Sleepy Hollow and a slew of other cool shows

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postaday2013, shows, supernatural, television, vampires, witches

I have to say that my hubby and I are quite happy with this fall season of new shows and the reprisal of our faves from last spring. Tonight we have Bones and Sleepy Hollow to look forward to, Bones I have been watching since day one, a decade’s worth I think, and Sleepy Hollow is an excellent new show. Whoever came up with the premiss is extremely creative, Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman are tied together through time by a spell and someone woke one of them up so hence the other is woken as well. The amount of folklore and legend is soooo cool, I have yet to be disappointed by a single episode. It doesn’t hurt that Ichabod is a dreamy British dude who is very charming and the lead detective is a feisty, very pretty, young, intelligent and gutsy detective. They make a great deductive and courageous pair when fighting the supernatural.

Bones is as I said one of my favorites. I adore the character of Bones, everything about her, from her back story to her quirks and her social awkwardness, even her extremely high opinion of her brilliance which within the context of the show you can’t dispute. Booth is of course our noble hero, he has his own foibles but he complements Bones on every level, they even deal with his devotion to his Catholicism versus Bones steadfast atheism. I have been watching these two characters for a decade, along with their friends within the lab and now this season we are finally going to get a wedding! Bones who never believed in the sanctity of marriage, now has come to love Booth to the point that she feels marrying him is right and natural. Booth being excited and wanting to marry Bones is beautiful and romantic, but the real champion of love and commitment is Temperance Brennan (Bones) herself. Her willingness to throw her customary caution and self-preservation of all things heart related, to the wind and take that “leap of faith” with Booth and their future is to me the ultimate thing of beauty.

I am going to have my tissues handy for their wedding show, I can’t wait.

P.S The whole other slew of cool shows are all supernatural related such as The Originals, a show about the original vampires who are one thousand years old. It is a spinoff of the Vampire Diaries, self explanatory. There is the new show called The Witches of East End, about a family of witches who keep coming back time and time again, always fighting a new threat, Then there is another show that we have fallen in love with called Haven, it’s about a small town in Maine, whose denizens have “troubles” and the main characters Audrey and Nathan help uncover the cause and thus resolve their troubles before more people get hurt. Great t.v!!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

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comedy, commentary, news, political humor, postaday2013, television

I am a faithful fan of this must see television program. It is a comedy program but their political coverage is so much more informative and analytical than our traditional news media. Jon Stewart and his team of correspondents such as John Olver, Jason Jones and Samantha Bee, bitingly and sarcastically take apart the ridiculousness of what takes place not only in Washington D.C but everywhere in the United States where political and economic mayhem exists. They never have to look too hard to find something outlandish to skewer which is what makes this show a must see television show.

The sister show to Jon Stewart’s show is of course the Colbert Report, led by the irreverent Stephen Colbert. His secret weapon is obviously his far right, conservative persona, and what makes it so funny is that some of his guests are oblivious to the fact that they are being interviewed by a persona. It becomes glaringly clear very quickly and makes those interviews that much more hilarious and special.

I am ashamed to say that right now our Supreme Court is deciding if section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 is still relevant in this day and age. I am ashamed because just two weeks ago, Mississippi just ratified the 13th amendment, they were only 150 some odd years late in formerly abolishing slavery in their state and a slew of states are establishing restrictive voter i.d’s and procedures making it much harder for minorities and poorer people to vote. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert and their respective staffs make it their mission through the backdrop of comedy and political satire to highlight how damaging and destructive these current issues are to our democracy.

I know that these two gentlemen consider themselves to be comedians first and activists second, but it doesn’t stop a growing segment of our population from wishing for them to consider doing more. I’m very happy with what they do right now, I just ask for them to never quit or retire. That’s not asking too much, right?
If it weren’t for these two shows, I am sure that many younger people would not be as well informed, because even I who read about politics on a daily basis, rely on these two shows to get other points of view and to weigh what I have read against their barometer of common sense. Comedy requires intelligence and I think that is part of why these shows have merit aside from being solely entertainment.

Soap operas and commercials across the Atlantic

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international commercials, postaday2012, soap operas, television

Today I decided that I was going to take the bus into the city after lunch. My Tantine who is wheelchair bound, took a taxi to my Tonton’s house to join us. It was the four of us enjoying vegetable soup, grilled herbed sausage links and sautéed string beans with garlic and parsley, followed by an array of French cheese and green salad. The television goes on at this point because we are ready for our coffee and chocolate. I didn’t have any chocolate because I have been eating dessert almost every night since I have been invited here, there and everywhere and I want to continue to fit into my clothes. While we’re sipping our chocolate, the news is informing us of continued sun, warm temperatures and possibilities of thunderstorms everywhere else but here. After coffee is done, I load the dishwasher and sweep the floors and finally it is time to join my two Tantine’s and Tonton for the Young and the Restless in French. It is a ritual that I have shared with them, for over a decade now and I get a kick out of it because here in France the soap opera is about two years late, so I know what happened and how it pans out in the larger picture of the whole soap opera scenario. I don’t spoil any of the cliff hangers for my family, but it makes watching the soap opera, almost a sociological study for me; I see how some stories seem to be written since the beginning with the intention of having long-term effects that reverberate through the entire cast of characters and then I see other story lines emerge with potential and with the gift of hindsight I see how they failed. From my perspective, as a “writer” just starting and learning, this is quite a learning experience for me. I also get a kick out of seeing my soap opera stars open their mouths and French come out in completely different voices. Melody Scott Thomas who plays Nikki Newman, has a high-pitched voice but her character in France has a low femme fatale voice, it’s like night and day. Victor who is played by Eric Braeden has a very similar voice in France. I wonder how they choose they voice over actors, if the depth and tone of the voice have anything to do with it at all.

Commercials in France occur three times during the show which is far better than every five minutes for us in the States, it was during one of these commercial breaks that I was stunned beyond belief. There was a commercial for Oreo cookies, in this country where they have fantastic cookies, I’m sorry but it is true, did they really  feel the need to import Oreo cookies? Oreo cookies taste like chemicals, if you have the good luck of having a Choco from the brand  Petit Prince, the cookie with its chocolate creme interior and really fine tasting cookie, you would never think of substituting the Choco for an Oreo. It saddens me to see MacDonald’s everywhere, the Kentucky Fried chicken franchise doesn’t do my heart any good either for that matter. I sat a little less straight in the bus when I saw a Subway franchise in Paris, France has their own version of what makes for an excellent sandwich, the ham and butter sandwich on a fresh baguette, Subway doesn’ t need to compete here, they have more than enough markets to fill in the United States. I am being selfish I know but I want France to keep her own personality, yes we might have become a global village, but can’t France be a bit more selective? Why import things that are doing such dietary harm to the Americans?

Everyone who reads my blog knows that I have a deep and abidong love for France, I have for the United States as well, which is why I am constantly protesting political choices that I find counterproductive for us on my other blog, A Progressive’s Thoughts, it is just that in seven years since I have been here, too much has changed in terms of how much the American way has influenced the eating habits,  the working habits and a even a little of the social habits of the French. I love France the way she is, I can’t help it.