This Week on My TV: January 10, 2015

Disclaimer: Consider the fact that there could be spoilers ahead. You read at your own risk!



**(Blue Bloods, S5E10 Sins of the Father) I have to be completely up front on this one. I was kind of distracted while watching this one, so I'm not sure if I was only mindlessly half-watching or if this episode was truly unmemorable. I remember there being a lot of shooting in this episode, more than typical, and that the opening scene, when a bullet shattered something glass, at the hot dog stand where Danny and Baez were getting lunch, was especially startling. I remember feeling slightly skeptical that Frank was able to recognize a man who killed an officer forty years ago, on Pops' watch, because he had been checking age progression photos on the guy for years, because are age progression photos really *that* accurate? I remember thinking he put the guy's son, a police officer himself, who had just received a promotion (the one his father showed up to see where Frank recognized him), in a terribly awkward position by asking him to wear a wire and get a confession, although I appreciate that Frank told the father he ordered the son to do, so he wouldn't know his son willingly wore the wire that put him away. In Jamie and Jenko's case, where a father took responsibility for running over a girl with a car to protect to his son (who was actually the one responsible), I remember thinking the detective on the case (did they ever actually give her a name?) was a real jerk and that the mother making the father and son do the right thing was a nice twist (if only more people had this mentality about owning your mistakes), especially when it made that jerky detective look like a fool for not listening to Jamie and Jenko's concerns about the father's "confession." And the story about the parents who were killing people in the adult film industry, for whom they blamed the death of their daughter, felt very "Law and Order: SVU," in both content and the theatrical elements. It wasn't a bad episode, because I enjoy the Reagans, but it almost felt like they forced a little too hard to make every element of the episode cram into a little box that fit the episode's title.

**(The Last Ship, S1E9 Trials) It's a nice (can you really call it nice, given the subject matter?) to see some of what's going on only peripherally related to the ship. In this case, with the Chandler's family. Terrifying though it may be. Danger is everywhere, barring the way of survival. I don't know which was more scary: the law enforcement shooting the sick people in the streets or the fact that the Chandler's wife was near a diseased corpse while looting the parts her father in law needs to get his radio working again. It was inevitable that she was going to end up infected. And of course, she served the whole family and did the whole "clean her son's face by licking her finger and scrubbing" bit, all while looking like someone who doesn't feel up to par. That final scene is surely setting the stage for both the finale, its certain cliffhanger, and season two. -- It was honorable of Quincy to admit he didn't deserve what Chandler did to get his family back from the Russians. -- Chandler [about Tex, as the volunteers are getting ready to go into quarantine to test the potential vaccine]: Ladies and gentlemen, your entertainment for the next three days. ... If you're going to be in the ultimate crappy situation, Tex is certainly the guy I'd want for my entertainment, because I cannot even start to wrap my head around how utterly and positively terrifying it would be to be injected with a deadly virus to test a vaccine's effectiveness. -- LOL: Tex's Sean Connery James Bond impression. -- You know circumstances are dire when Tex stops cracking jokes. -- Did Chandler really tell Danny that Kara was pregnant?? Even if she somehow survives and doesn't miscarry, this exposure can *not* be good news for a developing baby. And yet Rachels' response was only that it would be born immune? How does she know there will be no ill effects? -- I'm not sure I followed Rachel's explanation for how to trick the body from turning on itself when the immune system tries to fight the virus. Sometimes they rush too quickly through explanations for the sake of conveying urgency on this show. -- As difficult as it was to watch the six in quarantine struggle with their illness, even to the point of death, it was even harder for me to watch Chandler struggling to hold his emotions in check when Rachel told him that they not only had a vaccine but a cure.

**(The Good Wife, S6E11 Hail Mary) I had no idea they had "prison coaches." I wonder if that's really a thing. -- Cary was "prison coached" to "uncomplicate that today" with Kalinda. Excuse me while I fall on the ground laughing. -- Bishop is a real jerk. He basically threw Cary under the bus and Cary never once wavered or turned on Bishop to save his own skin, he's on his way to prison as a result, and Bishop isn't willing to find Cary someone to have his back without asking a favor in return? -- Eli confiscated Alicia's phone at her debate rehearsal like he was an angry school teacher. -- It's sort of ridiculous how excited I get whenever Finn appears on the screen. Have I mentioned just how much I like him? -- Kalinda cares about Cary more than she wants to admit. I can't remember any other time she showed an emotion other than anger. To see her eyes fill with tears after leaving Cary at the hotel was so very telling. -- I wonder what string of expletives was going through Kalinda's head when she realized Diane handed her "hack job" to the judge as evidence of a Brady violation. -- That was some stellar acting on the part of Matt Czuchry, as Cary realized all the charges were being dropped and he wasn't going to prison. Haggard disbelief and weary relief. -- I cracked wise when Alicia was in the parking garage with Elfman, rejoicing over Cary's good news, saying "she's going to kiss him." I never expected to be right! But, Alicia, what about Finn??

**(2 Broke Girls, S4E8 And the Fun Factory) OMG. Sophie's...errr...wig business. -- So their new plot for this show is to make the cast more likable by surrounding them with guest actors that are somehow (and I don't even know how, to be be honest) even more obnoxious. I know, right? (Just imagine me saying that last part in a nasal whine.) -- Now this is a way to make me happier with this show. *Two* Sophie arrivals in the diner. "Hey, everybody!"-- What is with this show's obsession with dropping things out of the female characters' skirts this season?! Newsflash: still not funny.

**(Madam Secretary, S1E12 Standoff) I can't believe I didn't catch til now that Henry's NSA contact played Jamie on Reckless. I'm so glad to see she landed somewhere. I hope we haven't seen the last of her, because it sure looked like Henry was less than thrilled that his mission was complete and he was being dismissed. -- Nadine: Blake's a little rattled. His message has a typo. -- Nothing like a cliche "having a fight on what should be a romantic anniversary weekend" bit. Of course most of them don't involve the fear that your Secretary of State wife may be assassinated by the guy you're spying on for missions so secret, your wife doesn't even know you're on them. (Follow that?) -- Moral of the story: Elizabeth can't go away for even a weekend without everything falling apart. Jason sprains his ankle. Texas violates Mexico's extradition rules and then gets in a standoff with the FBI. Nothing like making the woman believe she can never get a break. -- I like the real-world way they allow Elizabeth and Henry to make up from their fight. It's believable and relateable.

**(Mike and Molly, S5E5 Molly's Neverending Story) Mike [about his mother]: Her words don't just cut. They burrow in and lay eggs. -- I laughed right out loud at the "interrupting your coven" line. -- I'm not sure how that exercise ball a) fits into that tiny bedroom Mike and Molly share, and b) how it didn't do more damage when she chucked it. -- I get Mike's frustration. *I'm* ready for Molly to finish the book already.

**(Marry Me, S1E9 Test Me) There was a taxidermy owl in the nursery?! -- Mmmmmm...bellini. -- That scene where Annie and Kay are trying to steal the nanny cam would have been funnier if they hadn't made Annie act *so* weird. -- Gil telling Jake to "go to the doctor who will tell you if you have to worry about the thing you're worried about"...Why is Gil making sense? What is happening??  -- Annie: I mean, what if it's me that can't have kids? What if I find out it's just tumbleweeds down there?

**(About a Boy, S2E9 About a Manniversary) OMG Fiona coming on to Mr Chris. Could she be any more awkward? -- A surprise Brazilian would equal NOT MY FRIEND ANYMORE!! -- Fiona's Marcus-faced teddy bear = crazy creepy. -- Will: In what universe am *I* the weird neighbor?! -- LOL: Fiona gloating that finally got some.

**(CSI, S15E13 The Greater Good) I'm not sure which was more unnerving: Maya's opening dream sequence with the Gig Harbor Twins, or Shaw listening in on Maya and DB's phone call that was designed to be bait. -- The best laid plans, huh, DB? What an intense episode. I can't believe Maya had the presence of mind to leave the CSIs so many clues to follow. Her wedding ring. Paint flecks. Tire tread marks. I would have been a total blubbering wreck. -- When Shaw was strangling Jared, I kept expecting Paul to pop up from being shot and clock him over the head. I did not expect Paul to shoot Shaw. -- What Crawford lacks in personality, he makes up for in a kindness Brass never really showed. -- I'm glad Shaw was not really Paul's partner in crime, but a pawn, trading DB's daughter for the life of his own. -- Wait, Paul got away, despite Maya shooting him??

**(Chicago Fire, S3E11 Let Him Die) I'm not sure what was up with Brett wanting Mills to let one of their captors die rather than save him. She seemed pretty adamant though. I'm not completely convinced those guys worked for Lulo, though. -- I really hope Mills doesn't move in on Cruz's territory with Brett, because he seems to be giving some signals. However, as much as I want Cruz to be with Brett, I don't think he should have let her call that shady guy using his phone. That's all he needs associated with him. -- Because having breathing problems isn't enough for Baby Boden, they need to worry about brain damage from oxygen deprivation too. -- If Dawson is willing to walk out on her relationship instead of working on it, she probably *shouldn't* be marrying Casey. Marriage means you stay and fight for your relationship. -- And another explosion. One that looked kind of intentional, if you ask me, given the contents of that storage locker.

**(Grey's Anatomy, S11E2 Puzzle With a Piece Missing) I like the comparison between medicine and puzzles. I also like getting to know Maggie. It makes her more sympathetic than "just the new doctor who won't give Mer a chance." -- Made me laugh right out loud, because, actually, yeah. ... Maggie: I'm sorry, is everyone in this room somehow related? -- Richard [to Maggie about Mer]: I think she's more than you bargained for. But I think when the world gives you more than you bargained for, you usually end up glad you got it.

**(The Middle, S6E10 Pam Freakin' Staggs) Hooray! A Devin Levin appearance! And I love that Axl was the one chasing her. He's actually pretty cute and sweet, when his ego is in check. -- Mike: This hose water is really making the coffee taste weird. -- Devin Levin. Pam Staggs. What is with the Hecks calling everyone by their first and last names? -- Pam Staggs was annoying. How, exactly, was she one of "the popular kids" from Frankie's high school? Is this what happens to the popular kids after graduation and a dose of real life?

**(Person of Interest, S4E11 If-Then-Else) Mr Reese: Sorry, I'm busy making death threats to Samaritan operatives. ... Never change, Mr Reese. Never ever change. -- Mr Finch: What's the point in saving the world if you cant enjoy it? ... Indeed. -- I'm always amused that Root's "thing" is that she gets to have two guns when the bullets fly. -- T didn't care for the format of this episode, how it showed The Machine looking for the best possible scenario to direct the team. The back-and-forth and the replaying of the lead-in scene started to annoy him. It didn't bother me so much, once I knew what it was doing...and I recovered from thinking Mr Finch was dead. After that, it was kind of fun for me. Especially the scene where, to save time in the thought process, The Machine just had the team say things like "witty banter" or "biting retort," instead of actually creating lines for them to say. I also enjoyed the time travel back to when Mr Finch was teaching The Machine about infinite choices by playing a game of chess. -- Of all the crazy possible scenarios The Machine played out, the Fusco-Root kiss was my favorite. Never saw it coming and I laghed so hard. -- Is Shaw really dead??

**(Grey's Anatomy, S11E3 Got to Be Real) Jo: I am a doctor. I am a surgeon. I deserve respect. Stephanie: You're a girl in her pajamas with her ear to the door of a bathroom. How much respect can anyone give you right now? -- Yeah, because if Callie and Arizona are having entirely separate conversations about their individual work lives, wrapped up in themselves and not remotely hearing the other, things aren't going to go terribly awry once they start seriously trying to add a baby to the family. /sarcasm -- Things I would like to do: Slap Mer for being a brat about about Derek's decision to stay in Seattle. Slap Amelia for being a brat about Derek's decision to stay in Seattle. -- Alex isn't Cristina, but I like what he offers Mer as her new Person. -- It was heartbreaking to listen to Owen talk about Cristina and how she lit up his darkness. -- Alex has grown up. I hate that they have to choose between Alex and Bailey, because I think they could both be valuable assets as board members. -- Meredith [voice over, closing monologue]: Vulnerability isn't the opposite of  the strength, It's the necessary part. We have to force ourselves to open up, to expose ourselves, to offer up everything we have and just pray that it's good enough, otherwise we'll never succeed.

**(Grey's Anatomy, S11E4 Only Mama Knows) Young Richard and Ellis were not...visually convincing. -- This is the second time they've used the analogy of a side road as a method for making a medical procedure work. -- I wonder if there's a chance Mer and  Maggie will warm up to each other at some point. -- Meredith [voice over, closing monologue]: They say we can repress our memories. I wonder if we're just keeping them safe somewhere. Because no matter how painful they are, they are our most valuable possessions. "Our lives are built on our mistakes as much as our successes." They made us who we are. -- I wonder what Richard was thinking as he watched Mer and Maggie, side by side, over Ellis's journal. That maybe there was still a chance for him to know Maggie? That watching those two grow up might have been his life?

**(Grey's Anatomy, S11E5 Bend and Break) I miss the day when the opening and closing monologue voice overs were only Mer. Now I have to think too hard about whose voice I'm hearing. -- I just don't much care for the "on a break" solution for exactly the reasons Callie listed. -- The timeline's back and forth wasn't always very clear. I don't know if I just missed the notation of which day we were on in the Arizona-Callie Break or if they only bothered to show it every other timeline switch. -- So Callie and Arizona are, presumably, over. I'm kind of tired of all their whiny behavior anyway.

**(The Big Bang Theory, S8E12 The Space Probe Disintegration) Sheldon: If you want to live with Penny, I think you should. Leonard: You really mean that? Sheldon: Yes, just put on your squeaky shoes and eee-eee-eee right out of my life. -- I appreciated Raj's views on how one can be a scientist but still have a strong faith. -- Wow. Big step forward for Sheldon, who compromised (yet again! LOL) and "allowed' Penny and Leonard to start living together...one night a week...with him sleeping on the couch.

**(Modern Family, S6E11 The Day We Almost Died) I don't know which part of the Dunpnys post-near-accident revelations was funnier: Alex thinking Haley was going to hug her, wailing how "I almost lost you!" and going on a girls' day that led to her walking in painful shoes and sporting facial rashes in all the places she was waxed. Or Cam wondering if Phil was, maybe, sexy.

**(Mom, S2E9 Godzilla and a Sprig of Mint) How do Christy and Bonnie have an upstairs neighbor in their building when their apartment has an upstairs? -- Awww, I was hoping Christy had found a sweet guy to date. But if there was going to be a deal breaker with him, though, I wasn't going to guess he was into kinky bedroom stuff. Namely pretending to be a dog. -- Christy [singing as she escapes Andy's apartment]: I'm alone, I'm alone, I'm alone, but I'm not murdered! ... LOL

**(The McCarthys, S1E9 Sister Act) Ronny: Per usual we are embracing change with grace and dignity. -- Jackie's belly is all over the place in size. They really can't show these episodes out of order without it being completely obvious. -- [phone rings] Gerard [checking the phone]: No caller id? [answering] Who's this? ... That is my dream phone answering etiquette. If only it were acceptable.

**(A to Z, S1E11 K Is for Keep Out) That was a lot of people in the bathroom in that opening scene. -- I'm somewhat impressed that they showed Stephie and Joseph looking realistically sleep-rumpled. You know, like people actually look in the morning, rather than hair perfectly styled and makeup intact. -- Who surprised who? Andrew thought he was surprising Zelda with *his* new apartment, so they could finally have alone time...and somehow she thought that this was a great place for *them* to live together...surprise! -- Awww! Stephie and Stu made some alone time for Andrew and Zelda. They really are good, if needy. best friends. And speaking of friends, I think I almost like Big Bird and Lora, after their "girl talk" turned freiendship.

**(Last Man Standing, S4E12 Helen Potts) All the Home Improvement jokes were spot on and hilarious. 8 long years being with her husband. Amping up appliances and destroying their home. The conversation at the fence. -- Oh look. Kristin is here to do laundry at her parents' house. ::eye roll:: -- Mike: Right is tight. Left is you don't know what you're doing. ... ::snicker:: -- Confession: I totally teared up when they showed Ed helping the vets fill out paperwork and Eve realizing you didn't have to be in combat to be a war hero. -- Randy from Kristin's old restaurant is Helen Potts' son?? Please, oh please, let them both be recurring characters!

**(Sleepy Hollow, S2E12 Paradise Lost) Despite the fact that he appeared a bit loony for parts of it, I have to agree with Ichabod at the farmers market. I think we're way too busy, sometimes, searching for "the next greatest thing," often to our own detriment. There are just some things that don't need to be changed, because the further you get from the original, the more damage is being done. -- Interesting how, when talking to Abbie about Abraham, he takes the stance of "beneath the monster is a man," but when discussing Abraham with Katrina, he insists that Abraham is pure evil. -- Katrina appears to have expanded her wardrobe from her bustier to include a snugly fitting sheer top. -- I am not sure how I feel about the addition of Orion. It seems silly to consider him "over the top" in a show filled to the brim with demons and the supernatural. I will say that he has some startlingly intense eyes, and his desire to destroy the Horseman of Death is certainly going to create a conflict of interest with Katrina. Katrina's emotional investments in Henry and Abraham are turning her into a liability. -- I suspect this may not be the last we've seen of Orion. And I wonder how sparing Abraham's life is going to play out for Abbie and Ichabod. -- I KNEW IT!! I knew Irving wasn't going to be gone from the story. Seems few people are ever *really* dead on this show.

**(Elementary, S3E9 The Eternity Injection) Watson: So, how are you doing? Sherlock: Beg your pardon? Watson: How *are* you? Sherlock: Well, my heart rate is normal for a man my age, and my blood pressure is good to excellent, the last time I checked. You know better than to ask me such a nonspecific question. ... LOL! I love when he cracks wise. -- Time dialtion drugs? Is this for real? -- That was a moving explanation Sherlock gave Watson about why he's been so down in the dumps lately. -- LOL: Reveille on the bugle played by Sherlock for Watson after she spent the night and his gleeful admission that he missed rousing her. And then when she asked if he was going to wake Kitty, his indignant "Of course not. I am a courteous housemate." -- When they stumbled upon Mr Connaughton in his bed, under the influence of his time dilation drug, his rapid and exaggerated eye movement was way creepy.

**(Grey's Anatomy, S11E6 Don't Let's Start) I like that they allow April to look in control and efficient when she runs the ER. They went out of their way to make her look flaky and ruled too much by emotion for so long that it undermined the fact that she *is* a doctor. -- Ewww! I was NOT prepared for the geyser of blood when Owen performed the emergency laparotomy in the ER on that carjacking victim. -- Are we supposed to feel bad for Arizona, that her marriage is ending and her fellowship mentor(?) is berating her at every turn? Because...I don't. -- I like that Owen pulled military rank on the carjacked veteran to help her, since it was probably the only way she would accept the help she needed and deserved. -- Derek Shepherd. Family matchmaker. -- Sometimes I don't recognize this new Alex Karev. I like him. I like that Alex has grown up, quietly, under the radar. -- It's been a long while since Mer-Der sexytimes caused anyone to lose track of time. -- Whoa. Dr Herman (Geena Davis) has terminal brain cancer. Did not see that coming. -- True for more than just doctors: "You don't know the secrets the body in front of you holds." -- What was with the fades to grainy black and white at pivotal moments in the episode? Is this a thing we're doing now?

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This Week on My TV: January 3, 2015

Disclaimer: Consider the fact that there could be spoilers ahead. You read at your own risk!



**(Madam Secretary, S1E11 Game On) Russell: You know the manifest said Marsh was on his way to Caracas on his last flight. Maybe you can finish what he started. Elizabeth: What's that? Russell: Actually land. ... Russell is a Major League Jerk. -- LOL: All of Elizabeth's terrible baseball puns when greeting the famous Venezuelan baseball player who is accompanying them on their diplomatic trip to the hostile-to-the-States president. -- I love the way Henry is sweet, thoughtful, and romantic with Elizabeth. I still do not love Stevie the brat, the way she is acting toward Elizabeth, and whatever that move was with Alison and the boyfriend while Stevie was in charge during the trip. -- That baseball player made moves on Blake?! That whole exchange was unexpected and comical. -- What the heck is going on with that Marsh account? Forty million dollars emptied from the account the day after he died? I do feel a little bad for Nadine though. She clearly thought Marsh was in love with her and has been thrown for a huge loop by all the discoveries of the secrets he kept from her. -- I didn't care for the dress Elizabeth wore at the start of the episode (looked too 1980s matronly), but I loved that navy blue pinstriped button down shirt she wore near the end. -- It was just a matter of time until Russell learned about Elizabeth's investigation into Marsh's death. But if it wasn't Russell and the President...then who? -- What on earth is the real story of Marsh's murder?? Could it really be a larger scale global political plot?

**(Scandal, S4E9 Where the Sun Don't Shine) I found the way they jumped around, both from topic and scene, and within time, extremely confusing. I'm sure it was intentional for effect, but it wasn't...my favorite. -- I loved Maya's reaction when Olivia listed the charges that should be made against her and telling them to take Maya to prison, instead of "handling things." -- Lizzie Bear: There's a special place in hell for women who don't support other women. Olivia: There's a special place in hell for women who spout that tired quote to justify their bad behavior. -- It was just a matter of time before those photos of Cyrus and Michael were used. I almost feel bad for Cyrus. He clearly loved James, and the only spin Olivia can give this to make it go away is "a love story" where he marries Michael. So his options are to be ripped apart by the media scandal or to marry someone he doesn't love and dishonor the dead love of his life. -- I will never understand Quinn's love life. -- LOL: The amused expression on the face of the security guard at the law firm when Quinn scanned in with the fingerprint of an old man, as it showed on his computer screen. Using just the man's finger. Also, about Quinn: she's looking old. -- Quinn sees the kill card Charlie is carrying, confronts him with it, and all he can say is "Oh...crap." LOL -- I don't know how Olivia didn't scream when she came home to find Rowan sitting at her table, helping himself to a glass of wine. What a scene between them though. From her grabbing his gun and then pulling the trigger, discovering it wasn't loaded, and him freaking out that she would actually shoot him. -- LOL, Mellie is back. ... Mellie [to Lizzie Bear]: Because we're both screwing Andrew? That doesn't make us friends. It just makes us both at risk for the same STDs. -- What a gut punch for Olivia, walking up to see Abby in Fitz's office with him and Cy, laughing and having a drink. That used to be her place. Her entire world, as she once knew it, has now ceased to exist. -- I felt that same level of bewilderment Jake had all over his face when he came back to the living room to find Liv vanished without a sound, the only trace: her spilled glass of wine on the couch. Oh, Mr VP, what did you do???

**(CSI, S15E6 The Twin Paradox) I've always felt like CSI was at its best when it does a serial killer arc. The Gig Harbor Killer story is further proof of that. I like the suspense and the slow accrual of facts that aren't tied up with a tidy bow at the end of the hour. I have to admit I never saw the connection between Paul and Mark Valley's character, Shaw, coming!

**(The Mentalist, S7E5 The Silver Briefcase) To gain entry into a house where a murder had taken place, Patrick and Lisbon pretended to be house hunting. This prompted a conversation between me and T whether or not we could ever buy a house we loved if a murder had taken place there. -- Ever since they became an item, Lisbon has stopped giving Patrick a hard time about his consultant tactics. -- When Wylie was trying to take the scarf that was tied to the homeless person's tent, I kept waiting for the inhabitant to accost him from out of the bushes. -- With all their discussion about how they could "just pack up and leave" and what they would do if they left the FBI, I wonder if that's how they're going to play the end of this show.

**(Mike and Molly, S5E4 Gone Cheatin') Equating Victoria's cheating to a cell plan was really well orchestrated. -- After some initial resistance, I think Carl and Victoria's relationship is growing on me. Carl is really good to her. -- ::shudder:: Vince and the "apple juice."

**(Chicago Fire, S3E8 Chopper) Of course Boden's and Donna's pregnancy is in jeopardy. He works for the Cursed Firehouse. Why would it go smoothly? -- Awkward: Casey and Dawson listening to Severide and Brittany's bedroom antics. -- I can't imagine searching a neighborhood, looking for pieces of a helicopter that came apart and fell randomly on people from the sky. Where do you even start? I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it. -- There sure are a lot of explosions on this show. -- Brittany shows up too many places. She's very needy and very dependent and something is just...up with her. -- Too much tension all at once. Casey trying to pull the kid out of his own blood pool before it reaches the live power line and electrocutes them both. Severide in the chopper, releasing the two passengers trapped inside, as the lines holding it fray and the ledge it's teetering on crumbles. Brett treating a criminal who pulls a gun on her. -- "This goes no further,"my behind. Now everyone thinks Cruz and Brett are together when that's not at all what the real secret is... OMG. They *do* know the truth! And all showed up for class. LOL! That is awesome and hilarious. -- Uh, Brett? When someone is following you while you're driving, especially after you had a run in earlier with a guy who is clearly shady and combative, why would you pull into a deserted alley instead of driving to the police station or back to the firehouse or *anywhere* public?? -- Awww, it's a boy for Boden.

**(Chicago Fire, S3E9 Arrest in Transit) I think it's time we learn Brittany's real story. -- Brett, you fool! Cruz is a good guy! GO ON A DATE. -- Dawson needs to remember her professionalism when she and Casey are on duty. As soon as they are on the clock, she is the candidate and he is the boss. End of story. And she needs to stop having moments with Mills as a result of having her pride smacked down by a necessary reprimand. -- Mouch: Guys, I don't know what happened. I was just being friendly, asking about glass eyes, which is a bonafide interest of mine, and all of a sudden, I have a date. ... LOL at Mouch. An unintentional dating dilemma with his eye doctor when he's already dating Trudy, and his interest in glass eyes. -- Nothing like having a mob boss ticked off at you because his son died on the way to the hospital from "secondary drowning," huh, Mills? -- Good lesson for Dawson and Casey, seeing the man run into a burning building for his wife, and hearing Herrmann say he would do anything for Cindy, no matter what happened to him. -- I don't get why Brittany facing her parents after the guilt of driving the car in the accident that killed her sister means that she and Severide are over. If she goes to Florida to see her parents, is there some rule that says she can't ever return to Chicago?

**(Chicago Fire, S3E10 Santa Bites) So Mills gets to go from a mob boss being ticked at him to Casey's cold shoulder because he walked in on Mills holding Dawson's hand in a moment of friendly comfort. Not the best day. -- It bothers me that Donna was mad that Boden was against hyphenating the baby's last name, saying he didn't even give it some thought, when she had already clearly made up her mind on the subject and was just expecting him to go along with it. The man has a right to his own feelings on whether or not he wants his child to have a hyphenated version of his last name. No rule says a woman must always get her way. -- Oh, Casey, you naughty boy. A night of (assumed) indiscretion and suddenly you're all ready to let bygones be with Dawson? -- Predictability: Molly's 2 was going to have something to do with filling that boot for the chaplain and his soup kitchen. Casey and Dawson were going to end up on the rocks. -- On that token, things I *didn't* see coming: Mob boss maybe wasn't sincere in telling Mills he was no longer blaming him for the loss of his son. The guy started the fire that nearly killed his wife. The food truck would be donated to the chaplain to use as a rolling soup kitchen. Donna would be the one to "give in" on the hyphenated last name. -- Speaking of Donna, I thought her pregnancy was high risk, something to do with her placenta and potentially hemorrhaging out? So how is it that she delivered the baby in the fire truck without issue and the problem is with the baby having aspirated meconium, with no mention or concern whatsoever about Donna's risk?

**(CSI, S15E7 Road to Recovery) I wonder if that's true, that the refractory pattern of a diamond is or can be its "fingerprint" that can be used to identify it? I take this show with a grain of salt, since I am reasonable about the fact that they often need to be creative for the purposes of entertainment, but that doesn't stop my curiosity on how much is realistic. -- Nick sure had a predisposition about the rehab charging $8000/week. Turns out it had nothing to do with the case. -- My first guess was the husband, but the guy who was in rehab so he wouldn't lose his kids was my second guess, because he immediately seemed like the least obvious person to attack the victim. I've seen a lot of CSI.

**(CSI, S15E8 Rubbery Homicide) I'll say this: the fact that this show is based in Vegas means they can go in some truly strange directions with cases. These rubber doll suits are unnerving. Especially when they were all crowding around Greg, staring and leaning in. -- Greg: What made you think I was a cop? Interviewee: Please. There's thirty one flavors of freak in here. In walks Mr Vanilla, scanning the place, like some kind of Nordic Terminator? -- I would have guessed the son was the killer, not the daughter, and I certainly never saw her motive coming.

**(CSI, S15E9 Let's Make a Deal) I totally understood Greg's revulsion about all the germs in the medical module at the jail. Yuck. -- It seems that prison politics are very complicated.  Who's ratting out who, and who has the power and why. -- I have to admit I laughed when the FBI suddenly wanted to work with LVPD, after refusing to work together initially, when LVPD cracked their case in a way that jeopardized the FBI's hunt for a dirty detective. -- The guy who ended up committing the murder had my pity. I would have struggled to find him guilty after learning that he had been raped as a nine-year-old child by the man he later killed. -- Is it me or does George Eads look thinner lately? -- Wow. I never would have guessed that Nick had a secret in his past, that he too had been assaulted as a boy. I wonder if that will tie into his departure at the end of the season?

**(Once Upon a Time, S4E10 Fall) The Shattered Sight Curse is the coolest looking of all the curses inflicted on Storybrooke. -- LOL: The pirates vs wizards debate. "Pirates are better because they can be bought." -- Regina: Look at this mess. A good mayor checks that these things are kept up to code. Mary Margaret: Yeah, well, if the mayor only has to worry about one villain, and it's *herself*, that frees up a lot of time for infrastructure. -- Regina: I should know better than to trust blondes by now. -- Anna [to Hans]: You rolled around in gold bars? Weird. And ouch. -- This show takes crazy timelines to a whole new level. Anna and Kristoff and Arendelle were frozen by Ingrid for thirty years? And the trunk scene is happening now, at the same time Emma and Elsa are searching for Anna? -- Anna [to Elsa, upon Anna seeing Storybrooke for the first time]: What a funny looking world. ... Finally!! I was wondering why no one ever verbalized that about Storybrooke before, after arriving here from Fairy Tale. -- Nothing like having to save everyone while toting a newborn baby around, huh, Emma?

**(Sleepy Hollow, S2E11 The Akeda) LOL at Ichabod after taking a motorcycle ride: "I want one of these as soon as this is over!" -- When Ichabod was insisting that Abraham tell them where Moloch was located or he'd run him through with Methusalah's sword, I started to get annoyed. The man/demon HAS NO HEAD. He cannot *tell* them *anything*. Good thing for Katrina's amulet and magic witch powers that allowed Abraham to have a head for everyone. -- "All magic comes with a price"...? Who's been watching Once Upon a Time? -- I really feel for Ichabod, walking in to hear Katrina talking to Abraham. No matter how much he loves her, he's a human being and all her other betrayals has to make her "sweet nothings" nearly unbearable. She had that outburst from him coming. Although he *does* call her "my love" when they're in the church with Henry so... -- Bloody hail. Oh how I love a good play on words. (Say it out loud. I couldn't stop giggling.) -- I'm glad they finally figured out that they needed less run-of-the-mill weaponry to execute this planned attack. -- I think it's amusing that Katrina is fighting the apocalypse in a bustier. -- I want to be sad that Irving is dead, but I'm never sure when something like that is actually permanent in this show. -- Abbie: Don't thank me yet. You haven't heard my plan. ... At least she's honest. -- Twice, I expected a scene to be the midseason finale cliffhanger: when Irving lay dying and when Henry grabbed Methuselah's sword and turned it on the witnesses. I never expected him to use it on Moloch. So... now what? If he turns to the side of good, the show is essentially over. Does he plan on taking over all of Hell?

**(Once Upon a Time, S4E11 Shattered Sight) As a WDW frequenter, I immediately associated Madame Faustina as a veiled nod to Madame Leota. -- Madame Faustina [looking for payment for her reading]: And how will you express your gratitude? Ingrid: Thank you. -- The concept of the Shattered Sight Curse is actually rather scary when you consider it. Each of us acting like and seeing one another as the worst versions of ourselves, until we finally turn on each other. All the snarking between characters, though, was making me laugh. -- Regina [affected by the spell and seeing her Storybrooke style]: What the hell am I wearing? -- Emma [seeing Regina's Fairy Tale attire for the first time]: How do you walk in that thing? Regina: With the poise and composure of a queen. -- Hook [after Henry calls him a dirty pirate]: Dirty? I bathe quite frequently, thank you very much. ... I'd go with you, Hook. (Ahem.) -- Henry's marble move: right out of Home Alone! -- The "memory magic" from Arendelle was kinda cheesy. -- LOL: The guy in the streets of Storybrooke, trying to catch snowflakes on his tongue after the Shattered Sight Curse was undone...Dopey, I presume? -- Now what are we going to do with Gold and his plan to escape Storybrooke, free himself from the power of the dagger, and kill Hook? Because...no.

**(CSI, S15E10 Dead Rails) Zoe "knew Jimmy but hadn't seen him in years"? She looks barely 18! -- Kind of a meh episode. Billiards and hustling. The woman who accidentally hit Jimmy was the same one who thought she'd killed him the first time. Nothing all that inventive or shocking. In fact, the most shocking thing was that Crawford showed a hint of personality.

**(CSI, S15E11 Angle of Attack) Victims hit by cars in back to back episodes? (I wonder how many people would have caught that though. I'm watching DVR backlog and just finished the previous episode.) -- What the heck? A runaway, jet-propelled flying suit? A captain with a seizure whose brain just started bleeding out of his head? What is going on in the Air Force? -- Well, I did not see the motive coming in this one. I thought it was the wife, not the man Captain Holland was secretly involved with.

**(CSI, S15E12 Dead Woods) I do like that we're getting more personal details about the crew. Last time, Nick, this time, Sara. -- I keep wondering if this was an actual revisit to an old CSI case?I swear I remember a similar type story line from a show I watched in the past. -- I knew it! I knew that taxidermy guy was involved the second they showed up in his shop.

**(Elementary, S3E1 Enough Nemesis to Go Around) LOL: The reunion between Sherlock and Watson at the brownstone, when Watson was there looking at Sherlock's books and stumbled upon him back there, wearing a strange helmet. -- I'm almost afraid to put this into actual words, for fear it won't last, but they may have actually fixed the volume issue with this show. I didn't feel the need to crank up the volume on the tv to the point that I was concerned I'd damage the television's speakers, in order to understand what they were saying. -- I didn't pick up on it the first time Watson and Kitty met, in the park, but the second Watson's "stalker" popped up, following her, I strongly suspected she was Sherlock's new protege. I also knew that when Watson disappeared around that street corner, she'd noticed she was being trailed and would be lying in wait to confront her. -- I'm glad they didn't drag out whether or not Joan was going to allow Sherlock to resume working with the police department. But despite her agreement, I'm also glad they are still on somewhat stiff, strictly professional terms. It feels...real. -- Did Sherlock seriously bring Watson a pack of hangers as a housewarming gift? -- What a weird vague exchange between Watson and Kitty, about how they came to be who and where they are now.

**(Elementary, S3E2 The Five Orange Pipz) It's interesting to watch Sherlock and Watson navigate their new dynamic, of working in the same circle, sharing ideas, but not working as a team. -- I'm with Joan. Kitty is kind of an annoying addition. I think that may be the point, but still. Even if she has a sympathetic backstory. -- The first two episodes of this season, the cases seemed to have taken a backseat to the adjustment of the dynamic between Sherlock, Watson, and Kitty. I like that. This show has always been at its best when the case-of-the-week is a vehicle for delving into and advancing the interpersonal relationships of the characters. -- Now I wanna know what was in the Kitty file Watson was reading.

**(Elementary, S3E3 Just a Regular Irregular) Phil Simms! Secret professional knife thrower! LOL!! -- LOL: Beka's face when she handed Sherlock a dog treat, to make friends with her dog, and he took a bite of it. -- Three episodes in, now, and I'm almost convinced that they truly have corrected the low volume issues of the two previous seasons. -- So Kitty was a rape victim that was abducted and held prisoner. I'm curious how choosing this as her backstory will define her character. -- Sherlock has come a long way. He realized he'd hurt Harlan's feelings, when HE had thought Sherlock considered him a friend, then stopped using his services as a math consultant, Sherlock not only recognized it, but went the extra mile to mend the relationship.

**(Elementary, S3E4 Bella) LOL: Sherlock in a mind game with a doll that speaks for an artificial intelligence. -- Did Joan tell Kitty to use the fire extinguisher on Sherlock if he started destroying things?! -- The relationship between Sherlock and Watson has matured into *exactly* the type I had hoped. Mutual respect. Equals. Genuine understanding and affection. Witty banter. No romance. -- Interesting. No real resolution to the case! The only show that ever seems to toy with this outcome is Law and Order.

**(Once Upon a Time, S4E12 Heroes and Villains) When Hook refused to do Gold's dirty work and asked "what are you going to do about it?" since, you know, Gold has already promised to kill Hook when he's done with him anyway, I had to nod in agreement. I've often wondered why people just comply. -- Every time I see the Fantasia broom, I giggle. -- LOL: Henry calling Belle "Grandma." -- The flashback of Belle getting lured away by a Dalmation and captured by Cruella De Vil was...odd. -- I knew it was too easy for Regina that Robin picked her. Of course he has to cross the one-way line at the edge of Storybrooke and be (potentially) gone forever, in order to save Marian from the frozen curse. Broke my heart for Regina. -- And so we say goodbye to the Frozen portion of the story. It wasn't as contrived as I feared it might have been. -- For the sake of continuity, I have to ask: When we met Ariel, Regina was Ursula. So why is Ursula someone else now? -- The scene when the stars in the sky started to line up with the stars in the Sorcerer's Hat was impressive. Most of the CGI in this show makes me roll my eyes, but a couple of times now, recently, they've actually done some visually appealing stuff. -- Oh, thank God, Hook has been spared. I would have been devastated. -- I never saw it coming that Belle would discover that Gold had been keeping the real dagger from her and would use it not only to stop his evil plan but to banish him forever. What an excellent twist. -- Emma shows up at Granny's Diner and pulls up at the counter next to Regina, who is mourning the loss of Robin, and offers to do shots with her. Since when is Granny's also a bar?! -- I love love LOVE where they are taking this story. Henry stumbling upon The Author's room of blank books, and showing it to Emma and Regina. And Gold, now in New York City, tracking down Ursula, Maleficent, and Cruella, for some master plot. Heroes and Villains and Happy Endings, here we come!

**(Elementary, S3E5 Rip Off) Sherlock: Paranoia is the byproduct of being consistently right. You should aspire to it. -- All the test dummies hanging around the brownstone cracked me up. -- I wonder if Sherlock will ever confront Watson about the book she was writing about him. -- Captain Gregson has a daughter? Who is a police officer? And it's taken this long for her to be revealed?

**(Elementary, S3E6 Terra Pericolosa) Sherlock [to Watson, after she offers a few too mnay opinions about Kitty]: Get your own protege, Watson. -- I couldn't get into the maps story, but I'm enjoying Sherlock's growth and character evolution, the new dynamic between Sherlock and Watson, and the normal volume which appears to be here to stay.

**(Elementary, S3E7 The Adventure of the Nutmeg Concoction) Ooo! Missing person case! Nice change of pace from the usual murder. -- Watson: You're scrolling too fast! Sherlock: I'm speed reading. You moved out before we got to that portion of your training. -- LOL: horizontal refreshment as a euphemism for intercourse. That ranks right up there with coitus. -- Because of course Sherlock has a "smell guy" he knows only as The Nose. -- Actors who formerly played bad guys on other shows always make me unjustifiably suspicious when they appear in another show I watch. In this case, Christian Camargo, who played the Icetruck Killer on the first season of Dexter.

**(A to Z, S1E10 J Is for Jan Vaughan) Andrew is so stinking cute "tooting" after saying "not to toot my own horn." (To clarify, he actually said "toot!" in a high voice.) -- It was pretty hilarious to watch Andrew and Zelda compete at matchmaking for their best friends. -- I called Stephie and Stu "reconnecting" during their sadness over their respective relationships imploded. -- Zelda with the zinger, asking "Should I come to the window and watch?" when Andrew thinks he's about to get in major trouble at work. -- Awww! Zelda's new beau brought her $420 worth of flowers, after he accused her of stealing his $420 when he slipped away to buy them breakfast and she misunderstood, thinking he'd slipped out and left her money because she was a hooker.

**(Elementary, S3E8 End of Watch) Sherlock: I'm not a man prone to sharing my secrets. ... This is the sort of sentiment I can really appreciate. -- I'm starting to wonder if they will ever fix the brownstone to any extent. It's shabbiness is particularly depressing. -- I like that Sherlock takes protecting sobriety, both his own and his fellow AA attendants', so seriously.

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2014: Wishlist Reprise

Let's see how I did on my 2014 Wishlist, shall we?

1. I think I want to work on acquiring my passport. I don't have any plans to leave the country or anything, but I like being able to show a form of id that isn't my social security card. Not so much. I don't even have a good reason, other than I mostly forgot about it, and the few times it crossed my mind, I was doing something like sitting in an airplane or waiting in line at Disney, and couldn't actually act on the thought...and then I forgot about it, again.

2. Last year's goal of commenting on ten blog posts per day ended up feeling a bit out of reach in practice. I think I will shoot for three to start. Fail. I was perpetually three weeks behind on reading and too self-conscious to "admit that openly" by commenting when I read.

3. I *will* be current on my feed reader, within two to three days. A couple of times, I got within two weeks...and then it slipped away again.

4. I'd like to try for at least one new recipe each month. We missed two out of ten months, but totaled twenty new recipes, so I count this as a success!

5. Lest I bite off more than I can chew again, I think, perhaps, completing one Pinterest project each season is a good place to start. I really just wasn't into using Pinterest for project collection in 2014. It was really more just a place for me to gather ideas for home decorating.

6. This year's reading goal: forty books! I made it to 34, but, in my defense, two of those books were in the +700 page category, which should count as two books, in my humble opinion, so that number really would have been 36. I knew I was pushing it with 40, but how else do we challenge ourselves, if not by seeing just how far we can reach?

7. I'd like to complete another photo-a-day project, but I think I'd like to try out my own format this year... Wild success. I didn't miss a single day! And I loved the format I created for myself.

8. Find some "things" to hang on the walls in our house. I hesitate to say "artwork," because I feel like that indicates paintings or something. I don't think that's my taste, for the most part. But I love the few things we've put up so far and I want to find some more things to dress up our empty walls. I've gathered some ideas but I have yet to pull the trigger. Mostly due to the expense. I need to start thinking of it in terms of baby steps. I don't need them all at once. At least I know what I'd like now!

9. I *will* tackle my old nemesis: The Stack of Magazines. I'm done seeing this on my list. Done, I tell you! I managed to stay current, as in there are currently no 2014 issues hanging around. They were all browsed, ideas were collected or used, and then went promptly into recycling when the next month's issue arrived. It's the backlog that's taunting me still. I'm telling myself that the pile didn't grow, even if it went down less than I hoped. 

10. I'm not sure how lofty I can make this goal, but I'd like to scan in...oh...a hundred of my old photos? The final tally was 41. It took longer than I anticipated, mostly because I didn't factor in any editing. I'm pleased with what I accomplished though.

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Snapshot from Along the Broken Road: December 2014

1) A photo of me:


2) Candle scents* this month:
Cinnamon Caramel Swirl (Bath and Body Works). Cranberry Pear. Moonlight Harvest. Amber Glow. Pumpkin Ginger Bark. Cider Web. Fresh Balsam (Bath and Body Works). Caramel Pecan Pie. Red Berry and Cedar. Winter (Bath and Body Works). Farmhouse Apple. Vanilla Snowflake (Bath and Body Works). White Christmas. Luscious Plum. Mandarin Cranberry. Candy Cane Lane. Christmas Eve. Sparkling Pine. Holiday Bayberry. Mistletoe. Jack Frost.

3) What I am reading this month (you can find me on Goodreads!):
The Sun Also Rises (Ernest Hemingway) - It's funny, to me, to read books considered classics and wonder, a little, how they got to be such. The book was easy enough to read, although I find Hemingway's style to be a bit clipped and abrupt in its delivery, but it gets on my nerves a little when the characters repeat themselves within the same conversation. His choice of simple text leaves it clear what is being conveyed, so the repetition seems to serve no real purpose. I guess I also prefer there to be some sort of plot, and this was the sort of story that is just like jumping into and out of the lives of these characters for just the duration of the book, without any real point or resolution. There is also something just generally unlikable about this particular generation, at least as they are portrayed in literature. Much as I felt while reading "The Great Gatsby," I didn't find a single character I liked, even in passing moments.
The Diplomat's Wife (Pam Jenoff) - Such a great story. The characters were likable. The story sucked me right in. A little bit love story, a little bit spy mission. I got a sneaking sense, fairly early on, about a key factor in the story, which proved correct, but there were at least two twists I never saw coming. This book was easy to read, difficult to put down, sad to see end, and successfully immersed me so well in the story, I would find myself trying to read faster and faster during some the more intense scenes.
A Red Herring Without Mustard (Alan Bradley) - Flavia de Luce continues to amuse me. She's such a clever, multi-layered character. I enjoyed the plot of this story, but what I enjoyed more was learning more about Flavia, seeing some softer parts to her thoughts, and getting some more information about Harriet. I do remain confused how their last name is de Luce, presumably from their father, and Buckshaw is the de Luce family home. So...why do they remain in danger of losing Buckshaw, because Harriet didn't leave a will? Apparently they cannot transfer ownership to the Colonel and their financial situation would clearly prevent them from buying it, but why was Harriet, only a de Luce by marriage, the owner of the de Luce ancestral home in the first place? Was this explained in book one and I just missed it?
At Wit's End (Erma Bombeck) - With the crazy pace of the holiday season, I opted for something fairly easy and light. Something I could pick up and put down quickly, and would require minimal brain power.

4) Calendar image for the month:

Oh man, this makes me miss the possibility of a white Christmas.

5) New recipes tried this month:
Cheesecake Pumpkin Pie - Fairly easy and *very* tasty!
Cheesy Sausage Balls - A new recipe T tried for Christmas morning breakfast. We want to tweak this one a little though.
Herbed Potato Gratin - We (and by 'we', I mean T) made these for Christmas dinner. They are labor-intensive (so weekends or holidays only, for us, at least) and there is not a single healthy thing about them, but they are super delicious!

6) Restaurants where I ate:
Metro Burger Bar (or something like that?) - it was this counter you sat at that has iPads for ordering and then your food was delivered to your seat within 20 minutes and I wish I remembered anything else about this, but it was late, we had a ton of weather-related delays to deal with, and we had limited time until our connection, so my attention to detail was minimal. Bonefish Grill for our standing New Year's Eve date.

7) Five things I am loving this month:
1. Christmas lights. They make me a perpetual child.
2. Christmas treats. They also make me a perpetual child.
3. Being off work from noon on Christmas Eve until Monday, January 5, and only using three vacation days, thanks to weekends and paid holidays.
4. A Christmas visit from Daniel. Used to be I'd travel west for a few between Christmas and New Year. Now he travels east. It gives me the opportunity to reciprocate all the hospitality he showed me for years!
5. Tracking down the Neige Bubble that I so enjoyed during Food and Wine Fest to be our bubbles for New Year's Eve.

8) Three goals I had this month and three goals for next month:
1. I want to have Christmas in the mail by December 15. (It was the 16th. Close enough.)
2. It's been a long time since I visited the Disney hotels, to see them decorated for Christmas. Too long. (I almost went, but then it was raining, and the thought of traipsing through the rain, back and forth from parking lots to hotels killed my will. Maybe next year.)
3. Tackling my To Do List of odds and ends projects while I am off work from noon December 24 through Sunday, January 4. (All but two items! The DVR was reasonably cleared out -- I'm caught up on everything but Grey's Anatomy and Parenthood -- and whittled away at a good stack of magazines. I weeded out some clutter. I got myself nearly current on my blog reading. The only two things I still need to tackle are the music files/iTunes situation on my new-ish laptop, and getting my new planner set up the way I want it.)

1. Finally get my music files sorted and iTunes loaded onto the laptop.
2. Set up my 2015 planner.
3. Get to WDW at least twice, while the crowds are somewhat lower and the weather is somewhat cooler.

9) The best part of this month and the worst part of this month:
The best: Being at WDW when it's all festive and dressed up for Christmas.
The worst: T coming down with something flu-ish right before New Year's Eve. I hate when he feels poorly.

10) A photo I took this month:


*All scents are Yankee Candle, unless otherwise noted.

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What I Learned in December: 2014

1. I've been using my beloved KitchenAid stand mixer all wrong. Apparently, I should *not* be using the whisk to make cookie dough, but the paddle. The whisk adds too much air to the dough, rather than simply mixing the ingredients. My mistake was born of the fact that I'd used a handheld mixer all my life, and the whisk looks the most like the beaters on a hand mixer! Lesson learned.

2. Yukon Cornelius, on the classic Christmas special, "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer," was not looking for silver or gold. He was prospecting for peppermint! Unfortunately, a scene at the end of the original broadcast was deleted in every subsequent showing, to make room for Santa visiting the Island of Misfit Toys, so the audience never gets the resolution of his search: the peppermint mine he finds near Santa's Workshop! As I read through the Wikipedia page on the special, I learned all sorts of trivia, but that one surprised me the most.


Every month, Chatting at the Sky shares what she learned. Big things and little things. Life lessons from the serious to the silly. I've decided I want to participate. Just another means of capturing who am I along this broken little road called life.

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This Week on My TV: December 27, 2014

Disclaimer: Consider the fact that there could be spoilers ahead. You read at your own risk!



**(Once Upon a Time, S4E8 Smash the Mirror (1)) I have to admit that, while I don't have anything against the Frozen story line, I'm far more intrigued by the parts with the Sorcerer's Hat and Apprentice, and with Regina's search for the author of the book. -- Henry [to Emma]: You always think that pulling away from people will fix your problems, but it never does. -- How does the Dairy Queen (I can't seem to stop thinking of her by that name LOL) not get filthy, traipsing around the forest in those long, sparkly, white gowns? -- Whoa, whoa, whoa. Robin "just had the best...sleep" ever and invited Regina back to his place for some breakfast?! That whole scene was so steamy, it nearly made me blush! -- You would think the residents of Storybrooke would immediately be suspicious of Mr Gold when he offers to help them so willingly, even when they specifically seek him out for it. C'mon, Emma, are you really so desperate to get rid of your magic that you aren't wondering what Gold's plan is and what's ultimately in it for him to help you? -- Regina [who just rushed into the Charmings' home after Emma's magic injured Henry, and Snow says Regina might want to finish buttoning her blouse before going up to see him]: Oh, I was...in a rush to get here. ... Yeah, that's it, Regina. LOL! Truth be told, she *is* a good mom to Henry, though. -- Kristoff: You royals sure go to exhaustive lengths to ignore your issues. -- LOL: Will Scarlet emptying most of a flask into his coffee cup at Granny's Doner. -- When Hook left that voice mail for Emma, telling her that he'd lied to her, because he so desperately wanted to be a better man for her and had made a deal with Gold, and that even if she never wanted to speak to him again that would be ok, because it would mean she was safe, I kinda wanted to hug him. And not (just) because he's...ahem...Hook.

**(Once Upon a Time, S4E9 Smash the Mirror (2)) Famous last words on Once Upon a Time: don't worry, everything will be fine. -- Girl talk between Snow and Regina = weird. -- Regina [to Snow and Charming]: This may be the worst idea you've ever had, and you hired the Wicked Witch as your nanny. -- Regina [to Snow]: Do you get a quarter from the Hope Commission every time you say that word? -- That was actually a really good conversation between Snow and Regina about hope, redemption, making better choices, heroes vs villains, good vs evil. -- LOL at this conversation in the library. ... Robin: Why would a cat want a hat? Will Scarlet: I've seen stranger. -- I keep getting confused by who is currently in possession of the Sorcerer's Hat. Stupid flashbacks. -- I wonder if we're ever going to meet or see Yensid? -- The Dairy Queen sports some serious bewbs. -- NOOOOOOO!! Give Hook back his heart, Crocodile!! -- I continue to find The Book one of the most fascinating storylines of this show, possibly of all four seasons. I'm more invested in seeing how this plays out than whether or not Elsa finds Anna. -- Well, poo. Dairy Queen has gotten her way, gained her new "magic sisters," and harnessed their magic to launch the Shattered Sight curse.

**(The Mentalist, S7E4 Black Market) I like the tensions between Cho and Vega, after he learned she lied to him. It's true to Cho's character, for one, and for another, he's absolutely right: He has to be able to trust her with his life, and how is he supposed to do that, when he knows she lies? -- Kirk Upton: You think I'm stupid? Cho: Maybe. I don't know you yet. ... Have I mentioned I love Cho? -- I like that we're finally getting a glimpse into Abbott's personal life. It stinks that he and his wife are clearly crazy about one another, and now some secret from a case in his past has to threaten either her career or their marriage. -- I've never seen a corpse cry before (on tv, I mean; I have no experience with actual corpses), but they focused in on the body of Kirk Upton as a tear ran out of his eye. I wonder if that's possible? -- What kind of name is Bibby?? -- Jane is a considerate sick person. After Abbott reaches for a phone the ill Jane had just used, Patrick wipes it off with his sleeve before handing it over. -- Cho [to Vega]: Apology is easy. Trust is earned.

**(Mike and Molly, S5E3 'Tis the Season to Be Molly) I like that they took the humor of Molly wanting everything about Christmas to be her way, and then gave it the sentimentality of her feeling like every Christmas has to be exactly like the last one she had with her dad. That's the element I felt they were lacking last season, when everything was obnoxiously slapstick. -- Vince: I am never running an errand on Christmas Eve again. It's like a holly jolly end of days out there. -- The Christmas carol "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" sure seems to get a lot of use in Christmas shows, movies, and television episodes. I wonder why that one?

**(Reign, S2E9 Acts of War) Good grief, Mary, I though you *liked* Conde. Why would you even suggest marrying him to Claude?? -- Mary's dresses this season have been so hit or miss, disappointing, after how much I loved almost all of the first season's choice in wardrobe. Not a fan of that winter white dress they chose for her, at the beginning of this episode. -- Conde: I feel a creeping sense of unease. Mary: Because you've come to know me. I ask for things. -- Mary's "oh sweet Lord" slayed me, when she was in Claude's room, trying to convince her to marry Conde, and Catherine walked in. -- Ouch. How many times are people going to remind Mary of her infertility when it suits their own purposes? -- It sure doesn't look like wintry enough weather for it to be the Feast of St Nicholas. -- I'm not sure telling Conde what it feels like to be married to the right person, right after she set him up to be engaged to Claude, was a wise move, Mary. -- I wept for Mary as she sat in Catherine's chambers, terrified, broken, crying, after her attack and rape. And I sincerely liked Catherine for the way she handled Mary, cared for her, promised to help her be strong. That was some standing-ovation level acting. -- So heartbreaking to watch Mary tell Francis that she was assaulted. I can't even imagine how it must feel to have to pretend otherwise, publicly, while knowing the truth.

**(Reign, S2E10 Mercy) Even as he tries to be a fearsome king, I find it difficult to take Francis seriously. -- I feel terrible for Mary that she must endure being raped and now hiding it from all but those in her closest circle. -- Poor Greer. Finally realizing she does love Castleroy, only to have him dragged away because he's a Protestant. And then to see him disappear into exile. -- Catherine's guilt over the death of the twins is reaching Henry levels of insanity. I wonder how this will resolve. -- Claude: She hates me, and you're enjoying that, aren't you. Kenna: I'm trying not to, but you're being such a spiteful little shrew. -- This conversation between Conde and  Mary cracked me up. ... Conde: Mary, you're not even armed... [she whips out a dagger] Good Lord! -- Wow. Leith cashed in his I.O.U. with Francis to free Castleroy. That was quite a...declaration of love for Greer? -- O.M.G. Did Catherine just poison Claude to appease the ghosts of her dead twins?! -- That look on Conde's face, when he realized what had happened to Mary made me suspect he was in love with her long before the final scene where Mary read his letter of confession. -- Wait a second. Did Conde break off the engagement to Claude? When the heck did that happen? -- I want to get sucked in and believe that Mary will actually leave Francis, but I'm just not buying it. -- I don't much care for Narcisse being powerless as Francis's puppet. He was far more entertaining (and, um, appealing) with power. -- What. the. Heck. Is up. With Catherine. The illusions, or whatever they are, are a combination of unnerving and ridiculous.

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This Week on My TV: December 20, 2014

Disclaimer: Consider the fact that there could be spoilers ahead. You read at your own risk!



**(Blue Bloods, S5E9 "Under the Gun") Go, Linda, screaming at her mugger to scare him off when he wanted her wedding ring. Her cash and other jewelry, fine, you let that go without a fight, but your wedding ring? I'd have had a difficult time with that as well. -- Wow, you don't see Reagans cash in on "do you know who I am?" very often (hardly ever!), but Linda sure did when it came to getting issued a carry permit for a gun. -- Frank [to Jamie and Erin about the news that Linda was buying a gun and whether he was going to tell Danny]: She wasn't kissing another man in the gun store. She wasn't shop lifting a weapon in the gun store. She was buying a weapon legally in the gun store. It's no body's business but her own and whomever she chooses to share it with. -- I did suspect that the mole was the young assistant at the DA's office that was the mole. Otherwise, why spotlight her in that conversation with Erin about taking the bar?

**(2 Broke Girls, S4E7 "And a Loan for Christmas") I can't believe I was fairly amused by the personalize Christmas cards Han made his employees. Max's with the chainsaw (complete with sound effects from Han!) was the best one. -- Sophie's messed up nativity. I don't even know what to do with that mental image. -- I did like that Max and Caroline got the loan to make their cupcake t-shirts. That was a surprisingly sentimental ending for a show that I can't recall ever having a "soft" moment.

**(CSI, S15E5 "Girls Gone Wilder") I don't think I want to hang out with Sarah, Morgan, and Finn. Every time they do anything as a group, a murder takes place. -- OMG. That "goopy one" the guys got while the girls were at that forensics conference. ::gag:: -- How did Sarah know the shooter was a guy? When I saw the silhouette with the longish hair, first thing I thought was "could that be a woman?" -- Ugh. That Dr Jane expert witness woman was awful. -- I did not expect there to be two shooters, unrelated, but I did think the second shooter was suspicious when we met him. Interesting how their reasons were polar opposites: The first guy was shooting people because he was mad that Dr Jane prevented the imprisonment of the criminal who killed his family was behind bars, claiming there wasn't enough evidence to convict (it was two transposed numbers), and the second guy was a CSI that went to prison because he was a former CSI that "embellished" evidence so that convictions could be made. -- When Morgan was trying to scrub the blood off her hands, all I could think of was every Lady Macbeth reference ever. -- I wonder if Finn and her fling will really try to make some kind of relationship work? And does that mean he would move or would she?

**(The Mentalist, S7E3 "Orange Blossom Ice Cream") What I've learned from watching tv: Businessman is code for "you don't really want to know." -- Hmmm. Beirut isn't a city you see used much in television shows. Nice job by the writers to pick somewhere less used. -- Post head dunking made Patrick very cranky. I don't recall many instances in which he's shown that sort of emotion. --  Such a classic catty dusplay by Erica Flynn, telling Lisbon that she was once romantic with Patrick and then following that with "I shouldnt have said anything, please forgive me." If there's ever anything insincere, it's this sort of statement. She knew *exactly* what she was doing. -- If some irate "businessman" were going to be hunting me down. I would be on a plane tonight, never mind tomorrow. It isn't like the FBI couldn't get Lisbon and Jane out of there state, if they needed to. -- Lisbon is being so childish about Patrick's romantic past! She needs to... OMG, their argument was a setup meant for Erica, and I totally fell for it. -- Wow, Cho is mad at Vega, and worse, disappointed in her for lying to him when she told him Abbott said she could go on their mission.

**(Mike and Molly, S5E2 "To Have and Withhold") It appears that Carl and Victoria are still a (somewhat disturbing) item. -- Molly [to Peggy, about her shelves of "bodice rippers"]: I just assumed these were all westerns.-- The way Molly pounded out pages in her book while at Peggy's, I started to wonder if she had plagiarized from Peggy's collection. -- LOL: Mike and Molly's "handshake and I love you" because Molly can only write when she is...pent up.

**(Reign, S2E8 "Terror of the Faithful") I thought Francis told Mary to leave, so I was a little confused while they were still stalking around the castle, bickering. -- LOL: Catherine pouring the pitcher of water iver the hungover Claude. -- Lola looked like she was on the verge of laughing out loud while in her scene with Narcisse. -- I'm pretty sure that Claude's virtue hasn't been worthy of defending since she was pre-adolscent. -- Francis has a serious set of  Crazy Eyes. -- Francis seems to think that lamenting he "never meant fir any of this to happen" can excuse from all his terrible decision making, both on the throne and in his relationship with Mary. -- Naricsse: You could've used the extra safety my friendship would have offered. Lola: You are no friend. Or patriot. You're just a dangerous man. Narcisse: Well, perhaps it's escaped your notice, but the world is a dangerous place, and one day you will wish you had someone like me to protect you from it. -- Every time someone requires medical attention, I wonder again if we've seen the last of Nostradamus. -- Holy crap! Little Claude was as much a handful as young woman Claude. Did she honestly murder her twin baby sisters?? No wonder Catherine had her removed from the castle for so long. -- Is Catherine truly being haunted by the ghosts of her murdered babies or is she, like Henry, suffering from hallucinations? -- I very nearly had a heart attack when Bash was injured in that ambush on the party moving the Protestant minister. -- Narcisse and Claude make a disturbing and dangerous couple. I wonder if Narcisse has truly moved on from Lola.

**(Person of Interest, S4E10 "The Cold War") Root needs to stop forcing herself on Shaw. If I'm getting annoyed, surely short-tempered Shaw is. -- Based on the flashbacks to Greer in 1974, he did not age well. -- The look of total amusement on Fusco's face during this phone conversation ... Mr Reese: What do you want, Lionel. Fusco: Just the sound of your voice. Hows' your day going, honey? -- Mr Finch: Imagine what it will look like when two gods go to war. -- LOL: The church standoff between Root and Mr Reese, and the gang from Samaritan.-- I can't figure out what it was that happened to Greer in the 1974 flashbacks that turned him into the man, with his mission, that we see in 2014. -- That kid who spoke for Samaritan, in that conversation with Root/The Machine, was absolutely flawless in his delivery, especially this line ... "I wanted to see inside the mind of a fallen god." -- I have a really bad feeling that not everyone in our little group will be getting out of this war alive. I just don't know who we're going to lose, though I suspect it will be either Root or Shaw.

**(Mom, S2E8 "Free Therapy and a Dead Lady's Yard Sale") This show deals with some difficult topics, for a sitcom. Addiction. Teen pregnancy and adoption. Cancer. Now domestic abuse. -- I do feel bad for Violet. I don't think she means to be awful. She is very broken. -- I can see this new therapy arc being very similar to how it was used on Two and a Half Men. -- Since we've learned that Violet's dad is not really dead, I can't help wondering if that lie will come back to bite Christy like the others seem to.

**(Once Upon a Time, S1E8 "Red Sox Swap") Arthur: Katrina, this is a Red Sox house. We do not use the Y word here. -- Lily!! (Ok, fine, Allison Hannigan, but she'll always be Lilypad.) I hope Pam's a recurring character! -- OMG, Katrina has Baby Jesus earrings?! -- I like Ronny better when he's "more Will, less Jack" (as in Will and Grace). -- They are knocking it out of the park with the interactions between Marjorie and Katrina. The constant barely-veiled insults and the snark are hilariously spot on, both in writing and delivery. -- Pam: You poke a squirrel, get ready to dodge some nuts. -- They have to be showing these slightly out of order, because now Jackie looks less pregnant than she did in the previous episode. -- Sean [handing Jackie the bobblehead from the Red Sox Swap]: Here, you can teach your baby how to nod. -- Awww! Arthur has had a backup owl for years, just in case Marjorie didn't get it in the family Red Sox Swap.

**(Sleepy Hollow, S2E10 "Magnum Opus") I feel like I missed something. Since when was Irving in a truck with Jenny, being driven to Canada? -- I had a feeling Katrina being able to use Henry's "magic mirror" to communicate with Ichabod was too good to be true. It was a total trap. I just wonder why she wasn't suspicious? -- Hmmm. Methuselah's sword is the key to Moloch's demise? Well this is going to be an interesting treasure hunt. -- Ichabod: Leftenant, this quest will be fraught with peril. Abbie: Crane, you and I can't have *lunch* without peril! -- Now that Henry is informing Abraham that Katrina is communicating with Ichabod, I wonder how that is going to affect the way Abraham treats her? It kind of blows her cover with him. -- Abraham [to Katrina]: You were once my greatest treasure. ... Ouch. Even coming from him. -- Things by which I will continue to be baffled every single time they happen: Why Headless looks around. How he navigates steps without tripping. Why he acts like he can hear sounds. HE HAS NO HEAD. -- Once again, Abbie walks around with her regular old real-world firearm drawn. Like that has ever had any effect whatsoever on the supernatural threats they encounter. -- Ichabod [as morning breaks on Headless]: Good morning, sunshine. -- LOL: Ichabod flashing his weather app at Abbie when she asks how he knew when the sun would rise, providing them with a measure of safety, after he uses himself as a decoy to distract Headless from pursuing Abbie. -- I greatly appreciated the flashbacks showing some friendship history between Abraham and Ichabod. -- That creature guarding Methuselah's sword (and all those statue-fied people who've attempted to find it in the past) was terrifying. -- Back to my musings on Headless: so he *can't* see. Because otherwise Ichabod and Abbie's plan to use Headless to distract that Gorgon while they slipped past into the room with the swords wouldn't have worked. If he could see, he likely would have been turned to stone like the others. -- That was quite a bitter, emotionally charged conversation between Henry and Katrina about good and evil and love. -- That was a pretty awesome sword fight between Ichabod and Headless, while Abbie was busy trying to figure out which sword was the right one.

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This Week on My TV: December 13, 2014

Disclaimer: Consider the fact that there could be spoilers ahead. You read at your own risk!



**(The Mentalist, S7E1 "Nothing But Blue Skies") I wasn't initially impressed with the new detective, Vega. Maybe she'll grow on me. -- After all this time, it's...weird seeing Jane and Lisbon in a romantic relationship. But even though (unlike Pike) Jane doesn't have some Grand Life Plan to offer Lisbon, he seems to "get" her and that's a pretty important factor in a relationship. For all the plans Pike had, they didn't succeed in a lasting relationship. -- Oh, Cho, don't you and your sarcastic sense of humor ever change. -- I didn't get into the case of the week very much. Maybe because it, once again, involved some random law enforcement person who is unfamiliar with Jane's methods and gets all aggravated, only to have Jane solve the case. Spackman did have some great facial expressions along the way, though. -- I would never have recognized Pike when he stopped by to say hello to Lisbon. I actually had to look it up in order to believe it was the same actor, with that new beard he's sporting.

**(2 Broke Girls, S4E6 "And the Model Apartment") I'm pretty sure *I* could deliver Max's and Han's lines more smoothly than they do. Max is just abrupt and shrill, and Han says his lines like he's reading them off a card for the first time. The lingerie models without personalities had more acting talent...and they had very little. -- Sophie's "hey, everybody!" is still the best part of this show. -- I have to admit, I was shocked Oleg actually made an effort to stay faithful to Sophie. -- Max is far more funny when she doesn't speak. Like when she came out of the diner kitchen wearing one of her new bras *over* her clothes.

**(Mike and Molly, S5E1"The Book of Molly") Mike was really cute, waiting for Molly at the window. -- LOL: That scene in the diner when Mike was telling Carl how relieved he was Molly was back and Carl made a remark that left the two of them staring at each other, clearly trying not to laugh. -- It felt like they might be toning down last season's somewhat obnoxious, over-the-top-ness a bit. I'll be glad if they can meet in the middle between this show's two personalities. -- As well as Mike knows and understands Molly, it would have shown she knows him just as well if she'd taken part of the check to pay down a good chunk of her/their debt, and used some on a more modest, more reliable pre-owned car rather than a pricy sports car.

**(The Mentalist, S7E2 "The Greybar Hotel") What is it with angry women in the FBI interrogation room this season? -- It seemed just a little too easy that Marie suggested the prison break like Lisbon and Jane planned, and a lot too easy for them to actually walk out of prison. -- I do think it was sweet that Jane told Lisbon to wear flipflops in the shower because they will make her less attractive and that he was ready to take a bullet for her when she was being held at gunpoint by Marie's crazy boyfriend. -- About that final scene with the file on the smuggler's girlfriend. I wonder how it's going to play out with that former sort-of-flame of Jane's turning up in the next episode?

**(Marry Me, S1E8 "Stand By Me") I could have lived without ever seeing Gil in his tighty whities. -- How did they get Jake into those crazy yoga poses? -- Gil: Much like this Eric Stonestreet limited edition buttondown. ... It took me a second, and then I realized "plaid with a paisley accent inside the collar and rolled cuffs" Cam from Modern Family! LOL -- Gil was a mess. I kind of hope this episode evolves him a little, so his character can be slightly less annoying.

**(Reign, S2E7 "The Prince of Blood") The imagery of Mary and Francis sitting at opposite ends of a very long breakfast table spoke volumes of the distance between them as a result of the secrets he's keeping from Mary to protect her from the knowledge that he killed Henry. -- Mary: If you treat people as your enemy, that is what they become. -- Oh sweet irony ... Mary: Unfortunately my husband isn't giving me what I want so I've come to ask you instead. ... She says to Conde, who just got finished bedding another man's wife. -- Poor Kenna. She seems to want to find a friend and keeps finding girls who are insincere. -- I waver on whether or not I kinda like Narcisse. Part of me thinks he's being sincere in what he wants from Lola...and the rest of me doesn't trust him any further than I could throw him. -- Princess Claude is a handful and a half. Catherine has issues with her daughters, between this one and Clarissa. And what about those two little ghost girls Catherine keeps seeing? Are they really daughters that died in infancy? -- I was rather impressed with Lola's reaction to Narcisse kissing her, slapping him and telling him not to take before she gives. -- Once again, Francis forgets that he is a better ruler when he and Mary work as a team and that he is weakest when they are apart, literally or figuratively, even when he's trying to protect her.

**(About a Boy, S2E8 "About a Christmas Carol") This was actually a really great Christmas episode. For once Fiona didn't drive me crazy. I appreciated her Christmas spirit and determination to keep it magical for Marcus. -- LOL: Marcus and Will howling to get out their sadness about their fathers. -- I cannot believe this show made me *cry*. But when Will's dad showed up with his string quartet, playing Will's one hit, Runaway Sleigh, I was wiping tears off my face. I am such a sap.

**(The Middle, S6E9 "The Christmas Wall") Frankie: Where are you going and what's with the hat? Axl: If you must know, it's for our new business venture: Tree Wise Men, a subsidiary of Boss Co. Enterprises. -- Darrin: Rudolph made me sad, you know? They wouldn't ever let him play any reindeer games. That's B.S., man. -- LOL: Brick and the Christmas newsletter. -- Frankie [about Christmas]: I don't know if I can do it, Mike. I think I'm done. Mike: Did you get into the eggnog already? There better be some left! -- That $3 that Tree Wise Men earned after damages should have gone entirely to Darrin. It was Axl and Sean who fought over King Moonracer and destroyed stuff. -- LOL: The Heck's artificial Christmas tree with the green bottom and the pink top. -- I loved Boss Co laying in the Heck's front yard making snow angels. -- Awwww. The look on Mike's face when they all woke up Christmas morning to see that Frankie had put up Christmas after all, after Mike confessed he never celebrated Christmas before her. (Yes, I cried. Good grief.) -- By the way, I'm Team Axl on this one. King Moonracer was NOT a toy.

**(Modern Family, S6E10 "Haley's 21st Birthday") LOL: Lily asking Alex, Luke, and Manny if they know how babies are made. Luke telling her to get him a bagel and a pen...because she's going to need to take notes and he's hungry. And the expression on Lily's face when Luke and Manny are explaining about babies. -- ::snort:: Alex called Luke and Manny "Fuzzstaches." -- Haley: You're like my Grandma. Gloria [holding a dart]: Grandma. Easy...I have stabbed closer relatives than you. -- Lily's explanation of where babies come from: When I grow up, I wanna have kids. Well, first I want a perfect husband. Someone who takes care of me. And then we're gonna make a baby. Which is easy: you  just put eggs and tadpoles in a glass and the woman has to drink it. Then the woman and man kiss and jump on their bed. After a year, she pees and a baby comes out. -- LOL: Phil wanting to get a tattoo on his lower back that says GO DEEP BAM! Oh, Phil.

**(The Big Bang Theory, S8E11 "The Clean Room Infiltration") Amy: Wait, She Hulk's a lawyer? Howard: Yeah, she works at a lawfirm in New York. Sheldon: Yes, but she's the only monster at the form. Between you. me, and the wall, I think she's an affirmative action hire. -- Sheldon: Ugh. English pudding. You get yourself all excited for pudding and here comes a cake with raisins in it. -- Raj's father sure spent a lot of time bashing marriage to the newly engaged Penny. Now I'll be waiting for that to resurface. -- LOL: Bernadette singing "Santa Claus Comes Tonight" in the car next to a sullen Sheldon. -- Bernadette: Why'd you turn it off? Sheldon: Because in the last ten minutes, Santa Claus came to town, kissed Mommy, and ran Grandma over with a reindeer. I had a drunk uncle who did all those things. Nobody sings songs about him. -- Awww. At the mall, when Sheldon was talking about all the things Amy loves. Who knew he paid that much attention to anyone but himself? He really *does* love her! -- Where was Emily for Christmas? I know she's a doctor...but isn't she a dermatologist? That's not exactly an "on call for Christmas Eve" sort of medical specialty, is it? -- So Howard, Raj, and Leonard erased their names from the sign-in sheet at the lab, for the clean room, and left, pretending they were never there. First, every time I'm ever erased something there is always some sort of lingering evidence. The "ghost" of the pencil marks, smudges, imprint from the point of the pencil. Second, did they close the loading dock door? Or just leave it wide open for anyone to walk through and steal expensive lab equipment or who knows what? And finally, doesn't the University have security cameras that would show who was there and when, especially for cases when a bird gets into the clean room, causing it to be shut down for weeks and require extensive cleaning? -- Amy's face when she opened the framed photo of Sheldon on Santa's lap and then listening to its recorded message. -- Totally teared up at this scene. ... Sheldon [opening his gift from Amy]: Cookies? Amy: They're your Mema's Christmas cookies. I called and got the recipe. Sheldon [looks at one, then takes a bite, and looks at Amy]: They're perfect. It tastes like her hugs.

**(Mom, S2E7 "Soapy Eyes and a Clean Slate") Having Baxter suddenly become a more responsible adult, while unbelievable, creates some interesting dynamics between him and Christy. I like that. But not if he tries to take Roscoe away from Christy. -- I finally feel badly for Violet. She's miserable, but she had a terrible childhood and clearly hasn't recovered from giving up her baby. -- Christy's old landlord, Mr. Perugian, has a thing for Marjorie?? That's...weird. -- Nathan Cordrry is back! And not being a scum! I like it better when he isn't being a scum. I don't like disliking him.

**(Last Man Standing, S4E11 "Wedding Planning") You know, it's all fine and dandy to have your own beliefs, but if Ryan showed up at my house and started mocking my beliefs, I would quite firmly show him the door. -- Holy crap. Ryan and Kristin said they want to take a little of the $20,000 Mike and Vanessa gave them for the wedding, have a small wedding, and use the rest to pay off *some* of their debt? SOME of their debt? How much debt have they managed to rack up?! -- Mike [to Vanessa]: Need some help out here? Throw some plates against the wall? Maybe punch that pork roast a couple of times? -- Mike [about Vanessa]: I know. My wife has gone rogue. ... When he said that line, he looked exactly like Buzz Lightyear. -- Kyle learning poker looked exactly like I would trying to play poker. -- Ed's reaction when he learned Kyle only wanted to play poker so he could use the winnings to buy some Christmas gifts for needy kids was priceless. When he started finding ways for Kyle to "win," though, all I could think of was when Chandler "taught" Joey to "play Cups" so Joey could "win" the money he was refusing to take from Chandler.

**(A to Z, S1E9 "I is for Ill Communications")  Andrew and Zelda are the cutest couple on all of tv. -- I wonder if they would have explored a romantic relationship between  Big Bird and Howard, if this show had been allowed to progress past one season. (Even though haven't officially canceled it yet, I'm too afraid to hope it will get a miracle renewal.) -- Loved the dress Zelda wore to decorate Andrew's tree! -- I totally called that Andrew and Zelda were going to turn around and say 'I love you' for the first time after they made up for their fight and went their separate ways at the airport for Christmas with their families. Happy dance! -- Did we ever learn what "awesome amazing gift" Andrew got Zelda?

**(The McCarthys, S1E7 "Arthur and Marjorie's Night Apart") When did Jackie get so pregnant??  -- OMG, did she seriously say Jeter was cute? ::gasp:: -- Marjorie [to Arthur, as she prepares him for her to be away overnight]: Some of the light switches are tricky. When it gets dark, go to bed. ... Three years living at this house and I still don't get the light switches right half the time, so I get what she's saying!-- LOL: Arthur ended up in the hospital because he fell down, trying to make grilled cheese.

**(Sleepy Hollow, S2E9 "Mama") I hate hooded characters. You never know what's lurking under there. -- Poor Ichabod has a terrible cold. I don't know if Tom Mison was actually sick or what, but he sold me on it. -- That was a really good and enlightening conversation between Jenny and Abbie about their mother and what their childhood was like leading up to their mother being sent to Tarrytown Psychiatric. It made me very sympathetic toward Lori Mills. What a terrible position to be in, plagued by Moloch and demons, and wanting to protect your daughters, with everyone thinking you're crazy. -- Ichabod [about the matzoh ball soup Hawley brought him]: Ohhhh, that is... [glares at Hawley] somewhat comforting. -- Henry is so evil, the way he torments Katrina with that (demon) baby, playing on her unfulfilled maternal instincts and the guilt she clearly feels over abandoning him as a child. -- Katrina's special pendant seems to make all manner of evil of look normal. Not only does it give Abraham a head back, but makes a demon look like a newborn baby. -- I knew I didn't trust that "nurse" at Tarrytown! -- Whoa! Demon baby is growing at a rather rapid pace!

**(Law and Order: SVU, S16E9 "Pattern Seventeen") There sure seems to be a lot cases that somehow track back to Rollins and Atlanta. -- Do any other police agencies ever test rape kits in a timely fashion? -- I actually do hope that Olivia gets to keep Noah. She does clearly love him. -- I keep waiting for them to make Deputy Chief Dodds even a tiny bit likable or sympathetic or something. -- Something is clearly going to happen between Rollins and her old boss from Atlanta. That guy is a slime.

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