Asta's Journal
Evil Incarnate and Satan's Hellspawn
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Since I don't have a website, all my fic in one place.

Battlestar Galactica

Time and Space - Lee/Laura
Sway - Lee/Laura
Unrealized Reality - Lee/Laura
Impulse - Lee/Helo
Certainty - Ellen and Zarek

Horatio Hornblower

Merry Christmas, Mr. Hornblower - Archie/Horatio
Comfort - Archie/Horatio

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At least one person on the White Collar writing staff has to be reading fan fiction.

White Collar: Vital Signs )

How is it I'm able to write so much about a show of so little substance???

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It took me two days to write this. Oh, obsessions, you just can't allow me to be brief!

White Collar: Bad Judgment )

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It's been awhile. At least since last Tuesday. :) I meant to catch up on posting/responding to comments this weekend, but I got sidetracked by other projects as well as crankiness. And now there is more crankiness! I'm counting on White Collar to help alleviate some of that. Don't fail me guys!

Friday night I *finally* watched Caprica. It wasn't rage inducing as I feared it might be. There were some good performances and some intriguing concepts presented. However, I did have issues. I know, you are stunned by this admission! The issues are not severe enough that I won't tune in again this Friday, but I'm unsure if I will stick with it or if I'll care enough to post about it.

Cut for spoilers )

Ultimately, I think my problem with Caprica is it's a prequel. We know how the story ends. We know in 58 years these people will have died or will be facing a gruesome death (unless you are the great Bill Adama). So why should I care?

Some super brief thoughts on the last two episodes of 'Chuck'. )

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I was eager (to put it mildly) for the return of White Collar. I'd read positive reviews for 'Hard Sell'. But I've learned over the years (thank you The X-Files, Buffy and Alias) not to set expectations too high. Tonight's episode far, far, far exceeded my meager expectations.

White Collar: Hard Sell )

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If you haven't yet watched White Collar (and WHY haven't you???) or if you are like me and can't see enough of it, just a reminder that USA is rerunning the first seven episodes tomorrow starting at 9:00am est.

Now I shall go home and hope the DVR didn't screw up recording Regis & Kelly.

ETA: Recording worked! But Matt's appearance was far too short. Though I loved hearing him describe his role on Guiding Light and how his time on the show prepared him for future work.

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I'm not terribly familiar with [info]festivids, but I'm learning thanks to my Friends List :). I've just watched a couple of awesome vids I have to recommend.

Let's Misbehave, a White Collar vid. I know, you're shocked! But the song choice is perfection, it's OT3 and the ending is brilliant.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, a Slings & Arrows vid. Just gorgeous and it makes me want to get my DVDs out and rewatch the series.

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The lovely and talented [info]sdwolfpup is hosting the Third Annual More Joy Day. Because, unlike her, I suck ;p I have no grand post to make. This pretty much happens every year. When will I learn??? And I have limited time today between work, TV tonight (New Bones! New 30 Rock! New Community I'll need to catch on Hulu!) and calling [info]writteninstars back (which will bring me joy :), so if I don't get something posted now I shall miss contributing entirely!

First up, because I can never not mention White Collar and Matt Bomer enough...

Matt will be on Regis & Kelly (though I think Anderson Cooper is guest hosting) tomorrow.

USA has posted three new 'White Collar' promos - 'Critics', 'Explanatory' and 'Neal & Kate'. All three contain footage from numerous upcoming episodes so if you want to know nothing about what is to come, do not watch.

Trolling YouTube the other day I came across an entertaining White Collar/Neal-centric vid I had not seen before. I'm not a huge Elvis fan, but I love "A Little Less Conversation" and the vidder, ievaisjfik/Charlotte, does the song and series justice. I'm not sure how I feel about the color saturation, but the special effects work well.


And as dome of you know, my favorite movei musical is Singin in the Rain. No matter how crappy I'm feeling, watching this movie will make me feel better. If you can't watch it without smiling, well, you are dead inside. ;)

So here are my two favorite numbers from the film.....

Moses Supposes


Good Morning

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A few premiere reminders for me and you:

Southland returns to the air/makes it's TNT debut tonight at 10:00pm est. Please tune in and help a deserving cast and crew enjoy some success while also helping to stick it to NBC. :) The premiere is commercial free and an extended cut of the original pilot.

Leverage returns tomorrow night at 10:00pm on TNT.

And one week from tonight, White Collar returns! New day (Tuesday). Old time (10:00pm est). Same awesome show. :) Unfortunately, it does run opposite Southland, but Bomer and company wins the battle for my attention. The DVR will be busy that night.

Castle returned last night. I enjoy the show, but really don't have much to say about it. Other than I wish the writers would work on the mystery of the week element. I hate having to wait 45 minutes for Castle and Beckett to determine who the killer is when I've figured it out 30 seconds after being introduced to the character.

Brief thoughts on 'Chuck vs the Angel de la Muerte'. )

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I have no Chuck icons so just imagine that's Bryce Larkin and not Neal Caffrey. ;)

Chuck vs the Pink Slip/Chuck vs the Three Words )

And one thought about the promo for upcoming episodes. )

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I haven't posted since January 1. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? I don't feel as if I've been that busy. I did, briefly, have a cold. Wednesday night I felt as if I was coming down with something and I did something I never do, called in sick to work on Thursday. My decision to try and nip it in the bud seems to have worked. Usually, I go into work feeling mildly crappy, get more run down and start feeling (and looking) like hell as I lose my voice and cough up a lung. Plus, I lose several days of PTO time, get way behind in my work and become more stressed. I think a lesson has been learned.

In between frequent napping on Thursday (because Alka-Seltzer Plus Crystal Packs knock me out an hour after digesting and, FYI, they are not "taste-free"), I had a Matt Bomer marathon. I watched Disc 2 of Tru Calling. Or, more precisely, watched Matt's scenes because OMG, SO PRETTY! I had to fast forward through some of Eliza's stuff. And the plots are pretty laughable. They actually ripped off Flatliners for one episode. Eight episodes in I've thus far spotted Joe Flannigan (married to the actress from HIMYM), Michael Trucco, and Leah Cairns. Then I watched half of the White Collar pilot (see Alka-Seltzer induced sleeping) and SyFy's Chuck marathon until I headed to bed around 10:00.

I DVR'd the remainder of Thursday's marathon and watched the episodes yesterday. It's a good thing I did because it's been sooooo long since the show aired I actually forgot a lot of what happened. I'm not sure if the Season 2 finale still counts as spoiler territory, but just in case...cut for possible spoiler. )

I've also read quite a bit of White Collar fanfic over the past few days. The last time I read this much fanfic was back when I was actively in Buffy fandom. I tend to only read fic if I feel more can be done with my ship or the ship could go in directions the creator/writers didn't take it (Spike/Buffy) or if there isn't a chance in hell of of it happening on the series (Neal/Peter/Elizabeth). Then there is Lee/Laura which falls somewhere in between the two scenarios, but there wasn't a whole lot of fic involving the two because too few saw the brilliance of the pairing. But in perusing the various White Collar communities I'm starting to spot some wankiness....with only seven episodes aired. I'm also realizing while most of the fic is very well written, there is quite a few scenarios I don't care to read. I'll save that for another post. ;)

Speaking of White Collar (of which I do a lot these days - sorry to those who don't watch/don't care!), I had two thoughts occur to me, one about the pilot and another about the mid-season finale, 'Free Fall'. Cut for those who have yet to see the series/episodes. )

Earlier, I was following on Twitter reports from today's TCA NBC session. If you didn't think it could get any worse for the network, think again! )

And, finally, I forgot to post my Doctor Who thoughts last weekend. Oops! Short version is I was not impressed. Longer version under the cut. )

Yeah, I need to post more often. I've been working on this on and off all day!

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2009 ended and 2010 began rather inauspiciously for me. Like last year, I was sound asleep when the clock struck twelve. Unlike last year, I was asleep by nine o'clock. O_o It's rather depressing to think about, although there are circumstances for it. While I had no big New Year's plans, I did have plans in place. My office closed at Noon and I had hoped to pick up something to eat, go home, do a year ending fandom post and watch more of Season 1 of Chuck followed by the Thin Man marathon on TV. Woo.

Instead, the day went something like this. I woke up at 6:30am which led me to think, "Hey, I could actually get to work by eight!" That happened, but fifteen minutes after I got out of bed I felt a twinge of pain in my neck which ended up moving down into my back. So, I was a bit uncomfortable at work. And the plan to leave work at Noon was thwarted by not unexpected year end craziness. (As an example of the crazy, one of the attorneys had surgery on Wednesday, was released from the hospital Thursday morning, and had his wife drive him to the office upon his release so he could check on collections. I kid you not.) I ended up leaving work around 3:30. This was in part due to me need to have certain things done before I left; in part because my co-worker and friend was going to have to put in nearly a full day and I didn't want to leave her there on her own.

Around 1pm I received a phone call from my friend S. We were supposed to see Sherlock Holmes today, but a family obligation come up for her. She asked about seeing the film that night instead and, even though I was uncomfortable with the back and neck pain and a bit cranky from work, I said yes since I was eager to see the film. Unfortunately, between rushing around to get to the theatre on time and the day's stresses I ended up getting a headache...which I didn't want to take anything for for fear of becoming sleepy during the movie...which happened anyway. So, when I got home I made myself some hot chocolate, took some Advil PM and settled in for the Thin Man marathon on TCM. I watched about on hour of the first film and vaguely recall moving around the chair I was in a few times before waking up to realize it was 3:30am, 2010 and The Thin Man Goes Home, the fifth film in the series, was soon to start. At that realization, I turned off the TV and headed to bed where I managed to sleep for another six hours. On the plus side, most of the pain had subsided by the time I got up.

Brief, somewhat spoilery thoughts on 'Sherlock Holmes'. )

I had planned to do something more elaborate - and with visuals - to recap my 2009 TV/fandom highlights, but, as with my Christmas post, I know me and if I don't post something right now, it's just not going to happen. The whole posting now thing also helps me deal with one of my new years resolutions about procrastination.

The Best and Brightest of 2009 )

I've read a lot of year end memes - and I've read all your posts even if I haven't commented on them! :) - and [info]wisteria_ posted one that a) didn't seem too taxing nor b) too personal.

2009 in Review )

And now for a break before I try to catch up on comments. Stay on top of commenting, another goal for this year. :)

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Christmas was not terribly exciting, but not aggravating either so I call it a win! On the gift front, my mother has officially given up on trying to surprise me. Blame my age, her lack of access to my amazon wish list (she doesn't have a computer) and fandom interests that will occasionally confuse her. Still, she gave me some cool/useful stuff - a cute little blue M&M statue, some kitchen items (which I'm growing to appreciate more as I aim to expand my cooking and baking skills), cocoa, a book about the making of the Thin Man films (which I may actually read!), a book on must-see movies, Guys and Dolls on DVD and a big check to help with DragonCon expenses. Yes, she plans well in advance for DC too!

From [info]danceswithwords I received a GORGEOUS hand knit scarf. [info]brynnmck gifted me with a very useful Amazon gift card, which amused me since I sent her an itunes card. Media junkies unite! [info]sdwolfpup sent me yummy homemade holiday treats. And [info]reckleslinguist gifted me with Bryce Larkin Season 1 of Chuck on DVD. I also got a whole bunch of lovely cards from you all, some with awesome family photos.

This extended weekend, I tried to relax as much as possible in anticipation of what could be the week from hell. I watched a bunch of movies and some TV. On Christmas Day, I brought a copy of Star Trek to my mom's and she was actually pretty eager to watch it. While she has been known to enjoy sci-fi films, she's always been a bit iffy on 'Trek' - loves Nimoy/hates Shatner. ;) Though she really perked up when Bruce Greenwood made his first appearance (and this also led to a lengthy discussion of the original Captain Pike's fate and Jeffrey Hunter's death at a young age). There were times I needed to explain aspects of the story and where things went AU, but she seemed to enjoy it nonetheless. Then we watched Enchanted for the umpteenth time and half watched Elf while we cleaned up the kitchen and family room and she inventoried the DVDs and CDs I bought her. Yes, seriously, she updated her lists on Christmas day.

Saturday, I watched TV and cleaned out a bunch of folders and binders (thus creating a big shredding pile) and reorganized and labeled them. First up in viewing was Purple Violets which I stumbled upon on HBO. I usually hate Edward Burns' films, but this one wasn't bad. Then there was disc one of Tru Calling, which, yes, I am Netflixing because Matt Bomer starred in the first season. I had been warned to expect the worst. As if Eliza Dushku starring wasn't enough of a warning. But, I have to say, it wasn't as terrible as I had anticipated. And Matt (who didn't show up until episode 4 - I should have looked at imdb more closely) was completely adorable (I even saw a Neal Caffrey move!) so I think watching the rest of the season won't be too painful.

Then there was Doctor Who, 'The End of Time Part 1' or whatever it's called. I don't have much to say about it. It felt both overstuffed and pointless and I'm hoping there is some great payoff in Part 2. And there was too much scenery chewing by a certain guest star. There were a few really nice character moments, Tennant even choked me up at bit at one point, and I would have preferred a smaller, more personal story rather than the everything but the sonic kitchen sink epic that RTD felt he had to create. If nothing else, at least I have a better understanding of the regeneration process now.

I capped the night with the uplifting Revolutionary Road. ;) I was so-so on Leo's work, but Kate Winslet was outstanding. Has anyone else seen the film? I'd really like to discuss the ending, which I keep going back and forth on in my head.

And today....OK, I'm having trouble recalling what I did today! There was much channel flipping and loafing. I did just finish watching Julie and Julia again. That film speaks to me on several levels. And I'm contemplating squeezing in some Chuck after I post.

I hope you all had terrific - or at least relatively stress free - holidays. If work doesn't suck too much life out of me, I want to try and get a short fandom in review post up this week. [info]nolivingman posted a fannish year in review meme that I contemplated doing until I realized nearly all my answers would involve Battlestar Galactica, White Collar, and the actors who star in the shows. ;-)

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Since I see my west coast friends are posting it must mean Christmas Eve is nearly at an end and Christmas day will soon be upon us. Which means I'm rapidly running out of time to get my Holiday post posted!

For those of you who have known me FOREVER, or at least since Buffy fandom, you know of my tradition to butcher put a fandom spin on classic holiday songs. Last year, for the first time, due to a lack of time, various stresses and ever increasing expense I opted not to send out cards. The Plan was to post something online instead, but then inspiration alluded me and by the time I posted.....it was March. Well, this year I swore to myself I would be timely! And I while could fiddle with these some more, (one of) my New Year's resolution is to stay on top of things.

I don't know what shall happen next year, but this year Battlestar Galactica still managed to inspire me. And I wanted to show, once again, that while a may have a wee bit of a new obsession, Battlestar still remains my One True Show. But that other obsession? It managed to inspire me too. But only having seven episodes to work with? Not easy people!

A note on the White Collar song. I used a rather obscure one, I think. Remember how back in the 80s when MTV still played music they would have a singer write and perform a song around the holidays? Billy Squire wrote one and, a couple weeks ago, one of the local radio stations played it and it immediately led to ideas. For those who need a refresher or help imaging the music I've imbedded a clip. Now, on with the, er, whatever!

Battlestar Galactica )

White Collar )

::Smooches:: and Happy Holidays!

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WHITE COLLAR SEASON 2!!!!! It's official!  Via Jeff Eastin on Twitter.  EEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

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And, no, it does not involve Jamie Bamber or Matt Bomer. Actor Brian Cox teaches a 30 month old Shakespeare's "To Be or Not To Be" soliloquy.



Direct Link

I just realized it's been ten days since I last posted. Eep! I do have posts in progress, but have been distracted by my latest obsession, I'll let you guess what that is, as well as work and holiday stuff. At least my shopping is done. Woo!

Also, a BIG THANK YOU to all those who gifted me with snowflakes last week. I missed the opportunity to reciprocate, but want you know they were much appreciated. :)

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I feel like I'm missing covering some aspect of the show. Though it's likely because this is only two pages and my BSG meta usually ran three to four pages. I guess I can afford to be briefer when I don't have apocalypses, killer robots and the human condition to analyze.

White Collar: Free Fall )

Did everyone catch the Psych promo/tribute to Hall & Oates? AWESOME! It's one of the few times I skipped the recording back to rewatch a commercial. I also liked USA's characters promo. Tiffani is so excited to be a mom! And Matt stating, "I'm from a red state." Very funny. Love ya, Matt. :)

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Remember how I thought White Collar had one of the best pilots I'd ever seen? And my TV season had been saved because I finally had a series to look forward to every week? Remember how somewhere between the third and fourth episode I realized I adored the show? And White Collar had filled the void left by Battlestar Galactica's end?

At 10:30 tonight the show was filling me with so damn much joy I thought I could cry. (OK, I may be a little hormonal. ;p) And by 10:58 I was thinking "Ron MooreJeff Easton, you bastard!" and "Fall finale USA? Really? You had to come up with this concept?!"

For all of us waiting for the show to fire on all cylinders it certainly did tonight. That was one of the best hours of TV I've seen in a very, very long time. (I haven't seen this weeks Friday Night Lights yet, which I hear is awesome.) I seriously had my doubts after BSG ended that the 2009-2010 season would provide me with anything to analyze to death and obsess over. Bless you and curse you Jeff Easton and USA Network.

::wipes tear from eye::

Oh, yeah, they'll be a long ass post filled with analysis and squeeing tomorrow after rewatch. Count on it. ;)

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I'm unsure if this is a Gold Box Deal of the day or Amazon's desire to get revenge on DeepDiscount, but if you haven't already purchased the Farscape box set, Amazon has it at $58.

Jamie Bamber appeared at Starfury's Cylon Attack convention this past weekend and revealed to an attendee he auditioned for the role of Jaime Lannister in HBO's Game of Thrones. I posted links here at [info]bamber_news. While I'm a bit disappointed he didn't get the role, I was glad to read he is auditioning for American series. Sorry to my British friends, but I want to see him on my TV every week. ;)

I'm currently finishing up Season 8 of Stargate on Hulu. Wow, they really didn't think they were coming back for a ninth season, did they? They wrapped up a lot of storylines and Jack and Sam were as about as close to getting together as they ever were. (Shut up [info]danceswithwords :p)

And I have some White Collar speculation based on a comment Neal made in last Friday's episode 'All In'. Speculation under the cut. )

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I hope everyone living in the U.S. is enjoying the extended holiday weekend. I had a long To Do list to tackle and, as always, have had mixed results in the tackling. But I think I'm getting more done than I usually do, if not everything I want to get done. I successfully killed my old desktop computer. The killing was intentional. The plan is to donate it to Goodwill so I can clear off the desk in the spare room and repurpose it. And while the White Collar marathon was running on USA yesterday, I altered my time between staring at the the TV and doing a massive dusting of the furniture and knickknacks. The amount of dust in some places was frightening. I also had a post it listing stuff I wanted to post about, but it seems to have become a victim of the cleaning. I guess what I had to say wasn't that important.

Oh, and not that anyone looks at my journal directly (opposed to via your Friends page) all that often, if at all, but I stripped it down to the basic component style until I decide what exactly I want to do with it. I still want a header, one preferably with Jamie.....and maybe others ;).....but the BSG theme, for various reasons, needed to go. We're heading into a new year, I have new fandoms and interests and it's as good a time as any for a fresh start. Now, on to the show.....

White Collar: All In )

USA, just weeks after announcing White Collar would be paired with Burn Notice on Thursdays has changed their mind. 'White Collar' is moving to Tuesdays at 10:00est beginning January 19. I don't have any strong feelings about the move. My guess is USA originally paired it with Burn Notice thinking they could use the series to help boost White Collar's ratings, but White Collar is doing well enough on it's own. Plus with moving Psych to Wednesdays at 10:00 (My immediate reaction was, "But it's always been on Fridays!", but then I realized I seldom watch in on Fridays. :p) it looks like USA is trying to develop a strong presence at 10:00 during the week. What's really funny is USA seems to be taking advantage of their sister network, NBC, weakness at 10:00 thanks to the failed Leno experiment.

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