Jessica Alba Jessica Alba was in West Hollywood picking up some coffee and a snack yesterday.  The new mom was showing off her post-baby body and her all too familiar bitch face.

Alba just doesn’t want to smile anymore does she?  You would think being a new mom, getting back into serious shape, having some nice cleavage, and being in a stable relationship would be cause for smile…..oh not with Jess.  She did bust out the pigtails to give herself a more approachable young look, but even her amazing acting abilities couldn’t fool the cameras into thinking she was happy.

source: mavrixonline.com

(S04E07) The Closer continues to get some great mileage out of the supporting cast in season four. With episodes featuring Flynn and Provenza already in the books, this week Sanchez steps to the front of the stage. The resulting story was quite a bit darker than what we saw with “Dial M For Provenza.” As Sanchez dealt with the murder of his younger brother, we got to take a closer look at him than the usual episode provides.

I actually came into this one knowing nothing about the story. Because of that, the “sudden death” at the beginning of the episode caught me completely off guard. Seeing Sanchez at home, working on his Moto Guzzi, I expected we were finally getting a little peek at the man away from work. And, I suppose that’s what we did get. It just wasn’t what I thought we would be seeing.

The murder, and the aftermath, painted quite a picture of Sanchez and his environment. The fact that his brother was gunned down in the street, the ambulance drivers afraid to enter the neighborhood, and his reaction at the hospital combined to provide a whole load of back story for the detective. They also set the stage for what I found to be the most interesting scene of the episode. Seeing the whole team, and their spouses, gathered at the hospital was both strange and moving. Everyone wanted to help, but nobody knew what to do. That feeling rings so true.

The case itself was interesting in that, much like the team, we didn’t have a suspect in sight for most of the episode either. So often, a parade of possible perps is presented right away, and the game is narrowing the field down. This time, there was nobody. It really helped to amplify the tension the team was feeling as the days passed and they were no closer to finding the killer.

That lack of suspects was also a good point to bring back Ramos (Stephen Martines). His question, about why priority homicide was focusing on this case in particular, while other cases were being handled by robbery/homicide was so thinly veiled, but it seemed fitting for his character. I really enjoyed how Brenda spun it back on him with how his paper covers those same cases.

And in the end, the big break that ended up solving the case came from Fritz. It’s nice to see that relationship work out on the professional level, but it does leave me thinking about what we haven’t seen from the relationship on the personal level. After seeing no followup on the big fight in “Live Wire” and now no followup to the “good schools” discussion from “Problem Child”, I’ve resigned myself to the fact that we are not going to see the Brenda/Fritz relationship develop. We are just going to see snippets of it as it goes along, and be left to fill in the blanks.

For me, that story is good enough that I do want to see more of it. At the same time, I get that The Closer is a cop show first, so I’m ok with it. Even if you find those strange gaps from the end of one episode to the next somewhat frustrating, what the show does do, it does very well. And really, it’s enough to keep me tuning in every week.

Other bits:

In the midst of all the drama, Provenza did provide the comic relief. His whole scene, from pulling up his pants to get in the boat/pool, to the 12ft/16ft law game, was very funny.

I totally fell for Brenda’s cell-phone ruse too. I thought that she just wanted the photo, not realizing she was going to use it to uncover Tao’s indiscretion. T-Mobile is getting some good product placement.

Kevin Bacon returned to the director’s chair for the third time. He also directed “Blindsided” and “Serving The King: Part 2.” Here he is at work.

I have a tween-aged girl in the household, so we watch a fair amount of Disney Channel. I’ll come clean and even announce that Miley Cyrus, The Cheetah Girls, and Demi Lovato share iPod space with AC/DC, Jeff Beck, and Aerosmith. Hey, those Disney Channel tunes are catchy, and they’re easy to dance, I mean, walk to. I draw the line at the Jonas Brothers, though.

But about 10 minutes into the new Cheetah Girls: One World movie the other night, my daughter looked at me and said, “I was really hoping these Cheetah Girls movies would get better.” Yeah, me, too.

I actually liked the first two movies, in 2003 and 2006, respectively. The second, directed by High School Musical alum Kenny Ortega, was a downright cute tale about the Girls’ escapades in Spain.

But this third movie just flatlined for me and, apparently, for my daughter, too. Lacking Ortega’s directorial expertise and the presence of Raven-Symone, who’s moved on to nurture her ever-expanding empire, it was just a silly tale about three giggling girls with no real substance. I know … you’re thinking, Cheetah Girls? Substance? But there was at least a modicum of it in the first two movies.

So I was surprised when an ABC press note landed in my inbox reporting that the movie beat out all competition but the Beijing Olympics on NBC, harvesting 6.2 million total primetime viewers on Friday.

The movie actually edged out the Olympics in kids 6 to 11 (2.8 million overall) and in tweens 9 to 14 (2.4 million). The numbers catapulted it into second place among all original movies scheduled on TV this summer. Capturing first place is the Disney Channel’s Camp Rock, which scored 8.9 million viewers in June 20.

That either says something about NBC’s programming, or about summer TV movies, in general. Probably both.

FX is calling it the final act. Not the last season or the final season. Nothing jarring like “the end.” The final act sounds more Shakespearean than Shield - which, if you think about it, is appropriate. For six seasons we’ve watched one hell of a twisted play unfold before our eyes. We’ve rooted for the bad guy, applauded wrongdoing, cheered for recklessness, and shared laughs over how bad Vic Mackey screwed over this One-Niner or that Byz-Lat. However, as all good stories do, the time has come for The Shield to end.

The Shield returns to FX on Tuesday, September 2 for its final 13 episodes. Now prepare to be jealous – FX sent the first eight episodes to press outlets! That being said, I’m basing everything I’m about to write only on the first two. That’s all I’ve watched because a.) I’m a fan too and don’t want this to end, and b.) I don’t think I could have watched all eight right away and then written a spoiler free early review. I’m also pointing this out because any other early reviews you may read on the Web might potentially have way more info than you care to know. I don’t want to wreck this for anyone, so rest assured that I’ve made every effort to keep this light on details.

OK, here we go.

The season premiere picks right up after the end of season six – later on in the same evening after Vic walked out on his review and stole Pezuela’s blackmail box from Aramboles. What unfolds after that is arguably the most in-depth (and often confusing) plot featured on the show to date.

After Vic confronts Shane about kidnapping Corrine and Cassidy, the truth about the Armenian threat comes out and Vic and Shane are forced to work together for the first time since Lem’s murder. Trust is an issue. With one side playing the Armenians and the other playing the Mexicans, believe me when I say that the first two season seven installments are the definition of “edge of your seat.”

As you’d expect, numerous other plots are addressed. You’ll be on the floor laughing as Billings gets brought back into the fold (he and Dutch collaborate on a couple of great murder cases) and it’s going to be gut-wrenching to watch Claudette as her Lupus continues to affect her performance as chief. Additionally, with Hiatt gone now, there’s an open spot for a new minor character and Laurie Holden has joined the cast as Olivia Murray, a Fed with an interest in any and all things Mexican – The San Marcos murders, Pezuela, Aramboles. Needless to say, you know Vic is going to take advantage of her.

Ultimately though, the only question that really matters is how will it all end for Vic? Get away? Die? Go to jail? Without having watched more of the season yet, it’s hard to define what would be considered satisfying in this instance, but my gut says the ending can’t be good. For a guy with this much hubris to have done so much wrong, it has to crash down at some point and there are definitely a few moments early on in the season that allude to that.

Even though Kavanaugh is out of the picture, I’m still waiting for the original sin (murdering Terry) to come back and haunt Vic. However, I suppose with the murder of Lem, it did. And now, with the mess Shane has created by getting in bed with Diro and Rezian, Mackey already has his hands full and unfortunately, we’ve reached a point where he’s going to start dropping stuff.

Rawling (Glenn Close) had a great quote way back in season four: “Let me guess – you’re either with Vic Mackey or you’re against him.” Three seasons later and the scales have definitely tipped to one side. Two guesses, but you’ll only need one.

The giveaways continue this week! This time we’ve got three signed promotional posters for HBO’s new series, True Blood (premieres Sept. 7). As you can see from the image to the right, most of the primary cast has signed them.

To enter, leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Tuesday, September 2 simply telling us what you’re looking forward to most about HBO’s True Blood. As always, we’ll randomly choose three winners amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:

• To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating what you’re looking forward to most about True Blood.
  
• The comment must be left before September 2, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
  
• You may enter only once.
  
• Three winners will be selected in a random drawing.
  
• Three winners will receive a
  cast-signed True Blood promo poster (valued at $9.95).
  
• Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.
  

Click here for complete Official Rules.

Avril Lavigne Avril Lavigne and her husband Deryck Whibley were seen leaving Koi restaurant yesterday and the pop/rock singer looks like she gained some healthy weight. Could she be pregnant?

The couple seems way too happy and Avril is showing off a small bump under those ridiculous clothes… maybe she just ate too much or she is completely bloated but I don’t think so. Avril has the pregnant face… fuller and happy!

Congratulations to the happy couple!!

[Images by WENN]

(S07E06) This was a rarity in the Monk canon. It was not only a serious episode, but one in which Monk seemed capable of touching another person and falling in love again. The title of the episode, in fact, suggests that he does fall in love.

There were other differences in tonight’s show. The murder of the taxi driver brought Stottlemeyer and Disher to the case, and Natalie and Adrian, but also a San Francisco Homicide task force — i.e. two other detectives.

Have we ever seen these guys before? I don’t remember them. They were there for one reason basically, to contradict Monk’s assertion that the prime suspect — Layla with a Z, a beautiful social worker — is not the “guy.” In the face of mounting evidence, Monk refused to believe she did it.

At the same time, Monk allowed himself to be attracted to her, or rather, he couldn’t help himself. When he goes to see her to warn her that the cops will arrest her, he admits that he could have called instead. Fighting every one of his instincts to pull away, Monk kept coming back to her.

Joanna Pacula played Layla with complete sincerity. She did look like an angel when they first interviewed her. At no point, did I think she was playing Monk, like the other two detectives suggested.

As attracted to her as Monk was, she was attracted to him, too, a fact that was underscored in the dancing scene. Monk actually overcame his phobias about intimacy and after a hesitant start, he took her in his arms and they danced. It was a sweet moment, but it couldn’t last. Monk’s obsession with Trudy continues to hold him in check. Scrubbing the wedding ring symbolized his need to remain only Trudy’s. Sad, really.

The Zemenian restaurant scene was fun, sort of a Benihana of Slavic food. Like last week on the submarine, Monk refused to eat. This time it was because of chef was playing with the food. One of these week’s, Monk’s going to have to eat something.

When the story of the butcher came out and Layla mentioned Emmerich by name, Monk’s calling for 911 because the guy spat on the floor was over the top. But then, this is Monk.

The ending though was particularly poignant. Monk did the right thing. He save Layla and found the right “guy,” but was it fair that an old woman was imprisoned when a war criminal, “the butcher of Zemenia,” was never brought to justice? Yes, she stabbed him, but what crimes had he committed and never been tried for?

Ultimately, Monk’s choice resulted in his losing Layla. There was no right answer, actually. If he let her confession stand, he’d lose her. Bringing in her mother and revealing that she was the killer, lost Layla to him, too. The final shot of Layla walking away and the door swinging closed on Monk sealed the deal. I doubt Layla will be back again.

Other points of interest
– Randy in date mode was like Randy at work, oblivious. By the way, Randy looked quite randy in the cab. I guess he hasn’t been dating much lately.

– When Layla kissed Monk for the first time, Natalie gave him a wipe, which he didn’t use.

– “Red light, schmed light. That’s your argument?”

– The cops should not have had guns drawn when they went to arrest Layla; there was no imminent danger.

– Showing the murder in black and white was a nice touch, even though we’ve seen it before. But wouldn’t the cabbie have some inkling that he was despised by the Zemenian community? Was he hiding in plain sight?

– The mythical Zemenia reminded me of Freedonian.

Check out this new AdultSwim.com interview with voice actor Michael Sinterniklaas, who plays, among other characters in the cartoon world, Dean Venture of The Venture Bros. In this video, you get to watch him get his hair cut. Oh, and he talks about The Venture Bros. but that’s really secondary to my original intention of making sure you coiffure-fetish folks get your fill even on a TV site.

The best part is his Patrick Warburton impression, which was brief but sounded pretty spot-on. Apparently, all it takes to do a decent Brock voice is to drop your tone down, groan with frustration and say, “Ahh, boys…” Sinterniklaas also shares a story about one of his biggest fans’ Dean tattoo, which is sweet and further enforces that the folks on Venture Bros. are super wonderful to their fans. Click after the jump and check it out.

In other news, is anyone else as amused as I am by the weird grin that the dog sports at the end of the video? Damn you, cute animals, for breaking down my cold bitch exterior.

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In other, other news, remember that the season finale of The Venture Bros. is already online and officially airs Sunday night at 11:30. Be there, or be dangerously square. And don’t visit the Shirt Club until you’ve seen the final episode, Jackson Publick has warned, because it is spoilertastic!

(S05E06) The folks over at Atlantis had quite a week, even before we got to the new episode. Knowing that the countdown to the end of the series has now begun made it feel just a little different tuning in on Friday night. The plans for a movie lessen the gravity of the news, as the show won’t have to build to its final climactic moment, but there is still something to knowing its all ending. To take our minds off of that news, the crew checks in with a solid stand-alone episode that really stood out thanks to the performance of David Hewlett.

That’s really where this one begins and ends, don’t you think? In the big picture, “The Shrine” doesn’t carry much weight. It’s a decent enough idea for a story, scary space parasite and a ticking clock. But it’s something that we’ve all seen before. That plot on its own wasn’t enough to carry this episode anywhere past a C grade. Where the episode really shines though is in the work of David Hewlett.

I’ve always been a fan of McKay. His unwavering love of himself, and his own brilliance, is at once infuriating and amusing. To see him reduced to that child like state of confusion, and his experience of the anguish of knowing what is happening to him was very gripping. And a lot of the credit for that goes to David Hewlett. On his blog, producer Joe Mallozzi had said, “‘The Shrine of Talus’ will be a David Hewlett tour de force.” He called that right. It really was an outstanding performance.

That’s not to say that Hewlett did all the work. The story provided an opportunity to really show the dynamic of the team and the bonds that have formed. It even coughed up an opportunity for another good Woolsey scene. It totally caught me off guard when his touching story about his father was turned as a reason not to follow through with Ronon’s plan. Ronon and Teyla both took a bit of a back seat, but what they did get was also good.

Their lack of screen time did provide an opening for the return of Jeanie (Kate Hewlett). If Jeanie was ever going to come back, this was certainly the time and place. It made sense that they would call her, and it turned the tide so they could move forward with Ronon’s plan.

Although, that was one of the things about the episode that just didn’t feel quite right. I struggle with the idea that Keller was stopping anyone from doing anything. It still feels like she’s trying to work her way into her position and I can’t imagine any of them actually giving her decision much credence. It’s more like they would pat her on the head and think it’s cute that she’s trying to execute some authority.

Fortunately, those protests were short lived, and the scenes at the shrine worked out very well. I especially liked McKay’s reaction to the realization that they had brought him there to die, after a nice lunch. It led to a nice exchange.

“I die?”

“With honor and dignity.”

“Screw that!”

Also good was Sheppard’s do it yourself MacGyver brain surgery kit. That one initially gave me pause, because I can suspend a lot of disbelief, but I was wondering just how Keller was going to open up his melon for brain surgery in that cave. The parasite wanting to escape the radiation was a clever solution to that problem.

Through all of it though, the one scene that stood out for me above all the others was McKay and Sheppard on the pier. It’s telling that when he was really scared, he went running to Sheppard. And Sheppard’s reaction to it was just what McKay needed. He didn’t patronize him and the two of them shared a very nice moment that really showed what their relationship has become, over a Budweiser. There was still enough of the real McKay there for him to explain, “I want you to remember me as your genius friend.” It also provided the line of the night with, “You’re a good friend, Arthur.”

And finally, there’s the business of the McKay/Keller romance. The ending took me by surprise. I thought the earlier conversation where Keller said, “You bought me one drink.” was putting that story to rest. But with that final bit, the whole can of worms is all over the table again. I’m kind of, eh, on the whole thing. It’s not a strong suit for the show. It’s not going to turn me away, but the show could really do without it. So, there we have it. One step closer to the end. A good idea, turned into a great episode by some great performances.

Other fun stuff:

“The Shrine” is episode 300 of the Stargate franchise. Crazy.

For any of you upset about the cancellation, feel free to use Flu Bird Horror as this week’s rally cry. Because, seriously, they made a movie called Flu Bird Horror. If I tried, I don’t think I could come up with a more ridiculous title.

The FX for season five continue to impress. I really liked the submerged gate in the glacial lake and the Atlantis backdrop to the conversation on the pier.

Download Stargate Atlantis here

(S02E11 … or is that 12?) The live auditions were considered a sort of special, so does it count as episode one? This finale featured the return of all the crews from throughout the season and the results of which of the final two crews would be crowned. I’ll just come right off the top and say that I was pretty disappointed to see Fanny Pak taken down before the finale. Of all the crews this season, they were the ones who got me the most excited.

The problem is I’m not sure which of the top two finalists I would have eliminated to make room for them. I just don’t think either of them was stronger overall than Fanny Pak. Even the judges didn’t seem pleased going into the finale with the remaining two crews. And unfortunately, throughout last week’s performance episode, it was one disappointment after another until the final two dances. I appreciate the differences in these crews, but I don’t think it was as exciting a finale as we could have had.

The packages highlighting their respective journeys to the finale reminded me of some of their amazing performances throughout the season. It made me remember how much I enjoyed both crews. I guess they just let some of that energy and creativity slip in the finale. Maybe they should have had a chance to do an encore number of their favorite performance throughout the season in the final performance episode.

Tonight’s “results show” finale turned out to be a lot of fun. By having performances featuring multiple crews dancing together, we got to see some pretty cool routines. The opening number featuring SoReal Cru and Super CR3W was probably some of the best dancing we’ve seen from either crew in several weeks; again except for that final dance they did last week.

We also got to see the four different regions represented in large group numbers featuring all the crews from that region performing together.

• Representing the East we had Sass x 7, Phresh Select and Boogie Bots. Unfortunately, these were three of the least impressive crews throughout the season and this piece turned out to be more of the same.
  
• From the South, finalist SoReal Cru was joined on the stage by Distorted X. Their routine represented the southern style with intricate had movements and hard-hitting choreography.
  
• The Midwest brought A.S.I.I.D. and Xtreme Dance Force together for a high energy number that kept its frenetic pace right to the end. It was a fun, if not particularly intricate performance.
  
• There was a whole herd of dancers on the stage for the West, including Supreme Soul, Fanny Pak and finalist Super CR3W. As expected, this was a very acrobatic performance, but there was a great element of dance and choreography to it as well. I’m going to give the battle of the regions to the West because they gave us a more complete and varied performance than anyone else.
  

By the finale moments, I discovered that I didn’t care who won, as I thought both would be worthy of the title. Super CR3W grew from a street trick crew to a true dance crew, that still had those sick stunts, while SoReal Cru just kept real to who they were getting better and better as the show progressed. In the end, you gave the crown to the crew that had faced elimination three times already over a crew that had never been in the bottom two.Super CR3W’s high flying acrobatics knocked out the intricate choreography of SoReal Cru. A dramatic departure from the style of last season’s winners, the JabbaWockeeZ, but a worthy champion.

Just like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, America’s Best Dance Crew is hitting the tour circuit, starting September 18th. Featuring performers from both of its first two seasons, you’re looking at a helluva good time. Last season’s champs, The JabbaWockeeZ are worth the price of admission alone!

And better yet, America’s Best Dance Crew is coming back for more. Auditions for Season 3 are set to begin in October. In eight months we’ve already had two complete seasons and now we’ve got a tour and more to come. I’d say MTV is probably pretty happy with this little hit they’ve found. I’m gonna call out the gang here at TV Squad to see if we can put together a crew and get our groove on! The TV Dance Squad! Hell, yeah!!