Girlfriends & The Game 3.26.07

While Monday night's episodes weren't particularly LOL funny, they were still interesting and served to progress storylines as we enter the final stretch of the season. I think there are less than a handful of new episodes left, so let's get right down to it...

First up, Girlfriends.

Since Joan, Maya, and Lynn did contribute to the "confusion" of William and Monica's short-term marriage, it was apropos that they felt a need to take action to rectify the situation. I enjoyed the scene where Joan unveiled her "Operation Does She Yield" to Maya and Lynn, yet she only had a name and no plan.

I thought that last week William was starting to come out of his funk, but he was still wallowing in self-pity last night. When he wacked his sandwich with the platter, it reminded me of those "this is your brain on drugs" commercials from years ago.

So the ladies traveled to Chi-town which brought them face-to-face with Monica's mother. Not an expecially likeable or caring character, but it helped to form a basis of why Monica is the way she is (isn't it true that most of us are a reflection of our mothers, whether good or bad?!?). She had some cringe-worthy lines:

To explain her absence from Monica's wedding, she says "I thought we were just missing the wedding, not the entire marriage." And then goes on to call Monica a "spoiled brat unable to keep a husband longer than 2 hours."

Talking with a friend after the episode last night, we were both confused by Monica's sudden "brokeness." But then I thought back to when we first met Monica, and I don't recall her actually having a job, unless you consider looking for a husband a full-time position. She admitted that her father has bankrolled her extravagant lifestyle of lavish trips and personal grooming, but that has abruptly come to an end now that he's incapacitated and mama's taken over.

While I'm glad Monica returned to L.A., I don't think it was right of her to go to William and demand money. Of course he's going to assume that she only wanted him for his money to begin with. I feel like Monica has forgiven him, but she wants to make him sweat it out. But how much more, because as Maya so rudely commented "What do you want him to do? Hop on one foot and sing 'I'm Your Bitch'?"

With Monica back working at the J-Spot, I feel that it's inevitable that she and William will find their way back together.

My one pet peeve about the epsiode was Lynn. I'm really tired of her playing the "clown." Perhaps the writers don't really know what to do with her character. I guess one could argue that her obsession with the "rich nougaty chocolates" at Monica's condo served to balance the drama of Moncia's crisis. Lynn is smart - she certainly has the degrees to show it - and she was on point with her "full picture" analysis last night. I'd just like to see her more integrated into the main action and less of always being the side show.

And where is Aaron?

Moving on to The Game:

Last night we were introduced to two new characters: the new defensive end, Ty and his wife Camille. Camille proved to be a worthy adversary for Kelly, who is used to having full control over Sunbeam operations. Watching her square off against Camille proved that yes, Kelly can stand up for herself, but seems to have trouble doing it with the people she loves, like Jason and Tasha.

I knew that Tasha's insecurity was the reason why she wanted to hold Kelly back. While Kelly will always have the Sunbeams, Tasha has put her hopes and dreams into her firm, so if that doesn't work out, she's nothing more than "a stupid girl who happened to give birth to a professional athlete."

Melanie was correct in her assessment that Tasha had become another Jason in Kelly's life and I'm glad Tasha stepped in to rescue her from being voted off the island. Kelly has proven that she can defintiely balance work and Sunbeams, so Tasha's concerns were unfounded. But I did chuckle when she went all Gil Grissom from CSI over the voicemail message.

I really don't like Ty. The spitting on the bench was over the top. But I realize that in those locker rooms there is a clear division between offense and defense, with both sides thinking they're at the top of the heap. Since the boys don't really have much else going on during the off-season, the high school antics will have to suffice - Jason taking the legs off the weight bench, only to find that his car no longer has tires. Funny!

And I noticed that the men and women didn't have any scenes together last night. Interesting...

Once again, this show clearly is lacking in consistency. Derwin and his liasions with Drew Sidora has clearly fallen off the radar. I hope they come back to it because that revelation could make for a very explosive season finale.

Stay tuned....

Calling all 25-year-olds!

Be sure to tune in tonight at 8pm for the premiere of Spotlight 25 on Lifetime, hosted by award-winning journalist Willow Bay.

Spotlight 25 is an original one-hour special that explores the answer to the question: who is the contemporary 25-year-old woman and what dilemmas and issues does she face in this modern world? The documentary will feature real women in situations such as dating, the workplace and family life, as well as an exclusive interview with 25-year-old Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson.

I'm super excited about this program since I am at the mid-point of my 25th year. I think it's wonderful opportunity to see what life is like for similarly-aged women in different walks of live and how we compare.

And this show is not just for those of us at the quarter-century mark. I'm sure anyone who will be, has been, or is living with someone who is or will be 25 can learn something tonight. Let's meet back here tomorrow to discuss and share our thoughts!

For more information, click here.

Grey's Anatomy Alert!

Attention all Grey's Anatomy fans...contrary to popular belief, this is a BRAND-NEW episode airing tonight on ABC at 9pm. ABC initally planned to run a repeat tonight, but since fans were left stuck-on-stupid after last week's episode, we'll get to see the fall-out from Izzie and George's ill-advised hook-up tonight!

BET: More Money, Less Booty

I hesitated to blog about this issue, but since it seems to have gone without comment in any TV-related media outlet, I decided to talk about it here.

Friday's Washington Post reported that changes are afoot for BET (Black Entertainment Television). The network's parent company, Viacom Inc., will increase BET's budget for original programming by 30 percent to 50 percent this year. The network has typically lacked original programming, instead filling airtime with hip-hop videos and syndicated repeats of such shows as The Parkers, Girlfriends, Soul Food, The Wire, The Jamie Foxx Show, and In Living Color.

BET plans to add "at least 10 new shows this year" and expand across multiple media platforms to reach its predominantly black audience.

I think these are welcome changes, long overdue. I have always had strong opinions about BET. As the first, and until the relatively recent launch of TV One, the only Black network, it has failed miserably to address the diverse culture of African-Americans. Instead the powers that be chose to promote ignorant, violent and hypersexual misogynistic stereotypes of Black America. That's why my friends and I commonly refer to BET as Black Exploitation Television.

At a time when Black America is suffering, BET is doing a disservice to the community.

• Black-on-black crime is at an all-time high (did anyone catch Paula Zhan's special last night on CNN about this very issue?)

• African-Americans account for half of all new HIV/AIDS diagnoses, and the disease is the leading cause of death for young Black women.

• More Black men are in jail than in college (if you don't believe me, check the New York Times archives).

• And just yesterday, we learned that about one-third of the people living in Washington D.C., the nation's capital, are functionally illiterate, compared with about one-fifth nationally. 60% of D.C.'s population is African-American. You do the math.

But, all is not lost. Change is afoot, not just at BET. For the first time in history, we have a real, viable Black candidate for U.S. President in Barack Obama.

Since BET has the eyes and ears of so many African-American youth, they need to accept the responsibility, step up to the plate, and as Spike Lee says, "do the right thing." Because the stakes are too high now for them to fail and turn the other (butt-)cheek.

For the full Post article, click here.

Girlfriends & The Game 3.19.07

We're back! Last night we finally had new episodes of Girlfriends and The Game.

First up, Girlfriends:

• I'm disappointed by the lack of face time for Richard T. Jones. I know I've seen him as a guest-star on other shows recently, but he needs to come back here to grace us with his presence. I want to see more of him and hear less of Joan talking about him.

• I found it funny that the "heffer-tuplets" (Joan, Lynn and Maya) failed to notice that William had stopped talking to them a month ago. Classic passive-aggressive William. He needs to worry less about them and get busy trying to win Monica back. I have a feeling their marriage cannot be saved, but I think that outcome depends on whether or not the show is coming back.

• Lynn...Lynn...Lynn...you poor, confused and misguided soul. On one hand I applauded her for standing her ground and realizing she can't compromise herself for a relationship, but she had no business flaunting herself and doing the "ho-stroll" through the pulpit. I think that deep down she figured that by showing a little skin, Eldon would eventually come around and jump back into her (sofa-)bed. Eldon playing hard-to-get was a turn-on for her. And then Lynn shows up as the end like a repentant misbehaving Catholic school girl, and they decide to work it out?!? I don't like it. And this is a problem I have with men in general: if Eldon knew that he still had feelings for Lynn, why did he even entertain the notion of dating Tracey? Unfortunately, she's the one who's going to get hurt, as we saw from the look on her face when she walked up on Lynn and Eldon kissing.

My three favorite moments from last night:

• William: "How do you tell someone you're not talking to them that you're not talking to them?"

• Tracey: "Come on Eldon, let's go. You know how Chili's gets crowded after Bible Study."

• Lynn, after being caught trying to pass off a Thesaurus as a Bible: "I'm just looking for the Word."

And I though the ending with Joan and William was really cute, as the floodgates opened on all the gossip he'd been holding in for the past month. It totally reminded me of my relationship with my best guy friend. We may not speak for a month at a time, but when we do, it's like a marathon session catching each other up.

The Game

• Faune Chambers was wonderful last night. Did anyone else recognize her as the surprised and disgruntled wife from the McDonald's Snack Wrap commercial who walks into a sports-themed home Extreme Makeover:
Her: I hope you like what they did with the dog house.
He: But we don't have a dog.
I hope she comes back again, because she's was off the hook funny last night, especially when she seemingly had no clue who Melanie was nor her name despite the fact that she gave Mel "mono."

• Let's take Karen and Jevon's situation out of context for a second: What if he weren't an athlete, they broke up, and yes, he kicked her out the house. Perhaps I'm naive and have yet (knock on wood) to experience such a traumatic breakup, but why should she get a "package"? The silver parachute package included a new apartment, new wardrobe and a Gucci carry-on. The blue package, which Karen ultimately "won" was a one-way plane ticket back to her mama's house. Is that for real? I'm going to ask around to find out if this is common practice among the wives to finance a wife/girlfriend who is put out on her tail. Perhaps, since most of these women are like a fish out of water in any given city, away from family and friends, so the other wives and girlfriends become their makeshift family.

• Derwin and Melanie have some serious issues. I still can't figure out #1 Why they're even together? and #2 What they have in common? Melanie wants the benefits of marriage without making the vows. While his indiscretions with Drew Sidora weren't discussed last night (another case where I feel that this show is filmed out of order and lacks continuity), Melanie is really walking on thin ice with Derwin. And she knows it. Tasha and Kelly are doing their best to school her ("relationships are a business"), but Melanie feels like her love is enough. I know we'd all like to believe that is true, but in the world of professional sports, the stakes are higher. It's clear to me that Jevon and Karen's little melodrama was a wake-up call to Melanie of would could happen to her.

• So Melanie is going to medical school on the "Derwin Davis Scholarship." Derwin is certainly a nice guy, because any other man in his position could certainly pull the rug from under her. Since Melanie seemingly chose school over his marriage proposal, he could have easily put a stop payment on that next check to the Registrar's office. It's clear that Melanie's parents cut her off financially when she decided to move West with Derwin, and isn't it also interesting that Karen gave up the Culinary Institute in Miami to come to San Diego to be with Jevon?!?

• Maybe I'm the exception to the rule, but I don't want to be on any man's checking account, especially if we're just dating. Why? Shouldn't you have your own money and accounts to rely on? I know so many women who have dated high-profile men who've bought them expensive cars and when the relationship is over, guess who has to give the car back? Exactly! That's why these men feel like they hold the reigns to power - at any moment that could kick you out with no money, no car, and no place to go. But women need to provide their own safety net and come into the relationship with their own thing going on. I'm sure athletes, who are already skeptical of "gold-diggers," or any man, would appreciate it.

Almost every moment of this show is hilarious, but here were my faves:

• Kelly, explaining to Melanie the urgency of Karen's dilemma: "Jevon threw her out with nothing. He wouldn't even let her grab her contact lenses, so she's crying through her natural eye color."

• Melanie tells Derwin about Kelly's 3am wake-up call:
Derwin: "What was that all about?"
Melanie: "I just agreed to let a girl sleep here tonight."
Derwin: "So it's OK when Kelly asks?"

• Karen: "Here I am crashing on the faux leather sofa of a stranger."

•Karen: "He cut up all my credit cards and the Michael Kors trunk sale is tomorrow. It's only small sizes."
Melanie: "I'm a 2."
Karen: "I know."

• Karen, after Melanie tells her she gave up Johns Hopkins for Derwin: "What team does he play on?"

• Kelly: "Anyone want a refill before the meeting starts?" and then proceeds to drain the wine bottle into her own glass.

• Kelly (or was it Jason?): "All she has are the clothes on her back and the thong she rode in on."

Next week are more brand-new episodes. On Girlfriends, Joan, Lynn and Maya travel to Chicago to try to convince Monica to come back to William. And Kelly faces some stiff competition for Sunbeam president on The Game.

34th Annual Daytime Emmy Noms!

Congratulations to the outstanding African-American talent nominated this year. The awards will be given out June 15 in Hollywood.

Outstanding Supporting Actress

Renee Elise Goldsberry (Evangeline Williamson, One Life To Live)

Outstanding Supporting Actor

Kristoff St. John (Neil Winters, Young & The Restless)

Outstanding Younger Actor

Bryton McClure (Devon Hamilton, Young & The Restless)

Umm..but where's the nominations for the super-fabulous Victoria Rowell (Drucilla Winters, Young & The Restless)?


And why oh why is Days of Our Lives consistently shut out of the Daytime Emmys? Who do I need to call about this travesty?

Moving on to talk shows...the always-inspiring Tyra Banks

was nominated as both Outstanding Talk Show Host and Outstanding Talk Show for her eponymously-titled gab-fest, The Tyra Banks Show.

Meet 'Me & Mrs. Jones'

Get ready for The Newylweds, hip-hop style, starring Nas and Kelis. Titled Me & Mrs. Jones, the half-hour documentary-style series is set to air later this year, according to an MTV rep, and will showcase the unseen side of one of hip-hop's royal couple. Not set in the bedroom, or even at home - unlike similar couple-based series starring Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, Britney Spears and Kevin Federline, and Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown - Me & Mrs. Jones will follow both stars in their whirlwind lives on the road, balancing their demanding musical careers with life, love and each other.

Kelis, who was just arrested last week in Miami for assaulting an undercover police officer, serves as an executive producer with her beloved hubby.The couple married in a lavish Atlanta ceremony in late December 2004. MTV has reportedly ordered 8 episodes.

Let's keep our fingers crossed that Nas and Kelis don't fall victim to the "divorce curse" of other celebrity couples featured in reality shows. They seem like a fun couple, but uh, Kelis, what's up with the cotton candy hair color?!?

News & Notes...

Chris Rock (seen here with his wife Malaak at the premiere of his new flick I Think I Love My Wife) sits down with James Lipton on Bravo's Inside the Actors Studio Monday, March 12 at 8pm.


Grey's Anatomy cast members are getting paid. Ellen Pompeo, James T. Pickens and Chandra Wilson have all signed on the dotted line with regards to their mid-contract pay increases, with Pompeo's new deal fetching her nearly $200,000 per episode, sources tell the Hollywood Reporter. Justin Chambers and T.R. Knight are said to be close to inking their respective deals, while talks continue for Patrick Dempsey, Sandra Oh and Katherine Heigl (whose negotiations stalled when they became public last week).

Kate Walsh, who's fronting the prospective Grey's spin-off, accordingly has a fresh deal in place, while the contract status of Isaiah Washington remains unclear, the trade reports, as it is being kept under tight wraps by the show's producer, ABC TV Studio.

I can understand why ABC wants to "show them the money." They certainly don't want any key cast members to jump ship (as George Clooney and Julianna Margulies did on ER) and take the ratings with them (as what happened on ER).

Can't Keep A Black Woman Down!

First it was announced that she'd guest-star as a legal consultant on the May 22 season-finale of Law & Order:SVU, but now comes news that Star Jones will have her very own TV show again on Court TV later this year. It will be an hour-long live daytime talk show. For more information, read this.

Show Isaiah the money...

Looks like Isaiah Washington will, literally, have to pay for calling his co-star a "faggot." The New York Post's Page Six is reporting that while ABC is handing out pay-raises to the rest of the cast of Grey's Anatomy, "ABC is using Isaiah's recent troubles to keep from paying him more. This is going to cost him millions [but] it's just a bitter pill he's going to have to swallow." Hmmm....

The Hills & Dancelife 3.5.07

I used to really like Heidi. But what happened? Oh, I know...Spencer. She's become a "mini-me" of him. Her duplicitous behavior toward Lauren is heartbreaking. She pushed Jen to hook up with Brody, a guy Lauren was dating, and then flat-out denied it to Lauren's face. Then, she made plans to have dinner with Lauren, and stood her up to see a movie with Spencer. He is rubbing off on her, and not in a good way.

I really empathize with Lauren because I've been in a similar situation. In the long run, she finally saw him for what he was, and I did regret opening my big mouth to say anything, but like Lauren told Heidi, "as your best friend, I was the only person in a position to be honest with you but I shouldn't have said anything." I really don't blame Lauren for not wanting to hang out with Spencer - he's a dog and she certainly wouldn't want to catch his fleas, which have certainly rooted in Heidi's psyche.

Luckily, Lauren has some real friends, with backbones, to turn to - Audrina, who has proven herself to be a nice, honest and caring friend, and her fellow intern Whitney. I feel Whitney's pain - I was an intern, for what seemed like an eternity, in the magazine industry before landing a "real" job. Yeah, it sucks to have to be someone's assistant, at their beck and call 24/7, but these are dues we all have to pay to make it in this industry. The photo editor, Lawren (yes, Lawren) seemed particularly "bitchy." I wonder if Whitney had mentioned to her before that she would have to leave at 6pm for a family function - that's what she should have done, rather than springing it on her at the last minute - but good 'ol Lauren stepped in to help, like the good person she is.

Stay tuned for next week's episode, where it looks like Heidi is moving out, but Lauren shouldn't be too upset. She needs to cut her loses and move on. We'll see...

Unfortunately, Dancelife won't be back next week. Last night's season finale was outstanding. I was so wrapped into it I didn't even flip the channel during the commercial breaks or move from my TV watching position, as I am prone to do with MTV. I was overjoyed for Nolan - he performed with J.Lo and made up with his Dad. I really like it when good things happen to good people. Plus, it was worth it just to see the look on Blake's face. (Eat crow, you queen! Did anyone else feel like Blake just made up the Janet Jackson tour to make himself look good when he found out that Nolan got the J.Lo gig? Oh...and turns out the Janet Jackson world tour has been canceled! Ha!)

I applaud Jennifer "potty-mouth" Lopez for Dancelife and I look forward to it coming back for another season - perhaps with another group of dancers, or continuing with the same group. And J.Lo has still got it - that woman may not be the greatest singer of all time, but she is one heck of a performer. She put in the critical work during the rehearsals and at the show. I'm a fan!

Star Sighting

"Saggy" Star Jones is returning to her roots...well sort of. She is set to guest-star on an upcoming episode of NBC stalwart Law & Order: SVU in May, as you guessed it, a lawyer. I also hear that the multi-talented Ludacris will reprise his much-talked-about role on the same episode, airing during May sweeps.



TVnista will keep you posted as more details and a date becomes available.

NAACP Awards

Against my better judgment, I watched the 38th Annual NAACP Image Awards last night, but I was pleasantly surprised. Everyone looked nice and nobody acted ignorant. All in all, it was a well-put together show (BET...take note!). LL Cool J was good as a host, mainly because he didn't have much to do. I think his opening monologue was too long-winded and I didn't like him doing the "Jamie Foxx-style shout-outs" from the stage. The pacing of the show was a bit rushed, but I was glad that the special honorees


Soledad O'Brien


Bill Cosby


Bono were given time to say their piece.

And notice how they didn't play the "wrap-up" music when Prince took the stage?
That's right...ya'll better bow down!

Most of the awards were given out during the pre-show, but I was overjoyed to see my girl Tracee Ellis Ross win for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, Girlfriends



Here's the rest of the TV winners in the major categories:


Comedy series: Ugly Betty
Supporting actress in a comedy series: Vanessa Williams, Ugly Betty


Actor in a comedy series: Tyler James Williams, Everybody Hates Chris


Supporting actor in a comedy series: Reggie Hayes, Girlfriends


Drama Series: Grey's Anatomy
Writing in drama series: Shonda Rhimes, Grey's Anatomy, "It's the End of the World."


Actor in a drama series: Isaiah Washington, Grey's Anatomy


Actress in drama series: Kimberly Elise, Close to Home


Supporting actor in a drama series: Omar Epps, House


Supporting actress in a drama series: Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy


Children's Program: That's So Raven
Outstanding Performance, Children's Program: Raven Symone, That's So Raven