Oh That Wacky Ferraro

From CNN's Political Ticker

Geraldine Ferraro, the outspoken former Democratic vice presidential candidate and a supporter of Hillary Clinton's White House bid, told the New York Times she may not vote for Barack Obama should he be the party's nominee.

Ferraro claims that the reasoning is that Obama was "terribly sexist," although she provides no specific examples. I have a sneaking suspicion that there's another reason Ferraro won't vote for Obama.

LOST - There's No Place Like Home Part 1

While they won't be clicking their heels together until the big finale, we did get to see the homecoming of the Oceanic Six on this week's Lost. And while its clear that even going home they still aren't in Kansas anymore (think I've belabored this Wizard of Oz reference enough?) it was still exciting to see Jack, Kate, Sun, Sayid, Hurley, and Aaron return to civilization. Based on the scene in the airplane, whatever happens to get them off the island must be pretty awful. Not only did everyone seem shellshocked, I detected some resentment towards Jack. Could it be that Jack did something very wrong to get them off the island?

Certainly whatever happens seems to preclude any chance at getting back. We finally got to see the whole Oceanic Six cover story. Sayid said that there was absolutely no chance of there being any more survivors, which makes me think that the O6 think everyone else is dead or the island is gone. After all, why wouldn't they be leading a charge back to the island otherwise? Meanwhile, those two extra people came up again this week. According to the O6 story, eight people survived the initial crash, but two didn't make it. However, Sun said that Jin was not one of those two people. Also, Kate claimed Aaron as her own child, meaning Claire isn't one of the eight either. So, why lie about these two extra people? I hope they explain that. Meanwhile, we began to see the first sign of the cracks appearing in the sanity of the O6. Hurley loses it when he sees the numbers, while Jack finally learns that Claire is his half-sister, which seems to only add to his guilt. And a shout-out to Sun, who was a total bad-ass in buying out her father's company (although that must have been quite the settlement from Oceanic Airlines).

Meanwhile, on the island, not much happened, as the episode was more committed to moving everyone into place. And that place seems to be The Orchid. We know from the video released last summer that The Orchid is not a botanical research facility, and that whatever happens in there is quite weird, but we don't know much more than that. However, apparently that station contains the key to Locke's plan to move the island. I'm going to guess that Locke has to move the island through time, as well as space. But what that means is beyond me.

As we ended the episode, Jack and Sawyer were heading to The Orchid to get Hurley, Sun was on the freighter, which we found out has a ton of C4 on it that's wired to blow (likely related to Keamy's electronic thingy on his arm), and Kate and Sayid were surrounded by the ageless Richard Alpert and the Others. So, how does the O6 get together? And get off the island? I have a few predictions:

1. I'm betting that everyone makes it to The Orchid, and when they see what's happening there, some will choose to leave and others will decide to stay with Locke and help. Although I have no idea how this includes Sun and Aaron.

2. I'm betting the freighter goes boom, and takes Jin down with it.

3. Whatever happens in The Orchid, I think that it will involve Ben getting shot in the arm, putting on a parka, and getting transported to Tunesia.

Also, Michael needs something to do, right? Aside from Meet Kevin Johnson, Michael has just spent the season getting beaten up. There has to be some reason to bring him back.

What I'll Be Doing Next Fall

The new slate of TV shows have been announced and I'm not quite sure how it happened, but somehow Fox has managed to dominate, scoring the new shows from the people behind Lost, Buffy, and Arrested Development. Coming in fall is Fringe, the new show from JJ Abrams:



Lance Reddick, as always, looks hardcore. Plus, skin liquifying is down right creepy. All in all it looks like what would happen if J.J. Abrams remade The X-Files, and I can get behind that.

Next is Dollhouse, from Joss Whedon:

I can't find an embedable version of this trailer, but for now here's a link

Amy Acker doesn't pop up in the trailer, but she's got a recurring role in the show too. The buzz is that the show is less bantery and more serious than past Whedon efforts. It looks really awesome, although I get the feeling it will last about six episodes. Nonetheless, they shall be six glorious episodes.

Also, while no video has popped up yet, Mitch Hurwitz has a new TV show coming out called Sit Down, Shut Up featuring WIll Arnett, Henry WInkler, Jason Bateman, and many more funny people.

Narrow Stairs, Death Cab For Cutie

Its been a rough few years to be a Death Cab for Cutie fan. After a shout-out on The O.C. propelled them to success, the boys seemed to embrace their Myspacey side on the uneven Plans. I thought it had some good moments, but all in all found Plans to be a little on the boring side. However, I'm pleased to report that they have recaptured the magic on Narrow Stairs. The record is a real step forward for the band, as they explore different styles and ideas than what they've done in the past.

The album starts off with "Bixby Canyon Bridge," a slow burner that starts with just a guitar and Ben's vocals. Soon, however, the song explodes into a song that genuinely rocks. It was at this point that I realized this wasn't going to be like most other Death Cab albums. However, I also think a little too much has been made of how different it is. Songs like "Amputations" and "We Looked Like Giants" foretell a lot of what's on this album, its just that the dose of that kind of rock has never been as concentrated as it is here.

Ben Gibbard's lyrics are a little more direct than usual, like on "Cath," my pick for the stand-out song from the album. "Cath" sounds like We Have the Facts-era Death Cab, with the jangly, Built To Spill-style guitar. The lyrics tell the heartbreaking story of a woman who has settled for marrying someone she doesn't love because her "heart was dying fast." However, Gibbard ultimately takes her side, concluding "I'd have done the same as you." On "You Can Do Better Than Me," he cleverly subverts the expectations that title sets-up. Instead of being a song about someone who's afraid of being left, its about someone who's too scared to do the leaving.

Some have complained that the lyrics are a little too direct, especially on tracks like "Your New Twin Sized Bed" or "The Ice Is Getting Thinner," however both of these songs pack a pretty strong punch. That's mainly thanks to the contribution of Chris Walla, who I think tends to be unfairly overlooked. "Your New Twin Sized Bed" is emotionally riveting, with the guitar part effectively evoking feelings of loneliness to the point that Gibbard could be singing about what he had for lunch and the song would still be as moving.

"The Ice is Getting Thinner" ends the album with another surprise. Like Bixby, the song starts out sounding sparse and airy. However, just when you expect the drum to kick in, it doesn't. The ice is getting thinner, but it never actually breaks. Ultimately, this song reflects why Death Cab succeeds on Narrow Stairs. They don't focus on showing huge life-changing events, but instead they portray the little realizations we all have everyday.

A

This Sounds Awful

The good news: George Lucas is talking about Indy 5!

Now, what could possibly happen to temper the excitement about the fact that Crystal Skull might kick start the franchise. Take it away George "The Force is just a bunch of tiny bacteria and Darth Vader is a whiny kid" Lucas:

I haven’t even told Steven or Harrison this," he said. "But I have an idea to make Shia [LeBeouf] the lead character next time and have Harrison [Ford] come back like Sean Connery did in the last movie. I can see it working out.

Really George? We're going to hand the Indiana Jones franchise to the kid from Even Stevens? Really?