What A Little Moonlight Can't Do...

To say, "been there, done that..." in regards to the new TV show Moonlight would be more than redundant. Most viewers will think it is like the show Angel (1999-2004), the Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin off, about a vampire that is also a private eye. I didn't think that because I wasn't into the whole Buffy/Angel scene.
I say, "been there, done that" because of a show called Forever Knight (1989-1996). Forever Knight follows the evening activities of police Detective Nick Knight (Geraint Wyn Davies), an 800 year old vampire, who resides in a Toronto, Canada and drives a 1950s convertible Caddy. The episodes featured him solving crimes, on the night shift, with his partner (played by veteran actor John Kapelos) and avoiding the bad influence of the vampire underworld lead by, another veteran actor, Nigel Bennett. There is also Natalie, the night morgue worker, who lusts after our vampire hero - she knows he's a vampire. He of course cannot let himself love her because he's a vampire...yeah, yeah, we know the rest. There were many flashbacks during every episode, ala Highlander, but it never really got old because of how long his life spanned. An interesting episode is when you got to see how the head vampire was turned...just before the erupting of Pompeii. There is also a cool vampire club in town where Nick has to go on occasion to find a vampire that has been making trouble. Forever Knight was never actually on any network. At that time networks like USA and TNT were not in the major TV episode market. Instead it was on one of the big 3, after the news, on what they called "Crime time after Prime time." They also showed a wonderfully decadent show called Silk Stalkings (a fluffy Miami Vice type show). Basically, if you were up late...you may have seen an episode of Forever Knight.
This brings us to Moonlight. And here is a rundown of the originality...or lack there of. Moonlight follows the story of a private detective named Mick St. John - who was made a vampire in the 1950s and drives a 1960s Mercedes. Australian actor Alex O'Loughlin grumbles his lines, in his best American accent, through some pretty lame episodes (so far). He bounces his troubles off a vampire friend and you do see other vampires around Los Angles including ones that clean up after sloppy vampire activity. Mick also has someone he wishes he could be with and that is a young police detective whom he saved when she was a young girl. In the second episode of the season he tells her the truth about himself. I really don't know where the show is going to go at this point. I mean, the really can't do the whole flashback thing because...well...the guy only has about 80 years to flashback into. And there really isn't an interesting supporting cast. I have watched a couple episodes so far...I might stick with...but then again...I might not.
If you are into this kind of thing...rent episodes of Forever Knight.

Welcome Home

The movie mommy has dropped the ball lately when it comes to movie reviews...I know. But I have a good excuse...I have been moving.
I have moved a lot in the past 6 months...house to house...house to apartment...and now, in a week, apartment to home. Not just a house but a home. Everyone's definition of home is different. Some people think of home as being where they grew up, where their parents live, where they lived the longest, where they raised their own family, where they last lived or where they live now. There are countless more, I am sure. Mine is...where I can finally stay and not have to move again, for a long time. A place with my husband and children are waiting for me when I come home from work. A place that I can decorate anyway I want for the holidays. Those are just a few of my definitions of home. A home can be allusive for some people. Take my office and my desk - or lack there of. A home away of home...as it were.
Ever since I arrived at my office I have not had a desk of my own. I have been sharing desks with people. I refer to it as "hot desking." That is a term borrowed from shipboard living - an expression called "hot racking." That is when you have to share a bed (rack) with someone else. You go to work, someone else sleeps in your bed - can be several someones in a row. The bed is still warm from the other person when you go to get in it, thus the term "hot racking." Ew...I know.
Every time someone, in my office, went out for a few hours I would unplug their computer, plug in mine and use their phone. Sometimes even a few minutes. They understood. But sometimes when the office was full...I was stuck. I really do need a computer to do my job. Especially, since I am new and have a lot less busy work than my co-workers.
Last week my own desk dream came true. It's an old desk and will be replaced by a new one in a couple months...but to me it is my very own. Some of my co-workers think my desk arrangement and use of space is claustrophobic. I am in a corner, facing a wall and behind me is the back of a high walled cubicle. I have a computer and a phone. I call it my cave. And it is my cave and basically, I am the only one that has to like it.
Like a home.
As for my actual home...my new home...it won't be a home until next week when my family comes. After all...home is where the heart is.

Genesis Turns It On Again

When the Genesis show in Philly opened with the instrumental Behind the Lines/Duke's End from the Trick of the Tail album, I knew this would be a real fan's concert. Not that I don't like the Invisible Touch album or the "Mama" album, I love them, it's just that...everyone else knows those albums as well. I wanted to hear stuff that I have never heard them play in concert (I saw them twice in 1987) or thought they never would. They did not disappoint - even though they didn't play anything from the Abacab album. No biggie.
They, of course, rocked the place with Turn it on Again, Land of Confusion, Invisible Touch, Mama and Tonight, Tonight, Tonight. They also added some newer fan favs like In the Glow of the Night/Domino, Hold on My Heart, Throwing it All Away, as well as, other favs (that are not mine) like I Can't Dance and No Son of Mine.
The songs that surprised me were songs like Home by the Sea AND Second Home by the Sea - that was a treat. There were more to come!
Now, there were some clunky moments...like the crappy graphics on the screen behind them and the fact that the band doesn't have any new dance moves or new clever things to say. We've heard it all before...even the curse word during Invisible Touch. These things did not take away from the concert at all. I'm just being picky.
The real ultimate fan treat of the concert was the old stuff and instrumentals! When Phil Collins got behind the drums (where he spent half the concert) and sang Follow You, Follow Me - it was nostalgic and wonderful - I got goosebumps. Then when they rocked out with The Cage and went into the instrumentals of The Cinema Show and Duke's Travels it was incredible! They also did the instrumentals of Los Endos, Afterglow and Firth of Fifth. There was a wild drum solo and duet with looooong time Genesis tour/session drummer Chester Thompson.
Songs like Ripples and I Know What I Like had the fans singing full voice. Real fans that is. My attitude was - if you don't know these songs you shouldn't be here! I know that is harsh but I think for the most part...they were true fans. I know this, from the encore of Carpet Crawlers that had the crowd swaying along and singing like in some sort of trance.
This concert was a treat for the movie mommy on many levels.
Dinner at a place I would never go with kids: $40. Gas in truck for short trip to NJ: $50. Concert Ticket: $96.
Hanging with friends and family before the show: priceless.

The Closer

I have only a few television shows that I just have to see. Shows that while I watch them there must be peace and quiet. Children have to be in bed, chores must be done, cell phones are off, I have to be in my pajamas and I am ready to treat myself with The Closer. Even during the commercials, I am a serious viewer - no channel surfing. Don't even think about. I don't want to miss one delectable morsel of my one hour treat.
TNT advertises that The Closer is the highest rated show on cable. And so does TV Guide. Funny, since I only know one other person that watches it regularly. I ask co-workers and family if they watch it and I haven't found anyone yet. Their (and your) loss. It is a show that only comes on when the regular shows take their scheduled breaks - in the summer and somewhere around the holidays. New programming in the abyss of re-runs.
The Closer, in a word, is brilliant. TV Guide described it best when they said the formula of, "Unexpected moments of comedy, plucked heartstrings and a dash of gore - is working." It is really hard to describe. It's as if Lenny Brisco (from Law & Order) wrote a TV show. There are the wisecracks galore, over the top characters, wildly twisted plots and LAPD Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson played by Kyra Sedgwick.
You are asking yourself, "Who is she again?" She is and has been a working actress for over 25 years in television and films such as Born on the Fourth of July, Phenomenon, Heart & Souls and The Woodsman. All very different movies and very different characters. She is also a well educated and smart person. Smart enough to know that after rejecting even reading the script for The Closer, to listen to her husband, Kevin Bacon, and give the script a chance.
I am so glad she did! She is joined by such veteran actors as J.K. Simmons, Anthony John Denison, G.W. Bailey, Michael Paul Chan, Raymond Cruz and Robert Gossett. You may not know their names but they have very familiar faces and are the back bone of the LAPD's Priority Homicide Division. Chief Johnson directs these folks and works through their unique personalities and gets the job done. Catches the bad guy.
Her methods were unsettling for her team at first...they resisted but after seeing how she gets the suspects to confess (hence she is the closer)...they know she knows what she is doing. Johnson is the new Columbo. She has her catch phrases and that bag. She will come into the interview room with a suspect and start digging through this big tote bag she carries everywhere. It confuses the suspect and with her blond hair and deep southern drawl, they think she isn't that smart. That is their fatal error.
Never underestimate her. Or what this show will come up with next!
Watch The Closer and you will be a convert...but you will have to wait until the new season starts this winter. The season just ended. Sigh.

Something Wonderful

I have been experiencing something wonderful lately: I talk on the phone with my son. That might not seem like something stellar but to me it is. My son is 3 1/2 and when I first started this blog my son was just saying a few words and stringing very few together. Now, just like everyone warned me, he won't stop talking! I don't mind at all. I talk to him every night (we are currently living in different states because of my job) on the phone and he tells me about his day:
Me: Hi, Bill!
Little Bill: Hi, Mommy!
Me: Tell me about your day.
LB: Woke up...had cereal...go car with Daddy...go car with Bee Bee...Taco Bell...naptime...go park...have tee-too (pizza)...have ice cream...bubble bath...get pajamas on...bedtime.
Me: Goodnight, Bill.
LB: Goodnight, Mommy.
Sigh...The conversations do vary at times. Sometimes he just has me on the phone while he plays and when I ask to put Daddy on the phone he says, "No! Talk Mommy you me!"
I love talking to my little man. He can even say, "I love you."

For Babylonians Only

When it comes to Babylon 5 there are those that are fans and those that never saw and episode. It's not like Star Trek which is a show that everyone has at least seen one episode or at least know what it is. Probably because of it's longevity in the collective human pop cultural consciousness. Babylon 5 ran for five seasons and then just disappeared. There haven't been re-runs. Yet, the fans remain. Babylon 5 is like Farscape or Stargate SG-1, the fans just sit back and enjoy. It's sort of like being in on a joke that only you and your buddies are in on. And we are okay with that.
The latest Babylon 5 DVD is Babylon 5: The Lost Tales. It's terrific. The story behind the straight to DVD release is that these were stories that the series creator, J. Michael Straczynski, had been working on when the series was cancelled. Some B5 fans consider JMS to be "the one" or "great maker"...okay, you have to have watched the show to get that one. But you can probably get the idea. There are two "episodes" on this one DVD. The first episode centers around a Catholic Priest that is called to the Babylon 5 station at the behest of it's captain, Colonel Lockley. There is a man on board the station that appears to be a victim of demonic possession. Lockley carefully brings this to the Priest. She can't believe she is even asking for his help. In the end the demon puts a moral question to the Priest and we really don't know what choice he will make until the very end. The conversations between the Priest, Lockley and the demon are fascinating.
In the second episode the President of the Interstellar Alliance, John Sheridan, returns to Babylon 5 for the 10th anniversary of the founding of the Alliance. The return to station is bitter-sweet for Sheridan. He was once the captain of B5 and now returns for a celebration in his honor. A lot happened on the station when he was there and he comments that some was wonderful and some very painful. He gives an interview to a CNN type reporter (played by Teryl Rothery, nod to Stargate SG-1). It's interesting because it is a very dark room and there is no back ground music. It is almost like watching a play...more on that in a second. Along the way his transport picks up young Molari Prince that is third in line to the thrown. Sheridan gets a glimpse of the future, through a dream like state, and learns that this young Prince could cause the destruction of Earth...in 50 years. Now Sheridan has a moral dilemma, kill the Prince and save Earth or let him live and take those chances.
The interesting thing about these episodes is that there are only 2-3 characters in each scene. Each scene is like a scene from a play. There are not a lot of special effects (but the ones that are there are very cool!) just the characters devouring the scripts and working through each morality play. If there are more episodes done like this...I would love them. Of course, I would love more episodes of any kind but these are exceptionally well done.
Alas, my favorite character of the series does not appear in these episodes, G'kar, played by the late Andreas Katsulas. An actor who, through all that makeup, could leave the viewer speechless. Words are words when they are just spoken but to be spoken by G'kar...they were poetry.
"If I take a lamp and shine it toward the wall, a bright spot will appear on the wall. The lamp is our search for truth... for understanding. Too often, we assume that the light on the wall is God, but the light is not the goal of the search, it is the result of the search. The more intense the search, the brighter the light on the wall. The brighter the light on the wall, the greater the sense of revelation upon seeing it. Similarly, someone who does not search - who does not bring a lantern - sees nothing. What we perceive as God is the by-product of our search for God. It may simply be an appreciation of the light... pure and unblemished... not understanding that it comes from us. Sometimes we stand in front of the light and assume that we are the center of the universe - God looks astonishingly like we do - or we turn to look at our shadow and assume that all is darkness. If we allow ourselves to get in the way, we defeat the purpose, which is to use the light of our search to illuminate the wall in all its beauty and in all its flaws; and in so doing, better understand the world around us."

Licensed to Recruit

As I finish up my final week of Recruiter school, I look back at the times I have had and the times that are to come. Because we are in our last week of school, we have a great deal of confidence, like being seniors in high school. We can see our exit...just ahead.
There are 13 of us (considered a very small class) receiving our Recruiter badge or "cookie" as it is known in the field...or "rookie cookie" as ours will be known - at first. The badge is about the size of a half dollar coin and is emblazoned with the seal of the Navy and the words Navy Recruiter. After 5 weeks of some excellent training - we feel we have definitely earned it.
It has been an amazing experience for me at this point in my career and life.
First, I have been immersed in to the Active Duty Navy life. Having been a Reservist for 8 years, I had never been to a Navy school or been actively participating with so many of my Active Duty counter parts. Needless to say, I am older than just about everyone, not just in the class but probably the entire building (there are always students rotating in and out of the 5 week program). With that in mind, I prided myself in being able to finish our 1.5 mile run ahead of other students.
Secondly, I discovered how un-hip I am. Shocking as that may seem to those that know me - it's true. My pop culture references (and jokes) are not in the same framework as my classmates. I am dated. My classmates on average are probably 25 years old. So, with that being said...I was pretty clueless. It was painfully obvious that I was un-hip and I didn't mind poking fun at myself by making references to taking Centrum Silver and drinking Ensure (I don't do either!). Thankfully there is Star Wars which seems to be a reference across the generations. But in the end, I was told I needed to see the movie Boondock Saints and the Dave Chappelle Show (season 1 & 2). I guess if you don't know what I am talking about...sorry...you are un-hip too.
Lastly, it was fun to see the future of not just recruiting but of the Navy and ultimately our society. These are sharp and well trained young people that are confident at their jobs and their mission. I know they will all be great Recruiters and when they are done recruiting they will head back out to the Fleet. I do wish them well.
On Friday I fly back home and on Monday I report to my Recruiting Station (office). I will start the first day of the rest of my career. I am nervous but feel I have been prepared the best way the Navy can.
The rest is up to me.
Stand by.