Bones: The Plain in the Prodigy

I tuned in at about 15 minutes after the episode started. It's not the mystery that is devolutionary, but rather the subplot.

Dr. Camille Saroyan, an African American woman and director of the Forensic Division - and thus the boss of everyone, including Bones, has adopted a teenaged African-American girl.

In this episode, Cam is worried that her daughter is having sex.

Instead of approaching the matter in a calm, cool manner, the scriptwriter has Cam blurt out the question awkwardly and stupidly while the girl is talking to her about something else entirely.

The girl replies, "It's none of your business."

Cam replies, "Yes it is, I'm your legal guardian."

Then she babbles on and on about the importance of sex until the girl just ups and leaves.

I found this scene so annoying on several levels.

First of course is the fact that 75% of African-American children are born out of wedlock, so Cam is right to be concerned. So parents do need to have "the talk" with them. (While most black kids are born out of wedlock today, caucasian girls have the highest percentage of out of wedlock births right now - they're catching up. And supposedly, according to some study, these girls actually did not believe they could get pregnant "their first time" and apparently also didn't know that condoms protected them from AIDS, and venereal diseases.)

Anyway, the point is that this scene was apparently handled for comic relief, as Cam is stressing out about her daughter entering her teenage years and having sex and then becoming an unwed mother. A valid concern, but Cam up until this point has never been stupid enough to act in such a foolish and wrong-headed way. You talk to your daughter in your own home, calmly, maybe after watching a movie featuring a girl having a baby without being married, and segue into it - pointing out how stupid the kid is and so on.

But the way the writers had Cam handle it - it diminished her character and that of every parent. Because if I remember this episode correctly (and I think I have come across it "halfway" a couple of times) the daughter finally reveals that no she is not having sex and is too smart to have unprotected sex. Good for her, but marginalizing Cam as a parent.

2012 Kia Optima commercial

A woman dressed in a swimsuit - admittedly not a tinikini, or even a bikini, waves a flag and a Kia Optima starts racing.

Why the hell is this woman wearing a swimsuit to start a car?

What I'd really like to see is every race car starter - male of course, wear a swim suit. Give the other half of the population some eye candy for a change.

21 Jumpt Street Makes $31 Mil Over Weekend Debut

This is so sad. This garbagey, juvenile movie proves to be the most attended movie over this weekend.

Sad.

Project X - Movie

I don't know specifically what this movie is about - the ads were rather coy - but what was obvious was that it was another male fantasy where a bunch of teen guys go around trying to seduce women.

Another thing - the "suspect" who shot the teen at the party, and is STILL at large... well, is he white, black or Latino. What does he look like? How tall, how heavy. What's the point of an article like this that doesn't tell you who you should be looking for?

From MSNBC: 'Project X'-inspired party ends in teen's death

A Houston rave that was meant to mimic a massive party thrown in the film "Project X" spiraled out of control and left a teen dead Wednesday morning.

The victim died at Ben Taub General Hospital after suffering multiple gunshot wounds, Houston police told ABCNews.com.

The party is one of a string of copycat parties that have been held to emulate the ultimate party in the film, which was directed by Nima Nourizadeh and written by Michael Bacall and Matt Drake.

Word of the spring break bubbles-and-foam party spread quickly via social media, and about 300 to 600 guests attended the event.
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Daniel Menjivara, a 22-year-old college student, said that "Project X" and spring break brought out the partygoers that night.

Officials arrived at the vacant mansion, which has previously been used as a party location, around midnight to shut the party down when neighbors called to complain about the noise levels. The mansion, which is surrounded by a field, was still not enough space to accommodate such a large turnout.

Soon after, the overcrowded party dispersed into the streets, and arguments began to erupt among guests.

“Then, about 30 minutes later, all hell broke loose -- gunfire,” said neighbor Amos Miles to ABC affiliate KTRK.

"Kids took to the streets, but the parking lot was overpacked, so you couldn't get out," Menjivar said. "It was just people in the actual street. They got into arguments and started shooting each other."

Attendee Willie Armstrong told KTRK he witnessed the shooting.

"(The gunman) was just walking, and he pulled out a gun and started shooting, like for no reason,” said Armstrong. “He shot that boy in the back of the head, and he fell on the ground by the car. He was just laying there."

The suspect then turned the gun on police officers when they began to pursue him but was able to flee and remains at large.

“I asked some of the kids why, and they said 'Project X.' And I said, 'OK, what's "Project X?"'" Mark Stephens, a private investigator working for the homebuilder told ABC affiliate WFAA. "When you look at the movie, and you look at what happened here, the parallels are uncanny. It was a copycat. They did everything that I saw in the movie."

“It’s a tragedy. It’s a loss,” said Miles. “Somebody lost their child, which could have been avoided.”

"Project X" opened in theaters March 2. The film, which revolves around three friends who plan to gain popularity by throwing a party, was met with some criticism for celebrating such extreme irresponsibility. Bacall spoke to THR about the strong reactions to the film, saying, “I think we’d be disappointed if there wasn’t some kind of outraged response to 'Project X.'”

“I think the movie’s really about the revelry and being in that moment and feeling like you’re in the party when it all goes to hell, and just kind of going through those emotions," he added.

At the Feb. 29 premiere, "Project X" director Nourizadeh commented on the debate over whether the hard partying could be imitated by its audience: "I don’t want to speak whether it is irresponsible or promoting certain things it shouldn’t,” he said. “It’s an R-rated movie. It all depends on the individual whether you take inspiration from it.”

The Maury Povich Show

There are a few of these disgusting shows on TV. I was channel surfing today and saw the headline for the episode for today from this one, "You're 38 and you think I won't find out you're cheating on my daughter."

Well, I can't remember the exact title but it was something like that.

Apparently these shows take place in front of live audiences, and on the show comes the victim, the people she (or he) is accusing, and so on.

And I look at this stuff - very, very briefly - and think - why?

Why would anyone watch the dregs of our country air their dirty laundry in public. What kind of enjoyment is gained from that?

But then there's the people themselves.

"He's cheated on me with my mother and my sister and my daughter. Should I leave him.?"

Why, yes, I think you should. Why is it even up for debate?

M&MS - Brown commercial

This commercial, first aired on the Superbowl, has over 3 million views.


Ms. Chocolate makes her debut. Because her shell is brown, the male human beings at the party look at her and giggle like childish school boys - you know the ones, the ones who gaze at women's breasts and butts and want to lose their virginity ASAP...

Then the Red M&M sees her, assumes she's naked also, and tears off his own shell so he is naked. Fortunately we are spared the sight of any teeny tiny chocolate gonads.

But he starts dancing - kicking his feet and pretending to twirl a lasso which I know must have some sexual significance, while rap music begins to play.

And this is just so sad. This is a candy for children and what are they supposed to think... oh, it's subliminally sexy? And as for adults...are they really going to buy M&Ms because they can pretend to themselves that they're eating naked chocolate?

I'm in the minority of course. Sadly. The commercial has 30,944 likes, 338 dislikes at YouTube.

21 Jump Street - movie

If I remember correctly, it was the TV series 21 Jump Street that catapulted Johnny Depp into the hearts of and minds of teenage girls everywhere.

The premise was that two young police officers, who looked so young that they could pass for teenagers, were enrolled in a school where they would work undercover.

Now, of course, they have made a movie version of it.

The criteria now is not that the policemen "look" young - but that they "act" young - i.e., immature.

And based on the trailer, they do. The two young policemen are immature, act childish, and frankly, aren't too smart.

Just what we need, more movies that convince teens that it's not necessary to be smart - or educated - to get ahead in life.

A general observation

One thing I've always complained of as I've watched first-run TV throughout the years is the utter drivel of the TV commercials.

TV commercials do work - I have bought a few things based on commercials! (in the past). For example several years there was a Doritos commercial with Jay Leno, with the catch phrase "We'll make more." First time I saw this - the first generation of this commercial, I liked it, had a craving commercials and immediately went out and bought some!

But the Cheetohs commercials - I like Cheetohs but I'm somewhat reluctant to buy them anymore because of the atrocious commercials they've had over the last couple of years. Some smart-aleck, hippie or stoner (I think) Cheetah (as opposed to a previous incarnation of this animated Cheetah that they used many years ago who was just obsessed with eating Cheetohs) who actually encourages destructive behavior.

There was the series of commercials where this cheetah encouraged a woman to scatter Cheetohs on top of a woman's nice car so that birds would peck on it and destroy the finish, as well as defecate on it, presumably.

There were others of the same ilk, which rather cooled my enthusiasm for Cheetohs. I"m not going to reward them with income when I don't like the message they are sending to our young people.

But, just in general, commercials for a long time have been sending subliminal nessages to folks. Which might be okay - when it's late at night and you've got a man and a woman and they see a commercial about some kind of condom with some kind of lubricant that heightens the enjoyment - should we really say - hey, you can;t show that on TV? But when this commercial is aired in the morning or aftertoon when impressionable kids are watching it?

Or the Victoria Secret commercials which I have seen on the Family channel - presumably watched by families -moms and dads and their young kids. Should young kids really be seeing women dressed in their underwear lying on the ground in sexually inviting poses begging men to say "You love me," as those words are all that matter before two individuals have sex. (What young man with no interest in what a girl looks like or what she is, hasn't said that in order to get some sex out of her?)

Today's commercials encourage folks to engage in destructive behavior to someone who has been mean to them, or whom they just don't like. It encourages the razzing of individuals (if you don't drink this beer you will lose your "man card".) and so on.

As for the commercials aimed at women - sex, sex, sex. You want to be attractive to a man - regardless of what he looks like, mark you - you've got to be skinny with perfect white teeth, ya da ya da.

And the commercials actually aimed at the family - with a stupid dad, a know-it-all mom, and a boy and a girl child who are smart alecks and know more than both their parents - no womder parents these days don't get no respect.