it up to HD until we met the diorama-making ex-husband. Then, I began to wonder if he created Paris hoping to recapture that "we'll always have Paris" feeling between him and his ex-wife. Allison began to get the same notion, but she was sidelined by a lack of evidence and a now uncooperative family.

Just when I thought all hope was lost in a warrant technicality, my Det. Hottie Scanlon came in and saved the day (as usual). It's just too bad that he didn't have a big role this week. When is Devalos coming back?? I want the old gang back together and this new DA wants nothing to do with Allison. His loss (and mine since No Allison = No Det. Scanlon). Damn you new DA! Medium (apparently) will return in 4 weeks with all-new episodes.

'Medium' Pulls the Old Switcheroo

Things are beginning to get back to normal on Medium, and I couldn't be happier. Now, all we need is DA Devalos and Allison working with his office with Scanlon by her side. This week's outing, the second of the season, explored one of my favorite dynamics on this series: Allison working with Ariel. The family stuff is always the best on this show, and I LOVE the mother/daughter relationship because it feels so real. After watching Ariel's role increase last season, I am glad to see that trend continue this season. Sofia Vassilieva (Ariel) has developed into quite the actress. She amazes me with the depth she brings to her emotions and the character of Ariel. She had to play 2 different characters this week, and she completely sold me. When we were watching those awesomely rad 80s flashbacks, I kept forgetting that the same actress was playing Allison's high school BFF. And speaking of the same actress playing two roles, it was nice to see Jennifer Lawrence again. She played a murder victim in one of my favorite episodes from last season, "Mother's Little Helper" (the one where the mother-daughter team owned a dress shop and Ariel and Allison dreamt about their murders from 2 different perspectives). This week, though, she was playing young Allison.

This episode had me right back in full Medium mode where I can't fathom what Allison's dreams have to do with the case. I was wracking my brain trying to tie them together and then they added in Ariel's dreams and I was totally lost. As usual, it all made sense in the end with the cop from the '87 dream being involved in both the past and present. Those Medium writers are so clever!

Photos courtesy nbc.com

CATCH-UP EDITION: 'Lights,' Camera, Murder!

Please forgive me while I play a little game of catch-up. All of the college Bowl games had me TiVo-ing like crazy last week and Monday and now I'm busting at the seams with things to say about 3 exciting episodes of 3 excellent shows. First up, Friday Night Lights...

Friday Night Lights
Poor Tim Riggins. The boy just can't catch a break. He's trying to get his alcohol-filled, brother-hating, school work cheating, loser-ish life on track. He moved in (temporarily) with Coach Taylor and his family and started to rebuild the shattered relationship with his coach and then something like Julie getting drunk- at- a- party- and- him- putting- her- to- bed- while- her- father- walks- in happens, and he's right back where he started from: sleeping in his car. Coach Taylor got the wrong impression and jumped to conclusions based on Tim's history and Tami's worries. Too bad he didn't see what happened at the party when Tim saved Julie from being taken advantage of by a classmate. I'm so bummed for Tim. Despite everything, I really believe that he's a good kid. A little messed up and misguided, but a good kid all the same. Elsewhere, Landry made a gutsy move with Tyra and it paid off - well, sorta. He got her to admit that she has feelings for him (in fact, she's never felt this way about anyone), but she isn't ready to embrace those feelings yet. Landry did the right thing - he told her that he wasn't going to wait around for her anymore. Maybe this will kick things into high gear for these two. They're so the new Amy & Ephram (sniffle, sniffle Everwood).

Medium
At a time when all of my favorite shows are running out of new episodes (The Strike Effect), it's good to see some old favorites return. Even if when those old favorites return they're merely a shell of the show I used to know. Yes, I was mourning the old Medium this week and keeping my fingers crossed that it will come back and kidnap this evil twin that has Allison blacklisted, Devalos on a plane contemplating starting his own practice and my main man Scanlon preaching safety to elementary school kids. The end of the episode gave me hope for a return to normalcy, but I don't think the writers are in any hurry since they're introducing us to this Allison-for-hire plot next week. Moving on because if- I- have- to- be- truthful- I- sorta- enjoyed- the- fact- that- Allison- had- to- prove- herself- to- Anjelica- Huston (who is always fabulous and I LOVED that she paid Allison out of her own pocket - well, not Anjelica herself but her character, but you get the point). Anyway, the case was pretty straightforward as were Allison's visions and all of it definitely took a backseat to the upheaval taking place. BUT, I can't get that image of the little boy in the doll box in the storage warehouse out of my mind. It was so disturbing and they sorta just threw it out there and now I'm stuck seeing it when I close my eyes. I'm glad they caught the b*stard responsible, but I have to wonder if this wasn't his first murder considering the thought he put into it. Yuck!

Law & Order: SVU
You guys know that I think these so-called "tandem episodes" are the red-headed stepchild of SVU's otherwise impressive run, but this week's Olivia-centered outing actually worked without Elliot (I mustn't be feeling well this week because I also thought that a barely-there-Lilly episode of Cold Case was good -- maybe it's another strike effect). Curse NBC, though, for their over-hyped previews. I spent the entire episode waiting for the other shoe to drop because of that damn ubiquitous ad ("You know the SVU episodes..."). Consequently, nothing really shocked me in this one (not that it was predictable - I was just extra aware). When this thing first started, I thought that Erika Christensen was horribly miscast, and she was as an FBI agent. BUT then, she turned it on when Olivia hauled her into the interrogation room and she never turned it off all the way up into the character's disturbing suicide. She really brought the crazy, sympathy, depression, and compassion. I'm not sure if Olivia is going to be the same after witnessing that tragedy. Forget her, between the boy-in-the-doll-box on Medium and the suicide in this episode, I think my quota of disturbing images has been reached for the year already.

All photos courtesy nbc.com.

'Everwood' Continues to Shine! Plus 'Medium,' Sexy Vegetarians and 'Lost' Action Figures

As annoying as it was to go four months without a new Everwood right in the middle of the television season, aren't you loving the fact that we're still getting new episodes and will continue to for another two weeks? I'm savoring every moment since I know that these last few episodes will not only be the last of the season, but sadly, also of the series. It's a bitter pill to swallow, and even more so when I watch the amazing episodes each week. I feel like The CW stabbed all of us Everwood fans in the back last week with the announcement that it wouldn't be picking up the critically acclaimed drama. The network started twisting that knife when it kept the Everwood site up on its new web site, and it continues to do so each time we watch a new episode. I sat there last night fuming with the knowledge that quality programming with one of television's best writing staffs gets passed over for teenage drivel like One Tree Hill. I figure by the time the finale airs June 4th, I'll be so bitter and angry that the next day's entry will be a diatribe about the evils of The CW (save for Veronica Mars). Just thought I'd go ahead and warn you guys now.


But, let's not dwell on the terrible injustice that is The CW's decision not to renew Everwood because last night's episode produced another quality hour of television as it does consistently week after week (unlike some other shows that got another season. OK, moving on). This was the big "Bright Goes Through the Window" episode that we have seen advertise for some time now, and that led to a lot of fans thinking that Bright is the character that dies before the series ends (executive producer Rina Mimoun has said on many occasions that a character will die). I really didn't think it was going to be Bright, but I was a little worried when things looked a little touch and go at the hospital. Hannah seemed to show up for Bright as much as she did to support Amy. I never doubted that she still loved him, but it was nice to see her smile after he woke up. I really like Nick and perhaps if we were given another season, more could have been done with him and Hannah, but alas, we all know the hard truth. Ultimately, I want Hannah with Bright, but I think it's too soon. The problem is that the show is wrapping up against its will, so if I want Hannah and Bright to live happily ever after then it's now or never. Curse you CW! It's the same with Amy and Ephram for me. I just feel like both of these "couples" have so much story to tell before they ride off into the sunset, but the damn CW isn't allowing for that, so we're going to have to settle for a rush job in both cases. Luckily, the writers are brilliant enough to make the absolute best out of a horrible situation, but I'm still bitter about all of the stories we're going to miss out on. And there I go again getting off track about the ridiculous CW oversight (seriously, the day after the finale is going to be bad people, BAD!). Anyway, when we weren't busy worrying that Bright was the ill-fated character, we were getting nervous about Rose's cancer scare. It seemed that her cancer had returned, but luckily her scan showed that she was officially in remission. The person we all needed to be worried about was Irv. He seemed to suffer a heart attack as he was bringing Edna breakfast in bed. I assumed that she was still sleeping since we saw him collapse to the floor unconscious and no one running to his rescue. Is Irv the character that Everwood loses? My money was totally on Jake, but it seems that I was sorely wrong.


In other Everwood happenings, Andy's estranged father arrived in town to finally apologize for all the years of emotional neglect. The most interesting part of this story was the way that Andy and his father related to each other because it was like watching an older version of Andy and Ephram. I had no idea that Andy and his father had gone through the same relationship upheaval as he did with his son. Even more interesting was the fact that Andy didn't speak to his father because he was never there for him, especially after his mother died. Ephram and Andy never got along because Andy was never there for his family until after Julia died. This, of course, was the core difference between the two relationship dynamics, and the point that caused Andy's father to realize how badly he failed his son. Elsewhere, Nina and Jake were making plans for their big move to California. For the record, I still don't think it's happening, especially after Nina's talk with Andy. The real reason she's going with Jake is so she can run away from her feelings for Andy. We all know the attempt would be fruitless, so my money is on Nina realizing this fact and staying in Everwood while Jake pursues his new career path in LA. We'll have to see how it plays out in the finale two episodes (sniff, sniff). If you are as upset about the CW injustice as I am, there is a petition to get Everwood on the upstart network's midseason schedule. Right now, there is only one show planned for the mid point and having Everwood for half a season is better than no season. Sign the petition HERE.


How would your life be different if you had chosen another path? This was the fundamental question last night on Medium as we got to see just what would have happened if Allison's had been different. She would have been working for a high- powered defense attorney, married to her college sweetheart and childless. Yes, it was a very different Allison than we're used to seeing every week, and certainly a less compelling one as the episode seemed to drag from time to time. All of this was just a ploy to help Allison understand what was going to happen in court and how to prevent it. D.A. Devalos had a particularly difficult murder case to prosecute because there was no body. This opened the door for the possibility that the "victim" was still alive, and the defense lawyer was going to exploit that possibility with the murdered girl's twin sister. Allison's trip to the land of What Could Have Been allowed her to see how the other side was going to get his client off. The best part of the hypothetical life was the fact that Allison and Joe still found each other and ended up together. I told you guys yesterday that I'm a romantic sap, and now you see what I mean. The only omission from the episode was my TV boyfriend Det. Scanlon. I was bummed that this was the season finale and no Scanlon wit. Other than that, the episode was good, not the best of the season, but still good.


The 41st Annual Academy of Country Music Awards air tonight on CBS live from Las Vegas. And while I wouldn't consider myself a country music fan, there are a few songs that if I happen to hear them, I enjoy. I don't listen to country radio or music channels on TV, so I'm pretty much out of the country loop, but my girl Kathryn Morris is a presenter tonight. She will be joined by fellow presenters Dr. Phil, Emily Proctor, Craig Ferguson, Tony Stewart, performers Sugarland, Kenny Chesney, Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts and host Reba McEntire. Check out her promos pictures for tonight's event:



You can see more of Kathryn's ACM photo shoot (HQ photos) at KathrynMorrisOnline.

About Last Night...NBC won the first hour of the night with Deal or No Deal, followed by ABC's special Oprah Winfrey's Legends Ball and the first hour of Fox's 24 finale (which had more total viewers). At 9, CBS landed in first with comedies Two and a Half Men and Old Christine, followed by the second hour of Fox's 24 and NBC's The Apprentice. The first hour of ABC's series finale of Alias came in fourth and Everwood landed in fifth. The final hour of the night went to CBS' CSI: Miami, followed by NBC's Medium and the conclusion of ABC's Alias. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - It's down to Taylor and Katharine on Fox's American Idol. Listen to each of them perform and then cast your vote. Over on CBS, it's the aforementioned 41st Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. ABC presents Stephen King's Desperation starring Tom Skerritt, Steven Weber, Annabeth Gish, Ron Perlman, Henry Thomas, Matt Frewer and Charles Durning. The 3-hour movie centers on an unlikely band of people who find themselves forced to be reluctant heroes as they battle an unspeakable horror in a small, Nevada desert town.

FINALES TONIGHT!!!
House (9 p.m. Fox) - 2nd season finale

To see what else you can catch on television tonight with customized listings for your area (via Zap2it), visit the TV Listings area of PassTheRemote.net.


QUICK CUTS

*Actress Kristen Bell is PETA's newest "world's sexiest vegetarian" along with recording artist Prince. The animal rights group holds the online poll annually, and received 40,000 votes this year. Bell said in a statement about her decision to become a vegetarian: "I had a hard time disassociating the animals I cuddled with - dogs and cats, for example - from the animals on my plate, and I never really cared for the taste of meat. I always loved my brussels sprouts!" Natalie Portman, Nicollette Sheridan and Joaquin Phoenix were runners-up in the poll. Last year's recipients were American Idol winner Carrie Underwood and Coldplay's Chris Martin.

*And finally, you love the TV show, but how about Lost action figures? Touchstone Television is developing a line along with MacFarlane Toys of 6-inch action figures based on the characters of the hit show complete with props. Look for the figures to hit stores around the time of the show's 3rd season premiere this fall.

To get more of today's biggest TV news and headlines, visit the TV News section at PassTheRemote.Net.


That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for thoughts from the newest America's Next Top Model Danielle! Plus, Idol and all the lastest television news!

To get more television coverage, including the network's new fall schedules and a complete archive of the best of Pass the Remote with a photo gallery featuring pictures from the set of Veronica Mars, click on over to PassTheRemote.net.

Reid Needs a Little Help from his Friends! Plus, 'Medium,' 'Veronica' Finale Preview and More Shows Head to iTunes

Even though Ephram may have missed Reid's well concealed signs of trouble on Everwood, the rest of us watched helplessly as he sunk deeper and deeper over the course of the last several episodes. His expulsion from med school was only the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. Despite his happy go lucky facade, Reid was troubled by his performance in school and the pressure that he put on himself. He wanted to be a doctor so he could help people like his bipolar brother. In fact, he hadn't considered doing anything else with his life, so when he began to fall behind, he kept telling himself that he would catch up. Before he knew it, he was past the point of catching up and his adviser was telling him that some people just aren't meant to go to med school. It was a harsh wake-up call, and one that Reid wasn't willing to accept. The only problem was that he couldn't catch up, and he had a pivotal exam approaching, so he figured he could use a cheat sheet to pass the exam, stay in school and catch up over break. This compromise of his character left Reid feeling like he didn't know who he was anymore, and getting caught and expelled only made it worse. Fast forward to last night. Ephram found him unconscious on the bathroom floor with an empty bottle of pills lying next to him. Luckily for Reid (and Ephram), he's going to be OK - physically anyway. Ephram took the entire experience a lot harder than I think even he expected. Bright and Amy were very shaken up as well. The experience did allow Ephram to finally come clean with Amy about how he asked Reid not to date Amy. The whole thing left Ephram feeling a little guilty because he figured if he hadn't asked Reid to do that then he would have had Amy to lean on during his rough patch. He also felt that he should have picked up on the signs, but Reid set him straight as soon as he woke up. I think their talk helped Ephram, but he was still feeling a little guilty so he headed to New York to visit Kyle and help him get settled in.


Meanwhile, things were not going so well for Hannah and Bright either. Hannah was torn between feeling completely hurt and completely angry. Rose came to her rescue with a decorative pillow. She had Hannah take out her aggression by hitting the pillow until she finally collapsed into Rose's arms sobbing. Bright wasn't faring much better, especially after his plan to surprise Hannah with a necklace (which was intended for his mother) failed. He turned to his father for comfort and wound up literally crying on his shoulder. The best advice edge goes to Rose, though, because she told Hannah that before she goes running back to Bright she must decide if she can forgive him. If she can't and she runs back to him, then she'll spend the duration of their relationship resenting him. For the time being, Hannah feels that she can't forgive Bright. Time will tell how this pans out. Elsewhere, Nina and Andy got a little closer than usual after Sam came down with a case of head lice while Jake was out of town. It seems all of Jake's traveling is hard on Nina and it has made her realize that she's in love with two men: Jake and Andy. Again Nina, you have to stop doing this to Andy. You get his hopes up, and as soon as Jake blows back into town and starts talking about putting you first and maybe even getting married, you're right back in his arms. It just isn't fair to Andy. The ending moments of this show are usually some of the most poignant and last night didn't disappoint. Hannah called her mom to talk, Reid held his mom's hand as he lied in the hospital bed and Amy dropped Ephram off at the bus station. The two exchanged a cute "Call me" gesture as Ephram walked off and boarded the bus. The closing shot showed a pensive Amy watching as the bus drove off. I LOVE having my old Amy back and I love having the privilege of watching such a quality show every week. If you would like to help the show get another season, click on over to Save Everwood Now to learn how you can help.


What was great about casting Kelsey Grammer as "Death" on Medium last night (other than the fact that he serves as one of the show's executive producers) is the fact that he is so unassuming. The man was the lovable, if not slightly neurotic, Frasier Crane! This is why you never knew whether you should fear "Death" or call in and let him analyze you over the radio. Of course, "Death" turned out to be a sleazy life insurance salesman. He manifested as "Death" in Allison's dreams because he was buying people's life insurance policies and cashing in when they died early (which was thanks to the not-so-good doctor and his watered down drugs). The only part that left me confused was why Death/sleazy insurance salesman killed the doctor. They had a lucrative scheme going on, so why bring it to a close? I am still a bit foggy on why they had the standing reservation at the hotel as well. I think I'm missing something. If anyone knows the answer to either of these questions, please leave me a comment. I do know that I'll be showering a little more carefully now that I know that 47% of accidental deaths happen in the home and 60% of those result from a fall in the bathtub. The insurance salesman was always fast to point that out, wasn't he? LOVED that Scanlon had to drive Allison everywhere because she was too afraid to drive after her near-death experience at that intersection. He was a bit grouchy last night and very skeptical of Allison's intuition so I can only assume (hope) that he and the deputy mayor didn't work out. Bummer, except for the part where's it's not (and by part, I mean all of it). The episode ended on an interesting note as Allison dreamed that Grammer's character died from, what can only be called the definition of irony, a fall in the bathtub. Yes, it seems Frasier Crane has left the building.

**REMINDER**

**THE MARS FINALE AIRS TONIGHT!!!

On an excitement scale of 1-10, I'm about an 11. How about you? The Veronica Mars finale airs tonight, and we're finally going to learn who crashed the bus and killed everyone on board! We all have our theories and suspects, but we'll know for sure after tonight's 1-hour finale. TVGuide.com has a new interview with Rob Thomas and in it, he discusses Veronica's STD, Weevil's tattoos and what he has planned for next season (HINT: look for three shorter mysteries that will run uninterrupted!). Click over to that site's Insider column for more. Just in case you weren't pumped up enough, I have this glowing review of the finale from Zap2it's TV Gal, who watched an advanced copy of tonight's episode. Here's what she has to say about it:

I've seen this Tuesday's season finale (9 p.m. on UPN) and it is fantastic. I mean fantastic like I couldn't sleep after I watched it since it was so simultaneously disturbing and adrenaline inducing. Now I wouldn't dare to ruin all the surprises that are jam-packed into the finale. But I will tell you this: I think you'll love Logan even more at the end of the hour (in fact I may have to leave Bill Buchanan to run away with him), Kristen Bell deserves an Emmy nomination, the culprit is perfectly plausible yet still totally shocking and the final moments will leave you breathless for next season.

With a glowing review like that, how can you not want to watch this episode tonight? Just in case you need to catch up on the season or get a little refresher, you can click over to Marsinvestigations.net. To get even more pumped up about tonight's BIG episode, you can check out DuckyXDale's exclusive interview with Tessa Thompson, who plays Jackie on the show.


You can also check out the opening scene at upn.com. And finally, as promised here are the remaining three pictures from the finale (courtesy of Warner Bros./UPN).



About Last Night...NBC won the first hour of the night with Deal or No Deal, followed by Fox's Prison Break and CBS comedies King of Queens and How I Met Your Mother. At 9, CBS finished in first with comedies Two and a Half Men and Old Christine, followed by Fox's 24 and the second hour of ABC's special David Blaine: Drowned Alive. The WB's Everwood came in fifth in front of the UPN comedies. The final hour of the night went to CBS' CSI: Miami, followed by NBC's Medium and ABC's What About Brian. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - The final 4 contestants perform the hits of Elvis on Fox's American Idol. Over on the WB, Gilmore Girls wraps up its 6th season with an ultimatum, a goodbye and of course, a surprise.

@9 p.m. - Veronica finds herself in grave danger after learning who crashed the bus in the season finale of UPN's Veronica Mars (Again, you can watch the opening scene HERE). Over on NBC, Dr. Cox returns to work and JD reflects on the last five years on Scrubs. Fox's House finds the team attempting to save the lives of a mother and her newborn child.

@10 p.m. - The police are brought into family abuse allegations when a woman believes her young son was molested by her husband on NBC's Law & Order: SVU. Over on ABC, an ambitious but back-stabbing lawyer (Parker Posey) joins the firm on Boston Legal.

FINALES TONIGHT!!!
Gilmore Girls (8 p.m. the WB) - 6th season finale
Veronica Mars (9 p.m. UPN) - 2nd season finale (see special VM finale section above)
The Search for the Funniest Mom in America (9 p.m. Nick at Night) - 2nd season finale
The Real Housewives of Orange County (10 p.m. Bravo) - 1st season finale
8th & Ocean (10:30 p.m. MTV) - 1st season finale

To see what else you can catch on television tonight with customized listings for your area (via Zap2it), visit the TV Listings area of PassTheRemote.net.



QUICK CUTS

*You can now catch two of television's most popular superheroes on Apple's iTunes. Episodes of 24 and Buffy the Vampire Slayer are now available for purchase on the popular music download program. Fox and some of its corporate subsidiaries are the latest to jump on the iTunes bandwagon, expanding iTunes' total TV show library to more than 90 shows. In addition to 24 and Buffy, you can also get episodes of The Shield, Prison Break, Lost in Space and Firefly beginning today. As usual, each episode will set you back $1.99.

*And finally, E! Online's SOS campaign results are in, and most of you want to see One Tree Hill get saved over Veronica Mars, Everwood, What About Brian and Supernatural. Close to a million TV fans voted in Kristin Veitch's 5th annual Save One Show campaign and 44% of you chose the teen soap. Mars, which nabbed the second place spot, got 32% of your votes with Supernatural in third with 14% of the vote and Everwood (7%) and What About Brian (3%) filling out the fourth and fifth spots, respectively. As the winner of the campaign, Hill will get a care package sent on its behalf to new CW president Dawn Ostroff pleading its case for a spot on the new network this fall. The CW makes its fall schedule announcement next Thursday, May 18th.

To get more of today's biggest TV news and headlines, visit the TV News section at PassTheRemote.Net.


That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for the first of the special finale blowout editions of Pass the Remote. I'll have screen caps, reaction, thoughts and much more on tonight's all-important Veronica Mars finale in a special early edition of Pass the Remote. Then, be sure to come back in the afternoon for the regular edition featuring an extended Scrubs section (with a special Super-Sized edition of the Scrubies) and all the latest television news! Yup, you're getting a special 2 for 1 Wednesday this week courtesy of the first BIG finale of the season! Don't miss all the excitement tomorrow on Pass the Remote!

To get more television coverage, including a complete archive of the best of Pass the Remote and a photo gallery featuring pictures from the set of Veronica Mars, click on over to PassTheRemote.net.



SAVE EVERWOOD NOW! Click HERE to learn how to help the show get another season

Don't forget to help Veronica Mars with the $4,000 Shower Campaign. Click HERE for details