starvenger

Millar must be real good at fellatio. I like that Checkmate is on the DC list. I'd actually say that currently Astonishing is the second-best book with the word "X-Men" in it (New X-Men being the first) but that's really just my personal preference. I've actually enjoyed Civil War: Front Line more than the core title, if you can believe that. And Nextwave should be higher in my opnion. It's fucking brilliant.

I seem to remember Goulet as more of a standup guy for some reason. Whatever. Koschek continues his rise up the WW ranks. For some reason I read that as "titty twisting", which would be hilarious to actually hear announced. "The winner by tapout due to a titty twister, The Boogeyman, Dean Lister!" They push him because people hate him. If he got X-Pac heat, they'd get rid of the guy. Maybe they're bringing back Torres to help fill a new PPV down the line - "Hawaii and Alaska vs the Lower 48". Penn vs Karo, Hoger vs Swick etc.

The funny thing is that during the "press conference" they made up Virginia to look a bit like Rachael Ray. This, of course, is not a bad thing. In hindsight, the whole finale was bullshit, and you're right that Keith should've won the whole thing. For him there were a couple of obstacles - Ramsey was blatantly trying to shepherd teacher's pet Virginia as far as possible and I think the producers wanted a woman to win. Keith's attitude gave Ramsey the excuse he needed to boot him off.

I disagree with you. Heather deserved to win this over Virginia. You are right that Virginia had a better atmosphere, better menu and a better palette, but that means squat if you can't deliver the goods. Still, let's break it down: Atmosphere: Had the waterfall been completed properly (it was barely working) Virginia would've had an excellent feature piece there but I think she was overambitious there. Carpenters on TLC shows have difficulties putting small water pump projects together, so I knew that she'd get screwed there. The fact that the crew got the thing somewhat working is very impressive, to me. Heather's room was a bit too busy for me, but overall it reflected her personality quite well. Except that it was probably a bit more "vibrant" than I'd think she is. And possibly a bit too self-indulgent. Still, despite Ramsey's hesitance over some of her choices, none of the diners went "well, this place kinda sucks", so it probably wasn't a huge demerit. Menu: Virginia was probably the most creative person of the contestants, but the creativity did her in. She didn't trust in her crew to do the final platings, and it slowed them down. Not to mention that her meals were rather complex. Heather, knowing that they'd be trusting an entirely new menu to a crew on short notice, kept things simple so that her crew would be less likely to screw things up (although there is apparently no "right" amount of dressing to put on a napa salad.) It seemed to work, as I'd guess that the Red team finished up well ahead of the Blue (if you assume some editorial trickery regarding the finish times). Palatte: Heather showed just enough to get by. Virginia was presumably much better - they really didn't focus too much on this because it was so lopsided. Teams: Virginia chose Keith first, and Heather chose Rachel second. No surprise there, as Keith was the best chef out of the twelve, and Heather and Rachel were possibly a lot closer than they showed on TV. Virginia then chose... Tom. OK, I get that she and Sara didn't get along, and Giacomo is a fuckup, but even with the chicken issues, she should've chosen Garrett. I guess she wanted a girl on the team. Heather then, of course, chose Ga- oh wait, she chose Sara. Although that actually seemed smart in hindsight, since Sara wasn't trying to manipulate her way to the final two anymore. And Virginia then chose Mophead as her final chef. Again, I'm thinking because of the chicken issues, but hey, YOU DON'T HAVE TO PUT GARRETT ON CHICKEN. Leadership: Heather was obviously in control of her kitchen, plus she managed to earn their respect from the get go. It was pretty obvious that Keith, Tom and Mophead didn't give a shit about whether Virginia won or lost, and their respect probably went out the window when she gave into the bribe demands. On the line, Heather again kept things simple, calling out "steak" and "fish" where Virginia called out "chicken roulade" and "braised short ribs". Big deal, you say, but it's a subtle, important detail. You keep the words to a minimum, and you reduce the risk of confusion. Also in the subtle department, Heather had that "I demand respect" timbre in her voice, while Virginia, despite coaching from Ramsey, never had that. As you said, this was pretty much where Heather took this competition. Ramsey: Maybe it was the editing, but during the actual dinner service, I saw Ramsey coaching Virginia a lot more than Heather. To me, it seemed like Ramsey was saying "I'm doing everything in my power to help you win", but it wasn't enough. He obviously saw a lot of potential in Virginia (one of three things he saw in her), but the leadership was lacking, and that's something that, if it isn't there, has to be learned over time. And the Red Rock Casino didn't have that luxury.

Just a bad time of year for it. Fantasy football and all that...

Actually, if he was really into the pimp gimmick, he should make it a spinning bitchslap...

Heather really should win this, but the final challenge doesn't require Virginia to cook, so it'll probably be close.

I LIVE in Calgary. And they are not the best newspaper in the city. I'm sure it isn't. The <insert city here> Sun is pretty synonymous with "crap" in Canada...

My favourite comedian is still Russell Peters though. He gets my vote for funniest Asian comedian (he's Indian)...

Not that there is anything wrong with that kind of comedy - it just has to be done well. Alonzo and Dat showed us two ends of the spectrum.

I disagree. At least Josh is, you know, funny. My wife was actually ashamed to be from Vietnam after witnessing Dat Phan's set...

Check the fine print on page 1. That's probably your best bet, although probably not always the most accurate.

So I guess they do have teams, but are Couture and GSP rival coaches? As far as I've heard, there's only those two plus a kickboxing/Muay Thai coach. Maybe it was a schoolyard pick'em?

So I guess fighting as a MW didn't agree with him (again)? Also, what's the MMA equivalent to a JTTS? Glorified can?

Don't know, dude. I just saw what I saw there and hit "Quote" then "Reply". What, people on this board are sane? Dammit, now I gotta leave...

It was a TKO - ref stoppage Rudo posted this a while back:

He also said, when asked what he brings to the table for the book, "Boobs".

There are better computers out there but Dell's got a good service package for when it breaks down. But if you can find a good deal on them (if you're Canadian check out redflagdeals.ca), it's pretty much worth it.

I'm also willing to switch from Tampa to not-Tampa...

Not offensive, just unfunny. Unless you count Forte's "It's not half-Black History Month" joke...

I'm back for another beating this year. EPs will be PM'ed shortly...

Wasn't the "you lika the juice" from way back during the Sandler/Schneider/Farley days?

I think that we've said from the beginning that Josh is a one-note comic like Dat Phan and Jay London - the show forces you to come up with new material, so the routine becomes boring the second time around. Although with Jay, it was more the third or fourth time. Look at guys like Alonzo or Heffron - they had more than enough material for their sets and when they came up with new stuff (as John did because he had gotten married in between "the house" and the live competition) it doesn't feel forced or unnatural. As for Anthony Clark, I think he's been funnier here than he's been in Yes Dear and Boston Common combined. And no, that's not a compliment, just an observation.

She was still much better as Dr. Pat during the Joe Schmo Show. You're assuming that there's enough material to assemble a "best of". The best thing would've been to put a "special feature" on Jimmy's DVD where they show Horatio and Jimmy crack up.

Still not as unintentionally hilarious as the video for "The Touch", which I've posted before, but here's the link again... Til all are one.