Once upon a time, the 'Bamasphere was bound together by a mystical creation known as The Crimson & White Roundtable, a fantastic idea in which one blog — RBR, BSR, AG, PMR, Capstone Report,Tower of Bammer, Memphis Tider, Crimson Elephant and so forth (and yes, I'm linking these guys in the hopes that they notice) — posed a handful of questions (usually 3-5) and everyone devoted a post to answering those. It's a fun way to take the temperature of some of the more vocal members of our fan base, as well as a way for people to discover blogs they might not have known about beforehand.
For whatever reason, the roundtable died out halfway through the 2008 season (at least I think it did — the last post I can find was prior to the UT game in November 2008). Possibly we were so excited about what was happening that we didn't want to jinx it (and that attitude carried over to '09). Possibly we just didn't have anyone to really take the reins.
In any case, even though I've never really considered myself a "'Bama blogger," Alabama football is, as you know, the central focus of this site. As such, I'm making an effort by making up some roundtable questions and throwing out a few answers. Consider it a testing of the waters. If any 'Bama fans reading this have blogs and want to respond, feel free, and please post a link to your version of this in the comments. And maybe we can round this up at the end of the week (assuming someone out there notices, I mean).
Onward, then ...
1. Can't we just keep re-living 2009 forever?
Ummmm ... kinda. We do have youtube, after all.
2. Who's the hardest player from 2009 to replace?
The easy answer is to say Rolando McClain, the quarterback of the defense and someone of whom my dad told my mom, "If you'll just follow 25, he'll take you to the ball every time" (not to mention someone described as "the surest thing in the [NFL] Draft since Patrick Willis"). But just for the hell of it I'll say Javier Arenas. How often do truly great kick returners come along? Once every decade? Consider that Javy was the only player in 2006 (Mike Shula's final campaign) who could make the other team even remotely nervous. And he took the job of covering the opposition's best guy on defense in '08-'09 while continuing to make opposing teams shudder in the kicking game. Those don't come along every day.
3. Which player — or facet of the game — should we expect to make the biggest jump in 2010?
I'm guessing the passing game. Greg McElroy's on-again, off-again performance in '09 can probably be chalked up to inexperience and the fact that his best receiver (Julio Jones) spent most of the season battling nagging injuries. Even with that, he still looked great in the first four weeks of the season, led a game-winning drive at Auburn and turned in a virtuoso performance in the SEC Championship Game. With an extra year, we should all expect him to make a significant leap.
4. Is there one aspect that concerns you going into 2010?
You mean, other than the natural jinx that follows defending champs? What about the fact that we have to replace Terrence Cody at nose? How many 3-4 defenses can operate efficiently without a beast at the nose tackle position? Not many. (Note: I should probably add something about Cody as a goal-line blocker, but it should be noted that this was almost entirely a gimmick from the first time Alabama used it. Unless my memory is faulty, I can't think of one situation in which Cody delivered a block of consequence on the goal line. No, I'm not kidding.)
5. What is a reasonable expectation for 2010?
I guess it depends on where you stand on the concept of the "5-year grace period," explained thusly in this Simmons column:
After your team wins a championship, they immediately get a five-year grace period: You can't complain about anything that happens with your team (trades, draft picks, salary-cap cuts, coaching moves) for five years. There are no exceptions. For instance, the Pats could finish 0-80 over the next five years and I wouldn't say a peep. That's just the way it is. You win the Super Bowl, you go on cruise control for five years. Everything else is gravy.
I agree with the concept, but I don't think anybody would be happy to see this team limp out of the gates and not make some effort to defend what it's earned (read this column for more details). Looking at the schedule, there are plenty of dates that look scary — the early home date with Penn State, a midseason gamut that includes at Arkansas, home vs. Florida and at South Carolina — and that's before we talk about Tennessee or LSU (on the road) or Auburn, Mississippi State and Georgia State (OK, so I'm kidding about one of those). Still, I think it's fair to say that anything short of 9-10 wins and a respectable bowl trip will be considered a disappointment. Although how great that disappointment will be, I don't know, given that our team is, you know, national champs and all. (I can't stop saying that.)
Not sure if I've posted this one before, but today's Derek Webb piece is an old song from his days with Caedmons Call. I still think of it as my own personal anthem, since it was playing in my car the day I left Opelika for Tuscaloosa.
And the ants are welcome company.
Anyway, here's a whole batch of links to round out your week.
— With pitchers and catchers reported, two fantastic baseball links for you: Chop Talk previews Chipper Jones in 2010 (possibly his last season?), and David O' Brien tells us about the one name that should have us all salivating this spring: Jason Heyward.
I'll be honest: I've had a hard time getting over the fact that my favorite team is the defending national champs.
(You heard about that, right? Yeah. National champs. 14-0. Just making sure you remember.)
So it's been hard for me to stop thinking about everything that's happened over the past two years — the out-of-nowhere '08 season, the many different escapes in '09, the bludgeoning of Florida, the crystal ball — and start thinking about defending the title in 2010. If you think about it, the "defending the title" season is almost always strange. I alluded to this in this week's column for the SCT, but the truest measure of a champion, historically speaking, is in how it defends its championship. I'll explain: championship seasons are almost always charmed. Every bounce goes your way, you don't suffer any severe injuries, the schedule sets up in your favor, and so forth and so on (for a good number of champions, the run to the title is often an "out of frigging nowhere" proposition and they play the "underdog/no respect" card to the fullest). Championship defenses aren't like that: every day there's a target on your back; for the other guy, you're THE BIGGEST GAME IN (PROGRAM NAME'S) HISTORY every week; and eventually those bounces and injuries do have to even out. (Here's where 'Bama fans jump in and say, "But we're used to that, because we're everybody's biggest game EVERY year." Just trust me here: it's different when you're the champs.) The truest champions — the ones we remember for years and years and years — are the ones that keep coming even with all those circumstances and setbacks, that won't be kept down because that's what champions do.
To put it another way, let's use the analogy of pro wrestling. Most of us (OK, me) grew up with pro wrestling as a hobby — some of us were more into it than we should've been (OK, that was me too). Anyway, racking my brain, I can think of multiple occasions in which a "face" received a big push and challenged for a title belt. The odds were almost always stacked against him — he got jumped in the back and was injured, the other guy was constantly cheating to get ahead, the refs kept finding ways to job him out of his shot. Then, one night – usually at a big pay-per-view event — he defied the odds and captured the belt.
It's always a fun moment, when your guy finally becomes champion. Even so, what happens the next night? The champion is introduced, officially, to a delirious crowd. And he comes charging out as his theme music plays, and the fans go berserk, and he's wearing that championship belt ... and there's a moment where everybody realizes, "Holy (expletive), he's the champ now!" Which is followed by an even louder cheer. Only the next thing inevitably happens: some adversity presents itself. Usually it's in the form of a challenger — sometimes the guy who just gave up the belt, sometimes someone completely different — who strides out to lay down a challenge. And it's only then you realize that things have changed: the good guy is no longer the gritty underdog chasing glory; he's wearing a giant target and has to defend what he's just spent the last 6 months earning.
Which is why championship defenses are always so difficult, and title-defense seasons always so strange. Does anyone remember, for example, the 1993 Alabama team? It was a weird season — Alabama roared out of the gate, opening 5-0 before having to escape with a tie vs. Tennessee (with Phillip Fulmer in his first season as head coach). Beset by injuries and whispers of NCAA sanctions, the Tide survived a trip to Ole Miss, blew out Southern Miss for Homecoming (the best performance of Brian Burgdorf's life as QB) before finally losing — a 17-13 home defeat vs. LSU. 'Bama wound up losing to Auburn (the capper to the magical 11-0 season under Terry Bowden) and Florida (the first of Steve Spurrier's kajillion straight SEC titles) before winning a Gator Bowl appearance vs. North Carolina. (Note: All those games save the Gator Bowl have since been forfeited by the NCAA.) The main thing I remember about 1993, thinking back on it now, was how unlike 1992 it was. Mal Moore was dogged by nearly everybody for the punchless offense (he eventually resigned after the season and replaced by Homer Smith). David Palmer became a bona fide Heisman candidate (wait, a 'Bama player? Gunning for a Heisman?). And the NCAA seemed to chase the UA program from the moment the season began (we now know that Antonio Langham was considered radioactive and probably should've been suspended for at least the first month of the season).
Which, of course, brings us to 2010. The oddsmakers have followed the lead of the pundits by predicting a repeat. Rival fans and bloggers are already sharpening their swords for our inevitable fall. Things will only get tougher. There's no other way. So we should expect adversity. It's inevitable. Being a sports fan is as much about learning to live with the agony of defeat as it is celebrating the thrill of victory.
And for me, the question is not whether Alabama will surrender its crown (because eventually, we all do fall) but whether it will go down swinging like a madman? The way a champion does. Call me a homer, but I'm betting on the latter.
For now, let's all enjoy having something to defend.
Welcome back to "Lost" blogging, this blog's weekly attempt to analyze, comprehend and occasionally poke fun at ABC's remarkable television show, "Lost." This week's episode: The Lighthouse, most likely about Sideways Jack. For other blogs from this season, visit here, here and here.
As with last week, this week's blog will be slightly behind because of the magic of TiVo. As always, feel free to play along at home in the commentary section. Also as always, PLEASE STAY AWAY IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ SPOILERS. OK? OK.
As we enter tonight's episode, I'm going to re-visit a theory I've advanced at this blog before, however poorly: the dominant theme of this show was expressed in this speech, six days into the Castaways' first stay on The Island.
"We can't do this. 'Every man for himself' is not gonna work. ... Last week most of us were strangers, but we're all here now. And God knows how long we're gonna be here. But if we can't live together, we're gonna die alone."
Consider that nearly every bit of trouble that has befallen some member of this group has occurred because someone went off on their own. And even the Oceanic 6, when they went their separate ways, eventually realized they had to go back to the ones they left behind. Because if they can't live together, they're going to die alone. That's just the way it is. [The English majors in the room may now take a seat. We'll be back with more in a moment.]
(Interesting aside while I'm waiting to get started: I'm very confused by the term "live tweeting." Isn't "live tweeting" just "tweeting?" It's kind of like Mitch Hedberg's bit about corn on the cob — isn't that just corn?)
8:19: Sideways Jack has pictures of his dad everywhere, meaning he may not hate the guy like he did in the first-run world. He also has his appendix scar. Recall that Jack had his appendix out on the Island in Season 3. 8:20: Sideways Jack also drives a nasty looking car. And he ... has a son? [flash] 8:21: "Everything is an option." Because Dogen, apparently, believes in free will. Take your first drink of the night, you play-along folk. 8:23: Hurley & Miles were playing tic-tac-toe with ... something. Aside: can Miles see Jacob? Since he speaks to dead folk, and all. 8:24: Recall that, based on the exchange between Jacob & The Man in Black — now appearing the guise of Locke — Jacob brings people to the Island. For what purpose, we have no idea. [opening credits]
8:26: Recall for a moment that Jack was reading something Alice-related to Aaron in ... was it Season 4? That sounds right. 8:27: Is it possible that David belongs to Sideways Jack and ... whatever her name is? (Note: It's Sarah.) [flash] 8:28: Remember the stares Locke received when he first visited the Others. This is like the opposite of that. 8:29: Now we see New Rousseau, Claire — grungy, dangerous, searching for her son. Fantastic. 8:30: Now seems like the time to bring up the wonderful acting job done by Daniel Dae Kim, who's gone from playing A Guy Who Can't Speak English to playing A Guy Who Can Speak English, Although Not Perfectly. He's the most underrated performer on the show. 8:32: Just a thought: shouldn't someone who speaks Japanese watch these things and figure out what Dogen is saying? I haven't seen anything yet. 8:33: Aha! We're back to Daddy Issues Jack again. "You have what it takes." Also, kudos to Hurley for another slick "Star Wars" reference. [break]
8:34: The hound dog does NOT appreciate all these sound effects. 8:35: Ah, and ANOTHER similarity between Claire & Rousseau: they both talk frequently about infection. Or sickness. Or whichever you want to call it. 8:37: Bad things happen to people on their own. Not cool. 8:38: That scene was kind of lame. Made me think of this:
(Yes, Marcie, I stuck that one in there just for you.) [flash] 8:40: There's supposed to be something important about Mrs. Shephard's liquor cabinet. But I can't see it. 8:41: Lucky us -- in the Sideways World, Claire is still Jack's illegitimate sister. [flash again] 8:42: But is she really alive? 8:43: Just for clarification, let's recall the sequence of events from the last time we "saw" Claire:
• She was in a house that blew up when Martin Keamy's and Charles Widmore's mercenaries attacked Dharmaville. She escaped with Sawyer, Miles and a few others. • She disappeared during their journey back to the beach; Miles (who we should never forget, speaks to dead folk) says she walked off in the middle of the night with a guy he didn't recognize. "She called him dad." Sawyer went to look for her and found only the baby. • She appeared in "Jacob's cabin" when Locke came searching for guidance; Claire was seated in an armchair looking, in the words of The Warblogler, "doped up and sexually satisfied." • She appeared to Kate in a dream, warning her not bring Aaron back to the Island.
[break]
8:51: Hurley is the leader of this crowd now, right? He's totally asserting himself. 8:52: They found Adam & Eve! Cool. 8:53: Hot damn. And I frigging brought up this episode at the beginning of the post. I'm awesome. (Just give me a minute, will ya?) [flash] 8:54: Sideways Jack is trying too hard. The unbuttoned collar with no undershirt is a classic "old guy trying too hard" tipoff. 8:55: Funny thing I noticed: Jack's ex-wife's house key is under a ceramic rabbit. The title of that fateful episode in which a) Jack found the caves and b) made his heroic speech? "The White Rabbit." BOOM! 8:56: Sideways Jack's son is a Dodger fan, apparently. [flash] 8:58: Jack came back because he was dying alone. Period. 8:59: Claire isn't really going to hit this dude with an axe, is she? 9:00: The black guy's speech was eerily similar to Sayid's speech to Rousseau when he was tied up. 9:01: Didn't work as well, though. [break]
9:02: Best guess: the lighthouse is how Jacob brings these folks to the Island. And might FLocke be the one who locked the door? [flash] 9:03: I'm certain the music Sideway Jack's son is playing is significant. I have no idea what it is, of course, so I can't tell you the significance. But it's pretty special. 9:04: A quick pause: I don't have kids, so I can't say this for myself. What I've been told, however, is there's nothing like hearing your child excel musically. It's supposed to be like a religious experience. Seriously. Kudos to Mathew Fox for nailing the requisite emotions. 9:05: Hey, it's Sideways Dogen! And he's talking about people being special, just like in "real life." [flash] 9:06: Is this lighthouse at all similar to the beacon in "The Return of the King?" 9:07: 108 degrees. Priceless. 9:09: So ... Jacob's been watching them this whole time? He DID speak to them when they were children. 9:10: Jack just turned into Jack Bauer there for a minute.
[break]
9:13: Sideways Jack's son sounds exactly like my brother Jack. "I missed a couple notes." Yeah, nobody noticed. 9:14: Sideways Jack puts as much pressure on his son as his dad did on him. Lame. 9:15: Are there any similarities between David and Aaron, or is that in my brain? [flash] 9:15: So Jacob made Hurley bring Jack along with him, because he knew Jack was going to flip out? And Hurley's still babbling about luck. 9:17: After hearing Jacob spout that nonsense about oceans and cabs, I wish I was back in high school so I could re-do my yearbook quote. 9:18: What is Jin's play here? I'm not sure I understand. 9:19: Aha. So now it comes full circle. [end of episode]
Today's youtube is a tribute to the shifty, slithering slot guys who have made big plays for our beloved Crimson Tide over the years. Sit back and enjoy a few minutes' worth of jukes, jives and big plays.
Been a few weeks since I've posted my requisite links to close out the week. Before we get started, here's a throaty Derek Webb singing "A Savior on Capitol Hill."
And with that, we're off and running for this Friday's batch. — Because this wouldn't truly be the offseason without some unpleasant news, the university yesterday announced the suspension of safety Robby Green. BSR, as usual, has the skinny.
The rumors in Tuscaloosa at this point make it sound as though the suspension is due to a failed drug test. If you combine that with the carefully worded statement by Coach Saban, it would appear that the failed test was not an in-house one, but rather one administered by the NCAA. If that is the case, by rule Green will miss the 2010 season. He would have the opportunity to continue to work with the team, but would be ineligible to play. Because he would be ineligible, he would not be allowed to use the year as a redshirt; meaning he would be a senior when he was eligible to return to the field in 2011.
Our coaching search began the moment we learned Tubby was gone and never cut back to less than full throttle until Chizik was hired. The acrimony and shock of Tubby’s departure meant no one much felt like writing tributes. (I never did.) Vol fans were able to offer their long, impassioned good-byes over the course of weeks; Auburn fans woke up one morning and never saw Tubby again, save for his ESPNU appearances and “Auburn will beat Arkansas by three touchdown” gee-thanks-really predictions. Our good-byes never really got said, did they? It’s a shame. He deserved them. So, more than a year after the fact, I’m considering this mine.
For Christmas, my wife bought me Bill Simmons' comprehensive "Book of Basketball," a 700-page review of the history of professional hoop as seen through his eyes. I'd already read a number of reviews about it before Christmas even came; most bloggers, predictably, took the opportunity to skewer the book. And those who complained had some valid points. Simmons takes multiple, unprovoked potshots at players he dislikes (Kareem, Rick Barry and Kobe take a beating) while artificially pumping up those he obviously likes (there's the inevitable worship of Larry Bird and pretty much everyone who played for the Celtics in the '80s). He invents dumb arguments — does anybody really believe Wilt was better than Russell? — then spends entire chapters arguing them. And his writing remains filled with goofy pop-culture anecdotes and references to porn, as though Simmons (age 40) is trying to prove to us that he's still the backwards-hat-wearing former bartender from Boston who sits in the cheap seats surviving on Ramen noodles.
But can we really hold those things against him at this point? I mean, it's a Simmons book! Buying a Simmons book and then complaining about things like this is like renting "Friday the 13th," then complaining that there's too much gore. And yes, I'm biased. I discovered Simmons' writing while I was in college (when he first began appearing regularly on espn.com's Page 2) and have read everything he's written ever since. Frankly, Simmons represented everything I ever wanted to be as a writer: he didn't care about showing his biases, wrote with no attention whatsoever to length and always (ALWAYS) wrote what he wanted to write about. I even find his constant squabbling with his employer endearing; there's something almost noble about the back-and-forth between ESPN and its most popular writer. I even plopped down $10 for "Now I Can Die in Peace," even though I despise the Red Sox.
Still, anyone who reads him regularly knows that his destiny as a writer was this book. An unabashed NBA fan since his childhood, Simmons is one of the few writers who can make you care about things you didn't before you started reading him. At least that's the way it's been for me: I've always liked basketball but lacked the energy for the pros ... until I started reading Simmons regularly. Quite simply, through the power of his writing he made me interested in the NBA. It sounds ridiculous, I know. But that's the truth. And it's the truth because Simmons wants desperately for you to care about pro basketball the way he does. It's roughly the equivalent of playing intramural softball with my friend Daniel: after playing a season with him, I couldn't help but care about winning softball games. It wasn't until I turned 22 that I realized I was slowly going insane and had to get away from Daniel and softball as quickly as possible. Simmons is that way when it comes to pro hoops: read him long enough and you'll start caring about the NBA. Or you'll want to run away screaming. So this book is his magnum opus. He devoted three years of his life to it, watching copious amounts of tape, reading countless old books and SI articles and drawing on his own substantial memory bank to fill in the rest. It's 700 pages because it must be 700 pages, and by the time you finish reading it, you do have a different understanding about basketball than you had when you began.
If you like basketball, or if you just feel like you want to like it, it's definitely worth the read. Though I might wait on the paperback.
Welcome back to "Lost" blogging, this site's feeble attempt at comprehending some small part of ABC's multi-layered drama. This week's episode is titled "The Substitute." Please note: because this site's proprietor has recently discovered the magic of TiVo (welcome to 2004, Heath family!), tonight's timing will be slightly delayed (owing to my desire to skip all commercials). Also please note: SPOILERS, SPOILERS, SPOILERS.
Questions to ponder before tonight's episode:
• Where is FLocke going with poor Richard Alpert? • What will become of poor Sayid, who's apparently been "claimed" by the bad guys? • Is Claire alive? And why? • Where does the sideways world interact with this world? • Have I completely lost my mind?
(All times are CST.) 8:21: Every time I see a wheelchair lift, I think of Joe Swanson. Can't help it.
8:22: Whaddaya know, it's Helen! John's lovely woman apparently didn't leave him in the sideways universe. And apparently they're engaged? Maybe it's not so good, after all. (I'm kidding. Marriage is wonderful.) 8:24: Drink every time someone says the word "destiny" or "free will." 8:24: As an aside, even though I love everything about this show, I must admit the "Smoke Monster" CGI is eerily reminiscent of something you'd see in one of those terrible Sci-Fi Channel movies. [break]
8:27: Do you think Sideways Locke actually went on the Walkabout? Even in his wheelchair? Remember that in the real world (or "first run" world, as it may be) Locke went to Australia for the expressed purpose of going ON the Walkabout — he even took a solid ribbing from his boss before he went. So this is an altogether different universe. Although his boss is still a jerk. 8:30: John's a candidate ... for what, exactly? 8:30: Two things about this conversation:
• FLocke is promising to "tell you everything" if the subject will do what he wants ... just like the Other Others did to Jack last week. • Locke's mention of a "second chance" is pretty ... ironic.
8:32: Did FLocke just see He-Man in the jungle? I'm really confused. 8:33: The real reason no one believes Ben is that he very rarely tells the truth. 8:34: FLocke is recruiting? He should totally talk to Nick Saban and Urban Meyer. (OK, that was a lame joke.) 8:35: Anybody recognize that tune? I sure don't. Random theory: Could FLocke BE Death? Time for another Family Guy reference!
[break]
8:39: Think Sawyer will play "Never Have I Ever" with FLocke? And what exactly happened to Kate? 8:40: Whose house? RUN'S HOUSE!!! 8:41: Hurley's SUV is blocking Locke in. Pretty funny. 8:42: In the Sideways universe, Hurley is "the luckiest man alive." And Locke is a loser. But ... he does have a number of people willing to help him, including Locke and Jack. 8:44: When last we saw Jin, the poor guy had his ankle caught in a bear trap. Not a fantastic fate. 8:45: Wait a second: the child is Aaron, right? Right? Has to be. FLocke has the same problem with authority that Real Locke does. [break]
8:48: Is it me, or does Sawyer sober up really quickly? Shouldn't he still be drunk? 8:49: Maybe he'd describe himself a Giant Smoke Monster? 8:50: Hey, it's Rose! How awesome. In the sideways world, she still has cancer. That blows. Remember: Rose and Locke were the two people healed by crashing on the Island, which is why they didn't want to leave. 8:51: Sawyer's made reference to "Of Mice and Men" before. 8:52: I just noticed that Sawyer is left-handed. A possible reason for his trouble. 8:53: So here's a valid question: why on God's earth would Sawyer continue to follow this ... whatever he is? Remember the lesson of Malcolm Gladwell's "Blink" ... if someone's giving you a bad vibe, that's probably for a reason. Run the other way, and do so quickly. [break]
8:56: Burying Real John Locke is arguably the most poetic justice there is. Having Ben, who killed him, speaking at his funeral ... not so much. And let's remember: Ben actually tried to kill him on multiple occasions. 8:57: I remain convinced that Frank Lapidus was put on this show to speak for people like me. 8:59: If they found Locke's lost luggage, does that mean they found Jack's, also? 9:00: Recall that in "the real world," Locke's "Helen" who he tried to get to go with him on the Walkabout, was actually a call girl. At least in the sideways world he's with somebody. 9:01: For the moment, anyway. 9:02: Just an aside: didn't Helen mention something about inviting his dad to the festivities? Wasn't it his dad who paralyzed him? Am I missing something? 9:03: This seems eerily similar to that episode in Season 3 where Ben conned Sawyer into thinking he had a lethal device implanted in his heart. Or something. 9:05: That bit with the stones on a scale was missing the rat crawling across the background with the word "SYMBOLISM" flashing on a billboard. 9:06: Actually, the rock sort of looks like Chimney Rock at Lake Martin. [break]
9:07: So ... Sideways Locke became a volleyball coach? How fantastic is that. 9:08: And in the Sideways World, Ben Linus is a teacher? European History? Good grief. 9:09: Note that each name appears to ahve a number next to it. #23: Shephard. #8: Reyes. #16: Jarrah. #42: Kwon. #4: Locke. #15: Ford. 9:12: FLocke says "it's just an Island." Real Locke said it is "a place where miracles happen." (Note to Sawyer: Just light the dude on fire already & get it over with.) [end of episode]
As always, please add your own thoughts in the commentary section. I can use the help.
Welcome back to "Lost" blogging, an as-it-happens attempt to understand just what in the hell is going on in ABC's "Lost." Tonight's episode: "What Kate Does." As always, MAJOR SPOILER ALERT.
A few key talking points before we get going: • An episode from early in Season 2 was entitled, "What Kate Did." • Something's apparently going to happen in this episode in which Sawyer absconds with a gun, eerily similar to Michael in ... well, Season 2. • I'm pretty sure the only reason Frank Lapidus is involved in this show is to serve as the voice of confused fans like me. • This may be the coolest "Lost" related youtube I've seen yet.
• Vanderbilt is beating the holy hell out of Tennessee right now. And I'm totally skipping Alabama's loss to Kentucky on similar grounds.
Back in a moment.
(All times are CST.)
8:00: The Japanese guy here types on a typewriter for reasons that aren't entirely clear. Like, a typewriter from long, long ago. 8:02: You can pretty much see the wheels turning in Sawyer's head right now, can't you? [flash to alternate reality] 8:03: The guy in the middle of the road is Arzt. Awesome. Kate appeared to have deja vu when she saw Jack. 8:04: This seems like the right time to mention that Kate went back to the Island in the first place with the expressed purpose of finding Claire. She just lost her, obviously. [back to Island reality] 8:05: Miles speaks as the voice of ... well, us. 8:06: 100 percent chance Sawyer shoots the hippie. (OK, 99.99.) [Break] {Note from the break: Not joining us tonight, or any night for that matter: Stacey, who now has to wake at 4 a.m. as part of her clinical rotations.]
8:09: Who's the new guy with the gun? He looks familiar. 8:11: I feel like I should know this guy, too. Although I don't, so ... let's all just enjoy the lingerie shots. (Once again, it appears Kate gets a sense of deja vu looking at Claire's stuff. Recall that she's the one who was raising Claire's child off-Island.) 8:13: Sayid gets tortured on this show a whole lot. It's kind of sad. Although he tortured people for a living in his past life, so maybe it's karma. Or something. 8:14: Best guess: he's torturing Sayid like this to make sure he's actually alive. 8:15: Lied to him about what? He didn't pass? [Break]
[Best "Lost" related tweet so far: @hand_turkey "Sayid is as bad a test taker as I was in college."] 8:20: Brentwood! That's OJ's old haunt, right? 8:21: In all semi-seriousness, it's worth noting that the whole reason Claire was on the flight in the first place is that her psychic told her to get on the plane, knowing it would crash and she would have to raise the baby herself. So it's possible there isn't a family in Brentwood. 8:22: Seriously, I've watched this show as closely as anyone in the last few years, and I have NO idea what that last scene was all about. 8:24: Could Sayid be infected with the Smokey sickness? 8:25: "How did your friend get shot?" "Um, in 1977, we were trying to detonate an A-bomb and he got shot. The bomb didn't go off as far as I can tell, but we flashed forward through time 'till now. That makes perfect sense, right?" [Break]
[Note from the break: It appears Jack's wife from before the Island wound up on "Modern Family." I'd be upset too.] 8:29: Hurley asks the inevitable zombie question. Which is hysterical. 8:30: Remember when Rousseau said her whole team caught some kind of sickness and died? And then Desmond asked if anybody got sick? 8:32: "Who do you care about, Kate?" Damn. A reference to the crappy Love Triangle. Damn it all. 8:33: Claire and Kate's first conversation on the Island was about her zodiac sign. If I recall correctly. Also, Kate delivered Claire's baby. And, of course, like we said, she's the one who was raising the baby. In the parallel universe that never happened in this one. 8:34: And now she's apparently going to deliver it again. Almost on cue, my dogs start howling at a siren. 8:35: The last time we saw these houses were when Sun, Ben and FLocke were walking around in them. And they met Christian. 8:36: Gotta say, this version of Sawyer is kind of a wuss. [Break]
[Note from the break: "Buying lingerie at Wal-Mart for Valentine's Day" is my answer to the question, "Why is your wife kicking your ass?"] ["Lost" related tweet so far: @@Zap2itILostSF: "My first thought when I saw that piece of black fabric in Sawyer's hand: "thong!" In related news, I'm going to hell."] 8:41: Note that Kate is not running from this scenario, even though it totally makes sense to do so. (Holy crap, her doctor is Ethan Goodspeed. That's right, the same guy who tried to kidnap & steal the baby in Season 1, then got shot by Charlie. And he's making creepy needle comments. Perfect.) 8:42: Two things about this last scene: • Claire hadn't named the baby when we first met her on the Island — she named him after he was born. • Every time I hear Emilie de Ravin say the word "baby" in that fake Australian accent, I want bad things to happen to her. 8:44: Back to the Claire thing. Kate didn't know Claire was gone before she left? 8:45: Kate & Sawyer are playing the "what-if" game, which we've done here frequently. It causes insanity. 8:47: Worth noting: Japanese people love baseball. 8:48: Is our Japanese friend a survivor of the Black Rock? Is everyone in the Temple from that ship? 8:49: It's a cyanide capsule. (Yup.) [Break]
["Lost" related tweet of the moment: @j_bauer: "One more crying scene tonight, and #LOST will become Brothers & Sisters."] [Note from the break: Isn't "The Forgotten" a re-hashing of "Ghost Whisperer?" Or "Tru Calling?" Or "Medium?" I wish I could talk to ghosts — that'd be sweeet!"] 8:54: Kate used Joan Hart as an alias? Wow. Clarissa totally approves. 8:55: Ummm ... they can track you through credit card purchases, dude. You know that, right? (Note: Kate's mentioning that Claire should keep the baby is a re-hashing of that scene we mentioned earlier.) 8:56: Christian will likely make an appearance at some point soon. 8:57: Did Smokey mark Sayid? In the dirty water? So he IS a zombie! 8:58: Ah. Well, that explains what happened to Claire, I guess. Does that mean Claire and Christian are the bad guys now? 8:59: Nice. Claire's the new Rousseau. [End of episode]
As always feel free to leave your own thoughts in the commentary section.
Something I stumbled on the other day — these appear to be ads someone at the university made for our award-winning gymnastics program, currently ranked second in the nation.
I dig it. See you tonight for some "Lost" blogging. Roll Tide.
The company Web service is in & out today, which means no time to post links (yes, all 4 of you will be disappointed). In lieu of that, there's this ...
We're not talking basketball right now. Don't think I can. Nobody expected this team to be all that good, right? So we should just be proud they're playing their hardest and giving us a chance to win these games, despite the fact that we have virtually no depth, no reliable point guard and no reliable outside shooters.
Anyway, here's today's Webb, an avant guarde piece entitled "What Matters More." There is some language.
Doubt you'll hear that one in church anytime soon.
Anyway, some links to close out your week. — First, the guys at RBR do their typically excellent job summarizing Signing Day.
Objectively speaking, if you were given the ability to design a recruiting class from top-to-bottom, exactly what would you want? Well, to begin with, you would want a lot of highly-talented players, and then to make matters better you would also want to fill all of your position needs. Moreover, you would like to have a class full of players that have generally displayed good character off the field and sound academic performance in the classroom. And with all of that established as an objective baseline, clearly our recruiting class fits that bill to a tee.
If it's scorecards you're into, Chris Low can offer you one to wrap up the 2010 class even further. — As for the individual players, Gentry has an outstanding feature on DeMarcus Miliner and Philip Sims, two guys who may have a chance to play soon. And then, of course, there's the bizarre saga of Keenan Allen, who came out of Signing Day looking like a) a head case and b) a potential NCAA risk. And frankly, we don't need either. Best of luck to him, obviously. — On a national scale, Brian Cook — Sporting Blog contributor and MGoBlog proprietor, best known to 'Bama fans as the guy who tut-tutted Nick Saban for over-signing in 2008 — posted this list of Signing Day disappointments. At the top of the list is the Zooker, whose 2010 class was noticeably affected by the fact that Illinois kept him for no other reason than the economics of the situation. Doubt he's getting a contract extension anytime soon.
A playoff could work in one scenario. The top 12 or 16 schools should break away from the pack and form a new league, play each other, crown a champion, and keep the money for themselves. Unfortunately, most people would never agree which elite programs in the nation would break away. There would likely only be one team from Alabama in that new super conference, for example. No one would be happy with that either when their teams were formally relegated to a second tier.
I think they're hair-splitting. But they do raise good points. — In "holy [bleep], this is happening again?" news, Tommy Tuberville hired two of his former assistants — both of whom were working at East Alabama high schools — to join him at Texas Tech (in administrative roles only). Here's my cousin Jamie's take on the situation, via text message:
"Dunn could have a job almost anywhere if he wanted to. Good coach. Ensminger? Well he has pictures of Tub & a 3-legged goat. Only logical explanation."
As I've mentioned here in the past, I have a kind of love/hate relationship with football recruiting. Part of me feels ridiculous for caring about the whims of 18-year-olds even remotely, and I make a concerted effort NOT to make any kind of "HOLY S--- WE GOT [NAME PLAYER]!!!!11" comments here or on facebook/twitter. It seems sort of pathetic. Of course, the other side of that coin is this: in 2008 and 2009, Alabama turned in top-rated signing classes. In a related story, Alabama will enter the 2010 football season as defending champs. So maybe there's something to this thing after all.
On that note, here are some links and notable notes from around from around the landscape after yet another National Signing Day. — Considerably less buzz this time around than the last two seasons' top-rated classes. Of course, that's mainly because the team won the national championship on the field less than a month ago, and the cupboard is full enough that depth doesn't feel like a pressing concern (in each of the last two seasons, there was belief that members of the '08 and '09 signing classes would be needed to contribute immediately). That said, it's not like the 2010 version of this was a flop — beyond coach Saban declaring victory this afternoon (like everybody else), the class was either third or fourth in the nation, depending on the source. So Alabama should be fine, from a prospect standpoint. — My favorite signing for Alabama this time is Opelika's Corey Grant, because a) he's from my hometown; b) he may be able to fill the void for kick returns this fall (UPDATE: Cecil has a good story about him today). Observe ...
— Speaking of Opelika, the biggest story of the day is Auburn's class, which gained steam throughout December and January and ended up either just ahead or just behind of Alabama's in the ranking. It's a big deal, obviously, for the same reason Chizik's 5-0 start in '09 was a big deal: everyone was expecting a disaster, and every positive is a sign that maybe it is not. As Doc Saturday says ...
All of which may be redeemed for 30 seconds' worth of bragging rights and four years' worth of increased expectations. There's a reason the Tigers' bumper crop has met with so much surprise next to Alabama's day at the office: If Chizik can't convert that momentum into another January bowl and another celebrated class next winter, he'll be right back where he started, because Nick Saban's shadow isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
Of course, Auburn is under no obligation to compare itself to Alabama — too often, that "little brother" thing makes Auburn fans come off like a girl that's always staring too much at other girls in the locker room and comparing herself constantly. On the other hand, Alabama IS the defending national champs, and we do recruit the best here. So it makes perfect sense that anyone who wants to be at this level would draw that comparison. — I'll cede this next point to The Crimson Elephant.
The Alabama Crimson Tide had the top recruiting class in 2008 and 2009. In January of 2010 Alabama won the national championship. Just like the majority of any recruiting class, a good number of those athletes either do not play due to another player being a proven and efficient starter, or the new recruit is given a redshirt, and will never take the field during his first season. The 2010 Alabama recruiting class is solid, but for the in-state rival to “brag” about surpassing the Tide in recruiting, is based upon lack of knowledge. Alabama has a “stock pile” of talent from prior recruiting classes that have limited playing time, or in some cases, have yet to take the field. The Alabama football program is now in a position to carefully select prospects based upon need…not want.
Alabama coach Nick Saban Signing Day press conference, part 1
Alabama coach Nick Saban Signing Day press conference, part 2
And with that, I bid you adieu from National Signing Day. Tomorrow the basketball squad has Florida in Tuscaloosa. Also, it's my wife's birthday. Roll Tide.
Editor's Note: Welcome back to "Lost blogging," part of this blog's continuing effort to understand ABC's "Lost." Tonight's instance: LA X, a two-part, two-hour stage-setter for the show's final season. As always, stay away from this blog if you haven't yet seen the episode, as SPOILERS WILL INEVITABLY OCCUR.
Currently, I'm watching the show's "cheater" episode, a one-hour recap that basically serves as a means of allowing everyone who's never watched the show to get caught up (though, of course, it misses most of the subtle nuances). A few questions before we get there: • When we re-set everything, where will we wind up? • Is Jacob really dead? Is he a good guy? And why does his nemesis look like Locke? • What in God's name is Kim Bauer doing on a different show? (Whoops — that's a different blog.)
And away we go. All Times are CST.
8:00: So ... we're back on the plane. A few key differences here: Jack's hair isn't buzz cut; he didn't mention anything about critical FAA regulations; Rose talks to him first (instead of the other way around, and her hair is different too); and, of course, well, the turbulence is just that. 8:03: "You can let go now. It's OK — you can let go." "Looks like we made it." 8:04: What is Desmond doing on the plane? And why shouldn't Jack remember him (since they met off the Island)? 8:06: That trip on the camera just made me seasick. Apparently the entire Island is now underwater. [commercial break] [Note during the commercial break: Now seems like a good time that I have no idea what the point was to give away the entire opening segment (it "accidentally" leaked late last week. Of course I watched it. But what good did it do? I have no idea.]
8:10: I have now watched Sawyer drop Juliet, followed by her detonating the bomb, at least 40 times in the past seven days. 8:11: I think something's wrong with my TV's sound system. Kate sounds like she's underwater or something. 8:12: Oh. It was supposed to sound that way. 8:14: Everybody who had Sawyer's first "son-of-a-bitch" at 8:14, cash in now. 8:15: Dude, it Arzt! How cool is that? 8:16: In this alternate plane universe, Hurley is "the luckiest guy alive." 8:18: There's a 100 percent chance Hurley will pass out on top of Sayid. He's not so good around blood, you know. 8:19: Holy smokes! It's Jacob! [commercial break] [Note during the commercial break: now seems like the right time to bring up Dr. Jensen's recent post regarding time travel theories, and the various movies/TV shows/ comic books in which they play themselves out. "Lost" may be going for the "parallel universes" theory. Maybe.]
8:23: Except Jin and Sun. They seem just the same. 8:24: That Boone-Locke conversation was dripping with irony. I mean, you couldn't have gathered all of it up in one bucket. 8:25: Wild Theory I: the H-bomb blew the time-traveling folks back into the present day. Or what passes for it, anyway. 8:26: Just to review: we now have the Ajira group, the Others, the DHARMA Initiative, the Tail Section people, the Original 48, the Freighter People AND whoever Charles Widmore represents. You need a scorecard to keep track here. [commercial break] [Commercial break note: The Boone/Shannon combo is a classic case of two characters who simply didn't work. Neither of them brought a thing to the table (borrowing from Simmons' analogy) and both got in the way of a good story. It was a great thing when the show's writers found ways to get rid of them. Although they kept Claire for farr too long.]
8:32: Eerie parallels here to the first season when Jack was buried in a cave-in. 8:33: Recall that Hurley accidentally stumbled onto Jacob's cabin very early in Season ... 4, maybe (he saw the eyeball staring out at him)? What's his special connection to Jacob? 8:36: Charlie overdosed, apparently, in this alternate universe. Bummer. No shot at redemption. [commercial break] ["Lost" related tweet of the night so far: "@LtRandazzo That McDonalds coffee guy is a f------ d---. #LOST"]
8:40: A pen. Hysterical. 8:43: Juliet and Sawyer's emotional reunion is kind of lame. On the bright side, at least Sawyer won't try to kill Jack now. 8:46: Not Locke made the first reference to "freedom." 8:47: Everyone who had Smokey's first appearance at 8:47, cash in. Also, cash in one of our theories from back in November. Worth noting, our friend appeared to be protecting himself with the ashes from Jacob's cabin, which the Ajira folk burned in the Season 5 finale. 8:48: I haven't seen Ben Linus look so scared since he was poisoned by Jigsaw in "Saw." [commercial break] [Thought during the break: It just occurred to me that they're taking Sayid to the Temple to save him, just like they took Ben after Sayid shot him. Interesting, given what we already know about Sayid.]
8:54: I'm getting the same vibe from this scene that I got when Jack tried to save Boone, even when it was obvious he was beyond saving. Although Jack never tried to kiss Boone. But remember: Boone died saying, "Tell Shannon ... Tell Shannon." And Juliet died saying, "I have to tell you something. It's very important." Also, Sawyer is blaming Jack for this, the same way Jack blamed Locke for Boone's death. 8:56: It's our first reference to FATE in the episode — Charlie says, "I was supposed to die." 8:57: "Lost" related tweet of the moment: "@MKE I think #Lost just jumped the shark. Glenn Beck is the smoke monster? C'mon!" 8:58: In the parallel universe plane, Charlie gets arrested for using drugs on the plane, Kate's still in handcuffs and Jin is still there to deliver a watch to somebody on behalf of Sun's father (and he speaks no English). 8:59: Is Locke going to stand up? 9:00: Dammit. [end of first hour]
9:05: "I ain't followin nobody, Kate." A good line. 9:07: So ... in the alternate "Lost" universe, Jack's dad escaped? 9:08: The hound dog watched briefly before rolling back over. Nice. 9:10: Are these the Ajira soliders? Or did they come from "Temple of Doom?" [commercial]
9:15: Shouldn't there have been some kind of authority to meet Kate & Dog the bounty hunter at the airport? I'm perplexed. 9:17: Poor Dog gets hit in the head A LOT on this show. 9:19: Did what Juliet wanted to say have anything to do with what she was attempting to show her friend right before the plane crashed? The "we're in big trouble" scene? 9:21: Hey, it's Cindy! How exciting. I'd forgotten she ever existed. 9:22: What language is the Asian gentleman speaking here? It doesn't appear to be Korean, since Jin can't understand him. 9:22: Aw, hell. What kind of cross is that again? (Note: It's an ankh.) 9:24: Did Hurley never bother to look inside the case before he left L.A.? Really? I'm perplexed again. [commercial break]
9:30: The only person left on the Island who might recognize Cindy from the plane is ... Sawyer. Who, of course, is burying his dead lover. 9:32: The water turned into blood? Because Jacob is dead? 9:33: I have no idea what just happened here. But Sayid currently has a nice Christ-imagery thing going on. [commercial break] ["Lost" tweet of the moment: " @ryanmsheely The only way this mystical Asian guy is okay with me is if he is really Dr. Pierre Chang in disguise."] [Note from the commercial break: it actually says on Bradley Byrne's Web site that his family has been in Alabama for "four generations," at least it used to. But ... so what? My family's been in Alabama for longer than that — farming hogs, mostly, but we've been here. I'm supposed to vote for someone based on that?]
9:40: Was that Ilana who just picked up a bag? 9:42: Hey, Claire's back! And here I thought maybe she'd died and was never coming back. Wishful thinking, I guess. [Note: I genuinely can't stand Claire. She's like every annoying girlfriend I ever had, multiplied by 20.] 9:43: So ... the fact that he's doing Bansai trees means he's Japanese? 9:45: Now I get it — the ash is the same white ash that surrounded Jacob's old cabin. And hey, they have a flair — just like the one that Sayid tried to shoot back in Season 1. 9:47: Fake Locke at least proves he's not Real Locke. Also, it should be noted that the Man in Black KNOWS Locke wasn't weak — he looked him directly in the eyes and chased him off. 9:48: So now we get to debate about where Fake Locke's "home" is. I guess it's the Temple? [commercial break] [Note from the commercials: I still say the AT&T spot with Luke Wilson would be better if someone chopped off his arm.]
9:52: Kate is cleaning up Sawyer and caring for him again while he's barely conscious. Just like Season 2. 9:53: Poor Jack suffers a lot. "He deserves to suffer on this rock like the rest of us." Locke's question is pretty poignant, "What did you lose? 9:55: The conversation between Jack and Locke, like the Boone-Locke one, is dripping with irony and symbolism. 9:56: I was right about the present day thing, apparently. 9:57: Poor Frank Lapidus feels the same way I do about all this. 9:58: Richard has made earlier references to the fact that he is the way he is because Jacob made him that way. Does that mean he's going to start aging? 9:59: Well, at least one person who died in this episode isn't completely dead. That's good news, at least. [end of episode]
As always, I'm completely perplexed and need a few hours to think it over. Feel free to leave your own thoughts in the commentary section below.
Maybe you're tired of me posting these videos from the magic that was the 2009 season. Frankly, I don't care.
Nevertheless, you have to believe me: THIS is the best of the bunch — it's got cool locker-room scenes, Eli's commentary and a goofy soundtrack laid over it.
That's cool. Also cool: this video of some of our boys singing the fight song before the Senior Bowl (h/t: RBR). Even the sainted Tebow seemed to be enjoying it.
I'll be back Tuesday night, with an all-new "Lost" post. Oh yeah, you got that right.
