someecards.com Card Of the Week: 29th May, 2011

US Television: Breakout Kings, Episode 1.12, "There Are Rules"

Breakout Kings
Season One, Episode Twelve, There Are Rules
Original Air Date:  May 22, 2011

The Breakout Kings are called into action when five men escape from prison after an 18-wheeler crashes through the wall at Attica.  Ray sends Shea undercover at Attica to find out information on a sixth inmate who bailed on the escape putting Shea into danger.  Meanwhile, the new chief director pays a visit to Charlie letting him know that he wants to change things around with the team and they might very well lose one of their members.

Ronald Barnes (Jeff Seymour) walks through the yard of Attica Correctional Facility in Attica, New York holding a map.  He's walking as if pacing off steps to find something drawing curious looks from other inmates.  He makes eye contact with two inmates, Chester Rhodes (Avery Kidd Waddell) and Sandy Clemente (Dean Chekvala).  Rhodes taps on a table in front of yet another inmate, Tran Jun (Jeff Ong) who looks up from what he's writing then stands and follows Rhodes to stand before Barnes along with Clemente and a fourth inmate, Carlos Zepeda (Lombardo Boyar).  An inmate behind Barnes tells him he thinks he's lost.  Barnes turns and informs the man he's just enjoying the sunshine.  He's told by the larger inmate that that part of the yard belongs to him and he needs to get out of there.  Barnes looks to his watch and tells the man that it's funny as he was about to say the same thing to him.  At that moment, an 18-wheeler crashes through the wall of the prison yard.  As the guards start the lockdown, a man gets out of the truck with a gun and begins firing.  Barnes, Rhodes, Clemente, Jun and Zepeda run to the trailer of the truck and get inside.  In the process, Rhodes takes one of the guards hostage.  A guard fatally shoots the man who drove the truck into the prison yard.  The back of the trailer lowers and a black SUV drives out and through the hole opened in the wall by the 18-wheeler.

someecards.com Card Of the Week: Sunday, 22nd, May, 2011

American Television: Blue Bloods, Season One DVD's Available for Pre-order

Season One of Blue Bloods is currently available for pre-order on amazon.com.  Right now, it's only available on DVD.  The price is $42.59, a beautiful discount from the list price of $64.99.  There is currently no release date available but that information should be available within a few days.

Blue Bloods: The First Season

Worred about the Zombie Apocalypse? Never Fear! The CDC Has Got You Covered!

Do you often wonder what you will do if and when the zombie apocalypse occurs?  Will you be able to survive or will you fall prey to one of the zombies or, even worse, not be able to make it through because you are unprepared?

Well, put your fears to rest.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released some tips and guidelines to let you know what you should include in your survival kit and how you should plan to meet up with loved ones. 

So, my friends, follow these tips!  They could save your life!

The zombie apocalypse guide was originally prepared and posted on the CDC Blog by Dave Daigle, a longtime CDC spokesman.  Since it was released Monday, it has drawn so many hits it crashed the CDC blog (I still can't get it to come up!).

Daigle, a 52-year-old father of four is one of several writers on the blog and said he was looking for a way to create interest in preparedness in the wake of the recent disasters in the United States and with hurricane season just around the corner.  According to Daigle, "Essentially, the kids and many of the messages are the same.  We have had a hard time engaging people."

For More Information:
Working Link:  http://emergency.cdc.gov/socialmedia/zombies_blog.asp
Original Public Health Matters Blog Link (blog currently not working):  http://blogs.cdc.gov/publichealthmatters/2011/05/preparedness-101-zombie-apocalypse/

US Television: "The Secret Circle" News & Video from Upfronts, 19th May, 2011

The CW Network released some great information, stills and video for The Secret Circle today at Upfronts in New York.

The Vampire Diaries will remain in its Thursday night 8:00-9:00 p.m. (EST) time slot.  The Secret Circle will air immediately after Vampire Diaries from 9:00-10:00 p.m. (EST).  You can see the entire CW schedule at Deadline TV. 

US Television: Hawaii Five-O, Episode 1.24 "Oia'i'o (Trust)"

Hawaii Five-O
Season One, Episode Twenty-Four, Oia'i'o (Trust)
Original Air Date:  May 16, 2011

Steve receives another envelope containing a brass key that belongs to a piece of antique furniture.  Laura Hill is murdered by a car bomb and Five-O begins the investigation.  However, as they proceed into the case, shocking details begin to emerge as to who was behind her murder and why.  Meanwhile, Danny and Rachel make plans to leave Hawaii and go back to Jersey together.

Danny is in bed watching Blue Hawaii as Rachel sits down on the side of the bed and tells him Stan is coming home tomorrow night and they have to tell him.  Chief Mahaka (Kelvin Han Yee) pushes a badge across his desk to Chin Ho telling him to take it.  He compliments Chin Ho for how he handled the situation with his uncle and all the false accusations of his having stolen the money.  It showed character and now that the the case is closed and his record is cleared the HPD would like to re-instate him as a Lieutenant, a bump in rank from his former position of detective.  Chin appreciates the offer but they are doing great work at Five-O and that's his home now.  As he's leaving HPD, he passes Sgt. Duke Lukela (Dennis Chun) and another officer.  Both men are carrying bags.  Chin asks what he has and Lukela explains a rancher found what looked like burnt money on his property.  They are going to run the pieces that still have serial numbers and try to figure out where it came from.  At Five-O, Chin talks with Steve about what he learned from Lukela.  Steve tells him it's impossible as both he and Kono saw the money burn.  There is also no hard evidence linking the money back to them and the exact amount was returned to the locker where it was taken from.  They both look to the stairs where Governor Jameson (Jean Smart) and Laura Hills (Kelly Hu) are descending.  The ladies stop and greet the two officers.  When the ladies have gone, Steve asks Chin when he's going to ask Laura out but he laughs it off.

US & CDN Television: Programming Notes

There are a few programming notes to report tonight.

ABC Television has moved back the season two premier of Rookie Blue from 16th June to 23rd June.  The show will air Thursday, 23rd June at 10:00 p.m. (EST).

The New York Times ran a report over the weekend that CBS Television had renewed both Hawaii Five-O and Blue Bloods for a second season.  Hopefully, official word from CBS will come within the next day or so but given the respectability and reliability of the New York Times, I think it's pretty safe to assume both shows are definitely returning next season.

AUS Television: Offspring, Episode 2.1 & 2.2

Offspring
Series Two, Episodes 2.1 & 2.2
Original Air Date:  May 16, 2011

Nina Proudman is living a happy life in Baltimore, Maryland when she receives word her father has had a heart attack.  She returns to Australia and finds she must make a choice about whether to return to the United States or remain in Australia with the family and job she loves.  Meanwhile, Billie and Mick are trying to have a baby but receive disheartening news.

Nina looks out upon Baltimore thinking of her life there thus far.  She's been in Baltimore for five months, had zero panic attacks, has delivered 68 babies, has 3 1/2 new friends, has had 3 flings with quite nice men (no major sparks but at least the men were unmarried and not her sisters ex and refrained from blowing anything up) and her sexual performance while in the U.S. is an 8.  She's grounded, centered and living in the moment confident she can hang onto it when she receives a text to ring home as her father has had a heart attack.

US Television: Breakout Kings, Episode 1.11, "Off the Beaten Path"

Breakout Kings
Season One, Episode Eleven, Off the Beaten Path
Original Air Date:  May 15, 2011

The team is called in when a dangerous psychiatric inmate escapes during a field trip to a medieval-themed restaurant.  As the man is a known killer, the team knows they must work fast before he can kill again.  When they learn he has abducted a young television host time starts running out even faster.  An old face returns to the Breakout Kings to help them track the inmate through the Adirondack's.  Erica has flashbacks of the area where they are searching for the inmate as it is where she sought vengeance on one of the men who murdered her father.  Meanwhile, Charlie's father's watch is missing and he blames one of the cons for taking it.

At Sunnybrook Psychiatric Detention Center in New Hampton, New York, several inmates are lining up next to a bus for a field trip to Chivalry Castle, a medieval-themed restaurant.  When the woman in charge of them, Paula Berry, asks why the are going on the trip one of the inmates, Kenny, raises his hand.  He answers because they listen and have good behavior.  She asks why Todd and Phillip aren't going with them and Kenny again raises his hand to answer because they didn't listen and had bad behavior.  She tells them field trips can be taken away so they must follow the rules then allows them to board the bus.  One of the orderlies, Victor, stops an inmate, Bennett Ballester, telling him he can't take the stuffed animal he is holding with him.  Bennett begs Paula and she tells Victor it's alright and to let him go.

US Television: L.J. Smith's The Secret Circle in Development for the CW Network

I've been an L.J. Smith fan for a very long time.  I remember purchasing and reading The Secret Circle when it was originally published in 1992.  I bought the paperbacks and had to wait for the final book in the series, The Power, to be released.  The novels were so engaging and well-written that waiting for that last book was tough!

I was thrilled when the CW turned Smith's popular novels The Vampire Diaries into a series.  Kevin Williamson and the fine cast and writers have turned an already amazing series of novels into a stellar television series.  I was surprised the same hadn't already been done for The Secret Circle.  Imagine how pleased I was to hear news that plans were moving forward to finally do just that!

someecards.com Card Of the Week: Sunday, 15th, May, 2011

US Television: Blue Bloods, Episode 1.22 "The Blue Templar"

Blue Bloods
Season One, Episode Twenty-Two:  The Blue Templar
Original Air Date:  May 13, 2011

The Reagan family organizes to deal with the Blue Templar and find out who really killed Joe Reagan.  Meanwhile, Jamie, who Frank doesn't want involved in the Templar investigation so as not to draw attention is assigned to protective duty to a young woman who was the victim of an attempted kidnapping.

Jamie and Danny take the news of Joe's involvement in the investigation of the Blue Templar to their father, Frank.  Jamie tells his father, grandfather and brother what he's learned from conducting his own investigation and the evidence Lydia Gonsalves had assembled regarding Joe's death.  She had arrived on the scene, Detective Malevsky had killed the two dealers then told her they shot Joe.  She didn't believe Malevsky so the Blue Templar saw her to be a liability.  Frank asks why Jamie didn't bring everything to the family when it started and he tells his father Joe kept it from him and he thought it was something Joe had left for him to carry on and he wanted to honor him.  He admits he's in over his head now.

US Television: Vampire Diaries, Episode 2.22 "As I Lay Dying"

Vampire Diaries
Season Two, Episode 2.22, As I Lay Dying
Original Air Date:  May 12, 2011

Damon has all but resigned himself to the fact he will die from the werewolf bite but Stefan hasn't given up.  When he and Bonnie try to find a spell to save Damon, Bonnie hears the witches say a name:  Klaus.  Stefan seeks out Klaus to find a cure for Damon's werewolf bite.  Caroline and her mother reach a new point in their relationship after Liz Forbes makes a deadly mistake.  Elena and Damon make peace in their troubled friendship.  Stefan makes a dark deal with Klaus.  Jeremy sees two old friends he thought he never would see again.

The morning after the ritual Elena is standing at the door of Jeremy's room watching him sleep.  She slowly closes the door then goes to the door of Jenna's room, looks inside for a second then closes the door.  Damon is waiting for her in the hall.  She asks what he wants and he says he wants to apologize.  He admits feeding her his blood was wrong and that he doesn't deserve her forgiveness but he needs it.  She tells him she needs some time, maybe a lot of it.  He nods and tells her to take all the time she needs.

Television: Season Finale and Premier Dates

Here's a quick list of the finale and premier dates for the shows you can find on this blog.  The dates compiled here were found on TVRage.  If these dates change or when information currently unavailable becomes available this post will be updated as will the list on the left-hand side of the blog.

Finale Dates:
Blue Bloods (US):  Friday, 13th May, 2011
Breakout Kings (US):  Sunday, 29th May, 2011
Hawaii Five-O (US):  Monday, 16th May, 2011
Vampire Diaries (US):  Thursday, 12th May, 2011

Premier Dates:
Luther, Series 2 (UK):  Date currently unknown
Offspring, Series 2 (AUS):  Monday, 16th May, 2011
Rookie Blue, Season 2 (CDN):  Thursday, 23rd June, 2011
Tangle, Series 3 (AUS):  Date currently unknown
White Collar, Season 3 (US):  Tuesday, 7th June, 2011

Updated 25th May, 2011 to reflect new airdate for Rookie Blue.

US Television: Hawaii Five-O, Episode 1.23 "Ua Hiki Mai Kapalena Pau (Until the End is Near)"

Hawaii Five-O
Season One, Episode Twenty-Three, Ua Hiki Mai Kapalena Pau (Until the End is Near)
Original Air Date:  May 9, 2011

When a raid on Wo Fat's safe house turns up the wrong man inside the residence, a chase ensues leading Danny to a house three doors down.  A man is dead inside the house and Danny is exposed to a deadly chemical agent.  Sang Min returns with an ominous message for Steve McGarrett.  Meanwhile, Internal Affairs makes it clear to Chin that they know he was taking the blame for his uncles crime.

In Kahala, O'Ahu, Five-O and the Honolulu Police move in on a home where Wo Fat is believed to be located as thermal imaging, which Kono is monitoring, shows one lone individual in the house.  Steve McGarrett warns Five-O and the HPD that, even though he's alone, Wo Fat is still extremely dangerous.  Jenna Kaye gears up to go in with the team but Steve handcuffs her to a police car pointing out she isn't a field agent.  He refuses to let her get hurt on his watch.  They move in on the house and HPD breaks the door open triggering a blast that blows the officers in front of the door back.  As a firefight ensues, Jenna Kaye tries to free herself from the door handle of the police car and reaches inside for something to break the handle free.  Kono keeps an eye on the lone occupant of the house via thermal imaging and yells to Steve that he's on the move.  Steve enters the house ordering his team and HPD to surround the perimeter.  Kono keeps Steve up to date on the movements of the occupant as Steve moves through the dwelling.  She tells him the man is moving upstairs and Steve follows.  He comes face to face with the lone occupant of the house, Sang Min (Will Yun Lee).  Both men are surprised to see one another and do not fire upon each other.  Sang Min dives out the window onto the grounds below and Steve follows.  He tells the team he has eyes on the target but it isn't Wo Fat, it is Sang Min.  As they are running around the house, Min turns and fires in Steve's direction causing Steve to duck behind the house and confirm the identity of the occupant to Kono.

US Television: Breakout Kings, Episode 1.10, "Paid in Full"

Breakout Kings
Season One, Episode Ten, Paid in Full
Original Air Date:  May 8, 2011

When a dangerous hit man escapes from prison the team must find him and get him back into custody before he can complete his deadly mission.  Meanwhile, Shea overhears a conversation between Charlie and Ray about Ray not being a full-fledged U.S. Marshall.  This leads to conflict between the team and we finally learn exactly what each of the cons did to land them in prison.

At McCollum-Walker Correction Facility in Suffield, Connecticut, Virgil Downing (Mark Pelligrino) is rolling a magazine in his cell.  His cellmate tells him he's rolling it wrong if he wants to inflict real pain with it.  He continues to tell him he'll need a guy like him for whatever it is he has going.  When he receives no response as the man puts the rolled-up magazine into his shirt sleeve, he tells him the fact he feels he's too good to talk to any of them is why no one likes him and that he should watch his back.  A guard knocks on the door to get Virgil.  He tells him to turn around and step away from the door.  When the guard enters the cell, Virgil uses the magazine to get out of the cuffs then overpowers the guard and takes his keys.  He places the magazine on his cellmates bunk as the man looks on in surprise then, taking the guards vest, he leaves the cell and closes the door.  He clings to an overhead steam pipe in the hall and another guard passes right beneath him, leaving an entry open.  Downing walks through an area where another inmate is mopping the floor.  He breaks off part of the handle and stabs in inmate with it.  As another guard enters to assist the injured inmate, Downing targets him with pepper spray and exits the area.  A guard finds the first guard Downing overpowered and calls a "man down" alert.  As the guard team organizes to apprehend Downing, a guard in the security room watches him head from block to block on his way west.  The guard team go outside at D block, where the Sergeant said Downing was headed but he is nowhere to be seen.  Downing exits A Block and uses the vest to bypass the razor wire and goes over the fence.

AUS Television: Offspring Return Date

The much-anticipated second series premiere of Offspring will be on 16th May, 2011.

Time to mark your calendars for the return of Nina, "Doc Hottie", Billie, Mick and the rest of the cast we all love so much.  I know I have!

someecards.com Card Of the Week: Sunday, 8th, May, 2011

And the Winner Is...

The 137th Kentucky Derby has come and gone and the winner is Animal Kingdom.  The 20-1 long shot jockeyed by John Velazquez beat out favorites such as Nehro and Dialed In to be the first Kentucky Derby win for Velazquez.  Velazquez was scheduled to ride Uncle Mo but the horse was scratched because of a lingering stomach problem.  He took the reins of Animal Kingdom when the horses regular jockey, Robby Albarado was thrown from his horse and kicked in the face resulting in a broken nose three days prior to the running of the Derby.

US Television: Blue Bloods, Episode 1.21 "Cellar Boy"

Blue Bloods
Season One, Episode Twenty-One:  Cellar Boy
Original Air Date:  May 6, 2011

The murder of a couple who lives on the same street as the Reagan's and were family friends cause the Reagan family to take special interest in the case and relive old memories of Joe.  Meanwhile, Jamie Reagan faces his own problems when his service revolver turns up missing from his locker and the breaks on his car fail.  He finally confides in Danny about Joe's work with the FBI against the Blue Templar.

Frank has a meeting with the Mayor about the budget and cannot sleep.  He and Henry talk about Joe, who Frank has been thinking about as it's almost been two years since his death.  Frank didn't personally enforce the warrant that Joe was serving when he was killed but he was his Commissioner and he sometimes finds himself left with an inescapable truth:  his son was killed on his watch.  As his father is telling him he can't think like that, Frank's cell phone rings and the house phone rings.  Frank answers his and Henry gets the house phone.  Henry's conversation ends first with him telling the caller "alright, I'll tell him".  Frank asks his caller when the call came in then to tell his detail he will want to stop there on the way in.  When Frank hangs up his father tells him it was Danny who called.

Fiction: Stephen King's "Herman Wouk is Still Alive"

Stephen King fans can read his newest short story Herman Wouk is Still Alive in the latest edition of Atlantic magazine.  The three page story can be found on the Internet here.

You can also read an interview with Mr. King where he discusses everything from the inspiration behind Herman Wouk is Still Alive to writing to his taste in music.  Stephen King on the Creative Process, the State of Fiction, and More can be read online here.

UK Television: Luther, Series 2 Preview

BBC One has given fans of Luther a very exciting present today:  a preview clip of series two!

Ever since the last second of series one ended I've been eagerly awaiting the start of series two.  As of right now, there isn't a set date when the series will begin but that information should be coming soon.  The clip certainly doesn't give any major plot points away but that's a good thing, I think.  It's always much more fun to see the shocking developments as they happen than to see/read spoilers and nothing be unexpected.

You can watch the clip here off the BBC's official YouTube network or you can go to the official BBC web site for Luther and watch the clip there (for UK residents only).

US Television: Vampire Diaries, Episode 2.21 "The Sun Also Rises"

Vampire Diaries
Season Two, Episode 2.21, The Sun Also Rises
Original Air Date:  May 5, 2011

The night of the ritual has arrived and Klaus has everything, and everyone in place.  Up until the last minute, Bonnie, Jeremy and John look for a way to save Elena.  Jeremy and John find a way but the price that must be paid is great.  Bonnie steps into action against Klaus.  Matt makes it clear to Caroline how he feels about her life now.  Tyler and Caroline come to an understanding in their friendship.  Damon finally reveals he was bitten by Tyler Lockwood and Stefan vows to find a cure for his brother.

Caroline and Matt are trapped in the Lockwood cellar while Tyler, in wolf form, rages outside the gate trying to get to them.  Matt fires the gun against Caroline's protests as she knows the wolf is still Tyler.  The wolf slumps to the floor wounded and Caroline opens the door and tells Matt to take her hand.  He wants to shoot again but she insists he take her hand.  When he does, she secures their escape from the cellar.

US Television: Hawaii Five-O, Episode 1.22 "Ho'ohuli Na'au (Close to Heart)"

Hawaii Five-O
Season One, Episode Twenty-Two, Ho'ohuli Na'au (Close to Heart)
Original Air Date:  May 2, 2011

When a famous photographer, Renny Sinclair, is murdered during a Hawaiian photo shoot Five-O is called out on the case.  The prime suspect, one of Renny's old girlfriends turns out to have an alibi so the team must dig deeper into his life to find out who might have wanted him dead.  Could the answers they find be even more sinister than a lover scorned or even the bookie Renny is deeply in debt to?  Meanwhile, Chin Ho's uncle has gone to Internal Affairs and confessed that he stole the money Chin Ho was blamed for stealing.  Chin makes a decision regarding the investigation that could end up sending him to prison.  Kono crosses paths with a very old acquaintance during the course of the Sinclair investigation.

At Puaena Point, North Shore, O'Ahu, famed photographer Renny Sinclair (Rick Springfield) is doing a swimsuit photo shoot.  He comments to one of the models "you're beautiful, Alana" bringing a smile from her.  When he's finished taking pictures, he guarantees the cover is in the last sequence he shot.  He throws his camera to his assistant Amy (Andrea Bowen) as Alana (Serinda Swan) walks to him and takes his hand.  The two put their arms around one another and walk away as Amy gives the crew their instructions.  Once away from everyone, Renny and Alana kiss and he asks if she's not getting too tired as the setups are taking way too long.  She assures him she's fine and is way more than OK as she's on a beach in Hawaii with the man she loves.  He tells her they should stay there a couple more days, fly her family in and get married right there.  Under the watchful eyes of another of the models, Jordan, he tells her to get changed.  They kiss once more and she leaves him to change clothes.  Amy walks up next to Jordan and asks if she's alright.  Renny goes to his trailer and goes inside.  As he's going through the pockets of a pair of jeans he hears a sound at the door.  He tries to open the door to see who is outside but cannot.  From the window he sees a fire begin to rage beneath the trailer and tries harder to open the door.  He beats on the windows for someone to help him when another blaze flares up in the back of the trailer.  The models and crew leave their tents at the commotion and see Renny's trailer engulfed in flames.  As they run toward it the trailer explodes.

US Television: Breakout Kings, Episode 1.9, "One for the Money"

Breakout Kings
Season One, Episode Nine, One for the Money
Original Air Date:  May 1, 2011

The "Breakout Kings" are called into action when a charming thief escapes from prison.  As they delve further into his life, they find a long trail of women easily under his spell.  Could one of them be his true love and the key to finding him?  Meanwhile, Shea wants a conjugal visit with his wife but convincing Charlie and Ray to allow it is a huge hurdle so he takes matters into his own hands.

At Orleans Correctional Facility in Albion, New York, a prisoner's cell has been trashed.  When complaining to the guards does no good, one of the prisoners, Andre Brennan (Richard Burgi), convinces the other that he needs to retaliate against the three men he feels trashed the cell.  He lays out the plan the man should follow and assures him he will be there to back him up.  The plan goes into action and Andre again provides assurance he will be there for backup.  The attack begins and, when the action starts, Andre quietly slips away in the confusion.  Andre and another prisoner go to the roof where Andre scales the side of the building and leaves the grounds for a waiting SUV.

Note: Recent Post Delays

I want to take a moment to explain the recent posting delays on the blog.

For the past few weeks, the area where I live has seen some extremely severe weather. Power and Internet outages have been relatively common and have lasted anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days. It is amazingly easy to get behind on just about everything when you have so much downtime. For this reason, pretty much all recent blog posts have been delayed. For that, I apologize most sincerely.

Thankfully, the weather has taken a turn for the better and I am working hard to get caught up. I hope to have all of this weeks show recaps on the blog by tomorrow night. This includes Hawaii Five-O and Breakout Kings.

Everything should be returning to normal very soon and any recaps will once again be posted in a timely manner.

Recommendation of the Month: Supernatural

I enjoy any show that is well written and has a fine cast.  Supernatural is such a show.  But I don't just enjoy it, I love it.

I'll admit that I got into Supernatural late into its run.  The Winchester boys were already well into season five and nearing the end of the big angels and demons arc by time I picked the show up.  My greatest television regret is that I wasn't there with them from the very beginning.  But, better late than never, right?

The 2011 Kentucky Derby

It's that time of year again!  In a little over two days, the fastest, and greatest, as they say, two minutes in sports will begin and end for another year.  The celebrities have already turned out for the pre-Derby festivities and you can be certain that when Derby day arrives, they'll be out in full force.

Last year, the weather played a major role in the Derby.  Near flood conditions plagued the track but the horses and jockey's got out and gave it their all to give sports and Derby fans a wild race.  This year, race fans are hoping for a dry day and dry track.

someecards.com Card Of the Week: Sunday, 1st, May, 2011