The Great Good Thing Should Be A TV Show

Television keeps trying to replace the void that was left by Lost. With confusing sci-fi epics that are cancelled after one season and tricky psychological shows I can't keep up with. And now with Once Upon A Time, which I wanted to like but just didn't.

But might I suggest something else? How about a brilliant, fantastic sci-fi journey based on Roderick Townley's incredible The Great Good Thing? In rereading this book recently I was struck by just how complex the world is and how much more there is to explore of the world, the story, and its characters than the slim little book allows for. This is one of my treasured books and it's strange now to think I wish this were a tv show. Because you guys, it could be so so incredible in the right hands.

For those who don't know what The Great Good Thing is about and/or haven't read it, here's a quick rundown, spoiler-free: Sylvie is a storybook princess living in the pages of her book. When a Reader falls asleep with the book open, Sylvie not only breaks the most important rule ("Never look at the Reader!") but also journeys out of her father's kingdom and into another land... into the Reader's dreams. This leads to plotlines and excitement beyond anything she could have ever imagined in her own story.

I was going to do a big write-up here giving a short summery of all seasons of how I'd imagine the TV show to go but that would have SO MANY SPOILERS, so I decided against it. Just know that it would include fire, the subconscious, and wonderfully fantastic things like characters leaving their books. And that I think it should star Dakota Fanning's little sister, the one who was in Super 8. Elle Fanning I think is her name.

First Season TV Roundup

I don't often talk about tv shows on the blog, but at the beginning of this season I did a roundup of the new shows I was interested in. And now I'm coming back to talk about the freshman shows I'm still watching.

New Girl (FOX)

I wasn't loving this show at first. I'm a Zooey Deschanel fan, but not a big enough fan to watch the show just because she's in it. After the first couple of episodes I was a little ambivalent about it, but this has grown fairly quickly to be one of my favorite sitcoms. It's not "The Zooey Show," but more of an ensemble and the cast/characters work so well together. Like everyone else, I find Schmidt hilarious; he's definitely the breakout character of the show -- but I also really like the other characters and their interactions. It's just so funny and so, adorkable (yeah, I said it). I haven't heard yet if it's going to get a second season pickup, but I'd be shocked if it didn't. (Also, sidenote? This is the only FOX show I watch.)

Up All Night (NBC)

With a few exceptions, I tend to really love NBC's comedies. And this is one of the exceptions. I know a lot of people really love it and I'll admit that I'll end up watching it while I'm doing other things, but it's not a show I look forward to or feel the need to keep up with. I'm very eh about it (but I do love Reagan and Chris together).

Pan Am (ABC)

This show started out so good. I loved the pilot episode -- so atmospheric and it set up the time period and the "glamor" really well. Unfortunately the show didn't do so good in the ratings and (I don't know if these things are related or not), it was like they threw more and more stuff at it trying to give it more appeal and the whole thing just fell apart. I was really hoping for more of a focus on the "jet age" aspect of it and that didn't really pan out. Instead, the show went to various weird places (not geographically, I mean in the storytelling direction) and what kept me watching was the character of Colette. The first season is over now and I doubt it'll get picked up for a second season.

Free Agents (NBC)

I really liked this show but I must have been the only one because it got cancelled pretty much right away. Bummer, that.

Books I Want to See on TV

I haven't been doing a whole lot of reading lately. Not quite sure why. But what I have been doing is watching television and being so happy that my shows are coming back from the winter hiatus. And though I don't actually watch Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars, or The Lying Game, I absolutely love the idea of tv shows based on YA books. I like this even better than movies based on YA books! Because I like tv more than movies!

BOOKS I'D LOVE TO SEE AS TELEVISION SHOWS:

1. Hooked

Catherine Greenman

The fact that this book covers years of Thea's life and has plenty of family drama makes me think that it could be an awesome hour-long drama. It's the kind of show the WB used to make (remember the WB? Remember Gilmore Girls?) and now I feel like it might fit in ABC or ABCFamily. 

2. Wither (Chemical Garden series)

Lauren DeStefano

Alright, granted only the first book in the series is out now (also, I'm envious of anyone who's already read Fever), but this is looking to be a great trilogy - and a great basis for a tv show. Futuristic sci-fi and drama centered around the sister wives of Linden Ashby? With luck this series would also give us the backstory on Rose. I'm not sure if this show would fit better on the CW or the old SciFi channel (you know, the good old days before it was SyFy), but just thinking about Wither as a television series is awesome.

3. The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer series)

Jenny Han

Another trilogy that - thanks to its years-long arc, awesome characters, and incredible love triangle - would make a great drama. (Or, with some tweaking, a hilarious sitcom!) I really don't know where this show would fit, but I really love the idea of this series on the small screen.

4. Exclusively Chloe

J.A. Yang

Honestly not only would this make an awesome television show, but it would fit in perfectly with ABCFamily's current crop of hidden-identity shows (The Lying Game, Pretty Little Liars, Jane By Design ??) and teen family dramas (Switched at Birth). It's definitely been a while since I've read this book but it's stuck with me and it's so cute that I'm sure it would make an awesome feel-good show. 

5. Luxe (Luxe series)

Anna Godberson

Dear CW (because, obviously), if you do make Luxe into a show, I beg you to change the ending. PLEASE PLEASE PRETTY PLEASE. I can only live through the end of this series in one form of art/entertainment. Seriously. Other than that though! I think this would make a really addicting and beautiful and so awesome series. Four seasons and you just stick to the books with that one little exception of the ending.

What books would you love to see as tv shows?

Fall TV - Pilots

I know this is primarily a book blog, but with my unabashed enthusiasm for television I can't help but give you my opinions on the (many) shows I've seen so far this fall. First up: pilot episodes of brand-spanking-new shows. I ended up watching more pilots than I had planned on and might actually end up watching a couple more.

Here are two things I like and one thing I love: Christina Applegate, Will Arnett, and NBC. So of course I was going to tune into the new show Up All Night, in which the two portray new parents struggling to keep being the "cool kids" they used to be. Maya Rudolph, who plays Reagan (Christina Applegate)'s best friend/boss rounds out the main cast and while I don't care much for her character, this show is definitely a winner in my book. It's so much better than the new-parents premise makes it sound. Reagan and Chris are have a cute and hilarious relationship and though it wasn't nonstop laughs, there were more than enough genuinely funny moments (like Chris trying to find cheese "all I can find is the fancy salad bar cheese") and a whole lot of heart to keep me watching. Some of the plots are ridiculous, but also strangely real and believable. Plus, how much do I love that Nick Cannon is in the show? So much. This is the first time I've seen Will Arnett play a sort-of regular character and I'm definitely going to keep watching this show.

I really wasn't planning to watch this show, but iTunes had the pilot as a free download and I figured eh, why not? Plus it has that guy who played David on Friends. Not that I noticed -- my sister had to tell me. But still. ANYWAY. This show sort of flips the romantic comedy on its head with lead characters (one divorced, one whose fiance has died) who have already gotten together and then decided it was the worst idea ever, so of course they're just going to be friends. Because that's going to work! (No. It's not.) It was a lot funnier than I was expecting it to be, mostly because the leads are actually pretty funny together and the surrounding characters are equally as funny, but the romantic aspect seems forced. I'm sure these two will eventually get together, but the fact that they seem to work so good as friends and everything else seems forced makes me think that a lot of the show might seem forced. Still, it was a lot better than I was expecting and though I probably won't keep up with it, I still might watch it when I'm bored.

This seemed promising and I'd heard it was good, so I watched it. UM. I'm sure a lot of people are going to love this show. More than will love a lot of my favorite shows, surely, but it just isn't a show I'm going to be watching. This show relies a lot on crass and sexual humor, which is sometimes funny to me but an overwhelming amount of time it really isn't. I know there were some good jokes here, but I didn't find them funny and on top of that I can't suspend my disbelief enough to really buy into the character of Max (is that her name? The one Kat Dennings plays, with the brown hair). She's great at the role, but the character is hugely rude, sarcastic, and mean, to the point that it felt a bit offensive and I started thinking hey wait, there's no way she can talk like that at her job, to customers and more importantly how the heck do all these other people like her? I mean really. The scene with the hipsters was kind of funny, but more than anything I kept thinking OMG SHE'S SO MEAN!!! And unless there's a compelling reason, I don't like mean characters. And on a side note, there were way too many pop culture references that I just didn't get. So yeah. Not watching this one.

Is there anyone who actively dislikes Zooey Deschanel? No, probably not. I'm not as crazy about her as most seem to be, but the premise of a dorky-cute girl living with three guys was interesting enough to hook me. In most ways this is a typical sitcom, which is to say it's funny but not amazing, there are a few things that really stand out and will ensure I watch the next episode at least, if not the rest of the season. For one thing there are little moments that are just hilarious (the jar, for one). And in spite of the typical sitcom-y situations, the relationships between the characters seem like they're probably going to develop pretty well (or maybe that's me being hopeful). The New Girl's habit of singing her life also reminds me a lot of my sister, so that's cool.

First of all: my sister was right. She told me this show was going to be awful but, I don't know, I kind of thought it might not be? The commercials were funny to me. BUT OH MY GOODNESS, NO. Just, no. NBC, I love you, but this is a fail. As with 2 Broke Girls (also produced by Whitney Cummings), there was a lot of crass humor here. But more than that what put me off the show was the huge reliance on gender stereotypes and being unfunny. That's pretty bold for a sitcom: to rely on not being funny. Just kidding. It tries to be funny, but it just isn't. And as with 2 Broke Girls, the main character is pretty unlikeable. During her rant about how awful and terrible weddings and marriage are I couldn't help but wonder who is inviting this woman to their wedding? Because I sure wouldn't want her at mine. One of my Twitter friends called this show "offensively unfunny" and I kind of have to agree. And the thing is, while I don't think it's aiming for "unfunny," I do think it's aiming to "offensive." I get the feeling that this is the type of show that wants to be so edgy and so offensive because that kind of stuff is funny, but I just don't like shock-value humor and without characters I can relate to at least a little bit I don't stick around. So this is another I won't be watching a second episode of, even if it is on my favorite network. 

Okay, I realize there's plenty of time for this show to go into a horrible downward spiral, but judging by the pilot episode it's fair to say that I love it. I mean, come on! It has aviation/flight and espionage. Plus, it's just so dang pretty. I mean that opening shot of the sky and then the airport with all the Pan Am jets sitting there? Awesome. Right now it looks like the show is probably going to concentrate on a core group of stewardesses and pilots, but there's a mystery aspect that I feel like might become a big thing. The show does a good job of setting up the backstories of the characters and I actually really like all of the characters, which is a major plus. It's definitely a show I'm going to keep watching. 

What do you guys think of the new fall shows, if you watched any of them?

Crazy Shenanigans in Books vs. Movies and Television

Last month I read Susanne Colasanti's latest novel, So Much Closer. In it, a girl finds out her longtime crush is moving to New York City, so she follows him there and enrolls at his new school in the hopes that he'll notice, and fall in love with, her. It's not a bad book, but the entire time I found myself thinking about how unbelievably unrealistic the whole thing was. I mean, really? It just seems crazy. The whole time I was thinking about how insane this character is and how I couldn't believe what she was doing.

It just wasn't very believable.

And then Saturday night I watched television. More specifically, I watched iCarly and then Legally Blonde, both of which I love. In the first, a girl checked herself into a mental institution because she likes a boy. And I assume everyone has seen Legally Blonde, but on the off chance you haven't, she follows her ex-boyfriend to law school in order to become a lawyer so that he'll go out with her again and ask her to marry him. Now, these things are equally as unbelievable as the plot of So Much Closer, but I accepted them so much easier. A mental hospital? From vapid sorority girl to law school student? No problem.


And the craziness doesn't stop there.  In Pushing Daisies, a character joins a convent to get away from the guy she's in love with (and also there's a dead girl who's never recognized by her family, but that's another type of crazy); Lizzie McGuire passed for an Italian pop star for, like, a long time. And I easily went along with those things.

So why is it that the most unbelievable (and, let's face it, usually pretty stupid) things happen in a TV show or movie, but when similar things happen in books it's so difficult to get past? All of the shows and movies I mentioned? Love them. The book? Well, the idea that The Office references were so obscure people wouldn't get them was my breaking point.

There is something wrong here, some disconnect between the fictional stories we see on television and the ones we read in books. Is it because the on-screen stories are comedies while most books aren't? Maybe, but even those books that are comedies couldn't get away with the type of storylines and character choices we see here. There are some things not even Scarlett and Spencer Martin can make believable and realistic.

And if it's not comedy, what is it? Is it easier to accept that worlds, though they look like our own, are their own universes when those worlds are shown on screen instead of in pages? Is it easier, somehow, to nitpick books? Are story mediums like television and movies more about escapism, whereas books are about relating? I don't know, but the more I think about it the more interesting the question becomes.

What do you think? Is it easier for you to accept the crazy things characters do if those characters are in TV/movies instead of books? And why?

Clear Eyes and Full Hearts

I am easily involved in the lives of fictional people and their worlds. Give me a character to love or hate and I will. Give me an almost-couple to root for and I will. Give me something to laugh at or cry about. I like fiction not because it's less messy or complicated than real life but because it can be just as messy, just as complicated. Because it brings you out of yourself and into something else, a life or a world or a view that's not your own. It introduces you to people you'd never speak to in your everyday life and places you'd never visit.

But the funny thing is Friday Night Lights doesn't feel like that. It doesn't feel, to me, like other people and other places. It feels like home and I can't quite say why. The focus on high school football reminds me of the town (Arizona, not Texas) that I grew up in, sure, but that's not enough and trying to explain all the ways and reasons I connect so deeply with this show would be impossible, but I do. From the very first episode I was hooked. I loved it. While many others had to watch the first three or four to really get past the sadness that presents itself in the pilot, I knew from the get-go that this was a show I'd watch each week. I was at first captivated by those first couple seconds -- the landscape shots with Slammin' Sammy Mead's radio voice over -- but quickly grew attached to the characters and their stories.

As much as I know that many people didn't love the pilot - it was incredibly sad and hugely focused on football, which could be off-putting to some - I really think it's one of the best television pilots I've seen in terms of not only writing, acting, and all those other things we love FNL for, but also because it sets the stage for the series so perfectly. Coach's end-of-episode speech/prayer says it all.

Give all of us gathered here tonight the strength to remember that life is so very fragile. We are all vulnerable and we will all, at some point in our lives, fall. We will all fall. We must carry this in our hearts, that what we have is special. That it can be taken from us, and when it is taken from us, we will be tested. We will be tested to our very souls. We will now all be tested. It is these times, it is this pain, that allows us to look inside ourselves. --Coach Taylor, ep. 1.1

Friday Night Lights is a show about football, family, and Texas But more than any of that, I think, it's a show about being tested. About the vulnerability of people and that testing to our very souls. Every character in this show has fallen. With Jason Street it happens early on, when his legs and the future he always thought he'd have is taken away from him. With other characters it comes later. Matt Seracen is tested most notably when his dad dies. This is a show about people falling down and having the courage, one way or another, to get back up again in a very real way. Tim Riggins is one of those characters that seems to have the disadvantage of his entire life being one big test and the show doesn't give him an out when - miraculously - he ends up in college. Nope, for Tim his biggest challenge is still to come. The show never lets up in pushing these characters to the brink. Not in an overdone, melodramatic way, but in a life-like way. Stuff happens in life. Tami's pregnancy with Gracie Bell happening at the same time as Coach had taken the TMU job was so incredibly great and while it would have been so easy to play it like a soap-opera twist, that's not the way Friday Night Lights ever went. (As possibly the one person who loved season two, I stand by that statement.) Everything seemed so authentic. Even when Lyla Garrity drives an ex-convict home from jail I'm like, "oh, yeah, this is definitely something Lyla would do."

I don't like Lyla. For the first couple of seasons I didn't like Tim. I used to like Julie and now I don't. Jess bored me in season four and now I think she's probably one of my favorite - and one of the best - characters. All of this is due to the fact that Friday Night Lights lets their characters grow and change and make mistakes and come back from those mistakes or not. It pushes them into places that you wouldn't imagine but that, when they do it, make perfect sense.

I know that Dillon is fictional. I know that these people don't actually exist. I know that. But in my heart... in my heart they are all very much real and very much a part of me. Friday Night Lights and the town of Dillon, TX, will probably always feel a bit like home to me. I never thought saying goodbye to a show could make me feel so emotional or like I'm saying goodbye to a little bit of myself and my home, but this show. It has such desperation and honesty and hope. It's everything great storytelling should be and I feel confident in saying that for those who love it, football in Dillon, TX, is more than just a game.

clear eyes full hearts can't lose
<3

10 Lies Television Tells

Ever since the days of Full House (possibly even earlier!), television shows have been lying to me. AND TO YOU, ALSO! Real life is difficult for television. It's messy, complicated, and often boring. Television does not like these things. It likes drama! and funny! and increasingly ridiculous situations!

And it lies. For example,

1. When your fiance leaves you at the alter, don't worry! Because you'll totally be over it in a week or less. And, bonus! You'll probably be totally fine hanging out with your ex all the time, because obviously that won't be painful or anything. I most recently saw this on Happy Endings, but I'm sure it's been played out in other shows. For instance: Friends, How I Met Your Mother. Somehow I don't think this is how it typically works in real life.
2. If you have a good job, you can easily afford to have a big family, live in a nice neighborhood, and pay for all of your children to go to top-notch colleges and grad schools. Ahem, The Cosby Show. I realize that these people were doctors and lawyers, but... seriously? In real life, there's no way that actually works.
3. You can have a great social life, hobbies, and great grades that will get you into an Ivy League school. Also, you'll totally get plenty of sleep, I promise. Once again, The Cosby Show. Also Gilmore Girls, though Rory's route to Yale was, I think, at least relatively realistic. And didn't DJ from Full House end up going to Stanford? I really don't know how these fictional people did it, but I'm thinking the fact that they're fictional might have had something to do with it.
4. Everyone has a close and unbreakable group of friends. The culprits here are almost too many to list. Friends, Cougar Town, Happy Endings, Cheers, How I Met Your Mother, Community, The Big Bang Theory -- basically every sitcom based around people who have friends. And as great as this would be if it were true (maybe for you it is?), nobody I know has that type of super-close, unwavering group of friends.
5. All extended families live within driving distance of each other -- usually even closer! The same town! And they are all super-close and involved in each others lives. Parenthood, Gilmore Girls, Arrested Development, Modern Family. Okay, this one I know for plenty of people is actually true (and actually for most of my life I lived incredibly close to part of my extended family as well), but the way these shows portray it is often strangely, um... functional? And happy? And stable? It's kind of like the Kodak-moment version of family, even for the crazy ones. Everyone's always hanging out together, in the same room, doing these family reunion type things.
6. If you're a doctor or a lawyer, your work is always fascinating and glamorous and you have a super-dramatic personal life. House, Ally McBeal, Grey's Anatomy, too many more shows to name. And I'm definitely not a doctor or lawyer, but I've been in hospitals and those are definitely definitely not glamorous places. I mean, they're stark white and smell like disinfectant. People are always trying not to die. Somehow I suspect that television greatly exaggerates the glitz of these careers and totally plays down all the mundanities like paperwork.
7. You/your band will be discovered and become super rich and famous while still in high school. Hannah Montana, The Lizzie McGuire Movie (this counts, as it's based on television), Sonny With A Chance, Big Time Rush. So... basically all the Disney/Nick shows have some element of FAME, whether it be musical or otherwise. And this is all nice and good, but generally being a success takes not only talent, but also a ton of work and a dollop of right-place-right-time. It's not all rainbows and puppies; working so hard and being so young means missing out on a lot of normal-people stuff and it's annoying that these shows don't notice that.
8. Even though your job is minimum-wage (or nonexistent), you can still easily dress fashionably and go out all the time with your friends. Friends, most notably. But also Gilmore Girls and pretty much every Disney Channel show out there. Probably tons of shows I can't think of as well. I realize this is mostly a plot device because there's absolutely no story with someone who never goes out because s/he can't afford it, but still. It can get annoying.
9. If you happen to land on a deserted island, there will be plenty to read. Lost, Gilligan's Island. Okay, seriously, I know everyone has their little list of books they'd bring if they were trapped on a desert island, but really? I don't understand how Sawyer and The Professor always seemed to have something to read. Did they just read the same two books over and over? Was there actually a library on board the ship and somehow all the books survived sans water damage? I'm so confused and as a bibliophile I must know the answer in case this ever happens to me. 
10. Publishing is super glamorous and you'll definitely be totally famous. 30 Rock, Castle. Alright, this one primarily shows up in movies (The Proposal, My Future Boyfriend), but it applies here, too. According to these TV shows, there'll be a cardboard cut-out of you in bookstore windows when you publish a book and people will recognize you and possibly stalk you or sue you and etc. etc. etc. IT'S ALL VERY FANCY. Honestly though, I'm not sure I'd recognize my very favorite authors if I passed them on the street, and these are people whose blogs and tweets I follow. (Also, thank you to Laina for this suggestion.)

So, what other lies does television tell us? And do you agree/disagree with my list?

Here Comes the Endings

My mind is very full today. Full of the series I'm working on the last chapters of (you may know it as LOLSI or you may not know it at all), series endings in general, and many, many questions.

I'm not a fan of series, as a rule. And I say this knowing full well that there are many exceptions to that rule. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Uglies, Peaches, The Hunger Games, and Luxe are just some of the series I absolutely adore. Plus, as we all know, I'm television-holic, and tv shows are a type of series.

But the endings almost never seem right to me. In books series and in television shows there often seems to be something missing, something not quite right. With the rare exception of Mockingjay I can't think of many endings that I really loved (and I know that for many people Mockingjay was a huge disappointment). Either the ending kills the series (ahem, Twilight), doesn't really give a sense of completion (here I cite the incredible BSC books), or there's just something I didn't like about it. My favorite couple didn't get together, a major element was out of place, or a couple I specifically didn't want together ended up riding off into the sunset.

FOUR WAYS SERIES ENDINGS CAN GO HORRIBLY AWRY:

SPIRALINGS OUT OF CONTROL
This is when the end of the series kills the series. Storylines spiral out of control, the rules of the established universe are tossed out the window, and there are pages and pages of readers going wth is happening here? In this case it's not just one element that's out of place, but many elements. These types of endings are the ones that most often prompt readers to go let's just pretend that didn't happen, shall we? They're the endings that ardent lovers of the series sometimes have no problem "divorcing" from the rest of the story.

THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN
This, unlike the above ending, is where there's one specific element that ends in a way you don't agree with. The hero of the story ends up with the wrong love interest, your most beloved character dies a tragic death, or a choice is made that you just can't wrap your head around. In a way, this type of ending can be even worse than the first because if the whole thing were a mess you could easily write it off -- but there's that one thing! That one horrible, awful element that you just can't wrap your head around. This is also one of the more common (and subjective) types of endings out there, especially when it comes to love triangles and there are just as many members of TEAM NICE BOY as there are TEAM BAD BOY.

UM... THAT'S IT?
This is when the ending isn't really an ending. When, despite being a planned end to a series, it just feels like another book/chapter/episode. I'm going to take a stab in the dark here and say that this most commonly happens with series that are very episodic, where even the big things that happen are wiped away or forgotten by the next installment. And though that explains the lackluster ending to a certain extent, it still doesn't make it any better for the audience that wants a satisfying ending to their beloved series.

THE MISSING ENDING
Let me make it clear that this type of ending is on a whole different level from the first three. Because unlike those series where the ending is controlled by the writers and editors/producers, the missing ending is one that just doesn't happen. The series is cancelled and it has nothing to do with the planning on the part of the people directly involved in the series. It's easier to think of examples for this type of ending in television (hello, Firefly and the oh-so-tragic Pushing Daisies), but it also happens in book series and it's often a much more quiet death. RIP to lost endings everywhere.

And now I have to get back to writing my own series ending, which hopefully won't fall under any of these categories. But while I'm gone: what's your opinion on series endings? Which is the worst type and did I forget about a type?

10 Embarrassing Movie & TV-Related Facts About Me

1. Kicking and Screaming, the Will Ferrell movie about a dad who coaches his son's horrible soccer team, is one of my all-time favorite movies. I sincerely and absolutely love it. It's the rare movie that I can not only watch all the way through, but also watch over and over again.
2. At one time I found the WORLD'S WORST REALITY SHOW on Hulu. It was called America's Most Smartest Model. I watched way way way more episodes than I'd like to admit, only stopped because one of the judges was so incredibly horrible, and legit loved that show. It was beyond hilarious.
3. I love infomercials more than any sane human being should. The world's best infomercial was the one for the Magic Bullet (do they still air that one anymore?) and, after many years of saying omg I want thattt!! my mom actually bought me the Magic Bullet. And guess what? IT ROCKS.
4. Last week I went to the grocery store at about 10:30 at night and bought a box of Hot Pockets, three frozen pot pies, and a soda. I have never felt more like Liz Lemon. (And, trust me, I almost always feel like Liz Lemon.)
5. I love fanvids. (Def. A music video made by a fan of a television show or movie, using a song and video clips from the show/movie.) Seriously seriously seriously love them. I have tons favorited on YouTube.
6. The episode of Gilmore Girls when Rory slept with Dean made me hate her and it took a couple of entire seasons for me to love her character again.
7. I've had the theme song to Elmo's World stuck in my head for years. For a while it was so bad that I'd take notes in class, go over the notes later, and find that I'd written la la la la elmo's world over and over in the margins. I would, of course, have absolutely no recollection of doing this. (And I don't live with kids, so I don't know how I always have that song stuck in my head. Obviously I'm just a kid at heart.)
8. I hate (hate hate double hate) the movie Clueless.
9. I watched half an hour of the Wizard of Waverly Place Movie and even though I knew those two characters (I don't know their naaaames) were brother and sister, I still expected them to kiss. Because Disney Channel doesn't understand sibling relationships or something they have serious issues. (But honestly, did anyone else watch this movie? Was the campfire scene seriously messed up or what?)
10. I tend to remember movies and television shows that nobody else seems to have heard of. Do any of these ring a bell to you: Flash Forward (the old Disney Channel show) So Weird! (another Disney Channel show), some show about a girl who sits in her window and talks to the moon at night, Superfire (a made-for-tv movie)? Anyone? Bueller... Bueller?

Top 10: Favorite Love Stories

ALRIGHT SO. Favorite love stories is a little different for me than favorite couples and there are a few GIANT GAPING HOLES in this list because of leaving out a few of my favorite couples whose love stories just weren't as amazing as the characters on this list. I also left out an actual historical pairing to keep everything fiction. Also I feel incredibly uncultured for having almost no classic couples on this list, but I guess I'll just have to live with that. (Oh, and this list, unlike some of the others, is actually in order. Amazing.)

1. Victor/Anthony & Sierra/Priya

Dollhouse (tv)

Best love story ever? I THINK SO. Because it's Dollhouse and therefore incredibly confusing, I have no idea how to sum up Victor & Sierra's relationship. But the basic premise of this show is that there are people who've had their personalities and minds wiped and replaced with other personalities... these "dolls" have no memories and no personality of their own, yet Victor and Sierra somehow find each other no matter what personality they're imprinted with, as well as in their simplistic doll state. SEE, I WARNED YOU IT WAS CONFUSING. 

2. Jim Halpert & Pam Beesly

The Office (tv)

This is maybe the sweetest television love story ever, from the very first episode when Jim talked about Pam's favorite flavor of yogurt. They're just too adorable and nice and sweet and sometimes awkward. I love them. I also love this video.

3. Calliope & Eliot

Scrambled Eggs at Midnight (book)

This book blows me away every time I read it. Though only fifteen years old, Cal and Eliot's love story is one of the truest and most believable I've come across. 

4. Landry Clark & Tyra Collette

Friday Night Lights (tv)

Friday Night Light's least popular and most hated storyline (ahem, that whole murder thing in the second season) is one of my absolute favorites and out of it came Landry and Tyra, the best couple on the show. They deserve to be on this list despite not being together anymore because (a) I love them and their story too much to leave them out, and (b) there's one season left; it's not impossible for them to end up together. These are two characters that really do bring out the best in each other and prompt the other one to be a better person.

5. Anne Shirley & Gilbert Blythe

Anne of Green Gables (book)

I'm a little ashamed to say that I don't remember which book it was that these two finally got together, but if it wasn't the first book it was at least somewhere in there. Anne is one of the best protagonists (in my opinion) and the entire history between her and Gilbert Blythe is so cute and wonderful, not to mention their story and life together after becoming a couple.

6. Elpheba & Fiyero

Wicked (musical)

As much as I tried I couldn't get through the novel, but I absolutely love the musical version of Wicked, especially Elpheba and Fiyero's love story. It's such an interesting take on The Wizard of Oz story and I love how the different characters (in this case the scarecrow and the wicked witch) connect in Wicked. Plus, I just really really love Elpheba and Fiyero, end of story.

7. George Bailey & Mary Thatch

It's A Wonderful Life (film)

Really, It's A Wonderful Life needs no explanation. Brilliant.

8. Bryce & Julianna

Flipped (book)

This is the cutest jr. high love story ever. Ever ever ever. Not only is it adorable, but there's tons of character growth and expectations vs. reality and just so much awesome I'm surprised more people haven't read it. Go. Now. Read.

9. Sara & Tobey

When It Happens (book)

Colasanti's debut novel is one of the best love stories I've read. It's one of the few "opposites attract" stories that I actually really love.

10. Kaitlin Malone & Bram Crutchfield

Scribbler of Dreams (book)

I've never been a big Romeo & Juliet fan, but there are a couple of retellings I absolutely adore and this is one of them. Kaitlin meets the kindhearted Bram when she's forced to move to a new school, only to discover he's part of the Crutchfield family that her family, the Malones, have been feuding with for ages. The "families feuding" angle is done so well here.

Top 10: Fictional Characters

I attempted to put this list in order like I've done with previous lists, but it's so difficult! You can think of it as being in order if you want, or you can just assume that after the first one (or two) it doesn't really matter because they're all amazing.

1. Agent 99

Get Smart

Greatest character ever. And, well, I tried to write something about how and why she's so absolutely incredible, but nothing happened I think I just sat here at the keyboard typing best ever best ever best ever like ten times. BEST EVER. OH BUT ALSO UM UM I HATED THE ANNE HATHAWAY VERSION BECAUSE WAY TO COMPLETELY CHANGE THE BEST CHARACTER EVER SERIOUSLY NOW, PEOPLE WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?

2. Maxwell Smart

Get Smart

OH GOODNESS. The shoe phone, his insistence on using the Cone of Silence, the obliviousness that is trademark, how he's clumsy and bumbling and a brilliant spy at the same time? Maxwell Smart is just the best. I mean, HE HAS AN INVISIBLE WALL IN HIS APARTMENT AND HE SLEEPS IN A SUIT AND AND AND... there are no ands. His best friend is a ROBOT. He's a well-known secret agent, how is that not an amazing contradiction in terms? Also, the Craw. Also, Harry Hoo. Also also also, people routinely throw grenades into his apartment and people always show up and then die because they've been poisoned and he just goes about his routine like la-di-da, just another day in the life! Because that's the kind of character he is.

3. Captain Kirk

Star Trek

Do I really need an explanation for this one? I mean, what's cooler than flying through space and fighting aliens? (The only acceptable answer here is either: "fighting KAOS, obviously," or "nothing, der.") You guys, there is LITERALLY a motivation poster of Captain Kirk with the caption, I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am. So yeah. I'm pretty sure "Kirk" is one of the synonyms of "awesome." That seems legit, right?

4. Frankie Landau-Banks

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

Um, can I be as amazing as Frankie, please? She's the ultimate I-want-to-be-her YA girl. And not because she has such great adventures, or because there are guys fighting over her, but because she is just so incredible. The pranks, the Wodehouse, the secret society stuff, and thinking about feminism without going to the extreme on any one side. She's just awesome. Can we all agree that Frankie grows up and becomes a spy? Because, OMG YOU GUYS, Frankie is just like a younger Agent 99!! This is SOLID GOLD FACT. Frankie = 99. YES.

5. Spencer Martin

the Scarlett series

Honestly it's sad if I even have to explain this one to YA fans. Spencer Martin is everything that's right with humerous, contemporary YA. The awesomeness of his character starts on the very first page of SUITE SCARLETT and then never lets up. He's a loving brother, a struggling-but-determined actor, and he makes fun of people named Chip because seriously who names their kid that? But more importantly? HE'S HILARIOUS AND GREAT and [number one] it's nice to have a lovely and funny brother-sister relationship at the forefront of a story and, [number two] a book of just ALL SPENCER ALL THE TIME would be great, actually. There doesn't eve need to be a plot or anything. (And just wondering, but does he remind anyone else of the Spencer from iCarly?) 

6. Peeta Mellark

The Hunger Games trilogy

Peeta Mellark is, without a doubt, the best part of The Hunger Games trilogy. Even when he's thrown into a ruthless pit of death (the arena), he's still loyal and loving and protective and MY GOODNESS, YOU GUYS, HE'S JUST SO SELFLESS. He is a symbol of hope and love. LITERALLY THAT IS WHAT HIS CHARACTER IS and how can you not love that? Peeta is steady and reliable and incredible throughout all three books and this, when everything else is messed-up and disturbing, is the best thing ever. 

7. Topher Brink

Dollhouse

Topher Brink is like Spencer Martin if Spencer Martin were a genius scientist working for an evil corporation instead of a recently-famous actor. In other, more succinct words: Topher Brink is amazing. He's the brains behind the mind-wipe and personality-implanting technology in that creepyweird show, Dollhouse. He's smart and hilarious and creates havoc and cracks jokes and seems to have no morals until suddenly he does and then it just gets better and better and better until he goes completely nutter because that's what happens when you bring about the end of civilization, apparently. BUT OH GOODNESS HE IS JUST SO GREAT I JUST LOVE HIM SO MUCH AND I WON'T SPOIL THE ENDING FOR YOU BUT OMG OMG OMG OMG.

8. Diana Holland

Luxe series

Excuse me for saying this, but Diana Holland is boss. And I don't even use the word boss like that, but she so is. I love her so much that I'm willing to overlook the tremendous mistake she made at the end of SPLENDOR and allow her to have her rightful place on this list. She's a society girl who doesn't like the rules, who breaks them at every turn, who has her own inner fire and spunk and remains true to it. She's incredible and it was worth reading the Luxe series just for her journey... (though I still can't get over the ending, and I never will.)

9. Serafina

serafina67

While a lot of the other female characters on this list are ones I want to be more like, Serafina is the one I actually am like. It's a testament to something, I'm sure, that both friends I've given the book to commented on how much the spastic writing reminds them of me. But it's more than that. Serafina's a little insecure, more than a bit on the crazy side, and is emotional in the same way that I am. Her insane blogging is the kind of stuff that goes on inside my head (and on my Twitter) every. single. day., and for this I love her.

10. Charlie Pace

Lost

Uhhh, last night I finished season three of LOST. It was epic sad and I don't know why my favorite characters are always killed off, but Charlie is... well, bloody brilliant. From heroin-addict/rockstar, to one of the first people kidnapped by the Others, to baby-snatcher, to hero, he's pretty much consistently been the best part of the show. He has a lot of heart and as much as I love this show I'm not quite sure how the rest of the seasons are going to be without him on the island.