FIERCE ANTICIPATION: The Jersey Joe Edition II Apr16

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FIERCE ANTICIPATION: The Jersey Joe Edition II

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a substitute blogumn by Jersey Joe

Ryan is still off on his maternity leave, so once again we’re stuck with the rants of everyone’s favorite fill-in — Jersey Joe!


FIERCELY ANTICIPATING

The Final Ticks of the Clock for 24

[Ed. Note — skip to next section if you’re not caught up on the current season of 24]

After 8 seasons of non-stop thrills, chills, and spills, time is running out for Keifer Sutherland and his hit FOX series, 24 and that’s good for my waistline!  The action gets so exciting, I get lost in the show, and a simple snack turns into quite the bellybuster!  This week I unintentionally polished off a large strawberry-banana ice cream sundae.  A show that can get me that involved is just good televison.

It’s hard to find a show, this original and this creative on television today.  While you know at the start of each day (or season) Jack Bauer (Sutherland) is going to get beat around, shot at, drugged, betrayed – you somehow know you’re in for one heck or a ride as he finds a way to save the day.

Image Credit: Tim Norris

After all of these seasons of action, the writers still manage to keep the show fresh and the audience guessing until the end, without going over the top.  While the show has powerful and well-written characters, you never know how long they will stick around.  Most either get killed off, locked up in prison, or are simply written off the show.  Good guys suddenly turn bad, just to become a good guy again.  And just because a character is a major player on the show, their continuation is by no means certain.  There have been so many great characters throughout the series, that my simple blogumn, could not even begin to scratch the surface.

The current season set in New York, focuses on peace negotiations between the President of the United States, Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones) and President Oman Hassan (Anil Kapoor) of the fictional Islamic Republic of Kamistan.  Well, spoiler alert, he was killed off last week and once again, the plot takes an exciting twist no one saw coming.

24 is a serial.  The story continues week after week, but if a viewer misses a week, a brief recap at the beginning puts you right back in the center of the action.  It’s one show, where Hollywood has done right.  From the acting, to the writing, to the stunts and effects, this show flat out delivers an honest hour of entertainment.

ABC’s Lost is another show that will end it’s run in May.  This show, well, just flat out confuses me and pretty much the rest of America.  The series lost its focus years ago, with its unending and unlimited amount of confusing plot lines.  Obviously, you’ve gone overboard, when the network has to run a repeat episode the hour before, with subtitles and factoids to explain what’s going on.  I applaud the diehard fans of this show.  You certainly got your money’s worth investing in this show week after week.  But, if you missed a few episodes you got just what the title promised – LOST.

One of the major issues troubling Hollywood today is that once you have an idea that works, it gets copied over and over and eventually run into the ground.  Just look at all the courtroom shows or the American Idol rip offs.

But can you copy 24?  Probably not.  It simply has it’s own unique style and feel.  With all of the action happening in 60 minutes, a clock counts down, while a split screen sends viewers from once scene to another.  It’s easy to follow, a great design, and is simply – brilliant.

In the past television has briefly experimented with the 24 format, however on a small scale.  Most notably, an episode of M*A*S*H entitled “Lifetime” from 1979 takes place as the surgeons try to save a life while a twenty minute countdown clock appears on screen.

There is one big ray of hope for 24 fans, however.  Jack Bauer will most likely live to see another day after the season wraps up.  Reports say that FOX has commissioned a script for a 24 movie, which will be set in Europe.  Transforming their successful television format into a 2 hour movie won’t be easy, but, hey in the world of 24, anything is possible.  Either way, as for these final episodes and whatever comes next – you can bet I’ll be watching or at least Huluing!


KINDA WANNA EAT

The New KFC Double-Down Sandwich

A sandwich with no bread?  A sandwich that’s actually slammed between two pieces of chicken?  Yes, please!

Thank you KFC (a restaurant known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, before formally changing their name for health and image reasons).  For you have broken the mold of the same old sandwich, and replaced it with two pieces of fried (or grilled) chicken, with bacon, cheese, and sauce slammed in between.  Here comes the shocker – it’s actually not that bad for you!

The fried version contains 540 calories with 11 grams of fat.  The grilled version is 460 calories and 3 grams of fat, according to the company.  It’s not the healthiest item on the menu, but by no means the worst.  It’s actually better for you than a Big Mac.  I think I’m going to head through the drive-thru tonight and hopefully enjoy a few succulent bites.


WOULDN’T IF YOU PAID ME

Anything Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.  Tiger Woods.

Photo Credit: cliff1066TM

Just as sick as I am of  typing that over and over again, we’re all just flat out sick of him.  OK.  So, he couldn’t keep his penis in his pants.  So now every newscast has to tell me every stinking thing he’s been doing since he’s been back on the links?  I don’t care about his new Nike commercial, I don’t care that he cursed at himself after a lousy shot at the green, I don’t care what he had for dinner (unless it’s that new KFC Double Down Sandwich.)

I understand he’s a big name, but he’s just another athlete who blew it.  The media continues to shove this meme down our throat.  Over the weekend, he was the top story on Yahoo news, demoting their coverage of the earthquake in China to the sidebar.  I sure can’t wait for this guy and this story to go away.  Oh man, I just wrote about it – now I’m just as guilty!