RobertR

If the neighborhood is anything to go by, Michael leaps to mind as a possibility. I wouldn't necessarily read too much into who showed up and who didn't. It's a local death that didn't make national headlines. For all we know, Jack and Kate are the only ones in LA. I certainly can't see Sun and Jinn flying in from Korea for a funeral, for example. Robert

Yeah, I'd agree that the episode had some problems, although not answering questions I don't think was an issue in this instance. The episode was all about getting a signal off the island and the cost of doing so. That said, I agree that Ben and Locke sure did a half hearted job of convincing Jack of anything. I'm not sure why Sayid, Jinn, and Bernard are still alive either, although there was a good payoff for that subplot. And, heck, we did find out Penelope was not associated with the "bad guys" which I'm presuming are the true Dharma. And it once and for all puts to an end the "they're in Limbo" theories. As for who's in the coffin, my best guess is Ben. Or somebody we haven't met yet or really gotten to know, like Carl. Or Jacob. No way anybody is dragging Locke off the island alive. Robert

The words "jaw dropping" come to mind. I think the show just reinvented itself before our eyes. Edit: If nothing else it just brilliantly subverted the whole structure and formula of the show that's been well established to this point. "Through the Looking Glass" is a totally appropriate title for the episode. Robert

Ichiro's name has been coming up too. If the Brewers make a splash, and I don't count picking up a middle reliever as a splash, I think RF is the most likely spot with Hart shifting into Mench's role and Mench going out in the trade. It sure would be fun to snatch up a big name player and hear fans in big markets be all dismayed. Especially since the Brewers have the depth of prospects to make it happen. Robert

Considering MacDougal's performance, injury history, and contract, no thanks. At this point, I'm not sure that Capellan isn't an upgrade. Or at least, Capellan doesn't have the downside. The Brewers are in a position where they don't have to reach and can target guys that are pitching or hitting well. Robert

Jermaine Dye will likely be available if the Sox fall out of it. If Hart isn't really hitting by then, I could see something like Gwynn Jr. (the Sox need a centerfielder) and Mench for Dye with Hart taking over Mench's role. Or Nix and another top prospect in place of Gwynn. Robert

One of the best things about The Sopranos is how the dramatic beats and major events defy the conventions of episodic television. It's the anti-24 in that regard, where major events can happen at any time in the episode, not just in the last 5 minutes. While not surprising in the big picture, the way that Tony cold bloodedly took care of Chrissy had plenty of impact. A couple of thoughts. I'm not a big fan of AJ, but the father/son storyline fits in the big picture. How one deals with your family is one of the big themes of the series. Tony doesn't see any way out of his life, but he doesn't have to drag his son down with him. It wouldn't surprise me if the Phil/Tony confrontation never really comes to pass. Phil dropping dead from a massive coronary wouldn't be an out of left field ending. Especially since Tony does plenty to aggravate him. I wonder if the FBI are going to appear again. They're obviously in the deep background, but the FBI agents investigating Tony have been avoided for the most part since Episode 1. They're notable by their absence. Did I hear ducks outside the Sopranos' home while Tony was having breakfast? I wonder if the big finale for the series is simply going to be Tony quitting / Melfi throwing him out of therapy. Robert

David Chase is adept at defying expectations. For the first time, I actually liked an AJ centered episode as he struggled with depression. And Tony's advice might end up backfiring on him. And Tony's other "son" Chris completely melted down. With Phil looming in the background, Chase is obviously setting up the expectation that one of the two isn't going to make it to the finale. Whether he follows through or not is up in the air, but the idea that there's no future for the next generation of Tony's "family" is obviously one of the issues that Chase has in play. Robert

I've picked up a Wii myself and my wife and I are having a lot of fun. Bowling is incredibly intuitive. (I've created miis of The Dude, Walter, Donnie, and The Jesus specifically for that.) And I like the fact that Golf is really a finesse game. I've played a smattering of the other sport games as well and like them well enough. I'm not sure I understand the point of Wii Friends at this point. Anyone care to explain the concept? Robert

Not to mention, it's J.D. Closser the Brewers are trading. Hardly the definition of an impact player. Robert

Target has Wiis in stock this morning. Robert

For Your Consideration I was disappointed. Perhaps it was because they were too close to the material, but all I got out of the film was "actors are shallow creatures". Hardly a new insight. There are good performances, notably by Catherine O'Hara and Harry Shearer, but there's nothing substantial to bounce off of. Add to it the excessive number of awards shows limits the impact of the Oscars nowadays and the central premise is unrealistic in any terms. And, maybe it was just my household, but the audio synchronization seemed off which was distracting. Thank You For Smoking Pretty much a pitch perfect black comedy. Extremely focussed and well acted by Aaron Eckhart. I like movies which revolve around people being good at their jobs and making it the story around a tobacco industry lobbyist is too juicy a target to hit any number of points of willful ignorance and hypocrisy, by all sides. A nice little gem. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan I laughed hard. Primarily because there's an actual plot there and not just Sacha Baron Cohen making other people look bad (although there is some of that). A lot of the time, his character is the butt of the joke. And stuff like naked men fighting in and out of a hotel room is in completely bad taste and yet funny. and, out in theaters Hot Fuzz A pitch perfect, affectionate send up of action films. Using English cops as the protagonists makes it fresh because an American style cop doing his own thing is decidedly out of place. Add in an editing style that's very reminiscent of Tony Scott/Michael Bay, homages to movies from Bad Boys to Mad Max to High Plains Drifter to The Wicker Man to Chinatown ("Forget it Nick, it's Sandford") to Point Break, among others, and this is a love letter to movie fans. Beyond the homage/parody aspects, the script is very tight. Lines and situations set up early in the film are called back later to often hilarious effect. It's probably a better script than Shaun of the Dead. And the acting is terrific throughout. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have the potential to be one of the great comedic duos of the next decade. Robert

A couple of other thoughts on the episode. It's perhaps irony and a definite contrast to Tony, but Johnny Sac went out surrounded by his loving family. Well played to the end. And I enjoyed the Sidney Pollack cameo. Cleaver looks like a better movie than it has any right to be. Mortality and age was a definite theme last night. And Carmine apparently has found an out, which is something Tony has been looking for. Goodfellas is the usual model for The Sopranos, but between the restaurant hit and the baptism at the end, there's a definite Godfather homage going on. A Paulie centered episode should make it a good one. I get the sense that there's a definite direction here, but I don't know the final outcome. After a couple of seasons that were a bit meandering, I'm feeling confident about the ending. Robert

I thought it was a good reminder of just what a prick Tony can be. Heck, he even cheats at Monopoly. And he knows how to hurt a person emotionally. Not only did Bobby want to stay out of that side of the business, the job had added resonance. He took out a father that just wanted to be with his daughter, which echoed the last shot of the show. Considering the amount of liquor that was consumed and the fact that we weren't shown all of the night, I'm not surprised that Bobby eventually boiled over. Years of insults, more sniping, and the fact that Tony can't even play a game without cheating all contributed to the evening. I'm not sure that Bobby's DNA would be in any database. Up to this point, it doesn't look like he's done anything that would cause the authorities to take his DNA. And there's nothing that connects him to the victim. It's something that could hang over him in the future, but I'm doubtful that it's going to make an impact in the show. It's just another example of the small stuff that hangs over the characters' heads and how it's impossible to escape your past in the series. I agree that it was a very well shot episode as well. And the Sopranos doing karaoke was pure gold. I hope all of the episodes remaining are up to this one. Robert

I'd be very happy with Jeff Baker as a return. Especially as someone that could backup Fielder instead of Counsell. Robert

Hey, the Nats won a game. Their real concern is going to be keeping their bullpen fresh though. They have to get something out of their starters. Frankly, they should have been going after the Ben Hendricksons of the world all spring. Robert

I wasn't at my best behavior in that earlier thread either. I do think it's important to admit that stats have strengths and weaknesses (I sometimes regret teaching people that AB x OBP x SLG = Runs Created approximately) and many of those stats are narrowly defined. However, I think we'd all agree that where arguments occur is not in defining a stat, but defining what it means. That's where arguments tend to occur. Saying Bush had an ERA over 4 is accurate. Saying an ERA over 4 is lousy is where debate arises. I also think it's important to distinguish between statistics and metrics like VORP or WARP. I trust them because they've been vetted and appear to make sense, but they're only estimates. The actual value of a Replacement Player is certainly debatable. Metrics are simply numerical methods of saying what statistics actually mean and while they're potentially more useful than simply pulling out a statistic or two, they're less accurate and their assumptions are subject to debate. I perhaps think that part of it is being tired of going over the same old things every year. I can't wait for this year's "Do Strikeouts Matter" debate. Robert

You'd have to declare Braun off limits too. His bat is potentially good enough to be an asset at first base or in the outfield. I wouldn't give up Braun, Gallardo, or Villanueva. Probably not Inman either. Everybody else in the farm system would potentially be up for grabs. Jackson, Iribarren, or Gwynn all could be on the table. Maybe toss in Sarfate or Capellan to balance bullpens. And, I agree, if you like Cordero enough to trade for him at the deadline, you should like him enough to trade for him now. I don't think it will happen, but it sure is nice to be in the position of pondering it and realizing it could be feasible. Robert

It's worth pointing out that F. Cordero is a free agent after this year. The odds of the Brewers re-signing him are probably less than 50%. I believe Wise is a free agent too. It sure would be nice to go into the offseason knowing that you already have good options for the 8th and 9th inning. If the price was right, I'd sure like to have Chad Cordero and bump everyone else down a spot. I've no doubt that there will be some issues in the bullpen before the season is over. Very few teams can avoid it, even when the bullpen is solid overall. If the Brewers make a trade at the deadline, beefing up the bullpen is the likeliest target. So, why not target one of the best relievers that is reportedly available? Robert

It probably would be a good idea to add, as a sticky at the top of the page, a faq regarding trade, waiver, and free agency rules in baseball. Topics I'd suggest include: The June 16th question. Service time thresholds for arbitration and free agency. Free agency compensation. The five and ten rule. Options (particularly the fact that you can only use up one option a year, no matter how many times a player takes a plane to Nashville.) Waiver Rules. Probably something to work on. Robert

FWIW, Baseball Prospectus has the Nationals projected at 66 wins. Their offense is unimpressive, but not historically bad by any stretch. Ryan Zimmerman, Felipe Lopez, Austin Kearns, Ryan Church, Chris Snelling, and Brian Schneider have soem promise. Heck, if they move Lopez back to SS and start Belliard at 2B, they'll only likely be a bit below average. Their bullpen looks servicable, too. It's their starting rotation that's a shambles. The ballpark may serve to hide some of their struggles though. The main concern I would have would be the starting rotation putting too big a strain on the bullpen and the entire pitching staff collapsing. Robert

I'm thinking somewhere around 100 losses. They'll be the worst team in the majors, but nowhere near the Tigers of a few years back. The lack of ownership and tight budgets for scouting and strict slotting on draft day, really limited them. Joint ownership and a lack of direction did the Nationals no favors. Still, you have to be more than lacking direction, but actively incompetent to lose much more than 100 games. Manny Acta sounds like a fairly competent manager and I'm not expecting any Lopes/Royster style meltdowns. They'll be worse than Yost was his first year with a rock bottom payroll, but I also expect them to find some diamonds in the rough. Robert

Given up on Brick so quickly Robert? At least that was a crime caper that not only had a tangible plot, but had originality to boot. Thankfully that's just one of dozens of movies that were better then The Departed this year. I just forgot about Brick and to be honest I'm not exactly positive of whether it was eligible this year or not. But I'd agree that it was better than The Departed. Still, I enjoyed The Departed a lot and even if the third act has its share of plot holes, it was always interesting from a technical standpoint, a character standpoint, and a thematic standpoint. And it scores bonus points from me for throwing in an homage shot to The Third Man at the cemetary. It's certainly not Scorsese's best, but he shouldn't have to completely rewire your brain to win an award either. Robert

I'll agree that The Departed isn't going to go down as being on the level of Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, or Goodfellas. I'd probably put it on the upper end of the tier that includes Cape Fear. That said, since Pan's Labyrinth, Children of Men, and United 93 weren't nominated for Best Picture, I'm not upset with the choice. The Departed is better than Babel, Little Miss Sunshine, and The Queen. Robert

As I said, perhaps not well, I had mixed feelings about Babel. If you are interested in the concept and seeing it in the first place, and you have an interest in how a story is told, you'll get a lot more out of it than if you just want to settle down for a nights entertainment. The only segment that I felt strongly positive about was the Japanese segment. It was a good choice to end on that segment. Robert