The Ditzyplex

I'm baaack! (again)
Hello bitches! I'm back, desperately trying to give this blog malarkey a proper chance yet again. I want to actually regularly update this thing this year and get some writing practice etc so with that in mind I've decided to establish 3 sparkly new regular features that will (I hope) be seen in this fair blog every week (or so).
Those are: News: tidbits about music, movies, tv etc that I find interesting and/or informative
Album reviews: Every week I will review an album from somebody. From old faves to newbies, anything in my collection or that I'm passed on could crop up.
TV Update: I love my TV. And in this section I will give a wee update on what I've been watching recently. From my opinon on current plot arcs to comments on how pretty/unpretty the leads look this week. Fun.

NEWS

The Return of Lost
Finally! Got news of the screening date for Lost season 2 in Ireland. It's returning to RTE Two on the 13th Feburary (a Monday) at 10pm. We get to find out what's in the hatch in episode 1 (YES!!!) and see the exploits of the survivors from the tail end of the plane. Whoo.Hoo. Safe to say the spot on the sofa is already booked. This better deliver!!

Comeback Queens
Both Nelly Furtado and Pink have potentially ace sounding new material headed our way in the next few months. Pink's new album I'm Not Dead sounds like an attempt to re-establish her popularity especially in the wake of Kelly Clarkson's success recently and I'm excited about a possible return to widespread success not least because Pink's last album was so cruelly ignored. I may not be as big a Nelly Furtado fan but I'm pretty excited to hear Maneater, her forthcoming new album which features production from Timbaland and Lester Mendez. It's tipped as a return to form for both Timbaland and Furtado and I can't wait to hear it.

Popjustice gets a makeover!!
My favourite website www.popjustice.co.uk is getting itself a swanky new look with tons of extra content and a new messageboard. I've seen the preivew thing-y and it's all terribly exciting. Will probably go live soon. Wow.

eh that's it on the news front so far. Oh well. We all have to start somewhere..

Album Review
I'm cheating a bit here. I've already submitted this for the college newspaper but bah it mightn't be printed so I'll stick it here aswell:



Shakira “Fijacion Oral Volume 1”
When Shakira accepted her award for Best Female at last year’s MTV Europe Music Awards she wasn’t the only onewho was surprised. Many a viewer in the UK and Irelandraised their eyebrows and wondered how someone who’dapparently done nothing all year had won such an award.

It’s simple. While she may have cast aside the UK andIreland on her promotional circuit last year Shakira enjoyedconsiderable success with her new Spainish language album“Fijacion Oral Volume 1” across Europe and the US thankslargely in part to “La Tortura” the infectiouspop-reggaeton hybrid smash that crossed language barriers inthe US charts (first Spainish-language song to be sent intorotation on MTV, VH1 and US Mainstream radio and receive MTVVideo Music Award nominations for example) and beat DaddyYankee by going one further and sticking the immenselypopular reggaeton beat to a decent tune. The album is wortha look for this infectious track alone but thankfullyShakira manages to craft an album that holds then more thanjust one killer single.

Opening track “En Tas Pupilas”is a gorgeous ballad the kind female pop stars so rarely getright, “Las De La Intuicion” is fantastic bubble-yelectro pop like Kylie gone all eccentric and Spainishspeaking and “Obtener Un Si” has an interesting Sinatravibe. It’s a tad overwrought at times and some might beput off by the language barrier, but if you’re wonderingwhere Shakira was all this time or just want to clueyourself in before the release of Oral Fixation Volume 2later this year then this album is well worth a look.

TV Update
Ah January. I love you bring new televisual goodness into my life. Here's a quick round up of some of the stuff I've been watching..

Desperate Housewives
RTE Two, 10pm, Tuesdays
I do like this show but it's vastly underrated. Still I enjoy it's frothy mix of sex, black humour and silliness each week even if it's nowhere as clever as all the critics would like to think it is. Season 2 has had any huge plot points so far but seems to be slowly getting us hooked on the various misadventures of the residents of Wisteria Lane.

Gabrielle (my favourite) seems to have moved on from John the Ridiculously Overrated "Pretty" Boy and is willing to make things work with Carlos, who's busy doing time while Gaby spends his money and not look the least bit pregnant. The scene at the end of episode 3 where she actually apolgised was surprisingly heartfelt and a nice reminder that Eva Longoria has more acting chops then people would like to give her credit for.

Stupid Bloody Susan (I really don't like her) manages to be as irritating as ever. She's dumped Mike because he's Zack's son and he can't be anywhere her daughter. She's found out her ex husband is going out with Edie, ran Edie over by mistake (how hilarious.not), nearly rumbled the creepy new neighbours, been jealous about Edie's relationship with her daughter and acted like a gobshite in a church. New season, same Bloody Stupid Susan.

Lynette has gone back to work in one of the most potentially interesting storylines for the new season. It hasn't amounted to much yet but Lynette trying her best to balance work and family but Felicity Huffman manages what she did last year, taking a underwritten but likeable character and making her ten times more charming with her winning performance. Huffman is aces in the role, I just wish Lynette was a bit more well written.

Bree, this show's real asset despite what the Teri Hatcher loving press would like to say, seems to be getting the real juice plotwise this season. Rex is dead, his mother has turned up to over react, Bree is suspected in killing Rex and George, the freak a zoid who actually killed, looks set to win Bree's heart and get away with Rex's murder. The combination of twist and turns coupled with the idea of an already emotionally stunted woman grieving means the Bree is the heart of this show right now and it's her story that along with the new neighbours is driving the show

Edie, is still a bit flat and one dimensional this season, still seeming to be in the show to show how "sexy" she is and annoy Susan. Yawn.

But my favouritest thing about the new DH season so far is the new neighbours. Not only does Betty Applewhite look like Oprah's evil twin, her and her son seem to be keeping some guy, (Betty's husband? her brother? Some guy who was rude to her a few years ago she really wanted to piss off?) in their basement. So far he's managed to escape the basement and nearly kill Betty and son and make lots of noise but of which have aroused the suspicions of Stupid Bloody Susan, who'll probably be the one to rumble the mystery of what's the what in the Applewhite basement before the season ends. I am hooked on this story and am quite literally desperate (no pun intended) to find out what the deal is..

So in conclusion, the 2nd season is off to a slow but intriguing start. There's enough ammo in some of the current storylines to give us a strong 2nd year but certain elements could still do with a bit of a kick in the ass plot wise. Still Desperate Housewives is setting out to be as riveting viewing.

Veronica Mars
Sundays, 6pm (times vary slightly) Living Tv
I am really really buzzed about this show. All signs have pointed to at this logical successor to Buffy, my fave show ever. I'd seen episodes 5 an 10 when LivingTv aired them in their frankly ridiculous weekdays at 6 slot but now that it's being repeated at a slightly more manageable time I've managed to catch the first 2 episodes.

The pilot introduces us the the titular character. Once part of the in crowd in her well to do Californian high school Veronica Mars now works with her dad who's a private eye in the town. Her dad was the Sheriff but when Veronica's best friend (Lily Kane) died and he fingered Lily's dad as the main suspect it backfired and he lost his job and Veronica her social status. Not only was Lily Veronica's best buddy but she was dating Lily's brother Duncan. Plus not long after Lily's death Veronica was date raped at a party. Throw in the disappearance of her mother and Veronica's life begins to sound ridiculously complicated.

And it is. But thanks to deft scripting and sharp performances the show has set up a number of brilliant mysteries, who killed Lily? Who raped Veronica? Where is Veronica's mother?, that the show promises (and actually does) wrap up at the end of the first season.

The dialogue and tone are very similar to Buffy's. Tongue and cheek and ironic but still rich, well written and compelling. But the key thing is it's has a freshness and a wit that comparisons aside are hard to grasp until you watch it. I'm thoroughy impressed with this show. Hopefully the season long plot will enthrall me as muc as these initial episodes. And I didn't even mention the biker gang that helps Veronica out on occassion

The Comeback
Thursdays, Living Tv 9pm
This went out last year on US cable network HBO (home of Six Feet Under, Sex and the City and The Sopranos to name a few) and it stars my favourite Friends actress Lisa Kudrow. The plot is (not that) simple.

Kudrow plays Valerie Cherish, an out of the limelight actress who is being followed around by a camera crew that documents her part in a new hip sitcom. It's shot in a documentary meets reality show style and though it's not big on laughs or twists it's got an addictive quality that's got me slowly hooked on it.

The behind the scenes look at the putting together of a sitcom, Valerie's attempts to be hip, her cocky writer bosses and her nubile co-stars, it's all mixed together in one addictive package that plays like an episode of the Office meshed with a parituclarly in depth reality show. Kudrow is excellent too. Unfortunately only 13 episode's thanks to cancellation by HBO, so the Comeback is an acerbic, enthralling treat to be savoured before it disappears.


Well that's all for now. Hopefully my work here will be regular, fun and all that stuff.
bye for now!!