America's Next Top Recap: Bye Bye Birdie

For the first time all season (I mean all CYCLE), I had absolutely no idea who was going home.

Heading into panel, I honestly would not have been surprised if any of the four remaining girls was sent home based on how relatively drama-free their photo shoots were - a minor miracle considering they were in the jungle and the fact that the feathers were literally flying - and how much Tyra was talking up all of the girls afterwards.

But let’s talk about the rest of the episode before get to the ending.

The weekly "Lesson That Is (At Best) VAGUELY Related To Modeling" took the girls to Paulina, who was in a dance studio with a samba instructor. I was actually looking forward to this challenge since dancing DOES make people more aware of how their bodies move (helpful in photo shoots AND on the runway) and because the samba rocks!

Well, at least the real samba, as opposed to the simple little beginners’ routine these contestants still couldn’t quite master. Allison expressed concern (when ISN’T she concerned?) because she wasn’t a natural dancer. Celia still had trouble relaxing. Teyona was much worse than anybody (Paulina, me, Teyona) imagined. Aminat did the best by far and, in typical Aminat fashion, made sure that we knew it.

As a result, she was the favorite heading into the actual challenge, a rooftop samba with a male dancer in which the girls would have to also give Paulina usable model poses. Allison, once again, was charmingly brutal. Teyona was just brutal (as in the capoeira challenge from a few weeks back, she forgot that she was supposed to be modeling too). It came down to Aminat and Celia, with Celia getting the win (and more then $7,000 in jewelry) thanks to her ability to fake confidence. A helpful note on her wrist to "Relax" also contributed to the win (How amusingly uptight is she that she leaves herself a note to relax?)

Celia had the opportunity to choose a friend to share the reward with, and she picked her buddy Allison. Aminat (and Paulina) displayed surprise that Celia didn’t share the reward with the challenge’s runner-up. I call BS because there’s NO WAY Aminat would’ve shared the reward with Celia if she had won. (By the way, could the house have been MORE divided along racial lines, with Celia and Allison on one side, and Aminat and Teyona on the other? Subtle work from the editors there. NOT.)

Then again, that may just be my Aminat bias talking. I can see that the girl has the stunning LOOK of a model, but I don’t think she has any idea what to do with it. What’s more, (and the editors are probably to blame for this) I get annoyed when Celia is shown saying something very complimentary about Aminat and the rest of the girls, while Aminat is constantly shown putting the other girls down. I realize this isn’t "America’s Next Top Best Friend", but you’re still ALLOWED to be gracious.)

Of course, there’s a reason the expression is, "Nice guys finish last." Or in this case, "Nice girls finish fourth."

This week, the girls were woken up early, driven to an (allegedly) remote portion of the jungle, made up to look like birds and photographed by Tyra. Highlights from the shoot included Tyra almost twisting her ankle (I know it’s mean, but the thought of her holding court during panel in crutches is kinda funny to me) and Tyra saying that one of the girls had an "outer body" experience.

As far as the girls were concerned, they all did pretty well. Once the "best shots" were revealed during panel, my favorite was Allison (pictured, right and the best by far, and the only one who looked like a bird) and it was pretty clear she’d be safe.

The rest seemed more like generic, hot-model poses. To me, Celia and Teyona’s pictures were a bit of a draw (Celia’s body looked a little better, while Teyona’s had the edge with her facial expression). Aminat, on the other hand, had an interesting-looking picture, but (once again) I thought the face was kind of horrible. I have no idea why the judges liked it.

I thought the bottom two would be Aminat and Teyona (and so did Teyona, apparently), but it turned out to be Celia and Aminat . Celia was making her second straight appearance in the bottom two, while Aminat was there for the fourth time overall. Since, Aminat is infinitely more model-looking than Celia, I wasn’t surprised by the outcome.

The judges just couldn’t get over Celia’s advanced age (models get their AARP cards at 25, apparently) and all but completely discouraged her to give up modeling and try instead to become a stylist (which actually might not be a terrible idea).

Goodbye Celia. I’ll miss your kind, likable personality, your awesome sense of style, and the fact that your elimination means that, once again, my Ridiculously Early Prediction to Win it All (which I made after the first episode) didn’t come true.

So what’d you think of this episode? What did they do to make smoke come out of that jeep during Tyra’s entrance in the episode? (That entrance was TOO crazy and contrived, even for Tyra.) Do you speak "bird" like Ms. J? How funny/touching was Allison's blubbery face after Celia was eliminated? Finally, who do you like in the finals? (I’m rooting for Allison, but I don’t see how she can possible do well in the season-ending runway show.)

Lost: The Eternal Follower

When I saw that the title for the latest episode of "Lost" was "Follow the Leader", I guessed the hour would focus on Jack - as he began to assert himself having finally (allegedly) discovered his past-Island destiny - or the increasingly cocksure Locke - as he re-established himself as the leader of the Others in the present - and it did.

Much to my surprise, the person I find myself thinking about as I plop down to write this recap - other than the Hurley and his hilarious lack of knowledge about U.S. history when Dr. Chang grilled him about being from the future (the cut to Jin after Hurley claimed there was no Korean was GENIUS) - is Richard Alpert.

I was struck by several things about Richard that, for the first time, had nothing to do with Nestor Carbonell’s naturally guyliner-y eyes. Other than him obviously being the one constant presence in the 1977 and 2007 timelines, I thought it was curious how Richard seems almost OBLIGATED (by the Island?!) to follow whoever’s in charge at any given time. Sure, we always suspected this was the case (and I always found it odd, given that Richard seemed to know more about the Island than anyone) but last night we got an extended look at this circumstance as Richard dubiously followed Eloise Hawking and John Locke into the (metaphorical and literal) jungle.

Then again, maybe Richard only knows the stuff that other people have told him. All this time we’ve kind of assumed that Richard’s wisdom was due to his (in the words of Ben) "very, VERY" long stint on the Island and the sort of abstract communion with the piece of landmass that Locke is always blabbing about. (For example, he instantly noticed there was something "different" about Locke.) However, last night we saw that the reason he was able to find and aide Locke in the jungle (and let him know that he needed to die) was because that’s precisely what Locke told him to do. (Just as earlier in the year, we saw the reason Richard tested a young Locke was because Locke told him to.)

With this season’s time travel theme, there have been several scenes that have been revisited in a "Back to the Future: Part 2"-esque fashion. I was surprised that this may have been my favorite, since it seemed like a relatively minor moment to relive. I liked the contrast between the panicky, wounded Locke and the know-it-all in the present. I liked Richard and Ben’s variations on "huh" facial expressions (Ben to Locke: "Where did you go?!") when everything Locke predicted came to pass.

You may have noticed from the tone of my writing that I’m not exactly loving Locke’s newfound "confidence." I’m not hating on the perpetually tormented "Man of Faith" for finally finding his mojo (though having him stroll up to the Others carrying a dead boar was TOO much). On the contrary, I’m worried that Locke kicking so much ass right now is setting him up for a major fall in the season finale.

To me, it’s not even a question of IF he’s going to get taken down in the immediate future - I’m wondering WHO it’s going to be. Will it be Richard, who worried aloud about Locke becoming "trouble" and seemed ready to orchestrate a coup similar to the time he helped Locke ascend to power in the first place? Will it be Ben, who was bound by the Smoke Monster to obey Locke, but can’t help but give off an "I’m setting you up" vibe whenever he’s on screen? Will it be Sun after she finds out Locke was lying about the visit to Jacob’s cabin being about rescuing her husband and the rest of the castaways? Maybe, it’ll it be Jacob, who may not take too kindly being "killed" or to a bunch of uninvited guests showing up at his cabin door.

Most importantly, will any of these things even have a chance of taking place if Jack successfully detonates Jughead and negates everything we’ve seen so far?

Jack, you see, decided to take up Faraday’s cause and detonate Jughead to wipe out the past few years of misery for him and his friends. First, he had to get Eloise - who remembered the now-dead/vanishing Faraday from her teenage years and was eager to erase a reality in which she killed her own son - to show them where Jughead was. (It's buried underneath the Dharma village.) She believed their story about being from the future (like Dr. Chang, she was actually relatively open to the idea) and agreed to help the, which put her at odds with co-leader Charles Widmore.

The problem was that Kate wasn’t exactly down with the plan. Besides not being in a hurry to blow up an island full of people (the same way she wasn’t eager to let a little boy die when Young Ben was shot) Kate seemed personally offended by the idea that Jack couldn’t wait to undo the last three years of their life - or, as Jack would say, the last three years of their "misery." What was left unsaid was the fact that Kate isn’t in a hurry to undo the last three years because a big fat prison sentence is waiting for her if Oceanic 815 lands safely in Los Angeles.

For that reason, it makes perfect sense that Sayid would step in and take Kate’s place as Jack’s ally. Sayid was on his way to meet love of his life Nadia in L.A. when flight 815 crashed, so he’d definitely be down for Jack’s plan. Did I mention Sayid’s back (and sans jungle-unfriendly purple shirt)? He gunned down a trigger-happy Other that was about to shoot Kate when she was abandoning Jack. I forgot to mention that another reason for Kate objecting to Jack’s plan is the fact that it’s INSANE!! (Double exclamation point.)

Before she left, Kate vocalized what many of us have seen for a while - Jack is the new Locke. Of course, a quick peek at "Lost" history reveals that, in the season 2 finale, Locke decided to tamper with his own end-of-the-world scenario and allow 108 minutes to expire without pushing the button. Ultimately, he was bailed out by Desmond and the fail safe key, but I’m curious to see who or what (or if) will be there to help Jack if it turns out that detonating Jughead isn’t a great idea. By that same token, I can totally see the show letting Jack detonate the bomb, because that would lead to one hell of a cliffhanger leading into the summer before the final season. The fact that I have NO idea what’s going to happen next week has me giddy.

A few more quick thoughts about all the action at the Dharma dock. Dr. Chang sending his wife and baby Miles away played out precisely the way most of us predicted - he did it to protect them. The moment was a bit rushed because of all that was happening, but it was still well played by Ken Leung. Since the previews for next week show Sawyer and Juliet back in the jungle, you have to think that Hurley was right about Sawyer never abandoning them and always having a plan. (Also, witness him making a point of asking Juliet if she has his back.)

Speaking of the doomed couple, I liked the quick moment with Sawyer bidding good riddance to the Island, the place that seemingly made his dream life come true before cruelly and quickly taking it away. I even allowed myself to believe he and Juliet would be happy once they got back to the United States. That is before Kate showed up and Juliet shit a brick. (What’s the female equivalent of a cockblock?)

Overall, this was another very good episode in its own right, but an EXCELLENT set up for the season finale given the various conflicts heading into the year’s last episode. To me, the situation in the sub is just as potentially explosive as Jack detonating an H-bomb or Locke’s trip to Jacob’s cabin.

So what’d you think of this episode? Will Locke kill Jacob and is there even a "Jacob" to kill? (I think Locke’s intent is to perform a mercy kill, given that the only peep we’ve heard out of Jacob was a desperate, creaky "Help. Me.") There’s no way that Phil survives the season finale, right? (Hitting a defenseless woman = despicable and it feels like they’re setting us up for an applause moment when Phil gets it.) Could Radzinsky be any more annoying? How DID the Others get Jughead into the tunnels? Who (other than me) isn’t afraid to admit that they didn’t immediately know who the president was in 1977? Finally, what’s the ONE thing you want to see in the season finale? (Desmond!!)

American Idol: Scream On

If you guessed that one of the Idols would NOT be able to resist the urge to try and tame Aerosmith’s "Dream On" during Rock Week, congratulations - you were 100% right.

However, if you’d bet your money on Adam Lambert - who seems perfectly capable of going toe-to-toe (or howl-to-howl, actually) with Steven Tyler - I’m sorry for your loss.

Actually, it turned out to be OUR collective loss after Danny Gokey’s BEYOND hot (not to be confused with "molten hot") mess of a performance.

Of course, the thing everyone is going to focus on the day after is the scream heard ‘round the country (pictured, right, which Simon accurately described as something out of a horror movie). Still, I think that unfairly ignores how brutal the rest of the performance was. (Wonky beginning! Scatting! He missed when he tried to scoop a note!) The show’s editors even seemed to take pity on him (and us) and CLEARLY used the scream from his dress rehearsal during his end-of-episode recap package.

I’m no Danny-hater, but I can certainly see how people become infuriated with him after his "what me, sound bad?" reaction, and after the judges slipped on their kiddie gloves to critique him. They uniformly gave him an A++ for effort (when did this turn into Little League?), though I think an A for degree of difficulty would’ve been more accurate. The bottom line is that he picked a song that was all wrong for him, tried to out-Adam Mr. Lambert, and came up embarrassingly short. If this is who the judges are pimping for the final two against Adam, then it’s not really going to be much of a finale. Additionally, he pretty much undid all the good he did last week.

All that being said I fully expect him to be back next week. You know why? (other than a slavishly devoted fan base that has made him the only contestant not to visit the bottom 3 ALL SEASON) This performance was monumentally bad. That is to say, it was MEMORABLY bad. It’s all anyone is going to be talking about after last night. I’m sure I’m not the only AI recapper to lead his/her column with Danny Gokey. Bad press is better than NO press even if your performance is so bad that it’s kind of funny. (I literally laughed.)

Then again, it probably won’t be so funny when Kris Allen gets sent home Wednesday night.

The poor guy just did NOT have a good night right from the very beginning when the show awkwardly sprung the news that, for the first time, finalists would be singing duets and we were "treated" to Kris and Danny’s version of "Renegade" (brought to you by the two least renegade-y guys left). Though I DID like their harmonies, the rest of the performance was awkward (what to do with those mic stands?) and chemistry-free (did they even look at each other?). Still, the most painful part was Simon declaring that Danny was better (better = louder?) as Kris looked visibly pissed off.

So what better time to have him do his solo performance of "Come Together." I thought he started off kinda slow, but ultimately I really likeD how he finished the song, and I appreciated the subtle stylistic differences he brought to the performance. (Though I still prefer Carly Smithson’s take on the tune from last year.) However, he just didn’t seem as comfortable up there as he has been in previous weeks and it crept into his performance. The entire time he was singing, it seemed like he was already bracing for the unfair reviews that were sure to come. (And come they did.) (Who am I? Yoda?) Though he hasn’t come close to throwing in the towel, he’s starting to get the Jason Castro "There’s just no way I’m ever, EVER going to please Simon and convince these people I’m a star" Face.

It would’ve been easy for Allison Iraheta to get the same "TjnwIeEgtpSactpIas" Face after weeks of critiques that had less to do with her singing and more to do with her wardrobe and (alleged) lack of a personality. However, she seems to have gotten her second wind.

Sure her take on Janis Joplin’s "Cry Baby" wasn’t her best work (it was actually a slight letdown given the girl’s voice and the night’s theme) but it was still rock solid. Still, I’d say the best part of her performance was her finally striking back after more undeservedly lukewarm reviews. The reason she didn’t come off as a Mini-Lil Rounds is because this is the first time she’s really struck back after weeks of unfair (and often irrelevant) critiques from the judges. On top of that, (unlike Lil) her work on the Idol stage has actually earned her enough currency and credibility to defend herself up there. However, I’d advise her to ease off that stuff next week.

And yes, I’m saying she’ll be back next week for sure, thanks, in large part, to a big-time assist from her duet partner Adam Lambert. The two obviously had a blast during their duet of (the thumpingly-repetitive) "Slow Ride." They were so good, that the song actually seemed beneath them and I kinda wished they’d sung something better. My favorite part was still the genuine big-brotherly hug that seemed to signal to Allison (and to us), "Come join me in the finals."

Before that, Adam Lambert perfectly played the part of rock star during his take on Led Zepplin’s "Whole Lotta Love." I think this will go down as one of his more underrated performances, but make no mistake - he made a very difficult song seem very easy. I WAS actually going to call it one of his more understated performances until that glory note at the end (I should know better - there’s ALWAYS a glory note with this guy), but even as far as Adam’s glory notes go, I wouldn’t put it in the top 3.

I also wouldn’t go so far as to call him a "rock god" (as Kara breathlessly panted). Yes, he showed last night (again) that he’s in a class all his own in this season of Idol, but that doesn’t exactly put him up there in the pantheon of ACTUAL rock gods.

So what’d you think of this episode? Could Adam’s pants have been any tighter during his duet? How dorky was Kara’s blatant attempt at a "rock and roll" outfit? What’d you think of Slash as a mentor? (He’s a man of few words, but I like how direct he is) Do you think Adam should try to make more contemporary music or bring old-school glam back? Finally, who do you think is going home? (I’ll actually be pretty surprised if it’s Danny. I think it’s going to be Kris.)

Dancing with the Stars: Going Solo

We’re now at the point where the remaining competitors perform two dances a night - and "Dancing with the Stars" strains to fill two hours for ABC.

Sure, the pro ballroom and Latin dance demonstrations were fairly fantastic filler, but they were filler nonetheless. (Was it just me or did Lacey Schwimmer and Louis Van Amstel kinda steal the show?) On top of that, the segments with the judges giving each contestant a nickname ("King of the Cowboys" was my favorite) and explaining what they have to work on was straight out of a results show. By the way, I generally skip the result shows until the very end - when I check in to see who gets booted - because I believe they’re a huge waste of time.

Oh well, at least America was spared "Surviving Suburbia" for a week, right?

Let’s talk about The Four Remaining Contenders (featuring Ty Murray) - who performed a ballroom dance, a Latin dance, AND a 15-second solo during the latter - in order of appearance.

Shawn Johnson and Mark: Nice to see her snap out of her haze from last week. I actually would’ve given her quickstep performance to "Friend Like Me" a 10, if it hadn’t been for that pesky rule about her not being in hold long enough. However, I give the singer a 12 for doing all the Robin Williams voices, and an 11 to the fact that Shawn was the genie. Her paso doble, on the other hand, was a bit too robotic for my taste. Her stiff, gymnastics movement suited the solo, but the rest of the dance was good, but a bit lifeless. Oh well, at least she got the pissed off character down pat and she gets bonus points for keeping a straight face through two ridiculous musical performances. (A paso doble to Daniel Bedingfield’s "Gotta Get Through This"? Really?!)

Ty Murray and Chelsie: Everyone on the show (including Ty) seems to realize that his time is up, so it was great to see him still in good spirits throughout the night. It was even better to see him at home with Jewel in matching animal print robes as he "studied" for his tango. (Nobody dare tell Jewel she’s not part of this season of DWTS just because she got hurt!) His tango (which was supposed to be his better dance) underwhelmed the judges, but still managed to match his personal best score of 25. His rumba was kind of a hot mess, but it featured my favorite solo, basically consisting of him attempting to writhe sexily in front of his wife. I can’t say enough about how much this guy improved and how much fun he was. He’ll be missed. Finally, who knew Ty wasn’t Cuban?!

Lil’ Tramp/Kim and Derek: The knock against her last night was that she couldn’t do ballroom, but I seem to remember her turning in a pretty terrific tango and a very good quickstep in the past. However, she seemed disconnected during her waltz (which still featured good choreography by Derek). The performance definitely smelled of "when can I be done with this so I can finally shake my ass during the salsa?" and ended up being pretty feh. The salsa, on the other hand, was anything butt, I mean, but. Lil’ Kim gave us a predictably stripperiffic salsa solo (pictured, right), but the rest of the dance ended up being a bit more sloppy and not on-point enough to earn her a spot in the finals. Finally, let’s all take a shot every time someone says "bionic booty" from here on out.

Gilles Marini and Cheryl: What did Cheryl do to the editors that they make her look so mean during the rehearsal footage ("You look like a monster!")? I LOVE how much Gilles is into this, and I like that a couple actually took a RELEVANT field trip. (Watching Gilles mouth the word "wow" while watching the fox trot competition was endearing.) It helped because I think his fox trot was one of the best performances of the night (despite the fact that Len rightly pointed out that he was crouched low too much of the time). His rumba, on the other hand, was solid, but I was too distracted by how terrible his solo was (less sexy, more stupid) and the fact that he and Cheryl pretty much simulated having sex at the end of the routine (pictured, left). In a related story, that was a brilliant cut by the director to show his applauding wife right after.

Melissa Rycroft and Tony: It’s great to have her back and competing. She danced brilliantly last night in her waltz to "Angel" (which my girlfriend Erica thinks I hate because I change the station whenever it’s on - I just don’t like to think about dying dogs) and in her samba. I liked seeing that she was able to perform some of the more body-bending moves (samba rolls) in each dance. However, I feel that her rib injury is magnifying the main problem I have with her: when she dances, she just doesn’t seem to have that certain "oomph!" Lil’ Kim has it. Gilles has it. Shawn had it once (during her "PYT" cha cha). With her injury she seems noticeably more tentative than before. For example, there was nothing technically wrong with her samba last night, but, for me, it was missing the "it" factor for me to give it a 30. (Though that didn’t stop the judges - nice fakeout Carrie Ann.) Either way, it’s great to have her back - even if my pointing out her under-boob cleavage during her samba got me in trouble with Erica.

So what’d you think of this episode? We’d be fine if we never heard Len say "spotted dick" again, right? Is there anyone who’s a better sport than Gilles wife? Will you tune into the results show to watch the new pro competition? (I may tune in to watch the delightfully loony Lisa Rinna.) Finally, is there ANY way Ty doesn’t go home?

24: Sins of the Daughter

We love "24" because it’s the most action-packed, pulse-pounding hour on TV, right?

However, last night’s episode was once again relatively light on the pyrotechnics (except for one VERY notable explosion) and heavy on the scenes where the characters - Jack and Chloe, Jack and mosque imam Muhtadi Gohar, Jibraan Al-Zarian and his younger brother - simply sit there and TALK.

Still, unlike the last two episodes - which, to me, have felt like the show is stalling until the season finale - the latest hour of "24" used its downtime very wisely. It reinforced why we care about long-time characters AND made us care about newer ones, while also mixing in a couple of terrifically tense sequences.

Of course, there was also that one explosion.

I’d like to take this space to say farewell to Jonas Hodges - the delightfully-demented, temporary Big Bad of the terrific seventh season of "24" - who was killed with a car bomb. I guess he was right when he said he didn’t plan on being "Robert Tippett" (his new government identity, NOT a dog breed) for very long. I loved his defiance (finding a way to keep that picture) and his crankiness early in last night’s episode. Also, having him try to recruit the U.S. Marshal assigned to him for some unspecified future venture was a nice way of throwing us off the scent of what was about to happen.

When the bomb blew his vehicle up, I actually thought to myself, "Well, damn." Thanks to Jon Voight for a performance so good, that I’ll stop making "Karate Dog" jokes in my columns. (Probably.) I’m not putting Hodges alongside classic "24" villains like Charles Logan and Nina Meyers (who terrorized Jack for multiple seasons), but he’s certainly on par with the likes of Ramon Salazaar and Habib Marwan.

Now the question becomes, "Who the hell killed him?" Last night, we watched First Daughter Olivia (pictured, left) meet with Martin, her former associate of questionable character, who (after casually revealing he’d dug some dirt up on previous prez Noah Daniels) agreed to hook Olivia up with a hitman. First, he tried to dissuade Olivia from having Jonas Hodges killed by telling her she "could never go back," but the First Daughter was completely determined.

That is, until it was time for her to hit the execute button (hit us over the head, why don’t you writers?!) and complete the transaction that would lead to Hodges’ death. In the end, she couldn’t go through with it. (Maybe she had second thoughts about spending $250,000 in this economy.) Seriously though, the change of heart seemed pretty out of character for Olivia and would’ve made more sense if it came AFTER her talk with Mom and Dad (who finally broke out of the hospital after being fed up by the fact that no one came to visit him). Of course, if that happened, we wouldn’t have been treated to some great work by Sprague Grayden. After finding out that Hodges’ had been killed anyway, Olivia had to excuse herself before she vomited. Either way, how much cooler would it have been if we didn’t know what Olivia’s choice (Cancel or Execute) had been?

Now, she’s due to meet Martin in 15 minutes to find out what the hell happened. Personally, I don’t believe the professional-sounding hitman would complete the job without being paid. I think it’s more likely the group (led by Alan Wilson) Jonas was working with was behind the hit. However, Martin seemed to know that the hit had gone through when Olivia hysterically called him, which implies he’s involved. Most importantly of all, is Secret Service Agent Aaron Pierce hovering around and seemingly on the brink of discovering Olivia’s secret.

Meanwhile, if we’re to believe the previews for next week’s episode, Jack seems to be on the brink of catching up to Tony.

Before that, Tony and his new girlfriend the Moderator led the team that was making Jibraan Al-Zarian look like a terrorist by forcing him to film a propaganda video and backloading his computer with incriminating Web site hits. (Hopefully, they didn’t throw in any porn to make him look like a terrorist AND a perv.) Jibraan was almost rescued when the police showed up, but he successfully convinced them that everything was ok after a neighbor complained about the noise. (The police never seem to ASK to come in this situations, also seen in movies like "Bound" and "Panic Room.")

Jibraan was cooperating after Tony promised that he and his brother would have a much better chance of living if he did. I filed this under "Yeah, right", but it came to fruition (at least in brother Hamid’s case) since Tony actually needed the younger brother to be alive and tell the police that his brother was a terrorist. Jibraan and Hamid have now taken a commanding lead in Most Affecting and Likable scapegoats/cannon fodder race this season (beating out Marika, Dubaku’s girlfriend, and Carl the security guy at the docks). The scene where Jibraan desperately tried to convince his disbelieving brother that he was a terrorist in order to save his life was pretty terrific.

It was almost as terrific as the scene between Jack and Chloe earlier in the episode. After chewing a disapproving, racial profile-hating Janis out again (though much more gently than last week) Jack lost his train of thought, Chloe showed concern, and Renee and Janis spilled the beans about his condition. Words were at a premium between these two characters who aren’t big, touchy-feely talkers, but Kiefer Sutherland and Mary Lynn Rajskub’s faces said it all. Chloe was right in that she was Jack’s friend and he should’ve told her (she might be his ONLY friend), and Jack was right in that the most important thing was for her to do her job, stop Tony and save the world before he dies.

She did just that, as she discovered a lead. A Muslim relief organization had deposited $2 million over the last six months into the account of Jibraan Al-Zarian and the money was withdrawn within the last 30 minutes. After checking out his expired visa and his (planted) incriminating Web activity, the FBI figured it had its man. What it didn’t have was an address, so they visited Muhtadi Gomar, an imam at a mosque and a reference on Al-Zarian’s INS form.

Naturally, Muhtadi was resistant in giving up the address of a man he knew to be innocent, leading to the return of Angry Bauer, and the two got into a heated argument. Apparently Muhtadi had seen Bauer’s hearing that morning and was wary of helping the poster boy for torture. Fortunately, Chloe called with an address and Renee and Jack sped off - but not before cuffing Muhtadi and bringing him along.

On the way there, Chloe (who is kicking ass) revealed that Al-Zarian’s Web activity had been forged in the last 30 minutes to make it look like it’d been going on for months. Jack kicked himself for not realizing it before. (To me, this is a more subtle way of showing how the disease is affecting him than having him forget what he’s saying.) He uncuffed Muhtadi and admitted he was wrong. Muhtadi also offered forgiveness, but Jack wasn’t interested. In an echo to the conversation Jack had with Sen. "Red" Mayer a few hours before, Muhtadi offered Jack a soothing tone regarding Jack’s past sins. Jack ended up rebuffing him, expressing that he wasn’t interested in God’s forgiveness, or even in forgiving himself.

In the end, Jack and Co. broke in and saved Hamid, who was being kept alive by a lone "hostile" who Jack hoped to question about Tony’s whereabouts. Unfortunately, a furious Hamid took it upon himself to cut the guy’s neck open with a piece of glass (ANY other time, this would’ve been great!), leading Jack to break out the Bauer ("DON’T DIE ON ME!") as time expired on another excellent hour of season 7.

So what’d you think of this episode? Was EVERYONE in D.C. watching Jack’s hearing that morning? (Doesn’t anyone in that area watch "The Today Show" or something?) Is Tony’s target really just a busy subway station? (After an attack on the White House, it seems kinda meh.) Finally, who do you think blew Hodges up?

The Soloist Review

Isn’t it a shame when a movie is ALMOST really good? Unfortunately, that’s the case with "The Soloist."

It’s especially disheartening when all the elements for a really good movie are there.

In the case of "The Soloist," you have a very talented cast (led by Oscar winner Jamie Foxx, as well as Oscar nominees Robert Downey Jr. and the underused Catherine Keener), a skilled filmmaker (Joe Wright of "Atonement") an inspirational true story and an even more inspirational trailer. It’s not a good sign that, all things being said, the movie’s trailer had more of an impact on me than the feature film. (On the bright side, "The Soloist" is an early front-runner for "John’s 2009 Movie Trailer Awards.")

"The Soloist" tells the true story of damaged journalist (is there any other kind?) Steve Lopez (Downey) who, in search of fodder for his latest column, meets and befriends Nathaniel Ayers Jr., a Julliard-trained musician who is now homeless and mentally ill. Lopez’s series of columns on Ayers brings prominence to both men and threatens to break each man out of his comfortably miserable life.

To me, that would’ve been an interesting movie in its own right. Watching two exceptionally talented actors tackle wildly different, but thematically-parallel characters -and seeing how the two characters relate to each other - would’ve been worth the price of admission for me.

However, in adapting Lopez’s book, Wright and screenwriter Susannah Grant attempt to cram too many other ideas into what was already a pretty solid concept for a movie. These include the decline of newspapers in an online world and the incredibly high rate of homelessness in Los Angeles. Either of these two topics would make for an excellent movie in their own right, but watching them get jammed into "The Soloist", makes them come off as incomplete.

Another missed opportunity is Wright’s direction. I admire the filmmaker for taking some stylistic risks in trying to liven up a conventional drama. However, he ends up with more misses (using colors to dramatize the way Nathaniel hears music) than hits (dramatizing Nathaniel’s scary mental illness) and most of the misses end up coming off like second-rate Stanley Kubrick. I also think we probably could’ve done without the bits involving the raccoons and coyote urine.

At least the acting is top-notch. Foxx does a great job of creating a convincing, mentally-unstable character without coming off as completely indulgent. He also conveys both the softness and the unpredictable danger of someone like Nathaniel. (I’ll let the music experts out there let me know if his cello/violin playing was legit). Downey is equally as good as the (literally) beat-up, wounded journalist whose goodness may only be a flicker. Still, thanks to Downey, that goodness is definitely there, despite the character’s initial selfish motives. Curiously enough, though Foxx and Downey are excellent in their own performances, I found their chemistry to be a bit lacking.

Keener, who doesn’t have enough screen time, is VERY good as Lopez’s editor/ex and, in her few scenes, is able to portray a good deal of the damage Steve caused in her life, thereby enhancing both characters. (Never mind that the real Lopez is happily married.)

In the end, "The Soloist" is a missed opportunity because it bites off more than it can chew. Then again, I’m the guy who gave "Obsessed" a higher grade, so what do I know?

The Soloist...B-

Desperate Housewives: More Than They Bargained For

"I don’t like this show that much anymore."

That was my girlfriend Erica during last night’s episode of "Desperate Housewives" - and I can’t really say I blame her. Despite mostly top-notch work by the lead actresses, the show has felt flat for most of the season, and especially so in the last couple of months as it limps toward its finale.

Of course, Erica’s comment came during the first Dave Williams scene in last night’s episode. In the subsequent 45 minutes, we went on to laugh at Tom and Lynette (the latter has "seen more ceiling than Michaelangelo" during her 23 consecutive days of mandatory sex), MJ (the things that kids does for macaroons) and Gabby (she’s not really ill, you see).

So, I’m kind of thinking the BIG problem is the now-unbearable Dave Williams storyline, which really has infected the rest of this show. As I’ve mentioned before, I was a big fan of the storyline in the beginning (and of Neal McDonough in this role, in particular), but it’s now gotten to the point where it’s mind-numbingly unwatchable. I honestly feel dumb watching it. I mean, if I’m not dumb, why did the director feel the need to pan to that newspaper clipping (prominently displayed on Dave’s countertop) of a drowning accident to blatantly tell us what Dave was planning for his fishing trip with Susan and MJ? (Wait, so you mean he’s planning to drown MJ - AND make it look like an accident?!)

Later in the episode, a couple of detectives showed up and confronted Dave (who was completely back to normal after his meltdown last week) about missing psychiatrist Dr. Heller (who Dave killed). I’d love to tell you more about this, but I was actually in my kitchen making myself an awesome bowl of oatmeal (but no ice cream) and not regretting missing the rest of this scene AT ALL.

By the end of the episode, Dave seemed ready to readjust his target (again!) since Susan has a new fiancé. From the promos, we know that Jackson and his girly hair were going to return and propose to Susan (pictured, left). However, since we know the show wouldn’t give EVERYTHING away in its promos, we knew there had to be a twist. It turns out Jackson is from Canada, his student visa is expired and he needs to get married to stay in the country.

Despite the fact that this is unfortunately the exact same plot of the upcoming Sandra Bullock movie "The Proposal", I felt really bad for Susan after she gave that great, teary, heartfelt speech about how lonely she’d been despite trying to be a strong independent woman. Of course, (since this is Susan) that was eventually followed by hi-jinks as she chased Jackson out of the house with a plunger. Eventually, Susan agreed to the plan, since it’s pretty clear she still has feelings for him, and he’s willing to crash on the couch and not have sex (ah married life) for the time being.

At least, Susan can get a guy to fake-marry her. Last night’s episode was all about the characters on the Lane bargaining to get what they want and opened with an amusing sequence in which a Desperate Katherine had bribed MJ to pressure his dad about when he was going to marry her (well played). Last week, Mike made a point to stay completely silent after Katherine said she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, so I was happy to see the show follow up with this.

Eventually, Mike confessed that he loved Katherine, was NOT in love with Susan (yeah, right) and just was NOT looking to get married. It’s just been a tough year for the underused Dana Delaney. Now her on-screen character seems to be biding time until Mike goes back to Susan. Although Mike and Katherine have almost no chemistry together, I was still glad to see the show explore this interesting issue. He thinks, "We’re together and we’re happy, so why do we need to get married?" She thinks, "We’re together and we’re happy, so why don’t you want to marry me?"

Fortunately, a couple that has GREAT chemistry was exploring another interesting issue. As usual, Tom’s heart was in the right place (working hard to get intimacy with his wife), but he ended up coming off like an idiot (making sex seem like a task or work). Tom was trying to have sex with Lynette for 30 straight days (making it to 23 is NOTHING to be ashamed of), even going to her office and (very quickly) doing the deed during one of her conference calls. Eventually, Lynette learned that the only reason he was obsessed with the streak was because she was the only thing Tom is passionate about. (Aww.) Oh wait, he meant that because, with grown kids in the house, there’s nothing else for him to do. Thankfully, he already got the pizzeria out of his system, but, judging from next week’s promo, he seems poised to move on to - facelifts?!

Gabby and Carlos, another solid couple, had to deal with six-year-old Juanita, who’d taken to emulating her mom’s makeup on the cover of "Commotion" (huh!) magazine. All of this would’ve been a little easier to buy if the actress playing Juanita didn’t look like she was 12 years old, but I rolled with it. Carlos had the (not bright) idea that Gabby could go to the upcoming Latino Businessman of the Year Award gala for Carlos (what WAS the competition for that honor?) sans makeup. Of course, Gabby couldn’t help herself and eventually plastered on makeup (Asian woman, close enough) for a newspaper photo shoot.

Though this lead to a touching mother-daughter moment (and the gala scene was funny) this was all pretty dumb. Here’s a little tidbit from the John Ceballos School of Parenting: six year old girls CANNOT wear makeup, while ADULTS who are going out for the evening to a fancy gala and posing for a newspaper photo CAN wear makeup. No gooey life lesson. End of story.

I’ll just mention Bree’s storyline very quickly since we didn’t get very much last night. After realizing that she can’t be a good person in her impending divorce with Orson (how bogus is it that he’d get half of her business?) she hired Susan’s ex-hubby Karl as her lawyer. By the end of the episode she’d bribed MJ to let Karl’s psychotic son attend his sleepover and Karl agreed to take on the case. However, last night seemed mostly like a setup for what’s to come, including a rumored Bree-Karl romance. Ick, "romance" doesn’t seem like the right word for those two - let’s go with "hookup."

So what’d you think of this episode? Why do Dave’s plans always have to be so elaborate? (If he’s really that crazy and angry, just have him walk up to whoever he’s going to kill and put two bullets in their head - now THAT would be shocking and interesting.) Were you glad to see Jackson back? (I’m glad Gale Harold is ok after his serious accident, but I thought we were kinda done with Jackson, and having him back just so Dave can kill him seems pretty weak.) Finally, how good were the child actors last night (the kids who play MJ and Juanita)? (If only the actress playing Juanita looked anywhere near six years old.) The adults better watch their backs.

Obsessed Review

I didn’t walk into "Obsessed" expecting an Oscar-caliber movie. In fact, I don’t even think I was expecting a "good" movie.

I mean, how COULD it be good? Its plot was straight out of the type of 90’s thriller they stopped making a decade ago, Beyonce Knowles AND Jerry O’Connell looked like they had a decent amount of responsibility in terms of carrying the film, and it had a hideously generic title. Honestly, just sitting in the theatre waiting for the movie to start, I came up with two better titles off the top of my head - "Tempted" or "Crazy in Love" (Beyonce reference!)

The story - which you can pretty much guess from the delightfully campy commercials - follows successful asset manager Derek Charles (Idris Elba of "The Wire" and "The Office", two of my seven favorite shows from the past decade). Derek just got a major promotion - and an attractive new temp ("Tempted"!) played by "Heroes’" Ali Larter, who immediately arouses the suspicion of Derek’s wife Sharon (Knowles).

I went to see the movie because I happen to be a big fan of the type of campy 90’s thrillers they stopped making a decade ago. (Brief tangent: Another 90’s movie staple that’s gone away is courtroom dramas - did Hollywood run out of John Grisham novels to adapt?)

My other concern - the one about Knowles being prominently involved - proved to be mostly unfounded, since she doesn’t actually have all that much to do for a good portion of the movie.

That’s because (in a pleasant surprise to me), Elba is allowed to drive the story for the first 3/4 of the movie. It’s not that I didn’t think he can carry a movie (I think he’s a brilliant actor), it’s just that the promos had hyped this as sort of "The Beyonce Show." Since he’s given the opportunity, Elba creates a character - he’s suave yet kinda dorky; a loyal husband but a bit of a flirt - that had the potential to be Blandsville.

When I first heard about this flick, I thought it would’ve been more interesting if Knowles and Larter switched roles. However, I’m ultimately happy with the way things stayed, since Larter delivers a strong, sexy (for a PG-13 movie), scary (if you’re a guy) performance as an unstable young woman while mostly avoiding going over the top.

Still, I couldn’t fully understand why Knowles would take such a relatively-thankless role. To her credit, she overcomes an underdeveloped character (we know that she also used to be Derek’s temp, that she wants to go back to school and not too much else) and some questionable line readings to exude a strong presence in the stock wife role. Even O’Connell adds a dash of genuine relish in playing the stock role of douche-y best friend. On the other hand, I’m waiting for the day when we get a STRAIGHT male office assistant in a movie or TV show, though Matthew Humphreys DOES get some chuckles in that role.

Eventually, we got the blockbuster final sequence of the movie and - without giving too much away - I finally understood why Beyonce wanted to play the wife. The much-hyped catfight is so deliciously absurd (credit to director Steve Shill from not cheating us out of a good smackdown) that you’ll find yourself laughing as you chant "Fight, fight, fight!"

I realize that the amazing fight is sort of the centerpiece for the movie’s marketing campaign (as is the idea of kicking the ass of the woman who’s trying to steal your man), but "Obsessed" actually explores some interesting themes.

Though Larter’s temp is clearly mentally unstable, the movie brings up interesting ideas about a married man’s relationship with other women (when does "being friendly" cross over into "flirting"?) and I appreciated the fact that the characters’ race was never an issue. There’s also the never-ending issue of "how much do I tell my wife"? (Women’s answer: "Everything." Men's answer: "Enough not to get yelled at." Additionally, there’s, oh who am I kidding?!

If you’re going to see "Obsessed", you know you’re going to see a bad-yet-entertaining crowd-pleaser and it delivers in that regard. It’s a very solid B movie, so...

Obsessed...B

Hell's Kitchen: Three's a Crowd

Whatever you think of Andrea - the tiny terror of "Hell’s Kitchen" - I think we definitely have her to thank for making this final 3 episode funny, interesting and exciting.

I mean, we KNEW who the final two was going to be. We’ve known for at least a month. So thank you to the show’s producers (and Andrea) for entertaining me and for doubting the outcome of what should’ve been a totally predictable snoozer.

The continuation of "Hell’s Kitchen" found a considerably more harmonious (and considerably less delusional) atmosphere in "Hell’s Kitchen" with Big Ben gone. The final 3 (pictured, left) could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Well, Danny and Paula moreso than Andrea, as the show quickly re-established that Andrea was a major underdog. (At around that time, I marveled once again at how Andrea’s voice sounds almost exactly like Amy Poehler’s.)

In addition to the light at the end of the tunnel, the chefs could also see mysterious silhouettes gathered at the door. If you’ve seen the show before, you knew it was time for the annual family visits. Apparently, none of the final three had seen the show before because, as is ALWAYS the case, they looked totally shocked. The all-too brief (10 minutes!?) family visit was sweet, but I once again couldn’t help wondering how grown-ass adults can act like recently-released hostages upon the sight of their families. I realize this show is stressful and love my mom a LOT, but I don’t know that I’d cry like a baby if I didn’t see her for a little over a month.

The week’s challenge would be for the chefs to cook 100 portions of a high-end lunch for 100 mystery guests. Andrea wondered aloud if the mystery guests would be 100 kids (the show’s already done that, so maybe Andrea HAS seen the show before). The actual guests turned out to be a LOT scarier - they were 100 of L.A.’s finest culinary talents. Despite the fact that I’m no chef, I have to admit the sight of 100 white-chef-jacketed people lumbering into "Hell’s Kitchen" was scary. Then again, I suppose the sight of 100 people wearing the exact same thing (even a black hoodie) is generally frightening.

During the 90-minute cooking session, Danny decided to go with halibut, Paula decided to cook sturgeon, and Andrea (as usual) seemed frazzled and repeatedly talked to herself to pump herself up because there was no one else around to do it. (I swear this kinda made sense when she explained it.)

The results of the challenge were completely surprising - and not just because the show didn’t go out of its way to make it seem ridiculously close. Maybe that’s because there was no way to make it seem ridiculously close. Seventy six percent of them picked Paula’s dish as the best. Even more surprisingly, 76% off them picked Danny’s halibut as the worst.

Paula’s reward was a salon trip/mani-pedi and a limo ride with potential love interest Jean-Philippe. I LOVED how the show’s editors turned what was probably an innocent, friendly ride into a potential love connection. I just wish the show would decide if J-P is straight (is he not going back to Europe anytime soon because he’s staying here for Paula?) or gay (bringing in Francisco the annoying event planner earlier this year).

Back in "Hell’s Kitchen", Danny had the general look of someone whose dog had died. He was so down on himself that this is where I started to believe that it would affect his work during dinner service and (gasp!) open the door for Andrea to be in the final 2. Not helping matters was Andrea, who kept dropping subtle hints about how Danny had messed up and how soul-crushing their punishment was. Of course, this was completely f---ed up, but Andrea was WAY behind in the competition - she kinda had no choice but to try this.

The next day Paula got up early, met Chef Ramsay in the limo (No J-P? Will he even call?) and did a guest spot for "Good Day, L.A." - just in time for Danny and Andrea to see it on the TVs they were cleaning. The fact that Danny and Andrea reacted so positively and seemed genuinely pleased for Paula made this move seem a lot less cruel.

Before the dinner service, Chef Ramsay announced that each of the finalists would take their turns running the pass.

With Chef Scott and Chef Gloria in the kitchen for additional manpower, Paula was up first. Now, I can sort of accept a competitor on the show never having watched it before. (Though I still think it’s really dumb.) However, if that’s the case, the first person up at the pass has a major disadvantage given that they have no idea Chefs Scott and Gloria are going to try to sabotage them on purpose. That’s what happened here. Paula missed the first attempt at sabotage, but seemed to bounce back nicely and noticed Chef Scott’s mistake.

Danny was up next, and this is where the show threw in a nifty new trick. Jean-Philippe was in on the shenanigans and gave Danny a faulty ticket (which he missed). In fact, the executive chef’s big boy voice went on to crack (pretty funny) and he seemed to struggle for a longer amount of time than either of his two competitors.

Of course, you could make the case that Andrea’s brash, over-critical style was the worst performance (especially if you ask Chef Scott, who threatened to hit a woman for the second season in a row). However, I think Andrea was kind of a natural at the pass. In fact, she seemed more comfortable when she was running things than when she’s been, um, cooking. The best part was unquestionably Ramsay’s amused reaction shots to Andrea’s authority.

After the service, Ramsay asked the stumped chefs what was different about him. ("Your hair?" = lol!) What was different about him was that he was smiling for the first time after a dinner service for the first time in what seems like three years.

Still, someone had to go home, but instead of coming up with a consensus, he asked each finalist to nominate one person. Obviously Danny and Andrea nominated each other, so, once again, it was up to Paula to keep things real.

The show seemed to hint that Paula might side with her long time Red Team-mate, but Paula made the right choice again. Sure, Danny struggled this week, but, based on the entire competition, Andrea has CLEARLY been weaker.

So with that, Andrea was sent home with a kiss on the cheek from Ramsay. She’s been a pain in the ass for a good part of the season, but I was happy to see her leave on a high note (and so was she). More importantly, this episode proved that the show doesn’t have to be 100% humiliation porn to be entertaining.

So what’d you think of this episode? Was I the only one disappointed that Chef Ramsay didn’t do the thing where he made the finalists yell at him while he pretended to act all meek? Did you believe, for a second, that Andrea would be in the finals? Which returning contestant are you least looking forward to seeing? (I thought the answer for me would be Lacey, but it’s actually Crazy Caro or Big Ben.) Finally, who do you think is going to win? (I like Paula, but it feels like Danny is going to win.)

America's Next Top Recap: Coming Up Short

Tricky editing.

If you’re an astute "Top Model" watcher (or if you have a brain) you can usually predict who’s going to be in the bottom two for the week. In most cases, you can also guess who is getting sent back to the house to pack their belongings and leave immediately. You can pretty much tell both of these things from the way each episode is edited.

While this was still the case last night (the bottom two was PAINFULLY obvious as was the poor soul going home), at least the show threw some editing curveballs along the way during the go-sees.

That’s right. This week was the annual rite of passage in which the models wander around a foreign city, struggling with maps (people still use maps?!) and silently non-English speaking taxi drivers for their very un-American laid-back attitudes.

For example, from the way the show was edited, it kinda seemed like Aminat didn’t just have the go-see challenge in the bag, but (from the way the Brazilian designers were fawning over her), maybe Tyra should just cancel the rest of the competition and give her the win. So it was pretty surprising to find out she only booked two out of three jobs. Teyona, on the other hand, looked like she was in for a disaster as she continuously skipped designers when she found out they were seeing another girl. I was sure she was either going to get back late or she was going to end up not seeing enough designers. Of course, what really ended up happening was that she booked 3 out of 3 jobs and was the challenge winner. Her reward was a bunch of ill-fitting dresses. (I realize I’m a guy, but am I the only one who thought some of that stuff looked horrible on her?)

This being "Top Model", some aspects were totally predictable. We knew at least one girl would be back a little late (Celia), and that another would be back spectacularly late (Fo). The go-see designers also magnified the issues that would eventually lead these two aspiring models to the bottom two. Celia is too old (25) and doesn’t photograph like a fresh young thing. Fo (pictured, right) is too short and commercial. "Commercial", as we know, is a death sentence on "Top Model."

However, just because one is too short, and the other is too old, did they have to drag them to the rooftop, make them think they were riding on a helicopter and then force them to turn around and take a cab? (I’m surprised they didn’t make them take a bus, just to make it more undignified.) Not only was this unnecessarily cold, but it had the dual result of making the taunting Aminat (and Teyona, to a lesser extent) even more insufferable.

Later, the girls met up with Mr. Jay (and his too-short shorts) and noted fashion photographer Nigel Barker for the week’s photo shoot. The shoot involved a beach scene populated by a motley crew of extras (it was definitely that one hairy fat guy’s best day ever) and the girls were challenged with standing out. This being Brazil, the shoot featured tiny bikinis and 80% more (blurred out) butt than the typical "Top Model" shoot.

The best of the week were Teyona (just continuing her domination) and Allison (more sexy and less woodland creature for the second week in a row). The worst were Aminat (she negated her fantastic body and took a bad picture for what seems like the 18th consecutive week), Celia (over thought things and psyched herself out) and Fo (who somehow managed to make herself look even shorter).

Although Tyra took Aminat to task for her bad pose, the obvious bottom two was Celia and Fo. Though Celia seems to be suffering from a crisis of confidence, Fo is too short, too commercial and booked 0 out of 5 jobs. (Celia booked 3 out of 4 before being disqualified.)

Goodbye Fo. I’ll miss your cool edgy haircut and the fact that Sawyer from "Lost" wasn’t around to call you "freckles." However, I won’t miss your repeated whining about your imaginary friendship with Teyona.

So what’d you think of this episode? What’s more fixable - being perceived as too old or too short? (I say it’s been too short, because you can manipulate your body in shoots to work for you.) Is it just me or is Aminat kind of a giant pain in the ass? (Watching her diss Celia after Celia had just said how beautiful Aminat was may have been unfortunate editing, but it still struck me the wrong way.) Finally, who do you see falling short of the final 3? (I think Allison may fall short - she’s a major basket case.)