Fave Episodes - No. 4

I'm a little behind, so I'm going to skip number 5.

No. 4 - Final Cut

Morale is at a low after the Gideon massacre, leading to Roslin and Adama to allow D'Anna Biers to shoot a documentary about the Galactica and its crew. Adama agrees that she is going to be given full access to the crew. Of course, everyone on Galactica fears that they'll be subject to a hatchet job.

I really dug this episode partially because it gave a good insight into what goes on in the heads of the crew. It was interesting to see the dynamics of the crew along with their interviews. It does make you wonder how they're managing to keep everything together.

Of course, the other reason I love this episode is watching Apollo wearing only a towel.

Too Much Beef is a Bad Thing?

Maybe big and dumb really do go hand in hand... a new report explains a recent study that too much testosterone is bad:

"'Too little testosterone is bad, too much is bad but the right amount is perfect,' said Barbara Ehrlich of Yale University in Connecticut, who led the study.

'Other people have shown that high levels of steroid can cause behavioral changes...[t]hese effects of testosterone on neurons will have long-term effects on brain function...

Next time a muscle-bound guy in a sports car cuts you off on the highway, don't get mad -- just take a deep breath and realize that it might not be his fault...' "

Marc's Midweek Country Beef Haiku

Oft I've heard it said,
"Save a horse, ride a cowboy."
I'll have to ride you.

Favorite Characters - No. 5

Only a couple more weeks before the season premire of Battlestar Galactica! We'll start the countdown with my favorite characters, and alternate with my favorite episodes. Starting the countdown at Number 5...

No. 5 - Dr. Cottle

By all accounts, a crotchety old codger. At the same time, he demonstrates a fierce dedication to his patients without taking any nonsense. Nearly gets choked to death by Boomer when he tells her that baby Hera (who was being given to another woman on the orders of President Roslin) had died. Even though he wasn't happy with the situation he almost paid the price. Cottle serves as a great counterpoint to Baltar's spinelessness.

Rub the Duck!

Several years ago, a great source of knowledge was lost. Hooptie Goo, keeper of the haiku spirits, disappeared. We who revere and channel the great spirit of haiku were left to wander through this world alone.

Today, however, is a blessed day. Hooptie Goo has returned! Rub the duck to summon the haiku spirits and discover the answer to this age-old question: Strange goo, what kind of goo are you?

Whoa! The Evolution of Joey Lawrence

Isn't it impressive to see someone go from boy to incredibly hot beef of a man (even if I'm not particularly fond of the cowboy hat... and doesn't he look like he had a collogen injection into the lips?)?

Marc's Midweek Single Beef Haiku

His eyelids flutter,
another morning alone.
Will this beef find love?

(Thanks, Doug!)

Talk Like A Pirate!

Avast Mateys! Fer all ye scurvy dogs who not be knowin', today be International Talk Like A Pirate Day! Fer ye landlubbers, watch this movie to improve ye pirate speaking skills!

Least Favorite Episodes

Ok everybody, you got the chance to hear about the characters I love to hate on BSG. Now its time for my least favorite episodes from the first two seasons. This was a tough call because there weren't really that many episodes I didn't like. Here are the bottom four, and it was a struggle to come up with those. We'll get to the things about BSG I love in a week or so.

Episode 111 - Colonial Day

A quick synopsis -- this episode centers on conflict around the announcement that Tom Zarek is going to be a member of the Quorum of Twelve. A episode of pure politics. Zzzzzzzzzzz.....

Episode 214 - Black Market

Ok there is a black market in the fleet and that is bad and people get hurt because of it. Great. Yes, yes, we're all tainted by that, isn't it awful? Oh, and Apollo has his Pretty Woman experience. Is Dualla that much of a step up?

Episode 215 - Scar

Scar is the big, bad Cylon Raider bogeyman. Kids, you better behave or Scar is going to get you! What's worse is that this episode is all about Kat and her conflict with Starbuck. I can't stand Kat. Bravado is one thing but she's just annoying. The damn stim junkie! SciFi lets you watch the whole episode for free. There's a reason why.

Episode 216 - Sacrifice

Ok, this pretty much has to be the greatest insult to Billy. Not only does he propose to Dualla and get turned down only to find that Dualla is fracking Apollo but then Billy ends up dying at the end trying to save her. That just blows.

2

Did you miss it? I almost did. After a long, busy day, I happened to go back and look at the archives and hey, what do you know? Today is my 2-year bloggiversary. Not a lot of fanfare, I know, but that's just how I am. Still, two years is a heck of a milestone. Hope there are plenty more ahead.

Shiny

For those of you outside of Phoenix, here's a quick rundown of the history of the gay dance scene -- we used to have two main dance clubs here in town Boom & Crowbar, up until 3 years ago, or so. For a variety of reasons, Crowbar ended up closing and re-opening as a straight latino club. A couple of years later, Boom also ended up closing and then reopening as a gay latino club.

A year ago, my bar, Club Miami, ended up opening as an addition to Amsterdam, the main upscale bar here in town. Being the only resident since the club's opening, I've had the chance to grow and really establish the feel of the club, musically. That said, its not a perfect situation -- the space is small, its not a great dance club feel and having it attached to the other bar siphons people away from dancing, in my opinion. That said, I'm very glad to be where I am.

Most recently, a new gay dance club is in the works. It appears that the intent is to bring Phoenix the full-fledged dance club we've been lacking since Boom closed. A good thing, in my estimation. Its not clear when the opening is, though it seems like its pretty close. Personally, I'm really looking forward to it.

The underlying question, however, is this -- while I'm not unhappy where I am, could anyone blame me for being intrigued by the possibilities of a new, dance-only venue? It would certainly solve some of the issues that have nagged me since I started at Miami. At the same time, I've been treated very well by the owner at my place and I'm not one to burn bridges. Do I automatically jump at something because its new and shiny?

Just something rattling around in my head. Feedback is definitely appreciated.

Marc's Midweek 'Flex' Beef Haiku

Like a tree that falls
with none to hear, so with
a beef that won't flex

Sanity

Ok, I'm not much on celebrity relationships -- I don't really care who is together with whom these days. I make exceptions for the really bizarre ones -- Tom & Katie (and the alien baby) and the major one at the moment -- Whitney & Bobby. Of course, the big news is that Mrs. "Crack is Whack" has finally filed for divorce from "My Prerogative." Now, I don't know who is responsible for the absolute disaster that Whitney has become but I have to hope that this is a step in the right direction for her.

American History

In honor of school being back in session, I decided to give everyone a little bit of an academic refresher... American History, to be exact. Back in high school I had a very hot, hunky history teacher who also served as assistant football coach. Even though I pretty much already knew what he was teaching, he always had my complete attention. Well, I don't know what he's doing these days, but here's the next best thing -- the Naughty American History Game! Answer 8 questions about American History and your hunky online teacher takes it off. The first couple of questions are usually pretty easy, but there are some random questions that I wouldn't have expected. Truth be told, it took me quite a few tries before I got to finally see some cock-a-doodle-doo. Go ahead and try it -- you might learn something.

Marc's Back to School Beef Haiku

Like Capistrano,
to college, autumn winds bring
the return of beef.

We Have Entered The Twilight Zone

We see and hear plenty of stories about gay bashings and fundamentalists going berzerko with hate. So, when I came across this article, I couldn't help but feel like I had entered an alternate dimension... Still, I'm hardly one to complain. Keep these sorts of stories coming!

From MosNews.com --

Gay Couple Has Public Sex, Crowd Applauds

Two men drew applause from residents of Ekaterinburg in Russia’s Urals as they undressed in the street, kissed in front of the gathering crowd and finally performed oral sex on each other.

On Monday, two apparently drunk men stopped on the central street of the biggest Urals city and started dancing. While dancing, the couple stroked each other lovingly, gradually undressing and kissing passionately, the Ura.ru website reports.

People who gathered around the couple reacted quite positively, took photographs, applauded and recorded them on video. Nobody bothered to call the police or protest.

The show concluded by one of the men giving the other a blow job, after that the two promptly left and the audience strode off too.

The police said they had not received a single alarm call.

“Such actions are classified as an administrative offence and are definitely punishable,” a spokesman for the law-enforcement agencies said.

“Naturally, had we received an alarm, our officers would have immediately put an end to the incident.”

Vote - Most Hated Character

My Most-Hated BSG Characters

Ok, I figured that I'd do something a little different on my BSG countdown and examine the characters on BSG that I hate the most. Once we have my five, I'll let you guys vote on who you hate the most.

In no particular order:

Gaius Baltar

I don't think you can start a "most hated" list without Baltar. In additon to the obvious -- betraying the colonies and leading to the deaths of billions of people -- Baltar spends most of his time sniveling and whimpering before the Six "clone" in his head. (I call her a "clone" in the spirit of the Scorpius clone who played a similar role in Farscape.) There are some characters who are evil to the core and you can't help but at least respect their strength, cleverness, wit, etc. Gaius, on the other hand, demonstrates none of these -- just an admitted weakness of character.

Admiral Cain

Cain is the polar opposite of Baltar -- she is rigid and ruthless strength where Baltar is nothing but weakness. At the same time, she is perhaps as flawed as Gaius. In her zeal to survive, it seems like she has given up on what it means to be human. She fostered some of humanity's worst tendencies during her command of the Pegasus (and brief command of the fleet). Besides, she was just a Class A bitch.

Ellen Tigh

From one Class A bitch to another, we have Col. Tigh's drunken and manipulative wife. Since her reappearance we've been led to question whether Ellen might actually be a Cylon -- it would explain a great deal of things about her. Still, from what we've learned about her and Saul's past, it sounds like she's always been like that, Cylon or no. If I were married to her, I'm sure I'd have become an alcoholic too. Makes me glad I'm gay.

Lt. Gaeta

You may be thinking that this one is kind of a stretch. "What's wrong with Gaeta?" While the first three on this list are desipicable, Gaeta is just downright annoying. Essentially he's the Wesley Crusher of Galactica. That's enough to make me hate him.

Number Three

The only Cylon on my list -- yes, I loved Lucy Lawless as Xena, but Number Three is a different story. While outwardly helpful, Three's main goal was to push both Caprica Six and Sharon over the edge of insanity, resulting in their consciousnesses being placed in cold storage. Stone cold. I was glad that Caprica Six bashed her head in with a big lump of concrete.