Kick Off the Week with Jazz

When I was younger, I hadn’t listened to much jazz, but I didn’t really see what was so great about it.  Since hindsight is always 20/20, I really can’t understand why I thought that.  I’m not sure when the great switch in my mind turned on, but at some point it did and I realized that jazz was a beautiful thing to be enjoyed by all people.  Ok, I’m done waxing poetic now and ready to get to the point.

The point is that the local university had their annual jazz band concert this evening, and it was quite enjoyable as always.  Some friends, my wife, and I got together at the university auditorium for a night of jazz.  It was really quite the interesting compilation of music.  I’ll be honest and say that while I love to listen to jazz, I’m not a jazz connoisseur so I couldn’t identify for you all the different styles.  I can say that there were pieces where my legs and arms and fingers and head wanted to beat to the rythm and stare at the skills of the drummer as drool dripped out of my mouth, while other songs had this almost serene feeling that nearly put me to sleep, not out of boredom but just contended happiness.  It was like that feeling where you’ve eaten a big meal and then crashed onto the couch in the sun.  You drift off with a smile on your face.

It was a great evening, the company was wonderful, and the band was incredible.  Some of the student compositions were amazing and the guest conductor/composer was surprising and talented as well.  All in all, I can’t think of a better way to finish off the first day of the work week.

Good Deals and a Bad Turn

The Hollywood Video in our town is closing down.  This means they’re selling off all their inventory.  Unfortunately, I’m a little late to the party on this one, which means what I would consider the good stuff, or at least a majority of what I was looking for, wasn’t there.  However, I was able to find some good deals on some used DVD’s and a game.  Namely, I grabbed a copy of The Bourne Ultimatum, which finished off my Bourne Trilogy DVD collection at home, a copy of Stranger Than Fiction, one of the few movies with Will Ferrell that I enjoyed and didn’t feel uncomfortable through most of, and a copy of Batman Begins for the Gamecube to play on my Wii.  And I grabbed it all for less than $20 after tax.

The game was the first thing to emerge from it’s case when I got home.  That was when the first unfortunate turn occurred.  This one was actually my fault.  I recently picked up a wireless no-name brand Gamecube controller from Wal-Mart so I could have a total of 3 people play Smash Bros. at one time on the Wii.  It’s a lot cheaper than shelling what comes to $60 for a new Wii Remote plus nunchuck.  I figure, “I have the controller already, I can just throw the game in and play,” which is true to an extent.  Unfortunately, even thoug the Wii is equipped with a hard drive, you cannot save Gamecube save-games on the hard drive.  You must have a Gamecube memory card, which I don’t have.  So I can play the game all I want.  I just have to start over every time until I shell out more money.  Which leads from the unfortunate turn to the bad turn.

This afternoon, my no-name wireless Gamecube controller decided to fritz up and stop working.  I could explain how it’s not working, but it would be a waste of virtual paper.  Needless to say, two weeks after purchase, it looks like I’ll have to return it, and I’m not inclined to replace it with another one that will just break.  But as with anything that’s been opened I don’t much think I’ll be getting a refund either.  Next time I guess I’ll learn my lesson and get a Nintendo brand controller with a wire.  I don’t think I can go wrong there.  I hope…

Free Gaming? I’m in!

Along with enjoying a variety of movies and shows, I have to admit that I really enjoy video games as well.  In fact, gaming easily takes up more time than the movies and tv.  And the only thing better than getting a new game is getting a new game for free.  Here are couple of upcoming free games and another online option you can give a shot.

First off is Battlefield Heroes.  This game is developed by EA and Dice and follows in the path of other Battlefield games: a first or third person shooter, 2 teams, a variety of classes.  The two main things that set this one apart are the cost (FREE) and the art style, which is more cartoonish, similar to Team Fortress 2.  And as of this point in time, the system requirements are fairly low. The game is set in a World War II style setting as well with teams based on a fictional Axis and Allies.  Currently the game is still in development but there’s a trailer and website online if you want more info.  Also, the game is free but to my understanding monetized in some interesting ways.  One is through advertisements on the website which you’re required to log into the game through.  The second is through the sale of costumes and other items which would help you play the game, but not give you an unfair advantage over others.

Another game currently in development is Mythos.  Everything I’ve heard about Mythos so far has been great, including word from Jeff Green, editor-in-chief of PC Coverage for the 1up Network who said it actually took him away from World of Warcraft for a bit. As a former World of Warcraft junkie (who still has withdrawal symptoms occasionally) this sounds like my kind of game.  It’s top down in a style similar to the Diablo games, but the spell system, UI, and art style seem more connected to WoW.  Again, this one is going to be free, with monetized items within the game.  The developers haven’t been clear as to what those items will look or work like, but again, probably not unfair to those who do choose to pay.  If you’re interested in this one, rumors are that public beta could fire up as early as this month, so keep your eye on the website.

Finally, speaking of websites, there’s Kongregate.  Kongregate is almost the ultimate Flash games hub.  If you’re like me, you might here “Flash games” and immediately tune out muttering something about how we don’t need another Bejeweled clone.  I understand where you’re coming from, and let me be clear that I’m not a huge fan of that type of Flash game either (except for Peggle).  This site is instead a massive community of gamers and developers and there’s some really cool stuff here.  You can find really violent platform shooters if that’s your thing, puzzle games like the Flash version of Portal, and even turn based RPGs.  Plus, what makes it even more addicting is the fact that many games have achievements, and as you earn achievements you get points which increase your level.  At this point, that doesn’t really do much for you, but it does create a potentially addicting mechanic which keeps you coming back to Kongregate for more.  And again, it’s absolutely free.

So if you’re looking for something fun for your PC, you can keep your ears to the ground on the first two, and enjoy some really fun games at Kongregate in the meantime.

The Price of the Review

I wouldn’t call what I write on this blog professional reviews by any means.  In fact, they’re nowhere close.  I would say they are closer to the rambling opinions of a guy who just likes to be entertained.  I also happen to enjoy reading reviews and recaps of other things.

Sometimes I read a review because I just want a good laugh or to be entertained.  Other times I want an honest opinion of something before I go into it.  But that can cause some problems for me.  You see, I’m a fickle review reader.

One of the worst feelings in the world is to watch a movie or a show after reading a review and wondering “Would I have liked this better if I hadn’t read the review?”  It’s a serious question for me, because at times I’m easily swayed by other’s opinions.  I avoid thinking things through, because it just takes too much work.  Or it seems like something I would agree with anyway.  But perhaps the review says something negative, and suddenly, whether I like it or not, there has been a bad image painted in my head.  It’s stuck in there and some part of what I’m watching, reading, or playing will feel ruined because of that experience.

What makes it worse is if it happens when I’m reading reviews for affirmation.  For example, let’s say I grab a new game for my Wii or PC and I’m absolutely loving it.  I want to see what other people think, partially because I’m interested, but if I’m honest it’s mostly because I want other people to affirm my purchase, telling me I made a good choice.  And somewhere in that reading and research it happens.  Someone points out something they didn’t like.  I probably didn’t notice it before, but suddenly because they pointed it out and didn’t like, it’s glaring.  It’s like a giant pimple on an otherwise immaculate face. (OK, that was a gross simile.)

That is so frustrating.  Because when I think about it, my ultimate goal with the game or the TV show or the movie is to be entertained.  Being forced to think about tough issues can be a great part of that, but at the end, I just want to know that it’s been a worthwhile experience, and when it’s ruined by even one negative point in an otherwise positive review, it bothers me.  There are a couple of things to consider.

First, I probably shouldn’t let it get to me.  I made a decision, and I should be happy with it.  There is nothing I can do about it now.  Second, I could always stop reading reviews.  But that would be disappointing, because for every negative point that might ruin the experience, there are probably ten great points that I would not have noticed were it not for the review.

Why does the Studio have such a high number?

I made a mistake last night.

It all started at a friend’s house.  I weekly spend my Monday night’s at this friend’s with the guys watching our favorite shows (depending on the season).  Usually it’s the collection of Monday night shows with everything from Heroes to Chuck to 24.  Right now of course, all those shows are on hiatus, but luckily we have been saved by Battlestar Galactica, a show which has yet to disappoint this season.  If you haven’t watched Battlestar, I really can’t talk about it, because I’d be ruining 3 seasons of some pretty great writing (on the whole).  However, this post isn’t about Battlestar Galactica, it’s about a show that’s no longer on the airs.

Because you see, I got home last night at around 11pm with nothing to do and two glasses of Mountain Dew in my system.  Sleep was a distant drean.  So I checked my email, browsed my video game news at 1up, and then pulled up Hulu.  Hulu has been a fun past time for me lately, allowing me to rewatch some of my favorite shows (Battlestar Galactica for example), rewatch some older shows (The Pretender for example), and suddenly stumble upon shows I’ve never seen before.  Last night, that show was Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.

I’ll be honest when I say I didn’t really have much interest in the show when it was on besides following the news that it was dying a slow and painful death.  I had too many other shows to watch at the time, and when I had time I didn’t want to dive into a show in the middle of the season.  Then last night, wide awake from too much caffeine, I see that I can watch the entire series (22 episodes) on Hulu.  I thought about stepping out to the living room for a Super Smash Bros. Brawl session, but something made me want to hit play.  So I said, “I’ll give it a shot”, pulled up the pilot and hit play.

Let me say this: the jury is still out on this show.  I guess technically it was sentenced, but my personal jury is still out.  It’s interesting so far, but I can tell you two things about last night’s viewing session to wrap up my story.  First, the starting 10 minutes of the pilot of Studio 60 were amazingly entertaining and captivating television.  Second, before I went to bed I watched a second episode, and right now, I’m paused on episode 4 to finish this point.  Like I said, the jury is definitely still out.

The Constant

Before I dive into blogging this weeks episode,I wanted to apologize for having it up the next day.  I meant to post right after I finished watching, but my wireless mouse chose that opportunity to die.  Well anyway, here’s the stream of consciousness I was having while watching last night’s episode “The Constant”.

-Interesting opening.  The exact coordinates thing is interesting, I don’t know what it means.

-And it appears we’re on a Desmond-centric episode.  Yes! I love Desmond.  Hmm, Desmond is having insta-flashes.  He appears to be in the military and thinks the island is a dream.  But now he’s forgotten anything about the island.   That’s not good. 

-And Commercial.  Thankfully it’s the new trailer for Iron Man.  Awesome!

-Hmm, so according to Daniel, their perception of how long they have been gone may not be how long they’ve actually been gone.  And if Frank diverted, there could be “side effects”, which appears to be what’s happening to Desmond. 

-Desmond is still flashing back and forth.  I’m trying to remember if Desmond had past military service.  I think he did.  So he’s actually moving between the past and “present” then.  Interesting.

-He still knows who Penny is, which is a good sign.  Definitely a sign that he’s in the past.

-And they put him in the cook house…with another cook apparently. 

-Back from the commercial, Frank is in trouble with the crew.  But Sayid acquires the phone and makes the call to Jack.  Dan says Desmond doesn’t have amnesia, it’s something else.

-Desmond’s friend in the nuthouse is out on a ferris wheel, but thankfully he comes back in time to be drugged, right after he says they need to go back to the island.  Hmm, another one. 

-Desmond goes back again and calls Penny, but she doesn’t want to see him.

-Desmond returns to the present and the doctor.  But they’re awesomely interrupted by Frank and Sayid, who owns the doctor.  Who punches the alarm.  Dude, stop trying to interrupt my answers with your stupid alarm.

-The doctor fails!  Desmonds tells Daniel he thinks it’s 1996, so Daniel gives him a quest…to find the 1996 Daniel Faraday.  Awesome.  I’m waiting for Marty McFly/Doc Brown exchage where Daniel says “I’m going to send you back to the future!”

-Important facts for the past: 2.342, oscilllating at 11 hertz.  Also, if he doesn’t believe him, he has to tell him about eloise

-And he passes it on, which convinces Daniel Faraday to invite him into his office. ANDdemonstrates the experiment with Eloise which apparently moves her consciousness to the future.  So then I guess we can assume that when Desmond goes to the present, his past body stands still looking silly too. 

-Desmond finally has the phone stolen from him.  The doctor is angry that Desmond was talking to Daniel, who the doctor says “can’t even help himself”.  It seems there are factions on the boat, the civvies (Frank, Miles, Daniel, and Charlotte) and everyone else.  Thought some of them might be on the other faction. 

-Turns out that the guy on the bed (who woke up, probably from all the noise) is George McKowski (sp?) the comm guy.  Who was told not to answer all the phone calls the boat got.  Which happened to be from Penny Whidmore.  Nice!

-Desmond was in the present for 5 minutes but in the past he was catatonic for 75 minutes. The rat couldn’t take the transfer and had a brain aneurism.  Daniel tells Desmond he needs to find a constant, something he really cares about.  My wife just said “Pennny”.  Desmond wants to call Pennny. In the past and in the present.

-But in the present the communications room is sabotaged.  Good thing they have Sayid.  And a friend on the boat who left the door open for them to escape,  My wife says “Michael”.j

-And Desmond is back in the past again. And we’re at an  art auction.  Where Charles Whidmore is.  Desmond is trying to find Penny.  Thankfully Charles i s nice enough to give the address. 

-But Before Desmond can find her, he goes to do something menial like turn off the water in teh bathroom.  Dude, let’s try to be productive.  Please.

-Back in the present, McKowski reveals that he’s crazy because he left the boat with Brandon, who forced them to turn back when he went crazy.  He’s also now dead.  They make it to the comm room where someone sliced the wires with a knife or something.  IT’s pretty ugly looking.  McKowski proceeds to not make it.  Literally.  He “can’t make it back”.  And then he joins Brandon in the land of the not-so-living.   Also, it’s still 2004.  I’m almost disappointed.  I was hoping 4 years had gone back like we were watching it.

-Desmond finds Penny, and he can only get her number by promising not to call until December 24, 2004.

-And he awakens with the number.  And Sayid dials. But Desmond is gone.  And he’s back And he reaches Penny. 

-I can hardly type through this scene.  I’m emotionally invested right now in this show.  Please while I enjoy the reunion of Desmond and Penny. That was amazing.  And Desmond is back.  Which is awesome because as I said at the beginning, I love Desmond.

-And what’s our close?  Daniel Faraday now knows he is wrong.  You can change the future because in his notebook it now says that “If anything goes wrong, Desmond Hume is my constant.”

Another thought I didn’t squeeze in was to point out that at the art auction Charles Whidmore was purchasing a painting of the Black Rock, the boat found in the middle of the island, and (according to the ARG between Season’s 2 and 3 and I believe confirmed in this episode) was a slave trade ship owned by the ancestor of none other than Alvar Hanso, founder of The Hanso Foundation. There’s another tid-bit to chew on.  Well, what did you think?  The feeling I’m getting so far is that if you’re a guy or a lover or sci-fi, you loved this episode. If you’re a girl, well you liked that scene at the end with Desmond and Penny, but were otherwise confused and/or thought there could have been more in this episode.  Let me know what you think!

Eggtown

I’m changing up the style of blogging for this one.  It’s an “almost live-blog”.  Since I don’t have a laptop, I have a hard time typing and updating the blog while I watch.  However, I do have a palm and a keyboard so I can type while I watch, it’s just more of a process to get that info form there to here.  So, what you’ll read are bullet points on what I thought as I watched through.  It was a lot of fun to do, so let me know what you think of the new format.

• Locke is making eggs.  Ahh I see, Ben is in the basement.  Once again Ben owns Locke.  He’s great at keeping a cool face in front of Ben, but he’s kind of dumb to think that Ben can’t hear him when he’s 20 ft down the hall.
• Kate and Sawyer exchange some verbal jabs, always fun.  And….FLASH FORWARD! Cut through the legal mumbo jumbo and Kate gets remanded.  Man, it’s like Law and Order!  We just need McCoy to show up and send her to prison.  I love Law and Order.
• Kate just got owned by Locke.  He gets harder to like all the time.  I want him to be right, but he’s not making it easy.
• “You just Scooby Doo’d me didn’t you?” Hurley to Kate
• Kate just told her lawyer, “You are not using my son!”  And a shocked silence descended over the living room.
• Kate’s not good with babies. Just as a note Kate, you may want to start working on that…
• And Jack is now lying under oath.  That is interesting.   Details that could be important – 8 survivors, crashed in the water.  There are hints of truth, Kate provided first aid to Jack.
• Dharma Red Wine in a box. Amazing.
• If you couldn’t logically determine it by this point, Kate reveals what the rest of us know: she needs to bust out Ben.
• Wow, so the last sequence kept me too engaged to write.  At first I wasn’t sure if Sawyer was in on it.  But apparently Kate just used him and he didn’t know.  The Con is conned again.  I find it very humorous that Miles just wanted to extort  Ben.  Now Kate knows everyone knows about her.  What drives her back off the island still has me wondering.  I also almost expected Locke to appear and shoot Miles before he could tell Kate anything.  That feels like Locke’s style recently.
• <Locke continues his trend of awesome and kicks Kate out of his group.
• Kate and her mom have a heart to heart, but Kate feels manipulated and kicks her momma outta her….prison….home.
• Dang it, Sawyers was in on it. I was conned! Sawyer unbanishes Kate and seduces her with his Han Solo-esque scoundrel ways.  Yes, I’m sure someone has said it before, but Sawyer is the Han Solo of the 21st century.
• Jack is tired of reaching no one on the phone, so they call the “emergency number”. Their phone conversation determines that the helicopter hasn’t arrived. Of course the island members probably think they crashed or are dead.  I just keep thinking about where in the space-time continuum they got lost.  We already know there’s some kind of buffer between time outside and inside the island.  I guess the question now is does it fluctuate (which it seems is possible)?
• Wow, grenade in the mouth.  That is brutal.  Locke, you are one with the path of awesome. /end sarcasm
• Sawyer’s scoundrelly ways backfire.  He may be harsh, but it’s possibly true; Kate has been known to vacillate.
• And Kate gets off almost scott-free. McCoy wouldn’t have made a deal. Not that we couldn’t have assumed that from the beginning.  Jack wants to chill with Kate, but not with Kate’s kid.  Whose identity has become obvious over the process of the show.  And at the end when Kate says “Hi Aaron”, I’m not surprised.  It doesn’t detract from how awesome this show is overall, but…well let’s summarize.
• Good episode overall, but it’d definitely my least favorite of the season so far.  This one just didn’t surprise me or hit me in the gut like the last few have. It’s important to figure out what’s up with Kate in the future and figure out how she’s gets off, but it’s just not that compelling to me. The reveal of Aaron as one of the Oceanic Six doesn’t really surprise me either as Desmond “saw” Claire and Aaron get on the chopper if Charlie went down to the hourglass. The questions are what are going to haunt us: Where’s Claire?  How did Kate end up with Aaron?  Why does Jack hate the island so much?  Ok, that last one may take a lot longer to figure out.

Well, it’s been fun, and I hope you enjoyed my random thoughts.  Thoughts?  Theories? Comments?  Leave em below!

The Economist

This is over a week late!  Ack!  I’ve been lazy.  I apologize up front cause this one just won’t be as good as it could have been. 

 After the opening scene, I jokingly turned to my wife and said “Maybe Sayid is a hitman for the Island?!”  And with that, the revelation that Sayid is one of the Oceanic Six.  This is intriguing, but I’ll jump to that at the end. 

I have to be honest and say that partially due to the opening, this episode hooked me and kept me hooked from the get-go.  There were a ton of beautiful moments.  First, in non-Sayid news, there is a difference in time outside of and on the Island.  I kind of guessed at this before, but the scene with “the payload” was a lot of fun to watch.  There’s something about Faraday that I find engaging and fun.  I want to learn more about him. 

The conflict between John Locke and basically everyone else is interesting.  It seems like they want to follow him because they agree, but they’re scared of him at the same time.  Sometimes it feels like Locke is they guy who kicks his dog, and the followers are the dog who just keeps coming back. 

Which is best exemplified in Hurley.  Hurley is one of the funnest characters in the show, but you feel awful for him most of the time.  This guy just gets the brunt of whatever anyone has to give out.  Sawyer offering him some support during the first episode was one of the best moments, cause I can’t help but think that if I was Hurley, that would mean a lot to me with all I’d been through.  But then Hurley acting as bait for a trap for Sayid.  Just dirty.  I’m disappointed in you Hugo.

Now let’s get to Sayid.  It’s obvious that this guy has his own agenda, and I’m always curious as to what it is.  You look at Sayid and you wonder what’s clicking through the gears.  But we learn that even Sayid can be tricked, and when Sayid gets emotionally involved, it’s hurts.  Like bullet in the shoulder hurts.  Luckily not too badly that he can’t put out a couple of bullets himself on his quest to find “the economist”.  Which is run by Ben! Which brings us to the questions of the week:

• How did Sayid reach a place where Ben is telling him what to do?
• Who is The Economist?
• Why must Sayid kill all these people?
• Who is Sayid protecting?  Those still on the Island or the rest of the Oceanic Six?
• What is the previous event that Ben refers to where Sayid thought with his heart instead of his gun?

Looks like we’ll have to keep waiting for answers.  Hopefully we get some soon.

Confirmed Dead

Another great episode of LOST last night, made greater by the fact that my wife and I travelled to a friends house to watch it in 50 inches of HD goodness.  Something about my favorite show in HD makes me want a TV like that really bad.  But I digress…

Tonight’s episode provided more flashbacks instead of flash forwards.  However these flashbacks were different in two new (and pretty cool) ways.  The first difference that became apparent by the second flashback was that each flashback was for a different character.  Usually the flashbacks follow a particular characters journey through a past experience that relates to what’s currently happening on the island.  In this case, each new character had a flashback showing something of their former life.  The final flashback made things more interesting being a flashback of not only a seperate character, but a dead one.  That’s right, we flashed back on the life of someone who was dead.  Either that or the presence of a flashback implies that the character isn’t really dead.

 Speaking of the flashbacks (the last one in particular), I love the fact that Locke happens to kill the one member of the team, Naomi, who’s supposed to make sure everyone completes the mission and comes back.  I also enjoyed the flashback with the Polar Bear skeleton.  In the middle of the desert.  With a Dharma collar.  I can’t help but wonder if that has some connection to this. 

And you can’t help but wonder why they’re all after Ben.  I guess he’s the leader of “the Others” but that’s a different question altogether.  How does some kid from off the island become leader of “The Others”?  Or “The Hostiles”?  Or whatever you want to call them.  Regardless, someone is interested in Ben.  My only theory right now is that it could have something to do with his connection to the Island.  It has some power (obviously) and someone else wants to control it.  Sadly, I was disappointed that Ben (claimed he) didn’t know what the Monster was.  I was hoping for a surprising answer.  After Ben’s big reveal that he has someone on their boat, my wife immediately turned to all of us and said “Michael.”  I’m going with her on this one.  It’s a strong assumption.

Finally, some of my favorite moments:

-Finding out that in the long list of philosopher’s names in this show, a few more are added with Daniel Faraday and, can this be right, Charlotte Staples Lewis?  Really?  I’m almost disappointed at how easy that one is.  At least change the Staples…

-When Miles says that if Jack was in trouble, he’d say “Tell my sister I love her.”  After thinking about it, this is ironic since Claire is technically Jack’s half sister.  He just doesn’t know that…

-When Hurley inadverdently reveals he saw the cabin. The look on John’s and Ben’s faces are priceless.

Question? Disagreements? Love?  Comment below!

Frozen

My wife and I finally got time to sit down and watch Sunday’s post Super Bowl episode of House tonight.  We wanted to watch tonight’s as well, but it was unfortunately preempted by a college basketball game.

The post Super Bowl episode titled “Frozen” was worthy of it’s placement after the Super Bowl.  The storyline revolves around House doing diagnosis on a patient who happens to be the doctor for a group of scientists…at the South Pole.  Due to heavy winds, they can neither evacuate her or deliver supplies for another 2 months.  So they set up a video feed.

This episode did a few things that I loved.  First, it let Hugh Laurie do a more emotional side to House.  The doctor he’s treating can be stubborn and won’t just take the answers he gives her.  She’s taking the considerations and needs of the others at the base into consideration and refuses to use their medicine unless it’s absolutely necessary.  For some reason, House seems to find this attractive and demonstrates some interest in her, to the point of referring to her by her first name, and seeming to care about the patient.  When the case ends and he says goodbye in his own way, you can tell he’s going to miss her.  I thought it was some great acting on Laurie’s part.

Along with his acting, it allowed a different spin on what could have become a typical episode of house.  Rather than doing the usual, “pump full of a different drug every 5 minutes based on a hypothesis until we get it right,” the team is forced to deal with a patient who can control her own treatment directly and refuses to let House experiment on her without proof.  It provides a fun challenge for House and the viewer as we watch him work outside of his comfort zone.

The final thing I loved about the episode is the writers (when they’re not on strike of course) are starting to take some time to develop the team’s personalities a bit.  Last episode when House was complaining about them not fighting with each other, he was almost speaking the audience’s mind.  Sitting at home, we’re thinking “There’s a new team; great but who are they and why should we care?”  This episode, House’s tactic involves sending them after Cameron to get Cable returned to the coma patients room, presumably so he can catch his soaps.  Near the end he reveals that the goal of him sending them after Cameron was actually two fold.  One was of course to reclaim him cable.  The second was an attempt to put them in a position where they would stand up to him and be forced to think for themselves.

Surprisingly, Kuttner is the one to finally stand up to him on a diagnosis and actually help solve the case.  I really enjoyed that, because while Kuttner has previously been framed as the guy who’s willing to take risks, I think he’s also been pegged in a sort of stupid role.  Here, he not only stands up to House, but proves there’s a reason besides his risk taking that he got the job.  Well done writers!  Now if you could all finish this strike up, I’d like to continue seeing some nice character development.

Well I was just browsing my local Fox Affiliates site and it appears I just missed this weeks episode of House since they bumped it back a couple of hours.  Now I’ll have to catch up on-line.  I love the office chair, but it’s just not the same as the couch.