MamaPop™

New New Moon TV Spot

Because, apparently, a bunch of you people care about this or something. heh.

Scarlett Johansson's Dolce & Gabbana Ads

Speaking of photoshopping... Egads.

DirecTV Won't Let Stars Rest In Peace

It started out as a clever, yes, a very clever gimmick. Recreate famous movie scenes with the original stars to shill for DirecTV. But what happens when the recreated scene features a celebrity who has gone to meet their maker? Do it anyway, taste and tact be damned!

Heroes Recap: Nobody Wins

Last night was the season premiere of Heroes, brought to you by Boston and clam chowder.  I was excited.  I was also tired after dealing with important parenting matters.  Heroes was to be my escape.  It was 2 hours long, now with an extra hour of commercials!

It turns out that I couldn't remember crap from last season.  I was lost at times, but instead of a smoke monster I had a warm beer and a lot of questions.  Apparently last season didn't leave much of an impression.  I checked to make sure House was being recorded.

What Fox—And Other Networks—Can Learn From 'Glee'

Yesterday, Fox announced that its new musical/comedy show, Glee, has been given the go-ahead for a full 22-episode season. While this has definite implications for my future as a recapper, it says far more about the success of Fox's marketing campaign for the show, which began with a post-American Idol airing of the pilot and led to a five-month, buzz-generating viral marketing campaign that took full advantage of the popularity of social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook.

So why did Fox give Glee such a fantastic running start rather than a show like, say, Dollhouse, which had a built-in following of Whedonites to help a similar campaign go viral? Furthermore, why doesn't Fox give similar promotional backing to other new and returning shows in its lineup? This is pure speculation, but I'm willing to bet it has a lot to do with the Big Fours' simultaneous fear and dismissal of web entertainment and the internet in general, and its out-of-touch perception that only tweens and teens are actually paying any attention to the internet. 

I Think The Twilight Phenomenon May Be Approaching Maximum Ridiculosity

I know, this is sort of like the National Weather Service issuing a tornado warning when you're halfway to Oz. Nevertheless, the number of people and manufacturers crawling out of the woodwork to grab a piece of the Twilight-related merchandise pie has reached a critical mass. If you don't believe that it's worse than any other popular film, maybe you should take a look at some of this crap.

Progressive.com's Flo Is My Guilty Kitschy Crush Pleasure

Along with a great number of other North Americans, I have a crush on Progressive.com's brilliant commercials personality, Flo. Ahhh, Flo. I realize that Flo is just a character played by an actress, but I still fantasize about hanging out with her in her retro trailer. We lounge in her seafoam green naugahyde-bedecked breakfast nook, giggle over our matching white patent leather go-go boots, and engage in frothy repartee. We're kitschy-cute, we're fun, we're best friends. We fall just short of shacking up gay-style and owning too many cats together.

Naturally, after three successive nights during which I dreamt that Flo was selling me everything I ever wanted in tidy little boxes, I decided that it was time to take it to the internet and find out a little more about her.

Shut up. This is not stalking. I swear. So what if I became a fan of her on Facebook.

Twitter Fail Starring Jon Gosselin

Jon Gosselin, the muse of Ed Hardy and bane of Kate Plus 8, has finally joined whatever century this is.  Jon Gosselin is on Twitter.  Next up, my mom.

That photo on the left? That a Twitpic.  Believe it, baby.

Gosselin already has well over 13,000 followers which must make Ashton more than a little nervous.  Guess how many people Jon is following.  Go on, guess.

"Designer" Snuggies. Crapping. You. Negative.

I don't know exactly how long this gift from heaven has existed, but I didn't hear about it until last night. When the commercial first came on, I thought for sure that I had accidentally ingested LSD. Again.

Quit Trying to Make Pop Songs Out of Jingles

Remember in Mean Girls, how Gretchen Wieners, Toaster Strudel Heiress, kept trying to make, "fetch" happen? As in, "That is SO fetch!" Until finally Regina George told her, "Stop trying to make 'fetch' happen! It's not going to happen!"

That's how I'm starting to feel about commercials that try to make their jingles into pop culture institutions.

My Pants Are SO TOTALLY Into You Right Now

Aligned with our ongoing, tireless efforts to call to your attention aspects of our culture that might be viewed as suitable for inclusion in this site's archives under the category documenting Signs Of The Apocalypse, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I give you "Winkers^TM":

Mad Men Recap: Out Of Town

It seems like an eternity since Mad Men Season 2 ended, and I've rarely been as excited about the return of a television show as I was about last night's season premiere. But did it live up to all the hype and expectation? Let's take a spin in this inaugural episode and kick the tires of Season 3 a bit together, shall we?

In Anticipation Of The Mad Men Season Premiere

A few behind-the-scenes videos to get you further whipped up into a frenzy over tonight's premiere -- LESS THAN FIVE HOURS AWAY! SQUEE!

Countdown to Season 3:


More video after the jump!

Open Thread - Mad Men Season Three: The Anticipation Is Killing Me

If you're anything like me, right about now you're re-arranging the living room furniture, polishing the television set, preparing a variety of delicious chips & dips, and counting down the minutes until this Sunday night's premiere of the third glorious season of AMC's Mad Men. [fans self with hand dramatically]

Do you think Don Draper would prefer a three cheese or creamy spinach dip? Hmm?

Yesss mah presshussss, I -- your resident Mad Men recapper -- am chomping at the proverbial bit so hard that I feel I must, for the good of all humankind and the sanity of my loved ones, who are SICK OF TALKING ABOUT THAT STUPID SHOW ALREADY JESUS CHRIST ALMIGHTY, provide a space for my fellow Mad Men lovers to gush openly without fear of being shamed, judged, or ridiculed. SO.

What are you most looking forward to this season? What theories do you have about what will happen this season? What do you HOPE happens or doesn't happen? Which are your favorite characters? Who would you most like to have a drink with? What characters can't you stand? Who would you most like to punch in the neck? Why are you so obsessed with this show, anyway? Does it make you want to start smoking (again)? Is Jon Hamm my sekrit boyfriend? (The answer to that last one, just so you know, is YES.) Huh huh huh? OMG OMG OMG!1!!!

Please to commence with the shameless fangirl/fanboy squeeing in comments. We're all friends here, this is a safe space.

Hold me?

ETA: OPEN THREAD MAY CONTAIN SHOW GOSSIP, SPOILERS, AND SPECULATION ABOUT HOW GOOD OF A KISSER JON HAMM MAY OR MAY NOT BE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Did Irwin Mainway make this? Of Mainway Toys? Producers of Johnny Switchblade: Adventure Punk?

Berjuan, a Spanish toymaker who, is probably I hope not a pedophile, created the Glutton Baby doll. Its Spanish and official name, Bebe Gloton, sounds way cooler and does not at all sound like a horror movie title from the 70s in the way that its English name does.

Basically the toy is some weird doll that cries until you put on this bikini top and feed the baby from two big giant daisies that are meant to represent nipples.

No, that's not messed up AT ALL.

This is some messed-up Lord of the Rings crap right here.

Swedish television viewers were terrified when a woman who could have been the stand-in for the Satan dude in "Passion of the Christ" appeared on television singing some creeptacular Swedish folk song and pulling her blowing hair from her face.

Pregnant Gisele Bundchen, who is expecting her first child with husband Tom Brady, appears almost nekkid in a sexy new London Fog ad campaign but her baby bump is nowhere to be found. According to a press release from the company, "...Most of the shots have been retouched to respect her privacy during this wonderful and personal time in her life.” Although, curiously, the statement then goes on to read, “Nobody is sexier or more beautiful than Gisele Bundchen in nothing but a London Fog trench coat, even with her visible baby bump."

Which leaves me with two questions:

1) If nobody is sexier than a pregnant Gisele Bundchen, why Photoshop her pregnant belly?

And

2) What kind of lame ass airbrushing job is that?

Let's Play Breastfeeding with the Breastfeeding Doll

Did Irwin Mainway make this? Of Mainway Toys? Producers of Johnny Switchblade: Adventure Punk?

Berjuan, a Spanish toymaker who, is probably I hope not a pedophile, created the Glutton Baby doll. Its Spanish and official name, Bebe Gloton, sounds way cooler and does not at all sound like a horror movie title from the 70s in the way that its English name does.

Basically the toy is some weird doll that cries until you put on this bikini top and feed the baby from two big giant daisies that are meant to represent nipples.

No, that's not messed up AT ALL.

Swedish Commercial Terrifies People

This is some messed-up Lord of the Rings crap right here.

Swedish television viewers were terrified when a woman who could have been the stand-in for the Satan dude in "Passion of the Christ" appeared on television singing some creeptacular Swedish folk song and pulling her blowing hair from her face.

Gisele Bundchen's Baby Bump Retouched for London Fog Ads; In Other News, Photoshop Lessons Now Available Online!

Pregnant Gisele Bundchen, who is expecting her first child with husband Tom Brady, appears almost nekkid in a sexy new London Fog ad campaign but her baby bump is nowhere to be found. According to a press release from the company, "...Most of the shots have been retouched to respect her privacy during this wonderful and personal time in her life.” Although, curiously, the statement then goes on to read, “Nobody is sexier or more beautiful than Gisele Bundchen in nothing but a London Fog trench coat, even with her visible baby bump."

Which leaves me with two questions:

1) If nobody is sexier than a pregnant Gisele Bundchen, why Photoshop her pregnant belly?

And

2) What kind of lame ass airbrushing job is that?