sammi says

I am shocked to learn that Ricky Martin, the Puerto Rican singing sensation is gay. Ok. I'm not shocked at all. In fact, I thought it was a widely known fact. So it was much to my surprise when Twitter blew up this afternoon with the "breaking news." On Martin's official website he posted a long statement about why he's hidden his sexuality and why he is finally coming out. He says, "I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am."

I think it's great that Ricky is finally accepting who he is and that he isn't ashamed of his sexuality. I just can't believe the amount of hoopla surrounding the announcement. Remember back in 1999 when he was popular and wore mesh tops and leather pants? Or when he'd do yoga on the beach with his boyfriend? Or when he adopted two babies seemingly out of nowhere?





Sarcasm aside, I think it's great. The less closeted actors/musicians/politicians the easier it may make it for young people to come out and be more accepted by their peers. You go, Ricky! Oh, and for full disclosure, I attended a Ricky Martin concert in my youth and really enjoyed myself. I think he could be popular again if he went Lady Gaga-style crazy and did fun pop music.

I can't believe it's almost over. There are only eight episodes left until "Lost" is gone forever. In an unprecedented move, this week's episode of "Lost" featured none of the main characters and mostly took place in the 1860's. Pretty risky, right? Well, that risk paid off. We finally know what the island is! We found out the island's secrets through the story of our favorite, eyeliner wearing, ageless Other, Richard Alpert, played by the fabulous actor Nestor Carbonell. Let's recap.

It's 1867 on the Canary Islands and Richard Alpert is desperately trying to save his dying wife's life. In his attempts he accidentally kills the doctor, his wife dies and he is sent to prison. A day before his hanging he is sold as a slave to Magnus Hanso (great-grandfather of Alvar Hanso, of the Hanso foundation the financial backer of the Dharma Initiative) because he speaks English. He is chained to the walls of the Black Rock slave ship which during a treacherous storm knocks over the famous four toed statue and winds up in the middle of the island. The Man in Black/Smoke Monster kills the remaining crew members but passes over Richard. After days of being chained up he thinks he sees the ghost of his wife. She tells him they are both dead and that they are in hell. She leaves the ship and is "killed" by the smoke monster.

The Man in Black finally appears to Richard and frees him of the chains. He instructs Richard to go to the statue and kill "the devil" if he wants to see his wife again. Jacob tells Richard that he is not the devil, he's not in hell and certainly isn't dead. Still apprehensive, Jacob attempts to drown (or baptize?) Richard who screams, "I want to live!" convincing him he is not dead. Jacob explains to Richard that he brought the Black Rock to the island. He brings candidates to the island so that he can prove to the Man in Black that despite people's pasts the are inherently good, not evil. He explains using a bottle of wine that the wine represents, "hell" or "evil" and that the island is the cork keeping it from spreading to the rest of the world. Jacob asks Richard to be his representative to the candidates, as he does not want to intervene or persuade the people to do good. Richard agrees and in return Jacob grants him eternal life.

Jacob and the Man in Black meet and the Man in Black asks Jacob to be set free from the island. Jacob says that as long he is alive, that will not happen. The Man in Black says he will kill Jacob and anyone else he chooses to replace him. Jacob gives the Man in Black the bottle of wine who smashes it. In the present day, Richard is furious and believes his entire life has been a lie. He tells the group (Jack, Hurley, Sun, Miles, Illana, Frank, and Ben) that they are all dead and in hell. He says that he has given up listening to Jacob and is going to follow someone else. Ben informs the group that Richard has been on the island a very long time and has not aged. Richard begins his trek through the jungle to find the Man in Black but is being followed by Hurley. Hurley reveals that he has been speaking with the ghost of Richard's dead wife. They stand next to each other and have a final moment together with Hurley as the translator. She tells Richard that he must stop the Man in Black from leaving the island or they will all go to hell. Locke (Man in Black) is in the distance watching the interaction and does not seem pleased.



Everyone has been complaining that there have been no answers, but I think there's been some pretty big reveals this season.
• The island acts as a cork keeping evil from seeping into the rest of the world. (Could the flash sideways taking place this season be telling what the world would be like if the island didn't exist?)
• Jacob has brought people to island to prove that despite their pasts people are inherently good. So far all the candidates have died except #8- Hugo "Hurley" Reyes, #15- James "Sawyer" Ford, #16- Sayid Jarrah, #23- Jack Shepard, and #42- Sun or Jin Kwon.
• Which brings me to the point of the numbers, one of the most puzzling parts of the series. We learned earlier in this season that they represent the candidates who all have met Jacob at some point in their lives and that they are in fact on the island for a reason.
• We learned definitively that the Smoke Monster is an incarnation of the Man in Black and also that he takes on the forms of dead people on the island such as Christian Shepard (posing as a representative of Jacob who convinced John Locke to die), Alex Linus (who convinces Ben to follow the orders of Locke/Man in Black), and John Locke (who instructs Ben to kill Jacob).
• We now know how the statue came to be broken, where the Black Rock came from and why Richard Alpert never ages. Although, I'm still curious about the eyeliner.

I loved this episode and am so happy Richard Alpert finally had his day. Nestor Carbonell has waited around patiently for three and half seasons and it's finally paid off. I wonder if he knew back in 2007 (after his first appearance in the episode "Not in Portland") that he would turn out to be one of the key players in the show. Speaking of key players, where in the hell is Desmond? Is he ever going to be seen again? He's listed as a series regular this season but hasn't been seen since his tiny part in the first episode. I'm having Des withdrawals. Hopefully with last episode's appearance by Charles Widmore we'll be seeing more of his son-in-law, Desmond.

A few of my favorite TV shows returned this week. I feel like I was waiting forever to get some answers to some of the cliffhangers we were left with last season. First up, on "Breaking Bad" (AMC, Sunday) last season Skylar found out that Walt has been keeping secrets from her and that Walt's rich friends Elliot and Gretchen have not been paying for his cancer treatment. After Jesse's girlfriend, Jane, died of a drug overdose (partially Walt's fault) he checked himself into rehab. Jane's father, an air traffic controller wrought with grief, accidentally caused two 737's to collide in the air above Walt's home. Which finally shed light on the creepy, foreboding season two opening that showed debris and body bags being wheeled down the White's driveway.

This season's bizarre opening showed a bunch of Mexican's crawling on their hands and knees to some sort of shrine. Among them, two very wealthy looking, Mexican gangsters who enter the shrine and post a drawing of what looks like Walter White's drug dealer persona, Heisenberg. Although it also looked a little like the amateur drawing of a leprechaun or the cover of Jason Mraz's CD. Then the gangsters travelled across the border and killed a bunch of people. So we'll see where this is going to lead us...A lot happened in the first episode...Jesse's out of rehab, Walt is struggling with the fact that due to him allowing Jane to die he inadvertently caused the death of 167 people in the airplane crash. He reveals to Skylar that he in fact manufactures methamphetamine. She's sickened. Walter Jr. aka Flynn is not handling his parents separation well and wants some answers.

Next up, "Nurse Jackie's" (Showtime, Monday) first season finale left me dying to know what happens next. (Click here to read my full summary of season one) Eddie, the man Jackie's been having an affair with, found out that she has a husband and children and decided to introduce himself to Jackie's husband. He doesn't reveal his affair but he isn't going to let go of Jackie very easily. Jackie had to fight of Dr. Coop's advances after she made out with him. Now he has feelings when she was just trying distract him to get him off her case. All of it became too much for Jackie to handle so she downed a couple of bottles of liquid morphine.

In the season opener I was a little disappointed that so far there have been no repercussions for Jackie's actions. I thought for sure she was going to get caught for stealing the drugs. Instead, she was forced by Akalitus to give the nurses a talking to about the drug shortages. Eddie keeps trying to get a hold of Jackie and decides a fake accidental overdose is the best way to get her attention. Dr. Coop is still torn about his feelings and lodges a formal complaint about Jackie. The previews for what's to come seem pretty exciting but this episode was a little lackluster. Oh, and Momo's (Jackie's gay bff) absence was very noticeable. I did some googling and Haaz Sleiman (Momo) is no longer on the show. Now we're left with only one gay nurse, the ogre, Thor, who just isn't the same.

And finally, "United States of Tara," (Showtime, Monday) was a crazy ride last season. It is the most interesting, funny, sweet show with the most likable characters. Tara's alters spun out of control and started ruining her family's lives. In an effort to find the cause of her dissociative identity disorder Tara contacts a man she believes raped her in boarding school. Turns out, he was just having sex with "T" one of Tara's alters. Another alter is introduced, one that wears a poncho and pees on things. So we were left with little resolved and I was ok with that. It's a great show that is always entertaining to watch.

The first episode of season two sets up the path for Tara to discover what truly happened to her to cause her disorder. She's back on her meds and hasn't transitioned in months but when their neighbor commits suicide she seems all too interested in the details. Conveniently, the man's sister asks Tara and her family to look after the place and take in the mail giving Tara an easy in to the home. I hear that this event is going to force Tara to face her past and begin to understand why she is the way she is...after being in his house once it already caused her to transition into Buck and to flirt with a bartender played by Joey Lauren Adams who will be back for at least 3 more episodes.

I was very glad to find out today that both "Nurse Jackie" and "United States of Tara" have already been renewed for a third season.

John Mayer returned to St. Louis Saturday night for his Battle Studies tour at the Scottrade Center. It was the first time I've seen John Mayer indoors. He usually tours during the summer and plays at outdoor arenas so I was a little weary about what it would be like to see him in such a huge venue. Would it sound the same? Would it be sold out? One of the best parts of seeing John Mayer outside is that everyone is cramped together on the lawn, singing and dancing along, warm weather, nighttime....you get the picture. I was pleasantly surprised to feel comfortable inside. It didn't seem too big and it looked like most of the seats were filled. I would have been bothered if I could see empty seats...it would just seem wrong. Anyways, Michael Franti and Spearhead opened the show. He was probably the most entertaining opening act I've seen in a long time. People really seemed to be into his set which is interesting because I've only ever heard one of his songs. After waiting in a line for 15 minutes to use the bathroom, John Mayer finally hit the stage and kicked off the show with his hit single, "Heartbreak Warfare."

He ditched his leather jacket, bared his arms and went straight into a mash up of "Why Georgia" and "Message in a Bottle." Next came "Vultures," "Something's Missing," and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room," which was definitely a crowd favorite. He played "Perfectly Lonely," and "Assassin," from the album "Battle Studies," and then he really shocked me. Out of nowhere he played "Wheel," the final track on "Heavier Things," a song he almost never plays in concert, and one of my all time favorites. It's a pretty emotional song and reminds me of high school. I flipped out when I heard it. It made up for all of my other favorite songs he didn't play. I took a bathroom break during "Daughters." He then played "Crossroads," "Waiting on the World to Change," "Half of my Heart," and ended with "No Such Thing." I was a little sad that out of all of his music he played "No Such Thing." It's not a bad song, but it's not great either. I would have rather heard just about any other song from "Room for Squares."

For the encore he came back with "Who Says." Despite the concert being indoors, people definitely started lighting up during his, "who says I can't get stoned," song. With everyone throwing up their lighters and cell phones, John decided to turn off all the lights on stage and went into "Gravity." Appropriately the lights came up during the lyrics, "keep me where the light is." John then went into 5 minutes of some serious guitar playing...over his head and on the ground. It was really amazing and was the perfect way to end the show. I was ready for him to smash his guitar and light it on fire after all the theatrics. My favorites of the night- "Heartbreak Warfare," "Why Georgia," "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room," "Wheel," "Half of my Heart," and "Gravity." I loved the show and I love John. Can't wait until I can see him live again.

(as always, click on the pictures to make them bigger!)

It's only three weeks away until "Glee" returns to TV on Tuesday, April 13. The first half of the season was a such a success and now they're coming back with a full "Madonna" themed episode and bringing on guest stars like Neil Patrick Harris, Jennifer Lopez and Idina Menzel. I'm definitely ready for more after seeing the latest promos.



Let me just say that hearing Lea Michele sing "Like a Prayer" gave me serious chills. She is so talented it's sick. This second promo had me laughing out loud. Take a few minutes and watch "Sue's Corner," the hilarious news segment featuring cheerleading coach, Sue Sylvester, played by the outrageous Jane Lynch. This week's "Sue's Corner," is all about sneaky gays.



What will happen to Quinn and Puck's baby? Will Mr. Schue and Emma work out? Will "New Directions" finally get the respect it deserves? We'll find out when Glee returns. You can watch "Glee" on Fox on Tuesday nights after "American Idol" starting April 13. If you missed the first volume of "Glee: Road to Sectionals" you can buy it here on Amazon or watch online at Hulu.

Last night's episode of "Lost," "Sundown," was another doozy. I will admit that this episode didn't necessarily reveal a lot, but the last ten minutes were phenomenal.

On the island, Sayid confronts Dogen (Asian Other) and wants to know why he wants him dead. They get into an insane fight and right as Dogen is about to off Sayid a baseball drops to the floors and Dogen suddenly stops. Out in the jungle, Locke (Man in Black) sends Claire into the temple to do his dirty work. She goes in and tells Dogen that he wants to speak with him outside of the temple. Of course Dogen knows better to so he proposes to Sayid that he go out into the jungle and kill what he considers, "evil incarnate," someone who will appear to Sayid as someone he knows that is dead. For some reason Sayid agrees, leaves the temple and sees Locke and stabs him in the chest. Absolutely nothing happens and Locke seems pretty pissed off. Locke has a super fiesty 'tude and tells Sayid that Dogen knew he would fail at killing him and sent him out there in hopes that Locke would kill Sayid. Locke knows better and promises Sayid anything he wants, including his dead wife, Nadia, in exchange for Sayid to go back into the temple and deliver a message.



Sayid goes back to the temple and tells the Other's that Jacob is dead and that everyone needs to leave the temple if they don't want to die at sundown. Chaos ensues. Kate returns to the temple after leaving Sawyer several episodes earlier. Miles fills her in that the Australian chick is back. Claire, who has been put into some sort of restraining hole at the temple is singing a creepy rendition of "Catch a Falling Star," the song she wished to sing to Aaron before he was born. Kate meets her and Claire seems genuinely happy to see her, that is until Kate let's her know that she took Aaron off the island and raised him and that she came back to rescue her. Claire, in a super creepy tone tells Kate that she's not the one that needs rescuing. She says "he's coming."

Sun, Illana, Lapidus and Ben arrive at the temple and meet up with Miles. Miles informs Sun that Jin is still alive but they have to get the hell out of there. Sayid stays behind and confronts Dogen. Dogen gives his sob story about how he nearly killed his son because he was drunk driving him home from baseball practice. Jacob came to him and promised he would save his sons life if he came to the island and promised never to see him again. Sayid takes little pity and drowns Dogen. All hell breaks loose and Smokey (aka Locke, aka Man in Black) is killing people left and right. Ben finds Sayid standing in the pool of water and sees something different in him. He runs away looking truly terrified. Sun, Illana, Lapidus, Ben and Miles escape through the secret exit. Kate goes after Claire. Claire suggests she jump into the hole, which she does just before Smokey passes overhead.



Claire, Sayid and Kate walk outside the temple among all the wreckage. An even creepier sounding "Catch a Falling Star," is playing, it's definitely very eerie. Claire and Sayid come face to face with Locke and Others who are waiting for them. Over their shoulders Locke see's Kate.

In the alternate reality, what most people are calling a flash sideways (similar to previous season's flashbacks and flashforwards), Sayid arrives at Nadia's house (his dead ex-wife for those keeping track). Turns out she's married to Sayid's brother, Omar and has two kids with him. Omar has made some bad business deals and people are after him. He gets mugged and put into the hospital. Nadia confronts Sayid why he pushed her towards his brother if he loves her so much. He says it's because he wasn't worthy of her he's been trying to wash his hands clean of the horrible things he's done. Either way the bad guys kidnap Sayid. Turns out Keamy (that bad guy from the freighter) is the head bad guy. Sayid knocks one of them out, gets a gun and kills them all. He hears muffled noises and who's tied up in a meat locker? None other than Jin Kwon.

My thoughts- So is Kate joining the Man in Black and is going to the dark side? Could it have something to do with the fact that she was not one of Jacob's remaining candidates? I'm really curious to see more confrontation between Claire and Kate. Also, Dogen told Sayid that this "evil incarnate" takes the shape of someone who has died, now I know Hurley has talked to dead people before, but when he thinks he is talking to the ghost of Jacob, is he really talking to the Man in Black??? And also when he has seen the ghosts of Charlie, Libby and Ana Lucia, was that the Man in Black, too? Or was it Jacob manifesting himself in their bodies? It's all very confusing.

I work on Tuesday nights so I've fallen a little behind on my "Lost" recaps. But wow, a lot has happened in the last three episodes. I still can't believe that there are only ten episodes left and "Lost" will be finished forever. I've read a lot of complaints that people think the episodes aren't moving fast enough and that not enough has been revealed...I completely disagree....shall we recap?



"The Substitute" which aired February 16 was the first episode to reveal one of "Lost's" great secrets. Locke (Man in Black) takes Sawyer to a creepy cave promising to tell him why they are all on this island. He shows him writing on the walls and ceiling. It reads, 4-Locke, 8-Reyes, 15-Ford, 16-Jarrah, 23-Shepard, and 42-Kwon. Locke explains that Jacob has appeared to all of them earlier in their lives and that the choices they made that lead them to the island weren't their choices after all.

They are all Jacob's candidates to take over as protector of the island. Sawyer is obviously super confused and asks Locke what he's supposed to do. Locke says they're are three choices. 1. Do nothing and possibly get crossed of the list (meaning death) 2. Accept the job and become the new Jacob (even though Locke says the island really doesn’t need protecting) 3. Get off this island and never look back. Locke asks Sawyer if he's ready to go home. Sawyer's response, "hell yes."

Oh, and I almost forgot...Sun, Lapidus, Illana and Ben bury the body of the real John Locke. Benjamin Linus delivers an amazing eulogy, "John Locke was a believer. He was a man of faith. He was a much better man than I will ever be and I’m very sorry I murdered him.”

Meanwhile, off the island, John is still with Helen (played by Katey Sagal), which makes me super happy. He's still living a pretty miserable, handicapped life, but at least he has Helen! Locke gets fired from his job but runs into the new owner of the cardboard company, Hugo Reyes, who tells John to go to his temp agency and he'll hook him up with a job. John's employment consultant- Rose. Rose reveals that she still has terminal cancer. She finds John a job as a substitute teacher in a middle school. John walks into the teachers lounge and meets a whiney fellow teacher, none other than Benjamin Linus. Dun dun dun!

My thoughts- So we finally have some meaning to the numbers, thank god. But I'm wondering, after all the other numbers (candidates) have been gradually crossed out, why have 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42 been stand out numbers the entire time? Hurley first heard the numbers from Leonard, a fellow mental patient at Santa Rosa. Leonard heard the numbers with Sam Toomey on a repeat transmission when they were naval officers in the 80's. The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42 were the serial numbers engraved on the door to the Swan station as it was being built by the Dharma Initiative in the 70's. So I'm still unsure how or who knew those numbers would be important 30 years before the gang came to the island. Oh, and Kate? Not a candidate? That's pretty shocking. Off the island, I'm wondering why Rose still has cancer. Everyone else's paths seem to have changed, but not hers...I wonder if she's still with Bernard.

The next episode, "The Lighthouse," which aired on February 23 reveals more in the alternate reality than it does on the island, in my opinion. Jack is still reeling after his father's coffin has been lost by Oceanic Airlines. After viewing his father's will with his mother, they see that Claire Littleton is listed. Neither have any idea who she is or her relationship to Christian Shepard. Oh and did I mention that Jack has a brooding, moody teenage son!?! What the heck? The kid, David, acts just like Jack and their relationship is very similar to Jack and Christian's relationship. Turns out little David is a piano prodigy, one of Jack's favorite pastimes.

On the island, Jacob appears to Hurley and gives him detailed instructions (which Hurley writes on his arm, love it!). Hurley takes Jack out into the jungle and reminisces saying it’s old school, and cool, hiking through the jungle on their way to do something they really don’t understand. Good times. Hurley asks why Jack came back. “I came back here because I was broken and I was stupid enough to think this place could fix me.” They finally reach their destination, the lighthouse. At the top Jack is following Hurley's instructions turning a giant wheel to specific coordinates which are moving a set of mirrors reflecting sunlight. Jack sees his own name next to the number 23. He turns the dial and sees a reflection of his childhood home in the mirror. Jack puts two and two together and realizes that Jacob has been watching and brought him here for a reason. Jack is pissed and smashes the mirrors. Jacob appears to Hurley who asks why he wanted Jack to see that, Jacob says he wanted Jack to see how powerful he is....and he succeeded.


If you're curious about all the other names on the dial and who they are click here.

Oh and Jin is hanging with Claire in her humble abode in the jungle. She has a crib with an improvised baby made of animal bones and fur, a box full of dynamite, along with other troubling things. She interrogates one of the Other's she shot about where Aaron is. As she's about to kill the Other, Jin spills the beans and reveals that Kate took Aaron off the island. Claire kills the Other anyway. Jin recants his story and Claire is relieved because if she did, Claire would have to kill her.

My thoughts- Who the hell is the mother of Jack's son?! If you remember, last time we saw Jack's ex-wife Sarah, was last seen picking Jack up from the emergency room when he tried to jump off the bridge. She was very pregnant. Could Sarah and Jack have stayed married and had David? And if Sarah isn't David's mother, I'm awfully curious who is...

Wow, that was a lot to handle....now off to recap last night's Sayid-centric episode, "Sundown."