Sunday, October 27, 2024

DOA on TV October 27, 2023

 

 

NCIS Origins

Another good episode, cementing this as a new regular show for me to watch.  In Bend, Don’t Break, a man is found by the road, clearly having died somewhere else. There are plastic eggs with drugs inside near the body.  The investigation leads to a nearby mall which has had thefts in a toy store and a sporting goods store which sold guns.

Gibbs goes off the rails and entraps a mall security officer in a glass elevator, trying to tie him the thefts and the murder.


 

On the personal front, Gibbs goes to his home to see if he can sort out the belongings of his wife and daughter, but he leaves distraught without making any progress there.  His father, still staying at Gibbs’ apartment goes to Mike Franks and demands Leroy be given a desk job, as he’s not ready to be in the field.

Gibbs behavior at the mall makes Franks ask Gibbs to sit this out.  That doesn’t work, does it?

I’m liking Randy even more this week, as he’s unexpectedly loyal to Gibbs. Lala is much more composed and business like this week, not adding to the people harassing Gibbs.

 

Only Murders in the Building

In Escape from Planet Klongo, things finally heat up with another murder, and a very funny scene where Martin and Short get to be extras on a Ron Howard film set, but break into an argument, wearing blue performance capture outfits that make them look like aliens on a small monitor nearby.   Ron Howard’s cameo doesn’t disappoint.


 

 

Survivor

It’s the Merge, with the usual shenanigans about it not being the real merge until there’s been a competition to earn the new buffs. In a bit of a twist though, only the person ultimately earning individual immunity is safe, every other person can be voted out.

Thankfully Rome Cooney managed to get on everyone’s nerves in the new enlarged group.  The guy just never stopped talking, lying, bragging.  Out he went.


 

There are so many sharks this season, it should be interesting to see who falls next.

 

Matlock

In the episode A Guy Named Greg, Matty, it turns out, was a contracts lawyer, but never a trial lawyer.  Even so, given a sympathetic relationship with the client, and the favorable impression she’s made on the jury, Matty ends up in court trying the case.  The trial is about workplace sexual harassment. 

Matty at first has trouble grasping that the client wasn’t able to brush the guy off, as working women did back in her day.  Then she remembers Greg, and her husband does too.  It turns out Matty wanted to be a trial lawyer early in her career, but it was easier to move into contract law to avoid him after an incident in the break room.


 

Armed with that memory, which she had suppressed, she is able to go into the courtroom and deliver a powerful argument for her client.  Her character just gets better and better.

 

The Great British Baking Show

It’s Pastry Week on the show.  Where do they get these foods?  Spanokopita, a Greek dish with a spinach/feta cheese filling looked nice, but I can’t imagine it being tasty.  I did like seeing the pastry attachment on a Kitchen Aid Blender, though, how slick was that?  The group this time really is exceptionally talented, and the show stoppers were amazing.  I feared my second favorite baker, Illiyin, had some bad luck and was one of those on the bottom, but she continues on.   Nelly wore a beret this week, for luck, provided by her son.


 

 

Girl Haunts Boy

In this Netflix film, a girl named Beatrix from the 1920s takes half of a ring from a display at a museum.  Outside the museum, she’s hit by a car immediately.

In the present day, Cole and his mother are moving into a Victorian style home after the unexpected death of Cole’s father.  Everything is new here for Cole, particularly the discovery that the house is haunted by the ghost of a girl named Bea from the 1920s.  He finds a scrapbook and an old ring in the closet in his room. Once he places the ring on his finger, he can see and talk to Bea.


 

She thinks she’s been dead perhaps 30 years, but it’s been a century.  She is so happy to have someone to talk to, and he’s happy to introduce her to the modern world.  She’s been trapped in the house unable to leave, but they find if he wears the ring, she can go out and explore the world with him.

Taking her to New York and showing her the modern world takes Cole out of his grief a bit.  When he finds out it is possible to remove the curse of the ring and send her on to her fated after life, how can he say goodbye?

Saturday, October 26, 2024

DOA's Saturday Puzzles: An Answer Key for the October 19, 2024 Cryptogram Puzzle

 Our Beagle is like Don Knotts from the Ghost and Mr. Chicken (if you've seen the movie, you know my dog).  Every tiny or large noise, or sudden movement yikes!  He running!  Sometimes he actually runs in place like a cartoon dog trying to get traction before he speed bursts to safety.  Sweetest guy ever, but yikes.  Don't drop a pencil around him.  Or a sheet of paper.


IK RYQ ARK YD YH GXSF XZXFCIRYHT FWDIEXD

TO HIM WHO IS IN FEAR EVERYTHING RUSTLES

Acrisius



DOA's Saturday Puzzles: When The Moon Hatched A Word Find

 Welcome to week 4 in the puzzle rotation. It's Word Find Week, and this one is based on the most recent book I've read, When The Moon Hatched by Sarah A Parker






Friday, October 25, 2024

Five Things Friday October 25, 2024

 The leaves are falling in earnest. I’m going to keep up with them this season for sure. We talked about getting a leaf blower this season since we are officially little old people now. However, the 20 year old dishwasher had the nerve to go belly up, so leaf blower money allocated elsewhere. Plus, I enjoy raking leaves and our puppy is a huge fan of leaf piles. Blah, blah, you say.

One: Though I’ve never been a reader of The Saturday Evening Post (I wish I had been), I love their covers.  Here’s one with a harried housewife and grocery carry out man dealing with a Sack of Trouble.


Two:  Garden Humor, non gardeners need not apply.



Three:  Once again you can thank me for giving you display ideas for those old suitcases you’ve been snaring at sales.



Four:  Time for more Christmas Gift ideas for those special people in your life who “have everything”.


Five: For my brilliant Bridge playing spouse.



Sunday, October 20, 2024

DOA On TV 10/20/24

 



Welcome to DOA on TV.  I'm actually watching numerous shows right now, and love to share them with you :)


 

NCIS Origins



I saw ads for this while watching Survivor.  I’ve never watched a single episode of NCIS, or any of its breakout franchises.  I like a good origins story, though.  The framework of a military investigative unit appealed to me.  It takes place in the faraway year 1991.  I don’t recall the nineties being so…old. Low tech!  They use pay phones and pagers.  The cars are fun. Clothes a bit cringy.    I looked for reviews and forum discussions of the show after I watched it because I really enjoyed the show.  Ha!  All they talked about was Mark Harmon, and the long running series.  Hmmpf.

I like Leroy Gibbs, just a few months after losing his wife and daughter to a murderer, he’s starting fresh with the NCIS Unit.  His boss Mike is a real pistol of a character.  He’s barely contained.  The woman is the group is a bad ass named Lala, but I don’t like the way she treats Gibbs.  She worked on his family’s murder case, and should be giving him some space, but she goes after him relentlessly and talks about him failing his psych eval, and not being a safe member of the team to work with.  She fears he will be promoted over her.  Then there’s this little teddy bear of a guy “Randy”.  He’s a kind of a perfect, head on straight investigator compared to everyone else.



Survivor   



This season has an unusual number of “villains”.  There are so many unlikeable characters for me.  I’m struggling to think who I’d like to win.  Of those remaining, I think I only like Sol and Kyle.  Hang in there, guys!


Matlock



 The premier episode was as wonderful as the preview.  Kathy Bates is a joy to watch.  What an expressive face, and she modulates her voice so well to take charge of any situation.  Love her husband and grandson.  Of the supporting cast, Matlock’s boss Olympia is my favorite, as she tries to be tough but is a smoosh underneath, and will fight for the underdog any chance she gets.  I don’t think she’s the guilty one in the office.

Great British Baking Show



Up to Caramel week this week.  The baker’s this time around seem remarkably talented.  So fun to watch them work.  As always, everyone is likeable.  My favorite though is Nelly. She’s warm, funny, charming and talented.

Only Murders In the Building



This season is a real slow burn for me.  It’s just kind of dragging.  There's nothing about the making of the movie version of the Podcast that appeals.  Melissa McCarthy was a blast in her episode though.


Northern Exposure season 1  Amazon Prime    



I’ve seen lots of comments over time about how good this show was. I’d never seen it, but found season one is available free on Prime, then you need to buy other seasons.    I was ready to be in love with the show.  The main character, Joel, a doctor who expected better things than being a small town doctor in exchange for his medical school being paid for by the State of Alaska is just a drag. A whiner.  Lazy.  The cast surrounding him is excellent.  I’ll finish the season but would not watch more.  The opening scene with the moose needs to be able to be fast forwarded though, gack.


Saturday, October 19, 2024

DOA's Saturday Puzzles: An Answer Key for the Oct 12 2024 Double Puzzle

 I thought the puzzle was a smooth one.  I might be getting the hang of writing these puzzles.  Hopefully you are getting the hang of solving them!





DOA's Saturday Puzzles: A Cryptogram 10/19/24

 Good morning, Codebreakers! It's Cryptogram week at DOA.  I'm using an old puzzle generator for this one.  Letters of the alphabet have been replaced with other letters.  You figure out which letters are now representing the real ones as you go, and a fine phrase appears.

This one goes out to my Beagle, known here as DOA Dog.  


IK RYQ ARK YD YH GXSF XZXFCIRYHT FWDIEXD




Friday, October 18, 2024

Five Things Friday October 18, 2024

 I don’t know where I caught a cold, but bleh. Need to sleep….zzzzz.

One:  I remember having one of these masks and costumes when I was about five. I felt transformed into a princess, pure magic. Who needs to be able to see or breathe?



Two: Meter Readers are such weenies.



Three: I had a period of time when I was an avid comics reader and collector. Inexpensive, imaginative, with great covers. Magnus was a favorite, very hard to find.


Four:  I always loved Snoopy as an author.


Five:  Despite the charm of Halloween and the pretty falling leaves, October can be a daunting month..



Saturday, October 12, 2024

DOA's Saturday Puzzles: The Answer Key for the 10/5/24 Rebus

 Here is the answer key for the Rebus.  If you had trouble with what the pictures represented, it's all shown here. Click to enlarge!


Wait for that wisest of all counselors, Time.




From Plutarch's Pericles

DOA's Saturday Puzzles: A Double Puzzle

 It's Variety Week, in which a variety of puzzle types are used.  This week it's the ever popular Double Puzzle.  Unscramble the words in the boxes, then take the letters from the numbered squares to create a phrase below.  Easy!