Forever A Fangirl

Three Excellent Reasons to Watch 'Episodes' On Showtime:

1) The writing by David Crane & Jeffrey Klarik is super sharp and very funny. 2) The cast, from lead to support, are excellent--Matt LeBlanc stars alongside two superb British actors, Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig. I'm so happy to have discovered all three of them* and, 3) Episodes is from Showtime, who rarely miss when they aim for great.

*More on Matt in a bit.

What Episodes is about: 'Husband and wife writing team Sean and Beverly can't wait to bring their successful British television series across the pond to make it big in America. But in true Hollywood fashion, it quickly becomes a laughable, clichéd sitcom - starring none other than Matt LeBlanc. Matt not only messes with their beloved show, he rocks the foundation of their relationship. So now, even if they survive the absurdity of show business, will their marriage survive Matt LeBlanc?'

Episodes takes on some familiar territory but does so with verve, biting humour, and originality.

Matt LeBlanc stars as himself starring in a TV comedy, so it is structured as a show within a show. My reaction to a Matt LeBlanc-led production was not quite as extreme as Beverly's (Tamsin Grieg)--utter horror--but I'd  wasn't familiar with his work other than via all the 'Joey' jokes that were made about the character LeBlanc played in the much-loved American sitcom, 'Friends.' Turns out, I like the guy!

LeBlanc as well, Matt LeBlanc, is a bit of an arse in Episodes. He well aware that he's thought of as such and is first to admit to his own foibles, making him quite likable despite his sometimes extremely annoying behaviour. In sharp contrast to LeBlanc, Merc Lepidus (John Pancow) the president of the network, is utterly spoiled, mercurial, unfaithful to his spouse and un-loyal to everyone in general. He's a perfect example of someone rising to the level of their ineptitude. Pancow nails the character, making Merc easily despicable.

The hapless writers in Episodes, Sean and Beverly, are a husband-wife writing team who accepted the offer of a lifetime to jump across the pond from their British successes with their award-winning series to a chance to strike it bigger in Hollywood. Previous to Episodes, I'd not seen any of the work done by Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig, and I'm so very glad to have discovered them. They worked together with much acclaim in their native U.K. and it's immediately apparent why. The chemistry is intense and appealing and they are very funny.

Enjoy a look at the sure-to-be a hit, Episodes which premieres on SHOWTIME Sunday, January 9th at 9:30 PM ET/PT:

SHOWTIME | December 14, 2010

From the people behind Friends and Mad About You comes a new comedy series about making it 'Big in Hollywood.'

'All the jobs are cheating!' LOL!

Screwed, Hollywood Style

Official EPISODES Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EpisodesOnShowtime

 

Official EPISODES Twitter: http://twitter.com/sho_episodes

 

Official EPISODES Series Site: http://www.sho.com/episodes

EPISODES premieres on SHOWTIME Sunday, January 9th at 9:30 PM ET/PT, following the Season Four premiere of CALIFORNICATION, and followed by the series premiere of SHAMELESS. Encores will be broadcast throughout the week and available On Demand and on Showtime Anytime™.

The Muskie Show or, Fish out of Water (Repost 2004)

Today as I drove into the college parking lot and headed towards the fitness center to go lap swimming, I noticed signs saying 'The Muskie Show.' Hmm, I thought, muskie? The only 'muskie' I could think of was the big, ugly fish, but why would there be a 'show' about said fish?

The lot was jammed with pick-up trucks and SUV's, and on the frigid trek to the fitness center I noticed many folks wearing baseball caps. I began thinking maybe this was indeed a show devoted to a large, unnattractive fish. Upon entering the building and observing that the entire crowd had baseball caps on (part of the uniform of the American fisherman) I discarded my doubts and gave in to the realization that hundreds of people had paid money to go to a show starring an uncomely, untasty, aquatic creature.

Typical Muskie Enthusiasts

The swimming pool and the gymnasiums are on basement level--that's where I was headed and that's where the muskie show was taking place. One has the option of taking the elevator, but I take a narrow staircase. In my haste to get away from the crowds mingling upstairs and into the women's locker room, I failed to notice that the stairs were very slick from all the traffic.

On the second tier of stairs mid-way down, my feet went out from under me and I fell.
I had been grasping the handrail with my right hand, and I don't think I let go as I went thumping down what must have only been about 4 stairs. My left hip took the brunt of the fall and both ankles and my left wrist took the impact of "braking." The hip immediately began to throb. Amazingly, given how many people were in the building, there was only one on the stairs with me. Behind me was an Asian fellow sans baseball cap, so I don't think he was a muskie devoteé. He asked me if I was okay and I quickly responded with an affirmative thank you. At that point I wasn't really sure how okay I was, but nothing was broken, nor was I bleeding, the two criteria that I've always applied to 'Is it serious?,' so I headed on into the women's locker room.

I already had my suit on under my clothes so it didn't take me long to get into the pool. The hip continued to throb, but I didn't feel much else until the third lap (yeah, I count 'em), at which point my right ankle started pulsing in pain. Following that, was my right shoulder which must have been yanked as I clutched the handrail to stop myself from going ass-over-teakettle down the entire flight of stairs.

Fortunately, the lack of needing to bear much weight whilst swimming was in my favor.

My mind was taken off my woes somewhat when I caught sight of a group of muskie fans, rods in hand, on their way to approach the lifeguard. I couldn't hear much of the conversation, but I did hear the word 'ain't' a lot. Come to find out, they wished to cast their lines into the pool! Okay, so there wasn't anyone on the side of the pool that they wanted to play-fish in, but Christ Almighty, don't people have any inhibitions?!

The Muskie-ites stood about 6 feet from the end of my lane for about 15 minutes, playing with their rods and reels and lures and what-have-you. When they were finished, they started on their way, clomping down the length of my lane wearing their big, dirty, shit-kickin' boots whilst the lifeguard scanned the pool to make sure they hadn't left behind any fishing paraphernalia.
I'm nothing to gawk at, but I could feel them taking a good look at my Speedo-clad body, as they made their way to exit through the men's locker room.
My damaged body parts were speaking much too loudly right then for me to consider the notion that they were inbred, redneck asshats.

I managed to complete my workout, relishing the thought of a hot shower, but dreading the thought of the hell-walk through the parking lot in the crisp 20-degree-with-a-wind-chill-of-zero weather.
I came home and warmed up while the hurt parts of my body throbbed with more gusto--both wrists, one elbow, both ankles and my hip. It's a bitch to type. It's worse to walk.

My husband is working tonight, and my son has a video game that he's entranced by, so I'm going to make myself cozy and watch the following film--which somehow I missed on it's first run. I'm intruiged because I've never read of a character in a film described as a 'spunky extraterrestrial.'

120 mins.

A cop (Joe Cortese) and a spunky extraterrestrial (Maryam d'Abo) track a killer alien on the loose. Pilot for the short-lived series. Rick Baker and John Dykstra won Emmys for designing the creature and the special effects. Mandy: Kim Delaney. Frank: George Dzundza. Estabrook: Robert Webber. Victor: Gregory Sierra. Emmy for special effects.

Cast: George Dzundza, Joe Cortese, Maryam d'Abo, Kim Delaney

Category: Movie, Sci-fi

Release Year: 1988

The Kid's Table - Feliz Navidad, Photographs and Memories

 Download Jose`Feliciano - Feliz Navidad - 01 - Feliz Navidad

Above: Me and Canadian dept. store Santa, 1962.

 Not a bad Santa, tho'  he  looks as if he's a tad warm in that suit.

Below: A family Christmas get-together from about 1967. I have cousins and an aunt (my dad's sis) and uncle and my dad as the adults in this pic. There's me, my brother, and my cousins after that. No one in the kitchen one looks happy. My brother, the 2nd littlest, looks fearful. We may have just gotten yelled at by the host (not kidding!) It is after all, the kid's table.

So bring us some figgy pudding, but not TOO figgy, because we get gas.

 

                           


  
Merry Christmas!!!

... Have you been naughty or nice this year?  

 

'O, Christmas moose ...'
Dave Barry (c) 2005 Tribune Media Services
Published December 4, 2005

Today's holiday topic is:  Christmas Tree Care.

The Christmas tree is a cherished holiday tradition that dates back 500 years, to the early Germans. What happened was, one night right around Christmas, a bunch of early Germans were sitting around, and one of them, named Helmut, said: "I know! Let's chop down a perfectly good fir tree, drag it inside, and see if we can get it to stand up again!"

     "Why in the world would we do THAT?" asked the other early Germans, who also happened to speak English.

"It's a cherished holiday tradition!" replied Helmut.

This made sense to the other Germans, because they had just invented beer. So they went out, chopped down a tree, dragged it home and spent the next four days trying to make it stand up. We now know that, under the laws of physics, this is impossible. Nevertheless, the tradition of trying to erect Christmas trees continues to the present day.

We should be grateful that the early Germans didn't decide to drag home some large forest organism that is even LESS appropriate for interior use than a tree. Imagine what Christmas would be like today if they had used, for example, a moose. We'd have millions of families driving home with a dead Christmas moose strapped to the roof of the car; and then Dad would spend hours trying to get the moose to fit into a cheesy $4.99 drugstore moose stand; and then the whole family would decorate it; and then, as everybody gathered around in admiration, it would topple majestically to the ground. So it would be essentially the same as what we do now, except that Dad would not get pine sap in his hair.

But the point is that the Christmas tree is a cherished tradition, as reflected in the lyrics to the classic Christmas carol "O Tannenbaum":

O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum,

Something something something,

So bring us some figgy pudding,

But not TOO figgy, because we get gas.

Now let's talk about caring for your Christmas tree. According to the American Association Of Guys Without All Their Teeth Selling Christmas Trees From Tents, the major varieties of Christmas tree are: pine, spruce, Douglas fir, walnut, fake, balsa and Douglas Firbanks Jr. Once you have gotten the tree home and set up in its stand (allowing six to eight weeks) you will want to take measures to prevent it from shedding needles all over your floor. The best way to do this, according to the Association, is to "remove your floor." If that is not practical, you can make a mixture of four cups of water, two tablespoons of bleach and one tablespoon of sugar, but it will do you no good.

When decorating the tree, always use strings of cheap lights manufactured in Third World nations that only recently found out about electricity. Shop around for light strings that have been pre-snarled at the factory for your convenience.

OK! Now that we've covered tree care, it's time for this:

SPECIAL HOLIDAY SAFETY TIP: If you're staging a Nativity show, and you're thinking of using live animals, you had best think again. This tip is based on an alarming newspaper story from the Annapolis, Md., Capital.

The story, which I swear I am not making up, is headlined: "Huge camel fleeing live Nativity scene is killed on Route 50." It states that on the night of Dec. 21, a church was preparing to stage a Nativity show featuring live animals, when a 6-foot-tall, 600-pound camel named Ernie escaped, ran onto a highway, was struck by a car and went to That Big Zoo in the Sky. The article quotes the driver of the car that hit Ernie as saying: "How in the hell is a camel on Route 50 in the United States of America?"

These are words that we would all be wise to remember. But let us not let the threat of colliding with escaped camels dampen the joy we feel during this special time of year, as expressed in the traditional carol "Deck the Halls":

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly!"

Fa la la la la, la la la (crash).

 

Happy Winter Solstice Week

Stonehenge on Winter Solstice morning

What the scientists say:

As the Earth travels around the Sun in its orbit, the north-south position of the Sun changes over the course of the year due to the changing orientation of the Earth's tilted rotation axes with respect to the Sun. This QuickTime movie illustrates the tilt of the Earth's equatorial plane relative to the Sun which is responsible for the seasons.  The dates of maximum tilt of the Earth's equator correspond to the summer solstice and winter solstice, and the dates of zero tilt to the vernal equinox and autumnal equinox.

In the northern hemisphere, the Winter solstice is day of the year (near December 22) when the Sun is farthest south. However, in the southern hemisphere, winter and summer solstices are exchanged so that the winter solstice is the day on which the Sun is farthest north.  The winter solstice marks the first day of the season of winter. The declination of the Sun on the (northern) winter solstice is known as the tropic of capricorn (-23° 27').

The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year, respectively, in the sense that the length of time elapsed between sunrise and sunset on this day is a minimum for the year.  Of course, daylight saving time means that the first Sunday in April has 23 hours and the last Sunday in October has 25 hours, but these human meddlings with the calendar and do not correspond to the actual number of daylight hours. In Chicago, there are 9:20 hours of daylight on the winter solstice of December 22, 1999.

A more spiritual perpective:

Winter solstice was overlaid with Christmas, and the observance of Christmas spread throughout the globe. Along the way, we lost some of the deep connection of our celebrations to a fundamental seasonal, hemispheric event. Many people--of many beliefs--are looking to regain that connection now.

I gain inspiration from the universality of the ancient idea--winter solstice celebrations aren't just an invention of the ancient Europeans.

Native Americans had winter solstice rites. The sun images at right are from rock paintings of the Chumash, who occupied coastal California for thousands of years before the Europeans arrived. Solstices were tremendously important to them, and the winter solstice celebration lasted several days.

In Iran, there is the observance of Yalda, in which families kept vigil through the night and fires burned brightly to help the sun (and Goodness) battle darkness (thought evil).

Winter solstice celebrations are also part of the cultural heritage of Pakistan and Tibet. And in China, even though the calendar is based on the moon, the day of winter solstice is called Dong Zhi, "The Arrival of Winter." The cold of winter made an excellent excuse for a feast, so that's how the Chinese observed it, with Ju Dong, "doing the winter."

I'm certain there are other examples...I'm just starting to collect them. Candlegrove visitors have told me of celebrations among the Hopi and Iranians, among others.  Know of any others you'd like to share?

And what of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights that occurs around this time every year? Is it related to other celebrations of the season?

The placement of Hanukkah is tied to both the lunar and solar calendars. It begins on the 25th of Kislev, three days before the new moon closest to the Winter Solstice. It commemorates an historic event -- the Maccabees' victory over the Greeks and the rededication of the temple at Jerusalem. But the form of this celebration, a Festival of Lights (with candles at the heart of the ritual), makes Hanukkah wonderfully compatible with other celebrations at this time of year. As a symbolic celebration of growing light and as a commemoration of spiritual rebirth, it also seems closely related to other observances.

A Look Ahead at 'The Walking Dead' - Season 2 - Gruesome Moments from Season 1 - Interviews

What May Come Of 'The Walking Dead' in Season 2:

Only how many more months until the Walking Dead shamble back onto our screens?

 How to take a head shot. CLICK.

ashbanner4 | December 20, 2010 | 16 likes, 0 dislikes

The cast and creators of The Walking Dead talk about what might be in store for them in Season 2.

The Walking Dead's first season ended quite literally with a bang, leaving many fans grappling with burning questions as to the fate of Rick Grimes and his fellow survivors. In this new video, The Walking Dead cast and crew address some of these questions and discuss their hopes for Season 2. "Is there a chance of a cure, will they survive, where will they go?" asks Producer Denise Huth. Executive Producer Frank Darabont, for his part, adds: "I want the audience to feel uncertain when they tune in."

Check out this new video interview with the producers as well as cast members Sarah Wayne Callies (Lori), Jon Bernthal (Shane), Laurie Holden (Andrea) and more, and you just may get some valuable insight into where The Walking Dead is heading next.

I blogged about Season 1 The Walking Dead here: Inside The Walking Dead: Directing Zombies

The Walking Dead - 1.04 'Vatos' - 22 Photo Stills NOW with MORE ZOMBIES, Character Deaths

The Walking Dead (2010) 5-Minute Trailer Plus Bunches Of TV Spots, BTS, Learning To Shamble

CLICK links for much more. Use 'search' to find more after getting there.

© Copyright 2010 American Movie Classics Company LLC (AMC). All rights reserved.

 

Jeff Bridges & Cookie Monster Open Saturday Night Live with 'Silver Bells' - Bridges' 'Face Lift'

Cookie Monster Pleads To Be on SNL, Sings 'C is for Cookie':

andywinsagain | December 18, 2010 Apologies--only copy available.

'Cookie Monster is a surprise guest on Saturday Night Live opening the show with Jeff Bridges, singing Silver Bells'

I've searched for an official version of the Cookie Monster & Jeff Bridges singing 'Silver Bells' but so far all that is legit is via NBC (as usual) and NBC put that dumb 'Jeff'd' skit up instead of this little gem.

The cookie-obsessed, blue furry monster got the idea to petition to host Saturday Night Live from Betty White. 'Taking a cue from (White's) fans, Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster turned to Facebook last month to launch a campaign to host Saturday Night Live,' (as per the Hollywood Reporter).

Cookie Monster might not have realized his dream for a SNL hosting gig but everyone’s favorite blue furry guy has to be happy about his surprise guest gig and duet with Tron: Legacy star Jeff Bridges. Bridges is everywhere this weekend with Tron: Legacy just opening with good reviews and a great box office take... Also, Bridges also stars in a remake of True Grit, with Matt Damon and Josh Brolin, which opens December 22. (via: http://blogs.babble.com/famecrawler/2010/12/19/jeff-bridges-cookie-monster-duet-viral-hit-watch-video/)

Jeff Bridges hosted Saturday Night Live on Saturday, December 18, 2010, with musical guests Eminem and Lil Wayne.

 

Jeff Bridges hosted Saturday Night Live on Saturday, December 18, 2010, with musical guests Eminem and Lil Wayne.

SesameStreet | February 06, 2009

AssociatedPress | December 16, 2010 | 1 likes, 1 dislikes

Actor Jeff Bridges talks about the wonders of technology turning him into his young self in 'TRON:Legacy,' while co-star Olivia Wilde praises the merits of physical transformation for her role.(Dec.16)

 

SesameStreet | November 23, 2010 | 13,159 likes, 211 dislikes

Cookie Monster wants to host Saturday Night Live and he needs your help! Click here to join the Facebook group and help Cookie Monster be the next host! http://bit.ly/CookieSNL

 

TiVo Premiere: One Simple Device Plus One Stunning Interface Equals the Best Gift Ever!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of TiVo. All opinions are 100% mine.

Though I don't watch a lot of television,  I do have my very favorite shows that I never miss. Plus, I am quite interested in new shows and actors that are getting great buzz and/or are picking up Golden Globe nominations and such. Finally, there are a number of other TV watchers in my home and we all have our favorite shows and need to keep track of them.

Enter TiVo Premiere. Not only will TiVo Premiere help me stay on top of the dates and times of new and favorite shows it also does what I would have thought impossible: the TiVo Premiere helps me track my favorite actors individually.  I'm thinking now of William H. Macy, who was so memorable in the film 'Fargo' as well as in the popular television series ER as 'Dr. Morgenstern' in addition to many, many other endeavors. He's about to take on yet another starring role on a premium cable station sometime in January 2011 but I'm terrible at keeping track of what station, and the day and time of new programs, in particular.

This tends to be slower time of year for television watching as many of us have some additional tasks to complete. Yes, with the holidays comes many responsibilities and seemingly limitless gift options. At this point I start to worry about the people that I still have not a clue what to buy for! Here's a idea--and bonus! It may be the favorite present your lucky friend or family member may open this holiday season!

TiVo has a special holiday pricing offer with the TiVo Premiere available for just $99, when you sign up for a 1-year service plan of just $19.99 a month. This is TiVo Premiere's BEST offer EVER!

Since you were probably heading over to Best Buy anyway (doesn't everyone make at least one stop at the Big Blue Box during the holidays?) you may as well  jump in and take advantage of the offer that cannot be beat.

Here are some specifics that you'll want to take note of as I'm fairly certain that you already enjoy at least a few of these services:

The TiVo Premiere connects to your current cable and Internet service, giving you the power to find and record all your favorite programs. Also-- this is a biggie: You get cool online features like instant streaming from everyone's fave film & TV series outlet, Netflix, downloads from Amazon 'Video On Demand', YouTube videos, music from Pandora and  a lot more.

You can have it all on your HDTV using one simple-to-use handheld device (with a lovely HD interface) so switching inputs, cable boxes under every television, and cries of "Where's the remote?" will be a distant memory of the 'old days.'

Shameless: 20-min Promo, 'It's Called Parenting' 'Meet The Gallaghers' 'BTS' 'Cusak On Shameless' Showtime Videos

With Dexter wrapped, besides  the occasional film, I have nothing to watch on Showtime!

Correction. Had nothing until I  started paying better attention to what is new as well as why Sunday nights are a great reason to mix a little something old with two new offerings!

Showtime is premiering what they call their 'Biggest. Sunday. Ever' which includes the return of Californication and immediately following, the series premieres of Episodes and Shameless on January 9th at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

I've been watching the promos for 'Shameless.' I love the lead actors, Wlliam H. Macy and Emmy Rossum and the kids look pretty great, too. Add to the mix Joan Cusak in a recurring role and you've got a reason to  watch the 20-minute preview, followed by catching the series premiere on  Jan 9 on Showtime.

I'll have follow-up posts about both Californication  and Shameless. My plan is to watch all three shows  because 1. I currently I do not watch a single TV comedy and that's just not right (hey, Dexter is dark comedy (on hiatus), Weeds is  um, Weed's comedy (also on hiatus), Nurse Jackie is between seasons... none of them are on now) Between the three of the Showtime offerings, I'm betting a least one or more will tickle my fancy and 2. It's a good time of year, now that we've gone into a 4-month deep freeze here in the Midwest, to watch a bit more TV especially on Sunday night with Monday morning looming. Watercooler convo. anyone?

 

SHOWTIME - Fiona (Rossum) leaves her deadbeat dad, Frank (Macy), to look after the rest of his 5 kids for the night.

Every family has it's own rules of survival, some are just more creative than others. Meet the Gallaghers from Showtime's new original series Shameless.

SHOWTIME

Behind the Scenes: Shameless

The SHAMELESS cast weighs in on the characters in the new series.

ALSO: Check out 'Shameless' in this 20-minute uncut sneak peek of SHAMELESS: that will show you why this Showtime newcomer is a must-see: http://www.sho.com/site/order/preview.do#/Shameless_s01_Sneak.

Joan Cusack on Shameless

SHOWTIME | Season 1 Ep. 0 | Added: December 06, 2010

Joan Cusack discusses playing her agoraphobic character and working with William H. Macy.

Official SHAMELESS Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ShamelessOnShowtime
Official SHAMELESS Twitter: www.twitter.com/sho_shameless

 

Official SHAMELESS Series Site: http://www.sho.com/shameless

True Blood Season 4 Casting News (12.15.10)

True Blood Season 4 Casting/News (Updated 12.15.10) True Blood Cast Expands, Plot Details Leaked!*

 

Five More Actors on True Blood Season 4 Casting List:

 (12.15.10)

(Rebecca Wisocky - Photo credit : IMDb)

Rebecca Wisocky will play Queen Mab, who is described as an  a 'quick-tempered leader and elegant beauty who presides over a fantasyland.'

Wisocky has been seen on stage in AMAZONS AND THEIR MEN, for which she received an Obie Award. Other stage credits include GOD'S EAR, 36 VIEWS, and SUENO. She has also been cast on 90210, The Mentalist, CSI and HBO's Big Love and will have a future engagement with the film, 'Atlas Shrugged'.

(Dane DeHaan - Photo credit : IMDb)

'In Treatment's' standout Dane DeHaan has joined HBO's vampire drama True Blood in a recurring role:

Freshman actor DeHaan, has been cast for a key guest spot in the True Blood fourth season premiere.

DeHaan (whose stage credits include THE ALIENS, AMERICAN BUFFALO, SIXTY MILES TO SILVER LAKE and END DAYS) will play Timbo, a teen looked after by Ryan Kwaten's character, Jason. The part extends DeHaan's relationship with HBO. Currently, DeHaan plays Jesse on the current season of the network's drama In Treatment.

Sources:  Deadline -    Two Join True Blood Cast As Recurring Characters 

TVBroadwayWorld.com - Dane DeHaan and Rebecca Wisocky Guest Star on HBO 'True Blood'

TV CASTINGS: Laura Fraser Joins Showtime Pilot 'Homeland,' Two Added To 'True Blood'  Latest from Kristin - Various Shows - 14th December 2010

 (12.14.10)

Q: Any True Blood scoop?

Sam Trammell (Sam Merlotte on True Blood) Photo Credit: MTV Spike TV Scream Awards

... Sam Trammell gave details about 'what's going to happen (to his character, early) in the new season.'

"We've been [shooting] for about two weeks. We've gotten two scripts and it's really cool. I'm really psyched about it....  And it's different—some things have happened that have changed things, so I think the viewers will be excited. Alan [Ball] likes to keep everybody on their toes.

*Sam Trammell on True Blood's upcoming Season 4*:

"It's always fun just getting the scripts and reading them, it's like...I was going to say crack cocaine but I've never had it!"

(12.14.10)

Q:  True Blood S4 details?

A: Sookie's (Anna Paquin) farmhouse has been a shambles ever since Maryann (season 2) built meat sculptures in the front yard and had orgies in the back and front yards, as well as 'repainting' Sookie's murdered grandma's walls with mud (only--I hope!)...

'Insiders say they're finally repainting the house and repairing all the damage...ounds like Sookie might be settling back into domestic bliss?'* 

(*From the Sookie Stackhouse books, which the show has split off from, Sookie's kitchen was set deliberately afire; after surviving that (as Sookie always does--survives for another novel) with some time going by,) Sook decides to give the old place a sprucing up. - CLM

(Photo credit: Buddy-TV.com)

Christina Moore, Neil Hopkins and Chris Butler have been cast in the fourth season of True Blood, TVGuide.com confirms.

Moore (MADtv, 90210) has been cast as a Texas housewife with special abilities, a recurring role. She will film her part on the HBO series while HawthoRNe, the TNT drama in which she is a regular, is on hiatus.

Both Hopkins (LOST, Skyline) and Butler (The Good Wife)  will appear in multi-episode arcs.

Hopkins will play Claude, brother to Claudine, the queen of the fairies. Butler will play Emory, a conservative shapeshifter.

The news was first reported by Deadline.

 Intriguing screen cap photo to discuss (click to enlarge):

(Photo: Sookieverseblog.com)

Here Claudine beckons Sookie. Near her is a shirtless blond man, similar to other faeires we've seen sort of milling about in the Sookie-Claudine scenes of season 3. Is that the newly-cast Neil Hopkins? He bears a resemblance.  Book readers will recall Claude and Claudine were two-thirds of triplet siblings – and that Claude was described in the books as dark-haired, like his sisters. (Claude-from-the-books was also described as hating humans, gay and a popular male-stripper.)

 

(12.05.10)

Two New Actors Added To Season 4 Cast:

With the recent production start of Season 4 of HBO's True Blood series, the trickle of casting news is now gathering momentum.

The newest cast-ees?

First, a fellow who has already worked on True Blood, albeit not as a cast member but as a stuntman in the Season 3 installment, 'I Got a Right to Sing the Blues' ( July 25 2010). According IMDb, Brandon Molale has been cast in the first two episodes of True Blood, Season 4. Molale will play 'Officer X' in episode 4x01,'She's Not There' and will again appear in the role in True Blood episode 4x02, 'You Smell Like Dinner.'  Casting in further episodes has not yet been announced.

Molale has has appeared in over 90 feature films and television shows, albeit often in non-credited, more physical roles.

Earlier on he was a football player at Fresno State University. He earned a degree in Advertising and Marketing. Molale is a self-taught guitar player and former radio disk jockey and is a football coordinator and technical advisor.

At 6'4" in height Molale joins Alexander Skargård (Eric) and Joe Manganiello (Alcide) in the cast as the really, really tall guys.

A second True Blood casting call has been answered by actor-writer-producer Randy Wayne for the part of 'Matt', also cast in True Blood episodes 1 and 2 of season 4.

According to Wikipedia, Wayne is most famous for his portrayal of Luke Duke in the movie 'The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning.' Since then he has starred in numerous independent features including Dream Boy, Grizzly Park, and Foreign Exchange. He also portrayed 'Michael' in 'The Haunting of Molly Hartley'.

Find more True Blood Season 4 casting news right here.

 

Dexter - Reflecting on Season 5: Julia Stiles - Atonement: Chip Johannessen (Showtime)

Some of the points made by new-this-year executive producer Chip Johanneson include that through the Lumen arc, 'we've put to bed the Rita question.'

I took this to mean that the Rita storyline is tied up as much as it can be. I wouldn't be surprised if a few loose ends show in the future but for Dexter himself, Lumen has fulfilled that function. Johanneson continued, pointing out that the events of season 5 allow the writers to 'pick up anywhere in season 6.'

SHOWTIME | December 13, 2010

Julia Stiles discusses the end of her character's relationship with Dexter.

Though Julia Stiles 'kind of assumed that Lumen would end up dead,' it probably dawned on her as they got deeper into season 5, with the Dexter-Lumen dynamic proving ever-more appealing that perhaps there was another possible ending.  Regardless, season 5 ended on a typical Dexter note--the 'big bad' was on Dexter (and Lumen's) table, taking a knife to the heart.

Sadly, Dexter too, took a (metaphorical) knife to his own heart when Lumen suddenly announced that relieved of her darkness (dark passenger), she would be skipping town the following day. Dexter was cool enough to tell her that he was happy for her that her darkness had gone. He continued, assuring her that he would 'carry (her) darkness' for her. Aww. Poor Dex.

SHOWTIME | December 13, 2010

Atonement: Chip Johannessen

 Chip Johannessen discusses the season five finale of Dexter.

Executive Producer Sara Colleton weighs in via E!

Q:..What did Deb mean during her final conversation with Dexter at the party: "You must be [happy] too, now that this is all over.".... What would Deb be referring to?...s
A: Sara Colleton: "Deb is referring to the barrel-girls case. It was meant to be purposely vague, and it should make Dexter wonder exactly what it is she means as he can't be sure."

Q: Are we to believe that Quinn did not figure out that Dexter is a killer?
A: per Colleton: "Quinn may suspect Dexter has been somehow involved in Liddy's death, but don't think his world view is large enough yet to imagine who Dexter really is." 

Q: So bummed to see Lumen leave last night on Dexter! Any chance Julia Stiles will return?
Colleton: "That has not been discussed. But she is out there..."

Official DEXTER Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHO_dexter

Official DEXTER Series Site: http://www.sho.com/dexter

 Official DEXTER Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dexter

 

Update! Dexter's Michael C. Hall & IRL Wife, Sister 'Deb' On Dexter, Jennifer Carpenter Split #dexter

 


Update/ This never crossed my mind until today and by then I was sure the speculators got their hooks into it. (They have.)

Yes, 'Dexter' and 'Lumen' made a great couple in the Showtime drama "Dexter."

But do you really, really think that because of this and no other info. that the two of them are the reason for MCH (Dexter) and Jennifer Carpenter (Deb) breaking up, IRL? Really? C'os they didn't split when he married 'Rita' or when she dated the now-dead 'Agent Lundy' or, depending on the actual time frame of their romance--which we will never know--any of the other bf's 'Deb' has had in the last couple years.

Do you really believe that what is being acted out on your television is real life? If you do, you are silly and shallow. It's a possibility, sure, but are you certain Stiles isn't in a serious relationship with someone already or maybe has a 'thing' against hooking up with married guys? So many assumptions! And now of course it will be Stiles for whom every doubter looks askance and wonders,"Did she bust up the Hall-Carpenter union?

Note: In attempting to gather some solid news on the impending divorce of Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, I came across a little bit of what may be factual info.: 'Carpenter was the one who filed for divorce,' 'Carpenter is said to have complained about MCH to castmates on the set this season. Said castmates are 'concerned' about season 6.' 'Hall and Carpenter have been 'apart' for some time now and were in general, cool toward one another for the entire filming of season 5.'

Make of it what you will but don't expect any tell-all sob stories from Hall, Carpenter or Stiles. None of them are particularly outgoing or into the H'wood scene.

I'm sure there will be a variety of reactions to this but one that springs to mind is that some of your audience just got fully comfortable with the image of you going home to your wife who plays your sister on Dexter along with mastering the ability to not think that you guys are married IRL and now. NOW you split up?!

I admit at first when Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter were in a scene together post-marriage anouncement, I'd watch for any sign that they were not acting.

This is sad news-- and  after such a short go of it.  I wonder what's next for the two of them and of course, the same question on everyone lips besides 'Why did they split?'

BTW, the timing on the announcement of this split is just plain weird. Whose idea was it to wait until the Dexter season 5 ended and do so within a few hours?

Will there still be a season 6 Dexter?

After nearly two years of marriage, Dexter stars Michael C. Hall, 39, and Jennifer Carpenter, 31, are divorcing. An exclusive joint statement to EW from their representatives read: “Having been separated for some time, Jennifer Carpenter and Michael C. Hall have filed for divorce.” Both reps add that the split was amicable. The couple — who met on the set of the Showtime drama, in which she plays his foster sister — married on December 31, 2008. Hall completed treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma earlier this year.

13 2010 07:27 PM ET EW exclusive-'Dexter' stars Michael C. Hall, Jennifer Carpenter file for divorce '

 

 

 

 

Dexter: Season 5 Finale (5.12) Were You Surprised? #SPOILERS #dexter

Lumen (Julia Stiles) and Dexter (Michael C. Hall)
Image Credit: dextergr.blogspot.com

 

"Don't be sorry your darkness is gone. I'll carry it for you, always. I'll keep it with mine."

 

 

Dexter Season 5 Finale: Were you surprised?

I really wasn't but I was satisfied with it.

Just one small thing  is still sort of bugging me:

LUMEN: “First I wondered what was happening to me, then I was wondering how I could possibly tell you.”

Lumen's 'conversion', if you want to call it that, was very hasty--really sudden, especially on the heels of being re-traumatized (kidnapped, beaten, strung up, by Jordan Chase, again).

She told Dexter that she had to leave Miami 'the next day' almost as if she was running from...Dexter? Her Dark Passenger? Both?

It just seems too sudden a send off when they've spent the season developing a deep relationship. Dexter and Lumen just went *poof?* That doesn't feel real to me.

I realize (at least 'till I see the post- finale Stiles' interview whxih I've missed) that the door has been left ajar for another encounter with Lumen but I'm not banking on it unless it is quite fleeting.

What about Det. Joey Quinn (Desmond Harrington) and Deb (Jennifer Carpenter)?

Quinn knows way too much to not be a threat to Dexter. The set of photographs of the body parts bag dump he and Lumen made that Stan Liddy telephoto-ed, that alone is huge.

Dexter knows way too much to not be a threat to Quinn.

It seems however that Dexter has gone with his heart and spared his sister's lover a lot of grief despite the fact that he doesn't like Quinn 'at all.'

"Deb is slowly coming around to the idea of there being something other than black and white and that there is more than just good and bad," Colleton explains. "I think the turning point for her was when she killed that bad guy this season. And she and Dexter had that wonderful conversation over a beer when she says, ‘I didn't feel anything. And I'm surprised that I don't feel bad for having killed a bad guy.' And Dexter sort of floats something out there just as a little test bomb just to see how his sister would react when he says, ‘Well, Dad once told me there are people who deserve to die.' And that was one of my favorite scenes this year. I know our longtime fans got everything going on in that scene and all the layers,' - Exec Producer Sara Colleton 

And of course, with that heart-wrenching scene above a shattered plate in which Dexter let Lumen go, it must be noted that Dexter remains one of the most emotionally gripping and yes, even sometimes breathtakingly romantic series on television. Pretty amazing for a darker-than-dark serial killer show. --Kristen

E!Online - Dexter Finale: Deb Finding Out Is "Inevitable"—and More Scoop From the Show's Big Boss

A Good Recap: Small excerpt from LATIMES:

...Dexter’s finally broken a chain of relationships that end in blood and death, partially thanks to Deb learning, with Laguerta’s help, to be merciful and have faith and not just barge around expecting the worst from everyone.  So this “clean slate” thing may open up the next season as Dexter actually has the chance to figure out on his own what to do next, and not have his destiny foisted on him by someone else’s death. 

(All images: Showtime copyright)

Update! Dexter Full Set Promo Photos - 5.12 - 'The Big One' - #Spoilers via IMDb, E! #dexter

 
Tomorrow (Sunday) night marks the end of another spectacular season of Dexter on Showtime.

I still marvel at what an unexpectedly satisfying season this has been. I've loved seeing Dexter discover emotional depths to himself that he'd previously dismissed as not even remotely possible to feel.

For the first time ever, as an audience member, I'm wondering if Harry Morgan eff'ed up big time in diagnosing Dexter as broken and impossible to repair (Dexter, fleetingly, has asked the same question).

(Photo collage via tumblr.com)

It was very savvy of Dexter's writers to have Rita's death expose layers to Dexter that we may not have ever seen. Not that I felt this way, but Dexter the serial killer otherwise might have begun feeling a bit "been there, done that." That was not even on the table (no pun intended) this season as Dex had very little time to attempt to go back to his pre-Rita life, back to the old Dexter, before Lumen came into it.

And all the better. "Lumen" has been my favourite Julia Stiles' characterization, ever.  Stiles was pitch perfect in a very demanding range of her character, rape-club-victim-that-survived turned

avenging angel, Lumen.

I don't know if Lumen is Dexter's soulmate. I know that they both came along when the other was in desperate need and they filled those empty spaces. Whether they are fated to continue...I just don't know. My observation was that Dexter seemed more natural and relaxed with Lumen than anyone he has ever been with, including Rita. Lumen 'gets' Dexter. That has been profoudly healing for him.

Dexter first literally saved Lumen, then helped rehabilitate her in the way she requested as well as tenderly tending to her physical wounds.

When Deb tells Dexter that he is 'a good person,' she's right, he is. It makes no sense but that is what keeps us wanting more. 'Dexter' makes us question what, exactly, it means to be a 'good person'? Do any of us really know?

 

Some short excerpts from Dexter Exec. Producer Sara Colleton in an interview with E! Read it in it's entirety here.

In answer to a plea that the Dexter season 5 ending won't be as emotionally devastating as season 4's murder of Rita, Colleton replied:

You won't need therapy this time. The finale is actually quite therapeutic. It's like therapy in and of itself.

Colleton continued:

This season Dexter's journey was atonement. So the big question is, will he/(is it possible for Dex to) be at peace with himself?...Is it possible he has found a soul mate?

Colleton went on to explain that the many questions of this season are like coins tossed in the air and they will all come down (be answered?) on Sunday night.

When asked about whether Julia Stiles (Lumen) and the rest of the cast will return next season, Colleton turned cagey saying:

'...there a lot of fates that are still possibilities.'

I believe Colleton did a mild deflection of the question by next bringing up Det. Joey Quinn (Desmond Harrington) and stating that his fate was now in Dexter's hands. It's my opinion that Dexter has no reason to take down Quinn now.

Quinn has professed to be in love with Dexter's sis Deb (and she with him). Dex knows this, he knows that Quinn stopped investigating Dex, the guy that was doing the spying (Liddy) is dead and most importantly, his sister loves Quinn even if Dexter dislikes him intensely. As long as Quinn and Dexter have 'an understanding,' I beleive Dex will not sell Quinn down the river and I'm 99% positive Dex will not kill Quinn.

In answer to a query about the place that "Lumen' has had in Dexter's life Colleton responded:

...in the course of trying to help her, the thing has happened that Dexter never thought would. He's contemplating for the first time...Is it possible that there is such a thing as a soul mate? Is it possible that I, Dexter Morgan, could have a soul mate?

Dexter 5.12 Sneak Peek #3

 

oilery | December 12, 2010

Dexter 5x12 Sneak Peek

Colleton elaborated further on her take on the mechanics of Dexter's thinking:

(Dexter's father Harry) ended up killing himself because he couldn't deal with the guilt of what he had created. And so Dexter carries that guilt in shame... I've always thought (one thing that) binds Dexter to the audience is that we all have this feeling of wanting to be known and we all are terrified that if someone actually saw the real, true us, they might just run in the opposite direction. So he's been forced because of his need of atonement to to expose himself and to atone himself to Lumen.

For the Deb n' Quinn as a couple fans, Colleton had this bone to toss out:

In the last episode you see his character as being a redeemable man and a man worthy of Deb's love, in a way that is really satisfying. Desmond has done such a terrific job with his character and you've really seen him stepping up and becoming Deb-worthy.

...and then take back:

 But you know, fate often intervenes...

Reported quotes from the final episode (via anonymous IMDb source) :

HARRY TO DEXTER:

“It’s right in front of you. Remember your target. Where he came from. Who he was.”

QUINN: “I don’t think I should say anything else. Not until I speak to a lawyer.”

LAGUERTA: “We have an officer down. Stan Liddy”*** NOT a spoiler. It is in the sneak peek promo.

BATTISTA: “Am I the only one interested in this goddamn murder?”

LUMEN: “First I wondered what was happening to me, then I was wondering how I could possibly tell you.”

MASUKA: “Is it weird to bring a date to a first birthday party?”

DEB: “I’m happy. You must be too. Now that this is all over, I mean.”

DEXTER: “Wishes, of course, are for children.”

JORDAN TO LUMEN:“You’ve transformed. You’re beautiful. If you hadn’t met me, you’d never know you had it in you.”

via: SpoilerTV

I'm really hoping that that final delusional quote by 'Jordan' is just before Lumen plunges the knife into Jordan Chase's black little heart.

Sadly, the Dexter voiceover sonds like it comes after the resolution -- at baby Harrison's birthday party.

Guessing that Deb is speaking to Quinn after Dexter has proven Quinn (via blood analysis) not guilty of having anything to do with Liddy's murder. Dexter is after all a monster with morals.

I truly hope that the Lumen quote is directed at Jordan as a way to buy time prior to him killing her. In her time with Dexter she's been a quick study. It may be what saves her long enough for Dexter to get to her.

 

johnnyricotumblr | December 08, 2010

Michael C. Hall on Jimmy Fallon, Dec. 7 2010. Part 2

No copyright infringement intended.

johnnyricotumblr | December 08, 2010 |

Michael C. Hall on Jimmy Fallon, Dec. 7 2010. Part 2

No copyright infringement intended.

 Wondering what is to become of Batista's and LaGuerta's marriage? Read on:

Sgt. Batista’s on-the-rocks marriage with LaGuerta won’t get any better before the end of the season — but that doesn’t mean the marriage is hopeless, either. David Zayas told me this week at a LAByrinth Theater Company’s annual celebrity charades fundraiser in New York that the couple’s season-long troubles aren’t necessarily a sign of a breakup. “It never gets resolved. Marriages don’t get resolved. It’s a journey,” he said. “There probably won’t be a definite answer to that question in the season finale, but we’ll be back.”

Everyone has been tight-lipped regarding the Dexter finale — but luckily, the same can’t be said for star Michael C. Hall. While presenting a “Dexter-esque” playlist on New York’s 101.0 RXP, the actor seemingly spilled a huge spoiler by saying fans should pay “special attention” to one of his picks, Bob Dylan’s “I’ll Keep It With Mine,” before watching the finale. Among the lyrics to this song that so-perfectly describes Dexter and Lumen: “The train leaves at half past 10/ But it’ll be back tomorrow same time again./ The conductor, he’s weary, still stuck on the line./ But if I can save you any time/ Come on, give it to me. I’ll keep it with mine.”
 

Source: EW

(Photo Credit: Source: Pizquita)

PHOTOS: 'Trevor Live' at the Hollywood Palladium - Kristin Bauer van Straten - Joe Manganiello: Gorgeous Photos and Charity,Too!

True Blood's Vampire Pam, and werewolf Alcide Herveaux bring it!:

Joe Manganiello and Kristen Bauer van Straten

SOURCE: AfterEllen.com — Photo Gallery: “Trevor Live” at the Hollywood Palladium

(Image Credit: AfterEllen.com)

 

Kristen Bauer van Straten

 

 

 

 

SOURCE: AfterEllen.com — Photo Gallery: “Trevor Live” at the Hollywood Palladium

(Image Credit: AfterEllen.com)

Hollywood, CA - December 05:  The Trevor Project's annual 'Trevor Live' was held at The Hollywood Palladium on December 5, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

(All photos: Getty Images)

Last night some serious star power came out in force for The Trevor Project's West Coast fundraiser, "Trevor Live." The event featured musical performances by Neil Patrick Harris & James Marsden, Idina Manzel & Taye Diggs, Queen Latifah, and Darren Criss with Katy Perry and many others. 

Kathy Griffin was honored with a Trevor Life Award. The photos below and on the following pages are from the red carpet arrivals and also from the onstage event at the Hollywood Palladium.

Emma Stone

David Burtka & Neil Patrick Harris

True Blood's Joe Manganiello and Kristin Bauer

Wayne Brady

Katy Perry performing "Teenage Dream"

Rashida Jones

Brittany Snow

Josh Duhamel

Carrie Ann Inaba

Dave Navarro

Kate Walsh

Josh Duhamel

Darren Criss

 

Jesse Tyler Ferguson »

- AfterElton.com Staff

Dexter - 5.12 Preview 'The Big One' Sneak Peeks Promo Photos - RIP Stan Liddy - Stiles On Lumen

From Dexter - 5.09 - 'Teenage Wasteland' Screen Caps SPOILERS - Lumen & Dexter *Showtime Copyright*

Dexter Season 5 Finale ' The Big One' 5.12

Promo photos, screen caps

Above: Sorry  Screen caps I made are crap; promo photos issued by Showtime are OK.

 So you're digging Julia Stiles as Lumen? Especially she and Michael C. Hall together? Hmph. About time! I said it once before but it bears repeating: the Lumen character worked.

We've seen a Dexter that had never been exposed before because he'd not yet met Lumen. She has forever changed him. I hope against hope for a not-sad ending for these two.

I never thought, even for a second, that season 5 directly on the heels of the season 4 murder of Dexter's wife Rita, funeral and all, turned out out the way it has. Another cool thing is the show feels fresh--much as it did with last year's balls-out effort with John  Lithgow as the 'Trinity Killer', who killed or was responsible for most of Dexter's family getting either shot or killed (Deb in the mid-section to the side area, next to her, together on the ground of the motel parking lot a dying former Agent and current paramour Frank Lundy (Keith Carradine) by Trinity's adult daughter/ Joey Quinn's squeeze.  Then  there was Rita of course, by Trinity).

I hope Lumen (Julia Stiles) survives because I :heart: Lumen, as she's been such a nice 'partner' for Dexter. Certainly, each was the other's after-horrible-life-trauma savior.

          

'Terrible Curse' Dexter Tries To Bargain w/ Jordan Chase - JC, with Lumen in his trunk, tries to 'eff with Dexter's head while Dexter, driving frantically, desperately tries to find and save Lumen before Chase kills her.

                    

 Dexter - 5.12 "The Big One" Season Finale

''Surprise'

In the season finale, Dexter's situation grows more desperate when he discovers that Lumen's been set up. Despite knowing he's being baited into a trap, Dexter risks everything to make sure he doesn't fall into the same mistake again. In the Barrel Girls case, Debra lets her personal feelings lead her instincts once she concludes that vigilantes are more than just a theory. Quinn finds himself in a troublesome situation in which only Dexter can help him.

 

Julia Stiles' TV Guide Interviews:

Dexter's 'Lumen,' - Julia Stiles on her character

"Lumen is the only person alive who sees Dexter's true self and accepts him. There's something oddly romantic about that, and also very intimate," Stiles tells TVGuide.com. "The reverse is true for Lumen. The experience she had before was so traumatic, and had an element of shame, where she couldn't go back and see her family. There's something very isolating about that, and the fact that Dexter knows about it and also embraces her is very sweet amidst all this weirdness."

'Life has been twisted, dark and miserable lately for Lumen Pierce (Julia Stiles), which makes her an absolutely perfect fit for Dexter this season. She's been raped, exploited and whipped so badly even Stiles felt the pain. As the actress known for her work in the Bourne movies says, "I forgot to take off my prosthetic slash marks one night and I suddenly went, 'Wait. What happened to me?'" The bigger question is what's happening to Lumen? Ever since Dexter (Michael C. Hall) rescued her from that serial killer's creepy lockup, Lumen's been a bit of a Dexter wannabe. She wants to kill the people who've brutalized her, which in turn puts Dexter in the odd position of trying to stop murders.

"Lumen walks that fine line that's so cool on this show, between doing the right thing and doing the right thing that's sorta the wrong thing," says Stiles, who adds she feels the thrall of the Dexter "community" after only a few guest appearances. "My friends who are crazy about the show are really crazy about the show," she laughs.

 

Here's what's really crazy: how much we've enjoyed watching Stiles play a pawn in a human-trafficking scheme. Which side wins? The actress isn't telling: "I think we'll see a dramatic ending." Dexter airs Sundays at 9/8c on Showtime. -Julia Stiles' TV Guide Interview

 

Official DEXTER Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHO_dexter

 

Official DEXTER Series Site: http://www.sho.com/dexter

 Official DEXTER Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dexter

From Dexter - Episode 5.08 - 'Take It' *Showtime Copyright*

Dexter Death Spoiler - Episode 5.12 - Season Finale 'The Big One' Promo Photos #dexter #spoiler

Dexter Death Spoiler:

  Not sure if this spoils tonight's previous Dexter spoiler about 'two deaths' occurring in episode 11, (renamed 'Hialeah and Fourth').

I'd guessed that Liddy (Peter Weller) would buy it in the December 5 eppy (tonight). He may still do so but this photo still is from the season finale on 12.12.10, (re)titled 'The Big One.' It is quite possible that Liddy's body is found in episode 12 after him being offed in episode 11, IDK. Here are a few more photos being circulated from the finale. At least one is a behind-the-scene shot.

Source: SpoilerTV

 

Update: Dexter - NEW #3 #4 Sneak Peeks! Episode 5.11 'Hialeah And Fourth' - Hugetastic SPOILERS From EW, TVGuide

Dexter 5x11 - "Hialeah & Fourth" - Sneak Peek #3 and #4 ***Note: Episode title change

llegaronpara3 | December 05, 2010 |

Dexter -  What Happens Next:

No. 1: “It’s a great moment of panic when you realize someone is spying on you but you don’t know who it is and what exactly have they seen. For Dexter, it’s the world’s worst nightmare…. The audience knows that it’s Liddy, but when Dexter finds out that the surveillance equipment has been checked out by Quinn, his trail leads toward Quinn. What’s Dexter going to do to stop Quinn, who he believes is on his trail?

 

No. 2: “Having worked alongside Deb for this entire season and slowly getting together and at the same time backing off from each other, Quinn finally bares his soul to Deb in such a way that she can no longer ignore what’s happened between them. And this is going to be complicated by the fact that Dexter believes that Quinn is spying on him.”

No. 3: “Deb narrows down the evidence against Jordan and believes she has enough to put him into custody— only to realize that it’s going to be harder than she imagined.”

No. 4: “Jordan Chase makes his ultimate gambit toward getting Dexter where he wants him. He makes a move that leaves Dexter devastated by the end of the episode.”

--Dexter executive producer Manny Coto to EW

Two more sneek peeks (exclusive EW videos)

 In last week's episode, after Dexter (Michael C. Hall) helped rape victim Lumen (guest star Julia Stiles) get her first taste of revenge by killing one of her tormentors, the duo hit the sheets, becoming more than just partners in crime. But Stiles found a certain poetry in the juxtaposition of those two scenes.

 

'Dexter - Julia Stiles Interview'

"Lumen is the only person alive who sees Dexter's true self and accepts him. There's something oddly romantic about that, and also very intimate," Stiles tells TVGuide.com. "The reverse is true for Lumen. The experience she had before was so traumatic, and had an element of shame, where she couldn't go back and see her family. There's something very isolating about that, and the fact that Dexter knows about it and also embraces her is very sweet amidst all this weirdness."

But the two lovebirds sealing the deal wasn't the only big development. Viewers finally met the woman who made Jordan Chase (guest star Jonny Lee Miller) the man he is today — his first victim, Emily (Angela Bettis). And considering the bombshell she dropped on Lumen, Stiles says we'll definitely be seeing more of her.

"I think what's fascinating about Emily is her Stockholm syndrome — the weird way she idolizes the guy that victimized her," says Stiles. "She's a huge lynchpin in terms of Lumen finding out what's going on with these guys."

Emily's story line isn't the only one that will be addressed in the final two episodes of the season. Things between Quinn (Desmond Harrington) and Liddy (guest star Peter Weller) really heat up when Dexter finally figures out someone has bugged his apartment. "The tricky thing with Quinn is he has a moral dilemma, and Liddy is sort of out of control," Stiles says. "Quinn can't reverse what he started at the beginning of the season, and it's getting dangerous."

Because Dexter die-hards have learned to be suspicious of everyone, fans have speculated all season about whether Lumen is good or bad. Stiles, who grappled with the question herself during the early stages of filming, says that defining Lumen as one or the other would be way too simplistic for the show.

"I think what's great is that every story line and every character is dealing with what is right and what is wrong, and this idea that there aren't really absolutes," she says. "A lot of these characters — especially Lumen — fall into the gray area. Their actions don't necessarily define them as good or bad."
Source: TV Guide 'Dexter - Julia Stiles Interview'

More from: EW

Q: What the heck is going to happen next on Dexter?
A: ...Dexter ends up unconscious in the back of a white panel van this Sunday.'

Also: Jordan Chase, who up until now has kept his hands very much out of the killing action, finally gets his hands dirty in the penultimate episode of the season.'

More from TVGuide:

Q: Any scoop on Dexter?
A: In Episode 11 entitled 'Hialeah and Fourth'  there are...two deaths and two kidnappings. There are four separate victims, two male and two female. One death you'll cheer, and one will make you cringe. As for the kidnappings, let's just say both victims prove to be easy prey for their captors.

OK. Not really fair given my spoiler round up (above) but here goes on the guessing of who are the 'vics' for killing and kidnapping in episode 11 Dexter, Hialeah & Fourth.

Here's one death: Emily (Angela Bettis):

I think everyone saw that one coming. Note that Dex has his kill outfit on so the other death could be very close to Emily's or perhaps SPOILER Dexter is about to get the tables turned on him and become a kidnapping victim himself?

OTOH, since we are spoiled that we'll 'cheer' for the death of one victim: Hrm. Liddy has to die so it may be him. My guess is if so, it will be at Det. Joey Quinn's hands as Desmond Harrington has hinted ('blood on (his) shoes').

I'm presuming prior to at least one death there is the kidnapping of the victim so I'll stick with Emily:death, Liddy: kidnap/death and Dexter: kidnap (victim) by Jordan Chase. I'm also going to guess that Lumen--on her own--is going to have to rescue Dexter, nicely book-ending their relationship with one save each.

Official DEXTER Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dexter

 

Official DEXTER Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHO_dexter

 

Official DEXTER Series Site: http://www.sho.com/dexter

 

Dexter: Showtime Pick-Up For 1 More Season, 'Probably Two' E! Teases Harrington (Quinn) Exit

 

'I'm definitely in trouble in the season finale':

 

"Quinn is in trouble," Desmond Harrington says. "I think in this Sunday's episode you see a drop of blood hit my foot, and I'm definitely in trouble in [the season finale]."

Harrington can't comment whether he'll be a part of the...sixth season of Dexter, but he will say he's pretty sure there won't be a cliffhanger for Quinn(!) [Goes out boring? - CM] this season. Harrington goes on to assert in regard to Quinn's feelings for Debra:

"It's real. I think maybe early on in the year he was in this to get information on Dexter [but] that's definitely not the case now. He is actually in love with her...He definitely has softened up a lot. I honestly like that he's a little softer and basically he's fallen in love with this girl."

Quinn also seems alarmingly close to figuring out Dexter's big secret—that he is the 'vigilante' murderer Deb is hunting. That can't end in a good place...or can it?  

"In terms of accepting what Dexter does," Desmond says, "honestly I don't think [Quinn] would have a problem with this idea of justice being served the way that Dexter does it…Quinn more or less has a code of his own. I feel like he is very much a cop that would go to bat for other cops. And not necessarily in the best means."

And if you like your Desmond a little darker, good news: Gossip Girl producers have asked him to reprise his role as Jack Bass around February. Dexter producers, you best bring him back...

Read more: E!Online

 
Desmond Harrington as ' Joey Quinn': Is he going to survive season 5?

 Speculation has been flying for some time now that either  Desmond Harrington's 'Quinn', Deb's partner in (solving) crime as well as between the sheets, will not survive this season.

OTOH, some folks are positive that Lumen (Julia Stiles) is not going to make it out of season 5 Dexter alive. I suppose they could both get whacked.

We already know that both of them are treading in 'killer' territory, Lumen (& Dexter) with the concurrent police investigation into the guys the two of them are seeking out to revenge-kill.

Quinn's involvement with Deb whilst he deals with corrupt cop that was trailing Dexter for him is putting him in a very bad place. Bad cop Liddy (Peter Weller)  has surveiled and seen so much of Lumen and Dexter that he's surely soon going to have enough evidence to get something on them.

Liddy's very unhappy that Quinn's Deb-crush is clouding his judgment enough that a high-profile case could be escaping through his fingers. He is still pursuing Lumen and Dexter and that right there is a recipe for BIG trouble.

'Dexter' renewed for 6th season

Serial killer drama is most-watched series on Showtime

Showtime is set to announce a sixth-season pickup for "Dexter."

The Michael C. Hall serial killer drama has been the pay cabler's most popular show in recent years.

Last Sunday's episode was the second most watched in series history as 2.54 million viewers checked in for the 9 p.m. telecast.

Last season's finale drew the show's biggest-ever audience, with 2.57 million viewers. All key cast members are signed through the sixth season, which will encompass 12 episodes.

But if the show runs a seventh season, Showtime will face higher costs as cast members would have to sign new contracts.

Source: Variety.com - 'Dexter' renewed for 6th season

Check out the new DEXTER YouTube game: Dexter Interactive Investigation. Can you help Dexter find the killer before s/he skips town? Investigate the crime scene, collect the clues, and bring the killer to justice! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9IObJBjhlg

 

Official DEXTER Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dexter

 

Official DEXTER Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHO_dexter

 

Official DEXTER Series Site: http://www.sho.com/dexter

Update: Dexter - Episode 11 - 'Hialeah & Fourth' - 2 Sneak Peeks: 'A Blindspot' 'A Twin' - Promo Photos

Update: Title change for the episode. Dexter: Episode 11 is now titled 'Hialeah and Fourth.'

My first impulse is to say that Season 5 of 'Dexter' is getting really good but that falls short of what I really think about this season.

Season 5 'Dexter' has been outstanding throughout.

Keep in mind, last season was the season of the Trinity Killer with John Lithgow turning in a bravura performance as the psycho whack-job counterpoint to Dexter (Michael C. Hall) who seemed wholly balanced and stable in comparison.

Then there was the fine, though too-short return guest appearance by Keith Carradine as Deb's doomed lover, Frank Lundy.

Oh yeah. Dexter's wife, Rita was murdered.

Season four was engrossing and riveting, shocking and sad.

How were the Dexter showrunners going to follow up such a great season? As it turns out, with an equally great, but absolutely different season 5.

After they killed off Julie Benz's 'Rita' character the Dexter showrunners explained that they wanted to turn Dex's world upside down (and inside out). And they certainly did. We the audience had no idea what they had planned for Dex in season 5 but who could have guessed that he'd find his soulmate?

OK. Maybe that's a bit of a stretch because it is very early in their romance. But consider this: Julia Stiles' 'Lumen' is absolutely unique. She is the first person involved in a positive way with Dexter who knows exactly who he is and accepts him for it. It seemed a foregone conclusion that no woman would knowingly get involved with a serial killer but involved they are--on several levels.

And to top it off, seemingly Lumen is sane--at least when measured on the Dexter sanity scale.

Dexter's audience is among the most loyal there is so it was understandable that they were a bit apprehensive about Lumen and how she'd affect the still-grieving Dexter. But as season 5 progressed and the great episodes kept coming, Lumen and Dexter seemed to fit together like puzzle pieces.

As corny as the phrase 'You complete me' sounds, this is exactly what one does for the other. Both Dexter and Lumen had gaping holes in their psyches and hearts that they desperately needed healed and each has facilitated the healing of the other. They have been good for one another.

When Jennifer Carpenter, never better as 'Deb,' said to Dexter in episode 10 that there would be no recovery for the women that went through Jordan Chase and Co's. house of horrors, that a women would be better off dead than to survive and have to live with memories of the horrific acts perpetrated upon her, Deb was wrong--at least in part. Of course, she never considered that a victim could kick-start the healing process by killing the men responsible for her kidnapping, torture, and rape, but it seems to be working for Lumen.

Julia Stiles has put forth a very solid effort in crafting the Lumen character. She was totally convincing as the shell of a human being that Dexter accidentally rescued. Her evolution into a seemingly normal woman has been plausible and I think cathartic for the audience, too.

Where this is going is the big question. I see a lot of comments on the 'net that viewers do not want Lumen killed. I don't either but the Dexter-Lumen relationship is in a honeymoon period, so to speak. It cannot stay as it is because Dexter isn't going to have the luxury of this partnership lasting. At least he knows that someone understood him on a deeper level then perhaps even Harry ever did. And so Dexter has gained positive insights into himself that may have never happened if it were not for Lumen coming into his life.

I feel a mixture of excitement and dread about the last few episodes of season 5. What are your thoughts? What are you feeling?

A Blindspot

SHOWTIME | Season 5 Ep. 11 | Added: November 30, 2010

Dexter realizes someone is watching Lumen and himself.

A Twin

SHOWTIME | November 30, 2010

Masuka presents new evidence in the barrel murder case.

Dexter: Episode 11 'Hop A Freighter'

Synopsis: Dexter and Lumen's plans are momentarily thwarted when Dexter's forced to do damage control after he concedes that someone, outside of Miami Metro, has taken an interest in them. Debra's speculation on the missing Barrel Girl suspects begins to take shape. Quinn finds himself more involved in a homicide than he'd like to be.

More photo stills frorm "Hop A Freighter' after the jump: