MTV VMAs 2016

I was largely underwhelmed by this show. I fast forwarded a lot. No offense to any Bey/RiRi/Britney fans intended. Here are my thoughts: 

Rihanna’s dance party medley: singing over the track, but not very loudly and not very often. Not much of singer, not much of a dancer. She just does not impress me live—unless she’s doing slower songs (“Stay,” “Diamonds,” “Love on the Brain”). The dance songs are good too, but I don’t need to see her perform them.

Ariana Grande with Nicki Minaj: still rocking a high pony(tail) but now with bangs. She’s singing while leading a spin class—no seriously, she’s riding a stationary bike. Exceptional vocal range aside (and she’s singing live!), I still can only understand about 40% of what she’s saying. Why are her vocals so indecipherable?

Did MTV sanction Kanye’s rambling speech?! (eye roll)

Rihanna midtempo medley: the singing is better. The dancing, not so much. And there’s still a lot of track playing for the chorus, which she’s not even singing over.

Beyonce: I’m a fan though I don’t always understand her, especially the visual stuff. I didn’t buy “Lemonade” because I didn’t really care for “Formation” (sorry hardcore Beygency members.) Now I don’t know this song she’s singing. Costume change to a black leotard. She must really hate performing in pants. She is showing and shaking a lot of a** tonight. Remember when she used to wear leotards that modestly covered the majority of her ample rear? A more innocent time. How long is this performance?! 16 minutes confirmed. Wow. Wind machine and hairography in full effect.

Kim Kardashian is so thin (not from behind, I imagine, but everywhere else). She lost all that baby weight and then some.

Britney is back. I kinda like this song, but that’s because it doesn’t sound like recent Brit at all. It does, however, sound very much like current radio hits. But why does she even bother holding a mic? Does she actually think she’s fooling anybody? Maybe she’s singing over a track, but you can’t hear her at all if that’s the case.

The US girls’ gymnastics team (minus Gabby) presented an award to Beyonce, who is an Amazon next to them.

Rihanna again: more RiRi than I can handle.

Beyonce wins Video of the Year. She beat Kanye. Luckily there’s no one he’d rather lose to. LOL.

Rihanna AGAIN: singing “Stay.” I approve! Finally. Singing for real this time without a track. Not as good as when she performed it at the Grammys a few years back, but girl is just better standing still and singing slow. Shouldn’t have reached for a few of those high notes though. Ouch. Fittingly, they saved my 3 RiRi songs until the finale (“Stay,” “Diamonds,” and “Love on the Brain,” as mentioned in my very first comment). It’s like I’m psychic. Good choice, MTV.

Oscars 2016

Mark Rylance, Brie Larson, Leonardo DiCaprio and Alicia Vikander

It’s kinda funny that this whole OscarsSoWhite thing happened after they’d already hired Chris Rock to host. Chris is never afraid to shy away from awkward, uncomfortable, race jokes and truths, and now he has a world of material with which to work. Chris is my favorite comedian, so this should be good. Post-opening monologue update: it was good. He did what he does, in his inimitable style.

So many changes to this year’s broadcast. When the presenters come out, there’s a little factoid-caption next to them on the screen. And when the winners go up, their pre-submitted thank you list appears on a crawl across the bottom of the screen. The crawl is rather distracting.

More changes: the writing awards are up first. Some people discount the screenplay awards as insignificant. Well I beg to differ. There wouldn’t be any movies without the screenwriters. They create the story, write the dialogue and define the characters. Personally I’m very much invested in the screenplay winners.

Best Original Screenplay goes to Spotlight. Well-deserved.

Best Adapted Screenplay goes to The Big Short. Definitely a well-written film.

Methinks the white folks in attendance didn’t understand the bit with Stacey Dash. Allow me to enlighten you: Stacey Dash, best known as Alicia Silverstone’s bff in Clueless. Well, Stacey is now a politically conservative Fox News correspondent. The black community was rankled by her recent comments that there shouldn’t be a Black History Month or a BET Awards or anything specifically celebrating a minority group. She’s basically been disowned by Blacks, so the intended joke (didn't work out) was that she would never be a minority outreach liaison. 

Pottymouth (not a judgment, just a fact) comedienne Sarah Silverman looks classy, but I don't like what her dress is doing for her "heavy Jewish boobs" (her words, not mine). 

Sarah Silverman

Sam Smith sings the nominated theme song from Spectre. I do not care for this song, but then I didn’t care for Adele’s Bond song either. But of course I don’t care for Adele anyway. (Scoff.) He sounded a little off tonight as well. I still can’t get over how thin Sam is now. As my friend Bridget noted, he’s morphing into Jude Law (which means we also know what Jude will look like if/when he puts on a few pounds). 

Sam Smith (aka the new Jude Law?)

Damn Henry Cavill (most recent Superman) really made that intro for best picture nominee The Martian sound profound. What a classy accent. And chiseled jam. And excellent posture. Shwing!

Henry Cavill (with Kerry Washington)

Best Supporting Actress. I’m pulling for Alicia Vikander. I absolutely loved her in The Danish Girl. Never heard of her before that, but I’m all about her ever since. And…she wins! Yes, I cheered and clapped though I'm home alone. She deserved that. She’s gonna beat the supporting actress curse. For starters, she’s in the new Jason Bourne film, which should really raise her profile. Oh, and did I mention she's the new face of Louis Vuitton? Most if not all of her dresses throughout awards season have been Louis (this yellow frock being no exception.)

Alicia Vikander

 Charlize Theron—always breathtaking.

Charlize Theron

Best Costume goes to Mad Max: Fury Road. I’ve got your fury right here! Carol (1950s US) or The Danish Girl (20s Netherlands) should have won! What do the Mad Max costumes consist of? I’ll tell you what—grungy tees, cargo pants, and some leather accessories. Who cares?!

Mad Max: Fury Road "fabulous" costumes

Best Production Design also goes to Mad Max. I really should have seen this movie…

Best Makeup goes to…Mad Max. (I know, I’m getting bored too.) At least I understand this victory. Best moment: presenter Jared Leto mentioned merkins live on the Oscar stage. If you don’t know what a merkin is, you are in for a dirty, little treat! Funny word with an even funnier function. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkin.

Best Cinematography goes to The Revenant. Apparently the same guy won last year for Birdman, which shared the same director as well. At least I liked Revenant better than Birdman. And at least the Mad Max juggernaut was briefly interrupted.

Best Film Editing goes to…Mad Max. And it’s back. Can't believe I didn't go see this stinkin' movie last summer. I certainly considered it but wasn't sure it would be my cup of tea. Apparently it's Oscar's cup of tea. Several cups, in fact.

Cute bit honoring Jack “Black” for “Black” History Month. Get it?! Angela Bassett, featured in the bit, is truly ageless. She looks gorgeous. And the muscle tone in her arms and pecs is still insane, 20+ years after she got super-fit for the Tina Turner biopic, What’s Love Got to Do with It?

Best Sound Editing goes to Carol. Just kidding—it’s frakkin’ Mad Max again.

Best Sound Mixing goes to Mad Max. We get it—it’s a technical marvel. (Eye roll)

The guy who played Jackie Robinson & James Brown in recent biopics is a cutie. Just an observation. (So is Captain America Chris Evans, but you knew that already.) 

Chadwick Boseman and Chris Evans

Best Visual Effects: Ex Machina. Not kidding this time! Someone took a tech award from Mad Max! Poor Star Wars is getting shut out of these tech awards altogether. That’s the real tragedy here. But then again it made as much money as 10 Mad Maxes, so whatevs.

C3PO, R2-D2 and that new orange droid (didn’t bother to learn his name) from the new Star Wars are on stage presenting. Cute little Jacob Tremblay (from Room) is angling for a good view from his seat. I wonder if he’s the only kid at the award ceremony. Must be lonely.

Ellen Degeneres (my 2^nd fave comedian btw) brought pizza for the audience when she hosted; Chris Rock brought girl scout cookies to sell on his daughters’ behalf. Do millionaire actors carry cash to the Oscars? Do they carry cash at all? Because regular middle class folks do not. I mean, I do, but almost none of my friends do.

They awarded animated films and documentaries, but I don’t pay much attention to those. Sorry. But Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) presented documentary and he’s sporting longer hair. I don’t like it. Keep it clean-cut, Dev. 

Dev Patel

Jacob Tremblay isn’t the only kid in attendance. The kid from Beasts of No Nation is there too, and they’re presenting Best Short together. Both cute. Both possibly traumatized by their inaugural movie roles (child born in captivity and child-turned-killer-soldier).

Best Supporting Actor is Mark Rylance for Bridge of Spies (Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg). Who? Exactly. This was a sneak attack, the one surprise in the acting categories. Not sure who was favored, but it definitely wasn't this guy (maybe sentimental fave Sly Stallone?). He was nominated for all the awards, but he hasn't won any. Guess he was saving it up for the big one--the little gold guy. Anyhow, he's a very respected stage actor (has 3 Tony awards), and now he's halfway toward an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony), as is Sam Smith, btw.

Lady Gaga brings the house down with yet another stunning live vocal. In case you were wondering what all the hubbub was about, her song “Until It Happens to You” is about rape. I think it’s more specifically about date rape and college party rape, both of which are less reported than random attacks by total strangers in public. And apparently those were real-life survivors on stage with her.

Best Music Score goes to The Hateful Eight. Apparently this fella has been at it for a long time and is very respected in the business. Hence the standing ovation.

Best Original Song goes to the Sam Smith song for Spectre. I swear every Bond song wins, regardless of whether it’s a good song or not. Ugh.

Um, that clip from best picture nominee Brooklyn had a major spoiler in it. That’s just wrong.

Best Director: Alejandro Inarritu for Revenant. This man seriously just won back-to-back directing Oscars! I find him annoying (I really didn’t like Birdman, last year’s win). And yet I think it’s horribly rude that they are trying to play him off the stage. He won Best Director two consecutive years. I think he’s earned the right to say his piece.

Best Actress: Brie Larson for Room. No surprise here. She’s won everything during awards season. In case you're wondering who this chick is and where she came from, her previous claim to fame (not really) was playing Amy Schumer's more sensible sister in Trainwreck.

Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio for Revenant. No surprise here either. “It’s his turn,” they said. And so it was. I wouldn’t have minded seeing Eddie Redmayne win again this year, but oh well. I’m happy Leo finally has an Oscar. It’s his fifth (acting) nomination. Look at all the love for Leo in the room. And near the end of his speech, they finally cut to Kate Winslet, bawling for her cinematic boo. Nice speech about global warming and climate change, Leo. Interesting…they didn’t play him off. I guess he rates more important than his director.

Best Picture: SPOTLIGHT! I was afraid Revenant would take it, or freakin’ Mad Max would rise again but the right film won. Not sure it was my favorite movie of the year, but it was unquestionably my favorite of the nominated films. 

And there you have it. Hollywood awards season comes to a close. Until we meet again...

Golden Globes 2016

Either Jane Fonda really hated Jonah Hill’s “bear from The Revenant” bit (it kinda sucked) or she has a serious case of RBF (resting bitch face). Or that ruffle monstrosity around her neck and shoulders was about to swallow her whole. Anything’s possible.

Not loving my girl-crush J.Lo in yellow. I think she could use a different color. But Fashion Police says she was best dressed, so what do I know?

Brad Pitt is looking good. Short hair, clean-shaven. Me likey. Seriously it’s the best I’ve seen him in a long time. He’s looking downright boyishly handsome. Swoon.

Rachel Bloom of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend wins best actress in a tv comedy. You’ve probably never watched it, but I actually really like it. It’s quirky fun, but Rachel Bloom is not fully Hollywood-ready. Sorry, Rache, but you need better hair and makeup. The dress was pretty good (though an A-line probably would’ve been better since she’s also not quite Hollywood-skinny).

The Amazon sitcom Mozart in the Jungle, which I just heard of for the first time like two weeks ago, wins best sitcom. There are some weird choices tonight.

The president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has been trotted out to speak. I still don’t understand who HFPA is…

Oh, look is Mrs. Johnny Depp, Amber Heard. I’m finally starting to recognize her. I find her to be rather nondescript, like Connie Nielson (Gladiator) and Sienna Miller (American Sniper) before her.

Oscar Isaac (super pilot Poe in the new Star Wars) just won for some tv movie/miniseries. I like him. He’s cute. That’s all.

OMG I completely forgot about Harrison Ford and Callista Flockhart being a couple! But there they are, still together, Han Solo and Ally McBeal.

Why is Tom Ford presenting? He’s a designer.

Christian Slater just won an award. Thanks to Mr. Robot, he is no longer a tv curse. P.S. his wife is lovely (and looks very young).

Jamie Foxx just announced his daughter as Miss Golden Globe tonight. I remember when she made the awards circuit with him when he won for Ray twelve years ago. I thought it was so sweet that he brought his cute little 10-year-old to the Oscars. And now she’s all grown up and beautiful.

Eva Longoria and America Ferrera just did a very funny bit about how several Latina actresses have recently been randomly and unfortunately interchanged. Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g32j52NRqd0

I want to like Amy Schumer more than I do. Like she’s okay and all, but I’m just not that into her. I'm not that into her bestie-lovefest with J.Law either.

Ooh, now here’s an Amy I do like: Amy Adams. Where has she been since American Hustle? I’ve missed her.

Matt Damon wins best actor in a comedy for The Martian. He is such a charmer. I love you, Will Hunting. He’ll always be Will Hunting to me.

Kate Hudson is presenting with her common-law stepdad Kurt Russell. Awww.

Seeing last year’s supporting Oscar winners Patricia Arquette and JK Simmons on stage reminds me that I still haven’t seen the movies for which they won (Boyhood and Whiplash, respectively). Damn.

My 80s/90s movie crush Sly Stallone just won supporting actor for Creed, and what a wonderful moment. He is so genuinely touched, and he received the most heartfelt standing ovation. Everyone seems sincerely happy for him. (Not so sweet sidenote: Sly is a little too tan.)

Okay, there are way too many nominated movies that I haven’t seen.  Steve Jobs, The Room, The Big Short. I’m stressing! Some of them aren’t even in theaters anymore!

Mozart in the Jungle wins again, this time for start Gael Garcia Bernal (tv comedy actor). I don’t wanna watch this show. Do I need to watch this show??? Last year, Transparent won best comedy and actor, this year Mozart. Why is HFPA sweating Amazon original programming? They just love shiny, new things.

Helen Mirren’s hourglass figure is a marvel. Her sleek blond bob is fabulous too.

Ricky Gervais: “When Brad and Angelina see the next two little adorable presenters, they’re gonna want to adopt them. Kevin Hart and Ken Jeong.” Ha, ha, ha. (It’s funny because they’re so short. And of course because they’re not white.)

I don’t know what kind of heels Gaga is wearing to accept her award, but she towers over Kevin and Ken. (IMDB says she’s 5’1”—how short are Kevin and Ken OR how tall are her shoes?!) Another shiny, new thing for HFPA.

Katy Perry is becoming unrecognizable. She changes her hair, and I have trouble recognizing her.

Wow, Sam Smith (who just won for the Spectre theme song) really did slim down.

Okay, Ricky just said something to Mel Gibson on-camera that had to be fully bleeped. I’m talking like a full sentence. I sure hope they have the direct quote online tomorrow. Can’t wait!

Sam Esmail, creator of Mr. Robot (best drama winner) is engaged to Emmy Rossum (Day After Tomorrow, Shameless). Interesting. 

Denzel receives the Lifetime Achievement Award. Great, revered actor. How is his hairline still that good at 61? Inquiring minds want to know. And get this—he’s been with his wife Pauletta for almost 40 years, married for 34 years. In Hollywood. That’s incredible. His speech leaves something to be desired. He forgot it or can't read it without his glasses or something. The result is underwhelming. Does Denzel have to be saying someone else's words in order to be interesting?

Ick, Chris Evans (Captain America) is sporting a beard again. Why would you cover up that jawline with a beard? The hair and the tux are flawless though.

Alejandro G. Innaritu directed Leo D’s new film The Revenant? Well that’s a strike for  me because he also directed Birdman, and I was distinctly not a fan of Birdman.

Kate Bosworth is presenting. She is so shiny (her face, her arms, her décolletage) and skinny.

Taraji P. Henson is a mess but in a fun way. In honor of her win as Cookie Lyons on “Empire,” she actually passed out cookies on her way up to the stage to accept. Classic.

Okay this is where the Globes’ credibility get shaky: the comedy/musical film category. The Oscars doesn’t do that. Tonight in the best actress – comedy category, Jennifer Lawrence wins for Joy (which was a decent but not great movie and only semi-funny), and Amy Schumer was also nominated for Trainwreck (funny movie, but was Amy a good actress in it???).

Jim Carrey (presenting best comedy/musical) is rocking a very full beard. I hope that’s for a role. He’s still funny though. (For the record, The Martian wins, and while it had some very funny moments, I’d hardly classify it as a comedy.)

Why is Katy Perry at the table front and center? She’s at the same table as Denzel and Jamie Foxx. Huh? Random pop star, not nominated for anything, seated with the Lifetime Achievement honoree and the father of the Miss Golden Globes. Hmm.

Oh crap, Brie Larson (Amy Schumer’s sister in Trainwreck) wins best actress – drama for Room. That movie definitely isn’t playing anywhere in my vicinity. Dammit. She’s nominated for SAG too.

Leo wins best actor – drama for The Revenant and gets a standing O…though I’m unclear as to why. Denzel got the O for his body of work over many decades. Sly got his because he’s never won an acting award in his life. But Leo has won Globes before—a couple years ago for Wolf of Wall Street most recently—so what’s the big deal? Is the industry deeply in love with this movie? HFPA clearly is.

The Revenant also wins best picture – drama. HFPA gives no love to Spotlight even though it’s won most of the critics’ awards. The Globes just confuse matters with their highly subjective choices.

One of the funniest moments for me was when Ricky introduced (and gave a backhanded apology to) Mel Gibson. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhGGCCmbwvc

And Ricky Gervais’ closing words: “From myself and Mel Gibson, Shalom.” LMAO!

The Billboard Awards 2015

No time or energy for pics or any embellishments. Just quick and dirty commentary. Apologies for errors.

Instead of opening with a performance, they’re opening with the debut of Taylor Swift’s new video “Bad Blood.” The video features a ton of singers and actresses. I was able to pick out Ellie Goulding, Cara DeLevigne (sp?), Ellen Pompeo, Mariska Hargitay, Cindy Crawford and Lena Dunham, but there were glimpses of many others.

Ludacris and Chrissy Teigen (aka Mrs. John Legend) are hosting. How does Chrissy keep getting gigs? She’s also on Lip Sync Battle. Good for her, I guess.

Van Halen performing. Ah, the nostalgia.

One Direction wins. The remaining 4 members accept, and they graciously thank deserter Zayn too.

Why does Fallout Boy have dancers? Oh, their song borrows from that song in Pulp Fiction, and the dancers are all dressed like Uma Thurman’s character. Ok, gonna fast forward now.

Taylor Swift wins. Shocking. (Not.)

Megan Trainor and John Legend are duetting. It’s a nice song. I wonder if it’s on her cd. I might have to get her cd. She has lots of fun songs, and she sounds pretty good live.

Wow, Ellen Pompeo looks very young, fresh and pretty tonight!

Mariah Carey sounds decent singing her new song (at least I think it’s new because I don’t recognize it), but it’s just sad hearing her sing “Vision of Love.” Her voice isn’t what it used to be. Age is cruel to vocalists. This is gonna happen to Bruno someday, and that makes me want to cry!

Oh great, Wiz Khalifa is performing the song that stopped “Uptown Funk” from breaking the Billboard record for most weeks at number one. (Eye roll.) I admit I like the hook, sung by some new kid named Charlie Puth. I don’t care for Wiz’s rap at all though.

Celine! I wonder if she can still hit the power notes. She’s not performing, so we won’t get an answer tonight.

Poor Sam Smith can’t be there to accept his award or perform because of vocal surgery. It’s crazy that he and Adele had to go through this at such a young age. I hope it never happens to Bruno. (Everything comes back to Bruno and his precious, beautiful voice.)

People keep shouting out to Nicki Minaj, but they have yet to cut to her in the audience.

Hozier can’t hit the high note in his song. And he doesn’t have age to blame yet. Hmph.

John Legend wins Top Radio Song for the only song of his I truly love, “All of Me.” Aw, he thanked his wife Chrissy for inspiring him to write the song.

Everyone knows I’m not a country fan, but I’m kinda digging this song “Girl Crush” by Little Big Town and Faith Hill. Faith Hill looks and sounds terrific. She is working that short hair.

Gee, who will win Top Female Artist??? Taylor Swift, of course. That girl is a physical giant btw. Seriously, she’s like 5’10” before the heels.

Speaking of “girl crush,” (2 entries back), here’s mine: Jennifer Lopez. And look at her abs in that cutout in front of her dress. How does she get hotter and more beautiful as she gets older. It’s witchcraft or voodoo or something.

Chris Brown and Pitbull. Not interested.

I don’t really care for this particular Ed Sheeran song. Apparently it’s called “Bloodstream.” But he is putting his heart into it, and I admire the commitment.

Top Hot 100 song goes to Meghan Trainor for “All About That Bass.” Yay! T. Swift didn’t win one!

Britney and Iggy doing their new song. My bff Bridget warned me that Britney did some horrible lip synching on this performance, but I still wasn’t prepared for just how awful it is. Seriously, shouldn’t Britney be the best lip syncher in the business by now? She’s been doing it forever!

This Prince Royce kid is pretty cute. Ugh—Taylor just won another one. Apparently it’s a fan award, and the Swifties are a strong online fanbase, so Meghan and Iggy never had a chance. I mean, do their fans even have a name?!

David Guetta is back, this time with Nicki Minaj on lead. I don’t know this song, but Taylor and her girlfriends do. I know this because, like every award show, they insist on cutting to her dancing and singing along to every song in the front row. This has been going on for years. It really needs to stop.

OMG—The Breakfast Club was 30 years ago?!?! I’m so freakin’ old. They’re doing a little musical tribute. And the crowd is feeling it, particularly J. Lo. Ed Sheeran, on the other hand, seems bored. I don’t think he’s seen Breakfast Club. Simply Red probably hasn’t performed for a crowd like this in decades.

Oh good, Kelly Clarkson went with more of an A-line dress design this time. Much more flattering for her current figure. (She’s a yo-yoer and she recently had a baby so she’s a little thicker these days.) As always, she sounds great. Best thing to ever come out of American Idol.

Florida Georgia Line wins Top Country Artist. Really???

Imagine Dragons is singing “Stand By Me” in tribute to Ben E. King, who recently passed away. It’s pretty good. I’ve never seen them doing mellow, but it works. Ugh, Taylor is emphatically singing along in the audience. Just stop, Mr. Cameraman!

Top Artist goes to Taylor Freakin’ Swift. Why is she the only one surprised when she wins? For the rest of us, it’s a yawning, foregone conclusion.

Kylie and Kendall Jenner introduce their brother-in-law Kanye West. Wait—were people in the audience booing? Wow, lots of bleeping. Did the sound just go out? Nope, just lots of bleeping. I am not a Kanye fan, but the crowd is on their feet jammin’ out, bleeps and all. The way the stage is lit, one can’t even be sure that’s Kanye on stage. Could be anybody. LOL.

All in all, a pretty entertaining show. I watched more of it than I anticipated. “Uptown Funk” should figure prominently in next year’s broadcast. Can’t wait!

EMPIRE, Season 1 Finale, March 2015

Cookie sleeps with the Head of Security Malcolm (Derek Luke). When Lucious finds out, he kicks her out of the company but doesn’t fire Malcolm, who decides to quit anyway and asks Cookie to leave town with him. Cookie refuses to walk away from what she built at Empire.

Still angry with Lucious for paying off his cougar-love Camilla to leave town (he doesn’t know she didn’t take the money), Hakeem disses him in a rap at the press conference for the big concert and announces that he is going with Anika to Beretti’s label. Lucious punches him.

Lucious turns to Jamal for help on a new song, his swan song. Jamal helps him but refuses to perform at the concert without Cookie running it so Lucious asks her

back. Newly bonded with Dad, Jamal dangles Beretti over a balcony so he’ll sign over Lucious’ master recordings.  Lucious told Jamal he had to get those masters if he wants to take over Empire. At Beretti’s, Lucious finds Hakeem in bed with Anika (ex-fiancee)! They wanted to hurt him, which they did.

Turns out Lucious has MG (serious but treatable) rather than ALS, so he’s not dying. In a drug stupor, he confesses to killing Bunky.  Cookie overhears and starts to smother him but he wakes up and stops her.

Lucious tells the family that he’s not dying and apologizes for everything.  Hakeem gets a private jet, and Dre gets a well-funded foundation he can use for religious purposes. He names Jamal as the new head of Empire, pissing off everyone else. He also outs Cookie for trying to kill him, showing the video to Jamal. She tries to explain that Lucious killed Bunky, but Jamal doesn’t seem to be listening. They make up later though.

The feds want Cookie to help get Lucious for Bunky’s murder, but she refuses in spite of her anger.

Andre wants to quit Empire, having been passed over; he’s more interested in hanging out at church with Jennifer Hudson. His wife almost leaves him. Lucious makes J.Hud an offer she can’t refuse, and much to Dre’s dismay, she sells out. Later, Dre hooks up with Cookie, Hakeem and Anika to launch a takeover of Empire (Anika’s idea).

Lucious mends fences with Vernon (Malik Yoba), who then tries to placate Dre to keep him at Empire.  They fight, and Rhonda hits Vernon over the head defending Dre.  Vernon dies, they cover it up, and she reveals she is pregnant.

Empire starts public trading. Dre is there with his face all bruised; Lucious is wondering where Vernon is. At the big concert, Lucious is arrested for murder. He thinks Cookie rolled on him but she denies it.  It looks like it’s part of the hostile takeover. The takeover investor said they needed to catch Lucious in a scandal to sink the stock prices, so they could swoop in to buy it up cheap.

The feds are upset that Vernon is missing b/c he’s supposed to be their star witness. In the end, Lucious is behind bars, but is he in jail awaiting arraignment/trial? Or have we jumped forward in time, and he’s already serving a prison sentence? It looks like the takeover has gone through, and everyone is moving ahead with their lives. Dre and Rhonda have an ultrasound; Hakeem is recording with Anika; Jamal is running meetings at Empire; Cookie looks like she moved into the mansion. And Lucious vows revenge in a voiceover.

"Downton Abbey" Season Finale Recap - March 1, 2015

Dowager reunited the Russian prince and princess. The princess was mean and bitchy and not at all grateful. Dowager refused the prince’s romantic overture.  She later confessed to Cousin Isabelle that she was going to run away with the prince all those years ago, but the princess caught them, thereby saving the Dowager’s reputation. Dowager returned the favor by saving her in the present (from wherever she was), so they are even. Also, Isabelle broke it off with Lord Merton because she doesn’t want to come between him and his sons.

The rest of the family was out of town at a castle with Rose’s in-laws. Turns out Lord Sinderby (sp?) has a love child. The baby mama showed up at the castle and Rose, Mary and Lord Grantham rescued him from the potential scandal by pretending she was their guest. Thomas was responsible; he got Sinderby’s rude butler telling secrets while drunk in a plot to bring down the butler.

Mary met another potential love interest (played by Matthew Goode) at the castle. Edith may have met one too. Lord Grantham sweetly confronted Edith about Marigold being her child, as did Tom. Only Mary doesn’t know now. Lord Grantham has an ulcer, so he had to eat better and swear off alcohol through Christmas. Tom is moving to Boston with little Sybi after Christmas.

Bates confessed to killing whats-his-name, so Anna was released. Bates then went on the lam. Moseley and Baxter found the pub Bates was in during the murder and a witness, so his name was cleared. Anna may be rearrested, but for now Bates is back home and they can spend Christmas together. Carson bought the cottage and slapped Mrs. Hughes’ name on  the deed without her permission (she can’t afford it because all of her extra money goes to caring for her mentally-challenged sister). And out of nowhere, Carson proposes to Hughes, who readily accepts. Awwww.

How to Get Away with Murder Season Finale Recap, Feb. 2015

I've been doing season finale recaps for awhile now, mostly for my personal use. It's not easy keeping up with the happenings on as many shows as I watch, especially after a long hiatus. It occurs to me that they'd be safer posted here rather than only existing on my hard drive. So I'll post them here, and then post a link on Facebook to the respective recaps just before the new season starts in the fall. Up first:  

How to Get Away with Murder – Annalise had Nate (cop boyfriend) beaten up in prison to push for parole, but the judge was punishing him for making the police force look bad. Bonnie & Frank took pics of Millstone talking to the judge, creating a conflict of interest for Nate’s attorney to exploit.  The judge recused herself and Nate was released on bail (really badly beaten). Annalise also told the prosecutor that Nate and Sam had an altercation, providing an explanation for why his prints would be on Sam’s ring. At the end, Nate finally called the number Annalise gave him (for new lawyer?).

Bonnie and Millstone are a couple now, and Frank knows. Millstone suspected he may have been used to get rid of the judge on Nate’s case, but Bonnie said it was just coincidence that she was involved in that case too. The prosecutor on Nate’s case showed up at Millstone’s door to talk about Annalise. Uh oh.

Thinking Rebecca killed Lila, the gang kidnapped her when she wouldn’t talk about that night. Also, she located the cop who saw Connor’s car at the Keating house the night of Sam’s murder and threatens to call him. The gang brings Annalise, Frank and Bonnie in on the kidnapping, taking Rebecca to Annalise’s house where they unsuccessfully “put her on trial.” She manages to send a text saying “Eggs 911, lawyer’s house.” What does it mean? Eventually she tells Wes what happened.

Turns out Rebecca and Lila were good friends until Lila broke it off with her, blaming Rebecca for her bad choice to cheat on Griffin with Darcy. Rebecca seduced Griffin to prove to Lila that he’s not worth it, further enraging Lila. Sam met Lila on the sorority house roof and told her he was going to leave Annalise for her, and then called someone to “do what we talked about—you owe me.” Cut to Frank strangling Lila and dumping her into the water tank! Why did he owe Sam?

Rebecca found Lila in the water tank and hid in there when others came to the roof, afraid she’d be accused. She went home soaking wet, was spotted by her neighbor Rudy (who knew a lot about her relationship with Lila), and proceeded to get him high on some dangerous drugs that caused him to lose his mind. Then she called the cops to take him away to the loony bin (where Wes and Laurel later found him).

Back to present day kidnapping: Rebecca escapes from the basement, and Annalise wants to know who did it; no one confesses. Annalise tells Wes, who feels guilty about the whole situation, to ease his mind by just believing Sam did it (which it turns out is partly true). Then we see Annalise and Frank standing over Rebecca’s dead body in the basement. Frank says he didn’t do it; he thought Annalise did. But whoever did it must realize Annalise is lying about the escape because the killer knows she’s actually dead, right?

Other random bits: When Laurel suggests that Frank will “take care of” Rebecca, he gets all offended that she just thinks he’s a hitman (but he did take out Lila at Sam’s behest). Laurel returns Mikayla’s ring. She found it in Connor’s car, but she figured Mikayla would stay quiet as long as she was afraid of her ring being found. Mikayla refuses her ex-fiance Aidan’s mom’s invitation to reach out to him. Mom realizes her boy is gay/bi and wants to lock him down with a wife. Connor’s hacker boyfriend Oliver insisted they both get tested for STD’s before re-establishing sexual relations. Oliver tested positive; Connor is still waiting for results. Hope he wrapped it up when he and Ollie had sex.

Here’s a backup link to ew’s recap: http://www.ew.com/recap/how-to-get-away-with-murder-season-1-finale