TV Geek Out 160: Mad Men, "Christmas Comes But Once a Year"

There's no place like Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce for the holidays, especially when Don and company reunite with sadistic Lucky Strike honcho Lee Garner Jr. SCDP scrambles to give their biggest client a Christmas party like he's seen in the movies, and the forced frivolity he gets is just as fake (though it did give us wonderful images of Joan leading the conga line and Roger in a Santa suit). If Lee is the Ghost of Christmas Present, then good ol' Freddy Rumsen is the Ghost of Christmas Past. Though he's been sober for well over a year, his ideas of how to sell cold cream to young women are, much to Peggy's shock, plain old-fashioned. The Ghost of Christmas Future could only be creepy preteen Glen Bishop, who turns vandalizing the Francis household into a tangible love letter to young Sally. Despite some great lines from Roger, it was Dr. Faye Miller of the consumer research company SCDP met with who expressed this episode's main conflict: "What I want versus what's expected of me." Don -- alone during Christmas, failing with the ladies, sloppy drunk and jeopardizing one of the few healthy relationships in his life with his secretary, Allison -- is barely delivering on either count. The TV Geek Out geeks, joined again by AnnArbor.com's Chrysta Cherrie, discuss season four's ongoing prostitution theme, how this show can be so depressing and so funny at the same time, and the brand new euphemism "bringing the keys." Check it out here.

TV Geek Out 159: Mad Men, "Public Relations"

And we're off! Mad Men's fourth season began by continuing one of season three's major themes: change. Not only were we treated to Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce's sleek, brightly lit new digs, where everyone is on much more equal footing, we saw Don Draper undergo some renovations too. They didn't come without growing pains: Clamming up in an interview, snapping at his maid, throwing out customers and getting slapped by an escort, Don is uncomfortable with what's expected of him until he figures out how to give people the image they want on his own terms. Meanwhile, we see how much Peggy has grown in the year between "Shut the Door, Have a Seat" and this episode, and how much Betty has conformed to her new role as Mrs. Henry Francis. Image control, damage control and selling yourself metaphorically and literally were some of "Public Relations"' main ideas, all presented in ways that felt new and like classic Mad Men at the same time. Get with the times and check out our discussion here.

TV Geek Out 158: Mad Men Season 4 Preview

We're just hours away from the beginning of Mad Men's fourth season! The TV Geek Out Geeks couldn't wait until after Sunday night to start geeking out about the new season, so Dana, Perry and Heather shared their hopes for the characters and the show in general before it even started. What will Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce's new digs be like? What kind of women will Don seek out as a single man? Will Joan advance her career? Will Peggy have to stick with her dowdy haircut to get respect? We ponder these questions and more here.

TV Geek Out: Mad Men Season Three Review

Back when Mad Men's brilliant third season ended, the TV Geek Out crew did a wrap-up, reviewing the season's big events, the characters' various arcs, and our favorite episodes. We thought we'd re-post that conversation, as it's a great way to jog one's memory and get one's head back in the Mad Men universe in preparation for the upcoming season premiere this Sunday (yay!). Check it out here!

TV Geek Out 157: True Blood, "I Will Rise Up"

TV Geek Out covers one of True Blood's most epic episodes ever, season two's ninth installment, "I Will Rise Up." In the gory aftermath of the Lukinator's suicide-bombing, Eric tricks Sookie into drinking his blood, and Bill warns her that she might start to find herself sexually attracted to the Viking vamp. This leads to one of the awesomest (for those of us who like men) True Blood scenes ever, her first sexy dream of Eric! Back in Bon Temps, Hoyt finally stands up to his mom, and has her meet Jessica at Merlotte's, but that goes about as badly as you'd expect. Lafayette sticks up for Tara, and he and Lettie Mae forcibly rescue her from Maryann's clutches... or so they hope. Sam escapes from jail as a fly, which pisses Maryann off, and she sets practically the whole town out after him. Meanwhile, back in Dallas, Sookie and Jason have a sweet heart-to-heart bonding session. But the big event of the episode is Godric's suicide "meeting of the sun" on the roof of the hotel, after rejecting Eric's tearful pleas for him not to do it. Sookie stays with Godric through the whole ordeal, and Godric passes on peacefully. TV geeks Heather and Dana discuss this moving episode here.

TV Geek Out 156: Gleekout 2

If there was any doubt that Glee is the TV series of the moment, its 19 Emmy nominations proved that there is a lot to love about this show. However, the second half of its debut season also revealed some cracks in its foundation: repetitive jokes, disappearing plots and characters, and musical numbers that were increasingly separated from the show's reality of a misfit glee club trying to prove itself in an Ohio high school. Despite, or perhaps because of, themed episodes and celebrity cameos, the show seemed to lose its focus somewhat compared to the funny and heartfelt first half of the season -- a difference made all the more disappointing after its lengthy hiatus. But just because the TV Geek Out geeks find a few faults with Glee doesn't mean we don't like the show; we're critical because we care about it! Check out our season-one postmortem and our hopes for season two here.

TV Geek Out 155: True Blood, "Timebomb"

TV Geek Out covers "Timebomb," the eighth episode of True Blood's second season, in which we learn more about modern-day Godric and his peaceful stance on vampire/human relations. Eric and Sookie try to stop the planned murder of Godric, but they're both caught and almost killed themselves. It all leads to a showdown at the the Fellowship of the Sun church between Newlin's and Godric's forces, but thanks to Jason's expert marksmanship (with a paintball gun) and Godric's commitment to nonviolence, no blood is shed there. Elsewhere, there's plenty of blood being spilled! Bill finally escapes Lorena by bashing her over the head with a flat-screen TV! In Bon Temps, Maryann cooks up and feeds Tara and Eggs a very bloody "hunter's souffle," with Daphne's supernatural heart as the secret ingredient! It's even grosser than it sounds, and leads the couple to turn very primal, first beating each other up, and then getting it on. Also getting busy are Jessica and Hoyt, who lose their virginities together and then get embarrassingly walked in on by Bill. Later, in Dallas, there's a gathering celebrating Godric's safe return, and Lorena shows up and nearly makes a meal out of Sookie, but Godric stops her and banishes her. As she leaves, Lorena tearfully humiliates herself even more with Bill (yes, that's actually possible!), until he tells her he never wants to see her again. It all ends, quite literally, with a bang, as the Lukinator shows up and suicide-bombs the place! TV geeks Heather and Dana discuss all this, Maryann's plans for Sam, the psychology of a 2,000-year-old vampire, and much more here.

(Please excuse the audio quality on this recording; it's below our normal standards, but the conversation is still well worth checking out!)

TV Geek Out 154: Lost, "The End"

It's been a month since Jack closed his eyes for the last time and Lost reached "The End" -- enough time for the TV Geek Out geeks to have thought about the finale a bit (ok, a lot) more and have an in-depth finale discussion. Some of us were still dissatisfied with the ending, some of us grew to accept it with a few more viewings, and some of us still love it, but all three of us had a great time talking about one of the most compelling TV series ever. This will probably be our final Lost chat -- until we get our hands on all of that bonus footage in the DVD and Blu-Ray sets, that is. We miss the show already, but check out our discussion here.

TV Geek Out 153: True Blood, "Release Me"

In "Release Me," the seventh episode of True Blood's second season, many characters are being held captive in one way or another -- from Sam, who almost gets sacrificed at Maryann's freakiest orgy party yet; to Sookie, who is being held in the Fellowship of the Sun church's basement; to Bill, who is being forcibly kept in his hotel room by his maker, Lorena. Amidst all of the crazy things going on in this jam-packed episode, the flashbacks to Bill and Lorena's final blowout fight before parting ways in the '30s offer some of the most dramatically juicy moments. TV geeks Heather and Dana engage in a thorough analysis of the pair's tumultuous relationship, discuss the different dynamic that Bill has with Sookie, and lament the latest heartbreak that's wearing on Sam's tortured soul. Listen in as they talk about all this and more in a truly epic True Blood conversation here!

TV Geek Out 152: Lost, Finale Reactions

And so Lost has reached “The End.” While it may have been short on answers, it was long on emotion for the audience and on resolution for the characters we’ve come to love (and love to hate) over the years. TV Geek Out Geeks Dana, Perry and Heather will do a more in-depth dissection of this two-and-a-half epic series closer soon, but for now they share their first impressions of the finale here.