How I Met Your Mother: Blitzgiving

     This season has developed a pretty consistant pattern of every other episode being good.  Which means, after last weeks subpar episode, this week was going to be excellent.  And the pattern held true once again.  Blitzgiving was classic HIMYM and was everything last week's Robin Sparkles episode wasn't.  The concept of the Blitz was creative, funny and totally original.  It allowed the writers to do all the things that have made HIMYM a must see comedy, funny flashbacks, random pop culture references, inside viewer jokes (I love the sandwiches in every college flashback), well used cameos, and new catchphrases (Aw, Man!, turturkeykey, The Gentleman).  The idea of the Blitz was able to carry a whole episode while remaining entertaining and pushing the overall story along in a way that Robin Sparkles just can't anymore.  These are the types of episodes we need more of instead of the rehashes of jokes and themes we've already seen three or four times.
     I also love the way the elements of the amazing night Ted missed were reveled.  I love that we were never told all the details of the night.  What's with the parking meter and the hot dog cart?  Why exactly does everyone keep saying, "The Gentleman"?  I know it has something to do with the game they were playing with the top hat, but how the hell did that start?  It's like the pineapple all over again and man, do I want to know where the pineapple came from!
     I have to admit the episode wasn't totally perfect.  The end got supper sappy and the relationship between Ted and Zooey feels very forced.  I didn't buy the episode's resolution at all.
     I forgot to mention in my review of last weeks episode that as disappointing as it may have been, we did get a big piece of this years puzzle.  We were told what wedding the season started with.  I was totally off.  But in all fairness how was anyone going to guess that it was Punchy's wedding?

How I Met Your Mother: Glitter

     Alright, thanks to my sister's wedding, I'm a week behind, so bare with me...
   
     I might come off like a hypocrite on this one, but I think I'm over Robin Sparkles.  I know I've been calling for more references and flashbacks, but I feel like the Robin Sparkles storyline has been played out.  Did we really need a third episode on this subject?  Instead of coming up with creative storylines that intertwine and amuse, the writers answer to bringing the show back to its roots seems to be to rehash tired ideas.
     And what ever happened to Barney and his boutonniere?  That would have made a great side story.  It was introduced and then never mentioned again.  I was much more interested in that then Robin and Lilly.  Is it me or is Lilly become really annoying?  Her character feels so one dimensional at the moment and I couldn't care less about that dimension.  She comes off as whinny and concerned about issues that just don't matter.  She's acting like she's already pregnant!
     That being said, the Robin Sparkles stuff made me laugh.  I realize how that comes off.  I bitch about a storyline and in the next breath say it was funny.  But it was.  As much as I've felt we've covered the material, I was humored by the jokes.  The beaver song was classic.  Let's just agree that we don't need to have another whole episode about Robin Sparkles again.

How I Met Your Mother: Natural History

     I've spent a lot of time writing about what constitutes a classic HIMYM episode and what constitutes a typical sitcom episode.  In almost every case I trumpet the classic episodes that play with time, make fun of life as a thirty-something, and bend the rules of conventional sitcoms in anyway way possible, while blasting the "normal" sitcom scenarios and style that the show relied on last season.  Natural History is an exception.  There was nothing that separated the episode from anything you would see on Two And A Half Men or Big Bang Theory, the story was liner, the setting was limited, there were dick and fart jokes, yet, it was extremely entertaining.  The writing was sharp, the poignant moments were touching without overwhelming the comedy, the comedy was both clever and sophomoric, all the characters story lines were advanced in a convincing manner.  It was easily one of the two best episodes all year.  As much as I long for crazy flashbacks and allusions of things to come, I could watch episodes like this without losing faith in where the show was going.
     Funniest moments... The Captain vs Galactic President Superstar McAwesomeville, the Barney/Robin touching contest (although I'm disappointed there was no licking!), Ted's sophomoric whispers.  And another thing to add to the list of ways Ted's life mirror's mine, #15: Crossword Day.  Although mine is Sunday, not Saturday.  Saturday is the toughest of the week, but Sunday is the biggest and the most enjoyable.

Top 5: Monkey Songs

     After being forced to take a week off due to time constraints, I'm back with a classic.  In college, my good friend and radio show partner, Bryan, had a theory about how to make sure any song you write is great.  He hypothesised that any song that mentioned monkeys has to kick ass.  Now, over the years I've come across a few songs that prove this theory wrong, or at least not as concrete as Bryan would like to convince you, but it hasn't made it any less fun a topic to talk about.  So, this week, in honor of Bryan and his theory, I give you the Top 5 Monkey Songs...

5. "Feather Pluckin'" - Presidents Of The United States Of America
     These guys could easily be considered the kings of the monkey song.  They at least 5 monkey songs on their first two albums.  This one is my favorite.  It talks about 10,000,00 monkeys playing guitar.  And it kicks ass.

4. "Brass Monkey" - Beastie Boys
     There is something about the Beastie Boys that cures any empty dance floor.  I've never seen a tepid response for the Beasties at a party and this song is one of their classic cuts.  I guarantee if you are DJing a get together of people 30 and younger and nobody is dancing, play Brass Monkey and your problems will be solved.

3." Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except For Me And My Monkey" - Beatles
     Even the Beatles, the greatest pop band of all time, have a monkey song.  And it's one of their more kick ass numbers.  I'm not sure if Paul actually had a monkey or not, but I know if I was as rich as him there would be no way I wouldn't have a monkey.

2. "Monkey Man" - Toots & The Maytals
     This is a classic ska standard.  It is probably the most covered monkey song in existence.  Cover versions include, Reel Big Fish, The Specials, No Doubt and Amy Winehouse.  A kick ass song that will be played forever.

1. "Monkees Theme Song" - The Monkees
     This one kind of goes without saying.  The greatest monkey song ever written.  I defy anyone to not sing along anytime it's played.

Honorable Mentions - "Shock The Money": Peter Gabriel, "Bungle In the Jungle": Jethro Tull, "If I Had A Million Dollars": Barenaked Ladies (because haven't you always wanted a monkey?"), "Ghost Monkey": Taco (thanks Joe P)

How I Met Your Mother: Canning Randy

     Canning Randy was another strong episode from the HIMYM people.  They seem to be swaying back and forth from good to bad at this point in the season, which only begs the question, is the broadcast station season of 24 episodes just too much?  Throw out every other show so far this season and you have a super strong season.  The big three would be much better off if the modeled there seasons like cable, but the almighty dollar will prevent that from ever happening.  So, we will all just have to continue watching the mediocre with the good and enjoy it as much as possible.
     The big question as far as the show's plot is concerned is, what does the future hold for Ted and Zoey?    I'm sure we haven't seen the end of her, but I'm also fairly certain that she isn't the mother.  The feeling one is left with is that there is more to her story, but what is that story?  Are they going to get together at some point?  Or is just going to remain an adversary relationship?  With the creators promise that we are moving closer to finding out who the mother is this season, one would think that Zoey is playing some role in getting to that revelation, but it's still unclear what that role is.  There has to be more to her relationship to Ted then making his life difficult.
     This episode made me feel old.  Ted jokes about playing Pixies B-Sides for his students and says they didn't know who the Pixies were or a b-side.  My first reaction was, of course they know what a b-side is.  Then I thought, why would they know what a b-side is?  Am I really that old or is technology just started changing popular culture that much faster.  I mean, my dad grew up with b-sides and so did I.  My dad grew up with records and so did I, but these kids have no reason to know what cassette tapes are forget about records.
     I love that they are also focusing on the hardships of teaching this season, little things that people who haven't spent time in a classroom most likely wouldn't get.  Like last weeks jokes about Lilly's struggles give her child the same name as any of her problem students and this weeks take on Ted wanting to be the "cool" teacher.  Everyone goes into teaching wanting to be the "cool" teacher, but the hard fact is that if you want to be a "good" teacher most students are not going to like you.  It's not the easiest lesson to learn and the show handled it in a convincing manner this episode.  We will have to see if Ted carries the lesson into future episodes.

Walking Dead: Days Gone By

     At it's heart, The Walking Dead, the comic, was more about what people do to other people then it was about what zombies do to people.  It's a story about survival, the human condition and how it reacts to adversity.  It just so happens to be set in a world where zombies have taken over.  After only one episode you can't really tell if the TV show will pick up this vibe, but it looks promising.  It's been years since I read the first view issues, so I can't really speak to how true the show is to the comic frame for frame, but they nailed the sensitivity.  They kept to the main plot points and set the tone of desperation and survival that the comic did so well.  The show could have easily jumped right to zombie attacks and heavy gore, but they didn't.  They kept the action to a minimum in order to develop the characters and the world they now live in.  The story is about Rick and the other survivors and what they have to do stay alive on a day to day basis, not fighting zombies 24/7. The show creators seem to have stuck to the story telling that we have come to expect from an AMC show, not the mindless action broadcast stations rely on and this genre of show could have fallen into.
     That's not to say that zombies don't play a role in the show.  When the time was right, The Walking Dead creators pulled out all the stops.  The zombie torso crawling across the park was creepy, frightening and poignantly sad all at the same time.  And the huge reveal of the thousands of zombies waiting in the Atlanta alleyway was awesome.  It reminded me of Han Solo and Chewbacca running around the corner of the Death Star only to find thousands of stormtroopers waiting for them.
     I'm sure future episodes will increase the action and gore.  Much like the comic, there will be an ebb and flow of action and drama.  But it was important, if the show wanted to capture the feel of the comic, to start slow, build the characters and suspense and that was exactly what they did.  Great start to what I hope will be a great show.

Boston Bruins: Game 8

Record: 6-2-0

     It's going to get old if I keep talking about how great Tim Thomas is playing, so I'll have to find other topics to discuss.  It won't be easy since Thomas is the glaring reason why Boston is off to such a hot start.  Thomas got his third shutout in six starts Satuday as the Bruins beat the Ottawa Senators 4-0.  Both Jordan Caron and Tyler Seguin added to their point totals, keeping the B's youth movement going.  David Krejci added a goal and an assist as he proves he is ready to take over for the ailing Mark Savard as the team's top playmaker.
     With the team off to such a good start, the question seems to be, who is going to be left out when Savard comes back?  One would think Daniel Paille, who has been a health scratch since the first game, would be the odd man out, but I'm not sure that would keep the B's under the salary cap.  As much as I enjoy watching him play, Brad Marchand has to be on the list as well.  He's a great agitator and his fore checking abilities makes him great on the penalty kill, but he can't put the puck in the net.  Some people will say he's just been snake bit, after all he was one of the top scorers in the AHL, but I don't buy it.  Much like Paille proved last year, if you can't get the puck in the net, it's not something that is just going to change.  Marchand will never be a 30 goal scorer, probably not even a 20 goal scorer.  The question will be, are the other things he brings to the ice more important to the team then scoring goals?  I'm not sure.  The one thing he does have going for him is his salary.  Paille gets $500,000 more and brings pretty much the same talents to the table.
     Other people on the block are Michael Ryder and Blake Wheeler.  Both have higher salaries that will give the Bruins more wiggle room if dumped.  If one of them doesn't go when Savard comes back, chances are they will go when Sturm is ready to return.  Ryder has looked better then last year, but still isn't playing up to the 4 million he's getting.  I'm not sure anyone will want to take Ryder on, so he will have to be demoted to Providence.  Wheeler has never been a favorite of mine.  He's just to big a liability on the ice.  There have been a lot of trade rumors floating around about him going to Phoenix or Toronto.  It would be very much in character for the B's to trade Wheeler for high draft picks, which would drop the team salary and keep the youth movement going.