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FlashForward Breakdown, "Playing Cards With Coyote"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:30:30 -0800

After Al's tragic suicide on last week's episode of FlashForward, this week shows how the idea of "changing the game" has affected all the characters. Mark and Olivia start to find new hope for their relationship, Lloyd teaches Simon a lesson, and Aaron learns more about where his daughter has been for the past two years.

Ready to get into all the details? Just read more.

"The future can be changed": Al's death makes headline news when Celia gets her letter in the mail, instilling hope in Mark and Demetri - for a bit. Mark whisks Olivia off on a romantic getaway and things seem to be much happier between the two. But once they're back to regular life, they both get a reality check: Mark gifts her the lingerie she's wearing in her flash forward, and Aaron's reunion with Tracy makes Mark go back to believing that the visions may be set in stone.

The stars are aligned: Mark thinks he has a big lead when some footage shows up of a man he recognizes from his vision - a woman named Ingrid reports a crime and her phone images reveal a man with a tattoo of three stars on his arm. Thinking it's the same pern who breaks into his office in the future, Mark immediately dedicates himself to finding the guy. Using Ingrid as bait, Mark manages to take kill him, and rushes home to Olivia to tell her that they're going to have a second chance because he changed the game. But then - surprise! There's a whole crew of dudes with that tattoo. Um, seriously Mark? This never occurred to you? It's not like the guy has an unmistakable tattoo of Edward Cullen on his arm.

That was a crazy game of poker: Feeling guilty about that whole deadly experiment thing, Lloyd sends out an email to a few colleagues saying "We have to take responsibility." Of course, Simon isn't pleased about Lloyd's plans to go public and wants to settle their argument over a game of Texas hold 'em. There's plenty of trash talking from Simon, who thinks that he and Lloyd are gods for the impact they've had on the planet. He tosses around ideas of fate (was anyone else thinking about Lost's Charlie and his fate finger tape?) and just when Simon thinks he's sitting pretty, Lloyd turns the tables with a sleight of hand. (Some U2 lyrics come to mind here). Somehow I still don't think Simon is going to make it easy for Lloyd to publicize what they've done.

Reunited and it feels so good? Tracy is back at home with Aaron, but she's not exactly the same girl that went off to war. She's lost her leg in combat and suffering from PTSD, which she's reluctant to discuss with her dad at first. Feeling confident from his flash forward, Aaron encourages Tracy to open up about what happened overseas. She finally reveals that her near-death experience was an ambush from Jericho, a group of military contractors that she ratted out after seeing something she shouldn't. Tracy is paranoid after living a life on the run for two years (and is not at all pleased when Aaron talks to Mark about her situation). Though keeping track of all the different characters and their separate story lines is getting confusing, I'm liking this new development in Aaron's story.

Other plot points:

Janice tries to quit but Stan won't let her. As she continues to contemplate Al's death and her vision, she starts looking into sperm donation - does this mean those are tears of joy in her flash forward?

Ingrid says that she remembers one of the shooters saying "QED," which is also brought up during Simon and Lloyd's poker game.

Ingrid and her bird collection can be added to the list that already includes the crows and the bird crashing into Fiona's window.

So, is that Simon strangling Nicole in her vision? Creepy. I'm wondering if she finds out his secret and tries to intervene.

How'd you feel about this week's episode? Any new theories on what's going to happen over the next few months? Let's get the conversation going!

FlashForward Breakdown, "The Gift"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:30:48 -0800

On this week's episode of FlashForward, we get some of those big payoffs that Sonya Walger promised. While the main characters' most important relationships grow more tense, the FBI agents learn more about the blue-hand situation, and the end of the episode has two very big twists.

There's plenty of excitement to discuss, so to get into it, just read more.

Call me Al: We don't learn much about Al in the first handful of episodes of the season, but boy do we get an eyeful and an earful this week. Turns out Al's flash-forward is a lot more jarring than just a dead bird - it's followed up with a phone call revealing that a still-mysterious chain of events ends in Al "accidentally" killing a mother of two. Throughout the episode Al seems to have a laid-back, collected demeanor (even when he opts in for a game of Russian roulette), but inside he's a mess. In the end, Al is so overcome with grief about having a death on his hands, that he decides to "change the game" and commits suicide. I have to admit, as heartbreaking as that scene is, I was kind of glad Al went through with it - just to prove that the flash-forwards aren't necessarily the future. Everything is changed now, the paths can be adjusted, and both Mark and Demetri realize this as they head home to their significant others. Now that they believe the visions can be adjusted, I can't wait to see what else they try to do to throw their visions off course.

My blue heaven: Following up on Demetri and Al's scavenger hunt to find the "blue hands," the fun continues this week as the FBI agents discover that the blue hands are actually a "death club," with meetings set up all over the country for people like Demetri who didn't see a flash-forward ("living ghosts"). It kind of reminded me of Fight Club, though Mark defines it as a "book club with bullets." The guys are hilarious in their street clothes headed to the party, though what they find inside is pretty horrific. After a quick game of Russian roulette, the guys enter what can only be defined as a torture den - people who believe they are going to die doing all kinds of creepy things to each other. I have to say, if I was one of those "living ghosts" I think I'd either be trying to do all the fun things I never got to do before - or I'd just want to get it over with. Why anyone would want to be tortured when he or she is already tormented by the idea of their inevitable death is beyond me.

Blast from the past: Aaron gets a visit from Mike, a friend and solider who served at the same time as Aaron's daughter Tracy. Mike passes on a Swiss Army knife to Aaron, a good-luck charm that Tracy wanted her dad to have should anything happen to her. Aaron is overjoyed since the knife also appeared in his vision, though Mike isn't exactly receptive to the notion that Tracy is still alive. He explains to Aaron that he watched Tracy die (though hello! He didn't even check to see if she was breathing), but surprise! Tracy is sitting in Aaron's kitchen at the end of the episode.

Other plot points:

As tensions rise between Demetri and Zoey, Demetri finally admits to Zoey that he didn't have a flash-forward and is going to die. Zoey refuses to accept it, insisting that should could feel Demetri in her vision and that nothing's been decided yet. Demetri seems skeptical about choosing Zoey's side to "hope" for the best, but after Al's suicide, he seems to have warmed up to the idea that he can change his fate.

Like Demetri, Al's death is a wake-up call for Mark. After suffering problems with Olivia (how sad is it when Charlie catches him crying?) he runs home and embraces her sweetly.

Instead of helping out at the church, Nicole lands a gig volunteering at Olivia's hospital. We learn that she speaks Japanese pretty will, and now is helping Bryce try to find the mysterious Japanese woman from his vision. Will this somehow lead to Nicole's scary vision? Is she sticking her nose where it doesn't belong?

What did you think of this week's episode? Do you think other characters will try to "change the game," too?

Lindsay Bares Her Midriff and Heads Back to the '90s

PopSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:40:36 -0700

Lindsay Lohan flashed photographers a coy smile and gave us a glimpse of her abs as she left a club in LA with friends last night. The blond starlet seems to be keeping herself occupied since returning from NYC - Rocking the Kasbah for a good cause, taking in the Lakers opening game on Tuesday and yesterday she tweeted about being at a photo shoot with a '90s Johnny Depp and Kate Moss theme. While it's all smiles in front of the camera Lindsay's father continues his campaign of obnoxious public outcries regarding her lifestyle choices.

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What to TiVo: Thursday

BuzzSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:50:25 -0700

ABC is new with FlashForward, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice
CBS is new with Survivor, CSI, and The Mentalist
FOX has Game 2 of the World Series
NBC is new with Community, Parks and Recreation, The Office, and 30 Rock
The CW is new with Vampire Diaries and Supernatural
Bravo is new with Real Housewives of Atlanta
FX is new with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The League
Lifetime is new with Project Runway
Comedy Central is new with The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report
MTV is new with World's Strictest Parents
VH1 has Behind the Music: Lil Wayne
Late-night highlights include Tom Hanks and Weezer on The Late Show With David Letterman on CBS; Tina Fey on The Jay Leno Show on NBC; Denis Leary and The Swell Season on The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien on NBC; Jason Schwartzman and Rod Stewart on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC; Carrie Fisher and Sam Rockwell on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on NBC; and Derek Luke on Last Call With Carson Daly on NBC

What to TiVo: Thursday

BuzzSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:50:00 -0700

ABC is new with FlashForward, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice
CBS is new with Survivor: Samoa and CSI, and has a repeat of The Mentalist
FOX has MLB ALCS Game 5: Yankees at Angels
NBC is new with Community, Parks and Recreation, The Office, and 30 Rock
The CW has repeats of Vampire Diaries and Supernatural
MTV is new with Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory, Nitro Circus, and MTV's Ultimate Parkour Challenge
Bravo is new with The Real Housewives of Atlanta
Comedy Central is new with The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report
FX is new with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Lifetime is new with Project Runway
Late-night highlights include President Barack Obama on a repeat of The Late Show With David Letterman on CBS; Hilary Swank on The Jay Leno Show on NBC; Charlize Theron and Dave Matthews Band on a repeat of The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien on NBC; John C. Reilly and NeNe Leakes and Kim Zolciak from The Real Housewives of Atlanta on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC; Tim Gunn, Colbie Smulders, and Lynyrd Skynyrd on The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson on CBS; and Ryan Reynolds and Emma Stone on a repeat of Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on NBC

Flash App Lets You Tattoo Message on Faceless Set of Boobs

TresSugar — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:40:00 -0700

Racing game Dirt 2 launched yesterday, and to promote it, the creators decided to create a Flash app called Dirty Tats that allows you to tattoo a message - on the image of a faceless, nameless woman's breasts.

For the sake of experimentation only, I tried it out, and it was alternately creepy, infuriating, and pathetic. As I decided how I wanted to scrawl my message on a pair of boobs (lettering, text, or script), I was admonished for taking too long by the faceless torso ("I hope you're handy with a tattoo gun. I thought you were fast!") as her bosom undulated in a disconcerting way.

It may seem so obvious to call out objectification, but what else could it be when parts of a woman's body accompanied by a disembodied voice are used to promote a product that has nothing at all to do with the product itself? Well, what else besides lame, I mean.

7 Things Apple Didn't Include in the iPhone 3G S

GeekSugar — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:45:02 -0700

Who doesn't love a new iPhone?! Although the iPhone 3G S is nearly identical to the iPhone 3G on the outside, it certainly has a few more (desperately needed) bells and whistles on the inside. But after all the excitement from the WWDC liveblogging action, I got a second to catch my breath, and tally all of the things the new iPhone 3G S is missing. Yes, there are a few things missing, and the first one is kinda obvious:

More Carrier Options: I think if Apple allowed more carriers to offer the iPhone, it would totally take over the market. I can't tell you how many people I've talked to that want the iPhone, but won't take the plunge because they either dislike AT&T, or just don't want to change providers.

To see the remaining six things Apple could add to the iPhone to make it just that much better, just read more.

Lower Upgrade Prices: And I quote directly from Apple's product page: "For non-qualified customers, including existing AT&T customers who want to upgrade from another phone or replace an iPhone 3G, the price with a new two-year agreement is $499 (8GB), $599 (16GB), or $699 (32GB)." Now that's highway robbery.
Camera Flash: It's great that Apple is giving us a great new 3 megapixel camera with auto focus, auto macro, and auto white balance, but what about a flash for those super low light situations? I was hoping . . .
Push Email: The iPhone would be my all-in-one business and pleasure phone if I didn't have to obsessively have to check my inbox. Nuff said.
Ability to Run More Than One App at Once: It's a pain in my rear when I am knee deep in a sweet Tetris game and receive a text message. I then have to exit Tetris, and enter the messaging app. Is there a way to pause one app while you open another? Well, is there!?
Colors: Remember when the first iPod was just plain white, and then all of the sudden a rainbow of iPod Mini's, iPod Nano's and iPod Shuffles washed over us? Yeah, that would be awesome now too.
Flash support: With the majority of websites using flash embedded videos, and some of the funnest games out there being flash, it would make sense to have this added feature. I mean, if you want us to surf the web on this little gadget, not to mention that some websites are all Flash, let us do what you made this phone to do - play games, surf the web, and you know, make some calls here or there.

Is there anything you wish the iPhone 3G S had on board?

Flash Card App Keeps the Kids Sharp All Year Round

GeekSugar — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:02:23 -0700

When I was a kid, I remember getting out a stack of my mom's recipe cards and making my very own set of math flash cards. I'd like to think they helped me learn my times tables, but nonetheless, it was useful practicing in the Summer months because I'd be ahead of the game when school started.

Whether you've got children, young cousins, or brothers and sisters that are in the throws of learning arithmetic, this Math Flash Cards iPhone app is a great way to test them on all the basics. And because it stores times and scores for each exercise, there's some extra incentive to want to do better! This app only costs 99 cents.

Mark Brings His Boys Out For the Afternoon

PopSugar — Sun, 31 May 2009 06:00:00 -0700

Mark Wahlberg flashed a smile Thursday while out with friends in LA. He's been taking it easy for the last few months ever since he wrapped up promotion for Max Payne, enjoying a few low-key golf outings and Lakers games. Mark's got his hands full as a producer on Entourage, but there's still talk that he and Rhea will be walking down the aisle this Summer.

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Fame

Sugar Shout Out: YumSugar and the Chocolate Factory

PopSugar — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:50:00 -0700