Daily Archives: March 19, 2013

5 posts

Smash Liveblog Season 2 Episode 7 “Musical Chairs”

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Another Tuesday, another shitty episode of this shitty TV show. Turns out NBC has finally figured out what we’ve known about this show all along and has decided to move it to Saturdays starting April 6. So we’ve got this week and then next to suffer through this together. The show’s showrunner, Josh  Safran says the season finale will also be the series finale. (h/t to DottieB for the info.)

Anywho – this week’s episode is called “Musical Chairs.” I’m sure it’s about Jimmy Who going to IKEA to pick out some new furniture for his apartment. Continue reading →

Picking Your Crass NCAA Bracket for Fun and Profit

Important note: The Grand Inquisitor does not follow college ball, so she is relying on the wisdom of Crassers Past (St. Patrick’s Year) to get you started. You can sign up for Crasstalk Funderdome brackets here. The team password is “indianasucks” (without the quotes).

Today is Christmas wrapped in the Super Bowl surrounded by endless waves of Kentucky Derby roses for gambling professionals, casinos, Hoboken wise guys, and offshore sports books. This is the day when the non-gamblers gamble, the day when grandmas, toddlers, the comatose and Nepalese Sherpas all gather round the television and fill out an NCAA basketball tournament bracket without knowing the difference between Duke and Duquesne or a chance in hell of actually winning the office, school or neighborhood pool.

And the pros –also that skeezy guy from Tech Support who runs this thing every year–are lining up to take your bracket and your money. The only time you’ll hear from them again is through a weekly email between now and Easter showing you and your colleagues just  badly your bracket is progressing. Continue reading →

George Saunders’ “Victory Lap”

Tenth of December bookstackHere in 2013, American short-fiction author George Saunders is having a moment. His fourth collection of short stories, Tenth of December, was published in January. Wikipedia describes the book’s critical reception as “mixed to positive” — but the positive end of that range seems remarkably intense: A recent New York Times Magazine interview with the author is titled “George Saunders Has Written the Best Book You’ll Read This Year.” (Bold title for an article published during the first week of January.) And on a winter Sunday after yet another nor’easter had finished slamming New England, Saunders’ Boston-area reading practically filled a local auditorium with his fans. Continue reading →

Smells Like Queen Spirit: RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 5, Episode 8

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The queens are all emotionally spent when they enter the workroom after last week’s non-elimination and Roxxxy’s tearful, calculated confession. Roxxxxxxxxxxy admits she had been projecting her issues at Jinkx and apologizes. Well, that’s something, I suppose. Detox is pissed that there was no elimination. Me too, gworl, me too. Alaska is frustrated that she still hasn’t won a challenge. And we’re off. Hit the jump to see my updated Drag Race Index! Continue reading →