Yawn! A lot of t.v. to watch yesterday and this morning. Here're some quick notes:
Friends: What I saw of the finale and the clip show were fine. Definitely representative of the show in its better moments. However, did anyone see them on Leno last night? In my best Chandler-ism, Could they have been any less happy to be there? Obviously Kudrow was irked, but none of them seemed especially happy about it. Not that I don't blame them, but it was odd to see them make so little effort to mask their irritation at apparently being compelled by the network and/or Warner Bros. to attend.
Also a side note: with the band playing from the set of Friends, is that a record for the number of minorities on Friends?
Survivor: I'll be happy for the show to be over. I can't help watching because Boston Rob reminds me of a college roommate, and I'm just fascinated by arrogance. I'm sick of the challenges, too. What about a good old fashioned Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament, 4 out of 7?
CSI: When did this show get so smutty? I'm no prude, but they seem to be going out of their way to incorporate some labored double entendres into the dialogue. Also, the show seems to have lost almost all creativity. There's always a hair. There's always only one supplier of a special type of mulch that links directly back to the murderer. It's in the Law & Order trap of being so formulaic that it's just nonsensical.
Rumsfeld testimony: Rumsfeld did a decent job in his opening statement, probably enough to keep his job. A couple of things struck me.
First, I was surprised that until Sen. Allard spoke, the Republican senators were just as pointedly critical as the Democrats.
Second, I think Rumsfeld actually makes a good point that the information on abuse has been available for several months, but nobody cared enough to pursue it, apparently because the photos, videos, and "Girls Gone Wild" DVDs hadn't been distributed yet.
The senators come off as whiny when the complain about the lack of consultation from the administration. Power in the government is not something shared. If Congress wants to be included, it needs to use the tools at its disposal to compel the president and his deputies to respond. When you authorize wars without a declaration of war, you have yielded power. When you authorize funds for the war without any accountability, you have yielded power. When you initiate investigations after the fact, you have yielded power. The congressmen seem to be governing on the cheap, in terms of effort.
Primetime's Makeover: It was interesting to see a news show pimp the makeover phenomenon, but I think Elizabeth Vargas did a pretty decent job of at least asking thoughtful questions. Of course, they didn't let her tee-off on some of the responses because they don't want to damage one of the few ratings and money successes on the network. I was also impressed that the husband said he didn't care for the makeover, though it was apparently mostly out of his own insecurity. So often they do more than is necessary. I'd be curious what makeup alone, and maybe some work on those skin-bumps she had would have done. But, when you get a free makeover, there's probably no excuse to skimp on procedures.
