Rumour Has It

With nearly half of its third season underway, musical dramedy “Glee” has finally revealed a glimpse of why viewers fell in love with the show in the first place with the latest episode “Mash Off.” After heavily relying much of senior year on the school production of “West Side Story,” the high school drama prevails by returning to its original formula of incorporating music that has to do with what’s happening to the show’s stars.

FOX’s “Glee” centers on a group of very different high school students who form a singing group with the help of their Spanish teacher, Will Schuester. With a variety of characters in the ensemble cast, many episodes reveal dramatic characteristics about each star including relationships, sexuality, and social issues that result in song. This was shown in last week’s episode, which saw cheerleader Santana Lopez being exposed as a lesbian on television, which prompted her to sing her heart out to Adele’s “Someone Like You.”

After creator Ryan Murphy was criticized for the second season of the hit show, which depended on big guest stars like Gwyneth Paltrow and heavily themed episodes, he vowed to return to a more character-driven storyline. But the season thus far has left much of the show’s best characters like Guidance Counselor Emma Pillsbury in the dark and has given ex-cheerleader Quinn Fabray an odd baby-stealing storyline.

Murphy even went as far as to write off fan-favorite Lauren Zizes and give Sam Evans the boot, but has thankfully welcomed back the ladder who will return in the season’s eleventh episode. But the third season hasn’t been all bad: some highlights include Kurt Hummel’s campaign for Class President; Mercedes Jones’ rival choir group “The Troubletones,” and who could forget Mike Chang’s heartbreaking dance episode.

But was there really anything wrong with “Glee’s” second season to begin with? Viewers don’t seem to think so with last season being its highest rated to date, including a superbowl episode watched by nearly thirty million people. While the second season normally saw upwards of ten million viewers per episode, viewership continues to decline for its third season averaging nearly nine million people.

The FOX show also has an amazing merchandise line that includes soundtracks, concerts, and  last summer’s 3-D film. But with the departure set for show stars Rachel Barry, Finn Hudson, and Kurt Hummel, will “Glee” survive another plot change or will the introduction of new cast members drive viewers away? Maybe they won’t have to: “Rumour Has It” many departing characters will be featured in a spin-off.

Learn To Fly

Deserted island mystery “The Lord of the Flies” develops interesting relationships, fantastic symbolism, and brings to light where today’s media got some of their ideas. Originally written in 1954, this classic novel was William Golding’s first book, which wasn’t initially a success selling less than 3,000 copies. However, it went on to become a best-seller and ended up on the required reading list of many schools and colleges since the 1960’s.

The story is about a large group of British boys whose plane crashes on a mysterious island. The children must learn how to live without the comfort of adults by depending on one another and trying to get rescued through the use of a smoke signal. Ralph, “a fair-haired boy,” is chosen as the leader of the children after he finds the conch, a large shell that is used to call for meetings. Piggy is the second character introduced in the book and is severely different from the rest of the children as he is emotional and has attained a lot of knowledge.

The beginning of the book is slow at first; in fact much of the story is used as build-up to a division in the children that brings about violence, fear, and murder. Throughout the novel, “the beast” is often referred to as a hideous creature that is trying to keep the children from leaving the island.  The story’s antagonist, Jack, decides that he is better fitted as the leader of the group because he believes that the most important thing is hunting meat.

Although some of the interactions between the British boys were hard to translate, this book is an easy read for any age and deals with the subjects of human nature and individual welfare versus the common good. It also has strong comparisons to ABC’s “Lost,” which is about a group of people whose plane crashes on an island, chooses a man named Jack as their leader, and fear the “smoke monster.”

This novel was adapted into film twice, in 1963 by Peter Brook and again in 1990 by Harry Hook (shown in its entirety above), and remains a classic tale of good versus evil. The characters and story line can be used in today’s world almost sixty years later.

We Found Love

Pop princess Rihanna delivers a controversial music video with a message attached to her former flame for her techno song “We Found Love.” This is the distressed singer’s first single off her sixth album “Talk That Talk,” which hit stores this week.

The music video was shot in County Down, Northern Ireland in late September and depicted Rihanna in an abusive relationship with a blonde black man. The video not only paints ex-boyfriend Chris Brown in a negative light, but also shows Rihanna drinking, smoking, and attempting suicide.

The unhappy couple is shown engaging in sex while disturbing images flash across the screen including drugs, various pills, and dilated pupils. The love-hate relationship ends when Rihanna walks out the door of her “hopeless place” and is seen huddled in a corner, crying at the end of the music video.

The music video generated controversy for its depiction of violence and drug use, as well as when Rihanna took her clothes off during filming, which led to one local farmer famously telling the Barbadian that she needs to “find God.” It was also described as a “disgrace” by an anti-rape campaigner and was not what some fans had in mind when listening to the upbeat song.

“We Found Love” debuted at number sixteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number one in its sixth week on the chart, giving Rihanna the record for an artist to have twenty top-ten singles in the shortest amount of time. With the song becoming the singer’s eleventh number one single, the twenty-three year old singer is tied with fifty-three year old Madonna.

This seems to be just the beginning of a flourishing career for Rihanna, who has been non-stop since the debut of her first break-out hit “Umbrella” back in 2006. Throughout the years it seems the singer’s taste in music has changed just as quickly as her hair, which was last seen a firey-red not two months ago.

Both of her last albums, “Rated R” and “Loud ,”debuted in November of 2010 and 2009, respectively, and while they spawned several hits, the singer seems to not take a break from recording or the spotlight. Although critics have said that the latest album is a departure from the dark theme of her previous two records following Chris Brown’s assault, her video says otherwise.

Good Girls Gone Bad

Raunchy school comedy “Bad Teacher” showcases a new kind of educator with outbursts of laughter from the film’s outrageous star Cameron Diaz playing the titular role. This film continues a new trend of foul-mouthed, female-driven comedies that seem to be taking over Hollywood since the debut of “Bridesmaids” last spring.

“Bad Teacher” tells the story of Elizabeth Halsey, played by Diaz, who just got dumped by her fiancé because he believes she only wanted to marry him for his money; he was right. Now, Elizabeth must return to work as a teacher where she plans to land a new man by getting her breasts enlarged; the only problem is she doesn’t have enough money to pay for the procedure.

After a few months of watching movies in class, Elizabeth’s students are reluctant to find out that the new syllabus includes getting the best scores on the state exam so that their teacher can endure the benefits. Filled with outrageous one-liners, ridiculous situations and hilarious stars, “Bad Teacher” learns that sometimes it’s good to be bad.

Perhaps the best thing about the film was “The Office” star Phyllis Smith who plays insecure Lynn Davies, a fellow teacher and wannabe friend of Elizabeth’s. Also on board was Lucy Punch as Amy Squirrel, an “across-the-hall-roomie” slash sworn enemy whose overachieving ways gets the best of her resulting in an incident similar to “what happened in 2008.”

Justin Timberlake also starred as a potential love interest for Diaz, who were once a real-life couple. Although Timberlake’s character was mostly annoying, this movie definitely ends up on the top of his hit list. On the other hand, “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” star Jason Segal’s sarcastic Russell Gettis, a gym teacher who makes constant advances on Elizabeth, was charmingly funny.

Geared with in-class hangovers, hot-boxing, and gold-digging, this film opened with over thirty million dollars and made over two-hundred million dollars worldwide; if this is what “Bad” feels like, then I don’t want to know good.

Be My Escape

Spiritual civil rights novel “A Lesson Before Dying” leaves an impact on readers that rings true in today’s world, which has less to do with teaching a man on death row a lesson and more to do with teaching the story’s protagonist.

Written by critically acclaimed author Ernest J. Gaines in 1993, this book was set in the late forties and told the story of Grant Wiggins, a twenty-something African American school teacher who was given a difficult task in a small Louisiana town. His Aunt has burdened her nephew with teaching her godson, Jefferson, that he’s not a “hog” before he is sentenced to death.

It may be too late to save Jefferson from an unfair trial for a murder he did not commit, but it’s not too late to save him from God. Grant, who is an atheist that no longer attends church and believes in “nothing,” must meet with Jefferson over the course of six months in order to turn him into a God-fearing man.

Grant is an educated man with poignant pronunciation and thinking skills that are often taken as “being smart” with local white authorities. He wishes he could run away with his girlfriend, a divorcee mother of two, so they can be free of becoming anything since neither of them wish to be teachers.

This novel, which was adapted into an award-winning HBO film, can be most closely related to “Tuesdays with Morrie,” which offered the same weekly meetings of a man near death. However, this story is frighteningly different in comparison to an ailing, Jewish college professor.

The book doesn’t focus on the murder, trial, or even much of Jefferson; it deals with the everyday challenges of Grant and the decisions that he must make as an African American man living during this time period. Most notable from the book is the difference in delivery of the final three chapters, which were just as compelling and memorable as the rest.

All Star

With the fall television season winding down and shows beginning their winter reruns, “What Jason Watches” has compiled a list of the best new characters debuting this season.

Last week’s episode of “The Vampire Diaries” was all about our favorite Original Vampire, Rebekah. The episode showcased Claire Holt’s acting skills through a series of flashbacks that spanned one thousand years where she was turned into a new breed of supernatural that would be superior to the werewolves. Rebekah’s emotions were heightened after she was turned into a vampire as were the actress’ irresistible accent, adorably good looks, and overpowering ability to love the people around her, which has glamoured viewers into doing the same.

There is no point in hiding our over abundance of joy for ABC’s “Happy Endings;” the sarcasm, the wit, and did we mention its continuing to grow in viewers! And after instantly falling in love with Max and Penny, we must admit that Jane appears to be the true break-out star of this comedy. Eliza Coupe’s competitiveness and overbearing wife routine is spot-on during every airing and has viewers turning up the volume faster than you can say Monica Gellar.

The highly-anticipated FX drama “American Horror Story” continues to shock viewers with odd moments and an insanely-webbed storyline. After immediately taking a liking to resident whacko Constance, we have come to enjoy Tate; most notably his interactions with Violet. After the two-part Halloween episode that featured ghosts from not only the house the Harmons currently live in but also from a high school shooting, viewers are wondering whether Tate, played by Evan Peters, committed the murders or if he is a ghost himself.

It’s no surprise that ratings for “The Big Bang Theory” continue to grow during the current economic status, but we think it has more to do with the addition of Mayim Bialik. The always formally-referred Amy Farrah Fowler brings not only the female equivalent of Sheldon, but also adds a quirky, awkward, and at times sexually frustrated geek to the cast. Her interactions with “bestie” and possible obsession Penny prove to be the most hysterical with last week’s episode being no exception.

While popularity for ABC’s “Revenge” continues to rise, as is our need for more Victoria Grayson is our lives. Madeline Stowe fills the role of the Hamptons housewife as if she were born to play the part; however, as the series progresses it’s the interactions between Emily Thorne and Nolan Ross that get us all tingly inside. Gabriel Mann’s equivocal banter and schemy billionaire ways will have you saying Chuck who?

Honorable mentions go to Phoebe Tonkin as Faye, a sneering, badass, and all-around witch on “The Secret Circle;” Jane Levy as Tessa, an angsty, sarcastic teenager on “Suburgatory;” and Maya Rudolph as Ava, an emotionally detached talk show host on “Up All Night.”

Time To Pretend

Fantasy drama “Once Upon a Time” takes viewers back to the land of make believe and adapts everyone’s favorite bedtime tales by writing a new ending to an old story. The fairytale show has delivered some of ABC’s highest ratings, anchoring Sunday nights at eight o’clock.

“Time” tells the story of two worlds: one where fairytale characters exist in enchanted forests and lavish castles, and another where the same characters live as mortals in the small town of Storybrooke, Maine.  On the day Snow White gives birth to a child, the Evil Queen sets forth a dark curse that will bring them “someplace terrible where there will be no happy endings.”

According to Rumplestilskin, the curse has frozen time and erased everyone’s memories until the arrival of Snow White’s daughter, Emma Swan, a lonely twenty-eight year old bail bondsman played by “House” veteran Jennifer Morrison. As it turns out, Emma’s ten year old son, Henry, was adopted by the Evil Queen who happens to be the mayor of Storybrooke.

Lana Parrilla steals the show as the icy, beautiful Evil Queen who perfectly mirrors her personalities in both worlds while still making viewers feel empathy towards her. After watching her rip the heart out of the “person she loves the most,” her own father, her tragic plot for revenge continues as the mayor of Storybrooke.

Perhaps its the innocence of the story or people’s need for escapism, but this ridiculous-sounding show is nothing short of entertaining. Viewers are unsure whether the Evil Queen really doesn’t remember her past life or whether she’s just waiting for the right moment with the same being said for Rumplestilskin who was able to recite similar lines in both worlds.

Fresh off a five-season run as one of Bill Henrickson’s many wives on HBO’s “Big Love,” Ginnifer Goodwin plays the not-so-innocent Snow White. Responsible for the death of the Evil Queen’s lover which thrusted the Evil Queen’s plans into action, the dark curse has morphed Snow White into a pixie cut sporting schoolteacher.

The series premiere was watched by nearly thirteen million people, with almost the same amount sticking around for the second episode. With a guest list that includes Maleficent, the Magic Mirror, and Gepetto, ABC promises that more fairy tale characters and drama is on the way as a full season pickup has already been announced.

Time Of Your Life

Hit or miss actor/singer/comedienne Justin Timberlake tackles science fiction in his new thriller “In Time,” which hit theaters last week. Set in the future, this retro-influenced film packs some big names behind a dazzling compilation of eras.

The movie begins by informing the viewers that a genetic alteration allowed humanity to develop a system where individuals stop aging twenty-five years after birth. Timberlake plays Will, a twenty-eight year old man whose time in this world is about to run out.

Due to over-population concerns, time has replaced money as the standard currency and people must acquire more time through labor after turning twenty-five years of age, or die within a single year. The poor live in ghettos where people work each day to earn hours of life while the rich live in luxurious mansions for centuries based on how much time they have accumulated.

Amanda Seyfried plays Timberlake’s love interest and sports a short, red wig for the film while Olivia Wilde, fresh off her stint on FOX’s medical drama “House,” plays Timberlake’s extremely young-looking mother. “Mad Men’s” Vincent Kartheiser and “Batman Begins’” Cillian Murphy team up to try and stop both Timberlake and Seyfried from taking back time.

The movie opened in third place last weekend, behind “Puss in Boots” and “Paranormal Activity 3,” with twelve million dollars. With Timberlake’s history of major flops, “The Love Guru,” and minor successes, “The Social Network,” what list will this film be placed on?