MacGyver Reboot – I’m Rethinking My Stance

Okay, I’ll admit when I first heard about this reboot I was pissed off.  In fact, I wrote an article about it right here on skatronixxx.com.  However, recently CBS has released some featurettes showing some behind the scenes stuff and shown a bit more of the action.  Here… have a look….

See?  Can ya blame me?

Seriously.  It looks like CBS may have taken some of the criticisms to heart and tried to fix some of the problems.  For instance, in the original “preview” video, they called George Eads’ character “Lincoln”, but as you can see from the video I shared he’s now going to be playing Jack Dalton… one of Mac’s old friends that always seemed to get Mac into trouble.  The friend that could never lie to Mac because his eye twitched when he did and gave him away.  I kind of like this small homage to the original even if this Jack is a former CIA agent and the original Jack was a n’er-do-well pilot.  I saw elsewhere that there’s also a character named Patricia Thornton, another slight nod to the original.  I guess they couldn’t name her the female version of Pete…. is there a female version of Pete?

Anyway, the point is that with the new info they’re putting out there, I’m starting to think that I might actually be able to watch this without cringing…. but I’ll let you know when I start reviewing it Fridays this Fall right here.  So, watch this space.  =)

Vampire Diaries News, Get Your Fangs Into This!

Back in April, I told you that Ian Somerhalder had announced at a con that Season 8 was going to be the final season for TVD.  He said that they were going to do one more season to “do the story justice”.  Well, at SDCC, Executive Producer Julie Plec made it official.

Plec said that this season would indeed be the final season for the show, but there were other juicy tidbits that she revealed as well.  Episode titles this season will be based on popular lines from the first season of the show… including episode 8.01 entitled….

That’s right.  The first words Damon ever said in the show will be the title for the Season 8 premiere episode that will air on Friday, October 21 on The CW.  Another juicy tidbit that Plec dropped for us to eagerly gobble up was that Nina Dobrev may return to the show for this final season.  Fans are eagerly waiting to see if this turns out to be true.  Me?  I wasn’t ever really a big fan of Elena.  Wait.  Don’t throw those stones yet.  I didn’t say I hated her, just that I wasn’t that big of a fan.  I haven’t even missed her since she’s been napping in that coffin.  However, I think it would make a good ending for her to come back and live happily ever after with Damon.  Well, at least that’s #2 on my list of ways to end the show.  I still say that Jensen Ackles’ (Dean Winchester, Supernatural) preferred way to end the show would be the best way… with the Impala rolling through Mystic Falls.

Oh, and I almost forgot.  Plec also announced that this final season will only have 16 episodes.

I have to admit, I didn’t watch the show for the soap opera style romance.  I watched it for the bromance… and more specifically the Redemption of Damon Salvatore.  When the show began, the brothers were at odds.  In fact, they’d been warring for years.  But, as the show progressed we watched Stefan … and yeah… okay…. Elena slowly change Damon.  In the beginning, he was the bad boy… the sometimes villain that we loved to hate while we secretly lusted after him.  Then he became a hero… without the “hero hair”.  So,  yeah, Damon had me at “Hello, brother.”

Now, in the premiere?  I’d pay money to see Stefan find Damon (and yeah, Enzo) and say…. “Hello, brother.”  Ya know, just for poetic symmetry and all that jazz.

Breaking SPN Casting News: Rick Springfield Joins SN12

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Gregory Pace/BEI/BEI/Shutterstock (4926917eu) Rick Springfield ‘Ricki and the Flash’ film premiere, New York, America – 03 Aug 2015

The biggest annual event in the Geek’verse is going on right now in San Diego.  I like to refer to it as Geek Summer Camp, but most people call it Comic Con.  One day, I’ll make it to Geek Summer Camp, but until then I live on first hand accounts of people lucky enough to be there in the middle of the action.  Their tweets and other social media posts make my whole week.

The Supernatural panel in Hall H today was full of juicy tidbits.  The traditional unveiling of last season’s gag reel, and other antics from the cast.  But, the biggest thing to be discussed today was Lucifer…. specifically who’ll be playing the fallen archangel this season.  The Show’s new Co-Show Runners Robert Singer and Andrew Dabb explained that Lucifer would be trying out a few vessels this season.  The first one will be played by Rock Icon and former teen idol, Rick Springfield.  Lucifer’s first vessel of the season will be that of an “aging rock star trying to make a comeback” named Vincent Vicente.

Now, don’t get me wrong…. I love Rick Springfield!  He was great in Californication, and most recently in Ricki and the Flash.  And, who could forget Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital?  Yes, I’m that old.  However, there’s just some role’s that belong to certain actors, and my Lucifer is Mark Pellegrino.

I will try to reserve judgement though, and wait to see how this goes down.  What do you think of this casting news?  Tell us in the comments below.

OUAT Casting News: Morpheus Comes to Storybrooke

I was already very excited for the OUAT Season 6 Premiere in September, then they went and announced that Morpheus is coming to Storybrooke.  Morpheus is the Greek god of dreams and sleep… ya know, the one they named the drug morphine after.  According to mythology, Morpheus could appear in any human form in a sleeper’s dreams and shape and guide them.  So, the speculative guess is that Morpheus is going to help Rumple with his Sleeping Belle problem.

28 year old, English-Australian actor Giles Matthey has been cast in the role of Morpheus.  Matthey is best know for his roles in 24, True Blood, and NCIS.  His first acting job was back in 2011 in CBS’ The Good Wife.

I can’t wait to see where the OUAT writers take this story line this season, but let’s not forget the whole Untold Stories arc.  Rumors are going around that we might even see Aladdin and Jasmine this season.

Is it September, yet?

The Kiss Heard ‘Round The SPN Fandom

**picture credit to redteekal on tumblr  & gif credit to It’s Okay Sammy on tumblr**

It happened over a week ago at a Creation Entertainment event in Pittsburgh (PittCon), but it’s what my little corner of the famdom is talking about today.  With just a few details (because I get picked on for being too “wordy”), let me set the scene for you… It was the J2 morning panel, Jared wandered off the stage to interact with a fan and Jensen soon waded off into the crowd as well.  That’s when It happened.  A fan, with her arm thrown around his shoulders, hopped up on tip toes …. and kissed him on the cheek.

Without permission.

Now, I’m not calling for pitchforks and torches.  I want to be clear about that.  I’m sure she just got a little carried away and caught up in the moment.  However, I would like to throw this out there as a precautionary tale.

We, the fans, invite Jared, Jensen and the rest of the cast into our homes once a week… more on Sundays (or whenever you feel the need for a little binge).  We’ve read every article, watched con footage, follow them on social media.  We know their birthday, their kids’ names, and where they were born.  In fact, the only thing we don’t know is what they had for breakfast.

But, they don’t know us.

Oh, we like to think that they do.  And, they are aware of our existence, of course.  They consider us “family”…. but that’s SPN Family.  Not kissing cousins.

To them, we are strangers.

We should never …. NEVER initiate ANY form of contact without asking permission first.  We should never invade their personal space without an invitation.  That doesn’t just go for Jared and Jensen and the cast of Supernatural.  That goes for any celeb you may have a crush on or admire.

I’ve worked in radio (as an on air personality) for a looooong time (not gonna give my age away here) and I can tell you all about listeners who thought they were my best friend because they listened to me everyday and by doing so they invited me into their homes or their cars.  I’ve had them come up to me in the grocery store, in parking lots, on the street (etc) and a few of them have creeped me out.  I can honestly say that if anyone violated my personal space, I’d have lost my $h!t… for reals.

So please, just remember this little cautionary tale if you ever have the opportunity to meet Jensen… Jared… or whoever your celeb crush may be, remember that they are still a human being, with basic human rights.  Get permission before invading their personal space.  I can’t speak for them, but I can tell you that with all the photo ops I’ve seen and all the con footage I’ve watched…. they’ll probably say yes to that kiss on the cheek or that hug… but ASK first.

T’s Summer Binge-Watch Guide: Highlander

Obviously, I’m talking about the tv series not the movies.  However, the first movie is really worth watching as well (the others … with the exception of Endgame?  Not so much).  The pilot episode “The Gathering” is a great passing of the torch from movie hero Connor MacLeod to television hero Duncan MacLeod.  They explain things quite nicely.  Over the course of 6 seasons they had several different openings, but they kept the same awesome theme song…. Princes of the Universe by Queen, which was the theme song of the movies as well.

As you can tell, I couldn’t pick my favorite of the openings… that’s why I included all the different ones in the article.  This show was and still is highly underrated!  I watched it when it was on television and truth be told I was a little in love with Adrian Paul/Duncan MacLeod. (I even follow Adrian on twitter…. don’t judge me.)  Some of my favorite episodes were the ones with Fitz (played by The Who’s Roger Daltrey), an immortal friend of Duncan’s and the ones with Amanda, another immortal friend/lover.  When the show was on television, I watched all the way til the season finale of Season 5… then I refused to watch the last season out of pure stubbornness, mostly because I was pissed off.  So, I recently binged this one to see how things ended.

Premise of the show:  Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod is an immortal (and he’s not the only one) who can only die if you cut off his head, but since he’s kind of attached to it, you won’t take it without a fight.  Each episode usually sees an evil immortal coming after Duncan, which has basically been the way of things for 400 years.  Oh?  Did I forget to mention that Duncan is over 400 years old?  Hmmm.  I’m sure I mentioned that.

Primary Cast:

Adrian Paul … Duncan MacLeod

Stan Kirsch … Richie Ryan

Jim Byrnes … Joe Dawson

Alexandra Vandernoot … Tessa Noel

Peter Wingfield … Adam Pierson/Methos

Elizabeth Gracen … Amanda

Pros:  Um…. Adrian Paul is HAWT.  Also, there’s a lot of great sword fights and action, good vs evil, even some romance.  There’s great flashback period pieces that show how Duncan has spent the last 400 years.  AND, let’s not forget the great music by Queen.

Cons:  The only con I can think of is the one that made me quit watching when it was on television… but that involves a huge spoiler and I don’t want to ruin it for all of you.  You’ll know it when you see it.

The show spawned a spin off, Highlander: The Raven (about Amanda) and two movies.  In fact, the show is part of a huge franchise that includes the 3 original movies, the television show, an animated series, the Amanda spin off, and the final two movies.

There were 119 episodes total, and you can watch them on Hulu or on Youtube.

Some trivia about the show…  Elizabeth Gracen is a former Miss Arkansas & Miss America.  Also, Christopher Lambert (Connor MacLeod from the original movies) was originally offered $50,000 to appear in the pilot episode, but French investors weren’t happy with the amount so they had him written out.  However, that ticked off some German investors who threatened to scrap the whole project if Lambert wasn’t in the episode.  So, they went back to the original script.  But, all the hassle pissed of Lambert, who then demanded $500,000 …. for just 3 days work.

Let me know what you thought of this show in the comments!

Supernatural Creator Says The Show Will Go On

In a recent interview, show creator Eric Kripke announced that currently the show has no plans to end.  That there were no plans for  Season 12 (beginning on October 13, 2016) to be the final season of The Show.  Kripke said that as long as The Boys (Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki) want to continue playing the Winchester Brothers then The Show would continue.

Ages ago, Mark Pedowitz, the head of The CW Network made the same announcement.  He has admitted that he is a fan of The Show and that as long as J2 wants to continue with the project, then he’ll keep it on the network’s schedule.

There has been a mass exodus of late, with several key members of the crew leaving The Show including Show Runner Jeremy Carver and fan favorite writer, Robbie Thompson, who also acted as a co-executive producer and co-producer on several episodes of The Show.  This caused a shiver to race through the famdom.  Fans began to worry if people were leaving before a cancellation notice hit the news.  Thank Chuck that is not the case!

Kripke’s comments are the talk of the famdom today.  I’ve seen comments on several different social media sites…. they’re mixed… some even unkind.  Some commenters have said that they were fans of The Show until (insert season here) but aren’t any more, that The Show needs to die already.  One person even said The Colt should kill it already.  All I’m going to say about these comments is ….  maybe you should use your energy elsewhere, like supporting a show that you do watch currently instead of pushing negativity out into the world about a show of which you once called yourself a fan.  If you don’t like it… don’t watch it.  Simple.  Easy.  Problem solved.

If you do love The Show, then I’m sure you’re as happy about Kripke’s comments as I am!  Tell us what you think of this news in the comments!

Everything I Need To Know I Learned From Supernatural

Hello, I’m Terri and I’m a Supernatural-oholic, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t learned so many pearls of wisdom from The Show.  In fact, Bobby Singer was a wealth of knowledge all by himself!

I’ve learned things about family.

• Family don’t end in blood!  (Bobby Singer ~ episode 3.16 No Rest For the Wicked)
• Family is supposed to make you miserable.  (Bobby Singer ~ episode 4.22 Lucifer Rising)
• Kids ain’t supposed to be grateful.  They’re supposed to eat your food and break your heart.  (Bobby Singer ~ episode 7.10 Death’s Door)

I’ve learned a lot about fashion and home decor.

• Footwear is easily misplaced.  (Sam: I lost my shoe. ~ episode 3.3 Bad Day at Black Rock)
• To avoid getting filleted by a hooker from God, always take down your Christmas decorations by New Year’s.  (Dean ~ episode 2.13 Houses of the Holy)
• Only low sodium freaks don’t keep salt in their homes.  (Sam ~ episode 1.19 Provenance)
• It doesn’t take a roof and 4 walls to make a home.  (Chuck: They were never in fact homeless. ~ episodes 5.22 Swan Song & 11.4 Baby)

I’ve also learned prime curse words and acquired excellent name calling skills.

• Balls! is a great universal curse word.  (Bobby Singer ~ in about every episode he’s in…. seriously)
• Idjits! is a great universal name for anyone doing something stupid.  (see also: Balls!)

I’ve learned helpful tips to remember.

• Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life.  (Bobby ~ episode 3.1 The Magnificent Seven)
• People are crazy.  (Dean: Demons I get, people are crazy! ~episode 1.15 The Benders)
• Toilet paper is made of gold. (Chuck: Some free advice?  You ever get back there, you hoard toilet paper.  You understand me?  Hoard it.  Hoard it like it’s made of gold.  ‘Cause it is.  ~ episode 5.4 The End)

I’ve learned helpful life advice.

• Always Keep Fighting – Go Down Swinging.  (Dean: So, I’m gonna fight it until I can’t fight any more.  And when all is said and done … I’ll go down swinging. ~ episode 10.13 Halt and Catch Fire)
• If you can’t talk about it, you shouldn’t be doing it.  (Sheriff Jody Mills ~ episode 11.12 Don’t You Forget About Me)

I’ve also learned something that has helped me with this job.

• Writing is hard!  (Chuck ~ episode 4.18 The Monster At the End of This Book)

I’ve even learned something about myself.

• My sexual orientation is Jensen Ackles in glasses.  (episode 8.14 Trial and Error)

What have you learned from Supernatural?  Tell me in the comments.

**Special thanks to my friends, The Winchester Wenches & to SupernaturalWiki.com for episode information**

The CW In Bed With Netflix Now

Whether you’re a fan of “the comic book” shows like Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl or shows like The 100… maybe you’re a vampire lover and can’t do without The Vampire Diaries and The Originals… or maybe you’re a Supernatural addict like me…. or all of the above… this is a deal that will probably make you do back flips.  At least, as it pertains to your binge watching habits.

Beginning with the 2016 – 2017 seasons, whole seasons of CW shows will be available 8 days after the finale airs.  EIGHT DAYS!

This is all well and good for all the binge watchers…. right?

But what about the people that just miss one episode?  You know, the ones that had a DVR malfunction…. or had breaking news locally that interrupted their favorite show.  The ones that caught the show the next day on Hulu.  Yeah.  Well, you’re all SOL.  Hulu’s current contract expires with The CW in early October, right before the premiers of most of the networks biggest shows…. including Supernatural.  That contract will not be renewed; the deal between the network and everyone’s favorite binge watching site is an exclusive deal.  That’s right, they aren’t just dating, ladies and gentlemen…. they got married.  It’s a strictly monogamous deal now.

The only place you’ll be able to catch next day airings if you miss last night’s episode is on the commercial filled CW website or their apps.  But, hey, if you miss that favorite show, it’s worth a few commercials to get to see it the next day…. right?

We want to hear your opinion!  Sound off about this deal in the comments below.

T’s Summer Binge-Watch Guide: Stargate SG1

Before I tell you about this series, let me assure you that you can enjoy it without having seen the original movie.  In fact, it’s one of my all time favorite shows, and I’ve never seen the movie…. ever.

This show has spawned several spin-offs, including Stargate: Atlantis.  The only spin-off that I’ve watched is Atlantis, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as the original show.  I just didn’t think the chemistry between the actors and characters was nearly as good as in the original show.  I did watch SG1 when it was first aired, but recently binge watched it again just for the fun of it, but I used having to write an article about it as my excuse.  Ya’ll don’t rat me out, k?

Premise of the show:  A team of explorers led by Col. Jack O’Neill travel to other planets through a wormhole established by a Stargate.  They defend Earth from attack by various baddies throughout the run of the series.

Primary Cast:

Richard Dean Anderson … Col. Jack O’Neill

Amanda Tapping … Major Samantha Carter

Michael Shanks … Dr. Daniel Jackson

Christopher Judge … Teal’c

Don S. Davis … General George Hammond

Pros:  The show ran for 10 seasons, and has a clear ending.  There’s action, a little romance, and some really smart a$$ cracks… in other words the dialog is great.  There’s even some occasional comedic moments.  If you’re a fan of Sci-Fi, you probably have already watched it, but it’s certainly worth a re-watch.

Cons:  The only cons that I can think of involve spoilers, and I’d rather not give those away.  So, you’ll just have to find them out on your own.  But, let me tell you that when you get there…. it was all Michael Shanks’ fault.  It was his choice, and he made us suffer for a whole season before he changed his mind.  =)

The show is available to stream on Hulu, but is only available with the dvd option on Netflix.  There were 10 seasons and 213 episodes in all, so it may take you a while to watch this one.

A little trivia about the show…  Peter DeLuise (whom you may remember from one of the shows I’ve previously talked about, 21 Jumpstreet) wrote and directed many of the episodes, even appeared in several episodes in uncredited roles.  He produced and co-produced quite a few of the episodes and acted as a creative consultant on almost all of them.  In every episode he directed, he tried to work in the name Penhall (which was his character’s name on 21 Jumpstreet).  In one episode in Season 7, a colonel calls out to two soldiers calling them Hanson and Penhall.  Hanson was the name of Johnny Depp‘s character on Jumpstreet.

Be sure to let me know what you thought of the show in the comments below… after you watch it.