As an important introductory note, I'd like to point out that the author of The Secret Life of Damian Spinelli, Carolyn Hennesy, is actually the actress who plays Diane Miller on General Hospital. Another key note is this: unless you are a pretty serious fan of the show, read no further. This book is not for you, you won't get it, and you will hate it.
Now that I've gotten my initial remarks out of the way, here we go. . .
If you are a true fan of General Hospital, past or present, you will find some enjoyment in this book. Ms. Hennesy writes well, and it is entertaining to read the story from the perspective of the character she plays on the show. Each chapter is the retelling of one of Spinelli's entirely fantasy-based exploits. The entire book is basically fan-fiction at its best, written by a true show insider. Some highlights include: Alan's ghost haunting Monica, Brenda using her modelling career merely as a cover for her true job as an Interpol agent, and Spinelli as a closet master surgeon.
The book is at its best during the bits when Diane and Spinelli are interacting in the present. Diane has a great perspective as a storyteller, and I would love to see Ms. Hennesy write more GH-based fiction (perhaps Diane's personal memoirs) from a more "realistic" perspective.
My main recommendation with this book, even if you ARE a hardcore GH fan, is to take it in small doses. Read a story/chapter or two as a break between other books. It can get a little trying to read the whole thing through like a typical novel. All-in-all, I liked the book, but bear in mind that I have barely missed an episode of General Hospital since I was about 15. (And for those of you who don't know me, that was a LONG time ago.)
A little bit of everything...life is an adventure!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
A Belated Update of Exciting Events on SYTYCD, plus The Glee Project
Okay, so it's been awhile since I've posted about SYTYCD. There are a couple of very good reasons for this, so, in no particular order, we have:
1. General laziness and lack of motivation
2. Bitterness and unhappiness over the way the first eliminations were handled
3. A Tivo glitch which resulted in yours truly having to wait 4 days after the air date to catch the performance show on the network website
Now that those formalities are out of the way, here's what I have to say:
I was quite impressed with the first Top 20 performance show. Lots of talent, lots of good choreography, and the statues-come-to-life number was brilliant, as well as underscoring my very early selection of Melanie as a force to be reckoned with. In the end, I was even pleased with Nigel's decision to keep everyone, giving the entire Top 20 another chance to impress America, and giving us more time to pick our real favorites.
The problem came after the second Top 20 performance show, when the bottom three couples were announced, and four dancers were eliminated. What we had was this: two performance shows, with 2 different sets of three couples who were the least favorite in one of the two given weeks. While I am all for eliminating four people in one week instead of two per week, I think the prior week's results should have been considered. Either take the bottom three from each week, and eliminate a total of four dancers from among them, or combine the voting results from the two weeks and eliminate four dancers from the OVERALL bottom three. The way the elimination was actually handled gave a complete pass to the three least favorite from Week 1, and unfairly cost the three least favorite from Week 2.
And while I'm complaining, I should also mention that the producers need to stop calling the final 15-second performance "Dance for Your Life" if your fate on the show is not really determined by said dance. Even Nigel admitted that Ryan (who, for the record, I like) had the weakest DFYL performance of the bottom three girls, but guess what? Yes, she was the one who wasn't sent packing. Doesn't seem fair. I think the show will greatly suffer from the loss of both the lovely Iveta (the classiest girl on the show) and Nick, the only tapper. And the show just won't be the same without Wadi's superpower of being able to defy gravity. Nigel, my friend, you may have brought dance to America and all, but you guys really let us down on this one. Maybe you could get down to the Top 8, then have a "wild card comeback" show to let the ousted dancers perform (solo, and with an alumni partner) so that viewers could vote our favorite (like IVETA) back into the Top 10.
Now, for a few notes on the Glee Project, which I have neglected to mention before now. If you love Glee, it is a shame if you aren't following this one. Basically, a group of hopefuls are taking part in a competition/reality show to see who gets to be the lucky recipient of a 7-episode guest stint on the show. My main concern is that, several weeks in, we haven't had any challenges that address whether or not any of these kids can actually ACT. They can all sing/dance well enough to be on the show, but isn't the ability to learn and convey dialog a pretty critical requirement for being on a tv show?
Anyway, each wannabe has apparently created a "character profile" for the stock character they would like to portray on the show. Unfortunately, several are (in my mind) out of the running already because that character is already represented (ie Hannah = Lauren, Emily = Santana, Alex = Mercedes/Kurt combo, Lindsay = Rachel). The only one of these that I think even has a chance is Alex, who (thanks to my husband's input) I would write in as Mercedes' cousin, who has been a diva rival since childhood. Other lead contenders seem to be (and please note, the character description is the one I made up, regardless of whether it relates to the one the contender actually selected):
1. Samuel--dreadlocked rasta kid who comes across as a slacker druggie type, but really uses the "tough" image to disguise his generous, poetic soul
2. Marissa--Molly Ringwald's character from Breakfast Club, the rich girl who comes across like a self-centered spoiled brat, but is really just looking for acceptance and real friends
3. Cameron--the awkward dorky guy who is brilliant and talented, but woefully inept socially
4. Damien--the exchange student who can't decide if he wants to stand out as somebody foreign and different, or blend in with his (temporary) new life
Ah, producers, why didn't you make a little side component to the show for would-be writers? I could have such fun creating mini-scripts for the hopefuls to perform as part of their own auditions. That's all I have for now, but I promise I'll try to be a (little) more prompt with future commentary.
1. General laziness and lack of motivation
2. Bitterness and unhappiness over the way the first eliminations were handled
3. A Tivo glitch which resulted in yours truly having to wait 4 days after the air date to catch the performance show on the network website
Now that those formalities are out of the way, here's what I have to say:
I was quite impressed with the first Top 20 performance show. Lots of talent, lots of good choreography, and the statues-come-to-life number was brilliant, as well as underscoring my very early selection of Melanie as a force to be reckoned with. In the end, I was even pleased with Nigel's decision to keep everyone, giving the entire Top 20 another chance to impress America, and giving us more time to pick our real favorites.
The problem came after the second Top 20 performance show, when the bottom three couples were announced, and four dancers were eliminated. What we had was this: two performance shows, with 2 different sets of three couples who were the least favorite in one of the two given weeks. While I am all for eliminating four people in one week instead of two per week, I think the prior week's results should have been considered. Either take the bottom three from each week, and eliminate a total of four dancers from among them, or combine the voting results from the two weeks and eliminate four dancers from the OVERALL bottom three. The way the elimination was actually handled gave a complete pass to the three least favorite from Week 1, and unfairly cost the three least favorite from Week 2.
And while I'm complaining, I should also mention that the producers need to stop calling the final 15-second performance "Dance for Your Life" if your fate on the show is not really determined by said dance. Even Nigel admitted that Ryan (who, for the record, I like) had the weakest DFYL performance of the bottom three girls, but guess what? Yes, she was the one who wasn't sent packing. Doesn't seem fair. I think the show will greatly suffer from the loss of both the lovely Iveta (the classiest girl on the show) and Nick, the only tapper. And the show just won't be the same without Wadi's superpower of being able to defy gravity. Nigel, my friend, you may have brought dance to America and all, but you guys really let us down on this one. Maybe you could get down to the Top 8, then have a "wild card comeback" show to let the ousted dancers perform (solo, and with an alumni partner) so that viewers could vote our favorite (like IVETA) back into the Top 10.
Now, for a few notes on the Glee Project, which I have neglected to mention before now. If you love Glee, it is a shame if you aren't following this one. Basically, a group of hopefuls are taking part in a competition/reality show to see who gets to be the lucky recipient of a 7-episode guest stint on the show. My main concern is that, several weeks in, we haven't had any challenges that address whether or not any of these kids can actually ACT. They can all sing/dance well enough to be on the show, but isn't the ability to learn and convey dialog a pretty critical requirement for being on a tv show?
Anyway, each wannabe has apparently created a "character profile" for the stock character they would like to portray on the show. Unfortunately, several are (in my mind) out of the running already because that character is already represented (ie Hannah = Lauren, Emily = Santana, Alex = Mercedes/Kurt combo, Lindsay = Rachel). The only one of these that I think even has a chance is Alex, who (thanks to my husband's input) I would write in as Mercedes' cousin, who has been a diva rival since childhood. Other lead contenders seem to be (and please note, the character description is the one I made up, regardless of whether it relates to the one the contender actually selected):
1. Samuel--dreadlocked rasta kid who comes across as a slacker druggie type, but really uses the "tough" image to disguise his generous, poetic soul
2. Marissa--Molly Ringwald's character from Breakfast Club, the rich girl who comes across like a self-centered spoiled brat, but is really just looking for acceptance and real friends
3. Cameron--the awkward dorky guy who is brilliant and talented, but woefully inept socially
4. Damien--the exchange student who can't decide if he wants to stand out as somebody foreign and different, or blend in with his (temporary) new life
Ah, producers, why didn't you make a little side component to the show for would-be writers? I could have such fun creating mini-scripts for the hopefuls to perform as part of their own auditions. That's all I have for now, but I promise I'll try to be a (little) more prompt with future commentary.
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