CliqueClack

Maggie Q sizzles on Nikita

Typically, I try not to live by mottos and maxims, but one that I do tend to treasure is variety being the spice of life. Perhaps that’s why I’m so happy with all of the wonderful ethnic diversity on television as of late. Don’t get it twisted now — there’s still a lot of work left to be done, but at least we’re moving in the right direction … especially with a little show called Nikita on The CW starring Vietnamese ass-kicker Maggie Q.

Ah, how I like me some Maggie Q.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have to give props to the creators of this reboot for choosing her as the lead. The original series featured an actress of the Caucasian persuasion. Nothing wrong with that, but it’s nice to know that the creators were open to ideas. This kind of color blind casting makes me smile. I also can’t help but smile at the fact that Nikita is still doing well in its third season — at least by CW standards. Let’s not pretend like we don’t know their shows bring in about a million viewers each. Heck, that’s about as well known as Kim Kardashian’s buttocks being counterfeit.

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Does Dexter’s epiphany mean LaGuerta and Matthews are surer prey?

After Sunday night’s episode of Dexter, Deb and I got to discussing what those final scenes mean for Dexter’s future. My first thought was that by Dexter deciding to kill Hannah’s father (Supernatural’s Jim Beaver!), he will no longer adhere to Harry’s code, killing only those who’ve killed; he’d basically open himself up to kill whomever he felt the need to kill, without having to prove anything to himself first. Deb, on the other hand, thought this was only partly true; it did mean he wasn’t going to follow Harry’s code anymore, but it wouldn’t mean Dexter would kill just anyone he felt like killing — he’d still have some sort of moral compass to follow.

With those thoughts in mind, I wouldn’t say that Dexter is going to simply kill people for the hell of it. Instead, he’s going to kill who he needs to kill, and that just might mean simply anyone who threatens him or gets in his way — including LaGuerta and Matthews.

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Do New Girl and Mindy Project focus too much on lady bits?

Last year, I loved New Girl. It provided raunchy, brilliantly immature, laugh-out-loud fun, with a female protagonist. It was basically a show from a guy’s perspective with a woman as the lead. The same went for The Mindy Project‘s pilot. Sure, both shows feature pretty women with long hair who date random good-looking guys while surrounded by adorable male leads, but for the most part, you could’ve swapped Mindy Kaling/Zooey Deschanel with a man and I wouldn’t’ve noticed. However, recently, both shows have gotten into the lady business quite explicitly, and I can’t tell if I’m tired of it or not. Yes, we need more shows with female leads, but I’m tired of TV reducing its heroines to walking vaginas. Jokes about crazy, hormonal women are tiresome and reductive. Until recently, I didn’t get mood swings, so I hated male-written shows *cough* Guys with Kids *cough* that told one-dimensional jokes about crazy women at the female character’s expense. I want to make certain New Girl and Mindy Project don’t fall into that habit.

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Flashpoint is the best cop show you’re not watching

In the three-or-so years I’ve been working for CliqueClack, I’ve started a post about Flashpoint four different times. It is a show I like a great deal, but I’ve created a variety of excuses for not wanting to write about it. Considering just how great the show has gotten in its final two seasons (the first part of the series finale airs this week in Canada), it’s a crying shame that the show never found a greater audience in the States. If you’ve missed out, it is definitely a show to circle back around to (it is available on Netflix); American fans of the show are in for a great couple of episodes as the series comes to a close.

For those unfamiliar with Flashpoint, the show follows the exploits of Team One of Toronto’s fictional Strategic Response Unit, based on the city’s real Emergency Task Force – SWAT for American audiences. Each episode beings in medias res, showing the “flashpoint” of an incident, where guns are usually out and sighted and tension is at its highest. The show then flashes back to the past, showing the steps that lead the team and the subjects up to that crucial moment.

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New and classic TV shows come to home video for the holidays

New TV favorites and favorite TV classics come to DVD and Blu-ray in time for holiday gift giving with season 15 of The Simpsons, season two of Star Trek: The Next Generation on Blu-ray, season three of Eastbound and Down, season 8 of Hell’s Kitchen, complete series collections of Cagney & Lacey, McMillan & Wife, and Space: 1999 coming on December 4. You can find these titles and more in our handy gift-giving guide, and you can get more information or make a purchase by clicking on the corresponding link. You’ll get a great deal and you’ll be supporting our efforts here at CliqueClack as well. And for that, we thank you.

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The Dark Knight Rises – on video – just in time for the holidays

As the holidays get closer and closer, we’ll be seeing some big theatrical titles hitting the home video market just before the big day (and probably right after to cash in on all the new TV/DVD/Blu-ray equipment purchases). The first week of December brings one of the biggest — The Dark Knight Rises — along with some titles such as the critically acclaimed Beasts of the Southern Wild, Disney’s re-release of Finding Nemo in 3D, and the long-awaited (by me, at least) Criterion Collection Blu-ray release of the Terry Gilliam classic Brazil. And if you like some cheese with your holiday cheer, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians has been remastered for Blu-ray! These titles and more will be hitting retailers on December 4th, so take a look at our handy guide for some gift-giving ideas for the movie lover in your life. Click on a link to get more information or to make a purchase.

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Bradley James and Katie McGrath give their final Merlin interview

Even though I no longer review Merlin on the regular, being a fan of and blogger about Merlin has been one of the most truly rewarding experiences of my life, which is why I couldn’t say no to an opportunity to interview Bradley James (Arthur) and Katie McGrath (Morgana) one last time.

Alright, well, first of all, I just wanted to say thank you to you guys. This is my second time interviewing both of you, and as a fan you guys have been amazing and wonderful to interview, so thank you so much.
KM: Thank you so much!

Anyways, now for the harder questions …
KM: You were just buttering us up there so we’ll give you good answers, aren’t you?

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I am part of an elite contingent of “A” words

This a.m. on CBS Sunday Morning commentator Mo Rocca did a piece on “The A-Word,” more commonly known as the word “asshole.”

The report included mentions of Mel Gibson (“If I’ve still got my pants on in the second scene, I think they’ve sent me the wrong script.”), Kanye West (“I am God’s vessel. But my greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live.” / “I don’t even listen to rap. My apartment is too nice to listen to rap in.”), Donald Trump, Adam Sandler and more.

Comically (well … possibly comical … I’ll let the reader decide), I’ll include myself on that list based on a little incident which occurred yesterday morning. Continue reading 'I am part of an elite contingent of “A” words' »

Sitcom Superlatives: Best, worst, and wedded bliss

Best Wedding – Liz and Criss, 30 Rock
If I had to choose a favorite TV wedding, I should probably say that my favorite is Monica and Chandler’s, or Jim and Pam’s, or Marshall and Lily’s. But as I’ve mentioned before, my stance on weddings is, to put it lightly, highly atypical. And my wedding, should I ever have one, is going to resemble Liz and Criss’ on this week’s 30 Rock far more than anyone in my life probably feels comfortable with.

Look, I’m with Liz (shocker) — the wedding-industrial complex is nuts and I have no desire to have a big party where I have to be nice to people I never wanted to invite and look the most like I a beautiful princess I have ever looked in my life. Weddings, in my opinion, should ideally reflect the couple and the kind of life they want to share with each other. And maybe some people want to share a perfect fairytale life, but that sounds like a lot of pressure to me. Give me a small, personally significant, completely ridiculous and goofy wedding any day, because life is never going to be a perfect fairytale. But if you’re lucky, it will be a fun, silly gathering of close friends who love you, and of course, a few who don’t but are just there for the ride. And let’s be real, who wants to be Cinderella when you can be Princess Leia? No one I want to hang out with, that’s who.

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CliqueClack has free passes to see Deadfall in D.C.

CliqueClack, in association with Magnolia Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing, is offering readers in the Washington D.C. area (including Virginia and Maryland) a chance to see the new Magnolia Pictures release Deadfall, starring Eric Bana, Olivia Wilde, Charlie Hunnam, Kate Mara, Treat Williams, Sissy Spacek and Kris Kristofferson. The special advance screening will take place on Tuesday, December 4, 7:30 PM at the Landmark E Street Cinema.

What’s the movie about? Siblings Addison (Bana) and Liza (Wilde) are on the run from a casino heist gone wrong. When a car accident leaves their wheel man and a state trooper dead, they split up and make a run for the Canadian border in the worst of circumstances — a near whiteout blizzard. While Addison heads cross-country, creating mayhem in his wake, Liza is picked up by ex-boxer Jay (Hunnam), en-route for a Thanksgiving homecoming with his parents, June (Spacek) and retired sheriff Chet (Kristofferson). It’s there the siblings are reunited in a terse and thrilling showdown that pushes the bonds of family to the limit.

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