Screen God Top 5 - Daniel Day-Lewis

Usually on Mondays I post Screen Goddess Top 5, but I though I'd change it up a bit, and post a Screen God Top 5 for the next few weeks. It's the same structure - my five favorite performances by the actor, ranked. I'm going to star things off today, with my favorite living actor, Daniel Day-Lewis.

1. There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007)

2. My Beautiful Laundrette (Stephen Frears, 1985)

3. My Left Foot (Jim Sheridan, 1989)
4. The Age of Innocence (Martin Scorsese, 1993)

5. Gangs of New York (Martin Scorses, 2002)

Really America - Transformers 2?

Really, America? Really? Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen had to gross over 200 million dollars in its first five days? Really? Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen had to gross over 60 million dollars on its opening day, making it the biggest Wednesday opening ever? Really? Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen had to have the second highest opening day ever, just behind The Dark Knight? Really? I don't get it. Who are all these people going to see it on its opening day... its opening weekend? Fine, I get the fact people want to see dumb action movies during the summer, but I don't get why everyone had to see it opening weekend. Like I could understand if a bunch of teenagers went to see it this past weekend, and then gradually older people went and saw over the next couple of weeks because they had nothing better to do. But no, everyone went and saw it this opening weekend, and that high of an opening meant people saw it multiple times. Really, America? Really?

Sunday Blessings - Thomas Jane

Today's edition of Sunday Blessings is devoted to actor Thomas Jane, star of HBO's new comedy Hung. I have high hopes for the series, and not just for the rugged sex appeal of Jane and the promise of his nudity, though that is a big part. The series co-stars two of my favorite underused actresses, Anne Heche and Jane Adams, who play his ex-wife and his pimp, respectively. Any show that can give these two women great material gets high regards in my book, so fingers crossed. I also hope for the success of the series, as I find Thomas Jane an interesting actor, who never really got his due. After spending most of the nineties appearing in bit parts, Jane flirted with becoming a leading man, starting with Deep Blue Sea, a crap film that was modestly successful. The film led to starring roles in Dreamcatcher, The Sweetest Thing and The Punisher, none of which were of high quality, though The Sweetest Thing always makes me laugh, and none of which did huge box office. Since movie stardom never came, switching gears and focusing on an HBO series, may have been his best career move. Jane can do comedy well, as evidenced by his guest appearance on Arrested Development as himself. I wish the best of luck to him and Hung. The show could make a great pairing with True Blood for a Sunday night male eye-candy extravaganza. Amen.

RIP Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson

How odd yesterday was, losing two pop culture icons within hours of each other. Farrah Fawcett's death had been expected, after suffering the last few years with cancer, but Michael Jackson's came as a complete shock. The two stars will surely be missed, having left an indelible mark on American pop culture over the last thirty years. In both cases I wasn't around for their rise to superstardom, having been born in 1982. My earliest memories of them take place after the two were well established. I would always watch the syndicated reruns of Charlie's Angels around the ages of four and five (god, I was so gay), and I remember thinking the music video for Michal Jackson's "Bad" was one of the greatest things ever. In retrospect the video is kind of hokey. After their passings, what I most wonder about is how will they be remember thirty years from now? Without a doubt, Michael's music will live on, but I wonder how his personal life will affect people's perspectives.

Marry Me Ludo!

I'm speaking of chef Ludovic Lefebvre, who competed on last night's episode of Top Chef Masters. His temper would eventually annoy me, so really I wouldn't want to marry him, but an angry, shaggy, heavily-inked Frenchman - I want that naked in my kitchen! Ludo didn't win, meaning, unfortunately, we won't see more of him in the challenge, but I am happy with the actual winner chef Rick Bayless. This is the third episode in a row, where I believe the most deserving person actually won. What I like most about Masters is the scoring process, where in each judge gives up to five stars for a meal and the person with the most stars wins. The process makes the decision seem objective, or as objective as critiquing food can possibly be. On the original Top Chef, the contestants backstories and personalities can often influence the judges/producers decision making. Had Masters featured the same panel and judging process, Hubert Keller, Suzanne Tracht, and Rick Bayless would most likely not have been the winners, replaced, instead, by Tim Love, Graham Elliot Bowles, and probably my Ludo.

What the What?

Yesterday, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced, starting this year, the Academy Awards' Best Picture category would expand from five nominees to ten, an entirely unexpected surprise. The last time the Academy shook up the award categories, adding Best Animated Feature, there was a drawn out process. The category was suggested in 1999 (great year for animated movies), approved in 2000, and the first award was handed to Shrek in March of 02. While there must have been talks behind the scenes, the decision to go from five to ten Best Picture nominees appeared to come out of nowhere. A ten nominee field, while surprising, isn't unprecedented. For a period of time in the thirties and forties, the Academy experi The urge to expand must have arisen from the failure of The Dark Knight and WALL-E to score nods earlier this year. Both films were in the running, garnering enough precursors, but ultimately failed because they were genre pictures. Had one or both made the cut, the ceremony would likely have garnered higher ratings. It just came off as missed opportunity for the Academy, and I'm guessing they didn't want it to happen again. The move does increase the chances for a Best Picture nomination for Up, making it only the second animated film to garner a Best Picture nod, after Beauty and the Beast, and it brings some excitement to the race, as we don't know what to expect. However, I still remain cautious, because while we think this opens the race to more independent or foreign-language films, it more likely means getting more midbrow "prestige" pics that didn't have enough critics' support to break into the top five. Had the ruling been in 2005, Memoirs of a Geisha and Cinderella Man would have been nominated over the likes of A History of Violence and The New World.

RIP Ed McMahon

Television personality Ed McMahon died this morning at the age of 86. In the last few years, McMahon was mainly in the public eye because of his various financial and health problems, but I will always remember him as the host of Star Search, which I tuned into every weekend when I was just a wee lad.

On My Television Screen

Last night's My Life on the D-List must have been the funniest episode of the series to date. At one point I seriously thought I might pee my pants laughing. This week's celebrity guest was FoodNetwork star Paula Deen, who invited Kathy to spend the night in her Georgian home. During the precedings we were gifted with Kathy accidently wacking Paula in the face with a switch, Paula's dogs pooping and puking all over her house, jokes about Tom's nervous disorder (pulling out his eyebrows and lashes), a drag queen named Paul A. Deen, and Paul Deen uttering the phrase "circle jerk." Hands down, though, the best part was Paula's gay assistant, starting off as this quiet guy in the background, before getting drunk at dinner and turning into an over-the-top Paul Lynde like character. "This is gonna end tragic." After watching the episode (twice in a row, btw) I wish someone would give Paula Deen a reality series of her own.

Also of note, this weekend's episode of True Blood continued a good start to the second season. So far, Michelle Forbes is easily the stand out as Maryann, but Alexander Skarsgard's Eric has become an equally enjoyable character. Thank god they cut his hair; the short, slicked-back look is much sexier on him, and appearing in an ugly tracksuit was a hilarious bonus. The episode also featured a good deal of male shirtlessness, with Bill, Jason, Eggs and Lafayette all bearing their chests. This is by far the gayest show on television.

The Proposal's Box Office Success

Over the weekend, the Sandra Bullock/Ryan Reynolds rom-com The Proposal opened at number one, with a surprising haul of over 34 million. Now, while I thought the trailer had a few laughs and Betty White is usually hilarious, I have no huge desire to see the picture. I'll probably just catch the film when it comes on DVD or premium cable. That being said, I'm still very happy for its success, mainly because the film was a female-centric studio picture with a lead actress in her forties. Whether or not the film was of great quality, I still feel it needs support, as a sort of message to Hollywood that films with leading women over the age of forty can still ignite the box office. The studios are rather clueless, believing any time it does occur it's a fluke. Sex and the City: The Movie - fluke, Mamma Mia! - accident, The Devil Wears Prada - surprise, Something's Gotta Give - how'd that happen. Yes, there will be pictures like Duplicity or The Brave One, which don't exactly explode at the box office, but their "failures" cannot be blamed on Julia Robert's or Jodie Foster's age. Imagine That bombed at the box office last week, but no one in the industry attributed its failure to Eddie Murphy's age, so I don't get the double standard for actresses. There are a number of issues that result in a film's weak showing - poor marketing, lack of interest in subject matter, no positive word of mouth - so it's unfair to focus entirely on the age of the leading lady. So, I feel its important for movie goers to support these films, because it will result in further production of female-centric studio pictures, and while they may not all be of the highest quality (Mamma Mia! was just bad), for every four or five poor-to-mediocre films, there will at least one good-to-great picture. That's my two cents.

OOH, also I like the fact that in The Proposal, Sandra Bullock is a number of years older than co-lead Ryan Reynolds. How's that for a reversal of Hollywood trends!

Happy Birthday Meryl Streep

Sixty years ago today, the greatest film actress who ever lived (at least in my opinion) was born in my home state of New Jersey, and I think it's worthy of some celebration. So here's to Meryl Streep for gifting us with her presense in the cinema for over thirty years now. In honor of her birthday why don't you take a look at Silkwood, Out of Africa, The Bridges of Madison County, Adaptation, or Sophie's Choice (it's a crap film, but she's brilliant in it).

Screen Goddess Top 5 - Michelle Pfeiffer

1. Batman Returns (Tim Burton, 1992)

2. The Fabulous Baker Boys (Steven Kloves, 1989)

3. The Age of Innocence (Martin Scorsese, 1993)

4. Married to the Mob (Jonathan Demme, 1988)

5. Dangerous Liaisons (Stphen Frears, 1988)

Sunday Blessings - Ryan Reynolds

The focus of today's Sunday Blessings is actor Ryan Reynolds, star of the just released rom-com The Proposal, which had a surprisingly successfull opening weekend. Tomorrow, I'll talk more about its success and why I'm happy for it, but today is all about Ryan Reynolds. The actor got his start on the really bad sitcom Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place, which became simply Two Guys and a Girl for its second or third season. Apparently the pizza place wasn't necessary. I hate to admit it, but I actually watched the series for three of its four seasons, and I'm guessing primarily because of its attractive cast, since it sure as hell wasn't for the writing. The show did have some good eye-candy. Besides Reynolds, there was Richard Ruccolo, Nathan "Captain Tightpants" Fillion, Traylor Howard, Jennifer Westfeldt and Tiffani Thiessen. Anyway, I'm kind of surprised by Reynolds' lasting power in the industry. He was entertaining enough with the material he had on Two Guys..., but I didn't see any great potential in him. So... either I was entirely wrong at the time, or he got better over the last few years. The man did put in his dues, appearing in a number films that became cult favorites - Dick (yay!) Harold and Kumar, Waiting (ehh) and Van Wilder (eww!) - before getting roles in higher profile pictures with varying degrees of success. While I may not have been a fan of these sorts of films (Blade 3? Pass!) or his performances, I do appreciate Reynolds' means of marketing himself. By that I mean, appearing on every magazine shirtless with a rocking body. Oh dear god the abs on that man! I have to give props to any actor who tries to court sex symbol status for career advancement by appearing in photospreads in various stages of undress. Reynolds, Chris Evans, Seann William Scott - it's all good, except not you Matthew McConaughey - seriously, put a shirt on! Most actresses wind up being objectified, so I don't understand why actors shouldn't have to endure the same. Women and gay men everywhere appreciate the partial nudity, so Reynolds, keep up the good work. Amen.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey Finale

I'm a reality TV junkie. I finally admit to it. While I've tried to act as though I'm better than those who sit and watch "reality" series, I am one of them. I've accepted the label recently, due to my love of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New Jersey. By no means is it the best of the Real Housewives franchise - that distinction goes to New York- but there is something absolutely delicious about the women of New Jersey. I was born and raised in New Jersey, so I'd guess much of the show's appeal to me is based on recognizing character types from my own life. Honestly these girls are Jersey girls. The first season of the series culminated this week with a finale involving the greatest dinner table fight/blowup ever put on camera, with Danielle instigating drama, Caroline revealing she had spread word of "the book," Jacqueline growing a backbone, and Teresa flipping furniture. Ohhh, I hate to admit it, but I loved every minute of it. With much of the drama based on events off-camera, its hard to know what exactly is the truth, but my guess would be Danielle, feeling rejected by Dina, spread gossip (either true of not) about her, and in retaliation Caroline dug up the book to protect her younger sister. I don't know, but I cannot wait until next week's reunion.

Entertainment Weekly Cover

Oh Ryan Reynolds, do you ever take a picture with your shirt on? Not that I'm complaining. The magazine was definitely a pleasure to find in my mailbox this week.

One Show Opens, Another Closes

Thanks to Tivo, I was finally able to catch up on this past weekend's programming - the season premiere of True Blood and the series finale of Pushing Daisies (cry). True Blood was, of course, deliciously entertaining. We found Lafayette still alive, but chained in a dungeon below Fangtasia, at the mercy of Eric. The sight of Eric (Alexander Skarsgard) with his hair in foil, while killing the redneck, was a hilarious detail. Michelle Forbes is a great addition to the cast - I think I'm going to make "Nobody needed towels," my new catch phrase. Based upon the books, it's unlikely she'll make it to the third season, which always seems to happen with the actress. She also had roles on the second seasons of 24 and Battlestar Galactica, but didn't make it to the third season. I wish just once she'd be a permanent fixture on a series, as I always find her entertaining.

The last episode of Pushing Daisies also aired this weekend, and I'm still saddened by its departure (I'm also mad, damn you ABC!). The series ended on one hell of a cliffhanger, with Vivian discovering Lily had had an affair with her former fiance and Chuck was the result, plus Chuck finally revealed herself to Vivian and Lily, arriving at their doorstep with Ned. Shocker. In a brief epilogue, the series told that Emerson was reunited with his daughter, and Olive fell in love with Randy Mann and opened her own macaroni and cheese restaurant. We were then treated to an aerial tour of Coeur d'Coeurs and all the sights the characters visited throughout the series, ending with Digby running though a field of daisies. I'm gonna miss you Pushing Daisies! At least it's confirmed creator Bryan Fuller will do a twelve issue comic series, which will essentially be the shows third season. Let's pray a movie will also be in the works somewhere down the line.

Screen Goddess Top 5 - Samantha Morton

1. Jesus' Son (Alison Maclean, 1999)

2. Morvern Callar (Lynne Ramsay, 2002)

3. Minority Report (Steven Spielberg, 2002)

4. In America (Jim Sheridan, 2003)

5. Sweet and Lowdown (Woody Allen, 1999)

Sunday Blessings - The Men of True Blood

With the second season of True Blood premiering tonight, this week's edition of Sunday Blessings is devoted to its male cast members. I came to be a fan of the series late in the game... well, very late... well, actually just last weekend when the various HBO channels reran the entire first season, but none-the-less I'm excited for the new season to begin. The series has various elements going for it, but for the purposes of this post, I'm going to focus on its gorgeous actors and their aversion to clothing. Honestly, how much male ass was exposed during its debut season? As for my favorite guy from the cast, that would be Stephen Moyer, who portrays the vampire Bill Compton, lover of Sookie Stackhouse. Facially, the man has some interesting features - I'm guessing its the eyes, sort of always squinting, that does it for me, and I find his not-really-authentic Louisiana accent oddly appealing on the show. Then there's Sam Trammell, who plays the shapeshifting Sam Merlotte, who's adorable in a shaggy sort of way. While Sookie may have freaked out after waking up and finding him naked at the foot of her bed, I would have welcomed the sight. The series also features Alexander Skarsgard as the thousand-year-old Viking vampire Eric Northman. I actually first noticed Alexander last summer, in the great HBO miniseries Generation Kill. He was willing to bare his backside on that series, so hopefully he'll do the same on True Blood. It hasn't happened yet, but I'd attribute it to there never being an appropriate occasion during season 1. This now leads me to Ryan Kwanten, who plays Sookie's brother Jason. Every woman or gay man seems to love Mr. Kwanten, and while the actor is kind of a pretty boy, I still understand the appeal, and I definitly appreciate his constant state of undress on the show. After seeing his bare ass on several occasions, I kind of grew bored with it. "Oh, there's Jason's ass again... hmm... yawn." Ok, I wasn't really that bored, and believe me, I would never want the series to cut down on the amount of time Ryan Kwanten appears naked. Amen.

Stephen Moyer

Sam Trammell

Alexander Skarsgard

Ryan Kwanten

New Beckham Ads for Armani

This week David Beckham unveiled his new photo ads for Armani. I find it interesting European athletes are so willing to expose themselves, as compared to American sports stars. Good ole American puritanism! I find the new ads lovely, but I have to admit I prefer his earlier, more... shall we say "stuffed" ads:

Jimmy Fallon - What to Think?

Evidence that Late Night with Jimmy Fallon may be more interesting than previously thought: last night's episode featuring Jimmy playing beer pong with legend Betty White and Martha Wainwright covering an Edith Piaf number.

True Blood

Over the weekend I caught up with the first season of HBO's True Blood, which I missed during its initial run this past fall, and I all I can say is I'm hooked. I had previously not watched the series, believing I would have had little interest, but I was wrong. The series has several things going for it - an attractive cast, particularly the men (Stephen Moyer, I want to do bad things with you), well utilized character actors, including Stephen Root, Lizzy Caplan, Adina Porter, and William Sanderson, Anna Paquin's best performance since her Oscar winning role in The Piano, engaging gothic-melodrama storylines, and most importantly, vampires that are both sexy and scary. That last aspect should be a given for any vampire adaptation, yet so few actually are - ahem Underworld franchise. Had I watched the series earlier, it would have factored into my top ten list for the season, as well has getting a nod or two in my acting categories. As a whole, I'd give the first season a B+, and I cannot wait for next Sunday's premiere of season 2, hoping the series will build upon its successful debut.

The Return of Kathy Griffin

The fifth season of Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List began last night on Bravo, and like any good gay, I couldn't be happier to have Kathy back on my television screen. Some changes have occurred since last season. Her assistant Jessica has left, which kind of alters the dynamic between Kathy and her other assistants, Tiffany and Tom, and the show has taken on a talk show aspect, as Kathy interviews a celebrity, Bette Midler in the premiere, for half the episode. The show remains hilarious and entertaining - I'm still laughing over Kathy hiding behind the hotel plants, while dressed in a hoodie and sunglasses, though I do miss her struggle through various paid D-list gigs. I do understand her wanting to slightly alter the show, as it must be daunting task keeping a reality series going after several seasons.

Tony Awards - The Morning After

I know it's really mean, but I'm still chuckling over Brett Michaels almost being decapitated. The show has a whole was gaffe prone - mics not working, odd edits, mixing up actresses. Get it together people. Anyway, the acting veterans kept it alive - Liza, Lansbury, Rush, Langella (the funniest part of the night), as well as Neil Patrick Harris, though I thought he should have sang at the beginning of the show, rather than over the closing credits. Also, question for Broadway/Hollywood - Christopher Sieber can sing his ass off and is quite easy on the eyes, so why is he stuck playing Lord Farquad in Shrek the Musical? Some things I just don't get.

Screen Goddess Top 5 - Uma Thurman

1. Kill Bill (Quentin Tarantino, 2003-04)

2. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)

3. Henry & June (Philip Kaufman, 1990)

4. Hysterical Blindness (Mira Nair, 2002)

5. Beautiful Girls (Ted Demme, 1996)

Sunday Blessings - Neil Patrick Harris

In honor of tonight's telecast of the Tony Awards, this week's Sunday Blessings is devoted to this year's host, Neil Patrick Harris. Who would have thought, nearly twenty years ago, the kid from Doogie Howser M.D. would have grown into a hot gay guy? Not I. Since the days of Doogie, Neil has appeared in a number of Broadway shows- Proof, Cabaret, Assassins - so presiding over the Tony showcase won't be much of stretch, and if you saw the TV Land Awards last month, you realize the man can make for an entertaining host. Let's just hope the show as a whole is entertaining, and Shrek the Musical doesn't come away with prizes, but I'm guessing with all the fanaticism towards it, Billy Elliot will be the big winner of the night. I just wish Broadway could create original works, rather than adapting movies into stage shows. Anyway back to Mr. Neil Patrick Harris... he's adorable (I love that he's a magician as well) and his boyfriend/partner, stage actor David Burtka is equally adorable. They're just one big, adorable couple. Oh, also Neil's funny-as-hell on How I Met Your Mother, so he better win an Emmy this year. I really don't believe Jeremy Piven needs a fourth trophy. Amen.

Jerry O'Connell On Set of Piranha 3-D

Here's a photo of actor Jerry O'Connell, on the set of his upcoming film Piranha 3-D, wearing a very, very small swimsuit. Hmm... Jerry O'Connell in a revealing speedo, three dimensional piranhas attacking people, Elisabeth Shue - why should I not want to see this film?

TCA Nominations - Still Sexist

The Television Critics Association announced their nominations this week, and considering they are a critics group, you would think their nominations would be better than the Emmys. Well, that's not really the case. Some of their nods are confusing - Battlestar Galactica and Saturday Night Live gets nods for Program of the Year but not Drama and Comedy nods. They give nominations to the big network hits - The Mentalist get a nod for New Program of the Year. The most annoying aspect about the TCA, however, is they don't seperate their performance categories into Actress and Actor, leading to a lack of recognition for women year after year. Out of the ten performance nominations this year, only two are for women - Glenn Close for Damages and Tina Fey for 30 Rock. There is a definite sexist aspect to it, as television critics, who are mostly men, only seem to believe male roles are worthy of accolades, even the two women who are nominated, Glenn and Tina, have rather masculine roles in their respective series. The fact they'd give Hugh Laurie another nod for House, over the superior work of Marcia Gay Harden in Damages, Mary McDonnell in Battlestar Galactica, Elizabeth Moss and January Jones in Mad Men, or Jill Scott in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, is downright irritating.

The Noms:

Program of the Year:
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
Mad Men
Saturday Night Live
The Shield

Outstanding Achievement in Comedy:
30 Rock
The Big Bang Theory
The Daily Show
How I Met Your Mother
The Office

Outstanding Achievement in Drama:
Breaking Bad
Friday Night Lights
Lost
Mad Men
The Shield

Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Mini-Series, Specials:
2008 Summer Olympic Coverage
24: Redemption
Generation Kill
Grey Gardens
Taking Chance

New Program of the Year:
Fringe
The Mentalist
No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
True Blood
United States of Tara

Individual Achievement in Comedy:
Alec Baldwin
Steve Carell
Tina Fey
Neil Patrick Harris
Jim Parsons

Individual Achievement in Drama:
Glenn Close
Bryan Cranston
Walton Goggins
Jon Hamm
Hugh Laurie

Outstanding Achievement in News & Information:
60 Minutes
The Alzheimers Project
Frontline
The Rachel Maddow Show
We Shall Remain

RIP - David Carradine

Actor David Carradine passed away sometime last night or this morning at the age of 72, the cause yet to be confirmed by his family or agent. I wasn't well aware of his work, aside from a few television guest appearances and the Kill Bill films, but I did enjoy his public persona, and I have to acknowledge he gave a great performance in Kill Bill: Volume 2. What is it about Quentin Tarantino that makes him pull a great performance out of any actor/actress? It's a pity Carradine didn't receive a deserved Oscar nomination for his work in the film. It would have been a nice capper to his long career.

Make Me a Supermodel Finale

Make Me a Supermodel 's finale aired last night and the result was very America's Next Top Supermodelish, meaning the contestant with the superior runway walk and more consistent portfolio lost to the constestant with a better storyline. Over the course of the season, I felt the show was moving towards a Branden victory, beginning with the judges overly criticizing him for being cocky on the runway and placing him in the bottom two. He hadn't actually been that bad, and cockiness is a necessity for a good male runway model, but a storyline emerged in which Branden took the criticism, got depressed, then eventually brushed himself off to become a superior model, going from boy to man. Eh. I'm not saying Branden was a poor choice for the winner, he was definitely a better pick than Sandhurst, but I don't believe he was at the same level as Jonathan, Mountaha, or Salome. Surely, those losers/non-winners will all receive modeling contracts anyway, considering most of last season's contestants were picked up by agencies, so it all works out in the end, but still JONATHAN SHOULD HAVE WON THIS!

Have a Lick!

Who wouldn't want to lick Daniel Craig's torso?

Breaking Bad Finale

The season finale of Breaking Bad ended two nights ago, and I'm still in the processing of digesting it. While initially I might not have been gung ho about the ending, the fact I'm still ruminating is definitly a positive. Great art requires some reflection. Throughout the season the series provided hints of an impending event - a child's stuffed animal floating in Walt's pool, people in hazmat suits bagging various items, two body bags in Walt's driveway, smoke rising in the background. From the evidence one would guess the event was a meth lab gone wrong - Walt would be forced to make the drug in his house, endangering his family - but, this was not the case. In the final moments of the episode, we see Walt standing by the pool alone, his wife having just left him (great scene by Anna Gunn), a loud boom is heard and above we see an explosion as two planes collide, raining debris, including the stuffed animal, onto the neighborhood. The collision was a result of Jane's father, an air-traffic controller, being distraught over his daughter's death, so it did have a connection to the events of the season and wasn't entirely out of left field. It was a bold move on the part of the writers, which I have to appreciate, and I also have to give them props for the misdirection. I cannot wait for next season to see how the cataclysmic event affects the characters.

Screen Goddess Top 5 - Barbara Stanwyck

1. Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944
2. The Lady Eve (Preston Sturges, 1941)
3. The Bitter Tears of General Yen (Frank Capra, 1933)
4. Executive Suite (Robert Wise, 1954)
5. Forbidden (Frank Capra, 1932)