Thursday, June 28, 2007

Stephen King and LOST

I chanced upon this Entertainment Weekly interview among EW, Stephen King, J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof, and Carlton Cuse on the Stephen King thread on the Lostpedia Forums (which I've been frequenting since last Saturday). The LOST writers love Stephen King.

Click here to read the interview.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

LOST's Cerberus

Apparently, YouTube doesn't let people post videos on their Blogger sites directly from YouTube. Particularly, mine.

Anyway, here's a compilation of LOST's Smoke Monster's appearances from Seasons 1 to 3. Unfortunately, it doesn't include Cerberus's appearance in "Left Behind" - which appeared after "Exposé."

Here's the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaqbyekJHHs

I'll embed the video too. - in case it works.



Here's also Cerberus in "Left Behind."

This one is when it appeared to take pictures of Juliet while Juliet and Kate were hiding from Cerberus.



This one is when it chased Juliet and Kate and got thwarted by the sonic fence.



Enjoy.

Recap: LOST Season Three

Remember the Canada.com article that I posted here back in October 10, 2006?

Some of the questions in the article were answered in Season 3. Let me break it down:

WHO ARE THE OTHERS?
The only episode that answered this question was "The Man Behind the Curtain," which is a Ben Linus-centric episode. According to Ben's flashbacks, the DHARMA Initiative employees in the Barracks were killed by a poisonous gas that the Hostiles (the supposed Island natives) and Ben Linus (a DHARMA employee) released - the event known as the Purge. It was inferred that Ben joined the Hostiles. It was not shown in the episode whether the poisonous gas reached the known DHARMA stations on the Island, such as the Swan, the Flame, the Pearl, the Arrow, and the Staff - which means not all DHARMA employees (not including Ben) were killed during the Purge. It's doubtful that the DHARMA employees in the Hydra and the Looking Glass stations were affected. We may learn more about the Others in Season 4.

WHO WILL KATE FALL FOR?
Well, Kate slept with Sawyer for the first time in "I Do," the fall finale. And she didn't tell Sawyer that she loved him - except in "Every Man for Himself" where she said she only did it so Danny Pickett would stop hitting him. They slept together again in "Catch-22" and "The Brig." However, Kate seemed to be jealous when Jack started to spend a lot of time with Juliet. Lostpedia.com described Kate and Sawyer's relationship as "ambiguous romantic relationship" - which is apt because we only saw the physical relationship in Season 3. They seem to have an emotional connection, although Kate has never told Sawyer that she loved him (after they first slept together) and she seems to feel something for Jack.

WHY WAS LOCKE IN A WHEELCHAIR?
We learned from the episode "The Man from Tallahassee" that Anthony Cooper (Locke's biological father) pushed Locke through an eighth-story window. Locke was paralyzed as a result. Anthony Cooper proved that he was a heartless SOB when he pushed his son through the window so Locke wouldn't be able to verify with Mrs Talbot (a rich middle-aged woman and Cooper's fiance) that the wedding was called off by Cooper. It was believed that Cooper killed, or hired someone to kill, Peter Talbot (Mrs Talbot's son).

WHO IS THE FATHER OF SUN'S UNBORN BABY?
It was revealed in the episode "D.O.C." that Sun's baby was conceived 45 to 47 days after Flight 815 crashed on the Island - Juliet said the survivors crashed "90 days ago" (Lostpedia says 88, instead of 90) and that the baby was conceived "53 days ago" - which means Jin is the baby's father. However, this is impossible because the raft (crew consisted of Michael, Walt, Sawyer, and Jin) was launched on the castaway's 44th day on the Island, which is according to Lostpedia's article on the Season 1 finale "Exodus Part 1." Before the launch of the raft, Jin and Sun were not speaking to each other. Maybe Juliet's calculation is wrong? Anyway, the downside of the baby being Jin's is that Sun will likely die on her second trimester. Juliet said that pregnant women who conceived on the Island never made it to their third trimester. Poor Sun. It was also revealed that Sun cheated on Jin with Jae Lee, which is why Sun wanted to know when the baby was conceived. If she conceived before the crash, then Jae Lee is the father and that Sun will live. On the other hand, if she conceived after the crash, then Jin is the father and that Sun will die.

WHAT HAPPENED AT THE HATCH?
Simple answer: the hatch imploded after Desmond turned the fail-safe key in "Live Together, Die Alone," the Season 2 finale. The episode "Further Instructions" revealed what happened to Locke, Desmond, and Eko after the implosion. A mute Locke woke up in the jungle. He saw a butt-naked Desmond running through the jungle; in the episode "Flashes Before Your Eyes," it was revealed that Desmond relived his past with Island elements after the electromagnetic discharge, what Lostpedia termed "one continuous 'lucid flashback' of Desmond's Time Travel" (I removed the link to Lostpedia's character article on Desmond). Anyway, with Charlie's help, Locke saved Eko from being ravaged by a polar bear, which somehow dragged an injured Eko. It was never shown how Locke ended up in the spot where he woke up, how Desmond ended up butt-naked, and how and where the polar bear found Eko.

DID MICHAEL AND WALT ESCAPE?
This was not addressed in Season 3. Although, Walt, or a manifestation of Walt, appeared in "Through the Looking Glass" to Locke when he was about to shoot himself. Some fans speculated that Michael could be the dead guy that Jack visited in the Hoffs/Drawlar funeral parlour in the flash-forward.

WHAT IS DHARMA DOING WITH THE KIDS?
In the penultimate Season 2 episode, "Three Minutes," Walt said the Others were forcing him to take tests and that they were pretending. Ms Klugh threatened Walt that he would be put in "the room" again if he didn't stop revealing things about the Others. Also, we saw in Season 2 that the teenage girl that helped Claire escape may be Danielle's daughter, Alex. In Season 3, it was revealed in "Not in Portland" that Ben raised Alex as his daughter. Throughout season 3, Alex rebelled against Ben and usually helped the castaways, thus thwarting Ben's plans. Finally, Emma and Zack, the two kids abducted by the Others from the Tailies' camp in Season 2, were shown in "Stranger in a Strange Land" watching Jack while he was in the cage. Also, they were shown as part of the Others in "The Brig." Cindy was with them in both episodes. Therefore, the Others are taking the kids so they could raise them and instill their beliefs in them. The reason for this is still unknown, although one theory is that DHARMA, and the Others, are experimenting with social utopia.

WHO IS LIBBY?
This was never addressed in Season 3.

IS CLAIRE JACK'S HALF-SISTER?
Yes. The episode "Par Avion" confirmed the very popular theory that Jack and Claire share the same father, Christian Shephard. However, Claire didn't want to know her father's name. Neither Jack nor Claire knows that they are half-siblings.

CAN THE SHOW KEEP IT UP?
Yes! Every episode (yes, even "Exposé") was excellently written and brilliantly acted. Season 3 answered many questions, and in true LOST fashion, generated some more. Season 3 focused on relationships. There was
  • romantic relationships (Kate & Sawyer, Jack & Juliet, Alex & Karl, Claire & Charlie, Sun & Jin, Nikki & Paulo, Rose & Bernard, Desmond & Penny);
  • father-child relationships (Jack & Christian, Claire & Christian, Penny & Mr Widmore, Alex & Ben, Sun & Mr Paik, Jin & Mr Kwon, Ben & Roger Linus, Hurley & Mr Reyes, Sawyer & Clementine, Charlie & Simon Pace);
  • mother-child relationships (Kate & Diane, Alex & Danielle, Claire & Carole Littleton, Jin & his mother, Ben & Emily Linus, Claire & Aaron);
  • friendships (the main castaways, Jack & Juliet); and
  • Other-ships (Jacob, Ben, Juliet, Tom, Alex, Karl, Ryan Pryce, Bea Klugh, Mikhail, Richard, Danny & Colleen Pickett, Isabel, the rest of the Others).

Let's just hope that the questions here that were not addressed in - and the many mysteries and questions generated in - Season 3 will be answered in Season 4. If not, Season 5 or 6. As long as they're answered by the time the series ends in May 2010, I'll be happy.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Poor JC

I was just recovering from Kelly Clarkson's cancellation of her summer tour. In fact I was feeling a lot better because I'm going to watch Ocean's Thirteen and/or Shrek the Third. I went to JC-Source.net just to find out what's happening with JC Chasez. Imagine what I felt when I read this [in verbatim]:

Well the ugly truth is, Jive still is not backing what JC is doing. They said all the right things but did not follow through. His song is not being played because it takes money to market it and Mr Berry Weiss is afraid to spend any money because he needs to show a profit for the year. Justin is the only artist Jive has really marketed this time. Most of Jive's artist has fallen into this pit. Joe just released a CD and he has already crashed and burned…JC is spending a lot of time writing with other groups and making a name for himself as a writer and a producer. His career will continue to grow and he WILL get a chance to prove his talent but probable not with Jive. I hope berry wiess's next job uses the catch phrase "want fries with that" often, even that he might not be qualified for. Just thought I would give you an update.

Excuse my French, but...

BLOODY HELL???!!!

Jive Records screwed up Schizophrenic (JC's first solo album). Now they're screwing up JC's entire career!

I wonder if JC could leave Jive Records, maybe he can move to his "buddy" Justin Timberlake's newly-created Tennman Records?

But then... will Justin treat JC any better than Jive treats him?

Sure they're friends - rather they've been friends since they were in the Mickey Mouse Club. But Justin has changed. He's not the same humble guy that he was when *NSYNC started.

Can JC create his own label then?

Or maybe BT can help him out. Nettwerk Records, anyone?

How Jive treats JC is disheartening. It's frustrating. It downright SUCKS!

Poor JC. I can only wonder what he's feeling...

Thursday, June 14, 2007

It Was Not Meant To Be

According to People.com and VH1, Kelly Clarkson is no longer touring North America this summer.

"WHAAATTTTT???"

So I went to Kelly's label site, KellyClarksonWeb.com, this morning and didn't find anything that said the tour was cancelled. (There are two posts regarding the tour cancellation now.) I had no choice but to head to her other official website, KellyClarkson.com, and there it was: the welcome page containing a note from Kelly herself regarding the summer tour cancellation.

"I can't tell you how much I've been looking forward to getting out there to perform for y'all. In the craziness of the music business, performing is what I look forward to doing the most, so it really is disappointing for me to have to tell you that I won't be coming out to tour this summer. The fact is that touring is just too much too soon.

But I promise you that we're going to get back out there as soon as is humanly possible to give you a show that will be even better.

Thanks for all of your love and continued support."

— Kelly

They say it's because of weak ticket sales. Apparently, less people have purchased tickets to her arena concerts than what the promoter expected.

Should have known when only one friend has told me she could go to the concert with me. Even then she was torn between Kelly Clarkson and Beyonce. I even asked my Facebook and Friendster friends if anyone wanted to go to the concert with me. No one responded favourably.

Darn.

I've been waiting for the chance to see Kelly Clarkson live for two years. In 2005, she played Vancouver two days after my 22nd birthday. Last year, she played Seattle, WA (Auburn, actually). Obviously I didn't get to see her both times. So when it was announced that she would play Vancouver again, I started asking my friends to come with me. Unfortunately, my close friends started dating, getting married, and having babies. So I had to ask somebody else. They weren't crazy about seeing Kelly Clarkson live. *Sniff*

Oh well. Maybe I'm not supposed to go to a Kelly Clarkson concert. At least, not now.

Monday, June 11, 2007

Converting Kirk Cameron

This is cool. If you watched the "Left Behind" movies, you'll notice Kirk Cameron in them. Well, he became a Christian while in the show "Growing Pains". Read his story here. You may be inspired.

http://potw.news.yahoo.com/s/potw/41/converting-kirk-cameron

Three Weeks of Chill-Out

So it's 1:20 in the afternoon and I'm not at work. Why?

I'm on vacation for three weeks. Woohoo!

I wanted to go to Toronto, to visit a couple of friends. Unfortunately, I can't just buy a ticket and hop on a plane without any preparations. It's just the way I am. I'm an analyzer so I need to get everything that I need to decide how I'll spend my three-week vacation. Unfortunately I ran out of time because we were very busy at work (period-end is always crazy, you know).

So I'll be home for a couple of days, which is just as well because I have a cold. Then I'll start going out, visiting friends, going to my doctor and dentist. Hopefully we can go to Victoria before my vacation ends.

I'll think of more places to go to. I'll recuperate first.

Ciao.