I Heart Chuck

What do you think makes Chuck such a wonderful spy, however awkward and initially ill-equipped he was?

I cannot tell you just how glad I am that someone asked this question. Many an evening has been spent analyzing this beloved TV show with my family. Sometimes I've considered simply dedicating my blog to Chuck so I can flesh out my theories and observations after every episode. But now since someone has asked, I can discuss Chuck without looking like an obsessed nerd with no life. Thank you, Amy!

The most obvious thing to me is the second edition of the computer in Chuck Bartowski's head that has helped tremendously. With the first intersect he had tons of knowledge at every flash, but not much in the way of courage and confidence. He was starting to gain some of that even before downloading the intersect 2.0 as he more frequently risked his life at his own choosing. But at the end of the second season, he got the upgraded computer in his noggin and followed an awesome fight scene with one my favorite Chuck lines: "Guys... I know Kung Fu." This new ability to defend himself with mad skills really boosted his confidence thus allowing him to become a better spy.

Another thing that makes Chuck such a great spy is the support of his friends. The former-assassin-ish and now-fiance Sarah keeps him emotionally stable which is super important considering effects of the unstable intersect as seen in season 3. Military machine Casey helped train him and continues to offer advice in both professional and (gasp!) romantic areas. And his little bearded friend Morgan gives him chances to relax and be his adorable nerdy self.

Speaking of which, his nerdiness is a huge help. He has disabled bombs with viciously malicious porn in the pilot episode and with apple juice three shows ago, so he's full of very unconventional knowledge that ends up helping more than Sarah and Casey would have ever expected. But more important than his nerdiness is his heart. Even when things are in turmoil around him, he perfectly balances government intelligence protocols with compassion. He gives almost everyone the benefit of the doubt and honestly wants to see others happy even if it means it's at his expense. *Sigh*

Yes, my friends. I am in love with Chuck Bartowski. And he'll never know it because he's a dang fictional character. Probably written by a bunch of women. Break out the ice cream, it's time to drown my sorrows in chocolatey goodness once again.

Now, I am one comment away from beating my comments record for an entry. Someone ask me a question under my post Ask Mandy so I can celebrate and break out the ice cream for something good rather than heart-wrenching!

Super Bowl XLV

While I truly love football, I wasn't all that into the Super Bowl this year. I don't know if it's because I'm battling a cold or just because I didn't really care about either of the teams. But it was still a super fun time spent with my family while we ate way too much junk food. If only the preacher hadn't talked so long tonight, we would not have missed the entire first quarter. *cough*Dad*cough*

Even though I didn't care about who would win, I chose Steelers from the beginning. But with about two minutes left of game time, I switched my already-shaky loyalty to Packers just to say that I was rooting for the winning team. And also because their quarterback was cuter. Yay Green Bay!

Commercials

I was hoping to see some awesome commercials, but I was really disappointed. Yeah there were a few cute ones, and a few super raunchy ones, but only two or three that I really loved. My number one favorite commercial was the VW Passat commercial that I talked about in my previous post. My second favorite was this Doritos commercial...



Doritos always comes out with some great ads, so I was glad to see another great one. I seriously LOL'd. Here's my third favorite...



I don't care anything about the Best Buy program, but I loved seeing Ozzie say "What's a Bieber?" and then have Justin in a ridiculous costume make fun of himself. I cannot stand his music, but props to him for taking a good joke.

Half Time Show

I'm not a fan of Black Eyed Peas, but in my opinion they were tons better than last year's The Who. Here are my observations on their halftime show...

1. Voices and Sound were pretty bad. I'm willing to give Fergie and her homies the benefit of the doubt because I could tell their sound peoples weren't doing a good job. And if the sound people weren't doing a good job, their monitors may not have been functioning properly either, thus throwing the singers off key. But off key or not, I still didn't care for the singing. Kudos to them for actually doing a live show instead of lip-syncing.

2. Fergie's outfit made me happy. Not only did she not dress like a loser, but she had on what looked like a football player's set of shoulder pads. And it was sparkley!!! I spent half the show fascinated with her twinkling suit. Am I easily amused? I think so. Everyone else's outfits were lighted too. Apparently their costume designer thoroughly enjoyed the new Tron movie, because the outfits were undoubtedly inspired by it.

3. The stage show was awesome. Usually there's just a simple stage and they let fans on the field to enjoy the concert. But this time, the people on the field were part of the stage show. Their lighted suits and carefully choreographed routine made for a visually appealing performance in addition to the band's weirdly suited stage presence.

Facebook Activity

Every now and then I checked my news feed on Facebook to see what was going on. Lots of my friends were either yay-ing or boo-ing recent plays and making their own (mostly disapproving) comments about the half time show. But then a post caught my attention. Owl City posted, "There's the kickoff. Legolas goes wide! BUT WAIT! Gandalf with the interception! He's running down the field shouting 'YOU SHALL NOT PASS!'" I had a blast reading his following several updates giving us play-by-play commentary of the Lord of the Rings football game going on in his head. As if I didn't love him enough already!

Cutest Commercial Ever

Wow, it's been almost two weeks since I posted anything! How can this be?! I'm way too narcisis...

narsicisicis...

narcistishasdjkhalskdjhf...

*sigh*...

fascinated with myself to let this occur on purpose! Anyways...

As an article on Yahoo notes, the web is abuzz over the new VW Passat commercial featuring a mini Darth Vader. And because I stalk follow my favorite actor on Facebook I was one of the first few to see it. So for the first time ever, I was aware of a viral video before it was really viral! Woohoo! Here it is...



Is that not just the most adorable commercial ever? It almost makes me want to go out and buy a Passat, which is a big deal because I'm in love with my Corolla. (41 more payments, baby! Yay!) Not only is the nerdy little kid adorable, but the daddy rocks. If only men like that really existed! Again, most adorable commercial ever.

I could go on and on about other commercials I love, but it's been a long day and I'm sleepy. I'm so sleepy that while checking out at the grocery store tonight I referred to my MVP discount card as an mp3. Yeah. So goodnight, all. I lahve you!

Mandy's Choice Awards 2011

So the People's Choice Awards winners were announced this week. I didn't watch the ceremony on tv, but I did check out the list of nominees and the winners this afternoon. And I couldn't help but lol. In nearly every category available, the latest Twilight movie and the actors involved won in their respective categories. Is there really any need to guess the approximate age and IQ range of most of the voters? I think not.

I find that my taste in music, movies, and tv shows differs greatly from the majority of America. So here are the winners of the prestigious 2011 Mandy's Choice Awards. Instead of a trophy, the winners will receive my undying adoration. Much more valuable then a plastic trophy, right?

Favorite Family Movie - Tangled

Yeah Toy Story 3 was great, but I was allergic to the ending. It made my eyes water. And Tangled's main character was played by my beloved Zachary Levi (Chuck). I've already raved about this movie's adorableness, so go refresh your memory here.

Favorite Action Movie - Iron Man 2
Normally, I don't care for sequels. (examples of sequel suckage: Spiderman 2 and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest) But because I loved the first flick so much, I was willing to pay the ridiculous fee to see it in theater. And I was surprised with it's complete awesomeness. Explosions everywhere. Very satisfying sequel. You must see it.

Favorite Actor - Zachary Levi
Chuck Bartowski and Flynn Ryder (Tangled). Need I say more?

Favorite Actress - Gabrielle Anwar
As Fiona Glenanne in Burn Notice, Gabrielle gave me one of my favoritest quotes ever. "If it sounds too good to be true, best to shoot it just in case." While I think she was prettier with a little more meat on her bones in the 1992 film "The Three Musketeers", I love seeing the tiny woman holding a gun that's just as big as she is.

Favorite Guilty Pleasure - Phineas and Ferb
Anyone who knows me well knows that I love this Disney Channel show. I know countless tunes from the show by heart and have a tendency to burst out in song at any random moment. And then people have a tendency to look at me funny.

Favorite TV Show - Chuck
Seeing a trend too, huh? I watched a majority of seasons 1-3 on dvd recently, so my opinions may be a little skewed at the moment. Well seeing that I'm currently deeply in love with the character of Chuck, I would probably be more accurate in saying that my opinion is undoubtedly biased. *sigh*

Favorite TV Duo - Shawn Spencer and Gus Burton
The fake-psychic pair of Shawn and "Magic Head" Gus makes me lol every episode. Shawn's childlike impulses contrast perfectly with Gus' practical personality. The only thing I don't like is that I miss half of the puns related with 80's movies references.

Favorite Album - "Stories" by Addison Road
I've been a fan of Addison Road since their first album. Within a week of first having "Stories", I was already singing every word to every song in my car on the way to work. And I might or might not have been dancing and scaring the people in the cars around me.

That's all, folks! Tune in next January for the 2012 Mandy's Choice Awards! You can purchase t-shirts in the lobby for $15.99. Make checks payable to the "Support Mandy's Movie Addiction Fund."

Why I Like Football

Ever since actually learning the rules to football in 9th grade P.E., I have been quite fascinated with the game. I don't get to watch it often because the girly shopping urge always hits me during the weekend and I don't ever realize there's a game on tv. But I did happen to watch the Arkansas/Alabama rivalry match a couple weekends ago, and it reminded me of why I love football so much:

1. I live vicariously through the players. I've been brought up to be a polite and proper young lady, so rough housing isn't really an option for me. But football is the absolute opposite of polite and proper girliness. In watching my team tackle the enemy to the ground, I feel like I'm letting out some built up aggression. Is it wrong that I feel good when the other team gets an injury?

2. It gives me a reason to be loud. When I'm watching a player run down the field toward the end zone, I steadily move up from my cushy seat on the couch while yelling at the tv. Then I throw my hands up in the air, scream at the top of my lungs, and do a happy dance when they score a few points. Mom always has to cover her ears and then she'll say something about how we're being too loud, but I can never understand what she says because my ears are still ringing from my own loudness.

3. I feel like I know something when I'm heckling the refs for bad calls or the players for doing something stupid. While I am by no means a football expert, I can say whatever the heck I want at the tv and feel justified because no one else in the house is paying enough attention to challenge my limited football knowledge. Of course, I've no idea why I talk at the tv so much, because nobody on the other side of the screen can hear me.

4. It's a reason to eat tons of salty, buttery popcorn. You see, popcorn is best in only two situations: Watching a movie and watching a ball game. So when I have the chance, I'm eating some popcorn, dangit. I know that I would probably regret it later, but I eat it anyways.

5. It absolutely wears me out, perfectly preparing me for a good post-game nap. Without even stepping onto a field, I exhaust myself with all the jumping, happy dancing, and screaming. And then there's the emotional exhaustion either by pure happiness or utter disappointment depending on the outcome of the game. What weekend wouldn't be complete without the ritualistic nap anyways, right?

While I enjoy watching football games, it is definitely not an obsession of mine. I'm not one to spout off stats of popular players or tell you which quarterback is better than another. I just enjoy the excitement of the games along with the excuses to be unapologetically noisy, potentially gluttonous, and encouraging of bodily harm. Sooooo not polite and proper.

Oh, The Cliffhangers!

I don't think my jaw has ever in my two decades of life dropped so far as it did Tuesday night. Tears began to build up as I watched the unexpected turn of events play out before my eyes. Mozzie, my favorite crazy conspiracy theorist character had been shot and then the screen faded to black. That was the end of the mid-season finale of White Collar. Is it ridiculous that I wanted to cry right then? I have convinced myself that he is not dead. And based on an interview I read with one of the other actors, I'm hoping that I'm right.

Even with such annoying cliff hangers, I love watching season finales because they normally pull out all the stops and aplode my mind with awesomeness. I've been RSVP-ing to several "finale parties" on Facebook for my favorite shows. Even though the party is in my living room, saying that I'll be attending along with thousands of other fans makes me feel important, haha!

Another show that just finale'd is my beloved Psych. I was very unimpressed with last season because it just wasn't as funny as it used to be. But in the first half of this season, they have won me over again. They kept me laughing, especially during the episode where Gus and Lassie tap danced. In the finale, Juliet finally learns how Shawn feels about her and then she kissed him quite nicely. I got all sortsa squealy. Bout time, Psych writers!

But enough about finales, now I want to talk about premieres. Chuck is scheduled to come back on the air later this month, and I'm super excited about the new direction they'll be taking the show. I adore Zachary Levi and I cannot wait to see new episodes full of his attractiveness. (Oh and he's the male lead in the new Disney flick "Tangled" - Yes I am 21 years old, and I WILL be seeing this in the theater.) And Castle is coming back on the same night as Chuck, so I'll be eating tons of popcorn that night.

I would go on to compare Hannah Montana's new drama and ridiculousness to that of professional wrestling, but I don't feel like it. Although I will say that wrestling can be quite hilarious when you mute it and make up your own dialog. You should try it sometime.

Season Finales

I love my TV shows. In fact, I love them so much that when I was taking six courses at a time last fall, I would plan my breaks from homework for when my TV show for the night was scheduled to air. We're at the point in the year now that many shows have ended their season while others are just about to begin. So I'm sad about some shows ending, but happy that others are about to come back. But in this post, I just wanted to talk about my shows that recently ended. I'll probably write another TV-related post next week about the shows that are coming back, such as Burn Notice, Royal Pains, White Collar and Leverage.

One of my shows that just ended is NCIS. I  don't care for NCIS-LA, just give me the original with all the awesomeness of Gibbs. Although I love a good who-done-it (probably because of years of watching Scooby Doo), I watch this show more for the interaction between the characters than for the crime solving. I especially love the strangely happy goth Abby and the insecure but awesome McGee. Oh, and the former Mossad assassin Ziva. Oh and... well I really love all the characters. Except for Director Vance - he's hiding something and I don't like it. But there's just something about that whole hilariously dysfunctional family appearance of the coworkers that pulls me in.

That being said, I was very unsatisfied with the NCIS's season finale, just as I was with last year's season finale now that I think about it. But as I did last time, I'll give them a few episodes into next season to win me over again before I remove them from my TV watching schedule. The last season premiere was amazing, so I expect nothing less next time.

My other show that just ended is Chuck. I've been one of the few but rabid followers since its beginning and I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. It sounds silly, but the concept of the show itself is kind of an encouragement to me. Chuck goes from a dead end job at a kind of Best Buy to this super important government asset. This geek unintentionally gets a massive government database downloaded to his noggin and is thrust unwillingly into the world of espionage with his handlers, sweet but dangerous Sara and military machine Colonel Casey.

The show has evolved over its three years in many ways, and I wasn't sure I'd like it at first, but now it's quite exciting. For most of the show thus far, they had been keeping Chuck's government work a secret from his family and friends, but now both his sister and brother-in-law know the truth. Also, Chuck's ridiculous "little bearded friend" Morgan has not only discovered who his best friend really is, but has also become a spy (much to the challenge of the very impatient and no-nonsense Casey). Another way the show has evolved is in Chuck's primary goals. At first, he wanted the computer out of his head, and then he wanted to become a legitimate spy with the CIA, and now based on the season finale, it appears as though he's going to be doing rogue spy work but I won't know for sure until the fall.

Chuck's constant mix of action sequences and hilariosity keep me coming back every week, but the season finale went waaaaay beyond that. The two hour finale had going back and forth between sitting on the edge of my seat and nearly falling off that seat as I laughed. I have never been so happified with a season finale before, and now I'm very excited for what the next season will bring!

So until Thursday when Burn Notice starts back, I will be in a little TV lull. But it will probably be a good thing. On a few occasions, I have caught myself almost bringing up a story line and asking for prayer for these fictional characters during prayer meetings at church. Go ahead, laugh. So am I just passionate about my favorite shows, or am I on the verge of psychotic obsession??? ...Imma go with passionate.

I Love You, Zachary Levi

I went to the movies for a double feature yesterday - Iron Man 2 and Shrek 4. Both of which were great, but that's not the topic of this post. What I heard and saw before each movie has given me the giddiness to type up these few paragraphs.

So one of my favorite shows is NBC's Chuck. It's about a geek who is forced into spy work for the government. It's quite hilarious. If you get the chance to watch it, you definitely should. But anyways, the main character is played by Zachary Levi. I loooove watching him on tv, but then he suddenly showed up on the giant movie screen during the pre-movie entertainment.

Sitting alone in the theater at the time, my jaw dropped as I saw my beloved Chuck behind a microphone singing along with Katherine McPhee. I nearly melted into a puddle right there when I realized he was not only my favorite actor, but he could very well become my favorite male singer. Move over Josh Groban, this man has one of the sweetest, smoothest voices.



I love you, Zachary Levi.