Any negative reviews that I've seen of this book seem to have little to do with the writing or storyline, but rather people having trouble with the content itself. The plot and characters are extremely disturbing, yes, primarily because they are so realistic. Are the nay-sayers afraid to acknowledge that such horrible things DO in fact happen in this world? I understand that Gardner did not base this story on one true event, but much of the plot is highly reminiscent of the famous abduction cases of Steven Stayner and later Shawn Hornbeck. It's a horrifying psychological study of the effects of long term child abduction and abuse, and it does its job.

I have immense respect for Gardner for not only tackling a highly controversial subject matter, but for doing it in such raw, brutal and devastating fashion that rips your heart out at every turn. If you can handle the harrowing events enough to keep reading, it is one mind-blowing novel. The unapologetic nature of the writing is what makes it so powerful, but admittedly hard for some people to stomach.

The story is told on multiple timelines from multiple points of view, which is not unusual for thrillers but is done in an especially intriguing way here. For much of the book, you aren't sure who is narrating certain chapters (which is the point, because the experiences of the young boys are so interchangeable as the cycle continues), and when things are finally made clear at the end, it's that much sadder. You despise and yet feel so much pity for the characters all at once.

Say Goodbye is far from an easy read and many people will struggle with it or flat out hate its ruthless depiction of real-life horror. But for those of us who appreciate the relentless approach, disturbing and depressing though it may be, this is one hell of a masterpiece and a truly riveting read that is not to be missed.

Scrubs is and always will be one of my favorite shows of all time. And this edit by Little Heaven is the single best video that I've ever seen for it. The way that every single shot is so perfectly chosen to fit the beat and lyrics of this catchy song blows me away every single time. AND IT'S SO MUCH FUN.

For the most part, there's just something about this show that puts a smile on my face. The interactions between the characters and the chemistry of the cast are so wonderful, you can't help but adore them. Fantasy often has it the worst in regards to cheese factor, melodramatic dialogue, bad acting and more, especially when it comes to television, but on the whole, Merlin manages to breathe new life into the genre with its lighthearted, joyful and humorous retelling of a classic.

That's not to say that the show is without its flaws. In fact, the end of the series inarguably goes down as one of the worst letdowns in TV history, and let's not forget the fiasco of the first half of Season 3. In spite of that, though, Merlin remains one of my most enjoyed and rewatched series. The writing is clever, the direction and visuals are lovely, the costumes and set design are beautiful and the performances are great overall.

So...what made this show so very wonderful at its best, and what caused it to tank so very hard at its worst? Let's take a look:

I honestly don't know what to say about Sammy's storyvid except that it's pure brilliance. The incredible nuclear holocaust series, Jericho, recut in an amazingly creative way that uses Jake and Emily to tell the classic story of Bonnie and Clyde.

Thandie is a vidder that I got along well with back when I was very involved in the community, and two of her music videos for Supernatural have stuck with me through the years. Drive is a very calming, atmospheric and whimsical piece about the brothers' life on the road and there is something really simple and beautiful about it. In contrast, Eye for an Eye is an intense character study of the darkness within Dean and Castiel, and their individual falls from grace. Both are extremely powerful and addictive videos, albeit in very different ways. Enjoy.

   

As someone who is generally against modernizations, remakes, etc., I naturally found the idea of remastering (i.e. meddling with) the original Star Trek series to be an abominable idea. Why? Well, aside from making more money for the company, what purpose could such a project possibly serve? The series - most of which I grew up watching over and over, to the point where I knew most episodes by heart - was absolute perfection just as it was, no "fixups" necessary! I thought the idea was as idiotic as Spielberg replacing guns with walkie-talkies in E.T.

However, I recently bought the remastered version of Season 3 without knowing it and can happily admit to being completely wrong. I watched through my new DVDs of Seasons 1 and 2 (because, yes, I still had the whole series on VHS up until last year), and when I reached Season 3, my first thought was..."didn't the budget go down for the last season and not up? Why does everything look so good?" Only when I double checked the box and found that I'd somehow gotten my hands on the remastered release did I realize just how awesome the updates actually are. Contrary to common fears, they didn't try to make it look like a modern show at all. They simply enhanced, in most cases quite subtly, what was already there. The colors are brighter, the picture quality is sharper with better contrast and the sound is just a bit clearer, all without taking away the feel of the old school visuals and audio. Instead of a plastic toy flying around indistinct glowing globes, a slightly sleeker digital Enterprise floats across orbital views of definable planets. The phaser fire looks a bit less clunky and they even added some extra effects to scenes like the agony booth in Mirror, Mirror...but it blended in so well with the original footage that I didn't even remember it not being there before.

Not a single change in the remastered editions feels out of place and I must say, it's AMAZING. Of course, the original releases have a certain nostalgic charm that can never be replaced for those of us who grew up on the show, but if I could choose just one to have, the new verions are a bit more visually pleasing and only add to my love of the episodes rather than taking away from them. So at this point, I would probably stick with those!