Last week I wondered why Nate forgot to he is mad at Serena. This week I got my answer: Nate's still in love with her! Dan came to Nate for advice on how to deal post-threesome with your best friend and your girlfriend because of Nate's expertise in love triangles (Nate: I know things. I've been to Europe. Chuck Bass is my best friend), while Serena came to Nate for help with not sleeping with his cousin, a married congressman (Nate's also a professed expert on affairs with married people). Nate decided the best way to deal with Serena was to watch her every second, including a pub crawl that involved confessing his former (?) love for her. Apparently Serena never realized the depth of Nate's feelings after she stole his virginity and his shirt and went off to un-kill a dude. Unfortunately Serena went off with his cousin after all that, but it looks like that triangle comes to a head next episode (sadly, we have to wait until the 30th).

More importantly, though, Nate is so forgetful that even when Serena goes off to do the exact thing that he was mad at her about to begin with (potentially ruining his family's congressional reputation), he can't even remember to try to stop her, instead focusing on drowning his sorrows. Good work, Nate!

Dear Supernatural writers,

You know I love you, and I hate to hate, but someone needs to explain this to me: why is Dean's plan to end Armageddon killing the devil? Last night, as we knew they would, Dean and Sam got a bead on the Colt, a MacGuffin I sort of wish you'd drop, and off they raced to find it. Because Dim Dean's ridiculous plan, in case this wasn't clear, is to attempt to kill the devil with it.  

Now here's the angels plan, which Dean refuses to go along with: have Michael take over Dean's body, so Michael-in-Dean can kill Lucifer. If both plans end with a dead Devil and Dean very specifically does not want what the angels want, how can this be his best idea? Can't College Boy come up with something better? Won't killing the Devil have the exact same net result regardless of who accomplishes this goal? 

My F and K answers differ from plotline to plotine and haircut to haircut (okay, mostly I would kill Dan), but when presented with the men of Gossip Girl, my M answer is always Nate Archibald (assuming he's a choice, but when isn't he game?). It's not just the pretty or the fact that Chace Crawford is closest to my age. No, it's how endearingly dopey Columbia-matriculating Nate continues to be. Last night, Nate had to be reminded what Blair and Serena are fighting about (apparently having forgotten that he and Serena are still fighting). Chuck told him it's over which one loves the other the most while snatching Blair's phone to try to force the peace. While Chuck lied and schemed, Nate quietly murmured to himself, "Can you even fight about that?" Oh, Nate. Do you not remember what show you're on? That's the only thing B & S fight about. In the meantime, Chuck made hilariously convincing hungover faces, including "Smiling through the pain in the hopes that you'll stop talking and go away." GG could easily be subtitled Ed Westwick makes a series of exquisitely expressive faces.

I was excited when I heard there was going to be a new Bob Dylan song on the forthcoming NCIS: The Official TV Soundtrack - Vol.2 ,but I was freaking ecstatic when I learned the song is a never-before-released track from the Bringing It All Back Home sessions!!!  These are the same sessions that brought you Dylan classics "Subterreanan Homesick Blues", "Maggies Farm", "Love Minus Zero/No Limit", "It's All Right Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)", and "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue".

To coincide with the album's release date, the November 3rd episode of NCIS will prominently feature the song, titled "California".
In addition to Bob Dylan's "California," the album also features new and previously unreleased tracks from Norah Jones, John Mellencamp, Sheryl Crow,  Joss Stone, and others.
You can see the full track listing and sample music clips at http://ncismusic.com.

At least that's what I'm forced to infer from the new Vitamin Water/New Moon tie-in commercial. No sooner am I promised antioxidants via watered down juice than a young man suddenly morphs into a wolf/husky/thing! See for yourself after the jump.

Earlier this month, some Brits voted Fitzwilliam Darcy, a.k.a. Mr. Darcy, third in a Mills & Boon most romantic literary character poll. Richard Sharpe, of Bernard Cornwell's series, came in second. Both of these men are rather dreamy, so it must take someone pretty special to take top honours. Who could it be, you ask? Mr. Rochester, of course.

And by of course, I mean, "WTF?" Never mind his "grim" looks, the hero of Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, isn't a good romantic partner! He leads another woman on, letting her believe that they will be married, in order to make Jane jealous (the story, unfortunately, suggests that the other woman gets what she deserves for being shallow), and, when he does get Jane, he neglects to mention that, oh, by the way, he's married to someone else. Sexy!

Mr. Darcy may be excessively proud, but one refused proposal from Elizabeth causes him to examine his attitudes and completely redress his behaviour. This never happens in real life. Mr. Rochester only straightens out when he almost dies in a fire. Honestly, Britons.

On Monday night's Gossip Girl, Olivia (Hilary Duff) decided to show Dan's parents that she really is the shallow Hollywood starlet she believes they think her to be (yeah, lots of lies this ep), so she rolls up to the Freshmen Parents Dinner/Toast/Impossible Social Situation in a skin tight, peach Hervé Léger.

Over on Monday night's Castle, Beckett (Stana Katic) needs to remind everyone that she is a hottie in addition to a bitchin' detective, so she rolls up to Castle's book launch party in a skin tight, blue Hervé Léger.

On Gossip Girl, this sort of thing is expected. Also, TV has long conditioned me to accept that people on inside the tube wear clothes, live in houses, and drive cars far beyond their salary range, so I'm okay with Beckett's choice. But twice in one night on two different networks? What's next? Will Quinn be in tears on Glee tonight when her Herve Leger no longer fits? Will Jonathan have to solve the case of the stolen Herve Leger on Sunday's Bored to Death? Remember: twice is a coincidence; three makes a rule.

I just read the AV Club's road-trip mix-tape suggestions (I was very excited to see Josh Modell's answer because I would run away with him if given the opportunity and Nathan Rabin's because he doesn't drive). While their responses are wonderful, especially the road/location specific ones, there is something missing from their list. For some time now, all of my road trips have begun with the same song: Kansas's "Carry on My Wayward Son." The melodic to electric build is well suited to pulling out of the driveway and getting on the road.

It's also the first song of a very specific road trip mix based entirely on songs from Supernatural, which sounds dorky and ridiculous, but consider this: it's almost entirely classic rock, which is the very basis of all good road trip mixes (that, and country, because it is so readily available on radio regardless of location). What's more, if you watch Supernatural (and you should), cross-country trips are a regular part of the show. If you had a cherry '67 Chevy Impala at your disposal, wouldn't they be a regular part of your life?

Why does "Carry on My Wayward Son" have to come first? Since the penultimate episode of first season, each season finale begins with a montage set to that very song. And I kid you not, the fine editing folk behind Supernatural give great montage. See for yourself after the jump.

This morning (Cult)ure was excited to discover that what appeared to be a new and official Gillian Anderson Twitter account had started up.  Then we noticed a second one...

Despite having links to what appears, at first glance, to be Anderson's official website, the accounts are indeed fake, as confirmed by the Official Gillian Anderson Website (GAWS) when contacted by (Cult)ure:

 "Gillian has NEVER had MySpace or Facebook pages and she's also not on Twitter. When Gillian wants to communicate with her fans, she does so exclusively through the news page of her own web site."

After last week's dispiriting entry, I thought I might have to let Bored to Death go. In the series' third episode, things have started looking up. Jonathan doesn't take any cases but his own when he loses the script Jim Jarmusch has invited him to rewrite, and he spends the rest of the episode trying to track it down.

It's a simple plot, but paring things down helped the show immensely. George (Ted Danson) and Ray (Zack Galifianakis) are both drawn into Jonathan's plot instead of people he repeats bits of exposition to, which is great for the audience because both Danson and Galifianakis get to show off their comedic chops this time out. Galifianakis's laundry list of the things he wanted to do to cheer himself up after therapy was a particular highlight. 

More importantly, Jonathan seemed to come alive this episode. Making out with a sixteen year-old and the possibility of working with Jarmusch did much for his character. Oh, and his hair cut. That also helped.

The CBC has broken the story that recent messages posted on Twitter under the 'Chef at Home' user name were not posted by Michael Smith, but by an impostor assuming the popular Chef and TV host's identity.

Recent tweets made disparaging remarks about Montreal restaurants, and seemed especially out of character for those familiar with Smith.

(Cult)ure had the pleasure of interviewing Smith last year and he was warm, friendly, open, and every bit the gentleman you see on TV each week.  Check out our interview here, and be sure to spread the world to your friends on Twitter about the identity theft.

I don't want to go as far as to say that I was bored to death, literally or figuratively, by last night's première of Bored to Death, the new HBO sitcom starring under-appreciated hottie Jason Schwartzman. But it was kind of boring.

Perhaps it's just a little too low key. My last unlicensed PI show was, after all, Pushing Daisies, starring under-appreciated hottie Lee Pace. In it, a pie maker could wake the dead. This time around, a writer needs something to do to break himself out of what appears to be a white wine/pot-induced writer's block (or is it the other way around?). Actually, that too much white wine and pot thing is pretty funny. But it's not laugh out loud funny like I want it to be.

The pilot stuck to establishing characters and relationships, so the actual case  Jonathan Ames (a name so fake sounding I was surprised to learn it's real) took on was so run of the mill that I could have solved it while making a profit (Jonathan forgot about expenses).

Last night's episode, "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'" dispatched with Maryann so early on that I was nearly overwhelmed with dread and tension by the time that 10 o'clock rolled around. If there is one thing this show does well, it's a cliffhanger. How much bad could they set up for Season 3? Let's take a look.

Bill & Sookie (& Eric)

Though it takes Sookie a while to figure out Bill and Sam's plan for Maryann, they all end up okay (except for Maryann, but that's the point). The next day, a dress is delivered to Sookie (which, does this happen in real life? Clothes deliveries?) with a note about a night out. First I worried it was one of Eric's tricks, which would result in Eric finally drinking Sookie's blood. Turns out it really was Bill, but I only got more nervous when Bill told Jessica that he was taking Sookie to French restaurant to "celebrate." I think we all know what that means. Sure enough, Sookie broke down after Bill's proposal and ran off to the bathroom to collect herself. Too bad that by the time she realized her answer was yes, Bill had been abducted by Eric (or his minions). Because that V that Eric's having Lafayette sell? Is the Queen's own. And she's not too happy that Bill knows about it (not that we understand what she's up to at this point). For the first time ever, I hoped that Bill at least got the chance to sense how happy Sookie was when she came tearing out to accept his proposal. Will we find Bill down on Eric's work wheel in next season's opener? How many episodes will go by before Sookie asks for Eric's help in finding Bill? Oh, and did I mention that Eric's apparently in love with Sookie now? Good grief.

Despite the fact that I'm in my mid-twenties and headed toward my late twenties soon enough, I still watch the CW. I came of age when the network did (back when it was the WB): Buffy started when I was 13; Dawson's Creek premièred when I was 14. We have a bond. It's usually called"hotties."

I went into Melrose Place Tuesday evening expecting nothing and got the same in return. It doesn't seem like it will be the endlessly fun camp-fest of the original, and virtually none of the characters attract attention. Katie Cassidy, known to some as original recipe Ruby (Supernatural) and others as doomed Trish Wellington (Harper's Island), is the lone stand out as the truly bitchy Ella Simms, a.k.a the new Heather Locklear (compete with jokes about bad dye jobs). They've upped the ante by turning the character bi, but she's still hung up on some guy who's only got eyes for someone else. As much love as I have for Cassidy, she's not enough of a reason to stick it out. Final Verdict: Good enough when there's nothing else to do and you are bored our of your gourd. Not good enough for any other reason.

Though the Vampire Diaries books are older than Twilight and True Blood, the success of the latter two no doubt secured Kevin Williamson's adaptation a place on the CW's schedule. Fortunately for us viewers, it's just the right blend of soapy, campy, and violent. Also fortunately, no one's used the word soulmate yet. After one episode, all the characters are more vivid and interesting than everyone in the Twi-verse. Sadly, because of a little thing called "censors," they will never be as "vivid" (read: naked) as the good people of Bon Temps. But hot vampire brothers locked in a centuries long battle over a woman whose doppelgänger is already interested in at least one of them? There are worse things.
Final verdict: Assuming I never have to hear the s-word again, a full season order would do me fine. 

Okay, so apparently last July it was announced that Roeper and Ebert's contract for At the Movies was not renewed.

How did this not make bigger waves? How did I not hear about this until now? My internet skills have failed me!!!!

Ebert has been off the show for a few years now, due to health concerns, and Richard "Thumbs Down for LOTR" Roeper has always been largely irrelevant. All the same, it is sad to see Ebert's involvement, even behind the scenes, come to an end.

I cannot believe this didn't occur to me sooner. Normally I like my pop culture worlds to remains discrete (e.g. I don't spend a lot of time wondering what would happen if we got Edward some TruBlood because: Bill), but in last night's episode of True Blood (this season's penultimate), Eric did something that I knew I had seen somewhere before. To wit:

Blair's expression, while not moving in any way, somehow becomes totally terrifying. It is one of the greatest parts of this or any other episode. 

That's from Jacob's recap of The Ex Files, season 2, episode 4 of Gossip Girl.

The deadline for submissions is Tuesday, September 1, 2009. 

CALL FOR DOC OR DRAMA PITCH SUBMISSIONS: 2009 imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival DOCUMENTARY & DRAMA PITCH:

Exclusive Professional Training & Pitch Sessions

Hollywood industry mag Variety is reporting that all five original cast members of the Canadian comedy super troupe Kids in the Hall are reuniting for a new series called Death Comes to Town. The eight-part series will be a murder mystery set in Ontario. Filming is set to take place in North Bay, so the 'Ontario' setting, is it seems, does not mean Toronto.  Interesting!

As if appearing in Millennium, Buffy the Vampires Slayer, and Angel didn't buy him enough Cult Cred, actor James Marsters has signed on to Caprica, the upcoming Battlestar Galactica spin-off.

I'm still only halfway through watching BSG, but I'll definitely look forward to seeing Marsters on Caprica when I finally get through the series!

If you are a Jackass fan like me, and I know you are, you've been chomping at the bit for the release of Jackass 3.  If that Youtube clip of the dude jumping out of the airplane without a parachute, full on Point Break-style, is any indication, J3 is going to be insane!  Unfortunately, it looks like it wont be out until 2011!!

In the meantime, Jackass: The Lost Tapes is scheduled for a DVD release of October 13.  Likely culled from mediocre cut sequences, much like Jackass 2.5, I'm none-the-less looking forward to checking this out.

Hit the Chapters link in the side bar and order your copy today!