'American Idol' East Coast Update

The bottom three are ... (are you seated?)

Lisa, Ace and Katharine. Yipes.

Ace goes back to his seat.

Lisa got the boot.

'The Amazing Race 9' - Ep. 5 -or- "Lake is Just a Big Meanie Pants"

Do you know what "good television" would be? I personally think good television would be seeing Lake's head explode like in a cartoon! If I were more talented with digital imaging or knew someone with a cool digital imaging center, I could create it myself. Oh, what I'd have come out of his head! Bananas, cat excrement, boxes of Fiddle-Faddle ... the possibilities are endless. After all, what the heck is in his mind?

Here'a brief lowdown on what happened on last night's show:
The teams started out from their last Pit Stop in Munich, Germany. Jeremy and Eric (the HornDogz) had been the first to arrive there at 2:15 PM, so they were the first to leave at 2:15 AM. The last team to depart was Danielle and Dani (Double D's or Pinkies, though I hate the latter) at 7:28 AM. So, there was quite a time difference betwixt first and last and the DD's wouldn't be able to hook up with the Dogz this time 'round. Who would they hitch onto this week? Would they sink or swim on their own? I'm getting a bit ahead of myself here, but they sank a bit on their own and partly a Lake sank 'em. A mean, nasty despicable Lake.

While I find BJ and Tyler perhaps my most favorite team ever, they waited for Lake and Michelle while leaving the Pit Stop! Ack! Boys, boys, boys ... stay away from them! Lake is an evil meanie pants! He'll cut your throats while extracting your teeth with no Novacaine just to watch you bleed! He may have shot a man in Reno just to watch him die! Stay away from him. Wear garlic if you must be near him! I personally would love to see a team made up of Jonathon Baker and Lake. I know we'd be seeing exploding heads there, right?

The teams had to go to the airport to catch flights to Palermo, Italy. BJ/Tyler used those Ivy League brains and purchased tickets for the earliest flight on the Internet while Lake got ticked at Michelle because she couldn't understand enough German to pick up a ticket in the same manner. Ditzy Monica proclaimed how un-ditzy blonde she is by repeatedly pronouncing their destination as PAL-or-moe. Yeah, I know they probably edited that to make the situation look ditzier, but I snickered. Her oh-so-unditzy boyfriend Joe actually substituted a totally different word. Heh.

I know there are folks out there upset that Jeremy/Eric and BJ/Tyler played with the airport wheelchairs. Don't count me in as one of those folks. I've been around people in chairs for most of my life. I myself am a veteran of more than a few knee surgeries. Wheelchair sports are actually a big thing. They're fun for those involved and it's not in any way a mockery of those who need the chairs to get around. I don't know anyone in a chair who would have been offended by the guys racing and playing around in the airport's wheelchairs. Had they deprived someone who needed one to play, that would be another matter. I think they would have immediately handed over the wheelchairs if someone was in need. Pick your causes well and get over it (directed at those who think it was insensitive)!

The absolute best part of the airport waiting was watching Lake get madder and madder. I so wanted his head to explode! Now, you know the why behind my opening paragraph. He acted like a cornered cockroach frantically trying to figure a way out when he realized not only was he not on the first flight, he didn't make the second flight either. Heehee! Hmmm ... maybe I want him to stay in the race just to watch him implode. Perhaps I have a mean, evil streak myself.

Once the teams made it to Palermo, the next clue led them to a Detour. Their choices were Foundry or Laundry. In Foundry, the teams had to go to a metal works foundry to retrieve a 110 pound bell, load it onto a little truck thingee, drive it to a church and then carry it for quite a distance up steps to hand over to a priest for their clue. Laundry wasn't physical, but it could be time-consuming. The teams were faced with 2400 pieces of hanging laundry and had to find an Amazing Race label marked tag inside. There were only ten tags amongst the laundry, if memory serves. Most of the teams chose the laundry, but the teams who chose the bell seemed to make good time. Yolanda was so proud of Ray as he carried the bell solo. Joe also carried the bell solo, but Monica's reaction wasn't as sweet as Yolanda's. Over at the Laundry task, BJ and Tyler were so cute as they politely kissed the Laundry Woman and thanked her in Italian. (Is there a language these guys don't know?) The stragglers to Laundry were frantic and frustrated. Said stragglers would be Lori/Dave, Dani/Danielle and Lake/Michelle.

The clue teams received after the Detour warned them there is a Yield ahead, one of two in the race. BJ/Tyler, in the lead, clicked their heels and went on about Yielding the "Fratboys" - which would be Jeremy/Eric. However, once they hit the Yield, both in unison sang they chose to Yield ... nobody. It would have been a waste to use it, anyway. They had a good lead. They next hit a Roadblock, a task only one member of the team can complete. It was assembling the statue of David, but there was a hitch to it. Once properly assembled, there were two extra pieces. Eventually a team would cost themselves the race due to those extra pieces. Poor Lori had a breakdown trying to assemble the statue due to them. And, her equally poor David, lovebird that he is, cried actual tears because he had gotten frustrated with her as she freaked out over the statue. (Now, I'd like to see Lake go there, huh?) BJ/Tyler sailed through the task and were instructed to walk a mile to the Pit Stop where "one team may be eliminated."

No one was using the Yield until ... Lake came along. Michelle had told him she wouldn't use it; it was his decision. He knew that Dani/Danielle were a bit behind them, but also that Ray/Yolanda were even behind them. Out of some sort of pure mean dark soul kind of action, he used it on Dani/Danielle. Don't get me wrong -- I think they (DD) aren't a good team. I even had a cyberbet elsewhere that they would be eliminated this week as they're such a poor team overall. They hitch onto others, they frustrate easily, they aren't worldly. They had a lot going against them. But there was absolutely no need for Lake to use that Yield against them. They weren't a threat to him or Michelle. He's just plain mean. I bet he didn't use it on Ray/Yolanda because either one of them could whip his butt in the race (or elsewhere). He chose the girls because they're fairly defenseless in his mind. Nasty man, I tell you. Mean-spirited, sexist and plain ol' nasty.

Ray and Yolanda ended up passing DD at the Roadblock when DD furthered their woes with the two extra pieces of the statue. I watched The Early Show this morning. DD said that Ray/Yolanda had about ten minutes on them and it wasn't a race to the end at all as both R/Y are runners and they (DD) aren't.

Here's the finishing order at the Pit Stop:
1. BJ/Tyler - Won a digital imaging center. Maybe I can get them to digitally make Lake's head explode!
2. Jeremy/Eric
3. Monica/Joe
4. Fran/Barry
5. Lake/Michelle
6. Dave/Lori
7. Ray/Yolanda
Last and Philiminated: Dani/Danielle

My final thoughts on the remaining teams? Well, I want to know how many times we're going to see Fran and Barry walk by clues. I swear they have blinders on and no peripheral vision. I don't think we'll see them last a lot longer on the show. I'm pleased that BJ and Tyler are doing so well. Perhaps they're a bit of a gimmick, but they're enjoyable to watch. They're polite to the native folks in the various countries. They're respectful and even have a basic knowledge of most of the languages so far. They're nice to the other teams, but focus on doing well each leg. And, they're having fun with it all. I can take or leave the HornDogz. Yeah, they're male eye candy. I sort of wish they weren't as strong a team as they are -- the more I see of Ray and Yolanda, I'd like to see them take the reins up near the top. I still like the Nerds, Dave and Lori. I don't think they're a particularly stong team, but they're kind of like the representative of Normal Folks on the show - not too well traveled, not in fantastic shape, but in the adventure of a lifetime. As for Monica and Joe, they can go. I think they're a stronger team than the Nerds or Franberry, but they've done nothing to endear themselves to me. And, after all, it's all about me, right?

Heehee! What do you think?

Today's TV Newsy Bits - Mar. 28, 2006

Bet your sweet bippy, I've got bits for you!

Here are the television and entertainment related newsy bits links I found today --

• Fox Gives "Prison" Another Year - Mar 28, 2006 - E! Online News
• Variety.com - Hurwitz takes a hike (R.I.P. 'Arrested Development')
• CANOE -- JAM! Television: New Discovery Channel game show takes place in New York cab, pays riders
• Flashbacks Dominate Next Weeks Episode of Prison Break
• Court TV Develops Show With John Waters

'Amazing Race' East Coast Update - Finish Order and Philimination

For those of you on the West Coast who just can't wait --

1. BJ/Tyler - Won a digital imaging center. "Whoa! A digital imaging center!"
2. Eric/Jeremy
3. Monica/Joe
4. Fran/Barry
5. Lake/Michelle (Who YIELDED DD when they weren't even a threat!)
6. Dave/Lori
7. Yolanda/Ray
Last and Philiminated -- Danielle/Dani

A full recap/review will be posted in the morning.

"The Apprentice 5' - Ep. 5 -or- "Whose Ship Was Sunk Tonight?"

It's Week 5 of the 15 week "interview." I'm finally getting to know some of the names of the quieter folks or those not really highlighted by the show's editors. After tonight, I got to know who Leslie is. And, um ... Dan.

The show opened with the candidates wondering who would be fired. The Synergy folks really wanted to no longer see Brent while many of Gold Rush were hoping for Brent's return because of his detrimental inflluence on the team. All were shocked that Brent was gone. Some relieved; others wondering if they need to worry about Synergy now. Andrea went at Roxanne for saying that Tammy did a better job as a Project Manager. Ohhh! Catfight! Well, not quite. I personally don't think Roxanne's a really strong candidate for winning, but at least she's personable. Andrea irks me. Be gone, witch!

Ahem.

This week's task for the teams was a bit more along the lines we've seen before. They were brought on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship, the Norwegian Jewel, and instructed they must make a 30 second television commercial touting the cruise line's new "freestyle" cruises. They're cruises without any organized events time schedules. (Okay, that's a cruise I'd like!) The hitch was that the teams only had 3 hours to complete the filming with a crew and equipment provided. If they didn't finish by then -- the ship leaves port. And, but of course, they're stuck on a cruise. Hey ... that doesn't sound so bad, does it?

Dan decided he wanted to be the Project Manager for Gold Rush and the team instantly liked an idea Lenny had with a storyline of a castaway coming aboard and showing all the fun activities. They set about with the film crew. Over at Synergy, Roxanne went for the Project Manager position much to the dismay of Andrea. They came up with the idea to contrast traditional cruises with the more fun and exciting freestyle ones. Now, Roxanne did look a bit bewildered and overwhelmed at times, but Andrea irked me more. Please, please get her off my television set!

The foreshadowing of the error a team would make came after a commercial. This time it was the quote "Listen to your people" along with a little lecture by Trump. Okay. So, we know one Project Manager wouldn't listen to his people. It was so easy from that point on to see who would lose the task. While Roxanne didn't particularly listen to Andrea (can't blame her), she listened to the others on her team. Ah, but Dan tried to do everything by himself, didn't delegate tasks and, more importantly, didn't listen to Lenny when he said that text alone wasn't good, the commercial needed a voiceover, too. When Bill Rancik peeked in on the team, all was chaos. Dan was more worried about Lee shmoozing with Carolyn and Bill than he was about actually assigning Lee a task.

The results were pretty clear. I knew the castaway part of the Gold Rush ad and the first thing that struck me was you didn't know he was a castaway! Synergy easily won and with no help from Brent! They won big time, too. They got to go to a secret (yeah, right) Brinks diamond vault where they played with diamonds and got to select $30,000 worth of them to take home.

Gold Rush was in turmoil. Lenny came up with the castaway idea which, even beyond the confusion, didn't fly well with the thought of a cruise. Tarek shouted down Lenny's balking at the text only on the ad and pushed that as it's something he can do well. Dan wasn't a good leader at all. He didn't delegate tasks and he didn't listen to his people. Tarek told Dan he would back him up in the boardroom, but then went on to say he (Dan) didn't have any friends in the boardroom. The plot thickens!

Once the whole team got together in the boardroom with Donald, Bill and Carolyn, all heck broke loose. They argued like little kids. Here's the corporate future, eh? Dan decided to take Lee into the boardroom mainly because he doesn't like him. Lee really didn't do anything wrong on the task. He didn't do much, but he wasn't asked to do much. Again, no delegation. Dan didn't want both Lee and Lenny in there and Leslie actually spoke up for herself, so he chose Tarek. I thought Tarek was going to be a goner, but Donald fired Dan because he didn't bring Lenny in and the whole concept was his idea.

"Tell Lenny he hasn't long to go!"

The best line of the night was Trump to Tarek: "Mensa should change their test." I'm sure that Mensa is rescinding Tarek's membership right now.

Next week's show will be on at 10 PM instead of 9 (ET). Until then ...

Dollar bills, y'all...