Golden Potato Awards 2009

Happy New Year, everyone! Rundown of the most memorable TV shows of the year :)

Special Effects: Battlestar Galactica

Opening Titles: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood OP1

Theme Song: "Beautiful World" Hikaru Utada (Evangelion 2.0)

Not a TV show, but the movie was great, and it's a rebuild of a TV show, so that counts too, right? (Rhetorical, don't answer that)

Comedic Performance (tie): Eric Stonestreet "Cameron Tucker" (Modern Family) who also gave us the most memorable quote of the year "I gave her a pair of gorgeous diamond earrings and she gave me a hint." Heh.

Nick Offferman "Ron Swanson" (Parks and Recreation)

Sidekick (tie): Tim DeKay "Agent Peter Burke" (White Collar)

Jonathan Slavin and Malcolm Barrett "Phil and Lem" (Better Off Ted)

Villain: In order of their appearance, Gluttony, Lust, Envy, Greed, Wrath, Sloth and Pride (Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood)

Couple: Jason Segal and Alysson Hannigan "Marshall Erickson and Lily Aldrin" (How I Met Your Mother)

Team: Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar and Bruce Campbell "Michael Westen, Fiona Glenanne and Sam Axe" (Burn Notice)

Actress: Cherry Jones "President Allison Taylor" (24)

Actor: Steve Carell "Michael Scott" (The Office)

Ensemble: The voicecast of "Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood"

Farewell: ER

New Show: Parks and Recreation

TV Series: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

Here's hoping for another great TV year in 2010!

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Watched it last weekend. Quite underwhelming, I'm afraid. I think one really has to watch it in 3D, since it's pretty up set up as that to create an immersive experience. Take that immersive experience away, and we're left with the plot and characters, neither of which are particularly groundbreaking stuff. It's great to see James Cameron back at work though. His "Aliens" is, in my opinion, a masterpiece and yes, I love "Titanic" too.

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood: "The First Homunculus"; "Battle in Baschool"

FMA:B continues its general awesomeness during its term in the snowy realm of Briggs. The introduction of Sloth a few episodes back was pretty cool, as we finally get some substantial airtime on one of the two homunculi yet to be revealed in the series. This incarnate is markedly different from the version in the first anime, and definitely fits his name better.

The major event in "The First Homunculus", of course, is the reveal of the identity of Pride, ironically the last to be revealed after being the first created. I had been spoiled on who it was beforehand (argh!), but I thought the revelation was very well done, nonetheless. ::shivers:: who knew? It took a lot of courage from Riza to confront the homunculus the way she did, and she even managed to get in a barb at the end. Really gutsy there. Go Riza! Still, I was holding my breath for her throughout that chilling scene. Pride is just scary!

Elsewhere, Winry turns up at Briggs, a not-so-subtle reminder by Bradley and Kimblee to Ed and Al not to try anything funny. Kimblee gets another chance to show off his maniacal psyche when quizzed by Ed as to why he's helping the homunculi, though I'm not sure how advisable it was on Kimblee's part to allow Ed to reveal to Winry that she's actually being used to keep the brothers in check. Still, it was nice to see Winry react affirmatively when she knew of the situation. Another great episode.

The pre-title sequence in "Battle in Baschool" has Riza, visibly shaken, returning to her apartment after her confrontation with Pride. Poor Riza...anyone else would have completely lost their marbles by now...all things considered, she's taking it extremely well. Still, watching her, usually so composed and unfettered, jump at the sight of Hayate and at the sudden ring of the phone, was pretty jarring, and I couldn't help but feel for her situation. Nice subtle touch of Riza refraining from telling Roy the truth when she noticed her shadow and was reminded of how the homunculus might be lurking in the shadows. Affecting moment when Riza hugged Hayate after putting down the phone. Roy, of course, sensed something was wrong in Riza's voice, and it'll be interesting to see where this goes from here.

Absolutely loved the silent movie recap of how Yoki knew Ed and Al, and it was hilarious how the brothers completely forgot who he was, after Yoki had built his backstory up to such monumental proportions. Another highlight was Winry wanting to look Scar in the eye and have a direct conversation with him, and again, the cliffhanger (how'd they get from capturing Scar to him having Winry?!?) has moi eagerly counting down the days to the next episode. Most awesome show on TV.

Most Memorable Episodes 2009

Here's the rundown of the most memorable episodes of 2009:

"An Alchemist's Anguish" (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Season 1 Episode 4)
Written by Hiroshi Ōnogi
Directed by Yasuhiro Irie

You won't see this on American animation. An absolute gutter of an episode. Ed and Al visit the home of the Sewing Life Alchemist Shou Tucker, who gained fame by creating a talking chimera two years back, and meets his daughter Nina and her dog Alexander. All seems fine as Tucker offers use of his library for the brothers' research, and the brothers fit in some playtime with the adorable Nina during breaks in their work. Despite Tucker's laid-back facade, however, one notices something is amiss almost immediately. The awful truth finally reveals itself, however, when Ed and Al found that Tucker has subsequently transmuted Nina and Alexander into a chimera in order to regain his certification as a State Alchemist, and that his wife was used in the transmutation of the talking chimera two years ago. The stomach-churning turn of events take a tragic, final twist when Scar, who had been hunting State Alchemists, takes Tucker's life when the latter was in the military's custody, and kills Nina's chimera as an act of mercy because she can never be restored as a human again. Emotionally draining, but utterly compelling, this is a fine example of the very best that Japanese anime can offer.

"And in the End..." (ER Series Finale)
Written by John Wells
Directed by Rod Holcomb

ER's final season was an extended, loving farewell to the longtime staple, and this finale capped it off with the perfect closure. Director Holcomb (who won an Emmy for this episode) and longtime showrunner Wells balanced the day-to-day hectic pace of the ER (including an excellent central case of a teen binge party gone wrong) with a sense of finality as characters reunite for farewells. It was a real treat for a longtime fan such as myself to see Carter, Weaver, Benton and Corday together again, while the cast of the latter seasons deservedly also got their share of the airtime, including Archie, the new head of the ER (who would've thought? Haha). As the final shot pans out of County General for the last time as the staff works on patients from an incoming case, we might have taken leave of the good folks of the ER, but for them in their fictional universe, life goes on. Thanks for 14 years, ER.

"Born to Run" (Terminator: TSCC Series Finale)
Written by Josh Friedman
Directed by Jeffrey Hunt

Not easy to write a finale not knowing whether the series would be renewed or not, but showrunner Friedman came up with this real gem, with a genius of a final scene that would have worked either as a series or season finale. The prison breakout scene was a great homage to the original Terminator 1 & 2 movies, including having part of Cameron's face blown off to reveal the cybernetic red eye below the skin. After Cameron willingly surrenders her chip to John Henry who skips town into the future, John and the T1000 Catherine Weaver (who turns out not to be the villain we all thought she was) jumps too in pursuit. They find themselves in an alternate timeline (or to a timepoint in the current timeline) when the resistance hasn't been acquainted with John Connor yet, and where Allison, not Cameron, was in the group John encounters. So many questions, but yet, in a way, the show has also come to a kind of natural conclusion with the maturing of John. With time travel being such an integral part of the Terminator franchise, it might almost be OK not to have a new season to answer all of the questions posed by that final sequence, because the show has brought the audience to a point where we can speculate on what might happen next, given the clues of what happened in the series.

"Broke" (The Office, Season 5 Episode 23)
Written by Charlie Grandy
Directed by Steve Carell

The Michael Scott Paper Company arc comes to a great conclusion with Michael's standoff negotiation with Wallace, in which he brilliantly got (most of) what he wanted, i.e. his old job back, as well as jobs for fellow defectors Ryan and Pam. Especially loved the brilliant way in which Michael's genius-by-way-of-being-an-oaf is portrayed, as he threatened Wallace that he will just keep opening new makeshift paper companies that take away Dunder-Mifflin's business if his demands are not met. Another highlight is Jim outmaneuvering Dwight as the latter tried to expose Michael's weak bargaining position (the MSPC is actually broke) to Charles. The highlight of a great year 5 for the show, coming off a strike-shortened season.

"Daybreak: Part 2" (Battlestar Galactica, Season 4 Episode 20)
Written by Ronald D. Moore
Directed by Michael Rymer

The finale had its detractors, but the first half at least was as grippingly exciting as the series' best episodes, as Galactica staged an outrageous attempt at rescuing Hera from the Cylons' base proximate to a black hole. The sense of impending doom, despite the audience knowing that Galactica will pull through, was extremely well portrayed. And there was a genuine regret when, after all was done and dusted, Tigh resignedly announced that the ship had finally jumped its last jump. The second part, with the scenes on prehistoric Earth, were contemplative and meditative, and at least for me, served as a nice coda to the series' various characters. This great science fiction series will be missed.

"The Death of the Undying" (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Season 1 Episode 19)
Written by Hiroshi Ōnogi
Directed by Yasuhiro Irie

A perfect epitome of FMA's breakneck pace of storytelling, this one's as emotionally charged as it is thrilling. A battle royale of epic proportions ensues after Roy and his men pursue Barry's human form into the basement of the hospital where the Homunculi had been conducting human experiments. Lust appeared to have Roy and Havoc left for dead, but commits the mistake of not finishing off her opponents when she had the chance. Get this...Roy cauterized his wounds using his own flames, using Havoc's lighter, and goes back and consigns Lust to oblivion by repeatedly burning her until the regenerative powers of her Philosopher's Stone is expended. That has to be the badass TV moment of the year. Lust's last words might very well be among the best parting lines of a villain ever ("I've lost...this is frustrating"), being so devilishly understated. As terrific as the main battle is, the best scene of the episode, for me, comes right before, as Riza found out from Lust that Roy was (apparently) dead. Her complete loss of will to live, after what she knew was an utterly futile attempt to avenge Roy, was heartbreaking to watch, and equally good was Al's stoic protection of Riza as she was about to be killed by Lust. And that's not all the awesomeness of the episode, as the installment still finds time to have Barry come to a tragic, ironic end as his human form ignorantly scratches off his blood seal, and Ed finally comes face-to-face with their long estranged father Hohenheim. Absolutely. Terrific.

"Enemy at the Gate" (Stargate: Atlantis, Series Finale)
Written by Paul Mullie and Joseph Mallozi
Directed by Andy Mikita

SG1's disappointment of a series finale made me wary of SGA's ender, but this was a winner. Atlantis has to rush back to Earth to save the planet from an attack by a Wraith ship made almost invincible by the acquisition of several ZPMs. Ronan being revived by a Wraith after dying onscreen felt like a real cheat, but the final battle between Atlantis and the Wraith ship was appropriately epic. The highlight, thought, was the ending scene, with the city floating adrift in San Francisco bay and the crew gathering around as the sun sets. Yes, it sounds cheesy as I'm writing it, but it works surprisingly well on TV. The show has had its fair share of detractors over the years, but I thought this standalone finished the series (the upcoming TV movies notwithstanding) on a high note.

"The Gypsy and the Hobo" (Mad Men, Season 3 Episode 11)
Written by Matthew Weiner and Cathryn Humphris
Directed by Marti Noxon

The episode that MM fans have probably been waiting for, as Betty confronts Don about the truth of his previous life after she found out about the contents of the shoebox. The confrontation was made all the more unnerving by the genious use of the plot device where Don left his mistress waiting in the car outside while confessing to Betty, leading the audience to fear that things might get worse for Don. How will the series proceed upon this game-changer of an installment, in which the central conceit of Don is now, more or less, known to everyone that matters in his life? The aftermath, in which Betty continue playing the devoted wife and they go trick-or-treating the very next day, suggests that this might all work out for Don, but the subsequent episodes suggest otherwise.

"Lesser Evil" (Burn Notice Season 2 Finale)
Written by Matt Nix
Directed by Tim Matheson

Terrific season finale packs tons into just one hour. Michael's battle of wills and wits with his handler Carla comes to a head, as he and Victor try to uncover incriminating evidence to get Carla off their backs. Carla corners them eventually though, but just when the situation appears dire and all seems lost, Fiona takes out Carla just as the higher-ups arrive. To avoid both of them getting killed by the incoming troopers, Victor tells Michael he has to kill him, and sell himself as the guy who took out the traitor. Left with little choice, Michael is forced to carry out this gruesome task, and then proceeds to reject the higher-up's offer of a job by awesomely jumping from their chopper. Action-packed to the brim, with several eye-popping car chases, this was an extremely satisfying finale to a fine sophomore year for the spy drama.

"Seinfeld" (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Season 7 Finale)
The series finale that "Seinfeld" should have had? Perhaps. I for one liked it much better than the actual one back in 1998, but then, this had the advantage of condensing it to just short snippets, enabling TPTB to feature only the best bits, i.e. the jokes, the biting social commentary (including the hilarious Blackberry head-down thing) and even a little happiness for George in the end. The wider Curb finale was great too, tying very nicely the plots about Larry and Seinfeld's debate on "Having said that", the water stain on the wooden table ("I respect wood") and Larry's reunion with Cheryl. Every scene with Mocha Joe (what a name!) is a must, as is Larry's impersonation of Jason Alexander as George, a character based on Larry. Sweet, scathing and consistently laugh-out-loud funny, this is a gem of an episode.

Honorable mentions:
"7:00pm to 9:00pm" (24, Season 7 Episode 12-13)
"En Garde" (Modern Family, Season 1 Episode 7)
"The Incident" (Lost, Season 4 Finale)
"Mr. Monk and the End" (Monk, Series Finale)
"The Practice Date" (Parks and Recreation, Season 2 Episode 4)

最后

One of 静茹's more under-rated songs, from the album 勇气. I love the wistful tone of the song.

The Office: Scott's Tots

Wow. Where to begin? So many amazing moments in this episode. Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg wrote the excellent "The Lover", and they carried their good form here. Everything, from the cold open where Michael (finally!) calls out Andy's baby talk, to the tag where Ryan joins in Dwight's Diabolical Plan to take Jim down, was perfect. The main plot's best moment was, of course, Michael's heartfelt but painful admission to the high school kids that he could not pay for their college tuition as he had earlier promised. Another golden moment was in the car with Erin, where she pointed out that, despite everything, Michael's promise actually provided the motivation for the kids to graduate. Michael's in-kind words of encouragement to Erin are both affecting and funny at the same time, when upon Erin saying she had wanted to be an accountant, Michael told her that he actually offered Kevin the accountancy job when he had actually applied for the warehouse (ha!). The subplot of the Employee-of-the-Month award, aka Dwight's Diabolical Plan to take down Jim Halpert, yielded tons of laughs, the best of which was Dwight impersonating everyone in the office in calling David Wallace to complain that Jim had given the award to himself (by Dwight's design, of course). Excellent, excellent installment. The next episode can't come soon enough!

Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance

Didn't know anything about the franchise before watching this, but wow, was this impressive. Thought it was just going to be robots hitting each other ala Transformers, but was pleasantly surprised. Animation, as with all Japanese animation, was superb. Action sequences were great...really suspenseful and held my attention throughout. Light-hearted moments were a relief, especially Pen Pen the Penguin, because, quite frankly, the overall tone of the movie is pretty depressing. Some very powerful scenes, including Eva 1.0 under auto-pilot horribly ripping the guts out of the Angel, and the final sequence where Shinji tries to save Rei from the Angel. Highly recommended. Count me in as a new fan of the series.

TV Roundup: Week of 23 November 2009

Not much to say of this week's Thanksgiving-themed episodes of HIMYM and Modern Family. Both were pretty ok. Light on the laughs department. The see-saw between Ted and Robin got old quick, and the resolution was pretty much telegraphed that Marshall would end up being the one to slap Barney all along. Didn't much care for the Lily subplot with her dad. The chaotic finale to the Modern Family ep was less satisfying than all the build-up. The plot device of having the quasi-mystery of who got hurt at the hospital and then flashing back to the earlier events didn't seem necessary, while none of the plots (Cam as clown; Manny seeking dating advice from his dad; Claire at the crafts table) were particularly funny.

Stargate Universe: "Life". Goodness, another turgid, turgid episode. The show seems to see-saw between watchable and unbearable eps, and this one's firmly in the latter category. Felt for TJ, who had the unenvious task of seeking folks out for their pysch evaluation. Rush was insufferable (what else is new?), while the personal storylines involving Young, Ming-Na's characters and Scott would have been more interesting had I been more invested in the characters, which I'm not.

No, we should be thanking *you*, 静茹

静茹's lovely tribute to all her fans! Set to the wonderful 爱是...

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood: "The Northern Wall of Briggs"

Round 1 of Scar vs. Kimblee, though brief, was pretty awesome; the two nemeses recognizing each other, Scar preventing Kimblee from using his Philosopher's stone by driving a crankshaft through the latter's abdomen where the stone resides, Kimblee's crazed, scary monologue, after his escape, of how he loves his morbid task. Also great was Ed and Al's first meeting with General Olivier Armstrong, preceded by (another) pretty cool battle between the brothers and her aide Captain Buccaneer. Judging by Winry's remark, she probably knew that automail doesn't work well in the cold too. Next week looks like a real cracker, with the first substantial appearance of Sloth. The new episode can't come soon enough!

TV Roundup Week of 16 November 2009

Excellent episode of HIMYM this week. Was becoming less invested in the show, but this was a winner. Barney taking centerstage is always a plus, and Neil Patrick Harris gets amply opportunities to show off his comedic chops here. The various plays in the Playbook was nicely enacted, and I always love it when Lily and Barney interact.

Modern Family was a good episode too, especially the guest-star turn by Edward Norton as a haughty star whose ego far far exceeds his talents.

The Office: "Shareholders Meeting". Fairly ok episode. Highlight was how Jim dealt with Ryan's utter poor attitude, by Jim's own unique prankster style. Very nice. Pam's TH about almost forgetting to support Jim was an LOL moment. The main plot of the shareholders meeting didn't do much for me, with Michael doing his thing and falling on the side of grating. The office's excitement at seeing the limo was rather infectious though, and underlines the small town nature of the Scranton branch that a limo can generate so much commotion. I would be over the moon too in their shoes.

Parks and Recreation: "Hunting Trip" Hilarious episode. P&R is the funniest comedy around lately, and it's good form continues this week. Both main and subplots hit the target (pun unintended). The subplot with April and Andy fooling around in the office while everyone was away on the hunting trip was unexpectedly sweet in its on off-kilter way. Anything with Ron F*ing Swanson is comedy gold these days, and his TH about his hunting trip being stamped out once Leslie told him chirpily that she was tagging along was an LOL moment. Nice bit of pathos at the end too after Ron realized that Leslie, whom he had thought was the one who shot him, was actually covering for Tom. Good change of pace too to see Jerry, for once, being accepted into a circle (in this case being part of the regular hunting party together with Ron and Mark), instead of being the target of the office's ire.

Stargate Universe: "Time"

Very good episode this week. Was about to rail at the initial Kino POV that it was all style for no good reason, when it turned out that TPTB had a good reason. The production designer did a really good job with the jungle setting, and the rain especially accentuated the torridness of the attacks by the planet's creatures. Despite being done probably like a gazillion times before in scifi, I liked the solar flare time travel bit. Scott making use of the solar flare to send a new Kino back in time to tell the crew what exactly will happen in the future nicely sets up the second part.

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood: Episode 32

Relatively slower-paced episode this week. Grumman's disguise was fun, and effective. Didn't recognize it was him till he was standing next to Roy. Highlight of the episode was Ed and Al's visit to the Bradley household, with Selim and Mrs. Bradley humanizing King Bradley with personal snippets of his family life, while Ed and Al obviously knew the horrible truth. My heart broke when Bradley exited and there was his newly appointed personal assistant, Riza, waiting for him. Roy's trusted aides, and his most faithful companion, well and truly have been taken from him. Scar and Marcoh's cat and mouse with Kimbley's troopers was filler material, though it does set up what looks like a real doozer of a battle next week.

The Office: "Murder"

Michael having the entire office to role-play in the titular "Cluedo" like scenario in order to distract them from the rumor that Dunder-Mifflin is going under came across as somewhat unbearable at times. This is especially so when Michael insisted on continuing when the office had heard from Oscar that the company had asked the accountants to withhold payment to suppliers, and when Michael refused to take Wallace's call because he was so insistent on remaining in character. However, as is the trademark of "The Office", even when the premises aren't delivering joke-wise, they almost always have a great payoff. In this case, Jim following Michael's lead in everyone role-play in order to hide the bad news that he had just heard from Wallace. Andy and Erin are shaping up to be Jim and Pam: The Early Years 2.0. Ed Helms is slowly revealing a soft side to Andy (but wisely not so much as to make the change too unbelievably drastic), while Erin is easily likeable being so perpetually perky, so this could actually work, even if first impressions are that the writers might be treading familiar ground. Love the tag with the standoff when it was revealed that Pam was in on the zaniness too, and I also enjoyed the throwaway running gag of Ryan donning ultra-douchebag outfits.

Stargate Universe: Season 1 Episode 7

Fell asleep in the middle of watching the episode, so can't really give a review of it, and don't really feel like watching it again, but what I saw, I didn't like. Again, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, the show tries to be serious like "Battlestar Galactica" but it just doesn't come across with the required heft, and there's simply not enough likeable characters to plaster over all the flaws and keep the audience watching. If it continues in this vein, I'm not sure I'll be blogging about it any more.

Parks and Recreation: The Camel

Another strong installment. The running gag with the murals returns, and this time takes centerstage as finally the offensiveness of their contents forces TPTB to have the different departments come up with alternative suggestions to the theme of "The Spirit of Pawnee". Poor Jerry, who quite clearly came up with the best mural, fudges his speech and the rest of the folks were too busy laughing at his faux pas to notice the actual mural itself. Fun to watch Tom becoming increasingly enamoured with the abstract mural he paid an art student to concoct for him (including him tearing up during the tag!). Mark's mural was, as Ron put it, very pleasing and calm to look at, and probably would have won if they had gone with it. But Leslie's eventual decision to go with the montage of everyone's mural suggestions was in keeping with her character and tone of the show.

Best. Song. Ever

听了百万遍都不会厌的超棒歌曲! There aren't enough superlatives in the English language to describe how awesome this song is :)

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood: "The Promise Made for 520 Cenz"

Excellent, excellent episode. No other show on TV matches FMA:B right now in terms of consistent excellence. Highlight was Dr. Knox's reunion with his family, pitch-perfectly done. Tender, heartfelt...his monologue especially as he poured tea brought me to tears. Ok, so admittedly I cry rather easily. Still...extremely affecting moment. Another highlight was seeing Roy and Riza's farewell. Just really nicely done here...conveying how they feel about each other without either of them saying anything direct. The animation, writing, direction and voicework here is simply superb at bringing across such nuance. And in an episode packed with events, Kimbley, the nefarious Crimson Alchemist, is now free (through no small help by Envy), and on the hunt for Scar. Which brings us to the nice twist from the last episode, that Marcoh isn't, in fact, dead. Still, Scar disfiguring him was pretty brutal, and in front of young May Chan, no less. Kimbley vs. Scar sounds like a real battle royale. Laugh-out-loud moment of the week, without a doubt, goes to Ed's drawing of Xiao Mai. Dude really doesn't like pandas :)

TV Roundup: Week of 2 November 2009

Parks and Recreation:
Superb episode this week. Ron taking centerstage is always a treat, and libraries being vilified like they've never been vilified before was hilarious. The Andy-Mark-Ann subplot inevitably suffers by comparison.

Modern Family: "En Garde"
Brilliant. Just brilliant. I thought nothing could possibly come close to "Parks and Recreation" this week, but boy, did this match it blow for comedy blow. Laugh-out-loud from start to finish, and I lost count of the number of great one-liners in this. My personal favorite was Phil proudly proclaiming his son to be the future real-estate mogul "He's gonna drink your milkshake". The whole Manny fencing plot was pure comedy gold, and also very nicely tied in to the (by now obligatory) "family is good" moment of the week, which didn't seem out of place at all and indeed rounded off the plot well. Claire and Mitchell's history as figure skaters also provided its share of the laughs, especially Mitchell's snide remarks about why their team was named "Fire and Nice". Phil and Claire's TH as they do the rundown on their kids' potential (Alex is the best at everything...she'll settle on something eventually; Ashley's good-looking...she'll find someone who's the best at something; Luke...we kinda dropped the ball on that one...yea, we kinda did) was another LOL moment. All in all, solid solid installment. The next episode can't come soon enough!

The Office: "Double Date"

The double date between Michael/Helene and Jim/Pam was painfully awkward, to say the least, but cringingly funny. A highlight was seeing Michael gradually realize that he doesn't really want to be dating a woman older than he is because he still wants to, or have the option to want to, do things like a triathlon or bungee jumping. Prior to this, it was nice to see Pam coming to terms with Michael dating her mom when she saw how sweet Michael was being to Helene on her birthday by having their table at the restaurant specially decorated and especially the very thoughtful gift of the scrapbook. Things went off the wheels, however, upon the aforementioned realization by Michael, and he proceeded to dump Helene on her birthday in front of Pam. Clever touch of showing that Pam and Michael are both sides of the same coin when it came to potentially avoiding unpleasant situations, with each trying to weasel out of it by claiming the higher ground (e.g. Pam trying to avoid going to the lunch by pretending to be tied up with work; Michael pretending that his reason for breaking up with Helene was because he didn't want to make Pam awkward). Jim refusing to let Pam off the hook in terms of going to the lunch was hilarious, and harks back to Pam similarly dragging Jim back in "The Dinner Party" when he was on the verge of escaping Michael's titular dinner party. The plot then took a turn for the slapstick with Pam's punch of Michael in the parking lot, although it does set up the laugh-out-loud moment when Toby told Pam it was ok for her to do so as long as it's outside the office premises, and then Toby proceeding to teach Pam how to punch to inflict the maximum possible damage on Michael! The subplot of Dwight and Andy trying to one-up the other in terms of being polite was fun in the initial part, but ran out of steam a little towards the end. It was probably not helped by the fact that it was built on a fairly incredulous premise of Dwight wanting the entire office to ow him favors so he could cash in those favors later to oust Jim. Even by Dwight standards, it was pretty unbelievable. Still, an enjoyable episode overall.

Stargate Universe: "Water"

Ok episode this week. Felt like a rehash of the second episode on the desert planet, when the team needed to mine resources from an inhospitable planet due to a shortage back on ship (in this case water). To be fair, the writers did admit the similarities, though, in the many references back to the earlier ep, and even the sand alien from that ep made an appearance here. Eli's holier-than-thou chastisement of everyone else for lying to Young when he was off-world about the alien situation was off-putting, and again relegates the character several notches down in my favorite character list for the show, which admittedly runs pretty thin. Though the situation with Young not leaving Scott behind after the latter fell into a crevasse was predictable, I did like the portrayal of Young being a good commander again (and that's not mentioning him entrusting the ship to TJ and telling her she'll do fine). It's pretty run-of-the-mill stuff, but the show really needs a strong moral anchor right now. The alien attacking Gorman was pretty horrifying, though I don't think the various homages to the "Alien" franchise, e.g. Greer wielding the flame thrower, the ice planet etc, worked that well as homages. Again, the show is aiming too hard for "Battlestar Galactica"-like gritty realism, reinforced by the brief scene at the end where Young had to deal with the various mundane complaints of the residents. But it just comes across so far like a kid trying to act grown-up, and it's not working so far. Would the show work better if it lightened up and adopted the approach of its SG franchise predecessors. I'm not sure, but there's only one way for the producers to tell.

It didn't get more than one million views for no reason...

Well, 1 748 945 views to be exact, at the time of writing. 靜茹's 會呼吸的痛, with music from 宇恆 and lyrics by 姚若龍. Awesome song all round. 靜茹 sings it beautifully as someone internalizing their pain, and hence makes the song (with its soulful melody and killer lyrics) even more heartbreaking than it already is. Play it again, folks, and make it more than 2 million views, for the song deserves it!

The Office: "Koi Pond"

Though "Koi Pond" wasn't an episode filled with a lot of funny moments, I love that it made for compelling viewing nonetheless. The main plot with Michael falling into a koi pond while going to a meeting with Jim brought up some nice revelations along the way. Firstly, Michael going too far with his self-deprecating jokes and again making the audience feel for him when he revealed in one of his anecdotes that he didn't even have the numbers of five friends to recommend for the cell phone deal. And of course, the office finding out from the video that Jim actually let Michael fall into the pond without catching him, and Jim admitting to Michael that perhaps he didn't help because on a subconscious level, he was a little bitter at Michael for hand-holding him to the meeting. Michael feeling better at this admission (which understandably soothed his ego) and their later repartee at the kitchen after Oscar made fun of Jim, was terrifically played out, and was a perfect close to the storyline. Elsewhere, it was nice to see sweet Pam again, as she tried to put in a good word for Andy with Erin, and finding out that Erin was interested and might actually be a good match for him. The earlier cold call storyline also provided a nice moment in the car with Andy and Pam where he admitted that it was nice to role-play as Pam's husband for a while, having been sick of being lonely. Which probably also explained why he was so stung during the first cold call when Pam was overly eager to dismiss the potential client's mistake that they were a couple. Another good episode of "The Office". The next installment can't come soon enough!

Parks and Recreation: "Kaboom"; "Greg Pikitis"

A little light on laughs these past two weeks, but it's good to see the pit filled in in "Kaboom", and Louis CK does his usual deadpan magic in "Greg", owning the funniest bits as he tries to correct Leslie's law-enforcing ways on Pikitis. The Halloween party storyline is a bit predictable, but at least gives a nice twist in that Tom actually loves (or at the least cares for) his "wife" from their greencard marriage.

Stargate Universe: "Light"

Nice! First episode of SGU that I really enjoyed. Despite the protracted end (they're not gonna kill off half the main cast just five episodes in), plus mwah suspected that the star might revitalized Destiny's heretofore non-existent (or practically non-existent anyway) power, I thought this was pretty well-worked. I cared about the various characters as they awaited their impending doom (especially Eli which has gone from one my least fav characters to probably my fav), and I really liked the quiet strength portrayed by Colonel Young too. The FX was incredible with Destiny going into the star (and the show answered the question in my head "The ship's getting pretty close to the star without anything happening to it, isn't it?" with the fact that the shield was activated), and though the problem with the shuttle re-engaging with Destiny seems a bit manufactured suspense, it was pretty exciting nevertheless. And Rush was even ok for once, as he worked with the rest in getting the shuttle back safely, and earlier when he was going through what was, at that time, his farewell to Young. See SGU? The show does work when the crew is working alongside each other. The only thing that felt off, though, was the end when Young confronted Rush as to whether he deliberately took his name off the lottery for the shuttle because he knew all along that Destiny was going to survive. Like Eli said, it was pretty apparent, at least from what the audience was shown in this episode, that Rush most likely didn't know that, or even if he did, it was a weak hunch at best. Why the writers have Rush not flat out deny that to Young, or to have Young question that in the first place, comes across like a really tacked-on attempt at restoring the conflict between the two leading characters of the ship, after they had more or less reconciled with each other. Still, a good episode nonetheless, and the the show will be sticking around in my TV diet for a while more.

The Office: "The Lover"

Wow. Just wow. Quite an episode of "The Office" this week. So many memorable moments, I don't even know where to begin. Let's start with Michael and Pam going at each other in the aftermath of Pam's discovery that Michael has been sleeping with her mom. One of the most powerful moments in the show's history, and especially painful to see them being so vituperative to each other, considering the history between these two characters; Michael is obviously very fond of Pam, and though Pam has so often looked out for Michael in the past (most notably and recently when she encouraged Michael to drive up north to see Holly). A great shot at the end of Michael leaving, and then thinking of coming back, ostensibly to patch things up with Pam, but then realizing it was futile...all done in a one-second silent shot. Very nice. Jim's in the thankless position of being caught in the middle, but used all his nous and charm to get across to Pam at the end, including a well-worked tie-in to the B-plot of Dwight planting a listening device in a wooden mallard that he gave to Jim. The tag where Dwight revealed he had the last laugh provided some welcome levity to the intense proceedings of the episode that transpired. I can't really end the recap without mentioning Michael manipulating Toby into speaking to Pam about her blow-up in the conference room in particular and her animosity to Michael in general (and surely it speaks volumes of how much Michael treasures his friendship with Pam that he's willing to go through the onerity of pretending to be Toby's friend?). Toby really believing that Michael has finally come round to being his friend, only to find out he's been "used later, was heartbreaking and funny in a resigned "Oh Toby" kind of way. Add to this the fact that he greeted Jim at the wrong time (just when Jim found out the bombshell from Michael that he's dating Pam's mom). Poor Toby can't catch a break. Funny, powerful, heartrending...this episode, penned by longtime "Office" scribes Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg (the latter also directed), had it all! The next episode can't come soon enough!

TV Roundup: Week of 12 October 2009

How I Met Your Mother: Ok episode. Marshall and Lily's double date with Robin and Barney was fun to watch, especially Marshall's over-enthusiasm, but ultimately ran out of steam at the end.

The Office: Terrific episode of "The Office", packed with laughs. Oscar's TH that the sane was being outnumbered after Jim and Pam are gone and Toby had zoned out, followed immediately by Toby zoning out during his TH, was the hilarious highlight. The cold open and Kevin taking Jim's office were funny too, and despite the premise, I found myself liking Andy and Dwight helping Michael with his "mob" issue.

Stargate Universe: Geez, Rush's rant was probably the most unbearable, insufferable moment I've seen in fictional TV this year, by a country mile. Not helping the likeabiity of this show at all. Other than that, I really liked how the others pulled together despite Rush's negativity, and I'm especially starting to take to Eli's optimism. A nice moment of levity at the end when the crew paused to take in the beautiful sight of the planet as Destiny entered its gravitational pull, and they worked in a cliffhanger too. All in all, despite Rush, I liked the episode, so I think I'll be sticking around for a few weeks.

Departures

Absolutely stunning movie, easily the best film I've seen this year, or for that matter, for the past several years. Deeply moving, poignant, and yet with moments of genuine humor as well, "Departures" richly deserved its Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Totally bawled my eyes out during the movie...I've lost count of the number of times I cried, and I've watched the movie twice! Though the story of how Daigo eventually overcomes his initial hesitation and revulsion for his profession of encoffinment breaks no new ground structurally, the eloquence of the storytelling and little things here and there make for a truly memorable film. I love the portrayal of Daigo and his wife's relationship, how devoted and supportive Mika is to her husband. Really felt the hurt that Daigo feels when Mike recoils at her husband's touch after she found out about Daigo's job, and shared the joy of their reunion after their brief separation. Also loved his surrogate family at work...his taciturn but gentle boss (Tsutomu Yamazaki in the performance of the movie) and Kumiko Yo's assistant. Watch for the powerhouse finale that the film understatedly builds towards. Another undoubted highlight is Joe Hisaishi's rich score. Not many films can be this powerful through its quiet elegance and beauty...this is one of them.

The Office: "Niagara"

Jim and Pam's wedding episode was a nice installment, with funny moments (most notably Kevin's hairpiece, indignation at Oscar's revulsion at him being his date, and the tag of him resting his feet in the vending machine cooler), and the sweet, poignant ones (notably Jim's toast before his verbal faux-pas, Pam's mini-breakdown after her veil got torn and Jim cheering her up by cutting his tie "now we're even"). After "Phyllis' Wedding" was arguably one of "The Office's" weakest episodes, it rebounded nicely here when it matter for the union of the show's first couple. The Niagara falls wedding (where the real wedding took place) is undoubtedly the highlight, and Jim's delighted glance at the camera was priceless (also great was his TH that Plan A was to marry Pam the day he met her). The romance was nicely understated, and the episode gave more of a sense of joy and delight at the felicitous occasion. Did I like it as much as I would have liked? No, but I liked it plenty. It's hard for the wedding to live up to the momentous events in Jim and Pam's relationship, especially after they have been together for so long now that the wedding feels almost like an afterthought, a formality to what was already a happily ever-after following the delightful season 3 finale "The Job" (my favorite "Office" ep). Make no mistake though, from the 27 seconds of silence, Jim's heartbreaking confession of love to Pam, the pain of their separation, their aforementioned longwaited reunion at the end of season 3 (and that's not even taking into account Jim's proposal to Pam that had "Office" fans all over grinning cheek to cheek), this has been one of the most endearing, compelling screen romances ever. Fairy tales do happen after all.

How I Met Your Mother "Robin"; Dollhouse "Instinct"; Parks and Recreation "Practice Date"

Okay episode of HIMYM this week. Not a lot of laughs, though Ted's lecture to Barney on tips on dating Robin does give Cobie Smulders an opportunity for some nice comedic moments. Subplot of the barrel doesn't do much for me, and the tie-in to the main plot is superfluous at best. Nice to see Lily being a supportive friend to Robin though, in her crisis moment.

Dollhouse, I thought, had a good episode. Despite the telegraphed nature of the main mission-of-the-week storyline, I found myself engaged nevertheless. One part that left me confused though (in the aftermath of the reveal that Echo "remembers" her imprints)...does Echo retain her consciousness and the remnants of her imprinted personality are only in the background after a wipe? I.e. that she's completely her imprinted personality (without her original personality) prior to the wipe? Because she didn't seem to recognize Ballard when he came to take her back to the Dollhouse the first time. Good scene in Echo's heart-to-heart talk with Ballard in the park later in the episode about the tolls of taking down the Dollhouse while retaining her own personality juxtaposed with all her imprints, and offers more insight in that Echo seems to "feel" her previous imprints rather than remember them, though the scene does seem to reach for a higher emotional impact than what it eventually achieved.

Terrific episode of "Parks and Recreation", continuing its fine form this season. The one-upmanship competition among the staffers to see which of them could dig up the most dirt on each other was great, and had the awesome payoff of Tom catching Ron in his late-night jazz gig as Duke Silver. I like the main plot of Anne helping Leslie practice for her first date with Dave. Leslie's rambling of her awful past first dates was hilarious. All in all, a very enjoyable installment indeed. The next episode can't come soon enough!

Stargate Universe: Series Premiere

A new Stargate series! Yay! Despite its shortcomings, I liked "Stargate: Atlantis" (SGA) a lot, and so with its cancellation I was looking to maybe the latest in the franchise for my weekly Stargate fix. First off, "Stargate: Universe" (SGU) looks amazing. It really looks like SyFy Channel pumped in a lot of dough into the premiere, as the visual effects look better than anything on SGA and SG1. The premiere also moves at a nice clip, though the action sequences (e.g. the evacuation from the base to the Ancient ship) lack suspense or generate any significant levels of excitement. Indeed, even the final reveal of Robert Carlyle's Dr. Rush on the central concept of the show (the Ancient ship automatically drops out of hyperspace whenever it detects a world where it deems is suitable for the placement of a Gate, and drops back into hyperspace after 12 hours...which means the team only has a limited time to do their trademark Stargate trekking) doesn't really register as big an impact as what the writers (Brad Wright and Robert Cooper probably intended. Critically, despite the dire situation of a failing life support system on the ship, I found I didn't really care for any of the characters, and found myself missing SGA in the middle of the premiere. Eli as the resident geek comes across as irritating and annoying, where SG1's Sam and SGA's McKay were easily my favorite characters in those respective shows. Young is just mirthless instead of imposing, and Rush is just so holier-than-thou it's off-putting. Though the creators probably wanted a show that isn't a clone of its predecessors, I found myself missing the the levity of SG1 and SGA. SGU seems like its aiming for "Battlestar Galactica"-scale gravitas, and just coming off as a poor imitation, and abandoning what really distinguished the "Stargate" franchise (at least for me)...a fun sci-fi show where one can just tune in each week to watch the team's exploits without thinking too much. It's only the first episode, of course, so I could very well be too harsh in my opinions and harbor unrealistic expectations...perhaps I did indeed expect to find an SGA clone. It'll be intriguing to see how the show develops itself both in terms of tone and its characters over the coming weeks.

Parks and Recreation: Episodes 1 - 3

Block post for "Parks and Recreation". Really liking the season so far, and the way they have been writing Leslie, so that she's more than just a female Michael Scott. She's way more self-aware than Michael, but finds her well-intentions in politics doesn't always, let's just say, translate. I like how Anne is being integrated into the show as Leslie's friend. I don't find her presence out of place and I think the show needs a level-headed character to ground all the zaniness around. Leslie's budding relationship with the cop looks promising, and he certainly comes across as very decent and amiable. Hope the show can keep this up! The next episode can't come soon enough!

The Office: "The Promotion"

Jim's promotion to co-manager in the previous episode understandably leads to tension between the two heads of the office, as Oscar so astutely pointed out in his oblique TH on the situation ("Name me one country that doesn't have two presidens"). Jim naturally tries to right all the perceived wrongs in Michael's management style, only to discover the best intentions doesn't always go hand-in-hand with good management. Jim can, at times, come across as smug and superior, and it's a little nice watching him floundering in the face of the staff revolt after his announcement that only sales will be getting raises this year. I thought it was also a nice curveball thrown by the writers that Michael didn't actually make the situation better, when I thought this might be one of those brief moments of Michael genius when he would show why he was the boss for so long. Guess one can't really spin "no raises" in any good way. The TH with the staff complaining to the camera crew about the raises, and Dwight trying ventriloquism to throw in a dig at Jim was a laugh-out-loud moment ("It's Creed", and Creed agreeing!). Regarding the use of the beans to rank the staff in terms of merit (and therefore who would get the raise), obviously it wasn't meant for the staff to see, but I would feel insulted too if I were in their shoes. The gaff probably wasn't in the use of the beans, but in leaving the door unlocked for Dwight to bring in the rest of the staff. Affecting scene at the end with Michael and Jim bonding over their "World's Best Boss" cups, a brief moment of levity in the face of what was a long day for both of them. Looks like this storyline of Jim being co-manager is going to stick for a while, so really interested in seeing where this leads. At the moment, I really like what I'm seeing, and like "The Michael Scott Paper Company" arc of last season, throwing off the office dynamic to what the staff (and the audience) is used to, is paying off dividends for the show. The next episode can't come soon enough!

How I Met Your Mother: "Double Date"

Loved the episode. Ted's second blind date with Jen was nicely-written and played out, and a good example of the trademark time-shifting dexterity that the show does so well. Josh Radnor and Lindsay Sloane (from "Grosse Pointe"!) has an easy onscreen chemistry, and I thought for a while that Jen could perhaps, maybe, be the titular mother? For one, Sloane looks like she could slot right into the rest of the cast (as seen by her brief scenes with the rest of the gang at MacLaren's), and for another, they won't be the first couple who have gotten together after a disastrous first date.

One of the nice touches is that the first blind date started off bad but actually ended well (with Ted promising to call Jen but never did), while the second blind date started off well (with both of them playfully trying to review what went wrong with the first blind date so they could avoid repeating those in the future) but actually ended bad, when Jen remembered that Ted didn't in fact call her back the first time. It all nicely ties in to the denouement of the storyline, when Ted remembered that the reason he didn't call back was because it's apparent they were just tolerating each other's quirks. In the case of Ted, his love of making stupid shellfish jokes and being the language police in correcting spelling errors in menus; in the case of Jen, her love of talking obsessively about her many cats. Surely they each deserve to find someone who not only tolerates these quirks, but loves them as well, as Ted posited. Which I agree. Well, I'm no relationship expert, not by a mile, but tolerance only takes you so far, and the relationship they're thinking of entering into could very well turn out to be a lifelong commitment. Tolerating another's quirks is the same as changing oneself to suit the other's image. It's a short-term fix that won't work in a marathon. It's a pity that this means Lindsay Sloane's guest-appearance will probably be a one-time thing, but this story was just so nicely done that this is just a minor quibble.

Other than the main plot, the subplot of Marshall and Barney finding Lily's doppelganger at a strip club serves its amusing purpose, and the throwaways to the time when they found Robin's and Marshall's doppelganger were hilarious. Can't wait to see when Ted's and Barney's turn up. Also, I know the writers don't read this blog (haha, no one does) but one week after mentioning I love Lily and Marshall best as a sweet, loving couple, they have an episode of Lily and Marshall as...a sweet, loving couple! Awesome! The next episode can't come soon enough!

A Decade of 静茹

September 17, 2009 marked the 10th anniversary of 静茹's debut album "一夜长大". It's hard to believe that she's been in the music industry for a decade now. For me and countless of her fans, her songs have accompanied us, and been a reassuring presence, in good times and bad. Affectionately nicknamed 疗伤天后, 静茹 has that uncanny gift to 唱入民心...take it from an easily-stressed out dude (ha!) for whom her music has made at-times extreme work pressure that much more acceptable. Is it any wonder then that there's a saying among 静茹 fans that 遇见静茹, 遇见幸福? My mom's a big 风飞飞 fan and I used to be puzzled as to why she can love every song from one musician. Well, thanks to 静茹, I'm no longer puzzled now. To my very own 风飞飞, to my hero whose music have "rescued" me countless of times before, and whose songs have moved me to tears and made me smile, have a great 10th anniversary!

Dollhouse: "Vows"

Tough slog of a premiere. Perhaps my expectations were unfairly raised by the great unaired episode set in a dystopian future of the "Dollhouse" universe. Still, this episode dragged for me. Ballard is as unsufferable in his holier-than-thou attitude as ever, and the standalone story of the week (with BSG's Jamie Bamber) does nothing for me. The attempt at softening up Topher in his conversation with Whiskey left me cold too. Maybe I wasn't in the mood to watch this, but really hoping the season picks up from here. The next episode can't come soon enough...?

How I Met Your Mother""Definitions"

Strong season premiere. Marshall fooling around with the Indiana Jones whip is amusing. While Lily has been one of my favorite characters, she's falling rapidly down the scale though with her bizarre way of manipulating her friends' lives, first with Ted and Robin's relationship in the past, and now with locking Barney and Robin in the same room so they can work out the exact nature of their relationship. I liked Lily much better when she's playing off Marshall as the happily-ever-after couple. The locked-in-the-room scene does have the fantastic payoff where Barney and Robin ostensibly put on an act as boyfriend-girlfriend just to get Lily to back off, but it's so clear to the audience, even if it isn't to them, that their "fake" declaration of love is truer than either Barney or Robin would like to admit. Very nicely set-up scene. Ted as a douchebag at the university is fun enough, though I'm probably not alone in being indifferent at this point as to who the identity of the titular mother is. As I've said, a nice start to the season for HIMYM. The next episode can't come soon enough!

The Office: "The Meeting"

Hilarious cold open. Michael seeks Oscar's advice on what to expect during a colonoscopy...nuff said :) Michael's attempts to eavesdrop on the titular meeting between Wallace and Jim, however, hits the wrong side of the line for me in terms of Michael's general obliviousness...coming across as insensitive and then descending into mean-spiritedness as he tries to sabotage Jim's proposal after he got to know about it from Wallace subsequently. Michael's fumbling attempts to remedy the situation after he discovers that Jim was actually pulling for him does set up the potentially fascinating scenario of Michael and Jim as co-managers, though the irony won't have escaped the viewers that Michael could have gotten so much more if he hadn't dissuaded Wallace from accepting Jim's proposal in the first place.

The Dwight/Toby pairing is fun for two characters one would never have thought would be partners-in-crime, or law enforcement in this case, and this is one well I wouldn't mind if the writers revisited in the future. Pam, however, is becoming increasingly dislikable by the season. What happened to the sweet receptionist from Seasons 2 and 3?!? She just comes across as smug as she's trying to ask her colleagues as to who's coming to her wedding, and though Kelly, Ryan and Meredith aren't exactly angels themselves, one expects better from Pam. Come to think of it, the way her character has generally been written these past few seasons, perhaps I've been the silly one for expecting anything different.

Reservations aside, the Michael-Jim dynamic presents really interesting plot points for the episodes ahead. The next episode can't come soon enough!

The Office: "Gossip" (Season 6 premiere)

And the good folks of Dunder-Mifflin are back! I enjoyed the season premiere, showcasing Michael in good form (so to speak) again where he inadvertently chances upon the fact that Stanley is having an affair, and in a bid to be "in" with the crowd, spreads this around like hot cakes. Upon realizing the potential consequences of his action, Michael's way of solving the problem is to spread other gossip of his devising, so that Stanley's situation would get lost under the sea of false rumors.

Laugh-out loud moments center on Andy actually thinking he might be gay just because Michael spreads the rumor that he is. The two golden moments are Oscar's outrage in his TH right after Andy seeks his opinion on the matter, and Jim's expression after Andy tells him he's confused about his sexuality.

In classic "Office" fashion, on top of the hilarious moments are the moments of heartfelt warmth, where Jim and Pam admit to the rest of the office that, yes, indeed Pam is pregnant (a rumor that Michael had spread without knowing it was actually true) in order to cover for Stanley. The ending scene with Pam's radiant smile upon seeing Jim put up the ultrasound of "Little Tuna" on the picture frame on his desk is the perfect close for the episode. One of the (many) things that make this show so brilliant, and such a joy to watch, is its ability to tug at the heartstrings of the audience without descending into the mawkish, and showrunner Paul Lieberstein, who wrote the premiere, demonstrates how it's done again.

Welcome back, Dunder-Mifflin. The next episode can't come soon enough!

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Episodes 1 - 23

Disclaimer: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (FMAB) is the first encounter of any kind I have with the Fullmetal Alchemist series. I have never read the manga, nor have I watched any episodes of the first anime series before watching FMAB.

Being hardly an anime fan, I've found myself (pleasantly) surprisingly engaged to the series "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" ever since I caught the first episode on Hulu some months back. The story centers around two brothers who, in a failed bid to resurrect their mom through human transmutation (a taboo of alchemy), finds that they have paid a dear price for their transgression and hubris. The elder brother, Edward, lost one of his hands and legs, while the younger Alphonse lost his whole body, and only managed to stay "alive" because Edward somehow managed to transmute his brother's soul into a suit of armor. In a bid to regain their bodies, Edward has now joined the State army, so he could be in a position to search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone, which enables alchemy to be performed by circumventing the principle of equivalent exchange.

I love the close relationship between the brothers, and how they look out for each other. The single most impressive aspect for me is the character design; even though there are tons of characters, each is distinctive and well-drawn, and this is especially amazing considering that in a manga/anime format, the characters have to be physically mapped out too. The Homunculi make for fearsome enemies, and the series, like most anime, isn't afraid to shy away from more brutal depictions. However, and crucially, there are lighthearted moments of slapstick humor and warmth to alleviate some of the more grim proceedings. Memorable episodes to date include "An Alchemist's Anguish", a stomach-churning yet heartbreaking tale of the Sewing Life Alchemist, Shou Tucker who, in a bid to receive continued state funding for his research, resorts to converting his daughter and her dog into a chimera, in order to demonstrate that his efforts to create a talking chimera have been successful. Other installments that comes readily to mind are "Those who Lurk Underground" and "Death of the Undying", featuring especially well-choreographed and thrilling duels between Greed vs. Wrath and Lust vs. Roy Mustang, respectively.

I haven't realized the furious pace at which FMA: B has been going at until I watched the first few episodes of the first anime, and the pace shows no signs of letting up. The last few episodes have really upped the momentum (and gee, I thought the series was going at maximum gear already), with the re-appearance of Ed's and Al's dad, and the capture of Gluttony, one of the homunculi (the previews for next week's episode look positively awesome!).

Count me in as a new fan of FMA in general and FMA: B in particular! The next episode can't come soon enough!

Dr. Cai Mingjie

The Straits Times ran an article two weeks back on a Dr. Cai Mingjie, a former Stanford-educated researcher with A*Star who is now working as a taxi-driver. Being a wannabe academic myself (or at least, I wanted to be one several years back), this topic naturally hits close to home. During the course of grad school, I gradually steered my career aspirations away from academia (and it's incredible how many of my lab-mates and friends in the US feel the same way I do), and this (horror) story has done nothing to raise the desirability of academia as a long-term career in Singapore. The true reasons for Dr. Cai's dismissal from A*Star might never be known, but it appears from the article that his work was deemed unsatisfactory by an external scientific board which then recommended that his contract not be renewed.

I've always found it a little galling the insistence by universities, research institutes, etc, that quality of research is measured by such metrics as number of papers published per year, importance of journals the papers are published in (through the impact factor), the number of citations your papers receive etc. Sure, these measures do indicate to a certain extent the productivity of one's scientific work, but anyone's who's ever done a research project will know that this is not all there is to it. Different projects in different fields inherently incur different time requirements, so a certain field might naturally yield more papers than others. In addition, as Toby Ziegler put so eloquently in the episode "Eppur Si Muove" of "The West Wing", there's no telling where undirected research might take us, X-rays and Penicillin being among the two best examples. Too strict an adherence to judging research performance based on quantifiable guidelines might constrain researchers to devoting time and funds only to short-term projects that might yield papers quickly, in order to "save their jobs", but might not be the researcher's true passion, and what's the point in that? And it might even be counter-productive...work done in haste and too narrow a scope might not be necessarily be of the real practical worth that the higher-ups hope the work to be in the long run.

Sure, researchers receive funding from various sources like corporations, from taxpayers etc, and should be answerable to these entities in some way, and metrics like number of papers published are an obvious, tangible way of assessing research performance. But a seemingly inflexible way of assessing performance solely (or mainly) on these metrics, either during the award of tenure or in renewing contracts, is just the kind of thing that will send shivers up the spines of budding researchers or grad students just embarking on their PhDs. Imagine spending (or going to spend) so much time and sweat on a degree just to get into a career that could well see you jobless in middle-age.

Dr. Cai Mingjie's story is a sobering cautionary tale for all of us who are foolhardy enough to want a career in academia in today's remorseless research climate (publish or perish, indeed). My best wishes to Dr. Cai.

Pictures of Chengdu Concert

Some pictures of 静茹's concert in Chengdu. Thanks to my friend for kindly taking all these wonderful photos!